My Review of The Vampire Diaries 4.11- Catch Me if You Can

Sides in the race for the cure start to firm up, Klaus comes up with a plan to reveal the rest of the map, Kol plots to stop Klaus, and Elena plots to stop Kol.  Oh, Stefan and Rebekah get horizontal too.....

Well, we now have at least 4 groups in the search for the vampire cure.  Klaus wants it to get more hybrids and to stop other people from getting it.  Shane wants to resurrect someone (name forgotten) who will bring on the world (at least according to Kol).  Rebekah wants it to deny it to Klaus and Kol wants to stop the world from ending.  This could be interesting because at least some of these groups are going to have to cooperate to get things done.

I have to say that I was shocked at Elena's plan.  Kill Kol to wipe out his entire vampiric line?  Wow, that sounds like a Klaus suggestion.  My only question is if Klaus or Rebekah would allow it.  Klaus very well might if it would further his own ends, but I don't see Rebekah oking it, although I could be wrong.  I also suspect that Elena would regret it heavily if it were to happen.  Granted, she is also thinking about saving Jeremy and freeing Damon from Kol's compulsion, but still....wow....

Kol's plan to use Damon to kill Jeremy had the advantage of being very simple.  It was also a nice way to get around the promise Kol made to Klaus.  I wonder if Klaus actually meant to kill Jeremy or if he honestly thought that Jeremy would change his mind and kill the vampires.  I think Jeremy may have changed his mind eventually, but at this point, he is resisting the urge to kill vampires with everything at his disposal, particularly since Elena and many of his friends are vampires.

And Bonnie is becoming more and more powerful.  Unfortunately, that does not mean that she is becoming wiser.  She is so letting Shane get into her head an manipulate her.  Unfortunately he can do this because he knows her well.  He also seems to be able to control her to a certain degree.  Hopefully she'll be able to figure out a way to control everything herself instead of him pulling the strings.

Stefan and Rebekah?  Should have seen that coming, but I didn't.  Not terribly surprised, but not quite expected either.  Wonder how Caroline and Elena will react to this latest turn of Stefan's.  He seems to be dangerously close to turning off his emotions and becoming the Ripper again which will be a very, very bad thing for everyone.

Until next week!

My Review of Arrow 1.11- Trust, but Verify

Oliver and Diggle are at odds over his latest target, Thea has suspicions about Moira and Malcolm, Tommy has a falling out with Malcolm, and Thea makes a major mistake.....

Turns out that Oliver's newest target is Diggle's former CO and Diggle is not happy about it. Given the fact that the list has not been wrong yet and the similarity in tactics to what happened in Afghanistan, I was a little surprised that Diggle didn't seem to think it even warranted any investigation. I get that he feels a sense of loyalty, but to not even consider that what Oliver is saying might be true was definitely surprising. Watching him and Oliver fight was definitely cool and I was glad that he decided to investigate eventually. I did feel bad that his faith in his CO was misplaced and definitely wish that Gaynor hadn't been killed. I love Ben Browder and think he could have been a great recurring villain on the show.

We also found out a part of the reason that Oliver has trust issues. Turns out that the Chinese guy who rescued him on the island was working for the people who captured him. Not a good thing. The question: was he working for them willingly? Or did they force him to work with them somehow? Hopefully that will be answered sometime soon.

Poor Tommy. It seemed like his dad wanted to bury the past and move on, but all he wanted to do was sell a clinic that Tommy's mom opened up and (apparently) died for. Wow, that would have to suck. If it is all that Tommy has left of his mom, I am not surprised that he didn't want to get rid of it. Maybe he can run that and work at the club at the same time? That would be a very interesting arc for his character to follow. Was very happy that Laurel stood up for him and told his dad off after Tommy left. My one question: was the death of his wife what set Malcolm off on the path to become the Dark Archer and to come up with his plans for the city?

Speaking of Malcolm, Thea suspects that he and Moira are having an affair. I seriously doubt that given her obvious dislike for him. I never bought it, even with the little butt pats and what not. I suspect that Malcolm may be interested in her, but I so do not see her being interested in him. What Thea was noticing; I suspect; where their covert meetings about the plan, which is also what Moira and her husband were arguing about. I was surprised that Oliver confronted Moira so quickly about what Thea said to him. I thought he might take the chance and observe before confronting.

And Thea took drugs because of what she suspects and then got involved in a car accident. The nice thing is that it totally setup the plot for next week when Oliver goes after the drug dealer (played by Seth Gabel). That should be very interesting.

Until next week!

My Review of Vampire Diaries 4.10- After School Special

Rebekah catches up and has some fun, Jeremy learns some new information, and lots of torture happens.

Well, Rebekah was certainly pissed off.  She wakes up and almost immediately heads for revenge city.  She takes Stefan, Elena, and Caroline hostage in order to catchup on information aided by April.  While I find it hard to blame April for being upset about what happened to her, I still don't like what she did.  Her dad did something awful and everyone was trying to spare her from knowing things that would have seriously disturbed her.

Anyway, getting back to Rebekah, she managed to skillfully twist the emotional knife into both Stefan and Elena in order to inflict as much emotional damage as possible as payback for what happened to her.  Again, I have trouble blaming her.  She can be really nice and sweet, but the problem is that she is very unpredictable and can turn on someone incredibly quickly.  And now she is on a tear and that is not a good thing.

Klaus really, really needs to watch his back now that Rebekah is awake.  I do not know if she will refrain from attacking him again, particularly since she seems to be taking so much joy in the idea of turning him into a human as torture.  His method of helping Jeremy is typical Klaus: the simplest and most direct route possible.  Again, not a good thing.  I shudder at the possibilities implicit in what he is doing.  I suspect that he got Damon's help by the simple expedient of noting that it would help Elena.

