Monthly Archives: April 2014

The Best Thing I Saw on TV This Week (3/30 – 4/6)

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This week in television kicked off with another emotional Sunday night, as death returned to Storybrooke in devastating fashion on Once Upon a Time and the grieving process began on The Good Wife. Monday night’s episode of Dancing with the Stars featured a stunning performance from Meryl and Maks that earned the first 10s of the season. Tuesday gave us the triumphant return of The Mindy Project, which made all of us fall even more in love with Danny Castellano. Wednesday’s episode of Nashville featured huge moments of emotional confrontation between Scarlett and her mother as well as between Rayna and Deacon. Thursday’s episodes of Parks and Recreation, Suits, and Scandal continued to set the stage for their April season finales, as Once Upon a Time in Wonderland had its series finale. And Anna Kendrick’s turn as Saturday Night Live host last night was one of the most purely entertaining hosting performances of the season.

This was another week where the best thing I saw on TV was far from the happiest. And, once again, it came to us courtesy of the brilliant actors on The Good Wife. All of “Last Call” was stunning and compelling—from Cary’s deposition outburst and David Lee’s private moment of grief to Diane unleashing her righteous anger on an unsympathetic client and Kalinda’s showdown with Will’s killer. But the scenes that have continued to haunt me were the scenes between Diane and Alicia, the two women who loved Will more than anyone. Their first hug was punctuated by brutally realistic sobbing, and their moment of quiet, shared grief in Diane’s office was a beautiful showcase for the talents of Christine Baranski and Julianna Margulies. Their performances in this episode should land both of them on the list of Emmy nominees this year, if there’s any justice in this world.

What was the best thing you saw on TV this week?

Nerdy Girl Goes to the Movies: Captain America: The Winter Soldier

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captain-america-winter-soldier-poster

Title: Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Rating: PG-13

Cast: Chris Evans (Steve Rogers), Scarlett Johansson (Natasha Romanoff), Samuel L. Jackson (Nick Fury), Anthony Mackie (Sam Wilson), Robert Redford (Alexander Pierce), Sebastian Stan (Bucky Barnes), Cobie Smulders (Maria Hill)

Director: Anthony Russo and Joe Russo

The Basics: Captain America: The Winter Soldier begins with Steve Rogers (aka the eponymous Captain America) still struggling to adjust to the modern world after being awoken from a frozen state that he remained in since the 1940s. His sense of unfamiliarity in this colder, bleaker world is made worse by his growing sense of distrust for S.H.I.E.L.D., the government intelligence and defense agency he’s a part of. Steve’s suspicions turn out to be more than just unfounded fears; a faction within S.H.I.E.L.D. is planning to use advanced surveillance methods to kill millions in the name of the greater good. Steve—along with Natasha Romanoff (aka Black Widow) and Sam Wilson (aka Falcon)—must confront old and new enemies, but one new enemy (the mysterious Winter Soldier) might not be so new after all. Captain America: The Winter Soldier succeeds not just as a highly entertaining superhero blockbuster; it also feels darker and more thematically complex than any Marvel Cinematic Universe film that came before it, while still being driven by the sharp writing, strong character development, and charismatic performances that have made Marvel films huge box-office draws season after season.

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TV Time: Parks and Recreation 6.18

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Let’s welcome back everyone’s favorite beautiful tropical fish, Heather, who was kind enough to share her thoughts on this week’s episode of Parks and Rec (since I was busy watching Captain America and Black Widow save the world last night).

parks prom

Title Prom

Two-Sentence Summary Organizing a high school prom brings back memories of the Parks Department family’s own prom experiences and brings up uncomfortable feelings for some. Leslie is determined to mold a promising high school student into a future Parks and Rec employee, while Ron attempts to stop her before uncovering the real reason for her obsession.

Favorite Line “Blueprints for the future are a fool’s errand. They’re like blueprints for a house—nice to have, but any foreman with a brain doesn’t need to look at them. One day—this year or maybe the next—you’re gonna be somewhere else, so enjoy yourself now.” (Ron)

My Thoughts As a whole, this wasn’t my favorite episode of the season. It wasn’t as funny as previous episodes have been and, despite the episode being shaped around and largely taking place at the prom, it felt disjointed to me. However, it did have Ron giving life advice to Leslie and a good look at Andy and April’s relationship, so I still ultimately enjoyed it.

While much of Leslie and Ron’s interactions with Allison felt like a rehashing of their many arguments over their ideological differences, it served a purpose. Ron has always been there to give advice to Leslie (and Ben) when they are uncertain about their futures. He is very good at knowing what they need to hear, and that largely comes out of his respect and understanding of Leslie as a person.

A scared Leslie is one we haven’t seen much of before. She’s always been very good at what she does and has gotten used to that feeling. She knows that the Parks Department runs smoothly because she is there, and she worries about what will happen to it if she’s not. Even if she’s outgrown it, she loves it and wants it to be in good hands if she leaves, but because she is Leslie Knope, she expresses that in ridiculous ways. She doesn’t like uncertainty, but it’s a part of taking chances. I think Ron gave her some good advice, and I love that she recognized it.

