#the storylines the cameos the characters the effects? perfection.

[fandomcentralsposts]

WHO IS YOUR FAVOURITE FEARLESS HERO??? WHO 👏IS👏 YOUR👏 FAVOURITE 👏FEARLESS👏 HEEERROOOO👏

#why was the movie so fucking good #the storylines the cameos the characters the effects? perfection. #the way they handled anxiety attacks and fear of death in a kids movie was so impressive #puss in boots #puss in boots the last wish #10/10 would recommend #kitty softpaws #goldilocks #big jack horner #death #mama bear #papa bear #baby bear #perro #sherk #who is your favorite fearless hero #fairytale #childhood nostalgia #memes #bully maguire

[lylethewaterguy]

Finally got around to watching Superman & Lois and just finished season 2, so here are some random thoughts:

I love John and Nat with every fiber of my being, they are literally perfect. Especially Nat. I have no notes other than I want to see her happy more.

Jonathan is like the best brother/son/friend ever and he's never done anything wrong in his life (including the drugs, fight me)

Jordan is kinda narcissistic (is that how that's spelled?) and really should pay attention to the people around him more. But also he’s a child so it’s chill.

Speaking of which, when is the show gonna stop pretending like Lois and (especially) Clark aren’t neglectful of Jon? They clearly have a favourite son and don't seem to give two shits about their other one unless he's in trouble.

Also, when is the show gonna stop pretending like Jon doesn't have powers? We saw him throw a football at a rope and break it in episode one. A human 5-7 year old (idk how to tell the age of children) can't do that??? The boy clearly has latent powers.

Lucy was kinda annoying throughout season 2, but she was also manipulated by a cult so it's not technically her fault and it was in line with her character (was still mildly annoying to watch her constantly flip flopping tho).

I really like the Lang/Cortez/Cushing family. At first I was like "are we gonna have to care about these people too?" but they really grew on me and I like having the more grounded side stories next to the super stuff.

I think all the actors are really great and Tyler and Elizabeth really sell it as Clark and Lois. Only problem I have with either of their characters (besides their treatment of Jon) is the superman suit. I hate that neckline with every fiber of my being. And it’s made so much worse by the fact that we’ve already seen way better superman suits by the arrowverse.

Look I'm really happy for the actor getting that bag but can the arrowverse writers PLEASE let John Diggle out of this weird tv show limbo. Everytime he shows up in a cameo it takes years off my life. Don't get me wrong, I love him. But that's why I want him to just get to move on rather than showing up every single season in a pointless cameo where literally any other character could've worked just as well. Either let this man have an actual storyline or let him go home to his family, please.

I'm kinda glad that the show is in it's own universe. Since that way they can have more of a free reign on which characters to include and they can have their own versions of characters we've already seen in the arrowverse. That being said I just hope they actually use that opportunity. I forever stand by the fact that a superhero universe in which Booster Gold doesn't make sense is a superhero universe I want nothing to do with. Superheroes are so much more fun when they have friends and teams. So I just hope we actually get to see other heroes (even if they're mostly in the background) and aren't just stuck in a "superman and co are the only heroes that exist" type universe.

I kinda love how they keep baiting people with who the villain of the season is. Basically outright stating it's one character and then being like sike it's actually a different character, then sike again they weren't even a villain. It's kinda camp.

I think the show is pretty good at handling more serious and human topics, but I think their representation of mental health issues could really use some work, and is kinda frustrating to watch at times.

On a technical note jesus christ that final episode gave me a headache. All that glitching was extremely overwhelming and made it really difficult to focus.

Overall I like the show. It's fun, it's entertaining, it's emotional enough without being slow or forced, the special effects are pretty good and there's no characters I actually fully dislike. I mainly just wish Jon was treated as an actual equal member of their family and that Clark didn't show clear favouritism for children with powers (or at the very least that they properly addressed that favouritism).

I don’t know what show I wanna start watching next, except that I want it to be DC, so if you have any suggestions feel free to let me know.

#superman and lois

[ploppythespaceship]

The Orville Season 3 Thoughts & Review

A week late due to traveling, but I adored this season. It’s easily the strongest of the show so far, finally nailing the tone they want and not being afraid to drop the comedy to just tell a damn good story. If this is the quality we can expect going forward, I sincerely hope this isn’t the end for the series. But if it does end here, at least it’s going out on a high note.

What I Liked

This show has had a budget increase, and holy crap, it shows. Everything looks spectacular, especially the special effects and the opening sequence.

Last season, the writers began to show that they were willing to drop the comedic elements at time to just tell a serious story. This season pushes that idea even further. There's definitely room for some laughs and lighthearted fun here and there, but the core of most stories is serious. Several episodes even go to some pretty dark places, dealing with suicide and bigotry and torture. The end result is a show that balances stupid fun and thought-provoking themes incredibly well.

The show is also willing to explore difficult topics that don't have a clear right answer. And I love that. Episodes leave you thinking, wondering if the characters did the right thing as they themselves wonder the same. To me that is so much more engaging than just showing the good guys standing up against the world’s bigotry. They’re real people that are trying to do the right thing, but wrestling with how to go about that in tough situations.

I also appreciate how this season actually goes into more detail about how the utopian future and economy works, especially in the finale. Star Trek tends to be rather handwave-y about it, so hearing Kelly just explain it outright was sort of surprising.

This show has basically perfected its combination of episodic and serialized storytelling. Each episode stands on its own, but with plot threads continuing from story to story and building on each other to create a larger narrative. They're also not afraid to let the episodes be longer if they need room to breathe -- one of the advantages of being on Hulu. Episode 8 in particular had a huge story to tell, so they allowed it a full hour and a half.

I love the shifting of allegiances throughout the galaxy, changing the status quo from season to season in an organic way. We started with the Union against the Krill, then it was the Union and Krill against the Kaylon, and now the Union and Kaylon against the Krill and Moclans.

This season is generally excellent at taking plot threads from previous seasons and bringing them back for an even bigger and more satisfying payoff. Nearly every Moclan episode is referenced in some way to continue that storyline. Laura comes back to give Gordon an even more emotional storyline with her. Teleya comes back to further the Krill alliance storyline. Lysella comes back as a follow-up to “Majority Rule” (and I’d be interested to see her as a main character in season 4). Fucking Dolly Parton comes back. Even Alara gets a cameo.

The Moclan storyline has always been one of the best parts of the show, and they've simply perfected it this season. Topa's journey of self-discovery and ultimate coming out as female was so beautiful and powerful. Then the way everything led to Moclus finally being expelled from the Union... all the groundwork from the previous seasons perfectly led up to an incredibly satisfying moment.

Then in the more personal relationships, Klyden getting called out on his bullshit was immensely satisfying... but I love that they had him realize his errors and return to his family to honestly try again. It happened a bit fast, and I wish they'd done more to show people struggling to forgive him. But considering that season 4 is uncertain, it's probably best to wrap up these plot threads just in case.

Bortus also got so many chances to shine this season. Peter Macon deserves an Emmy -- he's not just delivering deadpan comedy anymore, he's perfectly portraying an uncertain father who loves his child so much that he would do anything for her.

Isaac is another standout this season as he develops even further into his own character. It's fascinating how they touch on the mental health of someone who doesn't have emotions, and Mark Jackson is just spectacular.

What I Didn’t Like

I’m sorry to say that Charly didn’t quite work for me. She feels rather reverse-engineered to fit exactly the arc the season needed, and there wasn’t much to her outside of that. A lot of her personality was based around hating Isaac, with not much else to endear her to me before her death. The big moment works in a vaccum, but ultimately didn’t quite land for me.

Also, considering she’s the only confirmed queer character (you can debate if the Moclans count considering their culture), killing her off isn’t the best look. It’s not the most egregious case of bury your gays I’ve ever seen, but it definitely didn’t sit entirely right with me. I don’t necessarily think they should have let her survive simply beause of that, but having more absolutely confirmed queer characters would alleviate this considerably.

John and Talla don’t have anything to do this season. They’ve always been underrepresented, but this was even worse than usual. They’re only ever in scenes to progress the plot, when someone needs technobabble or something broken. I was intrigued by the idea of them becoming a couple, which I thought might give them something to do, but the show then played it for laughs before dropping the idea entirely -- didn’t love that.

I’ll talk about it more in the next section, but “From Unknown Graves” was really a disappointment that rippled through the season. I just think they needed a little bit more tying all the Kaylon plots together, and that episode was the time to do that. Taking the development that Kaylon could develop emotions, exploring it fully, and then finding a way to tie that into the development of the weapon would have given the overall season much better flow.

Episode Thoughts

Electric Sheep -- The pilot frankly shocked me. The fact that they came out swinging with such a deliberately serious and unfunny episode, touching on the difficult aftermath of a painful battle leading into Isaac's suicide... my god. The actual plot I found a bit lacking, and I don't think this will be a go-to for rewatch, but I can't deny how well-done this was.  

Shadow Realms -- Easily the weakest episode of the season, and frankly one of the weakest in the entire show. Something was just off. The plot wasn't terribly compelling, the guest characters weren't engaging, and it felt like we were just meandering until it was done. Very uninspired and a surprising dip in quality.

Mortality Paradox --  This one was decent. The setup was intriguing, and I genuinely had no idea what was going on until the end. I enjoyed the continuation from "Mad Idolatry" as well. The only thing is I suspect this won't hold up well on rewatch once you know what's going on. It's fine, but not amazing.  

Gently Falling Rain -- Really, really damn good. This one continues the storyline of the Krill alliance while bringing back to Teleya to address her relationship with Ed. And it's incredible. Everything about this, from the politics to the relationship drama to the reveal of Ed and Teleya's daughter, hit hard in exactly the way that it needed to.  

A Tale of Two Topas --  I don't think I have the words, honestly. Watching Topa discover herself and come out was incredibly powerful and handled in such a beautiful and nuanced way that alluded to both trans and intersex issues. Plus Imani Pullum is fantastic as Topa. This is a strong contender for best episode of the entire series.

Twice in a Lifetime --  I liked this one. Seeing Gordon stranded back in time and struggle with that before ultimately seeking out Laura was a great choice for his character. And Ed and Kelly making the painful decision to force him out of that life he'd created for himself hurt. I love that Ed and Kelly clearly don't feel good about it, either, and the episode lets you sit in that discomfort with them, wondering if they should’ve just left him there. My only complaint is that Gordon seeking out Laura and using his future knowledge of her to progress their relationship is a tad creepy, and that doesn't really get addressed.  

From Unknown Graves -- “Shadow Realms” may have been the worst episode of the season, but this one was more disappointing due to the missed potential. The storyline with the matriarchal society did not work for me at all, and as a result, the storyline with the Kaylon getting emotions and the effects it has on Isaac and Claire's relationship did not get nearly the time that they needed to breathe. It just seemed to be put together wrong. I actually did a full write-up on this one.  

Midnight Blue --  This is where everything with the Moclans came to a head, and my god, it was outstanding. Building on Topa's storyline, intersecting it with Heveena's, and all of that leading to the Moclans finally getting called on their bullshit... and making this feature length, no less. This is another contender for best in the series.  

Domino --   An excellent episode with powerful themes and a lot of huge moments... but it did feel a tad bloated. This is one of the few times this season I’ve felt that the freedom to have longer runtimes hurt more than it helped. Trimming this one down to under a hour would really have tightened things up.

Future Unknown -- After two enormous episodes, bringing things back down to a quieter finale was definitely the right call. I adored Claire and Isaac’s wedding, and all the little character moments leading up to it. And bringing back Lysella was a surprising choice, but her scenes with Kelly were all great.

#personal #the orville

[ladymoonveil]

Thoughts on Zack Snyder’s Justice League

If the original JL was a 3/10, this one is closer to a 6/10.  It's definitely an improvement given the fact that it has twice the running time to flesh out various characters and scenes.  Unfortunately, this movie still doesn't make me excited to see more of the Snyderverse, and I'm kind of glad that DC is starting to go in a different direction with their cinematic stuff.  Some additional thoughts below:

The Good

There are some really gorgeous shots in this movie when the slo-mo is aptly used.  A standout scene for me is the football match in the falling snow; from a visual perspective it looked fantastic.

Cyborg got a lot more backstory compared to the original JL, and so did the Flash and Aquaman to a lesser extent.  This time around I was more interested in Cyborg, so the additional time taken to develop his character paid off well.

Overall, the plot is also a lot more cohesive.  For the most part, I understood why the characters acted in certain ways, and the story flowed better from scene to scene.

Despite the fact that this movie is 4+ hours long, it didn't feel like a drag.  I think breaking it up into chapters was a smart decision, and the pacing was fine.

Steppenwolf looks much better in Snyder's version.  I really like the way they animated his armour.

There are some neat fight scenes, and all the characters got their chance to shine at least once.

The Bad

The slo-mo in this movie is like 300 on crack.  It's so excessive that even the moments that really benefit from this effect became less special because you see it so often.

I particularly disliked the scene where the Flash saved the girl from the car accident.  It felt like a worse version of the Quicksilver scenes, and him brushing back the girl's hair instead of just saving her right away is kind of creepy.

I also did not understand why Wonder Woman used her gauntlets to blow out part of that building instead of just incapacitating the guy with the gun.  She's obviously fast enough to do it, and she didn't have to put anyone else outside the building in danger of falling debris or give the impression that a bomb went off.  Just felt incredibly out of character.

There is no reason for the Martian Manhunter to be in this movie.  The fact that the discussion between Martha and Lois was actually a discussion between MM and Lois really cheapened that entire scene for me.  Martha and Lois have barely anything to do in this movie, why didn't Snyder let the real Martha have a heart to heart with Lois about the death of someone that they both loved dearly?  Instead, he turned it into a cheap cameo that ruined the emotional impact between the two characters

Although new characters like Cyborg had some additional screen time to flesh out their backstories, we should have gotten more.  For example, they brought up the huge revelation of Cyborg having control over all the nukes in the world, but then completely glossed over how that works.  Does he need to be in proximity to the nukes?  Can he "accidentally" fire off the nukes if he has a nightmare or something?  Does he even have nightmares anymore?  Cyborg deserves to have his own solo film instead of just being thrown into JL.

Overall, the palette of this film is quite dark and dreary.  The most obvious is when you compare Mera's hair to how it looks in Aquaman.  Even the scene of Clark standing in the field with the sun shining down felt less vibrant than it should have been because of the muted colours.

I'm okay with the whole "motherboxes were sleeping until Superman died" thing, but Darkseid just...forgot where he left the motherboxes and anti-life equation??  What???

The Ugly

Although this cut was better overall, the major failing of JL (and the DCEU in general) is still very clear.   They rushed to get their Avengers equivalent ensemble film but forgot to establish the building blocks first.  This movie basically introduced Aquaman, Flash, Cyborg, and the Martian Manhunter.  That's four new superheroes in a film already dealing with the return of Superman plotline.  Even with the extended running time, this is a terrible idea that does not translate well to a movie franchise, even if it might work in the comic format.  (I honestly forgot that the Aquaman solo movie came after JL.  The order in which they released these DC films is all over the place.)

To be honest, I still think that it was a bad idea to give Snyder Superman.  All the characters in these films keep talking about him as a beacon of hope and a source of inspiration, but I never really felt it.  Snyder's Superman is hyper-focused on Lois Lane, but doesn't seem to care much about humanity in general.  I'm wracking my brain but I can't remember any instances of genuine joy or compassion from this version of the character.  I just don't think that Snyder is capable of writing a good Superman story without turning him evil or killing him. (I'm still salty that Snyder had the Kents suggest to Clark that maybe he should hide his powers instead of using them to help people, and that Clark watched his dad die in the hurricane instead of saving him.  I much prefer the comics where Jonathan Kent died due to a heart attack, since that was a perfect way of humanizing Superman.  No matter how powerful he is, when it came to the  unexpected death of his father in this manner, he was just as vulnerable and helpless as the rest of us.) I guess I have a soft spot for the boy scout characters, and Marvel did a much better job at bringing Steve Rogers to life while keeping him true to his character.   Somehow they made me care more about Captain America than Superman in the cinematic universe, even though Superman is probably my favourite superhero.  I honestly think a lot of the fault lies with Snyder's portrayal of the character on the big screen.

