Colony, Season Two, Episode Seven: Free Radicals

So much happened this episode of Colony, that it's hard to know where to start. The one thing that is certain is that the writers are not playing any games and have amped up the story. Death to collaborators is about to become the genuine article and I for one heartily approve. 

We know that a big shipment is being sent out from the factory where Bram is being housed but until this episode, we didn't know what the shipment was or the plans of the resistance in this regard.  When Bram was recruited by the resistance, he had no idea just how vital his help would be.  It turns out that for all of their planning and scheming, what the resistance has needed all along is someone on the inside capable of gaining Snyder's trust and to get access to Snyder's swipe card. Bram is informed of his task after having the briefest sex possible with Maya in the back of a crate. It seems that fucking is a tradition of people in the resistance before heading out on a mission. Well, if you're gonna die, one last orgasm seems the least that they are entitled to and poor Maya doesn't even get to cum. 

Bram meets with Snyder and expresses his worry that the resistance is on to him and will kill him. Snyder tries to reassure Bram but is called away by a guard. Bram uses the opportunity to search Snyder's desk and steal his access card. When Snyder returns, Bram is standing behind his desk, thus raising Snyder's suspicion.  Bram plays it off like he was just looking at Snyder's map and questions if he will be allowed to go home if he provides Snyder with information. Snyder, being the snake that he is, is quick to agree and so Bram points to the map and says that the prisoners are planning an escape. I gotta say, I didn't think Bram had it in him to be so smooth. 

Back on the factory floor, a couple of prisoners make their way towards the fence and having been warned by Bram, the Agency forces are ready for them.  What Snyder doesn't realise is that he's been played and that this has all been a distraction so that Maya and Bram can get away. Bram and Maya race with their homemade bomb to the storage area that Snyder showed Nolan in the last episode. When they open up one of the capsules they find an unconscious woman inside. Maya frees the woman, who promptly falls to the ground and starts expectorating the vilest green goop.  It looks like the woman is actually drowning from being forced to breathe the air.  It's enough to make me wonder if a) she's an alien or b) the aliens are turning humans into them? 

Bram and Maya don't have time to speculate about the woman because Jenkins has tracked them down.  Maya sends Bram off to deal with Jenkins armed with a shank while she continues with the mission.  Unsurprisingly, Bram doesn't fare well against Jenkins and is only saved by another prisoner sneaking up behind Jenkins and bashing his head in. I am sincerely hoping that Jenkins, who is a cruel bastard, is dead. Bram is ordered to rejoin the rest of the prisoners before it's noted that he's missing. 

The prisoners are all rounded up and Snyder is quick to note that one person is missing. The missing person as we know is Maya. Considering that Snyder was told that the plan was to escape the factory, he's not overly wound up, particularly because they can still send the shipment off on time.  The ship takes off and everything is fine at first, but suddenly it explodes. All of the Los Angeles Bloc sees the explosion, which is clearly meant to signal that the resistance is alive and well. 

Bram is absolutely stunned by the events of the day and is clearly in far over his head.  He speaks to the man who saved him from Jenkins to ask where Maya is and is informed that he knows where Maya is. That's right, Maya is dead because she set off the explosion from inside the ship. The man tells Bram that he hopes Bram is as brave as Maya was because they are going to call her a hero and things are about to get real. Bram lays downs and cries.

Supernatural. Season 12, Episode 13: Family Feud

This is another monster of the week episode but a nifty one as it draws on some old plot lines and continues to peak my interest in one of the characters who has had some shifts lately

So the bad is a ghost killing teachers based in a museum which means it’s going to quickly rack up the bodies and quite gruesomely. The Winchesters drop in and do their investigating thing, looking for the ghosty artefact to salt and burn

In the museum they find a part of a sunken ship and its contents – it’s the ship Gavin Macleod was supposed to sail on from Scotland to the US

Forget who Gavin is? Gavin is the mortal, human, son of Crowley when he was alive and before he became a demon. Due to various shenanigans and time travel and other factors, Abaddon grabbed him from the past before he got on that ship and brought him to the 21^st century and Crowley refused to send him back, saving his life

What Gavin has been doing wandering around the 21^st century despite being several centuries old is a mystery

The Winchesters quickly seize on this and try to get hold of Gavin – Crowley refuses to help being extremely pissed at the Winchesters since he’s realised they failed to get Kelly an abortion to stop her giving birth to the Nephilim of doom – so they turn to Rowena.

These leads to a rather touching meeting between Rowena and the grandson she never met, securing his co-operation in identifying the ghost:

He was in love with a woman called Fiona way back when and she was determined to be with him when he fled to America. She stowed away on the ship and hid there: except, of course, he wasn’t there. Instead she was a woman on a ship with a reputation for chasing after a man: the men abused her and even the female teacher said she deserved it for being a slutwhorejezebel. In weird Supernatural ghost logic this turns Fiona into a force for death and torture against all teachers rather than against all rapists, misogynists or slut shamers (I suppose if she were the latter there would be less motive to remove her and more motive to send her amulet on a world tour).

Gavin tries to talk to her, but it’s been well established on Supernatural that spirits aren’t really things you can reason with (just look at Bobby‘s ghostly storyline).

