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'Bones' is back! The show's eighth season is premiering tonight on FOX at 8/7 C.
FOX's decision to have it's shows return a week earlier than most other networks may be one of their smartest moves yet. Monday nights are going to be a tough crowd this year...'How I Met Your Mother' and 'Dancing with the Stars' will be 'Bones' main competition in the same time-slot.
'Castle', a show which attracts the same type as viewers as 'Bones', had a strong season last year. Arguably last season was one of 'Bones' weakest. There was a combination of:
a shortened season (due to Emily Deschanel's pregnancy)
writing said pregnancy into the series (meaning fewer case investigation with the show's lead duo)
a decrease in chemistry between the two main characters (unclear if this is because Deschanel and Boreanaz can play subtext better than they can play main text)
'Castle', meanwhile, offered:
a moving PTSD episode (leading to a PRISM award win by Katic and Huertas)
a rift between it's two main characters (which only lead fans to want them to get together more)
further investigation into the murder which propels the series (that of Beckett's mother)
a coupling of the show's main characters that was intense and steamy (proving that Fillion and Katic can do main text as well as they can do subtext)
If fans of both shows are going to choose only one series to watch this season, it's probably going to be 'Castle'. Because of that, it makes perfect sense to start airing episodes of 'Bones' tonight (a full week before the premiere of 'Castle'). If the season opener of 'Bones' is strong enough, it may sway some of the audience toward watching 'Bones' live each week, and leaving 'Castle' the the DVR.
The premiere episode of 'Bones' promises a couple of things: a blonde Brennan, a pissed-off Booth, a reveal of which members of the gang have been aiding fugitive Brennan, and a reunion.
31 Aralık 2012 Pazartesi
Grey's Anatomy S9Ep1: Going Going Gone Recap
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'Grey's Anatomy' is back in an episode that's as good as it is confusing.
As a quick reminder, last season ended with a bang. Literally. A plane carrying a team of doctors that included Meredith, Cristina, Derek, Mark, Lexie, and Arizona crashed. In the sob filled finale, Lexie died while pinned under the plane. Cristina injured her arm, Arizona was bleeding badly from her leg, Derek had a damaged hand, and Mark had some serious internal injuries.
You'd expect the premiere episode to pick up right after the crash, but instead the episode leapt several months ahead.
This leap was clearly done to increase the suspense throughout the episode: the viewer didn't know who had lived/who had died, and how each person was impacted. Unfortunately, it also made the episode slightly confusing. There's a thin line between being intrigued and being irritated. Luckily, this episode verged on the intriguing side.
The episode was intercut with numerous home video style flashbacks. The first one was filming Derek and Mark getting ready for Derek's first wedding. As with the rest of the videos, it featured Sloane prominently. This foreshadowed things to come.
We see a timid intern trying to avoid her mean resident nicknamed "Medusa". As the intern slowly approaches Meredith and Bailey, it is clear that Meredith is the resident in the question.
Meredith as a mean resident? It actually makes a lot of sense. Regardless of how the plane crash impacted her, Meredith was trained by Bailey...and they called her 'The Nazi' in the first two season's of the show.
Derek is back in the hospital dressed in scrubs. This alleviates our concern that he'd never be able to perform surgery again. Except it turns out that although he has been cleared for surgery he has yet to perform a single operation. He's nervous about his hand clenching at a crucial moment. Having hand seizures while said hand is inside someone's brain probably isn't the safest.
But today he wants to perform his first surgery. Callie asks him if he's sure he want to do it today of all days, but he insists that he needs it. What is so big about today?
When he walks into the surgery Callie is standing there along with the other surgical staff and they give him a standing ovation. Despite the fact that he says that "it's a wonderful day to save lives" Derek finds himself unable to complete the surgery. His hand shakes--whether it's mental or physical remains to be seen.
Alex is back to his Season One ways; he's making out with random interns in the supply closets. It seems he has delayed going to Hopkins because he has been covering Peds. Arizona is apparently gone. We don't know what's going on: Is she dead? Has she had a nervous breakdown?
Bailey's boyfriend has left to attend his out of state medical program but he is visiting her a lot. And they're having sex. A lot. She seems really happy. So happy in fact, that Webber admits to her that she is no longer called 'The Nazi'. She has a new--less scary--nickname. She begs him to tell her what it is, but he awkwardly refuses. Seems like the ex-Chief is still afraid of the wrath of Bailey.
Everyone at the hospital keeps on mentioning 5 o'clock as though something major is happening at that time. As soon as the camera pans to Mark Sloane lying on a hospital bed, attached to numerous wires and monitors, it's clear that the 5 o'clock deadline has to do with him. Sloane is in a coma and based on his wishes he doesn't want to be kept on life support for more than 30 days. The 30 days are up at 5 o'clock and the doctors realize the severity of that situation: at 5 o'clock Mark Sloane will die.
Cristina is now at her new job in Minnesota and it's clear she's not happy. Despite her displeasure with her supervisors and the climate, even Cristina is aware that 5 o'clock is approaching. Despite the fact that she and Meredith talk often via video conference it's soon clear that they have yet to visit each other. Presumably because they've both terrified of flying after the plane crash.
Although Callie wasn't in the plane crash it is clear she has been emotionally impacted as well. She is trying to hold it together--even going so far as sitting at Sloane's bedside and joking that she's taking her top off (in hopes of snapping him out of the coma). However, she breaks a couple of times during the episode. Her tension is evident when Owen introduces her to the new Peds surgery resident (Dr. Barnett) who is "replacing" Arizona. Does that mean she actually died in the crash?
It's especially heartbreaking when minutes later we see Callie crouched in a supply closet sobbing. Is she crying because Arizona is dead? In the middle of her emotional breakdown the supply closet door swings open and Alex pushes an intern inside. They begin making out but stop abruptly when they catch sight of Callie. She screams at them to "get out!". The intern promptly leaves, but Alex hovers in the doorway. Callie continues to order him "out" but instead he closes the door and leans against it. Alex may have reverted to some of his old ways, but he isn't the jerk he once was. He still cares about his friends.
Dr. Webber prepares to turn off Sloane's life support while Callie and Derek watch. Although it makes one wonder if Sloane has no other family, it is certainly true that Callie and Derek are the closest things to family he has at the hospital. Except for Lexie that is.
In an incredibly sad flashback, we see a home movie shot at Callie and Arizona's wedding. The videographer asks Sloane who he thinks he'll be with when he's old and grey. He admits he doesn't think he'll be with anyone, but if there is one person he's with it would be Lexie Grey. Since Lexie died in the plane crash and Sloane is about to die this statement is all the more powerful.
As Mark is dying his friends and colleagues gather close. While Callie and Derek are the only ones in the actual room, Bailey and her boyfriend, Webber, Alex and Meredith all gather close. The horribly depressing scene is briefly interrupted by a slightly comedic moment. Bailey, who has been trying to find out her new nickname for most of the episode, is abruptly told by Alex that her new nickname is BCB, or Booty Call Bailey due to the excitement (and copious amounts of sex) she experiences when her boyfriend visits.
Meredith can't deal with the stress of waiting for Mark's death. She announces that she's going to see Cristina and rushes out of the hospital.
At the airport Meredith catches a glimpse of Alex and gets his attention. She's mad at him because he's leaving without saying good bye to her. He yells that he can't stick around just because everyone else is leaving and she doesn't want to be alone. As Alex heads to his plane he catches sight of Owen.
Meredith gets on the plane, but freaks out just as it is getting ready to takeoff. It is clear that she is having flashbacks to the crash.
Back in Joe's bar Meredith calls Cristina over her iPad. They both takes shots together, states apart but facing each other as always. Meredith is shocked when Alex sits down next to her. He admits that he couldn't get on his plane and that he's not leaving. He asks Cristina to tell Owen that he wants his job back. He tells her that he saw Owen at the airport and assumes that Owen's coming to visit her--
But he isn't. We see April working at her family's pig farm. Owen approaches and tells her that she has her job back. He said he's made too many bad decisions and lost too many people. He wants her back at the hospital.
Callie walks into her apartment, devastated after Mark's death. She opens the door to a bedroom and we see Arizona, lying in bed, her back facing the door. Callie tells Arizona that she needs to "snap out of it" and reminds her that their daughter just lost a father, and Callie just lost her best friend. Arizona turns around and yells at Callie that she can't forgive her because she cut off her leg. She yanks back the blanket and we see that one of Arizona's legs has been amputated.
And the episode ends.
The entire episode is relatively sob inducing. Sloane's death and the devastation of his friends is heartbreaking to watch. Discovering Arizona's amputation at the very end of the episode makes the whole thing even more anxiety provoking.
Side notes: We're introduced to some new members of the cast. It seems clear that two interns, Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington) and Heather (Tina Majorino) will become central this season. The first appendectomy, designed to be failed by a weak intern (remember George's experience in Season One of 'Grey's'?), was performed by Dr. Wilson. This made her the most central new cast member of this episode.
As a quick reminder, last season ended with a bang. Literally. A plane carrying a team of doctors that included Meredith, Cristina, Derek, Mark, Lexie, and Arizona crashed. In the sob filled finale, Lexie died while pinned under the plane. Cristina injured her arm, Arizona was bleeding badly from her leg, Derek had a damaged hand, and Mark had some serious internal injuries.
You'd expect the premiere episode to pick up right after the crash, but instead the episode leapt several months ahead.
This leap was clearly done to increase the suspense throughout the episode: the viewer didn't know who had lived/who had died, and how each person was impacted. Unfortunately, it also made the episode slightly confusing. There's a thin line between being intrigued and being irritated. Luckily, this episode verged on the intriguing side.
The episode was intercut with numerous home video style flashbacks. The first one was filming Derek and Mark getting ready for Derek's first wedding. As with the rest of the videos, it featured Sloane prominently. This foreshadowed things to come.
We see a timid intern trying to avoid her mean resident nicknamed "Medusa". As the intern slowly approaches Meredith and Bailey, it is clear that Meredith is the resident in the question.
Meredith as a mean resident? It actually makes a lot of sense. Regardless of how the plane crash impacted her, Meredith was trained by Bailey...and they called her 'The Nazi' in the first two season's of the show.
Derek is back in the hospital dressed in scrubs. This alleviates our concern that he'd never be able to perform surgery again. Except it turns out that although he has been cleared for surgery he has yet to perform a single operation. He's nervous about his hand clenching at a crucial moment. Having hand seizures while said hand is inside someone's brain probably isn't the safest.
But today he wants to perform his first surgery. Callie asks him if he's sure he want to do it today of all days, but he insists that he needs it. What is so big about today?
When he walks into the surgery Callie is standing there along with the other surgical staff and they give him a standing ovation. Despite the fact that he says that "it's a wonderful day to save lives" Derek finds himself unable to complete the surgery. His hand shakes--whether it's mental or physical remains to be seen.
Alex is back to his Season One ways; he's making out with random interns in the supply closets. It seems he has delayed going to Hopkins because he has been covering Peds. Arizona is apparently gone. We don't know what's going on: Is she dead? Has she had a nervous breakdown?
Bailey's boyfriend has left to attend his out of state medical program but he is visiting her a lot. And they're having sex. A lot. She seems really happy. So happy in fact, that Webber admits to her that she is no longer called 'The Nazi'. She has a new--less scary--nickname. She begs him to tell her what it is, but he awkwardly refuses. Seems like the ex-Chief is still afraid of the wrath of Bailey.
Everyone at the hospital keeps on mentioning 5 o'clock as though something major is happening at that time. As soon as the camera pans to Mark Sloane lying on a hospital bed, attached to numerous wires and monitors, it's clear that the 5 o'clock deadline has to do with him. Sloane is in a coma and based on his wishes he doesn't want to be kept on life support for more than 30 days. The 30 days are up at 5 o'clock and the doctors realize the severity of that situation: at 5 o'clock Mark Sloane will die.
Cristina is now at her new job in Minnesota and it's clear she's not happy. Despite her displeasure with her supervisors and the climate, even Cristina is aware that 5 o'clock is approaching. Despite the fact that she and Meredith talk often via video conference it's soon clear that they have yet to visit each other. Presumably because they've both terrified of flying after the plane crash.
Although Callie wasn't in the plane crash it is clear she has been emotionally impacted as well. She is trying to hold it together--even going so far as sitting at Sloane's bedside and joking that she's taking her top off (in hopes of snapping him out of the coma). However, she breaks a couple of times during the episode. Her tension is evident when Owen introduces her to the new Peds surgery resident (Dr. Barnett) who is "replacing" Arizona. Does that mean she actually died in the crash?
It's especially heartbreaking when minutes later we see Callie crouched in a supply closet sobbing. Is she crying because Arizona is dead? In the middle of her emotional breakdown the supply closet door swings open and Alex pushes an intern inside. They begin making out but stop abruptly when they catch sight of Callie. She screams at them to "get out!". The intern promptly leaves, but Alex hovers in the doorway. Callie continues to order him "out" but instead he closes the door and leans against it. Alex may have reverted to some of his old ways, but he isn't the jerk he once was. He still cares about his friends.
Dr. Webber prepares to turn off Sloane's life support while Callie and Derek watch. Although it makes one wonder if Sloane has no other family, it is certainly true that Callie and Derek are the closest things to family he has at the hospital. Except for Lexie that is.
In an incredibly sad flashback, we see a home movie shot at Callie and Arizona's wedding. The videographer asks Sloane who he thinks he'll be with when he's old and grey. He admits he doesn't think he'll be with anyone, but if there is one person he's with it would be Lexie Grey. Since Lexie died in the plane crash and Sloane is about to die this statement is all the more powerful.
As Mark is dying his friends and colleagues gather close. While Callie and Derek are the only ones in the actual room, Bailey and her boyfriend, Webber, Alex and Meredith all gather close. The horribly depressing scene is briefly interrupted by a slightly comedic moment. Bailey, who has been trying to find out her new nickname for most of the episode, is abruptly told by Alex that her new nickname is BCB, or Booty Call Bailey due to the excitement (and copious amounts of sex) she experiences when her boyfriend visits.
Meredith can't deal with the stress of waiting for Mark's death. She announces that she's going to see Cristina and rushes out of the hospital.
At the airport Meredith catches a glimpse of Alex and gets his attention. She's mad at him because he's leaving without saying good bye to her. He yells that he can't stick around just because everyone else is leaving and she doesn't want to be alone. As Alex heads to his plane he catches sight of Owen.
Meredith gets on the plane, but freaks out just as it is getting ready to takeoff. It is clear that she is having flashbacks to the crash.
Back in Joe's bar Meredith calls Cristina over her iPad. They both takes shots together, states apart but facing each other as always. Meredith is shocked when Alex sits down next to her. He admits that he couldn't get on his plane and that he's not leaving. He asks Cristina to tell Owen that he wants his job back. He tells her that he saw Owen at the airport and assumes that Owen's coming to visit her--
But he isn't. We see April working at her family's pig farm. Owen approaches and tells her that she has her job back. He said he's made too many bad decisions and lost too many people. He wants her back at the hospital.
Callie walks into her apartment, devastated after Mark's death. She opens the door to a bedroom and we see Arizona, lying in bed, her back facing the door. Callie tells Arizona that she needs to "snap out of it" and reminds her that their daughter just lost a father, and Callie just lost her best friend. Arizona turns around and yells at Callie that she can't forgive her because she cut off her leg. She yanks back the blanket and we see that one of Arizona's legs has been amputated.
And the episode ends.
The entire episode is relatively sob inducing. Sloane's death and the devastation of his friends is heartbreaking to watch. Discovering Arizona's amputation at the very end of the episode makes the whole thing even more anxiety provoking.
Side notes: We're introduced to some new members of the cast. It seems clear that two interns, Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington) and Heather (Tina Majorino) will become central this season. The first appendectomy, designed to be failed by a weak intern (remember George's experience in Season One of 'Grey's'?), was performed by Dr. Wilson. This made her the most central new cast member of this episode.
 |
| Say Goodbye to Mark Sloane & Lexie Grey |
People's Choice Awards 2013!
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The People's Choice Awards are in! Apparently that's all the motivation I need to update this blog. I don't need anything as major as the Emmys to get my act together. A meaningless ceremony (otherwise known as a popularity contest where those who win are those who understand the internet and tweens best) is all it takes. So, I guess take note or something?
Anyway, GET EXCITED.
The televised show isn't until January 9th, 2013 but you can vote for the nominees now.*
*If you voted before you weren't actually casting a "ballot" (that seems too serious a term for this event) but rather indicating who you wanted to be nominated. Now that they actually are nominated they need your vote again to actually win. Aww, democracy at work.
Since this blog focuses on television, here are the TV nominees (along with some slightly snide commentary)...
Favorite Network TV Comedy
~Glee (at best this is a dramedy)
~The Big Bang Theory (please no)
~New Girl (acceptable)
~How I Met Your Mother (acceptable)
~Modern Family (please dear God, not again)
Favorite Network TV Drama
~Grimm (eh)
~Grey's Anatomy (acceptable)
~Gossip Girl (not happening. oh wait, tweens!)
~Once Upon a Time (acceptable, not that I watch this)
~Revenge (I don't know what's more intense than a drama, but this is it)
Favorite Cable TV Comedy
~Awkward (hilarious)
~Hot in Cleveland (oh Betty White)
~It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (always acceptable...for awards, not for political correctness)
~Melissa & Joey (um? no Baby Daddy?)
~Psych (all right)
Favorite Cable TV Drama
~Leverage (where is Rizzoli & Isles?)
