Showing posts with label Casual. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Casual. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 31, 2018

Previewing Casual: Season Four


Last year Hulu the biggest prize at the Emmys and since then it seems like the streaming is going for pure prestige in the wake of the big win. All four of their dramas that were on the air before that Emmy were canceled after their latest seasons aired with only one getting a final season to wrap things up. And it seems pretty clear; Hulu wants big splashy names at least in the new future (Blumhouse anthology! Anne Rice!! Stephen King!!! Sean Penn!!!! George Clooney!!!!! Reese Witherspoon!!!!!!) Even their two comedies got canceled with only Casual getting a final season to wrap things up. Although instead of the weekly release schedule that Hulu usually employs, all episodes of the fourth season are available to stream today.

For a show that gets its name from a not very committal relationship status, the last season ended with a couple of characters getting pretty serious. Leon got engaged to the receptionist. And then Alex knocked up his weird Asian Air B and B client. Well at least Val and her daughter were still pretty messed up in the dating department.

Season four starts up five years later (presumably five years from now and there is a weird presumably future Scott Pruitt reference) with Alex co-parenting with his baby mama in his house. The bigger news is that Alex finally shaved the goatee off (he is not the only one to lose hair over the past five years). Leon and his wife are now debating children. Lauren returns from abroad with a girlfriend and may be ready to change her relationship status from casual. But hey, Val is still going through an extended midlife crisis with few options in the dating department.

There is still plenty of the usual sly Casual humor. This season there is an automated voice response that annoys Val. Alex goes on a virtual reality dating that goes horribly wrong. The three main cast members get in one last road trip that naturally goes all wrong.  There is a weed/puzzle bar which inspires probably a horrible idea. And of course, much like the way the show started, it also ends with a funeral. Though you will have to find out on your own if this one is real or not.

All episodes of Casual season four are available on Hulu today.

Sunday, August 06, 2017

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 8/6/2017




Claws: So does Roller know who tried to kill him or does he really have selective amnesia? It is kind of a huge troll move if he does know at this point. Or he really fears the Russians and that he is throwing the scent that way?
You can download Claws on iTunes.

The Strain: Poor maid, Zach is totally going to get her killed soon.
You can download The Strain on iTunes.

I’m Dying Up Here: So the new guy pursues Cassie, gets a chance to nail her in the broom closet (because having sex apparently is the best way to end sexual tension), turns her down and then uses her as a wingman. Only on television or movies. But still, that is more believable than the other Boston guy banging the hot roommate in the baby’s room.

Preacher: So Preacher sinks the old cowboy in the bottom of a swamp and next week it looks like he will have another weirdo to deal with next week in the form of the dude we met this week.
You can download Preacher on iTunes.

Casual: I guess I was wrong that the season would end on a wedding. That is not to say we did not get any big news, Alex is going to be a father. Wow. That is a scary prospect. And his baby mama is not much of a responsible adult either. Should make for an interesting season four.
You can stream Casual on Hulu.

The Challenge: Dirty 30: That challenge was kind of disappointed. I think they have done ones like that before but it was much longer than one pass through. They should have done until one team had all the rings or the most rings after a time limit.
You can download The Challenge: Dirty 30 on iTunes.

Sunday, July 30, 2017

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 7/30/2017



Claws: Of course Dean and Roller ended up at the same art exhibit. But c’mon Virginia, take a photo to show Desna. But who exactly was looking for Roller if everyone thought he was dead? Did Uncle Daddy investigate the hung up he had from last episode. So what is going to happen next week that will keep Uncle Daddy from killing Desna for trying to kill Roller? Cannot imaging that will come with a huge price.
You can download Claws on iTunes.

The Strain: Oh, hey, Gus has hair? The reverse Ephraim. We also get our first glimpse of Dutch and Setrakian who were still together. So how did they split from Fett?
You can download The Strain on iTunes.

I’m Dying Up Here: Maybe not the best sign on a show about comedy is that the hardest I laughed so far was at the Hispanic guy running from the cop. And he got caught.

Midnight, Texas: Well that was boring for a show about the supernatural.
You can download Midnight, Texas on iTunes.

Casual: Awe, the nineties, when bands like Local H could actually have a hit and people could waste money just to see a movie trailer. Alex and Valerie were still living together. I am not entirely sure we need to learn just where Alex’s obsession with waffles started.
You can stream Casual on Hulu.

The Challenge: Dirty 30: I understand not having a cameraman at the Redemption House full time, but how do they not have a security camera? From the description that is one of the most epic fails in reality production history.
You can download The Challenge: Dirty 30 on iTunes

Sunday, July 23, 2017

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 7/23/2017



Claws: So Jenn is going to put two and two together that the people who killed Roller were also Desna’s foster parents. I guess that would be a mighty big coincidence. Not that Roller is actually dead, he is hanging out by a mountain of public hair. Though I am not sure why he just does not snatch the buzzer from the old chick to keep him from shocking him.
You can download Claws on iTunes.

The Strain: Usually I complain during season premieres that I do not remember what happened and the short “previously on” segments were not cutting it. I was smart enough to go on YouTube before the premiere and watch a lengthy season recap. Oh yeah, Angel died, the councilwoman died; oh yeah and that little twerp of a son set off a forking nuclear bomb and doomed the human race simply because his father killed his vampire mother WHO WAS TRYING TO KILL HIM. Ugg. And now that twerp has an annoying haircut. Now we are hear nine months later (um, do does they make a new instructional video every month saying how long it has been) and the humans are essential enslaved. What exactly does Fett want with a nuclear bomb? Does setting off a second bomb end nuclear winter?
You can download The Strain on iTunes.

I’m Dying Up Here: Cassie is supposed to be the hot one on that comedy special? The others better be really funny. I wonder if CBS actually did a Women Are Funny Too special back then.

Preacher: Well that was some unnecessary flashbacks. It would have been more entertaining had we just got to watch them watching Bob Ross the whole time.
You can download Preacher on iTunes.

Casual: “Leah and Leon”: that sounds like a spinoff title. And of course she proposed with some weird big show. Oh my goodness. But poor Alex, the self-centered part of him thought he was going to be best man when he could not even get groomsman. But I fear him as the officiant. I guess the wedding will be the season finale. Kind of ominous if so considering the first two seasons ended with a funeral.
You can stream Casual on Hulu.

