Women's Murder Club 101

The name may well suck, but seemingly the show might not. Colour me surprised. It's pretty straight forward really, and as they say in the show, it's not really a club. Four women; a homicide detective, a lawyer, a coroner and a reporter, all work together and share information to solve murder cases.

No caption could compete with what this is actually about.

I only recognise two of the women, but I would say they are all relatively unknown. The cop was in a lot of Law & Order apparently (and Baywatch Nights anyone?), so I guess somebody knows her. The coroner I only know to see, but she always stands out for me and I quite like her. The lawyer is none other than Daisy from Dead Like Me, which possibly explains why she doesn't have time for the upcoming Dead Like Me project. I'm not entirely sure I like her character in this though, but maybe she isn't meant to be liked. The last is the reporter who I don't particularly like, but she's the outsider so maybe she'll grow on me.

To hell with walls of weird, if I go insane I'm putting stuff on the ceiling.

The show starts off with a bang (literally) and pretty much held my attention throughout. I can see how maybe the sharing of information thing might become a little too convenient, a deus ex machina around every corner (coroner?) perhaps. I can also see how the old "ooh our relationships are so messed up, let's talk about it" thing could be tiresome. It is an interesting angle though to give all the roles to women. I'm sure if Sex and the City had more guns and dead bodies it would have had more of a male audience. I'm not sure how that would have worked exactly, but maybe they could have literally killed each other over shoes.

One actress needed. Must be able to breathe through nose.

If the show had ended a different way, perhaps I would be more skeptical. I think they've set it up nicely for an overall theme to the season though, which has gotten my attention. Also, I would have to say they didn't pull any punches with the theme, it's definitely not kittens and rainbows.

Flash Gordon 101 - 108

I'll be honest, I can't really remember what the original Flash Gordon was like or about. All I remember is that Flash wore red and Ming was green with crazy facial hair. So for all I know it was Christmas in space. Having said that, when I watched the new Flash Gordon, it just seemed wrong. I don't know if this is my unconscious mind objecting, or if it's just a bad show. For a start, there is no space or spaceships. They travel between Earth and Mingopolis, or whatever it's called, using rifts. Secondly, the beam from the blaster pistols looks incredibly cheesy. Those were my main objections from the beginning.

Serious faces mean serious business!

To be honest, I'm surprised I'm still actually watching it eight episodes later. I found the first four or five episodes incredibly boring. They can play that upbeat music all they like, it doesn't trick me into thinking something exciting is happening. Also, there is seemingly no danger. They just run home again through their little rift once they're done with the job. Even when they do get captured, somebody just lets him go again. My impression of the original was that it was very much about the grand adventure of travelling through space away from your home, and coming to terms with the alien planet. This is more like running errands and being home in time for dinner. It may have worked for child detectives in novels, but I would have thought this should have some more consequences.

He might be looking a bit peaky, but definitely not green.

The characters mostly annoy me. Obviously times have changed since the original, but it seems to me like Flash is completely emasculated by Baylin most of the time. I'm all for strong female heroes, but the show is called "Flash Gordon" and not "Baylin". I would happily watch a show called "Baylin", as she is in a way the character I find most tolerable (Which is sad because there wasn't even a Baylin character in the original), but that's besides the point. I would just appreciate if the hero of the show could do anything by himself. He can't even escape without begging Ming's daughter for help. As for the other two characters, they just seem like two big annoying stereotypes. Ooh look at me, I'm Lois Lane, and here's the socially inept scientist we don't appreciate but completely rely on. Actually to be fair, Baylin is also a giant stereotype, the emotionless alien hunter with a traumatic past who will eventually open up and start feeling again, but in the meantime stabs water bottles with a knife and drinks from it like a fountain.

Dramatic camera angle, feeeeeeeel the emotion.

I don't even know where the show is going at this stage. It seems like the only storyline they've really set up is that of Ming's downfall. Maybe they were intending to stretch that out for seven seasons, but it doesn't seem like the best longterm plan to me. They are already making moves in that direction and I don't really understand it, because my impression of the original was that they pretty much never defeated Ming.

To give it some credit, however small, I did notice that they suddenly flicked a switched and started adding in humour. Whilst it was sudden and unexplained, the fact that everybody suddenly started making jokes did at least make it easier to watch. I will probably hold out for a little longer to see if it keeps changing, but if it stabilizes as it is, I'm probably gone.

