A week late and a few dollars short, here is the review for last week’s episodes of Teen Wolf and The 9 Lives of Chloe King. Both were a pretty big improvement over the previous week, but Teen Wolf still suffers from weak acting out of its main character, and 9 Lives still suffers from including were-cats.
Spoilers Ahead!
Teen Wolf Episode 7: Night School
Finally an episode of Teen Wolf you can really sink your teeth into! Unfortunately it also made me want them to kill off their main character, but whatever. They can always make more teen wolves!
Last week ended with the Alpha impaling Derek and throwing him against a wall. Our heroic duo of Scott and Stiles wisely take this opportunity to hide in the high school, which means we get a full on Buffy episode! I can’t tell you how long I’ve been waiting for another show to portray kids fighting for their survival in the horrific by day and terrifying by night halls of the American High School – oh the social commentary!
Wait, where was I? Oh yes. The biggest revelation this episode is that Stiles is both more heroic and more intelligent than Scott ever has the hope of being. Scott proves time and time again that he’s incapable of a coherent thought and has serious anger management issues (BEYOND those conveyed by his recent fuzzy status). We also learn that Jackson really is willing to go to pretty much any length to get Scott out of his way – so that he can be the top dog in Lacross and in Allison’s life (poor Lydia). Scott’s lying and manic angry behavior is making things pretty easy for Jackson as well, and the episode ends with Allison dumping Scott’s ass. It was nice to see Lydia get to use her powers for good and not evil this week (chemistry nerds FTW), even if Jackson does sabotage her self-igniting Molotov Cocktail. I find myself hoping more and more that Lydia will realize that popularity is a trap and ditch Jackson for Stiles, but that will probably take her a few years of twice weekly counseling. But she did seem impressed when Stiles punched Jackson, so maybe there’ hope.
Unfortunately, my biggest disappointment is that Scott still hasn’t pulled his head far enough out of his ass to stop blaming Derek for everything (oh and that his acting still sucks). The fact that he chooses to peg the entire chaotic night and all the murders on Derek is a weak move, even if he did think the guy was dead. Equally weak was Stiles insistence that they not call the cops for the first half of the episode. I get that they wanted to elongate the suspense, but it should have been Scott deciding that, since he’s pretty much got a monopoly on stupid decisions.
Still no idea who the Alpha is, but now we know he’s savvy – he has a much bigger plan than we suspected and he has the wits to make it happen. I think he’s being a bit optimistic about things with Scott though; he’d have a much easier time turning pretty much any random teenaged delinquent into his dream pack. At the end of the episode the Vet miraculously reappears and DOESN’T start tossing any blame at Scott and Stiles for his kidnapping, so we still have to suspect him of some complicity with the Alpha, but no real idea how far this extends.
All in all a solid episode. Th back lighting and framed shots make for a nice, creepy, homage to horror films. The CG of the Alpha hasn’t improve and Scott still looks like Eddie Meunster when he changes, but I’m willing to let that slide when the show manages to make me not want to pay attention because I hate being scared. Sadly, I’m afraid they can’t keep this up for an entire season.
The 9 Lives of Chloe King Episode 5: Girls Night Out
First off, I have to say that this show made me feel really dated and out of touch. The fashion was so 1980s that I wanted to vomit, but apparently the 80s are back in full swing so I’m going to have to bear with it. I’m trying really, really, really hard to continue liking this show as a “genre” series, but, to be honest, the “genre” parts are just NOT working. Each week I hope to see them do something interesting and not cheesy with the Mai and each week they fail me. That said, the parts that don’t directly involve the Mai are working exceedingly well. Maybe too well, ’cause I’m developing a super crush on Brian.
This episode introduces two characters from another group of Mai. They automatically come across as suspicious, conveying a predatory grace as they stalk Chloe before introducing themselves. They seem to want to draw her out of her conservative shell so that she can relish in her Mai heritage. Since this apparently involves clubbing, Chloe is all over it, but these two cats have a much darker purpose in mind. Apparently whoever controls the Uniter controls the fate of the Mai. No pressure, Chloe! So these two she-cats are tasked with bringing the Uniter back to their own clan in Sao Paolo (except a Sao Paolo where everyone has an American accent). Much to Chloe’s horror, the Sao Paolo clan believes that humans are vastly inferior and they leave a trail of bodies in their wake, even going so far as threatening Brian. This doesn’t sit well with Chloe, who eventually fights the dastardly duo and kills one of them. I’m pretty sure we’ll be seeing the Sao Paolo clan again.
Meanwhile, Brian is at a bit of a dead end investigating his mother’s murder and his father wants him back at school. His near departure from the show was a horrifying prospect, since he’s the best thing the show has going. Luckily, he doesn’t buy Chloe’s rejection (she was just trying to protect him) and he decides to stand up to his father. Perhaps at the Rezza corporate headquarters he’ll be able to find some clues as to the real reason for his mother’s murder.
Paul and Amy are having some relationship issues as well. The two make a nice foil for the romantic heartstring pulling between Brian and Chloe, but I’m still very disappointed in Paul for being a stereotypical male. He’s been best friends with Amy for years, you’d think he’d be able to use his higher brain function (and I do mean higher).
We also get verification that the email Chloe sent her father wasn’t intercepted by bad guys. To be honest, I never even questioned that it was him, but I’m glad Chloe was smart enough to request verification. She’s not all bubbles and claws! But what does her father have to do with everything? We may not know for a while, but his absence means we get to see the strength of the relationship between Chloe and her mother. I can only hope my daughters and I have anything half as good. Damn television for creating ideal models for people to fail to live up to!
