Topic: Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles: The Complete Second Season marathon

[goodguy]

First of all guys, can we add comments to the spoiler tags if the spoiler is not (only) about the current but also future episodes?

Sorry, I thought it was obvious too that I talked about something I noticed upon rewatching in the current episode that concerns future ones.

BTW, shouldn't we agree that anything up to the reviewed episode is fair game and doesn't require a spoiler tag? While I left out some spoilerish things for 2x01 and 2x02, I'm not sure if it makes much sense in a dedicated thread. Just asking, I'm willing to do it either way.

[Tom]

BTW, shouldn't we agree that anything up to the reviewed episode is fair game and doesn't require a spoiler tag? While I left out some spoilerish things for 2x01 and 2x02, I'm not sure if it makes much sense in a dedicated thread. Just asking, I'm willing to do it either way.

I also understood it, that everything reviewed up to that point was fair game. But I am also willing to do it either way.

[Achim]

Well, I don't think the series was spoiled for me, it was just something I had noticed...

I'll admit that I should have realized you both have completed the series already and spoiler-tagged comments may "look ahead". So, I am "to blame" just the same, for not using my brain enough.

I always thought these threads are also for others, so I put any plot-specific stuff in the tags (this is why I clicked on yours, I thought it was hidden for others, not necessarily me). If we consider TV threads different to those for movies then I guess we can discuss everything openly and only have to spoilerize stuff that goes beyond the current episode.

[Achim]

5. Goodbye to All That
Derek leads John on his first mission in defense of a military school cadet with a vital future role in the Resistance.



My comments:
I found the first half of the main plot quite boring. The setting in the military academy where John and Derek "did their thing" just didn't spark with me until the action started. Dealing with this week's problem was eventually resolved satisfyingly. John, for once allowed to lead the mission, was clearly enjoying the change of pace and in his new found position almost happily gave in to his fate.

The side plot, involving Sarah kidnapping a young boy to protect him from harm's way, was much more fun all the way through. The young actor gave a good performance and everything came together quite nicely between him and Lena Headey.

The other side plot with Agent James Ellison (Richard T. Jones good as always) was not advancing enough; lame excuse to show off the T-1000 (or is it a T-X...?) again.


(mainly for the Sarah story line)

(click to show/hide)

What bugged me at the end: Why would Derek feel he needs to tell John the fate of the guy they just saved? It served no further purpose for him, other than actually upsetting him.

[Tom]

lame excuse to show off the T-1000 (or is it a T-X...?) again.

It's a T-1001

[Achim]

Thanks.

[goodguy]

2x03 The Mousetrap
Synopsis: See Achim's post.
My Rating:

Another episode that I enjoyed more upon rewatching. The opening is especially great, with Charlie & Michelle on the desert road, making stop at a gas station. No words exchanged between them for several minutes, just a little country song playing along, but the emotions between them are almost tangible. TSCC has a knack for these moody and minimalist scenes and it is the main reason I like this show. Also notable just how gorgeous it looks most of the time, in an earthy and completely unflashy way. All things that are pretty untypical for an action show about killer robots - no wonder it got cancelled.

From the early kidnapping climax, we get to a single short scene with highly pregnant Kacy, whom I forgot to mention in the last episode. I've never seen Busy Phillips before and initially I thought it was Mercedes McNab (Harmony on Buffy/Angel) playing the character. Anyway, she again is wonderful here. Oh, and Beast Wizard 7 is hilarious.

Do terminators get bored? Cameron finds the center of the house, determines the timeframe for a paint job, and is eager to kill at least a bird (Maybe later?). That sounds like funny robot, but is has such a wry sense of humor that it doesn't feel out of place. Also noteworthy the perfectly timed "I don't swim" exchange with John much later in the episode.

Charlie's phone call to John and Sarah is another one of many excellent scenes. He is so completely and heart-wrenchingly lost. Top performance by Dean Winters.

Sarah gets to do the reluctant hero thing, angry and tired, lashing out at everyone in frustration. That's a fine line to walk, but mostly it works, even when Michelle is the target (Frankly, I thought it'd be easier. I thought you'd be dead).

After Cromartie's setup succeeds the plot gets a bit messy. Taking an injured Michelle with them doesn't make much sense, nor does the designated meeting point for Cromartie and John. As much as the show succeeds in creating atmospheric and dramatic scenes, it often seems that less thinking went into the plot mechanics. I can live with that most of the time, but sometimes it becomes a little distracting.

The funeral scene at the end, while moving, would be a bit generic, if it weren't for the two cuts to the dinner table at the Connor house, once with the VO from the priest and then again, silent. Great stuff.

As for Weaver and Ellison: I like that they take their time and advance that part of the story slowly. And Shirley Manson already seems much better here than in the first episode. Or it could be Richard T. Jones, who can make almost everything work, reflecting positively on her.

[Achim]

Were you busy last week and will ctach up this week or should I slow down? I was planning to do a disc per week (according my Blu-ray set) but we can just do 2-3 episodes per week if that works better for you.

