True Detective's second season is, in a lot of ways, similar to a sequel to a movie you liked as a kid. There are elements there that remind you why you liked the first movie, but there are much more elements that make you question if the original was even that good to begin with because enough of the same things happen that do not work at all in the sequel. It doesn't necessarily make the original a worse movie, but it stains it.
This is admittedly a weird thing to bring up in a season that, by design, starts from scratch. The actors are different, the setting is different, and even the director is different. But the writer is the same. I may be a little biased because I came to True Detective late. I saw the reviews and I saw all the praise it was getting. I didn't love it. I think my opinion of the show would be much different if I happened to watch it from the beginning with no expectations, but as it stood, I merely liked it.
The problem is that the things that worked in the first season weren't there for the second season. Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrleson were off to other projects and the replacements couldn't match them. McConaughey somehow looks even better in retrospect because some of the dialogue he had to say could only work out of his mouth. Also, Cary Fukanaga, the director who set the mood and tone, had moved on as well.
There's not much I could say about this season that hasn't been said already. The plot was needlessly complicated and ridiculously hard to follow. The dialogue was cringe-worthy at times. The main characters weren't well-written. (It seems unfair to wonder this, but I wonder how Nic Pizzolatto's work would look without world-class actors. What I'm saying basically is that some writers can still make a good movie/TV show without good actors, but Pizzolatto definitely isn't one of them.)
There were some bright spots, most notably Colin Farrell. Farrell played an impossibly written role, where he was an violent, drug abusing, alcoholic who beat the father of his son's bully in front of the son. And he made him somewhat likeable, sympathetic, and while you maybe weren't rooting for him, you certainly hoped he would get better. I dare say few actors could pull off what he did. (In praise of Pizzolatto, this part seems written specifically for Farrell so he could have theoretically known ahead of time that he could make a sympathetic character that on page looks irredeemable).
Rachel McAdams is also very good and she has even less to work with than Farrell. She is a tough, knife-wielding, badass member of law enforcement. So she basically embodies all of the cliche male law enforcement officers except for the knife part. (Actually, her character is a well-worn trope itself right down to the tendency to use a knife.)
Taylor Kitsch is competent though he doesn't really elevate the material. The problem is the material. He seems like a useless character. With the exception of his final scene, which is well-staged and tragic, he could be removed from the show without the show actually losing anything. Do we need to see another homophobic self-hating homosexual? (I'm pretty sure that's a thing that is much more rare than fiction would lead us to believe. Most homophobic people are... just homophobic)
Lastly, Vince Vaugh is unfortunately one of the worst casting decisions possible. He actually does very well in the finale, proving he can actually act. But you shouldn't hire Vince Vaughn and make him a stiff, humorless character who says pretentious shit all the time. I don't know who thought that was a good idea.
Lastly, I think the ending fell flat with me. I don't mind a sad ending, but Ray not being able to send that message to his kid was all kinds of bullshit. He was on the highway and then decided it would be a good idea to go into the woods? Sure good luck with that. And Ani is pregnant? Why? Both men sacrifice themselves for their women? Haven't seen that before.
In all, I think I enjoyed this less than most. Some people, once they adjusted that the second season was not the first, ended up liking it. I wouldn't say I hated it, but some episodes were a slog to get through. I just have a lot of trouble enjoying a show with thin characters with a plot that is impossible to follow.
Grade - C
Wednesday, August 12, 2015
Monday, August 10, 2015
Writing Blind: Twin Peaks S1 (Rewind)
Welcome to a new feature called "Writing Blind." In this series, I will be writing about seasons of television that I watched in the past year or so, but failed to write about at the time. I call it writing blind, because I will be sharing my thoughts months after I have already finished the season. This is both because I want to write about these seasons, but don't have the time to re-watch them and because it is a challenge to hopefully improve my writing.
Twin Peaks' first season is a confusingly alluring season of television. It sticks in your brain. It really doesn't seem like it should be as good as it is. The show is juggling different tones: a murder mystery, a soap opera, a love story (which okay, yeah that's also under soap opera), a slice of small-town America, and what can only be described as psychedelic dreams laced with symbolism. By legacy alone, Twin Peaks should be watched for what it did for television. But it was also a pretty good show.
If Twin Peaks does not seem like your kind of show, don't let that scare. It doesn't seem like my kind of show. I'm not really into David Lynch. I didn't like Mullholland Drive (which, full disclousure, is the only movie I've watched of his. Yes I know I need to go see Blue Velvet immediately). I don't watch soap operas. I don't really like things that just continually throw weird shit at you just so you can say "Wow that was weird."
If there's one false step in the first season, and I know I diverge from a lot of Twin Peaks fans in this opinion, it's the first 30 or so minutes of the show. It's 100 percent because of the acting. The seriousness that the camera is treating the material is juxtaposed with soap opera acting - which is a shade off from the rest of the episodes to my eye. It's not a huge difference, but for some reason I just can't get past it. It's a little more expressive and over-the-top. It's acting to where you can always tell they are acting. That's not always a problem, but it just points me to the falseness of the characters. This is not only a 30 minutes problem, but the entire pilot problem for me. But the end of the episode ends up dropping plot bombs on you every 10 minutes so that's more entertaining.
I honestly think it's just because the situation - the instant reactions of a girl being murdered - is so serious and the acting is clearly ACTING that it blends less well when a new soap opera element is introduced. Almost none of the actors come out that well. The one who comes out best is Grace Zabiskie, playing Sarah Palmer, and I still am unmoved by her tears because she cries in the old movies style and not realistically. (Now that statement might actually get me in trouble here. It's still probably convincing enough for people with kids.) Dana Ashbrook (Bobby Briggs) is never worse than he is in this episode. I came to love Jack Nance's odd delivery, but it still didn't even work for me in retrospect here. And James Marshall, well... never mind I always just kind of tolerated him throughout the series.
However, whatever happened in the first episode that prevented me from embracing the series is gone for the other seven episodes. I can't explain it. It just clicks for me the rest of the way on. Not only is the acting not a weakness past the first episode, it's a strength (for the most part). I don't even know if they do anything differently, but I sure as hell love it.
The glue to the series is unquestionably Special Agent Dale Cooper as played by Kyle MacLachlan. In fact, I don't think he shows up until halfway through the pilot and that could be the answer to my problems in the first 30 minutes. He's just not there and I need Agent Cooper there. He is possibly one of the most unique law enforcement officers in the medium of television, which is no small feat given the large swaths of time dedicated to law enforcement. He is endlessly optimistic, completely devoid of judgment, and incredibly competent. Where you usually expect a character to zig, he tended to zag. For instance, you just don't see an FBI agent go into a small town and seamlessly dictate how the investigation will be conducted. Sheriff Harry S. Truman (who just FITS in with this show really well and is one of my favorite characters despite not having all that much to actually do) understands he's just there to help and respects Cooper. Likewise, Cooper can tell Truman knows what he's doing and respects him equally.
One of the big indicators that Cooper is vital to the series is that he is a part of two of the most delightful and burgeoning relationships that happen as the first season progresses. There's the aforementioned Cooper and Truman relationship which is one of the more surprising and welcome friendships I've ever seen portrayed. The other, of course, is between him and Audrey Horne. There's just a magic between MacLachlan and Sherilyn Fenn in their scenes that enhances the episode. It's a shame off-screen developments caused the writers to abandon that for the second season because it was one of the better parts of the first season.
