American Horror Story Season 1

I don't even know how to start this post.  This show is odd.  No, that's not quite right.  Saying it's odd is like if I said Brian Wilson kind of likes attention.  No, saying it is odd is a gross understatement.

Is it good?  Hell no.  This show is disjointed, full of character inconsistencies, fake scares, and worst of all, not at all scary.  I mean it's not scary AT ALL.  

Is it enjoyable?  Hell yeah.  It's unintentionally funny (I think), it's shocking, and you can't help but keep watching what happens next.  I hesitate to recommend this show, simply because it is not a good show by traditional standards of grading television.  I mean I can't even describe the show, that's how weird it is.

I'll attempt.  There's a character named Rubber Man, who is dressed in a skin-tight black latex from head to toe.  It's some kind of weird sex thing.  But that's not the point.  There's a fucking character named Rubber Man on this show.

There's the Harmon family.  The family consists of Dr. Ben Harmon, the world's worst psychiatrist we later find out, Vivien, and their daughter, Violet.  

Connie Britton, who plays Vivien, is given almost nothing in the entire season, so I find it not surprising she left the show.  I'll sum up everything she does in the show.  She is always wanting to leave the house, and she always fails.  There's something else that happens, but I'd consider that a spoiler.  

Dr. Harmon, played by Dylan McDermott, cheated on his wife and the family moves to California for a fresh start.  The daughter is kind of an edgy girl who usually resists doing whatever her parents tell her to.  She inexplicably wants to stay in the house, because the writers need her to want to stay in the house.

The best part of this show, by far, is the history of the house.  I am compelled to figure out the history of the house.  That's the reason I tune in every time.  I want to see the murders, the history, the obvious references to famous murders.  If this show does one thing good, it's giving you a house that you can tell is haunted from the beginning and you want to figure out its history. Unfortunately, the more you figure out about the house, the less interesting the show becomes.

I chose ultimately not to do spoilers, because quite frankly, I can't take the risk that you read on past where I would indicate spoilers.  I am afraid you won't watch the show because of the spoilers or choose to watch it because of it, when those spoilers would be the reason the show is interesting.

Should you watch this show?  I'd at least suggest you watch the pilot.  It'll succeed in one of three ways.  One, you're drawn in to figuring out the history of the house.  (I'll admit no one really gives a shit what happens to the Harmons most of the show - They are the weak link).  Two, you think it's so bad, that you can't stop watching. (My experience) Three, you get to experience one of the worst pilots I have ever seen.  (I think it's one of the worst ever personally)

Whether you watch it, that's up to you.  I'm not going to recommend it though.  I'm not responsible for the actions of the readers.

The Sopranos: "Denial, Anger, Acceptance"

This is a weekly feature.  I'm reviewing The Sopranos episodes starting from the beginning.  This is the third episode of the first season.  

Programming note: My plan was to do this every Sunday. but I missed last week's.  This was posted on a Monday after another Sunday I missed due to the NCAA tournament.  So I will be posting episode 4 this Wednesday, and Episode 5 this Sunday.  Afterward, it'll return to its weekly programming.  I'm just catching up on the weeks I missed.

Past Episodes
Pilot
46 Long

The title is a direct reference to the looming and inevitable death of Jackie Aprile.  They are the typical stages of grief that a person goes through for a person's death.  Tony covers them all in this episode, although the transition was so seamless, I didn't really realize it.

First, Tony denies that Jackie can die as he took chemotherapy for three weeks and "not one hair on his head" fell.  He doesn't believe Jackie can die as Tony has built him as a larger than life figure.  Then he cusses out Dr. Mefli for next to no reason and walks out on the session.  In the last scene, he's sadly accepted it as Jackie barely notices Tony's existence.

That storyline also gives us the memorable scene where the stripper comes in dressed as a nurse and her boobs pop out.  It's clear that the nurse is no ordinary nurse, but the first time I watched I pretty much had the same reaction as Jackie.  It's also hilarious.  It seems like a thing Tony would do as well.

