What did you miss? For a review of the last episode, click HERE

The Morning Show S1 Ep 4: The Woman

From Vulture.com: https://www.vulture.com/2019/11/the-morning-show-recap-episode-4-season-1-that-woman.html

The Morning Show Recap: What Doesn’t Kill You
By Maggie Fremont


Bradley’s TMS debut may be a disaster, but holy hell, it is entertaining. Photo: Apple TV+

Without a doubt, the first ten minutes of “That Woman” are the best ten minutes of The Morning Show so far. I mean, long live Alex Levy Getting Fed Up in Her Red Coat, but what goes down from the point when Alex introduces Bradley to The Morning Show audience until Bradley lies facedown on the floor of her dressing room is perfection.

If you’ve been reading along, you know I’ve taken issue with the time spent on Bradley’s backstory. Today, I’m happy to announce that we are handsomely rewarded for that meandering subplot with a glorious payoff. Everything about Bradley’s TMS start is so artificial, from her entrance to Kelly Clarkson’s “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You),” to the 100 percent scripted banter between Bradley and Alex, to the co-anchors’ cheery and bright demeanors — everything is dripping in morning show fakeness. Like, can you even imagine the restraint these two need to apply to avoid using profanity? They use so much profanity!


Still, the most hilariously fake moment comes when they cut to none other than Bradley’s mom, Sandy, who is apparently a pro at both lying through her teeth and reading cue cards. The former we already knew, the latter was a surprise! But there’s Sandy, reading a script about how she just knew was going to grow up to be someone special. While Sandy’s chatting about Bradley’s happy childhood, Bradley’s remembering that special time when Sandy grabbed her teen daughter and yelled, “Get your shit together girl, or you’re gonna end up sucking dicks under the promenade.” Ah, memories.

It’s this bit with her mother that is the last straw for Bradley. She needs to course-correct this message. She starts out TMS-friendly enough, making sure young women watching know their childhood doesn’t have to be perfect in order for them to be successful. That’s a great message to put out there. But then she starts listing less than perfect parts of her own childhood, which starts with getting suspended and ends with the abortion she had at 15 years old. Honestly, I’m surprised someone didn’t faint, that is the level of chaos that ensues after Bradley tosses a hot-button issue right onto the anchor desk of what is supposed to be a very non-political show. Alex and Bradley — who knows she’s in some deep shit and can’t tell if she did that on purpose or simply slipped — try to recover, but there’s not really a great segue out of that. Chip’s eyes might pop out of his head. Fred is freaking out in his office about the advertisers he’s sure he’ll lose. The only person super into it is, you guessed it, Cory. He was waiting for something exciting to happen!

Exciting is definitely one word for it. Watching the team scramble to cover is, well, let’s be honest, it is a legit joy. They decide to throw to Yanko with the weather, who proceeds to color his forecast with notes about how you should put some sunscreen and hats on your kids and babies, until someone gets in his ear to tell him to quit it with all the references to kids, and so he follows up with something about how even if you don’t have kids, you should wear sunscreen. It is a disaster. It is awful. But holy hell, it is entertaining.

Alex has a lot to lose in this mess. As she likes to remind anyone who will listen, she chose Bradley. She is the Dr. Frankenstein to whatever kind of monster Bradley ends up becoming. But more than anything, she doesn’t want to let Fred and the higher-ups think that they were right about how this would turn out. “I would die first,” she tells Bradley. And guys, I don’t think she’s exaggerating.

So Alex is the one who tells Bradley to put on her big girl panties and get back out there the next morning. Bradley apologizes — not for having an abortion, but for speaking so casually about an issue that is deeply personal to many people — and endures some truly heinous Twitter harassment from the anti-abortion crowd. But then something kind of wonderful happens: 50 percent of the audience may hate Bradley, but the other 50 love her. High-school girls are walking out of school in Mississippi in support of Bradley and reproductive rights. She’s given a voice to so many women. She’s refreshing and relatable. The ratings in the 18-to-34 demo are higher than ever before. Even Kelly Clarkson pulls Bradley up onstage with her during a TMS appearance to tell her that she’s “a truth-teller” and that she stands with Bradley. As Cory puts it, in less than a week, Bradley Jackson has completely “rebranded” morning television as something relevant.

If you’re thinking, Hm, Alex might not enjoy that, oh, friend, you really understand this show! Because yes, Alex needs Bradley to succeed, but she in no way wants Bradley’s star to shine brighter than hers. She doesn’t want to be grooming her own replacement. It’s Chip, the guy who’s known Alex for 15 years, who broaches that subject. It’s surprisingly sweet? Alex insists she’s fine. Bradley resonating with people is good for the show. And hey, it has also led the conversation away from Mitch’s scandal. Alex puts up a good front, but after Chip tells her that New York Magazine is going to do a feature on Bradley, you can see her almost break. That one stings. Alex may not be here for Chip attempting to be sincere, but she definitely needed that lovely little kiss on the forehead before he leaves her alone in her dressing room. When Alex plucked Bradley from the audience of that awards ceremony, this is certainly not what she had in mind.

But wait! Bradley’s first week on the job isn’t over. Everything is building up to her interview with Ashley, the Mitch accuser Hannah stole from YDA. It’s very clear, even before Cory visits Bradley and harmlessly wonders who else at UBA knew about what Mitch was doing (just kidding, Cory always has an agenda), that Bradley won’t be sticking to the script here. The prepped interview feels too safe to Bradley, it’s clearly protecting UBA from having to admit they played a part in Mitch’s actions, and Ashley’s story — that there was a lot of flirting that never crossed the line, but she felt pressured and like she couldn’t do her job, so she left — doesn’t completely add up to Bradley.

Bradley goes ahead with her scripted interview, but knows Ashley wants to say more. She pushes her — not screaming-in-her-face-about-being-exhausted pushes, but concerned-morning-news-show-host concerned — and Ashley tells the full story, much to the horror of, well, everyone else who has any stake in TMS. Ashley would go to Mitch’s room and give him oral sex. She was never forced, but she also had no way to say no to him. She felt like she was drowning, and everyone at TMS knew, but no one did anything. So, yeah, people like Fred, Chip, and Alex, who are worried about the show being taken down with Mitch, are freaking out.

The story Ashley tells about how much Mitch stole from her is as awful as you’d expect. And it also puts the entire show at risk. When the interview is over, that’s what Alex decides to confront Bradley about. But Bradley doesn’t care. I mean, did you see her take her earpiece out when Alex got on the mic and tried to get her to stop the interview? Bradley only has one question for Alex when she’s confronted about how reckless she was: “Did you know? About what was going on in his dressing room?” Oh yeah, that one hits Alex where it hurts.
This Just In!

• The investigator UBA hired to look into the Mitch allegations and see what’s going on at The Morning Show arrives and it becomes clear she’s mainly on a fact-finding mission for Fred, who’s trying to figure out where the network might be vulnerable. So her whole speech about creating a safe, confidential space for people to speak is basically bullshit. What isn’t at UBA?

• Mia’s time with the investigator is enlightening: She and Mitch had an affair for a year, after developing a close working relationship. She ended things when it got “too complicated” but is adamant there were no repercussions. And although she did file an HR complaint the week before everything leaked to the Times, it was done with the intent to get Mitch away from reporting on Me Too stories, not to get him fired. She was not the one who leaked the allegations. Can’t wait to find out who did!

• Oh, Yanko, Yanko, Yanko. He’s growing increasingly spooked about his secret relationship with Claire the PA, but she insists there’s no power imbalance here. In fact, her family is insanely rich and with just one phone call her father could have Yanko fired. I’m still 100 percent sure this relationship is going to blow up.

• Cory saying “Woke Twitter will NEVAH forgive us” forever and ever. I cannot wait for the impending Cory-Fred showdown. You know it’s coming!

• Maybe I’m an easy laugh, but Bradley pronouncing Y.A. as “Ya” and the proceeding saccharine banter between her and Alex made me laugh so hard. Those two are so good at being so fake. This is the content I’m living for!

