Amph What was the last tv episode you watched?

Unless I'm mistaken, that episode is the first time we actually see Klingon ships. The explanation is that the Klingons and Romulans had an alliance around that time, and the Klingons shared technology.

 

PCCViking I'm not a Trekspert by any means, but I'm enough of a fan that I recognized what looked to me like the Klingon ships I was familiar with. I was curious if maybe they'd redressed them a bit and tried to pass them off as Romulan as a cost saving measure (I'm guessing there was much less fan oversight on such canonical issues pre-internet), so I went to Wikipedia after the episode was over and they had this explanation.

The D7 models for the Romulan warships are actually Klingon ships, used instead of the Romulan Bird-of-Prey model seen in the episode "Balance of Terror". Although in production order the model was first used (as a Klingon ship) in "Elaan of Troyius", in transmission order it is first seen in this episode. It was stated in the first draft of the script that the Romulans and Klingons had an exchange of technology, where Romulans received four Klingon heavy D7 battlecruisers and the Klingons were given Romulan cloaking technology.

There have been two different explanations over the years for this apparent exchange of technology. According to one account, the show's production staff had just finished new Klingon ship models and wanted to show off Matt Jeffries' work and help boost sales on the about-to-be released model kit from AMT. Another report - one considered most likely by Trek historians and somewhat confirmed by model master and sculptor Wah Chang in a 1982 National Public Radio interview - was that the original Bird-of-Prey model was destroyed after its initial use in "Balance of Terror". According to Wah in the interview, there were some issues over payment for the model - which he had designed and built - following a complaint by one of the special effects unions over Wah's non-membership. Desilu and the Star Trek production staff used his talents anyway, claiming that the props he made were already made and "bought off the shelf". However, the local guild had evidence that Wah had built the Bird-of-Prey model specifically for the show, and after some negotiation agreed to drop the grievance if Wah received no payment for the model. Desilu capitulated, and returned the model to Wah. In a fit of anger, Wah took the model into his back yard, and proceeded to bash it to bits with a sledge hammer.

 

Star Trek: The Animated Series S2, Ep.6 "The Counter-Clock Incident" (1974) - Plot; While on a mission to take Commodore Robert April--the Enterprise's first commander--to his retirement ceremony, Kirk and his crew are pulled into an alternate universe where time goes in reverse.

Wonky science aside (I'm no Sir Isaac Einstein, but even I know none of this adds up), this is a semi-somewhat-kinda compelling episode that ultimately delivers a good message about ageism and our tendency to undervalue the hard earned wisdom won through experience. - 6/10

- Once again James Doohan is MVP, voicing four different characters.

- In this alternate universe, people are born fully grown. Ouchie.

- This was the last episode of ST:TAS.

 

Inside Number 9 .

this show is brilliant , anthology stories with a twist on BBC ,

 

Batman: The Animated Series S1, Ep.23 "Perchance to Dream" (1992) - Plot; In pursuit of fleeing criminals, Batman is knocked unconscious and awakens to a life where Bruce Wayne's parents are alive and someone else is Batman.

This tumble down the rabbit hole is a great example of what makes Batman: The Animated Series one of the best cartoons of all-time. The focus isn't on fisticuffs and explosions and the like, but on drama; here an increasingly feverish and tightly wound tale that takes Bruce to the razor's edge. The ultimate twist isn't as satisfying as it could've been, but it doesn't take away from the power and effectiveness of this beautifully askew tale. - 8/10

- Gotta give a special shout out to actor Kevin Conroy (Batman/Bruce Wayne), who gives a really strong performance here.

 

That's a really memorable episode of the show. Very nice Twilight-Zoney episode. The solution to these kind of mysteries is always a disappointment simply because the mystery is so cool and this is no exception that that but it's a great episode.

 

Rogue1-and-a-half Spot on. Very Twilight Zone. It is tricky to stick the landing on such stories, as we tend to try and get ahead of mysteries by nature, and often arrive somewhere completely different than the story.

