Falling Skies season 2 episode 6 : Homecoming

Summary : Inspiring Tom & Anne, I've joined the 2nd Mass, intense parallel stories, exciting confusion and wowing action but slightly predictable

Score : 8/10

Spoilers

Anne, would you marry me ? The first minutes sounded like a siren song destined to lure the innocent viewer to its doom. But it's Noah Wyle & Moon Bloodgood's lair we're talking about here so there's nothing to fear. Wait, was Red Eye under their bed ? Probably but what matters is that Tom looked like a mess, as he hasn't shaved for months not taken a bath in weeks, when Anne was screaming "Sleeping Beauty doesn't stand a chance against me". Seriously beside their charming personalities I was also quite moved by their discussion about past and present. How their lives used to be, with their respective partners and children. Moreover it was inspiring because I couldn't agree more that surviving is a lot about moving forward despite all the traumatic experiences we have endured. Tom lost his wife for instance but he still has his three sons. As for Anne she represents the future of their "colony" considering the number of people she has already saved.

It leads us to Captain Weaver's mysterious illness. I wasn't surprised his leg got infected by an alien parasite considering his wound already looked disgusting in the past episode. I didn't really worry about his fate because killing him would represent a risk I'm not sure the producers are willing to take. We lost Jimmy a few weeks ago so please give us a break. Yes your devoted servitor is in fact a proud member of the 2nd Mass ! But I'm not ready to tell you my name because it would compromise the future of my extraordinary mission. That's why I did my best to support Tom as he had to take charge and deal with our fuel crisis. And as usual we could count on our jack of all trades, what a great guy, as he was even able to build a machine to boil up our Captain's blood. In my subjective opinion a kiss from Anne would have done the job nicely but it would have made me jealous so let's just welcome our brave leader into the world of the living. This is Falling Skies, not The Walking Dead ! Remember ?

But the highlight of this week was definitely Karen's arrival. When Hal came back from patrol with her in his arms I smelled trouble or "big badaboom" as my muse Leeloo would say. Enduring Maggie's lunatic behavior is already annoying, even if I envy their relationship, so we didn't need an other blonde to lower the total IQ of our group. Just a little joke to welcome John Pope's return ! However this time he wasn't the bad guy but the one who warned us about Karen. Otherwise I saw it coming from miles away considering how viciously she stared at the camera. What was the point of revealing her true nature to the people watching us ? It should have been kept a secret until the last minutes ! Moreover she was locked into a room when "Benalien" can move freely just because he's Tom's son. I also wonder if he has the same abilities than Karen because thanks to the camera I had discreetly placed I was able to witness the surreal moves she executed to knock out Maggie. Remember Trinity in The Matrix ? Not as mind blowing but definitely entertaining ! Last but not least my favorite part was when I heard Ben getting all paranoiac about Ben when he was actually the one under the influence of Karen. Once again someone let negative emotions take over but lucky for him cowgirl Maggie was around and decided to face her illegal doppelganger !

True Blood season 5 episode 7 : In the Beginning

Summary : Rotten Lilith arc, shred story, Arlene must die but Supersam, exciting werewolves, playcop Jason and empathic Sookie

Score : 4/10

Spoilers

In my review of Hopeless I defined the Authority arc as disastrous but I still hoped that it would improve. Sadly "In the Beginning" wasn't this season "Cold Grey Light of Dawn". Lilith and her followers have reached the bottom of the barrel. Seriously who would be stupid or crazy enough to forgive Russell Edgington ? And the man isn't sane enough to hide the fact that he belongs in an asylum. Of course I understand that the writers intention is to criticize religion and terrorism but this time I couldn't find a single scene to save things. From the ridiculous party in the street to the B movie part featuring an unidentified blood drop turning into a naked woman (Species XIII ?) and a ghost whispering at Eric "Melinda Gordon" Northman. And what the hell happened between "Russell trapped in a silver fishnet" and "Russel in a black suit" ?

