So long Season 2! It's like you were never here...
A new premiere, a new mystery and now a new showrunner. A lot has happened over the last several months that has created some optimism for the new season. Revenge suffered a fate that most must-watch shows face: the sophomore slump. Someone decided that more mysteries, more plotlines and more characters were what was needed for the second season but the show ultimately suffered. Too much was going on and it showed when viewers stopped tuning in live (DVR and online became the new normal). After Revenge was renewed, the showrunner left and an overhaul was in the works to fix the problems of the previous season. Did it work? Possibly. We'll have to see as the season develops.
This week on Revenge, Emily turns against a former frenemy, Charlotte gets a backbone (and some much needed attitude), Victoria finds happiness, and Jack breaks a heart.
ASHLEY DAVENPORT-ED
Oh the red sharpie, whenever you reappear I fall in love all over again. Emily tends to use the red ink against those who've slighted her father but this week saw her target a former friend, Ashley. Upon returning to the Hamptons, the former Grayson Political Campaign and PR Manager tried to blackmail Emily into inviting her to the annual Grayson Memorial Day party. While it scored her an invite, Emily directed her main focus at tearing down a potential thorn in her side.
During the unveiling of Conrad's painting, he succumbed to a temporary poison (supplied by Nolan and Emily) and was rushed to a nearby hospital. News surfaced about Conrad's fake condition and Emily skillfully placed the blame on Ashley. With help from Victoria, the social climber was forced to leave the Hamptons (and the US) forever. Poor Ashley, she didn't stand a chance... and not just talking about her storyline.
BANGS AND BACKBONE
Victoria found peace (and dare I say - happiness?!) over the summer break. Patrick, her long lost son, arrived at the end of season two and the pair bonded to reclaim any lost time. The only person that wasn't excited to see the blonde boytoy: Charlotte. She returned from her Europe trip (minus pregnant belly - so long season two storylines!) with a new mature look and a new icy attitude. In the matter of one episode, she called out her mother, played doting daughter to her father and confronted her half-brother. Patrick went running back to the city but Charlotte stood her ground and I can't wait to see what evil she'll be bringing to the new season. Now that Ashley is gone, it'll be great to have a devious character around causing chaos to the characters.
THE KISS GOODBYE
Season two ended on a cliffhanger. SPOILER ALERT: Emily revealed to Jack that she was Amanda! With the time jump after election night, we're left waiting to find out how Jack reacted but he left the Hamptons, along with his son Carl in toe. Jack has never had the best storylines on Revenge but he has had some of the best one-liners and shocking comments. After kissing Emily in a heated conversation, he feels NOTHING(!) and wants nothing to do with her ever again. He gives her until the end of the summer to complete her revengenda.
DOUBLE INFINITY
On the wedding front (I haven't forgotten), Daniel and Emily have set a date: August 8th. That's right! Their wedding is 8/8 - oh the irony.
Will Ashley return for HER revenge? Anyone else like this new mature Charlotte? Can Conrad bounce back from the fake diagnosis? Can Patrick be trusted? Share your thoughts by posting in the comments below.
Which witch is which?
Will Katrina be freed from her world? Is Jenny the next target? What's the next modern item Ichabod discovers? Share your comments below about this week's episode.
Back for another week and suffice it to say: I'm hooked. I like the story of Sleepy Hollow and it's a good mix of unrealistic storylines with fun characters. I couldn't help but watch to if I still liked the show in the second week. (Sometimes the pilot can be the only impressive episode.)
This week on Sleepy Hollow, Ichabod adjusts to the real world, an evil witch rises from the ashes, and someone from Abbie's past makes an appearance.
BURN BABY BURN
The Headless Horseman returned but a new foe has emerged as this week's new big bad. Serilda, an evil witch burned by the townsfolk of Sleepy Hollow, returns to reclaim her earthly body. To complete her mission, the evil mirror demon resurrects Officer Andy (John Cho) - broken neck and all - to find the descendants of the man that prosecuted and condemned Serilda to death. By the time that Serilda has murdered one man and stolen the ashes of another, Ichabod and Abbie have followed her to her burial place beneath the city with hidden tunnels leftover from the war. She returns for a brief second before being set on fire with remnants of abandoned gun powder left. How convenient!
