The Strange World of Thomas P. Coombe

Fringe: Destroyer of Worlds

  The only downside to Fringe's current dual Olivia storyline is that eventually it's going to have to end. 

 For now, we can enjoy the ride, cherishing the knowledge that having Fauxlivia/Thomas Jerome Newton in the equation can take a pretty standard Fringe story -- weird box makes people's brains melt -- and make it part of the show's larger mythology.

 I'm looking forward to next week's episode, where we return "Over There" and see what Olivia 1 is up to. But there was a lot to like about "The Box," beyond general weirdness. I enjoyed Fauxlivia's attempts to blend in (During Newton's tutoring session, I had the same thought Peter eventually did: Olivia doesn't make a lot of pop culture references), just like I enjoy anything that allows Anna Torv to play something beyond "by the book."

 And I liked how the episode gave Walter and Peter time to grapple with their roles as the once and (possibly) future destroyers of worlds. Even though they save the day at the end, it's clear from the final scene that Walternate has them both right where he wants them. 

 Other thoughts:

•  Speaking of the final scene, that parallel dimension typewriter has yet to stop being creepy.
• I'm not sure what to make of the Walter-inherits-Massive-Dynamic plot twist. At this point, MD doesn't seem like the menace it once did, so the show has -- thankfully -- retired the "Massive Dynamic just happens to be working on this very technology" trope that seemed to pop up every week in season one. Maybe it's just a way to keep Blair Brown in the picture, which I have no objections to. 
• After spending last week with Walternate, it was a comfort to have goofy John Noble back this week, playing the Miami Vice theme and attempting to have Jean the cow give chocolate milk.
• Between Olivia executing the deaf thief and the little person -- a member of Howard Stern's "Whack Pack," or so I'm told -- exploding at the subway station, this episode was not kind to the disabled.

Tom Coombe

Sons of Anarchy: Bargaining Chip Baby

 I wish I had better things to say about this season of Sons of Anarchy, but 30 minutes into "Home," I found myself wishing I was catching up on Terriers or Boardwalk Empire than slogging through another installment of the When Will They Find Out the Truth About Abel? drama.

 (The answer: at the end of this episode, if you're Jemma, and possibly sometime between this week and next week for everyone else, assuming Jemma's remains conscious on the way to the hospital.)

 So, we were spared a trip to Canada, but like I said last week, it's no fun watching the Sons spin their wheels week after week. Last season, when they knew Zoebelle was a step ahead of them all the time, it was satisfying to watch. And now that we know the Evil Irish Priest is using Abel as a bargaining chip, the whole storyline seems a lot less interesting. I'm far more concerned with how the entire club gets out of its jam.

 Other thoughts:

•  Despite my feeling on the plot, the acting in this episode was stellar as always -- Segal and Siff continue to make a great team -- even if Charlie Humman's accent pretty much reverted back to its natural state on the line "Our lovely ladies whacked the caretaker."
• The guy who played the leader of the tweaker posse was on Justified earlier this year, also playing a backwoods thug. 
• In one line, Paula Malcomson used the words "wee" "da" and "kin." Why not just dress her all in green?

Tom Coombe

Mad Men: Make It Go Away

 "Mel Gibson was nicer to Jesus than the Mad Men writers are to these dudes." 

 Joe Warminsky, to me, on Twitter during this episode

 And yeah, "Hands and Knees" was a particularly brutal hour for the folks at SCDP, as many of the characters struggle under the weight of knowledge they'd rather not have. Forget Dexter and Boardwalk Empire, this was the most violent hour of TV Sunday night, even without Lane's cane thumping at the hands of his father.

 Sure, it was mostly emotional violence, but it was still quite devastating. By the end of the episode, we've seen:

•  Lane chastened and humiliated by his father (cheers to Jared Harris -- newly cast as Moriarty to Robert Downey Jr.'s Holmes, by the way -- for making this character so sympathetic).
• Joan learn she's pregnant, with Roger's child, and undergoing an abortion.
• Roger discover that the company will lose Lucky Strike, and therefore 70 percent of its business.
• Don on the cusp of going hobo yet again when the FBI starts digging into his past.

