'The Bullet That Saved The World' - Fringe, Season Five

Fringe

Season Five

Episode Four

'The Bullet That Saved The World' - 7.5

That is a nice ass. 

The indicator for a good thrill ride is how you feel once it's over: if you are tingly in the extremities or full on shaking it was pretty damn fun, but if there is no leftover feelings then it was average or less. 'The Bullet That Saved the World' is the former, and has another definitely positive indicator; the death of a major character.

Ok, perhaps Etta Bishop is not the most important person there, and she is certainly not the one that I would say we were most attached to, but the very fact that she is the main characters’ respective child or grandchild would often be enough to ensure her survival. Not so in the final season of this crazy masterpiece, which sees Etta die the heroic death she deserved. 

Before we get into the fantastic climax I should mention the best part of the first thirty minutes: the numerous references to past fringe cases. So far this season we've been engrossed in a story that had little to do with what we'd seen in the first four years, but when Walter opened his secret cold storage in which he'd planted the many specimens he'd collected over the years, it was like a Fringe fanboy's wet dream.

Olivia looked up at the worms that pulled themselves out of refugee's stomachs in 'Snakehead', Etta unknowingly fiddled with the ambering device invented in '6B', Walter marvelled over the porcupine man from (I assume) last season's 'Nothing As It Seems' and best of all, the face-growing poison from 'Ability' is used to give our heroes the upper hand in the assault on the subway. These allusions to a largely ignored past are what we've been waiting for over the last three episodes, so it was almost relieving to know they hadn't simply been forgotten. Luckily the group manages to throw the loyalists off the scent of the lab by re-ambering it, meaning that we get to explore the room-of-references more in the coming weeks - unless Peter and Olivia go off the deep end following their daughter's death. 

Broyles appeared again tonight, and had a terrific meeting with our heroes, with Olivia giving him a legitimately warming greeting. For the character I was surprised, as Olivia rarely looks happy to see anyone ever, but she had tears in her eyes as she embraced her former boss. Too bad she was about to lose her daughter in all of about five minutes...

A character doomed to die is often remembered solely on how epically that came to pass, and for Etta I was pretty fifty-fifty. I was enthralled and tense as it was happening, but afterwards I have little to say that's either positive or negative. It wasn't particularly memorable since it was just a point-and-shoot, leave-me-to-die sort of event, and in the end the emotion that could have been explored was squandered as the bereaved trio is forced to make a run for it after the dying girl activates a bomb.

What was better than her actual death was the scene immediately before it, which tied in wonderfully with what we'd seen over the episode. In the first scene, Peter had been caught buying a replacement chain for Etta's necklace, and the Observer present had managed to retrieve thoughts of the girl from his mind. Ever after he'd been inquiring about the purpose of the necklace, only realising once he'd grabbed her and thrown her against a wall that it for 'love'. Awwww, shucks. The wonderfully edited sequence in which the generally unreadable Etta was mind raped was beautiful, as it cut together her adult self being assaulted by the Observer with her younger self in the happy, pre-invasion days with her father. What's even better was the failed attempt to stab her attacker, as it was possibly the most tragic and heart wrenching part of the whole scene, mostly because of how desperate it ended up looking. 

Her death is not in vain, luckily, as they had managed to attain some more plans (even if Walter doesn't understand them) as well as confirmed Broyles' involvement in the resistance and taken out a whole mess of Observers with an anti-matter bomb. 

Surely the next episode will be mostly devoted to exploring how the trio will deal with the loss of Etta, and I sincerely hope that the 'Oh god, she's dead!' moment goes to Astrid, who isn't aware that the girl has been killed. I couldn't even tell at which point Etta actually died, as it held focus on the as-normal stoic Olivia, who clutched the eponymous bullet while looking conflicted. She was actually the one of the three who ended up ditching the post-loss pity party, walking away so she can sulk in typical solitude. It's all very characteristic for her, so I'm not complaining, I just don't think she's going to win any points with the viewers.

They had a few minutes at the end there that they could have explored the impact of the baby Bishop's demise, but for the most part 'The Bullet That Saved the World' is a terrific ride that quickly reaches season highs then plunges to distressing - but still awesome - lows. I adore the inclusion of past Fringe cases to aid our heroes, and I implore the writers to have that be the deciding factor in the coming battle. I mean, they did save the world a whole bunch of times, they have to find something they can beat the observers with. What about that poison that could be made to kill only people with a specific genetic trait, as seen in 'The Bishop Revival'? Of course that would require a fully functioning lab rather than a half-ambered one, but it would be worth it, right? 

Anyway, goodbye to young, short-lived Etta and to her Australian portrayer Georgina Haig, who ably gave the role a sense of knowledge and experience while also tinging it with sadness and youth. Still, she did have a role that seemed to require death, as she not only gave the show an imbalance (Olivia and Peter went from new lovers to having an adult daughter in all of about five episodes) but she will also force the characters to leave their largely safe and cautious existence and properly move to the offensive against the all-powerful enemy. 

'Family Ties' - The Vampire Diaries, Season One

The Vampire Diaries

Season One

Episode Four

'Family Ties' - 6.5

Spoiler alert: even topless Caroline is about a tenth as awesome as Season Two-onwards Caroline.  

There really isn't a whole lot to say about this episode. Once again, there is a serious lack of action, but the acting was a step up from most weeks and the plot itself seemed to advance considerably.

We meet the Founder's Council for the first time tonight, though whether they are named I can't remember. All we know is there is a group of important people who are aware of the vampire presence in Mystic Falls, consisting of at least Logan Fell, Mrs. Lockwood, Sheriff Forbes and the Mayor. At the present time, none of these characters are actually compelling or particularly threatening, though it is at least significant that they all have some sort of tie to the characters we've already met - Tyler's parents, Caroline's mum and Elena's Aunt Jenna's ex-boyfriend. This will all be surely important later down the track, if only because it'll make it more difficult for them to be killed off. At the same time, they theoretically are only a threat to Damon and Stefan, neither of whom I'd be overly upset to lose, though I'd be upset if they DIDN’T kill Damon.

Leading on from that, Damon was actually at his best in this episode - which isn't that great - but just because he ended up locked in a little prison cell. Hahahahahahahahaahahahah. And by Mr. Bland-weak-sauce. That's gotta hurt him, but it made me happy. It was almost like retribution for all the crappy voice-acting by Ian Somerhalder, having him be captured in a truly obvious way. I mean, you have to admit the ploy was clear - I thought for a moment Damon only let Caroline and Stefan be alone together so he could gloat about foiling another vervain-attempt. Damon, you are officially too cocky and too stupid. JUST DIE.

