Carl Alves's Blog, page 30
May 9, 2016
Game of Thrones: Oathbreaker
Jon Snow is back, and it’s clear that he’s not the same person that he had been. The Wildlings think he’s some sort of god, but at this point he is still shaken and confused. Let’s get on to the breakdown.
Bran Stark
So far, I’m enjoying the Bran flashbacks. It’s a good thing that they have these flashbacks, because there is little else going on for him other than having conversations with a creature who is part of a tree. This was an especially cool flashback where Ned Stark and his comrades face Sir Arthur Dane. Ned was well overmatched in this fight, and would have bit the dust if not for Meera Reed’s father stabbing Sir Arthur Dane in the back. To Ned’s defense, Dane is reputed to be one of the greatest warriors who ever lived. Ned was good, but not that good. They cut the flashback short right before the good part. What’s going to happen in the next flashback is that Ned will enter the castle to find his sister, Lianna, dying after giving birth to Jon Snow. She will make Ned promise to take Jon as his own, and to keep it secret that Jon is actually the bastard child of her and Rhaegar Targaryan. This shows that Jon is the key character in the series. The books are called A Song of Ice and Fire, and Jon is the character who combines both. He is part ice (Stark) and part fire (Targaryan). Ultimately, he will be the one leading the final battle against the White Walkers.
Cersei and Jaime Lannister
It’s the whole damn world against the two star-crossed lovers and siblings. They have enemies at every turn, even their uncle Kevyn, who is now the hand of the king. Speaking of which, Tommen is utterly useless. He goes against the High Sparrow full of vim and vigor, only to be talked off the ledge by the religious leader. This kid is as soft as Charmin and has the intensity of a marshmallow
Tyrion Lannister
Tyrion’s scenes are usually fun and interesting, filled with witty dialogue as he skewers people with his sharp tongue. This time he fell flat. Far more interesting was Varys trying to pry loose information from the lover of one of the Harpies.
Ramsey Bolton
As Ramsey tries to secure additional allies in the north, the Umbers present him with a gift, Rickon Stark and his dead dire wolf. By my count, that leaves only two dire wolves left. Sad to see them all go like that. I would think they would be able to put up more a fight. Now Ramsey has a hostage. What this all is going to lead to is a showdown between Ramsey and Jon Snow, where Ramsey will meet his demise. Speaking of Ramsey, I don’t find him to be a particularly compelling villain. They have made him too one-dimensional for my liking. I’m still aggravated by the last episode where he killed his father. Of the villains in the show, he is the least interesting.
Jon Snow
Jon is having a hard time getting back into the groove after coming back from the dead. I can’t blame the guy. After all, he said there was absolutely nothing after he died. That’s a bit disheartening. As I predicted, Jon gave up being the Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch. Although he gave the cloak to his buddy Ed, it will ultimately be Davos who becomes the Lord Commander. Jon will lead the Wildings, who look to him as a god, and he will cut Ramsey down in battle. Take it to the bank.
This was a strong episode. Lots of quality stuff here. In the next episode, Ser Jorah will bust Daenarys out her exile, gray-scale and all. Sansa will make her way to Castle Black and reunite with her half-brother (actually cousin). Tensions between Dorne and the Lannisters will escalate.
Bran Stark
So far, I’m enjoying the Bran flashbacks. It’s a good thing that they have these flashbacks, because there is little else going on for him other than having conversations with a creature who is part of a tree. This was an especially cool flashback where Ned Stark and his comrades face Sir Arthur Dane. Ned was well overmatched in this fight, and would have bit the dust if not for Meera Reed’s father stabbing Sir Arthur Dane in the back. To Ned’s defense, Dane is reputed to be one of the greatest warriors who ever lived. Ned was good, but not that good. They cut the flashback short right before the good part. What’s going to happen in the next flashback is that Ned will enter the castle to find his sister, Lianna, dying after giving birth to Jon Snow. She will make Ned promise to take Jon as his own, and to keep it secret that Jon is actually the bastard child of her and Rhaegar Targaryan. This shows that Jon is the key character in the series. The books are called A Song of Ice and Fire, and Jon is the character who combines both. He is part ice (Stark) and part fire (Targaryan). Ultimately, he will be the one leading the final battle against the White Walkers.