~Burn Notice (definitely)
~Pretty Little Liars (this isn't season one anymore tweens)
~The Walking Dead (completely)
~White Collar (okay)
Favorite Premium Cable TV Show
~Dexter (after this season? well deserved)
~Game of Thrones (meh)
~Homeland (obviously)
~Spartacus (I don't even know what this is)
~True Blood (wait! Is it 2008?)
Favorite TV Crime Drama
~Bones (I love you Hart Hanson, but this season?)
~Castle (yes, please)
~Criminal Minds (questionable)
~CSI (no)
~NCIS (I don't think so)
Favorite Sci-fi/Fantasy Show
~Doctor Who (clarification would be helpful)
~Once Upon a Time (why do they get two categories?)
~Supernatural (no)
~The Vampire Diaries (tweens)
~The Walking Dead (yes)
Favorite Comedic TV Actor
~Chris Colfer (is it comedy?)
~Jesse Tyler Ferguson (don't you have an Emmy?)
~Jim Parsons (Emmy?)
~Neil Patrick Harris (please)
~Ty Burrell (Emmy)
Favorite Comedic TV Actress
~Jane Lynch (okay)
~Kaley Cuoco (not this year)
~Lea Michele (no)
~Sofia Vergara (Emmy?)
~Zooey Deschanel (this seems likely)
Favorite Dramatic TV Actor
~Ian Somerhalder (maybe)
~Jared Padalecki (who?)
~Jensen Ackles (next year)
~Nathan Fillion (yes please. also, Twitter)
~Paul Wesley (possible)
Favorite Dramatic TV Actress
~Ellen Pompeo (good crier)
~Emily Deschanel (wait, no Boreanaz?)
~Ginnifer Goodwin (possible)
~Nina Dobrev (maybe)
~Stana Katic (she wasn't here last year!)
VOTE
Anyway, GET EXCITED.
The televised show isn't until January 9th, 2013 but you can vote for the nominees now.*
*If you voted before you weren't actually casting a "ballot" (that seems too serious a term for this event) but rather indicating who you wanted to be nominated. Now that they actually are nominated they need your vote again to actually win. Aww, democracy at work.
Since this blog focuses on television, here are the TV nominees (along with some slightly snide commentary)...
Favorite Network TV Comedy
~Glee (at best this is a dramedy)
~The Big Bang Theory (please no)
~New Girl (acceptable)
~How I Met Your Mother (acceptable)
~Modern Family (please dear God, not again)
Favorite Network TV Drama
~Grimm (eh)
~Grey's Anatomy (acceptable)
~Gossip Girl (not happening. oh wait, tweens!)
~Once Upon a Time (acceptable, not that I watch this)
~Revenge (I don't know what's more intense than a drama, but this is it)
Favorite Cable TV Comedy
~Awkward (hilarious)
~Hot in Cleveland (oh Betty White)
~It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (always acceptable...for awards, not for political correctness)
~Melissa & Joey (um? no Baby Daddy?)
~Psych (all right)
Favorite Cable TV Drama
~Leverage (where is Rizzoli & Isles?)
~Burn Notice (definitely)
~Pretty Little Liars (this isn't season one anymore tweens)
~The Walking Dead (completely)
~White Collar (okay)
Favorite Premium Cable TV Show
~Dexter (after this season? well deserved)
~Game of Thrones (meh)
~Homeland (obviously)
~Spartacus (I don't even know what this is)
~True Blood (wait! Is it 2008?)
Favorite TV Crime Drama
~Bones (I love you Hart Hanson, but this season?)
~Castle (yes, please)
~Criminal Minds (questionable)
~CSI (no)
~NCIS (I don't think so)
Favorite Sci-fi/Fantasy Show
~Doctor Who (clarification would be helpful)
~Once Upon a Time (why do they get two categories?)
~Supernatural (no)
~The Vampire Diaries (tweens)
~The Walking Dead (yes)
Favorite Comedic TV Actor
~Chris Colfer (is it comedy?)
~Jesse Tyler Ferguson (don't you have an Emmy?)
~Jim Parsons (Emmy?)
~Neil Patrick Harris (please)
~Ty Burrell (Emmy)
Favorite Comedic TV Actress
~Jane Lynch (okay)
~Kaley Cuoco (not this year)
~Lea Michele (no)
~Sofia Vergara (Emmy?)
~Zooey Deschanel (this seems likely)
Favorite Dramatic TV Actor
~Ian Somerhalder (maybe)
~Jared Padalecki (who?)
~Jensen Ackles (next year)
~Nathan Fillion (yes please. also, Twitter)
~Paul Wesley (possible)
Favorite Dramatic TV Actress
~Ellen Pompeo (good crier)
~Emily Deschanel (wait, no Boreanaz?)
~Ginnifer Goodwin (possible)
~Nina Dobrev (maybe)
~Stana Katic (she wasn't here last year!)
VOTE
HIMYM: Lobster Crawl..."But he's her lobster!"
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You know how sometimes something is really, really stupid but it makes you laugh anyway?
That describes last night's HIMYM in a nutshell.
"Lobster Crawl" (S8Ep9) opened with an exchange that was so ridiculous that I didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or turn off my TV.
Since this season of "HIMYM" has been incredibly uneven (both in quality and in tone) I decided to bear with it.
I still can't decide if I'm pleased with that decision.
The episode opened with the gang (plus baby Marvin) hanging out at the bar.
Thank god that adorable baby was there, because we really needed him to get through the rest of the scene.
Barney spills some ketchup on his red tie and begins to have a verbal heart attack, spewing about how the tie died so young (and way too close to retirement) and essentially going on and on about the tie as if it were a close personal friend. If you've watched prior episodes you probably remember that this joke has been done before (with a suit) which may be one reason why it isn't terribly funny. When a show starts to recycle it's own jokes without purpose you know that it's near the end of it's tenure.
Robin, after her "huh" moment at the end of last week's episode (where she realized she might actually be interested in Barney the moment he said he was going to let her go and would stop bothering her) was acting like a complete fool. Using a "flirty" voice (I assume that's what Cobie Smulders was trying to do here), laughing like a twelve-year-old, and generally being a tad crazy. Lily filled her normal role of sane one (a role that was to be yanked away from her in the next ten minutes) and pulled Robin aside to confront her.
When Lily heard the story she told Robin it was just like the lobster incident all over again. See, apparently Robin's doctor told her she was super allergic to lobster and could never eat them again. So she immediately went out and ate a lot of lobster. Because when Robin's told she can't have something she really, really wants it.
So Robin had very little interest in lobster before she was told she could never, ever have it again and Robin had very little interest in Barney before...well, you see where this is going.
The interesting thing is that Lily compares Barney to the lobster, and Robin accepts that he's the lobster equivalent, but both of them are clearly wrong. If the past several episodes have shown us anything (and they haven't shown us a lot) it's that Robin really does still have feelings for Barney.
The subtle undertones that Cobie Smulders has been managing this season have been very impressive. Speaking of which, I didn't mean to belittle Smulders' acting ability re: the "flirty" voice. While I found it incredibly grating, I was very impressed with the level of commitment in her acting. She actually managed to make herself unattractive which is kind of hard to believe because have you seen her?
Moving on. Barney and Robin continue to have ridiculous exchanges which were, frankly, almost embarrassing to watch. Meanwhile, Marshall, Lily and Ted have a less important storyline that revolves around baby Marvin.
See, Marvin is temporarily childcare-less because Lily's dad is sick and so Ted volunteers. He's currently unemployed and everyone knows he loves kids so it's a win-win. Except that, being Ted, he completely oversteps and does things like buy Marvin a football jersey for a team that Marshall hates and take the baby to get his first photo taken with Santa without his parents. Lily goes briefly crazy (I told you she would) when she realizes that she missed Marvin crawling for the first time, but by the end of the episode the three of them are okay again (as we all knew they would be).
Meanwhile, Lily attempts to help Robin with her Barney situation. Robin admits that she wants to sleep with Barney one more time because if he's really her lobster* then she should treat him like she treated the lobster: have him one more time and then feel horrible about it and never want it again.
The rest of the episode is filled with Robin's version of Barney's playbook. (Is a show also considered almost over when it starts spoofing itself?) Much as in "The Playbook" (S5Ep8) each pick-up attempt is inter-cut with a story card telling us the title of the play. Here each of the cards are the title of a move that Robin uses to try and get Barney to sleep with her.
Of course, the one suggested by Lily involves using Lesbian taunts...'HIMYM' loves to throw in occasional references to Lily's attraction to Robin.
The lesbian taunt spectacularly backfires as Barney seems more interested in Robin's co-worker Brandi. He leaves with her to go and have sex on the weather set. Robin is upset, but not devastated. I think that her lack of interest in here is because Brandi is the type of woman Barney often has one-night stands with: attractive and not terribly smart.
Later that same night, perhaps because she's more upset with the Barney/Brandi hook-up than she originally let on, she goes to Barney's to seduce him. He opens his door and she opens her coat, revealing lingerie. He tells her he didn't sleep with Brandi and she looks relieved, but then she opens his door further and Patrice is sitting on the sofa.
Patrice has been presented throughout this season as a perfectly nice woman who is irritatingly cheerful and desperately wants to be best friends with Robin. She's also no where near as attractive as Robin (that is not supposed to be an insult toward Ellen Williams, because seriously, have you seen Cobie Smulders?).
Seeing Patrice sitting on Barney's couch and hearing Barney say that they're on a date clearly devastates Robin. Because she knows that if he does hook-up with Patrice it will be more than a one night stand...she clearly is not his typical type.
Barney is easily able to shrug off Robin in lingerie (another blow to her ego) and tells her that if she gets dressed she can come in and play cards with them. Basically giving Robin permission to be a third-wheel on his date.
Robin turns him down, incredibly embarrassed though she does a good job of not showing it, and walks away.
My hope is that the devastation that Robin so clearly feels serves as a catalyst for her to admit that she truly has feelings for Barney. It's not just that she needs to get him out of her system, she just needs him. In other words, she doesn't want to eat the lobster, she wants him to be her lobster.**
HIMYM airs on Mondays at 8/7C on CBS
*Ha! Just realized that this could almost be taken as a spoof of 'Friends'. Ross and Rachel were will they/won't they for years and Phoebe was insistent that they were each other's lobster. Here Barney is being compared to a lobster and we are again having a will they/won't they scenario forced down our throats.
**That sounded way dirtier than I intended.
That describes last night's HIMYM in a nutshell.
"Lobster Crawl" (S8Ep9) opened with an exchange that was so ridiculous that I didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or turn off my TV.
Since this season of "HIMYM" has been incredibly uneven (both in quality and in tone) I decided to bear with it.
I still can't decide if I'm pleased with that decision.
The episode opened with the gang (plus baby Marvin) hanging out at the bar.
Thank god that adorable baby was there, because we really needed him to get through the rest of the scene.
Barney spills some ketchup on his red tie and begins to have a verbal heart attack, spewing about how the tie died so young (and way too close to retirement) and essentially going on and on about the tie as if it were a close personal friend. If you've watched prior episodes you probably remember that this joke has been done before (with a suit) which may be one reason why it isn't terribly funny. When a show starts to recycle it's own jokes without purpose you know that it's near the end of it's tenure.
Robin, after her "huh" moment at the end of last week's episode (where she realized she might actually be interested in Barney the moment he said he was going to let her go and would stop bothering her) was acting like a complete fool. Using a "flirty" voice (I assume that's what Cobie Smulders was trying to do here), laughing like a twelve-year-old, and generally being a tad crazy. Lily filled her normal role of sane one (a role that was to be yanked away from her in the next ten minutes) and pulled Robin aside to confront her.
When Lily heard the story she told Robin it was just like the lobster incident all over again. See, apparently Robin's doctor told her she was super allergic to lobster and could never eat them again. So she immediately went out and ate a lot of lobster. Because when Robin's told she can't have something she really, really wants it.
So Robin had very little interest in lobster before she was told she could never, ever have it again and Robin had very little interest in Barney before...well, you see where this is going.
The interesting thing is that Lily compares Barney to the lobster, and Robin accepts that he's the lobster equivalent, but both of them are clearly wrong. If the past several episodes have shown us anything (and they haven't shown us a lot) it's that Robin really does still have feelings for Barney.
The subtle undertones that Cobie Smulders has been managing this season have been very impressive. Speaking of which, I didn't mean to belittle Smulders' acting ability re: the "flirty" voice. While I found it incredibly grating, I was very impressed with the level of commitment in her acting. She actually managed to make herself unattractive which is kind of hard to believe because have you seen her?
Moving on. Barney and Robin continue to have ridiculous exchanges which were, frankly, almost embarrassing to watch. Meanwhile, Marshall, Lily and Ted have a less important storyline that revolves around baby Marvin.
See, Marvin is temporarily childcare-less because Lily's dad is sick and so Ted volunteers. He's currently unemployed and everyone knows he loves kids so it's a win-win. Except that, being Ted, he completely oversteps and does things like buy Marvin a football jersey for a team that Marshall hates and take the baby to get his first photo taken with Santa without his parents. Lily goes briefly crazy (I told you she would) when she realizes that she missed Marvin crawling for the first time, but by the end of the episode the three of them are okay again (as we all knew they would be).
Meanwhile, Lily attempts to help Robin with her Barney situation. Robin admits that she wants to sleep with Barney one more time because if he's really her lobster* then she should treat him like she treated the lobster: have him one more time and then feel horrible about it and never want it again.
The rest of the episode is filled with Robin's version of Barney's playbook. (Is a show also considered almost over when it starts spoofing itself?) Much as in "The Playbook" (S5Ep8) each pick-up attempt is inter-cut with a story card telling us the title of the play. Here each of the cards are the title of a move that Robin uses to try and get Barney to sleep with her.
Of course, the one suggested by Lily involves using Lesbian taunts...'HIMYM' loves to throw in occasional references to Lily's attraction to Robin.
The lesbian taunt spectacularly backfires as Barney seems more interested in Robin's co-worker Brandi. He leaves with her to go and have sex on the weather set. Robin is upset, but not devastated. I think that her lack of interest in here is because Brandi is the type of woman Barney often has one-night stands with: attractive and not terribly smart.
Later that same night, perhaps because she's more upset with the Barney/Brandi hook-up than she originally let on, she goes to Barney's to seduce him. He opens his door and she opens her coat, revealing lingerie. He tells her he didn't sleep with Brandi and she looks relieved, but then she opens his door further and Patrice is sitting on the sofa.
Patrice has been presented throughout this season as a perfectly nice woman who is irritatingly cheerful and desperately wants to be best friends with Robin. She's also no where near as attractive as Robin (that is not supposed to be an insult toward Ellen Williams, because seriously, have you seen Cobie Smulders?).
Seeing Patrice sitting on Barney's couch and hearing Barney say that they're on a date clearly devastates Robin. Because she knows that if he does hook-up with Patrice it will be more than a one night stand...she clearly is not his typical type.
Barney is easily able to shrug off Robin in lingerie (another blow to her ego) and tells her that if she gets dressed she can come in and play cards with them. Basically giving Robin permission to be a third-wheel on his date.
Robin turns him down, incredibly embarrassed though she does a good job of not showing it, and walks away.
My hope is that the devastation that Robin so clearly feels serves as a catalyst for her to admit that she truly has feelings for Barney. It's not just that she needs to get him out of her system, she just needs him. In other words, she doesn't want to eat the lobster, she wants him to be her lobster.**
 |
*Ha! Just realized that this could almost be taken as a spoof of 'Friends'. Ross and Rachel were will they/won't they for years and Phoebe was insistent that they were each other's lobster. Here Barney is being compared to a lobster and we are again having a will they/won't they scenario forced down our throats.
**That sounded way dirtier than I intended.
'HIMYM' Breaking News: Renewed or Cancelled?
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'HIMYM' breaking news!!
The show has officially been renewed for a final ninth season.
Jason Segel was originally hesitant to resign to the hit show, but now that he has acquiesed the rest of the cast is on board.
That means we get another year to meet the mother. Or, as many loyal viewers and fans hope, a year to see the mother acually become a part of the group.
Hopefully fans of the CBS hit comedy will be pleased.
First an engagement, now this, it's certainly been a good 'HIMYM' week.
Wait, what?
No, WHAT?
'HIMYM' breaking news!!
The show has officially been renewed for a final ninth season.
Jason Segel was originally hesitant to resign to the hit show, but now that he has acquiesed the rest of the cast is on board.
That means we get another year to meet the mother. Or, as many loyal viewers and fans hope, a year to see the mother acually become a part of the group.
Hopefully fans of the CBS hit comedy will be pleased.
First an engagement, now this, it's certainly been a good 'HIMYM' week.
 |
| The cast nine years ago, when they were BABIES. |
27 Aralık 2012 Perşembe
'Bones': Season 8, New Tonight. Premiere.
To contact us Click HERE
'Bones' is back! The show's eighth season is premiering tonight on FOX at 8/7 C.
FOX's decision to have it's shows return a week earlier than most other networks may be one of their smartest moves yet. Monday nights are going to be a tough crowd this year...'How I Met Your Mother' and 'Dancing with the Stars' will be 'Bones' main competition in the same time-slot.
