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Something For Everyone?

Oh my GOD this week has been insane. And the internet has been fussy, so I've just been storing up a giant ball of TV thoughts. I'm glad it's almost March, because sweeps have worn me out and I need as many shows as possible to go back to hibernation for a bit. Remember around season premiere time, when I was disenchanted with all my shows and almost everything seemed lackluster? Lately, it seems like everyone has been in overdrive on the quality front. I still have, what, 5 more shows to get to?

House, 7x13, "Two Stories"I may or may not have keeled over on the floor 20 minutes from the end and listened to the majority of the rest with my eyes shut, but that is in no way a reflection on the episode. I was just tired, and unfortunately, all the quality in the world cannot inspire me to watch House of my own volition, so those missing minutes will have to stay lost.

Which is a shame, because from what I saw, it was glorious.
+ House ripping off old movies to enhance his stories (and caught at every turn by DiNozzo Jr.), resulting in trippy scenes like House shooting uncooperative people -- well, really everything in the classroom was wonderful. 

+ So was everything outside the principal's office, with Bossy Cuddy Jr. demanding additional stories from him (this girl is so great. I need to remember her, and then when she turns up somewhere else, she will be someone I've seen on House). Her own backstory was pretty precious, too. It didn't even trigger my "WHY ARE PEOPLE THINKING ABOUT KISSING BEFORE GRADE 8?" horror.

+ Enjoyed watching House/Cuddy stretch to its breaking point and fray, but not technically snap before being repaired. I still don't believe it's gone on this long. I feel like I keep pushing my luck. *knocks on wood* Anyway: I am mostly harping on this for the shot of them curled up on the couch together, watching something. Apparently, from now on, every week is just going to attempt to out-cute the last one. I approve.

+ I really enjoyed how minimally important the case was to the episode as a whole -- so little patient face time, hurray! -- because Storytime Hour was clearly much more important.

Keep it up like this, show, and I will hand you an A- in the next marking period.
How I Met Your Mother, 6x17, "Garbage Island"I thought this was funny, if far too reliant on double entendres to make gross jokes (this show lies to you -- it makes you think it has class, but it doesn't. Movies have proven to me that nothing containing Jason Segel is actually classy), but I didn't love how it stabbed a dagger into both of my OTPs simultaneously. One at a time is enough, don't you think? And then on top of that, they jabbed a side-dagger into the Baby Eriksen plans, because apparently this show is not done wallowing in self-pity. Damn you, Marshall's Dead Dad.

I didn't understand Ted's obsession with being The Bad Guy -- because I really do not see him that way; maybe dude should watch Glee, and then learn how important it is when the divorce comes first, and the Feelings revelations come later -- but more of The Captain is always welcome. He is such a great character. I fell out of my chair laughing when he first appeared in half shadow, and that streak just kept going.

Meanwhile, I am so distressed over hearing about how Ted/Zoey doesn't end well (why would you drop that sort of time bomb on me? this is worse than terrorizing Barney with a slap counter) that I have almost no room left to care about Barney/Nora. The tiny part that cares is just spitefully wishing for an NSA Barney/Robin hookup for old times' sake. (MAYBE SOMETHING MAGICAL WOULD HAPPEN AS A RESULT)

At least Wendy the Waitress got a happy ending. Love born of mutual hatred of a third party is great.
NCIS, 8x16, "Kill Screen": Show, coming alive! I was too deep in the Glee review trenches to take notes so I don't remember many specifics, but part of that was because I was just so enthralled by the storyline. Normally McGee-centric things make me tune out, but this one was on fire from start to finish. Can this love interest stick? I would love for McGee to have a longterm geeky relationship with someone even more MMORPG-obsessed with him. I couldn't believe how relieved I was that she didn't wind up being the evil mastermind behind everything, as women who take an interest in him usually are.

