The Sword and Laser discussion
TV, Movies and Games
>
What else are you watching?
Mod
I love "For All Mankind" by far the best show on Apple+ (Slightly ahead of Ted Lasso)
Loved Prey.
Ms. Marvel was ok. I would have liked it more 50 years ago.
She-Hulk. Tatiana can do no wrong.
Cross-peaust from Discord...Finally got around to watching the first episode of Ms. Marvel. I wasn't all that interested in the character or the premise but hey, MCU. Anyway, it managed the Marvel references well, but otherwise left me meh. I read the miniseries a while back and noted it was fairly faithful to the comic, including one scene with the brother reading from the Koran with a shot that could have been direct from the comic.
Powers are recast, fine. The bracelet looked like a nega-band to me so I kept looking for the other one. Probably the best part was the cosplay competition with Captain Marvels through the ages. I find the storytelling device of "but wait, there's another obstacle" excruciatingly dull, so large chunks of the plot just left me cold.
Only five more so I'll probably get to them eventually. In the meantime, Werewolf By Night is topical and looks like cheesy fun, so that's likely next.
Marvel has a bad habit in their recent series of taking the first 2 eps to do stage setting/world building. Moon Knight did the same thing. Ms Marvel really picked up in the third episode, I thought, and while I started out thinking it was hitting beats in a very stock manner (Geeky kid, misunderstood by overly strict parents sneaks out and gets in trouble...) it came into its own and ended up being quite good.
Cross post on Werewolf by Night!Watched Werewolf by Night yesterday. Cheesy awesomeness! Shot in black and white with only one item in color. That's the Bloodstone, the Macguffin for the show. Obvious riffs to old monster movies. Topical for Halloween. The plot involves a bunch of monster hunters seeking the Bloodstone's power for their own hunts, but things are definitely Not What They Seem. Great use of (view spoiler) powers and abilities about what I remember from the comic altho this one is (view spoiler) Perhaps he's been quietly rectonned. 55 minutes long, a "special" so only one episode. Give it a watch!
John (Taloni) wrote: "Cross post on Werewolf by Night!..."I understand this is the directing debut of Michael Giacchino who is usually a music composer. He did the Incredibles score which is one of my favorites, and scored a bunch of other good films as well.
Ms. Marvel Eps 3 and 4: Soooo much to unpack! Gonna spoiler protect the whole thing, can't really discuss without full-ep spoilers.(view spoiler)
So why is the show such a ratings dud? It's really too bad. The actress playing Kamala Khan is a Marvel fan, and that's something I really want to encourage. But this show's ratings were well worse than any other Marvel entry.Two reasons - manbabies don't like female-led properties (see Captain Marvel and She-Hulk which also got review bombed before they ever released) and some bigots have issues with it being a Muslim lead and character.
The show really does pick up in Ep 3 and I won't comment on your other points, because some of them are addressed in the final 3 eps.
I think Rick is nailing a ton of the right answer on that. And As you acknowledged J(T) it is more of an all ages show than some of the other Marvel properties. I would have hoped this would have brought on more viewers, not less, but I think there is a category of folks this turns off as well. Funny enough I think this and She Huk are probably my favorite of the Marvel tv shows so far. I like the fact that both felt more like TV shows, than mini series like in the other shows. While I really liked aspects of Wondavision, especially the first half of the season, in the end I would put it behind Loki and Hawkeye for me.
I hope what the producers are finding is they can tell these other types of stories besides just action one, just set in the Marvel universe. That is where I'm having the most fun with these at least. But, if those aren't the shows that are getting the numbers, I'm not sure they will stick with them.
As I mentioned the other day, I’m in the bag for both Ms. Marvel and She-Hulk. The latest episode of She-Hulk was hilarious.So far Hawkeye is still my favorite Disney MCU show, but that’s like naming my favorite part of a hot fudge sundae. It’s all good. (Except Falcon & Winter Soldier. That was a huge miss for me.)
