Classic Coverage looks back on the episodes of past shows from a modern perspective.
After All These Years Have you noticed something. A through line, whether intentional or nor, hangs through every single premiere in Korra, one that isn’t really commented or remarked upon by the show. Yes each premiere in the series ends in the … Continue reading Re-Avatar State: “After All These Years” & “Korra Alone”
“I hope you will only ever imagine how horrible it is to never return to the life that you love. You are smarter than that, Gilina.” Building an episode of television around a single guest star is a bit of … Continue reading The Wonders I’ve Seen: 1×07, “P.K. Tech Girl”
The funny thing about the Golden Era of The Simpsons is that it pulled off being two things. It’s a thoughtful and sophisticated exploration of our higher spiritual and emotional needs and an entertaining and accessible work of commercial entertainment. … Continue reading The Golden Era Of The Simpsons / Futurama, Season One, Episode One, “Space Pilot 3000”
In Which There is Service and Sacrifice There is a point in every long running story where the true depths of the narrative unfurl, where ideas hinted at or pointed toward finally come into focus and the crux of the … Continue reading Re-Avatar State: “Venom of the Red Lotus”
“A Matter of Honor”(Star Trek: The Next Generation – Season 2, Episode 8) For many fans (including myself), the appeal of Star Trek is its utopian setting and theme. Dystopic futures in which the world is on the brink of … Continue reading You Talking Trek to Me? – “A Matter of Honor”
NOTE: If you are watching along on the Roku Channel, many episodes of Fear Itself are mislabeled. In Sickness and In Health is listed as episode one “The Sacrifice.” Fear Itself is the unofficial third season of Masters of Horror. … Continue reading Fear Itself: S1E04 “In Sickness and In Health”
The Ultimatum One of the reasons the death of the Earth Queen is such a huge moment for the franchise is that it finally, and truly, throws out the character safety net that has existed for the run of Avatar and most … Continue reading Re-Avatar State: “The Ultimatum” & “Enter The Void”
It’s a good thing I’m planning on doing one big goodbye essay to The Simpsons next week, because otherwise we’d have the weirdness of ending on an incredibly horny episode about Homer and Marge’s sex life. Some people have argued … Continue reading The Simpsons, Season Nine, Episode Twenty-Five, “Natural Born Kissers”
The Stakeout What does Zaheer want? A simple question that has been motivating both our heroes and villains, there’s been moments of chaos and calamity as our characters come into contact with the Red Lotus (thank God I can right … Continue reading Re-Avatar State: “The Stakeout” & “Long Live The Queen”
“Physical Education” originally aired on NBC Thursday night, March 4, 2010 Sometimes an episode of Community succeeds because it explores a resonant theme, or it nails the tone and feel of a certain genre dead-on, or it creates an iconic … Continue reading A Community Notification For This: S1E17, “Physical Education”
Ah, but we have reached very nearly the end of our travelogue through this series, mais ous? With but two episodes to go, and having recently been through a number of episodes that felt quite different than the classic Christie … Continue reading Poirot (Classic): S13E03 “Dead Man’s Folly”
“By Any Other Name” (Star Trek: The Original Series, Season 2, Episode 21) At the time of its original airing, what set Star Trek apart from other science fiction TV properties like The Twilight Zone or The Outer Limits was … Continue reading You Talking Trek to Me? – “By Any Other Name”
Note: The Roku Channel says it has the entirety of Fear Itself to watch online. However, episodes are swapped in the program order and at least one episode is missing. Family Man is that missing episode. is listed under E7: … Continue reading Fear Itself: S1E03 “Family Man”
Original Airbenders What a week. After a short hiatus for processing the world in the past seven days I’m happy to so that I’m motivated and ready to wrap up the rest of the Legend of Korra. Indeed the timing is noticeably … Continue reading Re-Avatar State: “Original Airbenders” & “The Terror Within”
“When I was a boy I dreamed of two very different lives.” “Only two? I wanted hundreds.” The strangest thing about many early Farscape episodes is that the character they’re about is often not the character that they follow. “Thank … Continue reading The Wonders I’ve Seen: 1×06, “Thank God It’s Friday, Again”
This season has squashed the characters into caricatures of themselves, and nobody has suffered that worse than Lisa; the writers know she’s supposed to be principled and idealistic, but they often fail to forget what those principles actually are, and … Continue reading The Simpsons, Season Nine, Episode Twenty-Four, “Lost Our Lisa”
Once more unto the breach, dead friends! That’s right, cry havoc and let slip those hellhounds of horror! Ahehehehehehehe! “Catspaw” (Star Trek: The Original Series – Season 2, Episode 7) The Original Series was a remarkably cogent show for its … Continue reading You (Still) Spooky Trek to Me? – “Catspaw”
Fear Itself is the spiritual successor of Showtime’s Masters of Horror series. When Showtime was no longer willing to fund the anthology horror series, Lionsgate stepped in to finance a new season. The show found a new home on NBC … Continue reading Fear Itself: S1E02 “Spooked”
This is actually one of my favourite episodes, because it’s one of the purest expressions of what I find so sympathetic about Homer Simpson. In “Trash Of The Titans”, I talked about how Homer is loveable because he’s a creature … Continue reading The Simpsons, Season Nine, Episode Twenty-Three, “King Of The Hill”
The Metal Clan As the title of the third season has so helpfully reminded us, one of the driving themes in The Legend of Korra is change. This is a show built on the inherent premise that it is different from … Continue reading Re-Avatar State: “The Metal Clan” & “Old Wounds”
Zut alors, but this week’s tale of murder and mayhem possesses quite the… how do you say… “stinky aroma of badness”? Yes, “stinky aroma of badness” is what we’ll go with. In an episode that even its own writer (Mark … Continue reading Poirot (Classic): S13E02 “The Big Four”
