The End of the F***ing World Season 1 Review

I've been counting down the days until the end of the world. The days until British comedy-drama The End of the F***ing World arrives on Netflix, that is. The series has been available in the UK for over two months now, premiering in late October on Channel 4, and on January 5th Netflix released it internationally. This is my first season review, as in the past I have stuck to episodic reviews of shows airing weekly. This review will be somewhat episodic in nature, I will discuss each episode and give episode scores, but it will also take a look at the season as a whole, and it won't spend as much time on each episode as my episodic reviews do.


The End of the F***ing World S1


The first episode is short, only eighteen minutes, but it does what it needs to do. We meet James and Alyssa. They are both really interesting characters, especially James. He considers himself to be a psychopath, put his hand in a deep fryer intentionally, kills animals, wants to punch his dad in the face, doesn't have a sense of humor, and masturbates once a week for medical purposes (this detail likely being something that Black Mirror fans would enjoy, considering the episode that Alex Lawther, the actor playing James, was in). Alyssa is interesting as well. She isn't as unique of a character as James is, but she is entertaining in how blunt she can be, she tosses profanities into her language all the time, sometimes randomly it seems, and she appears to have some issues, considering how she smashes her phone on the ground in anger when she receives a text from someone she is sitting at the same table as.

The episode provides us with quite a bit of humor, but it's all humor that helps us get to know the characters. James's dad is funny in the scene where he meets Alyssa, James is entertaining as he prepares for Alyssa to arrive and hides the knife, and it's completely hilarious when Alyssa asks James out of the blue "Have you ever eaten a p***y before?" then tells him that she wants that from him and schedules it for the next day at eleven. The end of the first episode is of course when things really get started, as Alyssa, who is tired of her life in this town with her family, suggests to James that they leave, and James punches his dad in the face and takes the car.

The first episode flies by, feeling even shorter than the short eighteen minutes it is because it is so much fun. James and Alyssa narrate the story, which can be entertaining since they are such interesting characters. I also like how the characters contrast. Alyssa talks a lot, and as a result we know all about her family situation. James, on the other hand, isn't much of a talker, and only reveals anything about his mom when prompted by Alyssa, telling her that she lives in Japan. Yet, somehow, it feels like the first episode got to know James better than it did Alyssa.


When the first episode ends, it's unclear if there is any destination in mind; it doesn't seem that there is. That's true for most of the second episode as well, and that seems to be part of the problem with how the show handles Alyssa and how it handles James up to that point. James has a clear motivation, he wants to kill Alyssa. Alyssa's motivation is less clear. She wants to escape the life she has been living, and she does that at the end of the first episode, but that leaves the question of what now? Luckily, the second episode answers that, when Alyssa tells James that she is going to her dad's.

Alyssa's relationship with her dad is an interesting thing. Usually, characters who have a parent that abandoned them tend to feel resentment towards that parent. Alyssa, however, understands that her dad left because he is a free spirit, and she idolizes him in a way. When she and James realize they don't have any money for the food they have eaten, she recites a motto of her dad's, concluding they can dine and dash because the restaurant is a part of a chain. We also see in this episode how screwed up Alyssa's home life is. When she calls home, she asks her step dad if she can speak with her mother, and without consulting her mother, he tells her she can't. Alyssa's mother appears to want to speak to her daughter, but says nothing.

What I found most interesting in the second episode, however, is Alyssa's worries that James doesn't actually want to be a part of this adventure of sorts that they are having. Alyssa gets to worrying about this due to a very strange and funny situation that occurs, when the man giving James and Alyssa a ride uses the restroom at the same time as James, takes an interest in his hand, and then holds the hand as he continues to pee. This moment is used for entertainment, to get to know more about James, that he just goes along with things sometimes, and to cause Alyssa to worry. While she doesn't seem to care what most people think of her, insulting the looks of the man's child earlier, she does care what James thinks, or maybe she just cares that he is doing what he is doing out of his own free will.

This is not all that happens in the second episode though, which manages to pack a lot in. James is still trying to find the right time to kill Alyssa, and something interesting happens near the end of the episode. He waits outside the bathroom for her with a knife, but then abandons the plan to kill her at that time because he hears her crying. In the last few minutes of the episode, James seems to actually care about Alyssa, at least a little bit.


