Week of 8/23/10 - Summer Season Finales are Around the Bend!

SPOILERS: Warehouse 13, White Collar, Covert Affairs, Eureka

We're heading into the last lap of summer programming, and it shows. They're pulling out all the stops to make sure we're there when they pull out the cliffhangers that are supposed to last us 9 months till next May. To steal a certain company's catch phrase - I'm loving it.

Episode of the Week: Warehouse 13 "Merge With Caution"

Unless, you're an Auggie fan, in which case, it's Covert Affairs "Communication Breakdown"

Warehouse 13 "Merge With Caution": What a cool take on a classic sci-fi theme. Myka and Pete switch bodies, and Claudia and Artie go on their own adventure. The highlight of this episode for me was the extent to which Pete and Myka experience each others feelings. Pete get's drunk off of Myka's vodka tonics, and is afraid of backsliding after 8 years sober, and Myka experiences one of Pete's vibes (a definite sign that it's a physical effect, not just his intuition). The artifact, and even their interactions with Kelly and Brad (?) are really secondary to the actual physical differences we see. And congrats to both actors, though I have to say that Eddie McClintock wins, his Myka impression was spot on.

And two thumbs up for "Clartie/Artia." Artie proves just how long he's been at work, with his 23 ways to escape being handcuffed in a hotel closet. We get some nice references to Mr. Knock Knock, and we get to see them bond. The whole thing had a strange sort of "day at the office" feel, even for such a life-or-death drastic situation. And Saul Rubinek kept me in stitches, especially with his delivery of the line "She should drive more carefully, she could get hurt!" after Lauren runs over one of her hapless male victims.


Covert Affairs "Communication Breakdown": This episode was about Auggie. Just Auggie.

*Slap* "I have to say, I didn't see that coming...[cause I'm blind]"

Christopher Gorham fans rejoice, we got to see him shirtless. Twice. For a blind guy, he certainly gets a lot of action. And he's adorably emotional too. This episode served to remind us just how little we know about the tech guy we all love - between the charming playboy exterior and the kind mentoring interior, there's a thin cold, almost bitter agent who is using Liza Hearn. I hope. That's the worst part. This episode makes me wish he's ruthlessly seducing a journalist, because the only other option is to see him as a traitor.

This isn't the Auggie we want to think about. He's charming, he's suave, but as As Annie puts it, "James Bond...was a lonely old man." And I'm somewhat nervous how shaken up Annie is over his behaviour; I know some people must, but I cannot repeat how much I don't want an Annie/Auggie paring.

Which brings me to another point: I am almost ready to totally forgive Sendhil Ramamurthy for Heroes,  because he is really hitting his stride as Jai. I have to be honest. I like his character. I like his hitting on Annie. I like him more for her than Auggie. And I actually don't want him killed off. Which is ther first time I've really ever said that since the first season of Heroes. Even as a backseat character, I enjoy his scenes, I laugh at his jokes, and his smiles are genuine.

And finally, I liked Tash. Her reactions to Auggie being blind were wonderful. She doesn't devolve into instant
sadness, but you can see her struggling to deal with it, but still secondary to her dealing with Auggie's reveal that he's CIA. She's a total wild child, and the moment when she plants one on Auggie you see the shocked look in his face; and the joy she clearly gets out of putting him through the ringer. But, as the episode ends, there is a definite sense that we may never be seeing her again. Which leaves us back with a lonely Auggie.

White Collar "Prisoner's Dilemna": The trailer for this episode totally misled me. In fact, this episode misled me until the end. Because, unfortunately, I kept expecting it to be a more interesting and convoluted plot than it actually was. The trailers showed Peter on the run, so I thought he was running from Fowler. The episode put Peter alone with Franklin who claimed his own innocence, so I thought he would turn out crazy and guilty (as in Jake 2.0 "Double Agent") and Peter naively following. Instead, I ended up with, well, a cute episode. A "CI-off" over Lamborghinis and a nicely set up confession at the end. A gift for Mozie, a view of "Tuesday" (because he's usually there on Wednesdays), and a night with Mrs. Suit. But all in all, not the drama I was expecting.Which just leaves me oddly unsatisfied. Huh.

Eureka "The Ex-Files": OUCH Jo. Just OUCH. Someone needs ice cream and a hug. I knew it was headed that way once we knew Jo was hallucinating Zane, but OUCH it hurt to watch. The puzzled look on his face and then - "What are you doing with my grandmother's ring?" OUCH. I'm bummed that the trailer for next week sends them back to the past cause I want to see Zane process that truth.

Onto the episode plot. Grant got played, CPR isn't always a good thing, we learned a sad truth about science research and the military, and it's time to go back to the past. Done.

Let's get to the subplot shall we? Nathan Stark was back! Oh, and Tess. But let's focus on the awesome here, Nathan Stark WAS BACK! I was so happy, I nearly squealed. Honestly, both were great. Nathan's constant prodding "Size 13 shoes, [if you know what I mean]" and Tess' betrayed rants "Men are pigs!" made me crack up. And come on, "just put a shirt on." It was exactly what Jack and Allison needed to face, and better now than later.

Plus, Fargo grew some balls with the help of his 5th grade nemesis, and Jo.... well, OUCH. And I think Henry and Grace are totally cheating using those neural devices. I like keeping my memories to myself, thank you very much!

Next week, the true madness begins! Season finales, massive cliffhangers, characters stuck near death - good times. And if my homework load is nice and light, you might get a post each! (How special!)

~ Sarah