The Challenge: Dirty 30: So the Dirty 30 season started out with just 28 contestants. Okay, CT’s passport issues will eventually get fixed because he is in the “This Season On” package. But what went on with SmAshly (who looked a lot better with the shorter haircut)? She seems to quit every season, including last season right before the final. But actually left this time because the airline lost her bra? Do they not have Target in Columbia to get more? And they just let her leave this time, not even a TJ scolding. And then how can you have “the thirty dirtiest players in the history of the Challenge” then bring in about six new people. And what the fork is non-binary? Still the actually challenge was pretty entertaining. Shocking to see Darrell exit this early, though apparently not really, it is another season where people will be fighting to get back in the game apparently.
You can download The Challenge: Dirty 30 on iTunes

Sunday, July 16, 2017

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 7/16/2017



Claws: Are we really getting a second, oh wait Roller really is not dead, for the second time in three episodes? Ugg. Really an up and down episode, the opening was great (though I have to question why the doctor did not take off the pillowcase in the trunk). The parts with Desna’s brother is always a drag, but it was paid off with a great sequence where they cut back between the murders and the weirdly choreographed dance sequence. But to end with the tease of Roller not being dead again was a huge let down.
You can download Claws on iTunes.

Fear the Walking Dead: Poor hot chick, she was gone this whole time and does not even get her own episode; it was just one segment where we learned how she joined the Indians. And of course she was a Trojan horse. Plus that was a horrible cover story to boot. And what is with this mid-season crap. The main show does it to avoid Christmas, but a break in the summer is just silly and exploitative and just builds into the narrative that the franchise can only do premieres and finales and everything else is boring.
You can download Fear the Walking Dead on iTunes

I’m Dying Up Here: Oh hey, Bill’s dad is still around? Hasn’t been months? But that got dark real quick. And poor Johnny Carson, the first up and coming comic after a dude walks into bus tried to OD in his green room.

Preacher: So after a century in Hell, Hitler has turned into a pansy? Are we really supposed to feel bad for Hitler?
You can download Preacher on iTunes.

Casual: There is no television cliché I hate more than start an episode at the end and then show the x amount a time before place card. But this was weird because it had no bearing on the episode. It was almost like they thought, well we are paying all this money for a Fleetwood Mac song, might as well play it twice. And does Tommy not listen to Nice and Smooth because if he did he would know too much of anything makes you an addict.
You can stream Casual on Hulu.

The Bold Type: This may already be my favorite horrible show on television. Sorry Supergirl.
You can download The Bold Type on iTunes.

Sunday, July 09, 2017

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 7/9/2017



Claws: The only downside of watching screeners before episodes air is that sometimes you have to wait over a month to see a new episode. TNT made the first three episodes available before the show aired so I had to sit on Roller being alive for a long time while I sat and stewed on how he could have survived. Except it turns out he did not, Desna is just hallucinating him. Meh.
You can download Claws on iTunes.

Fear the Walking Dead: Okay, crazy person went and killed the family that left the compound, but why let them turn into zombie?
You can download Fear the Walking Dead on iTunes

Preacher: Whenever I know does something immoral, I tend to guilt them by saying, “you are going to spend all of eternity in hell with Hitler.” So I was not surprised when Eugene bumped into him there. I just hope they do not help each other escape.
You can download Preacher on iTunes.

Casual: I would be fine if the show would take a hard left turn and focus on Leon and the assistant.
You can stream Casual on Hulu.

Sunday, July 02, 2017

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 7/2/2017



Claws: Oh my goodness, that opening scene. Oh my goodness. Oh yeah, and that closing. I was spit balling that Roller was not really dead last week (the actor’s name is in the main credits so it is not entirely surprising he is not dead), but I never thought that Desna would be in on it. She did try to drown him, he did smack her around, she lit him on fire. I mean, dude got shot by Virginia. Or did he? Did she miss, did Roller and Desna plan this and loaded blanks in the gun hoping she would stick around and “save” Desna. The show has a lot of explaining to do next episode.
You can download Claws on iTunes.

Preacher: It hated the first season finale with a fiery passion. The opener was alright, but that angel killing himself montage just seemed to go on forever.

I’m Dying Up Here: Holy Richard Pryor siting! Yeah, it is weird seeing real people show up on a program like this. Makes me wonder if these characters we are watching are real people who just never made it, based on real people who went on to make it and the names were changed for legal reasons, or just completely made up.

Casual: Isn’t Tommy running an Air BnB? I have to imagine there are rules against having sex with your tenants.
You can stream Casual on Hulu.

Pretty Little Liars: Well, twin Spencer as AD was a more sensible reveal than A being Alison’s brother who ended up being CeCe Drake which made absolutely no sense. Though I still do not understand why Wren did not try to connect Spencer and her twin when he found out.
Pretty Little Liars on iTunes.

Sunday, June 25, 2017

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 6/25/2017






Claws: The South really knows how to do a funeral. Up here we got the silly car processional. I want one of those New Orleans marching bands leading my death match (I will pass on Roller’s stripper brigade though). But goodness this show is much better than I expected. That opening scene was great, the running on the beach was hilarious. But that they only found Roller’s grills and random body parts really send up my Spidey senses. As I always say, if you do not see the body, they probably are not dead (and even then I may not be convinced). Sure dude almost drowned, got shot in the head, sank in a pool for probably minutes, got doused with gasoline, set a flame, and pushed out into the bayou. On the other hand, what exactly happened to the other body in the boat?
You can download Claws on iTunes.

Fear the Walking Dead: Last week everyone wondered just how Daniel survived the fire from last season. Except the episode started with him fleeing a zombie with a burn on his leg. Later he said he did not know how he survived. Meh.
You can download Fear the Walking Dead on iTunes

I’m Dying Up Here: I thought they set the show in the seventies so they could be as racist and sexist as they could but who would have guessed it was a puppet who crossed the line? And then kept going? But oh my, dude cannot continue being a comedian after that haircut, he looks like an accountant now.

Casual: Wait, Leon and the receptionist? Did I miss something or were they keeping that from the audience as well as everyone else on the show?
You can stream Casual on Hulu.

Pretty Little Liars: I completely forgot that they yet to reveal who killed Charlotte. And that was mostly lame. Mona did it… sort of, I guess it was self-defense? And so AD just ends the game because it? She does not even punish Mona? I guess it is not the end end because we still have the two hour finale.
Pretty Little Liars on iTunes.

The Challenge: Champs vs. Pros: I understand why they do the thirty-five percent of your weight thing, but man, that really does put the biggest guys at a massive disadvantage. And I do not understand the stagigy of the eating challenge, I would have eaten all the deserts first and only go to the other tables as a last resort.
You can download The Challenge: Invasion of the Champions on iTunes.