What did you miss? For a review of the last episode, click HERE

From ew.com: https://ew.com/recap/the-sinner-season-3-episode-3/

The Sinner S3 Ep 3

The Sinner recap: Nietzsche made me do it
By Matt Cabral
February 20, 2020 at 11:00 PM EST

The Sinner‘s third episode begins the way last week’s ended, with Jamie trying to throttle the remaining life from a hospice patient. No, he’s not taking another crack at the old man, but rather replaying the horrific murder attempt in his head.

His flashes of the previous evening’s events are intercut with sights and sounds of a grave being dug (perhaps the same six-foot hole discovered on Sonya’s property) until Lela snaps him out of his stupor. Mrs. Burns, due to give birth in just a few days, has had it. “Pull it together. Deal. Get some help,” are among her responses to Jamie’s self-absorbed, self-destructive musings on life, death, God, and whether or not it’s fair to bring a newborn into the world.

Ambrose has a slightly better morning, waking up on Sonya’s porch after a night of security duty. The painter offers him coffee, a smile, and a tour of her studio. He’s got a killer to catch, though, so it’s back to the station for more awkward exchanges with eager-to-help Detective Vic Soto. A limping Ambrose — suffering sciatica pain from last night’s uncomfortable slumber — informs Soto that Burns attacked his roommate back in college.

Ambrose interviews the former dormmate/now-dermatologist, who provides plenty of juicy intel on Jamie, circa junior year in college. Apparently everything changed between the “friendly” roomies when Jamie met a “weird, dark guy” — Hello, Nick Haas! — who placed Burns under his spell. After a night spent with his new bestie, Jamie came back to the dorm covered in dirt and blood, and looking “too alive.” His roommate snapped some pics of him, then attempted to shake him from his trance. His efforts were rewarded with a lava lamp to the skull and 22 stitches.

Catching up with current-day Jamie, he’s once again clashing with his fellow train commuters; following an altercation over a parking space, he sits across from the offender, then shoots him a seething stare before the man removes his Airpods and finds another seat. His destructive path continues after school when he meets Emma — the student he’s been “helping” get into college — off-campus. He tells the girl to think for herself and not let others influence her decisions, then teeters into crazy-talk territory: “We are living on a giant rock. We are flying through space, and no one knows anything.”

When Mr. B sees he’s scaring Emma, he nervously apologizes, heads outside, and has another grave-digging flashback. More than just another close-up of a shovel hitting dirt, however, the scene reveals a sweaty-faced Nick doing the digging. This prompts Jamie to contemplate stepping in front of a bus. As he decides to step back from the curb, suffering only a puddle splash, he gets a phone call from Lela — it’s baby time!

Jamie returns home, where contractions are seven minutes apart and Lela’s brother’s been all-hands-on-deck since the afternoon, a detail that clearly bothers the father-to-be. During the natural, at-home birth, Jamie tells Lela he’s happy, despite his mind again drifting to that night at the grave. While Lela pushes and breaths, we get another big clue: While Nick’s digging, another person is kneeling nearby, clutching a hose — like the one found by the hole on Sonya’s property — with bloody hands.

Over a boring dinner of grilled chicken and broccoli, Ambrose receives pictures via email from the dermatologist. They show Jamie, sitting cross-legged on his dorm room floor, holding a hose. Behind him, the word “ubermensch” has been carved into his headboard. Cut back to Jamie, just a few nights after cutting his son’s umbilical cord. He’s holding baby Burns, afraid to leave him. “What if he stops breathing?” he desperately asks Lela. He sees a hallucination of Nick, rocking in a chair in the nursery, a copy of Green Eggs and Ham next to him. Jamie tries to escape the vision by heading to the living room, but Nick’s unnerving presence follows.

Meanwhile, Harry’s back at Sonya’s, helping her pick prime spots to install security cameras and teaching her about tree fungicides. An apparent fan of his amateur arborist inclinations, she gets a bit flirty with Harry, saying “someone has to make the first move” after asking for his hand to help her scale a downed log. When not trying to crack the emotionally closed-off detective, Sonya’s doing a bit of her own sleuthing, Googling Jamie and stalking/snapping pics of him at the train station.

Back at the Burns’ happy home, daddy’s coming home with a bundle of groceries. When he finds Lela’s brother there, helping out and holding the baby, he snaps, “Give me my son!” Later that night, a stressed Jamie goes for an evening stroll. He’s tracked by Ambrose, who informs him he’s not only got the dirty details on his college days but also DNA placing him at the grave. Oh, and proof he shut off Nick’s phone the night of the accident. He says he let Nick die — which equals manslaughter — because the toxic friend had a hold on him, one that persists even after his death. Jamie seems desperate for Ambrose’s help, but gets defensive and storms off.

So, about that “ubermensch” reference: While meeting with Nick and Jamie’s college philosophy professor — who remembers the former as “brilliant” and “eccentric” — Ambrose learns the word, essentially meaning “beyond man” or “superhuman” in German, is a concept explored in Friedrich Nietzsche’s philosophy that was later co-opted by Hitler and the Nazis to describe their idea of creating a master race.

While Harry continues peeling pack the layers of his suspect’s dark past, Jamie’s having a particularly bad day … even for him. At the job, he’s being disciplined for encouraging Emma to ignore her parents’ wishes, while at home he’s seeing more of ghost-Nick. While rocking his son, the deceased creep appears in front of him, demanding Jamie give him the baby because “he has to learn.” A tearful, pleading Jamie complies. Nick smiles and gently cradles the tyke, before twisting and contorting his tiny body to the sounds of screams and breaking bones.

The incredibly unsettling vision brings a sobbing Jamie to his knees and, ultimately, to Ambrose’s office begging for help. But before the detective’s alerted to Burns’ arrival, we’re treated to a bit more of his social awkwardness — this time courtesy of his deceased father’s personal effects, which were referenced back in episode one.

Obviously not a fan of dear old dad, Ambrose has the box shoved under his desk; when his boss notices, he attempts to console him with a hug Harry clearly wasn’t comfortable with. Between this slowly-evolving side story, as well as the one involving Harry trying to connect — unsuccessfully — with his daughter and grandson, we’re wondering if the suffering sleuth will ever find some personal happiness this season.

In the station’s conference room, Jamie’s pacing, nearly hyperventilating, and “trying to hold it together.” He claims Nick infected him and there’s no cure. He finally agrees to Harry’s help and is taken to the hospital for a “consultation.” While Burns sits nervously, the detective quietly asks security to cover the lobby, hoping to detain his suspect before the night’s over.

When the two are called to see the doctor, Harry thinks a confession’s coming. But the patient, who’s growing increasingly paranoid, believes he’s just there to answer a few questions. The doc runs through the standard psych evaluation, as Jamie uneasily stares at his clicking ballpoint and bulging Adam’s apple. It seems the two items might meet violently at any moment, but Burns instead sticks to crazy-talk, suggesting everyone in the room has had thoughts of dropping a helpless baby just to quell the dread of such an accident happening. When asked if he’s suicidal, he shares something “his friend” used to say: “[Suicide] is avoiding pain, and pain is the gateway.”

As he’s previously done so many times this season, Jamie becomes defensive and heads for the door. Ambrose tries to stop him, but is met with a “Nick was right,” before he bolts into the woods outside. Harry gets on the horn toot sweet, calls for a security detail at Sonya’s house, and requests an emergency warrant on Jamie’s phone. “He’s out there. He’s going to do something. We have to find him.”


Until next week, sinners.

From Roger Ebert.com: https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/blade-runner-1982-1
Jun 2, 1982

BLADE RUNNER

The strangest thing about the future is that this is now the future we once foretold. Twenty years ago, we thought of "now" as "the year 1982," and we wondered what life would be like. Little could we have guessed that there would be no world government, that the cars would look like boxes instead of rocket ships, and that there would still be rock 'n' roll on the radio.

"Blade Runner" asks us to imagine its own future, in "the year 2020." The movie takes place in a Los Angeles that looks like a futuristic Tokyo, with gigantic billboards showing smiling Japanese girls drinking Coca-Cola. I would have predicted L.A. would be Hispanic, but never mind. It looks sensational.

