Bob’s Burgers: “Bye Bye Boo Boo”

Kyle’s Thoughts

I like it when Louise shows vulnerability and age, and this happens whenever there’s a Boys 4 Now episode, and “Bye Bye Boo Boo” is such an episode. I liked it well enough. I get that Louise doesn’t want to show anyone that she has crush on Boo Boo, and the episode did feature a patented, awkward Tina pearl of wisdom (don’t be afraid to show off your swampy pits), but Louise grated on my nerves.

As usual Louise takes things to extremes. She drags Gene into her Boo Boo obsession. She knows that Tina is part of a Boys 4 Now fan club and that the fan club hates Boo Boo because he broke up the band, and she doesn’t care that she causes Tina to become ostracized by her friends. Louise only thinks of herself. I’m okay when she does this and she realizes she’s done something wrong and apologizes. Typically, Bob’s Burgers works in a Louise apology, too, but they didn’t even hint at one during “Bye Bye Boo Boo.” You’re on your own, Tina.

The other half of “Bye Bye Boo Boo” featured another Bob not liking any kind of change to his restaurant. Again, I get why Bob wouldn’t want a historical plaque showcasing a gruesome murder in his greasy spoon during Prohibition, but even someone who doesn’t know anything about business should know that you could draw a crowd with such a slice of history. Jimmy Pesto takes the plaque Bob discards and uses it as a ploy to bring in business. This all tracks with what we know about the characters. It even makes sense that Bob wants his plaque back when he sees it bring in customers, but what doesn’t make complete sense is Bob letting Jimmy off the hook because Jimmy looks happy. Maybe it’s petty to not let Jimmy have his moment, but those two hate each other. Bob is a nice person, but I’m not sure he’s that nice of a person.

Still, this week’s episode had a lot of laughs. The swampy pits made me cringe in a good way, and I couldn’t stop singing “I’m tall enough to ride your heart.” That’s some killer imagery, even if Jen told me to shut up with that stupid song.

Thanks for reading.

Captain America: Civil War Review

Kyle’s Thoughts

What a difference a focused, well-written script makes. Age of Ultron had a similar cast as Captain America: Civil War, but the characters in Age of Ultron felt out of place, and the action forced down the viewers’ throats, while Civil War’s script better understood its characters, and that’s weird for a movie that features heroes fighting heroes. The biggest reason for this is that Civil War starts with a quieter script and explores the inner thoughts of superheroes.

If you read my rankings of Marvel movies (here’s a link to it), you’ll see a common thread for most of them: their villains are non-existent or they weren’t developed as well as they should be. Captain America: Civil War avoided this—for the most part—by having heroes fighting other heroes. Usually, I don’t care for the plot device of heroes taking arms against other heroes, because at least one character is written out of character (read Jim’s portion of our Batman v. Superman review here), but Civil War has done the best job I’ve seen of using this device. While you may not side with a particular hero in Civil War, you can understand why the heroes on the other side of the issue chose their path. That was something the comic book series of the same name didn’t do well. Great job, Civil War, great job.

I’m not saying Civil War is a perfect movie or that it goes light on the action. It crams as much action as it can in short order, but the two hours of Civil War were better used and paced than the two hours of Age of Ultron. The characters weren’t given equal time—and that might have been the reason Age of Ultron was lopsided—but they were given their own moments, and the viewers knew where each hero was as a character if nothing else. Civil War is a Captain America movie after all, so certain characters had to take a backseat.

It’s difficult not to spoil any of Civil War, and I’m trying hard not to drop any spoilers, but I will get into some particular heroes. Cap (Chris Evans), Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Black Widow (Scarlett Johansen), and The Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan) work well off each other, illustrating where each character falls on the spectrum of government oversight as it pertains to The Avengers. We know most of these characters well, so that shouldn’t have been a surprise, but Chadwick Boseman (Black Panther) was a breath of fresh air.

T’Challa wasn’t just an excuse to have an African hero, he served as a third party to The Avengers. His inclusion painted how The Avengers are seen outside of the United States. And that is one of Civil War’s central themes. Viewers caught a hint of T’Challa’s origin as Black Panther, but since his presence was integral to the main story arc, Civil War incorporated his origin in stride. I’ve always liked how Wakanda was the most technologically advanced country in the Marvel Universe and how it developed, unfettered by colonialism. After Civil War, viewers should be primed for 2018’s Black Panther.