Sunday, June 18, 2017

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 6/18/2017



Orphan Black: I needed that "previously on" segment to be longer. This show just got way too complicated over the years.
You can download Orphan Black on iTunes.

Fear the Walking Dead: Well preppers are an interesting character study in an actual apocalypse, but has society ended that quickly? They were on a boat and in Mexico for maybe a month and society has already fallen? And didn’t the Mexican daddy burn up last season? I guess this could be a hallucination. And where is his daughter? She is still in the credits.
You can download Fear the Walking Dead on iTunes

I’m Dying Up Here: Oh my, Let’s Make a Deal. I was going to say how seventies, but I think there was a reboot recently with Wayne Brady as host. But what a horrible show.

Casual: Oh Leon, you need to be on this show more. Oh course you are into Magic: The Gathering. And oh hey, Judy Greer: always a plus.
You can stream Casual on Hulu.

Pretty Little Liars: Last week when Hannah and Caleb got engaged, following Aria and Ezra’s engagement (still icky) and Emily and Allison bizarrely having a kid together, I felt bad for Spencer whose one night stand with a detective has gotten worse and worse. But of course Toby came back this week so they could do one huge Lairs’ sex montage. Le sigh. Only two more episode until I can start wearing my I Watched Every Episode of Pretty Little Liars and all I Got Was This Stupid T-Shirt t-shirt.
Pretty Little Liars on iTunes.

The Challenge: Champs vs. Pros: Oh wow, I actually thought Kameron maybe could win that challenge by himself. But poor Ashley and Lolo, going into every elimination this season.
You can download The Challenge: Invasion of the Champions on iTunes.

The Handmaid’s Tale: So why exactly are they taking Offred? The easy answer is that it is because of the stunt she pulled in the stoning. But that was everyone who refused to throw a stone, they are not going to round up all the Handmaids are they? It could be because of the package, which was kind of lame, just a bunch of letters. There could be a very small chance the resistance is poising as the black van people. But my best working theory is that the driver, who is part of the eye, is getting who he thinks is his baby mama out of a dangerous situation. Wherever Offred ends up going, I just hope she runs into Rory Gilmore, my one complaint is she got hauled away early in the season and we never got to see what happened to her. And with a season of great musical cues, American Girl was another one. Remember America is not much of a thing anymore, but Offred but the show reminds us as the show goes on hiatus that Offred is still an American girl ay heart.

The show has been cruel since the beginning but they really racheted that up for the finale. Making the Handmaids stone one of their own (but “don’t throw too hard” was a great line), the Waterfords were equally harsh to each other. But number one on that list was Mrs. Waterford driving Offred over to where Offred’s daughter is being kept, Waterford talked to the daughter within sight but out of earshot completely out of spite. But here is the thing: that is secretly a gift because now Offred knows where her daughter is. I can imagine Offred will find her way there in season two.
You can stream The Handmaid's Tale on Hulu.

Monday, May 22, 2017

Previewing Casual: Season Three



The end of the second season of Casual felt like a conclusion and not just a season conclusion. The series started with the funeral of their father, albeit a dream, and ended with the real funeral of their father. The show started with Valerie moving in with her bother and the season finale saw her move out into her own place. It would have been a very symbolic ending. Except television show do not end after two seasons, at least on purpose. So now we get a third season of the show, the first with Alex living on his own which should be interesting considering he is clearly codependent. Already in the first episode there are plenty of calls and texts to Val and Leon.

Oh yeah, and to cure his co-dependent streak, he has started to rent out his room and in the season three he gets a little too close to his new German roommate which of course includes making waffle. Later in the season he takes in a Midwestern couple which goes about just as well. But the good thing for his guests is that he still is a big fan of making waffles. He is also still using his sister’s neighbor as a free therapist a little too often.

On her own, life is not much better for Val, her kid is still pulling teenage stunts and her new place is not coming together like it should. Jamie Chung (Real World: San Diego) shows up as her landlord. Oh, and her mother drops a pretty huge bombshell at her father’s wake that pretty much changes the course of the whole season for her. And really, her daughter’s reaction to the news is the best.

New episodes of Casual are released every Tuesday on Hulu.

Sunday, August 28, 2016

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 8/28/16



Ray Donovan: There seems to be a pacing problem this season as they are having trouble balancing between the Russian storyline and the boxer. Two episode, Ray kills a Russian and I think, well the other Russians will not like that. Except it was not brought up once last week. Then finally someone found the body this week. And just as things started to get ramped up, they had to slip in a scene with the boxer and his crazy sister. But at least the Russian plot got interesting. Does Ray get the niece back to save Avi or sacrifice him? (Or a third option where both the niece and Avi are safe?)

Fear the Walking Dead: Has there ever been a more boring season premiere than this? I was actually rooting for the dogs.
You can download Fear the Walking Dead on iTunes.

Roadies: Wait, does Machine Gun Kelly have suspenders tattooed on his body? Weird. But anyway. But man, did they really bring Phil back just to kill him? Should have stayed with Taylor Swift.

BrainDead: I do not care if it did not turn out to be true, Ramona Flowers has forever been tainted by having sex with Michael Moore. The dream nightmare sequence will forever be seared into my brain. And I thought the bug sex scene last week was the worst thing I would ever see on the show.
You can download BrainDead on Amazon Instant Video, free with a Prime membership.

Murder in the First: I have talked about the rise of incest on television considering it is one of the last taboo left. But up to this point is has been brother-sister relationship, all of which have been creepy, but oh my goodness, did this show really do a consensual father-daughter relationship? Eww. Then there was Hildy talking about the time her brother got a bit handsy because telling her partner it was a line because saying she was a good liar. I am not sure if it was the writer’s intent, but I was left wondering if her I am a good liar line was about the story she told the pop star or telling her partner she was lying.
You can download Murder in the First on iTunes.

The Voice: I was not expecting much, but I had to bail quite early on the preview episode right around the time Miley Cyrus opened her mouth. The actual person who sang was not that much better though I did like they went straight to the singing, no super sappy background. I did check out the other person they featured who was a big giant meh. The first person picked Alicia and the second picked Miley so this was clearly a showcase on the new coaches not the talent. But that is ever increasing point of the show. Each episode used to end with the best season, but the last three of four seasons, it seems to end with mediocre singers at best but a lot of coach banter and fighting. But if that was the best person Miley got on her team it will be a long season and she will rival Shakira season six as the worst collection of talent on a team ever. Then I had to skip the coaches singing Dream On because I have no desire to hear anyone sing that song on this show other than Amanda Brown.