The first two episodes are mostly spent getting to know the characters and sending them off on their journey. The third episode is when things escalate. James and Alyssa decide to spend the next night in a house that they find that's empty. I'm not exactly sure why, after making it obvious that they have quite a bit of cash now, they have to do this, but it's what Alyssa decides on. Alyssa also wants to delay seeing her dad. While she has decided that they are going to see him, it seems she is beginning to worry if it will be as good as she hopes that it will be.

The house that James and Alyssa find ends up leading to a lot of trouble. It seems perfect at first, but then we get some hints as to what type of person the owner of this house is. He arrives home and finds Alyssa, who says that she is alone. Thinking that the two of them are alone, he attempts to rape her, but James, who is hiding underneath the bed, stops that from happening by killing him. James wants to kill someone, but the person he was prepared to kill was Alyssa, who he now just saved from getting raped and likely murdered. This also happens after he realizes that Alyssa is making him feel things, which he does not like. Now, his relationship with Alyssa is even more complicated.

The third episode also deals with sex. Alyssa has expressed since the first episode that she wants to have sex, but in reality she seems to have mixed emotions about it. When James is not aroused right away when she starts to give him a blowjob, she bails on him. (James later tries to apologize to Alyssa for this, but she doesn't even acknowledge that, which seems out-of-character for her.) She finds a guy who wants to have sex with her, but right before they are about to, she changes her mind. Alyssa seems to want sex, but is scared about it. Alyssa's exact feelings and worries about sex aren't made clear in this episode, but it is clear that there is some conflict inside her on the topic.


In the fourth episode, James and Alyssa now have to deal with what happened. This means both that they have to clean up the scene, and that they have to deal with the different dynamic between them. Alyssa realizes that there is something seriously wrong with James, and she doesn't really buy his answers to her questions about the knife. James also has a realization near the end of the episode, a part of the episode where Alex Lawther really shines, when he is lying on the ground after paying some guys to beat him up (which rids me of my worries that James was getting too normal in this episode). He realizes that Alyssa has been protecting him, without him realizing it. James also realizes that he is not a psychopath, though given his past with killing animals, he certainly still has plenty of issues.

While I really liked the realizations and Alex Lawther's performance, I found the fourth episode to be the weakest one so far. Without Alyssa providing that much humor in this episode, the detectives that are working the case are relied upon for comedy, and it doesn't work very well. Also, the show attempts to get the audience to care about these two characters and whatever happened between them, but it feels like a waste of time that could be spent with James and Alyssa, or one of the two, as they split ways late in the episode. My one other criticism for the episode is that early on there seems to be some urgency to get to Alyssa's dad's, as she concludes that he will know what to do, but everything after cleaning up the crime scene feels like it is in no hurry at all.


The fifth episode begins with a flashback that takes place eleven years before the time the rest of the episode takes place. A young James seems totally normal, which is bizarre because other flashbacks to his childhood have shown him being weird, indicating that he wasn't always that way. Sure enough, the flashback gives us something that likely made James be so strange: he witnessed his mother kill herself by driving her car into a pond. In the present day, James reports his mother's suicide to the police, indicating that the fact that she killed herself is a secret that he has kept until now. The flashback provides interesting insight into James's life, but other than that, his part of the episode isn't that interesting, as he decides, inspired by a police officer's question if there is anyone to take care of him, to try to find Alyssa.

Alyssa's story isn't as interesting as what we have witnessed before in this show, but she is an entertaining enough character to make it enjoyable. Without money, since she gave it to James, she has to steal when she gets her period and is unprepared. She steals out of necessity, and returns a lost girl to the store instead of escaping, making Alyssa seem like a completely moral character, but then she steals a bra from the store after the manager decides not to report her attempted theft to the police. In the scene after this, we really get to see Alyssa doubt her decisions, as she wonders why she stole the bra when she didn't need it, and why she left James when he was trying to protect her. She feels conflicted, and wants to see James again, and then miraculously finds him. Thank god the two of them found each other though, because they are both more interesting when playing off each other.


