Summary: Rachel is upset because her divorced parents keep arguing. The friends throw a surprise birthday party for Rachel but they are forced to create two separate parties when both of Rachel's parents show up. The friends attempt to keep the parents separate as Rachel struggles to have a good time listening to both of them complain.
The Good: This was a really creative episode of comedy and it worked so well because of that. The idea of the two parties was ingenious and the desperate attempts to keep Rachel's parents away from each other allowed for some hilarious tension and very inventive laughs. All 6 friends got the spotlight at different times and all were very funny whenever they needed to be. But the main focus here was on Rachel who had a fantastic episode to examine her feelings with the divorce. It felt very real and gave us an excellent story to base the episode around. The laughs were spectacular in this episode. Ross' antics were brilliant as always, Phoebe's "secret operation" was really funny, Monica's obsession with an organized party was great, Chandler's energy was as great as always and Joey got a lot of nice moments throughout like when he hilariously kissed Rachel's mom. Even Gunther got some lines and funny moments. The Bad: Nothing. Best Moment: There are so, so many laughs to select from. I'll go with Ross' hilarious conversations with Rachel's parents as he tries to sheepishly explain things away. Character of the Episode: Ross. Conclusion: This was a fantastic episode with an engaging plot and some of the show's very best laughs. Episodes like this are why Friends is one of the very best sitcoms out there. Score: 85
0 Comments
Summary: Flashbacks show Shane attempting to save Rick when the apocalypse happens. Jenner lets in the group and they enjoy some luxuries. Jenner explains that all the other scientists are gone and he's alone. He also explains how the infection works. The CDC then runs out of power and is going to self destruct in 30 minutes. Jenner locks everyone inside to give them merciful deaths but eventually lets them leave. Jacqui stays behind and everyone else leaves as the CDC explodes.
The Good: The opening flashback was fantastic. I would love to get a flashback episode detailing the actual outbreak at some point and I think it would also help get me attached to more characters. I thought it really helped humanize Shane and let us know that he did what at the time was the right thing to do. He actually did seem to think that Rick was dead and with the pressure of walkers and military gunners invading the hospital, Shane really needed to get out. It made him a bit more humanized which was definitely needed. But Shane also gets deepened even more when he drunkenly almost rapes Lori. He came off extremely creepy in that scene and while I initially sympathized with him since he did his best, I quickly turned against him as he clearly is only out for his own interests now. The apocalypse likely changed him now that there are no rules in the world. I really like that these characters are different from who they used to be ad it adds some realism to a show about zombies which I really like. Jenner was really good throughout the episode. It was nice to see him behaving slightly awkwardly with others since he's been alone for so long. That was a really good little touch. I like that the arrival of a new group didn't change his suicidal mindset from last episode, as it would have made little sense for them to give him hope, especially with his backstory about his wife and the other scientists. His speech explaining the process of zombification (it's what I'm calling it) was very gripping and it felt really good to get some answers about how the apocalypse happened. The ending stretch was pretty tense and exciting and served for a fun closing stretch for the season. I was very pleased to see the grenade return and have a role in the plot too. Throughout the entire ending stretch Rick really impressed me. Daryl and Shane were pretty rough and overly aggressive which was pretty annoying, but it was nice to see Rick keep a level head and logical thought process throughout the episode. It's always nice to see the group enjoying some luxuries and relaxing for once. In a dark show like this, these little moments of levity count for a lot. The Bad: The characters still remain a weak point in this series. They are all extremely shallow and while Shane got some development in this episode, we still don't know a great deal about him. This weakness really affected the end of the episode when Jacqui died and I literally did not care at all. If you were to ask me who Jacqui was I would not be able to answer you, and that's a problem. The CGI in the final explosion was a little rough and definitely could have been better. The Unknown: Are the French still alive? Are there any other places not overrun? It seems unlikely now. Is there any chance of a cure? What did Jenner whisper to Rick? Best Moment: The explanation of the infection was interesting and gripping television. Getting some answers feels quite good sometimes. Character of the Episode: Jenner. Conclusion: This was a solid and enjoyable finale, despite not being particularly special. The focus on the CDC gave the episode purpose and it leaves us on a good note as we don't know what to expect in season 2, and that's pretty exciting. The season as a whole was really good. It had great moments and a very fun pace throughout all 6 episodes. There hasn't been a bad episode and the action has been great. The biggest flaw so far has been the weak characterization, but with season 2 being 13 episodes long, it builds some hope that we may get more insight on these characters soon. If The Walking Dead can get its characters together, it could really be a fantastic show. I'm looking forward to seeing more. Score: 68 Summary: Chandler and Ross run into bullies at the coffee shop who bother them and they are afraid to deal with them. Phoebe tries to meet her father again and accidentally hurts his dog. Monica is running out of money and doesn't want to take a bad job so she invests in stocks.
The Good: The bullies plot is creative and pretty unexpected, since adult bullies are rarely seen in TV shows and movies. There are some fun laughs with Ross and Chandler throughout the episode. Phoebe meeting her brother was pretty fun too, and so was Monica's little stock storyline. The Bad: This episode lacked for me though. The plots were fun, but really lacked in humour. There were just a ton of average jokes, with some feeling a little bit ridiculous as well. This episode had creative ideas but the execution was weak and there was nothing memorable about this episode at all. Shortly after watching it, I forgot pretty much all of the jokes, which is never a good thing. Best Moment: I'll go with Phoebe's ridiculous connections telling her to go see her dad. Not a great scene, but this episode was quite ordinary throughout. Character of the Episode: Phoebe. Conclusion: This episode had creative ideas, but was extremely bland and didn't give me very many laughs. The weakest episode of the show so far. Score: 55 Summary: Flashbacks reveal how June met Luke and started their relationship. Fred starts making passes at Offred which frustrates her. Serena approaches Offred, asking her to have sex with Nick since she believes Fred is sterile. Nick reveals he is an Eye. Offred meets Ofsteven, who is Emily. Emily is much more secluded now. She steals a car and drives around before killing a guard. She is escorted away by officials. Offred has passionate sex with Nick.
