Best Episode of the Season: Fringe Season 4

June 19, 2012

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Season Analysis: With all the destruction, crossing over, rebooting, and combination of universes, it is hard to keep track of which characters to identify with and how to do so, which is not to say that Fringe is still not just as fascinating as it has always been.

“Welcome to Westfield”

Fringe, like many sci-fi shows, started off more or less as a freak-of-the-week series, but it became its best when it fully developed its more serial side.  Interestingly enough, though, some of the best episodes of Fringe have been the one-off episodes that break from the present serialized plotline, e.g., “Peter,” “Subject 13.”  While those episodes did break from the show’s normal setting, they were still quite important in how they related to the whole series – “Peter” revealing how Peter was brought over as a boy from the other side, “Subject 13” revealing what happened to young Olivia during the Cortexiphan trials.  Initially, it seemed that “Welcome to Westfield” was going to be a perfectly enjoyable one-off Fringe episode that would work well on its own but would not really relate to the series as a whole.  Olivia, Peter, and Walter enter a town from which there is no escape – essentially a living, breathing Twilight Zone episode.  The appearances of extra pupils and extra sets of teeth on some of the townspeople were fascinating examples of eldritch horror.  And while it was not clear initially how “Welcome to Westfield” would fit into the larger plot of Fringe, the confusion of memories from the townspeople’s versions of themselves from the other universe did fit in nicely thematically in terms of the show’s interest in identity insofar as what makes people who they really are.  Ultimately, this episode did prove to be rather important in the overall developments of Season 4, as Westfield prompted this current Olivia to have the memories of Olivia from the first three seasons, and the destruction of Westfield turned out to be a test by David Robert Jones for bringing together and destroying the two universes.  A show that originally needed to become serialized to become truly good now needs to mix its serialization up a bit to remain good and keep itself moving forward.

Best Episode of the Season: Parks and Recreation Season 4

June 19, 2012

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Season Analysis: Parks and Rec continued to be one of the best comedies on TV, with strong performances all season particularly from Nick Offerman (who remained basically the same as Ron Swanson, just more awesome) and Aubrey Plaza (with April actually, shockingly, growing and maturing).

“Citizen Knope”

Leslie Knope cares a great deal about everyone she has ever met, because she puts forth a full effort in everything that she does, and thus she just cannot help herself.  So of course she always gives everyone the most thoughtful Christmas gifts possible: for Andy – a gold Mouserat record, for Donna – a leather-print robe, for Tom – a watch and a tiny throne (since he couldn’t get tickets to the Watch the Throne tour), for April – a painting of her killing the Black Eyed Peas, and for Ron – a button for closing his office doors.  The gift of socks for Jerry was the nicest touch: a classic make fun of Jerry gag, but also sweet, as Jerry is apparently so boring that the gift of socks indicates that Leslie truly understands him.  With Leslie suspended from work in the wake of the scandal with her and Ben, she finds herself in the unusual situation of not being able to take care of everything and then some.  Therefore, the dual Christmas gifts from the rest of the Parks Department of the gingerbread version of city hall and volunteering as Leslie’s campaign team could not have been sweeter, in that this was the perfect moment for everyone else to step up and show Leslie that they could take care of her just as she has always taken care of them.  It was one of the purest examples of friendship inspired by Christmas that I have ever seen on any sitcom.

Best Episode of the Season: The Secret Circle Season 1 (First and Only Season!)

June 19, 2012

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Season Analysis: For the past few years, The Vampire Diaries has made the portrayal of high school life in a small town with a significant supernatural population seem so natural, but then The Secret Circle comes along and makes it seem oh so confused.  Still, TSC was occasionally entertaining during its only season, mostly thanks to Australian firecracker Phoebe Tonkin.

“Masked”

The biggest reason I started watching The Secret Circle and just about the only reason I continued to watch despite considering giving up on it several times was Phoebe Tonkin.  With her saucy line readings and suggestive facial expressions, she was clearly having the most fun of all the cast members.  And a show about witches ought to be fun!  There is plenty for high schoolers to be sad about, and that is truer for the kids of TSC than it is for most, but as Faye Chamberlain, Phoebe Tonkin lived by the dual mottos of, “We’re witches, let’s have fun with our powers” and “We’re kids – we’re supposed to have fun!”  At no other point in the season was this fun more evident than in “Masked,” the Halloween episode, particularly the scene of Faye and Cassie shopping together, during which Faye spent much of the time walking around basically topless.  Faye and Cassie began the series at odds with each other, but they eventually developed into a classic odd couple pairing and the most entertaining pairing of characters that the show had.  When Faye brought up the classic maxim that Halloween is the time for being a slutty version of someone else, it was just the right amount of wrong.  If some readers think that with this post I have abandoned my journalistic integrity by writing a love letter to Phoebe Tonkin instead of an actual critical analysis, well, then I must repeat that Phoebe Tonkin was by far the main reason I watched The Secret Circle, so any critical analysis I would write about this show was always going to revolve around her.

