Let's Fold Scarves

Eximete! Vis zenobia! Solvere!

Normal Again (Diego Gutierrez)

Quote of the season: “You’re addicted to the misery.”

I looked back at a review from season 5 and, while the episode wasn’t very good (it was “Spiral”), I wrote about it with affection. I don’t feel affectionate towards the mid to latter half of season 6, a fact which I am inclined to blame on my wavering attachment to Joss Whedon.

Whedon seems to bring out the critic in a lot of us. I think the weight of his self-proclaimed feminism and his desire to explore contentious issues is becoming too much for his work to bear. After all, I can happily watch series like Bionic Woman and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles and not really care how contrived or inconsistent or stupid they are as long as they reasonably entertain me but I can’t do that with Whedon’s work because there is supposed to be more to it than mere entertainment.

For me, the problem with season 6 has been its sexual content and unpleasant plotting revolving around Warren. Sexual exploitation and manipulation is part of human life but I don’t want to watch it on TV. Which leads me to Dollhouse – I know the task that Whedon has set himself to do but do I want to watch how he is going about it?

I was initially reluctant to watch Mad Men because I thought that I didn’t want to watch a show about misogyny and racism but the show is of such high quality that although it portrays these things it does so in an interesting, mostly subtle and definitely thought provoking way. It’s not entirely light-handed but it is not ever a gratuitous show. I think my point is that Mad Men is well made but Dollhouse isn’t – yet.

Season 6 isn’t very good overall.

I have now tipped into that camp. Except for “Once More, With Feeling” and “Tabula Rasa”, the episodes have been a mixed bag that were too often unbearable particularly anything involving Spuffy and the Willow’s a junkie storyline and not just because they are difficult topics but also because the writing and the plotting were weak. It has been a struggle to get through this boxed set, and the competition for my time, namely Mad Men and Battlestar Galactica (and that has its weaknesses and inconsistencies but is often exciting and moving), has highlighted the weaknesses of latter day Buffy.

I also blame Anthony Head. Giles’ absence has been keenly felt and not just for the Scooby gang. His mature, adult presence stuck the show together (and ensured less screen time for other characters).

On to a few points about the episode itself:

I think it was brave to suggest that Buffy may still be in a mental institution with the final scene in the hospital. It can and is argued that this doesn’t necessarily mean she has always been there but it is borderline UNambiguous.

A line like “Eventually my parents just forgot” is really not enough to erase Joyce’s reaction to Buffy’s coming out all the way back in season 2. However, if it’s all in her head then anything can happen on 7 seasons of Buffy.

Anyway, I don’t really care one way or the other but I hadn’t realised until I read Sam’s comments on Mikejer’s site that there were people who hated season 6 for a third reason. Obviously, I know there are the kittens but there are also the folks who cannot bear the attempted rape in “Seeing Red” and the souled Spike storyline and now I know there are those to hate that Buffy may no longer be a superhero but a young woman making up fantasies in her head – they feel that Whedon let them down.

Tara has a bit of a cheek marching into the Summers’ home but she saves the day: a fact that I love a great deal. She earlier wears a spectacularly horrible top but that isn’t the last bad top she’ll wear.

There is some tremendous acting from Sarah Michelle Gellar and Kristine Sutherland in the scene where the latter tells Buffy that she will always be there for her. It brought tears to my eyes.

I know you’re afraid. I know the world feels like a hard place sometimes, but you’ve got people who love you. Your dad and I, we have all the faith in the world in you. We’ll always be with you.

I almost felt sorry for Xander as he explains how pathetic he is (“But then I left and ever since I’ve had this painful hole inside. And I’m the idiot that dug it out.”) – Nicholas Brendon is great here. I also like the scene when Spike tells Xander all about his relationship with Buffy and in typical Scooby fashion Xander doesn’t pay close enough attention.

Only two epsiodes to go.

Posted in Battlestar Galactica, Buffy Season 6, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Dollhouse, Mad Men, Television | 12 Comments »

Russia Georgia not sweet home Georgia

Dollhouse – “Gray Hour” (Sarah Fain & Elizabeth Craft)

I vowed to myself that if I disliked this episode of Dollhouse as much as “Stage Fright” I wouldn’t blog about it because I really didn’t like writing about it at all.

This started off with heavy breathing which of course made us all roll our eyes only to find ourselves confounded by a woman in labour and Echo as doula. Quite why she was a doula in a remote location can only be explained by the symbolism throughout the rest of the episode. I don’t care anymore if something is implausible; I’m giving up worrying about that.

