Author: Overstuffed DVR

Justified S05E03: “Good Intentions”

…an episode reminding us all the importance of “getting involved with women who run afoul of the law.”

It’s been awhile since my last recap of Justified, but hey, it’s not called overstuffeddvr.com just because it sounds fancy.  Quick insight: my DVR is legit overstuffed, so sometimes certain shows that I love take a backseat in the name of more pragmatic management (I’m looking at you, 90-minute episodes of Sherlock).  I know, I know: #TVJunkieProblems.  Well, enough belly-aching!  I’ve been away for far too long and need to dive back into Harlan County feet-first.  Let’s do it!

The first quarter of this outstanding season of Justified could very well be paired with a subtitle: The Distorted Domestication of Raylan Givens.  First, it was about shirking his responsibilities as a father; then it was the inevitability of them finding him; now it’s making sure Raylan can be properly housebroken.  Seriously, our favorite quick-witted US Marshall found himself playing house at the seized mansion of Charles Monroe, the dirty money washer for the local mob Raylan arrested in the previous episode.  He even has a companion: the lovely Allison, Loretta’s social worker.  Those two are playing so much bowling all over Monroe’s house: on the stairs, on tables.  Just bowling, bowling, bowling**.  Add in a few pants-less rump pats, and Raylan is essentially in heaven.

**Is it possible I don’t know what bowling is?

Unfortunately, domestic bliss does not seem likely for Raylan, as a bat-wielding thug with a shamrock tattoo shows up and tries to play “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” with the alarm on one of Monroe’s cars.  Raylan does not like having his special private time interrupted, assumes the dude’s a not-so-subtle message from Monroe, and threatens him but good in typical Raylan fashion.  Ah, but there ’tis a twist!  Maybe the rump-patting, weed-smoking Allison isn’t quite so lovely afterall.  You see, it turns out that goon was really on the hunt for Allison.  After a very aggressive candygram from Raylan and a few gentle proddings with an aluminum bat, he learns that this guy thinks Allison planted meth during one of her visits in order to obtain cause to retrieve his son, Henry Jr, from the house.  Chick is hardcore!  Seriously, I’m worried about Raylan because if I found out someone I loved dabbled in meth-planting, I might question his or her moral code or something?  Then, again, he’s probably just distracted by all those rump pats.

However, the confusion over the identity of the goon does not stop at Raylan.  Turns out Monroe is a bit concerned because he’s keeping a ton of gold inside a secret safe in his house and worries that his lover/maid Gloria wants to steal from him.  In a truly tender sequence, Monroe proceeds to choke her to the brink of death before smothering her nearly to death with a pillow in order to get to the truth.  Ah, the sweet whimsy of #YoungLove!  Who says romance is dead?

In the continuing saga of Boyd Crowder, he’s on the hunt for the moron who ripped him off at the end of last episode.  And what do you know?  First suspect: Cyrus, he of the BB addict skeet shooting***.  Faster than you can say, “That’s not what Pop Rocks are for?” he gives up the identity of Candy, the lady of ill-repute he told about the incoming shipment.

***One of the best scenes of this show ever: Wyn Duffy shooting Cyrus with BBs as Boyd interrogates him.  I could not stop laughing because, hey, karma.  “Ear,” Duffy announces before landing a shot there.  I seriously hope this show can continue to find ways to insert BB guns and/or pellets into the upcoming plot lines because, quite frankly, I’m not ready to part ways with Cyrus.

Fun fact if ever vacationing in Harlan: Ava is apparently a human rolodex of local prostitutes, a skill that admittedly does not help her through many cocktail parties.  I can relate because I can name all six actors who have played James Bond—and in order, too.  Or is it seven actors?  Either way, I end up getting a lot of drinks thrown in my face due to my rolodexing skills, so I feel ya, A-dawg!  Fortunately for Boyd, there’s only one place Ava can be, what with the impending threat of a murder trial, so he moseys on by the big house and asks his bride-to-be if she has any knowledge of specialists who completely misread the instructions on the Pop Rocks package once upon a time.  I’m going to be honest, but Ava comes across as fairly grouchy in this scene.  Maybe she hasn’t been getting eight solid hours of shut eye?  Whatever the reason, she just wants to have a normal conversation with her future husband: for him to ask how she’s doing, for them to discuss Boyd nearly beating Paxton to death in his own living room, those sorts of things.  Communication, folks: it keeps the heart of every relationship beating.****  Still, despite her foul mood, she comes through for Boyd; Carl tracks her down, and it turns out Candy’s working for Cousin Johnny. #AwkwardFamilyReunion

****Worth mentioning: Ava’s lawyer could be the spokesperson for Beats headphones.  They really DO encase you in a sonic wall of music until everything else just fades away!

Given her recalcitrant assistance, I’m not sure how much Ava would appreciate Boyd’s clandestine tattoo-sharing session with the sexy Mara.  Under the auspices of identifying any distinguishing markings on Boyd’s body so they can mark up a corpse to fake his death and keep a very much alive Paxton off their backs, Mara demands Boyd disrobe.  This scene reminds me a great deal of that one from Jaws where they’re all gathered around, drinking and sharing their scars.  Well, it would if Brody were a reformed Nazi.  Or if Brody wanted to do lots of shirtless hugging with Hooper.  But still, very similar all things told.  Controversy warning: these two like each other as more than just friends and likely want to go bowling with each other ALL. NIGHT. LONG.  Mark my words.  Mark it, Dude!

Oh, Dewey Crowe, you magnificent bastard!  Seems like Cousin Darryl marathoned a season’s worth of HGTV on his trip to Kentucky because homeslice is very concerned about the curb appeal of Dewey’s brothel.  I’m no expert, but adding a few azaleas and a tasteful but inexpensive DIY trellis will probably not increase foot traffic.  If you’re serious about this Real Estate Consultant title, you’d best get it together, Darryl.  Still, he really thinks Boyd ripped  Dewey off when he sold him the place and thinks he owes him one…hundred thousand, that is!

Dewey confronts Boyd, who spins him around and tells him to chase Darryl out of town.  Time to step up and be a man, Dewey Crowe!  Ever the apple polisher, Dewey follows instructions, and Darryl finds his fancies very much tickled (not a euphemism) by the display of authority from his typically mild-mannered cousin.  Unfortunately, it seems like Darryl has not done a great deal of laundry in his time because he did a pretty poor job of explaining the drying process to Messer.  Just kidding!  Darryl straight up tortured Messer with a dryer until he confessed to skimming off the top in the name of none other than Boyd Crowder.  Classic Darryl!  Doesn’t look like our favorite Floridian tourist will be leaving Harlan any time soon.

This third episode continues the hot streak that Justified‘s been riding.  The overlapping and interwoven plot lines give the overall narrative a head-spinning complexity, and the dialogue remains as fresh and hilarious as ever.  Surprises keep getting fired at us one after another, and Justified knows that what keeps it in the upper echelon of the medium’s best is that it keeps them coming.