So burn and salt the amulet which is her tether? For plot reasons the Winchesters decide they can’t because she may randomly be tied to something else? No real reason for this after all, she snuck onto a ship, it’s unlikely she’d have a huge number of possessions in that situation and we’ve only seen the necklace be the haunted object

The Magicians, Season 2, Episode 5: Cheat Day

Oh my god that rabbit

I can’t even begin this review, I’m just crying with laughter. I don’t even know why but the creepy pregnancy test rabbit?

Ok I can focus

“pregnant”

*snerk* I don’t even know why this is funny to me.

Since I’ve mentioned pregnancy rabbit, let’s start with Elliot in Fillory who is reigning over the wrecked kingdom and completely obsessed over alcohol. Because of course he is. Then Fenn, his wife, arrives to announce she’s pregnant with his child (told by said rabbit). He pretends to be thrilled before someone tries to assassinate him. He’s part of a rebellion group, the Foo-Fighters who want Fillorian people on the throne and no more people from Earth. He kind of… has a point, to be honest. The country has been completely wrecked and is always ruled by clueless foreigners? Yup, vive la resistance!

It’s a terrible assassination attempt and Margot is quick to intervene. His courtiers decide that the assassin absolutely must be executed – including a psychotic sloth who is quite creative. Margot also notes their contempt for the peasantry with an awesome “if we’re the least snobby people in the room, there’s something wrong with the room”. So they hit the books and decide to do some research on how to deal with rebellions, eventually coming up with execution. Elliot decides to be all dramatic and insist on doing it himself – which Margot duly rocks in perfect Margot style

Y’know, every ruler needs a Margot to deflate their heads, stop them getting up themselves and occasionally advocate brutal practicality

Elliot changes his mind and instead decides to ask the Foo Fighter exactly how he would fix Fillory. A mature, compassionate choice, albeit rather naïve, since it acknowledges he doesn’t know a damn thing about the country or ruling and these people may actually have a clue. Of course this also means overruling Margot revealing that she may be High Queen but he’s still boss because of bullshit patriarchy. Which Margot also points out and hopefully she will point out more and more.

I also need to skewer the homophobic nonsense of Elliot’s “growth”. Left to his own devices? He obsesses about wine and ignores his kingdom. This is gay/immature/useless Elliot. Elliot + straight wife and new baby, Elliot in his forced straight life and straight family, MATURE Elliot is making hard choices and worrying about the kingdom and trying to make a better world – and this continues constantly through every episode and it’s toxic for all the reasons I’ve mentioned before

This may get more complex because it turns out Fenn knows the assassin and used to be a member – they assumed she was just trying to get close to the king but she’s thoroughly on team Elliot, father of her child now and has plenty of threats should he act up. But he threatens to tell Elliot of her former loyalties – especially since it’s well known the king is emotional and sensitive.

Because Magicans is subtle about its stereotypes guys.

Anyway, let’s move to Penny – his hands are still not producing magic and Henry, despite healing his own hands, can’t really do anything for Penny. But he knows someone who may help: Mayakovsky: our drunken, world hating Russian teacher who I always kind of loved.

The Walking Dead: Rick and his Fan Club

There's never been any doubt that Rick is the protagonist of this show.  There are times that for whatever reason, the writers seem determined to drive home the White, cis, het able bodied male will save the world narrative and Hostiles and Calamities is just one such occasion. The white man will save us was laid on so heavily and enforced by one of the four black male characters that I found myself wanting to simply turn off this episode.  The racial dynamics at play seem lost on the writers who are determined at all cost to set Rick up for victory.

The Walking Dead has essentially erased race from the conversation as though a dystopian setting would suddenly bring up about the equality that is so sadly missing in our civilised world. In seven seasons, there have been two conversations about race. The first occurred between T Dog and Dale in the second season.  T Dog expressed his concern about travelling with two white police officers only to be quickly shut down by an incredulous Dale as though police officers abusing their authority to actively harm Black men isn’t a historical fact. This conversation only existed to affirm the goodness of Rick and, at the time, Shane.  T Dog’s legitimate fears were deemed meaningless because the purpose of shows like The Walking Dead is to have power coalesce into the hands of white men as though their leadership guarantees success for all. This is an abject negation of the fact that men like Rick have been the primary cause of violence, rape, starvation, physical brutality of communities of colour since First Contact.  

The second conversation was between Daryl and his older brother Meryl. After leaving the group for a time to be with brother, Daryl decides to return. Meryl makes it clear that he cannot go with Daryl because he “damn could have killed that black bitch and damn near killed the Chinese kid”.  Daryl simply replies to Meryl, “he’s Korean”, in reference to Glenn, before walking away. This moment is meant to stand out because it represents Daryl’s redemption train. By turning his back on Meryl and going back to Rick and the group he is signalling that he is choosing to live in a community rather than relying upon comradery based solely on a homogenous identity of whiteness. Darryl’s redemption train is short  because it is assumed that his racist beliefs are a victimless crime and that having seen the light that he should be afforded the benefit of the doubt. That this approach simply doubles down on the white supremacist attitude that the writers are trying to divorce Darryl from seems lost in the desire to offer a redemption to allow a popular character to not only rise in the ranks but to fully integrate as a trusted member of the group. It is a subtle dismissal of white supremacist beliefs by having them dismissed and ignored so easily

Darryl has made no apologies for his former belief system, there was barely even a nod towards them. It has simply been erased as though it didn’t permeate his formative years thus greatly affect his sense of self. Darryl’s moment of epiphany isn’t based on the morality as much as it is based in a need to survive in this new dystopian world. That it comes with a reward of increased status and the ability to be seen as valued is simply glossed over. It’s a convenient change of ideology that is both self serving and disturbing in its ability to erase the harm of white supremacy on communities of colour. Glenn is a friend and coupled with a need to survive, it now costs Darryl nothing to admit his humanity.

