The Americans Season 3 Episode 11 Review: “One Day in the Life of Anton...
When we think and talk about our favorite TV series, some of the most common reasons we give for being invested in a show are that the story is good and the characters are interesting. But what makes...
View ArticleThe Americans Season 3 Episode 12 Review: “I Am Abassin Zadran”
A relatively quiet hour before a hotly-anticipated finale that has many important storylines to address, “I Am Abassin Zadran” is mainly an exercise for The Americans in examining the prolonged effects...
View ArticleThe Americans Season 3 Episode 13 Review: “March 8, 1983”
On first consideration, “March 8, 1983” can feel like an underwhelming season finale for The Americans. Here is a series that has made a living off high-adrenaline climaxes following carefully-plotted...
View ArticleHannibal Season 3 Episode 1 Review: “Antipasto”
Ever the eloquent performer for his own implied audience, Hannibal Lecter tells newcomer Anthony Dimmond (Tom Wisdom) that “one can appreciate another’s words without dissecting them…though, on...
View ArticleHannibal Season 3 Episode 2 Review: “Primavera”
When The Beach Boys came out with Pet Sounds in May of 1966, it was largely in response to the genius of The Beatles’ Rubber Soul—that bird’s first major step into its more progressive, less commercial...
View ArticleHannibal Season 3 Episode 3 Review: “Secondo”
In the gloom of Lithuania, Will Graham and Chiyoh come to agree on at least one thing: “All sorrows can be borne if you put them in a story.” Fiction as a coping mechanism is not something unfamiliar...
View ArticleHannibal Season 3 Episode 4 Review: “Aperitivo”
Memory and trauma are inextricably linked. In the time following a traumatic event, memory plays a massive role in determining how someone deals with that trauma—using memory, for instance, actively in...
View ArticleHannibal Season 3 Episode 5 Review: “Contorno”
As Season 3 of Hannibal progresses, Dr. Lecter continues to reveal bits of information about his past to Bedelia and to the audience. He used to keep snails in his garden for the firefly larvae to eat,...
View ArticleHannibal Season 3 Episode 6 Review: “Dolce”
If these reviews have made semi-consistent references to “Mizumono,” it’s because that episode of Hannibal—the Season 2 finale—had such a tremendous impact not only on the series as a whole, but on...
View ArticleHannibal Season 3 Episode 7 Review: “Digestivo”
Though the events of Bryan Fuller’s Hannibal have only taken place across 33 episodes, we have known this Will Graham since April 4th, 2013. In that span, the incredible change he has undergone has...
View ArticleHannibal Season 3 Episode 8 Review: “The Great Red Dragon”
Something that has separated Bryan Fuller’s Hannibal, since its first episode, from other series involving serial killers is its handling of violence. The ways that the show observes and interprets...
View ArticleHannibal Season 3 Episode 9 Review: “And the Woman Clothed with the Sun…”
As this season of Hannibal has gone along, I’ve begun to notice more nuance to its scripting by doing “Hannibal by the Numbers” (which is included at the ends of these reviews). The differences between...
View ArticleHannibal Season 3 Episode 10 Review: “And the Woman Clothed in Sun”
While I maintain my position of seeing no legitimate value in comparing Red Dragon and its film adaptations to Bryan Fuller’s Hannibal as a way of finding value (or lack of value) in the series, I will...
View ArticleHannibal Season 3 Episode 11 Review: “…And the Beast from the Sea”
It is with some amount of trepidation that we begin to think of our own answers to Hannibal Lecter’s question at the end of “…And the Beast from the Sea”: “Don’t you crave change?” In context, Hannibal...
View ArticleHannibal Season 3 Episode 12 Review: “The Number of the Beast is 666…”
The last three episodes of Hannibal have pivoted around a central set piece. “And the Woman Clothed in Sun” featured one of the series’ most poignant moments in Reba’s visit with the tiger. “…And the...
View ArticleHannibal Season 3 Episode 13 Review: “The Wrath of the Lamb”
When Season 3 of Hannibal began, the good doctor Lecter invited us to consider his story in a surprising context: “Let it be a fairy tale, then. Once upon a time…” Twelve weeks later, even though we...
View ArticleVinyl Season 1 Episode 1: “Pilot”
Every new HBO drama premieres to high expectations—higher, for better or worse, than any other network. And while the premium cable powerhouse has an insanely successful series in Game of Thrones, its...
View ArticleVikings Season 4 Episode 1: “A Good Treason”
If it’s hard to make sense of Vikings’ brand of loyalty, it’s because the series carefully shows that loyalty is much more complicated than it appears to be on the surface. Floki, acting out of loyalty...
View ArticleVikings Season 4 Episode 2: “Kill the Queen”
Among the many things Vikings has been able to accomplish across three full seasons is establishing a specific tone. The series could easily revel in its melodrama in the same ways that HBO’s Game of...
View ArticleVinyl Season 1 Episode 3: “Whispered Secrets”
While Vinyl hasn’t matured fully into the aural powerhouse that it has the potential to be, the excess of the pilot has already worn off by episode three. “Whispered Secrets” is co-written by Banshee...
View ArticleVikings Season 4 Episode 3: “Mercy”
Much better, Vikings. With an entire action set piece last week devoted to what has been the least interesting plot thread of the season, “Mercy” sets the English side of Vikings back on track during...
View ArticleVinyl Season 1 Episode 4: “The Racket”
Ask and ye shall receive: Shedding the excess fat of flashback scenes that have done little in the way of making the present of Vinyl any more urgent, “The Racket” is fully immersed in the here and...
View ArticleVikings Season 4 Episode 4: “Yol”
Watching an episode of Vikings can be an unusual experience for regular television viewers because of the series’ pacing. There are other shows out there that move just as methodically in ways that...
View ArticleVinyl Season 1 Episode 5: “He is Racist Fire”
Now halfway through its debut season, Vinyl continues to struggle at finding a way to nail an episode in its entirety. A gut reaction might be that much of the season thus far has felt like it’s more...
View ArticleThe Americans Season 4 Episode 1: “Glanders”
Stan and Martha share a moment in copy room as the rest of the office gossips about Gene’s apparent suicide. “I guess you never really know a person, do you?” That may be an understatement in...
View ArticleVikings Season 4 Episode 5: “Promised”
Enter: King Ecbert. He falls to his knees in front of the figure of Christ. “Lord, you know me for a sinner, and I think you have already decided to cast me out into the darkness—like a fallen angel,...
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