Heavy, heavy stuff. The firm is pretty much fucked* if it can't change Lucky Strikes' mind/land a client of equal/greater value, and Joan is suffering through yet another traumatic situation with a smile on her face.

 Only Sally -- of all people -- seems happy, unleashing a moment of Beatlemania when Don tells her she's going to see them at the famous Shea Stadium show. (Note that he tells her this before he has the tickets.) Even Betty seems happy here. That should've been our tip off that bad stuff was to come, both in this episode and the rest of the season.

 Tom Coombe

 *I tend not to drop casual profanity -- in writing or in real life -- but in this case, I think it's called for. 

Fringe Premiere: Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not

 It's taken awhile to happen, but Fringe has finally found its voice. 

 Of course, to do so it needed to plunge into a parallel universe populated by doubles of all the major characters, but still. Since the home-stretch of last season, Fringe has felt like a different show. Playing up the "other side" angle of its mythology allowed it to both raise the stakes and drive wedges between its characters.

 And now, with Olivia A.) trapped on the other side and B.) robbed of her own identity in a frightening, reverse-Shutter Island move, I get the feeling the show is about to become even stronger.

 By having "our" Olivia and their Olivia investigating cases but still playing out their separate story lines, Fringe will get to have its cake and it too, at least in the short term. It can still do monster-of-the-week episodes (in both universes), while continuing to tell a larger story.

 And it gives some of the cast the chance to play two versions of their characters. John Noble is the most obvious example: he spent most of this episode as the cold, tyrannical Secretary, although he also got a glimpse of the sweet, goofy, still-a-little-crazy Walter we're used to. I'm not sure yet how much difference there is between Anna Torv's two Olivia's, especially now that Olivia 1 thinks she's Olivia 2, but she did a nice job tonight, essentially having to carry the episode with Andre Royo (AKA Bubbles from The Wire). 

 No monsters this week, and not a lot of grossness, aside from Lincoln's* make-up effects. But a very solid episode in what will hopefully be Fringe's break-out season.

 Other thoughts:

•  I'm going to watch this again tomorrow**, if only to pick up on all the little differences between universes. Among the things I noticed tonight: Dogs! is a popular Broadway show, people can fly to the moon, and JFK was named to some new post by President Obama. 
• Did anyone else think of Royo's character as "Bubbles, 10 years later"? He alludes to a rough past that could've involved mental illness or criminal behavior, but it also could've been the sort of addiction that Bubs struggled with.
• Massive Dynamic's all-purpose-scientist makes his alternate universe debut, this time as a sinister version of himself working for Walternate. 
• I'm not sure which nickname I like better for the characters' dopplegangers: Walternate, or Fauxlivia.
• Speaking of which: she takes center stage next week, as we switch back over to "our world." See you then.

 Tom Coombe

 *Initially, I called this character "Nick," but I was thinking of the finale, in which he and Nick Lane -- the "empath" Olivia brought with her -- seemed to know each other.

 ** A second viewing revealed Martin Luther King and Eldridge Cleaver Park (slogan: We have a dream), where a man rode one of those old fashioned bikes with the giant front wheels.

Sons of Anarchy: Hail to the King

 I'm of two minds about this season's Ireland subplot on Sons of Anarchy. 

 On one hand, it's allowed the show to bring in fine actors like Paula Malcomson and Titus Welliver (both of whom have appeared on Lost and Deadwood).

 On the other hand, we know a lot more than the folks in Charming about what's happening in Ireland, meaning that the last three episodes have been a bit frustrating to watch, because we know Jax and co. are just spinning their wheels.

 At the very least, the crew's discovery at the end of the episode that Cameron made it back to Ireland spared them -- and us -- a trip to Canada. But honestly, I'd rather be far more invested in the show if Abel and Jax were reunited only to have some sort of left-field plot twist make things somehow even worse.

 Also: how great was it seeing Stephen King show up as an awkward, creepy-yet-funny version of Winston Wolf? King -- apparently a big fan of the show -- has acted before, but almost always in productions of his books or stories. He did well here in a small role, requesting "80s music" before disposing of the ill-fated nurse. (By the way, the closing credits listed his character as "Bachman," a nice little in-joke.)