The loved ones came out in full force this episode; possibly to give Ichabod and Abbie more connections than just to each other? Katrina, Ichabod's departed love, foreshadows the four horseman rising and warns of the impending apocalypse while still being absolutely vague. Before Serilda bites the dust (quite literally), she confirms that Katrina is trapped in a world between worlds and Ichabod now has renewed hope to be reunited with his lady love. We also are introduced to two people from Abbie's past: her former boyfriend and fellow cop Luke and her sister Jenny. Luke may cause a little romantic trouble for Abbie but it seems that Jenny may play a bigger part of this Sleepy Hollow mystery than she realizes.
THE REAL WORLD: SLEEPY HOLLOW
Ichabod adjusting to the real world may be some of the funnier bits. The post-it notes explaining how to perform simple tasks, discovering donut holes and being outraged over the tax: priceless moments. I'd like to see more opportunities for Ichabod to be surprised and shocked - he seems to too well-adjusted for someone more than 250 years old.
Will Katrina be freed from her world? Is Jenny the next target? What's the next modern item Ichabod discovers? Share your comments below about this week's episode.
Beware of the Headless Horseman.
I remember from childhood the tale of Sleepy Hollow and its infamous midnight rider, the Headless Horseman. Simply a story written decades before that I merely read for my Grade 7 literary class, plus I did love the Tim Burton film with Johnny Depp. When FOX announced it would pick-up a re-imaging of the classic tale set in modern times, it sounded like an interesting premise to watch.
This week on Sleepy Hollow, Ichabod Crane awakens from his slumber, the Horseman marks his latest victims, and a mission to stop the apocalypse begins.
SWEET DREAMS
Ichabod Crane (played by Tom Mison) is a former British professor turned American soldier more than 250 years ago. After fighting a mysterious British soldier and slicing off his head (there will be a lot of headless jokes going forward), Ichabod collapses from his battle wounds only to wake up in modern times in an abandoned cave. For a man over 250 years old, he surprisingly took this new modern world pretty well. He made it into the town of Sleepy Hollow without becoming a raving lunatic before being arrested for no apparent reason (seriously, jay-walking isn't a severe crime). He becomes the top suspect for the latest murders... that happened only five minutes before... on the opposite side of town... while using an axe and a horse. I think the word missing here is logic.
THE HORSEMAN RIDES
Returning from the cold depths of hell is the Headless Horseman; an unnamed British soldier with a strange mark on his hand. Responding to a mysterious 911 call, Lieutenant Abbie Mills (Nichole Beharie) and the Sheriff arrive at a farm to discover that it's owner has lost his head - the first victim of the Horseman. Unfortunately for the Sheriff and his one pistol, Abbie finds her partner decapitated and the Horseman riding off with a stolen horse.
Ichabod, for some reason, is the top suspect but after passing a lie detector test, he's to be sent to an institution, ordered by Captain Frank Irving (Orlando Jones). Abbie isn't as oblivious as her Captain, she believes that something's wrong and when the next victim, the town Reverend, is murdered, she starts to believe Ichabod's story and breaks him free from the institution to find the horseman and his missing head. (Yes, I said his head!)
Returning to Sleepy Hollow, they locate the Horseman's head and a stand-off ensues to protect it until sunrise. They succeed and the Horseman is forced to live without hats for yet another week. Still, the image of the Horseman riding off with a machine gun might possibly be the best moment (see above).
SEVER YEAR MISSION?!
Prophecies are all well and good but everyone is surprisingly accepting this fate too easily. Earlier while in the burial cave, Abbie and Ichabod found a book left by Katrina (Katia Winter), Ichabod's wife and a burned witch, detailing the apocalypse and a coming battle. The Horseman is apparently one of the four horseman of the apocalypse and will bring about the end of days. Both Abbie and Ichabod are the chosen ones to fight a seven year battle! Seven years is a long time and to them it sounds like the best news; I would be breaking down hearing that time frame but don't worry, it's normal. A headless walking man, decapitated heads, witches, prophecies - it's all normal for Sleepy Hollow.
Who will be the Horseman's next victim? What items will Ichabod uncover in modern times? Will the show even last seven years? Post in the comments and share your thoughts on this week's episode.
Say goodbye to summer! Sun, sand and summer programming are almost a distant memory now as the upcoming fall season will begin this month. Last television year I had bad luck with the shows I picked for the Midseason 2013 list; I did well with the Fall 2012 list. Seriously, I shouldn't even bother picking my early favourites without fear of cancellation... but I'm going to anyway. I never can tell which shows I'll really like once I start watching the season. Several of my early picks quickly fell of my schedule within weeks (i.e. Deception and Hannibal).
