TV reviews of Homeland, New Girl, South Park, and more.
(Also at 411Mania.com)
Welcome everyone to DVR Weekly. This column is kind of like a Two Tivos To Paradise companion piece until Al Norton decides that I’ve totally ripped him off and has me shut down. Here is the premise:
I watch a lot of television. That’s what happens when you have a DVR and no life. So I’ve decided to quickly review all the television I watch in hopes of being quoted during one of the trailers for the show. Once that happens, I’ll stop writing this column. We could be here for awhile.
Some shows I’ll continue to watch, while others I’ll give up on because I think they suck or the network thinks they suck.
Here’s what I watched for the week of November 2 - November 8
Sunday (11/2)
Bob’s Burgers (Tina and the Real Ghost) - Tina finally got a moment to shine. She played the final trick and got people to admit their flaws and possibly see her as an equal to them. And she did all of that with just a box (and a little help from Louise). Tina gets so many rare moments to shine that it makes it extra special when she’s able to do so. Also, Gene’s Turner and Hooch costume may’ve been the best Halloween costume ever.
Brooklyn Nine-Nine (The Mole) - Every character was highlighted in this episode and they all shone brightly. Jake and Holt working together to find the mole, Gina admitting to sleeping with Boyle, Terry and Rosa working the drug case, and a little Amy sprinkled in. Everything felt
Homeland (From A to B and Back Again) - Note to anyone planning on sleeping with Carrie: Don’t. You’ll end up dead. This episode was moving along kind of slowly…and then the last 10-15 minutes happened. Aayan went to see Haqqani, Haqqani has Saul, Haqqani killed Aayan, and Carrie still wanted to take the shot at Haqqani. That’s a lot to process but my biggest takeaway is that Carrie is still crazy and on a mission to complete her task by any means necessary. Even if that means putting the boy “she loves” at risk (and now he’s dead) or killing Saul. That’s right. KILLING SAUL.
The Affair (4) - This was the Noah and Allison show. Literally. Outside of the detective, no other reoccurring character showed up in this episode as Noah and Allison took a romantic getaway to get to know each other better. And they did, as they had plenty of sex and Allison really opened up about her past. This was the “true start” of the affair between the two and I have a feeling this is the point where things start to get messy for both them and their families and friends. A solid bridge episode.
Revenge (Damage) - Alright, it looks like David is back to being an idiot. And it only took a week. Most of the good that Revenge did last week came undone this week. Not only is David an idiot, but Emily is becoming an idiot as well. I guess it runs in the family. At least Charlotte is smart enough to get away from it all, even if it took her awhile. Nolan is the smartest person on this show and he’s consistently getting the blame and taking the abuse for everything. Maybe he should play dumb.
Monday (11/3)
2 Broke Girls (And The DJ Face) - Whatever happened to Deke? He had a long-term story with Max and has just disappeared. And now that Max is randomly hooking up with a new guy with no mention of Deke. Oh yeah, and stop me if you’ve heard this one before, Caroline ran into one of her former friends and is afraid to face her because she’s broke. But. TWIST! Her friend is kinda broke too. Earl saved this episode with his show closing comment.
Gotham (Penguin’s Umbrella) - Every week this show does something that pisses me off. This week, Victor Zsasz, a stone cold serial killer, answers his phone as “Funky Town” plays as his ringtone. STUPID! I’m going to make the same complaint I always make: this show can’t decide if it wants to be serious and dark or fun and light. So it tries to do both and it comes across as a muddled mess. I like the focus on The Penguin this week and that was a nice turn of events at the end, but this show is really testing my patience.
The Millers (Give Metta World Peace A Chance) - Metta World Peace isn’t a great actor, but he had some good one-liners on this show and has a history to play off of. Kip continues to be useless and the lack of Tom and Ray hurt this episode. The secondary story of Debbie and Adam finally giving up on their juice bar yoga studio thing should’ve been a bigger deal, but wasn’t since they didn’t get it much focus this week or this season.
Jane The Virgin (Chapter Four) - This was a pretty big episode. Jane finally admitted that she is attracted to Rafael, Michael finally realized that he loves Jane no matter what, Rafael finally confronted Petra about her cheating, and Jane finally found out who her father is. Yup. A very huge episode. And none of it felt overshadowed or that they were trying to do too much. This show continues to be very charming and well put together.
Anger Management (Charle Plays Hide and Go Cheat) - What a stupid concept this whole “cheating game” was. Maybe I shouldn’t look at it logically, but I just didn’t get how the game made any sense considering he was trying to fool a private investigator, but she knew the window he was going to cheat with her in. STUPID! STUPID! STUPID!
Are You The One? (Strap Those Boots Tight) - THEY GOT ANOTHER ONE! Unfortunately they are halfway through the game and the most lights they’ve gotten is three. I have a feeling that Curtis and Shelby aren’t going to last since he’s clearly hung up on Brianna. Poor Shelby, maybe she needs consoling. Sup girl?