Speaking of mysteries...

The X-Files S1, Ep. 1 "The Pilot" (1993) - Plot; An FBI agent is teamed with another agent whose assignment is to cover cases outside of normal parameters.

A show that should absolutely have been in my wheelhouse in the 90s (I was 19 when it debuted), yet I think I've only seen one or maybe two episodes of The X-Files. Being the pop culture archeologist that I am, I'm aware of the basics and the iconography of it. I was long overdue to give it a shot when I came across S1 on DVD at Walmart for $10 and decided to see if I too believed.

Pilot episode is standard length, yet it quickly lays its track, setting up the premise and the characters with great efficiency. By the 1/4 mark it feels like an established series. Stars David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson inhabit their roles from the get go and have a strong chemistry right out of the gate. Duchovny's Mulder is a mix of dry and sardonic and yet boyishly enthusiastic about his mission. Anderson's Scully could easily get overshadowed as the logical skeptic, but she and Mulder share an almost Kirk/Spock relationship... but with sexual tension.

This first episode is pretty standard stuff story-wise, but as with most such endeavors it's all in the execution, and here The X-Files delivers an effectively creepy 48 minutes. - 7/10

 

Juke Skywalker **** me! You're doing The X-Files?! I am with you all the way on this journey. I picked up the nine season blu-ray set a while back and started from the beginning. Prior to starting this time, I'd seen seasons one & two in their entirety; a lot of seasons three, four & five; a bit of six; almost none of seven & eight; and nothing from nine. I'm about a third of the way through season three currently. We'll have fun talking about this! I'll be very interested to see how you progress over season one; it's really patchy, but there are a handful here that are right up there with the best of the series. And some that are the worst too, but we'll skip on that.

I give the Pilot a full endorsement. Like you say, by about fifteen minutes in, it feels like a series you've already watched for a few weeks. And, for a Pilot, it's strikingly assured. Very little changes for the series proper. About the only thing here that doesn't carry over at all to the series is that weird scene of Anderson in her underwear; very weird and the show proper traffics in exactly zero of that kind of stuff. Gives the Pilot a weird vibe when you're watching it again (I've seen it . . . five times probably).

So, you've seen only a bit; how up on the series arc are you? Like do you know any of the recurring characters or any of the larger plot points of the series? I figure you've assimilated a bit culturally, but hopefully not too much.

 

As far as pilots go, the X-Files is probably as close to a perfect pilot as it gets. It set the premise and the lead characters up perfectly and didn't do any noticeable departures from it once it went into series proper.

 

I think my favorite moment is a really small one. It's when Scully arrives after she's been hit by the cop (um spoilers lol) and she comes up beside Mulder and she just says, "Mulder. There was a light." At the end of the day, all the evidence is gone; the body, the x-rays, the implant . . . it's all gone. But there's one thing no one can change: what Scully saw. There was a light. There was.

As you can tell, I care about this show way too much. And I should say, cheaply as that DVD set came, if you do find yourself falling under the show's spell, I'd highly recommend checking out the newest blu-ray release. I've seen the first two seasons on DVD and the picture quality is a stunning upgrade and the sound is better too; Mark Snow's always excellent music just really shimmers. And they're in widescreen too! After years of speculation that there wasn't an original film source to go back to, Chris Carter dropped a bombshell twist worthy of the series: they'd filmed the entire series in widescreen even though there wasn't a use for it! Carter was a visionary in so many ways.

 

Rogue1-and-a-half It's been a long time coming. How a 19 year old me didn't get swept up in the buzz and hype of a show that seemed right up my alley is a mystery Mulder and Scully couldn't solve. By the time I was ready to believe a few years later, the train had left the station, and there was no such thing as DVD or streaming to allow me to play catchup. I've wanted to give it a go for a while now, and the hype surrounding last year's revival only increased that desire. So when I saw S1 for a paltry $10 at Wally World, I figured what the heck (they also had a S1-4 pack for $32, but I was more in a dip my toe in the water than a jump in the deep end kinda mood).