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We Need to Talk About New Girl

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new girl disappointed

Nick and Jess broke up. It’s been over a week, and I’m still having trouble writing about it.

Before you think that this is just a case of impassioned fangirl angst, let me remind you that I am no stranger to TV breakups. I live with the emotional scars of being an Alias fan; I had to watch my favorite character deal with the fact that the love of her life married someone else and stayed married to her for a whole season. I’m not one to get apoplectic over a TV breakup.

But do you know what I do get apoplectic over? Contrivances, poor characterization, and shoddy writing choices. If my favorite couple on a given TV show calls it quits in a way that feels believable and organic to their characters, I’ll be sad, but I’ll understand. I don’t understand Nick and Jess breaking up, but maybe that’s because I don’t really feel like I understand New Girl very well anymore.

I wasn’t someone who immediately jumped on the Nick/Jess train—or even the New Girl train, if I’m being honest. It took until Season One’s “Injured” for me to really open my heart to the show, and that was because I cared about the people in that episode; I wanted good things to happen for them, and I could see that they wanted good things to happen for each other. I don’t enjoy TV shows that let the plot influence how the characters are written; I want the characters to drive the plot. In order for that to happen, those characters need to be written consistently. By New Girl’s second season, I was blown away by the consistent and surprisingly complex characterizations that were guiding the show.

When Nick and Jess kissed, I think everyone was surprised by the impact of the moment—including the writers. These were people who had said that both Nick and Jess had a lot of growing up to do before they could be with one another romantically; they even hinted that a relationship would be bad for both characters. But as Season Two entered its incredible final stretch, it seemed as if they were proving themselves wrong on a weekly basis. Nick and Jess didn’t just work together; their relationship was good for both characters. It showed sides of them that enriched their characterizations while still keeping the show as funny as it ever was.

Season Two was the Season of Nick. We learned about his past, we saw that he was capable of being responsible and romantic, and we watched him develop into a person who was willing to grow. Nick Miller was a revelation in Season Two of New Girl, and the whole show benefitted as a result of the deft handling of his character.

And then came Season Three…

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Two Years Later

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I’ve always loved birthdays. They’re a chance to take stock of things in your life; to look back on the ways you’ve grown and to look ahead at all the possibilities the next year (and more) can offer.

Today is NGN’s second birthday. For a blog, a first birthday is great, but a second birthday is something to really celebrate. The first year is all about running on adrenaline, building something from nothing, and throwing things at the wall to see what sticks. But the second year—that’s when the fun really begins, but it’s also when the work really begins. The second year is about keeping your readers interested in what you have to say after the initial novelty has worn off. The fact that so many of you have stuck around means the world to me.

At NGN, this year has also been about discovering a real purpose. When I started this blog, I had no idea what it would become. For one of the first times in my life, I didn’t have a plan or lofty goals; I just wanted to write about what mattered to me. Since then, I’ve watched people gravitate towards NGN for its generally positive tone and the passionate but respectful discussion it inspires. At the risk of sounding cliché, I can’t find the words to describe how happy it makes me to think that this is what NGN is known for. The Internet can be a nasty place, so it fills me with a deep sense of joy and also a very motivating sense of purpose to know that people come here to talk about their favorite TV shows (as well as movies, books, and other passions) in an environment that makes people feel welcome and encourages sincere discussion.

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TV Time: Once Upon a Time in Wonderland 1.12

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It’s time once again for Leah to take us into the world of Once Upon a Time in Wonderland!

wonderland

Title To Catch a Thief

Favorite Lines
Will: More like a jack-of-all trades, actually.
Alice: But, apparently, master of none.
Will: Watch your tongue, lass, else you’ll lose that as well as your head.
Alice: That’s a bit redundant, don’t you think?
Will: Depends which one you lose first.

“Nobody’s born a monster. We’re made.” (The Jabberwocky)

“I grew up with a very stubborn girl; always felt like they were the best kind.” (Will)

What Happened? Jafar sends Will to retrieve his staff by using possibility of bringing Anastasia back to life as motivation, which initially puts Will at odds with Alice and Cyrus. However, Will and Alice eventually come to an understanding: They can’t give Jafar his staff back, but they will try to find a way to get Anastasia back. The trio ends up with an unexpected ally in the Jabberwocky, who tells them about Amara’s ability to help bring Anastasia back in exchange for helping free her from Jafar. Meanwhile, we see in flashbacks how Will and Alice first met. The flashbacks include Alice stealing Will’s heart back from the Queen of Hearts, as well as Alice and Will’s capture of the Rabbit as proof of Wonderland, which takes place just moments before she discovers Cyrus’s bottle.

My Thoughts What I enjoyed the most about this episode was the way it brought us full circle in our story and the depth it added to Will and Alice’s friendship.

Will and Alice’s friendship has always been one of my favorite parts of the show, and I’m so glad that it is getting attention amidst all the action and romance. In this episode, we discovered how Alice and Will first met, and it was in a fashion that was truly fitting for their characters. Will had been sent by the Queen of Hearts to kill Alice, and they engaged in an entertaining bit of fighting and banter before Alice decided to go get Will’s heart back to end their conflict.

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