Don't get me wrong I don't hate True Blood as much as Hoyt hates Jessica now, even if I didn't really believe what he said. The show still has plenty of potential but sadly I can't take its flaws anymore. Indeed most episodes and specially this one seem like if they had been shred by enraged bats. Seriously I can't comprehend how it's possible to so badly tell a story. The editing is just an abomination and deserves a Razzie award ! The worst of the arcs ? It's probably the one with Arlene and Terry. It's sad because I care for the second and the smoke monster isn't such a bad idea but his wife drives me crazy. I didn't time her scene where she watches videos from her marriage but it was so dead boring that I thought I was hallucinating. What was the point of these precious minutes that felt like hours waiting for an haunted bus that never arrived ? We already knew they were friends and how much they love each other.

All in all it was impossible to enjoy the great supporting arcs and our immersion was constantly broken. Yes the werewolves and shapeshifters couldn't be more exciting and the best is yet to come. Sam sniffing all around and scratching his back on the ground delivered super fine entertainment ! As for Alcide's fight with the brunette it was both well choreographed and sexy. Jason making breakfast for Sookie and their declaration of love as brother and sister was heartbreaking and inspiring. Her fairy crisis is quite interesting and it was clever to use Jessica as a reminder of Jason and Hoyt friendship. And how shocking and cool was it to see him shoot Jessica right in the head ? If only the technique was applied to other characters in order to create a network of connections as captivating as Lost's one ! Instead the story tasted like a rotten milkshake where decent arcs like Lafayette's one are decayed by vicious greed.

For the moment I feel like giving up on the show so this could be my last review. The matter what my decision is I hope you guys enjoyed reading my past critics. As for the fans who will keep on watching True Blood I can only wish them to have as much as fun as I did. Indeed despite my deception I'm not ready to forget the fangtastic adventures of Sookie and her gang ! Ryan "Jason" Kwanten, Kristin "Pam" Bauer van Straten… Thanks for the inspiration, talent and overdose of killing humor !

Falling Skies season 2 episode 5 : Love and Other Acts of Courage

Summary : Dumb and annoying ideas saved by a 180° slide

Score : 7/10

Spoilers

First I'll give you three reasons to throw mutant tomatoes from outerspace at your TV screen when Falling Skies is running. Then I'll explain why it still deserves the attention of starving sci-fi fans.

I. Tom's older son rejected by Maggie after he kissed her. Of course she's broken but come on !

II. Mechs, formerly refered as "robots", are idiots. Remember RoboCop's failed Enforcement Droid Series ? Two noisy humans hiding in a car, let's pretend we haven't detected them. We've only been conceived by highly intelligent creatures after all.

III. It's dark outside, let's send a distress signal by switching on the lights of the hospital to make sure the friendly aliens nearby will rescue us.

How is it possible to write and direct such scenes when others are so exciting ? It feels like the heads behind the show don't know how to say… No way ! I mean turning some Skitters, specially the one we thought was an enemy, into resistants like the 2nd Mass is very smart. It actually reminded me that in the premiere Tom implied these six-legged creatures could be soldiers controlled by superior beings. He was right ! As for his discussion with their leader it was quite interesting : Slaves, home planet, overlords… Otherwise that part was flawed by a major mistake because asking Tom's men to leave them alone didn't make sense. I mean how can you expect people to trust you after such a request ? Moreover let's not forget that Tom is still not to be trusted. John Pope, please come back ! At least the shocking massacre he escaped was explained and I'm definitely intrigued by Ben's next move. When will he leave and where ? Tom and Captain Weaver are also growing on me thanks to some moving dialogs about respect and following orders.

Political Animals season 1 episode 1 : Pilot

Summary : Irresistible leading trio, empathic relationships, feminism-driven story but stereotyped characters and questionable production

Score : 7/10

One actress to rule them all, Sigourney Weaver. The more I grow up the more I'm into politics but without her I would probably have ignored the miniseries. Now that I've seen its pilot I won't say that not giving Political Animals a chance would be a foolish mistake because it has some flaws. Otherwise this first installment shined in many departments so in the end it's really about what you expect from a show and which mistakes you're not ready to forgive.

