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Yes, I know...I'm behind on the wrap-ups. So without further audieu....
Monk: Mr. Monk and the Game Show
Every once in a while, when I'm watching Monk, I just say to myself, "Who'd've figured the guy who played Antonio on Wings was actually THIS GOOD?" It's amazing how GREAT Tony Shalhoub is in this show week in and week out.
"Mr. Monk and the Game Show" is one of those where we know the identity of the murderer before the opening credits but we don't know why he killed the victim or how it ties into the plotline that actually involved Mr. Monk. Trudy's father comes to San Francisco to ask Monk for help--a man on his game show is on a tremendous winning streak and he's sure cheating is involved. Thing is--he can't figure out how (Shades of Jeopordy anyone?) Monk reluctantly agrees and upstairs neighbor Kevin Dorfman tags along to assist Monk (Sherona is off taking care of her mother). The mystery itself is an intriguing one, but it's what the show chose to do character-wise that made this episode so compelling. In flashbacks, we see Monk and Trudy coming to her parents house during their courtship. Over the course of the episode, a couple of well done flashbacks show how happy Monk and Trudy were as well as Monk now struggling still with her loss. The scene were Monk tries to tell his father-in-law he's sorry he couldn't take care of Trudy like he promised he would was truely moving, as was the scene where Monk goes into her old bedroom and reads his diary. Shalhoub delivers an understated, elegant performance here and he does just enough with the flashback-Monk and the current-day Monk to make you realize which one is which--even without the tint the flashbacks take on. I have to say this was one of the more moving, enjoyable and well-done Monk episodes of the season and I can only hope the season finale (well, the summer season finale, I believer) will continue this nice trend.
Stargate SG1: Avatar
Teal'c becomes trapped in a training exercise video-game--each time he "dies" it resets to the start of the level and he has to start over again. Also, the game can feed off Teal'c's decisions and slowly make the game more difficult as it learns more about him. Old concept and definitely done before by such shows as Farscape, X-Files, Star Trek, even Lois and Clark. But you've got to give Stargate SG1 credit for taking an old plotline and giving it its own spin. Turns out Teal'c might be trapped within the game because on some level he doesnt' believe our heroes can ultimately defeat the Goa'uld, despite all the success they've had these past couple of years and the victories they've made. I'll admit it--when I saw the preview I was ready to dismiss it as "been there, done that." But the story actually had enough suspense to keep me hooked until the final few moments when it wrapped up. My final question is--when will this videogame be out on the market? LOL
Stargate: Atlantis: Childhood's End
While exploring a new planet, Shepard, McKay, Teyla and Ford's puddle jumper suddenly loses power and is forced to land. The four discover a society of young adults, none over the age of 24. The group is convinced that by killing themselves before they turn 25, they are keeping the Wraiths from feeding on their village. McKay finds out that a force-field is protecting the village and is eager to take it to Atlantis as a possible defense mechanism for our heroes. Turns out both are keeping the village shielding--the pretty radical policy of ethuinasia at 25 and the shield. Again, what could have been a case of "been there, done that' from other genre shows turns out to be a fairly well done episode that asks a lot of good questions--namely just how much should Atlantis interfere with the lives of those they find and weighing that against their own survival. I'll admit that this one had me until the last five minutes when, after restoring the shield, everyone in the village pretty much says, "Gee, let's stop killing people at age 25." Sorry, but it's hard to see the long history of this practice suddenly being done away with just because the crew puts the shield back up. It seems too ingrained in the culture and too many of them were willing to fight for it to have them so easily put it aside.
posted by Michael Hickerson at 8/21/2004 05:50:00 PM |
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