Supernatural - 99 Problems, S05E17

The Apocalypse is coming, and, with only 5 episodes left this season, it's coming on fast. I was surprised by how much everything was changing already, until I realized that it was more like about time.

The boys came up against yet another villain from the Book of Revelations, the Whore of Babylon. Claiming to be a prophet, she had an entire town under her sway, and was trying to bring them all to Hell. Using promises of being reunited with dead kin and being saved come judgement day, she convinced good people to commit unspeakable acts from which none could be saved. Too bad for her that Dean (Jensen Ackles) and Sam (Jared Padalecki) happened to pass through her town.

I'm going to say this once, and just once, "Why are all these things happening in the USA." I realize that Sam and Dean are there, and we have established that they are a huge part of the Apocalypse and the Fates do love them, but are there no demonic activities in Europe or Africa or anywhere else? Or are we just suppose to assume that before the Whore came to that small American town, she was doing the same thing somewhere in China? That Death and War and Famine and Pestilence are doing their things in Australia and Argentina? What explanation have you given yourself for why all this turmoil is centred on the States?

Ignoring that, Sam and Dean would be completely screwed without Castiel (Misha Collins). Showing up, eventually, in response to a call for help (left on an answering message with a very amusing recording), Cas reveals that Leah (Kayla Mae Maloney) is not a prophet, and must be the Whore. He is quite wrecked at the time, explaining that he found a liquor store, and drank it. Poor Cas, there is not enough liquor in the world to drown an Angel's spirits because his dad is a dead-beat like most other people's.

Cas also revealed that only a true servant of God could kill the Whore. Luckily, there was a priest on hand, but as he was the girl's father (before she was killed and the whore took her shape), he hesitated, and Dean ended up impaling the creature. To everyone's surprise, she died. Apparently Dean is a true servant.

And what did Dean do upon discovering this? He ran (well, drove) away from his brother. He showed up to see Lisa, the love of his life, to tell her that he loved her and to promise her than one of his conditions for the thing he was about to do (likely saying YES to Michael) was that she and her son would be protected and saved.

The big show down is coming, how it is going to happen, how we are all going to survive long enough for season 6, I cannot say. But I am certain that it will not only be epic, but the transition will also be credible. This show continues to be amazing 5 seasons in, and I have every hope season 6 will also deliver.

Supernatural - Dark Side of the Moon, S05E16

What an emotional and touching episode. There is a sadness in my soul, and my heart breaks for Dean (Jensen Ackles), Sam (Jared Padalecki), and Castiel (Misha Collins). And, while they say it is always darkest before dawn, I'm not certain that there can ever be brightness in the world again.

Sam and Dean start the episode by getting killed, again. As Ash (Chad Lindberg) tells them when they meet up with him in Heaven, our boys die more than anyone else he knows. And while in Heaven, they revisit all the happiest times of their lives - for Dean, those moments all include his family, his mother and his brother, for Sam, those moments are the times he was on his own.

If witnessing Sam's love of some of Dean's most painful memories wasn't enough trauma for Dean to go through, he also remembers that his parents' marriage was far from perfect. When this was followed up by the memory of his mother telling him that he was the problem, the reason everyone abandoned him, and finally by the revelation that God felt he had already done enough, and was not willing to stop the end of the world, Dean's faith was done.

How Dean is supposed to continue fighting when he has nothing to rely on, when he believes in nothing, I don't know. And Castiel was equally despondent when he learnt that his Father would not act. Sam, alone, retained hope and the drive to succeed against all the odds. And despite all the pain Sam had put Dean through in Heaven, Dean delivered an equally, if not more, painful blow back on Earth.

The amulet Sam gave Dean when they were children was meant to help them locate God. As this was no longer possible, Dean through the necklace out, naming it worthless. It no longer had the value of finding God, or the value of a gift from a loving brother which had prevented him from giving it over willingly to Cas in the first place.

As for Free Will, though, I feel that God's refusal to get involved speaks more highly for the belief than anything else so far. I would just state that it seems he has also given that ability to the Angels and Demons as well. What are your thoughts?

Supernatural - Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid, S05E15

There is nothing more horrible than the idea of having loved ones return from the graves, completely unchanged from how they were, and, after five days of loving affection, having them turn to the cannibalistic tendencies which are typically associated with Zombies.

The confrontations with War and Famine were not pretty - many civilians were killed in those battles. Death, however, fights much more cleverly. He never came into direct contact with Sam (Jared Padalecki) or Dean (Jensen Ackles), never had any intention of involving them in this scheme while it was going on. And though they killed the Zombies and prevented quite a few deaths, Death's attack was still successful.

Sam and Dean are physically very strong. They are smart and resourceful, and they have many friends to back them up. They also have two very powerful angels - Lucifer and Michael respectively - who have a great interest in seeing that the boys come to no physical harm. But psychologically, it's a very different game. As Dean stated in Sam, Interrupted, it would not be shocking if at some point either of the boys lost his mind. Mentally, they are far from stable.