Caroline's going pretty great though, Candice Accola was fantastic portraying the dazed and battered girl as she came out of her compulsion. She has managed to go from an irritating and nosy bitch to a tragic and no-doubt spitefully real person. It'll be good now that she has the crystal and can play an important role in the coming storylines.

Another character slowly edging towards the limelight is Bonnie, who revealed tonight she has real power by lighting some candles... with her mind! No, it was horribly clichéd, and ridiculous that a normal person would just decide to try and ignite a candle with telepathically. Seriously? Sure, it worked, but maybe she should be put in therapy for delusions. Even with the psycho witch being herself, the scene where she lit an entire room full of candles was masterful, I loved the image and thought it was very moving. Perhaps soon Bonnie can pull some awesome shit - I hope she ends up like Willow in the Buffyverse.

So this is 'Family Ties', nothing to make us praise the lord for the existence of television, but the most important of the first few episodes in terms of plot and character advancement, although I did prefer the previous outing. The action was entirely all-talk, with a little creative filming, but it was not too boring, and I ended up caring for a lot of the people who live in this world.

'The Five' - The Vampire Diaries, Season Four

The Vampire Diaries

Season Four

Episode Four

'The Five' - 6.5

I'd be lying if I said I saw the point of this. It wasn't even that impressive.

As per Vampire Diaries' usual, the origins and ramifications of intriguing and/or mysterious plot points are addressed in only the following episode. This is a fantastic move to cater to impatient, forgetful or high teenagers, but for folk like me who prefer a steady burn-off period where we can munch on the possible directions of a storyline, it's kind of... patronising? That's a good word. 

Interestingly though, I wouldn't call the story of 'The Brotherhood of the Five' the focus of tonight's entertainment. Rather, Claire Holt absolutely steals the show with some amazing work as original vampire Rebekah, who was always just awesome. She is coming to understand herself in relation to the people around her, and she is beginning to grasp her tendency to fall in love so easily. This is demonstrated by her twelfth century love affair with Alex, one of the original five hunters, and this ends typically for her, as she becomes the first victim of a silver dagger (I assume) after promising to go away with him. 

The writers have this obvious fixation with the tragic Rebekah, and they seem to believe that her obsession with finding love and acceptance is some glorious character innovation, so she and all the other characters refer to it all the fucking time. Yes, I get it. I UNDERSTAND. VAMPIRE DIARIES, PLEASE STOP.

Anyway, the writing isn't the best part, obviously. Claire Holt just owned her material tonight. I have been a little tough on her lately, but god was she good, especially in her blubbering argument with her brother all the way back in the 1100s. Joseph Morgan did well too, but Holt really hogged his limelight and really, really proved herself as more than an actress with impeccable delivery. Also, she's still totally Australian, so that's awesome. Why isn't Hayley Australian on that note? 

Later on, Klaus conspires to have his sister daggered in order to keep his and Stefan's plan a secret. This leads to the greatest scene of the night, and possibly of the show so far, as Rebekah once again realises her once beloved brother has wronged her again, turning to see him preparing the dagger. She takes it willingly, almost running headlong into the blade, but not before tearing into Klaus for being a weak, loveless monster who will never have a real legacy. I'm officially head-over-heels in love with this teenage monster, and I pray that she’ll be with us again soon. Ah, the beauty of a race of vampires who only die temporarily (other than Finn and Mikael).

Elena did shit too, learning how to control herself while feeding on random strangers, which is weird because I was pretty sure that she had learnt how to drink from Matt without much issue. She had a little lapse in control last episode, but who gives a shit about that? Regardless her entire plotline was ruined by the Delena overload. Damon sucks, just get over it, OK? 

Truth be told, I actually was a little impressed by Ian Somerhalder's handling of his whole 'predatory species' monologue, as well as Nina Dobrev's reaction to it. I really am trying to like this guy, as he is clearly the focal point of the show, even if he isn’t the main character on paper. That’s Elena of course, who’s new vampirism is being treated in the most hipster way possible; they are trying to make deep, subtle parallels to the original doppelganger, Katherine.  When she takes her first bite  at the (stupid sounding) Murder party she turns to Damon and tells him – with a cocky smile on her face – that she wants more. She has also altered her hair just enough to be a little like Katherine’s frizzier do. UG.

Connor is still a pretty fun villain, and I appreciated his violent killing of that hybrid, though the Brotherhood of the Five is so clearly a ripoff of the Slayer line. Even the would-be hunters are called potentials! Seriously? Every time one dies a new one is called? They have super strength and super reflexes? IS THIS NOT A BELL BEING RUNG? 

  

Aside from the usual writing fails that perpetuate every episode of this drama, 'The Five' was pretty good, mostly in part to the wondrous woman that is Claire Holt. I'm gonna wrap it up now though, because I've just discovered that I'm incredibly pissed off by unrelated matters. Goodbye! 

'Killer Within' - The Walking Dead, Season Three

The Walking Dead

Season Three

Episode Four

'Killer Within' - 10.0

Hello doors. I love you doors. And Carol's apparently indicative head scarf. 

Well, where can I possibly begin?

How about a simile?

Watching 'Killer Within' was akin to walking through a pleasant, flowery field full of butterflies and chirping birds who flutter gracefully atop the tree line which frames the sun as it slowly descends beyond the green horizon. Possibly with some relaxing classical music playing all the while as well.

Then, when darkness falls a few seconds later, you fall down a three storey mine shaft into the decrepit lair of a six-legged, conjoined horror of a fuck-monster who wants nothing more than to repeatedly violate your paralysed corpse with its seventeen penises, before throwing you back into the cold, wet world outside (it's been raining during the rape) to painfully drag yourself home to find that your mother's DVR'd your experience so you can't tell what happens until after she's watched it for herself.

FUCK YOU MUM. THIS IS WHY YOU EXIST, SO I CAN TALK TO YOU INSTEAD OF GETTING A FUCKING THERAPIST.

Anyway, 'Killer Within' was unbelievably amazing. Like, seriously. Ten out of ten, simply for audacity and extreme - and deservedly titled - horror. One main character gets torn apart by hungry zombies quite explicitly and disturbingly, and another (three guesses who) is sliced open and has a TINY HUMAN RIPPED OUT OF THEM. And maybe Carol died, I don't know.

