I don't know if it's just me being tired with Supernatural, because "The Mentalists," a typical monster of the week, left me wishing for more--not necessarily Leviathan more, but something the season can really grip on. It's nice that we get a funky ghost story, which had plenty of funny lines and the most solid plot in a long time, but the Sam and Dean conflict, running underneath this episode and season, was again not very inspiring.
Score: 8.6/10
Showing posts with label Supernatural. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Supernatural. Show all posts
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Friday, October 28, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 7 Episode 6 Slash Fiction
Okay, now I'm worried. The major, season long villains of Supernatural always had a greater agenda than what they were doing week to week. Whether implied or explicitly stated, the various demons and enemies we've seen through the years had something up their sleeves. This drove the seasons forward as the Winchesters dealt with their internal problems.
This season, however, there's little of that. The Leviathans are formidable enemies, to be sure, but they lack the deviousness of the demons, the long-term planning that leads to great arcs towards the end of the season. While they've proven themselves very capable of causing havoc, the consequences of what they do don't seem to be adding up. Who's to say the Winchesters would be fighting less if the Leviathans weren't around?
The problem with "Slash Fiction" is that it begins with events so shocking the writers had to hit reset at the end of the episode. The Leviathans pose as Sam and Dean and start slaughtering people on camera. This leads to a nationwide manhunt, which puts the brothers in crisis mode. This leads to a sticky situation where the brothers are arrested at the police station. However, the writers decide not to have Sam and Dean chased by police for the whole season, so they create an easy solution involving Bobby's sheriff friend who stumbles upon a way to combat Leviathans with borax. So Sam and Dean are declared dead, the actual brothers escape, and they're fine except for Sam knowing about Dean killing Amy. All too convenient if you ask me.
Score: 8.3/10
This season, however, there's little of that. The Leviathans are formidable enemies, to be sure, but they lack the deviousness of the demons, the long-term planning that leads to great arcs towards the end of the season. While they've proven themselves very capable of causing havoc, the consequences of what they do don't seem to be adding up. Who's to say the Winchesters would be fighting less if the Leviathans weren't around?
The problem with "Slash Fiction" is that it begins with events so shocking the writers had to hit reset at the end of the episode. The Leviathans pose as Sam and Dean and start slaughtering people on camera. This leads to a nationwide manhunt, which puts the brothers in crisis mode. This leads to a sticky situation where the brothers are arrested at the police station. However, the writers decide not to have Sam and Dean chased by police for the whole season, so they create an easy solution involving Bobby's sheriff friend who stumbles upon a way to combat Leviathans with borax. So Sam and Dean are declared dead, the actual brothers escape, and they're fine except for Sam knowing about Dean killing Amy. All too convenient if you ask me.
Score: 8.3/10
Friday, October 21, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 7 Episode 5 Shut Up, Dr. Phil
On its own, "Shut Up, Dr. Phil" is a funny episode, featuring two funny Buffy alums, Charisma Carpenter and James Marsters, as a feuding husband and wife witch couple. Their murders to get at the other are all very grisly and were stimulating to say the least, and the final bit where they reconcile was great. Even though Cordelia and Spike didn't have too many scenes together (and once again I have to wonder what the fifth season of Angel would be like if Cordelia was in it), it's cool to see both of them together.
Viewed, however, in the context of what Dean did to Amy, it doesn't make too much sense. Dean's exact words were that she'd kill again so he had to kill her. Excuse me, Dean, but didn't the two witches just kill four people? Why is this different? Normally I would be fine with something like this because the funny parts of Supernatural are often cordoned off from the rest of the show. But the writers use Don to deal with the Leviathan, bringing the two worlds together. I'm not sure I really want to make a big deal about this, but the writers don't seem to care about these obvious contradictions, which is troubling when the brothers try to talk about morality and stuff like that.
Score: 8.7/10
Viewed, however, in the context of what Dean did to Amy, it doesn't make too much sense. Dean's exact words were that she'd kill again so he had to kill her. Excuse me, Dean, but didn't the two witches just kill four people? Why is this different? Normally I would be fine with something like this because the funny parts of Supernatural are often cordoned off from the rest of the show. But the writers use Don to deal with the Leviathan, bringing the two worlds together. I'm not sure I really want to make a big deal about this, but the writers don't seem to care about these obvious contradictions, which is troubling when the brothers try to talk about morality and stuff like that.
