A List of Sci-Fi and Pop-Cultural Allusions & Borrowings in Defiance

H & S just sat down and watched the first episode of Defiance.There was one thing, or shall we say several things, that we couldn’t help but pick up on. That being the many many sci-fi and pop-cultural allusions and references from our other Viewing Party faves.

Firefly/Serenity and BSG	Spaceship debris
V	Spaceship invasion in the sky over the park
Fringe	Invasion in a (Canadian) park
Firefly/Serenity	Terraforming
Farscape & BSG	Space swear words
Walk the Line & O Brother	Country musical interlude
Firefly	Scavenging derelict ship
Doctor Who	TARDIS console in the ark
Jurassic Park	Fast monster in the woods
Star Wars	Cantina band and Chewie in the town square
BSG	“Defiance!” = “So say we all!”
Sherlock Holmes	Nolan’s deductions and man scarf
Romeo and Juliet	Teenage lovers from feuding families
Star Wars	“Did you just sweetheart me?” Thanks Han Solo
Lord of the Rings & Game of Thrones	Big battle on a ledge
The Fifth Element	Irisa has Leeloo hair
Star Wars	Ewok celebrating party after the battle

Those are just a few that we found. Which references did you spot in Defiance’s pilot episode?

Are you ready for the Castle Premiere? Check out this Sneak Peek!

Castle Mondays are almost back and here at The Viewing Party we’re counting the hours until our first Castle-party of the season this Monday evening!

As you might have gleaned from the trailers things have gotten steamy between Castle and Beckett, and as one might expect, things goes from steamy to silly very fast. Check out ABC Premiere Week’s sneak peek of Monday’s episode featuring exclusive footage from Monday night’s episode. Skip to 1:14 in the video if you don’t care for “Dancing with the Stars” to the introduction.

Alexis is hungover and Beckett is sneaky, click to watch the clip!.

The season 5 premiere “After the Storm” airs at 10pm on ABC! Watch with us – we’ll be live-tweeting @TheViewingParty! 

Top 5: Castle Episodes of Season 4

While we are still not over the exhilarating events of this year’s season finale, we think it’s about time to take a step back and assess the season as a whole. There were a lot of ups and downs, no doubt about that, but this post will focus on the ups. Here are our five favourite episodes from season 4 of Castle, in order of appearance. Enjoy!

It all comes together in Once Upon a Time’s Season Finale: “A Land Without Magic”

Slaying a dragon, the Evil Queen taken down a peg, true love conquers all and Emma Swan finally believing in magic, the season finale has it all. Let me begin with telling you that I love this show, I know that it’s terribly cheesy most of the time and it’s kind of part of the charm. Once you accept the cheese and are ready to enter the world where true love conquers all, where subtlety goes out the window and the budget constraints are very apparent in the special effect, then you’re ready to sit down and really enjoy the little town of Storybrooke.

Once’s first season was uneven, hitting some bumps in the road as it careened through the back stories of a vast array of fairytale characters as it struggled to find a centre around the primary story, and perhaps even decide what that was going to do.  In the premiere it seemed like the heart of the show was going to be Emma Swan, the savior of Storybrooke, and her immediate family; Henry her son and her parents Snow White/Mary Margaret and Prince Charming/David Nolan. Through the season the show veered off track it eventually found its centre again in the latter episodes, the finale tying together the key plot points of the season and wisely leaving out many of the less relevant tales. These stories weren’t wholly useless, just executed in a way that dragged the pacing of the season. The use of the Mad Hatter and Belle in the finale was excellent and wouldn’t have been possible if we didn’t already know where they were coming from.

J Shares the Castle Love Forever and For “Always”: A Review of the Suspense, Revelations, and Grand Romance in the Season Finale 4×23

Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

Things happened. Big things. Things that are meaningful and irrevocable and wonderful. So let’s jump right in as I try, like so many fans out there, to make sense of my Castle/Beckett feelings.

We begin with Beckett clinging to the edge of a building, calling out for Castle as she loses her grip.  Just as all hope seems lost, we cut to three days earlier. Oh, season finales. After discovering what appears to be a gang-related murder in an alley, Beckett, Castle, and the boys soon discover a link to Montgomery’s home and the files he was trying to keep hidden. Drama, stolen glances, and intensity ensue, highlighting how much Castle, Ryan, and Esposito love Beckett in their own ways. Each of them will do pretty much anything to support Beckett and keep her safe, and we see this play out throughout the episode. Of course, Castle is keeping a secret about the files and the case, and we all know that it’s only a matter of time until it comes out.

Castle and Beckett Resurrect Their Romance…and Some Zombies! J on Castle 4×22 “Undead Again”

We’re heading in the right direction, people.  I mean, sure, we’re celebrating the fact that Castle and Beckett are even talking to each other at all, let alone talking about their feelings, but after the last few episodes we’ll take what we can get.  It’s no secret that I was getting a little sick of the constant evading, concealing, and inability to communicate, and I was thoroughly fed up with Castle when he said this would be his last case working with Detective Beckett.  I knew it wasn’t going to prove true, but somehow that made it even more annoying.  Enough already!

