Marvel's What If? (Season 1)

Disney+ just doesn't let up, does it? I think I might just be destined to watch all of their stuff. Still, I have been enjoying these MCU and Star Wars shows even with their flaws, and What If? seems like a nice change of pace. Being an anthology series, this will be much easier to review episode by episode:

What If... Captain Carter Were The First Avenger?: I remember when Agent Carter was airing, and learning that it was cancelled was devastating. So seeing Peggy, Howard Stark, and much of The First Avenger cast again was really nice. Peggy is such a likable and underrated lead, and I'm glad to see Hayley Atwell still nails the character even in a vocal performance. I think this is a good first episode to ease the audience into the show's What If premise before we start to get into the weird stuff like "Marvel Zombies", and there were plenty of things I enjoyed about it. There were some neat twists like Steve falling off the train rather than Bucky, and Peggy joining the Avengers. The ending really left me wondering if the show will tie everything together in some way. I also thought the animation was really solid, especially with the action. However, I think this episode did try to do a bit too much. It's like an entire movie condensed into a half-hour, with some pretty abrupt jumps between scenes. Maybe the fact that this is an altered retelling of an already existing movie holds this one back, but I think the pacing is the biggest problem for the series to overcome right now. Otherwise, it was a solid episode, but you probably wouldn't get too much out of it if you're not a fan of The First Avenger and/or Agent Carter.

What If... T'Challa Became A Star-Lord?: Thanos is a good guy? Nebula isn't a full-on cyborg? The Black Order works as security guards? Howard The Duck appears?! This was the kind of weird episode I wanted from the show, and it was insanely fun. I think what helped is that it's not just recapping a movie like the premiere, it's telling an original story that was far more well-paced. T'Challa had an actual character arc, with package to deal with, and the whole episode had that cool heist vibe to it. It was really nice to see Chadwick Boseman again, at least one last time. His T'Challa voice is so recognizable, and I'll definitely miss it. I still think the writing is a bit cliche and not too many of the jokes really landed (aside from the Thanos stuff), but in terms of pacing and even characters, this was a far better and more fun than the first. I'm also just surprised this episode made Thanos a likable character.

What If... The World Lost Its Mightiest Heroes?: This was a bit of a different episode of What If?, as it doesn't reveal what the nexus event was until the very end. As a result, it feels like a whodunit story starring Coulson, Nick Fury, and Black Widow. It led to a episode that was surprisingly tense compared to the previous two, and the payoff of Hank Pym being the murderer worked pretty well. Whenever the episode was focused on that central mystery, it was really great. However, I also felt like it was a bit too packed, using scenes from pretty much the entirety of Phase 1 (though I did like the references to The Incredible Hulk). The pacing wasn't nearly as bad as the Carter episode, but there were so many characters being juggled throughout the episode. Otherwise, I thought this was a fun What If? episode. Definitely better than Episode 1, but not as good as Episode 2.

What If... Doctor Strange Lost His Heart Instead Of His Hands?: So is Episode 4 just always gonna be killer in these MCU shows? Because this episode was shockingly good, completely outclassing the first three in so many ways. I wasn't even a fan of Doctor Strange, nor his first film, but this episode was great. It really helped that this episode felt the most focused of the four so far, centered around one specific character with one specific goal. The pacing was tight, and watching Strange slowly lose his sanity as he continues to try to prevent Christine from dying feels natural. I definitely got a bit of a Steins;Gate vibe from the first half of the episode, between Strange's repeated time travel, the introduction of the Absolute Point, and the sheer amount of sacrifices that go into changing it. Once Doctor Strange Supreme starts to absorb monsters and grow in power, the episode starts to lean more into horror. There's a bit of a cosmic horror vibe to the end of the episode, with Strange Supreme's final form resembling Cthulhu, the good guy being defeated, Christine rejecting Strange after all he's become, and The Watcher just being forced to watch as an entire universe collapses on itself and not being able to do anything about it. I was genuinely surprised by how dark the ending is, and I really want to see What If? continue to be gutsy like this. The animation was also really good this episode too, I think Doctor Strange's magic works really well in this medium. I also think this episode really solidifies the fact that we're going to be seeing intersections between these universes, as the reappearance of that tentacle monster from Episode 1 and Strange's ability to talk to The Watcher seem to hint at a bit of a larger plot than just an anthology series. Regardless, this episode was the gutsiest thing the MCU has done in years, and I hope What If? can continue to use its format to tell more un-MCU stories.