At very least it’s a rather waste of a storyline - actually having Darryl grow, change, confront his beliefs and understand the full impact of how terrible they were and trying to move on from that would have been an interesting, developed, character building and respectful way of not just adding flesh to some rather dull seasons AND respectfully addressing racism.

Race as an issue on The Walking Dead is either silenced or simply a part of the elevation of White supremacy.  The Walking Dead routinely divorces its characters of colour from any distinct cultural markers.  They don’t congregate at anytime to discuss how their experiences or situation might well differ from that of the white characters; there is no closeness based in difference, they barely interact at all. Surviving the threat that zombies pose along with the threat from out group individuals is used to tie people together.  Whatever disagreements may occur between individuals never come down to racial disharmony, they are always about something else.

Most recently, we’ve seen tension between Sasha and Rosita who represent fifty percent of the women of colour on this show.  It’s telling that the source of the antagonism between these two women is the very white and now dead Abraham. In Rock in the Road, Rosita makes it clear that she and Sasha aren’t friends and only slept with the same dead man.  Keep in mind that there are several men of colour on The Walking dead currently and yet 50% of the female cast of colour are grieving the death of a White man.  That these men weren’t even considered to be viable love interest goes a long way in The Walking Dead’s narrative purpose of setting up White men as the epitome of masculinity and desirability. Masculinity in The Walking Dead’s work is always hyper aggressive and is continually rewarded.

The 100, Season Four, Episode Four: A Lie Guarded

So much happened in this episode.  For me what stood out a lot are the parallel stories told about leadership. On one hand, we have Clarke, who is acting Counselor in Kane's absence and while Clarke is doing what she believes is best for her people, she's clearly conflicted about her decisions. On the Ark, Clarke hated everything about Jaha, but now placed in a similar situation, she finds herself seeing a sort of kinship with the man.  Then there's Luna, who has abdicated leadership in the past and now finds herself in the position to save all of humanity by virtue of the blood she actively seeks to reject.  Luna could be a leader but she clearly wants no part in it.  Roan, clearly believes that he was meant to lead his people and enjoys his power but is all too aware of exactly tenuous his position is.  Kane, is desperate to hold the shaky alliance together but is also desperate to hold onto his new found morality. Finally, we have Abby, who depends on science to save the day.  The 100, is offering us several different types of leadership styles and they are all to some degree sympathetic.  At the end of the day, what really matters is humanity being able to survive the coming storm. 

Let's begin with the return to ALLIE's little island.  It seems that Jaha informed everyone that there's a lab there where Nightblood was originally made.  Abby, Raven, Nyko, Luna, Murphy, Emori and a few soldiers head out with the hope of turning everyone into a Nightblood.  As they reach the markers, Emori stops, having never passed it before because to do was to break ALLIE's rule about mutants on the island.  It's Murphy who crosses first and extends his hand in support to Emori.  I really like these two as a couple, even if they are always scheming for the best advantage for themselves. 

The moment they get through the barrier, they are attacked by ALLIE's drones and have to take cover.  Nyko ends up sacrificing himself to stop Luna from being shot to death.  As the crew dives for cover, Luna takes the opportunity to disappear. Without Luna's blood -- this entire endeavor is pointless -- so they split up to find her. Abby heads off with Emori and Murphy, who discuss hiding out in the shelter that he was locked in the first time he came to the island. Murphy's only objection is that it's no longer stocked with supplies, even though it's large enough for two.  Raven is forced to stay behind because of her leg.  This is when Raven notices that the drone Jackson shot earlier is still active.  Raven tries to get to it but is chased back to the bushes. It's then Raven notices Luna making her way back to the boat.  Raven chases after Luna, and just manages to cross the barrier before being shot.  Clearly, Luna has had enough and thinks that humanity is just horrible, and therefore; believes that project save humans should just end. Raven manages to talk Luna down by reminding her of just how good Adria was and adds that there are other Adrias out there.  Luna helps Raven retrieve the drone and Raven shuts it down.  I really like that even though Raven's disability slowed her down that her skill at hacking served as a reminder of just how skilled Raven is. 

With the way no clear of drones, Abby and crew reunite and enter the lab.  It's all bright and shiny, causing amazement.  It's only then that they begin to wonder why ALLIE felt the need to have drones in the first place.  Exactly what was ALLIE protecting the lab from? Abby wisely advises Raven to get the drones back in the air as soon as possible. 

