Category Archives: Prime

Bates Motel S2 E3

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“Caleb”

And with that, we understand why Norma has always had a bad relationship with Dylan despite him being her first born son.

The end of this episode dropped a major bomb as Norma revealed to Norman and Dylan, who were in the middle of a physical fight (that Norman was totally kicking his butt, by the way), that Caleb, her brother, was Dylan’s father.

Dylan had met with Caleb and befriended him and Caleb gave him a story about his own father, acting like that was why Norma had such a problem with him. When Dylan went to bat for him with Norma, she told him that Caleb had raped her for years, but Dylan did not believe it. This is what led to Norman and Dylan’s fight and Norma’s confession.

The rest of the episode had some building blocks for upcoming stories, but this was the biggest fire of the episode.

Clearly, Dylan is a memory of the rapes for Norma, which is the reason why she had treated him so differently than she treated Norman.

The Boys S4 E1, E2, E3

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“Department of Dirty Tricks”

“Life Among the Septics”

“We’ll Keep the Red Flag Flying Here”

Season four of The Boys dropped on Amazon Prime today with the first three episodes. I had only planned on watching the first one, but, unsurprisingly, I cruised through all three available. The show has not missed a step.

Homelander is probably the most complex, intriguing and fascinating antagonist on TV today. Antony Starr is at both times heart-breaking and terrifying as the lead super hero in Vaught’s world. His performance is tremendous ever minute he is on screen. Homelander is hateable, but there is something about him that makes you almost feel for him.

His relationship with his son, Ryan, causes such confusion for him because he does not know what it means to be a father and the things that he believes are important simply are not. You can see that Ryan is slowly coming to the realization to what his father is really like. I do not get the feeling that Ryan is going to be corrupted like I thought at the end of season three with his little smile when Homelander blew that protester’s head off.

Hughie has an interesting arc to kick off this season dealing with his father’s stroke and the return of his absentee mother. Again, this is something very relatable and human in a world of craziness and super powers. Hughie has always been the heart of the show and he continues to carry that mantel.

Mother’s Milk, on the other hand, is not handling the mantel of leadership very well. First of all, I had to look up on Google if the show had recast the role because when I first saw MM in episode one this season, he did not look anything like the actor I remembered. I found an article online asking if he had been recast, so obviously I was not the only person thinking that. However, Laz Alonso is back, just without the beard and thinner. He really does look differently. He is also struggling with the lead role with the Boys.

I’m not quite sure that I have been enjoying the arc of Frenchie and Kimiko so far. I am not sure where this came from and it feels as if it were tossed in just this season.

The new characters are something else. I swear that Firecracker is Marjorie Taylor Greene. A right wing conspiracy theorist spreading lies across the internet. And then there is Sister Sage, the smartest woman (excuse me, person) on earth. She is a real manipulator who I would keep an eye on.

This show is not hiding its politics at all. The metaphors of Homelander and the Seven being the right wing/MAGA of this country is not hidden very well. It might be a bit too obvious.

This show continues to be one of the best one on TV. I can’t wait to see where it goes from here.

Battlestar Galactica mini-series

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Tonight I started the next TV program to add to the watchlist. I have been doing rewatches of The X-Files and Bates Motel, but it felt as if I needed another one. However, this was not a rewatch as I have never seen any of the episodes of Battlestar Galactica.

I used to watch the original series back in the 1970s with Richard Hatch, Dirk Benedict (Face from the A-Team) and Loren Greene, but it was never one of my favorites. So when there was a new version of the series starting on Syfy, I was not interested. I have heard tremendous praise for the series from lots of different sources, so when I was looking for a new series around the time that I finished up with Man from Atlantis, Battlestar cam eon my radar.

The thing is… I discovered that there was a mini-series that aired prior to the series and, when I found it on Amazon Prime, I saw that it was over 3 hours long. That was preventative to starting it and it was going to require a certain spot to watch this lengthy of a show.

