Basic Genealogy
- it is family day at Greendale Community College
- Jeff's girlfriend (Professor Slater) dumps him; Amber (Pierce's adult step-daughter) is on campus for family day and the the two men get a bit competitive about getting her attention, all be it for different reasons
- Britta goes to some rather extreme lengths to accept and understand Troy's grandmother, despite Troy's numerous warnings to stay away from her
- Abed's father and sister (who arrives wearing a burka) and Shirley's young sons also visit the campus
- the A plot is the Jeff-Pierce-Amber story
- Annie is also in this episode but to a much lesser degree than possibly any of the other regular cast members
- Senor Chang's brother (who is a rabbi) also shows up for family day
- the pictionary scene probably got the biggest laugh from me
- on the whole a good but not great or awful episode
Friday, July 8, 2016
Thursday, July 7, 2016
Adventure Time 4.02
Five Graybles
- Five short tales with a common theme
- 1. Beemo talks to himself in the mirror
- 2. Finn and Jake high-five several times
- 3. Princess Bubblegum makes the perfect sandwich in her laboratory
- 4. Ice King cleans up beacuse he smells bad
- 5. Lumpy Space Princess enters a talent show
- not great but fun
- the Finn and Jake story is looped throughout the other stories but the first high-five doesn't occur until after the Beemo story
- there is a bookend feature with a character whose name I did not catch who introduces the episode and at the end explains what the 5 tales (or graybles) had in common
- Five short tales with a common theme
- 1. Beemo talks to himself in the mirror
- 2. Finn and Jake high-five several times
- 3. Princess Bubblegum makes the perfect sandwich in her laboratory
- 4. Ice King cleans up beacuse he smells bad
- 5. Lumpy Space Princess enters a talent show
- not great but fun
- the Finn and Jake story is looped throughout the other stories but the first high-five doesn't occur until after the Beemo story
- there is a bookend feature with a character whose name I did not catch who introduces the episode and at the end explains what the 5 tales (or graybles) had in common
Wednesday, July 6, 2016
11.22.63 1.02
The Kill Floor
- Jake takes a side trip which began in the previous episode; his plan is to prevent the murder of Harry's mother and siblings by Harry's father
- Jake goes about it in a hamfisted way; he doesn't seem to have a plan; he meets Frank, Harry's father, who is a very violent man; he tries talking to Frank but doesn't get very far; it is pretty obvious that he is completely unprepared for this task; if anything he just seems to get Frank riled up
- In the end he murders Frank to prevent Frank from murdering most of his family
- then there's a twist at the end where the bartender at a local watering hole finds one of Harry's newspaper clippings about JFK's assassination and confronts him about it
- this episode felt a bit like a Twilight Zone episode but not that much; my biggest problem with it is the way James Franco seems determined to prevent the murders of Jake's mother and siblings but doesn't seem very emotionally invested in his task
- it felt as if the plot was supposed to satisfy because there really weren't any good character moments even though there was definitely potential there; there was build up but then the plot just moved on without any real change in Jake's personality or insights into what he is feeling
- I wish I liked this show more; it feels a bit forced and artificial; it doesn't move me
- I was drawn in by the alternate history and time travel aspects of the story but there isn't enough of that or anything else to satisfy me
- even though there are just 6 more episodes I think I've seen enough; I don't want to watch any more
- I wonder if the book (by Stephen King) is any better
- Jake takes a side trip which began in the previous episode; his plan is to prevent the murder of Harry's mother and siblings by Harry's father
- Jake goes about it in a hamfisted way; he doesn't seem to have a plan; he meets Frank, Harry's father, who is a very violent man; he tries talking to Frank but doesn't get very far; it is pretty obvious that he is completely unprepared for this task; if anything he just seems to get Frank riled up
- In the end he murders Frank to prevent Frank from murdering most of his family
- then there's a twist at the end where the bartender at a local watering hole finds one of Harry's newspaper clippings about JFK's assassination and confronts him about it
- this episode felt a bit like a Twilight Zone episode but not that much; my biggest problem with it is the way James Franco seems determined to prevent the murders of Jake's mother and siblings but doesn't seem very emotionally invested in his task