Best Episode of the Season: The Office Season 8

June 18, 2012

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Season Analysis: Where to begin with the troubles that plague The Office?  That reboot idea sure seems necessary, though I don’t know if I can say that I like its chances for success.

“Tallahassee”

One of the biggest problems of season 8 of The Office was its profound lack of focus.  It is true that, at its best, The Office has captured the random absurdity amidst the day-to-day drudgery of office life and therefore focus is something that is not really necessary – and perhaps even counterintuitive – for its success.  But while The Office has not always had a strong sense of focus plotwise, it has, for most of the series’ run, had a strong sense of the type of show that it wants to be.  This past season did not have that sense, at all, so when the Florida storyline provided the show with a focus regarding the plot, it was a good thing that there was at least some focus.  “Tallahassee” stood out among the Florida episodes, mostly thanks to some classic Dwight moments the likes of which we do not get to see as frequently as we used to.  His struggling through appendicitis and then returning to the presentation after surgery was appropriately suspense-filled comedy: the audience was on edge (a state of mind that can easily prompt laughter), knowing that at any moment, he might collapse or his guts might spill out in front of everyone, and the fact that he was going full-bore despite his condition only made it more amusing.  “Tallahassee” also featured the best cold opening of the season (Jim creating a fake murder scene in his hotel room), and that is no backhanded compliment, as the cold opens were a rare consistent bright spot this season.

Best Episode of the Season: The Big Bang Theory Season 5

June 18, 2012

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Season Analysis: The Big Bang Theory has always had a weakness for cheap gender and racial gags and overly broad zingers amidst its otherwise keenly observed and performed version of the geek experience; this season, the cheap gags overwhelmed the whole show and produced its worst season thus far.  Until a string of fine episodes to finish off the year, I was worried that TBBT had become completely the worst possible version of itself that its critics think it always is.

“The Launch Acceleration”

Who are the two best characters on The Big Bang Theory?  If you answered anyone besides Sheldon Cooper and Amy Farrah-Fowler, then you are a fool.  Moreover, obviously, their “romantic” relationship is the most fascinating coupling on the show.  Sheldon professes to be immune to the charms of romantic entanglements and his actions usually make that appear to be the case, but, as a neurobiologist, Amy may have the insight for breaking down that immunity.  Accordingly, she taps into the pleasures of Sheldon’s childhood to insidiously prompt an attachment – utilizing the Super Mario Bros. them as background music, serving spaghetti with little hot dogs cut up along with Strawberry Quik, and playing doctor Star Trek-style.  Sheldon recognizes what she is doing, and he does not like it, except for the fact that he likes it very much.  It is this sort of bizarre understanding of social constructs from socially abnormal individuals that The Big Bang Theory has generally excelled at.  Also in this episode, Leonard and Penny’s relationship – while not at its most dramatic or its most entertaining ever – zips along nicely, and that is the least that we ask of it.

Best Episode of the Season: New Girl Season 1

June 18, 2012

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Season Analysis: Initially, Zooey Deschanel’s character was the only one defined at all on New Girl.  The other regular characters eventually became consistently strong by season’s end, but there is still some work to be done before the storytelling is just as consistently strong.

“Jess & Julia”

I love Zooey Deschanel.  I find her charms irresistible.  I find that iPhone commercial adorable.  But, I recognize that there are some people who are immune to her charms, and I even understand where these people are coming from.  But I do not accept it.  As far as I am concerned, such people are missing out on plenty of joy.  Anyway, it seems that the writers of New Girl also recognized the existence of the Zooey haters, so they decided it was important to confront that force on their show, whose premise and initial promotion were almost entirely reliant on Zooey’s persona.  In the climactic scene of “Jess & Julia,” in which Lizzy Caplan’s Julia points out to – with not-too-subtle disapproval – Zooey’s Jess her “whole thing” of cupcakes and breaking for birds and “bluebirds come and help me dress in the morning,” I thought, “Hey, I like both of these ladies!  Can’t they get along?”  Even though I was disappointed that there ended up a conflict between these two different personality types, I was happy that it prompted Jess (and by implication, Zooey Deschanel, and also by implication, creator Liz Meriwether) to stand up for herself, pointing out, that she does not in fact talk like Teddy Ruxpin and proving that there is indeed some toughness to her despite her intensely sunny worldview.  Seriously, Zooey haters, what is your deal?  She means you no harm and I do not think she means to force her personality onto the rest of the world.

Best Episode of the Season: Raising Hope Season 2

June 18, 2012

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Season Analysis: Raising Hope settled into a groove in Season 2 as it essentially further became My Name is Earl 2.0: the adventures of a quirky working-class (most likely Southwestern) town as created by Greg García, but without the burden of a premise that needs to be attended to every episode.

