Bert Vandecasteele

Author: Bert

  • Fringe 405 – Novation

    “What’s an observer?” (Astrid)

    So Peter’s back. Now obviously, you can’t have him immediately be part of the group again. Things just can’t be the way they were – after all, Olivia is a top-secret FBI agent and Peter… well, he’s a nobody found in a lake. If I were Olivia, I’d do one thing to this strange guy who seems to know the darkest secrets of the agency as well as the colour of my underwear: lock him up. But then how do you solve that impasse? Simple: you make sure Peter has something they need.

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  • Boardwalk Empire 205 – Gimcrack and Bunkum

    “Would you fight for me?” (Richard)

    I think it was when Jimmy got hit in the face with a cane I sensed this would not be a regular episode. And true enough: what started as a sneaky suspicion slowly grew into full-grown shock as the episode went on. Suddenly, we were treated with slap in the face after slap in the face. I think there’s no better time than now to utter the legendary term shock and awe.

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  • Arrested Development

    “Michael, you are not quite the ladies man I had pictured. Hopefully, we will remedy that when we are in the spa spreading body chocolate on each other.” (Tobias)

    Arrested Development is nothing but a comedy legend. Always pushing the envelope, this absurd show about a wealthy family who lost everything (and their one son who had to keep them all together) was canceled halfway into its third season. Just when it was at its peak. Oh FOX.

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  • Boardwalk Empire 204 – What Does the Bee Do?

    “I didn’t spend my life getting groped by a bunch of drunks to wind up in a goddamn poor house.” (Gillian)

    What an unexpected episode. Like a fait divers, we got treated to a season changer in the form of a stroke. What happens in a world like Boardwalk Empire’s when the king falls?* The pawns start rearranging themselves. Everyone starts looking at the queen. Which is exactly what this episode does.

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  • Downton Abbey 102

    “What’s a weekend?” (Violet)

    This week focused on a battle that’s been as old as the industrial revolution: city versus country. As Matthew, the rightful heir to the fortune, arrived at the abbey, this conflict was unfolded in a typical – but very charming – matter. And where, at first, Matthew didn’t want a butler, he quickly learned that not everything revolves around him.

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  • Boardwalk Empire 203 – A Dangerous Maid

    “I will ruin you.” (Nucky)

    Allow me to start this review with a sexist statement: the first thing I noticed about this episode that it was directed by a woman: Susanna White. Immediately, my mind started racing: what could a female touch mean for a male-oriented series like Boardwalk Empire? One sub-plot later, I found out the answer.

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  • Downton Abbey 101

    “No one wants to kiss a girl in black.” (Violet)

    I’m always hesitant to try a period piece. While they might be nice to look at, there’s usually an overflow of dialogue and not nearly enough action to keep things going. I don’t mean I want to see explosions – I just want the damn actors to move around now and again. At a first glance, itv’s upstairs-downstairs-based period drama Downton Abbey might pull that off. One reason: telling an upstairs-downstairs story usually involves taking stairs.

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  • Fringe 404 – Subject 9

    “An idea I got from the fight scene in the Matrix.” (Walter)

    What a weird episode. I’m not entirely sure whether I’m happy about it or not. We’ve got treated to another Cortexikid (or whatever I should call it), but in the end it was all a big hoax to set up a cliffhanger. A delightful cliffhanger, sure, but a thirty minute-long red herring? Meh. Colour me unimpressed.

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  • Boardwalk Empire 202: Ourselves Alone

    “Look around, big brother. What do you got?” (Eli)

    What a bad-ass follower to the stunning season 2 premiere. A bit more action, a bit more plot and a little faster narrative tempo was all it needed, apparently. It gives us the impression more things are going on in one episode – even if they’re really not. In fact, this episode completely ignored one thing constantly criticized about the series: the uneven focus on its main characters. Which I gladly care nothing about.

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  • Tangled

    “They just can’t get my nose right! ” (Flynn Rider)

    Disney’s been in a rut lately. It’s not an eighties-type rut, as they seem to be doing okay money-wise, but creative they just have been dropping the ball so much it’s getting harder and harder to take them seriously. The Princess and the Frog, an absolutely stellar movie, showed us that Disney is at best when it doesn’t try to reinvent itself. Movies like Tangled, however, show they haven’t given up on trying. And when you try too hard, you tend to make things even worse.

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