mjc570

I thought that was a pretty good episode, way better than the last one. To me, the best thing is how much fun Patrick Stewart seems to be having. My least favorite part: the young male staffer and JAckie Weaver.

Me, too!

I just watched the first two eipsodes. I liked the frist one very much, the second not nearly as much. I'll keep watching, tho, especially since the episodes are short. Patrick Stewart was amazing, but I was totally blown away by Jackie Weaver, whom I had only seen in Broadchurch. I just hope they don't dumb it down too much, by going for the cheap laughs.

Aagh, just watched S5E1 (US here) - wtf? Lots of action, but the boys totally got their a**es handed to them several times - must be out of practice. It doesn't occur to the ambassador to make sure he could get real time updates, and have the bomb disposal squad standing by?

I didn't think he was snide at all. I thought his remarks were pretty funny and on point, and Colby certainly was not offended. I realize there is a lot of Alex hate here, some of which is well-deserved, but I like him and make allowances (perhaps more than others) for the fact that he is a pretty old guy who has been doing this for a long time. I'm an old person, myself, and I sure hope people make allowances for me. I very much liked the guy who won (sorry, can't remember his name), although both of the others also were fine. I thought it was a pretty good game, with interesting categories and no excessive board jumping or contestant quirks.

This relates to Monday's game: It must be really stressful for a contestant to hit a DD - I absolutely can't believe Luke didn't get "degree." I liked all the contestants - Scott didn't bother me, at least he claps for the other contestants. I thought almost all of the questions were pretty easy (I am TERRIBLE at geography and Oscars and all kinds of other categories), so I was glad to see there were few stumpers. Although, Buttermilk! I really feel bad for the show's insistence on correct spelling in FJ, although I guess it does remove the element of "close enough."

I've been watching (in real time!) this show from the beginning, but this most recent episode makes me wonder why. Donna and Boz were awesome, as usual, but that was nowhere enough to offset that awful "Gordon wandering in the garage" garbage. Yeah, we get it, he's mentally ill, spiraling down, we didn't need to have it literally pushed in our face over and over. I watch a lot of TV, so I don't really have any expectations of logic when it comes to plot - my suspension of disbelief starts as soon as I turn on the TV, and ends when I stop watching. What I mean to say is that my expectations are totally low, but that Jacob would (1) invite Joe to the investors meeting and then (2) allow him to speak was just too much even for me. That was cheap, unnecessary and ridiculous. Also, while I think Lee Pace is a good-looking man, the pushed up sleeve thing is almost enough to make me avert my eyes. I can say without hesitation that if Boz goes, so do I. Thank heaven there's only 1 episode left.

Wow, great episode. Datak was AMAZING, and I really liked the flashbacks - especially young Datak. There were a few things that were almost either stupid or out-of character enough to take me out the episode - Nolan just accepting that guy, Omec dad letting his daughter literally spit in his face - but I still thought it was good.

I liked tonight's game, although I was surprised at a couple of TSs (esb = landmark = empire state building comes to mind). I thought all 3 contestants were pleasant, and seemed at least somewhat knowledgeable. At this point, I'm satisfied if a contestant is not actively annoying, I guess my standards really have slipped.

My local grocery store was giving away "soup corn" - ears that obviously failed the attractiveness test. I thought that was a good idea, to encourage people to think about using "leftovers" (so to speak) in different ways. I have to admit that I am one of those people who really doesn't like to buy less than perfect produce. I could be induced, perhaps, by a substantial discount and some creative ideas, but I am really picky.

ElectricBoogaloo and DEM: Thanks for explaining about the Kelly Reilly/V V credits. For someone who watches a lot of TV, I know very little about the entertainment business.

