Wallace & Gromit's Grand Adventures: The Last Resort

The Last Resort wasn't quite as fun as the first episode, but it was still a very enjoyable continuation of the series. It starts out with Wallace and Gromit turning their basement into a beach resort to help the people in town escape the poor English weather, but takes a turn for the more interesting when a newly introduced Scottish douche of a character gets knocked on the head and a whodunit begins. I probably would have preferred it if there was an actual mystery to the culprit and you had to figure out who with clues and such, but gathering the evidence needed to prove your suspect guilty is still a really cool way to use the adventure game system. A couple aspects were a bit unintuitive but for the most part I'm really enjoying the puzzles in this series, more than in Telltale's other episodic adventures by at least a little bit anyway. All the new human characters they created for the games can be a little long-winded from time to time, but I still like the expansion of the world. I still have to see the theatrical film, actually. I was such a fan of the earlier shorts that I feel a bit ashamed for having not seen it yet. I should get on that.

Scrubs - Season 8

It's still not clear whether this was an end to the series or just the series as we know it, with the possibility still existing for it to go on in another form without Zach Braff and some other big cast members. In any case, it was a nice send off for the show and Braff's character in particular, if it perhaps tried a bit too hard to tug on the heartstrings in the final sequence. Scrubs has been a great series, and while it's declined in the last few years, I'm going to miss it when it's gone. Even if it does continue, without JD it's hard to even call it the same show, and I'm not sure if I'll watch it if it sticks around.

Overall, like the last couple years on NBC, the season had plenty of moments, but it wasn't the consistently hilarious show it used to be. A big theme through the season was change, as most of the main characters got promotions, went to the next level in a relationship, or moved away. Even a whipping boy like Ted saw some emotional maturing. It seemed like they decided to spend the time they had setting things up to show how everything was changing, and how even if we won't be seeing these characters anymore, they'll continue to grow and live their lives like normal people. That all certainly took the forefront over silly jokes, in any case. I generally liked what they did with everyone, and it seemed like a natural way to wrap up a show that's always had a more serious, sentimental side beyond the humor. It was a little ham handed at times, but always fun to watch.

Angel - Season 2

Angel's second season expands naturally on the first, as his crew gets a little larger while he continues to kill a bunch of demons. There's much more of a real story arc through the whole thing, and an awful lot of the season is not spent following the status quo of the cast being paranormal investigators for hire. A character brought back at the end of the first run is the focus of most of Angel's attention for a long while, and a lot of time is spent with him estranged from everyone else and not really being himself. It was sort of interesting for them to go in that direction this relatively early in a series, although it's not too terribly long before he's back to where he was, just in time for another unusual storyline.

The last several episodes revolve around a plot involving portals to another dimension stuck in a medieval society where humans are slaves, and brings in two main characters, one of which who already appeared frequently since the season premiere. Lorne is a green-skinned, lounge singing demon with special mental abilities, and is a pretty likable character considering how cheesy that sounds. Wesley and Gunn both have bigger parts this time, though I can't really say I totally like either yet. Fred is the late addition, and so far she seems pretty entertaining. She's played by Amy Acker, who also has an increasingly interesting part on Dollhouse. Whedon's shows seem strongest when there is a sizable, fun cast, and Angel is definitely building towards something there. It's not great, but the first 44 episodes kept me reasonably entertained enough to keep watching.

Important Things with Demetri Martin - Season 1

For a while I wasn't sure if they were just taking a break from new episodes or if the first season was over. Apparently it's over. There's only seven episodes, but they show a lot of promise for a pretty enjoyable series with a nice mix of stand up and sketch comedy. Demetri Martin is one of my favorite current comedians, and he uses the show as a nice outlet for his material. I've definitely seen some of the jokes before, some of which are a bit of a stretch to fit the given theme, but it's not the sort of stand up that gets old quickly.

Each episode focuses on one important thing, like chairs or the concept of power. He bounces back and forth between telling jokes to a live audience, often accompanied by his trademark large notepad or a guitar, and pre-filmed segments featuring some funny cameos by guys like H. Jon Benjamin who's done a voice on practically every Adult Swim show and John Oliver from The Daily Show. The longer parts are often transitioned between with shorter bits, some of which are crudely animated. It's not really typical skit material, as Demetri spoofs on famous historical figures and philosophers as often as anything else. Not every sketch is a winner, but enough of them work that if you've ever enjoyed his comedy, the show is worth checking out.