Joe Hellandback

Oh my god, only 4 eps left of the second best series on TV! Hmmm, Philip looking into their emergency cache, perhaps to take money to save the business? Elizabeth phoning her son? Wonders will never cease! You get the feeling that this really is the endgame for the family. Stan and the boys finally getting a break and looking to exploit it all the way. How will the series conclude? Will they ever tell Henry? Will Elizabeth take Paige back to Russia leaving Philip with Henry? Is Elizabeth luring Philip to Chicago for nefarious purposes? A week seems a long time to wait!

I don't think that's a hero moment so much as a grown up moment? What's the third option that doesn't make sense?

1. Benson; "I need you to come in on your day off to work on something" Finn; "Can't do it, promised my son we'd spend the day together" Benson; "But this is important" Finn; "And it'll be important again tomorrow and I'll give you 100%. But today I need a day off" 2. Carisi; "How's Noah?" Benson; "He's fine, I packed him off to military school" 3. DS; "Doctor Warner, you examined the accuser, can you tell the court if this was rape or violent but consensual sex?" Warner; "No, it would be impossible to distinguish between the two" 4. Benson; "We really need your co-operation in this matter" Strip club manager/escort agency owner/porn producer; "No problem, happy to help, really care about my employees" 5. Jeffries; "We have a problem, the accuser is a friend/relative/former lover/colleague of mine" Benson; "Well then you better recuse yourself from the investigation and let IAB know about your conflict of interest" 6. Benson; "You better co-operate or we'll get the IRS/Health and Safety/regulating authority in here to turn your business upside down" Business owner; "Go ahead, we have nothing to hide" 7. Benson; "Okay, let's go storm the suspect's house" ESU team leader; "Right, you just stay here and I'll let you know when my team is finished" 8. Carisi; "This has really upset you hasn't it?" New female SVU recruit; "Yes, I'm so glad I was never raped or sexually abused in any way"

You make it sound like he gave Barbara an STD? Yes, that's the clever thing, they always said the Burton movies were deliberately set in 'No time', a very different world to ours, Gotham pulls that trick too (particularly clever that we never know which war Jim is a veteran off, it looks like Vietnam?) I kinda thought we'd have a little more at end of the scene where the cook tells Sophia she followed the Penguin's mother's recipe exactly. Have Sophia try a bite and say 'You know actually this IS really good" and the cook nods in agreement. Not just that, he blows up the Joker's goons at the chemical plant, he burns Two Face's henchmen alive with the jet blast from the Batmobile, he lures Two Face to his death, he massacres Luthor's goons hijacking the Kryptonite... I'm trying to think of Batman and Robin but I think I've successfully blotted it from my memory. That is one truly 70s collar!

S1 Ep3; Dreamworker The Good; The final pond scene is quite lovely The Bad; Nothing bad, just a fairly weak episode. Recurring Characters; Cyrene-1 Lila-1 Gabby's dad-1 Perdicas-1 Draco-1 Xena cliches; Gabby captured-1 Village in peril-2 Duel to settle things-1 Kills; yep, 2 more for Xena making 3 in all but Gabby keeps her blood innocence Best quote; Mystic (To an unconscious Xena) "Don't worry, I'm a gentleman" Other; Gabby with a sword for the first time and the cleavage enhancing 'breast dagger' which I think will recur in a couple of later eps. Bruce Seth Green as director who also directed on Buffy. First appearance of a 'dreamscape' which will also recur. Gabby's extra toe which I had quite forgotten. Rating; 6/10

Come on, how about when Buffy and Dawn went shopping to return all of Dawn's shoplifted items? Or when she and Faith make up? Or Buffy's birthday before it turned into the inevitable disaster (love the little look B&D give one another as they wave the others goodbye, they're not going anywhere because this is where they belong together)? Or when they welcome Willow home?

Six was a good season but not much of a fun season, I'd be careful disparaging the musical as most of fandom would consider that heresy! It's Dawn who always seems to be butting on courting couples, she's a right little voyeur.

No, every time she sees Dawn or has the gang together her smile is genuine, it's simply her relationship with Riley was so dull and Spuffy was so joyless as compared to Bangel.

I think that's a little harsh on both Tara and season 6, folk in the Scooby Gang and Sunnydale generally seem to have a pretty much open door policy.

