The Shield-Season 7
Many good tv shows ended in 2008:The Wire,The Shield,Boston Legal and other shows.There were many possible nominations for best tv show of the year,but without a doubt,The Shield with its seventh and final season,was the clear winner.The journey of Vic Mackey finally ended,but not without consequences,for everyone involved,in one of the darkest seasons of the show,a show known for being raw and gritty.A common theme in this season was that the past comes back to haunt us,that nothing is forgotten,that unresolved issues come back,asking for a resolution.It's clearly the end of an era.Loose ends were resolved and nothing in the lives of the characters,in the Barn,in Farmington was the same.It was a season with one best series finales.It was one the best (along with the first),if not the best season of the Shield.It also was a season,where Vic Mackey showed his true colours.The question is,was he punished or did he get away with what he had done ? Many argue that the situation in which he was when the finale ended,was a form of punishment,although i might disagree with that opinion.I guess we will never know.
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Saturday, January 31, 2009
2008 Best Tv Show
Friday, January 9, 2009
Boston Legal 5x12/5x13 'Made In China/Last Call' (Series Finale) Review
SPOILER WARNING
Sadly,one month has passed since Boston Legal ended.A little late,but i decided to post my comments on the finale,because i watched it for the first time last week.I delayed that,because i wanted to think that the show was not over,but..Anyway,i watched the episodes again today.While my initial opinion has not changed,i have to say that i liked the finale more after the second viewing.I expected a bittersweet finale.It was good,but it was also a letdown.This may sound strange,but in my opinion it's not.While i did not expect all the loose ends from all these years to be resolved (and you could argue that the loose ends of the last few episodes were resolved ),i expected that the episode would follow the general tone of the season,and i am mainly referring to the development of Alan Shore.
The first part was very good and the second had nice moments.Generally,the finale had many highlights,moving moments,funny moments,clever remarks about how ABC handled the show.The idea of the acquisition by the Chinese was good and the reaction was interesting (with some moving moments-Shirley worried about her life's work,Paul defending Denny and Alan).There was also a happy ending for Jerry and Katie and the return of Paul was welcome (although i hoped that more old cast members would appear).Another major part of the finale was the return to the Supreme Court,with nice and moving arguments(although it could be argued that it could be better,but a counter argument would be that because it was the finale and it was not the Court Supreme,the scenes at the SC served their purpose).
Another part was the marriage of Denny and Alan,which is one of the things that i didn't like.I disagree with the choice of the writers,although i have to admit that there's some logic that justifies that choice and some of the previous comments gave some answers on that subject.I can understand all the arguments that support the marriage,but in my opinion,it did not fit with all the character development throughout the season.Denny wanted to marry again before he died,they have a strong friendship,Alan didn't have any luck in his recent relationships,there's also the subject of the decisions if Denny got worse and the financial benefits but i think that it was a wrong choice,as far the writers are concerned.Alan says in the finale,when Denny mentions this idea,that it's "beyond ridiculous,even for us",Denny justifies his proposal and Alan says that they will win and Denny would get the experimental drug.They should have ended the whole thing there.
There was also the fact that Denny got worse in the episode (disorientation,confusion,etc).Boston Legal was always a bittersweet show,with its successful mix of drama and smart humor,and the finale was bittersweet but after some point it became too over-the-top.In the final balcony scene,Denny mentions the thought of Alan being his son and that has some logic.They are best friends,they have a strong emotional bond and it could be said they are also father and son,because Alan learns from Denny and Denny learns from Alan.It's an exchange of experience,an exchange of wisdom,an exchange of love.
In another scene (one of the best moments of the finale),Alan is alone looking at Denny and Shirley,Carl and the judge dancing.There's a symbolism in that scene,which fits better with development of the character.
The Wire and The Shield also ended in 2008 and you could argue that they are different shows from BL,they were in cable,they ended in different conditions.There's one more difference.After i watched the finale of these shows,i felt really satisfied.I can't say that the finale was bad,it was a decent,good finale,but it could be better.There was potential,which,to some level,was wasted.
It was a good final season (with few not so good episodes)and it would be better if it was a full one or if BL was renewed for a sixth season.I will miss one of my favourite shows...It's sad,especially when you think that there wasn't actually a reason that justifies the decision of ABC.At least,i have to watch the eighth season of the Practice (which i haven't watched yet) and of course the seasons of BL.
Farewell,Boston Legal...
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Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Friday, December 5, 2008
Boston Legal S05 E12-13 "Made In China"/"Last Call" Trailer (Series Finale)
Provided by Boston-Legal.org
Boston Legal ends (sadly) next Monday with a two-hour finale.
3 DAYS LEFT
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Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
One week before the Shield's series finale
By Jonathan Toomey,Tv Squad
November 17,2008
Over the past several years, TV fans have been fortunate enough to be able to say a proper good-bye to some of the medium's finest dramas ever made. Alias, The Wire, The West Wing, The Sopranos, and Six Feet Under have all bowed out within the past four years, and the list could go on. They all got "endings" - whether you liked them or not. However, none of them (save for The Wire and for entirely different reasons) were as consistently riveting as Vic Mackey's exploits on FX's The Shield.
