thuganomics85

Isaac: "Where in the hell did Abby go?! Her and her gang just disappeared!" Park: "Actually, Manny is still here.: Isaac: "Man, fuck Manny!" You know, he might be one of the main (?) antagonists, but Isaac is kind of relatable on some levels. I blame it on Jeffery Wright! Oh, Jesse. Once he got as much screen time as he did here and they brought up how he is arguably a "good person" in Ellie and the other characters' eyes, I knew he was a goner. He even found out that he was going to be a father before it all went down. In hindsight, he really should have gone to Texas with that painter he was crushing on. Then again, had he not stayed, Ellie and Dina might not still be here either. Either way, he's another person close to Ellie that is no longer with us. Rough. And they did reveal that he actually was one of the council members that voted no. Had a feeling that was going to be the case. Credit to Young Mazino for making the most of his screen time. Dina finds out about what Joel did to the Fireflies and isn't taking it well at all. But I guess her giving Ellie the watch was a sign that she hasn't given up on her? Granted, after everything she's been through, Dina has earned a few moments to collect all of her thoughts. Scar Island doesn't not seem like a pleasant place, to put it mildly. I'm guessing the Wolves are attacking their village, which is why we had all of that shooting and explosions at the end. Really not sure which of these groups is the worst. Maybe the rest of the world will get lucky and they'll wipe each other out. Ellie adds two new victims to her list, with Owen and Mel both getting taken out thanks to Owen trying to be cute and pulling a gun on Ellie. But wait! Turns out Mel was pregnant this entire time. Yikes! Even if her getting shot wasn't on purpose, I imagine that will do a number on Ellie's already fragile psyche. And then a desperate Mel begging Ellie to cut out the baby which was probably never going to happen. Even in the womb, babies are not safe on HBO shows! Glad Tommy finally returned. No one will ever top Joel, but seeing him again was the closet to having a calming presence on the show. Briefly... At least Shimmer is apparently still chilling in the record station! Eating that good grass! Abby is here and is pissed! Kaitlyn Dever is already bringing that intensity and charisma! But hold up! We're flashing back to Day One from her perspective? Will next season start out with her in the lead role? Interesting approach. Overall, I enjoyed this season still but I do think it was more flawed compared to last season. Less episodes definitely hurt it as I feel like some stuff and characters could have been fleshed out more. I also think Neil Druckmann and Halley Gross being less hands on this go around might have hurt it, because I thought these last two episodes were some of the stronger ones, and I noticed they wrote both of them (and Neil directed the previous episode.) But I also think they didn't quite get a handle on the Ellie/Dina relationship, as it kind of came off soapy and silly at times. Also, while it is obviously following what happened in the games, I suspect Joel/Pedro Pascal's absence going forward is going to be tough to handle. But I'm still looking forward to seeing how this plays out. Sucks we'll probably have to wait another two years or so.

Those poor employees. At least Jose seems to realize they might need to play things down a bit, but I imagine Simone is going to make their lives even more hellish: wherever she pierces together that their celebratory behavior was because of her firing or not. Not too surprised that this all ended with Peter being the true villain, but I was kind of surprised how obvious and easy it was. He really was just bored with Michaela and wanted a new (and younger) wife, and once he got a hold of that picture (and I guess she didn't have the awareness to make any kind of copies?), she really had no choice but to accept her fate. Not exactly a happy ending there. I mean, granted she had her own issues as a human being, but Peter really is iced cold. As for Simone, some of her actions can be chalked up to her trauma and history, but she equally burned a lot of bridges for what will probably be a decade at best of a marriage that will probably suck. At least Devon is taking a step towards getting her own place, even if she plans on denying potential happiness with Jordan in order to continue to take care of Bruce. Ethan ended up being kind of irrelevant at the end, which is fitting. All in all, it kind of went the way I expected. Won't be a show I'll remember about for every long, but the season was short enough to be binge-worthy, and it was great seeing Meghann Fay and Milly Alcock shine again. Looking forward to seeing what they do next!