Leaving aside Maclachlan's performance, which honestly if i squint I could see on different shows, my favorite performance that is distinctly Twin Peaks is definitely from Richard Beymer. Beymer plays his character over-the-top yet somehow still containing a semblance of reality. When performances are generally grandiose and heightened, Beymer provides an example of someone who can pull that off while still seeming like an actual character. The other shining example is oddly enough Piper Laurie as Catherine Martell. I say that because she has one of the roles that somewhat disappears when you look back on the show. But she is certainly giving the most soap opera like performance with her devouring of scenery and she does it so well you don't even care. (Obviously this is under the assumption that a soap opera performance is a bad thing which is an opinion I hold, but if you do not share that opinion, boy you probably LOVE her performance.)
There are a lot of performances to get through and I probably hold an opinion of all of them, which you certainly can't say about every show. Ashbrook either gets better and sinks into his character as the show goes on or I just get used to him. It doesn't really matter to me either way because eventually I grow to like his performance. I always enjoy Ray Wise, who has guest starred in about a million shows. Warren Frost gives probably the most subdued performance of all the actors, but it works all the better for it. James Marshall is as awkward in his eighth episode as his first so I tend to think Ashbrook actually got better, because Marshall never does for me. Joan Chen makes the least impression on me and I didn't really like her performance or her character. Russ Tamblyn (Lawrence Jacoby) is great.
I really liked Everett McGill even though he for some reason seems like the character most likely to fit in on Days of Our Lives (of which I've seen maybe 10 hours total in my life due to haphazardly glancing at when my mom is watching it, which she has done as long as I've been living). It's a sin it took me until now to mention Mädchen Amick (Shelly Johnson) who unfortunately has to act alongside Eric da Re, who is in the running for the worst actor on this series with Marshall. I can't believe two things: that Sheryl Lee never acted before this and that she hasn't had more of a career post-Twin Peaks, because she makes such an impression in such little screen time that you wish you saw her alive. (Because I only have so much space - the rest: Michael Horse as Hawk is awesome, Harry Goaz as Andy is a fantastically terrible actor, and I actually have no opinion on Laura Flynn Boyle for better or worse.)
The interesting thing about this show, when researching it, is how much credit David Lynch gets and how little he actually had to do when the cameras started rolling. He co-wrote the first three episodes and directed the first and third, but other than that he didn't have any direct involvement in the rest. He obviously deserves credit for molding the directing style and helping to formulate what the show would be. But I think Frost wrote almost all of the characters except for Agent Cooper (which by my own admission is a rather important character) This is just an observation and honestly the non-Twin Peaks credits for Frost are so disappointing and just plain bad that it's weird he helmed most of the first season.
I will refrain from giving this a grade for two reasons: an A feels dishonest as I don't really know if my overall feelings would warrant that and the grade is flexible in this case. I think Twin Peaks' first season is a show that gets better every time I watch it. It is the rare show that, first 30 minutes of the pilot excepted, I will never get tired of watching. That is an extremely rare quality in a show and I can count on one hand the number of shows where that applies. Hopefully my words, rather than an inability to given an A, can convey my feelings towards this show.
Playlist
1. "Swimming Stone" - 20syl
2. "Be Above It"- Tame Impala
3. "Wesley's Theory" - Kendrick Lamar
4. "Lonely Soul" - UNKLE feat. Richard Ashcraft
5. "From Hate We Hope" - Steve Mason
One of the big indicators that Cooper is vital to the series is that he is a part of two of the most delightful and burgeoning relationships that happen as the first season progresses. There's the aforementioned Cooper and Truman relationship which is one of the more surprising and welcome friendships I've ever seen portrayed. The other, of course, is between him and Audrey Horne. There's just a magic between MacLachlan and Sherilyn Fenn in their scenes that enhances the episode. It's a shame off-screen developments caused the writers to abandon that for the second season because it was one of the better parts of the first season.
Leaving aside Maclachlan's performance, which honestly if i squint I could see on different shows, my favorite performance that is distinctly Twin Peaks is definitely from Richard Beymer. Beymer plays his character over-the-top yet somehow still containing a semblance of reality. When performances are generally grandiose and heightened, Beymer provides an example of someone who can pull that off while still seeming like an actual character. The other shining example is oddly enough Piper Laurie as Catherine Martell. I say that because she has one of the roles that somewhat disappears when you look back on the show. But she is certainly giving the most soap opera like performance with her devouring of scenery and she does it so well you don't even care. (Obviously this is under the assumption that a soap opera performance is a bad thing which is an opinion I hold, but if you do not share that opinion, boy you probably LOVE her performance.)
There are a lot of performances to get through and I probably hold an opinion of all of them, which you certainly can't say about every show. Ashbrook either gets better and sinks into his character as the show goes on or I just get used to him. It doesn't really matter to me either way because eventually I grow to like his performance. I always enjoy Ray Wise, who has guest starred in about a million shows. Warren Frost gives probably the most subdued performance of all the actors, but it works all the better for it. James Marshall is as awkward in his eighth episode as his first so I tend to think Ashbrook actually got better, because Marshall never does for me. Joan Chen makes the least impression on me and I didn't really like her performance or her character. Russ Tamblyn (Lawrence Jacoby) is great.
I really liked Everett McGill even though he for some reason seems like the character most likely to fit in on Days of Our Lives (of which I've seen maybe 10 hours total in my life due to haphazardly glancing at when my mom is watching it, which she has done as long as I've been living). It's a sin it took me until now to mention Mädchen Amick (Shelly Johnson) who unfortunately has to act alongside Eric da Re, who is in the running for the worst actor on this series with Marshall. I can't believe two things: that Sheryl Lee never acted before this and that she hasn't had more of a career post-Twin Peaks, because she makes such an impression in such little screen time that you wish you saw her alive. (Because I only have so much space - the rest: Michael Horse as Hawk is awesome, Harry Goaz as Andy is a fantastically terrible actor, and I actually have no opinion on Laura Flynn Boyle for better or worse.)
The interesting thing about this show, when researching it, is how much credit David Lynch gets and how little he actually had to do when the cameras started rolling. He co-wrote the first three episodes and directed the first and third, but other than that he didn't have any direct involvement in the rest. He obviously deserves credit for molding the directing style and helping to formulate what the show would be. But I think Frost wrote almost all of the characters except for Agent Cooper (which by my own admission is a rather important character) This is just an observation and honestly the non-Twin Peaks credits for Frost are so disappointing and just plain bad that it's weird he helmed most of the first season.
I will refrain from giving this a grade for two reasons: an A feels dishonest as I don't really know if my overall feelings would warrant that and the grade is flexible in this case. I think Twin Peaks' first season is a show that gets better every time I watch it. It is the rare show that, first 30 minutes of the pilot excepted, I will never get tired of watching. That is an extremely rare quality in a show and I can count on one hand the number of shows where that applies. Hopefully my words, rather than an inability to given an A, can convey my feelings towards this show.
Playlist
1. "Swimming Stone" - 20syl
2. "Be Above It"- Tame Impala
3. "Wesley's Theory" - Kendrick Lamar
4. "Lonely Soul" - UNKLE feat. Richard Ashcraft
5. "From Hate We Hope" - Steve Mason
Wednesday, July 8, 2015
Rewind: 24 S6
Before I watched this season, a vast - VAST - majority of lists listed Season 6 as the worst season of 24. Some had Season 7, some had Season 8, but Season 6 was far and away as near of a consensus as possible the worst season the show had to offer. Too many of these lists preceded this post with "Even the worst season of 24 is good." Because no this season is awful. This is borderline unwatchable. It took me months to watch this season. Every time I was faced with the prospect of watching another episode, it was a struggle to watch.
