Ranking the top 5 moments from “The Purge” season 2 episode 2: “Everything Is Fine”

Happy Wednesday TV fans! After watching the USA network’s The Purge season 2 episode 2 last night, I also started to ask myself: “What do you do when every choice you can make seems like the wrong one?” Is it possible to find redemption and goodness in the world of The Purge or is society too far gone? Please note spoilers are ahead if you have not gotten a chance to watch the latest episode yet.

In last night’s episode, “Everything Is Fine,” it’s the day after Purge Night, which may be even messier than the actual night, as our new characters deal with the aftermath, making new decisions that might change their lives forever. My top 5 moments from The Purge season 2 episode 2 are:

“I know how you got this…”

After pulling off a dangerous heist, Ryan takes his bag of money to a facility where his mom is being treated. We learn that Ryan’s mother suffers from some kind of dementia and Ryan is doing his best to take care of his family and his other team members from the heist.

Ryan is being presented as the leader with the moral compass, but it will be interesting to find out where his loyalties truly lie once he is connected with the rest of the characters.

“He’s family.”

After Tommy makes it to the safe house, Ryan is worried that he may have been followed and sure enough, the police show up with perfect timing. Tommy walks out of the building with no weapon, but the police continue to beat him badly to make a point. Ryan explains that Tommy will be held until the next Purge and then they will just kill him, which reveals quite a few holes in this justice system that the NFFA seems so proud of.

Will Ryan risk it all to free his friend? We’ll have to stay tuned to find out, but I thought that this inside look during The Purge aftermath shed some new light on everything.

“I’m fine…”

But are you really, Ben? After beating the boy in the “I Am God” Purge mask to death, Ben makes it home to his fraternity, covered in blood. His roommate is extremely surprised to see him and things aren’t looking too good for him, especially since he left Ben to die.

Ben claims that everything is all right, but this trauma has clearly impacted him and it looks like it also unleashed some inner violence brewing within Ben. He even tries out playing a Purge video game and gets a little bit too obsessed, revealing that Purge Night may have changed Ben for good. It also looks like we haven’t seen the last of the “I Am God” Purge mask, as Ben goes back to retrieve it.

“I need to know what happened in that house.”

After Esme’s friend is brutally murdered, Esme continues to look into the case, even though her supervisor tells her to let it go. Esme goes to her friend’s house and finds an envelope with an interesting recording of a woman’s voice.

The woman is talking about her need for violence and already I am connecting the dots, wondering if the voice on the other end is Marcus’s wife, Michelle? I’m really interested in Esme’s character and I support her quest for the truth, but she better watch her back because the NFFA is always watching.

“Whoever is trying to kill you is still out there.”

During episode 2, we discover that Marcus is a doctor and he actually attempts to save the life of the man who tried to kill him. Marcus doesn’t get any concrete answers out of him, but he decides to go visit his son at college.

In episode 2, we get several connections between our new characters already. Marcus’s son had Professor Adams as a teacher, who is Esme’s friend, so the dots are already lining up for us. Ben was in the same class, so we get that link as well, but I’m sure that there are more connections to discover. Marcus’s son finds a hidden app on his phone that was spying on Marcus and they learn that there is still a bounty out on Marcus.

So, who wants Marcus dead? The obvious answer is his wife, but things are not always what they seem on The Purge. Either way, I’m intrigued. Stay tuned!

I hope you enjoyed the list and feel free to post your own theories and thoughts on The Purge below in the comments section. Thanks so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

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Ranking the top 5 moments from “The Affair” season 5 episode 9: “Like They’re Prey…”

Happy Tuesday TV fans! After watching Showtime’s The Affair season 5 episode 9, I wondered if Noah can truly be redeemed? Can one really be erased from their own story or is there still a chance to make things right? Please note spoilers are ahead if you have not gotten a chance to watch the latest episode yet.

In Sunday night’s episode, “509,” the story about Noah is leaked everywhere and it really takes a toll on the entire family. Meanwhile, Helen makes a shocking discovery about Sasha and Whitney determines where her loyalties lie. My top 5 moments from The Affair season 5 episode 9 are:

“Is she finding any skeletons?”

Part one of the episode follows Helen and we catch up with her right after Petra has called her. Helen is shocked by what she is hearing, but Noah continues to lie, telling her that everything is fine. Once the story is released, Helen immediately knows something is up when everyone begins to stare at her while dropping off her kids at school.

Helen calls Noah and demands that he read the story out loud to her, which includes excessive details about a number of cases where Noah has been accused of mistreating women. Noah looks to Helen, asking her what to do, but he is not the only one who is suffering from the release of this story, as Helen is fired from her job before even starting because of the bad publicity.

“I’m very grateful…”

Even though the Solloway family is dealing with a lot right now, Noah turns to Helen and tells her what a great mother she is. Over the seasons, Noah has constantly placed the blame on someone else. In this moment; however, he takes a second to reflect on the amazing mother of his children who he has wronged, and yet somehow still stands by him when it comes down to the moments that truly matter.

While I don’t think that Noah deserves a second chance with Helen, I thought this was an important moment worth mentioning.

