Category Archives: TV Reviews

Star Trek: Enterprise – Season 1 (TVR00014) – 🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪

The PolyBlog
October 25 2020

Overview

Star Trek – Enterprise

Most of Season 1 is about the first Warp 5-capable Earth vessel venturing out into uncharted space. The Vulcans have been taking very cautious steps in helping humans expand, and Archer has been pushing for Earth to take a more aggressive, risky approach. The season shows early attempts, selecting a crew, venturing out, and a series of bloody noses as they meet both friendly and less-than-friendly allies. The Vulcans give them T’Pol, which helps and hurts with the Andorians, Klingons, and a host of other smaller races. But throughout it all, there is a hint that something bigger is going on, as Crewman Daniels teaches Archer about the Temporal Prime Directive.

Episodes That I Liked

The two best episodes of the season are about time travel, including EP11 Cold Front where the Time War becomes more apparent and answers a few questions while opening a host more. EP26 ShockWave Pt 1 brings time travel back to the fore as well and serves as the cliffhanger for the season.

Six other episodes are rated 4/5, including a two-parter (EP01 and 02 kick off the series with Sulibans and Klingons on Earth); E10 where you get to meet Nausicaans with predictable results given their history of attacking merchant vessels; E12 with a lot of focus on phasers; E17 with Vulcans who embrace emotions rather than suppressing them; and E20 with an old crashed ship sending out an SOS with seemingly no survivors on board, yet there is…something.

Episodes That Were Watchable

Fourteen more episodes are rated 3/5, and it is the reason why the whole season is similarly rated. E03 deals with Hoshi having trouble adjusting to being on a ship; E04 has a planet that causes hallucinations; E05 rises to okay which is surprising since the premise is that Trip gets pregnant; E06 looks at a lost colony; E07 and 15 deal with Andorian / Vulcan relations, and other than the main Andorian, they’re kind of a wash; E09 has interactions with a pre-warp society and the start of the “Prime Directive”; E14 is about rescuing a Klingon ship while E16 is about rescuing a shuttlepod; E18 has a rogue planet drifting through space; E19 and 22 show Malcolm isn’t doing a very good job with security since the Ferengi and a spider manage to take over the ship; and E25 is a trip to Risa where lots of little adventures happen for everyone. Of all of the mid-range ones, E13 deals with a week in the life of Dr. Phlox and while it was a great premise, there wasn’t enough “oomph” to get above 3/5.

Episodes That I Didn’t Like

Four episodes really weren’t that great…”thawing” relations with Vulcans (namely T’Pol, E08), an internment camp (E21), a disgraced Vulcan Ambassador (E23), and a trip through the desert (E24).

List of Episodes from Season 1

S01E01Broken Bow Pt 1Sulibans on Earth? Not a good time🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S01E02Broken Bow Pt 2Visiting Cronos? Priceless🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S01E03Fight or FlightHoshi finds her sea legs🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E04Strange New WorldCamping with hallucinations? Fun🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E05UnexpectedTrip’s blind date goes too well🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E06Terra NovaFind a lost colony, get taken hostage🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E07Andorian IncidentSomeone always breaks a treaty🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E08Breaking the IceComets, Vulcans…everything thaws🐸🐸⚪⚪⚪
S01E09CivilizationOooh, no Prime Directive? Cool🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E10Fortunate SonNausicaans and Boomers don’t mix🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S01E11Cold FrontTemporal observatories and cold wars🐸🐸🐸🐸🐸
S01E12Silent EnemyOh, look, target practice for phasers🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S01E13Dear DoctorWeek in life of Phlox and an epidemic🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E14Sleeping DogsJoke: Klingons fly into a gas giant🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E15Shadows of P’JemAn Andorian rescue op? Great🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E16Shuttlepod OneOne way ticket to cold space🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E17FusionVulcans who embrace emotion? Scary🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S01E18Rogue PlanetSave the wraiths, save your memory🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E19AcquisitionA Ferengi boarding party? Embarrassing🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E20OasisA crashed ship with spooky survivors🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S01E21DetainedInternment camps? Not that interesting🐸🐸⚪⚪⚪
S01E22Vox SolaA space spider spins its web on board🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E23Fallen HeroVulcan Ambassador slash criminal?🐸🐸⚪⚪⚪
S01E24Desert CrossingSpace captains like the desert?🐸🐸⚪⚪⚪
S01E25Two Days and Two NightsIt’s Risa, anything goes🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E26Shockwave Pt 1Always a bad time for time travel🐸🐸🐸🐸🐸

The Bottom Line

A show still getting its space legs

Star Trek: Picard – Season 1 (TVR00013) – 🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪

The PolyBlog
September 27 2020

Overview

The new show takes place after the movies and the end of the Next Generation timeline. There has been what appeared to be an AI uprising and a catastrophic attack that led the Federation to ban all cybernetic organisms (like Data or more inferior copies) and to withdraw from helping the Romulans as their planetary system collapsed. Picard fought for both communities and lost, and he resigned from Starfleet. Now he sits in his vineyard estate and watches his body and mind slowly stagnate.