I’m sure a lot of fans are interested in Spider-Man. He was amazing—pun intended. Spidey was a larger part of Civil War than I thought he’d be, and Tom Holland did a great job of portraying a really young Peter Parker. Civil War integrated him into the cast as well as it did T’Challa. We’ll have to see whether or not Spider-Man: Homecoming will be weighted down with Spidey’s origin, but at least Civil War didn’t go that route.

Like I said before, every character had a moment. Scarlet Witch, Vision, Ant-Man, Falcon, Hawkeye, and War Machine each had flashes of what made them tick as characters and why they chose which side they chose. Civil War was a hero versus hero story done about as well as it can be done. Sure, it had a bloated cast—we knew that before watching the movie—and the story did drag because of its large cast, but if Marvel can remind us why we care about these heroes (like it does in Civil War), I’ll continue to find enjoyment with these movies.

Jim’s Take

As Kyle noted, I’ve been pretty open about disliking the plot device of heroes fighting heroes. It does require at least one side being written out of character, and Captain America: Civil War is no exception. Tony Stark is out of character in supporting government oversight. This is the guy who refused to turn his suit over to the government, right? Well, Marvel has done a lot to develop Tony Stark’s character, and they use his guilt over what happened in New York, D.C., and Sokovia to make his surprise decision to serve governments a little less unbelievable. Of course, Stark’s logic still requires a selective memory, as Captain America: The Winter Soldier showed us Hydra (and other rogue elements) can infiltrate any governing body. Suffice it to say, I’m Team Cap.

What helped Civil War was keeping the conflict contained. These heroes are opposed to one another, but for the vast majority of the film, there is focus on how the characters are pulling their punches. This isn’t so much a Civil War as a Civil sparring match, and that helps these characters not feel like they’ve completely lost perspective.

I won’t blow the villain’s identity here, because fans of the comics may appreciate the surprise. It’s a version of a character from the comics who doesn’t really resemble the comic book character in any way, so that might upset some hardcore fans, but I’ll leave that to you to decide.

The important thing about the villain in this story was his plot. What Civil War does so well is it makes you think the villain is aiming much higher than he is, then the plot shrinks. It’s refreshing to me to see a comic book film where the fate of the planet or even the galaxy aren’t on the line. Civil War manages to keep the plot small, but the stakes high, and that’s a compelling story.

I wish there had been a little more closure in the end, but it would’ve been hard to do without glossing over everything the story did, so I can’t fault the film for that. I will say what I loved, and respected, so much about The Winter Soldier is how that movie changed the Marvel Cinematic Universe. It forced all of their storytelling to adapt, and Civil War has done that again. I was nervous about this movie going in, and I can tell you my fears were put to rest. I’m sure I’ll see this at least a couple more times before it’s out of theatres.

Arrow Review: “Genesis”

Jim’s Thoughts

I may be in the minority this week, but I think Arrow outdid The Flash. We finally got a little forward momentum on the Darhk storyline, and after a week spent memorializing Laurel, the show really needed it.

It wasn’t all great. The forward momentum I mentioned came pretty easily, and rather suddenly. It also begged the question as to why it took so long for Oliver to reach out to Constantine for help on how to combat magical forces. We’ve waited far too long for the obvious solution to be the right one.

I really could have done without Felicity being the “happy place” that gets Oliver to embrace the nebulous “power of light” that helped him repel Darhk. If that’s the price we have to pay, though, for something other than Darhk “Darth Vader-ing” Ollie around the room, I’ll call it a wash.

Diggle’s finally confrontation with Andy was pretty well acted on John’s part. I’d say he pretty much carried those scenes.

Thea being locked in the “Hunger Games” sort of dome seems a little like forcing the tension. Her relationship with Mr. Politico never sat well with me, and after he went to Ruve’s camp, it became impossible to justify. Plot devices can be necessary evil in television, but they should at least make an effort not to shine the spotlight on them.

