Yolapukka

I thought Quinn's death looked unambiguous but the next season could prove me wrong. Considering the context, that he was was already dying, I just see it as an end that was hastened but already inevitable. I don't see much to be accomplished by his survival unless they plan to retell the story they already told this past season. I don't see him walking in to reclaim to his kingdom and lord it over all with the same attitude of strength and intimidation that carried him in the past and he's not going to be a rootable underdog. As has already been said, he's served his purpose.

I'm glad Quinn is most likely dead. Pompous, rambling, jack-ass, horn-dog psycho. It looks to me like Ryder will be the main adversary in the next chapter, which I see as both good and bad as I completely loathe the character, but I don't believe the actor has the gravity to carry off a villain unless said villain is intended to be a pouting nincompoop who can best defend himself by wetting his pants and hoping his adversaries slip in the puddle. However as far as that goes, this show is all broad strokes and action sequences, not subtle character moments. I think Martin Csokas is a reasonably competent actor but he gave us a continuous cheese buffet as Quinn. I have no worries about Sonny, the only question is whether he'll escape from the boat or his final destination. (I wonder if he's intended for some sort of fight to the death arena?) In his absence and with the consequent chaos following the death of Quinn, I assume Veil will go into hiding. I believe Jacobee and his regent, Zypher are dead, but they might have survived to cause further trouble. Sonny seemed to suffer worse than they did, but he's wearing main character teflon and they were just dressed in dark plaid. It appears that MK is going somewhere that could be of benefit to him, at least in controlling his abilities. It seems also that the Widow had access to similar powers and lost the ability as she learned to control it. Given that Sonny also has ties to Azra, does he have something similar inside of him that remains untapped?

Yeah, I definitely found the structure of the show to be formulaic this season and I didn't like that. It also really showed that they were trying to do a reset and it was not smooth, especially in the initial episodes. They need more crazy, unexpected moments on this show and you don't get that when you tie yourself to the highly visible set formula savinggrace outlined. They also need more inherent humour as written, instead of relying on Tom's wacky faces and Nicole's dismayed eye-rolls to provide lighter moments. One change that was an improvement on Goffman's reductive style was they packed a lot more plot into every episode, though it was a mixed blessing because some moments lacked time to breathe while things were rushing towards the next plot point. I think the show improved by leaps and bounds when they finally dropped the MOW as the central emphasis to focus on the seasonal arc as they closed in on the mid-season finale. I found those episodes hugely satisfying.

Quinn doesn't need to do anything for sex. As Baron, he seems to have a right to the women under his sphere of influence. He is not a forcible rapist but he is someone for whom compliance is expected and because of his power, there will always be an element of coercion whatever the degree of willingness. I don't believe he expects to get Veil entirely on his side, but he does want to divide her from Sunny because it suits his view of their places in his world, because it could result in a conflict he wishes to precipitate and also because he finds Veil desirable. I think it is important to him that both Veil and Sunny are aware that he could have sex with her whenever he wants and that he has an interest in her. Or similarly;

I don't think anything I've seen Mark wear, other than the car-pose outfit has fit him properly, everything looks like he bought it a size too small or a size too large, so that it either hangs or clings in an unflattering way.

I think he wants to try to nail Veil because, sex. Mainly I think he wants to mess with Sunny for a number of reasons. For one, he is displeased with Sunny for defying him over killing Veil's parents. Also, he wants what he sees as a worthy successor so he's trying to provoke his son and his regent into turning on him by taking" their" women. He wants to provoke one into killing him and then the two of them consequently taking each other on.

If Jade's not dead, I'm almost willing to bet money she staged her poisoning to take down Lydia. Ryder toned down his overwhelming shittiness in the scene with Waldo. I might have enjoyed their connection if he wasn't so awful. At least I enjoyed Waldo. I loved seeing Lance Henrikson as his grandfather, but I know I'm going to thoroughly hate the character already.

I was unclear about the time period that elapsed between Devar leaving his job and coming to the US. Did one or the both of them anticipate that it would be a much a shorter time than it actually was? Also, what would have been the penalty if he worked for two thirds of a six month contract and then quit? I don't tend to think either of them conned the other, but I do think there were some conversations they should have had once they decided that they would marry and he would move to the US. Melanie certainly had no anticipation that he planned to continue helping his family financially and he certainly seemed to be under the impression that she could afford to spend the money she was laying out.