I took a half-hour break before writing this review simply because my hands were shaking too much to type. I checked twitter, looked up Sarah Wayne Callies to see if she was as traumatised as I was (only to find her death scene was her suggestion YOU SADISTIC BITCH), sat in extended dramatic pause mode and then stroked my dog for a few minutes. Emotionally draining? I FEEL PHYSICAL PAIN. THIS CANNOT BE LEGAL. I THINK I'M IN THE EARLY STAGES OF GRIEF, POSSIBLY NEARING CATATONIA.

OH GOD THE CAPS LOCK. IT JUST MAKES MY STATE OF MIND CLEARER, I.E. I DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON ANYMORE.

Ok, was there anything bad about this episode? I mean, if I get my mind off the OHGODWHY parts I think I can clear my head. And no, there probably wasn't anything negative worth mentioning, unless the gory deaths of characters you like is a negative. In fact, it might be so negative it's a positive, as in so-bad-it's-good, like KFC. If you know me you'd probably expect me to call out the Woodbury-based scenes as significantly slower than the prison-set scenes, and while that's true I admit that when we flashed over to Andrea, Michonne, Merle and/or the Governor I was overcome with relief. It was like break-time at the office, and it felt long awaited and just as refreshing. Thank you, drama! It's a nice break from the horror. 

After Sophia last season, Lori's death by caesarean-section will go down as a defining moment of this boundless show, not just for it's almost cruel, tortuous outing but because it was actually fucking beautiful. Lori knew the second Maggie showed her that she was bleeding she wasn't going to make it out of this, and so rescuing the baby was the only real option left open. Imagine if Rick had to put down his own (well, maybe) child? His own (well, maybe) INFANT child? Thankfully this show isn't so intense that it lead to that, but we still lost the mother in the birthing process. 

I know Lori isn't (wasn't) the most popular character of all time, but she was amazing tonight, and her parting words to her grieving - but very composed - son were things of glory, with Callies and Chandler Riggs being wonderful in the undeniably overwhelming sequence. Lauren Cohen too, even if she didn't get to say too much at this point. There was almost peace in Lori though, and she was willing and happy to die to save her child's life, although I probably rather go out that way than like T-Dog. 

For him, he's at first bitten when he goes with Carol to close the gate that some inconsiderate soul has left carelessly open, allowing the walkers to leave their compound for a nice feast. It doesn't give him too much pause as it's just a nip on the shoulder, but it's immediately clear that time is nearly up for him. He decides to go on one last mission, with the aim of leading Carol back to the others and to safety. In the end though, since she runs out of ammo he has to sacrifice himself to get her past the final hurdle. We get the poor woman's point of view as she quickly turns back to watch her saviour having bits of his flesh being pulled from his body. ICK. JUST, ICK. HELLO, YET MORE ZOMBIE NIGHTMARES. Did you know that this is the ONLY FUCKING SHOW OR MOVIE that gives me nightmares? One time I did have a dream about Freddy Krueger, but I've never actually seen a Nightmare on Elm Street film so I can't put much stock in it. Anyway, I'm not overly frightened during the whole experience, nor does it keep me awake, but sometimes my brain likes to FUCK WITH the memories of the show and TURN THEM INTO MONSTROSITIES. THIS WILL NOT BE HARD TONIGHT.

T-Dog's fate is definitively confirmed - not that it was a mystery or anything - when the group, fresh from ending the life of the miscreant who caused all the trouble finds his bloodied and bare corpse seeping across the FLOOR OH GOD MY MIND IS DYING AGAIN.

Daryl also decides from a head scarf that Carol's dead as well, though that just may be optimism on his part. 

However, what was the best single moment of the episode came about at the very end, as the surviving group (sans Carol) reconvenes back in their yard, with Rick seeing Carl, Maggie and the baby emerging from the depths of the prison, no Lori in sight. Considering it had come down to the stoic and surprisingly strong Carl to deal the double-tap blow to his mother, Rick was disturbingly weak. I'm satisfied that he realised what had gone down pretty quickly, but in the end he says 'No' a lot then collapses on the ground. I'm not calling out Andrew Lincoln's performance... OK, maybe I am, but because it was FORMIDABLE. It was epic, and what would normally be over-the-top anguish was presented realistically because Lincoln FUCKING SOLD IT, and it was heart-breaking. He didn't even look at his new child, who a traumatised Maggie holds against Glenn's chest, and I can't blame him. There was just so much riding on Lori, and you know he feels somewhat responsible for them not reconciling, and now she's dead and he couldn't be there to help. 

There is something almost cathartic about death on this show. Perhaps the creators realised this, and are aware of the constant feeling of lingering doom which surrounds every character, because so far all the major deaths have been spine-tinglingly good; Amy, Sophia, Dale, Shane and now Lori and T-Dog. They understand that they need to step the death up a notch to help it transcend the death that already exists in the show, so whether it be horrifyingly violent and painful like T-Dog, or beautiful and emotional (if still horrifyingly violent) like Lori, they get how to do it right and have managed to do so consistently. 'Killer Within' is The Walking Dead at its absolute best, showing us that there really are casualties in this universe, and that the viewers can't watch this like any other show. Yeah, 24 or Lost or any other serial shit could theoretically pull off an 'anyone can die' routine, but their characters don't exist in a world where nearly everyone already has. This bleak, inevitable, unflattering end that awaits all our characters, beloved or not, is what makes this so difficult and so glorious to watch. We don't know what's going to happen. I didn't expect Lori to go out that way, and I didn't expect T-Dog to go out either. One moment changed everything from a normal episode which started with collecting firewood and bringing Hershel back out into the world into a violent and tearful goodbye to two, maybe three characters. Is there anything more that we can ask for? 

'Vatos' - The Walking Dead

The Walking Dead

Season One

Episode Four

'Vatos' - 9.0

At least he was decent enough to prepare.

Compared to the calm, character-based last episode, 'Vatos' is a cornucopia of chaos, destruction and so much plot it feels like it could have been its own season. A couple secondary players bite the dust in the final minutes, both of whom have direct connections to other members of the group, and that has little to do with all that went down in Atlantic City.

Before the Walking Dead's boring-as-hell title sequence rolls, we are showed a nice, serene moment between sisters on the lake in the quarry. It is a good scene, with the acting by both Emma Bell and Laurie Holden easily able to hold the realism and believability; we are supposed to believe that this is how we would live after the apocalypse. Amy and Andrea lament their missing parents, as well as come to realise that their father loved them both equally, catering to the different personalities of his incredibly dissimilar daughters with variations in his fishing methods. It sounds like a bizarre thing to spend a while discussing in a zombie show, but it is touching and wonderfully composed, and once you've seen the episode you know why it's there; Andrea and Amy are having their final sisterly conversation.

