Mid-Season Report: Designated Survivor

Here's a show I stopped watching somewhere this season, then watched the final episode to see how it all played out.

The series started off so well, then became the Hannah show.  She isn't admirable to me, she does what she thinks should be done, with no thought for others or for whether she might be right or wrong.

Kiefer Sutherland shines, though he became less of a deeply good man this season.   We need more deeply good men.

 

I knew his wife's character was leaving, but found the plot line that took her out to be unbelievable for her character.  Kiefer's character is less without her partnership.  His family, which was part of the interesting adjustment to his presidency took a back seat completely.

Didn't appreciate the removal of Kimble Hookstraten who was a great foil for him. 

I might continue watching, but unlikely.

Mid-Season Report: The Walking Dead

For me, the show started a huge downhill turn with the way Beth's fate was handled.  Since then, the summary dispatching of characters "to advance the story" has been bleeding the show dry of it's heart.

Though he lives and thrives in the comics, Carl, the boy we watched grow up in the apocalypse is now to be dead when the show returns in February from a random bite.   How special that they saved the actual death for the midseason return.

Then there's the constant tease that Rick could die too.

This season was supposed to be when the Rick and the non-Savior groups rose up together to fight and defeat Negan.   Despite a few victories, Negan's army shrugs it all off and wipes out most of The Kingdom.  In a ridiculous scene, even the CG tiger was needlessly slaughtered.  There's the thing.  Character deaths apparently equal ratings.  Perhaps they might want to ask themselves why the ratings drop and drop.   Because you don't need to kill off characters every few episodes that your fans have been rooting for.  They're killing hope as well as the characters.

I think it may time to walk away.

This Is Us Binge Watch Episodes Pilot through Ep. 7

I've seen the article headlines for this show, and being in a mood to just watch TV last night, I curiously loaded up the pilot.

At first I thought all of these characters are unlikable, why are people watching this?

Hours and hours later, after "one more episode" syndrome took me to 1 am, I'm totally taken by the characters and plot, and only dislike Kevin, who has been a bratty, selfish snit his whole life, so far.

My favorite character is Kate, both as a child and an adult.  She is such a smart, talented, wise woman. And beautiful.  Tough and vulnerable. I love every moment she's on the screen.

I now understand the fascination with Jack, and see how everyone could wonder about his death.  So cleverly is the story woven between past and present that his demise is something you know happens but wish would never come.

Randall is so great as a child, credit goes to the adorable actor Lonnie Chavis.   I've only seen a few episodes with teenage Randall, but he seems to be coming into his own as a person and character in those years.  Adult Randall is wonderfully complex, and is a great husband and dad.  Of the three kids, he seems to have learned the most from his parents, and he has their best traits.  I like that he is the one who keeps up family traditions.  His wife is wonderful.  His kids are super.   A brilliant man with a big heart.

Mandy Moore as the mom is alternately wonderful, awful, and frustrating.  She does a spectacular job of playing the character at various stages in her life.   You want to understand her keeping Randall to herself and her fear of him being taking away by his father, but the result of her actions is too crushing for the father and son.

I'm curious to see more of Randall and Kate's relationship, because so far the show has concentrated on Kevin's resentment and fights with Randall from childhood on, but I don't see the relationship of the two more interesting characters being shown.

I see season 3 (eep!) is coming up soon, and how can I possibly binge my way through the rest of season 1 and 2 by then?  Who needs sleep?

D.O.A.'s Fall TV

 

There are a few new and returning shows on my schedule.  I would like to have something every night but, meh.  Wednesday looks like an alternate entertainment night.

Monday

Gotham

Sleepy Hollow

 

Tuesday

Flash

Agents of Shield

Forever

Person of Interest (record for later)

 

Wednesday

Alternate entertainment nite

 

Thursday

Gracepoint

Elementary

 

Friday

Grimm

Constantine

 

Saturday

Doctor Who Night  Netflixed David Tennant episode then at 8 Peter Capaldi Who.

 

Sunday

Once Upon a Time

Walking Dead

Downton Abbey (January)

Stephen King's Under the Dome to be a TV Series

 

 

 

 

 

Reports are that CBS will air a serialization of Stephen King's novel Under the Dome next summer.  Thirteen episodes are ordered.  This is from Steven Spielberg's Amblin Entertainment, which should be magic, but in TV something goes awry and they just don't seem to be able to carry out an ongoing storyline.  Perhaps if they approach it as a prolonged mini-series it might work.  Remember your failure at the cave, I say.

The novel features a town which is suddenly cut off from the world by a clear impenetrable dome.  The inhabitants have to survive on what they have, while the outside world tries to break in and rescue them.  It has the appeal of a post apocalyptic survival tale with the added angst that goes with the thought that they could all escape somehow. 

I thought the ending of the novel was quite cheap and unworthy of all that had gone before.  We shall see how they handle the ending if they get that far in the story.

Television Without Pity

I found this site recently. It sort of mercilously discusses television shows, has reviews, and forums wherein people happily trash their favorite shows.

The forums I read are the Reality How to and Reality Competitive ones, where readers trash House Hunters, if you can imagine. I haven't read back far enough, but it seems the show is a set up in many ways, and often when you see the show, your House Hunters have already purchased one of the properties and are living there. They'll clear out the house and go back and film the HH's "choosing". I wish I could say this spoils the show for me, but since I use HGTV as white noise to nap in front of more often than not, I'm just sort of amused by it.

I have liked the posts in the competitive forums on Design Star, a pretty mild competition, so I'm hoping they pull out the stops on the Survivor and Dancing With the Stars forums.

If there are any new shows you're interested in (and so far I haven't seen anything on new fall season shows that interests me) you may want to visit Television Without Pity for some raucous opinions of the show.