“Do you have any idea what you have done?”

To make things even more dramatic, a fire is spreading across California and Helen evacuates in Sasha’s helicopter after finding out that he picked up her kids. Helen is initially annoyed that he didn’t say anything, but realizes that he was just trying to help. However, Helen’s phone continues to blow up and after she makes a statement, only part of her actual statement is used on television, which doesn’t present it in the best light.

Helen is horrified that her children have to witness this, but everything starts to add up when she realizes that Sasha is the one who gave Petra Eden’s name in the first place. Helen suddenly realizes that Sasha is behind all of this because he wanted writing credits on the movie. Sasha tries to reason with Helen, but she takes her kids out of there, realizing Sasha’s ulterior motives here.

“I just wanted to say hi to the woman who’s ruining my family’s life.”

Part two of the episode is from Whitney’s perspective. Her phone also starts blowing up when the story about her father is released. Even though Whitney receives calls and texts from Colin, she decides to call Furkat instead for a shoulder to cry on. After realizing her mistake when Furkat mistreats her, Whitney gets on the same plane as Audrey Nelson, who is one of the women accusing her father.

Whitney decides to sit right next to her to get some answers and I was really proud of her in this moment. In the earlier seasons of the series, Whitney was sometimes presented in a selfish and materialistic light, but she has grown so much and has experienced her own misfortune, suddenly realizing that perhaps it really is about the power rather than the man, understanding where Audrey and the other women are coming from all too well.

“Why are you still defending him?”

Later in the episode, Whitney comes clean with Colin and he still continues to be there for her, reminding her that she is worthy and special. This reunion is interrupted; however, when both Noah and Helen show up at Whitney’s place to come up with a plan. Helen claims that this is all her fault because of Sasha, but Whitney asks her why she is still defending her father?

Whitney explains that part of the reason why she entered into previous destructive relationships was because of what her father did to her mother and she reminds her father that she has seen how he truly looks at women, “like they’re prey.” Whitney’s awkward encounter with her father in the hot tub comes back up, which is something that Helen was not aware of.

I thought it was important for Whitney to speak her mind here so that Noah can finally see things from another perspective. Maybe he isn’t completely guilty or innocent, but I am really wondering at this point if his story will lead him to an ultimate redemption or to a darker path of destruction? Stay tuned!

I hope you enjoyed the list and feel free to post your own theories and thoughts on The Affair below in the comments section. Thanks so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

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Ranking the top 5 moments from “Supernatural” Season 15 Episode 2: “Raising Hell”

Happy Friday TV fans! After watching the CW’s Supernatural season 15 episode 2, Castiel reminded us that life may be an obstacle course, but we do run our own race. Sometimes it may feel like we are just puppets, but we can still determine our own fate and what we do each day is real and significant. Please note spoilers are ahead if you have not gotten a chance to watch yet.

In last night’s episode, “Raising Hell,” some familiar faces show up since it’s basically all hands on deck at this point, but is there anyone who can stop these souls from taking over the world? Meanwhile, Chuck/God has a family reunion and Dean and Castiel have a heart-to-heart talk. My top 5 moments from Supernatural season 15 episode 2 are:

“Am I interrupting something juicy?”

It’s always great to see Rowena, who shows up to help the Winchesters out of this jam. Rowena is willing to help, but she does point out that a town full of ghosts is extremely messy even by Winchester standards. Rowena also seems to be quite familiar with the leader of the ghosts, Francis. Will she be able to put a dent in his plan or do we need some more recruits to fight the good fight? Either way, I always want Rowena on my side!

“Ketch…how are you here?”

Rowena is not the only one to show up to help out, as Ketch makes a grand entrance as well. Ketch and Rowena have an interesting vibe going on, although Sam and Dean don’t seem to be too interested in this love connection. Ketch claims that he wants to help, but things get interesting when he becomes possessed by Francis.

After Dean uses an iron bullet on him, Ketch reminds him that this isn’t the first time he has tried to kill him, but Castiel cannot heal Ketch, which means that something is definitely off in the universe. It looks like our former assassin is all right for now, but everyone will need to be more careful moving forward.

“What about all of this is real? We are.”

It wouldn’t be Supernatural if we didn’t get some kind of motivational speech and Castiel and Dean stop to have a heart-to-heart chat. Dean is still feeling very defeated, but Castiel maintains a positive spin. I think that Castiel makes a significant point and I’m just hoping that Dean can truly see the good that they are all doing. There is always this dynamic when one character loses faith, but I’m hoping that they can all find some way to keep on believing in the final season.

“You’re on your own.”

Dean is not the only one to think twice about life and his purpose, as Chuck/God decides to pay his sister a visit. Amara is not exactly pleased to see her brother and seems to be perfectly content right where she is. Chuck wants to take on some kind of family project, clearly searching for something else beyond the world he just abandoned, but it looks like he is starting to realize his mistake.

Later on, Amara detects that Chuck is not at full strength and it appears that he has also been weakened by the bullet. When Chuck touches the wound on his shoulder, Sam also feels it, which means that they are somehow linked. I started thinking about what this means and I was wondering if Sam could be next in line to be the new “God” of the world?

