Five Drinks Into Reality TV: Survivor Season 25 Episode 6 "Down and Dirty"

Tom's Take:

We're down to twelve people! Does that mean jury has started? This episode also featured some awesome negotiations, which lead to a lot of whining from Artis. I don't know why he hates Skupin, but he does, which  is why I want to see them go to tribal council!

Five Drinks Into TV: Castle Season 4

Tom's Take:

Season  Four of Castle is at times over angsty, but most of the time it keeps away from that and brings the funny. It's really only the beginning and ending of the season that engage with Beckett's running investigation of her mother's murder, and the season is better for it, even though I really liked the season  finale. The premiere of the season felt off, since it was TOO focused on the angst. I also didn't really like Castle's douche phase, although I appreciated that it was necessary.

Five Drinks Into Reality TV: Survivor Season 25 Episode 5 "Got My Swag Back"

Tom's Take:

And the Matsing Tribe is gone. Jeff is right. This tribe was decimated, and at the end of the day, Malcolm and Denise are left to be split into the Tandang and Kalabaw tribes. Both find themselves in surprisingly good positions, since their new tribes are apparently too focused on separate issues to take them out. That coupled with Dana leaving the game allowed both Denise and Malcolm to make it to the final twelve, which I assume means they'll at least be on jury.

Five Drinks Into TV: Caste Season 3

Tom's Take:

Season Three of Castle is a bit inconsistent at times, but overall continues to push the main characters along on their journeys. We as the audience are treated to the fact that we are really growing to love these characters. The show has reached a point this season where we feel comfortable and familiar with these characters. We don't even want challenging character development, and romantic tensions, we just want to tune in for our beloved characters, and the clever dialogue. That's not to say there isn't challenging character development, or romantic tension, but it's not really what we're tuning in for.

Five Drinks Into Reality TV: Survivor Season 25 Episode 4 "Create a Little Chaos"

Tom's Take:

Oh Matsing Tribe. Why were you so terrible? Why couldn't you have won just one immunity challenge? And why do I still think that Malcolm and Denise have a shot at this thing? Meanwhile Kalabaw finally gets some airtime and we find out that there is a gender split in that tribe, which could lead to some interesting post merge situations. Meanwhile the Tandang tribe continues to boil over as Abi Maria is clearly crazy, RC has grown too complacent, and Peter is loving every moment of it. So let's get into rankings!

Five Drinks Into TV: Castle Season 2

Tom's Take:

Castle Season 2 kept the show on the right track by continuing to push the simple formula for a cop show while still finding emotional resonance for the characters. Castle's relationships with his daughter Alexis and his mother Martha continue to make him a bit more complex of a character than the comic portrayal Nathan Fillion provides would lead most to believe. Also, I have officially developed a crush on Stana Katic, the actress who plays Beckett. The way Castle and Beckett flirted in Season 2, leading to both fairly openly pining over the other provided good emotional material, but it was ultimately for the best that the writers kept them from getting together so early.

Five Drinks Into TV: Castle Season 1

Tom's Take

So I've just started watching Castle, even though it's been on the air for over four years, and the first thing I'd like to say is that I've been missing out. This is a good series, and it stars Nathan Fillion who is an alumnus of Joss Whedon shows Firefly, and Buffy. How did I let this show go for so long without giving it a try? I think it has to do with the genre, since I'm a little wary of cop shows, but this show is more than that. I think this show succeeds in a lot of areas that Bones fails. It is constantly surprising me, as so far I only have about a 30% success rate with predicting who the killer is, it is very funny with Nathan Fillion hitting the material out of the park, and I think the two leads have even more chemistry than Booth and Bones did, and I was a big fan of them.

Five Drinks Into Reality TV: Survivor Season 25 Episode 3 "This Isn't A We Game"

Tom's Take: 

The Kalabaw Tribe continues to get the editing shaft, while Matsing continues to self destruct.Will they be able to bounce back? Here are my thoughts.

Five Drinks Into British TV: Doctor Who Series 1

Tom's Take on Doctor Who  Series 1:

So this is my introduction to the Doctor Who franchise, and I can already tell that it is deserving of all the fandom and cult status it has. This show is good, and while from what I heard the reboot is more angsty than the early years, I think that a lot of what makes it good was probably there then as well. This is not a show that will blow you away with cool effects. I personally find the 10 year old Buffy effects to be better than those in Series One of Doctor Who, and that's saying something. The writing is comparable in many ways though. In a word, the writing is FUN. I found myself smiling or outright laughing at a lot of the dialogue, and I love that the Doctor's response to outrageous and often terrible situations is just to shout out "fantastic!"