carey-941-755692 Reviews

The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live (2024)

Slogged through

[4/10 · 2 April 2024]

I just watched the end of this series and I can only hope it is the last I see of it for a long time. The completist in my forced me to watch to the bitter end, slogging through the hours of ill-placed admiration for the two protagonists. As I watched, the recurring themes of so much of TWD made their appearances, including:

1. Wherever they go, Rick and Michonne leave a stunning level of death and carnage in their wake.

2. Both characters are clad in almost impenetrable plot armour. Overwhelming odds, bombs, guns, grenades matter little.

3. No matter their achievements, the enemy's plans are always psychotic and make little sense when finally made clear.

4. The writers of this show might actually believe that the protagonists are exceptional.

5. Only those two will see the psychotic endgame as bad. Everyone else will be convinced.

6. It is better for everyone in the world to die than to live in a way that Rick and Michonne don't like.

Enough is enough.

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters (2023– )

Fun to watch

[8/10 · 12 January 2024]

I admit it. I am not someone who lives and dies with the details of a universe. I don't care that much about canon. In a show about monsters, I am not that concerned about the occassional need to stretch my suspension of disbelief. Frankly, I watch a new show based either on word of mouth or interesting marketing. Monarch was good enough from me to like spending my time to watch.

What did I like?

The story was good enough. Secrecy, conspiracy, good and bad intentions. Nothing new but not horrible.

The Russells playing the same character was interesting and both were enjoyable on screen. Not just nostalgia.

The monsters. I have watched all the new Godzilla and Kong movies. Candy floss for the mind. For a TV show, the monsters are not bad.

I think this is the first time I have seen Anna Sawai. She is not terrible as an actress playing a character. And she is gorgeous. I admit that having such a pretty woman on screen helps hold my attention. Not the most important thing nor enough, on its own, to have me come back. Call it an appreciated bonus.

The rest? Titans. Rifts. Time differentials. Internal Monarch politics? As long as they don't get stupid enough for me to groan out loud, I am fine.

All in all, I look forward to watching each episode. I hope that does not mean Apple cancels it.

Justice League: Crisis on Infinite Earths - Part One (2024)

This is terrible

[2/10 · 10 January 2024]

It is hard to believe that Crisis on Infinite Earths came out almost 40 years ago, just after Marvel's Secret Wars. The breadth of Crisis was unprecedented, with stories across the entire universe of comics and characters. Moreover, it was to have real impact, with dead characters staying dead and everything in danger. Of course, over time, the characters came back but at the time, it was something.

I was wondering how this animated adaptation would address the massive scope of the story and now I have my answer. It does not. The story in this movie is a distant cousin to the original, with none of the import.

I have to assume that this movie was written with the expectation that The Flash movie would not be such an apocolyptic bomb and thus centred around Barry Allen and Iris West. There is little there, primarily due to a script seemingly written by an emotionless AI and animation that is as bad as the last years of DC Animation movies.

What a shame that what started as a series of well written and animated movies has diminished to this.

What If...? (2021– )

Reminds me of the What If? comic series, unfortunately

[5/10 · 29 December 2023]

I remember so many years ago, enjoying the What If? Comics. I suppose it was a simpler time for comics and each issue took a look at what might have happened if a different choice were made or different result occurred. They were the Marvel comics version of DC's imaginary stories.

Like any comics, some issues were better than others. But overall, the stories were fun, enjoyable and some were even thought provoking.

But along the way, the comics started to reflect less important or interesting decisions with increasingly absurd results. Even worse, some mildly popular issues and characters started to emerge in the mainstream comics, calling for increasing levels of silly complexity. Like most readers, I kept on for a while then stopped buying the comic.

The What If? Series seems to be reflecting the worse of the comic legacy. Sure there are a few interesting episodes that stand on their own. The zombie one was certainly fun.

But it seems this programs is falling victim to the desire to fit itself into the actual MCU rather than just examining possibilities.

Watching the second season, it seems the show is trying to fit itself to the MCU's big multiverse mess. Not working for me.

Doctor Who: The Church on Ruby Road (2023) Season 1, Episode 0

It was OK. Liked the new Doctor

[7/10 · 26 December 2023]

On the upside, the new Doctor seems like he has the chops. Brought fun and a little darkness to his first episode. The new companion is cute and did not immediately know everything. The pairing may be fun in the new season.