As far as the Meadow and her friend storyline goes, it definitely shows when it was made.  Was Adderall not a thing then I guess?  That's the go-to drug for needing to study a large amount of material in a short amount of time nowadays.  Anyway, that was pretty realistic and gave Jaime-Lynn Sigler something to do.  (As good of an actress as she is, they have to do something with her)

I'm pretty sure that storyline was created for another reason.  The pay-off to that storyline is when Christopher is getting beat up and is convinced he'll die at the hands of the hit-men   The hit-men try to tell Christopher, it's from Junior, but he's crying and telling them he's sorry he sold the speed to Tony's daughter.  The joke being that Chris thinks Tony found out about him selling speed to Meadow and would kill him over it.  It's pretty funny.

Livia Soprano gets almost nothing to do here, but the little they give here has way bigger consequences than anything else in this episode.  She basically sends Brendan to his death.  I'm not sure I picked up on it the first time I watched it (forgive me, I'm slow on stuff like that), but she definitely not so subtly hinted at killing Brendan and beating up Christopher without really saying it when talking to Junior.

By bigger consequences, I mean it escalates the Junior and Tony conflict that will remain the rest of the season.  And just in case we felt bad about Brendan getting shot, they made him extra unlikable in this episode by having him hit on two high schoolers about as sleazy as someone can.  (Hitting on high schoolers at his age is already sleazy. He somehow upped the ante)

I also missed this the first time, because again I'm slow on this stuff and there's a lot of plot to take in, but this brings about the motels in future episodes.  I know one episode is almost exclusively in a motel (poker game) so that explains how they managed to do that.

Deaths (New Feature)
Brendan - We don't really feel any sympathy for him, because he's not a likable character.

Surprise Guest Appearances
There were zero famous people in this episode, but half the time Ned Eisenberg was in a scene, I kept wondering where I'd seen him before.  Then it clicked and he reminded by of John Cazale, who I knew was dead so I was more confused.  The beard certainly didn't help.

Quotes
"Listen you weirdo fuck..." (I just love the delivery) - Paulie to Ariel, the Hasidic Jew who refused to divorce Shlomo's daughter.

"Fuck that.  This is how I say nothing!" *Starts hitting Ariel in head with bell* How's that for nothing?" - Also Paulie in same scene

"Like the cop would be calling this asshole sir if the fucking cameras weren't around?" - Chris commenting on COPS

"Trees.. ducks... who the fuck are you, Ranger Rick?" - Tony to Dr. Melfi

"We both made our choices.  I'm fine with mine." - Charmaine to Carmela about choosing their current husbands

"My son was right.  I've created a living gollum." - Shlomo to Tony

"Hi Jack.  Bye Jack." - Mikey before he wacks Brendan

Procedural Shows

Before reading this, I suggest you read the introduction to this site where I say what I'm doing.  

Previous Sections
The Shows That Changed Television
Quirky Comedy
Unconventional Drama
Classic Comedy
British TV Shows
Supernatural

The average TV watching person loves the type of show this post is about.  It allows them to easily view a show out of order, whenever they want, and most of the time, the season doesn't really matter either.  Also, it's not a comedy.

It's a procedural show.  A problem is presented at the beginning of the episode, the entirety of the episode is spent solving that problem, and the end is the solution of the problem.  There aren't really season-long arcs.

I'll use Wikipedia's definition of a procedural show if that wasn't clear enough: "Self-contained episodes also make it easier for viewers to return to a show if they have missed some episodes."  

I'm not really a fan of this format.  These shows were hurt most by Netflix in my opinion.  While I can see people watching a bunch of Law & Order episodes in a row if they are bored, nothing really pulls you in strongly to watch an episode.  Breaking Bad makes you want to watch every episode as soon as you can.  Law & Order?  Not so much.

If it sounds like I'm picking on Law & Order, I'm really not.  I've seen quite a few episodes and it's on this list so I'm a fan.  It pretty much created CSI, NCIS, and all other crime procedural shows.

I've gone on explaining this enough, so I'll just jump in and list the five shows I have picked out.  A important disclaimer is that these labels I give the show aren't necessarily strict so if you are somehow offended by this characterization, well, first off, analyze your life cause this isn't worth being upset over. Secondly, I haven't seen the show you're talking about most likely so if it's not a procedural, whoops?  

Law & Order (1990-2010)
Law & Order wasn't the first "procedural show" I got into - that would be CSI: Crime Scene Investigation - but it did pretty much create the genre.  I don't plan on watching all 20 seasons, because I don't love the show that much.  It's a good show to watch in your free time.  It's weird.  I never come away blown away by the show, yet I never come away disappointed.  It's adequate television.

