Murphy's Multiverse

Author: monarchwrites

  • Taking One Last Look Back at Marvel’s Netflix Era

    Taking One Last Look Back at Marvel’s Netflix Era

    It was 2013, Marvel had just recently finished wrapping up their first phase of films with the release of Avengers in 2012. Agents of Shield, Marvel’s first TV program set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, had just premiered. After the success of the Avengers team-up, Marvel was obviously looking to capitalize on the momentum by setting up new teams, on the big screen and on TV. With that, Netflix and Marvel announced a smorgasbord of new shows set within the MCU, starting with Daredevil and culminating in a Defenders team-up, similar to the strategy that made Avengers as big as it did.

    Now, all of these years later, the Netflix era is over, with all shows in their wheelhouse being canceled. The shows are leaving Netflix to take their place in Disney’s streaming services, and the characters are being integrated into the MCU proper after debates about their status in the canon. I want to take this time to take a look back on this era of the MCU, to appreciate what it brought us, and to theorize about where we go from here.

    When Daredevil was announced, I was 16 – a teenager already obsessed with Marvel after liking the characters when I was younger – but fell in love with them through the MCU’s first introduction in Iron Man when I was 11. When news came of that these series are M-rated, with blood and gore and more adult themes, you can guess how excited I was. The possibility of Marvel always having something going on. Different themes from action adventures, comedies to even horror seemed promising, especially with the atmosphere promised from the initial reveals and fanfare. We know now that this dream wouldn’t come to fruition until Disney+, and even then, new genres are still only being played with. The hype and possibilities were high over my head in 2013, creating the vision of a perfect MCU.

    Daredevil delivered on its promises. When it was released in 2015, I was a senior in High School. At the time, I was overhyped for the new shows and the anticipation was killing me. Finally, the show launches, and I’m there watching day one. Oh boy, did the show start slow for someone that was hyped as I was. However, after the second episode, I was hooked. Easily becoming my favorite TV show at the time, Daredevil was exactly what I wanted. Following one of my favorite characters, witnessing awesome combat with all the blood a teenager could want, and all set within the MCU. What more could a person ask for? The rest of the shows didn’t matter to me since I didn’t know the characters, Daredevil was what mattered to me, and not only did it deliver, it almost immediately was ordered for a second season. So, I was content.

    I was content until Jessica Jones released in late 2015 and showed me that Daredevil was just the tip of the iceberg. Without any knowledge of Jessica or her villain, it didn’t immediately click with the show as I did with Daredevil. I was, of course, going to give it a try. From the first episode, Jessica’s attitude and sarcasm gripped me. Being a bit of a sarcastic person myself – emphasis on a bit – and growing up with more of the same, I love characters that speak their mind. Not only did her character grip me, but the ominous Purple Man has stood firm in my top 10 villains of all time. The abilities of the character on top of the stellar performance by David Tennant is definitely a force to be reckoned with. However, aside from the two lead characters, Jessica Jones also introduced me to the incredible Luke Cage, and apparently, I wasn’t the only fan impressed with the character. Originally slated to be the last show to premiere before The Defenders, Marvel wanted to ride on the momentum of the new fan-favorite character being introduced in Jessica Jones and fast tracked production.

    Arriving in 2016, Luke Cage followed up the storyline established in Jessica Jones. At this point, I was addicted with Netflix’s Marvel properties during my time in college. After two absolutely steller seasons of Daredevil and the arrival of the Punisher into the fold, as well as a tremendously good season of Jessica Jones, Luke Cage had a lot to deliver. Arriving with positive reception, I look back at that time and remember the fans not welcoming the show with open arms like with the two previous entries. Likely due to Cage’s decline in the second half of the season, the show was great, I even skipped a lab class to binge it in my college library, but it was the first minor dip from Marvel and Netflix. The show also introduced Iron Fist, which fully lead to the decline.

    Iron Fist was constantly criticized and for good reason. The fighting choreography is lackluster at best, the writing was sloppy, and the entirety of the first season is a definite stain on Marvel’s pretty great track record. At this point only having negative reviews for Thor: The Dark World and The Incredible Hulk on the movie side of things and the lukewarm reception to Agents of Shield, Iron Fist definitely marked a critical point for Marvel TV. Lead by Scott Buck, the show ended with fans severely disappointed. I remember going into the show incredibly hyped after everything so far. Reviews started to hit the day before, but most of them were only for the first few episodes. So, I thought maybe it gets better. Even with some good characters, the show just did not deliver. Leading into The Defenders, this was definitely a bad look and a momentum killer going into the long promised team-up.

