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Reviews
Halo (2022)
Not the same story as the games, you might hate that, but if you can handle that then there's a solid sci-fi show here.
I'd avoided this based on the vocal opinions about it but it's really not that bad. It doesn't really respect the games' story or characters, at all, but if you accept that it's doing its own version of this IP you can enjoy it enough. To me, it has a more Mass Effect vibe than a Halo one.
Production values and CGI are quite good and the story is decent if taken by itself without comparing it to the games. It's more brutal and gory than you might expect too. It expands on the Halo universe and lore far more than any of the games do. The games are all about the mission with little insight into how the rest of humanity fares in this fiction whereas the show includes that kind of thing in droves. It's not the Master Chief we know either but there is a key narrative point that explains why he's different.. It's what the whole story revolves around tbh. So, contextually, the difference at least makes sense.
Frasier (2023)
A departure from the original but could become much greater over time, like most sitcoms.
It's a big departure from the original series but I guess that's intentional. They probably didn't want to just copy what was done before. The first episode packed a lot in to set up the new situation Frasier is in and judging it based on that episode alone would be a bad take. You also might think the focus is always going to be on the new younger characters, which is isn't. They are very much side characters.
The main thing holding this up so far for me is the excellent sitcom comedic timing from Kelsey Grammer and Nicholas Lyndhurst. They are titans when it comes to this kind of thing and I think the show is at it's best when it's mostly focused on them.
As an English person myself, it's really weird seeing Rodney... *Ahem* Nicholas Lyndhurst... doing one of those fake, posh, exaggerated for an American audience "British" accents. I'm not complaining, it's just really amusing for those of us on this side of the pond. Perhaps it is for Americans too, I have no idea if he or any of his earlier work is popular elsewhere.
Overall, I quite like the fact they are even attempting this show. Frasier has this kind of "posh", confident, rich bachelor attitude, lots of potential there for self destruction in the future. Alan Cornwall (Nicholas Lyndhurst) is the absolute definition of a British professor caricature, a silly but stereotypically amusing sidekick. It's a decent set up and I imagine it will improve over time, especially when the younger actors 'and' the writers get some more experience with it and riff more naturally.
It's rare for sitcoms to absolutely nail it in the first season, take a look at Friends or The Office (US) in their first season.. they were very different shows from what they eventually became. I think this could be one of those shows.. if it doesn't get cancelled like most things these days.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds: Subspace Rhapsody (2023)
You'll love it or hate it
Haha, I think it's obvious this was a bit of a marmite episode; you will either love it or hate it.
I'm a big fan of musicals so this was one of my favourite star trek episodes ever, out of any series. Not for any serious reason, I just found it the most fun. It's very similar to an episode of Scrubs where everyone starts singing.
It's funny, heartfelt and some of the songs were actually really good (and some were a little cringe as with most musicals). I always find it interesting seeing which actors have powerhouse voices (looking at you Christina Chong) and which are kind of terrible but still give it their best shot when shows do something like this.
I get that some people aren't into musicals and that it's a big departure from what most trekkies are probably used to but I, personally, genuinely didn't want it to end.
Invasion (2021)
Great story telling, if you knew what to expect
This is a great show but if you expected in your face action or an episodic format then you probably won't like it.
The events of an invasion play out more realistically with this one, in the sense that it's quite believable things would really happen this way if it ever happened. Why would aliens instantly launch a full scale attack or announce themselves openly if they weren't interested in relations? They probably wouldn't. They'd do some ground work and recon work first. Feel us out and identify easier targets or targets of interest. Try to stay undiscovered for as long as they can get away with. Similar to how some real world military operations might play out. Things are happening slowly and hardly anyone knows or even notices what's really going on at first... That applies to us viewers too and I'm convinced it's intentional so that we are in the same position as the main characters.
We're shown the events from the point of view of a number of different characters from around the world and there is a LOT of character development which starts to pay off "eventually". Most of the characters are interesting in their own way and have a certain amount of drama surrounding them but the English school children can be a bit cringe sometimes (to someone like me that's actually from England, at least).
