Undercovers - Pilot, S01E01

Finally a pilot which has me won over. This terrific premise (a retired spy couple must get back into the game) was excellently realized, with solid fight segments, neat spy bits, and fun remainders of real life sneaking in. The episode was exciting and hilarious, while serious just enough of the time to keep us focused. I'm looking forward to following it.

So much of television these days seems to be based on the will they/won't they factor. If you follow my blogs, you know that I constantly complain about this. And Undercovers proves absolutely that that particular story telling technique is not necessary. Our leads, Steven (Boris Kodjoe) and Samantha (Gugu Mbatha-Raw), are married and in love. Sure, we got a bit of the impression that their relationship had lost a little bit of its spark - they had settled into a comfortable zone where passion did not visit very often, but the affection was still there. And watching them interact, being playful at times, jealous when necessary, and protective every moment, we saw that love come back into full flame. A flame that does not need to be tempered with.

Instead, we will get to focus on the fun of the missions. I loved when Sam was getting the information off that arms dealer's blackberry. She seduced him as long as she needed to, going so far as to end up in very sexy lace underwear in the middle of a wine cellar, and once her task was complete, she slapped him and told him to get away from her. It was sexpionage at its best. And who didn't love the use of the word sexpionage?

I can't wait to see more. I am certain that there is more to the show than the mostly episodic nature we got the impression of in the pilot. Something about the way their handler said that they didn't know exactly why they were being reinstated screamed exciting plot!! I wonder how long it will take for us to figure that out, or discover if he merely spoke of the likelihood that Leo (Carter MacIntyre) had gone rogue. What do you think?

Chase - Pilot, S01E01

Chase isn't anything particularly special, but it's still a decent show. It's a cop drama, focusing on US Marshalls chasing fugitives. And if that's the sort of thing you are looking to watch, then that works out nicely, doesn't it.

You take a team of US Marshalls, add a new guy so that you have an excuse to explain to him, and thus to us, how things work, and then choose your villain. In this episode, we got a guy who was pretty crazy killing witnesses as he commits crimes. His weakness, though, is kids. He doesn't feel right about hurting young girls and, it turns out, he's a father. Frankly, the best moment of the entire episode was when he decided to leave his daughter behind so that she would not get hurt. Almost sad how I felt as much pity for him in that moment as I had for his victims.

The Marshalls themselves are also pretty typical. Anne Frost (Kelli Giddish) is the tough female who had a rough upbringing with no mom and a criminal dad. Her partner, Jimmy (Cole Hauser) clearly has difficulty staying in relationships, and the new guy, Luke (Jesse Metcalfe), is so green that he escorted the fugitive to safety.

That is what you are going to get. These fairly stereotypical law enforcement agents pursuing criminals who are, hopefully, a bit rougher and a bit more violent and ruthless than on other cop shows. Should easily be episodic enough that if you are bored and the show is on, you can enjoy regardless of how many other episodes you've seen. So, not really worth the effort to watch every week, but not a complete waste of time either.

Castle - A Deadly Affair, S03E01

Sure, we knew that Castle (Nathan Fillion) wasn't going to end up being a murderer, and that Beckett (Stana Katic) wasn't going to end up shooting him. We really knew that he wasn't going to end up shooting her! Still, watching Castle make himself really look quite guilty because, as always, he gets himself mucked up in things was a pleasure.

I missed Castle about as much as Beckett did, though I was not nearly so annoyed at its absence as she was about his. Seeing his cardboard cutout in the window, just staring at her while she worked that crime scene, really gave the right eerie sensation, and to follow that up with Castle turning up at her next crime scene, gun in hand, well, that was just perfect.

Plus, while we never really believed Castle capable, I did love that Beckett got to take out her anger at him about not having been called. And, as always, I was glad that Alexis (Molly C. Quinn) showed him how much trouble he was in because she was annoyed at her boyfriend for not calling. Men are idiots, and I suppose we women should know this and not expect quite so much from them, but on the other hand, shouldn't they know better?

The case itself was unique. Sure, we've seen counterfeiters before, but to have them get together through the bizarre connection of a strip club, now that is certainly something new. I loved the club - it was so vibrant and fun. Too bad that its owners turned out to be killers. It was absolutely brilliant to have them separate, with one ending up behind Castle and the other behind Beckett so that the two ended up saving each other's lives. Now that was a great start to the season.

I can't wait to get my hands on a copy of Naked Heat. At least there we get a little of the satisfaction of having the two leads getting together. But I don't actually mind as the relationship Castle is in at the moment does actually seem to make sense. Perhaps the moment has passed, and as long as I don't start immediately wishing they would hook up in the next episode, it'll all be all right.