Death's attack was for Bobby (Jim Beaver). Had the Zombies killed him, that would have been a great success. That they didn't was not necessarily a defeat, as it meant that Bobby's wife who ha been resurrected had to be killed by her loving husband a second time. Time does not heal wounds, but allows them to scab over cleanly enough, allows to pain to become a dull, consistent ache in the background. And the most painful event of Bobby's life was not played over for him a second time, but was repeated with new details. And that pain is very fresh, and very very crippling.

Will Bobby be able to keep helping out? And if not, how will Sam and Dean continue without him?

Supernatural - My Bloody Valentine, S05E14

These episodes are the best - the ones where the start and set up seems to be some bizarre and random episode designed to amuse, but turn into those where the mythology and the main plot are really the most important aspect.

It started with gruesome deaths. Really gruesome deaths. A couple ate each other to death. Then, another couple went crazy and Romeo + Julietted out of this world. Both couples were imprinted by marks of a cupid, leading Castiel (Misha Collins) to believe that said Cupid had gone rogue.

Calling upon the Cupid, Dean (Jensen Ackles), Sam (Jared Padalecki), and Cas confronted him on the fate of his latest chosen lovers. When the Cupid appeared, he was absolutely naked and proceeded to hug the three men. "What's going on?" Dean demanded, "Are we in a fight?" "This is their handshake," replied Castiel. "I don't like it." "No one likes it."

The Cupid, however, was not the problem. He was deeply upset to discover that his lovers had gone insane.

It did not take long for Castiel to figure out that there was a horseman about - Famine. All I can say is, thank God Cas is helping out our boys or they would not be doing too well at all. Castiel's vessel began craving beef, Sam began craving Demon blood, and Dean, strangely, craved nothing. He did not even want to go to the bar on Valentine's Day, which he usually referred to as Christmas for unattached drifters.

I cannot express the horror I felt when Sam was released for his self-imposed confinement by demons, upon whose blood he then feasted. Memories of last season and thoughts of how easily Lucifer might be able to pray on him in such a state screamed forth, projecting a situation in which I could see Sam say yes. And yet, when he waltzed into the dinner to save Cas and Dean, he was so calm. Clearly, having consumed the blood, he was as unaffected by Famine as the demons who were his aids were. Sam, using his demon powers, defeated the demons and Famine, feeling no more desire to drink their blood.

Naturally, he had to spend the next while in confinement, getting himself clean. But there was a moment of such calm there that gave me hope. Though Sam had slipped, he was still strong. The devil will not win that easily.

Do you think the demon blood will be the key to Sam's potential undoing? Or was its original ability to bring him to harm because of Ruby's manipulations?

Supernatural - The Song Remains the Same, S05E13

One of the things that Supernatural does best is that it does not forget about anyone. Jo and Ellen may have disappeared for several seasons, but we did eventually reconnect with them. That those events soon led to their deaths is rather beside the point.

And not so long ago, I had been wondering what had happened to Anna (Julie McNiven). The last time we saw her, Castiel (Misha Collins) betrayed her to the other angels. I had thought she had been killed, but that was not the case. She had been locked up and tortured...so now we know where Lucifer first learnt that habit. And we found her again, having escaped from the dungeons of Heaven (which has a very wrong feel to it).

Her new plan was to stop the Apocalypse, which might have made her a good ally had her method not been to do so by killing Sam (Jared Padalecki), cutting him into teeny tiny pieces and spreading his molecules out across the galaxy so that he could not be brought back.

Whether or not this would in fact stop the Apocalypse is not the point - Sam's death is not an option for Dean (Jensen Ackles) or for Castiel, so when she travels back to 1978 to murder Mary and John Winchester before they have their sons, the boys follow. Besides, while they have no problems not being born, they do have issues with their parents being killed, again.

Poor Sam, confronted with the younger versions of his parents - the mother he never knew and the father he thought he hated. Being able to tell both of them how he felt, despite the fact that afterwards their memories were wiped and that they didn't realize at the time that he was their son, may have actually been a salve on the pain he feels about the whole situation. Dean, meanwhile, wanted to protect his father from going down that path as long as he was able to. Touching to see where both boys got their attitudes and tendencies.

And while we still got laughs (Dean comparing weakened Castiel to a Delorian without plutonium, and Cas not comprehending the reference), the serious discovers we made are what stay with me.

Meeting Michael, finally, and in the body of John, was something close to horrible. The Archangel believes that Free Will is an illusion, and considering the effort put into the union of Mary and John to produce sons who would be able to be vessels to angels as powerful as Michael and Lucifer without ill effect...with the Apocalypse coming, as has always been foreseen, and with the lives of Sam and Dean so obviously effected by Fate and Destiny, the entire idea of Free Will seems naive.

And so, Team Free Will (Sam, Dean, and Castiel) will continue to fight the good fight, while Michael and Lucifer sally forth with their plans. And after what happened to Anna - she was incinerated by Michael for daring to try to stop the end of the world - and to Ellen and Jo, I can only pity anyone who wants to help our boys.

Would you be willing to risk everything for them?