24 is a weird show and I've probably said this in my other posts on it and will probably say it in future posts as well. It's good for weird reasons basically, reasons that aren't usually at all sustainable over multiple seasons. Is it well-acted? Well not really. Are the characters well-fleshed out? Again, not really. Is it well-plotted? Well, the more you think about it, usually the less sense it makes. Is it well-written? Eh no the dialogue isn't really a strong selling point here either. Well what the fuck makes this a good show? Excitement, twists, Jack Bauer, and good acting from key supporting characters. (I kind of cheated and said it wasn't well-acted, but sometimes it is like George Mason or Charles Logan. Generally speaking though, I don't think it's a reason to watch the show)
Now, excitement and twists are two things that tend to get less rewarding the longer you have a show, especially if you don't have interesting characters. 24 HAD interesting characters. They killed a lot of them off though. Wayne Palmer isn't one. Nadia Yassir isn't one. Milo Pressman isn't one. Neither is Sandra Palmer (do you have remember her?). Bless 24's soul, but how in the hell do you have James Cromwell and Regina King and make both of their characters absolute nothings. James Cromwell, as Jack's father, should have been great. Hell, Cromwell as Jack's evil father should have been a piece of cake. It's James freaking Cromwell. How did they mess that up so badly? Judging from the fact that King is a starring character and showed up in 9 episodes, they clearly had no idea what to do with her.
Then they kill off Curtis Manning in the stupidest way possible. Manning was an underrated character. I don't know how Roger Cross did it, because I can't imagine anything was on the page for him to work with, but I was invested in Curtis Manning. Then, all of a sudden, he becomes so unprofessional that he forces Jack to kill him. Congratulations on being extremely unsubtle about the difficulties with working with someone you hate, 24. (That's unfair; 24 has never been subtle)
I'm going to be honest here. There are many high points in this season that I can point to where I can say I enjoyed it. This was just an absolute trainwreck of a season. Powers Boothe is decent as Vice President Noah Daniels, but like his weirdly obsessive desire to go to war makes no sense. And I am tired of so many characters on this show going against the president for the good of the country. And that happens this entire season. I don't mean go up against in the sense of verbally, I mean like try to take him out.
Anyway, I'll keep watching, because from what I've read, Season 7 is a lot better. Yes, some say it is worse than Season 6, but a lot of other people claim it's a change of pace and that it's better than any of the last three seasons (which granted, so far is like being one of the best Big Bang Theory episodes). In any case, these lists have been generally trustworthy, outside of their inability to prepare me for just how truly bad this season is, and season seven and season eight both seem to have good and redeemable qualities and are far from hard to watch.
Grade - D
24 is a weird show and I've probably said this in my other posts on it and will probably say it in future posts as well. It's good for weird reasons basically, reasons that aren't usually at all sustainable over multiple seasons. Is it well-acted? Well not really. Are the characters well-fleshed out? Again, not really. Is it well-plotted? Well, the more you think about it, usually the less sense it makes. Is it well-written? Eh no the dialogue isn't really a strong selling point here either. Well what the fuck makes this a good show? Excitement, twists, Jack Bauer, and good acting from key supporting characters. (I kind of cheated and said it wasn't well-acted, but sometimes it is like George Mason or Charles Logan. Generally speaking though, I don't think it's a reason to watch the show)
Now, excitement and twists are two things that tend to get less rewarding the longer you have a show, especially if you don't have interesting characters. 24 HAD interesting characters. They killed a lot of them off though. Wayne Palmer isn't one. Nadia Yassir isn't one. Milo Pressman isn't one. Neither is Sandra Palmer (do you have remember her?). Bless 24's soul, but how in the hell do you have James Cromwell and Regina King and make both of their characters absolute nothings. James Cromwell, as Jack's father, should have been great. Hell, Cromwell as Jack's evil father should have been a piece of cake. It's James freaking Cromwell. How did they mess that up so badly? Judging from the fact that King is a starring character and showed up in 9 episodes, they clearly had no idea what to do with her.
Then they kill off Curtis Manning in the stupidest way possible. Manning was an underrated character. I don't know how Roger Cross did it, because I can't imagine anything was on the page for him to work with, but I was invested in Curtis Manning. Then, all of a sudden, he becomes so unprofessional that he forces Jack to kill him. Congratulations on being extremely unsubtle about the difficulties with working with someone you hate, 24. (That's unfair; 24 has never been subtle)
I'm going to be honest here. There are many high points in this season that I can point to where I can say I enjoyed it. This was just an absolute trainwreck of a season. Powers Boothe is decent as Vice President Noah Daniels, but like his weirdly obsessive desire to go to war makes no sense. And I am tired of so many characters on this show going against the president for the good of the country. And that happens this entire season. I don't mean go up against in the sense of verbally, I mean like try to take him out.
Anyway, I'll keep watching, because from what I've read, Season 7 is a lot better. Yes, some say it is worse than Season 6, but a lot of other people claim it's a change of pace and that it's better than any of the last three seasons (which granted, so far is like being one of the best Big Bang Theory episodes). In any case, these lists have been generally trustworthy, outside of their inability to prepare me for just how truly bad this season is, and season seven and season eight both seem to have good and redeemable qualities and are far from hard to watch.
Grade - D
Wednesday, June 24, 2015
Rewind: The Simpsons S8
I'm a somewhat strange Simpsons viewer in two respects. The first is that I started watching a couple years ago, in 2013, and have somehow completely avoided watching any episodes - to my memory - good or bad ever before that first viewing. I think I haphazardly watched part of a Treehouse of Horrors episode in its later years, but I gave up on it pretty quickly - and really not sure a later years Treehouse of Horrors is the best introduction to The Simpsons.
On the other hand, season eight really feels like a series ending type of season, doesn't it? You get the sense that they are wringing every possible type of comedy that is left in their creative brain. This is everything that they have left and everything they've got for the rest of the series. Now that may or may not be true, but this season features changing the status quo more than once (Milhouse Divided, Grade School Confidential), off-the wall ideas (El Viaje Misterioso de Nuestro Jomer, Spinoff Showcase), and unfortunately narrative shortcuts and some lazy ideas (The Springfield Files, Simpsoncalifragi. yeah not typing more of that).
The last three episodes, for my money, are some of the greatest episodes to end The Simpsons. I'm not saying they are the best episodes, but that it's a damn great way to stop watching. "Homer's Enemy" IS one of the greatest episodes of the season, features some extreme meta commentary on the show, and after watching it, it's kind of hard to continue forward. The show is pointing out how ridiculous it is and that seems like a thing you do when you end the show. "The Spin-off Showcase" is a creative and original idea, and while not all three segments are great, it helps, well, showcase both its originality and the vast crate of characters. The last one is a return to classic Simpsons: simple story, emotional, and funny. Seriously, I want my last memory of The Simpsons to be that so bad that it's going to be difficult to watch season nine, which I pretty much assume is worth watching if not essential.
