I am starting to realize that Designated Survivor is actually quite the sneaky show, in that it finds a way to infect your thoughts long after an episode has come to an end. Case in point, the ending of last week's episode where Hannah Wells and President Kirkman finally met face to face. At first glance it really felt like an 'awesome, can't wait to see what comes out of this' moment, but instead...it stuck with me. For the past week I've been dying to know what would come from the knowledge that the newly minted Vice President is part of some grand conspiracy to do who knows what to the nation and thankfully, none of us had to wait long to find out.

Because last night's episode 'The End of the Beginning' wasted no time in getting down to business, picking up immediately where last week left off, taking us right into the middle of this all important conversation and just like that, the shady underbelly of Peter MacLeish's life was revealed to the most powerful man on the planet and also just like that...the V.P. was suddenly in the crosshairs of a president betrayed and that wonderful opening led to a simply intense episode, one that quite frankly was the darkest one that this show has delivered to date and it was one that also seem poised to crack the conspiracy wide open and while it didn't lay everything out for us...we did receive some fascinating insight as to what could have been the motivation behind the Capitol Hill bombing.

But before we get too deep into that particular revelation, we need to spend a little bit of time talking about the sheer darkness of this episode and in a way the series now, because the hope for a bright future, which was evident early on in this show thanks to Kirkman's integrity and desire to put the nation back on track, has all but disappeared in the last two episodes and well, I think it's a welcome change to the design of this show. The balance of a nation is at stake here and I appreciate that we are now into the nit and grit of a fight for freedom if you will, and well...our first real taste of how dark things are going to get before they get better on this show was Jason's short but powerful storyline, since we learned that the mystery organization didn't return his son as they originally promised to do. They instead drowned the poor boy and Jason was forced to see his son's remains first hand, and it only went downhill from there.

Which means it's time we cycle back to MacLeish and his storyline because with Hannah back on the case, she went after the V.P. with a vengeance and she finally found a way to get to him, by putting a little pressure on the most nervous member of his squad, making him worry and forcing him to call MacLeish for a meeting, something the V.P. agrees to and that's when things went wild. Because in that moment, the darling of Washington admitted point blank that whatever happened in that mysterious mission was a sign that America had turned its back on Peter and his men and what they were doing...was nothing more than giving the country what it deserved. But before the conversation could go any further, Hannah stepped in to arrest MacLeish, but apprehending the Vice President was never in the cards for Hannah since MacLeish's wife arrived on the scene as well and executed her husband, before turning the gun on herself.

So, just like that, the office of the Vice President is vacated once again and what he had to say somehow makes this conspiracy worse because the implication of revenge means that there is a fair chance this shadow organization wants chaos and anarchy to rule to teach America a lesson and that's a terrifying plan indeed. It's also a lovely way to keep this storyline rolling since MacLeish was really our only big link to this conspiracy and with him gone, they are back to operating in the shadows and without their golden boy one step away from the big chair...they are no doubt going to become more aggressive in accomplishing their goals. Either way, this was a stellar episode, one that was riveting and shocking and everything in between and it should be interesting to see what kind of fallout comes forth next week from this botched mission and what the next move will be from those who wish to do harm to the United States of America. Until next time.

I think it is time we talk about the elephant in the room when it comes to The Flash, specifically in that...Barry Allen really hasn't been that much of a hero this season. His lack of heroism is something that's been on all of our minds as of late, and it's something that most of us simply don't want to say aloud because hey, Barry's a good guy, and he does have the best intentions in mind regardless of the mistakes he makes, which at times...are plentiful. 

But when you really break it down and look at this season, and the end of season two objectively, there's nothing heroic about what Barry has done as of late. He's been selfish and confrontational with his friends and family and well...he has truly screwed the pooch when it comes to the timeline because every single mess that's come forth this year has come by way of Flashpoint and it seems at long last that Barry is starting to realize that his poor decisions are the problem here and that the lives he's changed will never be made better until he owns up and acts like a hero for a change and that epiphany was the focus of last night's episode, 'Into the Speed Force'.