Maybe it’s time for someone else to take over and perhaps this link will allow him to do so. We’ll have to see how this plays out, but it’s clear that Chuck and Sam’s fates are now intertwined.

“I love you guys…”

Kevin also shows up during this episode, but Dean is extremely surprised to see him since he was under the impression that he was in heaven. Chuck/God lied about this, which means he could have been lying about a lot of other things, but Kevin is now basically trapped between Hell and earth. Apparently once a soul has been to Hell it can’t go to heaven and Chuck/God is no longer on the Winchesters’ side, so it looks like Kevin doesn’t have much of a choice here.

It’s clear that Kevin thinks of Sam and Dean as his true family and I’m hoping that they can find a way to help him. However, it looks like they need to first tackle the issue of more souls coming out to play, which makes me wonder how they will get out of this one? Stay tuned SPN family!

I hope you enjoyed the list and feel free to post your own thoughts and theories on Supernatural in the comments section below. Thanks so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

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Ranking the top 5 moments from the “Supernatural” Season 15 Episode 1 Season Premiere: “Back and to the Future”

Happy Friday TV fans! After watching the CW’s Supernatural season 15 episode 1 season premiere, I realized that we’re coming to the end of the road for the Winchester brothers, but how will it all end? I mean, “What’s one more apocalypse, right?” Will Sam and Dean drive off into the sunset together or is there one final battle still coming? I can’t wait to find out! Please note spoilers are ahead if you have not gotten a chance to watch yet.

In last night’s episode, “Back and to the Future,” Sam, Dean, and Castiel face off against an overwhelmingly large group of the undead. The souls of hell have been freed and they are looking to inhabit the nearest bodies, but some of them seem to be pickier than others. Meanwhile, Sam and Dean are forced to work with a demon, as some familiar ghosts begin to wreak havoc in town. My top 5 moments from Supernatural season 15 episode 1 season premiere are:

“Welcome to the end…what did that mean?”

An excellent question for sure, as we start off the season premiere exactly where we left off. Chuck/God is out and he leaves the Winchester brothers and Castiel to fight off the undead. Our favorite heroes are outnumbered for sure, but they are able to get to a nearby mausoleum, barricading the door. That doesn’t necessarily mean that they are out of the woods just yet though…

“It’s not Jack…”

For all of you Jack fans (me included), fear not! Even though Jack appears to be gone, a demon decides to set up shop in his body and even sports some nice new shades since Jack’s eyes were burned right out of him. Castiel is beyond upset and wants him to get out of Jack as quickly as possible, but the demon offers to help the Winchesters out, claiming that he likes hell the way it is.

While I’m not sure that he can be trusted, they hilariously refer to him as “Crowley Junior” and Jack’s got a new attitude, but it’s probably only a matter of time before he turns on Castiel and the Winchester brothers.

“If she’s back, then they’re all back…”

Sam and Dean run into quite a few familiar faces…only they’re ghosts and it looks like a lot of this season may involve them trying to eliminate past foes that they killed previously. A lot of these spirits will most likely have vengeance on their minds, but some of them just want to have fun, tormenting several people in town, which forces Sam and Dean to get creative about evacuating everyone.

This is only going to last for a little while; however, so they better come up with something else fast even though the demon’s spell seems to work for now, creating some kind of barrier, trapping the spirits where they are. Either way, I thought this was a fun and clever way to allow fans the chance to see the Winchesters face some of the more popular villains again and I can’t wait to see who else shows up!

“Did you fix it?”

As a reminder, a bullet did hit Sam in the fight against Chuck/God during the season 14 finale, but it looks like there is something strange going on with the wound. It has no exit and Castiel tries to heal him, but explains that there is some kind of energy he has never felt before surrounding it. What exactly does this mean for Sam’s fate? We’ll have to wait and see, but I’m hoping that they can figure out a way to heal him soon. We need you, Sam!

“You and me vs. every soul in hell. I like those odds.”

Toward the end of the episode, Dean feels frustrated and asks Sam what it all meant, feeling almost like a rat trapped in Chuck’s maze. Sam reminds him that they saved so many people and that it did matter. Dean doesn’t seem completely convinced, but Sam also explains that Chuck/God is gone and that “it’s just us.”

After they figure out everything and stop the newest apocalypse, they are basically free. Dean is on board and they say that they have work to do, but it will definitely be interesting to see where their last journey leads them.

Will the Winchesters be able to earn true freedom or is this the end of the road for them? It will be a bitter sweet ending for sure and I’m not sure that I’m ready to say goodbye just yet, but I’m looking forward to exploring the road ahead and I can’t wait to see what happens next. Stay tuned SPN family!

I hope you enjoyed the list and feel free to post your own thoughts and theories on Supernatural in the comments section below. Thanks so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

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Ranking the top 5 moments from “Riverdale” Season 4 Episode 1 Season Premiere: “We Will Never Forget You Fred”

Happy Wednesday TV fans! After watching the CW’s Riverdale season 4 episode 1 season premiere, I am in tears. In fact, I was in tears throughout the entire episode, but I remembered that no one is every truly gone if we continue to honor them in what we do next. Please note MAJOR spoilers are ahead if you have not gotten a chance to watch yet.

