Tag: TV | Amy C. Shaw

A Few Thoughts on Agents of SHIELD Season 1 Finale “The Beginning of the End”

May 29, 2014 • 4 Comments

Alright, so I’ve gotten behind on things, as I really wanted to discuss the last three episodes of SHIELD and I simply got busy and by this point I’ve forgotten details, but I remember that they were AWESOME. Especially the finale, which I did rewatch (while multitasking, which generally results in me not actually absorbing as much of it as I would have liked, but I have a weird thing about rewatching TV episodes I’ve seen before when I’m home alone where I always feel like I have to do something else at the same time, I don’t know why!). But I wanted to share a few of my thoughts.

* WARNING – SPOILERS! *

– It was basically perfect. I thought the storylines that needed to wrap up did so nicely and without getting too tropey. Ward wasn’t redeemed and is still an antagonist in the eyes of the team. Garrett was killed in the most awesome way. But of course, there were things planted to make way for new storylines in season two (and there is going to be a season two, yay!).

– Fitz + Simmons = OMG FEELS. Look, I know I’ve been kind of obsessed with the Fitz-Simmons development lately, but seriously, the chemistry! These two will break your heart.

So my prediction for these two in season two, with Fitz being alive but possibly not quite the same, is that he’s going to lose some of his memory and forget that he admitted to Simmons that he had feelings. He may even forget that he started to develop feelings for her. Meanwhile, Simmons will have to grapple with knowing while still trying to figure out if she feels the same way.

Elizabeth Henstridge has been quoted as saying that “Fitz is going to be her main priority. 100%” in season two. So yeah, I’m dying. I NEED SEASON TWO NOW.

– Nick Fury tells Coulson it’s his job to rebuild SHIELD, and to do it right. I’m sure this will be a big part of Season 2. And I’m hoping that in doing this, by Avengers 2 he can finally let the Avenger crew know that HE’S ALIVE!

– AGENT KOEING LIVES! Sort of… So at the end of the episode we’re introduced to Agent Billy Koeing in a new secret facility of SHIELD, twin brother of Eric Koeing perhaps? And by twin brother, I mostly mean clone, because I’m thinking there must be several Koeing clones in these secret bases. I mean, he says the same exact things! It seems a bit unethical but… I’m game to have Patton Oswalt back on the show.

The show did start off slow, but there was a point where it really started to pick up and would deliver week after week, often times getting better week by week. I finally grew to love and care about the characters, there was a lot of action, some fun cameos and references, and some back-stabbery. Now that SHIELD has found its footing, I really can’t wait for season two, and especially with Agent Carter being picked up alongside it! I love Haley Atwell as Agent Carter and I’m really looking forward to how they translate her character for TV.

Share your thoughts on the season finale of Agents of SHIELD, as well as your thoughts on the show overall and what you’d like to see in season two!

My Thoughts on Agents of SHIELD Since Winter Soldier

April 25, 2014 • 7 Comments

This probably goes without saying, but just to be safe, this post is filled with spoilers from all released episodes of Agents of SHIELD.

As I mentioned in my review of Captain America 2: The Winter Soldier, the show Agents of SHIELD was clearly building up to the movie. And it was obvious after the movie that the repercussions of what happened there was going to bleed onto the show. It all started just days after the movie released, with the episode Turn, Turn, Turn.

The whole episode is fashioned in such a way that we are constantly questioning who is loyal to SHIELD and who is loyal to Hydra, as well as make you wonder and guess and re-guess who “The Clairvoyant” is. Needless to say, I really did not see it coming that it would be Agent Garrett!

Triplett: “But hey, if we get questioned, let me talk. You’re a surprisingly bad liar.”

Simmons: “I know. But I’m getting better at it.”