That title says plenty since the Speed Force is where Barry ventured last night in the hopes of finding Wally West's prison so he could free him and bring him home and unfortunately for Barry, accomplishing such a task was no easy endeavor since the Speed Force manifested itself and it had some questions and some challenges for Barry since the return of his speed last season came with the promise that he wouldn't go back in time and change anything, a promise we all know he shattered and the Speed Force expressed its displeasure by becoming a litany of the people that Barry has lost over the past few years, all in the hopes of helping Barry recognize the fact that he needs to own up to being a hero, and the tough choices that come with that title. 

Granted, he does eventually get Wally out of the Speedster prison, with a little help from Jay of course who takes Wally's place in that waking nightmare with the caveat that Barry stop Savitar, yet in a way...Jay's sacrifice feels a touch hollow. I mean dang, it's noble and all, but did Barry really learn anything during his time back in the Speed Force? Sure he offered to sacrifice himself to save Wally, but I keep thinking back to that final scene with Iris where she declared her love for him and that she wanted to be his wife right before Barry basically pushed her aside, citing a need for space because of the fear he carries within and well...I just don't know what it will take for Barry to finally embrace his role as a hero. Does Iris have to do die for this to happen? It's just hard to say and it's downright frustrating to see Barry not learn the right lesson time and time again. 

But the good news is, his time in the Speed Force wasn't a total waste. After all, Kid Flash is free and home, and while he may be emotionally wounded, he's still alive and Jesse Quick's desire for revenge against Savitar uncovered an important tidbit about the God of Speed...he's not a God at all. He's just a man, wearing one powerful suit of armor and he can be wounded just like anybody else, and that information will no doubt come in handy in the weeks to come, but in the meantime it looks like the show is taking a break from the angst that's been on display for weeks now with a musical episode, one that features a crossover with Supergirl as well, and we should enjoy every goofy second of it, because once that's done, I'm sure it will be back to business as we barrel toward a bloody showdown between The Flash and Savitar. Until next time.

It's amazing the things you discover when you rewatch your favorite television series and well, one thing that I am truly forgetting when it comes to Battlestar Galactica is just how dark the story was willing to go at any given time. This show really pushed some serious envelopes and that was never more evident than it was in the second episode of season two, 'Valley of Darkness'.

Now this is a story that I think we all expected to be brutal the first time around since Cylons were aboard the Galactica and no good can come of that, but settling it in to watch this one again, well in all honesty I needed a couple of minutes after this story was done to clear my head because of the dark places it went. Case in point, basically everything that happens on Kobol this go round since the chief has to put down one of his own or watch him die a slow and terrible death, plus there's that whole awful dream that Baltar has where he envisions a rescue party, led by Adama, where the Commander meets the mystery child that the series was toying with up to this point, and promptly drowns the baby in the river nearby. 

But that was all merely a taste of the dark places this story was prepared to go, because the plot line unfolding on board the Galactica was quite frankly...the stuff of terror. In fact I couldn't help but notice that this story did something that the series rarely ever did as a whole; borrow from another genre, because this tale, was all about horror. There is a distinct lack of actual light in this episode, and bone chilling sounds surrounding our characters, raising the tension and leaving the audience to wonder when by chance a Cylon will pop out of the darkness and well...this all worked like a charm. With the Cylons running free on the ship after escaping that Heavy Raider, they sent chills down my spine for certain and their first solid appearance in this episode made me jump in my seat.

Oddly enough, it is the Cylons, and the force of nature that they always are that made this episode so chilling, because their plan was to reach two key areas of the Galactica where they could depressurize the ship and eject its crew into space before turning the ship's mighty guns onto the rest of the fleet and in their wake...they left nothing but devastation and what made the bloodshed so poignant is that aside from Tigh and Adama really, no one on this boat has ever really seen what horrors the Cylons are capable of and the shock and awe that the crew goes through as they pass their slaughtered shipmates speak to that and it was truly a nice touch to focus on the fact that many of these kids signed up to serve in the Colonial Fleet, without a clue as to what the people that served before them were witness to.