Lady Weaver is really the ultimate acting chameleon. She can become anyone and the characters she has played have become icons and changed the life of millions of people around the globe. Don't worry, she has plenty of scenes respectful of her inspiring talent. From thundering anger to contagious hilarity the palette of emotions she developed would make an interesting painting if you splashed all its dual colors on a canvas. Her character, Elaine Barrish, instantly grew on me because her profile felt realistic enough to make me care about her story. Contemporary and feminist. A valley of intelligence and beauty. Of course it's impossible not to compare her to Hillary Clinton but if you're interested by foreign cultures other names like Ségolène Royal should pop up in your head, and the reason will be obvious once you have seen the pilot.

Around Elaine gravitates plenty of other characters, some are perfect matches when others couldn't be more stereotyped. Among the last we have the gay son, addicted to drugs… The list of clichés is long but he has an excuse, his twin brother. Seriously ? As for a blogger she reminded me too much of Willa from Dirt, played by the gorgeous Alex Breckenridge, so let's hope she's not just one dimensional. However their respective roles are minor so they shouldn't ruin your experience. In fact each time Carla Gugino and Ciarán Hinds enter the stage you instantly forget about what went wrong a second earlier. The first already had my vote because I found her quite convincing in Threshold. Here she's a reporter named Susan Berg and I absolutely loved her dynamic and chemistry with Sigourney. From their complex mind games to well designed costumes most of their scenes are televisual diamonds. Sadly the only one that disappointed me was their last as it featured majestic animals behind bars and I found Elaine's metaphora way too literal. There was definitely room for improvements in order to make it memorable because it's what all great pilots require. Still the truthful moments they share, the one on the plane felt like a self-help session, are what you will remember. As for Hinds, Julius Caesar in Rome, my heart balances between skepticism and subjectivity. In the one hand the character he portrays, Bud Hammond, made the episode more entertaining but in the other hand if it wasn't for Elaine I would have definitely thrown him into the clichés trash. However they made a believable couple and the part featuring the bodyguards was brilliantly staged and delivered exactly what you would expect from a miniseries titled Political Animals.

It leads us to the production quality because it's actually one of the show weakness. Apparently they didn't have the resources, time and budget, to polish all scenes as they would have wanted. Some are cinematographic when others, in the garage or at the zoo, are immersion breakers. Therefore it prevents the viewers from fully diving into their screen for more than an hour. Otherwise despite all these cons the pros should be numerous enough to convince part of the audience to watch all six episodes. I don't know yet if I'll be part of them but I'm sure of two things, Elaine Barrish's destiny intrigues me and Sigourney Weaver is an extraordinary womanimal !

True Blood season 5 episode 6 : Hopeless

Summary : Disastrous Authority development but Peter Mensah dominates, Alcide + Sookie = LOL² and blossoming secondary arcs

Score : 6/10

Spoilers

Where's the fun ? Where's the horror ? I really hope True Blood will get back right on track or else I'll just give up on it. It's so disappointing that all its great characters and performers aren't supported by a better story. Is the novel this season is adapted from that bad ? The ending was atrocious and not surprising at all considering we all knew Salome was up to something. It's so obvious I don't even need to watch the next episode to be sure of it. I also can't believe how easily Roman got killed when he's leader of the Authority and supposed to be an experienced vampire. The worst part is that nobody in the room moved to help him when most of them are surely against Russell Edgington. Eric looked at Bill. "Sharon Osbourne" opened her mouth. As for the so-called super villain he's just an old vampire played by Denis O'Hare who wouldn't even scare Larry Harvey, his character in American Horror Story.

The only thing I enjoyed about the Authority's arc was Kibwe Akinjide. Peter Mensah, the charismatic and complex Doctore in Spartacus : Blood and Sand, makes one hell of a dark vampire and his scene in the bus with all the silly humans was well staged and insanely gory ! What happened on Alcide and Sookie's (Alcookie, Sookide ?!) side was also quite entertaining. The athletic and tanned Joe Manganiello waking up in her pinky bedroom ? Hilarious ! The contrast between the glamored and angry wolf was in the same vein and proved the excellent chemistry between both performers. His decision to become the new pack master really excited me and it seems he'll have plenty of hot brunettes around him to forget our favorite blonde. It leads us to Sam because I have no doubt that at some point he'll team up again with Alcide. I really enjoyed how he convinced Andy to let him investigate the shooting, by enumerating all his shapeshifter surreal abilities. Still let's hope they won't have the insane idea of crossing the show with Fringe even if it could lead to some very funny stories. Last but not least I have finally understood what's going on with Lafayette and Terry. They're both haunted by demons so their arcs are surely connected and will inevitably collide. And if you think about it even Hoyt has to fight a demon, himself !

