Category Archives: TV-G[eek]

Shogun S1 E8

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“The Abyss of Life”

Whoa.

The scene near the end of this episode was unbelievably powerful and tense. The confrontation between Toranaga and Hiromatsu, which led to Hiromatsu committing seppuku. Man, what a moment among a pretty solid episode filled with moments.

It seemed as if Toranaga has more planned than what it appeared. He claimed that Osaka must believe he has given everything up. The loss of his son last episode and Hiromatsu’s death in this one has given Toranaga, who appeared very sick and frail from the trip, time.

John faced a member of his crew finally after months and it did not go well either. John had attempted to sway Yabushige to forming an alliance. Yabushige rejects the offer in name of loyalty to Toranaga. However, the death of Hiromatsu changed his opinion, saying that he did not want to die for the crazy old man.

There was a powerful scene over some tea between Mariko and her husband Buntaro. Buntaro wished to have them both commit suicide as a protest to Toranaga’s decision, but Mariko came out and specifically said that she did not want to follow him into death and that she would rather live a thousand years because of the way he had treated her.

Two more episodes remaining in this series and who knows where it is heading. This one left that knot in my stomach as I watched the pain involved in the machinations of Taranaga.

Moonlighting S5 E12, E13

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“Einme Kleine Nacht Murder”

“Lunar Eclipse”

This is the final two episodes of Moonlighting. They wrapped up the series finishing off the storyline with David and Maddie’s cousin, Annie.

They still have David and Maddie having repressed anger with each other. Even Annie called David out on his anger, which, of course, he denied. However, it is fairly obvious. It is the same anger that has poisoned the series and brought about the end of the show.

These final two episodes included all of the reasons why Moonlighting lost its way. The anger between Dave and Maddie. The overuse of Herbert Viola, in over the top comedy. The cases taking back seat and being tossed aside.

Dave and Maddie end up two of the most depressing characters in TV history.

Even their giant meta ending to the show fell flat. Denis Dugan appearing as Cy the big time producer did give the final repose on the show.

The final clip montage was more sad than anything else. And I do not mean sad in the good way. The last two seasons of Moonlighting really miscalculated what made this show so classic that it wound up in the EYG Hall of Fame. The last two seasons had so much bad in it, but there still had some great moments too. And very few shows can provide three seasons like the first three did.

The rewatch of Moonlighting has now come to an end. I am very happy that Hulu gave me a chance to see the show once again for EYG.

The Anselmo case was never solved.

Moonlighting S5 E11

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“When Girls Collide”

You knew what kind of episode this was going to be when you heard the sad Maddie piano music that we had a lot during season three and four. That was a bad sign.

There was a funny cameo from Demi Moore, who married Bruce Willis in real life.

After that there was way too much Viola. The relationship between Dave and Maddie felt very childish with the inclusion of Maddie’s cousin/old roommate, Annie.

The case was one of the worst ones that they have had in ages.

Why do we have to have the anger back between Dave and Maddie? I thought they were getting more into the act recently, but this truly felt like a step backward.

By the way, Maddie has no one to blame but herself if David is looking for a new relationship.

They then through the “To Be Continued” up on the screen, as if I want more of this soap opera storyline. This show does not do drama well. It is just too angry, degrading the relationship between Dave and Maddie.

Only two more episodes of Moonlighting to go.

Twin Peaks S2 E20

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“The Path to the Black Lodge”

Three remaining Twin Peaks remaining in season two. Things are slowly picking up the connections between the first story arc and the new arc with Windham Earle.

We discover something more about the Black Lodge and we see Killer Bob make another appearance, connecting Bob with the Black Lodge.

Windham Earle dressed up as a horse (with Leo as the horse’s ass) and kidnapped Major Briggs.

Miss Twin Peaks hypes up. Sounds as if Annie may be joining in when the giant returns to attempt to warn Cooper.

A few of the men had some strange reaction with their hand. I saw Cooper and Pete both have it happen.

The whole Ben Horne may be Donna’s father feels forced. If Ben had such a deep connection with Donna’s mother, why did we see nothing about it before now? Why was there absolutely no tie to Donna until just recently? I do like the new Ben Horne, but this just does not work.