The city is dominated by almost inconceivably huge skyscrapers that look like the Merchandise Mart, times ten. People get around in compact vehicles that fly, hover, climb and swoop. (In a lot of fictional futures, people seem to zip around the city in private aircraft; can you imaging the traffic problems?) At ground level, however, the L.A. of the future is an urban jungle.

The movie stars Harrison Ford as a cop who moves confidently through the city's mean streets. He is laconic, cynical, competent. He has a difficult assignment. A group of "replicants," artificial people who seem amazingly human, have escaped from "off-world," and are trying to inflict themselves on Earth.

Ford's job is to track them down and eliminte them. Anyone who has read this far can predict what happens next: He falls in love with one of the replicants. She may not be quite human, but, oh, you kid.

This basic story comes from a Philip K. Dick novel with the intriguing title, "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?" The book examined the differences between humans and thinking machines, and circled warily around the question of memory: Does it make an android's personal memories less valid if they are inspried by someone else's experiences -- especially if the android does not know that?

Ford says he originally signed on for "Blade Runner" because he found such questions intriguing. For director Ridley Scott, however the greater challenge seemed to be creating that future world. Scott is a master of production design, of imagining other worlds of the future ("Alien") and the past ("The Duellists").

He seems more concerned with creating his film worlds than populating them with plausible characters, and that's the trouble this time. "Blade Runner" is a stunningly interesting visual achievement, but a failure as a story

The special effects were supervised by Douglas Trumbull, whose credits include "2001: A Space Odyssey" and "Silent Running," and who is about as good as anyone in the world at using miniatures, animation, drawings, optical effects and other ways of tricking the eye.

The visual environments he creates for this film are wonderful to behold, and there's a sense of detail, too; we don't just get the skyways and the monolithic skyscrapers and the sky-taxis, we also get notions about how restaurants, clothes and home furnishing will look in 2020 (not too different). "Blade Runner" is worth attending just to witness this artistry.

The movie's weakness, however, is that it allows the special effects technology to overwhelm its story. Ford is tough and low-key in the central role, and Rutger Hauer and Sean Young are effective as two of the replicants, but the movie isn't really interested in these people -- or creatures.

The obligatory love affair is pro forma, the villains are standard issue, and the climax is yet one more of those cliffhangers, with Ford dangling over an abyss by his fingertips. The movie has the same trouble as the replicants: Instead of flesh and blood, its dreams are of mechanical men.

What did you miss? For a review of the last episode, click HERE

from Ready Steady Cut: https://readysteadycut.com/2021/08/25/recap-clickbait-episode-6-netflix-series/

Clickbait S1 Ep 6: The Brother

August 25, 2021

Jordan Russell Lyon0

Summary

The whole narrative of Nick’s murder is flipped on its head whilst a shocking conclusion hints at the true identity of his killer.

Episode 6 of Clickbait starts with a flashback. Six months ago, whilst working in content moderation, Simon spied on Sarah. Back to the present day, Simon is with his friend Daryl (Jamie Timony). Daryl is freaking out over the leaked messages making it onto the news. Later that day, Det Amir pays Simon a visit, so he texts Daryl: “Don’t answer your phone. Don’t come back today. Don’t go home”. Back to a flashback and a distraught Sarah hasn’t been to work all week. “Why can’t I be like everyone else, why can’t I just be happy?” she cries. Sarah then calls Simon before she kills herself. This is what leads Simon to the conversation with Jeremy, aka Nick.

With Simon now a suspect in Nick’s murder, Simon practices his alibi with Daryl, but Daryl wants to make a run for it. Meanwhile, Pia stalks Simon and Daryl on Facebook. She notices that Simon only posted a selfie on the day that Nick went missing. She tells Det Amiri what she’s found, and they nearly sleep together. He stops it from happening though, fearing he will lose his job if anyone found out.

Flashing back to the day that Nick disappeared, Simon and Daryl track Nick down and corner him before attacking him whilst he rides his bike by injecting him.

Det Amiri wants a formal statement from Simon at the station, Simon agrees but asks if he can take his own car. He’s allowed to but uses the opportunity to flee from the police. At the same time, Pia has decided she wants to talk to Simon. Finding Daryl, there’s brief eye contact before he tries to kidnap Pia. A passing neighbor distracts Daryl and Pia pushes him in front of a moving car. Simon, meanwhile, is cornered in an alleyway, and after a tense standoff, Simon finally surrenders to Det Amir.

Det wants a formal statement from Simon at the station. Simon takes his own car but uses the opportunity to flee from the police. Pia has come to talk to Simon herself. She finds Daryl, they make eye contact, a van passes by, and then he is gone. Det chases after Simon. Daryl was hiding behind his car and tries to kidnap Pia. But a passing friend distracts him, Pia keys him and pushes him in front of a car. (Anyone else think that Simon was going to force Det Amiri into killing him?)

11 days ago. Nick is held at gunpoint where he is forced to hold up the cards whilst Simon and Daryl record him. Nick denies knowing Sarah and asks Simon what evidence there is to prove he had anything to do with her death. After Simon mentions the dating app, Nick denies ever having one and claims that the photos of him with Sarah are photoshopped as the real one is of him and Sophie. With Simon beginning to believe Nick, he allows Nick to escape. Nick does say, however, that only one person knew about Sophie’s affair and as the affair was discussed with Sarah, he knows who created the fake profiles.

When Simon is questioned by Det Amir, he asks to speak to Pia. She wants to know what he accomplished but she’s taken back when he admits to getting the wrong guy and then when he last saw Nick, he was alive. Det Amir isn’t interested in the claims, he believes that Simon is purely trying to save his own arse.

The ending

Simon is in his cell, distraught with what’s happened. With a quick flashback to Nick fleeing, Clickbait ends in the present day with Nick’s son Ethan in bed. He texts someone saying it looks like they caught the guy who did it.

Talk about an ambiguous ending! So did Ethan kill Nick? Maybe he believed his Dad was guilty of what he got accused of in the viral video and killed him after Nick escaped? Or was it someone else altogether? Ethan sure looks very suspicious at the moment.

from Roger Ebert: https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/shang-chi-and-the-legend-of-the-ten-rings-movie-review-2021

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

Nick Allen September 03, 2021


It’s telling when the Marvel Cinematic Universe uses its immense power to operate an assembly line. But it’s just as telling when there’s a deeply human spark to one of their projects, allowing franchise values like great spectacle, striking performances, and intricate depictions of family to prevail. “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” is the latest addition to the latter category, taking after previous Marvel movies that introduced a vision and became benchmarks: “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “Black Panther,” and “Thor: Ragnarok” come to mind. Directed by Destin Daniel Cretton, this film fits into Marvel packaging in its own way, but it has an immense soulfulness that other MCU movies, superhero movies, and action movies in general should take notes from.

Simu Liu stars as Shang-Chi, a key piece to a broken family that has a history of infighting. The dysfunctional family dynamics are even more important than the ten rings that grant such immense power to Shang Chi’s power-hungry father Wenwu, who has lived for 1,000 years and created a society called the Ten Rings that has destroyed kingdoms and swayed the events all over the world. When Wenwu found love with Jiang Li (Fala Chen), there was peace. They married and started a family. But after Shang-Chi’s mother died, a newly monstrous Wenwu tried to mature his son by making him a killer, causing the young boy to leave behind his sister Xialing (Meng'er Zhang) and Wenwu. Cretton, who previously directed “Short Term 12,” an Avengers-like showcase of indie rising talent (Brie Larson, LaKeith Stanfield, Rami Malek, etc.) keeps those visceral, personal stakes in this script (by himself, Dave Callaham, and Andrew Lanham), so that the superhero context is a bonus to the drama. The film is a mega-budget ballet, one that glides and floats over an abyss of grief.

This backstory comes for Shang-Chi, known as an American adult as Shaun, when he rides the bus with his friend Katy (Awkwafina) up and down the hills of San Francisco. A group of henchmen attack Shang-Chi for a green pendant he wears around his neck, and in a beat that’s prefaced like a power-up (to Katy's funny surprise), Shaun’s immense courage suddenly comes to light. So too do his fighting skills, which help make for an incredible melee scene of hand-to-hand combat that has the camera gazing for long shots and freely going in and out of the moving bus, just like its impromptu hero. The scene lacks for its yowch-factor—especially compared to how “Nobody” did the same thing with appropriate blood earlier this year—but it side-steps that element by being fast-paced, even longer than you think it’ll be, and very funny. It’s the birth of an action star in Liu, and an amazing debut for a character who will find himself in fight scenes here of escalating intensity.

