Read on for Johnni’s recap of Once Upon A Time 2×21, “Second Star to the Right,” aired Sunday, May 5th, 2013:

This week answers a question that I think we have all been waiting to have answered: Where did Bae land when he left Fairy Tale Land? The answer: London, England! And that is where we begin in this episode of Once Upon A Time.

After being separated from his father, Bae lands in London, where he becomes another homeless child—so sad. One day he sneaks into a rich home and starts to eat all the bread, but he is caught by the owner’s daughter, Wendy Darling. Yep, the Wendy from the classic Peter Pan tale we all know. Too bad this version doesn’t end happily ever after.

When we cut back to present day Storybrooke, Tamara is “training” for a marathon (which actually means helping Greg torture Regina), while Rumplestiltskin has embraced his evil side and doesn’t mind showing off for Lacey (Belle). Meanwhile, Charming, Snow, Emma and Henry discover that Regina is missing and the magic beans she stole are gone too. At that moment, in a secret location, Greg is trying to torture Regina into telling him what happened to his father, but she is a badass and won’t tell him anything. 

In another flashback, Bae is living with Wendy’s family—so sweet. Wendy tells him about a shadow creature from another world. When Bae hears about this magical creature, he panics and tells her that magic ruins families and to stay away from it. The next night, Wendy goes to the window again and tells Bae that it is a different magical world, one with no parents, where children can do whatever they want. They call it Neverland! Bae still doesn’t like the sound of it, but when the shadow comes to the window, Wendy takes its hand and is whisked away.

Back in Storybrooke, Charming cashes in the favor that Rumple owes him and uses it to help locate Regina. By taking one of Regina’s tears (which Rumple creepily has) and one of Snow’s tears, and dropping them in Snow’s eyes, she will feel and see everything that Regina is seeing. So cool! Snow uses the drops and instantly feels the pain and torture of the electricity that is being put into Regina’s body. Charming panics when he sees her in so much pain, but there is nothing he can to do stop it. After the pain dies off, Snow can only remember that she was tied down and that the place smelled like fish.

Meanwhile, Emma and Neal are on the beach searching for Tamara, who then magically appears on the sand, claiming to be out for a jog. After Tamara runs away down the beach, Neal admits to Emma that he should have come looking for her all those years ago and that he is sorry—aw.

While they are making up by the water, Regina is staying tough. She manages to figure out that Greg and Tamara’s plan is not to steal magic, but to completely destroy it—yikes!

Moments later, Emma calls her dad (Charming) and he tells her what happened with the spell to find Regina. As soon as he mentions the fish smell, Emma knows that Tamara wasn’t actually working out; she was down by the water because she is hiding Regina somewhere near the docks.

We then return to the past, as Bae wakes up the morning after Wendy went with the shadow. He awakes just as she is being dropped back off at the window. Wendy starts to cry because Bae was right, the shadow is not good. In fact, at night, all the little boys started to cry because they miss their parents and couldn’t go home. She tells Bae that it is called Neverland because the shadow never lets you leave! The only reason he brought her back is because he wants a boy not a girl. The shadow is coming back that night to take one of her brothers. Who knew that the tale of Peter Pan could be so dark?

Bae prepares all of the children for a fight and gets ready to protect his new family. When the shadow returns that evening, he blows out all the lights and tries to steal one of the boys. They are all hiding, when Wendy realizes that Michael is still out in the room! Bae runs out and sacrifices himself so that Wendy wouldn’t lose her family like he lost his. Bae is such a hero!

The shadow grabs him and flies him past Big Ben and towards Neverland. Before he gets all the way there, Bae lights a match, which startles the shadow creature, and Bae drops into the ocean. A ship picks him out of the water. And who is the captain of that ship? None other than Captain Hook of the Jolly Rodger!

Back to Storybrooke, Emma, Neal, Charming and Snow are searching the docks for Regina and her captors. Charming and Snow find Regina right before Greg is able to kill her. Regina finally tells Greg where his father is: dead in the woods! Greg then makes a run for it, as Charming and Snow save Regina.

In another area of the docks, Tamara comes out of nowhere and hits Emma in the head. Neal realizes that she never loved him and tells her he can’t let her get away with it. Tamara shoots Neal, but before she can kill him, Emma gets up and kicks her butt (a totally awesome moment)! In a final attempt to escape, Tamara throws the magic bean down and a portal opens up and starts pulling Emma towards it. Neal grabs her to safety but then the floor gives out and the two of them are falling in. Emma tells him not to let go because she loves and needs him. Neal says “I love you too” and then lets go of her hand and falls into the portal! Emma is beyond distraught when she returns home and tells her parents that Neal is dead.

Regina, on the other hand, is regaining her strength with the help of Mother Superior, when she realizes that Greg and Tamara got away with the trigger. Without the trigger, she no longer controls the fate of Storybrooke … they do!

Tune in to tonight’s series finale to see if they can save Storybrooke, or if Greg and Tamara will manage to blow it up completely. Plus, will Neal survive? And if he does, where will he end up?

Photo Credit: ABC/Jack Rowand.