'Castle', a show which attracts the same type as viewers as 'Bones', had a strong season last year. Arguably last season was one of 'Bones' weakest. There was a combination of:
a shortened season (due to Emily Deschanel's pregnancy)
writing said pregnancy into the series (meaning fewer case investigation with the show's lead duo)
a decrease in chemistry between the two main characters (unclear if this is because Deschanel and Boreanaz can play subtext better than they can play main text)
'Castle', meanwhile, offered:
a moving PTSD episode (leading to a PRISM award win by Katic and Huertas)
a rift between it's two main characters (which only lead fans to want them to get together more)
further investigation into the murder which propels the series (that of Beckett's mother)
a coupling of the show's main characters that was intense and steamy (proving that Fillion and Katic can do main text as well as they can do subtext)
If fans of both shows are going to choose only one series to watch this season, it's probably going to be 'Castle'. Because of that, it makes perfect sense to start airing episodes of 'Bones' tonight (a full week before the premiere of 'Castle'). If the season opener of 'Bones' is strong enough, it may sway some of the audience toward watching 'Bones' live each week, and leaving 'Castle' the the DVR.
The premiere episode of 'Bones' promises a couple of things: a blonde Brennan, a pissed-off Booth, a reveal of which members of the gang have been aiding fugitive Brennan, and a reunion.
FOX's decision to have it's shows return a week earlier than most other networks may be one of their smartest moves yet. Monday nights are going to be a tough crowd this year...'How I Met Your Mother' and 'Dancing with the Stars' will be 'Bones' main competition in the same time-slot.
'Castle', a show which attracts the same type as viewers as 'Bones', had a strong season last year. Arguably last season was one of 'Bones' weakest. There was a combination of:
a shortened season (due to Emily Deschanel's pregnancy)
writing said pregnancy into the series (meaning fewer case investigation with the show's lead duo)
a decrease in chemistry between the two main characters (unclear if this is because Deschanel and Boreanaz can play subtext better than they can play main text)
'Castle', meanwhile, offered:
a moving PTSD episode (leading to a PRISM award win by Katic and Huertas)
a rift between it's two main characters (which only lead fans to want them to get together more)
further investigation into the murder which propels the series (that of Beckett's mother)
a coupling of the show's main characters that was intense and steamy (proving that Fillion and Katic can do main text as well as they can do subtext)
If fans of both shows are going to choose only one series to watch this season, it's probably going to be 'Castle'. Because of that, it makes perfect sense to start airing episodes of 'Bones' tonight (a full week before the premiere of 'Castle'). If the season opener of 'Bones' is strong enough, it may sway some of the audience toward watching 'Bones' live each week, and leaving 'Castle' the the DVR.
The premiere episode of 'Bones' promises a couple of things: a blonde Brennan, a pissed-off Booth, a reveal of which members of the gang have been aiding fugitive Brennan, and a reunion.
Grey's Anatomy S9Ep1: Going Going Gone Recap
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'Grey's Anatomy' is back in an episode that's as good as it is confusing.
As a quick reminder, last season ended with a bang. Literally. A plane carrying a team of doctors that included Meredith, Cristina, Derek, Mark, Lexie, and Arizona crashed. In the sob filled finale, Lexie died while pinned under the plane. Cristina injured her arm, Arizona was bleeding badly from her leg, Derek had a damaged hand, and Mark had some serious internal injuries.
You'd expect the premiere episode to pick up right after the crash, but instead the episode leapt several months ahead.
This leap was clearly done to increase the suspense throughout the episode: the viewer didn't know who had lived/who had died, and how each person was impacted. Unfortunately, it also made the episode slightly confusing. There's a thin line between being intrigued and being irritated. Luckily, this episode verged on the intriguing side.
The episode was intercut with numerous home video style flashbacks. The first one was filming Derek and Mark getting ready for Derek's first wedding. As with the rest of the videos, it featured Sloane prominently. This foreshadowed things to come.
We see a timid intern trying to avoid her mean resident nicknamed "Medusa". As the intern slowly approaches Meredith and Bailey, it is clear that Meredith is the resident in the question.
Meredith as a mean resident? It actually makes a lot of sense. Regardless of how the plane crash impacted her, Meredith was trained by Bailey...and they called her 'The Nazi' in the first two season's of the show.
Derek is back in the hospital dressed in scrubs. This alleviates our concern that he'd never be able to perform surgery again. Except it turns out that although he has been cleared for surgery he has yet to perform a single operation. He's nervous about his hand clenching at a crucial moment. Having hand seizures while said hand is inside someone's brain probably isn't the safest.
But today he wants to perform his first surgery. Callie asks him if he's sure he want to do it today of all days, but he insists that he needs it. What is so big about today?
When he walks into the surgery Callie is standing there along with the other surgical staff and they give him a standing ovation. Despite the fact that he says that "it's a wonderful day to save lives" Derek finds himself unable to complete the surgery. His hand shakes--whether it's mental or physical remains to be seen.
Alex is back to his Season One ways; he's making out with random interns in the supply closets. It seems he has delayed going to Hopkins because he has been covering Peds. Arizona is apparently gone. We don't know what's going on: Is she dead? Has she had a nervous breakdown?
Bailey's boyfriend has left to attend his out of state medical program but he is visiting her a lot. And they're having sex. A lot. She seems really happy. So happy in fact, that Webber admits to her that she is no longer called 'The Nazi'. She has a new--less scary--nickname. She begs him to tell her what it is, but he awkwardly refuses. Seems like the ex-Chief is still afraid of the wrath of Bailey.
Everyone at the hospital keeps on mentioning 5 o'clock as though something major is happening at that time. As soon as the camera pans to Mark Sloane lying on a hospital bed, attached to numerous wires and monitors, it's clear that the 5 o'clock deadline has to do with him. Sloane is in a coma and based on his wishes he doesn't want to be kept on life support for more than 30 days. The 30 days are up at 5 o'clock and the doctors realize the severity of that situation: at 5 o'clock Mark Sloane will die.
Cristina is now at her new job in Minnesota and it's clear she's not happy. Despite her displeasure with her supervisors and the climate, even Cristina is aware that 5 o'clock is approaching. Despite the fact that she and Meredith talk often via video conference it's soon clear that they have yet to visit each other. Presumably because they've both terrified of flying after the plane crash.
Although Callie wasn't in the plane crash it is clear she has been emotionally impacted as well. She is trying to hold it together--even going so far as sitting at Sloane's bedside and joking that she's taking her top off (in hopes of snapping him out of the coma). However, she breaks a couple of times during the episode. Her tension is evident when Owen introduces her to the new Peds surgery resident (Dr. Barnett) who is "replacing" Arizona. Does that mean she actually died in the crash?
It's especially heartbreaking when minutes later we see Callie crouched in a supply closet sobbing. Is she crying because Arizona is dead? In the middle of her emotional breakdown the supply closet door swings open and Alex pushes an intern inside. They begin making out but stop abruptly when they catch sight of Callie. She screams at them to "get out!". The intern promptly leaves, but Alex hovers in the doorway. Callie continues to order him "out" but instead he closes the door and leans against it. Alex may have reverted to some of his old ways, but he isn't the jerk he once was. He still cares about his friends.
Dr. Webber prepares to turn off Sloane's life support while Callie and Derek watch. Although it makes one wonder if Sloane has no other family, it is certainly true that Callie and Derek are the closest things to family he has at the hospital. Except for Lexie that is.
In an incredibly sad flashback, we see a home movie shot at Callie and Arizona's wedding. The videographer asks Sloane who he thinks he'll be with when he's old and grey. He admits he doesn't think he'll be with anyone, but if there is one person he's with it would be Lexie Grey. Since Lexie died in the plane crash and Sloane is about to die this statement is all the more powerful.
As Mark is dying his friends and colleagues gather close. While Callie and Derek are the only ones in the actual room, Bailey and her boyfriend, Webber, Alex and Meredith all gather close. The horribly depressing scene is briefly interrupted by a slightly comedic moment. Bailey, who has been trying to find out her new nickname for most of the episode, is abruptly told by Alex that her new nickname is BCB, or Booty Call Bailey due to the excitement (and copious amounts of sex) she experiences when her boyfriend visits.
Meredith can't deal with the stress of waiting for Mark's death. She announces that she's going to see Cristina and rushes out of the hospital.
At the airport Meredith catches a glimpse of Alex and gets his attention. She's mad at him because he's leaving without saying good bye to her. He yells that he can't stick around just because everyone else is leaving and she doesn't want to be alone. As Alex heads to his plane he catches sight of Owen.
Meredith gets on the plane, but freaks out just as it is getting ready to takeoff. It is clear that she is having flashbacks to the crash.
Back in Joe's bar Meredith calls Cristina over her iPad. They both takes shots together, states apart but facing each other as always. Meredith is shocked when Alex sits down next to her. He admits that he couldn't get on his plane and that he's not leaving. He asks Cristina to tell Owen that he wants his job back. He tells her that he saw Owen at the airport and assumes that Owen's coming to visit her--
But he isn't. We see April working at her family's pig farm. Owen approaches and tells her that she has her job back. He said he's made too many bad decisions and lost too many people. He wants her back at the hospital.
Callie walks into her apartment, devastated after Mark's death. She opens the door to a bedroom and we see Arizona, lying in bed, her back facing the door. Callie tells Arizona that she needs to "snap out of it" and reminds her that their daughter just lost a father, and Callie just lost her best friend. Arizona turns around and yells at Callie that she can't forgive her because she cut off her leg. She yanks back the blanket and we see that one of Arizona's legs has been amputated.
And the episode ends.
The entire episode is relatively sob inducing. Sloane's death and the devastation of his friends is heartbreaking to watch. Discovering Arizona's amputation at the very end of the episode makes the whole thing even more anxiety provoking.
Side notes: We're introduced to some new members of the cast. It seems clear that two interns, Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington) and Heather (Tina Majorino) will become central this season. The first appendectomy, designed to be failed by a weak intern (remember George's experience in Season One of 'Grey's'?), was performed by Dr. Wilson. This made her the most central new cast member of this episode.
As a quick reminder, last season ended with a bang. Literally. A plane carrying a team of doctors that included Meredith, Cristina, Derek, Mark, Lexie, and Arizona crashed. In the sob filled finale, Lexie died while pinned under the plane. Cristina injured her arm, Arizona was bleeding badly from her leg, Derek had a damaged hand, and Mark had some serious internal injuries.
You'd expect the premiere episode to pick up right after the crash, but instead the episode leapt several months ahead.
This leap was clearly done to increase the suspense throughout the episode: the viewer didn't know who had lived/who had died, and how each person was impacted. Unfortunately, it also made the episode slightly confusing. There's a thin line between being intrigued and being irritated. Luckily, this episode verged on the intriguing side.
The episode was intercut with numerous home video style flashbacks. The first one was filming Derek and Mark getting ready for Derek's first wedding. As with the rest of the videos, it featured Sloane prominently. This foreshadowed things to come.
We see a timid intern trying to avoid her mean resident nicknamed "Medusa". As the intern slowly approaches Meredith and Bailey, it is clear that Meredith is the resident in the question.
Meredith as a mean resident? It actually makes a lot of sense. Regardless of how the plane crash impacted her, Meredith was trained by Bailey...and they called her 'The Nazi' in the first two season's of the show.
Derek is back in the hospital dressed in scrubs. This alleviates our concern that he'd never be able to perform surgery again. Except it turns out that although he has been cleared for surgery he has yet to perform a single operation. He's nervous about his hand clenching at a crucial moment. Having hand seizures while said hand is inside someone's brain probably isn't the safest.
But today he wants to perform his first surgery. Callie asks him if he's sure he want to do it today of all days, but he insists that he needs it. What is so big about today?
When he walks into the surgery Callie is standing there along with the other surgical staff and they give him a standing ovation. Despite the fact that he says that "it's a wonderful day to save lives" Derek finds himself unable to complete the surgery. His hand shakes--whether it's mental or physical remains to be seen.
Alex is back to his Season One ways; he's making out with random interns in the supply closets. It seems he has delayed going to Hopkins because he has been covering Peds. Arizona is apparently gone. We don't know what's going on: Is she dead? Has she had a nervous breakdown?
Bailey's boyfriend has left to attend his out of state medical program but he is visiting her a lot. And they're having sex. A lot. She seems really happy. So happy in fact, that Webber admits to her that she is no longer called 'The Nazi'. She has a new--less scary--nickname. She begs him to tell her what it is, but he awkwardly refuses. Seems like the ex-Chief is still afraid of the wrath of Bailey.
Everyone at the hospital keeps on mentioning 5 o'clock as though something major is happening at that time. As soon as the camera pans to Mark Sloane lying on a hospital bed, attached to numerous wires and monitors, it's clear that the 5 o'clock deadline has to do with him. Sloane is in a coma and based on his wishes he doesn't want to be kept on life support for more than 30 days. The 30 days are up at 5 o'clock and the doctors realize the severity of that situation: at 5 o'clock Mark Sloane will die.
Cristina is now at her new job in Minnesota and it's clear she's not happy. Despite her displeasure with her supervisors and the climate, even Cristina is aware that 5 o'clock is approaching. Despite the fact that she and Meredith talk often via video conference it's soon clear that they have yet to visit each other. Presumably because they've both terrified of flying after the plane crash.
Although Callie wasn't in the plane crash it is clear she has been emotionally impacted as well. She is trying to hold it together--even going so far as sitting at Sloane's bedside and joking that she's taking her top off (in hopes of snapping him out of the coma). However, she breaks a couple of times during the episode. Her tension is evident when Owen introduces her to the new Peds surgery resident (Dr. Barnett) who is "replacing" Arizona. Does that mean she actually died in the crash?
It's especially heartbreaking when minutes later we see Callie crouched in a supply closet sobbing. Is she crying because Arizona is dead? In the middle of her emotional breakdown the supply closet door swings open and Alex pushes an intern inside. They begin making out but stop abruptly when they catch sight of Callie. She screams at them to "get out!". The intern promptly leaves, but Alex hovers in the doorway. Callie continues to order him "out" but instead he closes the door and leans against it. Alex may have reverted to some of his old ways, but he isn't the jerk he once was. He still cares about his friends.
Dr. Webber prepares to turn off Sloane's life support while Callie and Derek watch. Although it makes one wonder if Sloane has no other family, it is certainly true that Callie and Derek are the closest things to family he has at the hospital. Except for Lexie that is.
In an incredibly sad flashback, we see a home movie shot at Callie and Arizona's wedding. The videographer asks Sloane who he thinks he'll be with when he's old and grey. He admits he doesn't think he'll be with anyone, but if there is one person he's with it would be Lexie Grey. Since Lexie died in the plane crash and Sloane is about to die this statement is all the more powerful.
As Mark is dying his friends and colleagues gather close. While Callie and Derek are the only ones in the actual room, Bailey and her boyfriend, Webber, Alex and Meredith all gather close. The horribly depressing scene is briefly interrupted by a slightly comedic moment. Bailey, who has been trying to find out her new nickname for most of the episode, is abruptly told by Alex that her new nickname is BCB, or Booty Call Bailey due to the excitement (and copious amounts of sex) she experiences when her boyfriend visits.
Meredith can't deal with the stress of waiting for Mark's death. She announces that she's going to see Cristina and rushes out of the hospital.
At the airport Meredith catches a glimpse of Alex and gets his attention. She's mad at him because he's leaving without saying good bye to her. He yells that he can't stick around just because everyone else is leaving and she doesn't want to be alone. As Alex heads to his plane he catches sight of Owen.
Meredith gets on the plane, but freaks out just as it is getting ready to takeoff. It is clear that she is having flashbacks to the crash.
Back in Joe's bar Meredith calls Cristina over her iPad. They both takes shots together, states apart but facing each other as always. Meredith is shocked when Alex sits down next to her. He admits that he couldn't get on his plane and that he's not leaving. He asks Cristina to tell Owen that he wants his job back. He tells her that he saw Owen at the airport and assumes that Owen's coming to visit her--
But he isn't. We see April working at her family's pig farm. Owen approaches and tells her that she has her job back. He said he's made too many bad decisions and lost too many people. He wants her back at the hospital.
Callie walks into her apartment, devastated after Mark's death. She opens the door to a bedroom and we see Arizona, lying in bed, her back facing the door. Callie tells Arizona that she needs to "snap out of it" and reminds her that their daughter just lost a father, and Callie just lost her best friend. Arizona turns around and yells at Callie that she can't forgive her because she cut off her leg. She yanks back the blanket and we see that one of Arizona's legs has been amputated.
And the episode ends.
The entire episode is relatively sob inducing. Sloane's death and the devastation of his friends is heartbreaking to watch. Discovering Arizona's amputation at the very end of the episode makes the whole thing even more anxiety provoking.
Side notes: We're introduced to some new members of the cast. It seems clear that two interns, Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington) and Heather (Tina Majorino) will become central this season. The first appendectomy, designed to be failed by a weak intern (remember George's experience in Season One of 'Grey's'?), was performed by Dr. Wilson. This made her the most central new cast member of this episode.
|
| Say Goodbye to Mark Sloane & Lexie Grey |
People's Choice Awards 2013!
To contact us Click HERE
The People's Choice Awards are in! Apparently that's all the motivation I need to update this blog. I don't need anything as major as the Emmys to get my act together. A meaningless ceremony (otherwise known as a popularity contest where those who win are those who understand the internet and tweens best) is all it takes. So, I guess take note or something?
Anyway, GET EXCITED.
The televised show isn't until January 9th, 2013 but you can vote for the nominees now.*
*If you voted before you weren't actually casting a "ballot" (that seems too serious a term for this event) but rather indicating who you wanted to be nominated. Now that they actually are nominated they need your vote again to actually win. Aww, democracy at work.
Since this blog focuses on television, here are the TV nominees (along with some slightly snide commentary)...
Favorite Network TV Comedy
~Glee (at best this is a dramedy)
~The Big Bang Theory (please no)
~New Girl (acceptable)
~How I Met Your Mother (acceptable)
~Modern Family (please dear God, not again)
Favorite Network TV Drama
~Grimm (eh)
~Grey's Anatomy (acceptable)
~Gossip Girl (not happening. oh wait, tweens!)
