Commentary on SG1 S10 The Shroud (spoiler)

Well I watched The Shroud and in all honesty I would have to rate it as good.

One of the major issues that kept me from rating it as excellent is that the Jack and Daniel banter was way too slick and superficial. It was as if the dialog was written and played 'by the numbers' with no real depth to it and no one's heart really in it.

That said, there were a few moments between them when it felt like the Jack and Daniel of old, the two men who had had founded a friendship on being able to 'agree to disagree' and to have an understanding of each other that went beyond what anyone else had bothered to know about the other. For the most part, however it was just cotton candy, airy and very little actual substance.

I don't know if was the effect of being a prior or that he was sharing his mind with Merlin, but Daniel just didn't seem to have the kind of genuine frustration level that he gets when he really needs to convey something to Jack and O'Neill is not taking him seriously. I would have liked to have seen abit of the Daniel we had in There but for the Grace of God. Not the 'I must be so amusingly sarcastic' Daniel we got in this episode when he was dealing with Jack. And for heaven's sake when did Jack trade in his 'adult male in the military' voice for that constant whiny tone. He sounded more like a petulant 4 year old who is being told he can't watch cartoons right now then a man confronted with the very real possibility that someone who is a suppose to be a dear friend might now be their worst enemy.

The only time he stopped whining like a 4 year old was when he gave Woolsey the 'over my dead body' ultimatium. There was the Jack O'Neill that I wanted to see in all of this episode. There were a few other glimpses of him here and there, but not enough to counter the whiny guy.

I do have to say I really liked his scenes alone with Carter. For the first time in a long time I saw a comfortable and easy interaction between them. There was nothing being forced or trying to be implied. It was just O'Neill and Carter talking and trying to solve something.

I liked Vala in this episode very much. She is one smart lady under those pigtails and she knows the score. The scene where she is sitting on the stool laying it on the line for Daniel about what it might mean for her to have to chose not to protect or save him was the kind of scene that would have once been between Jack and Daniel, but I have to say that it now works so much better between Daniel and Vala. I'm glad they gave that dramatic part to them. Michael and Claudia made it work and work well.

The scenes between Daniel and Woolsey were awesome. Those two have such complicated interaction and uneasy relationship going on. Robert Picardo brings the right balance of arrogence and sympathic note to Woolsey. His character is a man very earnest about doing the right thing, but never sure where the line is between the right and the wrong thing and what consequences there will be for not making the right decision. Daniel understands that, but has little patience for bureacratic mindsets. It makes for interesting clashes between them.

Overall this episode was too slick and too superficial in many parts. I think it should have been a two part episode. There should have been more angst and more suspense. I think Michael Shanks deserved a two part episode for this story because he is such a powerhouse when it comes to this kind of acting challenge. I would like to have seen more of the Adria/Daniel interaction that led to him becoming a Prior. I like the fact that we have learnt that Adria has a real competitive rivalry streak when it comes to her mother.

In conclusion, I think I would have liked this episode better if Jack O'Neill had not been in it. If they hadn't wasted time trying to go there, but instead had focused on Daniel, Mitchell, Vala, Sam and Teal'c. I would liked to have seen more of Daniel being a Prior before being captured. More of Daniel having a discussion with Mitchell and Teal'c about some of the things that he might have learned about Origin that he actually found admirable or good. I could see Daniel defending something he found that made sense or was enlightening and it making Mitchell and Teal'c wary, but at the same time more sure that it was Daniel under that prior exterior because something like that would be so typical of Daniel Jackson, the man who always seeks to find the good in something or someone if he can.

So it was a good episode. Michael Shanks was awesome as he rose to the challenge of working under heavy makeup, restraints and such. Just wish it hadn't been so slick and 'by the numbers' in the parts that could have been some of the best scenes in the episode.

Dancing With Denny Crane

OMG the ending of last night's episode of Boston Legal was a scream! Alan Shore dressed up like Shirley and Denny Crane wanting to dance with him on the balcony.

Denny:"Image what someone looking accross at to here and seeing Shirley dancing with Cheney would think."

Alan: "If they are regular viewers, they know anything goes."

What a priceless scene that was and as much as the writing does deserve credit, I think the reason the scene worked so well is all down to the incredible chemistry and comedic timing between William Shatner and James Spader who are willing to take the risk.