In episode six, James and Alyssa are reunited again. We get to spend some fun times with them then, the highlight being when an attempt to steal some gas ends up going much farther than either of them had expected. The one employee at the gas station that wants to go with them is endearing, and I kind of wish that they had let him come with them, but this show is rooted in the two of James and Alyssa, so the two of them facing things together is important. Speaking of facing things together, the unusual happens in this episode with James comforting Alyssa. She expresses her worries about her dad to him, and he is surprisingly good at comforting her. He probably wouldn't be able to comfort others well, but James and Alyssa have really gotten to know each other, and now they understand each other and have a relationship, unlike James has with anyone else.

This episode also brings the police closer to finding them and finding out what happened when the man was killed. After they found the knife at the end of the last episode, they have determined that it is a murder weapon. The victim's mother is persuaded into giving up information revealing who her son is, which gives the police potential motive for James and Alyssa killing him. Finally, the robbery of the gas station gives them a direction to go, making it not as challenging now for them to track down James and Alyssa. I liked how this progressed, and I also liked how one detective seems to sympathize with them. It does seem harsh that they would be convicted of manslaughter.


The seventh episode is largely spent with James and Alyssa getting to know Lesley, Alyssa's father. He is probably exactly what most viewers were expecting him to be. He seems to spend most of his time having fun, he lives in a mobile home, and he is a drug dealer. This episode isn't as funny as the early episodes of the season, but Lesley does provide some humor. The biggest thing that Lesley does though is impact James and Alyssa's relationship. Alyssa has idolized her father, so she loves spending time with him, and that leaves James, who doesn't really like Lesley, feeling alone. It's saddening, and that's largely because the show has done a great job of establishing James and Alyssa's relationship.

Near the end of the episode, Alyssa discovers that she has a half-brother, and she feels betrayed by Lesley since he withheld this information from her. Most shows would use this as a moment for James to comfort Alyssa. Instead, the opposite ends up happening. When Lesley injures a dog, and James is unable to bring himself to put it out of its misery, Alyssa steps up. Then, they hug. Alyssa has realized that no matter what happens in the world around them, she and James have each other.

With the seventh episode being the penultimate one of the season, the detectives of course get closer to finding James and Alyssa. They arrive at Lesley's old address, but the woman there gives them no information. The most interesting thing in these detective scenes are their different perspectives on the situation. These different perspectives make the ending interesting, as the detective who believes that James and Alyssa need someone to talk to them rather than to be locked up is told where Lesley is staying. Now, she has to make a choice, and this sets up what has the potential to be a thrilling conclusion.


The conclusion didn't disappoint. The season finale reflected on James and Alyssa's relationship while bringing the police to them and presenting them with a series of choices. After jumping ahead to the very end, with James running on the beach, the beginning of the episode has James and Alyssa on the beach. Alyssa stops James before they are going to have sex, saying that she wants to wait a few days and that they have a lot of time. We, however, know that they do not have much time at all. They also make a plan, they will take Lesley's boat and leave the country.

James and Alyssa put their plan into action, and this is where everything goes wrong. Lesley won't give them the boat keys, and because he saw them on the news the previous night, he calls 9-9-9. The scene in the mobile home gets more and more intense, as James grabs a gun, Alyssa stabs her father in the leg, and the detective enters the scene. This scene works wonderfully, and I love how it ends with Alyssa refusing help from the detective when she gets confirmation that she and James won't end up in the same place.

With boat keys in hand and time running out, James and Alyssa try to make their escape, but they realize it's too late. While James and Alyssa have grown together, they have different perspectives on the situation. Alyssa wants the two to be together, no matter what. James doesn't want Alyssa to get in trouble when he was the one that killed the man. It's heartbreaking as James hits Alyssa with the gun and runs down the beach in an attempt to save her, not realizing that what she wants most is to be with him. At the end of the episode, the police are shooting at James, and it's unclear what the results of this are. It could be implied that James has been killed, and if this were presented as a mini-series I would infer that, but Netflix lists this as season one.


This show was a quick watch, perhaps too quick (it takes less than three hours to watch the entire season), and it was a delight the whole way. The parts of the season where James and Alyssa were separated weren't as strong, and I didn't care much for the police investigation in the first couple of episodes that it appeared in, but these were the only parts of the season that I didn't love. The characters were introduced in an efficient and entertaining manner, and the show didn't waste any time getting to its climax.

