Sleepy Hollow

blixie wrote:I can NOT believe they stuck all the black folk in the B plot including the ostensible LEAD, and fed us more of Whitey McWhispersons.

I think the fork is fully in this show, it was such a DELICATE balance in the first season, a miracle really that it managed to work on almost every level, but a season full of episodes just like this one have decimated Ichabod as a character for me, and I can't foresee anyway the show can recapture the frothy bat shit insane fun it managed to evoke last season. I mean killing Katrina dead dead dead would help, having her poof into smoke, having her vanish into the mists, any of that might work, but it's too far gone for me to invest in until Katia and the showrunner and basically the entire writing staff are fired.

I thought the twist ending would be the showrunners swapping out Black Abbie for First Lady Abbie--Katrina does need her very own bestie just like Ichabod, after all.

But I'm sure it crossed their minds.

We needed more Miss Jenny in this episode. She brought some welcome snark. "Thanks for telling me to leave one bullet in him, HAWLEY!"

That was fun! After so much dour nonsense, it was so nice to have a good, old-fashioned rollicking adventure with lots of humour and oh my god the singing. It felt patchy in places - like Abbie's sudden mistrust of Ichabod after helping him out with his date last week (yuck yuck yuck) - but it was lovely to see them communicate their issues and work things out after all the false, misplaced drama of late.

The main story was fine, despite the monster-lady wearing what appeared to be one of the Four Who Speak As One's ratty dentures. Fake-looking teeth make for a goofy-looking villain. However, it was so great to see Abbie, Ichabod and Jenny back together again, with lots of ingenuity and teamwork. And singing! Singing makes everything better.

The writers have finally begun to listen to criticism and looks like Hawley is the first to bear the brunt. Having dropped that awful love triangle plot like a sack of nothing good, it seems a bit cruel to show him the door just when I'm beginning to not mind him so much. He works as an occasional, jokey anti-hero type that Team Witness are forced to consult with from time to time, but placing him with the lead actress was a shocking misstep. I'm sorry to see him go as he and Jenny make a potentially interesting couple and I'd like to see him come back from time to time (it will never happen though, given the fate Joe Corbin, Big Ash and all the other fan favourites who have disappeared without trace after one episode). Will Orion return? And Kindred?

Poor Frank, I'm really feeling scared for him now. I really hope the writers give him something much better to get his teeth into before the season is over. And finally, finally we get to see Katrina's weak, vacillating character show some actual darkness. However, from the looks of it she will turn evil to save her demonic little muffin, rather than give us the revelation that I want - that she has been playing Ichabod for a fool this whole time. I will take this for now, though.

I had my fingers crossed that Poochie was going to finally Die Heroically, but I'll accept him returning to his own planet. I liked his interactions with Jenny (and if he'd been a seasoning, with hints of adoring Jenny, all along I'd have liked him a lot better) and even mustered up some sympathy for him over his EEEEEvil (and inhuman) foster mother.

Alas, ever since Help! I find it very hard to take Kali seriously as an agent of EEEEEvil, which I know means I need to do more research but I'd rather just watch the Beatles run around some more.

And Katrina, having demonstrated that she won't give up her loyalty to a loved one even when she really, obviously, should, looks like she's going to fulfill all of Abbie's suspicions. Personally, I like the idea of her not being evil, but having a normally-positive trait that can turn really negative under the wrong circumstances. I think I might finally be about to find out what an evil Hufflepuff looks like.

I loved Team Witness facing their dysfunction head-on at last (and Jenny being the one to take Abbie by the neck and make her look was excellent.) Bonding via karaoke was a lot of fun ("Proud Mary" made me actually squee, but Ichabod's version of, well, the source material for "Streets Of Laredo" was good cringey fun. I did not know Nicole Beharis was so multi-talented!)

Anyway--I don't mind this season anyway, but this episode was particularly fun. Although yeah, I think Frank still needs to watch his back.

