Andrew Buckley's Blog, page 12

SPOILERS! – Recap and Reviews – 10/18/12 - Dexter and Once Upon a Time

Once Upon a Time – Season 2, Episode 3 – Lady of the Lake

After a disappointing second episode (that I didn’t bother to review as I slept through the middle bit) the third episode in this popular fairy tale adventure show re-captures a bit of that lost magic. Back in season 1 Prince Charming killed the Lady of the Lake because, let’s face it, she was a deranged lake monster. Sadly that caused the Lake and all its magical properties to dry up preventing Charming from saving his mother who didn’t have the good sense to stay inside the house when she was told to. Snow White is tricked by King George into drinking a potion that will stop her having kids but she’s saved by Sir Lancelot. With me so far?

In the real world Charming and Henry search for a way to get Emma and Snow back but seem to put in the most minimal amount of effort possible. Henry convinces the Mad Hatter to reunite with his daughter which turns out to be quite a touching moment. In the current fairy tale land, Snow and Emma partner with Sir Lancelot, Mulan, and the next-to-useless Princess Aurora to find the magical wardrobe that might be able to transport them back to the real world. It turns out that Lancelot was dead all along and it’s really Cora (Regina’s evil mother played by Barbara Hershey) posing as him. In order to save Snow, Emma sets fire to the magic wardrobe and then they have a teary mother/daughter moment which would be sweet if you were constantly distracted by them being the same age.

Other points to note are Regina giving up her role as the Mayor of Storybrooke, the curious absence of Mr. Gold, Charming uncovering Regina’s vault of magical stuff and not doing anything with it, a really cool bit of VFX with an ogre, and the appearance of King George in Storybrooke…DUN DUN DUUUUU

I give Lady of the Lake 9.5 deranged lake monsters out of 10.

Dexter – Season 7, Episode 3 – Buck the System

With the exception of Season 2, Dexter (Michael C. Hall) has always had a rival serial killer to go up against but the villain this season seems to be split between Debra (Jennifer Carpenter) and the Ukrainian Mob. Debra in that she’s trying to subdue Dexter’s dark passenger and the Ukrainians because they’re very familiar with ‘offing’ people randomly. After Dexter frames Louis Greene (Josh Cooke), has him fired from his job, and then dumped by his girlfriend, the interesting computer geek meets the nasty end of a bullet.

Dexter gets all antsy and day dreams about killing people while Debra spends a lot of time looking worried. The best part of the episode is Debra coming around to Dexter’s way of thinking. She’s not exactly approving of what he does but she understands it. I can’t help but feel that she came around a little too quickly but with her practically witnessing a murder that she could have prevented by letting Dexter do what he does best it almost seems viable.

There was also some lovey dovey stuff going on between Quinn and Nadia the stripper, also tied to the Ukrainian mob, and we may even have seen the introduction of a love interest for Dexter in ex-killer Hannah McKay (Yvonne Strahovski).

I give Buck the System 8 nasty ends of a bullet out of 10.


COMING NEXT ON SPOILERS - The Walking Dead and American Horror Story!

Death, the Devil, and the Goldfish gets a release date!

Mark your calendars, prepare yourself accordingly, maybe even put on some pants...my debut novel, Death, the Devil, and the Goldfish has a release date! On December 5th, 2012, you'll be able to buy DTDTG on Amazon in various formats (including a stellar audio book read by Jon Cross). The novel is being published by the innovative and wonderful Curiosity Quills Press.  

In case you have no idea what I'm talking about here's what you're in for:

From the Bahamas to Heathrow airport, to the rain soaked streets of London the dead have ceased dying. This is inconvenient for a number of reasons but what’s the real reason behind the chaos?

In London we find Nigel Reinhardt, a disgraced, confused, and gifted London police constable who owns a prophetic goldfish. In Ireland the Angel of Death questions the value and position of his current employment. At Majestic Technologies Celina McMannis works diligently on a top secret project. At the South Pole there lives a very unhappy penguin.

When the Devil hatches a nefarious plot to take over the world by possessing a cute
little kitty and seizing a factory of robotic Christmas elves it’s up to Nigel and his group of unlikely companions to save the world or die trying…or both. 