The Good: The depressive nature of this show has done a fantastic job of providing some genuine tension. I don't want to see the main characters suffering, yet the show has established that even the smallest things can have disastrous effects. Because of this, every scene has a notable amount of tension as I worry that things can escalate when I'm least expecting it. Fred and Offred's relationship has been decently fun to watch so far. It provided for a really good scene towards the end where Fred revealed some nice details about his character and motives, while also posing himself as a potential threat to Offred despite being so welcoming to her. Clearly Fred has some affections towards her, and I'm interested to see what that leads to. Seeing Emily return as Ofsteven was great. Alexis Bledel put in a tremendous performance as always, and I really loved how she conveyed the tragedy her character was put through. The simple scene with Ofsteven playing with the dog was really sad and powerful, and I like how it actually took the opportunity to show a wife who seemed genuinely nice, as she tried to give Ofsteven a bit of a break. The Bad: I still feel like Nick is completely lacking as a character. I know nothing about him, and I found it tough to buy into the idea of Offred going to have passionate sex with him by the episode's end. Sure she may have been inspired by Ofsteven stealing the car, but it's hard to imagine her feeling quite that inspired. The Eye twist was predictable too and it had no real impact to me. It's also hurt by the fact that we don't exactly know what an Eye is. I assume it's somebody who works for the government, but then why doesn't Nick report everything to the government? In that case should I feel afraid that Offred is having sex with him since it's illegal? Would Nick tell officials? But wouldn't he tell them anyways about Serena setting up Nick to have sex with Offred? Since he apparently isn't telling anyone, then what does him being an Eye even mean for the story? It serves no purpose and changes nothing, which is just sloppy writing. The scenes between June and Luke did nothing for me. Luke is a very bland character and I find it hard to buy into their "special" love. They just don't have good enough chemistry. I wasn't a fan of the car scene either. I could maybe buy into Ofsteven doing it, but it still felt spectacularly stupid in my eyes. Because of that, I was completely taken aback by the tone of the scene, as it was apparently supposed to be empowering or something. I didn't get that vibe at all with the scene, so it completely missed its purpose. The Unknown: Looks like a lot of people are in love with Offred. Where is that story going? Is Offred going to be pregnant soon? She threw up in this episode, so could that be a clue? When will the Mayday resistance come into play? And I'll repeat this again, but what does it mean to be an Eye? I expected we would get answers before the reveal but we really didn't. Best Moment: Ofsteven playing with the dog in complete sorrow was quite powerful. Character of the Episode: Ofsteven. Conclusion: This was a notably weaker episode with sloppy writing and moments. It still consisted of solid storytelling, but the attention to detail was very weak and the flaws really dragged the episode down a lot for me. Score: 56 Summary: Flashbacks show Offred and Moira talking during their handmaid training. They stage an escape and Moira gets away but Offred is caught at the last second. She is punished by Aunt Lydia and Aunt Elizabeth. Offred is kept in her confinement and reads a message from the previous Offred. Offred discovers Fred is sterile and they have another unsuccessful ceremony. Offred has her rematch with Fred who tells her about the previous Offred who killed herself. Fred also frees Offred from her captivity to Serena's chagrin.
The Good: This episode was really strong. The previous episode was very powerful but it was also quite flawed. This episode on the other hand was much more consistent (at least until the final 30 seconds), and I think that this episode itself really got me hooked into the series. The show just really needed a full episode which had me engaged without any major problems which detracted from the show as a whole. Offred's main storyline in her room was very strong. We get to see more of the harsh life in Gilead and it's clear that Offred won't be as exempt from it as we may have hoped, especially seeing how vicious Serena continued to be in this episode. It was pretty sad to see Offred continually trashed by Serena who is determined to keep her isolated, despite how much Offred wants to be able to leave her room. The flashbacks were also very cruel to Offred this episode. Seeing her whipped in the feet was deeply unpleasant and brutal, and it continues to make aunt Lydia the most vicious villain of the series. Ann Dowd is fantastic in the role and she is a character I really want to see receive some comeuppance. Her reign of terror continued to be really painful with her whipping of Offred. Continuing with that storyline, I really enjoyed the escape attempt from Offred and Moira. It made sense that they would try to get out of their containment, and the final scene where Offred is reprimanded while Moira leaves was very powerful stuff (see: Best Moment). I also think it's good to build more around Moira and Offred's relationship. I suspect we will be seeing more of them, so I feel that I really need to care about what their relationship was for an of Moira's scenes to have resonance. As a side note, I was really unsettled by the ceremony scene in the flashback. It was really creepy and awful, in a lot of ways even more so than actually seeing the ceremony for ourselves. This show continues to find success by being unpleasant, but still powerful. This isn't a show I can watch for long periods of time, but it is one which has really stuck with me so far. I really enjoyed seeing Offred interact with the various people in this episode who offered to help her out. Nick was rather creepy as he continued to seemingly affirm love for Offred, which I think really helps to show how Offred really can't trust anyone no matter how helpful they may seem. The doctor was the same way as well. He claimed to be a good listener and he also offered some invaluable information to Offred by suggesting that Fred was sterile. Yet despite all this, he came off very poorly by offering to have intercourse with Offred to help her out. In this world it's hard to tell if he's genuinely trying to help or if he's just taking advantage of her. Offred refuses, implying that she couldn't trust him either. And now that takes us to the Waterfords who are the most trustworthy, yet Offred just can't trust