Things in Arkadia start off light and almost fun, but don't stay that way for long. Courtesy of Jasper, Jaha awakes to find himself floating on a mattress in the middle of the lake.  Jasper calls the peoples attention when Jaha awakens before calling out to Jaha that he's been floated.  It's a light take on the very real punishments Jaha inflicted when he was Counselor. It's also btw the last time that I didn't want to slap Jasper this episode. 

Softpaw (Smilodon Pride #1) by Beryll Brackhause and Osiris Brackhaus

Connor loves Paris and revels in his beautiful life in the museums of the city and the streets of Le Marais – and he’s always ready to take in waifs and strays who need shelter, good advice and a warm meal

But when these gay sex workers are targeted by a serial killer, Connor’s not going to stand aside and if he catches the serial killer they’ll find there’s another dangerous predator prowling the rooftops of Paris.

While Michel is an undercover cop, ideally placed to infiltrate the killers victims – being a former sex worker himself. But can he lure in the killer without falling into old, destructive habits?

Like many paranormal romances, I find myself a little frustrated by the fact actually hunting down the serial killer takes a very big back step to the romance. I don’t know how much Michel actually spends investigating the murder at all… I mean other than walking the streets looking sexy I can’t really point to anything Michel does to actually hunt down the serial killer. Michel does little more than move in with Connor and then repeatedly fall asleep instead of doing his job and then destroying evidence. Connor does more, but even he gets heavily distracted.

I do actually like the romance, I think it has a lot of positive elements, is nicely based, has reasonable conflicts and is generally something I appreciate – but it’s hard to be that invested in it when there are men being murdered and that’s pushed into the background.

I am somewhat bemused with the idea that the police are under so much pressure from the powers that be to solve this case right now! The dead are sex workers, homeless street walkers, gay men and, at least some of them, immigrants, possibly undocumented. The powers that be being passionately outraged about this does not match up with actual official reaction to the deaths of any of these groups, let alone men who straddle all of them. I think it would have been much better to focus on Judge d’Angers, a clearly deeply involved woman (in what we don’t know yet) who could be driven by her own moral code (or other motives we’re not yet privy to).

I really like Connor and Michel here – they’re fun characters, they have hobbies, histories and depths. I like how they grow together, I like how they come to realise more depth. I like how Michel relates back to his previous life but is happy about how far he has come and is very confident as to risk everything to prove himself. I like Connor, his life his dedication to art, his existence, community and friends.

I like the unique wereanimal, some very original takes on werecreatures in general and a really interesting take on the supernatural depiction of the Council of Paris. I really really wish we could see more of the supernatural here. The hints of the supernatural are too brief, Connor’s history is too brief, his family too brief and what it means to be a weresmilodon was all pretty abruptly passed over. Which is a shame because not only did I want to see more of these unique elements, but I felt the supernatural wasn’t as big a part of this book as I like

But I really did like to see Connor stalking the houses of Paris. And how that isn’t quite as easy for a big cat as we often see depicted

Etched in Bone (The Others #5) by Anne Bishop

Humanity has been firmly rebuked by the Others. Towns have been depopulated, bodies have piled up, communication is splintered.

Humanity tries to rebuild in the aftermath and to face the new reality they live in, under new rules and under new restrictions.

And none more so than Lakeside – Meg, Simon et al have built a whole different way for humans and Others to interact and the Elders are curious. What they learn in Lakeside may decide the fate of all humanity.

And the appearance of Cyrus, Monty’s criminal, shiftless brother, risks upending all of that.

The Meg, The Meg is back! We love the Meg. We adore the Meg. This is known!

After last book, the whole land has been mauled by the Others. Humanity has been slaughtered and the conflict that has pretty much defined the last few books has been dramatically changed. The whole Humans First and Last movement is no longer a force to be reckoned with. The Others have revealed their claws and the whole idea of humans rising up and taking the land is now well and truly gone.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t plenty of humans who hate the Others – of course there is – but the whole idea of them as an institutional powerful force has slipped. Even the position of local government et al has slipped considerably towards appeasing the Others. Humanity is on survival mode now which makes for a very different tone overall for the books and characters specifically.

This book also carries on the tone of the Others being dangerous. That was always on the cards but as we saw more and more of the Others playing with the Exploding Fluffballs of the female pack, of the crows being endearing and curious – and even, in this book, Meg scolding the Elders for being insufficiently polite (and it’s moments of humour like this that really adds the peak to this book series). But this book not only presents the threat but reminds us that even the friendly, happy Others like Simon and the Crowguard are still vicious, dangerous and willing to eat humans who break the rules. The teeth is back in the series with this book.

The ongoing conflict is how the humans exist in this new Thasia. A world with more shortages, less communication, less trade and generally everything being so much more isolated than it was. It’s interesting how it touches on things like shortages – because that means “famine” or “starvation” to the Terra Indigene, but means “lack of options” to many of the humans. Obviously, The Others are less inclined to be sympathetic towards the idea of a monotonous diet being a terrible hardship (most of them are carnivores with a relative narrow prey selections) while at the same time being indulgent of the Female Pack

And, yes I love the women of the Courtyard. Because though Meg earned her respect and position among the Others with her unique abilities and nature first of all, the other women earned their place through personality, strength, capacity, courage and compassion (and attacking enemies with a teakettle). We also have some really excellent depiction of abusive relationships – but violent and non-physically violent relationships, how words have power and how people can be beaten down so completely in these relationships (and how domestic violence isn’t always between partners). It’s a meaningful and powerful storyline with some excellent characters. I’m also hoping for other women, including the women of the new frontier town, one of which is a police office resisting the sexist assumptions of humanity with the sheer bemusement of the others.