It looks like Snyder's original plan is to build towards something like Injustice (which doesn't surprise me at all).  However, because his Superman is already toeing the edge of darkness, I don't think it will have nearly as much impact/contrast if he does turn evil.

Final Thoughts

This new cut of Justice League is worth watching if you are 1) a fan of the characters, 2) a fan of the genre, and 3) a fan of Snyder's directorial style.  If you don't fit into any of the categories above, you can skip this and spend four hours watching something else instead.

Maybe the biggest issue for me is that he never got me invested in his version of the characters.  I waited for years to see Superman and Batman together on the big screen.  World's Finest are some of my favourite comics to read.  What I got instead was the absolute dumpster fire that was BvS, where Bruce acted like a murderous psychopath, Clark was emotionally detached from the world, and their fight was resolved because "Martha".  While it's true that his cut of JL is better than BvS, it still wasn't enough to redeem the DCEU IMO.

To leave things on a more positive note, if you're as tired of the evil Superman/dead Superman/brooding Superman storylines as I am, might I recommend Jeff Loveness' works?  He's one of my favourite Superman writers, and when I read his stuff I always get that injection of hope that Superman is meant to inspire. Two of my favourites are "Help" (where Lex Luthor is assisted by a regular civilian when his car breaks down), and "Glasses" (where we see Superman through Lois Lane's eyes).  You can also find the scans of these stories on Tumblr if you look around.

My favourite line about Superman from Loveness' comics is, "He could be anyone...and he chooses to be kind."

I wish that we saw more of this Superman in the DCEU, because we could all use a little more kindness in our lives these days.

(And if you do prefer the darker stories, Loveness' entry for the Dark Multiverse: Death of Superman story is fantastic too.)

#Zack Snyder's Justice League #Justice League #Superman #spoilers #DCEU #my thoughts

[dgcatanisiri]

(1/2) I got such a big facepalm when Dorian appiered in tevinter nights and how writing deliberately mentioned that he have only the servants now. I just... Bioware really should stop pretending that Dorian didnt defent horrible things. If anyone of their scenarits gave at least half of theit shit, Dorian could have finally had a conflicked he (as a character) so despiratly needed in Inquisition.

(2/2) But it would probably make many players uncomfortable with their "Best Gay Friend" being not so perfect cinnamon roll UWU as they want, so Bioware just run from risk as fast as from a shitting elefant. Writers dont want Dorian to grow, just be a stereotipical LGBT-doll to bait the audience. The worst thing is - it actually worked... It sickens me. (sorry for my bad english btw) 

I mean, I really would have been down for a “Dorian learns that slavery is bad” push through Inquisition - we have Krem, Bull’s trusted right hand among the Chargers, whose father sold himself into slavery because he couldn’t compete with the prices of slave labor, and yet there’s not even a passing encounter between them. We have Varric, who was friends with an escaped Tevinter slave, and yet Fenris isn’t even NAME-CHECKED, let alone discussed as an example of what is wrong in Tevinter. We have the encounter with Gatt, and, while I understand not making it a must-have encounter because of variation possibilities, Dorian just gets catty at him because he represents the Qunari, rather than having even a moment of recognition that this freed elven slave looked at staying in slavery and joining the Qun, and unreservedly joined the Qunari - kinda shoots holes in that whole “poverty is the same as slavery” thing when the Qun looks better to someone who has suffered under those systems.

But no. We have Dorian revealing that his father would have straightened him out if he’d gotten the chance (and getting the option to push Dorian to “forgive” him, which HELL. NO. and I resent the implication that it’s somehow “better” to do that). And we have Dorian getting harassed by Mother Giselle, framed in such a way that we can only disagree with her asking after the intentions of the Tevinter mage among the Inquisition - when a Tevinter cult centered around an ancient Tevinter magister is the actual enemy of the game. Her concerns are completely justifiable, but the game wants to set her up as a straw villain in opposition to Dorian, with no real room to accept her point of view. But DORIAN, no, he’s got to be in the right.

Like I’ve said before, Dorian just comes across as little more than a prop - there to drop the “homophobia is bad” anvil and then be the ego boost for the female Inquisitor with the “safe” flirting - flirting that leads to that conversation where the Inquisitor will accuse him of leading her on, he’ll offer that line of “in another life” that I despise, and then tell him to keep fluffing her ego. He’s there to be the bestie character, not a character in his own right.

I mean, note that when BioWare DID write a gay character who shut that “friendly flirting” down right off with Gil in Mass Effect Andromeda, Gil has been sidelined all over the fandom. And while part of that is certainly BioWare setting the scene with the combination of minimal focus on him and a homophobic storyline... When it’s compared to Dorian, it gets very, VERY concerning to me on the subject of representation.

Because, end of the day, BioWare is still a business, still trying to make money. And making money means focusing and continuing their successes, cutting their losses when things aren’t working out. So the business approach here says that Dorian is a success, so keep chasing a repeat. Meaning that there’s a not-unreasonable-expectation that whoever DA4′s gay option is, he’ll be a prop as well, yet another gay character suffering something exclusive to his experience as a gay man.

Worse, even, because if they don’t do something like this, when we’re heavily expected to be in TEVINTER and hobnobbing with the elite of that nation, then there are two options to BioWare - either they don’t comment on homophobia in Tevinter, gutting the emotional core of Dorian’s story outright by making it into “not that big a deal” in reality, or they try and argue that Dorian’s efforts at reform have already been turning the tide, which... No. That’s not how society works. If they were already near the point where Dorian’s (acknowledged to be!) long shot minority party has been able to impact society that much, then it was already nearing that change, and, look at that, the emotional core of Dorian’s story is gutted anyway, because now Halward was doing this at a point that it would have reflected poorly on him in society.

BioWare doesn’t THINK about how the things they include will impact the rest of the world. It’s all immediate gains at the expense of future world-building. I mean, hell, that much was obvious with all the snapback Trespasser put the Inquisitor’s choices through, making everything more or less the same.

But it hits with Dorian in a different way because the game wants us to see him as a “good” Tevinter, without ever asking the question of if there ever really can be a “good” Tevinter. And my answer is “not among the Magisterium.” The good Tevinters are ones like Krem, like Fenris, the people who’ve been beaten down by the systems of Tevinter and have no voice.

I stand by the idea that, if BioWare wants us to have some kind of conflict in DA4, some decision point, where Dorian’s life hangs in the balance and it defines who gets to “rule” Tevinter going forward... Honestly, I can very easily accept Dorian as a casualty. Of course, given how BioWare has gone out of their way to play him up as “the good Tevinter” in the last few years with their supplementary material (he’s been in like every comic story arc they’ve published over the last few years in some capacity, even just a one-issue cameo), I’m reluctant to believe they’d actually even go through with that - “oh, no one would sacrifice Dorian, so let’s not put that in, no one would choose [other option] over him.”

I get that, in a barren landscape, Dorian represents a very powerful SOMETHING to audiences. Hell, I even understand the people who are moved by his story, even if I’d deeply critical of it - just because I find it reduces him to a prop for the development of the straight man who would have done that to him, that doesn’t mean that other people can’t find meaning and can’t connect with Dorian himself. But it’s a very real counterpoint that, in a barren landscape, Dorian also by design fails to be what just as many people needed him to be as he provides. And, rather than listen to anyone who was left unsatisfied, the overwhelming attitude I’ve seen from both the fandom, in their treatment of anyone who DOES have criticisms towards him, and BioWare, in their portrayal through merch (having his hoodie modeled by and shaped for women’s bodies) and supplementary material (the comics, Tevinter Nights), don’t care to address, that they want to just sweep it under the rug and lavish praise on Dorian for being what he is in Inquisition.

And, again, all I see in Inquisition is a prop for gay pain causing straight people character growth and development. I’m not here for that.

#0alix0 #dg replies #dg plays dragon age #dorian critical

[calliecat93]

ST: TNG S5 Watchthrough Episodes 18-21

Cause and Effect: Who’s ready for the ST equivalent of Groundhog Day? Yep, we have a time loop episode. This is actually my mom’s favorite episode so I’ve been waiting for this one XD.So the episode opens with the Enterprise blown up… and after the titles we have a poker game as though nothing happened. But Crusher begins to have deja vu and as the loops continue, so do the others. So... If you’ve seen time loop stories you more or less know how this goes. Though unlike most of the oens I’ve seen where just one person becomes aware of it, while Crusheris the first the others also begin to take notice. The don’t remember everything, but they start picking up on it and figuring out that something’s up. Again, I appreciate the cast being written as competent and not stupid cause it’s very easy to do with this kind of plot. Not sure I at all understand Data’s explanation on how he figured out how to end the loop... but hey, it ended. So it was good. Nothing mind-blowing but very much enjoyable. Any time that Crusher gets prominent screentime I’m happy, but again I just appreciate the cast being intelligent. Also the Kelsey Grammer cameo at the end, Hell yes~! 3.5/5.

The First Duty: Okay Wesley, second guest star appearance. Let’s see how it goes. Which, haha... it’s not a happy episode for him. There’s been an accident at the Academy and while thankfully Wesley is alright aside from an injured arm, one of his classmates has died. Well… that’s sad. That n and of itself could fuel a story all its own. But as a hearing is held, it becomes clear that something more is going on. As it turns out, Wesley’s teammate died because the entire squadron not only performed an illegal flight procedure… but lied about it. First that it was an accident, then that the accident and his own demise was his own fault. Why? To save their own skins. Now to be fair it’s clear that they’re scared, but it doesn’t change the fact that they’re essentially lying/disgracing a dead person to save themselves. Even the kid’s own father gets convinced of this, which only adds to Wesley’s guilt. I actually felt really bad for Wesley and I kinda feel like Picard, upon confronting him, was… pretty harsh. Wesley’s actions were wrong, but again he was clearly scared and felt guilty for it. Thankfully he does ultimately do the right thing, accepting the consequences. Hopefully, Wesley can push through it and grow from it if he shows up again. My mom doesn’t like this episode I guess because of how it portrayed Wesley, but honestly? I like it for that exact reason. Welsey isn’t portrayed necessarily as bad, he’s reacting like… well… a scared nineteen-year-old. He made a major mistake, and he paid the price for it, though it certainly wasn’t the worst punishment that he could have received. While Picard was rather harsh when confronting him, it was the push that Wesley needed to do the right thing. I think that this was the kind of episode that Wesley needed, where he commits a huge screw-up and unlike when he was a regular, pays the consequences for it… it’s just a shame that they did it after he stopped being a regular. I can see why some may dislike this one because of Wesley’s portrayal, but I think it was good and was long overdue for the character without villainizing him. He’s intelligent and capable of greatness, but he’s got a lot to learn, especially after this. Let’s hope that he does. 3.5/5.

Cost of Living: It’s another Lwaxana episode folks… yay. Okay despite my complaints about her episodes, the last one’s issues I had was more due to the subject matter than the character. If anything, she was the best part of it. So maybe this time things will be better. So this time, Worf is having parenting problems with Troi trying to help him and Alexander make it work. Lwaxana is on the Enterprise as she’s getting married, to Troi’s exasperation and Picard’s utter relief, and ends up butting in. Oh and the ship malfunctions because it’s Star Trek. So… it was okay I guess? The Holodeck scene was just utterly bizzare and I’m still trying to wrap my brain around WTF just happened. To be honest, Troi is the best part of this episode. She’s trying to reasonable help Worf with his parenting issues, Alexander with his lack of discepline/responsibility, her mother marrying a guy she never met and bending agains the Betazoid traditions that she usually follows, and she’s clearly just fed up with everyone especially her mother. It makes her such a joy to watch, haha! Lwaxana was… alrigh. On the one hand, it ws not at all her place to butt into the whole Alexander situation especially since Troi was handling it. On the other hand, the episode does go more into how lonely Lwaxana is and make her manhunting/desire tog et married more sympathetic. Te previous episodes always played it mainly as a joke/a condition of her species at her age, but it never allowed her to actually delve into why she’s so desperate. How she’s fears rowing older and being all alone without someone to love her… and gosh I’ve absoluteley seen this before and it’s just sad. Consideirng that this came out the same year that Gene Roddenberry, majel Barret’s husband and of course as we know the franchise creator, has passed… I can only imagine how rough this had to be for the poor woman. But if she wad channeling that into her performance, she did a fantastic job. Also Lwaxana’s fiance? He was played by freakin’ Tony Jay. The man is a freakin’ legend the voice acting world (probably best known as Frollo in Disney’s The Hunchback of Notre Dame, by far his darkest performance yet probably his best) and it’s the first time I’ve seen him in a live aciton role. He plays a snobish asshole and obviousy the marriage falls through in the end, but he made the episode worth it! So yeah, I’m still not a big Lwaxana fan but they are trying to add more to her and overall it was fine. It’s not great, for example the Enterprise’s plot felt tacked on to fill in the runtime, the pacing was rouh, and the storylines were not at all balanced out well. But it was overall fine, though i think Half a Life did her better. Troi, some legit Lwaxana development, and getting an appearance by Tony Jay made it worth it XD 2/5.

The Perfect Mate: While preparing for a peace treaty, the Enterprise picks up two Ferengi, one of which messes with the cargo, and releases a young woman named Kamala, a mutant amongst her kind whose abilities let her become the perfect mate for any man, from suspended animation. She was meant to stay that way until the ceremony... and was meant to be a ‘gift’ to one of the sides. Yeah... that’s not at all messed up. Due to the Prime Directive, the crew can’t interfere... and we find out that there was a more complicated reason as to why Kamala was as she was. This is pretty much the TNG version of Elaan of Troyius from TOS. Kamala is completely different from Elaan, more composed and well-mannered while Elaan was more aggressive and upfront. Looking back I do feel I was too harsh in calling Elaan a brat considering the conditions she was under, but the episode certainly didn’t give he much sympathy from anyone (aside from Kirk) while they do better calling out the arrangement here. Then again it’s been months since I watched the episode so I may be remembering wrong. But it does ultimately end with Kamala entering an unhappy marriage, but she bonds with Picard and ends up acting as his perfect mate, so... hope that goes well. The whole empath/metamorph thing felt necessary as well, you didn’t need a reason to make men attracted to her for this episode to work. Which yes it only works on men, remember this is the 90’s folks. I’m kind of baffled as to why Troi wasn’t in this one considering we have another empath, that could have added a more interesting layer and justified that part. But I shall repeat what I said in Elaan when they put Kirk under that tear-induced love spell: you don’t need those elements to keep a plot spicy. The Ferengi we're also utterly pointless. While I feel that the subject is better done than in TOS and it felt more evenly paced... I’m still not a fan of it. It has more of the nuanced debate on the arranged marriage plot that I was annoyed that Elaan didn’t have... but I’m still pretty meh about it overall. it’s alright, but just that: alright. 2.5/5.

Okay folks, we’re five episodes away from finishing S5. So far... it’s only been alright. There’s been a couple of strong episodes, but overall it’s remained firmly in the average range. Maybe S4 hyped me up too much, IDK. I’m still having fun, but maybe I’m just starting to get fatigued from TNG. But we don’t have much more to go, and there’s still plenty of time for S6 to change my mind, so we’ll see how things go from here.

#st watchthrough

[fuckblizzardbearlover]

Ok so reasons why i Love Warcraft the Beginning, and why its perfect and i hope for more. Might be a little incorherant cus i'm just doing my thoughts as they come. i  dont have the time to spend hours writing articles i'm not being payed for.