Kyle’s Take

Arrow did outdo The Flash this week. I don’t know whether or not it’s us against the world, Jim, or we’re in the majority, but “Genesis” was leaps and bounds better than the Laurel clip show last week. That doesn’t mean that this week’s episode was great.

I’ll start by saying the one consistent from last week to this week was David Ramsey (John Diggle). He’s put in back-to-back solid performances. Kudos!

So many of the show’s other elements are bittersweet—and not in the pleasant but tinged in sadness fashion. They’re bittersweet because the show ended in a good place but the reason why little of the progression made sense is due to the several things that have happened this season that leave me bitter.

Felicity being Oliver’s “happy place” reminds me of Olicity, and the toll it’s taken on Arrow’s narrative. Oliver refusing to ask Constantine for help until now conjures images of when Ollie asked Constantine to help with Sara’s soul. Constantine could’ve done more than just be the vehicle to get Legends of Tomorrow—another blight on this season—off the ground. And the show has dropped storylines for months and returned to them out of the blue, and that’s what we got with Thea going on vacation with Mr. Politico.

Despite all that, we’re left with Darhk kidnapping Thea and the final showdown is set, so everything’s looking pretty sweet. “Genesis” had more pimples than a teenager working in a fast food restaurant, but it generated momentum for the series. I hope Arrow maintains this momentum through the season finale.

Thanks for reading.

Flash Review: “Rupture”

Jim’s Thoughts

Remember last week when I said I was tired of the de-powered superhero trope? Well, that also goes for “dying” superhero tropes. You may think that was a huge episode spoiler, but I don’t. Show of hands, who thinks Barry is really dead? No one? Right, because he’s not. The preview for next week confirms it. So what was the value of this ending?

In fact, this entire episode felt like a whole lot of throat-clearing. Barry wrestled with whether or not to subject himself to the replicated particle accelerator explosion. We all knew he was going to, so why did it take all episode? Seeing Zoom kill a bunch of people changed his mind. Was there any doubt that’s what was going to happen? Why did Barry wait for Zoom to do it then? As you can see, I’m asking a lot of rhetorical questions. I do that when I’m annoyed.

Cisco had a nice moment with his brother this week. I continue to enjoy his character arc, and he may have been the only highlight for me this week.

Kyle’s Take

I’m going to channel Van Morrison and Them by singing, F-I-Double L-E-R. FILL-ER! F-I-Double L-E-R. FI-LL-ER! I didn’t buy Barry’s reluctance in replicating the particle accelerator explosion. He knows he can’t beat Zoom without his powers, just like he knew he couldn’t trust Zoom when he gave up his powers in the first place. I didn’t buy the progression of Iris and Barry’s love. Barry’s more Iris’s brother on this Earth, and that’s kind of gross, unless you’re down with a brother-sister getting freak nasty. I didn’t buy Barry dying at the episode’s end. He isn’t dead. Jim and I talked about it and how is Barry even dead? Dr. Wells recreated the original explosion to the letter, so it should’ve yielded similar results. So shouldn’t Barry be in a coma?

The writing is channeling WWJD. You can’t return after a day or two because everyone has to know you’re dead for your return from death to mean anything. Wait for Sunday to come around, when everyone’s looking around thinking where Jesus is, and then announce you’re back. If that last comment offended you, know that this isn’t the first time DC has used the WWJD writing technique this year: Superman at the end of Batman v Superman.

Wally and Jessie were the only two non-metahumans locked up for their own protection. And look how that turned out. They were in the right place at the right time for both of them to get zapped by a bolt of lightning, which should, in turn, transform them into speedsters. Sigh. We’ll watch them run around for an episode, while Barry takes thirty to forty minutes to rematerialize.

On to pleasant things, I also enjoy Cisco’s character arc. The Flash has done a great job with him this season—and last season for that matter—but I worry about what might happen to The Flash if Cisco gets too powerful. The Flash is already an overpowered hero, that’s why we’ve already seen the de-powered trope two or three times in less than two seasons and we’ve gotten one death, too. If you add Cisco’s vibe powers at full-throttle, they’d be nigh unbeatable. So then we’d be back to de-powering and killing.