I'll be watching the first eight seasons.  Why that rather arbitrary number you ask?  Well, quite simply, those are the only seasons on Netflix.  Eight seasons pretty much covers the 1990s, and I've seen quite a few re-runs of the 2000s episodes that I feel like I would have a good crash course on Law & Order history.

Is it odd that I find the changing of characters one of the most interesting things about Law & Order?  This is the only show I can think of that is watched due to its concept and not the characters.  I suppose Sam Wasterson comes in and slightly changes that (Jerry Orbach has an argument as well).  But most of these characters last a few seasons and then you have to adjust to a new one.  And people still watch the show.

The concept of the show is the law side of things and the order side of things (THAT'S THE NAME OF THE SHOW!).  The law features the district attorney, the executive A.D.A. and his assistant.  The order side features the two detectives and their commander.  To give an idea of the overhaul of characters, so far Chris Noth has remained the entirety of three seasons, but his partner has changed three times.  And he leaves after the fourth season.  The commander has also changed.  On the law side, Adam Schiff remains for 10 seasons.  Michael Moriarty has been the executive A.D.A the entire time, but his assistant has changed already.

Basically, that's six key positions in the show and only three have the same characters after just three seasons.  After four, the lone remaining original character is the district attorney, Adam Schiff.  I can't think of another show that could do that and still have the necessary ratings to remain a TV show.

Anyway, that's enough ink spilled on Law & Order (but not really - I'm on a computer, I just really wanted to say that).  I'm on Season 4, Episode 8.

Bones (2005-present)
So this show is about as light-hearted as a show can possibly get.  Everything about this show should make me hate this show.  But I can't hate it.  I actually like the show.  It's pretty enjoyable.  I like the characters.  Most importantly perhaps, I like David Boreanz.  I mean I liked him before I got into Buffy, but yeah having watched Buffy, I definitely like him more.  It's impossible not to now see him as Angel.

Pysch (2006-present) (Updated: I was correct about the procedural part, but USA shows get its own category for their... uniqueness)
Man, this show just looks like I'd enjoy it.  I've never seen the show, but it just looks like it's fun to watch.  It's got a really good rating on IMDB (8.4/10) and I've heard positive things from my friends about the show.  It's a USA Network show so I'm pretty positive about this categorization. If you've never seen a USA Network show, they are the epitome of allowing viewers to pop in whenever they want to watch an episode.

Updated: I've seen one season and I love this show.

Burn Notice (2007-present) (Updated: This is now in a different category - USA Shows)

Sigh... I have nothing to say.  I think it's overacted, with stupid plotting, and annoying voiceovers.  I can't tell you why it's listed here.  I would try if it wasn't impossible.  I'm not encouraging anyone to watch this show.

Law and Order: SVU (1999-present)
So... if you've ever accidentally caught a day-long marathon of this show, you understand.  I never mean to watch a bunch of episodes, but hey the next episodes on and it looks interesting already.

Anyway, this show is probably better than the original.  At least, I've been blown away by certain episodes, it has the same main characters for most of its run, and it goes farther in developing those characters.

The material is more serious, the stakes seem higher... everything about this show is just better than the original.  Perhaps I like Wasterson or Orbach more, but Law & Order didn't get me to care too much about their personal lives like this show does.

Updated
I've only added one extra show to this stable and that would be Castle.  This show wouldn't even be on my radar if it wasn't on Netflix and didn't star Nathan Fillion.  Those are the only reasons that show is on this list.

USA Shows
This is a separate, unique category on my Google Docs page, but USA shows are essentially procedurals from what I have seen so it's appropriate that I just post them here as well.  As from above, I plan to watch both Pysch and Burn Notice.  Pysch has been started and it's more fun than I anticipated.  You need fun, well-written shows like this.  I haven't disliked an episode yet.

Also on this list are Suits and White Collar.  I've been specifically told not to watch White Collar so I'm not sure when I'll get to that show.  Suits, on the other hand, I've only seen positive things.  It'll be a while until I get to that and I don't write about any procedural shows so you'll probably not hear about it until I update these posts again in 2015.

