This Is What Happens When Doves Cry

Here’s the rundown from Wednesday and Thursday night.

Modern Family – “Slow Down Your Neighbors” (A-)

Luke absolutely stole this episode. From his frequent shots at the police, to his unorthodox teaching methods with a squirt gun, everything this kid did was hilarious. I love how he lied to Gloria about having taught a lot of people how to ride bikes because “my play date cancelled, and my afternoon was wide open”, and I love how quickly Phil handed over his teaching duties when he saw how effective Luke was with a squirt gun.

Some of my other favourite Luke Quotes:

LUKE: Order a pizza and call the cops. We’ll see who gets here first.

PHIL: What are you guys doing?
LUKE: What the cops won’t.

Aside from Luke the rest of the episode was pretty good too. I really liked the “slow down your neighbours” sequence that serves as the episode’s namesake (I guess that’s still sort of Luke), and how Claire did the three checks that Jay had previously taught Gloria and Manny before taking off with Gloria’s bike.  Also good was Phil’s aside about how he’s been tested his whole life.

PHIL: Bring it Laura. You want to test me. I’ve been tested my whole life... they could never find anything.

Cougar Town – “No Reason To Cry” (A-)

Another really good episode from this show. Cougar Town is slowly becoming one of the shows I most look forward to each week. The show just has some sort of goofy energy to it that I can’t help falling for.

Like this week for example. Who thought ragging on Tom, the neighbour whose only real wish is to become a part of the Cul-de-sac Crew, would be so fun? He gets it from every angle too, even from normally level headed characters like Grayson.

The same goes for watching Tyler’s new girlfriend Kirsten try to interact with the crew. The scene where they barge into her apartment because she “broke” Bobby was hilariously entertaining, especially after Travis’s earlier warning – “he’s part of the Cul-de-sac Crew, you meddle with one of them the entire group responds.” It’s great to watch an outsider like this interact with the normal crew – it’s provides great context to how ridiculous these people really are. 

Case in point:

KIRSTEN: “Are we really at a dead lizard’s funeral in your mom’s yard?”

Yes you are Kirsten, and that’s why I love this show.

The Big Bang Theory – “The Bus Pants Utilization” (B-)

This episode left me feeling fairly indifferent. There were a couple of good moments, like the guys early exchange with Penny, or Sheldon’s frequent shots at Howard’s intelligence. His “three geniuses and their friend Howard” line was particularly funny.

But other than that, there wasn’t much there that really had me laughing. I don’t know whether it was because the episode’s concept was a little worn, or because I’m just horribly jaded, but either way my attention started wandering. I don’t know. Am I right? Wrong? Let me know in the comments.

Grey’s Anatomy – “Disarm” (B+)

I want to get something off my chest before I get into the review – I really didn’t like the school shooting concept used in this week’s episode. Something about using the mass shooting storyline twice in less than a season just seemed really manufactured to me. Obviously this is open to debate, and if you disagree with me, feel free to let me know in the comments, but it managed to turn me off on the episode before it had even started.

Now with that said, I did eventually come around, and this was one of the better episodes of Grey’s this season. I liked the way they handled Christina’s return to the hospital. Emergency situations require decisive action, so Christina simply reacting to a medical emergency was the perfect way to make her return feel both organic and in character.

Also good was the storyline featuring Avery and his decision to walk out on the shooter. The debate over a doctor’s Hippocratic Oath is used rather frequently in medical dramas, and for good reason, as it’s still quite compelling. My one complaint however would be that the story felt a little rushed, and somewhat cookie cutter, for such a complex ethical issue.

One last thing – was it just me or did that final scene in the operating room gallery seem really put on. I get that the writers were trying to surprise the audience with a quirky reaction from the doctors, but watching an entire room full of doctors all have the same reaction seemed a little stupid. The scene was a fairly important one too, as the staff was finally given a chance to confront what had happened to them, so I really don’t think it was a good decision to use a gimmick in such somber circumstances.

Enjoy the weekend!