Monday, February 27, 2012

The Walking Dead: Season 2 Episode 10 - 18 Miles Out

Hello fellow Walkers!  Well, if anyone has been starving for action on this show, I think the latest episode paid out in huge dividends!  It was a more focused story on our 2 former cops settling out some issues in a confrontation that was long overdue.  For anyone who was tired of the farm action (or non-action), there was only a small storyline there.  A relevant storyline to some overall themes of the show that have been resonating.  And there was even a little excitement there to get people's blood pumping.  Overall, a very good effort from the Walking Dead gore factory.  Now, I've heard rumors that this second half of episodes were created after former showrunner Frank Darabount exited and Glenn Mazzara took over.  That may be true on paper, but I'm pretty sure the season was intentionally laid out to start slow and heat up by the end.  Anyway, I feel like a broken record every week with this intro so let's just get into the recap!  I'm short on time so this will be quick!


The Farm
  • Guess who's awake?  It's Beth!  Looks like she wasn't infected or anything as some people suspected.  But the whole fever/shock/passing out thing was a bit much then, wouldn't you say?
  • But Beth's mindset is pretty much following that of Andrea's in the past.  She sees no hope in the world and wants to go out on her own terms.  She even stole a knife off of her dinner tray in hopes of making this happen.  Lori caught on and went into full-on prevention mode. 
  • She gave Maggie a heads up on what's going on which launched the sister fight to end all sister fights.  Screams reached an ultrasonic level.  The only thing missing were the sounds of cat hisses and scratching.  It was the basic "stay alive for me, your brother, your husband, your father" fight on Maggie's side vs. "why bother? We're all walking corpses anyway" argument on Beth's side. 
  • Of course, Andrea was playing the "it's not your fight, Lori" card.  And she went one step further pointing out the jealousy of potentially the whole group at Rick, Lori and Carl's perfect little family.  They are the only ones who haven't experienced loss.  And now they have another child on the way?  Of course, Andrea took a little jab at Lori for having a "boyfriend" on the side too.  A man whom which they both have now shared a bed (err...soil, carseat). 
  • Lori sounded like a woman from the olden days when she start saying it's the men's place to be out providing for the women and killing zombies.   The woman's place is to provide a sound environment for living.  Washing clothes, cleaning dishes and making beds.   ALRIGHT!!  Bring on the Zombie apocalypse!!  (just kidding ladies) 
  • So, Lori seemed to be expressing jealousy or just flat out contempt for Andrea playing with the boys and wanting to shoot Walkers.  Andrea is of the mindset that this is all that matters now.  Both good arguments.  But a survivalist would have to agree with Andrea, I would think.   Though, once you lose any semblance of humanity, is there really anything worth saving at that point? 
  • Anyway, Andrea seemingly allowed Beth to attempt to take her own life.  But, Beth failed in doing so.  This seemed to indicate to Andrea that she wanted to live.  Lori, not agreeing with the methods, did seem to agree.  The damage was done though.  Andrea is no longer welcome in the house on Hershel's farm.  We'll see if that extends to off of the premises too eventually.


