slackersmom Reviews

The High Chaparral: Feather of an Eagle (1969) Season 2, Episode 19

Sorry, got distracted

[7/10 · 21 July 2022]

I couldn't pay much attention to this episode, as it featured what is certainly the Worst. Wig, Ever.

If that's the only way they could show that the girl was "blond," then they didn't look very hard for a young blond actress.

As I type this, I'm watching a different episode in which Blue falls in love. That was his function on the show, after all: to be the handsome young colt of the show.

Perry Mason: The Case of the Stuttering Bishop (1959) Season 2, Episode 20

Stuttering?

[8/10 · 5 August 2020]

Is it just me, or is this "bishop" mischaracterized? I've heard only a mild stutter in a couple of instances, but nothing that would lead me to describe him as a chronic stutterer.

Stargate SG-1: Stronghold (2006) Season 9, Episode 14

Hmm, what about....

[9/10 · 10 September 2019]

Couldn't the Air Force pull a few more strings and look into the Tok'ra to help Mitchell's friend Ferguson? I know the Tok'ra aren't embroiled in fighting the Goa'uld anymore, but they still exist, and will continue to need willing hosts. How is this different from Jacob Carter's situation? A healthy young body in exchange for healing an aneurysm..... sounds like a decent trade-off to me.

Stargate SG-1: Menace (2002) Season 5, Episode 19

Good episode, but on a BAD, FAULTY PREMISE

[9/10 · 7 September 2019]

After everything that SG1 and the SGC in general have been through to this point, you'd think they would have learned an important lesson: DON'T BRING ALIEN THINGS/TECHNOLOGY BACK TO EARTH. First mistake was Gen. Hammond giving the OK to bring the young woman back to the SGC, even though there were already way too many questions about her, more than enough to arouse suspicion and doubt. Second mistake was not removing her the minute they found out she was a machine. Even before supplying a fresh power source, they should have gotten rid of her.

THe SGC should have an off-base--or even better, off-world-- research lab for exactly this sort of situation. Even the Alpha Site would do. At least that way, if Reese-- or whatever the threat is-- should become uncontrollable, Earth and the SGC would still be secure.

I really find it hard to believe that O'Neill, Hammond, the SGC, etc., haven't learned this lesson by now and keep making this same mistake over and over. It may make for dramatic TV (which of course we all love), but it is NOT in the least bit logical.

Stargate SG-1: The Tomb (2001) Season 5, Episode 8

One minor nitpick (or potentially not so minor)

[9/10 · 31 August 2019]

One thing strikes me every time I watch this episode, and it occurs near the beginning. There are two 4-person teams, one from the US, one from Russia. Daniel manages to open the ziggurat door, and guess what? All eight people go inside. Has SG1 not learned ANYTHING from their various missions? You don't go into a strange building without having an exit strategy. They should have left one person on the outside, with the code to open the door, in case anything happens. (I bet those Russians wished they'd done that... right before they were past wishing for anything.) After all, what good is knowing how to gate back to your home planet if you can't get out of the building you went to visit?

MacGyver: The Gauntlet (1985) Season 1, Episode 4

Good episode, but....

[8/10 · 3 August 2019]

Minor spoiler for the Opening Gambit: In the opening gambit*, MacGyver uses the map (the procuring of which was his primary objective) to cover or seal a hole in the balloon--he taped it to the balloon with duct tape.

The obvious question is: why didn't he just use duct tape to seal the hole? He could have made a 6in x 6in patch with the tape, and used that instead. It would have been more effective as a seal and would certainly have protected the all-important map. (But then, it would have limited the number of ways he used the map to escape. We saw a total of four way to this point, and the balloon was the fifth way he used the map. But it really made no sense to do what he did.

BTW, I really enjoyed the Opening Gambit of these first-season episodes. I think one of the mistakes this show made after the first season or so was to drop it.