The Blacklist (The Scimitar) - Like Homeland this week, not much was happening until the very end of the episode. That’s when it was revealed that Zoe is the daughter of Berlin and not Red. It was a pretty big moment considering that the feud between Berlin and Red stemmed from Berlin thinking that Red killed his daughter. So, now what? Also, Tom is still held captive by Liz and is trading as much information as he can to stay alive. So far it’s working, but who knows for how long.
Anger Management (Charlie and the Revenge of the Hot Nerd) - This episode was a step up from the one that preceded it. It was nice that they brought back someone from a previous episode, although there have been so many episodes of this show and Charlie has slept with so many women that I don’t remember her at all. I like the Face Eater prisoner and hope he returns.
Tuesday (11/4)
Selfie (Even Hell Has Two Bars) - Eliza went to a place with no bars but still had fun, because she’s Eliza. And Henry had fun as well because that’s just the effect that Eliza has on people. Once again, Henry and Eliza has great chemistry and I’m liking this slow build towards their eventual hook-up. They are using each other and falling for each other. It’s not exactly an original plot, but it works.
Selfie (Never Block Cookies) - Looks like Henry may’ve finally found someone who isn’t Eliza. If that’s the case, I definitely look forward to where things are going. I enjoyed this episode as Henry struggled to pick up the signs from women and Eliza did everything she could to get Henry laid. Also, Sam is emerging as a very strong secondary character.
*Note* Both episodes of Selfie were reviewed before the show was cancelled. It’s a shame that the show got cancelled as it was one of the more charming and funny shows of the season despite the bad title.
Marry Me (Annicurser-Me) - I feel like this show is really failing to live up to its potential. This episode was fine, but the unnecessary curse bleeping and boob blurring continues to be a turnoff and the secondary characters outside of Gil continue to suck. I like the story of this episode but it’s just little things that hurt this show.
New Girl (Background Check) - What was up with that new intro? It sucked. I liked that they isolated Coach and just made it about the core four (and CeCe) as Winston tried to pass a house check. Obviously the meth bag was never going to be meth, but it was funny watching everyone struggle to keep the secret.
About A Boy (About A Bad Girl) - I hope Shea sticks around. It’s nice that Marcus has a friend (A GIRLFRIEND?!?!?!) who isn’t Will. Based on the final scene, I’m guessing this is going to be a season long story, which I’m on board with. This episode had one central focus, didn’t mess around with a true secondary story, and pulled it off perfectly. Along with Shea entering the picture, I like Will growing up and kind of being a parent, playing good cop to Fiona’s bad cap.
The Mindy Project (Caramel Princess Time) - I was enjoying this episode with Mindy being late and Danny getting fed up with it, but then they veered off into a strange direction that just soured me on things. Really, Danny thinks that Mindy is just not going to show because his dad did? Why would Mindy ever give him that impression? Yeah, she’s late. Women are always late. Peter lowering his hotness standards was a solid secondary story as long as they follow up.
Awkward (Girls Rule) - A really good episode. I like that Matty finally has a girlfriend that Jenna likes and who is actually nice to Jenna and not competing with her. Jenna’s mom getting into college was a nice little twist as well. Of course Jenna and Matty kissing at the end definitely lends itself to plenty of possibilities as well.
Sons of Anarchy (What a Piece of Work Is Man) - I think Bobby’s death was supposed to be shocking and heartbreaking, but it just wasn’t. Maybe it’s because it was expected or that I just have no sympathy for Jax or anyone in the club at this point, but I just didn’t care that Bobby died. The rest of the episode was largely uneventful, which seems to be a theme for this season.
Faking It (Date Expectations) - I’m really starting to wonder if they are going to pull the trigger on Karma finding out about Liam and Amy sleeping together. Besides that wonderment, I enjoyed this episode as it brought all the characters together for one story and showed that Karma might not be ready to move on from Amy. The secondary characters were on point and the stars were great as well.
Benched (Downsizing) - I might be out on this show after two episodes. This episode had its moments and Eliza Coupe is great as Nina, but I’m not a huge fan of the plot and the inconsistencies. This episode was just filled with too many plot holes that made me scratch my head, which is a shame because the jokes are good when they land. I’ll give it a couple more weeks because I like the cast.
Happyland (Disorderly Conduct) - So much for the Noah and Lucy relationship. At least Will is finally free to admit how he feels about Lucy, although Lucy seems to have bigger problems right now. This was a pretty simple episode that mainly focussed on Elena and James, which I was fine with.
Wednesday (11/5)
Red Band Society (Ergo Ego) - The show I love to hate is back. And I still hate it. Actually, this week wasn’t so bad. Dash is still pretty useless and Jordi’s character is kind of confusing me, but at least there was some advancement in the Charlie story and Leo/Emma are officially together. The lying dude seems like a pretty dumb insertion and considering that the actor, Keegan Allen, is pretty busy with Pretty Little Liars, I don’t expect him to stick around long. The ending with Nurse Jackson getting suspended was definitely a strong moment.
