Category: TV Shows

Roswell, New Mexico Season 1 Episode 3: Tearin’ Up My Heart Recap

~ Metacrone ~ 1 Comment

Roswell NM 103 Lizzie Drew

Episode 3 of Roswell, New Mexico, Tearin’ Up My Heart, is a big improvement from episode 2, and puts the series back on track with what the pilot led me to expect. The show still has issues, but if it can avoid the WTF inconsistencies and the terrible characterizations from episode 2, along with so much blatant misogyny, it could develop into a compelling story of its own.

This week, the couples continue to play games with each other, which will get annoying very soon, especially in the case of Michael and Alex. If you want me to care about a couple, there has to be something there to actually care about. Max and Liz have been given montages and flashbacks, conversations between themselves and with others about their feelings and memories, and we’ve seen them take risks for each other. It’s been driven home that they have real feelings for each other but were forced apart.

Michael and Alex have had a few brief conversations, mostly made up of insult-filled arguments, and Alex had one short conversation with Maria in which he talked about Michael, but kept him anonymous. It looks like Alex uses Michael when he needs a boost to his self-esteem or to get off, then drops him when he comes to his senses. Why would I want Michael to be with a guy who doesn’t have a personality, has never publicly acknowledged their relationship, is embarrassed by Michael, and is psychologically abusive toward him?

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Roswell, New Mexico Season 1 Episode 2: So Much for the Afterglow Recap

~ Metacrone ~ 1 Comment

Roswell, NM 102 Michael & Isobel at Crashdown Cafe

So Much for the Afterglow is right. After an enjoyable pilot, Roswell, New Mexico comes crashing down to earth in episode 2. I had a lot of issues with this episode, but the biggest one was with Max Evans. If you watched the original series, you may know where this is going.

I hated the Tess/Max storyline in the original series, especially for how much it took away from Max and Liz’s story. I was hoping Roswell, New Mexico would never go there. I knew Max had been casually dating someone in this series, and was fine with it. But dating someone else while Liz was gone for ten years is totally different from being ready to get together with Liz one minute, then shagging his second choice ten minutes later.

I wasn’t ready for Max to leave Liz and go straight over to the Tess look-alike’s house for sex. I was really, really, really hoping to avoid that entire scenario, where he’s in love with Liz but inexplicably sleeping with the blonde. Yet here we are, in episode two. Very disappointing. For a number of reasons, which I’ll go into further later on.

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The Passage Season 1 Episode 3: That Never Should Have Happened to You Recap

~ Metacrone ~ 3 Comments

The Passage 103 Sykes gives Amy the serum.

The Passage and Deadly Class are tied for my favorite new shows of the season, and episode 3 of The Passage, That Never Should Have Happened to You, has only made me more excited about it. The way showrunner Liz Heldon and her team are perfectly balancing plot, character and world-building remind me of SYFY and Amazon’s The Expanse, one of the highest quality science fiction shows of this decade.

The Passage may not be a space epic, but it does tell an epic, sweeping story, just as The Expanse does, and it’s carefully arranging all of the necessary elements, while telling an exciting story. The set up for the long-term arc isn’t being rushed, even though in the present day, the end of the world is fast approaching. It’s an incredibly delicate balance to maintain, along with introducing viral vampires who need to be threatening, but not so camp that you can’t take them seriously. So far, based on the books, this adaptation is everything I would wish it to be. I’m just having a hard time not rushing them to the next part of the story!

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Deadly Class Season 1 Episode 2: Noise, Noise, Noise Recap

~ Metacrone ~ 1 Comment

Deadly Class 102 Marcus & Billy at Party

Deadly Class’s second episode, Noise, Noise, Noise, was just as amazing as its pilot. It lived up to its title, from the noise of the loud house party Marcus and the Rats coerce another student into hosting, to the noise in Willie and Marcus’ heads as they process the murder of Rory the night before. Then there’s the extra loud sound of a gun being fired very close to Maria’s head.

