Monsters of Television

“The time is now…Tetris?“

I am of two minds about “Operation P.R.O.M.” and I bet you can guess which ways I’m leaning.

This season has been pretty frustrating due to the long breaks between halves, the low lows, and the high highs. It’s only fitting then that this episode captures all of those joys and annoyances in a single episode. Compounding my anxiety is whether or not this is a season finale, which it is billed as or if it’s a series finale, which it very well cold be (Adult Swim hasn’t ordered a fifth season). Read more »

“We sold ourselves to vampires!“

This is not the way to go into a month-long hiatus, The Venture Bros.

It isn’t that “The Silent Partners” is a bad episode, but it’s just not particularly good. It’s the kind of flabby, aimless storytelling that has marked the show for much of this season, and some of last. I don’t object to the in media res storytelling (Billy’s working at a hospital? He and Pete suddenly have tons of cash?) since the episode does explain it, but I do object to the lack of throughline in the episode’s purpose. Read more »

“Aw, geeze, he must’ve gotten sucked into my enigma hole.”

I missed last week’s very fun send-up of noirs with Hank due to schedule craziness (read: I was dead tired). I really enjoyed the episode though as it tied up some dangling mysteries (never thought for a second that Dermott belonged to Brock) and paired Hank and Al together in a very productive (and meaningful way). But that episode has nothing on the sheer lunacy and cleverness of “Bright Lights, Dean City.” Read more »

“They’re like The Notebook sad.“

Meh, you win some, you lose some.

“Any Which Way But Zeus” is a smattering of jokes, none of which really come together, even at the end of the episode which is often when the show salvages itself with a solid turn of the screw. Part of the problem is structural, as all the characters are kept separated from one another  but since there’s three on-going plots, none get developed to the point of providing laughs or emotions. It all falls flatter than that Zeus cardboard cutout. Read more »

“You’re lucky you weren’t on duty when he had his conjugal visit with a freaking shoe.”

This review will have to be quick and dirty, which is fitting since this episode was more or less the same way. While last week’s episode was a glorious romp, “Pomp & Circuitry” feels like a great deal of piece moving to (hopefully) gets things in place for the tail end of the season that leads to a big splashy event like Season 2’s “Showdown at Cremation Creek” 2-parter.

The continues to conspire against anyone being happy, as Dean doesn’t seem on going to State University (and why would he? Look at all the nuts that went there before him!) and Hank wants to head over to the army (when he really means S.P.H.I.N.X (Sphinx!)) instead of going to college, and Rusty learns that his name is essentially meaningless (again). The only one seems to have anything going for him is Phantom Limb, and he’s still in love with a high heel he stole from Dr. Mrs. The Monarch. Read more »

“They discover us like every other week!”

Oh thank David Bowie, The Venture Bros. is back.

After a 9-month hiatus (for which I assume that torturing me was the only reason for), The Venture Bros. returns with an episode forces you read between the lines to understand what’s going on. But, then, Venture has always been like this. Like  Jeremy Mongeau tweeted by in August, The Venture Bros. is a show obsessed with its continuity while doing episodic, anthology-esque work week-to-week (Mongeau highlights this season in particular, but I think we can apply it fairly well across the show).

It is “a contradiction” even moreso in that new viewers should be able to come in and understand what’s going on with with little in the way of clearly defined expo speak. But, again, The Venture Bros. straddles the difference, being a show that gives solid and recognizable pop culture references and daring-do nostalgia for new folks, but rewards viewers who are as familiar with the series as the creators. Read more »