On-Season Week 30

WEEK 30

We've hit the big 3-0, which means shows are starting to reach their endgames. Of 7 shows this week, 4 will haired 20 or more episodes by the end; with most network shows somewhere between 22-25 episodes, we're going to start seeing them drop off soon. One that has dropped off already is The Walking Dead, which aired its season 7 finale last week; MacGyver, with its odd 21-episode first season, will join it by the end of this roundup. Conversely, Brooklyn Nine-Nine returns after a full 14-week hiatus, only just over halfway through its reported 22-episode fourth season and with a renewal/cancellation announcement imminent. How will it, and the rest of our shows, fair this week? Let's find out.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine - 4x13 "The Audit"

"News arrives that due to lowering crime rates one Brooklyn police precinct will be closed following audits, however the Nine-Nine is audited by Amy's ex-boyfriend Teddy."

Brooklyn Nine-Nine returns to its brilliant fourth season after 3 months by having Gina return in the cold open after 2 months’ recovery, following her being hit by a bus. For the final week of her recovery she has to continue wearing a head and back brace, though she contends that her prior capabilities remain unimpaired, going so far as to prove this by dancing – and screaming in pain while she does so. It’s a funny scene, and a welcome piece of hilarity that clears up the shocking, uncharacteristic cliffhanger.

Gina tries to prove she is fine by dancing
despite being in traction

   Then into the next arc of the series: Brooklyn police precincts will be audited and one selected for closure. Unfortunately for the Nine-Nine, the auditor is Amy’s ex-boyfriend Teddy (last seen in season 2), who she maintains is the most boring man in America. Hijinks ensue as she and Jake try to sweet talk him round, but continually mess up by insulting him; oddly and despite this, Teddy tries to propose to Amy when he imagines her and Jake’s fake argument was real – directly in front of his own girlfriend. The inappropriateness was incredible; meanwhile, sidebars included Terry trying to fix a $21,000 photocopier CJ had bought and Boyle trying to get rid of the Nine-Nine’s rat problem using wolf urine and quickly getting stuck in the ventilation shafts, but both of these received very little attention.

   All of these hijinks culminated in Teddy recusing himself for lack of impartiality, only to be replaced by an ex of Terry’s, one who plays nice with the team but secretly promises Terry she will shut down the Nine-Nine.

   VIEWERS: 1.93m

   DEMOGRAPHIC SHARE: 0.7

VERDICT: You don't know you love something until you lose it, which is why Brooklyn Nine-Nine's return felt even better. It was a well-crafted episode too, if the side plots were a little rushed. 9/10

Elementary - 5x19 "High Heat"

"Sherlock attempts to take down an organisation of private investigators when a member is found cremated alive."

Appropriately named "High Heat" saw another convoluted murder mystery, this time centring around a terrible PI who had been burned alive in a crematorium. The murder plot quickly expanded when it became clear this PI was investigating a 30-year-old mass shooting case where a crazy gunman shot up a courthouse full of citizens being naturalised. Further twists took us into Chernobyl conspiracy theories, a degenerative muscle disease and, eventually, major league baseball. I liked the plot and the number of valid twists and turns it took (I especially liked the Hail Mary moment that proved the killer's guilt, wherein Sherlock, in cleaning his own blood spatter experiment, accidentally discovered the banging sound heard by witnesses on the night of the crime), but it was just lacking a little kick.

Sherlock performs a blood spatter
experiment in Joan's bedroom

   The episode's subplot was interesting however: Sherlock set his sights directly on the New York Order of Private Investigators (N.Y.O.O.P.I.), for whom the dead PI worked, as he believed the lack of suitable qualifications within their ranks made them poor detectives. Therefore, Sherlock assumed control, transformed it to the Empire State Order of Private Investigators (E.S.O.O.P.I.) and created a standardised test for all members to pass in order to become certified. This I had not expected: ruthless Sherlock would have dissolved the company altogether. Perhaps this is a mark of the distance he has come as a person since the beginning.
   A much more subtle thing to note was the "fallout" from Shinwell's actions, and Sherlock and Joan acting out in their individual ways: Sherlock engaging in a series of meaningless sexual encounters, and Joan in obsessively tidying her brownstone workstation, since neither knew quite how to process his betrayal. Shinwell wasn't here today in person, but his smell lingers on nonetheless.