Cersei and Jaime Lannister
It’s the whole damn world against the two star-crossed lovers and siblings. They have enemies at every turn, even their uncle Kevyn, who is now the hand of the king. Speaking of which, Tommen is utterly useless. He goes against the High Sparrow full of vim and vigor, only to be talked off the ledge by the religious leader. This kid is as soft as Charmin and has the intensity of a marshmallow
Tyrion Lannister
Tyrion’s scenes are usually fun and interesting, filled with witty dialogue as he skewers people with his sharp tongue. This time he fell flat. Far more interesting was Varys trying to pry loose information from the lover of one of the Harpies.
Ramsey Bolton
As Ramsey tries to secure additional allies in the north, the Umbers present him with a gift, Rickon Stark and his dead dire wolf. By my count, that leaves only two dire wolves left. Sad to see them all go like that. I would think they would be able to put up more a fight. Now Ramsey has a hostage. What this all is going to lead to is a showdown between Ramsey and Jon Snow, where Ramsey will meet his demise. Speaking of Ramsey, I don’t find him to be a particularly compelling villain. They have made him too one-dimensional for my liking. I’m still aggravated by the last episode where he killed his father. Of the villains in the show, he is the least interesting.
Jon Snow
Jon is having a hard time getting back into the groove after coming back from the dead. I can’t blame the guy. After all, he said there was absolutely nothing after he died. That’s a bit disheartening. As I predicted, Jon gave up being the Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch. Although he gave the cloak to his buddy Ed, it will ultimately be Davos who becomes the Lord Commander. Jon will lead the Wildings, who look to him as a god, and he will cut Ramsey down in battle. Take it to the bank.
This was a strong episode. Lots of quality stuff here. In the next episode, Ser Jorah will bust Daenarys out her exile, gray-scale and all. Sansa will make her way to Castle Black and reunite with her half-brother (actually cousin). Tensions between Dorne and the Lannisters will escalate.
May 2, 2016
Game of Thrones: Home
Everything in this episode was merely setting the table for the shocking conclusion (not so shocking if you read my blog since I predicted exactly what was going to happen). Yes, Jon Snow makes his miraculous return with Malisandre’s help. Woo-hoo. Jon Snow is back, which will set up some of the major story lines going forward.
Bran Stark
Majorly overshadowed by Jon Snow coming back from the dead, his sort of half-brother Bran returned to the show. It’s kind of ridiculous. Bran is supposed to be about 12 years old at this point in the story and he looks like he’s about 18. Game of Thrones should have recast the role to a younger actor. It wouldn’t be the first time they have recast a role, and it would have made sense here since this was so jarring to see an older actor playing a young kid. I did like the flashback to Ned Stark, his brother, Benjen, and a young Hodor, who was able to speak. My guess is that the children of the forest, who Bran is with, are training and preparing him for his ultimate battle against the White Walkers, which he will be a pivotal character.
Jaime Lannister
Jaime fired the first shot against the High Sparrow in the form of a threat. My guess is that Jaime would have killed him right then and there if not for being so heavily outnumbered by the Faith Militant, who showed up in mass. My prediction is that by the end of the season, Jaime will kill the High Sparrow and they will disband the Faith Militant, an utterly foolish decision by Cersei to put them in power to begin with. When are people going to realize religion and politics don’t mix? Speaking of which, Tommen is such an utterly pathetic, wimpy ruler. He will undoubtedly face the same fate as his brother and sister. Cersei will be burying all three of her children.
Tyrion Lannister
In the books, a character who has never appeared on the show (Prince Dorin’s oldest son) is burnt to a crisp when trying to release the dragons. Tyrion suffers no such fate when he unleashes the beasts. There are some theories that Tyrion is actually a Targaryan (the love child of his mom and the mad king). My guess is that Tyrion and the dragons will be instrumental in Daenarys’ rescue.
Ramsey Bolton
Out of everything that happened in this episode, this was by far the most disappointing. It’s not remotely believable that Ramsey would have killed his father. Yes, Ramsey is a sadistic bastard, who wouldn’t think twice about killing his baby brother, but Ramsey has always strived so hard to gain his father’s approval, and it meant so much to him for his father to declare him his true born son. There is no way he would killed him. The show was going for the shocking moment, but it fell completely flat. It would make much more sense for him to wait a couple of months and then kill his brother in a way that didn’t look like it was him. The way it happened on the show was an epic fail.
