True Detective 3.3 Review: The Big Never

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After being informed that the Purcell's have received a note stating that Julie is still alive Hays and West re-examine their investigation to see if they can uncover something they have missed. Mainly, why did Will and Jamie tell their father that they were going to meet the Frankie Boyle when, after interviewing him, he informs them that he had never made concrete plans or met up with the Purcell's outside of school. What were the Purcell children doing and who were they meeting? They return to the Purcell's to look through the children's possessions again they find a map, along with some handwritten notes with messages: 'It's alright', 'I'm always here', 'Don't listen', 'I'll always keep you safe'. The messages were in a sketchbook found in a Hoyt Foods bag, where Lucy Purcell previously worked two years ago on the chicken line. Coincidentally, Hoyt Foods also runs the Ozark Children's Outreach Centre, which has put a reward out for Julie's safe return to her family, causing a lot of false tips for the case (although, it turns out, the companies board cleared it with the count prosecutors office).

Later during another search party West finds dice to a game they believe Will was playing, and a bag of toys, as well as the site of Will's murder before his body was moved. The site is near a farmhouse the original search missed as the farm road wasn't on any maps. The owner tells them that he already spoke with the police, and that in addition to seeing Will and Julie multiple times, he also mentions a black man and a female driving around in a brown sedan. Be refuses to let them search the property without a warrant. West and Hays take the toys back to the Purcell's to identify, but neither recognise them despite having their children's prints on them, in addition to a set which they couldn't get a match for. West spots a family photo album that he hadn't seen before, as Tom had only taken it out since the children had been missing. Inside is a photo of Will's first communion, him posed with his hands in prayer the exact same way his deceased body was posed.

In 1990 the deposition continues, but now it is West recounting the events above in 1980. Hays and Amelia visit the Walgreen in which Julie's fingerprints were found. Hays expresses how tired he is with the case being in their lives, but Amelia suggests that she uses her book as an excuse to find out more information about Julie from the police. Hays goes to Walmart to shop with the kids while she does this, and Rebecca goes missing, causing him to panic. Amelia returns home giddy with success but Hays is angry as he doesn't want it in their lives any longer.

West visits Tom Purcell to ask how him how he feels about the case being re-opended and the discovery of Julie's prints, and we learn that Lucy has passed, perhaps a suicide, and that Tom is five years sober. Tom then asks West to pray with him. He alter leaves a message with Hays and work, whom he hasn't seen in nine years, telling him he wants to meet. They meet at a bar and he asks Hays to become a detective again under him, as he is in charge of re-opning the Purcell case.

In 2015 Hays and his son Henry visit the Doctor about his memory loss and it is all but confirmed that he has Alzheimer's, but he tells Henry he will kill himself if he is put into a home. He continues his interviews with Elisa and she throws him off guard with testimonies of witnesses who claim they were never questioned by police during the initial investigation. Some of these witnesses also claim to have seen the brown sedan the farmer mentioned driving around Devil's Den they day the Purcell's went missing, as well as the black man. Later in his study as he is trying to record things to remember Hays has visions of Amelia who implies he is worried about them finding something he left in the woods, and she tells him to finish it.

Rating: 3.3/5

BoJack Horseman 3.3 Review: BoJack Kills

Still on his Oscar campaign BoJack is endlessly making appearances at the plays of Oscar voters' children, barmtitzvah's, and old-folks homes all to ensure that he gets good buzz. This is made a little more difficult when his old friend Jill Pill rings and reminds him that she asked him to check on her ex-lover Cuddlywhiskers, which BoJack had forgotten to do. She asked him to go to his house and get a private letter she sent to Cuddlywhiskers some years ago and wants back. BoJack and a begrudging Diane (she's trying to keep her relationship with him purely professional) go to his house only to find a dead whale in the pool before Officer Meow Meow Fuzzyface shows up with two other police officers and take them back to the police station. After Diane sneakily looks up their rights on her phone and tells Meow Meow Fuzzyface that he can't hold them at the station without arresting them her and BoJack leave. Diane reveals that she has Nadia's (the dead whale's) phone and that her last text was 'BoJack is going to kill me'. The pair think that BoJack is being framed for Nadia's murder and when another friend of her's leaves a voicemail they trace it back to Whale World, an erotic dancing venue for the whole family. The establishment is run by Goober, who once was a child-actor on BoJack's show Horsin' Around. BoJack and Diane come back later that night after getting a tip from Nadia's whale friend Skinny Gina. When they return they discover that the 'BoJack' to which Nadia was referring to in her text is actually a brand of heroin that Goober in peddling through the club. After he's arrested Bojack and Diane go back to Cuddlywhiskers house to retrieve Jill's letter when he reveals that after the cancellation of The BoJack Horseman Show Cuddlywhiskers retreated to hi Ojai property. They find him there and he reveals he turned his LA property into a halfway house for drug addicts - explaining Nadia's death.