Now that the first few premieres aired last week, I've thought of which shows I'm excited to see. The fall season features the top programs which networks promote to be their big successes and earn the highest ad revenue. While that's not to say midseason shows are treated less, the fall shows tend to get higher viewers and more press early on. It was hard to narrow my list down as there are plenty of shows I want to check out, but here's a shortlist of seven shows I'd like to watch the pilot.
Marvel's Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. (ABC)
Was there any other show that has earned more hype? While I haven't seen The Avengers quite yet, the early trailers and clips for the show look intense. Plenty of drama, action and potential cameos from big name stars and comic book heroes. The entire pilot episode was kept under lock and key by ABC from being leaked online. I've heard of rumours regarding a few cameos, but it must be an important episode to check out since it's gone to great lengths to not be revealed.
To be fair with my assessment, I've already seen the pilot for Sleepy Hollow. Possibly about a few months back near the Canadian Television Upfronts, I got a chance to watch the pilot beforehand. It had a nice mix of fairytale backstory while throwing in an apocalypse angle. Obviously the headless jokes are a bit cheesy but there's something to be said about the Headless Horseman and that axe. I would like to give this program a shot with a few episodes before I really decide. The standard is four so until then.
Reign peaked my interest since it's an unusual choice for The CW. The show is a period piece based on Mary, Queen of Scots (played by Adelaide Kane) throughout her teen years and may be a little too period for The CW's core audience. Also, the show was picked up to series over the highly anticipated (and expected) pilot The Selection and placed in the coveted post-Vampire Diaries timeslot. It's a gamble for the network and I'd like to see if they would be able to pull off an authentic period show.
Rebel Wilson - I think that could basically sum up an entire explanation on why to watch the show. She's funny, I loved her in Pitch Perfect and from the few clips I've seen, it looks like a pretty interesting half-hour comedy. Similar to The Mindy Project, this will be heavily dependent on Rebel's performance and it will determine the success of the show. Though, I think it could do somewhat well in the initial first weeks based on clips alone.
The Blacklist (NBC)
A bit of a change in gears for choices this post. The Blacklist stars James Spader as an FBI most-wanted criminal who helps the police track wanted criminals and terrorists around the world from his handy list of contacts. I didn't know what to expect until I saw the trailer and I was blown away. This might be one of NBC's best new shows of the year and could help them score a ratings boost for fall.
Once Upon A Time In Wonderland (ABC)
Is it a spin-off or a limited series? Originally it started as a limited series to fill in the gap of Once Upon A Time in the middle of the third season but now it's a full-fledged show. My only hesitation is that nothing will hopefully change between both the main show and its spin-off since they're both set in the same universe. The Mad Hatter was already introduced in one show and I wouldn't want details to be altered between both storylines. If the show doesn't get picked up moving forward, I wouldn't be surprised to see the characters appear in the main series.
Another vampire show? I liked the Originals from The Vampire Diaries and I was glad to hear they survived the deaths in the main storyline. The CW is obviously hoping that fans will carry their fandom to another night and save Tuesdays, which has shaken its line-up similar to the other nights. I'm not too fond of the storyline but it has potential and it could be a more darker than its parent show.
There
were a lot of good shows to add to the list and I still have plenty of new picks like The Crazy Ones (CBS), The Tomorrow People (The CW) and Dracula (NBC) to name a few. Similar to the last few picks, I'm always open to hear your choices on which shows I should be watching. The cancellation axe will hopefully be merciful this season but we won't know until it comes crashing down.
Already have
your favourites this season? Share your comments below on which new TV shows you’ll be tuning in... and tuning out!
The unthinkable happened: I created a tumblr.
As mentioned weeks ago in my previous blog post, I debated whether to create one or solely stick with my other accounts. It looked fun to do, might be something quick to manage, and a great way to have a few laughs. Yes... I drank the Kool-Aid.
My Tumblr is called "TV Said It, Not Me" and it's basically about television quotes (with some real life and movie quotes) thrown in that interest me. I love finding hilarious and dramatic posts directly from my favourite shows; though, anything that catches me eye will get thrown in too.
I find it quite relaxing. It reminds me of Pinterest where I can just sign on and share a few posts throughout the day. This website and blog is still my top priority for full content and updates - the tumblr will be a great way to have a few laughs. Feel to check it out with the link above!