They spend some more time trying to make me care about John and Audrey. Not sure I do. I liked Pete more in the episode. When he offered to take Audrey fishing, that was very sweet.

This episode was clearly bringing a lot of the mystical energy back again.

The X-Files S4 E9

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“Terma”

This is the conclusion of the story that started in the previous episode, Tunguska,” with the term conclusion being a loose descriptor. It just seems that the overall message of the X-Files is that the bad guys are just so much smarter than Mulder or Scully because they just keep getting away with things.

The Smoking Man, Alex Krycek, even some retired KGB agent are always one, maybe two, steps ahead of Mulder and Scully and they just can never bring anyone to justice. The whole mythology of the series winds up being frustrating at times, not just for the characters on the show, but also for the audience.

The two part story was full of action and dramatic moments from the Russian gulag (that Mulder escapes really easily) to an oil refinery explosion in South Dakota, the action beats are exciting.

I’m not sure how the cliffhanger from last episode was resolved. Mulder had been exposed to the Black Oil (or as they started calling it this episode, “Black Cancer”). We see people who have had their arms amputated to stop the testing, but that does not happen with Mulder (sorry Krycek).

This episode really was not structurally well designed. There are just too many issues. It has its moments but not enough.

Man from Atlantis S1 E9

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“Man O’ War”

Mister Schubert returned.

After a refreshing change of villain, Victor Buono returned to Man from Atlantis as Mister Schubert, the megalomaniacal villain who has appeared in most of the regular episodes so far.

I have stated that he may be a bit overused, but I did like his use in this episode.

There was a giant jellyfish that Schubert unleashed on the coast in an attempt to blackmail money from the government. Schubert is lacking money and it is causing serious problems for him. I do like this arc for Schubert.

There were definitely signs that this was a 1970s show. The special effects on the jellyfish were pretty lacking. The second thing was the Indian dialect for one of the secondary characters that was on the show. It was the stereotypical Indian accent and would not be used in today’s world. The third example was the cameo of Gary Owens and his distinct voice. It made me think of the old cartoon, The Superfriends.

Why did they not just arrest Schubert when they started looking for the jellyfish? Did Schubert not commit a bunch of crimes in previous episodes?

The X-Files S4 E8

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“Tunguska”

The X-Files is back to using the black oil in some horrifying manner. The mysteries of what the black oil is and what the government knows about it is the driving force behind this story.

Alex Krycek returned to cause trouble for Mulder and Scully. Mulder winds up in a Russian gulag and Scully winds up before Congress, being threatened with contempt of Congress if she does not reveal Mulder’s whereabouts.

Mulder and Scully get their hands on a rock that contains the black oil, to the chagrin of Cigarette Smoking Man.

There were some fun scenes in this episode including a handcuffed Krycek dumping a thug from Skinner’s apartment balcony. The thug, a courier for CSM, fell to his death. This show provided some real strength to the character of Krycek as he really outmaneuvered Mulder.

That final scene with the black oil dropping onto a confined Mulder, creeping beneath his face to cover his eyes in blackness was devastating.

This was a part one, and it was a tough one to stop on, but I did not have time to continue the part two before Smackdown.

Twin Peaks S2 E18, E19

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“On the Wings of Love”

“Variations and Relations”

Those pesky owls.

They just aren’t what they seem.

I did not remember the trip into Owl Cave to find some mysterious petroglyph, but it fits right into the magical woods around Twin Peaks.

Storylines are beginning to come together and the newly reinstated Cooper is on the case. Windham Earle continues to be very creepy as he has been stalking Audrey, Shelly and Donna.

Some odd things going on…

I am starting to feel pity for Leo. He was such a horrendous character during season one, but since he got captured by Earle, he has really come to bad side of karma.

Ben Horne is another character whom I suddenly want to root for. It is difficult to believe his change of heart, but I really want it to be more than just a way to stick it to Catharine.

I am not a huge fan of the new relationships that the show had forced upon us. Cooper and Annie felt pretty rushed. I had little connection with Audrey and John either. It seemed a long way to keep Cooper and Audrey apart.

