dckgrysn666 Reviews

Millennium: The Well-Worn Lock (1996) Season 1, Episode 8

A Strong SVU Episode Years Before SVU Existed

[9/10 · 6 August 2020]

Considering the chronological time this episode was written/produced, Chris Carter and all who executed should be proud to have created something that still holds up against contemporary shows specifically dedicated to exploring the dark and depressing world of sex crimes, family sexual abuse, etc. I was anticipating disliking this ep based on the synopsis but was really surprised. Not my favorite subject matter (at all), but I can't help but admire the execution, especially given the time it was created.

The Flash: Infantino Street (2017) Season 3, Episode 22

How Are More Fans Not Dinging This Ep For HR's Ridiculously Implausible Screwup?

[5/10 · 31 May 2019]

As at least one reviewer has already pointed out, it makes ***ZERO SENSE*** that HR would blurt out Iris's location to Barry/Flash; never mind that it turned out to be Savitar posing as Barry. This episode specifically spent time emphasizing how anything Barry knows Savitar will also end up knowing through magical 'real-time' speed force memory updates. It was established that the most important thing about hiding Iris away was that Barry couldn't know her location. If Barry doesn't know where Iris is, then neither does Savitar. We all get it. But then HR blurts out Iris's location to imposter-Barry/Savitar anyway, and the already significant amount of disbelief that one must always suspend to enjoy shows like this suddenly becomes more than just heavier-it becomes a challenge from the show's creative team to the viewer, and that challenge is something like: We dare you to let us be this lazy, to accept us contradicting the logic of our own storytelling even within the same timeframe as we're establishing it. Obviously most fans accepted the challenge. I don't get it. Most aspects of this episode were better-than-average Flash fun, and I am an overall fan of the series-i.e., totally forgiving re: fun over sense-making when it comes to all the time travel shenanigans. But that HR moment..., man, it totally broke the spell of entertainment for me. And it was insulting. Makes me sad to see this as such a highly rated episode.

Murphy Brown (1988–2018)

Thumbs Down on Reboot OR 20 Years Later: All Gen Xers Were Killed Offscreen

[5/10 · 28 March 2019]

As a Gen Xer, I'm used to being underrepresented in all ways and in all areas of life etc., but the erasure of the entirety of Gen X in this reboot season (compared to Roseanne/The Conners, because how can you not compare?) is so insane it not only soured me on these new episodes but sullied my formerly fond memories of the original series. So much of these eps' attempts at non-political humor hinge on hamfisted scenarios wherein Boomers don't understand Twitter and Millennials have never seen a cellular flip phone, etc. The new characters (Murphy's son Avery all grown up, Pat Patel the 25-year-old gay Indian dude from Ohio who is of course running FYI 2.0's social media, and Miguel the undocumented DACA college student) are all Millennials; except for Tyne Daly, of course, who is both yet another Boomer and-for better or worse-not written as anything more than a female fill-in for the OG Phil character. You don't populate a 13-episode fictional contemporary America with ZERO Gen X characters by accident. Miles, the only OG Murphy Brown character who's close enough to the Gen X bracket that he's more Gen X than not (certainly not a Boomer or a Millennial), is the only OG character who hasn't mellowed with age. He has no partner, no kids, and he's somehow almost as highstrung today as he was when starting his career in television 30 years ago. The fact that Miles has continued his career as a TV producer from when we last saw him is all we know really about his life. So why hasn't he mellowed with age, just like Murphy and Frank who were also different flavors of neurotic when we last saw them in the 90s? I'm guessing Miles 2.0 is written as this shockingly improbable 30-year-veteran TV producer who is both perpetually successful and insecure at work because-whether it was a conscious choice or just a consequence of lazy storytelling-this show only 'works' if it denies the existence not only of factual Gen X Americans but also any Gen X perspective or sensibility. If there was a central character onscreen whose lived experience made it impossible for them to be straightforwardly amused by self-obsessed Millennials confounding self-obsessed Boomers and vice versa, what would the writers have them do? Groan periodically? Better to just not write them at all, apparently. The only thing that might have offset the offness of this sustained erasure of all things not Boomer-v-Millennial would have been some of the great apolitical weirdness that made the original series fun. It wasn't all social commentary, remember? This reboot made me sad. It's hard not to look back now on all of Murphy Brown and think, hey, was it always just about giving bourgeois Mother Jones-reading white Boomers a pass on whatever they decided activism was that week? (I'm thinking yes.)