 

Harlan Chit-Chat

– Raylan: “Now here you are, all dinging and donging but don’t have the sense to ditch.”

– Boyd: “My colleague is apoplectic at the part you played in the loss of our product.  I, on the other hand, understand you must have been an unwitting accomplice because you ain’t stupid enough to think you could rip me off and remain on this side of the god**** planet!”

– Boyd: “Family can be the perfect salve in difficult times.”

– Duffy: “You’re protecting me from a situation you created?”

Raylan: “You could see it that way if you want to dwell on the negatives.”

Downton Abbey S04E06: “Episode 6”

…an episode reminding us all the importance of “coming to bed and dreaming of ragtime.”

Are you one of three people in the world hoping for an alternate universe where Downton Abbey could cross-over with The Wire?  Wouldn’t you love to see the former delve into the social structures and infrastructures of 1920s London as the latter did with the city of Baltimore?  Admit it.  That would be pretty cool, and in its own Downton way, that kind of sort of maybe almost a tad bit happened as black jazz singers came to Crawley manor, bringing with them an infusion of metropolitan culture that clashed so starkly against the traditions of the rural upper crust.  Neat!

But in addition to jazz music livening up Robert’s birthday bash thanks to Rose, it very nearly sends Carson to an early grave.  How much did you love watching him lecture the musicians and servants on British anti-slavery policies out of one side of his mouth while clearly reviling the moral looseness those same musicians seemed to stow in their trumpet cases out of the other?  Carson, to borrow from JBJ, you give curmudgeons an excellent name.  Thank you.

So much happens in this episode that I’m tempted to label it overcrowded.  Take Isobel Crawley’s plot this week.  She flies off the handle after Violent Crawley fires the gardener after a second trinket goes missing, confronts Violent about the gardener, gets pulled into a deeply philosophical argument about the tension between materialism and justice, pulls a Miss Marple and does some investigating**, locates the missing knife from last week in the chair cushion (which I can relate to because that is, honestly, where I keep all of my gifts from the King of Sweden, in addition to the pretzels that don’t want to stay in mouth), confronts Violet again and gets shamed in the process, embraces her role as grandmama and has a play date with George, and bonds with Mary and Tom over their shared fortune of having loved someone as deeply as they all had.  Phew!  See what I mean?  I wish they hadn’t squeezed Violet’s reintegration into the Downton family in the same episode as the gardener plotline because it did major disservice to the latter, more meaningful plot.  Slow it down there, Downton!

**Um, brainstorm: can Penelope Wilton get on the next season of Sherlock?  Because yes please.

Speaking of slowing it down, how about Robert’s off-the-rails, crazy-train decision to allow Downton to dabble in intensive farming?  I mean Tom and Mary were totes #PigFanatics in this episode, scoping out barns and getting really worked up about all things pork related.  Don’t get me wrong, I love bacon as much as the next guy, but I’m starting to think that maybe Mary might need a companion to pour her energies into?  Because, if we’re being honest, her obsession with pigs does not seem like the behavior of a well-adjusted woman?  But fear not, Tom vows he wouldn’t even dream of leaving for America until all this pig business is put to bed.  Well thank goodness for that!

Here’s one for you: what does a pig have in common with Mr. Bates?  Both are eager to stick their snouts in a pile of filth!  See what I did there?  For Bates, his pile of filth is a tad more metaphorical, though.  In case you were confused.  I have to say, I could not believe my ears when Bates told Anna over dinner that he is most definitely not over what happened to her and would love an opportunity to open a fire hose of hate-orade into her attacker’s face.  You see, like an ever-decomposing Steven Tyler, Bates cannot let go of the past.  I really loved the excellent use of lighting predominating this strand of the narrative to give it a bit more of a symbolic heft.  The bright, sunny opening shot reflects Anna’s slowly returning former disposition.  As Bates and Anna meet in near-darkness to be alone, the use of shadows mirrors Anna’s refrain that they, too, are shadowed by the lingering effects of her trauma.  Clever.

***Best scene of the night: Lady Cora coming to the rescue after a snobby maitre de refuses to sit Bates and Anna amidst the local upper crust.  Cora is totally FTW tonight.  MVP!

Grab your trombones and get ready to make that sad sound again because #SadEdith has returned.  Remember that trip to the doctor from last week?  Well, we all saw it coming, but she is indeed preggers.  Having a child out of wedlock is one thing, but then there’s the slight Case of the Missing Gregson too.  Somebody call Isobel Crawley out of retirement because home girl’s got another case to solve!  But seriously, she is NOT investigating Gregson’s disappearance even though I want to write Julian Fellowes an e-mail to pitch the idea because it is absolutely the greatest idea in television history IMO.  Poor #SadEdith.  This might sound harsh, but for her sake, I hope Gregson died a terrible, sudden, and violent death because, at this point, she can’t take another jilting.

If we’re talking about downcast depressives, you know what time it is!  It’s #MoseleyWatch time as the tennis match that is his prospective employment at Downton continues.  Alfred receives good news that one of the top four candidates for the Ritz withdrew, so he–coming in at fifth–gets to step up!  In a great scene, he publicly thanks the Crawleys in general for his excellent treatment and Carson in particular for being a wonderful teacher.  Now I’m about to go out on a limb here, but Robert did not seem terribly comfortable with this expression of what I believe the pleebs call “feelings.”  Seriously, dude has an acute case of ants-in-the-pants for real.

After saying goodbye to the downstairs staff as well****, Alfred’s vacancy seems like another chance for Moseley.  Unfortunately, while Mrs. Hughes wants to give Moseley a break, Carson is being Carson.  Ever the traditionalist, he found Moseley’s previous balking an affront to his sense of social propriety.  Very arrogantly, he tells Moseley he does not want to hold him back from the great things he clearly wants.  Haha!  Good one, Carson!  Have you ever considered a career in theater?  Oh, right…Anyway, Mrs. Hughes eventually wins the Battle of the Moseley after she asks Moseley to come around to serve the servants tea.  Carson relents, offers him the job, and squirts some lemon in a wound, reminding Moseley about the…gloves!  For shame!

****Alfred’s farewell speech to Daisy, where he apologizes for being unable to love her as she loves him, is one of those vintage scenes this show pulls off, understated and honest.  Also, exceptionally aggressive dough kneading– and, no, that’s not a euphemism.

Elsewhere, Jimmy gets a little too handsy for Ivy’s taste, Napier and Blake reveal the true intentions of their estate report on behalf of PM Lloyd George, Thomas and Baxter learn the sketchy details of Anna’s attack, Rose and Mr. Ross get frisky, and news of Cora’s brother Harold falling to a bad investment arrive at Downton.

The crowded plotting hurt this week’s episode for sure, but there was still an overflowing abundance of trademark humor and character flourishes that almost made up for the accelerated pace.  As we gear up for the home stretch, I’m eager to see how these myriad plotlines begin to coalesce.