 Tom Coombe

Mad Men: Here's to You, Ida Blankenship

  Matthew Weiner wrote "Kennedy and Heidi," an episode of The Sopranos that contains what I'd argue is -- in it's own quiet way -- the show's most shocking death. 

 As creator of Mad Men, he's maintained that ability to provide us with subdued surprises, like Miss Blankenship's sudden departure this week.

 It was a beautifully played turn of events, and I like how it moved from funny  -- the scene with Joan and Pete moving the body while Don continues his pitch was priceless -- and to melancholy as the episode went on.

 She wasn't a pivotal character, but she was funny as hell, and wound up imparting some wisdom ("In this business, you're either a sadist or a masochist...") before she passed.

  Other thoughts:

•  Peggy continues to be my hero, even if I don't totally buy her equating her struggle at work with the plight of black Americans circa 1965. As Alan Sepinwall pointed out, it's really cool that she and Joyce are comfortable with each other despite Joyce's failed pass at Peggy. 
• Don't Not a TOTAL Dick moment of the night: Telling Ken to stop making fun of the stuttering auto executive.
• Best part of the "hide the body scene": Harry's "My mother made that!" when he sees her afghan being used to cover poor Ms. Blankenship.
• Two questions before I go: How much worse can things get for Sally? And has there ever been a show with less useful "On the next..." previews than this one?

 Tom Coombe

What I've Been Watching: So Much TV, So Little Time

 This has been one of the busiest weeks I've had in months, so I've had to -- yet again -- scrap plans to write about Mad Men, the True Blood finale and Sons of Anarchy. 

 I actually had a bleak moment earlier in the week when I thought about scrapping the blog altogether, but it passed quickly enough. Still, if my readership drops much beyond what it is now, and if I continue to remain as busy as I've been, I may have to go dark for a few weeks.

 And that would be too bad, because there's so much out there this time of year that I want to write about. (Putting aside TV, the fall is a great season for movies, music and books, not that I've ever reviewed the latter two here, but still...)

 So maybe the best bet is to take things a day at a time, and write about what I can whenever I can. For tonight, that means brief thoughts on a lot of things:

Sons of Anarchy Season Premiere: Death at a Funeral

  Last year's attempt to add Sons of Anarchy to the line-up of shows failed miserably. I came in late to it, barely knew who the characters were, and it was only after buying the entire first season on DVD midway through the second that I felt confident enough to write about SAMCRO and its associates.

 And boy, is it great to have them back.

 "So," is mostly 45 minutes of slow burn, despite occasional bits of action/violence (the chase from the marina; Jemma knifing the guy who catches her hot-wiring his car).

 But we enter this season finding the characters still reeling from the events of last year (note the blood stain still on Jax's floor), so everything feels sort of numbed and quiet. Maybe too quiet, as the episode culminates in one of the show's more brutal and sudden climaxes. What I liked most about the end is how it suggests a whole other possible direction for the season.

Mad Men, Breaking Bad and AMC's Amazing Year

  Maybe I'm still reeling from last night's amazing Mad Men/Rubicon double-bill, but it's unreal, the year AMC is having.

 I don't think any network has had a line-up like this since 2005, when HBO had The Wire, The Sopranos and Deadwood in production -- if not on the air -- all at the same time.

 (Not to mention lesser but still top-quality programming like Rome, Carnivale and Six Feet Under.)

I'm always updating and revising my mental list of the best TV shows of any given year, and for the last three months, Breaking Bad has been firmly planted in the number one spot. It managed to take a phenomenal second season and built upon it. Each week was like a little movie: sometimes a dark, Coen Brothers-style comedy, some times an action movie (watch it again. I'll wait.) and sometimes a slow-moving character study. But always excellent, anchored by the justly-praised Bryan Cranston, who was backed by great supporting players like Aaron Paul, Anna Gunn and Dean Norris.

 But now I'm thinking it should share that spot with its sister shows: Mad Men -- which is on its way to its strongest season since it premiered, aired one of its best episodes ever last night -- and Rubicon a paranoid thriller that gets better each week as it focuses more and more on its supporting cast.

