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.
CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND, "I'm Finding My Bliss", March 15, 2019, Actors: Scott Michael Foster, Rachel Bloom, The Scene: Nathaniel sings Rebecca's song
Luana: The gesture was sweet, but what I really loved was Rebecca's face when she saw someone else singing her song, perhaps directing her to her real dream of being a writer.
DOOM PATROL, "Paw Patrol", March 15, 2019, Actors: Diane Guerrero, Ezra Buzzington, The Scene: Doctor Harrison psychoanalyzes Bertrand
Mads: Diane Guerrero is doing amazing work on this show. I loved this scene where we see another one of her alters appear, Doctor Harrison. She has the ability to persuade people to do things with her mind. I think she's one of my favorite alters. It's crazy how well Guerrero can transition back and forth between such distinctive personalities. Harrison's eerie calmness as she almost convinces Bertrand to stab himself through the eye repeatedly was spine-chilling.
FOR THE PEOPLE, "This is America", March 14, 2019, Actors: Anna Deavere Smith, Wesam Keesh, The Scene: Tina's "this is America" speech
Luana: This speech was one of the best in recent memory, given the current state of affairs, it was so important to be reminded that the idea people have of one thing is never completely accurate. When Jay says "this is not the America I know" he's echoing the thoughts of so many others in this past couple of years, and Tina's answer is spot on, just because you've seen one side of a country it doesn't mean you know it in its entirety. No identity is set in stone, which is why people have to work constantly to shape things to get them where they want and then keep evolving as everything continues to change.
Marko: Tina and Jay discuss This America.
GOD FRIENDED ME, "Scenes From an Italian Restaurant", March 10, 2019, Actors: Brandon Micheal Hall, Violett Beane, The Scene: Cara and Miles share a kiss at the restaurant
Beth: Just when they seemed to be headed down the friend zone highway, fate intervened and Miles and Cara found their spark. It was a very sweet and memorable moment.
GOOD GIRLS, "Slow Down, Children at Play", March 10, 2019, Actors: Retta, Christina Hendricks, Reno Wilson, Manny Montana, The Scenes: Ruby confronts Stan about the rift between them & Rio tells Beth he'll teach her
Beth: Rio tells Beth he'll teach her. This moment was not only hot without barely any touching but it proved that Rio is not trying to kill Beth, in his weird and twisted way, he is trying to spend time with her. Is it healthy? No, but these two have off the charts chemistry, so it is hard not to have a reaction to their scenes.
Claire: Ruby confronts Stan about the rift growing between them. Ruby did what she had to do to save their daughter’s life, but Stan can’t accept that Ruby is a criminal. He is a cop and he’s mad, scared and judgmental. I love when she finally speaks up and says I did what I had to do to save our family; powerful moment.
GREY'S ANATOMY, "And Dream of Sheep", March 14, 2019, Actors: Giacomo Gianniotti and more, The Scene: Andrew realizes his father is repeating the past
Mads: I felt so bad for Andrew in the moment he realizes Carina was right and their dad is not as mentally stable as he so desperately wanted to believe. The "baby in a bag" experiment falls apart and their father is unwilling to see it - and also willing to risk the life of a child and potentially break a mother's heart by getting her hopes up for an experiment that is nowhere near ready for human trial. Andrew recognizes the same signs his father showed in the past, when his actions resulted in four patients dying. It's clear he wanted, so badly, for his father to learn from those mistakes and it crushes him to realize he's nowhere near close to doing so.
LEGACIES, "Let's Just Finish the Dance", March 14, 2019, Actors: Danielle Rose Russell, Erica Ash and more, The Scenes: Hope's breakdown & The reveal about MG's mom
Prpleight: MG's mom is the big bad. When I decided to add Legacies to my list for this week it was going to be Penelope's goodbye scene, but then I realized the scene that really threw me was the revelation that MG's mother is actually the mysterious Mrs. G, the woman in charge of Triad Industries. Did. Not. Expect. That. I'm not sure that information affects the direction of the story at all but it was certainly an effective surprise.