Maybe it's because the writing for him is purposeful , he is what he is, they aren't trying to tease anything out or make us wonder, so the writing for him supports his characterization rather than misdirects us or fills time. The actor is also a huge part of what makes him work, he plays him straight and knows when to underplay rather than go big. His soft voice is a lot more menacing than a shout or snarl. There isn't that much on the page to make him an impressive character but what is there supports interest and the performance fills in what isn't there. Contrast that with Dawn, who I think could have been a fascinating character if the part had not been cast with a wooden, stilted actress, It was a flawed storyline overall, but that particular character had some writing that would have really come alive in the hands of someone who could bring layers and charisma to the table.

Or touch his windows, especially after they've eaten pancakes.

If they can afford it, sure, it would be a green flag if you were inclined to take advantage. If they can not afford it, then marrying someone who spends money they don't have is pretty damn stupid, especially if they have unsupportable debts.

Melanie spent just shy of $30,000 on travel and Dr. Phil warns her that she needs to see the red flags? Flags like the one where she spends her own money, by her own choice on herself and characterizes it as spending money on her SO? Devar should have at least ponied up for his own visa, but I fail to see how Melanie's choice to spend money on frequent trips to the tropics (something many can only dream about) to visit him are on anyone other than her. Presumably, she could afford it and if she can't, then Devar should have been the one seeing red flags himself. Dr. Phil always seems taken aback, right before he says something condescending and cobbled together from random catch-phrases to give it a veneer of folksiness. I think Devar might not be in it for the long run but only time will tell. Mel is a grown-ass woman who is well capable of making her own mistakes. I might not like it if I was her sister but I would hope that I'd have enough sense not to undermine her once the wedding had gone through. I don't think Bev is jealous, per se but I think she needs to look down on her sister's choices and infantilize her.

I wonder if his ex made a considered decision to forgo primary physical custody of her kids because she suspected Mark was the type of guy who would be controlling, difficult and nit-picky over support, time spent with children and any expenses and costs not explicitly addressed in their divorce. And yes, she may have felt that she didn't have the rights or resources to fight him effectively. Mark seems like the kind of guy that would ditch time he was supposed to spend with his kids, complain bitterly about child support while not actually paying it and join a father's rights group to complain about it all. They would have had a toxic or barely existing relationship with their father instead of one that was probably far from perfect but mostly Ok. He's their dad, he's a big ol' persnickety weirdo and that would have been true even if the first marriage had gone well instead of ending (which I highly doubt was possible....) All we really know is he complains about being left with "four kids in diapers", that his wife was the one who paid child support and was present in their lives after the divorce.

Whether or not Bev is 100% (or 90%) justified in her mistrust of Devar, she would have a problem with anyone Melanie was involved with. She'd always find something. I guarantee that if Mel dated or married someone from a similar background from the same geographic area who was financially successful and was on exactly same page as Mel in terms of what he wanted out of life, Bev would still find something to take incessant issue with. She justifies it by saying Melanie is her younger sister and I think that's what it's really about. Melanie seems to have a more successful and accomplished life than Bev and the only way Bev can deal is pretending she has a level of wisdom her sister lacks. What Bev really has is a shitty personality and a chestful of ill-considered tattoos.

It really stood out for me how Mark complained about all the bells and whistles he'd constructed past dates around, roses, five star meals (sure, sure......) blah, blah, blah. It was all about putting on a show, nothing about getting to know someone, find common values or interests and certainly nothing about having fun or finding someone with a shared sense of humour. Even if I will myself to be blind about just how creepy Mark is in his proprietary attitude towards Nikki and women generally, he's distasteful because he's no damn fun. Holy crap, he's sour! Everything is a complaint and when he says something positive it's about how he got something over on someone he thought might be trying the same. He just wants someone to follow instructions, spread her legs and smile at him. He strikes me as being acutely aware that the marriage was a transaction, which is the only kind of romantic relationship he understands, but wanting to get as many rebates as possible because he's so damn cheap. He seems to dislike Nikki for being exactly what he wanted.

