Another week with not a ton of new stuff on the tube, but some good stuff to keep an eye on and one let down of a season finale after an epic penultimate episode. Burn Notice also made a solid start to its final season, but not good enough to quite make the cut after a couple of lackluster seasons have taken it way down from its peak.
3. Game of Thrones, Episode 10, Mhysa. As Game of Thrones has shown it likes to do ... it uses Episode 9 for its climaxes and uses Episode 10 to try and get you licking your chops for more ... in particular more of the Mother of Dragons. For the second time in three seasons GoT gave us a Daenerys closing letting us know that she has some dragons that are coming for all you silly men in the seven kingdoms. And it works, but after such a spectacular ninth episode in both the first and third seasons, it is such a shame that the final hour of the season is just spent with more positioning of people for power plays that seem completely moot at this point. If Khaleesi doesn't end up on the Iron Throne or seriously flaming up Joffrey with one of her little pets, won't all of this emotional investment really kind of been a waste? I am very happy they showed some resolve in the Ygritee/Jon Snow situation, but it is clear she could have easily killed him, she wanted him to have a fighting chance. And in the end, this show reminded us what can happen weekly on GoT that we all take for granted. At any given point, Peter Dinklage can absolutely take over your television screen and you simply cannot turn away. He can be that unbelievably charismatic while playing a character that has evolved into one of the best on television. He could very well be setting another Emmy on his mantle this year.
2. The Killing, Episode 3, Seventeen. The Killing is always going to struggle with pacing because it tries to stay gritty and "real," but they are going to need to pick it up, because gritty is going to need a ratings boost to keep from being canceled for real. That said, I LOVED this episode. It is starting to pit our favorite duo, Linden and Holder, against each other with different partners and it is starting to form a ton of intrigue that can make things interesting every episode of the way (a problem the show has had with noticeable lulls the first two seasons). The street kids angle that I loved so much in the first two episodes is still very fresh and very intriguing and can take the story in a ton of angles. But really has everything so entertaining it Peter Sarsgaard as serial killer (we think) Ray Seward. Is he the way he is because he has been in prison all this time? Did he kill all those women, but NOT kill his wife? Did he kill any of those women? Has he killed someone else? If he is innocent of the crime he is convicted of, how comfortable are we as viewers with him walking if he maybe committed many others? It is perplexing to say the least and ... thus far ... expertly written and acted.
1. Mad Men, Episode 11, Favors. Seriously? What else could be No. 1. Somehow, even the "uneventful" boring episodes of Mad Men are so well done right now that nothing else on television is up to snuff. Barring a complete disaster of a season's ending in two weeks ... this is going to win iwify's Top Drama with relative ease ... and that is saying a ton considering the strong shows that have already come and gone this year. As Don Draper continually comes to grips with not liking who he is as a man he still balances his life with an almost eerily amount of precision. Yet, it call came crashing down as his own daughter saw him with a woman other than his wife. Don closes the door at the end of the episode completely perplexed what to do next. The wife, the other woman and his own young adult daughter all swirling around his brain as Chevy, Sunkist and Ted start to slip from it. Meanwhile, we continue to see the major struggles that Peggy is having with trying to figure out her lot in a man's world. Living alone and trying to lure help to chase off a rat was quite a memorable scene, but the scene with Pete after speaking to his mother was magical to see. It reminded us that even Pete has a light side and a few drinks has brought these two together before. Could be nothing, as the Mad Men folks love to mess with the viewers, but it certainly was nothing less than intriguing. Oh ... and Bob Benson. That guy.
Honorable Mention: Burn Notice, Episode 1, New Deal.
Monday, June 10, 2013
Monday, June 3, 2013
This Week's Top Three (Monday, 5/27/13 through Sunday, 6/2/13)
Well, after finally getting the family settled in a new home, it is definitely time for TWT3 to return ... and just in time for the end of the season on Game of Thrones and Mad Men ... and in time for the premier of The Killing and Longmire with Breaking Bad, The Bridge and Dexter's final season on the horizon.
This week looked like a slam dunk for me after watching Game of Thrones prior to watching The Killing or Mad Men. But, by the end ... the No. 1 show for the week was not as clear cut as I had previously thought as we had some excellent storytelling on AMC.
3. The Killing, Episodes 1 and 2, The Jungle and That You Fear The Most. I had high hopes for the return of this series after such a thorough botching of Season 2. And, the best cop duo on television did not disappoint despite a little bit of slowness in pacing for the season premier. The first time Detective Holder, says, "What up, Linden," had to bring a smile to the face of many fans of this duo and the new case is a nice fresh angle for the show. I am eager to see the ratings numbers because I already have a sense that I would like to see a Season 4. As for the show ... a slow pace still did not hurt the strong amount of intrigue that has been placed in a number of different spots. I am very curious to see how this all weaves together throughout the season and think that the inclusion of the entire "street kids" storyline could be quite a treat. The casting of the fantastic character actor Gregg Henry as Holder's new partner should provide great repartee to go along with the great connection between Holder and Linden.