Score: 8.7/10
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 7 Episode 4 Defending Your Life
Eh..... I'm not entirely sure what that was about, but "Defending Your Life" definitely wasn't a normal episode of Supernatural and not in a good way. Although I liked the scenes with Jo, the episode tries to aim for something complex and misses, generating a patently artificial situation which feels unnatural and forced.
The central motivator for the exploration of guilt is the Egyptian god Osiris randomly popping up, and he's a one-note character bent on carrying out his form of justice. Again, Jo and Alona Tal are awesome, but it's a quite arbitrary what Osiris does and this allows the writers to create any dialogue they want without fully addressing the major issues of the season.
But there are a few worthwhile things to come out of the episode--Sam revealing that he has no guilt, in great contrast to Dean. Trying to quantify amount of bad things each brother has done won't go anywhere, so it's best to chalk it up to mindset. Sam doesn't really care what he's done in the past while Dean still carries the weight of each action.
Score: 8.0/10
The central motivator for the exploration of guilt is the Egyptian god Osiris randomly popping up, and he's a one-note character bent on carrying out his form of justice. Again, Jo and Alona Tal are awesome, but it's a quite arbitrary what Osiris does and this allows the writers to create any dialogue they want without fully addressing the major issues of the season.
But there are a few worthwhile things to come out of the episode--Sam revealing that he has no guilt, in great contrast to Dean. Trying to quantify amount of bad things each brother has done won't go anywhere, so it's best to chalk it up to mindset. Sam doesn't really care what he's done in the past while Dean still carries the weight of each action.
Score: 8.0/10
Saturday, October 8, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 7 Episode 3 The Girl Next Door
After the cliffhanger at the end of last week's episode, I was expecting a continuation from the Leviathan/Cas story dominating the previous episodes. Instead, Dean and Sam escape from the hospital with help from still-alive Bobby in the first couple minutes of the episode. So much for cliffhangers... This departure pushes Supernatural into monster of the week mode which we haven't had in a while.
Although the Sam and Dean dynamic doesn't feel particularly fresh, as it's about the 10th iteration of the deceiving plot, the monster story was very interesting this week. Through a series of flashbacks, we see Sam a kid meet this girl Amy, tied into the current case Sam ran off to work on. The monster in question is one of the most sympathetic yet, no doubt helped by Jewel Staite, and we see Sam connect on a deep level with this supposed monster. Both their parents made them what they were today, on completely opposite sides of the monster spectrum, but they can still live with each other. Of course, Dean comes and messes things up.
It's impossible not to look at Dean as a moron when he does kill Amy. Amy killed her own mother to save Sam, takes brains from dead bodies, and only started killing again to save her son. She's obviously not a bad person. If Dean is going to kill her on the principle that she will kill again, he must kill the boy as well who no longer has a mother to provide him with food. Otherwise, Dean is just an idiot who's fine letting the boy go and kill more people.
Score: 8.8/10
Although the Sam and Dean dynamic doesn't feel particularly fresh, as it's about the 10th iteration of the deceiving plot, the monster story was very interesting this week. Through a series of flashbacks, we see Sam a kid meet this girl Amy, tied into the current case Sam ran off to work on. The monster in question is one of the most sympathetic yet, no doubt helped by Jewel Staite, and we see Sam connect on a deep level with this supposed monster. Both their parents made them what they were today, on completely opposite sides of the monster spectrum, but they can still live with each other. Of course, Dean comes and messes things up.
It's impossible not to look at Dean as a moron when he does kill Amy. Amy killed her own mother to save Sam, takes brains from dead bodies, and only started killing again to save her son. She's obviously not a bad person. If Dean is going to kill her on the principle that she will kill again, he must kill the boy as well who no longer has a mother to provide him with food. Otherwise, Dean is just an idiot who's fine letting the boy go and kill more people.
Score: 8.8/10
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 7 Episode 2 Hello, Cruel World
My memory is a little sketchy, but the way these episodes have been playing out, this is the first time Supernatural will have four continuous episodes, beginning from the sixth season finale. While I don't think this serialization will last too much longer, it's interesting to see the writers play around with the cliffhangers. It adds a sense of doom, as the Winchesters went from dealing to crazed Castiel to Leviathan to Lucifer in Sam's head in quick succession.
The episode ends on a bold note--Bobby possibly dead, Sam seizing, and both Sam and Dean heading to the hospital where the Leviathans are having a party. Yeah, pretty terrible circumstances.