The post ONCE UPON A TIME: “Second Star to the Right” appeared first on Heroine TV.

Photo Credit: PBS.

On Saturday, my friend Kyle returned to the podcast, this time to talk about Downton Abbey. He recently marathoned the entire series on DVD. Fair warning: We discussed major plot points from the series, so don’t listen unless you’re caught up. Topics of discussion included Downton‘s attitude toward progress, the question of whether the show is “a consequence free environment,” Maggie Smith’s awesomeness, and more. I have a cold, so please excuse my voice–I think my medicine was wearing off by the end of the episode. Beginning at the 1:30:30 mark, we switched topics to a more general TV discussion. I helped Kyle plan his future television marathoning schedule, while he convinced me to start Breaking Bad. Update: I’m halfway through season 2 now, so he was right! You can listen to the podcast on the player below, download the MP3, or subscribe via iTunes.

The post Heroine TV Podcast #32: DOWNTON ABBEY Season 3 appeared first on Heroine TV.

Read on for Johnni’s recap of Once Upon A Time episode 2×20, “The Evil Queen,” aired Sunday, April 28th, 2013:

Evil is coming … and it isn’t in the form of the Evil Queen! This week’s episode is full of darkness and destruction and the outsiders are to blame. Let’s dive in!

We pick up in Storybrooke, as Hook is being held prisoner by Tamara and Greg. Hook thinks Rumple is dead, but quickly discovers that he survived the stab wound and loses it. Greg makes him an offer: if Hook helps find his father, Greg will help him kill Rumple once and for all. Yikes!

In the first flashback, the Evil Queen is searching the local villages for any sign of Snow White. When there is no sign of her, she rounds up the villagers and asks them where Snow went. No one comes forward, so she orders them to all be killed! After the Queen realizes that no one will tell her where Snow is, she turns to Rumple for help. He agrees to shift her into a peasant so that she can find Snow on her own. She won’t have any powers this way, but the Queen doesn’t care. She will kill Snow with her bare hands! So intense. 

Back in Storybrooke, Regina overhears Charming and Snow discussing their plan to return to the Enchanted Forest without her. Regina panics and goes to see Henry. She tells him that there is a way to undo the whole spell that got them to Storybrooke, but it will destroy everyone who lives there. She will get them out with the magic beans (that she stole), but no one else will survive. Of course Henry doesn’t like this plan, so Regina erases his memory. She clearly no longer cares about Henry seeing the good in her, and decides to carry out her plan of destruction alone.

When Regina is back at home, Hook comes in and tells her about his deal with Greg and Tamara. He proposes that they work together instead and Regina agrees. A little too quickly, might I add. Meanwhile, in another part of town, Emma has figured out that Tamara is up to something bad. Now shw must find a way to prove it, without Neal thinking she is sabotaging his relationship—very complicated.

In a switch to Fairy Tale past, the Queen is undercover as a peasant. She is shocked to discover that no one likes her and that everyone has allegiance to Snow. While she tries to stop the villagers from defacing a dummy that looks like the Queen, the knights come and arrest her. As they are about to take off her head, Snow comes to her rescue … a true hero! Snow continues to nurse her back to health but she has no idea who she really is. The Queen starts to see that Snow is good and, after listening to Snow, she sees that Snow believes there is good in the Evil Queen’s heart.

Just as the Queen is starting to believe that there may be good inside her somewhere, Snow stumbles upon the massacred village. Snow takes back all the nice things she said about the Queen and says it is too late to save the good that was once in her. At that point, the Queen accidentally reveals who she really is and then makes a run for it.

In present day Storybrooke, Regina brings Hook with her to find the failsafe that will trigger the end of Storybrooke. She uses Hook as a distraction while she looks for it. At the same time, Emma and Henry are being totally adorable as they create a new operation to figure out what Tamara is up to. As Emma is searching her place, Neal walks up and confronts her. Sadly, they find nothing; but Henry still believes her, which is all that matters!

In the final flashback, the Evil Queen returns to her usual form after admitting to Rumple that he was right. The people will never love her because they love Snow. With that realization, the Queen says that the normal Queen is dead and the Evil Queen lives. Uh-oh!

A quick switch back to Storybrooke shows Charming and Snow back at the beanstalk farm. As they raise the invisibility spell over the farm, they discover that some has burned down all of the plants leaving no more beans … so sad.

In a more pressing matter, Regina comes up from the cave with the failsafe that she was looking for. As she comes out of the elevator Hook is waiting … alive. Just then, Hook reveals that he was able to survive Maleficent (the protector of the failsafe) with the help of Greg and Tamara. As he talks to her, Greg and Tamara appear. Regina tries to use magic against them, but all of her powers have stopped working. They are using science to counteract the magic and it is working! Tamara then grabs Regina and they take her.

What will happen next? Will Regina be okay? Will anyone come to her rescue?

Photo Credit: ABC/ Jack Rowand.

The post ONCE UPON A TIME: “The Evil Queen” appeared first on Heroine TV.