This episode was jam-packed with action and misleadings, and also many character moments. Coulson still doesn’t trust May completely, even though she is an “ally.” Fitz is crazy worried about Simmons. Ward tells Skye that he has feelings for her and they share a kiss. And of course, we learn the truth about Garrett. And then at the end, we see Ward kill Agent Hand and nod towards Garrett. But then he seems distant as Garrett starts telling stories of his grand escapades of the past. What’s going on with Ward? Surely he’s a double or triple agent, right? We never heard him say, “Hail Hydra!” and besides, it doesn’t seem to fit that he would be bad.

Next was Providence, in which everyone starts to question what’s next as SHIELD has obviously shattered. Coulson makes an impassioned plea to his team that they are Agents of SHIELD, not Agents of Nothing, and they must continue to fight for what they know is right. And meanwhile, Ward and Garrett go to the Fridge to spring out those being kept there, and to grab anything that can be beneficial to the cause of Hydra.

Raina: “So you’re a liar. You’re a fraud.”

Garrett: “An artist. A con artist, perhaps, but an artist all the same.”

From the coordinates that light up on his SHIELD badge, Coulson is able to find a secret SHIELD facility called Providence where ~~Remy the rat~~ ~~Adam Goldberg~~ ~~Patton Oswalt~~ Agent Koenig is waiting for them (or at least for Coulson). He tells the team that Fury is dead, though reveals to Coulson in private that Fury is actually alive, but only a few people can know, and that the rest of the team will have to pass a lie detector before they are trusted.

I have to say I loved Agent Koenig so much in this episode and the next, and I’m so sad we won’t get to see more of him! This episode also solidified, at least in my mind, that Ward is really working with Garrett, at the very least, and he is allegiant to him first and foremost. It will be interesting to see if anything happens with that allegiance if Garrett dies or if he makes Ward choose between him and Skye. At the end of the episode, Garrett sends Ward off to get Skye’s hard drive encrypted, and of course poor Skye has no idea who Ward truly is when he reunites with the team at the end.

Ever since the episode “FZZT,” I’ve been all aboard the Fitz-Simmons ship. Fitz has a couple of moments where you can see that his feelings for Simmons have truly gone past those of a brotherly/sisterly nature and have turned into more of a romantic love for her. But of course, Simmons is clueless.

Simmons: “Did you mean what you said earlier? About Coulson?”

Fitz: “I don’t know know, Jemma. I want to believe that Coulson knows what he’s doing but…”

Simmons: “Well, we still have each other.”

Fitz: “Yeah. Good. Cause the last thing I want is for things to change.”

Simmons: “It’s too late for that.”

This week’s episode was The Only Light in the Darkness, in which any previous caring I had for Ward before is absolutely gone by everything he does, May leaves, we finally meet Coulson’s lovely cellist, and the Fitz-Simmons feels only grow. It starts off with everyone going through the lie detector test Koenig mentioned to Coulson in the previous episode.

The lie detector sequence was great because it provided even more insight into each character. When asked, “Why are you here?,” May decidedly says Coulson. Simmons admits she’s not sure. When asked if they were stranded on a deserted island with a box, what’s in the box, most people have practical answers, but Simmons declares she wants the TARDIS, and after asking for the variables of the box and being told to say what first comes to mind, Fitz finally says that Simmons would be in his box. (*FEELS!!!*)

When Ward has his test, his readings are all over the place. Koenig starts to suspect him. But then Ward is able to work around it through half truths, convincing Koenig at least temporarily that he’s a good guy. Unfortunately, Koenig pays for that mistake and Skye finds a dead Koenig and with this, the truth about Ward. And though she has her freak-out moment, she is able to pull herself together enough to think and act. I’m really glad Skye is wise to the truth now and I’m interested in seeing how she handles herself in the next episode as she is off with Ward.

I loved Amy Acker in her role as Audrey Nathan, AKA, the cellist. Her plot involves a villain of the week who Garrett released from prison, obviously to keep Coulson busy in chasing after him to protect Audrey. But it was all so sad that Coulson had to just watch her from a distance. And then when he kissed her on the forehead and told her he was there and then ran off before she woke… ACK! FEELS!