The Leviathans are dangerous and evil enough, but they're pretty generic adversaries. We've already see creatures inhabiting bodies plenty of times in the past and the black stuff easily recalls black oil from The X-Files. I'd like to see more originality from the writers regarding the Leviathans.
Score: 8.9/10
The episode ends on a bold note--Bobby possibly dead, Sam seizing, and both Sam and Dean heading to the hospital where the Leviathans are having a party. Yeah, pretty terrible circumstances.
The Leviathans are dangerous and evil enough, but they're pretty generic adversaries. We've already see creatures inhabiting bodies plenty of times in the past and the black stuff easily recalls black oil from The X-Files. I'd like to see more originality from the writers regarding the Leviathans.
Score: 8.9/10
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 7 Episode 1 Meet the New Boss
Since the Apocalypse, which was more like a series of events than anything else, Supernatural on a grand scale hasn't been that all that exciting. Angels and demons pop up to do battle on occasion, but it always felt like isolated instances rather than a grand battle for Earth. Blame it on the lack of budget for sweeping CGI shots or whatever; it didn't seem like too big of a deal.
When Castiel sucked up the souls, however, it was a big deal because it dealt with a character we've come to love. There's significance to him as a main character, not just a random angel. Proclaiming himself God, Cas pretty much went off the deep end, leaving Sam, Dean, and Bobby behind and running off to do things that God is supposed to do. It turns out that Cas doesn't really have the right mindset, as it kills people left and right. The season begins with this shocking behavior right off the bat and it's all very scary.
After some plot development in the middle, with the return of Death who is always fun, Cas gives up the souls, surprisingly. I had expected Cas to retain his new powers for a couple episodes, but he loses them quite early, allowing us to see Cas's regret over what he'd done. If that had been it, I'd be a little disappointed, but there is another twist afterwards, the Leviathan staying in Cas's body and taking over. Needless to say, Mischa Collins is awesome in the final scene.
There is less focus on the Winchesters since Cas is doing his thing, but with Sam's wall broken, he's having problems. Lucifer shows up and tells him he's still in Hell, which probably isn't true, but must be psychologically harmful to Sam.
Score: 9.0/10
When Castiel sucked up the souls, however, it was a big deal because it dealt with a character we've come to love. There's significance to him as a main character, not just a random angel. Proclaiming himself God, Cas pretty much went off the deep end, leaving Sam, Dean, and Bobby behind and running off to do things that God is supposed to do. It turns out that Cas doesn't really have the right mindset, as it kills people left and right. The season begins with this shocking behavior right off the bat and it's all very scary.
After some plot development in the middle, with the return of Death who is always fun, Cas gives up the souls, surprisingly. I had expected Cas to retain his new powers for a couple episodes, but he loses them quite early, allowing us to see Cas's regret over what he'd done. If that had been it, I'd be a little disappointed, but there is another twist afterwards, the Leviathan staying in Cas's body and taking over. Needless to say, Mischa Collins is awesome in the final scene.
There is less focus on the Winchesters since Cas is doing his thing, but with Sam's wall broken, he's having problems. Lucifer shows up and tells him he's still in Hell, which probably isn't true, but must be psychologically harmful to Sam.
Score: 9.0/10
Saturday, May 21, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 6 Episode 21 Let It Bleed / 22 The Man Who Knew Too Much
To be honest, I could care less about the angels at war. There's supposed to be a massive war between the angels, presumably with all sorts of bright light and other fantastical happenings. With the low budget, however, Supernatural can never shows us any of this, and we're left imaging all the cool stuff going on in heaven. But that's not how television is supposed to work. We're supposed to see what's significant. Hints about the war just don't cut it. These angels dropping in for two seconds to kill something and then running off don't matter to me one bit.
Sam and Dean matter to me, though, because we always see the significant events in their lives and there is real, emotional weight to their scenes. "Let It Bleed" focuses on Dean after Lisa and Ben are taken by Crowley because the Winchesters won't stop poking around. Eventually, Dean rescues them, but always smacks Ben in the heat of the moment in order to get him to concentrate. Obviously Dean feels horrible about this afterwards, but his solution is troubling. After Cas saves Lisa, Dean asks for Lisa and Ben's memories to be wiped clean of everything Dean. If all he wanted was for Ben to not hate him, then that's fine. But Lisa and Ben are still at major risk and not remembering Dean when being attacked will be a death sentence.