    The Defenders launched on my birthday in 2017. Even after Iron Fist, I remember being cautiously optimistic. Even if that show wasn’t great, this one was no longer in Scott Buck‘shands and has had time to develop. Alas, the show launched to mostly positive reactions, but suffered from pacing issues, a pretty lackluster story, and a crutch of once again using the Hand as villains. The show definitely could have delivered on those initial great seasons of TV that lead us there. It was said to be the least viewed show of the Netflix-Marvel shows, with a considerable drop in viewership. To me, this marked the downfall of the Netflix-Marvel era, even if we still got some great projects after.

    Following The Defenders, Marvel and Netflix attempted to capitalize on the success of the previous shows, without the major team-up this time. Daredevil got an incredible third season, largely considered to be one of the best seasons of Marvel TV to this day. Jessica Jones received two more seasons after an agonizingly long wait. Luke Cage and Iron Fist got another season each. Daredevil even received a spinoff in the form of two seasons of the gruesome series The Punisher. Even a few more spinoffs like Heroes for Hire were rumored. The Netflix shows looked to be getting back on track, and then in October 2018, the cancellations began.

    Shortly after its second season, which started to deliver a more quality experience compared to the first Iron Fist was cancelled by Netflix. Considering it was the worst reviewed show in the bunch, and rumors were flying of a possible Heroes for Hire spinoff, doom and gloom didn’t quite set in yet. Then, just a week later, Luke Cage was the second causality. Once again thanks to the Heroes for Hire rumors, fans felt like this could just be in anticipation of that show, I mean, both of those characters are in the team in the comics.

    Then came December 2018: Daredevil, the flagship show in Netflix’s Marvel arsenal, was cancelled despite a critically acclaimed and adored third season. At this point, we all knew the Netflix era was over. The Punisher and Jessica Jones both ended their final seasons and were also added to the cancellations. By February 2019, all of the Netflix Marvel shows were cancelled, finishing the era for good.

    Up until recently, you could watch the back catalog of these shows on their original home over at Netflix, but as the deal ends, Disney is regaining those rights. They are expected to remove the shows in March 2022 and move the shows to their international streaming services like Disney+, Star+, and Hulu. A definitive home is not yet known.

    While the Netflix Marvel era might be done, the characters they shaped and the stories they have built are not forgotten. From Matt Murdock appearing in Spider-Man: No Way Home to Wilson Fisk’s return in Hawkeye, it is clear that the story of these beloved characters may be just starting. The history will always be there for generations of new True Believers to adore, but their return may be some of my most anticipated moments in the MCU even with things like Secret Invasion coming up. I literally grew up with these characters as you can tell from my writing above, and I cannot wait for a new generation of Marvel fans, even if just a few years later, to discover these stories for themselves.

  • REVIEW: ‘How I Met Your Father’ Episode 7 – “Rivka Rebel”

    REVIEW: ‘How I Met Your Father’ Episode 7 – “Rivka Rebel”

    Episode 7 of How I Met Your Father takes a break from Sophie’s love life and focuses instead on development with the core cast. Considering the two previous episodes were easily the best of the season, and were heavily involved with her love life, it is interesting going into an episode not fully knowing if it is going to land on the same level as those which directly preceded it.

    The episode follows each character as they try to develop in problem areas. Sophie and Valentina are tasked with performing a photoshoot for the head photographer of Sophie’s dream job. Meanwhile, Charlie and Ellen take on adjustment to living in New York, as well as Sid and Jesse spending the time dealing with procrastination. The duo pairings are already starting to seem like patterns. So far the cast is really falling into a weird place where each person has a best friend of the group and the cast all get together every few episodes to establish that they are a cohesive group. This has been ongoing, but I didn’t really catch onto it until this episode.

    Every episode pairs up Valentina and Sophie, Charlie and Ellen, and Sid and Jesse. Sure, we see them all interact, but when it comes to the personal moments where only two characters are there, it gets a bit underwhelming. This is largely because those types of relationships are being developed continuously while there is still no big development in other areas. Valentina and Charlie are a couple, but only two episodes have involved their relationship for example. Jesse is obviously in love with Sophie at this point, but we don’t see him actually do much about it, whether it is jealousy, chasing her, or any other type of emotion. This weird disconnect is my new big complaint about the show, not that there are many complaints, but I do hope we see this corrected in the final three episodes, or if not, in season 2.

