thuganomics85

Yeah, sign me up for a "The Chronicles of Young Jet Reno" prequel stat. As long as it's still Tig Notaro: even with silly wigs and make-up to make her look younger. I just want twelve or so episodes of her deadpanning her way through all of those outlandish scenarios she was referencing. So, after everything, L'ak just ends up accidentally killing himself in a failed attempt for Moll to try and escape. Kind of feels like a going out with a whimper ending for him, but maybe something will come out of the Proto technology being able to bring people back from the dead. Wished I cared more. Elias Toufexis and his epic voice did all they could, but I'm just not majorly invested in these characters and their fates. Speaking of which, so Moll basically is going to join Team Breen? Yeah, even if Hail Mary works, she better have some kind of backup plan because no way they will let her walk away in any shape or form. But while Book might hate it, I really can't fault the Federation for letting her go instead of trying to fight back. She really isn't worth all of the likely deaths that would have happened. But I suspect he'll be even more moody and angsty going forward. Loved seeing Nhan again, even if she was surprisingly ineffective in a bout with Moll. One the flip side, Culber actually held his own there for a second. The Doctor's got some moves! No Saru again since he was apparently off on some mission, but at least T'Rina return and was being her normal awesome self. A little disappointed this is the final season, because Rayner is actually becoming a compelling character for me. Imperfect, but someone whose reasons and actions are usually understandable, and Callum Keith Rennie is doing great work with everything. Would have liked to have seen more of him in the future.

Yeah, this stuff with Glassman and Hannah is just odd. Really feels like this was something planned for a season that would have been full lengthen, but then once they got the actual episode order, they are now rushing the whole thing. None of this really feels earned and I already find it ridiculous that Glassman is going to risk his career like this. To be fair, maybe this will all play into that mysterious phone conversation we overhead last week, but for now, it just feels like this is all an excuse for Richard Schiff to work alongside his daughter (which, hey, I get it! Probably a nice bonding moment!) I'm not sure how the show wanted to make me feel thanks to all of those scenes with Jordan being snippy with him, but I really can't find any fault with Park a) not just going along with a "We're getting married at the courthouse tomorrow even though I never even mentioned this before. Be there 10:00 a.m, sharp!" plan out of the blue, b) a public proposal that seems obvious to anyone with a working brain that it was all calculated and for show, and c) getting another proposal with a ring that wasn't actually a family heirloom but something Reznick bought from a pawn shop. After seasons of being much more likable and interesting, it's like Reznick regressed back to her earlier, more one-dimensional self these past two episodes. I guess I'll just file all of this along side Park's stupid reasons for breaking up with her last season as stuff I'm just going to pretend didn't happen in order to keep enjoying this pair (which, I do: mainly thanks to Fiona Gubelmann and Will Yun Lee.) Cases of the week were solid. Nice to see that Shaun and Charlie can actually be a fun pair when they are no longer at each others throats. Nice to be reminded how horrible Shaun's dad was. A little surprised they were able to get Michael Trucco back for the one scene. Noticed they recast his mom though, because she was played by Joanna Going back in that season three episode. Shaun ends up deciding to not go through with trying to get a diagnosis for Baby Steve. I wonder if they'll go back to this or will this be something left open-ended. I can see it going either way.

Name a more popular pair in Star Trek than the Prime Directive and a captain/lead character breaking the Prime Directive, heh. For whatever reason, I just couldn't get into this episode. I liked the idea of Michael and Tilly being on an away mission together and diving back into their relationship. And there was some intriguing ideas with the mission, the particular planet's culture and look, and the resolution. But it just didn't connect with me, when it was all said and done. Maybe the guest characters just didn't feel fully fleshed out? Or it's because we obviously knew nothing was going to happen and they'll get the next clue? I don't know: just kind of got bored during a lot of this. Still not sure what is going to be in store with Culber and him potentially finding some form of religion. At least Stamets is supportive, but I agree that he right now doesn't seem to quite understand what Culber means when he is bring up this change. Did like the Reyner/Adira scenes and seeing Reyner being more supportive and patient, while still maintaining some of his sternness and blunt talk. Book totally wants to rekindle that flame! No Saru, again. Hopefully Doug Jones was filming something else at the time, so that means we will get more Doug Jones awesomeness elsewhere at some point. But I imagine he'll factor back in at some point.

