Lacking middle ground - the highs and lows of NCIS:LA

One of things I have been written to some extent here when it comes to NCIS:LA is its extremes in highs and lows. Both how incredibly good the series is and also, how bad it can sometimes. One of the reasons I write more NCIS:LA than other series is because these extreme fascinate me. Unlike the other series I cover here, NCIS:LA completely lacks a middle ground. It is either absolutely wonderful or terrible (at least considering the high standards it sets with its good episodes). NCIS:LA is in many ways much better than most shows on TV and it has a lot of great things about it, that's why is disappointing when it does not deliver.

When NCIS:LA is bad, it gets pretty terrible. It seems to me that this generally happens when the show becomes too ambitious and there is too much going on. When NCIS:LA amps up on steroids , is generally when thins go awry. The humor turns way off, the characters become stiff in their interactions and general demeanor, the level of violence is increased to a ridiculous level and the story lines become far too unrealistic. There is also ridiculous reliance on stereotypes and the writing is not good. When such episodes come, I don't like watching them and therefore I make a point of avoiding them. There are some episodes of NCIS:LA that I have only seen once because I disliked them so much.

Those episodes include:
Pretty much all of season 1
2x14 'Lockup' - that episode has never sat right with me - the level of violence is far too much
2x19 'Enemy within' - The foreign policy in that episode is quite simply way off and I find it disrespectful towards Latin countries and enforcing the stereotypical attitude that everyone is America's enemy - and it has the typical scene of Kensi going badass when dressed in fine clothes and high heels - how anyone thinks that is a good idea is beyond me
3x19 'Vengeance' - It did not sit right with me the whole time - the idea of someone being redeemed of killing someone just because said person is a navy s.e.a.l. is not something I like
4x02 'Recruit' - It was described as being the funniest episode ever but I ended up disliking it a whole lot. The humor felt entirely too forced, the level of violence is far too much and it relied on bad stereotypes about Muslims in order to further the story. It is my least favorite episode of the entire series.
4x11 'Drive' - Kensi went undercover as a stereotypical Latina - the entire setup felt ridiculous and unrealistic and was a low for such a great character.

But there is always an plus side. When NCIS:LA does something well, they blow me out of the water! When NCIS:LA feels more laid back but retains the drive and ambition it has, it produces some high quality shows which I can re-watch over and over again. It has the wonderful humor I adore so much, the character reactions are gold, the characters are alive and the story lines are ambitious and delivers some excellent points. When it does something so well it is one of the best TV shows I have ever seen and I mean that. The episodes I can re-watch over and over again are a few

2x20 'The Job' - This is probably my most favorite episode on NCIS:LA. It has the good humor but has a seriously good character focus on Kensi and the story line keeps me on the edge of my seat every single time. I watched the episode on my last birthday as a treat, it's that good.
2x01 'Human Traffic' - Holy smokes. That episode is more than awesome! It has Deeks character focus, the story line is intense and exciting and you really feel for the characters. It is one of those classical re-watch episodes I can see over and over again
2x05 'Little Angels' - It is just such a good and intense episode and Sam is excellent in i. It is also highly creepy which I enjoy
2x07 'Anonymous' - This episode has the best Kensi and Deeks undercover action - it is so funny, light and delightful I grin just thinking about it. I laugh so much every time I see it. There is something so earnest and clusmy about it which I love.
2x10 'Deliverance' - It has nail biting exciting action and twists and turns
2x17 'Personal' - A Deeks heavy episode, need I say more? One instant favorite
2x22 'Plan B - A Deeks heavy favorite which is one of the best character episodes yet - It is interesting and intriguing and I really feel for the characters in it
3x07 - This episode is their funniest one ever. Ranging from Nell and Eric playing airport staff to Sam speaking Japanese and Kensi and Deeks pretending to be waiters - it is comedy gold for 40 minutes which I love.
3x10 'The Debt' - Deeks/Kensi heavy and it has some awesome twists and turns and some seriously good character interactions. It gets to me every time I watch it
3x16-17 'Blye, K.' - seriously good character focus on Kensi, nail biting action and tension and as some really sweet Densi scenes
3x18 'The Dragon and the fairy' - This episode is too good. It deals with the difficult issue of human trafficking and the Vietnam War with seriousness and respect and one can tell they wanted to do it right. It is absolute gold to watch.
3x22 'Neighbor Watch' - Kensi and Deeks go undercover as a married couple and it is nonstop humor for 40 minutes - ranging from the epic dinner scene to the scene where Deeks discovers Kensi cut her foot - it is nothing but highly good humor. I laugh every time I watch it and it makes me happy.
4x01 'Endgame' - This episode has non-stop epic action, twists and turns in the story line and some comedy gold in between - it is so good!
4x06-07 - A wonderful Sam two-parter which had some wonderful twists and turns and the action was very good.
4x13 'The Chosen One' - It attempts to deal with the subject of bombinh in the name of Islam and to a certain extent it does a great job
4x14 'Kill House' - This episode was epic! The action had me at the edge of my seat the whole time (also closing my eyes regularly), the tension was palpable and it so so exciting. Not to mention, Nell kicking ass is great.
4x23 'Parley' - A great Deeks heavy  episode with some good tension between him and Kensi

