Category: Reviews (Page 47 of 120)

Heroes 3.25 – Lives Come Together, They Fade Apart

Here are now, at the finale of another season of “Heroes.” Entertain us…or, at the very least, leave us happy ’til the beginning of the next season, right? With the return of Bryan Fuller to the fold, the show has been working its way slowly but surely out of the creative doledrums in which it had found itself, but does anyone even care anymore?

It’s a fair question, particularly when you look back at how few people are commenting on this blog nowadays. Once upon a time, we actually used to get a discussion going about the episode of the week, but if you look back over the course of the past several weeks, we’ve been averaging no more than 2 or 3 comments per ep, with one week receiving absolutely no comments! I figured Fuller’s return would kickstart the blog, but has it really reached a point where even the return of one of the show’s seminal writers (if, indeed, a show only in its third season can be said to have such a thing) can’t stir much in the way of conversation? I’m not even taking it personally anymore. I’m really just surprised.

Frankly, I feel like the show’s been relatively strong in recent weeks. Are there really so few people who feel the same way?

Last week ended with Zeljko looking darned surprised about Sylar surviving a knife blade to the back of the skull, but given the amount of shapeshifting Sylar had been doing, I wasn’t terribly shocked. Since he’s now able to move his size and shape around in a rather dramatic fashion, I figured his Achilles’ heel might not be where we last left it. I was, however, wondering whether we’d see Sylar slaughter Zeljko immediately or if he’d toy with him for awhile first. Nice touch, taking on his form to discredit him, ruin his reputation, and get him thrown into prison with…HRG?

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Heroes 3.24 – “That hurt.”

Two full-fledged “comic book” episodes in a row? Has “Heroes” ever managed to pull that off…? If so, it’s been ages. Tonight’s installment may well have been the most successful portrayal of Sylar as a complex villain in the show’s history, revisiting the character’s established mythology in the midst of his new shapeshifting abilities and the curse they bring with them. Plus, c’mon, Clint Howard? Are you kidding me…? The show’s coolness factor just jumped exponentially.

Obviously, Sylar’s storyline has consistently been one of the strongest parts of the “Fugitives” saga, but this took it to new heights. I never would’ve guessed that the path to his mimicry of Nathan would take him on a psychological journey of such magnitude. When he questioned his identity as Agent Taub in the initial moments of the episode, it became clear that he was having some issues dealing with his transformation into other people. You don’t get much more disconcerting, however, than that sequence where he was flip-flopping back and forth from himself to his mother – once again played by Ellen Greene – in order to rationalize her death and his ongoing existence. (I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who felt the echoes of Norman Bates’ relationship with his mother in their discussions, was I?) Given that we’ve seen Sylar’s semi-soft spot with the youth of America in the past, I guess it shouldn’t have been too surprising that he was willing to give li’l Micah a pass. I don’t know how well the kid’s poignant speech will work in the long run, but, hey, it worked long enough to prolong his life for a bit, so that’ll do for now. Zeljko’s constant grumblings through the episode were highly entertaining, and you knew full well that he was eventually going to view Sylar as a loose cannon who couldn’t be controlled and needed to be taken out permanently (which he clearly must’ve known all along, anyway), but the one-two punch of the thrusting of the knife in the back of Sylar’s skull being followed up with Sylar’s brilliant episode-closing line was totally awesome.

Zachary Quinto’s performance this week was tremendous. Sometimes he takes his villainous rantings too far over the top for you to be able to take him seriously, but not this time. This was definitely a well-considered look at a complex character.

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TV Roundup: Poor ratings for Prison Break, TiVo’s ratings plans and more

– The ratings for the return of “Prison Break” were poor, and TV By The Numbers says that it’s bad news for “Dollhouse.”

– One of my favorite shows, “The Unit,” is on the bubble, but the good news is that producer Shawn Ryan (“The Shield”) has been invited by CBS to present ideas for a fifth season.

– The NY Post says that Mary Louise Parker is thinking about leaving “Weeds” after next season.

