Last night's TV

[stakebait]

Heroes
Not even my rampant Mohinder crush can keep me from saying that was silly. You don't chase after political candidates in the street asking them if they are having mutant superpowers and expect them to do anything but what he did. And I really can't fanwank it into making sense. Mohinder is not only a smart, educated and allegedly logical man, he's also keenly and personally aware of the general dismissive reaction to his father's theories. He got the guy's attention with the possible threat to his life – at that point you tell him you need to speak to him privately, or at least with only a trusted goon or two. Last week's inconsistencies I could chalk up to emotion; this week's are starting to look like plain old lack of thinking. Which in the character who seems to be cast as the thinker is a little disconcerting.

By the by, do congressional candidates really travel with that many bodyguards nowadays? I know it's a new and scary era and all, but when last I had personal contact with a congressional candidate he had no bodyguards whatsoever, just a campaign manager and a few volunteers who tended to be something less than intimidating.

Does anyone know if he's running for first time election or re-election? I could have sworn no one has said anything about him being an incumbent Congressman already – and frankly, if he is, what's he so worried about? Incumbents rarely lose, and particularly in New York, which is practically a one party town except for the mayor and governor spots. But in Vegas didn't someone refer to him as the Congressman?

I really kind of wanted to slap him upside the head for cheating on his wife, which is a) wrong and b) really stupid in a candidate who cares so much about avoiding gossip that he's willing to pay his brother to leave him alone. Sex scandals are much bigger news than wacky siblings. And what happens in Vegas with a total stranger who you haven't so much as run a background check on is most unlikely to stay in Vegas, even if she wasn't being paid to set you up. If you're going to be a conniving, selfish, power grubbing bastard, at least be good at it. Although lord knows I can't say it's not a believable weakness for a politician to have.

Though speaking of not believable, am I the only one who thought that not-Niki's performance felt enough like, well, a performance, that if I were him I'd think it was weird? YMMV, of course, but I'd expect a new hookup to be a little more into the mutual touching and a little less into pushing me away so they could put on a show.

I loved the split mirror effect of the elevator doors, though. Nicely done. And it got me when her son told her it was safer over the Internet, with the knowledge she thought he didn't have and the taking care of her and the touch of resignation and all.

Still not loving Peter as much as I think I'm supposed to, though I'm glad to get the "he picks up other people's powers" memo – that makes as much sense as anything else, and it fits with his caretaker persona. But I'm finding his relationship with Simone kind of creepy rather than charming. He knew she was with Isaac, he didn't ask about that till the next morning, he doesn't want to be the rebound guy and yet he still made a move right after she made the toast about love that's no good for you – um, 'kay. Have I done dumber things for love? Yep. But he doesn't really seem to be owning them.

Still feeling the Claire love in a big way. Poor bunny! Attempted ape, murder, terrifying waking up violated and exposed, literally broken open, having to hide it from your folks, crying on the stairs – she really does remind me of Buffy at her best. And I must admit I cheered her on when she crashed the car. I don't believe in the death penalty and I wouldn't have supported it just for revenge, but the combination of getting her own back and refusing to be a victim, *and* avenging her fellow-victim, *and* her making sure first that he wouldn't stop raping others or show remorse, yeah. Plus it is the first time she's really deliberately used her powers. And I love how the look that girl gave her, which passed as jealousy at the time, now gets reinterpreted as fellow feeling and maybe even an attempt to convey a warning. That's elegant storytelling. Although thinking of her as a real person, I could wish she'd done something less ambiguous to warn or prevent.

I was quite startled to find out that Claire's mom is still around. Her dad always seemed to talk about her in the past tense. I wonder if she's in on it. And if she's not, what she'll do when she finds out what he's up to vis a vis their daughter? I wonder if Little Bro is a superhero too?

Gotta love Hiro. Though no, cheating is not remotely the same as selling pictures of yourself. He really did know that, he shouldn't have let his friend play on his excitement at being a superhero to do something wrong. But I didn't have any real fear that he was going to keep slipping down the slope because he doesn't fundamentally care about money and power and suits. And it was awesome to see future Hiro, when he's become the real thing. Almost like getting a glimpse of ATS season 4 Wesley during Buffy season three.

