Penny Dreadful “And They Were Enemies” Review (2×10)

6 Jul

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“I know what I am. Do you?”

Identity may be the major theme governing the Penny Dreadful universe, but the writers expertly tie that into other topics like religion and darkness, weaving together the show’s characters in a large tapestry of past, present, and future. Going in, you might not expect this kind of depth and complexity from something that’s a horror series in its simplest form, but as you keep watching, you realize that the show works because its characters are fascinating to watch. They’re flawed individuals just trying to find some light in a room full of darkness, and that’s exactly what makes their journeys so compelling.

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True Detective “Maybe Tomorrow” Review (2×03)

5 Jul

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“Do you want to live?”

The past weaves its way throughout the narrative of True Detective‘s second season, leaving indelible marks on all these characters as they attempt to deal with its effects. It can be a nasty thing haunting you at every turn, or it can be something full of moments you long to recapture. The people we’re witnessing at the moment seem to be stuck in a middle ground of sorts, one that lies between life and death and past and future; not everything’s working right now, but Pizzolatto and the actors seem to be grasping ahold of their characters a bit better.

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Hannibal “Contorno” Review (3×05)

2 Jul

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“If you don’t kill him, you’re afraid you’ll become him.”

The Hannibal Lecter-Will Graham dynamic is one of the most fascinating dynamics on television, and what’s impressive about this show is its ability to develop their relationship through the use of other characters. Last week, we witnessed an episode all about the long-lasting impact Hannibal’s had on a plethora of people, and this week, it all explodes in a truly masterful final sequence. Even though the show’s two main characters aren’t physically by each other–the passionate sex that inevitably will ensue is more of a finale event–the writers still take care to note just how close they are. We see just how tightly the two are entwined, and it only makes the upcoming reunion even more intriguing as a result.

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Mr. Robot “eps1.1_ones-and-zer0es.mpeg” Review (1×02)

1 Jul

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“You either do something or you don’t.”

The second episode of Mr. Robot is about choice, about the push and pull between E Corp and Fsociety, about the idea of an “illusion of control” in regards to that choice. The hour may not be as intriguing as the pilot is, but it’s still able to strike a balance between character study and thematic umbrella, taking us into Elliot’s mind and asking us: “How much of this is real?”

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Battlestar Galactica “Crossroads, Part 1 and Part 2” Review (3×19/3×20)

30 Jun

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“We’re not a civilization anymore. We are a gang, and we’re on the run, and we have to fight to survive.”

The trial of Gaius Baltar sets up a courtroom that is permeated by history, fraught with tension, and caught between shifting allegiances. For the first time since right around New Caprica, we get a sense of the toll the experience took on the fleet, a sense of the simmering tension that has been building up over the weeks. Director Michael Rymer has his camera pan over the crowd and linger on faces, underscoring the bitterness and betrayal, the desire for revenge, and when the words hit, they hit with an icy bluntness that strikes to the core of the show’s relationships and themes. This is a trial surrounding one man’s life, but the implications of a guilty or not guilty verdict–as well as of the legal process itself–are far-reaching.

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True Detective “Night Finds You” Review (2×02)

28 Jun

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“The world will turn, uncaring of our struggles.”

At the beginning of this episode, Vince Vaughn has a nice try with a monologue about his character’s painful past, but ultimately, it’s clear that the uncomfortably long scene is sorely lacking a McConaughey presence to sell those lines. Vaughn simply doesn’t fit in with the dialogue he’s been asked to deliver, and it’s becoming clearer and clearer that the main strengths of season one lay in the performer’s hands more so than the writer’s. And that’s not to say that Pizzolatto’s necessarily a bad writer; rather, it’s that his style can sound stilted coming out of one person’s mouth and gloriously complex coming out of another’s. It’s also not a knock against Vaughn, who’s seeming a bit more comfortable outside of the opening scene; in fact, he has his best scene of the series here when he’s threatening someone by the side of the road.

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Hannibal “Aperitivo” Review (3×04)

25 Jun

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“Imitation allows us to better understand others.”

This is one of those episodes that allows you to simply sit back and appreciate a wonderful cast. Even without Mads Mikkelsen and Gillian Anderson, the show fires on all cylinders here, tying together all its other characters within the web spun by Hannibal Lecter. We feel his influence at every turn, and each person’s fascinating story serves to highlight one important fact: that Hannibal has scarred them all in one way or another, that who they are in the present is very much a product of their interactions with the man.

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Mr. Robot “eps1.0_hellofriend.mov” Review (1×01)

24 Jun

MR. ROBOT -- "hellofriend.mov" Episode 101 -- Pictured: (l-r) Christian Slater as Mr. Robot, Rami Malek as Elliot -- (Photo by: Peter Kramer/USA Network)

“What about society disappoints you?”

After hearing this question, we’re taken through Elliot Rodgers’s mind, through images of corporate America and Steve Jobs and child labor as a bitter voiceover lays out everything that’s wrong with society. It’s certainly an on-the-nose sequence, but it forms the firm foundation for USA’s intriguing new show, a show that’s a departure from the network’s usual lighthearted fare and a promising new venture for television as a whole. This is a pilot that knows how to work through cliches to craft a compelling story, and this is a pilot that has the ability to balance procedural elements, an overarching storyline, and characterization within the span of its 65 minutes.

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Jurassic World Review

23 Jun

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Jurassic World loses much of the terror and wonder of the original in favor of fun, summer blockbuster entertainment, and while that type of movie is by no means inherently bad, it doesn’t make for a particularly interesting installment to the franchise brought to life by Steven Spielberg 20 years ago. You can replace the dinosaurs with generic action movie villains and the humans with puppets, and nothing changes except for the fact that it might actually be a funnier movie this way. Well, maybe not. Dinosaurs eating puppets would be hilarious.

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True Detective “The Western Book of the Dead” Review (2×01)

21 Jun

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“We must recognize that the world is meaningless and understand that God did not create a meaningless world.”

The season two premiere of True Detective is a meandering affair, an exposition dump for the show’s expanded new cast as it struggles to get its story legs underneath it. However, for all its flaws, it’s still an intriguing episode, one that snaps the story into focus when it brings all of its characters together at the end. The problem, though, lies in the execution of the backstories beforehand, as the episode jumps all over the place in order to establish a plethora of people and places and motivations; it remains to be seen where it’s all heading, but there are certainly some growing pains we have to get through here.

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