Pretty Little Liars: I was hoping Hanna would go Liam Neeson this week and after a pitiful attempt at drugging Noel, boom goes the dynomite at the end the episode with a baseball bat. Awesome. I cannot wait to see what goes wrong with the interrogation.
You can download Pretty Little Liars on iTunes.

Casual: Interesting they chose not to end the season like they started the series, at their father’s funeral, but I guess they ended the first season in a church so I guess they did not want to go back to that well. Instead we end with Valerie moving back in with her ex-husband. Alrighty, Hopefully the side piece did not get too comfortable, or pregnant, I thought they we going through fertility procedures. But really, for a show whose title would lead you to believe it is about casual sex, there was a lot of talk of death this season and relationships that are moving out of the “causal” category.
You can watch Casual on Hulu.

Mr. Robot: And we are back to starting episodes with flashbacks that wink and nod but do not really mean much. So the Muslim chick and fat guy who spent most of a season and a half met in a coffee show, presumably owned by the same guy Elliot took down in the first episode, but not the one with his illegal operation, one with crappy wi-fi. Of course this begs the question, when is Elliot going to run into him in prison? Back in current time, Darla kills a chick… alrighty. So is her boy toy going to give her up as the person who took his gun? Instead, Dom pulls in the fat guy. But really, I think it is safe to assume that everyone can agree the best scene this week was Angela singing Everybody Wants to Rule the World even if it was a bit on the nose. Speaking of the karaoke bar, holy Duck Phillips sighting! He has to be tied into the story somehow, you do not bring in Duck Philips just to creepily hit on someone half his age just for one scene.
You can download Mr. Robot on iTunes.

Tyrant: I thought we were going to have a repeat of the first season of Homeland where the suicide vest did not go off then… boom goes the dynamite. And now that Jamal is dead, it looks like Barry is slowly morphing from the voice of reason to the titular character.
You can download Tyrant on iTunes.

Sunday, August 21, 2016

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 8/21/16



Ray Donovan: A couple weeks ago, Ray sang Bob Seger and this week he danced the Chihuahua, I am beginning to wonder if the actor did something to the writers to make him act the fool. Not that I am complaining, the main problem with the show is that it can get too serious, especially Ray, so this sillier moments make it much more enjoyable. And Connor, if you want to be taken serious, how about not playing dancing video games?

Roadies: Fun fact: I used to work at an amphitheater in college and Lynard Synard came to town, and no lie, played a forty-five minute set, obviously ending with Sweet Home Alabama. Then came back out for an encore which ended up being a forty-five minute version of Free Bird.

BrainDead: I am beginning to wonder if the show is running out of story and it is about tie to wrap things up. I really do not care if Laurel’s dad has bugs in his head.
You can download BrainDead on Amazon Instant Video, free with a Prime membership.

Pretty Little Liars: So the doctor was a complete waste. Meh. Hopefully Hanna is going to go Liam Neeson to find Uber A next week.
You can download Pretty Little Liars on iTunes.

Casual: I spent the whole episode wondering what was going on with the dad, did I just imaging him being carted into his home by a ambulance, did I watch the episodes out of order? That storyline was much more interesting than anything that happened this week. At least it will make for an interesting finale.
You can watch Casual on Hulu.

Mr. Robot: Fan theories are a fun way to talk about like Megan would be at the Manson murders because she wore a Shannon Tate shirt; but these wild fan theories never come to fruition. Well except Lost is purgatory, which kind of what the flashsideways were in the final season even though the writers swore the island was not. So when the theory of Eliot being in prison and delusionally thinking he was back living with his mother popped up on the internet, I filed it in the crazy, Sharon Tate type theories. Sure it was an interesting theory, Eliot having a very set routine because he was forced to, but there were too many holes. Craig Robinson really being a prison guard did not really jive, plus Eliot left the house and when to places other than the basketball court, which could be a prison court yard. He even was able to get his hands on drugs to make Mr. Robot disappear.

Except the wild theory was true, Eliot has been in prison this whole time. The big problem is they did this the first season with making it obvious that Mr. Robot was in Eliot’s head, then spent a couple episodes poking holes in that theory only to be, actually he is just in Elliot’s head! And what about Craig Robinson? Was he really an evil prison guard? Was he just in Elliot’s head? Were the Craig Robinson scenes a prequel to the season and him being nabbed by the FBI after chess is why he is in prison? Except we saw Eliot with Craig at the basketball game. If not because of Craig, why is Elliot in prison? It seems it is not because of the Evil Corp hack because the FBI is still looking. Did the Ashley Madison guy get him. I am confused. I miss Alf.
You can download Mr. Robot on iTunes.

Sunday, August 14, 2016

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 8/14/16



Ray Donovan: This show would be much better if Cochran and Ray were forced to team up every week. Can’t Cochran become the new Ezra?

Roadies: Not since the over choreographed scene with KellyAnne running back to the band at the end of the Pilot has anything been so obvious that KellyAnne would end up getting the perfect picture after be denigrated by her idol. Okay, it was also pretty obvious that Phil find his way back to the tour considering Ron White was in the title credits this whole time. Still I find the show very enjoyably, it is kind of like a cozy but tattered blanket reminding me of a time when shows used to be fun before The Sopranos came along and most shows had to be super serious ever since.

BrainDead: As silly as Laurel almost being subjected to enhanced interrogation (granted as not likely that scenario is in present day, I can see that playing out exactly that way in a potential Trump presidency), it did make for a good scene with the bug people inadvertently voting against the torture.
You can download BrainDead on Amazon Instant Video, free with a Prime membership.

Pretty Little Liars: So Charles had a sibling that is the Liars’ age. They seem to heavily pushing Noel so that probably means it is not him. Sara is blonde and has the look, but she just died (or so we are led to believe, it would not be the first time someone came back from the dead). It is ethnically impossible (not that it has stopped the writers before, Charles turned out being a chick who dated her brother and significantly younger than they led us to believe) but I am rooting for Mona. But I am guessing it will end up being Jenna.
You can download Pretty Little Liars on iTunes.

Casual: What was up with the ending? Is our health system so messed up that we are talking people back to their homes when they run out of money?
You can watch Casual on Hulu.