Now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, I can comment on the actual episode.  I felt that “Undead Again” was all about one person knowing better than another and pulling the wool over their eyes.  This plays out in the zombie storyline, but also more significantly in Castle and Beckett’s relationship.  In terms of the zombies, we (or the characters) are fooled into believing that they might actually be the walking undead.  When that theory is debunked, we see the case of one “zombie” being manipulated into committing a crime against his will and without his knowledge.  See: pulling the wool over his eyes.  As for Castle and Beckett, they simply can’t keep up their charade any longer, and there are many layers of the charade: first and foremost is the fact that they’re in love with each other and not acting on it, second is Beckett hiding from Castle that she heard him say he loved her last year, third is Castle hiding his knowledge that she heard him, and fourth is Castle hiding info about Johanna Beckett’s murder and Kate’s shooting (which will most certainly come up in the finale next week).

J Talks Conviction and Kookiness on Community 3×15 “Origins of Vampire Mythology”

While I normally don’t write stand-alone reviews for Community, I enjoyed last night’s episode so much that I think it is warranted.  “Origins of Vampire Mythology” struck just the right chord of funny, sweet, and weird, and pretty much summed up the essence of all the main characters.  Having been slightly underwhelmed by the two-part blanket/pillow fort battle that preceded “Origins of Vampire Mythology” (maybe I just don’t like to see Troy and Abed fighting), this week’s episode was a perfect example of why I love Community so much: the genuine wackiness and heartfelt earnestness of the characters.

Everybody is earnest in what they do: Annie genuinely wants to help Britta, even if she goes about it in a questionable way; Shirley is there for her friend Jeff in his time of need; Troy is lovable and loving, and is sometimes a doofus; Abed is Abed.  Even Jeff, who is egotistical and self-serving to the extreme, pursues his egoism and self-promotion with conviction and zeal.  The show doesn’t apologize for who these characters are, and as a result their study group/friendship is both believable AND a barrel of laughs.

Lanie is the Star of “The Limey” (If Only Someone Would Follow Her Advice): J Reviews Castle 4×20

As was to be expected, nothing in the way of relationship advancement happened in “The Limey”.  However, I actually liked this episode better than last week’s for a few reasons, not the least of which is that we got some real character development on the part of Kate Beckett.  While “47 Seconds” followed Castle closely through his childish reaction to finding out Kate’s secret, this week we go home with Beckett, seeing things from her point of view and gaining insight into the character.  I wasn’t happy with the lack of discussion between Castle and Beckett (no surprise there), but watching Beckett grapple with her feelings is far more interesting than Castle pouting about her betrayal.

 

Lanie was really the best part of this episode in my opinion.  She tells it like it is, and always has.  She’s been aware of the attraction between Castle and Beckett from day one, and has never been shy about encouraging her friend to go for it with “writer boy”.  In “The Limey”, we not only see her supporting Kate, but also confronting her about her feelings for Castle.  And when she does, it doesn’t take long for Beckett to admit to those feelings.  In the course of the initial conversation in Kate’s apartment, this moment happens almost casually, but it’s actually a huge deal for Beckett!  She has been denying her feelings and declaring she isn’t ready for ages, so the fact that she owns up to being crazy about Castle is a really big step for her.

Frustration Builds in “47 Seconds”: J Reviews Castle 4×19

We were all looking forward to “47 Seconds”. It was to be the episode in which something finally happens between Castle and Beckett. And while I suppose something did happen, it’s certainly not anything I am pleased or impressed with. I’m waiting until the end of the season for the writers of Castle to convince me that the events of this episode were justified, because right now they seem like yet another contrived device to keep the two main characters apart.

Allow me to clarify. I’m not talking about Beckett’s secret coming out, because (a) that was bound to happen and (b) it is kind of a big deal. Beckett heard Castle say “I love you” after she was shot in last season’s finale, and neglecting to mention it to him for almost a year is on the list of things you probably shouldn’t do to the man you’re clearly in love with. Thus the main drama of the episode is established, with a bombing setting the stage for Castle and Beckett to ponder how precious and uncertain their time is. It seems like the perfect opportunity for the couple to finally act on their feelings, make out, make babies, do all those things Stana Katic keeps advising for the characters.

Bright Colours and Dueling Divas: J on Castle 4×18 “A Dance with Death”

It was nice to have Castle back after a three-week hiatus, especially because this season seems to be flying by. While I could have done with a slightly more engaging plot, I will let that slide given the big things that seem to be in store for our favourite crime-fighting pair in the episodes to come this season. “A Dance with Death” was light and not particularly memorable, but had some small moments and side storylines that definitely deserve a mention. And so. To begin.

Beckett in blue

For the most part, I was digging Beckett’s brightly-coloured wardrobe this episode. She’s definitely much more casual this season (and has been following an ever-increasing casual trajectory throughout the show) but we don’t often see her in those popping colours. From bright orange to electric blue to berry pink, this says a lot about what she as a character is comfortable with. Often when Beckett feels unsafe, threatened, or vulnerable, the dark colours and turtlenecks come out in great abundance. Here her wardrobe tells us that she is totally comfortable with herself, her job, her relationship with her co-workers, and her relationship with Castle. This might be lulling both Kate and the viewer into a false sense of security since I have a feeling one or both of the big secrets being kept by Castle and Beckett are going to come out before the end of season 4. But for now, hooray for colour!