    While the pairings have me critical, the actual development between the characters did progress well. Jesse is starting to move on from the tragic ending to his last relationship. Sid is getting closer to marrying Hannah, with them agreeing on more and more. Sophie is finding herself and taking leaps for what she wants. Valentina is admitting to her true feelings about where she is in life. And Ellen and Charlie are getting more comfortable with each other. I do like how the characters are progressing. Sophie is obviously the most interesting due to her being the main character, but Valentina and Jesse are early standouts. Valentina is quickly breaking away from the free-willed and confident character we were introduced to and becoming a very interesting character with lots of real-world problems and reactions, such as lying about how glamorous her life is to not worry her friends. Jesse is also great because of his struggle moving on from his ex, especially since it left him a semi-famous internet sensation. The struggles are very 21st century, relating to the target audience as much as it can, but it feels real all the same, especially as a twenty-something like myself.

    While we have talked about my major complaint about this episode, I do have a second. As I have stated before, the show really has no time to waste in its short 10 episode season, especially now as we near the end. However, this episode seemed like a disconnect from the really big momentum they had coming into it. Due to this, the episode felt like filler, even if it did help develop some of the main cast. I think this largely stems from my first complaint of the pairings being more of the same, since it is starting to be smaller and smaller jumps in development, we as viewers don’t perceive the new changes as well, and therefore the episode falls into this weird place that it feels like a filler episode despite being a normal episode for a traditional sitcom. Filler is usually an episode that does little to progress the plot, such as the rhyming episode in How I Met Your Mother‘s final season. While they can be fun, they have to be used in appropriate places. This episode doesn’t fit the filler category because it did develop the plot, but it just didn’t land as well as the last two episodes since there were no real standout moments.

    How I Met Your Father has definitely improved a lot since its premiere just a short few weeks ago. While almost every episode has gotten progressively better, there have been two small dips so far, and sadly, episode 7 feels like one of them. With only three episodes left, I feel like there could have been a better balance of time in this one, but hopefully, this means a killer winddown. I wouldn’t be surprised to see next week’s episode as another one like this, but that should hint at an amazing final two-episode performance. Let’s just hope I’m right and we don’t see a significant slide.

  • REVIEW: ‘How I Met Your Father’ Episode 6 – “Stacey”

    REVIEW: ‘How I Met Your Father’ Episode 6 – “Stacey”

    Episode 5 of How I Met Your Father really upped the emotions and was a standout episode for the season. As a result, episode 6 had a lot to live up to in order to keep the show on a high. From an amazing emotional performance last episode to humor massively improving from episodes 1 and 2, I had hopes that the show would keep up and be able to meet that kind of quality for the entire second half of the season. Did Episode 6 continue on the great path?

    “Stacey”, the episode title, refers to Sophie’s current love interest’s ex-girlfriend because all sit-coms need that episode in the beginnings of a new relationship. To avoid spoilers, the man in question on this episode will not be named. He and Sophie are invited by Sid and his fiancee to a weekend out. Not having previously slept together, obviously, tensions were a little high.

    The episode did a really good job of focusing on the relationship aspect of the show. I have already said how well they have been developing the characters and relationships thus far; the show really dug into that this episode with each of the main cast members. From Sid and his fiancee dealing with their own problems, to Sophie and her current love interest dealing with some jealousy with the ex-girlfriend, and the rest of the cast having a dinner party, which ends up revealing many secrets about their relationships as well, it was all handled competently.

    As previously discussed, the emotional moments of the original show and how they were starting to come up on the new show as well matter. After last week’s episode, I thought they would surely save episodes like that for the end of the season, as most shows do. However, with the season only being 10 episodes long, I also felt they would be wasteful if they followed that since there really isn’t time for filler episodes that sitcoms are known for. Luckily, they did not nearly do what I expected, at least so far.

    If episode 5 was a standout memorable moment, episode 6 was a defining one. Sophie not only has an absolutely charming end to the episode when all loose ends are tied, but she also has a surprising moment with one of the other characters on the show (who I suspect is the true father). One moment that further develops the current relationship, and one that hints at other possibilities is one of the biggest things I loved from How I Met Your Mother, comes to How I Met Your Father and I am all for it. Always keeping viewers on their toes about the mystery of the aforementioned father is what the show truly needs to shine and keep viewers engaged and, so far, they have absolutely killed it. With one character currently winning Sophie’s attention, one that makes sense on a lot of levels, again, no spoilers, and one that has openly denied very unconvincingly that he is in love with her, there are so many possibilities.