Eliza Dushku was at her best (so far in the series) as the reset Echo who comes to in a horrible place where men slap her. She made her can I go nows rather affecting. In addition, her awakening after her doula mission seemed more aware and less mechanical then usual.

Some folk complain that they are fed up with comparisons being made between ED and Dichen Lachman. However, when they play the exact same imprint I think a comparison is only fair and DL wins.

I also really like Enver Gjokaj as Victor/Lubov. I hope he keeps up this level of charm.

The scenes before we realised that Echo was Taffytastic were particularly unpleasant: multiple rape and the threat of further rape were just nasty and hard to take. I hope that as the series takes off in episode 6 that this kind of scene is dropped. I would also like the now unquestioningly gratuitous shots of ED in her bra to stop too.

Topher is mostly over the top, but as others have wondered, is he OTT or is Fran Kranz? I’m going for the former for the moment.

I have determined that Olivia Williams has decided that subtle acting has no place in the Dollhouse:

Posted in Dollhouse, Television | 3 Comments »

I haven’t even cried yet

Mad Men – “Flight 1″

A few remarks on episode 2 of season 2:

• Vincent Kartheiser does a fine job as Pete on a weekly basis but in this he was amazing: enter this as your Emmy submission amazing. He was strangely vulnerable, lovable and appealing.
• Peggy is a funny one. Sometimes I’m not sure if she is supposed to be as inscrutable as she is. With an actor like Jon Hamm you can read his face and expressions and get an idea of what he may be thinking but Elisabeth Moss is often unreadable. She is either incredibly subtle or a bit wooden. I can’t make up my mind.
• I fear Don is not long for faithfulness. His relationship with Betty is brittle. I give him credit for trying but I really don’t think he likes her.
• Betty has little patience with her children but I thought she was spot on about her son being a little liar and lack of respect (what would she make of many modern parents’ relationships with their children?). The subtext of her remark regarding she knows what little boys are like wasn’t lost on Don – which does make me think he is only being faithful because he knows that she knows. I though her snippiness in the kitchen was also justified after all it was Don who hinted that Francine’s husband was unhappy. She does seem awfully privileged but that doesn’t mean she isn’t unhappy within the parameters of her life.
• It is useful to keep in mind that Mad Men is a narrow view of the sixties. However, a limited view is a useful way to focus on specific issues.
• Christina Hendricks was worried about coming across as racist in her remarks to Sheila and to Paul but I think she would have been as unpleasant to anyone. Furthermore, Paul is a creep and a phoney (a great Orson Welles look-alike mind you) who made a move on Peggy after he bought her a sandwich back thirteen episodes ago.
• On a shallow note, Alison Brie (what a great name, not as fab as January Jones but still great) is a lovely looking woman.

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You can’t be a storyteller and a speechwriter at the same time.

1. It is supposed to be uncomfortable.

2. Obviously, the point is you have to take control away from her so that she can get it back.

3. The fact of the matter is, I’ve been worried about this. It’s kept me up nights but I believe the best way to examine anything is to go to a bit of a dark place. You can’t be a storyteller and a speechwriter at the same time.

4. They’re gonna be disappointed by this…people might be angry with me…I can’t just write a polemic.

These are quotes from an interview with Joss Whedon about Dollhouse by Jacki Lyden on npr’s All Things Considered on 8th February 2008.

1. It is uncomfortable.
2. True. A trope. Boring.
3. I’m think Joss fails in this respect. This series has reminded me of the Angel episode called “Billy” when Wes is handed his inner misogynist and tries to kill Fred. This is perhaps the most heavy-handed example of Joss and co failing to “show, don’t tell” but “Stage Fright” is pretty unsubtle too. I do realise both episodes were not written by Joss himself but he’s in charge. Mad Men is an exploration of misogyny but I have yet to hear anyone say the words “hate” and “women” unlike Wes who actually gets to hammer it home: “What do you tell a woman who has two black eyes?  Nothing you haven’t already told her twice.”
4. I’m not angry. However, I am disappointed that such serious stuff is being presented via poor scripts.

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Ten years…never done that

Looking for the positives

Dollhouse – “Stage Fright” (Maurissa Tancharoen and Jed Whedon)

Joss Whedon and crew are continuing to run on goodwill with me. After Joss gave me Buffy and to a lesser extent Firefly I have been willing to give him a chance with his other material because I know he can deliver. However, I am being stretched by Angel, Dr Horrible and his hit and miss comics (from X-Men to Buffy).

I am only persisting with Angel because it is part of the wider Buffyverse. Otherwise, its poor plotting, boring and inconsistent characters and lack of continuity would have turned me off.

Like Angel I have found myself saying throughout the first three episodes of Dollhouse “but how?” or “but what?” and then immediately saying, “never mind”.