Movie Review - The House at the End of the Street

There are those horror movies that seem to start with purpose and then half way through the GPS breaks down and there’s a mad panic to find which direction to run in. Case in point: The House at the End of the Street. In stark contradiction to the usual horror movie cliché of the large breasted blonde running upstairs, in The House at the End of the Street, she instead runs downstairs.

Elizabeth Shue and the ‘always hungry for games’, Jennifer Lawrence star as mother and daughter who move to a sleepy little town to start their lives over. They move into a lovely house that for once doesn’t have a deep dark secret. However the house next door does. In this century I think it’s safe to say that you should never move into a house or near a house where people were killed violently. And if you do, don’t act all surprised when you get stabbed/shot/hung/decapitated/haunted/etc.

The movie features the usual mother/daughter conflict which, to their credit, works really well. Jennifer Lawrence continues to shine as Hollywood’s new favorite blonde and once again finds herself running through a dark forest fearing for her life. Most of the story revolves around the discovery of Ryan, the surviving son who still lives in the house where his parents were brutally murdered and keeps some dark secrets of his own.

The movie tries to be smart and has a couple of nice twists and more than enough creepy ‘jump-points’ to keep you awake. As with most horror movies there are some pretty large plot holes that we choose to ignore because, let’s face it, you don’t watch this kind of movie for the complex story. Elizabeth Shue plays the concerned/semi-drunk mother effectively and Jennifer Lawrence does a fine job of playing a troubled teenager while wearing an ill-fitting bra (not made for running). Max Thierot is considerably creepy as the troubled Ryan, but definitely doesn’t tingle the spine as much as his character should have.

Keep your expectations at a minimum and you won’t be disappointed.

I give The House at the End of the Street 6.5 ‘dark, horrible secrets that aren’t overly scary’ out of 10.

SPOILERS! – Recap and Reviews – 10/03/12 - Dexter, Once Upon a Time, The Big Bang Theory

Welcome to Spoilers!

In the past I’ve managed to churn out full length recaps and reviews of popular shows like Game of Thrones and True Blood. However now we’re into prime TV season there are just TOO MANY great shows to keep up with everything in such detail. Add to that a hectic lifestyle with a wife, three kids, two cats, a needy dog, a full time job, a part time job, a third job that exists in a parallel universe, podcasting, AND my debut novel being published this fall…I simply don’t have enough time in the cosmos.

However I do have time to watch TV :)  Instead of full length reviews, once or twice a week, I’ll produce ‘Spoilers’: mini-recap/reviews for popular nerd culture shows. The name says it all, there will be spoilers, DO NOT read if you haven’t already watched the episode. Covered shows will include Dexter, The Big Bang Theory, Once Upon a Time, The Walking Dead, American Horror Story, and anything else I manage to catch, maybe even some random weird stuff.

Without further ado…
The Big Bang Theory – Season 6, Episode 1 – The Date Night Variable

The hapless geeks of the Big Bang Theory and their dealings with their cute female neighbor continue to entertain and delight. The writers of the show somehow manage to keep the awkward nuances of the characters, particularly Sheldon (Jim Parson), fresh and hilarious. The season 6 opener featured some nifty shots of Howard (Simon Helberg) floating in zero gravity while arguing between his mother and wife. Raj continues to feel lonely and audiences everywhere must be starting to questions his sexuality. Leonard tries his best to converse with Penny about their relationship while she effectively avoids it and Sheldon and Amy celebrate their anniversary. Funny, quirky, awesome.

I give The Date Night Variable 8 hapless geeks out of 10.