Beyond, Season One, Episode Nine: Out of Darkness

Out of Darkness is the penultimate episode of season one. At this point, as a viewer I should feel that the show is rising to a great crescendo but it feels more like it is limping to the finish line after a long drawn out struggle in which nothing really happened and nothing was explained.

When last we left Holden, he had been kidnapped by Yellow Jacket, (who still doesn't have a freaking name) at the behest of Tess, for Frost. Out of Darkness begins with Frost waking up and making an elaborate breakfast which he delivers to Holden's room. Frost is quite pleased with himself and his new captive. 

Willa and Luke meet at a diner and Luke asks about Hollow Sky. He recognised the logo on the cuff link when he was working for the church.  Luke is determined to get answers but Willa has none to offer having not seen Holden since before he went on his little road trip with Charlie.  Willa does take the time to warn Luke to stay away from Hollow Sky.  Their conversation comes to a halt when Willa gets a call from Jeff, to inform her that Holden has been taken captive.

Holden awakes in a strange bed and is disoriented for a moment.  He spies the breakfast which Frost left for him along with a clean shirt lying on the bed.  Holden looks out the window and sees a group of kids playing ring a round the rosey which I suppose is apropos given that Hollow Sky amounts to a death cult. Holden gets dressed and makes his way downstairs and into the kitchen where he pauses long enough to grab a utensil to use as a weapon.  In the distance music can be heard and so he follows the sound to Frost's private office.  Moments later, Frost walks in carrying wood for a fire and expresses happiness to see that Holden is finally awake. 

Now that Willa knows that Holden has been kidnapped, she's desperate to get him back and to that end, she pays a visit to Arthur.  Arthur isn't pleased that Frost now has Holden but he's unwilling to help get Holden back.  Arthur claims that he's already lost his daughter and is unwilling to potentially lost Willa as well. As you might imagine, this doesn't sit will with Willa and she decides it's truth telling time. Willa is certain at this point that Arthur is only concerned with his competition with Frost and that he is only throwing in the towel now because he believes he's lost the after life race.  Willa storms out but is stopped by Daniel, who gives her the coordinates for Hollow Sky.

Frost is completely magnanimous as he tells Holden, that he only wants a little bit of his time to explain everything that has gone on. The first stop is the garden, where Frost shows Holden a genetically modified tomato to begin the discussion about how far science has taken mankind, and how much further humanity can go.  Holden is dismissive of the tomato and questions if this is why Frost brought him here.

In the stables, Tess meets with Yellow Jacket, who wants to know what his next assignment is. When Tess orders Yellow Jacket to deal with Charlie, since she a loose threat, Yellow Jacket is not pleased because he wants to be allowed to stay to work with Frost and Holden.  Tess makes it clear that Yellow Jacket fulfills a specific job at Hollow Sky and that Holden is no longer his concern. A desperate Yellow Jacket asks to speak with Frost, but is informed that Frost is meeting with Holden right now.

Silent Whispers (Totem #2) by Christine Rains

Kinley Dorn, architect, werepolarbear and geek is used to being pushed to the sidelines when her more active sisters are trying to chase down the missing totem pieces.

Until Ransom, werelynx and assistant to a vampire, encourages her to leave her safety and join him on the site – though even he didn’t expect an extinct giant to be rampaging around the site.

I have to say I am generally quite happy about how the romance in this book in some ways though it is a bit odd in some says. It doesn’t dominate – it’s clear there’s chemistry between Ransom and Kinley, but it is definitely not taking over.

But it’s always present which is slightly odd. Not because it’s distracting like so many romances are in this genre – because it isn’t. The characters are clearly focused on stopping the zombie giant, helping the people around the land and finding the totem. The focus is clear. The romance is… not? It’s not so much a distraction so much as a blink and “oh, yeah… romance. Apparently? Ok”. And in some ways I find the romance far more out of place than I find it a distraction: because the focus is so clearly present that it seems weird that these cleverly focused people are instead suddenly throwing this focus to a side to muse over how hot Ransom is

I also found it somewhat detrimental to their development – we spent time on the romance when we could have spent more time on the actual characters. We have to remember this is a very short book – so needs to be careful where the focus is. What do I know about Ransom? He’s a good looking rascal. What do I know about Kinley? She’s a geek with self-esteem issues. Rather than have this little odd romance we could have explored Kinley’s abilities, her skills as an architect (hey, one thing I loved about Totem is that it did a great job of, in a brief space, showing Ametta’s skill as an interior designer and why this matters for the supernatural beings who are their customers), finding her confidence in ways other than “yes the hot guy actually thinks you’re hot despite your love of Firefly”. Even more geeky references (though there were some excellent references which was always fun).

The OA, Season One, Episode Three: Champion

Nancy is approached by Patricia, who is a journalist interested in writing Prairie's story. At first, Nancy isn't at all interested in the publicity but when Patricia starts talking about the money this story could make for her family, suddenly Nancy isn't so resistant. Patricia suggests that given what she has been through, Prairie may never be able to work.  Rather than this being about what's best for Prairie, I really think that Nancy sees this as giving her a tool to keep Prairie dependent upon her and a chance to hear what Prairie has gone through.

