Category: tv

I thought Season 1 of Kidding was okay. It was interesting enough to keep me watching, and the cliffhanger at the end—Jeff hitting Peter with his car—was a great hook leading into Season 2. Overall, though, this season was pretty weak. The car accident storyline, for instance, is resolved too quickly and offers little payoff. This is a recurring issue. New problems arise, span a few episodes, then wrap up unsatisfactorily. It leaves Season 2 feeling like there’s no central conflict. Season 1 was great in that Jeff was still reeling from the death of his son. While there isn’t complete closure around that in Season 2, either, it’s been backburnered to make room for other shenanigans. And boy, are there shenanigans. This season is all over the place and really stretches the line between reality and fantasy.

Even from Season 1, you kind of had to accept that some things played out differently in this universe, but Season 2 asks you to accept a little too much bullshit. Like, we’re supposed to believe Jeff mass produced an online toy that connects to a customized app in just a few months? Scott was able to wrestle half of the puppet IPs away from Deirdre in the divorce without any pushback from her lawyer? The Filipino Mr. Pickles went along with the divorce episode, even though everyone on the team would have known that promoting divorce in their country was punishable by death? Yeah, no… That “Death of Fil” episode is where the show completely lost me. It went from being an intriguing dark comedy to a silly drama. And considering what damage they’ve done to certain characters like Seb and Deirdre, I don’t see how a third season (if there is one) could possibly recover.

The Mandalorian is the kind of stuff I was hoping we would see once Disney took over the Star Wars license. It’s a refreshing contrast to the big, bombastic sequels that have been plaguing the movie scene. The stakes are smaller, there’s not a Skywalker or Solo in sight, and the word “Jedi” is only mentioned once. It does a great job of living in the Star Wars universe without falling back on “remember moments.” Though to be fair, there’s still a lot of fan service in the form of familiar-looking droids and creatures, including the ever-present, Yoda-like baby. There’s no denying said baby’s cuteness, and I’m sure we’re gonna be inundated with Baby Yoda merchandise in 2020.

The first three episodes of the season are really fun and engaging, but the middle three episodes hit a significant lull when things devolve into “job of the week” material (or as I like to call it, Jabba the Week). That’s not to say a Star Wars show can’t be episodic, but in doing so, Baby Yoda’s inclusion felt very gimmicky, and the story elements set up earlier came to a screeching halt. Fortunately, the last two episodes put the story back on track and end on a high note. I’m definitely interested in where Season 2 plans to go… assuming there is a plan. If Disney plays it right, The Mandalorian could be their best Star Wars effort. But considering the hit-and-miss reception of their big screen endeavors, I’m cautious.

Season 2 is kind of dumb. Not entirely, but instead of focusing on one really good plot and story line, the show goes all over the place like a traditional TV show. If I am paying for your stupid app, I expect better. Every character gets an episode and every episode seemed to takes our heroes to the most extreme dangers with universe-ending danger only to save it by the end. The problem with this tired formula is that I never felt any of them were in real danger, so I sat there and waited for Pike or Spock to come back on. Those two are great additions and are worth watching, but everyone from season 1 I sort of despise now. It just doesn’t seem like consequences of the first season seem to matter. It feels like their “character progression” is more like complete betrayal of who they were.

I loved parts of this season: The truth about Saru’s home world. Burnham and Spock’s backstory. Pike facing his destiny. Also, I’m a sucker for any time we get to deal with a hyper intelligent AI. There were 14 episodes this season with about 7 worth of decent content. A really great Sci-Fi Star Trek is there, I just had to wade through a lot of shit I didn’t really like to get it. I gave it a lot of chances, and I even like they way things tied into the original Star Trek Series. I just wish it was better. If I’m honest, I hate-watched most of this season. I don’t think I’ll be back for the next one.