I'm absolutely atrocious at sticking with a show on a consistent basis. I bought Star Trek: TOS complete series on BluRay last Summer and I've maybe watched half of it, skipping around between seasons. Same with the original Battlestar Galactica, Knight Rider and Airwolf; The latter two sitting here basically untouched.

But I'll by God be chipping my way through X-Files, and I look forward to our conversation on it .

Yeah, that felt like gratuitous eye candy and out of place with the series as I know it. It was 90s era Fox, so it fit in with that sort of Melrose Place zeitgeist of the moment and was likely a studio note "Get the girl in her skivvies.". That sort of thing is fine in a series whose premise is pretty people in their undies, but it doesn't fit in here. Glad to hear it's a one time glitch.

My one real memory of watching the series came early on in S1. My friend and I were visiting another friend who'd moved into a new apartment just off campus with his future wife. We went over to sorta help christen the place (and move a large couch up a narrow staircase) and we followed it up with pizza and an episode of this new Fox series getting so much hype. But you can't wade into pop culture at large without the flotsam and jetsam of things you don't even follow sticking to you, so I know about the Smoking Man (Though not exactly who or what he is), the conspiracy loving Lone Gunman (Though no details about them. No story beats), that Mulder leaves the show at some point. Scully gets pregnant I think? But in terms of spoilers, I'm more or less spoiler free.

I was struck by that as well. I knew enough to know that Scully is the skeptic. It's an important dynamic, but I wondered how long they could keep that up. I mean, she's going to see stuff. At some point she's going to have to start to believe herself. But here, where she's a beat late to see actual event, but sees enough to begin to plant that seed, was clever and well done. Not sure how long they can stretch that out before it starts to become grating or silly...

Scully and Mulder are strapped down to examination tables, surrounded by small grey beings not of this world.

Mulder: Now. Now do you finally believe, Scully?!

Scully: Maybe they're...just from...Alaska. Don't get a lot of...sun.

Nice! Yeah, I was actually impressed by the picture quality considering the show is over 20 years old and is on standard DVD, but the formatting isn't the most handsome presentation. I'm sorta used to it, having so many 80s shows on DVD, but I can only imagine it's a better experience in WS.

Yeah, that's what struck me. Again, having not watched it, I wasn't sure if there would be some details in the pilot that would get changed, retconned or dropped altogether, but what was there--the characters--felt very much like I knew them from afar all these years. I've seen enough pilots to know there are tweaks, but this felt fully formed out of the gate.

 

*Some vague spoilers within*

Star Wars: Rebels S3, Ep. 19 "Twin Suns" (2017) - Plot; Ezra sneaks off to Tatooine in search of Obi-Wan Kenobi, but finds he's not the only one trying to find the Jed Master.

I've always had mixed feelings about exploring what happens with Obi-Wan in the years between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope. On the one hand, it's reasonable to assume he didn't sit around his hovel counting grains of sand for twenty years, and the idea of more time spent with this beloved character is appealing. On the other hand, there's always a danger of demystifying him and his journey, robbing that moment in A New Hope where he appears again of some of its power. But this being a cartoon, it's not quite the same as them doing a live action anthology film (Which has long been rumored, and Ewan McGregor has said as recently as this week that he's game for), so...

If you're expecting an epic showdown between old foes Kenobi and Maul, prepare to be disappointed. The clash here is over within seconds. But nevertheless, there's some drama to be mined and mine it they do. Stephen Stanton, who voices Obi-Wan, is particularly good, expertly evoking the late Alec Guinness. His brief interactions with Ezra and then Maul are poignant and the final moments will likely give fans a chill. Not all it could have been, and if you're going to bring in Kenobi, you need to have a better reason than a simple ratings grab, which this felt like. - 7/10

 

Star Trek S3, Ep.23 "All Our Yesterdays" (1969) - Plot; The Enterprise arrives at a planet whose sun is about to go supernova to begin an evacuation. When sensors indicate the planet is uninhabited, Kirk, Spock and McCoy beam down to investigate.

