As the celebration of our BUILD theme continues, today’s Friday Five focuses on five television shows that gave us a great examples of how what we build with our own hands can be the groundwork of great storytelling…
[WARNING! Some spoilers for these shows follow… naturally, we encourage you to look away if you haven’t seen them and go start watching immediately.]
(Syfy)
Battlestar Galactica, “Flight of the Phoenix”
This season two BSG episode is jam packed with plot: The main crisis is a dormant Cylon virus that is discovered on the ship, forcing Adama and crew to trust toaster prisoner Sharon Valerii to help them disable it. But the heart and soul of the episode is Chief Tyrol bringing first his deck crew, then a number of volunteers together – Starbuck, Dualla and Helo among them – to build a totally badass, DRADIS-invisible stealth Viper out of spare parts. The passion project gives Galactica’s crew exactly the dose of hope and morale that it needs, and the dedication ceremony at the end of the episode has one last, emotional grace note for President Roslin (whose cancer is getting worse at this stage in the show). Won’t say what that is! Just watch it.
Currently streaming: Hulu
(NBC)
Community, “Pillows and Blankets”
Let’s be honest, there is more than one Community episode with high-concept DIY elements to it. But arguably the best of them all is this season three episode that – finally! – brings pillow forts and Ken Burns-style documentaries together. For reasons unknown (until the end) everyone at Greendale Community College has built a giant fort that quickly splinters into two factions: Abed’s Pillowtown, and Troy’s Blanketsburg. “Troy and Abed cre-ate connnnn-flict!” Britta is shooting battle photos, Pierce is decked out like a Michelin Man made of pillows, and Chang is recruiting pre-teen soldiers (the “Changlorious Bastards”). War is hell, yo. Especially when it culminates in a huge pillow fight in the cafeteria, next to the Subway. (Thanks to Wes Citti for suggesting this one!)
Currently streaming: Hulu
(Fox)
Fringe, “Peter”
At the end of season one of Fringe the show’s central mythology is revealed, hinging on multiple universes existing parallel to one another. By season two, we discover that Peter Bishop has in fact been from an alt-verse all along; his counterpart in our universe died as a child. “Peter” is the episode that finally reveals the 1985 backstory: scientific genius Walter Bishop, desperate for a cure for his son, adapted his window to view the alt-verse into a portal so he could take their advanced medicine and save Peter. Needless to say, things got out of control very quickly. The episode, however, is an emotional masterpiece and a nifty example of a build that goes on to inform the entire arc of a show moving forward. (Also, those Eighties credits – so good!)
Currently streaming: Nowhere with subscription right now, sadly. But the usual suspects (Amazon, Google Play, Apple) have season passes.
(Channel 4)
Spaced, “Mettle”
Every episode of Spaced – the brilliant sitcom from Simon Pegg and Edgar Wright (plus the amazing Jessica Hynes) that predates their Cornetto Trilogy – is full of pop culture references. “Mettle” from season two nods toward Fight Club and One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, to name a few. At the front lines of the action, though, is the “Battlebots”-inspired underground smackdown that Tim and Mike enlist in with their homemade destructo-robot, Private Iron. Oh, but that Robocop inspired opening is so choice. (“I think we should lose the axe.”… “I like the axe.”… “I like my face!“… “I like your face.”… “Let’s keep the axe.”)
Currently streaming: Hulu
(ABC)
Every Episode of MacGyver Ever
Props to Eddie Espinoza on Loot Crate’s marketing team who suggested the Mythbusters episode where they replicate MacGyver gadgets for this round-up. But then it occurred to us: Why not go directly to the source? For four glorious seasons in the 80s, Richard Dean Anderson’s mulleted secret agent managed each week to foil the forces of evil with his keen understanding of science an the ability to build just about anything with whatever was lying around. Don’t believe us? Check out this wiki’s exhaustive list of every device ol’ Angus built in every episode. (Personal favorite: episode 1×15, a “hypnotizing machine” made out of a mirror and a spiral-painted ashtray. What the what, now?!)
Currently streaming: Nowhere at all, which would surely annoy Selma and Patty. But it’s available on DVD!
