A weekly feature in which we're trying to find the most compelling, best acted, written, directed and just generally great, memorable scenes that we've seen in past seven days on TV.
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST, "Bob & Carol & Vincent & Cat", June 25, 2015, Actors: Kristin Kreuk and more, The Scene: The fight scene
Tonya Papanikolas: Cat and the DHS lady kick some serious butt! This scene was just fun. Cat is always tough, but it's been awhile since we've seen how physically tough she can be. And it great to see her doing this with another woman. Even though the woman later turned out to be her enemy. This was girl power to the fullest, and I loved watching it. Seeing Cat take off her heels to beat up a guy was a great touch. This was an all-around fun scene.
DARK MATTER, "Episode Three", June 26, 2015, Actors: Marc Bendavid and more, The Scene: The final twist
Justyna K: I'm so glad I finally got a chance to watch this show. Thank you to all who recommended it in the comments. It's been really good and entertaining so far! Another great episode this week. There are many moments I enjoyed, like a standoff (go Five!), One and Six saving the Android (she's part of the team after all) or the truth test, but I really liked the twist at the end and what it means for the show's main mystery. It sure looks like One might not actually be Jace Corso. Makes sense since he's never really seemed like a criminal described back in the premiere. The question is, if he's not Jace, who is he? And whoever he is, whether it's also true for everyone else. If it's only him, maybe he's the one who erased everyone's memories... I'm excited to find out more. Kudos for great work so far!
Nirat Anop: The ending. Firstly, what an awesome episode. That ending twist was great, I realised it was a twin or clone of One though before I even saw his face as I recognised his voice early on but I really liked this twist. I'm really intrigued as to what happened between One and Jace Corso.
HALT AND CATCH FIRE, "Play with Friends", June 21, 2015, Actors: Kerry Bishé, Mackenzie Davis and more, The Scenes: Donna takes the pregnancy test & Cameron and Tom talk about work in the closet
Pablozky21: Donna takes the pregnancy test - Kerry Bishé gives a great performance all around; as she hides in the bathroom taking the pregnancy test we can easily tell how afraid she is. Everything she has worked for during her time on Mutiny is now in the balance due to this unexpected pregnancy. Just by looking at her we feel sorry because the audience knows a baby is the last thing Donna wants, she already neglects her two daughters enough as it is right now. She tries to have it all, the family and the work, but right now she has put more energy on the job and this just comes to shake off balance at the worst posible time. The scene conveys all this and it works so wonderfully by how Kerry Bishé plays it.
Tonya Papanikolas: Cameron and Tom talk about work in the closet. Oh my gosh I loved everything about this scene. It was so fun. I love how it began, with the characters aiming their play guns at each other but not firing. Then it was fun to watch Cameron come up with a great gaming idea. They both got so excited, it was adorable. It's very clear that Tom is a good match for Cameron, and this scene just proved how much they have in common. It's obvious they like each other. But just when they have this great shared moment, it ends with Tom getting a call about a date. Suddenly things turn awkward very quickly. I loved that part, too. The change in tone was written and acted so well. I loved it!
HANNIBAL, "Aperitivo", June 25, 2015, Actors: Laurence Fishburne and more
The Scene: Bella's funeral
Diana Mack: Another amazing episode and I'm still wondering why it got cancelled and how people can't watch this show when it's clearly a masterpiece. Still mad at NBC. Anyway, my favorite scene was Bella's funeral. Jack remembers the moment when his wife wore the white dress and it was kinda beautiful and touching.
KILLJOYS, "The Sugar Point Run", June 26, 2015, Actors: Aaron Ashmore and more, The Scene: Johnny helps Dutch and D'avin escape
Justyna K: And here's another show I'm glad I finally got a chance to watch. I really enjoy all the interactions between the characters as well as the space adventure plot. My favorite part of this week's episode would probably be all the John and Lucy's conversations - how fun are they? Also, both Dutch and D'avin are truly impressive fighters. It seems like both the team and the show are starting to find their feet and it's pretty great so far. I decided to choose a scene near the end of the episode where Johnny arrives just in time to help Dutch and D'avin escape from Sugar Point. "Smart and punctual" indeed. Nice team moment there! Kudos.