(Short review, but I watched most of this season a while ago so you get what you get)
Playlist
1. "NWA" - Miguel feat. Kurupt
2. "Them Kids" - Sam Roberts Band
3. "Long Way Down" - Robert DeLong
4. "Endors Toi" - Tame Impala
5. "Hood Took Me Under" - Compton's Most Wanted
The second is that, amidst the discussion of what the "golden era" of The Simpsons is, I found myself extremely underwhelmed in some of the years considered "golden". Season 2 is by no means a season that is universally considered among peak Simpsons, but seasons 3 and 4 are on every list. It's not that I didn't like them, but I so clearly enjoy seasons five through seven over the previous two that I feel I'm missing something. Hell, I rewatched seasons three and four to make sure I didn't miss anything.. and pretty much the same feeling as before. I caught more jokes, but overall I didn't experience some sort of leap in quality or enjoyment that I was hoping I would get.
So I'm a little more amenable to the idea that season eight might not have been the decline people make it out to be. Or I was when I started the season. There's definitely a dip in quality. I wish I could explain it well, or even at all, because I watched the majority of this season a few months ago. Looking over the previous episodes, the episodes I remember or ones that stick out, are ones that are considered classics. But I distinctly remember at the time watching them - though not the specific episodes - that this is somewhat of a downgrade from before.
So I'm of two minds going forward at this point. On the one hand, I am clearly an unconventional Simpsons viewers with varying tastes from the consensus. As such, I shouldn't assume things that the consensus tells me are simply true. I should find out for myself. From that perspective, I absolutely need to watch season nine and possibly season 10 (as both are lumped together as similar in quality). I probably won't watch season 11 as of now, but I'm willing to amend that depending on how much I like or dislike the next two seasons. At most, I'm watching until season 12 and I've considered having sort of a "greatest hits" collection of episodes post season 10 on to the present day. Skip the bad ones while still getting a feel for modern Simpsons.
On the other hand, season eight really feels like a series ending type of season, doesn't it? You get the sense that they are wringing every possible type of comedy that is left in their creative brain. This is everything that they have left and everything they've got for the rest of the series. Now that may or may not be true, but this season features changing the status quo more than once (Milhouse Divided, Grade School Confidential), off-the wall ideas (El Viaje Misterioso de Nuestro Jomer, Spinoff Showcase), and unfortunately narrative shortcuts and some lazy ideas (The Springfield Files, Simpsoncalifragi. yeah not typing more of that).
The last three episodes, for my money, are some of the greatest episodes to end The Simpsons. I'm not saying they are the best episodes, but that it's a damn great way to stop watching. "Homer's Enemy" IS one of the greatest episodes of the season, features some extreme meta commentary on the show, and after watching it, it's kind of hard to continue forward. The show is pointing out how ridiculous it is and that seems like a thing you do when you end the show. "The Spin-off Showcase" is a creative and original idea, and while not all three segments are great, it helps, well, showcase both its originality and the vast crate of characters. The last one is a return to classic Simpsons: simple story, emotional, and funny. Seriously, I want my last memory of The Simpsons to be that so bad that it's going to be difficult to watch season nine, which I pretty much assume is worth watching if not essential.
(Short review, but I watched most of this season a while ago so you get what you get)
Playlist
1. "NWA" - Miguel feat. Kurupt
2. "Them Kids" - Sam Roberts Band
3. "Long Way Down" - Robert DeLong
4. "Endors Toi" - Tame Impala
5. "Hood Took Me Under" - Compton's Most Wanted
Sunday, May 3, 2015
Vikings S3
It's no longer unusual for a creator to have such a wide-ranging influence on his television show that he might as well have written every episode himself. Of course that'd be kind of ridiculous and nearly impossible to do. And yet, Vikings creator Michael Hirst has tried to do that very thing on Vikings, writing every single one of the 28 episodes so far.
And I think the show has suffered for it. It's creatively stagnant with few surprises and constantly checking on stories that have never been interesting. The first season was a good show with a few flaws that never got fixed. The second season was pretty much an identical season to the first, quality-wise. And the third season in my mind represents a clear decline.
One of the biggest worries for me going forward is that I thought the dynamic between Athlestan and Ragnar was one of the most compelling and intriguing parts of the show. And for some reason Hirst had him killed off by Floki. From a plot sense, it made sense. Floki has been resentful of Athlestan for years and it was only a matter of time. But from a character perspective, it loses a lot of the appeal I once had for this show. With him gone, what relationship will provide the bedrock for the series?
Similarly once a staple of the show, the relationship between Ragnar and Lagaertha is another thing that's been missing. Occasionally, we'll get a glimpse of their past, but it's few and far between. Understandably they've grown apart, but unfortunately their new partners are significantly less interesting. Aslaug has never been a good character and barely anything changes this season. I can't think of anything she did this season except come into contact with a wanderer and humiliate the Christian who thought he could carry a burning stick. The wanderer brought the death of Siggy and her death was far more interesting than anything she did in life. THAT was a good example of using a death for a character who had exceeded her time and raising the stakes.
And Kalf is a dud as a character, who instead of being menacing, just makes Lagaertha bad because she trusted him. His character motivations made no sense either. Lagaertha wanted to marry him and he didn't because we needed a plot here, so he usurps her by gaining the trust of another member who wanted her gone because women be crazy. That member was apparently impactful enough to convince everyone else Kalf was good as earl, but not impactful enough to convince everyone Lagaertha was bad. It's a mess and it could probably be forgiven if Ben Robson is at all convincing. But he's not and every time spent on him was time better spent elsewhere.
Which is really the story of Vikings at this point. It's a shocking change of pace from one moment to the next. You're either really interested in what's happening (Ragnar is usually involved) or not at all interested (most of King Ecbert later in the season, although thank god for Linus Roache). Speaking of not being interesting, I have no idea why they decided to make Athelstan have sex with Princess Judith. Here's where something comes out of nowhere. Despite never showing any interest in women, he all of a sudden is so distraught with "love" for Judith that he abandon common sense and has sex with her. She gets pregnant and then gets her ear cut off and then Ecbert wants to have an affair with her, because she's apparently irresistible despite having no personality. She's basically a blank canvas so that Hirst can do whatever he wants with her in order to have a plot.
Floki is well played Gustaf Skarsgård, but his character is extremely annoying at this point. I'm sure there's another beat to be played other than "Really religious and hates Christianity" but Hirst has yet to do it. It isn't that his character isn't well-explored, it's that there's got to be something else to the character. It was good to see him get his comeuppance in the battle because I no longer like him at all.
Speaking of that battle, Hirst keeps trying to do the impossible and fool the audience into thinking something will happen that so clearly won't. Last season, it was Floki turning on Ragnar. This season, it was acting like Ragnar died. Look, it was somewhat convincing, but the biggest problem is that without Ragnar there is no show. He IS the show. So if he dies, what the hell else is he going to do? Plus, all of his actions where nobody could see him look worse because if you're playing a long con on the audience, you need to have him fooling someone else who isn't supposed to know. But if he's coughing up blood by himself, that's just cheating.
Naturally, Travis Fimmel is as good as ever. He's the reason to watch the show at this point. In fact, I'm not sure if his story is still technically interesting as it is written or if Fimmel is just that good. Similarly, Linus Roache does his best with some weak material. When he's a part of the plot and he and Ragnar grin and play mind games with each other, it's honestly fantastic television. When he starts just getting thrown in to remind us he's still a factor, he's not really able to save the pointlessness of it all.