So I have to stop being at all concerned about how a super secret organization ever gets customers, how Topher manages to get any rest when he appears to be the only person monitoring the Actives’ activity (and we know that some missions are 24 hour), why Sierra wasn’t programmed to be both a number one fan and someone kick-ass (like Echo was programmed to be singer and protector), why was Victor wiped as Lubov and then sent out again as Lubov the next day, and other things if I could be arsed.

There were two moments in this particular episode that made me feel uncomfortable. I have the right to be challenged and made to feel uneasy but this show doesn’t deserve that right because it simply isn’t good enough. So when the manager backhands Rayna I think we are meant to feel that this may be a deserving slap after ten years of frustration working for this demanding and ungrateful diva (albeit heartbreakingly unhappy). However, she is so poorly characterised that her unenviable position isn’t made real and instead brings out a “who cares?” about her “plight” attitude in people. However, it must actually be awful to be in a goldfish bowl for so long but Julia Roberts’ line in Notting Hill said it all and better than anything in this episode: “I’ve been on a diet every day since I was nineteen, which basically means I’ve been hungry for a decade”. So in short, that slap felt in bad taste and mean.

This series hasn’t even reached the level of reasonably entertaining and mildly thought-provoking and it needs to do that before it can show me a woman suffering and it not seem gratuitous which is what happened when the stalker made Audra sing. She is terrified and upset and can barely do as she is asked. This scene felt completely unnecessary because it simply confirmed what we knew: he was a nutter. Unless in a future episode Sierra remembers this moment and uses it to her advantage then all it did was make me feel bad.

However, as I have said before, I am tired of characters suffering (or having others suffer on their behalf) so that they can develop so even if this does happen in the future it is still boring.

I have found it scarily easy to write negatively about Dollhouse but after three episodes it is a failure as far as I am concerned. People say look at the first three episodes of Buffy because they weren’t great but I don’t accept that a series made ten years ago by a first time showrunner can be compared to his fourth series made in a climate that demands it hits the ground running.

So why isn’t it good enough? The dialogue is often heavy-handed. Too many characters say something to Echo that have double meanings that are basically groan-worthy, e.g., Rayna asks if Echo/Jordan was born in a lab or some such clunky thing. Adelle at the end justifies her actions to Lawrence by recapping the episode. Paul’s “we split the atom – we made the bomb” speechifying was a tad obvious. The acting is inconsistent. I’ve on Eliza Dushku’s side for the last two episodes but her mannered gesticulation spoiled the scene when she confronts the singer in front of the mirror. I am giving her a chance because at some time she will be asked to do something more than act Faith-like (other than the sexy be-suited businesswoman type from “Ghost”). However, it is worrying that the actress who is generally known as not being very good in Neighbours is more convincing and is showing a more effective range (that’s one thing I did like about Sierra/Audra being kidnapped, Dichen Lachman’s performance). Finally, based on the first three episodes, the storylines are unengaging, clichéd and derivative.

Phew, after all that generally incoherent moaning I might try for some positivity. To reiterate, I do like Lachman (and she shares my birthday) and I loved that Lubov was Victor after all. Hopefully, Mellie is still a doll too. The scene between Lubov and Mellie (Old Navy and coffee) was an actual treat with both actors interacting well (and funny dialogue too). I thought Olivia Williams was better in this episode too. I think she will be better as a character if they tone down the haughtiness. And dammit, I am interested in the Dolls’ awakening: the shake of Echo’s head at the end was a great ending.

Of course, I will keep watching and my last three reviews of the series will involve the words “Joss, how did I doubt you?”

I hope.

Posted in Dollhouse, Television | No Comments »

Tory Foster

Regarding Battlestar Galactica, what adequate explanation can there be that Tory Foster, one of the five final cylons, is the only one not to have an interesting storyline in season four? Scratch that – not to have a storyline at all. She offed Cally and she has now spent the last few episodes doing nothing in particular except to utter the line “I wanted to ask him about that frakking song.”

Posted in Battlestar Galactica, Female thinking, Television | 1 Comment »

Hence the exuberant price tag

Dollhouse: “The Target” (Steven S. DeKnight)

I laughed several times during this and only once when I was supposed to (“four brothers, none of them Democrats”). I laughed the most at the cut from Echo loosing the arrow and failing on top of Richard after a bout of sex.