In tonight’s episode, “Chapter Fifty-Eight: In Memoriam,” the gang gets ready for the 4^th of July and everything seems to be really quiet in town…until Archie receives a phone call that will alter his life forever. My top 5 moments from the Riverdale season 4 episode 1 season premiere are:

“I have to bring him home…”

In the beginning of the episode, Archie receives a phone call while he is at Pop’s and discovers that his father has been killed in a hit and run. Archie is beyond devastated and shocked and so are his friends and mother. Even his dog whimpers quietly by the door, which immediately broke my heart. Archie decides that he wants to bring his father’s body home and his friends agree to help him along the way.

The sudden passing of Luke Perry toward the end of season 3 shook everyone, but the show did not truly get a chance to give him a proper goodbye before. While I knew that something like this was coming, I was not prepared for this incredibly emotional and heartbreaking episode.

Even though it was extremely difficult to watch and hit very close to home for me, it was something that Fred Andrews earned and something that Luke Perry deserved even more, reminding us just how many lives he has truly touched and how much he is missed every single day.

“I’m just paying my respects.”

It truly meant the world to me to see Shannen Doherty guest star on this particular episode to pay tribute to her good friend, Luke Perry. I grew up watching her and Luke Perry on Beverly Hills, 90210 and both of them made a huge impact on my life.

When I recently watched the BH90210 reboot, the tasteful tribute for Luke Perry was done perfectly and I thought it was so appropriate for us to see Luke Perry’s journey come full circle here.

Doherty plays the woman that Fred saved on the road and while she doesn’t have a huge part, her presence was so powerful. Seeing her standing next to Archie and the others truly allowed Luke’s memory to live on, seeing where he started and where he ended up, living on in every role he played.

“Whenever he looked at you, there was pride in his eyes.”

After discovering the identity of the man who killed his father, Archie decides to track him down to take justice into his own hands. When Archie realizes that the man is innocent and is merely trying to protect his young son who made a mistake, Archie realizes how he could have been in this very same situation with his own father.

Archie feels ashamed and thinks he let his father down, but Veronica has a supporting and meaningful moment with him, telling him how proud his father truly was of him. Sometimes Varchie can be over-dramatic, but I thought this was such a simple and perfect moment for them and I’m hoping Veronica can help him get through this because he is going to need her.

“We will never forget you Fred.”

After Cheryl initially feels some type of way about a parade on 4^th of July, she has an immediate change of heart when she finds out what happened to Fred. Cheryl and Toni go to see Mrs. Andrews and Cheryl explains that she knows what it feels like and she wants to do something for their family.

When Archie brings his father home, the entire town is waiting and there are signs showing their love and admiration of Fred, which was incredibly heartwarming to see. Even though this town has had its fair share of tragedy and misfortune, everyone comes together now to honor a man who always just tried to do his best and help others.

“Fred Andrews will always be a part of Riverdale…I’m going to honor him.”

I thought that Archie’s eulogy was beautiful and simple, but he talked about how his father helped build this town and it’s clear that Fred made an impact on everyone in it…even Hiram Lodge, who ends up doing the right thing by paying for all of the costs.

Archie says that his father was the greatest man he’s ever known and hopes that his spirit and memory will live on. At the end of the episode, each character has a moment to self-reflect and mourn and we end with Archie going into the garage. We actually see some past clips of Fred; right before the camera zooms out, leaving us with the photograph of Fred and Archie together.

This was probably the most incredible episode I have watched of the series. Yes, it took a break from the drama and the mystery we have come to know and love, but it truly dedicated itself to a character and an actor who was so inspiring. I feel incredibly honored to have witnessed a true tribute that was so beautiful and well done.

Thank you, Riverdale for providing Fred and Luke with this tribute.

Fred Andrews will always be a part of Riverdale and Luke Perry will always be in our hearts.

I hope you enjoyed the list and feel free to post your own thoughts and theories on Riverdale in the comments section below. Thank you so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

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Ranking the top 5 moments from “The Affair” season 5 episode 6: “I Think He Killed Her”

Happy Sunday TV fans! After watching Showtime’s The Affair season 5 episode 6, I learned that there can be an ongoing game of tug of war between resilience and trauma. Is it possible to channel trauma to become even stronger or are we destined to be broken, repeating the fate of our parents? Please note spoilers are ahead if you have not gotten a chance to watch the latest episode yet.

In tonight’s episode, “506,” Joanie meets a man named EJ, who has been studying the Lockhart family history for quite some time. As Joanie uncovers new information behind her mother’s suicide, she begins to realize that perhaps there was more to it. My top 5 moments from The Affair season 5 episode 6 are:

“If you touch me, I’ll stab you.”

Part one of the episode follows Joanie and I was really happy that part one lasted for the entire episode, as Joanie has deserved some screen time for a while now. We catch up with Joanie in the cemetery and she meets a stranger named EJ. After being momentarily creeped out by his staring, EJ offers to give Joanie a ride and she hesitantly accepts.

