all about the endings
Writing about television again mostly due to my own bleak real life and, also, TV is what I do best.
Recently "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" came to its conclusion as its original fans know it: the departures of Rossi, Goren, and Eames. It was a disappointing two-part farewell episode to Vincent D'Onofrio, Kathryn Erbe, and Eric Bogosian.
Sadly for we CI fans, their ends came at the hands of diabolical Somali Pirates. I'm not even kidding. Now, don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with Jeff Goldblum. I even grew to enjoy his half of episodes last season, but this show is, was, and will always be Vincent D'Onofrio's. The reason the split season with Chris Noth worked as well as it did was due to Chris Noth never aping D'Onofrio's eccentric character, Goren. Jeff Goldblum's character does have this eccentric personality thing going on that is similar to Goren, but it pales in comparison to the psychological-driven interrogations or story arcs that Bobby used to have. The episodes with Olivia D'Abo as his Moriarity, the arc of his schizophrenic brother & mother being introduced, the revelation that his father was a serial killer (played by Roy Scheider!...I mean, come on...those scenes were amazing.
I know it is the nature of Law and Order to change characters and being a fan of the shows means you must adapt, but CI was always unique in the way that the characters drove the story to its conclusion. It just doesn't hold up that the trio's demise would be the result of Somali Pirates living in NYC. It should have been a serial killer or an evil genius, you know, someone worthy of Goren's amazing intellect and intuitiveness. Then to make matters worse, NYPD promotes Eames and her first assignment is to fire Bobby (again, I'm not kidding). She then resigns?!? Someone (sorry, I can't remember who) wrote that they hope she applies for Van Buren's job once this season of "Law & Order" original recipe ends since Epatha Merkeson has said she's leaving. Still would it have killed Dick Wolf to let her become the Captain over the new detectives? They also sacrificed much of Goren's screen time by suspending him in the second hour then introducing Jeff Goldblum's gorgeous new partner (yawn). There was a very emotional goodbye between Bobby & Eames where they embraced for a very long time, and Eames began to cry as did I. I always knew they were best friends as well as partners which was why Eames feelings of betrayal a couple of seasons ago when Bobby went undercover and didn't tell her was such a magnificent arc for the show.
A seven-minute emotional good-bye and hug between the two seminal characters on the most challenging and intelligent series of the "Law & Order" brand is an insult to all of its fans. Badly done, Dick Wolf, badly done.
My other rapidly ending series is "Lost". Now, I've said before that I don't really care about them answering everything, and I am all for enjoying the ride. But...but...I don't know...after all these years now you're going to tell me that the ghostly whispering was just dead souls who can't escape the island? Really? And they were warning them about The Others? (did I imagine Michael saying that?)Does that mean, like Michael, they had to commit a sin (?) or kill someone on the island? If so, Ben's soul is going to be a jungle whisperer for a long ass time. I mean he massacred an entire camp of Dharma Initiative members.
I loved the alternate timeline or flash sideways because I thought they were what happened to them if the plane had not crashed. Finding out that it's just an error that needs to be corrected is pissing me off. I'm not sure why I'm so angry about it, but it's like you're giving me a happy endings (Jack, Ben, Hurley) and then ripping them away from me.
I like my happy endings.
My last hope evidently is if the happy endings in the flash sideways are somehow granted upon the candidates if they ever make whatever fucking choice it is that Jacob wants them to make of their own free will. You know, when I start to talk or write about Lost, I start to sound like a crazy cat lady carrying on about her stories. Also, every time I make a damn guess about the show, I am always wrong. Except I don't really get how this island is not Purgatory. I know. I know. It will be revealed. Sure seems like Purgatory to me though.
My last ending is "Ugly Betty". Surprisingly, I never liked, watched, or even paid much attention to this show. I think I watched it once and the colors were too bright, the co-workers too mean, and, most importantly, there was too much Vanessa Williams (I hate her). However, I watched the last episode because, well, there was nothing else on, and I wanted to see if she got together with her boss since I was aware that the source material, telenovela 'Betty La Fea', concluded with the culmination of the boss/Betty relationship.
I thought it was amazing that I seemed to know exactly what was going on after four seasons without even watching one full episode (my only guess is that readng EW religiously provided me with four years of backstory), but, more importantly, it was a damn good farewell episode. I know that long-time fans of the show were upset that there was no kiss between Betty and Daniel, but, as an unbiased viewer, that was one of the most romantic moments I've ever seen on TV.
Betty's need for more in her professional life and her determination to grab it inspired Daniel to give up the magazine and her. He followed her to London...he FOLLOWED her to London, he tracked her down, he asked her out to dinner, he emphasized that he is no longer her boss and they are now equals, and, most importantly, he is staying in London. Also, he watched her walk away (le swoon). Ladies, I know a kiss would have been nice, probably hot, and a swoon-worthy end, but look at what her courage inspired in Daniel: respect, devotion, and love.