The first episode sets up the premise of the show with a bang. A young couple is hanging out, getting to know each other in an apartment, and suddenly shock troopers enter the room, kill the boy, and are targeting the girl. She goes into super combat mode, takes them out, escapes, and while she doesn’t know how she did any of it, she knows she has to find a man she has never met — Jean-Luc Picard. It doesn’t take long for them to figure out she’s actually an advanced android, a synthetic human, based on the neural pathways that Data had before he died. Making her basically Data’s daughter. One of two “twins”. She’s killed and Picard goes in search of the second daughter, Soji, before someone kills her.

Episodes That I Liked

Episodes 4 and 6 were pretty cool, with a warrior caste of nuns and some battles, plus Jean-Luc visiting a Borg cube to visit Hugh and the Romulan reclamation project. Can anyone say PTSD? I rated both episodes 5/5.

There are another 5 episodes that I gave a 4/5 rating to…Episode 2 where you learn about the reclamation project and Soji (with a great health and safety sign on the cube that says it has been 5843 days without an assimilation); EP 3 where they’re getting ready for the voyage and putting a team together; EP 5 where they meet up with Bruce Maddox again; EP 8 where they meet Noonian’s descendant; and the season finale, EP 10, with potential space battles, cubes, and androids galore.

Episodes That Were Watchable

EP 7 is a giant fan favourite because it introduces you to Riker and Troi and gives you some of their history after the movies. It has not been sunshine and roses, but they have found a way to make it work. And EP 9, the first part of the finale, shows you the life the synthetics have built, so highly watchable.

Episodes That I Didn’t Like

I described EP 1 in the Overview above, and it SHOULD have been awesome with the shock troops and the new synthetic. Instead, it was actually pretty slow. And the super genius who supposedly built her? Bruce Maddox. The same one who tried to have Data declared a toaster in Season 1 of ST:TNG and whose proposals Data found “intriguing”, yet he’s the God of Cybernetics who built the twin daughters? Yeah, right. I would have accepted his children or his protegé being the creator, but Maddox? He was fun in Season 1 but a bit of a joke.

List of Episodes from Season 1

S01E01RemembranceReally? Maddox is the new Noonian? Doubtful🐸🐸⚪⚪⚪
S01E02Maps and LegendsBest line was the sign: This facility has gone
5843 days without an assimilation		🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S01E03The End is the BeginningCan we go already? Yes, fine. Engage.🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S01E04Absolute CandorWarrior nuns are cool, but Picard owes
somebody a ship		🐸🐸🐸🐸🐸
S01E05Stardust City RagHey, Bruce, good to see you again🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S01E06The Impossible BoxIf you can’t go home again, you might
as well revisit your last trip to hell		🐸🐸🐸🐸🐸
S01E07NepentheWhen you need a refuge, find two old friends
and couch surf		🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E08Broken PiecesGood news, the cyberneticist won’t
kill anyone else		🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S01E09Et in Arcadia Ego Pt 1Well, as synths go, it’s better than
Lal and Lore		🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S01E10Et in Arcadia Ego Pt 2One impossible thing at a time,
plus an obvious one		🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪

The Bottom Line

This is not your father’s next-generation show.

Continuum – Season 4 (TVR00012) – 🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪

The PolyBlog
September 18 2020

Overview

The premise for the series was always about Keira getting home, and what she would find when she does. Will it be the future she left, with the timeline intact? Will her husband and son be waiting for her? In most shows, the answers would be obvious and simple. This season recognized the complexity of time and introduced the idea of a time war with two different factions fighting to keep different timelines intact.

Episodes That I Liked

E05 brought home the reality of a time war and the time soldiers really started to shift Keira’s politics. Whose side is she on? Liber8 or the soldiers? Over the course of the series, Liber8 moderated some of their positions, as they began to see that the issues weren’t as clear-cut as they initially thought or that their tactics weren’t quite so justified, while Keira started to see some of their point of view too.

Episodes That Were Watchable

E01, E03, E04, and E06 were pretty solid outings, showing some of the shifting alliances and political viewpoints.

Episodes That I Didn’t Like

E02 had a blast of information from the future, but the context wasn’t clear, and it didn’t really integrate well with the other episodes.

List of Episodes from Season 4

EP #EPISODEREVIEWRATING
S04E01Lost HoursTime soldiers are messing things up🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S04E02Rush HourA blast from the future, without info🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S04E03Power HourNow you see Garza, now you don’t🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S04E04Zero HourThe universe is shifting, dragging destiny🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S04E05Desperate HoursWar is hell, time war doubly so🐸🐸🐸🐸🐸
S04E06Final HourYou’ll understand, in time🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪

The Bottom Line

A short final season, with no easy answers

Continuum – Season 3 (TVR00011) – 🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪

The PolyBlog
September 18 2020

Overview

At the end of Season 2, Alec had to make a choice, and it created consequences for everyone. Now there is semi-evil Alec and semi-good Alec, although it isn’t always clear which one is the good guy and which one is the bad guy. And other entities are interested in time travel for their own purposes.