~Once Upon a Time (acceptable, not that I watch this)
~Revenge (I don't know what's more intense than a drama, but this is it)
Favorite Cable TV Comedy
~Awkward (hilarious)
~Hot in Cleveland (oh Betty White)
~It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (always acceptable...for awards, not for political correctness)
~Melissa & Joey (um? no Baby Daddy?)
~Psych (all right)
Favorite Cable TV Drama
~Leverage (where is Rizzoli & Isles?)
~Burn Notice (definitely)
~Pretty Little Liars (this isn't season one anymore tweens)
~The Walking Dead (completely)
~White Collar (okay)
Favorite Premium Cable TV Show
~Dexter (after this season? well deserved)
~Game of Thrones (meh)
~Homeland (obviously)
~Spartacus (I don't even know what this is)
~True Blood (wait! Is it 2008?)
Favorite TV Crime Drama
~Bones (I love you Hart Hanson, but this season?)
~Castle (yes, please)
~Criminal Minds (questionable)
~CSI (no)
~NCIS (I don't think so)
Favorite Sci-fi/Fantasy Show
~Doctor Who (clarification would be helpful)
~Once Upon a Time (why do they get two categories?)
~Supernatural (no)
~The Vampire Diaries (tweens)
~The Walking Dead (yes)
Favorite Comedic TV Actor
~Chris Colfer (is it comedy?)
~Jesse Tyler Ferguson (don't you have an Emmy?)
~Jim Parsons (Emmy?)
~Neil Patrick Harris (please)
~Ty Burrell (Emmy)
Favorite Comedic TV Actress
~Jane Lynch (okay)
~Kaley Cuoco (not this year)
~Lea Michele (no)
~Sofia Vergara (Emmy?)
~Zooey Deschanel (this seems likely)
Favorite Dramatic TV Actor
~Ian Somerhalder (maybe)
~Jared Padalecki (who?)
~Jensen Ackles (next year)
~Nathan Fillion (yes please. also, Twitter)
~Paul Wesley (possible)
Favorite Dramatic TV Actress
~Ellen Pompeo (good crier)
~Emily Deschanel (wait, no Boreanaz?)
~Ginnifer Goodwin (possible)
~Nina Dobrev (maybe)
~Stana Katic (she wasn't here last year!)
VOTE
Anyway, GET EXCITED.
The televised show isn't until January 9th, 2013 but you can vote for the nominees now.*
*If you voted before you weren't actually casting a "ballot" (that seems too serious a term for this event) but rather indicating who you wanted to be nominated. Now that they actually are nominated they need your vote again to actually win. Aww, democracy at work.
Since this blog focuses on television, here are the TV nominees (along with some slightly snide commentary)...
Favorite Network TV Comedy
~Glee (at best this is a dramedy)
~The Big Bang Theory (please no)
~New Girl (acceptable)
~How I Met Your Mother (acceptable)
~Modern Family (please dear God, not again)
Favorite Network TV Drama
~Grimm (eh)
~Grey's Anatomy (acceptable)
~Gossip Girl (not happening. oh wait, tweens!)
~Once Upon a Time (acceptable, not that I watch this)
~Revenge (I don't know what's more intense than a drama, but this is it)
Favorite Cable TV Comedy
~Awkward (hilarious)
~Hot in Cleveland (oh Betty White)
~It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (always acceptable...for awards, not for political correctness)
~Melissa & Joey (um? no Baby Daddy?)
~Psych (all right)
Favorite Cable TV Drama
~Leverage (where is Rizzoli & Isles?)
~Burn Notice (definitely)
~Pretty Little Liars (this isn't season one anymore tweens)
~The Walking Dead (completely)
~White Collar (okay)
Favorite Premium Cable TV Show
~Dexter (after this season? well deserved)
~Game of Thrones (meh)
~Homeland (obviously)
~Spartacus (I don't even know what this is)
~True Blood (wait! Is it 2008?)
Favorite TV Crime Drama
~Bones (I love you Hart Hanson, but this season?)
~Castle (yes, please)
~Criminal Minds (questionable)
~CSI (no)
~NCIS (I don't think so)
Favorite Sci-fi/Fantasy Show
~Doctor Who (clarification would be helpful)
~Once Upon a Time (why do they get two categories?)
~Supernatural (no)
~The Vampire Diaries (tweens)
~The Walking Dead (yes)
Favorite Comedic TV Actor
~Chris Colfer (is it comedy?)
~Jesse Tyler Ferguson (don't you have an Emmy?)
~Jim Parsons (Emmy?)
~Neil Patrick Harris (please)
~Ty Burrell (Emmy)
Favorite Comedic TV Actress
~Jane Lynch (okay)
~Kaley Cuoco (not this year)
~Lea Michele (no)
~Sofia Vergara (Emmy?)
~Zooey Deschanel (this seems likely)
Favorite Dramatic TV Actor
~Ian Somerhalder (maybe)
~Jared Padalecki (who?)
~Jensen Ackles (next year)
~Nathan Fillion (yes please. also, Twitter)
~Paul Wesley (possible)
Favorite Dramatic TV Actress
~Ellen Pompeo (good crier)
~Emily Deschanel (wait, no Boreanaz?)
~Ginnifer Goodwin (possible)
~Nina Dobrev (maybe)
~Stana Katic (she wasn't here last year!)
VOTE
HIMYM: Lobster Crawl..."But he's her lobster!"
To contact us Click HERE
You know how sometimes something is really, really stupid but it makes you laugh anyway?
That describes last night's HIMYM in a nutshell.
"Lobster Crawl" (S8Ep9) opened with an exchange that was so ridiculous that I didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or turn off my TV.
Since this season of "HIMYM" has been incredibly uneven (both in quality and in tone) I decided to bear with it.
I still can't decide if I'm pleased with that decision.
The episode opened with the gang (plus baby Marvin) hanging out at the bar.
Thank god that adorable baby was there, because we really needed him to get through the rest of the scene.
Barney spills some ketchup on his red tie and begins to have a verbal heart attack, spewing about how the tie died so young (and way too close to retirement) and essentially going on and on about the tie as if it were a close personal friend. If you've watched prior episodes you probably remember that this joke has been done before (with a suit) which may be one reason why it isn't terribly funny. When a show starts to recycle it's own jokes without purpose you know that it's near the end of it's tenure.
Robin, after her "huh" moment at the end of last week's episode (where she realized she might actually be interested in Barney the moment he said he was going to let her go and would stop bothering her) was acting like a complete fool. Using a "flirty" voice (I assume that's what Cobie Smulders was trying to do here), laughing like a twelve-year-old, and generally being a tad crazy. Lily filled her normal role of sane one (a role that was to be yanked away from her in the next ten minutes) and pulled Robin aside to confront her.
When Lily heard the story she told Robin it was just like the lobster incident all over again. See, apparently Robin's doctor told her she was super allergic to lobster and could never eat them again. So she immediately went out and ate a lot of lobster. Because when Robin's told she can't have something she really, really wants it.
So Robin had very little interest in lobster before she was told she could never, ever have it again and Robin had very little interest in Barney before...well, you see where this is going.
The interesting thing is that Lily compares Barney to the lobster, and Robin accepts that he's the lobster equivalent, but both of them are clearly wrong. If the past several episodes have shown us anything (and they haven't shown us a lot) it's that Robin really does still have feelings for Barney.
The subtle undertones that Cobie Smulders has been managing this season have been very impressive. Speaking of which, I didn't mean to belittle Smulders' acting ability re: the "flirty" voice. While I found it incredibly grating, I was very impressed with the level of commitment in her acting. She actually managed to make herself unattractive which is kind of hard to believe because have you seen her?
Moving on. Barney and Robin continue to have ridiculous exchanges which were, frankly, almost embarrassing to watch. Meanwhile, Marshall, Lily and Ted have a less important storyline that revolves around baby Marvin.
See, Marvin is temporarily childcare-less because Lily's dad is sick and so Ted volunteers. He's currently unemployed and everyone knows he loves kids so it's a win-win. Except that, being Ted, he completely oversteps and does things like buy Marvin a football jersey for a team that Marshall hates and take the baby to get his first photo taken with Santa without his parents. Lily goes briefly crazy (I told you she would) when she realizes that she missed Marvin crawling for the first time, but by the end of the episode the three of them are okay again (as we all knew they would be).
Meanwhile, Lily attempts to help Robin with her Barney situation. Robin admits that she wants to sleep with Barney one more time because if he's really her lobster* then she should treat him like she treated the lobster: have him one more time and then feel horrible about it and never want it again.
The rest of the episode is filled with Robin's version of Barney's playbook. (Is a show also considered almost over when it starts spoofing itself?) Much as in "The Playbook" (S5Ep8) each pick-up attempt is inter-cut with a story card telling us the title of the play. Here each of the cards are the title of a move that Robin uses to try and get Barney to sleep with her.
Of course, the one suggested by Lily involves using Lesbian taunts...'HIMYM' loves to throw in occasional references to Lily's attraction to Robin.
The lesbian taunt spectacularly backfires as Barney seems more interested in Robin's co-worker Brandi. He leaves with her to go and have sex on the weather set. Robin is upset, but not devastated. I think that her lack of interest in here is because Brandi is the type of woman Barney often has one-night stands with: attractive and not terribly smart.
Later that same night, perhaps because she's more upset with the Barney/Brandi hook-up than she originally let on, she goes to Barney's to seduce him. He opens his door and she opens her coat, revealing lingerie. He tells her he didn't sleep with Brandi and she looks relieved, but then she opens his door further and Patrice is sitting on the sofa.
Patrice has been presented throughout this season as a perfectly nice woman who is irritatingly cheerful and desperately wants to be best friends with Robin. She's also no where near as attractive as Robin (that is not supposed to be an insult toward Ellen Williams, because seriously, have you seen Cobie Smulders?).
Seeing Patrice sitting on Barney's couch and hearing Barney say that they're on a date clearly devastates Robin. Because she knows that if he does hook-up with Patrice it will be more than a one night stand...she clearly is not his typical type.
Barney is easily able to shrug off Robin in lingerie (another blow to her ego) and tells her that if she gets dressed she can come in and play cards with them. Basically giving Robin permission to be a third-wheel on his date.
Robin turns him down, incredibly embarrassed though she does a good job of not showing it, and walks away.
My hope is that the devastation that Robin so clearly feels serves as a catalyst for her to admit that she truly has feelings for Barney. It's not just that she needs to get him out of her system, she just needs him. In other words, she doesn't want to eat the lobster, she wants him to be her lobster.**
HIMYM airs on Mondays at 8/7C on CBS
*Ha! Just realized that this could almost be taken as a spoof of 'Friends'. Ross and Rachel were will they/won't they for years and Phoebe was insistent that they were each other's lobster. Here Barney is being compared to a lobster and we are again having a will they/won't they scenario forced down our throats.
**That sounded way dirtier than I intended.
That describes last night's HIMYM in a nutshell.
"Lobster Crawl" (S8Ep9) opened with an exchange that was so ridiculous that I didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or turn off my TV.
Since this season of "HIMYM" has been incredibly uneven (both in quality and in tone) I decided to bear with it.
I still can't decide if I'm pleased with that decision.
The episode opened with the gang (plus baby Marvin) hanging out at the bar.
Thank god that adorable baby was there, because we really needed him to get through the rest of the scene.
Barney spills some ketchup on his red tie and begins to have a verbal heart attack, spewing about how the tie died so young (and way too close to retirement) and essentially going on and on about the tie as if it were a close personal friend. If you've watched prior episodes you probably remember that this joke has been done before (with a suit) which may be one reason why it isn't terribly funny. When a show starts to recycle it's own jokes without purpose you know that it's near the end of it's tenure.
Robin, after her "huh" moment at the end of last week's episode (where she realized she might actually be interested in Barney the moment he said he was going to let her go and would stop bothering her) was acting like a complete fool. Using a "flirty" voice (I assume that's what Cobie Smulders was trying to do here), laughing like a twelve-year-old, and generally being a tad crazy. Lily filled her normal role of sane one (a role that was to be yanked away from her in the next ten minutes) and pulled Robin aside to confront her.
When Lily heard the story she told Robin it was just like the lobster incident all over again. See, apparently Robin's doctor told her she was super allergic to lobster and could never eat them again. So she immediately went out and ate a lot of lobster. Because when Robin's told she can't have something she really, really wants it.
So Robin had very little interest in lobster before she was told she could never, ever have it again and Robin had very little interest in Barney before...well, you see where this is going.
The interesting thing is that Lily compares Barney to the lobster, and Robin accepts that he's the lobster equivalent, but both of them are clearly wrong. If the past several episodes have shown us anything (and they haven't shown us a lot) it's that Robin really does still have feelings for Barney.
The subtle undertones that Cobie Smulders has been managing this season have been very impressive. Speaking of which, I didn't mean to belittle Smulders' acting ability re: the "flirty" voice. While I found it incredibly grating, I was very impressed with the level of commitment in her acting. She actually managed to make herself unattractive which is kind of hard to believe because have you seen her?
Moving on. Barney and Robin continue to have ridiculous exchanges which were, frankly, almost embarrassing to watch. Meanwhile, Marshall, Lily and Ted have a less important storyline that revolves around baby Marvin.
See, Marvin is temporarily childcare-less because Lily's dad is sick and so Ted volunteers. He's currently unemployed and everyone knows he loves kids so it's a win-win. Except that, being Ted, he completely oversteps and does things like buy Marvin a football jersey for a team that Marshall hates and take the baby to get his first photo taken with Santa without his parents. Lily goes briefly crazy (I told you she would) when she realizes that she missed Marvin crawling for the first time, but by the end of the episode the three of them are okay again (as we all knew they would be).
Meanwhile, Lily attempts to help Robin with her Barney situation. Robin admits that she wants to sleep with Barney one more time because if he's really her lobster* then she should treat him like she treated the lobster: have him one more time and then feel horrible about it and never want it again.
The rest of the episode is filled with Robin's version of Barney's playbook. (Is a show also considered almost over when it starts spoofing itself?) Much as in "The Playbook" (S5Ep8) each pick-up attempt is inter-cut with a story card telling us the title of the play. Here each of the cards are the title of a move that Robin uses to try and get Barney to sleep with her.
Of course, the one suggested by Lily involves using Lesbian taunts...'HIMYM' loves to throw in occasional references to Lily's attraction to Robin.
The lesbian taunt spectacularly backfires as Barney seems more interested in Robin's co-worker Brandi. He leaves with her to go and have sex on the weather set. Robin is upset, but not devastated. I think that her lack of interest in here is because Brandi is the type of woman Barney often has one-night stands with: attractive and not terribly smart.
Later that same night, perhaps because she's more upset with the Barney/Brandi hook-up than she originally let on, she goes to Barney's to seduce him. He opens his door and she opens her coat, revealing lingerie. He tells her he didn't sleep with Brandi and she looks relieved, but then she opens his door further and Patrice is sitting on the sofa.
Patrice has been presented throughout this season as a perfectly nice woman who is irritatingly cheerful and desperately wants to be best friends with Robin. She's also no where near as attractive as Robin (that is not supposed to be an insult toward Ellen Williams, because seriously, have you seen Cobie Smulders?).
Seeing Patrice sitting on Barney's couch and hearing Barney say that they're on a date clearly devastates Robin. Because she knows that if he does hook-up with Patrice it will be more than a one night stand...she clearly is not his typical type.
Barney is easily able to shrug off Robin in lingerie (another blow to her ego) and tells her that if she gets dressed she can come in and play cards with them. Basically giving Robin permission to be a third-wheel on his date.
Robin turns him down, incredibly embarrassed though she does a good job of not showing it, and walks away.
My hope is that the devastation that Robin so clearly feels serves as a catalyst for her to admit that she truly has feelings for Barney. It's not just that she needs to get him out of her system, she just needs him. In other words, she doesn't want to eat the lobster, she wants him to be her lobster.**
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*Ha! Just realized that this could almost be taken as a spoof of 'Friends'. Ross and Rachel were will they/won't they for years and Phoebe was insistent that they were each other's lobster. Here Barney is being compared to a lobster and we are again having a will they/won't they scenario forced down our throats.
**That sounded way dirtier than I intended.
'HIMYM' Breaking News: Renewed or Cancelled?
To contact us Click HERE
'HIMYM' breaking news!!
The show has officially been renewed for a final ninth season.
Jason Segel was originally hesitant to resign to the hit show, but now that he has acquiesed the rest of the cast is on board.
That means we get another year to meet the mother. Or, as many loyal viewers and fans hope, a year to see the mother acually become a part of the group.
Hopefully fans of the CBS hit comedy will be pleased.
First an engagement, now this, it's certainly been a good 'HIMYM' week.
Wait, what?
No, WHAT?
'HIMYM' breaking news!!
The show has officially been renewed for a final ninth season.
Jason Segel was originally hesitant to resign to the hit show, but now that he has acquiesed the rest of the cast is on board.
That means we get another year to meet the mother. Or, as many loyal viewers and fans hope, a year to see the mother acually become a part of the group.
Hopefully fans of the CBS hit comedy will be pleased.
First an engagement, now this, it's certainly been a good 'HIMYM' week.
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| The cast nine years ago, when they were BABIES. |
20 Aralık 2012 Perşembe
'Bones': Season 8, New Tonight. Premiere.
To contact us Click HERE
'Bones' is back! The show's eighth season is premiering tonight on FOX at 8/7 C.
FOX's decision to have it's shows return a week earlier than most other networks may be one of their smartest moves yet. Monday nights are going to be a tough crowd this year...'How I Met Your Mother' and 'Dancing with the Stars' will be 'Bones' main competition in the same time-slot.