Not much else to say about this season - or at least if I did have more, I'd talk too much about plot. This show is technically better than other shows as mediocrely written as this because of its production values, it's acting, and it's period drama. Technically speaking I should probably give this a higher grade than I will. It's a C show that is elevated to a B show from its production. But I'm going to give it a C anyway because no way in hell do I think this season deserved a B.
Grade - C
Playlist
1. "Easy" - The Commodores
2. "The Man in Me" - Bob Dylan
3. "Maggot Brain" - Funkadelic
4. "1999" - Prince (Look this up on Spotify I guess; no Prince songs on Youtube)
5. "House of the Rising Sun" - The Animals
And I think the show has suffered for it. It's creatively stagnant with few surprises and constantly checking on stories that have never been interesting. The first season was a good show with a few flaws that never got fixed. The second season was pretty much an identical season to the first, quality-wise. And the third season in my mind represents a clear decline.
One of the biggest worries for me going forward is that I thought the dynamic between Athlestan and Ragnar was one of the most compelling and intriguing parts of the show. And for some reason Hirst had him killed off by Floki. From a plot sense, it made sense. Floki has been resentful of Athlestan for years and it was only a matter of time. But from a character perspective, it loses a lot of the appeal I once had for this show. With him gone, what relationship will provide the bedrock for the series?
Similarly once a staple of the show, the relationship between Ragnar and Lagaertha is another thing that's been missing. Occasionally, we'll get a glimpse of their past, but it's few and far between. Understandably they've grown apart, but unfortunately their new partners are significantly less interesting. Aslaug has never been a good character and barely anything changes this season. I can't think of anything she did this season except come into contact with a wanderer and humiliate the Christian who thought he could carry a burning stick. The wanderer brought the death of Siggy and her death was far more interesting than anything she did in life. THAT was a good example of using a death for a character who had exceeded her time and raising the stakes.
And Kalf is a dud as a character, who instead of being menacing, just makes Lagaertha bad because she trusted him. His character motivations made no sense either. Lagaertha wanted to marry him and he didn't because we needed a plot here, so he usurps her by gaining the trust of another member who wanted her gone because women be crazy. That member was apparently impactful enough to convince everyone else Kalf was good as earl, but not impactful enough to convince everyone Lagaertha was bad. It's a mess and it could probably be forgiven if Ben Robson is at all convincing. But he's not and every time spent on him was time better spent elsewhere.
Which is really the story of Vikings at this point. It's a shocking change of pace from one moment to the next. You're either really interested in what's happening (Ragnar is usually involved) or not at all interested (most of King Ecbert later in the season, although thank god for Linus Roache). Speaking of not being interesting, I have no idea why they decided to make Athelstan have sex with Princess Judith. Here's where something comes out of nowhere. Despite never showing any interest in women, he all of a sudden is so distraught with "love" for Judith that he abandon common sense and has sex with her. She gets pregnant and then gets her ear cut off and then Ecbert wants to have an affair with her, because she's apparently irresistible despite having no personality. She's basically a blank canvas so that Hirst can do whatever he wants with her in order to have a plot.
Floki is well played Gustaf Skarsgård, but his character is extremely annoying at this point. I'm sure there's another beat to be played other than "Really religious and hates Christianity" but Hirst has yet to do it. It isn't that his character isn't well-explored, it's that there's got to be something else to the character. It was good to see him get his comeuppance in the battle because I no longer like him at all.
Speaking of that battle, Hirst keeps trying to do the impossible and fool the audience into thinking something will happen that so clearly won't. Last season, it was Floki turning on Ragnar. This season, it was acting like Ragnar died. Look, it was somewhat convincing, but the biggest problem is that without Ragnar there is no show. He IS the show. So if he dies, what the hell else is he going to do? Plus, all of his actions where nobody could see him look worse because if you're playing a long con on the audience, you need to have him fooling someone else who isn't supposed to know. But if he's coughing up blood by himself, that's just cheating.
Naturally, Travis Fimmel is as good as ever. He's the reason to watch the show at this point. In fact, I'm not sure if his story is still technically interesting as it is written or if Fimmel is just that good. Similarly, Linus Roache does his best with some weak material. When he's a part of the plot and he and Ragnar grin and play mind games with each other, it's honestly fantastic television. When he starts just getting thrown in to remind us he's still a factor, he's not really able to save the pointlessness of it all.
Not much else to say about this season - or at least if I did have more, I'd talk too much about plot. This show is technically better than other shows as mediocrely written as this because of its production values, it's acting, and it's period drama. Technically speaking I should probably give this a higher grade than I will. It's a C show that is elevated to a B show from its production. But I'm going to give it a C anyway because no way in hell do I think this season deserved a B.
Grade - C
Playlist
1. "Easy" - The Commodores
2. "The Man in Me" - Bob Dylan
3. "Maggot Brain" - Funkadelic
4. "1999" - Prince (Look this up on Spotify I guess; no Prince songs on Youtube)
5. "House of the Rising Sun" - The Animals
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
Looking S2
If I had to bet, there aren't many shows at all to where I can honestly say that I'm watching a program nobody else I know is watching. Usually, that's probably wrong and you just haven't asked them. In the case of Looking, that may actually be the case. The ratings for this show are low to the point where there's a threat it will be cancelled. And while it's certainly too late to get people to watch this show as the season is over, that would be a shame.
To explain the premise - which I no doubt need to do because nobody watches this show - it's simply about three gay friends who are looking for love, fulfillment, whatever. Basically, they are in a point in their lives where much is uncertain. Usually, that leads to the main characters trying to find love. It's not a wholly unusually tale except for the fact that it's completely focused on gay males.
That focus is evident in a San Francisco that seems 90% gay and not the other way around. There's maybe six characters in total over the course of 10 episodes who aren't gay. There's a mother, a sister, a best friend, the best friend's boyfriend, the main character's work buddy, and then some random childhood friend who we meet a funeral. And they've still avoided having any lesbians in the show either (except some random ones at a party who don't speak). Everybody's a homosexual male.
This is a world where a character expresses concern that the heterosexual members of the work will be treated unfairly. The sister similarly says that another character always gets to do things because he's gay. It's ridiculous (and certainly is meant as ridiculous), but given the world Looking presents us, they both have points. This isn't a complaint either. As mentioned in last review, I find it kind of funny and appropriate given the history of the medium of television and movies.
The show unfortunately seems a little more invested in a love triangle than I am. Patrick, played by Jonathan Groff, is torn between his boss Kevin, and his ex-boyfriend, Richie. Two problems are that Richie's not exactly interested. It's not so much a love triangle, but given that Raul Castillo is a regular and it's obvious the show is headed towards a Richie/Patrick final - that is if it gets there - he's obviously a part of the long-game. Also Kevin as a long-term boyfriend.
If there's one weakness, it's that I'm not sure the creators are completely aware of terrible Kevin comes off. For a love triangle to really work well, you need to be equally invested in both options or at least you need to believe there's a contest. But Richie's clearly better and he's clearly going to win. The last episode helped a little - maybe the best scene of the season was Patrick and Kevin's fight about whether to remain monogamous. Also, Patrick is kind of terrible. It's fine, because I don't mind having unlikable leads, but damn so many shows seem to center around the wrong lead.
As always, I find Dom the most interesting character. However, unlike the usual route for these characters, this season is about Dom and Doris' friendship more than it is about Dom and a romantic partner. Sure, he and Lynn are dating to begin the season, but by the end I nearly forgot about him. To get ahead of myself, he's also a nice contrast with Eddie, who's able to get past his past in order to be with Agustin whereas Lynn cannot ever get past his "true love" dying.
