Sleepy Hollow, Season 3, Episode 18: Ragnorak

Well this was some bullshit

I’m not even going to try and go for a detailed recap of this episode because it doesn’t deserve my time or keystrokes and I’m sure Renee and I will sit down together and write a Friday Discussion about Sleepy Hollow’s latest trainwreck

After Betsy Ross is quickly shuffled out of the picture (her presence last episode was as pointless as… well as its always been) they rebuild Pandora’s box with which they intend to trap the Hidden One. Fine print – it needs a Witness Soul to rebuild it. Specifically Abbie’s (yes, of course Abbie’s).

They take their newly rebuilt box to have the most utterly anti-climactic fight ever with his Hiddenness who spends more time making dramatic speeches about how evil he is rather than actually do anything with all that epic power he apparently has. His power is drained but to finish him off, we need a sacrifice

Yes, as anyone with any social media presence knows, that sacrifice is Abbie Mills. She’s dead, she dies to kill the Hidden One.

This happens pretty close to the beginning of the episode and much of the rest of the episode deals with Abbie Mills saying goodbye and assuring Ichabod it’s totally ok to not resurrect her and the whole point of her existence was establishing his specialness anyway

No, really. We actually have that line. Ichabod was her purpose. That’s not rubbing salt into the wounds, that’s rubbing rotting faecal matter into them.

Seriously, I’m not going into detail of the emotion or goodbyes of this episode. I’m not going to even pretend this death was ok or well presented – I’m not going to act like any amount of emotional goodbyes would make her sacrifice anything other than a clumsy story twist forced in at the last minute for no reason

The 100, Season 3, Episode 10: The Fallen

Time for another week of cringing delivered by The 100.

First lets look at the rebellion – a major battle between who controls the Skykru which, nevertheless, is eclipsed by Octavia and Bellamy’s family drama. She makes it clear again and again how much she hates him while he lowers his head in guilty Manpain with a side order of “it will all come right in the end.” He’s trying to step on the Redemption Train but after Lincoln’s death (mentioned in passing), Octavia keeps pushing him off again. At least Kane is also a little suspicious of him but it’s clear Kane is happy for him to try and earn his place back – so it’s going to happen. I also think Bellamy’s general support of awfulness this season is basically going to turn into a family drama between him and his sister. Oh. Yay. Imagine how eager I am for this.

First step on this redemption train is when Monty tries to join the rebels after his mother turns him in (they have a kind of emotional not goodbye which is all nice and touching it if weren’t for the whole turning-him-in thing. What is it with this season and people making terrible decisions which are obviously terrible which they regret and try to pretend the decisions weren’t obviously terrible when they made them). Monty only tries to join the rebels because he’s super ineffective and instead leads Pike to them. Bellamy then doublecrosses (triple crosses?) Pike by leading him to the Grounder blockade where they plan to exchange him for the blockade being removed.

Pike ends up injured, captured and taken to the new Heda – Kane going with to try and plee Skykru’s case. And yay we can have peace (except for the dead guards who were killed but who cares about red shirts?)

Of course this all depends on new Heda

Time to join her. Looks like Ontari is in waaaay over her head, especially since the Flamekeeper has left and she can’t perform the proper ceremonies that only the Heda can do with her proper chip upgrade. Don’t you just hate it when new software isn’t compatible with your current tech? She relies a lot on the ominous and-never-right Murphy to guide her (he is alive and in this position of power because of epic plot armour). He wants to use lies and cunning. She wants to use horrific violence

Wynonna Earp, Season 1, Episode 2: Keep the Home Fires Burning

Wynonna is now a proper member of the Black Badge brigade which means Dolls is all official and she is all snarky. He has lots of official research. She has her own family history – and they clash a bit but not so much as to give me a headache. Though I think Wynonna gives Dolls all the headaches. Dolls also puts the sheriff in his place which is kind of fun.