2. Game of Thrones, Episode 9, The Rains of Castamere. Just wow. Fantastic television. Sure, all the fan boys/girls who have read the books knew this was coming, but it is often difficult for TV to stay true to source material with such popular and seemingly essential characters. With the unbelievable death of Ned Stark at the same time in Season 1 ... this betrayal and brutal killing of the matriarch and eldest son of the Stark household was unreal to watch. But, as the story was going ... had to happen. This is obviously a Game and when Robb and Catelyn chose to play it their way and shun others rules there was only one ending that could occur. Lost in the drama of the last 15 minutes was the great storyline where Jon Snow was just steps from Bran, who witnessed Snow's turn on the wildlings. Rest assured this is not the last we have seen of Jon Snow and Ygritte and we all know the Starks, and even their bastard son, are quite the suckers to the wiley ways of a woman they seemingly love. So, it will be very interesting to see how this story plays out in next week's finale and in the future of the show. Also, Daenerys just keeps gathering wealth, power and men. Once she comes for the Iron Throne it is going to be interesting to see how much those that are all playing their Game across the sea will defend against her might.
1. Mad Men, Episode 10, A Tale of Two Cities. While Game of Thrones was good enough to launch it from the middle of the pack to a potential Best Drama Emmy nod ... Mad Men keeps holding down the fort. It is apparent that I love it a lot more than many other critics out there this season, but I don't see a single flaw in this season so far as they build toward Don Draper's ultimate fate in Season 7. As the new merger continues to cause strain at work, Draper is constantly in flux with trying to decide who he is and what he wants away from the office. The constant pushing of Pete Campbell to the side is going to erupt into something as well. Should be very interesting to see where he goes as his personal life continues to fall apart and as he feels his security at work is being threatened. John Slattery once again proved to be a wonderful director in this episode as it was full of great one-liners and still very Roger-heavy despite Roger being behind the camera. With Draper's umpteenth near-death experience over with ... will he make any changes or will this just be yet another warning sign he fails to listen to?
This week looked like a slam dunk for me after watching Game of Thrones prior to watching The Killing or Mad Men. But, by the end ... the No. 1 show for the week was not as clear cut as I had previously thought as we had some excellent storytelling on AMC.
3. The Killing, Episodes 1 and 2, The Jungle and That You Fear The Most. I had high hopes for the return of this series after such a thorough botching of Season 2. And, the best cop duo on television did not disappoint despite a little bit of slowness in pacing for the season premier. The first time Detective Holder, says, "What up, Linden," had to bring a smile to the face of many fans of this duo and the new case is a nice fresh angle for the show. I am eager to see the ratings numbers because I already have a sense that I would like to see a Season 4. As for the show ... a slow pace still did not hurt the strong amount of intrigue that has been placed in a number of different spots. I am very curious to see how this all weaves together throughout the season and think that the inclusion of the entire "street kids" storyline could be quite a treat. The casting of the fantastic character actor Gregg Henry as Holder's new partner should provide great repartee to go along with the great connection between Holder and Linden.
2. Game of Thrones, Episode 9, The Rains of Castamere. Just wow. Fantastic television. Sure, all the fan boys/girls who have read the books knew this was coming, but it is often difficult for TV to stay true to source material with such popular and seemingly essential characters. With the unbelievable death of Ned Stark at the same time in Season 1 ... this betrayal and brutal killing of the matriarch and eldest son of the Stark household was unreal to watch. But, as the story was going ... had to happen. This is obviously a Game and when Robb and Catelyn chose to play it their way and shun others rules there was only one ending that could occur. Lost in the drama of the last 15 minutes was the great storyline where Jon Snow was just steps from Bran, who witnessed Snow's turn on the wildlings. Rest assured this is not the last we have seen of Jon Snow and Ygritte and we all know the Starks, and even their bastard son, are quite the suckers to the wiley ways of a woman they seemingly love. So, it will be very interesting to see how this story plays out in next week's finale and in the future of the show. Also, Daenerys just keeps gathering wealth, power and men. Once she comes for the Iron Throne it is going to be interesting to see how much those that are all playing their Game across the sea will defend against her might.
1. Mad Men, Episode 10, A Tale of Two Cities. While Game of Thrones was good enough to launch it from the middle of the pack to a potential Best Drama Emmy nod ... Mad Men keeps holding down the fort. It is apparent that I love it a lot more than many other critics out there this season, but I don't see a single flaw in this season so far as they build toward Don Draper's ultimate fate in Season 7. As the new merger continues to cause strain at work, Draper is constantly in flux with trying to decide who he is and what he wants away from the office. The constant pushing of Pete Campbell to the side is going to erupt into something as well. Should be very interesting to see where he goes as his personal life continues to fall apart and as he feels his security at work is being threatened. John Slattery once again proved to be a wonderful director in this episode as it was full of great one-liners and still very Roger-heavy despite Roger being behind the camera. With Draper's umpteenth near-death experience over with ... will he make any changes or will this just be yet another warning sign he fails to listen to?
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