Overall
This is a section that will be largely ignored.  There's not many TV shows on this list and for that I'm glad.  I watch these shows sparingly and it will take a while for me to get through them.  For instance, I probably won't finish Law & Order Season 4 for months.  I just randomly decide to start viewing an episode.

(I realized CSI: Crime Scene Investigation applies here, but I've seen so many episodes that I just left it off the list.  It's essentially already watched.  And really if you've seen one of these episodes, you've seen all of them.  I've seen like 50 of them)

I haven't decided what comes after Law & Order.  I might just do Law & Order: SVU because the original ends in 1998 (at least for what I'm watching) and SVU starts in 1999.  That just seems like a perfect flow in terms of timeline.  I might watch Burn Notice, because I hate myself.  I might watch Pysch next because it's probably the best show on this list.  I don't see a scenario where I watch Bones next though.

Anyway, I have probably a year to figure that out.  I have just one category left and that category is "Other."  Either a certain category got too large or I literally thought it didn't apply to them, these are shows essentially without a category.

Bates Motel Pilot

I love the streak that television is on right now.  Now A&E is adding an original series that looks like it has immense potential?  I'm all for it.  Screw Fox, CBS, NBC, and ABC.  The only quality shows on those networks are comedies for the most part.  So if A&E wants to follow in the footsteps of AMC, please do it.

The pilot wasn't perfect, and I'll voice some complaints later in this post, but it is without question good television.  There was this creeping sense of dread throughout this whole episode and it's not just because you know the end result for Norman Bates.

I'll confess two things before I continue: I don't really like horror movies.  It's not my thing.  Also, I've never seen Psycho, although I have seen the iconic scene and I am aware of Bates' modus operandi.

This is the second true horror television series I will have ever watched.  American Horror Story, through five episodes, is funnier than it is scary and I don't think the creators intended that to be the case.  This show is full on a horror show as I don't think I laughed once though.

The performance of Vera Farmiga is absolutely phenomenal.  She plays the part of an overbearing (to the extreme), jealous, caring, and straight up attention-seeking mother seamlessly.  There's a seen where she puts herself down, obviously so Norman will say something good about it.  I hate that so incredibly much.  There's also a very creepy sexual undertone between the mother and son.  

The son is played well by Freddie Highmore, except his voice bothers me.  It's a weird accent and it's off-putting.  He does nail the shy and reserved guy who, on the inside, could be murderous as fuck.  It's pretty clear in the beginning his transition will be slow and steady so don't expect him to randomly go psycho on anybody.  

Now for some problems with this show.  First off, what in the hell with every girl on screen fawning over Norman, including his OWN mother?  (I'm aware the latter is pretty central to the story, just making a point).  So he sits on a bench waiting for the bus and BOOM five girls come up to him and start flirting hardcore immediately. Then his teacher tells him to stay after class and not so subtly indicates she wants him.

Norman doesn't even have to do anything.  He has no game.  I don't understand female attractiveness to guys at all, but I'm pretty sure every girl in the school won't just throw themselves at him.  He's got a weird vibe to him and pretty sure girls would be slightly put off by that.

Also, this is a small town I believe.  And apparently they have a night club for teenagers.  I don't really understand how that party came to fruition, because even if I accept that the small town did have an awesome nightclub, why are high school students in there?  They can't be in there.  There's an age limit.  And if that's at a house, then I guess the creators missed that most high school students are broke.  (They could have basically made the same point in that scene and made it look like a realistic high school party so I don't understand.)

Anyway, those are my two complaints, one minor and the other slightly major in my opinion.  (I can kind of guess where the major problem is headed as well which would make me have less of a problem with it).

There's also a pretty enticing cliffhanger that I want to find more about.

In summary, Farmiga steals the show and drives the episode.  I wasn't really looking to add a show, but I will be watching the rest of the first season.

Grade - B+

The Sopranos: "46 Long"

This is a weekly feature.  I'm reviewing The Sopranos episodes starting from the beginning.  This is the second episode of the first season.

Past Episodes
Pilot

This is a tightly packed, plot-filled episode that works wonderfully.  The first scene features Tony and his fellow mob members counting loads of cash while watching a 60 Minutes-style TV program about a former mafia member who decided to tell all.  He pretty much says the theme of the entire television show by noting that the mob has seen the best of times and is on the decline.