Stargate Universe - Space, S01E11

Please, please, please don't pull the rug out from under me again, like you did last time I thought you were getting good. This episode is the reason I kept watching SGU; I know it has potential, and we've seen it attain that potential a few times, but then the writers do something insane, and everything falls to pieces. So PLEASE go with what you know works!

Why did this episode work? Well, for starters, the communication crystals failed. Instead of being transported back to Earth for some boring emotional drama with the people left behind, Colonel Young (Justin Louis) ended up in the body of an alien. Oooh, it's like it's a science fiction show!

Then, we got a space battle! These aliens are not friendly, and they also appear to be interested in studying us. They kidnapped Chloe (Elyse Levesque), whom, other than the moment she made it really easy for the aliens to take her, actually did not annoy me particularly this episode. If the writers continue to give her believable moments, like her pleasure and subsequent disappointment with the not-quite-tomatoes, I might start to like her.

Young actually did something heroic. Not that I'm going to start liking him at all for it, after all, he abandoned Rush (Robert Carlyle) on a planet to die, he cheated on his wife, he beat up a fellow officer, and he's not even man enough to not feel guilty about what happened to Rush. But at least he went to the other space ship and freed Rush, even though he was really there looking for Chloe.

So we had heroic, science-fictiony moments, which is terrific, and the drama finally was palatable. Because of Young's stupid decision to murder Rush (even though it turns out he didn't succeed), the scientists now actually have a reason to resent the leadership of the military. The army has changed from supposed protector to definite dictator. I love that Camile Wray (Ming-Na) and Rush have teamed up, both knowing what did happen to Rush, even though they both have let on to the rest of the crew that Young's story was accurate.

The best moment of the episode, however, was the demonstration of pure joy and friendship between T.J. (Alaina Huffman) and Vanessa James (Julia Benson). James admitted to having a crush on one of the scientists, who overheard the comment. James was embarrassed, and T.J. laughed and teased her, but not with any cruelty. I hope we get to see a lot more interaction between these two.

Do you agree with me? Was this episode actually what you want and expect from a Stargate show? And do you think they will take this positive new take and run with it? Or will the communication stones begin working again next week, and the quality drop back to pitiful?

Spartacus: Blood and Sand - Old Wounds, S01E11

Batiatus (John Hannah) is a very smart man, with great ambition, and the determination and cold heart to accomplish whatever task is necessary to get him where he wants to go. Since the beginning of the series, he has been struggling and prevailing, slowly climbing forth, and now that he seems to have everything exactly as he wishes it, one mistake will cost him everything.

The latest success of Batiatus rests completely on Spartacus (Andy Whitfield); the gladiator's winnings are his master's glories. And when the Magistrate refused to help with Batiatus's political ambition, after hurting Spartacus by forcing him to kill Varro (Jai Countney), Batiatus plans to get even. Promising Spartacus vengeance for Varro, he and Ashur (Nick Tarabay) and another man capture the Magistrate, planning to kill him.

Mid-episode, things began looking ill for Batiatus. Spartacus, planned to compete in the primus of upcoming games, fell literally ill due to an infection in the wound Varro gave him before he died. Crixus (Manu Bennett) was chosen to replace him, even though he no longer had the crowd's love and it had been a long time since he fought in the arena. If those circumstances were not worrisome enough, Ashur's meetings with Solonius (Craig Walsh Wrightson) continued. Ashur was clearly debating telling Solonius about the Magistrate; he hesitated the first time they met, but he looked to tell him the next time.

Although things looked bad, however, all of Batiatus's machinations worked out perfectly.

Crixus won his primus, promising Batiatus the choice of two champions. Ashur led Solonius to the Magistrate, only so that it would appear as if Solonius had killed him, and not Batiatus. Spartacus healed from his wounds and would fight again.

The thing that Batiatus did not count on, however, was that Spartacus would discover the hand he played in the death of his gladiator's wife. As the episode ended, Spartacus claimed to be returned to himself - not gladiator, but husband. The biggest problem for his master is that, since his wife's death, Spartacus has learnt to play the game. When he will strike and how are as yet unknown, but he will not do so with the careless rashness that he would have formerly.

I cannot wait to see the last two episodes of this season!

Republic of Doyle - The Fall of the Republic, S01E12 - Season Finale

For a show that has mostly relied on humourous ridiculousness, the finale of the first season was both sad and serious. We did get a few laughs to carry us through, but we cannot forget that actions have consequences and not all of them are good.

It began with Malachy (Sean McGinley) being taken to hospital with a heart attack, while Christian (Jonathan Goad) woke up after having blacked out, with blood on his face and hands, and a pool of it on the floor.

Des (Mark O'Brien) and Tinny (Marthe Bernard) are sent to take care of a client, since the Doyle men have much more serious problems. The case provided most of the amusement of the episode, climaxing at the moment when Des and Tinny came upon a man who had stolen a winning lottery ticket from their client. Absurdly, he swallowed the ticket to prevent Des from getting it, and then he promptly chocked to death on it. Yes, Des got a kiss from Tinny to help calm him down, but there was still a dead body.