The power for this film, however, comes through in the eyes of his father, Wenwu. One of the movie’s most brilliant choices is casting Tony Leung so that can repeat the same magic he’s had from countless romances and dramas in Hong Kong. Leung rules this movie. With the same silent passion and stillness that made “In the Mood for Love” one of the greatest romances of all time, Leung destroys armies, raises a family, and struggles to resist destructive grief; his presence is made all the more powerful by the ten blue rings that help him slingshot around and destroy whatever is in his path. When he hears the voice of what could be his wife from behind a cave of rock, Wenwu becomes a Darth Vader-like tyrant, driving a campaign to rampage through the mother’s magical home known as Ta Lo, in order to get to a cave that everyone else knows (including his son and daughter) has an apocalyptic, soul-sucking dragon inside. It’s the best performance from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, because the passion and grief it expresses is appropriately Leung-sized.

Cretton is able to take this enthralling movie from one scene to the next with this vivid sense of a brother and sister trying to stop their father from destroying everything because he can’t move on. It’s a more devastating threat than the usual world domination thing, and it parallels how the script builds out the painful backstory of Shang-Chi and his similarly skilled and aggrieved sister, Xialing. With a few strong twists along the way, “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings” turns into an adventure and a homecoming to a peaceful realm from a whole different time, which brings in a sweet, magnetic performance from Michelle Yeoh. These passages, as balletic as the entire movie, detail how Shang-Chi learned two different fighting approaches—life philosophies, really—from his mother and father.

It doesn't seem like a coincidence that a massive Hollywood tentpole sincerely based on character-based kung fu has inspired such rich fight scenes, and it makes the film even more of a refreshing blast. Cretton and his team constantly play with height, light, reflections, and staging when it comes to orchestrating a fight set-piece that surprises the audience (like a jaw-dropping, way-up-high nighttime battle royale on some scaffolding in Macao), and then foregrounds the choreography as the main spectacle; it’s not just about who is throwing the punches and kicks. I should admit that numerous beats in these sharply edited sequences blew me back in my chair,, an involuntary filmmaking nerd response I’ve had to similar movies that inspired this one: “Skyfall,” “The Grandmaster,” for starters.

“Shang-Chi"'s thrilling’s embrace of clarity, of nudging your imagination instead of doing all the work for you, spreads the inspired special effects that enhance the magic of this story and the world of its characters. There’s an evocative use of water—it bursts from walls, floats in the air, and makes a map of icicles—a striking way of depicting a moment that usually would just get a hologram. The movie even throws in a charming animated cute sidekick that cleverly subverts the expectations of cute faces on plush-looking sidekicks. The dominating usage of CGI—the kind that requires dark clouds, as we saw in the grand battle of “Avengers: Endgame”—is saved for the last massive sequence, which is such an over-the-top, giddy, rollercoaster ride that you can’t help but root for it.

The Avengers, the new roster at least, lurk on the periphery of “Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings,” but Cretton’s film benefits from establishing its deeper family and friend relationships. Liu and Awkwafina have adorable, platonic chemistry as two valet workers who are thrust into another adventure, this one more intense than their karaoke nights; Awkwafina in particular becomes a vital source of levity for the script, and a welcoming audience surrogate as the film ramps up to a large battle. She helps the humor pop even more compared to the story’s darker themes, making numerous passages of the movie not only thrilling but charming and funny.

As for Shang-Chi himself, well: take away the comic relief that lovingly dunks on him, or the battling schools of fighting from his parents that swirl within him, and there’s not too much personality to the character. It’s a distinct void when one reflects on the performance, given that Liu is so watchable in how he combines a striking, bulky presence with endearing innocence, a la Channing Tatum’s own box office dominating days. It becomes telling of the imperfect balancing act of this script that its main character needs a little emphasis in his sequel; the same could be said for other intriguing characters like Xialing, a vengeful bad-ass in her own right not given enough screen time or depth, especially considering where she ends up.

Without spoiling, the movie does make some efforts to address Marvel’s previously problematic presentations of Asian characters, and while the moments are used for some self-deprecating comic relief, they remind me of two things: how it’s impossible for these Marvel films to exist in a vacuum, and how much more work needs to be done. Even the people who helped make this movie stumble through talking about it, like when Disney CEO Bob Chapek insensitively said this was an “interesting experiment,” a phrase that indicates a secondary status, something unofficial. The statement is ignorant in many ways, but especially after one witnesses the many triumphs of “Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.” It embraces fruitful ideas, big and small, whether in cohesive action scenes, embracing platonic friendships in a mega-budget movie, or introducing a new exciting hero who also has to instruct his friend (and the audience) on how to properly say his name. This movie is not an experiment for Marvel and Disney. It is a promising template for how they can get it right again.

What did you miss? For a review of the last episode, click HERE

from Ready Steady Cut: https://readysteadycut.com/2021/06/17/recap-black-summer-season-2-episode-2-netflix-series/

Black Summer S2 Ep 2: Prelude

June 17, 2021

Daniel Hart1


Episode 2 is certainly entertaining, even if we are questioning the purpose of the story — we are barely learning anything new.

This recap of Netflix’s Black Summer season 2, episode 2, “Prelude,” contains major spoilers.

As you can tell by the title, episode 2 serves the audience context to what happened before the opening chapter to provide different character perspectives.

The opening scene begins with the title screen, “Officer Ray Nazeri.” Sirens are going off, and Ray is packing items. He’s a little on edge, convincing himself that everything is going to be okay. Wielding a baseball bat, Ray slowly walks around the house. He closes the door on a zombie and the way he keeps convincing himself that he’s going to be okay sounds like he’s speaking to his children. Eventually, Ray leaves the house.

Using Anna to gain access

The title screen, “The Decision,” pops up. A couple of men are taking items from a store. Anna slams on the shop door, and she tells the men that her parents are dead and asks if she can come in. Feeling guilty because she’s a kid, they let her in. Anna immediately goes to the back of the store and lets Rose, Spear, and Sun in. They tell the men to leave the store.

The lesson always is — do not trust anyone.

Rose and Anna leave the group, Sun is captured

As they scour the streets, Sun finds a man that needs water, so she gives him a bottle. Suddenly, the group sees a militia faction so run. Sun and Spear run separately and hide in a building. There’s plenty of tense minutes as the group keeps on finding new hiding places. Sun, Rose, and Anna manage to get away, but they find Spear, who has been shot. Rose thinks Spear is going to slow them down. Rose tells Anna to go, and they leave Sun and Spear. The militia group approach Sun, so she throws Spear down a grassy bank, so they don’t see him. Ray asks Sun if she knows where her friends went.

A dying friend

The title screen, “Three Point Turn,” pops up. A couple of men are dragged out of their truck by a group of people. The title screen, “Friends,” pops up. A man finds a snowed-in car and looks inside it. Venturing in the snow, he returns to his friend, who is nearly freezing to death. He helps his friend get into bed — he tries his best to try to keep his friend comfortable, but then his friend slowly passes away, and all you can hear is groans from him. His friend suddenly turns into a zombie.

I mean, come on, get with the script — he should have seen this coming!

Borrowing zombie gloves

The title screen, “Shadow,” pops up. Spears is still struggling as he meanders across a snowy scape. He reaches a snowy hill, and the foundation collapse beneath him, so he falls down the hill. He ends up lying next to a zombie that’s not in good shape. He takes the zombie’s gloves. When he looks at the top of the hill, he sees a person.

The ending of Black Summer season 2, episode 2

The title screen, “Rose and Anna,” pops up. The mother and daughter find a house ahead of them, and Rose calls it “beautiful,” but they soon have to hide from a zombie. Rose gets out her sniper and scopes the zombie, but in the first attempt, she misses, so they have to run. When they get to the house, the door is stuck initially, but Freddy lets them in. There are a few people inside.