    Humor also stayed on a high note in this episode. Multiple character moments had me giggling and some added environmental humor that,while a little corny, also managed to get a laugh out of me in the end. Add in a whole lot of banter from the cast and the show really feels like it is getting in a grove. Great sitcoms are a mix of good humor, memorable characters, and relationship development. How I Met Your Father already had the relationship development down; now, the memorable characters are getting developed perfectly. While some moments are still corny, or definitely will not age well, they are starting to work out those kinks, which makes me really excited for how the recently announced season 2 will help in that area even more.

    The second half of the season is really getting How I Met Your Father on a hot streak. With better humor, keeping up with the tremendous characters, and delivering absolutely stellar moments, the problems of the first two episodes seem so far away now, likely even to be more forgivable on a second watch-through, similar to season 1 of How I Met Your Mother. I truly hope the show stays on this path, I am absolutely loving how charming and emotional it is becoming, and with season 2 confirmed, I cannot wait to see what else this cast and crew are able to deliver with feedback in hand. The foundation is set for success on this show’s journey to be a great successor to the phenomenal original, maybe even being able to fix some of the original’s complaints, such as the often criticized final season. With only a few episodes left this season, I’m excited about where things are going. I just hope they can deliver on a season finale worthy of the twists and turns of How I Met Your Mother’s.

  • ‘South Park’ Set to Arrive to Paramount+ in 2025

    ‘South Park’ Set to Arrive to Paramount+ in 2025

    After a $500 million deal for the exclusive streaming right to the South Park back catalog for HBOMax, Paramount is bringing South Park to their own streaming service Paramount+. The deal is set to end in 2025, and that will mark the end of South Park on HBO and the beginning of their likely new permanent home.

    Along with the news, we also have word that South Park will also air two events every year for the next six years, similar to their Post-Covid projects. Likely due to the success of their Coronavirus event. Paramount+ will also stream new episodes of the show before anyone else starting in 2024. The streaming service is gearing up to take on the big hitters like Disney and HBO in the streaming wars, and becoming the home of South Park will surely help them in that area.

    Source: Twitter

  • New ‘Beavis and Butt-head’ Revival Series Heading to Paramount+, Movie to Arrive this July

    New ‘Beavis and Butt-head’ Revival Series Heading to Paramount+, Movie to Arrive this July

    Previously announced Beavis and Butt-Head renewal is headed to Paramount+. The show was originally supposed to air on Comedy Central, but as the streaming wars ramp up, it looks like Paramount is choosing to keep it as an exclusive to subscribers. The show is currently ordered for a 9 episode return. Along with the show, a new movie is in the works and will debut this July. The new episodes are set to follow, although an exact release date is still unknown.

    The return of the classic franchise is definitely going to put a smile on a generation’s face. It’s cute that the logo still includes MTV. The design we’ve seen some time ago, but it’s still jarring to see aged-up versions of these iconic characters. It’ll be interesting to see just how meta the project might end up being, especially with how South Park approached it with its Post-Covid films.

    Source: Twitter

  • ‘Teen Wolf’ Movie and Spinoff Series in Development

    ‘Teen Wolf’ Movie and Spinoff Series in Development

    Today we got word that a Teen Wolf movie is in the works for Paramount+. The movie will have multiple returning cast members including Tyler Posey and Holland Roland. Along with the movie announcement, we also got a quick word that the movie will lead into an original show titled Wolf Pack that will also stream on Paramount+.

    The original series started back in 2011 and is based on a film from 1985 with the same name. Posey took on the role of the titular character and the series ran for six whole seasons. The teen drama was met with a lot of praise at the time and released just around the whole supernatural teenage angst era that was kicked off with Twilight. It’ll be interesting to see how Wolf Pack tackles the franchise and even reinvents it for a new generation.

    Source: Entertainment Weekly

  • Hulu Renews ‘How I Met Your Father’ for a Bigger Season 2

    Hulu Renews ‘How I Met Your Father’ for a Bigger Season 2

    Good news has arrived, as How I Met Your Father is getting a second season on Hulu. The show received mixed reviews on the first 4 episodes, but things have been looking good so far. The newest episodes were great, and Hulu must be happy with the performance thus far to renew it and even add a little extra.