For Mal, the day went slightly better than that. He discovered that Christian really was no where near the success he had made himself out to be, and though he believed that his son hadn't committed any murder, he still suffered another minor heart attack due to the strain. Knowing he was going to have surgery, he proposed to Rose (Lynda Boyd) with a ring he'd been holding onto for the last 4 months. So, while we (hopefully) have a wedding to look forward to next season, Malachy's involvement in the PI business is going to have to be drastically reduced. Good thing Tinny and Des seem so good at it (or, at least, Tinny does).

Jake (Allan Hawco) had by far the worse day. He tried to help his brother out, but the conspiracy against Christian was so big that even Leslie (Krystin Pellerin) came to regret any of the information she received about it from Jake. He ended up helping his brother skip town, while Leslie was removed from the case. Although she is still drawn to Jake, she knows he isn't good for her career. Too bad she's too smart for those other cops, and will likely have to uncover their conspiracy next season.

For Nikki (Rachel Wilson), things were even worse. Knowing what pain Jake was in because of his concern for his father and his brother, she did her best to be there for him. But when she arrived to discover him with Leslie, an interruption which gave Leslie enough sense to leave, Nikki announced she was leaving town - she couldn't be around Jake any more.

So, next season, we have a major conspiracy to pursue, a restructuring of Doyle & Doyle to be done, and Jake's love triangle with Nikki and Leslie, full of more complications than ever, unless Rachel Wilson doesn't return. I'm glad to see that they can do serious as well as goofy, but I'm looking forward to more up-beat episodes when the show returns.

Vampire Diaries - There Goes the Neighborhood, S01E16

Mystic Falls may have had some vampire problems in the past, but those will not remotely compare to the problems they are about to suffer through...that is, if the humans do make it through.

When Damon (Ian Somerhalder) went after Katherine, the spell that was supposed to keep the vampires locked in the vault did not remain sealed. Not only did Damon, Stefan (Paul Wesley), Anna (Malese Jow), and her mother escape, but so did the rest of the vampires who had been enclosed there. About 20 vampires are currently gathering strength, planning to take Mystic Falls back from the humans.

It's a good thing that not only is their sunlight to stop the vampires without rings, but there is also vervain to counter all of their powers. Balance is very important - there must be a reason why 20 vampires are not able to storm one small, mildly-suspecting town, and that is the vervain, which has been distributed throughout the town, despite its scarcity. It explains why witches and vampires have not teamed up to destroy us all.

But, with the ability to go in the sunlight, and the lack of other negative effects - the souls still appear properly within the undead - it is easy to understand why people are so interested in being turned. First Elena (Nina Dobrev)'s birth mother, and now her brother, Jeremy (Steven R. McQueen), has an interest. I hope that the reasons for his desire to transform with be made apparent to us soon. I was rather a fan of the idea of he and Anna having a human-vampire relationship for a while.

Regardless of the vampire stories, I was pleased that one of the main issues of this episode had nothing to do with those 20 odd vampires who escaped from under the church. Caroline (Candice Accola) and Matt (Zach Roerig)'s relationship is hitting all the snags of a normal teenage relationship. Poor Caroline has insecurities because she feels that she is nobody's first choice. Elena, Matt, and probably her mother as well have too many other people and priorities that they choose before her. Had she great confidence in herself, in her ability to hold Matt's attention, his comments about old times with Elena would not be so painful.

Of course, Elena is a bit to blame. Although Stefan has no issues of confidence, it is obvious she is hurting her friend. She really ought to have tried to direct more of the conversation towards present circumstances, even though it is always easier to talk about shared moments than any thing else. But, she is only a 16 year old, after all. I suppose she ought to show it sometimes.

I doubt we will be able to get too many more tender, normal moments, as the crisis and conflict with the new vampire nest quickly approaches. How are they going to resolve all the plots - Katherine's whereabouts, Elena's mother, Anna and Jeremy, the vampire nest, etc., by the end of the season? And how will they leave us hanging for the summer hiatus?

FlashForward - Better Angels, S01E14

Although one important development took place back home for our characters, the focus of this episode was on the events and discoveries of Somalia. A bit exciting, definitely attention grabbing, but possible including a mistake?

Mark (Joseph Fiennes) and Olivia (Sonya Walger) discovered both why their daughter would not speak about her flashforward and what started their separation. The little girl had heard a man, whom we learnt was Marshall Vogel (Michael Ealy), telling another agent that Mark was dead. No wonder the little girl was scared. Olivia, wanting to protect her child, her husband, and her family, again pushed the idea that they could simply pick up and leave. When Mark finally refused, she determined that that was likely what would lead to their break up.

The thing is, I don't understand Olivia. Mark doesn't want to leave, can't leave, because he is the centre of something he considers important. He would be far more likely to start drinking again if he ran like a coward. She is the one putting the wedge between them by deciding that his determination to see things through, something she must once have loved about him, means that he wants to see the end of their marriage. She is making the choice to say there is a rift where one does not have to be

Meanwhile in Somalia, a whole lot of people were dying. Pretty much anyone who went with them who wasn't a lead character was riddled with bullets. It was lovely. What was also lovely was learning that this weekend was Janis (Christine Woods)'s window to get pregnant. Since she is gay, and they ended up in a very violent and dangerous part of the world, despite the nature of the show, I was certain she was going to get raped. There was a part of me that knew FlashForward was NOT going to go there, but the possibility of it happening if the situation were real was too poignant.

