Reviews
[TV Review] “iZombie” Season 2 Finale: ‘Dead Beat/Salivation Army’
Well that was a lot to take in, wasn’t it? iZombie really knocked it out of the park in last night’s 2-hour season finale. We lost some supporting characters (RIP Chief, Drake, Rita and Vaughn), revelations were made (Clive finally found out about zombies) and a whole new world was opened up to us (a zombie utopia run by a military contractor who now owns Max Rager). “Dead Beat” and “Salivation Army” were filled with enough fantastic moments to overcome their minor shortcomings, and make for one of the best season finales the CW has ever aired. If you weren’t already excited for season 3, this episode would push you over the edge.
“DEAD BEAT”
“Dead Beat” was arguably the stronger of the two episodes as it centered on Major’s incarceration after his arrest at Dale’s hands at the end of last week’s episode. Screenwriter John Enbom infused the episode with so much suspense that it was pretty hard to handle. The best example of this is Major’s initial release from prison as he he walking down the steps with Janko behind him and Ravi with a brain smoothie just out of reach. That crushing moment when Clive arrests him again was such a soul-crushing moment. The entire sequence was masterfully directed by John Kretchmer.
Everything came back to bite Major in the ass in these episodes. From his massacre at the Meat Cute in last season’s finale to all of the “killings” at the hands of the Chaos Killer. The entire episode was a waiting game to see if he would turn while in prison and start a zombie outbreak. Little did we know that the outbreak would eventually happen. Major just wouldn’t be the cause of it.
One great thing we got out of Major’s incarceration was a delightful guest appearance by Rob Thomas staple Ken Marino (Veronica Mars, Party Down) as his defense attorney Brant Stone, appointed by Vaughn du Clark himself, no less. Stone was essentially a replica of his Veronica Mars character Vinnie Van Lowe, but it was still a treat to watch, especially for fans of that series.
We can’t discuss “Dead Beat” without talking about the major plot development that occurred: Liv finally (finally!) told Clive that she and Major were zombies! It’s a moment that has been a long time coming and opens up a whole new world of story opportunities for Clive next season as he deals with the repercussions of that knowledge and his betrayal of Dale since he ruined her case against Major. Clive has frequently been a strong supporting character, but his lack of zombie knowledge prevented him from ever truly connecting with the main group. Here’s hoping next season will remedy that problem.
Both episodes brought Vaughn front and center as the main villain of the season (Mr. Boss didn’t really have much to do this year, did he?) as he sent Janko after Liv and Major once Major was released. Ravi got to show off some mad skills as he killed Janko in self defense. “Dead Beat” was an outstanding episode of iZombie that moved the plot forward in ways you wouldn’t have imagined possible. That was nothing compared to….
“SALIVATION ARMY”
While Clive’s revelation was the major set piece of “Dead Beat,” “Salivation Army” focused on the hostile takeover of Vaughn’s prison-themed party (White people….) by a horde of ravenous zombies. First we had to deal with some issues with Mr. Boss.
Blaine has been one of iZombie’s most valuable assets, with David Anders’ performance a true highlight of the series. Blaine’s amnesia has allowed him to play a different side of the character, but it also makes him significantly less interesting. The entire B plot with Mr. Boss’ henchmen kidnapping Peyton seemed a little out of place in an episode where Vaughn was clearly being set up as the Big Bad. Even the conclusion of that plot leaved a little to be desired, with Ravi walking in on Blaine hugging Peyton after he murdered the henchmen. The whole thing felt like an afterthought when compared to the A plot, but it’s still gave us plenty of Ravi and Peyton which is never a bad thing.
The big set piece of the episode was the zombie outbreak at Vaughn’s party (featuring musical guest Rob Thomas!). This party provided plenty of visual gags with the waiters dressed up as policemen before shit hit the fan. Clive showed up to help Liv and Major and we got a taste of our new team setup with their defense against the zombie hordes. While it was pretty clear that Clive was never going to become a zombie, the reveal of Vivian the military contractor as their savior and zombie leader(!) was a huge surprise. It’s not clear what she has in store for Liv and the gang, but a zombie paradise sounds too good to be true. Still, the last scene of her eating Rob Thomas’ brain while her soldiers sang Matchbox 20’s “Unwell” was a rather nice touch.