S3 of Star Trek is famous--or perhaps infamous--for its drastically reduced quality thanks in no small part to NBC slashing its budget. But there are a few highly regarded episodes from that final season, and one of them is "All Our Yesterdays".

There's never any real explanation as to why or how the people of this planet created a device that allows them to go back in time, or why they chose to do this instead of simply fleeing their planet, but what it lacks in logic it makes up for by being a solid dramatic device. With a ticking clock and our heroes separated, there's a nice energy to the episode. Kirk's arc is pretty empty from a dramatic perspective, but as he's the one who can get them back to the present and off the planet before things go "Boom!", there's some nice intensity to his scenes. With Spock and McCoy, the gristle is the fact that Spock, 5,000 years in the past, begins to revert to the passion of his more barbaric ancestors. This creates nice tension to balance out Kirk's action oriented arc.

A little more *ahem* logic to the plot device would've gone a long way toward making this a top-tier episode. As it stands, it's still pretty good, and if one grades it on a S3 curve, pretty darn good. - 7/10

- The episode features a young and quite fetching Mariette Hartley.

- This was the second to last episode of ST:TOS to air.

 

G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero S2, Ep.8 "Sink the Montana" (1986) - Plot; When the U.S.S. Montana is decommissioned, her captain makes a deal to steal the legendary battleship and turn it over to Cobra.

I love my 80s 'toons. Sure, some of it is nostalgia--in some cases that's all it is--but with G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero I genuinely still enjoy going on missions with America's daring, highly trained special mission force. It's a brand that really excelled across all formats; 'toon, comic and toy line. "Sink the Montana" is one of the better regarded episodes by Joe fans, and for good reason. The logic of a dedicated captain betraying his country for a terrorist organization because he's miffed about his beloved ship being decommissioned doesn't hold up to much scrutiny... until you factor in that by this point Cobra was being lead by a man created from the DNA of history's greatest tyrants.

There's some humor to be had, with Shipwreck getting into pirate mode when the Joes are forced to use the U.S.S. Constitution (launched in 1797 and the oldest commissioned vessel in the U.S. Navy), but otherwise it plays things pretty serious and straightforward. Or as serious and straightforward as you can with android soldiers running into a hail of laser beams. - 7.5/10

 

That is absolutely an issue with the series going forward, but, like I say, I'm midway through season three and I was just thinking after a two-parter that I watched the other day that the show managed to do a good job with that. I mean, she does change over the arc of the series and I'll avoid spoilers since you're basically spoiler free (which is going to make the show a wonderful experience), but in many ways, I feel like the show really is kind of about her journey at the end of the day. The show particularly struggles with her "skeptic" role in the first season. There's a moment in Shadows, episode six, I think, that is one of the most laughably silly moments of the whole series. But by the point I'm at, the show has found a nice way to explore her character and keep her scientific mindset intact while also allowing her to become more and more immersed in the strange events the show traffics in. It's not perfect and it's easy to make fun of her character as its written at times, but, for the most part, they did a really good job keeping her character honest.

It's a super-long show, I know, but I really hope you are able to get invested past season one. It just gets richer and richer from there. Until about season six. Then it stops getting richer. If you know what I mean. But, yes, I always enjoy your reviews for other shows, so I'm particularly curious to see how you react to some of the first season episodes coming up.

 

If only there were another show about a very honorable woman's journey and her overcoming skepticism, huh Rogue1.5?

 

That's definitely a necessary characteristic for the formula of the series; You have the true believer and the skeptic. That's the dynamic that really makes it go. And because of the nature of the show, where there's never an instant of doubt on the audience's part that the supernatural aspects are real (We're there to witness it happening first hand), Mulder isn't going to be the one changing. He's right, we know he's right, and we're just waiting for Scully to get wise. But that puts the show on a tricky footing. For it to work, you need that ideological tug of war, but on the other hand, you can't drag it out to the point where it's ridiculous. So in that way it's the same as a "Will they or won't they?". You can only drag it out so long before it reaches a breaking point, and if you put them together, *poof*, there goes that essential component.

