Mr.Robot eps1.5_br4ve-trave1er.asf

I'm sipping a cup of black tea and enjoying a small piece of dark chocolate, 70% pure cocoa. I'm preparing myself for tonight's episode of Mr. Robot, the American cyberpunk–thriller drama television series created by Sam Esmail. (As wikipedia wisely explains here).
This series captured my attention from the very beginning. I wasn't sure when I decided to watch the pilot. But after less than 5 minutes I was totally hooked.
When that happens I start researching everything. Who is the showrunner? Episode directors? Characters? Why they decided to tell this particular story in this particular tone? Is this scripted or the screenwriting is done and all the episodes are already shot? So I discovered Sam Esmail, his attachment to Chuck Palahniuk's Fight Club novel and David Fincher's Fight Club movie among other very interesting things he revealed in various articles covering the series. He was also in Reddit: I am Sam Esmail, creator of MR. ROBOT. AMA.
I love when someone has an idea like this one. I love the fact that they made it happen, just as they wanted to.

Other things Mr.Robot made me want to revisit are the audio version of Neuromancer, read by William Gibson himself. You can find it here thanks to Ian Kaplan. Also the independent documentary film made by Mark Neale, No Maps for These Territories

At first, Elliot's voice and tone made me remember Dexter's first season. The explanation of his acts, his thoughts, his feelings, why he is like he is. I watched Dexter's first episode again to see what I felt, but I'm not sure Dexter Morgan and Elliot Alderson can be placed in the same group of sociopaths. I also hope Mr. Robot continues to be a good story and doesn't end as poorly as Dexter.

We have the imaginary characters as well. As of now I don't know who is imaginary and who is real. I'm having this Fight Club déjà vu all the time. I was convinced Mr. Robot (Christian Slater) was imaginary, a kind of Tyler Durden. But now I'm not so sure. Tyrell Wellick (Martin Wallström) brought some doubts about his real existence in the last episode. And of course Elliot Alderson (Rami Malek) so real at times and so imaginary at other times. We'll see.There are so many levels of unpredictability in this story. So many. And yet everything seems to fit perfectly so far.

Now, let's see the reviews and recaps of the episode that I found interesting:

Before airing: BlackGirlNerds' "Mr. Robot", A shining example of 21st. Century Existencial Anger"

I like the way it is written. The paragraph that got me the most was this one:

"But while these shows capture the confusion and wonderment of coming into one’s own as an adult in these times, USA’s Mr. Robot, starring Rami Malek, provides a point of view that quite a lot of shows, cartoon and otherwise, lack. Mr. Robot shows the brutality of 21st century existentialism and how, with even more conglomerates vying for our attention and with the internet as integral to life as it has been, it’s become even harder to realize what it is you are supposed to contribute to the world."

And from now on, [Spoiler Alert]. If you don't like'em, just don't read'em.

Here we have mild spoilers from this episode's promo video: 'Mr. Robot' Episode 6 Spoilers: Elliot Meets Fernando In Prison; Tyrell Is Frustrated With Scott Knowles

One thing I discovered in Mr. Robot's IMDB Full Cast & Crew page is that Shayla (Frankie Shaw) appears in 5 episodes this season. So, no more Shayla, I guess. The character is indeed very vulnerable, so I think it's justified that she is the first real casualty in Elliot's surroundings. He will for sure feel guity about this outcome.

IGN review, "No way out" by Amy Ratcliffe offers full spoilers and an excellent analysis of the episode. I will quote just a couple of paragraphs below, but the full text is worth reading.

"Mr. Robot has shaped up to be a more personal story. It's as much about the smaller scale as it is the big picture. Adjusting the scope hasn't always been successful, but it definitely worked in "br4ve-trave1er.asf."

"The Verdict: Elliot's focus this week shifted off taking down Evil Corp, but as he let go, Angela picked up the gloves. And as it should be, she's taking a more direct approach. There's definitely the possibility for her to get to Elliot and FSociety's level though. Elliot's world has been turned upside down, and it's a fascinating place to put a character at this point in the season."

Hitfix.com: "Can Mr. Robot engineer a prison break? And what's Angela's master plan?" by Alan Sepinwall

So glad I read these "Random thoughts on tonight's "Mr. Robot" coming up just as soon as I've had several glasses of water"

And I quote:

"The show is so good at putting us inside Elliot's haunted, lonely point of view that it's vision of New York seems positively empty much of the time, and that played well here, not just in making us feel his anguish and paranoia, but papering over some of the implausibilities of the escape itself."

"This week in Byte Club (aka, Is Mr. Robot Elliot's Tyler Durden?)"... well, as I said before, it's my guess every time Mr. Robot (Christian Slater) interacts with Elliot.
And I also think Mr. Sepinwall is right when he writes "Odds remain high on the Durden of it all, but the show is keeping it ambiguous enough so far that neither explanation will feel like a cheat."

There are some more considerations worth reading there. Take the time. You won't regret it.

Forbes: Jail Break: 'Mr. Robot' Episode 6 Reality Check by Abigail Tracy gets 'Mr. Robot's' technical consultant and cyber crime security expert, Michael Bazzel to explain the many hacks we see on screen in "Brave Traveler". Super interesting, super accurate.

This one also by Abigail Tracy is worth reading: 'Mr. Robot's' Cyber Crime Expert Talks Accuracy, Hacking Misconceptions And What Other Shows Get Wrong

And I quote: "We make any computer code shown on the screen accurate. We don’t need to fake it. There is no reason to put random characters up to please the audience. We want that code to be accurate so that even the most sophisticated hacker or technical person out there will not roll their eyes at a scene."

