Game of Thrones Season 8 (TV Review)

Game of Thrones Season 8 had the gigantic task of giving a legendary television show a satisfying ending. It did give viewers an ending, but it was not satisfying at all.

The Iron Throne (Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode Review)

The end of Game of Thrones was never going to satisfy everyone, but it still could've ended better.

The Bells (Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode Review)

All I wanted and expected from this episode was a spectacle of destruction. It delivered on that front.

The Last of the Starks (Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode Review)

After the battle against the Night King's army, the war for the Iron Throne continues. If there was better writing, this would be compelling television.

The Long Night (Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode Review)

We now get to see the epic battle between the living and the dead. Those of us with night vision, that is.

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms (Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode Review)

This episode covers events right before the Battle of Winterfell. Viewers are now perfectly prepared to have their hearts torn out next episode.

Winterfell (Game of Thrones Season 8 Episode Review)

Game of Thrones Season 8's premiere episode showed viewers where everyone was and allowed a moment of calm before the storm.

Falling Skies "Reborn" Review

I talk about the Falling Skies series finale.

Falling Skies "Reunion" Review

I talk about the Falling Skies episode "Reunion".

The Following (Season 3)

Show: The Following

Season: 3

Episodes: 15

Created By: Kevin Williamson

Released: 2015

Falling Skies "Hatchlings" Review

I talk about the Falling Skies episode "Hatchlings".

Falling Skies "Find Your Warrior" Review

I talk about the Falling Skies episode "Find Your Warrior".

Revolution (Season 2)

Show: Revolution

Season: 2

Episodes: 22

Created By: Eric Kripke

Released: 2013-2014

Rating: 4.5/6

Basic Plot: Fifteen years after a permanent global blackout, a group of revolutionaries seeks to drive out an occupying force posing as the United States Government.
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Difference From Season 1
The changes make this show feel like something different, but in a good way. It's not a rehashing of the first Season which is a very good thing. What you get instead are new enemies (the Patriots) and a sub-plot that slowly gains importance as the Season goes on (the nanites). A lot of people had problems with either the plot lines or the nanites. Or both. I don't get why something introduced in the first Season and got better explained this Season would be hated so much.

The Odd Hiatuses
One thing that was really odd and strange were the odd hiatuses that would take place during this Season. Besides moving the show to a different time, this seems like NBC was trying to cancel the show by going, "The show's ratings went down. However did THAT happen? Well, guess we have to cancel it." If people didn't like it, fine. But for NBC to make it hard to watch when it aired is a completely different thing.

Aaron's Expanded Role
I am one of the few people that really enjoy Aaron. So I was very pleased this Season when his role got expanded. Because of his ties to the nanites the show focuses on him more than it did in the first Season. Some people were angry about more Aaron in the show and would even skip through his scenes. Hell, those people were happy when he broke away from the group so that his scenes were easier to skip through.

Final Thoughts
This was a good Season that expanded on the first and ended with a big cliffhanger. I liked Monroe getting redeemed and not all the characters being together at the start of the Season. I also love that Aaron gets a more expanded role this Season. I know a lot of people don't like him but I don't see why people would hate this lovable character. Well, I had a good time watching this show but it's over now.

Breaking Bad "Felina" Review

I talk about the roller coaster/thrill ride of a finale.

Cult (Season 1)

Show: Cult

Season: 1

Episodes: 13

Created By: Rockne S. O'Bannon

Released: 2013

Rating: 4/5

Basic Plot:  Tracks the investigation of a string of mysterious deaths and disappearances surrounding the show-within-a-show.
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Not Given a Chance
I have seen a great show not get a second season (Last Resort) and I have seen a decent show get renewed (Elementary). Cult was one of those shows that its network didn't seem to care about. That its network didn't like airing even one episode because it might do well enough to earn a renewal. After its second episode it was moved to the Death Slot (aka Friday Nights where shows go to die). Then the CW held up its hands and acted surprised that a new tv show was getting bad ratings on Friday Nights! Never mind that Cult was already struggling with ratings on Tuesday nights. After a few more episodes aired the CW pulled the plug and said it wouldn't air the rest of the episodes of Cult's only season. Luckily they decided to show the final episodes, but it doesn't erase my feelings that this was a show that was cancelled before it even begun.


A TV Based Cult Makes Sense
In the beginning of Cult it seems insane that Nate (Jeff's brother) seriously believes that the cult of Cult (aka True Believers) are murderous psychos. But what Nate says isn't only proven to be true, but also that it is much more complicated. Nate isn't in the majority of the show, as for the earlier parts he is captured, and Jeff searches through the twists and turns (with the help of Skye, someone who works on the show and whose father went missing because he was getting too close to the truth of Cult) to find out what is really going on. As this show wasn't given warning of cancellation soon enough, by the end of the series you are left at a big cliffhanger as you realize that the scope of the True Believers (and Steven Rae) is even bigger. And, really, a cult giving out messages in a tv show makes sense in this day and age.

Legacies
Something that fuels the plot (and sub-plots) of Cult is figuring out what happened to someone's father. It's what is the driving force behind the True Believers and it's a reason why Skye helps Jeff in the first place. To find out what lead to a father's disappearance and left a child all alone. For one person it lead to an obsessive quest that left a large body count. For Skye it lead to a healthier interest in finding out questions that she didn't know before as well as getting a boyfriend.