18 Miles (and then some) Out
  • So, in case there was any doubt that The Walking Dead was ready to give us some action they did the tried and true TV Trick of showing a pretty intense scene at the beginning of the episode and then flashing back to the events that lead up to it.  Almost like a "okay guys, we know this episode will start off all talky and stuff, but trust us, you're gonna see some guts!!"   So, we got a hint of Shane, Rick and a tied up Randall fighting for their lives against a hoard of walkers at some new location.  It looked like a no win situation and......cue opening credits!!
  • We see Rick and Shane out driving in the countryside, stopping at a 4 way intersection.  Rick looks around to make sure things are clear and then he decides to have a heart to heart with his former/current(?) best friend. 
  • Rick brings up Otis and how he knows what really happens.  Rick didn't seem to think what Shane did was wrong.  Instead he pretty much attempted to convince Shane that he would have done the same thing.  He would have done what was needed to provide for his family.  He pretty much told Shane that Lori thinks he's dangerous and insisted that he will no longer be dangerous if he wants to stay a part of this group.  He laid it all out there with the whole Lori/Shane relationship.  He admitted that he figured it out pretty quickly and wanted to kill Shane when he did.  But it took everything in him to let it go.  He wants to stay alive to keep his wife, his son and his unborn child alive.   You could tell every time Rick mentioned his unborn child Shane was thinking something else.   He told Shane that he thinks he loves Lori but that he really doesn't.  He needs to accept all of this so that they can move forward. 
  • Shane went into defense mode saying how it all happened.  The outbreak started out as just a couple weird stories on the news.  Then everything happened so quickly afterwards.  2 weeks later he's in the hospital trying to save Rick (we saw this in a flashback in the season 1 finale).  He saw the military shooting actual people and knew there was no way to get Rick out.  But we did see him barricade Rick's door to give him a fighting chance.  Then he said that Lori and Carl are the ones that kept him alive not the other way around.  He assured Rick that he never looked at her before that and he'd take it back if he could. 
  • You would think this would have settled things between them, but the conflict continued.   Rick kept going past the 18 miles they agreed to, where they would let Randall out to fend for himself. (in case anyone can't place Randall from other TV shows, think Rescue Me, Sheila's Son)    Rick wanted to drop him off somewhere where he had a fighting chance.  This just started to make things simmer with Shane.
  • They finally did come across a Public Works building and Rick saw this as a great place to drop off Randall.  Sure, drop him off in civilization.  There surely won't be any walkers there.  I guess maybe he thought there might be a couple and they would flush them out.  There were 2 cops and Rick and Shane disposed of them (with knives.  This was a new rule Rick put into place.  Just 1 or 2 walkers?  Use knives to avoid making too much noise.  You're just NOW coming up with that rule??). 
  • Anyway, they took Randall out and were going to leave him tied up with a knife not too far away.  But then Randall started talking.  He begged them to not do this.  He said he's not like the other guys.  He rode the bench at his high school.  Wasn't very popular, blah blah blah.  In a last ditch effort he said he went to school with Maggie.  Uh oh.   Yeah, she didn't know him, but he knew her.  You know what that means.  He knows where the farm is.  All of the blindfolding and ipods were for nothing.  If he found his old crew he would be able to tell them where this farm was.  Even if they had to force it out of him.    Shane knew what had to be done.  He was going to kill him right then and there.  He even pulled the gun out and pulled the trigger.  But Rick was able to push Shane just in time to mess up his aim. 
  • Rick begs for more time from Shane.  He needs to think about what needs to be done before acting. This is unacceptable to Shane.   And then, just like in season 5 of LOST when Jack and Sawyer finally had it out, here go Shane and Rick!   WOA.  That was an intense fight.  And it looked like Shane was really out to kill his best friend.  He took a very heavy looking wrench and threw it right at Rick, but instead of hitting Rick it smashed a window.  And yes, a boatload of walkers came pouring out of it. 


  • Rick and Shane were split up eventually with Randall still pushing himself towards the knife.  Rick ended up in a walker pile-on.  His way out of it?  Shoot through the mouth of a dead walker to kill the one on top.  Pretty awesome! 
  • Shane ended up in a school bus with 10-15 walkers outside trying to get at him.  He even used one of Rick's tactics to start killing them one by one.  Cut his hand open and spread blood on the door.  He was able to start stabbing them in the head.  But there were still too many of them.
  • Randall worked his way free and got a few kills himself.  Randall begged for a gun so that they could save Shane.  But Rick started thinking abotu Shane's mentality and decided to leave him for dead!  WOAAA.  Of course, it all came back to seeing the 2 dead sheriffs on the way out.  It tugged on Rick's heartstrings and convinced him to go back for Shane.  And it was a pretty badass way to do it!  Randall driving the car, Rich shooting walkers from the passenger side.  They pull around the back of the bus and Shane jumps throught the window Dukes of Hazzard style.  AWESOME!


  • When they get far enough out they blindfold Randall again and put him back in the trunk.   Rick tells Shane that he's going to have to do better than a wrench to kill him.  He knows they probably have to kill Randall but he still wants to think about it.  It's not easy to just kill someone and he hopes Shane understands that.  Then he reiterated about HIS wife, son and unborn child.  He asked for Shanes trust and told him it's time for him to come back.   And he gave Shane a gun.  
  • It should be important to note that while Shane may have seemed humbled, he never agreed to Rick's terms.  He kind of just stood there and took it.  I don't know what the symbolizm was to Shane staring at a the walker in the fields on the way to the Public Works at seeing him still walking there on the way back.   Maybe just a metaphor to them all being "walking dead" or whatever.  But, Shane was definitely doing some thinking.   We'll just have to watch the final 3 episodes to see exactly what!

Pretty intense episode folks!  Hopefully everyone got their GORE fix.  3 more episodes this season, and I'd expect the intensity to continue.  Your turn to chime in!  Hope you enjoyed my ramblings and I'll see you next week!