I was able to find the time tonight to watch this show (which was presented originally in two parts, but just in one full episodes on Prime).

What an amazing three hours it was.

This mini-series took time to present a group of characters, a few of whom I recognized names (Starbuck. Apollo. Both names from the 70s show). I was aware of Katee Sackhoff was playing Starbuck as one of the standout characters of the series. Even I, who did not watch the show but was aware of its cultural place, knew that. I recognized the actor Edward James Olmos who was playing the role that Loren Greene had originated. Other than that, the cast was full of actors whom I did not know.

The cast was excellent and I started learning these characters. The show does a decent job of providing enough development to know who these people are and why I should care about them. Such as Mary McDonnell, who played Laura Roslin, who becomes the President after the Cylon attack of earth killed everyone ahead of her in progression. It was Battlestar’s own Designated Survivor moment. Giving this important character cancer before she had to step into this leadership role was quite ballsy of the show and connected the audience to her immediately.

The show was a war show, which was also something that I was not expecting. I knew that it would be sci-fi, but I did not know how much of a war show this would actually be.

The special effects were tremendous throughout the show, specifically with the moment at the end when the Galactica was holding off the Cylons so the civilians to ‘jump’ was amazingly shot. The final moment when Starbuck used her own ship to push Apollo into the Galactica before it jumped as well was exceptional.

Making the Cylons look like humans for this series is a stroke of genius. Not that the design of the robotic Cylons was bad, but this gives you more than just unexpressive robots to be antagonists. It was a wonderful decision for whomever made it.

This was a tense, exciting, anxiety-filled adventure with some new characters that I really liked out of the gate. I am excited to learn more about these people as this series moves along.

Battlestar Galactica has four seasons of around 74 episodes and I will be adding this to the watchlist starting this summer. It was a great start with this mini-series.

Bates Motel S2 E2

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“Shadow of a Doubt”

Lots of things going down on Bates Motel as the second season gets underway.

  • Norma is concerned over Norman’s blackouts and she finds a pearl necklace in his room.
  • Norman is trying to help Bradley get away with the murder she committed.
  • Speaking of which, the murder Bradley committed, Gil, whom killed her father, started fireworks between the two weed families in the area.
  • Norma and Norman try out for local musical at the theater in town. Norma knocks her song out of the park.
  • Romero arrests a suspect for Miss Watson’s murder, based on a seaman sample.
  • Romero presses charges without much evidence.
  • Norman can’t get away from Norma to drive Bradley to the bus station. He called Dylan to help. Dylan will make it look like she committed suicide.

Then, the episode was coming to an end in what seemed to be a happy moment. The word about Miss Watson’s accused killer got out and everyone was happy (especially Norma who believed that Norman had killed her during one of his blackouts). Dylan had returned and gave Norman the good news about Bradley getting on the bus and gave him a handwritten note from her to Norman. There was happy music playing in the background. It felt like the episode was going to end on a happy note for once.

I should know Bates Motel wouldn’t let that happen.

Norma’s brother arrived in the town, looking for the Bates Motel. At the end of season one, we discovered that Norma had been sexually assaulted by him through her teenage years. Things aren’t looking good for this guy.

Bates Motel S2 E1

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“Gone but not Forgotten”

I was about halfway through the episode on Amazon Prime when my internet went out. So I had to wait a couple of hours before I could finish the season premiere of season two of Bates Motel.

One of my favorite scenes of the show happened in this episode. Vera Farmiga had the most righteous rant at the city council meeting and I threw my arms into the air as she ripped into the council and the prudish women who had presented about removing books from the school. This gave another great look at the character of Norma Bates, who is being shown to be a force of nature.

The show took the character of Bradley in a different direction this season as she tried to kill herself at the beginning of episode 1. She started going all in on an attempt to find out about her father, who died in season one. That led her to killing the guy that had some knowledge of the death in a shocking moment. Then she drew Norman into the problem at the very end of the episode. I did not remember this part of the storyline from the first time I saw this back in season two, so it was a cool, seemingly new, feature.

