Review - Burn Notice - S07E09

This week's episode was full of tension and suspense as the audience tries to guess what will become of each of the character on the final episode, which is, sadly, only four episodes away.

There is lots of confusion surrounding James. He is the supposed 'bad guy' who Michael is trying to take down on behalf of the CIA. However, if you didn't know this, you would honestly think he was the good guy. So far, although he tortured Michael, which remains the only reminder of his potentiality, he has had Michael perform a number of seemingly moral missions, this week's being protecting a peace reformist.

Michael, Jesse, Sam and Fi are all in on the mission, making you feel all comfy and familiar...right before it is about to be ripped out from under you. The tension is high as the success of the mission is very questionable, and Fi's death seems imminent. Fi was left behind by the 'team leader' of the mission, and Michael will stop at nothing to save the woman he loves.

The confusion sets in again as James 'punishes' the team leader for leaving Fi behind (a seemingly justified reason), however, his methods are more then questionable, to the point where even Michael tries do defend the team leader.

Michael’s mother even receives a personal visit from the elusive James, putting Maddie in a very bad state of mind as she more than freaks out about the idea of being watched, although, if you ask me, with Michael as her son, she should be a bit more used to it.

Overall, this episode was great in context of the seventh season, however, it seems the storyline is beginning to take over the awesomeness and brilliance of Michael's wit, making you miss Michael's little side missions from the previous seasons more than ever.

Review by Emma Laarkamp

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REVIEW - Teen Wolf - S03E10

Thank goodness Teen Wolf is back on form. This episode was fantastic; just the right mix of excitement, emotion and humour. I was on the edge of my seat the whole time, which isn’t a response Teen Wolf has been able to get from me recently… and it was nice.

This week on Teen Wolf… Stiles and Scott prove to Derek that Jennifer is the Darach but they can’t kill her because she is the only person that can save Derek’s sister Cora and Stiles’s dad. While trying to save Cora, the pack end up trapped in an evacuated hospital by the alpha pack who are after Jennifer. They have to work together to get themselves, and Jennifer, out of the hospital safely.

Haley Webb stole this episode with her nuanced portrayal of Jennifer Blake/Julia Barracus. I found myself believing every word she said even though I knew I was falling right into her trap and that’s the mark of a great villain. She was still likable at times but there were moments when she was genuinely terrifying. The way her face would switch as soon as she wasn’t being watched was subtle enough to go unnoticed but worked to foreshadow her final betrayal.

One of the highlights of the episode for me was an incredibly awkward elevator ride. Where Jennifer was stuck between a very angry Scott and Stiles, it was one of those rare moments that are humorous on the service but underneath it’s pretty distressing. That coupled with the return of the famous McCall bat (last seen Season 1) made this moment a perfect representation of everything I have been missing in previous episodes.

It was a relief to finally see the impact of some of the big emotional events Teen Wolf has been throwing in all season. Stiles had to face the possibility of losing his remaining parent. Derek had to acknowledge that another one of his girlfriend’s turned out to be a homicidal maniac. Scott had to finally accept that he might not be able to have it all. These are the character insights I have been craving all season. These are the moments that make the big emotional events mean something.

“The Overlooked” was a great hour of television and it didn’t hurt that there was less slow-motion (it was still excessive but it’s a start). Let’s hope that this a sign that Teen Wolf has pushed through it’s teething problems and found a way to mesh the ambitious epic storylines with much needed character development.

Review by Yvonne Popplewell

More of Yvonne’s work can be found at her blog.

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REVIEW - Futurama - S07E22 - 'Leela and the Genestalk'

This week's episode of Futurama, 'Leela and the Genestalk', while not amazing, was certainly better than the last couple of episodes we have seen. More familiar faces return, Fry is his usual silly self, and we get to see the Planet Express crew line-dancing.

Leela comes down with a condition called "squidification", which means she will soon turn into a giant squid as a result of her mutant DNA. There is a medical procedure which can be used to delay Leela's squidification, but it is very expensive. The Planet Express crew wants to help, and the Professor lets Fry sell "Old Bessie" (the Planet Express Ship). Fry sells the ship for giant "magic" beans. Leela, realising she now has no hope of returning to normal, decides to live in the sewers with her parents and the rest of the mutants. Just as she is about to descend into the sewers, she notices a giant beanstalk and decides to climb it. On top of a cloud, Leela finds Mom and her "floating genetic engineering facility". Mom decides to imprison Leela and use her DNA in some experiments. Fry and Bender realise that Leela has gone missing, and make it their mission to save her. But even if they are able to save Leela from Mom, can she be rescued from her squidification?

Overall, I enjoyed this episode. It was nice to see Mom and her three sons up to no good again, and the fairy tale references were worth a smile or two. Though it may not have been the best episode of this season, this week's episode was still better than the last few we have seen, so hopefully this means Futurama is on the improve as the series draws to a close.

Review by Heather Bale.

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REVIEW - True Blood - S06E08 - 'Dead Meat'

After a very slow start wherein all of the characters seem to be dealing with the same issues they have for the last couple of episodes, 'Dead Meat' offers us some interesting plot progression as the episode draws to a close.

As is customary with True Blood, we are caught up with where everyone is and how they are faring: Eric is devastated over Nora's death and is angry with Bill; Arlene is still grieving after Terry's death; Lafayette, Holly and Andy are still with Arlene; Sookie is contemplating whether to help Bill; the vampires in vamp camp are refusing their blood; and Sam has returned to Merlotte's and is coming to terms with the loss of Terry as well. 