I have been recapping The Following all season, with Amy and Tash (@80sRebelGirl). Thanks to Amy’s hard work, we have had the chance to interview Marcos Siega, Executive Producer on The Following (and formerly of The Vampire Diaries), and Joshua Butler, director of 3 episodes of The Following (and much, much more). Earlier this year, I was able to join Amy and Nat (@agirlnamednat) for their Pretty Little Liars show. Also, Tash and I  have teamed up with Tiffany (@Angelized_1st) for a weekly Scandal show, which has been a total blast. And now, I am also co-hosting a Game of Thrones recap show with Nadia (@NadiaBunny88). It’s a lot, I know. So I’m providing a list of links to these shows, for anyone interested. Also, you can subscribe via iTunes, if you don’t want to miss an episode. We thank you for listening! And think about calling-in to one of our live shows when you have a chance, because we always love hearing from you.

The Following interviews

• The Following — Marcos Siega
• The Following — Joshua Butler

The Following season 1 recap shows

• The Following — Pilot
• The Following — Chapter 2
• The Following — Mad Love
• The Following — The Fall
• The Following — Let Me Go
• The Following — Welcome Home & Love Hurts
• The Following — The Curse
• The Following — The End Is Near
• The Following — The Final Chapter (Live this Sunday at 7pm ET!)

Scandal season 2 recap shows

• Scandal — Boom Goes the Dynamite
• Scandal — Top of the Hour
• Scandal — Snake in the Garden
• Scandal — Molly, You’re in Danger, Girl
• Scandal — Seven Fifty-Two
• Scandal — A Woman Scorned (Live this Saturday at 5pm ET!)

Game of Thrones season 3 recap shows

• Game of Thrones — Valar Dohaeris
• Game of Thrones — Queen of Thorns
• Game of Thrones — Walk of Punishment (Live this Friday at 7pm ET!)

Pretty Little Liars season 3 recap shows

• Pretty Little Liars — She’s Better Now
• Pretty Little Liars — Misery Loves Company
• Pretty Little Liars — Dead to Me
• Pretty Little Liars — What Becomes of the Broken-Hearted
• Pretty Little Liars — Hot Water
• Pretty Little Liars — Out of Sight, Out of Mind
• Pretty Little Liars — Will the Circle Be Unbroken
• Pretty Little Liars — I’m Your Puppet
• Pretty Little Liars — A Dangerous gAme

Sons of Anarchy season 5 recap shows

• Sons of Anarchy — Season 5 Premiere & Episode 2
• Sons of Anarchy — Season 5 Episode 3
• Sons of Anarchy — Season 5 Episode 4
• Sons of Anarchy — Season 5 Episode 5
• Sons of Anarchy — Season 5 Episode 6
• Sons of Anarchy — Season 5 Episodes 7 & 8
• Sons of Anarchy — Andare Pescare
• Sons of Anarchy — To Thine Own Self & Darthy
• Sons of Anarchy — J’ai Obtenu Cette
• Sons of Anarchy — J’ai Obtenu Cette, Part 2

The post Partnering with Variety Radio Online: Recaps, Interviews, and Fun Fun Fun appeared first on Heroine TV.

The Heroine TV Podcast is back, this time with a super-sized Buffy and Angel episode. LaToya (@lafergs)–of All the TV, Pretty Little Liars Annotations, and Offscreenville–joined me to discuss our Jossy obsessions. Do you want to listen to a Whedonesque therapy session, between two Buffy and Angel fans as they discuss what they love and hate about their two favorite shows? And try to work through the pain of “Seeing Red,” Cordy’s hair, and that Connor-Cordy scene that we pretend never happened? Then click play. You can listen to the podcast on the player below, download the MP3, or subscribe via iTunes.

We start off with a general discussion of TV, weighing in on Pretty Little Liars, Bunheads, Hart of Dixie, The Carrie Diaries, Defiance, Warehouse 13, Elementary, Southland, and more. Yes, we watch a lot of television. The Buffy and Angel discussion starts in earnest at the 21:54 mark, and does contain spoilers for those two shows if you are unfortunate enough not to have watched them. (If you know nothing of Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Angel, please contact a trusted professional as soon as possible, to get the help you so desperately need. We are here for you.) As for the Whedon veterans, our discussion includes how we got into Buffy, our season and show rankings, favorite episodes and characters, least favorite episodes and characters, and a detailed history of Cordelia Chase’s hair. Oh, and lots of wig talk, obviously. I admitted to not liking Xander, while LaToya admitted to not liking Andrew. It was all very therapeutic. Enjoy!

The post Heroine TV Podcast #31: BUFFY and ANGEL appeared first on Heroine TV.

Read on for Johnni’s recap of Once Upon A Time episode 2×19, “Lacey,” aired Sunday, April 21st, 2013:

Happy Birthday, dear Henry! This week’s episode starts off with a bang and a birthday wish for Henry, which results in him getting one gift from Gold’s shop. What does he pick? A magic wand, which Rumple shows him how to use by freezing him! He then kills Henry because of the Seer’s premonition—yikes! Okay, so it was all a dream, but pretty scary stuff don’t you think?

