TV reviews by @RikerDonegal
“Resident Alien” s4e1 (2025)
Show returns after 14 months without missing a beat. Almost all the character had cliffhangers when last we saw them, and these are dealt with here: Harry is still in captivity, D'Arcy still has the baby, Mike has explained away the alien as a hallucination, etc.
Alan Tudyk is playing two characters now. And is twice as hilarious.
10/10
“Murderbot” s1e4 (2025)
Best episode so far. This is an absolute cracker! Very funny and thrilling and clever. The action sequences are top notch.
Being told that Murderbot was being programmed to kill his own team and waiting for it to happen was nail-biting. The ending was shocking.
10/10
“The Tick” s2e1 (2019)
Low-key but fun episode, with a major change for Arthur. (He quits his job.) There’s an even bigger change for Dot. (She develops a super-power!)
Good fight scene at the end.
7/10
“Love, Inc.” s1e16 (2006)
Noureen DeWulf.
Disappointingly average episode. The Denise storyline dominates, but there’s not much to it. She bribes Francine to make changes to her new boyfriend so he don’t think they are coming from from her. Not many laughs. The b-story has a funny guest star but it never really develops as a story.
6/10
“The Rockford Files” s7e6 (1996)
Bryan Cranston.
1996 TV movie written and directed by David Chase which sees Kathryn Harrold return to the show as Megan.
It plays more like a character drama than a crime drama. Although there is some action and a murder very late in the story, it’s mostly the story of Megan’s dysfunctional family and her rekindled on-again-off-again feelings for Jim.
7/10
“The Six Million Dollar Man” s4e19 (1977)
Good execution of a clever story - written by Michael Wagner - with most of the scenes filmed on a submarine. It’s got a strong guest cast, plenty of tension and bionic action. Very rewatchable.
8/10
“The Bionic Woman” s2e21 (1977)
Stephen Elliott.
An average but enjoyable instalment. On the surface it’s a gimmick episode which sends Jaime undercover as a dock worker. But it’s actually a reasonably involved story in which Oscar is looking for his brother who disappeared 36 years earlier.
My 280th TV episode of 2025. Averaging 1h10m of TV per day.
6/10
“Wings” s6e16 (1995)
Sheila Kelley.
Series seems to be in a bit of a slump at the moment. Here’s another episode that doesn’t quite gel. It’s about a high school reunion and Helen is the focus, dealing with the clique that used to torment her for being overweight. It’s all a bit mean-spirited and unfunny.
Brian’s b-story is a bit better, as it finds him reconnecting with an old love. There cliffhanger comes out of nowhere.
5/10
“Murderbot” s1e3 (2025)
The second half of this third episode was excellent. The mystery, the build-up of tension, the pay-off and the cliffhanger were as good as I’ve ever seen.
The first half was good but very different. It leaned heavily into Murderbot’s discomfort around the crew. It was good but sometimes less is more.
9/10
“Murderbot” s1e2 (2025)
Really enjoyed David Dastmalchian in this episode, as his character tried to figure out what’s wrong with the SecUnit. Plus, the show has set up an intriguing mystery on the planet.
8/10
“Murderbot” s1e1 (2025)
Impressive first episode. The show looks great (expensive) and is funny. It’s also got an imaginative premise - kinda Resident Alien with a robot.
9/10
“Resident Alien” s3e8 (2024)
Excellent!
Several parallel storylines. No weak link. All reaching major turning points.
Show has mastered the art of balancing drama and comedy. Mostly every serious moment in this script is immediately underscored by the characters showing an equal interest in something utterly trivial. It always works and it always provokes hearty laughter.
The cliffhanger is jaw-dropping.
10/10
“Resident Alien” s3e6 (2024)
A perfect episode.
Written and directed by Nastaran Dibai.
Alan Tudyk has never been better as Harry. He managed to make it hysterical as we are watching his heart breaking. It’s really sad. And hilarious. I have no idea how he did that.
It was also Elizabeth Bowen’s best episode, as she finally confronts her grandma.
In fact, there were standout moments for Kate, Asta and D'Arcy. This felt like an important episode.
10/10
“Wings” s6e15 (1995)
Another episode that doesn’t quite work. The situations are strained and laughs are thin on the ground. The idea is that Joe and Helen are fighting a lot as they plan their forthcoming nuptials. They gate-crash another wedding and end up derailing the whole thing.
Occasionally, I chuckled. Mostly, I was bored. I just don’t believe that Joe and Helen would suddenly bicker that much.
5/10
“The Night Agent” s2e8 (2025)
Man, this show is leaning heavily into the tropes of Twenty Four. I guess, these are standard espionage tropes (?) but Twenty Four perfected them. The Night Agent does a good job with them. It’s well set up and we get how Peter has found himself in this situation, making this choice. (To go rogue to save Rose.)
One of the villains gets redeemed here. And dies a horrible death soon after. Who else will die?
9/10
“Wings” s6e14 (1995)
Natasha Pavlovich.
Good episode. Plenty of laughs in both the a-story and b-story. A-story resolves in predictable fashion, which is how we want it to conclude, while the b-story ends quite cleverly.
Helen is at the center of the main plot, with Roy marrying a Russian mail-order bride and Helen determined to save the woman if she can.
Antonio only has a couple of short appearances but they are hilarious.
8/10
“The Night Agent” s2e7 (2025)
Jay Karnes.
One thing that is very impressive about this show: It really makes you care about the characters. Solomon and Tomás Bala are villains, but you can empathise with their situations. And their choices.
Noor’s storyline is the most gripping here. It’s intense. Has she really switched sides.
Great use of Rose in this episode. But I really, really wish she would make up her mind about whether she wants to stay or go.
10/10
“The Night Agent” s2e6 (2025)
Another very strong episode. This season is turning out to be much better than the first couple of episodes would have indicated.
The tension surrounding Noor and what might happen to her is superb.
This season has really spent time building up the character of Catherine and I really like her now.
Rose was well used in this episode, and had some good character moments. The villains, too, have been well built up this season.
9/10
“Wings” s6e12 (1995)
Valerie Mahaffey is brilliant in her second episode as the girl obsessed with Joe. Because this is a sequel, it’s basically the same story as the first one but this is a situation where something like that works.
So… nobody believes Joe about the psycho girl and… in the end, she holds him “hostage” and makes him act out their wedding. Very funny.
Best line: “They’re fighting over me.” Tim Daly at his best.
9/10
“The Night Agent” s2e4 (2025)
Another jump-up in quality. Season has improved with each episode. This one featured Peter, Rose and Noor on a mission together and it was really well told and gripping. There was a short-but-decent action sequence, too.
It was the first episode to make me like Catherine. And the conclusion, with Noor standing up for herself, was a cool ending.
Anousha is a real scene-stealer as Haleh.
9/10