We lost a lot of people in this episode. First it was Chief, then poor Drake. I admit that I didn’t think Drake would have gone out the way he did. It was ballsy of iZombie to actually have him become a Romero (love that term) after his self-sacrifice, but to have Liv kill him to save Clive was an even ballsier move. Drake didn’t make as much of an impression as Lowell did last season, but his death will undoubtedly have sever ramifications for Liv next season. Then there’s Rita. Poor, poor Rita. While her end was poetic (her last action was eating her father’s brains), it’s lamentable that she wasn’t given a chance to be a part of the main cast (I’m a sucker for villains to decide to side with the heroes), but c’est la vie. Vaughn, on the other hand, got exactly what he deserved. Good riddance.
“Dead Beat” and “Salivation Army” were two stellar episodes of iZombie that made for an incredibly exciting and suspenseful season finale. It sets up what could be a potentially great Season 3, with new character dynamics and a clean slate of supporting characters. With these episodes, iZombie has emerged as one of The CW’s greatest series.
Random Notes:
- Chapter Titles of the Week (Dead Bait): Felonius Hunk; Bros Before Po Po’s; The Chaos Spiller; Freezer Burned; Tickets to the Gun Show; Brain Candy; At Death’s Door
- Chapter Titles of the Week (Salivation Army): Jankos Rancheros; Other Pluckers; Alive and Tricking; Three’s Company, Boo; Stairway to Hell; Emotional Rescue; Drake-Ing Up is Hard to Do
- Brain Recipes of the Week: First is a Straight Brain. It’s finger lickin’ good! Also, Chocolate Covered Brain Nougat and Schmear for a Bagel!
- “Brains, brains the magical food. The more you eat, the less you brood.”
- How funny was it watching Ravi and Major use the video game cover to discuss the location of the frozen bodies?
- “Quid pro quo Bernice. It’s from The Silence of the Lambs” – Ken Marino needs to be in more things.
- “You’re doing all this for me? Yet you couldn’t hold an elevator door open for three seconds?” – RIP Rita/Gilda. You will be missed.
- “We should have taken the damn hand.”
- The drink specials at the party: Cellblock Mango and Convicted Melon
- So many Rob Thomas jokes tonight:
- “You didn’t tell me the dude from Matchbox Twenty was gonna be here. I might have come.”
- “Poor Rob Thomas.” “This is how a skull breaks.”
- One hundred dead employees! One dead Rob Thomas! This just looks bad!
- A massive zombie outbreak means never having to say you’re sorry.”
- “We’re all on the same team here. We all hate my dad. We’ve all seen Major naked.” “I haven’t seen….” – God Bless you, Clive.
- “Major Lilywhite: Personal Trainer.”
- “Heeeeeeere’s Major!”
- Thank you everyone for reading my reviews for iZombie this season! I’m not sure if I’ll be covering the show next season, but feel free to follow me on Twitter for my random thoughts on all things movies and television.
Writer Adam Rockoff reteams with director David DeCoteau on a new Lifetime thriller that bears a striking resemblance to this month’s earlier title, Million Dollar Lethal Listing.
In Fatal Fixer Upper, Vivian (Jasmine Aivaliotis) and Ryan (Philip McElroy) are a young married couple preparing to purchase their dream home. Just like in Million Dollar Lethal Listing, the deal is too good to be true: the house is wildly underpriced, the owner is looking for a quick sale, and they’re asked to make a hefty cash deposit.
Unlike the former title, though, there’s no mystery about who the villain is in Fatal Fixer Upper. The film opens with a classic Lifetime cold open that immediately establishes that there is a bad man keeping an eye on things. His identity is quickly revealed as Josh Thomas (Duke Van Patten), the home’s original owner and the person spying on Vivian when she checks out the property with her father, Roger Fields (an underused Dorian Gregory).