The opening credits now over, we switch to the four guys in Atlanta, where we pick up right where 'Tell it to the Frogs' left off; Merle has sawn off his own hand to escape the rooftop he was left on by Rick and T-Dog, and Daryl is understandably pissed. I'm surprised how effective Norman Reedus is as the agro redneck, and I'm just as surprised to find that I actually find him oddly likable. His character may be an over-the-top stereotype, but I respect his devotion to finding his brother, and I get why he's unhappy with how Merle was handled two episodes ago.

The group begins a slow, tense search through the department store following the trail of blood left by Merle. Of course, in this universe it would be hard to go anywhere without the trip being fraught with suspense, and part of the draw of the show lies in its constant threat of violence and/or zombification. Nonetheless the four of them encounter only of couple walkers, none of whom put up much of a fight against Daryl's crossbow, but in the end Merle is found to have escaped into the city and out of their reach. I didn't like Merle as much as Daryl, but with him out in the wild the show has obviously made it open for his return, but this being the Walking Dead, they could be smart enough to know that his survival is expected, and thus his death would be more of a surprise. However, assuming he is dead, how could anyone discover this?

There is a man back at the base camp named Jim. I hadn't really noticed him in the couple of episodes we've spent at the camp, but he certainly makes an impression tonight. Andrew Rothenberg plays the quiet, clearly depressed or manic man, who reveals not long into this episode that his survived a zombie attack due only to the zombie's preoccupation with devouring his family, i.e. his wife and children. It is a disturbing thought, but this show has never really shied away from making viewers uncomfortable. The gore and the silence see to that. Anyway, Jim spends the first part of the episode seemingly digging graves a little while away from the centre of camp, for reasons he can't remember after Shane forces him to stop. Seems his actions were scaring the other survivors, though to be honest I didn't really get this storyline. It has its eerie relevance at the conclusion of 'Vatos', but it still seems a tad too supernatural for the show's strict keepings to a sense of realism in its storytelling. Similarly, I had issues with the group's decision to actively prevent Jim from digging his holes, as it wasn't that freaky, was it?

In an attempt to salvage a rather fruitless trip to Atlanta the group plans to retrieve the guns Rick dropped in the overrun streets at the end of the first episode, but the plan goes awry when another group of survivors intervenes, failing to steal the guns but taking poor Glenn away. As anything with a brain would do, this new group - full of the titular 'Vatos' - promises to trade Glenn for everything in the bag, or die guns blazing. The 'Vatos' have more men, and apparently more thirst for blood, but looks are deceiving. Turns out after an effectively stereotypical Mexican stand-off situation this new group of annoyingly evil Latinos just... aren't. They are actually protecting an old folks home, and their leader Guillermo is the former janitor at the facility. I appreciate the contrast between our first impressions and the reality, but it did wrap up all the issues that arose with the bag of guns really nicely, maybe too nicely. It also managed to make Rick look more noble and kind, which is really annoying in a protagonist. We have enough noble protagonists, mate, be bad!

On the way back to the van they took to Atlanta, our four guys come across one more obstacle - someone has stolen the van. It's Rick who jumps to the conclusion that it was Merle, and for a brief moment we are anxious at the thought of an enraged Merle arriving at the survivor's camp and wreaking havoc on the innocents. It's a nice little red herring, although nothing really comes of it tonight except it slows Rick and his friends down significantly, forcing them to make for the camp on foot. Perhaps one day Merle will return and take his revenge.

Back at the camp, the delayed return of Rick with the new weapons has serious repercussions for some of the survivors. While for a while everything seems fine, we are waiting for Merle to emerge from the woods brandishing some deadly piece of hardware, or worse simply roar through the lot of them with the van. Alas, the show chooses to slow the worst down, having nice old guy Dale describe his habit of winding his watch. It is a well written little monologue, but it is only an entree compared to the main course.

Everything goes to hell quickly; a beaten and bruised Ed awakens alone in his tent to the sounds of rustling outside. Irritated as he usual is, he decides to zip open the door and confront whoever's there, only to be confronted himself by a very hungry zombie. Seconds later a whole hoard of the creatures are making their way into the tent for a meal.

Back at camp, little sister Amy comes out the RV after going to the toilet. Unlike Ed though, she is given no warning when a zombie appears from the darkness and bites into her arm. What follows next is the most muddled and bloody three or four minutes of a television show I've seen. Zombie's heads a blown clean off, their blood staining the camera lens, extras are torn limb from limb and Amy gets another, fatal bite to her neck and Andrea rushes to her side. It's over almost as quickly as it began, when Rick and the others finally return to the camp, their new guns hot in the arms, zombies falling left and right.

Once the worst is over, we exit the chaos and find ourselves back on Earth, and The Walking Dead reasserts its statement; Death matters. Andrea mourns her sister's fatal injuries while the rest of the group can only watch in a particularly bloody goodbye for Amy, who succumbs to her wounds without any sort of final words, only a meaningful touch to her sister's cheek. It really is beautiful, but the final words go to Jim, who states that he now remembers why he dug the graves.

The thought of a psychic is a bit much for me, but it depends on how they handle it over the rest of the show that matters. If they can make it similar to the mysterious River Tam of Firefly or Olivia Dunham of Fringe I'll be happy, but if they turn him into some sort of constant Deus Ex Machina like Bonnie of the Vampire Diaries I'll be pissed. That's if he really is psychic, he might just be nuts.

The end of 'Vatos' is dramatic and almost distressing, with how suddenly everything changes being the most affecting aspect of the entire experience. It will no doubt expand on the prevailing feeling of suspense and dread that we already felt, but here we have proof that it can happen at any time, presumably to anyone. In this world the zombie invasion is real, as are the people who won't survive it, and The Walking Dead wants us to always remember that.

'New Car Smell' - Homeland, Season Two

Homeland

Season Two

Episode Four

'New Car Smell' - 7.0

In a show about national security and terrorism, young love is the most important thing. 

I find myself largely unable to believe that Carrie would just be let back into the CIA. It was probably my only issue with the episode tonight - that, and the Dana subplot which went nowhere interesting - as I'm pretty sure she was not only discredited but she was stripped of her security clearance due to her mental illness. I don't think you can just veto that decision because it turns out she wasn't wrong, she's still a bit everywhere up in the head. Of course I could be wrong, the CIA might have a bit of leniency when it comes to people kicked out because of crackpot theories that don't end up that crazy. She presumably could have sued them for wrongful termination, so maybe they’re just covering their asses. 