The family meets with Patricia over dinner and she tells them about the last story she wrote about a boy who was abducted. Patricia stresses the healing factor of sharing your story with the world because it allows the survivor to not only claim their own story but proclaim it finished.  This is when Prairie decides that she's out because apparently her story is far from finished. I suppose this has something to do with the clandestine meetings she's holding in the unfinished subdivision in her neighbourhood.

Prairie returns to her little group and starts talking about the early days of her captivity. Prairie talks about the difficulty of not having a true sense of time. For Prairie, each morning she would awaken and feel as though she were free for the first few moments before remembering her captivity. Though she is not the only captive, it's clear that despite being in the same situation, Prairie, Scott, Homer and Rachel have nothing to say to each other.

The little crew of captives don't actually speak to each other until Prairie somehow convinces Hap that her blindness means that she needs light and fresh air more than the others.  For some reason, Hap takes Prairie upstairs and she amazes him by making him a chicken sandwich. I know that Prairie is blind but Hap is standing so damn close, why didn't she use that big ass butcher knife as a weapon? Hap, feeling all full of himself for his generosity, offers Prairie the other half of the sandwich and allows her to make one for each of the other captives when she refuses to eat. This is the catalyst which starts the group finally talking.

We learn that Homer agreed to be part of Hap's NDE (near death experience) study group to earn five hundred dollars to support his unborn child.  Homer quickly felt that something wasn't right with Hap and so stashed his championship football ring in the medicine cabinet. Homer still has the five hundred dollars and he's desperate to get the money to his kid. Now that Hap trusts Prairie, Homer wants her to steal a bill so that they can use to send out the money to his child and a note.  Homer is adamant that they use this opportunity so that his son will know that he didn't abandon him. Prairie however has another plan that she wants to work on. We learn then that Hap gasses the foursome before removing one of them for experimentation.

Perhaps its because she's blind but Hap decides to let Prairie out of her cage to prepare meals for him. It's through her work as Hap's servant that she learns that he has to take sleeping pills.  Despite Homer's plan to send for help through the mail, Prairie decides to follow her own inclinations and starts slowly stealing pills from Hap. I'm not sure why exactly why Hap is drawn to Prairie other than the fact that her blindness means that he can trust her in ways that he cannot with others. The fact that Hap seeks out Prairie's aid, suggests that Hap is truly a lonely man but then you would have to be when you have four people locked in your basement.

When Prairie has squirreled away enough pills, she decides to make a special broscht using a recipe from when she was a child. Prairie is clearly nervous as she prepares the stew but Hap remains clueless that he's about to consume a bowl of poison. Hap seeks to calm Prairie by asking her to sup with him.  Hap begins shoveling the food in his mouth and Prairie is forced to take a bite when he notices that she isn't eating.  It doesn't like long for Hap to realise something is wrong and this happens much faster than Prairie thought it would because it's not the sleeping pills in the soup that is affecting Hap but the fact that he is allergic to the kind of tomato paste she used.  Hap makes his way to a drawer and pulls out an EPI pen but its empty.  Hap then sends Prairie to get him another from the bathroom and she searches fiercely. When she finds the pen however, Prairie is slow to hand it over because she finds a dead woman in the bathtub. The woman is August, and she died before Prairie was taken captive.  Hap crawls into the bathroom and snatches the new Epi pen from Prairie and quickly injects himself. This is why at the very beginning of the meeting, Prairie told her little group that it's really hard to allow a man to die. I don't really understand this given that Prairie has proof that Hap is a murderer and she's been taken hostage by him. The only way out is for Hap to die.

Now that Prairie's plan has failed, it's time to move onto Homer's which seems even less likely to work. How exactly are they supposed to mail the letter once they write it? While in the bathroom, Prairie grabbed a Horizon bill and Homer's ring. They decide to compose a letter filled with information about who they are, who needs to know about them and to their best understanding where they are. The plan is to mix the letter in with outgoing mail and hope that the class ring does not alert Hap as to its contents. Unfortunately for the captives, they never get that far because while passing the now completed letter to Prairie, it slips out of her hand and floats along their shared little stream out of their reach.

The Walking Dead, Season Seven, Episode Ten: New Best Friends

This week's Walking Dead stomped all over some particularly damaging tropes that the Walking Dead has been exacerbating for a long time. Ultimately while we could talk about the tension between the Saviours and Ezekiel, Richard's attempt to use Carol, Rick gathering more supporters, Rosita and Tara snarling at each other, Daryl and Carol's reunion and him lying to her etc; the tropes, especially around Father Gabriel and his fawning creeping and crawling around Rick, that permeated this episode so much was just too much to swallow. Especially since we've been fed a steady diet of the same or similar tropes for several seasons now. We've written about it before and it's time to write about it again So faced with writing a more detailed recap and not properly address this (and it sticks in the craw to do so), we're going to tackle this in a Friday discussion this week. Watch this space for that