But let’s save that for later. Chico isn’t ready to spoil the surprise yet.

Recap

The episode begins with a long, morning-after monologue from Marcus, reflecting on the events of the night before and what it means in the context of the larger world. In the end, it comes down to nihilism and tribalism.

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The Passage Season 1 Episode 2: You Owe Me a Unicorn Recap

~ Metacrone

The Passage 102: Jonas gives Carter the serum.

The Passage’s second episode, You Owe Me a Unicorn, slows down the pace a bit from the pilot’s continuous ‘on the run’ vibe. All of the main characters are represented, and many of the recurring ones, as we get to know them all a bit better. Time is still a factor, as it always will be on this show. One of the ‘passages’ referred to by the title is the passage of time, which speeds up and slows down according to our perception of current events.

Another theme which is explored this week is the issue of determining who your real friends and family are, as opposed to the people who are nice to you in order to use you for personal gain. This theme goes in some surprising directions.

Then there is the unicorn, symbolic of Amy and Brad’s dream that they can become each other’s family and live happily ever after. Dreams, visions, hallucinations and predictions are a huge part of this story. Everyone approaches Project NOAH with a dream of their own. Eventually, the dream changes. For some, the dream improves on reality. For others, it becomes a way to deny reality. For larger subset, it becomes a nightmare.

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Netflix’s Transfers Season 1 Episode 4 Recap

~ Metacrone ~ 3 Comments

Screen Shot 2018-12-13 at 12.16.02 AM

In episode 4, Transfers takes the viewer deeper inside the illegal transfer business, showing the perspective of a buyer who is an average person and showing the workings of a mass body theft scam. The investigative process used by the BATI is also followed closely, and where it all goes wrong is revealed. There is unjust bias among the BATI and  there are important people exerting undue influence. There are BATI officers who are obsessed with following their own agenda. But those could all be overcome. It’s the major leaks from a highly placed person in the BATI to a ringleader in the transfer traffickers that foil the BATI every time.

Florian is still working his way through his philosophical and moral crises. Sophie is discouraged by his continued exploration of Sylvain’s life, but her uncle, Vautier, tries to reassure her that this is a normal part of the process for many transfers. As Sylvain, Florian is making waves by taking a stand on transfer issues, which causes everyone around him to reassess him, their relationship and their own opinions.

He’s not exactly keeping his head down and blending in so that he can quietly slip away with Sophie and the kids in a few months. Instead, Captain Sylvain Bernard is becoming more famous, and more controversial, than ever.

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Quick Review of Roswell: Entire Original Series

~ Metacrone ~ 1 Comment

 

The original TV series Roswell (not to be confused with the new CW show Roswell, New Mexico) ran for 3 seasons on The WB (seasons 1&2) and UPN (season 3), from 1999-2002, for a total of 61 episodes. The show was very loosely based on the YA book series Roswell High, written by Melinda Metz. Jason Katims (who later went on to create Friday Night Lights and Parenthood) created Roswell and stayed on as showrunner for all three seasons.

Roswell takes places in the real life small town of the same name, in southern New Mexico, where a mysterious crash in 1947 has become legendary in the decades since it happened. The alien spaceship crashed out in the desert, leading to rumors and guesses about what really happened, which quickly led to a government cover up. Roswell houses a military base which took part in an investigation of the ship and secret alien remains. The town itself has embraced its notoriety as an alien and UFO Mecca, with businesses and events throughout the town sporting space themes and catering to alien-hunting tourists.

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Roswell, New Mexico Season 1 Episode 1: Pilot Recap

~ Metacrone

Roswell,NM Liz&Max at sunset

Roswell, New Mexico is The CW’s latest entry into the reboot and revival craze that’s brought back so many old TV shows, whether they should have been resurrected or not. As a fan of the original Roswell series, I had mixed feelings going into this version. After watching the pilot, I think that if viewers can focus on this version and leave behind expectations based on the original series, it’s an enjoyable show. Roswell, New Mexico has the potential to live up to some of the early promise that the original showed, before it turned into a charming mess.