While Diane and Mr. Peanutbutter's relationship troubles (Princess Carolyn spent the entire episode trying to clean out the skunk smell out of their house for Diane's benefit), as well of the brief discussions of happiness and how to achieve it, provide some pathos that we're used to from BoJack Horseman, tonally this was an odd episode. The series is no stranger to being dark, but having an episode revolve around a dead whale and someone assumedly framing Bojack for her murder, even if in the even it turned out to only be a heroin overdose definitely took away from the series usual sense of eccentric Hollywood-centred wackiness.

Rating: 2.5/5

BoJack Horseman 3.2 Review: The BoJack Horseman Show

In 2007 Princess Carolyn has just slept with BoJack for the first time. She's still an agent's assistant to Marv Sbarbori, the man that represents BoJack, and she's trying desperately to book him an acting job - although he's adamant he's still trying to recuperate after his time on Horsin' Around. She convinces BoJack to talk to veteran sitcom writer named Cuddlywhiskers about a part on a new show after she reads his script, Mitch's Life, at work. BoJack thinks the show sounds incredible but doesn't want to do it because he's afraid that he is not, to which she replies by telling him that he's an idiot if he doesn't realise how talented he is. BoJack agrees to do it, but of course starts to self-sabotage himself immediately. The network executives love the table read, but BoJack convinces Cuddlywhiskers that if they liked the script that they're playing it too and they they need to re-write it - with ideas like opening with BoJack's character literally taking a massive dump on a VHS tape of Horsin' Around and his character's catch-phrase being 'Wassup bitches!'. He realises too late, thanks to Princess Carolyn (who Marv has finally appointed as an agent), that people liked the horse from Horsin' Around and he doesn't need to be afraid of doing something to step out of its shadow, but shouldn't be too scared to try, either.

The episode also showed what the lives of the other characters were like in 2007. Diane worked at Starbucks under the name 'Blarn' - ironically as a joke - and was getting her open letter to open letters rejected by The New Yorker. Mr. Peanutbutter was as easily distracted as ever going from being a spokesperson for Seaborn's Seahorse Milk to hosting a John Edwards fundraiser, all the while being married to his second wife, Jessica Biel. And Todd was getting intimate with a girl for the first time, and unwittingly ruining the end of The Sopranos. While Diane and Mr. Peanutbutter meeting for the first time was a big moment, these subplots of the episode were mainly used to hilariously highlight the fact that they were in 2007. I could easily see people getting bored of the repetitive joke - but I loved it. According to phone calls Marv was having, 'she kissed a girl and she liked it? This I got to see' and 'There's a panic? At the disco?'. There was flipphones and MySpace mentions. The movie Bearspray and television series Eel or No Eel were big at the time. You could eat at David Hasselhoff's Floor Burgers. It was all glorious, but was ultimately the backdrop in an episode trying to highlight something more.

Start Spreading The News highlighted BoJack's discontent with having finally made his dream come true in The Secretariat and not knowing what to do afterwards, and The BoJack Horseman Show was a timely reminder of just how far his character has come since the beginning of the series. It showed him ruining a perfect chance to revive his career in comparison to were he is in current time -having revived his career by making his dream film. But a lot of that has to do with Princess Carolyn, who told Bojack at the end of the episode that she didn't want to spend the next seven years falling in and out of love with him. As we've seen though, this is exactly what has happened, and while BoJack keeps getting everything he wanted and being unimpressed by it Princess Carolyn is still struggling to make it as an agent. Here's hoping when we return to the return timeline on the series that things will start to progress for this character that has always been behind and helped our antihero.

