Paul Levinson's Blog: Levinson at Large, page 18

Podcast: It's the Debate that Failed, Not Biden

Welcome to Light On Light Through, Episode 393, in which I argue that debate performance has nothing to do with how a candidate actually performs as President.

See also:

It's the Debate that Failed Last Night, Not Biden blog post NY Times Editorial Board: President Biden Should Leave the Race What's Wrong with The New York Times blog post Philadelphia Inquirer Editorial: Donald Trump Should Leave the Race

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Presumed Innocent 1.4: Under Fingernails

[Spoilers ahead ...]

Presumed Innocent 1.4 ended with a shocker: Rusty's DNA is found under Carolyn's fingernails.  This is obvious proof that the two were fighting ...

Of course, if we read the book or saw the 1990 movie, Rusty's DNA under Carolyn's fingernails is entirely consistent with who the real killer is, definitely not Rusty.  And since I have no idea how similar this Apple TV+ series and the 1990 movie will be, I'm keeping an open mind:  the killer could be the 1990 killer, or Rusty, or someone else entirely.

The relationship between Rusty and Raymond, his lawyer, continues be strong, and Mya on the defense team is an excellent asset.  Over on the prosecution side, Nico continues to be unflappable, but also not having 100% confidence in Tommy.  I'd like to see more focus on Tommy's character.  He actually seems to be doing a pretty good job, which makes me wonder why Nico seems so quick to disagree with him.

We also need to know more about Carolyn.  What was Tommy's relationship with her in the office? What was Raymond's relationship with Carolyn -- he after all was her boss.  Shouldn't there be more investigation of Carolyn's cases, and whether any of the people she prosecuted were now in a position to kill her?

I'm very much looking forward to seeing how this literally life-and-story, and saga of justice, unfolds.

See also Presumed Innocent 1.1-1.2: Presumed Excellent, And So Far Is ... 1.3: Sterling Performances

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It's the Debate that Failed Last Night, Not Biden

Biden tried to say decent, ethical things but delivered most of his words poorly in last night's Presidential debate; Trump spoke much more clearly but said vile things and lied just about every time he opened his mouth (lies which the CNN moderators failed to call out).

What are we to think about this?

I would say it's that debates shouldn't matter as much as they seem to.  JFK looked better on TV than did Nixon, and a majority of people who saw the two in TV thought Kennedy won.  A much smaller number of people heard the debate on radio, and thought Nixon won.  That event certainly demonstrated the importance of debates.  But though JFK proved to be an excellent President, the fact that he won the debate was really no indication that JFK would do so well in office.   The debates, in other words, were very valuable windows into the effects of media, not indicators of the political acumen of the candidates.

It's plain logic that what a President does in office has nothing to do with the President's voice quality or appearance.  FDR was in a wheelchair throughout his presidency.  He connected to the American people in an age before television via his fireside chats on radios.  Few people knew he was in a wheelchair.

I've spent my professional life as a professor of media and an author talking about the importance of televised debates, how candidates look and sound on television.  Maybe it's time to focus on what debates really are: a 90-minute performance that has little to do with what the candidate did, is doing, or will do in office.   The truth is that the skills needed to be an effective debater have nothing to do with the skills needed to be an effective President.  Never did, never will.  Maybe it's long since time that we recognized that.

Or, to paraphrase Shelley, maybe it's the debate that failed last night, not Biden.

***

Note added this Friday afternoon:  And Biden amply demonstrated his power to effectively communicate in a rip-roaring speech in North Carolina.

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Podcast Review of Dark Matter 1.9

Welcome to Light On Light Through, Episode 392, in which I review Dark Matter 1.9 on Apple TV+.

Further places:

podcast review of Dark Matter 1.1-1.2 podcast review of Dark Matter 1.3-1.4 podcast review of Dark Matter 1.5 podcast review of Dark Matter 1.6 podcast review of Dark Matter 1.7 podcast review of Dark Matter 1.8 written blog post review of episode 1.9

See also Deadline's interview with Blake Crouch

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Dark Matter 1.9: Science Fiction and Horror

I have unsettled feelings about the season 1 finale of Dark Matter on Apple TV+ -- episode 1.9 -- and they all point to a series eminently worth watching and continuing.

[Spoilers ahead ... ]

I said last week that the multitude of Jasons showing up in one world gave cinematic verite to the poster for the series.  But that crucial scene near the end of 1.9, with all of those Jasons, marshalled by their leader to let our Jason -- Jason 1 -- have the life he deserved with Daniela and Charlie -- well, that scene epitomized the poster.