End Credits
  • This season I am recapping FringeTerra NovaThe Walking Dead and Alcatraz
  • WATCH NBC'S AWAKE NOW!!  It will officially begin March 1st at 10pm.  But you can already watch the pilot episode!  It's available for free online, on iTunesHuluAmazon Instant Video, and probably other On Demand services too!  I was blown away by the pilot and recommend you watch! 
  • Other shows that are being discussed in comments recently:  Sons of Anarchy, How I Met Your Mother, Once Upon a Time, American Horror Story, Dexter, Chuck, Shameless, Mad Men (March!!), Game of Thrones (April 1st!), among others.  Feel free to join in!
  • See trailers for the Mid-Season shows I'm looking forward to: Awake and Touch.  
  • As always, there are other shows that I watch as well and would be happy to discuss with all of you in the comments of any of these blog posts.

54 comments:

Mike V. said...

http://insidetv.ew.com/2012/02/27/walking-dead-robert-kirkman-18-miles-out/

Kirkman's weekly interview with EW. Totally forgot to watch Talking Dead this morning. lol I'll try later today!

Mike V. said...

Also totally forgot to discuss the whole topic of "winter coming"...maybe my mind started wandering to game of thrones returning. Anyway, feel free to bring that up in comments. I'm late for a meeting! lol

Mike V. said...

Holy crap...I just realized I totally forgot to bring up the biggest clue in the ep. Really guys, I'm slacking today.

The walkers had no bite marks or flesh wounds of any kind. Just some scratches. Definitely a hint of a big reveal to come. I know too much from the books so I don't want to spill it! lol But it does still raise some questions in my head of how they became walkers!

MJ said...

Great ep ! Loved the action and the gore again. I didn't even mind all the silliness at the farm since there was a balance of action and dialog that's been missing in the early part of the season. Can't believe only 3 more !

Boy - everyone sure loves to tell Shane what he feels. LOL Like they know if he is in love or not. Interesting that Lori told shane he's not the dad in a way that said if you are the dad you're not the dad. But Rick said it like he believed it.

Since we don't know what the timeframe of an ep is we really can't yet say of Shane could be the daddy.

Glad someone has finally thought about conserving some bullets - my husband and I said that weeks ago.

The throwdown was good fun - and Shane seeing himself in that window was very poignant. Thanks for saying where we'd seen Randall ! I couldn't place him but knew his face.

Andrea's dig on Lori was great. Both are right of course - someone has to keep camp and do laundry and food, but it was odd that Lori's attitude is that Andrea should be choosing the domesticity. Guess since there's only 2 other women she's kinda saying that it leaves alot on them.

For once I'm feeling Shane's impatience. Rick is all like I can do what has to be done but then takes Randall back ? Rick himself said Randall should die now - so why drag him back first and wait a day? Isn't that kinda cruel in it's own way ?

I have not read the comics so have no idea what the no bite marks mean - but obviously it's gonna be pretty significant

MJ said...

You have probably seen it since it came out friday - but the new S2 promo for GoT looks freaking awesome !
http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2012/02/new-game-of-thrones-trailer-debuts-the-storm-is-coming-yes.html

Leslie said...

I've been avoiding reading your post all day because I watched the Oscars last night and haven't watched this episode yet. But, I guess I'll have time tonight because I just heard that the Daytona 500 is going to be on Fox tonight starting at 7pm ET. That's gonna mess with Alcatraz. :(

MJ said...

Dang ! And i was looking forward to Alcatraz too, but thanks for the 411 Leslie. Also I was going to post this Revenge promo on the Alcatraz recap as I think that is the one that Kelly reads
http://www.tvline.com/2012/02/revenge-season-1-hot-promo-game-of-thrones-season-2-video/


Didn't know they had actually cast the Gov yet ! Just heard we'd see him season 3
http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2012/02/the-walking-dead-finds-its-governor-meet-david-morrissey.html

MJ said...

oops - forgot this

Breaking Bad article - not spoilery, very iteresting though
http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2012/02/breaking-bad-bryan-cranston-and-creator-vince-gilligan-on-what-knowing-the-endpoint-means.html

Mike V. said...

Looks like they changed the layout of this comments section since this morning! lol

I read everyone's posts. Been busy today, just gonna take me some time to respond!

But first, I totally didn't think about Daytona 500 preempting Alcatraz. I just looked up on tvline and Matt Mitovich said in the comments that a FOX scheduling guru said the preemption may not happen. Weird. Guess we'll just have to tune in to see!

MJ - totally saw the GoT trailer this wknd and loved it! It's starting to make sense to me since I'm more than halfway through the book. Lots of good stuff coming!

As for TWD - agree with your thoughts. Action was good and good balance on Farm.

Understood on getting impatient with Rick. I think I identify more with his "think it out" approach more than Shane's trigger happy decisions. I'd probably get killed pretty quickly in a zombie apocalypse...but Rick seems to be doing a decent job with it so far. (in a lose lose situation. lol)

Thanks for the links..i'll check them out! Though, I did hear about The Governor's casting this wknd. Exciting! I don't know much about the Governor, but I'm glad it's not Merle. lol

Mike V. said...