EJ studies family histories and is very interested in the Lockhart family tree, explaining that he has a theory on trauma running in families. When he finds out who Joanie is, he is starstruck for sure, but Joanie doesn’t seem to be too interested in what he has to say just yet. That is, until she finds out that she is taking samples at the place where her mother died.

“There’s no way she could have drowned herself in water that shallow.”

After parting ways with EJ temporarily after viewing some old police records, EJ calls her and says he has something to show her. The two watch a breathtaking super moon in the sky, which ends up triggering something within Joanie. Joanie brings up the data on the super moon from the night Alison drowned and realizes that the water where she drowned was extremely shallow, like a bathtub.

This brings up some questions about her death, but Joanie doesn’t seem quite ready to process it, as she decides to sleep with EJ, trying to turn everything off. EJ questions her about her fetish for being choked and becomes a little bit too talkative, which prevents Joanie from truly losing herself…but perhaps she needed this to actually start dealing with the emotions swirling around inside of her.

“Are you sure it was suicide?”

Joanie returns home the next day, but seems extremely irritable and distracted. Joanie’s mom comes to visit and we learn that she is referring to…Luisa! Remember her? Even though I was never a fan of Cole and Luisa’s relationship, I was happy to discover that Luisa remained in Joanie’s life even after she and Cole split up because Joanie needed a lot of support.

Luisa tells Joanie that Cole was the most determined person she ever met and that Joanie reminds her of him in so many ways. Joanie proceeds to tell Luisa that she feels like Alison ruined everything, but it’s clear that she is unable to process the grief that is taking over right now.

“He could do anything.”

After having a meltdown over her oxygen garden failure, Joanie panics and tells her husband, Paul, that she has been cheating on him for years. Paul tells her to get out and Joanie ends up on EJ’s doorstep. She opens up to EJ about her father and we learn that Cole died of a heart attack at age 72.

Joanie blames herself because she thinks that if her father was not alone, he would still be alive. EJ tries to get Joanie to talk about her father, recognizing that she is not allowing herself to feel anything and she tells him that Cole could do anything, bringing up some touching and heartwarming memories.

“I don’t know who the hell Benjamin Cruz is…”

EJ shows Joanie Cole’s box of letters, which he rescued from the trash, and shows Joanie some newspaper clippings about Benjamin Cruz. Joanie initially doesn’t recognize him and I was laughing at EJ’s theory about him being Cole’s lover, but Joanie has a memory about the day she met Ben Cruz, as we see a flashback accompanied with Alison’s voice over. Joanie wakes up suddenly and tells EJ that she remembers that Ben Cruz was her mother’s boyfriend and says, “I think he killed her,” as all of the pieces start to come together now.

Will Joanie be able to uncover the truth? I can’t wait to find out! I’ve been waiting for this episode since the new season started and I thought that it was brilliantly done, giving us the chance to truly understand Joanie and allowing Alison and Cole’s memory to still be present and relevant. Joanie’s coming for you, Ben! Look out!

Justice for Alison Bailey!

I hope you enjoyed the list and feel free to post your own theories and thoughts on The Affair below in the comments section. Thanks so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

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Ranking the top 5 moments from “Fear the Walking Dead” season 5 episode 15: “That’s a Bitter Sweet Thing”

Happy Monday TV fans! After watching AMC’s Fear the Walking Dead season 5 episode 15, I realized that life is short and “if there’s things to say…you should say them.” There’s never really a right time and we may regret it for the rest of our lives if we don’t share these feelings. However, if we do share these inner thoughts or feelings, does it just ultimately make things harder in the end? Please note spoilers are ahead if you have not gotten a chance to watch the latest episode yet.

In last night’s episode, “Channel 5,” the group decides to challenge Virginia with…another documentary. Meanwhile, Grace’s health continues to deteriorate, John and June contemplate moving up their wedding date, and Wes seems interested in painting with Alicia. My top 5 moments from Fear the Walking Dead season 5 episode 15 are:

“This is the truth.”

In the beginning of the episode, we watch Virginia’s documentary, which seems a little bit too good to be true…even more so than our group’s initial documentary. We learn that members of Virginia’s group wear keys on their shirts because “each one of us holds the key to the future,” but it’s clear that Virginia is actually only interested in people who she considers to be “useful” to her cause, but where does that leave everyone else?

Al is infuriated by this and wants to get the real truth out there. Morgan reminds her that they are going about things the right way, but that doesn’t mean that the right way will win in the end.

“Everybody is useful.”

Tom is beyond thrilled to be reunited with his sister, Janice, who happens to be the girl Wes saved. What a small world! I need to give a shout out to my good friend, Luke on QuizUp, who predicted this last week. Nice job, Luke!

Tom is excited about the mission and really wants to get the story out there, as we are presented with another documentary style episode, which was kind of underwhelming for me. Luckily, we do get a little bit of action later in the episode, but we are at the end of the season and I’m starting to wonder what is going to happen to shake things up?

“That’s a bitter sweet thing…”

It looks like I’m not the only one shipping Morgan and Grace, as John decides to ask if anything is going on between them during the documentary. John recognizes that it will be difficult for Morgan and Grace either way and asks June how she feels about moving up their wedding date.