Mr. Robot: I am beginning to think the writers are just trolling us now. And I thought the two straight weeks where they started with a flashback was unnecessary, this week we got a full twenty minutes of Elliot stuck in a cheesy nineties sitcom (I think Married with Children did that very episode) complete with Alf. Alf! Alf killing Gideon!! Again!!! How could anyone possibly take the rest of the episode serious after that (um, I think Angela got hit on with a really bad pick up line)? But hey, at least they worked in an Up All Night reference because, c’mon, does anyone remember anything about USA in the nineties other than Up All Night? I guess we did get one thing out of that, it seemed pretty clear that Mr. Robot admitted to killing Tyrell. Sure you cannot truly believe a delusion, but he did admit to it.
You can download Mr. Robot on iTunes.

Sunday, July 31, 2016

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 7/31/16



Ray Donovan: So after half the season dedicated to this casino heist, it ends with the owner with his money back, does not even bother to press charges (presumably to get the insurance money and the original money) and Ray does not even need that money to bribe the FBI guy to blackmail the other guy because Micky is going to turn himself in. But hey, at least we got to hear Ray sing Bob Seger. We dd get some set up of two storylines that will likely end disastrously: apparently Bunchy is now a single father and Connor was able to break into the gun safe. Checkov would have us believe that gun will go off sometime in the third act, the question now is who is he going to shoot?

Roadies: So Janine is the chick from The Civil Wars. Alrighty. Though she was actually competent as the girl next door that got away. But is she really going to hook up with Reg. Or as importantly, is Reg going to hook up with the girl who broke his boss’ heart? Well, if it ends the will they or won’t they storyline with KellyAnne, I would be happy.

BrainDead: Oh no, Ramona Flowers better not be taken over by the bugs. Hopefully she is able to get to her bacon before they push out her brain or Gustav arrives in time. But c’mon Ramona, you throw out all the stuff he brought but did not throw his flowers at him?
You can download BrainDead on Amazon Instant Video, free with a Prime membership.

Casual: Oh, hey, Leon, I forgot you even existed. Where has he been, he was the best part of the first season. He should have gotten the C-storyline; it probably would have been more interesting than the teen cancer one. Then you have Pete Campbell as vindictive as ever, lowballing Alex for his company. But since there is still four episodes left, I am guessing Alex will be fighting this even though his partner may take the money and run.
You can watch Casual on Hulu.

Mr. Robot: So we are just going to get a flashback at the start of every episode? Meh. At least this was a bit more informative than last week’s F(un) Society origin. I guess we saw the start of Mr. Robot and where the masks came from. There was also the return of White Rose as him and Evil Corp guy talk about there still as unknown Illuminati plot on society. But still I am still a little down on this season. Hopefully now that Elliot is back to hacking, things will pick up.
You can download Mr. Robot on iTunes.

Tyrant: And I thought Jamal not coming back to life would be the most shocking part of the episode, nope his son actually being Barry ended up being more shocking. Sure they had to do some retconning by saying Jamal had low sperm, oh his other son (who died two episodes ago without much of a mention) was not really his son either.
You can download Tyrant on iTunes.

The Challenge: Rivals III: So after a whole season, we are left with Johnny Bananas, his cousin, and a team that was booted the very first week, but since so many teams left prematurely, were brought back, were sent into the jungle over half the time and managed to not pull the black skull once. How anticlimactic. At least they goosed the finale with a twist where you can screw over your rival and take all the money. At first I thought you have to split the cash otherwise you are the first one out in future Challenges, but if you are Sarah and you are ready to go to grad school and pop out some babies, you might as well take the money and run. Plus that would be funny if she screwed over Johnny Bananas twice in consecutive seasons.
You can download The Challenge: Rivals III on iTunes.

Sunday, July 24, 2016

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 7/24/16



Ray Donovan: Welcome back FBI guy (although it was a little silly Ray got the epiphany to see him after seeing a chick in a “Federal Boobie Inspector” t-shirt), he and Micky’s parole officer are the best character on the show. I was actually thinking when he told Ray that he looks like a Bob Seger guy, how disappointing that we will not get to see Ray pretend to be a member of The Silver Bullet Band. Yet somehow FBI guy actually got Ray to do it. I wonder if Showtime asked for this so there would be some synergy with Roadies. That song got the asking price down three million, but apparently Ray does not have two million lying around (um, whatever happened to his buy a football team money?) and will look to get that Horseshoe money with Micky. Whenever those two work together, things never go well. Actually Ray needs that money because of killing all the Armenians for Micky.

Preacher: The hell is not as far as you think comment was really deep, too bad they muddled it by making Eugene turning out to be fake.
You can download Preacher on iTunes.

Roadies: Did someone already say the C-word on the bus before because the tour already seemed pretty cured up to now. The one guy fired everyone including Phil who seemed to be the lifeblood of the tour (bu hey, he got to go to space with Taylor Swift), they are on their third opening act (does My Morning Jacket count as the fourth or was Jim James just a stowaway), oh and this week the bassist went MIA with the band’s groupie. But I wonder if The Who cast is to explain the inevitable hookup of KellyAnn and the money guy. No way that is really happening without some devilish curse pushing them together.

Pretty Little Liars: Ugg, Ezra proposed to Aria? Still creepy after all these year. Hopefully Ezra’s not so deas fiancé comes back and ruins that relationship one more time.
You can download Pretty Little Liars on iTunes.

Casual: I said last week the workplace would be weird if Pete Campbell found out about Alex and his fiancé and it is worse than weird, Pete Campbell plans to burn the company to the ground. Oops. And of course Alex then hooks up with her again, and it kind of looks like she is moving in as he brought a lot of luggage.
You can watch Casual on Hulu.

Mr. Robot: Fun Society? Alrighty. I fear we may be getting into Lost-ian territory of silly backstory told in way too cute of a way (the concrete scene was a bit much too). But it is hard out there for secondary characters from the first season, All Safe dude last week, hacker guy this week. I fear for the job security of Gloria Rubin. But the other hackers think it may be the Chinese. My first thought was Tyrell. Mr. Robot also crossed my mind as well as E-Corp who would rather dispense their own brand of justice than let the Feds deal with it.

Tyrant: What the frack? Why did they have and go kill off the hot chick? Sure her character was worthless but, um, yeah, oh well. And did they really kill Jamal too? Sure he was flat lining but that does not stop some people from coming back to life. I know this is a third world country, but he is a former president, so where were the doctors when he started to flat line? Still this guy survived driving off a cliff and being show at point blank range, certainly he can survive a pillow.
You can download Tyrant on iTunes.

The Challenge: Rivals III: Finally, a silly challenge harkening back to the early days and not some everyone takes turns to do something short and boring. The Jungle should have been better too except no one got dirty. How do you not pull a leg as they are going by?
You can download The Challenge: Rivals III on iTunes.

