Life: I Heart Mom
By fred | February 19, 2009
(S02E15) There’s talk about American Idol moving up to 9.00 and facing Life (among others), and while I’m sure this won’t have any impact on a third season of the show (never gonna happen, not a chance, sorry), I’m wondering whether it could lead NBC to reconsider things, and either move the show once again, or even decide not to air all the remaining episodes. I would hope not, but then again it’s NBC.
Also, as much as I would hate for that to happen, I have to admit I wouldn’t feel as devastated as I would have been one year ago, or as I was when the first season was cut down due to the strike. Last week I mentioned already how this show had changed between this season and the first, and how it wasn’t the same, and I feel I have to come back to it with this episode.
This show changed, it certainly isn’t the brilliant thing it used to be then, and it lost a lot, too. For different reasons this episode had me think about that again, and I ended up really sad about it…
This episode could be cut in three parts, three different plots/stories that took place during this hour, and that eventually were all a sign of how much we’ve lost this season.
First off we have Ted. Poor Ted, stuck in a big empty house with nothing to do. Literally, the writers don’t know what to do with him, but he’s here, and since neither Charlie’s father not Olivia seems to be coming back, now writers are puling off the daughter card. Simply put, this was some useless boring crap, filler to give Arkin something to do to justify his paycheck, but nothing more.
It’s always been a problem, to find a way to use Ted, but that whole thing with his daughter was mean, odd, and didn’t serve any purpose really. Writers just don’t know what to do with him, sometimes he’s a teacher, sometimes he’s in love, sometimes he’s in jail, just anything they can come up with… and the last thing they thought of, yet another broken family because we’ve never seen that before, was just useless.
Moving on, the conspiracy was back — or was it? Rayborn keeps being this annoying guy who plays with Charlie and teases him without ever giving away any real info, and by the end we didn’t really learn anything new. Maybe he did say more to Charlie, maybe not, either way as far as we’re concerned there wasn’t much new, expect maybe how Roman fit in that big picture — but even that was very very little.
It seems we’re not going anywhere with this, and now instead of looking into the conspiracy that sent him in jail, the people who destroyed his life, Charlie might be looking in Rayborn’s (probable) murder. I’m sure whoever is behind it is linked to the conspiracy, but that looks more and more like Charlie is simply working another case on the side and outside of the law, than his own personal quest for revenge as it used to be.
It just doesn’t have the same impact. At all. And, why the Hell did that security women came exactly? She’s got no authority to investigate the murder, I’m guessing whether or not she/they catch who killed their client, they still failed and need to pay the $15 million, and I’m sure she doesn’t really think it was Charlie. Come on, Charlie would never be as stupid as kill the guy, on his boat where they were meeting, and leave such a mess behind him.
At best it’s either a big game by Rayborn, but that seems just stupid, or she was just “recruiting” Charlie to investigate the murder, because… I don’t know, maybe she doesn’t fully trust her own people. Whatever, I really don’t care that much, as this whole thing seems so far away from Charlie and his years behind bars, what makes him who he is.
I think I’m too attached to this show.
I’m trying to think that its end is so near to come I should avoid this attachement and…on Sundays and Mondays it works…but then Tuesdays come and they are like X’mas Eve for me, and each and every Wednesdays I fall in love again with it.
Sorry for these random thoughts but it’s exactly how I feel. Confused. Happy but sad.
I’d like to see so many things happen on this show, but I know I’m not going to see anything because it’s destined to end. Damn!
:(
Anyway,
The best part in this ep for me?
The jealousy.
Tidwell, Crews, Reese: they all felt jealousy in this ep, and not only “love” jealousy.
And I’m so sad because even in this ep Crews pointed out how it will be having “Reese with no Crews”, how it *will* be when they’ll be teared away from each other.
Sad. That’s how it will be.
This is the last season? We all know it, do you think the writers and the producers have some glimpse of hope?…because I was thinking: why they don’t simply use Sarah’s pregnancy into the show at this point? I mean, if it’s going to end I’d like to see at least one “happy ending”..of course you *know* what I’m talking about…and if you don’t, here’s what I’d like to see:
*Dani realizes she is pregnant and as Tidwell is the only man she’s making love/sex with, he is the father.
She doesn’t want to tell Tidwell and she doesn’t want the baby.
Somehow or other Tidwell becomes aware of that fact.
He’s very happy to have this baby: for him it’s like a dream become true, he loves her very much and he desperately wants to start a family with her.
Tidwell faces Dani, he tells her he loves her more than his own life.
She leaves him.
Angst, oh so much angst.
Crews finds Dani and talks to her.
She doesn’t want to listen.
He keeps talking over and over and over again ‘zenning’ her.
Dani kicks him off the room, but his words find their way into her heart.
Dani shows up at Tidwell’s door.
Tidwell is in his apartment, standing face to face with her. She frowns, she has something to say to him but she has never said a thing like this, maybe she has never *thought* a thing like this before, so she doesn’t know how to start saying it.
He stares at her trying not to take her in his arms, not to hold her close to him: the hard ones for the hard ones.
Then Dani pronounce his name for the first time: “Kevin, I love you.”
Tidwell grabs her, carries her in his bedroom and doesn’t answer her with words.
AND THEY GET MARRIED.*
I said that. I FINALLY said that.
I feel much better.
You don’t, I know ;)
kudos to a very well written post. Sometimes I think i’m an intelligent person then I read stuff like this and realize I need to read a lot more books..lol (nice work)
As for the show, I agree and disagree, I still love Life and Charlie and Dani and even tidwell, but I see what youre saying. I watched season 1 over this xmas break and while i see some differences, I honestly haven’t noticed it as much as you say. The one thing that really sets apart this show (besides lewis being a great actor) are the great scenes get every epsiode. Of course the beginning when then find the body is awways great, but then other parts, like when the clocks went off in the shop or when there is a busload of bikers in the station or even crews eating a scorpion to get more answers.
All in all, I’m resigned that it wont return as this has happened to me plenty of times in the past (3 that passed way too early, traveller, daybreak and journeyman), but I’m gonna hope that they at least let us finish out this season.
Once again, great post, thanks.
@citisol: Well, I’m glad you feel better, but I’m also glad you’re not a writer on the show..? Nope, that marriage really isn’t something I would like to see happening. I’m just starting to accept Tidwell, let’s not rush ;)
@thecritic: Thanks :) Well, I feel there’s a real difference between S1 and S2. Even between episodes like this one, and Not For Nothing, with the “Prison Experiment.” This one (minus the crap with Tidwell) was I think the closest to what S1 felt like, you could clearly see again that intensity, the duality in Charlie, his pain & anger & raging violence contained inside.
Whether it was when walking in a “prison” again, letting the sun finally shinning in, rushing to the outside eating fruits, of course his talk with the kid at the end (”You don’t have to be there“), or even exchange like this one:
Charlie: You want the short answer or the long answer?
Frat boy: Short.
Charlie: Because.
Frat boy: Okay, the long.
Charlie: Because I’m about three seconds from deciding that I just do not like you.
And you can’t tell me you didn’t notice how different Dani is, too?? I mean not just the look, but how she used to be this complex, layered characters with her own demons, and now she’s just this happy & in love with her boss girl who, expect maybe for one episode or two this season, you’d think doesn’t really have any such trouble…
PS: hope you got to watch the show as it aired, not the rerun/DVD version where the music is all wrong! God I still can’t stop being mad angry at NBC for this shit!!