I’ve been traveling and didn’t have time to work on anything, so…
First, Legend of the Seeker:
I really, really wanted this show to be good. The first episiode was good enough that I started reviewing it… but it never got any better, just kind of sat there. I’ve officially lost interest. Which is a shame – I love high fantasy. Someday there will be a good high fantasy TV show. LotS just wasn’t that show.
Oh, well.
Sarah Conner:
I wasn’t really sorry to see T:SCC canceled. It never seemed particularly… focused, I think. Was it supposed to be about Sarah Conner? Or John Conner? Or Cameron? Or The Future Aussie Chick who’s name I can’t remember? In retrospect, the problem with T:SCC was that neither Lena Headey nor the actor playing John Conner were suitable to focus an entire show on. So they brought in Brian Austin Green (who stole far too many scenes!) and lots of other characters to spice it up. And the best actor on the show (Summer Glau) was playing the robot! (I would have liked to see Glau as Sarah Conner.) As a result, the show wasn’t really about anything or anyone, and the only reason to watch was to see Summer Glau beat up everybody!
Nothing against Lena Headey, by the way – she was amazing in Imagine Me And You, but she’s not great action hero material. She did a solid job as Sarah Conner, of course, but unfortunately she didn’t do an outstanding job. And the show needed an outstanding job.
Dollhouse:
I’m not crazy about Dollhouse yet. I don’t hate it, but it’s no Buffy or Firefly. Perhaps it will be eventually, but in the mean time it annoys me a bit that of the short-lived almost-canceled shows I like (Firefly, Wonderfalls, Pushing Daises, etc.) the one that makes it is the one I like the least!
In Plain Sight:
I love this show! For one thing, the protagonist is a badass woman who’s NOT supernaturally gifted in any way. For another, the show manages to be entertaining without always being serious, and yet not making overt jokes. The only bad part of the show is Mary’s family. They who make no sense to me, and the drama is seems senseless and overblown. Happily, it doesn’t take up the bulk of the show.
Bones:
Speaking of jokes, I am competely ticked off at Bones (the show, not the character!). Bones was an unusual and interesting show once upon a time. It featured a highly rational woman who, while lacking certain finer social graces, managed to show an uncanny understanding about the world. Sure, her awkwardness was played for laughs, but if she told somebody, “You’re only saying that because you want to have sex with her,” or “Love is only a chain of chemical reactions in the brain,” it was probably true! She was blunt, but often right. Booth was sometimes right as well – and the mutual learning between the two kept the show interesting. Now, the writers have seemingly become scared of the rationality. They constantly go out of their way to show that Booth (equals feelings!) is right and Brennon is wrong. Brennon is nothing more than a big joke. Worse, they are also trying to show us that Booth is smarter than he looks – i.e. it’s possible for a ‘lab rat’ like Brennon to be just as successful without the rationality. Thus her need to change.
As a moderately rational person, I strongly resent this!
Fear of reason (on the part of the writers, in this case) belies an essential insecurity about one’s environment and nature, leading to unintended negative results. (In other words, I’m not watching Bones anymore.) Bah.
Fringe:
…is the best show on television.
It does have its moments. Walter’s sense of humor is just annoying. Peter serves no function at all. And the boss-man having to talk Olivia down only worked the one time! But it’s all worth it to see Olivia either: A. find some piece of the puzzle, or B. beat the crap out of some really evil guy.
I only wish that Fringe wasn’t quite so disgusting. It’s as if they are overpaying their FX crew, and want to get their money’s worth!
So finally, the moral is:
Anyone But Me is officially better than anything currently on TV. I’ll review the latest episode tomorrow!