This Is Us: Season 2, Episode 5 “Brothers” (B+)
This was a helpful episode for explaining the relationship between Randall and Kevin, starting at a point when Kevin was very meant to his brother while Randall was making lists of things he could stop doing so that he wouldn’t be perceived as annoying and ending up in the present where Randall is doing a great job of being a dad under difficult circumstances and Kevin is spiraling out of control. Déjà’s eagerness to go to the gala was a great opportunity for Randall to step in, and he did the right thing by standing outside the bathroom and hearing her when she said that he couldn’t grab her like that because of bad experiences she had in her previous foster home. We haven’t seen Sophie in a while, and while her reintroduction in this hour started off in a semi-comic way with an auction featuring Kevin as the hot ticket, it turned much more sour when Kevin was on the phone trying to get a refill he wasn’t eligible for of painkillers. Kevin needs some serious help, and I’m not sure that anyone is paying enough attention to help him get it. Jack deciding to be a good father to his sons rather than be there for the father who was never there for him said something about his commitment to family, and it seems that he had a brother who we’ve never heard mentioned in the past, who seemingly isn’t alive anymore but I imagine we’ll still meet in some time period. Toby’s reaction to Kate telling him she was pregnant, after he threw everything off his desk, was fantastic, and hopefully she’ll appreciate his celebration in the bar and not be too thrown off by his enthusiasm. I’m not too fond of the support group meetings and Madison, and I think her spat with Kate ending in a joint moment of happiness was the weak point of this episode.
Showing posts with label Brothers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Brothers. Show all posts
Saturday, October 28, 2017
Sunday, June 18, 2017
What I’m Watching: 12 Monkeys
12 Monkeys: Season 3, Episode 4 “Brothers” (B-)
To describe this show as lost in time might not be all that accurate, but it seems fitting given that this show’s frequent flitting around the timestream as of late has made it almost impossible to follow and not all that enticing anymore either. Tracking down Cassandra before Cole ever met her to the point that he could go and give her a heartfelt speech after having not seen her for so long gave this show a very dated feel, though of course it also added incredible poignancy to the surprising return at the end of the episode to the exact place from which she so fatefully disappeared at the close of last season. I for one am very glad she’s back, since now it’s clear what the mission is and that, tragically and fatefully enough, it was Cole and Cassandra themselves who created the witness, who has become the bane of both of their existences. Killing Ramse so that he wouldn’t take her out before she had a chance to give birth to the witness was an important act for him to do, and given that this is the now the thirteenth or fourteenth time that Ramse has betrayed Cole and he’s had to decide whether or not to forgive him, it’s about time. I far prepared the season opener that showed Cole making the choice to forgive Ramse, but at this point I’ll settle for Cole and Cassandra being reunited, ready to sit down and work with Jones and Jennifer to figure out how best to stop the witness once and for all. Not that they’ll stay put for long, I’m sure.
To describe this show as lost in time might not be all that accurate, but it seems fitting given that this show’s frequent flitting around the timestream as of late has made it almost impossible to follow and not all that enticing anymore either. Tracking down Cassandra before Cole ever met her to the point that he could go and give her a heartfelt speech after having not seen her for so long gave this show a very dated feel, though of course it also added incredible poignancy to the surprising return at the end of the episode to the exact place from which she so fatefully disappeared at the close of last season. I for one am very glad she’s back, since now it’s clear what the mission is and that, tragically and fatefully enough, it was Cole and Cassandra themselves who created the witness, who has become the bane of both of their existences. Killing Ramse so that he wouldn’t take her out before she had a chance to give birth to the witness was an important act for him to do, and given that this is the now the thirteenth or fourteenth time that Ramse has betrayed Cole and he’s had to decide whether or not to forgive him, it’s about time. I far prepared the season opener that showed Cole making the choice to forgive Ramse, but at this point I’ll settle for Cole and Cassandra being reunited, ready to sit down and work with Jones and Jennifer to figure out how best to stop the witness once and for all. Not that they’ll stay put for long, I’m sure.