The sense of humor that the show displayed, primarily in the earlier episodes of the season, was right up my alley. I wish the show had continued to be so funny as the season progressed, but they had more serious subjects to deal with. Alex Lawther and Jessica Barden were absolutely terrific, no matter if the material they were dealing with at the time was comedic, dramatic, or some mix of both. They helped make their characters thoroughly engaging, and had a great chemistry. The writing of their relationship was also strong, and I really enjoyed how it evolved throughout the season.

In conclusion, I am so glad that I have been paying a lot of attention to what Netflix is releasing, because I would not have wanted to miss this show. I've been thinking about how to define this show, and honestly, when it comes down to it, I would say that this is a dark coming-of-age relationship comedy-drama, but it feels like the show is even more than that. Whatever it is, The End of the F***ing World is a show with great acting, great writing, and great directing.


Episode scores:
Episode 1: 9/10
Episode 2: 10/10
Episode 3: 9.5/10
Episode 4: 8/10
Episode 5: 8/10
Episode 6: 9.5/10
Episode 7: 9/10
Episode 8: 10/10

Season score: 9.125/10

What did you think of the first season of The End of the F***ing World? Leave your thoughts in the comments!

Stranger Things 2 Review -- The Upside Down Spreads Sideways (And Now Has Ratings in the Forefront!)

Written Upside Down by Bridger Cunningham.



"All that we see or seen is but a dream within a dream." -- Edgar Allen Poe

Enjoy a rarity, as Netflix made a fleeting reveal by disclosing how many folks have tuned into Stranger Things 2 since the October 27 premiere.  Here is the breakdown of how many viewers watched the nine episodes as of November 2:

Episode 1: 15.8M
Episode 2: 13.7M
Episode 3: 11.6M
Episode 4: 9.3M
Episode 5: 8.0M
Episode 6: 6.4M
Episode 7: 5.3M
Episode 8: 4.9M
Episode 9: 4.6M

The trajectory may appear folks lost interest along the way.  However, Netflix viewers watch at their own pace, and later episodes are expected to have the lowest number of viewers.  Also, Netflix does not appear to scrutinize demographics, as the cost of a subscription (the goal for the company vs. advertising dollars on television) costs the same for a viewer, whether they are 27 or 79 years old.  And now a critical view...

Without divulging too many crucial plot twists and allowing readers to draw their own experiences, take a long, crucial look at Stranger Things 2, which made its heralded debut on Friday, October 27.  The 2nd season picks up one year after the prior season's events, fittingly prior to Halloween 1984.   Period pieces walk a tightrope with high odds of failure as they are not only costly with production values but also demand rigorous detail.   Dialogue, fashion, mannerisms and minor touches allow the audience to enter the period in reference.  And for older viewers, ring accurate and true.  Stranger Things mastered this tall order when it debuted in July 2016, spreading like a terrifying plague across Netflix.  The concept of killing a child struck a raw nerve not struck since the early 80's, even if teased.  After a landmark first season, how could Stranger Things fathom delivering a rewarding season for fans while evading the Sophomore Slump Curse?  Stranger Things 2 managed this tall order to mere perfection while enhancing character developments and relationships.

The plotting for Stranger Things 2 offered few surprises when stacked against the original season.  However, The Duffer Brothers seem to understand if show-runners cannot shock their viewers at every moment without the bubble bursting, giving viewers twists they cannot wait to see happen offers a similar gratification to keep viewers hooked.  Last season, Will Byers (Noah Schnapp) was developed as a figment to a story as his loved ones and surrounding characters enjoyed the spotlight.  This season, Will's plagued story offered the ripe opportunity for exploration of a damaged and moody pre-teen exploring the fallout from his traumatic events the prior season.


Along with Will, the teenage triangle between his brother Jonathan (Charlie Heaton), Mike's sister Nancy (Natalia Dyer) and Steve Harrington (Joe Keery) also progressed with the three segued into the next chapter in "Justice for Barb."  The Duffer Brothers cleverly incorporated the real-life movement into the show and left a presence for Shannon Purser to enact a new figment to drive a strong story.  The triangle is well developed, as each couple has their merits and strength.  Jonathan and Nancy have the tragic curse of being from two different classes, while Steve and Nancy are fighting Nancy's continual indecisive nature.  The greatest detriment Steve held from the premise' launch is he is not tied to other characters besides this triangle, a decision the writers wisely corrected by forming a brotherly connection with a desperate Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo).  Developments humorously mocked Steve's "perfect" hair as he revealed his secret of styling to Dustin, paying nod to Farrah Fawcett.