I think I really just liked it because Gibbs got to take out his frustration on computers through various means such as shaking them, hitting them, hitting them with a baseball bat apparently kept strictly for that purpose, and oh yes -- shooting the hell out of them to save the Pentagon. Did his day get mixed up with Jack Bauer's? (I jest. That was one exciting final mission. I love when people have to be guided blind via a third party following a blueprint).
The siren song of Raising Hope was too strong to ignore, but the pull of Scruffy Vaughn "Deeks" (boo. I like "Scruffy Vaughn." Do we ever call him Marty, at least, or is that as weird as calling Gibbs "Jethro"?) getting shot definitely sent me boomeranging back to catch the latter half of NCIS: LA. As ever, Creepy Hetty destroys the appeal of this show in a way that makes The Brothers McSmirkerson seem like harmless annoyances, but all of the other supporting players make up for it.

Way to cater to, oh, all of my whims at once by attempting to kill both of my favorites in the same hour, hospitalizing one of them, only to have said barely-able-to-walk patient save the other's life with a couple of handy stealth shots (with both ultimately winding up as Hero of the Day). He was amazing throughout, but that last bit left my jaw on the floor. As of now, the guy almost edges out Kensi for Most Redemptive Character On A Sucky Show.

And now, someone should tell me who to ship, because I can't decide between the appeal of Kensi's snarky banter/badass self and the fact that Nell is a precious, puppy-like ball of adorable. I can go either way. I can probably even OT3 this thing if I try hard enough. YouTube seems to be pushing the Kensi angle, though. (as a result, I immediately want to rebel, but I'm guessing that also means it is probably just my own imagination based on Pretty Factor that is including Nell in the mix at all. Wikipedia says I should be pairing her off with Eric, which...I guess I can do, since the long distance Abby ship has clearly sailed in the opposite direction)
Pretty Little Liars continues to be my Tuesday (or in this case, Wednesday) morning pick-me-up; have I mentioned how handy it is that YouTube conveniently and immediately compiles clip packages? This week, Aria experiences, for what I think is only the second time, what was just a constant state of being on Life Unexpected -- reality gives the teacher a swift wake-up call about the logistics of this relationship, and he starts pulling away, much to girl's consternation. But as is always the way with the morals-free version, things end with kissing. Which remains a distasteful sight even when I approve the context and the words that lead up to it -- so not pretty, guys. Ew.

(And be careful what you say about being happy with the here and now without considering the future, Aria! You think it's enough, but it's not. Before you know it the secret's out and he's gone forever, and six weeks later the acute pain has subsided to a dull ache but you still want it back more than anything)

Honestly, I have no idea why I'm here when I hate so much about them, but it's like falling into a sideways universe where my show/ship is still chugging along. I'm some kind of addict. I need my fix, any fix. So I was quite giddy to see them get an A plot, resulting in a massive 12-minute video this week, even as they clearly wasted all the potential in this storyline. It would be so much neater if they could actually work together on something in a school-related capacity, around other people, without Aria getting weird and/or calling him by his first name. It would really help me to believe they have something besides a physical attraction to base their alleged soulmatehood on. Besides. You know how I have a thing for mentor-type aspects to relationships, as well as extreme fondness for right-hand-(wo)man students in any context. Director/stage manager would have blended both things together.

Randomly noted: I get the sense that, if I ever watched this show in full, I would like Spencer more than Aria as an individual character. She seems smarter and more mature. ...also didn't I read something in a recap once about her asking Ezra to dance, for some reason? My brain thinks it would like that.

Out of curiousity, I just checked out Lucy Hale's IMDB background, because I knew she was on HIMYM in an adorable role as Robin's slutty little sister, but..holy crap, she's got a massive credits list full of RS-approved projects, and yet I remember nothing! CSI: Miami (I know I skipped that one), Private Practice, the O.C, Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2, and coming soon, Scream 4! (side note: Scream 4 is just collecting all my favorite ladies, isn't it?)

Actually, now that I look it up, I do remember her on Private Practice -- she was in the Tracie Thoms episode, during that glorious heyday of early season 3 when the show and I were best buds, and she was the 15-year-old teen mom I derided for having a kid who looked about 3 years old. I think she was quite good in the role, though.