Luckily, Janis saved herself and the remaining members of the team, Vogel, Demetri (John Cho), and Simon (Dominic Monaghan) by revealing the meaning of the flashforward of the warlord who was holding them prisoner. He was supposed to bring peace to his land. And here is where the mistake happened - This man, who had had a flashforward, was killed to prevent him from killing Simon. And while Simon did not actually have a flashforward, he did send a text message to someone during theirs, and they did not react because it was from beyond the grave.

The question is, what was supposed to happen, if neither man was supposed to die, but somehow, in circumstances which I find hard to imagine could have played out any other way, the choice was either the life of one or the other. Perhaps it means that now that some of the flashforwards have begun changing, they all will. Perhaps Gough, who is not supposed to have died, went on that mission and things went differently?

In the end, two exciting things happened. 1. Janis (probably) conceived her baby, using Demetri as a sperm donor in what was the most nonsexual and friendly offer of the use of a man's sperm ever. 2. D. Gibbons has a message for Demetri which is dated 1981.

Makes me very excited about the upcoming episodes. How about you?

Republic of Doyle - A Horse Divided, S01E11

With only one episode left of the first season of this awesome new Canadian series, let us reflect over all that has happened so far, and determine what ought to be addressed in the finale.

One of the biggest things will naturally be the return of Jake (Allan Hawco)'s estranged brother, Christian (Jonathan Goad. Oh my God, that was Jonathan Goad. I can't believe I didn't recognize him! Apparently a bit of a Newf accent and different hair can really change a person. I love Jonathan Goad).

Christian is smooth talking and far more charming and confident than Jake, but also a perpetual liar who has a drug problem. The nature of the brothers' tension has something to do with a bar the two were to open together, something to do with the drug problem, and something to do with issues Jake had growing up with Christian as his older brother.

We will also have to have some sort of something with Nikki (Rachel Wilson) and Leslie (Krystin Pellerin). I'm not sure if Jake's relationship with either of them will reach a conclusion, or if one will restart, or if they will end up in the same situation as the premiere, where both offer him attention, and he is hopeless to pick.

I like Leslie a lot better after last night. Although there was probably more to her reasons for not seeing Christian anymore than simply because she had also dated Jake, after all, she knew he had been lying about his job, what she told Christian was more important. The last thing any girl wants to do is get between two brothers. Jake certainly did not even take the implication of an attachment well.

Still, Nikki is my favourite. Even though they are officially divorced now, there is something about their chemistry and their attitudes that make them perfect for each other. I can't say whether Christian was telling the truth or not, but the idea that, during his own bachelor party, Jake drunkenly wandered off to find a payphone to try and call Nikki rather than watch the strippers just tells you how important she was to him. His mother's ring is also a solid indicator of his affections, and Nikki is also still invested in his feelings as she was quite jealous in last week's episode when Jake watched Leslie sing.

As for the rest of the family, Malachy (Sean McGinley) and Rose (Lynda Boyd) had a plotline revolving around them which has already been resolved, so there is no particular need to focus on them (though, of course, I would not complain if the story did); Tinny (Marthe Bernard) finally showed some interest in Des (Mark O'Brien), so that could develop as well.

I loved that she slapped him for being in the closet with a girl, although she could not explain what had prompted the action. Guess the girl is not above Des' charms after all.

What do you hope happens in the finale? Are you hoping Jake will get back with one of his women? Do you want Christian to stay on next season?

Bones - The Bones on the Blue Line, S05E15

Although Bones has been on hiatus since the beginning of February, the return held a better place in the overall story then the send-off. I can only hope that the ideas of storyline and structure discussed in the plot can bring us back to the quality of the first 3 seasons of the show.

Although this week's murderer did not turn into a repeat offender who will excite us with the possibility of return and the heightened danger of an individual capable of evading Bones (Emily Deschanel) and Booth (David Boreanaz), the character development took on deeper values and a metaliterary discussion underlined the attraction to the story.

A Japanese reporter was interviewing Brennan about her latest book, her primary focus the interest in the resemblance between Brennan's characters and her friends and colleagues. While Brennan insisted that the forensics and science were what made the stories real, Booth pointed out that the characters were what made the story approachable. If the writers of Bones take their own advice, they will realize that the characters are exciting, but the forensics are what keep the story from being a harlequin romance.

The progress of relationships in this episode felt like progress. Angela (Michaela Conlin) and Hodgins (T. J. Thyne) got to have a moment, where their sexual chemistry reigned freely and Hodgins reminded her that no other man would compare. Angela and Brennan came to a better understanding of how much Angela helped Brennan with her writing. Daisy (Carla Gallo) and Sweets (John Francis Daley) reached a delightful new place in their relationship.