 

Snippets of Intrigue

– Bates: “Your husband is a brooder.  And brooders brood.”

– Isobel: “How you hate to be wrong!”

Dowager Countess: “I wouldn’t know.  I’m not familiar with the sensation.”

– Carson: “You’re nervous because you’re intelligent, Alfred.  Only stupid people are foolhardy.”

– Mrs. Patmore: “Oh, I like that Rudolph Valentino.  He makes me shiver all over.”

Carson: “What a very disturbing thought.”

– Mrs. Patmore: “It does make you want to jig about though, doesn’t it?”

Carson: “Certainly not!”

Top Chef S11E16: “Maui Wowie”

…an episode reminding us all the importance of “having confidence in your own cuisine.”

This is never an easy discussion to have, but it’s important that you know.  We need to have this out in the open so that we can begin the healing process and take steps to repair the damage.  Look, I’m just going to come right out and say it.

Top Chef and I are definitely not on the same page right now.  Sorry to be so crude, but it’s the truth.  This show is really cheesing me off right now.  Apologies for the coarse language.  But seriously what is going on, Top Chef?  Are you working your way through a trauma?  Because your behavior is completely bonkers honestly and I need to know if I should be worried about you.

First of all, I didn’t appreciate the way you rubbed in the beautiful scenery of Maui.  I mean, for real, you know us East Coasters are struggling through a horrific winter, so what’s the deal?  Not cool, Top Chef.  Not.  Cool.  Then the chefs started to arrive: Shirley, Nina, and Nick.  All three of them seemed relaxed and rejuvenated, but Nick’s transformation positively chilled me to the bone.  He laughed, he joked, he didn’t give off the impression that he would disintegrate before our eyes.  He chalked it up to time spent with family, but regardless of the reason, I didn’t like it.  Not one bit.  Hold me.

Before the Quickfire Challenge (insert aggressive smash cut here), the three chefs stumbled upon a party with people getting lei’ed left and right and Tom drinking something out of a hollowed melon while donning the hat of a seventy year old lothario.  Time for a luau!  Anyhow, before that, Padma needed to introduce the winner of Last Chance Kitchen, and–the one decision this show’s made right lately–it was Louis!**

**I loved when Padma told Louis he “certainly earned it” with all the enthusiasm of a robot.  Sell it, girl!  Wow.  Now I know why some reviewers refer to her rather unaffectionately as Padbot.  For real!

So the Quickfire introduced guest judge Sam Choy, who tasked the chefs with creating a dish out of Hawaiian steak, aka spam because obviously.  Sam Choy started listing the various preparations of spam he’s ingested over the years but none disturbed me as much as the image of a spamcake, whatever on earth that is.  I would prefer never to think of that again, please and thank you.  Anyhow, the winner of this Quickfire would pocket 10 grand, and the chefs were off!

Nick immediately confessed that he was not a practitioner of spam and that it really pushed him out of his comfort zone because he could not think of a way to encase it successfully in cornsilk (I added that last part, tbh).  Louis, meanwhile, found himself inundated with questions by local Hawaiians curious about his technique.***

***He didn’t care for the distraction, but it did allow me to come up with a fantastic band name: Louis and the Curious Hawaiians.  I mean, right?

I wonder how long Padma practiced her “Hands up!  Spam down!” line when time elapsed on the Quickfire because I had the impression she was incredibly pleased with herself.  When it came to tasting, Padma said that Louis’s spam mousse was so silky in her mouth, which forced me to pause the television and immediately go to Confession even though I’ve never gone to Confession.  It just seemed like the right thing to do?  Still, ever the tease, Louis didn’t even win the challenge!  That honor went to (who else?) Nick for his spam broth, quail egg, and fricassee of mushrooms.  Ugh.****

****For a brief second, I thought Nick was having a stroke on national television.  What was happening to his mouth?  OMG!  That’s a warning sign!  It’s a warning si–Oh.  He’s smiling.  Somehow, that was worse?

I just don’t know what to say anymore.

As for the Elimination Challenge (insert aggressive smash cut here), Professor Padma once again took to the podium and gave us a lecture on the history of Polynesian settlers coming to the shores of Hawaii.  I’ll be frank with you, I wasn’t really paying attention because THAT DRESS.  Padma, you might be part robot, but when you look like that who cares?  Anyhow, she introduced the topic of canoe crops and the chefs had to create a dish using them.

Then before you could say Double Elimination Challenge, a few canoes landed ashore and scantily clad Polynesians emerged!  This show!  So, the chefs selected their ingredients and headed back to scope out their new living quarters.  Nick took the largest ocean front room because he needs the space to plug in his oversized ego overnight.  Puppy’s gotta charge!  Meanwhile, Nina and Shirley shared a room (I bet those two would be delightful roomies), and Louis found himself shoved into a closet Harry Potter style.

Before the cooking started in earnest, the quartet wandered around Maui and found themselves confused over the sight of a waterfall, which I can completely relate to because I never know what to call streams of water falling down the sides of mountains.

And then the cooking!  Nick decided he wanted to make chicken skin salad with his opakapaka because he’s doing an excellent job of making me hate him.  He then told the group he planned to stick his pork butt into the pressure cooker.  I’m not sure, but I think this offended the ladies.  I mean, what a man wants to do in the privacy of his kitchen with whatever appliance tickles his fancy is his business, but I’d prefer not to have it aired in public.  Am I right?

Louis made opah (one tough fish to cook) with sweet potato and coconut glaze while Nina went a little bit more traditional and grilled her opah in a simple broth.  Shirley was the odd (wo)man out, opting to cook pork in lieu of fish.  But poor Shirley immediately began fretting over the sweetness of her meat because #SweetPork.

Top Chef then made it juicy as rain began to fall*****.  Nina joked about the show’s ability to control the elements, but I don’t think it’s a joke.  Can’t you see Tom, Emeril, and Hugh gathered in a circle around a blazing fire and engaging in a rain dance?  Or maybe that’s just an idea best kept between me and my diary?

*****After the raindrops stopped falling, Nick engaged with his diners by dabbling in some playful race humor about sticking the only white guy in the sun without a cover.  And…crickets.

 Unfortunately, at Judge’s Table (insert aggressive smash cut here), Nick was the unquestioned victor because nothing in the world makes sense any more, and HE IS IN THE FINALE.  Please don’t make this season another Hosea situation because that still haunts me to this day.  Louis’s opah was inconsistent, so after all his grueling work on Last Chance Kitchen, he packed his knives amidst a tearful admission that he wanted his son to see him win.  I found this a real shame because Louis was my favorite.  But, this being a double elimination, the axe had not yet ceased falling.  It was down to Nina and Shirley, both of whom belong in the finale over Nick.