Even if this was a less than rational plot machination, the significance in Dean's eyes is major, so much so that he tells Sam never to remind him of them. The season began with Dean happily living with Lisa and Ben, and 20 episodes later, at the end of the season, he's at the opposite end. Lisa and Ben don't even remember him anymore and that happily life, as close as it seemed, is now too far away to even fathom.
"The Man Who Knew Too Much" continues from Bobby and Elle's plot in the previous episode and resolves several issues before bringing up a new, possibly bigger, problem. As we learned in the episode before, Elle is from purgatory and her blood is needed to open the portal. This is all solved in the fantastic final scene where Raphael and Crowley conspire to bring down Castiel once and for all. Castiel also plays them, however, having performed the ritual already and absorbed all the souls. Crowley runs off, Raphael is popped (literally), and that's that... or not. Castiel's transformation is complete. No longer is he fighting for heaven or the disenfranchised angels. Castiel has lost sight of everything and now believes he is God. Psst, God, it's time to come back and clean up the mess.
On a smaller scale, Sam's feeling of incompleteness is fixed in a nifty set of scenes in the first three-fourths of the episode. His soul, shattered in pieces, is finally put back together, but only after his main soul kills soulless Sam and the Sam that remembers Hell. With the way the episode begun--Sam without memories running from the cops and trying to figure out who he is--the two pieces of the episode seem somewhat incongruous since the Winchesters and Bobby have zero influence over the ending, though they try. But Sam putting his single soul back together and feeling complete stands in contrast to Castiel who acquires more souls and transcends his being.
Score: 9.0/10
Sam and Dean matter to me, though, because we always see the significant events in their lives and there is real, emotional weight to their scenes. "Let It Bleed" focuses on Dean after Lisa and Ben are taken by Crowley because the Winchesters won't stop poking around. Eventually, Dean rescues them, but always smacks Ben in the heat of the moment in order to get him to concentrate. Obviously Dean feels horrible about this afterwards, but his solution is troubling. After Cas saves Lisa, Dean asks for Lisa and Ben's memories to be wiped clean of everything Dean. If all he wanted was for Ben to not hate him, then that's fine. But Lisa and Ben are still at major risk and not remembering Dean when being attacked will be a death sentence.
Even if this was a less than rational plot machination, the significance in Dean's eyes is major, so much so that he tells Sam never to remind him of them. The season began with Dean happily living with Lisa and Ben, and 20 episodes later, at the end of the season, he's at the opposite end. Lisa and Ben don't even remember him anymore and that happily life, as close as it seemed, is now too far away to even fathom.
"The Man Who Knew Too Much" continues from Bobby and Elle's plot in the previous episode and resolves several issues before bringing up a new, possibly bigger, problem. As we learned in the episode before, Elle is from purgatory and her blood is needed to open the portal. This is all solved in the fantastic final scene where Raphael and Crowley conspire to bring down Castiel once and for all. Castiel also plays them, however, having performed the ritual already and absorbed all the souls. Crowley runs off, Raphael is popped (literally), and that's that... or not. Castiel's transformation is complete. No longer is he fighting for heaven or the disenfranchised angels. Castiel has lost sight of everything and now believes he is God. Psst, God, it's time to come back and clean up the mess.
On a smaller scale, Sam's feeling of incompleteness is fixed in a nifty set of scenes in the first three-fourths of the episode. His soul, shattered in pieces, is finally put back together, but only after his main soul kills soulless Sam and the Sam that remembers Hell. With the way the episode begun--Sam without memories running from the cops and trying to figure out who he is--the two pieces of the episode seem somewhat incongruous since the Winchesters and Bobby have zero influence over the ending, though they try. But Sam putting his single soul back together and feeling complete stands in contrast to Castiel who acquires more souls and transcends his being.
Score: 9.0/10
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Preview of Week 5/15/11 - 5/21/11
NCIS - CBS, Tuesday, May 17, 8:00pm ET
After the way the last episode ended, I'm looking forward to the season finale and the possible capture of the P2P killer. The question is, who will die?
Bones - Fox, Tuesday, May 19, 9:00pm ET
Will we get confirmation that Brennan and Booth slept together? The episode is titled "The Change in the Game," but Hart Hanson loves to play tricks--remember the alternate universe finale? In any case, we know Brennan and Booth are going undercover for sure.