The Event - I Haven't Told You Everything, Pilot, S01E01

Sure, I'm left with a sense of confusion. I'm not actually sure what is going on and that does create a lot of questions. Unfortunately, I really don't care about what the answers will turn out to be. Last year's FlashForward started off with a much bigger bang, and look how well it did. The Event may end up being the next Lost, but no thanks to its pilot episode which not only didn't leave me wanting more, but also failed to retain my careful attention for the full hour.

I found it really jumpy. I get that they wanted to give back story, to not reveal too much too quickly, and so they told only told the different parts of the story as they wanted them to be revealed. It did not work. All the tension they developed would suddenly dissipate when the scene cut from high stress to relaxing afternoon. Perhaps they hoped to build a sense of ominous doom behind all the ordinary and pleasant action we were watching, but to me it felt like they kept taking away anything worth holding onto.

The characters themselves seem interesting enough. Sean Walker (Jason Ritter) came across as some ordinary guy, but after his girlfriend was kidnapped, he somehow managed to make it on a plane armed in an attempt to get his father-in-law-to-be to not crash the thing. Hopefully that means that there is a lot more to his character than we originally assumed. He did jump off a cliff into the waves in order to save a young woman from drowning, which shows he has courage. If this show does it right, he'll turn out to be so much more than what we could imagine.

I was most drawn to Simon Lee (Ian Anthony Dale). His brash determination to accomplish whatever needed to be accomplished and his utter anger at anything less that success gave him spunk and energy. The President (Blair Underwood), on the other hand, came across as a man too stubborn to listen to the advice of his advisers who have been doing their jobs far longer than he has been doing his. Michael Buchanan (Scott Patterson) I liked. He was a great family man, willing to do anything for those he loved. Of all the questions, the one I am most interested in knowing is why he of all the pilots in the world was the one targeted.

I also have to point out how odd I think it is that all 4 leads presented to us were male.

I do also have to give them points for using an airplane as a weapon. Watching an American man drive that plane towards the President of the United States of America was a very powerful image. The tragedy was that suddenly the plane just disappeared. It didn't get shot down, it didn't crash somewhere off target, Sean didn't convince Michael to pull up, it just disappeared. Way to pull the rug out from under my feet. And maybe that'll be a more interesting choice as the series develops, but I am not going to see that happen.

A show which refused to tell us anything about what was going on in it and the posters of which were so ugly I could barely stand to look at them, the result is worse than even I suspected. I will not be watching. Will you?

Glee - Audition, S02E01

I have said it before and I will say it again: If not for the fact that Glee is a musical, no one would watch it. This insane high school comedy continues to have very little that is redeeming beyond its music. Of course, the music side of it makes it so compelling and watchable that, despite my continued complaints, I will probably still watch because, whatever else it might be, it is entertaining.

Okay, so it was quickly established that the Glee kids are still a bunch of losers. Fine. And Finn (Cory Monteith) and Rachel (Lea Michele) are still happily together, while Artie (Kevin McHale) lost Tine (Jenna Ushkowitz) to Mike (Harry Shum Jr.). That's really all that was significant about what has happened since last season.

Now, Quinn (Dianna Agron) is back to being head cheerleader because Santana (Naya Rivera) got a boob job, and the two friends really don't like each other anymore, and worse, Finn got kicked off the football team. And that happened because people are awful and mean to each other and as a result, other people are even more awful and mean to even more people. Why would I want to watch a show where everyone is so horrible?

Oh, and while I really enjoyed the New York song and Rachel's brilliant finale, I do want to know what was up with her singing with Sunshine (Charice) in the bathroom because other than the final interruption by Sue (Jane Lynch) the entire moment was just weird, as well as what is the point in giving all these pointless secondary characters solos and diva moments when I really don't care enough to just listen to them sing. It's a tv show, people, not a concert.

Finally, did they really have to make Rachel come across as such a bitch to have sent Sunshine to a crackhouse? I don't actually believe that behaviour is possible from her. Maybe if Sunshine had gotten herself horribly lost because of Rachel's directions and perhaps ended up in an unsavory part of town as a result, that would have made sense, but Rachel should know better than being that evil after having been egged so cruelly at the end of last season.

But that is Glee for you. Love the music, love Sue for being evil and witty, love every moment that you can actually love, and simply ignore all the noise and nonsense.

Hawaii Five-0 - Pilot, S01E01

Of all the pilots I have watched so far this Fall (and granted we are still very early on), Hawaii Five-0 is the first to truly make me want to watch the series regularly. Within an hour, I was convinced that this remake which had all the makings of a cheesy cop show would end up being a lot of fun, as well as very exciting. I'm not sure how it will stand up in the ratings - I would watch Castle over it without question - but I do hope it sticks around, and I plan on at least staying on top of it for one more week.