In the end, Tom agreed with Shirley…about her #SweetPork, so the adorable, tenacious, and talented chef packed her knives and left.  For those keeping track at home, that leaves N squared to face off for the title: Nina and Nick.

Take him down, Nina!  Do whatever it takes!  Make a voodoo doll and stuff it with cornsilk if you must!  Seriously, if Nick wins, I’m never watching this show again, Top Chef.

Oh, who am I kidding?  Of course I will watch until the end of time, you wily rapscallion.  Until next week!

 

 

Banshee Renewed for a Third Season

Do you love to see intimidating Amish mobsters dump cow viscera into hot tubs?  Or policewomen beating their ex-husbands to the brink of death with a Bible?  Or perhaps you’re more of an old-fashioned gal and just appreciate the simple pleasures of snarky cross-dressing computer hackers blowing up hair salons? If you answered yes to one or all three of these questions (and let’s be honest, you answered yes to all three of these questions because obviously), then you’ll be delighted by Cinemax’s recent announcement that Banshee has been renewed for a third season!

I, for one, find this news incredible, as Banshee is one of the most entertaining shows on television.  Also, unbelievably epic fight scenes!  I’m pretty sure the average run-time of a Banshee fight sequence is longer than a round of “Double Jeopardy” and usually more violent depending on Alex Trebeck’s mood.  Regardless, television became a manlier, more-testosterone fueled medium today; I look forward to the further exploits of Lucas Hood, the best fake sheriff/real criminal in all of the land!

Do yourself a favor and check out this show if you haven’t already.  It’s a blast, and it looks like it’s sticking around for awhile!

Parenthood S05E14: “You’ve Got Mold”

…an episode reminding us all the importance of  “eradicating cholera in Mumbai.”

Look, I don’t want to cause you any undo panic or create a crisis or whatever, but right now, you and I (all of us, really) are surrounded by a swirling miasma of #CancerBeams.  Leave it to Zeek Braverman to make technophobia positively charming!  Also, what other character on television could make a curmudgeonly acceptance of Italian roast coffee seem like a life-changing breakthrough?

But seriously, imminent death and coffee beans aside, this was a very solid episode of Parenthood.  Each branch of the Braverman family tree found itself weighted with a quality narrative, but even more important, I sensed a shift in the handling of the season’s most problematically inconsistent character: Joel.

But let’s just dispense with the pleasantries and dive right in, shall we?

 

Sarah and Hank

Hey, quick question: remember Sarah’s dalliance with playwriting a few seasons ago?  For most of us, that plotline has likely faded into something closely resembling a dream,** but doesn’t that speak to this character’s revolving door of haphazard arcs over the years?  Sure, Lauren Graham has always been phenomenal, but wow is it refreshing to see her photography career carry over from last season. Sarah Braverman needs more than a male counterpart as the lynchpin of her character’s continuity, and her recent employment by Surf Sports is a great place to start.  Plus, more Hank!

**Perhaps because, like the best dreams, Richard Dreyfuss had an extended appearance.  But that could totally just be on my end of things.

I just love Hank’s initial disdain over the fact that Sarah beat him out for the gig.  He’s been in the industry for twenty years, but he thinks her feminine wiles and not genuine talent gave her the edge.  His spontaneous decision to quit (after setting up the big starfish and everything) works great for a few reasons: it allows Sarah to contemplate the possibility that she does have a knack for photo and, perhaps more important, Hank can have a candid chat with Max in the darkroom about the finer points of perseverating.  If the entire episode had been these two having a candid chat on the finer points of perseverating, that would have been wonderful.

Of course, Sarah’s decision to shoot the surfing ad on the beach (go figure) rubs the aggressively practical Hank the wrong way initially, but thanks to a firm boot to the rump by #BuddhaMax, he acquiesces and rescinds his resignation.  In a wonderful montage, we see how successful the photo shoot is because Sarah might, as it turns out, know a thing or two about a thing or two.  Also Hank in sunglasses and a wonderful beach hat.  To celebrate (after a reticent concession that Sarah’s idea worked out), the two bop over to the local dive bar for a cocktail.

As refreshing as Sarah’s continued interest in photography is that Hank is not a viable love interest at this point in time.  How wonderful to see two grown adults of the opposite sex share a completely healthy friendship.  It’s clear there’s more than just a professional relationship underlying their interactions (and that’s fine), but kudos to Parenthood for not just forcing these two back into each other’s romantic lives right off the bat.  That kind of writing takes more nuance and deftness, and I for one appreciate it.

What an absolutely fantastic way to rejuvenate Sarah’s character.  With her ex-husband’s interest in being a father on the proverbial table as well, things are looking up for Sarah Braverman, narratively speaking!  Let’s just hope she doesn’t decide to write a play about it.

Joel and Julia

If I were to boil down the single most successful aspect of this episode, then it would be the clear attempt to reestablish Joel as the guy we all knew so well for four seasons.  Was it just me or did I snatch a few glimpses of the old Joel?***

***If your heart didn’t positively tear asunder during Julia’s tear-laden plea for Joel not to give up on her, then you are made of tougher stuff than I am. And then Joel, like, apologizes and wishes they weren’t at this point?  You mean he’s empathizing with his wife even if they’re on separate wavelengths?  And acting like a real human being?  Well golly!  There’s a thought!

I mean, yeah, he ended up moving out and peering back at his house through tear-blurred eyes, but the road to that decision felt so much more real and organic.  How interesting was the irony of Joel and Julia sort of re-bonding over the planning of how to tell Sydney and Victor about the separation?  He even mentioned how excited they were just a year ago for Victor’s adoption!  Watching Victor and Sydney playing videogames as siblings, Joel remembers that was all they wanted and asks to push back the news.  OMG, that is totes something he would do!  Joel, you are in there somewhere!  Follow the sound of my voice!  We’ll find you yet!

Also worth mentioning, for me, is Victor’s look of stoic denial as the words leave Joel’s mouth–absolutely on the nose and gut-wrenching.  That affected me far more deeply than Sydney’s wail of sadness, which I’m sorry to say, sort of annoyed me?  I know, I know.  I’m terrible.  But so are you because you sort of agree with me?

That this plotline then dovetails with Zeek and Camille makes it all the better.  There is a veritable convergence at the house that Cancer Beams built, what with Crosby and Jasmine crashing there due to rampant #MoldHysteria.  Finally, we get to see Julia break the news to her parents!  And perhaps Camille realizes her presence is forever integral to the Braverman clan!

We killed several birds with one very flexible stone here, and it felt so right having it all go down exactly where it did, particularly in light of Zeek’s recent compromise to downsize!

 

Kristina & Adam

We all knew Kristina would somehow find a way to put her passion for education too good use, but how cool will it be to watch her build a school from the ground up?  I don’t want to turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy, but this plotline is going to make me cry SO MUCH.  I can see it now.