This was the episode to finally let Bill Camp earn his paycheck, since he got more meaty material compared to the previous episodes of just sitting in a chair and acting through a phone. Bruce really is not well, but if it's true that he basically abandoned Simone like he did, it's hard to fault her for not wanting anything to do with him. Glad Simone rejected Ethan's proposal, because he was being a condescending douche throughout everything. White Knight really was the perfect description for him. But with him plunging off a literal cliff, I wonder if he'll end up continuing to be a thorn in her side. If he dies, will some suspect Simone pushed him? I say this as someone who adores all things Meghann Fay, but it's hilarious that three guys seem to be willing to destroy their lives for Devon of all people. The sex can't be that good, can it? Michaela and Peter have a heart to heart, but any progress has now been undone thanks to the Vanity Fair photographer giving her proof of his kiss with Simone. I would assume she could just use that to file for divorce and void the prenup, but I wouldn't be surprised if she decides to cause more chaos instead. Onto the finale!

Figures. A show that actually seems to be improving each season (even though I really enjoyed it since the beginning), but probably just didn't bring back enough viewers who left after the first season to keep going. I also wouldn't be surprised if the budget was pretty high with all of the visual effects and location shooting. Still, I will miss it. Hope the cast move on and find good roles elsewhere.

Not sure if Michaela really does have some kind of magical power that can manipulate people or if all of the stuff with Devon was just shot in a mythical way to show what her mindset was. Granted, it doesn't work on everyone since Jose was able to not roll over and do her bidding. Maybe his loyalty towards Peter trumps it. Granted, he probably should take her advice and watch his back, because she does strike me as someone who can be vindictive. Funny that Michaela thought Peter was having an affair this entire time, but it turns out he was off the grid and just trying to avoid all of the crazy socialite drama that entails her life. But then he ends up proving her right by trying to make a move on Simone. I wonder if him finding out she also has panic attacks made him take more of a notice or was that attraction always there? Did not realize until now that Josh Segarra was playing Raymond this entire time. Figured Ethan wouldn't be dead, but I was surprised over the revelation that he left to Buffalo to get their dad (and Raymond), and is now proposing to Simone. I'm guessing it's part of some kind of scheme Michaela has cooked up since they were last seen talking together. Maybe she thinks all of them together will make them one big, cult-like happy family? Or maybe it's the reverse: that having the dad here will mess with Simone, because Michaela really is mad at her over the lies?

Kevin Bacon finally arrives to keep the "Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon" going! Peter is kind of a strange fellow. Doesn't seem all that lovingly towards Michaela, and is also distant with his adult children as well. And judging from his reaction towards Devon's obvious probing, he at least seems aware that Michaela killing his first wife isn't that far-fetched. Devon really doesn't seem cut out for the whole spy thing, huh? She's lucky that either Michaela is that oblivious towards her obvious goal or she knows and is planning something herself. I also think Devon being so open with Jordan the Boat Guy is going to backfire on her. Simone certainly had herself quite the meltdown after finding out Michaela knows about her and Ethan. Even if she is able to recover, I imagine Michaela will not be happy over that, the deceit, and her missing during the bird funeral. I wonder if Devon will try and take advantage of this? "I'm Astrid!" Meghann Fay and Milly Alcock are still my main reasons for watching!