Marko: Hope has a breakdown at the end of the pageant.
NEW AMSTERDAM, "King of Swords", March 12, 2019, Actors: Anupam Kher, Jocko Sims and more, The Scenes: Vijay's story about his wife & Dr. Reynolds manages to free Hugh from the spike
Justyna: It was incredibly hard to choose just one scene from this deeply emotional episode, certainly one of the show's best so far. Each of the stories and patients from the hour made quite a lasting impression and left an impact on the main characters. Dr. Reynolds connected with his patient in a way we haven't seen before and he went to great lengths to try to save his life. Then there's Max and Helen struggling with their own relationship, his cancer and their patient's predictions. Another memorable part has to be Avi's confession on the roof where he admits to Iggy why he almost killed himself. His speech was heartbreaking to hear and the young actor did a wonderful job with it. But in the end I decided to highlight the conclusion to Dr. Kapoor's story in the episode - his conversation with Iggy about his late wife. Little by little we've been getting to know Vijay, his past, his methods, his relationship with his son. This was the first time he opened up to his friend Dr. Frome about the last day of his wife's life. Moved by his patient's last conversation with her husband he makes sure the two can spend another moment together before she dies. So that at least one of them gets to say goodbye. Vijay admits that his last conversation with his wife was a fight about their son and they both went to bed angry with each other and he never had a chance to tell her what he truly wanted her to know. Every little thing he loved about her. Anupam Kher continues to be brilliant on the show. Kudos to cast & crew for all the wonderful work on the series so far.
DJRiter: Dr. Reynolds helping the man impaled on the spike in the snow. Watching the normally reserved Dr. Reynolds connect with Hugh, the man impaled on the spike in the snow as he fought to save him was both touching and inspiring. Reynolds exhibited his usual determined to save his patient demeanor, despite having to work in the most adverse conditions in a blizzard. The man connected with him talking about his husband and despite knowing he most likely was going to die remained calm and upbeat. Inspired by the man and his attitude Reynolds was ready to battle the elements and was determined to save him. In an almost superhuman effort, he managed to free Hugh from the spike and carry him six blocks through the blizzard on his back.
SHAMELESS, "Found", March 10, 2019, Actors: Emmy Rossum, William H. Macy, The Scene: Fiona says goodbye to Frank
Claire: Too many great scenes to choose from in Emmy Rossum’s final episode. But I chose when Fiona says goodbye to Frank. I love that this wasn’t a sappy scene and that they stayed true to the awfulness of Frank Gallagher. Though the look on his face does not match his words. You can see how broken up Frank is about Fiona leaving, but he would never tell her that. He just thanked her for ‘helping out’ when in reality Fiona did everything.
SHRILL, "Annie", March 15, 2019, Actors: Aidy Bryant, Luka Jones and more
The Scene: Annie finds her power and confronts Ryan
Claire: The end of episode 1. Annie finds her power and confronts Ryan by walking right through his front door; introducing herself to his roommates. He’d always made her sneak out the back; ashamed of her being fat. Aidy Bryant is wonderful as Annie.
SUPERGIRL, "Stand and Deliver", March 10, 2019, Actors: Melissa Benoist, Mehcad Brooks, Chyler Leigh and more, The Scene: "Mad World" sequence
Justyna: Every voice and action matter. Each of them can make a difference. For the first time since the conflict between aliens and humans grew stronger during the season we finally got to see a glimpse of hope in the most unexpected place. When a peaceful march and Ben Lockwood's rally turn into a brutal fight it seems that things couldn't possibly be worse. That's when a few people in the crowd actually manage to change something. Not with extraordinary acts of bravery but with a simple act of kindness. Humans reaching out their hands to help scared or injured aliens stand up and find safety away from the fight. A woman looking for her daughter and Supergirl holding the girl in her arms before reuniting her with her mother. People supporting each other and putting their differences aside. Many little moments captured in the photos by James Olsen. This was a very powerful and impactful scene, the place when the change truly starts. I loved watching everyone's reactions to the events around them and "Mad World" was beautifully placed in the sequence. Who would have thought that a fight like that can actually end up changing people's hearts & minds? Truth is you can never know what's going to happen but you can always hope for the best. Kudos to cast & crew for such a memorable moment and the meaningful message behind it.
