What's Happening On Television These Days? (Part 1)

Tweet It has been a really long time since I've done a serious 'entertainment' post. On a blog that prides itself on writing about sports and entertainment, you would think something like this would be written more often. In my defense, there really has not been anything interesting to write about entertainment-wise, since breaking bad ended. Yes, there have been a few movies that have come out but are you really going to care about our reviews when you have websites like collider, rottentomatoes, and IMDB? I thought so. Luckily for you (all six of you that care about my TV opinions), there has been a flood of watchable shows on television recently, well... maybe not a flood, but enough to give me material to write about. So without further ado, here is a mini rundown of some shows that I have been watching. There maybe some minor spoilers ahead so be careful.

Dexter

With Dexter seasons you just know. Seasons one, two, and four were good; the other seasons either sucked or were very forgettable (with season 6 being being just mediocre at best). This season, I am happy to say, falls in the 'good' category, at least so far. I wont get too much into it as I am considering doing full out reviews for the rest of the Dexter season, but I will point out some things that I like about this season. In no particular order, here are the things that are making this season click, presented in note form:

-The main villain is actually pretty interesting

Who would have thought that Isaac would make for a really decent 'main' bad guy? He is smart, ruthless,and the king of some weird human exploitation empire. He already found out that Dexter killed one of his henchmen (and we are not even at episode four yet), and who ever the actor is that is playing him, is doing a really good job. We have not had a villain this interesting in Dexter since season four (the trinity killer), which was easily the best season, so these are all good things!

-The supporting characters actually have things to do

Whereas in past Dexter seasons, particularly the brutal third season, LaGuerta, Quinn, and company had really dull and useless side-plots (usually culminating in personal problems and self-rediscovery) this season there is actually *gasp* development! LaGuerta actually acts like a police officer and starts investigating a Dexter mistake (a forgotten blood slide) which is leading her to re-opening the 'Bay-Harbor Butcher' investigation. This is a genuinely interesting side-plot that does not make you groan when it comes up. Louis was shaping up to be an interesting character (more on him in the future), Quinn's story-line is just asking for trouble. For the first time in a really long time, Dexter episodes are complete and not just 20 minutes of content you care about with the rest being fast-forwarded.

-The story is developing at a good pace

A lot of people who watch the show complained that the second episode of the season was a major disappointment. In some sense they had a point. The episode did not really have much action and focused more on the characters and their development. So why did I still enjoy it? Because unlike other seasons' this was actually interesting. It is fun watching a story grow into something bigger (a simple 'Dexter' kill that leads to Ukrainian mob bosses coming to Miami for example).

That is all I will choose to comment on at this time about Dexter, as you can see, I will probably write about the show a lot more.

Arrow

Based on the popular DC comics character "Green Arrow" This is a new show on the CW (think Smallville) that takes a darker and more gritty approach to a super hero story (I know, I know shocking). To be fair, the original story is pretty dark in itself so this is not much of a reach at all, in fact, it works really well. For those of you who don't know: "Green Arrow" is the super-hero identity of one Oliver Queen (Bruce Wayne without the dead parents). There are a lot of variations to his origin so I will keep it basic. Essentially, Queen is left for dead in the middle of the Ocean, betrayed by the same men who betrayed his father, he washes up on an island and has to learn how to survive. For five long years he hunts, builds arrows, and forages on the unknown island until he notices a ship and promptly signals to be rescued. The experience on the island changed him vastly. No longer will he squander his wealth on partying, but will instead seek to avenge his father by bringing an end to the corruption of Star City (basically Gotham). Sounds cool right? Here is a trailer if you aren't convinced.

The best part? The writers have promised that other DC universe characters (Batman, Superman, Flash, Green Lantern to name a few) will be making appearances in the show and will probably be significant parts of the story. For now I am definitely in on arrow.

So this took up a lot more space than I initially imagined, so I will make this a 2-part feature! I will leave you with this clip from South Park that just screams awesome.