Last Week in TV #35

The 2012-2013 network TV season officially ended this week (as of Wednesday night, I believe), but thanks to Revolution continuing to run out its thread, my usual backlog of shows (as well as a few more weeks of Game of Thrones), I've got at least a few more "Last Week in TV" posts coming your way before I take a much needed summer break.  

The Simpsons: The Saga of Carl/Dangers on a Train (season finale)

As far as latter day Simpsons episodes go, "The Saga of Carl" is one of the more original episodes we've seen in a long time. Carl as a character isn't someone who's received a lot of attention, and the concept of male friendship is something the show hasn't really examined much before. There was also some really strong animation in the Iceland scenes, giving the whole thing a look that was different than Springfield but still very much in the show's aesthetic.

X-amining New Mutants #30

"The Singer and Her Song"
August 1985

In a Nutshell
Kitty, Rachel and Dazzler help the New Mutants infiltrate the Gladiators.

Presenter: Stan Lee
Writer: Chris Claremont
Artist: Bill Sienkiewicz
Letterer: Joe Rosen
Colorist: Glynis Oliver
Editor: Ann Nocenti
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

Plot
Sam, Kitty, Rachel and Dazzler find themselves in Limbo, where Illyana had teleported them in the wake of their encounter with the Beyonder. As a result of that encounter, Illyana's Darkchilde side has been released, causing Limbo to go as mad as its mistress. Wresting her Soul Sword from her, Kitty uses the weapon to restore Illyana to normal. Still seeking to free the captured Roberto and Amara from the Gladiators, Illyana returns the group to Los Angeles, where they once again track down the Gladiators. Dazzler offers to infiltrate the group, and though everyone else decides against it for fear she won't be able to resist the lure of fame, she goes anyway. Welcomed back by her old friends, Dazzler is forced to take an inhibition-lowering drug to prove her loyalty. Later, Kitty, posing as a technician, gets a job working for the Gladiators. As Dazzler revels once more in being a star, she tries to win the trust of Roberto and Amara. Following a practice session, Kitty triggers a blackout and seeks out Roberto.

X-amining Uncanny X-Men #195

"It Was a Dark and Stormy Night" 
July 1985

In a Nutshell 
The X-Men rescue Power Pack from the Morlocks.

Writer: Chris Claremont
Artist: John Romita Jr.  
Inker: Dan Green
Letterer: Tom Orzechowski
Colorist: Glynis Wein
Editor: Ann Nocenti
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

Plot
Awoken by a thunderstorm, the Power children realize their parents don't know who they are, and discover that all traces of their existence have been removed from their home. Remembering they recently met a Morlock who could alter peoples memories, they change into their costumes and head into the sewers. However, a group of Morlocks is waiting for them, and all but Katie are captured. However, Masque manages to disfigure her face before she gets away. Fleeing through the subways, Katie is found by a police officer and taken to the hospital. The next morning, Kitty overhears a news report about Katie, and recognizing Masque's work, realizes the Morlocks have broken their word not to attack surface dwellers. She brings Rogue, Rachel and Wolverine to the hospital where they rescue Katie and learn what happened to her siblings.

Game of Thrones 3x08: Second Sons

On the Road
So the Hound professes to be taking Arya to her family after all (for the money), which probably means the Hound is about to meet a grisly end, since I continue to doubt Arya will ever be reunited with her family. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the dig at the Brotherhood Without Banners, as the murderous Clegane is actually trying to do what the Brotherhood promised but ultimately failed to do.

Last Week in TV #34

It's finale time, but unfortunately, due to Mothers Day and SpringCon setup (if you're in the neighborhood, swing by the Grandstand on the State Fair grounds this weekend and say hello), I didn't have as much time to watch TV as I'd have liked. But we soldier on nonetheless!  

The Simpsons: The Fabulous Faker Boy

This almost the perfect example of a cromulent episode: neither good nor bad enough to get too worked up over. It shows up, does its thing, and leaves, with little lasting impression. I honestly don't have much to say about it. It's always nice when Bart goes nuts for a girl (though such stories would work better if he was a scootch older). The tie-in to Mothers Day was nice, I suppose, though nothing we haven't seen before. That's about it. Oh, there was the Justin Bieber cameo, which like much of the episode, was hard to get too worked up over either way.

X-amining Power Pack #12 & Secret Wars II #1

Power Pack #12
"Underground!"
July 1985

In a Nutshell
The Morlocks kidnap Power Pack

Writer: Louise Simonson
Penciler: June Brigman
Inker: Bob Wiacek
Letterer: Joe Rosen
Colorist: Glynis Oliver
Editor: Carl Potts
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

Plot
As Power Pack heads back into the sewers to retrieve their schoolbooks, left behind rescuing a kitten, they're attacked and captured by a group of Morlocks. Elsewhere in the tunnels, Nightcrawler and Kitty Pryde are meeting with Callisto. As they leave, they catch sight of the captured children and investigate. Power Pack, their powers suppressed by the power-dampening Morlock Leech, is told they were kidnapped to replace Annalee's recently murdered children. They manage to escape their bonds and trick Leech into leaving the room, enabling them to use their powers. Together with Nightcrawler and Kitty, they overpower the Morlocks. Power Pack explains to Annalee why she can't just steal other people's children, then leaves their kitten with Leech. The X-Men accompany them home, but later that night, Annalee tracks them down and vows to make them her children forever.  