And that´s it for today. Thanks for reading

UnREAL Season 1 Episode 9 Reviews

Photo from AV Club: UnREAL: “Princess” - Reality starts to seep in to our fake reality show by Gwen Ihnat

A TV show about a reality TV show. I discovered it by accident, and as I am very fond of love stories, from Jane Austen to iZombie, I gave it a try. It is a well written show, with a good plot. You may think that some of the characters are kind of predictable, or too very horrible, but so far they have surprises for us.
As they have been renewed for a second season, next week's season finale promises to be very interesting.

First of all, we have to choose: #TeamJeremy or #TeamAdam? Jeremy is not Mr. Darcy and Adam is not Mr. Wickham... maybe we can see Gabriel Oak in Jeremy and Frank Troy in Adam. Just maybe.
But lets see what Google found for me:

First, TVline. UnREAL Recap: 'Nobody Here Does Anything to Be Nice' by Kimberly Roots. It is a recap with a twist. If you don't like spoilers, read it after you watched the episode.
I laughed here: "The minute they get there, Rachel asks for a shower, so eager is she to wash Adam off her. Of course, she and Jeremy get it on in there while the water’s flowing. Two guys in about as many hours? If you want, Rach, I’ve got some Aquaphor you can use — y’know, to help with the chafing." because I had a similar thought when I was watching the episode.

We have watched this character, Rachel, developing episode by episode. Her vulnerability. She is like a cornered animal sometimes. And definitely has an instinct for self-sabotaging with the most damaging things.
I also was thinking about all the characters. Who has a choice? Who has the slightest posibility of happiness? So far, none of them. Not one. This is drama. Next week's finale is going to be tough.

Second, Vulture: UnREAL Recap: Cutting Out the Middleman by Lindsey Weber.

She is right: "Next week? 'An honest-to-God, ring-on-the-finger, blood-on-the-sheets ratings bonanza.' Amen!"
And yes, I loved the fact that Adam wasn't actually horse-riding. He is the real fake prince charming.
All the considerations about Quinn are true. She is in bitch-revenge mode and will destroy everything in her path.

Third, TVFanatic: UnREAL Season 1 Episode 9 Review: Princess by Paul Dailly

""Princess" was an outstanding hour of television. The show is continuing to improve and has set the bar exceptionally high for the season finale. Will Rachel leave with Adam? Why is Britney back on the show? What will happen with Quinn? There are so many questions that I feel my head is going to explode if I don't get answers soon!"


And that's it for today. Thanks for reading.

Masters of Sex: The excitement of release - Season 3 Episode 3 Reviews

Image from Collider
One thing I like to do, before of after watching a new episode of a TV series is to read the reviews online. Some of the reviews are just a recap of what happened in the episode, with no critic or any insight of the author. Let's say that they are just spoilers, a step by step guide to the episode. Those are the ones that we can find online first, just after the episode was aired. Then we have the ones that have a little more thought. I have been fascinated by tales and stories all my life and I think that right now TV series have screenplays as good as movies and theatrical plays.
So as a practice, I will be listing here some recaps and reviews I find online. My goal is to learn how to write a good review, and evetually you'll be able to read an actual review written by yours truly. Until then, I'll share what I enjoyed the most.

For now I will go in order of appearance. Perhaps in the future I will use some kind of measurement.

First, IndieWire: Review: 'Masters of Sex' Season 3, Episode 3: After 'The Excitement of Release,' the Sweet Smell of Success by Matt Brennan

It has spoilers and perhaps you'll enjoy it if you already watched the episode, but it is excellent. There is a perspective there and also there is additional information about the books mentioned, a historic point of view and some brilliant quotes. Here are two as an example:

"Even in a subculture driven by the accumulation of credentials, keeping up appearances is the core prerequisite."

"In the era of "Masters of Sex" as in our own, the sexual revolution remains unfinished."

Second, The A.V. Club: Masters Of Sex: “The Excitement Of Release” - The show depicts just why the study was so important  by Gwen Inhat

The author says: "it’s a much better episode than the two that preceded it, adding new characters and old to bolster the excitement of the event we’ve all been waiting for: The release of Human Sexual Response. To underline the importance of the book, the show now offers cautionary tales as subplots: the curious teenager, the bored domestic couple, the closeted older man. To these different scenarios, Human Sexual Response offers not just a solution (for the couple), informative but dangerous knowledge (for the teenager), and the promise of a more enlightened populace (the older man). Framing these subplots in this way not only underlines the importance of the book, but paints Masters and Johnson’s cause as the farthest thing from sordid, into downright noble territory." and I completely agree.

I also agree with Joy's “undocumented spousal abuse” suspicion as well. I thought the husband had actually killed her, to be honest.

Third, The New York Times, of course. excellent Judith Warner in "For Tessa a nightmare homecoming". I like so much the way she writes, and I quote: "With tonight's episode, we finally return to the "Masters of Sex" we've come to love and expect: lots of ambiguity, a touch of creepiness, characters at war with themselves and out of sync with one another, and a combination of disturbing and beautiful visual imagery that you just can't get out of your mind."

And here you can read a 2009 New York Times book review written by Cristina Nehring of "Masters of Sex - The Life and Times of William Masters and Virginia Johnson, the Couple Who Taught America How to Love" by Thomas Maier
Yes, the book!

Well, this is it for today. Thanks for reading.

Hello World!

Beautiful emptiness
Surrounds me
I take small steps
I'm making progress
In a non-specific way

Depeche Mode - My Little Universe