Stargate SG-1: Legacy (1999) Season 3, Episode 4

Based on a very faulty pre-supposition

[5/10 · 3 August 2019]

I'm not talking about the Goa'uld / Machello thing taking over Daniel. that's not problematic to me. What I *DO* have a problem with is, when Daniel starts behaving oddly and hearing things, etc., everyone automatically assumes he's gone 'round the bend and is having mental problems. The problem is that this team has been through enough things--enough WEIRD things--including being taken over by Goa'uld and other entities--that SOMEONE at the SGC should have at least thought it possible that Daniel could have been infected (or affected) by some alien entity or technology. I can't believe everyone was so quick to go to the "he's crazy" option. I mean come on, this is hardly the first time that a member of SG-1 has come back from a mission and started acting oddly. And THEY didn't end up in a padded room. Give me a break!

Royally Ever After (2018 TV Movie)

Cute story/premise-- horrible dialogue

[6/10 · 15 January 2019]

I like the main characters, for the most part. But the female lead (the pretty teacher) has got to be the stupidest "smart" person on the planet. Common sense says you don't admit to picking royal flowers while you're sitting at the dinner table with King, Queen, and other royal guests. Or talk about the gardener, or the cook. Anyone with half a brain should know that. So yeah, the writers make her out to be an idiot; in fact, she seems to have a knack for saying the exact wrong thing. I guess it's supposed to come off as her being "down-to-earth" or charming, or something, but .... sorry, it doesn't work out that way. Quite the opposite: it's an epic fail.

NCIS: Los Angeles: Free Ride (2012) Season 4, Episode 10

Hmm....

[8/10 · 2 September 2018]

Since when can Navy personnel beat up a civilian contractor on an aircraft carrier with impunity?

Without a Trace: Birthday Boy (2002) Season 1, Episode 2

Good episode

[8/10 · 6 April 2018]

I don't know who wrote the "Storyline" above, but it sounds like someone who just received a Word-of-the-Day calendar.

The Sentinel: Pennies from Heaven (1997) Season 2, Episode 21

A dreary visual

[8/10 · 17 February 2018]

Mot of this episode appears in shades of black, white, and grey. It's very dull looking. There are some bits of color (the red of a fireman's suspenders, or a police car light bar) but overall it's a dreary-looking production.

Perry Mason: The Case of the Bogus Books (1962) Season 6, Episode 1

A complicated side plot

[8/10 · 8 November 2017]

Spoilers for one of the main plots of the episode.

I don't quite understand the book forgery story in this episode. You would think that someone would take 2nd or 3rd editions of valuable books, alter them to look like first editions, and switch them out for the valuable first editions. And in a way, that's what happens. But once the first editions were acquired, they too were altered and then resold. I don't understand why anyone would do that? Surely the market for the original first editions would be stronger than the market for an altered version. After all, if you're going to steal the Mona Lisa, you wouldn't paint a mustache on her before selling it, would you? I've never heard any explanation, plausible or otherwise, of why the supposed mastermind of this book-theft ring would mar (ruin) a valuable object. Or was there an explanation of this on the show that I missed??

Father Knows Best: Time to Retire (1960) Season 6, Episode 22

What's with Bud's sweater? (Oh, and the episode's premise)

[3 October 2017]

First off, if "Uncle Arthur" has been working for the company for 15, 20, or more years, how does he not know the retirement policy? There's no way this should have come as a surprise to him.

Also, in the scene at the cabin, when Bud goes to see Arthur, he seems to have some lint or something on his shoulder. A second or two later, there are specks on the front of the sweater. Either I'm nuts, or they seemed to be moving around a little. But what was that stuff on his sweater? Was it just the lights playing off the fabric of the material? It totally disappeared later, when the two returned at the Andersons' house.

Perry Mason: The Case of the Waylaid Wolf (1961) Season 4, Episode 16

Someone gets what he deserves

[7/10 · 8 September 2017]

I won't go into the plot of the episode, but I have to point out a very glaring hole in part of the story line. Perry and Della go to check out Madge Elwood's car, to see if there's any evidence of her having seen murder the victim. The landlady lets them into the garage and walks away. About 15 seconds later Della calls out to Perry that she found something: a cardboard box, and inside is a paid of muddy shoes (and trousers, I think, although we don't see them). Perry picks up one of the muddy shoes and is about to put it back in the box when Lt. Tragg appears at the garage door and Perry is accused of "planting evidence" to clear his client. That's bad enough, but the very next scene takes place in court and the ADA is ranting to the judge about Perry Mason's underhanded (and illegal) actions with the evidence.