The Mentalist - CBS, Thursday, May 19, 10:00pm ET
I've been very pleased with The Mentalist this season, and was impressed by the Red John-themed episodes in the beginning of the season. Now, the two-hour season will address who Red John's CBI is, and hopefully we will learn a bit more about Red John.
Supernatural - CW, Friday, May 20, 8:00pm ET
The jig is up and the Winchesters know Castiel was behind much of the bad things that happened in the season. While this two-hour season finale probably is as anticipated as the Lucifer showdown last year, the writers are always good at season finales.
After the way the last episode ended, I'm looking forward to the season finale and the possible capture of the P2P killer. The question is, who will die?
Bones - Fox, Tuesday, May 19, 9:00pm ET
Will we get confirmation that Brennan and Booth slept together? The episode is titled "The Change in the Game," but Hart Hanson loves to play tricks--remember the alternate universe finale? In any case, we know Brennan and Booth are going undercover for sure.
The Mentalist - CBS, Thursday, May 19, 10:00pm ET
I've been very pleased with The Mentalist this season, and was impressed by the Red John-themed episodes in the beginning of the season. Now, the two-hour season will address who Red John's CBI is, and hopefully we will learn a bit more about Red John.
Supernatural - CW, Friday, May 20, 8:00pm ET
The jig is up and the Winchesters know Castiel was behind much of the bad things that happened in the season. While this two-hour season finale probably is as anticipated as the Lucifer showdown last year, the writers are always good at season finales.
Saturday, May 7, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 6 Episode 22 The Man Who Would Be King
At the end of last week's episode, we learned that Castiel was working with Crowley the whole time. This is a big deal, at least from the Winchesters' perspectives, but as a viewer who has only been somewhat interested in the overall story this season, I wasn't that excited and was waiting patiently to see what the writers would do next.
"The Man Who Would Be King" takes us from the end of last season to the present, all from Castiel's perspective. We see God saving him, a bit of heaven, and the confrontation with Raphael revolving around freedom which is the spark for everything wrong that happened later. To defeat Raphael, Castiel uses the help offered by Crowley, who claims that Purgatory is where Castiel can find the power to prevail. This takes down the path of deception and while he innately knows what he was doing was wrong, the will the win was stronger.
As Castiel recounts the story, we see Dean, Sam, and Bobby are suspicious of him, as they should be after finding Crowley still alive. They manage to trap Castiel, but Crowley comes around, so they leave before finding out too much. After a discussion with Dean in which Castiel claims him has things under control, Castiel sits and asks God for a sign which apparently doesn't come.
At the end up it all, I'm just not looking forward to the season finale in two weeks. There is an interesting dynamic going on between Castiel, the brothers, and heaven, but it's mostly too much too late. After toiling with Samuel and Eve, the season lost its footing and the angel aspect hasn't been there enough to ingrain onto us that this current story is important. I understand the significance plot-wise, since Castiel is a crucial element and both Raphael and Crowley are trouble, but the lack of impact from the angels leaves the plot without enough kick.
Score: 8.7/10
"The Man Who Would Be King" takes us from the end of last season to the present, all from Castiel's perspective. We see God saving him, a bit of heaven, and the confrontation with Raphael revolving around freedom which is the spark for everything wrong that happened later. To defeat Raphael, Castiel uses the help offered by Crowley, who claims that Purgatory is where Castiel can find the power to prevail. This takes down the path of deception and while he innately knows what he was doing was wrong, the will the win was stronger.
As Castiel recounts the story, we see Dean, Sam, and Bobby are suspicious of him, as they should be after finding Crowley still alive. They manage to trap Castiel, but Crowley comes around, so they leave before finding out too much. After a discussion with Dean in which Castiel claims him has things under control, Castiel sits and asks God for a sign which apparently doesn't come.
At the end up it all, I'm just not looking forward to the season finale in two weeks. There is an interesting dynamic going on between Castiel, the brothers, and heaven, but it's mostly too much too late. After toiling with Samuel and Eve, the season lost its footing and the angel aspect hasn't been there enough to ingrain onto us that this current story is important. I understand the significance plot-wise, since Castiel is a crucial element and both Raphael and Crowley are trouble, but the lack of impact from the angels leaves the plot without enough kick.