Aside from that problem, there was a lot to like about 'New Car Smell'. Most notably, we're back to the surveillance of Brody. It was an immediate call back to the first few episodes of this fantastic show, but on a significantly grander scale, with the CIA tapping into the cameras in every building he visits, including the hotel he's staying in. They also have tapped his mobile phone and the one at home, all in the hopes of working out who he's working with. Early on, the team decides to throw the jihadist off by having him catch Carrie on the way out of Langley, thinking that he'll realise she's been reinstated in some way. It works like a charm, and the two of them even catch up for a few moments. 

The best Carrie/Brody moment had to be in the bar, as Claire Danes was simply amazing as her character struggled to keep her real feelings bottled up while talking about getting the Electro-convulsive therapy. In the end though, Carrie doesn't believe she was good enough and warns the team that she thinks she's been made, making her way over to Brody's hotel room for one of the greatest scenes this show has given us. 

At first Carrie pretends to be there for a booty call, openly flirting with her target. Soon though, her apparent sincerity fades to reveal the true anger underneath it all, as she cracks spectacularly, tearing into the man she loved for wronging her, getting her fired and driving her to the looney bin. It was powerful stuff and expertly handled, especially as she began egging him on to dispose of the apparent only witness. Luckily the SWAT team barges in and apprehends Brody just as he'd started advancing on her, and thus we end the first chapter of this show: Brody is now not only a known operative of Abu Nazir, he's a captured one too.

There was some other stuff too, namely Dana kissed Finn Warden, the Vice President's son. In all honesty, no one even really likes Dana so how am I supposed to give a shit about her fucking love life? Oh no! She has to dump Zander for him, despite the fact he's a complete asshole. All this plot line was was a waste of precious time.

Similarly, Mike and Jess has to deal with a drunk and raving Lauder, who turned up on his crutches at the Brody home, talking shit about Brody being evil and all. I mean we know it's true, and Mike does inquire deeper, but they end up concluding that he's working for the CIA. What? What exactly is he doing for them? Keeping tabs on the Vice President, who FYI used to be the director of the CIA? He's a terrorist, gentlemen, realise it.

We also meet a new character tonight, one Peter Quinn, an agent assigned to the Brody task force. He's an obvious relief character, one who is able to survey the main characters and make witty or almost meta-referential observations, ones that the audience can agree with or be amused by. Don't get me wrong, he was funny at times and a nice change from the sombre seriousness that is generally Homeland, but for the most part his presence fell to the wayside and I didn't really care. 

It's good to see that Claire Danes and Damien Lewis get some more scenes together, and looking at next week's previews we can expect to see her in on the interrogation, so I'm definitely looking forward to that. When Carrie and Brody are together we often get the most effective and beautifully delivered dialogue on television right now, and the two actors have some genuine chemistry, even if it isn't so much romantic anymore. Hopefully there'll be a lot more of the two of them to come.

After 'New Car Smell', Homeland has essentially burned through all the plot lines I'd expected from this season, which is both a brilliant and a risky move. Where can the show really go from here, and how long can they keep pushing the public acknowledgement of Brody's dissent back before it just gets annoying? I am definitely excited to see how Homeland will handle pretty much losing its premise - it was about whether or not Brody was a terrorist and how they would catch him - but I'm also wary that it could go very wrong. We can only wait and watch to find out.

'Semper 1' - Homeland, Season One

Homeland

Season One

Episode Four

'Semper 1' - 3.5

There isn't much colour in Homeland. Apart from Damien Lewis' hair. 

Homeland continues the expository early arc of its run, facilitating changes in the dynamics of a couple of the relationships in order to reinforce our prior notions, as well as bringing Carrie's hunt for Brody into the next stage. Unfortunately it takes a while to get into the action, and I found myself distracted by shinier objects in the room on occasion.

'Semper 1' begins as Carrie's FISA warrant nears its end, meaning around three weeks have passed since the death of Lynne Reed last episode. Carrie is a day away from having to break into Brody's house and take down the surveillance equipment, ending the moderately legal operation. In the first scene, we get an insight into how acquainted she has become with Brody and his family, watching him prepare to speak to some young Marines in training and narrating his preparation routine. She even knows where his tie was when he didn't. The pre-emptive commentary was actually effective in demonstrating how observant, obsessive and attached Carrie is with her mark, and predicts her almost mindless pursuit of him following the end of the warrant.

Meanwhile Estes is approached by a Lizzie Gains, the chief political operative for the vice-president, who wishes to investigate Brody, and it is suggested he's being considered as a possible candidate for office. What office? I have no clue - I don't understand American politics. Seems like civilians over there can be elected for anything. Gains organises a meeting with Brody after encountering him while his family's at church, but we haven't seen the meeting yet. Next week, probably.

Now would be a good time to mention that I was actually quite bored watching this episode. I'm not sure why, it is intriguing, but it didn't really grab me as much as the first three. Until the end of the episode, nothing really happened, and the characters all seemed to be walking in circles around one another. For example, Jess continues to fuss over her affair with Mike, while Chris and Dana worry that their family is about to fall apart. Saul keeps pretending to help his protégé and friend, while simultaneously talking down to her, and Estes just acts like a prick the whole time.

On that note, what was up with Estes? He and Carrie's scenes together told us two things; first, Estes doesn't trust her, and rightfully believes she's up to no good behind his back. Second, the two had a little fling in the past that ended with Estes' wife leaving him, effectively explaining their mutual dislike. That's just great, Homeland, but I honestly don't care a single iota about Estes or his relationships, present, past or future. Carrie's, maybe, but considering how pointless it ends up sounding I think it was a bit unnecessary. It is nice that the two kind of made up with each other in the scene at the bar, but it was just a bit more sentimental than important. I also don't know yet if I can trust Estes' demeanour. It just shifted from hostile to sincere way too quickly.

We seem to have a non-Nazir face to our enemy, with the couple we saw buying a house last week getting a proper introduction tonight. When the prince from the last two episodes' chief aide visits the a laundromat the FBI has noted as a Hawala broker - seems to be some sort of Arabic-world banking system that allows funds to be transferred without records - Carrie suspects he swapped that $400,000 necklace in. This means that someone who visited the laundromat afterwards may be part of a sleeper cell in need of funds. Raqim Faisel, an assistant professor at some generic sounding university is photographed leaving the laundromat, along with a whole mess of others. Noting a couple suspicious visits to Pakistan, Carrie and her partner tail Raqim home from work. Seems the sleeper cells are smarter than that though, and just as he's about to enter his new home - which isn't the home listed in his file - his wife receives a cryptic phone call. Instantly, she freaks out, rushing up the stairs of the house and putting an American flag outside a second-storey window, and Raqim slams his brakes on and keeps going, able to hide the real location of his home. No doubt these two will be integral in whatever Nazir is planning, and it is interesting they chose a Caucasian woman to be part of a sleeper cell.

