Tag Archives: American Television

The Last of Us: Feel Her Love – TV Review

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TL;DR – Today, it feels like we have hit the point of no return, that moment when you can not undo what you have become.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Max service that viewed this show.

End Credit Scene – There is a trailer and behind-the-scenes making-of.

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause distress.

Ellie playing a guitar on the theatre stage.

The Last of Us Review –

It has been said that “Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves”, a phrase often linked to the philosopher Confucius, but I think he never actually said it. But I digress. The phrase is as evocative as it is because you can understand how that drive for revenge can push out all reasonable thought and make you act in ways that actively hurt yourself. Literature is full of revenge narratives, from simple calling, like you hurt an old lady whom I liked, or you killed my dog. All the way to convoluted messes like we don’t like your politics of fear, so we are going to kill you. But no matter the narrative, there is always a tipping point, and I think we have hit one of them today.     

So, to set the scene, Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Dina (Isabela Merced) have firmly planted themselves in Seattle and are actively hunting down the ones who killed Joel (Pedro Pascal). Thankfully for them, a war has broken out between the WLF and the Scars. It provides a lot of coverage and a lot of information. People can help but chat over the radio, and Dina hears everything on Day Two. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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The Last of Us: Day One – TV Review

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TL;DR – It is time to find out what is happening in Seattle … and it is messy, to say the least.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Max service that viewed this show.

End Credit Scene – There is a trailer and behind-the-scenes making off.

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause distress.

Ellie and Dina scoping out a site.

The Last of Us Review –

In cinema, while the word ‘physicality’ gets thrown around a lot, what it means is a tangible sense that you believe what you see. Does an actor have the presence to make their performance believable? Does a place feel real, or is it coming off as a paper veneer? Well, today, we get some good examples of how The Last of Us uses physicality to make its world work.    

So, to set the scene, eleven years ago, FEDRA ruled Seattle with a hard fist, so much so that they have dehumanised the local population. Few believed this was an issue, but Isaac Dixon (Jeffrey Wright). In the world of now, Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Dina (Isabela Merced) have just made it into the city to find no signs of life but a lot of dead FEDRA corpses around. But there is hope. In the distance, there is a large dish brandished with the WLF, and they realise they are in the right place for their revenge. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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Andor (Star Wars: Andor): Harvest  – TV Review

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TL;DR – A profoundly upsetting episode of harsh juxtapositions, but war is not meant to be rosy or simple.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Disney+ service that viewed this series.

Mon Mothma begins to disassociate.

Andor Review –

Well, I had held off watching this episode for a couple of days because I knew that it was going to have an impact. It was clear that both One Year Later & Sagrona Teema were building to something, and the three-episode release strategy helped secure that view. But sometimes, you have to take a deep breath and dive in, so let’s do that today.

So, to set the scene, Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) managed to escape his capture by the skin of his teeth, and now it is time to connect with his resistance team before The Empire works out where the stolen tie fighter is. But time might not be on his side as things are coming to a head across the galaxy. On Mina-Rau, the Empire’s inspections have started to get close, and there is a good chance everyone will be rumbled. On Chandrilla, Mon Mothma (Genevieve O’Reilly) finally realises just what a sacrifice her daughter is undertaking. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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The Last of Us: The Path – TV Review

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TL;DR – This week is a step back from the relentless pace of the opening episodes to refocus us on the rest of the season.     

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Max service that viewed this show.

End Credit Scene – There is a trailer and behind-the-scenes making off.

Joel's watch.

The Last of Us Review –

Last week’s Through the Valley was … well … look … even for those of us who knew what was coming, it hurt a lot, even more so with the way that they updated the framing for the television adaptation. But it is also one of the lynchpin moments in the series. From here, everything changes, and that can be very hard to handle at the best of times. But when you are shifting the narrative structure from the game, things can become precarious.  

So, to set the scene, the city of Jackson has probably gone through the most significant test that has been thrown at it in the post-apocalyptic world of the series. The Infected sent feelers down their old sewer pipes and forwarded a large hoard right to their doorsteps. Many lives were lost, and much that had been built was destroyed and needed to be rebuilt. For some, that pain was even more acute as Ellie (Bella Ramsey) had to watch Joel (Pedro Pascal) be brutally murdered in front of her without closure from their confrontation during Future Days. Three months later, the city finally started to heal, but some wounds were deep and couldn’t be fixed with a hammer. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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Andor (Star Wars: Andor): Sagrona Teema – TV Review

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TL;DR – This episode is all about the foreboding feeling that ebbs into every pore of your being.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Disney+ service that viewed this series.

Saluting the new bride to be.

Andor Review –

In the modern era, there are many different distribution models. While Netflix was famous for its binge dumping of a whole season at once, it still mostly follows that arrangement. It has become clearer that the binge model does not build engagement for shows, bar the odd exception. Andor has chosen a slightly hybrid model, in that they are releasing three episodes at a time, which I think will work because this very much feels like a part two of three episodes.

So, to set the scene, Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) is trapped on a jungle planet with a big problem. The pilot he was meant to be handing off this new tie fighter to has been killed by rebels that were dumped and left. Now, those rebels have started fighting amongst themselves. The only thing keeping Andor alive is the fact that he is the only pilot, but with tempers flared and rational thoughts cast aside, is that enough to keep him alive when even the planet could be the greater threat? Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.   

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Andor (Star Wars: Andor): One Year Later – TV Review

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TL;DR – A reintroduction to our world and characters and the layers of issues they face.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Disney+ service that viewed this series.

a tie fighter.