Yes Warcraft is a great, i say Perfect movie. "But it has flaws". Everything does. That perfect movie you love so much? someone found it boring, someone found it pretentious , someone found it stupid. Perfect pizza? someone doesnt like your toppings, someone thought there wasnt enough for it. A movie, a show, a book, art in general cannot be judged by an arbitrary list of items it must meet to sufficient quality. "no plotholes, great acting, good effects" are not good qualifiers. Most ppl dont know the meaning of plotholes, different tons of story require different acting (Casablanca is seen as a masterpiece but i dislike movies of that era because the acting is over the top, stiff, and campy. however that does not make them bad, it just means i dont like it). Really the only way a piece of art can be judged is by judging it based on what it TRIED to do. If your character is suppose to show they are angry in this scene and they just seem constipated then you did fail and that was bad acting. But if your character is suppose to be angry and some of the audience thinks they should have acted a different way, then thats just a difference of opinion between author and audience.

So what did Warcraft the Beginning TRY to do? Pay homage to the original franchise, tell a heartfelt complex story, give a larger than life epic, and reinterpret the story into something thats better than it was and can be accepted by a general audience

-So i love how much the art, style and themes embraced the franchise. The intro was PERFECT. The little cameos and everything were well done. For some weird reason a few thought that was cringe but part of good cameos is world building. They arent putting "this way to the stoutelager inn" so fans can go "i get that refrence" they are doing it to create  a scene that involves a sign to an inn and might as well be a real one from the story, right? The franchise STARTED as Err orcs bad humans good but it has since evolved past that, and you saw that with the  theme of the H and A heroes banding together against guldan. The armor and costumes were perfect, using the major flair of warcraft without being overly done. Llane's and Lothar's armor is perfect example.

some people have a problem with what i'd say was the "family friendly epic fantasy adventure" aspect of the movie. yes pacing was quick but when you go into a weird story you just suspend disbelief and take things as you go. They never explain how the Flashy Thingies in men in black work, they just do. you accept it and move. And there was some slightly heavy handed themes and moments. but thats what we call Camp. Its a fantasy adventure, you have snark, a few cheesy lines, hope vs darkness and all that good stuff. I remember when Wonder Woman came out an interviewer asked about the....hammy? ending. i think they used  a different word. but the idea was that it seemed...bad? that the ending revolved around Wonder woman's faith in humanity, faith in goodness and trying to do good, was naieve. And Patty Jenkens said that she thinks the world needs more hope like that, not everything is doom and gloom and the point of a hero is to be hopeful.

A GOOD movie, a PERFECT movie doesnt need to be high art. Ppl talk about inception cus it was so intense but IMO if half the audience doesnt know whats happening then its not so good is it? and like i said So many "great perfect movies' in history are boring, or weird or unlikable to many people. And i think its a great detriment to the world that people got to act like only high art movies that win awards are any good.

And then there is the story and charactes. I loved Lothar and Llane, very relatable and good example of heroic men. The mirror between the father Lothar and Durotan was great. I loved how well they did the orcs, just everything about them. Like their meeting and having it so that you could only understand the side you were listening from, if you listen when its focused on the orcs and Garona is translating you can hear Llane speaking something that is NOT english. But like even with the kinder orcs they kept the furiosity. Durotan makes it clear that their world is dead and they cannot simply go back, and thats very realisitc. even were it not for guldan if he was fighting to save his people he'd willingly fight the humans if they tried to stop them. It was great seeing them touch on the idea of the fel infused orcs with Medivh's ability to create spells that specifically target them. Oh and geeze his whole arch. the actor and directing i think did a great job of showing him struggling to do as much as he could to help the alliance against the orcs. He seemed addled, like he was losing it or on drugs but you find out it is really because the fel is taking hold of him. thats what was great about the last guardian is the whole Inner monster storyline. Betrayal of one's self and all that. And it showed the variety in the orcs, yes you had dark ones who embraced the pillage too, and its a shame that the campfire scene "but you're...Green" scene didnt make it. Kadgar, did a good job with the whole "he's smart enough to notice when his 'betters' are wrong but he's young and inexperienced and doesnt know how to assert himself" was great.  Its funny cus some didnt like he didnt age, but far as i can tell nothing in warcraft even addressed that. Like he mentions once or twice in the book and in click dialogue that it sucks losing his childhood but there is no angst about it. you wouldnt know he's only in his 40s now. Even his little cinematic before legion focused on him taking up the mantle of the guardian.

And then there are the improvements it made. Rise of the Horde was good but they didnt have time to have the 'non fel orcs being around fel turn slightly green', so it was a good choice to have that dynamic visual change. Lothar's son arc i think gave him more of a personal reason to be invested in this other than "defense of our nation". And it kinda sucks in the original narrative that stormwind just kinda got its butt kicked. I'm sure it will still fall but it will be nice to see more effort put into it. And goodness we actually got to see varian's mother? and she was an important part of the story? she was an interesting character and had influence and was crucial to getting garona on their side. Speaking of , Garona by herself is the best change and alone makes this movie better than the original. She is a product of love, the first human/orc couple, presumably when Medivh was first exploring Draenor. And not a tool created by rape? Its so great that this shitty aspect of the story generated from the naive creator's idea of womens place in stories, was rewritten. Oh i'd be the first to say it wasnt malicious. but between Kerrigan and Sylvannas and Garona, heck this attitude exists today. That a man's humanity comes from his family, that he is violent emotionless and a killer but a wife brings out his peace and children his humanity . so the worst thing that can happen to him is his family is killed, thus bringing the beast back. And that for a Woman she is defined by her love of the man, does she reject him or accept him, does she play hard to get or support him? how freely does she give herself to him. And thus the worst thing that can happen to a woman is to have her body violated, and what many guys who grew up in the 70s-90s fantasy era that was the go to story. Woman is violated (in body) and gets her revenge and feels empowered by killing her rapist. while the man is violated by those he LOVES being killed, and empowered by avenging them and finding a new family (or a way to honor the dead ones)

So yea its REALLy awesome that this story rejected that whole farse and said "no, the key behind saving both peoples is a young woman who exists because 2 people from different planets loved each other"

#decided to leave this hear to repost elsewhere when people are awake #warcraft #duncan Jones #warcraft the beginning #the world of warcraft

[niki-frost]

Say in a few years they decided to remake OUAT and chose you as the lead writer/director, what would you keep from the old show and what would you change (y'know, besides the obvious) and what would you add?

Fantastic and thoughtful question! Thank you!

(Showrunner would be the term used here, as a roomful of writers have to write according to the showrunner, directors have to direct based on the script they’re given, and there’s usually a different director for every episode. Showrunners often like to direct the first and last episode of every season, also.)

I think I would try to stay true to the first season as much as possible and then take things in a different direction from there. Season 1 was so very special and I want to honor that, to bring the show back to its roots in a rustic Storybrooke and a minimalistic Enchanted Forest, in a storyline that focused on character development and their relationships with each other in both the past and the present. As much as I adore Disney stories, there are a lot of crossovers from the rest of the show that I would cut out. Too many characters made the ensemble too wide, and we lost so many crucial moments for characters to grow and evolve and interact with each other, all for a few cheesy Frozen cameos and too many AU versions of the same character. When shows gain popularity and bigger budgets, it’s so easy to forget what’s important in favor of using more special effects and CGI and big fancy sets, and I think that’s where OUAT started going downhill. They got popular, received more funding, and started focusing on trying to please every single outspoken fan screaming for certain characters or ships or cameos... and they lost sight of their own story. Fans are vital to a show, yes, but most of them don’t know how to craft good stories for television. They aren’t professional storytellers for a reason, and they all want different things. Trying to implement everything they want in your story is a recipe for complete disaster.

I would try to keep a lot of the main cast, but there would for sure be some recasts to remove actors who have made homophobic jokes or have encouraged toxic behavior in their fans, as my version of a remake would definitely be SwanQueen endgame. That being said, I think I would keep a lot of the H00d/H00k stuff as important plot points, highlighting the unhealthy nature of their relationships so that in the end, Emma and Regina would come full circle and realize they’re perfect for each other. I don’t think I would have needed to change much about H00k’s progression, except this time around, Emma would actually be aware of his toxic behaviors, call him out on it, and eventually cut him out of her life because she realizes he’s bad for her. H00d would likewise be treated similarly, except Regina would kick him out of town the moment he tried to sleep with her while his wife was in a coma in the next room. (Marian wouldn’t be Zelena in disguise. There’s too much rapey context there for what was supposed to be a Disney show. Marian would awaken and have Roland again and she’d take over the Merry Men. I would have made Zelena her own standalone villain, sweeping into town in perhaps season 2 or 3 on a cyclone, having finally figured out how to escape Oz and get to Storybrooke to get her revenge on Regina, only to later be defeated and put through rehabilitation. The Regina/Zelena sisterly bond is too important and I think their progression from enemies to sisters should have been more thoroughly explored.)

Split Queen, as entertaining as it was, would not have made it into my version. It felt like forcing more drama into a character that had already gone through so much personal growth, and her suddenly being “afraid” of her own darker instincts and wanting to be physically separated from it seemed like absolute bull to me. Regina’s a smart woman, and that had been the dumbest decision she’d ever made. Dark Swan would have stayed in Storybrooke (bye bye, Camelot, you useless loaf of greenscreen) and would have brought out the worst in Emma regarding all her inner struggles with being abandoned and sacrificed by her parents for the “greater good.” There should have been so much more Emma/Snow/David angst that they completely missed out on, especially between Emma and Snow. The Emma/Regina relationship would have been in that I-hate-you-because-I-secretly-love-you phase around this time, H00k would turn on her and, in his obsessive hatred of any Dark One, would try to kill Emma, citing is as a “mercy” because he loves her and would rather her die than to be evil. Striking a mortal blow to Emma, he’s about to finish the job when Regina blasts him away. Emma’s fading, about to die from whatever Dark-One-killing-weapon H00k had stabbed her with, and Regina would save her with a True Love’s Kiss.

We’re all gluttons for punishment, so of course Emma will be in denial and Regina will be bitter about it. I feel like this would be an excellent chance to make H00k the villain he was always supposed to be, escaping his prison cell and fleeing Storybrooke, only to return with friends to get revenge on Emma for daring to reject him even after she was cured of being the Dark One. This would be a fun point to bring in a cameo or two of villains to join H00k and terrorize the town with a new curse. As our heroes deal with this new headache, Emma and Regina are forced to work together. Henry would encourage them to talk, and with his optimism, they slowly find their way back to their friendship and more.

I don’t know that Hyperion Heights would have happened in my version. It was an entertaining reboot in a fresh location and I loved adult Henry, Ivy, Jacinda and Sabine. But again, the convoluted storyline and cheating and rape and weird pervy moments kind of sour the whole season for me. I would have gotten rid of a LOT of the realm jumping throughout the seasons, focused on a lot of character backstory and relationships in Storybrooke, and then perhaps have made a single curse (much like the first curse) that simply dropped all our beloved characters in a new world somewhat like Hyperion Heights, except without the confusing time jumps and new/AU characters. It would have been the last big hurdle for the heroes to solve before returning home, now with the ability to portal-jump to the Enchanted Forest to visit their medieval friends. And of course, Emma and Regina would be the power couple overseeing it all, making sure to keep their worlds safe and protected for many decades to come.

I’m rambling at this point, but yeah, as a gay woman of color who already works in the TV and film industry, that’s my pipe dream of how I would remake OUAT. Hope that answers your question. :)

[falkenscreen]

Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga

There’s bad, there’s good, and there’s Eurovision.

The European ‘Song’ Contest, to which this film for many will serve as introduction, neither sits at any apex of cultural achievement nor the ironic bulwarks of saccharine kitsch to which many entrants aspire. Rather, amidst its longevity and oddly unique role in cross-border co-operation, the competition, to which Australia is specially beholden, marks its own measures of success and brands of cultural height.

Tied not necessarily to any independent form, skill or recognisable ingenuity, appeal relies on brazenness, melding of styles and a nakedly single-minded, utterly shameless pursuit of shock-filled fun. To this end, it’s amazing Will Ferrell and Adam McKay haven’t mined these depths already.  

Reportedly a huge fan of the show, Ferrell, committing as always, is regretfully on auto-pilot for whole lengths, drawing on the manner and storylines of his underrated Blades of Glory and early success Zoolander as regards the relationship between his Lars and the characters’ “extremely handsome father;” Pierce Brosnan having some fun with comedy for change.

The story is of the broadest if heart-warmingly familial strokes elevated by its novel focus on the tournament; anyone who’s seen more than one Ferrell comedy (Old School fans should recognise one of the gags) will be across these stylings; complete with a Blades-esque MacGuffin in the form of an unreachable note. We’re all familiar with the follow your dreams against all opposition arc and even if it can get tired it doesn’t get old.

With Ferrell persistently glaring at the camera ala his Mustafa and reminding everyone that he’s here to make them laugh, McAdams, unsurprisingly, is best in show. Her reactions to a pro forma troupe of yet unseen backup dancers invading her solo and her negotiations with a group of elves, yes elves; pure gold. Viewers seem to be constantly finding out that the severely underappreciated comic performer can put in turn after turn like this and unlike Ferrell nails the balance of earnestness, knowing self-seriousness and tactless flamboyance central to Eurovision’s greatest hits.

There’s a caveat that has to be given before anyone watches this movie and that is you are only going to enjoy this if you are moderately familiar with and endeared by Eurovision. The film does not serve as a primer for the uninitiated absent proper grounding in the dynamics of the competition and those unbeholden to its unique stylings will likely feel as unimpressed by Ferrell’s tonally similar antics.

For those most dedicated decades-long Eurovision fans who wake up at 5am every year to watch every Semi-Final live, this author among them, you will get many a high off of this and more so for our having sadly missed the contest in its traditional form this May past. To the filmmakers’ great credit, they picked Iceland as the focus and amidst many playful digs at the nation, the treatment of the Icelandic Government being a highlight, managed to nail the effective winners of this year’s non-tournament.

And it would not be a Eurovision movie without being (in respects) avowedly self-referential, with the film taking some time out of proceedings to address that this is in no small part a group of North Americans behind and in front of the camera. Taking the mickey via another appropriately parodic band of US tourists who have only just landed in town, it’s some of the tightest scripting therein as every line hits the mark. Itself landing on Netflix, Fire Saga is probably best served by a platform where the most well-attuned fans can discover this and return for repeat viewings at their leisure and as they might otherwise have tuned into the annual tradition.  

The varied numbers (and song titles) which form the lead-up to and actual competition are successes not just for their catchiness and necessary originality but for effectively satirising one of the hardest things to mock and exaggerating that which barely bears exaggeration; generating in the process what would typically be Eurovision bangers in any given year. Graciously recognising that Belarus are invariably stand-outs, there’s a classy Lordi reference alongside years-old highlights and fair acknowledgement of the pivotal (if often biased) roles respective countries’ commentators play. The hark-backs  to classic Eurovision numbers will have any fan beaming and the elapsing of the first Semi-Final, encompassing one of the great Eurovision props, is uproarious while speaking to the extremely sincere ethos of the entire escapade.

The blocking of the stage performances, akin to how the broadcasts are typically handled, are too coyly deferential and situate us amongst this extravagance better than a more highly stylised or numerous camera setup which would have likely faltered.

Stars of past, clearly having the time of their lives in this reunion, welcomely make appearances, among them Alexander Rybak (“trust us, bring a violin”), though the best and most welcome surprise comes from a winner of recent years lovingly reciting one of Eurovision’s very best numbers on Edinburgh’s streets.

On this, there are varyingly hilarious interpretations as to why the competition was set in Edinburgh. It could be acknowledging that the British are least likely to win this and if so even less likely to relegate the fanfare to Edinburgh, though with the Russian entrant (Downton Abbey’s Dan Stevens) explicitly lampooning the Isles’ standing in the tournament its more likely the filmmakers’ subtle advocacy of the longstanding hope that Scotland will one day get their own highly competitive place.

