Last Resort
Coming from Shawn Ryan, creator of The Shield, The Unit, and Chicago Code, there are high expectations for Last Resort. The series follows the crew of a nuclear submarine which is given what appear to be false orders to attack Pakistan, thus instigating a nuclear was. Instead the crew mutinies and takes over a NATO listening post, where it will begin to function as a sovereign nation while they clear their names. The pilot episode did an excellent job of introducing a large number of characters and building the world they inhabit. It was filled with tension and humour and entertaining throughout.
Stay, Skip, or Give it 4: Absolutely a Stay. The creator’s pedigree alone make it worth giving the series a chance. It could be difficult to maintain the level of tension featured in the pilot, but this team has a better chance than most.
Elementary
Yet another “modern” interpretation of the Sherlock Holmes series of books. The series has been adapted so many times over the years that it is nearly impossible to review without comparing to other efforts. This is especially true now, when there are currently three separate takes on the material producing new content; this series, the BBC’s Sherlock, and Warner Bros’ film series Sherlock Holmes. This version takes place in New York and features an incredibly lifeless Lucy Liu as Watson. Sherlock himself is somewhat interesting, but it is the investigation itself that really fails here. Yes, Sherlock does comes up with all of the clues more or less single handed, but none of them are particularly impressive. Nothing he pieces together make him appear any smarter than any other TV cop, and even the viewers will be able to come up with all of the same deductions. There needs to be more of the type of reasoning featured as he worked out Watson’s backstory and less of the “there are two glasses so she knew her killer!” type.
Stay, Skip, or Give it 4: Elementary gets a Skip. Though it is better than the abysmal film version, there is nothing here worth staying around for. Bland presentation and generic mysteries render the show inert. Check out the far superior Sherlock instead.
South Park
After sixteen seasons, the series’ creative team has it down to an art. Not all of the episodes are masterpieces, but they are consistently funny and even the weakest outing have some genius gags. The quick production time allows them to be incredibly relevant and the still do satire better than almost anyone else.
Stay, Skip, or Give it 4: Definitely Stay. The premiere was good, but not especially noteworthy, but that’s not really the point. The show remains smart and funny and, if you aren’t offended by it’s often crude nature, you should be watching it.
Big Bang Theory
This show’s quality seems to be inversely related to its popularity. Though it is achieving its highest ever ratings, it is also far from its creative high point in the second season. That being said, it is still reliably funny. Though it may not be terribly original or inventive, it is more than capable of serving as “comfort food”. The season premiere was a prime example of that. It was enjoyable mainly because we know the characters and have developed relationships with them, not because anything that happened was particularly funny or interesting.
Stay, Skip, or Give it 4: Big Bang Theory still gets a Stay. For those who have been watching for years it is still nice to spend time with these characters. If you’ve never watched, there’s no particular reason to start. There are plenty of worse comedies to watch, but there’s nothing here to really entice new viewers.
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