Her decision comes on the heels of a few revelations.  First off, Max’s history teacher keeps sending him to the library when his passionate interest in history interrupts history class.  I’m no expert, but isn’t that sort of every teacher’s dream?  Oh well, what do I know?  Point is, home girl is none too pleased by this and finds herself up against the realities of the American public education system.  In addition, Kristina serves as an educational advocate for the mother of a special needs high school student named Ciara.****

****By the way, the mother is played by Tina Holmes, who previously worked opposite Peter Krause in the brilliant-beyond-superlative-usage HBO series Six Feet Under as Maggie Sibley, and in that series, she totally stole Peter Krause away from his wife.  So, girl, you best keep your man in check!  Mm-hmm!

This is a great next step for Kristina and so true to her character.  Can’t wait for more!

Call me a sucker for  a handful of #CancerBeams and a dash of #MoldHysteria if you must, but holy cow did this episode go a long way in righting some wrongs plaguing the series in its immediate incarnation (Joel) or as a long-running inconsistency (Sarah).  Keep up the awesome work, Parenthood.  We’ll see you after the Olympics!

 

Conversation Around the Dinner Table

– Zeek: “You’re drinking wine and eating ham.  What a class.”

Camille: “Have some prosciutto.  It’s delicious.”

– Kristina: “I’m going to advocate his ass!”

– Hank: “The boss buys.  It’s like California code.”

Downton Abbey S04E05: “Episode 5”

…an episode reminding us all the importance of “enriching the Béchamel.”

Last night’s episode, likely the strongest installment of the fourth season so far, overflowed with huge revelations and critical character moments, and we’ll get to them in due time.  But a man needs his priorities, and my priorities (and heart) lie with Mrs. Patmore.

Back when the premiere first aired, I hoped beyond hope that we had not seen the last of Downton’s delightful cook grappling with newfangled kitchen paraphernalia.   For a few weeks there, all hope seemed lost, as we never had a chance to return to that plot line (what with Anna’s attack taking center stage).  But this patient viewer found himself rewarded twofold last night.  The look of utter horror that overtakes Mrs. Patmore’s face while she watches Baxter, Cora’s newest maid, at work at an automatic sewing machine had me in (pardon the pun) stiches.  She marvels at its automation, unable to grasp the utter witchcraft of that pedal.  The way she hangs back as Baxter mends her torn apron reminded me of a hesitant child approaching a Doberman: curious but not curious enough to get too close.

While Mrs. Patmore could comprehend the benefits of a sewing machine at Downton, our favorite cook very nearly has a coronary when Cora comes downstairs to announce her desire to replace the icebox with a refrigerator.  Poor Mrs. Patmore splutters half-hearted rejoinders, unable to formulate coherent thoughts in this time of unexpected tragedy**.  This sequence is, in my mind, Downton’s equivalent of the Red Wedding.  I’m afraid the Mrs. Patmore we once knew and loved is gone forever. #ArtistFormerlyKnownAsPatmore

** No ice deliveries?  What form of blasphemy is this? 

Interestingly, Patmore’s technological reticence plays into the bigger theme of impending modernity playing out over the course of the episode.  She is not alone in her distrust of change; Robert himself falls victim to his sentimentality.  After a Downton tenant named Drew dies, the significant debt he left behind to his son forces Drew the Younger to relinquish the tenancy in order to pay back Lord Grantham***. Despite Drew the Elder’s debt, Robert considers the family loyal and so decides to defy modern convention and allow his traditionalist leanings to guide him: he allows Drew to stay on, even providing him with financial support to pay off the debt and remain a Downton tenant indefinitely.  Robert knows how hard out there it is for a pimp, so he’ll do anything to fly in the face of advancement!  Take that sociological betterment!  How’s it feel now?  Guys, I think I’m sort of starting to see why Downton totally went bankrupt a few seasons ago because, um, Robert is a real dumb-dumb financially speaking.  But this also shows he might have the burning ember of a heart in that ribcage?  So that’s progress!  Hurray Robert!

***Or something like that?  I didn’t really care about the particulars, and neither did you if we can both pause, cut the BS, and be honest with one another.  There, feel better?

 If we’re keeping it real (and, as you know, that is the only way to keep it when it comes to Downton Abbey), the whole Bates/Anna fiasco ties into the concept of modernity too, as a snapshot of the changing nature of male-female interactions.  While I’ve had my gripes with the rape plot overall, it has admittedly shed some light on this dark corner of women’s history, so that’s something.  Having said that,  boy oh boy was I glad when Bates overhears Mrs. Hughes and Anna talking in code about her attack.  To make a long story short, he threatens to leave Anna forever if Mrs. Hughes doesn’t spill this can of unfortunate beans, so he now knows about her attack, and he really wants to go all Liam Neeson on the culprit.  I mean like legit neck snapping, car door slamming, bridge heaving, electrocuting you while you’re strapped to a chair Neeson.  Not sure about you, but that would very much tickle my fancy.  #Taken3

Anna, of course, wants to protect Bates from the truth because she does not want him to go Neeson for some reason (oh right, jail and stuff).  But underlying all that, of course, she fears Bates will be unable to look beyond the stigma of her as a rape victim.  In a brilliantly subtle and symbolic moment, Bates rests his hand on Anna’s, stopping her from scrubbing those shoes she’s been cleaning since last week. For Bates, she has nothing to scrub from her soul, for she has  been neither spoiled nor sullied; in fact, the needless suffering she’s endured has sanctified her, and his love remains as passionate for her as ever.  Bates is a sensitive, modern man, breaking down and weeping over his wife’s torment****.

****This all works really well, but I can’t help but question the decision to turn Anna’s rape into Bates’s story, as it seems very much like a male writer taking this plotline in a direction he’s more comfortable with.  Still, Brendan Coyle and Joanne Froggatt crushed it.

Meanwhile, Alfred’s all about personal advancement, trying to realize his dreams of being Gordon Ramsay by attending a cooking test for possible employment at the Ritz.  Ultimately, he doesn’t make it (maybe he’s too much beanpole, not enough cream puff?), but Carson hopes this strengthens his resolve while Daisy bounces all around the kitchen, delighted by Alfred’s failure because she is crushing all over that ginger face of his and totally hearts him 4ever.  Seriously, though, I loved this plotline so much because it gave me that idea for Top Chef: Downton that I just came up with now.

When it comes to stagnation, it’s time for #MoseleyWatch!  Looks like Carson figures Alfred’s a shoe-in for that cooking position and offers Moseley a preemptive gig as replacement footman, but Moseley’s still reeling from those gloves he’d have to wear, so he needs to think it over.  In the meantime, Alfred flubs it and returns just as Moseley tells Carson he’ll accept the lowly position.  *Sad trombone*  Oh, Moseley, your misery delights us all so very, very much!  Don’t ever change!

Elsewhere, Thomas and Baxter forge an alliance in douchebaggery, Branson wants to live in America, Robert’s birthday approaches and Rose wants on the party planning committee, Edith might be pregnant, Mr. Napier returns to Downton with eyes on Mary, the Dowager Countess thinks her new gardener is a thief or possibly just a connoisseur of all things Swedish, and did I mention EDITH MIGHT BE PREGNANT?