Now, there's the Reznick I remember! Using her friendship to try and poach Leah's favorite nanny candidate is certainly something out of her playbook. Moral/fairness debates aside, that is a surefire way to never be trusted again, so I'm not sure if it was worth putting their friendship at risk like that, but I guess it's not worth thinking too much about that. Not surprised though that Leah would fight back and I did enjoy it leading to Park having to bring everyone to the negotiating table to stop things from really going off the rails. Loved that his biggest fear was that them being at war would mean he and Shaun wouldn't be allowed to hang anymore. Heh, he might act like a grump at times, but he really enjoys his time with Shaun! So, Guillermo Diaz; who I've seen in a ton of stuff but I'm guessing he's best known as Huck from Scandal; shows up as a patient who literally thinks he's Jesus. Is it odd that this is honestly not anywhere close to the weirdest thing to happen on this show? Maybe not, because even the gang themselves seemed pretty chill about it. Like they acknowledge it was off, but were just glad it wasn't something as insane as other cases they dealt with. Knew how everything was going to end, but I'm glad he at least allowed Jordan to find a healthier way to grieve and remember Asher. Speaking of which, I'm glad we did get to check back in with Jerome, even though I really don't see him ever coming back because I have to think no matter where he was in the hospital, he'd see Asher and that would be extremely painful. But it was nice of Jared to keep checking in on him and equally helping him move forward. The other case was predictable, but worked well enough. Always good to see "Hey, it's that Canadian Guy" Adrian Hough as the patient. So, is Glassman's reaction to that phone conversation suppose to be hinting that something medically bad is going down with him? Again? I guess it wouldn't be a season of The Good Doctor if Glassy didn't have at least one health scare! Shaun now wonders if Baby Steve has autism as well. Seems pretty early to know for sure, but I imagine that will be something he'll be paying attention to going forward.

Oh, Book! He seemed prepared for everything but Moll basically being like "Yo, he may have been a good mentor to you but he SUCKED as a father, so I could give a shit about our relationship." I guess that is a common blindspot, to be fair. Plus, if I were a betting man, this will all probably end with them forming some kind of bond by the end of this. So, long story short, Moll and L'ak are basically on the run from a Blood contract because the latter is Breen and their whole relationship is looked down upon by everyone else. Plus, killing those soldiers and shooting his uncle probably didn't help things either. Can't really blame him on that though, because Eve Harlow would be worth going against your douchebag of an uncle! But that is why they are so gung-ho to get the Progenitors' powers for themselves. With Michael away (with Book), Rayner.... actually played really well with the Discovery crew. Still kept his natural sternness and firm grip on the proceedings, but was still more open with them and seemed to find a better way to get ideas out of them without being a jerk about it. He might fit in, after-all! Callum Keith Renne is doing good work here. The stuff with Tilly and Culber felt random out and out of place. Second episode in a row without checking in on Saru. I'm sure he'll be back at some point, but I'm wondering if this direction (him serving on the station, Rayner as the new number one, etc.) was always planned or if Doug Jones needed a lighter schedule for this final season?

"Time bump." I do kind of love it whenever Trek (or any sci-fi show) just combines the word time with some other random word in order to explain a new situation involving some form of time-travel. In this case, it's thanks to a bug planted by Moll that Discovery keeps randomly flipping to new timelines every few minutes. Effective enough, but luckily for Discovery, not only is Stamets self-aware about it due to his history, but Michael and Rayner just happen to be attempting to teleport when it happens, so they are able to keep their memories as well. If not for that, it might have gone on for days or maybe even weeks! Atypical timey-wimey silliness aside, I did enjoy revisiting some of the previous looks (and situations) again, and I thought they actually did a solid job at not going too broad with the differences, but still seeing how these characters changed. In particular, Younger Michael and Current Michael are clearly the same woman in so many ways, but you can see how much more of a hothead and emotional Younger Michael was compared to Current Michael. Loved how Stamets initially kept claiming that a "spore breach" was happening to clear out engineering, but for the oldest timeline, he just simply bemoaned "I'm very angry right now! Leave!" and everyone bailed. Yeah, Stamets might always be a crank, but he really has mellowed out compared to the early seasons. Speaking of cranks, not surprised this ended with Rayner coming around to realizing that personal connections can be good things amongst the crew and seems to making an effort now. At least they did acknowledge this his stern old-school approach might still have some merit in certain situations. Cool to see Airiam again and the Lorca reference, even if we couldn't see him. That would have been cool. Or maybe a Georgiou sighting. Hell, I would have liked to have seen Pike. I wonder if we'll ever a holo/android version of Zora before the end, just to get Annabelle Wallis on screen one time.