True Blood season 5 episode 5 : Let's Boot and Rally

Summary : How to ruin in 666 steps an episode that could have been one of the best

Score : 5/10

Spoilers

Drive fast, outclass your opponents and crash into a tree like a dumb test dummy right before the finish line. It's how this 5th installment felt because the beginning augured of the most epic episode ever but slowly infection spread : Myriad of arcs, reashed stuff, dated editing…

I'm in love with True Blood ! Let's start with what went right and why the show is irresistible. No harpies and gentlefeeders I'm not talking about Jason and Andy's fantastic butts. How Alcide & Sookie's drunken romance ended was expected but its execution was hilarious. Watching him declare his long time desire for her and the lady throwing up right on his boots was a moment I'm not ready to forget. Things got even better when Bill & Eric, always there when you don't need them, appeared right behind the fairy and the wolf. Next if there's one storytelling element I enjoy it's definitely fantasies, dreams or nightmares. I just can't get enough of these surreal and oneiric incursions so Jason's one was no exception. Ryan Kwanten is by far my favorite actor on the show and his He-Man tee-shirt killed the last breath of zany air I had in my body. As Barney Stinson would say : « Suit up ! ». More seriously his vengeful arc, as he's now convinced that their parents were butchered by vampires, has tremendous potential and considering Tara has now joined the dark side it's even more exciting to imagine what's going to happen next !

True Blood, I hate you ! Hoyt had a few anecdotic scenes so I'm still convinced Jim Parrack's talent is under exploited considering how percussive his few appearances in season 4 were. But this time the most important issue wasn't a secondary story, it was the main one. Even Terry Bellefleur and the ifrit were better. I still don't know how his arc will merge with the others but mixing contemporary warfare and uncommon mythology is quite refreshing. It also reminds me, so there's probably a connection here, that Lafayette's wicked persona has become my guilty pleasure. The desperate way he smashed the religious figurines and their high-pitched voices were reminiscent of cult horrors films like Dolls (1987) and Child's Play of course. Let's hope they will come back and fight him as a demon in some sort of reimagined story of Stephen King's Battleground ! And…

… he was supposed to point out what went wrong. Yes I was but when you have such hypnotic gems in sight how can you look somewhere else ? It leads us, finally, to what ruined my night fever : Sookie and her gang. Shame on me for comparing them to the Scooby Gang in some other review ! Joss Whedon isn't behind True Blood, Sookie is no Buffy, Alyson Hannigan made the sexiest geeky girl and no one can be as dangerous as a Xander armed with a wooden stick ! I can't believe how badly executed and predictable was Sookie and her men's exploration of the hospital. From the fat chicken she was forced to mind read to the creative less mix with other arcs I'm still stunned of such a bad development. It wasn't scary. It was funny. It was just dead boring and the highly awaited discovery of this season's villain completely spoiled by the misplaced music, soporific slow motions and epileptic switches between stories.

To sum things up the mad editor, mummy writer and negligent director deserves to be buried alive with candy canes for only food supplies. Who will be the last (wo)man standing ? You'll know next week and until then, be as cheerfully blondie as Sookie !

Falling Skies season 2 episode 4 : Young Bloods

Summary : Uneven writing, direction and character development ; immersive production and how to please The Puppet Masters

Score : 7/10

Spoilers

What's wrong with Falling Skies ? It's like if this fourth episode had been written and directed by people having a split personality. In the one hand we had some superb science-fiction and in the other hand ideas not even worthy of a bad family drama.