Alas there’s no room for subtlety in Van Patten’s performance as he immediately goes from spying on Vivian to snapping at realtor Sandy (Eliza Roberts) and neighbour Jill (Grisselle Escotto). Considering how easily he flies off the handle, it’s a surprise that Josh stays calm long enough to ingratiate himself into Vivian and Ryan’s lives by doing repairs around the house.
Because Josh is revealed as the villain early on, Fatal Fixer Upper is an exercise in patience. The audience is always one to two steps ahead of Vivian and Ryan, which requires the screenplay, co-written with Jeffrey Schenck and Peter Sullivan, to find entertaining ways to fill the time until the characters catch up in the last act.
Unfortunately the film relies too heavily on clichéd characters and formulaic developments. Naturally there’s a concerned therapist, Dr. Shaw (Diane Robin), who questions if Josh is taking his meds. There’s also Ryan’s cousin, Casey (Randy Jay Burrell), a police officer-turned-PI who investigates Josh after the homeowner explodes at a BBQ in front of everyone. And you know that Sandy’s in danger the moment she confirms to Vivian that Josh lied about where he’s living (sidebar: the film treats this as a reveal, but anyone who has ever seen a horror film will immediately call it).
The fact that danger and injury befalls anyone who questions or gets in Josh’s way is inevitable, though the way DeCoteau shoots action leaves something to be desired. Characters tend to die easily in Lifetime films, and Fatal Fixer Upper is no different: one person is briefly strangled before they’re dragged off screen and another is struck in the back of the head. Considering a third act hit and run looks far worse, but the victim barely uses crutches a day later, the impact of violence in the film feels wildly inconsistent.
Another Lifetime trait is the presence of ineffectual police officers. Here the role is played by Detective Jones (Rachel Wong) who does believes the couple about Josh’s increasingly unhinged behaviour, but doesn’t assign a police guard outside their home until after dark (perhaps she believes Josh is a vampire?).
While Fatal Fixer Upper rarely surprises, there are a few notable moments of inspiration. Like Million Dollar Lethal Listing before it, this Lifetime film’s secret strength is interrogating the integrity of the central couple’s marriage. As the film progresses, it’s revealed that Vivian and Ryan aren’t as solid as they initially appeared to be, and their doubts about the other help to sustain the film until its violent climax.
In terms of performances, Aivaliotis is a sympathetic lead with a decent amount of agency. It’s nice that she refuses to take crap from Ryan when he questions her about Josh’s continued presence around the house. McElroy is likewise solid as the suspicious husband, though Ryan makes some questionable decisions in the finale that seem more motivated by plot than by character.
That leaves Van Patten, who has arguably the trickiest role. He’s best when Josh is awkwardly trying to flirt with Vivian, even going so far as to initiate a rom-com moment when he’s sprayed by water and has to change shirts in front of her. Unfortunately when Josh loses his cool, Van Patten always plays him at a 10, so there’s no range or escalation. The performance needed to be dialed back to give it levels.
Fatal Fixer Upper‘s other fatal quality is that there are simply too many characters. Jill and her husband exist solely to offer vague exposition at convenient moments, but because they’re new parents, they’re equipped with plot armour.
Then there’s Josh’s ex-wife, Michelle (Savoy Bailey), who only returns after the cold open to diagnose Josh with a ridiculously laughable (and highly fabricated) disease that “explains” his behaviour. Fatal Fixer Upper has its share of deaths, but there are a few too many red shirts wandering around by the time the credits roll whose deaths might have helped to make the film more memorable.
Overall, this is pretty standard Lifetime fare. Fans of DeCoteau and Rockoff’s previous collaborations will undoubtedly appreciate it, but for the uninitiated, Fatal Fixer Upper is solidly mid-tier.
Fatal Fixer Upper premieres on Lifetime Thursday, April 25 at 8/7c.
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