In the inverse of Peter, I am more for Isaac than maybe I should be. He is a junkie, after all, and it's very easy for me to undercode the importance of that when I never see him doing anything really bad to get his fix, or failing to do anything really needed because of it. (Okay, he didn't answer the door. But the same thing would have happened if he'd gone grocery shopping when they dropped by.) Mostly I just see him arguing with Simone about something where he's right and she's wrong. If they showed more and told less I think I would have the reaction I really ought to, of tough love at best rather than taking his side, but as it is, when he said "you only want the ones I paint when I'm high" I kind of wanted to cheer.

Am also a little confused about "save the cheerleader, save the world." First of all New York, much as I love it, is not the world. Or is that just the beginning of the bad?

Also it's hard for me to see what Claire's superhealing powers could do to fight off a citykiller explosion, much less a planetkiller. She can run into infernos, but bombs pretty much need stopped before they go off, and how is she going to get to them or do that better than someonw who's just plain willing to die to get it done? Maybe what she has is information about the people planning the attack, or access to it, because she knows her dad. Do you all think the mutant search and observe people are really also planning to bomb New York – 'cause, why? -- or is that some other villain that the mutants are needed to stop?

Studio 60
The weather with Pat Robertson – bwah! I often like the throwaway concepts better than the developed ones, unless the developed ones have a further twist and/or stop as soon as we've gotten the first joke. I think that's just my preferred style of comedy – I almost always think SNL and Mad TV and in fact, most comedy sketches go on too long. Though Jenny Doesn't Have a Baby did make me giggle out loud.

I also loved Danny's line about "we have the barn, let's put on a show." Bradley Whitford does that mix of wistful, determined, and self-mocking very well indeed. And I loved his interaction with Matt, especially the finishing sentences thing "and you are…" which shows just how seamlessly they communicate and how well they know each other.

I thought the FHM girl thing was mildly piggish – I'm pretty sure Danny's point was, go out with someone you could never be serious about, but it also seemed to carry some freight of weird implications – like, non-smart girls will be sexier, or sexy girls won't be smart, or hurting the feelings of non-smart girls doesn’t count, or something. But I suspect this is the equivalent of doing an "I hate men" rant -- it *is* a little troubling, but it's also not literally meant, more a shorthand for showing solidarity with someone who's hurting.

Then again, Jordan has me wondering if I'm sexist myself, because I must admit, I was totally cheering for Jack when he slapped her down with the sign on his door line. Even though yes, that was a loathsome TV show concept she passed on (and what if more than one couple survives the dirt? Or what if none do? As game design goes, it's got flaws.) Still, I've been wanting to do that for ages. Jordan, you work for him. If you're so good at your job, at some point you need to recognize that that's a legitimate part of it. It's fine to stand up for your principles (and your autonomy) but she never, that I've seen, has an interaction with him that does NOT involve her defying him and being flippant about it, and she's never (so far) wrong. I liked his line about it being said by a coach who hasn't won in nine years, too. She not only knows the obscure play the guy wrote, she quotes Pericles from memory? If they showed her swotting it up in advance to woo him, maybe I'd be touched, but this, not so much.

Martha the reporter is much more my speed, in spite of the shirt-unbuttoning thing which I thought was manipulative and unfairly reductionist in its view of men – and honestly, how long could you last in Hollywood without developing some immunity to cleavage? But apart from that she's been smart, confident, clever, ethical, skilled at dealing with people but also warm in relating to them, unapologetically clear on what her own agenda is and going after it hard, but also empathic in expecting other people to have their own. It's a little like seeing CJ Craig from The West Wing getting to play offense instead of defense.

I thought her speech about the divided culture and the criticism of the religious right and pop culture being important was a little pompous even though I agree with it, but that's one of those periodic Sorkin Mission Statements that I try not to hold against the character appointed to deliver them.

I liked Harriet's premarital sex line *and* that she knows what a pull quote is.

And Sting! With a lute!

No writer's room again, though. I wonder how the Studio 60 writers that are not Sorkin feel about their virtual counterparts' marginalization. There *are* Studio 60 writers besides Sorkin, right?

