Scream Queens SN02 EP06 – ‘Blood Drive’

THE GREEN MEANIE IS REVEALED!

 

***WARNING SPOILERS BELOW***

The episode began with Nurse Hoffel (Kirstie Alley) explaining how she ended up at the C.U.R.E Institute, where she reveals why she hates the Chanel’s so much. It turns out her sister was Ms. Bean, you know back in season one when Chanel accidently burnt her face off.

However, it was not the only reveal of the episode, as near the end the Green Meanie is unmasked! When Nurse Hoffel walks in on the Green Meanie attempting to murder one of the Chanel’s (No.9 I think), she persuades them to reveal themselves and The Green Meanie is none other than the 80’s hospital baby, Dr. Cassidy Cascade (Taylor Lautner). Not all that surprising, but he explains he hasn’t committed all the murders and that there is another Green Meanie running around. What are the chances of the same hospital being filled with multiple serial killers’? And we can also add another one to the mix as Nurse Hoffel offered to help Dr. Cascade, as long as she gets the Chanel’s all to herself.

 Other things to note from this episode:

• One of the highlights was that Hester (Lea Michelle) finally got more screen time this episode. She was tasked by Munsch (Jamie Lee Curtis) to cure a patient of his ‘vampirism’ or she would lock her back up. Hester tries an extreme aversion therapy, making the patient drink so much blood that he would no longer be able to stomach it, and of course it worked. It’s also worth noting Hester didn’t kill anyone this episode, but I doubt that will last long.
• Munsch overcome with jealousy attempted to break Chanel (Emma Roberts) and Dr. Holt (John Stamos) up by falsifying blood test that proved she had every STD known to man, but her plans are exposed and Holt and Chanel remain together.

Questions we still need answered; Who is the other Green Meanie? How long will Hester last without a kill? Will Zayday be able to find a cure for Dean Munsch? Will Nurse Hoffel get her revenge on Chanel? Will Holt be able to keep has hand in check? And who will be the next to die at the hands of one of the three Green Meanies?

Comment and let us know what you thought of this episode. Do you think you know who the other Green Meanie is?

Check out clip for next weeks episode below:

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Charley is Marvel obsessed! ‘Not sure what I love more TV or Donuts!’. Follow her on Twitter @awesomect98

Marvel’s Inhumans TV Series Premiere Date Revealed

Hot off the heels of the exciting announcement that Marvel is set to bring an Inhumans TV series to ABC, we now know exactly when the show will premiere. A report by THR revealed that following a two week theatrical run of the first two episodes in Imax cinemas, the series will then debut on ABC, Tuesday 26th September 2017.

The report also contained several other interesting snippets of information. The series is set to run for eight consecutive episodes, bar any unforeseen circumstances, placing the finale on Tuesday November 14th, 2017. That’s a fairly short order then, especially when compared to Agents of Shield’s 22 episode season order, but it gives ABC a chance to test the waters. As awesome as Agents of Shield is, it hasn’t done as well for ABC as they hoped, so the eight episode season order for The Inhumans minimises some of the risk.

What’s most intriguing about the premiere date for The Inhumans is not so much the date, but the actual day. Agents of Shield currently airs Tuesdays on ABC, and has done so for its entire run, so what does this mean for the show? The move to a later timeslot for Agents of Shield has managed to improve the show even more, and it seems to be getting some pretty solid ratings, especially when factoring in those who watch it later through recordings and catch up. The ratings increase with catch up has been huge this season, so hopefully ABC will realise people just don’t watch TV the same way anymore and consider this in their decision to renew the show. If the show is indeed renewed for Season 5 then, it’s possible it could move to a different night, similar to what The CW does with its superhero shows. Conversely, Agents of Shield could stay right where it is, and ABC could introduce a two hour Marvel block for Tuesday nights. It does a similar thing with its comedies on Wednesdays, but so long as Agents of Shield is still around fans likely won’t mind which day it airs.

Marvel’s The Inhumans premieres Tuesday, 26th September 2017 on ABC.

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Joe can’t wait for The Inhumans to air, but that hasn’t stopped his concerns about what this means for Agents of Shield. To see how much he loves that show and all things Marvel, check him out @resonantrevs on Twitter.

Arrow SN5 E8 – Invasion!

Welcome back to your weekly recap of our favourite Star City vigilante, the Green Arrow, as he joins the best team up ever to battle aliens. This week’s killer DC crossover features Arrow, The Flash, Supergirl and Legends of Tomorrow. Today’s episode is Episode 8 of Season 5, titled Invasion! It also happens to be the hundredth episode of Arrow, so congrats to them!