This episode proves that sufficient development in the characters' relationships can be enough to tie together a season, but I still with the writers would remember that it is 2010. We no longer want a bad-guy-of-the-week every week, we want a bad guy or mysterious incident of the season. If it weren't for the character advancements, any of the episodes of season 4 and 5 could have taken place in season 1-3, and I want more than characterization to mark the passage of time.

Were you as pleased with this episode as I was? Do you long for a big-bad too? Or does Bones always still have the magic that made it popular in the first place?

V - Welcome to the War, S01E05

I really want V to succeed. The cast is quite good, and the storyline is mysterious enough to make me want to find out what is going to happen and creepy enough to suit my SciFi-loving self. Unfortunately, despite all the potential, it continues to miss the mark, and I can't help but fear for its success.

Elizabeth Mitchell's portrayal of Erica Evans may be the cornerstone of my interest. I understand Erica's motivations - her sense of betrayal because her partner was a V double agent, her desire to protect her son above all else, her common sense in not being taken in by the Vs so easily. Her decision in this episode to make a deal with a known terrorist was one that she made with confidence, knowing fully the necessity of the move, but her own self-doubt when she had concluded the deal kept her grounded in reality. Yes, she is a tough FBI agent who believes in protecting her country first, but she is also a woman with values she has to compromise to accomplish her first goal.

I can't say what drama will be caused by the fact that Father Jack (Joel Gretsch) was injected by the R6 serum. Though I doubt he will turn into the reptilian Vs, it certainly appears that some sort of genetic change will occur and make him their slave, or possibly even a supersoldier.

But that is the beginning to V's problems. Why did we see the thousands of ships supposedly on their way to Earth when they may not arrive in time to accomplish anything. The Vs are possibly converting humans to fight for them, and Anna (Morena Baccarin) definitely produced some soldier offspring at the end of the episode. Does Anna not think that they can manage to bide their time till the rest of the ships arrived? If so, why did she announce their presence before the other ships were in range? And if she and those ships that are already at Earth are defeated, other than what that would mean for her, won't Earth still be screwed?

Those questions annoy me, but what really irks me is that V is not going far enough. Although Val (Lourdes Benedicto) wanted to eat a dead mouse because her half-human/half-V child was giving her strange cravings, she did not. Please let her eat live rodents soon. And the carnage we should have gotten when Anna mated also fell short. Of course he was going to kill her mate after the eggs were fertilized. Frankly, I wanted her to open her mouth so wide she bit off his head while in the middle, like a praying mantis. Instead, she said "And now I must provide sustenance for my children," as if we would not have been able to figure that out, and then her mouth opened to reveal bad CGI teeth, which darted at the camera. Why haven't they figured out that that is actually more cheesy than her biting a chunk out of his neck?

I really hope that over the coming weeks, the episodes develop the moments that I have been loving. Of they do, the audiences will respond. Or are you loving it just the way it is?

Parenthood - The Situation, S01E05

What is the right punishment when you know that your child plagiarized on an essay? Although Sarah Braverman (Lauren Graham) is mother on the show who struggles the most in that role, I really had to applaud her choices, though with any other child, it might not have worked out.

At Parent-Teacher interviews, Mr. Cyr (Jason Ritter), the English teacher, tells Sarah that her daughter's essay was brilliant. He has a lot of faith in Amber (Mae Whitman), which is a very good sign since she was nearly held back a year. Unfortunately, it turns out that the paper was one Sarah wrote 20 years before when she was in high school.

Sarah's initial reaction is to inform Mr. Cyr of the incident. On the one hand, he has the right to know, particularly as he informs Sarah that he would be willing to write Amber reference letters on the strength of the essay. But that faith, in combination with the flattery Sarah feels that Mr. Cyr thinks she could have gone to college, which she never did, prevents Sarah from speaking.

Instead, Amber has to write the paper for her. As a parent, this may be the best decision, since Amber will still have to do the work and will still learn from the experience, but it will not put the black mark of plagiarism on her transcript.

In the episode, Amber confessed to her teacher, submitting her new essay instead, which proved she really did learn her lesson, but would such a thing have taken place in reality?

What would you do/have done had your child done the same thing?

Miami Medical - Pilot, S01E01

Medical dramas have not done particularly well this season, despite the efforts to find a show to replace ER. The premiere of Miami Medical is the most promising medical show I have seen this season, but with Friday time slot, it may not last either.

I had no desire to watch the second episodes of Mercy, Trauma, or Three Rivers, but Miami Medical will have me back again. This may be because I am quite a fan of Jeremy Northam from his days in Emma and in An Ideal Husband, but one actor would not get me back if I found no value in the show.

The opening scene was done very well. A couple, the wife pregnant, pulled over to get an ice cream cone. The women undid her seat belt, about to get out of the car, but short conversation with her husband kept both in the car until an explosion in the shop they were about to head into pushed the car back into the street, and an oncoming vehicles slammed into them, sending the wife hurdling from the car. The moment I saw her remove her seat belt, I knew that her injuries would be severe, but the removal itself made complete sense and was very natural.