Gus Fring (Giancarlo Esposito) is joining that new JJ/Kripke show!

http://www.tvline.com/2012/02/giancarlo-esposito-revolution-nbc/

Mike V. said...

Okay, so I looked on FOX.com and it has House and Alcatraz still listed as airing. But when I went to FOX Sports, it says that Daytona 500 is scheduled to air on FOX at 7pm tonight. I'm inclined to agree with FOX Sports. Ratings will be much higher for D500 than House and Alcatraz unfortunately. lol I'm not sure how this will impact the future schedule for FOX Mondays. They had things worked out pretty well for the rest of the season with Alcatraz, House and Touch. Guess we'll see how things go!

But, it would appear that TWD is going to get an influx of comments this week. If alcatraz airs tonight by some miracle, I'll still recap it. :-)

Mike V. said...

Shouldn't be any surprise now but Daytona 500 preempted Alcatraz. :( Next week's ep was going to be a 2 hour episode anyway (a 2 parter I think)....so we'll get this week's hour plus 1 hour of next week's 2 parter. Kinda sucks. But oh well. Oh and guess what? Fox shuffled its schedule again. They're putting TOUCH after Idol on Thursdays when it comes back. I guess a good idea since its premiere ratings were so good. Of course, we saw Fringe get killed in that slot for 1.5 seasons. There's no way I'll have time to watch it that night, especially if I'm going to add AWAKE to my nightly viewing!

http://www.tvline.com/2012/02/fox-spring-schedule-bones-monday-touch-thursday/

Anyway, just thought I'd share those updates!

MJ said...

Personally I don't think that Idol and Awake are a good match - but whatever. I happen to watch Bones and I'll be watching Touch so it doesn't matter where they put them to me.

Good news on Esposito - I've always felt he was a good actor but playing Gus put him on bigger map I think.

HIMYM: Eh - it was ok. I have to admit I hate the ones where Barney seems to lose all intellingence, but it was all good by the end. Long Island stuff was dumb. That's all I'll say in case you haven't watched.

SMash: Another very good ep, though I'm no Jonas fan LOL. They are making Ivy quite the little beeotch. Really enjoying this show more than I thought I would.

It's been a very surprising year - I checked out Smash, Revenge and Ringer never thinking that I'd like them so much. I might jsut have to look at this new show GCB starting sunday.

I have S1 of GofT on my DVR but might just buy the BluRay that comes out next week.

By the way - I'm actually going away for a week so I'll probably be delayed on reading the recaps.

Mike V. said...

MJ

I think you meant Idol and Touch. lol Awake is on NBC. If you think about it, Fringe used to follow Idol and was very successful when it did. I'll definitely watch Touch, but I won't be able to fit it in on Thursday night with the NBC comedies, a quickly fast-forwarded through idol, Vamps, and Awake. Just too much! (I mean, I'm already dropping Jersey Shore for Awake, but that was a GOOD move! lol)

Agreed on Esposito!

HIMYM - The episode, agreed, was pretty blah...but I liked how it ended. The plotlines were a means to an end and not very funny. But Ted moving out of the apt was big! I wonder if he'll move into the house he bought now and start fixing it up? I know that throughout the show someone always has to live in that apartment...the producers said this before. But this will be the first time Ted doesn't live there. Pretty interesting.

SMASH - Was able to watch since Alcatraz wasn't on. Definitely a great episode. Not a Jonas fan either. lol I can't take the dude seriously. It was pretty tough seeing him as Marius in the 25th Anniversary concert of Les Mis! (PBS - it's on all the time lol)....can't say I'm enjoying Smash more than I thought I would though...this show is right up my alley!

It has been a really good year for telelvision. I'd throw New Girl into that mix too. Consistently funny for me! Revenge and Ringer I'll still have to catch up on. (though Ringer, I may have to see if it gets renewed). TiVo is set for GCB for my wife...but I'm sure I'll get sucked in. lol

My wife pre-ordered GoT Blu-ray for me for V-Day...I'm totally psyched. When I'm reading the books I always have to look at the maps and character/family explanations to keep things straight. but the extra features on this Blu-ray look like they're going to do that in a pretty fun way! Exciting stuff! Plus the show is awesome too.

No problem on recap commenting delay! Looks like there won't be anything new posted until next Monday anyway! Enjoy your week!

Leslie said...