Rating: 3.5/5

BoJack Horseman 3.1 Review: Start Spreading The News

The season starts off with BoJack doing a press tour for The Secretariat in New York and as with most things in life BoJack tells reporters constantly that 'it's a dream come true', but it's also a nightmare having to repeatedly answer the same questions and be teased about his previous work like Horsin' Around. The press are also constantly asking him, 'what's next for BoJack?'. He wants an Oscar for his role, sure, but after that who knows? BoJack reveals to his publicist Anna at the end of the episode (after having accidentally revealed to a Matinee Fair that his performance in The Secretariat is a digital construct), that he was almost relieved that the farce of having to act at a certain way and say certain things for so long just for one night of happiness to get an Oscar wasn't worth it. She seems to think is it, however, telling him that this has been his dream and that he's worked so hard already that he deserves that one night and that together they'll get it for him. Knowing BoJack Horseman, I very much doubt he'll actually win an Oscar for his role, because that's life.

Back in LA, J.D. Salinger announces that he no longer wants to keep making 'Hollywoo Stars and Celebrities: Do They Know Things? What Do They Know? Let's Find Out' stating, 'I told the story I wanted to tell. To prolong it for commercial reasons would be crass and inorganic'. This puts Mr. Peanutbutter out of a job, and Princess Caroline decides to focus all her agency's attention on the small amount of clients it has rather than trying to attract big name celebrities like J.D. Salinger again. This prompts Mr. Peanutbutter to put P.B. Livin back in business and his accountant unwillingly gives him one of his worst ideas to date while impersonating Todd (who had been accidentally packed into BoJack's luggage and was in New York) - 'A Spaghetti Strainer That's Also A Hat: The TV Show.' Naturally Mr. Peanutbutter tells him that he wants to put all his money into the series. I personally could see it running as long as Horsin' Around.

Rating 3/5

Difficult People 2.3 Review: Italian Piñata

On their way to attend the launch of Kevin Smith Jorts Emporium in Hoboken, Julie and Billy decide to kill time in an Italian restaurant. Much to Julie's surprise there is a group of women there that laugh out loud at her meat jokes and just seem to get her, after she was earlier wondering why women her age didn't like her as her and her mother Marilyn got free (and disastrous) student hair cuts. They mistake her for being Italian, thanks to the aforementioned 'little orphan Weird Al Yankovich' perm, and invite her and Billy out to a gay bar for Coming Out Day. To take advantage of the drinks special, naturally Billy pretends that he has just come out, which also attracts Joey, the brother of one of Julie's new friends.

Elsewhere, Arthur was tasked with organising PBS' staff birthday celebrations for the next month, but after accidentally spending the entire budget on one birthday Julie helps him by combining the birthday's of their neighbours son and Arthur's boss which results in the latter's clown phobia resurfacing. After the incident Marilyn shows up at his office after having a particularly stressful day as work as well (her stupid haircut was making it difficult to concentrate). Her client, who's daughter had joined a cult, made her fear for Julie's newfound identity conversion to Italian and together the pair set about going to get Julie back form Hoboken.

They needn't have worried though, as a seasoned watcher of Difficult People would expect, both Julie and Billy kept up their charade of being Italian and recently out, respectively, until they were caught out at the end of the episode, by characterising a Frank Sintara song as more of a 'Liza Minnelli song'.
The pair mourned the loss of New Jersey as they left to catch the train back to New York. Julie had finally felt accepted for who she was amongst the Italian women, earlier telling Billy, 'Everything that made me unacceptable as a New York Jew is celebrated as a New Jersey Italian'. Meanwhile, Billy had a difficult time playing a recently out straight guy in an attempt to get into Joey pants - who seemed to be aroused by the idea. Particularly hard when Joey offered to give him a crash-course in being gay. 'Lying about who we are made us accept who we really are - after we changed it', he responded to Julie, pretty much a classic line to some-up the pair as characters. Deep down, they will never change. They are who they are and they love themselves for it, but that doesn't mean that they'll   ever stop trying to validate themselves by trying to get other people to like them.