South Park (Freemium Isn’t Free) - The other day I was wondering if South Park was going to release a iPhone game where you do a bunch of clicking and build things. I guess this episode was my answer. Leave it to South Park to make me feel bad about playing Kim Kardashian: Hollywood. I thought this episode was hilarious although it did tend to get kind of busy at times. The return of Satan was very welcome as he’s one of the best third characters. I was disappointed that no one said, “Freemium isn’t free. It costs a buck oh five.”
Stalker (Love Is a Battlefield) - What a crazy episode. Quite possibly the best single stalker case of the season. We also got to learn a lot more about Jack this week. It turns out that maybe he isn’t such a bad guy. Yes, he cheated, but he seems to really want a relationship with his son and he’ll go to any measures to prove it. Including stalking. But he’s stalking out of real love. So that makes it ok, right? This show continues to surprise me and hook me in.
Key & Peele (Sex Detective) - Three great sketches this week. “Sex Detective” “Strike Force 3” and “Luther” were all fantastic. Luther sketches are always great and since this was his first appearance of the season and during election time, it definitely hit for me. “Sex Detective” was a strong opener with a funny plot and “Strike Force 3” was brilliant on so many levels. Really great episode this week.
The League (Epi-Sexy) - Even though Rafi vs. Leeway Lee seemed a bit out of nowhere, it was some pretty funny stuff so I’ll allow it. Andre faking being blind and then acting like he fooled everyone was classic Andre and Jenny not knowing how to cook (of course she doesn’t, she’s hot) and then using weed was good stuff. I didn’t care for Pete’s story, although I have no complaints about the opening scene.
Thursday (11/6)
The Big Bang Theory (The Prom Equivalency) - I’m pretty shocked that this show hasn’t done a prom episode yet. But they finally did one and it was good. Everyone had a date, there was plenty of awkwardness, and OH MY GOD SHELDON LOVES AMY!!!!!! A really special episode with plenty of laughs.
Mom (Figgy Pudding and the Rapture) - Two episodes in, two new houses. I hope they get a permanent residence soon, although Violet walking out at the end of the episode was a really strong cliffhanger. I’m enjoying her tough attitude character this season as she recognizes that her family kinda sucks. I have a feeling that the dad will come into play when it comes to getting them a house and re-uniting the family.
Gracepoint (Episode 6) - Jack started off as your typical old-man sea captain and turned out to be one of the more fascinating characters in Gracepoint. It’s a shame he had to go out the way he did, but with nowhere else to go, did he really have another choice? The case kind of took a backseat this week to Jack’s past, but obviously it was still a pretty big focal point since it’s the basis of the entire show. Susan remains a top suspect and the less they focus on her, the more I think she did. This show is only ten episodes long and after a couple of transition episodes, things are slowly heating up again.
A to Z (F is for Fight, Fight, Fight) - Even though this show was officially cancelled before I decided to watch this episode, I decided to watch the episode anyway. And I can see why the show was cancelled. It started out as a fun romantic comedy with a decent enough plot and then turned into an unorganized mess. Zelda and Andrew were in a new relationship, why are they always fighting? I can see why they broke up given how things started. But I guess we’ll never know the true reason things ended. I’ll just assume that Zelda died.
The McCarthys (Love McCarthys Style) - So I watched this show because I thought it was going to be about a gay guy coaching a basketball team. Instead it’s just about a gay guy who whose family is incapable of loving. But they accept that their son is gay. So there is obviously some love there. I might be out on this one pretty soon.
How To Get Away With Murder (He Deserved To Die) - This episode focused entirely on Lila’s murder case and highlighted the biggest flaw with the show: who is Rebecca and why should I believe that she’s innocent? They’ve done a terrible job explaining her character and why Wes believes she’s innocent. I like that the episode was fully about the murder and of course they had to have a shocking moment at the end. Sooner or later these shocking moments won’t be a big deal since they happen every week, but for now they work.
Friday (11/7)
Nothing on DVR
Saturday (11/8)
Hell on Wheels (Bleeding Kansas) - We were all led to believe that Sid died in the previous episode, but he was actually clinging to life. So instead of immediately jumping into “will Ruth be punished for killing a man?” we got “will Sid live?” for one episode. It added to the drama of the show, which I liked. And of course Sid did die, so now we’re back to “will Ruth be punished?” Right now it looks like the answer is yes, but you Bohanan will fight for her freedom.
Binge Watch
Arrow (S01E05 - S01E06)
Not much of a binge watch this week. I like where the show is going. These two episodes were good as Oliver tried to prove that he wasn’t The Arrow while the rest of his family is starting to fall apart due to secrets.
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