kcksu Reviews

Suits: We're Done (2014) Season 4, Episode 7

Nauseatingly Maudlin and Cliché

[2/10 · 1 August 2014]

This is the worst episode of Suits I've ever watched, by miles and miles. What a load of emotional drivel. It's as if the episode was written specifically for a pack of hormonally-challenged 13-year old kids. That's about the maturity level every character displayed. What was Dianne Clarizzio (sp?), the writer, thinking? I can't even.... I completely regret having wasted every second that I did on this episode.

One of my pet peeves is a plot twist involving willful stupidity which is obviously written specifically for the purpose of creating drama. This sort of thing happened with frightening regularity in "We're Done." I like to watch characters evolve, but in this episode, they all devolved.

Bottom line: if you're thinking about watching this episode, do yourself a favor and watch something else instead...or better yet, read a book!

Remember Sunday (2013 TV Movie)

Writing & Acting is great, post-production suffers

[8/10 · 28 April 2013]

I love a good love story about imperfect people. This one is among the better ones, well-acted by leads Zachary Levi and Alexis Bledel, and a terrific supporting cast. Here's where it lost two stars for me. First, the writing is great, but I found the open ending unsatisfying. It feels kind of like the beginning all over again. I s'pose this type of ending works well with the overall theme of the movie, but...let's put it this way: with an ending like that, one can only hope there'll be a sequel!

Second, it suffers a problem which is common among many Hallmark movies - the soundtrack is intrusive. Rather than setting the mood, it distracts, at times. I really don't need an orchestra to tell me when the emotion is building. The actors do just FINE telling the story all on their own! Other Hallmark movies suffer far worse from this problem than this one does, so if I could, I would have deducted only a half- star for this problem.

Overall, a thoroughly enjoyable movie!

Fairly Legal: Satisfaction (2012) Season 2, Episode 1

Sparks Fly Right out of the Gate with Satisfaction

[10/10 · 27 June 2012]

As the opener for the second season of "Fairly Legal," a character-driven legal drama/comedy, "Satisfaction" hits the mark. It's a great introduction to the new dynamic, which is a bit of a departure from season one, where we saw world mostly according to Kate Reed (Sarah Shahi), a somewhat self-centered & immature, but compassionate lawyer-turned-mediator. Her quick mind and impulsive nature sets up a lot of fun, if somewhat over-the-top situations. This time around, everyone is a little less edgy, and we get to see things from more points of view, especially Lauren (Virginia Williams), the managing partner at the law firm who also happens to be Kate's stepmother, and the new guy, Ben (excellently played by Ryan Johnson), a self-satisfied, money-grubbing ambulance chaser who makes a perfect foil to Kate's people-oriented approach to solving everybody else's situations while muddling through a messy personal life. Is it an accurate testament to mediators? Um, no. Kate ends up far too emotionally invested with her clients for that. But if you like to watch a fun, situational drama, with well-written & well-acted snappy dialog and by-play, or a good, old-fashioned love-hate relationship, I think you'll be very satisfied to watch the sparks fly between the ever-kinetic Kate and everyone else in her life in "Satisfaction."

Fairly Legal (2011–2012)

Fairly Legal grabs you and won't let go!

[9/10 · 10 June 2012]

If you haven't watched Fairly Legal lately, you haven't watched Fairly Legal. The show is a drama with a good dose of comedy thrown in. If you're looking for a realistic legal drama, look elsewhere. If you're looking for a good, fun story with snappy dialog you can lose yourself in, this is the show for you. The show is extremely well-written & casted, right down to the guest stars. It oozes with character development. The more you watch, the more you find out why the flawed characters are the way they are--especially Kate, the self-centered, but also compassionate, endearing & compelling lead character, who is very convincingly played by Sarah Shahi. The addition of the Ben Grogan character in the second season as a third partner at Reed & Reed, the fictional law firm in which the plot is based, lends a lot of romantic--and all sorts of other--tension to the plot-line. I'd give it a 10, but I'd prefer it if the show had just a little bit less of a soap opera vibe to it. P.S. I think most of the people who gave the show low ratings at the beginning of the first season just missed the point.