As to the Christmas episode itself, it was OK. Not great. Not bad. In the tradition on several Christmas episodes, which were just OK. The antagonist was unexpected and magically based, not a choice I would have made but maybe it resonated better with other watchers.

I worry about a silly season long story about Ruby. Again, that is just me. Let's see how it goes. The team would have to work hard not to be an improvement over the last two years.

Found (2023– )

OK for background noise

[4/10 · 26 October 2023]

You may ask why I am watching this show if I think it is badly acted and written even more badly. There are a few reasons.

1. Shanola Hampton is not a particularly gifted actor. That was apparent in Shameless and even more so here. But she is a hot woman who dresses to show off every well toned asset. She is a pleasure to watch and is not so bad that the pleasure is lost.

2. I like to see if new shows are following what seems like the required structure for this type of procedural. This includes the requirements that the characters are all super earnest, live in relative luxury while decrying wealth and always know better than everyone else.

3. Over the last few seasons, I have been watching to see if new shows follow the "first white guy" rule of villainy. In this show, and in others such as the new The Irrational, knowing the villain means only looking for the first white guy - or occasionally the first white woman - to show up on screen. However outlandish their motivation, they are almost always the villain.

There are many good shows requiring attention to be paid. This is one of those which is OK for background noise.

Update: I had hoped I was joking. But I find I was not. You can watch with the sound off. The first white male is always a villain. Occassionally, the first white female is also a villain.

The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon (2023– )

Expected more than the same slowness

[5/10 · 26 September 2023]

I was looking forward to this show. I hoped that it would be different than the US based shows with their post-apocalyptic groups, zombies and cliched antagonists and silly mcguffins. Focused on a quiet character who is interesting, if not compelling, perhaps we would be thrust, through Darryl, into a far off location which has taken a different direction than that taken in the areas of the US we have seen.

Silly me.

Putting aside the new mcguffin of having to get the kid to the far off place (did they write this before or after the first season of Last of Us?), this show is The Walking Dead with some of the dialog in French.

Boring in English. Boring in French.

How I Met Your Father (2022–2023)

I tried but no more

[3/10 · 13 June 2023]

I like to give programs a chance to get better. So I forced myself to watch through the first season and a half of this show. While I didn't find it particularly good, it was something I could watch while working or playing sudoku.

At first, I wrote off my lack of enjoyment to not being the target audience. But the more I watched, the more I despaired at what the characters said and did. The more I listened and watched, the more I wondered whether the characters were suffering some sort of mental disease or damage. Their ability to make the most idiotic choices makes them seem stuck at the mental age of children.

These are not characters with whom to empathize and enjoy. They are to be pitied.

FUBAR (2023– )

It feels like a Schwarzenegger movie

[7/10 · 27 May 2023]

I never went to Schwarzenegger movies for Oscar level performances. What I remember getting was excitement with more than a pinch of humour. Some movies were better than others but I always felt like I got value for my time and money. It always felt that Arnie was doing his best and the supporting cast often worked well to elevate the material.

I suppose I could critique elements of FUBAR but I don't feel the need. Arnie still commands the screen. And while he is not young, he can convincingly play a 65 year old man nearing the end of a big career. The supporting cast is attractive and fun. The story is OK. In short, I enjoyed the show and don't regret the time I spent watching.

Don't tune in for an Emmy winning show. Enjoy a fun series that rarely disappoints.

The Blacklist (2013–2023)

The last few seasons - good actors with bad lines

[8/10 · 18 April 2023]

I am watching episode 8, season 10 of The Blacklist right now. James Spader and Harry Lennix are on now, spouting dialog that is almost irrelevant. The way these two interact, their voices, their movements, and their body language are valued reminders that the show has only a few more episodes.

Just before one might start really thinking about the story, we are taken to the rest of the cast, anxiously expositing whatever the story of the week needs. Familiar but interchangeable, its current cast has but one remnant of the original. In the world of The Blacklist, the second in command to the world's most wanted criminal can quickly transition to the FBI. And, of course, there is a stunningly beautiful woman in her early twenties with expansive talents.

Still, we get to enjoy Spader and Lennix who can elevate mediocre writing to entertainment. They exemplify the idea that some people can read the phone book aloud and people would be rapt.

I will miss this show but it is time for it to go.

Lucky Hank (2023)

Sayre's Law

[8/10 · 13 April 2023]

Sayre's law states, "In any dispute the intensity of feeling is inversely proportional to the value of the issues at stake."

