S01.E08: Long Shot / S01.E09: Bad Actors

[CooperTV]

Quote

When a woman is shot outside a community center, Dylan and Lizzie are challenged by the mayor to solve the case in less than 24 hours to quell pressure from the media and special interest groups.

and

Quote

Two members of an acting troupe are killed using sophisticated poisons; Andy worries that Dylan isn't fitting in, so he encourages Dylan to attend a barbecue being thrown by Detective Fucci.

Promos

[Misslindsey]

I think the next new episode airs on 27th. I could be wrong though.

[possibilities]

It aired tonight, and there was also another episode, about the death of an actor who did kids' parties in a furry suit.

Edited May 28, 2018 by possibilities

[Free]

4 minutes ago, possibilities said:

It aired tonight, and there was also another episode, about the death of an actor who did kid's parties in a furry suit.

Yeah, it was a double episode tonight.

[shapeshifter]

Yes. I just sent a message requesting that the info for the following episode, "Bad Actors," be added to this thread.

 I was a bit confused by the ending of "Bad Actors." Does this mean Julian (Naveen Andrews) is being written out and that there will be no more convenient CIA hacked info dumps for Lizzie to ask Dylan about with, "How did you find that out? Never mind. I don't want to know"?

 

The Muslim girls singing in sweet harmony and tagging messages to the filthy rich landlord were the best part of the entire run of the show to date, IMO. I wonder if a show could be built around them and the victim (resurrected) who ran the youth center?

[Free]

3 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

 I was a bit confused by the ending of "Bad Actors." Does this mean Julian (Naveen Andrews) is being written out and that there will be no more convenient CIA hacked info dumps for Lizzie to ask Dylan about with, "How did you find that out? Never mind. I don't want to know"?

It depends, but keep in mind that the episodes are technically airing out of order too so that could throw some things off.

[shapeshifter]

13 minutes ago, Free said:

keep in mind that the episodes are technically airing out of order too so that could throw some things off.

Oh, yeah. And looking it up (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instinct_(U.S._TV_series)#Episodes ), "Bad Actors" was originally episode 5. Although we have definitely seen Julian giving crucial information in later written episodes, maybe they rearranged them for the purpose of writing him out? The two remaining episodes were originally 7 and 9, FWIW.

[Arkay]

 A Jewish funeral does NOT have flowers and a fancy coffin. Furthermore, the coffin, which would be plain wood, is lowered into the ground during the service, and then family members place a shovelful of earth on the coffin. Also, burial would take place within 24 hours, but it could be delayed if the family permits an autopsy, and Dylan did mention something about the M.E.  I suppose writers who entirely ripped off a script from another show don't have the professionalism to know what they're writing about.

I was also offended by the very broad stereotype of Det. Fucci's wife. I know a million NYC Italians, and no one dresses or acts like that.

The plot was interesting until the end. I don't believe Lizzie would enter that cabin alone, and it was laughable that Dylan was perfectly unharmed searching for Lizzie in a cabin set ablaze, and so was she. A wooden cabin splashed with kerosene would have gone full fire right away. 

This show is too ridiculous. I tried, based on the cast, but I've had enough.

[Writing Wrongs]

Gary is the real star of the show. Who pushes their dog in a baby stroller from crime scene to crime scene?

Was the beat cop in the first episode the same as the detective in the second? I'm so confused. When this season is over, I'm gonna have to watch the episodes in order to see if it makes more sense.

[Mermaid Under]

Quote

Does this mean Julian (Naveen Andrews) is being written out and that there will be no more convenient CIA hacked info dumps for Lizzie to ask Dylan about with, "How did you find that out? Never mind. I don't want to know"?