Sunday, July 17, 2016

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 7/17/16



Ray Donovan: Oh Bridget that was harsh, especially with the fake Boston accent. And of course Conner was just oblivious to the whole thing complaining gun shots ruining his television show. Why are the sons on anti-hero show always the most worthless and incompetent? And just how many times has Terry sat alone in the center of his gym with a gun? Well at least he had company this time around.

Roadies: It was clear by showing up and sitting next to fake Lindsey Buckingham on Saturday Night Live that the real Lindsey Buckingham had a sense of humor, but who really knew just how funny he was? Just the reaction shot of him with Rainn Wilson were great. Speaking of whom, I wonder if Rainn’s character was based on anyone in particular and this was Cameron Crowe’s revenge against some bad reviews.

Murder in the First: Kind of a weird start to the season, in the first episode, Hildy gets a dire diagnosis, but then in the second, they were just like, oops, we were looking at someone else’s records. Then Terry kills what looks to be an unarmed black man, how topical, but again, another false alarm, the perp’s gun fell out of his waist in the chase. Two storylines that looked like they could have been season long arcs that the writers were just, um, nevermind.
You can download Murder in the First on iTunes.

BrainDead: Sure I laughed at the cat CAT scan. Which begs the question what do those bugs do to cats? It clearly makes humans more partisan. And are these bug controlling their humans or just heightening already existing views? The head dive makes it seem like the former. But does that make the bugs partisan or are they just taking over the already held beliefs in the human. At any rate, those previously on segments are just gold.
You can download BrainDead on Amazon Instant Video, free with a Prime membership.

Pretty Little Liars: What a horrible plan. Some dude ran in front of you when you were following him when he kidnapped your friend, which is a legitimate excuse to the police. Instead they come uup with an elaborate plan of leaving his phone on a train (which Spencer ended up being too drunk to do) and burn the car that hit him which would have been extremely conspicuous, at Mona knew a guy who does not ask questions.
You can download Pretty Little Liars on iTunes.

Casual: I did not see the episode title was “Threesome” until after the episode ended. The teenagers were obvious (is it horrible of me to think he may be faking), but the more interesting part of the episode were the emotional threesomes, Valerie is stuck between the two guys, one who is pushing hard and the other who is drunk texting random emojis. Then Alex is not even in a threesome, it is more of a foursome with his crazy ex, her fiancé (possibily ex, that will be one weird working environment if he finds out about them; although they seemed to figure out about him and the secritary) and their pathological assistant.
You can watch Casual on Hulu.

Mr. Robot: What a weird way to start the season, Tyrell was completely absent from the marketing of the second season except being named dropped by President Obama leading me to wonder his involvement in the second. Then he was the first person we see in season two, of course never to be seen again in the double episode premiere. One thing I went back and forth on all first season was: is Tyrell real? That opening scene made me lean back to the delusion side. Then when Elliot asked Mr. Robot where Tyrell is, it reinforced that theory as if when they are not out and about, all of Elliot’s personas are hanging out in his head like Inside Out.

But then Tyrell’s picture was plastered on an episode of Nancy Grace (natch) which pulled me back to the real person side and that maybe the reason Elliot ask Mr. Robot about Tyrell because Elliot knew Tyrell was in the game room, then Mr. Robot took over and when Elliot took over again, Tyrell was missing. I did come up with another theory in that Tyrell is both real and fake. When Elliot meets Tyrell in the Pilot, Elliot decide he is going to be his patsy and to best set him up as the fall guy had to become him and who we saw ever since was Elliot’s delusion. The flaw in that is where does the pregnant wife come from, could she be another delusion?

Speaking of patsies, RIP Gideon. I was surprised he even showed up again and of course he will not again. Though I was unclear what the other guy’s motive was: revenge, fame, hired by Evil Corp to make Gideon the fall guy? Poor Gideon, the ultimate wrong guy wrong time. But really the most interesting part of the first two episode was Elliot saying that we, the audience probably does not trust him the way he does not trust him. Very true, I am beginning to believe less and less of what my eyes see on this show. I am just hoping this does not lead to some sort of St. Elsewhere finale (where the audience learned the whole show was taking place in the mind of an autistic kid) and everything we have seen was taking place in kid Elliot’s mind who is really laying in a coma from the time his father pushed him out a window.
You can download Mr. Robot on iTunes.

The Challenge: Rivals III: Another meh challenge (okay, Vince belly flopping was somewhat entertaining), even the Jungles were stupid too this week. What ever happened to the physical challenge where teams go head to head, almost every challenge this season teams have been taking turns. But at least we got a “Greatest Moments” episode this week. Granted it was basically twenty-five minutes of waiting for the CT using Johnny as a backpack. Weird that they completely ignored all the fighting or the time Julie almost killed Veronica. I guess it was not surprising that the avoided the time Tonya emptied Beth’s luggage into the pool considering the things that happened behind the scenes with here.
You can download The Challenge: Rivals III on iTunes.

Tyrant: These types of family drama follow a familiar format; the older daughter gets a storyline (for better or worse) while the younger brother just stays in the background. This show kind of flipped that, well both children are mostly worthless, but every once and a while the son does something to remind you, oh yeah, he is a gay homosexual, but really never push that storyline very far. After three seasons, they finally gave the daughter something to do in being captured. I am with Barry, you cannot trade the daughter for the wife, they would likely just kill both, really, the obvious answer is to get the American general exactly what he wants and have them send in Seal Team 6 to rescue the daughter.
You can download Tyrant on iTunes.

Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll: Networks got interesting with their On Demand channels. NBC made the most noise by releasing the entire season of Aquarius after its series premiere. What I found more interesting was FX released uncensored version of this show on its On Demand channel. But much like NBC who did not air drop Aquarius this season, for some reason did not upload uncensored episode leaving me to wonder just what Denis Leary is saying whenever the audio when silent. Hurumph.
You can download Sex&Drugs&Rock&Roll on iTunes.

Sunday, July 10, 2016

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 7/10/16




Preacher: I have been pretty ambivalent to the show but I did laugh more than once at the respawning angels. And about the ending, are we ever going to see Eugene again? I guess this is the type of show where people could escape Hell so I would not be that surprised. I wonder if doing harm accidentally via Genesis will make Jessie more inclined to let go of it. Okay, no need to wonder, there is no show without it in him.
You can download Preacher on iTunes.