#jonsnowlives
The wildlings are back and they brought a giant with them. I loved how he smashed that dude from the night’s watch. The battle wasn’t much of a battle at all as Ser Allisair’s men laid down their weapons without putting up a fight. I like the shift in Davos’s character. He has evolved quite a bit, as can be seen by enlisting Malisandre’s help in resurrecting Jon. My predictions for what follows are: Jon will resign as Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch. Hey, his previous vows were taken when he was alive. He takes command of the Wildlings, where they go into battle against Ramsey Bolton, where Jon kills Ramsey. Davos takes the black and becomes the new Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch.
Bran Stark
Majorly overshadowed by Jon Snow coming back from the dead, his sort of half-brother Bran returned to the show. It’s kind of ridiculous. Bran is supposed to be about 12 years old at this point in the story and he looks like he’s about 18. Game of Thrones should have recast the role to a younger actor. It wouldn’t be the first time they have recast a role, and it would have made sense here since this was so jarring to see an older actor playing a young kid. I did like the flashback to Ned Stark, his brother, Benjen, and a young Hodor, who was able to speak. My guess is that the children of the forest, who Bran is with, are training and preparing him for his ultimate battle against the White Walkers, which he will be a pivotal character.
Jaime Lannister
Jaime fired the first shot against the High Sparrow in the form of a threat. My guess is that Jaime would have killed him right then and there if not for being so heavily outnumbered by the Faith Militant, who showed up in mass. My prediction is that by the end of the season, Jaime will kill the High Sparrow and they will disband the Faith Militant, an utterly foolish decision by Cersei to put them in power to begin with. When are people going to realize religion and politics don’t mix? Speaking of which, Tommen is such an utterly pathetic, wimpy ruler. He will undoubtedly face the same fate as his brother and sister. Cersei will be burying all three of her children.
Tyrion Lannister
In the books, a character who has never appeared on the show (Prince Dorin’s oldest son) is burnt to a crisp when trying to release the dragons. Tyrion suffers no such fate when he unleashes the beasts. There are some theories that Tyrion is actually a Targaryan (the love child of his mom and the mad king). My guess is that Tyrion and the dragons will be instrumental in Daenarys’ rescue.
Ramsey Bolton
Out of everything that happened in this episode, this was by far the most disappointing. It’s not remotely believable that Ramsey would have killed his father. Yes, Ramsey is a sadistic bastard, who wouldn’t think twice about killing his baby brother, but Ramsey has always strived so hard to gain his father’s approval, and it meant so much to him for his father to declare him his true born son. There is no way he would killed him. The show was going for the shocking moment, but it fell completely flat. It would make much more sense for him to wait a couple of months and then kill his brother in a way that didn’t look like it was him. The way it happened on the show was an epic fail.
#jonsnowlives
The wildlings are back and they brought a giant with them. I loved how he smashed that dude from the night’s watch. The battle wasn’t much of a battle at all as Ser Allisair’s men laid down their weapons without putting up a fight. I like the shift in Davos’s character. He has evolved quite a bit, as can be seen by enlisting Malisandre’s help in resurrecting Jon. My predictions for what follows are: Jon will resign as Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch. Hey, his previous vows were taken when he was alive. He takes command of the Wildlings, where they go into battle against Ramsey Bolton, where Jon kills Ramsey. Davos takes the black and becomes the new Lord Commander of the Night’s Watch.
April 24, 2016
Borealis by Ronald Malfi
Borealis is a wonderfully dark novella masterfully written by Ronald Malfi. It takes place on board of a trawler on the Bering Sea when the crew finds a young woman running naked on an iceberg. The fact that she was able to survive being naked on an iceberg probably should have been the first indication to the crew that they should sail as far away as possible from her. After taking her in, the crew is infected by physical maladies and a madness that creeps up on all of them with the exception of Charlie Mears, who is the only one who could see that she is responsible for the deaths and terrible things happening to the ship and crew. Charlie comes to the realization that he has to kill her at all costs before she reaches the mainland and spreads her evil on land.
The setting for this novel matched the mood and atmosphere of the story. It had a feeling of strong desolation and despair. The trawler has to sail through frozen waters around them, and anything that goes wrong with the boat has the possibility of putting the crew in serious danger, which happens when the woman starts to work her aura on them. The trawler becomes like a creeping death. This story reminds me in a lot of ways of H.P. Lovecraft’s In the Mouth of Madness. It’s like a slow descent into insanity with Charlie the only person who can keep it together. This was an enjoyable horror novella that I would recommend to readers of the genre.