Glad we got at least one "War. War never changes", even if it was from Barb and not Ron Perlman's epic voice. I'll take it, though. That said, assuming this gets more seasons, he better show up at least once: even if it's just a cameo. Man, I know opinions on corporations are at an all-time low, but Vault-Tec somehow outdid them all by basically going "Hey, you know what would really increase our profits? If we cause a nuclear war so that they have to use our vaults!" Damn, guys. I think even the Roys from Succession would find that a step too far. No idea how they pulled that off, but hopefully they are saving all of that for the future. Whelp, he might have only been in two episodes for the entire season, but Kyle MacLachlan sure managed to leave a lasting impact for this episode! Hank is just insane. Truly think he is bettering humanity by... dropping a nuke on an entire city just to protect Vault-Tec's interest. And to top it off, he's certainly not winning any Father of the Year awards for the way he took Lucy (and Norm's) mom away from her. Dude's truly a psychotic company man through and through. Moldaver is dead, but she at least turn the fusion on and powered up the city (world?) That said, it's all in the hands of the Brotherhood of Steel now, which is... troubling. At least Maximus is now looked upon as a hero, so maybe this new fame and status will help him find ways to at least slow the damage, if not stop it. Barb definitely knew Cooper was spying on her, right? Sounds like was equally down with Vault-Tec's nefarious plans, so any potential reunion will be a sight to behold, I imagine. The show looks good for the most part, but the de-aging of Hank/Kyle MacLachlan in the flashback was rough. To be fair, most shows/films still seem to be struggling on that front. Lucy and The Ghoul are now doing something they probably never would have predicted: teaming up (with Dogmeat!) to hunt down Hank. The Wasteland really does create strange bedfellows! A few quibbles aside, this actually exceeded my expectations and was a pretty good adaptation that I think can stand on its own as well. Obvious brutal and had some typical post-apocalypse tropes, but I thought they did a pretty great job with also capturing the bizarre, outlandish, and sometimes offensive humor from the games, which helped makes the series standout from the pack. The set designs and production was good as well, and the characters were enjoyable to watch. Acting was great too: in a just world, Ella Purnell will get even more roles going forward after this. And, of course, Walton Goggins. Just more proof that he's one of the best actors in the world, IMO. From what I can tell, most seem optimistic that it will get renewed (certainly as gotten a lot of buzz/traction online), and I certainly hope that is the case. We need a Deathclaw, stat!

Fred Armisen as a disk jockey who only plays fiddle music and has elaborate booby traps surrounding the station to prevent people from killing him over said fiddle music is pretty much what I would expect a Fred Armisen Fallout character to be! Between him and Chris Parnell, I wonder what other former SNL folks from that era would fit in here (Bill Hader?! Kristen Wig?! Andy Samberg?!) Turns out that the current Vault 4 folks were actually not evil, and were trying to fix all of the horrible experiments their predecessors did. Doesn't explain away all of the weirdness, but that's just vault life for y'all! They do banish Lucy though for throwing acid in that doctor's face, but still were kind enough to give her two weeks worth of supplies! Only for Maximus to destroy it and get himself booted with an attempt to "save" her, even though she actually ended up not needing it. Ah, mishaps! At least Maximus actually told Lucy the truth about who he is on his own accord, and she didn't find out another way. Not surprised she isn't going to hold it against him, because considering everything that goes on in wasteland, some fibbing really isn't high enough to get that worked up over it. Thaddeus is a ghoul, now?! That's why you never trust doctors who dress like 1800 carnies! Cooper ends up spying on his wife for Moldaver. Yeah, I'm guessing this why they will be estranged at some point. But it definitely feels like Vault-Tech is up to no good. Norm is off to Vault 31!

