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1. Note to ABC...while the obvious self-promotion of Dancing with the Stars on General Hospital was funny, the advertisement of Hannah Montana on Last Resort did not work. Submarine's have sonar for a reason.
Speaking of which, where are the reviews of Last Resort? Am I the only person who watched this? I found it to be rather funny in places, ludicrious and completely unrealistic, but funny. Considering the fact that it is meant to be an epic drama and romance, this is not necessarily a good thing. Shawn Murphy should stick to cops and robbers.
2. The Angels Take Manhattan
I've read everyone else's reviews, so will try not to repeat other's thoughts. I liked the episode better than some did. But I'm admittedly not a fan of the first three seasons of New Doctor Who (pretty much forgot them with a few exceptions) nor have I watched Old Who.
Also it bears keeping in mind that of all the companions, Rory and Amy were my favorites. They were snarky, smart, self-deprecating, and had interesting real life stories in their own right. So of course I was moved by the episode and loved it. It's weird in Moffat era Who, my favorite characters are River, Rory, Amy and then Eleven. While in RTD era it was Doctor Who 10, Doctor Who 9, Jack, Sarah Jane, Donna, Martha, Rose. Which may be the reason? If you aren't crazy about the companion or can't identify with them - the show won't work for you, will it?
Few points/contradictions I've noticed in others' reviews regarding key plot points - that I'd like to clarify, or at least this was how I viewed them:
( Spoilers Doctor Who )
3. Once Upon A Time.
Problem with this show is the casting. The four leads aren't that interesting. And the writing is a bit..hollow. It's hard to care.
That said, I do like the pro-feminist subversion of classic and somewhat sexist Disney animated children's tales. Note, I said children's tales, not fairy tales. In Once, it's really about stories. Which means all those animated films Disney did are basically fair game. The only restriction? Anything Disney or ABC does not own the copyright to or can't obtain the copy-rights to. In other words, if its in the public domain or owned by Disney it's fair game.
Also the narrative structure which keeps changing is rather fascinating and not at all difficult to follow. Whoever is writing this thing is clearly more interested in playing with narrative style and classic children's story thematic setups (not to mention plots) than they are characters. The character's often feel a bit on the flat side.
That said, both Rumplestilskin and Regina look like they are about to get a bit more rounded and less two-dimensional. To be fair, Rumple always was more rounded, Regina required work. This gives me hope. I really would like to see a redemptive arc for both characters, mainly because it's more interesting. Characters that stay bwahhah evil or ambiguous can get predictable and boring after a bit, unless you use them sparingly.
ie. One note. Which was Regina pretty much all of last season. If they want the show to last, they either have to kill her off, or develop her further, one or the other.
In some respects, Once is that rare series, where I actually prefer the episodic mystery of the week to the serialized back story. LOST is another example of that. The serialized back story really isn't all that interesting. But Once has possibilities. They set up a lot of stuff in this past week's episode that has definite potential - far more potential actually than last season.
( spoilers )
What I like most about Once is I really have no idea where they are going. And the narrative structure continues to intrigue me. If you are fussy about acting, well-developed characters and great dialogue - it will probably annoy you. It's tv, I tend to be flexible. As long as I'm not bored, annoyed, or wandering off...I'm fine.
4. Revenge - great opener with lots of twists and turns. Another series I can't predict. These are rare gems.
Also Emily Thorne is delightfully wicked. She's a great anti-hero. The type that you root for in spite of yourself. Mainly because her actions make sense. You understand where she is coming from.
Plus we get Jennifer Jason Leigh popping up. Haven't seen her in a long time. Last year was about Emily's father, this year is about her mother and the secrets regarding her mother's past.
Sigh...the old tv shows are so much better than the new ones so far. I haven't really seen any new tv series, outside of maybe Copper that I plan on keeping. Haven't seen Call the MidWife yet, so will let you know. (Has anyone else seen this - no one mentions it on flist. Bletchly gets a lot of mentions - but I can't find it, so it's clearly not available on US television as of yet.