Episode 2 is certainly entertaining, even if we are questioning the purpose of the story — we are barely learning anything new.

 

Batman #61-69: Knightmares

There are strange goings-on in the dark alleys of Gotham City, mysteries that will require a different skill set than the Caped Crusader’s if he’s going to stop the whole city from succumbing to the darkness. Still reeling from the attacks on his Bat-Family and reputation, the Dark Knight looks to track down the mysterious operator has been lurking behind the scenes in Gotham. Collects issues #61-63 and 66-69.

What did you miss? For a review of the last episode, click HERE

from the Review Geek: https://www.thereviewgeek.com/hightown-s2e3review/

Hightown S2 Ep 3: Fresh As A Daisy

01/11/2021 by Greg Wheeler



Fresh as a Daisy

Episode 3 of Hightown Season 2 begins with Charmaine ready to start dealing with Frankie, complete with a private jet. As they get to work, Alan also learns the body out in the park is that of Kissel’s. When Jackie finds out, she’s incredulous that Alan wants to pin this on Junior, believing another is responsible.

As we know, it was Osito who pulled the trigger. However, when Donna is interviewed, she loses her temper and hopes that Junior did kill him, given there’s no love lost between her and Kissel. This is, of course, made all the worse given Donna is now working at Xander’s.

Upon learning this, Jackie heads in to see Osito in prison. She wants to know the truth, and eventually he spills the truth that he put him on a bus to Miami with bills in his pocket. Jackie obviously doesn’t buy this and realizes Osito is behind the killings. When she tells Alan, it comes right off the back of him getting praise from superiors. Realizing that Jackie is not following the chain of command, he lashes out and demands she go back to the beat with Leslie.

During Leslie and Jackie’s stake-out, Jorge notices them outside and puts on a bit of a show. This obviously doesn’t fly with Jackie, who appears and squares up to Frankie inside. She’s immediately challenged though when he puts his handgun down on the table. Thankfully Leslie heads in and saves the day, stopping anything unpleasant from blowing up between them.

While this is going on, Renee learns that she’s 8 weeks pregnant but the trouble is, she’s not sure who the father is. To avoid any unpleasantness in the future, she books in an abortion. At the same time, Ray shows up to spend some quality time with Nick and Maryanne.


With business on the up, Charmaine visits Osito in prison, admitting that she’s working with Frankie now. He warns her to be careful but in exchange for helping him out, Charmaine wants Osito on her side, ready to make a power play.

Meanwhile, Frankie decides to head out and orders Renee to wear a revealing skirt that night. Jorge and Daisy are there too, and they intentionally visit Ray’s workplace, and personally request Ray as their waiter. Inevitably a big fight breaks out, leading to Ray fired for hitting Frankie. He also loses any respect that Nick had for him too, saying, in no uncertain terms, “f**k off Ray.”

The whole club incident and the earlier chat with Jackie is enough for Donna to loosen her lips. On the phone, she mentions how she heard Jorge and Frankie talking. Apparently, Jorge has been pimping out Daisy, and this revelation is enough to realize they may just have some dirt to use on the brothers after all.

Ray, down on his luck, approaches Alan and pleads with him for help. He claims he’s not cut out for “normal work” and needs something to sink his teeth into. Well, Alan tells him he can go and find out who supplied the drugs, eventually leaving him with a big choice to make.

The Episode Review

The third episode of Hightown sees everything at somewhat of a stand-still. Although Charmaine is now working with Frankie and Jackie is struggling to adjust to protocol, there’s not much advancement on the overarching plot. Instead, we start to see more of the character relations and ensuing drama that’s woven through this second season.

The situation between Frankie, Renee and Ray is still as volatile now as it was in season 1 and that’s not helped by the incident at the diner. It’s clear Ray wants to get back into police work but he hasn’t exactly made a great case for himself. However, Alan has thrown an unofficial bone his way, allowing him to investigate the drug situation.

However, the series does manage to keep things interesting and the overarching story, involving this cat and mouse chase and the drugs being distributed into Cape Cod, is engaging enough to stick with for the time being,

Quite what next week’s episode has in store for us though, remains to be seen.

 X-Force #15-20 + Wolverine #13

Crossing a dangerous line! Omega Red is harboring a deadly secret, and how far will X-Force go to keep Krakoa safe! But nothing compares to the trust broken by the interrogation of one of their own. Then, Forge, Wolverine and Quentin Quire brave the depths of the sea, where terrors of the deep await and a deadly discovery reveals a dark side of Krakoa! How will revelations about the island nation they fight for affect X-Force? And shaken by his recent resurrection, what will Quire do with his new lease on life? When Quentin finds a nightmare creature wreaking havoc on X-Force, he soon realizes that the only way to fight it...is on its own turf. Sweet dreams, Quentin! Plus: Can X-Force handle unwanted party crashers at the Hellfire Gala while keeping the disturbance under wraps?

What did you miss? For a review of the last episode, click HERE

From Den of Geek: https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/black-sails-season-2-episode-8-review/

Black Sails S2 Ep 8

Exposition is king in this episode of Black Sails, but it is of the necessary kind as buried treasure nears...
By TS Rhodes|March 15, 2015|


As many times as I’ve watched Black Sails, I never skip the opening credits. It’s just too good. The music is wild, archaic, and exotic, and the images on screen have everything and nothing to do with what we will see during the coming show.

We have a new narrator, and her name is Abigale. Her memoir is another way the show takes good care to give us the exposition we need. Miranda’s reflections continue the service. She and Flint are back on the voyage they started together so many years ago, and their relationship is once again strong. How sweet. How un-pirate-like. I’m definitely on Team Vane in this matter.

There’s a lot of exposition here – not a bad thing. Black Sails has always excelled at it, and sometimes you need to speak exposition to move the story forward.

Flint’s exposition is the background of his relationships, the murders that are now explained, his plans for the future, and his actual arrival at Charles Town. He tells us Billy Bones’ history, accurate details of how press-gangs worked (although men captured by press-gang were supposed to be paid, just like other sailors. It’s just that the money to do so was often years late in coming). Flint also reflects on the nature of Abigail’s father, and reminds us that Vane is the fellow who made the deal to return Abigail.

Rackham’s exposition includes his musings on his relationship with the now-vanished Anne Bonny. He admits that he thought he understood her, but he may have been wrong – she may have always been so complex that he never grasped what’s going on in her mind. Good job, Jack! You men never figure us women out, but the day you realize this is the day you have the best understanding you ever will.

I also notice that, in the beginning of this scene, Max is wearing a dress that imitates the look of a captain’s coat, and Jack is coatless. He puts on his outer garment when he leaves for the fort.

I also appreciate the idea that gets thrown around to just bury the treasure. Of course, this is part of the story of Treasure Island – buried treasure, which is something that real pirates never did. Jack’s move on the fort is more logical, and very clearly explained by his second who asks, “Are we just going to walk up to the door, knock and ask to see Vane?” We’re given no chance to miss the point of the plan.


By the way, just for fun, I did the math on five million doubloons. The weight of the gold involved – just the gold, not including any chests needed to contain and carry it – is 172 tons. That’s tons, folks. To put it in perspective, the Queen Ann’s Revenge, one of the largest pirate ships to ever sail, was only rated at 100 tons. This means that the ship, fully loaded, would displace 100 tons of water.

So including food, water, cannons, men, equipment, and the weight of the ship itself, the pirates would be lucky to stuff 50 tons of gold into a single ship. I wonder if this will come up? Not likely, as TV gives us a million dollars in a briefcase, when a real million in 100 dollar bills is more like a pallet load.

Just remember, you learned it here first.

Silver gives us a slice of exposition when he repeats to his two fellow conspirators the lies he told Flint and sums up his plan to take the gold for himself. We also get to see how far these men will go for the millions in gold, as the talkative pirate is murdered by his shipmate.

Of course, the plan of cutting part way through a rope and trusting that it will part at exactly the right time is complete hogwash. There’s just no way to know it will work, and also a good chance that someone will notice the damaged rope. After all, these ropes are what hold the ship together, and they are all important.