MR. ROBOT, "eps1.0_hellofriend.mov", June 24, 2015, Actors: Rami Malek and more, The Scenes: Elliot breaks down & Ending & Elliot stalks his therapist's boyfriend & Elliot talks to his therapist
Nirat Anop: Elliot breaks down in his apartment and then takes morphine to stop the pain. I absolutely loved the writing in this pilot so I had to go with one of Elliot's monologues. Rami Malek is exceptional in this role, his entire performance, mannerisms and voice overs are the best, "I hate when I can’t hold in my loneliness". It's through his thought process we learn about who he is and what drives him. One lesson to learn from this scene, "don't ever make decisions on morphine".
Milo MJ: Ending. Eliot realising that it's happening, and that Colby is arrested, however his victory isn't one that last long because bam, you have the SUVs and men in suits turning up and surrounding him. I half expected Nick Fury to step out of the car, but it was such an effective way to end the episode.
Ben L: The best part was Elliot stalking his therapist's boyfriend and going into his personal stuff. It was so good of him to take the dog from him after he abused the dog earlier in the episode.
Prpleight J: Really talking to his therapist to make her feel better (given he's responsible for her pain).
STRIKE BACK, "Episode 4", June 24, 2015, Actors: Michelle Lukes and more, The Scene: The death of Julia Richmond
Jimmy Ryan: Episode 4 ended with the shock death of Julia Richmond. Richmond's death came out of the blue, and will be felt particularly strongly by Damien Scott, her boyfriend. Richmond's last words were touching but summed up the risks she and the other members of Section 20 take in their stride to do their job. I was pleased that the writing team maintained the character's integrity, with Richmond not giving away any intel to her enemies despite paying the ultimate price. The episode's final scene saw all this play out. It was beautifully written and directed, with some stunning acting thrown in to boot.
SUITS, "Denial", June 24, 2015, Actors: Gabriel Macht, Patrick J. Adams, The Scene: Harvey gives Mike an engagement present
Laura Markus: Harvey gives Mike an engagement present and takes him to a Nets game. I must admit, I had extremely low expectations for the return of Suits. After hearing that, “Mike and Harvey don’t always have to work together on cases”, I thought my favourite duo was doomed to have no screen time together. But this episode gave us enough to be satisfied. This scene felt like classic Suits/Mike and Harvey. Harvey gave Mike a bridal magazine, emphasizing this importance of finding the perfect colour for his wedding. They joke around a bit more, and then Harvey tells Mike he's taking him to the Nets game, where they'll probably run into Jay z and Beyonce. I still hold out no hope for a truly AMAZING episode due to the expected lack of Mike and Harvey this season. But, as far as this episode goes, I was pleased.
THE LAST SHIP, "Fight the Ship", June 21, 2015, Actors: Marissa Neitling and more
The Scene: Lt. Foster fights to protect her unborn baby
Prpleight J: Her fear and desperation. When she grabbed the assistant's hand in a silent plea for help. My runner up would be Quincy sacrificing himself to protect the primordial strain.
THE ASTRONAUT WIVES CLUB, "Protocol", June 25, 2015, Actors: Joanna GarcÃa, Joel Johnstone, The Scene: Betty tells Gus all the reasons she loves him
Tonya Papanikolas: Wow - Joanna Garcia Swisher knocked this scene out of the park. She took a scene that could have been mundane and made it fantastic. It took a minute to realize Betty was saying all these things because she was scared she would lose her husband. Just in case he died, she wanted to acknowledge how much she loved and appreciated him. It was great that they never spelled out her reasons. It made the scene all the more powerful to realize it on your own. The emotions and reality that Joanna infused into Betty's character shone like a beacon. Great scene.
THE WHISPERS, "Meltdown", June 22, 2015, Actors: Milo Ventimiglia and more
The Scene: Sean saves his son
Prpleight J: Sean is out to stop the boy that’s going to cause the meltdown … only to actually be the person who causes the meltdown when he stops the water from killing his son.
TRUE DETECTIVE, "The Western Book of the Dead", June 21, 2015, Actors: Colin Farrell and more
The Scene: Ray confronts his son's bully and his father
Ben L: Although the premiere could have been better, the best part was when Ray beat the hell out of his son's bully and the dad of his son's bully.