Of course, the day is saved in this episode as one might expect, but not until after we are put through an emotional gauntlet, one that saw Lee and Tigh finally settle their differences for the time being with some harsh honesty and despite the happy-ish ending, a lot of good people died in that brief Skirmish with the Cylons, plus the away team on Kobol is slowly being whittled down, and the Old Man is still in critical condition. If anything, the only bright spot in this one was Kara and Helo taking a breather in her old apartment to enjoy the silence of a life gone by, and seeing as to how season two has started off in intense and ugly fashion, I have a bad feeling the next episode will find a way to give us another harrowing story as the fleet tries to put the pieces back together while the Commander recovers in sickbay. Until next time.

When we last left the intrepid crew of the Battlestar Galactica things were well...bad. The discovery of the lost thirteenth colony, Kobol, at the end of season one, led to all kinds of trouble for the last remnant of mankind. The science team sent to investigate this mysterious planet found themselves under fire from the Cylons and despite a victorious counter offensive that saw a nuke take down a Basestar in orbit, the sleeper agent in Sharon was activated and she put two bullets into the Commander before everything went to black, closing out a wild and dynamic first season of this stunning show.

Of course with a cliffhanger like that, surely things would improve come the second season premiere right? Yeah...that was simply not the case. While season one set the stage for this grand and sweeping space opera about the plight of survival at the end of the world, it became clear quickly in 'Scattered' that season two was going to take us right into the thick of it. Hard choices, the kind that don't have time for discussion or committees were going to be made from here on out, and whatever consequences came from that had to be lived with, whether those responsible liked it or not and that was never more evident than in the opening moments of this episode when Colonel Tigh assumed command of the Galactica and made the call to jump the fleet shortly after the Cylons arrived. 

However, in the midst of all of the chaos of getting the Commander down to medical, and dealing with Lee's screaming and Sharon's protests for being placed under arrest a critical mistake was made allowing for the Galactica and the fleet to jump to two wholly separate locations, leaving the crew stranded and alone and clueless as to what to do next and that's when things truly got interesting because for the first time on the show, Tigh was forced to lead and bury all the petty garbage in his mind and well...it was little bit touch and go early on for the colonel because let's be honest...Tigh hasn't exactly done much to earn the crew or the audience's trust, but you know what? He managed to redeem himself by taking some bold risks.

He bothered to let Lee out of his jail cell, he went along with Gaeta's plan to network the computers in the hopes of finding the fleet and what made his actions matter on a deeper level is that everything he did was all done in Adama's name. This was an episode that informed us that Bill had more or less saved Saul's life on multiple occasions and the time had come to repay the favor and make Adama proud and the end result was downright impressive. Everyone that Tigh talked to this episode when it came to orders that they weren't comfortable with came through with flying colors. No one liked Gaeta's plan but Saul backed it and it worked like a charm since they found the fleet and the medic that was unsure of how to help Adama, stepped out of her comfort zone and performed life saving surgery on the Old Man.

If anything, it's about damn time. Saul's drinking and apathetic stretch was becoming difficult to stomach and this new bold attitude from the XO could not have arrived at a better time. Because despite the pseudo happy ending to this particular tale, there's more trouble on the horizon. Their forces are still trapped on Kobol and the survivors are under fire and of course, that strange armored Cylon Raider that went after the Galactica during a brief firefight as the ship worked to find the fleet, was filled to the brim with Centurions who are now aboard the ship and they will no doubt do their best to alert the Cylon fleet to their location, which means one hell of a fight is on its way and once again these poor souls will have to be prepared to give life and limb to repel their enemy in the hopes of keeping mankind alive. Until next time.

