swimmyfish

I'm curious where the Lockhart Agos & Lee plot us going this season. We started out with Cary's weird gay-panic response to an associate, had an ageism lawsuit from Howard, and now this. It's seems like there will have to be some serious consequences to all of this. Officially, you can ask an applicant's age, race, whatever in an interview, you just can't make a hiring decision based on it. It's much safer not to ask, because it's difficult to prove that info didn't influence your decision, but technically it's not against any laws to ask. I thought Diane's assumption that the applicant was from a rough part of Baltimore was also pretty racist. But then when Monica just assumed that Diane slept with people to get ahead, and liked it, well. . . Honestly, I was back on Team Diane after that.

I really wanted to like Jake's dressing-down of Olivia, but that was such an awkward and poorly written speech that I couldn't. Partially because The writers are counting too much on the audience caring about Elise's death, which really doesn't matter to me at all. Was this the first episode where Josh Malina & Portia de Rossi shared a scene? They had zero chemistry together. And it was made all the worse by the reminder of the effortlessly charming interaction he and the vice president shared last week. Although I was not expecting the VP to be the third point on this triangle - I was expecting it would be Abby who walked in on them, thus starting the long march toward their reconciliation. I also thought Liv's initial reaction to Cyrus's final speech at the end was that she genuinely did not understand up until then just how much sway she had over the President. Like, she knew she could get Fitz to do stuff, but she hadn't quite put it together that she could effectively run the country. I liked that the show is (finally!) acknowledging what a worthless little crap-weasel Fitz really is, off to the side and taking notes in the oval, but I don't think the fictionaly United States is any better off with Olivia in charge than wth Fitz. Sally Langston is like the Charlie Brown of D.C. - she always thinks she's gonna get the real story, only to have Liv yank back the football at the last minute. I do love Sally's smug face when she thinks she's winning, but she's gotta figure out a new strategy soon.

Really? Yikes. What is happening on that set?

Ann Meara's shift from 'slightly doddering older lady' to 'monstrously cruel and abusive parent' is amazing. The scorn that she has for her own child gives me chills just thinking about it. Damn, that was a good episode.

Is Carisi always this awesome? I admit I had to tap out of the series during the Amaro era (that actor really gets on my nerves), so this is my first brand-new episode in a while, and I was pretty impressed with it. Well, with Carisi, who somehow manages to be outraged about the cases without being the slightest bit self-righteous. It's a good balance, and I liked it. I also, obviously, continue to be a fan of Fin, because: come on. Carisi, weirdly, also reminded me strongly of Dr. Dave from ER, but from the brief stretch of episodes where he was portrayed as an actual competent doctor. That actor had a short arc on SVU ages ago, and I thought it was a shame they didn't make him a regular part of the rotation because he fit in really well. I know it's super unlikely, but it would be great if they brought him in to work on a case while Rollins is on leave (particuarly because I think his original appearance was due to Mariska Hargitay's maternity leave.) Olivia's hair looks unbelievably terrible. I'd read that in the recaps, but I didn't believe how serious it was until I saw it with my own two eyes. It's almost tragic. You're a lovely woman, Mariska, and a producer on the show! Get yourself better than this. I did laugh when they decided it was the priest because of his appearance in 1 episode of the show-within-the-show. I mean, I get that it was 9:44 and they already had 2 wrong suspects, but shouldn't it require slightly more police work than watching YouTube (or MeScreen or whatever the SVU-equivalent is) to get a warrant for someone's DNA?

I really hope that the OTP of this series turns out to be Rebecca and Paula. Not necessarily in a romantic way, but they have easily the most compelling relationship on the show,they're powerhouse singers, and I love that they always support each other. We definitely got some much needed character development for Josh this episode, but I think it's a little too late for me to be interested in him. Rebecca and Paula forever!

That's what I understood. Which, as much as I loved Mellie's smackdown of Liv (and Fitz!), means that now Liv has something on her as well - she forged the president's signature. I imagine that will come back to bite her at some point. I really liked this episode. I'm glad Mellie finally got to tell off Liv and Fitz, and that the show finally seemed to be on her side; she's one of the most consistently mishandled characters on the show, IMO, because they don't seem to understand that she's actually awesome, rather than just an obstacle to Liv & Fitz's happiness. It's nice to see her finally get her due as way, way better than Fitz. As I said above, I'm sure that she will eventually be brought low because of it, but for now, I just love it. A couple of quibbles with the episode: I was so glad when Jake did not actually die last season after being mortally stabbed because I really like Scott Foley, but seeing how little his character's had to do this season, I almost wish he really had died. I'd probably watch a web series of just him hanging up on Olivia, but there really isn't a reason for him to be on the show, at least not right now. Make him an official part of OPA, have him date some client, whatever - something that actually pertains to what's happening in the main plot would be nice. Also, that was some super weird acting by Jeff Perry in the scene where he's insisting that Liv & Fitz need to get married. I know there's a cadence the actors normally fall into with all this dialogue, but he was all over the place rythym wise. And then it sounded like he made some weird grunt at the end of the scene - did anyone else catch that, or was it possibly just a well-timed grunt from my neighbors? Finally, I'm glad the recapper mentioned this, because I do not at all understand Liv's motivation in telling Mellie that Rowan killed Jerry Jr. It almost seemed like it was a bit of a 'pity-me' moment, since she's known how awful he is far longer than Mellie has (I think it was in response to Mellie asking "Do you even know how many people he's killed?"), but I can't imagine that was actually the intent. But whatever was the intent is completely mysterious to me.