Norman is continuing to have trouble getting over the death of Miss Watson. The show is implying that he had something to do with the murder. Norman does not remember what happened that night, but, when he was talking to Norma about it, Norman said that he did not remember and when he left, he could have been there to help her when the person who killed her arrived. You could see that Norma was thinking that Norman had something to do with the death.

Great kickoff to season two.

Bates Motel S1 E10

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“Midnight”

Season one of Bates Motel wrapped up with some major events that both put an end to some dangling threads and set up what will be happening in season two.

Norma goes to Sheriff Romero with the details about Abernathy’s threats at the end of the previous episode. Romero basically tells her that he would take care of it and that she should trust him. I don’t know why anyone would at this point because Romero is sus as hell.

Norma asked Dylan if he could get her a gun and teach her to use it. Dylan refused at first, but changed his mind and they had a nice mother-son moment while shooting cans and bottles.

Norma still planned on going to the meeting with Abernathy at midnight.

Meanwhile, Norman and Emma decide to go to a school dance together, but Norman’s obsession with Bradley tanked that.

Prior to Norman and Emma going to the dance, Norma told Norman about her brother. She said that when she was 13, her brother would make her have sex with him and she told Norman because she just needed someone to know. You could see how this news affected her barely sane son.

So at the dance, when Emma leaves Norman alone, Bradley’s boyfriend punched Norman and he started walking home in the rain. Miss Watson picks him up and takes him to her house to fix up his bloody eye.

Norma went to the docks to meet Abernathy despite Romero’s warning for her to trust him. She saw Romero arrive and hid. Romero confronted Abernathy and shoots him multiple times, shoving him into the water. Romero then told Norma, whom he knew was there, to go home. It was a laugh out loud moment when Norma popped up from her hiding spot after Romero said that. Romero told Norma that she needed to trust him when he says to trust him.

Romero is a bad ass in these episodes. He is also a huge riddle. Is he corrupt? Is he just like a vigilante, taking care of things on his own? He says that this was his town, to what extent does he mean that? Nestor Carbonell brought the intensity of this character to the screen and would become a series regular in season two.

We then see Miss Watson dead on the floor of her home with her throat slit. We know Norman was there and we know that “Mother,” the delusion that Norman sees, told him that he knew what he had to do. Did Norman off his teacher? We did hear Miss Watson on the phone earlier with what sounded like an old boyfriend so it may not be cut and dried that Norman killed her.

After a couple of lesser episodes, the season finale of season one of Bates Motel really rocked and set up everything for the series moving forward.

Bates Motel S1 E9

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“Underwater”

Poor Norma.

She has had a rough time. Finding the cadaver in her bed only started her stress. She was clearly afraid that this was the start of something worse, and she was very apparently correct.

The scene with Norma in the car with Jake in her backseat telling her to bring him the money that Shelby owed him was tense. Poor Norma had no idea what he was talking about, but she was stuck.

And she needs help but there is not much that Sheriff Romero could do and his comments to Norma with the flowers was completely understandable, even though she was 100% right.

Norman is still slowly descending into his craziness and I know it is heading toward his teacher getting the death treatment. Norman is showing the cracks in his life, especially when he trots into the house with his stuffed dead dog.

This is the penultimate episode of season one and it is again kind of a feeling of set up than a full story. It is a solid episode but it is not the same as the first half of this season.

Bates Motel S1 E8

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“A Boy and his Dog”

Compared to the rest of the episodes so far in season one, this episode felt like a transitional one. There are some good scenes, in particular between Norma and Jake Abernathy (Jere Burns), but much of the episode felt as if it were setting other things up.

