Funny Time Traveling Ghosts And Aliens

Here are my thoughts about some of the new shows appearing in the new fall season of September 2022

The Simpsons Season 34: Episode 1 Every Monday

I actually haven’t watched this show in some time. I decided now would be a good time to revisit it, so I could actually write about it. Right before I watched the season premiere of The Simpsons I watched a video on Youtube about Donald Trump more readily embracing QAnon. The 34th season opener featured a story around conspiracy theories. It involved a missing 150 year old turtle at the Zoo. At the end of the episode there was a joke where Homer said, “Let’s watch that cartoon that predicts the future”. I’ve read they will have an episode that treats that particular theme at some point. Many have pointed out that this show has actually predicted the future.

That joke and and the surprise twist and Homer’s Tik Tok video at the end while the credit’s were rolling were really the only amusing and somewhat funny aspects of the whole episode. The wit, satire and creative writing that has permeated past Simpsons episodes was missing in this one. A show that has run since the end of the 80’s is bound to hit some bumpy writing patches. The missing turtle is symbolic of the missing quality of writing. Perhaps there will be funnier episodes going forward. Maybe The Simpsons have already jumped the shark or in this case shelled the turtle.

The Simpsons Season 34 Premiere Uncovers a Massive Conspiracy | Den of Geek

Quantum Leap 2022 Season 1: Episode 2 Every Tuesday

In the past The premiere episode featured Ben leaping into an undercover cop posing as a getaway driver for thieves who wanted to steal the Hope Diamond. Episode 2 has Ben leaping into a astronaut whose life he has to save. Not only does he get to time travel, he gets to travel in outer space. There are interesting shots of Ben in his spacesuit talking to Addison wearing no space suit in her normal everyday outfit in outer space as a hologram.

KSiteTV@KSiteTV: It didn’t hit me until reading a@TVLine recap that the “Samantha Stratton” astronaut character from last night’s #QuantumLeap was the daughter of the pilot Sam leaped into in the original series’ first episode “Genesis.” Sam helped deliver her.

Fate’s Wide Wheel: A Quantum Leap Podcast@FatesWideWheel: Minor correction: He didn’t help deliver her, but prevented her from being born prematurely, which had resulted in a stillbirth.

In the present, the QL team has a disagreement about whether they should tell Ben about the present and whether or not Ben can be trusted with that information. What if he is in the past to do evil? Could Ben be a evil leaper? The mystery deepens on why Ben jumped. Please bring in the descendent of Colombo to solve the supposed crime. Al’s daughter Janice Calavicci is introduced and she warns the team to stay out of her way. We also have a cameo by Al’s wife Beth played by Susan Vanita Diol who played her in the original series. Also, we learn that Ben had plans to jump to a particular place in time. Does this have something to do with Sam or Al? That would be a reasonable guess.

Quantum Leap’s Reboot Could Be Entirely About Rescuing Sam Beckett (screenrant.com)

The double storyline focuses so much on plot that it takes away from good character development. The show moves too fast not leaving enough time (in a show about time travel) for us to get to know Ben, Addison, and the team. The main character seems reduced to just another side character. It is possible to have multiple storylines and still develop your character’s personalities to where they are memorable and likable. This was done successfully in another NBC time travel show ‘Timeless’. And the old 60’s ‘Time Tunnel’, pulled it off really well. The revival has some good ideas which I wonder if it will pay off later on. Does the show actually have an endgame in mind? Will the real objective be revealed or is this like ‘Lost’ where the writers came up with good ideas with no actual plan of actually giving the audience a satisfying conclusion? At least ‘Lost’ had memorable characters.

Quantum Leap – Fate's Wide Wheel: A Quantum Leap Podcast

I’m still holding out and waiting for the show to get really good and interesting. QL still needs to explain the absence of the waiting room and of Ziggy as a personality. These are important things introduced in the original and have been ignored so far in the remake. I am also waiting for the awe of mystery and the gift of humor to grace the show giving it more of a hook to latch my imagination onto the stories. It is moving too quickly through the plot so far to do that.

The 3rd episode has Ben leaping into a boxer. I’m wondering what they will do with this concept as they have already done it in the original series in the first season episode 4.

La Brea Season 2: Episode 1 Every Wednesday

NBC has the monopoly for Sci-Fi Time Travel fans. On Mondays fans can leap around time with Ben and Addison. On Tuesdays they can fall into a sinkhole to 10,000 B.C. Los Angeles with woolly rhinos, saber-tooth tigers, trinkets like civil war gold from other eras, other nomadic tribes from sometime, items from the future scattered about the ancient landscape such as the famous Hollywood sign from Hollywood and secret government built buildings with a secret stairway hidden by a flood of water.

One of the advantages of television watching back in the 80’s and 90’s was that you could step into an episode of a show like Quantum Leap and not have to be caught up on all the previous episodes. It also helped that the original QL had a synopsis of the premise of the show at the beginning of each episode. There was no overall ongoing continuous storyline and only 2 real characters to keep up with with all the side characters off screen. La Brea is in the vain of the new modern 2020 type of show where the whole series or seasons are one long giacatic movie split up into different segments. There is so much going on plot wise and character wise that even watching a recap of season 1 will not get you caught up properly.

