-I checked in with Hawaii Five-O some months ago and voiced my disappointment with their second season. The addition of Lori threw off the group dynamic. The aside with Kono and Billy Baldwin sucked. Joe White and McGarrett constantly talked about Shelbourne. I still don't know what Shelbourne represents nor how it relates to his dad or whatever family thing of Steve's. Admittedly, I missed three episodes. I might've missed a vital 'download' of Shelbourne. I'm more inclined to think it didn't stay in my head because it's not memorable. I learned stuff from Hawaii Five-O, like what to expect from finales. The Wo Fat episode last week seemed to fit the 'finale' definition more than the actual finale, but the actual finale had cliff-hangers. I'm actually getting ahead of myself. Quickly, though, the finale wasn't the conclusion to long and intricate story.
Last season I watched every episode. This season I tried to watch every episode but couldn't muster the enthusiasm. I responded to the level of fun in the first season. The team took cases and kicked ass. The locations were beautiful. The side characters were delightful. The level of fun dropped in season two. Things became more serious for every character. The small 'light' moments were reserved for the teaser, and then the episode plunged into the case. If they weren't dealing with some case involving Dennis Miller, Steve was combating the Yakuza because of Joe White doing something stupid or Joe White walked around the city looking mischievous and, in turn, Steve walked around the city looking suspicious of Joe. Danny couldn't find a place to live, his ex-wife still loves him but won't leave Stan, his daughter hates him but then doesn't hate him, and Kono and Chin bickered about being dirty cops or some shit.
Lori left the show because the writers realized she didn't work. They brought the character in as a profiler. Of course the writers forgot about this particular skill. She served the same purpose as Kono. Her crush on Steve separated her from Kono. Naturally, the writers devoted maybe four pages every couple of weeks to Lori's feelings for Steve. Their most memorable scene was a race up a giant outdoor staircase. It was flirty and playful until Lori twisted her ankle. Steve carried her down the steps. Not once did she go in for the kiss. When she left she looked longingly into his eyes, but nothing came of these feelings. I guess I should commend the writers for avoiding the trope of the 'new-female-character-who's-supposed-to-challenge-the-heroic-male-but-ends-up-falling-for-her' and instead deciding that Steve wouldn't even realize the romantic possibility with her.
Tom Sizemore and Billy Baldwin brought absolutely nothing to the show. Sizemore's Fryer was a generic veteran cop with an attitude. Billy's I-don't-remember-the-character's-name was a dirty cop who was eventually set-up and incarcerated by Kono. CBS falls in love with 'name' actors. I imagine CBS tells Lenkov to create a character for the Sizemores and Baldwins and elder Caans. I didn't watch James Caan's episode. I didn't watch the throwback to the original Five-O. I avoided the NCIS crossover. Stunt episodes probably work, but not with me. Stunt episodes are the worst kind of television in my opinion. They're these forced stories in the hopes of getting ratings. I know more of this will happen in season three. CBS won't change. Why should they? It's the most watched network on TV. But just because it works doesn't mean I won't criticize it.
I liked parts of the season. Any scene at the shrimp truck delighted me. Steve and Danny's banter is still great. Caan and O'Loughlin play well off one another. The season premiere stood out. I liked the Halloween episode. The episode in which Danny's family was in peril was well-done. Individual episodes, besides the ones I mentioned, didn't stand out as much though. I fell asleep during numerous attempts to watch the North Korean adventure. I liked individual moments in episodes more than the whole: group scenes of everyone eating together or Chin Ho's wedding or any scene at the food truck of Danny/Grace scenes, etc. So many story and character choices baffled me though, and it made the season really disappointing. I'm willing to chalk it up to missing three episodes; however, after reading a Five-O forum, it seems I'm not alone.
The finale was full of action, high stakes, and cliffhangers. Steve left with Joe to meet Shelbourne. Shelbourne turned out to be Steve's mother. Whatever. Danny decided to fight for Grace's custody after learning about Rachel's plan to move with Stan to Las Vegas. Kono's under-water and tied up by episode's end. Chin-Ho is apparently paying for dirty cop days. Billy Baldwin threatened his wife's life and Kono's life because Chin-Ho never suffered for being a dirty cop. I loved the choice to not dwell on Chin-Ho as dirty cop. Dirty cop stories are bland on network TV, especially on CBS. The finale isn't bad. The action elements are particularly strong. The team tried to take down a woman who completely messed up HPD. Lenkov and company freely borrowed from The Dark Knight though. The woman blew up a building to distract people. Baldwin set up Malia and Kono like Rachel and Harvey. Chin-Ho needed to choose.
However, like the season as a whole, the good moments didn't add up to a great finale. I hope Hawaii Five-O rebounds next season. It can be so enjoyable. The writers need to figure everything out again first.
-I haven't watched Hart of Dixie since I wrote about the premiere in September. I didn't like the pilot, though I wanted to hug Rachel Bilson in every scene. I decided to watch the finale to see where the show ended up after all this time. Mother of pearl, friends and well-wishers, Hart of Dixie is infectious. Gosh, I was smiling at the quirky small town almost immediately. If Hart of Dixie induces smiles from its audience every week and makes them feel good then they made the right choice in renewing this show over The Secret Circle. TSC was a miserable show. I didn't want to hug any of the characters. I never smiled. Hart of Dixie was so light-hearted and joyful.
I wouldn't watch the show every week. After all, too much sweetness can make a person sick, and I'm certain I'd get sick of the characters; however, a candy bar every so often is pleasurable; and, say, if I had a particularly bad day or weekend, I'd tune into Hart of Dixie because the town is quirky and silly in that endearing TV kind of way. George and Lemon were going to wed outside, it was the royal wedding of Blue Bell, but a character felt a tingle in his leg, chickens laid down, and so on, and Lavon, the mayor, knew the big Blue Bell storm was near. George thought Lavon wanted to sabotage the wedding because of a previous affair with Lemon. But no, the events signaled a disastrous storm. The town rallied to turn an old firehouse into the wedding. It was so damn charming, folks, and I miss this kind of charm in TV, no matter how 'escapist' (to use Gerstein's word) or manipulative or whatever TV or theoretical term you want to use.
I followed the story very well. Obviously, I missed episodes 2-21. The exposition helped. The show's simplicity helped too. I thought I remembered Zoe and Wade having sex in the premiere. Apparently Zoe and Wade didn't have sex until "The Big Day." The wedding didn't work out. George likes Zoe and Zoe likes him. Lemon punched George in the face. I thought Lemon's scenes with her bridesmaids were funny and sweet. I expected to feel annoyed by Lemon, but I wanted to hug her too. I was pleasantly surprised to find out Brick isn't a dick; that the town likes Zoe; that Lavon is an actually good mayor; that people wanted to help others out of the goodness of their genuine hearts.
So, yeah, Hart of Dixie is a-okay in my opinion. I wish the show success in the second season. I plan on checking in again.
THE YOUTUBE CLIP OF THE WEEK
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