The setting for this novel matched the mood and atmosphere of the story. It had a feeling of strong desolation and despair. The trawler has to sail through frozen waters around them, and anything that goes wrong with the boat has the possibility of putting the crew in serious danger, which happens when the woman starts to work her aura on them. The trawler becomes like a creeping death. This story reminds me in a lot of ways of H.P. Lovecraft’s In the Mouth of Madness. It’s like a slow descent into insanity with Charlie the only person who can keep it together. This was an enjoyable horror novella that I would recommend to readers of the genre.
April 18, 2016
Chelsea Avenue by Armand Rosamilia
Armand Rosamilia’s Chelsea Avenue is a refreshingly unique novel that I devoured in a few readings. Set in the Jersey shore, an ancient elemental entity is trying to destroy humanity. His coming out party takes place at the Haunted House Pier and Murphy’s Law club. This entity was thwarted only to continue to try to rise back from the ashes and destroy the human race. Each year on the anniversary of the date, he takes control of people that survived the fires that burned the pier and Murphy’s Law and kills them a few at a time, gaining power until he can once more rise again. Manny Santiago, whose parents owned the club, is struggling through the aftermath, but his life slowly disintegrates. He is the last man standing to save humanity and redeem all that he lost.
The way the novel is written is different and pretty cool. Each entry takes place one year after the date of the fire, as the survivors get killed off in varying and gruesome manners. Manny Santiago is kind of like an everyman. He doesn’t possess any real heroic qualities, and at times, even becomes unlikeable in the story. He has a real underdog feel to him, and in the end, it’s hard not to get behind him. The novel has a real Cthulhian feel to it, although unlike many other novels I’ve read, doesn’t seem like a H.P. Lovecraft rip off. The caliber of writing is top notch. As a fellow writer, I can respect and admire the attention that Rosamilia applies to his craft. This was an all together enjoyable novel that qualifies as a must-read.
The way the novel is written is different and pretty cool. Each entry takes place one year after the date of the fire, as the survivors get killed off in varying and gruesome manners. Manny Santiago is kind of like an everyman. He doesn’t possess any real heroic qualities, and at times, even becomes unlikeable in the story. He has a real underdog feel to him, and in the end, it’s hard not to get behind him. The novel has a real Cthulhian feel to it, although unlike many other novels I’ve read, doesn’t seem like a H.P. Lovecraft rip off. The caliber of writing is top notch. As a fellow writer, I can respect and admire the attention that Rosamilia applies to his craft. This was an all together enjoyable novel that qualifies as a must-read.
April 12, 2016
The Measure of the Magic by Terry Brooks
This novel starts off with a new villain for Panterra Qu, now holding the black staff after a dying Sider Ament gave him the responsibility of being its new bearer. A demon determined on chaos and destruction is now on his path wanting to kill Panterra and take the staff from him. Meanwhile, Prue Liss has escaped from the trolls and the demon and has been given new powers to aid Panterra. Phryne Amarantyne is imprisoned after her father, the king of the elves, has been killed. This is typical for Terry Brooks, to have multiple storylines going on at the same time, and weaving them together, something he does quite well. There were a lot of smaller conflicts leading up to the larger conflict at the end between Panterra and the demon.
Reading a Terry Brooks novel is like putting on a pair of comfortable shoes. They can be formulaic at times and similar in many aspects, but I’ve gotten a feel for how the journey is going to go, and it’s usually an enjoyable one. That is the case in The Measure of the Magic. He has created a compelling cast of characters, a rich backstory, and strong conflict. He sticks to the formula, but it’s one that works quite well, which is why I’m rarely disappointed with Brooks’s novels. The one thing that I thought kind of jarring was the presence of a dragon, which came out of nowhere since I haven’t seen them in the other novels in the series. It seemed like he was stuck for something to create a dramatic effect and pulled this out of nowhere. The dragon aside, I thought the novel was well plotted with strong conflicts and good epic fantasy elements, something readers of this genre will enjoy.
Reading a Terry Brooks novel is like putting on a pair of comfortable shoes. They can be formulaic at times and similar in many aspects, but I’ve gotten a feel for how the journey is going to go, and it’s usually an enjoyable one. That is the case in The Measure of the Magic. He has created a compelling cast of characters, a rich backstory, and strong conflict. He sticks to the formula, but it’s one that works quite well, which is why I’m rarely disappointed with Brooks’s novels. The one thing that I thought kind of jarring was the presence of a dragon, which came out of nowhere since I haven’t seen them in the other novels in the series. It seemed like he was stuck for something to create a dramatic effect and pulled this out of nowhere. The dragon aside, I thought the novel was well plotted with strong conflicts and good epic fantasy elements, something readers of this genre will enjoy.