Once Upon a Time – Season 2, Episode 1 – Broken

After Mr. Gold (Robert Carlyle) broke the curse at the end of last season it left audiences wondering how it would change the dynamic of the show for season 2. Simple answer really: it didn’t. The premise remains that fairy tale characters are stuck in our world, the only difference now is that they all have their memories back and know exactly who they are. It was a good opener with Mr. Gold seeking to kill Regina (Lana Parrila) and failing thanks to Emma’s (Jennifer Morrison) intervention. The flashbacks this week revolved around Sleeping Beauty, Prince Philip, and Mulan and the cliffhanger with Emma and Snow White (Ginnifer Goodwin) getting stuck back in the fairy tale world is a great way to kick off the season. A couple of things to note: Prince Charming is still completely lacking in any sort of charm. Mr. Gold is still the best part of the show. And finally why the hell is Emma so pissed off that she actually found her parents? What a royal fairy tale whiner…

I give Broken 8.5 royal fairy tale whiners out of 10.

Dexter – Season 7, Episode 1 – Are You…?

Who would ever have thought that a show about a serial killer that kills killers would ever work? Although it’s had its ups and downs, and frankly I wasn’t a big fan of the first half of the original season, Dexter has easily become one of the best, darkest, and entertaining hour long dramas on TV. After the jaw dropping season 6 cliffhanger which had Debra (Jennifer Carpenter) witnessing Dexter (Michael C. Hall) killing the DDK curiosity ran wild as to how he was going to talk his way out of that one. Here’s one such speculation:

Deb: Did you just kill that man?
Dex: What? No!
Deb: I saw you stab him.
Dex: Who are you going to believe? Me or you?
Deb: Why are you wearing an apron?
Dex: I was cooking.
Deb: In a church?
Dex: Seems logical doesn’t it?
Deb: Why is he wrapped in plastic?
Dex: He was cold?
Deb: You’re a killer!
Dex: Nope, I’m just very passionate about cooking in churches and that man had the nerve to say my curried tomato and orange bisque was not edible!
Deb: Did he really?
Dex: Well, I’m sure he thought it.
Deb: That all seems justifiable then.

Of course it didn’t happen like that. It was much better! Debra struggled through the episode trying to come to terms with what she witnessed while Dexter, very calmly, tries to continue on as usual.

In a single episode Debra figured out exactly what Dexter was up to, seeing directly through his lies, and delivering a final scene that was on par with the previous season cliffhanger. Credit has to be given to the show runners and writers for not dragging this out over several episodes. Debra is too smart of a detective to give up and ends up uncovering Dexter’s ‘dark passenger’. What happens now?! Will Dexter kill her, will he run? She’s an accessory to murder, is she going to turn herself in? So many questions and only 11 more episodes to answer them in. Bring it on!

I give Are You…? 9.5 tomato and orange bisque's out of 10.

Death, the Devil, and the Goldfish - Audio Book!

As you may or may not know (if you don't know, you deserve a slap with a wet fish) my debut novel 'Death, the Devil, and the Goldfish' is being published this fall by Curiosity Quills Press . This ridiculous little cautionary tale detailing exactly what happens when the Devil possesses a cute little kitty cat, hijacks a factory full of robotic Christmas elves, and convinces the Angel of Death to quit his job is a completely true story except for the bits between the beginning and the end that I made up to make it more interesting. The release date will be announced soon but in the meantime be simply content that you won't have to wait too much longer before getting your hands on a copy.

The fantastic news today is not only will you be able to read all about Death, the Devil, and the Goldfish but you'll also be able to listen to it as an audio book to be released at the same time as the digital downloadable copies! Who would be crazy enough to read such a thing? Glad you asked. Fully prepared to completely display his sultry, uncensored, vocals for the audio book is none other than podcaster, comedian, musician, blogger, and all-round uber-talented Englishman, Jon Cross (pictured here in his natural state). Jon's highly popular podcasts The After Movie Diner and Dr Action and the Kickass Kid (with Paul Crowson) can both be found on iTunes as a free download or you can check out his websites here and here. You can also stalk him on Facebook and Twitter. I've had the pleasure of being a guest on the After Movie Diner and utilizing Jon's wide range of voices on the Fairy Tales Out Loud series, also available on iTunes or from this very site. Jon's sense of humor, accent, and vocal range are perfect for the satirical tone of Death, the Devil, and the Goldfish and I couldn't be happier to have him wrap his vocal cords around my words (that sounds dirty, it isn't). 

Look for the digital and audio versions coming this fall!