By way of corollary, it adds: "That is why academic politics are so bitter." Sayre's law is named after Wallace Stanley Sayre (1905-1972), U. S. political scientist and professor at Columbia University.

I am watching this show because of Bob Odenkirk's recent history. Better Call Saul took time to gain momentum and Lucky Hank certainly needs to do the same. I will keep watching for now, hoping it gets into gear.

It will certainly take some real effort to make this low stakes story interesting.

65 (2023)

Fun. No regrets.

[7/10 · 7 April 2023]

A few thoughts about a movie a enjoyed.

1. This was a fun science fiction movie with a basic story, a few good scares and dinosaurs. Its CGI was good enough for me to enjoy.

2. it wasn't another movie where the stakes were the fate of the world. Getting tired of every SF movie trying to up the stakes.

3. Not sure why they made the two protagonist unable to speak the same language. Maybe a little dig at the idea of ubiquitous translation and the technology needed to make it happen. But it is not important and the reason for such a thing is hardly relevant.

4. It was not too long. It did not pad itself to a boring length just to be longer.

All in all, a pretty good movie to enjoy an evening.

Rizzoli & Isles (2010–2016)

Good show - excellent rewatch

[8/10 · 12 March 2023]

This is not the first time I am rewatching this series. I know it will never be listed in the top ten television series but it is enjoyable to watch.

Just as an FYI, the show took me to the books, rather than the reverse. While much in the books are different, the core of the characters is reflected pretty well. Two very capable women who become close, supportive friends through different situation, while solving murders.

The two leads, Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander, are well cast. They come off as very capable and mostly believable. They are not superwomen, not always right and not always pleasant, and they grow as people.

The only element of the show is the almost omnipresence of Lorraine Bracco as Angela, Jane's mother. The protagonist of often silly secondary plots, her time on screen often dimishes the show and the characters. I suppose the show wanted to get their money's worth from Bracco, but it did not help. Having watched the series a few times, I will sometimes just fast forward through the Bracco scenes.

That said, I very much recommend this show for a fun, pleasant watch.

Quantum Leap (2022–2024)

I miss Al

[6/10 · 7 March 2023]

I watched the original show. It was OK and I did enjoy it, though it was never must see TV for me. Still, I like me a good time travel show and was looking forward to this new version of Quantum Leap.

Raymond Lee is doing a good job as the lead, portraying a good man in a series of consistently changing situations. Like most shows, the supporting cast is hit or miss, with the exception of Ernie Hudson, who makes everything better.

After the last episode, I realized what is missing. I miss Al, as played by Dean Stockwell. Al was the conduit from the future to the past whose job is now done by Addison, as played by Caitlin Bassett.

When I write that I miss Al, what I mean is that I miss the interplay between the two leads. Al's idiosyncratic voice and personality brought humour to what might have been bland intgerplay. And that's what I miss, humour and humanity. Instead, Addison, and the entire cast, seem so earnest in everything they say and do. A special note regarding Nanrisa Lee, who seems to be trying to escape the constraints and find humanity in her role.

I am not really surprised, as earnestness seems to the default in many shows. But in this version of Quantum Leap, it sucks some of the joy from watching the show.

The Last of Us (2023– )

Not a video gamer so I only know this story from the TV show

[5/10 · 6 March 2023]

I am not a video game player and have never played the video game from which this show is adapted. So I am watching this story for the first time and reacting to the shows only as a watcher.

To start, the show looked great at the start, with the story taking us through the ruins of cities. And the travel through the country is also well shot.

The actors are fine, with most of the actors performing well with what they are given.

The monsters are an interesting turn on zombies, though they seem very rarely seen.

But I am finding the stories increasingly dull and repetitive. Perhaps it is the limited look at the monsters. Perhaps it is the slowness of the story. Perhaps it is the apparent filler episodes.

We hear about FEDRA and other organization but we really do not feel them.

There is potential here. Here's hoping it finds it.

True Lies (2023)

Updated - I get it now

[1/10 · 2 March 2023]

It took watching and enjoyuing the movie one evening to understand what was missing in this show, and why I did not enjoy it. While it is not his fault, the problem lies primarily with Steve Howey and how he portrays Harry Tasker.

True Lies was a fun movie and, at its core, it was a story about an alpha male who is in love with his seemingly average wife and family. His marriage and family offered him a life that deeply contrasted with his real life, a supercapable spy. In that marriage, he did not have to be the ubermensch. In truth, he had been gaslighting his family so that he could enjoy the time away. But there was never a question as to who Harry really was. Harry was Superman and he played Clark Kent with his family.

