Paul Levinson's Infinite Regress

reviewing 3 Body Problem; American Rust; Bosch: Legacy; Citadel; Curb Your Enthusiasm; Fauda; For All Mankind; Foundation; Hijack; House of the Dragon; Luther; Outer Range; Outlander; Reacher; Severance; Silo; Slow Horses; Star Trek: Strange New Worlds; Surface; The: Ark, Diplomat, Last of Us, Lazarus Project, Orville, Way Home; Tokyo Vice; True Detective; You +books, films, music, podcasts, politics

George Santayana had irrational faith in reason - I have irrational faith in TV.

Sunday, October 6, 2019

The Affair 5.7: On Montauk, Now and Later

And tonight's episode of the The Affair - 5.7 - was the best Noah segment, so far. He's back in Montauk, with Whitney to help her prepare for her wedding at her grandparent's house. But the circumstances lead to a crucial conversation between the two, culminating with her asking him why he left the family that he loved and loved him. His answer: I don't know.

By the way, Julia Goldani Telles, who plays Whitney, has really come into her own as an actress. The scenes between her and Dominic West, one of the best actors around, were really top notch. My guess is she'll do great in third season of The Girlfriend Experience, for which she's already been announced.

Back to Noah: a new plot turn was introduced. His former publicist is saying he made unwanted advances towards her. If recollection serves, I'm pretty sure he didn't. Will be good drama, though - excruciating for Noah - when all of that plays out in the episodes ahead.

As for the second segment - a half-hour of Joanie - for once I didn't like that too much. It was a crucial interlude. She confronts Ben. It was not only unsatisfying to see how he got the better of her, but it was not well developed in the narrative. She shouldn't have just gone over to confront him, with no real, apparent plan. But excellent acting by Tony Plana - who did well on Mayans MC last year - in that important role of Ben.

And so The Affair continues on. It still has some punches. I'm still sad to see it end. But not as sad as the characters, none of whom ever seem to be able to catch a break.

See also The Affair 5.1: Death, Nobility, and Science Fiction ... The Affair 5.2: Tears and Floods ... The Affair 5.3: The Raya App ... The Affair 5.4: 2053 ... The Affair 5.5: No One Happy ... The Affair 5.6: Best Episode of the Season So Far - Finally, About Joanie