In short, this episode’s balance of witty comedy and dynamite drama fell in perfect balance, launching it to the front of the season’s installments so far.  We’re halfway through now, and—like the best of Downton—it left me positively clamoring for more.

Until next weekend, Downtonites!

 

Snippets of Intrigue

– Thomas: “Mrs. Patmore is not what you’d call a futurist.”

– Dowager Countess: “The one thing we don’t want is a poet in the family!”

– Cora: “Is there any aspect of the present day that you can accept without resistance?”

Mrs. Patmore: “Well, my lady, I wouldn’t mind getting rid of my corset.”

– Dowager Countess [on Isobel’s passionate nature]: “Wars have been waged with less fervor.”

– Bates: “Nothing is over, and nothing is done with.”

Community S05E05: “Geothermal Escapism”

…an episode reminding us all the importance of being “a school on 911’s blocked call list.”

Saying goodbye to Troy was never going to be easy.  Even though, going into Community‘s fifth season, we knew this day would come, the foreknowledge did not help me to prepare adequately for the departure of my favorite character.  Last week, the narrative twist that turned Pierce’s death into a set-up for Troy’s exit blindsided me.  And then, Abed’s insistent “cool cool cool” gut-punched me.

In many ways, this episode is a direct response to those closing lines from last week.  That Abed’s parting gift to Troy, a school-wide game of Hot Lava with $50,000 on the line, becomes an astute insight into the psychology of letting go proves that Community is so much more than a joke-machine.  You listening, Big Bang Theory?

I’m not going to belabor the plot machinations of the episode’s first three-quarters too much.  While I enjoyed the Mad Max and Waterworld (lol because why not?) homages throughout, having another parody/spoof so soon after episode three might have undercut its impact a bit.  Great opening credits, plenty to laugh at**, but not a whole lot to really break apart.  As the saying goes, if you have to explain a joke, it stops being funny.

**Professor Hickey deserves the #FTW here.  From his amazing entrance on that makeshift tank mowing down Chang’s Locker Boys gang to his lamentations about his “getting gay married” son’s expensive wedding, Jonathan Banks continues to kill it.

What is worth mentioning is the way the story develops this entire mythos around it, with a new lexicon (floor strider, chair walker, sofa hopper), a quasi-religion, and even a MacGuffin (the orb) all contributing to the overall tone here.  Just further proof of Harmon’s do-it-right-or-don’t-do-it-at-all attitude.  Love it.  Also, so many chair puns I couldn’t even keep track, though the sparring words of “chair to dance?” still ring in my ears.

Oh, and Magnitude playing a post-apocalyptic version of steel drum on Shirley Island?  His journey to that point could have been a subplot in and of itself.

But, as we all know, the story of Troy’s exit had to be the story of his friendship with Abed because, as we expect, it hits him the hardest.   Troy puts it best to Britta, “No one gets Abed.  I got him a little.”  There is something incredibly moving about Abed telling Troy that, for him, the floor really is lava.  It’s his way of processing the emotional reality of his friend’s departure–he can’t let go of Troy, so he devises a game where he cannot relinquish his literal grip, either.  Wow.  So this is what you call a half hour situational comedy, huh?***

***Though Abed’s slow motion fall into the lava to the swells of classic music makes sure things don’t get too serious because this is Community, after all.

The fact that Britta then saves the day with psychology of all things (!) makes me question if perhaps we need to re-define the term “Britta-ed it.”  She and Troy devise a scheme to reanimate and clone Abed (who fake died in the lava pit because obviously), so his clone version can be the one to say goodbye.  To make it even easier on Abed, Troy (admitting he’s as afraid to go as Abed is to lose him) does a backwards free-fall into the lava himself, so that, in the end, it’s just two cloned versions of best friends parting ways.  In any other show and with any other set of characters, this would sound ludicrous.  But for Troy and Abed, whether they’re “in the morning”, “shooting lava”, “sewn together”, or “in slow motion”, this makes absolute sense.  And it’s also incredibly sweet and, somehow, moving?  Dan Harmon, you rascal!

Well, if you managed to keep those eyes dry up to this point in the episode, then the final sequence might have reduced you to a blubbering mess.  (Shut up, you’re the one who’s crying…)  I mean, sure it was a bit predictable, but don’t we sort of expect a scene where the departing character says one final thing to each of his friends?  I thought so.  In this case, predictable’s fine.

Troy wishes he hadn’t ignored Annie in high school so that he could have had four more years of friendship, tells Britta she’s absolutely amazing, labels Jeff the coolest guy he’s ever met, and reminds Shirley she’s not the mom of the group but one certified bad-ass.  And then he shares a final hug with Abed before climbing aboard the Childish Tycoon****.  A final parting gift?  Co-captaining his ship with, of course, Levar Burton.  Fortunately, this meeting goes a little better than the previous one.  And by a little, I mean a lot.  At least Troy can, you know, speak to the man.

****A clever meta-joke referencing Donald Glover’s decision to leave the show in pursuit of his hip-hop career as Childish Gambino.  By the way, the dude can rap; if you haven’t, check out his albums.

In the end, Troy Barnes, whose dim-witted hilarity proved a source of consistent laughter over the years, leaves big shoes to fill at his seat of the study table.  But with returning gags, as well as an honest treatment of his central friendship with Abed, this proved a wonderful send-off that ultimately rendered my initial hesitance moot.  I’m not sure what a Troy-less Community will look like, but I take solace in picturing Mr. (or is it Captain?) Barnes listening to “Come Sail Away” on an unending loop as he cuts a swath through the Pacific Ocean, firing a barrage of questions to Burton.  Maybe somewhere around Indonesia they’ll get to the bottom of that whole Star Trek misnomer.

#BonTroyage indeed.

 

Quotes from the Refurbished Study Room

– Jeff: “Do you get kickbacks from Big Buzzkill?”

– Prof. Duncan: “My self-published novels aren’t going to publish themselves!”

– Vicky: “My name is Vicky!  Tell my story!”

– Troy: “I had a dream like this, but it was sexual!”

– And, for a final time: “Troy and Abed in a buuuuuubble!”

Top Chef S11E15: “Leaving New Orleans”

…an episode reminding us all the importance of “teaching Emeril to cook.”

I don’t want to sound cocky or anything, but I’m pretty sure I carry considerable influence with the executive producers of Top Chef.  If you’ve followed my recaps on the season, you’ll know that Nick and I have not been getting along.  He thinks I’m pushy; I think he’s a jerkface.  Clearly, the producers felt our animosity had to end, so they kickstarted this episode with Nick’s heartfelt confession about wanting to make his dad, who happens to be afflicted with Parkinson’s, proud.  For a brief moment, my heart began to thaw; I didn’t care for the foreign sensation of warmth–I was scared and needed to be held.