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Following what happened on The Flash this week, Oliver runs through the gardens of Queen Manor, heading inside. He’s met by Laurel Lance inside his bathroom, whom he’s engaged to, and downstairs both his parents are alive.
Sara shows up to support her sister as one of the bridesmaids, as does Thea. Oliver goes for a walk with his father downtown when someone suddenly waves a gun in their face, demanding their watches. When Oliver refuses, the Green Arrow swoops in to save the day, then takes off without a word. Back at the mansion, Oliver feels something is wrong with the reality he’s living in, especially since he’s getting visions  of another life.
He follows his intuition, heading to the police station to talk to Detective Lance about his leads on the Green Arrow. Noticing a map on the wall, Ollie heads to the Arrow cave not quite realizing what it is. Once the elevator opens, Felicity calls out for help because of the intruder and the Green Arrow appears, knocking Oliver out.
Oliver confronts the Green Arrow when he wakes up, calling him John Diggle. John gets scared, unsure how Oliver knows so much about him he kicks Oliver out of the Arrow Cave. Back in reality, it’s revealed that Oliver, Thea, John, Ray and Sara are being held unconscious inside pods aboard a Dominator spaceship.

Meanwhile in the Arrow Cave, Felicity brings Cisco in to vibe a piece of alien tech. Cisco vibes that they’re being held unconscious inside stasis-like pods, technology all around the room.

They try to hack into the Dominators’ mainframe using a piece of alien technology that Cisco took from the alien ship wreckage. The alien tech proves too high powered for the human tech they’re using, so the team needs to recover a device stolen by Cyberwoman in order to run the alien tech.

The Flash, Supergirl and Wild Dog head out on a mission to a warehouse, where Wild Dog encounters her first. Using her tech implants she shoots energy blasts at Wild Dog, who is saved by the Flash. Together the Flash and Supergirl take her out.

Back in the Arrow cave, Felicity locates their coordinates, realizing they’re in a spaceship above earth since the coordinates are inverted. Oliver sees more flashes of his former life, as do Sara, Thea, John and Ray. The five of them soon realize that they’re inside a shared hallucination, created by the aliens.

The way out is the Smoak building they’ve noticed feels wrong to all of them, but their escape is blocked by safeguards set up by the alien. They’re blocked by Deathstroke, Malcolm Merlyn, Damien Darhk and his mercenaries. Thea takes on Malcolm, Oliver battles Deathstroke and Laurel fights Darhk, while John and Ray take on the mercenaries.

Finally defeated, the five begin to head out but are stopped by Laurel calling out to Oliver and Sara. They say their goodbyes, leaving Laruel standing in her wedding dress in tears. At the Smoak building they head through a portal and awaken inside the Dominators’ ship. They fight their way to a shuttle using an alien weapon, escape into space and are rescued by the Waverider,whom Felicty had relayed their coordinates to.

Ray concludes that the Dominators were gathering information from their minds because the metas would be immune against the Dominators. The hallucination was merely a distraction to help the Dominators complete a weapon. Gideon informs the team that the Dominator mothership is heading towards Earth.

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Jessica is Skatronixxx’s episode recapper for Arrow, The Flash, Game of Thrones and Shadowhunters. Her current guilty pleasure is Rise of the Tomb Raider and she’s hella excited for Rogue One. Follow her on Twitter @SohoDoll

The Flash SN3 E8 – Invasion!

Welcome back to your weekly recap of our favourite Central City speedster, Barry Allen, as he fights crime and aliens? Hold up, hold up—we need a new intro this week. Welcome to another episode of this week’s killer DC crossover featuring The Flash, Arrow, Legends of Tomorrow and Supergirl. Today’s episode is Episode 8 of Season 3, titled Invasion!

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Barry’s ongoing troubles of his broken relationship with Cisco and Wally’s new speed are put to a halt by a satellite alert. A meteor is on a collision course with downtown Central City, sending the Flash speeding into action. The meteor crashes outside Central City, so Barry investigates, only to discover that the meteor is actually a spaceship from which aliens emerge.

Surprisingly the aliens leave the Flash alone and race out into the city on their swift alien limbs. The scene is quickly contained by the government, headed by Argos. Reassuring the news that a routine military craft crashed, Lyla secretly tells team Flash that the aliens have come before.

The Dominators, as they’re known, landed in the fifties but mysteriously departed afterwards. Lyla warns the team that the aliens are near-invincible, so let the government handle it. Of course, team Flash doesn’t listen so Barry assembles the Green Arrow, Speedy, Spartan, Overwatch, Firestorm, White Canary, Atom, Heat Wave, and Supergirl.