I am enjoying this show, generally, although there are particular things that I don't like or understand, It seems clear to me that the writers (or whoever makes decisions) just don't like or understand women - the two women in traditionally masculine fields (Ani the cop, the assistant AG (>??)) are interesting, believable characters who exhibit agency and advance the plot in realistic ways. On the other hand, the "less maculine" (so to speak) women are total idiots: (1) Ray's ex-wife - why is she insisting on a paternity test NOW? She must hate Chad, if she thinks he'll be better off knowing he's the son of a serial rapist, rather than the cop who loves him; (2) Frank's wife - really, does she have to insist on the child thing, now, when Frank is clearly under a lot of pressure? and (3) Paul's mother, ugh, what can I say. What a coincidence, all 3 of these women have plots solely concerned with childbearing/raising. I know I shouldn't hold this against her, but why does Kelly Reilly have higher billing than VV? She's not better known (I don't think), and I assume VV is more integral to the plot. This makes me wonder if there is more to come about her character - I hope not, because while I think the other 3 characters' backgrounds are somewhat interesting and help fill out their characters, I really don't care about Frank's childhood or baby struggles, or anything other than the fact that he's a gangster whose plans to go legit were thwarted by Caspere's murder. p.s. I wonder about Frank's negotiating skills - shouldn't he have specified that he could select the 5 parcels? Unless this is a deliberate choice, to show that he just isn't that smart and that any "success" he's had is due totally to his use of violence. I was sorry to see that he had to move from that beautiful house, because I looked forward to seeing it each week.

I enjoyed the episode, since everybody pretty much acted consistently with their characters, but there was some movement (Gordon telling Donna, the whole Mutiny thing). I have to say, though, that I was totally distracted by Ton's obvious lip coloring. Come on, makeup artists!

I really can't stand Laura, although some of that is just being shallow because her voice really grates on me. She was no great shakes as a mother (still isn't), but I can see why having Anita there would maker Laura insecure. Because, let's face it, Anita really is better in virtually every way. I agree that Anita's belief that Sophie's safety may be at risk is what enables her to lie, along, perhaps with her residual Mia personality. I guess I'm just not that sensitive - I didn't think the either the dad or the son were creeps or pervs. Obviously, the dad (Joe?) was uncomfortable with Anita's nudity, but there has been no indication whatsoever that he has taken sexual advantage of her. He could have groped her during that inspection, but did not. Similarly, I understand the son's fascination with Anita - he is a young, inexperienced, man, of course he wants to see what a naked woman looks like and feels like. Yes, he put his hand on her breast, in a tentative way, and was mortified when she reacted. I guess it's understandable that a lot more effort went into the writing and casting of the synths as characters, but I like every one of them (even Niska) more than any actual human on the show so far. I'm not usually a William Hurt fan, but I really like his portrayal here, since he apparently is able to dial back the smarminess. I have to laugh every time I see Inspector Innocent, through.

Maybe I'm missing the point of his character, but I was totally uninterested in Paul's sex life/love life/military atrocities. I'm not familiar with the actor, so I don't know if it's the acting or the writing (or both), but I just don't care. I'm deliberating not comparing this to last year, but the fact is that the title is the same, so there must be an element in common. To me, the message last season was that both Marty and Rust, despite being screwed up characters, were in fact "true detectives." My feeling this season is that none of the lead characters (the three cops and Vince Vaughn, who did seem interested in solving the murder) are "true detectives" at all. Certainly, the three cops are COMPLETELY incompetent (which, I know is why they were assigned to the task force) - I knew a massacre was coming when I saw them striding openly down the street, without it occurring to any of them that the criminals might have lookouts posted. I'll keep watching this, but at this point the only character I like is VV's house (and furnishings).

I found Hilary's gestures annoying, and didn't really care for her. I don't expect contestants to measure up to my beloved Julia, but I do appreciate it when they exhibit some warmth, humor and charm. Much as I like the new champ (sorry, can't remember her name - Jess?), the way her ears poked through her hair made me laugh. Maybe she can get a decent hair cut with her winnings. She really was lucky that Hilary didn't get the FJ (and frankly, it was an instaget for me), because her bet was pathetic. Sorry if I'm coming off as negative - I don't know why, I just don't seem to enjoy watching as much as I used to.

@AntiBeeSpray and Chattygal: Thanks for the explanation. I'm sorry to hear about Penny's health issues, but I'm glad at least she was able to appear on the show.