This section got entirely off track. Shutting up now, Boss.
Southland: You know what's become a chore lately? THIS SHOW. Making myself sit through episodes seems increasingly like torture, season-7-CSI: NY-style. And ordinarily I would be fine just not saying anything at all, especially since no one cares, but on the off chance they turn it around, I would like to go on record as stating that season 3 has been dragging along for like a month now.

Is it the transition from episodes produced for network TV to episodes produced for cable, even soft cable? Because it was always dark and gritty, but now it just feels so dark that it's both exhausting and tedious. I swear, no pun intended, they've amped up the language they don't have to bleep. Cooper is becoming almost as unbearable as Dewey. Ben is just sort of there, dulled to a bland point under his supervisor's attention-demanding insanity spiral. Chickie shines in the rare moments she gets, but there just aren't enough, and they don't last long enough.

Bryant is still more interesting than Moretta ever was, but I will take Crazy Tammi over Weepy Widow any day. It's sweet, in a wholly platonic way, how he's helped out and held the family together, but compelling TV it does not make, any more than his vigilante/crazy spiral does.

At this point, about the only people not going crazy and still retaining some semblance of personality are Detective Adams and her partner (whose name I STILL have not learned). At this point, I'm pretty much watching for the lady detectives. Even though her partner can be -- well, no, IS, always is -- quite aggravating at times, I'm getting used to her. I like they way they work together and the working relationship is definitely growing on me. Their cases are the best part of any given week.

Pity that Russ decided to screw Lydia over for cold hard cash, though. Not in a malicious way, but in a way that probably destroyed their friendship forever, which is terrible because the two of them were among the few great things left about this show.

In conclusion, STOP DOWNWARD-SPIRALING, SERIES. Do we need to keep you in half-pint-sized seasons forever?
Off the Map, 1x07, "Es Un Milagro": THERE you go! That's how you do it. Aside from the fact that Lily appears to be losing brain cells at an alarming rate, that was perfect. Everything I wanted from all the patient storylines.

I love when the three newbie docs are just hanging out, chatting with/teasing each other. And remember, once upon a time, when I only appreciated Ben/Lily for the mentorship aspect? I'm back there again. My shipping radar is dead and all it wants is this easy rapport. The heart's got better places to be.

Like with Ryan, who spent the hour being center-stage hero (definitely my favorite now), complete with angry 1-sided conversations with God, only to wind up having to admit to her creeping illness to Ben after all, what with the toll of her tumble down a ravine pushing her over the edge into heart failure. Oh, geeze. His face. Preview-spoiled or not, let me just watch that another hundred or so times.

"I love you too."

Meanwhile, Tommy is so much more fun as the quasi-big-brother mentor to Charlie than when he is anywhere near that fluttery excuse for a girlfriend, so, thumbs up for that.

Cole still annoys me. Really, is there no one better available to mentor Mina? Why can't Ben take special interest in two? Since she is Proxy Me, I feel like I've been dealt a distinctly short stick. However, I will tolerate him for the purposes of Buddyship Bickering (Old Married Couple style, HOW DARE YOU BUY ME GRAPE CANDY INSTEAD OF ORANGE) and/or Ben constantly harping on him for signs of heroin use relapse.
Community: I imagined this was going to be dreadfully boring, because: politics! Even at fictional schools, they put me to sleep. The early part of this episode did not give me high hopes. Snoozeville, yawn. (Aside from Vicki, pulling such awesome faces in her jaunty black hat that I respectfully request she replace Pierce as a full-time character) But then suddenly, some exciting things happened:

+ Troy and Abed's political commentary, complete with scrolling marquee. I have a love/hate relationship with bonus features like that, because the text is always so awesome that I want to read it all, but then I get too distracted to listen to the dialogue. Watching stuff twice? Sorry, not enough time in the week for that.

+ Abed/Secret Service Lady. I DIG IT. More please.
(FAVORITE TROY LINE: "Do you just constantly have your own little side adventures?")

+ JEFF. REAL WORLD. 1997 AUDITION TAPE. I CAN'T EVEN. Annie, you are magnificient for digging this out.