 (Although with each week that passes, I'm straining to see why we need Miranda Richardson's story at all. She's probably the most recognizable name in the cast, but there's just nothing interesting about the plotline. I'd rather spend that time with Will's team, or with Spangler and Kane, his frightening -- for different reasons -- superiors.)

 Hell, I'll even throw in The Walking Dead. It hasn't actually premiered yet, but you need to give AMC credit for trying to adapt such an ambitious comic book series, and for giving it a second season before the first one even airs.

 But it's Mad Men I'm most impressed with these days. I still think it lacks the punch that makes Breaking Bad so strong, but other than a stumble a few weeks back, season four with Don Draper and company has marked the show's best run since the first season. 

 And last night's episode really was among Mad Men's finest. It's what an episode like "Walkabout" or "Ab Aeterno" was to Lost. (I don't use "The Constant," because, frankly, it just doesn't do it for me. Sorry, Lost fans.)

"The Suitcase" has a simple premise: Don and Peggy stay late at the office working on an ad for Samsonite. It's pretty much just them for the entire episode; we see a bit of Pete, Harry, Joan, etc., and Roger has two brief, hilarious cameos, but most of this hour's weight falls on Jon Hamm and Elisabeth Moss.

 And dear lord, do they carry it, fighting, bonding, marching each other through emotional mine fields. It's a great showcase for both of them and one of the show's best uses of a product as metaphor for the characters. In this case, the tough Samsonite suitcase, which symbolizes Peggy and Don's hard outer-cores, and Don's hobo code past. When their long, hard night -- which included a break-up for Peggy, some vomiting and almost-fight with Duck Phillips for Don -- is over, they seem closer than ever. 

  Other thoughts:

•  This show does small moments beautifully. One that caught my eye last night: the very brief look of fear on Don's face as the phone rings. One that I wish I'd caught: Don taking Peggy's hand as a call back to the pilot, where she tried to do that to him and he rebuffed her.
• Here's a measure of how good "The Suitcase" was: my girlfriend hasn't watched Mad Men since maybe midway through the second season, and she was enamored. I think Ms. Blankenship helped with that...
• ...as did Don and Peggy listening to Roger narrate his memoirs. That could be its own spin-off.
• Harry to Danny: "You're such a Jew." It's still very much 1959 for Mr. Crane.
• Note that Pete seems to be the only person at SCDP who thinks Clay can beat Liston, just as, years ago, he saw JFK defeating Nixon.

 Tom Coombe

Mad Men: The Lost Weekend

 I'm already late with this post, so I'm going to take the lazy, bullet-pointed way out, and just list what I liked about this episode. There was a lot. If we ignore "The Good News" from a few weeks ago, and the show keeps on this streak, season four may shape up to be Mad Men's strongest yet. Here are 6 things that made this episode great:

•  Don's drunken downfall. Sure, he drinks. A lot. It's like a running gag. But in "Waldorf Stories," Don's alcoholism -- we can call it that now, right? -- takes a rather frightening turn as he loses an entire day (in which he apparently introduces himself as "Dick," at least to the waitress he brings home). It's pretty impressive how the show shifts from funny, ebullient Don -- his one-after-the-other pitch of possible Life cereal slogans was hilarious -- to surly, shattered Don.
• All things Peggy. I love how she's come into her own in her relationship with Don this season, and her undressed game of chicken with the obnoxious new art director was one of the highlights of the episode (but not for the reasons you'd think). 
• The Don/Roger parallels. We spend part of this episode flashing back to the 1950s, when Don still sold fur coats...to people like Roger Sterling (who was buying one for Joan). At first, it seems like this is a story of how Don impressed Roger with his initiative. In the final scene, we learn that he only got the job because Roger hired him during a bender...just as Don would, several years later, be forced to hire the inept copywriter Danny for similar reasons. 
• Odds and ends: The shot of Joan holding both Roger and Don's hands before the award was announced. Duck Phillips heckling the emcee, then being booted from the ceremony, prompting Don to say "I feel like I already won."  And Ms. Blankenship, who like every other character on the show, has her own Twitter feed. 

 I'm going to try to start posting on Mad Men much earlier than I have been starting this weekend. The show is too good these days to get a short shrift.

Tom Coombe