Reaper 102 + 103

Okay, so Reaper isn't quite what I was expecting it to be. That isn't necessarily a bad thing though, I'm coming to terms with it. I was expecting the focus to be on catching the soul, and I thought he would get a little more into it. However it seems he is going to remain somewhat reluctant about the whole thing, and the focus is somewhat more on his normal life and relationships. So, less asskicking and more talking about his feeeeeelings. This made the second episode feel a little slow for me, but after the third episode I'm getting used to it. I like Missy Peregrym which helps (kind of glad she didn't do a cameo in Heroes as Candice in 203).

Oh The Devil, you're such a card.

I think it's kind of an interesting theme to the show that his parents never pushed him to do anything with his life, because of their tremendous guilt over what they had done. Now he's stuck in a dead end job that he hates, and doesn't know what to do about it. I think this is probably something they're going to focus on, as they've set up his two friends to be opposite ends of the scale; one wants a career and one never wants to leave home.

It's decidedly the hat that completes the ensemble.

You can't help but find their outfits each week amusing, as they really go all out. I'm not entirely sure where they're going with it all though, things are going to have to change as time goes on or I don't think it'll last. For the moment though, I'll wait and see.

"Oh sorry, that's me at the Emmys."

I am a terrible person

I have been slacking.

Pushing Daisies 101

My only dilemma with this show, is what word do I start with? Wow, amazing or fantastic? The premise is strangely simple considering how bizarre it is. If Ned touches someone dead, they come back to life. If he touches them a second time, they die permanently. If they're brought back to life for more than 60 seconds, someone else nearby has to die to take their place. He pretty much uses this ability to ask people how they died, or more to the point, who killed them.

Where's Wally?

Probably the first thing to notice is the visual style, colours, and voiceover. It is definitely reminiscent of Amelie, and despite Amelie's voiceover being in French, I can't help but feel it's so similar. Everything looks so good and it's shot so nicely... and the soundtrack is perfect, giving it a sort of bedtime story feel. It's really enjoyable to watch, even without the story. It's created by Bryan Fuller who did Wonderfalls, a show that was supposedly fantastic but cancelled early. I never managed to see it. He's also involved in Heroes and even more interestingly, Dead Like Me. I don't think you can point any fingers about this being too similar to Dead Like Me though.

I foresee a lot of time in the morgue.

The story line has a lot of potential, the acting is spot on, and I look forward to seeing more of the aunts. There's also a pretty unusual twist on a love story, which is really interesting to see. My only fear is that it won't survive, so far only six episodes are listed on IMDB. Fingers crossed.

How can you not love this show?

Bionic Woman 102

I shouldn't really be talking about new episodes of the same shows, before I talk about the first episodes of new shows, but I can't help it! The second episode of Bionic Woman was... good..ish. I was hoping it would be a little more aah, a bit more oooh, and a twist more holy smokes! It disappointed me a little that it didn't have more pizazz and that maybe the plot was a bit fillerish. They clearly want to get themselves to a certain point in the story, and it seems like they decided to cram all the stuff that should happen up until that point into the second episode. Some things were just too convenient, and tied up in ribbon with a nice little bow.

Bionic Woman or Speedy Gonzalez?

The first few scenes really surprised me though, I have to admit. I didn't realise they were going in that direction, but I guess the addition of Isaiah Washington to the cast is meant to fill things out. I find it hard (as usual?) to figure out what exactly it was about the episode that bothered me. The ending it to was extremely anti-climactic. Oh boy, we got a big problem! Phew okay, that sorted that. What's that Jamie? Oh, super!

Body wire? What body wire?

I did really like some scenes however, such as her fight scene. It was a very reasonable start, and I'm glad she didn't turn into super woman overnight. The strange, slightly butch, blonde woman also made a funny. Again though, convenience saved the day, and they completely shrugged off the mystery they were building up. It was strange, but I think I will still be watching for a while yet to see how things pan out.

That's not lying, that's having an aneurysm.

Street Fighter: The Later Years

Hurrah! If you haven't heard of Street Fighter: The Later Years, what sort of Street Fighter fan are you? CollegeHumor.com apparently, who'd have thought, have their own department for creating original content. Last year they made three live action episodes of SF:TLY and it looked really promising. Obviously it's a bit cheesy, but that's part of the fun, and it's cool to see them putting in the real powers in every episode. Something the Van Damme/Kylie Minogue movie was severely lacking.

No Chun Li, I liked my old hat!

Thankfully they've picked up where they left off, and are promising seven new episodes. September's episode is out already, and October's should be along any day now. What are you waiting for? Watch it! Also for those who are interested, there's some pretty interesting "how we did the special effects" videos here and here.