+ The whole time Jeff & Annie were talking, I was cringing, not understanding why Annie wasn't seeing through Jeff's clearly fake ploy to take advantage of her morals and steal the election out from under her nose as soon as he manipulated her into withdrawing. But then -- wait, that was REAL? But, but, the feelingsssss! Oh gosh. He was actually hiding out? And he actually cares what she thinks about him? Sometimes I still have trouble believing Jeff is capable of feelings like caring. Of course, if that's true, I am more than happy to embrace this fact.

I have no idea what feeling this struck a chord with, but I really, really enjoyed, "I got what I deserved. I am a gross, jaded adult with control issues that couldn't let a young, bright, idealistic kid run for president."

Also there was hugging. Really, really precious hugging in which you can fully appreciate how much he towers over her.

+ MILADY. It always drives me crazy when people take a thing that was said once on a show and then beat it to death with over-referencing in fanfiction, but it was amazing to have a callback a year later on the show. That's not even counting the continuity with him hiding out here because clearly, the men's room is no guarantee of privacy.

+ While we're on the subject, if you need a little bit of manipulative Jeff/Annie in your life, here is this, courtesy of erychan86. Sure, it was already in your head, but now you can WATCH your dreams come true.
CSI, 11x16, "Turn On, Tune In, Drop Dead": Despite the overlying theme of zombie-esque adventures, this is a science-based show and it cannot just throw the rulebook out like Community did, so it was even less about zombies than "Blood Moon" was about vampires and werewolves. Which made it much better.

It was driving me nuts trying to figure out why I knew the old doctor, especially after IMDB revealed that all he's really done is guest star on a million things, so I guess his three appearances on That 70s Show really left their mark. This guy is great. The only thing greater was the psychological experiments his character was pioneering. SO DISTURBING/AWESOME, especially with the amount of ambiguity that was left in there.

But then again, I may have just been enchanted by the fact that they got to go poking around in a largely-abandoned 60s time capsule of a college professor's office. Old things FTW.

Plus, my favorite Officer Mitch got a bigger starring role than usual this week. Also really liked Doc Robbins threatening the moronic EMT about putting his assistant in harm's way. Sadly, I missed that part while I was attempting to give Nikita a second chance and I can't make the internet behave long enough to load even 5 minutes online, but I'm guessing it was great.

[Edit: Wait, was this supposed to be a "lighter" episode? Because...I did not see a lot of levity or humor. Rather, they went to some pretty dark places with the various deaths, the emotionally messed up student, and the dire end of the old professor apparently doomed to this semi-comatose state.]
P.S. When did The Event become about aliens? One, I knew there was a good reason I was scorning you. Two, how is this not "V"?


( 6 comments — Leave a comment )
Feb. 26th, 2011 05:52 pm (UTC)
You do know that Spencer is McGee's sister, don't you?
Feb. 27th, 2011 02:21 am (UTC)
I did not -- but now that you mention it, I do vaguely recall this, and her appeal makes so much more sense.
Feb. 26th, 2011 07:50 pm (UTC)

TRUE, TRUE. I've been complaining about this exact thing lately because there is ALWAYS a "milady/milord" reference in Jeff/Annie fic, but. Hell if I didn't gasp and clutch at my chest a little when it happened in this week's episode. IT WAS SO PERFECT.

(Also, how dare you. That reference happened TWICE before last episode, not just once.)
Feb. 27th, 2011 02:23 am (UTC)
...crap. When was the last reference? Maybe I can get away with the excuse of "it was before I watched this show full time," or possibly the "I often show up 2 minutes late" excuse.
Feb. 27th, 2011 02:52 am (UTC)
It was probably before your time. Ta da, a gif with the 3 "milady" (/"milord") moments.

Feb. 26th, 2011 08:09 pm (UTC)
I'm hoping this new girl of McGee's will stick around, too, and that she also doesn't turn out to be a nutjob who's just playing him! LOL. He certainly deserves to get some legit lovin'.
( 6 comments — Leave a comment )

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