I also said last week that I didn't expect to see the happy ending that the ending of 1.8 was pointing to.  And we did see Jason 1 and Daniela 1 and Charlie 1 in family bliss for part of 1.9, only to have that taken away from them by a few of the marauding Jasons.  But Jason 2 saved them -- at least, I think that was Jason 2, I'm never 100% sure -- and got the crowd of Jasons to let the Jason 1 family go into a world where they could presumably have a very happy life.

That scene with the crowd of Jasons made me realize that I was watching not just a science fiction story but a horror story.  Crowds have been a part of horror at least since the notorious town folk with their torches in Frankenstein.  They weren't carrying torches in Dark Matter 1.9, and they were different versions of the same person, but they felt to me to have a kinship with those villagers in Frankenstein.  Mary Shelley's and Blake Crouch's stories, after all, are both vivid testaments to the horror that uncontrolled science can bring.  The Twilight Zone often focused on this field of dreams turned nightmares, too.

So, the Jason 1 family has a happy ending.  And Jason 2 sees the error of his ways and redeems himself. But there are an infinity of stories in that crowd of Jasons, and in this, our offscreen reality, I envision a Canterbury Tales of Dark Matter stories spanning years.

See also Dark Matter 1.1-1.2: Break-Neck Action and Philosophic Contemplation ... 1.3 Missing Fingers ... 1.4 The Multiverse Unveiled ... 1.5: The Lesson ... 1.6 "A Bunch of Chicagos" ... 1.7: Obama Tower ... 1.8: A Bevy Of Jasons

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The Lazarus Project 2.3: The Plane Outside the Loop

A really tight episode 2.3 of The Lazarus Project now up on TNT.

[Spoilers ahead ... ]

Let's start with the end.  A plane with most of our crew traveling back in time to 2012.  It -- of course -- encounters some extreme turbulence.  Will they survive?  Can they?

Well, let's put aside the point that it's highly unlikely that the series would kill off so many major characters in the third episode of the second season.

But, wait, why would it matter if so many players were killed in this plane?  Wouldn't the time loop give them another chance to get the flight right, as it does with everything else?

Here's where we get to the nitty gritty. The folks on the plane are time-travelling -- trying to time travel -- outside of the inevitable, infuriating, but life-saving loop.  So, if they're beyond the loop, and have already traveled a few years back in time, doesn't this mean that they're on their own?

The loop is really cool.  Over and over again, a character or characters make a wrong choice, die as a result, only to come back and get it right.  There was an excellent example of this in 2.3 when Archie and Zhang (a great couple) mistakenly think a finger is needed to open a digital lock, die as a result, but come back next time around with an eyeball, which works.

Time travel outside the loop has changed everything, and I'm looking forward to seeing how those characters on the plane outside the loop fare next week.

See also The Lazarus Project season 2.1: Shades of Gray ... 2.2: Shag in the Alley

And see also The Lazarus Project season 1: Time Travel Done Superbly Right

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my latest novel (with a touch of time travel)

“Paul Levinson’s It’s Real Life is an incredibly unique and captivating peek behind rock and roll’s mysterious curtain. The idea that the story delves into an alternate world adds to its page-turning intrigue. Highly recommended!” 
-– Steven Manchester, #1 bestselling author, The Menu


"Paul Levinson's It's Real Life is a page-turning exploration into that multiverse known as rock and roll. But it is much more than a marvelous adventure narrated by a master storyteller...it is also an exquisite meditation on the very nature of alternate history." 
-- Jack Dann, The Fiction Writer's Guide to Alternate History


get It's Real Life in paperback, hardcover, or on Kindle here

 

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Criminal Minds: Evolution 17.4: Progress

Criminal Minds is coming together nicely (or harrowingly, depending on how you look at it) as of episode 17.4 on Paramount Plus.

[Spoilers ahead ...]

Elias Voit now has a good reason to cooperate: his daughter is showing signs of becoming a serial killer, like her old man, and he wants the BAU to help her with their expertise.  But the smile on his face at the end of the episode shows he's also happy about this for other, more nefarious reasons.  I'm half-guesing he's hoping to turn his daughter into an asset.

Penelope is allowing Tyler to come back into the fold.  Good. She still has feelings for him, and there's no point in struggling all season to keep them down.  And, I don't know, I don't think Tyler did anything that terrible, but maybe that's just me.

It's good to see the crew's excursions now actually connecting to the Gold Star case, which happens just as the BAU realizes that Gold Star is not a person but a project.  This of course puts Voit right back in the picture.  In addition to being the serial killer Internet mastermind Sicarius, Voit is no doubt part of Gold Star, and maybe it's chief?   That would be good reason for Voit's smile at the end.

One issue unaddressed in this episode are the fake porn photos of J.J.  We'll no doubt see that center stage sooner or later, as Criminal Minds: Evolution continues its perilous journey this season.