'Castle', a show which attracts the same type as viewers as 'Bones', had a strong season last year. Arguably last season was one of 'Bones' weakest. There was a combination of:
a shortened season (due to Emily Deschanel's pregnancy)
writing said pregnancy into the series (meaning fewer case investigation with the show's lead duo)
a decrease in chemistry between the two main characters (unclear if this is because Deschanel and Boreanaz can play subtext better than they can play main text)
'Castle', meanwhile, offered:
a moving PTSD episode (leading to a PRISM award win by Katic and Huertas)
a rift between it's two main characters (which only lead fans to want them to get together more)
further investigation into the murder which propels the series (that of Beckett's mother)
a coupling of the show's main characters that was intense and steamy (proving that Fillion and Katic can do main text as well as they can do subtext)
If fans of both shows are going to choose only one series to watch this season, it's probably going to be 'Castle'. Because of that, it makes perfect sense to start airing episodes of 'Bones' tonight (a full week before the premiere of 'Castle'). If the season opener of 'Bones' is strong enough, it may sway some of the audience toward watching 'Bones' live each week, and leaving 'Castle' the the DVR.
The premiere episode of 'Bones' promises a couple of things: a blonde Brennan, a pissed-off Booth, a reveal of which members of the gang have been aiding fugitive Brennan, and a reunion.
FOX's decision to have it's shows return a week earlier than most other networks may be one of their smartest moves yet. Monday nights are going to be a tough crowd this year...'How I Met Your Mother' and 'Dancing with the Stars' will be 'Bones' main competition in the same time-slot.
'Castle', a show which attracts the same type as viewers as 'Bones', had a strong season last year. Arguably last season was one of 'Bones' weakest. There was a combination of:
a shortened season (due to Emily Deschanel's pregnancy)
writing said pregnancy into the series (meaning fewer case investigation with the show's lead duo)
a decrease in chemistry between the two main characters (unclear if this is because Deschanel and Boreanaz can play subtext better than they can play main text)
'Castle', meanwhile, offered:
a moving PTSD episode (leading to a PRISM award win by Katic and Huertas)
a rift between it's two main characters (which only lead fans to want them to get together more)
further investigation into the murder which propels the series (that of Beckett's mother)
a coupling of the show's main characters that was intense and steamy (proving that Fillion and Katic can do main text as well as they can do subtext)
If fans of both shows are going to choose only one series to watch this season, it's probably going to be 'Castle'. Because of that, it makes perfect sense to start airing episodes of 'Bones' tonight (a full week before the premiere of 'Castle'). If the season opener of 'Bones' is strong enough, it may sway some of the audience toward watching 'Bones' live each week, and leaving 'Castle' the the DVR.
The premiere episode of 'Bones' promises a couple of things: a blonde Brennan, a pissed-off Booth, a reveal of which members of the gang have been aiding fugitive Brennan, and a reunion.
Grey's Anatomy S9Ep1: Going Going Gone Recap
To contact us Click HERE
'Grey's Anatomy' is back in an episode that's as good as it is confusing.
As a quick reminder, last season ended with a bang. Literally. A plane carrying a team of doctors that included Meredith, Cristina, Derek, Mark, Lexie, and Arizona crashed. In the sob filled finale, Lexie died while pinned under the plane. Cristina injured her arm, Arizona was bleeding badly from her leg, Derek had a damaged hand, and Mark had some serious internal injuries.
You'd expect the premiere episode to pick up right after the crash, but instead the episode leapt several months ahead.
This leap was clearly done to increase the suspense throughout the episode: the viewer didn't know who had lived/who had died, and how each person was impacted. Unfortunately, it also made the episode slightly confusing. There's a thin line between being intrigued and being irritated. Luckily, this episode verged on the intriguing side.
The episode was intercut with numerous home video style flashbacks. The first one was filming Derek and Mark getting ready for Derek's first wedding. As with the rest of the videos, it featured Sloane prominently. This foreshadowed things to come.
We see a timid intern trying to avoid her mean resident nicknamed "Medusa". As the intern slowly approaches Meredith and Bailey, it is clear that Meredith is the resident in the question.
Meredith as a mean resident? It actually makes a lot of sense. Regardless of how the plane crash impacted her, Meredith was trained by Bailey...and they called her 'The Nazi' in the first two season's of the show.
Derek is back in the hospital dressed in scrubs. This alleviates our concern that he'd never be able to perform surgery again. Except it turns out that although he has been cleared for surgery he has yet to perform a single operation. He's nervous about his hand clenching at a crucial moment. Having hand seizures while said hand is inside someone's brain probably isn't the safest.
But today he wants to perform his first surgery. Callie asks him if he's sure he want to do it today of all days, but he insists that he needs it. What is so big about today?
When he walks into the surgery Callie is standing there along with the other surgical staff and they give him a standing ovation. Despite the fact that he says that "it's a wonderful day to save lives" Derek finds himself unable to complete the surgery. His hand shakes--whether it's mental or physical remains to be seen.
Alex is back to his Season One ways; he's making out with random interns in the supply closets. It seems he has delayed going to Hopkins because he has been covering Peds. Arizona is apparently gone. We don't know what's going on: Is she dead? Has she had a nervous breakdown?
Bailey's boyfriend has left to attend his out of state medical program but he is visiting her a lot. And they're having sex. A lot. She seems really happy. So happy in fact, that Webber admits to her that she is no longer called 'The Nazi'. She has a new--less scary--nickname. She begs him to tell her what it is, but he awkwardly refuses. Seems like the ex-Chief is still afraid of the wrath of Bailey.
Everyone at the hospital keeps on mentioning 5 o'clock as though something major is happening at that time. As soon as the camera pans to Mark Sloane lying on a hospital bed, attached to numerous wires and monitors, it's clear that the 5 o'clock deadline has to do with him. Sloane is in a coma and based on his wishes he doesn't want to be kept on life support for more than 30 days. The 30 days are up at 5 o'clock and the doctors realize the severity of that situation: at 5 o'clock Mark Sloane will die.
Cristina is now at her new job in Minnesota and it's clear she's not happy. Despite her displeasure with her supervisors and the climate, even Cristina is aware that 5 o'clock is approaching. Despite the fact that she and Meredith talk often via video conference it's soon clear that they have yet to visit each other. Presumably because they've both terrified of flying after the plane crash.
Although Callie wasn't in the plane crash it is clear she has been emotionally impacted as well. She is trying to hold it together--even going so far as sitting at Sloane's bedside and joking that she's taking her top off (in hopes of snapping him out of the coma). However, she breaks a couple of times during the episode. Her tension is evident when Owen introduces her to the new Peds surgery resident (Dr. Barnett) who is "replacing" Arizona. Does that mean she actually died in the crash?
It's especially heartbreaking when minutes later we see Callie crouched in a supply closet sobbing. Is she crying because Arizona is dead? In the middle of her emotional breakdown the supply closet door swings open and Alex pushes an intern inside. They begin making out but stop abruptly when they catch sight of Callie. She screams at them to "get out!". The intern promptly leaves, but Alex hovers in the doorway. Callie continues to order him "out" but instead he closes the door and leans against it. Alex may have reverted to some of his old ways, but he isn't the jerk he once was. He still cares about his friends.
Dr. Webber prepares to turn off Sloane's life support while Callie and Derek watch. Although it makes one wonder if Sloane has no other family, it is certainly true that Callie and Derek are the closest things to family he has at the hospital. Except for Lexie that is.
In an incredibly sad flashback, we see a home movie shot at Callie and Arizona's wedding. The videographer asks Sloane who he thinks he'll be with when he's old and grey. He admits he doesn't think he'll be with anyone, but if there is one person he's with it would be Lexie Grey. Since Lexie died in the plane crash and Sloane is about to die this statement is all the more powerful.
As Mark is dying his friends and colleagues gather close. While Callie and Derek are the only ones in the actual room, Bailey and her boyfriend, Webber, Alex and Meredith all gather close. The horribly depressing scene is briefly interrupted by a slightly comedic moment. Bailey, who has been trying to find out her new nickname for most of the episode, is abruptly told by Alex that her new nickname is BCB, or Booty Call Bailey due to the excitement (and copious amounts of sex) she experiences when her boyfriend visits.
Meredith can't deal with the stress of waiting for Mark's death. She announces that she's going to see Cristina and rushes out of the hospital.
At the airport Meredith catches a glimpse of Alex and gets his attention. She's mad at him because he's leaving without saying good bye to her. He yells that he can't stick around just because everyone else is leaving and she doesn't want to be alone. As Alex heads to his plane he catches sight of Owen.
Meredith gets on the plane, but freaks out just as it is getting ready to takeoff. It is clear that she is having flashbacks to the crash.
Back in Joe's bar Meredith calls Cristina over her iPad. They both takes shots together, states apart but facing each other as always. Meredith is shocked when Alex sits down next to her. He admits that he couldn't get on his plane and that he's not leaving. He asks Cristina to tell Owen that he wants his job back. He tells her that he saw Owen at the airport and assumes that Owen's coming to visit her--
But he isn't. We see April working at her family's pig farm. Owen approaches and tells her that she has her job back. He said he's made too many bad decisions and lost too many people. He wants her back at the hospital.
Callie walks into her apartment, devastated after Mark's death. She opens the door to a bedroom and we see Arizona, lying in bed, her back facing the door. Callie tells Arizona that she needs to "snap out of it" and reminds her that their daughter just lost a father, and Callie just lost her best friend. Arizona turns around and yells at Callie that she can't forgive her because she cut off her leg. She yanks back the blanket and we see that one of Arizona's legs has been amputated.
And the episode ends.
The entire episode is relatively sob inducing. Sloane's death and the devastation of his friends is heartbreaking to watch. Discovering Arizona's amputation at the very end of the episode makes the whole thing even more anxiety provoking.
Side notes: We're introduced to some new members of the cast. It seems clear that two interns, Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington) and Heather (Tina Majorino) will become central this season. The first appendectomy, designed to be failed by a weak intern (remember George's experience in Season One of 'Grey's'?), was performed by Dr. Wilson. This made her the most central new cast member of this episode.
As a quick reminder, last season ended with a bang. Literally. A plane carrying a team of doctors that included Meredith, Cristina, Derek, Mark, Lexie, and Arizona crashed. In the sob filled finale, Lexie died while pinned under the plane. Cristina injured her arm, Arizona was bleeding badly from her leg, Derek had a damaged hand, and Mark had some serious internal injuries.
You'd expect the premiere episode to pick up right after the crash, but instead the episode leapt several months ahead.
This leap was clearly done to increase the suspense throughout the episode: the viewer didn't know who had lived/who had died, and how each person was impacted. Unfortunately, it also made the episode slightly confusing. There's a thin line between being intrigued and being irritated. Luckily, this episode verged on the intriguing side.
The episode was intercut with numerous home video style flashbacks. The first one was filming Derek and Mark getting ready for Derek's first wedding. As with the rest of the videos, it featured Sloane prominently. This foreshadowed things to come.
We see a timid intern trying to avoid her mean resident nicknamed "Medusa". As the intern slowly approaches Meredith and Bailey, it is clear that Meredith is the resident in the question.
Meredith as a mean resident? It actually makes a lot of sense. Regardless of how the plane crash impacted her, Meredith was trained by Bailey...and they called her 'The Nazi' in the first two season's of the show.
Derek is back in the hospital dressed in scrubs. This alleviates our concern that he'd never be able to perform surgery again. Except it turns out that although he has been cleared for surgery he has yet to perform a single operation. He's nervous about his hand clenching at a crucial moment. Having hand seizures while said hand is inside someone's brain probably isn't the safest.
But today he wants to perform his first surgery. Callie asks him if he's sure he want to do it today of all days, but he insists that he needs it. What is so big about today?
When he walks into the surgery Callie is standing there along with the other surgical staff and they give him a standing ovation. Despite the fact that he says that "it's a wonderful day to save lives" Derek finds himself unable to complete the surgery. His hand shakes--whether it's mental or physical remains to be seen.
Alex is back to his Season One ways; he's making out with random interns in the supply closets. It seems he has delayed going to Hopkins because he has been covering Peds. Arizona is apparently gone. We don't know what's going on: Is she dead? Has she had a nervous breakdown?
Bailey's boyfriend has left to attend his out of state medical program but he is visiting her a lot. And they're having sex. A lot. She seems really happy. So happy in fact, that Webber admits to her that she is no longer called 'The Nazi'. She has a new--less scary--nickname. She begs him to tell her what it is, but he awkwardly refuses. Seems like the ex-Chief is still afraid of the wrath of Bailey.
Everyone at the hospital keeps on mentioning 5 o'clock as though something major is happening at that time. As soon as the camera pans to Mark Sloane lying on a hospital bed, attached to numerous wires and monitors, it's clear that the 5 o'clock deadline has to do with him. Sloane is in a coma and based on his wishes he doesn't want to be kept on life support for more than 30 days. The 30 days are up at 5 o'clock and the doctors realize the severity of that situation: at 5 o'clock Mark Sloane will die.
Cristina is now at her new job in Minnesota and it's clear she's not happy. Despite her displeasure with her supervisors and the climate, even Cristina is aware that 5 o'clock is approaching. Despite the fact that she and Meredith talk often via video conference it's soon clear that they have yet to visit each other. Presumably because they've both terrified of flying after the plane crash.
Although Callie wasn't in the plane crash it is clear she has been emotionally impacted as well. She is trying to hold it together--even going so far as sitting at Sloane's bedside and joking that she's taking her top off (in hopes of snapping him out of the coma). However, she breaks a couple of times during the episode. Her tension is evident when Owen introduces her to the new Peds surgery resident (Dr. Barnett) who is "replacing" Arizona. Does that mean she actually died in the crash?
It's especially heartbreaking when minutes later we see Callie crouched in a supply closet sobbing. Is she crying because Arizona is dead? In the middle of her emotional breakdown the supply closet door swings open and Alex pushes an intern inside. They begin making out but stop abruptly when they catch sight of Callie. She screams at them to "get out!". The intern promptly leaves, but Alex hovers in the doorway. Callie continues to order him "out" but instead he closes the door and leans against it. Alex may have reverted to some of his old ways, but he isn't the jerk he once was. He still cares about his friends.
Dr. Webber prepares to turn off Sloane's life support while Callie and Derek watch. Although it makes one wonder if Sloane has no other family, it is certainly true that Callie and Derek are the closest things to family he has at the hospital. Except for Lexie that is.
In an incredibly sad flashback, we see a home movie shot at Callie and Arizona's wedding. The videographer asks Sloane who he thinks he'll be with when he's old and grey. He admits he doesn't think he'll be with anyone, but if there is one person he's with it would be Lexie Grey. Since Lexie died in the plane crash and Sloane is about to die this statement is all the more powerful.
As Mark is dying his friends and colleagues gather close. While Callie and Derek are the only ones in the actual room, Bailey and her boyfriend, Webber, Alex and Meredith all gather close. The horribly depressing scene is briefly interrupted by a slightly comedic moment. Bailey, who has been trying to find out her new nickname for most of the episode, is abruptly told by Alex that her new nickname is BCB, or Booty Call Bailey due to the excitement (and copious amounts of sex) she experiences when her boyfriend visits.
Meredith can't deal with the stress of waiting for Mark's death. She announces that she's going to see Cristina and rushes out of the hospital.
At the airport Meredith catches a glimpse of Alex and gets his attention. She's mad at him because he's leaving without saying good bye to her. He yells that he can't stick around just because everyone else is leaving and she doesn't want to be alone. As Alex heads to his plane he catches sight of Owen.
Meredith gets on the plane, but freaks out just as it is getting ready to takeoff. It is clear that she is having flashbacks to the crash.
Back in Joe's bar Meredith calls Cristina over her iPad. They both takes shots together, states apart but facing each other as always. Meredith is shocked when Alex sits down next to her. He admits that he couldn't get on his plane and that he's not leaving. He asks Cristina to tell Owen that he wants his job back. He tells her that he saw Owen at the airport and assumes that Owen's coming to visit her--
But he isn't. We see April working at her family's pig farm. Owen approaches and tells her that she has her job back. He said he's made too many bad decisions and lost too many people. He wants her back at the hospital.
Callie walks into her apartment, devastated after Mark's death. She opens the door to a bedroom and we see Arizona, lying in bed, her back facing the door. Callie tells Arizona that she needs to "snap out of it" and reminds her that their daughter just lost a father, and Callie just lost her best friend. Arizona turns around and yells at Callie that she can't forgive her because she cut off her leg. She yanks back the blanket and we see that one of Arizona's legs has been amputated.
And the episode ends.
The entire episode is relatively sob inducing. Sloane's death and the devastation of his friends is heartbreaking to watch. Discovering Arizona's amputation at the very end of the episode makes the whole thing even more anxiety provoking.
Side notes: We're introduced to some new members of the cast. It seems clear that two interns, Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington) and Heather (Tina Majorino) will become central this season. The first appendectomy, designed to be failed by a weak intern (remember George's experience in Season One of 'Grey's'?), was performed by Dr. Wilson. This made her the most central new cast member of this episode.
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| Say Goodbye to Mark Sloane & Lexie Grey |
People's Choice Awards 2013!
To contact us Click HERE
The People's Choice Awards are in! Apparently that's all the motivation I need to update this blog. I don't need anything as major as the Emmys to get my act together. A meaningless ceremony (otherwise known as a popularity contest where those who win are those who understand the internet and tweens best) is all it takes. So, I guess take note or something?
Anyway, GET EXCITED.