And I thought the Danny street cred thing was a little odd. Danny himself is working for this network -- how would that not compromise his street cred if advising someone else to work there would? I get the idea that intregrity demands you give the best advice you can, but integrity and street cred? Related, yet not the same. Plus if he's that concerned with integrity he shouldn't be changing his mind as a good-conduct prize to Jordan. It would be legit to say "you doing that convinced me this is a network that would value this show, treat it right and put it in a worthy context" which maybe is what he was going for, but it actually came out to me more like "I told this guy to do something, not because I'm now convinced it's in his best interest, but to reward you for doing something else I approve of."

Comments

[thebratqueen.livejournal.com]

One theory (and this is just a theory, no spoilers) is that Claire's power might be the last thing that Sylar needs to go total big bad. Granted we've already seen him survive bullets, but that's possibly related to whatever power he has that enabled him to fly and make that FBI agent turn her gun on herself (all of which could be TK, or Magneto style stuff). He's collecting other powers in the mix, but true healing ability could make him unstoppable.

Or this theory doesn't know what it's talking about. But food for thought.

S60? Still improving as it goes though I'd like much less telling us "This show is important" and more with showing us, or at least explaning why. Sports Night, in its very first ep, had a moment of showing how sports can be deep and meaningful and it was so powerful it just FLOORED me when I saw it. So we know AS can show us this, I just don't know why he hasn't yet.

And people need to stop talking over Sting's performances kthx. ;)

[stakebait.livejournal.com]

Oooh, interesting! I hadn't realized he was collecting powers, but that makes a lot of sense (and makes me wonder what he has in common with Peter, who can sort of do that too even if they don't stick).

And amen to the show don't tell. Admittedly I didn't watch Sports Night and West Wing kind of had a gimme on why its important, but still, I'm really *not* a hard sell on the the idea that pop culture is both an important reflection and an important influence on our culture, and I'm still not yet sold.

Of course, partly that's because we're seeing the folks who do the influencing, and largely being left to infer the reaction of the audience. Which is probably accurate enough, but it makes me think that's what Martha should have said -- she should have talked about what it's like to be in the living rooms and at the office water coolers and this is what we talk about and that's why it matters.

[thebratqueen.livejournal.com]

Some folks are speculating that maybe Sylar *is* Peter, just a Peter of the future, which I think would be way cool. Either that or possibly Sylar is Peter's not really dead Dad, and that that's what Peter's "We're all pale imittions of our fathers" line might have been foreshadowing. What's neat for me is that I could see the show going in either of those directions or even a third yet still interesting one, and it's nice having a show that you trust to take you along for the ride like that.

And word to what you said about Martha. Granted at any point I could've seen Matt or Danny or Jordan or one of the Big Three explaning it too, but Martha could've acted as an outsider everyman to showcase how this is more than just a sketch comedy show.

What amazes me even more is that not only could AS show us this even without the help, but all things considered in the era of The Daily Show and the Colbert Report the concept of the impact of comedy on not only popular culture but on the way the country *thinks* has never been more relevant, yet AS is barely tapping into that. Not that it has to be about Bush jokes and I get that Matt's been gunshy about those, but there's so many other things that they could be aiming at (like TDS does with hte news itself) and they just aren't, nor are they even talking about why they aren't. It's just "This show is important" over and over. Which is disapointing.

[stakebait.livejournal.com]

Ooh, neat speculations about Sylar! I'd be interested in either.

Well said about the Daily Show et al, and about Martha's potential to act as the outsider representative.

You know who would be a cool person to deliver that lesson at some point, if it's not going to be an outsider? Jack the Chairman. Because he is always the hardboiled all about the money guy, and it could be his version of Cordy's "What, I can't have layers?"

[oyceter]

Though Mohinder is hot like a hot thing, I do wish he'd get some better things to do instead of accost a Congressman and look stupid, given that I feel he is smarter than that. I also keep wanting to slap emo brother on the head.

But yes to the Claire adoration and ditto with the Hiro adoration.

I'm just hoping that "save the cheerleader, save the world" will mean that Claire can and will do things, and not that she will be rescued by people all the time for who knows what reason.

[stakebait.livejournal.com]

Hee! Totally with you.

I'm pretty sure it will turn out that Claire can and will do things -- she's had a decent track record of rescuing herself and other people so far.