What If... Zombies?: Despite being probably the most hyped episode of the season, Zombies didn't quite do it for me in quite a few aspects. It felt a lot like Episode 3, with a lot of characters being juggled around and most of the episode being comprised of action sequences. I did like the action, though. Hulk vs Scarlet Witch was cool only if we only got to see just a bit of it, and the episode incorporated just enough zombie violence without earning the show a TV-MA rating. I thought the main cast was a solid lineup of characters, if a bit overstuffed. The highlight was Spider-Man, who got all the emotional moments and finally name-dropped Uncle Ben, but I also enjoyed seeing Kurt from the Ant-Man films back for a while. My main issue though was just how lighthearted the episode was. Even though all their friends were dead, the remaining Avengers were still cracking quips, and none of the death scenes aside from Wasp's really had time to breathe. While most of the episodes seem to end with a bit of a cliffhanger (except the fourth which actually feels like a full story), this episode genuinely felt like it was setting up for a second half. The ending about Thanos being on Wakanda feels less like a cruel twist ending and more like a plot thread that needs to be tied up. Overall, this episode was fine, but I'm starting to worry that Episode 4 may have spoiled me on the rest of the series.

What If... Killmonger Rescued Tony Stark?: Killmonger is my favorite villain in the whole MCU, so I might have a bit of a bias here, but I really enjoyed this episode. They got the most important thing right, they nailed the character. Killmonger is still as interesting as he was in Black Panther, with this episode giving a bit of screentime to his oft-mentioned military background. This episode also showed how manipulative and brutal he could be, showing off an incredible gambit to become the Black Panther, and it works perfectly. Killmonger also kills a lot of people to get his way, particularly Iron Man, Rhodes, and T'Challa himself. Thankfully, unlike last episode, these deaths actually get a bit more time to breath. Michael B Jordan isn't quite as intense in live-action, but his voice acting was generally really good to. Aside from the obvious highlight, I liked to get to see more of pre-character-development Tony, even if he didn't get too much screentime. Rhodes's interaction with Killmonger was cool too, though technically he should have been modeled after Terrence Howard during that time period. I also really liked the ending of Shuri teaming up with Pepper, that's definitely something I would see another episode of. Overall, one of the better episodes for me.

What If... Thor Was An Only Child?: What was this episode? This one didn't work for me at all! The whole storyline is just that Thor is holding a party that could destroy the planet and SHIELD wants to stop him. That's all. Otherwise, this episode was just a series of random cameos and jokes that honestly didn't land a lot of the time. There were a few chuckle-worthy moments, like Darcy marrying Howard The Duck and Surter hitting on the Status Of Liberty were pretty good, but otherwise, I found this episode to be kinda unfunny. The cameos and easter eggs also went way too far at this point, to a point of self-indulgence that not even the MCU has managed to reach yet. And then there's the ending. I get that What If? has this shtick where every final scene has to be a big cliffhanger or downer setting up some future episode of appearance of these characters, but they almost always feel abrupt. This one was especially strange, not only did it conflict with the episode's attempt at a comedic tone, but there was nothing foreshadowing "Infinity Ultron" showing up at all. The whole episode just felt like a waste of time, easily the weakest in the series and probably one of the worst MCU things I've seen in a while.

What If... Ultron Won?: So it turns out there's a reason Infinity Ultron just showed up out of the blue, and it's because he's the main villain of the season! Coming after three episodes ranging from meh to just plain awful, this was definitely one of the better ones. I like that Uatu was pretty much the main focus of the episode, and the exploration of how his "don't intervene" vow can take a toll on both him and the universes he watches. So seeing him come face to face with Strange again after Episode 4 and admit he needs help was a really good moment. Infinity Ultron was an alright villain, though he did kinda feel like just a robotic Thanos (speaking of which, seeing him sliced in half was kinda cool). The Hawkeye and Black Widow stuff was entertaining since I really like them as a pairing, though once it became apparent this episode would be about Uatu, I kinda stopped caring what happened to them. Overall, this episode was mostly set-up for the finale, but I enjoyed it more than most other What If? episodes. It was well-paced, balanced its tone well, and did a good job at raising the stakes to the point that Uatu would need to break his vow.

