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Teen Wolf will always be the show of wasted potential to me. The overall ideas were generally intriguing (although often cobbled together from other shows) but the execution left everything to be desired. It was a triumph of style over substance. There was too much slow-mo, too little light and way too much rain. They created wonderful characters seemingly by accident, which they then subsequently ruined, underused or cast subpar actors in. It almost seemed like there was a curse on the show because actors who acted perfectly well in other shows handed in terrible performances (maybe it was the direction or the script or the showrunner?). I don’t think it’s any great surprise that the best actors on the show, the ones who rose above it and went on to better things, also played the best-loved characters. The show always wanted to do too much. Everything was piled on top of everything else. One villain per season would have been enough and it would have left them to write better fleshed-out and more comprehensible stories and, oh, I don’t know, maybe some character development? Everything was sacrificed to the over-laden plot. IMO what was lacking the most was commitment. They couldn’t or wouldn’t commit to anything: continuity, world building, characterisation, killing off the baddies, the baddies who actually died staying dead, Sterek, Stydia, everything was half-hearted and would change on a whim. Or more likely because they feared they might lose viewers if they went in one direction so they tried to go in every direction at once. In the end, they didn’t even commit to an ending. Teen Wolf will always make me smile a little for the glorious mess it was and it will always sadden me a little for how good it could have been and wasn’t.

Wow, JD can't stop screwing with the Sterek fans until the very end. Mind you, since there are more Sterek fans out there than other fans and a lot of them have stopped watching, he had to do something to get decent ratings. It also looks like Lydia does the same old thing as always. Why are they even bothering shooting new scenes when they could just recycle her old ones from previous episodes? She hasn't done anything different in three seasons, nor does HR ever play them with any variety. Interesting premise as always but I think I'll check out if Stiles is in an episode before watching. Otherwise a general gist will do for me until he turns up.

As usual the episode made no sense but it was good on an emotional level. A nice wrap-up, funny and poignant in equal measures and a throwback to the beginning. It was great to have Stiles back and who would have thought that the much fan-maligned Malia would turn out to be such a great character. They played to their strengths for a change, highlighting the two best relationships on the show: Stiles & Scott and Stiles & his dad. The obligatory kissing scenes were completely superfluous and thankfully brief. The less said about Stydia, chemistry and proper build-up or lack of either the better. The whole episode felt so much like the ending that it made me wonder how they’re going to continue it. And why they would even want to. I certainly won’t be watching without Dylan.

At first I was seriously considering if these episodes are being shown in the wrong order because they already said last week that everybody else was gone and today the sheriff - and even Liam to some extent - treated this like news. I loved the sheriff’s attitude to Theo though. Shame he was the first one to go because I really didn’t care what happened to the other two. For a bottle show it was really well done and the recycled scenes made me nostalgic for better days when it was the Stiles-and-Scott-Show. I wish they had reversed the order from Lydia to Malia to Scott instead of the other way round. I’ll have to overlook the ret-conning of the Stydia kiss because the show does this stuff all the time. That’s just Teen Wolf. They are notoriously bad at a) continuity and b) romantic relationships. I wouldn’t be watching it if I wasn’t able to ignore these things. So yes, it was one of my favourite episodes this season. Well, it had Stiles in it, so it would be. So Liam and Theo can kill Ghost Riders now? With saws and gurneys? They didn’t seem to make much of a dent though. Do Ghost Riders replicate like coat hangers and odd socks? Why do the Ghost Riders have to take the elevator? Pretty mundane way to travel for what they can do, which made it (probably unintentionally) funny. Why the hell did Scott and Malia have to take their tops off to go into the machine? Is that little bit of cloth going to make all the difference? And why is Theo a werewolf again? Strange how getting taken by the Ghost Riders hasn’t made any emotional impact for a while now. There’s only so many people you can disappear into a puff of green smoke before it loses any meaning, especially since we know they’re all going to come back. Well, if they forget to bring back Hayden and also take Theo I wouldn’t complain.

The episode was a bit of a misnomer. There was nothing fast about it. Everything dragged interminably. It was the dreaded info dump, only there was no new info. How did Theo even know all that? Did he and evil!teacher have a nice drink together and reminisced about their past killings? Never mind, it was just so boring. And they broke the sword. Kira and her mom are going to be so pissed. This season has taught me that the show is nothing without Stiles (as if I didn't know that all along). Even talking about him isn't enough. I just don't care what happens to any of them. The kiddie pack is so awful acting-wise and has such boring plotlines that it's impossible to connect with them. And the rest seem off somehow emotionally. I agree that Scott's relationship with Stiles should be at the forefront of the season. It's by far the show's strongest relationship and they're just wasting it. Of the others, only Malia's arc makes sense. At least she used to date Stiles so her emotions are well-established. Everything else just suddenly appeared because the writers said so. Lydia's feelings are too sudden and unconvincing, but I find even Melissa and Chris, both of whom I normally like, have gone from zero to full throttle in about five seconds. Peter's sudden paternal love is also very left-field. Stop developing relationships off-screen. It doesn't work. The only light in this episode was Linden Ashby. I still don't know how Claudia came to be there but he made losing her again and remembering Stiles very poignant despite seeming to play a giant version of cat's cradle in the room first. (Does anybody know which song was playing while he was doing that?)

