Last Week’s Television Shows This Week

Where we discuss episodes from the past couple weeks.

1. Constantine and Grimm

I’d lost interest in these shows a while back, so the episodes had been piling up on the DVR.  Due to a tv drought (after all, how many times can you rewatch Outlander?), I finally caught up.  Guess what?  They’ve been kind of good.  Grimm in particular.

2.  Constantine and Supernatural

The Winchester conduct some good old-fashioned flashlight-foo.

“A Whole World Out There,” Constantine’s 11th episode (which aired way back on Jan 30) felt a lot like Supernatural.  Sure enough, this past week’s Supernatural‘s “Halt & Catch Fire” was eerily similar.  Both shows featured four college students (two guys, two gals) dealing with spirits beyond our realm.  Three of the students died:  first one of the guys, then a gal, then the other guy; leaving only the final gal to survive, but not before a close encounter with the dead spirit.  Methinks there is formulaic television at work.  Constantine‘s episode was more macabre than Supernatural‘s, but then, Constantine is pretty damned macabre in general.

3.  Arrow Last Week

Last week’s Arrow, The One Where Oliver Returned “Uprising,” left me uninspired.  Maybe it was because Felicity rejected Oliver.  Or because Ted Grant died (I’m assuming).  Two developments I  deeply dislike, so nothing to say.  Moving on…

What’s New This Fall?

Last year, the 2013 television season brought us several new scifi-oriented shows.  Only a couple of them survived.  Does this year bode as well (or as poorly) for the genre?  I’m not sure.   I’ve been checking out some of the new show previews on Xfinity.  Here’s what I’ve gleaned so far.  Interestingly, these three remind me of three current shows.

Gotham (Fox)

The Gotham cast: All the main players are here.

The most highly-anticipated show of 2014 is a prequel to the Batman saga.  As with Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., I’m behind the power curve, having seen only a handful of the many Batman movies made in the last several years.  Ratjer, my exposure to the Batman world came from the Adam West Batman series of yesteryear; and its campy, cartoonish vibe was much different from the dark, forlorn tone of the movies and (I suspect) the comic books.

CANCELLED!

Well crap.  Intelligence was cancelled in favor of another season of The Mentalist.  That makes yet another show down the drain.  My Current SciFi category is going to be significantly smaller next season.   Let’s look at the count.

Intelligence – CANCELLED!

Almost Human – CANCELLED!

Dracula – CANCELLED!

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – Renewed!

Freshmen programs:

Believe: Collapse (110)

Well geez, if I’d remembered Channing was shot in the last episode, I might have watched this episode sooner.  Good news for Jamie Chung fans.  She lives.  Oops, spoiler.  Sorry.

It’s a good thing the writers didn’t wait too long for Tate find out he’s Bo’s father, since Believe has been cancelled not renewed.  His interactions with Bo have become so much sweeter.  He even kissed her in “Collapse.”  (Maybe he’s done it before.  I don’t remember.)

Tate & Farrell: Frenemies with benefits?

In general, I don’t like main characters in perilous situations.  I fast-forwarded through the bulk of 127 Hours. When Magnum, P.I. was lost at sea, I really didn’t want to watch an hour of Thomas treading water. (Of course, there was much more to the story, with Magnum’s memories and the search for him).

Thus, I wasn’t looking forward to “Collapse.”  Yes, there were the tropes of the dying batteries and no cell phone service (except there was).  But having Tate and FBI Agent Farrell not only working together, but sharing similar pasts was a nice touch.  And Farrell turns out to be pretty darned awesome!

It’s Rate-a-Palooza Time! Part 1

I’ve recovered somewhat from my Charlie White crush.  So, shall we do a little catching up?  Lots of episodes have aired since last we reviewed (mid-April).  Which episodes were good?  Or not so good?

Believe

FBI Agent Farrell is back!

This show is getting good!  There’s been a nice story arc building with the past three episodes. Big Events have occurred, an old frenemy has returned, and we learn Channing’s first name.  It’s Janice.

Bang and Blame (107)

We discover Channing initially worked for Skouras, but flipped sides when she saw what Bo could do.  While in a coma, Bo realizes Tate is her father.  Other than that, it wasn’t particularity memorable.

