Was it fun while it lasted? The second, and final, season just ended, not with a bang but a whimper,...whimper(s) actually, but as Doctor Who's [Link removed - login to see] would say "spoilers!" In an odd way, having only two seasons highlights a show that was more Jekyll and Hyde than Watson and Holmes. A first season marked by the malevolent and shadowy character Moriarty, long the antagonist in Holmesian legend was replaced by the patricidal and anti-social Dr. Ingrid Derian. The cliffhanger of Season 1 was, at best, a blink and you'll miss it mention by the beginning of Season 1. The "was he/wasn't he" reappearance of Sherlock Holmes, and an a major shift in focus into the lives of the Watson fellowship marked the tone of second season. But, as I predicted, the end truly was a poor player that strutted and fretted it hour upon the stage and signified nothing.
Exunt

Too much artificial, not enough intelligence. It was like playing a video game that you have no control over.

Ugh! 7 episodes in and I am reminded why I prefer [Link removed - login to see] over the dreck that's come out of Hollywood in the past years. An American-ized remake of the beloved drama [Link removed - login to see] it fails on almost every level. In the UK, Portwenn was a charming, quiet Cornish village. In the US, Port Wenn is a hyperactive little village in Maine, where the idiots have never left for greener pastures.
[Link removed - login to see] and [Link removed - login to see] adequately fill the main roles of Doc Martin and his love interest, Louisa. And that's where the American version goes off the rails:
- The initial "meet cute" moment between Martin and Louisa occurs during his interview to replace the now-deceased town doctor. Unless Maine has moved to government-run medicine (like the UK), why is he being interviewed by the town's leadership and not a healthcare system? A plot contrivance that was shoehorned into this to copy the UK version?
- The assistant in Martin's office? In the UK, over the years, two characters filled the role, each with their own personal foibles. The US version, it's a hyperactive chipmunk addicted to social media as her way out of the town.
- The local cop? In the UK version, he was bumbling, well-meaning, socially-awkward, but went about with a quiet dependability. In the US, he's a hyperactive mash-up of a B-level character from [Link removed - login to see] and [Link removed - login to see]
- His aunt? In the UK version, she's a local fixture, a quiet matron and gentlewomen. In the US, she's a hyperactive town figure, played almost to typecast by [Link removed - login to see]
- The local restaurant/center of town society? In the UK, it was run by a father/son scheming duo, always chasing the latest get-rich-quick idea to improve their station in life. In the US version, the restaurant is owned by a same-sex, AND bi-racial couple of, you guessed it, hyperactive over-the-top stereotypical queens direct from LGBTQ central casting (not that there's anything wrong with that,...)
The romance between Martin and Louisa was a slow-burn that built up over the years in the UK version. In the US, Martin is already pining for Louisa in a quiet (for a change) sort of way.
Where it fails the most? Every episode so far seems centered around some major annual festival or event, designed to highlight the "eccentricity" (in a hyperactive way) and uniqueness of the town.
I doubt this show will make it through a full season, but given the dumbing-down of US commercial television, who knows?

No! Just "no!" [Link removed - login to see] was enough of a visual abortion, why try to mind-meld it with [Link removed - login to see] Clearly a pilot for a planned series that everyone with an IQ above a Tribble knew would fail, it was rolled into an incoherent mess and a mockery of all things Trek! Someone give the producers a Vulcan neck pinch if they ever think of making a sequel!

Hey, is there a doctor in this [Link removed - login to see]
If [Link removed - login to see] got admitted, would they still be dead?
The House MD comparisons are obvious:
Genius doctor with crippling injuries? Check!
Former lover now in a position of authority over our medical hero? Check!
Arguing policy with same said lover as a form of sexual tension? Check!
Hero doctor leads a group of young, genius medical fellows, each with their own agendas and backstory? Check!
The conceit of Watson is this: John Watson, companion and chronicler of Sherlock Holmes, is the sole survivor of Holmes' final battle with Moriarty. Recovered from a traumatic brain injury, Watson now leads a Holmes-funded specialty clinic at the fictional University of Pittsburgh Hospital (UHOP), headed by his ex-wife, Mary Morstan.
The episodes are standard medical-related boiler plate issue. Only one episode, [Link removed - login to see] involved an actual crime and introduced us to the Holmesian character, Inspector Lestrade, which leads me to my "Rosencrantz" callback: Holmes' former lover and con artist, Irene Adler, drops by, hinting at the possibility that Holmes survived. Shadowy characters, all being blackmailed by an evil incarnate we're led to believe is Moriarty, bedevil Watson and Co., leading to a season-ending cliffhanger. As we move into Season 2 this fall, we are left to wonder if this show will develop it's own identity or, as said in [Link removed - login to see]: “Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player,
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more. It is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing.”
Exeunt

Set against the economic battles and general anti-Japanese sentiment of the late-80s and early-90s, (even [Link removed - login to see] briefly touched on it before the mayhem ensued), Black Rain and it's nearly-identical plot twin, [Link removed - login to see] stirred the pot, using a veil of mystery surrounding Japanese culture as a plot mechanism, to push a pro-American point-of-view. Dated for it's plot and, given how much the world has opened in the digital age, it's interesting in the way we look at those buried time capsules after they're unearthed.

What the (bleep)?? The movies my daughter and son-in-law watch (I blame her pregnancy cravings)! Did Chucky from [Link removed - login to see] have a sex change, or is M3GAN his offspring with Tiffany from [Link removed - login to see] Either way, Johanlefourbe's [Link removed - login to see] was spot-on with the theme of AI's power in the wrong hands. And, of course, with low-brow stuff like this, the producers will likely milk a few sequels before the glow wears off.

Also known as "Star Trek: The After School Special." In an initial season wracked with production changes and poor scripts, this one stands out for it's Nancy Reagan-esque "Just say no!" theme, as Wesley Crusher gets the "drugs are bad, m'kay" talk and Picard initiates a planet-wide case of withdrawal to preserve the Prime Directive. Trekkies will take note of the casting callback, featuring [Link removed - login to see] and [Link removed - login to see] both playing significant supporting roles in Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan!

The epitome of the phrase "video killed the radio star," Romeo Void, a new-wave band out of the San Francisco Bay area, was on the rise with their hit "Never Say Never." The risqué lyrics were sung by their lead vocalist, Debora Iyall, a sultry-voiced, Rubenesque Native American woman. But this was 1981,...no social media support, no Spotify or Apple Music here! Just the radio and an up-and-coming cable channel that played "music videos" 24/7. And thus began the band's downfall. Expecting some svelte eye candy, Iyall's looks proved to be something of a turnoff to many and Romeo Void's popularity tanked, leading to their breakup in 1985.

As with many "prequels" and "origins stories," there's always the inherent pitfall of deviating from canon. In my younger days, I spent many nights in the fire department on nightwatch reading the original Dune and Dune Messiah, and partially completed Children of Dune before love and marriage got in the way. As bitterly disappointed I was with the [Link removed - login to see] bastardization of the novel, I thoroughly enjoyed the first 2 parts of the current remaking of Dune. With that in mind, I never read [Link removed - login to see] and only have the current movies as a framework. Even with the residual HBO "Game of Thrones" vibe (imagine the Harkonnens as a lesser house in Westeros, looking to advance to the Iron Throne), this was a thoroughly enjoyable series and I'm looking forward to Season 2.