As to Stevens’ contender, it’s a well-known problem that many of the countries which participate have appalling records on human rights and LGBT welfare. Amidst a more dramatically sensitive reckoning with this matter, his performance, Stevens’ best to date, is outright hilarious as Lemtov lion-tames extremely scantily-clad men about the stage in typical Eurovision fashion.  

Lovingly landing jabs on the annual extravaganza, infamous for its nondescript, heavily generic slogans, the tagline ‘Perfect Harmony’ for the in-film comp shows that we’re dealing with real fans here, as does moreover the exclamation, as to why there are no cars on the road, that everyone’s  “at home, watching Eurovision.” The film too acknowledges the constant push for and joy when singers indeed sing in Indigenous languages or emphatically about wherever they’ve ventured from with several seemingly throwaway gags, including a great one centring on whales, happily coming full circle.

Absent the voting process, this is too a stickler for Eurovision lore and procedure; though Sweden did have seven performers on stage and should have been disqualified.

Finally, there’s an odd tone at the centre of this film which arrests it from the heights of greatness to which Eurovision otherwise transpires. Co-produced by Jon Ola Sand of the European Broadcasting Union who makes an appearance here and in every Eurovision, even if, and it would be fairly speculative and unusual if so, full creative and parodic freedom were permitted alongside the name’s licensing rights and co-operation, a parody, even a loving one, just isn’t the same when the subjects and stalwarts are so in on the joke and stand to so outwardly benefit.

Yes Eurovision relies to some extent on being self-referential ala ‘Love, Love, Peace, Peace’ but it was only one year among many where the hosts winkingly outshone competitors; the platform otherwise persisting on a lifeblood of entrants’ own (and self-professed devotees) earnest if outlandish skewering. Regular commentator Graham Norton’s true to life cameos are notably distinct and illustrative in this regard; his mawkish if impassioned demeanour emblematic of the tone pursued herein, just like a local townsman declaring “we know they’re awful, but they’re our awful!”

It’s why Trey Parker and Matt Stone refused celebrities the opportunity to voice their own marionettes in Team America, and why Zoolander 2 never worked when all the fashion icons wanted to show they could poke fun at themselves as well. Sure it meant a lot of the gags here might not have happened, but if they’d called it almost anything else the same niche audience would have lined up and there’s no way the winners past wouldn’t have joined the festivities for what turned out to be our collective annual dose of insanity.

‘Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga’ is now streaming on Netflix

#xl #reviews #netflix #eurovision #eurovision song contest: the story of fire saga #will ferrell #rachel mcadams #graham norton #pierce brosnan

[travllingbunny]

The 100 6x07 Nevermind

Season 6 of The 100 has been fantastic so far, and 6x07 is not just the best episode of the season so far, but also one of my favorite ever episodes of the show. Nevermind is, in many ways, a dream come true for me: this is exactly what I was hoping for at least since the promos for the show started promising the theme of characters “facing their demons”. At the time, I couldn’t have guessed that it would be about Clarke battling a centuries old woman who has taken over her body after her parents had decided to bodysnatch Clarke in order to bring their daughter back, but I was hoping for trippy, mind-bending, character-based storylines. Most of all, one focused on Clarke Griffin, the main character and hero of the show (oddly enough, this needs to be pointed out, since there are fans who keep forgetting it), her psyche, her traumas and emotional issues and character development.

After the wonderful last scene of 6x06 and the promos for this episode, my expectations were really high, and they were met. There was a little bit of fear that the whole “which characters will make a cameo”, “who will be mentioned how many times” thing would distract from Clarke’s character exploration, but that was not the case. This episode was almost entirely (except for the last scene) set in Clarke’s and Josephine’s mind space rather than the real world. The walk down the memory lane that the drawings we saw on Clarke’s mind-wall was there, but it was, above all, a great character study of the show’s protagonist, a battle of wills between the hero and the villain, and it had some big revelations – for the audience or for the characters. It had brilliant dialogue and acting, and was emotional, dark, intense and even funny at times (mostly thanks to Josephine, who is evil and detestable but also incredibly funny and charismatic).

And what particularly made me happy is that it addressed some long-standing questions of morality that the show had been ambiguous about. The show’s moral complexity/greyness has long bordered on moral relativism, and allowed (mis)interpretations in the fandom, to the effect that “There are no good guys, the protagonists are as bad as the villains, therefore it’s all the same and it doesn’t matter if someone does bad things, since everyone does it”. The unfortunate motto “for my people” has been overused and abused by many morally ambiguous or straight-up villainous characters on the show, to justify their own actions (the classic “who are you to talk, when you killed all the Mountain Men! Therefore I get to do whatever I want ‘for my people’’ – as if doing the only thing that could have stopped the evil society of technological vampires/overlords from killing and cannibalizing all your loved ones, is the same as killing people with no remorse to get power). By season 5, Clarke herself seemed to start buying into that view. Josephine Lightbourne again try to use that against Clarke in this episode, and nearly made her give up. This time, however, Clarke and the show both finally said “f*ck you” to that worldview.

One of the reasons why Josephine is such a great villain is that she is both a parallel and a striking contrast to Clarke. On the surface, they seem similar – their looks, background, family. When we first saw her in the flashback in 6x02, the similarities were obvious – another intelligent, capable, beautiful blonde girl with loving parents (Russell, in both versions, even matches the same physical type as Jake), a princess from a privileged background. But Josephine is everything that Clarke-haters (in and out of the show) claim Clarke to be, but that Clarke most definitely is not: selfish, narcissistic, with a god complex, remorseless, sociopathic, completely ruthless, pampered, classist, treating people as disposable. A start contrast to Clarke’s compassionate, caring, self-sacrificing nature.

Various thoughts about this episode in bullet points under the cut.

One of the many contrasts between Clarke and Josephine is the disorganized, beautiful way that different memories fill Clarke’s mind space, as drawings all over the walls of her room, unlike Josephine’s highly structured, organized mind. Just like “Monty”, I also like Clarke’s better.

I’m overall very happy with how this episode included references to various people and events from Clarke’s past, through a combination of drawings, flashbacks, mentions and objects. Most important people in Clarke’s life were referenced – both dead ones like Jake, Finn, Lexa, Jasper, Monty, and living ones like Bellamy and Madi (not so many mentions of Abby, but that’s because she’s both alive and, unlike so many others, not a source of guilt for Clarke).

The only exception is arguably Wells, and it’s really unlucky that the planned appearance by Eli Goree didn’t work out. We still got a confirmation of his importance in Clarke’s life (which should be big – he was her best friend since childhood and died tragically, even if he didn’t last long on the show) through several drawings (and the Chinese version of the idiom “A friend in need is a friend indeed” under one of them), and, more importantly, a close-up of one of them. Let’s be honest, the drawings are generally little more than a cool Easter egg for the fans, if the show doesn’t focus on them through close-ups and flashbacks or mentions – something that the general audience would notice.

I love the way that Clarke’s outfit and hairstyle kept changing depending on which memory or part of her mind space she was in at any given moment. For instance, she started as Ark Clarke from the Pilot, then turned into Eden Clarke when she visited her safe space of the life there with Madi for those 6 years – which was far from perfect (what with being isolated from everyone else, without any adult with her, without other friends or any chance of love or sex life, and waiting for Bellamy to come back and talking to him without answer to keep sane), but was still the most peaceful time she’s known. Except maybe for her childhood, which she did spend in a not-happy space (life on the Ark was difficult, if not for her, then for so many others who were less privileged, and we know Clarke was aware of that), but she had a happy family life, so it makes sense that her father is the first person she would see in her mind-space. Jake and Eden stood for safety and family life and peace, which Clarke thought she got when she briefly believed she had really died – before Jake (aka her own mind) told her it wasn’t true. It’s the sign of her being upset – the rain and storm outside that happened due to her mood – that alerted her to the fact she was still alive.

Every character, other than Josephine, who appeared in Clarke’s mind space was, of course, an embodiment of a part of her.  

Although I’m not sure about ALIE, whose code may have remained there, and who delivered information that Clarke may not have already known. It was the one cameo in this episode that really surprised me (since the rest had been revealed or guessed on social media). She was there for the big revelation that the neural mesh from the time Clarke was in the City of Light is what ended up saving her. This made this episode’s link to 3x13 Nevermore even stronger. (Funny that the erased memory of ALIE!Raven is what gave rise to that awful amnesia theory. Glad that this has been shut down now.) I guess this means that I was wrong about other hosts being savable, and that Delilah is gone forever? A big part of why I wanted it to be true, apart from liking Delilah, was to give the Earthkru more incentive to fight the Primes. But we have been given a lot of other reasons why they should make the decision to so that.

ALIE also had a conversation with Clarke about the nature of life and humanity, which, however, could be just Clarke talking to herself. Clarke has been tempted to run away from pain, she’s even tempted to run from it by accepting death in this episode, but she’s still insisting that pain is a necessary part of life and that there’s no joy without it. At the core, Clarke is not someone who gives up.

The revelation that the darkest and most painful memories are those that aren’t even on the wall and that Clarke keeps hidden, explained some things, such as why there were no drawings on the mind-wall of such huge moments as Jake’s death or Finn’s death (Clarke’s trauma from this was a subject of an entire episode – one of my favorites, 2x09, Remember Me)... However, while I don’t want to criticize the prop department, who did an incredible job drawing those pictures from scenes, they did make an error - one of the drawings of Lexa is actually from the scene of her right after being shot, which doesn’t really fit (her death is one of the “darkest place” hidden memories) – though you wouldn’t know that by just looking at the picture and not knowing the scene.

I’m glad that Josephine called out Clarke on child abuse, and that the drawing of Madi in pain in the shock collar was so prominent on the wall. Season 5 had Clarke at her lowest point, and that was certainly, IMO, one of the worst things she’s done.

We know (from 6x04) that Clarke’s biggest regret is leaving Bellamy in Polis in season 5, and this episode confirmed that this weighs so heavy on Clarke’s heart that she can’t even face Bellamy in her mind space (which fits with the fact that the darkest and most traumatic moments are those she did not put on the wall). She is afraid that he hasn’t really forgiven her in his heart, and that he can’t, because she can’t forgive herself. Even if Bellamy is alive and well, Clarke’s feelings for him make her betrayal of him unforgivable in her own eyes (even though, at the time she did it, she had been heartbroken and furious because she felt he had betrayed her). Octavia, or rather Blodreina, was the right embodiment of her guilt in a weird way, since she was the danger that Clarke left Bellamy to, the one who threw him into the pit in the first place (kind of like Jaha was the embodiment of Bellamy’s guilt over the culling in 1x08). She reminded Clarke of some of her other sins, those that involved Clarke being ready to sacrifice Octavia (while trying to protect Bellamy) – letting the bomb drop on the people in Tondc, stealing the bunker in season 4, but she was there mostly to talk about Bellamy, because the relationship between Clarke and Octavia has always mostly revolved around their respective relationships with him. Even in her own mind, Clarke is still deflecting when confronted with her feelings for Bellamy (“I care about both of you”, just like she said “I care about all of them” when called out on her feelings for Bellamy by Lexa in 2x14). Octavia is also the embodiment of the unwillingness to forgive, so her refusal to fight for Clarke makes sense.

Not that Clarke needed any help to kick Josephine’s arse. It was satisfying to see, but expected. Josephine is an actual pampered princess who’s never had to fight for anything, while Clarke has been fighting and surviving in adverse circumstances for 7 years.

Maya’s appearance made perfect sense, but she was the most OOC character of all the “mind space” characters – maybe because Clarke didn’t get to know her that well, but mostly because she was the embodiment of Clarke’s guilt over the innocent deaths she’s caused. Maya was a good person, someone who helped them against her own people because it was the right thing to do, and because she knew what the Mountain Men were doing was wrong. She is also linked in Clarke’s mind with her feelings of guilt over Jasper – Clarke didn’t know Maya well, but Jasper was one of her closest friends, and Clarke feels deeply guilty for indirectly causing his downward spiral that ended with his suicid4. I was happy to see him referenced so much in this episode – through “Maya”, the case Clarke found in 5x01, and his goggles that she found there, which all played a big role in this episode. The accusations that “Maya” (Clarke herself) made sounded a lot like the repertoire of Clarke-haters: that she likes being a savior, has a god complex, has killed more people than she’s saved, is no better than the Primes… This is a confirmation that Clarke herself has agonized over all of these things. But it’s not what the real Maya would have said – the real Maya died acknowledging the responsibility all of the Mountain Men had for the evil things their society was doing, saying “None of us is innocent”. When Clarke made her “Maya” character be helpful against Josephine, it was the closest thing to what the real Maya had been like.

Clarke’s darkest place, the most painful and traumatic memories she has, are the deaths of Finn and Lexa, the only two people she has had romantic relationships with – relationships that were both extremely brief and tragic, and ended with deaths that traumatized Clarke a lot and made her feel guilty – even though she doesn’t really have, IMO, objective reasons to feel responsible for either of them, it’s not hard to see why she would feel, on the emotional, irrational level, that she is the one causing people to die. (The show and especially the fandom have tended to ignore one of these relationships  post-season 2 and to over-focus on the other, so I was pleasantly surprised that they were both acknowledged in a similar way for their role in Clarke’s development and emotional traumas – with the visual references with Lexa’s throne and the pole Finn was tied to and the knife Clarke used to mercy kill him, combined with the flashback of Finn’s death, a different flashback of Lexa seen before, and Josephine’s indirect mention of her death – which was probably the most elegant solution, since I don’t think the show would ever dare replay the footage of her death for fear of more backlash.)

It’s certainly no coincidence that this dark place that’s about Clarke’s traumas of her tragic romantic life is the place where Josephine breaks Clarke by convincing her that Bellamy has given up on her and that he and everyone are better off with her dead. Josephine didn’t technically lie – she told her he took her death hard but in the end made the rational choice of agreeing to the deal with her murderers. But, by showing her an out-of-context memory of Bellamy taking the deal, she showed her a skewed version of the truth. Clarke didn’t see Bellamy’s grieving, despair and anger, and didn’t realize that Bellamy saying that she would do the same was out of admiration for her, as a leader who’s not just smart but also selfless and caring. She probably took it as another sign he sees her as a monster, doesn’t care that much about her and is better off without her, because it fed into her own insecurities.

Josephine: “Have you considered sacrificing yourself?” Bitch, watch the season 4 finale. She didn’t just consider it, she did it.

I loved the fact that the case Clarke used to hide the important memory was Jasper’s case, that it contained Jasper’s goggles alongside Jake’s video, and that the lock password was “102”. More confirmation of the importance of the initial Delinquents community from season 1 in Clarke’s life and the show. “You forgot Bellamy and Raven” may be my favorite line from this episode.

Monty’s return (which the show tried to hide by not putting Chris Larkin’s name in the credits until the end credits, but it revealed it through not cutting enough of one of the promo pics) was not a complete surprise, thanks to the detective work of some of the fans, but was still my favorite part of the episode. Monty was most in-character, because Clarke knew him so well, and it makes perfect sense that he was the voice of Clarker’s reason and moral compass, which is what made her change her mind after having given up and given Josephine the victory. (You want a great platonic friendships between a man and a woman on The 100? Here it is!)

The ‘Monty” part of Clarke’s mind fought back, against all the BS – the “bear it so they don’t have to”, “for my people” mottos and moral relativism and Josephine’s half-truths) and reaffirmed Clarke’s resilience and will to live, and reminded her that what it all comes down to is not just saving your people, but doing the right thing. After Monty told them to be good guys and be happy. Both of these messages are what Clarke had to remember. As I’ve been pointing out, doing better is not just standing by and not killing people. It’s also actively fighting against evil. They are not being good guys if they let the Primes murder, bodysnatch, oppress, brainwash and sacrifice the people from their community, just because it doesn’t affect them.  As “Monty” (Clarke) pointed out, it’s not doing better if you let the Primes murder people to live forever.