In this show, Harry is very much the Clark Kent and very occassionally pretends to be Superman. While he is physically up to the role, the role he is does not make us believe.

Were Harry a more impressive man, the way his wife is written would still be annoying but infinitely more bearable. But this is not the case. So the whole show becomes unfortunately bad.

Final Update: I tried again with episode 4 and made it through 10 minutes before turning it off. A shame.

Update: I tried again with episode 3. Believe it or not, the show has gotten worse.

I really enjoyed True Lies, the movie. This show is related by its name and the name of some of the characters. It is a distant relation and suffers from severe genetic degradation.

I was looking forward to this show. Steve Howey is usually a pleasure to watch. Ginger Gonzaga is fun and energetic and a beauiful woman. I hoped that they could convey the spirit of the movie in a series. But my hopes were dashed.

I cannot review the entire first episode because I turned it off before it was completed. It was underwhelming right from the start, with a lack of energy in the opening mission. But when the leads were captured, the inevitable happened and the wife showed herself to be more capable of the two.

I expected this show would check all the diversity boxes and it did. But what made the movie such fun was both Arnold being the superspy and Jamie Lee Curtis tranforming from a quiet housewife to something more. In this show, girl power starts from the beginning. And in order to do so, it has to diminish he superspy into an insecure, lesser person.

Enough.

Star Trek: Picard (2020–2023)

Not aging well

[6/10 · 24 February 2023]

I suppose I am like many, kind of a nostalgic completist. I watch the new Star Trek show hoping to feel some of the pleasure I felt watcing them for the first time, in my own relative youth. I was in my mid-twenties when TNG began and my thirties for Voyager and DS9. Like many of the older fans, my memory of TOS was reruns, cartoons and movies.

Putting aside nostalgia, one of the reasons I considered Picard to be my favourite Enterprise captain was the interesting combination of rationality and emotion and of reserve and physicality. Almost tied was Sisko, who brought together such qualities in a different but equally impressive way.

Nostalgia is fine and I enjoy looking back. I appreciate some of the changes that have come over the years with experience and maturity. But I know that my prime has passed and the decline accelerates each year.

Which takes us to Star Trek: Picard. I watch this not because I think it to be the equal of its predecessor. I watch it for the sake of nostalgia. Patrick Stewart is a shadow of his former self, his physicality shrunken and his voice that of an elderly man. But my memory of the original endears him to me. Unfortunately, his character seems to have changed. Not just far more emotional but also a person who prizes his own personal desires above his duty. Many of the themes that made Star Trek so enjoyable have disappeared.

Night Court (2023– )

Needs work

[6/10 · 8 February 2023]

A few things.

1. I remember the original show. Like most viewers, I did not start getting into it until the third or fouth season, when it became a part of the Thursday lineup. The characters were OK but it did not gel for me at the start. It was especially the addition of Charles Robinson that made the show.

2. If you watch the original show, you will find it filled with the type of racial humour and sexual inuendo that can no longer be used. Night Court was filled with quick, fun moments.

3. On older sitcoms, or at least the good ones, the characters had character. It seems that on most new sitcoms, including this one, the characters seem mentally challenged, bordering on stupid. And their actions seem idiotic and without any intelligible motivation.

I think that with some cast changes and some time to gel, this might be a good show. Right now, not so much.

Blue Bloods (2010–2024)

Is it just me?

[7/10 · 6 February 2023]

First, for context, I still watch Blue Bloods every week it is on.

However, over the last 2-3 years, I have found the show less compelling. It has become more of a "watch in the background" experience, rather than something to which I pay much attention.

Maybe it is over familiarity with the characters. Perhaps it is an aging cast. I wonder if the shorthand one develops with familiar characters is draining something from the cast or from me, as a viewer.

I am not sure what it is but I have reached the point where I would not be terribly upset if the show stopped. But, until it does, I will likely be watching.

Criminal Minds (2005– )

Not crazy about it but now I understand why

[7/10 · 13 January 2023]

I enjoy Criminal Minds and have watched it from beginning to end a few times. And I am watching Evolution, too.

While it is nice to see the characters back, this new iteration is less enjoyable. And I think I understand why. The show started as weekly episodes, with some themes running in the background. Each week (with the occassional double episode), there were new killers to catch. The personal lives of the teams were shown but only as a small part of the larger show.