them. Nobody else is trustworthy so why would they be? The shadow of the past Offred was also cast over the storyline, raising the paranoia as we try to find out the motives of both Waterfords. Fred seems decent enough at the moment as he tries to help improve Offred's life, apparently since the previous one killed herself, but can we really trust him? Such is why this show has been so fascinating thus far. The Bad: I wasn't very happy with the ending scene, just like with the last episode. I thought it wasn't properly built up to and I really didn't get the feeling of Offred taking control, which is what I believe was intended. It was also quite cheesy and didn't fit at all with the tone of the show. How did Moira get away with writing in the bathrooms? Surely the aunts would notice, and seeing how remorseless they are, I'm sure they would punish everyone until the culprit revealed themselves. The Unknown: Is Fred sterile or was the doctor lying about it? The evidence does point to him beign sterile though, so I suspect it's true. What happened to Moria after she left? Apparently she was caught and killed according to Janine, so how did that happen? Was Fred telling the truth about the past Offred? I don't trust anybody at the moment. What happened to Aunt Elizabeth? Did she violate the laws or die somehow? What did Ofglen do while Offred was locked in her room? Best Moment: Moira leaving was a spectacular scene. I love how Offred wordlessly communicated to her that she should go while Moira expressed guilt, sadness and gratitude to Offred. The scene was carried by acting and created a pretty powerful moment, which was much more powerful than the reveal of Moira's death in "Offred". I think that reveal did add an air of tragedy to this scene as well, since we know that Moira is destined to be captured and killed anyways. Character of the Episode: Offred. Conclusion: This was a very good episode. It was consistently enjoyable and continued to build the world and its characters in fascinating ways while also having more powerful and uncomfortable scenes. This was the first episode that felt like a complete package of enjoyment, making it quite effective. Score: 68 Summary: Phoebe learns that Old Yeller dies at the end of the movie and that her mom had been hiding the sad endings of sad movies from her. Richard starts hanging out with Joey and Chandler a lot and Monica gets jealous since she gets less time with him now. Rachel gets terrified after she learns that Ross has made plans for their future.
The Good: This was another solid episode. The Richard story was the best here and was pretty clever. It felt real having Joey and Chandler think of Richard as a dad naturally, and I also like that they gave Richard reasons for enjoying the company of the guys as well. Monica's involvement was excellent too and I love that she didn't create meaningless drama as Richard immediately chose Monica first. It was a logical decision for Richard and was a nice little story for the episode. And on top of that it was really funny especially with Joey and Chandler imitating Richard, though it wasn't as funny as Friends at its best. The other storylines were mostly just filler but they were fine. Ross was great as always in his story with Rachel and I did enjoy their brief argument. Ben's story was harmless fun I suppose. The Bad: Phoebe's story was completely average. Phoebe is best as a background character, so giving her a central story like this with nobody else to properly play off of really doesn't work. The episode really lacks on hilarious moments and only gets a few good chuckles out of me. That separates it from the other great episodes this season. Best Moment: I'll go with Joey cluelessly telling Richard they think of him as a dad. It was pretty funny and used Joy's one-track mind to its fullest. Character of the Episode: Joey. Conclusion: This episode had some pretty funny moments and solid storylines but it doesn't quite live up to the other strong episodes this season. Score: 66 Summary: Chandler continues to get creeped out by Eddie and tries to get him to leave but Eddie doesn't seem to remember anything and refuses to leave. Joey struggles to deal with the consequences of losing his job and has issues moving on. The girls all read a book where they are goddesses who get their "wind" stolen by men and they use the book as inspiration to help them improve their lives.
The Good: Eddie was the real highlight of the episode once again. Adam Goldberg has done an absolutely tremendous job of bringing the character to life with all of his hilarious quirks and mannerisms. Chandler's reactions to Eddie's crazy antics remain hilarious and the storyline has a great feel good ending with Joey and Chandler being reunited to get Eddie to finally leave. Joey's storyline is really good too and feels pretty real as we can see Joey struggling to deal with the fact that the best thing in his life is now gone. His conflict with Ross is great too and has some pretty funny moments, but more importantly, it was a conflict which felt real. Neither of them were mad at each other and were still friendly but they came to blows once and quickly apologized to solve it. It was nice to see the show exploring a minor spat between friends instead of something big. The girls' story was fine as well and ha some really good laughs scattered throughout. Also, I feel that in terms of pure humour, the show has never been better. The creativity and the dialogue in every episode is excellent, so even while some stories lack, the show remains tremendously funny to make up for it. The Bad: The girls' story feels rather pointless and it accomplishes nothing other than filling out time. Surely Chandler and Joey should have called the police or somebody about the obviously crazy Eddie? Best Moment: As much as I enjoyed the Eddie story, the best moment was from the conversation between Rachel and Ross where Rachel tried to set her foot down. The scene was really well written and a lot of the dialogue has me laughing hard. Character of the Episode: I'll give it to Eddie again. I'll miss his crazy fruit-dehydrating and head-stealing antics. Conclusion: This was another really strong episode with tons of funny moments, though one slightly weaker story once more prevents this from reaching absolute greatness. Still a great episode of comedy though, as the show continues to prove why it's one of the best sitcoms around. Score: 77 Summary: After foolishly claiming he writes his own lines, Joey is killed off from Days of Our Lives and is upset. Chandler tries o get to know Eddie and discovers that he's a little bit crazy. Ross and Rachel deal with sex related topics while Monica and Richard do the same, one room away from each other.