What If... The Watcher Broke His Oath?: This finale was... decent. Seeing the characters from different episodes unite was pretty cool, and they had a lot of genuinely entertaining interactions. The final battle with Infinity Ultron had some cool moments, the muted black-and-white aesthetic as Widow used Zola was cool, and there was a pretty neat cliffhanger. It did a solid job of tying everything up into a satisfying bow and touching upon pretty much every episode. However, as per the usual, I have my gripes. First of all, a lot of these previous episodes had cliffhangers that weren't realized resolved rather than interrupted, with the most glaring being Episode 5's. I really wanted to see a Pepper and Shuri teamup, but we never got that. One of the Guardians Of The Multiverse was an alternate Gamora wielding Thanos's sword, but since she didn't end up having an episode, I was left really confused. And there are the plot elements that just confused me, like how Zola's arrow just happened to conveniently be nearby and while it didn't work last episode, it worked really well this time. Or how The Watcher decided Party Thor out of all the possibilities in the Multiverse would be a good candidate. Still, I did enjoy myself with this finale and it was definitely one of the show's better episodes.

Overall, while I really tried to give it a fair shake, I ended up not really liking What If?. An anthology series is supposed to be varied and experimental, but I just didn't get that feeling from this series. Most of the episodes felt like rushed versions of MCU movies, suffering from wonky pacing and cliffhanger endings that mean you couldn't really enjoy them on their own. And while I enjoyed the ending, the addition of serialization meant that Marvel couldn't even make an animated anthology series without going back to focusing on canon. Compared to the endlessly creative Star Wars Visions, What If? felt like more Marvel, for better or worse. Not to mention the wonky tone, the unremarkable animation, and the pretty awful scripts. Not to say there weren't episodes I enjoyed. Doctor Strange's episode was fantastic and I liked the final two episodes, but otherwise, I'd say this is one of the worst things Marvel has ever done.

1.5/5 Stars

Star Wars: The Bad Batch (Season 1)

So since this series was airing weekly on Disney+, I originally wanted to do another live reactions blog like WandaVision and Falcon, but the shorter episodes and slower pace made it seem like there wasn't quite as much to say episode by episode. So, I'm reviewing this first season as a whole, and I have a lot to say about it.

The Bad Batch is about the titular team of genetically modified clones trying to find their place in the galaxy now that the Clone Wars are over and the empire has taken over. Meanwhile, they run into a rare enhanced female clone who tags along with them, so now they have to deal with taking care of a child too. Even more, a member of the Bad Batch, Crosshair, seemingly had his inhibitor chip malfunction and has taken the side of the empire. As a whole, I think this storyline is fine, seeing the empire's slow but painful takeover from a normal person's perspective was easily the best and most compelling part of the series. The Omega subplot felt a bit derivative of The Mandalorian, but she ended up being far more capable than Baby Yoda ever was. However, this season of The Bad Batch suffered from feeling really aimless. Aside from the premiere, two-part finale, and a few episodes in the middle, the central team doesn't actually have a concrete goal. Rather, they're really just wandering the galaxy, doing odd jobs for their new boss, and meeting up with random Star Wars characters. By the end of the season, I still struggle to figure out what the Bad Batch was actually trying to achieve, giving the story a serious lack of momentum.

It doesn't help that the main cast is fairly underdeveloped, so I still have difficulty truly coming to care about them. Characters like Wrecker and Tech are still one-dimensional cliches, and potentially interesting characters like Echo barely got any fleshing out. The only main character I found compelling was Crosshair, but we rarely get to see his side of the story. I thought it would have been fascinating to watch Crosshair adjust to his new team in the empire, but that rarely happened. Thankfully, he doesn't fully redeem himself by the season's end so hopefully we'll get more for him in Season 2. I hate to use the term "filler" since it can discredit character development and important set-ups, but with the lack of depth for the cast and the general focus on other Star Wars characters (we got a two-part Hera backstory!), it's hard for me not to feel like the season was padded out a bit. On the other hand, I do really like the animation. I always preferred the Clone Wars artstyle to that of Rebels, and The Bad Batch feels like that style has been perfected. The sheer attention to detail throughout the season is stunning, and the show is overall a treat to look at. Kevin Kiner also returns from Clone Wars and Rebels, and he still does a fantastic job with the score. As a whole, while I can generally admire a first season that focuses on laying the groundwork for a series (Avatar does this excellently), the lack of character development and paper-thin seasonal arc just left me feeling a bit disappointed with this season.

