Homeland "In Memoriam"
I was totally ready to pan this episode until Brody and Jessica's talk. Absolutely everything about finding Abu Nazir is not worth even mentioning (but I will). It was kind of tense but at the expense of both character growth and common sense. Brody and Jessica talking in the car was a major "oh yeah, that's why I watch this" moment. Leading into the finale isn't a matter of sticking the landing. Currently, it's Denzel Washington on a plane in free fall. Let's see if they can minimize the casualties.
-Free Saul!!!
How I Met Your Mother "The Over-Correction"
Since I've made it clear the show isn't winning me over on plots anymore, I won't bother dissecting what I didn't like about the setup (Hint: It's not positive). How were the jokes? In truth, mixed bag. As a man who takes inventory of all my things, I rather liked Ted's story, even if it was a little much. Basically, anything with Lily's dad and Marshall's mom I found painfully thin. The deciding factor of this episode was Robin. Be it yelling at Patrice (funny only for her excellent delivery) and the "please say this is about my drinking" at the intervention, I thought Colbie Smulders was quite solid throughout this.
New Girl "Santa"
-Enough laughs here to forgive any problems I had, of which, there really weren't any. My only issue is with the implausability of cranberry deafness, but it was a funny enough gag, I guess.
-The "I feel like a bird" scene had me cracking up. I don't entirely know why.
-I've always liked Olivia Munn and I think she was really good here with her Perfect Couples costar, David Walton also making his return. So, Munn and Walton have done New Girl. Christine Woods and Hayes MacArthur are doing guest spots on Go On. Kyle Bornheimer and MacArthur are in Bachelorette. What show or movie is going to finally put together three people from that failed show?
Happy Endings "To Serb, With Love"
I wish I could find more to say about this show. I consistently like it, but it doesn't require a bunch of processing. Penny and Max were good together. We get to see another dynamic of their friendship. Everything at the party was solid. Just once I'd like to here more than the punchline to one of these "world's greatest joke" stories. I get that it'll never happen. It sure would be nice though.
The Mindy Project "Josh and Mindy's Christmas Party"
This show is still young. There's obvious signs of growth but there will always be fumbles...like this one. We're down to five regulars now so maybe it can start feeling more like an ensemble. I think back to where New Girl was as this point last year. The Mindy Project is in a much better place this early. That gives me hope.
The Middle "Twenty Years"
This was a little too dark, I think. Axl was an outright dick to Brick. Both brothers were asses to SUe for not helping with the party. Mike was rather thoughtless (Let's be clear, the ring he got her was a band-aid, not a fix). The fact that NO ONE would show up to the anniversary party speaks exceptionally poorly for every recurring cast member. There simply wasn't enough positive at the end to make up for the negatives.
Still, props on the call backs this week (like Brick owning the guitar). A show like this does need to keep a timeline. The fact that it does says a lot.
Modern Family "Diamond in Rough"
-I find myself asking this about a lot of things, but am I missing something? How are so many people still loving this? I want to know. I used to like it a lot. I want to still like it a lot.
-Manny's character is more of a cartoon than Cam now. That's saying something.-They are determined to ruin my Fizbo goodwill. Each time he comes back, my fond memories of his debut episode are tarnished a little more.
-What's the point of keeping Haley around if they only use her briefly for an opening tag? I get why Alex is limited since she's underage (although it doesn't stop Manny or Luke from showing up). Sarah Hyland doesn't have that problem. What's the deal?
-Do any of the three main couples even get along? All this sniping at one another is bumming me out.
The Big Bang Theory "The Santa Simulation"
-Is it just me or do the episodes always feel slightly too short? Not in a "I'm yearning for more" way. Rather, the stories don't get the sort of completion I expect.
-This show is admittedly broad, which is why it's successful. I can't knock that, but it does limit the maximum potential of my enjoyment of it.
-I am so tired of Raj and how they use him. I'm even more tired of the new trope in which the socially awkward guy must be covertly gay.
Burn Notice "Odd Man Out"
See. This is what happens when you let a USA show off its leash. It is getting way too serial and, fun fact, it gets complicated when you do that. This show works best as something you can jump right in to. The fact that I need the recap at the beginning to not be lost goes against the grain of the show.
It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia "The Gang Dines Out"
Bottle episode alert! I got the feeling this was a burner episode they've had the idea for floating around for a while and finally wrote it. The concept even stepped on the toes of Seinfeld more than they normally do. It wasn't the most inventive episode, but it did have something I like to see from time to time. That is, seeing them all come together instead of shit on one another. It reminds me that they're all friends and members of their own tribe. I sort of reminded me of the end of Thunder Gun Express in that way.
The League "Our Dinner with Andre"
These double-episodes sure are making it hard to distinguish what happened. Brooklyn Decker being in both helped make them feel like a set though.
The League "12/12/12"
-I think this was the best use of Rafi in a while (See: Limited).
-It's good that they had this episode following the last one. The last one had a lot of shitting on Andre and this one , while still shitting on him, showed some actual concern for him. It was nice. Similar to my feelings of Dee in It's Always Sunny this week.
-They are really good at getting guest stars. Seth Rogen, Jayma Mays, Deion Sanders, and Brooklyn Decker this week.
The Point of the Purge
Past Purges:
12/6-12/8
12/1-12/5
11/29-11/30
11/25-11/28
11/21-11/24 (Dexter)
11/17-11/20
11/11-11/16
11/4-11/10
10/28-11/3
10/20-10/27
10/13-10/19
10/6-10/12
9/29-10/4
9/22-9/28
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