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Pilot Review: Brothers
Brothers (FOX)
Premiered September 25 at 8pm
FOX doesn’t have a great track record with comedies that aren’t animated. With the exception of the monstrously popular but short-lived “Arrested Development,” the network has tried and failed time and time again with series like “Do Not Disturb,” “Unhitched,” “The Return of Jezebel James,” and “Free Ride.” Their latest non-musical, live-action effort is perhaps the most formulaic of all its past attempts. Two brothers, one a former football player and the other a handicapped restaurant manager, hate each other but are reunited to under the same roof to help keep their family afloat. The jokes are far more frequent than the laughs, and it’s one of those shows that finds a funny line and likes to capitalize on that, repeating it over and over again within a span of just a few minutes. That kind of comedy may work for some, but it doesn’t here. The brothers have already nearly reconciled by the end of the pilot, so each episode will just involve them fighting continuously before temporarily calling a truce and realizing that they do in fact care about each other. It’s not exactly a promising setup. As portrayed by comedian Daryl Mitchell and real-life football player Michael Strahan, the brothers fall very neatly into conventional character types, and it doesn’t seem like there will be much room for (or interest in) development of those stereotypes at all throughout the series’ run. The parents are woefully caught in this tragic waste of their talents. Carl Weathers provides a few laughs as the patriarch of the clan, and somehow CCH Pounder went from “The Shield” to this. It’s unfathomable. This is a pure, contrived, predictable, formulaic sitcom that has the ability to bore and annoy viewers to tears.
How will it work as a series? It’s pretty much set out – even though this is the introductory pilot, the show, as implied by its title, will focus on the warring relationship of the two brothers and how they fight and make up all the time. It should be all about competition and one-upping the other brother, which isn’t exactly anything revolutionary when it comes to television comedies.
How long will it last? FOX has kept Brad Garrett’s unfortunate “Til Death” alive far longer than it should have ever existed, and it’s paired that show with this one. That’s a good sign for this series, which could find its niche audience, which definitely doesn’t include me. It’s a show that would be better suited for the CW or its predecessor UPN, but FOX probably doesn’t care about its comedies as much as its dramas, so this one might last out the season but probably won't score a touchdown and make it into overtime (a.k.a. a second season). Dismal ratings for the premiere, however, may signal an early end to the game.
Pilot grade: F
Premiered September 25 at 8pm
FOX doesn’t have a great track record with comedies that aren’t animated. With the exception of the monstrously popular but short-lived “Arrested Development,” the network has tried and failed time and time again with series like “Do Not Disturb,” “Unhitched,” “The Return of Jezebel James,” and “Free Ride.” Their latest non-musical, live-action effort is perhaps the most formulaic of all its past attempts. Two brothers, one a former football player and the other a handicapped restaurant manager, hate each other but are reunited to under the same roof to help keep their family afloat. The jokes are far more frequent than the laughs, and it’s one of those shows that finds a funny line and likes to capitalize on that, repeating it over and over again within a span of just a few minutes. That kind of comedy may work for some, but it doesn’t here. The brothers have already nearly reconciled by the end of the pilot, so each episode will just involve them fighting continuously before temporarily calling a truce and realizing that they do in fact care about each other. It’s not exactly a promising setup. As portrayed by comedian Daryl Mitchell and real-life football player Michael Strahan, the brothers fall very neatly into conventional character types, and it doesn’t seem like there will be much room for (or interest in) development of those stereotypes at all throughout the series’ run. The parents are woefully caught in this tragic waste of their talents. Carl Weathers provides a few laughs as the patriarch of the clan, and somehow CCH Pounder went from “The Shield” to this. It’s unfathomable. This is a pure, contrived, predictable, formulaic sitcom that has the ability to bore and annoy viewers to tears.
How will it work as a series? It’s pretty much set out – even though this is the introductory pilot, the show, as implied by its title, will focus on the warring relationship of the two brothers and how they fight and make up all the time. It should be all about competition and one-upping the other brother, which isn’t exactly anything revolutionary when it comes to television comedies.
How long will it last? FOX has kept Brad Garrett’s unfortunate “Til Death” alive far longer than it should have ever existed, and it’s paired that show with this one. That’s a good sign for this series, which could find its niche audience, which definitely doesn’t include me. It’s a show that would be better suited for the CW or its predecessor UPN, but FOX probably doesn’t care about its comedies as much as its dramas, so this one might last out the season but probably won't score a touchdown and make it into overtime (a.k.a. a second season). Dismal ratings for the premiere, however, may signal an early end to the game.
Pilot grade: F
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