Well, that was an unexpected return to form!

I loved that it was fun again. Not every moment was dour, "the end is nigh", or wasted on horrid, damsel in distress, secondary characters (cough*Katrina*cough). The pacing felt a little "off" in places, but there was humour and character interaction that didn't rely on an exposition fairy. Welcome back Team Witness! Well done show!

I loved the review at I09. Something to the effect of <the writers and producers of SH really, really want you to come back. This show was the equivalent of a letter under the door saying "we're really sorry, and we're listening, please come back">

Its about bloody time!..I just hope that it is "in time".

I still liked Hawley, but they bungled him to the point where he really had to go.

The best part of the episode was Proud Mary, the one thing these showrunners can not kill is the adorable chemistry between Tom and Nicole and that was all over that final karaoke song, their mutual smiles and sidelong looks are just Too Cute. Kittens and puppies BEWARE.

If Hawley had to be sacrificed on the altar of We Are Doing What We Can, I'm fine with it. I liked him all right too; there was just too much of him all at once and the specter of the Abbie/Jenny/Hawley love triangle was too facepalmy to contemplate.

I'm not sure how much they've been able to change since the internet rose up against Katrina, but I feel like there has been a lot of "ugh, KATRINA" "I KNOW" from the characters the past couple of episodes. Which I'm also fine with for now.

This episode was DELIGHTFUL. A return to form indeed. A scary monster to fight/real danger without it being THE END OF THE WORLD, RIGHT NOW, NO REALLY THIS TIME (really a lot of wolf-crying on that the first half of the season), no Henry whining in the background; just, let's go fight this monster and oh no we got locked in a closet! and it all works out and then karaoke. And product placement. (Ichabod driving was fun though, and asking about which breed of horse specifically was being referred to with the term "horsepower.")

Apparently Irving didn't have a reflection in the mirror, which I totally did not catch because apparently I'm unobservant. So, that's going on. Katrina's lying? Maybe.

Obviously, the karaoke was fabulous. Go, little Nicole! I was sad they cut off Proud Mary just when it was going to get awesome, but I assume and hope that a longer version will find its way to the DVD.

Tom Mison on what to expect for the rest of the season. He's surprisingly candid, and unless he's lying his face off this should make some folks very happy indeed.

Tom Mison no longer on the fence about Ichabbie and Twitter just melted.

The weird thing is - I'm as happy as anyone that Poochie went back to his own planet, but as I finally watched this week's episode on my DVR, I found myself feeling really sorry for the actor, Matt Barr. Here he thought he had landed this sweet gig on a popular show, and the fans blame him for OMG RUINING IT. I was probably projecting, but I imagined that's what he was thinking as he did his final scene.

And then there's this from Katia Winter, and now I have to feel sorry for her too.

It's like back in the BtVS days, when I spent a good amount of time hating on Dawn, then found it it made teen-aged Michelle Trachtenberg really sad.

Is there another show that's had so many of its principal players complain publicly about what the showrunners have done with it, or how their characters have been treated?

I'm scared that the actors are aware that the show's going to be cancelled, so they are airing some of their frustrations. If the scuttlebutt is correct, then Tom Mison is not happy with how Nicole Beharie has been treated this season. He may be tossing a grenade before looking for a new gig, or he knows how indispensable he is and has finally decided to tell the writers what he thinks of their shenanigans this season.

Neil Jackson announced on Twitter that he's leaving, so if the show does survive, we will be seeing some major changes. Either Katrina's character is going to be killed off or drastically changed in terms of tone and screentime. If I'm reading Katia Winters' tweet correctly, then she's annoyed with the inconsistent writing too. She has tweeted a couple of snotty responses to some of the criticism thrown her way, which I don't really blame her for. It can't be easy playing such a despised character.

I do feel bad for Matt Barr too. Kali Yuga shows that he could have been a decent addition to the show if he was an occasional player, instead of shoved down our throats. I'd like to see him return on occasion - he's definitely better in small doses.