Roadies: It was clear by showing up and sitting next to fake Lindsey Buckingham on Saturday Night Live that the real Lindsey Buckingham had a sense of humor, but who really knew just how funny he was? Just the reaction shot of him with Rainn Wilson were great. Speaking of whom, I wonder if Rainn’s character was based on anyone in particular and this was Cameron Crowe’s revenge against some bad reviews.

Pretty Little Liars: Oh yeah, I completely forgot the season started with the Liars burying someone (they made it seem like Hannah who was absent from the scene) or what I thought was something because, c’mon, they definitely would not bury Hannah in the middle of the woods, or as I thought then, anyone else. Oops, got that one wrong. They actually ran over Ally’s husband. Poor Hannah, she is really having a bad week, she is the one that gets captured by Uber A and then she is the one behind the wheel during the hit and run with the deceased literally starring at her with his head through the windshield.
You can download Pretty Little Liars on iTunes.

Casual: Just two episodes ago I mentioned how this season was about casual friendships and not casual hook up, and this week all three main characters hooked up with someone. And what world do we live in when a man cannot hook p with his business partner’s secretary and not have to get lawyers involved? That seemed to be a prerequisite at Sterling Cooper (and sometimes Draper Price). Pete Campbell even impregnated one. The guy even spearheaded the pimping of Joan out to that fat slob to secure his business for the firm. Man, someone really need to punch Pete on this show.
You can watch Casual on Hulu.

The Challenge: Rivals III: No. No, no, no, no, no. You can feed me all the cow balls you want, you can make be grind on a block of ice, I will even be worn as a backpack by CT and thrown into a trash can, but you are not getting me in a box and burying me alive. Nope. But I did like the trivia (though I would rather there be a history trivia or a spelling bee), it was kind of like on Survivor when they have those late stage season challenges where people realize just where they sit in their alliance. The course of a couple season changed by people realizing they are on the bottom and flipping for a better position.
You can download The Challenge: Rivals III on iTunes.

Aquarius: I watch this how for its stupidity (c’mon, Mulder was the guy who suggested Bobby Kenedy go through the kitchen where he is assassinated and the gay Republican who had the hots for him just happened to be there and of course so was Charlie Manson) but you juxtaposed Manson trying to start a race war and what is going on today with people trying to race bait juts made me uneasy.
You can download Aquarius on iTunes.


Sunday, July 03, 2016

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 7/3/16



BrainDead: I am not sure how practical red solo cups duct taped over your ears are and it may have been wise to set the trap, leave, and check them later, but it made for one funny sight gag. But does that ending mean the aliens invaded the cat too? Aren’t cats evil enough that they do not need to be taken over by aliens?
You can download BrainDead on Amazon Instant Video, free with a Prime membership.

Pretty Little Liars: Finally someone is calling out the Aria/Ezra relationship as really creepy. Though I fear Aria will be able to talk her ex-boyfriend into the idea.
You can download Pretty Little Liars on iTunes.

Casual: I knew it, one of the friends would try to become more than friends. Though I missed what went on with Alex’s dad. They made it seem like the dad told Alex the ex-girlfriend was committed when she just moved away. But then she stole the lightbulbs first?
You can watch Casual on Hulu.

The Challenge: Rivals III: I am shocked that every team but one was able to finish that challenge. I did a Cancer Walk that I was actually prepared for and still could not function for a week afterwards. And what is with that ball during The Jungle? The thing got dented really early. How is well above average soccer player Wes (insert eye roll here) supposed to show off his skills with a ball that is concaved?
You can download The Challenge: Rivals III on iTunes.

Aquarius: The chick with the historically bad accent has always been the best part of the show, but her pretending to be a cop pretending to be an anti-war activist is just awesomely bad. Almost make up for the unnecessary flashforwards of an event we all know is coming anyway.
You can download Aquarius on iTunes.

Saturday, June 25, 2016

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 6/25/16



Penny Dreadful: What is going on over at Showtime. About a month ago they announced House of Lies was ending with just episodes to go in the season. Then they announce the end of Penny Dreadful by added a “The End” title card to the end of the season finale, adding a press release saying yes this is the end the next day. Add that to the recent announcement of its flagship show Homeland will not be airing in its normal fall slot, instead being delayed to winter. I actually do like the surprise “The End” title card because sometime the anticipation of the final couple episodes of a series can really drag on the enjoyment of the show as you spend too much time worrying if the show will stick the landing.

Of course when the show ends, you still are left to decide if the show did stick the landing. The death of Vanessa did bring things full circle and it was probably for the best to put her out of her suffering. Same with Frankenstein’s monster who realized that it is for the best for everyone to let someone stay dead, no matter how much you loved them. Other storylines just kind of fell flat. Dorian was always the weakest link on the show and never really fit. Then I spent most of the season waiting for Mr. Hyde to show up, instead all we got was Lord Hyde who does not seem all that different from Dr. Jekyll. I guess you can say metaphorically that Lily was the split personally, or even Vanessa. But in the end it is probably the right call to just end the show here, it was enjoyable while it lasted but it was never going to be great. I will just be slightly disappointed the show did not last long enough to introduce the Invisible Man.

BrainDead: What a bizarre way to do a “previously On” package. I would expect it from a show like Galavant, but I wonder what possessed the writers on this show to do a musical recap about alien brain bugs and exploding heads. And I am not sure if it really exists, but sadly I can totally believe that there actually is a “Tax Prom” every year. But my big complaint with this show is I really do not understand what is going on with the aliens. Are half conservative and half liberal and just happen to inhabit different brains to continue their partisan war? Do they take on the traits of the brains they inhabit and just amplify those ideas? And why do some brains explode?
You can download BrainDead on Amazon Instant Video, free with a Prime membership.

Pretty Little Liars: There are few things I hate more than the “x amount of time earlier” title card at the end of the first scene of an episode. The only thing that is worse is when they do even resolve that scene until later in that season. So we start off the season with the Liars sans Hannah burying someone (or something, I am not entirely sold on them burying a dead body). The title card only said four days ago so hopefully we do not have to wait the whole season to get there.
You can download Pretty Little Liars on iTunes.

Casual: It only took four episodes, but I finally see what they are doing. The first season was all about casual romantic relationships and this season is all about casual friendships. Valerie has her work neighbor, Laura has her study group buddy, and Ale, well, he still has the British dude. But now that I realized that, I have to start wondering at which point do any of the friends try to make a romantic move?
A lot was made at all the women Don Draper bedded, but if we are talking quality over quantity, Pete Campbell had Don beat hands down: Alison Brie, Sarah Wright, Alexis Bledel, Jessy Schram. So I was expecting bit more with his finance on this show. Granted if she ended up stealing all of Alex’s lightbulbs later in this season, her stock will rise greatly. And if I were the Asian chick, I would be a bit offended by being called Bill Wennington. C’mon, at least give her Horace Grant.
You can watch Casual on Hulu.