Tuning in for mainly two reasons: a) Meghann Fay, who I loved in the second season of The White Lotus and was also great in the better than expected thriller Drop and b) young Rhaenyra Targaryen and future Supergirl herself, Milly Alcock! Throw in beautiful scenery, outlandish bright outfits, and Julianne Moore in full cult leader mode and it is certainly enough to give this all a watch! Hard to tell yet what is really going on and I'm sure more mysteries are yet to come, but it sounds like Simone/Milly had a rough enough childhood that she wants nothing to do with her family anymore. I'm wondering if her father in particular is to blame, because she really seems to think little of him. But Devon is acting like Simone is the one at fault, so I wonder if there is more to that or is just arrogance/selfishness on Devon's part? It does look like Simone is easily swayed, since she seems to be under Michaela's spell and borderline acting like a mini version of her. Ethan will obviously be up to no good, because no way is Dennis Reynolds from It's Always Sunny going to end up being just a normal, rich guy! Hope we see more of Jose and the rest of the staff, since I can only imagine the bullshit they've seen working with this ball of crazy! I figured the rescued bird was going to come back into play, but I was not expecting him to take himself out by bashing himself through Michaela's window. Wouldn't be surprised if there is a lot more going on with her bird sanctuary than meets the eye.

Abby and everyone else in the world that hates Joel and thinks he is a monster really don't know how more worse he could have been. Because his dad was none other than freaking Lalo Salamanca! Okay, not really, but Tony Dalton as Joel's dad in the flashback was a great casting choice. An abusive dad who tried to rationalize his behavior by claiming that at least he wasn't bad as his own dad. Some really hollow excuses there but at least he did plant the idea about Joel "being better than him." Looks like Joel accomplished that since he seemed to be a great father to Sarah and despite his many, many, many flaws, did his best to do right by Ellie. Seeing Young Joel try to lie and protect Young Tommy also hinted at someone who would always do what he thinks is best to protect those he cares for: even at his own expense. If this is actually the final time we see Joel/Pedro Pascal here, at least he goes out on a high note. It was great seeing the Joel/Ellie pairing again and seeing them during happier times, until slowly but surely, it all came crashing down. But, of course, the show just had to twist the knife a little by showing a spark of a potential reconciliation that will no longer be possible thanks to Abby's actions. In some ways, that has to hurt Ellie even more than if she and Joel had just been on bad terms until his death. I still think Joel's actions against Marlene and the Fireflies aren't that clear cut, because I really do feel like there was so many unanswered questions and possibilities with their science and approach, that I don't think it would have worked despite their claims. But in the end, I guess it really doesn't matter because Joel all but admitted that he was going to save her no matter what. And I guess I can understand the debates over morality and the greater good, but it's hard for me to fault him for what he did. That said, I do understand Ellie's reactions a little more now, because seeing the way he can lie and cover things up is tough to watch. Even if his intentions are good (in his own mind.) The stuff with how he dealt with Eugene (Joey Pants!) and his execution were definitely more questionable. Even if he really did think there wasn't enough time to get him back to Gail to say goodbye, creating a sob story about how heroic he was and making Gail even start crying in his arms was manipulative as hell. He didn't have to tell her the full story, but he could have at least said that he was the one that put the bullet in his head and not some kind of major self-sacrifice. Again, I get that he was probably thinking that Gail would "feel better" if she thought Eugene went out as some kind of heroic martyr, but the way he did it just felt icky. Also, I do think we got glimpses that Joel wasn't completely comfortable with Ellie being a lesbian. Using the word "experimenting" stood out for sure. He might not have been a raging bigot like Seth, but it's kind of interesting that they showed that Joel had his own dated views, which I guess wouldn't be completely surprised for a man his age and where/how he was raised. The porch scene was everything. Overall, Pedro and, yes, Bella Ramsey crushed this episode. Probably the best episode of the season, but seeing that the finale is next week does give off a vibe that this season feels more rushed compared to the first season. Feels like we've only just kicked things off and it's already about to end.