I've never watched this, so I thought I would give it a try (he celebrities are Dr. Phil, and Penny/Gary Marshall). I lasted 8 minutes - Mrs. Dr. Phil was the single most annoying character I've seen on TV in my entire life (and I'm old AND watcch a lot of TV, so that is something.) The constant mugging, the constant repetition of "Good answer" to anything said by her team, the comments to Steve Harvey when it was her turn - just ugh. Was she being ironic, somehow, and I just missed the joke? I was sorry to see how decrepit Penny Marshall is - is she in poor health? It seems that her mind is as good as ever, though.

I wasn't a huge fan of Alex the contestant (after all, he ousted that cutie, Brandon), but I much preferred him over the other 2 contestants tonight. Elsa was pleasant, but boring (sorry!) and I very much disliked Jon - for the Scottish accent, starting categories in the middle of the column and the overly emotional anecdote. I don't wish to appear unfeeling, but please, contestants, could you not bring up dead family members and then, get emotional. Wow, I guess I AM pretty unfeeling, but I much prefer the Wheel of Fortune quickie intros (spouse, kids, job), which is why I generally DVR Jeopardy and FF that stuff. Maybe I'm getting smarter ( ha ha), but it seemed like a lot of clues, especially in the second round, were just so obvious.

Alex definitely deserved the win - he was quicker on the signaler than Brandon, but I'm sorry to see Brandon leave - he is such a cutie, although I think he must panic at DDs - he missed some (to me) really easy ones, like a military person who was pictured wearing a band uniform (Sousa).

Watching tonight, I realized how much I dislike contestants' interjections (yes, you, Shayna). Although she is one of the two types of contestants I normally like rooting for, a dumpy older woman (the other category is hot guys, what can I sayl I guess you can guess which one I am), I'm really glad her math skills were so poor. Matt was ok, although him not getting "Anglo-Saxon" was surprising to me.

It's kind of a shame - our power was out last night, so this episode didn't record. I didn't even care enough to seek it out On Demand. In terms of who the titular Tyrant may be - I always thought it was Barry. Otherwise, what was the purpose of the scene showing him as a child executing that man? I've kind of refined that, to assume that Barry is a natural tyrant (whixh he has consciously or subconsciously repressed, from being a pediatrician to putting up with Molly) while Jamal is NOT a tyrant, but is forced by circumstances to act as one.

I totally agree.

i very much enjoyed season 1, and really was looking forward to season 2. I have to say that I was disappointed. I don't know what's up with Jamal (or the actor portraying him), but it's like he lost all his energy (along with his hair). If it hadn't been for his voice, I don't know that I would have recognized him. I still like the character, though, but I don't even begin to understand how he's going to deal with the fallout and total loss of credibility when the truth comes out. I also thought that Barry's "death" was completely overdone, since it was obvious that he wasn't the person being killed. I get that it was an opportunity for the various characters to have big, emotional scenes (not all of whom were able to carry it off), but I think it was an insult to the viewers. I blame the writers for not coming up with something more creative (such as the execution had to be postponed because Barry fell ill, or something), because I wasn't moved at all, since even I (and I am generally pretty clueless) knew that the lead actor wasn't going to be killed off. I had to laugh how Molly stayed in character during the big good-bye scene with Barry - not a word of apology for forcing them to come to Abudin,any recognition that Barry was right to stay awayor how her actions jeopardized everyone. Of course, in his discussion with Jamal (and I admit that I am biased in favor of Team Jamal on this one), Barry was as self-righteous as ever. I'm not sure that I'm going to watch the rest of this - I'll probably give it a few more episodes, because I like all the al-Fayeeds (except Barry and his family) and am curious to see what happens. What I would LOVE is if the focus on the show was getting rid of Barry and Molly (and Sammy), truly the weakest links in terms of both acting and writing.

Latverian Diplomat: Thanks for the clarification. I was watching under less than ideal (or even minimally acceptable) conditions, and missed a lot.