- it felt as if the plot was supposed to satisfy because there really weren't any good character moments even though there was definitely potential there; there was build up but then the plot just moved on without any real change in Jake's personality or insights into what he is feeling
- I wish I liked this show more; it feels a bit forced and artificial; it doesn't move me
- I was drawn in by the alternate history and time travel aspects of the story but there isn't enough of that or anything else to satisfy me
- even though there are just 6 more episodes I think I've seen enough; I don't want to watch any more
- I wonder if the book (by Stephen King) is any better
Tuesday, July 5, 2016
Casual 2.03
Such Good Friends
- Val wants to make friends with Jennifer, the therapist occupying the office across from her; Jennifer takes her to lunch but then has to leave while they are waiting for their food; with some help from Alex, Val eventually hooks up with Jennifer and her friends at a wine bar
- is it for real? Val and Jennifer? Val is desperate for friends, especially after discovering (2.2) that her ex still hangs out with the friends they had when they were married
- Val and Laura go to visit a home schooling collective; later Val, Laura, and Alex go for dinner with the collective (kids plus parents)
- the collective seems strange to them, lots of awkward moments, but ultimately Laura decides she wants to give it a try
- one of the female students at the collective is played by the actress who played Xanthippe on season 1 of Kimmy Schmidt
- Alex meets with his business partner and a VC firm about Snooger and how things need to change; one of the VC people is played by Vincent Kartheiser (Pete Campbell on Mad Men); the VC firm encourages them to start mismatching their clients because it will be better for repeat business
- Alex winds up in bed with one of the single moms from the collective
- Val wants to make friends with Jennifer, the therapist occupying the office across from her; Jennifer takes her to lunch but then has to leave while they are waiting for their food; with some help from Alex, Val eventually hooks up with Jennifer and her friends at a wine bar
- is it for real? Val and Jennifer? Val is desperate for friends, especially after discovering (2.2) that her ex still hangs out with the friends they had when they were married
- Val and Laura go to visit a home schooling collective; later Val, Laura, and Alex go for dinner with the collective (kids plus parents)
- the collective seems strange to them, lots of awkward moments, but ultimately Laura decides she wants to give it a try
- one of the female students at the collective is played by the actress who played Xanthippe on season 1 of Kimmy Schmidt
- Alex meets with his business partner and a VC firm about Snooger and how things need to change; one of the VC people is played by Vincent Kartheiser (Pete Campbell on Mad Men); the VC firm encourages them to start mismatching their clients because it will be better for repeat business
- Alex winds up in bed with one of the single moms from the collective
Monday, July 4, 2016
Teen Titans 1.11
Apprentice: Part 1
- opens with Robin having a dream about fighting Slade
- Soon thereafter the Titans are contacted by Slade who reveals that he has a Chronoton Detonator (a device that stops time) and that he plans to use it
- the Titans track him to Pier 41 where they do not find him or the detonator but are attacked by a bunch of his robot assistants; Robin is moving in overdrive and despite the fact that his teammates seem perfectly capable he takes out everyone of the robots himself
- Robin is way too keyed up and a bit out of control
- unsure of what to do next the Titans eventually turn to Starfire's allergy to Chromium, which is one of the components of the detonator, to track it down
- as they race through the sewers after a boat with the detonator and some of Slade's robots, Robin is separated from the others and gets into a fight with Cinder Block which eventually leads to an encounter with Slade
- while Robin and Slade fight the other Titans catch up to the boat and get their hands on the detonator; Cyborg attempts to defuse it but in the end it turns out to be a fake; it was all a trap and the purpose of it was to get the other Titans infected with nanobots
- Robin is then given an ultimatum; Slade wants Robin to be his apprentice; if he says no then Slade will kill his friends using the nanobots in their bloodstreams; Robin agrees to become Slade's apprentice and in the last scene is shown donning a new uniform similar to the one that Slade wears
- definitely another Robin-centric episode, or more accurately a Robin-Slade-centric episode