Rating: 3/5

The Big Bang Theory 9.15 Review: The Valentino Submergence

With Valentine's day approaching Sheldon, Leonard, Howard and Raj discuss their romantic plans for the day. Sheldon and Amy are putting on a special live show of Fun with Flags, Leonard and Penny and dinner reservations at a fancy restaurant and Howard and Bernadette are going to break in the new hot tub. Raj tells them that he is spending it with Emily, although he is not too excited about it, having become interested in Claire after their coffee date. Raj, after getting some advice about from Penny, tells Emily that he wants to break up and she can't believe he has chosen to do this right before Valentine's day. He then calls Claire and asks her if she has plans, but she has just gotten back to together with her ex-boyfriend and Raj is left alone for the holiday. I'm glad that the writers have decided to move on from Emily but the problem I have with this is that they've basically wiped the slate clean and re-set his characters' relationship status (and any growth that comes with that) back to zero. They always seem to be trying things with Raj and when it doesn't work out it the end it turns out to be a huge waste of time.

Sheldon surprises Amy by putting her name in the title of Fun with Flags , it now being called 'Sheldon Cooper and Dr. Amy Farrah Fowler present Sheldon Cooper’s Fun with Flags'. During their live broadcast they ask people to call in with flag related questions. A depressed Raj rings asking them what is wrong with him beginning a prolonged discussion about relationships, in which Barry Kripke, another lonely watcher joins in (oh how I wish Stuart had joined them). While Sheldon is annoyed that Fun with Flags has resulted in minimal flag talk Amy reminds him that he knows how hard it is to break up with someone, and Sheldon admits that he was glad they broke up because he then realised how much he missed and needed Amy - a similar sentiment to what was attempted to be done at the end of the last week's episode 'The Meemaw Materiaization'. I personally think it worked better here because Sheldon wasn't coerced into saying something nice and genuine about Amy like he was last week my Leonard and Penny in front of his Meemaw.

Despite having dinner reservations Leonard and Penny's wait it still going to be an hour long. Penny convinces Leonard to try and bribe the maître d', but his attempt fails. She then tries to flirt with him, but when he calls her 'ma'am' she takes it as a reference to her old age and she decides that her and Leonard should leave. As they eat takeaway in their car (that sounds like a great Valentine's Day to me) Penny expresses her concerns that time has moved so fast since they've meet and they're getting old. Leonard suggests they do something to make them feel young. After being thankful they couldn't get tickets to a 12.00am Moulin Rouge sing-a-long, the pair burst into the apartment where Sheldon and Amy where filming Fun with Flags dressed as cupid and throwing confetti everywhere wishing them a Happy Valentine's Day. It's storylines like this in which it becomes glaringly obvious to me of Leonard and Penny's differences and why I don't like them together. Leonard is a optimitic romantic, appreciating the little things, while Penny is a self-absorbed cynic, at least when things don't go her way. I don't really understand why Penny would have a mini mid-life crisis on Valentine's Day, but it's hard to watch Leonard try and fix imaginary problems Penny has caused in her own head. And I wouldn't really clarify dressing up as cupid as making one feel young again, but you know, whatever works. At least Sheldon seemed to annoy it.

At Howard and Bernadette's they are about to take a spa when they find what they initially think is a rat in the water. They fish it out inly to realise it's a rabbit and they quickly look up on Howard's phone how to make sure it's okay. While nursing it back got health they name the rabbit Valentino (it may be cliched, but I loved that they did this) and it's bites Howard. Howard is concerned that it might have rabies, and despite it not showing any symptoms, he wants to go to the emergency room just in case. As he leaves the room Bernadette tells Valentino, 'we'll have to find another time to tell him I'm pregnant.' It's been a long time coming, but there it is, awkwardly revealed to the audience by Bernadette talking to a rabbit. It was just such as odd way to reveal it, you think that the writers would want to go for something bigger but I guess I should also commend their self-control on deciding for a more subtle reveal.