Fortunately, Shirley intervened and called Nick a total a-hole.  And we’re back!  Thanks, Shirl, for dragging me back to reality!  Because, let’s lay the cards on the table here, folks.  I hate to beat a dead horse and everything, but I have no problem beating up on Nick.

This week’s Quickfire Challenge (insert aggressive smash cut here) was a not just a two-parter.  It also happened to be the dreaded car challenge.  Loyal viewers know that winning the car pretty much means you simultaneously might as well start packing your knives, which gives me pause.  Why are the cheftestants consistently so excited for this challenge?  I mean, yeah, it’s a car.  But it’s no quarter of a mill.  All I’m saying.

Anyhow, the chefs had to participate in a two-roud challenge, first impressing Gail with one complete experience in a single bite and then wowing Tom by highlighting a veg (what we call vegetables in the food service industry).

The first challenge forced Nick to reflect on his need for self-editing**, but when Shirley started talking about the plumpness of her cherries, my cheeks started to burn.  Girl, you bad!

**Though, oddly, it did not prevent yet ANOTHER paranoid delusion about a phantom competitor tampering with the temperature of his deep fryer.  This guy!  #FryerGate

In the process of the tasting, Gail struggled with her forking skills.  When she finally managed, Carlos’s mango shrimp and Nick’s meat and potatoes (with a purple potato chip because UGH) bested the ladies.  Thanks, Top Chef for sending women’s lib back to the stone age!  I’m surprised Gail didn’t slap Nina’s and Shirley’s bums and demand them to collaborate on a pie on their way out.

My heart began to flutter.  Nick was through to the next round!  Suddenly, I found myself rooting for him to continue the show’s track record of sending home the car winner; this despite him getting to the veggie table before Carlos and boasting about his high school varsity track record (really?).  But then he had to go and cut eggplant into a scallop because Nick hates each and every one of us, so Carlos’s simple but elegant pepper soup emerged the victor.

Carlos, NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!  Stop dancing and demand a re-taste!  Spit in your own food!  Do something!

But before you could say eggplant scallops, it came time for the Elimination Challenge (insert aggressive smash cut here).  Before relocating to Hawaii for the finale, the chefs had to create one last dish that summarized their New Orleans experience, then prepare that meal in Emeril’s flagship restaurant.***

***Nick waxed poetic and claimed that his New Orleans experience had humbled him, which worried me a great deal because I’m starting to think maybe Nick might not have a level-headed view of himself?

Anyway, Carlos prepared a seafood tamale without corn (nifty idea), Nina dove into Italian fare with speckled trout and some kind of mini-biscuit, Shirley wanted us to take a trip down the bayou with black drum fish, and Nick prepared roughly ten thousand mini-morsels of fish in a broth.  This might sound judgmental, but Nick’s dish was basically a pile of garbage next to everyone else’s.  Also, I’m worried he might have a glandular problem because two minutes in the kitchen, and the man started to sweat like he’d just been water boarded.

Nina forgot to plate her mini-biscuits and completely lost her mind, apologizing for her catastrophic mistake in front of the judges in a mishap that pretty much came across like the Top Chef version of the Holocaust.  Little did Nina know that Tom was all like, “Yo, yo, yo.  For you, for me, for you, this didn’t even need that ricotta dumpling, dawg!” (Maybe I’m confusing Tom with Randy Jackson?)

Later, in a sequence that really strained my understanding of good taste, the judges wanted to bathe in Shirley’s broth and rub it into their naughty bits, so we all assumed Shirley won.  And guess what?  She did!  Because #ButterSauce!

Emeril felt personally affronted that Carlos didn’t wrap his seafood tamale in a banana leaf, while some of Nick’s fish felt underseasoned for what I can only postulate the ninety-eight zillionth time this season (plus or minus one or two).

At Judge’s Table (insert aggressive smash cut here), the producers seemed like they wanted to make up for past mistakes.  Reflecting on their collective sexism from earlier, the judges let the ladies sail through to the finale, leaving the gents on the bottom.

On the one hand, my heart began to flutter again.  Could this be the moment?  Was Nick doomed at last?  Or would Carlos fulfill the prophecy of the Doomed Car Winner?  For a glorious moment, I thought the former possible.  Padma was all like, “Um, ya’ll want to send some chump into the finale who still can’t quite grasp the purpose of salt?”  And all the judges nodded solemnly.  In that moment, Padma’s beauty seemed more radiant than ever.

But guess whaaaat?

Seems like Nick and the witches of American Horror Story: Coven have been holding clandestine meetings.  How else to explain the fact that NICK IS JOINING SHIRLEY AND NINA IN THE FINALE?  Carlos went home because of the dark arts at work, folks.  Nothing makes sense any more.  I’d like to thank Top Chef for making me question the very fabric of everything I hold dear.  Had I known, when it began, that this season would cause me to embark on a philosophical journey of the soul, I might have packed more cornsilk.

Next week, the chefs will meet up in Hawaii and learn the identity of the winner of Last Chance Kitchen.  That means the two part finale has begun!  Let’s just hope Nick leaves his tiresome tomfoolery on the mainland.

Hey, a guy can hope!

In Memoriam: “Family Tree”

“Family Tree”

2013-2013

HBO giveth, and HBO taketh away.  The hilarious and heartfelt (but, admittedly, under-watched) comedy from the mind of Christopher Guest struggled to find an audience from the minute it began airing in the spring of 2013.  But for those who treasured its eight episodes of pleasant quirkiness, Tom Chadwick’s multi-continental genealogical journey to trace the roots of his family tree provided delights in abundance.  But, what’s more, it allowed the likes of Chris O’Dowd to grace our screens each and every week.

It was too young to go, but sometimes the ones that shine brightest are too good for this world and their time spent too short.  So, now, we must say goodbye, part ways like lovers at an airport (seriously, we’re never going to get resolution on that?!).  Let us neither  cry nor mourn its passing but celebrate a life well-lived.  A life of Britcom obsession, Civil War reenactments, owl collections, Abe Lincoln impersonators, insensitive comments about  American Indian culture, disturbing farm work, and Fred Willard’s double entendres.  But, perhaps most important of all, this will be a show remembered for starting the conversation on a hitherto unrecognized brand of hate: mythical racism.

In the face of this tragedy, we must act like the formidable rear of the two-man horse costume: sturdy in the face of unspeakable tribulation.  In short, let’s do what Monkey would: hide behind a wall of biting sarcasm to mask the pain lurking beneath.  Also, ruin children’s birthday parties.  It’s the way “Family Tree” would’ve wanted it.

We’ll miss you, old friend, though we hardly knew ye.

In lieu of flowers, please make a donation to the charity “Unlucky Charms.”  Let’s rein in the hate in honor of our fallen friend.

Parenthood S05E13: “Jump Ball”

…an episode reminding us all the importance of “Bisquick.”