The beauty of Star Trek as a whole is that it has always celebrated the wonder of life. The people we are, the people we will be or could be and the best parts of what define us as a species were always on display when it came to this show and the finest episodes out of any Trek series were the ones that explored this on the deepest level.  

But of all the episodes that The Next Generation provided us in that particular vein, only one stands out above the rest since the fifth season episode, 'The Inner Light' delivered unto us a powerful and sweeping story that truly allowed for Patrick Stewart to show off his acting chops all while providing us with a stunning look at what it means to be human, what it means to have our minds open to the plight of others and the beauty of life and everything that comes with it, both good and bad.

In this episode, the Enterprise encounters a probe that immediately puts Captain Picard into a coma with an energy beam. When he awakens he finds himself on a distant planet, with a wife and a new identity. Confused and afraid Picard tries to get back to his ship but quickly learns he is in this life for the long haul and settles into his new world, as Kamin. He lives a full life, with a family in fact, but his training in Starfleet cannot be ignored and he learns that his new home planet is dying. But what Picard does not know is that he is still on the bridge of the Enterprise and is experiencing the memories of a world long gone in the hopes of preserving the existence of this fallen species.  

I realize that the title of this series makes a rather bold claim. Some of you reading this undoubtedly agree with me and will nod along with each of these articles muttering things like “yeah” and “for real, though” the entire time. Others might read this series and think, “Yeah, I mean, maybe it’s not the best show ever but she’s right, it is pretty damn awesome.” A few more might have no reference for this show and leave this blog on a quest to stream the entire series. But I’ll admit, I’ll be surprised to find anyone who actually dislikes this show. And why is that? Because it is the best show EVER.
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I’ll give some context for this sudden outpouring of love for ATLA. Until recently, my boyfriend had never seen ATLA (I fixed that). I, on the other hand, was the kid who raced home from school to watch it each afternoon and had long debates with myself about whether I was a water bender or an air bender (definitely a water bender). For me, this show came like lightning out of a clear sky. Those opening credits hooked me and I had to know more. I was attached not just to the entertainment of it all, but to the characters and their stories. I cared deeply about how the war was going to end and what would become of the world that had sucked me in. So obviously, if our relationship was to have any kind of future, he had to watch this show and he had to love it. Lucky for both of us, he did.

It was watching ATLA with someone who had never seen even a single episode that really reminded me of how magnificent this show really is. Of course I’d seen each episode a million times and I could quote along with almost every line, but suddenly it was like I was a kid again. Seeing it through his eyes was like rediscovering the series altogether. I was in awe at the animation, the character development, the perfect blend of humor and drama, the intricate stories lines, the vast world creation, all of it! And having just finished the series with this new yet familiar perspective, it seemed only right to geek out about it.

In this six part series (this being part one) I will look at all of the reasons why I personally think Avatar: The Last Airbender is the best show ever. You’ll notice I didn’t say “best kid’s show ever.” That was intentional.

I expect you all will have other reasons for why you love this show and I also expect that some of you may disagree with me on some of the finer points. If so, please comment and share your thoughts! The more the merrier when it comes to geeking out. But I will only be outlining the five reasons I think it’s the best. And I’d like to say right off the bat that I don’t necessarily believe that ATLA is the best show EVER in each of the categories. It is the combination of all of them and how well each one is executed that makes this show an untouchable of work of sheer genius. 

The mark of a good cliffhanger is that it manages to leave the audience talking, long after the story has dropped its stunning or shocking moment and that's precisely what Designated Survivor was able to accomplish with its midseason finale. We were all dying to know who took the bullet from Catalan and I know on my end, I've endlessly discussed multiple scenarios with others as we tried to figure out what a character death or critical wounding might mean for the show while we waited for it to return from its winter hiatus.