However, there were some episodes I really liked, such as:

Aftermath: I think this premiere gave me unreasonably high expectations for the show, because I thought it was phenomenal. The first fifteen minutes were chilling, seeing the Bad Batch struggle to figure out what the hell Order 66 was. The rest of this 70-minute behemoth of an episode was great too, from Crosshair's betrayal, to Omega's intriguing origins, to the exciting escape from Kamino. I could only wish the rest of the season was this strong.

Reunion: The midpoint of the series, Reunion finally managed to get the plot going a bit. Crosshair trapping the Bad Batch in the wrecked Star Destroyer was incredibly tense, especially when they used the engine to escape, but the real highlight was Cad Bane's shocking appearance when he comes in, shoots Hunter down, and steals Omega.

Return To Kamino: I feel like this episode could have been the season finale, or even the series finale, given how much ground it covers. The titular return to Kamino really does feel like a farewell tour, culminating in that legitimately heartbreaking scene where the iconic city is completely blown to bits. Crosshair got some great material here too, with the reveal that he had his chip removed, meaning he's not excused from any of his awful actions this season. Sadly, the actual finale was more of a denouement episode with no big status quo changes or revelations.

Overall, The Bad Batch was decent. It had some really strong episodes and moments, but the season felt aimless with a minimal plot and a lack of concrete character development. Still, a weak first season is par for the course for Star Wars series. Hopefully, Season 2 will improve.

2/5 Stars

March Comes In Like A Lion (Season 1)

March Comes In Like A Lion (which I'll call 3gatsu No Lion for the sake of shortening it) is a fairly slow-paced character study about a high school shogi player with amazing atmosphere and characters but some pretty boring stretches at times.

3gatsu No Lion is an anime about a professional shogi player named Rei Kiriyama who, despite being a high schooler, moved away from his adoptive family and lives on his own. He's haunted by his pretty traumatic past and his shogi skills are starting to slip, but he's also been taken in by a small family of three sisters who care for him far more than his original adoptive family ever did. There isn't much of a "plot" to this one, it's really about Rei navigating life, coping with his past, learning to make friends, and making a better future for himself. While this could make the series feel pretty aimless for some people, that's not entirely a problem for me. I love shows where nothing happens and you get to just follow the characters through their lives, K-On's one of my favorite anime of all time. However, given how many aspects are at play in Rei's life, I definitely find certain subplots more interesting than others. For example, I was incredibly invested in Rei's relationship with the Kawamoto sisters along with his encounters with his adoptive family, but the shogi games were a bit of a bore for me (this is no Queen's Gambit, to put it simply). While I'm sure other people might feel differently, it meant that certain episodes would end up being far more enjoyable than others. I also think the anime gets off to a bit of a slow start since the first few episodes prioritize flashbacks to Rei's past over character interaction, but that all changes once Kyouko shows up in the present day.

Without much of a plot, 3gatsu No Lion is purely character-driven, so it's a good thing I like most of the characters, or at least find them interesting. Obviously, Rei is a incredibly complex protagonist with such a twisted past and his many issues. The series does an amazing job of depicting his depression in a realistic manner, like how he doesn't seem too bad when interacting until he's on his own and he starts to reflect. The three Kawamoto sisters are also incredibly lovable, though not quite as complex (especially the little one Momo). They're a real positive force in the series that just makes the general tone more upbeat by being on screen. Kyouko is probably my favorite character, though, and easily the most fascinating. She perfectly toes the line between sympathetic due to her childhood of neglect and abandonment, and detestable for the abuse she inflicts on Rei. She doesn't appear too often, but makes a big impact every time she does, partly helped by the fact that she always gets some really fluid animation. The only character I found myself not quite loving is Harunobu, who gets some funny and emotional moments but is also kind of annoying at times whenever he's stuck in the role of comic relief. Outside of him, though, I think the comedy of 3gatsu No Lion is generally pretty good. I tend to laugh whenever the Kawamoto sisters are involved, and the show never undercuts any of its drama with the humor. Frankly, I think this anime does a good job of juggling tone and pacing without feeling disjointed or losing any of its impact.