“Why don’t you tell her the truth? That you’re still alive? … It’s just – the way she talks about you, it sounds like the two of you had something nice… So it’s not because you’re afraid to talk to her?” – Fitz

Yes, more Fitz pining at the end, with more clueless Simmons. My heart is breaking for Fitz. TELL HER HOW YOU FEEL, MAN!

And then the episode ended with May and… Mama May!

May doesn’t know who to trust , other than her mom, and is on the hunt for Maria Hill, who will be in next week’s episode. I’m intrigued by all this.

In short: I’m enjoying the direction of the show and how it keeps bringing its A game. I love Fitz-Simmons. I’m so over Ward, though I am somewhat interested in his backstory. I loved Koenig (RIP!). I continue to love Coulson. I’m curious to see what happens with May, Skye, and Triplett too. And the finale, I have a feeling, is going to leave us with a brutal cliffhanger.

What are your thoughts on these last few episodes of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.?

TV Series Finales

April 4, 2014 • 14 Comments

This post is inspired by the highly controversial finale of How I Met Your Mother that aired on Monday night. I didn’t actually watch the finale since I’ve only seen a handful of episodes, and I won’t spoil you all on here, in case you’ve somehow managed to avoid spoilers and don’t want to know the end, but I can certainly understand why after years of character development, fans of the show would be upset with the ending.

This led me to think about the finales of the various series I’ve watched, the finales where they knew it was their finale and had the chance to plan properly for it. Here’s my ranking of eight TV show finales, all from TV shows I watched from beginning to end, staring with my favorite going down to my least favorite…

1. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, “What You Leave Behind”

When I watched this finale and saw the above scene at Vic’s, it felt so right. It was exactly the sort of note Deep Space Nine needed to end on after the turmoil of war the characters had gone through. It’s hard to get a much better finale than Deep Space Nine, I think, and the only way it really could have felt more complete was if they actually made movies afterward to follow up what happened, because even though it was closure enough, it definitely left an open door and a desire for more. There are books that explore what happens next, which I might get around to reading one day. But sometimes it’s also fun just to imagine for myself.

Story Closure Satisfaction: 4.5/5

Character Closure Satisfaction: 4.5/5

Emotional Satisfaction: 5/5

“The more things change, the more they stay the same.” – Quark

2. Fringe, “An Enemy of Fate”

If you ever binge watch Fringe, just be sure the tissues are ready when you reach the end because HOLY GENE (that’ll make sense if you watch the show ;)) the feels are real. Unfortunately, Fringe never answered all the questions I wanted them to and some of the finale lacked logic to me, but it was still really satisfying, especially emotionally.

Story Closure Satisfaction: 4/5

Character Closure Satisfaction: 4.5/5

Emotional Satisfaction: 5/5

“You are… my very favorite thing.” – Walter Bishop

3. Babylon 5, “Sleeping in Light”

Like most finales, Babylon 5’s was very bittersweet. It was sad, but I don’t think it could have really ended any other way. And it was a pretty powerful conclusion for the grand story arc J. Michael Straczynski had planned (errr… minus a lot of season 5). This is only #3 on the list because the two before it are so strong, but this one really was too.

Story Closure Satisfaction: 4.5/5

Character Closure Satisfaction: 4/5

Emotional Satisfaction: 4.5/5

“A toast… to absent friends, in memory still bright.” – John Sheridan

4. The West Wing, “Tomorrow”

West Wing ran for seven seasons, which means we got to see most of President Bartlett’s two term Presidency, and fittingly, the last episode is him and his crew leaving the White House to make way for the new President. In this episode there’s a lot of reminiscing and a lot of having to show the new folks the ropes for when they take charge. From this list, this is the finale I saw longest ago so it’s the foggiest on my mind, but I do remember being very satisfied overall with the conclusion.