It’s difficult to write for TV. I’m not trying to be sarcastic with that last comment. It is difficult. A season of The Flash runs about 20 hours, and that’s daunting, and when we take a macro approach to storytelling (an entire series’ run or a block of two or three seasons), it’s even more difficult. But I couldn’t help but hear a drill sergeant or band major bark, “Mark time, march” at the beginning of “Rupture,” and the characters marched in place for forty minutes.

Thanks for reading.

Arrow Review: “Canary Cry”

Jim’s Thoughts

This week brought us a fairly decent Arrow episode. Because I’ve never really cared for Laurel, the sentimentality of the episode was lost on me. The flashbacks to her and Ollie dealing with Tommy’s death in the first season didn’t serve as the trip down memory lane I think the show was going for, but Paul Blackthorne (Detective Lance) had some really strong moments as he struggled with his loss as a father.

Diggle also had a good bit of character development as he wrestled with the guilt of knowing his decision to trust his brother over Ollie played a part in Laurel’s death. It’s been a while since I’ve felt Diggle has had a well executed bit of progression, so that was nice to see, and Ramsey didn’t waste the opportunity. His performance was strong.

The storyline with impostor Canary fell flat. It came out more as a quick fix for not having a clear villain in the episode. What’s more, I didn’t buy the conflict at the heart of it, the need the group felt to protect Laurel’s legacy as Black Canary. First, Laurel hasn’t been Canary-ing for very long. I don’t see how she could have established the reputation the show presumed she had. Second, Black Canary wasn’t really her creation, remember? It was Sara’s.

As with The Flash this week, I could pick a lot more apart, but for the time being, I’ll just take this week’s installment for the slight course correction it appeared to be, and look forward to a solid finish down the road.

Kyle’s Take

“Canary Cry” was a better Arrow episode than recent weeks, but that’s not saying too much. Arrow has set the bar low these past few months. I’d say that this episode could fit with previous seasons, so that’s a good thing. I don’t care for Laurel either, but I’m not sure the flashbacks were that effective even if you liked the character. All Arrow needed was the wavy lines and a dreamy harp and it’d have a sitcom clip show. To be honest, I had forgotten Tommy existed, Arrow didn’t set him up at all, but Detective Lance (Paul Blackthorne) had one of his best performances on the show in years. I thought he galvanized the cast the first couple of seasons, was forgotten like Tommy these past seasons, and this week he reminded me that he’s a talented actor.

Kudos to Ramsey and his performance as Diggle, too. He was another character who got lost in the cracks, even though his brother was at the heart of the plot, but he had some great moments this episode.

I’m not sure what was going on with the new Canary. I don’t buy any of it and agree with Jim’s logic, including Sara as the original Black Canary. How can Laurel be “The” Black Canary when she was in fewer episodes as that character? What the what? You’re not even Roger Moore’s James Bond to Sean Connery’s.

Now my next comment may not make sense if you aren’t watching Arrow and Flash as they’re being released (like if you binge watched them on Netflix in the next year or two), but the state Barry’s in right now on The Flash doesn’t jive with the scene he shared with Ollie this week. Barry doesn’t have his speed. How does he bolt off at the end of this episode? With all the breaks both shows have taken, you’d think the CW would’ve synced the two shows’ timelines.

I could rip into “Canary Cry” more but this was a watchable episode of Arrow and I’m glad. Hopefully, it’s a sign of things to come.

Thanks for reading.

Flash Review: “Back to Normal”

Jim’s Thoughts

To put it succinctly, this week’s episode of The Flash was an improvement. It was still far from perfect, or even the highs the show has reached in the past, but if nothing else, the plot didn’t feel quite as convoluted.

In the interest of full disclosure, I’ll say some of what rubbed me the wrong way this week may be DC’s creative direction of late. If you read DC comics, you know they’ve been on something of a “de-powering” kick. By that, I mean they’ve been telling stories about heroes losing their abilities. I’ve grown weary of it, and it’s not the first time Flash has done it, so I wasn’t all that interested in watching Barry flail around, trying to be a vulnerable hero.