The first thing that really stuck out to me about 3gatsu No Lion is the animation, done by Studio SHAFT of Madoka fame. The more of their stuff I watch, the more SHAFT's style has been becoming one of my personal favorites, between the sketchy hand-drawn characters, the stunning backgrounds, and the frequent art shifts. This anime in particular uses a beautiful painterly style for the backgrounds that just looks stunning, and the facial expressions do a really good job of emulating the look of the manga. While I never brought this up in my Madoka review, I've always been impressed how consistently fluid SHAFT's works look. None of the character movements are stiff at all, the hair moves in the wind, it really doesn't feel like many shortcuts are taken at all. I also adore the sound design, especially when it comes to the comedy. The vocal sound effects almost always elicits a laugh out of me, every single time. The voice acting is pretty great too, which is solid all around but especially great in the emotional scenes. The music is probably the least impressive aspect of the anime's presentation, as it's a bit subdued and low-key, but it does a solid job of setting the tone for the series. As a whole, though, I think 3gatsu No Lion has some pretty stunning presentation, like most of Shaft's work.

This season was so consistently solid that it's hard to truly find which episodes were worse than others. However, there were two highlights worth noting: 

Something Given: Rei doesn't let out his emotions too often, so the ending of Something Given was a bit of a shock. Kyouko's manipulations and the pettiness from his opponents finally got to him, resulting in a devastating breakdown that I'd call the most emotional moment of the season.

Silver Thread/Water's Surface/Base Of The Blue Night: Seeing the Kawamoto sisters and Kyouko finally meet was a pretty new deal, the intersection of Rei's past and present day. The second half of the episode had a pretty strong balance of drama and humor, between Rei and Kyouko's pretty intense fight and Hinata's immediate hatred for Kyouko, and Momo's hilariously sudden appearance and Kyouko's false belief that Rei liked one of the sisters.

Kyoto: I wasn't the biggest fan of Shimada's storyline throughout the season, but this episode was a pretty powerful ending, one might argue it's the climactic moment of the entire season. Shimada was so close to winning if he didn't have that tunnel vision, but Rei wasn't able to tell him. It's a pretty gutsy and painful route to take, but that's why I was impressed they took it.

Overall, 3gatsu No Lion gets its characters right and has the great visuals you'd expect from a SHAFT production, but it had a bit of a slow part and none of the shogi storylines really hooked me, a problem since this was half the series.

3/5 Stars

Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Season 7)

Season 7 of Brooklyn Nine-Nine genuinely surprised me when I watched it, as it felt like a nearly perfect season of the series. Strong pacing, great humor, varied episodes, and a satisfying resolution made for a well-crafted season that might just surpass the fifth as my favorite to date.

Similarly to the previous season, Season 7's storylines are fairly lighthearted, with none of them being anything special. Holt spends a surprisingly large portion of the season as a patrol officer, and only rejoins the precinct after Wuntch's death halfway through. Amy and Jake spend the season having a kid, which does feel a bit rushed after they decide to take things slowly last season, but it does lead to a really heartwarming finale so I'll let it pass. The worst storyline of the season for me was about Debbie Fogle, who starts out as fun foil for Holt but ends up being written out of the show after having been revealed to be a dirty cop. While the main storylines are pretty standard for the series, the standalone episodes are excellent. Similarly to Season 6, B99 is far more willing to experiment, and this season contains far more hits than misses. As a matter of the fact, the only episode that I could call somewhat weak is the Debbie episode, otherwise, this season is nearly flawless.

Brooklyn Nine-Nine isn't the type of series to have "filler" episodes per se, but the pacing of Season 7 was incredibly strong due to its short length. With only 13 episodes, nearly every outing was unique in its own way, without any episodes that would feel like they're just padding out the season length. Nearly every episode of the season did something cool, from homages to movies like Memento and John Wick, to strong story-driven episodes like Ding Dong and Manhunter, to series mainstays like the heists and Pontiac Bandit, to sequels to episodes in earlier seasons. There was never a dull moment this season and nearly every episode had something to love. I don't think this season is the most uproariously funny season of the series, but the humor and acting was still consistently strong throughout as well. This also was the only season so far to not have any Gina in it, which can only be a good thing.

While I liked a large portion of the episodes this season, these were the highlights:

Pimememento: Easily my favorite Pimento episode of the series, Pimememento is a hilariously bizarre parody of the movie Memento which has the titular character lose his memory and try to figure out what's going on. There's a ton of weird and wacky setpieces throughout the episode, along with a cute subplot about the dynamics of the 99th precinct as a whole.