I was not prepared for what Star Trek Discovery is. I’ve never been a big Star Trek person, but I heard a lot about this, so I jumped in and I’m very glad I did. Much of what was fun about this season was the surprises, so I don’t want to give many details away. In short, you follow Michael Burnham, played by Sonequa Martin-Green, through her journey trying to navigate through Klingon war. The supporting crew members are fleshed out well and the writers did a great job of keeping me interested in the supporting cast. I particularly liked the dynamic between Burnham and Saru, who is a new alien species played by Doug Jones that has some very interesting characteristics that play well off her arrogance. He’s able to expose a lot of her flaws. The entire cast is great including Michelle Yeoh (I know her for Crouching Tiger) and Jason Isaacs, who again, really shine different lights on Burnham.

As you learn more about the ship and crew, you get to explore Sci-Fi tropes and subjects in a way that’s never been more interesting. Even the budget and special effects of each episode are just below movie quality. So much so, that I was ok that this is the show that Bryan Fuller left American Gods for. Even with all that good, the season suffers from being 3-4 episodes too long. I’m just speculating, but I’m guessing that CBS had everything to do with this decision, because the content creators made such a strong show for so many episodes, and then it just shifts gears and then sort of trips at the finish line. It doesn’t ruin the season, but kind of like this review, you’ll leave somewhat disappointed. My family and I binged the first 10 episodes in 3 days then slowly finished the rest over the following week. Our interest fell off a cliff and I felt the resolution for the season was rushed. I recommend it, but you have to watch it quick if you don’t want to actually pay CBS any money for their stupid app.

I forgot how much I love this show. I’ve watched the entire series (minus Season 9) at least three times through now. There was a fairly long hiatus between Seasons 8 and 9, though, which may be why I didn’t think Season 9 was all that great when it first aired. But I’ve gained a better appreciation for it after recently re-watching it. What originally threw me off more than anything was Jeremy’s bisexuality kind of coming out of nowhere. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter, of course, but, fresh off the Dobby debacle, it was a very abrupt “revelation.” While it still felt that way on a second viewing, knowing that’s where his character was headed made it easier to sit back and enjoy the shenanigans. Like Mark, you just have to say, “So this is a thing now, is it?” and carry on.

Mark brings with him his own problems in Season 9, though. Sure, he was never a saint to begin with, but he starts to act on his worst impulses more than you would expect. He literally kicks an otherwise good roommate out and maliciously attempts to break up a marriage so he can swoop in and take over as the new boyfriend. These things do come back to bite him in the ass, though. Thus, balance is restored in the Peep Show universe. This isn’t a finale meant to shake things up. The show ends pretty much where it began, meaning you could immediately restart with Season 1 and feel right at home. As Mark so eloquently puts it, “Butter the toast. Eat the toast. Shit the toast. God, life’s relentless.” Well, that’s one more Peep Show quote that’s gonna roll around in my head for years now.

Living with Yourself is like an elongated episode of Black Mirror. If you can excuse the outlandish technology—they can clone a person and his/her memories in a day?!—then there’s plenty of opportunity to relish in the aftermath. The show does present some interesting ideas, mostly in the form of the clone being in love with and feeling like he’s married to the main character’s wife. I mean, how would you come to terms with that, no matter who you are in this love triangle? The fact that a “love triangle” is the show’s only source of a plot, however, leaves much to be desired. Having a clone of you running about, even if you tried to pass him off as a twin brother, would raise so many questions that the show either ignores or merely flirts with and then abandons.

I kept thinking back to another Netflix sitcom called Sick Note that was equally bingeable and forgettable thanks to its inability to lean too far into dark comedy or compelling drama. Paul Rudd is still great, of course, and does a believable job playing Old Miles and the clone who’s had the weight of the world scrubbed from his DNA. The two don’t interact as much as you would like, though (probably to cut down on costly special effects), so it periodically feels like they may as well be in different shows. The wife, Kate, does act as a central anchor, but we don’t really get to see or appreciate things from her point of view. Sure, there’s a fun surprise at the end that attempts to unite the three characters. Looking back at the season as a whole, however… it’s not necessarily earned.