At times the show is somewhat predictable plot wise and some of the characters are a little cliche and paint by the numbers. But the show tries to have fun with its premise. And because it doesn’t have a legacy to live up to it’s a little more free to go in any direction without the same type of criticism as the new QL. So it is a little more satisfying to watch for that very reason. Seeing there on the same network why not have a unique La Brea/ Quantum Leap crossover. Or at least in a commercial anyway.

Here is an example of some of the fun fans have with a show like La Brea.

The Goldbergs Season 10: Episode 2 Every Thursday

In this episode of the Goldbergs you will get

An aging David Hasselhoff being harassed by the Goldbergs.
A reason for Adam to skip college and stay around the house.
More tributes and remembrances of Murray.
More of Jonathan Glascott the great guidance counselor at William Penn Academy.
Comic word play between Geoff and Erica.
One of the better pro-life examples on television of why the baby in the womb is an actual person and not a blog of tissue. Erica says to Geoff as they are looking at their hologram “That’s Our Baby”.

The Goldbergs Season 10 Episode 2 Review: That's a Schwartz Man | Tell-Tale TV

Ghosts Season 2: Episode 1 Every Friday?

If you’re looking for a theological explanation of the afterlife explained through a drama on network television it is best to turn on CatholicTV or EWTN. If your looking for a lighthearted comedy with interesting characters and clever unexpected writing ‘Ghosts’ is the show to watch. Samantha and Jay Arondekar dreams spring to life when they inherit a beautiful old country house from a distant relative of Sam’s named Sophie Woodstone.

It is filled with lots of history including all the folks who died on the property who are lingering around the house as ghosts. They are now bound to the area until they can reach the afterlife. After having a near-death experience Sam can see the viking, scout master with an arrow in his neck, the native American, Revolutionary war general, the guy with no pants and the many other dead people who live in the mansion with them. In the opening episode of the new season the ghosts spy for Sam and Jay on their first customers in their newly opened B & B who are known for writing notorious scathing reviews of businesses on Yelp. Not the funniest or most interesting episode but it is a good start to a new season of laughs. This american sitcom follows in the steps of the Office which was adapted from a British equivalent.

Content warning: Some sexual humor and indendo and not an accurate description of Catholic theology concerning the after-life.

Ghosts (Official Site) Watch on CBS

Resident Alien Seasons 1 & 2: FULL SEASONS

One of the funniest, freshest, and entertaining shows of the past several years revisits a sci-fi formula that follows in the footsteps of Alf, My Favorite Martian and Mork and Mindy. An alien gets stranded on earth , and learns to become more human. An alien whose name you can’t pronounce in the human language is sent to wipe out humanity. After crash-landing on Earth in Patience Colorado he becomes the town doctor after killing and taking on the identity of a vacationing pathology physician named Harry Vanderspeigle. During the first season he wrestles with the moral dilemma of his secret mission, while also dealing with the mayor’s young son Max, who can see his true appearance.

Harry becomes very entangled in earthly human events in the town and ends up loving pie and Law and Order, in which he learned how to talk like a human. The characters of the town are fully developed and fleshed out and are fun to be with and watch with their own zany antics. Season 1 consists of some great sci-fi comedy.

For some reason the writers of Season 2 part 1 were replaced by pod people as the good writing suffered injuries. After the conclusion of season 1 the show lacked a main focus that was the center of the first season. For some reason there was an entire episode dedicated to female political issues that had nothing to do with comedy or sci-fi or good interesting writing. At the end of that episode a character throws leaflets out of an airplane explain why men in the town get paid more than the women with the MASH theme song playing in background. Sadly it had an episode dealing with euthanasia that I thought didn’t deal with why it is problematic.

Season 2 part 2 picked up memento and got sort of back on track but not as evenly as the great first season. Still it kept introducing mysteries and plot points that they sort of actually focused on. Alien Babies, alien abductions, alien vs. aliens confrontations, time travel, alien tech, shady government alien hunters, George Takaki as the voice of an alien, the ancient aliens guy, the wonder of birth, the certainty of death, character growth and all types of other cool stuff. The door is wide open for possibilities in season 3. Hopefully it will go back to the wonder of season 1.

Content Warning: Some swearing, profanity and sexual situations.

Andor Season 1 Episode 4:

The story is still being set up and not much action has occurred except some shoot out in episode 3. Despite Genevieve O’Reilly returning as the leader of the rebel alliance Mon Mothma, this episode of Andor proved to be more boring then…

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power: Episode 6

This is the first episode where some real action takes place. People die. More importantly orcs die. Also the plot really advances in an unexpected way. We get to see Galadriel show off her badassery. Sadly no norri the Half-foot (Hobbit). This episode in a land and time far away was more amusing then the story in a galaxy far far away. But it was still not as amusing as…

She-Hulk Season 1: Episode 7:

This episode expands the plot and explores the agonizing ache of waiting for someone to text you back after giving them a message you think they will respond to. I have put out recent messages myself to others whom never responded back to me. They have in the past. Such as life. Blonsky is back and we get to see the inner workings of his inner sanctum. She-Hulk attends a therapy group while waiting for a tow truck to come get her car that was ruined in a fight between two other members of the therapy group. Lots of wacky characters appear in this episode. Still don’t see how this show is so woke and shallow.

Funny Time Traveling Ghosts and Aliens