DJRiter: The alien rally and the results. As chaos between aliens and the anti-alien humans breaks out at Lockwood’s rally, Alex strong arms Lockwood off the stage saying at that he’s the greatest threat. Then, in a standout sequence in a powerful episode you see in slow motion style people getting pushed, shoved and knocked over. Then something unfolds that James captures perfectly with his camera, he gets illuminating photos of aliens helping humans and vice versa as the exquisite tune ‘Mad World’ plays in the background. The significance of what is happening is not lost on Alex, Supergirl and Brainy as they look at each other then watch as other people in the crowd begin having a change of heart.
Zandarl: As panic ensues during the rally aliens help humans, humans help aliens. All caught on camera by James Olsen as the haunting tune Mad World plays.
THE FLASH, "Failure Is an Orphan", March 12, 2019, Actors: Jessica Parker Kennedy and more
The Scene: Nora takes over
Naomi: Nora has taken complete control of STAR Labs and the Cicada case. She orders the team around and puts Barry on the spot about if he is ready to make the case to Cicada to take the cure. An annoyed Cisco and Sherloque blame Barry and Iris for the creation of bossy Nora. A very cute scene and added some much needed humor back to the show.
THE GOOD DOCTOR, "Trampoline", March 11, 2019, Actors: Freddie Highmore, Jasika Nicole
The Scene: Shaun asks Carly out on a date
Naomi: After he gets his job back, a more confident Shaun suits up and finds the courage to ask his former colleague in pathology out on a date; she says yes! This is such an exciting end to the season for Shaun. It was nice to see him take a risk and have it pay off in such a big way.
THE GOOD FIGHT, "The One About the Recent Troubles", March 14, 2019, Actors: Delroy Lindo, Audra McDonald, The Scene: Adrian tells Liz about the allegations against her father
Laura B: It's always hard to just pick a single scene for this series, because the show is structured in such a way that it really relies on all of it, for it to have kind of impact that it has. I chose this scene though, because it was so monumental for Liz and for the audience to be able to see the kind of person she really is by how she reacted. She took it as truth, but then surprisingly took responsibility for it and how the firm should handle it. Audra McDonald just killed it.
THE OTHER TWO, "Chase Turns Fourteen", March 14, 2019, Actors: Drew Tarver, Heléne Yorke and more, The Scene: Cary does Call Me By Your Name
Mads: Man I really wish more people watched this show! It's so honest, even uncomfortably so sometimes, and genuinely hilarious. In this scene, Cary is dealing with the aftermath of being called out on his transition into a douchebag by Jeremy, a guy he really liked. He's distraught and dealing with a serious identity crisis so he sits in front of the fireplace crying with the camera framed on him - credits start to roll. In the background you can hear Brooke and Pat discussing the moment and Brooke says, "Give him a minute, he's doing Call Me By Your Name." Genius.
THE PASSAGE, "Last Lesson", March 11, 2019, Actors: Saniyya Sidney, Mark-Paul Gosselaar and more, The Scene: The Agent gets bitten
Prpleight: The man who kept her alive, taught her lessons she would need to face the destiny forced on her, protected her and loved her gets bitten -- in a situation Fanning sets up in an effort to turn her into the monster he is. Two of their neighbors want to shoot him to protect her. And he's willing to let them....in order to protect her. The moment the door opened and Brad appeared with blood on his neck I knew how the scene was going to end. The idea that this sweet girl (she's what...12?) was going to be forced to kill was heartbreaking. Despite the fact that Amy did kill her innocent neighbors, Fanning lost again. Amy didn't turn into a monster. She gave Brad the last of the cure and left because she couldn't bare the idea of The Agent thinking of her as a monster. She left him her book! I really hope at least some of what she said in the voice-over was in that note she left him. The sequence was sad....and a little beautiful.