My beef is that the issue could have been resolved back at the garage, with Tragg asking the landlady one simple question: Was Mason carrying a cardboard box, or dirty shoes, or anything else when he and Della arrived? The answer, of course, would be NO. They were NOT carrying anything that could have been planted, and were only in the garage for 20 or 30 seconds before Tragg saw them.

Very irritating that something so simple--and simply resolved--was spun into such a big deal for plot purposes.

Star Trek: Voyager: Fair Haven (2000) Season 6, Episode 11

An inherent problem

[5/10 · 7 August 2017]

Fair Haven is another example (one of many) of Voyager episodes which mirror episodes of TNG. In this case I'm speaking of the TNG episode which deals with the Professor Moriarty character on the holodeck.

These two episodes (and others like them) suffer, in my opinion, from a fatal and really stupid flaw: holodeck characters should NOT be able to reason and react the same way as living, breathing beings do. Sentience, self-awareness, reaction to crew behavior-- none of it should be possible--under any circumstances. Imagine playing World of Warcraft or some other online game, and your character turns to look directly at the screen--at YOU--and addresses you directly, knowing that you're not really a level-six mage or whatever. It can't happen in real life, and I have a hard time believing that the advanced engineers of the 24th century allow such bad programming to let it happen on Federation ship holodecks.

For this reason, the fact that the entire premise on which the episode is based is faulty, I honestly can't 'buy' the action in this episode, and can't watch it.

Blue Bloods: Chinatown (2010) Season 1, Episode 8

A detail never explained

[5 August 2017]

One detail about this episode always bothers me, every time I watch it. At the start of the ep, Jamie is secretly meeting w/ FBI Agent Anderson. A few minutes later he gets pulled in (while off-duty and in street clothes) to a dangerous situation, for which he gets questioned and investigated by Internal Affairs. The IA rep says that Jamie was seen talking to a red-haired woman shortly before the incident. He sort of insinuates that that's suspicious. Jamie tells IA that the woman was simply a tourist asking for directions.

Fast forward to later in the episode. A woman contacts NYPD and is brought in to Jamie's next 'meeting' with IA. Lo and behold if it isn't Agent Anderson. She says she heard about the investigation and wanted to come forward to say she interacted with Jamie on the night in question. She says she's visiting NYC and wanted directions to where she could buy some knockoff handbags, thus corroborating Jamie's 'story' to IA. That took the heat off him and closed the investigation (not sure why; it was sort of irrelevant to why he was being investigated).

Anyway, my question is: HOW did the woman (Anderson) know what Jamie had told IA? She corroborated his story so perfectly; she HAD to have inside info about what Jamie told IA. His session with them was taped, so most likely Anderson (the FBI) got their hands on the recording. But it's never explained or spelled out; the viewer either simply wonders about it, or has to try to put the pieces together herself... or possibly many viewers never even notice this odd fact.

Star Trek: Voyager: Distant Origin (1997) Season 3, Episode 23

Other theories of origin

[1 August 2017]

One thing that I found odd in this episode is the absolute absence of any theory other than the one put forth by Janeway and Chakotay when it comes to the Voth: that this race of 'sauropods' evolved to the point of super-advanced technology (warp capable) at a time when the rest of the earth was populated by amazon forests and dinosaurs. And NO humans. In this situation, the sauropods evolved and thrived to the point of joining the Space Age in a big way-- and yet never bothered to explore the rest of Earth. Instead they apparently stayed on their little now-lost continent, and, when they discovered that an asteroid was going to devastate the planet, they got on space ships and flew away.

Two more likely theories (well, relatively speaking, that is) would be if either A) some race of space travelers 'rescued' the Voth species from doomed Earth and took them halfway across the galaxy. OR, option B) some debris from the collision of the asteroid and earth was thrown into space, and contained microscopic cells that later developed into life forms that eventually evolved into the Voth. But no, instead the theory is that a whole race evolved, learned, and thrived on one isolated continent, and,without ever exploring their own planet, they flew to the other side of the Milky Way.

If this 'theory' had been tempered or at least mentioned as being only ONE possibility, this episode would have been much better.