Then Chris and his partner Brandon decide to hijack the wrong truck.  A stubborn Chris shows how he wants to skip the "earning your stripes" stage of being a mafia member and be a made man already.

Junior demands $15,000 from the guys, which of course they have to pay.  But Chris and Brandon aren't happy with this.  Boy, is Brandon an idiot.  First, he says to Tony that everybody knows Tony's the real head of the mafia at this point while insulting Tony's idol, Jackie Aprile.  Then he decides to actually go through with a hijacking of another truck protected by Junior to... prove a point?  I'm not sure how he thought that was a good idea.

The other storyline is Livia Soprano slowly making it impossible to keep her in her house.  She accidentally starts a fire (while displaying some overt racism in the process), basically forces out the maid Tony hires (while displaying some overt racism in the process), and then runs over her friend on accident when dropping her off (no racism here).

There were some good character beats here.  Livia accusing her maid of stealing just because she was black showed a lot of who she is as a person.  Also, she suspected the black mail woman of stealing as well without actually outright saying it.

The more I watch this, the more despicable Livia Soprano is as a person.  It's telling when Tony is barely able to conjure a happy memory of her mother, which consists of his father injuring himself.  Also, she keeps referring to her husband as a "saint," which Tony told us last episode was clearly not the case.

Also, Chris being an entitled prick has continued in this episode.  He thinks everything should just be given to him.  He thinks he deserves to be made.  This does not help his image, which is that he is immature.

I almost forgot to mention the bit where the worker at the strip club is unable to work a basic phone.  It all leads to the last scene where Tony flips out and starts beating him with the phone, which seemed overly dramatic and a gross overreaction.  But, hey, that's what happens when you work for a mob boss.

Surprise Guest Appearances
Mike Epps!  One of the two gay guys who stole the science teacher's car.

Brody from The Wire!  If I didn't already know Brody pretty much never left Baltimore, I'd say this was Brody a few years prior.  (Also he's supposed to be 15 in The Wire)

Quotes (New Feature)

"I phoned your house.  Some operator answered the phone, I couldn't understand a word she was saying" - Livia
"Ma, how many times do I gotta tell you, that's not an operator, that's an answering machine." - Tony

"Fucking expresso, cappuccino - We invented this shit.  And all these other cocksuckers are getting rich off it." - Paulie

"You accord this little old lady an almost mystical ability to wreak havoc." - Dr. Melfi

"This day and age, who wants the fucking job?" - Tony, about being the Head of the mob

"It's too bad they don't have a telethon for fuckface-itis, huh?  They find a cure yet?" - Tony, to Mikey

"These blacks - who knows when they're gonna take it the wrong way?" - Livia displaying some casual racism

"You excited about coming to live with us, hon?" - Retirement community worker
(Long silence)

"He caught some friendly fire or something and he's gone" - Chris
"Oh, fuck" - Tony

"Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!" - Silvio

Grade - A-

Supernatural Genre

Before reading this, I suggest you read the introduction to this site where I say what I'm doing.  

Previous Sections
The Shows That Changed Television
Quirky Comedy
Unconventional Drama
Classic Comedy
British TV Shows

This section of TV shows is relatively easy to understand.  It's a television show where there is a force beyond scientific understanding at play.  Simply put, these are shows with ghosts, aliens, and all kinds of other manifestations of that nature.

I mentioned that British TV Shows was a section I would finish pretty fast since barely any British TV shows last all that long.  Well, this is the direct opposite.  Most of these shows are long-running and the first TV show is hard to watch, because it is a show that has aged terribly.

I'm going to start in chronological order, starting with the TV show I am in the middle of watching.

Star Trek (1966-1969)
Well, I don't really know where to start.  I'm watching this the same way a movie buff would need to watch The Birth of a Nation.  Yes, it's not really good in modern terms.  Yes, it's definitely not politically correct in modern terms either.  But it changed television into what it is today.

Part of the problem is that many shows do what Star Trek did first.  So the originality aspect of Star Trek that made it so great is simply another cliched show from my perspective.  So let me run down the many problems that I've run into while watching this show:

Perhaps the worst effect any TV show can have on its viewer: boredom.  I constantly check to see if the episode is almost over.  It's a chore to watch most of these episodes.  I do it, because I want to appreciate television history, dammit.  But seriously, it seems like a lot of the episodes have a whole lot of what I call "filler" - pointless bullshit that doesn't advance the plot.

