Almost Human: Favorite Scenes: Beholder

"A LITTLE HELP HERE!!!"

                      It's getting to that heart breaking time where I'll be doing the last "Favorite Scenes" of Almost Human. It was a fun ride but I won't dwell on that just yet. "Beholder" has become one of my favorite episodes not just because of the comedy scenes between John and Dorian but also it was centered on Stahl and confronting her own world that she didn't really fit into. Also it was a real attempt for John to come out of his shell.

The Beauty Killer is on the loose!

             1. Beginning where John is eating a donut and Dorian answers John's phone call that he was trying to ignore. It was a funny scene with John trying to teach Dorian about guy code but we also got a deeper look into John when it comes to dependence on technology. He's an old fashioned guy and when he's on a date he prefers making a human connection which explains why he and Dorian work so well together as Dorian displays human emotion which allows him to make those kinds of connections. 

Val has the "Bitch Slap You" Gene

             2. Every scene with Valerie and Maldonado talking about chromes. This episode was a deeper look into Valerie after "Perception". I wish there was a Season 2 so that we could have expanded on her character's background but we got to know her a little more in Season 1. Valerie doesn't usually like stepping back into her old world where the rich, perfect, and privileged get to do whatever they want and look down on others. However, after her visit to the Chrome club (which is another favorite scene I'll discuss later) she realized that she was being just as judgmental as the chromes. She forgot that no matter a person's genes they're still people. I also loved when Valerie asked why Maldonado kept John around and she said: "I lost a bet." Personally I would keep him around for his looks but that's just me. 

"I only heard him grunt as he was kicking your ass."

           3. John and Dorian debate on the pros and cons of technology. John believes that technology is driving a wedge turning their society into "us vs. them". You mean it wasn't already? John is right though. Even today in California they have a program (a very expensive one) where while in utero a parent can choose their baby's eye color, hair color and even their gender. Of course many are against this and I agree. If you have a girl but you want a boy just take the girl. You get what you get but I'm getting side tracked. Dorian however knows that while some technology is unnecessary some are very beneficial. He hilariously points out how they could just switch out John's synthetic leg with a tree trunk or a shovel. John knows he's right about that. The point is that we should moderate our dependence on technology or we lose that very part of us that makes us human. 

Hi, I'm Handsome & you're Smart & Gorgeous

          4. I loved watching Valerie take on that bitch chrome from the club. Valerie had proven that she had the superior genes (well sass genes). She even impressed a very cute chrome boy named Jake Bellman. I have no doubt that if there was a second season that we would have seen more of him. But for now he just proved that like Valerie not all chromes are stuck up. Jake's brother is an artist who sculpts using chain saws, which is not a medium many people look into, especially not chromes but he's happy. Valerie loves being a cop and Jake made her feel okay with being a chrome. 

"You see a guy named Dicarlo?"
"Nope."
"Okay..." WHAM!
"Hey, Dicarlo, you miss me?"

           5. After John and Dorian leave the plastic surgeon's office they talk about John's physical flaws. Dorian mentions that to have flaws is to be human and that John was very human indeed. We all saw Dorian's pride when the surgeon said that his nose was perfect. Dorian shows that he has some vanity as well, which makes him human in that he has a flaw: vanity. This leads us into the scene where John and Dorian go to meet John's C.I. Dicarlo:

           Dorian: "You snore."

           John: "How do you know I snore?"

           Dorian: "Your smart bed told me."

           John: "Really? I didn't know you two had a relationship... What else did it tell you?"

           Dorian: "I don't know. Whatever it was I erased it from my memory. Whatever it was I didn't want to remember."

          John: "Good."

"It's called getting punched in the face it adds character"
So you have a lot of character, John

          Forget the walls, it's the beds that have all the juicy. dirty details. That had me rolling in stitches. When did Dorian consult John's smart bed and what was John doing in there? We may never know but it's fun to theorize. 

"Damn it, Kennex!"

         6. Dorian hates seeing androids used in such a way for entertainment. Seeing them fight made him cringe. We know that Dorian can be sensitive but he should also know that the androids don't have the understanding that he does. They do what they're programmed. Still, we see what Dorian sees: subjugation of his kind. Needless to say Dorian was not entertained.

Oh honey if you only knew the
irony of this moment right now

          7. Eric, the serial killer, murdered many people just so he could be perfect for the woman he loved and whom he was about to meet for the first time. Yet the immense irony of this scene is that the girl he was perfecting his face for was blind so she couldn't even see his new face. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder (where the episode gets it's title from) but this woman beheld Eric's inner beauty. A great lesson to be learned here that looks aren't everything. The soul holds more beauty than the body.

See what happens when you wait to have
slice of cake? Someone takes a bite first!

         8. If I was on a ledge I would rather talk to Dorian to get me off the edge but that seems mean. John and Eric had a moment. It was very intense and they didn't share a connection but John did come to a realization. Eric asked John if he'd ever been loved. Well of course John's been loved he's a great guy once you get past the sarcasm and broodiness. Eric then said his exit line: "We're supposed to be loved." This opened John's eyes. He knows he doesn't want to be alone, that he wants someone to go home to but we also know that he wants Valerie. John's been going on all these dates but they were just an excuse for John not to ask out Valerie because it could affect their working relationship and John's heart's been broken before. Yet at the end of the episode he takes a risk and asks Valerie out (not on a date date but we all know what "to get a drink means").

"One is the loneliest number..."

            9. Unfortunately, John is too late and Valerie is already going on a date with the handsome, sweet Jake Bellman. See what happens when you wait to eat the cake? Someone else ups and grabs it. John then retreats back to his desk. We see that Valerie was actually waiting for John to ask her out but he was too late. However, she gives John a look of hope. I think she should have tried to ask him out herself but maybe because she knew that he needed time to trust again she waited. We see in the final scene that John was standing on the pier and watching happy couples and friends walk by. John said he chose to live alone but I think he realized that he has huge trust issues and needs to work on them because he doesn't want to be alone for the rest of his life. 

        Next "Favorite Scenes" will unfortunately be the last. I'll try to get it posted by next week. You gotta rip off that band aid.