- Starfire's sneezes were explosive; there was this cute moment where Starfire sneezed when Cyborg was trying to defuse the detonator; Raven enclosed Starfire's head in a bubble so that her sneeze wouldn't impact the detonator; Starfire's hair looked all messed up immediately afterward but a couple seconds later it was back to normal
- pretty good on the whole but not as good on the character moments, really hoping that Robin seems a little more human after part 2; if any of the Titans could stand to seem more human it is definitely Robin; he seems a little too guarded and lacking in emotional moments
- opens with Robin having a dream about fighting Slade
- Soon thereafter the Titans are contacted by Slade who reveals that he has a Chronoton Detonator (a device that stops time) and that he plans to use it
- the Titans track him to Pier 41 where they do not find him or the detonator but are attacked by a bunch of his robot assistants; Robin is moving in overdrive and despite the fact that his teammates seem perfectly capable he takes out everyone of the robots himself
- Robin is way too keyed up and a bit out of control
- unsure of what to do next the Titans eventually turn to Starfire's allergy to Chromium, which is one of the components of the detonator, to track it down
- as they race through the sewers after a boat with the detonator and some of Slade's robots, Robin is separated from the others and gets into a fight with Cinder Block which eventually leads to an encounter with Slade
- while Robin and Slade fight the other Titans catch up to the boat and get their hands on the detonator; Cyborg attempts to defuse it but in the end it turns out to be a fake; it was all a trap and the purpose of it was to get the other Titans infected with nanobots
- Robin is then given an ultimatum; Slade wants Robin to be his apprentice; if he says no then Slade will kill his friends using the nanobots in their bloodstreams; Robin agrees to become Slade's apprentice and in the last scene is shown donning a new uniform similar to the one that Slade wears
- definitely another Robin-centric episode, or more accurately a Robin-Slade-centric episode
- Starfire's sneezes were explosive; there was this cute moment where Starfire sneezed when Cyborg was trying to defuse the detonator; Raven enclosed Starfire's head in a bubble so that her sneeze wouldn't impact the detonator; Starfire's hair looked all messed up immediately afterward but a couple seconds later it was back to normal
- pretty good on the whole but not as good on the character moments, really hoping that Robin seems a little more human after part 2; if any of the Titans could stand to seem more human it is definitely Robin; he seems a little too guarded and lacking in emotional moments
UnREAL 1.01
Return
- heard about this show on Pop Culture Happy Hour and possibly on WTF when Constance Zimmer was on
- wasn't too taken by the show at first but about 15-20 minutes in to the show it started to get interesting
- the central part of the show and what I see as the most interesting part of the show is the relationship between Rachel and Quinn
- Rachel continues to work on the show as a producer where she flamed out or melted down in the previous season because she has to; they have power over her; at the same time she knows she has a talent for manipulating people and getting the most out the people on the show while simultaneously being disgusted by what she is able to accomplish
- Quinn is the executive producer of the show so in theory she holds all the cards but she doesn't because she is beholden to Chet, the show's creator; she does what she has to stay in his good graces which on this episode looks like she allows him to use her sexually and presumably it isn't the first time; she knows that Rachel is good for the show but that doesn't keep her from pushing her around; ultimately I think she sees something in Rachel that reminds her of herself
- I didn't laugh very much but the what-what-what scene totally got me
- 10 minutes in I wasn't sure if I would be watching any more of this show but by 20 minutes in it was really starting to get its hooks into me; I think I'm in for the long haul which at this point means the rest if season 1 (10 episodes) which is all that's available on Hulu for now
---
- on second thought I've been thinking about it and I'm starting to wonder if my first reading of Quinn and Chet's relationship is mistaken; I believe this is supposed to be the 4th season of the show (Everlasting); maybe they have a romantic or sexual relationship; even though he seems to be calling the shots when they are doing it in her office maybe that's just the way it looks
- towards the end of the episode there is a scene of them, she is sitting on his lap, that moment makes me think that their relationship is a little more complicated than I initially thought; hopefully this will be something that was explored in future episodes of season 1
