The lesson TV taught me this week is that there is no “right way” to go about anything. Any approach to problems or life has drawbacks, and there is no perfect plan.
How I Met Your Mother
Lily calls Ted and Zoey’s relationship “exhausting,” while Ted says it’s merely “challenging.” Ted counters that Lily and Marshall never disagree about anything (I would like to challenge that statement, because we’ve seen Marshall and Lily fight, most notably about her going to art school, which led to their breakup). Anyway, Lily says that she and Marshall like to support each other, which is good for Marshall since he just quit his job at GNB to volunteer at the NRDC. Lily: I support you, baby!
I am going to skip the whole Barney revenge plotline because WHAT THE WHAT was that, writers!?!
Ted concedes that being in a supportive relationship might be better than constantly battling with your girlfriend. Lily offers that while Ted and Zoey have a different relationship than her and Marshall’s, it doesn’t mean it’s worse. However, constant support is possibly unworkable, as well, as we see when Lily is so frustrated by Marshall’s lack of income (and lack of interest in continuing to try to have a baby!) that she nearly jets off to Spain. In the end, Lily chooses to continue to support Marshall, who decides to find a paying job to ease the burden on their finances and relationship. Sometimes I find Marshall and Lily irritating, but this was not one of those times. We really got a glimpse into all the issues they’ve been dealing with as a couple and how it’s affecting them and their marriage.
Castle
The Mystery of the Week was nice and twisty, but ultimately I was disappointed this week. There were a few things I did enjoy, however. I liked Castle’s distress at learning that his protégé was “stealing [his] muse.” And I’m sure there were a million squeals heard across America when Castle confessed to Beckett: “I want you all to myself.” I also liked seeing the poker game again. The empty chair memorial made me well up a bit. If you don’t know who Stephen J. Cannell is, well, you’re probably not as obsessed with pop culture as I am (but in The Rockford Files, the man was impressive!).
This exchange best describes my own writing process for this blog post:
Castle: “He wanted to learn about my writing process.”
Martha: “And by process you mean your procrastinating until the last minute?”
Alexis: “And then writing out of a desperate panic in a caffeine-induced haze?”
Martha: “That one?”
Castle: “No. Not that one.”
Parenthood
On Tuesday, Parenthood was all about how much freedom parents should give their kids as they navigate adolescence. Amber has been spiraling out of control since being rejected by Berkley. She’s doing drugs with the valet guy from Julia’s office (played by Scott Michael Foster, aka Cappie from Greek!). The mother/daughter fight before Amber took off with him was an epic showdown, with Sarah ending up face down in the yard.
Christina and Adam are trying to responsibly guide their daughter through taking her relationship with Alex to the next level. For now, they’ve opted for openness and honesty with an emphasis on safety. I love the conversation between Sarah and Adam near the end of the episode. Sarah has traditionally taken a more hands-off approach to raising her children, and while they’ve had troubles, both Amber and Drew seem to be pretty decent kids. Adam and Christina — Christina in particular — have been extremely hands on, and both Haddie and Max have thrived. Now they are each questioning their methods, and neither one seems to be right. That’s one of the things this show is so good at: showing that relationships between humans, related or not, are complicated and there is no one answer for how to handle them. I cannot wait for next week!
Justified
Last night was my favorite night for TV. Justified is easily my favorite thing out there right now. This week was a bit slower than last week’s episode, but it feels like things are being set into place for a showdown: Mags vs. Harlan; Dickie vs. Boyd; and Raylan in the middle of it all somehow. This means there is no telling who hired the two mysterious gunmen.
We learned just how much Art knows about Winona and the money. Moreover, Winona knows that Raylan loves her and is ready to settle down. Speaking of romantic pairings, apparently Boyd’s new enterprise is a big turn on for Ava, who finally planted a big one on him. It was nice to see Loretta wasn’t just disappearing after the last episode, and I loved how Raylan talked her out of getting into the social worker’s car. I’m looking forward to seeing how everything unfolds, but I have to say, I’m not a huge fan of Raylan and Winona settling down.