Score: 8.7/10
Saturday, April 30, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 6 Episode 19 Mommy Dearest
Since Eve arrived a while back, she hasn't been a very good villain. We've seen her do evil things, but certainly not on the scale of Lucifer, and I had a hard time buying her hype, especially with a lot of tangential episodes along the way. Like the confusion which begun the season, there hasn't been a clear sense of where the season is going.
"Mommy Dearest" resolves this problem, getting rid of her character, and reintroducing Crowley/Castiel(?) as the main enemies. But it also brings up another question: why introduce Eve in the first place if she'd get ganked once they found her? There really seems to be little point to her other than providing a bridge to Crowley, and if that's the case, why was she made to the such a fearsome enemy?
What comes out of the episode is the information that Crowley harnessing souls to gain more power and Castiel is intimately involved with this. With three episodes left in the season, we'll see what happens soon enough.
Score: 8.6/10
"Mommy Dearest" resolves this problem, getting rid of her character, and reintroducing Crowley/Castiel(?) as the main enemies. But it also brings up another question: why introduce Eve in the first place if she'd get ganked once they found her? There really seems to be little point to her other than providing a bridge to Crowley, and if that's the case, why was she made to the such a fearsome enemy?
What comes out of the episode is the information that Crowley harnessing souls to gain more power and Castiel is intimately involved with this. With three episodes left in the season, we'll see what happens soon enough.
Score: 8.6/10
Saturday, April 23, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 6 Episode 18 Frontierland
There comes a time when a string of episodes like "Frontierland" show up and you begin to wonder when the meat of the season is coming. It's near the end of the sixth season and honestly, not much has happened since the first arc of the season with soulless Sam. Supposedly, the angels are fighting a huge war and Eve is on a rampage, but so far, we've seen little of anything.
Normally, I'd be fine with a gimmicky episode like "Frontierland," because the writers are adept at writing funny situations while advancing the plot without cutting too many corners. This time around, however, the overall plot development is paper thin, while the rest of the episode is dedicated to "this travel travel thing is funky" jokes, which are funny but not deep.
The plot of the episode is rather meager as well, with the Phoenix, an angry guy who burns people, and Samuel Colt, a regular, chill guy, turning out to be stock characters. The final confrontation, teased at the beginning of the episode, is over in a blink of an eye and is very anticlimactic.
Looking ahead, Castiel has a big, dark secret that caused another angel to attack him. Hopefully we'll finally get to see what's going on in heaven.
Score: 8.3/10
Normally, I'd be fine with a gimmicky episode like "Frontierland," because the writers are adept at writing funny situations while advancing the plot without cutting too many corners. This time around, however, the overall plot development is paper thin, while the rest of the episode is dedicated to "this travel travel thing is funky" jokes, which are funny but not deep.
The plot of the episode is rather meager as well, with the Phoenix, an angry guy who burns people, and Samuel Colt, a regular, chill guy, turning out to be stock characters. The final confrontation, teased at the beginning of the episode, is over in a blink of an eye and is very anticlimactic.
Looking ahead, Castiel has a big, dark secret that caused another angel to attack him. Hopefully we'll finally get to see what's going on in heaven.
Score: 8.3/10
Saturday, April 16, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 6 Episode 17 My Heart Will Go On
One thing Supernatural has been able to do consistently is taking a bizarre situation and spinning it in a way to connect to the mythology. This is the case with "My Heart Will Go On," which begins in an alternate universe. We notice all the discrepancies right away--Ellen being alive and the Mustang logo--but, deviating from previous episodes like this, Sam and Dean are oblivious to anything being wrong and continue their normal investigations.
Soon, everything becomes evident as Balthazar shows up to show his hate for Titanic and Fate shows up to kill off people who deserve to be killed. Ultimately, there is little overall story progression, but we do see Ellen again and are introduced to Fate.
Score: 8.8/10
Soon, everything becomes evident as Balthazar shows up to show his hate for Titanic and Fate shows up to kill off people who deserve to be killed. Ultimately, there is little overall story progression, but we do see Ellen again and are introduced to Fate.
Score: 8.8/10
Sunday, April 10, 2011
Preview of Week 4/10/11 - 4/16/11
Happy Endings - ABC, Wednesday, April 13, 9:30pm ET
What's this, another comedy about couples? I'm guessing this is at least the 5 one premiering this season and the second from ABC.
Supernatural - CW, Friday, April 15, 9:00pm ET
After a disappointing episode over a month ago, hopefully Supernatural can return with a better episode.