The acting is incredibly over the top from William Shatner and whoever the villian is that week.  Leonard Nimoy and DeForrest Kelley are actually great actors that only highlight how bad Shatner is at acting.  This is a problem that I can't blame on the time period, quite frankly.  Good actors existed in 1966 right?

Things I can blame on the time period: the sometimes blatant sexism evident in some episodes.  It's pretty bad as all the women just fall for Captain Kirk for pretty much no reason.  When I say all the women, I mean ALL the women.  Is William Shatner really that attractive?  I have no idea.  When stuff like that happens to men like Shatner and Dennis Leary in Rescue Me, I'm always so confused, because man do I not see it.

The special-effects are out-dated sure, but that has never bothered me before.  I don't know the writing just seems way out-of-date.  I'm trying, but I am struggling.  I'll have a post up about Star Trek whenever I finish.

Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987-1994)
My interest in Star Trek was piqued because of the cult fandom it produced.  The reason I ended up choosing to watch it was because of this series.  I haven't seen an episode, but by all accounts, this one is actually good.  Like good in 2012 not good in 1966 only.

Really I want to watch this for two reasons: Patrick Stewart and LeVar Burton.  Stewart, because of X-Men really, and he just seems like a fantastic actor.  Already he's got a point over the older show because the leading man can actually act.  Burton, because, well any Community fans out there?  (That's the only reason by the way - He appears on episode of Community as LeVar Burton)

Also, Wil Wheaton hasn't turned out half bad.  Not all child stars become crazy lunatics.

X-Files (1993-2002)
I have never seen an episode of X-Files.  However, this is one of those shows I go into pretty much knowing its awesome.  There's a special value to finding a show when it starts and then watching it be one of the best on television (Here's hoping The Americans is that!).  But it's also nice being able to start at the beginning knowing the show is headed to a wonderful place.

And that's where X-Files is.  I haven't seen Californication, so I'm not familiar with David Duchovny's acting credentials, but for some reason he annoys me.  It's the representation of what I imagine his character is like in Californication and that imaginative character annoys me, so in turn he annoys me.  Sense, this makes none.  I know.

Six Feet Under (2001-2005)
I want to watch this really for one reason: Michael C. Hall.  Namely, I've heard he plays a vastly different character than he does on Dexter.  I mean that makes sense since Dexter is one of the most original characters created.  But if I thought I appreciated his acting on Dexter, I think I'm going to be blown away on this show.

I have no idea if he stars or is a supporting player, but I don't really care.  Also, I'm under the impression that it's actually a good TV show, which is important.

Supernatural (2005-   )
Here's a show that I've wanted to watch since it first aired.  I never got around to watching a single episode somehow.  This blog has given me the motivation necessary to watch this show.... in like a year.  Plus, some twitter friends of mine are die-hard watchers of this show who've recommended it to me.

The Guild (2007- )
Well, this is awkward.  I have basically no idea what this show is about.  I just found out it was a comedy and it also is apparently a web series.  I just assumed it was on television since it's on Netflix.  Anyway, I'm a fan of Felicia Day so I'll give this series a shot.

An important thing to note by the way is that my sections are meant to be general so if a TV show doesn't appear to belong in a section, I don't really care.  I'm just trying to organize my TV shows into a coherent way for me to easily view all of them at one time or another.

Anyway, I'm forcing myself through Star Trek, which as I said, has aged pretty awful.  The most excited I am for any of these series has to be Six Feet Under, which I've wanted to watch for a while.  Next in line would have to be X-Files, a highly regarded show.

Update on Current Shows: (Episode listed is first episode I haven't seen yet)
American Horror Story - Season 1, Episode 3 - Very shitty so far, heard season 2 is good, might stick with it

Freaks and Geeks - Season 1, Episode 11 -  I'm dragging this show out as long as possible.  Excellent.

The Simpsons - Season 1, Episode 8 - Haven't seen this show in a while.  Might attempt an episode tonight.

Sons of Anarchy - Season 2, Episode 4 - Still a very good show.  Surprised they've maintained the quality of the first season.

The Sopranos - Season 2, Episode 11 - I will finish season 2 at some point in my life...

