What Are You Watching in 2015? (TV Lists, Rankings & More)

JUSTIFIED SEASON 6

Fate's Right Hand: B+
Cash Game: A-
Noblesse Oblige: B+
The Trash and the Snake: B+
Sounding: B+
Alive Day: B+
The Hunt: B
Dark As a Dungeon: A
Burned: A-
Trust: B+
Fugitive Number One: A-
Collateral: A-
The Promise: A-

SEASON/SERIES GRADE: A-

THE AMERICANS SEASON 3

EST Men: B+
Baggage: B
Open House: A-
Dimebag: A-
Salang Pass: B+
Born Again: B+
Walter Taffet: B+
Divestment: B-
Do Mail Robots Dream of Electric Sheep?: A-
Stingers: A-/A
One Day In the Life of Anton Baklanov: B+
I Am Abassin Zadran: B+
March 8, 1983: B+

SEASON GRADE: B+

THE SOPRANOS SEASON 1

The Sopranos: A-
46 Long: B
Denial, Anger, Acceptance: B
Meadowlands: B+
College: A-
Pax Soprana: B (Last few minutes: A)
Down Neck: B
The Legend of Tennessee Moltisanti: B+
Boca: B+
A Hit Is a Hit: B
Nobody Knows Anything: B+
Isabella: A
I Dream of Jeannie Cusamono: A-

SEASON GRADE: B+

Murdered By My Boyfriend (BBC3):

Despite the bluntness of its title, this a remarkably layered, thoughtful, unbelievably horrific and stomach-churning look at domestic violence. Based on the Casey Brittle case (the names in the film were changed), a young mother who was beaten to death in front of her toddler, could have been a lurid, distasteful potboiler of the Lifetime variety, but sensitive direction and fantastic performances from Georgina Campbell (who more than deserves her BAFTA nomination) and Royce Pierreson give it a poignance that prevents it from devolving into freakshow territory. There are moments in the script that feel a bit on the nose (the 'voice-beyond-the-grave' effect can be a bit obvious, but it works well enough), but it's unflinching look at this poor woman's descent toward a vicious end is absolutely heartbreaking. The final title card says it was four years before she died; in that time, over 200 women in the UK died by domestic violence. A perfectly chilling end to a harrowing single drama.  

Shows #30 through 34 must be pretty mediocre to lose out to Marry Me.

Oh hey, I haven't posted here in ages.  Anyway, here's what I've been watching.

February 2015

Shows I Watched
1. Parks and Recreation (Season 7, episodes 7-12)
2.  Portlandia (Season 5, episodes 5-7)
3.  Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Season 2, episodes 14-16)
4.  Comedy Bang! Bang! (Season 4, episodes 4-7)
5.  Better Call Saul (Season 1, episodes 1-2)
6.  Marry Me (Season 1, episode 11)

Top 10 Episodes Watched
10.  "Uno" season 1, episode 1, Better Call Saul B
9.  "Kid Cudi Wears a Denim Shirt and Red Sneakers" Season 4, episode 7, Comedy Bang! Bang! B+
8.  "Fashion" Season 5, episode 6, Portlandia B+
7.  "Simon Helberg Wears a Sky Blue Button Down and Jeans" season 4, episode 5, Comedy Bang! Bang! B+
6.  "Donna & Joe" season 7, episode 7, Parks and Recreation B+
5.  "Defense Rests" season 2, episode 14, Brooklyn Nine-Nine B+
4.  "Two Funerals" season 7, episode 11, Parks and Recreation B+
3.  "Pie-Mary" season 7, episode 9, Parks and Recreation B+
2.  "Doug Becomes a Feminist" season 5, episode 7, Portlandia A-
1.  "One Last Ride" season 7, episodes 12/13, Parks and Recreation A-



March 2015

Shows I Watched
1.  Better Call Saul (season 1, episodes 3-7)
2.  Brooklyn Nine-Nine (season 2, episodes 17-19)
3.  Police Squad! (season 1, episodes 1-2)
4.  Portlandia (season 5, episodes 8-10)
5.  Last Man On Earth (season 1, episodes 1-2)
6.  Community (season 6, episodes 1-2)
7.  Staring at the blue screen explaining that the cable is currently out
8.  Random moments of channel surfing where I stopped at a channel long enough to read that it was for pay-per-view programs before changing to another channel
9.  The Neighbors (season 1, episodes 1-4)
10.  I think family members might have been watching The O'Reilly Factor one night at dinner, but even if I was fortunate enough not to see any of Bill O'Reilley's show in March it's at least marginally more offensive and less valuable a way to spend one's time than watching The Neighbors, just for context