The Good: This episode was much better than the last as all 4 of the stories were meaningful and had several great laughs. The main Joey story was probably the weakest of the bunch, but it was still very good and provided some nice laughs. Chandler's story is excellent though as Eddie instantly becomes a hilarious and memorable side character while he demonstrates his unhinged craziness, which is made even funnier by Chandler's reactions to him. The writing was creative and the jokes even better. Meanwhile, both Rachel and Monica's storylines are excellent. They tie nicely into each other's as both couples experience some minor problems before they ultimately decide to have a passionate night together. Not only were the arguments between everybody funny, but all of the characters felt perfectly in line and logical through every moment. I particularly enjoyed the awkward interactions between Ross and Richard which were absolutely hilarious. The Bad: I suppose it is a bit of a stretch for Eddie to suddenly be crazy, but I'm willing to buy it sine we hardly knew anything about him in the previous episode. Best Moment: It's tough to choose with so many hilarious moments. I'll go with Eddie freaking out at Chandler after Tilly arrived. The scene was so well done with tons of great laughs. Character of the Episode: Eddie for being just excellent though I could easily give this to a number of different characters. Chandler, Ross and Monica were all excellent here. Conclusion: This episode was really good, delivering tons of great laughs and moments and had the Joey storyline been just a little bit better, I feel this could have been one of the show's best episodes. Score: 79 Summary: In flashbacks, June and Moira witness the rise of Gilead as women's rights are slowly stripped away and riots happen in the streets. In the present, Offred is taken by Serena to see Janine and her baby. Offred talks to Janine who seems to be abusing her new privileges. Upon returning home Offred is questioned by Lydia about Ofglen who is revealed to be gay. Lydia is about to punish Offred for quoting the bible but Serena protects her by claiming her to be pregnant. Offred however isn't pregnant. Ofglen, now known as Emily had an affair with a Martha. The Martha is executed and Emily loses her genitalia through surgery.
The Good: This was a very strong episode with a bunch of great moments throughout. It was a marked improvement on the first 2 episodes and has now hooked me into the series. I really enjoyed the scenes at Janine's residence. There was great dialogue and the character motivations were very strong for both Janine and Offred. I loved the short scene where Offred got to hold a baby for a little bit, and the show was able to subtly demonstrate how much Offred misses her child. Janine's character is also nicely getting developed as we see her taking advantage of her situation, something which fits what we saw of her aggressive character in "Offred". The scenes at the Waterford residence were great as well. Aunt Lydia and the Eye interrogating Offred was very tense and enjoyable. I love how we slowly got more information fed to us about Emily's situation and we got our understanding that Emily had an ongoing relationship with a Martha and is being punished for that, not for being part of the resistance. There was also a great air of tension during Offred's questioning as she kept on provoking Aunt Lydia by quoting the bible, clearly frustrated with her life. I also appreciated that Serena took pity on Offred and got Lydia to stop attacking her. It gives us more understanding on Serena's character and gives her some conflict with Offred once it's revealed that Offred is not pregnant. The flashbacks were enjoyable too, though I had some issues with them (see: The Bad). I thought it was an effective way to show the injustice of what happened to the world. There was some good emotion in seeing the army killing people as they rioted and also in seeing June and Moira struggling to comprehend their new situation. The best part of the episode in my opinion was absolutely Emily's storyline. We didn't know much about her relationship with the Martha, but the silent performances of both women made me emotionally invested, ensuring that all the scenes surrounding Emily's tragedy hit hard. We didn't know much about her before and we still really don't know much about her, but I care about her now. The Bad: The story of how Gilead came to be just doesn't seem real to me. Apparently the law preventing women from doing things like working and owning property was passed overnight. Was there no press on this? The internet exists so how did nobody know this was happening? How did a majority of people choose to do this? Whose idea was this? How did they get a following for this? There are so many unanswered questions and a lack of attention to detail which really frustrates me and prevents the episode from scoring really high. I wasn't a fan of the ending music. Last episode it made sense because it conveyed a sense of happiness which was tonally different from the rest of the episode. This time we had uncharacteristic music signifying anger, which doesn't work as well since we have seen anger in the show before. While it may not have been on the same level, I feel that it wasn't different enough to require a different music cue. The Unknown: Does the Commander really love Janine or is she just making up stories? How is that going to impact Janine's standing in her house? Is it also foreshadowing the possibility of Commander Waterford loving Offred? Does Nick truly love Offred? I feel like his character has been fairly weak so far and has added very little. I almost put it in The Bad, but I feel that the show could definitely make something good out of this. I also believe that Nick is the Eye in the house so that could lead to some interesting story. Best Moment: The hanging scene was emotive and powerful. Both actresses did a fantastic job of getting me to care and that followed with a deeply unsettling and difficult to watch scene where the Martha was executed in a vicious hanging while Emily watched. Very strong stuff. Character of the Episode: Emily. Conclusion: This was a very strong episode and while it had some flaws, it had lots of emotion, tension and character building which I absolutely approve of. If the show can keep this kind of focus on characters and emotion, then it has some serious potential of being great. Score: 70 Summary: Joey isn't enjoying his alone life as much as he had hoped and wants to move back in with Chandler. Chandler however comes to terms that Joey is gone and so gets a new roommate named Eddie. Monica is upset with Ross who is spending more and more time in his apartment. Phoebe is contacted by a record company to make a music video for Smelly Cat.