This week’s villain of the week went a little deeper than past examples. Mostly it was just used to give a little emotional progress to Wells, and there was something worthwhile there. Jessie sharing a moment with her dad, explaining how Harrison killing to protect her made her feel, might have fleshed out both characters a little bit, even if was all a little too direct. Speaking of family moments, there was also an attempt to give the West family a bit of momentum, though Wally’s declaration that he won’t waste the chance The Flash gave him rang hollow. We don’t know him well enough for his change of heart to mean much.

I’m starting to feel like Zoom being unmasked as some version of Jay has gutted the character. His fixation on Caitlin makes him seem more like a run-of-the-mill headcase than a harbinger of death and despair. While there was something cool about Caitlin confronting her doppelganger, I couldn’t help but ask the same question Killer Frost did. Is she really that gullible?

The more I poke this episode with a stick, the worse it starts to smell. There were a lot of issues with it, but unlike last episode, where the plot became so nonsensical I wouldn’t follow it if I could, this week managed to hold my attention. Here’s hoping this is the start of a tighter focus returning to the show.

Kyle’s Take

I agree with Jim about DC de-powering its heroes in the comic books but I try to view the TV shows and comic books as separate entities. I’m not sure that Barry’s de-powering is as much of a crossover effect from the comics as much as it is a means with which to turn Jessie Quick and Wally West into speedsters and explain why the rest of The Flash’s rogues gallery didn’t change during the first particle accelerator explosion. Yeah. We’re getting a second explosion next week. Say hello to Mirror Master and all your Flash rogue pals.

The Flash presented the idea a few weeks ago that there’s no way a metahuman—to be fair it was specifically a speedster—could hide this long without revealing themselves. (This idea was presented during the episode that featured a lab tech who became a speedster by taking Velocity-9.) I thought this was a silly statement, and “Back to Normal” showed us a metahuman who hid this long without revealing himself. So in the episode The Flash set in motion a second explosion with which to gain more villains, because metahumans can run but they can’t hide, they feature a metahuman who was still in hiding. I don’t know if that makes sense.

I wish all family issues could be solved as quickly as the Wells family’s problems. I’m sorry I called you a murderer for killing someone, Dad. I’m sorry I stalked you, Jessie baby, but if you run again, I will hunt you down. That’s not creepy at all. Let’s hug. I don’t even know why Jessie was a necessity for Barry’s team. What happened to Pied Piper? Aren’t they besties now? Jessie only returned to Central City so she could become Jessie “Quick.” Harry name-dropped her superhero alter ego in a fashion as subtle as the Wells’ story.

Not only do we not know Wally well enough to care about him, he serves no purpose besides his inevitable turn as Kid-Flash or Impulse or whatever speedster name The Flash wants to give him after next week. Zolomon-Garrick isn’t Zoom, that’s why he’s a lesser villain. I don’t care if Zolomon was Zoom in the comics. Again, the TV shows are based on the comic books; they shouldn’t mirror them. Watch out because Earth-Prime Caitlin Snow may be the real Killer Frost. I’m sure she’ll be near Star Labs next week and she may have a change of heart.

I almost forgot about Zoom’s comment about controlling Earth-Two this episode. You can’t tease Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, and Aquaman on Earth-Two (this happened during Flash’s Earth-Two episodes), because Zoom wouldn’t control Earth-Two if these heroes existed in that reality. You aren’t all that, Zoom.

I agree that Flash has regained its focus, but there are plot holes the size of a particle accelerator explosion. Oh, wait, we’re getting one of those next week. Let’s see what happens.

Thanks for reading.

Bob’s Burgers: “Pro Tiki/Con Tiki”

Kyle’s Thoughts

“Pro Tiki/Con Tiki” was a good—if uneventful—episode. Chris Parnell as Bob’s childhood friend served as a good guest star, and I wondered if Bob’s Burgers would change up the feel of Bob’s greasy spoon; they did here and Bob hated every minute of it. On the surface all this would equate to a great episode but the reason I’m hesitant to shower praise on this show is that we don’t learn something new about any of the characters.