Top 10 Episodes
10.  "Sabotage", season 2, episode 19, Brooklyn Nine-Nine  B
9.  "A Substantial Gift (The Broken Promise)", season 1, episode 1, Police Squad B
8.  "Ladders", season 6, episode 1, Community B
7.  "Captain Peralta", season 2, episode 18, Brooklyn Nine-Nine B
6.  "Hero", season 1, episode 4, Better Call Saul B
5.  "House for Sale", season 5, episode 8 Portlandia B+
4.  "Alpine Shepherd Boy", season 1, episode 5, Better Call Saul B+
3.  "Nacho", season 1, episode 3, Better Call Saul B+
2.  "Bingo", season 1, episode 4, Better Call Saul B+
1.  "Five-O", season 1, episode 6, Better Call Saul A



April 2015

Shows I Watched
1.  Better Call Saul (season 1, episodes 8-10)
2.  30 Rock (season 1, episodes 1-6)
3.  Community (season 6, episodes 3-8)
4.  Weird Loners (pilot)
5.  Police Squad! (season 1, episodes 3-4)
6.  Last Man On Earth (season 1, episodes 4-5)

Top 10 Episodes Watched
10.  "The Aftermath", season 1 episode 2, 30 Rock B
9.  "Blind Date", season 1 episode 3, 30 Rock B
8.  "Marco", season 1 episode 10, Better Call Saul B
7.  "Queer Studies and Advanced Waxing", season 6 episode 4, Community B+
6.  "Advanced Safety Features", season 4 episode 7, Community B+
5.  "Jack-Tor", season 1 episode 5, 30 Rock B+
4.  "Basic Crisis Room Decorum", season 6 episode 3, Community B+
3.  "Jack the Writer", season 1, episode 4, 30 Rock B+
2.  "RICO", season 1, episode 8, Better Call Saul A-
1.  "Pimento", season 1, episode 9, Better Call Saul A

Roy Batty's Pet Dove The show is available to me both through a British channel and an Irish channel, been watching the British as they had that earlier. The last episode for me was the sixteenth one, where they met the egg donor for Casey Wilson's character (probably not a good sign I still think of her as Casey Wilson's character.)

Weird Loners good?

Orphan Black (Season 1, Episodes 1-3):

Finally caught up in all of the excitement, and I'm kicking myself for waiting so long. The pacing is taut, the mystery (at least in the beginning) is pleasant labyrinthian, and Tatiana Maslany really is fantastic and deserves all the acclaim she has received. How she doesn't have more awards on her mantle is a mystery worthy of its own show. It's a rich, beautifully nuanced collection of performances; a talented actor's true dream, and she is more than up for the challenge. Plus, Dylan Bruce is really easy on the eyes, and is Ms. Maslany, so that's a nice perk too. 
Grade: A

No Offence (Series 1, Episode1):
Paul Abbott's first new series since his landmark drama Shameless has concluded. Abbott is a curious writer: at his best, his vivid characterization, keen yet unsentimental eye for social issues, breakneck pacing, and richly realized worlds (whether it be the Chatsworth Estate or Mackintosh Textiles) make for enormously entertaining, moving television. At his worst, he feels like a British Ryan Murphy: more is more to the point of sloppiness and exhaustion (Hit & Miss, despite some great visuals and strong central performance by Chloe Sevigny, often felt like two shows at war with one another). With No Offence, Abbott and Channel 4 take on the police procedural, with a raunchy twist. The problem is, given the saturation of British and European crime dramas as of late (Broadchurch, Glue, Happy Valley, Bron/Broen, etc), everything feels familiar. It isn't helped given that another Channel 4 cop comedy-drama, Babylon (which was fantastic and my choice for one of the very best shows of 2014), had already concluded last December. Despite the familiarity and try-too-hardy dip into the outrageous, the cast is great (Joanna Scanlan is the real comedic highlight, with some very nice work from Alexandra Roach and Elaine Cassidy as well) and worth a gander alone. It has the ingredients to be something truly interesting and provocative (its depiction of Down Syndrome is more thoughtful than at first glance), so my curiosity is piqued. 
Grade: B

Haven't heard of Enfield Haunting, but I'll keep my eye out for it. And I need to catch up with Penny Dreadful this week. As far as British TV goes, the only things on the horizon that have my interest (at this time) are those literary adaptations BBC is doing later this year and the C4 sci-fi drama, Humans. 