I also cringed several times. Mark Sheppard is consistent – consistently bad. He was bad in the X-Files, Firefly, Bionic Woman and Battlestar Galactica. People just love him though and I don’t understand at all – I groan every single time I see him in the credits and then again when he kills a scene. He does these accents and they are all atrocious. The clichéd scene in the cabin was painful followed up by an equally painful one in the FBI office – the dialogue here was terrible. The next cringey scene was with Miracle Laurie as the woman with lasagne. I can only hope that Joss Whedon was lying to us about her not being cast as an active any more because she may as well be a blank – standing behind her door waiting for the neighbour she pines over to come home – a seriously not interesting character. The final cringey scene involved our Russian mobster friend (who can only be intriguing if he too is still cast as a doll) and his face-sucking girlfriend who can’t stop until he shoves her away.

I thought Eliza Dushku was better than in “Ghost” although her reading of “they won’t wake up” was poor. Harry J. Lennix is keeping my interest in the show above meh. He is plain excellent and his relationship with Echo is going to matter to my attachment to the show should that moment of attachment arrive.

Considering that Olivia Williams casting as Adelle was the most exciting news for me, I continue to find her off. I don’t like her long hair or her delivery (and I know she is a superb actress) but most of all I don’t like that she has been shown as not particularly competent.

Topher is really obnoxious as the Marshall without the charm, the wit and the good looks. In fact, I am not alone in being reminded strongly of Alias with Echo as Sydney, Boyd as Dixon and Topher as the nerdy one. However, Marshall always made me laugh.

I love watching this show in real time. It was easy to immerse myself in Firefly having heard excellent word-of-mouth and knowing even as I sat through “Shindig” there were definitely better episodes to come. With Dollhouse, I may have just watched “Out of Gas” and the rest are all “The Messages” and “Hearts of Gold”.

And please, no more “Did I fall asleep?”, “For a little while.” exchanges.

Posted in Dollhouse, Television | 4 Comments »

Not anymore, but he was, trust me. Is he still a doctor?

Mad Men – “For Those Who Think Young”

I would happily see more of Francine

Mad Men is back on British screens but not too explosively or even particularly sparkling. I wonder how such a low-key opener worked on new viewers. There were plenty of good moments but there were too many scenes of Don pontificating obscurely about advertising as if it is important. I’m afraid that Don and his charm will never persuade me that it is.

I’m not sure if I like where Betty might be heading this season. I liked her taking charge while ordering room service but what she did with the mechanic was dangerous. I’m not sure I even believe in the scene, it felt completely off-kilter. I did think she was offering him sex but I now think that isn’t what she was doing which leads me to ask just what she supposed to me playing at?

Most of the time I find myself reluctantly not liking Peggy. She was so nasty to Don’s secretary (Lois) but I did feel for her when Pete asked her if she wanted children. Pete is such an idiot. He has no notion of how unhappy Trudy is because she cannot conceive.

I’m never sure of what to make of Joan. I thought she was mean to Lois too but then she put the photocopier in Peggy’s office so she can’t be that bad.

Sal being married is interesting. I wonder if they will make his wife oblivious or suspicious.

Don is having a midlife crisis and can’t get it up. This is not a particularly thrilling or unusual storyline but maybe we will see Betty benefiting from this or getting into trouble with someone less nice than the mechanic. Who is Don sending poetry to? I have a notion who it isn’t. Rachel

My favourite scene was in the lift (although I do find it hard to believe that even now two men would speak so lewdly and crudely in front of strangers in such a confined space). I did like that instead of Don drawing attention to the woman by directly telling them off, he made a big deal of it the hat pointing out how awful their behaviour was.

Writing about this episode has made me realise how much is packed into each 45 minutes. I’ve just remembered the sequence of different characters as they watched Jacqueline Kennedy in the White House (“where’s her husband?” asks Sal) until it stopped at Pete who was watching something else.

Posted in Mad Men, Television | 1 Comment »

Um, I’m not sure you should say “sex poodle” in your vows.

Hell’s Bells (Rebecca Rand Kirshner)

Another divisive episode, which seems par for the course in season six. I like a great deal of it. I’m not keen on the notion of the demons at the wedding and how they could possibly pass for any kind of human. And what kind of explanation could there be for the slaying of a demon in full view of all the guests? I think Willow’s rescue of Tara is handled in a ham-fisted way because Tara (in her green dress) looked formidable rather than in need of help.

The green dresses are hideous and they are the clearest indication that the costumer (Cynthia Bergstrom) was having a laugh. No way would Anya want to ruin her wedding by having to look at those.

Sarah Michelle Gellar seemed very relaxed in this angst-free episode (for her anyway) and this shows in her performance. I delighted in Buffy’s inability to think on her feet (“You know, he’s half-minister, half-doctor, he’s a-a mini-tor. Not, of course, to be confused with a Minotaur! Because he’s all, you know, man, this doctor minister man, no, no bull parts whatsoever.”), her playing charades (with horns) and juggling! Buffy juggling, it doesn’t get any better really. Buffy and Spike speaking civilly to each other is such a treat too.