In real life Storybrooke, Rumple watches his son Bae play with his grandson Henry as Regina approaches. Rumple tells Regina that he is Henry’s grandfather and Regina freaks out (obviously). Rumple leaves her to pay Belle a visit at the hospital and explain his last phone call to her (the one where he was on his deathbed).

Belle still doesn’t know who she is but she does believe that Rumple means what he says—she can tell that there is truth about his love for her! Rumple asks for Belle’s help to bring out his good side, since she is the only one who has ever brought out the good in him, and in return he will try and help her remember who she is. Super cute. 

In the first flashback, Belle is Rumple’s prisoner and cannot stop crying. As Rumple gives her a pillow (to silence her loud crying), there is a noise downstairs. Rumple quickly discovers that a man is trying to steal his wand. The thief tries to shoot Rumple with a magical arrow but fails. He is now Rumple’s prisoner, but won’t be a maid like Belle; he will be tortured for his crime—yikes!

Back in Storybrooke, Tamara and Greg are working on their plan to find Greg’s father and steal all of the magic. They are very cryptic with their plans and keep talking about a “package” that will be brought into town that night. Very fishy. Meanwhile, Regina pays Belle a visit at the hospital and after she hears that Rumple is going to help her get released and discover her true identity, Regina steps in. She gives Belle matches from “The Rabbit Hole,” which magically sparks a memory in Belle’s mind. She thinks she knows who she is now!

When Rumple returns to pick her up from the hospital, he finds no Belle, just the matches. He heads to The Rabbit Hole, a dive bar, located somewhere in Storybrooke. As he describes the girl he is looking for, the bartender points him to Lacey…Belle’s cursed identity. It is Belle all right, but she is nothing like the old Belle. Lacey is a heavy drinker and a “bad girl,” who knows who she is and it is not Belle!

In another flashback to Fairy Tale past, Belle sneaks into the prisoner’s cell while Rumple is out and sets him free. She can tell he wasn’t stealing for selfish reasons and doesn’t think anyone deserves to be tortured. After she does her good deed, she patiently waits for Rumple’s return. When Rumple returns and discovers the man is missing, he tells Belle she will accompany him to find the thief (who did steal the wand) and watch him be killed.

Switching back to Storybrooke, Rumple is flustered because the love of his life has no clue who she truly is and Lacey isn’t the one he fell in love with. After yelling at Regina, he realizes that only true love’s kiss can break the curse. So, who is the best person to go to for help? Charming! Rumple asks Charming for his help and, for the first time ever, Rumple owes someone a favor—very interesting.

Charming advises Rumple to make Belle remember who she fell in love with, and then takes Rumple back to the bar to find Lacey. A gross man is hitting on Lacey as Rumple walks in and his temper flares. Charming tells him to go for it and just ask her out already. He is the perfect wingman! Rumple does what he is told and Lacey agrees to a date—aw.

Nearby, Emma and Regina have one of their talks, but Regina can tell that Emma is hiding something from her. Earlier in the day, Charming and Snow showed Emma Anton’s beanstalk farm, which the blue fairy has hidden from everyone else so it would be safe. Emma is freaking out about the possibility of moving back to Fairy Tale Land, but can’t tell anyone about it. This clearly isn’t going to stay a secret for very long.

Jumping to the past, Rumple and Belle are on the hunt for the thief, and Belle is trying to convince Rumple that there is good inside him and that he doesn’t need to kill. Just then, they come to an impasse where the Sheriff of Nottingham (the drunk at the bar who was hitting on Lacey) is standing. He tells Rumple that he will reveal to him where to find the man he wants, if he can have a night with Belle. Rumple takes his tongue and tells him he will get it back only if he tells them where the thief is. Aw, he really does love her!

The Sheriff obeys and tells them that Robin Hood (yes it is Robin Hood!) hides in Sherwood Forest. With this, they are off and back on the hunt. The two find Robin in the forest with the wand, but Belle makes Rumple pause to see where he is taking it. A carriage comes by with a woman inside, who is clearly dying. Robin runs to her and heals her with the wand. Belle starts to plead with Rumple not to kill Robin. She was right, as he wasn’t stealing for himself, he stole to save his beloved Mary, who is pregnant. Rumple shoots the arrow, but misses, sending Robin Hood and Mary fleeing further into the woods.

Belle gives Rumple a giant hug and you can feel their love. When they return home, Rumple shows her the library and claims it is for her to clean, but it is actually because he has fallen for her. So sweet.

In present-day Storybrooke, Lacey and Rumple are on their date and, although she is a little rough around the edges, Rumple can still see glimpses of Belle in her. After Lacey is in the bathroom for a long time, Rumple goes looking for her and finds her behind the dumpster making out with the gross bar guy (Sheriff Nottingham). Not cool! Rumple is heartbroken and leaves angry.

Meanwhile, Regina is watching as Charming and Snow drop off the dwarves and Anton at Granny’s. She waits for them to leave and then uses magic to light up the car tracks and see where they came from. She follows them to the field and lifts the spell, revealing the beanstalk farm…uh-oh!