Speaking of which, where are the reviews of Last Resort? Am I the only person who watched this? I found it to be rather funny in places, ludicrious and completely unrealistic, but funny. Considering the fact that it is meant to be an epic drama and romance, this is not necessarily a good thing. Shawn Murphy should stick to cops and robbers.
2. The Angels Take Manhattan
I've read everyone else's reviews, so will try not to repeat other's thoughts. I liked the episode better than some did. But I'm admittedly not a fan of the first three seasons of New Doctor Who (pretty much forgot them with a few exceptions) nor have I watched Old Who.
Also it bears keeping in mind that of all the companions, Rory and Amy were my favorites. They were snarky, smart, self-deprecating, and had interesting real life stories in their own right. So of course I was moved by the episode and loved it. It's weird in Moffat era Who, my favorite characters are River, Rory, Amy and then Eleven. While in RTD era it was Doctor Who 10, Doctor Who 9, Jack, Sarah Jane, Donna, Martha, Rose. Which may be the reason? If you aren't crazy about the companion or can't identify with them - the show won't work for you, will it?
Few points/contradictions I've noticed in others' reviews regarding key plot points - that I'd like to clarify, or at least this was how I viewed them:
( Spoilers Doctor Who )
3. Once Upon A Time.
Problem with this show is the casting. The four leads aren't that interesting. And the writing is a bit..hollow. It's hard to care.
That said, I do like the pro-feminist subversion of classic and somewhat sexist Disney animated children's tales. Note, I said children's tales, not fairy tales. In Once, it's really about stories. Which means all those animated films Disney did are basically fair game. The only restriction? Anything Disney or ABC does not own the copyright to or can't obtain the copy-rights to. In other words, if its in the public domain or owned by Disney it's fair game.
Also the narrative structure which keeps changing is rather fascinating and not at all difficult to follow. Whoever is writing this thing is clearly more interested in playing with narrative style and classic children's story thematic setups (not to mention plots) than they are characters. The character's often feel a bit on the flat side.
That said, both Rumplestilskin and Regina look like they are about to get a bit more rounded and less two-dimensional. To be fair, Rumple always was more rounded, Regina required work. This gives me hope. I really would like to see a redemptive arc for both characters, mainly because it's more interesting. Characters that stay bwahhah evil or ambiguous can get predictable and boring after a bit, unless you use them sparingly.
ie. One note. Which was Regina pretty much all of last season. If they want the show to last, they either have to kill her off, or develop her further, one or the other.
In some respects, Once is that rare series, where I actually prefer the episodic mystery of the week to the serialized back story. LOST is another example of that. The serialized back story really isn't all that interesting. But Once has possibilities. They set up a lot of stuff in this past week's episode that has definite potential - far more potential actually than last season.
( spoilers )
What I like most about Once is I really have no idea where they are going. And the narrative structure continues to intrigue me. If you are fussy about acting, well-developed characters and great dialogue - it will probably annoy you. It's tv, I tend to be flexible. As long as I'm not bored, annoyed, or wandering off...I'm fine.
4. Revenge - great opener with lots of twists and turns. Another series I can't predict. These are rare gems.
Also Emily Thorne is delightfully wicked. She's a great anti-hero. The type that you root for in spite of yourself. Mainly because her actions make sense. You understand where she is coming from.
Plus we get Jennifer Jason Leigh popping up. Haven't seen her in a long time. Last year was about Emily's father, this year is about her mother and the secrets regarding her mother's past.
Sigh...the old tv shows are so much better than the new ones so far. I haven't really seen any new tv series, outside of maybe Copper that I plan on keeping. Haven't seen Call the MidWife yet, so will let you know. (Has anyone else seen this - no one mentions it on flist. Bletchly gets a lot of mentions - but I can't find it, so it's clearly not available on US television as of yet.