ForReal

He actually said, "I give you me upfront, so there are no surprises later." Oh, the irony of it all, for a catfish to say that! I wanted Max and Nev to get her money back. She deserved that much, at least.

That's not just you -- I feel the same way. It also annoys me that they keep trying to pair him with smart/smart-mouthed women who challenge him. The love of his life was someone kind and warm, although smart. If they want to pair him off, I'd rather see him with someone like that, although perhaps that's why he chooses women so different from Shannon, now that I think about it.

I miss reading the recaps, too. I'm not much of one for podcasts.

I don't think I would mind if it had. I thought she was very sweet, and I thought she seemed to have issues as serious as Robert's, although invisible and not physical. I was frustrated by Nev coercing her to go with him without even trying to understand why she was afraid -- extreme social anxiety, perhaps? Nev is not qualified to handle these kinds of cases. When he suggested she could care for Robert and she hesitated, I was like, 'Dude, she just cared for one parent until she died and now she's dealing with a dad with dementia -- how is this good for her?" Really, this was possibly the worst show yet. They did not do right by either person, and they should have known better than to make this episode.

I was Team Max the whole way, even after they met and it really was Brandon. Something just seemed so off...I was not convinced that the situation was real. I think this was fixed so the show could feature a "happy ending," but I don't believe for one second there was one.

I really like the show, and I've watched the first three seasons on Netflix. I'm waiting for Season 4 to air, but I read one spoiler elsewhere that has almost spoiled the whole show for me. I keep telling myself that it was just a troll trying to ruin the show. I'm scrupulously not looking at spoilers here because I don't want confirmation. I've enjoyed this show too much to not see it through.

I just don't think I can deal with the Doctor actually being played by anyone who's been the Master/Missy. If he were to regenerate into one of their bodies temporarily, if that's even possible, I don't think I can deal. Just can't.

I actually had to turn this off half way through. I thought the commentary by Nev and Max was incredibly rude -- they would never have said that to a catfish or catfishee's face, so why is it okay to do it on this show? These people will be watching, right? When Nev put his head on Max's shoulder and Max accused him of dry humping him, that was it. Delete. I'm not sure there's anything left to look forward to on this show.

Yes, but he lived in Western Washington, and she lived in Eastern Washington. In the show, there was never any indication that he had lived over there. It's a less populated region, so it seems weird to me that he would have an area code from there. There are several in the area he lived in before he moved away, so it makes more sense that he would have one from there.

At the end Max made a comment that after these catch-up shows, people's lives are better. How? It felt more like these people were being exploited. None of them seemed all that thrilled to see each other again, yet Max and Nev kept determinedly fanning the flames of the half-hearted enthusiasm of those willing to admit maybe they might like to reconsider their relationships. Yuck.

Is it typical for an athlete to fly in a groupie he's never even spoken to for a hookup? Shelly didn't accuse him of distributing child pornography, so you can't put all that on her; it was the decision of law enforcement in the US to pursue that. And the best way to not have nude photos of yourself posted on the internet is not to send them out to strangers in the first place, but I don't know if it was all that traumatic for her -- just look at her website.

That article was heavily sympathetic to the basketball player, and while I have some sympathy for him I also give him some side eye for flying Paris out for a weekend fling when they had never even spoken. No matter how they vilify Shelly (and on another forum I frequent they ripped her to shreds), after viewing this show I only feel pity for her. I find her more depressing than diabolical. I do not understand why, if someone knows he did nothing wrong, he goes ahead and pays a blackmailer. That in itself is wrong.

In total agreement with this.

Well, that kind of proves my point. There are five area codes in Western Washington and one in Eastern Washington. I would say that a Western Washington area code would be more trendy, yet he ended up with one from 509.

As far as I recall, he didn't live in the 509 area code. It's true with cell phones you don't have to switch your number if you move to a new area, but to get a number in an area code in the first place, you generally have to have a billing address in that area code. She lives in the 509 area code, but I don't recall them ever saying he did, so it's still strange to me how he got that number.

I am sad to say I feel the same way. The young agents are so flip and so smug -- when Torres told Gibbs in autopsy, "Ah, I know you like me," I was like, "Really?" The lack of respect annoys me. I like how they all used to look up to and fear Gibbs. I was actually happy when they were babbling about meatloaf and Gibbs jumped on them, saying "Get me some answers!" I couldn't even get anxious about the cliffhanger; I don't believe either will die. I did like Gibbs picking off so many shooters, though. He will always be my fave.

