What I Watched This Week: 18 June 2017

NEW SHOWS
Twin Peaks – “The Return, Part 7” (B+)
The most straightforward the show has been thus far, but no less intriguing. Laura Dern as Diane more than earns her fabulous entrance last week, and MacLachlan continues to give the performance(s) of the year.

Veep – “A Woman First” (B+)
A random subplot ends up wreaking havoc on everyone in this episode. Selina is at her worst, using Catherine’s pregnancy as an excuse to get out of a potentially awkward interview, then ignoring her when she has actual complications. But Kent in full-on ABA gear might be the visual gag of the year.

Silicon Valley – “Hooli-Con” (A-)
The show’s reliance on irony pays off hugely here, when Richard’s recklessness and selfishness nearly derails the company, yet they’re saved by corporate pettiness.

BINGEING
House of Cards – Season 5 (B-)
Had a chance to take on a lot of relevant issues – voter suppression, Russian interference, the President’s family having too much power – and decides to piss it away in the most unrealistic manner possible, because this show had to paint itself into a corner and then fight its way out with an episode that featured the most WTF moments outside of a typical Ryan Murphy show. Yet there were multiple moments – including when a character is killed by accidentally ingesting essential oils – that I realized it almost doesn’t matter, because I will watch this absurd show to the very end.

Master of None – Season 2 (A)
A truly masterful season of television, hilarious and heartbreaking. It’s even better than the first, which I didn’t think was possible. Even in its more conventional moments, the show found new ways to tell those stories, always on its own melancholy wavelength. I don’t know if I’ll see a better show in the rest of 2017.

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