Barry leads the team at a S.T.A.R. Labs hangar, starting with practice against Supergirl since she’s invincible and also an alien. Jefferson and Professor Stein reveal a recording sent by future Barry to the Legends team, warning them not to trust Barry in this time. Caitlin accompanies Professor Stein to visit his home, where he’s greeted by a stranger who introduces herself as Stein’s daughter. Later on, Cisco discovers the recording and exposes Barry’s decision to save his mom by time travelling and how it affected other team members.

Kara and Oliver become the only ones who remain trusting of Barry. Meanwhile, the Dominators abduct the President from a military base where he had just spoke to Lyla. Lyla informs Felicity who sends the team out, led by Kara, to rescue the President.

Kara leads the entire team, except Barry and Oliver, but the Dominators use a device to mind control them and kill the President. Now mind-controlled, the heroes return to S.T.A.R. Labs and begin attacking it. Oliver and Barry try to fight them, but realize they can’t hold them off forever. Wally tries to help, but Supergirl knocks him unconscious. Barry tries to lure Cara away, while Oliver holds the rest of them off.

Barry lures Kara to the device and manipulates her into destroying it, freeing everyone from the aliens’ mind control. The team begins to trust Barry again, now that he’s proven himself. Just when they’re about to head inside S.T.A.R. Labs, Sara, Ray, Diggle, Thea and Oliver are beamed away by the aliens before Barry can save them.

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Jessica is Skatronixxx’s episode recapper for Flash, Arrow, Game of Thrones and Shadowhunters. Currently binge-watching Skam, follow her on Twitter @SohoDoll.

Lucifer SN02-EP10 “Quid Pro Ho”

Welcome back Lucifans! I really thought Chloe was a goner last night, suffice to say I was very relieved when Amenadiel stepped in, but what a bombshell at the end! Right let’s have a quick recap of last week’s episode “Homewrecker”

SN02-EP09 “Homewrecker”

Chloe, Dan and Lucifer tackle the murder of a wealthy real estate mogul who owned the entire block that includes Lux. Their investigation turns up multiple people with motives, including the victim’s son, his fiancée who comes from modest means, and a rival real estate developer who wants to tear down the whole block, including Lux, to put in a shopping mall. The developer is about to get her wish, until Chloe manages to get the building that houses Lux declared a Historic Landmark. Meanwhile, Charlotte becomes friendly with Dan and starts to strongly believes that Chloe is the reason Lucifer wants to stay on Earth. Charlotte meets with a bomb maker and plans to blow up Chloe when she steps into her car.

SN02-EP10 “Quid Pro Ho”

We begin this week’s episode where we left off with Chloe (Lauren German) leaving the restaurant after being stood up by the selfish but handsome Devil Lucifer (Tom Ellis). Luci, Luci, Luci what are you doing man? I’m just going to throw it out there, I definitely wouldn’t stand Chole up, or any of the girls really… I mean have you seen them!! Mother Dearest (Tricia Helfer) is waiting in the alley so she can blow Chloe up, as she is the one person that is keeping Lucifer on earth. Amenadiel (D.B. Woodside) intervenes and tells Charlotte that Lucifer needs to make the decision to return home on his own. Charlotte shows us just how powerful she can be by lifting Amenadiel off the ground by his throat, Amenadiel is undeterred and tells her, if she hurts Chloe, Lucifer with hunt until he finds her killer, he reminded her that Lucifer killed Uriel to save Chloe. Dr Martin (Rachael Harris) guesses that Lucifer didn’t  go to dinner with Chloe and tells him that he is only lying to himself about his feeling for Chloe. Lucifer turns up to Chloe’s house to apologise but she doesn’t want to hear it and nor does she want him to bother her on today of all days, the first day of the murder trial for the man who killed her father. Lucifer says he’s there to support them like “an emotional jock strap there to protect the Decker family jewels“. Ella (Aimee Garcia)is picking up a vibe that Dan (Kevin Alejandro) got laid, he says’ she is way out of his league and he was most certainly punching above his weight, saying she “goddess-like“. Dan gets a mystery package and when they open it, the head of the prosecution’s key witness is staring back at them. Chloe rushes into the courtroom gallery with news of the witnesses murder.