THIS IS US, "The Waiting Room", March 12, 2019, Actors: Mandy Moore, Chrissy Metz, Chris Sullivan and more, The Scenes: Kate and Toby meet baby Jack & Rebecca explains what the waiting room reminds her of
Luana: Kate and Toby meet baby Jack. This scene was so sweet, it's always the big events in life that make you feel the absence of a loved one even more. Kate introduces the new member of the Pearson family to his grandpa and even though she has reservations about talking to dead people, she asks him to take care of her baby boy, and props to the casting here because when she was looking up I could see teenage Kate in there asking her dad for help.
Jamie: Rebecca explains what the waiting room reminds her of. This was a very emotional episode but this is the scene that stuck with me. It may have been years but sitting in that waiting room brings back some horrible memories for Rebecca. Everyone had been fighting the whole time but this is what got them to quiet down. Great acting from Mandy Moore in this scene.
CRAZY EX-GIRLFRIEND, "I'm Finding My Bliss", March 15, 2019, Actors: Scott Michael Foster, Rachel Bloom, The Scene: Nathaniel sings Rebecca's song
Luana: The gesture was sweet, but what I really loved was Rebecca's face when she saw someone else singing her song, perhaps directing her to her real dream of being a writer.
Mads: Diane Guerrero is doing amazing work on this show. I loved this scene where we see another one of her alters appear, Doctor Harrison. She has the ability to persuade people to do things with her mind. I think she's one of my favorite alters. It's crazy how well Guerrero can transition back and forth between such distinctive personalities. Harrison's eerie calmness as she almost convinces Bertrand to stab himself through the eye repeatedly was spine-chilling.
Luana: This speech was one of the best in recent memory, given the current state of affairs, it was so important to be reminded that the idea people have of one thing is never completely accurate. When Jay says "this is not the America I know" he's echoing the thoughts of so many others in this past couple of years, and Tina's answer is spot on, just because you've seen one side of a country it doesn't mean you know it in its entirety. No identity is set in stone, which is why people have to work constantly to shape things to get them where they want and then keep evolving as everything continues to change.
Marko: Tina and Jay discuss This America.
GOD FRIENDED ME, "Scenes From an Italian Restaurant", March 10, 2019, Actors: Brandon Micheal Hall, Violett Beane, The Scene: Cara and Miles share a kiss at the restaurant
Beth: Just when they seemed to be headed down the friend zone highway, fate intervened and Miles and Cara found their spark. It was a very sweet and memorable moment.
Beth: Rio tells Beth he'll teach her. This moment was not only hot without barely any touching but it proved that Rio is not trying to kill Beth, in his weird and twisted way, he is trying to spend time with her. Is it healthy? No, but these two have off the charts chemistry, so it is hard not to have a reaction to their scenes.
Claire: Ruby confronts Stan about the rift growing between them. Ruby did what she had to do to save their daughter’s life, but Stan can’t accept that Ruby is a criminal. He is a cop and he’s mad, scared and judgmental. I love when she finally speaks up and says I did what I had to do to save our family; powerful moment.
Mads: I felt so bad for Andrew in the moment he realizes Carina was right and their dad is not as mentally stable as he so desperately wanted to believe. The "baby in a bag" experiment falls apart and their father is unwilling to see it - and also willing to risk the life of a child and potentially break a mother's heart by getting her hopes up for an experiment that is nowhere near ready for human trial. Andrew recognizes the same signs his father showed in the past, when his actions resulted in four patients dying. It's clear he wanted, so badly, for his father to learn from those mistakes and it crushes him to realize he's nowhere near close to doing so.