June seems to be on board and it looks like we will be able to put Rabbi Jacob to work as well. I love John and June together, but they may need to put things on hold now that Virginia is in the mix.

“I just want to be around long enough to see it.”

Grace is still holding on, but it doesn’t look like she is doing too well, as the group tries to go on a detour to get her more fluids. Morgan attempts to tell Grace how he feels, but she ultimately stops him and explains that it will be too difficult. While I want some kind of happiness for Morgan and Grace, I completely understand where she is coming from.

It just seems so unfair that Morgan has finally lifted the guard around his heart and now has to watch Grace die unless there is some miracle waiting for them in the near future. Fingers crossed!

“You call her, there’s no coming back.”

Toward the end of the episode, we deal with a bridge of our very own and Tom decides to do anything for the story, which includes going down with the bridge. Sorry Tom! Al is beyond upset, but somehow manages to have the tape? I’m not too sure about that, but the group decides to keep going.

Unfortunately Humbug’s Gulch is overrun by walkers and the group is forced to ultimately make that call over to Channel 5 to ask for Virginia’s help. It looks like Virginia got what she wanted, but what does this mean for our group now?

Overall, I was slightly disappointed and underwhelmed with the episode. We already tried out the documentary style in a previous episode and I’m not sure that we needed another one now. I’ve been waiting for some kind of substantial character death and instead, we get Tom losing his common sense on the bridge.

Alicia and Wes seem to be hitting it off, but she is so focused on painting and I want the beast within her to be unleashed again because once she gets going, she is unstoppable! Poor Luciana is off serving Virginia at the oil field and while Virginia seems like an interesting foe, I’m not sure that we can salvage things in one episode, but I’m remaining hopeful.

What would YOU like to see happen on the season finale? Stay tuned!

I hope you enjoyed the list and feel free to post your own theories and thoughts on Fear the Walking Dead in the comments section below. Thanks so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

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The Dreaming of Wonderland Book Series is available here!

Free Instant Preview of The Search for Alice is available here!

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Spoiler-Free Review of “Marianne” on Netflix: Bone-Chilling Terror that will give you Nightmares and then some

**This is a spoiler-free review so feel free to read on!**

Netflix has been bringing us some genuinely terrifying programming lately like The Ritual and The Haunting of Hill House, and it doesn’t look like they are stopping there, as they may have just released the scariest show I have seen in a while. If you enjoy films and shows about witches and demonic possession, you are in the right place.

Marianne is a French horror series that was released on Netflix on 9/13/19. The show features 8 episodes that are about 50-55 minutes in length each. It stars Victoire Du Bois, Lucie Boujenah, and Tiphaine Daviot. The series is in French, but you can watch it dubbed in English or in French with English subtitles. I watched it in English and was able to get through the whole show without needing to switch over to subtitles.

The show follows author, Emma, who has had much success with her horror novel series. The characters are based on nightmares Emma had when she was younger and when she finishes the book series, she begins to realize that the characters may actually exist in the real world, threatening her family and close friends, while desperately trying to release some kind of evil entity into the world.

Whatever you do, be careful about saying Marianne’s name three times…you have been warned!

The Pros:

Marianne 9 22 4 — Images courtesy of Netflix

This show will scare you enough to leave you with some serious nightmares.

I’m not talking about the typical jump scares we often see. I’m talking about truly frightening moments. There is a terrific build-up and suspense that seamlessly brings these moments to life. The soundtrack works perfectly with these moments and you may want to consider watching this show with the lights on if you are not a fan of horror. Seriously, I keep looking over my shoulder and I finished the show hours ago.

Terrifying characters and a well developed plot.

Before we even get to Marianne, you will notice a lot of discussion going on about the old woman she possesses. I have to hand it to this actress, who has just completely traumatized me for life!

The plot moves fairly quickly, but once you get past the first three episodes, the rest of the show flies by, as it introduces more pieces to the puzzle, luring you in so much, that you may want to ensure that Marianne is not nearby. The imagery is beautiful and I loved the concept of the pages from Emma’s book series appearing on screen.

The Cons:

Marianne 9 22 5 — Images courtesy of Netflix

The switching of genres is slightly jarring.

As Emma returns home, we get a lot of fluff involving some drama with her friends and family that I could have honestly done without. While some of the past flashbacks and revelations were necessary and interesting, other parts just kind of seemed forced and I almost felt like I started watching another show without realizing it.

I think part of the problem was that I didn’t really care that much about Emma’s group of friends. There were some redeeming moments here and there, but other moments just felt filler and boring.

There was also the introduction of some comedy thrown in that felt out of place. This sometimes made the show move slower and I’m still not really sure what the point of this was. Luckily, the terrifying moments and plot reveals were enough to overshadow this.

So am I in or out?

Marianne 9 22 6 — Images courtesy of Netflix

I am in! Sure, I may have nightmares for quite a while, but this show was genuinely frightening and unique. We are left with a cliffhanger ending, so hopefully we will get a second season, but I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this show.