I was coming here to ask if (among the 6 of us watching) did anyone think that Julian didn't actually shoot Bishop?  Because their interaction on the docks (and in fact Julian's responses to Alan Cummings character the entire episode) was weird, and the gunshot was very deliberately off camera.  To me, that says that someone had a story line in mind for the Julian character.  Not that it will happen.  This show was renewed despite not being popular, so they may get rid of Naveen Andrews as a cost saving measure,

[Free]

7 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

Oh, yeah. And looking it up (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Instinct_(U.S._TV_series)#Episodes ), "Bad Actors" was originally episode 5. Although we have definitely seen Julian giving crucial information in later written episodes, maybe they rearranged them for the purpose of writing him out? The two remaining episodes were originally 7 and 9, FWIW.

Agreed, I had to keep looking up the production order because of it.

[Trey]

7 hours ago, shapeshifter said:

The Muslim girls singing in sweet harmony and tagging messages to the filthy rich landlord were the best part of the entire run of the show to date, IMO. I wonder if a show could be built around them and the victim (resurrected) who ran the youth center?

I loved that too! The lady from the youth center didn't die so she doesn't have to resurrected.

I saw only this episode, not the other one.

[possibilities]

I like Dylan, Andy, Lizzie, and even the new guy who helped on the case this week (he reminds me of Amy Santiago). But I still find the show boring. It always feels like they are just going through the motions. I think the writing is the problem.

I had stopped watching, but tried again tonight and... it's really not getting better.

I also hate Dylan's CIA friend. I hate how they just have him come up with info and help Dylan behind Lizzie's back. It's like the get out of jail free card for writing. Also, I hate the actor, who is doing the same schtick he does in Sense8, and I hate him there, too. And in Sense8 he's supposed to be a bad guy, while here he's supposed to be a good guy. But his acting and affect are identical both places. Horrible.

I also find Lizzie's boss to be ridiculous, both when she's in friend mode and when she's in boss mode. Ditto for Dylan's agent. Why is it that 3 of the 4 POC regulars on this show are (1) sidekicks, (2) schticky and terrible, and (3) unlikable as hell? Even the new detective, who I like, is kind of being played for laughs as a caricature. C'mon, show! Don't be so transparent in your shittiness.

I do like that they seem to have decided the dog is not dying any time soon. Though I did have a cat who died a few months after a dental work. But I'm trying to take this week's dog story as a reversal of fortune for Lizzie's dog.

Edited May 28, 2018 by possibilities

[shapeshifter]

11 hours ago, Arkay said:

 A Jewish funeral does NOT have flowers and a fancy coffin. Furthermore, the coffin, which would be plain wood, is lowered into the ground during the service, and then family members place a shovelful of earth on the coffin. Also, burial would take place within 24 hours, but it could be delayed if the family permits an autopsy, and Dylan did mention something about the M.E.  I suppose writers who entirely ripped off a script from another show don't have the professionalism to know what they're writing about.

I was also offended by the very broad stereotype of Det. Fucci's wife. I know a million NYC Italians, and no one dresses or acts like that.

The plot was interesting until the end. I don't believe Lizzie would enter that cabin alone, and it was laughable that Dylan was perfectly unharmed searching for Lizzie in a cabin set ablaze, and so was she. A wooden cabin splashed with kerosene would have gone full fire right away. 

This show is too ridiculous. I tried, based on the cast, but I've had enough.

I've been threatening to quit this show since the plagiarized episode, and yet here I am, even though I too was bothered while watching everything in this episode that @Arkay posted, and even more—
Like just because the writers are including a main character in an openly gay marriage does not mean they need to make everything about the couple's interactions unbelievably saccharine like out of a 1950S-60s family show. 
Or am I just being cranky about this?

 

1 hour ago, possibilities said:

also find Lizzie's boss to be ridiculous, both when she's in friend mode and when she's in boss mode. Ditto for Dylan's agent.…

And ditto to both of these^^ too. It's like the boss was a poorly thought out character, and now she's still a poorly written character in the background. And I guess Whoopi, like me, is willing to put up with a lot of BS for an Alan Cummng project.