[mabfan.livejournal.com]

I don't have anything to add, but I just wanted to let you know that I am reading and enjoying your reviews of these shows.

[stakebait.livejournal.com]

Thank you! That's nice to hear.

[mbarr.livejournal.com]

I just assumed the Street Cred thing was meant to be seen through, and what he was really saying *was* (to quote you) "you doing that convinced me this is a network that would value this show, treat it right and put it in a worthy context"

[stakebait.livejournal.com]

*nods* Makes sense.

Heroes Comments

[kuzibah.livejournal.com]

I think with Mohinder and Nathan, M so strongly believed that N had powers that he thought N would talk to him. That also explains why he became instantly disillusioned when N refused to speak to him. I agree, not an intelligent way to go about it, but that's how I saw it.

And re: Nathan's wife... There's something weird going on there. At the dinner last episode he apologized for his "brave wife" being unable to attend. Is she dying? Has she left him and he's hiding it until after the election (which would fit his character)? Is she dealing with her own unpredictable super powers? Is she a "beard"? Does she even exist?

And I liked the split mirror effect, too. They also lighted the doppelganger differently, making her look harder and tougher.

And Peter is still something of a cypher. Maybe it's fitting that he takes on the abilities of others, because he doesn't seem to have much volition of his own.

And poor Claire. The manifestation of her power is especially cruel because she has invulnerability but no super strength. She can be beaten, raped, literally torn to pieces, and she just has to take it and wait to recover. That pretty much sucks. And Claire had a long talk with her mom in the first episode, but it was mostly about her mom's dog. So, she has a mother, but she's emotionally absent.

And I would really be impressed if Isaac DID need the heroin to paint the future, and that was a liability he (and eventually the rest of them) had to deal with. After all, most addicts IRL are not slobbering junkies. But this is network TV, so we can't have that.

And my theory is that the heroes will come to learn that with their various liabilities, they can only work effectively as a team. Nathan will have to fly people around, Hiro will have to carry them through time and space, Claire will have to let Peter absorb her healing abilities, and so forth. That's why they all have marked weaknesses, so it doesn't become like Justice League, where Superman gets taken out early so Hawkgirl can save the day.

Re: Heroes Comments

[stakebait.livejournal.com]

Oooh, good point about the wife!

The talk with her mom must have been in the part where my friend's DVR fritzed out. Drat.

I would be impressed if Isaac needed the heroin too, though I would also like to see him try mediation or hypnosis or some other way to unplug the conscious mind. But as long as he and Simone are locked into this dynamic where for him, trying to kick the habit means admitting he can't see the future and for her, admitting he can see the future means admitting he needs the drugs, I don't see that happenning.

[batyatoon]

Everybody on Heroes keeps doing this, with the lack of thinking out the likely results of their actions. It's possibly the thing that annoys me most about the show.

Though speaking of not believable, am I the only one who thought that not-Niki's performance felt enough like, well, a performance, that if I were him I'd think it was weird?

I was saying while we were watching it: dude, she is doing that WAY too well for an amateur. Get a clue, Nathan.

Hiro is still my favorite in a big way (and future-Hiro! SQUEE!), but Claire's been the second since day one and she's moving up fast. I knew she was going to crash the car with both of them in it the second she asked if she could drive, and I loved that she questioned him first -- as you say, making sure he showed no signs of remorse.
I kinda wanted her to drag it out a bit more, going faster and faster and letting him start to feel the fear first. But on the whole I think I'm glad she didn't.

I'm not sure we are supposed to like Peter all that much. We'll see. I've heard some very interesting speculations about his future, though.

[stakebait.livejournal.com]

Everybody on Heroes keeps doing this, with the lack of thinking out the likely results of their actions. It's possibly the thing that annoys me most about the show.

*nodsnods* You're not wrong, but I can live with it better in some cases than others. If I find it plausible in the character, it's still annoying, but not nearly as much as when it's puncturing my suspension of disbelief.

Does the Peter speculation depend on spoilers? If not, I'd love a pointer.

[batyatoon]

It's the one TBQ mentions above, to do with the possibility that Sylar is Peter FROM THE FUTURE.

I find it oddly compelling.