I also liked Werewolf By Night, but at 50 minutes it felt more like a single episode of a TV series rather than a complete entity unto itself. It’s a fun divertimento.Man-Thing being so prominent was cool. That’s one of the few characters I don’t have a take on when it comes to bringing them to live action, so I liked seeing what they did with him. He was teased all the way back in the pilot of Agents of SHIELD, which underscores how deep the Marvel bench is. But Harriet Sansom Harris is one of my favorite character actors, so that goes a long way to adding to the awesome.
Trike wrote: "I also liked Werewolf By Night, but at 50 minutes it felt more like a single episode of a TV series rather than a complete entity unto itself. It’s a fun divertimento.Man-Thing being so prominent..."
My wife and I really enjoyed both She-Hulk and Ms Marvel. Both in keeping with the source material and expanding the type of stories the MCU is telling.
I loved that Kamala is (view spoiler)
Interesting convo above, lemme get back to that in a bit. First up tho: Watched the last two eps. Was fairly underwhelmed. The first three quarters of the final action sequence hit with the emotional impact of a Nickelodeon show. They even had the foam standing in for the slime that Nickelodeon used to have on awards shows.Then there's Kamala jumping and flipping like Spider-Man when they've already clearly established she doesn't have powers beyond the light manipulation and is fairly out of shape for a person her age. Nice try but needed some justification.
Overall villains too easily redeemed. You spend 80+ years wanting to go home, are willing to destroy another world to do it, but then (view spoiler) Plus, (view spoiler) So there's open plot points for another season, if there were to be one.
I was modestly amused by the love triangle because, well, am I the only one thinking that Bruno and Nakia would make a far better couple?
There's a hard edge to the end that included a criminally underused plot point: Government overreach. Damage Control's actions come close to creating the very villain that they claim to be trying to prevent. Then the impact of that element was reduced as they were "rogue agents." Really? Seems more like policy to me.
Wow, the vice president is flipping like Spider-Man?
Tamahome wrote: "Wow, the vice president is flipping like Spider-Man?"She's in great shape!
Spider-Veep, Spider-Veep, does whatever a Spider-Veep does. Does she flip, round the place? Yes she does, 'cause sheeeeee's...a Spider-Veep!
Just watched the season finale of She-Hulk. I loved it. It was trending all day on Twitter so I had to stay off so not to get spoiled. LOVED IT. (view spoiler)I also liked Ms. Marvel. I like where the shows are going. The only one I didn't watch was Winter Soldier.
Calvey wrote: "Just watched the season finale of She-Hulk. I loved it. It was trending all day on Twitter so I had to stay off so not to get spoiled. LOVED IT. [spoilers removed]I also liked Ms. Marvel. I like ..."
I'm honestly really glad that some people really enjoyed this ending. And you are not alone, I know a few others as well. But it didn't work for me. And I really enjoyed the first 8 episodes. I also was not excited about where the third act was going, but the zag was a bit too far for me. I would have preferred something more original than either of those two options. But it was what it was. I will still probably watch a second season of this, or whatever comes next, I just may not be as pumped about it as I was before this episode.
I thought the She-Hulk finale was fine. It was riffing on the classic Moonlighting meta-commentary about being on a show, but wasn’t quite up to that standard. But given the premise and the way John Byrne ran his era of the comic, it wasn’t a surprise. I *did* really like the reveal about Kevin. (view spoiler)I do wonder what they were referring to about Wong during the stinger. I assume he’s going to show up in several more shows, but none of the ones coming up have a part for him, going by the comics. I can see him as a natural fit in Agatha, but I don’t know if that show is filming yet.
AaaaaH *leaps out of thread* Seeing it next, clicked in here figuring it was more Ms. Marvel talk! Altho I've already seen the spoiler regarding the Hulk. Hrumph.