Of course Sam isn't left to grieve in peace for long, as Alcide shows up and tells him that he has rescued Nicole and her mother from the wolf pack. Sam and Alcide share a bonding moment, and it seems Alcide is finally going to start acting nice again. Hopefully this is the last we have to hear about the wolf pack for the rest of this season, because that storyline just wasn't that interesting. However the revelation about the change in Sam and Nicole's relationship means she may be sticking around for a while...

In vamp camp, Sarah Newlin officially loses it in her quest to eradicate vampires when a businesswoman from Tru Blood visits seeking answers. Terrified that all her hard work will be for naught, Sarah makes sure the woman never gets to tell anyone what she saw. Suspicious that some of the vampires seem to know what's going on, Sarah threatens to torture Steve unless he tells her what he knows. Being the coward he is, Steve caves straight away. Sarah orders all of the vampires who have been refusing blood into the one room (the room Bill has been foreseeing all season), with Jason in tow as Violet says he is hers (this Violet seems pretty crazy and I would not be upset if she dies before the end of the season).

After an episode of Sookie thinking, drinking, talking to her parents graves, and just being generally uninteresting (except for that part where she tells Sam she thought they would end up together, that was pretty interesting, an homage to the books I guess), she finally decides to help Bill. This should come as no surprise to the regular viewer: no matter how much Sookie laments about wanting to be normal and free from supernaturals, she always does the right thing and helps. Even if in helping she agrees that Ben/Warlow can turn her. Though that may no longer be an issue when she and Bill find what Eric has done to Ben/Warlow...

With two episodes to go things are finally heating up, and it seems True Blood may be on track to returning to the show in once was in the early seasons.

Review by Heather Bale.

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REVIEW - Teen Wolf - S03E09

After a couple of fairly disappointing episodes Teen Wolf is back on form this week. While it was far from perfect – the pacing issues from earlier episodes are still causing problems – “The Girl Who Knew Too Much” was exciting, emotionally gripping and I thoroughly enjoyed watching it.

This week darach was revealed, the Sheriff was brought in on all things supernatural (with terrible consequences) and we found out that Lydia is actually a banshee. This episode was action packed but still managed to fit in a couple of sweet emotional moments, that have been sorely lacking from previous episodes, including a surprisingly moving moment between Scott (Tyler Posey) and Lydia (Holland Roden).

It wasn’t particularly shocking to find out that Derek’s most recent romantic interest, Jennifer Blake, was actually the big bad dark druid but that wasn’t really a bad thing. Jennifer’s character always felt a little forced so it’s nice to know there is more too her than just a terrible cliché romance. Haley Webb played the reveal brilliantly, whoever the darach really is she’s a far cry from the bumbling English teacher Derek fell in love with.

Only time will tell how Jennifer’s secret will affect poor Derek Hale but does it really matter at this stage? There’s only so much manpain you can inflict on one character before it loses its impact. More troubling is the fact that when Jennifer fled the scene, after attempting to kill Lydia, she took the Sheriff with her. I think is speak for everyone when I say that killing the Sheriff is pretty much unforgivable.

There wasn’t anything particular interesting about this episode, the story and the way it was presented was simple but it was nice. Look I appreciate the way Teen Wolf has been experimenting with style and technique this season but sometimes it’s nice just to be able to focus on the characters emotional journey, something that this season seems to have forgotten at times.

Overall, this episode was Teen Wolf at it’s best – sexy, a little bit camp, kind of scary and super fun. Let’s see more of this and less flashbacks with unnecessary manpain from now on please.

Review by Yvonne Popplewell

More of Yvonne’s work can be found at her blog.

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REVIEW - Burn Notice - S07E08

I'm not going to lie, this episode of Burn Notice lacked the shock value that characterises the tv show. It revolved around Michael doing an assignment for 'James' – the new villain in town – in order to establish a relationship with him, as the CIA wants to take down the terrorist organisation, and James is the new way in.

Not much develops in this episode – Fiona is still rocky with Carlos, Maddie is still putting all of her time into little Charlie, Jesse is again attacked from behind, and Sam is continuously Michael's breath of fresh air from the criminal world. We do, however, see a new, darker side appearing in Michael, following the intense torture he underwent last week.

We are introduced to a new character, someone who has maybe the most rightful reasons to hate James. We only see him towards the end of the episode, during which time a piece of his past with James is uncovered, and with this, the reason for his pure hatred towards James. This has caused 'John Doe' to team up with the CIA in order the bring James down.

All in all, there wasn't as much development and the good old special effects as usual which in turn caused the episode to lack suspense and action. It was however still enjoyable, and leaves a pretty good opener for next week, so I for one think that there will be a complete turn around in the pace of the show.

Review by Emma Laarkamp

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REVIEW - Futurama - S07E21 - ‘Assie Come Home’

This week’s episode of Futurama, ‘Assie Come Home’, was... okay. It had an easy to follow plot, plenty of familiar faces, and the perfect smattering of jokes and popular culture references to keep me satisfied, but it just wasn’t brilliant. Perhaps my expectations have been too high for this final season, or perhaps this is just why Futurama is ending...

While making a delivery to the criminal planet, Bender gets “bot-jacked”. That is, all of Bender’s parts are stolen except for his eyes and teeth. Fry and Leela offer to help Bender track down the rest of his body. As Bender reassembles himself we revisit some of the more memorable characters of Futurama, and learn why they have purchased the various parts of Bender (which gives us a reminder of how great the show can be).

Of course, as the title of the episode suggests, there is just one part Bender cannot seem to find: his “shiny metal ass”. After going to great lengths to retrieve it, it seems there may be a greater purpose for Bender’s ass, but can Bender part with his favourite piece of anatomy?

This episode had it’s ups and downs (much like the season as a whole), but overall it was one of the weaker episodes this season. As the final season of Futurama draws to a close, I am left to wonder whether I should be raising my expectations or lowering them?

Review by Heather Bale.

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