What's this, another comedy about couples? I'm guessing this is at least the 5 one premiering this season and the second from ABC.
Supernatural - CW, Friday, April 15, 9:00pm ET
After a disappointing episode over a month ago, hopefully Supernatural can return with a better episode.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 6 Episode 16 ...And Then There Were None
Really? Maybe we were spoiled by the amazing Lucifer arc last season, but this current one isn't cutting it. "...And Then There Were None" is the last new episode until April 15, so I was expecting something great. The episode starts with Mother of All, named Eve, inducing someone to kill his wife. Then, the episode veers off into boring territory, with a creature crawling into people's heads and making them kill people, while Sam, Dean, Bobby, Rufus, Samuel, and Gwen try to sort things out in a somewhat amusing fashion
A bunch of people die before we learn that the creature was created by Eve. The plot has no twists (unless you count the deaths as twists, although they don't affect the eventual outcome) and is very bland and definitely not tense. We don't even see Eve beyond the initial few minutes, so we can't see if she's menacing at all. At the end of the episode, the only thing we learn about her is that she very powerful and can make creatures. As far as her potential goes, I can imagine a solid backstory. How does Eve go from sinner to mass murderer?
The worst thing about the episode is how the writers blithely kill off several recurring character. There goes Gwen, and there goes Samuel, and for good measure, Rufus also has to go. There is nothing significant about the deaths. It's just shocking for shocking's sake. Afterwards, there's little time to reflect on them since the creature is still on the loose. Rufus gets a tiny wrap-up at the end, but the whole ordeal is just random as hell. Why did three semi-important characters have to die in this way?
Score: 8.0/10
A bunch of people die before we learn that the creature was created by Eve. The plot has no twists (unless you count the deaths as twists, although they don't affect the eventual outcome) and is very bland and definitely not tense. We don't even see Eve beyond the initial few minutes, so we can't see if she's menacing at all. At the end of the episode, the only thing we learn about her is that she very powerful and can make creatures. As far as her potential goes, I can imagine a solid backstory. How does Eve go from sinner to mass murderer?
The worst thing about the episode is how the writers blithely kill off several recurring character. There goes Gwen, and there goes Samuel, and for good measure, Rufus also has to go. There is nothing significant about the deaths. It's just shocking for shocking's sake. Afterwards, there's little time to reflect on them since the creature is still on the loose. Rufus gets a tiny wrap-up at the end, but the whole ordeal is just random as hell. Why did three semi-important characters have to die in this way?
Score: 8.0/10
Sunday, February 27, 2011
Preview of Week 2/27/11 - 3/05-11
Castle - ABC, Monday, February 28, 10:00pm ET
The final of the two-parter airs Monday night and in line with Castle's previous two-episode endeavors, it should be good.
Supernatural - CW, Friday, March 4, 9:00pm ET
The last episode until April brings Supernatural back to the Mother of All plot after last week's meta detour.
The final of the two-parter airs Monday night and in line with Castle's previous two-episode endeavors, it should be good.
Supernatural - CW, Friday, March 4, 9:00pm ET
The last episode until April brings Supernatural back to the Mother of All plot after last week's meta detour.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 6 Episode 15 The French Mistake
Because Supernatural is a fantasy/horror show which pushes the boundaries all the time, an episode like "The French Mistake" isn't too out of the box. After the string of funny episodes last season, we're kind of accustomed to the writers pulling these incredible ideas out of the box. But for most other shows, an episode portraying the characters in an alternate universe as their real-life selves would be too much, although I would do anything to see more normal shows do this kind of episode.
"The French Mistake" has a little plot tacked on the beginning and the end--and it's actually pertinent--but I'm sure no viewer cared after the laugh riot in between. Epic acting fails, "Eric Kripke" gunned down, Jared Padalecki married to Genevieve Cortese (as he is in real life), Mischa Collins tweeting, and the hilariously twisted world at large, with hilarious lines constantly coming from all the producers. What more could you ask for?
Score: 10/10
"The French Mistake" has a little plot tacked on the beginning and the end--and it's actually pertinent--but I'm sure no viewer cared after the laugh riot in between. Epic acting fails, "Eric Kripke" gunned down, Jared Padalecki married to Genevieve Cortese (as he is in real life), Mischa Collins tweeting, and the hilariously twisted world at large, with hilarious lines constantly coming from all the producers. What more could you ask for?