The televised show isn't until January 9th, 2013 but you can vote for the nominees now.*
*If you voted before you weren't actually casting a "ballot" (that seems too serious a term for this event) but rather indicating who you wanted to be nominated. Now that they actually are nominated they need your vote again to actually win. Aww, democracy at work.
Since this blog focuses on television, here are the TV nominees (along with some slightly snide commentary)...
Favorite Network TV Comedy
~Glee (at best this is a dramedy)
~The Big Bang Theory (please no)
~New Girl (acceptable)
~How I Met Your Mother (acceptable)
~Modern Family (please dear God, not again)
Favorite Network TV Drama
~Grimm (eh)
~Grey's Anatomy (acceptable)
~Gossip Girl (not happening. oh wait, tweens!)
~Once Upon a Time (acceptable, not that I watch this)
~Revenge (I don't know what's more intense than a drama, but this is it)
Favorite Cable TV Comedy
~Awkward (hilarious)
~Hot in Cleveland (oh Betty White)
~It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (always acceptable...for awards, not for political correctness)
~Melissa & Joey (um? no Baby Daddy?)
~Psych (all right)
Favorite Cable TV Drama
~Leverage (where is Rizzoli & Isles?)
~Burn Notice (definitely)
~Pretty Little Liars (this isn't season one anymore tweens)
~The Walking Dead (completely)
~White Collar (okay)
Favorite Premium Cable TV Show
~Dexter (after this season? well deserved)
~Game of Thrones (meh)
~Homeland (obviously)
~Spartacus (I don't even know what this is)
~True Blood (wait! Is it 2008?)
Favorite TV Crime Drama
~Bones (I love you Hart Hanson, but this season?)
~Castle (yes, please)
~Criminal Minds (questionable)
~CSI (no)
~NCIS (I don't think so)
Favorite Sci-fi/Fantasy Show
~Doctor Who (clarification would be helpful)
~Once Upon a Time (why do they get two categories?)
~Supernatural (no)
~The Vampire Diaries (tweens)
~The Walking Dead (yes)
Favorite Comedic TV Actor
~Chris Colfer (is it comedy?)
~Jesse Tyler Ferguson (don't you have an Emmy?)
~Jim Parsons (Emmy?)
~Neil Patrick Harris (please)
~Ty Burrell (Emmy)
Favorite Comedic TV Actress
~Jane Lynch (okay)
~Kaley Cuoco (not this year)
~Lea Michele (no)
~Sofia Vergara (Emmy?)
~Zooey Deschanel (this seems likely)
Favorite Dramatic TV Actor
~Ian Somerhalder (maybe)
~Jared Padalecki (who?)
~Jensen Ackles (next year)
~Nathan Fillion (yes please. also, Twitter)
~Paul Wesley (possible)
Favorite Dramatic TV Actress
~Ellen Pompeo (good crier)
~Emily Deschanel (wait, no Boreanaz?)
~Ginnifer Goodwin (possible)
~Nina Dobrev (maybe)
~Stana Katic (she wasn't here last year!)
VOTE
Anyway, GET EXCITED.
The televised show isn't until January 9th, 2013 but you can vote for the nominees now.*
*If you voted before you weren't actually casting a "ballot" (that seems too serious a term for this event) but rather indicating who you wanted to be nominated. Now that they actually are nominated they need your vote again to actually win. Aww, democracy at work.
Since this blog focuses on television, here are the TV nominees (along with some slightly snide commentary)...
Favorite Network TV Comedy
~Glee (at best this is a dramedy)
~The Big Bang Theory (please no)
~New Girl (acceptable)
~How I Met Your Mother (acceptable)
~Modern Family (please dear God, not again)
Favorite Network TV Drama
~Grimm (eh)
~Grey's Anatomy (acceptable)
~Gossip Girl (not happening. oh wait, tweens!)
~Once Upon a Time (acceptable, not that I watch this)
~Revenge (I don't know what's more intense than a drama, but this is it)
Favorite Cable TV Comedy
~Awkward (hilarious)
~Hot in Cleveland (oh Betty White)
~It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (always acceptable...for awards, not for political correctness)
~Melissa & Joey (um? no Baby Daddy?)
~Psych (all right)
Favorite Cable TV Drama
~Leverage (where is Rizzoli & Isles?)
~Burn Notice (definitely)
~Pretty Little Liars (this isn't season one anymore tweens)
~The Walking Dead (completely)
~White Collar (okay)
Favorite Premium Cable TV Show
~Dexter (after this season? well deserved)
~Game of Thrones (meh)
~Homeland (obviously)
~Spartacus (I don't even know what this is)
~True Blood (wait! Is it 2008?)
Favorite TV Crime Drama
~Bones (I love you Hart Hanson, but this season?)
~Castle (yes, please)
~Criminal Minds (questionable)
~CSI (no)
~NCIS (I don't think so)
Favorite Sci-fi/Fantasy Show
~Doctor Who (clarification would be helpful)
~Once Upon a Time (why do they get two categories?)
~Supernatural (no)
~The Vampire Diaries (tweens)
~The Walking Dead (yes)
Favorite Comedic TV Actor
~Chris Colfer (is it comedy?)
~Jesse Tyler Ferguson (don't you have an Emmy?)
~Jim Parsons (Emmy?)
~Neil Patrick Harris (please)
~Ty Burrell (Emmy)
Favorite Comedic TV Actress
~Jane Lynch (okay)
~Kaley Cuoco (not this year)
~Lea Michele (no)
~Sofia Vergara (Emmy?)
~Zooey Deschanel (this seems likely)
Favorite Dramatic TV Actor
~Ian Somerhalder (maybe)
~Jared Padalecki (who?)
~Jensen Ackles (next year)
~Nathan Fillion (yes please. also, Twitter)
~Paul Wesley (possible)
Favorite Dramatic TV Actress
~Ellen Pompeo (good crier)
~Emily Deschanel (wait, no Boreanaz?)
~Ginnifer Goodwin (possible)
~Nina Dobrev (maybe)
~Stana Katic (she wasn't here last year!)
VOTE
HIMYM: Lobster Crawl..."But he's her lobster!"
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You know how sometimes something is really, really stupid but it makes you laugh anyway?
That describes last night's HIMYM in a nutshell.
"Lobster Crawl" (S8Ep9) opened with an exchange that was so ridiculous that I didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or turn off my TV.
Since this season of "HIMYM" has been incredibly uneven (both in quality and in tone) I decided to bear with it.
I still can't decide if I'm pleased with that decision.
The episode opened with the gang (plus baby Marvin) hanging out at the bar.
Thank god that adorable baby was there, because we really needed him to get through the rest of the scene.
Barney spills some ketchup on his red tie and begins to have a verbal heart attack, spewing about how the tie died so young (and way too close to retirement) and essentially going on and on about the tie as if it were a close personal friend. If you've watched prior episodes you probably remember that this joke has been done before (with a suit) which may be one reason why it isn't terribly funny. When a show starts to recycle it's own jokes without purpose you know that it's near the end of it's tenure.
Robin, after her "huh" moment at the end of last week's episode (where she realized she might actually be interested in Barney the moment he said he was going to let her go and would stop bothering her) was acting like a complete fool. Using a "flirty" voice (I assume that's what Cobie Smulders was trying to do here), laughing like a twelve-year-old, and generally being a tad crazy. Lily filled her normal role of sane one (a role that was to be yanked away from her in the next ten minutes) and pulled Robin aside to confront her.
When Lily heard the story she told Robin it was just like the lobster incident all over again. See, apparently Robin's doctor told her she was super allergic to lobster and could never eat them again. So she immediately went out and ate a lot of lobster. Because when Robin's told she can't have something she really, really wants it.
So Robin had very little interest in lobster before she was told she could never, ever have it again and Robin had very little interest in Barney before...well, you see where this is going.
The interesting thing is that Lily compares Barney to the lobster, and Robin accepts that he's the lobster equivalent, but both of them are clearly wrong. If the past several episodes have shown us anything (and they haven't shown us a lot) it's that Robin really does still have feelings for Barney.
The subtle undertones that Cobie Smulders has been managing this season have been very impressive. Speaking of which, I didn't mean to belittle Smulders' acting ability re: the "flirty" voice. While I found it incredibly grating, I was very impressed with the level of commitment in her acting. She actually managed to make herself unattractive which is kind of hard to believe because have you seen her?
Moving on. Barney and Robin continue to have ridiculous exchanges which were, frankly, almost embarrassing to watch. Meanwhile, Marshall, Lily and Ted have a less important storyline that revolves around baby Marvin.
See, Marvin is temporarily childcare-less because Lily's dad is sick and so Ted volunteers. He's currently unemployed and everyone knows he loves kids so it's a win-win. Except that, being Ted, he completely oversteps and does things like buy Marvin a football jersey for a team that Marshall hates and take the baby to get his first photo taken with Santa without his parents. Lily goes briefly crazy (I told you she would) when she realizes that she missed Marvin crawling for the first time, but by the end of the episode the three of them are okay again (as we all knew they would be).
Meanwhile, Lily attempts to help Robin with her Barney situation. Robin admits that she wants to sleep with Barney one more time because if he's really her lobster* then she should treat him like she treated the lobster: have him one more time and then feel horrible about it and never want it again.
The rest of the episode is filled with Robin's version of Barney's playbook. (Is a show also considered almost over when it starts spoofing itself?) Much as in "The Playbook" (S5Ep8) each pick-up attempt is inter-cut with a story card telling us the title of the play. Here each of the cards are the title of a move that Robin uses to try and get Barney to sleep with her.
Of course, the one suggested by Lily involves using Lesbian taunts...'HIMYM' loves to throw in occasional references to Lily's attraction to Robin.
The lesbian taunt spectacularly backfires as Barney seems more interested in Robin's co-worker Brandi. He leaves with her to go and have sex on the weather set. Robin is upset, but not devastated. I think that her lack of interest in here is because Brandi is the type of woman Barney often has one-night stands with: attractive and not terribly smart.
Later that same night, perhaps because she's more upset with the Barney/Brandi hook-up than she originally let on, she goes to Barney's to seduce him. He opens his door and she opens her coat, revealing lingerie. He tells her he didn't sleep with Brandi and she looks relieved, but then she opens his door further and Patrice is sitting on the sofa.
Patrice has been presented throughout this season as a perfectly nice woman who is irritatingly cheerful and desperately wants to be best friends with Robin. She's also no where near as attractive as Robin (that is not supposed to be an insult toward Ellen Williams, because seriously, have you seen Cobie Smulders?).
Seeing Patrice sitting on Barney's couch and hearing Barney say that they're on a date clearly devastates Robin. Because she knows that if he does hook-up with Patrice it will be more than a one night stand...she clearly is not his typical type.
Barney is easily able to shrug off Robin in lingerie (another blow to her ego) and tells her that if she gets dressed she can come in and play cards with them. Basically giving Robin permission to be a third-wheel on his date.
Robin turns him down, incredibly embarrassed though she does a good job of not showing it, and walks away.
My hope is that the devastation that Robin so clearly feels serves as a catalyst for her to admit that she truly has feelings for Barney. It's not just that she needs to get him out of her system, she just needs him. In other words, she doesn't want to eat the lobster, she wants him to be her lobster.**
HIMYM airs on Mondays at 8/7C on CBS
*Ha! Just realized that this could almost be taken as a spoof of 'Friends'. Ross and Rachel were will they/won't they for years and Phoebe was insistent that they were each other's lobster. Here Barney is being compared to a lobster and we are again having a will they/won't they scenario forced down our throats.
**That sounded way dirtier than I intended.
That describes last night's HIMYM in a nutshell.
"Lobster Crawl" (S8Ep9) opened with an exchange that was so ridiculous that I didn't know whether to laugh, cry, or turn off my TV.
Since this season of "HIMYM" has been incredibly uneven (both in quality and in tone) I decided to bear with it.
I still can't decide if I'm pleased with that decision.
The episode opened with the gang (plus baby Marvin) hanging out at the bar.
Thank god that adorable baby was there, because we really needed him to get through the rest of the scene.
Barney spills some ketchup on his red tie and begins to have a verbal heart attack, spewing about how the tie died so young (and way too close to retirement) and essentially going on and on about the tie as if it were a close personal friend. If you've watched prior episodes you probably remember that this joke has been done before (with a suit) which may be one reason why it isn't terribly funny. When a show starts to recycle it's own jokes without purpose you know that it's near the end of it's tenure.
Robin, after her "huh" moment at the end of last week's episode (where she realized she might actually be interested in Barney the moment he said he was going to let her go and would stop bothering her) was acting like a complete fool. Using a "flirty" voice (I assume that's what Cobie Smulders was trying to do here), laughing like a twelve-year-old, and generally being a tad crazy. Lily filled her normal role of sane one (a role that was to be yanked away from her in the next ten minutes) and pulled Robin aside to confront her.
When Lily heard the story she told Robin it was just like the lobster incident all over again. See, apparently Robin's doctor told her she was super allergic to lobster and could never eat them again. So she immediately went out and ate a lot of lobster. Because when Robin's told she can't have something she really, really wants it.
So Robin had very little interest in lobster before she was told she could never, ever have it again and Robin had very little interest in Barney before...well, you see where this is going.
The interesting thing is that Lily compares Barney to the lobster, and Robin accepts that he's the lobster equivalent, but both of them are clearly wrong. If the past several episodes have shown us anything (and they haven't shown us a lot) it's that Robin really does still have feelings for Barney.
The subtle undertones that Cobie Smulders has been managing this season have been very impressive. Speaking of which, I didn't mean to belittle Smulders' acting ability re: the "flirty" voice. While I found it incredibly grating, I was very impressed with the level of commitment in her acting. She actually managed to make herself unattractive which is kind of hard to believe because have you seen her?
Moving on. Barney and Robin continue to have ridiculous exchanges which were, frankly, almost embarrassing to watch. Meanwhile, Marshall, Lily and Ted have a less important storyline that revolves around baby Marvin.
See, Marvin is temporarily childcare-less because Lily's dad is sick and so Ted volunteers. He's currently unemployed and everyone knows he loves kids so it's a win-win. Except that, being Ted, he completely oversteps and does things like buy Marvin a football jersey for a team that Marshall hates and take the baby to get his first photo taken with Santa without his parents. Lily goes briefly crazy (I told you she would) when she realizes that she missed Marvin crawling for the first time, but by the end of the episode the three of them are okay again (as we all knew they would be).
Meanwhile, Lily attempts to help Robin with her Barney situation. Robin admits that she wants to sleep with Barney one more time because if he's really her lobster* then she should treat him like she treated the lobster: have him one more time and then feel horrible about it and never want it again.
The rest of the episode is filled with Robin's version of Barney's playbook. (Is a show also considered almost over when it starts spoofing itself?) Much as in "The Playbook" (S5Ep8) each pick-up attempt is inter-cut with a story card telling us the title of the play. Here each of the cards are the title of a move that Robin uses to try and get Barney to sleep with her.
Of course, the one suggested by Lily involves using Lesbian taunts...'HIMYM' loves to throw in occasional references to Lily's attraction to Robin.
The lesbian taunt spectacularly backfires as Barney seems more interested in Robin's co-worker Brandi. He leaves with her to go and have sex on the weather set. Robin is upset, but not devastated. I think that her lack of interest in here is because Brandi is the type of woman Barney often has one-night stands with: attractive and not terribly smart.
Later that same night, perhaps because she's more upset with the Barney/Brandi hook-up than she originally let on, she goes to Barney's to seduce him. He opens his door and she opens her coat, revealing lingerie. He tells her he didn't sleep with Brandi and she looks relieved, but then she opens his door further and Patrice is sitting on the sofa.
Patrice has been presented throughout this season as a perfectly nice woman who is irritatingly cheerful and desperately wants to be best friends with Robin. She's also no where near as attractive as Robin (that is not supposed to be an insult toward Ellen Williams, because seriously, have you seen Cobie Smulders?).
Seeing Patrice sitting on Barney's couch and hearing Barney say that they're on a date clearly devastates Robin. Because she knows that if he does hook-up with Patrice it will be more than a one night stand...she clearly is not his typical type.
Barney is easily able to shrug off Robin in lingerie (another blow to her ego) and tells her that if she gets dressed she can come in and play cards with them. Basically giving Robin permission to be a third-wheel on his date.
Robin turns him down, incredibly embarrassed though she does a good job of not showing it, and walks away.
My hope is that the devastation that Robin so clearly feels serves as a catalyst for her to admit that she truly has feelings for Barney. It's not just that she needs to get him out of her system, she just needs him. In other words, she doesn't want to eat the lobster, she wants him to be her lobster.**
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*Ha! Just realized that this could almost be taken as a spoof of 'Friends'. Ross and Rachel were will they/won't they for years and Phoebe was insistent that they were each other's lobster. Here Barney is being compared to a lobster and we are again having a will they/won't they scenario forced down our throats.
**That sounded way dirtier than I intended.
HIMYM: The Final Page Part One & Two
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'How I Met Your Mother' references it's canon again and again in one of the most important episodes of the series.
"The Final Page" (S8Ep11&12) was a necessary penultimate episode to the series finale. But just because it was necessary didn't make it any less fascinating.
As those of you who watch the show reguarly know, Barney and Robin have both been spinning out of control over the last several episodes. Unfortunately, instead of spinning together they seemed to be spinning further and further apart. Yet we, as loyal viewers, knew that something had to bring them together. Why? Because in the season seven finale it was revealed in a flashforward that Robin marries Barney.