   VIEWERS: 5.15m

   DEMOGRAPHIC SHARE: 0.8

VERDICT: Convoluted and interesting, though a little less so than last week. B-plot at the very least equalled A-plot. 8/10

Hawaii Five-0 - 7x22 "Waimaka 'Ele'ele / Black Tears"

"Five-0 chase a group of ex-military soldiers who have turned to robbing banks. Meanwhile, Adam finds a bone at the construction site he works and suspects foul play."

In "Black Tears", McGarrett learned that his grandfather was a hero in the Pearl Harbour attacks, which is all heartwarming and lovely except it had no actual relevance to either plot strand beyond the victim being an ex-Pearl Harbour survivor. This was one of those character points that should have spun an episode, not a C-plot that really wasn't even significant enough to really be called a C-plot. And let's not forget that Hal Holbrook played the ex-Pearl Harbour survivor killed in the opening scene, in a total waste of Hal Holbrook's talents.
   Meanwhile, Hawaii Five-0 chose also to go down the annoying route of forcing a murder investigation into every apparently non-plot-related scene they can: here, it was in shoehorning a dead body into the construction site at which Kono's husband Adam Noshimuri worked. Not that I didn't like the plot - it was the better of the 2 main plots - but this kind of lazy writing always irks me.
   In the main plot, Five-0 followed a group ex-military-turned-bank-robbers; their actions were undertaken in support of a fallen comrade's wife, whose house was about to be foreclosed on. And yet the writers never attempted to make their cause a noble one, and the fact they were doing it for a justifiable (if no less criminal) reason was largely ignored for the one-dimensional aspect of the baddies' personalities, representing an oversight, if you ask me.
   Which is what this episode mostly was. Oversight after oversight, topped with a little bit of tired trope.

   VIEWERS: 8.40m

   DEMOGRAPHIC SHARE: 1.0

VERDICT: If ever there was an episode of TV to demonstrate the definitions of "filler" and "shoehorning plots into mundane situations", it's "Black Tears". The fact that the B-plot was nonetheless enjoyable doesn't apologise for the shoehorning. 6/10

MacGyver - 1x21 "Cigar Cutter"

"Murdoc's plan to take down Phoenix begins."

'Always call in sick on Cairo day. Always.'
   The words of JackGyver (as Jack refers to himself following some Mac-like ingenuity), after Matty calls him and Mac into work on the anniversary of their disastrous mission in Cairo. The point of calling them in seems unclear, beyond maybe they were going to review why Daniel Holt wanted to be caught, but it was necessary to introduce the fake Dr. Zito before NYPD called up and said they had the real Dr. Zito as their latest murder victim. Cue all hell breaking loose.
   Bozer got stabbed, Zito (played by the wonderful Mark A. Sheppard) freed Daniel Holt and together they took control of the Phoenix building. Mac and the team were separated on numerous occasions all throughout the episode, leading to the implementation of various Mac hacks as the team fought to win back control of the building (the ratio of Mac hacks was pleasantly high here compared to most episodes).

Mac disposes of the virus

   The strongest part of the episode besides the considerable number of Mac hacks was the fact that this time the tension really was raised for our characters. Bozer got stabbed, Riley got trapped trying to prevent Holt from shooting her, Mac was forced to blow up a room with himself in it to stop the bad guys stealing a prehistoric virus ... even if we knew there was little chance anyone would be lost, ramping up the tension is something this show has been missing for a long time.
   In the end, Murdoc's plan is foiled and Mac disposes of the virus his goons had also been trying to steal, so it's a happy end all round. Except for the cliffhanger of Murdoc's escape from prison. Will it be this that picks up the impending season 2, or will it be Mac and Jack's road trip to find Mac's father?