Since the seventh and final season began airing, FX has sent critics the first 11 episodes. So, despite the fact that I've been in the know, I've tried to avoid sounding like "I have a secret" in my episode reviews. Still, I was in the dark like everyone else when it came to how it all ends. So imagine my glee when I received an invite last month to attend a screening of the show's final two installments followed by a Q&A with Shield creator Shawn Ryan.
Along with a handful of other critics, I arrived for what turned into a mini-TCA session. However, before you read on, rest assured that what follows in no way spoils anything major about the final two episodes, but rather is about The Shield as a whole. I thought I had reached a pinnacle when I interviewed Walton Goggins - I was wrong. Following the screening, Ryan sat down and just started talking Shield. It was like being witness to the taping of a commentary for a DVD release. He made a point of saying how uneasy the show's finale makes him feel:
"This has been the longest ending ever. This show has been ending for me for a year [partly due to the WGA strike]. Between writing the final script, filming it, editing it, and it's airing, I mean it's obviously been a special show for me and it's nervousness, even knowing what's coming."
http://www.tvsquad.com/2008/11/17/saying-good-bye-to-the-barn-chatting-up-the-shields-shawn-ryan/Check also:http://www.thrfeed.com/2008/10/watching-the-sh.html Read more!
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Friday, October 31, 2008
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Boston Legal:Julie Bowen and Rene Auberjonois return,S05E03 Sneak Peek
by Michael Ausiello,ausiellofiles.ew.com
Julie Bowen and Rene Auberjonois will appear in this season's 10th episode -- two shy of the show's series finale. Unlike Bowen, Auberjonois never technically left Boston Legal -- or at least his character, Paul Lewiston, never did. When last seen in December '07, Paul had begun scaling back his duties to focus on raising his daughter's kid.Bowen made her last appearance in May '07 when Denise left to be a mom.
Sneak Peek #1 of Boston Legal: Dances with Wolves (S05E03)
Sneak Peek #2 of Boston Legal: Dances with Wolves
Video provided by boston-legal.org
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Friday, August 29, 2008
The Shield Season 7 Trailer,Episode 1 Clips
Trailer
Vic Confronts Shane The Shield Season 7 Episode 1
Vic and Shane together again.... The Shield Season 7 E1
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
X-Files Retro:The Truth (Series Finale)
By JULIE SALAMON,NY Times.com
May 22,2002
The television series that turned paranoid distrust of the government into a pop phenomenon ended just when paranoia might seem like a smart response to current events. But with a platitudinous final episode that was more of a tease than a conclusion, ''The X-Files'' wrapped up looking more dutiful than relevant, an acknowledgment that the show's lucrative future lies in its past.
The first commercial break drove the point home: ''The series is ended, but the conspiracy will continue forever on DVD. Own Season 5 today.'' The busy Internet chat rooms after Sunday night's two-hour finale were full of lamentations for the vigor and excitement of Seasons 1 through 6, when the show's paranormal, conspiracy-theory creepiness was fresh and fun. (Season 9 just ended.)
The show's executive producer, Chris Carter, wasted little original thinking on a final episode meant to invoke instant nostalgia in the hope of reaping future rewards. (In more reruns, perhaps another movie, the memorabilia market for ''X-Files'' lunchboxes and T-shirts.) Borrowing blatantly from the ''Seinfeld'' finale, Mr. Carter used the mechanism of a trial to remind viewers of the series's highlights in the guise of revelation.
The F.B.I. agent and U.F.O.-chasing hero Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) is captured while infiltrating the government sanctuary holding the biggest secret of all. The F.B.I. and the military join forces in a kangaroo court designed to find Mulder guilty.
In case anyone has forgotten, a military man explains Mulder's biggest crime: ''He's a crusader and a lot of people do not like crusaders.'' Fans, however, loved Mulder (and Mr. Duchovny, who left the show a year ago). So Mr. Carter brought him back to center stage one last time, to kiss Agent Scully (Gillian Anderson) and to prove beyond doubt that Robert Patrick and Annabeth Gish were doomed to remain the second team.
It turned out that the episode was called ''The Truth'' not so much for its mostly unsurprising revelations, but for its endless speechifying about the subject. ''The truth will come to you as it's come to me,'' says Mulder solemnly, ''faster than the speed of light.''
In the final episode, however, truth emerged slowly and often ponderously, through court testimony geared toward recollection of the series's weird amalgamation of alien and family mythology. It's confirmed that Mulder's sister, Samantha, was abducted by aliens and was the subject of terrible experiments; that Mulder was the father of Scully's baby, William (given up for adoption); and that aliens are indeed going to take over Earth. (There's a date: Dec. 22, 2012.) Old demons like the Smoking Man (William Davis) appeared to die yet again.