The best scene of the episode occurs while Brody and his family are at church, giving Carrie enough time to get into his house and remove all the camera and microphones. Of course, it's actually Virgil and his brother who do the physical labour, while Carrie searches for that elusive clue hidden somewhere in the garage. At one point, she even lifts his Muslim prayer shawl up in order to open the box beneath it. Anyway, the best part of this sequence is that it is scored by the hymn being sung at the church. It was a very moving, beautiful hymn that had dramatic organ music not often heard in television or film. The final shot of Carrie unscrewing the last camera was great too, showing it on one of her monitors back at her house.

With the surveillance supposedly over, we knew Carrie would find some new way of keeping tabs on Brody. Now, she's not being particularly subtle about it, simply tailing him around and watching him from her car.

Brody is still having a tough time, and in a suspenseful moment the show tries to make us believe that he is going to shoot Mike. After building up the implication that Brody is actually aware of his wife's infidelity, Mike ends up being invited to a get-together at his friend's house. As Brody watches Jess and Mike converse in the kitchen, he pulls down a gun he stores above the fluorescent light in the garage, just as there's a shot of Mike coming in. We cut back to Jess who's having a nice, normal moment with some other friend when two gun shots ring out. It was a bit of a shock, and for a second there things were looking bad, but he ends up just having shot a deer who was eating the flowers. Jess freaks out nonetheless, and fair enough. Any excuse really to see Morena Baccarin do her stuff, and do her stuff she does, with Jess telling Brody that he needs to get help or she'll leave him.

Carrie follows Brody to a Veteran's support group, where she seizes her opportunity to get a little closer to him, pretending to be a part of the group. She 'accidentally' bumps into him, then fakes a freak out at seeing a familiar face and bolts, fully expecting him to fall into her trap and follow her. Brody proves he's not the brightest bulb when he does exactly that, meeting her out in the parking lot for some none-the-wiser flirtation. Damien Lewis and Claire Danes play off each other like best friends in a Mensa meeting, with the two being quick but secretive simultaneously, and there is an obvious spark the second the two begin talking. Straight away, you can sense that this is going to go somewhere new, somewhere much more personal than the original long-distance surveillance gimmick had made it look. As Carrie walks away, a big satisfied - and probably aroused - grin on her face, you just know that despite a comparatively lifeless episode, Homeland is about to get very, very interesting.

'The Arrival' - Fringe, Season One

Fringe

Season One

Episode Four

'The Arrival' - 9.0

Cute. Boy or girl? 

'The Arrival' is really the first episode of Fringe that deals solely with the overall mythology of the series. While initially the show had seemed like a by-the-week procedural with continuously linking and building season-long elements, we are pretty explicitly told here that Fringe is going somewhere and it's taking us with it. Sure there is a 'beacon' that comes and goes over the course of this episode, but it leaves behind a thousand questions and moves the plot and the characters forward to an extent I didn't think we would see this early on.

There is little to call out over the forty or so minutes. It appears to me that the makers of the show have watched long-running sci-fi hit 'the X-Files', which Fringe resembles on paper, and weeded out exactly what made the 1990s cult classic so... last millennium. No, Fringe is modern, and it is going somewhere. The questions are obvious - what is the beacon? Who is the Observer? Who's the man trying to get the beacon? - but they don't feel like they will go unanswered, not yet. The way the plot devices are introduced, it at least seems like the writers have an idea of why they are important. Hopefully this won't turn into Lost.

Something that made the X-Files good was that it assumed its viewers were intelligent, capable of coming to their own conclusions while still providing us with some answers to the truck-loads of questions. In this regard Fringe is not overly different - for those who have yet to watch the next few seasons of the show, many questions are in fact answered - but Fringe also chooses to leave its episodes less open-ended, at least in my opinion. It lacks the infuriatingly vague story-telling style that plagued its predecessor.

'The Arrival' featured some terrific moments, outside of the beacon. That first scene is a worthy opener, and makes the entire episode a must-see for any TV fanatic; if only to see the Observer make and eat a disgusting hamburger to Willie Nelson's version of 'Crazy'. Lovely stuff.

Walter is at his finest tonight, managing, as usual, to be both utterly insane and the smartest person in the room. This entire episode is set over around about forty-eight hours, and in just that time he sedates Astrid, steals the beacon, meets with the observer, gets arrested by the FBI and gives us some surprising clues into one of the great mysteries of Fringe. It was thrilling to watch, most in part due to the captivating acting ability of John Noble. In fact, almost every actor in this episode does a fantastic job, especially during Walter's interrogation scene. Peter's impatience and anger are palpable, while Walter's typically insane ramblings are as believable as ever. The diner-based meeting between the Observer and Walter was also terrific, I was genuinely shocked when he simply sat down across the table. He is probably Fringe's greatest creation, that hairless man.

I'll also commend the episode's villain - apparently referred to as 'the Rouge', who did a great job humanising someone who appears to only feature tonight. His dialogues with his victims were surprisingly well written and acted, and I do hope that he can make another appearance in some form. Also, I loved the sounds and effects of his futuristic gun, it provided some epic stunt work and lots of sparks. Literally.

This was Astrid's first real acting job, not only was she drugged she also got to act unimpressed by her assailant's babbling apology. It may not sound like much, but it was the most she'd been given so far. The moment she got syringed by Walter was a nice twist, I didn't see it coming, and I love that she hands him the very syringe he sedates her with. Later, after the action’s over, he comes to admit his guilt and apologises for attacking her in one of the most well-scripted scenes the show has sent our way. I won't transcribe it, but it was perfect, if too short.

I can't give the episode a ten out of ten, not because it has flaws, but only because there could have been more. The bad guy and his great gun were too underused, he should have done more, shot more, killed more. There probably were slightly too many questions raised as well, I mean the Observer is freaking bewildering on his own, but the beacon? We aren't dumb, but don't overestimate our ability, like Boardwalk Empire or something. Nonetheless, I'm very happy to give 'the Arrival' my highest rating so far for the show as a whole.