More menacing, apparently the powers that be behind his organisation (founded by Roosevelt) will destroy the town if any news of the supernatural leaks, which is something of a problem given how unsubtle Wynonna is

I quite like that they’re both right in some instances: her about how all of his shiny guns don’t mean much next to the Peacemaker, him about making their home safe

Which is top of Wynonna’s priority list this episode – finding a safe place, what with Revenants invading Gus’s bar and Waverly’s flat. They need a safe place – which would be their old homestead since it has never been attacked by Revenants except for that one time when they lost their dad and their older sister.

Turns out, per Dolls’ research, the homestead is magically protected: unfortunately when she was a small child, Waverly was manipulated by a Revenant posing as her imaginary friend to bury a talisman that voided the protection: they just have to dig it up and get rid of it to get their safe space back.

They do this in the face of this week’s monster – a big shadowy Revenant of scariness who hunts down a target when receiving a living human blood sacrifice. Despite being all shadowy and scary and able to put out lights, and one of the Seven Revenants that took down Wynonna’s father, he doesn’t seem to be all that special and the Peacemaker puts lots of holes into him. In fact, as a villain, he seemed far more invested in being scary than deadly. Not a great bad guy. It does give Wynonna and Waverley chance to bond and be all sisterly which is nice.

Zoo, Season 1, Episode 5: Blame it on Leo

Between experiments and reading Evan’s Bible they find a name to follow up on: Leo Butler. This man is a chemist who worked for… dumdumdum Reiden Global. Jackson instantly declares he is going to go investigate this guy and Chloe agrees

That’s a shame – Chloe was doing her best as a leader in the last episode, that was her role in the group. She could have just said that Jackson and Jamie should follow this up rather than having Jackson present Chloe with an ultimatum (especially since she is the one ponying up the money for all of this). Especially since later on in the episode Mitch pokes Chloe because she, apparently, doesn’t have any field experience. Why are we undermining her? Why do we have to reduce her power and capability? This actually happened last episode as well – when Chloe told Jackson how capable she is compared to the assumptions Jackson may have made when she was panicked in Botswana, she then promptly tripped over a corpse. That’s two – can we end it there please Zoo? She can be competent without having to depower her, just as Jamie can be skilled without Mitch condescending to her about her Reiden Global obsession.

So two teams – Jackson and Jamie go to track down this Leo Butler while Chloe, Abraham and Mitch go to Rio de Janeiro which has a bat problem.

Jamie uses some epic hacking skills to discover that Leo Butler was a chemist for Reiden Global but is now blackmailing the company and giving the money to charity. Awwwww. Her inept hacking also brings her to the attention of suspicious FBI Agent Ben Shaffer who points out how inept they are (and how utterly in need of official representation they need!). Thankfully Shaffer decides that, rather than arrest them for their illegal hacking, he will instead help them find Butler. Then, rather than arrest Butler, they let them, people he barely knows, question him about the weird animal conspiracy theory they have

Shaffer makes no sense – but he provides the desperate authority the team needs. Which would be solved nicely if they shelved the whole confidentiality nonsense

The Walking Dead, Volume 22: A New Beginning

Things have really changed for the survivors of the zombie apocalypse.  It's been two years since the war with the Saviours ended.  Negan has been locked up in jail in Alexandria and sentenced for life. The Hilltop, Alexandria and the Kingdom trade supplies with each other and a modicum of civilization has returned. Riders patrol the area on horseback between settlements making it safe for people to travel.

Each person is assigned a role and the young have to apprentice. Even Carl is embracing the change and has decided to apprentice at The Hilltop to become a blacksmith. Rick has his concerns about letting go of his son but ultimately realises that it's time and that he has to find a new purpose to live.
 A New Beginning is aptly titled because this graphic novel is what happens when the weak have died off, people have learned how to deal with zombies, and no humans are making power grabs.  Civilization certainly isn't at an industrial level but a modicum of order has been returned.