Prpleight: MG's mom is the big bad. When I decided to add Legacies to my list for this week it was going to be Penelope's goodbye scene, but then I realized the scene that really threw me was the revelation that MG's mother is actually the mysterious Mrs. G, the woman in charge of Triad Industries. Did. Not. Expect. That. I'm not sure that information affects the direction of the story at all but it was certainly an effective surprise.
Marko: Hope has a breakdown at the end of the pageant.
Justyna: It was incredibly hard to choose just one scene from this deeply emotional episode, certainly one of the show's best so far. Each of the stories and patients from the hour made quite a lasting impression and left an impact on the main characters. Dr. Reynolds connected with his patient in a way we haven't seen before and he went to great lengths to try to save his life. Then there's Max and Helen struggling with their own relationship, his cancer and their patient's predictions. Another memorable part has to be Avi's confession on the roof where he admits to Iggy why he almost killed himself. His speech was heartbreaking to hear and the young actor did a wonderful job with it. But in the end I decided to highlight the conclusion to Dr. Kapoor's story in the episode - his conversation with Iggy about his late wife. Little by little we've been getting to know Vijay, his past, his methods, his relationship with his son. This was the first time he opened up to his friend Dr. Frome about the last day of his wife's life. Moved by his patient's last conversation with her husband he makes sure the two can spend another moment together before she dies. So that at least one of them gets to say goodbye. Vijay admits that his last conversation with his wife was a fight about their son and they both went to bed angry with each other and he never had a chance to tell her what he truly wanted her to know. Every little thing he loved about her. Anupam Kher continues to be brilliant on the show. Kudos to cast & crew for all the wonderful work on the series so far.
DJRiter: Dr. Reynolds helping the man impaled on the spike in the snow. Watching the normally reserved Dr. Reynolds connect with Hugh, the man impaled on the spike in the snow as he fought to save him was both touching and inspiring. Reynolds exhibited his usual determined to save his patient demeanor, despite having to work in the most adverse conditions in a blizzard. The man connected with him talking about his husband and despite knowing he most likely was going to die remained calm and upbeat. Inspired by the man and his attitude Reynolds was ready to battle the elements and was determined to save him. In an almost superhuman effort, he managed to free Hugh from the spike and carry him six blocks through the blizzard on his back.
Claire: Too many great scenes to choose from in Emmy Rossum’s final episode. But I chose when Fiona says goodbye to Frank. I love that this wasn’t a sappy scene and that they stayed true to the awfulness of Frank Gallagher. Though the look on his face does not match his words. You can see how broken up Frank is about Fiona leaving, but he would never tell her that. He just thanked her for ‘helping out’ when in reality Fiona did everything.
SHRILL, "Annie", March 15, 2019, Actors: Aidy Bryant, Luka Jones and more
The Scene: Annie finds her power and confronts Ryan
Claire: The end of episode 1. Annie finds her power and confronts Ryan by walking right through his front door; introducing herself to his roommates. He’d always made her sneak out the back; ashamed of her being fat. Aidy Bryant is wonderful as Annie.
Justyna: Every voice and action matter. Each of them can make a difference. For the first time since the conflict between aliens and humans grew stronger during the season we finally got to see a glimpse of hope in the most unexpected place. When a peaceful march and Ben Lockwood's rally turn into a brutal fight it seems that things couldn't possibly be worse. That's when a few people in the crowd actually manage to change something. Not with extraordinary acts of bravery but with a simple act of kindness. Humans reaching out their hands to help scared or injured aliens stand up and find safety away from the fight. A woman looking for her daughter and Supergirl holding the girl in her arms before reuniting her with her mother. People supporting each other and putting their differences aside. Many little moments captured in the photos by James Olsen. This was a very powerful and impactful scene, the place when the change truly starts. I loved watching everyone's reactions to the events around them and "Mad World" was beautifully placed in the sequence. Who would have thought that a fight like that can actually end up changing people's hearts & minds? Truth is you can never know what's going to happen but you can always hope for the best. Kudos to cast & crew for such a memorable moment and the meaningful message behind it.