We (Metamaiden and Metacrone) loved the original Roswell fiercely. We own the DVDs and have watched the entire 60 plus episode series ‘I don’t know how many’ times. Actually, we should probably write a Quick Review of the series and recommend essential episodes. Keep an eye out for that review. It’s HERE.

We also own the original Roswell High Series of 10 books by Melinda Metz. The original TV series was commissioned based on the first book, so the two series don’t have much in common beyond the basic premise.

What we’re trying to say here is twofold: This is a major fandom for us, and Roswell has always been a story with multiple versions. The novels and the original series were written at the same time. So which is the real cannon? Neither. The story works best if you’re open-minded about many things, from “mixed relationships” to different versions of stories about aliens to reinterpretations of beloved characters.

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The CW’s Containment: Review of Entire Series

~ Metacrone ~ 1 Comment

 

Containment- Sabine, Jake, Lex, Katie, Jana

Containment, the story of a viral plague which erupts in Atlanta and the quarantine zone that’s set up to control its spread, was a limited series which ran for 13 episodes on The CW in the spring and summer of 2016. Like all CW shows, it now lives on Netflix. Because it aired during that odd time of the year that isn’t a traditional TV “season”, Containment didn’t get much attention at the time, and had mixed critical reviews. (Metawitches wasn’t around yet.) Metamaiden and I both thought it was a fun show, for the subject matter, and brought some things to the table that we rarely see when a plague is the main subject.

Containment, based on the Belgian series Cordon, was developed for The CW by prolific showrunner Julie Plec, of The Vampire Diaries fame. She and David Nutter both served as executive producers. It starred David Gyasi as Major Alex “Lex” Carnahan, Christina Moses as Jana Mayfield, Chris Wood as Officer Jake Riley, Kristen Gutoskie as Katie Frank, Claudia Black as Dr. Sabine Lommers, George Young as Dr. Victor Cannerts,
Hanna Mangan-Lawrence as Teresa Keaton, and Trevor St. John as Leonard “Leo” Greene.

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The Passage Season 1 Episode 1: Pilot Recap

~ Metacrone

Brad and Amy- Can One Girl Save Humanity?

Review

Fox’s new science fiction series, The Passage, which is based on Justin Cronin’s trilogy of novels, got off to a great start this week. The pilot served as an appetizer to whet our taste buds for what’s to come in this series, giving us small bites of different aspects of the universe established in Justin Cronin’s books and the changes made in order to transfer it to the screen. So far, all of the important book elements are present (or on their way), and the changes make sense, given the different logistics required for books vs TV.

I enjoyed everyone in the cast, though I can’t say they’re all exactly how I pictured the characters in the book. That’s mostly because the show has done a great job of diversifying what was a very white, male cast of characters in the book version of Project Noah. This is a welcome change. The gender swaps have already made for some intriguing changes in character interactions.

The early part of the story depends on the chemistry and believability of the pseudo father-daughter relationship between Mark-Paul Gosselaar’s federal agent, Brad Wolgast, and Saniyya Sidney’s orphaned 10 year old girl, Amy Bellafonte. The two actors nail it. Individually, they are each talented, charismatic and charming. Together, they share an immediate warmth and light that makes it understandable why they’d bond so quickly. Both characters come into the relationship feeling like they are alone in the world and each is mourning a deep loss. Their chemistry allows them to slot each other into the holes in their hearts.

The virals (vampires) are suitably menacing as they lie in wait for their prey and use hypnotic psychological tricks to draw in their victims. The series has added the threat of a global avian flu pandemic, which kills its victims in 12 hours, to help explain the reasoning for the accelerated pace of the research on the virals, who were meant to cure all diseases.

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