Rating: 3/5

The Big Bang Theory 9.14 Review: The Meemaw Materialisation

The longer a series runs, the more opportunity viewers have to gain insight into its characters and their histories. One of the major problems of The Big Bang Theory that I've had for a while now is the writers' inability to make the most of the show's longevity by introducing more members of the characters' families. I think the only real family member that has been used to great effect up until this point is Leonard's mother to be honest. So when it was announced that Sheldon's often mentioned 'Meemaw' would be making an appearance, and was being played by June Squibb, it was hard not to get excited. Unfortunately, because of the amount of time we've had to wait to meet her character and the expectations that come with that wait I think I was always going to be disappointed.

Sheldon's grandmother randomly decided to visit her grandson in Pasadena, but as we quickly learnt she was actually there to size Amy up and ensure that she's good enough for her 'Moonpie'. Sure, Sheldon's over-protective grandmother wants to size Amy up, that's fine as a plot, but as i've often thought about some of The Big Bang Theory's most recent episodic plots - it's something that could (and probably should) have occurred five seasons ago when they started dating, or even more recently when they broke up. The timing just seemed a little odd to me, although I guess it shouldn't be that surprising that the writers were desperate to introduce a new conflict into Sheldon and Amy's relationship since they've been so happy recently. Regardless, Meemaw's two-faced nature - being the sweetest old lady imaginable to everyone, yet being hard-nosed behind their backs to Amy - was a boring cliche of a character. Once it got out that the pair weren't very find of each other the drama was wrapped-up fairly quickly. While Sheldon's declaration to his Meemaw that he's been working on improving Amy throughout their relationship (just as his Meemaw had done with his Pop-pop) may have been good for a cheap laugh, I really would have preferred if he had uttered Amy's sentiment that they have both helped each other grow into better people. It's an idea the episode seemed to ignore about Sheldon as the appearance of his Meemaw reverted him to a frustrating man-child that the character has slowly been growing out of. Ultimately, though, him telling his Meemaw this convinced her to accept Amy if Sheldon felt so strongly about her and that she would let him give her her ring (which Amy now knows about!).

It's rare that I find an episode's B-plot more intriguing then the main one but Raj's internal struggle about meeting a woman he potentially has more chemistry with than Emily was fun to watch. Him and Howard met a woman named Claire at the comic book store and she, wanting to interview Raj for his astrophysicist knowledge for a scripts she was writing, gave him her number. It was fun watching Raj ask Howard and Bernadette for advice while quite obviously ignoring them and going off into his own tangents about how it would look to have a family with Claire. Who knows if anything will come of this, B-plots are rarely used for plot development in sitcoms and are more just there to be funny, but I really wish the series would focus some more time on Raj and his relationship (whoever that may be with).

Rating 2.5/5

The Big Bang Theory 9.13 Review: The Empathy Optimization

With Amy still away at her neurobiology conference Sheldon gets sick and, as usual, he makes it very painful for his friends with his constant demands his unappreciative behaviour at their attempts to help him. We've seen Sheldon sick before, so I'm glad that the episode skipped over his sickness via flashbacks because having a whole episode about him being sick would have been very repetitive. And I love how Amy explained to him to him that his unbearable behaviour makes his friends wants to stay a few extra days at a neurobiology conference.

Raj notes that Amy's relationship with Sheldon improved by having some time apart from him, and Leonard suggests that they should all do to Vegas for the weekend as him and Penny had been talking about it, and Raj suggests taking a party bus there. Sheldon overhears Leonard telling Penny about it and wants to come and Leonard tells him that everyone else is going but he's not invited so he'll have to resort to hanging put with Stuart. Did anyone else think it was unnecessary for Leonard to say that? When they said they were going to Vegas Sheldon didn't even want to go. Had Leonard not said anything else one would assume the whole situation would have been fine, but no, he had to specifically tell Sheldon that he wasn't invited. Just seemed a bit harsh to me.

Sheldon Skypes with Amy and tells her how mad he is at the others, and she suggest that he needs to apologise and she teaches him about empathy - that he should feel bad about the way he treated them while he was sick. Surprisingly, it works and he does feel remorse for his actions. While it's been a little weird confining Amy to Skype conversations the last two weeks, there's no denying that the scenes work wonderfully regardless.