Andor Review –

Things were not looking good for Star Wars on TV back in 2022, as the Mandalorian experiment seemed to be running out of steam, and a lot of their experiments were falling flat. So, I didn’t hold a lot of hope when it came time to watch a prequel to the very messy Rogue One. But goodness, if there was ever a time to be wrong, I am glad it was then. Andor was subversive, fascinating, and profoundly compelling, not something you expect to come out of the House of Mickey. Well, it is back for a second and final season, and I can’t wait to see what they cook up.     

So, to set the scene, it has been a year since the riots on Ferrix, and it is four years before the Battle of Yavin. Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) has joined the Rebellion and is in the process of infiltrating Test Facility 73 on the planet of Sienar. All across The Empire, the Rebellion is slowly growing, one act of disobedience at a time. The Empire is trying to find ways of crushing any chance of this coalescing into a significant power, but freedom will always be the better choice. Now, from here

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Reacher: Season 3 – TV Review

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TL;DR – I am not sure if the formula is starting to feel repetitive or if this season falls flat for me, but I didn’t connect with it at all.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Amazon Prime subscription that viewed this series.

Reacher standing by a road.

Reacher Review –

There are few people in the military fiction business with a bigger name than Lee Child. His novels, especially his Reacher series, are legendary in the space. So much so that having Tom Cruise be the face of the film adaptations was seen as a disappointment because he did not live up to the depiction in the novels. However, there was much rejoicing when the First and Second TV series came out because they captured the essence of what the book readers and the general public wanted, and that is a hard cross-section to nail. But now, after seeing the third season, I’m not as sure as I once was.   

So, to set the scene, poor Reacher (Alan Ritchson) always seems to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. This time, all he wanted to do was sell some old records to fund the next part of his journey, but when he looked out to the street, he saw a kidnapping happen right in front of him. Quickly dispatching the potential captors, he tries to get the potential hostage, Richard Beck (Johnny Berchtold), to safety, only to find one of the potential captors was a cop. Now a potential wanted felon, he takes a job with Richard’s father, Zachary (Anthony Michael Hall), while things blow over. However, all is not what it seems, and Reacher might be just where he wants to be. Now, from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

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The Residence: Season 1 – TV Review

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TL;DR – This was a delightful time as we pulled apart the motives of all the many people in the White House who possibly wanted a man to die.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that viewed this show.

The White House.

The Residence Review –

Many genres rise and fall as time goes on, and unless you live in the British countryside, one example of that is the humble Murder Mystery. There are times when we can’t get enough of them, and then there can be a desert with none in sight. They are also one of the oldest genres in the industry, and you have to wonder if there is space for anything new? Well, today, we get a delightful new entry that shows it can.  

So, to set the scene, it is just a typical day at The White House as everyone prepares for a state dinner with Australia who the Americans are currently on poor terms with. There is chaos in the kitchens, disasters in the seating plans, and some unfortunate kangaroo placements. However, all of that changes when a piercing screen from Nan Cox (Jane Curtin) echoes through the halls of power. For the chief usher, A.B. Winter (Giancarlo Esposito), is dead under somewhat mysterious circumstances. Anyone dying in the White House would be a calamitous event, but murder? That is unheard of. And while everyone fights to find out who actually has jurisdiction in this case, Larry Dokes (Isiah Whitlock Jr.), the Chief of Police at the MPD, calls upon the one person that he knows can take on such a challenge, Cordelia Cupp (Uzo Aduba), a consulting detective. Now, from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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The Last of Us: Through the Valley – TV Review

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TL;DR – It shows the strength of the production team that even when you know how the narrative will go, yet you are still sitting on the edge of your chair.    

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Max service that viewed this show.

End Credit Scene – There is a trailer and behind-the-scenes making off.

Abby looks out over the town of Jackson.

The Last of Us Review –

Look, I have to speak very vaguely here because we are on the wrong side of the spoiler zone, but when I said during our review of Future Days that I came into this season with a bit of apprehension, today’s episode was at the forefront of my mind. Could this adaptation pull off multiple story points that will echo not just throughout the show but out into general pop culture? Well, let’s have a look.  

So, to set the scene, while the New Year Party was meant to be a fount of joy for the community of Jackson, Wyoming, it ended in a confrontation that confirmed the fault lines that have grown between Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) in the five years since Season One. Ellie might not know what Joel lied about, but that lie has slowly soured their relationship. But things are difficult for Jackson at the moment. It is the deep of winter, but the Infected have also been acting in different ways, and now you don’t know if you should be more concerned with things walking above or crawling below the snowline. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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The Last of Us: Future Days – TV Review

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TL;DR – This first episode lets us catch up with the cast and world and catch our breath before the world turns.  

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Max service that viewed this show.

End Credit Scene – There is a trailer and behind-the-scenes making off.

A group standing around some newly dug graves.

The Last of Us Review –

While the First Season of The Last of Us was a triumph, not just for Video Game adaptations but for adaptations in general, it was one of the rare works that fundamentally understood the source material, sometimes down to a shot-for-shot recreation. But also knew when some aspects needed to be refreshed or, in the case of Long Long Time, completely rewritten from the ground up. Yet, still, I came into Season Two with more than a bit of trepidation. The adaptation of the source material is going to require some hard choices, which is not going to be popular. I was there when it was released the first time and lived through that moment of ‘less than stellar’ online discourse. Yet still, I knew I had to sit down and watch, and here we are today.   

So, to set the scene, it has been five years since Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Joel (Pedro Pascal) walked away from the Firefly facility in Salt Lake City to return to Jackson. But the legacies of what Joel did, and very much lied about, live large in those who made it out of the massacre. Jackson is one of the rare places in the old America that has survived the Cordyceps Apocalypse without being under the thumb of FEDRA. But there are more than a few stragglers out there, and there are more people than construction can keep up with. Tensions remain everywhere, and the echoes of the lies we tell have started to reverberate. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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