If you are a fan of horror, you will absolutely be entertained and the writer in me loved the idea of characters coming to life, really reminding us that words certainly have a lot of power and we can unleash anything we want. Although we may want to slam the book shut on Marianne…

I hope you enjoyed the review and feel free to post your own thoughts and theories on Marianne in the comments section below. Thanks so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

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The Dreaming of Wonderland Book Series is available here!

Free Instant Preview of The Search for Alice is available here!

**If you enjoyed this blog, I would love it if you would click the follow button on your way out to subscribe. Thanks for your support!

Ranking the top 5 moments from “The Affair” season 5 episode 5: “You Are Enough”

Happy Sunday TV fans! After watching Showtime’s The Affair season 5 episode 5, I realized that you can tell yourself over and over again that you are enough, but you need to truly believe it. Sometimes that means trusting our instincts and other times that means saying no, but it all comes down to how we view ourselves and perhaps how we want to be viewed. Please note spoilers are ahead if you have not gotten a chance to watch the latest episode yet.

In tonight’s episode, “505,” Helen prepares to make her official debut as Sasha Mann’s girlfriend, but is constantly pressured by others around her. Meanwhile, Sierra desperately tries to adjust to motherhood, which becomes even more difficult when her own mother arrives in town. My top 5 moments from The Affair season 5 episode 5 are:

“I’m so sorry…”

Part one of the episode follows Sierra, as she adjusts to motherhood. Sierra has been raising baby Eddie by herself for four months and it is clearly taking a toll on her. Sierra desperately tries to find her balance and tells herself, “Everyday and in every way…today, I am enough.”

Even though the phrase certainly has a nice ring to it and I think I might try it out myself, Sierra has trouble keeping her cool, especially since baby Eddie will not stop crying. Sierra goes to an acting audition and initially thinks she did not do a good enough job, but I am more concerned that she decided to leave baby Eddie in the car during the audition…

“I just didn’t think men like you existed…except in the movies.”

During Helen’s part of the episode, Helen and Sasha appear to be getting closer and Sasha even tells Helen that he loves her. Helen is slightly hesitant, but it looks like she does have strong feelings for Sasha, but things get a little bit overwhelming when she learns that she will be basically making a public debut as Sasha Mann’s girlfriend at a party.

Everyone seems to comment on how “normal” Helen is, which makes me wonder if she is really cut out for the Hollywood lifestyle and we even get to run into an old friend…Noah’s book agent, Eden. Remember her? I have to admit, I was glad to see a little bit of jealousy running across her face when she saw who Helen was dating, especially since she did have a brief affair with Noah as well in the past.

“She’s been like a second mother to me.”

After Sierra lands the role, she is beyond excited, but she suddenly remembers she needs to find someone to watch baby Eddie. After her mother bails on her, she tries to ask Helen, but Helen tells her to figure it out and Stacey offers to watch him. Sierra makes another questionable call by leaving her baby with a 12-year-old, but does end up doing well at her first taping…once she gets out of her head.

Perhaps she should have left it there, but Sierra decides to have some time for herself and ends up doing drugs and sleeping with the director. After stumbling into Helen’s place at 2 am, she decides to take baby Eddie for a drive to calm him down and crashes the car. Luckily, she and Eddie are OK, but I’m hoping that this is a huge wake up call for Sierra.

“I don’t love you anymore.”

During the episode, we also get a brief moment between Noah and Helen. Noah comes to apologize to Helen for his behavior and tells her that he still loves her and wants her back. Helen stays strong; however, and tells Noah that she doesn’t love him anymore and that she’s not sure what the word “love” means to Noah.

While I’m not convinced that Sasha is the better choice for Helen, I was proud of her in this moment. Noah has had so many chances with Helen and he has continued to mess them up. While I appreciate his honesty with Helen, I think that she was right to turn him down here. Go Helen!

“You have everyone fooled.”

Helen tries out saying “no” in this episode, but she starts to have second thoughts about it later on. Vic’s mother, Priya, begs Helen to bring baby Eddie to meet her brother because she doesn’t want everyone in her family to know that Eddie is actually Sierra’s baby. After witnessing Sasha breaking his promise to one of his friends about a movie deal, Helen starts to realize that perhaps Sasha isn’t as perfect as he may seem.

Priya knocks on her door and tells Helen that she has everyone fooled and that Vic told her she was a selfless person. This encounter clearly impacts Helen and I think she is going to start really looking at her choices moving forward. While I want Helen to find happiness for herself, I also don’t want her to turn her back on who she is either.

Overall, I thought this was another revealing and moving episode, but I also want more Joanie screen time. It looks like we will be getting a Joanie-centric episode next week so I am super excited about that. There are still so many unanswered questions surrounding Cole’s death and Alison, so I’m hoping we will finally get to devote some time to that in episode 6. Stay tuned!

I hope you enjoyed the list and feel free to post your own theories and thoughts on The Affair below in the comments section. Thanks so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

[twitter-follow screen_name=’TV_Fanatic_Girl’]

The Dreaming of Wonderland Book Series is available here!

Free Instant Preview of The Search for Alice is available here!

**If you enjoyed this blog, I would love it if you would click the follow button on your way out to subscribe. Thanks for your support!