Final Thoughts
This show is the cancelled show I miss the most this year. At least Last Resort was given enough time to wrap everything up (albeit some subplots did feel rushed). Cult wasn't even given a chance and that's really sad for a show like this. A cult that sends out messages through a tv show seems relevant to today. It's such a crazy idea that no one would believe it was happening. Those who figured it out would be labeled as crazy and ignored. In Cult, not even the police are there to help Jeff and Skye because they don't believe there's a cult that sends out clues through a tv show. I admit fans getting so crazy that they'd kill sounds insane unless you go on sites like tumblr and Twitter and see the insanity inherent in fandoms as a whole. There is a gigantic cliffhanger that raises unanswered questions, but the ride is well worth it. And to all the True Believers out there: Hey, these things just snap right off.

Last Resort (Season 1/Final Season)

Show: Last Resort

Season: 1

Episodes: 13

Created By: Karl Gajdusek and Shawn Ryan

Released: 2012-2013

Rating: 3/5
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Strong Beginning and Strong End
The beginning and ending of this season were the strongest parts. The pilot episode drew you in and made you care for the characters. The ending was good closure and one of the better episodes of this season. While you can debate whether what happened between them is good or bad, I have to say the pilot and ending episodes were a strong point.

Some Subplots Were Noticeably Shortened
By the finale you could tell some things were meant to go on longer. The biggest one for me, at least, was what happened to Sam Kendal's wife. We were left on a cliffhanger in one episode and suddenly it's quickly resolved in the finale. Trust me, I loved seeing it resolved in time but it happened way too quickly. I won't say what happened, but its resolution was much too simple for my liking.

Robert Patrick
Many know I am a big Terminator fan. So when I saw the T-1000 himself (my favorite Terminator model) I got very happy. Luckily enough Joseph Prosser (the character Patrick plays) was a joy to follow too. While Patrick is much older than he was in Terminator 2: Judgment Day, he still looks a lot like his younger self. So he isn't that hard to spot. I am going to miss tuning in every week to Last Resort to check up on how the T-1000 is doing.

Final Thoughts
This show was good in its one season run. However, I have to agree with others in that it doesn't seem like the concept was made for the long term. So it is both good and bad that the show got cancelled after its first season. While it was a joy tuning in each week I had started to grow bored with it, and it wasn't until the last episode that I got really excited for next week's episode...which is never going to come. Before I end this I must thank Michael L. Keller for getting me into this wonderful but short lived series.

Fringe (Season 5/The Final Season)

Show: Fringe

Season: 5

Episodes: 13

Created By: J.J. Abrams

Released: 2012-2013

Rating: 4.5/5
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The Device They Spend All Season Building
Turns out to be unused by the end. Why am I not saying what the device does here? I like to keep my written reviews mostly spoiler free. MOSTLY being the key word. So in the beginning of the season Walter has forgotten his plan (due to Windmark torturing him at the start) and so must find the tapes hidden randomly in his old lab. So in nearly every episode Walter, Peter, Olivia, and Astrid find a tape and do what it says. For the majority of the season you are left in the dark as to what this device will end up doing. Luckily, during the last few episodes, you find out what it does. However, one part doesn't work so they have to go to Plan B.

It Ends Where It Begins
One of the best things about this season is that it starts and ends at the same point. While I would've wished to see where other characters (like Astrid and Broyles) ended up, I thought it was nice and sweet that it ended at the beginning. If you took the epilogue without the feelings of what happened previously, it was a happy ending which the two love birds (Peter and Olivia) more than deserved.

All the Information About the Observers
Throughout the first four seasons of Fringe the Observers are shown to be mysterious alien beings from the future! Here and there we were given bits and pieces of who (and what) they really were. By the end of this season the majority of questions about these beings were answered. Some of them (like why there are no women Observers and why the Observers wear the old time clothing) aren't answered. But enough are to leave you satisfied. And it's the Observers' past/future that becomes the whole basis of Walter's Plan.

Final Thoughts
This being the end of the Fringe saga (unless they continue it in other media forms, which I hope they do), made me sad as the Season went on. By the time the final few moments of Fringe came and went, I felt LOST. I felt completely heartbroken. Don't worry, it wrapped all the major plot lines up nicely. The season played out well, though there were a few slow moments. Like the psychic/anomaly that Olivia encounters when she goes to pick up the magnet. One character's death was very sad but I felt the character was killed off a little too quickly. However, there were some great moments such as the Monty Python Tribute (in the episode "Black Umbrella") or when Walter gets his redemption (in the episode "Enemy of Fate"). This was a fun season and I am going to miss not tuning into Fringe every Friday (well, I usually had to DVR it so actually every Saturday at the earliest). Thank you JJ Abrams for a great ride for 2 years (yes, Fringe was on the air 5 years but I've only kept up with the show for 2 of them).

Fringe Series Finale Review

I review the Series Finale of Fringe and manage not to break down in tears.

Fringe "The Boy Must Live" Review

Do we trust September?

Fringe "Black Blotter" Review

Monty Python!