Paul Levinson's Blog: Levinson at Large, page 329

Homeland 3.7: Revealing What We Already Knew

I'm still enjoying Homeland, but episode 3.7 was the one weakest this season, with a big reveal of what we already knew: Brody was not responsible for the bombing that took out the CIA.

I suppose this clears the boards, but it's not enough, especially with Brody MIA this season, with the exception of the one excellent, standalone episode.   Otherwise, Quinn is doing a good job, but other than his heroic action at the beginning of the season, he's fighting small potatoes battles.   And Dar continues to be intriguing - I still think he's working for Saul - but with no development at all of his character and situation.

Saul remains the center of the story, which I like.   But his personal life is a distraction, as it always was.   It did get me thinking that wouldn't it be a nice twist if his wife, or at least her lover, was in some way responsible for the bombing.

The lack of Brody, I think, is the main problem.  In the first two seasons, his chemistry with Carrie animated the narrative.   Now, at least so far, all we really have in play in the Washington, DC area is his family. And as far we know, they have little to do with the main action, either.

I have enough faith in the show to expect all of this non-development is subtly setting the foundation for something really big.   Could be Saul getting killed, which I wouldn't like to see.   One thing is clear.   We need more than Saul getting the better of Javada, who, though personally a repulsive killer, has none of the gravitas of Abu Nazir.

See also Homeland 3.1: Sneak Preview Review ... Homeland 3.2: Sneak Preview Review ... Homeland 3.3: Two Prisons ... Homeland 3.4: Twist! ... Homeland 3.6: Further Down the Rabbit Hole
And see Homeland 2.1-2: Sneak Preview Review ... Homeland 2.3-5: Sneak Preview Review ... Homeland 2.6: What Brody Knows ... Homeland 2.7: Love Me Tinder ... Homeland 2.8: The Personal and the Professional ...Homeland Season 2 Finale: The Shocker and the Reality
And see also  Homeland on Showtime ... Homeland 1.8: Surprises ... Homeland Concludes First Season: Exceptional





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The Blacklist 1.8: The Father and the Husband

An important Blacklist 1.8 tonight, in which Lizzie's father dies.

He's her adoptive father, and, with just six weeks left to live with terminal cancer, he's put to death by Red.  But it's not quite a mercy killing.  It's Red wanting to make sure that Lizzie's adoptive father doesn't tell her the truth before he dies.

She already knows that she was adopted, so that's not the truth that Red wants hidden.  Again, the overwhelming likelihood at this point is that Red is Lizzie's biological father.  But that seems so clear that the truth is likely to be more, and the question is what more.

I'm thinking more than ever that a significant part of the answer resides with the husband, who just doesn't seem what he appears to be, despite Lizzie's faith in him.   And, indeed, the best scene in tonight's episode nonverbally confirms that - at least to me.

Red sits next to Tom, who knows that Lizzie's father has died, but (apparently) doesn't know that Red killed him.  Red waxes poetically about life and death, and Tom takes it in.  But when Red leaves, we're permitted to see a look in Tom's eyes, an expression, that says to me that Tom knows more about Red than he's letting on.  Indeed, I think Tom knows all or at least a lot about Red, and he's married to Lizzie as part of some sort of plan to ... I don't know, perhaps get Red, find out more about Red, though that depends on whom Tom is working for.

So we'll see what happens.   The Blacklist continues to walk the edge, tempting with interpretations of its unorthodox, compelling story.

See also The Blacklist Debuts: Alias Meets Jay Z ... The Blacklist 1.2: Mysteries ... The Blacklist 1.3: Construction Site Heights ... The Blacklist 1.6: Truth and Enigma ... The Blacklist 1.7: Natural Immunity




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Bones 9.8: The Bug in the Neck

Bones 9.8 gives us one of the significant Hodgins episodes in quite some time - at once instructive, repellant, and endearing - as we discover that he has elected to offer his neck for the propagation of one of those bugs he so loves.

What makes this even more interesting is that the bug - a special kind of bot fly from South America that uses its human host to propagate - has nothing to do with the case at hand, or "the dude in the dam".   So this Hodgins story is a standalone tale, in which Bones the series serves as host to the little Hodgins narrative, much Hodgins' neck serves as host for the bot fly larvae.