And to wrap up my rant:

1 HOUR AGO, POSSIBILITIES SAID:

also hate Dylan's CIA friend. I hate how they just have him come up with info and help Dylan behind Lizzie's back. It's like the get out of jail free card for writing

"It's like the get out of jail free card for writing." Ha! Exactly! 
From Lost until this show, I have been repulsed by every character I've seen Naveen Andrews portray. It seems like he should be doing Shakespeare instead of American TV shows. IDK. Maybe he likes going for questionably creepy.

Okay. Perhaps it's time for me to admit: My name is shapeshifter and I am a Hate Watcher.

[hookedontv]

6 hours ago, Writing Wrongs said:

Gary is the real star of the show. Who pushes their dog in a baby stroller from crime scene to crime scene?

Yesssssss....... 

[zoey1996]

Of the main cast, Alan Cummings is the only one I'm familiar with.  Don't remember seeing any of the others in anything else; that may be a good thing.  I had no idea that episodes were being broadcast out of order from the production.  So far, I'm really liking it.  

Loved the girls singing, too.  And glad Gary the dog will be OK for the time being, too!

[AnimeMania]

6 hours ago, Mermaid Under said:

I was coming here to ask if (among the 6 of us watching) did anyone think that Julian didn't actually shoot Bishop?  Because their interaction on the docks (and in fact Julian's responses to Alan Cummings character the entire episode) was weird, and the gunshot was very deliberately off camera.  To me, that says that someone had a story line in mind for the Julian character.  Not that it will happen.  This show was renewed despite not being popular, so they may get rid of Naveen Andrews as a cost saving measure,

I believe Julian was behind the fake video and hired all the actors, including the assassin. In the end he let the assassin go.

I hate when they show the episodes out of order, Dylan not knowing what a "bus" is, after working "homicide squad" for 9 episodes.

[shapeshifter]

4 hours ago, AnimeMania said:

hate when they show the episodes out of order, Dylan not knowing what a "bus" is, after working "homicide squad" for 9 episodes.

And I guess Dylan has never watched a single episode of the L&O franchise.

[Chaos Theory]

I think people are waaaaaaaaaaaaay to aware of tropes for there own good.  They want an openly gay couple but they don’t want a happy sacrine relationship but they don’t want an unhappy cheating one either and you can’t kill off one of the couple so.... and it is CBS so we are kind of in a bind here.   I think a happy relationship with a guy who never expected one is a nice story considering.

[Neurochick]

11 hours ago, Chaos Theory said:

I think people are waaaaaaaaaaaaay to aware of tropes for there own good.  They want an openly gay couple but they don’t want a happy sacrine relationship but they don’t want an unhappy cheating one either and you can’t kill off one of the couple so.... and it is CBS so we are kind of in a bind here.   I think a happy relationship with a guy who never expected one is a nice story considering.

I don't get why Lizzie's boss is "ridiculous." 

[possibilities]

She was trying on wedding dresses at work; that's when I first decided she was ridiculous.

[Emma9]

Lizzie being put through 'just a couple minutes' of hell by the vet's idiot receptionist (who should be fired, if not drawn and quartered) hit too close to home for me, cheap grab for the heartstrings or no, and I cheered when she recognized Gary's voice and badge-bulldozed her way into the back.

(Also, was him drug-alerting to the kid at the barbecue supposed to go anywhere, or is that for a future plotline?)

Edited June 1, 2018 by Emma9

[Clanstarling]

On 5/27/2018 at 9:31 PM, Free said:

It depends, but keep in mind that the episodes are technically airing out of order too so that could throw some things off.

These two episodes were the first where I really felt it (though to be fair, I haven't paid close attention -and at least these two seem to be sort of in order, as the eager beat cop from the first one is now in the squad).

On 5/27/2018 at 10:06 PM, Arkay said:

 A Jewish funeral does NOT have flowers and a fancy coffin. Furthermore, the coffin, which would be plain wood, is lowered into the ground during the service, and then family members place a shovelful of earth on the coffin. Also, burial would take place within 24 hours, but it could be delayed if the family permits an autopsy, and Dylan did mention something about the M.E.  I suppose writers who entirely ripped off a script from another show don't have the professionalism to know what they're writing about.