“Jimmy’s Fake Girlfriend”

One common complaint I encountered about Season 2 of Raising Hope was the lack of interest in Jimmy and Sabrina as (what was supposed to be) the show’s primary romantic coupling.  As the episode “Jimmy’s Fake Girlfriend” demonstrated, the problem was not that Jimmy and Sabrina made a boring couple, it was that they just did not have too many good scenes up until this point.  As the episode culminated in the performance of the story of Jimmy and Sabrina by the Room for Improvment Players (including Burt and Virginia and their hitherto latent but definitely potent improv skills), we, the audience, were won over just as much as Sabrina was.  This episode also provided a template for how to blamelessly prompt a breakup if you are a guy who has feelings for a girl who is with another guy, especially if that guy is a jerk.  The concept of this episode also set up scenes of acting for the sake of acting – a favorite routine of mine – as delivered by Ashley Tisdale, whose expertise in this area was no surprise, being as she is a veteran of the overacting-heavy Disney Channel.

Best Episode of the Season: Up All Night Season 1

June 13, 2012

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Season Analysis: Up All Night established itself as consistently slightly better than mediocre.

“First Birthday”

You know that awkward situation when what is supposed to be a gathering of your friends and family gets out of your control, and you catch strangers becoming just a little too intimate with every nook and cranny of your house?  I don’t know that situation, because I have a big family and I see most members of my family either frequently or at least every so often, and they are generally considerate enough to let me know when someone I don’t know will be joining the festivities.  But I was able to imagine the uncomfortable scenario Will Arnett’s Chris had gotten himself into by agreeing to a joint first birthday party for Amy and neighbor couple George and Terry’s baby due to his inability to say no, and then discovering that George and Terry had invited every last one of their cousins, aunts, and uncles to the Brinkleys’ home.  More important, I was definitely able to relate to Chris and Ava’s desire to end the party when their guests would have preferred to stay put.  I like parties, but I also have things to do, and it is hard to do those things when people are just hanging around.  Chris enthusiastically kicking everyone out was a small-scale victory in his learning how to say no, but it was a significant one, and one that could inspire anyone who has had party guests who have stayed just a little too long.

Best Episode of the Season: Happy Endings Season 2

June 12, 2012

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Season Analysis: After catching my breath from all the laughter, I realized that Happy Endings had suddenly become one of the best comedies on TV.

“Big White Lies”

The natural speed of Happy Endings is hyper-drive.  So, when any episode forces its characters to put together a whole to-do in a short amount of time, then Happy Endings is spinning in its wheelhouse.  For the sake of avoiding going out for tea with Daphne, a slightly off-putting childhood friend (played by Mary Elizabeth Ellis, natch), Penny panics and blurts out ever more elaborate fibs, which eventually involve Alex (who’s supposed to be gay), Brad and Jane (who are supposed to be pregnant), and Dave (who is supposed to have a terminal illness – but refuses to play along), but not really Max (who is happy to play along anyway, and decides that he’s lost his money to Bernie Madoff).  The stakes could not possibly be any lower: when Penny ultimately admits to Daphne that she was just trying to avoid her, Daphne is hardly, if at all, offended.  Those low stakes were exactly the point: these meta-minded friends were all too willing to put on a Three’s Company-esque charade, and could not slow down their hyper imaginations for just a second to realize that there was no real cause for concern.  There was no point to this half hour, except for pure comic brilliance.

Best Episode of the Season: Archer Season 3

June 12, 2012

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Season Analysis: Brought to life by one of the most – if not the most – talented voice casts in the business, Archer is a truly unique animated vision, thanks a great deal to its retro vibe, which seems almost accidental, yet also integral.

“The Limited”

“The Limited” – the wildest, fastest, most hilarious, most joke-filled, most hilarious, and best episode of Archer’s third season – was practically Shakespearean in its comedy.  As in the Bard’s yukfest The Comedy of Errors, if something could make the situation in “The Limited” any funnier, then that something happened: there is an ocelot loose, the train will not slow down because Cheryl’s family owns the train and she wants to break the travel time record, a Nova Scotian separatist movement exists, etc.  Also, just as Will Shakespeare employed doubles and mistaken identities, so did Archer include villains disguised as Canadian Mounties at the same time that the actual Mounties appeared.  But Archer ups the ante even further, as its characters are not plainly the Renaissance stock comedic characters of the clown, the straight man, and the put-upon fool – they are bursting with their own idiosyncratic, slightly absurd, personalities: Sterling Archer is a spy who fancies himself the star of his own spy movie (a silly attitude to have when you are actually a spy) and thus he takes a self-aware view of his own life, in which he makes highly literate, obnoxious comments (“Thanks, Freddy Foreshadowing”) and leaps at the chance to live out a classic action-movie scenario, and pays the price for it (a standoff on top of a speeding train can be quite hellish for all parties involved).  In general, the spies of Archer are all too self-aware for their own good, which means they are self-aware enough to be absolutely fascinating for viewers, and with all that there was to be acutely aware of in “The Limited,” there was almost too much to be fascinated by.

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