Well, Well, Well…It Finally Happened

ABC did in the fourth episode of their first season what FOX couldn't/wouldn't do in six years.

Fandom never believed in a million years it would actually happen—even with all parties involved repeatedly agreeing they were cool with it. Still, it was a surprise to both fandom and casual viewers alike when it happened. (Ben was reading ahead online during a commercial break and let out an "OH MY GOD!" from the Kitchen and I my first thought was that they'd killed off a major character because—well—911!).

Social media went into a meltdown of praises and relief. Our 911 viewing experience has definitely changed forever with this historic moment. Our lives will never be the same—and neither will Evan "Buck" Buckley's.

Oliver Stark – Again, you displayed such a delicate yet powerful performance for this episode. All emotions were on point. Valid! And we all felt it deep in our bones. The storyline is worthy for the show's 100th episode. You did not disappoint us. You delivered and exceeded everyone's expectations. Thank you!

But the question remains…when are you and Eddie getting together?

3 Body Problem

I know some of you have been waiting to hear my opinion of the new Netflix series 3 Body Problem, based upon the book series by author Liu Cixin, so here goes.  I guess the best way to illustrate how I feel about it is to say I binged the entire series in one day. I couldn't stop watching. It was totally engaging and kept me on the edge of my seat.

I was not familiar with the source material, although I had heard of it. I'm not going to offer up any spoilers other than to say the San-Ti, the story's antagonists, are truly are evil—but at the same time I can't help but think that if humanity was faced with the same impossible fate the Sai-Ti were, we'd be just as coldheartedly ruthless. Hell—we're coldheartedly ruthless to our fellow humans now when not faced with complete societal destruction.

The first season ends on a cliffhanger…of course. This led me to researching the story further, and if I thought the alien invaders were ruthless before, all I can say is you ain't seen nothin' yet.

The story is intriguing, and initially a bit of a puzzle if you're not familiar with the source material, but it soon becomes clear exactly what is going on. It basically highlights the dark forest theory, one of many hypotheses used to explain the apparent lack of other civilizations in the universe. The acting was uniformly good. The special effects—while somewhat cheesy when the characters were in "the game"—were still quite good otherwise.

In short, recommended.