Discovering new things about Bob’s Burgers characters separates the good from the great episodes, and “Pro Tiki/Con Tiki” was good. Bob likes his restaurant the way it is. No shock there. At first he appreciates his rich friend Warren’s help to improve his joint. That tracks. Linda gets dazzled by the eatery’s facelift and likes the pretty island decorations. That’s not a big surprise either. But then Bob resents the changes and he wants his restaurant back to the way it was and it returns to the way it was. Pretty standard sitcom fare.

I laughed. The show had its moments, but this episode makes me wonder what would happen if Bob’s Burgers borrowed a page from Archer and make the change last more than an episode. I don’t think the two shows should mirror each other but I can’t help thinking this way with Parnell taking over Bob’s business (when he’s done so in Archer) and I like having the danger of Bob’s restaurant changing for a chunk of time. It’s a missed opportunity that I wouldn’t have noticed had “Pro Tiki/Con Tiki” revealed something new about this show’s characters. So, it was good, maybe even very good, but not great.

Thanks for reading.

Flash Review: “Versus Zoom”

Jim’s Thoughts

With all these breaks Flash and Arrow are taking, then coming back from, it’s hard for me to tell how much of the loss in momentum is on the writing, and how much of it is on the scheduling. This week offered some interesting character moments. I like seeing Cisco continue his journey toward becoming Vibe. Barry getting a new gadget to boost his speed feels a little like a cheat, but I’m glad it moved things forward with Zoom.

There were a couple big problems with this episode. First, and probably most noticeable, the explanation of how Zoom has managed to be so many places, how he duped them with the “Jay” persona, all that highlighted the grievance Kyle has brought up a few times. Dopplegangers not only cast shadows on the prospect of death, but they muddy the waters, and make the story feel convoluted.

I continue to not care about the story with Wally. There’s nothing really wrong with the character, but we’re always hearing about what he’s doing off-screen, then getting nothing but forced family moments in the show. This week’s episode brought Wally into the main story, but it’d be more meaningful if I were more invested at this point.

The conclusion to the episode irked me. I’ve never bought into Jay and Caitlin. Caitlin’s mourning for her half of Firestorm and her love for Jay had no breathing room between them, but I could go on indefinitely about how poorly The CW handles romance. The real problem is that the obvious happened. Barry surrenders his speed, and now he can’t do anything to stop Zoom. What did he think would happen? How could he hope to hold Zoom to his end of the bargain? All of this is to say nothing of the fact that de-powered Barry has already been done. I wouldn’t swear to it, but I’m not even sure it’s the first time they’ve done it this season.

Kyle’s Take

Flash weakened Barry’s powers earlier this season with the same device Wells used to boost his speed during “Versus Zoom.” So, yeah. It’s been done.

It’s all been done before. Reverse-Flash needed Barry’s speed to return home last season; Zoom needs Barry’s speed to live. You could say that Flash raised the stakes by making Hunter Zolomon’s need life-and-death, but that’s if the show had developed Zolomon, and that didn’t happen. Seriously, this is a moment when the TV show shouldn’t have followed the comic book. There were a couple of other characters set up—somewhat—by the TV show who would’ve worked better as Zoom and what we got was a yawn.

Wally’s a yawn. The fact that all his development happens off-screen makes him an ineffective character. Flash may as well cast a different actor as Wally for each episode because Wally doesn’t behave the same from one episode to the next. We’re sounding like a broken record but so is Flash.

The Caitlin-Jay love story—we should call that relationship Cait-lie from now on—didn’t do anything for me either. Barry giving Zoom his speed was nonsensical (you can’t stop him without your powers, Barry, and nothing the gang knew about Zoom should lead Barry to believe he’d keep his word). Depowering Barry was predictable too. And this is before we get to doppelgangers and time remnants. Who does Earth-2 work for? Absolutely no one. Those last two sentences–a nod to 1997’s Austin Powers–were fresher than most of the Flash’s story arcs this season.

I guess Earth-2 works for Cisco. I like his development, too, but I could’ve done without the Star Wars midi-chlorians reference. And I can’t believe I’m about to say this, but the presence of Cait-lie has made Iris palatable. The CW still doesn’t know how to handle romances, but I welcome Iris’s reluctance to date after Eddie, even if I don’t buy her falling for Barry. All Flash is doing with Iris’s deep like of Barry is flipping Barry and Iris’s roles from last season.