Her husband's injuries seemed relatively mild, but the camera highlighted him removing a piece of glass from his neck. When, shortly afterwards, a nurse asked if his neck had been looked at, and he said it had, I knew that his serious injury would be the neck wound. There was little chance in the pilot episode for a pregnant mother to die, or lose her child, but killing off the husband was a very real possibility, and as soon as his wife was out of the clear, it was expected for him to go down.

Yes, cliche and predictable, but that's actually what one wants out of these kinds of shows. Not too many surprises. I was glad, also, that the writers chose to save the husband.

As for the characters, our introduction to the team showed us just how comfortable they were with extreme trauma. Dr. Raynard (Andre Braugher) was a good leader, but he lost it. After saving a man's life, the blood was just too much, and he left the OR, stripping down to nothing. Despite this, his team kept going, pushing forward, and figuring out the new power dynamic. As expected, a new guy, just transferred in and planning to start in a week, was on hand to help out. Dr. Proctor (Northam) proved himself very capable in a very short period of time.

The team's relationship with Raynard was one of colleague to colleague; he was their boss and a respected surgeon, but the depths of friendship did not bind him to the team. They can go on without him, in a way they have already shown they could not go on without each other. They rely on each other's ability to stay above the horror to stay there themselves.

The most unique part of the pilot, for me, was the death scene. Instead of having someone die on the table, unable to be saved by our heroes, the victim had been killed at the scene of the explosion, and though he survived several hours more and was transported to the hospital, nothing could be done to save him. He was going to die, and they did not even try to save him because they knew that they could not. The challenge then became simply completing his last wish, allowing him the chance to say goodbye to his fiancee. I thought this was perfect because we were confronted with mortality, and the inability for doctors to save everybody, but we were not confronted on the first day with someone dying on the table because a doctor made a mistake or did not move fast enough.

I plan on watching Miami Medical again. Do you?

Chuck - Chuck vs the American Hero, S03E12

"Love is a battlefield," Morgan (Joshua Gomez) told Casey (Adam Baldwin). And perhaps a better title for this episode would have been Chuck (meaning the entire cast and not just the main character) vs the battlefield of love.

This episode have everything! I'm not sure the number of times I started clapping with excitement (I do that sometimes), but it was enough to claim based on those statistics alone that this IS the best episode of Chuck to date, and that is saying a lot.

It started with what might not have seemed the most engaging of storylines. Chuck (Zachary Levi) was going to go to Sarah (Yvonne Strahovski) and try to convince her of his love so that they could be together in Rome. With the issues caused by Sarah's involvement with Shaw (Brandon Routh) and her feelings over his ability to kill a man, it was not going to be easy, if remotely possible, but at least Chuck really wanted to give it a shot.

So, enlisting the aid of his best buddies, Morgan, Casey, and Devon (Ryan McPartlin), Chuck goes in. While our boys distracted Shaw, Chuck joined Sarah on her date, trying to make her understand that he loved her and that she still loved him. Things weren't going too badly, until Ring agents showed up. Then Shaw really had to be grateful to the boys because, through their shenanigans, they managed to outmaneuver the enemy.

Still, Morgan, Casey, and Devon ended up in jail. But, as Ellie (Sarah Lancaster) brilliantly pointed out, since Chuck went to them for advice instead of her, no wonder it ended in jail.

She went on to be the awesome big sister that she is, and when Chuck had almost given up on Sarah, she told him to man up and get his girl.

And if all that wasn't enough to make a great episode, Shaw then decided to go be a hero, bring a tracking device to the Ring who wanted to bring him to their director, and allow the CIA to bomb the entire complex, likely with him still inside. Sarah, naturally, planned to go after him, but Chuck stopped her. He locked her in Castle to protect her, and went after his rival instead.

Back to the brilliance of our Buy More employees. Jeff (Scott Krinsky) and Lester (Vik Sahay), wanting to prove to Chuck that they could stalk with the best of them, decided to follow Shaw. Turned out to be a very good thing when the Ring operatives removed the tracking device from Shaw's person. They led Chuck to the all American Hero, and he was able to plant the removed tracking device and save Shaw.

But that didn't account for the awesome complication. It turns out that somewhere, somehow, at some point, someone really screwed up. The target Sarah was told to kill for her Red Test turned out to be Shaw's double agent wife. Why a CIA agent ended up killing one of the good guys, we can't be sure, but let's just say that the craziness of next episode when Shaw confronts Sarah about it is going to be great.

We had romance, we had explosions, we had Buy More employees accidentally foiling the plans of supervillains, we had Morgan, Casey, and Devon working together, and we had major plot twists! What more can you ask from any episode of Chuck!

The Mentalist - The Red Box, S02E17

Red John has been Enemy #1 to the CBI team since The Mentalist started, but that doesn't mean that another enemy cannot appear. Especially when that enemy is such a very different kind of threat.

No, I am not talking about Lisbon (Robin Tunney)'s new hair style. While I think the curls do not suit Lisbon at all because I simply will not believe that she would put that kind of effort into her hair in the morning, Tunney still looks attractive, so it's not a disaster.