   VIEWERS: 6.64m

   DEMOGRAPHIC SHARE: 0.8

VERDICT: MacGyver's season 1 finale produced one of its most thrilling episodes to boot and left us with a juicy cliffhanger that announced Murdoc will return in some form next season. It's been a lowkey first season, but then so was Person of Interest's and look how that turned out. While I don't expect MacGyver will grow quite as exponentially, there's positives to take from this going forward. 9/10

NCIS: Los Angeles - 8x20 "From Havana with Love"

"NCIS investigate claims from an estranged husband that his wife is selling military secrets."

NCIS discover military schematics hidden
in Rebecca's bird drawings

This was truly one of the oddest episodes of NCIS LA that I've seen. The investigation was kicked off when the estranged husband of a woman who works in the graphics design department of a defence contractor was shot at in the nightclub where he works as a bartender, but beyond that the investigation was fuelled by back-and-forth accusations between husband and wife. Husband, Victor Larmont, believes wife Rebecca is selling military secrets because she works late and accidentally sent him a text telling him to "meet outside" at 1 A.M.; wife Rebecca believes he's disrupting her due to a frustration that he isn't getting the amount of spousal support he feels he deserves.
   The baseless accusations bounced from one spouse to the other, with various investigative sidebars which included Kensi and Deeks going undercover in the nightclub as a dancer and toilet attendant respectively, and Callen and Sam investigating a Cuban doctor who is currently the boyfriend of Rebecca Larmont.
   It was utterly, utterly odd - but it turned out Victor was partially correct. Rebecca, an avid bird-watcher, would fill her cubicle with bird drawings, but those drawings would be manipulated by Alonso Raul (the Cuban doctor boyfriend), so that they hid military schematics which he intended to sell on.
   The plot worked, as did the hilarious subplot of Kensi and Deeks warring over which sex talks the most on average, but this was just a (refreshingly interesting and bemusing) storyline that left me going "What on Earth ...?"
   VIEWERS: 9.51m

   DEMOGRAPHIC SHARE: 1.1

VERDICT: I cannot begin to fathom what was going through Joe Sachs' mind when he wrote this script. A messy divorce? Either way, this was such an odd episode I'm going to cop out and give it N.A./10

Quantico - 2x17 "Odyoke"

"The taskforce take to Washington to try to stop a Muslim Registry bill."

With "Odyoke", Quantico took a breath from the fast-paced episodes that have come before, although in pace only; in topic, with a Muslim Registry bill (the passing of which is the next step in evil Speaker of the House and terrorist collaborator Henry Roarke's plan), Quantico continued to hit the high notes, whilst also giving us an insight into Clay's professional life. I love every chance I get to use the phrase "hot button topic", and this was another chance.
   I could discuss the bill, but the most salient point (made through Nimah) is the fact that there shouldn't be a need for this discussion at all. However, its use as a plot device cannot be understated: though the team made efforts to convince (the wrong) politicians to switch their vote to "no", the bill passed - only to be vetoed by President Claire Haas. That's the result we all hoped for, but with Roarke lurking the point is made very clear that if another attack occurs because Claire vetoed the bill then the blame will fall squarely upon her shoulders. And after her impeachment, a terrorist collaborator would assume the Presidency.
   I say "another" attack, for the episode opens with Raina having escaped her captors, who frame her for a shopping mall bombing. The little emotional meat goes to her and Nimah's less-than-cordial encounters, until Nimah offers to take the fall and pretend to be Raina until Raina is cleared. These two have had almost no scenes together all season, but their coming together here drove both A- and B-plots to their conclusions.
   Meanwhile, Sasha, the reporter Ryan had been grooming as an asset (and also becoming involved with romantically), is revealed to be a suspected FSB spy, but more interestingly Owen, for all his talk of being robbed of a great career, froze at the crucial moment during a gun battle. Perhaps  therefore he's more at risk of dying before the season ends. And there is trouble brewing: after kidnapping (and killing?) Harry Doyle, Sebastian follows Alex and Owen getting in a taxi. What is he up to?