The Challenge: Rivals III: Wow, that was cheap. Vince actually throws punches and gets off with a warning, Tony hovers over his parter and gets tossed. That is like in baseball where a pitcher throws at a dudes head as hard as he can, both teams gets a warning, then a couple innings later some middling reliever drills someone between the shoulder blades with a sixty mile per hour retaliation pitch and gets the boot. To add insult to injury, it was even Vince who basically instigated the whole thing by knocking Camilla to the ground making her go full drunken Brazilian mode leading to Vince and Johnny to wake up the blacked out Tony. Karma should dictate Vince should automatically go to the Junglee. And with a memory challenge, he may very well depending how attentive Jenna is.
You can download The Challenge: Rivals III on iTunes.

Aquarius: Not a good sign for the second week in a row I fell asleep while watching. I did wake up in time to see the chick with the bad accent turn on the creepy biker dude. Worse sign, I did not even bother to look up a recap to see what I missed.
You can download Aquarius on iTunes.

Sunday, June 19, 2016

57 Channels and Only This Is On:




House of Lies: I hate when episode start in the third act before a “x amount of time earlier” title card, this was weird because we did not get just one scene in the future before flashing back to the beginning, we got five (and really the whole episode just jumped back and forth in time), but at least that was worth it for adding Doug making out with the old lady at the end. I guess it was good the show ended because I am not sure a season with Marty and Jeannie blissfully married. But still a weird way to end it. Before the season Kristen Bell was cast in an NBC sitcom but they said it would not interfere with House of Lies. Which makes sense, ten episode of one show, thirteen of another; some sitcoms air twenty-four episodes a year. Except when the Veronica Mars movie was being made there was talk of a television reboot but they said that could not be done because Kristen Bell could not be the face of two shows at the same time. But then David Duchovny did it with X-Files and Aquarius so maybe in that time people were lax on that. But then two weeks before the finale, Showtime announced it would be a series finale, not season. Has Showtime just decided to get out of the half-hour business? Happyish was a rare one and done on a premium network. House of Lies is now done; Episode only has one season left. So that leaves Dice as only half hour on the air that has not been canceled. Except that has not been renewed either, and not getting a renewal a month after the season ended is not a good sign. And I am not aware of any new comedies in the pipeline. Not that I am complaining, Showtime’s drama are much better. House of Lie is the best I have seen on the network and it is not in the top five all all shows.

Preacher: Being able to get people to do whatever you say in the most literal way has to be one of the lames superpowers to have. That may take a while for Preacher to master in his advantage. Okay, the scene with the Irish Vampire was fun.
You can download Preacher on iTunes.

Penny Dreadful: When shows like Lost were on I obsessed on every little detail, noticed every callback, every Easter egg, just straight off the dome. Fast forward a decade and I do not even notice that museum guy and Dracula was the same guy. Getting old really sucks. At the start of the episode when museum guy lifted up the vampire I thought, oh, I wonder what Victorian monster this guy could be. It was not until it donned on Vanessa that she was hooking up with Dracula the whole time that the lightbulb slowly flickered over my head too. But what exactly does that ending mean? Dracula want to serve Vanessa but it was still him that drank her blood. Does that mean she is a vampire now too? The hot Mr. Lyle replacement said not to believe the mythology behind Dracula, so maybe not. She definitely turned evil. But we did learn from her phycologist that she has at least three distinct personalities so there is probably still a good version or two in there.

Speaking of split personalities, Lily may be getting one soon after Dorian turned on her to team up with Dr. Frankenstein and will soon get injected with Dr. Jekyll’s formula. I have been waiting all season for Dr. Jekyll to turn into Mr. Hyde, maybe it will be Lily who turns into Mr. Hyde. Well that theory does really work because Mr. Hyde is a hideous, evil creature without compassion or remorse and, well, Lily is already there.

BrainDead: Man, this show got killed by critics (and in the ratings) but I really enjoyed the whole sixties B-movie with modern day production feel to it. It is more enjoyable than the other Ramona Flowers show that aired earlier this year.
You can download BrainDead on Amazon Instant Video, free with a Prime membership.

Casual: Nice to see Pete Campbell is still an intolerable douchebag. Here is hoping someone on this show punches him too. And here we are in the third episode and Laura is on her third learning environment. During the meet and greet, right around the “good job” discussion (speaking of intolerable people) I thought she might be on a fourth one next episode but looks like she may actually be sticking around for a while. And apparently Alex’s phase three phase is officially over after bedding one of the annoying mother. Is he back to phase one or is there a phase four?
You can watch Casual on Hulu.

The Challenge: Rivals III: For years I have been advocating that Survivor poach The Challenge challenge makers. But maybe The Challenge challenge makers have finally run out of ideas because almost all of them this season have been horrible and this week’s grab a flag going off the cliff challenge may have been the worst yet. Then they stole that build something until it reaches a certain height Jungle challenge from Survivor, albeit adding a silly ice cooler bath component to it.
You can download The Challenge: Rivals III on iTunes.

Aquarius: I spent most of last season talking about what was happening behind the scenes than what was actually happening on screen. And that is continuing for the surprise second season. No binge watch option like season one where NBC released every episode On Demand after the premiere, but instead this year we get a two hour commercial free premiere. When they announced this I thought we would get two extended episodes. But when the credits ran I noticed writers and directors for “part 3.” So instead of two extended episodes, the two hour premiere was three shortened episodes (though not by much, most hour longs run forty-two minutes so we basically got two minutes less than usual). Did this stunt work? I cannot see how it possibly could. When Angie Tribeca ran its commercial free marathon, it still had a “presenting sponsor,” Aquarius did not even have that. On a personal level it was pretty much a failure because I found myself nodding off about halfway through. But I vaguely remember Denis Wilson showing up. And guess the people that are killed in the future are the Sharon Tate murders. Meh.
You can download Aquarius on iTunes.

Orphan Black: So before season finale we learned next season will be the last raising the bar for the episode. The big reveal is that Rachel will soon meet the person behind everything that apparently is too good for dying and has been around for over a hundred years. So have we met this person yet or is going to be someone new. My first thought was Leekie, or more specifically someone who looks like him, we really cannot rule out the big bad being a clone themselves. Or will it look like Sarah and the rest of the clones that we already know and this person is the real original clone?
You can download Orphan Black on iTunes.