Back in town, Rumple runs into Sheriff Nottingham and loses it. He begins to beat him and let his darkness out, as Lacey comes up and sees him. She says that she was wrong about him being a nice guy and she likes that he is dark! Is this opposite day? Rumple then continues to beat the man—so bad.

Lastly, at the town line, Greg and Tamara are bringing in their secret weapon. Tamara opens up the trailer truck and shows the “package”… it is Hook!

Do you think Hook will help them? Will Emma choose to move back to Fairy Tale Land with her parents? And what will happen to the Belle we all know and love? Tune in tomorrow night at 8/7c on ABC to find out!

Photo Credit: ABC/Jack Rowand.

The post ONCE UPON A TIME: “Lacey” appeared first on Heroine TV.

Read on for my pilot review of SyFy’s new drama Defiance, aired Monday, April 15th, 2013. What follows includes some discussion of plot points, but I tried to avoid revealing major twists or spoilers.

Last week, SyFy aired the two-hour premiere of its new original series, Defiance. Before a new episode airs tonight, I wanted to post my thoughts on the pilot. There has been a lot of buzz going into the premiere, including hotel-sized billboards at Comic-Con last year and a lot of press about the complementary game. None of that really gave me any sense of what the show would be, and I was a little nervous going into the pilot. But don’t fear, sci-fi fans, because I ended up impressed. Spaceships are back on SyFy, you guys! With awesome ladies in charge, to boot! More, please.

The premise of Defiance is as follows. In 2013, spaceships full of alien races arrived on Earth. The landscape was terraformed, changing it forever. There was a series of wars, which eventually ended by armistice, thanks to bravery of “The Defiant Few.” Now, it’s 2046, and as the tagline of the show states, it’s a new Earth, with new rules. Enter our characters. The story centers on Nolan (Grant Bowler) and Irisa (Stephanie Leonidas), a father and daughter who are trying to make their way in this new world, hoping to earn passage to Antarctica (which now is a beach-filled paradise, apparently). Of course, it’s tough to get a Mai-Tai-sipping happy ending when people are shooting at you, just because you’re trying to engage in a little petty thievery. Oh, and it only gets harder when the Dark Forest you’re traveling through is the same one that borders Hogwarts, full of dramatically enlarged spider-like creatures. Ick. Our outlaws/heroes are rescued by residents of the town of Defiance, formerly St. Louis, and quickly find themselves embroiled in the town drama. Intrigue, murder, romance, betrayal, and triumph ensue.

Defiance borrows from a variety of genres. On the one hand, it is defiantly science fiction (sorry, I had to), proudly featuring a bunch of alien races and futuristic technology. It does not shy away from what it is. Defiance is also post-apocalyptic, a sub-genre that has become increasingly popular with things like Firefly, Battlestar Galactica, The Hunger Games, and Revolution—rag tag groups of survivors, and all that stuff that I love. And like Firefly, it feels a bit like a space western; the town of Defiance could easily be located next door to Canton, or even a few miles from Deadwood. At the same time, there are also more modern pop culture references, including a Johnny Cash song and a quote from Kung Fu. Defiance is not set in our world, and yet it could be. 

The “borrowing” also extends further. Many of the characters seem to follow recognizable tropes. For example, Nolan is a Han Solo-esque rogue, charming and good with a blaster. Then there is “the hooker with the heart of gold,” Kenya (Mia Kirshner), who runs the local watering hole. The rivalry between the human McCawley clan and the alien Tarrs is reminiscent of all too many familiar stories. The Tarr family are basically Malfoys. Or perhaps the Luthers to the McCawley’s Kents? And the Spirit Riders are a gang of ruffians straight out of Mad Max, who also happen to look like vampires from Buffy. Oh, and I can not seem to care about the star-crossed lovers—Alak Montague and Christie Capulet, I think they were called. Maybe if Alak gets a new hairdo?

One of my favorite parts of the show so far is the relationship between Nolan and Irisa. The actors have a great father-daughter chemistry, and really sell us on their bond right away. Nolan tells the mayor that Irisa is his daughter, but receives a doubtful reaction—Irisa is clearly Irithian, while Nolan is human. He claims that she was a war orphan, whom he saved. Later, Irisa confirms that Nolan saved her, but she adds a different twist to the story. Yes, Nolan saved her, but when asked what he did for her, she replies “Something I couldn’t do for myself. [...] He murdered my parents.” Um. Yeah. Can’t wait to find out more about that backstory.

I also enjoyed the little bits of humor surrounding Nolan and Irisa’s easy ability to get out of handcuffs, and Irisa’s love of weapons. They are a tough duo, not used to having to get along with others. This makes for a hilarious encounter between the redhead and the young deputy, as he bemoans, “What is wrong with you?!?” (As for Irisa’s journaling, I think we’ve seen enough of that. Ahem.)

