User Reviews

I admit by this point in the journey I was growing a bit exhausted (especially after Owen's hawk transformation) though the way this episode deals with closure is one of the most touching moments I have seen in television in years. I admit: I laughed, I cried, I felt things that TV hasn't made me feel in a long time.

A good episode. Well-crafted, dynamic, unique, superb acting by Stone and Hill, but I've stopped caring about what's going to happen at this point. Things are starting to finally come together, but at the same time it's obvious that the plot was made overly complicated for complexity's sake. Things like a feeling computer and a doc with mommy issues doesn't really add to the core theme of the story or the bond/journey of the protaganists. And again the tone is manic, flipping from somber to silly in a single shot. Yet the craftsmanship of Fukunaga makes it watchable. The nods/influences of Kubrick are also great (this time to Dr. Strangelove and possibly The Shining). I'm going to stick it out to the last episode, but I'm thinking that by this point, I'm not going to really care how everything comes together/ends.

Maniac's "Utangatta" is a chaotic episode that has much going on and little that one could actually understand...yet it still is lots of fun. Both Emma Stone and Jonah Hill deliver excellent performances. One could be annoyed with Hill's accent, but he has some truly amazing lines. As I try to decipher the plot, I liked the spy angle with a sci-fi twist. Of course, Russia had to be involved. The episode reminded me of 2001: A Space Odyssey as we see who GRTA truly is and the race to shut her down. Like I said, this episode is filled with delicious chaos. Fukunaga may not have the super glue from the previous episode, but still managed to make the episode somewhat coherent. Fukunaga does a solid job wrapping up the main plot as we will focus on resolutions to end this series. As a side note, I liked how this episode tackled mental health and I was moved during the scenes where Annie interacts with Ellie and admits she has been lying to herself all along.

As with most recent television series, the climatic action occurs during this penultimate episode. There is a NATO summit (including Russia) where all countries assembled to discuss an alien invasion. Annie finds herself in a situation where she needs to be saved. Owen risks his life to save Annie. Annie finally confronts GRTA. Over at the lab, the Mantleray's finally learn how dangerous GRTA is and need to find a way to shut her down. Will Annie and Owen be able to survive and feel better about themselves?

Overall, definitely a really good episode despite everything moving really quickly. The show has a knack of providing some fun comedic moments. I liked the scene with Ernie the alien and his speech at the microphone. I was pleased with this penultimate effort and I am looking forward to see how this series wraps up.

My Grade: A-

Hope something in episode ten makes up for 8-9 which were just stinkers.