Individual relationships are explored in depth as the last season focused heavily on Eleven/Jane (Millie Bobby Brown) with Mike (Finn Wolfhard), Dustin and Lucas (Caleb McLaughlin) tagging along on second string.  Eleven is out of sight, leaving greater opportunities to explore the loyalty between Mike and Will, as well as a rivalry between Lucas and Dustin as they vie for Hawkins transplant Max(ine) (Sadie Sink).  Indeed, the cast is splintered this season, working for and against the premise.  It benefited character development for the returning characters, while leaving a convoluted mess with the majority of the new characters underdeveloped.  Where the Duffer Brothers do Stranger Things 2 justice is when it strays too far and opens too many plotting questions, they quickly tie the tales together so the audience will not be lost.  Eleven's standalone episode sans the remaining cast was a bold risk as standalone episodes can break the momentum in a serialized story.  Yet it was needed to shed further light on the mystery and enabled her return to her friends.

Just as the first season perfected, Stranger Things' chilling synthesized score and era appropriate music from the early-mid 80's enhanced the season. It generates the appropriate nostalgia for viewers to feel as though they are frightened in a dark movie theater in 1984.  Season 1 paid eerie homage to Poltergeist and Tron with The Upside Down, and Season 2 appropriately craft a tribute to Gremlins and John Carpenter's The Thing.  The driving force, of course, is the Upside Down spreading like a plague, again, and the authorities working to contain it from spreading.  Stranger Things 2 delivered a successful entry which respected the premise of the original.  New characters weighed down the ensemble, and the original cast members did the heavy lifting to relive the frightful power of the first season.  Enjoy this rich entry, as the series now boasts 17 episodes which new viewers may pick up and binge their way straight to the second season.

SLASHER: The Executioner -- A Review Cutting Friendly Canadian Stereotypes to Ribbons

Writing a Bloody Mess by Bridger Cunningham



Daring to find a new Netflix series which can conjure up scares more frightening than a Friday ratings report?  The United States' neighbor to the north managed to perfect s sleeper hit known to few, as it made a quiet debut on Canada's Premium Cable Super Channel and America's cable outlet Chiller.  Broken apart into an 8-episode season, Slasher crafted a clever murder mystery hinging on the seven deadly sins.  Set against a picturesque fictitious Canadian town of Waterbury, the idealistic setting holds a beautiful backdrop thinly guising the vile nature and actions the townsfolk have been hiding for decades.  Slasher is not produced to draw upon the Award-worthy nature of American counterparts Stranger Things, Twin Peaks or American Horror Story.  But rather, it delivers decent dialog against a well-constructed mystery and delivers a standalone product worthy of investing in if viewers yearn for frightful thrills and piquing their curiosity and theories as to the killer's identity and motive for unleashing mayhem.

McGrath, McLaren

Slasher manages to debut with a shocking, gruesome murder of two seemingly innocent people on Halloween 1988.  Out of this town's blemish, the daughter of one of the murdered principles returns as an adult to inhabit the infamous house where the murders took place.  Immediately, she is the beacon of speculation for sensationalist reporters, curious, friendly townsfolk and even a hateful neighbor who breaks the stereotype that all Canadians are jovial.  The heroine, Sarah and her husband Dylan (Katie McGrath, Brandon Jay McLaren) interact with local police officer Cam Henry (Steve Byers), his chief Iain Vaughn (Tori Spelling's spouse, Dean McDermott), local realtor Robin Turner (Christopher Jacot), his spouse Justin (Mark Ghanime), and Dylan's newspaper publisher Allison Sutherland (Mayko Nguyen).