April 10, 2016
Jake's Wake by John Skipp and Cody Goodfellow
Jake Connaway is a rocker turned cable televangelist preaching that he will one day be resurrected. His chance to prove this theory happens when he is murdered by the husband of one of his followers as he’s having sex with the man’s wife. Jake’s outrageous claims comes to pass when he comes back to life during his wake. Convinced that he is the second coming of Christ, he sees himself as a godlike figure and goes on a violent killing rampage. Among the victims are the people at his house, which includes his wife, his assistant, and a woman he once abused, as well as the men that are with them. Jake and his friend, Gray, a cold-blooded killer, come up with creative and inventive ways to massacre these folks. His end goal is to telecast his rebirth to the world.
The characterization of the two main villains in this story, Jake and Gray, are both well done. They are loathsome and vial characters, but all the same have some level of humanity to them and feel more real than most antagonists that I come across in fiction. The gore in this novel wasn’t overdone and fit the story pretty well. The pace of the novel was quick and there was a high level of tension. On the downside, there was an interlude of Jake’s followers trying to get to his house that seemed pretty useless and should have been scrapped. One thing that was annoying me during the course of the novel was that there was no explanation of Jake’s resurrection. However, there’s a twist at the end of the novel that fully explains the reincarnation and makes the entire novel make sense. For me, the best part of the novel was the twist at the end, which produced a very satisfying conclusion. This was an enjoyable novel that I recommend.
The characterization of the two main villains in this story, Jake and Gray, are both well done. They are loathsome and vial characters, but all the same have some level of humanity to them and feel more real than most antagonists that I come across in fiction. The gore in this novel wasn’t overdone and fit the story pretty well. The pace of the novel was quick and there was a high level of tension. On the downside, there was an interlude of Jake’s followers trying to get to his house that seemed pretty useless and should have been scrapped. One thing that was annoying me during the course of the novel was that there was no explanation of Jake’s resurrection. However, there’s a twist at the end of the novel that fully explains the reincarnation and makes the entire novel make sense. For me, the best part of the novel was the twist at the end, which produced a very satisfying conclusion. This was an enjoyable novel that I recommend.
April 6, 2016
The Walking Dead: Season 6 Finale
If I had one word to describe the season 6 finale of The Walking Dead, it would be disappointing. If I wanted to use two words, I would go with bitterly disappointing. The easiest thing to point at in the episode was that they didn’t reveal who got killed at the end by Negan and his barbed wire baseball bat, but that was far from the biggest problem in the episode. I mean, come on, what’s the point? Do they really need the cliffhanger of having to find out who died for people to tune in to the opening episode of season 7? Like me, all of the other viewers of the show are going to watch it.
What really killed it for me is the same thing that has plagued this entire season—a complete and utter lack of believability. Believability in a show about zombies, you scoff? Yes. Even within the context of a post-apocalyptic world overrun by zombies and all of the implications associated with it, the show still must remain logical and consistent, and what occurred in this episode made very little sense.
First of all, just how many people do the Saviors have? Based on what they pulled off, they would need thousands of people, in which case the Alexandrians don’t stand a chance. Secondly, how could they have known that Rick and crew would be travelling to Hilltop on this day? What, do they hang out on the road every day in the hopes that they will make a trip to Hilltop? They blocked off every possible route to Hilltop. What doesn’t make sense is the levels of organization that this would entail, and the sophisticated communication equipment—equipment, which by the way doesn’t exist in the apocalypse, that this would require. There aren’t cell phones, and even battery operated radios probably wouldn’t have that level of range. Yet somehow, not only were they able to track the movements of the RV—as if they had satellites and helicopters of a modern army—but they somehow were able to figure out exactly where Rick and company would be travelling on foot to and converge all of their forces there. Give me a f***ing break. This was awful. There were so many unbelievable things that happened this season, but this was by far the worse.
The arrival of Negan certainly had its share of drama, although I thought it went a bit long. The acting was certainly strong in this scene, so it wasn’t all bad. I stick to my prediction that the unfortunate character getting decimated by Lucille was fan favorite, Daryl.