It almost made me wish that I had watched the damn show for the past four seasons, but then I remembered Vanessa Williams and breathed a sigh of relief.
the end
Recently "Law & Order: Criminal Intent" came to its conclusion as its original fans know it: the departures of Rossi, Goren, and Eames. It was a disappointing two-part farewell episode to Vincent D'Onofrio, Kathryn Erbe, and Eric Bogosian.
Sadly for we CI fans, their ends came at the hands of diabolical Somali Pirates. I'm not even kidding. Now, don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with Jeff Goldblum. I even grew to enjoy his half of episodes last season, but this show is, was, and will always be Vincent D'Onofrio's. The reason the split season with Chris Noth worked as well as it did was due to Chris Noth never aping D'Onofrio's eccentric character, Goren. Jeff Goldblum's character does have this eccentric personality thing going on that is similar to Goren, but it pales in comparison to the psychological-driven interrogations or story arcs that Bobby used to have. The episodes with Olivia D'Abo as his Moriarity, the arc of his schizophrenic brother & mother being introduced, the revelation that his father was a serial killer (played by Roy Scheider!...I mean, come on...those scenes were amazing.
I know it is the nature of Law and Order to change characters and being a fan of the shows means you must adapt, but CI was always unique in the way that the characters drove the story to its conclusion. It just doesn't hold up that the trio's demise would be the result of Somali Pirates living in NYC. It should have been a serial killer or an evil genius, you know, someone worthy of Goren's amazing intellect and intuitiveness. Then to make matters worse, NYPD promotes Eames and her first assignment is to fire Bobby (again, I'm not kidding). She then resigns?!? Someone (sorry, I can't remember who) wrote that they hope she applies for Van Buren's job once this season of "Law & Order" original recipe ends since Epatha Merkeson has said she's leaving. Still would it have killed Dick Wolf to let her become the Captain over the new detectives? They also sacrificed much of Goren's screen time by suspending him in the second hour then introducing Jeff Goldblum's gorgeous new partner (yawn). There was a very emotional goodbye between Bobby & Eames where they embraced for a very long time, and Eames began to cry as did I. I always knew they were best friends as well as partners which was why Eames feelings of betrayal a couple of seasons ago when Bobby went undercover and didn't tell her was such a magnificent arc for the show.
A seven-minute emotional good-bye and hug between the two seminal characters on the most challenging and intelligent series of the "Law & Order" brand is an insult to all of its fans. Badly done, Dick Wolf, badly done.
My other rapidly ending series is "Lost". Now, I've said before that I don't really care about them answering everything, and I am all for enjoying the ride. But...but...I don't know...after all these years now you're going to tell me that the ghostly whispering was just dead souls who can't escape the island? Really? And they were warning them about The Others? (did I imagine Michael saying that?)Does that mean, like Michael, they had to commit a sin (?) or kill someone on the island? If so, Ben's soul is going to be a jungle whisperer for a long ass time. I mean he massacred an entire camp of Dharma Initiative members.
I loved the alternate timeline or flash sideways because I thought they were what happened to them if the plane had not crashed. Finding out that it's just an error that needs to be corrected is pissing me off. I'm not sure why I'm so angry about it, but it's like you're giving me a happy endings (Jack, Ben, Hurley) and then ripping them away from me.
I like my happy endings.
My last hope evidently is if the happy endings in the flash sideways are somehow granted upon the candidates if they ever make whatever fucking choice it is that Jacob wants them to make of their own free will. You know, when I start to talk or write about Lost, I start to sound like a crazy cat lady carrying on about her stories. Also, every time I make a damn guess about the show, I am always wrong. Except I don't really get how this island is not Purgatory. I know. I know. It will be revealed. Sure seems like Purgatory to me though.
My last ending is "Ugly Betty". Surprisingly, I never liked, watched, or even paid much attention to this show. I think I watched it once and the colors were too bright, the co-workers too mean, and, most importantly, there was too much Vanessa Williams (I hate her). However, I watched the last episode because, well, there was nothing else on, and I wanted to see if she got together with her boss since I was aware that the source material, telenovela 'Betty La Fea', concluded with the culmination of the boss/Betty relationship.
I thought it was amazing that I seemed to know exactly what was going on after four seasons without even watching one full episode (my only guess is that readng EW religiously provided me with four years of backstory), but, more importantly, it was a damn good farewell episode. I know that long-time fans of the show were upset that there was no kiss between Betty and Daniel, but, as an unbiased viewer, that was one of the most romantic moments I've ever seen on TV.
Betty's need for more in her professional life and her determination to grab it inspired Daniel to give up the magazine and her. He followed her to London...he FOLLOWED her to London, he tracked her down, he asked her out to dinner, he emphasized that he is no longer her boss and they are now equals, and, most importantly, he is staying in London. Also, he watched her walk away (le swoon). Ladies, I know a kiss would have been nice, probably hot, and a swoon-worthy end, but look at what her courage inspired in Daniel: respect, devotion, and love.
It almost made me wish that I had watched the damn show for the past four seasons, but then I remembered Vanessa Williams and breathed a sigh of relief.
the end