The Good: The two main stories are good here. Joey and Chandler are funny as they have a conflict which is funnily treated as a breakup. They have some good moments here and I particularly enjoyed Joey letting out his frustrations on Chandler. The Monica and Ross story is good too and has a really realistic feel by bringing in a sort of sibling rivalry into the mix. It had some sweet and funny moments throughout. The Bad: This episode is fine but is really missing a spark throughout. There is fine storytelling in the major storylines but neither really make me laugh hard with some quality comedy. The Phoebe storyline feels pretty pointless and doesn't add much comedy either. Best Moment: Joey snapping after the juice ran out was a hilarious moment and the idea that the juice just sent him over the edge was hilarious, and the scene was made even better by the egg analogy and Chandler pointing out that there is another carton just over there. Character of the Episode: Joey. Conclusion: This had some good story but was lacking the special humour that most other episodes had. It was fine but completely unspectacular. Score: 62 Summary: Offred continues talking to Ofglen who is revealed to be in the resistance. Ofglen wants some information on Waterford. Janine gives birth to a healthy baby against the odds. Offred has a meeting with Waterford which shouldn't be allowed and they play scrabble. The next today, Offred discovers that Ofglen has been replaced. Flashbacks show the day when June gave birth to Hannah when a girl tried to steal her.
The Good: This was a pretty strong episode which had a much more watchable tone than the last one. After the last episode was drenched in misery, this was much more optimistic. Instead of just constant pain, this episode contained some small optimism rooted in the relationship between Offred and Ofglen which slowly blossomed as the episode went on. They trusted each other more and Offred even looked to be joining the resistance in time, until the surprise ending twist where Ofglen has been replaced by another Ofglen (see: The Unknown). I really loved the use of music as well. After the Waterford scene, Offred had a legitimate reason to be happier and then we got hit by an uncharacteristically happy music theme to symbolize this, but then it was abruptly cut off at the twist ending, allowing us to feel the drastic change in the situation. Another thing I want to highlight is Elisabeth Moss' performance in this episode. I skimmed over this in the previous review, but I really understated how great of a job she is doing conveying Offred's emotions without using words. Her performance has been great so far and added an absolute ton to the episode. The birth scene itself was pretty interesting too. The actual birth ceremony was really interesting, especially seeing that the wives had to go through something as well even though they were doing nothing. The presentation of the scene fit pretty well into the world which has been established. I also enjoyed seeing Janine's love for her baby in a sweet little scene. It helps humanize her more. The flashbacks were pretty good too. Clearly the world didn't suddenly just change into Gilead since apparently the whole birth thing has been a problem for a long time. It was a little unsettling seeing the girl try to claim Hannah as her own, which of course fits with the themes of this show. The scene with Commander Waterford was a wonderful example of tension. We don't know what Waterford wants and we don't know what his motivations are, so it made the scene extremely tense. There was so much tension and mystery and I found myself hoping that I could get more information on who Waterford is through the scene and I was decently satisfied, though I'm still left with a lot of questions (see: The Unknown). The Bad: We desperately need to know Gilead's history. At the moment I have too many questions about how the world functions and what happened to America to turn it into this way, that its starting to hurt my enjoyment of the show. The Unknown: What is the resistance and how did they form? Who is in charge at the moment anyways? How does the new world function? Is there still a president? Is the whole world under these new rules? How did America change to these new rules? What overthrew or converted the government? A lot of people were praying in the flashback. Was there a Christian revolution of sorts? What happened to Ofglen? Was she taken by the government people, whoever they are? Who is the person who replaced her? Can she be trusted? What did Waterford want from Offred? Is he attracted to her, or is he up to something else? Does he work for the government? Could he have been just keeping an eye on her to make sure she was doing everything properly? Best Moment: The best moment for me was honestly Offred with the cookie. Hearing the one lady compliment Offred for being so well-mannered was just creepy and unsettling just like the rest of the world and really demonstrated the low standing of all handmaids. Better yet though was Offred's clear glee at actually being able to have a cookie, but she forces herself to spit it out for fear that she would be caught with cookie crumbs in her mouth. Pretty intense stuff. Character of the Episode: Offred again. Conclusion: This was another solid episode which continued to develop the story and the world, but we desperately need some explaining on how Gilead functions to truly get invested in the show. Score: 65 Summary: After an argument with Chandler, Joey decides to move out now that he is financially stable. Monica goes to her dad's birthday party with Richard and she struggles with how to tell them the news. Phoebe and Rachel go to get a tattoo.
The Good: This was another really good episode which featured some really good stories. The main story with joey and Chandler was really great and felt realistic because it made perfect sense for Joey to want to try to expand a little and leave. They had some funny moments in their conflict and there was some emotional resonance with Joey leaving. In a lot of ways Joey and Chandler's friendship is just as compelling as Ross and Rachel's relationship if not more. Meanwhile, the Monica story as the real highlight this time as it tackled a very awkward topic in hilarious fashion with a very consistent amount of humour. The Richard story has been excellent so far as it has provided loads of funny moments and has made Monica much more enjoyable. The tattoo storyline was harmless fun too and led up to some funny moments. The Bad: The Chandler/Joey storyline wasn't as funny as both guys usually are since they were both put in such a serious situation. It's a minor nitpick but it is what prevents this episode from being one of the series' very best. Best Moment: There are plenty of moments in Monica's storyline, but my favourite had to be Monica's time in the bathroom from Richard loudly talking to Monica "catching the live show". Character of the Episode: I'll give this one to Jack Geller actually since he got a ton of hilarious lines. I believe this is the first time I've given this to a non-main character. Conclusion: This was another really funny episode with a number of memorable moments and storylines. Quality stuff as usual. Score: 78 Summary: Offred is a handmaid, which means she is a fertile woman in a world where that is a rarity. She is essentially a servant with very few rights. Flashbacks show her becoming a handmaid with others like her friend Moira and Janine who lost her eye after speaking out. In the present, Janine tells Offred that Moira died trying to escape. Offred grows closer to fellow handmaid Ofglen who warns her that her house has an Eye. The man of the house, Commander Waterford tries to impregnate Offred.