Another highlight of the pilot for me was the mayor, Amanda Rosewater, played by Julie Benz. I have been a fan of Julie Benz for years (Darla 4evah!), so I’m really excited to see her on TV again, and playing such a strong character. She’s smart, tough, and calm, yet vulnerable. Amanda’s relationship with her sister Kenya (Mia Kirshner) is pretty fascinating, and I hope that we learn more about how they grew up. One sister is the town mayor, while the other is the town madam. How did that happen? And what does it mean to them in the culture of 2046? And of course, Amanda’s mentor, ex-mayor Nicky (Fionnula Flanagan), provides a whole new level to the story. Oh, and speaking of awesome ladies, Stahma Tarr (Jaime Murray) can certainly hold her own, even if she is a total Slytherin. Throughout the pilot, she manipulates her husband like a boss. I just love that there are so many women running this town, both publicly and privately, for better and for worse. There is so much potential here.

Of course, we’ve only seen one episode so far, so it’s hard to know how the series will fare. I am certainly hopeful, but I also have concerns. While Defiance’s ambition is admirable, and the world-building is impressive, I worry that it is trying to do too much. The story is so sprawling that it can easily get out of hand, and at the expense of the character development. Fair warning: this is not a laundry-folding show. I watched it twice and I still don’t understand what the point of the soccer ball of light was. And who are the Volge exactly, other than scary? The political landscape and context of the 2046 shenanigans could be more clearly drawn. But we can’t expect miracles from a pilot. The real strength of serialized storytelling comes in the long run, as the story is given time to grow and develop. I will definitely be watching along the way.

Stray Observations:

• I was more thrilled than I should have been to recognize two stars from Wolf Lake, the short-lived 2001 series about werewolves in the Pacific Northwest: Graham Greene, who plays Rafe McCawley, and Mia Kirshner, Kenya. Kirshner, of course, was also on The Vampire Diaries, where she went up in flames as Elena’s vampy biological mom.
• I recommend that you Google the actors who play aliens, because it really demonstrates how good the makeup team is on this show. Stephanie Leonidas, Tony Curran, Trenna Keating, and Jesse Rath look nothing like their characters!
• Do you have a handle on the various alien species? There’s a guide on SyFy’s official site. Other than the Votan races I’ve mentioned—the Malfoys (Castithians) and the Vampire Forehead Bikers (Irathients)—there are also the Wookies (Sensoth), the smart ones with pale perforated skin (Indogenes), and some funny looking characters whose superpower is sarcasm (Liberata). Then there are the Volge, who are hated by everyone … but maybe they’re just misunderstood? We’ll see. Oh, and there are also humans. Apparently, even the arrival of millions of aliens on Earth can’t keep humans down.
• There is a place called The Hollows, where shirtless men and aliens fight in a ring, without weapons. No comment, but I just thought you should know.
• Defiance’s fake swear word is “shtako.” I don’t know … “frak” it is not.
• Bookending the episode was the image of a young boy and his family picnicking. They look up to see a fleet of spaceships enter the Earth’s orbit. By the end of the episode, we come to understand that the young boy was Nolan, and St. Louis was his hometown. Nicely done.

Photo Credit: SyFy.

The post DEFIANCE: Pilot Review appeared first on Heroine TV.

FX’s new Cold War era drama, The Americans, has fully captivated me. Wigs! 80s music! Keri Russell beating people up! So, you can imagine how excited I was to have a chance to join in on a conference call Q&A with Noah Emmerich, who plays FBI Agent Stan Beeman. As the next-door neighbor and friend to undercover Soviet spies, in addition to their government foe, Beeman is a fascinating character. Emmerich turned out to be an insightful and intelligent interview, and you can read what he had to say over at TheTelevixen.com: The Americans’ Noah Emmerich: On History, Flashbacks, and Wig Envy.

The post THE AMERICANS’ Noah Emmerich: On History, Flashbacks, and Wig Envy | The Televixen appeared first on Heroine TV.

Read on for Johnni’s recap of Once Upon A Time episode 2×18, “Selfless, Brave and True,” aired Sunday, March 24th, 2013:

Calling all August lovers … he’s back! In last Sunday’s episode of Once Upon A Time, we were transported to Phuket circa 2011 for our first flashback. Who was in Thailand in 2011? August, a.k.a. Pinocchio! We begin with the first time that August starts turning to wood. He panics, of course, and runs (or limps) to the hospital.

We then switch to Storybrooke, where Snow has finally gotten out of bed–hopefully to deal with the fact that she has a blackening heart (so depressing). As Snow heads to the woods to take out her anger by shooting arrows, a total badass moment, Emma takes Henry to see Neal. In another Neal bombshell, he tells Emma that his fiancée Tamara is coming to Storybrooke. Yikes!

Back in the woods, Snow stumbles upon a rundown trailer and decides to explore. What does she find? August … totally made out of wood! He says that he did this to himself; therefore, when the curse was lifted, he could move again but he was no longer a real man. Meanwhile, Tamara has arrived, and there is a series of uncomfortable moments as Emma and Henry eat breakfast with her. Neal tells Tamara who he really is, and explains that fairy tales are true stories. She freaks out and leaves. Not surprising at all. 

