Today, the Tuesday TV Touchbase takes a look at a couple of series that are part way through their current season.
5 episodes in, Star Trek Picard has gone a LONG way towards righting the wrongs of seasons 1 and 2. The big threat turning out to be a follow up to the Dominion War from Deep Space Nine was a most unexpected but welcome development.
Speaking of unexpected, the return of Michelle Forbes as Ro Laren was completely a surprise. We haven't seen here since the 7th season TNG episode "Preemptive Strike" where Ro went undercover and wound betraying Starfleet and Capt. Picard by joining the Maquis. 30+ years later and Jean-Luc Picard is still pissed off about that.
It's a heartbreaking moment when Ro and Picard confront each other over how much each hurt the other. But they have to trust each other since Ro is getting close to the truth of how far the Changelings of the Dominion have infiltrated Starfleet. It is a mission that will cost Ro her life and puts the burden of finishing her work in the hands of Jean-Luc Picard.
It also finally connects Worf and Raffi's plot line with the rest of the cast.
While season 3 is a vast improvement on the previous seasons, Star Trek Picard is still beset by pacing issues. It takes too long for the plot to get from point A to point B.
I'm loving this show's take on Worf, older and wiser, darn near philosophical but still more than able to kick anyone's ass.
We still do not know what Jack Crusher's deal is and quite frankly, this has played out too long. Why Vandic and the Changelings have such an interest in Jean-Luc and Beverly's son remains frustratingly unclear and Jack's own mental lapses and hallucinations should mean something by now.
We've learned more about Capt. Shaw. Yeah, he's still an asshole but we have a clearer idea why. He's a random survivor of the Borg assault at Wolf 359 and his survivor's guilt fuels his worse impulses. But for all his being a total jerk, Shaw is still a good guy with some considerable skills trying to do the right thing.
The promised TNG reunion is still not quite a thing yet. As of episode 5, Geordi LaForge is still a no show but his daughter as a navigator on the Titan has been an endearing presence so far. Deanna Troi has only made 2 appearance on communication monitors. And Brent Spiner's return as Lore is still pending.
Star Trek Picard is giving more of what fans want with some deep dives into the legacy of not just Star Trek: The Next Generation but also the larger Star Trek universe. Pacing issues and some plot logic problems aside, season 3 has been the journey we were hoping for all along with this series.
Meanwhile...
We're in the middle of a break for Young Sheldon while the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament takes up space on the CBS Thursday night schedule.
When we last left the Coopers...
Mandy gave birth to a baby girl and in an echo of Bernadette's situation on Big Bang Theory, Mandy's baby will not stop crying. Georgie despite being shy of his 18th birthday has been remarkably wise and helpful during this post birth trauma.
Sheldon's database debuted and within the show no one cares and out here for us folks watching the show, no one cares. Too often, the star of Young Sheldon is the least interesting part of Young Sheldon.
The big drama is when George Sr, Brenda Sparks, Mary and Youth Pastor Rob wind up in the same room. George and Brenda have a close relationship as do Mary and Rob. The ever hypocritical Mary (who we know has had sex dreams about Rob) is immediately suspicious of George & Brenda. On the other hand, George (who does seem to spend a lot of time with Brenda in the Sparks family chicken coop) isn't sure of Mary's intentions around Rob. He's seen how she lights up with he's in the room.
While both insist to each other they are not cheating, Mary nonetheless is staying with her mother.
Which leaves Missy. Between the drama of her older brother knocking up a woman 10 years older than him, whatever shit Sheldon is sucking up the air around him about in any given moment and whatever the hell is going on with her parents that no one is talking to her about, Missy feels estranged from her family. So she steals her dad's truck and runs away from home.
The Coopers are heading for a crisis that will tear the family apart. We know from Big Bang Theory that George is no far from the point in his life where he cheats on Mary. Despite his attraction to Brenda, George is really trying to be a good and faithful husband. But when Brenda treats him with more respect and affection than Mary and is also a damn sight more fun to be around, well, George is facing quite a challenge.
And we are also about a year from where George Cooper is going to die.
OK, that is that for this week's Touchbase.
Next week I'm posting about the return of Superman & Lois. Also I've finally finished the first season of Doom Patrol.
Until next time, remember to be good to one another and try to keep it down in there, would ya? I'm trying to watch TV over here.
No comments:
Post a Comment