Got to watch last night since there was no Alcatraz. Agree about the good balance again with the activity and gore in this episode. Something for everyone! Lots of fighting going on. All intense in their own ways. You mentioned the winter comment with Rick saying that maybe the cold will affect the walkers and kill them or at least slow them down . . . they are pretty fast as zombies go! Agree they were a little slow on the uptake with conserving their ammo. As you said, the no bites, but only scratches thing is going to be important, but it made me wonder if both Rick and Shane were cutting themselves with the same knives they were stabbing the walkers with. Would that make them more vulnerable to catch something? Shane’s look of panic when it looked like Rick was gonna leave him in that bus was intense. Maybe for a second he knew how Randall and Otis felt.

Agree that both sides of all the arguments had merit. Just like the line between right and wrong is blurred in their world, so are gender roles. Seems like in survivor mode, people need to play to their strengths. Sometimes you have to cook and do the laundry, and other times you have to kill a walker or two. All in a day's work! Kinda reminds me of Kate who was always with a gun and out with Jack or Sawyer.

And, it seemed to me like maybe Shane was feeling kind of like that lone walker in the field. I agree with MJ that we really don't know for sure who the daddy is. When Lori told both of the guys, she said something like "no matter what, Rick is the father" almost like she wasn't sure herself, but was declaring Rick the father.

MJ said...

Yes - I did mean Touch. I'm must be excited to see Awake. LOL

TVD is not as must see for me lately. I'm a little over Elena and how everyone Loves Elena (not Raymond) LOL. I wish both Salvatores would move on from her - it's the mythology I like. But that won't happen. LOL

I loved the HIMYM ending with Ted giving Lily and Marshall the apartment. I didn't want to spill earlier in case you'd not seen it. Personally as an old NYer I was cracking up over the LI bashing - which is so not true. But the snuggli's were great.

I was shocked to see the Smash review on EW being not so great - especially on your idol girl. I find no fault with her.

Agree on New Girl ! Ringer is great fun because it has become quite cheesy - and it def does not take itself seriously, so def wait to see if renewed.

TWD - was watching Talking Dead last night and the In Memoriam reminded me - the scene where the car runs over the zombie head was just awesome !

Mike V. said...

@Leslie -

Yeah the winter thing will be interesting. When I read the Kirkman interview, it sounds like we may be at the 4 month mark in terms of how much time has passed since the beginning of season 1. So, I guess season 3 may have us dealing with winter. On TALKING DEAD someone brought up the question about the knives too..cutting themselves then killing sombies and what not. Of course, no one that was a guest on the show was an expert (just actors and Kevin Smith) but they all thought it was a good question! lol Yeah, I think Rick taught Shane a pretty good lesson (intentionally or unintentionally) that he doesn't quite know everything...and for that moment in time, Shane was probably relieved Rick was who he was.

Yeah...I don't see Andrea picking up a wash cloth any time soon. Definitely need to play to their strengths. I'm sure they'll revisit this stuff pretty frequently throughout the show. lol

With the lone walker in the field, Kirkman said that it was meant to symbolize that the walkers are starting to populate the area. So, they may not be safe on the farm for long. Definitely didn't pick up on that. Even on TALKING DEAD they all thought there had to be some kind of symbolism with Shane staring at him like that. Maybe it's a "interpret it yourself" type moment! lol Oh yeah...I think it's a very good chance Shane is the daddy. But, I think Lori's point is...she doesn't care and she doesn't want Rick and Shane to fight over it either. I can't imagine Shane never bringing up the possibility and not being conflicted in the future about it. We'll see!

Mike V. said...

@MJ -
TVD - Oh yeah, I could probably wait on watching it if it wasn't my wife's favorite show right now! And no...Elena being a central obsession of Stefan and Damon's ...i don't see that changing anytime soon!

HIMYM - The Snuggies were a good time. I love how they called them "Snugg-its" in the show. Guess they couldn't call them the real thing. lol

SMASH - Hmm, didn't read the review but no I don't see any issues with McPhee either. There are times when I can definitely tell she is not a professionally trained actress (maybe she was prior to Idol and I don't know about it) but I think she does just fine for this show. I wasn't even a fan of hers on Idol! lol Not that she was horrible. Just was rooting for others!

TWD - Yeah...I loved that scene too!! :)

AUStarwars said...

The "Winter Thing" is a complete reference to World War Z (which you really need to read to appreciate this whole genre to be honest) where the zombies slow down and they can take them out much easier..

I would "explain" the clue about there being no scratches and them becomming walkers, but i dont want to ruin it..lets just say that im sure whatever the Doctor in the CDC said to Rick, im sure Rick knows about this issue as well..

I still really have a problem with how they treated that kid..why leave him to essentially die in that town AFTER you almost died to save him..dont they see that they banded together to try and survive? do you really think he is part of some roving gang that takes from others to survive? i had a lot of sympathy for him, how would you feel if you were dying in a world like that and your only source of survival is putting you in the back of a car just cause you know where they are..talk about paranoia...it just bothers me that they wouldnt try and help others..it bothered me with the guys in the bar too to be honest, just too quickly an assumption of evil..if they did that to Rick and crew, there wouldnt even be a boring farm, the farm people would have just shot them at range..just misplaced paranoia imho

Mike V. said...