In another flashback to Phuket, August sees a doctor, but he can’t see the wooden leg. August is desperate so he seeks help from “the dragon” (a miracle worker). As he is waiting in line, a woman drops her phone and when she turns around, we see that it is none other than Tamara! Uh-Oh.

When August meets with “the dragon,” he tells August that he can fix him, if he gives him something close to his heart and $10,000. August is desperate, so he gives him the whale necklace he wears with rope that was originally used to create him. Now all he needs is the money.

As August ventures around town trying to figure out where to get the money, he runs into Tamara, who has a ton of money. They talk about what is wrong with one another, and Tamara says she has cancer. She also tells him that she had to give “the dragon” a picture of her grandmother and her, as a meaningful trinket. Moments later when she leaves to take a call, August steals her money and runs back to get his cure. “The dragon” gives it to him, but tells him that he is the only one who can truly fix himself. As he is running away, Tamara sees him and tracks him down. August falls to the ground and Tamara gets her cure back—so intense.

Back in Storybrooke, Snow goes to the diner to tell Emma and Geppetto that August is alive and she knows where he is. As the trio heads out to see the Blue Fairy, who helped August turn into a real boy in the past, we see Tamara sitting in the diner, listening to everything. When they find the Blue Fairy, she tells them that she cannot help because Pinocchio was supposed to stay selfless, brave, and true, or else he couldn’t be a human. Unless he goes back to those ways, he cannot be saved.

In the woods, August gets another surprise at his door … Tamara! Tamara can see that he is made out of wood, which means she believes. She tells him that she was cured by the potion and that she has some left over. All he has to do is go to her apartment in New York and get it … and oh, never come back to Storybrooke. Sounds like trouble!

In another part of Storybrooke, Regina has figured out who Greg, the mystery visitor, is. She knows he is Owen, and tells him to leave by tomorrow or else. He doesn’t seem very scared, and is pretty determined to find his father.

We then return to Phuket, where we see Tamara back at “the dragon’s” place. She has come to pick up her photograph of her grandmother. She reveals that she never had cancer, and that she has been searching for magic everywhere. Now that she has found  magic, she needs to kill “the dragon” because he knows too much. After a little bit of a fight, Tamara kills him and leaves with the potion that was meant for August.

In present day, August is driving out of Storybrooke when the picture of Tamara and her grandmother falls out of the car. Right then he realizes that she is a bad seed and that she is the one who killed “the dragon.” He quickly turns around and heads to the police station. Once he gets there, he calls Emma, but is interrupted by Tamara. After he promises to warn the town, she stuns him with a taser gun. Not cool!

Moments later, Pinocchio stumbles outside. He runs into Emma, Snow, and Geppetto outside the station, and tries to tell them what happened. But he dies in his father’s arms before he can warn them. Henry (the smartest in the bunch) tells them that Pinocchio can be saved because he was good again. The Blue Fairy shows up and manages to make him a boy again. Magic!

Just then, Tamara walks out and sees the magic. She tells Neal that she believes. But as soon as she recognizes August, we can see the fear in her eyes. Lucky for her, August doesn’t remember anything about what happened before he died.

In a quick flashback to New York in 2011, we see that Tamara had been following August for a long time. When August paid Neal a visit and told him that Emma was in Storybrooke, Tamara was there and made her move on Neal. She has always been after the magic. Poor Neal! He has no idea that he is being used.

Meanwhile, back in Storybrooke, Snow finally breaks down and tells Charming about her blackened heart. In typical Charming fashion, he hugs her and tells her she is good and they will fix her heart together. Aw!

We then cut to another part of Storybrooke, where Greg is on the phone with “her.” Just as he asks where this mystery girl is, a knock comes at his door … it is Tamara (obviously). The two of them are in this together, and Storybrooke is in for a rude awakening.

Tune in April 21st for a brand new episode full of magic, drama, and a new hero … Robin Hood!

Photo Credit: ABC/Jack Rowand.

The post ONCE UPON A TIME: “Selfless, Brave and True” appeared first on Heroine TV.

As it stands, here are the shows I used to keep up with every week:

With an ever growing list of responsibilities (is that what it means to be an adult? If so, I want to get a refund), I had to pick which shows I really wanted to keep up with live. I’ve pretty much stuck with this, except that I added Lost Girl to the mix, because sometimes a girl just needs to immerse herself in a fictional universe several hours a day, you know what I’m sayin’? [Editor's Note: Yes, I really know what you're saying.]

I picked Grey’s Anatomy and The Vampire Diaries because out of all the shows that I regularly watch, these are the ones that compel me the most. Which, you know, is surprising since the first one is a 9 year old drama about doctors and the second is a supernatural soap about vampires. But oh, they are sooo much more than that.

Here are some thoughts about what I watched this week:

1. Lost Girl
Episodes 2×06 to 2×18

Ok, maybe I went a little overboard on Lost Girl this week for someone who wanted to rein back her TV watching. Regardless, as Lucia pointed out recently, this show is pretty great, and it has taken a hold over my heart. The first season was close to being perfect, as the friendship between Bo and Kenzi quickly became one of my favorites on TV. Unfortunately, the streamlined sleekness of Season 1 gave way to a jumbled mess in Season 2. Don’t get me wrong: this season is as enticing as ever, with the ever looming threat of the big bad a motivation that I’m quite used to and love, but the season order of 22 episodes instead of 13 clearly impacted the show, and I’m not sure it’s in a good way. 

