Tuesday, May 21, 2013

Archer - Tunting Kidding Me...

Archer "Sea Tunt I" (S04E12): 
From the Diary of Archer Sterling...

Of course Mother is dramatically introducing some amazing news about... something... but Bermuda is great by the way. Long story long, her master plan is to recover a hydrogen bomb from a crashed B-2 bomber and sell it back to the US government. Resting at 13,033 fathoms deep (not sure how I'm the only person in the room to know this...), we're racing the Russians and apparently have to 'steam' there faster.

Cheryl's brother Cecil happens in (why the hell is he here anyway?) and he has a submersible lab, an island, and a helicopter. Cecil is gracious enough to fly on his helicopter to his research vehicle to get moving on the bomb recovery. I make very good use of the bar to make long island iced teas, and make fun of Lana about... well, everything. Cecil kept his girlfriend, Tiffy, under control from Cheryl's taunting. Then, Cecil questions the crap out of Mother about Cheryl... while I kept drinking.

The drinks had morphed from fuzzy navels to hairy navels as Cecil kept wandering around asking everyone questions... strange dude. He even questioned Pam through her rampage of the soy seafood buffet. Cheryl has been watching Cecil from some video monitoring room that is recording everything... So... Cheryl goes nuts and tries to take over the cockpit from Tiffy. Pam's swelling from her soy allergy finally gets bad enough to send her rolling around on the floor. 
FX Network
Cecil comes clean about the plan to steal Cheryl's inheritance... and about the madman who took over his underwater lab and plans to send missiles to major US cities loaded with VX nerve gas... man this guy's a tool.

Bates Motel: We're Just Getting Started!

Not a lot of time has passed since the series premiere, but a lot sure has happened! I wasn't expecting yet another death this episode, figuring that the first nine episodes had given viewers their fill of that! But, a cliffhanger can be a good way to get everyone to return next season, so it makes sense. I'm not thrilled that the sheriff found it acceptable to kill Jake to take care of things, as that really makes me wonder how much longer he'll put up with Norma, as she must be the biggest pain! We completely avoid Dylan's work this episode, though with Norma cleaning rooms it's believable that the "workers" are still around at least. I don't know where next season will begin, and I surely don't know how to predict what might occur, but a little less corruption would be nice...

Bates Motel "Midnight" (S01E10): Norma goes to the sheriff about Jake wanting the money, and he says that he'll take care of it. We see him go to a storage unit where there's a bag of money, among other things. [the theme of this show is that everybody is corrupt, after all.]
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But, she isn't sure if she can trust him, so she asks Dylan for a gun. He's hesitant but decides to help her out, plus teach her to shoot. [that "Mom" thing WAS a big deal!] In the process, Dylan admits what his job is, upsetting his mother. [but it shouldn't have really been a surprise.] She then shows up at the therapist's office, but she doesn't have a scheduled appointment. She asks for advice on handling stress, but she won't go into detail about what's stressing her. She talks about being an only child with no surviving parents, but then she suddenly claims illness and leaves. [was this just so we could once again see that she tells multiple stories about her past?] 

Keith's sister (the bookkeeper for the "Asian import" business for Keith, Shelby, and Jake [whom she knows as "Joe"]) talks to both the sheriff and Norma separately. It seems that Jake/Joe has this business going in multiple ports, and he's a dangerous guy.

Norman asks Emma to the winter formal the day of the dance, and he freaks out when he learns that Dylan has been helping Bradley when the girl comes to get her father's things. Norman takes out his anger on his mother, then just tells Dylan that he should just date Bradley. [that was an absolutely GORGEOUS dance!]

Norma tells Norman that she grew up in Akron, Ohio and was sexually abused by her brother. [yikes!] She kept it a secret but wanted someone to know "just in case." Well, this is on his mind so he ignores Emma at the dance, and she leaves. A guy then punches Norman for "taking advantage of Bradley" after her father's death. Norman leaves on foot in the rain and is picked up by his teacher, who offers to tend to his wounds at her place. Now, things were already getting awkward between them earlier, when he overheard her private phone conversation with "Eric." Well, after she undresses in plain view, Norman has visions of his mother telling him that he knows what he has to do. We learn that he killed his teacher, though nobody else is aware. [CREEPY.]

Meanwhile, Norma goes to the dock at midnight to meet Jake and sees the sheriff talking to him about working together. [whaaa?] The sheriff shoots Jake after making a deal, then throws the bag in the water. He knows that she saw him, and is upset that he didn't trust her. [no surprise.]

Secret Life: The Wrap-Up Begins...