Of course, not all in this town are friendly toward the Bennetts as grudging neighbor Verna McBride (politician/actress Mary Walsh) is too eager to pepper the young couple with insults and awkward exchanges. The characters meeting their grisly demises at the hands of the masked copycat Executioner are guilty of the seven deadly sins over the first 7 episodes -- Wrath, Gluttony, Envy, Sloth, Greed, Lust and Pride.  For those eager to locate clues lying in plain sight, pay attention to the chillingly appropriate title sequence.  The 2016 run manages to hook viewers with the first casualty being campy and humorous balanced with the right doses of shock and horror, hooking viewers to see who will meet their cleverly crafted and savage demise.  Throughout the 8-episode run, characters' vile misdeeds are explored, leading the audience to realize to the very end why they were chosen to meet grisly end.


Incarcerated Executioner Tom Winston (Patrick Garrow) plays the aiding villain as he aids Sarah in her quest to figure out why her friends, loved ones and neighbors are being picked off, and how this ties into her sudden return to the infamous town scarred by her birth.  The cast delivers on par, though the only demerit was the severe underuse of international star Wendy Crewson as Sarah's "grandmother."  At first glance, viewers appear to have to suspend disbelief that she plays the grandmother of a woman in her late 20's until further explanation is given why Sarah has a GILF.  That oversight aside, Slasher delivers on-par and has two seasons readily available for the globe via Netflix.  Dare to frighten yourself bemused and give Slasher a whirl if you crave a decent mystery.

Disjointed Part 1 Review

When Netflix's new comedy series Disjointed was first announced, I was super excited for it. After all, Kathy Bates is an Oscar and Emmy winning Queen of Acting, and Chuck Lorre, despite some missteps, remains a comedy great, responsible for Mom, one of my personal favorite shows, among others. When reviews from other critics started to come in, let's just say that my expectations were immediately lowered. Critical response has been tepid at best. Nevertheless, I remained excited (though less so) for the series, as I tend to like shows that the critics really don't. So without further ado, let's talk about Disjointed.

I'll be honest, Disjointed gets off to a rough start. The first episode is not very good. The laughs are few and far between. After more than a year of excitement, it's certainly a disappointing start. I was very underwhelmed by the whole thing. With just a few tweaks, it could have been good, but it wasn't a great start. The scene in which we learn that Carter is a veteran is just really weird, and it's one of the few times in which Nicole Sullivan's Maria, who was a true standout this season, got on my nerves, the other being the way-too-long ending scene of the first episode. The entire episode was really just setup for the rest of the show, but that doesn't mean I'll just brush off its mediocrity. It really made me doubt that I would even enjoy the show.

The second episode is much better, as the characters actually have something to do in it. A big problem I had with the first episode was that some of the characters were just there, not really contributing much to the show. I had trouble remembering if Elizabeth Ho's Jenny and Dougie Baldwin's Pete were even in the first episode. Even characters that served more of a purpose, such as Ruth's son Travis and Alternative Caring employee Olivia didn't help to make the first episode very funny, memorable, or very good. The only parts I really enjoyed were Kathy Bates as Ruth and Nicole Sullivan's Maria. They remained my favorite parts throughout the show, but the other characters got much more entertaining as they were given more to do. We got to see the dynamics between the characters in episode two, and it went a long way in improving the show.

This show also tries to get dramatic at some times, and it flat out does not work. Whenever the story involves Tone Bell's security guard Carter and his PTSD, it's awkward. A storyline involving the PTSD of a soldier just does not make any sense in a stoner comedy. It's out of place, and it keeps this show from truly embracing its light and goofy side. And this isn't me saying that a sitcom can't address these issues. Fellow Netflix shows BoJack Horseman and F Is For Family mix darkness with comedy perfectly. But not this show. It just doesn't work. FX/FXX's You're the Worst also features a character with PTSD and handles it much better. Carter's PTSD storyline is always my least favorite part of the show, and I just find myself cringing during it. It's not good.

All of this isn't to say that I disliked Disjointed. In fact, I really enjoyed it.

Kathy Bates puts out another great performance in this show. Ruth is the absolute delight to watch on screen, always delivering the funniest lines in the show that frequently made me laugh out loud. Like in most of her roles, Bates is a natural in this role, and she's easily the best (and the funniest) actor in the main cast. She's always entertaining in this role, and I enjoyed this show mostly because of her.