Story Closure Satisfaction: 5/5

Character Closure Satisfaction: 4/5

Emotional Satisfaction: 4/5

Man: Hey, you work there?/ C.J.: Pardon?/ Man: I said, do you work up there? In the White House./ C.J.: No. I don’t./ Man: Oh, sorry./ C.J.: No problem./ Man: Must be something, huh?/ C.J.: Yeah. Yeah, it must be something.

5. Star Trek: The Next Generation, “All Good Things”

The closing scene of “All Good Things” is perfect, and while there is some callback in the episode that is nice, it also involves a lot of Q. I’m not a big fan of Q (John deLancie, yes, Q, no) and his antics, and especially his antics from the first episode of TNG, which unfortunately is where a lot of the callback in this episode comes from. It also shows some of the future, and all I remember from that is one thing that left me disappointed. Still, I think that future never really comes to fruition anyway, and we see more of the characters in the movies (though let’s not talk about Nemesis being the end for it all… sigh…). I do remember enjoying this finale pretty well though.

Story Closure Satisfaction: 4.5/5

Character Closure Satisfaction: 4/5

Emotional Satisfaction: 4/5

“So, five-card stud, nothing wild… and the sky’s the limit.” – Captain Picard

6. Star Trek: Voyager, “Endgame”

The ship Voyager spends seven seasons in another quadrant of the galaxy, trying to make its way back home, and so of course for the finale, everyone wants to see Voyager make it home. But how will it happen? How long will it take? I don’t want to spoil what happens, but let’s just say that maybe this wasn’t the best execution of the idea. But not the worst either. It was just a little more convoluted than I prefer. They also made an interesting choice with a couple of characters I didn’t really see coming, and I didn’t love it or hate it, but now that I know the real life back story of why it happened, it seems kind of lame. But overall, it’s a pretty good finale.

Story Closure Satisfaction: 4/5

Character Closure Satisfaction: 3.5/5

Emotional Satisfaction: 4/5

“Set a course… for home.” – Captain Janeway

7. Chuck, “Chuck Versus the Goodbye”

The Chuck finale was good for the secondary characters. If I were to rank my satisfaction for that part of the finale alone, the numbers would be higher. But for our two main characters, Chuck and Sarah, completely different story. Again, without spoiling anything, all I can say is it does feel like an undoing of previous character development, and that was frustrating and heartbreaking both. I mean, it could have been worse, but it was more than bittersweet.

Story Closure Satisfaction: 2.5/5

Character Closure Satisfaction: 2.5/5

Emotional Satisfaction: 2.5/5

“… tell me our story.” – Sarah Walker

8. Star Trek: Enterprise, “These Are the Voyages…”

Sorry for the butt shot, but almost every picture I found for this episode was a major spoiler. This episode is truly the sorriest excuse for a finale or a “Valentine to the fans” (as Rick Berman and Brannon Braga called it… gag me…) EVER. Which is so disappointing because to this day, it’s the last episode we have of Star Trek ever, and the episode before this one was really quite good and would have made a fitting finale. But this is terrible garbage. The premise is ludicrous, what happens to some of the characters is inane, and it just made me ANGRY. I’m giving story closure a rating of .5 only because we see the beginnings of the Federation. That was the ONE good thing that happened. I really enjoyed Enterprise overall but this finale was truly the biggest disappointment for a TV show ever, and from what I gather, nearly every Star Trek fan agrees.

Story Closure Satisfaction: .5/5

Character Closure Satisfaction: 0/5

Emotional Satisfaction: 0/5

“Here’s to the next generation.” – Captain Archer

What are your favorite and least favorite finales? (And please avoid spoilers, unless you’re talking about the aforementioned shows.)