No, I never got the suicide vibe from her, burying her weapons was a sign of saying goodbye to her violent history. As for the subtext I'd say it was more a case of seeing things in retrospect and taking greater significance from them, S1 Ep2; Chariots of War The Good; Not bad, a little humdrum, full of clichés but they haven't become clichés in the series yet. Xena says sorry for the first time to Gabby's surprise and we have the first hurt/comfort scene so beloved of fanfiction. The Bad; The villain seems to die awfully easily from what is obviously a non-fatal wound? Xena tells the peaceful farmer that she doesn't have a family which must be news to her mother, half brother and son? Gabby refers to Xena as being 6ft tall when LL is actually only 5, 9 but I guess her boots can boost her up. Recurring Characters; Cyrene-1 Lila-1 Gabby's dad-1 Perdicas-1 Draco-1 Xena cliches; Village in peril-2 Duel to settle things-1 Nudity-a little LL back but see more of her later. Kills; yep, slits the villain open with her sword. Subtext; Gabby's 'Tree in the forest' story is pretty obvious and some interesting comments on Xena not having to be strong. Yeesh!; the hot poker scene, dear lord. Let's all be grateful for anaesthetics and disinfectants Best quote; Gabby-"If I die I'll never talk to you again" which is somewhat ironic given how many times both will die in the series. Xena to Gabby-"Remind me to talk about your taste in men" which is ironic given Xena's track record, Other; run of the mill story but enjoyable enough Rating; 6/10

Scenes I'd like to see; 1. Finn; "The FBI/DEA/ATF/CIA/organised crime taskforce etc are asking us to back off as we're jeopardizing their investigations" Benson; "Better do that then, we don't want to ruin years of work and get their undercovers, witnesses and informants killed" Jeffries; "What about our victim?" Benson; "That's just one person, we're talking about potentially hundreds of lives. Besides, we're overwhelmed by the number of our own cases, we'd be glad to hand off some work to somebody else" 2. Defence solicitor; "Miss Jane Doe, you originally stated that you didn't want to give evidence, what changed your mind?" Jane Doe; "Detective Benson said that there would be other victims and I would be letting them down if I didn't testify" DS; "Have any other past victims come forward?" Jane Doe; "No" DS; "And has my client been accused by anyone since?" JD; "No" DS; "So did Detective Benson show you some sort of crystal ball or mindreading device?" 3. Victim/witness/suspect/journalist/random nutcase; "Hi, I'd like to speak to someone about...." Finn; "What a second, how the hell did you get in here?" "Uhhh, I just walked in" Finn; "This is the sex crimes unit, it's a secure area, you DON'T just walk in!"

1. A rapist targets epileptics, using a strobe light to incapacitate them then sexually assault them whilst pretending to help them. But one of the team seems extremely reluctant to get involved in confronting him.... 2. A religious cult discovers one of their 13 year old members as being pregnant and proclaims her as being the subject of immaculate conception. As the SVU investigate the religious battle lines are drawn. 3. A jailhouse snitch provides invaluable evidence in an SVU case but the SVU later discover he runs classes for other inmates in how to lie and exploit the system for their own benefit. As they investigate the SVU come under huge pressure from other law enforcers who have also used him and would see their current investigations jeopardized and past convictions overturned if the news leaked out. 4. A journalist writing a book about changing attitudes to sex crimes interviews the SVU. But when one unidentified detective comments that they think the pendulum has swung too far the other way and the system is now unfair to suspects a public outcry sees the SVU under intense IAB scrutiny to identify them. 5. The SVU discover paedophiles have created their own prison gang to protect one another on the inside and provide for each other on the outside. When they try to have the inmates separated the prison authorities object as the sex offenders are their favourite prisoners, almost entirely non-violent and providing a calming influence on the population. 6. A fading music star becomes a celebrity and feminist icon after exposing sexual assault and harassment in the music industry. However private detectives hired to investigate her past uncover a history of rampant drug abuse, mental health issues, support for terrorist causes and even that she was a member of a cult as a child. When she turns up under the influence of drugs to court the judge orders her arrested for contempt putting the SVU under wrath of the media and public opinion when they have to aid the bailiff in subduing her. 7. A string of stranger rapes resemble a past series where a suspect has already been convicted with DNA evidence, eyewitness identification and confession. Is it a copycat, a false conviction or did the original rapist have an accomplice? 8. A suspect is charged with a series of stranger rapes where the victim is branded with the marks of a popular 'Incel' group. However when he releases hidden camera footage of how cruelly his victims originally rejected him (and how he didn't target those who let him down gently) public opinion swings back in his favour.