I'm sure WWZ is a good read, but I totally appreciate TWD without reading it. lol I'll just watch the movie when it comes out! I'm too busy reading the GoT series right now and considering my pace, it's gonna be awhile!

Very good on scratching the surface of the spoiler without really giving it away. And yes...good point bringing up that Rick probably already knows what the issue is and probably didn't want to spill the beans to Shane right now. Also (MILDLY SPOILERISH IF YOU CAN DEDUCE THINGS), stances that Andrea and Beth have been having may take on whole new meanings in a world where new things are revealed. lol

Yeah, it was hard not to sympathize with Randall. But something tells me that they are writing things this way for a reason. There could be a twist down the line where Randall IS bad news. Possible hints could be the way he handled the walker when he cut himself loose. He could be bad news. Guess we'll find out. I just figured since Hershel wasn't too keen on the guests in the first place that Rick's first instinct was to protect their location from "NEW" visitors as a means of securing their place there. But you do raise good points!

Mike V. said...

Some "ONCE" scoop:

http://www.tvline.com/2012/02/once-upon-a-time-season-1-episode-14-preview-kitsis-horowitz/

Leslie said...

Once - interesting that they are telling us not to assume the writer is the author of the book and that we won't find out until next season who wrote it.

For MJ and Kelly, some Revenge info:
http://www.tvguide.com/News/Revenge-Mike-Kelley-Daniel-Victoria-1044206.aspx
Looks like we won't have to wait to find out what really happened on the beach!

Leslie said...

Mike, Did you watch The Killing last year? It's one of those shows sitting on my DVR that I haven't watched yet, and I was curious what your opinion was on it. It's scheduled to start again in April.

Mike V. said...

@Leslie -

Exact reason I sent that link about ONCE. lol Definitely interesting.

The Killing - we started it. I must have watched 4 episodes because there are still 9 sitting on my DVR. I found out how the first season ended and how upset people were and never went back to watch it. But, if season 2 starts and people are raving about it again...maybe I'll pick it back up. But from what we saw we definitely enjoyed it!

Leslie said...

Yeah, I heard about people being upset with the ending, too, so I think I'm with you on waiting to hear if people are liking the new season, but at least you know it started good!

Mike V. said...

I think the problem with the ending is that the show was misleading. I think some people were expecting resolutions in season 1 that they didn't get. So if the show was a little more forthcoming on the format of the series, it would have been better.

And I think the media helped to portray the misconceived format because it was how the original British series worked.

I tried to be vague there so I didn't spoil anything. But the thing is...there's nothing really to be spoiled...and that was the problem! lol

Leslie said...

I'm with you. I stayed away from reading details, but I read enough to know what you mean about the ending.

I know you're not watching The River, but it's still interesting enough to see where it goes since there's only 8 episodes, but I hear it's not getting very good ratings.

Mike V. said...

Yeah I have every episode of The River recorded, just haven't watched yet. I'll probably wait to see if it's renewed or not at this point!

MJ said...

I love Amy Acker ! Now all they need is to have the actress who played Faith (from Buffy) - the actress's name is eluding me at the moment.

The Killing: I haven't decided if I'd watch S2 or not. Season 1 had a few issues. Some complained it was a little slow. I liked it, the heroine was flawed, which is good in my opinion. Chars were quirky too. Some eps were def not as good as others. Some of the acting was fab though - emmy worthy for the parents of the girl that was murdered.

They def led everyone to believe that the murder would be solved after that first season and then didn't really do that. So that was the backlash. I admit I was pissed at the time too.

River: OMG - anyone watch this past week? So creepy - and so sad at the end. But this one was def a better ep. Too bad the ratings are so bad.

Mike - I'd say watch the River even if it's not picked up. It would be great as a mini-series. I actually can't see how they can have this last thru multiple seasons personally, but we'll see.

Alcatraz - I'm hearing that Alcatraz is slumping lately in the ratings dept. Hoping this weeks 2 hour ep (or 2 - 1 hour eps) will help bring the ratings back up.

Not this saturday but next sat is a show called Dead Files - it's a medium and an ex cop that investigate spirits and they will be in Alcatraz ! Could be a hoot.

Revenge: OMG! SO surprised that they revealed what happened on that beach so quickly. Great ep.

Mike V. said...

KILLING - Ahh yes...the mother who was the big villain in season 2 of True Blood and also the Oceanic representative in the season 4 finale of LOST. lol Yeah, I heard Killing lost its way in the middle a bit. I'll just play the waiting game!