I found this scene ridiculous too - without knowing much about Jewish funerals. You can't just flash a badge and grab a body without consulting the family after it's been released and they've had a funeral. The gravediggers have no right to hand over a body to anyone.

On 5/28/2018 at 4:36 AM, Mermaid Under said:

I was coming here to ask if (among the 6 of us watching) did anyone think that Julian didn't actually shoot Bishop?  Because their interaction on the docks (and in fact Julian's responses to Alan Cummings character the entire episode) was weird, and the gunshot was very deliberately off camera.  To me, that says that someone had a story line in mind for the Julian character.  Not that it will happen.  This show was renewed despite not being popular, so they may get rid of Naveen Andrews as a cost saving measure,

I think there's a good chance he did not. It sure seemed like they knew each other, and as you pointed out - we didn't actually see it, which is often tv for "didn't happen."

I personally like Naveen, and have liked him in everything I've seen him in. But maybe I'm just distracted by his looks. On the other hand, I liked him inLost and Sense8, but not in Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love, where you'd think that would be a factor (I don't think I watched for more than a few minutes, though. It was pretty terrible, as I recall.)

There are a lot of things wrong with the show, but I'm still in. Not just for AC, but for the guy who plays his husband, and I'm starting to like the rest of the homicide crew. And Lizzie is growing on me. Maybe because of the ridiculous doggie stroller.

Edited June 2, 2018 by Clanstarling

[Toothbrush]

On 5/28/2018 at 5:53 AM, Writing Wrongs said:

Gary is the real star of the show. Who pushes their dog in a baby stroller from crime scene to crime scene?

My DVR didn't pick up the 2nd episode, and I wasn't going to bother watching on-line, but after reading this? I went straight to CBS' site to make sure it was there. 

On 6/2/2018 at 12:13 PM, Clanstarling said:

I personally like Naveen, and have liked him in everything I've seen him in. But maybe I'm just distracted by his looks.

You and me both. I'm already losing my Rob Lowe & Boris Kodjoe eye candy on Code Black, and Benjamin Bratt was killed off on Star, so I'm glad it looks like Naveen is staying. 

[Accidental Martyr]

This show just seems very amateurish to me.

[mythoughtis]

I’m not a fan of AC, so I’m watching in spite of him. I am a fan of Naveen. Lizzie is growing on me.  I like the guy who plays ACs husband. 

[shapeshifter]

1 hour ago, Accidental Martyr said:

This show just seems very amateurish to me.

Yes, "amateurish" is a good descriptor for the show.
I also wonder if the writers stumbled across a working time travel machine and wasted it on bringing a writer from Dragnet (or some other crime show from that era) to work on the show. 

[auntiemel]

Oh, God, the green screen action when they were on the roof! So. Bad. So, so, so very bad.

[auntiemel]

OK, watching Bad Actors now. For all the dialogue about how poor the victim was when they were in his apartment, they didn't mention that he had a shitload of expensive epi-pens just lying around on his bookcase.

[Orbert]

It seems like they're trying to do too much with this show at the same time.  Obviously the partnership between Dylan and Lizzy is the main focus.  Then we have his homelife with Andrew, and Andrew's workplace; we have her homelife with Gary such as it is; we have the other detectives in the office, only who of whose name I knew before this episode; we have Jasmine the boss who is also Lizzy's friend; we have Julian the CIA guy who is also Dylan's friend.  Did I miss anyone?  Now there's the uniform who's apparently become the newest detective.  Did they need *more* characters on this show?

Things tried to get dark and heavy when Julian warned Dylan that they were all in danger and it seemed very serious, then things got tense for about five minutes and I guess it was all over by the end.  No lingering danger?  I don't even know.  It could have been good if there'd been a bit more time spent on it.  The tension between the boss and Lizzy could have been interesting if there'd been a bit more time spent on it.  But they're trying to cram so much into each show that nothing gets developed and they just rush from one plot point to the next.

Overall, I like most of the characters and their interactions.  There's just too many of them for any of them to get enough screen time to matter.