 

Charlotte struts into the courtroom as Perry’s defence attorney, Lucifer clearly pissed asks “what are you up to now, mother?” Lucifer confronts his mother and she tells him, that she needed a way to open his eyes about Chloe, and also reveals to Lucifer that she was going to kill Chloe,  this triggers the Devil within and Chloe says to Lucifer, she hopes this will not impact on the trial. Back at the station, Dan is stunned to learn that Charlotte is defending Perry the man accused of killing his ex-wife’s father. Ella says the victim’s tongue what cut out and his head was severed by a meat cutter and there is only one place where that type of meat can be found. Chloe returns to the courthouse and Lucifer promises to protect her from the “Quid Pro Ho“. Lucifer takes the stand and the prosecutor asks him about being at the crime scene, Lucifer puts on a show a reenact’s the entire scene and have both the Judge and Jury eating out of the palm of his hand. Dan has a feeling he has been set up, he and Ella head over to talk to the butcher who tells them that it was an Asian man with a scar on his neck that came into used the machine. Maze (Lesley-Ann Brandt) catches Amenadiel sneaking around Chloe’s car at their apartment, he says he is there because he can’t stop thinking about her, and while the kiss she takes the detonator out of his pocket and blow his car up, she tells him that he can tell his mother that no one is hurting Chloe on her watch. Lucifer is again called by Charlotte and asked who what first on the scene, Lucifer has no choice but, to tell the truth, that Chloe was first on the scene and now Chloe thinks Lucifer gave Charlotte crucial case information and is not a happy camper. Dan realises that Charlotte used him for intel on the case.

 

Dan tells Lucifer that the man who chopped off the witness’s head was part of a Chinese syndicate who had been feuding with the Russians. Lucifer, Dan and Maze head to the Chinese cultural centre and Maze tries to drag it out of Dan that he has slept with Charlotte, when Lucifer finds out he puts Dan through a wall, and when they look up a group of armed men are pointing their weapons at them. Lucifer can speak Chinese and asks who is in charge he speaks to the woman in charge and agrees to hand over the man who killed the witness if they fight Kang.  Maze kicks Kang’s arse and sends him hurtling outside. The woman gives Lucifer the information to find the killer. Dan and Lucifer arrive in Chinatown and they find two bodies, one body is the headless witness and the other is the man who killed him. Charlotte continues to manipulate the situation and convinces Chloe to testify against Lucifer and call him a liar, if she does that then she will get her client to plead guilty, oh she is a nasty piece of work this one. Chloe takes the stand and Charlotte questions her about Lucifer’s background and chokes when Chloe says his background running Hell makes him a good detective. Chole ignores Charlotte and says Lucifer isn’t a liar, she tells the room she was the one who arrived first, the prosecution try to revoke the testimony but it’s not to be and Perry is release.

 

Amenadiel turns up with flowers looking for Maze and finds Penelope (Rebecca De Mornay) crying outside, she tells him she thought things happened for a reason, Amenadiel responds that it is how you respond that makes the difference, he pauses for a minute when he believes he recognises Penelope, he excuses himself and quickly leaves. As Perry leaves the strip club, Dan steps out of the shadows and tell him the Russians are not happy with him, then don’t like it when one of their own is taken out without permission, as he walks away the Russians pull up and load Perry in the van. Dan gets into Maze’s car, she didn’t think he had it in him. Charlotte finds Amenadiel at her house and he says she’s right, and that she’s nothing like their father and tells her that 35 years ago his father asked him to bless a couple to help them have a baby. That miracle child, he says is Chloe and she was placed intentionally in Lucifer’s path, and Amenadiel was merely a pawn. Lucifer trying to make up for standing Chloe up brings her dinner, wine and fries and as they lean in closer Lucifer smiles when he realises they are about to kiss. Charlotte says to Amenadiel that Chloe is the answer to getting his wings back, and she’s how they will get everything back. Charlotte says  “We’re going home, son, and Chloe is the key”

Well, that was bombshell i wasn’t expecting, but we are going to have to wait until January now to find out what’s going on and if Luci and Chloe finally kiss.

Lucifer will return to FOX in January 2017.

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 Presh (@Presh81)

TV Show Recapper at Skatronixxx

Tattooed Mobility Scooting, Chronic Autoimmune Disease Fighting Writer, Lover of Elvis Presley, Lover of Crime TV Shows True & Fiction, Lover of My Cats Elvis & Priscilla and Labrador Webster with a G-Shock watch addiction & collection
Recapping: Bates Motel, Lucifer, American Horror Story & Elementary

Skatronixxx.com Your Friendly Neighbourhood Nerds

Steven Universe S4 E8 ‘Gem Harvest’

Stevn arrives at the barn to spend the night. He walks through a corn field and finds them having a nice time. They both think corn are like crystal gems. Steven licks a pumpkin seed since he has special powers.

Peridot is surprised by a pumpkin dog that Steven grew. Steven tells them he did it. They are both down about it and Steven tries to help.

Suddenly the owner of the barn flies in angry by what they have done to the barn. They call Greg who brings the Gems along.

Andy turns out to be Stevens uncle. They all decide to have a big meal so Andy will see the Gems as family.

They gather food for the meal and use Andy’s propeller as a way to cook the food.