Oh sure, there's always a dramatic shelf life to any show. There's kind of an expiration date built into them, and very few exit the stage gracefully.

Thanks, and ditto . My goal is to watch it on my days off, when I have a little more time. I like to watch something before bed most days, but often find I only have time for something a half hour or less, hence the high number of 'toon reviews of late. On my days off I try to get in a movie and a few hour long dramas, which is where X-Files comes in.

 

Spider-Man S2, Ep.3 "Swing City" (1968) - Plot; A disgruntled (and inexplicably green) scientist takes over a new nuclear power plant and holds the city to ransom.

Fear not faithful webheads! Our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man hasn't fallen prey to the temptations of these tempestuous times! The "Swing" in "Swing City" doesn't refer to the dirty deeds of those counter culture hippies with their rock 'n roll and hair down past their collars!

This was a fun episode. The villain (The Master Technician!) isn't, as far as I know, a part of Spidey's actual rogue's gallery, and he's about as generic as it gets. But the drama with Peter/Spidey trying to balance saving the city with making a study date with a beautiful classmate is a hoot, and the visuals and music are super groovy. Just check out the video below (go to 1:08). - 7/10

 

"The Shark Affair", one of the early Season 1 episodes of "The Man from U.N.C.L.E." Features a good turn from Robert Culp as the special guest villain.

 

Star Wars Rebels S3, Ep.20 "Zero Hour: Part 1" (2017) - Plot; As the Rebels prepare to mount an attack to free the planet of Lothal, Grand Admiral Thrawn intercepts their plans and mounts an offensive to destroy them before they can launch.

IMO, S3 of Rebels has been uneven, and even at its best, not up to the standard set in S2. There have been some solid episodes, but few standouts ("Through Imperial Eyes" and "Trials of the Darksaber" come to mind). In this first of a two-part finale, the series gets back to what it does best, even if it's still not quite the series at its best. The pieces are in place for a strong closer, and that could rectify many of S3's sins, because as the old saying goes, "It's not how you start, it's how you finish.". - 7.5/10

 

Star Wars Rebels S3, Ep.21 "Zero Hour: Part 2" (2017) - Plot; The Empire unleashes an assault on the Rebels while Ezra escapes to find help from an old friend.

Picking up right where Pt.1 left off, everything comes to a head in typical season finale fashion. Surprises are few (if any), but there's fun to be had; particularly Ezra and the Mandalorian's low-g assault on the hull of an Imperial ship. This episode really reminded me a lot of The Empire Strikes Back, where victory is measured by our heroes surviving and there's a hint that it's always darkest just before the dawn. It's not a transcendent episode by means, but it's got the kind of emotional purchase and narrative significance that the series should strive for each and every time out. - 7.5/10

 

Rogue1-and-a-half finally got around to Ep.2 of The X-Files...

The X-Files S1, Ep.2 "Deep Throat" (1993) - Plot; Mulder and Scully investigate the disappearance of a test pilot who may have been involved in a project that reverse engineered alien technology.

In a manor that is simple but effective, this second episode both tells a standalone story and begins to build its universe. We're introduced early on to a shadowy character (Deep Throat, though never named so on screen) without a specific connection to the story at hand. He warns Mulder about the danger of investigating the rash of elite test pilots who have gone missing or suffered severe trauma at an Air Force base in South Dakota and then falls out of the story until the very end. In a wraparound, he meets with Mulder in a bit of an "I told ya so" moment and tells him that "they" (aliens) have been on Earth for a long time. This Deep Throat, whose motivations and background are never revealed, would seem to be the first of many such characters to populate this paranoia soaked world.