RIVER: Yeah, I'll probably watch it this summer. I'm almost wrapped up season 5 of HIMYM and it won't take me long to get through 6. So, maybe I'll queue up the River for a 1.5 weeks worth of treadmill runs. lol Thanks for the heads up too! BTW...HIMYM - picking up on so many subtle things that usually aren't picked up on a week to week basis. Remember that episode with the Robin "drinking game" every time she said "BUT UM??" on the news? lol They kept the "but um" joke going during subsequent episodes. Every time they show a news broadcast of Robin..it opens up with "BUT UM" .....so funny. lol And the show is still holding up well on rewatch!

Alcatraz: Yeah, ratings have been slumping. Not a good sign. I'm still confused about how they're handing the makeup episode. The show is scheduled to end on 3/26 which was the original plan. TVLINE says the finale will be 2 hours too now. That would explain it. But when I count episodes there should only be 2 on monday and the 3 1 hour eps after that. Maybe it's 13 episodes and not 12 or something. lol

Thanks for the heads up on Dead Flies...i'm sure I won't get to it any time soon but if I remember I'll record it!

MJ said...

yeah - I read that this monday was alredy scheduled for 2 hours so that it's not due to being pre-empted last week. But I don't know if it is true.

Modern Family - hope you have watched the Satan's Trifecta ep. Was cracking up !

I never noticed the but um continuing ! My niece has been buying them so I'll just borrow them one of these summers.

Mike V. said...

Yeah, it was always supposed to be 2 hours on 3/5. The finale was originally supposed to be 2 hours but then they extended it a week to 3/26. But now...i think they might have 2 hours on 3/26. lol Moving Touch to Thursdays may have given them more flexibility to do all of this. lol

Haven't watched MF yet. The wife and son went to visit family and they didn't record MF for her! THE NERVE!!! So, I gotta wait. :-) Can't wait though!

Cool on HIMYM...enjoy if you do! I know Netflix has had some issues with publicity lately, but sometimes it is just so convenient!

Mike V. said...

BTW, everyone enjoy AWAKE tonight if you haven't seen it yet! I may just have to tune in again. So good!

Leslie said...

River – MJ, I agree this was a better episode this week and that last scene was sad, but they are keeping the creep factor going.

Revenge – MJ, You must not have seen the link I posted yesterday afternoon that said they were gonna reveal what happened in the episode last night. And, they also explained that look we questioned between Takeda and Nolan at the party. Also, Takeda told Emily that Amanda has been taken care of, but I bet we’ll see her again. And, Ashley’s true colors are showing. Great that Nolan busted her on leaking the photos.

Modern Family – Cracked me up, too! That show has the best writing and great cast!

I didn’t watch Awake online, so I’m looking forward to it this evening.

Kelly said...

MJ- Faith is Eliza Dushku.
THE RIVER- I really do like this show! It stinks that the ratings aren't doing good, but I agree that I can't see how they could keep it going anyway. It's definitely worth checking out, it fulfills me weekly creep quota that AHS used to satisfy :)
REVENGE- First off, can I just say, WTF NO NEW EPISODES UNTIL APRIL? BOOOOOOOO!!! I love this show. Like, really love it. We can fast payoffs and great drama. So who is rooting for Emily to be with Jack? And who wants her to be with Daniel? I'm a Jack fan, Daniel's too much of a pretty boy for me, lol. The triangle will be heating up soon, so LET'S GO JACK!! I'm loving Takeda, he's keeping Emily's plan on track.. though it's a bit confusing as to why he cares so much. I guess it's because he's her mentor.. Love Nolan, Ashley sucks but I'm glad they're giving her some sort of purpose because she was just floating around all season. I'm so glad Fauxmanda wasn't in this episode, I really can't stand her. She's apparently coming back before the end of the season, I hope it's only to show up as a dead body or something, lol.
AWAKE- I will definitely rewatch the premiere tonight, I really liked it :)
MODERN FAMILY- I didn't get a chance to watch it last night, I'll probably watch it tonight. My coworker LOVED it :)
GRIMM- My Titus is on this week! SQUEE! I've loved the past few episodes, I think the show is finding its stride. Looks like Friday will delve a little bit more into the mythology, which I can't wait for. Like, WTH is the deal with Renard?? (Is anyone else still watching this show?)

Mike V. said...

No eps till april eh? Hmmm...seems like a great time to catch up. :-) (doubt I will...but still. lol) The network TV schedule is getting a little dated. When you have 22-24 episodes to air from September to May, there has to be breaks. After February Sweeps is a prime time to take that break. Shows will return in April and ramp up for the May Sweeps finales!

Leslie said...