In addition, single men did not go aloft to work the sails. There were very specific teams assigned to each sail, and they all worked together. After all, sails are heavy, and are by definition moving and trying to flap wildly.

One thing is very real in this show, though. Silver feels the blood that has been spattered onto his hands.

Eleanor Guthrie has another bad show. I was pleased to see the old Madame from the brothel, who did a lovely job of filling us in on Max and Silver, and what they have been up to. But all Eleanor seems to do is gape and say, “What?” The men just don’t write this character well. Even the loss of her father doesn’t elicit much.

Flint’s story ends with his foray into Charles Town to confront Ash, his old ally. We get a good look at the city, and at the governor’s mansion (One thing that annoyed the bejezus out of me was the nylon British flag on the rowboat. Just sayin’).

Abigail coming in on Flint’s side was an interesting addition, and I wonder where it may go.

And where do we end? With Vane, in the swamp, waiting for his move. Why his boat is still in the harbor I’m not quite sure, but Vane is a real pirate, and with or without a ship, he’ll keep the people of Nassau on course.

Immortal Hulk #41-45:

The Weakest One There Is

Collects Immortal Hulk (2018) #41-45. It’s the rematch everybody wanted — but not like this! The Hulk is broken, friendless and hunted, a shadow of his former self. But there’s nothing like the real Thing! What will happen when Ben Grimm enters the world of the Immortal Hulk? As the year comes to an end, costs are counted — by Jackie McGee, Eugene Judd…and Samuel Sterns. All the Leader’s plans have come together in what may be his greatest triumph! But will that be enough…or will the horrific One Below All still claim his due? Plus: The U-Foes are here — and they know how to finally kill the Immortal Hulk! The new Sasquatch faces something even weirder than himself. Henry Peter Gyrich watches from somewhere far above the world. And with the Hulk’s strength gone, what hope is left…for the weakest there is?

What did you miss? For a review of the last episode, click HERE

From The Review Geek: https://www.thereviewgeek.com/dopesick-s1e3review/
Greg Wheeler

Dopesick S1 Ep 3: The 5th Vital Sign

Episode 3 of Dopesick begins in 1999. It’s been 3 years since the launch of OxyContin and doctors in the medical profession have been infiltrated by Purdue Pharma. They pedal a new buzzword, claiming that pain is the 5th vital sign.

Back in 1996, Finnix decides he wants to wean Betsy off OxyContin. Betsy isn’t exactly thrilled about it but Finnix is concerned and wants her to live her best life. As she leaves his office, Betsy throws her pills in the trash, ready to be rid of these drugs.

Meanwhile, Michael joins Richard Sackler and the others and suggests they should focus on individualizing the dose for individuals. That way, they don’t have to start patients off with 10mg at a time. After Richard approves this, he goes on to mention how he has bigger plans. He wants to try and get Germany onboard and break OxyContin into the European market.

In order to try and drive the sales targets up, Purdue run a Toppers contest by adding a prize of an all-expenses-paid trip to Bermuda. Billy Cutler is determined to win but cutthroat Amber has no plans to go with him if she wins.

In 2003, the court case goes ahead and with Purdue broadly claiming there’s a “national pain movement”, the court side with Big Pharma to begin with, telling Randy and John they need something more substantial.

Now, given Randy has surgery for his prostate cancer, when he awakens in hospital after he finds the doctor determined to give him OxyContin. They push it pretty hard too, with a senior doctor even showing up and trying to pressure him into it. He defiantly refuses though, prompting the doctors to leave.

During this same year, Bridget continues to look into OxyConttin and realizes that this prescription drug is causing jails to fill up. The trouble is, it’s nationwide and given the genie has already been released, trying to get it back in the lamp now is next to impossible. And that’s not made easier when Purdue lawyers – including Amber – are threatening to sued and shut down clinics and hospitals if they don’t sell OxyContin.

Back in 1996, Betsy begins to suffer from horrible side effects after not being on OxyContin. She’s dizzy, vomiting and visibly sweating. She’s not eating either, and as she sits at the table, her father nonchalantly mentions how being a homosexual is the worst thing in the world. Betsy speaks up and promises to leave, calling out how she’s clearly not welcome in this house anymore.

During work the next day, things go from bad to worse for Betsy. One lapse in concentration sees a massive explosion knock her off her feet after failing to read the methane monitor. Her colleague, Eddie, is going to lose his right arm while Betsy comes under fire for the damage she’s inadvertently caused in the mine. She’s confused and scared, trembling as she remains confused over what’s happening to her.

Meanwhile, Bridget has had enough. She believes the FDA are colluding with Purdue and given Curtis Wright is not working directly in-line to all of this, she’s determined to get to the bottom of all this. Or, at least she would be. Her boss decides to transfer her and give her a promotion at the same time, up to becoming the deputy director. It’s a thinly disguised way of getting her off the case and keeping things above water.

As we soon come to learn, Purdue have infiltrated every part of the medial community, including the Appalachian Pain Society, who are adamant that Oxy isn’t addictive. It turns out they’re actually funded by Purdue – along with a number of other “individual” organizations.

In essence, this is a stealth tool to promote conversations about pain and bring more attention to Purdue, which in turn sees sales of Oxy go up. This single statement in court is enough for the judge to allow an investigation further into Purdue’s marketing strategies.

Over at Purdue, the competition ends and a guy called Todd wins. It turns out he’s only won because he’s landed a “whale”. In other words, a doctor who over-prescribes opioids to his patients. He should be reported for it but when these sales reps are directly benefiting from fat bonuses, who’s going to speak up?

Following the explosion at the mine, Dr Finnix receives a call and is recommended to head back to town. Only, on the road he winds up getting hit by another car that ploughs into the side of him. At hospital, Finnix is inevitably prescribed OxyContin but the doctor decides to start him on 20mg. Finnix isn’t exactly thrilled with the idea, and remains conflicted over whether to take it or not.

If that wasn’t bad enough, the lawyers find themselves drowning in paperwork as Purdue intend to completely suffocate them and make their job a lot harder than it ordinarily would.

Meanwhile, Richard Sackler reveals that he intends to break Germany’s market for the sole purpose of it being so much of a challenge. If he can do it, then OxyContin could go on to become a massive opioid across the world, seeing his dream of “healing the world” come to fruition.

The Episode Review

Things are starting to heat up now in Dopesick, as all our different characters find themselves diving deeper down the rabbit hole into this OxyContin mess. It’s clear that Bridget’s promotion is simply a ploy to keep her distracted and off the case, while the lawyers win the battle but find themselves drowning in paperwork as a result of this.

Finnix is arguably the one caught in the middle of this, with both medical knowhow and firsthand experience of seeing Purdue and his patients deteriorate. It could well be that he’s the most important witness that they’ve got going forward.

Either way, Dopesick has been a thoroughly enjoyable show and with sharp writing, good editing and an absolutely absorbing story, this is definitely turning into a must-watch.

 Venom #31-34 + #200: The King In Black

Donny Cates and Ryan Stegman bring their three-year saga to a stunning close! The horrifying threat of the King in Black, all-powerful god of the symbiote race, has loomed large for years. Now, after millennia of imprisonment, Knull and his symbiote army have arrived on Earth! But what is Knull's hideous agenda? And what happens to Venom when he finally comes face-to-face with the lord of the abyss? Eddie Brock is about to face the biggest challenge of his life, but he's not alone. Who will stand by his side in Earth's darkest hour? And do any of them have the slightest chance of success? Nothing will ever be the same for the Lethal Protector!

What did you miss? For a review of the last episode, click HERE

From TV Guide: https://www.tvguide.com/news/best-shows-on-hulu-right-now/

Evil S1 Ep 7: Vatican III

Maggie FremontNov. 14, 2019, 8:00 p.m. PT



It was around the time Kristen Bouchard's (Katja Herbers) homicide detective friend Mira Byrd (Kristen Connolly) popped over for a visit and, after being introduced to Priest-in-Training David Acosta (Mike Colter), turned to Kristen to ask, "Are you Fleabagging it?" that I stood up and said aloud to no one, "I just really love this show." It was very sincere and emotional and I wish you could've seen it. I cannot be alone in this! Aside from clever writing and pitch-perfect cultural references, the other thing Evilis doing that really gets me going is that in "Vatican III," the show is starting to connect some dots. Evil works extremely well as a case-of-the-week procedural, but from the beginning it was clear there was a larger story being told. In this episode, the procedural elements are starting to inform the bigger picture in a much clearer way, and we're getting solid clues as to what's going on here. Of course, any answers we might find only beget like 300 more questions, but that's okay because you can tell this show has a plan. And man do I enjoy a show with a plan, even more so than I do shows with self-referential hot priest jokes, which, as you can tell, I enjoy a lot!