'The Plague Dogs' - Revolution, Season One

Revolution

Season One

Episode Four

'The Plague Dogs' - 5.5

Some how, the blonde woman in front is kidnapped before they get to the diner just ahead, without anyone noticing. Sense?

And so Revolution claims its first real victim. No, it wasn't really anyone important, rather it was a character who had most likely been destined to die in order to increase the drama and up the ante, as it were. Nonetheless, I was a little surprised.

I'd have to say that 'The Plague Dogs' was another improvement for the show, and I admit that I'm actually enjoying the ability to turn my brain off for a short period of time and just absorb the cheesy awful of Revolution. Yeah, the dialogue is perhaps the worst that I've ever seen in a show of this scope, and on the whole I find it entirely devoid of personality or style, but yeah, I'm not minding it. I still wouldn't worry too much if it was cancelled, but I'm still planning to get through it. 

I wonder if my sudden lack of derision stems from my slow acceptance of Charlie as a protagonist. At the moment I still think Miles is depressing in his horrible conception and portrayal, but Tracy Spiridakos proved herself worthy tonight, depicting her character's grief and desperation, as well as kindness and fear all with realism and ability. Sure, it was standard TV emotions, i.e. over-the-mountain-top, incapacitating outpourings, but she did them well. 

The group learns early on that they are approaching Danny's captors, garnering information from a militant at a way station that his convoy passed through only the day before. This gives them incentive to move just a bit faster, as while they are catching up, they are also nearing his apparent destination. First though, the two halves of the pack convene in Lowell, having spent two weeks apart since their division in 'Chained Heat'. Once darkness falls, the group is attacked by a pack of hungry and wild dogs, who chase them through the city ruins and nearly tear Aaron's leg off. In order to save his life, Maggie kills the offending canine with a crossbow.

Aaron's absolutely fine though, despite clearly needing medical attention. He's well enough to walk the next morning at least. Ug, this show. Anyway, as they stroll through an abandoned amusement park, who should they confront but fucking Nate, who Miles is able to disarm. Charlie convinces him not to kill the dickwad for some reason, apparently for information. Whatever Charlie, I bet you're just going to sodomise the prisoner when no one's looking. Whore.

The dogs attack again, sending them all scampering into a diner for safety, only they lose Maggie in the process. No, she isn't killed by wild dogs, God, this is primetime, general masses-style television. No one's getting torn apart. Maggie is instead seized by their owner, who, rather than have his animals do his business, he'd rather do it himself, trying his hardest to jam his knife into her eye socket. She's too strong though, and she manages to deflect him long enough for him to settle on a simple leg stab instead, before running off when Miles turns up. 

Of course Maggie dies, but not before a long period of time is wasted trying to save her. Miles and Nora go off to try and track down the crazed dog man while Charlie and Aaron work their hardest to save the woman. Unfortunately, Charlie is grabbed while gathering supplies and dragged off into his creepy bad-guy lair, where he gives an insane monologue to his new prisoner. Not insane in a good way, insane in a clichéd, 'you remind me of my dead daughter' way. I didn't even cringe or shudder. It wasn't very interesting. 

I did cringe briefly as he set up a crossbow to fire right between Charlie's eyes when the door is opened though, clearly anticipating her rescue party to arrive shortly. Miles brings Nate with him this time, leaving Nora to help conduct the surgery on Maggie's leg, who is suffering from a severed artery. That's a good prognosis right here...

Crazy man is easily killed by Nate and Miles, but they come within centimetres of taking Charlie out as well, but lucky for them she's managed to loosen the chair she's sitting on and rock it out of the arrow's path. I admit though, I kind of wanted to see her get it in the brain. It would have been a gutsy move... Alas...

They return her to the diner where Nora and Aaron complete the surgery on Maggie, but sadly she's lost too much blood and dies after informing Charlie that she saved her. There's a whole long story here that was told through flashbacks - Maggie got stuck in the US, tried getting home for years, gave up and tried to kill herself, saved by Ben - but it is rendered so utterly pointless by her death I can't be bothered going into details. Regardless, I was depressed by the loss of this character, if only because of Charlie's desperate pleas as she died. I was a little put off that she died like so many other TV characters die; quickly. I'm not saying torture her, but they always just imply that the death of someone from blood loss just happens. No, you lose consciousness first, often a few minutes or more before you actually die. Did they even check her pulse? 

I'm angry now. 

The world's worst character - Danny - continues his really bizarre run of expert skills, this time predicting the arrival of a tornado. He convinces the convoy to pull into a shed while the storm passes, but is able to distract them with a wayward horse while he makes a run for it, only to be apprehended by Captain Neville and dragged into the basement. The two get to talking down there, with Neville likening himself to Ben Matheson, much to Danny's chagrin. He gets his small victory though, as Neville ends up trapped under a collapsed ceiling, a heavy range top only inches away from crashing down and crushing the captain. Danny's an idiot though, and he saves him only to get handcuffed and led away again. God you people suck. Giancarlo Esposito gives a heck of a performance, easily delivering the awful dialogue with thrilling and chilling mastery. I don't think I've really heaped praise on this guy enough yet, but I'm young and can't quite place him in anything before this. Nonetheless he's fantastic, and you people need to inform me of where I can find more of him. It was like torture though, watching him act circles around Graham Rogers, who I think needs to be axed. Seriously.

My other favourite actor on this show? Elizabeth Mitchell. The mum if you were wondering. No, not the dead one, the dead one that isn't dead, the one that Monroe is holding prisoner. It probably just stems from my Lost love (ha!), but I know for a fact that she can really bring it to the table performance-wise, and she definitely hinted at her underlying abilities at moments tonight. Notably, when Monroe came in to her beautiful prison to tell her that despite her strong will in torture - yeah she was tortured, wanna fight about it? - she would be a horrible mother if she could withstand Danny's torture. Rachel Matheson was absolutely shattered, but she couldn't show weakness to her captor, choosing to act with a cold, passive-aggressive stance that is highly reminiscent of Juliet Burke. 

Through flashbacks, we see Rachel leaving her children for the apparent last time and turning herself into the hands of the militia, this time led by none other than Miles himself. And I'm supposed to be surprised?

I find the flashbacks a tad tiresome. They aren't adding anything to the story really, we are just watching events we already knew happened. Hell, watch Lost for some great flashbacks, or even freaking 'The Walking Dead'. You need to know when and where to place them, you can't just chuck them about and expect people to care. I sure don't, not now that I know I can still see Elizabeth Mitchell in the normal timeline. 

