Justified. I was a bit disappointed to not see the fantastic interplay between Raylan and his boss as often as in Season One, but Raylan had other things occupying his time. And how do you try to follow Boyd and Beau Crowder? Why, you introduce Mags Bennett and her sons, who proved to be just as dangerous—and much more under-the-table with their crimes.
I will admit to being a little disappointed in the new love combinations this season. Seeing Raylan go backwards in his relationship was a bit too “easy”, but you can’t turn down Natalie Zea, I guess. Ava’s new interest came out of left-field, though, and because she was seen so little this year, it was hard to see why she went the direction she did.
Modern Family. This show is so consistently good—and yet so NOT showy—it’s easy to forget just how great it truly is. But, looking at it with a critical eye, it’s nearly flawless. The writing is spot-on and the characters and situations always fit together. The six adult actors are masters of their crafts and their characters. And the younger actors must be learning something from them because I can’t faults with their work either—and this show doesn’t hide them off-screen; very often, they are the main parts of the side-plots. These characters are all very real, and that’s incredibly rare.
Something else I enjoy about the show is: it’s not cynical or mean-spirited. Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE that type of humor—but I can also appreciate a show that gets by on not having it (other than a playful “jab” at a husband or a sister). This is a show that is based completely on love and mutual respect, and it’s very very rare to see a movie, let alone a continuing TV series pull it off.
And it’s funny. Always funny.
Raising Hope. Like the above, this show is also based on love—but there is a heck of a lot of cynicism in it as well. Like My Name is Earl, this show tries to prove even the “worst”, most selfish people can be good. There is some crazy and wicked behavior going on, but the base of the entire show is this extended family that is trying to make the world a little better for the baby of the family. And they have a tough time of it with all the kooks and oddballs that live in their little neighborhood.
I have to say I probably laughed out loud more watching this show than any other this season.
The Walking Dead. I’ll admit this wasn’t the best show I watched this year, but I loved the ambitiousness of it. The creators and actors are going “all in” with this show. From great zombie effects to the pure “real-people” nature of the characters, this show is worth keeping your eyes on. Yeah, some of the lines are hokey, some of the plots are littered with holes, and the blood and explosion CGI effects are cringe-worthy, but I consider those aberrations to what the show is trying to accomplish, which is to show what would really happen if the people around you died and then came back, wanting to eat you.
This show can and does surprise on a weekly basis (and I’ve read the comics the series is based on). I have a feeling season two will continue to blow-up expectations—and it’ll settle into an amazing look at the nature of humanity. All while dodging creatures that crave eating human flesh…
Torchwood. At first, I was a bit jarred to see this show that spun-off of the kid-friendly Doctor Who be as raw as it is (definitely couldn’t be a network series in America), but that rawness allowed it to tell stories in ways I have never seen before. Captain Jack Harkness leads a small group of humans in their efforts to control the alien technology that keeps popping-up on Earth. Jack (an immortal time-traveler) also knows something big is coming, so his little band of heroes is also supposed to lead the charge against an upcoming alien invasion (another reason they are collecting all these alien artifacts and weapons they find).
This is a show for grown-ups because of the frank sexuality and violent nature of some of their cases. The protagonists are also only “heroes” in the sense that they usually do the right thing. But not always. They all have their pasts. They are all petty at times and lustful at others. It reminds me a lot of one of my favorite shows, Angel, which followed less-than-perfect characters trying to do the right thing. In many ways, these characters, who deal with aliens, and demons, and other supernatural things, are more real than most other characters you’d find in TV and movies because they have realistic foibles.
I also find the “omnisexual” (man, woman, alien, whatever) nature of Captain Jack interesting. One of my favorite “love stories” on TV or film—ever-- was contained in a truly heartbreaking episode that showed a love from Jack’s past, an American soldier in World War II. It was very sweet, and very real, and the fact that it was between two men made no difference on its impact. What’s interesting is that it isn’t pointed out. There are no “very special episodes” dealing with whom Jack gets involved with. He just finds someone he’s attracted to, and goes for it.
This show isn’t for everyone, but if you like very grounded science-fiction on your TV with sophisticated characters and backstories, and can handle some sex, violence, and vulgarity, give it a look.
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