I only watched the Bones half of the crossover, which was my very first introduction to Sleepy Hollow, and I have to say that Ichabod is an extremely charming character. I can see why that show became a hit.

Peter Gallagher! I hope this is the first of many appearances of The Eyebrows on this show; he fits so well into TGW universe, I almost can't believe he hasn't been on the show the whole time. Diane handling Canning's shenanigans in court was a thing of beauty. Diane is maybe the only character on this show who consistently behaves like a grown-up, and it's just so appealing. Add me to the number of people confused by a trial happening in bond court. Or the whole bond court system. I don't need the portrayal of bond court on tv to be 100% accurate, or even 78% for that matter, but I do want them to set up some rules for themselves, and then stick to them. Cary, please find a storyline. ETA: I almost forgot to mention, but I really dig the new detective. He's almost aggressively charismatic, but it completely works on me. He actually kind of reminds me of Big on the first season of Sex and the City, so I'm hoping we'll get to see some scenes with him and Chris Noth go head to head to see who manages to stay on the right side of smarm.

For some strange reason, what I remember most about this episode is Brenda's "DYLAN! I need you!" I really liked them as a couple and, after all the sound and fury of their breakup, I thought it was a very nice, subtle demonstration of their relationship being back on track. But really, while this is a great episode for Dylan, it's also another really good showing from Jennie Garth, I think. It's funny, because I have a lot of residual affection for her from this show (I don't want to admit how many episodes of What I Like About You I watched just because she and Leslie Grossman were totally charming together), but I didn't realize until this podcast how genuinely good she was in the earlier seasons of this show. I know I've said this before, but it's so sad to think of the miserable pill Kelly becomes in college because she's just been so sunny and likable so far.

I remember being incredibly disappointed with this episode when it originally aired because it really seemed (to me) like they were building up to DeadScott killing himself, and having him die in an accident instead struck me as a massive cop out. I apparently kept it very real as an 18 year-old. Thinking about it now, it seems really weird to me that they went to the trouble to kill DeadScott in any fashion since, as many of you have already pointed out, there were zero repercussions for his good pal David. Scott wasn't a beloved character, and they could have just as easily come back from the summer season and discovered his family had returned to their home planet. Maybe there were contract issues in play with Douglas Emerson; maybe they needed to check 'gun safety' off their big list of issues to address. But bringing back a character of so little importance just to kill him off after 3 episodes really seems almost mean to both the character and the actor.

I didn't pay attention to much of this episode, but I suddenly got very suspicious when Max Rager noted that zombies will show signs of frequent tanning and hair dye. Because he looks awfully tan himself and his hair is immaculate. I don't know if part of that us due to Steven Weber's own upkeep regimen, but was that maybe a clue that Max himself is a zombie? (Or is that something we're already supposed to know and I just missed it?)

I think Eli's revenge plan is shaping up to be the most interesting plot of the season. Peter's done a lot of shady stuff through the series and I was always quick to forgive him, but you do not cross Eli and stay in my good graces. Again, too little Diane, although it was nice to see her ferocious in court. Oh, Cary. What are they doing to you? Maybe you should go get a job with Louis Canning. Or for him; it looks like being in charge doesn't quite suit you. Overall I thought this was a pretty strong premiere. I'm cautiously optimistic about this season.

At least in the screengrab, that Ronald Reagan looks a lot like Richard Nixon. It's weird. Also, while I mean no disrespect to the fine Canadian actors, none of these dudes are anywhere near as attractive as the actual cast members. Brandon is maybe the most egregious, but Ian Ziering had a cocky charm that this poor guy doesn't come close to.

Much as I appreciate Lifetime giving Dan Castellenetta (sp?) an opportunity to bust out that accent, I do wonder a little bit what was the point of this special? As Tara pointed out, even without the internet, the turmoil and behind the scenes Shannen-igans were very well-documented at the time; anyone who would be interested in this gossip would have learned it 20 years ago, when it was actually happening. I'm certainly happy we had an opportunity for a bonus podcast this week, but, as die-hard fan of the Brenda era, I'm very disappointed at the lack of insider info.

I'm sure this is my own latent immaturity talking, but I actually have some sympathy for Dylan's conflicting motivations with regard to Iris. It makes sense to me that he would continue to be mad at her for leaving him when he was a child, while also resenting her for suddenly being around. It's certainly not great behavior, but it also strikes me as realistically teenager-y to not quite understand what you want from your parents, yet to hold it against them that they don't know how to give it to you.