But the true season-long relationship with Dom - I have a feeling that will be a theme with this show if it continues - is with Doris. This is the season of Lauren Weedman, who's particularly excellent as her role increases. In a sort of meta moment, she gets recognized by Malik and she just assumes he's gay and looking at one of the guys. (I actually find it kind of funny that Malik behaves somewhat like a gay character - there is no way I'm being a Sonny and Cher couple for Halloween - and he camp up with it!)
The season of Doris is reflected best by the episode where she goes back to her hometown with Dom and awkwardly Patrick for her father's funeral. (This would be her Emmy submission I would guess, but lol at this show having a chance at winning an Emmy) It's a standout episode all around. We learn Dom never came out to his father, an experience I can't exactly relate to, but there's a universal aspect to never getting a chance to tell a loved one some secret you hold. Also, her commitment to Malik is established when he arrives at the end and breaks down and cries while hugging him. It allows her to realize she really does love him.
Back to the Dom and Doris friendship though, it's pretty clear both have commitment issues and both are making it more difficult to have a solid relationship. It's just easier to not commit and stay with your best friend. Although some plot contrivances made it happen (bank takes away Doris money, their fight seemed to kind of explode out of nowhere), both really needed to move on from each other.
Lastly, the rehabilitation of Agustin was successful as he mostly failed as a character last year. I think the writers did an admirable job in improving his character quite a bit while not making it a completely different character. (He takes some hard drugs and passes out on the street for instance) A clever way of doing this was having him prove himself to Eddie, who has HIV. Oddly enough, at the end of the season, they probably have the most comfortable relationship on the show.
In all, the final episode could work as a series finale. When Patrick discovers his mother left his father, he suddenly doesn't feel like he needs to live up to anything. This helps him discover subconscious feelings about Kevin being a possible sex addict. He gets a haircut from Richie and says I'm ready - notable because the first season ends with Richie telling him he's not ready. I would have no qualms about Agustin's story ending here because no doubt a new season may destroy his relationship with Eddie (it remains to be seen whether this show can write an effective stable relationship as pretty much every one of them hasn't worked out). Dom is forced to grow up as his best friend moves on. It's not hard to imagine him finding someone and being able to commit at this point. In all, it'd be a solid series finale, although there could certainly be more on Patrick, Dom and even Augustin could be an interesting test case on healthy relationships from the writers.
This second season continues to be one of the best directed shows on television. It's a bevy of well-reviewed indie directors from Andrew Haigh (Weekend), Ryan Fleck (Half Nelson), Craig Johnson (The Skeleton Twins), and Jaime Babbit (who kind of seems like she should stick to television judging by her movies). San Francisco is not near as prominent in this season as the first, but the cinematography is still naturally beautiful. I'm terrible at last paragraphs and don't have anything particularly sophisticated to add, but the second season is an improvement of an already good first season.
Grade - A-
Monday, March 23, 2015
Rewind: Mad Men S5
With the final season of Mad Men returning in April, I will re-watch the first four seasons and watch the following two-and-a-half seasons for the first time. After each season, I will share my thoughts on the show.
Season 1
Season 2
Season 1
Season 2
Season 3
Season 4
The fifth season of Mad Men feels like a radical departure from previous seasons while still being undoubtedly Mad Men. Don Draper is a dedicated husband who has lost interest in work at a time when the firm needs him more than ever. Roger Sterling for the first time comes to a sort of peace thanks to an LSD trip. Peggy Olsen gets promoted by another firm simply because her career would be in stasis if she were to remain at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce. Joan Harris finally leaves Greg, realizing he's a poor excuse for a husband and lives life as a single mother.
That's not mentioning the newest principal character, Megan Calvet. In between seasons, she became Megan Draper and got promoted into a copywriting position. Mad Men avoids the easy route by making her both good at her job and largely uninterested in it. She also seems to be good for Don in a way Betty clearly never was. This may sound like a weird complaint, but I almost feel like the show went too hard in the other direction here - making her an impossibly good person so that when Don inevitably cheats on her, there's no one to blame but Don.
It's weird because I think Jessica Pare does a fantastic job as Megan - she certainly feels like a person. But try as I might, I cannot think of one single flaw that Megan possesses. She's certainly the opposite of Betty in most ways. However, usually when you think of a character having no flaws, it's mostly because they don't seem like an actual person, but simply as a plot device. Which isn't a problem here. But Don rushed into this marriage and you wouldn't really expect him to just happen to rush into a perfect woman for him. Let's get past that though because obviously that's what Matt Weiner is going for - Don Draper will be Don Draper no matter who he is with.
I think the arc of Don Draper is most fascinating in this season of all seasons, mostly because he finally goes through an arc. Don has always had a thing for strong woman - I'm not really sure why he married Betty anymore as she is literally the only woman he's had an extended relationship with that doesn't seem ahead of her time. Anyway, you'd expect philanderer Don to have a problem working with Megan, but strangely he seems happiest and most comfortable when she's working.
When Megan realizes she'd rather become an actress - with the help of her parents (which seriously how is she not more fucked up with those two?) - it seemingly devastates Don. That's not what seems to get Don back in his natural state though. It's after Megan asks Don to use his connections to help her land a commercial. Don would rather she do it on her own and be independent. Something is lost when she's relying on him to further her career. I think he loses some respect for her.
Meanwhile, I usually don't talk about Roger Sterling this early in the post as he's more of a side character, but this is definitely the season of Roger Sterling. For seasons, he's been feeling useless and the end of the fourth season made it official with the loss of Lucky Strike. So here's a Roger who's actually trying to work - in his own way by stealing clients off Pete. Pretty much the entire season is a showcase for John Slattery's charms, whether it be his feud with Pete, his LSD trip, or his post-LSD trip where is he as happy and content as he's ever been.
After roughly four years, he finally breaks up with Jane - it was clear that they've been unhappy for a while and the LSD simply enlightened him. Basically, previously I had noticed that every Roger Sterling story bottled down to the same thing - he's increasingly useless at work and getting to an age where he can't behave like he was when he was younger - and now finally we get something new. Hell, that's kind of a theme with this season I suppose - Don has new storylines, Megan's a new wife to Don, and Roger.
Plus, Joan finally escapes her awful, domineering husband. It took him deciding to volunteer for an extra year in Vietnam for her to realize it, but nonetheless it is still a welcome surprise. At work, she's clearly one of the most vital people, making Lane Pryce essentially useless because she performs most of his job duties. At home, with the help of her mother, she is learning how to raise a child in a time when being a single mother was most certainly looked down upon. And I have little doubt when I start season six later, that she will have found herself another man - if not as a husband, at least a potential one. (Foreshadowed by that great scene at the bar between Joan and Don - which if Megan's reaction afterward is any indication, he won't get away with the same shit he did with Betty, but he'll try)
Another thing Joan experiences is that she's made partner because she sleeps with a client to land an account. This is strongly encouraged and manipulated by Pete, who's never seemed more dickish than that episode. Don opposes, but it doesn't matter. I will say that if there's one character who would get over this fast, it's Joan. I'm not even sure it will weigh on her given her attitude as the head of secretaries, but this being Mad Men, it could go either way.