I guess the reason I felt the need to drop a review is because you need your expections in check with this one. It's not for someone seeking a popcorn show and it's not for children or, probably, younger teenagers. It's a mature show with mature minded people as the target audience. It's the kind of show that takes the time to lay the groundwork so it should, hopefully, get better each season because they didn't rush straight to the best they've got planned and all the extra context we are given now should improve the impact larger events will have later.
The more "typical" invasion stuff starts to happen at episode 6. So, if you decide to check out this series but are struggling with it, see if you can make it to episode 6 before completely writing it off.
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023)
Parody of fantasy where it isn't necessary
I don't play table top, never been interested in that kind of thing, but I am into my fantasy. Books, video games, shows, movies, etc. I've read a lot of D&D novels (R. A. Salvatore's stuff are my favourite).
This movie is not about some mates who are sat down playing a game and enjoying some friendly banter. We're not in a Jumanji situation here. It's supposed to be set in the Forgotten Realms and that is supposed to be a serious place within the context of itself.
This movie, and the previous D&D movie, are like a parody of D&D and fantasy in general. That's not what D&D is to me. It's typically a serious fantasy setting that includes themes like suffering, racial politics, actual honour, war, emotional loss and even horror.
Sure, there's plenty of moments of humour in D&D but usually when it's contextually relevant for the characters. Not in this movie though, it's always a constantly campy romp through this version of Forgotten Realms no matter what is going on.
It's like the whole thing is a huge joke. I sometimes felt like it's even subtly mocking people that enjoy fantasy. Childish jokes are in there too to the point of them genuinely trying to create humour because something is fat. They made absolutely no effort to make the dialect sound appropriate for a fantasy setting either. They all talk like they are in the modern real world, except for one specific side character.
I don't understand why so many people are happy with this kind of thing, especially D&D players. I can only imagine they cream themselves when they spot a reference they understood and that's enough for them. There's plenty of that if that's how you assess the worth of an adaptation but it's not enough for me.
I want to see them take a more serious approach for a D&D movie or TV show sometime and for them to stop focusing on thieves as the tool used to drive the plot every... single... time...
The Mandalorian: Chapter 22: Guns for Hire (2023)
They would have gotten away with it if it wasn't for those damn kids!
Lizzo can't act, period. She's got a lot of work to do if she's aiming for a career in acting. Jack Black can't really act either although he has his often appealing signature style and comic value but it wasn't put to good use here. This is a terrible cameo episode that breaks immersion almost as bad as the go go gadget cool(?) kid bikers did in the Boba Fett series.
This season isn't going well and is starting to feel a bit like cheesy pantomime. Sometimes it looks like pantomime too.
Some other reviewers liken this one to a Scooby Doo episode and I immediately laughed a little and agreed once I read it.
The Rookie: Double Trouble (2023)
Third time's a charm?
No, no it isn't.
I'm back, like many others will be, for the annual negative review given to an episode made in this fake documentary format. I seriously think the show's writers are just memeing us now. There's no way they aren't aware that these episodes are rated far lower than all the others.
What more is there to say? It doesn't suit the show, it makes fools out of all the characters, it pulls the series down into places it otherwise wouldn't deserve and it's just disappointing to get these outliers in an otherwise entertaining show. The doppelganger stuff with Dim and Juicy is quite rediculous on its own but when paired with this format it's just taking it too far.
I can't imagine a single person would prefer that the events of this episode weren't just done in the usual style. Urgh, the cringe is all over me.
The Rookie: The Choice (2022)
Great but what are they going to do now?
This was a great episode. Nathan Fillion was front and center which I think we all want and everyone loves to hate Rosalind. The overall events aren't really believable but most of the show is like that now anyway. You're either used to it by now or you've stopped watching, or probably should have.
Problem is, they've just killed off the show's best antagonist. I'm sure this isn't the end of her story and she's probably set up all kinds of stuff to further antagonise John in the future after her death but it won't be as good as her simply still being alive and doing it.
Feels like this character has been cut short. They've either made a mistake, in my opinion, or they have some genius reason for doing this. Rosalind has felt like the "main" ongoing storyline for The Rookie for most of the series so I'm curious about where they go from here. It could be a wrap up and story reset to go in another direction. For it to happen so soon into the season is kind of strange. Feels like it would have been better served as a season finale.