The episode itself is reasonably solid, with the Mulder/Scully dynamic firmly in place and both actors already having a pretty good handle on their characters. We once again see Mulder and Scully separated at the "See! See! Alien stuff!" moment, but honestly it's far too early for there to be fissures in Scully's world view, so I give it a pass. - 7/10

- A very young Seth Green has a small role as a stoner who regularly sneaks onto the base with his girlfriend and has seen the strange goings on.

 

Seth Green is the first of many, many actors you'll see on the X-Files that would later make it pretty big. I think he's wonderful in this episode. This is a very slow-paced episode (not a complaint or anything, just a fact) and so I think he adds a really nice spark in the scene in the diner. His prop work with the hamburger is gold.

Jerry Hardin doesn't have much to do yet as Deep Throat, but he'll become a genuinely mythic figure. I think it's amazing how much he registers just in this episode when he's only in it for about a minute and a half. Hardin's a real pro and perfect casting. I feel like they only call him Deep Throat once in the entire series and that one is kind of tossed off as a reference to the famous Deep Throat rather than a real term they use for him, ie. "this Deep Throat character." The final scene is great. "They've been here a very long time." This is an early example of the show sacrificing reality in service of being really striking in a visual or an emotional way. i mean, Deep Throat is supposed to be this really secretive character who can't allow himself to be exposed. So he meets with Mulder . . . in a three piece suit . . . in the exact middle of a running track . . . in broad daylight. It makes no sense, but the long shot of the two of them walking toward each other across that big green space is just beautiful. The X-Files doesn't always make logical sense, but it has a beautiful poetry to it and I love the decision to sometimes just not reflect reality in service of getting a beautiful shot or underlining a thematic point or hitting an emotional point home. Don't come to the show as a literalist.

I think the Mulder/Scully dynamic is really catching fire. The scene with the woman selling the picture she took of the UFO is just brilliant. I love Anderson in this scene. The way she snaps "catchyaoutside" when Mulder starts questioning the woman is gold.

Special effects are patchy. Chris Carter points to the scene with the two UFOs over the airbase as the worst special effects in the history of the show and it is pretty bad. But later, when Mulder encounters the triangular ship in the air base, the special effect isn't bad.

Anyway, I basically think the first three episodes are all great episodes, a really, really strong out of the gate showing. I shouldn't tip my hand on episode three; I don't want to color your perceptions of the episodes by me hinting at which ones are good and which ones aren't (in my opinion). But, yeah, as a dedicated fan, I give the first three episodes 4 stars. Anyway, great episode; can't wait for your reaction to episode three.

 

Believe it or not, Twin Suns.

 

That's always one of the things I enjoy about going back and watching series that are 10-20 years old. Seeing actors like Green in early roles. I agree re: his performance. He nails that sort of Lollapalooza-era stoner, and he does make great use of the burger as a prop.

One of the hallmarks of a great show is often how fun and/or compelling the minor, supporting and guest characters are. No series epitomized that more than Seinfeld, and I already get the sense that's going to be true of X-Files as well. Coming in I was vaguely aware of some of those characters, like the Smoking Man, but Deep Throat was a surprise for me.

Well said. Having been born by the Big Bang that was Star Wars, I've always held that such things need only make emotional sense, or else make sense in the construct of that particular universe. I also think it's just more disconcerting when these things happen in broad daylight in the middle of a "normal" setting as the world around them goes on completely oblivious to what's going on in the darker corners of that world.

Yeah, the two UFO's zipping around looked a tad sketchy, but those kinds of things don't bother me much. I have Star Trek: TOS on Blu-Ray and you're offered the choice between watching it w/the original F/X or updated ones, and I choose original every time. F/X, music, fashion, all of them--dated or not--are ingredients in the stew for me and I don't think the shows would work quite the same w/o them.

I've been impressed by how quickly the show seems to have found its footing. It's very assured, seems to know exactly what it wants to be and where it wants to go. It's a rare quality, even in the best shows.