Such as:

  • Therapy for Norman
  • Dylan taking a step in the criminal organization
  • Dylan and Remo’s work relationship
  • Building Norman’s taxidermy hobby.
  • Building Norman and Emma’s relationship.
  • Another side to Sheriff Romero as he put Norma in her place.
  • Abernathy’s mysterious business.
  • A possible connection with Norma and Dylan

Of course, everything was leading up to that horrifying end sequence with the corpse in Norma’s bed. It seemed obvious that it was Zach Shelby in the bed, because of the scar on the face and the badge on his chest. It also seems fairly apparent who put it there. How did it happen was another question.

Overall, this was the weakest episode of the first season so far, but there was a lot of solid character work that will pay off down the line.

Bates Motel S1 E6, E7

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“The Truth”

“The Man in Number 9”

The Deputy Zack Shelby storyline came to a dramatic conclusion in episode six as Shelby wound up in a gunfight with Dylan after he discovered the Asian girl in one of the motel rooms.

The whole situation came to a head with Shelby as he showed off his violent side, including smacking Norma a couple of times. This set off Norman.

The gunfire was tense as Dylan and Zack fired at each other. Zack ended up dead outside on the front steps of the house.

It also led to one of the big reveals of the early season. As we see Norman go into a blackout with Shelby, we learn from Norma that Norman had blacked out once before, and ended up killing his father Sam. Norma made it look like an accident and Norman believed that story.

Strangely, Sheriff Romero, who responded to Norma’s 9-1-1 call, upon finding the dead body of his deputy on the steps, listened to the story and then told the Bates clan what the actual story was going to be. That was odd considering how gung-ho Romero was to arrest Norma at first.

The show does not let us hear what Norma tells Romero. She said that he knows it all now about Shelby. How much that actually was would be interesting to know. Did she tell Romero about the rape? Or how she murdered Keith? I’m not sure we ever found out.

Another new story started in episode seven with the mysterious salesman who showed up claiming to have a standing reservation of room 9. He was definitely creepy and a riddle. Then he booked all the rooms for the first week of every two months. What is going on here?

Norman’s sex life took a turn as he talked with Bradley and she let him down as easily as she could, but we could see Norman turning into Norma as he walked away. Her kind hug brought him back, but it was spooky.

The arrival of a stray dog Norman named Juno brought another tragedy to Norman as a car accidentally ran over the dog. This is leading to the knowledge for Norman of taxidermy as he wanted to take the dog’s corpse to Emma’s father.

Norman feels very much on the edge. I’m not sure how he made it through five seasons. Bates Motel has been just an excellent show so far.

Bates Motel S1 E4, E5

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“Trust Me…”

“Ocean View”

Things are heating up among everyone in Bates Mote.

So much happened in these two episodes it was truly epic.

  • Norma is arrested for the murder of Keith Summers
  • Keith’s hand was found with carpet fibers from the motel.
  • Norman confided in Dylan.
  • Norman had sex with Bradley.
  • Emma and Norman found the missing Asian girl on Summers’ boat.
  • They took the girl back to the motel where Norma found them.
  • The girl told Norma that Zack was behind her kidnapping, keeping her for sex.
  • Dylan’s partner lent him $5000 to get a place for Dylan and ‘his bro.’
  • Dylan’s partner was shot in the neck.
  • Dylan ran down the shooter with his truck.
  • Zack steals the carpet fiber and the case against Norma is dropped.
  • Norman told Emma about his night with Bradley. She claimed it was just a hook up.

So much going down in these two episodes that it is just packed full. Norma’s manipulations are coming back on her, but Zack is certainly being shown as someone who is not just a good guy trying to help someone he loved. He is a control freak and he is out for Norma. The whole fishing scene with Norman was really tense and uneasy.

Norman’s own mental illness took a back seat in these episodes as his relationship with Dylan appeared to be getting stronger as his relationship with Norma took a hit. She was mad at Norman for being out ‘getting laid’ on the night she was arrested, but that was just another way to attempt to control him.

Bates Motel continues to be excellent, creating a ton of intriguing stories wrapped around these characters. Dylan is one of the most engaging characters included in the show.

Bates Motel S1 E3

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“What’s Wrong with Norman?”