This episode was too slow for me. They wasted a full five minutes on Theo’s opening. I’m sorry, but he’s neither interesting enough to warrant it nor does he deserve anyone feeling sorry for him. He really is irredeemable although that’s never stopped Teen Wolf in the past. The Lydia bits always slow down the story. I agree with blugirlami21 that her scenes could be improved if she talked instead of just trying to look otherworldly. She really isn’t a good enough actress for that. So unfortunately her little chat with the sheriff fell flat for me and I’m still not buying that she’s madly in love with Stiles. Too left-field for my liking. The rest of the episode was just the usual. “We need a plan.” Discussion of said plan. Execution of plan and the proverbial hitting the fan. Did we learn anything new, other than Deputy Teflon-Underpants can talk to the Ghost Riders? Melissa brought the goods as usual and Malia is one of my favourite characters by now. Peter played well off the two women and them dropping him unceremoniously in the elevator was a delight. Not sure if Malia’s plan made any more sense to me than the others’ plan but at least she had one and didn’t dither about like Scott seems to be doing all this season. I couldn’t work out how Theo survived the lightening strike when he was first came back if he doesn’t have any powers now. Or why no one ever wolfs out when they need strength. Or why the lacrosse shirt said Beacon Hills when afaik it always said Stilinski 24 when Stiles wore it. I also don’t like that the sheriff supposedly conjured Claudia. Yes, I know it’s cute/sad/whatever that he was so heart-broken over Stiles that he could, but he’s human. It made sense for the banshee to get her son back, but not for the sheriff to conjure Claudia. But then again TW is not known for its logic or continuity. Parrish can step over mountain ash now? I give up.

Lol. Sorry I asked.

I knew that at some point the show would fall off the wagon of decent episodes. This one was soooo sloooow. The whole Canaan bit was apparently just to tell us that banshees are immune to Ghost Riders. That was a hell of a waste of time for just that. The kiddie pack resurrected Theo (bad kids! Time out for you – preferably for the rest of the show). And that was just to find out that the Ghost Riders are stuck. Bits that I liked: Kira’s sword is back! That’s a really nice effect. Also: Kira was actually mentioned instead of never being talked about again. Scott coming home to his kids having really messed up in his absence. Complete with the disappointed parent look. Theo not being instantly redeemed (alas! there’s still time for that). The sheriff slowly coming round to the idea of Stiles. Bits that I hated: Melissa and Chris taking up screen time without cause. I just don’t see the point of their storyline or them. But that’s true for every other “romantic” relationship on this show, too. Liam’s lack of brain power is wearing really thin (if they’re really looking for someone to replace Scott when he leaves, why hasn’t anyone jumped to the obvious conclusion?). Theo!!! Why can’t this show ever let their villains rest? Especially the dead ones? Why did they all phone in their performances? And the writing? Both were atrocious. My question is why is Canaan not on any maps even as a ghost town? And hey, Melissa has now has chemist as another feather in her cap! There’s no end to that woman’s talents!

This is exactly my point. Lydia had so much potential, as the smart girl playing high school at it's own game in the beginning, then as a banshee. But this is where Teen Wolf fails every time. There's no development and no world building. It's all about "wouldn't it be cool?" or worse: "wouldn't it look cool?" with no rhyme or reason behind it. Lydia has been a plot device since S1, nothing more. We need to get from A to B but have no idea how to get there? Let Lydia sense it somehow. No need to build a mythology around this banshee stuff as long as Lydia's skirts are short enough (yes, I am also shallow enough to appreciate Lydia's jeans). I find no substance in the character to relate to. In fact I'm pretty convinced that if the show hadn't lost so many characters from the first season, she would have disappeared without fanfare like Kira or Derek by now. They just couldn't afford to lose anyone else. The writers seem to have simply no idea what to do with her nor any interest in her, palming her off with boring love stories (which unfortunately includes Stydia for me). Together with the (IMO) sub-par acting, that leaves nothing for me to like or be curious about.