Now the sight of the larvae metamorphosing out of Hodgins' neck is suitably revolting to us and Angela, who of course still loves him.   It's a minor seminal story of how a man has to do what he has to do on behalf of his science and the bugs he loves, and how his woman stands by him.  In a different milieu, it could easily have turned into a major horror story, perhaps a new prequel to The Fly, either the Vincent Price or the Jeff Goldblum version.   Only Bones would be so audacious and off-the-wall as to house it.

Meanwhile, we also get a good second act in the story we saw last week concerning Bones aka Temperance the best-selling author of the Kathy Reich as character novels.   Bones has a run-in with rival author Tess Brown - well played SNL alumna Nora Dunn - who, as Bones is quick to mention, only has half the best-sellers that Bones has.   But Tess gracefully acknowledges that while Bones bases her novels on real experience, Tess just makes it up, and Booth is so inspired by all of this that he says he'd like to see his and Bones' characters in the Reich novels go on to a rip-roaring science fiction adventure in outer space.

That would work for me - though, given Booth's denunciation of bloggers at the beginning of this episode, I'd be unlikely to write about it--   Nah, only kidding.   Bones and Booth in outer space like a James Bond movie would be too good to neglect.

See also Bones 9.1: The Sweet Misery of Love ... Bones 9.2: Bobcat, Identity Theft, and Sweets ... Bones 9.3 and NCIS 11.2: Sweets and Ziva ... Bones 9.4: Metaphysics of Death in a Television Series ... Bones 9.5: Val and Deep Blue ... Bones 9.6: The Wedding ... Bones 9.7: Watch Out, Buenos Aires

And see also Bones 8.1: Walk Like an Egyptian ... Bones 8.2 of Contention ... Bones 8.3: Not Rotting Behind a Desk  ... Bones 8.4: Slashing Tiger and Donald Trump ... Bones 8.5: Applesauce on Election Eve ... Bones 8.6: Election Day ... Bones 8.7: Dollops in the Sky with Diamonds ...Bones 8.8: The Talking Remains ... Bones 8.9: I Am A Camera ... Bones 8.10-11: Double Bones ...Bones 8.12: Face of Enigmatic Evil ... Bones 8.13: Two for the Price of One ... Bones 8.14: Real Life ... Bones 8.15: The Magic Bullet and the Be-Spontaneous Paradox ... Bones 8.16: Bitter-Sweet Sweets and Honest Finn ... Bones 8.17: "Not Time Share, Time Travel" ... Bones 8.18: Couples ... Bones 8.19: The Head in the Toilet ... Bones 8.20: On Camera ... Bones 8.21: Christine, Hot Sauce, and the Judge ... Bones 8.22: Musical-Chair Parents ... Bones 8.23: The Bluff ... Bones Season 8 Finale: Can't Buy the Last Few Minutes

And see also Bones 7.1: Almost Home Sweet Home ... Bones 7.2: The New Kid and the Fluke ...Bones 7.3: Lance Bond and Prince Charmington ... Bones 7.4: The Tush on the Xerox ... Bones 7.5: Sexy Vehicle ... Bones 7.6: The Reassembler ... Bones 7.7: Baby! ... Bones 7.8: Parents ...Bones 7.9: Tabitha's Salon ... Bones 7.10: Mobile ... Bones 7.11: Truffles and Max ... Bones 7.12: The Corpse is Hanson ... Bones Season 7 Finale: Suspect Bones

And see also Bones 6.1: The Linchpin ... Bones 6.2: Hannah and her Prospects ... Bones 6.3 at the Jersey Shore, Yo, and Plymouth Rock ... Bones 6.4 Sans Hannah ... Bones 6.5: Shot and Pretty ... Bones 6.6: Accidental Relations ... Bones 6.7:  Newman and "Death by Chocolate" ...Bones 6.8: Melted Bones ... Bones 6.9: Adelbert Ames, Jr. ... Bones 6.10: Reflections ... Bones 6.11: The End and the Beginning of a Mystery ... Bones 6.12 Meets Big Love ... Bones 6.13: The Marrying Kind ... Bones 6.14: Bones' Acting Ability ... Bones 6.15: "Lunch for the Palin Family" ...Bones 6.16: Stuck in an Elevator, Stuck in Times ... Bones 6.17: The 8th Pair of Feet ... Bones 6.18: The Wile E. Chupacabra ... Bones 6.19 Test Runs The Finder ... Bones 6.20: This Very Statement is a Lie ... Bones 6.21: Sensitive Bones ... Bones 6.22: Phoenix Love ... Bones Season 6 Finale: Beautiful