The weirdest thing about No Offence is how so many reviews are blown away by it and how Abbott is acting like he's boldly created a brand new genre in the process. There are things I like about the first episode, and I'll continue watching it because I like the cast, but Babylon already did this and did it very well, so…

I liked Hit & Miss more than you, but when he said in an interview he combined two different scripts into one, my first thought was, 'Yeah, it shows.' Still really liked Shameless and Clocking Off. 

I hope Humans is good. I'm not sure if it'll fill the Utopia-shaped hole in my heart, but it looks promising. 

MAD MEN SEASON 7

Time Zones: B+
A Day's Work: A-
Field Trip: A-
The Monolith: B+
The Runaways: B
The Strategy: A
Waterloo: B+
Severance: B
New Business: B
The Forecast: B+
Time & Life: A
Lost Horizon: B+
The Milk and Honey Route: B+
Person to Person: B+

OVERALL: A-
SERIES: A-

PERSON OF INTEREST SEASON 4

Panopticon: B+
Nautilus: B
Wingman: B
Brotherhood: B
Prophets: A-
Pretenders: B+
Honor Among Thieves: A-
Point of Origin: B+
The Devil You Know: A-
The Cold War: A-
If-Then-Else: A
Control-Alt-Delete: A-
M.I.A.: B
Guilty: B
Q&A: B+
Blunt: B
Karma: B
Skip: B+
Search and Destroy: B+
Terra Incognita: B+
Asylum: A
YHWH: A

OVERALL: B+/A-

SCANDAL SEASON 4: C+
ARROW SEASON 3: B
NEW GIRL SEASON 4: B+
THE LAST MAN ON EARTH SEASON 1: B+
SNL SEASON 40: Best episodes=The Rock/Michael Keaton

After seeing the early-posted pilot, Mr. Robot just went into my Top 5 new shows. Here's a piece on the show & a link to the pilot (region-limited, but you know how to get round that, right?)

It's a very smart show about an anarchist hacker: think Fight Club meets the non-magic bits of The Invisibles. Charismatic lead in Rami Malek (like a Middle Eastern ethnicity version of the young Rufus Sewell), Christian Slater turning up as a possible-mentor figure. And, as the creator used to code, the hacking isn't the usual shite. Beautifully shot and scored, confident as hell.

The Sopranos Season 2

Guy Walks Into a Psychiatrist's Office: B+
Do Not Resuscitate: B+
Toodle-Fucking-Oo: B+
Commendatori: B+
Big Girls Don't Cry: B+
The Happy Wanderer: B+
D-Girl: B+
Full Leather Jacket: B+
From Where to Eternity: B+
Bust Out: A-
House Arrest: B+
The Knight In White Satin Armor: A-
Funhouse: A-

OVERALL: B+

Game of Thrones Season 5

The Wars to Come: B+
The House of Black and White: B
High Sparrow: B
Sons of the Harpy: A-
Kill the Boy: B
Unbowed, Unbent, Unbroken: C
The Gift: C+
Hardhome: A
The Dance of Dragons: B
Mother's Mercy: B

OVERALL: B

Veep Season 4: B+/A- (Favorite episodes: "Election Night", "Testimony")
Silicon Valley Season 2: B+ (Favorite episode: "Two Days of the Condor")
Louie Season 5: B+/A- (Favorite episodes: "A La Carte", "Sleepover", "The Road")
Community Season 6: B+ (Favorite episodes: "Modern Espionage", "Emotional Consequences of Broadcast Television")

Not Safe for Work (Season 1, Episode 1):

With the exception of Banana, there haven't been many original series from C4/E4 this year that have really wowed me. However, Not Safe for Work can be added to that list. The pilot is one of the best things I've seen this year: a scathing look 'Austerity Britain' job outsourcing and employment cuts, a droll work place comedy, and a brutally downbeat portrait of work/personal life failure in one's late 20s/early 30s. The opening episode shares more than a few nods to The Office and This Life, but the tone doesn't feel muted or too broad. The excellent performances, particularly from Zawe Ashton and Sacha Dhawan, are funny, but in step with the series' more lugubrious undercurrents. If it can maintain this balance over the coming weeks, it could become an instant cult classic. Should it get remade in the US, I nominate Mike Judge or Louis C.K. for the adaptation process.
Grade: A

Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit: 

The multi-award winning miniseries adaptation of Jeanette Winterson, who wrote the scripts, it's more of a  historical curiosity than anything else. Surprisingly frank in its treatment of Jess' sexuality (topless lesbian sex on public TV in 1990!), it never less shows its age in a few spots. The three hour running length probably could have been whittled down to a little more than two hours, and some scenes have a more stage-y approach that feels a bit jarring by today's standards. Still, it's awkward and endearing, much like its protagonist. 
Grade: B+

True Detective (Season 2, Episode 2):

Another belly flop, and another inadvertent way of making me yearn for the first season. Two hours in and the meandering, largely plotless endeavor seems almost willfully enervating. Everything that is learned at this point in the 'mystery' could have been summed up in 10 minutes time. But, why do that when you can have another scene of the morose bar lady singing a sad song? I love slow-burning TV, but this is making Top of the Lake and The Fall look as peppy as a Shonda Rhimes series. All this would be forgivable if the characters were interesting, but the walking cliches just get a couple other personality tics (Motorcycle Cop may be gay! *faints dead away*) and that's about it. Even the final 'shocking twist' felt phoned in and lifeless. I'll give it another episode but I'm not expecting a miracle. 
Grade: D-

Hannibal
Season 3
Antipasto - B+
Primavera - B+
Secondo - B
Aperitivo - A
Contorno - A-
Dolce - B+
Digestivo - A
The Great Red Dragon - B+
And the Woman Clothed With the Sun - A-
And the Woman Clothed in Sun - A
And the Beast from the Sea - A
The Number of the Beast is 666 - A-
The Wrath of the Lamb - A

True Detective
Season 1
The Long Bright Dark - A-
Seeing Things - B+
The Locked Room - A
Who Goes There - A
The Secret Fate of All Life - A
Haunted Houses - A
After You've Gone - A
Form and Void - A-


Season 2
The Western Book of the Dead - B
Night Finds You - B
Maybe Tomorrow - A
Down Will Come - C
Other Lives - C
Church in Ruins - A-
Black Maps and Motel Rooms - A
Omega Station - A

Better Call Saul
Season 1
Uno - B+
Mijo - A
Nacho - A-
Hero - B+
Alpine Shepard Boy - B
Five-O - A
Bingo - A
Rico - A
Pimento - A
Marco - C+

Rick and Morty
Season 2
A Rickle in Time - A-
Mortynight Run - A-
Auto-Erotic Assimilation - A
Get Schwifty - B-
The Ricks Must Be Crazy - B+


Mr. Robot
Season 1

eps1.0_hellofriend.mov - C
eps1.1_ones-and-zer0es.mpeg - C
eps1.3_da3m0ns.mp4 - B+
eps1.4_3xpl0its.wmv - B-
eps1.5_br4ve-trave1er.asf - B
eps1.6_v1ew-s0urce.flv - B-
eps1.7_wh1ter0se.m4v - A
eps1.8_m1rr0r1ng.qt - A
eps1.9_zer0-day.avi - A-

The Sopranos Season 3 (Overall: B+/A-)

Mr. Ruggiero's Neighborhood: A-
Proshai, Livushka: B+
Fortunate Son: B+
Employee of the Month: B+
Another Toothpick: B+
University: A-
Second Opinion: B+
He Is Risen: A-
The Telltale Moozadell: B+
...To Save Us All From Satan's Power...: B+
Pine Barrens: A-
Amour Fou: A-
The Army of One: A-

Daredevil Season 1 (Overall: B+)

Into the Ring: B
Cut Man: B+
Rabbit in a Snowstorm: B
In the Blood: B+
World on Fire: B
Condemned: A-
Stick: B+
Shadows In the Glass: B+
Speak of the Devil: B+
Nelson v. Murdock: A-
The Path of the Righteous: B+
The Ones We Leave Behind: B+
Daredevil: B

Sense8 Season 1 (Overall: B+)

Limbic Resonance: B-
I Am Also A We: B
Smart Money's On the Skinny Bitch: B
What's Going On: B+
Art Is Like Religion: B
Demons: B
W.W.N. Double D?: B
We Will All Be Judged By the Courage of Our Hearts: B+
Death Doesn't Let You Say Goodbye: B+
What Is Human?: A-
Just Turn the Wheel and the Future Changes: A-
I Can't Leave Her: A-

Penny Dreadful Season 2: B+
Orphan Black Season 3: B+