Ranking the top 5 moments from “The Affair” season 5 episode 4: “There You Are Noah”

Happy Sunday TV fans! After watching Showtime’s The Affair season 5 episode 4, I realized that sometimes one decision can set forth a course of events. If you are given the chance to have everything you ever wanted, would you take it? Sometimes the decision is not always clear cut, but once we get everything we thought we ever wanted, is it enough? Please note spoilers are ahead if you have not gotten a chance to watch the latest episode yet.

In tonight’s episode, “504,” Noah shows us a glimmer of potential, but continues to be thrown off course by Sasha’s relationship with Helen. Meanwhile, Whitney crosses paths with an ex-boyfriend who could change everything for her and Joanie tries to make a clean start. My top 5 moments from The Affair season 5 episode 4 are:

“Well for once we want the same thing…”

Part one of the episode follows Noah and the kids seem excited about attending Sasha’s Halloween party, while Helen’s mother disapproves. Noah seems to really be putting forth an effort with both Trevor and Stacey, reminding Helen that he just wants to maintain a healthy and stable co-parenting environment/relationship. Let’s just hope he can keep this up because Noah has the tendency to get distracted and obsessed easily with other things, especially since Helen is still dating Sasha.

“You want her back.”

During Noah’s part of the episode, he runs into the new sheriff in town, Joel, who is just dressing the part for Halloween, but he does point out to Noah that perhaps he wants Helen back. Noah denies this, but then why is he so obsessed with Helen’s decisions? Is it more about Helen or does he feel like Sasha is replacing him?

Noah is upset to discover that Sasha will be credited as the co-writer of the movie based on his book, so I have to wonder where his frustration is really coming from? Helen is taking care of Helen and I wasn’t a fan of Noah trying to leave behind a bra so that she would get angry at Sasha. It just seemed selfish and childish and Noah needs to leave that part of his life behind him.

“Hi Dad.”

Part three of the episode follows Joanie and she decides to start cleaning out Cole’s house. Only she begins throwing out all of the pictures of Alison and Cole as well. She then finds the box of letters that Cole learned about on his trip to Morro Bay and tosses it, which instantly broke my heart and then she stumbles across the chest with Gabriel’s toys. Joanie pauses when she gets to this one, immediately recognizing and understanding the meaning behind it, but she throws it out as well and takes off on Alison’s old bicycle and heads to the cemetery to say hello to her dad.

It looks like Joanie is trying to erase every part of her past, but I’m not sure this is the right answer. I’m looking forward to finding out what actually prompts her to go and find Ben Cruz. She seems willing to part with these reminders of her family, but what makes her want to solve the mystery behind Alison’s death?

“I don’t want to be looked at anymore.”

Part two of the episode is from Whitney’s perspective, which was a nice change of pace. I mentioned in last week’s blog that I wanted to find out more about Whitney’s story so I was pleased to see this. Whitney has been struggling for a while now to get by and her rent is past due. Colin is putting a lot of stress on her since he can’t work and she begins to resent him for it. To make things more complicated, Whitney’s much older ex-boyfriend, Furkat, returns. Remember him from Paris? He begs Whitney for her forgiveness and invites her to a gallery opening, introducing her to some connections along the way.

Later on, Whitney has a conversation with Furkat’s new connection, who asks Whitney, “If you could have everything you ever wanted, what would it look like?” Whitney talks about wanting to open up her own gallery and ends up sleeping with Furkat. The man she spoke to comes in to watch and Furkat explains that he can give her the gallery she is dreaming of. Whitney has come so far as a character, but she gives in here and allows this to happen; wanting to get that much closer to her dreams, but everything has a price.

At the end of her part, she crawls back into bed with Colin and holds on to him, as the guilt of her actions washes over her. I thought this was a revealing and vulnerable moment for Whitney and I started to think about how similar she is to both her mother and father. Helen warned her daughter about not giving up her dreams for a man, while Noah has always put his dreams above all else in some regards, so you have to wonder which side of the scale Whitney will ultimately end up on?

“Because I’m her father.”

It’s been a while since I have given a Noah moment my number one spot, but I have to say that I was impressed by his loyalty to his daughter, Stacey. After Stacey gets her period for the first time, she locks herself in the bathroom. Noah asks Helen’s mother to help out and puts her in her place, reminding her that he is Stacey’s father and he is not going to leave her side. Helen’s mother is actually impressed by this and says, “There you are Noah…welcome back.”

Stacey is grateful that her father stands by her and they are absolutely adorable heading into Sasha’s Halloween party. Too bad Noah makes some bad decisions after this, but his moment with Stacey reminded us that perhaps Noah needs to put aside Noah, the writer…Noah, the director…Noah, the lover and just simply focus on being a good father. Can he stay on track? Stay tuned!

I hope you enjoyed the list and feel free to post your own theories and thoughts on The Affair below in the comments section. Thanks so much for reading and happy viewing!

Best,

Amy Koto, TV Fanatic Girl

[twitter-follow screen_name=’TV_Fanatic_Girl’]

Have a performance on TV that you think is simply outstanding? Feel free to contact me with your nomination for the week by Friday at midnight!

The Dreaming of Wonderland Book Series is available here!

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