DVR Weekly – Week of 9/30-10/06

Welcome to DVR Weekly! What is DVR Weekly you might ask? Every week I choose three shows that I have managed to watch on my DVR and I’ll do a small recap and review which means spoilers ahoy. I’ll also mention two shows that are worth checking out. And I’ll give you a glimpse of five shows I’m looking forward to for the following week. Keep in mind, I don’t watch everything. We will still have a few other full episode recaps for some shows (usually ones that I don’t watch).

Top Shows of the Week

Green Lantern: The Animated Series – 1.16 “Reboot”

Hal Jordan goes on his first patrol as an Honor Guard with Lantern Tomar-Re. Together they discover another Manhunter base. Under the impression these bases stored three Manhunters, Hal and Tomar come under attack only to find more Manhunters awaiting. They retreat and decided to approach the Guardians with the news. The Guardians allow Hal to gather some forces and investigate the Manhunters. Hal decides to gather the old gang. First stop: Kilowog at the Lantern training facilities. Kilowog declines Hal’s invitation, but Hal bets Kilowog he can beat the best recruit in order to coax him along. Kilowog calls Lantern Recruit 1014, who fans will recognize as space squirrel, Ch’p. Ch’p easily defeats Hal, and Kilowog tells Hal he would have joined him anyway. Next, they grab the Interceptor and Aya. Oh wait, Aya has been replaced by a new AI (Lanos) and is currently strapped to a lab table. Rescue mission, go! Hal sneaks into the lab and distracts lab security, Chaselon, the crystal Lantern. Ch’p switches Aya’s core with Lanos’. Upon returning to the Interceptor, Kilowog and Hal are confronted by Tomar-Re who agrees to accompany Hal on his mission. Tomar-Re also reveals he’s discovered the source of the Manhunter reactivation signal. Upon arriving Biot to investigate the antimatter signal, the team is assaulted by Manhunters. They barely escape to one of the dormant Manhunter bases. Within, they discover the base is busy manufacturing new Manhunters. Upon escaping with the aid of Aya, the Anti-Monitor appears. The Interceptor’s weapons array proves ineffective against the Anti-Monitor. Hal covers the others’ retreat, but is overwhelmed by the Anti-Monitor’s blast. Hal’s “gone” as Tomar puts it.

This episode crams so much into its twenty-some-odd minutes with so much for fans while still revealing more for those who have just tuned into the show. I hope we get to see more in-jokes as we’ve gotten all season. I’m also looking forward to finding out exactly what happened to Razer. As far as speculation for this episode, the blast that eviscerates Hal left a very familiar energy mark as it dissipated. Basically, I think Hal’s simply been transported to the anti-matter universe.

Once Upon a Time – 2.01 “Broken”

We open on a man in New York receiving a message via pigeon. The message? The word “Broken” written on a postcard from Stortybrooke. In Storybrooke, the curse has been lifted, but all of the townspeople are still stuck in–to steal a term from Fables–the Mundy world. Magic has apparently returned, but it is different in Storybrooke. The townsfolk mob together to attack Regina, but Emma saves her. Emma then imprisons Regina in the jail. Meanwhile, Mr. Gold reconnects with Belle and promises that he would not kill Regina. In order to keep that promise, he uses a talisman to mark Regina as a target for the wraith, a soul vampire. Again, Emma, Snow, and David come to the rescue. Together, they devise a plan to use Jefferson’s hat to banish the wraith to the oblivion that was once the fairy tale land. In the confrontation, Emma and Snow fall into the portal along with the wraith.

In fairy tale land, Prince Philip reawakens Aurora with the aid of Mulan. The wraith attacks and marks Philip. The group begins their trek to a sanctuary. After setting camp for the night, Philip departs to sacrifice himself and ensure Aurora’s safety. Mulan realizes Philip’s plan and the pair set off to find Philip. Mulan offers to take the mark from Philip, but he refuses and offers an ambiguous “I love you” before being killed by the wraith.  Upon laying Philip to rest, Mulan catches Aurora up on what has been happening during her slumber. Regina’s curse froze the fairy tale land and anyone who wasn’t transported to Storybrooke. Time resumed upon Emma’s arrival in Storybrooke, but the enchanted land (better name, sticking to that) had been ravaged by the curse. The enchanted characters had found a haven, but before they set out again, Mulan discovers the source of the wraith: Emma and Snow.