Life 101 + 102

There I was, going about my business, when I get blindsided by Life. No, not that "real life" thing, the tv show Life. I had looked at the description and pretty much dismissed it. Another stoopid cop show, I was in prison, blah blah blah, I was framed and cleared 12 years later, woe is me, boohoo. Well yes, anyway, suffice to say I was not thrilled by the premise of the show, a detective who just got out of prison and is now a little bit kooky. However, I made a deal with someone that I would watch Life, if they watched Reaper. Turns out, it was a pretty sweet deal!

Whatcha gonna do when they come for you?

Okay yes, he's a homicide detective, there is most likely a murder a week, and he's good at solving crimes by spotting things normal people don't. He has a feisty partneress, and he has issues. It may not sound new, but actually I think it's a pretty refreshing take on things. It's more about the people, him being Charlie and her being Dani (she has issues too). It even has that guy that was in Chicago Hope I think, but judging by IMDB they're sort of phasing out the extras in the cast. It's hard to put my finger on why exactly this show seems different, but the two main characters are really likeable, warts and all.

Some kind of documentary thing is mixed in for a little exposition.

There is of course a few other things to know. He got some huge settlement and has lots of money. He has an unusual outlook on things which isn't entirely explained yet, but he listens to self-help tapes etc. He has a wall of weird investigating the crime that put him away. Honestly, unless you have zero tolerance for even seeing police on screen, I think this is a pretty captivating dose of light entertainment.

Help, my hair is on fire.

I found him!

If this isn't hilarious, I don't know what is.

Heroes 201 + 202

Do I even need to say anything about Heroes? Who isn't watching it? The second season, unsurprisingly really, started a little slow. It would be difficult to keep up the pace when they had resolved all the storylines. It's picking up nicely though, and they're setting up lots more stories, with even more to come (Niki?).

Durrrr, didn't I leave something here?

So far they've picked back up with the cheerleader, mind-reading guy, Hiro, and the Petrellis (sort of). The cheerleader seems to be getting a lot of time, I wonder why! I have a feeling it'll balance out as more people are added however, and I can barely contain my excitement that Kristen Bell is due in 205 and will be in a whole 13 episodes!!! I accidentally spoiled what her power is for myself, but I'll spare you the same fate. There's something I want to say about it, but I'll wait till she appears. They've also added the South American twins, who so far seem to have a really useless power. The interesting thing about it of course is that it's a two-person power, but until we see some other applications of it... it's not much. I was really surprised that woman helping them just got up and walked away.

I shouldn't have bought that cheap mascara.

I was surprised to see David Anders (Sark from Alias) appear. I was even more surprised that he'll speak Japanese, but they still have him speaking English like he's about to order some tea and crumpets. I've heard his other accents, why didn't they let him use one? But then having heard what they try to pass off as an Irish accent, ugh. They can spend a million per episode, but they can't call someone in Ireland to see what they actually sound like.

I think something moved in his beard...

The Big Bang Theory 101 + 102

The Big Bang Theory is funny. It's an extremely simple sitcom, but it makes me laugh. It's about two physicist roommates, and a supposedly dumb blonde girl who moves in across the hall. There's also two nerd friends as backup. There's not much to it really, but the nerds are very funny in their explanations of things and their interaction with the girl who doesn't understand them.

Hi. Hi. Hi.

You might recognise the lead nerd as that guy from Roseanne. That's about all I know him from. She's from season 8 of Charmed and some Disney crap. Although I kind of don't like her, so far she's ok. The scary perv nerd is a little bit extreme, but thankfully they keep him in small quantities, so it doesn't get too awkward.

One of many types of humour on offer.

I wondered if the humour would last beyond the pilot, but after two episodes it's still going strong. You'll either it love or not get it probably. Either way, you should know after one episode.

Chuck 101

Chuck is a strange one. It's on NBC, and from what I can gather that implies a certain seriousness. There's nothing "zany" about shows on NBC, even if they're comedies. So when I say that Chuck is a comedy, and it's about a guy who downloads a government database into his brain, I mean that in an entirely serious way. He's not "Wahey, party in my head!" but rather "Oh the humanity!". It's strange for other reasons too. I can't find how many episodes it's going to have, the number on IMDB is currently 7 (was 6). The cast seems to change a lot, with the main people apparently not really the main people. Who knows what's going to happen, let's move on to the pros and cons.

Can YOUR security guards do Parkour?

Pros: It's nerdy. It's about spies. It's about nerds being spies. One of the spies is Adam Baldwin aka Jane from Firefly. It has C.S. Lee aka Masuka from Dexter. One of the spies is a hot woman, Yvonne Strzechowski. There are strange sequences of images as he thinks about something in the database that are pretty interesting. The sequence near the start with the Parkour is really fun and it's a pity there probably won't be more of it. I would watch a show about Parkour spies.