And see also Bones: Hilarity and Crime and Bones is Back For Season 5: What Is Love? and 5.2: Anonymous Donors and Pipes and 5.3: Bones in Amish Country and 5.4: Bones Meets Peyton Place and Desperate Housewives and Ancient Bones 5.5 and Bones 5.6: A Chicken in Every Viewer's Pot and Psychological Bones 5.7 and Bones 5.8: Booth's "Pops" and Bones 5.9 Meets Avatar and Videogamers ... Bad Santa, Heart-Warming Bones 5.10 ... Bones 5.11: Of UFOs, Bloggers, and Triangles ... Bones 5.12: A Famous Skeleton and Angela's Baby ... Love with Teeth on Bones 5.13 ... Faith vs. Science vs. Psychology in Bones 5.14 ... Page 187 in Bones 5.15 ...Bones 100: Two Deep Kisses and One Wild Relationship ... Bones 5.17: The Deadly Stars ...Bones Under Water in 5.18 ... Bones 5.19: Ergo Together ...  Bones 5.20: Ergo Together ... Bones 5.21: The Rarity of Happy Endings ... Bones Season 5 Finale: Eye and Evolution




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The Walking Dead 4.5: Hershel, Carl, and Maggie

A great Hershel episode of The Walking Dead - 4.5 - tonight, and for that matter, the best Carl episode we've seen in a while, and a pretty good Maggie episode, too.

Hershel's role as the moral compass of the show and our people is put to the ultimate test.  We learn that he's never point-blank stabbed a walker in the head before tonight.  Killing is close to being against his religion.   But the loss of people he truly loves is even less acceptable.  So he does what needs to be done to give Glenn every possible chance, and the combination of the killing, with Maggie's help, and his knowledge about how to keep people alive to the very end, works.  With the meds that Darryl, Michonne, and Tyreese at last return with, Glenn will survive.   And Sasha will too.

But the deadly flu is not the only mortal threat that our people face tonight.   The gates, ever in danger of coming down as the walkers press against them in increasing numbers, do just that.  Fortunately for Rick, Carl is with him, and the two manage to mow down the requisite number of walkers.  It's inspiring to see Carl fighting right alongside his father, even though we all know that this kind of life is of course not whatt Rick wanted for his son.   But it's the kind of life that's needed for our group to survive.

So the new plague is contained by the meds, and the wall is buttressed, and all of major characters survive, but of course no one's out of danger yet.   The camera shot from beyond the compound, with someone looking at the compound, turns out to be not from Carol's point of view - who might well have doubled back - but the Governor's. We knew we hadn't seen the last of him when he survived last year's final episode.  And now he's back - with who knows how many people under his command, though he may have none - and I'm wondering if Carol will yet end up on someone's side in the impending battle of The Governor vs. our group.

See also The Walking Dead 4.1: The New Plague ... The Walking Dead 4.2: The Baby and the Flu ... The Walking Dead 4.3: Death in Every Corner

And see also The Walking Dead 3.3 meets Meadowlands ... The Walking Dead 3.4: Going to the Limit ... The Walking Dead 3.9: Making Crazy Sense ... The Walking Dead 3.10: Reinforcements ... The Walking Dead 3.11: The Patch ... The Walking Dead 3.12: The Lesson of Morgan ... The Walking Dead 3.13: The Deal ... The Walking Dead 3.14: Inescapable Parable ... The Walking Dead 3.15: Merle ... The Walking Dead 3.16: Kill or Die, or Die and Kill
And see also The Walking Dead Back on AMC ... The Walking Dead 2.2: The Nature of Vet... The Walking Dead 2.3: Shane and Otis ... The Walking Dead 2.4: What Happened at the Pharmacy ... The Walking Dead 2.6: Secrets Told ... The Walking Dead 2.7: Rick's Way vs. Shane's Way ...  The Walking Dead 2.8: The Farm, the Road, and the Town  ... The Walking Dead 2.9: Worse than Walkers ... The Walking Dead 2.11: Young Calling the Shots ... The Walking Dead 2.12: Walkers Without Bites ... The Walking Dead Season 2 Finale
And see also The Walking Dead 1.1-3:  Gone with the Wind, Zombie Style ... The Walking Dead Ends First Season




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The Walking Dead 3.5: Hershel, Carl, and Maggie

A great Hershel episode of The Walking Dead - 3.5 - tonight, and for that matter, the best Carl episode we've seen in a while, and a pretty good Maggie episode, too.