So as people can tell - I enjoy more episode than I dislike. And to add, the acting in NCIS:LA is always consistently good. Whatever the standard of other things, the acting is always top-notch and that is something I appreciate.

Knocking my head against the wall - The unrest on Sweden

For the past few days there have been serious riots in Sweden's capital Stockholm in neighborhoods where much of the inhabitants are immigrants. The riots have been bad and there has been much unrest. People are very uneasy over this and it is a cause of concern. The riots are believed to be partly a rise against and objecting the increasing gap between the rich and the poor and lack of proper education and vocational possibilities for Swedish immigrants, particularly those of Middle-Eastern and African origin. These events have led to a serious discussion in Sweden about immigration, the changing Swedish identity, how immigrants have assimilated into society and what must change in order for events like this not to occur again.

That is what is going on here. 

The reason I am hitting my head against the wall is because of how the media handles things. 

-US and UK have issued travel warnings. Can I ask why? It is not like the whole of Sweden is in a state of turmoil and the country is still very much a safe place to visit. It is much bigger than its capital Stockholm and it is a safe and beautiful country that offers much to travelers.. 

-NBC news reported that the riots in Sweden very challenging its happy image. Did I miss something? The last time I checked, Sweden was not especially marketed as the happy place. And it is not. Sweden is in many ways a wonderful country but it is not perfect. It has problems just like any other country.

NBC-News 

-And again rises the constant, ever troubling conversation about socialism. Because obviously the roots of the problem lie in the fact that Sweden is a welfare state like all other Nordic countries. Because, taking care of people apparently causes riots. I have been raised in a welfare country my entire life and it is something I firmly believe in. People here are safe and well taken care of if something happens. Living in a welfare country does not mean that people do not work hard or expect everything to be handed to them. It means that the state provides them with necessary services they might need that are paid for both with tax money and by the state. It means a better health system, good public schools, safe environment, people can get all sorts of live-saving benefit payments and they can rest assured in the fact that if something happens they will not be on their own. It means that people take care of each other! I am proud to belong to a part of the world that offers this and pay my taxes gladly because I know it benefits me and those around me. It is a strong part of the culture of every Scandinavian country to work hard and do your job and help others. Scandinavia has some of the highest standards of living in the world and its welfare society is amazing.  It is one the best places to live.
-And of course the conversation about Muslim immigration always rears its ugly head at times like this. People actually blame the riots on Muslims and I read countless comments stating that if only the Muslims hadn't been allowed to emigrate then we wouldn't be facing this problem. The last time I checked, white and Christian Scandinavian had no trouble attacking each other and causing ruckus. Breivik is a clear example of that. Muslim immigration has to the largest extent been peaceful and most people have integrated successfully. The presence of Muslims here has added much to the culture and its depth and made society more colorful. It has been pretty much nothing but a good thing. There are many Muslims living where I live and I can safely say that not once has their presence affected my life negatively in any way or been a threat to me. And I know that most other people would say the same. I enjoy the fact that the Scandinavian identity is changing so much, our society and culture are becoming more colorful and that we are able to have successful immigration.