Speaking of Lane, he finds his role in the company in doubt since his main function was to transition companies to be more efficient. Well, this company can't really be more efficient and seems to be mostly skating by from account to account. Joan handles the finances and day-to-day leaving not much for Lane to do. One of the better established traits of Lane is that he loves America - ever since he was threatened with going to India, we've known he wants to stay. Thanks to his move from England, his $50,000 deposit, and his tax troubles, Lane is potentially at risk with leaving. So instead of asking for the money - probably due to pride -he embezzles money out to pay his taxes.
When it's discovered, it's not a surprise that he would rather stop living life than have to uproot and face the humiliation. If there's one weakness to his story, it's that the show kind of piled on him in his last episode. His wife gives him the car and he gets a position in some esteemed club at the exact moment when everything falls to shit for him? I will say that I did however enjoy that the piece of shit car that won't start causes his suicide attempt to fail. Enjoy is perhaps harsh, but there's a cruel sense of humor in that.
Peggy meanwhile remains with Abe Drexler from last season. She gets excited at the prospect of marrying Abe - though probably more due to the societal expectation - but he only asks if he can move in with her. Apparently, that was highly frowned upon back then, because her mother does not respond well. But because she is Peggy Olsen, she does it anyway. I'm interested to see the sixth season version of Peggy Olsen, because her in a new work environment could be one of the most interesting plot developments of her character.
Pete is more Pete than he's ever been. Despite being responsible for most of the accounts at the firm, he still doesn't have enough. He has an affair with his fellow train commuter's wife - who to be fair is one of the most giant pieces of shit Mad Men has ever had and that's saying something. Pete had made something of a comeback from his first season character - mostly because he goes from a spoiled, entitled brat to one who's good at his job. Being good at your job will make people forgive a lot of your sins. Well, this season Matt Weiner seemed to remind the audience why Pete sucks.
This may sound harsh, but this season might have been my favorite season and I can't help but think Betty appearing in only four of them has something to do with it. She gets her own win in the episode when she's there for Sally when she unexpectedly has her first period. But in order to gain the audience sympathy, the writers gave her a cancer scare and made her overweight. First off, I can't imagine her letting herself go like that due to her outsized focus on her appearance. It would have made more sense after she had her kid in my opinion. Secondly, her compulsion to stress eat came literally out of nowhere. She's never had that problem. Mad Men is usually good at setting the groundwork, but they needed something for January Jones to do when she's not dealing with Don so they created this out of thin air. And lastly, the makeup is completely unconvincing to the point of distraction.
But I went into this season - this is my first season that I've written about that I have not seen before - with little expectations. I don't know if I thought Mad Men declined, but subconsciously I must have, because I was surprised at how good this season was. I suppose I just naturally assumed due to the nature of how TV shows usually work. Nonetheless, season five so far is probably my favorite mostly from the new directions several characters take. It's my favorite take on Don, it establishes an interesting new character in Megan, Roger has never been better, Peggy's still Peggy, and Betty is marginalized (which - look her character is good, but there's not really anywhere new to take her character at this point - she'll forever be unhappy and she'll probably never grow)
- Because these posts are so long, I'm never able to expound on the acting so I'll just say it here. Jon Hamm, Elisabeth Moss, Christina Hendricks, Jared Harris, and Vincent Kartheiser are all excellent. I think Kartheiser is perhaps the most underrated of the bunch. (I already mentioned Slattery above)
- Ken Cosgrove is the most normal, well-adjusted person in this show so there's not much interesting things about him. His actions when Sterling Cooper Draper Harris (is that the name now?) land his father-in-law accounts was a notable exception where he made sure Pete was in no way a part of it. I like Aaron Staton's work and I like the character a lot. Who knew, from the first season, he'd be the most likable person on this show or at least the one who you could easily imagine being friends with?
- Harry Crane's de-evolution is nearly complete. I heard his character from seasons 1-4 and 5-7 are completely different and he's gone the full way towards being a lousy person. He's always been clueless, but here he shows no remorse at cheating on his wife. His episode with Paul Kinsey was certainly interesting as he did a good thing for his friend, sending him away from the cult, while still being Harry Crane.
- I hope I will be able to talk about him more in next season's review, but Michael Ginsberg is probably the quickest character to instantly be compelling as a side ad man. The loss of Peggy might be felt in the firm, but both due to the talent and the character, the show will be alright. Good work from Ben Feldman.
- Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce accidentally becomes progressive in hiring a black secretary. That's a pretty smart way of doing that because no way would they do this on their own and Mad Men writers probably still wanted to do that.
- Alexis Bledel - never seen Gilmore Girls - but she's not that impressive here.
Playlist
1. "Zou Bisou Bisou" - Gillian Hills (sung by Megan)
2. "You Don't Have to Say You Love Me" - Dusty Springfield
3. "Ebb Tide" - Ken Griffin
4. "Sixteen Going on Seventeen" - Rolf and Liesl
5. "He Hit Me (And It Felt Like a Kiss)" - The Crystals
6. "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times" - The Beach Boys
7. "I Want to Hold Your Hand" - The Beatles (whistled by Don)
8. "September in the Rain" - The Wedgewoods
9. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles
10. "Sweeping the Clouds Away" - Maurice Chevalier
11. "The Christmas Waltz" - Doris Day
12. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks
13. "Butchie's Tune" - The Lovin' Spoonful
14. "You Only Live Twice" - Nancy Sinatra
Season 4
The fifth season of Mad Men feels like a radical departure from previous seasons while still being undoubtedly Mad Men. Don Draper is a dedicated husband who has lost interest in work at a time when the firm needs him more than ever. Roger Sterling for the first time comes to a sort of peace thanks to an LSD trip. Peggy Olsen gets promoted by another firm simply because her career would be in stasis if she were to remain at Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce. Joan Harris finally leaves Greg, realizing he's a poor excuse for a husband and lives life as a single mother.
That's not mentioning the newest principal character, Megan Calvet. In between seasons, she became Megan Draper and got promoted into a copywriting position. Mad Men avoids the easy route by making her both good at her job and largely uninterested in it. She also seems to be good for Don in a way Betty clearly never was. This may sound like a weird complaint, but I almost feel like the show went too hard in the other direction here - making her an impossibly good person so that when Don inevitably cheats on her, there's no one to blame but Don.
It's weird because I think Jessica Pare does a fantastic job as Megan - she certainly feels like a person. But try as I might, I cannot think of one single flaw that Megan possesses. She's certainly the opposite of Betty in most ways. However, usually when you think of a character having no flaws, it's mostly because they don't seem like an actual person, but simply as a plot device. Which isn't a problem here. But Don rushed into this marriage and you wouldn't really expect him to just happen to rush into a perfect woman for him. Let's get past that though because obviously that's what Matt Weiner is going for - Don Draper will be Don Draper no matter who he is with.
I think the arc of Don Draper is most fascinating in this season of all seasons, mostly because he finally goes through an arc. Don has always had a thing for strong woman - I'm not really sure why he married Betty anymore as she is literally the only woman he's had an extended relationship with that doesn't seem ahead of her time. Anyway, you'd expect philanderer Don to have a problem working with Megan, but strangely he seems happiest and most comfortable when she's working.
When Megan realizes she'd rather become an actress - with the help of her parents (which seriously how is she not more fucked up with those two?) - it seemingly devastates Don. That's not what seems to get Don back in his natural state though. It's after Megan asks Don to use his connections to help her land a commercial. Don would rather she do it on her own and be independent. Something is lost when she's relying on him to further her career. I think he loses some respect for her.