I told you retail was the thing this season.

Cons: Oh boy. It's REALLY nerdy. I don't think he is ever going to actually be a spy. There's going to be a lot of "technical" things which are really quite sad and unrealistic. Viruses do not fry your hardware and cause sparks mmkay? His sidekick is made out to be really sad, to make it look like Chuck is the better option, as if nerds are a lower lifeform. They play up the "socially retarded but can fix stuff for you so use him!" angle way too much for my liking. The idea of a) being able to email someone an 8 hour video collage from your cellphone and b) being able to stand there and watch an 8 hour video collage and then absorb it completely into your brain and c) a database being stored as a video collage, is dumb. Let's just say there are a lot of things to nitpick about this show, and I am going to stop before I start frothing at the mouth.

Stand back, I'm going to hack the bomb!

Despite the list of cons drastically outweighing the pros, I am still going to watch it. You heard me. It was somewhat entertaining and I was mostly able to ignore the technical stuff at the time. I am curious to see where it goes.

Reaper 101

I have to admit, Reaper seems pretty good. The pilot was directed by Kevin Smith which I suppose is an endorsement. A guy wakes up on his 21st birthday to eventually find out that, oops, his parents sold his soul to the devil and now he has to work for him. I was a little worried it was going to be too cheesy and packed to the brim with cliches, but I was pleasantly surprised. It's pretty easy to watch. It seems like there'll be special effects in every episode, and they were good but... not up to Heroes standards.

They didn't pay me to speak.

Speaking of Heroes, everybody's favourite illusionist Candice (Missy Peregrym) plays the love interest Andi. There's also the best friend called Sock, and not to spoil anything but, let's just say IMDB doesn't have him listed for the full season. He hasn't annoyed me so far, but I can see how he might. The Devil is played by Ray Wise, and he was pretty good so far. He has the usual "ooh I'm the devil and I'm casually doing earthly things while I talk to you" schtick, but it wasn't over the top like it is sometimes.

Is working in retail the 'thing' for this season?

The overall premise seems pretty good, I won't spoil what exactly the work he does for the devil is. I was surprised to see a cameo by Christine Willes who played Delores Herbig in Dead Like Me. I hope it's a respectful nod to the show, because dammit I loved Dead Like Me and it was a crime it got cancelled. They are at least making a TV movie of it now which I'm looking forward to. Speaking of shows about death, I'm also looking forward to Pushing Daisies which should be on soon. Although all three shows are about death, I think Reaper is pretty different and covers new ground. It has plenty of potential. Oh, I forgot to mention it's sort of a comedy. In case you couldn't tell.

Herbig, as in her big ass horns.

Bionic Woman 101

Ahh, The Bionic Woman. I used to love that show. Even the bionic dog had a little place in my heart. For years afterwards you couldn't jump without doing it in slow motion and making a boiiiinnggggg noise. As always, a remake is good news and bad news. Good news because you loved the show and you want to see it again. Bad news because they'll probably botch it horribly and you'll hate them for it. So far though, Bionic Woman (what was so wrong with the word "The"?) is pretty good. At least, in so far as they didn't screw it up. It is different though. It seems darker and she seems like she'll be moodier. The original was fairly perky, and she had a smile on her face as she clobbered someone with her arm like it was a club.

I'm moody. Don't mess with me.

The pilot is fairly straight forward. It sets up her life very briefly and introduces her sister and boyfriend. Apparently her sister isn't deaf any more, now she's a l33t hacker. It seems like they even removed the extended preview featuring the sister from YouTube. So she crashes, she gets rebuilt, she learns how to use everything, she kicks a little ass, sticks it to the man, and walks off into the sunset. Or rain, in this case. There is stuff I could nitpick (I could nitpick anything), but nothing actively annoyed me. I did notice though that Sarah (the villain) said "the first time the ear and eye implants come online" when she was being nice. She also whispered from across the room knowing she'd hear her. Yet later on when she was fighting, she tried to guess her implants and didn't know about the ear. Oops? Oh well.

Girls fighting in the rain. Aimed at guys perhaps?

I had never heard Michelle Ryan (Jamie) speak before, but she has a fairly frightening English accent. Thankfully she pulls off the American accent. Katie Sackhoff (Sarah) is good as the badass, but then we knew that from Battlestar Galactica.

Hello, is my lipstick ok?

Overall, I look forward to seeing more!

What to talk about...

There are so many interesting new tv shows this year and I can't help watching them all. For the moment at least, until they spiral into a pit of despair and loathing. Or I get bored. The only question is, what to talk about first?