Snap Judgments

Finished up a bunch of series in the last six months, rocking 'em old school one episode a week because, you know, life and such. I find bingeing has ruined the viewing experience and the tide is turning in my favor. Here are 9 series, quick takes all to fit in this format because I care. A lot. Maybe too much.

Best of the lot has to be Hulu's remake Shogun, far exceeding my expectations above and beyond, a really magnificent, compelling epic. This time around, they managed to do it right. This is what major scale series and productions should be modeled upon. That it was so popular world-wide is major step in the right direction should they attempt something along these lines again. Hopefully, it's not a fluke. Showering it with Emmys is frosting on a beautiful cake.

Ripley on Netflix has to be one of most gorgeously shot shows 
on television probably ever and it's all in glorious black and white. Hah! Andrew Scott makes the lead character so creepily bland that's damn near hypnotic. This show is a slow burn and turned my stomach into knots, which is a good thing for a thriller.

Then there's 3 Body Problem, a show I expected to be similar to the sensational German series Dark from a few years ago. It missed that mark by a country mile, though it had its moments, enough to keep my interest to the end. However, glad to see Rosalind Chao get an overdue decent role after all this time.

Endings are notoriously difficult to pull off, "sticking the landing" as I like to say. (Who said it first? Was it Amelia Earhart?) If you can't manage the finale, it can sometimes negate what came before. Case in point: The Veil on Hulu. Five episodes of really taut story-telling leading up to a potentially smashing finale and...it goes right off the rails and limps off into the sunset. Fortunately, Elisabeth Moss saves the day once again, making this the best of this bunch. She's a goddamn jewel.

Under the Bridge, also on Hulu, had a decent wrap-up which actually rescued it from obscurity since it was two episodes too long, junked up with unnecessary sub-plots that proved there wasn't enough faith in the source material.

The worst show of the year thus far, Netfix's Eric could barely get out of the first episode without tripping over itself, particularly painful for me since I am a Cumberbitch and he was the only reason I stayed with it. He owes me one since what followed is a trash heap that I had hoped the last episode would at least give it some kind of redemption. Instead, it had to be the worst hour of television imaginable. I'm still holding my nose from this one.

Amazon Prime's Fallout is a better than your average bear post-apocalyptic show with enough twists to make it appear fresh when it's just another notch on the genre. But anything with Walton Goggins is worth your time and mine.

Also on Prime is Good Omens 2, a swell adaptation of a Terry Pratchett/ Neil Gaiman collaboration
about the relationship between an angel (Michael Sheen) and a demon (David Tennant). And Jon Hamm is a hoot as an amnesiac Gabriel.

The second season of AMC's Interview with the Vampire elevates it to a new level, setting the bulk of the story in a vampire theater. The role of Claudia, the young girl turned vamp who must spend eternity in the body of a child with adult sensibilities, was re-cast this season and the actress who portrays her, Delainey Hayles, is superb-fierce, compelling and ultimately heart-breaking.

As of this writing , I haven't finished the new season of The Bear, Dead Ringers, Mr. and Mrs. Smith or The Lazarus project. I'll get to 'em, okay? What's the rush? Damn, you're pushy. I've got better things to do with my time besides watching TV like blog about watching TV...

Yikes. I'm a sad soul. What's it like outside these days?

Sad Men

And thus, Mathhew Weiner's MAD MEN ends not with a bang, but with an "Ommmmmm..."

The finale of AMC;s first successful foray into series television had the feel of a greatest hits album with additional previously unreleased tracks. High notes abounded, giving closure to some characters, new roads to travel for others and for Dick Whitman AKA Don Draper, a round trip ticket. Some elements seemed too pat, like a fairy tale ending for Peggy Olsen, but those who are familiar with the Weinerverse now full well that pitfalls are right around the corner. But that final coda put it all in perspective with a wink and a jab to the ribs to make it all worthwhile.

Breaking Bad to the Bone

And so it ends.

BREAKING BAD, Vince Gilligan’s sublime Scarface meets Goodbye, Mr. Chips saga on AMC, ended its run with a highly satisfying grand finale that has already infuriated self-important critics who always know better which direction to steer the ship and is currently being dissected, scrutinized and rehashed by anyone with an opinion and a keyboard from here to Andromeda and beyond. 

What else is new? In this era of the mega-hype nothing can possibly live up to the ridiculously outrageous expectations set for a show whose supporters and fans were as rabid as pit bulls on blue meth. Since this show had the honor to be a critical and ratings success, not mention ending way before it wore out its welcome, the pressure was on to deliver THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH.  But whatever Gilligan came up with would never be enough, not even the shopworn dream ploy when Walt wakes up next to Suzanne Pleshette.  

In days past, series finales have always been a mixed bag, usually delivering high ratings numbers with dubious results. Mostly they’re bloated, overlong affairs concocted to deliver maximum ratings numbers and quality be damned. The concluding episodes of THE FUGITIVE and M*A*S*H* set the standards back in the sixties and seventies, garnering huge numbers with shows that at least matched up to the rest of their respective runs. But when SEINFELD, CHEERS and FRIENDS said goodbye, it was almost as if they couldn’t wait to into their cars and drive home. THE SOPRANOS, a definite precursor to BREAKING BAD, wrapped up feebly and is only memorable for its ambiguous closing shot that has polarized fans to this very day.

But BAD’S last season, almost rushing to a conclusion, took a methodic approach for this episode entitled "Felina" under writer/director Gilligan, almost like Bryan Cranston's swan song performance as Walter White. This chemistry teacher turner druglord attempted to right the wrongs in his life in one step at a time, trying to find the soul he lost along the way. It coincided with Gilligan's approach to this last hour. This was no more evident than in what I consider to be the highlight, Walt and his wife Skyler quietly powerful confrontation, a scene that was in turns tense, brutal, tragic and touching in its short five minutes. Cranston and Anna Gunn, so deserving of her Emmy win, set a high standard for acting that should be studied for years to come. Aaron Paul’s Jesse finally graduated from Mr. White’s class with honors, ending their twisted father/son relationship once and for all. The episode contained those brilliant fine touched that help propel this show in to legendary status like the Marty Robbins tune, Lydia’s ringtone and those damn laser pointers. As for Walter White, did he redeem himself? Not one iota. There’s no way he could. The only thing he could do was go out with a bang and a whimper, laying on the floor of a meth lab, staring at the Heaven he will never see as he forever resides in the Hell of his own making.

For both Walter White and Vince Gilligan, the last stand of BREAKING BAD can all be summed up in what the Man Who Would Be Hiesenberg finally admitted:

"I did it for me. I liked it. I was good at it. I was really… I was alive."

If it wasn't the best ending, it was the right ending for Vince Gilligan, for Walter White and for those of us who have taken the journey with them and accept this is indeed Felina.

BREAKING BAD.

Remember its name.