Ok, 4 Music is repeating the series from beginning to end so I thought I'd give it a whirl. been a few years since I watched it on the Horror Channel and they stopped at the end of season 4. The Good; yay, our girl is here in all her leather clad beauty! Gabby in her peasant blouse and we have all the elements of the show right here, right down to the Chakram. The Bad; early days yet, this ep still has the feel of a Hercules ep and not nearly as sophisticated as the show will become. Recurring Characters; Xena and Gabby aside we have; Cyrene-1 Lila-1 Gabby's dad-1 (does he ever get a name?) Perdicas-1 (who gets much more handsome this season) Draco-1 who comes across as much more sophisticated than the simple warlord we'll later see, quite a tragic figure who knows he can never 'go home' as Xena does. Xena cliches; Village in peril-1 Duel to settle things-1 Kills; amazingly Xena doesn't actually kill anyone, still in that Hercules phase but that won't last long. Subtext; just get a load of the look they share when Gabby finds Xena at her brother's grave and tells her she's not alone. She also refers to Argo as 'Boy'? Greek myths; Xena is Greek for guest/visitor, Gabrielle is actually Hebrew and means 'Woman of God/God is my strength'. Draco means Dragon and was the name of a famously strict Greek politician but unlikely to be the same guy unless he had a radical career change. Xena's blinding of the Cyclops and Gabby's later trick is very reminiscent of the legend of Ulysses. Best quote; Gabby tells Lila that Xena will 'Never let a man get close enough to do her'? Hmmmmmm? Other; a pretty simple story but the seeds of greatness are here, always very fond of Lila and Cyrene and we have them here for the first time. Rating; 7/10

1. God, no matter how many times you see Liz break into people's buildings and murder them it never stops being shocking, the sheer viciousness of it. Talk about a lack of reaction from Stan though? 2. For the record the USSR did lose 20 million people in the 'Great Patriotic War'. Having actively supported the Nazis until halfway through (the German/Italian planes which bombed Britain in the Blitz were fuelled by Russian oil), hugely reliant on massive aid from Britain and America (which had we been able to divert to the Pacific would have meant never losing Malaya, The Philippines etc), would certainly have lost Stalingrad, Leningrad, Moscow had the Germans not also needed to fight the Allies in the West and only declared war on Japan AFTER the first A-bomb. Not to downplay their suffering and sacrifice but let's have some perspective here. 3. Interesting scene where they teach Paige how to drink but stay sober, of course a vital skill for real spies. 4. I liked the bar scene, you cheered for Paige smacking that jerk 5. So, Phillip finally crosses the line, I was right that she seemed to be giving him the shove but he warns her off, even going so far as to warn her specifically to not go to a Communist country. Because she reminds him off Paige and he sees what is happening to her?

I take your point, I was recently reading that Iowa had introduced some of the most restrictive abortion laws ever. But again even if something happens to Donald and you have President Pence it seems exaggerated, Roseanne has a gay grandson, Will and Grace is back on TV, the liberal ethos of the US is incredibly powerful and overwhelming to an almost absurd degree, emotional support animals on planes, safe spaces at universities and people wanting to rip down statues and rewrite the past. In many ways US society at the moment is less of a rise of the right than a backlash against the ascendant left.

Good call on The Gentlemen, I remember when Butch used the rocket launcher to destroy Galavan, reminded me a lot of Buffy taking out The Judge.