Do terminators get bored? Cameron finds the center of the house, determines the timeframe for a paint job, and is eager to kill at least a bird (Maybe later?). That sounds like funny robot, but is has such a wry sense of humor that it doesn't feel out of place. Also noteworthy the perfectly timed "I don't swim" exchange with John much later in the episode.

Oddly this didn't strike me as bad as tfhe tears in the other episode. I also enjoyed the humor coming from this. I think the explanation of this behavior (as it is differtfent from Season 1) is supposed to be the damaged chip.

As for Weaver and Ellison: I like that they take their time and advance that part of the story slowly. And Shirley Manson already seems much better here than in the first episode. Or it could be Richard T. Jones, who can make almost everything work, reflecting positively on her.

I think it's the latter. While I enjoy Jones' perfomrance a lot I personally think Manson comes across rather wooden (well, she is supposed to be a robot, but still...).

[goodguy]

Were you busy last week and will ctach up this week or should I slow down? I was planning to do a disc per week (according my Blu-ray set) but we can just do 2-3 episodes per week if that works better for you.

Yeah, I was a bit busy. I've catched up with 2x04 and I should manage 4 episodes per week - that's what's on the DVDs - I have no idea how it is spread out on Blu-ray.

[goodguy]

2x04 Allison from Palmdale
Synopsis: See Achim's post.
My Rating:

I agree with Achim that the Cameron part of the story is the most exciting and I can see why some people would find the side stories of Sarah & Kacy and Ellison & Weaver distracting. I didn't, though. Like Cameron's story, both are stories of their respective character's origin, although on a much smaller scale.

At the hospital, Sarah tells Kacy about John's birth in two different versions. The first is a lie, intended to comfort Kacy. But when she meets Kacy's boyfriend and finds out he is a cop, she switches to the truth, using it to manipulate Kacy. She was alone and she got through it and so can Kacy.

In the case of Weaver we also get a little piece of back-story. It is of course carefully selected to hold up against the investigation Ellison will soon undertake and to further draw him towards Weaver's agenda. What exactly that agenda is remains unclear, but it is interesting to note how Weaver rejects Ellison's notion of "evil" regarding the machines. Also interesting to note that she deliberate tells him a version of the helicopter crash story, which is not backed up by the official report - fully aware that he will find out. In the end, her manipulation succeeds and Ellison agrees to work for her.

During his investigation, Ellison visits his ex-wife twice (also working at the FBI) to gather information about Weaver. As small as these scenes are, especially the second one is really great. She: "I'm worried about you. I've never seen you in so much pain." Ellison: "Now, we both know that's not true." With someone like Richard T. Jones, that's all the dialogue you need to draw a rich picture of these characters.

Now I have waffled (as Jon likes to say) quite a bit and haven't even reached the main story. Blame Achim for that, I just couldn't let his comment slide.

Anyway, while all things mentioned above are pretty great, it is the main story of Cameron where this episode truly shines. It is an inspired and artistic work, with great cinematography and editing, a wonderful score and an amazing performance by Summer Glau.

The episode starts in the future, with a Cameron look-alike (Allison, as we learn later) running through a set of tunnels pursued by a terminator. She manages to get out through some metal door, but soon she is captured in some sort of net, trashing around in full panic mode.

Cut to a completely serene Cameron sitting in a car next to John. This is the first of a number of breathtaking cuts. My description barely does them any justice, but trust me, that is truly awesome stuff.

They stop and Jon sends Cameron off to do shopping and meet him half an hour later, which elicits a hilarious look from Cameron (if you recall the previous episode, you know why). Right from the beginning, the scene with Cameron in the supermarket has an eerie feeling to it, thanks to a shopping cart wheel, an apple and a reflecting balloon. Seriously. There is another short flashback to Allison trapped in the net, then we are in the supermarket again, where Cameron crashes the shopping cart into a pile of melons and than goes completely still.

Police arrives and tries to question Cameron who barely reacts and doesn't seem to remember anything. The questioning triggers more flashbacks, this time to Allison being interrogated by a terminator without the human disguise. All those intercuts are beautifully done. Cameron soon finds herself in a holding cell and meets Jody, a street kid also grabbed up by the police. While talking with Jody, Cameron starts by first mimicking her than slowly assuming the Allison persona.

As both get released from the police station, Jody takes Cameron under her wings (after she glimpsed the big wade of cash Cameron has). They have lunch, Jody gets attacked by a guy she apparently stole something from and Cameron, instead of ripping him to pieces, hands over her money to calm him down, much to Jody's dismay.

They take refuge in a shelter. During an apparently mandatory counselor session, more about Allison's past is revealed. There are again numerous intercuts between flashbacks of Allison's interrogation and the counselor talk. Cameron has now fully adapted the Allison persona and her crying while talking about her parents is a beautiful and sad moment that works perfectly for me, while Achim seems to think it is one of the worst scenes of the episode.