A new twist of an ongoing story in the enchanted lands leaves me with high hopes for the season. After this season opener, a lot of questions are left in the air. What exactly happened in the enchanted lands? Who are all the enchanted analogues for the Storybrooke characters, and where do they fit in the big mystery? What role will Jefferson play since he supposedly returned way before Emma and Snow? And what exactly has been happening in the years since time resumed?

Young Justice – 2.09 “Darkest”

Aqualad is tasked by Black Manta to prove himself for the other members of the Light. His test? Capture Blue Beetle for the Light’s mysterious partner. Aqualad gathers a team consisting of the Terror Twins, Icicle, and Tigress (Artemis in disguise) and confront Blue Beetle and Impulse. Impulse manages to steal Aqualad’s tracker before BB and Bart make their escape to Mount Justice. However, Aqualad has a backup tracker, and the first tracker has disabled security in the cave. Aqualad’s team strikes within the cave and manages to capture Blue Beetle, Impulse, and Beast Boy. Upon escaping, Aqualad orders Tigress to detonate the bomb which he’d left behind to secure their retreat. The bomb obliterates Mount Justice. Meanwhile, Mal tries to reconnect with Karen. After being ignored, Mal leaves in time to witness Mount Justice’s destruction. He manages to come to Nightwing and Superboy’s rescue. On the next day, Wally confronts Dick. The attack had been a ploy to receive further info from Aqualad, but Wally has his doubts. Wally believes that Aqualad has completely betrayed the team. Meanwhile, Aqualad is inducted into the Light and introduced to the partner.

And we still don’t get to see the partner. This is the episode I was hoping would follow the mid-season break. It continues the intrigue for the team. Aqualad is acting undercover, but has he gone in too deep? What can we expect in the final three episodes? The team has lost a lot of members, but the team is still fairly strong. Quite a few powerhouses like Superboy, Wonder Girl, and Miss Martian, and some great underdogs like Robin, Batgirl, and Bumblebee.

Honorable Mentions

Elementary – 1.02 “While You Were Sleeping” – Sherlock solves a murder involving a mysterious seated shooter and twin heiresses. Watson continues to encourage Sherlock’s rehabilitation while discovering new things about the enigma that is Sherlock.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – 1.02 “Turtle Temper”  – Raphael loses his temper while on stake out that results in the Turtles getting captured on video.

Next Week’s Most Anticipated

(Episode descriptions from tvguide.com)

Once Upon a Time – 2.02 “We Are Both” – Regina is determined to get her powers back; David keeps looking for Mary Margaret and Emma; and the seven dwarfs learn why it’s unwise to leave town. Meanwhile, in the fairy-tale world, bride-to-be Regina meets a man who promises her magic and freedom.

Arrow – 1.01 “Pilot” – Series Premiere – Oliver is rescued and creates the persona of Arrow, an expert archer determined to fight evil in his beloved city in the opener of a series about billionaire playboy Oliver Queen, who becomes a vigilante after being shipwrecked for five years on a remote island.

The League – 4.01 “Training Camp” – Season Premiere – In the fourth-season premiere, preparations are made for the arrival of Kevin and Jenny’s baby. Meanwhile, Taco scores an invite to the Dallas Cowboys’ training camp.

Young Justice – 2.10 “Before the Dawn” – Shocking secrets are uncovered during a mission by the team, Blue Beetle and Miss Martian.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – 1.04 “New Friend, Old Enemy” – (TV Guide description unavailable) The Turtles befriend a man with close ties to a man from Splinter’s past.

Well, that wraps it up for DVR Weekly. Leave a comment if you have any suggestions for shows that I should be watching and I’ll see if I can fit it in my watching schedule. I’ll see you next week at our regular DVR Time (Monday), same DVR channel.