The first ten episodes of season eight definitely did everything in their power to dissuade us from believing that truth. First, they had Barney and Robin drunkenly kiss...and Robin reject him. Then they had Barney tell Robin he was letting her go...once and for all. Robin's reaction to that was less than favorable, and she began to realize her true feelings for them. But she never had time to act upon them, because Barney started dating Robin's "arch-nemesis" Patrice (for a more thorough description of the beginning of season eight go HERE).
"The Final Page" was a two-part episode (episodes 11 and 12) and was also the winter finale for the show. In actuality, the climax of the episode felt very much like a season finale, but since the show may not be renewed for a ninth season (and since it would have been painful to watch the writers attempt to drag out the tension much longer), this was a perfect time to air the episode.
Since it was such an important episode (nope...not telling you why yet!), it made sense that so much of the show's canon was referenced.
The first reference was not a direct reference; in the opener Ted revealed that the gang put a huge amount of importance on jinxes. They must follow them religiously, and cannot speak once they've been jinxed unless someone present at the time of the jinx releases them by saying their name. I chose to interpret this as an oblique reference the slap bets.
Throughout the show the characters have all engaged in a slap bet: a bet that enables the winner to slap the loser. This seems ridiculous and childish (as does a belief in jinxes) but has become a vital part of the show's canon. Hence the believablity of committing fully to a jinx.
And believe me, the audience needed to fully believe that each of the characters would committ to a jinx in order for the episode to work.
Anyway, the episode began with Ted explaining how committed the group was to jinxes. He spoke about when Barney broke a jinx; he got hit by a truck. Loyal viewers will recall that was the day that Barney first realized that he had feelings for Robin. When they showed the brief flashback of the gang in Barney's hospital room, which looked suspiciously like the moment before Barney first stared at Robin in open adoration, it made me wonder whether the writers were referencing their canon again. Perhaps this episode had something to do with Robin and Barney?
The gang manages to jinx Barney and, because of his strong belief in the jinx, he stops talking. He doesn't even say anything when he discovers that Ted is going a tad crazy.
Why's Ted going crazy? Because the grand opening of his building is happening and he invited his old architecture professor--the same professor who once told him he would never be an architect. And not only did the professor RSVP "no", but he also wrote a note saying that he doesn't know Ted.
Of course, considering the fact that most of Ted's career has been based on proving this professor wrong (and because, come on, he's Ted), he decides the only recourse is to drive to his alma mater and confront the professor.
Since Lily and Marshall went to Wesleyan too they decide to come along as, for some inexplicable reason, does Barney. However, Barney's still under the power of the jinx, leading the gang to taunt him with sexual inneundo (Lily: "I want a weiner. In my mouth" etc.).
On campus Marshall and Lily run into a creepy guy they went to college with (Seth Green, who just happens to have played Alyson Hannigan's boyfriend on 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'; now the show is referencing other show's canons). He drags them to his basement and reveals that a game of hacky sack with Marshall and Lily in college made him a millionare (aka he sells hacky sacks online). Unfortunately, he doesn't reveal this until after Marshall has accused him of bringing them into the basement to murder them.
In reality, the poor guy was just trying to give Marshall and Lily a royalties check. But after Marshall tells him the truth he admits that he doesn't need validation from them anymore and tears up the check (much to Lily's dismay).
(I couldn't help but wonder if the chains in the basement were a further reference to 'BtVS'; Hannigan's character had to chain Green's character whenever he turned into a werewolf. But then that seemed too obscure...or is it?)
At World Wide News Robin has been given the task of firing one of her employees and Patrice's name is on the list. Patrice who, as you may recall, is currently dating Barney.
The gang has had a conversation with Robin about putting people "in a pit". This is another new piece of terminology from the show. It means that there is one person in every person's life who you want to get rid of and punish...to get rid of them and "put them in a pit". Lily has suggested that Patrice is Robin's pit person.
And it appears that she might be, because when Robin brings Patrice in for her staff evaluation she fires her. When Patrice asks why Robin clearly can't think of any legitimate reasons and begins spouting about how her cookies are only decent and how she's too nice.
Patrice realizes that Robin is upset about something else and the scene shockingly ends with a teary Robin receiving a hug from Patrice. Seriously, we all know this is about Barney.
At Wesleyan Ted confronts the professor but is disappointed by his reaction: he still doesn't remember Ted and he thinks his building design is horrible.
But after meeting with the professor Ted runs into Marshall and Lily who tell him about their encounter with creepy guy. When Ted hears that a truly obsessed man was able to find self-validation he decides that he doesn't need the professor's approval.
Throughout the entire Wesleyan trip Barney is jinxed and silent, but when Marshall and Lily stop for snacks on the way home, Barney is alone in the car with Ted. And Barney makes Ted break the jinx by pulling a huge enagement ring out of his pocket.
Barney then jinxes Ted, because he wants to tell him things without interruptions. Barney reveals that he is going to propose to Patrice on top of the World Wide News building and makes Ted promise not to tell anyone. Ted hesitantly agrees.
Of course, Ted being Ted it is unlikely that he will keep that promise. While Barney seems sincere, I couldn't help but think back to "The Broath" (S7Ep19), an episode where Barney manipulated Ted into revealing information to all of their friends by making him promise that he would't say anything. Was that what was happening here? Was the show again referencing it's own canon?
Ted, Lily, Marshall and Robin are all hanging out at the bar when Lily and Marshall ask for permission to leave Ted's event early. Since it's their first 24 hours without a baby they want to make the most of their time (aka have lots of sex). Ted says that's okay, and admits that Barney isn't going to be there either. The rest of the gang expresses shock that Barney would stand Ted up on his big night, but even faced with their confusion he keeps Barney's secret.
When Robin and Ted are alone at the bar she asks him again what's going on with Barney. He claims he doesn't know and distracts her by asking her to be his date to the grand opening that night. She accepts. Suddenly the writers have put some fear in us...what if Ted doesn't tell Robin about the potential engagment?
Ted does partially cave and tells Marshall that Barney is going to propose to Patrice. He wants to know whether he should tell Robin...he believes that he owes it to her to let her know. Marshall tells Ted to let it go. Marshall admits that he is on Ted's side and that he still believes Ted and Robin will end up together.
That revelation would be surprising, except the show is once again referencing it's own canon. In "No Pressure" (S7Ep17) it's revealed that Lily and Marshall have made long-term bets about their friends. One of these bets revolved around whether Robin and Ted would end up together; Lily bet "no", Marshall bet "yes". That episode concluded with Marshall telling Lily "not yet" when she asked for him to pay up.
Ted picks Robin up in Ranjit's limo. They're both very well dressed, clearly having gone formal for Ted's big event. But now that he's alone with Robin he can't keep the news to himself. He tells her about Barney's plans, including that fact that Barney is planning on proposing on top of the World Wide News building (Patrice's favorite spot in the city).
While Robin keeps trying to tell Ted that she is fine with the news, upon discovering the location of the proposal she massively overreacts, screaming "Damn it Patrice!" (Robin's favorite place in the city is on top of the World Wide News building).
And again we reference the show's canon. "Damn it Patrice!" is a varation of "Nobody asked you, Patrice!", a line that Robin has been saying since "The Stinson Missle Crisis" (S7Ep4). While that line has become grating in recent episodes, mainly because the delivery causes Robin to appear somewhat of a caricature, it was definitely used well in this episode. It enabled Robin to show the true depth of her feelings for Barney.
And those feelings help persuade Ted what he already knew; that the woman he loved (and maybe still loves) is in love with his friend. Instead of driving to the grand opening, Ted has Ranjit go to the World Wide News builidng. When Robin hesitates, Ted tells her that she needs to go after Barney and not worry about how it makes her look. He says: "I made an ass of myself chasing after you...I have no regrets...led to you being my friend".
That line references the show's massive history, flashing us back to the very beginning when Robin was just some girl in a bar who Ted thought was hot. It also enables Robin to let go, to realize that her friendship with Ted will be safe even if she literally abandons him to go chase after Barney. It releases her from the fear which must still exist after their extended separation when she told him she didn't love him back (S7Ep17-21).
Robin heads up to the roof of the World Wide News building, but when she opens the door no one is there. Instead she sees a path of rose petals leading to a single piece of paper. It is entitled The Robin. It's an obvious reference to the plays that existed in Barney's playbook. A book we thought we'd seen the last of since Barney burned it in "Over Correction" (S8Ep10).
As Robin reads the play we see a series of flashbacks, all reinterpretations of scenes from the last several episodes. We see Barney realize, after his break-up with Quinn, that he still love Robin. We see Barney and Robin's drunken kiss, and discover that it was purposeful on Barney's part. We see Barney tell Robin he's letting her off the hook because he knows it will drive her crazy. We see that he's right and it does drive her crazy. We see Barney ask Patrice to help him in his quest for Robin. We see how Barney watches Robin steal the playbook. We see Barney burn the playbook again, and Robin reads his admittance that he doesn't need it anymore. Then we (and Barney) watch the gang hold the intervention for Robin...on the cameras that he has placed in all of their apartments.
In other words, the last five episodes (since "Splitsville", S8Ep6) have been part of Barney's play. While many people online suggested that Barney was using Patrice to get Robin back, it was gratifying to re-watch the hints the writers had given us...and it was nice to know that Barney wasn't using Patrice; that she was in on the plan from the beginning.
Number 15 on the play informs Robin that she is standing under mistletoe. She stares up to see it above her, and when she looks back down Barney is in front of her. She begins screaming at him, asking how he could do this to her, and how she can ever trust him again now that he has manipulated her. He just stands there and takes it, smiling gently. When she seems to run out of the steam he asks her to turn the paper over. The back of the piece of paper says: 16. Hope she says yes.
Robin lowers the piece of paper and Barney is in front of her, down on one knee, holding an engagement ring. And she says yes.
The music starts to swell and we know we're reaching the end of the episode, seeing the winter finale, nearing the end of the series...
Ted has finally built the GNB building (something first referenced in "Unfinished", S6Ep3).
Robin and Barney are finally engaged (something first openly referenced in "The Magician's Code, Part Two", S7Ep24).
And the writers attempt to hightlight that Ted is still relevant to the show (something that I called into question in last week's review). A toast is given for Ted at the grand opening: "none of this would have been possible without him...to Ted".
And we know that's not just a reference to his building.
"The Final Page" (S8Ep11&12) was a necessary penultimate episode to the series finale. But just because it was necessary didn't make it any less fascinating.
As those of you who watch the show reguarly know, Barney and Robin have both been spinning out of control over the last several episodes. Unfortunately, instead of spinning together they seemed to be spinning further and further apart. Yet we, as loyal viewers, knew that something had to bring them together. Why? Because in the season seven finale it was revealed in a flashforward that Robin marries Barney.
The first ten episodes of season eight definitely did everything in their power to dissuade us from believing that truth. First, they had Barney and Robin drunkenly kiss...and Robin reject him. Then they had Barney tell Robin he was letting her go...once and for all. Robin's reaction to that was less than favorable, and she began to realize her true feelings for them. But she never had time to act upon them, because Barney started dating Robin's "arch-nemesis" Patrice (for a more thorough description of the beginning of season eight go HERE).
"The Final Page" was a two-part episode (episodes 11 and 12) and was also the winter finale for the show. In actuality, the climax of the episode felt very much like a season finale, but since the show may not be renewed for a ninth season (and since it would have been painful to watch the writers attempt to drag out the tension much longer), this was a perfect time to air the episode.
Since it was such an important episode (nope...not telling you why yet!), it made sense that so much of the show's canon was referenced.
The first reference was not a direct reference; in the opener Ted revealed that the gang put a huge amount of importance on jinxes. They must follow them religiously, and cannot speak once they've been jinxed unless someone present at the time of the jinx releases them by saying their name. I chose to interpret this as an oblique reference the slap bets.
Throughout the show the characters have all engaged in a slap bet: a bet that enables the winner to slap the loser. This seems ridiculous and childish (as does a belief in jinxes) but has become a vital part of the show's canon. Hence the believablity of committing fully to a jinx.
And believe me, the audience needed to fully believe that each of the characters would committ to a jinx in order for the episode to work.
Anyway, the episode began with Ted explaining how committed the group was to jinxes. He spoke about when Barney broke a jinx; he got hit by a truck. Loyal viewers will recall that was the day that Barney first realized that he had feelings for Robin. When they showed the brief flashback of the gang in Barney's hospital room, which looked suspiciously like the moment before Barney first stared at Robin in open adoration, it made me wonder whether the writers were referencing their canon again. Perhaps this episode had something to do with Robin and Barney?
The gang manages to jinx Barney and, because of his strong belief in the jinx, he stops talking. He doesn't even say anything when he discovers that Ted is going a tad crazy.
Why's Ted going crazy? Because the grand opening of his building is happening and he invited his old architecture professor--the same professor who once told him he would never be an architect. And not only did the professor RSVP "no", but he also wrote a note saying that he doesn't know Ted.
Of course, considering the fact that most of Ted's career has been based on proving this professor wrong (and because, come on, he's Ted), he decides the only recourse is to drive to his alma mater and confront the professor.
Since Lily and Marshall went to Wesleyan too they decide to come along as, for some inexplicable reason, does Barney. However, Barney's still under the power of the jinx, leading the gang to taunt him with sexual inneundo (Lily: "I want a weiner. In my mouth" etc.).
On campus Marshall and Lily run into a creepy guy they went to college with (Seth Green, who just happens to have played Alyson Hannigan's boyfriend on 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'; now the show is referencing other show's canons). He drags them to his basement and reveals that a game of hacky sack with Marshall and Lily in college made him a millionare (aka he sells hacky sacks online). Unfortunately, he doesn't reveal this until after Marshall has accused him of bringing them into the basement to murder them.
In reality, the poor guy was just trying to give Marshall and Lily a royalties check. But after Marshall tells him the truth he admits that he doesn't need validation from them anymore and tears up the check (much to Lily's dismay).
(I couldn't help but wonder if the chains in the basement were a further reference to 'BtVS'; Hannigan's character had to chain Green's character whenever he turned into a werewolf. But then that seemed too obscure...or is it?)
At World Wide News Robin has been given the task of firing one of her employees and Patrice's name is on the list. Patrice who, as you may recall, is currently dating Barney.
The gang has had a conversation with Robin about putting people "in a pit". This is another new piece of terminology from the show. It means that there is one person in every person's life who you want to get rid of and punish...to get rid of them and "put them in a pit". Lily has suggested that Patrice is Robin's pit person.
And it appears that she might be, because when Robin brings Patrice in for her staff evaluation she fires her. When Patrice asks why Robin clearly can't think of any legitimate reasons and begins spouting about how her cookies are only decent and how she's too nice.
Patrice realizes that Robin is upset about something else and the scene shockingly ends with a teary Robin receiving a hug from Patrice. Seriously, we all know this is about Barney.
At Wesleyan Ted confronts the professor but is disappointed by his reaction: he still doesn't remember Ted and he thinks his building design is horrible.
But after meeting with the professor Ted runs into Marshall and Lily who tell him about their encounter with creepy guy. When Ted hears that a truly obsessed man was able to find self-validation he decides that he doesn't need the professor's approval.
Throughout the entire Wesleyan trip Barney is jinxed and silent, but when Marshall and Lily stop for snacks on the way home, Barney is alone in the car with Ted. And Barney makes Ted break the jinx by pulling a huge enagement ring out of his pocket.
Barney then jinxes Ted, because he wants to tell him things without interruptions. Barney reveals that he is going to propose to Patrice on top of the World Wide News building and makes Ted promise not to tell anyone. Ted hesitantly agrees.
Of course, Ted being Ted it is unlikely that he will keep that promise. While Barney seems sincere, I couldn't help but think back to "The Broath" (S7Ep19), an episode where Barney manipulated Ted into revealing information to all of their friends by making him promise that he would't say anything. Was that what was happening here? Was the show again referencing it's own canon?
Ted, Lily, Marshall and Robin are all hanging out at the bar when Lily and Marshall ask for permission to leave Ted's event early. Since it's their first 24 hours without a baby they want to make the most of their time (aka have lots of sex). Ted says that's okay, and admits that Barney isn't going to be there either. The rest of the gang expresses shock that Barney would stand Ted up on his big night, but even faced with their confusion he keeps Barney's secret.
When Robin and Ted are alone at the bar she asks him again what's going on with Barney. He claims he doesn't know and distracts her by asking her to be his date to the grand opening that night. She accepts. Suddenly the writers have put some fear in us...what if Ted doesn't tell Robin about the potential engagment?
Ted does partially cave and tells Marshall that Barney is going to propose to Patrice. He wants to know whether he should tell Robin...he believes that he owes it to her to let her know. Marshall tells Ted to let it go. Marshall admits that he is on Ted's side and that he still believes Ted and Robin will end up together.
That revelation would be surprising, except the show is once again referencing it's own canon. In "No Pressure" (S7Ep17) it's revealed that Lily and Marshall have made long-term bets about their friends. One of these bets revolved around whether Robin and Ted would end up together; Lily bet "no", Marshall bet "yes". That episode concluded with Marshall telling Lily "not yet" when she asked for him to pay up.
Ted picks Robin up in Ranjit's limo. They're both very well dressed, clearly having gone formal for Ted's big event. But now that he's alone with Robin he can't keep the news to himself. He tells her about Barney's plans, including that fact that Barney is planning on proposing on top of the World Wide News building (Patrice's favorite spot in the city).
While Robin keeps trying to tell Ted that she is fine with the news, upon discovering the location of the proposal she massively overreacts, screaming "Damn it Patrice!" (Robin's favorite place in the city is on top of the World Wide News building).