Thankfully though, the wait has finally come to an end since the series returned to the air last night and I have to give the show credit, because 'Warriors' not only wasted zero time in answering the question as to who was shot, but this midseason premiere also managed to bring back something we haven't truly experienced in the story since the series premiere...a solid sense of danger. Except this time, that danger was amplified seeing as to how there was no sense of the unknown hovering around this episode, we knew exactly what kind of trouble was brewing and that made for one unnerving, edge of your seat story. 

As for who took the bullet...well that turned out to be President Kirkman, and thanks to Hannah's quick thinking, the bullet was slightly off course and passed right through him with what appeared to be no major issues. But hey, this is Designated Survivor we are talking about here and nothing ever quite goes as planned, which means there was more trouble for Kirkman on the horizon when the doctors discovered that bullet fragments were still present in his chest, which meant emergency surgery was on the horizon and that the 25th Amendment would have to be invoked; which also meant the newly minted Vice President was going to be in charge for a few hours, and considering what he was beginning to learn about Peter MacLeish, Kirkman took a few precautions before going back under the knife.

He called in Speaker of the House Hookstraten, and asked her to keep an eye on the V.P. and it's a good thing he did, because once he was back in surgery...MacLeish was clearly a man with an agenda on his mind. He ordered the markets to stay open despite the financial risk and he wasted no time in helping to hunt down his fellow cohort Catalan in order to keep his name out of the conspiracy and well...this is the part of the episode I found downright fascinating simply because it's these odd little moments, where the people behind this whole mess try and execute another part of their plan that leave me dying to know exactly what their endgame is. Yes, the obvious part is that they want to dismantle the government and install their own figurehead/puppet leader, but what else are they up to?. Destabilizing the markets only leads to chaos so is that what they want? To plunge the United States into chaos and anarchy and slowly rebuild it into what they believe it should be? 

Time will tell of course, but thankfully this episode ended on a positive note for a change. Since Kirkman came through his surgery just fine and an impromptu wave to the crowd below stabilized the markets and prevented a financial disaster to boot. But alas, the conspiracy is still looming large and it would seem that Hannah Wells is going to be okay as well since the president was able to get Mike to speak with her and learn more about Catalan and MacLeish and at long last, she got a face to face meeting with Kirkman. As to what will come of that meeting, it will likely be little to nothing for the time being. Everyone that has knowledge of this waking nightmare fully understands the danger of discussing it out in the open, but this is a good start to hopefully bringing MacLeish and his cohorts to justice. Until next time.

For quite some time now, the characters on ​The Flash have simply been living on the edge. Ever since they discovered what the future holds for them, it's been a mad dash to alter their fortunes and well, it's led to some rough and tough storytelling where the bond this team shares seems to be the only thing holding their sanity together.

But last night, that bond was shattered and shattered hard because 'The Wrath of Savitar' not only featured the return of the titular God of Speed, but it featured a complete breakdown of the S.T.A.R. Labs dynamic, wherein we learned that lies and betrayals, all driven by fear had pushed personal agendas and ideas and well...all of this made for one incredibly devastating and dark episode that certainly did not leave this reviewer with a shred of hope when all was said and done. 

If anything, the only plus side to this episode, is that we learned a lot of about Savitar. Because thanks to the fact he was suddenly appearing to Wally, Barry thought it best to link Julian up with Savitar once again to try and figure out his end game and over the course of several of these little chat sessions, we came to learn that the God of Speed despises Barry and everything he stands for and that it would seem that somewhere down the line, Barry is the man responsible for the creation of this being. But where the story began to unravel for Mister Allen and his friends is when Savitar promised that he would soon be back, which was a threat that really didn't seem to bother Barry all that much, because hey...he needed the Philosopher's Stone in order to escape, but Barry's confidence in this fact was quickly shattered because as it turns out, Barry and the gang have been subject to one long con from Savitar.