A New Beginning is yet another evolution for Rick.  When we first began, Rick he was scared and desperate to do anything to get back to his family. Over time we have watched him deal with loss, check out mentally for a while, become cold and vengeful, distrustful and finally full of rage. For the majority of the comics, Rick's life has been about surviving from one moment to the next, mowing down whatever person or group dared to get in his way.  Each success has emboldened him and cemented his position as a leader.

Rick at this point has become more than a man to many people - he's almost a God.  Everywhere he goes, people are in awe of him and everything that he has achieved. He complains and even mockingly chides Maggie about the hero worship, though it's clear on many levels that he enjoys it. Rick Grimes the saviour of all is enough to have me rolling my eyes. If anything, Rick is perhaps at his most annoying.

 It's clear that everything Rick has gone through has taken his toll on his body. Rick now walks with a cane and is not nearly as quick as he used to be, yet he still thinks of himself as invincible. When Rick and Carl run into walkers on their way to The Hilltop, Rick is insistent that Carl stay back with the gun while he fights off the walkers.  Rick manages to kill two walkers but Carl is forced to shoot the gun despite his father's fear that the sound will draw more walkers, to stop Rick from being bitten from behind.  The Rick of just a few years ago would have been able to handle this threat.  When poor Benjamin from The Hilltop - the rider responsible for the area arrives, though he is apologetic, Rick beats him with his cane and berates him until Benjamin is forced to curl into a fetal position to protect himself.  Rick screams that there would be many happy for Benjamin's job. Rick feels free to express his power violently without fear of retribution.  Clearly, Rick's rage is about his own body giving out on him than Benjamin's supposed incompetence.

Rick's relationship with Andrea and Carl has become cemented.  These two clearly turned to each other out of loneliness, fear and grief and now it's clear that they are partners in every sense of the word.  Rick goes as far to let Andrea know that he doesn't just consider Carl his son but their son. Carl refers to Andrea as mom and they have clearly formed a family.  Rick now has exactly what he lost when the apocalypse happened - control over his life and a family; however with his original group split up, what he doesn't really have are friends. At The Hilltop, Rick tells Maggie how much he misses Michonne.  While it's clear that he misses Maggie as well, and though Maggie is the leader of The Hilltop, they are clearly not equals.  Maggie like most others, worships the ground that Rick walks on. When Eugene talks to him about his troubled relationship with Rosita, Rick is quick to blow him off. He has a much easier time relating to Eugene about projects happening in Alexandria and the unique set of skills Eugene offers the community that he does being a friend when Eugene needs it.

As head couple, Rick and Andrea  are responsible for welcoming new people into the group. Out on patrol, Jesus meets a new group and they are very reminiscent of the way that Rick's group behaved when they first arrived at Alexandria.  Their leader Magna is very suspicious and firmly believes that things seem to be to good to be true in Alexandria.  Magna's group actually breaks into Andrea's home and demands she answer their questions.  Andrea is still tough as nails however and warns them that if they hurt her, they will never leave Alexandria.  Magna even leads her way into the jail where Negan is being kept and though he puts up a good act claiming that he is being tortured by Rick, who is a sadistic leader, Magna doesn't buy it and leaves Negan to rot in his cell.

Supernatural, Season 11, Episode 18: Hell's Angel

Castifer has decided to visit Heaven to terrify a lot of nervous angels and play lots of head games with them to try and get them on side

I actually kind of like this… it could work well with a lot of world building of angels who are, ultimately, a species that has (canonically) no free will and is so used to serving a higher power. Now all the Archangels are dead…. Except one. One they’re also terrified of. And just after they’ve thrown their greatest power at Amarra and she hasn’t been all that bothered by it.

Not all that – but she is still injured by this big nuclear heavenly wrath. But Rowena is there to help heal her

Yes, Rowena is still alive, because she is Rowena, and she always has a plan B, plan C and possibly a plan PQRST1. She’s also on Team Amarra wanting to be by her side while she takes on all the powers of the world and remakes the world in her image.

That is until Amarra, healed, decides to send a warning shot against Heaven, terrifying everyone (including Rowena) with a tiny flick of her awesome power. Rowena perfectly acts that horrified moment when she realises how utterly over matched she is and quickly tries to switch sides.