The short little Strain O' The Day segments (for which each episode of the show is named for) are pretty enjoyable, and I frequently found myself laughing out loud at them. My favorite Strain O' The Day segment is easily the "Prom Night" one, which I found hysterical. Everyone involved in that segment is quite funny in it, especially Kathy Bates and Tone Bell as the "parents".

There's only one real "standout" episode of Disjointed, in which the entirety of the episode really works well and it's really funny. That episode would be "Olivia's S***balls", which is so funny and a great watch. It also features a great setup for the finale. If you can only watch one episode of Disjointed, this really should be the one. Episodes 2-8 and 10 were also pretty good and I suggest watching them, but episode 9's the best.

In the end, Disjointed is a really fun watch, and I suggest it to anyone looking for a fun show to watch that isn't serialized. It's a fun way to spend 25-or-so minutes, and I don't get why the critics hated it so much. If you go into it with an open mind, instead of thinking it'll suck right off the bat, you just might enjoy it. I know I did. This show isn't exactly high-quality, but that doesn't mean that it's not entertaining. But please, kill that laugh track.

Score: 8/10
Grade: B
MVP: Kathy Bates
Episode of the Season: Olivia's S***balls

Take a Bite Out of Santa Clarita Diet

Written Digesting a Critical Masterpiece by Bridger Cunningham

Welcome to Santa Clarita, California, a majestic community located 35 miles northwest of Downtown LA.  It possesses low(er) crime rates than the Boyle Heights hole in the county, new(er) homes crafted with Tuscan love from the last decade, and neighbors who fit the idyllic, muted, suffocating neutral colors.

Does this sound like a phony sales pitch and/or a suburban nightmare full of cookie cutters?  Sounds about right.  The opening 10 minutes depicted the greatest element of horror possessed by this series -- the mundane, status seeking locals everyone is bred to fear/aspire to become.  That unruly horror bled like molecular acid as Drew Barrymore plastered a plush master bath in vomit with greater veracity than the Exorcist's pea-soup rebellion.  Then the series began.

This crafted the idyllic, seductive and addictive series at the foundation.

Clever writing is essential as it creates the bedrock for the premise.  And the actors labor the structure and beauty of the architecture.  The beauty of the finished product is the producers are capitalizing on the cast's strengths and prior experience.  Drew Barrymore is no stranger to science fiction, horror and seductive scandal.  She beamed as the sweet spot in ET, followed by frightful turns as a horror child in Firestarter and Cat's Eye, a cult classic which her kitty vanquished the troll living in the crowned trim.  Barrymore flirted with illicit seduction in Poison Ivy, flashed David Letterman, and became a hapless teenage opening slaughter in the launch of the Scream series.

The end product -- Barryomore scored a landmark role to be remembered by in the 2010's.  Barrymore's Shiela Hammond is the ideal amalgamation of Barrymore's prior crafts.  Sheila possesses a naivety (ET), seductiveness during her first kill (Poison Ivy) and battled a small rooster pest slighting her vitality (Cat's Eye).  On display is irrationality during her second slaughter (Firestarter) demonstrated vulnerability fused with desperation.  Lewd honesty with impulses came forth with a foul and direct vocalization (her Letterman stint), and Barrymore tugged at our heartstrings when her toe disintegrated in the tub, painting a horrific ending for a newly-established heroine (Scream).  The end product as Sheila Hammond is a hot mess of Barrymore's prior roles blended into a lovable heroine in a storage locker blender.


Timothy Olyphant functions best as leading males pushed to the brink with slow-boiling tension, similar to his Santa Clarita alter Joel Hammond.  Vexing between heroic and villain, Olyphant works best in heroic roles in period pieces like Deadwood and Justified, and greater in villainy in roles like Scream 2, Live Free or Die Hard and The Girl Next Door.  Olyphant plays best as conflicted, and Joel is another card in the deck.  Another cliche of a high-school athlete who married the hot chick, Joel is having a midlife crisis instigated at his true love "going through the change."  Olyphant's Joel is poised to score greater character excavation than Barrymore's Sheila.