Andy is finally broken by the Gems trying to celebrate all of a human’s life events.

They have dinner outside and it is quite nice. Andy runs away because he hates change. Steven tells him that he wants to be his family because he has never learned what it means to be human.

Andy saves Steven when he falls off the his plane and comes back with him.

American Dad S12 E3 ‘ The Enlightenment of Ragi-Baba’

Roger deals with the loss of one of his alter egos mixing career. The woman they replace her with looks close to Roger which is unsettling. Haley brings Roger to meditate to heal him.

Francine makes reservations for Sushi and Stan begrudgingly accepts. Stan is hilarious because he really isn’t a fan of change.

Stan and Steve are changed by the power of Sushi. Haley is angered by Roger taking over her meditation center.

Stan and Steve learn the way of the sushi chef. Roger ends up on Tv talking about his meditation prowess. Roger ends up going into the mountains to find himself.

Stan and Steve find out the horrid secrets of the sushi chef. Roger hates the special collective his fans have made.

The Sushi chef gives the Sushi shop to Stan and Steve and they fire his son. Roger meditates for the first time and he and Haley go on a mind journey. Roger decides to leave Nirvana because he loves his material possessions.

Francine is upset that Stan and Steve have taken over the Sushi hut.

You’re the Worst S3 1 Hr Finale ‘You knew it was a snake/No longer just us’

It’s here the season finale of You’re the Worst and after the last episode I’m curious what will happen. Jimmy wakes up Gretchen reading his work to her to prove he will be successful. Jimmy won’t take back the fact that he won’t have kids with Gretchen because of her track record with Iphones. Lindsay suddenly wakes up with out clothes on after dumping Paul.

Edgar and Dorothy are not having the best time since Edgar ditched her to write sketches. Edgar is offended that she thinks he was only hired because he is Latino.

Paul suddenly comes in upset with Lindsay who had an abortion without consulting him. She takes him down a notch by repeating My Body My Choice, and he is dumbfounded when she goes outside to smoke without clothes on.

Dorothy is trying to talk Edgar into thinking that she isn’t a little racist towards Hispanics. Edgar tells Dorothy that he thinks she has the advantage being a woman. But none of this offends more than Jimmy and Paul saying they have more trouble then them.

Paul and Lindsay fight and Paul even tells Gretchen to shut up. It is interesting how anger can change someone.

Jimmy and Gretchen talk about how they have no idea how they got here. Jimmy offends her and she storms off.

Edgar and Dorothy continue their fight with Edgar  saying he thinks Dorothy only likes him when he struggles. Paul and Lindsay fight about their lives and how they both have different ideas about things. Gretchen yells at Jimmy for breaking down her hypothetical idea. Dorothy tells Edgar that she is at her lowest and she needs him. Paul freaks out and calls Lindsay his bad luck. Jimmy and Gretchen halt their fight when they hear Lindsay and Paul fighting.

Lindsay calms Paul by telling him he knew what Lindsay was when he met her. How could someone not know what their spouse is, he certainly did. The fights stop when the couples get a text saying that Vernon and Becca had a baby. But suddenly Jimmy and Gretchen’s fight starts over and they argue about who is more broken. Jimmy and Gretchen let it all out and they both realize how broken they both are.

Jimmy questions Gretchen about why she didn’t leave and she asks why he didn’t. Jimmy argues that most relationships end in failure and that they are a success because they tried.He tells her that she has been the one fueling his writing and he reads his story to her.

Dorothy gives up the ghost and tells Edgar that she is insecure because he is successful. Edgar is given a job working in a writers room for 3 months and he lies to Dorothy to spare her feelings. This certainly won’t cause trouble for him later right?

Paul and Lindsay reconcile a little and Paul realizes they just aren’t meant to be. Paul tells her that she “Better lawyer up bitch” when she asks for him to rip up the Pre-nup as he heads out. Gretchen breaks a ninth Iphone as Jimmy falls asleep on her.

The last episode of the season begins with Gretchen and Jimmy at a bar, Jimmy reading the end of his novel to her. Jimmy identifies himself as Post-Family and is then disgusted when Gretchen is excited about a near by murder. Which is a legitimate thought as murder shouldn’t excite people…

Edgar makes Lindsay breakfast sushi and talks about how  he is troubled about telling her about his own good fortune. Jimmy and Gretchen are disgusted by a photo of Becca’s baby sent to their phones. They see cops outside and disguise themselves so they can toss out anything that might get them in trouble.

Paul begins his divorce with Lindsay and offers her 2000 a month so he can watch Lindsay burn. Edgar goes to see his boss and tell him he can’t do the show because his girlfriend is so down. He decides not to quit and heads off with a new bit to film.