Hershel's role as the moral compass of the show and our people is put to the ultimate test.  We learn that he's never point-blank stabbed a walker in the head before tonight.  Killing is close to being against his religion.   But the loss of people he truly loves is even less acceptable.  So he does what needs to be done to give Glenn every possible chance, and the combination of the killing, with Maggie's help, and his knowledge about how to keep people alive to the very end, works.  With the meds that Darryl, Michonne, and Tyreese at last return with, Glenn will survive.   And Sasha will too.

But the deadly flu is not the only mortal threat that our people face tonight.   The gates, ever in danger of coming down as the walkers press against them in increasing numbers, do just that.  Fortunately for Rick, Carl is with him, and the two manage to mow down the requisite number of walkers.  It's inspiring to see Carl fighting right alongside his father, even though we all know that this kind of life is of course not whatt Rick wanted for his son.   But it's the kind of life that's needed for our group to survive.

So the new plague is contained by the meds, and the wall is buttressed, and all of major characters survive, but of course no one's out of danger yet.   The camera shot from beyond the compound, with someone looking at the compound, turns out to be not from Carol's point of view - who might well have doubled back - but the Governor's. We knew we hadn't seen the last of him when he survived last year's final episode.  And now he's back - with who knows how many people under his command, though he may have none - and I'm wondering if Carol will yet end up on someone's side in the impending battle of The Governor vs. our group.

See also The Walking Dead 4.1: The New Plague ... The Walking Dead 4.2: The Baby and the Flu ... The Walking Dead 4.3: Death in Every Corner

And see also The Walking Dead 3.3 meets Meadowlands ... The Walking Dead 3.4: Going to the Limit ... The Walking Dead 3.9: Making Crazy Sense ... The Walking Dead 3.10: Reinforcements ... The Walking Dead 3.11: The Patch ... The Walking Dead 3.12: The Lesson of Morgan ... The Walking Dead 3.13: The Deal ... The Walking Dead 3.14: Inescapable Parable ... The Walking Dead 3.15: Merle ... The Walking Dead 3.16: Kill or Die, or Die and Kill
And see also The Walking Dead Back on AMC ... The Walking Dead 2.2: The Nature of Vet... The Walking Dead 2.3: Shane and Otis ... The Walking Dead 2.4: What Happened at the Pharmacy ... The Walking Dead 2.6: Secrets Told ... The Walking Dead 2.7: Rick's Way vs. Shane's Way ...  The Walking Dead 2.8: The Farm, the Road, and the Town  ... The Walking Dead 2.9: Worse than Walkers ... The Walking Dead 2.11: Young Calling the Shots ... The Walking Dead 2.12: Walkers Without Bites ... The Walking Dead Season 2 Finale
And see also The Walking Dead 1.1-3:  Gone with the Wind, Zombie Style ... The Walking Dead Ends First Season




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Boardwalk Empire 4.10: Family Treachery

Family treachery - the disloyalty of family members to the boss - has been a staple in crime drama movies, presented to greatest effect in The Godfather (I and II) and Casino.   Episode 4.10 looks like it's bringing Boardwalk Empire into that territory.

Eli is caught in the perfect storm, or the agonizing space between a rock and a hard place.   He wants to save his son.  He'll do just about anything towards that end.  But the last thing he wants to do is betray Nucky, especially after Nucky took him  back - somewhat unbelievably - the last time.  It was a little hard to believe that Nucky would ever trust Eli completely again.   And now the Feds have are giving acute expression to that doubt.

What will Eli do?  As was made clear in tonight's episode, lying to Feds won't buy him much time - they'll learn he is lying and come back to him with even more pressure.   I'm thinking the only way out of this for Eli is to tell Nucky what's going on.   At this point, no real damage has been done to Nucky, which means he's likely to be furious at Eli for even going this far with the Feds, but ultimately forgiving of his brother.