Ding Dong: A big turning point in the season's storyline and the series as a whole, Ding Dong has Wuntch die, though not without putting Holt through the ringer one last hilarious time. Thankfully, the episode ends on a really heartwarming ending, with Holt becoming captain again and Amy learning she's pregnant, setting up the main story for the rest of the season.

Dillman: Easily one of the best guest stars in the series, the titular character played by JK Simmons is a hilariously brutish detective who's way less intelligent than he makes out. The entire episode is a focused and fun whodunit that gives Charles a surprising moment to shine in the ending.

Ransom: Whoever came up with this episode is an absolute genius. B99 has done action movie parodies before, but the decision to do a parody of John Wick where Holt's dog Cheddar gets kidnapped was just too perfect. It's a lot of fun too, Holt gets a chance to really let loose culminating in a really badass action climax to end off the episode.

Lights Out: Lights Out is an oddly focused finale for the series, being the first to completely lack a cliffhanger. The entire episode is just about Amy delivering her baby and Jake trying to get to the precinct in the middle of a blackout. It's frantic, hilarious, and ends on a really heartwarming note. It also has Terry teach Holt to dance which ranks as the funniest moment in the entire season.

Overall, Season 7 was just really, really solid. Aside from one tiny subplot that I found a bit weak, the season was fast-paced and jam-packed with creative episodes, fun callbacks, and heartwarming moments.

5/5 Stars

Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Season 6)

From here on out, Brooklyn Nine-Nine had switched channels from FOX to NBC, and you might begin to notice a few changes. For some people, the show just isn't quite the same and this season is a massive step down from Season 5. For me, Season 6 is a strong if slightly uneven followup where B99 finally ditches the clunky dramatic arcs to focus entirely on comedy.

Season 6's main storyline is a continuation of the cliffhanger that ended Season 5, as Holt learns that he didn't make commissioner. He spends the season getting over his loss and fighting back against the new commissioner's policies, it's a simple but effective storyline. Aside from that, there are a few subplots like Terry becoming a lieutenant and Gina leaving, but otherwise, this season lacks the kind of story arcs you'd see during the Fox seasons. Brooklyn Nine-Nine has become much more episodic and experimental after its move to NBC, a change that I think is for the better. From an episode entirely focused around Hitchcock and Scully, to an episode that takes place in real time, to the four-part goodbye to Gina, it's apparent that Brooklyn Nine-Nine is more willing to change up its format, even if it doesn't always work. I also think it's worth noting that the characters can curse now that the show is on NBC, and you can tell that the showrunners are having a ton of fun with that change.

However, the varied lineup of episodes this season means that not all of them can be a hit, which is why I think Season 6 is so divisive. Particularly, the episodes that deal with more serious topics like He Said, She Said and Casecation were a bit on the clunky side (though that's not an NBC thing, this show always had that problem). I also think Gina's departure was handled a bit sloppily. While I actually really liked the episode when she left, having such an emotional goodbye only to bring her back near the end of the season felt like an odd choice. But while not everything worked, I'd much prefer B99 try new things because that's when we get some of the show's best episodes. Stuff like the Halloween heists, along with episodes like The Box, One Last Ride, and next season's Ransom play around with the show's formula to great result. While Season 6 might be one of the more uneven seasons of the show, I think its high points ranked as some of the highest in the series.

Speaking of which, these are the aforementioned high points:

Honeymoon: Easily one of the funniest episodes of the series, Honeymoon was an amazing start to Season 6 and gave me hope that the switch to NBC wouldn't dampen the show's quality. As sad as it was that Holt didn't make commissioner, seeing him act depressed all episode was hysterical, and the fact that he was trashing Jake and Amy's honeymoon seemed oddly perfect.

Four Movements: I never understood why people don't like this episode. Don't get me wrong, I'm not a fan of Gina at all, but I think Four Movements did a good job of sending her off on a funny high note. It explores her relationships with the rest of the cast and feels like a perfectly tailored goodbye to the character (if only Return Of The King never happened).

Cinco De Mayo: With the shortened seasons airing during the springtime, Brooklyn Nine-Nine wasn't going to be able to do its Halloween specials anymore. It had to find a different excuse for the characters to have their heist competition, and Cinco De Mayo was just random enough for it to work. There isn't much else for me to say, just like HalloVeen, this episode is a manic caper that utilizes the entire cast and ends on an incredibly sweet note as Terry learns he made lieutenant.