Sleepy Hollow: Season 4, Episode 7: Loco Parentis

Last episode Malcolm seemed to achieve immortality demon defeated and all sorts of things – so now it’s time of a monster of the week, but with some decent bonding along the way and some exploration of Diana and Molly

It’s Molly’s 11^th birthday coming up which comes with Ichabod learning about modern childhood toys and Diana becoming increasingly concerned about the whole witness things since Milly is still a child. She’d rather be Witness by proxy and preferably tell Molly as little as possible despite Ichabod saying it’s probably not going to work that way

Into this comes Mitch, Molly’s father, Diana’s ex. And this could get messy. This could end up with Ichabod being irrationally jealous or lots and lots of jokes about Ichabod and Diana being a couple or Diana looking at her ex and seeing he’s still interested but realising she’s interested in Ichabod more…. And thankfully none of that happened. Not once. I think the eternally clueless writers of Sleepy Hollow realised that this soon after Abbie absolutely no-one, not one damn person, was here to see Ichabod head down the quasi romantic path with someone else. No-one (and if anyone does? You’re a bad person who should feel bad.)

It was surprisingly mature in a genre which generally doesn’t handle relationships in anything resembling a sensible or reasonable manner (and by “genre” I mean “media in general. At all. Ever.”) it works well. Ichabod encourages Diana to pursue her relationship if she wants to, realising what she actually wants. She explores her issues with Mitch, why the split up and why the whole Witness thing makes it a much more difficult time to reintroduce a 2 year missing father into the mix may be

While Mitch turns out to be reasonable, kind, patient, definitely wanting to reconnect with both but respecting Diana and her boundaries.

And he’s a werewolf.

Or a Barghest – except Barghest is actually a northern English monster and doesn’t especially resemble this – it’s a werewolf.

Said werewolf has been killing people and, like so many monsters, it turns out to be from ye olde colonial days which Ichabod has just remembered. And like every monster from ye olde colonial days, the people then decided to lock it in some American Artefact (the Liberty bell is actually Dracula’s tomb. The Washington Monument has Anubis impaled in the bottom). Despite the fact this creature literally needs killing with sharp rock.

The Vampire Diaries, Season 8, Episode 12: The Lies are Going to Catch Up with You

Noooooooooooooooo, oh my gods no. I hate this show’s morality so much. It’s definition of redemption, forgiveness et al – gah. This episode. Oh this episode.

Ok, take a breath and dive into this.

So, Kai is back because ringing the hell bell actually does open the door to hell which gave several evil evil evil souls chance to escape and come to Mystic Fall. After 8 season there were so many people who could have come back from Hell (because everyone is evil in this series, yes, everyone) we end up with Kai

Damon, being the amazingly self-centred person he is, instantly realises that this is his key for waking Elena early so is quick to stop Alaric from murdering him savagely and agreeing with Kai when he claims he can help them kill Cade. Ultimately it’s Damon deciding yet again to pursue his own goal, his own desires.

Along the way they realise that Kai is only halfway in the real world (he can’t feel anything or taste anything) and he is being pulled back into hell. Clearly killing more evil people will help with that – which Damon, grudgingly does

At least we get Kai mocking Damon’s rather feeble attempts at redemption – because, really, he’s in such karmic debt that sparing the odd life here and there doesn’t even begin to cover it. Damon finally decides to try and convert Kai to the redemption pathway by claiming Kai needs to do a big selfless act to prove to Cade he’s not evil – wake Elena. And then Damon will forgive him

Uh, Alaric won’t for killing his wife and trying to kill his children. Or what about the gazillion other deaths Kai left in his wake? One person forgiving him does not in any way make up for everything. And, for that matter, I hate this very recent fixation of The Vampire Diaries on forgiveness – that you are redeemed by your victims forgiving you and can then guilt them into it. Most of their victims are dead and they have no clue who their surviving relatives are - if at all. For that matter, most of them died en mass or died so long ago that there’s very few people they can actually seek forgiveness from. It’s a cop out – one which allows them to focus “redemption” on proximate guilt and a clear path to redemption: by foisting it on one victim who is obliged to forgive

This is especially true now we have the reality of hell. That victim is now obliged to forgive or literally send you to hell – that’s a guilt trip for you.

In other Damon self-servingness, he checks in with Bonnie to see if she’s figured out how to save Enzo – not for her, nor for Enzo or for her grief. It’s just about Damon getting his own way so they can save Kai and he can resurrect Elena.

Grimm, Season Six, Episode Seven: Blind Love

"Love looks not with the eyes, but

with the mind,

 And therefore is winged Cupid

painted blind"

I know that I've complained a lot about the Wesen of the week thing in this last season because I have been so anxious to see the meta move to a satisfying conclusion after six long years. Blind Love, is another in the long list of Wesen of the Week but this week, I forgive the writers for the simple fact that I don't think that there's ever been a funnier episode of Grimm. I simply could not stop laughing.  If they have to drag out the meta, this is the way to do it.

It's Monroe's birthday and so Rosealee arranges for the entire group to go on a weekend getaway as a celebration.  I know that Monroe and Rosealee love their friends but as a parent, I couldn't help but think about how they are blowing one of their last child free weekends.  Finding a babysitter for one child can be challenging, let alone the three Rosealee is carrying.