Short of such honesty from Eli, there are not many ways out of this.   Willie or Eli could die.  So could Nucky.  Willie is the least essential to the show.   Eli is more essential, but less essential than was Jimmy, who was taken off the show in that stunning ending a few years ago.  Will Boardwalk Empire go that way again?  I sort of doubt it.   And knocking off Nucky would completely undercut the show, not to mention what little connection our Nucky Thompson has to the real-life Nucky Johnson, the A.C. crime boss who died in 1968.

The only way out for Eli, as far as I can see, is J. Edgar completely calling the Feds off the case.  We've already seen signs of this.   But I think that would be a little too easy an out for Eli.

Which means the vice will continue closing, providing even more edge-of-your-seat viewing in the final two episodes of this excellent season.

See also Boardwalk Empire 4.1: Sneak Preview Review ... Boardwalk Empire 4.2: Sneak Preview Review ... Boardwalk Empire 4.2: J. Edgar ...Boardwalk Empire Sneak Preview Review 4.3: Honey, Sunny ...Boardwalk Empire 4.3: Nucky, Sunshine, and Heroin ... Boardwalk Empire Sneak Preview Review 4.4: Downfalls ... Boardwalk Empire 4.4: Bullies and Betrayals ... Boardwalk Empire Sneak Preview 4.5: The Gift of Rage ... Boardwalk 4.5: Two Deaths ... Boardwalk Empire Sneak Preview 4.6: Good Lovin' ... Boardwalk Empire 4.6: Sally and Margaret ... Boardwalk Empire Sneak Preview 4.7: Beds, Promotions, Surprises ... Boardwalk Empire 4.7: Family and History ... Boardwalk Empire Sneak Preview 4.8: The Blues ... Boardwalk Empire 4.8: Knives in the Back ... Boardwalk Empire 4.9: The Imbecile

And see also Boardwalk Empire 3.1: Happy News Year 1923  ... Boardwalk Empire 3.2: Gasoline and the White Rock Girl ... Boardwalk Empire 3.3: The Showgirl and The Psycho ... Boardwalk Empire 3.5: "10 L'Chaim" ... Boardwalk Empire 3.7: Deadly Gillian ... Boardwalk Empire 3.8: Andrew Mellon ... Boardwalk Empire 3.9: Impaired Nucky

And see also Boardwalk Empire 2.1: Politics in an Age Before YouTube  ... Boardwalk Empire 2.2: The Woman Behind the Throne ... Boardwalk Empire 2.3: Frankenstein and Victrola ... Boardwalk Empire 2.4: Nearly Flagrante Delicto ... Boardwalk Empire 2.5: Richard's Story ... Boardwalk Empire 2.6: Owen and Other Bad News for Nucky ... Boardwalk Empire 2.7: Shot in the Hand  ...Boardwalk Empire 2.8: Pups with Fangs ... Boardwalk Empire 2.9: Ireland, Radio, Polio ...Boardwalk Empire 2.10: Double Shot ... Boardwalk Empire 2.11: Gillian and Jimmy  ... Boardwalk Empire Season 2 Finale: Stunner!

And see also Boardwalk Emipre on HBO ... Boardwalk Empire 1.2: Lines and Centers Power ...Boardwalk Empire 1.10: Arnold Rothstein, Media Theorist  ... Season One Finale of Boardwalk Empire





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The Blacklist 1.7: Natural Immunity

One of the best Blacklists on this past Monday, reminiscent of Fringe in its biological theme, which makes sense, given that J. R. Orci wrote it, and he was one of the best writers on Fringe.

I guessed that Barnes was out to get a cure for his son, as soon as it was clear that he was interested in the woman who survived his germ attack in the courtroom.  Spreading an almost instantly deadly illness - a hyped up version of what is afflicting his son - is a bit extreme, but makes good epidemiological sense.

Less understandable is why Lizzie killed him, rather than letting Barnes inject his son with the possible cure.  We saw at the end that she agonized about this decision, but for my money, not quite enough. But ethical quandaries and disagreement over decisions make for good television.   And it was good to see Robert Sean Leonard aka House's Wilson in the lead villainous role, and a nice couplet with the slightly deranged by good scientist he played on Revolution last year.

The show is still dancing around on whether Red is really Liz's father, and the coming attractions promise more  of this.  As I've indicated several times, it will almost be counter-climactic when we find out that he is, which makes me think that he isn't.  But if not, then what exactly is his relationship to Elizabeth?

And husband is still a question mark, which makes Elizabeth's lovey-doveying him disquieting.   All in all, The Blacklist is probably the edgiest show on television right now, with James Spader the perfect persona to carry this forward.