   VIEWERS: 2.57m

   DEMOGRAPHIC SHARE: 0.6

VERDICT: A procedural episode that worked within the canon, pushed the overall plot in a horrifying direction and had some good twists to boot. 9/10

Scorpion - 3x21 "Rock Block"

"The team collect a space asteroid for the country of Hechnia, but when they discover it may be carrying deadly pathogens they have to defy a government and stop them opening the capsule."

I was pleasantly surprised with "Rock Block" for being better than I expected. It was set to be fairly good - the guest cast list included Christopher Heyerdahl (who was used properly as President Korsovich, rather than misused as he was on MacGyver), Carlo Rota and Reiko Aylesworth, who returned as Cabe's thought-to-be-gone love interest Allie. She passed Cabe intel that her boss Patel had taken bribes in order to ascend to the West Altadenia aldermanship, and in doing so eventually gave Cabe reason (after some tough love from Sly) to continue pursuing her again. Considering I'd not expected to see Allie again, this is a nice about-turn.
   Plot-wise, it was fun to see Scorpion go through a much different type of structure: after actually succeeding in collecting the asteroid in its space capsule as it free-fell to earth, the plot switched to the potential for Hechnia to release a deadly, unknown pathogen if the capsule was opened. The General wanted to in spite of the risks because of how the palladium in the asteroid would help Hechnia's national GDP, but President Korsovich furtively aided Scorpion in burning the asteroid to dust to protect the country. Everything turned good in the end, however, as the US made a trade deal with Hechnia over rights to asteroids in the future.

Scorpion all agree to take a six-figure mission
to recover an asteroid

   Meanwhile, Toby and Happy's wedding arrangements were in full swing. While they were trying out the freebies from different venues, Cabe was sorting out table decorations and Walter arranged music ("Head bone connects to the ..." since it's medicine-related for Toby and mechanically-inclined for Happy - they now have to play this at the wedding or I'll be disappointed). These were all typically humorous as they led to an end point, leaving one question left: when will #Waige become a thing? 

   VIEWERS: 6.40m

   DEMOGRAPHIC SHARE: 1.0

VERDICT: Typical humour infused with good writing and an above average number of excellent guest stars. 8.5/10

QUOTE OF THE WEEK:

Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Diaz: “Are [the auditors] gonna be looking in our desks? Also, unrelated, someone left a bunch of swords in my desk.”

Hitchcock: “I have a similar question about browser histories.”

Holt: “Just throw your computer away.”

BEST EPISODE THIS WEEK:

There are 3 contenders for this: Brooklyn Nine-Nine, MacGyver and Quantico. Brooklyn Nine-Nine opened its return with rip-roaring hilarity, but that ebbed as the episode continued and the B- and C-plots failed to really evolve into anything. MacGyver deserves a mention for its exceptional season finale and a cliffhanger that leads us into next September when season 2 arrives. But I have to give this week to Quantico.
   Even if it was missing a few emotional beats, "Odyoke" took us on a more fluid rollercoaster ride than usual, turning the true allegiances of more than one character inside out, giving us an un-Quantico-like look at politics and leaving us with some significant cliffhangers - and it did all of this whilst dealing sensitively with a serious and contemporary issue facing America. It was the most complete procedural episode of the show so far, and promises even more given where the story is heading in the final few episodes. What else can we ask for of an episode?

LAST WEEK'S ROUNDUP: On-Season Week 29

NEXT WEEK'S ROUNDUP: (will be posted here when complete)

Final thoughts

Daylight Savings is starting to have a real effect on the ratings of our shows towards the back end of their seasons. Scorpion hadn't ever seen a lowly 1.0 before (likewise MacGyver hadn't seen a 0.8), but this is even plainer with Brooklyn Nine-Nine, which returned from a 3-month hiatus to a series low 0.70, which is nearly a whole decimal point below its previous low (0.78 for 3x18) and almost a full two decimal points below any demo share this season (0.89). Nonetheless, the networks have gathered enough data that these dipping figures aren't a problem for the shows, and in the case of Brooklyn Nine-Nine a fifth season renewal is expected soon.
   And even though it's already renewed, hold onto your hats for how bad Lucifer's ratings will be in a couple of weeks.

Thanks for reading everyone and I'll see you next week!

Sam