Next post: Probably episode reaction to the second episode of season 1 of The Sopranos, though I may think of something for tomorrow.

The Sopranos: Pilot

About five minutes ago, I decided that for shows that changed television, I'll do episode-by-episode comments and reactions from myself.  The reason is because these shows are very different from any other show and each episode on its own warrants a full blogpost.

I begin with The Sopranos, because that is the show I am already in the middle of watching.  I stopped before I reached the end of season 2 for some reason and have not seen an episode in three months.  So instead of just dropping in on the episode I stopped, I watched the pilot for the second time to kind of get back in my mode where I want to watch Sopranos episodes.

It worked.  In fact, it worked so well, that it spurred me to do episode reactions.  Since I have the benefit of knowing how season 1 plays out, I feel it allows me more room to write.  As of right now, while I watch an episode a week, I'll also try and finish the episodes I haven't seen.  For example, by the time I reach Season 2, I kind of hope to have finished most of the series since that is 12 weeks from now.

Anyway, this post has obvious spoilers, not just for this episode but up until I stopped watching.  I probably won't post much about season 2, but I know I will post at least one thing about it in this episode.

This is not a typical Sopranos episode at all.  The set-up is different, there's more dark humor than any other episode, and I'd say 90% of the episode is about Tony.  Somehow, the remaining 10% are filled with only relevant details.  It seems like nothing unimportant happens in this episode.

 We find out a lot about Tony, none of it inconsistent with later representations.  I'm always impressed when shows have such a good grasp on their characters this early on.  Granted, they don't really give enough material to the other characters for that to happen, but every single character seems accurately written from the start.

To use an example, Meadow Soprano is pretty much the stereotypical teenager daughter in this episode, but everything she does in this episode is in-character to a tee.  Now, whether the writers had fully grasped the character at this point or if they figured it out later, it doesn't really matter.

The ducks representing Tony's family was way too-spot on to me.  I don't think psychology works like that.  That's a minor qualm as far as problems with episodes go.  Another psychology related thing I wonder is if people have dreams that symbolize what is going on with their life?  I personally have never had a dream where that was a case.  I don't know, it feels like it is something that only happens in movies and TV shows.  It seems like a pretty quick and easy way to show character details/development.

The little amount of screen time that Chris gets impressively shows a great amount of character detail.  Chris shows initiative and kills a man before he is supposed to.  He wants desperately the credit for this.  This is a recurring theme with Chris as he always wants to skip the part where he pays his dues.  Also, Chris and selling his life story is already brought up in this episode.

The part where Carmelo shows little concern for Tony at the hospital honestly seems out-of-character to me, the lone time I felt that way.  The priest/Carmela episode in Episode 5 is foreshadowed here as well.

The strange and complicated Artie/Tony friendship is explored her, a storyline that will be often repeated.  Actually Tony destroying the guy who owes him money by using different means than money is foreshadowed when he later does it to Robert Patrick in Season (I figure you'll remember the actor better than the name)

This is just a fantastic episode that works a lot better the second time.  Not that it wasn't great on first viewing, but knowing how far ahead the writers were thinking certainly improves the show.

So this is the basic framework of how my episode reactions will go.  And then I'll end the post with a letter grade, because... I don't know why, but I'm doing it anyway.

Quotes

"It's good to be in something from the ground floor. I came too late for that and I know. But lately, I'm getting the feeling that I came in at the end. The best is over."

Here we go. Here comes the Prozac! 

I'll have more quotes in future episodes when I write them down as I'm writing.
Grade: A

House of Cards Season Review

Let me preface this with saying that I overall enjoyed the first season of House of Cards and will be tuning in to watch the second season, whenever that comes out.  Also, this review will contain spoilers for anybody who hasn't watched the show.

This show is frustrating to me, because I look at how well-shot it is and I see how well-acted it is across the board, and yet I find myself not enamored with the show.  Something is missing.  Something that isn't obvious with shows this well-acted and well-shot.  The answer is the writing.  Creator Beau Williamson is not that great a writer.

It snuck up on me, but the things that are seen on the surface hide the very mediocre writing.  And almost nothing on this show is surprising, with the exception of the big twist, which I hated (more on that later).

