The Blacklist
The Stewmaker
Season 1, Episode 4 ~ A Surprise Favorite

10/26/2013

Red, knotted mind jpgJames Spader | © NBC Universal

I expected to love two new shows this year: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and Almost Human. I had been looking forward to them for months and couldn't keep the excitement contained. I adore the first so far (and still do! //1.22.18). The second premieres on November 17, so I can't make a judgment just yet. (It had great potential, but it was canceled after only 13 episodes. //1.22.18) But I didn't even know The Blacklist existed until I saw NBC's fall preview not long before it premiered. I put it off for the first few weeks and I'm just now getting caught up. Still need to watch the fifth episode, but it's already very high on my list of must watch series. This James Spader-led thriller came out of nowhere and surprised me tremendously, and it reminded me why I missed him so much when Boston Legal ended.

The story begins with Raymond Reddington, former naval officer and one of the government's most wanted, turning himself in to the FBI. Over the years since he disappeared, Red built a vast criminal network and sold government secrets, getting himself branded a traitor. Now he's setting the FBI after those in his way, making a deal to cooperate in taking down the worst of the worst only if he's guaranteed to work with brand-new agent Elizabeth Keen. An intriguing start for sure.

I love the mystery of who Lizzy is to Red. In just four episodes, the show has dropped a lot of hints and Spader, as usual, has been superb, giving plenty of insight into a morally murky, conflicted character who works for himself, selling secrets and brokering deals with anyone willing to pay, damn loyalty or patriotism. He's one of the government's most wanted men for a reason. I can't wait to find out what made him that way. The higher ups will tolerate and use him for now, but that won't last forever. Red is very intelligent, so he must know he may not get out of this - or an escape has been planned to be undoubtedly saved for the end of the series.

But it seems Red wants more than the satisfaction of putting away the worst of the worst, and those in the way of his criminal enterprise, or whatever other hidden agenda he may have. He requested Keen to get close to her for some reason. To make up for a wrong in his past? When Elizabeth calls him a monster, he agrees with her without hesitation, but you can tell he wasn't always that way, that he regrets some part of the things he's done, the things he's had to do. No matter how far he may have fallen, he obviously has a heart for the innocent. The evil of the world disgusts him. Spader is playing my favorite kind of bad good guy, or is it good bad guy? Either way, he's a complicated character in a very dark grey area and he's fantastic and fascinating to watch.

Catch up on Hulu Plus, NBC.com, your OnDemand channel, or Amazon Instant Video (Pilot [HD]). I already know I'm going to buy The Blacklist: The Complete First Season [Blu-ray] when it's released.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier Trailer

10/25/2013

I've been putting off watching any of these trailers and sneak peeks because I've been too busy. It happens often and then I find out that what I was avoiding is great. I like the first Captain America, but not nearly as much as, say, Iron Man or The Avengers. But I was smiling throughout this newest trailer in which I triumphantly laughed at a certain elevator scene ("Before we get started, does anyone want to get out?") and awed at the helicarrier taking a slightly more serious nosedive than previously. Looks like I'm going to have another favorite Marvel movie.

"I joined S.H.I.E.L.D. to protect people." Reminds me of the great Tony Stark line, "I'm trying to protect the people I put in harm's way," which I constantly hear on FX commercials.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Two New Blades, One for a Dedicated Agent
Weapons

10/15/2013

Say hello to North Star and Reassemble, which is my Phil Coulson tribute. How could I not draw a knife for him? I hope I'll be inspired again when Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. reveals what the meaning is of Tahiti being a magical place. I have a feeling a lot of Coulson/Clark Gregg fans are going to be crying over it. I took time to write a little about each of these, so please follow the links for more and for larger images.

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Doctor Who
Shadow of the Time Machine
T-Shirts

10/10/2013

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The TwoFury battle today is a hard choice between two beautifully-designed Doctor Who mashups, one quite subtle. I immediately recognized the Morlocks from The Time Machine in KNOCK KNOCK... Who's There? And I haven't seen that movie in years. But I didn't realize the second was a Shadow of the Colossus reference even though it's named Shadow of the Dalek. I checked the comments and then felt a bit dumb since I had played and loved that game. It was also years ago, so cut me a little slack. Or don't, because I think about it often enough and recently watched Rev3's Spoiled Games video featuring it.

You have until the end of the day to get these for just $11 each with shipping starting at $3. Sizes go up to 3XL for men and women.

UPDATE
Shadow of the Dalek now available in TeeFury's gallery for $18.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Clark Gregg on The Chew
Video Interview

10/08/2013

Did you miss Clark Gregg on The Chew yesterday? I almost did. I had no idea. SHIELDTV.net forgot to tell me. (Give them a break. They're new.) It's okay, because I turned it on after a minute anyway. It's okay for you, too, because ABC gets shows up pretty quickly. So here are the two clips that we care about.

My favorite highlights for those who have no time to watch:

Celebrity Egg Timer -
Michael: "Most irrational fear." Clark: "Okay, you know when the plane lands and it's just slowly driving to the thing? I feel like I'm gonna die. Between the time - after it's landed and before they let me out, I'm just - that's when I get claustrophobia really bad. Just those five minutes."

Clinton: "Who said 'I love you' first? You or your wife?" Clark: "I'm gonna go with me. Just because I was really into her right away, and she needed some convincing." And everyone says "aww" at that point, including me.

Some bonus videos that you may not have seen if you get distracted by cats on YouTube or don't stay up for late night shows. I missed the GMA one.

"He is the backbone of the show." And the heart of the show. Probably the liver and the spleen of the show, too. Not to take away anything from the other members of the team or the actors themselves, but I haven't gotten to know them yet. Coulson is why I'm there.

"See, you think it's funny, and then a spear is gonna appear through your chest."

"Comic-Con's a beautiful event for me. And I didn't go the year of The Avengers because I knew, and it was true, there was a lot of Agent Coulsons walking around with spears through their chests. I found that upsetting. But I'll be excited to go this year, because the back to life Agent Coulson can be represented."

Almost Human is Almost Here

10/05/2013

"Fantastic. I get the synthetic with the bleeding heart."

Finally a new promo for Almost Human! And it was on TV. Let's hope Fox keeps promoting and doesn't let this one languish. So you've seen it all before except for that last line. It's been quite a long wait for Joel Wyman's next project, and now there's less than a month to go before the premiere on November 4. If I could, I'd have a premiere party. So excited. If it matches the quality of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., my other must-see new series, then I will be a very happy, and very busy, girl this season.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
0-8-4: You Took a Bullet?
Season 1, Episode 2 Thoughts

10/03/2013

Clark Gregg and Chloe Bennet, "0-8-4," 1x2 | © ABC Studios and Marvel Studios

"An Asgardian stabbed me through the heart with a Chitauri sceptre."
—Coulson

So, Coulson did get it through his heart. Poor guy. When Fury said Coulson died, I held out hope through the rest of The Avengers, and the end credits, that it was a lie to unite the team. I knew it had to be. I was wrong. The movie was witty, warm, and action-packed, and I left the theater with another favorite, but I still wanted the tragedy to be righted in a subsequent film. Did I wish that The Avengers had been written differently? Absolutely not; it was perfect the way it was. It shocked me, made me feel a loss, and gave the movie more depth and purpose. What I wanted the next chapter to do was to expand on something that wasn't shown. I thought there was room for interpretation and that disbelief in many of us, as I've mentioned before, translated into differing theories, beautiful art, endless tweets, and a world-spanning project to save our beloved S.H.I.E.L.D. agent.