Plot Synopsis:
You know, normally I'd be happy to write up a nice little synopsis in my own words, but between my Lenten activities and the extra time I'm spending at work this week while my director is away, I just don't have the energy or the motivation - not for an episode as pointless as this one.
If you really want to know the specifics, the Lurker's Guide has the blow-by-blow here.
Overall: 4.7
Did I mention this episode is pointless? Heavy use of the fast-forward button is recommended.
Writing: 3.0
I'm not a sports enthusiast - but I'm perfectly capable of being pulled into a sports-related plot. I loved Miracle, Rudy, and The Blind Side - and as you all know, I am currently mad for Friday Night Lights. So the fact that the main plot is centered on an alien version of Ultimate Fighting is not precisely what bothers me about TKO. What bothers me is DiTillio's failure to convince me that I should care who wins. Walker Smith, the guest character DiTillio brings in to fight in the Mutai, is a character we've never seen before (and never will see again), and nothing about Smith's personality truly holds my interest.
I also find it highly dubious that station officials would allow something like the Mutai - which, according to Garibaldi, has claimed more than one life - to continue long term.
The only reason this script earns any points at all is that Ivanova's struggle to forgive her father and come to terms with his death actually is worth your time. Ivanova's father, despite having shuffled off this mortal coil, comes through as very much a unique and vital figure.
Acting: 6.0
I feel indifferent about everyone here - everyone, that is, except Claudia Christian, who does a fine-to-excellent job in every scene she is in. In my opinion, the true highlight of Christian's performance in this episode is not her final breakdown - although that's pretty good in itself - but an earlier scene in which Ivanova tells her assembled friends about the time her father verbally pwned a neo-Communist writer. Christian's rendering of this story is funny, human, and very touching.
Message: 5.0
I think the Jewish traditions surrounding death and mourning are beautiful and psychologically wise; thus, I really appreciate their inclusion in Ivanova's subplot. Beyond that, though - meh.
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