Clarke’s trip through Josephine’s memories (of being killed by Kaylee, and of killing Isaac and sacrificing a baby) helped her fully realize that Josephine is truly evil and needs to be stopped. Really, if killing babies is not enough to make you classify someone as true evil on a whole different level, what can?

Josephine tried to pull the “for my people” motto with Issac, but she was full of s*hit. She only does things for herself and maybe a few other people (not even all the Primes, since she murdered four of them). We learned that Children of Gabriel are literally the children that the Primes tried to sacrifice to the trees and that Isaac saved and brought to Gabriel. We also got another confirmation of the cruel caste system of Sanctum, where “nulls” (people who are not Nightblood gene carriers) are treated as lower life forms, and routinely sacrificed, and that Josephine would rather kill them all, if she was allowed to by her father. Not that having the NB gene is so good, as it means your child may end up as a host, and obviously, the “honor” of being a Nightblood means you get bodysnatched at the age of 21.

When Isaac said  “if only we were allowed to be more than your janitors and guards”, it felt like it was the writers’ way of reminding us of the class system on the Ark, where Bellamy was a janitor and a guard-in-training. It’s also another reminder of how different Clarke and Josephine are – Josephine would have considered someone like Bellamy expendable and useless, whereas Clarke quickly showed in season 1 she valued people based on their personal qualities rather than their origin or class.

It was cool to see a flashback to the time before the apocalypse, complete with references to Diyoza and Becca, but this memory was my least favorite part of the episode. I guess I just wasn’t that interested in Josephine’s traumatic memories, since I don’t think they’re enough to explain her sociopathic nature. On second thought, you could say that this guy was her Finn, and that her response to that trauma was completely different from Clarke’s – genuinely shutting herself down to any compassion or remorse.

I love the fact that what saved the day was the fact that Clarke and Bellamy were both good students of Earth skills (taught by Pike!) and that they are, once again, so well attuned to each other that they can communicate this way. Or the fact that Bellamy was watching JC so carefully, even though it must have hurt him emotionally to look at her, that he noticed her movements and read them correctly.

Nice to see Miller back, but did he have to be so… not-bright? In any case, it’s great to see Bellamy as determined to save Clarke, as he was despondent in the last episode. This is maybe the first time that Clarke really needs saving, but a huge and crucial part of that rescue was Clarke deciding that she wants to live.

Rating: 10/10

#the 100 #the 100 season 6 #the 100 6x07 #nevermind #clarke griffin #josephine lightbourne #bellamy blake #monty green #jasper jordan #maya vie #jake griffin #wells jaha #octavia blake #madi griffin

[meladis]

The Boys: Season 1/ Spoiler Free Review

So, I just finished watching the new TV-show (which I have been waiting pretty much since its very announcing) and, boy (haha), it’s was diabolical.

That a very bad feeling, when you’re waiting for something for too long, getting excited for every piece of information you receive and then when it comes out, you realize that your expectations were much bigger than this show/movie/book can offer you. Fortunately, watching this show (especially first 5 episodes of it) I couldn't stop but feeling some kind of relief as the show was surprisingly good. 

Without any further discussion let me try to tell you what good and bad sides of the show are.

1. Visual effects

Though I believe the show didn’t have a big budget, the visual effects were pretty good, all this blood and supe’s “stuff” looked very cool and pleasant for eyes to watch. Moreover, I really liked the colouring the creators decided to use which gives this show its very unique style. And every “the boys” opening was just as perfect as you can only imagine it to be. That’s all I can say, like, really.

2. Music

Oh, boi. I can’t describe how AWESOME the music in the show was. I’m not talking about the original soundtrack which really suits the whole atmosphere but the songs that were used there. It not only introduces every character with his/her own character-describing theme but makes every shot diabolically stylish. I mean I’m listening to those songs on repeat. Very cool stuff. Even better than The Umbrella Academy’s, though, it’s very hard for me to admit it. 

Btw, my favs are “Iggy Pop - The Passenger”, “Daniel Pemberton - Take You Down”, “R.E.M. - Everybody Hurts” and “Bill Withers - Ain't No Sunshine”.

3. Characters

That’s gonna be a very big topic, prepare yourselves to this. 

Billy Butcher. Played by diabolical Karl Urban this character stole my attention with the first trailers, promos etc. Man, he’s good. He’s awesome. Though I can’t tell that while watching the show itself Bucher was my favourite because there were some moments (especially with his wife) that weren’t emotional enough (comparing to the more or less the same theme in Punisher, for example). I wasn’t on his side fully. That’s why the ending didn’t play to me as it supposed to. Though yeah, he’s diabolical.

Hugh "Hughie" Campbell. So, Hughie was definitely the one who had a character developing line in the show and with that said he was growing as a person throughout the whole season. I really like what the creators did with him, and his line was never boring, always understandable and interesting. Really into what is going to happen with him in the 2nd season.

John/Homelander. Antony Starr did an amazing job showing this very complex character. My thoughts towards him were changing constantly during the process of watching. Closer to the end he was stealing every scene. What a character, what a story. You bought me, I’m waiting for the 2nd season.

Annie January/Starlight. I was afraid her line wouldn’t be as complex as it could have been, comparing to the others. I was wrong. I really sympathized her, her story was actually sad and inspiring at the same time. Cool. 

Frenchie. That was a “surprise” character for me. I mean, I didn’t expect to worry about him, but his line turned out to be very interesting and very enjoyable to watch. 

A-Train. I hate this character from the beginning to the end. Maybe the final episode’s stuff changes him and I won’t be so certain about my feelings? We’ll see. 

“Can you teach me to run out cancer?”

Marvin "Mother's Milk". I don’t know if it were just my thoughts but while watching I felt like Marvin was really left out. Maybe it was because of the number of the characters the show had or the creators decided to leave something for the 2nd season, but there wasn’t a lot of him on the screen and his character's development. I don’t know him that much.

Kimiko / the Female. Her storyline was actually something very new to me. I was into her story and every new piece of information we were given gave her a very new perspective look. Hoping to see more of her in the future.

Queen Maeve. As in the situation with Marvin, there is something in her, and we were shown her character changing (the plane scene and its consequences) but still, could have been more? 2nd season, ha?

Kevin/The Deep. That was a very weird part of the story, I didn’t get it, really. So I have very mixed up feelings about this character and... cough *gills* cough scene.

Madelyn Stillwell. She was a person with her own motivation, she had her view on everything, she knew what she wanted. Maybe, that’s why I considered her as the main villain of the season.

Hugh Campbell. They got Simon Pegg!!! Yaaas.10 unexpected cameos out of 10.

There are much more characters, some of which were more interesting than the others, but everybody felt like they belonged there. Diabolical cast.

4. The Main Plot

Attention! I haven’t read the comics, so all that I’m going to talk about is the show. I don’t know what’s going in comics and I’m judging just by what I’ve seen in the show.

As you could have noticed, I said at the very beginning that the first 5 episodes were good. I didn’t lie. In fact, they were perfect. The structure, the dynamic, character’s development, their relations with each other, diabolical actions scenes, blood and stuff. 

The first 5 episodes were iconic, very stylish, unique. The authors really decided to make a satirical story on superheroes and the real situation in the world, showing some stuff that is happening or more likely to happen within the circumstances. The people, events were so down to earth it was very easy to believe that such things really could have happened. 

And the plot. It was interesting, so much mystery, unknown and I was sitting, asking myself a bunch of questions and hoping to find astonishing answeres later in the season.

And the Spicy Girls’ reference - I laughed so hard. Awesome.

Unfortunately, something went a little bit wrong and starting with the 6th episode it wasn’t as exciting as it was before. I can’t tell that everything went wrong and it was impossible to watch, no. Just the tone and the style were gone, for some reason, plot twists didn’t work for me that much (not all of them, of course). I just found myself looking on the timeline of the episode (you know what I mean). 

Also, I thought, in the end, there would be a big diabolical fight between two characters (spoiler-free, hehe), but there was a scene of them just talking. Don’t get me wrong, I like talking stuff, it just didn’t feel like those character’s actions. Maybe again, the budget. But first five episodes worked with it, so why?

In the end, it was a very diabolical TV-show, and I’m going to watch the 2nd season, hoping that the creators won’t lose their style and motives closer to the end of it, ‘cause people are likely to remember last moments than the first ones)

Gonna give it 8,5 diabolical supes out of 10 (for the first five episodes).

#theboys #amazon prime #tvshow #butcher #hughie #frenchie #marvin #kimiko #starlight #honelander #simon pegg #diabolical

[jennifersbod]

ooh i forgot to ask you but what did you think about chapter 2??

asdfghjkl i have Feelings™ and i’m making this public to see if other feels the same because rn i feel kinda lonely in my criticisms (anyway doron ily and feel free to dm me if you wanted this to be a private convo asdfghj). that said, i still really loved the movie as a whole, and i feel like it did hit the most important parts of the book in a mostly satisfying way. this answer is gonna be spoiler-heavy so like anyone reading this who doesn’t want spoilers can yeet themselves now.

starting with cons because i like saving the best things for last:

bev’s cycle of abuse storyline NEVER getting fully resolved. in the book tom has a super satisfying death and the movie completely ignored the entire thing. this felt messy/problematic as most abuse survivors will know that abusers tend to track their victims. knowing he’s still out there, if i were bev, would leave me forever nervous.

also bev’s being psychic from the deadlights (???) and saying they’ll all die if they don’t help is a moralistic cop out because it changes their basic motivations from love and goodness and light to just being scared they’re all going to die (meaning they didn’t fully conquer their fear or overcome it because they’d die anyway). (wouldn’t this also mean that richie became psychic after his run-in with the deadlights in the third act?? who knows because it wasn’t fleshed out any further)

eddie’s being used as comic relief. i laughed with everyone else when angel of the morning came on but like where’d it come from, y’all??? if anything paul bunyun should’ve been the comic relief scare.

mike’s parents being crackheads and dying in a fire (i know they did this in the first film too and it pissed me off just as much then). mike and his relationship with his father at his death bed was such a HUGE part of the book for me and they scrapped it completely for a racist trope AND robbed us of a black spot scene and the giant bird

barely anything of stan before he yeeted himself off the board. just like as a jew, i loved how the book handled the antisemitism of derry and the world at large. if handled correctly, it could’ve been super timely and relevant, but nope.

they left out don talking to the cops after adrian

henry bowers’s whole subplot was rushed and honestly could’ve been left out completely if they were just going to do it wrong like that

audra, where tf is audra

ALL THE CGI was laughable- mrs. kersh was honestly ruined for me with that last bit of cgi. it’s something that so easily could’ve been accomplished with practical effects (it’s basically the same makeup they could’ve copied from the bathtub scene in the shining), but this is a problem that’s pretty pervasive in the genre right now that andy falls into way too much

this is kind of a more arguable one, but leaving out the turtle and 'He thrusts his fists against the posts and still insists he sees the ghosts’

amy adams not being cast over jessica chastain only because i really miss sharp objects and sofia/amy playing the same character

i also wish they’d gone into ben’s whole architect thing more and included how he’d subconsciously replicated part of the derry library in one of his buildings

the ending being so small in scale, like, the book had a bigger scope of the town and i missed that (also IT’s eggs)

i’m sure i have more but that feels like a lot so imma stop there

tldr; i have petty opinions on what they should’ve kept from the book and the look of the cgi

pros!!!

bill hader, BILL HADER, BILL HADER- an actor i’ve loved and believe in since his snl days a decade ago playing a character i’ve always related to and loved from a book i read a decade ago is more than i ever could’ve asked for and he stole the movie #hader2020

the expansion of richie’s sexuality. never explicit in the book, but a wonderfully worthwhile storyline in the film that hader and wolfhard both absolutely kill

THE BIRD PUZZLE !!!!

stan’s death being portrayed the way it was and not being used for shock value in the least!!! and andy bean in general!!!

xavier dolan as adrian was heartbreaking and he made me cry (people have mixed feelings about it being included in the movie but it’s important to recognize that it was based on a true story that largely inspired the book’s themes)

all the eddie x richie content… even 2 months ago i could never see this happening even though i’ve shipped it since i read the book and i’m still in shock tbh. the hammock scene was the cutest fucking thing i’ve ever seen in my entire life and i want it to play on my gravestone.

james ransone was perfect casting and i love him with all my heart, he played it perfectly and somehow made reddie mutual when the script didn’t make it fully clear

the scene transitions were gorgeous and almost made up for the shoddy cgi

STEPHEN KING’S CAMEO bitch give me $300

“ayooo silver away!!” being included

eddie getting stabbed in the face and still criticizing bower’s mullet and people still think he’s straight

 the “here’s johnny” moment

tHE BRIDGE

the turtle in ben’s classroom !!!

richie’s going to temple for stan !!!

benverly endgame!!!

my favorite addition was honestly the pomeranian and richie and eddie fawning over it (dog dads au pls)

i could literally mention every loser’s interaction with each other but this post would get even longer so yeah no

kiss me, fatboy

beep beep richie even if it was only really once

beverly smashing the mirror when ben is being carved up isn’t talked about enough but i loved that moment

the losers not forgetting each other was a welcome change from the book for me personally and i’m glad to see a stephen king adaptation somehow make the ending lighter than the book’s

i feel like most of the pros have been touched on at length on this website so i don’t want to list anymore and end up being repetitive, but i did adore the movie and i think it’s unlikely anyone would’ve made a version that would satisfy me more so i’m really thankful we got what we got.

#answered #me using this as an excuse to rant obsessively lmao #julies-andrews #usershaysh #it chapter two spoilers #it19 #it spoilers #long post tw #horror #stephen king #personal

[mysneakpeekblog-blog]

With the existence of heroes’ portrayals and history drama in the Philippine Cinema, the 2015 biopic film ‘Heneral Luna’ offers another perspective for the Filipino film industry. The film tries to capture the eyes of the youth by picking it as its target market; and as a matter of fact, in cinemas nationwide there is an available discount for students. Fortunately, I am one of those students who were able to watch it on big screen. Undoubtingly, this film has so many to offer and I am truly moved by the film. It is indeed a game changer to the world of our cinema and allow me to tell you how and what I thought about the film.

           The film is a detailed account of the life of one of our revolutionary heroes during the American period namely Gen. Antonio Luna. It tells a story which is a part of our history we care less, something that we don’t usually learn at school. The film opens by claiming that it is fiction based on facts which I think is one way of pulling more modern viewers. It is framed around a series of interviews granted by Luna to Joven Hernando played by Arron Villaflor, a fictional newspaper journalist. Threaded into the narrative, these lively conversations provide viewers with valuable insights into the general’s personality and assist greatly with the transitions as the viewers keep track of the story’s bulging inventory of characters and events. After 333 years of Spanish colonization, the Philippine archipelago was sold for $20 million to U.S. The dilemma is now to decide how to respond with the Americans arrival under the government leaded by President Emilio Aguinaldo played by Mon Confiado and Prime Minister Apolinario Mabini played by Epy Quizon together with the Gen. Antonio Luna played by John Arcilla, is it to negotiate or fight? Clearly, the film told us that Heneral Luna’s proposition which is to strengthen the military force and fight is different from the majority of the key players of the government who is driven by each personal’s interest who wanted to accept the Americans’ domination without a fight. With this altercations, Luna being portrayed as a fiercely straight-talking patriotic general who had a temper as passionate as his feelings to the country made his own enemies inside the congress. While they are discussing inside the congress, a messenger came with the news that the Americans shot the soldiers scouting Sta. Mesa district and also terrorizing other parts of the country as well. The president then gave his go signal to Gen. Luna to take action. However, more conflict arises between Luna and other major players of the country. First, Captain Pedro Janolino played by Ketchup Eusebio who is dragged outside the hut while sleeping with a naked woman and humiliated in front of his soldiers after refusing Luna’s orders. Under the war, the bureau individuals were all engaged into discussing about reconciling to America which flamed the anger of Luna commanding the arrests of the members of the congress, Felipe Buencamino played by Nonie Buencamino and Gen. Tomas Mascardo played by Lorenz Martinez. President Aguinaldo knew that the members are getting fed up of Luna’s attitude but then let it pass. After the battles with his co-Filipino, we are able to meet Heneral Luna as a leader, with his interactions with his men, a soldier as how he fights under war, a son as his mother Dońa Laureana Luna y Novicio do tell his past, a brother, a lover with his affair in the name of Isabel played by Mylene Dizon and as a man. Then goes the climax, General Luna was summoned by a telegram written under the name of the President asking him to appear in Cabanatuan. He was welcome by mere silence and a few soldiers. At the office he saw Felipe Buencamino who told him that the president left long before he arrived. Heneral Luna was ambushed, fired and stabbed to death. The film ends with the sides stories of other characters making the death of Luna left unanswered.