I figured the Vault 4 folks would end up being nuts (and that's saying something when talking about vaulters in general), but that was a wild ride. They not only worship Moldaver and spread the ashes of the dead on their bodies at times, but they are also doing some kind of experiments on level 12? That, I think, involves forcing women to birth some kind of fish creatures. Yeah, that's all kind of crazy and disturbing. Good luck trying to worm your way out of this, Lucy! Not surprised that Maximus would fall under the spell of vault life, with all of the food and hot showers. He's even ready to have "intercourse" with Lucy now that he know ejaculation is actually considered normal. Safe to say sex education amongst The Brotherhood is lacking in a lot of areas... Chris Parnell was a hoot as Vault 4's Overseer: complete with one eye in the middle that makes him look like a cyclops! Curious to see what is next for The Ghoul and this new "president" played by Glenn Fleshler. Ironically, this might be one of the more normal characters Glenn has played out of everything I've seen him in (True Detective, Barry, Boardwalk Empire.) The flashbacks with Cooper seem to opening up some interesting paths. I'm guessing the wedge between him and his wife will be due to all of this stuff with Vault-Tech and how shady they are. It already sounds like being part of their advertising has damaged his spot in Hollywood, so if he ends up going against them, I can see why he ends up being forced to work kid's birthday parties come pilot time. Great seeing Dallas Goldtooth from Reservation Dogs as Charlie and getting to see Matt Berry in live action form as Sebastian Leslie: the icon whose voice will be used by all of the Mr. Handy robots! But the biggest reveal? That Moldaver is also there in the past and seems to be the same age she is now. Twist!

Oh, Maximus! It was probably not going to go well no matter what, but if he was planning telling Thaddeus the truth, he really should have done it before he "branded" him. Because I'm pretty sure it doesn't actually count since he isn't actually a knight, so I can kind of understand why Thaddeus would want nothing to do with him or "his story." And once again, Maximus gets cocky (and kind of psycho) in that suit, and Thaddeus finds a way to scamper off with Michael Emerson's head. At least he got saved by Lucy before the radroaches got him, but he's still maintaining that lie, so you know that's going to end badly for him. Our first New California Republic/NCR reference! Certainly seems like something is going down with the Vaults and apparently it is coming from Vault 31, where the Overseers always seem to originally come from there, and everyone is mum about it. Yeah, they are hiding something. Looking forward to Norm facing off a more sinister Betty and seeing Leslie Uggams get to dine on some scenery. Speculation: Lucy talking about how the sun felt real on her face during her childhood/with her mother makes me think that she was actually born on the surface, and somehow gets put into the Vault thanks to her parents and whatever is going on with them being known by both the vaulters and surface folks. Missed The Ghoul/Walton Goggins, but I liked seeing more of Lucy and Maximus together and I can't wait to see how this other Vault will play out.

Figured The Ghoul had something nefarious planned after he killed the turning ghoul, but I wasn't predicting making ass jerky. Classic Fallout! Loved seeing one of the variations of the Mr. Handy robots get significant screen time. Snip Snip is certainly one of the most polite organ traffickers to ever be put onto film/television! Again, Matt Berry and his epic voice were the perfect choices for this role (and hopefully future ones.) Lucy is still letting her kind heart and need to help others put her in precarious situations and in harms way, but she does have a knack for getting out of it. But she now has her first kill, so we'll see if this changes things (even if it was a rabid ghoul.) But she is still holding onto some kind of moral code by giving The Ghoul that medicine or whatever it is he needs. We'll see if this ends up blowing up in her face or is this a step for him turning a new leaf. It could be either or! Something crazy certainly went down in Vault 32. Looks like they had actually took each other out before the raiders came in? And Rose/Lucy's mom was the one that opened the door from the outside? Also, The Ghoul totally had a significant reaction to hearing the MacLean name for the first time, so there is clearly a lot more to this mystery and this family. Fun seeing Ansel from Reservation Dogs as one of the organ traffickers. Before he met a typical brutal Fallout end!

Cooper Howard a.k.a. The Ghoul being the loose inspiration for the Pip Boy face was unexpected but awesome. Makes even more sense why they got Walton Goggins: along with his other numerous talent, he certainly has the face/teeth for that role! Curious to see what will come out of the flashbacks. He is going to go from someone who didn't even want to kill people in movies to.... well, what we see now. Safe bet is that something will probably happen to his daughter that will change him (sounded like he and his wife had already split up in the pilot, but he still seemed like a decent fellow.) Glad that we are still going to revisit the Vault and follow things through Norm/Lucy's brother's eyes. Right now, it feels like they are directionless without a firm Overseer and it will likely cost them. I get that just straight-up killing prisoners isn't not a welcomed idea, but trying to rehabilitate this lot is probably a losing strategy. But it looks like both Norm and Stephanie/Lucy's friend might not be down with the way things are going. Hmm... Thaddeus/Maximus' bully being his new squire has a lot of potential. Maximus was clearly enjoying the power trip, but he did seem to soften a bit and even saved his life. I imagine this will all lead to the eventual moment when Thaddeus finds out who he is really squiring for! I have to imagine all of this contact Lucy has had with various radiation will not be healthy for her.