Believe: White Noise (105)

Channing (Jamie Chung) is finally given something to do besides complain. As for Bo, how cute!

Finally!  An episode that broke the mold—sort of.  Winter, the season, has thawed into a gentler climate.  Winter, the man, got the dressing off his hand.  (It makes me think there was break in filming between episodes 104 and 105.)  Jamie Chung’s character, whose name I finally caught as “Channing,” was given something to do other than complain.  Yes, she complained a little bit, but it was overridden by demonstrating some astounding fighting skills.  Doesn’t it make you wonder a bit about her background?

Sure, there were the guest star that needed saving, but at least Bo and Tate weren’t on the run the entire episode.  It was a pleasant break from the intensity of the constant running, but there was still plenty of action.

Believe: Origin & Defection

Goddamn it!  Why aren’t people watching this show??  Perhaps with The Walking Dead season finale, viewers will migrate to NBC.  Then again, it’s doubtful zombie lovers would go for the tenderness of Believe.

Origin (103)

Even a 4-star admiral isn’t afraid of a little labor.

The larger story is unfolding nicely, giving us a little more background each week.  “Origin” was a lovely story, my favorite so far.  We learned the reason for Bo’s gifts.  It’s genetic, literally.  It’s a specific gene Bo inherited from her mother, Nina.  But the powers seem to come with a price of mental illness (Nina’s mother) and physical weakness (Nina herself).  There was a hint of Nina’s relationship with Tate, although he’s not mentioned by name.  But no mention or appearance of Stanley, Bo’s stuffed turtle.  It seemed short-sighted, given Stanley’s role in the previous two episodes.

 

Why I Believe It’s Better than Resurrection

[Nope.  Not above a groan-worthy pun.]

This week brought the second episodes of Believe and Resurrection.  While a series can take several episodes to find its groove (*cough*Brooklyn Nine-Nine*cough*), two episodes each is still 100% more to go on than last week.

The citizen’s of Arcadia, MO discriminate against the previously dead.

After the pilot episodes, I found Believe more entertaining than Resurrection.  I couldn’t have told you why, it was something I felt.  Now that the second episodes have aired, my verdict of Believe over Resurrection still stands.  At least now I know why.  Not that Believe‘s second episode didn’t have problems.  It did.  But I’m willing to forgo them in the interest of the longer run.

Resurrection is generating more positive buzz, what with better ratings, more coverage, message-board enthusiasm, and critical acclaim.  Heck, Resurrection even has its own listing at Television Without Pity.  It’s also being covered at TV Fanatic and io9, two sites that don’t even acknowledge Believe exists.  Why is that?  Alfonso Cuarón is hot property now.  Did NBC just drop the ball promoting it?

Grimm: Revelation (313)—It’s All About Monroe

Look! It’s Monroe’s parents—E.T.’s Earthly step-mom and That Guy.

Last week Grimm returned after its long winter hiatus.  How long was it?  Not as long as last season’s three-month hiatus.  But long enough to forget the previous episode was a cliff-hanger.  And “Revelation” was quite a good episode.

When last we saw everyone’s favorite inter-Wesen couple, Monroe had proposed to Rosalee.  Via cuckoo clock!  His parents fly to Portland to meet her, only to discover she’s a “foxy” Fuchsbau and not a werewolf-esque Blutbad.  As if that wasn’t enough of a shock, they also learn Monroe is friends with a Grimm.  It’s enough to send them away in disgust.

After some separation angst, Monroe gives his mom and dad an ultimatum.  Mom decides to stay and try to make peace with the situation.  She visits Rosalee at the Spice Shop, where the two perform a Vertrautheiten (thank you, close-captioning!), which seems to involve some sniffing and purring.

So Many Shows, So Little Internet Quick Takes

So much has happened in TV-land since my internet modem crashed last week.  I was able to post a couple reviews I’d already started (Agents of SHIELD and Supernatural—and a reply to Natalie) during interludes of access, but that’s it. Now that things appear to be stable, here’s a super-duper brief roundup.

New best gal pals? Nope!

What a Hank without a Nick?

Any excuse for a hug.

Come for the Urban, stay for the Ealy

Terrible Terrors on the loose! Aren’t they cute? And colorful.

Talk to the hand.

Yep, all these shows are discussed (to a limited degree) under the cut.