UNDER THE DOME, "But I'm Not", June 25, 2015, Actors: Dean Norris and more
The Scene: The residents come out of their cocoons
Daniel van der Veer: Under the Dome had a weird season premiere, but I do think it shows some promise for the rest of the season. The most interesting moment comes at the end of the premiere, when the residents are freed from their cocoons. It's ironic that Big Jim set them free given all that he has done. The additions of Eva and Christine intrigue me and are bound to make interesting stories.
WAYWARD PINES, "Choices", June 25, 2015, Actors: Toby Jones and more, The Scene: Group A's Deathly Demise
Owen Bush: Wayward Pines is hugely complicated, but the holes are slowly being filled with juicy plot points that splurge out real and beautiful action that makes the show so entertaining and addictive. When Pilcher tells Ethan about there being a Group A, shivers (literally) ran down my back. As it allows the show to actually make some sort of sense through the chaos occurring in every direction. This show is a very sensitive and fragile gift of insanely new storytelling - so go watch it.
Tonya Papanikolas: Cat and the DHS lady kick some serious butt! This scene was just fun. Cat is always tough, but it's been awhile since we've seen how physically tough she can be. And it great to see her doing this with another woman. Even though the woman later turned out to be her enemy. This was girl power to the fullest, and I loved watching it. Seeing Cat take off her heels to beat up a guy was a great touch. This was an all-around fun scene.
Justyna K: I'm so glad I finally got a chance to watch this show. Thank you to all who recommended it in the comments. It's been really good and entertaining so far! Another great episode this week. There are many moments I enjoyed, like a standoff (go Five!), One and Six saving the Android (she's part of the team after all) or the truth test, but I really liked the twist at the end and what it means for the show's main mystery. It sure looks like One might not actually be Jace Corso. Makes sense since he's never really seemed like a criminal described back in the premiere. The question is, if he's not Jace, who is he? And whoever he is, whether it's also true for everyone else. If it's only him, maybe he's the one who erased everyone's memories... I'm excited to find out more. Kudos for great work so far!
Nirat Anop: The ending. Firstly, what an awesome episode. That ending twist was great, I realised it was a twin or clone of One though before I even saw his face as I recognised his voice early on but I really liked this twist. I'm really intrigued as to what happened between One and Jace Corso.
Pablozky21: Donna takes the pregnancy test - Kerry Bishé gives a great performance all around; as she hides in the bathroom taking the pregnancy test we can easily tell how afraid she is. Everything she has worked for during her time on Mutiny is now in the balance due to this unexpected pregnancy. Just by looking at her we feel sorry because the audience knows a baby is the last thing Donna wants, she already neglects her two daughters enough as it is right now. She tries to have it all, the family and the work, but right now she has put more energy on the job and this just comes to shake off balance at the worst posible time. The scene conveys all this and it works so wonderfully by how Kerry Bishé plays it.
Tonya Papanikolas: Cameron and Tom talk about work in the closet. Oh my gosh I loved everything about this scene. It was so fun. I love how it began, with the characters aiming their play guns at each other but not firing. Then it was fun to watch Cameron come up with a great gaming idea. They both got so excited, it was adorable. It's very clear that Tom is a good match for Cameron, and this scene just proved how much they have in common. It's obvious they like each other. But just when they have this great shared moment, it ends with Tom getting a call about a date. Suddenly things turn awkward very quickly. I loved that part, too. The change in tone was written and acted so well. I loved it!
HANNIBAL, "Aperitivo", June 25, 2015, Actors: Laurence Fishburne and more
The Scene: Bella's funeral
Diana Mack: Another amazing episode and I'm still wondering why it got cancelled and how people can't watch this show when it's clearly a masterpiece. Still mad at NBC. Anyway, my favorite scene was Bella's funeral. Jack remembers the moment when his wife wore the white dress and it was kinda beautiful and touching.
Justyna K: And here's another show I'm glad I finally got a chance to watch. I really enjoy all the interactions between the characters as well as the space adventure plot. My favorite part of this week's episode would probably be all the John and Lucy's conversations - how fun are they? Also, both Dutch and D'avin are truly impressive fighters. It seems like both the team and the show are starting to find their feet and it's pretty great so far. I decided to choose a scene near the end of the episode where Johnny arrives just in time to help Dutch and D'avin escape from Sugar Point. "Smart and punctual" indeed. Nice team moment there! Kudos.
