Category: TV Review

Diana Vacc Sees CRIMINAL MINDS: BEYOND BORDERS

cmbb posterby Diana Vaccarelli

Criminal Minds is following in the footsteps of Law and Order and CSI by spinning off its own clone, called Criminal Minds: Beyond Borders.  This child/nephew/niece is about an elite group of FBI Agents charged with coming to the aid of and solving crimes that involve American citizens abroad.

THE GOOD

  • The fast paced writing of the series.  The numerous twists and turns keep you on your toes and in suspense. (The music helps too.)
  • The writers really bring to life the different cultures where the Agents are sent to do their thing.  For example, the pilot episode took them to Thailand, giving viewers an interesting glimpse into how women are treated in the Thai Police Force.
  • The performances by all the actors, led by Gary Sinise.  Each character on the team has a distinct personality and set of skills. Much of this is in the writing, as in Criminal Minds, but the actors’ performances seem so genuine that it wasn’t till I sat down to write this review that I even thought about possible copycatting.

THE BAD: read article

Diana Vacc Sees AMERICAN CRIME STORY: THE PEOPLE vs. OJ SIMPSON

 by Diana Vaccarelli

the-people-v-oj-simpson-american-crime-storyTwenty years later and the OJ Simpson trial still fascinates so many.   Executive Producer Ryan Murphy, creator of Glee, Nip/Tuck, and American Horror Story, decided to produce a series based on Jeffrey Toobins book The Run of His Life. The show starts at the murder scene and continues through the trial.

THE GOOD:

  •  The best part of this series is the acting. Everyone fits their roles perfectly. John Travolta as Robert Shapiro, Courtney B. Vance as Johnnie Cochran, Sarah Paulson as Marcia Clark, David Schwimmer as Robert Kardashian, and Cuba Gooding Jr. as OJ Simpson. Each actor gives the viewer the most poignant performance. It is almost like watching the trial all over again.
  • The cinematography by Nelson Cragg is nothing short of brilliant. The colors and the scenery bring you into the scene.
  • The writing makes the characters come alive. We experience the emotional toll that the case has on them all…and, man, is there ever a toll.

THE BAD: read article

The 100 and the Power of Story

The-100-303-5

by Kathryn Graham

On March 3rd, an episode entitled ‘Thirteen’ of The 100 aired on the CW. Shortly afterward, the social media sphere blew up with enraged and heartbroken fans. Why? Here There Be Spoilers.

In this episode, an older male mentor and advisor, Titus, shot his commander and the only lesbian character, Lexa, with a stray bullet mere moments after her one and only love scene with the bisexual female protagonist, Clarke. read article

LB Sees VINYL

The best thing about VINYL
The best thing about VINYL

by Larry Brody

THE GOOD:

  • Gotta love the look, filled with energy and chaos
  • The ’70s setting
  • The talent attached to the project – Mick Jagger! Martin Scorsese! Ray Romano! Olivia Wilde!

THE NOT SO GOOD:

  • The dated, bullshit rock ‘n’ roll cinematography that we’ve seen in every film – and terrible TV episode from the ’70s to today
  • The cliche that the ’70s have become
  • Mick Jagger! Martin Scorsese! Men of talent who stopped making anywhere near full use of that talent long ago

OVERALL: read article

Comic Book Women on TV

Comic book heroes have taken over feature films and aren’t exactly scarce on TV either. Comics pro Mindy Newell has a most interesting take on the situation. Check it out!

Superman-Supergirl-Dave-GibbonsJessica and Kara
by Mindy Newell

So it turns out that I maybe I do have a TARDIS, because I was able to finish watching Jessica Jones and to catch up on Supergirl.

You remember that basically crappy review of Supergirl I gave a couple of months ago? Well, the show is getting there, though, im-not-so-ho, they aren’t taking advantage of what could be some great story arcs. Except for Alex Danvers. And Cat Grant. And Hank Henshaw. But more on that in a bit. read article