It all began with some immersive scenes featuring the "walkers" and Skitters we all love in fear. Their HDR rendering impressed me again because the visual effect gurus behind the show aren't afraid of the light ! It's not District 9 but you can only applaud considering it's just TV. Using Tom's young son as a bait was also unexpected and in general I think it's refreshing to witness kids dealing with an alien invasion. Moreover there's always something to learn from these parent-child relationships, specially when Noah Wyle plays the father. I'm also glad they keep covering humanist topics like love, through his flirt with Anne and the younger recruits. Still a real man would have baked a chocolate cake, even if they're resisting against powerful invaders from a distant galaxy. However even if I enjoy emotional moments here some of them are predictable or feel forced. Indeed the worst part was the ending as the Captain's daughter left them when not a single soul, beside John Pope, would be badass enough to take such an unreasonable decision. Survivors, food and water rations, weapons, leaders… Who wouldn't want to stay in a post-apocalyptic world ?

Fortunately the harness room sequences were frightening and reminiscent of the Alien quadrilogy and The Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Its gloomy ambiance wasn't Fincheresque but I absolutely loved the dark red palette and steaming machines. As for the pod-like creatures they were well animated, disgusting and scary enough to chase the weakest viewers into their dreams. Things got even better when a glowing Ben decided to smash the tank. Now we have been introduced to the babies I can't wait to meet the parents !

Perception season 1 episode 1 : Pilot

Summary : Convincing Eric McCormack and audience magnet protagonist, fascinating and refreshing neuroscience, reality-bended story but disappointing Rachael Leigh Cook, episodic format and slight impression of déjà vu

Score : 7/10

Rachael Leigh Cook was the only excuse I needed to check out Perception. Indeed its concept sounded just like all these other cop shows trying to bend things with edgy characters and unorthodox experts. However in the end it's not the actress who stole my heart in 1999, the year She's All That was released, but Eric McCormack's performance as Doctor Daniel Pierce. As expected RLC was cute as a button but she didn't convince me at all as a FBI agent. So don't expect her to pull a Dana Scully or anything exciting because sadly her character, Kate Moretti, was written by the book and couldn't be more normal. However I suspect it was intentional because it magnified the Doctor's eccentricity but still it's definitely a lazy solution to design characters. Otherwise the story is really about Daniel, from his life as a teacher and how he deals with his condition. What's reality ? He asks the question to his neuroscience students and then give a quite shaking answer, as fascinating as the Allegory of the Cave. During the episode many other interesting and surprising topics are also covered, from lie human detectors to medecine side effects. Hallucinations are also part of the experience so you're constantly bouncing between realities. Add mind puzzles, special senses with a twisted investigation and you can't help comparing it to Mental or Person of Interest's pilots. It's also possible to associate attributes from the Doctor's profile to Benjamin Harmon from American Horror Story even if Daniel doesn't act like a psycho. Sadly I doubt following his unconventional adventure will make us forget that the series format can only be episodic. Sure his best friend has an undeniable potential and the ending made me very curious about what's coming but I don't have much hope. Therefore I'll give it an other chance and probably move on.

True Blood season 5 episode 4 : We'll Meet Again

Summary : Humanist Pam & Eric, don't do drugs and exciting return

Score : 8/10

Spoilers

Don't turn your friend into a vampire even if she's about to die. That's what we learned last time thanks to Tara's real nightmare. As for tanning beds we already knew they caused skin cancer but she proved us that these evil machines take things to a whole new level when you're an undead. But the important moment in the vampiric triangle shaped by Eric, Pam and her new born child was of course the release of the second. Kristin Bauer van Straten's performance was quite emotional and the words of her maker about bloodlines were heartbreaking. Long live the Northman dynasty ! An other arc actually touched me and it was unexpected to say the least. Indeed even if I couldn't care less about Andy's brother road trip I believe covering the collateral damages provoked by drugs and hallucinogens was a bold move. Stay away from them, watch The Cleaner and just use your imagination if you want to travel beyond the stars and feel the planet's heartbeat under your feet ! As for dealing with our daily issues such substances are the ultimate opposite of solutions. Still I have no idea what they're up to so let's just skip to the dusty part… Fairies ! They're not as heady as Kylie Minogue in Moulin Rouge or even Tinker Bell herself but the one Andy had already met in Soul of Fire definitely has my vote. As for their club it's not a match yet for Fangtasia but it's exciting to have them back as season 4's pilot, She's Not There, left me craving for more even if the sorcery-driven story was full of surprises.