Nirat Anop: Elliot breaks down in his apartment and then takes morphine to stop the pain. I absolutely loved the writing in this pilot so I had to go with one of Elliot's monologues. Rami Malek is exceptional in this role, his entire performance, mannerisms and voice overs are the best, "I hate when I can’t hold in my loneliness". It's through his thought process we learn about who he is and what drives him. One lesson to learn from this scene, "don't ever make decisions on morphine".
Milo MJ: Ending. Eliot realising that it's happening, and that Colby is arrested, however his victory isn't one that last long because bam, you have the SUVs and men in suits turning up and surrounding him. I half expected Nick Fury to step out of the car, but it was such an effective way to end the episode.
Ben L: The best part was Elliot stalking his therapist's boyfriend and going into his personal stuff. It was so good of him to take the dog from him after he abused the dog earlier in the episode.
Prpleight J: Really talking to his therapist to make her feel better (given he's responsible for her pain).
Jimmy Ryan: Episode 4 ended with the shock death of Julia Richmond. Richmond's death came out of the blue, and will be felt particularly strongly by Damien Scott, her boyfriend. Richmond's last words were touching but summed up the risks she and the other members of Section 20 take in their stride to do their job. I was pleased that the writing team maintained the character's integrity, with Richmond not giving away any intel to her enemies despite paying the ultimate price. The episode's final scene saw all this play out. It was beautifully written and directed, with some stunning acting thrown in to boot.
Laura Markus: Harvey gives Mike an engagement present and takes him to a Nets game. I must admit, I had extremely low expectations for the return of Suits. After hearing that, “Mike and Harvey don’t always have to work together on cases”, I thought my favourite duo was doomed to have no screen time together. But this episode gave us enough to be satisfied. This scene felt like classic Suits/Mike and Harvey. Harvey gave Mike a bridal magazine, emphasizing this importance of finding the perfect colour for his wedding. They joke around a bit more, and then Harvey tells Mike he's taking him to the Nets game, where they'll probably run into Jay z and Beyonce. I still hold out no hope for a truly AMAZING episode due to the expected lack of Mike and Harvey this season. But, as far as this episode goes, I was pleased.
THE LAST SHIP, "Fight the Ship", June 21, 2015, Actors: Marissa Neitling and more
The Scene: Lt. Foster fights to protect her unborn baby
Prpleight J: Her fear and desperation. When she grabbed the assistant's hand in a silent plea for help. My runner up would be Quincy sacrificing himself to protect the primordial strain.
Tonya Papanikolas: Wow - Joanna Garcia Swisher knocked this scene out of the park. She took a scene that could have been mundane and made it fantastic. It took a minute to realize Betty was saying all these things because she was scared she would lose her husband. Just in case he died, she wanted to acknowledge how much she loved and appreciated him. It was great that they never spelled out her reasons. It made the scene all the more powerful to realize it on your own. The emotions and reality that Joanna infused into Betty's character shone like a beacon. Great scene.
THE WHISPERS, "Meltdown", June 22, 2015, Actors: Milo Ventimiglia and more
The Scene: Sean saves his son
Prpleight J: Sean is out to stop the boy that’s going to cause the meltdown … only to actually be the person who causes the meltdown when he stops the water from killing his son.
TRUE DETECTIVE, "The Western Book of the Dead", June 21, 2015, Actors: Colin Farrell and more
The Scene: Ray confronts his son's bully and his father
Ben L: Although the premiere could have been better, the best part was when Ray beat the hell out of his son's bully and the dad of his son's bully.
UNDER THE DOME, "But I'm Not", June 25, 2015, Actors: Dean Norris and more
The Scene: The residents come out of their cocoons
Daniel van der Veer: Under the Dome had a weird season premiere, but I do think it shows some promise for the rest of the season. The most interesting moment comes at the end of the premiere, when the residents are freed from their cocoons. It's ironic that Big Jim set them free given all that he has done. The additions of Eva and Christine intrigue me and are bound to make interesting stories.
Owen Bush: Wayward Pines is hugely complicated, but the holes are slowly being filled with juicy plot points that splurge out real and beautiful action that makes the show so entertaining and addictive. When Pilcher tells Ethan about there being a Group A, shivers (literally) ran down my back. As it allows the show to actually make some sort of sense through the chaos occurring in every direction. This show is a very sensitive and fragile gift of insanely new storytelling - so go watch it.