Mr. Carter stirred himself to inject some humor into the somber proceedings. When Scully visits Mulder in jail, he says, ''I thought I smelled you coming, Clarice,'' and follows the Hannibal Lecter joke with a full kiss on the mouth (a rare exhibition of physical intimacy). During Mulder's trial, as John Doggett (Mr. Patrick) testifies about the supernatural things he's seen, the prosecutor asks, ''What does this science fiction have to do with anything?''
Until the end, the series maintained its mesmerizing visual gloominess, cleverly punctuated with suggestive plays of color and light. What does it mean -- if anything -- that Mulder's orange prison uniform perfectly matches Scully's hair?
It also retained its conspiracy-theory heart that has appealed so greatly to viewers. After Mulder is captured, his military jailors torment him with beatings and doublespeak. ''You are a guilty man,'' screams a soldier. ''You entered a government facility in search of nonexistent information.''
Above all, Mr. Carter wanted to reconnect the series to Mulder and Scully. In the final confrontation in the New Mexican desert, when Doggett (Mr. Patrick) and Monica Reyes (Ms. Gish) try to save them, Mulder waves the agents away. As he and Scully jump into their own S.U.V. and drive off, the members of second team look sad, as if realizing that they never quite cut it.
As the final episode ends, Scully and Mulder are left together, alone against the world, in a burst of romance mixed with apocalyptic certainty and unconvincing religious inspiration. They hold hands and contemplate a dismal future of conquering aliens. They also talk of a greater power that may save them. Mulder touches the cross Scully wears around her neck, caresses her lips and then utters the series' final words: ''Maybe there's hope.'' At the very least, there's syndication -- and those lunchboxes.
Monday, July 21, 2008
X-Files Favorite Episodes: Season 9
Season 9
Episode 3 (185) "Dæmonicus" (Written & Directed by by Frank Spotnitz)
With Scully reassigned to the Quantico Training Academy, Doggett and Reyes investigate their first X-File together - a series of satanic ritual murders - which sees their different investigative techniques working together.
Episode 7 (189) "John Doe" (Written by Vince Gilligan, Directed by Michelle Maxwell MacLaren)
With no knowledge of his identity or his past, Doggett is found wandering a dusty Mexican town. While he struggles to piece together his memory, he finds himself embroiled in a smuggling plot, and - across the border - Scully and Reyes attempt to find him.
Episode 17 (199) "Release" (Written by John Shiban & David Amann, Directed by Kim Manners)
When one of Scully’s students displays an inordinate ability to profile serial killers, his insights reopen the murder case of Doggett’s son.
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Monday, May 12, 2008
Boston Legal renewed for season 5
The verdict is in, and “Boston Legal” will indeed be back on ABC next fall.
Show had been at the center of a tug-of-war between ABC and David E. Kelley Prods.
At issue: ABC wants to greenlight the pilot “Life on Mars,” but Kelley owns the rights to the show (an adaptation of the BBC drama of the same name).
Kelley has expressed his intention to leave “Mars” (Daily Variety, May 7) – but in order for the show to continue without him, first needed to negotiate his departure.
That’s where Kelley’s beloved “Legal” comes in. Show has a loyal, but small audience – and wasn’t a lock to return for another season.
But insiders now say that a deal has been reached between ABC, Kelley and 20th Century Fox TV, and “Legal” indeed will be back for a fifth season.
“Mars,” meanwhile, hasn’t been officially ordered to series yet – but a deal appears to be imminent. ABC did not confirm the pickup.
Critically acclaimed “Legal” stars Emmy winners James Spader and William Shatner as litigators Alan Shore and Denny Crane. Cast also includes Candice Bergen and John Larroquette. Bill D’Elia exec produces with Kelley.
Once Kelley’s departure is finalized, ABC Studios is expected to join 20th Century Fox TV as a co-producer on the drama. Also, “October Road” exec producers Josh Appelbaum, Andre Nemec and Scott Rosenberg are in line to take over as showrunners.
Kelley first began developing the U.S. adaptation of “Mars” in 2006, when he obtained the rights.
At the time, ABC gave the show a put pilot commitment, with Kelley set to write the script and exec produce.
"Life on Mars," which was in contention for last year, but rolled to this development season after Kelley couldn't find a proper lead for the show.
Jason O'Mara was eventually tapped last summer to play the lead, a 21st century detective who somehow finds himself transported to the 1970s -- where he encounters a serial killer who may have something to do with the present-day abduction of his girlfriend.
Kudos Film and TV, which was behind the original, is also a producer on the U.S. version.
According to TvWeek.com,ABC has the right to cut back its episode order on Boston Legal to 13, a person familiar with the discussions said.
According to Zap2it,will return with a somewhat tighter budget. The network and 20th Century Fox TV, which produces the show wit Kelley's company, negotiated a somewhat lower license fee, which will likely mean some paring of the show's cast (Saffron Burrows, for one, has moved on to an NBC show).
sources;Variety,TvWeek,Zap2it,Boston-Legal.org