So let's get into how things are starting to connect. Our team has a lot on their plates this week. First, they're meeting with three assessors sent from the Vatican in regards to Grace the Prophet from last week. Honestly, they seem more curious about Kristen's birth control situation and Ben (Aasif Mandvi) growing up Muslim than getting to any truth about a possible prophet who may be heralding the end of the world, but sure, "they're just doing their job." Thankfully, David puts an end to their ridiculous questioning and tells the Monsignor (Boris McGiver) that they won't answer any more questions about Grace until they get an apology. The next time they chat with the assessors, it is as a team because David is a goddamned hero!

The assessors press for more information about what Grace was writing while in ICE detention (the guard who threw out her notes mysteriously disappeared), but our team wants something in return for their help -- they want to see the full codex of prophecies. The Vatican assessors take them into a secure room and show them the ancient codex. Aside from reminding Ben that he could look at the security footage from when Grace was detained and figuring out that one of the things she was writing translates to a "massacre of the innocents," which sounds great for everyone, it also allows Kristen and David to get a look at a document that seems to be a key to so many of the shenanigans going on. It's a hierarchical map of demon sigils -- 60 OF THEM, IT SHOULD BE NOTED. And wouldn't ya know, one of those sigils looks EXACTLY like the weird drawing Leland (Michael Emerson) put into one of the diaries he gave Kristen's daughters as his "I'm Dating Your Grandma" Gifts.

It should also be noted that when David finds out that Leland was in Kristen's house and is obviously targeting her by dating her mother, he is extremely concerned and protective, and, like, can't we really just be Fleabagging it at this point? Are we not owed that for all the demon sigil stuff? Can we not have good things?!


The answer is no, we cannot. We can only have demon sigil-related things. According to David, and his Wikipedia search, these sigils are believed to have magic powers and act as a way for demons to recognize one another. The sigil Leland drew was that of Anatas, the "king of the beasts," who feeds off of the sins and lies of humans, which is like so Leland, amirite?


Speaking of, feeding off the sins and lies of humans to gain power is exactly what Leland is up to this week as well. This time, he finds Sebastian (Noah Robbins), whom you may remember as the pissed off IT guy who hacked the high-strung Broadway producer's office, after he's spurned by his local barista and pissed about it. Leland uses that anger to manipulate Sebastian further, and in just a few meetings -- he gets the guy into therapy sessions with him -- turns him into a woman-hating incel who derives power from punishing the women who hurt him. Leland encourages him to join a like-minded online community, and in a truly nauseating scene, Sebastian joins other incels in planning an attack. Everything that Evil laid out in the pilot episode about Leland breeding evil and chaos, and about evil being able to thrive because people are more connected than ever, is coming to fruition here. Leland's plans are working.

Okay, so let's get back to this light storyline about demons and the end of the world, shall we?

The team is dealing with more than just mysterious codexes in stark white rooms: There is yet another exorcism situation at hand! This time, the Monsignor shows them video of an exorcism in progress, in which the possessed, Bridget Farrell (Annaleigh Ashford), who is nightmarish levels of scary, admits to killing a young boy named Enrique and then calling his parents to tell them but only being able to laugh. This demon's name is Howard, and a thing I did not know I was here for but am definitely here for is all these demons with regular dude names. This choice truly brings me joy, but not too much because we are talking about demons.

Kristen believes they could be dealing with split personality disorder, but really what they are investigating is whether Bridget/Howard actually committed a murder. There's a lot of debate: If someone really was killed, is Bridget to blame or is Howard? You know, your typical "Can We Say the Demon Did It?" ethical quandary. But before we can get into that mess, they need to know if this murder actually happened. This is what brings Kristen to her aforementioned homicide detective and apparent rock climbing buddy, Mira. When Kristen not-so-casually asks her about any cases involving a boy named Enrique and the parents getting a prank call after, Mira sits in shock. How could Kristen possibly know details like that when they haven't been released by the police?

So, the answer is yes -- Bridget/Howard's story about Enrique checks out, and more than that, there are two other missing Latino boys in the area whose parents received the same phone call. Bridget/Howard must've killed three boys. Kristen's in a tough spot -- giving up Bridget would sort of go against patient confidentiality, and in the end, after some intense ethical duty vs. justice debates I imagine Kristen had internally, she decides she can't give Bridget up, but she can tell Mira the location of the bodies.

The team reconvenes at the Farrell house as signs point to the end of Bridget's possession. Before that happens, however, Ben walks in on Dwight Farrell (Dan Bittner) calling the police and turning his wife in. It is highly suspicious, and honestly, never trust a man named Dwight (a good demon name, by the way). By the time Bridget returns to herself, the police -- including Mira -- are at the door, ready to take her away. Case closed!

Just kidding! Ben informs Kristen and David about Dwight's phone call and some other suspicious activity, and it doesn't take long for them to figure out that Dwight framed his poor, possessed wife. David goes to see Dwight ALONE and AT NIGHT and finds this dude going through his stash of souvenirs from his kills, along with the murder weapon, in his little hiding space behind a baseboard in his house. At first Dwight tries to say he was hiding these things to help his wife, but then he gives up the act and attacks David. David easily puts him in a sleeper hold because, hi, have you seen him? The shocking part is not that Dwight actually murdered those boys (he gets arrested and Bridget is released); the shocking part is that engraved on the baseboard where Dwight was hiding all of his murdery things is one of the demon sigils from the map in the codex.

Thanks to the handy-dandy photos Kristen snapped of the demon sigil map, the team now has a copy of their own and will be able to be on the lookout for more of them out in the world. David's obviously using it as a literal demon tracker, but Kristen assures Ben that she hasn't defected to Team Faith just yet, but if this is where all the psychopaths they're dealing with are leading them, they need to follow up. While they're looking the document over, David gets a concerned look on his face -- he recognizes another one of the symbols. He grabs an art book off his desk and starts flipping through the pages. On every painting by the artist in that book, one of the sigils is drawn in the corner. And the artist just so happens to be David's father. So, yes, that is concerning.

What did you miss? For a review of the last episode, click HERE

from Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Return_to_Sender_(Dexter)

Dexter S1 Ep 6: Return To Sender

 While eating breakfast with Rita, Dexter is called to a crime scene, only to discover that it is the salvage yard where he committed a double murder the previous night. He finds Valerie Castillo's body lying in the Airstream trailer where he killed her and her husband Jorge, despite having thrown the corpses into the ocean. He deduces that the Ice Truck Killer retrieved and planted the body. LaGuerta, Doakes, and Debra discover a young Cuban boy, Oscar, who claims to have seen somebody take Valerie into the trailer. Dexter begins to fear discovery, and has a nightmare of Debra being a serial killer with a modus operandi similar to his own.

As the investigation proceeds, Dexter attempts to discredit each of his colleagues' leads on the case. When Debra asks him to read her report on the killer, profiling a man sharing many of Dexter's characteristics, he second-guesses her theory. Worried about coming under suspicion, he throws his knives into the ocean. However, while looking at the blood drops from his victims, he notices that Valerie's slide has a happy face etched into her sample. Dexter realizes that this is a hint from the Ice Truck Killer, leading him to go to the salvage yard and plant Jorge's fingerprints and a knife bearing a dry drop of Valerie's blood for Doakes' men to find. After successfully framing Jorge for Valerie's murder, Dexter discovers that Oscar's description of the man who "saved" him from Valerie is in fact Jesus Christ.