I did think it was funny that Gordon Cole could easily hear Shelly even though she spoke in her normal voice. It wasn’t enough to base a relationship on, but it did make for a good scene.

The whole Miss Twin Peaks storyline is shaky. Ian Buchanan with the white bandage across his nose from the weasel bite from ep. 17 was funny.

X-Men ’97 S1 E4

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“Motendo/Lifedeath-Part 1”

It was a strange week on X-Men ’97. They had two stories inside the one half hour timeframe. The first one was Motendo, a Jubilee focused episode versus Mojo and the second was the beginning of the story of Storm and Forge, which was teased at the end of last week’s episode.

I believe both of the two parts, though enjoyable, suffered together. They both felt a little rushed and could have easily been full 30 minute episodes on their own.

The two halves were very different as well. The Jubilee part was full of action and video game Easter eggs, while as the Storm/Forge part was intended to be more emotional. Both had its positives, but I just felt as if the two did not flow together well.

It was cool to see Mojo again, and him moving into the world of video games makes perfect sense. I could have used more of the older Jubilee or more with Roberto. I did like how Jubilee and Roberto’s relationship took a step at the end of this section.

I wanted more with Storm as well. The connection between Storm and Forge did not feel fully realized.

Still it was an enjoyable half hour, but it was definitely the weakest of the four episodes this season.

Shogun S1 E7

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“A Stick of Time”

When Toranaga was awaiting the arrival of his brother and his brother’s forces, I thought to myself, what if his brother betrayed him. However, I immediately dismissed that possibility.

Then, I found out that I was right.

Saeki became the fifth regent, turning on Toranaga in the process. He gave his brother an offer, return to Osaka and face his fate or to die on the field of battle.

He gave him until the sundown the next day to decide.

Toranaga agreed to return to Osaka.

This led to Toranaga’s son to Nagakado launching an attack on Saeki while he was at the brothel with the courtesan Kiku. This led to the accidental death of Nagakado. Whoa. I did not expect that.

Tough show. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time, as I was not sure what was going to happen and it was compelling. John is really getting frustrated with the situation too.

This has been so good so far. Can’t wait to see where this goes.

Man from Atlantis S1 E8

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“Giant”

This was a really fun episode of Man from Atlantis. I had been hoping for a break from Mr. Schubert, as played by Victor Buono, for awhile now. He had been in all of the run of the series, since the end of the TV movies. This was the episode that finally gave us a break from Schubert. And in his place, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar!

The former Lakers star appeared as a giant named Thark. Water from the ocean was being drained through a vortex into another world where Thark was mining gold. Another person named Muldoon was trying to steal the giant’s gold.

This was a weird episode, but I did like it quite a bit. At first, it looked as if Kareem’s giant character was monstrous, but he turned out to be friendly and helped Mark stop the flow of water. When Thark learned that the water, which was invisible in this world, was a danger to Mark’s world, he immediately went to help him.

I really like how Mark deals with his conflicts. Many action heroes would head into a confrontation with the giant using physical threats, but, even after getting thrown around by Thark, Mark just spoke to him and used his words to convince him that he meant him no harm.

There was an ironic lesson to be learned for Muldoon too as he wound up stranded in this odd location with Thark. Muldoon had come back after deserting Mark to help them close the vortex, but the show still had him pay for his greed. I felt bad for Muldoon.

This was a step up from last episode’s offering. I thought Kareem did a good job in his role, which was admittedly fairly simple. The sci-fi concept of the ocean containing portals to different dimensions is an intriguing idea. I wonder if they were going to use this idea eventually to deal with the origin of Mark Harris and where he came from had the series continued.

Twin Peaks S2 E17

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“Wounds and Scars”

The fallout over Josie’s bizarre death happened in this episode as Harry went into a dark place. I do remember that aspect, but I am not sure what else was done with Josie’s death. I did like the Cooper/Harry bromance that was displayed here. The fact that Josie weighed 65 pounds from the autopsy was a detail that I did not recall that was cool.

Honestly, there was not much more in this episode. Windham Earle stalked Donna. They held a fundraiser at the Great Northern to fight Ghostwood and Dick had a weasel bite his nose. Norma’s sister Annie arrived and met Cooper. Audrey and her new boy toy connected. Ed and Nadine prepared to divorce and Nadine and Mike snuck into a room at the Great Northern.