Whelp, it was fun seeing Michael Emerson while we could! Definitely seems like its going to be a show where characters don't last for very long, outside of maybe Lucy, Maximus, and The Ghoul. He made the most of his screen time at least. And judging from that final bit, we will likely be seeing his severed head again, at least! Knowing the unspoken rule that killing animals on television makes you irredeemable, I was definitely shocked when it looked like The Ghoul killed the dog. Instead, he only wounded her and brought her back to life with a handy, dandy stimpack! Of course, I doubt it was out of the kindness out of his heart. I'm guessing he's going to use her to track Wilzig (or what's left of him) down. Walton Goggins continues to be perfection in this role. The shootout in "Filly" was extremely violent and highly entertaining. I figured the Knight Maximus was stuck with would end up not being the macho ass-kicker he built up in his head, but I wasn't expecting him to be Michael Rapaport! I know he's an acquired taste, but he does have a knack for these type of roles. Also think it's funny that this makes another former Justified villain to pop up here. Just need to get either Neal McDonough or Margo Martindale next! Dale Dickey!!! Have to imagine Lucy will eventually grow out of her naivety at some point, but Ella Purnell is continuing to actually make me like the character and root for her to maintain some form of morality by the end of this.

As a fan of the games, I was looking forward to this and I'm glad the pilot delivered at least. Between this and The Last of Us, maybe they are finally figuring out how to adapt video games into a live action form (definitely think series is a better choice than films, because you really can't cover most everything in just two hours or so.) The look and feel of the Vault was top notch and looked like it came straight from the games. Curious to see if the Wasteland will be able to standout amongst other post-apocalyptic worlds in media. The opening scenes looked really great as well. I like the idea of them using Lucy/the Vault, Norm/The Brotherhood of Steel, and The Ghoul as ways to eventually connect everything with what is going on with the Enclave and the likely reason the Overseer was taken. Definitely spared no expense with the violence and gore. And while they started things out a bit seriously, you can already see some of the zany and out there humor that has populated the series. Casting was good. I mainly know Ella Purnell for her voice work as Jinx in Arcane, so it's great seeing her in live action form and I thought she made Lucy a likable and relatable enough of a protagonist. Kyle MacLachlan is always a welcomed sight and the actor playing Maximus was solid as well. Great supporting cast too with Sarita Choudhury, Michael Cristofer, and Matt Berry voicing Mr. Handy might be the best casting decision ever. But my favorite? Definitely Walton Goggins as The Ghoul. For me, he might be one of the best actors out there and I can't wait to see what he will do with this character. Already like seeing how different he was pre-Ghoul and now. The Justified fan in me also got a kick out of seeing Mykelti Williamson as Honcho: the guy trying to recruit the Ghoul (and failing miserably.) A lot of good Easter Eggs and I'm sure we'll get more, but the only request I have is that they better have a cameo from Ron Perlman, lamenting his iconic line, "War. War never changes." before the end of this series!

I know Rayner is a jerk for only "analyzing" the main crew instead of actually getting to know them, but considering that I usually have to IMDB any character who isn't in the main cast, he's already a step ahead of me at least. It's not that they are bad, but the show never really did a good job at making the bridge gang standout in ways the other Treks have. Great seeing Reno again: complete with Tig Notaro getting bumped up to main credit status this season. Hope we see more of her. It was brief, but I can already see the comedic potential to keep having Rayner and Reno in the same scenes together. I suspected Jinaal was playing some kind of game/test with Michael and Booker, and would help them at the end, but he was still kind of a dick about it. But I guess when you live that long (sort of), your bound to be a social mess. Wilson Cruz seem to be having fun playing the character. Saru seems to have a solid handle on the politics so far, but almost screws things up with T'Rina after her aid gets in his head about how their relationship will damage her status with the Vulcan purists. At least he did apologize and seem to understand why he was wrong, and they've moved past it. I do wonder if the Vulcan purists will end up being a bigger threat than expected. Grey returns so that they can end things with them and Adira. Not much else to add there, really. Moll uses Adira to plant a bug or something on Discovery.

