Hey, he recently disposed of a body (the prisoner Wells killed) and it doesn't seem to have phased him at all, so there's definitely reason for concern.

OK, but that's still prioritizing Cisco's feelings over Caitlin's feelings. Even if Cisco's behavior is understandable, the fact that nobody points out to him that he is being massively selfish puts the burden of worrying about his feelings on Caitlin's shoulders at a time when she's struggling with enormous pain.

the fact that they resolved it by having Caitlin make the point that she's free to grieve as she will was very welcome

After a brief respite, I see it's time to return to our corner, "boy, The Flash really does seem to hate women!" This week: Cisco feels free to police the feelings and behavior of his friend (I'm sorry, "friend") Caitlin, after she loses her second lover in the space of a single year, because said behavior is making h…

To me the crucial issue is whether the writers are able to convince me that a situation truly exists in which there are no good choices, or whether I can see their finger on the narrative scale, pushing events in the direction they want them to go. Children of Earth is a good example of that sort of thing working,…

You know, I say this as someone who works in STEM, who tends to enjoy depictions of engineers and their work in fiction, and who enjoyed that depiction in The Martian as well, but I still don't think that buys the film its place on the Oscar ballot. Like pretty much everything else about it, I found the effect of its…

And even when she makes the wrong choices, there's a refreshing lack of judgment. I'm struggling to think of another recent story where the heroine cheats (or almost cheats) on her loving partner and is depicted with so much understanding and compassion.

I'm a lot less charmed by so-called "moral ambiguity," which is usually just a gloss for lazy writing in which people do awful, often stupid things with no consequences. My main problem with stories like this is that, flawed as they are, there's usually a good reason why we have the laws and values that we have. …

I haven't seen The Revenant, but I liked Brooklyn a lot, and I think I'd argue for it more than The Martian. Yes, it's very slight, but it's stuck with me more, and I also think it has an importance that The Martian lacks. At a time when immigrants are being demonized at every turn, it feels valuable to tell a…

Well, then let's just not have a justice system at all! Personally, I think accusing someone of kidnapping and murdering half a dozen young women would take a little bit more to clear up than a golf game with the judge, but either way, the possibility that a person might be found innocent in a court of law isn't a…

Good on Supergirl for being the first in the seemingly endless barrage of superhero shows to grasp that throwing people in prison without trial or any hope of release is really messed up, and not in any way heroic. I could have done without the distinction the episode draws between the false imprisonment of humans…

I enjoyed The Martian a lot, but to me it's the epitome of forgettable. There's really nothing about it that lingers, even a few days after watching it. It deserved the acclaim and success it received, but its presence on the best picture ballot is indefensible.

I'm inclined to blame the script for that more than the actor. There's simply nothing there as far as the character's inner life or feelings about living so near to the edge for so long are concerned. Damon was brought in to do what he does best - be affable and everymanish - and he delivered, but it's the film and…

In general, I wonder how well the Peter David tie-in novels hold up. They were amazing when I was a teenager, but I'm not sure I'd want to revisit them now.

Hurrah for Lwaxana Troi-positivity! Too many people dismiss the character because her early appearances were so awful, but she was much improved in later episodes, and anyway there should always be room in the future for loopy, horny old ladies who are much savvier than they let on.

But they chose to give her those powers in the first place.

Oh, good, we've come full circle.

Whereas a 30ish woman as the mother of a 20ish woman doesn't look ridiculous at all.

And age-appropriate to each other too, right? But was the show ever going to cast a 50ish woman as Skye's mother, and a 30ish man as her father?

Counterpoint: if you're Jewish, it's kind of nice not to have to choose between watching a great movie, and giving your money and support to an admitted, unrepentant anti-semite. Giving your money and support to an actor who is, by all accounts, a total mensch is icing on the cake.