Sicko/Suicide Squad: This was a pretty fun finale. Befitting the title, Jake and Holt assemble a crew of their rivals to take down Kelly, resulting in a better Suicide Squad story than the actual 2016 film. In all seriousness, though, it's a fun plan that brings back some of the show's side characters. It works, too, at least until Wuntch demotes Holt in a worryingly similar cliffhanger to the Season 2 finale.

Overall, Season 6 drops the drama and story arcs for a far more lighthearted and experimental season that I think works pretty well. While it can be uneven at times, this season does have some of the show's best episodes.

4/5 Stars

Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Season 5)

I don't think I need to say that Brooklyn Nine-Nine's fifth season was something special. It's a refreshing boost of energy for the series, the point at which the show runners seem to have finally put all of their effort into making B99 as good as possible. For what was initially assumed to be the last season, it's about time.

Coming after the drama-heavy fourth season, Season 5 of B99 course-corrected pretty much right away. While there were still dramatic storylines this season (Jake and Rosa in prison, Seamus Murphy), the tone generally went back to the more lighthearted and manic vibe of Season 3. I especially liked the episode where Kevin's life was endangered thanks to Murphy since it allowed the otherwise incompatible Jake and Kevin to interact. With the prison stuff resolved, Season 5's biggest focus was on Holt running for commissioner. I'm always a big fan of campaign storylines, so this was a lot of fun, and it was compelling to see Holt try to make commissioner given how much of a disadvantage he was in. Meanwhile, Amy and Jake planning their wedding leads to a lot of really sweet episodes, as does Rosa's fantastic character arc about coming out as bisexual. At the time, there still weren't too many shows that dealt with bisexuality in an honest and respectful manner, so Rosa's storyline this season was actually really important. As a whole, I think this is the first season where none of its character arcs and storylines managed to irk me, which is already a small indication of how much of an improvement it is.

But then we get into the comedy, which is far and above any other season in the series. The writers really brought out their A-game here because Brooklyn Nine-Nine's fifth season might be one of the funniest sitcom seasons ever made. There are so many iconic episodes and scenes from this season specifically, with even the cold opens becoming pretty much legendary (that Backstreet Boys scene is particularly worth noting). I still don't think the series is quite as willing to experiment yet. We still have all the seasonal staples like the Halloween heist, Pontiac Bandit, action movie homage, and an episode that takes place over a long span of time, but these were probably the strongest iterations of these premises to date. The only gripes that I really have with Season 5 of B99 is that it does have my personal least favorite episode to date (Return To Skyfire), but the fact that it comes right before two of the show's best episodes just shows how much of a minority it is compared to the rest of the season.

With far more high points than any other season, Season 5's most memorable episodes truly stuck out this time around:

HalloVeen: Easily the best Halloween heist in the series (and probably the best episode too), HalloVeen adds in even more characters than the last one resulting in a ton of hilarious and manic heist moments, but what puts it over the rest is the ending. It's the only Halloween heist to not have a concrete winner, because it's all an elaborate ploy for Jake to propose to Amy. It's a twist that caught me off guard, and might just be one of the most memorable and perfect proposals in a TV show.

Ninety-Nine: Most shows try to make their 100th episode special, but it's only fitting that Brooklyn Nine-Nine would do the same with its 99th episode. Ninety-Nine is a massive episode. The characters get to visit Nakatomi Plaza, culminating in a huge cross-country trip. The episode is stuffed with callbacks to the rest of the series, but it's also not afraid to look to the future, setting up storylines like Holt running for commissioner, Rosa coming out as bi, and the Seamus Murphy issue. It's everything a good 100th episode should be. 

Game Night: Not to say that the show's real 100th episode isn't pretty big either. Game Night is another one of my favorite B99 episodes because of how maturely it deals with Rosa coming out to her parents. Similarly to Moo Moo (though not nearly as dark), Game Night isn't afraid to get real and ends on a bit of a bittersweet note. However, the titular game night is still a lot of fun, and the episode as a whole is a testament to how strong Jake and Rosa's friendship has gotten.

The Box: The Box feels like a summation of B99 as a whole, yet it only features three characters and takes place in a single location: the interrogation room. It's an entire episode based on Jake and Holt's dynamic as they try to get a charismatic criminal to confess. It's funny, well-acted, and compelling, and the moment said criminal finally confesses manages to be both hilarious and satisfying.