At Nick's, Eve wakes up to Diana the demon child questioning if her stomach hurts.  Diana explains that her stomach sometimes hurts when she's upset and now that Nick is no longer Eve's boyfriend, she has a reason to be upset.  Eve explains that things are different now and that they cannot go back to the way they used to be.  Diana then explains that she misses her other mommy Kelly and wants to know what happened to her.  Eve has a flashback to Mommy Grimm's head in a box.  We all know what happened to Kelly. Damn you Grimm. Before Eve has to respond to the demon child, Adalind appears to get Diana to pack to visit Renard.

As Adalind gets Diana ready, she brings up the drawings which Diana made of the glyphs she saw in the tunnel.  Adalind asks Diana to keep them a secret from her father.  When they are done packing, Adalind and Diana head out, leaving behind Nick and Eve.

Eve is in the shower and when she exits, she notices a dot on the mirror.  The spot gets larger until it encompasses the entire mirror. A dark red face with glowing eyes appears, causing Eve to call out to Nick.  Nick rushes into the bathroom and makes eye contact with the monster in the mirror.  The two stare at each for a few moment before the face disappears and the mirror turns back to normal.  Eve is relieved when Nick reveals that he saw the face as well. Eve explains that it looked like where she was when she was caught in the death grip. I suppose this means we haven't seen the last of Bonaparte.  Nick decides that they should keep what they saw from everyone until they get a better handle on exactly what is gong on. When has Nick ever figured anything out on his own? What sense does it make to keep a secret from those who are most able to help him?

Adalind drops Diana off at Renard's, and a hungry Diana requests cookies for breakfast.  Renard tries to be the responsible parent and suggests that they have pancakes instead.

The gang all arrives at the hotel and act like it's been years since they'v seen each other.  Randy checks everyone in and then heads to the elevator to help Nick and Adalind get to their room, since the elevator is an old fashioned one.  Randy looks at Nick strangely, as though he recognises him from somewhere. Once Randy is done with escort duty, he heads downstairs to call his mother because he needs to get into contact with his father. When Randy finally gets a call from his father who's in jail, he reveals that Nick is the same Grimm responsible for him being imprisoned. Randy promises his father that he's going to make Nick pay.

Diana is back to drawing the glyphs and when Renard notices them he asks what they are. Diana explains that she saw the glyphs in a tunnel and promised her mother that she wouldn't tell anyone.  Renard tries to probe for more information but Diana refuses to rat her mother out any further. Renard has to satisfy himself with taking a picture of the glyphs.  The door bell rings and Renard answers the door. Renard is informed that his fellow cops have sent some topiaries as a house warming gift. While Renard is distracted with the delivery, someone sneaks into his home, and uses chloroform to knock Diana unconscious before kidnapping her. Whoever decided to kidnap the demon child messed up in a big way. When Renard reenters the house, he discovers that Diana is missing. Renard's first instinct is to panic and to call someone but he quickly puts down his phone and smiles. 

Emerald City, Season One, Episode Eight: Lions in Winter

Next week will be the penultimate episode of this season of Emerald City.  I have to say that I've been fascinated with Emerald City from the very first episode. Unfortunately, it seems that others have not shared my interest, given the poor ratings.  It the cancellation bear is projecting that Emerald City is not likely to be renewed. If this is indeed the case, I hope that the writers thought ahead and gave us an ending which could both serve as an end to the season and the series. There's nothing worse than becoming hooked on a show and then not having any closure.

We are still waiting for the Beast Forever to appear but in the meantime, the Wizard has decided that now would be a good time to go to war.  The Wizard gathers 1000 soldiers with the intent of marching to pick up his weapons from Lady Ev, before then heading North to attack Glinda.  Eammon tries to insist on coming along but it seems that the Wizard wants him to stay to keep Emerald City safe.

In a field, West and Tip discuss who Tip really is.  West finally convinces Tip that he really is the princess Ozma by questioning what sense it would make to hide an orphan and change their sex.  West points out that if the princess were really alive, she would be exactly Tip's age and this combined with the dagger which was given the princess on her name day, is pretty damning evidence.  After informing Tip that they were born for greater things, West grabs Tip and the two soar through the air.

Now that Roan has made it clear that Glinda came first, Dorothy has been locked in a room with a heavily pregnant woman. The woman has been imprisoned for daring to love while in service to Glinda, rather than being chaste. The woman reveals that The Wizard killed the father of her child and that she believes that the true Beast Forever is in fact the Wizard himself.  She asserts that people need not fear monsters falling from the sky because the Wizard is whom they should fear.  The woman is well aware who Roan and Sylvie are and doubts Dorothy's promise to keep her and her baby safe, given that Dorothy was cavorting with Glinda's husband. That's right, Roan and Glinda are married.  

Speaking of Glinda and Roan, it's reunion time.  Glinda is so clearly happy to have her husband back but Roan clearly doesn't reciprocate those feelings. Unsurprisingly, Glinda has questions, chief among them how long Roan has been travelling with Dorothy. Roan is quick to deny that Dorothy is an assassin and explains that she saved his life and that he did the same in return when required. Roan should have explained that Dorothy isn't bright enough to be an assassin. Roan then claims that he cannot be held responsible for the things he did while he wasn't himself. Uh huh.