Everything that's happened up to this point, was all part of the God of Speed's master plan to escape from his prison, which by the way, turned out to be the Speed Force. Which meant that since the Stone was tossed into the Force, he should by virtue be able to escape, save for the fact that part of the Stone never made its way into the Speed Force. Caitlin kept a chunk for herself in the hopes of using it to remove her cold powers, and she broke Julian's heart in the process of revealing this since it became clear part of her hoped to use his knowledge to aid in keeping Killer Frost buried away and the betrayals didn't end there. We found out Barry's proposal to Iris was predicated on the fact she had no ring on her finger in the future and to top it all off, Savitar was able to break Wally down to the point where he tossed the remainder of the Stone into the Speed Force, unleashing the Speed God from his prison and forcing Wally to take Savitar's place in his eternal prison...

So yeah. That happened. Savitar is loose again and he has completely and utterly managed to destroy Team Flash in a matter of minutes. No one seems to trust anyone on the team anymore. Iris is no longer engaged to Barry because she wants a marriage rooted in commitment rather than fear or panic and well, Wally is lost to the Speed Force and since Savitar has been pretty spot on with his predictions thus far, it seems that nothing will stop Iris from dying at his hands and man...what a dismal way to end this episode. It's not a bad thing, I just never thought I'd see the day when ​The Flash outright decided to strip away any sense of hope for the audience because it's going to take some monumental effort on everyone's part to band together again and figure out how to beat Savitar and save Iris and well, I'm just not sure how the heck they will get that done. Either way, kudos to the show for going big and bold with this story, they certainly have my attention and I'm desperate to know how the heck Barry is going to get out of this mess.  Until next time.

Over the course of its seven year run, Star Trek: The Next Generation brought forth some incredible and thought provoking television as it updated Gene Roddenberry's vision and delivered it into the homes of so many more people. I, of course, never missed an episode of this iconic show and out of all the episodes that aired in my home on Saturday night at seven p.m. there is one two parter that I instantly think of when I remember the show...'The Best of Both Worlds'.

In this stunning two part episode that served as the Season Finale for Season 3 and the Season Premiere for Season 4, the Borg, a cybernetic race of beings that the Enterprise encountered far away from home thanks to the super being Q, have arrived at last in the Alpha Quadrant. Their goal is as it always has been. To assimilate any species they deem worthy into their collective hive mind and the people of the Alpha Quadrant are their next target. But to make this transition as smooth as possible, the Borg have identified a need for a SpokesBorg, and they have chosen Captain Jean-Luc Picard.  

I would have to say first and foremost, and perhaps it was merely my perception being so young at the time, that this episode of The Next Generation may have been the genesis of the big time cliffhanger when it comes to television. After this one aired, it seemed as though every single series out there had to have some kind of a powerful cliffhanger to end their season upon and I guess in all honesty I shouldn't be surprised that other shows tried to replicate the success of this story. That's because this episode was well, one of the most revolutionary things I had ever seen on television at the time.  ​

After all it breached new territory in episodic storytelling. Since this is the first time I had ever seen the life of a lead character be placed in such jeopardy, as since there was a chance that the Picard/Locutus storyline could have ended with the death of Picard and also because, I cannot remember watching an episode (or episodes) of a series that put together so many devastating moments for the characters and the universe they inhabit to experience.

Don't get me wrong, we've all sat through tales that leave our hearts shattered because of a powerful moment or two, and when it comes to Trek we have all shed tears for fallen shipmates before, and we've been witness to agonizing moments like the destruction of the Enterprise in Star Trek III. ​But grand devastation, the kind that leaves you silent in awe wasn't present in this saga until we were able to lay our eyes upon the aftermath of the Battle of Wolf 359. With forty Federation ships laid to waste, and tens of thousands of lives lost, there are few moments in the show that ever rivaled the sobering sight and the darkness of that graveyard of Starfleet vessels.  

All in all, this was to me, one of Star Trek's finest moments on television. It was thrilling, terrifying and it made for one of the hardest summers of my youth simply because I was dying to know what would come next after Riker ordered the crew to fire and those three horrible words, "To Be Continued..." filled my screen.   ​