I wonder if Stefan really hates Damon as much as he claims to or if he is trying to fool Rebekah.  I suspect the former, but I could be wrong.  He was deeply hurt by what Elena said.  The problem is that; as has been said frequently; Elena loves both brothers.  But Stefan has been trying so hard to turn her into his ideal of a vampire (not that Damon hasn't been) that she is feeling trapped.  Damon seems to want to let Elena be what she wants (even though he is molding her in a more subtle way) and I suspect that plays a part in what Elena said.  Also, there is the sire bond to consider.  Sigh....

Ok, think I said this before, but I mean it.  Jeremy can no longer wear any shirt other than a tank top.  Damn that boy is fine!  And Matt needs to go sleeveless more often too.  Sorry, hormones were most definitively on parade when those two were on the screen together.  I am glad that Jeremy is trying to retain his sense of self while being a hunter, but to help Elena, he may need to do things he would rather not do.  Unfortunately, by working with Klaus, there will definitely be collateral damage.

Then there is Bonnie.  Girl, you need to run away from Shane as fast as possible.  You are right, that magic he is having you use is dark.  Sadly, I don't see her doing any running.  She was freaked by what happened, but I think that if she thinks she can control it, she will continue to use Expression.  Not a good thing.

Until next week my friends!

On Top Chef: Restaurant Wars

I do not normally comment on reality shows, but after watching last night's Top Chef, I have to say something.  I have read what Tom Colicchio and Gail Simmons had to say about the elimination as well as other people's reactions.  I just have to throw my two cents into what I think is quite possibly the worst elimination I have seen on Top Chef.

Before I go off on a rant, I do need to say that Kristen definitely made some mistakes.  She tried to take on and control too much and didn't have the experience to run the kitchen.  That being said, I am incredibly upset at the judges for eliminating her regardless of what she did or did not say to defend herself.


*****WARNING*****

There is some semi-strong language below, so if you are at all sensitive about that, don't read any further.  I am definitely upset and let that come through.  Thankyouverymuch.


*****WARNING*****


I know that Tom Colicchio has said (on numerous occasions) that they can only judge based on the dish placed in front of them, and I totally get that normally.  However, it would seem that when faced with two contestants who are on the bottom, one of whom has consistently been in the top or won (Kristen) and one who has accomplished jackshit and has consistently been on the bottom (Josie), it is very relevant to take their histories into account.  I've seen it on other shows too, and I think that rule is one of the stupidest rules.  When deciding the top, definitely only look at what is in front of you, but when the bottom is close (as I said) history should definitely play a part as Gail so rightly noted last night.

I have to applaud Kristen for being a very classy lady, but I do want to take her to task for not defending herself.  I honestly think that if she; in a calm manner; laid out the reasons the dish failed (both her's and Josie's) she would have survived.  Instead, she let Josie throw her under the bus and then threw herself on her sword.  I think she could have preserved her integrity while still telling the truth about what happened.

As for Josie, I am so looking forward to that talentless bitch getting her ass kicked off the show.  So far she has skated through because other people have somehow managed to screw up worse than she did.  What she did in the show last night was horrific and should utterly destroy any chance she has to come any closer to the title.

My Review of Arrow 1.10- Burned

Oliver has to recover that which was lost, Tommy and Thea show a new side to themselves, Detective Lance shows how cold he can be, and Laurel helps out a friend....

 

Oliver took a massive blow to his confidence as a result of the fight with the Dark Archer last time we saw him. He realized that he had alot to lose and he does not know how to deal with it. So he more or less shut down as he avoided dealing with the issue. I appreciate that he wanted to help take care of his family, but I am annoyed that he used that as an excuse to give up being the Arrow; even if only temporarily. I also have to say that I am glad that Laurel and Diggle managed to snap him out of his funk. It was also nice to see that woman on the news defending the Arrow. I think that helped to show Oliver that he had been making a difference and that he could continue to do so if he took up the hood again.

 

I was definitely impressed with Thea. She has shown that she is not as shallow as she comes off in the past, but what she did here was by far the most impressive thing she has done so far. I will grant that it was, of course, tainted by self-interest, after all if Moira didn't get it together Thea would have to grow up even faster than she already has. However, I do also think it was also a tough love type thing and it is exactly what Moira needed. Both Oliver and the COO were being too deferential. What Moira needed (as did Oliver) was a swift kick in the ass, and that is what Thea gave her.

 

Tommy also impressed me. He initiated a talk with Laurel about getting a drawer in her apartment, meaning that it was getting serious. He also suggested and planned a benefit in their club and kicked some contractor ass to get things done. Very, very impressive. I was incredibily happy to see that he is maturing and growing up. Hope it continues.

 

Laurel is, frankly, a little annoying. She, at one point, wanted nothing to do with the Arrow because he was a murderer, but now that she needs help, she is calling him up to get it. Not fond of the hypocrisy implicit in that. I will grant that maybe she has had more time to consider everything and changed her mind, but still. She needs to either trust him or not. I think she is leaning to the former. She just needs to be careful with her dad who is next on my rant list.

 

Using his daughter unwittingly as part of a scheme to catch the Arrow is so incredibily low. I understand that Detective Lance wants the Arrow badly, but to betray and lie to his daughter that way is just awful. I will grant that she lied to him about having the phone, but she didn't betray him the way he is betraying her. If he asked her, then I would be fine, but the fact that he is using her in such a surreptitious and deceitful manner is completely disgusting.

 

Until next week!