Sleepy Hollow 1.10 Review: The Price of Living

Anyone that has yet to watch Monday night’s episode of Sleepy Hollow, entitled ‘The Golem’, this would be the time to do that. This is not a spoiler free blog. THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS! Proceed at your own discretion.

In my opinion, this week’s episode was incredibly well done. And I say that, despite having to watch it on the Internet because my stupid DVR skipped the recording. This was the perfect continuation of last week’s episode, where Ichabod learned he had a son. We actually got to see a bit of what happened to the boy, and what his name was. The only thing I do have to say, is that his death better not mean they’re done with his character because you cannot just drop a bombshell like that one week, and then just expect nothing more of it the next. I think that the season finale should have the hex lifted to stop his heart, and he’ll be alive for next year, but more neatly written then that.

Alright, so I realize everyone is feeling like Abby and Ichabod, because they are the two witnesses and because of their “chemistry”, is a couple worth shipping, but I am still adamant that they don’t work that way. Ichabod just has way too much chemistry with Katrina for there to be any other woman in his life, romantically speaking. I mean, did no one see these two and their ability to convey such passion between them when they’re in purgatory? And even if Katrina were to eventually die, I don’t see Abby and Ichabod working out as couple, even though they’re the only two they can share their fate with because they have very little chemistry in a romantic capacity. They work brilliantly as friends, and wonderfully as partners, but if they were to start up a relationship it would seem more as one of convenience. Okay, that’s all I’ll see; I’ve made my peace with it now, I think.

When it comes to the characters and the acting, I have to say that Ichabod is brilliant, and someone I constantly want to listen to speak – both because of his accent and his eloquent use of the English language… Why can’t people speak like that these days? Anyways, I also think Irving is my third favourite character (behind Ichabod and Katrina), and that Orlando Jones plays him superbly. My one problem with this series lies with Abby. I just find that her use of tone grates with me and doesn’t make her acting anymore natural – and it wasn’t seeming that way to begin with. And while she didn’t seem to do it nearly as much this week (yay, improvement!), she definitely is one to overact with her facial movements. It’s very distracting having her on screen sometimes; she may even be my least favourite character of this series. Also, I’m still having trouble differentiating Henry Parrish from Walter. I just… don’t think his character is as good, or as unique as he could be.

All in all, this was a very enjoyable episode. I loved the rush to find out what had happened to Ichabod’s son, and then the grief in having to let him go. Also, I really enjoyed Irving’s interactions with his ex-wife, and his apology to her, and especially his daughter (played by the lovely Amandla Stenberg, whose acting abilities will really take her places). This series can definitely be a hit and miss each week, particularly with its pacing of the story, but for the most part I think it was very adept at getting the point across this week. Although, I do think they seemed to wrap up what happened to the son rather quickly, but there are only two episodes left in the season, and that does make for a need to rush. Sure, twenty-two episodes may have meant a few filler episodes, but this twelve episode business is not making the story any tighter, and just increases the need for rushing progression, and I really think that detracts from the overall story. Also, I’m not really caring that it seems Moloch is going after Abby’s soul; I kind of couldn’t care less about her character. Honestly, her sister is kind of more interesting than she is.

My rating: 8 out of 10.

Best Lines:

“If your God has a plan, who’s it for – me or Him?” – Irving asks.

“Without books we have neither a past or a future.” – Ichabod states.

“That is not a choice you were given, my friend.” – Henry tells Ichabod.

“When did irony become a national pastime?” – Ichabod questions.

“You’ve embroidered my name on some oversized hosiery, how… odd.” – Ichabod remarks, regarding the Christmas stocking.

Okay, so I’m going to probably watch Trophy Wife and then call it quits tonight. I am so exhausted still, and this headache is threatening to become a migraine, so I’ll probably make it quick. Stay tuned.

Sleepy Hollow 1.06 Review: Sometimes We Need to Forgive Ourselves

Anyone that has yet to watch yesterday’s episode of Sleepy Hollow, titled ‘The Sin Eater’, then I suggest that now would be a good time to do so before reading ahead. This is not a spoiler free blog. THIS REVIEW MAY CONTAIN SPOILERS! Proceed at your own discretion.

For a series with only thirteen episodes in a season and thus cannot throw away episodes, this one sure felt like a filler to me. Sure, it introduced the character Henry Parrish and his ability to eat sins, and it dissolved the connection between Death and Ichabod, but otherwise there wasn’t an overall movement to the episode. And besides, it seemed a bit early to cut the connection between Death and Ichabod, but that could just be my opinion.

I was really disappointed with this week’s episode. Other than the flashbacks that showed how Ichabod came to fight under General Washington, there wasn’t much I liked about this episode. To me it felt kind of blah, like not much thought went into it. I knew after the pilot episode going into this series that each episode would basically be resolved by the end, but that’s not helping it to blend together very well, and it’s beginning to cause me to lose interest, which is sad because I absolutely adore Tom Mison.

The writing isn’t completely working with this series. Other than my belief that the individual episodes aren’t quite stringing together well enough, the idea that Ichabod could be as cheery as he is sometimes when his wife is held captive in some sort of purgatory astounds me. Perhaps following a miserable Brit would be less than fun, but I’d like to at least see him trying to find a way to her, or subtle hints that add up each episode. Also, it’s my fear that if she is ever rescued, all that means is that her soul is set free to go to heaven, or wherever, and that this series will move forward with a relationship between Ichabod and Abby. And let me tell you, they have no sexual chemistry with each other, at all. Until recently I didn’t even consider them a possibility, until websites like TVLine gave a refresher on how couples were doing and all I could say was no. Every time I look at them with those subtle looks in this episode, the romantic chemistry felt forced and wrong. They’re partners, they work well as friends, they fit together as sibling-like characters, but they don’t have any romantic chemistry together. And this is not me in denial, I just don’t see any form of spark.

While I was looking forward to the introduction of Henry Parrish, after missing the actor since the conclusion of Fringe, there wasn’t much the intrigued me about him other than the sadness I got from his situation. The man looked miserable, all secluded with his plants, and I felt for him, but I didn’t see much he could add to this series. Besides, it felt like this sin Ichabod felt he had clung to was just randomly thrown in to bring this guy in. No mention of it before, but suddenly it’s there. Like I said, I’m growing quite disappointed in this series. And I loved Fringe, so I can’t understand why the creators of that series could seem to make a mess of this one. At least on Fringe there were little hints to be had that strung the episodes together, but I’m not getting that here. But again, that’s more to do with the writing – which I seem to be running back to – then anything to do with Henry Parrish.

All in all, these actors envelope their characters well enough, although I do find Abby’s expressions are over exaggerated, but the writing doesn’t seem to match to their abilities. Basically what I’m saying is that the acting is good, but the writing just isn’t up to par. Maybe I’m expecting too much of these creators, maybe it’s like with Fringe where the first season was a bit slower than the rest. If that’s the case, I will try to give them the benefit of the doubt and wait to see how season two goes before I fully commit to letting go of this show. I mean, I love the gothic style to it, but the police part is less than interesting.

My rating: 6 out of 10.

Best Lines:

“Wrong does not cease to be wrong because the majority agrees.” – Katrina wisely states.

“The love of power is the demon of all men.” – Arthur Bernard says to Ichabod.

Okay, just one more show to catch up on with a review. Before I do that for The Blacklist, though, I have to go run over to Shoppers, so check back in about an hour.