Score: 10/10
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Preview of Week 2/20/11 - 2/26/11
Royal Pains - USA, Thursday, February 24, 9:00pm ET
With Hank and Evan tossed out of Boris's house and Divya spilling the secret of kissing a patient, the Royal Pains season finale is sure to be interesting.
Supernatural - CW, Friday, February 25, 9:00pm ET
Sam and Dean become Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles. Too meta? Nah.
Spartacus: Gods of the Arena - Starz, Friday, February 25, 10pm ET
The finale of Spartacus: Gods of the Arena will probably involve lots of blood... just a guess.
With Hank and Evan tossed out of Boris's house and Divya spilling the secret of kissing a patient, the Royal Pains season finale is sure to be interesting.
Supernatural - CW, Friday, February 25, 9:00pm ET
Sam and Dean become Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles. Too meta? Nah.
Spartacus: Gods of the Arena - Starz, Friday, February 25, 10pm ET
The finale of Spartacus: Gods of the Arena will probably involve lots of blood... just a guess.
Friday, February 18, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 6 Episode 14 Mannequin 3: The Reckoning
The case about killer mannequins, more precisely a ghost inhabiting mannequins, is standard horror movie fare, but it's still freaky as hell. No matter how many times you see a doll kill someone in movies, it's still unsettling each time. Who doesn't shy away from those empty, unmoving eyes? In its own way, Supernatural always puts a little extra on top, ending with a woman dying because she received a kidney from the now-deceased woman who is the ghost. A little more explanation would have been nice, but it was a good twist nonetheless.
The idea of an inanimate figure possessed by a ghost is a bit like Sam's soul returning to his body. In a way, the body is a mere vessel, a hulk of mindless flesh like a doll, before it has a soul, which is the purpose the ghost has in the episode. Supernatural is again advancing the idea that body and soul, are completely different entities.
The rest of the episode is Dean figuring out to do with Lisa and Ben. After Ben tricks Dean into meeting Lisa, Dean faces reality, knowing he can't stick around and make things right. As Dean rightly tells Ben, even if you love someone, circumstances don't always allow you to be with them. I'm fairly certain this isn't the last we've seen of them, though, so Dean may get another opportunity when the time is right.
Score: 8.9/10
The idea of an inanimate figure possessed by a ghost is a bit like Sam's soul returning to his body. In a way, the body is a mere vessel, a hulk of mindless flesh like a doll, before it has a soul, which is the purpose the ghost has in the episode. Supernatural is again advancing the idea that body and soul, are completely different entities.
The rest of the episode is Dean figuring out to do with Lisa and Ben. After Ben tricks Dean into meeting Lisa, Dean faces reality, knowing he can't stick around and make things right. As Dean rightly tells Ben, even if you love someone, circumstances don't always allow you to be with them. I'm fairly certain this isn't the last we've seen of them, though, so Dean may get another opportunity when the time is right.
Score: 8.9/10
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Review - Supernatural Season 6 Episode 13 Unforgiven
Flashbacks on television are great if they reveal something new about characters. However, flashbacks are rarely used in that manner, instead going over the same material so we don't learn anything significant. To my dismay, "Unforgiven" went the route off point flashbacks, long, extended scenes in which nothing was added to Sam's character.
It's one thing to have a couple short flashbacks to advance the plot; it's another to go over things we already new. Soulless Sam had lots of sex. Covered already. Soulless Sam doesn't care about family. Covered already. Soulless Sam doesn't care about hurting people. Already covered.
We see these flashbacks recap attributes of Sam we already saw during the entire first half of the season, and they're just boring. If they did add one thing, it would be how reluctant Samuel is, which suggests that Sam's practices must have rubbed off on Samuel along the way. While the flashbacks do serve a purpose for a plot and allows for Sam to "scratch" the wall, they take up way too much time to be of much use.
Score: 8.6/10
It's one thing to have a couple short flashbacks to advance the plot; it's another to go over things we already new. Soulless Sam had lots of sex. Covered already. Soulless Sam doesn't care about family. Covered already. Soulless Sam doesn't care about hurting people. Already covered.
We see these flashbacks recap attributes of Sam we already saw during the entire first half of the season, and they're just boring. If they did add one thing, it would be how reluctant Samuel is, which suggests that Sam's practices must have rubbed off on Samuel along the way. While the flashbacks do serve a purpose for a plot and allows for Sam to "scratch" the wall, they take up way too much time to be of much use.
Score: 8.6/10