Oh Xander, what have you done? He is scared he will turn into his father and I appreciate that it was himself that he hated in the visions and not Anya who was portrayed as unfaithful. However, the worst thing to come out of this episode is the Xander who turns up in “Entropy” who thankfully we haven’t seen since season five. He is my least favourite Scooby.

OK, enough of the main plot onto the best scene which is another to add to my all time favourites from BtVS . They don’t all involve Tara and Willow because this one involves Anya as well. So there. Anya is rehearsing her ridiculous sounding vows and as Willow helps Tara button up Anya’s wedding dress, they smile and laugh at Anya until they realise that she is genuine and they start to look thoughtful instead. The actresses play the scene so sweetly that it just warms my cockles. They then realise how lovely she looks, despite the mask, and she flaps her hands because she is so thrilled to be marrying the love of her long life: she is cute, funny and heartbreaking.

“Okay. Blah, blah, blah, misogynistic. Blah, blah, ‘I do however entrust you…, um, with my heart. Take care of my heart, won’t you please? Take care of it because, it’s all that I have. And, if you let me, I’ll take care of your heart too.”

“Okay. It’s just I’m so excited and I want to share it all with my best friend. I get to be with my best friend forever! Yay!”

Posted in Buffy Season 6, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Television | 8 Comments »

Nothing is what it appears to be

Dollhouse: “Ghost” (Joss Whedon)

This was better than an average episode of Angel but since I think Angel is the biggest let down ever then maybe I’m not sounding too positive. However, I did like most of it and I hope what I didn’t like won’t be a major problem for future episodes. I mean, I didn’t like Adelle’s hair and make-up and I didn’t like the reams of exposition but I’m going to get used to Adelle’s hair and the exposition is no longer necessary.

Joss Whedon completely swiped the idea of a kidnapped and sexually abused child growing up to be an expert in the field from his clearly highly generous pal Tim Minear who dealt with a whole series on the subject called The Inside. I was surprised to see in the first scene how Echo/Caroline became a doll and I think, studio interference or not, that was an error. Too much, too soon.

I think all the characters were interesting and intriguing with the exception of Paul Ballard and Laurence Dominic. I haven’t much to say about Laurence except the role seemed a standard clichéd henchman type. I have reams to say about Paul Ballard. I want to like Tahmoh Penikett because he seems like such a nice bloke but his performance as Helo and now Paul show that he is rather limited as an actor. It doesn’t help that two of the scenes he was in were by far the worst in the episode. They were terrible. Really terrible. The kickboxing intercut with Paul talking to his superiors was as bad as Buffy and Riley having sex intercut with Buffy and Riley fighting the Polgara demon. Oh, the subtlety. Look at Paul! He’s tough, he’s manly, he can even keep those shorts up. Look, he’s down and out! Oh no, look at that comeback! He’s so hard! Apparently a bare-chested Tahmoh is supposed to appeal to the laydees in the same way as a micro-skirted Eliza is supposed to appeal to the chaps but I just think it’s cheesy, tacky and childish.

Paul’s second terrible scene had horrible dialogue and the lamest last line “wash your hands…and your shoes”. Please do better by Tahmoh, Joss, because he may end up like Apollo on BSG in that I glaze over whenever he is on screen.

Despite my reservations about Eliza’s range I thought she was fine, not great, but good enough. Actually, thinking of The Inside I am reminded of Rachel Nichols who was fine, not great, but good enough.

I am bothered by my own lack of discomfort about the concept of mind-wiping and using these people as objects for other people’s desires and needs. I’m not sure if this episode managed to get across the skeeviness of it all. There is the scene with Sierra being erased for the first time but I was distracted by the ease in which Echo got up the stairs and into that area of the Dollhouse and by Dr Saunders lurking in the shadows (to what end?) so its impact was actually lost on me. However, my reaction to the first job we saw Echo on was to ask but what about venereal disease?

I can think of things that bother me at the moment but may prove to be suppositious. I will say that one thing that saddened me was the dropping of the character of the active called November to be played by Miracle Laurie, in favour of a new character who will be “playing against (and pining for) Tahmoh’s character, Paul Ballard“. That doesn’t sound boring, does it?

My favourite bit was the transition from successful hostage negotiator to brainwashed doll:

PS: to every person who says that pilots generally suck (and just why would that ever be true? pilots are supposed to hook you in), I say Dead Like Me.

Posted in Dead Like Me, Dollhouse, Television | 5 Comments »