The third episode of Bates Motel shows that there is something off about young Norman Bates. He blacked out during school, he took a belt from the rapist Norma killed and kept it as a memento, and seemed to not remember when he attacked Dylan from episode two.

The mental illness showed its ugly head early in this series. We all know where Norman Bates ends up, and it makes sense that he would have these issues as a young man. But you wouldn’t have guessed that he would be as likable as Freddie Highmore made him.

Norma is in full manipulation mode, but she has apparently gotten herself involved with Deputy Zack Shelby, who discovered the belt under Norman’s bed and took it before Sheriff Romero saw it. However, Norman, who had a delusion that Norma told him to take care of the belt, sneaking into Shelby’s house to search for the belt, discovered something shocking. A girl chained up in Shelby’s basement.

We get a touch of a relationship between Norman and Dylan. The step-brothers had a minor scene that told a lot. It hinted to Dylan that maybe something was not right with Norman.

Emma got a glimpse at Norman’s darker side when he rebuked her decision to go to the police with the journal with the artist renditions of the Chinese woman in it. Norman was fairly scary when he snipped at Emma that he did not want the police involved.

Bates Motel has been great in these first few episodes as we watch the creation of an iconic movie villain.

Bates Motel S1 E2

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“Nice Town You Picked, Norma”

Man, Freddie Highmore can give some death stares unlike anyone else. His eyes are amazingly creepy and, at times, simply frightening. You can see the insanity inside them, making him a great Norman Bates.

Norma’s first son and Norman’s half-brother Dylan arrived at the beginning of episode, creating tension within the Bates family. He had so much anger directed toward Norma, who he did not call Mom, but by her actual name, and the tension between him and Norman was obvious. Dylan’s anger toward Norma boiled over as Norman tried to defend his mother’s honor.

Vera Farmiga played Norma with such a depth that elevated this character into one of the most compelling character on the show. She is so mysterious and enigmatic. You are never quite sure what she is thinking behind each stare. When she was questioning Emma about her disease, I could not tell if she was interested because she was being empathic or if she was saying it to let Norman hear about the things about her cystic fibrosis because she was jealous of any other girl who might have a connection to Norman.

Romero continued to be suspicious of Norma after they found the truck of Keith Summers and a witness had said that Keith was seen arguing with Norma and Norman at the Hotel. Norma is cool as can be during the interactions, hiding the real anxiety beneath the surface. Keith was the man who raped Norma and whom she killed and dumped in the lake. Some of the word play between Norma and Romero was well written and jumped off the screen.

The town that they have moved to is shown to be a darker place than Norma had expected, with a deep criminal underground involved.

After episode number two, the storytelling is excellent. They bring up storylines that continue to service these characters while focusing on the unhealthy relationship between mother and son. A relationship that we know will end up in tragedy.

Bates Motel S1 E1

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“First You Dream, Then You Die”

Whoa. I had forgotten how much I loved this series.

I needed a new series to rewatch and I came across Bates Motel on Amazon Prime. I used to love this show when it was on A & E, but rewatching this first episode reminded me how amazing this show was.

Norma Bates and her son Norman leave Arizona to get a new start six months after her husband died. They wind up at an iconic house and motel from the movie, Psycho.

The idea of having a show that took place as a prequel to Alfred Hitchcock’s classic Psycho was a great idea and the execution was even better.

Freddie Highmore and Vera Farmiga are absolutely brilliant as son and mother in this remarkable series. They both totally embody these characters and you just ache for them, especially knowing their ultimate fates.

The first episode pulled no punches either as there is a brutal scene where Norma is raped by the motel’s disgruntled former owner and an equally brutal scene where Norma stabbed said rapist to death with a butcher’s knife.

You can’t help but root for these people as Highmore and Farmiga are absolutely exceptional. You can see the mental illness that takes root inside Norman. Just a glance in his eyes tells so much about his lack of stability.