This was a very bad episode in the worst season by far of the show. I’m not saying that the show has run its course and that it can’t be fixed, but right now they are on the edge of falling into pop-culture irrelevance. I’m hoping they can right the ship and become the show that they once had been, which captured the hearts and minds of millions, but if they continue sprouting garbage like this, it’s not going to happen.
What really killed it for me is the same thing that has plagued this entire season—a complete and utter lack of believability. Believability in a show about zombies, you scoff? Yes. Even within the context of a post-apocalyptic world overrun by zombies and all of the implications associated with it, the show still must remain logical and consistent, and what occurred in this episode made very little sense.
First of all, just how many people do the Saviors have? Based on what they pulled off, they would need thousands of people, in which case the Alexandrians don’t stand a chance. Secondly, how could they have known that Rick and crew would be travelling to Hilltop on this day? What, do they hang out on the road every day in the hopes that they will make a trip to Hilltop? They blocked off every possible route to Hilltop. What doesn’t make sense is the levels of organization that this would entail, and the sophisticated communication equipment—equipment, which by the way doesn’t exist in the apocalypse, that this would require. There aren’t cell phones, and even battery operated radios probably wouldn’t have that level of range. Yet somehow, not only were they able to track the movements of the RV—as if they had satellites and helicopters of a modern army—but they somehow were able to figure out exactly where Rick and company would be travelling on foot to and converge all of their forces there. Give me a f***ing break. This was awful. There were so many unbelievable things that happened this season, but this was by far the worse.
The arrival of Negan certainly had its share of drama, although I thought it went a bit long. The acting was certainly strong in this scene, so it wasn’t all bad. I stick to my prediction that the unfortunate character getting decimated by Lucille was fan favorite, Daryl.
This was a very bad episode in the worst season by far of the show. I’m not saying that the show has run its course and that it can’t be fixed, but right now they are on the edge of falling into pop-culture irrelevance. I’m hoping they can right the ship and become the show that they once had been, which captured the hearts and minds of millions, but if they continue sprouting garbage like this, it’s not going to happen.
March 31, 2016
10 Cloverfield Lane
10 Cloverfield Lane is a science fiction movie that is really more of a suspense movie than anything else. It’s an intelligently written film that keeps the audience wondering what is really going on. The story starts off with Michelle, who is leaving her boyfriend. While she is driving, she is smashed by a truck. She wakes up in a cellar, chained to the wall, and hooked to IV tubes. Her captor is Howard, brilliantly played by John Goodman. Howard is a wacky, doomsday survivalist, who tells Michelle that he saved her from the ditch she was in and brought her to his shelter right before the start of the apocalypse. Emmett is also in the shelter. He helped build the structure and confirms what Howard was saying about an apocalyptic even that Michelle has no evidence of.
What I liked about this movie is that it was hard to tell what was true and what was fabricated. There is sufficient evidence to support Howard’s claims of an apocalyptic event, which may be aliens, or a foreign invader, or something else. However, that doesn’t mean that Howard isn’t crazy. Michelle picks up pieces of evidence that confirm that Howard is one deranged, loony, which prompts her to plot her escape. Even at the end, when the truth begins to be revealed, there is still that lingering doubt. This is enjoyable movie marked with good acting and filled with loads of tension that I would recommend.
What I liked about this movie is that it was hard to tell what was true and what was fabricated. There is sufficient evidence to support Howard’s claims of an apocalyptic event, which may be aliens, or a foreign invader, or something else. However, that doesn’t mean that Howard isn’t crazy. Michelle picks up pieces of evidence that confirm that Howard is one deranged, loony, which prompts her to plot her escape. Even at the end, when the truth begins to be revealed, there is still that lingering doubt. This is enjoyable movie marked with good acting and filled with loads of tension that I would recommend.
March 29, 2016
The Walking Dead: East
Things heated up in a big way in “East”, the episode prior to the season finale. This episode showed increasing hostilities with the Saviors, some really stupid decisions being made by otherwise savvy characters, and the biggest cliffhanger since “Who Shot J.R.?” from Dallas back in the day.