[teenygozer.livejournal.com]

Though Jenny Doesn't Have a Baby did make me giggle out loud.

One thing about that particular skit: unless Jenny was some sort of running character like Wayne in Wayne's World, she would have been played by that week's host! Even if Jenny *was* Harriet's running character, Harriet still wouldn't have been center stage during the entire skit -- you'd have seen a lot more of the host's character featured. I'm not saying that just because I wanted to see more of Lauren Graham, though I did, but in point of fact, LG was the host and the host is usually center screen when she's in a skit on shows like SNL and Mad TV. For some bizarre reason, they barely had a camera on her when we looked at the director's board, cutting her right off the screen every time Harriet had a line! I actually said to my husband, "Is Lauren Graham one of the cast members on Studio 60? She's the featured player on her own CW show, is being bit player on an NBC show a step up from that for her?" I get that Harriet is the main character of the show we're watching, but the host should be shown as the featured character on the show they're putting on!

[stakebait.livejournal.com]

*nods* To the point where I didn't notice that she was in it, and when Danny mentioned the whole "cutting skits that the host is in" problem, I blinked. Of course, if I had a better idea of who Lauren Graham is, or had been watching S60 for so long that it was obvious to me who was not a regular cast member, it might have been less confusing, but still.

[(Anonymous)]

"I think that's just my preferred style of comedy – I almost always think SNL and Mad TV and in fact, most comedy sketches go on too long."

They really, really do. It's not just you.

"There *are* Studio 60 writers besides Sorkin, right?"

It's entirely possible that there are not... if his experience on "The West Wing" is any indication.

I think Danny gave the nod to the other show's writer because Jordan had proven that she was serious about creating a network based on quality programming.

ejg25

[stakebait.livejournal.com]

Makes sense. But I'm pretty sure there were other West Wing writers, even though Sorkin had his name on every ep and I'm not sure how much they got used during his tenure.

Matthew Perry’s eyes

[gmdraves.livejournal.com]

Was I the only one who noticed that Matt’s eyes were doing something crazy during the final scene with Harriet? He looked like he was trying to speed read her. Did he also do that on Friends? Maybe...

Also, Ed Asner (who originated the line “I hate spunk!”) was awesome.

Re: Matthew Perry’s eyes

[stakebait.livejournal.com]

I didn't notice the eyes, but that's interesting.

Re: Matthew Perry’s eyes

[sinanju.livejournal.com]

It's not just Matt. Everybody does it. You can't focus on both eyes at once at that range, so you (generic you) tend to switch back and forth. Watch for it--you'll see it in a lot of scenes.

Ed Asner was indeed awesome--but did anyone really believe for a moment he wouldn't back Jordan? I think it would have been more interesting if he hadn't, but had told Jack that _in the future_ if he wants Jordan to cook the meal, let her choose the groceries. (After all, presumably he hired her because he thought she could do the job.)

[sinanju.livejournal.com]

By the numbers...I agree that Mohinder's behavior of late seems plot-driven rather than integrated. I hope that comes to a stop soon. I would point out that we don't know that the Congressman is cheating. He might have an open relationship. (I doubt it, frankly, but it's possible.) But even so, sleeping with Nikki is a dumb risk--even if he had his wife's blessing, a lot of voters aren't going to see it that way if it gets out.

Why surprised that Clare's mother is still around? She was in the first episode, only days ago (story time). Daddy Dearest really gets around, though, doesn't he? Texas, NYC, Las Vegas--and so speedily. Makes me wonder if he's got some way other than commercial flights.

As for Clare's power being useful--if Peter winds up "borrowing" powers from everyone to fight the boss villain, her ability to shrug off otherwise crippling injuries could be very handy.

As for Studio 60: I fully expect to see a scene in the not too distant future in which Jordan buys a show she doesn't like precisely because she knows it'll make money hand over fist and that is part of her job. This will be the "See, I can be practical too" moment. You heard it here first!

[stakebait.livejournal.com]

I missed the second half of the first ep (technical difficulties), so I must have missed Claire's mom. And good point about the possible open relationship, though I tend to think, if he were, he'd have said so, at the point where Niki turned him down if not before.

I hope you're right about the Jordan moment, and I'm looking forward to it.