Glad that they at least had a service for Asher, even if was cut short. Nice of them to bring back Rabbi Benjamin from last week as well and have a heartfelt moment with Jerome. I hope this isn't the last we will see of Jerome, but I wouldn't be surprised if he leaves/moves at some point, since it will probably be a lot to handle since he'll no doubt be seeing Asher everywhere he looks at the hospital and amongst his co-workers/friends. Surely he'll need time to grieve. Just when things look like they might get worse, they do an about face with Shaun and Charlie, thanks to the latter helping the former survive another potential meltdown and then successfully complete a surgery together. A little bit pat and borderline "it takes an autistic person to truly understand/get through to another autistic person because they all share that bond" territory, but I'm all for them not dragging this out. Instead, Charlie is now withdrawing her complaint (for now!), and Shaun not only tells her she did a good job but has the makings of being... an "adequate" surgeon. Progress! Poor Lim though. She was almost in the role of the Angel of Death here, with the way her patients seem to be the ones that ended up dying. At least she made it through things with only one mild outburst at an unruly patient (who ended up being pretty understanding/apologetic at the end.) The scene with her mom at the end was nice. Glassman's still got it! And Dom steps up! Noticed that Park was pretty much off screen during the thick of it and was only referenced during all of the surgical stuff. I wonder if Will Yun Lee needed a lighter schedule that week, and that was why he was only really there for the opening and ending scenes. Jordan lets her anger over what happened to Asher prevent her from giving the driver proper medical treatment, but eventually comes around, thanks in part to a speech from Jared. Because Jared is now the wise man of the gang. A bonus with these mass casualty episodes (man, no way not to sound a little psychotic when I word it like that!) is that it's fun seeing all of the recurring nurses in the thick of it and getting moments to standout.

Ah, the return of Discovery's true greatest crew member of all time: Grudge! Time for the queen to lay down the law! With all of the talk about this being Saru's last mission, they certainly wanted to give off the idea that this could be the end for him. Definitely tempted fate there, since that's how it normally goes on shows. Thankfully, that is not the case and he is now off to begin his journey as a diplomat! Imagine though that we will still be checking in on him since he's going to be still on the main base. I'm guessing that's the case for Tilly as well since she's only temporary helping Discovery. Since Moll and L'ak are bound to go back to the planet since they don't have all of the information, why isn't Discovery (or another ship) hanging back so that they can ambush them? Wouldn't that make sense? Have no idea why they aren't. Anyway though, it now also sounds like Moll might be related to Booker's mentor, so I'm sure that's going to be a thing as well. Rayner initially gets forced into early retirement due to his actions last episode, but after his assist here and how he does seem to be sincere about doing what is best for Starfleet (for better or worse), Michael instead asks him to be her number first officer. Which he accepts after making sure she knows he isn't just a "yes man." I guess we'll see how this effects the dynamics with the rest of the Discovery crew.

Star Trek: Discovery is back for one final ride! It might not have the star power of Picard or be the close to perfect nostalgia ride that is Strange New Worlds, but it was the first of the NuTrek, so I'm looking forward to seeing how this all plays out. I'm usually good with placing faces, but it took me until the credits to place Eve Harlow as Moll since I'm use to her as a brunette (remember her best as Maya from The 100.) On the flip side, I totally knew that Elias Toufexis was L'ak, because that man's voice can not be duplicated. Part of the reason why I've heard him in various video games (especially Adam Jensen in the Deus Ex series.) They both were effective enough as adversaries and hopefully they'll be popping up from time to time. We also get "Hey, it's that Guy who appears in every Canadian-based show ever!" Callum Keith Rennie as Captain Rayner, who definitely isn't meshing well with Michael and the rest of the Discovery gang. Since he's listed as a regular, I'm guessing he'll be playing a major factor despite being a captain of another ship. We will never be rid of Soong since even his androids; or those based on his work; apparently still last into this century. I wonder if old Dead Fred will somehow get woken up. Aww, Saru and T'Rina want to tie the knot! I hope nothing bad happens to either one of them. Stamets seems to be struggling to find his place since the spore drive has apparently been shuttered. I wonder if we'll actually see Tilly interact with her students or is that being saved for a potential spin-off? Yeah, yeah, I'm sure Michael is happy to have Booker back, but I want to see Grudge again! The queen must not be denied! Glad Vance is still around. Oded Fehr needs to be in more things! Looks like the mystery is going to be connected to an alien race Picard met back during his Next Generation days. Can't remember which episode that was, but the Romulans were apparently involved as well, so I'm sure fun times were had!