Grainne Mhaol wrote:I'm scared that the actors are aware that the show's going to be cancelled, so they are airing some of their frustrations.

TV by the Numbers has the series listed as more likely to be renewed than canceled.

I loved this show last year, but I think its issues always went beyond Katrina. It was very delicately balanced on a point of being fun/silly/crazy, and other than Tom Mison and Nicole Beharie (and John Noble, but his storyline was kind of a disaster) (and John Cho was great, but hardly in it) I don't think most of the regular cast is that good. And it will make me sad if they reduce Ichabod and Abbie's sweet friendship to a romance, like every other freaking show out there. Bleh.

Okay - evil Katrina? Henry and Irving in cahoots? I'm back in.

So finally we're seeing some forward motion in Katrina and Irving's stories, but it's hard to care a great deal as they've been running in circles for most of the season. Again, this episode felt front-heavy and oddly paced. I don't know if it's the extra episodes, or the fact that the writers have felt hamstrung by Katrina being so prominent or what.

The Salem story took up a good proportion of the episode to little effect, but I guess there are a few (cough Mark Goffman cough) for whom more Katia Winter can only be a good thing. Soloman Kent had potential as a villian but there was no emotional connection to make me care about the story. I don't know if his part was edited down but I didn't understand why he ended up in Purgatory and what he intended to do when he travelled back to Salem - not witch-shame the girl I guess? She still won't love you, dude. Build a bridge and whatnot.

The only reason for the audience to care about him changing history is the effect is has on our heroes. I was hoping for a scene where Abbie asked Crane if he was tempted to use the Traveller spell to go back to his old life, but no such luck. The writers have again forgotten the emotional core of the show - Abbie and Crane. They seem to think throwing fans a bone by having them sing karaoke or have vague conversations about their bond is sufficient (though I'll take what I can get on that front right now.) I need that stuff to be tied into the A-plot, otherwise all the witchy stuff won't resonate with me.

There was a lack of imagination that I noticed here more so than before. I realise that the showrunners shot themselves in the foot to a degree by making Henry the Big Bad and connecting the Apocalypse so much to the Cranes, but there's loads of season one stuff to pull on if they're lacking ideas. I don't know if it's a lack of talent or passion in the writer's room, but this was another episode that felt off to me. The disposable imps in their tiny underwear worked once or twice in the first season, but it's time to raise the stakes now, surely.

I'm also scared this season's nonsense has thrown a permanent spanner into the Abbie and Ichabod relationship. They still have chemistry in spades, but the banter and lightheartedness is largely absent from their interactions. It seems like they're going through the motions at times. I also feel that this episode highlighted a problem with Crane's character this season, in that he has become something of a caricature. I know that he's a modern man and all that, but punching an unconscious man (even a villain) doesn't seem like something the honorable Ichabod Crane would countenance before.

I heard that this was the first episode to be shot after the Great Fandom Backlash of 2014, and I have to say I expected more. The darkening of Katrina's character is good, but again, we've been seeing hints of her being evil all season. I want full Dark Katrina or nothing.

On a positive note, Frank's got some of his old spark back - I'm not wild about him being evil but I'll take that over mopey, drugged up, incarcerated Irving any day. This season's been a drag as far as his character is concerned, so I want to see him have some fun. Talking about not moping, I was heartened to see Henry back and not whining about his parents. I hope he, Irving and Katrina will join up and force Crane, Abbie and Jenny to go head-to-head. Now that's a scenario I can get behind.

Yeah I found that episode incredibly underwhelming given how it was supposed to be changing course, and not encouraging for what they think they can do in S3. I'll say the one bit I DO like is Irving being compromised and working with Henry, I'd actually thought early on in S1 that Irving's loyalties would be more ambiguous and teased out, that he would be witch and we'd not be sure if he was aligned with a good coven, or a bad coven, whether he was totally supportive of Team Witness, or undermining them, kind of like Skinner (though obviously like Skinner I wanted him to be very much Team MSR). So yeah I'm good with him trying to restore his soul and maybe trying to be a double agent.