Just not much there in this episode. Without the scenes with Cooper and Harry, this would be a totally dismissible episode.

Cooper spoke with Major Briggs and the Log Lady about stuff that happens in the woods. The Log Lady has a mysterious mark on her leg that was similar to Briggs’ mark on his neck. They both made a reference about the owls.

Not much of an episode.

Moonlighting S5 E10

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Note: [The numbering of these Moonlighting episodes may be off. I am following along Hulu with the episode numbers they have provided, but most place I have found online list this as episode 9. ]

“Perfetc”

What was that?

I do not know what I just watched, but I found it to be a total misfire among a season that has mostly done a decent job of trying to get Moonlighting back on track.

I legit hated this.

It felt totally off kilter. The characters were acting in manners that they would never act and changing behavior from one scene to another. There was way too much use of Herbert Viola in just a ridiculous set up after another for no reason.

David started off being late because of a bowling tournament. Um… what? He arrived in a bowling shirt.

The case they were working on was bizarre and made no sense. The entire set up was dumb. The pay off was ridiculous and the stupid chase scene only made it worse.

I think this may be my lest favorite Moonlighting episode ever.

The X-Files S4 E7

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“Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man”

“Life is like a box of chocolates. A cheap, thoughtless, perfunctory gift that nobody ever asks for. Unreturnable because all you get back is another box of chocolates. So you’re stuck with this undefinable whipped mint crap that you mindlessly wolf down when there’s nothing else left to eat. Sure, once in a while there’s a peanut butter cup or an English toffee. But they’re gone too fast and the taste is… fleeting. So, you end up with nothing but broken bits filled with hardened jelly and teeth-shattering nuts. And if you’re desperate enough to eat those, all you got left is an empty box filled with useless brown paper wrappers“

This monologue came from the season four, episode seven of the X-Files, out of the mouth of the Cigarette Smoking Man, and I loved it. It was not the kind of monologue one expected, taking a famous quote from Forest Gump and warping it into a view of life considerably more negative.

The episode featured a telling of the back story of CSM, played by William B. Davis (and a younger version played by Chris Owens). In the show, CSM is given credit (or blamed depending on how you look at it) for the assassination of JFK and Martin Luthor King Jr, as well as many other historical moments. However, it is implied that the story may or may not be accurate, as Lone Gunman Frohike stated that he found this story in an old magazine of his.

This article is a fictional tale written by CSM himself, though, as he said, the ending had been changed. Exactly what was changed was not included keeping us uncertain about the accuracy of the episode.

I liked the way they leave it uncertain as it felt sort of doubtful that one man could be behind all of the things CSM was given credit for.

The main purpose of the episode is to show just how dangerous Cigarette Smoking Man was and continue to set him up as the big bad for the series, while potentially humanizing the character a touch. Imagine the pain and death that could have been spared had the magazine just published the story he wrote as he had intended it.

The episode also gives the actual cigarettes as a symbol for the evil that CSM does, as he was preparing to resign, he crumpled up the cigarette pack and once he realized that his life was not changing, he purchased a new pack right away.

I had always wanted CSM to be killed by Mulder, multiple times over the series so far. This provides even more context to the villain.

Man from Atlantis S1 E7

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“Hawk of Mu”

This episode was probably my least favorite one so far, certainly of the regular weekly series if you discount the TV movies.

Schubert is back again and, although I love Victor Buono here. I would really like a new villain to step forward. They added a daughter for Schubert who has taken a liking to Mark.

According to IMDB, “Schubert’s tracking of a mysterious power source causes a blackout, at the center of which, Mark discovers an ancient statue of a hawk. When he rescues Schubert’s daughter Juliette from drowning, the villain learns of the hawk and steals it to discover the secret of its power.“

I thought the conclusion of this episode was fairly lacking, though I did like the scene where Mark tricked the local law enforcement to spray him with a hose as he was trapped inside their cell. He had been dehydrating and Mark knew he needed the water.

Other than that, I found this episode to be a step down from the last couple. It is not terrible by any stretch, but just nothing major.