Darryl
Is Darryl dead? The ending of the episode certainly hints at that, but before answering that question, the better one is just what the hell was Darryl doing? His actions and behavior made absolutely no sense. When he first left Alexandria, I was sure it was because he learned about what happened to Carol, and was hell bent on getting her back. As it turns out, he was trying to hunt down Dwight and the rest of Neegan’s gang. What utter foolishness. Just what did Darryl think he could accomplish here, other than getting himself and his friends—who obviously were going to follow him—killed? When they attacked the Saviors in the middle of the night at their compound, that was a great plan. This was just dumb and Darryl’s not a dumb character. I think Darryl didn’t die in last night’s episode but will in the season finale. Once upon a time, I thought Darryl was one of the three untouchable characters on the show. Now, I think he’s going to buy his ticket. Norman Reedus has a new show in development for AMC, and they haven’t featured Darryl as much this season. In the comics, the character Neegan is introduced by killing a major character with a spiked baseball bat. The preview of the finale indicate Neegan will appear, and I believe he will kill Darryl.
Carol
Here is stupid decision making by a savvy character, part 2. I don’t understand Carol’s rationale. She has a great situation in Alexandria. If she can’t kill people because she is on the verge of breaking down, then go the Morgan pacifist route. It seems to work for him. Where is Carol going to go where she won’t have to kill people? Such a place doesn’t exist in the post-apocalyptic zombie world. Instead, she runs into the Saviors. No surprise there. And I think it’s getting ridiculous with Rick’s band getting into these situations where they are obscenely outgunned yet they still manage to kill all the bad guys. I can accept this happening once. The second time, I had to roll my eyes. This is now the third time this has happened this season, and it’s enough already. There was no way, even with the element of surprise, that Carol could have taken out eight armed men like that. Come on, The Walking Dead, I expect better from you.
Rick and Morgan
Once good friends, Rick and Morgan have major philosophical disagreements, which have driven them apart. They spent much of this episode discussing these philosophical disagreements. What I was hoping out of Rick was more planning. He knows Neegan’s people are out there, and instead of coming up with a plan to learn more about them and try to take them out, he seemed a bit cocky and arrogant, thinking he could easily defeat them.
Predictions
• RIP Darryl and possibly Rosita. There have been no major casualties this half-season, but I think we will see it in the next episode.
• Carol will eventually return but I don’t think it will be in the season finale
• They will get Maggie to Hilltop so she can see the doctor there, and he will save the baby
• Morgan runs into serious trouble and faces his dilemma of having to kill someone
• Rick goes apeshit and kills a mess of Saviors
Darryl
Is Darryl dead? The ending of the episode certainly hints at that, but before answering that question, the better one is just what the hell was Darryl doing? His actions and behavior made absolutely no sense. When he first left Alexandria, I was sure it was because he learned about what happened to Carol, and was hell bent on getting her back. As it turns out, he was trying to hunt down Dwight and the rest of Neegan’s gang. What utter foolishness. Just what did Darryl think he could accomplish here, other than getting himself and his friends—who obviously were going to follow him—killed? When they attacked the Saviors in the middle of the night at their compound, that was a great plan. This was just dumb and Darryl’s not a dumb character. I think Darryl didn’t die in last night’s episode but will in the season finale. Once upon a time, I thought Darryl was one of the three untouchable characters on the show. Now, I think he’s going to buy his ticket. Norman Reedus has a new show in development for AMC, and they haven’t featured Darryl as much this season. In the comics, the character Neegan is introduced by killing a major character with a spiked baseball bat. The preview of the finale indicate Neegan will appear, and I believe he will kill Darryl.
Carol
Here is stupid decision making by a savvy character, part 2. I don’t understand Carol’s rationale. She has a great situation in Alexandria. If she can’t kill people because she is on the verge of breaking down, then go the Morgan pacifist route. It seems to work for him. Where is Carol going to go where she won’t have to kill people? Such a place doesn’t exist in the post-apocalyptic zombie world. Instead, she runs into the Saviors. No surprise there. And I think it’s getting ridiculous with Rick’s band getting into these situations where they are obscenely outgunned yet they still manage to kill all the bad guys. I can accept this happening once. The second time, I had to roll my eyes. This is now the third time this has happened this season, and it’s enough already. There was no way, even with the element of surprise, that Carol could have taken out eight armed men like that. Come on, The Walking Dead, I expect better from you.
Rick and Morgan
Once good friends, Rick and Morgan have major philosophical disagreements, which have driven them apart. They spent much of this episode discussing these philosophical disagreements. What I was hoping out of Rick was more planning. He knows Neegan’s people are out there, and instead of coming up with a plan to learn more about them and try to take them out, he seemed a bit cocky and arrogant, thinking he could easily defeat them.