And again we reference the show's canon. "Damn it Patrice!" is a varation of "Nobody asked you, Patrice!", a line that Robin has been saying since "The Stinson Missle Crisis" (S7Ep4). While that line has become grating in recent episodes, mainly because the delivery causes Robin to appear somewhat of a caricature, it was definitely used well in this episode. It enabled Robin to show the true depth of her feelings for Barney.
And those feelings help persuade Ted what he already knew; that the woman he loved (and maybe still loves) is in love with his friend. Instead of driving to the grand opening, Ted has Ranjit go to the World Wide News builidng. When Robin hesitates, Ted tells her that she needs to go after Barney and not worry about how it makes her look. He says: "I made an ass of myself chasing after you...I have no regrets...led to you being my friend".
That line references the show's massive history, flashing us back to the very beginning when Robin was just some girl in a bar who Ted thought was hot. It also enables Robin to let go, to realize that her friendship with Ted will be safe even if she literally abandons him to go chase after Barney. It releases her from the fear which must still exist after their extended separation when she told him she didn't love him back (S7Ep17-21).
Robin heads up to the roof of the World Wide News building, but when she opens the door no one is there. Instead she sees a path of rose petals leading to a single piece of paper. It is entitled The Robin. It's an obvious reference to the plays that existed in Barney's playbook. A book we thought we'd seen the last of since Barney burned it in "Over Correction" (S8Ep10).
As Robin reads the play we see a series of flashbacks, all reinterpretations of scenes from the last several episodes. We see Barney realize, after his break-up with Quinn, that he still love Robin. We see Barney and Robin's drunken kiss, and discover that it was purposeful on Barney's part. We see Barney tell Robin he's letting her off the hook because he knows it will drive her crazy. We see that he's right and it does drive her crazy. We see Barney ask Patrice to help him in his quest for Robin. We see how Barney watches Robin steal the playbook. We see Barney burn the playbook again, and Robin reads his admittance that he doesn't need it anymore. Then we (and Barney) watch the gang hold the intervention for Robin...on the cameras that he has placed in all of their apartments.
In other words, the last five episodes (since "Splitsville", S8Ep6) have been part of Barney's play. While many people online suggested that Barney was using Patrice to get Robin back, it was gratifying to re-watch the hints the writers had given us...and it was nice to know that Barney wasn't using Patrice; that she was in on the plan from the beginning.
Number 15 on the play informs Robin that she is standing under mistletoe. She stares up to see it above her, and when she looks back down Barney is in front of her. She begins screaming at him, asking how he could do this to her, and how she can ever trust him again now that he has manipulated her. He just stands there and takes it, smiling gently. When she seems to run out of the steam he asks her to turn the paper over. The back of the piece of paper says: 16. Hope she says yes.
Robin lowers the piece of paper and Barney is in front of her, down on one knee, holding an engagement ring. And she says yes.
The music starts to swell and we know we're reaching the end of the episode, seeing the winter finale, nearing the end of the series...
Ted has finally built the GNB building (something first referenced in "Unfinished", S6Ep3).
Robin and Barney are finally engaged (something first openly referenced in "The Magician's Code, Part Two", S7Ep24).
And the writers attempt to hightlight that Ted is still relevant to the show (something that I called into question in last week's review). A toast is given for Ted at the grand opening: "none of this would have been possible without him...to Ted".
And we know that's not just a reference to his building.
16 Aralık 2012 Pazar
Grey's Anatomy S9Ep1: Going Going Gone Recap
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'Grey's Anatomy' is back in an episode that's as good as it is confusing.
As a quick reminder, last season ended with a bang. Literally. A plane carrying a team of doctors that included Meredith, Cristina, Derek, Mark, Lexie, and Arizona crashed. In the sob filled finale, Lexie died while pinned under the plane. Cristina injured her arm, Arizona was bleeding badly from her leg, Derek had a damaged hand, and Mark had some serious internal injuries.
You'd expect the premiere episode to pick up right after the crash, but instead the episode leapt several months ahead.
This leap was clearly done to increase the suspense throughout the episode: the viewer didn't know who had lived/who had died, and how each person was impacted. Unfortunately, it also made the episode slightly confusing. There's a thin line between being intrigued and being irritated. Luckily, this episode verged on the intriguing side.
The episode was intercut with numerous home video style flashbacks. The first one was filming Derek and Mark getting ready for Derek's first wedding. As with the rest of the videos, it featured Sloane prominently. This foreshadowed things to come.
We see a timid intern trying to avoid her mean resident nicknamed "Medusa". As the intern slowly approaches Meredith and Bailey, it is clear that Meredith is the resident in the question.
Meredith as a mean resident? It actually makes a lot of sense. Regardless of how the plane crash impacted her, Meredith was trained by Bailey...and they called her 'The Nazi' in the first two season's of the show.
Derek is back in the hospital dressed in scrubs. This alleviates our concern that he'd never be able to perform surgery again. Except it turns out that although he has been cleared for surgery he has yet to perform a single operation. He's nervous about his hand clenching at a crucial moment. Having hand seizures while said hand is inside someone's brain probably isn't the safest.
But today he wants to perform his first surgery. Callie asks him if he's sure he want to do it today of all days, but he insists that he needs it. What is so big about today?
When he walks into the surgery Callie is standing there along with the other surgical staff and they give him a standing ovation. Despite the fact that he says that "it's a wonderful day to save lives" Derek finds himself unable to complete the surgery. His hand shakes--whether it's mental or physical remains to be seen.
Alex is back to his Season One ways; he's making out with random interns in the supply closets. It seems he has delayed going to Hopkins because he has been covering Peds. Arizona is apparently gone. We don't know what's going on: Is she dead? Has she had a nervous breakdown?
Bailey's boyfriend has left to attend his out of state medical program but he is visiting her a lot. And they're having sex. A lot. She seems really happy. So happy in fact, that Webber admits to her that she is no longer called 'The Nazi'. She has a new--less scary--nickname. She begs him to tell her what it is, but he awkwardly refuses. Seems like the ex-Chief is still afraid of the wrath of Bailey.
Everyone at the hospital keeps on mentioning 5 o'clock as though something major is happening at that time. As soon as the camera pans to Mark Sloane lying on a hospital bed, attached to numerous wires and monitors, it's clear that the 5 o'clock deadline has to do with him. Sloane is in a coma and based on his wishes he doesn't want to be kept on life support for more than 30 days. The 30 days are up at 5 o'clock and the doctors realize the severity of that situation: at 5 o'clock Mark Sloane will die.
Cristina is now at her new job in Minnesota and it's clear she's not happy. Despite her displeasure with her supervisors and the climate, even Cristina is aware that 5 o'clock is approaching. Despite the fact that she and Meredith talk often via video conference it's soon clear that they have yet to visit each other. Presumably because they've both terrified of flying after the plane crash.
Although Callie wasn't in the plane crash it is clear she has been emotionally impacted as well. She is trying to hold it together--even going so far as sitting at Sloane's bedside and joking that she's taking her top off (in hopes of snapping him out of the coma). However, she breaks a couple of times during the episode. Her tension is evident when Owen introduces her to the new Peds surgery resident (Dr. Barnett) who is "replacing" Arizona. Does that mean she actually died in the crash?
It's especially heartbreaking when minutes later we see Callie crouched in a supply closet sobbing. Is she crying because Arizona is dead? In the middle of her emotional breakdown the supply closet door swings open and Alex pushes an intern inside. They begin making out but stop abruptly when they catch sight of Callie. She screams at them to "get out!". The intern promptly leaves, but Alex hovers in the doorway. Callie continues to order him "out" but instead he closes the door and leans against it. Alex may have reverted to some of his old ways, but he isn't the jerk he once was. He still cares about his friends.
Dr. Webber prepares to turn off Sloane's life support while Callie and Derek watch. Although it makes one wonder if Sloane has no other family, it is certainly true that Callie and Derek are the closest things to family he has at the hospital. Except for Lexie that is.
In an incredibly sad flashback, we see a home movie shot at Callie and Arizona's wedding. The videographer asks Sloane who he thinks he'll be with when he's old and grey. He admits he doesn't think he'll be with anyone, but if there is one person he's with it would be Lexie Grey. Since Lexie died in the plane crash and Sloane is about to die this statement is all the more powerful.
As Mark is dying his friends and colleagues gather close. While Callie and Derek are the only ones in the actual room, Bailey and her boyfriend, Webber, Alex and Meredith all gather close. The horribly depressing scene is briefly interrupted by a slightly comedic moment. Bailey, who has been trying to find out her new nickname for most of the episode, is abruptly told by Alex that her new nickname is BCB, or Booty Call Bailey due to the excitement (and copious amounts of sex) she experiences when her boyfriend visits.
Meredith can't deal with the stress of waiting for Mark's death. She announces that she's going to see Cristina and rushes out of the hospital.
At the airport Meredith catches a glimpse of Alex and gets his attention. She's mad at him because he's leaving without saying good bye to her. He yells that he can't stick around just because everyone else is leaving and she doesn't want to be alone. As Alex heads to his plane he catches sight of Owen.
Meredith gets on the plane, but freaks out just as it is getting ready to takeoff. It is clear that she is having flashbacks to the crash.
Back in Joe's bar Meredith calls Cristina over her iPad. They both takes shots together, states apart but facing each other as always. Meredith is shocked when Alex sits down next to her. He admits that he couldn't get on his plane and that he's not leaving. He asks Cristina to tell Owen that he wants his job back. He tells her that he saw Owen at the airport and assumes that Owen's coming to visit her--
But he isn't. We see April working at her family's pig farm. Owen approaches and tells her that she has her job back. He said he's made too many bad decisions and lost too many people. He wants her back at the hospital.
Callie walks into her apartment, devastated after Mark's death. She opens the door to a bedroom and we see Arizona, lying in bed, her back facing the door. Callie tells Arizona that she needs to "snap out of it" and reminds her that their daughter just lost a father, and Callie just lost her best friend. Arizona turns around and yells at Callie that she can't forgive her because she cut off her leg. She yanks back the blanket and we see that one of Arizona's legs has been amputated.
And the episode ends.
The entire episode is relatively sob inducing. Sloane's death and the devastation of his friends is heartbreaking to watch. Discovering Arizona's amputation at the very end of the episode makes the whole thing even more anxiety provoking.
Side notes: We're introduced to some new members of the cast. It seems clear that two interns, Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington) and Heather (Tina Majorino) will become central this season. The first appendectomy, designed to be failed by a weak intern (remember George's experience in Season One of 'Grey's'?), was performed by Dr. Wilson. This made her the most central new cast member of this episode.
As a quick reminder, last season ended with a bang. Literally. A plane carrying a team of doctors that included Meredith, Cristina, Derek, Mark, Lexie, and Arizona crashed. In the sob filled finale, Lexie died while pinned under the plane. Cristina injured her arm, Arizona was bleeding badly from her leg, Derek had a damaged hand, and Mark had some serious internal injuries.
You'd expect the premiere episode to pick up right after the crash, but instead the episode leapt several months ahead.
This leap was clearly done to increase the suspense throughout the episode: the viewer didn't know who had lived/who had died, and how each person was impacted. Unfortunately, it also made the episode slightly confusing. There's a thin line between being intrigued and being irritated. Luckily, this episode verged on the intriguing side.
The episode was intercut with numerous home video style flashbacks. The first one was filming Derek and Mark getting ready for Derek's first wedding. As with the rest of the videos, it featured Sloane prominently. This foreshadowed things to come.
We see a timid intern trying to avoid her mean resident nicknamed "Medusa". As the intern slowly approaches Meredith and Bailey, it is clear that Meredith is the resident in the question.
Meredith as a mean resident? It actually makes a lot of sense. Regardless of how the plane crash impacted her, Meredith was trained by Bailey...and they called her 'The Nazi' in the first two season's of the show.
Derek is back in the hospital dressed in scrubs. This alleviates our concern that he'd never be able to perform surgery again. Except it turns out that although he has been cleared for surgery he has yet to perform a single operation. He's nervous about his hand clenching at a crucial moment. Having hand seizures while said hand is inside someone's brain probably isn't the safest.
But today he wants to perform his first surgery. Callie asks him if he's sure he want to do it today of all days, but he insists that he needs it. What is so big about today?
When he walks into the surgery Callie is standing there along with the other surgical staff and they give him a standing ovation. Despite the fact that he says that "it's a wonderful day to save lives" Derek finds himself unable to complete the surgery. His hand shakes--whether it's mental or physical remains to be seen.
Alex is back to his Season One ways; he's making out with random interns in the supply closets. It seems he has delayed going to Hopkins because he has been covering Peds. Arizona is apparently gone. We don't know what's going on: Is she dead? Has she had a nervous breakdown?
Bailey's boyfriend has left to attend his out of state medical program but he is visiting her a lot. And they're having sex. A lot. She seems really happy. So happy in fact, that Webber admits to her that she is no longer called 'The Nazi'. She has a new--less scary--nickname. She begs him to tell her what it is, but he awkwardly refuses. Seems like the ex-Chief is still afraid of the wrath of Bailey.
Everyone at the hospital keeps on mentioning 5 o'clock as though something major is happening at that time. As soon as the camera pans to Mark Sloane lying on a hospital bed, attached to numerous wires and monitors, it's clear that the 5 o'clock deadline has to do with him. Sloane is in a coma and based on his wishes he doesn't want to be kept on life support for more than 30 days. The 30 days are up at 5 o'clock and the doctors realize the severity of that situation: at 5 o'clock Mark Sloane will die.
Cristina is now at her new job in Minnesota and it's clear she's not happy. Despite her displeasure with her supervisors and the climate, even Cristina is aware that 5 o'clock is approaching. Despite the fact that she and Meredith talk often via video conference it's soon clear that they have yet to visit each other. Presumably because they've both terrified of flying after the plane crash.
Although Callie wasn't in the plane crash it is clear she has been emotionally impacted as well. She is trying to hold it together--even going so far as sitting at Sloane's bedside and joking that she's taking her top off (in hopes of snapping him out of the coma). However, she breaks a couple of times during the episode. Her tension is evident when Owen introduces her to the new Peds surgery resident (Dr. Barnett) who is "replacing" Arizona. Does that mean she actually died in the crash?
It's especially heartbreaking when minutes later we see Callie crouched in a supply closet sobbing. Is she crying because Arizona is dead? In the middle of her emotional breakdown the supply closet door swings open and Alex pushes an intern inside. They begin making out but stop abruptly when they catch sight of Callie. She screams at them to "get out!". The intern promptly leaves, but Alex hovers in the doorway. Callie continues to order him "out" but instead he closes the door and leans against it. Alex may have reverted to some of his old ways, but he isn't the jerk he once was. He still cares about his friends.
Dr. Webber prepares to turn off Sloane's life support while Callie and Derek watch. Although it makes one wonder if Sloane has no other family, it is certainly true that Callie and Derek are the closest things to family he has at the hospital. Except for Lexie that is.
In an incredibly sad flashback, we see a home movie shot at Callie and Arizona's wedding. The videographer asks Sloane who he thinks he'll be with when he's old and grey. He admits he doesn't think he'll be with anyone, but if there is one person he's with it would be Lexie Grey. Since Lexie died in the plane crash and Sloane is about to die this statement is all the more powerful.
As Mark is dying his friends and colleagues gather close. While Callie and Derek are the only ones in the actual room, Bailey and her boyfriend, Webber, Alex and Meredith all gather close. The horribly depressing scene is briefly interrupted by a slightly comedic moment. Bailey, who has been trying to find out her new nickname for most of the episode, is abruptly told by Alex that her new nickname is BCB, or Booty Call Bailey due to the excitement (and copious amounts of sex) she experiences when her boyfriend visits.
Meredith can't deal with the stress of waiting for Mark's death. She announces that she's going to see Cristina and rushes out of the hospital.
At the airport Meredith catches a glimpse of Alex and gets his attention. She's mad at him because he's leaving without saying good bye to her. He yells that he can't stick around just because everyone else is leaving and she doesn't want to be alone. As Alex heads to his plane he catches sight of Owen.
Meredith gets on the plane, but freaks out just as it is getting ready to takeoff. It is clear that she is having flashbacks to the crash.
Back in Joe's bar Meredith calls Cristina over her iPad. They both takes shots together, states apart but facing each other as always. Meredith is shocked when Alex sits down next to her. He admits that he couldn't get on his plane and that he's not leaving. He asks Cristina to tell Owen that he wants his job back. He tells her that he saw Owen at the airport and assumes that Owen's coming to visit her--
But he isn't. We see April working at her family's pig farm. Owen approaches and tells her that she has her job back. He said he's made too many bad decisions and lost too many people. He wants her back at the hospital.
Callie walks into her apartment, devastated after Mark's death. She opens the door to a bedroom and we see Arizona, lying in bed, her back facing the door. Callie tells Arizona that she needs to "snap out of it" and reminds her that their daughter just lost a father, and Callie just lost her best friend. Arizona turns around and yells at Callie that she can't forgive her because she cut off her leg. She yanks back the blanket and we see that one of Arizona's legs has been amputated.
And the episode ends.
The entire episode is relatively sob inducing. Sloane's death and the devastation of his friends is heartbreaking to watch. Discovering Arizona's amputation at the very end of the episode makes the whole thing even more anxiety provoking.
Side notes: We're introduced to some new members of the cast. It seems clear that two interns, Jo Wilson (Camilla Luddington) and Heather (Tina Majorino) will become central this season. The first appendectomy, designed to be failed by a weak intern (remember George's experience in Season One of 'Grey's'?), was performed by Dr. Wilson. This made her the most central new cast member of this episode.
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| Say Goodbye to Mark Sloane & Lexie Grey |
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