I really liked this episode. Predictably because: Stiles. Not sure if DOB is really such a great actor (I'd tend to say yes, but admit I’m biased) or if it’s also because the writers write better scenes for him (I'd tend to say yes to that, too). I’m not a great Peter fan, but love him when he’s snarky and unrepentant. The antagonism between him and Stiles is always fun to watch. The pacing for this episode was much better in general as well. The juxtaposition of Stiles and Peter trying to get out and the pack trying to find him was well done and for once not slowed down by silly side stories like the kiddie pack or evil!teacher. Personally I really like Malia and while her character sadly never reached her inherent potential (no character on the show ever does), she is amusing and well acted. I still can’t see the Stydia but YMMV, of course. To me, HR overacts all her dramatic scenes so I can’t take her seriously and she and DOB have zero chemistry. I will never understand the fandom’s fascination with either Lydia or Stydia. But I can overlook it like I overlook other inconsistencies and plotholes. So overall it was an enjoyable episode.

Lol. So they gathered everyone in this super secure bunker where "nobody gets through that door!" and then one of the kids just... slips out the back? The others must have felt really safe, especially when both Chris and Malia left to chase after him. The ghostriders seem to be playing a game of peek-a-boo. Now you see us. Now you don't. Oh wait, now anybody can see us? I don't know what's up with Claudia Stilinski but if a girl she barely knows (because she doesn't have kids that they could have been friends with) comes to her house to look for a relic that the son she doesn't remember having has left behind and said girl starts peeling off the wallpaper, then throwing her out doesn't make her evil. It's the sane thing to do. It's business as usual on Teen Wolf: take an interesting idea and then spin a story that's full of plotholes and inconsistencies that you just can't be bothered to explain in the end. That's what the fans are there for, right? Pretty sure everyone commenting on this episode has put more thought into it than the writers. They probably spent their staff meetings on discussing what Malia should wear or whether Liam should get a haircut.

I have no clue which year the kiddie pack is supposed to be in. I think the only thing we know with certainty is that they are neither seniors (because then they would be in the same year as the old pack) nor can they be freshman because Liam and Mason were around before the old pack became seniors. But I actually meant soporific. I'm one of the few people in fandom who found Allison and Scott's epic love story yawn-inducing for the most part and I find Liam and Hayden even more so. ;-)

I kind of like this season so far. The way the old pack is trying to piece things together is interesting. But in this episode everything was dragged out too long for my taste. The scene with Grandpa Stilinski went on forever – quite fittingly they seemed to be there from at least afternoon until night time – and for what? We found out the sheriff’s name and that Grandpa remembers more than anyone else, i.e. that the sheriff has a son. None of that warranted spending so much time on it. I found the party scene a bit of a mess. They are all the same on this show. Hayden and Liam are an even more soporific couple than Scott and Allison always were. Liam in general seems to be a knock-off version of Scott. I really don’t care if he gets there in the end and is able to replace Scott. None of the kiddie pack are particularly interesting. The only one I like is Corey and that’s only because of his ability which looks cool. And did Parrish really try to arrest the ghostrider? How does that even make sense? My favorite bit was Melissa. I never cared much for Chris but they were good together. And Melissa continues to impress with her medical skills. After working in reception, the emergency room and the operating theater in the past, she can now perform autopsies and find and remove a pea-sized gland in the middle of the brain with her fingers. Kudos! Shame the storyline about evil!teacher is so boring. The only highlight I was hoping for was him trying to teach after he inhaled the helium but alas! It wasn’t to be.

I actually liked this episode, much to my own surprise. There was a nice mixture of the old gang and the ‘kiddy pack’. The pacing was good – if they would only leave off the slow-mo. The storyline is interesting. When I think about it, this plot is actually surprisingly ingenious for the Teen Wolf writers, who are not known for their exciting – or even coherent – ideas. With DOB being mostly unavailable this is making the most of his popularity. Loved: DOB brought the goods, as usual. Stiles and his dad! O the feelz! Hated: as far as I’m concerned, HR couldn’t act her way out of a paper bag. Granted, Lydia’s ‘power’ requires her to mostly look vacant or vaguely constipated. At least I’d like to give her the benefit of the doubt that it’s deliberate. I’m still praying we will be spared Stydia. And by now HR really looks her age. Although the same goes for TP. DOB can just about pass for a teenager. Only SH still looks young enough. Just as well that this is the last season.

Well, the exclusive “new photo” is actually from before the accident when Dylan was filming TW Episodes 1 and 2 before he started filming for the Maze Runner, as evidenced by his hand brace which he had at the time. And since the storyline for this Season is about the Wild Hunt and how they erase people from everyone’s mind, you could say that Stiles’s disappearance is a huge part of the storyline but that is more likely about him not being there. This is typical for Jeff Davies and his deliberate misdirection. He knows Stiles is a huge draw for the show (if not the only draw left) and he keeps making it sound that DOB will be in it a lot. So far DOB hasn’t resurfaced since his accident. There are no public appearances or even private photos (bar one back in May) and he’s definitely not back at work, on TW or anywhere else.