1. Of all the menacing freaks we've seen in the series Anubis is undoubtedly the most creepy, he makes Zsaz look like a Care Bear. I'm glad he's dead (?) 2. Speaking of Zsaz, really starting to love the Penguin/Zsaz relationship, the way he gets into the hip-hop duo but still wants to torture them. Why do these poor guys keep coming back, is Ed paying them? 3. Dr Bashir is really growing on me, actually love the scenes with him as Mr Civilized Academic, he's so plausible, you half expect him to be wearing cricket whites. . Note he's started the whole 'Detective' thing. Love it when Alfred slugs him. 4. Oh my god they killed the kid! Thankfully they chickened out from killing the nuns and torching the cheerleaders but they went and did it this time. No wonder Bruce is so anguished. 5. What is Barbara's business? Is it a bar or private members club or something? And where are Tabby and Selina this week? 6. Oh Jim, she's trouble! T-R-O-U-B-L-E! But yes, you still would. 7. Not sure about Jim's new partner, is she meant to be permanent or just because Harvey is not available this week? 8. Ras-a ghul in Blackgate? Surprised he just hasn't got diplomatic immunity. What does his little smile mean? That he can get out so easily or he wanted to be sent there?

From 'Smut' Season 10 Episode 10; Defence solicitor; "Miss Andrews, could you please tell the court when you first came to believe you were raped?" Victim (Laurel Andrews); "Well when Detective Benson told me I had been raped" DS; "So you never actually believed you were raped until Detective Benson TOLD you that you'd been raped?" Victim; "No" DS; "Miss Andrews, how did you sustain the bruising to your thighs?" Victim; "That was when the accused prised my legs apart to rape me" DS; "But how can you know that? You have testified that you have no memory of the event?" Victim; "Detective Benson told me that's what happened" DS; "Miss Andrews, would you believe that this was rape at all if Detective Benson had not led you through your story from beginning to end and fed you the details?" Victim; "I don't know"

Scene I'd like to have seen; Captain Cragen; "Eliot, you sure you're okay to return to duty?" Stabler; "Yes sir, the job still needs to be done" Captain Cragen; "Okay but I should inform you that the NYPD has decided to start video recording all suspect interviews" Stabler; "No worries, it will make all their confessions all the more credible" Cragen; "No I mean from beginning to end, from the moment you walk in the door so we see how you got to the confession" Stabler; "But Captain that means I can't brutalise and threaten the suspects!" Cragen; "Well you shouldn't have been doing that anyway" Stabler; "Screw that, I quit" Cragen; "Okay, what will I tell Olivia?" Stabler; "Well just tell her I was upset about shooting that girl"

Interesting idea, it would be a little contrived in places but it would certainly be different.

Good point but if he wasn't off spying all the time I'm sure his business would be a lot more successful.

Ok, watching in the UK so pretty behind the times but hoping to catch up. 1. The scene with Elizabeth's break in was so dark I thought there was something wrong with the TV! Hadn't a clue what was going on. 2. Little Paige growing up fast, developing her own sources and using the old honeytrap to do so, her mother must be so proud. 3. A little puzzled by Philip's financial problems, he and Elizabeth are such badass operators couldn't they just rob a bank? Love Elizabeth's attitude to Henry, not exactly the mother of the year! 4. Anyone else think that Kimmie is giving Philip the old heave-ho? Her going away for the holidays instead of staying with her family an analogy and hint that maybe she doesn't need him anymore? So the battle line are drawn, will the marriage survive Glasnost? And which side will the kids be on?

Defence solicitor; "Dr Warner, do you have confidence in the forensic evidence you have presented to the court in your testimony?" Warner; "Yes, absolutely" DS; "Dr Warner can you explain to the court the 'Wink' effect?" W; "It was a method used to define child abuse in the 80s" DS "And it has since been totally discredited, hasn't it?" W; "Yes" DS; "Along with Expert fire marshals who can distinguish between arson and accidental fire, bite-mark testimony from dentists, recovered memories and forensic psychological profiling, all have been discredited by independent testing, haven't they?" W; "Yes" DS; "And the medical profession is at virtual war over the diagnosis of shaken baby syndrome, isn't true?" W; "Yes" DS; "Yet at the time they were presented by the experts involved to the court with total confidence, is that not true?" W; "At the time, yes" DS; "And resulted in numerous false convictions and even executions?" W; "Yes" DS; "Dr Warner, can you guarantee us that your testimony here today won't be similarly discredited?" W; "Guarantee you? No"

By the stage she was a producer she was pretty much indispensable.

Well Gabby (and Joxer) would always rely on Xena to protect them, it wouldn't have been a problem if not for the Callisto's interference