It’s all been done and it’s only the second season. Flash needs a Speed Force injection.

Thanks for reading.

Bob’s Burgers: The Hormone-iums

Kyle’s Thoughts

“The Hormone-iums” was a Tina episode, and it was a satisfying one. Bob’s Burgers mines teenage angst gold any time it features Tina. Butts were tossed for kisses and that was a welcome change, but invention of The Hormone-iums was contrived. Bob’s Burgers does an excellent job of call-backs to previous jokes—it did that well with week’s secondary story—and it’s developed rich Tina lore, but this episode didn’t tap into either of those particularly well as far as Tina is concerned.

That’s not to say that “The Hormone-iums” is a bad episode. It’s a good episode. The titular musical theater group is straight out of something Mr. Frond would create but Bob’s Burgers has hinted at Frond’s ABS (his conflict resolution system) on multiple occasions and The Hormone-iums appear to be an extension of Frond’s ABS and yet we haven’t seen The Hormone-iums before now. Gene and the rest of the Belcher kids have thrown countless musicals and this is the first time we’ve seen The Hormone-iums. I wouldn’t ding a comedy this hard but Bob’s Burgers has done a better job of incorporating ideas like this in the past. I’m a little disappointed.

The rest of the show was good to great. Tina stands up for herself and challenges Mr. Frond—for right and wrong reasons—and that was good to see. Most episodes that focus on Tina take a layered approach and “The Hormone-iums” was no different. And it was fun.

Since Tina took center stage, the other Belchers served as the secondary story, and we’re back to Bob’s Burgers’ usual formula. That was also nice to see. The story for Linda’s booze shoes was a little flat but watching Bob come out of his shell made it worth it. And that also led to a tender—and awkward—moment between Tina and her father. The Marshmallow, Gretchen, and Fishoeder call backs added some needed spice.

“The Hormone-iums” had enough zest for a Tina episode, and I had fun watching.

Thanks for reading.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Review: “Paradise Lost”

Kyle’s Thoughts

“Paradise Lost” was heavy on Malick’s backstory. It was handled well—for the most part—but this week’s episode wasn’t as balanced as other recent ones. S.H.I.E.L.D. marked time. The gang reflected on their past with Agent Ward and tried to figure out how Ward was still alive or figure out what Ward has become. It was a slow episode, even if it was necessary.

The audience knew little to nothing about Malick, so it was nice to learn about his past. Malick’s flashback scenes worked to set current Hydra events, but the S.H.I.E.L.D. scenes didn’t jive. I don’t know if the S.H.I.E.L.D. scenes added anything besides giving Daisy the green light to mobilize her team inhumans—something we knew was coming for a while—so let’s concentrate on Malick’s past and modern-day Hydra.

I didn’t get the sense of who modern-day Hydra was. “Paradise Lost” was so steeped in Malick’s past that everyone at Hydra’s big table read like a one-for-one stand-in for the poignant flashbacks. I get why Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. did this—they only have so many minutes in an episode—but it was lazy and it forced the bulk of the episode’s action to occur in the past. Malick betrayed his brother by using the same marked stone his father used (to avoid being It’s sacrifice), after Malick promised his brother he wouldn’t use the stone. He hid the stone in his father’s copy of Milton’s Paradise Lost, hence the episode’s name, and It-Ward gave the stone back to Malick. It was predictable but it worked.

I guess I buy how It-Ward functions too: he absorbs his victims’ memories and personalities. It reads like a cheat for the character, but it lead to this episode’s best moment. Malick spent the entire hour thinking It-Ward would kill him. He comes clean to his daughter about how he set up his brother to die. His daughter turns her back on him, and It-Ward absorbs Malick’s daughter’s essence. Ouch. It was a good moment but it wasn’t as powerful a moment as it could’ve been because Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. did little to set up Malick’s daughter. We knew so little about their relationship and Malick already screwed over his brother, so I’m not sure how much this moment will affect him, but it was interesting.

Because of the story’s unevenness “Paradise Lost” was one of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s weaker episodes this season, but it was still enjoyable.

Thanks for reading.