Oh, fuck! Not only did Dedra remain a prisoner of the Empire, but it looks like she's locked up in a prison similar to the one Cassian was in last season. Never thought I would have said this last week, but Syril might have had the better ending in comparison. Either way, fitting end. So, despite the odds, Cassian was able to get Kleya to Yavin and inform the Rebel leaders of the Death Star plans. Only... for the majority of them to doubt him because they all distrust/hate Luthen and think he was just talking crazy. Yeah, I should have saw that coming. The Rebellion really was their own worst enemy at times. Glad Cassian stood up for him because despite their shaky at best history, there is no doubt Cassain knows the lengths Luthen went to in order for the Rebellion to have a chance in this fight, and wasn't going to let his name be crapped on like that. At least Mon kept an open-mind and then both Draven and Bail Organa were swayed at the end. Was not expecting Nemik's Manifesto to briefly come back into play! I guess Partagaz killed himself because he knew he was going to be blamed for Kleya escaping. But it did look like he was expressing regret at the end, so there is another example of a fascist loyalist realizing how little he mattered to the organization and those in charge. Seems to be a common "too little, too late" theme with this lot. Everyone needs a K-2S0 in their lives! One final moment of Saw being a big old nutty ball of ham! Like Luthen, there is/was aspects about him that the Rebellion needed to put up a fight agains the Empire, but it is really not a surprise over how this all ends up for him come Rogue One time. The final montage of all the characters was great. Complete with the reveal that, yes, Bix really was pregnant with Cassian's child this entire time, so even if his time in this galaxy ended on that beach in Rogue One, his legacy/bloodline will carry on. A few minor/normal quibbles aside, this really is going to go down as one of the best Star Wars products ever made. Granted, even the worst of them will always have at least one or two moments or characters that stick with me. But this show really was excellent across the board. Fascinating and layered characters, superior writing and directing, a top notch cast, and easily the best look at how truly evil but grounded the Empire is and why so many gave their lives to try and stop that threat. Sad that it ended but at least it went out on a high note. And I can't wait to rewatch Rogue One again with this all in my head now. Great job, all around.

Okay, all of the Empire can just dive off a cliff right now, but I have a smidgen of respect for Partagaz when he didn't let Krennic completely walk all over him and even called him out for his own failures with all of the delays. Plus, I got a kick out of him basically saying "Calling it Death Star is so extra, guys. Y'all ain't even trying to hide it" over the name. Yeah, he is as evil as the rest of them, but he's definitely more of a straightforward mid-level manager type of sinister, as oppose to all of the theatrics. I can almost respect that! Looks like it's Dedra's turn to realize that being loyal to a fascist regime means squat, since they are now assuming she was part of the rebellion this entire time and all of her warnings/pleas are falling on deaf ears. If she can't find a way to turn this around, it would be a fitting end for her in the same way Syril's rate was. Still kind of unnerving though the way Krennic being choking her. Ben Mendelsohn can definitely play evil really well! Glad we got more K-2SO this go around. Can watch an entire episode of him trying to play cards and figure out the art of bluffing! You know, when he isn't busy tossing stormtroopers off balconies. Priorities! Cassian gets to Kleya, but it sounds like she doesn't even want to go to Yavin due to knowing that they are very anti-Luthen over there and she doesn't think she'll be accepted. I guess we'll see if Cassian will convince her or is she destined for a noble sacrifice of some kind. General Draven is either going to promote Cassian or throw him in the brig once he gets back. Time to wrap this up!