See also Criminal Minds: Evolution 17.1-17-.2 The Elusive Profile ... 17.3: "BAU Gate"

And see also Criminal Minds: Evolution 16.1-16.4: Outstanding! ... 16.5: Assessment of What Could Have Happened at the End ... 16.6-16.8: Better Than Ever on Paramount Plus ... 16.9: Elias Voit and David Rossi ... 16.10: Gold Star

===
Some reviews of episodes from earlier seasons:
Criminal Minds 8.12: Spencer's Burden
Criminal Minds 7.1: "The Is Calm and It's Doctor" ... Criminal Minds 7.3: Meets House and The Unit

Criminal Minds in Sixth Season Premiere ... Criminal Minds 6.2: The Meaning of J. J. Leaving ... Criminal Minds 6.3: Proust, Twain, Travanti ... Tyra on Criminal Minds 6.13 ...Criminal Minds 6. 17: Prentiss Farewell Part I ... Criminal Minds 6.18: Farewell Emily ... Criminal Minds 6.19: Fight Club Redux Plus ... Criminal Minds 6.20: Emily's Ghost ... Criminal Minds 6.21: The Tweeting Killer ... Criminal Minds 6.22: Psycho and a Half ... Criminal Minds 6.23: The Good Lie ... Criminal Minds Season 6 Finale

Criminal Minds 5.22 and the Dark Side of New New Media


 
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Podcast Review of Dark Matter 1.8

Welcome to Light On Light Through, Episode 391, in which I review Dark Matter 1.8 on Apple TV+.

Further places:

podcast review of Dark Matter 1.1-1.2 podcast review of Dark Matter 1.3-1.4 podcast review of Dark Matter 1.5 podcast review of Dark Matter 1.6 podcast review of Dark Matter 1.7 written blog post review of episode 1.8

Check out this episode!

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Presumed Innocent 1.3: Sterling Performances

I was struck by the sterling performance of just about every actor in Presumed Innocent 1.3 on Apple TV+.

[And here let me advise you not so much about spoilers, but that I saw the 1990s movie with Harrison Ford, and I'll try not to in any way indicate the ending of that, because I have no idea if this series will end the same way.]

Here are some of my favorite scenes in this episode:

Every scene that  O-T Fagbenle as DA Della Guardia is in.  He has a strange, compelling presence that I've never quite seen before, which makes him instantly memorable.Noma Dumezweni as the tough-ass judge. PerfectThe scene in which Rusty (Jake Gyllenhaal) falls in love with Carolyn (Renate Reinsve), as she gently works to make a little girl who will be testifying feel safe And, yeah, every scene with Bill Camp as Horgan, former DA and Rusty's attorneyBut the truth is every character shines in this series, Rusty's wife and their children, the bartender at the beginning of the episode, Peter Sarsgaard as ADA Molto.  I can't recall another series in which every character was so vibrantly portrayed.
It occurred to me that Apple TV+ currently has two series -- Presumed Innocent and Dark Matter -- situated in Chicago.   The only thing missing from Presumed Innocent is maybe a scene with one of the Jasons in the background.

See also Presumed Innocent 1.1-1.2: Presumed Excellent, And So Far Is

See my reviews of Dark Matter

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Dark Matter 1.8: A Bevy of Jasons

[Spoilers ahead ... ]

Up until Dark Matter 1.8, we had a Jason -- Jason 1 -- visiting a variety of alternate realities.  All of that flipped in 1.8, where we had an onslaught of different Jasons showing up at the worst possible times in World 1. That made for a crackling episode in which all hell broke loose.  And now we finally can see the poster for the series fulfilled.

At first, it looked like Jason 1 killed Jason 2, or maybe versa.  But we soon learned that the victim was Jason 3, or the first of a flood of Jasons, all of whom were at odds with Jason 1's understandable, transcendent desire to be back with his family -- i.e., the family that he knew, and who knew him.

Here let me just tip my hat to the bartender. He's a great science fictional character.  He no longer questions or even seems to wonder about the proliferation of Jasons who show up in his bar.  He just greets them, serves them, and takes them in all in stride.

We already know that all Jasons have a violent streak, and when competing with each other for Daniela 1 and Charlie 1, sheer violence quickly comes to the fore.   Daniela is always willing to be deadly violent to save herself and Charlie from Jason 2, and she pushes him down the basement stairs.

This season could have ended right after that, with Jason 1 finally reunited with his family.  But 1.8 is not the final episode this season -- there's one more -- and there's no way that Dark Matter could end with quite so happy an ending.

See also Dark Matter 1.1-1.2: Break-Neck Action and Philosophic Contemplation ... 1.3 Missing Fingers ... 1.4 The Multiverse Unveiled ... 1.5: The Lesson ... 1.6 "A Bunch of Chicagos" ... 1.7: Obama Tower

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