That other side involves Crowley – who has slaughtered some random disposable Saudis to get another Hand of God weapon to share with the Winchesters, but we have some arguments over how to use it:

Sam wants to focus on Amarra, and if that means Castiel being Castifer for a bit longer, so be it

Dean wants to take down Amarra – but only after freeing Castiel

Crowley wants rid of Lucifer because he has an EPIC GRUDGE then they kill Amarra

Sam rightly points out everyone’s priorities are somewhat skewed but since Crowley is the one with the Hand of God he chooses. Their plan to put Lucifer back in his cage requires Rowena and the book she hid – thankfully she’s willing to come out of hiding and join side

Sweep in Peace (Innkeeper Chronicles #2) by Ilona Andrews

Dina is still desperately struggling to make sure her inn can survive and thrive despite being off the beaten path.

Which means accepting jobs no other innkeeper would dream of taking: when the Arbiters want to use her inn to host peace talks which are virtually doomed to failure – and likely to blow up into violence and destroy her inn – or her inn’s reputation which would be just as bad.

But the risk comes with a very high chance of reward… and maybe it will be worth it.

I always have a moment of glee when I have an Ilona Andrews novel to read, and this is no exception. These books are always ones where I read it, finish it and then instantly regret that it’s over because it was so awesome and so much fun that I want it to just keep going and going.

Dina has officially developed the niche she mentioned in the last book – her inn is not on a thoroughfare and can’t possibly rely on passing trade so she needs to find another way to bring in business. This way involves taking on the business no-one else will touch, the cases that are too dangerous, too risky for any sensible innkeeper to take on. This makes for major, dramatic, world shattering scenes, lots of excellent danger, lots of dramatic happening and Dina constantly walking the delicate tightrope if being 2 seconds from utter disaster.

And I love how she handles it. She’s always smart. She stands up for herself and demands respect and honour for her position without being ridiculously aggressive or violent – as is too often used as a method of showing defiance. Like the only way to show strength is to be so violently out of control that no-one could possibly give you orders. She manages to combine an excellent amount of respect and regard for her guests who she honours with all the regard of their position while at the same time being very clear where the lines are and punishing them severely when they cross them

I can’t really stress enough how well this balancing act is maintained – the combination of respect, control, allowing the hosts and controllers of the summit to actually do what came to do while at the same time managing to protect herself and her business for the future. It’s full of action and awesome displays of power and really wonderful dramatic scenes of super powers all really well written

iZombie, Season 2, Episode 17: Reflections on the Way Liv Used to Be

We ended last week in a major cliffhanger – Major told Ravi the truth and started to turn into a zombie… before Ravi drugged him

And this episode begins with… common sense and Ravi allowing Major to explain himself (he drugged Major because the stress was turning him full on zombie), including the whole death threat and kidnapping instead.

Can we take a moment to say how much I love this? A terrible situation happened that needed desperately explaining and… the characters explained themselves! How unheard of is this? They needed to spend at least 4 episodes with whacky misunderstandings, lots of angst before finally seeing the truth. Seriously, characters actually explaining themselves and listening to each other is so depressingly unheard of fiction that this is novel.

Common sense… so very rare.

Of course Major being a zombie is likely to cause a lot of emotional angst, especially since he’s hungry for brains… so Ravi feeds him left over super-positivity brain to making him all happy and sunshiny.

Ok while this is kind of hilarious, this needs to be something that iZombie needs to examine more. It is something they began to touch on in season 1 and occasionally when Major first learned about Liv – the whole way that eating brains really does destroy someone’s personality. How their basic opinions, attitudes, personality, likes, dislikes – every single aspect of their beings, of their identities, is constantly in flux. They lose themselves – and it’s constantly played for jokes without really looking at the utter horror of this. They did touch on the horror of eating brains and then living the lives of the people you’ve killed – but the fundamental horror of losing yourself is not really touched on