Sheldon apologises to Leonard and he accepts, but he now expects to be invited to Vegas, and Leonard tells him it's not just him he has to apologise to, which arguably led to the highlight of the episode: Sheldon Cooper's apology tour. Trying to play the pan flute for Howard and Bernadette, trying to take a picture of Penny with is commemorative shirt while she's in the shower, and apologising to Stuart and telling him about the trip he's not invited to - it was all so hilarious.

When he tries to apologise to Raj and Emily, however, he once again gives Emily a backhanded compliment about how she must not be called a real doctor all the time because she's a dermatologist. She doesn't accept his apology, and she gets mad at Raj who doesn't stand up for himself or her.

Later Raj storms into the apartment and asks Sheldon what is wrong with him after he has gone to Emily's to try and apologise again, only to make her cry. She told Raj she's not going to Vegas if Sheldon is going. He suggests he go and try to apologise again, but everyone tells him no and he realises that perhaps by not going on the trip he'll prove his sincerity.

On the party bus just as Leonard is about to make a toast Sheldon pops out of the toilet, which Stuart in tow, no less. Sheldon successfully apologises to Emily by telling her that he always means well but his odd nature often makes that difficult. She accepts, and Sheldon says he'll leave (with Stuart) because they'll have a better time without him. Until, that is, they feel bad and invite him back onto the bus we're they're soon watching Raj dance on a stripper pole.

Ultimately this episode worked by having all the cast together (sans Amy) involved in a single storyline. It also greatly highlighted often ignored and underused characters like Emily, whose fierce energy is a welcome addition to the mostly passive group of characters, and Stuart, who, after last week's episode, I am glad got an appearance and a reprieve of sorts.

Rating: 3.5/5

The Big Bang Theory 9.12 Review: The Sales Call Sublimation

It's always hard for large ensemble sitcoms to successfully navigate multiple plot-lines, but it's made even harder for The Big Bang Theory by the fact that Sheldon is the unspoken lead character in the series. This means, as exemplified by 'The Sales Call Sublimation', that even if his character is stuck with a particularly lifeless lot with no potential (sorry Raj), that that storyline will become the A plot regardless. This was really unfortunate in 'The Sales Call Sublimation' because it should have been all about Penny and Leonard and how Leonard's innocent trip to a psychiatrist (for Penny) brought up more than a few problems for them.

Since Amy was away at a neurobiology conference Sheldon was free to spend the weekend as he pleased, so as Sheldon does he agrees to help Raj go through data in the telescope lab. This resulted in them discovering a medium-sized asteroid, and apparently laughter was meant to ensue from them trying to agree on a name for it, with Sheldon trying to remove Raj from the equation all the while.

At the Wolowitzs', as Howard and Bernadette prepared for their house renovations (is this really a plot?) Stuart awkwardly announces that he's found a place of his own and is moving out. Stuart is unfortunately a character the writers of the series have never known what do do with and subsequently has become a cliche of running gags about a creepy middle-aged nerd (he watches them while they sleep!). I will be sad, because his departure probably means seeing less of him, but at the same time that's probably better for his character at this stage. Howard and Bernadette's parent-esque reaction to his departure could be seen coming a mile a away.

Penny enlists Leonard's help in trying to persuade a potential client, physiatrist Dr. Gallo (an underused Jane Kaczmarek), to purchase stress-relive pharmaceuticals on her behalf, but the plan backfires when Dr. Gallo tells Leonard that she's read his mother's book and disagreed with a lot of her theories. The fact that Penny would even ask Leonard to do such a thing is outrageous, but the fact that it delved into some of their character/ relationship problems is always welcome in my eyes. Dr. Gallo's observation that Leonard could potentially be trying to replace his mother with Penny as an unobtanable love interest is an interesting viewpoint on their relationship. The pair have never exactly 'worked' as a couple, but I've always been quick to blame Penny, but this idea goes someway to explaining why they might be together in the first place. Unfortunately, as is the problem with all sitcoms, assumedly all of this will be forgotten be next week's episode, which is a shame because it would be nice to see them try and do something (anything!) with the boringness that is Lenny, and perhaps try and do something better for Jane Kaczmarek.