Predictions
• RIP Darryl and possibly Rosita. There have been no major casualties this half-season, but I think we will see it in the next episode.
• Carol will eventually return but I don’t think it will be in the season finale
• They will get Maggie to Hilltop so she can see the doctor there, and he will save the baby
• Morgan runs into serious trouble and faces his dilemma of having to kill someone
• Rick goes apeshit and kills a mess of Saviors
March 23, 2016
The Walking Dead: No Way Out
“No Way Out” is much like many other episodes of The Walking Dead, where little of consequence is going on and the episode is working itself at a moderate pace until all hell breaks loose at the very end. This was punctuated at the beginning of the episode where they show normalcy in Alexandria after the attack of the Savior compound. Things have settled into a routine. By the end of the episode we have the death of a character, a departure of another, and an escalation of hostilities with the Saviors.
Abraham and Eugene
Abraham was front and center in this episode with his confrontation with Eugene (sparked by Eugene’s displeasure with the way Abraham handled his breakup with Rosita), his new romantic entanglements with Sasha, and his role in the confrontation with the Saviors. Abraham was very busy in this episode. I like his back and forth with Eugene about how Eugene had evolved and was in his stage 2 of his evolution. Most of what Eugene says is complete and utter nonsense but he showed that there was some truth in it, first with his idea about making bullets and then biting the savior’s nether regions as they fought the Saviors at the end. This may have been Eugene’s shining moment on the show to date.
Darryl
Darryl learned a lesson in this episode—he has been getting soft as time goes on. The old Darryl would have killed the saviors when he had the chance, and now they paid the price for it. I fear that the end is near for my favorite Walking Dead character. Rumor has it that Norman Reedus in production for a new series on AMC, which could lead to Darryl’s demise since he probably can’t do both series at the same time. My guess is that he meets his doom in the season finale. Hopefully I’m wrong.
Dr. Denise
I didn’t think Denise was going to bite the dust in this episode. I thought Rosita would be the one to die. Alas, her own stupidity led to her demise. In the Walking Dead there are fighters who know how to survive and those who aren’t capable of fighting. Those who don’t know how to fight, such as Denise, need to listen to those who do. If she hadn’t gone for that stupid cooler and raised such a ruckus in the process, the Saviors most likely wouldn’t have caught up to them and Alexandria would still have its doctor.
Carol
When Carol first started reading the note at the end, I thought she was just breaking up with her new dude. I was stunned to hear that she was leaving Alexandria. Where exactly is she going? And how is she going to avoid killing people unless she is isolated in some wilderness far away from other human beings. In the world of The Walking Dead, this is the way of life.
Abraham and Eugene
Abraham was front and center in this episode with his confrontation with Eugene (sparked by Eugene’s displeasure with the way Abraham handled his breakup with Rosita), his new romantic entanglements with Sasha, and his role in the confrontation with the Saviors. Abraham was very busy in this episode. I like his back and forth with Eugene about how Eugene had evolved and was in his stage 2 of his evolution. Most of what Eugene says is complete and utter nonsense but he showed that there was some truth in it, first with his idea about making bullets and then biting the savior’s nether regions as they fought the Saviors at the end. This may have been Eugene’s shining moment on the show to date.
Darryl
Darryl learned a lesson in this episode—he has been getting soft as time goes on. The old Darryl would have killed the saviors when he had the chance, and now they paid the price for it. I fear that the end is near for my favorite Walking Dead character. Rumor has it that Norman Reedus in production for a new series on AMC, which could lead to Darryl’s demise since he probably can’t do both series at the same time. My guess is that he meets his doom in the season finale. Hopefully I’m wrong.
Dr. Denise
I didn’t think Denise was going to bite the dust in this episode. I thought Rosita would be the one to die. Alas, her own stupidity led to her demise. In the Walking Dead there are fighters who know how to survive and those who aren’t capable of fighting. Those who don’t know how to fight, such as Denise, need to listen to those who do. If she hadn’t gone for that stupid cooler and raised such a ruckus in the process, the Saviors most likely wouldn’t have caught up to them and Alexandria would still have its doctor.
Carol
When Carol first started reading the note at the end, I thought she was just breaking up with her new dude. I was stunned to hear that she was leaving Alexandria. Where exactly is she going? And how is she going to avoid killing people unless she is isolated in some wilderness far away from other human beings. In the world of The Walking Dead, this is the way of life.