Meanwhile, I usually don't talk about Roger Sterling this early in the post as he's more of a side character, but this is definitely the season of Roger Sterling. For seasons, he's been feeling useless and the end of the fourth season made it official with the loss of Lucky Strike. So here's a Roger who's actually trying to work - in his own way by stealing clients off Pete. Pretty much the entire season is a showcase for John Slattery's charms, whether it be his feud with Pete, his LSD trip, or his post-LSD trip where is he as happy and content as he's ever been.
After roughly four years, he finally breaks up with Jane - it was clear that they've been unhappy for a while and the LSD simply enlightened him. Basically, previously I had noticed that every Roger Sterling story bottled down to the same thing - he's increasingly useless at work and getting to an age where he can't behave like he was when he was younger - and now finally we get something new. Hell, that's kind of a theme with this season I suppose - Don has new storylines, Megan's a new wife to Don, and Roger.
Plus, Joan finally escapes her awful, domineering husband. It took him deciding to volunteer for an extra year in Vietnam for her to realize it, but nonetheless it is still a welcome surprise. At work, she's clearly one of the most vital people, making Lane Pryce essentially useless because she performs most of his job duties. At home, with the help of her mother, she is learning how to raise a child in a time when being a single mother was most certainly looked down upon. And I have little doubt when I start season six later, that she will have found herself another man - if not as a husband, at least a potential one. (Foreshadowed by that great scene at the bar between Joan and Don - which if Megan's reaction afterward is any indication, he won't get away with the same shit he did with Betty, but he'll try)
Another thing Joan experiences is that she's made partner because she sleeps with a client to land an account. This is strongly encouraged and manipulated by Pete, who's never seemed more dickish than that episode. Don opposes, but it doesn't matter. I will say that if there's one character who would get over this fast, it's Joan. I'm not even sure it will weigh on her given her attitude as the head of secretaries, but this being Mad Men, it could go either way.
Speaking of Lane, he finds his role in the company in doubt since his main function was to transition companies to be more efficient. Well, this company can't really be more efficient and seems to be mostly skating by from account to account. Joan handles the finances and day-to-day leaving not much for Lane to do. One of the better established traits of Lane is that he loves America - ever since he was threatened with going to India, we've known he wants to stay. Thanks to his move from England, his $50,000 deposit, and his tax troubles, Lane is potentially at risk with leaving. So instead of asking for the money - probably due to pride -he embezzles money out to pay his taxes.
When it's discovered, it's not a surprise that he would rather stop living life than have to uproot and face the humiliation. If there's one weakness to his story, it's that the show kind of piled on him in his last episode. His wife gives him the car and he gets a position in some esteemed club at the exact moment when everything falls to shit for him? I will say that I did however enjoy that the piece of shit car that won't start causes his suicide attempt to fail. Enjoy is perhaps harsh, but there's a cruel sense of humor in that.
Peggy meanwhile remains with Abe Drexler from last season. She gets excited at the prospect of marrying Abe - though probably more due to the societal expectation - but he only asks if he can move in with her. Apparently, that was highly frowned upon back then, because her mother does not respond well. But because she is Peggy Olsen, she does it anyway. I'm interested to see the sixth season version of Peggy Olsen, because her in a new work environment could be one of the most interesting plot developments of her character.
Pete is more Pete than he's ever been. Despite being responsible for most of the accounts at the firm, he still doesn't have enough. He has an affair with his fellow train commuter's wife - who to be fair is one of the most giant pieces of shit Mad Men has ever had and that's saying something. Pete had made something of a comeback from his first season character - mostly because he goes from a spoiled, entitled brat to one who's good at his job. Being good at your job will make people forgive a lot of your sins. Well, this season Matt Weiner seemed to remind the audience why Pete sucks.
This may sound harsh, but this season might have been my favorite season and I can't help but think Betty appearing in only four of them has something to do with it. She gets her own win in the episode when she's there for Sally when she unexpectedly has her first period. But in order to gain the audience sympathy, the writers gave her a cancer scare and made her overweight. First off, I can't imagine her letting herself go like that due to her outsized focus on her appearance. It would have made more sense after she had her kid in my opinion. Secondly, her compulsion to stress eat came literally out of nowhere. She's never had that problem. Mad Men is usually good at setting the groundwork, but they needed something for January Jones to do when she's not dealing with Don so they created this out of thin air. And lastly, the makeup is completely unconvincing to the point of distraction.
But I went into this season - this is my first season that I've written about that I have not seen before - with little expectations. I don't know if I thought Mad Men declined, but subconsciously I must have, because I was surprised at how good this season was. I suppose I just naturally assumed due to the nature of how TV shows usually work. Nonetheless, season five so far is probably my favorite mostly from the new directions several characters take. It's my favorite take on Don, it establishes an interesting new character in Megan, Roger has never been better, Peggy's still Peggy, and Betty is marginalized (which - look her character is good, but there's not really anywhere new to take her character at this point - she'll forever be unhappy and she'll probably never grow)
- Because these posts are so long, I'm never able to expound on the acting so I'll just say it here. Jon Hamm, Elisabeth Moss, Christina Hendricks, Jared Harris, and Vincent Kartheiser are all excellent. I think Kartheiser is perhaps the most underrated of the bunch. (I already mentioned Slattery above)
- Ken Cosgrove is the most normal, well-adjusted person in this show so there's not much interesting things about him. His actions when Sterling Cooper Draper Harris (is that the name now?) land his father-in-law accounts was a notable exception where he made sure Pete was in no way a part of it. I like Aaron Staton's work and I like the character a lot. Who knew, from the first season, he'd be the most likable person on this show or at least the one who you could easily imagine being friends with?
- Harry Crane's de-evolution is nearly complete. I heard his character from seasons 1-4 and 5-7 are completely different and he's gone the full way towards being a lousy person. He's always been clueless, but here he shows no remorse at cheating on his wife. His episode with Paul Kinsey was certainly interesting as he did a good thing for his friend, sending him away from the cult, while still being Harry Crane.
- I hope I will be able to talk about him more in next season's review, but Michael Ginsberg is probably the quickest character to instantly be compelling as a side ad man. The loss of Peggy might be felt in the firm, but both due to the talent and the character, the show will be alright. Good work from Ben Feldman.
- Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce accidentally becomes progressive in hiring a black secretary. That's a pretty smart way of doing that because no way would they do this on their own and Mad Men writers probably still wanted to do that.
- Alexis Bledel - never seen Gilmore Girls - but she's not that impressive here.
Playlist
1. "Zou Bisou Bisou" - Gillian Hills (sung by Megan)
2. "You Don't Have to Say You Love Me" - Dusty Springfield
3. "Ebb Tide" - Ken Griffin
4. "Sixteen Going on Seventeen" - Rolf and Liesl
5. "He Hit Me (And It Felt Like a Kiss)" - The Crystals
6. "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times" - The Beach Boys
7. "I Want to Hold Your Hand" - The Beatles (whistled by Don)
8. "September in the Rain" - The Wedgewoods
9. "Tomorrow Never Knows" - The Beatles
10. "Sweeping the Clouds Away" - Maurice Chevalier
11. "The Christmas Waltz" - Doris Day
12. "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks
13. "Butchie's Tune" - The Lovin' Spoonful
14. "You Only Live Twice" - Nancy Sinatra
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