I love Scandinavia. I truly do. But the way we behave sometimes and how we react to events can make me want to scream. There are definite problems we are facing and need to address but it is still a good place, a wonderful place. We will get through it. So I'd appreciate it if the media could calm down and if USA and UK could stop trying to create hysteria. Because it does not help anyone.

Muslim faith in media - Part 1 - How NCIS:LA has dealth with it

This is a very touchy subject - how the Muslim faith is portrayed in media and just in general. I had the remarkable pleasure of attending a lecture a few weeks back about women in the Islamic faith. To say it was awesome would be an understatement. The lecture was delivered by a highly educated German-Iranian woman and it was a treat to listen to her. Not only did she make incredibly good points about women's rights in Islam but also about how Muslims are presented in media.

The point that struck me most was when she said that whenever something bad happens in Middle-Eastern countries, be it violence, terrorism, women's rights being infringed upon and other issues, the Islamic faith is always said to be the cause. She said it was never the cause when bad things happened in other parts of the world. Such as when the terrible domestic terrorism attack happened in Norway July 22nd 2011 (peace be unto the victims) it was stated that Breivik was a Christian, yet no one blamed his faith as the basis of his actions. If this had happened in a Muslim country, the Islamic faith would have been blamed.

It is striking how easily everything that takes place in the Middle East is is blamed upon the Islamic faith. Things are so much more complicated than that. Faith is a big part of people's lives all over the world and drives them to action, both good and bad. In America, abortion clinics are bombed by fundamentalist Christians. It is a tragic when that happens and it angers me as a Christian that people treat the live of a fetus seriously when they ignore the lives of other people. Yet, despite that, the entire Christian faith has not been blamed as a whole. So why do people blame the entire Islamic faith and all Muslims based on isolated events?

That's why episode 4x13, "The Chosen One" of NCIS:Los Angeles was so interesting to me. NCIS:LA has not always been exactly smooth when it comes to dealing with the Islamic faith but this episode was interesting in many ways.

-It presented the view of a person that had been converted after listening to Malcolm X, who was a muslim. the character stated she just wanted to feel "clean", meaning renewed and the faith gave her that. Unfortunately, the faith was terribly twisted and Callen acknowledged that. This view on the Islamic faith is not often presented.

-When Kensi interrogated the Chechen terrorist I was impressed with the fact that she was the one that stated a well known passage from the Quran about the sin of killing people. Throughout that scene, she and the character fought with different views on the act of committing terrorism because of faith. I thought it was interesting they had Kensi defending the Islamic faith. Generally it is condemned by the main characters.

-I was however NOT impressed with the scene they had Callen and one of the terrorist performing prayers. Praying is a very sacred ritual in every faith and is one to be treated with care. Praying is very important to me as a Christian. The same goes for muslims. So to have a character pretending to be a Muslim and participating in such a ritual and that just before a supposed bomb attack is not only extremely offensive to the faith but also misleading about the faith in general. Prayer is the time people come before their God and have a conversation with him, abide in him, love him, get their answers. It is such a sacred and important ritual and I was not happy with the lightness with which they treated it.

-And in episode 4x02 there was one very offensive scene in my opinion. They had Kensi don a traditional burqa with her face covered and everything. Then she entered a shooting scene speaking Arabic and suddenly she pulled out a gun from under her clothes and started firing around. That scene shocked me. I thought it was completely unnecessary first of all to have her enter in such a terrible way and secondly, it was very offensive in my opinion. It supported the stereotypical image of the "shooting Arabic woman" that is so wrong. And it disgraced a traditional outfit of faith I was surprised they even thought of doing this on the show. Thankfully this has not been done since and I hope not to see it again. Like the Germany debacle, it was demeaning to what is a good show.

I respect the fact they decided to attack this issue and they did parts of it very well but it needs to be treated with care and respect. They could have skipped the prayer scene and the episode would have been just as good. Sensitivity is needed when it comes to dealing with religion, every religion. Sensitvity, respect and to remember always that something very important is being portrayed. People can make an effective and thoughtful point while maintaining respectability.

Next up for dissecting i ow NCIS deals with the Muslim faith