See also The Blacklist Debuts: Alias Meets Jay Z ... The Blacklist 1.2: Mysteries ... The Blacklist 1.3: Construction Site Heights ... The Blacklist 1.6: Truth and Enigma




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Revolution 2.7: Firestarter Aaron vs. the Creepster

Well,  Zeljko Ivanek, who's specialty is playing oldster cerebral creepsters, usually working for the government or in some position of administrative power, has made his way to Revolution in just such a role.   We saw a bit of him last week, but in tonight's episode 2.7 he's on the scene in full force, using the weight of his vicious intellect to identify and get in tow the firestarter - that is, Aaron.

The other major character tonight is Rachel's father, the not-so-good Dr. Gene Porter.  Last week, it looked like he was the patriots' mole.  Tonight we learn that for sure, and Stephen Collins puts in a good performance as the tortured doctor who made a deal with the devil - the patriots - in order to keep bringing medicine to the town.

His reluctant treachery might have done Aaron in - or at least seen him taken into custody by the neo-Nazi USA - but, after all, he's Aaron, with his super Heroes-like power (hey, Zejko was on that show, too), so it was completely predictable that when pressed to the wall (actually, it was to the ground), Aaron would set his would-be captors ablaze.   But it was good to see Monroe step up, after all the trouble that Rachel went through to save his life.

So now Zeljko - that's a much cooler name than whatever his character is called on Revolution - has more reason than ever to twist the doctor's arm and find Aaron.  But, again, isn't Zeljko worried that Aaron will set him ablaze, with his control of the nanites - or does Zeljko have a way of neutralizing Aaron's power?  Not likely, since he apparently is not even super clear yet on what that power is, though he has a pretty good idea.

Back East, there's no talk of firestarting powers at all, but Tom and his son seem reunited, and back on the trail of high officials in the dictatorial new US of A.  I have a feeling, though, that Tom's pursuit of revenge will run into the one thing that will stop it - his wife, who's probably still alive, and, it just occurs to me, may be a high official in the patriots herself.   At very least, it will be good to see Kim Raver (who plays Tom's wife) and Zejko in a scene together, though will take some doing, since they're now in different parts of the country.  They were both in 24, but in different seasons.

Good plot possibilities, good science fiction, bring it on.

See also Revolution 2.1: "The Last Surviving Friend" ... Revolution 2.2: Reanimation ... Revolution 2.4: Nanites and ... Maybe Aliens?

And see also Revolution: Preview Review  ... Revolution 1.2: Fast Changes ... Revolution 1.14: Nanites and Jack Bauer ... Revolution 1.15: Major Tom and More 24 ... Revolution 1.16: Feeling a Little Like the Hatch in Lost ... Revolution 1.17: Even Better Nanites ... Revolution 1.18: Whodunnit? ... Revolution 1.19: Cheney's Bunker ... Revolution Season 1 Finale: Good Pivot




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Boardwalk Empire Sneak Preview Review 4.10: Unholy Alliances

Continuing with my sneak preview reviews of Boardwalk Empire - this one of 4.10 - courtesy of screeners from Starpulse, guaranteed to be specific spoiler free, and to be followed this Sunday with a proper recap/review right after the episode has aired in New York City, just up the road from A.C.

This is a real hit-the-fan episode, bursting with gunplay, verbal confrontations, great lines, and surprising, unholy alliances.

First, on the death count - lots of peripherals killed, and three major characters are in deadly peril from bullets.   I won't tell you their names, because you'd know that two survived, based on their names, and what we know about them in real history.  As for the third ... well, I said above, this review will be specific-spoiler free.

The unholy alliances are disturbing, gratifying and, in one case, a real stunner that drastically ups the ante against Nucky.   One takes place totally in New York City, and we could sort have seen it coming. The stunner entails Atlantic City and NYC.

Nucky gets off the best line, telling Narcisse that he's wanted to ask him a question since ever first they met - "who the fuck do you think you are".   The delivery is vintage Steve Buscemi, in a tone of voice we've admired since Reservoir Dogs.

Alliances - unholy and otherwise - speak to loyalty, and the position of Eli, pressed by Feds, trying to protect his son but loathe to sell Nucky down the river, is the central theme of this taut episode.   The last scene could have come right out of The Godfather - and, come to think of it, there's 1920s music that sounds like it could have come from The Godfather in one of the scenes in Florida.