Star Trek: Voyager: Projections (1995) Season 2, Episode 3

A hologram of a hologram within a hologram

[26 July 2017]

Time travel episodes usually give me a headache, and this episode about holograms does also. One thing I don't understand about the Doctor in this show-- he can do so many things that 'real' people can do (very conveniently, usually), but I don't know why he can't recognize other holograms when he sees them. I know, I know-- holograms aren't supposed to be easily identified as holograms. But you'd think that one hologram (who is basically made of nothing but light beams, after all) would be able to identify and recognize other "light beam beings." Similar to how family pets aren't fooled into thinking that the cat or dog on TV is real, it's not 'real' to them.

Anyway, the Doctor exhibits talents and abilities that are convenient at the time, and yet very inconsistent throughout the course of the show--and illogical at times. Within the context of the show it would have been easy for someone to program him to identify other "photonic beings."

Perry Mason: The Case of the Lucky Legs (1959) Season 3, Episode 10

Standard Perry Mason

[26 July 2017]

Others can describe the plot of this episode better than I (although I must admit I didn't think Marjorie Cluny looked much like a young ingenue or wide-eyed naif).

The primary thing I want to mention is a fun fact or piece of trivia. At the beginning of the episode, when Perry and Della arrive at the apartment building to meet Frank Patton, watch as they get on the elevator. (Hint: specifically, look at the floor.) This scene really brings home the fact that late-1950s television was as yet unskilled in the details of set design. Even for a scene as brief as this one, it really could have been done better. (But it's funny.)

Perry Mason: The Case of the Sausalito Sunrise (1966) Season 9, Episode 19

Good episode, but a question remains

[9/10 · 30 March 2017]

The other reviews touch all the main points to discuss: this is an episode with a lot of action and in which Paul Drake takes a surprising role. Although how and when Perry realized that 'his' case and that Paul's work for the trucking company were related, I'm not sure.

However, I didn't get to watch this episode on DVD or 'in full' via some other method. I watched it on TV, and it's likely that a minute was snipped here and a scene cut here to fit it in the TV schedule. Therefore I might have missed a scene that deals with pertinent facts of the case.

So my question is this: if only Paul and the trucking company owner knew what route Paul would be driving, who tipped off the hijackers? It was mentioned prominently that nobody knew the route--certainly not the stolen art ring-leader--so the question remains... who was it??

BTW, Della looked lovely in that first scene at the art gallery. Very chic with the upswept hair.

MacGyver: The Stringer (1992) Season 7, Episode 13

So.... that was the finale?

[7/10 · 23 March 2017]

This was a thoroughly mediocre episode. It includes the return of a character we met in a previous episode, and, according to the credits, "introducing" an actor that I'm sure nobody had ever heard of at the time. So that "introduction" alone means something is going on with this episode. Anyway, as I said, the storyline was the epitome of 'meh,' and the only item of note was the introduction of-- surprise!!--MacGyver's grown son.

Yeah, it was pretty weird. Almost like the Powers That Be found out halfway through filming that this was going to be the finale, so a quick rewrite and bing-bam-boom, we have Mac Junior, and a heartwarming connection for our lone-wolf hero.

The best part of this was the final scene, which actually was kind of fitting for MacGyver, as he literally rides off into the distance on a carefree road trip. (However, as wonderful as it was to see RDA in leather (!!) on a motorcycle, I think his jeep would have been more eco-friendly in the long run.)

In any case, I can think of a dozen other ways this series should have ended, rather than with a nothing of an episode, and the addition of a surprise offspring. (Although I have to say that him discovering he has a son is a lot better than him rediscovering an old love, or going off with a new one--like that German woman, Maria.)

Also loved the voice-over by RDA thanking the show's fans for their loyalty and support. Nice!! <3

Diagnosis Murder: Wrong Number (1998) Season 6, Episode 4

Based on bad/crazy premise

[7/10 · 22 March 2017]

THis episode would have been better if it weren't for one major glaring error toward the beginning. The premise of the episode: Mark gets a "wrong number" call about a payoff for a child's kidnapping. They don't know any details of the matter (who was kidnapped, when, etc.) but somehow Mark discovers the place where the ransom will be paid and he and Steve show up there. They see a man with a briefcase (obviously the father with the ransom) and for some unknown reason MARK GOES UP TO TALK TO HIM. Whiskey tango foxtrot!! They had the perfect opportunity to see the kidnapper pick up the money and discover who it is, but what does Mark do--he walks up to the poor father, who was supposed to be ALONE, which gets the father shot and killed. There are other twists involved in this, but why someone would approach a man paying off a ransom is beyond me.