The Good: I thought this was a solid pilot episode which sets the tone for the series very well. I thought the show did a great job of introducing us to Offred and putting us into the shoes of her unfair life. Since Offred isn't allowed to talk much, it could have been easy to not get into her character, so thankfully there is a smart decision to give us some dialogue showcasing Offred's inner thoughts. By understanding what Offred is thinking, it helps us relate more to her and also serves a dual purpose to additionally give us some more exposition about what we are seeing in this world. Furthermore, I think that having Offred speak so rarely, the show builds a sense of real paranoia and fear of the world which helps put us in her shoes and also helps build up the atmosphere of the world. Speaking of atmosphere, I really think this show has nailed its tone and look. The darker screen filter looks really good in contrast to the bright outfits of the handmaids and it makes the world seem really darkly beautiful. I think the flashbacks were really good too. It gave us some much needed exposition about what the handmaids are and why they exist. It helped give us exposition in a very entertaining ways opposed to just having Offred tell us everything we need to know. And also, I really liked that the flashbacks helped add some emotion to the story by allowing us to realize the cruelty of the world through a number of rather painful scenes and occurrences. There were a number of really powerful scenes here as well, thought they were a bit tough to watch (see: The Bad). I really enjoyed the gritty nature of watching the handmaids attack the rapist and brutally punish him for his crimes. When combined with Moira's death, It also served as a nice excuse to get Offred to open up a little more to Ofglen in organic fashion. The Bad: The opening scene didn't really do much for me and it felt like it existed solely for an "exciting" opening sequence. I also didn't like the clichéd dialogue from Offred's husband who decided to stay behind for some unknown and convenient reason, "don't worry I'll be right behind you". It wasn't exactly a promising start to the show. The emotion of Moira's death really was a miss unfortunately. While I did praise the show for its lack of dialogue from Offred, I think it really hurt the relationship between Offred and Moira. I got the sense I was supposed to care much more about Offred and Moira's relationship but I really didn't. Lastly, is the obvious one. This show is extremely dark so far and there have been a number of rather unpleasant scenes so far. It doesn't bother me yet but I could understand if it turns away some other viewers. The Unknown: Where has Hannah been taken? What were Offred's memories? Was she living a normal life before? What happened to change that? There were numerous references to wars. What are the wars? Apparently there is fighting in Florida too. That also begs the question of where exactly Gilead is. Is it in America? Why were the hanging bodies killed? Apparently they were a doctor, priest and gay man. Is that why they were hung? Who is the Eye (I'm assuming that means a spy) in the Waterford household? There are several people int he house so this could be a really engaging mystery. Best Moment: While the attack on the rapist was pretty gripping, I think the moment where Janine was regretting her unfair treatment was powerful, especially when all the handmaids give a robotic response. It was quite freaky in a subtle way and it was this scene which really got me to understand what this world was about. Particularly the chants of "teach her a lesson" really stuck with me. Character of the Episode: Offred, or well June. I'll see where the story goes to decide what name to call her by. Conclusion: This was a solid pilot which introduced us nicely to this harsh world. It didn't do anything particularly special but it was rock solid and I'm looking forward to seeing more from the show. Score: 65 Summary: Jim reveals he is bit. Andrea waits for Amy to come back ads a walker and kills her. Rick and Shane argue about what to do next and Shane is almost tempted to kill Rick. Eventually he sides with Rick and they choose to head to the CDC. They drop off Jim on the way so he can die on his own accord. Dr. Jenner is in the CDC working alone but he loses the last test sample. He prepares to kill himself but opens his doors to let in Rick's group.
