Martha giving up on the foster kids was a pretty good indication that, in her mind at least, this ends with a murder/suicide.

Yeah, they really needed the high-tech gauntlets to "contain" those "gifts." All the geniuses at SHIELD, and no one thought to bend, dull, or simply snap off those scalpel blades.

"But here's the thing: Yes, the big reveal centered around Howard Stark. But it didn't have to."

I kind of think the opposite. Networks like NBC and the CW get the most out of prestige, since unsuccessful networks have to work as much to change their brand as to grow their ratings. Even though Hannibal draws minuscule ratings, it helps NBC's reputation that they have (and keep) a critically acclaimed, cutting…

Hannibal is one of those series that shows off why Noel's system of categorization isn't very useful (at least in its current form). Hannibal should be right in mid-reputable's wheelhouse: it's clearly got prestige production values and artistic aims (serious actors in the cast, high-culture references to art and…

I agree that Dushku was the weakest lead…up until Bennet and Agents of SHIELD. But for all of Dushku's limitations, and the folly of casting her in a role that required Tatiana Maslani-like range, Dushku has intensity and charisma, which are two things Bennet struggles with. I think Oliver put it best when he was…

Is it bad that when she got cocooned I immediately thought — "YES! You have the perfect opportunity to re-cast this role! Take it!"? I was totally hoping that the Skye that came out of the cocoon would be portrayed by a different actress, Dr. Who-style, courtesy of the transformative powers of the Terrigen mists.

Battlestar Galactica reference?

I kinda wanna bet that Christian's not dead…

Stop using Siri to make your phone calls, casting agents!

I'm pretty sure that's not how it works. Marvel only created the character in the first place because Stan Lee was worried someone else would take the name (and trademark) if they didn't make a character first.

The one I was going to go with as a really early episode, where Monk's upset because he's been jerked around about getting reinstated to the police force. He's been ordered off the case they're investigating, he's been publicly humiliated, and he's vacuuming his apartment because, y'know, OCD.

If we're going to be earnest here, the thing I most admire about Todd is that he's open-minded as to his approach as well as the subject matter. When he first took over the Mad Men writeups, he was reviewing two or three other Sunday night shows, and since Mad Men doesn't do screeners the reviews felt rushed and…

I agree, but that refusal to give answers has to be earned—the idea that the answers aren't the point should be consistent. I think we're hard on entertainments which suddenly shift in the final act or chapter from "Solve the mystery!" to "You know what? The mystery was never what was important."

This is what happens when you can't fight DISQUS past the first three or four hundred comments on each of the "Todd's leaving" threads.

"Where's Todd taking the fax machine? Why's he carrying a baseball bat? Why's 'It Feels Good to be a Gangsta' playing in the background?"

Going to Ezra Klein's Vox Media.

And BOOM! Just like that, he drops the mike.

You might be right that by the end of Columbo's run, the schtick had grown tiresome, but that's just because over 68 performances and thirty someodd years a character goes stale. Early Columbo is a thing of beauty, however, and even the later eps had some inspired moments.

Nah, he's off because the writing's terrible. Sometimes, when we want to reply "no" to whether something is well written, my brother and I will quote the reveal of this episode: "He said 'T'isn't.' It isn't. It. Is not."