Frankly, I hope it works out for Alex O'Loughlin. His performance as Det. Steve McGarrett showed me yet again that this young man (known for the unsuccessful shows Moonlight and Three Rivers) is so very talented (at least at acting, if not at choosing winning scripts). His action sequences were awesome, particularly his final fight with terrorist Victor Hesse (James Marsters) and the way he jumped onto the trunk of that car as another slammed into the bumper, avoiding being crushed. Their fight guys know what they are doing and I certainly appreciate that.

But it isn't just gunfire, explosions, and punches. We are easily made to care about these characters - McGarrett's father was murdered, and his pain was easy to see. Det. Danny Williams (Scott Caan) gets easy points for being a great father despite difficulties with his ex-wife. He's not so sure that he's getting it right, but if he's concerned about being a good father, than he's already succeeding.

Chin Ho Kelly (Daniel Dae Kim) not only loved McGarrett's father, which showed him as compassionate in his first scene, but he is both protective and loving of his cousin. He obviously doesn't want anything to happen to her, and does not like the idea of men behaving inappropriately towards her, but he also knows that she can take care of herself. Now that is the mark of a good cousin. And Kona (Grace Park), well, who doesn't love a badass, kickass surfer female who doesn't take crap and yet seems like an utter sweetheart?

I hope this reboot is very successful. Of all those which I have seen or heard of lately, it has the best shot of being a great show in its own right.

Chuck - Chuck vs the Anniversary, S04E01

I am SO glad that Chuck was not only renewed for a 4th season, but that that season started now and not in January. This show is definitely the funniest show on television. I laughed loudly and clapped in delight many times, but that is always the case. And I know that the rest of you must have been equally pleased not only with the simple joy of having it back, but the set up for the entire season.

Naturally, by the end of the episode, the status quo had to be restored. Chuck (Zachary Levi) could not remain out of the spy game or let his intersect powers go to waste. But the journey to get there and his reasons for taking the mantle up again and lying to Ellie (Sarah Lancaster) about it made far more sense than last season's premiere. Gotta love that she is pregnant and that he needs to protect her all the more now! EEEE! Plus, the secrecy of his job is back, although Morgan (Joshua Gomez) remains his sidekick both in spy-life and real life.

Watching Chuck and Morgan travel all over the world on the search for Chuck's mom (and I really loved watching the graphic of the little Buy More dude running all over the world) was hilarious. The later assertion by the Russian baddies that these two spies were experts as they were ghosts and could easily use the public transportation system to disappear (while Morgan and Chuck were, of course, only using it because they were broke) was classic. And Sarah (Yvonne Strahovski) and Casey (Adam Baldwin)'s simultaneous denial of knowing either of them was also perfectly in tune with the brilliance that is this show.

My favourite scenes were

1. When Morgan was sexting with Sarah in Chuck's name while she was trying to indicate to him that she was in danger. It was so beautifully set up with the pics Morgan had already sent her of Chuck and the clear difficulty both were having with long distance.

2. When Casey grabbed Chuck and unceremoniously dragged him to look at the EMP, demanding that he flash.

3. When Chuck's voice came through the walkie-talkie moments after everyone assumed he was dead and he sounded so badass he might have been Casey. Plus, just before that Casey was ready to destroy everyone in the room in vengeance.

4. When General Beckman (Bonita Friedericy) was revealed as the new manager of the Buy More, now a CIA base of operation.

So Chuck is a spy, his sister no longer knows this (and neither does his brother in law), his mother is even more badass than you can imagine, Chuck and Sarah's relationship is no longer in the irritating will they/won't they stage, and Chuck and Morgan are back at the Buy More. All we need is to see Lester and Jeff get rehired and everything will fall back into place. Man I love this show.

Nikita - Pilot, S01E01

While my standards for keeping a show on the roster have increased drastically because of time constraints, Nikita would not have made it anyway. It's not that it's a bad show, or that it doesn't have a lot of interesting elements or characters which would hold my attention. My problem was that I simply did not like Maggie Q's Nikita and don't really see the point of watching a show where I have no interest in the lead.

It didn't start particularly well. We got a little showing, but then Nikita gave us the most boring and poorly done back story exposition that I have seen in a long time. I really could not care that her boyfriend/fiancé got himself killed because of her. And the difficulties she went through being a recruit don't really play as she is obviously only there for revenge. Frankly, if she managed to kill Percy (Xander Berkeley) and made it look like an accident, everything would be fine in her books and probably in everyone else's as well.

So despite the fact that I really liked Alex (Lyndsey Fonseca) and her interactions with the other recruits and the recruiters, and that I also like Michael (Shane West), the meat of the show - what goes on with Nikita - is superfluous. If the story focused on Alex, perhaps I would want to watch more. She has a whole lot more going on than Nikita does.

But if you did like Maggie Q as Nikita, than I suspect you would have quite enjoyed the pilot and be very inclined to watch the next episode. So if that was the cast, then I hope you have a great time watching the rest of the series.