Rating: 2/5

Galavant 2.1- 2 Review: A New Season aka Suck It Cancellation Bear & World's Best Kiss

Galavant was a wildly rambunctious surprise on our television screens early last year and it seemed set to be a short-lived one at that, receiving dismal ratings over its eight episode (four week) run. Miraculously though, the series survived, and boy, did it want you to know it in its premiere episode 'A New Season aka Suck It Cancellation Bear'. I mean, just read that title. There are very few series that are able, let alone willing, to be as daring to name an episode like that, but the joy of Galavant is that its existent as a series itself - a fantastical musical comedy - has little precedence which I guess lets the writers feel like they can do whatever they want, which makes for a great ride as viewers.

So after its possibly too self-aware opening song, 'A New Season', the first episode found Galavant and Richard shipwrecked while on the search for his kingdom and tangled up in 'The Enchanted Forest', which hilariously, was actually a gay bar. Writing about episodes sometimes it's easier to see points where writers use detours to fill up time, but like Sid said in the opening song, common sense dictates that we know where this season is headed so there's no reason why we can't have fun along the way. So having Kylie Minogue being the owner of said gay bar was absolutely the best regardless. Elsewhere Isabella was still trapped in Hortensia, waiting to be wed to her cousin and trying to escape, while back in Valencia both Gareth and Sid had difficulty without having properly defied roles within the kingdom.

The worst thing about Galavant is that with now three separate plot-threads, and musical numbers thrown in, there's very little room for significant plot/ character progression to occur. Thankfully, this is where ABC's decision to air two episodes back-to-back works quite well (where previously it just seemed like an attempt to get it off the air faster). The second episode 'World's Best Kiss' was nicely able to build on the energy of the first and create some needed plot/ character progression while still technically being an episode by itself, which is why I think it was probably better than the premiere. Thanks to a fortune teller Galavant is able to get in touch with Isabella by 'calling' the amulet she was bestowed with as a child. Unfortunately the connection is bad, and while this is potentially sloppy writing I suspect Isabella thinking Galavant is not in love with her is just another stalling tactic so that she has a legitimate reason not to escape Hortensia. Richard also receives news of Gareth's betrayal which provided a nice character moment for the pair, while Gareth and Queen Madalena also finally bonded over how annoying they find Sid.

And if the writer's didn't have enough to fit into an episode, they managed to put in a nice cliffhanger too - upon reaching his Kingdom Richard and Galavant discover that his castle is gone. Where could it be? Deviously self-aware, often hilarious,  and contagiously catchy are why you should give into the miracle that no one thought we'd get, and watch Galavant.

Best Musical Number: 'Off With His Shirt' could easily be a Kylie Minogue chart topper.
Best Quote: 'Die in a fart brown cow' - a distorted Galavant as heard by Isabella.
Rating: 3.5/5

Looking 2.1 Review: Looking For The Promised Land

It’s important for a series with an ensemble cast to take time every now and then to ensure that its main characters are keeping in touch with each other and haven’t become too separated or marginalised by their own individual storyline. There no better time to do this than in a season premiere, allowing both the characters and the viewers to take stock of what happened last season and where they are now. Looking did this by having Patrick, Dom, and Agustín head to a secluded house in the woods, owned by Dom’s now boyfriend Lynn, and it eventually resulted in a well needed release for all of our characters.

I usually find Patrick to be the most relatable character, early on in ‘Looking For The Promised Land’ he was a downright painful goodie two shoes, wanting to visit a thousand year old trees, quite Walt Whitlam, and play board games all weekend. I actually felt sorry for Agustin, who, while a master of his own misfortune last season, Patrick had slyly planned the weekend for to in attempt to cheer him up. All I can say is that thank god Doris arrived to convince them to attend an almost mythical fairy party that Agustin was brashly invited.

While there Agustin went skinny-dipping with Eddie (the welcome return of Mean Girl’s Daniel Franzese to our screens), the man who invited him, who works for a homeless shelter that supports gay and transgender teens.  It’s hard to say at this point whether this relationship will lead anywhere, but I hope it does. I was half expecting Agustin’s grief over his breakup with Frank to dominate his characters’ storylines early this season – but it might be more interesting to see him exploring a new relationship after have being in one for so long.