An episode of Andor without any, well, Andor. And yet I really can't complain because what we did get was all sorts of awesome (and heartbreaking.) Fare thee well, Luthen Rael. Granted, it was obvious since season one that he was destined not to make it through this in one piece (after-all, he called it himself with his epic "I burn my life to make a sunrise I know I'll never see" speech), but it was still wild to watch unfold. Dedra finally put the pieces together and figured out what he was doing, but instead of fleeing, he stayed to make sure all evidence was destroyed and when he was cornered, he did his best to not be able to tell her anything. Only flaw was he really should have slit his own throat instead of stabbing his chest, because I don't even know if Imperial medicine could have walked that back. At least Bacta tanks are the rave yet! I did love that he got one final taunt with him promising Dedra there is a whole bunch of rebels in the galaxy waiting to "disgust" her. That landed in a very satisfactory matter. But credit where credit is due, Kleya more than picked up the ball and ran with. Made sure to finish the job (in some ways, she probably put him out of his misery), and made enough explosions to probably have the Empire on their toes for a bit. Assuming she's off to Yavin now win the info Lonni gave them. Luthen would be proud. Speaking of which, poor Lonni. I'm guessing Luthen knew there was probably no way to actually get him off the planet and didn't want him captured/talking, but that was still ice cold. Really, his death was already on the cards the first time he crossed paths with Luthen. Again, Luthen helped/has helped the rebellion in ways that can never be diminished, but he committed some horrible acts in order to give them a fighting chance. Brutal. But, it sounds like Lonni's discovery was none other than the Death Star itself, so his sacrifice really does mean a lot. Not sure how much comfort that will be, but it's something at least. Loved the flashbacks and it really helped explain why Kleya was so loyal to Luthen, and even why Luthen became who he was. A solider in the Imperial fleet who witnessed; if not helped committed; horrid acts, and it clearly haunted him throughout his life. And then when he met Kleya has a child, he didn't see her as a form of redemption or a way out, but as someone who can be molded to be a fighter like him. Dark, but in this world, it is clearly what is needed to survive. The young actress playing Teen Kleya did excellent work. Unless we get any flashbacks of some kind these next two episodes, I salute you, Stellan Skarsgard. You have the talent that you probably could have phoned in or half-assed this and still come out looking good. Instead, you went all in and not just gave arguably one of the best performances in the entire Star Wars universe, but made Luthen was the most fascinating characters in not just this galaxy, but in all of television. Well done.

Ellie and Dina are stronger people than me, because regular zombies are bad enough, clickers are a nightmare, and the bloaters really suck. But a whole bunch of intelligent zombies? Yeah, I might just have called it quits right after that. Maybe this life just ain't worth it. If they ever start speaking, I think humanity will just be toast! Whelp, we now see why Gabriel Luna and Young Mazino have been in the credits this entire time. Looks like Tommy and Jesse left Jackson a day later and have been on their trail ever since. I guess they were able to follow since everyone was aware that Joe's killers came from Seattle, but it definitely relied on some atypical plot contrivances to catch up that quickly and Jesse being able to arrive at the right moment to save them. But I'm looking forward to seeing how those two factor in going forward. Especially if/when Jesse finds out about Dina's pregnancy. The fungi mutating in a way that you can be infected by breathing it's spores in is certainly a scary proposition. Seems limited to only this B2 area for now, but that could be a game changer if it spreads. The solider having to seal her unit; including her own son; in was tragic and brutal. Hettienne Park; who I know best as Bev from Hannibal; did fantastic work in her one scene. So, the Seraphites are just a wee bit crazy, huh? Ellie gets her first victim in the form of Nora/the one played by Tati Gabrielle, who is already doomed after breathing in the spores, but Ellie is going to keep beating on her unless she tells her where Abby is. Shades of Joel going to town on that one guy when she was kidnapped by Daniel last season. I'm sure we're suppose to want to question if she's going too far with her revenge tour, but since she did just watch her father figure get brutally murdered in front of her, I'll give her maybe two or three tortures before I declare she's crossed the point of no return! Joel! Kind of. I guess they're setting things up for a flashback episode next week. Can't wait!

Welcome to the rebellion, Mon Mothma! Say what you will about how it took longer than many probably would have liked for everyone to get on board, but massive credit to Mon for stepping up like she did. Giving a speech to the Senate that she knew that Empire would not only hate, but would likely arrest her for? Even dropping fucking Emperor Palpatine's name at the end? Yeah, that takes guts. Great show on her part. And I still have to imagine Genevieve O'Reilly would have never predicted almost twenty years ago that she'd be able to revisit this character and it such great material for her. Cassian helping her escape definitely benefited from the Imperial goons doing what they do best and being incompetent, but it was still a fun little caper. Glad Eskrin came though after the whole "Oh, yeah, I'm a spy for Luthen by the way" reveal that understandably made Mon a little miffed. Looks like no one is going to know what Cassian did and are going to make Mon's arrival to Yavin a big spectacle. Instead, he comes back with a thankfully still alive Wilmon, so I guess most will believe that his trip to Ghorman was the only thing that happened. Cassian wants to finally be done with things and run away with Bix to a far off planet (maybe in a galaxy far, far away?!) But despite her feelings, Bix decides to choose the Rebellion over both of them, so she flees in the night and Cassian has no idea where she is. Wonder if this is really it for her or if she comes back in some form ,but if it is, great show from Adria Arjona. K-2SO has awakened and is already rocking the Alan Tudyk voice!