    The second season of the show will be double the episode count of the first, moving up from 10 episodes to 20. Considering the relationship-building needed for a show like this, much less for a successor to How I Met Your Mother, I’m glad the second season is going to get a bit more time to spend with this cast. The character development in the show has been great so far, so a doubled episode count should really help the show.

    How I Met Your Father is a standalone sequel to the acclaimed How I Met Your Mother. The show follows Hilary Duff’s Sophie as she explains the tale to her son of how she came to meet his father and the subsequent love story that follows. Twisting key plot lines and troupes of the original, How I Met Your Father does a lovely job at following the original in new ways. You can catch it on Tuesdays on Hulu.

    Source: Deadline

  • REVIEW: ‘How I Met Your Father’ Episode 5 – ”The Good Mom”

    REVIEW: ‘How I Met Your Father’ Episode 5 – ”The Good Mom”

    How I Met Your Father seems to be off to a great start. Each episode so far has been better and better, aside from episode 4 being a bit of a slide in quality. Episode 5, entitled “The Good Mom”, is exactly as you’d expect: about Sophie’s mom. Obviously How I Met Your Mother explored similar ”parent” episodes, like Ted learning of his mom and dad’s divorce and the beginnings of their relationship basically being a mirror to that of Ted and Robin’s. I do feel that just like before, How I Met Your Father is seemingly borrowing tropes and plots from the original, but adding new spins to make them their own. Episode 5 is a perfect example of this.

    While the episode had antics from the rest of the cast, it was obviously focused on Sophie and her relationship with her mom. What started out as what seemed like a traditional happy mother-daughter relationship developed further and further as the episode progressed. As Sophie learns more about her mom, she starts to think back on moments of their life, ultimately getting a clearer picture of what was going on when she was young. The relationship, although only being developed over one episode, truly felt like one of the most developed relationships in the show so far. I hope to see the mother again, as the history there is very interesting to Sophie’s development. I’m glad the other characters had a bit of a light story to the episode, with most of the cast trying to get over their fears, and Valentina being attached to Sophie for the duration of the episode, it really gave Sophie and her mom time to shine.

    I always think back to How I Met Your Mother, not for the humor, although funny, but for the emotional moments that truly made the show great. The ones that shook a character to their core. Spoilers for How I Met Your Mother, but Barney and Robin getting engaged, Ted reuniting with Victora, the countdown to Marshall’s dad dying. Those are the moment that made the show stand out. This episode was one of those moments for How I Met Your Father. The episode developed Sophie’s character and made her finally do something for herself, as we learned was hard to do for her when it involved her mom. I absolutely loved the moment she took that leap, and as a result, the moment she shared with Drew at the end. I walked away from the episode with the same smile and reaction as I have had with those favorite episodes of mine from the original show, and that was the moment that this evolved for me from a sitcom recapturing the feel and tone from How I Met Your Mother, to a proper successor that deserves the fan’s attention.

    Although having a rough start, I truly feel audiences should give the show another chance at this point if they have dropped off. This episode has me excited for this story to unfold more and more. If they can have a great episode like this in the first half of season 1, and so quickly developing the two characters involved in this moment with Sophie, I can only imagine what is in store for us as more relationships evolve, grow, end, and deepen. Sophie’s love story seems great, although it is early, she is a very easy character to cheer for, similar to how Ted immediately grasped me. Her ability to build with the rest of the cast seamlessly, and have deep and impactful relationships with them, has me clapping for the writers, as well as Hillary Duff for her performance. Although there have been some questionable acting in the show so far, I do find Sophie’s character charming and ultimately a great showing.

    I am definitely excited for the future of the show, one good episode is all it takes for a show to start to grow, and I feel like this can be that episode for the show. I hope they can capitalize on that feeling for the second half of the season. There are still so many plot threads currently dangling in front of us with no resolution. I cannot wait for them to be explored. The show is shaping up to be an early favorite of mine for 2022, and if it can keep up with episodes like this, maybe it might stay in my favorites.

  • ‘That 90’s Show’ Adds Six New Cast Members

    ‘That 90’s Show’ Adds Six New Cast Members

    That 90s Show, a Netflix spinoff to the ever-popular That 70’s Show, has added more cast members on top of the previously announced returns of some cast members from the original.