Glad the Angstrom threat has been put to rest, even if Sterling K. Brown made sure to go all out and give a hell of a performance for his last episode. But it looks like this will be sticking with Mark for a while because not only is he is first kill, but he did so in a fit of rage, so now Mark is concerned that he is going to lose it again if he's not careful. An understandable concern, but him showing any form of guilt at least proves he isn't like his dad. Angstrom breaking Debbie's arm was brutal. But she really is a strong despite not having any super powers. The multiverse scenes were fun. Had everything from a zombie world (naturally), a Fornite reference, this show's version of a Spider-Man, and Mark meeting another mysterious hero who looked a bit... batty. Mark now knows that Eve has feelings for him thanks to Future Eve, but it seems like he's not going to act on it right now. Repli-Kate is still with us after-all, because it turns out the real Kate has been hiding this entire time. An advantage of having clones! Allen and Nolan might be teaming up! Think it was a mistake for Amazon to split up the season like they did. Think it lessen the buzz and hype for this season. At least they already confirmed a third one.

Okay, I knew something bad was going to go down at the end, but I figured it was going to be a simple assault that would lead to a dramatic "have to operate on of our own" stories next week. But they totally just killed off Asher, right? I mean, there was not only a lot of blood but his eyes were still open when he was lying there and that's usually the tell-tell sign of dying on television/film. Crazy. Keep forgetting that this is a David Shore production and they do tend to randomly kill off main characters every now and then. Really though, Asher should have just waited with the rabbi until the cops showed up. Even if those anti-Semites left, the possibility of them doubling back would have had to been obvious for everyone involved. Poor Jerome. So, Lim's issues with her mom were simply a case of her always assuming she was a boring housewife who did what her husband/Lim's father wanted, but it took this thing with Glassman to realize that she was actually her own person this entire time and had layers to her. Certainly took a long time to figure that out, huh, Lim? At least they are at a better place now. Curious to see if they will go forward with this character and Glassman as an item. They really do seem to enjoy one another. But maybe, just maybe don't talk about y'alls sex lives in front of everyone, guys. Not exactly wanting to know about Glassman's sexual stamina, frankly... Looks like things have gotten even worse for Shaun and Charlie, as now the latter has filed a complaint against him. I guess she does have some merit due to his previous actions. Tonight though, she really did go overboard with the arguing and interrupting, and I really can't blame Shaun for making her leave. Even then, it still feels like she goes out of her way to be this way around him, while she was more controlled with Park last week. I don't think it is out of maliciousness, but she does seem to act like she expects to get away with things around him and is surprised when we pushes back. Still, Shaun really hasn't handled any of this well at all, so I can still see him getting into some form of actual trouble here.

I guess it's been a while since Mark has gotten his ass kicked again. Hey, just because he's Invincible doesn't mean he's Invulnerable! This time, it was at the hands of this Viltramite, Anissa, who seems to work for General Kregg and was trying to get Mark to fall in line with them. Complete with the always popular approach of claiming that humans are already screwing up the planet in a lot of ways, so why not let them take over instead. Which.... yeah, humanity is messy and fucked up, but choosing full-fledge enslavement is going to be a hard sell, to put it mildly. Looks like Mark/Amber are done for (for now?) Feel bad for them, but I really don't see how they can make this work. I normally don't buy into the breaking up to protect those you love because villains still seem to find a way, but it's the combination of that, school, and just being a good boyfriend in general that is going to be almost impossible for Mark to balance out with his superheroing. Curious to see what they are planning with Donald. The meta joke with the the comic book writer at Comic Con made me chuckle. What is Allen planning? Looks like the finale will kick things off with Mark having to take on Angstrom after he kidnaps Debbie and his half-brother.

Tonight's episode was all about reminding couples that having a baby changes things! For Shaun and Lea, it was about them no longer having personal time for them to just have a date night (episode title!) or hang like they use to. And even when they do get a sitter with Jordan, both of them still can't enjoy it since Steve is always on their mind. Still, it's good that both are acknowledging this and are on the same page with where their goals are. Having a baby does change things, but barely speaking with one another isn't healthy long-term, so I'm glad they are at least back to constant communication, even if carefree nights of karaoke and tequila are no longer thing (then again, they changed the brand apparently. Boo!) Meanwhile, Park and Reznick are dealing with the classic obstacle of having an active sex life going forward. Office sex is off the table (pun intended?) due to interruptions and the storage room closet will likely be off limits after they almost destroyed half of the supplies, but they found a solution that was always destined for them: car sex right after they have an argument. Oh, you two! Certainly looks like they are hinting at a possible Jordan/Jared romance as well. We'll see how this goes. Right now, it kind of feels like a case of them realizing these two characters don't have a love life, so why not? Maybe they'll surprise me. I knew the stuff with Asher/Jerome was going to be a misunderstanding, but I figured it was going to be a classic tale of them forgetting about the time difference, and missing one another that way. Instead it was a combination of jet lag and a dead cellphone! Both cases were solid. Interesting seeing Erinn Hayes as the wife of Shaun's patient, because I'm use to her mainly from comedy roles. Both of the newbies had fine showings here and seem to work well with the respected doctors. That said, while Park did seem to simply be more supportive towards Charlie, I noticed she was suddenly more behaved around him compared to Shaun. No constant interruptions or backtalk this go around. Not sure if that was intentional or not noticed from a writing standpoint. Still think Shaun was a major dick last week (and will be back at it next week), but it seemed to show that Charlie can tone it down compared to how she acted in the past. Great seeing Bess Armstrong as Lim's mom. And... she seems to be hitting it off with Glassman. Man, I cannot wait to see Lim's reaction to this! Hell, just go all out: have them get married and Lim has to deal with Glassy as her stepfather! And don't stop there! In the show with a major flash-forward where Steve and Eve marry, so that almost half of the gang become an actual family by the end of this!

