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I just caught myself up on Damages' 3rd season and let me tell you
- it has really upped the ante! This season is quite the page turner, which is really interesting because at the end of the previous seasons, it always seemed that the writers had written themselves into a corner. But no. Each season they amaze by pulling yet another rabbit out of the hat .....and for a LEGAL show, at that. Now generally, I cant stand legal shows because their almost-there realism (at least of Law & Order and its euccessors) is a major turn-off. This show, however, does an outstanding job of focusing less on the work itself (although the work is as in reality - ever present) and more on the relationships that surround the work, and more importantly, on the very real social dynamics and interpersonal minutia that can make or break a case.
I was reading a review someone somewhere wrote for the 2nd season last year, and I think they aptly pegged it: in the Freshman season we see Ellen Parsons the blushing and ingenious neophyte; in the Sophomore season we see Ellen the angry adolescent, and in this the Junior season, we SERIOUSLY are starting to see some coming of age in her handling of her (former?) mentor, and who knows what the rest of the season holds?
It reminds me of the the episode 12 Blinded in the first season of Lie to Me
Lightman regularly goes off on his new apprentice Torres in front of a convict, and explains to the convict that there are 3 stages of mentorship - its actually quite funny. Torres asks him at the end of the episode, "Which stage are we at?"
Finally, its great to see Martin Short back in front of the camera, and even his supposedly serious lawyering is funny.
Lost is also really good this last season, but the answers they are presenting at this point makes it seem even more like the writers freeformed the storyline and just picked a random ending. Literally. It was first the Oceanic people vs. The Others, now its everyone vs. Jacob & The Smoke Man's vendetta. Weird. But in a cool way. As an aside, I think its cool that Gemma from Sons of Anarchy is now in Lost as Locke's wife.
Heroes is a travesty of magnificent proportions. Completely awful, yet I still watch. Why?
Burn Notice is back, and somewhat weirder. This show, too, is suffering from the malady of bad writing. Its almost as if the storyline went stream of consciousness, its so bad. Clearly they are just trying to continue a good thing, and the storyline and characters are suffering for it.
- it has really upped the ante! This season is quite the page turner, which is really interesting because at the end of the previous seasons, it always seemed that the writers had written themselves into a corner. But no. Each season they amaze by pulling yet another rabbit out of the hat .....and for a LEGAL show, at that. Now generally, I cant stand legal shows because their almost-there realism (at least of Law & Order and its euccessors) is a major turn-off. This show, however, does an outstanding job of focusing less on the work itself (although the work is as in reality - ever present) and more on the relationships that surround the work, and more importantly, on the very real social dynamics and interpersonal minutia that can make or break a case.
I was reading a review someone somewhere wrote for the 2nd season last year, and I think they aptly pegged it: in the Freshman season we see Ellen Parsons the blushing and ingenious neophyte; in the Sophomore season we see Ellen the angry adolescent, and in this the Junior season, we SERIOUSLY are starting to see some coming of age in her handling of her (former?) mentor, and who knows what the rest of the season holds?
It reminds me of the the episode 12 Blinded in the first season of Lie to Me
Lightman regularly goes off on his new apprentice Torres in front of a convict, and explains to the convict that there are 3 stages of mentorship - its actually quite funny. Torres asks him at the end of the episode, "Which stage are we at?"
Finally, its great to see Martin Short back in front of the camera, and even his supposedly serious lawyering is funny.
Lost is also really good this last season, but the answers they are presenting at this point makes it seem even more like the writers freeformed the storyline and just picked a random ending. Literally. It was first the Oceanic people vs. The Others, now its everyone vs. Jacob & The Smoke Man's vendetta. Weird. But in a cool way. As an aside, I think its cool that Gemma from Sons of Anarchy is now in Lost as Locke's wife.
Heroes is a travesty of magnificent proportions. Completely awful, yet I still watch. Why?
Burn Notice is back, and somewhat weirder. This show, too, is suffering from the malady of bad writing. Its almost as if the storyline went stream of consciousness, its so bad. Clearly they are just trying to continue a good thing, and the storyline and characters are suffering for it.
They totally wussed the redhead out - she's a basket case, which is a real tragedy given her clear competency and capability in last season. In fact, I might even go so far as to say it's almost SEXIST how they made her weak in order to make Jack look strong. Its such an obvious ploy - she's the alpha female to his alpha male, and I'm comfortable with that, but I hate how that when she makes a tough decision, its somehow wrong or irresponsible, but when JACK BAUER has to do something that skirts the law, or hurts himself for his country, its somehow wonderful and cool of him. honestly, its a double standard, and it pisses me off, because you have the girl doing all this hard stuff, and they not only have her doing it, they then take away any shred of dignity for the self-sacrifice/patriotism that could attach to the act by belittling her reasons for doing it.