When an episode of Parenthood fires on all cylinders, I can typically attribute its success to a narrative device I have been a sucker for as long as I can remember: pairing two characters who don’t often share a great deal of screen time.  Doing this gives me the equivalent of short-term memory loss; as soon as we cut back to the unlikely duo sharing the screen, I forget about a plot I might not care for otherwise (ahem, Julia and Joel).  What I’m trying to say here is that I love when Parenthood gives me the working memory of a goldfish.

And, fortunately for us, that’s exactly what we had this week!  I found myself rediscovering nooks and crannies of the same fishbowl, so let’s get to it!

Camille & Zeek 

Great news: Camille is back from Italy with a new bohemian haircut!  I loved how the sequence of Camille’s return home uses contrast to show us what’s going on for this couple: Zeek’s palpable excitement smashing up against Camille’s equally palpable ambivalence.  Need proof?  Just check out Zeek’s silly smile spreading across his face as he bounces around to open car doors for his wife, or the fact the he organized a Welcome Home Party with the whole Braverman clan.**

**Sydney, in an effort to perpetuate her bratty image, demands recompense from her grandmother for deigning the party with her saintly presence, demanding gifts as soon as Camille walks through the front door. Ugh.  The worst.

We can tell Camille’s not really feeling the vibe of this party (maybe there’s too much Sydney and not enough pasta fagioli?), but it’s not until later that we learn what’s exactly going on for her.  All we know is that, suddenly, she seems confined at home, darting off to meet fellow artistes at the MoMA within hours of settling back in.  Zeek, in an effort to close a rift he clearly feels, makes reservations at an expensive Italian restaurant so the two of them can reconnect.  Because hasn’t it felt like forever since they have?

At dinner, Camille realizes that life in the Braverman world continued in her absence, what with Kristina’s mayoral bid and Amber’s dissolved engagement.  She claims she’s not needed anymore, which she finds positively liberating.  Is it just me or is Camille totally having a late mid-life crisis?  But instead of buying a bright red sports car, she’s indulging in European art retreats?  Her newest plan, without consulting her husband, is to leave for France in a few months, and Zeeks–clearly angry–applauds his wife for having it all figured out.  Camille either doesn’t care to or outright doesn’t notice her husband’s hurt.

I’m loving this plot and what it will likely force Zeek to do: participate in Camille’s adventures and give him some new experience.  Also, the thought of Zeek donning a beret as he scoffs at a butter-and-brie baguette while sitting alongside the Seine is sort of the greatest image of all time.  Please make that happen!

Adam & Hank

For me, the pairing of these two characters was the most artfully and subtly written.  Take that photo of Bob Dylan that Hank gives Adam to hang in the Luncheonette.  The magic rule of three applies to the photo.  The first time, Hank uses it as an excuse to get Dr. Pelican’s number from Adam.  The second time the picture appears, Adam brings it to Hank’s studio for framing as an excuse to invite Hank to a poker game.  The third time, Hank criticizes (in his very Hank way) the placement of the photo in the studio.  Holy cow, did Katims just use this photograph as a symbol for the burgeoning friendship between these two?  Because that’s incredible.***

***Also, a trash-talking, sunglasses-sporting Hank playing poker, calling Joel a donkey on behalf of viewers across America?  I could watch that for hours.  Seriously.  Where’s the raw footage?

You see, Hank’s convinced he has Aspberger’s syndrome after reading that book about Max.  Ray Romano’s performance blew me away, particularly in the consultation scene with Dr. Pelican.  The combination of Hank’s reticence and certainty comes across with each mumbled word, each dart of the eyes.  Emmy voters, please take note.

But, for me, the entirety of Hank’s arc came down to the word “tenacious.”  He uses it twice in this episode: once with Dr. Pelican to describe how his wife described him and then again with Adam to apologize for his behavior during poker (fun fact: Hank dislikes wild cards).  Doesn’t this seem like an acceptance of a kind, an embracing of who he is?  If he’s accepted this label of tenacious, what’s to stop him from accepting a psuedo-“jump ball” diagnosis of Aspberger’s.  Brilliant writing.

Also, could these two #Besties spend a great deal more time together?  Perhaps join an intramural league of tetherball competitors?  Yes.  I’m sticking with that.  Adam and Hank: tetherball partners.

Amber & Seth

If there’s one thing I learned from college, it’s that binging on a steady musical diet of Joy Division ensures you’re going down a bumpy road.  So, when we first see Amber cleaning her apartment to the wails of Joy Division’s “Isolation,” call me crazy, but I had a sense that Amber was about to embark on a trying emotional journey.

Soon, Amber’s calling out sick and heading on an impromptu road trip.  She pulls over a time or two to stare vacantly out into the abyss, which told me that perhaps she hadn’t entirely gotten over Ryan proposing to and then dumping her?  Go figure.

Before long, Amber’s pulled over in the parking lot of a bar, drinking and smoking and leering out the window at some dude dressed in an apron.  Holy cow, it’s Papa Seth!  When we cut back to Amber, she’s sitting at the bar and on the receiving end of some rather ham-fisted seduction by a delightful gentleman named Jason.****

****Jason, evidently, owns a few shares in the local neighborhood dive Donnie’s around the corner.  Also, he really pushes the mechanical bull, which I thought hurt his prospects with Amber (in addition to his gross demeanor and attitude).  I mean, slow down there Jason!  Save some mystery for the date!

One drink in Jason’s face later, Seth emerges from the back, Amber storms off, and Seth follows her to the parking lot to wrestle the keys out of his daughter’s hands.  I’d like to point out that Mae Whitman is a brilliant actress and is perhaps the best “crier” in the biz.  When she breaks down, blaming her break-up with Ryan on him because she’s afraid she’s just like him, that’s about as compelling a scene as you’re likely to find on television.  A stunner.

John Corbett has never been my favorite actor in the world, but he is fantastic as Seth, and I hope he sticks around to rebuild his relationships with his kids, as he hints to Sarah on the phone in yet another excellent scene.  Hey, he’s off to a good fatherly start: pancakes.  Well played, sir.

Elsewhere, the relationship between Drew and Amy intensifies after she reveals experiencing a (possibly suicidal?) sadness at Tufts following the abortion, Joel moves out after the most aggressively passive aggressive breakfast donut delivery in television history, and Julia seeks advice from Sarah.

While the Julia/Joel plotline continues to frustrate, everything else surrounding it is so good, my goldfish memory will permit the misstep in what is an exceptional season of television so far.

Conversation Around the Dinner Table

– Kristina [on Hank]: “Are we hoping he has Aspberger’s?”

– Hank: “I want to know if there’s a reason I’m blowing it with the people I care most about.  You know?”

– Seth: “Listen, I know my track record isn’t exactly stellar.  I don’t deserve this opportunity, but I’d like to try.”

Sarah: “Try what?”

Seth: “Being her dad.”