Meanwhile, Rita learns that her abusive husband Paul has been released from prison, and she forbids him from attending their daughter Astor's birthday party. Doakes takes Debra to dinner with his mother and sisters, while LaGuerta bonds with Oscar and considers adopting him until his uncle arrives to take him home. In flashbacks, a teenaged Debra pleads with her father Harry to bring her on his and Dexter's hunting trips. When Harry forbids her from joining them, she steals his gun and practices shooting cans by herself. Later, Debra lashes out at Dexter in jealousy of the time that he spends time alone with their father.

 Champions #1-5: Outlawed

Earth's youngest heroes are outlawed! In the wake of a devastating tragedy, the United States passes a law that will shake the Marvel Universe to its core. The world has had enough of teen crimefighters. The crackdown has begun. And the lives of the next generation will never be the same again. But the world still needs heroes — and Ms. Marvel, Nova and Spider-Man will rise to the challenge as Champions once more! After Kamala Khan makes an unexpected and emotional announcement that her team won't go down without a fight, the group gathers to plan their next move. But the C.R.A.D.L.E. task force is hot on their trail — and there's a spy in their midst! Where is Riri "Ironheart" Williams in all this? Guest-starring the Champions' old friend Cyclops — and the seafaring Marauders.

What did you miss? For a review of the last episode, click HERE

from EW: https://ew.com/tv/recaps/fargo-season-4-episode-6/

Fargo S4 Ep 6: Camp Elegance 

Fargo recap: Countdown to catastrophe
By Nick SchagerOctober 26, 2020 at 06:11 PM EDT


It’s only a matter of time before the Faddas and the Cannons engage in all-out conflict. And though that doesn’t commence in “Camp Elegance” — season 4’s shortest installment to date, by a considerable margin — tensions continue to incrementally escalate, putting everyone in harm’s way.

Ethelrida comes home to find her intensely worried parents waiting for her with a hug, a birthday song, and a cake full of candles that she blows out while surrounded by darkness, the gaunt white ghost looming over her right shoulder. Weff also returns to his abode to find things amiss; as he prepares to pee, a man hiding in his bathtub (Omie) wraps him up in the shower curtain. Loy punctures that shroud before Weff can die, and enlightens him about the racial dynamics at play in this drama, stating, “I’m not just fighting a few Italians. I’m fighting 400 years of history. I’m fighting a mindset.”

Loy believes he’s presently losing that fight. After asking Weff how he’d feel if his collection of figurines rose up and demanded equal rights — a situation akin to African Americans’ plight — he explains that Weff now belongs to him and that he’s going to help Loy destroy the Faddas if he wants to keep breathing. Weff gets the message. As Loy and his men leave the building, Defy — munching on more carrots, per usual — watches from down the street in his parked car.

Gaetano listens to records and prances about, stabbing a mannequin. He and underling Paolo (Nick Dibrizzi Jr.) witness two prostitutes arrive at the house. Gunshots and sounds of a commotion erupt downstairs, and Paolo goes to check it out. When a figure approaches the door to his room, Gaetano opens fire, accidentally killing Paolo. Swanee sneaks in through a window and, before Gaetano and Zelmare can have a face-off, she shoots the gangster in the back of the head. Gaetano isn’t dead, though, so the outlaw duo drags him away.

Gaetano awakens in a room above a boxing gym. Loy asks him if he’s ever heard of Sugar Ray Robinson, who had to borrow someone else’s union card to get his first shot in the ring, and who then had to fight off “all these do-right daddies that want to knock your head off” once he had the title. Omie is also there, taping up his hands; he’s a former flyweight who fought his way up to welterweight and is about to deliver some serious punishment to the captive gangster. To Gaetano, Loy says that Doctor Senator’s execution was “the one that got you killed.”

At the hospital, Oraetta is called into Harvard’s office. He’s received Ethelrida’s anonymous letter and confronts the nurse about its accusations. She admits that she attends her deceased patients’ funerals (“It’s the Christian thing to do”), but denies confiscating their personal items. She successfully begs him not to show the missive to HR. Instead, he agrees to keep the letter between them and stashes it in a desk drawer. Oraetta thanks him, and on her way out, is instructed, “No more funerals.”

Ebal returns from New York City with a henchman in tow. With a sluggishness that frustrates his boss, Ebal informs Josto that their mafia superiors will help, on two conditions. The first is that they only have two weeks to fix things with Loy, “one way or the other” (which Josto finds “cryptic”). The second is that Josto must patch things up with Gaetano. Josto finds this directive all the more unbearable given that — right before this news is delivered — Constant reports that Gaetano has been abducted by Loy, which would have otherwise been the ideal way for Josto to get rid of his aggravating sibling once and for all.

Loy remembers asking Doctor if he misses New York; Doctor replies that he mostly misses being young. Loy is desperate to get Satchel back, but Doctor warns him that reclaiming the kid will immediately trigger World War III. Weff is later brought into the gym to meet with Loy, where he sees a tied-up, beaten-and-bloodied Gaetano. He’s commanded by Loy to drive over to the Faddas’ house and take Satchel back (“Just walk in there and grab him”). His gloved fingers incessantly tapping, a muttering-to-himself Weff ventures to the house where Satchel is being kept. He musters the courage to enter, but before he can demand Satchel, Constant shows up and says that Josto wants to immediately see Jeff, and escorts him out. Watching this unfold, Rabbi looks concerned.

Ebal relays a new directive from New York to Josto: They have until 3 p.m. to trade something (territory, cash, whatever) for Gaetano. Josto doesn’t want to do this and instead instructs Weff to find out where Gaetano is being held by 2:30 p.m. Constant chimes in that Gaetano wouldn’t want to be part of a trade, which prompts Josto to wonder whose side Constant is on — his or Gaetano’s. Once those two have left, Josto meets with Antoon (Sean Fortunato), who’s ordered to fetch Rabbi, and then to take Satchel for “a drive” (i.e. kill him), because “playtime is over.” Antoon expresses fear that this course of action will lead to the assassination of Gaetano and possibly Zero as well, not to mention anger New York. Josto makes clear that he’s going to pin Satchel’s murder on Constant (and, by extension, Gaetano), thus absolving Josto of any responsibility. Antoon reluctantly accepts his assignment.

Antoon finds his wife asking Rabbi to put in a good word about him with Josto. Upon hearing he’s wanted by Josto, Rabbi leaves. Antoon demands that Satchel come with him, which prompts Antoon’s wife — who realizes the nightmare that’s about to transpire — to cross herself.

Rabbi locates Josto in the alley behind Joplin’s. He’s told that he’s back in the game, and that “the kid’s done.” Rather than seeing Ebal (as ordered), Rabbi races back to the house, only to discover that Satchel is gone. Antoon and Satchel drive to the Camp Elegance Relocation Center, which is closed and now in ruins. Walking through the dilapidated, snow-covered place, Antoon recounts how he arrived in America as a WWII prisoner of war, and how the bountiful food and sunshine resurrected his traumatized spirit. He instructs Satchel to check out a spot at the bottom of some stairs where, as a child, he carved his name into the stone.

Satchel obeys, and Antoon raises his pistol, ready to kill the kid. However, he reconsiders, and puts his gun back in his pocket – at which point he’s shot dead from behind by Rabbi, who explains to a shellshocked Satchel that “This is what men do,” and that “It’s war now, for real.”

Rabbi says that, while he never had the opportunity to choose his own fate, Satchel will. They’ll find a quiet place to hide out until the dust settles from the forthcoming war, and if Satchel then wants to go home, Rabbi will take him. They drive off.

Before the end credits roll, the camera creeps down the hallway of Harvard’s slumbering hospital. Oraetta’s ceaselessly moaning patient expels one final “argh” and goes silent. Oraetta emerges from his room’s dark doorway — her lethal business now complete — with a content smile on her lips.

Oh Geez!

When Weff attempts to pick up Satchel, he finds the boy reading to Rabbi from The Jungle, Upton Sinclair’s famous 1906 novel about the horrific conditions under which immigrants worked (and were exploited) in the industrialized meat industry.
Defy once again has very little to do in this episode, which makes one suspect that he’s going to function as more of a plot device than a fully fleshed-out player in this saga.
How Gaetano survived a point-blank shot to the back of the head is now the season’s biggest mystery