The Good: The one sequence that didn't really fit in with the rest of the episode was the Jenner sequence, so it naturally felt like a breath of fresh air and was amongst the best parts of the episode. Seeing him struggle in isolation to try to save the world was powerful stuff and it was suitably sad when his test sample was destroyed. Worse yet was seeing him talking to nobody, clearly feeling miserable in his total isolation. And it's because of this that he takes pity on our group of survivors, as he chooses to be a better man and let in the group even though he knows he plans not to stay in the world much longer. The main group moments were pretty good too. I liked the constant focus on the humanity with many small moments. Andrea staying with Amy and wanting her to at least be sort of living so she can say goodbye is really sad but it feels like the way a real person may handle the situation, even with the risk. Glenn wanting to bury their dead was another nice moment, even though I thought Steven Yeun's acting left a little to be desired when saying that line. I enjoyed Daryl still being upset about Merle and I also loved Rick's argument that they don't kill the living. As another scene with Shane showed, the temptation to kill in this world must be high but there needs to be some sort of morality to keep us engaged with the characters. I loved Rick and Shane's conflict in this episode. Them arguing about where to go next and what to do with Jim felt real, since it is much more likely that not everyone would agree to do the same thing, and with a lack of actual rules in this world, it's easy to understand how there are a ton of potential decisions to be made. I really loved that Shane felt for just a little bit that maybe Rick has a freak accident and doesn't make it back from the forest. After all in a world with no rules, why not? It was a fascinating little moment which really amps up the tension with Shane since he is clearly a little unstable at the moment. I also liked that Daryl got a little involved too as he entertained the most barbaric possibilities in this world. Rick calling Morgan was excellent too. I'm glad that the writers haven't forgotten about Morgan since he was the primary reason Rick went to the city anyways. I was glad that Rick left a message for Morgan when he left as well on the off chance that he came to the quarry. There were a couple other good scenes too. I enjoyed Carol taking out her frustrations on Ed's corpse for the short amount of time it got. I also liked Dale and Andrea's talk, as it gave us more information on both characters. Jim's scared reaction to being bit was great too and his farewell was somewhat touching though we really didn't know him well at all. The Bad: The characterization on this show still lacks. We are seeing that they are human, but no character feels particularly distinguishable. Everyone has like one significant trait but other than that they have no depth. We need to get more depth next season at least because it's hard to get too emotionally engaged the way things stand right now. I wish there was more urgency when Amy rose up instead of everyone passively watching. They were all so concerned when Amy was dead but there was a weirdly limited reaction from everyone when she did come back. How long did it take them to reach the CDC? They left the quarry in the morning and barely made it by nightfall. What took so long? They must have had like 8-10 hours to get there, but they took forever. What were they doing? They clearly weren't scavenging either since they apparently had no food or fuel by convenience. The Unknown: Is Fort Benning still fortified? Or has it been whittled down like the CDC? What happened to all the other scientists at the CDC? Did they die? Run away? Best Moment: While I really enjoyed the Jenner scenes, I thought the moment of Shane momentarily tempted to kill Rick was really well done. Character of the Episode: Shane. Conclusion: This was a pretty good episode with some great moments, though the characterization problem prevents this from being truly excellent. Score: 68 Summary: Joey and Chandler buy new recliners and sit in them without getting up. Monica dates her eye doctor Richard who is 20 years older than her. They are uncomfortable at first but eventually give in. Ross and Rachel have their first date but Rachel is still a little weirded out by everything.
The Good: Joey and Chandler are funny in their side plot. Ross and Rachel have nice chemistry and produce a lot of nice little moments in their romantic scenes, especially with Rachel constantly laughing and the brilliantly executed museum date which provided great laughs. Monica and Richard's storyline is good too and they played falling in love very nicely. Phoebe is also pretty good at getting the odd chuckle as always. The story was really good overall in this episode. The Bad: This episode was pretty forgettable overall. It sets up 2 different romances but doesn't provide a ton of hilarious moments. It's consistently good but with the exception of the museum scene it never really hits the next level. I suppose the ending was a little too silly as Ross really should be facing some consequences from the museum. Best Moment: Ross and Rachel in the museum room provided some awesome moments. Character of the Episode: Chandler. Conclusion: This was a great episode with funny moments, but doesn't have enough extremely funny moments to really send it over the top for me. It's probably one of the more forgettable episodes this season, even though I really did enjoy the storytelling. Score: 71 Summary: James and Alyssa decide to take Leslie's boat and run away. They talk to Leslie who attempts to record a confession from Alyssa of the murder but James discovers his ploy and stabs him. Eunice arrives and tries to convince both to plead guilty for manslaughter but Leslie doesn't help. Eunice tells them that they won't be together if they do it, prompting James and Alyssa to escape. The police squad arrives and James knocks out Alyssa so she will be spared and he is shot.
The Good: It was nice to see discussion on the tough things that James and Alyssa have gone through. I was glad that Alyssa was feeling the effects of her father being a disappointment because it made the drama from last episode feel a little more real and powerful. Additionally, I was glad that James' mom got more of a mention to highlight just how much her suicide affected who he was as a character. The sequence inside Leslie's home was superb and really tense. It was gripping because we were hoping that Leslie wouldn't succeed in calling the cops and we didn't want Alyssa to fall for his trap again. Things escalated quite quickly too with Eunice arriving at the scene and adding on to the tension as we wonder if James and Alyssa will actually choose to go for peaceful jail time. Naturally the deciding factor was them not being able to see each other if they did, and I was willing to buy that as the reason they chose the riskier reason to attempt escape. I liked the ending too. It felt rather poetic to end the series with a James monologue, with him acknowledging everything he discovered on his trip with Alyssa before ultimately dying. Or at least I'm assuming he died. I think the slightly ambiguous ending was for sure the best choice here since actually seeing James die would be a pretty depressing way to end the show. Instead ending with James' monologue was a much smarter move. The Bad: There were too many unresolved threads though. Eunice and Terri were utterly pointless in the end and added nothing to the story. I question hat the point of their conflict even was, and what their point in the story even was. James and Alyssa didn't listen to Eunice anyways so she may as well have just been some character we have never seen before and it would have had the same effect. It was also really unfulfilling to get no resolution with either of the kids' parents who never appeared again though they were presented as important early on. The Unknown: Is James dead? I would assume so. All other questions really don't matter since the show is over. Best Moment: The tense mobile home scene was a lot of fun to watch. Character of the Episode: James. Conclusion: This was a solid finale to the show, but it was hurt by a lack of satisfying resolution to a lot of the secondary storylines. Regarding the show as a whole, I thought it was really good for an 8 episode show. However, it clocks in at under 3 hours in length and it did have some fillerish moments, which makes me just question why it wasn't a movie. Even the cliffhangers at the end of each episode felt mostly tacked on and I honestly feel the show would be much better watched as just a single story. I watched each episode one at a time, and I'm pretty sure it hurt my overall enjoyment of the show. The quality was fine though and it's a nice watch for such a short amount of time. Score: 63 Summary: Alyssa's father Leslie is a drug dealer but is extremely friendly and Alyssa really likes him. James ge4ts a little jealous and realizes that they need to move on. Leslie reveals he has another kid he abandoned and Alyssa realizes he isn't so great. Teri and Eunice argue about the kids.