The Omar-Adrian storyline is wrapped. I could live with where we are for George and Kathleen, Jack and Grace, and Clementine. Henry opened up a new can of worms for he and Alice, Ethan did with he and Layla, and Leo did the same when he offered Amy and Ben apartments in New York. I've made peace with the fact that Ashley, Anne, Robbie, Mimzi, Margaret, Shaker, and Nora likely won't get any fanfare as the series closes, and we've probably seen the last of Dylan, Lauren, Madison, and Grant as well. But, I just can't shake the feeling that the drama is not wrapping up loose ends quickly enough... I don't want to be angry at how the series ends in two weeks! Sad, sure. Crying like a baby, perhaps. But I'm never thrilled when I'm just mad about the ending. For example, I still can't talk about last night's series finale of Rules of Engagement, which just had me gritting my teeth at the closing credits!

The Secret Life of the American Teenager "When Bad Things Happen to Bad People" (S05E22): Kathleen finds out that Grace and Jack had sex, and warns Grace that she needs to be honest with Jack about her plans not to marry him. She tries to weasel out of it and have George talk to Jack, but he won't.

Omar doesn't want to have a long-distance fiance, so he calls off the engagement unless Adrian moves to New York. [AMEN! He realized that Adrian is a selfish brat!] She's so upset that she breaks the truth to Jack - Grace wants to go to college alone and she's years from marrying anyone. She adds that Amy doesn't want to marry Ricky, either... she just wants him to watch John while she's at college. Clementine takes this opportunity to make one last play for Ricky, but he assures her that it'll never happen between them, though Adrian believes the opposite. 
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Ricky has more to think about, however, as he now has the chance to move to New York with Amy. See, Leo has a shop and property there, so Ben and Amy could have apartments, and Ricky and John could stay with Amy while Ricky transfers to the office there. [too magical to be true. Why wouldn't Ben have any idea about this before?] And, if Ricky doesn't go, Ben feels his chances to be with Amy are high... he admits to Alice that he hacked Amy's computer and read her diary, mentioning she's not over Ben. [you are KIDDING me!] 

In smaller storylines, Ethan is already thinking about having sex with Layla, partly for the "anonymous" factor. [I don't get it... he wants to have sex with her BECAUSE they don't know each other very well? is that a thing now?] He's too embarrassed to buy condoms, which Margaret points out means he's not ready for sex. [AMEN.] And, Henry tells Alice that he's going to the Philippines for a year to work in a hotel, but he's really doing something else. [ooohhh... mystery! Any guesses?]

NEW SHOW: The Goodwin Games

This comedy made my "maybe list" last summer, and I've been looking forward to its debut ever since then. The premiere got pushed back, the number of episodes was shortened, and things don't look good for this hilarious family comedy. Only seven episodes will air, and, although the series hasn't officially been cancelled or renewed, don't bet on seeing more of this fabulous sibling trio. That's right! I really loved the pilot, though I might be partial because I'm a board game geek, a trait I share with both of my siblings. As promised, the premise is intriguing, and it left me without the comparison to Wings that I feared. I look forward to finding out what the messages are on more of those VHS tapes, and just how any and every game possible might appear. And, I would question the concept's ability to last more than a season or two if it weren't being done by Bays & Thomas, who have been stretching the story of how Ted Mosby met the mother of his children for eight years. Let me know if you enjoyed this pilot as much as I did... it's hard to think about it without comparing it to the new trailers and pilots out for fall already, but I do think it can stand its own.

The Goodwin Games "Pilot" (S01E01): Mr. Benjamin Goodwin dies at the age of 72, just after completing the creation of his video will, which challenges his three children to come together and win $23M. The siblings (36-year-old doctor Henry, 34-year-old actress Chloe, and 32-year-old Jimmy, who was just released from a minimum security prison) have lost touch with their father and drifted apart, so they're shocked that their old man was worth so much. We quickly learn that Benjamin was a big fan of testing the kids to win various prizes growing up, and to keep the kids competitive, he's added a fourth, unrelated contestant, Elijah.
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Elijah is at a disadvantage when he doesn't even know the names of the other players or their family history, but Chloe feels she's also starting below the water line because she was once BFFs with the will lawyer but dumped her for popularity as kids. [haha.] The game is Trivial Pursuit, but it's been modified so that the questions are about the Goodwin family. [how neat would that be?!? the summer after my first year of college, a friend and I made one another personalized crossword puzzles and they were AWESOME!] This leads to tons of flashbacks, and the siblings argue about whose fault it is that the family fell apart. [awww.] Chloe is close to winning when Henry and Jimmy quit, which means nobody won. The lawyer pops in another VHS, which awards the siblings $50 each while Elijah gets $1M. He heads for the hills but when Chloe picks up on the fact that there is Morse code in the video, she scrambles for the family attic, only to find a message laid out in scrabble tiles saying that Benjamin loved his kids. [awww!] It makes Chloe demand her brothers finish the game with her, for their father's sake. [sweet.]

They play at a bar, where a monk gives them a card that says to take a photo. They head to the photo booth but are greeted with a video from their father, asking them all to move home.