For anyone too young to know about Moonlighting, and anyone too old to remember what it was like:https://youtu.be/cSUpH8MuUTI
John (Taloni) wrote: "AaaaaH *leaps out of thread* Seeing it next, clicked in here figuring it was more Ms. Marvel talk! Altho I've already seen the spoiler regarding the Hulk. Hrumph."Yeah - folks, use spoilers. USE SPOILERS. I mean, not everyone watches things the second they're released.
I don’t see any spoilers for She-Hulk. Unless the tags aren’t working for some reason.
John (Taloni) wrote: "...Watched the last two eps. Was fairly underwhelmed. The first three quarters of the final action sequence hit with the emotion..."Agree completely with your assessment here. I appreciated the diversity the character brought to the MCU but I had to wonder who the target market was? It was a little dark thematically for little ones with the stories from the Partition and also Crazy Djinn Mom, but everything else pointed to the pre-teen set. The special effects were awful at the Network-TV show level, especially the super-bracelet powers which were a little too Green-Lanternish.
And I also loved the She-Hulk ending although the "reveal" Trike mentioned was a little abrupt. I'm hoping for a 2nd season.
Watched The Curse of Bridge Hollow last night and Missing Link this morning. Both are fun, lightweight entertainment that don’t require much thought. I genuinely laughed out loud a few times during Link. (view spoiler) Both on Netflix.Trailers:
Curse: https://youtu.be/Y-eYqE_X9N8
Link: https://youtu.be/-6jCNhebfg8
Watched The Halloween Tree. I hadn't known that Bradbury's book had been adapted until one of my mutuals on Twitter brought it up. It was a decent enough Sunday morning watch. 70 minutes long and significantly truncates the "history lesson" portions. Girl character added apparently to allow a riff on witches, which covered some horrifying material in a gloss-over fashion. The other three sections came out well. Kind of like a Halloween history lesson so has that "after school special" feel. Bradbury narrated, Leonard Nimoy as the oddball adult (is he Death? Or something else?)I think of the book as "lesser Bradbury" in that it covers elements of what I like about Bradbury and has flashes of brilliance, but isn't as good as quite a few other works. Still worth reading and in this case watching. Bradbury's beautiful and grandiose writing is hard to adapt to the screen, and this one suffers from the same as all the other adaptations. The animation was adequate. This was originally intended as a collaboration with Chuck Jones; now THAT would have been a sight to behold.
Finished Rings of Power season one. Let's the season reviews begin!
The School for Good and Evil on Netflix is… actually quite good. Based on the book of the same name: The School for Good and Evil
Tamahome wrote: "Finished Rings of Power season one. Let's the season reviews begin!"Going in I really wanted to enjoy it.. which I did.. kinda, but... while the individual story elements and characters were all fine, when grouped together the whole was somehow not very satisfying.
There were some great moments but I feel that the inexperience of the showrunners was apparent.
But I will be back on day 1 for the start of season 2. What else is a boy to do?!
I recently watched Vesper. Although tagged as thriller, I’d definitely place in the sci-fi genre. It’s a post-apocalyptic earth with some truly fascinating plant and animal life. Main character is a 13-year old girl with some bio-hacking chops. Great actor. For post-apocalyptic, it has a feel of hopefulness and beauty. Don’t resist because of perceptions on this genre. It’s definitely NOT the road. 😏
Kenley wrote: "I recently watched Vesper. Although tagged as thriller, I’d definitely place in the sci-fi genre. It’s a post-apocalyptic earth with some truly fascinating plant and animal life. Main character is ..."What channel is it on?
Watched a couple episodes of Star Trek: Lower Decks. Every so often it’s pretty funny.I particularly enjoyed the other Orion guy they met on Deep Space Nine, and his reveal made me laugh out loud. (view spoiler)
I think this season of Lower Decks in particular has been extremely good. I think it just finally found its grove as a full ensemble show, instead of primarily being about Marriter. While it still makes in jokes about the rest of the series, I also think it toned those down just a bit this season, and that helped.