And I'll be back with more detailed proper review shortly after this episode airs on Sunday.

See also Boardwalk Empire 4.1: Sneak Preview Review ... Boardwalk Empire 4.2: Sneak Preview Review ... Boardwalk Empire 4.2: J. Edgar ...Boardwalk Empire Sneak Preview Review 4.3: Honey, Sunny ...Boardwalk Empire 4.3: Nucky, Sunshine, and Heroin ... Boardwalk Empire Sneak Preview Review 4.4: Downfalls ... Boardwalk Empire 4.4: Bullies and Betrayals ... Boardwalk Empire Sneak Preview 4.5: The Gift of Rage ... Boardwalk 4.5: Two Deaths ... Boardwalk Empire Sneak Preview 4.6: Good Lovin' ... Boardwalk Empire 4.6: Sally and Margaret ... Boardwalk Empire Sneak Preview 4.7: Beds, Promotions, Surprises ... Boardwalk Empire 4.7: Family and History ... Boardwalk Empire Sneak Preview 4.8: The Blues ... Boardwalk Empire 4.8: Knives in the Back ... Boardwalk Empire 4.9: The Imbecile

And see also Boardwalk Empire 3.1: Happy News Year 1923  ... Boardwalk Empire 3.2: Gasoline and the White Rock Girl ... Boardwalk Empire 3.3: The Showgirl and The Psycho ... Boardwalk Empire 3.5: "10 L'Chaim" ... Boardwalk Empire 3.7: Deadly Gillian ... Boardwalk Empire 3.8: Andrew Mellon ... Boardwalk Empire 3.9: Impaired Nucky

And see also Boardwalk Empire 2.1: Politics in an Age Before YouTube  ... Boardwalk Empire 2.2: The Woman Behind the Throne ... Boardwalk Empire 2.3: Frankenstein and Victrola ... Boardwalk Empire 2.4: Nearly Flagrante Delicto ... Boardwalk Empire 2.5: Richard's Story ... Boardwalk Empire 2.6: Owen and Other Bad News for Nucky ... Boardwalk Empire 2.7: Shot in the Hand  ...Boardwalk Empire 2.8: Pups with Fangs ... Boardwalk Empire 2.9: Ireland, Radio, Polio ...Boardwalk Empire 2.10: Double Shot ... Boardwalk Empire 2.11: Gillian and Jimmy  ... Boardwalk Empire Season 2 Finale: Stunner!


And see also Boardwalk Emipre on HBO ... Boardwalk Empire 1.2: Lines and Centers Power ...Boardwalk Empire 1.10: Arnold Rothstein, Media Theorist  ... Season One Finale of Boardwalk Empire




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Bones 9.7: Watch Out, Buenos Aires

A nice light Bones 9.7 tonight as we find our newly married couple on their honeymoon in Buenos Aires.   But as is always the case with Bones, there's profundity undergirding the frivolity and making for an altogether satisfying episode.

Bones of course can't resist getting involved in a bones case in Buenos Aires, and Booth's resistance melts with the flattery he receives from the many who recognize his greatness in Argentina.  How does that happen?  Well, we're treated to another episode in which Bones' work as an author of forensic science detective fiction figures in the story - novels in which Bones and Booth are both characters under other names, and in the case of Bones, with the always fine meta-touch that her character is named Kathy Reichs, who of course is the author in real life of the books upon which Bones the television show is based.   There's just no better example of such meta-twistery on television.

Meanwhile, the murder to be solved is that of a Nazi in his 90s who's bludgeoned to death by a bar of his ill-gotten gold.  The suspects are plentiful, and, for once, I was mostly fooled as to who did the murder until close to the very end.

But my favorite part of the story, old softy and sentimentalist that I am, were Angela and Hodgins taking care of taking of Christine while Bones and Booth are in South America, along with their own little boy Michael.  The kids of course keep them up, the couple are sleep deprived and grousing, but in end agree that they both want another baby.

So, once again, Bones proves to be about death only on the surface.  Deep down, the series is one of the best celebrations of life and its joys you're likely to see on any screen.