           Creating a film with this kind of theme is something courageous because it is risky thing to delve the past since Philippine history had always been complicated. Personally, I am not into watching history-themed Filipino films because I feel like there will always be biases and sugarcoating techniques to produce a commercially made film with lots of profit. But Heneral Luna is an exception for me. The film was able to create a not hero type of protagonist but instead send us a message. From the protagonist’s line “Bayan o Sarili! Pumili ka?”, the movie gives us the story that the Filipinos main enemy were not Americans but themselves. It does not romanticize the character of Luna, the film showed that Luna’s rage sometimes is out of his control. As I watch the film, I could feel the anger and disappointment by Heneral Luna which I believe proves its efficiency to deliver its message. Undoubtingly, one could really point out the amazing performance of John Arcilla. The first time I saw the movie poster I am really excited to see how John Arcilla will portray his role because the poster is really intriguing and he really looks like Heneral Luna. He was able to bring to life the fierceness, fearlessness and devotion of Heneral Luna which looks really genuine. Though it was Arcilla who really stand up in the film, the supporting characters also deserved the praise which made the film more convincing. Heneral Luna’s supporting military men including Gen. Jose Alejandrino (Alvin Anson), Col. Francisco Roman (Joem Bascon), Capt. Jose Bernal (Alex Medina) and of Lt. Rusca (Archie Alemania) who deliver their roles commendably. On the opposite side of things, Ketchup Eusebio nails his portrayal of Capt. Pedro Janolino, who played as a young general with full hatred to Luna and one of those who led the killing of Luna. Mon Confiado and Epy Quizon also brings the best as Emilio Aguinaldo and Apolinario Mabini. It is amazing how these known comedians was able to engaged themselves into dramatic roles like that. Lastly, Mylene Dizon, a fictional representation under the name of Isabel, a Red Cross Worker was able to show her skills given the small screening time.

           Heneral Luna is one of the most audacious film I have watched mixed with the perfect vision of its film makers. It is a kind of film that deserves the applause. From the beginning up to the end there is something to be praised and averse. The beginning of the film with those short subtitles written in English gives us a hint that they wanted to enter the film into international field. It also announced that it is fiction based on facts which gives more questions to the viewers. I love how the film unfolds every narration through the effective transitions and flashbacks. The cinematography and direction is also a thumbs up for me. The images had wonderful and innovative effects, colors and angles which is shown on the series of flashbacks especially during Rizal’s execution. I would also like to acknowledge the scriptwriters for creating such remarkable storyline with smooth pacing and rasping and poetic dialogues. It is notable how they consistently put together different layers of events to achieve a much engaging story. One thing to notice as well is how they were able to put into timing the comic and humorous factor of the film which became an integral part of the film as well. Also the beautifully written dialogues with cuss words doesn’t sound so corny as the characters mouthed it. Like the lines “Para kayong mga birhen na naniniwala sa pag-ibig ng isang puta,” “Hindi ako ang asawa mo kung hindi gera.” “Isinusuka ko ang digmaan pero ang kompirmiso magbubulag bulagaan ba tayo sa kalaban?” “Ingles inglesen mo ko sa bayan po punyeta!” and “Mas madali mo pang pagkasunduin ang langit at lupa kesa dalawang Pilipino sa alin mang bagay.” There are just scenes I found a little lame in the film, those were the screen times for American’s conversations because the characters were not the appealing for me. But overall it was still carried out because there were just few scenes. At the end of the film we could hint for a trilogy, there was an extra scene in the middle of the closing credits, suggesting a next film featuring Paulo Avelino as Gen. Gregorio del Pilar which has been showed this year. There was also a brief cameo appearance of Benjamin Alves as a young Manuel L. Quezon, hinting at a possible trilogy. This is a very exciting plan indeed which we all hope will materialize given the success of "Heneral Luna" and only international films like Marvel series only which adds another first time for the film.

           I really admired the film at its finest. More than the things I mentioned above I like about the film, it taught us lessons to ponder. Ultimately, the portrayal of this tragedy has spurred so many emotions and so many questions. It does not only give life to history but it is telling us the present issues we have in our country. Today the Philippines is facing so many problems in our economy, education, politics and still too many to mention. I could say that the problems of the past were never resolved. Are we really independent? Are we really free from colonization? The film taught us that the Filipinos are the enemy of themselves, people driven by personal interest and those who can’t sacrifice for the betterment of his/her nation. Do you think this people don’t exist at the present? Or do you think they are the one leading this slow moving country? Leadership like what we discussed at University and I, comes with many styles and theories and therefore different to each person. In line with Heneral Luna, he’s kind of leadership maybe harsh because of being authoritarian but this is what the country needs during those times. We must always keep in mind that leadership never worked unless there is an exchange of the force of his followers. The main lesson we could adhere in the film is to keep ourselves inform with the issues of the country and do our job as its citizens. The revolution is still happening right now. Our current situation is no different from that what it had experienced during the era of the Philippine-American war and we should do our part like what our heroes did before. Ignorance should not be tolerated and let us do our part as leader or as a follower.

           This kind of film is what Filipinos must and would want to see. Like what I mentioned earlier its target market are the youth and modern viewers. They even use social media as a way of promoting this film. However, as I watched the film this is a movie for all. I recommend every Filipino to watch the film because it is worth the time and money. If you wanted to watch something that is really substantial and entertaining well this is the movie you are looking for. Or if you are tired of Filipino cliché made film, try changing your genre and explore our unrated films and watch Heneral Luna. In wrapping up, I really liked the film. With a rating over ten, I will give a nine to it and it is truly recommended.  

[vmheadquarters]

Twelve years, two books, and one Kickstarter-funded movie later, one of TV’s greatest shows has made its triumphant return. Veronica Mars season 4 is just what Marshmallows around the world have been waiting for.

It’s hard to believe that a Veronica Mars season 4 exists, let alone that it has been twelve years since we all first thought we were saying goodbye forever to one of the wittiest, smartest, and most heartfelt shows to have ever been created. Who would have ever thought that a show that struggled to stay on the air as long as it did would have had such a well-deserved comeback?

I, for one, never imagined it. The hope of a small reunion, a one-off, was a glimmer on the horizon for the longest time. And then the announcement of the Veronica Mars movie came and it seemed like we hit peak-Veronica Mars revival culture. But then came the books. And the whispers of a new season.

But with every shiny new Veronica Mars property that came out, the question of “Could it possibly be as good as the original series?” always lingered in the background. Especially with this new season.

‘Veronica Mars’ season 4 review

Suffice it to say that Hulu’s Veronica Mars season 4 revival combines everything you love about the original run of the show with everything you enjoy about binge-worthy television. Updated to reflect the current world climate and to fit into the true crime era we’re now living in, this new season of Veronica Mars feels exactly like how you think a modern run of the show should.

Veronica Mars season 4 picks up not too long after the events of the movie, so a few years at most. Veronica and Keith Mars are working cases side by side, struggling as ever to keep business afloat. Though Veronica’s takedown of Bonnie DeVille’s murderer shone a bit of a light on Mars Investigations, business isn’t really booming. That is until a serial bomber threatens the lives of numerous young people and, even worse, the livelihood of Neptune: Spring Break.

Pooling their resources, connections, and keen instincts for detecting mischief and wrong-doing, Veronica and Keith set out to unmask the bomber before any more lives are lost and the 09ers achieve the return to the “idyllic” and clean (read “white” and “privileged”) Neptune they’ve been fighting so hard for.

There’s quite a lot going on in Veronica Mars season 4. So much so that it doesn’t waste any time jumping in to the conflicts or adding in any gratuitous (Marshmallow) fluff. In fact, this is probably the property’s leanest bit of storytelling as practically every scene and encounter serves a purpose in driving characterization or one of the two main plots (the bombings and the excess gentrification). Though they were also focused on one or two main plots, as well as character development, the movie and the books didn’t feel nearly this streamlined.

That could partially be due to the immense fan service those three bits of storytelling felt compelled to do. While the movie and the books trotted out fan-favorite character after fan-favorite character, there’s quite a bit less of that in this new season of Veronica Mars. While there are some beloved characters that make appearances from time to time, there are fewer of them and they’re not around as much as you’d expect.

In fact, there are perhaps more cameos that feel like they’ve come out of left field than there are appearances by some of the more well-known supporting cast. Without revealing anything, I’d say it’s important going into this season without high expectations of seeing a lot of your favorite supporting characters (if they even show up at all). Their absence is jarring at first, but, once the story gets going, it’s clear that they just don’t fit in well with the current story and shoehorning them in as fan-service just wouldn’t work.

Honestly, Veronica Mars season 4 is less about fan service and more focused on getting back into the groove of the show. Like the series’ original run, this new Hulu season is the perfect mix of darkness, laugh-out-loud comedy, and heartfelt moments. Veronica’s personal mantra that “the people you care about most will always inevitably let you down,” while not as prevalent, still very much lives in the shadows of every interaction she has and relationship she develops.

That being said, while it does work hard to return back to the show’s roots, this season isn’t an exact return to its original form. Given just how much time has passed since the show went off the air and how different the world is today, there’s no way it could be. For all of the way it emulates and pays homage to what has come before, this revival season demonstrates just how much the show, as well as the characters, has evolved.

There’s no better example of this evolution than by tracking all of the different iterations of the show’s theme song, “We Used to Be Friends.” It first changed in the show’s third season, after Veronica Mars‘s move to The CW where the story arcs and overall season structure, not to mention the setting, shifted. The Veronica Mars movie then introduced a more stripped-down and slightly upbeat version which matched the film’s fan-service/reunion vibe.

Now, in this revival season on Hulu, the theme shifts again, this time to a more haunting, ethereal, and noir-ish rendition by Chrissie Hynde of The Pretenders. It takes an episode or so to get acclimated to (after all, the original theme is a classic), but it perfectly conveys just how much Veronica and the show have grown in the past fifteen(!) years. It’s sophisticated and dark yet still playful, just like this season. And it matches the stunning new opening credits perfectly.

Another example of the show’s evolution, as well as its return to form, is Keith and Veronica’s relationship in this new season. They may not have seen eye to eye on Veronica’s decision to stay in Neptune and officially join the family business, that storm cloud that hovered over their relationship in the movie has since dissipated. It’s clear that Keith still doesn’t agree with Veronica giving up her fast-paced lawyer life in New York, but he respects her decision. He makes one remark to his daughter about joining a law firm but ultimately drops the argument.

The show is all the better for this. The moments between Keith and Veronica are some of the best of the season, if not the entire series. They’re just as witty and sharp when interacting with each other, and yet there’s a more mature tenderness that has developed between them since we last visited Neptune, thanks in large part to the fact that they’re now equal business partners. Their relationship isn’t too mature, however, to not have at least one “Who’s your daddy?” quip!

Oh, and there’s a hilarious “cuss war” between Keith and Veronica that’s introduced in the first episode and runs throughout the duration of the season. Presumably, it’s a direct reference to Kristen Bell’s role as Eleanor on The Good Place, but, while it’s an allusion to the NBC show, it fits perfectly here. It’ll seriously have you laughing out loud every time it comes up.

For all of its similarities and callbacks to the previous seasons and stories, there are some pretty drastic differences between Veronica Mars season 4 and its predecessors.

Perhaps the most notable difference this season is the lack of “cases of the week.” Personally, I’m a huge fan of the “case of the week” structure because it’s a fun way to test our characters and reveal different facets about their personalities and relationships with one another. The cases also usually give the overarching mysteries and storylines space to breathe so that when those reveals do come, there’s no emphasis lost.

Additionally, these mostly self-contained mysteries provide a helpful background in distinguishing between episodes. As is so often the case with shows that are meant to be binge-watched, the episodes in Veronica Mars season 4 all run together and don’t have all that much to distinguish themselves from one another. It’s honestly hard to recall which episodes I enjoyed the most out of this season because the entire thing is a blur.

Though I do think there’s a bit of the Veronica Mars charm and cleverness that’s lost without the inclusion of smaller cases, there just wouldn’t be any room for them here with the way the season is plotted out. After all, it’s doubtful that Veronica or Keith would even dream about taking on additional cases after fully entrenching themselves in the case of the spring break bomber.

That’s not to say that there isn’t a lot packed into every episode of Veronica Mars season 4. Each episode is at least 50 minutes long, which means that, even though this Hulu revival season has a total of eight episodes, it’s almost like we’re getting nine and a half episodes worth of classic Veronica Mars (or about four movies).

It’s hard to determine whether or not the amount of episodes we get this season is optimal or not. On one hand, there’s just the right balance between effective character moments and plot. But on the other, this season’s plotlines don’t land quite as hard as past ones, at least on first watch.

The most drastic difference between Veronica Mars season 4 and the rest of the series is the fact that Veronica has less of a personal connection to the overarching mystery this time. Sure, she puts herself in the middle of everything and the bombings impact her daily life. But she takes the case because it’s the right thing to do, not because she or someone she cares about has been directly affected by the bombings.

Her lack of attachment slightly lowers the stakes for the season, which is kind of disappointing that the season focuses solely on the one mystery. Yes, people are being murdered by explosive devices. My observation here isn’t meant to make light of that. But, because Veronica’s personal stakes are generally lower throughout the season, the impact of the mystery is lessened considerably and the “whodunnit” just feels less pressing than usual.

Veronica Mars season 4 also deviates from the norm in its commentary on class and privilege. The plotline about the 09ers working to re-gentrify Neptune and drive out the “riff raff” (including the yearly spring breakers) is an underlying current, but it focuses more on how selfish the “haves” are rather than the impact all of this has on the “have nots.”

Though the movie indicated that a pretty big class war was on the horizon, that tense atmosphere seemingly evaporated in the time since Deputy Sacks was murdered in that “car accident,” most likely due to the sheriff’s department actually being not that corrupt this time around (which is a pretty big shocker).

It’s a small difference that perhaps I’m being too picky about, but after the movie did a great job discussing the racial inequality in Neptune and setting up the town itself as a bomb that was about to explode, the discussions in this new revival season are anti-climatic at best.

And then there are two side plotlines, one involving a senator and the other a Mexican cartel, that just don’t mesh well with the rest of the season at all. They’re directly connected the bomb and 09er plots, but really serve as nothing more than a distraction from everything else that’s going on. Yes, they (sort of) play their part in the season’s climax but are otherwise equal parts pointless and frustrating.

That all being said, the bombing storyline is definitely captivating from start to finish (and then some). The threat this season is no joke as the explosions come without warning and in crowded areas. The bomb that detonates in 4×04 is particularly gruesome and hard to watch, especially in the immediate aftermath. Not only that, but they’re hard to track. Many times, mysteries can be pretty easy to figure out but, true to form and thanks to a few pretty big twists, this Veronica Mars mystery will keep you guessing and feel like you’re missing something until the very end.