Yup, I can see why this is currently one of the highest rated episodes on IMDB right now. I knew everything in Ghorman was all heading for some kind of massacre, but I was still surprised over how emotionally brutal it was. The Ghorman rebels really were put in a no win situation, and actually showing us how the Empire was planning everything and watching it all unfold really was twisting the knife. Right down to even willingly sending some of their inexperienced, younger soldiers into the fold and knowing they will not make it out alive. No wonder the likes of Luthen and Saw are needed to even make this a competition. With evil like that as the opposition, clean hands will be hard to find. A lot of Ghorman deaths; including some of the recurring rebels; but we did get one big Imperial death in the form of old Syril! A fitting end since he goes out knowing that he was just a pawn for the Empire to get precious minerals instead of the greater good or whatever shit he had cooked up in his head. And he realized that Dedra had been keeping it from him this entire time. Oh, and when he finally has his big showdown with Cassian, he finds out that Cassian didn't even know who he was. I almost felt bad for him. Almost. But credit to Kyle Soller though, because he made Syril one to remember. Dedra did seem sincerely upset over him leaving and then I guess finding out about his death, so I do wonder if she cared for him more than she expected. Diego Luna's facial acting during that final montage.... perfection. Oh, shit, are we getting the origins of K-2SO soon?! Excellent episode.

"Take of your shirt!" Okay, I know that was to show the blaster bruise, but that also carried just a little bit of a "Get Diego Luna shirtless at least once this season!" vibe as well! Another year forward and things continue to change in some ways and stay the same in other ways. Cassian (and Bix) pretty much seem to have gotten away from Luthen and are working with this new rebellion in Yavin, that seems to have slightly more structure and footing compared to their previous gigs. That said, Cassian isn't exactly endearing himself to the higher ups since they see a potential leadership role for him, but he keeps doing things like ignoring them or going off on missions without their permission. But I think Bix is right that he will be there for them when the time calls for it. On the flip side, Wilmon has return and seems to be deeper in Luthen's side of the rebellion (I wonder if he's still a major factor with Saw's faction?), which has put him at odds with Cassian. Not sure what to make of it, and I mean this in a good way for once. I can't deny that Luthen has played a huge part with taking it to the Empire and when this is all said and done, he should be credited for it. But I can see why Cassian does not want fall back in with him, because at the end of the day, everyone is expendable in his eyes and he will inflict all types of horror as long as he believes the ends justify the means. Sure, it's great that he's on the "good" side, but it's such a slippery slope. Ghorman really has become a fascist state now with armed soldiers in every corner, curfews, and rebellions being branded as terrorists, so that the Empire can crack down even more. Doesn't help that the rebellion seems to be at odds over how to handle all of this pressure. We will see who is left standing, if any. I'm guessing Dedra being upset over the new soldiers and manpower isn't out of any type of morality, but because she feels like control is being taken from her. Interesting that she did warn Syril that something is going down and to be prepared. Maybe she does care about him? But then tried to make some kind of deal with his rebel contact. Is his loyalty faltering or was he just trying to find a way to court favor? Mon Mothma is now under some from of surveillance. Loved her initially wanting to get rid of the obvious mole pilot, only for her assistant to point out that they might just replace him with someone smarter. Cassian is back on Ghorman and preparing to assassinate Dedra, but I won't be surprised if things don't go according to plan.