Review: Almost Human, Season One

March 16, 2014 • 4 Comments

In a not-so-distant future, human cops and androids partner up to protect and serve. – from IMDB

Almost Human is a sci-fi show that just finished up its first season on Fox with a 13 episode run, and I am hoping and crossing all my fingers and toes that it won’t be the last season, but with it being on the bubble, I am aware of the unfortunate possibility. I just want MORE! More of these great characters, more of this interesting world with its developing technology, and more of the hinted at story arcs. Why did Valerie, a genetically engineered “Chrome” decide to become a cop? What makes Dorian so much more special than all the other DRN models that Captain Maldonado reactivated him for duty to work with Kennex? What happened with Anna and why is she listening in on Kennex? And what in the world is on the other side of The Wall?! Why is it there in the first place? I need to know!

If I had to describe Almost Human in my own words, I would say it’s a detective bromance set in a future where crimes evolve with the technology and the lines between man and android are sometimes blurred. Karl Urban, starring as the main character John Kennex, is perfect in his role. If you love Dr. McCoy from the new Star Trek movies (and seriously, who doesn’t?!)…

Then you’ll love Kennex…

And Michael Ealy is perfectly paired with Urban as his android partner who has been programmed with “synthetic soul,” which makes him more human than the more generic models of androids. He is always delivering perfectly-timed quips and enjoys giving Kennex a hard time, and he also has more serious moments when he reflects on humanity in ways that Kennex cannot.

I enjoyed the rest of the main cast as well, and in 13 episodes, we definitely did not get enough of them. I want to learn more about each of their characters, and all the actors/actresses, in addition to the great writing, are responsible for that.

AH-secondarycast — Minka Kelly/ Mackenzie Crook/ Lili Taylor

I can see the reasons why Almost Human may not have gained popularity, despite how much I truly enjoyed it. For starters, it can’t seem to decide if it wants to episodic or serial, which can be frustrating for people who prefer one sort of show over the other. Each week there is a new case, but there are also several mentions sprinkled in that hint at an overall storyline or, even more frustratingly, seem super important and make you think it will be addressed in the next episode, but then it’s not. Because of this, audiences who learned not to rely on these supposed important plot points may not make an effort to tune in every week, and then those who prefer the episodic nature might still do the same, because they’re not looking for a week-to-week story arc.

What was also super frustrating was that Fox decided to air the episodes out of order, so one week Kennex and Dorian would be buddy-buddy, and the next week Kennex would be ready to throw Dorian out of the window from frustration. The development of the characters and the story did not make much sense in the order the episodes were shown.

There’s also the fact that it was just not given enough time for word to properly get around about the show. Those who love Fringe (which by the way, I think spent its first season with some of the same struggles as Almost Human, but then found its feet and improved) and similar shows would really enjoy Almost Human, and they just may not have discovered it yet. Perhaps it is a niche target audience, but I think there are people who would like it who might not think to seek it out. Words like “sci-fi” and “androids” may make the show seem heady or out there, but the show really is about being human. And can’t we all relate to that?

One of my favorite episodes, “Perception,” was ultimately about a teen girl trying to live up to her mother’s potential, and how far someone is willing to go for the vindication of someone they love. There might be talk of genetically engineered humans and printed drugs in the process, but ultimately, the story is about people.

The season finale was not dramatic, it did not raise many more questions, and there was not a cliffhanger. They left the Kennex-Dorian relationship in a satisfying place, I think in case that if this was it, at least their relationship would have closure. But there is still so much left to be explored.

I really believe in the potential of this show. I hope Fox will too. I want more Almost Human!

Did you watch the first season of Almost Human? What were your thoughts on it?

Review: I Spy, Season Two

March 10, 2014 • 4 Comments

See my review for I Spy, Season One here. I Spy is an action-adventure TV series from the 196os that focuses on Alexander “Scotty” Scott (played by Bill Cosby) and Kelly Robinson (played by Robert Culp), who pose as a tennis player and his trainer, but are actually secret agents for the U.S. government.