Here's an interesting point to think about: Frank Underwood, even if you have no knowledge he was derailing the presidency, is a terrible VP candidate.  He is in charge of a major education bill, which causes a month-long strike.  The bill eventually gets passed, but that wasn't kind of a failure?  He was supposed to keep both sides happy.

Also, he is basically the driving force behind Peter Russo's nomination, which also ends in a huge failure.  And lastly, he helps Russo develop a bill to obtain jobs, which also fails when the votes don't come his way.  In what world is Kevin Spacey's character even remotely considered?  I'll tell you.  The lazy writing of Williamson and staff.

Everything about the newspaper storyline was extremely outdated.  New journalism vs. old journalism. I figured that would be dead by now.  Williamson's about five years too late with that.  I'm pretty certain any credible newspaper has adapted to the online format by now and editors have accepted it.  It's only logical.

Also, it's not great that the two female journalists we know most both apparently slept with guys to get stories to further their careers.  Uh, that's not good and kind of sexist from the writers' perspective.

Lastly, here's the biggest failure: the big twist of Frank killing Peter.  I'm going to ignore the fact that Peter was in the passenger seat, which should, theoretically, set off a huge alarm that he didn't kill himself.  No, that wasn't a big issue for me.

Peter is literally the only likable character on this show that I rooted for.  And now he's gone.  I suppose his girlfriend is likable, but there's really nothing to root for in her storyline.  All of her actions are related to Peter, and I guess we should now root for her in season 2.  Root for what exactly?

This seems like a death where the creative team was like: "Ok, so we need to do something drastic and kill off a likable character.  Then we'll get credit for being willing to kill off major characters."  Oddly, I'm usually a person who would support the killing of a major character, cause then it makes it seem like anybody could die.

However, Russo really didn't have to die.  I realize he's become a liability at this point, but he could have resigned his position as a candidate and then he's no longer a concern for Frank.  Frank's motivation for killing him is kind of unclear so using the fourth-wall, he could have explained why he needed to kill Russo.  It's just odd that a show that uses a fourth-wall doesn't explain a major event like that.

Now that Russo is gone, we, the viewers, are left with nothing.  Does anybody really like Claire?  Firing half her staff, then firing the person she fired half her staff for just because they disagree with her is really endearing.  Does anybody like Zoe?  If you say yes, I'm thinking you're letting Kate Mara's attractiveness overlook her general terribleness as a person.  Don't worry, I suffered that as well for a while.

Speaking of Zoe, her character development was poor.  At first, she's willing to get ahead, screw ethics.  Then out of nowhere, she just wants the truth, because her time as an unethical reporter had come and they needed a new storyline.  There was no transitional phase.  What's odd is they could have easily just had her want to destroy Frank and still remain true to character.  But it appears she wants the truth all of a sudden after not really caring as long as she went up in the world.

Does anybody like Stamper, Underwood's right-hand man?  Oh gee, helping that prostitute get a new life and then using her to destroy Russo makes him likable.  Then the only reason to like Underwood is because Kevin Spacey is playing him.

Man, and I haven't even gotten into the fact that there is no indication Spacey was willing to kill a guy for political gain in the first ten episodes.  He doesn't seem like a guy who would kill a guy and no hints are dropped that he's willing to. Then after he kills the guy, it's like it didn't happen.  Underwood is not deterred.  Remorse or taking the killing harshly would have achieved character consistency with a man who acted in a moment of weakness.

The plan to get Russo to self-destruct and then have the VP quit being the VP to run for governor is just a terrible plan and Frank was pretty lucky that it worked out.  I mean that hasn't happened in 200 years, it'd be pretty foolish to think he could pull that off.  I realize he did, but that's because the writer made it happen.  (At least, they made it clear early on that the VP was not happy being the VP)

I realize this review is almost exclusively on plot, but the acting and the camera work and everything that is usually a problem with a TV show were done beautifully.  The plot is the biggest weakness of this show in my opinion.

After all that, will anyone really believe me when I say I mostly enjoyed the show?  Season 2 might go a long way towards resolving some of these issues, but I was actively rooting for Peter Russo to succeed and then he died and now I have nobody to root for.  The Sopranos had good writers who made you root for Tony despite his awfulness as a person.  House of Cards just doesn't have the writing to make you care too strongly for Frank Underwood to succeed.

Grade: B