I'm also scared this season's nonsense has thrown a permanent spanner into the Abbie and Ichabod relationship.

Yeah I think the big problem for me is they have decimated Ichabod as character and sacrificed so much of what made Ichabbie a joy, aka this incredible bond and trust has been tossed out the window to facilitate Kadreena (seriously Mison kept saying it that way last night) story, they seem as recalcitrant as ever to just KILL HER OFF. Turning her evil for me doesn't work, because it's too little too late, because it presupposes she hasn't always come across as EVIL and shady, and because good lord I'm sorry but Katia Winters sucks. I mean I tried not to blame her, but lady try try to do something other than whisper in British accent even when you're playing a completely different character.

I almost thought they could make her interesting in that first scene because she was actually doing Magic, and even seemed to be having FUN with it, but then she started droning on about blah blah blah and yadda yadda yadda, and stilll was ineffective as ever with the actual villain. The kicker was bitchy retort that magic isn't like a musket, it can't just be reloaded. Lady, you need to go. Unless she A) dies or B) is sucked into another dimension in the finale, it's gonna be wicked hard to give this show any rope for S3, especially if Goffman is still on board.

At least now we know whispering runs in Katrina's family

That was... good? The Reavers were genuinely scary, despite looking more than a little like a cross between Serenity Reavers and the creatures from The Descent. It was nice that they weren't the usual Disposable Imps in Tiny Underwear™ that aren't threatening in the least.

Hello, Calvin! Unlike Hawley he actually has chemistry with Nicole Beharie, as well as charm to spare and is actually, you know, a decent human being. I hope he returns if the show does. He is the first character I wouldn't mind her being paired with (temporarily of course, cause no handsome journalist is getting in the way of my babies and their Biblically-prophesied ship).

The central story showed little in the way of forward momentum for Team Witness - seeing as the Fenestella-thingy got destroyed in the end - but it was good to see the importance Abbie's role being highlighted. I guess it showed how far Ichabod has come, from missing his Founding Father buddies and his old life to willingly sacrificing the Fenestella to save people, thereby embracing his place in the new world.

And Katrina is bearable only because she's barely there, finally making the turnabout that she should have made ten episodes ago. I'm trying to suppress my hatred for how she's been written all season and enjoy seeing her finally becoming the powerful witch everyone's been hyping her to be.

Steven Weber! LOVE him. He looked good, too.

Toward the end there, I kept saying, "Can't you haul a few of those books and trunks and trinkets out of there before you blow it up?"

I did not realize that Orlando Jones live-tweets during the show until tonight. Also, excellent episode tonight! Oh, Abby.

Is Katrina trying to be Willow? The reavers are like Serenity and first there was a homage to supernatural now to Joss Whedon hmmm please don't take away this show it's getting better again

Oh my giddy aunt, this show just got awesome again. Ending the interminable Henry arc and making Katrina finally unleash her badness was the best thing Sleepy Hollow has done all season. The last scene was pure Season One gold, what with the parallels to Ichabod's introduction to the twenty-first century and the string version of 'Sympathy for the Devil'. Genius.

I got chills. If next week goes the way I think, Season Three (let us pray) will involve a timeline reset which corrects a lot of this season's problems. Irving's got his soul back! Plus Cynthia and Macey might be witches!

Only Kindred making a comeback would make me more excited right now.

the string version of 'Sympathy for the Devil'

Does anyone know who did that version? I WANT it. It was amazing.

That whole episode was so much fun! Thank goodness this show got its groove back.

I haven't watched the show since the midseason finale--209, I think. I was waiting for it to get better, so I have all the new eps saved on my DVR. Do you guys think it's time to come back to the show? And if so, should I just start with this one, or go back a few?