What I love about season two of the show is that the characters are already established, as well as their friendship, so we dive right into new stories with the two. I felt there was a more diverse range of locations this season, from Italy to California to Spain. Kelly’s still picking up women left and right, but he’s also smoking a lot more, and Scotty’s about as straight-laced as ever, though he gets to loosen up some this season. I also found the season to be overall more political, espousing American ideals and speaking out against Communism quite a bit. There is a blend of serious episodes with more fun, romp-like episodes, and while I have a lot of appreciation for the serious ones (minus the ones that the late Robert Culp wrote, because with all due respect to him, they weren’t that great), I generally preferred the fun ones (unless they were trying to be fun and then weren’t, particularly an episode involving an Italian boy named Gino…).

Episode Stand-Outs

The first episode I enjoyed a lot was “One of Our Bombs Is Missing,” in which Kelly and Scotty have to recover an A-bomb from an American military aircraft that crashed in Italy. There was a colorful cast of side characters that made this one enjoyable, including a man trying to hook Kelly up with his daughter (who he insists is a very good cook) and a priest.

One episode where I found the premise intriguing and would like to see done in a more modern way was “Father Abraham.” A very young rocket scientist has volunteered to be tortured and give false information to some bad guys (probably Russian Communists, but I don’t remember for certain) all to win the approval of his father. Part of me found it far-fetched, and yet, it really was intriguing because the character himself was an enigma to me, and I don’t know how to explain why. I suppose because he seemed so young, early to mid-twenties, and was a fairly attractive guy who could probably find a lady to settle down with and live a normal life, but he chose this whole other, dangerous path. I think it could be a great movie or book, and that it could expound so much more than this episode could.

“Child Out of Time” was interesting in that is focuses on an extremely bright girl who ends up an orphan. With this episode, I found her character more interesting than the actual story. She kept these secrets that her mother had memorized, valuable information that many people wanted, but once that’s given away, there’s nothing left for her except to go live with some nuns. She was the sort of character that I wanted to know more about (like the guy from the aforementioned episode), and it would be interesting to find out how she was doing ten years later. She formed a sweet friendship with Scotty, and I really hope he kept in touch with her.

The last one I really enjoyed was “Night Train to Madrid,” a story that feels like an Agatha Christie novel, yet is almost light-hearted in some ways. It was definitely a good murder mystery story, and it almost entirely takes place on a night train ride.

Groundbreaking For Its Time

As I mentioned in my season one review, this series was groundbreaking for the time, with some really great on-location shots, political commentary, and a black man and a white man working together as equals on screen (and that black man, Bill Cosby, won 3 Emmy awards for his 3 years on the show). I have to say that this show and Star Trek both did a lot for 1960s television.

But Not Perfect…

Unfortunately, women were a bit objectified at times in the series, especially in the two episodes Culp wrote for the season. Most of the girls were air-headed and willing to abandon everything for a man, or pig-headed but still willing to abandon everything for a man who completely disagrees with their philosophy. Thankfully, they weren’t all that way and some were actually very capable and not annoying.

Also, sometimes I am amazed by how incompetent Kelly and Scotty can be, getting captured, people figure out who they really are, or them not being armed when really, they should be at all times. But there are also times they are completely competent and get the job done!

And Speaking of Star Trek (as I was, uh, a paragraph ago)…

There are several Star Trek actors that made an appearance in this season of I Spy, from Walter Koenig (you may know him as Chekov) to Ricardo Montalban (who you may as the original KHAN!!!!) to Salmone Jens (who was an awesome character in I Spy, but less so as the Female Changeling in Deep Space Nine). There are others (mostly people who played much smaller roles in Star Trek), and it was always fun to discover someone from Star Trek on I Spy. Oh, and Opie Taylor made an appearance too (not from Star Trek, but whateves)!

Overall, it was good, and though there were a few clunkers, it was a stronger season than the first. My husband and I hope to be able to get a hold of season three sometime, but unfortunately for some reason it’s a bit pricier than the other two. I’d give I Spy season two 3.5 stars.

It’s definitely worth checking out, especially if you’re a fan of spy stuff and/or Bill Cosby’s work.

Anyone else a fan of I Spy?

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