Of course James Spader has always been willing to take the risk in his career with roles and scenes that might make other actors cringe in fear. He's kissed other men, dressed like a woman, been a ruthless killer, a geeky jerk.

William Shatner on the other had has, IMHO until this role, played it safe in his career. With few exceptions that were designed to poke fun at himself he has been the proper 'leading man' material' all the way. It seems that age has become a liberator for him. That he's reach a point in his career where he seems to feel a measure of safety in which to take chances and do something different.

It seems a lot of 'old school' actors go this route. Leslie Nielsen, Peter Graves, Lloyd Bridges..all stalwart leading men and 'rugged action heroes' in their early days yet after a certain age found that they could take comedic risks and poke a little fun at those images of themselves along the way.

Personally I think William Shatner is the best he has ever been. Don't get me wrong, I will always remember him best as Captain James Kirk, but Denny Crane is a masterpiece of work on his part. The writers give him great scenes and great dialog and Shatner shines in them. He also shows that you don't have to be a twentysomething year old man to be virile and sexy. That older age doesn't mean an actor is relegated to playing the grumpy old codger, the crazy old coot or the devoted grandpa(grandma). That older age is just another stage in life to play upon.

And whomever got the bright idea to pair William Shatner up with James Spader needs an award for the brilliance of that move. I admit right here and now, I only watch BL for the two of them together.

Shine on Shatner and Spader...you've got a winning combo going there!

Marla

Commentary on The Dresden Files Series(Spoilers)

I watched the pilot episode and came away less than impressed with it. Nothing seemed to fit right with what I liked about the books and the audio novels. Mostly I think I missed James Marsters voice.

After the pilot episode left me unenthused for the series, I still decided to go against my earlier decision to pass on the show and I watched the second episode.

It was a little better, but I couldn't help but think how much better this story would have been in the hands of the writers and actors from my absolute fave series right now, Supernatural. This version of Harry Dresden just can't kick it like Dean and Sam Winchester can.

I've decided that Bob is annoying and maybe he wouldn't be if the actor doing the role would make some real facial expressions. Bob looks like he's suffering from Botox overload. At least Harry had more than one facial expression in this episode..last week he looked like he was suffering from a sour stomach all through the episode.

So what is it with tough female cops named Murphy? There was one on MacGyver years ago.

I think my main problem with the whole story about Anubis and the tablet that was a lock that allowed people's souls to switch bodies at the time of physical death was that I just kept hearing Dr. Daniel Jackson from Stargate SG1 saying that this was the myth behind the explanation for how Goa'uld parasites changed hosts. I mean even the tattoos on the back of the neck were like entry marks made by the goa'uld when they possessed a human host. I think I've watched waay too much Stargate SG1!

Not sure if I will watch the next episode of The Dresden Files. I think it depends on what's playing on LMN or Lifetime.

Marla

Commentary on Movie - Long Distance(spoilers)

So I saw the movie 'Long Distance' yesterday. Netflix is such a wonderful thing:)

I was expecting Long Distance to be a rip off of Cellular, but it wasn't. It was a instead a very well written and acted movie with plot twist they managed to keep hidden until the very last moment possible.

Nichole is a young grad student who is reeling from the breakup with her long time boyfriend whom she suspected was cheating on her. She has a very tense phone conversation with her mother and then attempts to call a friend to commiserate with. However she inadvertantly misdials the friends number and hungs up. No soon than she does, when a man at that number calls her back and begins a series of creepy and harassing phone calls.

Each time the man calls her it's from a different place where he has committed a murder and he is headed in a straight line for Nichole's apartment. Meanwhile Nichole is having strange and disturbing dreams that may link back to why the killer is stalking her.

The police and FBI become involved in as a race against time to track the mysterous man who call's himself Joe and protect Nichole. The lead detective on the case, Tony Halsey becomes romanticly involved with Nichole as he takes on the role of her personal bodyguard.

All the elements of the movie are somewhat cliched, but the actors involved manage to create a lot of tension and character dimension out of it. The movie has minimal gore and relies very heavily on psychological terrors than visual ones. That in itself was a refreshing change of pace. A movie that keeps you on the edge of your seat without grossing you out of it.

The plot twist was very well done and very well hidden until the time needed to reveal it. I won't give the twist away here..I say rent the movie and see it for yourself.