Gretchen and Jimmy are walking through the park annoyed with more pictures of Becca’s baby. Jimmy and Gretchen talk about their future babies and look at children not realizing how awful they are being.

Paul writes Lindsay a check and she takes a picture of a check thinking it will be deposited instantly. Lindsay throws it back in his face by saying how stupid he is for letting her cuckold him.Vernon isn’t going to leave with Paul as he loves his baby and soon the trio send him off.

Gretchen takes Jimmy to find her therapist and they find out she has been telling her friends about her. Her therapist is leaving for Iowa to be there for her boyfriend but does tell she is proud of her. A nice end to a solid arc that helped Gretchen.

Edgar goes to tell Dorothy about his job and that he is ready to support her as a full person.Dorothy has come to the conclusion she won’t make it and is moving back to Florida. Edgar of course loves her and wants to leave with her.

Lindsay asks Becca if she can move in with them and is accepted if she nannies the baby. Becca then goes off and shows how sad she is that she will have to raise this baby with an idiot like Vernon.

Edgar takes Lindsay to Dorothy’s old apartment so she can take on the lease. Lindsay and Edgar talk and it is a rather beautiful scene because they both feel good about life. For the first time Lindsay is going to try to be an adult and that is a great thing.

Jimmy and Gretchen are walking to find the murder site and Jimmy smiles at how excited Gretchen is. They both agree that they both hate everyone but the other. Suddenly praising Gretchen for her going to therapy Jimmy proposes to her. He planned the whole thing about the murder so he could propose to her. She says yes so happy that he made a murder for her.

Gretchen and Jimmy decide to sleep together outside when she calls them a family. Jimmy goes to get a hoodie from the car and drives off freaking out about what she said. The screen splits and both of them look sad knowing that something awful has occurred after a great moment.

This season finale was absolutely brilliant and freed our characters from relationships. Hopefully though Jimmy and Gretchen fix things and stay together because they are this shows life blood. I cannot wait for Season 4 to see what becomes of all of these characters.

 

 

 

 

The Walking Dead SN7 EP06-‘Swear’

Tara returns and shines in the spotlight as yet another new community is introduced.

After a nine-episode absence, both Tara and Heath returned in this week’s extended episode which acted as somewhat of a breather from recent tragedies. It was a necessary episode if only to give us a much needed break from all grief and general depression surrounding just about everyone else on the show. Since her introduction Tara has always been brilliant for some great comic relief, and given Abraham is no longer in the picture, she’s needed now more than ever. That being said, by episode’s end it looked as though she’s joined everyone else in mourning. Still, Tara was on fine form this episode, which did even more world building, and mostly set events in motion for later on down the line.

If you told me when she first entered the show that Tara would one day get what essentially boils down to a solo episode, I would have laughed in disbelief. Indeed, the fact that she has managed to make it to Season 7 is a big enough surprise. Alanna Masterson has always been great as Tara, and I really like the character, she just hasn’t really been given a meaningful storyline up until now. Her relationship with Denise was a sweet element of Season 6, but even that was cut brutally short, so hopefully now that she has this secret, things will pick up for her. It will no doubt factor into Tara’s character from now on. She essentially holds the key to beating Negan, or at the very least putting up a good fight with all the guns at Oceanside, yet she’s honourably choosing to keep it secret. This will likely take its toll on her as the season progresses, due to her own likely desire for revenge, and pressure from all those around her who wish to put an end to Negan. This could mark a really interesting development for Tara and the show as a whole, as we’ve never really seen psychological damage as a result of a secret done as a storyline. Of course, who better to emotionally crush than the show’s peppiest character.

This episode also introduced us to yet another new community, in the form of the Oceanside. This was a group of characters that in the comic book just sort of appeared with little fanfare, so the story here was full of surprise. In an episode that essentially took a break from Negan, it showed that his reach is far wider than we ever could have imagined. It seems no group in quite a large area has been able to escape him, but the people of Oceanside might have had the most traumatic dealings with him yet. A question looming over much of the episode was why the group contained only women. Like Tara, my thoughts immediately jumped to whether they even accepted men, but the truth was much more disturbing. After refusing to work for Negan, every man and boy over the age of 10 was lined up and shot in the head, leaving only the women behind. Mass murder on a scale such as that is something that really could have only been told on the show rather than watched. If people stopped watching after what happened to Glenn and Abraham, I imagine this would have been a whole lot worse. The story, however horrifying, helps flesh Negan out even more. With the Hilltop and Rick’s group, he initially only killed one or two people to set an example, so the story of what he did to the Oceansiders paints him as a thoroughly more brutal man.