I don't know if I can like this show while Miles is here and while the dialogue is this heartless. There are just so many little things wrong, I can't believe that this is produced by JJ Abrams. Often when I watch television shows, I think to myself how could I write something like this, but I'm almost viewing this show as a lesson in how NOT to write television. Yeah, it's beginning to intrigue me, but that fact is making me sadder than Maggie's death every could have. You could have introduced me to some of these people before you start killing them. DID MAGGIE EVEN HAVE A SURNAME? 

'Anastasia' - Boardwalk Empire, Season One

Boardwalk Empire

Season One

Episode Four

'Anastasia' – 7.0 

Nice colour scheme. Apart from the torture this picture would make a good Christmas card. 

While the first two episodes of nothing but character exposition were fantastic, I admit I'm starting to get tired of watching a large number of people simply living in stasis. Yes, the quality of the episode is pretty damn good, with terrific acting as normal, as well as a script that matches its cast's talent. However, I wish that the show could let something happen that changes the way things are in this universe, because we are a third of the way in now and I have no clue where we're going.

The title for this episode comes from a story that seems to be sweeping the news of the world, even though out of the main characters only Margaret refers to it. Apparently an amnesiac girl found shivering in a river has begun claiming she is the Grand Duchess Anastasia, despite the fact Anastasia was killed along with the rest of her family three years prior to the date of Boardwalk Empire. Margaret finds the thought of a normal woman being hailed a princess inspiring at first, allowing her to develop an almost deluded fixation on Nucky Thompson. When the story is proved false close to the end of the episode, the change in her is immediate, as she realises one doesn't simply become a princess, one must earn power and prestige, or take it from someone who has it.

Jimmy Darmody is the only character who has been developed over the course of the season, with his world being turned upside down by his and Al Capone's involvement in the massacre outside of Atlantic City. Now that Nucky has forced him out of his home and away from his family, Jimmy's found his way to Chicago and to Al. Sharing a bed with a prostitute named Pearl, the first time we see Jimmy tonight is a surprisingly intense scene, where Al Capone creeps his way into Jimmy's room with a gun, holding it just over his friend's head, before shifting it to the left and firing into the pillow. It was a jump moment, but ultimately a false one. If anything it is an example of the sort of person that Al Capone is; a rash, relentless, almost idiot thug, but for some reason he is an endearing contribution to the story, and a terrific choice of actor for the iconic gangster. Al actually gets quite a lot to do tonight, and in a rather unintelligent move brutally forces a Greek tavern-owner into buying his liquor from Torrio, rather than the Irish Mr. Sheridan, the supplier in Greek town.

This move results in this Irish gangster arriving to confront Capone at the Four Deuces, where Al and Jimmy work as bouncers. Sheridan doesn't appear to threatening initially, as it doesn't take him long to cave to Capone's brash manner, apparently agreeing to a fifty-fifty split of the earnings from Greek town between Torrio and him. It's obvious that something else is happening that Capone isn't picking up on, and that it might just have something to do with Pearl, who walks in during the meeting to say goodbye to Jimmy. It wasn't particularly subtle, but I don't think subtlety was what the writers were going for. If we weren't somewhat aware of what was going to happen later, it wouldn't have been as suspenseful as it was.

Sheridan's men return to the Four Deuces later in the episode, and upon discovering Al and Jimmy are somewhere else, they settle on enacting their revenge on Pearl. It was a very disturbing scene, as Pearl is lured closer to a man who wants to harm her. When he draws his knife, he doesn't do anything straight away, giving us that brief moment of opportunity to think she'd get away, but alas she doesn't even know what's happening until he runs the blade right down her face in a bloody line, then leaving her clutching her face on the ground. The entire gang then ditches the club with guns firing, a clear act of vengeance and of Sheridan's true intentions. I don't know about any of you, but facial injuries are more unsettling than most other injuries, though it wasn't too violent to detract from the show. The film makers even went so far as to actually flesh Pearl out during the episode, although I can't say whether she'll make more appearances or not. Jimmy's delivery of flowers may indicate that he will continue to see her, but it may also be a sense of closure to her story. We shall see.

While Jimmy's over in Chicago, his wife, son and mother are all over in Atlantic City. At a time when Angela is out and Gillian is left to babysit, Lucky Luciano arrives from New York, presumably on the mission Rothstein gave him last episode. As one would upon seeing Gillian, Luciano assumes immediately that she is Jimmy's wife rather than his mother, and you can see his interest peak straight away. Over the course of the next few nights he follows her from Jimmy's home to her extravagant strip shows - can I just say how stunning those sequences are? - before Gillian gives up on ignoring his presence and explicitly offers him a place in her bed. For a second there I thought she was gonna get a bullet through somewhere unpleasant, but in the end it went the other way, in tone and character.

It's Nucky's birthday party, an event that has been casually referred to since the first episode, and it is a grandiose as one would expect. Nucky clearly wishes to use the party as a political event, and spends a lot of the night communicating with Mayor Hague and Senator Edge, both of whom could be instrumental in constructing a paved road to Atlantic City. I didn't really care about this, because roads don't really interest me unfortunately. So don't expect me to be an expert on this plot line. I was impressed by Nucky's 'I do expect everything' line, though I really can't be stuffed describing why. Did you know I didn't get to sleep until four in the morning? And not through lack of trying. Is four and a half hours of inability to fall asleep normal?

I have to congratulate the bravery of the man who portrayed the Grand Cyclops (was that what KKK leaders were actually called?) for delivering such an intensely racist speech. It actually made me physically uncomfortable, which is a sign of a powerful performance. Anyway, the Cyclops gets arrested by Sheriff Eli for the lynching of Chalky's driver the episode before, and in one perfect scene is interrogated by Chalky himself. It needs to be heard to appreciated, but it was a captivating and beautiful tale by a clearly angry Chalky, played with unwavering flamboyancy and intimidating confidence by Michael K Williams.

Margaret gets a bit of focus as well, and despite not being heralded a princess, the show thrusts her out as the only strong feminine character on the show. In a well-written dialogue she shoots witty comebacks at a shamelessly sexist Senator Edge, almost officially cementing herself as the voice for women in the cast. Yet at the end of the episode, she falls to the level of stealing a negligee from Madame Jeunet, something almost foretold by the Anastasia plot line.

So yeah, it was pretty interesting at points, but making one character a shoplifter and slicing another's face in half won't change that much either. If anything, this episode establishes newbie Sheridan as an antagonist for a little while, and that's not such a bad thing.