Ah, so it looks like they walked things back a bit with Rae somehow not dying after-all, but pretty much broken and in a coma. Not sure how she was available to survive all of that, but I guess superheroes really are built tough! Repli-Kate seems truly gone though and Immortal is... not taking it well at all. Rex though, is totally earning my respect with the way he was able to power through things and take out King Lizard. And even show a molecule of self-awareness! I'm guessing some of the awkwardness we saw between Mark and Eve is hinting at something possibly happening with them. Wouldn't surprise me because I really don't know if Mark and Amber can make this work. Trying to juggle the superhero stuff and college life is clearly a losing battle for both of them. Still don't trust the nanny even if she was open about being sent by Cecil. Great seeing/hearing Mark Hamill again as Art. Mind-controlling squids manage to still make it to Earth after-all. Nolan ain't out of it, yet! General Kregg better not underestimate him! Not many can match Clancy Brown in intensity, but J.K. Simmons certainly can if/when Nolan goes back into full throttle unhinged mode! Angstrom Levy is coming back into the fold now!

Certainly did not have "Dominick being able to go toe-to-toe with Reznick in snarky blunt talk" on my bingo card! Man gets my respect, right there! Loved that Reznick herself kind of loved that as well. Yeah.... Charlotte is a lot to take at times; and will become a walking H.R. violation if she doesn't listen to Jared's "Hey, maybe don't ask your co-workers about their sexual positions"; but Shaun saying that he had to fight his way through everything and got no breaks from anyone is... a choice. Man had full-blown meltdowns at times, and his team members had to bust their asses to save him. Both Glassman and Lim went to bat several times for him. Hell, freaking Andrews threw down with the the board for him (and that was when he still wasn't a huge fan.) In short, plenty of people showed him grace because they could tell that he not only had the makings of a good doctor (sorry!), but knew he was a good person despite some of his aloofness and awkwardness. I can understand him thinking he needs to be firm at times with her, but he crossed some lines here. Really did become Dr. Han, which is ironic. Also thought it was interesting that he brought up Melendez as a barrier and how he made him to scut work all the time, because while Melendez did start out as an obstacle in a lo of ways, he was someone who actually seem to realize the error of his ways and actually ended up being a good mentor for Shaun, in my opinion. Funny that Shaun doesn't see this. Let us hope he ends up more like Melendez than Han. Intentional or not, I do think the contrast between this and how Park worked with Dominick was interesting. Early season Park really would have been more petty and arrogant, and would have eye-rolled his way through Dominick's issues. But the Park we see now is actually being supportive and trying to be there for Dominick. In this aspect, Park has actually grown compared to Shaun. Seems to be more level-headed in general (almost going to pretend that whole breaking up with Reznick last season never happened, because that was just dumb all around on his part.) Glad that Asher did go with Jerome to meet his family in the end, even if it took his dumb frat patient almost dying to make it happen, heh. Oh, and Jared's word of advice. With Andrews gone, Jared's almost becoming the new voice of reason on this show. At least Glassman and Lim now have a pool table to take out their frustrations with the job (and one another.) With respect to the generally awesome main cast, Baby Steve and Baby Eden are almost stealing the show. Those are some expressive little performers right there!

Not a huge surprise, but still welcomed: both Antonia Thomas and Brandon Larracuente will be returning at some point for the final season. Figured they would want Claire to come back in some form since she was one of the OGs: plus, with Jared back, I see them wanting some form of closure with those two characters. As for Daniel, I imagine they will also want a closure of some kind for him and Jordan. Curious to see how this goes!