See also Bones 9.1: The Sweet Misery of Love ... Bones 9.2: Bobcat, Identity Theft, and Sweets ... Bones 9.3 and NCIS 11.2: Sweets and Ziva ... Bones 9.4: Metaphysics of Death in a Television Series ... Bones 9.5: Val and Deep Blue ... Bones 9.6: The Wedding

And see also Bones 8.1: Walk Like an Egyptian ... Bones 8.2 of Contention ... Bones 8.3: Not Rotting Behind a Desk  ... Bones 8.4: Slashing Tiger and Donald Trump ... Bones 8.5: Applesauce on Election Eve ... Bones 8.6: Election Day ... Bones 8.7: Dollops in the Sky with Diamonds ...Bones 8.8: The Talking Remains ... Bones 8.9: I Am A Camera ... Bones 8.10-11: Double Bones ...Bones 8.12: Face of Enigmatic Evil ... Bones 8.13: Two for the Price of One ... Bones 8.14: Real Life ... Bones 8.15: The Magic Bullet and the Be-Spontaneous Paradox ... Bones 8.16: Bitter-Sweet Sweets and Honest Finn ... Bones 8.17: "Not Time Share, Time Travel" ... Bones 8.18: Couples ... Bones 8.19: The Head in the Toilet ... Bones 8.20: On Camera ... Bones 8.21: Christine, Hot Sauce, and the Judge ... Bones 8.22: Musical-Chair Parents ... Bones 8.23: The Bluff ... Bones Season 8 Finale: Can't Buy the Last Few Minutes

And see also Bones 7.1: Almost Home Sweet Home ... Bones 7.2: The New Kid and the Fluke ...Bones 7.3: Lance Bond and Prince Charmington ... Bones 7.4: The Tush on the Xerox ... Bones 7.5: Sexy Vehicle ... Bones 7.6: The Reassembler ... Bones 7.7: Baby! ... Bones 7.8: Parents ...Bones 7.9: Tabitha's Salon ... Bones 7.10: Mobile ... Bones 7.11: Truffles and Max ... Bones 7.12: The Corpse is Hanson ... Bones Season 7 Finale: Suspect Bones

And see also Bones 6.1: The Linchpin ... Bones 6.2: Hannah and her Prospects ... Bones 6.3 at the Jersey Shore, Yo, and Plymouth Rock ... Bones 6.4 Sans Hannah ... Bones 6.5: Shot and Pretty ... Bones 6.6: Accidental Relations ... Bones 6.7:  Newman and "Death by Chocolate" ...Bones 6.8: Melted Bones ... Bones 6.9: Adelbert Ames, Jr. ... Bones 6.10: Reflections ... Bones 6.11: The End and the Beginning of a Mystery ... Bones 6.12 Meets Big Love ... Bones 6.13: The Marrying Kind ... Bones 6.14: Bones' Acting Ability ... Bones 6.15: "Lunch for the Palin Family" ...Bones 6.16: Stuck in an Elevator, Stuck in Times ... Bones 6.17: The 8th Pair of Feet ... Bones 6.18: The Wile E. Chupacabra ... Bones 6.19 Test Runs The Finder ... Bones 6.20: This Very Statement is a Lie ... Bones 6.21: Sensitive Bones ... Bones 6.22: Phoenix Love ... Bones Season 6 Finale: Beautiful

And see also Bones: Hilarity and Crime and Bones is Back For Season 5: What Is Love? and 5.2: Anonymous Donors and Pipes and 5.3: Bones in Amish Country and 5.4: Bones Meets Peyton Place and Desperate Housewives and Ancient Bones 5.5 and Bones 5.6: A Chicken in Every Viewer's Pot and Psychological Bones 5.7 and Bones 5.8: Booth's "Pops" and Bones 5.9 Meets Avatar and Videogamers ... Bad Santa, Heart-Warming Bones 5.10 ... Bones 5.11: Of UFOs, Bloggers, and Triangles ... Bones 5.12: A Famous Skeleton and Angela's Baby ... Love with Teeth on Bones 5.13 ... Faith vs. Science vs. Psychology in Bones 5.14 ... Page 187 in Bones 5.15 ...Bones 100: Two Deep Kisses and One Wild Relationship ... Bones 5.17: The Deadly Stars ...Bones Under Water in 5.18 ... Bones 5.19: Ergo Together ...  Bones 5.20: Ergo Together ... Bones 5.21: The Rarity of Happy Endings ... Bones Season 5 Finale: Eye and Evolution




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