Episodes That I Liked

The episodes that stand out for the season are E01 where Keira is looking for any sort of connection with anyone, feeling lost and alone; E09 where a new time traveller appears, feeling much like John Connor from Terminator; E11, where you see that the “real” future isn’t really as great as Keira might have been deluding herself into believing; and E13 where the two Alecs have to face off against each other. But are they changing the future? Or merely fulfilling it?

Episodes That Were Watchable

I rated 5 episodes as 4 stars (E2, 3, 6, 7, & 8), mostly ones having fun with double the Alecs and double the Keiras, and the introduction of the Gleaners as one of the other entities.

Episodes That I Didn’t Like

Three episodes fell to the “3/5” rating for me, and I didn’t think they really did much for the series. E04 had some student protests turning violent, E05 had Travis shifting tactics to go on national TV, and E12 had people asking who has Alec? And which Alec do they have?

List of Episodes from Season 3

EP #EPISODEREVIEWRATING
S03E01Minute by MinuteAny lifeboat in a time storm🐸🐸🐸🐸🐸
S03E02Minute ManDouble the Alec/Keira, double the fun🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S03E03Minute To Win ItAlec vs Alec, Keira vs robbers🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S03E04Minute ChangesStudent protests turn violent🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S03E0530 Minutes To AirDon’t touch that dial🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S03E06Wasted MinuteBiological weapons, (wo)man down!🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S03E07Waning MinutesGleaners wake Keira from her sleep🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S03E08So Do Our Minutes HastenNew player in town🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S03E09Minute of SilenceOooh, a new time traveler🐸🐸🐸🐸🐸
S03E10Revolutions Per MinuteSmall pharma is growing🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S03E113 Minutes To MidnightThe future isn’t that bright🐸🐸🐸🐸🐸
S03E12The Dying MinutesAlec, Alec, who has Alec?🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S03E13Last MinuteAlec vs Alec, and the whole band🐸🐸🐸🐸🐸

The Bottom Line

A little more complicated politics than S01 and S02, with double the Alec.

Continuum – Season 2 (TVR00010) – 🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪

The PolyBlog
September 18 2020

Overview

At the end of Season 1, Keira found another time-traveller, one who has not fared so well. Everyone thinks he’s crazy, in fact. But most of Season 2 is about her trying to get home still, yet more on an advanced technological plan with Alec to find a way for him to power the device. She is also dealing with more of the separation from her family, including her husband.

Episodes That I Liked

Episode 8 (Second Listen) shows flashbacks to when she met the future Alec Sadler while in the company of Garza posing as a prostitute. Equally, the second last episode E12 (Second Last, yep) is pretty good as it basically looks like everything is coming together for Keira, just before it all goes to crap. Both EPs are outstanding, and I rated them both 5/5.

Another 9 episodes are solid 4s for me on the rating scale, and my rating of the season overall…E01 has Alec getting a message from the future; E02 is a prison break; E04 introduced another time-traveller, one of Keira’s partners from the future. Except she was sent WAY farther back in time and is now old and dying. E05 went in a different direction, with the suit and internal “implant” triggering a psych eval for Keira by hologram. Very Star Trek-like, actually, but quite cool. In E06, Keira finally decides to share some truths about her origins. Not that she is believed. E07 deals with some data nodes for info, E10 has Garza getting captured, and E11 has Lucas going a bit nutty. Liber8 is falling apart with a less-than-clear mission anymore.

And the final episode lays the groundwork for S3 and 4 — that there are other entities using time travel to either preserve time or profit from it.

Episodes That Were Watchable

E03 deals with free will and Keira, and whether drugs can be a temporary escape. But E09 asks questions about the original Theseus starting a revolution, and whether one should kill him in order to stop Liber8 from ever starting. The EPs weren’t exactly bad, but they never quite fit the rest of the storyline as well nor advanced the plot much.

Episodes That I Didn’t Like

Again, as with Season 1, there weren’t any episodes that I didn’t like. The series just continued to rock.

List of Episodes from Season 2

EP #EPISODEREVIEWRATING
S02E01Second ChancesMessage from the future shakes Alec🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S02E02Split SecondPrison break for Travis, Garza-style🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S02E03Second ThoughtsThere’s free will Keira and drugs🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S02E04Second SkinA second protector, a second suit🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S02E05Second OpinionWelcome to batcaves and pysch evals🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S02E06Second TruthsSo you’re a time traveler…riiighhht🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S02E07Second DegreeData nodes, ass kickers and court🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S02E08Second ListenDo you think I’m pretty?🐸🐸🐸🐸🐸
S02E09SecondsWould you go back in time and kill Theseus?🐸🐸🐸⚪⚪
S02E10Second WaveGarza’s capture and new tactics🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S02E11Second GuessedLucas goes nutty & attacks the grid🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪
S02E12Second LastTravel options, then life goes to crap🐸🐸🐸🐸🐸
S02E13Second TimeThe business of time is travel🐸🐸🐸🐸⚪

The Bottom Line

While Liber8 starts to fall apart, Keira starts to figure out options from other time travellers.