    Debra Jo Rupp and Kurtwood Smith were previously announced to return as their respective characters of Kitty and Red Foreman, parents to Eric Foreman, the frontman for That 70’s Show.

    Alongside the returning cast members, we also have word that Callie Haverda (Shut-Eye), Ashley Aufderheide (Emergence), Mace Coronel (Pocket), Maxwell Ace Donovan (Gabby Duran & The Unsittables), Reyn Doi (The Boss Baby: Family Reunion), and Sam Morelos will be joining the cast as series regulars. This group of kids will likely be the main friend group, similar to the one comprised of Eric and his closest friends.

    The show is set to follow Leia Foreman, who is the daughter of Eric and Donna from the original, as she visits her grandparents over the summer. Hopefully, this means original cast members other than Red and Kitty are able to appear, especially the aforementioned main character and his high school sweetheart, Eric, and Donna. The show will be released on Netflix and is set to start production soon.

    Source: Variety

  • REVIEW: ‘How I Met Your Father’ Episode 4 – “Dirrty Thirty”

    REVIEW: ‘How I Met Your Father’ Episode 4 – “Dirrty Thirty”

    Last week, we saw How I Met Your Father start to feel like a true successor to How I Met Your Mother. Between perfect relationship building, good comedic moments, and a whole lot of charm, it seemed as though the show was starting to hit a stride. Can that continue through the entirety of season one? Or did episode four dig a ditch?

    Episode 4 started off with Sophie finally beginning to take a partner seriously, so much so that the majority of the episode is spent trying to impress the man. This isn’t a novel concept, as you may recall, this type of thing is right out of the Mosby playbook. In How I Met Your Mother, a young Ted spends an entire episode planning multiple parties over a weekend to try and impress a newly found crush, Robin. Luckily, this similarity stops there. Once again, How I Met Your Father does an excellent job of mirroring parts of How I Met Your Mother without feeling like a cheap copycat, rehashing old ideas. Instead, the show decides to do things a little differently. Sophie was already having a party, her birthday party, in fact. Instead of randomly trying to make her suitor find her more spontaneous, Sophie is aiming to seem more mature to match the personality of her date. She spends time disguising her apartment, looking to match both the “trashy rager,” as she recalls, and the more mature tone she wants in order to impress the man. 

    The above seems like a great way to follow the tone of the original, but other parts of the episode fall flat. There are moments sure to take viewers out of the episode, as it loses its engaging tone with the addition of a random scene, forcing it to feel more like a generic sitcom than the charming show its predecessor was. There were parts of episodes one and two that had a similar feeling, but it seemed like most of the early sitcom tropes were starting to feel fixed. Yet, despite its flaws, the latest episode still feels stronger than the earlier episodes. It’s just a shame the show seems unclear of the tone it wants to take on, especially as the series seemed to finally be hitting its stride.

    Luckily, while the weird generic sitcom vibe was definitely there, the laugh track issues still seem to be gone. As initially expected, it appears the premiere episode may have been trying a little too hard to land its humor. Thankfully, though, the latter two episodes definitely used the laugh track more appropriately.

    Luckily, the relationship-building and supporting cast still feel great. The episode follows Valentina and Charlie as they continue to try and work out their relationship, as well as Jesse and Ellen as they try and form their sibling bond. Unfortunately, Sid seems to have been put on the sideline for this episode; while it makes sense, given his storyline, it’s an unfortunate turn of events.

    Valentina and Charlie remain an almost inverse of Marshall and Lily, a couple trying to make it, but instead of being the perfect couple in a more traditional sense, their way of life is a little more “modern,” if you will. Their chemistry is starting to show through the one-tone character that is Charlie. He seems to be starting to settle into his new lifestyle a little more, previously being a rich and rather condescending character that was hard to like. Valentina and Charlie seem to be starting to round each other out, which seems like it could do wonders for their characters.

    While Episode 4 feels like a step back from Episode 3, it appears to be a small step back. The show retains its charm while continually making the characters and their relationships very easy to love. Hopefully, the next 6 episodes will manage to capture the charm and continue to improve, potentially leading to a phenomenal ending that will want us begging for more like How I Met Your Mother did in its first season. Considering there are three possible suitors set up for immediate relationships with Sophie, and any of them can come up at any moment, it seems likely the end of season 1 is aiming to get there. It’s obviously too early to tell for sure, but who knows, one might happen before we say goodbye to Sophie and her gang for the season.