New to this season, Patton Oswalt’s pizza delivery guy character introduces a “true crime” element into the Veronica Mars universe which, honestly, I can’t believe we haven’t seen before. He follows all of the bombings going on, as well as the other cases Mars Investigations has taken on in the past, and adds a layer of skepticism. Not only that, but he also serves as a way of legitimizing just how intelligent Veronica is and how perfect she is in the role of a private eye, rather than a lawyer.

In this era of true crime that we’re all living in, it’s easy to forget that there are real people involved in the crimes and real lives at stake. While it’s not an official plotline for the season, one of the effective underlying currents is the slow takedown of true crime enthusiasts and just how much harder it is to solve crimes in real time and in the field rather than from a couch or a cell phone.

Speaking of characters with notable storylines, what would an article about Veronica Mars be without fangirling a bit over Logan Echolls and LoVe? After everything he has experienced in his life (especially the last few years), it makes sense that Logan we meet in Veronica Mars season 4 is quite different from the Logans we knew in previous seasons. Still a United State Naval Aviator, this Logan is regimented and reserved. He’s still witty and charming, but in a more subtle way.

However, Jason Dohring and Kristen Bell’s chemistry is still as sizzling as ever. Each scene they share is incredibly nuanced and emotional. Logan and Veronica may say one thing or act one way to each other, but their body language and facial expressions many times tell completely different stories. And yet, there’s still a sense that these two are not only completely meant for each other, but also that they’ll figure out some way to make it work.

This season takes extra care with Logan’s character, fleshing him out and bringing us all up to speed with just who he is at his point in his life. No longer surrounded in controversy, we’re able to see Logan the man rather than the Logan who’s almost always at the center of a storm. Not only that, but this season gives us a better understanding of who Logan is outside of his relationship with Veronica (or really, any other regular characters from the show). We get to see Logan for Logan. Jason Dohring gives his best performance as Logan in this season and, honestly, he’s a joy to watch.

And then there’s Veronica.

Veronica Mars is no longer the brooding teen and town pariah she once was. She’s all grown up now. Of course, Veronica still has her flaws (mainly her penchant for distrusting just about everyone and her unyielding pride), but she knows who she is and accepts all of the aspects of herself, for better or worse. This Veronica is self-aware enough to know when she’s in the wrong and she’s getting better about owning up and apologizing for it.

Also, although she tries to put up the same sharp, prickly front, it becomes increasingly apparent through the season that Veronica has softened considerably. Sure, she still just as witty and clever as she always was, but her second chance at love with Logan as well as her father’s brush with death has made her more of a marshmallow than she was before. Veronica wears more of her emotions on her sleeve and isn’t as quick to dismiss others as she has been in the past. In fact, dare I say, she’s more trusting and lets people in a lot more than she used to.

Veronica’s character development from the movie to now and all throughout this season is incredibly gratifying to watch. Following her trajectory has been a bit of a frustrating struggle sometimes, but this season makes it all worth it.

Veronica Mars season 4 has been a long time coming and, now that it’s finally here, it’s hard not to love it. This season is by no means perfect, but it feels like a proper return to Neptune and all of the characters we Marshmallows care so much about. Plus, it’s quite an enjoyable and emotional ride from start to finish with some pretty big twists and major events along the way (two in particular that will most likely set the internet ablaze).

Fans of Veronica Mars as a whole won’t be able to get enough of this fresh take on the show and will surely be clamoring for more as the final episode’s credits roll.

Random spoiler-free notes from watching ‘Veronica Mars’ season 4

The first episode makes it feel like truly no time has passed since the show went off the air. It sets up all of the season’s conflicts and storylines as effectively as its 1×01 and 2×01 predecessors.

OMG DICK.

I’ve never been more turned on by a Frank Sinatra song since 10 Things I Hate About You.

Wait, is this show actually introducing capable semi-capable local law enforcement with a sheriff that isn’t completely self-involved?

So Logan is effectively Veronica Mars‘s version of the Bruce Banner?

This season is very Jessica Jones-like in its story-telling. There are no “cases of the week,” but there is a lot of sardonic commentary to go around.

OMG THE BOOKS ARE OFFICIALLY CANON!

Is this show introducing a “new generation” here or something? Could you ever have Veronica Mars without Veronica Mars?

‘Veronica Mars’ season 4 will be streaming exclusively on Hulu starting Friday, July 26, 2019.

#veronica mars #veronica mars hulu revival #vm spoilers

[takaraphoenix]

Movie Review: Avengers Endgame

I’m already tagging it with like four different spoiler tags, but just in case someone who hasn’t gotten to see it yet forgot to block spoilers, review under the cut:

The short of it first: I love this movie. I, however, also hate this movie. There were many wonderful things about it and many things I disliked or that upset me. Overall however, I think the balance made for a perfect ending to the MCU. (Which, makes me feel really weird about the fact that there will be... more MCU.)

Fair warning, this review will not be in any particular order, more like... what comes to mind. Because there was just so much happening in it. So I’ll bolt the particular hero each section will be about, for easier navigation.

First things first, we gotta talk about the time paradox. Look, I know it’s not a plothole, it was very much intentional, they set it up from the moment Bruce met the Anient One, however it still drives me insane that they killed Thanos from 2014 and... it changed nothing in their time.

If Thanos from 2014 is dead, he can never even go and collect the Infinity Stones and this entire reality should cease to exist. The Ancient One’s explanation on how removing something from the past leads to a split timeline makes little sense to me, because it first and foremost should change this timeline.

I know it’s most likely meant to set up the multiverse - the x-Men, it’s going to be used to work in the X-Men, probably also the Fantastic Four. But the lack of explanation as to why changing your own past does not affect your present time was rather... frustrating for me.

Same goes for “Loki escapes punishment in 2012 with the stone”. How did the stone end up in the 70s then? And what impact does this have on the Thor timeline? Will he wreak more havok? Or change to good earlier?

For a movie working the primary angle of time-travel, answers about the paradox created were... too scarce for my taste.

IRON FAMILY

That being said: My Tony Stark stanning ass is absolutely living for the fact that Tony just... solved time-travel in one night, casually, like it’s nothing.

And as such, I gotta talk Tony first, don’t I?

I am now 100% the Tony-Nebula friendship that everyone was expecting after Infinity War and in the reality I will be accepting from hereon out, Nebula and Tony get to stray friends.

Though, a dynamic I did not expect to absolutely love and stan is Rhodey and Nebula! Oh, that was so good. Generally, Rhodey in this movie was so good. He is usually just treated as the add-on to Tony and in this movie, he was... so much more than that and seemed to stand on his own a lot. (Yes, he’s still in this section because he is still part of the Iron Family so sue me.)

At first, I was honestly frustrated that Pepper was just... The Wife And Mother and seemed to have so little... input into things. Like, support, brainstorm along with them, anything. She deserved to be more than that.

I genuinely don’t have an opinion on Morgan. Like, yay, Tony got to be a dad, but also she was just such a generic Child with no defining personality traits, which granted, there was no time in this movie to establish that, but having no time is not an excuse for shortcomings.

What really broke me was Peter though. Peter being the reason Tony invents time-travel, even though it could mean losing Pepper, losing Morgan, losing his own life - Peter is what pushes him over the edge into helping. And then the reunion. The hug, the confusion on Peter’s face. And gods did it wreck me when Peter cried over Tony’s body.

I mean, generally, Tony’s death wrecked me. I’m starting to cry again as I write these words. I fully admit that it was perfect. There is virtually no better way to have Tony Stark go out than by him single-handedly in the most literal way possible saving the entire planet and the universe, with his last line being “I am Iron Man” as he wields the Infinity Stones - seriously, if you watched this movie and still try to post Anti Tony shit, I have to wonder what movies you even watch because this entire damn franchise literally rests on his shoulders, holy shit.

It was... It was the most perfect ending for Tony possible. But I still hate that it ended. I wanted an Ironheart movie where he mentors a potential Riri Williams for the future of the MCU, I wanted Tony cameos in future Spider-Man movies, I... wanted him to get the chance to grow old and see his daughter grow up.

But holy shit that funeral. Everyone. Just... everyone. Even Harley. Which, admittedly, I only figured out after wrecking my brain for an hour trying to figure out who that lanky brunette kid was that stood around alone and then remembering that Harley should have had a cameo in this movie too and--oh. That... that was really a deep dig for the Iron Man stans and I wished it had been a tiny bit more prominent. Like, having him and Peter talk, even just for a brief moment, about Tony, to remind us who Harley is and what those two have in common. That’d have been a nice touch.

TEAM ANT

Scott being the one to come up with time-travel as the solution was kind of hilarious to me, considering he isn’t a scientist and he has never encountered time-travel before. (I mean, Stephen literally introduced time-travel to some of them as a thing that is possible before.)

Legit, one of the two only times I cried in this movie was when Scott searched for Cassie’s name on the memorial and then was reunited with her. Paul Rudd played it so well and so heavy with emotions, it was amazing.

Hope, well, due to having been dusted, she got a shorter end of the stick. Which, in itself, should not make me salty because obviously did the dusted ones not play a huge part in the movie - but the fact that she was dusted to begin with, seriously, they dusted more female characters than they did male characters and there are already so few female characters and I am still salty that in a movie called Ant-Man and the Wasp it was entirely about one Wasp getting un-fridged just to then have them kill off two Wasps.

I have to admit, I have a certain saltiness that while Hank got a cameo in the 70s, Janet again was not deemed important enough. She got a non-speaking role to just... stand there during Tony’s funeral. That’s it.

TEAM CAP

Steve. Gotta admit, this movie brought me back to St0ny. Civil War completely killed that ship for me, but I really, truly loved how they worked Steve and Tony together again in this movie. From the first confrontation when the ship lands, to Tony screaming at Steve in the compound and them then slowly rekindling again. Because the emotional outburst was needed and deserved and had it not come, something would have felt... cheap.

I’m not sure how I feel about how they solved things with him and Peggy. Honestly, I’m so tired that Peggy post the first Captain Marvel is literally just Steve’s Love Interest, even though she was so much more. When she appears, it’s only to dance with Steve or to be sad about Steve and it’s... frustrating. And I don’t know how much they just changed her life by having her and Steve get married in the 70s. Not to mention, uh, what did Steve do in the past 50 years? Just hide out at home? Since Captain America’s face is kind of recognizable.

Look, Steve and Peggy getting married and growing old together, being happy together, is absolutely the dream ending for Steve’s storyline. Genuinely. But this was too big a thing to be so casually handled. The ripple-effect that two Steves in one timeline have, the implication that this Steve really did give up fighting bad guys, during four decades where no Captain America was there to help, it’s... so very, very vague. I know there was no time to dive into this in full length, obviously, but that doesn’t quite excuse it.

I love that he handed the shield off to Sam though. He is easy to establish as the new Captain America since we all already know him and honestly, the only two options would have been Sam or Bucky - and... please just let Bucky retire, that boy’s been through too many decades of shit don’t force him to live up to Steve now, so yeah, Sam is the better fit there.

That being said, Bucky. I liked that Steve handed the shield off to Sam, but I was missing a proper Steve-Bucky reunion. Bucky nudging Sam to talk to old!Steve and even before that, after getting undusted, there was... nothing. After 75% of Steve Rogers’ plotline in the MCU being centered around Bucky Barnes, the least they could have done would have been a proper, heartfelt reunion and a last conversation between the two. So Steve didn’t want to tell Sam about the marriage? One more scene. One where Bucky sits down next to Steve and Steve tells Bucky about his life with Peggy, even if just shortly, but... that was something that was missing, for me.

Clint was... there. I just... I don’t know, man. He was out there murdering criminals for five fucking years and they couldn’t track one archer during all that time and now he’s supposed to go back play house with Laura? I honestly, genuinely would have preferred that they killed him off at that point.

Also because Natasha deserved better. They fridged her. They took the only female member of the original team and basically killed her off for the others’ man-pain. Seeing those five guys crying about her at the lake felt like really nothing but fridging. She died so they could have the stone, she died so Clint lost her - that was literally the only note on that. She died so Clint would lose her. That’s the definition of fridging and it makes me mad, because apparently during those five years, she was like a leader to everyone else.

I was, honestly, ready for them to spin off a female Avengers team after this movie. Led by Natasha. And that they did her dirty like that makes me mad.

Wanda was also in this movie. She was badass, that’s something. (This is literally the nicest you will ever hear me say about MCU!Wanda.)

WAKANDA

They really did Wakanda dirty. Mainly so because they did them dirty in Infinity War already - aside from Okoye, they literally killed off every single significant cast-member from Black Panther.

Shuri, I’ll hand it to you they had to kill off because otherwise Steve and co would have had an alternative to go to instead of Tony and thus they wouldn’t have brought the team together as they planned. But the way she was treated after? She didn’t even have a speaking role in this movie, damn it. Not even... one line... She and Peter never got to interact. She got a bit of action, but not much.

T’Challa at least had a speaking role, but also suffered from having been dusted in the previous movie and thus only getting ridiculously little screentime.

M’Baku! He had one scene. He ran through the screen once. That was it. That’s just... ridiculous. He didn’t even get a major throw-down or anything.

And Okoye? The only undusted one? I am genuinely disappointed that she was not part of the team. They got the whole gang together, but the gang didn’t include anyone who wasn’t an OG Avenger or a Guardian. Valkyrie and Okoye should have been brought onto the team too.

Never mind Nakia, she didn’t even get a cameo at the end like the queen did. She was just like... Sharon Carter and Jane Foster: Not found. And yes, I get it, you can’t get all 200 MCU cast members, that doesn’t make it less frustrating when key characters are just... missing.

THE ASGARDIANS

The humor around every Bruce and Thor scene was... very Ragnarök. That’s not a compliment. It’s jarring, considering that this is an Avengers movie and I would have preferred their regular characterization over that one-off movie one with its... strange, cringey humor.

Seriously, they did Bruce so dirty. He was little more than a punchline. He’s a genius scientist, but now he’s a poser in the body of the Hulk who rather takes pictures with fans? And who completely screws up time-travel - but don’t worry, it’s hilarious so it’s okay.

And I better not start with Thor. Look, I approve of the fact that he grieved, that he was shown to not handle shit well. But... the extend in which he didn’t handle shit well was... not satisfying for me, but that’s a matter of taste I suppose. I didn’t like that he killed Thanos off just like that when Nebula was right there - and yes, Thor lost a lot, but Nebula would have had the right to kill him off and Thor took that away from her.

I did love his conversation with Frigga though. That was... incredibly well-handled and very nice and exactly what he needed to get at least most of his shit together again.

Though it really frustrates me how... ridiculous it was that he didn’t save Frigga. What makes anyone who got dusted more worthy of being saved? They died too. They were killed off too. It was a legitimate kill. But here, you decided that going back in time to save them is okay. When Thor however gets to be right there and have the chance to also save his mom... that’s a no-no? Why? That’s bullshit. You are altering things, saving people who died, but you get picky about what people get saving? Fuck off.

Valkyrie was... why was she not part of the team. They went and picked up Thor for the mission. They sent Bruce to pick up Thor, Bruce who knows Valkyrie the best after Thor. Why would he not also take her with them because they could have needed the backup?

And I don’t know how to feel about her as a king either. Maybe... Maybe let the Asgardians vote? Try democracy if you say you no longer have monarchy? You can’t just... appoint the next king like that.

Where exactly did her pegasus come from, by the way? I mean, did they have time to save the stables in Asgard too...? Just, where?

Also on the note of characters who didn’t make it into the movie I’d like to give honorary mentions to Sif, who I love and dearly miss and also would have wanted to meet Valkyrie.

THE GUARDIANS

Same as with Cap and Bucky, I was salty that Rocket and Groot did not get a heartfelt reunion.

And that Quill getting to see Gamora again was handled as a joke despite just how... emotionally loaded it could have been.

Drax and Mantis were... also in this movie, I guess. Some of the dusted characters came out shorter than the others.