Jake And Amy: After two pretty shaky finales, Jake And Amy is probably the most low-key ending to a season until this point. While there is still a cliffhanger about who became commissioner, it's far more personal and compelling. Jake and Amy's wedding is pretty cliche (another "wedding goes wrong" episode), but it's still incredibly sweet and fitting to see them get married in the precinct. I even like Rosa's new girlfriend in this episode, it's a shame she doesn't appear after this one.

Overall, Season 5 is easily Brooklyn Nine-Nine's best season to date. The storylines are compelling without getting too dark, the humor is consistently top-notch, and it feels like the series has finally become its best self. Now, let's see if NBC manages to keep up the momentum.

5/5 Stars

Brooklyn Nine-Nine (Season 4)

B99's third season was a solid improvement on the first two, doing a decent job of juggling its drama and comedy. However, its fourth season leaned way too heavily on the drama, leading to my least favorite season of the bunch.

Season 4 of Brooklyn Nine-Nine tries to be a full-on dramedy, which I've always felt doesn't fit the show at all. B99 is at its best when it's manic, funny, and comforting, so Season 4's dark and dramatic arcs just aren't all that enjoyable to me. Not to say that none of the darker material this season is good this season, I really like the emotional storyline about the precinct being at risk of shutting down, along with Terry's episode that deals with racism in the police. However, that's pretty much it. The three-part opener with Jake and Holt in witness protection suffers from splitting up the cast, though it does have a strong ending. On the other hand, the "dirty cop" arc that ends the season with Jake and Rosa falsely getting arrested is awful. Not only is it pretty lacking in humor (Charles's rapid aging isn't funny), but it takes one of my least favorite storytelling cliches (character gets falsely accused) and devotes the entire two-part finale to it without anything for the rest of the cast to do. And worst of all, it's hard to even care since you know that everything will be resolved at the start of Season 5 (which is, in fact, the case). I criticized B99's season finales in the past, but Crime And Punishment is by far the worst of the bunch As a whole, I don't think much of this season's attempt at drama works, and makes Season 4 a low point for the series as a whole.

Thankfully, Season 4's comedic episodes do work pretty well, resulting in a pretty solid middle section for the season. The token Halloween and Pontiac Bandit episodes are probably the best ones yet, and even weaker episodes have pretty memorable segments like the painfully short New Girl crossover, Holt screaming "BONE", and Gina getting hit by a bus. Despite having some of my least favorite storylines, Season 4 does also have some of my favorite episodes in the series to date. I also think the character work is generally pretty great (aside from one person) as well. I already mentioned that the more personal storylines like the night shift, the precinct almost closing, and Terry's profiling were excellent, but so was more goofy stuff like Jake and Amy's apartment bet, Pimento and Rosa's relationship, and Charles's new son Nikolaj. The only character I really had problems with this season with Gina, particularly with her sudden pregnancy in the finale. While Gina's pregnancy was probably intended to be a big "season finale event", it just left me baffled why the show runners decided to write her actress's pregnancy in when not only was she not dating anyone, but the pregnancy is barely mentioned for the rest of the series. This isn't a massive gripe, though, it's more of an oddity that made the finale feel even more odd.

Despite my gripes with the season, though, its high points were really high:

Halloween IV: Continuing the trend of Halloween episodes being better than the last, this fourth one delivers on the premise that pretty much anyone could win, because Gina ended up becoming the winner this time! Even as someone who doesn't like the character that much, Gina's win was insanely clever and probably the most effective and least telegraphed surprise in any Halloween heist to date. 

The Last Ride: Until Season 5, this was my favorite episode of the series, because even if you know that the precinct isn't closing down (this wasn't even a finale!), The Last Ride is a genuinely emotional episode. The acting really sells you on the fact that the characters think their job together could be over, and what we get is an episode that gives all the bittersweet vibes you'd expect from a series finale, let alone some random episode in the middle of the season.

Moo Moo: As of Season 7 (and this is definitely going to change come Season 8), Brooklyn Nine-Nine has two episodes that deal with serious topics, and while I like both of them, Moo Moo, which deals with racial profiling, is definitely the most impactful. Even with how lacking in humor it is, Moo Moo works because of how genuine it is, particularly when it comes to Terry Crews's great acting and its intentionally unsatisfying ending. 

Overall, Season 4 is the weakest season for me because of its shaky attempts at drama and pretty bad ending, but the show's best still shines through when it focuses on comedy and its characters.

2/5 Stars