Next in the perfect casting order is Liv Hewson as she exhibits the same sass and confidence public Drew Barrymore shamelessly displayed in the 90's.  Adding to the credibility is Hewson is blessed with similar attributes to Barrymore in the 90's with her defined jaw and choppy chic hairdo.  Who better to pair with Hewson than Skyler Gisondo's Eric Bemis, a lovable green apple waiting to ripe into his prime.  Possessing the same green-eyed attributes as Griffin O'Neal (minus the substance abuse and criminal scandals), Gisondo refreshingly displays the youthful male legacy with his right of passage as he learns to stand his ground after being run through like a sidewalk.

Additional casting delights include Ricardo Chavira as bullying deputy neighbor Dan Palmer, a fitting retread to his Desperate Housewives role as overgrown bear Carlos Solis.  And what better to accent such suburban hell than Mary Elizabeth Ellis' perfectionist nightmare Lisa Palmer, whose duality possesses a greater tragedy than Sheila's own gruesome fate?  Santa Clarita Diet is rich and rife with colors.  Not the lovely primary colors or neutral tones of the backdrops.  Chocolate reds depict the ugliness of a heroine's deterioration as she struggles to regain the former life she lovingly crafted.  Nasty, olive greens paint vomit across a tainted life representing the point of no return as contaminated characters vomited an unidentified organ.  And the ruby-red smoothies showcase the false veneer Barrymore's Sheila struggled to force to keep up appearances.

The casting and production present the greatest strengths, adding a trifecta of biting dialogue and clever quips.  Where Santa Clarita Diet fails greatest, however, is pacing.  Adopting a breakneck plot acceleration, it satisfies the appetites of viewers with limited attention spans.  Like Sheila's body, it runs the risk of premature deterioration with limited survival beyond 4 seasons.  If Santa Clarita diet strives for a limited run of 40 episodes, its pace is suitable.  Beyond that, pacing has already accelerated too fast to make this series a durable favorite beyond that range.  The greatest blunder that hastened decomposition was Nathan Fillion's blink-to-miss guest spot as weaseling realtor Gary West.

Declared "a bad person" in the intro of the 2nd episode, limited exploration merely left character stating Gary was bad news vs. Fillion's demonstrated range able to display villainy.  Had Gary met his vicious ending in episode 3, pacing would have allowed viewers to see why he deserved to be disemboweled.  All he did in one episode was steal a real estate listing and flirt with Barrymore's Sheila.  That is a garden-variety realtor, not a villain to bust Sheila's zombie cherry to our intrigue.

The second villain dispensed too fast is Chavira's Dan Palmer.  Yes, he was a bully via profession.  Dan's death would have sufficed as the cliffhanger for the season and allotted more sympathetic undertones to establish and make a compelling, complex killing.  Dan blackmailed Joel and somehow established a liking for his latest host.  The fast pacing failed to capitalize on supporting characteristics depicting how Dan developed a power complex and had enough mileage to carry the season remains.  Every great villain needs proper exploration including their rooting values.  Santa Clarita Diet missed the mark in Chavira's range, properly explored through his 8-year run on Desperate Housewives.

The breakneck pacing dispensed DeObia Oparei faster than a takeout meal after two shameless episodes.  Oparei's initial episode paced properly, followed by a forgettable flirtation with Sheila.  Oparei and Barrymore established chemistry and may have carried a flirtatious arc a la season 2 of Dexter's Lila Tournay toying with the antihero Dexter.  Instead, the accelerated deterioration turned this plot hook into a book end episode with unlimited potential squandered.  The season wrapped with Sheila's voracious appetite turning on logic, leaving limited beauty and potential to exploring a longer Greek tragedy to explore.   Her eyeball strung out of its socket, matching the digested effects of speeding through material which may have carried well into the second season.

Accelerated pacing proved to be the greatest plot flaw Santa Clarita Diet committed in similar nature to ABC's Revenge.  But Olyphant and Barrymore's commitment to Joel and Sheila showcases the hook for viewers as a middle-aged couple attempting to keep love alive.  No matter which plot wist the show sped through, viewers can invest in Joel and Sheila.  Both depicted devotion and what made the couple tick through any given plot twist.  What lies ahead for Santa Clarita Diet in 2018?  Hopefully the writing leaves ample room to explore the plethora of talents, as this show combined glorious favorites like Desperate Housewives and Revenge with gruesome tragedies like Dexter to leave an intriguing entry to Netflix's already full and bloody plate.