- heard about this show on Pop Culture Happy Hour and possibly on WTF when Constance Zimmer was on
- wasn't too taken by the show at first but about 15-20 minutes in to the show it started to get interesting
- the central part of the show and what I see as the most interesting part of the show is the relationship between Rachel and Quinn
- Rachel continues to work on the show as a producer where she flamed out or melted down in the previous season because she has to; they have power over her; at the same time she knows she has a talent for manipulating people and getting the most out the people on the show while simultaneously being disgusted by what she is able to accomplish
- Quinn is the executive producer of the show so in theory she holds all the cards but she doesn't because she is beholden to Chet, the show's creator; she does what she has to stay in his good graces which on this episode looks like she allows him to use her sexually and presumably it isn't the first time; she knows that Rachel is good for the show but that doesn't keep her from pushing her around; ultimately I think she sees something in Rachel that reminds her of herself
- I didn't laugh very much but the what-what-what scene totally got me
- 10 minutes in I wasn't sure if I would be watching any more of this show but by 20 minutes in it was really starting to get its hooks into me; I think I'm in for the long haul which at this point means the rest if season 1 (10 episodes) which is all that's available on Hulu for now
---
- on second thought I've been thinking about it and I'm starting to wonder if my first reading of Quinn and Chet's relationship is mistaken; I believe this is supposed to be the 4th season of the show (Everlasting); maybe they have a romantic or sexual relationship; even though he seems to be calling the shots when they are doing it in her office maybe that's just the way it looks
- towards the end of the episode there is a scene of them, she is sitting on his lap, that moment makes me think that their relationship is a little more complicated than I initially thought; hopefully this will be something that was explored in future episodes of season 1
Friday, July 1, 2016
Daredevil 2.13
A Cold Day in Hell's Kitchen
- Season Finale
- disappointing; it felt like they crammed too much into this single episode
- there were some "happy" coincidences at or towards the end (1 - Frank/Punisher showing up to help out, 2 - Stick showing up to take down Nobu) that just seemed a little too convenient for me
- Matt's insistence that Black Sky is a myth grated on my nerves (as it has in previous episodes) and his profession of love for Elektra just before they go out on the roof top to fight the Hand made me groan and roll my eyes (it seemed forced)
- it felt like they were fast forwarding through a number of things
- still pissed about the fact that they killed off Ben Urich in Season 1, he was a pivotal character and a great actor was playing the part
- I don't have a problem with the dircetion they have Karen headed in but it really isn't impressing me either
- the editor at the Bulletin is a poor substitute for Ben Urich
- I like how they had twin story lines througout this season (1) Punisher (2) Elektra but there was much stumbling along the way
- on the whole this season had its moments but it started slowly and ended badly, and it isn't so much the content as how it was told in a very rushed way; overall C+ but the ending is more like a D+
- Season Finale
- disappointing; it felt like they crammed too much into this single episode
- there were some "happy" coincidences at or towards the end (1 - Frank/Punisher showing up to help out, 2 - Stick showing up to take down Nobu) that just seemed a little too convenient for me
- Matt's insistence that Black Sky is a myth grated on my nerves (as it has in previous episodes) and his profession of love for Elektra just before they go out on the roof top to fight the Hand made me groan and roll my eyes (it seemed forced)
- it felt like they were fast forwarding through a number of things
- still pissed about the fact that they killed off Ben Urich in Season 1, he was a pivotal character and a great actor was playing the part
- I don't have a problem with the dircetion they have Karen headed in but it really isn't impressing me either
- the editor at the Bulletin is a poor substitute for Ben Urich
- I like how they had twin story lines througout this season (1) Punisher (2) Elektra but there was much stumbling along the way
- on the whole this season had its moments but it started slowly and ended badly, and it isn't so much the content as how it was told in a very rushed way; overall C+ but the ending is more like a D+
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