X-amining Nightcrawler #1-4

"How Much is that Boggie in the Window?/A Boggie Day in L'un D'un-T'wn/To BAMF or Not to BAMF!/The Wizard of OOPs!" 
Nov 1985 - Feb 1986

In a Nutshell
Nightcrawler goes on a cross-dimensional swashbuckling adventure

Writer/Artist: Dave Cockrum
Colorist: Paty
Letterer: Jim Novak
Editor: Ann Nocenti
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

Plot
Issue #1: Nightcrawler tells Kitty of a past adventure in which he journeyed to another dimension, meeting Sevh the Oracle and encountering the Well at the Center of Time. Intrigued, Kitty attempts to recreate the well in the Danger Room, but somehow manages to create the real thing. She's horrified when Nightcrawler and Lockheed are dragged into the well. They find themselves transported to a strange world, and are made members of a pirate crew. Minutes pass as Kitty and Illyana scramble to find Nightcrawler, but weeks pass for him. However, he refuses to participate in the pirates' attack on another ship, instead disabling their ship and leaving with their target. Taken to the nearest port, Nightcrawler attempts to help a young women in trouble, but it knocked unconscious by one of the pirates. Awakening back aboard their ship, he discovers he's been sold to the sorcerer Shagreen.  

Issue #2: Shagreen takes Nightcrawler and Lockheed to his fortress, where he intends to study Nightcrawler to learn the secret of his teleportation abilities. Escaping, Nightcrawler rescues a princess Shagreen means to sacrifice, dueling the sorcerer aboard his skyship. After Shagreen falls to his apparent death, Nightcrawler is taken aboard the royal ship and knighted for his actions. Just as Nightcrawler is getting to know the princess, however, Kitty tries again to bring him home, but instead he lands in another world, face-to-face with a childlike-version of himself.

Game of Thrones 3x07: The Bear and the Maiden Fair

Harrenhal
He still tried to murder a kid, but Jamie continues to be a far more nuanced and interesting character than I ever imagined he'd be. Granted, he had a pretty good idea the guy that was tasked with delivering him to Kings Landing wouldn't let the bear eat him, but it was still pretty ballsy to leap into that pit unarmed (pun intended), and to do so entirely for Brienne's benefit.

Also, while getting mauled to death by a bear for the entertainment of others is pretty rough, I was expecting Jamie to walk-in on something far worse (ie sexually depraved) at the end there.

I'm curious just how far Jamie will be willing to go in keeping his word to deliver the Stark girls to their mother. Assuming he ever does make it back to Kings Landing (and the way most people on this show rarely make it where they're heading, that's a pretty big assumption), will he go so far as to defy his father and send Sansa home? Would he venture out to track down Arya?

Last Week in TV #33

We are now well into May sweeps, and shows are starting to wind down. To that end, I held off on some Glee, Parks and Rec and Community coverage (three shows that have already bowed but which I'm behind on) from this post in order to maximize my time and not fall behind on others, so expect some multi-episode coverage of those shows in the remaining last few weeks of the season. 

The Simpsons: Whiskey Business

I probably would have enjoyed this episode more if Moe's misanthropy and self-loathing hadn't, through the years, become quite so broad. Before he was a complete and utter sad sack whose suicide attempts were so commonplace they went uncommented on by other characters, there was something interesting and occasionally funny about a constantly-down-on-his-luck Moe. But that character trait has been so beaten into the ground over the years that it's lost all meaning and impact (I mean, how many times now has Moe almost achieved success only to have it snatched away because of his ugliness, be it physical or emotional?), thus undercutting some of the more interesting things in this episode.

X-amining New Mutants #29

"Meanwhile, Back at the Mansion..."
July 1985

In a Nutshell
Roberto and Amara are kidnapped by the Gladiators. 

Writer: Chris Claremont
Artist: Bill Sienkiewicz
Letterers: Orzechowski & Rosen
Colorist: Glynis Oliver
Editor: Ann Nocenti
Editor-in-Chief: Jim Shooter

Plot
Sam and Illyana race through the Westchester County airport after a kidnapped Roberto and Amara. They catch up to the van containing their friends on the tarmac, only to realize they've been placed on a departing plane. Sam attempts to catch up to the plane, but is unsuccessful. Illyana teleports Sam to Limbo, where they interrogate the driver of the van. They learn that their friends have been captured by a group known as the Gladiators, operating out of Los Angeles. Illyana teleports them to LA, but also accidentally shifts them in time, leading them to arrive a week after they left. They head for Lila Cheney's house, where Sam explains the situation and they learn that one of Lila's recently-hired sessions singers is Dazzler, who has a past history with the Gladiators. Elsewhere, a captive Roberto is taken before Alexander Flynn, the apparent leader of the Gladiators. He and Amara are told they will fight to the death for sport in the arena, or else a group of runaway children the Gladiators have captured will be killed.