I loved the inclusion of Richard of LOST, Nestor Carbonell as Sheriff Alex Romero. He is an excellent actor and he brings Alex alive. He creates a totally different character than Richard of LOST and that is a tough thing to do. Admittedly, he does not appear to be that quick in the opener as he takes a pee beside the shower where the dead body of the rapist was hidden. That’s okay. Just prevents Norma from having to kill a couple of more.

This was a fantastic show and I am really looking forward to rewatching the entire run over the next few months.

Them: The Scare S2 E7, E8

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“One of Us Is Gonna Die Tonight”

“The Box”

This is what American Horror Story: Delicate wished it could be.

I was very disappointed with AHS this year as the classic horror anthology series just failed in this season. However, Them: The Scare was everything that AHS was not.

I had not seen the first season of Them, so some of the things that happened in the finale seemed a little confusing. I could only guess (and then confirmed after the show was done) that the photo and the woman giving baby Dawn and Edmond away had some tie to the first season (she did) and that the weird creature at the end also tied it to the first season (yup, it was something called Da Tap Dance Man).

So we have a connection between the first and second seasons, but the story of this season was all about family and the pain of being rejected and tossed away. The seventh episode does a tremendous job of laying out everything that we needed to know to understand what was happening and gave us a horrendous end for Athena Reeve (Pam Grier).

With the exception of the arrival of Da Tap Dance Man, there was plenty of satisfying moments in the finale. The confrontation between Dawn and Edmond was tense and powerful, showing how much love still existed between the twins, even if Dawn had forgotten about him. The scene of Edmond killing himself and giving himself over to the demon with the red hair was tough to watch. The shooting of McKinney was dramatic and pleasing to see the rotten racist get his comeuppance.

This was just so creepy. The imagery of the red-headed man will never allow me to look at Raggedy Andy the same way ever again.

There were several times that I found myself holding my breath from the tension of the situation. The performances were top notch and the tone was just so exceptional.

Them: The Scare was everything you would want in a horror anthology series, filled with thrills and anxiety and a story with themes of family, loss and rejection. I loved this show and I was happy I gave it a chance. Them: The Scare is on Amazon Prime.

Them: The Scare S2 E5, E6

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“Luke 8:17”

“Would You Like to Play a Game?”

Whoa. Some huge revelations dropped in these two episodes that made it a little clearer about what was going on… however, there are still some strange things going on.

I always thought Raggedy Andy was creepy.

Part of the intended confusion early in the show, the stuff that made me think that Edmond was only a copycat killer, was that he seemed like he had not killed before. I actually thought for a brief second last episode that these two stories going on we in different timelines, but I dismissed the idea quickly. Turns out, what we were seeing of Edmond was two years before the stuff with Dawn. Boom, mind blown.

Things go down hill quickly for Dawn Reeve. Edmond is her biological brother. She tries to save a little boy by taking him to the hospital and he dies in the back of her car. This little boy had told her that he was seeing a red-headed man who wanted to kill him. She is put on leave from her job because of this. The racist cops of the LAPD made things even worse, making sure that everything looked bad for her. McKinney is such an a-hole.

However, it is not as simple as Edmond is the killer. There is something supernatural going on too. How does that happen? Edmond hears voices. I do not think it is as simple as Edmond has mental illness. There is something deeper and darker going on.

The attack on Dawn’s son during his performance was frightening as could be, as was his breakdown in the classroom as he was seeing the red-headed man.

Wild speculation time: Does Dawn have something to do with these murders? I mean, more than just being connected to them or being Edmond’s sister? The missing time suggestion means something. What is it? Clearly, Dawn is not very stable at the moment and her life is falling down around her.

Deborah Ayorinde was outstanding in these two episodes. I am very conflicted by her character and I am not sure what this show is expecting me to think about everything. Is she just a victim? Or is there something more sinister going on?

Only two episodes remaining and there are a lot of questions with the show. Either way, this has really kicked into high gear, which was impressive because it was always very compelling already.