Kelly - Emily definitely needs to be with Jack! I keep hoping Jack will figure out why Sammy the dog doesn't like Amanda, but loves Emily. Dogs have a better sense about people than we do. Sammy clearly feels the same way about Amanda that you do! lol

MJ said...

Leslie - no I didn't see your post til this am !

Ashley is def starting to show her true colors. Glad they are giving her some purpose. I'm not surprised since Conrad had that weird little conversation with her an ep or 2 ago and said she was too bright or something to be his wife's lackey. paraphrasing as I don't remember the exact words.

I'm on team Jack as well. Although the symmetry of the real Amanda marrying into this family would be fun, no, I want Amanda to be with Jack.

Takeda said he'd taken care of faux-manda, but I don't think that means dead either.

While I'm not happy with the 4 weeks hiatus, it does mean that once it's back there will be no repeats til the end, so a small consolation I guess.

Kelly - yes ! Eliza Sushku ! I knew an old Buffy fan would remember when I couldn't.

Like Leslie I held off watching Awake so I am very excited to watch that tonight.

Modern Family - all I will say is "satan's trifecta". Had me rolling.

Kelly said...

HOORAY for Emily/Jack shippers! Leslie, you're right- Sammy is the best judge of character, people need to listen to dogs more often!
MJ, I totally remember the Conrad/Ashley scene you're talking about. It definitely set up Ashley to have more of a purpose, and I actually thought that they were setting up a Conrad/Ashley pairing- like, they team up to take down Victoria together. Which could still happen, I suppose.

Leslie said...

Mike - I just read that Sheldon's is gonna get to meet Leonard Nimoy, but not in the flesh.
http://www.tvguide.com/News/Leonard-Nimoy-Big-Bang-Theory-1044270.aspx

Mike V. said...

Leslie, I saw that too. Very exciting! :) I thought he was retired from acting...but this may give hope that he'll return to Fringe before it's all over. lol

Mike V. said...

Not a big shocker...Jessica Lange will return to AHS..

http://insidetv.ew.com/2012/03/01/jessica-lange-will-return-to-american-horror-story-exclusive/.but as a new character.

MJ said...

Ugh ! I am so mad at myself. I started a re-watch of Game of Thrones last night and we were so into it I forgot all about watching Awake last night. DOH!

So I guess I'll watch it tonight and just stay off the blog today so I don't read anything.

I go on vaca tomorrow for the week but might be able to login while gone. Should have plenty of time - we are going to Massanutten Va to supposedly tube sled - but doubt there is any snow. LOL Just my luck.

So much stuff not on this coming week though.

MJ said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Anonymous said...

Mike,
My first thoughts when I heard that Nimoy was going to be on Big Bang was exactly the same as yours.... "I thought he was retired from acting...but this may give hope that he'll return to Fringe before it's all over. "

Bill B

PS: I think a lot of people who visit this site might also enjoy a blog on USA Today's website called "Pop Candy". Maybe most of you are already aware of the blog but I find a lot of interesting news on there...
http://content.usatoday.com/communities/popcandy/index

Mike V. said...

Another sale for twitter. I was warned of the walking dead leak and avoided it like the plague! Lol. Though the name in the link you posted seems suggestive :-(.

On my phone I'll post more later!

Mike V. said...

Bill I check out pop candy too! There's even an app for that! Lol

Mike V. said...

Okay, back at a computer! lol

Sorry you missed Awake last night, MJ! I watched it again though I was kinda tired so there's a chance I fell asleep for a bit. Has nothing to do with the show though! Still awesome!

Enjoy your vacation! Snow or not! lol

Bill - funny that we both thought the same thing! lol

MJ said...

OMG ! I didn't read the link. Mike - remove that please. I don't want people ruined. So sorry for that.

Mike V. said...

Well crap...now I just have to pretend I don't know!! :-) I guess it's not like I didn't have a hunch already anyway. lol (it's deleted)

Kelly said...

http://insidetv.ew.com/2012/03/02/awake-rating/

shoot :(

MJ said...

Thanks Mike

Hopefully the DVR number will increase ratings for Awake. Dopes like me who forgot to watch. LOL

Have a great week everyone, I'm outta here soon.

Mike V. said...

You can also factor in all the people that watched the pilot early. Maybe that will help boost the ratings next week. Didn't work that way for SMASH though. :( The guy that did this show...his last show was LONESTAR...an incredibly bold proposal for a network show. Pilot ep was awesome...totally flopped when it aired. This guy can't catch a break!

Kelly said...

Yeah, I also thought that maybe the numbers were low because of the preview... but we'll see, the critics love it, HOPEFULLY America will follow suit. I never watched Lone Star, I hope Awake is more successful! For some reason I'm very protective of Awake and Grimm.. I REALLY want them to succeed!