– FOX’s “Sit Down, Shut Up” didn’t do all that well (ratings-wise) in its debut on Sunday, considering it was sandwich between stalwarts “The Simpsons” and “Family Guy.” I’m a fan of both of those shows, but I couldn’t make it through a full episode of “Sit Down, Shut Up.”

TiVo is continuing to move into Nielsen’s territory. They’ve been offering national ratings since 2007, but now plan to provide market-by-market ratings as well. It makes sense — the TiVo is essentially a computer that can track what a household watches (if they choose to opt-in).

– Variety compares “Heroes” to “Lost” in that both programs started off really strong before faltering a bit. The question is — will “Heroes” find its way like “Lost” did? (Methinks maybe an end date two or three seasons down the line would do the trick.)

JAG: The Eighth Season

Although it ran for a staggering ten seasons over the course of its time on NBC, who canceled it after a single season, and CBS, who no doubt spent the next nine seasons patting themselves on the back for having the foresight to pick up the show, I gotta tell you: I’ve repeatedly tried and consistently failed to find myself intrigued by the exploits of Captain Harmon “Harm” Rabb and and Lieutenant Colonel Sarah “Mac” MacKenzie. For the most part, Season 8 of the series is no exception. It’s not bad, but I’m just “meh” about it. And, yet, as an “NCIS” fan, I cannot help but deny that, for those who share my appreciation of the adventures of Leroy Gibbs and his gang, it’s totally worth owning “JAG: Season 8” to see the pair of episodes which introduced the characters of Gibbs, DiNozzo, Abby, and Ducky. Yes, sometimes we forget, but “NCIS” was indeed a spin-off of “JAG,” and one which, at least as far as I’m concerned, outshines its original source, but the mere fact that it originated here is a reason to offer up at least a three-star rating.

Click to buy “JAG: The Eighth Season”

Blu Tuesday: The Spirit, Pride & Prejudice and Mean Girls

Not every week can offer the kind of choice titles that we’ve been seeing lately, but while today’s sole major release is a bit of a dud, there are still plenty of decent catalog titles to check out as well. Okay, so maybe it’s not the best week for my Blu-ray collection, but that doesn’t mean everyone else will feel the same way.

“The Spirit” (Lionsgate)

Frank Miller’s “The Spirit” might just go down as one of the biggest disappointments of 2008. When the project was first announced, fanboys were ecstatic at the possibility of another comic book movie in the same vein as “Sin City” (especially when they had already waited so damn long for a sequel), but as soon as the first clips of the movie hit the net, any excitement was quickly deflated. If memory serves correct, there wasn’t a soul on the planet that was begging for a live-action Spy vs. Spy movie, but that’s exactly what Miller has delivered with “The Spirit.” The performances are terrible, the dialogue is even worse, and though Scarlett Johansson looks hotter than ever, there’s not a single redeeming element to be found. The few fans the movie does have will be pleased to discover that the Blu-ray release includes a nice selection of extras (including a director commentary, a making-of featurette, and an interview with Miller) but that’s about the only positive thing I could possibly say.

“Pride and Prejudice” (A&E)

If there’s one novel I hate more than any other, it’s Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice.” Then again, I’m a guy, so that’s hardly a surprise, but that doesn’t mean I abhor everything to do with the book. Joe Wright’s 2005 adaptation was certainly more enjoyable than expected, while the recently released mash-up novel, “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies,” is an absolute riot. Unfortunately, I just don’t feel the same way about the BBC’s six-part miniseries, which has long been considered the ultimate film version thanks to Colin Firth’s star-making role as every female’s nightmare/dream man, Mr. Darcy. My personal biases aside, “Pride and Prejudice” has long been considered a classic, so it’s nice to see that A&E has taken the time to restore the film in HD using the film’s original 16mm negatives. The end result is nothing short of amazing (in place of what looked like a storm cloud hovering overhead in every scene, there’s actually a burst of color) and should be considered a must-own by any fan.

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