Murphy Brown: Fake News (2018) Season 11, Episode 1

20 Years Later: All The Gen Xers Were Killed Offscreen?

[1/10 · 28 March 2019]

As a Gen Xer, I'm used to being underrepresented in all ways and in all areas of life etc., but the erasure of the entirety of Gen X in this reboot season (compared to Roseanne/The Conners, because how can you not compare?) is so insane it not only soured me on these new episodes but sullied my formerly fond memories of the original series. So much of these eps' attempts at non-political humor (I'm reviewing the whole season) hinge on hamfisted scenarios wherein Boomers don't understand Twitter and Millennials have never seen a cellular flip phone, etc. The new characters (Murphy's son Avery all grown up, Pat Patel the 25-year-old gay Indian dude from Ohio who is of course running FYI 2.0's social media, and Miguel the undocumented DACA college student) are all Millennials; except for Tyne Daly, of course, who is both yet another Boomer and-for better or worse-not written as anything more than a female fill-in for the OG Phil character. You don't populate a 13-episode fictional contemporary America with ZERO Gen X characters by accident. Miles, the only OG Murphy Brown character who's close enough to the Gen X bracket that he's more Gen X than not (certainly not a Boomer or a Millennial), is the only OG character who hasn't mellowed with age. He has no partner, no kids, and he's somehow almost as highstrung today as he was when starting his career in television 30 years ago. The fact that Miles has continued his career as a TV producer from when we last saw him is all we know really about his life. So why hasn't he mellowed with age, just like Murphy and Frank who were also different flavors of neurotic when we last saw them in the 90s? I'm guessing Miles 2.0 is written as this shockingly improbable 30-year-veteran TV producer who is both perpetually successful and insecure at work because-whether it was a conscious choice or just a consequence of lazy storytelling-this show only 'works' if it denies the existence not only of factual Gen X Americans but also any Gen X perspective or sensibility. If there was a central character onscreen whose lived experience made it impossible for them to be straightforwardly amused by self-obsessed Millennials confounding self-obsessed Boomers and vice versa, what would the writers have them do? Groan periodically? Better to just not write them at all, apparently. The only thing that might have offset the offness of this sustained erasure of all things not Boomer-v-Millennial would have been some of the great apolitical weirdness that made the original series fun. It wasn't all social commentary, remember? This reboot made me sad. It's hard not to look back now on all of Murphy Brown and think, hey, was it always just about giving bourgeois Mother Jones-reading white Boomers a pass on whatever they decided activism was that week? (I'm thinking yes.)

Doom Patrol (2019–2023)

Arnold Drake/Grant Morrison Doom Patrol 'Purists' Do Not Be Deterred

[9/10 · 16 February 2019]

Even after mostly enjoying the Titans backdoor pilot episode, I was expecting this series to debut on its own with at least one fatal flaw baked in that would have me groaning and dismissing it straightaway, but that didn't happen, so...success(?)! Captain Obvious would remind us that there's a reason great comics are great *comics.* The fact that this show is being attempted at this level and isn't a disaster out of the gate is pretty cool. I will continue to expect little and hope to be pleasantly surprised. If it can find its own way to capture something of the real Drake/Morrison spirit without moralizing or trying too hard to be cool, that'll be the thing. Fingers crossed.

Update: Wrote the above after watching only the pilot. Finally finished the whole first season. Loved it. None of my 'worst fears' came true, and the aspects of the pilot that 'concerned' me ended up expanding in ways I mostly really enjoyed. Of course this show isn't for everyone. The comic certainly never was/is (any iteration). You're either a 'Doom Patrol person' or you're not. For whatever it's worth, this Drake original and Morrison reboot Doom Patrol comic fan ended up very impressed with this season. So glad it's been renewed for a 2nd season. Please keep your word on that, folks at DC. I think this show has the potential to grow a serious following over time. Quick note: upped my rating from 8 for the pilot to 9 for the 1st season.

The Other Two (2019–2023)

'But also, like, *chase dreams* literally...'

[8/10 · 16 February 2019]

I'm three episodes in and loving this show. Went in skeptical of (potentially too gimmicky) premise, but the writing is solid and the actors are fantastic. If you're a fan of Schitt's Creek like me, you'll probably like this, too. If strong pilot doesn't hook you, move on.