Also, John's new rookie is kind of being forced on us very quickly. I'm not on board with her yet but time will tell I suppose. Seems like a wildcard so far.
The Rookie: Feds (2022)
Don't think anyone wanted more of this character
I'm going to guess they didn't bother screening for feedback about this character because I'm pretty sure everyone that watched The Rookie found her to be extremely over the top and a bit grating. As a rarely seen reoccuring side character she would be fine but there's no way she can hold up an entire show. The actor is doing their job just fine but the way the character is written is just a lot to take.
The Rookie already has a lot of filler episodes so adding a filler spinoff that no one asked for is just a weird choice. That money should have been put into more writers for The Rookie.
This character was and should have always been a bit of mild comic relief every now and then... nothing more.
The Black Phone (2021)
Despite not being bored, you will most likely be unsatisfied
There's a supernatural element to this story and that's the only reason it's classed as a Horror. Really, it's in the same catagory as something like The Silence of the Lambs... so, Crime, Drama and Thriller.
The problem, a big problem, is that the supernatural stuff isn't explained or justified in any way, shape or form. It's simply just there for no reason other than to move the plot in ways that wouldn't make sense without it and that's why the movie kind of fails. It still doesn't make sense because it doesn't justify the existence of the stuff that has been included to make it make sense. Confused? You should be because you will be if you watch it.
Despite not being bored, you will most likely be unsatisfied at the end. You'll be intrigued throughout but get no insight about the things that made you feel that way.
Nope (2022)
Not much happens to be honest
Not sure why it's rated so highly. Its slow and kind of feels like it's building up to something but it never does. The whole concept is kind of flat and you don't even see anything cool, unless you think some cloth blowing around in the air is cool.
What is the point of watching this? Can't tell you. There's single episodes of Star Trek that have done this idea better. Acting, production values, cinematography, etc. Are all great but that's all worthless if you're not entertained. I was getting bored after about 20 mins but thought I'd stick with it because, you know, something crazy and awesome is bound to happen eventually, right?... It doesn't.
Moon Knight (2022)
Wagwan!
The script writers definitely had a list of British and London words with them for when they only had two southern British words in the scene and needed a few more. Absolute overkill.
Other than that, pretty good show.
The Book of Boba Fett (2021)
Cyberpunk Wars
Lost me on episode 3 with the introduction of the cool d00ds cyberpunk gang with pimped up rides and go-go-gadget weapons.
This isn't Star Wars. I really hope this whole cyberpunk vibe they are experimenting with here isn't what they have done with darth vader in the obi wan series.
Time to change the leadership I think. No real Star Wars fan would EVER put in characters like this. It's only a matter of time until The Mandalorian is ruined as well.
The Book of Boba Fett: Chapter 3: The Streets of Mos Espa (2022)
Youth gang..
This is where the series lost me. The introduction of a gen z style youth gang with pimped rides and fashion(?) sense was so anti Star Wars and immersion breaking that I just lost the will to keep going.
Not my Star Wars. They borked it. New people need to be put in charge of this stuff.
Everything Everywhere All at Once (2022)
Didn't get it.
I watch and enjoy enough deep or artistic movies. Hell, I studied film and media for years so I've been exposed to the strangest things ever produced.
I decided to watch this based purely on the amount of positive reviews it was getting but I just don't get it. You know those paintings that people say are masterpieces and then you see it and it looks like something a child made? This is how I feel about this movie. Seems like it's just weird for the sake of being weird and it's getting a lot of extra credit for being quite unique. The comedy was either crude or childish so that didn't do much for me either.
I'll give a middle rating purely because you've probably never seen anything like this before. Loads of people love it so you might too. Either way, you're going to experience something different for a change.
Wrong Turn (2021)
Nothing to do with the original
Gets a 1 because they put the Wrong Turn name on this and other than it being about some people getting killed in a forested mountain area there's nothing linking this to the original IP.
I'd give it a 4 if they'd labelled it as something new. Acting and script are terrible. The wokeness feels forced and is cringy. Some of the kills and gore are OK but even that is ruined by overacting most of the time.
Only bother watching this as a last resort when you've watched all the other horrors.
The Rookie: Real Crime (2022)
Hate this style
Yeh, they did it again. Another true crime fake documentary style episode. This kind of thing isn't why I watch this show and I just wish they'd stop it. With how silly the show is getting a lot of the time it feels a bit like it's turning into a sitcom. Not good.
Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City (2021)
Failure
This is a weird one because on one side they tried hard to recreate some iconic things from the video games and on the other they completely butchered the story and most of the characters with an absolute tonne of changes and tried to pack the (massively altered) story from Resident Evil 1 + 2 + a little of Zero into a standard size movie.
The result is something that just didn't provide the proper context for what was happening. Below average special effects and some very weak actors for many of the minor characters didn't help things either. The standard zombies are too fast, too aggressive, too loud and too strong as well. It's just not really Resident Evil and I don't even recommend it for fans of the games.
I don't know why they always insist on changing so much when adapting video game stories but here we are, again, disappointed with what we got. Will they ever learn?
Another Life (2019)
You think it's going well then something dumb happens, again...
It's totally ruined by stupid moments. Crazy stuff is happening that could be good and then everyone decides to masterbate or have a threesome or have a disco in deep space or go bowling.
There's better sci-fi than this. If you want to make the most of your time you should watch something else.
Curb Your Enthusiasm: The Watermelon (2021)
You'd think it'd lose steam after so long but it just doesn't
Masterfully crafted comedy here. Curb is always great at setting up the big laughes early on and delivering a great payoff but this episode was a masterclass. It's setting up like four payoffs at the same time. The watermelon stuff just ruined me.
Only Murders in the Building: The Boy from 6B (2021)
Hardly anyone speaks and its weird
I get what they were trying to do here artistically with the lack of spoken dialogue when a deaf character comes to the forefront but it just created some awkward and unrealistic moments to me. You know, characters didn't speak in scenes that didn't involve the deaf character in any way when they obviously would have done really. It just all seemed very unnatural and eerie to me.
Not sure why some people are praising it by saying it proves dialogue isn't needed. There's plenty of dialogue; signed, lip read or written. It's just not spoken dialogue or it 'is' spoken but we just couldn't hear it and had to read it in subtitles instead.
To be clear, the scenes involving the deaf character are great in this style, the ones without him were not necessary and are the reason for the low score. The overall events of this episode, story-wise, are excellent.
Dune (2021)
Just not good enough, read the book if you're interested in Dune
It's a popular opinion that Dune is too complex for the big screen and this version proves that yet again. I imagine that people new to the IP will be utterly confused about what is going on because in order to understand it fully you'd need a seperate movie just to set up the universe before even attempting to tell the main story.
Visually it's great but they lean on the mystical vibe far too much with drawn out screens of nothingness that simply look pretty. You'll spend a good 30+ minutes of this movie looking at shiny sand blowing across dunes or staring at oversized sci-fi looking structures.
Other than the obvious adaptation issues it has, sound design was one of my biggest gripes with this movie. They do this weird thing where they bring the somber soundtrack to the forefront during scenes which are supposed to be exciting, urgent and action packed. It completely ruins those scenes and lessens their impact.
Ultimately, this is not a substitute for the book even if books aren't your thing. If you want to experience this story without the book then you should just move on and forget about it because you won't get what you want from this. You'll just think the whole Dune thing is massively overrated instead.
Free Guy (2021)
Dumb fun that kids will enjoy but it's kind of cringe for gamers
Ryan carries it just because he's so charismatic but this is another example of that strange disconnect there is between actual gamer culture and what the people making a movie or TV show 'think' gamer culture is like. It's cringy in places because if that, especially to gamers.
Dear Evan Hansen (2021)
Emotional story and great songs
This is getting a bad rap from some people for some reason. Most of the complaints seem to be about Ben Platt but I just don't get it. Other than some slight aging in his face and hairline he is totally convincing as a younger character in terms of body language and physique. His singing is obviously amazing since he's tuned himself to this role for many years.
Overall, its a great musical that's well acted and will hit you right in the feels. The music is stellar and that's the main thing you want. Platt is the genuine article when it comes to this one. You get the authentic, iconic sound of the actual stage musical thanks to him.
The Tomorrow War (2021)
Good sci-fi action
I'll keep this simple. If you like stories and events like in Gears of War or Starship Troopers with military operations against alien invaders then you're going to enjoy this.