Trike, I did a rental on Apple TV. So not a freebie.
Kenley wrote: "Trike, I did a rental on Apple TV. So not a freebie."I checked because I want to watch this. Its on a couple platforms
Amazon, Google Play, YouTube and a couple others. I have Amazon already. I may watch this over the weekend.
I'm 3 episodes into Lauren Beukes's timey wimey serial killer story The Shining Girls on Apple.
Kenley wrote: "Trike, I did a rental on Apple TV. So not a freebie."Jennifer wrote: "Kenley wrote: "Trike, I did a rental on Apple TV. So not a freebie."
I checked because I want to watch this. Its on a couple platforms
Amazon, Google Play, YouTube and a couple others. I have Amaz..."
Gotcha, thanks. 👍🏻
Today I watched House of Dark Shadows from 1970. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0065856/
I liked it. For 1970 it was a good story. It is essentially the TVshow in movie form. It was made by the folks who did the tv show. With the film, they could go more violent and gory.
Just watched the original 'Bride of Frankenstein'. Most amazing thing I can take away from that movie is how a character who only gets about 10 minutes of screen time became such an icon.
Suffering from House of the Dragon's deficiency now that's it's over. Just finished the Indian version of Forrest Gump, Laal Singh Chaddh, in Netflix and OMG it is awesome, I might prefer it than the original. Fantastic OST and cinematography too. I cried a few times. I also watched The School for Good and Evil - it's mindless fun and I watch it with zero expectation. Cool CGI and OST.
Finished with Malory Tower season 3 - love it!
And of course still enjoying SpyxFamily season 2.
Watched the season finale of Dr. Who. Not gonna front, I was not a fan of this doctor and was watching kind-of like a fan of Itchy and Scratchy on the episode where they killed off Poochie. But not quite. (spoiler protecting for politeness, anyone who really cares has likely seen it already.)(view spoiler)
John (Taloni) wrote: "Watched the season finale of Dr. Who. Not gonna front, I was not a fan of this doctor and was watching kind-of like a fan of Itchy and Scratchy on the episode where they killed off Poochie. But not..."I've been really enjoying the recent episodes with the Master. I'm excited to see the next thing. Do we have to wait almost a year for the 60th anniversary special?
I've been watching the new season of For All Mankind. It's good.
I just started watching She-hulk I’m only on E3 and I like it so far but I heard it gets bad after 4
Christos wrote: "I just started watching She-hulk I’m only on E3 and I like it so far but I heard it gets bad after 4"My wife and I really enjoyed it. A bit messy but great fun.
^^ Depends on what you're after. Superhero fare? Doesn't have it. I mean, the weak woosed up Wrecking Crew alone was enough to make me gag. The final episode, either hilarious parody or tedious overdone message show depending on your POV.Looking for Marvel style Ally McBeal? Yeah, this has it. FWIW my wife liked the idea and asked me to watch it with her. She enjoyed it a lot. I rolled my eyes at least twice an episode.
There are worse ways to spend a half an hour, so watch the last five and see what you think.
Christos wrote: "I just started watching She-hulk I’m only on E3 and I like it so far but I heard it gets bad after 4"I liked it a lot. It might be my favorite Marvel TV series. The ending was great although you will understand why some people didn't like it.
The Sword and Laser
Books mentioned in this topic
A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms (other topics)The Thursday Murder Club (other topics)
Ironheart, Vol. 1: Those With Courage (other topics)
For He Can Creep (other topics)
The Shadow Rising (other topics)
More...
Authors mentioned in this topic
George R.R. Martin (other topics)Robert Jordan (other topics)
George R.R. Martin (other topics)
Robert Jordan (other topics)
George R.R. Martin (other topics)
More...
We did get an angry 16 year old Chihuahua. That’s pretty bad.