Further, nobody thought to ask how the father knew to be in the park at that time, since the ransom demand was supposedly made to Mark by mistake. Yes, there are more twists involved regarding the phone call, but the point is, it didn't occur to anyone to wonder how the father knew where to be, and when.

Other than these glaring plot-holes, it was a decent episode. Although the aforementioned plot-holes were distracting enough to take me out of the story to some degree, not to mention that the guilty party was pretty obvious from the get-go.

Perry Mason: The Case of the Lonely Eloper (1962) Season 5, Episode 30

Warning - Characters mis-identified in other reviews

[31 January 2015]

Unless I'm totally off the mark, the other reviews of this Perry Mason episode are way off-base. They ALL identify the character of Margo Stevens (played by Carol Anderson) as the "lonely eloper" of the title, that is, the child-like niece who is charged with killing her overbearing Aunt Olivia. Margo Stevens is NOT the niece, and does NOT stand trial, and is, in fact, little more than window- dressing.

The basis of the story is: Olivia Langley is the trustee of her niece MERLE TELFORD's fortune, and she treats Merle like a child, belittles her, and does not allow her to make any decisions on her own. On Merle's 21st birthday, when Merle will legally be free of her aunt's influence, Olivia is found stabbed to death and the murder weapon is in Merle's possession.

As far as I know, Margo Stevens barely appears in the episode at all (one scene) and does NOT play a large role in it; turns out she is only involved in a case of mistaken identity with another character, Gina Gilbert.

Again, the main character/defendant in this episode is Merle Telford, played by Jana Taylor.

Adam-12: Log 155: Internal Affairs - Blackmail (1971) Season 3, Episode 16

Pete gets disillusioned

[9/10 · 25 July 2013]

This isn't a typical episode of Adam-12, with Reed & Malloy on patrol, dealing with the usual variety of crazy calls during their shift. Instead, it opens with Adam-12 assisting another unit with some thugs, and an officer named Johnson commandeers a runaway forklift and supposedly saved Pete's life. (Although it didn't look quite as dire as they made it out to be.) Anyway, Pete is floored when Johnson tells him that someone has put in a charge of blackmail against him (Johnson). Malloy tells Reed that Johnson is "one of the best cops" he knows, and doesn't have a dishonest bone in his body. (Reed, though, doesn't look convinced.) Anyway, in talking to Johnson, Reed and Malloy are sort of talked into helping him find a witness who might be able to clear him, a "b-girl" named Ginger. (Despite what might be assumed based on dialog in the show, a b-girl is NOT a hooker; apparently they 'worked' at one particular bar trying to get men to spend lots of money.)

Anyway, one thing leads to another, and when Malloy & Reed "happen" to find Ginger, she's very willing to help out the cops and answer questions. All of which leads to a very intense, emotional scene between Johnson and Malloy in the precinct break room. There's great dialog there, especially after the truth comes out. I honestly don't know why Milner hasn't been better recognized for his acting work, as he was impassioned and on fire in that scene.

Again, not the usual A-12 episode, but a terrific example of an issue that dogs police officers.

Emergency!: The Professor (1973) Season 2, Episode 15

Roy's admirer

[12 July 2013]

The previous reviewer connects Roy's mysterious admirer, Susan St. John, to an actress who was (at the time of the show) starring on MacMillan & Wife. This is incorrect. The actress who played on MacMillan & Wife was Susan Saint JAMES, not Saint John. Whether the writers of Emergency purposely used a name similar to a known actress is unknowable, but perhaps they simply thought that the name Susan Saint John sounded fancy and classy. In any case, regarding this episode of Emergency, any references to MacMillan & Wife in particular, or network synergy in general, should be disregarded.

And btw, why SHOULDN'T Roy have an admirer? Johnny's a hot-head and gets obsessed with crazy ideas. Roy is level-headed and supremely capable at his job.