In season 2, Dyson is giving Angel a run for his money in the brooding department, Nadia doesn’t have enough screentime for me to feel something about her, be it contempt or sympathy, and then there’s Ryan. What I like about him is that, being Dark Fae, he questions Bo’s moral stance on Dark/Evil, Light/Good. What I dislike is that he always felt temporary; a fill in the gaps type of character. In the latest episode I watched, they “broke up”, but I can’t even tell if it’s for good or just a temporary goodbye. I guess the idea of him is better than the realization. I am definitely looking forward to the conclusion of some seeds planted in earlier episodes: what’s going on with Bo’s blood? What is this favor that The Morrigan will ask of Kenzi? What is UP with Nadia, anyway? And perhaps the most important of all: Will Hale and Dyson be friends again? I hope that the tail end of the season brings more focus, and a return to its source, namely, the reunion of the “Dal gang”–or whatever we are calling them.

2. Grey’s Anatomy
Episode 9×19, “Can’t fight this Feeling”, aired Thursday, March 28th, 2013

I talked a bit about my overall feelings regarding Grey’s here, and my feelings haven’t changed. I look forward to this hour of TV all week.

I think what gripped me most this week was twofold. First, let’s talk Meredith Grey. I’m always one to pick supporting characters as favorites over the protagonist (see: Willow, Kenzi, Caroline, etc), so Meredith, as a person, never really interested me. However, I feel like this is beginning to change. I recently re-watched a few season 2 episodes, and coupled with yesterday’s, it is astonishing to see the evolution and change this character has gone through in nine (!) years. Of course, evolution is expected, but the years have made Meredith a more sympathetic character, something I wasn’t expecting. I felt it the most in “Can’t fight this feelings”, as Meredith completely embraced her motherly intuition, and a patient’s mom who’s fighting for her son. Season 2 Meredith was way too busy being dark and twisty to 1) even think about having kids and 2) be so empathic with her patients’ families. The last scene with Bailey, in which she asks her for a genome test to check for possible Alzheimer’s, encapsulated the journey she’s been on: this woman has faced her fears and worst-case scenarios year after year, and has emerged stronger for it every time. Through it, she’s becoming a character I can relate to, which gives me even more reason to keep Grey’s on my roster.

Second, it hit me as I was watching that this show is going to end, probably sooner rather than later. I cannot imagine a world where these characters don’t exist; they are so well-developed that they are a part of my “world”, and I think things will be a little grayer when they’re gone. It’s always sad when a show ends, but if I compare Grey’s to Smallville, another long-running series that I watched semi-religiously, the emotions are not even comparable. And I think that’s a testament to the great writing, and fantastic show running by Shonda Rhimes.

3. The Vampire Diaries
Episode 4×18, “American Gothic”, aired Thursday, March 28th, 2013

What I love about this show is that I’m not waiting for anything. There isn’t a preferred outcome I’m looking for; it’s one of these shows where I can sit back, and let the plot wash over me. Are there some things I wish would be different? Of course! I’m not particularly fond of Bonnie’s portrayal, or the Salvatore’s brothers wish to dictate Elena’s every move. But overall, the fast-paced narrative and constant plot twists are what keeps TVD on the top of my list. And in that regard, this week’s episode did NOT disappoint.

The biggest surprise for me was Katherine’s transformation. For the past season or so, she’s been a plot device: a cunning and manipulating vampire, thwarting everyone’s plan. Now, with the added bonus of Elijah’s presence as her lover [Editor's Note: I'll let you use that word just this once because it is a special case], we’re seeing another side to her, and that intrigues me to the highest level. [Editor's Note: Omigod Elijah and Katherine are make out buddies and it is all too much perfection and why has the show been wasting our time with Salvatore-Gilbert drama when we could have been watching Elijah and Katherine's love story all this time?!?!] It’s a testament to Nina Dobrev’s acting chops, overall. Let’s count out all the different variations she’s played so far, shall we? There’s human Katherine, vamp Katherine, human Elena, vamp Elena, “no human emotions” Elena … am I missing any? We’re getting dangerously close to Anna Torv/Olivia Dunham territory, and that is a very good thing.

This episode also had the amazing quality of being all about the master plot arc: the cure (Katherine et al.), and Silas (Caroline and Klaus). I find TVD is always at its best when its focus isn’t episodic, and it left me asking more questions, which is primordial if it wants to keep my attention. So kudos to the gang for a brilliantly realized episode, and an Elena with agency!

And that’s all I watched this week! Well, I guess I also watched The Lizzie Bennet Diaries’ series finale, the Vlogbrothers archives, and all I possibly can about Game of Thrones’ third season. Ahem. What did you all watch this week?

The post What Gabby Watched: Week of March 24th, 2013 appeared first on Heroine TV.