It helps that despite trying to kill Tara multiple times, the Oceansiders were an interesting new set of characters. Once the reasoning for their shoot on site policy became clear, they became much more sympathetic, and badass kid Cindy is someone I could easily see becoming an exciting new recurring character. Hidden among the trees, the settlement itself was different to what we’ve seen before, and added to the general feeling that this episode was a refreshing break from the norm. Yes, Negan’s presence was looming over the entire episode, especially given Tara and Heath didn’t know what had happened back home, but ultimately this episode was a reminder that Negan isn’t everything, and the show has other stories to tell. However, I don’t think it would have worked as well with any other character than Tara. Her humour and positivity despite all the tragedy that has befallen her makes her stand out from all the rest, and she brings some levity to most scenes she’s in.

Of course with so much newness going around there’s plenty more to talk about, so other notable highlights include:

• Heath! I really enjoy Heath, and this episode only strengthened my opinion of him so it’s just a shame he can’t be on the show more. The actor who plays him, Corey Hawkins, is a very talented guy and clearly others have noticed, so between an emerging film career and starring in the new 24 reboot, he just hasn’t got much time to be Heath. Many assumed that because of this he wouldn’t make it to the end of this episode, so it was again a refreshing change of pace for the writers leave his whereabouts unknown. Writing him out like this gives him the possibility to return later on, and going out saving a beloved character is quite the exit.

• It seems that wherever Heath went, he got away using the van he and Tara had, but he possibly left a key card marked PPP. Clearly the writers aren’t just going to have Heath pop up when next available like nothing’s happened, so this is an interesting way to inject some mystery into the matter.

• How awesome was Cindy? By my count she saved Tara’s life a total four times this episode from her less than welcoming group, so that definitely makes her awesome in my book, and I imagine she’ll end up being the bridge between her group and the Alexandrians once the time comes.

• You’d think that 7 seasons in they’d stop being able to come up with new and exciting Walkers, but it seems not. The sand Walkers were exceptionally eerie, but the scenes with them pointed out an obvious flaw. Whenever the group is ambushed by a large amount of Walkers, and the writers haven’t planned for any of said group to die, the Walkers seem to simply mill around. Sometimes they’ll get to eat people within seconds, and then at others they’ll just sort of half-heartedly grasp at people. It’s a noticeable problem that takes you out of the show for a moment.

• After a fairly funny episode, it all came crashing down with those final few scenes. I was thankful that they didn’t make us live through the deaths all over again, instead using Eugene’s face to convey to Tara everything that had happened. In that one moment everything came crashing down.

So overall this episode was an enjoyable change of pace. The decision to give Tara the spotlight was a surprising one, but also one that payed dividends due to the character’s funny nature, as she brought some joy to the show. The introduction of a new group was obviously set up for them to return later on down the line, making this episode more likely to succeed as part of the whole season rather than stood on its own. It was reminiscent of the same episode last season that saw the introduction of Dwight and Sherry. Still, the episode offered up plenty of drama, with Tara now the bearer of a secret that could change the tides of the coming war against Negan, and Heath mysteriously disappeared. With only to episodes left until the show takes its midseason break, it’s nice to see things start to finally pick up.

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Joe thinks that it’s so awesome The Walking Dead is devoting whole episodes to single characters, he’s now starting a campaign for Shiva the Tiger to get a solo episode. Follow his antics over on Twitter.

People of Earth: S1 Ep3 “Acceptance”

The mystery deepens and the aliens get…well they seem to be getting wackier and wackier. This show is unique in that the aliens are not the super intelligent lifeforms  aliens are normally portrayed as. In People of Earth they’re more of the show’s comic relief…

Another note about the show: this is highbrow comedy. It’s written with the sarcastic personality in mind. If you’re sarcastic and like jokes that are more than slapstick, this show will definitely entertain you.

What happened last week?

Episode 2 went into a bit more detail on members of Starcrossed. We found out Chelsea (Tracee Chimo) and Kelly (Alice Wetterlund) had really…really…REALLY “close encounters” with one of the aliens. Quotes around “close encounters” cause you know how they got close…wink, wink, nudge, nudge…

I think you know what I’m trying to say.

We also found out who/what Ozzie’s (Wyatt Cenac) old boss, Johnathan Walsh (Michael Cassidy), is. The episode ended on a cliffhanger.

“Acceptance”

We pick up with Gina (Ana Gasteyer) arriving home after her shocking accident with the Reptilian named Kurt (Drew Nelson). When she calls the police department to report the accident, Office Glimmer (played by the talented and underappreciated H. John Benjamin of Archer and Family Guy) tells her that it was just a raccoon. It was Glimmer who took of things at the scene of the accident at the end of Ep2.

Glimmer immediately reports the accident to Walsh. Walsh has to go report the accident to his superiors.