DJRiter: The alien rally and the results. As chaos between aliens and the anti-alien humans breaks out at Lockwood’s rally, Alex strong arms Lockwood off the stage saying at that he’s the greatest threat. Then, in a standout sequence in a powerful episode you see in slow motion style people getting pushed, shoved and knocked over. Then something unfolds that James captures perfectly with his camera, he gets illuminating photos of aliens helping humans and vice versa as the exquisite tune ‘Mad World’ plays in the background. The significance of what is happening is not lost on Alex, Supergirl and Brainy as they look at each other then watch as other people in the crowd begin having a change of heart.
Zandarl: As panic ensues during the rally aliens help humans, humans help aliens. All caught on camera by James Olsen as the haunting tune Mad World plays.
THE FLASH, "Failure Is an Orphan", March 12, 2019, Actors: Jessica Parker Kennedy and more
The Scene: Nora takes over
Naomi: Nora has taken complete control of STAR Labs and the Cicada case. She orders the team around and puts Barry on the spot about if he is ready to make the case to Cicada to take the cure. An annoyed Cisco and Sherloque blame Barry and Iris for the creation of bossy Nora. A very cute scene and added some much needed humor back to the show.
THE GOOD DOCTOR, "Trampoline", March 11, 2019, Actors: Freddie Highmore, Jasika Nicole
The Scene: Shaun asks Carly out on a date
Naomi: After he gets his job back, a more confident Shaun suits up and finds the courage to ask his former colleague in pathology out on a date; she says yes! This is such an exciting end to the season for Shaun. It was nice to see him take a risk and have it pay off in such a big way.
Laura B: It's always hard to just pick a single scene for this series, because the show is structured in such a way that it really relies on all of it, for it to have kind of impact that it has. I chose this scene though, because it was so monumental for Liz and for the audience to be able to see the kind of person she really is by how she reacted. She took it as truth, but then surprisingly took responsibility for it and how the firm should handle it. Audra McDonald just killed it.
Mads: Man I really wish more people watched this show! It's so honest, even uncomfortably so sometimes, and genuinely hilarious. In this scene, Cary is dealing with the aftermath of being called out on his transition into a douchebag by Jeremy, a guy he really liked. He's distraught and dealing with a serious identity crisis so he sits in front of the fireplace crying with the camera framed on him - credits start to roll. In the background you can hear Brooke and Pat discussing the moment and Brooke says, "Give him a minute, he's doing Call Me By Your Name." Genius.
Prpleight: The man who kept her alive, taught her lessons she would need to face the destiny forced on her, protected her and loved her gets bitten -- in a situation Fanning sets up in an effort to turn her into the monster he is. Two of their neighbors want to shoot him to protect her. And he's willing to let them....in order to protect her. The moment the door opened and Brad appeared with blood on his neck I knew how the scene was going to end. The idea that this sweet girl (she's what...12?) was going to be forced to kill was heartbreaking. Despite the fact that Amy did kill her innocent neighbors, Fanning lost again. Amy didn't turn into a monster. She gave Brad the last of the cure and left because she couldn't bare the idea of The Agent thinking of her as a monster. She left him her book! I really hope at least some of what she said in the voice-over was in that note she left him. The sequence was sad....and a little beautiful.
Luana: Kate and Toby meet baby Jack. This scene was so sweet, it's always the big events in life that make you feel the absence of a loved one even more. Kate introduces the new member of the Pearson family to his grandpa and even though she has reservations about talking to dead people, she asks him to take care of her baby boy, and props to the casting here because when she was looking up I could see teenage Kate in there asking her dad for help.
Jamie: Rebecca explains what the waiting room reminds her of. This was a very emotional episode but this is the scene that stuck with me. It may have been years but sitting in that waiting room brings back some horrible memories for Rebecca. Everyone had been fighting the whole time but this is what got them to quiet down. Great acting from Mandy Moore in this scene.