We also know a little bit about two side stories... the first is that Henry hasn't completely gotten over an old girlfriend, and she tells him to come see her in a month if he's still in town. also, Jimmy sneaks around to see his daughter, giving her a stolen pen as a belated birthday gift but later a giant teddy bear. [the guy is trying.]

Monday, May 20, 2013

Dance Academy's Second Season, Part 4 of 4

This is the final group of recaps for second season of Dance Academy. I don't want to spoil the end, but you should be aware that one of the main characters dies unexpectedly a few episodes before the finale. It's a shame, as when the third season airs, I would have loved to find out what all of the characters do after graduation, and we'll now have no future for this dancer. But, the way some others are changing their paths, who knows where they'll be in an academic year!
danceacademy.wikia.com
S02E21: It's time for the national round of the Prix, and the students don't do fabulously in the first round. [though everyone claiming bias was annoying.] Sammy's father and brother come to see him perform, and they want to meet his significant other. Sammy asks Abigail to act as his girlfriend for a lunch, but his father later sees him holding Ollie's hand. [wonder how this will play out...] Later, a kid messes with the sound system during Sammy's number, but Christian and Ben lock him in a closet. [there was NOBODY official backstage??] Sammy's father invites Ollie to join Sam on a trip home anytime. [awww!] Christian thinks that Ben is trying to psych him out by flirting with Tara, but Tara enjoys the attention... right up until she thinks Ben's timing might really be to mess with Christian. And, Abigail's mother thinks they should move to New York, so she's shocked when Abigail chooses the fringe show instead of the Prix. [as am I!] Tara, Grace, Sammy, and the cheater make it to the international round.

S02E22:
Grace's father is supposed to come to see the international round of the Prix, but he cancels because of business. Christian takes motorcycle lessons but tries to showboat and winds up laying down the bike, hurting his arm. [of course.] There's a rumor going around that fewer third-years are going on tour, so more will be snagging the Peter Pan parts, making auditions fierce. Grace thinks that Zach is pretty much handing her Tinkerbell, so she makes a move on him. He tells her that she's putting more into the situation than is there, so she Grace spins it the other way when she tells Tara that Zach tried to kiss her, asking Tara to tell Miss Raine. [I think I might hate Grace more than Abigail.] Grace is sent back to London.

S02E23:
Peter Pan has been cast, with Abigail getting Wendy, Kat getting Tinkerbell, Christian getting Peter Pan, and Ben getting John. Abigail feels she's unsuited for the role, afraid that she's been typecast. She wants to drop the part, but Miss Raine tells her she needs to focus. [no Prix and no spring piece? what would she do with herself, LoL?] She has other things on her mind, though, when she pretends she likes fish when she's asked on a date. She and Sammy skip class so he can teach her about marine stuff.

Meanwhile, Ben is still after Tara, but he starts taking it too far when he wears her bra and makes fun of her. He then throws an ice-skating party for her, though she's starting to think about moving to Russia - the Prix winners will be able to do their final year of training elsewhere.

S02E24: Grace shows up to represent Great Britain in the Prix, planning to do Tara's preferred solo. [hate Grace!] Tara goes to one of the judges and explains that Grace might have taken someone's place on the United Kingdom team by injuring a teammate, but nothing malicious is uncovered. Sammy wants to change his solo to a group piece, but Abigail calls it a gimmick. [it WAS weird.] Shortly before the Prix, however, Sammy is killed in a car accident. [WHAAAT??!?] Christian breaks the news to Tara, who runs to console Kat and Abigail, who kissed her ex-boyfriend the night before. [awww.]

S02E25: The Prix is postponed, Peter Pan is canceled, and classes are optional for the second-years. [it was quite moving to see the kids in mourning dress performing warm-ups.] Abigail auditions with some third-years for a six-week tour, but freaks out because she misses Sammy, her original partner. [I didn't see that coming.] The group of friends talk about Sammy, read his bucket list, and play his favorite songs. We also see flashbacks to Sammy trying to talk his way into the Academy after not making the finals in auditions, and Sammy meeting Kat, then Abigail, then Christian. [I just found these awkward.]

S02E26: Tara has nightmares about the Prix, and asks Miss Raine to remove her from the competition. [I thought this was a major reaction!] Ben is selected as the alternate to compete in Sammy's place, which Abigail supports but Tara rejects. Grace manages to psych out Tara a bit in the contemporary round, but Abigail helps Tara train a different dance for "The Red Shoes," the solo that is Tara's unicorn of sorts. [like that Gone in 60 Seconds reference?] Ben does the piece Sammy would have done, with video of his friends dancing in the background, who then join on-stage. The choreography wasn't approved in advance, so he's disqualified. [how do the kids keep jumping from the audience to backstage to sidestage? all-access passes??]

Though Tara had more heart, Grace wins the Prix and decides to return to the Academy, Abigail goes to Spain with Ethan for the summer, Kat passes her finals and is accepted into second-year (and decides to go to the farm with Tara for the summer), and Christian (now 18!) rides his motorcycle off alongside his father.