Also, I really don’t know how I feel about Thor joining the Guardians, to be quite honest. Not... my favorite idea, because him and Quill have such a bad, obnoxious dynamic and it was already annoying during Infinity War and now during Endgame and both had like... five minutes of it. An entire movie with it would just give me a fucking migraine.

FEMALE AVENGERS TEAM??

And also, on the note of a female Avengers team - that group-shot of every female hero looked really fucking epic, I had tears in my eyes when Okoye repeated Natasha’s words from Infinity War; She’s not alone. That was... that was a bit much for me, but personally, I found it really undersold.

They took the time out of this movie to show us a shot we have all already seen. That big epic “first time of all the Avengers in one scene” shot.

They had the time for that, but they didn’t fully give that to the girls. It was clear they were trying to recreate that moment with the female Avengers, but it was such a split-second image - the least they could have done then would have been to give it a proper spin, to pause, to really show it off. Show off what female heroes Marvel has to offer right then and there.

And yes. They absolutely had the time for that. They could have just cut the damn shot that we have all already seen in favor of this new one, for example.

And since now seems to be as good a time as any, let’s talk about Captain Marvel and her hair. I love it. It made my lesbian heart really very happy.

Part of me hated that she was off-world for most of the movie, most of me knows on a rational level that the had to have her off-world or else things would have ended too quickly. And I liked how they explicitely pointed it out in-universe too, through Rocket and Carol.

Stephen was also in this movie. Not very much due to having been dusted and not actually doing a lot, but him telling Tony what to do was... It made me cry some more. And I guess Wong also got a brief cameo.

IN CONCLUSION:

So, on the overall, I complain a lot about how the dusted ones came short, how certain emotional scenes could have been deepened.

There would have been an easy solution to that. Make one more movie. Make this finale a trilogy instead of a two-parter. There were so many characters with individual plotlines in this movie and they deserved to be heard. Endgame should have been a two-parter in my opinion.

Also, I don’t like the five years time-jump. I just... yes, yes, big tragedy, lots of people dead, but somehow I find it incredibly unrealistic that five years into the future, the world would be slowly turning dystopian and no one moved on even a little bit? Life... Life would go on, somehow. And this made it look like it just didn’t.

I’d have had an easier time had they put this one year later, but I guess then Morgan couldn’t have been an adorable girl and would have just been a screechy baby so they needed the time-jump, huh.

Still I think five years was too much on the overall. Clint out there, murdering criminals for five years without being caught by the Avengers?

But yes, in the overall, I really did enjoy the movie. While some things came to short, they still put a pleasant amount of focus on the emotions and dynamics. It was heartfelt, emotional, sad, it gave Tony and Steve both the end they deserved. It did however still include a lot of things that didn’t sit right with me or that I thought were fault and I do still require a more elaborate explanation on the time paradox.

The total sum of this movie however was the perfect ending for the MCU. Which... is actually kind of a problem considering there is more MCU happening? And while, yes, I am totally here for Captain Marvel 2 and Black Panther 2, I... honestly... am basically done with the rest? And those two mainly due to the quality of their first movies and the fact that they happen isolated. Space and Wakanda. Not... yet another story in New York but this time without the Avengers you know and miss now.

#Avengers Endgame #Avengers Endgame Spoilers #Avengers Spoilers #Endgame Spoilers #A4 Spoilers #Phoe's Movie Reviews #Marvel

[jessisreadingblog-blog]

Pet Sematary (1989) - movie review

This week I finished re-reading “Pet Sematary” and right afterwards I re-watched the 1989 movie.

The book review is already up and, as promised, here’s the movie review!

Please be aware that this review is FULL of spoilers for both the book and the movie – you’ve been warned 😉

 Main differences between the book and the movie

After the Creeds’ arrival in Ludlow´, Gage gets stung by a bee in the book, which leads to the introduction of Jud, who pulls out the bee sting. The movie is a bit more dramatic and foreshadowing. While Ellie has her little accident with the tire swing, everyone is focused on her and Gage walks to the road and almost gets hit by a truck but is saved by Jud. This is not a bad change at all. However, what I found a little weird is Rachel’s reaction. Yes, she’s relieved and thanks Jud, but if this had been my kid, I would have been a lot shakier afterwards, especially after being on the edge already after the long drive and Ellie falling off the swing … Considering how Rachel usually reacts to the potential of someone dying, this came across as a little weird. 

Norma, Jud’s wife, is not in the movie. Instead they kill off Missy Dandridge, who’s a completely different character than the kind lady who watches the kids sometimes and is very much alive in the end of the book. In the movie she doesn’t die of a heart attack, like Norma, but, believing she has cancer, she hangs herself.  That’s an acceptable change, too. In the movie they only have so much time, so it’s ok to leave out Norma’s storyline, although I’m sure that no one really cares about Missy’s death as I cared about Norma’s death in the book. She’s not really likeable, which is a pity. They could have made her just a little nicer, interact with the kids once or twice, to make people actually care before killing her.

It’s not dark when Jud finds Church dead and it’s still day when they head for the Micmac burial ground. I first thought this was a bad idea – it’s much less creepy – but I guess it was done because it made the next time, when Louis brings Gage there, more effective. I still don’t really like it, this scene had much more potential. For me Louis’ two walks to the burial ground were by far the creepiest scenes in the book. The wild, hysterical laugh of the Wendigo never fails to make me shudder, no matter how often I read this book. In the movie there are just some weird sounds that could probably really be birds.

Speaking of the Wendigo: There’s no Wendigo in the movie! In fact, there’s no background story to the burial ground at all. We only know that “the ground went sour”, for whatever reason.  I would have liked the background story and the menacing presence of the Wendigo.

The cairns on the burial ground don’t look like someone dug himself out as they are described in the book.

When Church comes back, he’s more aggressive than in the book. I have no idea why Louis lets this thing anywhere near his kids. At the same time, he isn’t at all clumsier or dumber like he is in the book, but it’s difficult to have a cat act like that so I get it.  

The same goes for Spot, Jud’s dog. When Jud tells Louis about him in the book, he says that Spot always remained a good dog. When he came back from the dead and scared Jud’s mother it was just by standing there and cornering her, by accident or on purpose.

In the movie he growls at her – and again, I have no idea why they kept that thing until he died of old age. And if the dog was so aggressive, why in the world would Jud tell Louis to bury his cat there, knowing there are two small children in the household? Even the dark power of the burial ground couldn’t convince me that that’s a good idea.  

The story about Timmy Baterman, the young man who died in WWII was brought back to life by his father when Jud was still a young man, is far creepier in the book. In the movie he’s just this savage, dumbed down version of a human, kind of like a zombie. He even chews on a little girl’s leg! By the way: I’m so confused about that! Did he dig it out of a grave or did he kill the girl to get it? And if it’s the latter – why doesn’t Jud mention that he didn’t just walk creepily back and forth in their town, scaring housewives, but also stole and ate little girls? Anyway, in the book he’s malicious and knows the darkest secrets about everyone, playing mind games with Jud and his friends, and Jud uses the word “demon” to describe him.  

Timmy’s end is also very different. In the movie the men from the town set the house on fire with Timmy and his father in it. Bill, the father, tries to get himself and Timmy out, but Timmy drags them both into the flames, which makes it seem like he himself prefers death.  In the book it’s Bill himself who kills Timmy, sets the house with both of them in on fire and then shoots himself. That solution is far better. The book tries to give the girl-eating, housewife-scaring zombie thing without the demon vibe a tragic touch. Of course that tragic touch is also there in the book but the demon, or whatever it is in Timmy’s body, doesn’t commit suicide.

After Gage’s death, the movie version of Louis goes to the cemetery by bright daylight and stores his grave robbery equipment there. Isn’t that a bit risky? The place must have great power indeed to back up so much stupidity.

In the book Louis only sees Pascow once after his death, namely in his “dream” from which he wakes up with dirty feet (in the book he reacts to that far more strongly, which I missed a bit in the movie). Later, after Gage’s death, only Ellie sees him in her dreams. In the movie Rachel feels his presence, too, as he’s trying to make her go home and get there more quickly, so she’s potentially able to help Louis. Not the best idea from the beyond as it turns out, and in the end it makes Ellie an orphan, but nobody’s perfect, not even the helpful spirits.  

When Gage comes back, he’s different in the movie than he is in the book. Thankfully, he’s not like the movie version of Timmy Baterman but the mind games are fare more harmless, which is again due to the age of the young actor and understandable.

In the book, a moment before his death, Gage is himself once more, calling out to Louis with the word “Daddy”, which literally made me cry. In the movie he walks away from Louis, looking like a sulking kid (which isn’t bad either) and says “Not fair”, and before he dies, he growls again, showing that he’s not at all himself. For me that’s not nearly as intense but it doesn’t ruin anything.

When Louis carries Rachel away from Jud’s house and towards the woods, he again encounters Pascow, who tries to talk sense into him one last time. In the book it’s Louis’ colleague and friend who finds him, but he doesn’t play any role in the movie, so it makes sense that he doesn’t show up there.

What I liked

The actors are great, especially Jud. He’s exactly like I always picture him reading the book. Gage and Ellie are adorable, which makes Gage’s death and Ellie’s mourning and fear for her father even more intense. Dale Midkiff (Louis) may not be the best actor int he world but he’s not as bad as some say.

The music is perfect and positively creepy. The movie relies mostly on atmosphere and slow build-up.

Zelda! Everything about her is perfect and so scary! Fun fact: She’s played by a man because they couldn’t find a woman who was skinny enough and could still be scary.

The scene of Church coming back is great, with the remains of the plastic bag, in which he was buried, still in his whiskers, just like in the book, and him indeed looking more menacing at Louis than before his death.  

I loved the Stephen King cameo – he’s playing the priest at Missy’s funeral.

At Missy’s funeral Ellie is wearing the marine blue dress she wore at Norma’s in the book; that’s just one of the nice little details they adapted from the book – there are many more.

I very much like how Pascow keeps interfering. He replaces Rachel’s inner struggle in Chicago and on her way home which we wouldn’t be able to see otherwise in the movie.

The second time Louis goes up to the burial ground is well done, with the blue fog and the noises and all. At least up to a certain point which is mentioned in the “What I didn’t like” section.

Gage killing Jud is well-done, even if it’s different from the book.

Except for Pascow following and helping her, Rachel’s way home is faithful to the book. Even the way she meets Gage and her untimely demise is quite faithful, with her first seeing Zelda and all. BUT if a small kid runs towards you with a scalpel openly in hand, no matter if he came back from the dead or not, the first think I would do is take the scalpel out of his hand. In the books he makes the effort of hiding it behind his back. Still, it’s a very good scene.

Gage calling Louis at home, making him realise that he killed Jud and Rachel.

Louis killing Church again is also well-done, and so is Louis killing Gage – this bone chilling little boy’s cry when Louis sticks the needle in his throat is so hard to bear. Just one thing (and I’m really nit-picking now, which is why this is not going to the “What I didn’t like” section): Why is Louis wearing medical gloves when he kills Church? Aren’t we beyond the point of caring about things like that? Also: He doesn’t wear gloves when he kills Gage.

Louis bringing Rachel to the burial ground and waiting for her and her coming back. It’s mostly well done.  

What I didn’t like

This is a minor complaint, but the scenes with Pascow can become a little cheesy at times. At the end of Louis’ “dream” he didn’t have to float away, they could have just zoomed in on Louis and let him wake up. The last scene with Pascow and Rachel was even worse. You know, when she gets out of the truck and he just closes the door and decides to stick with the trucker (why can he do that and most of all – why doesn’t anyone notice?).

Why are there stupid-looking kids standing around in Rachel’s house when she runs down the stairs after Zelda’s death? Can anyone explain that to me? I never understood that. I mean, she was alone with her sister when she died, she says that to Louis, in the book and in the movie. I don’t know about you but creepy neighbourhood kids have no way of entering my home without permission.

Another thing involving Pascow: Before he dies, he says that the soil in a man’s heart is stonier; later Jud repeats that sentence and when Louis is shocked about that we see a flashback to Pascow to remind us that he said it before. I don’t like it when a movie takes me for a fool, I’m perfectly capable of making the connection myself and don’t need cheap tricks like two-second-flashback for that, thank you very much.

When Louis climbs up to the burial ground with Gage in his arms, a jump-scare-face suddenly rushes towards him out of nowhere. Why would the face of a regular guy rush towards him? Is that Jud? Even with the screenshot I’m not sure but I’m starting to think it’s Jud (which never occurred to me in during the scene because it’s so fast). But it doesn’t matter because that would make even less sense. In the book the Wendigo comes so close to him and it’s such a scary scene and yes, he does see a face, but that of a spirit, demon or whatever, not that of a face coming out of nowhere just to make us jump and to look stupid. If they left out the Wendigo, they could have left out that s***, too.

The Gage puppet/doll/whatever this thing is! I get that you can’t make a little child act in scenes like the ones in towards the end, but the puppet thing is just so ridiculous! It always makes me think of Chucky and this is when I can’t take it seriously anymore and everything that might be creepy about a scene is completely ruined. And how did Chucky … I mean Gage … get Rachel’s corpse to the attic to drop it in front of Louis? He might be undead, but he’s still tiny!

Louis waiting for Rachel. Yes, I know, this is in the “What I liked” section, too, but it deserves to be in both. I mean – Louis is setting the alarm clock and right when it rings, Rachel comes back. Really? Has he become such an expert in raising the dead that he knows the exact time they will reappear? He didn’t even see when exactly Church and Gage came back.

Also, his hands are perfectly intact. Like in the book, he brings Rachel to the burial ground without any shovel or whatever to help him dig, so he does it with his bare hands. In the books his hands are ruined, which makes sense, in the movie they’re perfectly fine, which doesn’t make sense. Otherwise, the scene is good!  I didn’t even notice the thing with his hands before I read the novel, by then I had seen the movie twice.  

Is it a faithful adaptation?

Yes, definitely.

Even in very first scene, while the camera slowly moves through the pet cemetery, there’s a voice-over of some of the kids who buried their pets there, reading the inscriptions on the grave markers, which are exactly the same as the ones in the book.

A lot of the dialogue is the same as in the book, word by word.

The story, despite a few changes of which some where necessary because it is a different medium, is mainly the same.

The main characters are very true to their book counterparts, there are so many small details you will notice that are exactly the same in the book.

Is it a good movie?

I think it is. It has a creepy atmosphere, does not rely entirely on jump scares, as so many modern horror movies do, and the soundtrack is perfect! It has its flaws, some scenes have not aged well, but it’s still a very good, atmospheric horror movie and a mostly faithful adaptation to the source material.

The new movie

I am so hyped! Yes, I know the movie won’t be as faithful to the novel as the first one but we already have a faithful adaptation and in some scenes (GAGE PUPPET!) it didn’t work out.

I don’t want the kid to be replaced with a puppet or CGI effects – so it’s such a good thing that Ellie is the one who dies and comes back because the actress playing her will be old enough to do so convincingly. Gage is a good choice for the book and Ellie is a good choice for the movie.

There will be other changes so that even long-term fans like me will be surprised here and there. I will tell you what I think about these changes when I actually saw the movie because right now the only big change we know about for sure is that Rachel will be at home when Ellie comes back, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing, the whole to Chicago and back again journey does take a lot of time.

What I also like is that the actress playing Zelda will be younger. In the first movie she’s an adult or almost an adult, in the book she’s only two years older than Rachel, which makes her 10 and therefore the whole story is even more terrifying and tragic. I can’t wait to see how that turns out!

I’m also so happy that the Wendigo will be addressed and I’m really looking forward to see how exactly that will be done.

Long story short: I can’t wait for the movie to come out and I’m not mad about the changes so far!

#pet sematary #pet sematary movie #movie review #review #book vs movie #book movie comparison #stephen king #pet sematary 1989 #pet sematary 2019 #horror movie #horror book #horror novel