Big Love: "Till Death Do Us Part"
I’m not sure what prevented this episode from sticking its landing as much as you’d expect it to. It’s not that the plot developments don’t work, they do – and well, too. But, the overall end product is not exactly stellar. Margene’s underage liaison with Bill will soon be revealed – of course, we all knew that that secret was never going to keep. I know Bill has many haters, but I usually understand his take on things – not so much this time. His dismissal of Barb’s feelings is annoying, and though his war with Alby his unfortunate he seems to be taking the wrong approach. Even Cara Lynn, usually so fine, annoys me this episode. I’m worried about how Nicolette is going to take that revelation when the inevitable fall-out occurs. The episode serves its basest purpose, though, in that it sets us up for a gamut of great scenes to occur in the final three episodes.
[B/B-]Parenthood: "Qualities and Difficulties"
On the note of main characters annoying you, I just wanted to consistently slap Adam during this episode. It’s almost as if he’s become imbued with all the annoying traits that Kristina had in earlier episodes (and now Kristina is awesome). The less said about his arc (which dominated the episode) the better. That being said, I cannot overstate how brilliant Craig T. Nelson and Bonnie Bedelia are. They’re such fine actors working so excellently on the sidelines, Bedelia continually sleighs me with just an expression. Then…Crosby, he’s such a mess and that final scene with him and Zeek was great. Can I just ask: when did Jason Ritter grow up? I still remember his wheel-chair bound brother on Joan of Arcadia – a show I was vaguely fond of. I hope he’s back soon – he and Graham are hilariously awkward opposite each other (in a good way). And Julia and Joel are absolutely brilliant. But, God, can Jaegar and Christensen have an actual storyline? Yeesh.
[B/B-]Modern Family: "Two Monkeys and a Panda"
This episode doesn’t pop for me, a few laughs here and there but there’s something underwhelming about the actual storylines. It seems like a bit of regressing having Claire go back to her nut-so ways, even if the continuous swapping of gender roles in that marriage make me delighted. O’Neill and Vergara are great opposite each other, but the storyline is just too on-the-nose even if Gloria gets to bring out her brilliant logic (the proper uses of “ta-da”) and it leads to a sweet moment with Jay and Manny. Even Cam and Mitchell with the main plot don’t quite deliver. Correction: Ferguson and Stonestreet are great, but this storyline, too, seems heavy-handed. It’s not a terrible episode, but it’s somewhat disappointing.
[B/B-]Standout Performances
Eric Stonestreet in Modern Family B+
Jesse Tyler Ferguson in Modern Family B+
Chloe Sevigny in Big Love B/B+
Ty Burrell in Modern Family B/B+
Monica Potter in Parenthood B/B+
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