At the other end of the spectrum Dom is staying at Lynn’s house and musing over his baby photos, hoping to get more insight into him, but is then going and having ecstasy-fuelled sex with random men. I like Dom, I think he’s a refreshing take on the older characters usually depicted on television, so I like that he doesn’t really have his life together because it is so relatable – but I wasn’t really okay with this. He says he’s in an open relationship with Lynn, which may be the case (although be haven’t seen him and Lynn talk about their relationship so it’s hard to tell), but even if that’s true it’s obvious he wants something serious, but is still messing around with the relationship. Much like Agustin before him, if this keeps being the case I’ll stop enjoying his character. Yes, people make mistakes, but it’s painful to watch people purposefully sabotage themselves without good reason.

For example, Patrick is making mistakes too, but I’m sympathetic towards him because he finds himself in new territory and doesn’t know what to do. His liaison in the woods with Kevin turns out to be one of several, and it must be intoxicating for Patrick to know that someone likes him as much as he has loved in the past, most recently Richie. He seems to want more with Kevin, but also seems to be acknowledging the ridiculousness of the situation – that he’s cheating on someone with his boss, no less.  It’ll be interesting to see how things unfold throughout the season.

Rating: 3/5

Gotham Season 1.11 Review: Rogues' Gallery

With Jim Gordon’s demotion and re-assignment to head of the newly re-opened Arkham Asylum at the end of Gotham’s mid-season finale ‘Lovecraft’ I revelled in the series taking such a drastic change so early on in its run. Gotham has yet to reach its potential as a series, with its overdramatic characters and dialogue and inability to settle on a tone – problems which were still present in ‘Rogue’s Gallery’. Gordon’s shift from the police prescient to Arkham Asylum however offers the series an easy opportunity to explore its greatest asset in its mythology first hand, assumedly (and I’m not sure of this as I’m not a Batman aficionado) from a new perspective.

With the change ‘Rogue’s Gallery’ was almost like a pilot for however long this new part of Gotham’s story will run, with the introduction of many new characters including patients and colleagues alike. But as is the nature of a series now based in a home for the criminally insane, particularly when someone is experimenting with electroshock therapy, characters end up dead and by the end of the episode Jim’s new boss Director Jerry Lang, and patient-turned administrator Dorothy Duncan were dead, along with two other patients.

The case of the week wasn’t particularly compelling despite the twist that could be seen coming in Dorothy’s involvement in everything, as well as the late bait and switch with another patient Jack Gruber. Gruber, underused as he was, was the best part of the episode, though, actor Christopher Heyerdahl channelling his best Hannibal Lecter for the part. I particularly enjoyed that the episode ended with an Arkham Asylum riot (although it probably was too soon to be using what could be such a great plotline) and Gruber’s subsequent escape. It was a dark and foreboding ending to the episode’s events, a tone which I hope the series tries to continue. Morena Baccarin also joined the cast as Dr. Leslie Thompkins who at this stage only provides the role of damsel in distress/ potential love interest, which is bland and uninteresting.

Despite Gotham’s shift to the Asylum, the series’ inability to juggle multiple storylines successfully, particularly in tone and pace, was evident in ‘Rogue’s Gallery’. Gotham’s crime war is a very intriguing concept, but thus far the series, much like the character Fish Mooney herself, seems to be biding it’s time to give audiences something good. This episode saw Mooney use her right hand man Butch to try and convince another crime boss to join her in rebelling against Falcone, predictably resulting in his death. Elsewhere Salvatore Maroni taught Penguin a lesson when he tried to raise taxes on some fisherman; Selina Kyle took ill Ivy to recover at Jim’s apartment; and Montoya attempted to remove herself from her toxic relationship with Barbara., resulting in a call home to Jim and an unfortunate conversation with Ivy. The ridiculous of the last scene basically sums up the problem with Gotham’s subplots – they lack cohesion and importance. Perhaps with more time to develop they could mean something, but they come across as attempts to fit in every character for the sake of it, and even worse than that, filler to spread out the main plot of the episode.

Rating: 2.5/5