Starcrossed

In the next group meeting, we get to hear Richard’s (Brian Huskey) story of how his wife was captured by aliens and how he’s trying to find her. He tells of how the aliens tried to message him. In reality, we see that the “message” is actually a petition for divorce. Richard refuses to accept it as real, though.

Outside, Gerry (Luka Jones) shows up after 6 days of being in jail. It turns out he tried to call Gina to bail him out, but it was the night of her accident so she missed getting his one phone call (I didn’t know they still did that one phone call thing). Gerry immediately notices her car starts to see the similarities between Gina’s accident and Ozzie’s accident.

Leave it to Gerry, the imbecile of the group, to pick that up.

Meanwhile, Richard has to go to a mediation between him and his wife. Ozzie offers to go with him. On the way, Richard warns Ozzie of how weird things might get. It seems he just won’t admit the divorce is real.

On the way there, Ozzie starts hallucinating that he’s seeing his younger self. He’s still freaking out about what’s going on in his life, too.

Alien comedy break

The aliens are trying to figure out what to do with Kurt the Reptilian. It’s in these little asides with the aliens that we can really feel Conan O’Brian’s influence on the script. Remember, Conan’s one of the show’s executive producers.

The Mediation

As the mediation is set to begin, an increasingly confused Ozzie is trying to figure out why Beacon is so important and weird to him.

While they wait, we get to see a bit more of Richard’s once happy relationship and his version of the abduction of his wife. But was it real?

Right now, we still don’t know if Richard is crazy or not; or who’s an alien and who isn’t. So Richard’s insistent rants about his wife’s abduction could be true.

Gerry, Yvonne, and the Hawthorne Road mystery

Gerry is out on Hawthorne road looking for clues to Gina’s accident. Yvonne (Da’Vine Joy Randolph) shows up and together they notice fresh tar laid in the shape of a body at the same spot Gina says she hit the “raccoon.”

They begin to strongly suspect Gina might have hit an alien and that the accident is being covered up.

The Mediation, Part 2

So, funny story, Ozzie wasn’t really supposed to be at the mediation but Richard tells the mediator Ozzie is his lawyer so he can stay.

Richard is not handling things well. He makes a scene that embarrasses himself and his wife. But he finally signs the divorce papers, or does he?

Turns out, all he did was write the reptilians a special message from the bottom of his heart.

The Next Starcrossed Meeting

The next day at the group meeting, Richard tells the group he really did sign the papers. They can’t believe he actually did it. As they’re about to congratulate him for moving forward, Debbie (his ex-wife) shows up. Despite her anger, he vehemently refuses to sign. We also find out that Debbie (Amy Landecker) used to be a member of Starcrossed.

During a break, Yvonne tells Gerry that she looked into the court records to find out about Gina’s accident. There was nothing reported. So there really is a covered up!

Ozzie tries to get Debbie to calm down. Ozzie just wants’s to know what happened on the camping trip. He’s still skeptical about the aliens and is trying to get to the bottom of things.

We hear Debbie’s version of the trip. It wasn’t as romantic as Richard’s. It turns out she was very unhappy in her marriage to him. Apparently, she asked Richard for a divorce while on the trip, just before she really…was…abducted!

Ozzie’s shocked. She doesn’t seem to want to admit the truth of the abduction. In her opinion, she doesn’t think anyone will ever find out what the truth is, so she’s decided to move on.

Richard was hiding and heard the whole conversation. Disheartened after hearing her, he finally signs the papers.

Back in the group, he’s broken but seems to have a new theory. He now thinks Debbie has really been a Reptilian the whole time.

Alien comedy wrap up

It’s starting to become apparent that most of the episodes are going to end with a hilarious look into alien life. This episode ends with the funeral of Kurt the Reptilian. It’s funny, the aliens have been watching the humans for so long that they’re starting to feel like humans. They’re also starting to enjoy human things.

BTW, has anyone noticed yet that the Grey Alien’s head looks like a hairy, male scrotum?

As we fade out, the Grey Alien comes across a clue to who killed Kurt the Reptilian and vows to find the person and get revenge.

My take on this episode?

First thing’s first. There’s an awesome version of “Ring of Fire” at that plays over the closing credits, so that was cool.

By now the stories of the aliens and the group members are starting to weave together and I’m personally getting more curious. What really happened to Ozzie? What really happened to Richard and his wife, Debbie? What’s going to happen to Gina?

Guess we’ll find out in Ep4. See ya there!

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Deven B got fat over the Thanksgiving holiday but swears to run 5K every day for the rest of his life. Find out if he really does it over on Facebook and Twitter.

Read about his other favorite shows, The Expanse and Stan Against Evil.