The Good: I really like Leslie's character. He was one of the more well-rounded ass characters on the show. He was clearly a bad father as established at the end, but before that he seemed surprisingly friendly though he was a drug dealer. I like that he wasn't completely 2-dimensional. I was really happy to see that the gas station attack from last episode was important to the overall story. Now there is much more tension regarding the kids since the cops believe they are armed when they really aren't. This sets up the finale really well for a tense climax. I enjoyed seeing Teri and Eunice disagreeing about the kids. It added more thematic relevance to the show as they contemplate if the kids are just evil killers or if they are just hurting and need to be talked to. The Bad: Eunice and Teri are still pretty boring and we know very little about them. I didn't care at all about Eunice interrupting a date and I still don't fully understand their characters and relationship. That's pretty bad for a show which is heading into its season finale. Every character in this show has been just an asshole that James and Alyssa have encountered, so when Leslie was revealed as a decent guy, I was just waiting for the twist that he wasn't as good as he seemed. Since I predicted it almost immediately, the twist had little impact on me and it lacked emotions for the most part. James feeling that Alyssa's dad is taking her away was a good conflict but it had absolutely no bearing on the story which made it pointless filler. The Unknown: Will Leslie be even sleazier and turn in Alyssa to the cops? Best Moment: James being unable to kill the dog was the most emotionally powerful moment. Character of the Episode: Leslie. Conclusion: Leslie was really great but other than him this episode was quite flawed. I think it could have done a better job hyping up the finale and there were several problems too. The weakest episode in quite a bit of time. Score: 58 Summary: James and Alyssa hotwire a car and drive but they need to stop for gas. Thy almost get caught but James uses his smarts to get them out of it okay. Koch's mom reveals the truth about what he did to Eunice and Terri.
The Good: This was another good episode. The gas station sequence was tremendous in this episode. It was tense, funny and created another fun little conflict for the show. I enjoyed the entire sequence thoroughly and I thought they also added one of their best side character's in Frodo. I enjoyed Frodo's brief story as it was not only funny, but also thematically relevant to the show with the exploration of taking a boring and dull life and making it more exciting. I really liked the irony of Phil saying how James isn't at al dangerous while James is robbing a gas station while "armed". I love hat he show introduced the fact that James knows a lot of random details before this scene, as it made it seem more realistic that James would know the exact specs of a gun. I like that Alyssa is afraid that her dad won't be as great as she hopes. It's a very real emotion and it helps us relate more with her. The Bad: The cops storyline leaves a lot to be desired at the moment. Both women aren't particularly interesting and I don't care as much about them as I do about James and Alyssa. Koch's mom changing her mind didn't feel earned at all and I really couldn't believe that she just decided to reveal that truth to the cops. Both scenes with her were quite poorly written. The Unknown: Will Alyssa's dad predictably be bad just like every other character in this show, or will he actually be decent? I can see it going either way which adds a nice amount of intrigue. Best Moment: The gas station scene was tense and funny, really easy to enjoy television. Character of the Episode: James. Conclusion: This was another solid episode, though it had some flaws wit the cop storyline. The show has improved a lot and I'm excited to see how it starts wrapping up. Score: 63 Summary: Flashbacks show James' mom committing suicide in front of him. James talks to a cop about his mom's suicide before leaving to find Alyssa. Alyssa robs a store and gets caught but she is let go. Alyssa goes back with hopes of finding James and the both of them reunite.
The Good: Seeing James' backstory is exactly what we needed to really start caring about him. Last episode did a ton for him, and this episode did much more as it let us realize why he feels so emotionally detached from the world. The awkward cop who talked to James was fantastic too. I love how he seemed really uncomfortable with the situation but till tried his best to help, with very little effectiveness. It was the most real a side character has felt in this show. Alyssa's mindset was good to see. I like that se had serious regrets about leaving James, which is exactly what we needed to care more about their relationship. Alyssa has always been impulsive, so it's nice that she took a little bit of time to cool down and realize her mistakes. The reunion at the end of the episode was a really sweet moment and is probably the best part of the show thus far. It felt earned after what we saw both characters go through in the last episode. I'm glad that they weren't kept apart for too long, as the dynamic between both characters is the show's main drawing point. To have them apart for so long would definitely affect the quality of the show. Instead, they both ended up spending just enough time by themselves to get us to care about them, which will surely pay dividends on the rest of the series. I doubt I will ever have to complain about not being emotionally invested anymore. The Bad: The cliffhanger from the last episode felt completely pointless since it had no payoff. We learned about James' mom from the flashback so we didn't really need him talking to the cop. It felt like filler. Emil was really dumb to leave Alyssa and he didn't even watch the door at all. Nobody would be that careless. Also what was the point of those stealing sensors in front of the store? They should go off if something is stolen but they didn't. The Unknown: What is the incident that Teri and Eunice regret? Why does that matter? Best Moment: James and Alyssa's reunion was great. Character of the Episode: Alyssa. Conclusion: This episode did a ton for both of the main characters and I can finally say that I'm emotionally invested in the show now. This was easily the best episode thus far. Score: 64 |
Aaron DhillonJust a university student who loves to watch TV. And analyze it way too much. Archives
February 2024
Categories
All
|