There is also a great bit where Allison mentions that her mother was a music teacher who listened to Chopin all day. You may recall the Chopin pieces featured in the cellar of 1x06 Dungeons and Dragons and while Cameron was dancing alone in her room at the end of 1x07 The Demon Hand.

But that scene still hasn't reached its high point yet. As Cameron-as-Allison finally has figured out she comes from Palmdale, the counselor convinces her to call her mother on the phone, who obviously is very surprised - and very pregnant: I don't have a daughter. Not yet. Very pretty name, though. Allison.

I don't want to recap the entire episode, so I stop here and only say that it even gets more amazing and complex. More flashbacks reveal more about the fate of Allison and cause Cameron to shift personalities and echo more bits and pieces from those memories.

In the end, of course, she reverts to normal(?)-Cameron, but the episode ends on a wonderfully eerie note.

This is one of the best episodes of the entire series, if not the best. Which is why it makes me kinda sad that Achim gave it his lowest rating yet.

[Achim]

They take refuge in a shelter. During an apparently mandatory counselor session, more about Allison's past is revealed. There are again numerous intercuts between flashbacks of Allison's interrogation and the counselor talk. Cameron has now fully adapted the Allison persona and her crying while talking about her parents is a beautiful and sad moment that works perfectly for me, while Achim seems to think it is one of the worst scenes of the episode.

It's not the worst scene of the episode. I don't mind the robot to pretend crying ("I lknow now why you cry." from T2), I just don't buy into Skynet giving the machines tear glands just to be ever so better in infiltration. This is not "A.I." where the robot is supposed to learn emotions, here it's just about infiltrate, kill.

one of the best episodes of the entire series, if not the best. Which is why it makes me kinda sad that Achim gave it his lowest rating yet.

I guess I found there was too much of the other stroy lines dragging it down. Obviously your enthusiasm is concentrated on Cameron's path all the same, hardly pointing out Sarah's part. I also didn't have a problem with Ellison's story, it just was the smallest of all. Was I to rate Cameron's story alone the result would be different...

[goodguy]

I just don't buy into Skynet giving the machines tear glands just to be ever so better in infiltration. This is not "A.I." where the robot is supposed to learn emotions, here it's just about infiltrate, kill.

Well, Cameron is different. She also likes pancakes Anyway, I'm usually able to go with the emotional flow of the story and that scene felt right to me. I found the plot problems in both 2x02 and 2x03 more distracting than the tear glands that maybe shouldn't be there. 2x04 seemed pretty flawless to me on the first viewing as well as upon rewatching.

Obviously your enthusiasm is concentrated on Cameron's path all the same, hardly pointing out Sarah's part.

Yep, I acknowledged that right from the beginning. But I thought the proportions were well balanced and I didn't find the small ones dragging at all. Maybe I should take a stop watch and measure them.  

[Achim]

I think I better don't want this answered in detail , but maybe some episodes get better upon re-watching, knowing where is it all going? I have the impression reading some of your and Tom's comments.

I agree that the tear thing is indeed rather minor. Now I wish it wouldn't have been so strange to me ; I could gave enjoyed those bits more.

[goodguy]

2x05 Goodbye to All That
Synopsis: Derek leads John on his first mission in defense of a military school cadet with a vital future role in the Resistance.
My Rating:

That was a rather average episode with some good bits inbetween.

I liked the T1-nod. I really loved the macho scene of Derek and John loading up the truck with weapons and gear, changing first to a sudden shot of Cameron in the foreground, turning her head to look at John and John then looking at Sarah, who is watching from afar. Several shots establishing all three POVs and showing John between those two women. Great stuff.

I won't say anything on how easy Derek and John got into the military school, it just isn't worth it. Some of the scenes there worked pretty well, but overall it was far too simplistic bordering on cheesy. Likewise the scenes with Sarah and the kidnapped kid were hit and miss. The initial video game turning real as they get chased by the Triple-8 certainly was fun.

The Wizard of Oz must be the most used reference in US movies and TV shows. Still, they managed to pick some interesting parts as VO when Derek and John defeat the T-888. I remember complaining about the Sarah VO's in my initial S1 review, but upon rewatching I've gotten rather fond of them, to the point were I actually was starting to miss them in S2.

I also really loved the final scene between Derek and John: We all die for you. It's not about upsetting John as Achim suspects, but about encouraging John to become the man and leader who is worth that kind of sacrifice.

The slowly advancing story of Weaver and Ellison seems to confirm what could be already picked up from the coda of 2x02: Weaver seems to be interested in keeping the power plant operational. BTW, is there any way to make the scene with the plant manager in the alley any worse? Well, I suppose there is, but that was a new low after the men's room scene in 2x01.

[Achim]

Great review there, Matthias.

Now, refresh my memory, what is a T1? Or did you mean there was a nod to the first film?

Yes, the way they just got into the academy like that was ridiculous to say the least

I agree on the last sentence being really good ("We all die for you.") but still have issues  with Derek telling the stroy.

EDIT:
BTW, the Blu-rays mostly have 5 episodes per disc, but I'll settle for 4 to match your pacing...