The AMC network may be slow to develop original programming, but its track record thus far with ‘Mad Men‘ and ‘Breaking Bad’ is enviable by any standard. (Let’s all do ourselves a favor and pretend that the misguided miniseries remake of ‘The Prisoner’ never happened, shall we?) This week, the network has rolled out its latest offering, the conspiracy thriller ‘Rubicon’. Based on the first two episodes, the show seems pretty promising.
This week brings a ‘Mad Men’ episode set during Christmastime. Now, this makes sense because last week we were treated to a Thanksgiving episode. But I also feel like a deliberate calculation on the part of Matthew Weiner and the rest of the crackpot geniuses on the writing and production staff. They want us to feel misplaced like the characters are feeling misplaced, disjointed and out-of-place. There’s a new office, Betty’s in a new family situation, and Don is trying on a number of visages. I know that the creators probably don’t care when a show is watched anymore – especially in an era of TiVo, iTunes and everything else – but it really does add a lot to the Christmas episode, seeing it in August.
So much potential wasted. Already, that’s how I feel about ‘Covert Affairs’. We may only be three episodes in, but it seems pretty clear that this show is just not going to live up to the promise of its quite exciting pilot episode. There was a sudden and distinct drop-off in quality with the second episode, but I was still willing to give the series the benefit of the doubt that it would pick up again. Perhaps I even still am. But the third episode, last week’s ‘South Bound Suarez’… well, it just kind of stinks. This isn’t a good sign that we’re getting episodes this bad so soon.
Now that’s the ‘Rescue Me’ I remember! While the first four episode of this season were all pretty decent, they’ve also all felt a little like the series has been treading water, repeating themes and storylines that had been covered already. Even if some of the show’s characteristic humor was present, that darker edge that has marked ‘Rescue Me’ at its finest hadn’t yet reared its head. I don’t know that least week’s episode, ‘Blackout’, really brings much new to the table from a thematic standpoint, either. However, it brings out the darkest of dark humor in spades, and rides that dangerous line between black comedy and overwhelming tragedy like no other show on television can.
Last night’s ‘The Late Philip J. Fry’ is a standout episode of ‘Futurama.’ It has great comedy throughout, a little sweetness to go with it, and some science to top it all off.
My name is Josh and I’m a TV addict. I have to admit it. Even during this slow summer season, I watch far too much TV. If you think that this week here at The Bonus View has been heavy on the TV recaps, keep in mind that I don’t even recap everything that I watch. One of the shows that I follow this time of year, though perhaps not religiously, is ‘Psych,’ which recently started its fifth season on USA. This is the type of series that I enjoy and will watch when I have the time, but don’t generally prioritize for immediate viewing. I’ve only just caught up with the season’s first two episodes. As I look at the schedule, I realize that another new episode will have aired by the time you read this. Oh well. Let’s take a look at what happened in the season’s second episode, called ‘Feet Don’t Kill Me Now’.
I suppose this shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise. After a pretty exciting series premiere filled with plenty of action and slick feature-film production values, the second episode of USA’s new spy series ‘Covert Affairs’ dials things way down. While the episode isn’t “bad” per se, it sure seems like the producers must have shot their wad with the pilot. If this is an indication of things to come, it would appear that, from week to week, the show is going to be more of a formulaic procedural. Depending on how well it’s handled, that may not necessarily be a disaster. The second episode is… well, it’s OK. (Spoilers to follow.)
Welcome to a brand new television recap here on the Bonus View. That’s right – AMC’s critically acclaimed ‘Mad Men,’ hosted by yours truly, the guy who does the weekend box office report. That tingling sensation you’re feeling right now is excitement! Or possibly jock itch. Either way, please pull up a chair and let us discuss the show’s fourth season premiere, ‘Public Relations.’
I fell behind on ‘Rescue Me’ last week and didn’t get a chance to recap the previous episode, ‘Comeback’. Long story short, Lou had a heart attack and we were left uncertain whether he would live or die. Fortunately, ‘Breakout’ answers that question right away with some good news. He’s going to make it. This show has killed off enough major characters already. Letting Lou die at this point would feel like a cheap ploy, and might be one plot twist too many for a series that regularly skirts the edge of alienating its audience.
Futurama was back in fine form last night with an episode called ‘Lethal Inspection,’ which puts the spotlight on pencil pushing bureaucrat Conrad Hermes and everyone’s favorite beer swilling robot Bender Bending Rodriguez. The surprising thing is that it actually works.
