After skipping a week (was sick!) I’m back.
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Fringe’s Garden of Forking Paths
A lot of people have felt that Fringe has not been at its best this season, for various reasons. One specific complaint has been about spending time in a world in which the fact that Peter Bishop drowned in Reiden Lake rendered everyone slightly different from the versions we know. Not radically different, as in Earth 2, but still not quite the same.
When introducing Fauxlivia and Walternate’s world, Fringe had the advantage of stepping into a world that was very clearly, very obviously, different from ours. Blimps in the sky. The World Trade Center still standing. Olivia’s red hair. Everything about the world said, this is different, and the audience could approach it as such. The problem facing Fringe this season is that we have no clear indicators of how to approach the reality we’re watching. Neither Here Nor There indeed. The problem has been, I suppose, that we weren’t quite sure whether we were supposed to take this as OUR Earth, rendered different enough for it to be unfamiliar after whatever Peter did, or as an entirely different timeline. I think the writers definitely knew all along, but we didn’t, and I think it’s caused a certain unease.
Over 3 months of stuff?
Work happened. Then vacation happened, and I just got back to my regular routine a week ago. In any case, quick rundown of what I’ve been watching:
The stuff I’ve gotten into in the past 3 months, and that I’ve been playing catch up with…
Community – I’d watched Advanced Dungeons and Dragons last year and always meant to watch more. Took advantage of long plane flights to watch the first season and wow, how have I not gotten into this show before now? Best. TV show. Ever. My favorites are Abed and Troy. I’m more than halfway through season 2 and have already caught up on the new season; and I know this is just echoing what everyone else has been saying, but Remedial Chaos Theory was amazing.
Mad Men – I’d been watching the 4th season as it aired earlier this year, and about 2 months went back to the first season. Love it. I love how seeds planted in an episode bear fruit 10 episodes later. I love the characterization, and I particularly love the female characters, and how each navigates the male-dominated world they live in in their own way… some better than others, obviously.
The Good Wife – Watched the second half of last season and then went and watched what I’d missed in the summer hiatus. I’ve already caught up on new episodes. Kalinda and Eli are one fabulous team, and I’m really enjoying seeing Lisa Edelstein play a character so different from Cuddy.
Downton Abbey – I still have a couple of episodes left from series 1, and have been really enjoying the soapy period drama. I understand things get darker in series 2…
The Hour – Was also about halfway through when I went on vacation. It’s not Mad Men, but I like it a lot. Loved the episode where everyone was invited to Hector’s in-laws’ country estate. Love Freddie Lyon.
When bad shit happens to favorite characters
Okay, seriously why is it that my favorite characters always seem to die or suffer horrible fates? I mean, well, okay, not always, not every one of them, but very very often.
Late to the party: Fringe & Battlestar Galactica
Most of my media-consuming time the past few weeks has been spent watching Fringe and Battlestar Galactica… which means that I spend a lot of time trying to avoid spoilers, more so with Fringe since it’s got at least one more season to go.
When watching toku that isn’t currently airing, like Den-O (which I need to get back to) or all the previous Kamen Rider series, I tend to just write about what I’m watching since there’s usually a fair amount of people that may be watching, or may have watched recently. With western, particularly US, shows, I tend to feel less inspired to blog about past seasons of current shows, or shows that have actually ended. Which is why I haven’t mentioned either of these shows on this blog before, even though I’ve been enjoying both quite a bit.
Fringe, for me has the unique additional draw of playing Spot The JJ Abrams Trope. Alias is one of favorite shows of all time, and it’s really interesting how many elements from Alias have made their way to Fringe, but in completely different contexts and configurations. There’s also Peter and Walter Bishop, both of whom I adore, and Charlie, whom I also love. I’m in the very beginning of season 2, so the Charlie love in particular has turned rather poignant (spoilers!).
As for Battlestar Galactica, I’ve heard for a long time how good it was and decided to give the miniseries a try. Loved it, and I’m now in the middle of season 2 (just passed the two Resurrection Ship episodes, in fact). My fannish love tends to gravitate towards very specific character types, and so it was that I was instantly interested in Gaius Baltar, and by the time he very obviously considers stealing a little half-blind old lady’s spot on a ship off the nuked and invaded planet, I was just flailing helplessly in adoration. Like I said, I have types. I find him to be absolutely fascinating. Not just him, though; so many of the characters on Battlestar Galactica are really well written. I’m sure declaring one’s love for Starbuck is fairly common. There’s also Mr. Gaeta. Yes, I realize that (at this point), he’s really nowhere near as developed as the Adamas, Helos, Roslins, etc… but Minor Character Who Just Gets Shit Done is another one of my types.
Obviously there is a lot to say about both of these series. Maybe I’ll post more about them in the future. While carefully avoiding spoilers.