Washington does not have that many area codes; 509 is most of the eastern part of the state, and Lakewood is in the west. She never once noticed that he had an area code not in the area in which he claimed to live, but in hers instead? Then again, she said she lived in a small town before moving to Spokane, lol. Okay, Spokane is the biggest city in the area thereabouts, but still. I lived in western Washington and often felt like it was the middle of nowhere. I wish them well, but they both seem insecure, needy, and not totally honest, so I just don't see it working out...

I liked the scenes between Gibbs and McGee, especially when McGee fell apart at the hospital. It was the most real he's been all season, in my book. When he couldn't decide on a tux, I was getting disgusted with him. I did not care for the way Quinn kept whining: "It was so cold in there, I'm glad to see these orange walls, are we going to make everyone on the ship tie knots?" So unprofessional! Tony complained, but he didn't whine. I did not care for the way Bishop leads in a lot of the interrogations, especially when Gibbs is present. Granted, he is a man of few words, but she is altogether too wordy. It did come together in the end for me, although I was surprised Abby blabbed (would she have been as forgiving if the situation were reversed?), I thought there was no justification for rushing things and leaving family out, and I would have liked some mention of Tony. Surely he would have been missed? I also didn't get why Delilah, as a result of her past injury, could be struck down without notice, as McGee claims the doctors said, unless he was just being a worrywart. I mean, she travels worldwide and takes care of herself, and yet she's that fragile? I figured that either McGee was overreacting or the writers were a bit lazy. All in all, though, I liked it. Definitely an uptick in the season, for me.

I don't know, if you hang with the Doctor and he expresses reservations about your new living arrangements, I would think you would listen instead of rush him out the door. My suspension of disbelief really struggled with that!

I thought Dylan was sweet but not particularly pediatric cardiologist material, I thought Mary was sad and a little ruthless, and I think Max and Nev are just phoning it in. I recall that Max made a resigned comment about going to New Jersey, and I think he made fun of Dylan's hair upon first meeting him on Skype. I think he's done. And Nev? Was he even on this episode? My favorite line was when they asked Mary if any of the other stuff she'd said was true, and she said, "Maybe some things I said were not correctly right." What an interesting way to describe lying, lol. I agree that the show should offer therapy to catfish like Mary, not just for her but for all the catfish who watch. It's kind of pointless to tell a catfish how hurtful their actions have been to the catfishee when the catfish has usually suffered a lot of pain inflicted by other people. I'm not saying turnabout is fair play, but pointing out to someone who's been hurt as much as someone like Mary undoubtedly has been that it isn't right to hurt someone is just not helpful. Max at least tried to get her to face the downside of her obsession and to replace it with something that brings about more joy in her life. Five minutes with Max isn't going to be enough to turn her life around, though. She needs more, and maybe viewers like her could benefit as well.

I tolerated Elizabeth Rohm because I knew it was only for one episode, although I did have a momentary pang when I thought they might be introducing her as a possible love interest for Gibbs. Shudder. I thought it was odd that Abby wasn't reprimanded for telling her friend unpublicized details about the case. It looks like for a minute she was going to be, but then suddenly it was okay. Something seems to be missing this season...

I agree with so much of what's been said! I felt like I was getting hit over the head with the public service aspect -- it was so heavy it stopped being entertaining. The push toward animal love -- and I do love animals, especially horses -- was just too much this episode, it got in the way. I thought the pepper spray story was poorly done; McGee seems so clueless. He should have been more on top of things in the first place (or cared more that he wasn't) and he should have been more apologetic when he realized his mistake. I'm starting to miss the way Tony messed with him. I used to think it was mean sometimes, but at least it kept McGee on his toes. Now he's just...ineffective. I tolerated Elizabeth Rohm better than I did on Law & Order, although I'm still not a fan, and I loved Gibbs with the horse!

I simply can't understand half of what they say...it's seriously interfering with my understanding and enjoyment of the show.

While I was with Max all the way, I did wonder what made him particularly mad at this catfish. Because of his age? Because he was a man? Almost all of the other factors -- he was creepy, he showed no remorse, he is in denial, he is unlikely to stop, he had other victims -- were present in other past catfish, but somehow this guy really set Max off. It was the best part of the episode, frankly.