I am referring to the new boss, Special Agent Madeleine Hightower (Aunjanue Ellis). She is fully prepared to upset the balance of our team, and who knows where that will lead her.

For starters, she's threatening Lisbon. Though this is quite sensible, since threatening Jane (Simon Baker) has never gotten anyone anywhere. The problem is that, although Jane doesn't want to see Lisbon get into trouble or be disciplined, he simply can't help getting into trouble. He also continues to believe, and will continue to believe, that not only is he doing the right thing, but that he will always be able to make a situation turn out exactly as he wanted it.

And, while I am very interested to see how her threat will manage to keep its force over the next while, I am much more interested in what will happen to Rigsby (Owain Yeoman) and Van Pelt (Amanda Righetti) since Hightower is also aware of their relationship (which is a cute as ever). Unlike Lisbon, she is not going to ignore the lapses in protocol that we ignore because the team is strong anyway, or possibly even as a result of.

Again, we are faced with the consequences of reality. Two CBI agents are not supposed to be romantically involved, and since we have two who are, and who are not super subtle about it, they will have to face the same consequences that real CBI agents would have to face. So what are the writers going to do to keep the events believable, but not break up the team we are so big a fan of.

What do you think they will do?

The Pacific - Part 3: Melbourne

After two episodes fighting in the dark in the Pacific, the Marines moved to a much happier and beautiful climate, but that did not mean that their emotional situation improved much. The stresses of every day life are only made worse by being at war.

John Basilone (Jon Seda) was granted the medal he was put up for, while Bob Leckie (James Badge Dale) met an attractive Aussie girl, Stella. The experience wasn't what either expected, and certainly did not end as they had hoped.

Although Basilone started the episode as a normal soldier, in the company of his friend, J.P. (Joshua Biton), drinking himself into a stupor to the memory of their friend Manny, he could not stay there. When he was awarded the Medal of Honour, suddenly he became a role model. Any mischief he got into echoed loudly, any trouble was far worse. His new duties of being an example became more important that those he had had in the field. And to make matters worse, he also got the special honour of using his fame to go home and sell war bonds.

He had to leave behind the men he had come to know, leave behind J.P., and fly back to the USA where he would be safe to make money for the army. An important task to be sure, but for a man of action like John Basilone, the honour could only be taken as a demotion of sorts.

Leckie had it worse. Although his romance with Stella started hot and heavy, with her coming to his bedroom the first night, it could not last. Through him, we saw the pain of the folks left behind, those waiting to hear the news, to cry tears over men whose bodies might never be recovered. And Stella's family suffered the same. They were losing friends in Europe, while Bob was staying with them. And when Bob left, they would pray for him too.

But that was the problem, would Bob come home? The likelihood was not great, and Stella, claiming she could not put her mother through the pain, broke off the relationship. Imagine being dumped because you might die. Well, let's just say that your will to live, and therefore the likelihood you would end up dead, decrease and increase proportionately.

And then Bob, having got into a fight with a higher ranking officer, ended up also being separated from the men he fought with up until then.

So, although they did not lose any more friends through the course of this episode, they did end up getting spread out and getting hurt all the same

Murdoch Mysteries - Victor, Victorian, S03E03

Three episodes so far this season, three killer scripts and performances. Murdoch Mysteries is taking everything that was great in the first 2 season and making it happen every time, and I could not be more pleased.

Certainly, between the title of the episode and the fact that the Mason's pledge had a very high squeaky voice, it was obvious that the man who was murdered was not, in fact, a man, but a woman. And what a great choice too, as most men of the period would have been considered to have a motive if they discovered a woman had entered into their secret club in the guise of a man. Most men would have been more than angry.

The fact that George Crabtree (Jonny Harris) and Inspector Brackenreid (Thomas Craig) were part of the Masonic order, and present when Victor (our female victim) was murdered, gave the scene the humour needed to prevent Murdoch Mysteries from becoming more serious than I want it. Particularly when we discovered that George ranked higher than Brackenreid in the Masons. Hilarious.

But, despite the moments that really made me smile, the episode was more emotionally potent than usual. Victor was living her life as a man because she wanted to freedoms afforded to men that she could not have as a woman. She was part of a group of women who dressed as men on a regular basis to be able to go out without drawing gossip, though she had a job and was joining the Masons as a man as well, while the others only did so on occasions. She befriended a couple, the man was a good friend, but the woman was a better one. They both took advantages of male appearance, though sometimes Victor met up with Miriam while one was a man, and the other a woman.

Miriam's husband became suspicious, and suspected that Victor and Miriam were having an affair. He killed Victor, not knowing she was a woman, believing in fact quite the opposite. And that's what made this episode brilliant. When Murdoch (Yannik Bisson) discovered that the victim was a woman, all the motives that would have existed had she been a man disappeared. Had not another murder taken place - that of a private detective who had been following Victor and Miriam - the truth of the affair might never have come out.

I can't wait to see next week's episode.