TV Thoughts: 2010 Season Finales
The 2009-2010 US television season has mostly come to an end, which will theoretically leave me with more free time. I may do something different with these types of posts when the new season starts in the fall, but for now, here are some ramblings about the season finales of Smallville, 90210, Lost, and Chuck. There are many spoilers, but I’ve blocked them out with color codes.
Smallville 9-21: Salvation
Man, this show… The finale was less horrible than usual, at least. All the Superman teases were cute, and the bit with the Kryptonite knuckles was hilarious. I wonder if this means Tess is going to turn into Two-Face. And the ending was mostly predictable, except for the Blue Kryptonite, which I didn’t see coming at all. It made for a confusing yet intriguing final shot, which almost gives me a glimmer of hope for next season. Almost.
90210 2-22: Confessions
The second season has been a lot better than the first, and they topped it off with a killer ending. I want to say that waiting all summer to see what happens next will kill me, but as far as my perception of time is concerned, it will be September in a few days anyway. But man, so many oh snaps. I had a feeling that Mr. Cannon was going to try something with Naomi after all, but I didn’t expect it to go down like that. Holy crap. And the way Mr. Matthews got wasted and crashed into the school sign? Wow. But it seems obvious that that will lead to him having to choose between being a witness on Naomi’s behalf or keeping quiet to save his own ass. And then after all that buildup all season, Jasper sets Liam’s boat on fire? Shiiiiiit.
Though it’s not entirely related to the finale, I also want to express disappointment over the fact that they made such a big deal about Adrianna turning gay and insisted it wasn’t temporary, but they squashed that storyline so quickly and she’s already back to men. I guess it’s probably realistic as far as teenage girls go, but sheesh. And I’m also very sad that Rob Estes is leaving, but at least he’s getting a great exit, writing-wise.
Chuck 3-18 to 3-19: Chuck Versus the Subway, and Chuck Versus the Ring: Part II
Wow. Some of the twists, like Stephen’s death, and the return of Shaw, were fairly predictable, but the execution was still amazing. There were so many good moments, like General Beckman doing a “Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi” style message to Morgan, another epic final battle set to the music of Jeffster, the way Chuck completely outsmarted Shaw into revealing everything on camera, and of course, another ultimate show-changing cliffhanger. I eagerly await the fourth season.
Lost 6-17 to 6-18: The End
Man, this show… My theory was that the alternate reality was a result of either the bomb or the final battle, and that everyone was reuniting because they were going to go back to the “real” world on the island to fix things. But instead, it’s just an afterlife? And the whole “it worked” thing was just about a vending machine? All of that made for some nice sappy moments, sure, but it craps all over the previous narrative and leaves far too many unresolved story issues. But at least I only invested six months into this show instead of six years.