Overall I enjoy this show, for the most part, it's weaknesses are easily overlooked in light of those things it does well, however.... The more I see of Ryder the more problematic I find the character, He's an important part of shifting allegiances around Sunny, Quinn and the Widow but I can't stand to have him on my screen and he needs to go because he ruins every scene, even those that merely reference him. He's so awful that I think Jade is better off marrying Quinn and being poisoned by Lydia. I can't even take him playing unconscious. In fact I wouldn't even care at this point if they had someone say he died and then cut every shot of him without bothering to reshoot, with the result that we get inexplicable scenes of other characters having conversations with no-one, because that would still be better than having to look at him pulling dreadful faces and spitting out his lines in a monotonous snarl. He's fucking awful. Terrible actor, really terrible, playing a grating, unlikeable, useless character. I can usually find something to enjoy in a performance or character I otherwise despise, but not him.

From what I've read, Henry was always intended to be Jeremy. Even without the Katrina factor, turning the sin-eater into Sonny-boy Whiny-pants was a major misstep, so yeah there was always going to be CFD. Whatever was planned for Katrina, I doubt the original intent was that she eclipse all others, but that was certainly Goffman's direction by his own words in numerous interviews. I don't think he's a fall guy for (incompetently) doing what he wanted, whether or not K&O were completely on board with "all hail Katrina" from the beginning.

I was dumbfounded when he was let go, but now I have no idea how they'd incorporate him successfully into the story they are telling. There would be a level of fuckery in keeping him incorporated in the Scooby gang in the context of his family situation, I don't know how they'd work that in or work around it without the results being somewhat jarring.

I was sure as soon as Rick decided to go out in walker guts that they should have left Sam on the roof or duck-taped his damn mouth.

The actress is Kathleen Gati. She does have a definite resemblance to Shelley Morrison.

Why doesn't she lock the damn door? Is there no lock? Sign-outs and community mindedness don't seem to be bloody working anymore. Seriously lady, lock the damn door and control entry to the place or get someone else to manage it while you stick to preserving stuff and counting chocolate squares.

Dawn sucked so bad. Terrible character, worse actress and it was just really frickin tiresome to watch all that in service of Beth/Emily Kinney, another unfortunate combination of writing and performance. All the performances in that setting, except for TJW, were really stilted and off. If Dawn had worked and they had mixed the Grady-only episode with some other scenes of the main cast it would have been tolerable, even enjoyable. At least it culminated in an end to all the creepy shipping of Daryl + Beth. Episodes like this past one are a lot easier to enjoy, even if you fervently dislike a particular character, they aren't the whole story and you are probably going to see something of one you do appreciate. It's riskier storytelling for sure to lift a character or characters out of the main cast and focus on them, especially in an unfamiliar setting and risk doesn't always pay off in kind, sometimes it's just a great big fail.

I wish this episode had aired last week and they'd put Morgan's Moral Journey on this week. I would have better appreciated it with the Glenn reveal out of the way. The reveal that the wolf was who Morgan was hiding would have been more effective too, even if I guessed it well before it was shown.

I've often wondered if Boob and/or Me-chelle sat the girls down and warned them off from staying close to a specific sibling after marriage because it could interfere with the sacred bond with a spouse. It seems in keeping with their warped mentality and typical hypocrisy from Me-chelle who has kept her me-time with her own bestie.

Yeah, usually I stay away from calling deaths, unless it's a villain, but Tobin was coming off as rather doomed in those scenes. Still, I thought the biggest redshirt in the episode was that dark-haired lady at the back of Rosita's training group, the one that already looked like a walker. I thought Carol's thoughtless advice to Sam was probably the worst moment of the episode. I don't mind Enid and I I somewhat admire her desire to fend for herself, even though I think it's totally wrong-headed, because throwing in with a group, settled or transient really isn't much safer. However that does not mean I have much tolerance for annoying and she really was being annoying, in fact sufficiently annoying that it was starting to rub off on Glenn because his plucky insistence that they stick together and return to Alexandria rapidly pushed past my "enough already!" point. That was some really thin and ill-considered writing the pair of them got. Their scenes and Enid's bratty attitude in particular were pointlessly grating. I think the object was to give them some dramatic tension and remind us Who Glenn Really Is, which is Stuff We Already Know.