What was really weird about Olivia's question was that she seemed to think it was only 1 random chance that led her to be hiding out in a hotel room, rather than years and years and YEARS of poor decision making when it comes to the president. Sure, a butterfly flapping its wings at the wrong time can cause problems, but making out with the (married) president on a heavily monitored balcony will also have some repercussions. I tend to like Olivia (well, sort of), but that little woe is me speech was really dumb. As for Abby, she is a terrible press secretary, and this is the second episode in a row where she has immediately been contradicted in something she's told the press. I kind of hope that's a continuing theme throughout the season, actually; a little Easter egg in every episode: how does Abby get contradicted this time?

The Blue Jean Committee sketch from Jason Segel's SNL is one of my favorites. I hope the DN! band is the same one, and they address why he left the band.

Wow, Mr. Souter is SUCH an asshole! I like that Ohndrea stuck up for herself and called him on his outrageously inappropriate behavior even if he didn't hear it, but my god. What a shit barn.

Wow, did Jim steal that parking lot move from Jake Ryan? Are he and Brandon going to eat belated birthday cake on top of a table by the light of a million candles while the Thompson Twins take over the soundtrack? Because that's an inappropriately seductive posture for surprising your son WHO WAS ARRESTED FOR DRUNK DRIVING with a new car he completely does not deserve.

I agree. It's been very hard not to wonder through the whole series what Maggie ever saw in Bruce, so it was nice to see them have a good time together in a way that had nothing to do with Charlotte. And I, once again, actually gasped when the camera panned up on the two of them together in bed, but I really, really liked the way it was handled - no regret on either side, no one secretly pining they'll be getting back together, just a lovely homemade breakfast. I never thought I'd say this about Bruce, but that was very classy. Although, not as classy as Mark in his tuxedo! Hot DAMN, that man is fine. It's interesting how Keegan Michael Key played essentially the same role on Parks & Recreation. He's very, very good at being a romantic lead as well as just a good guy. I'm sure he doesn't want to get pigeon-holed, but if he wanted to become the television-equivalent of '90s Hugh Grant, I would not complain.

I also am not crazy about Bocephus and was dreading his reappearance since the previews last week. And not just because of Bocephus, but I wasn't really thrilled with this episode as a season finale - I thought Officer of the Year was much stronger in terms of plot, character development, and wardrobe choices - although props to Zach for really pulling off the goth-lite look. That being said, I do love how kind this show is to its characters. I love that Rabbi Dan is back at the gym and doing well, and that Emma immediately swings from feeling guilty about hurting him to being a little bit hurt that he's already moved on. I also loved her speech to Mark about not being able to promise that they'll never hurt each other, and how realistic it was that Mark, who clearly is so into her jam, is still wary of starting things up again with her. And I loved Maggie's summary of Emma's little breakdown, which I don't remember word for word but was something along the lines of 'You quoted Maya Angelou and then pointed at your crotch.' So, I would definitely not be satisfied if this turned out to be a series finale, but it had a lot of nice little moments that demonstrate what had made, and continues to make, this series such a delight to watch. If there's some kind of petition I can sign for season 3, just point me toward it!

I'm glad you mentioned this - I thought it seemed like they kept skipping over Cedric the Entertainer & Mel B. in Scary Poppins, but I chalked it up to my not really paying attention. Now, at least, I know I'm not the only one who thought that was weird. And I think you're absolutely right that the rounds of that ran long - I've enjoyed that game when it showed up earlier this season, but this episode showed that, to move along, it very much depends on the contestants/celebrities doing badly. I don't particularly care for that aspect of it. Both Pete Wentz and Kevin Nealon did a good job of balancing genuine competitiveness with having fun - I'd say they were two of my favorites from the whole season. Ming-Na was a terrible player, but she seemed like she was having a good time and was supportive of both teams, which was nice. I probably would have picked Cedric the Entertainer over Niecy Nash to go into the finals, but he did seem a little laid-back through the whole game. I mentioned this over in the Show & Yell thread, but dumbest moment of the night (imo) was passing on Bill Murray during Celebrity Name Game. I mean, maybe there's just too much to choose from and Pete & Niecy were paralyzed by options, but I don't know - that seemed like a very easy get. It made me very nervous that they were going to lose the bonus round.

I thought Girl Civilian realized that Politically Incorrect was not the right clue but then based her guess on who people would most likely mistake as the host of Politically Incorrect. Either way, it was still a snowball of wrong answers, but I appreciated her attempt to persevere there. For me, dumbest moment was immediately passing Bill Murray in the final round. How do you not say Ghostbusters? Is Pete Wentz maybe too young to know Ghostbusters? I'm glad you mentioned that Cedric the Entertainer got all his answers in Scary Poppins, because, while I admit I wasn't paying full attention, it looked to me like they kept skipping him and Mel. B. in the subsequent rounds. It was really weird, but now I realize he must've just answered very quickly and they moved on to the next question.

I love idea of Lane & Joan living happily ever after in London! I would add that Bob Benson accompanies them to their new firm, and he, along with a few of his seemingly innocent acquaintances, "takes care of" Lane's abusive father in the same way he did for Pete Campbell's mother;.