It would seem that trying to stretch out the story to ten episodes has the same affect as it has for so many shows on so many channels. It requires the content to be padded out and it requires additional dedication from the viewer.

I admit that I will still be watching but it is just not the same nor is it as much fun.

The Rookie: Feds (2022–2023)

Suspension of disbelief

[3/10 · 6 January 2023]

One of the key elements of a fish out of water show like The Rookie or The Rookie:Feds is the the viewer being able to stay within the world presented. Like any fiction, it requires a suspension of disbelief. A good few lead actors let me go with the flow, making for good entertainment.

Nathan Fillion plays the mature everyman well enough that I can enjoy the rest of the show. It's not perfect but good enough that I enjoy each new episode.

Unfortunately, while The Rookie:Feds could have taken a similar concept and made it enjoyable. But Neicy Nash is shrill, jarring and unbelievable in the role. It makes watching the show unpleasant.

It is unfortunate, as the opportunity was there for this show, with another lead. As an example, I don't care much for the show East New York but I watch because Amanda Warren is compelling. There are several African-American actresses who could have made this role their own. Nash is not one of them.

I am sure the producers of this show had every good intention. And, perhaps, there is a good core of viewers who are enjoying it. I am not one. For me, it is the type of show that gets watched when background noise is needed.

Fear the Walking Dead (2015–2023)

Rewatched the first 3 seasons. Story of a woman and her family destroying everyone they meet.

[6/10 · 24 November 2022]

I just finished rewatching the first 3 seasons of FTWD and it struck me why I stopped watching during the actual run.

First, the increasingly desperate decisions made by Madison to ostensibly protect her family leave a path of death and destruction. Her single minded belief that she must protect her children at all costs seem to lead her to odd, even sociopathic decisions and actions.

Second, and perhaps worse, is why people seem to follow her, as written. Frankly, most of those who came into her orbit would have been better off if she was bitten. At very least, they would have lived longer. This is not a person whose experience would lead to effective survival decisions. And her are certainly not effective.

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022)

Not my thing, I guess

[4/10 · 1 September 2022]

Like many, I was looking forward to this show. She-Hulk is an interesting character and seemed well-positioned for episodic TV. And, as someone who very much enjoyed Orphan Black, I thought Tatiana Maslany was an interesting choice for the lead.

Having now watched the first 3 episodes, I am not finding it compelling, for me. I am sure there are those who love it.

Without getting into spoilers, here is what is not working for me, in no particular order.

1. The half hour format. Over the years, sitcoms have become increasingly less appealing to me. To fit within the 30 minute format, they have to be formulaic and the characters generally stereotypical and superficial. This show is little different.

2. The lead. As I said, I was looking forward to TM playing She-Hulk. But the character she is playing seems less a competent professional woman than, for want of a better term, a ditzy girl.

3. The look. She-Hulk looks like a plastic doll, rather than an exagerated human being.

There are more. But overall, it seems this sitcom is following mediocre concept of having some actors act hysterical and silly, and hoping the audience laughs. Just not my thing.

Superman & Lois (2021–2024)

Looks good but falls to the CW tropes

[7/10 · 29 June 2022]

I very much enjoyed the first episodes of this show. It is cinematic in it's look and feel.

What has taken this show from a must watch to a should watch is its writing, which increasingly falls victim to the CW tropes.

First, every CW show seemingly needs to build a diverse team around the central character/hero, with each team member being important and playing a major part of the adventures. This means there is often an inordinate amount of attention paid to creating a need for this character.

As an example, in this show, Superman is orders of magnitude more powerful than Steel. Yet, to watch, one would think they are almost equal.

Second, the wife, or significant other, must be of equal or greater value than the hero. In this case, Lois must be essential to Superman's ability to do anything.

Superman is an almost supernatural hero, with powers and abilities far beyond those of mortal people. Yet to play up the supporting cast, he is weaked beyond logic. It makes the show increasingly hard to watch, as the same tropes made Flash almost unwatchable.

The Twilight Zone: Try, Try (2020) Season 2, Episode 9

There was almost a twist. Almost

[4/10 · 29 June 2020]

There was almost an opportunity for this episode to have a real twist, at least for this version of the Twilight Zone, but it was not to be.

As soon as we saw the two main characters, it was obvious that Topher Grace's character would be exposed as an evil, twisted psycho who would end up threatening the noble, innocent, female lead. It was only a question of when and how, not if.

I have no issue with the discussion of race in this show. But the lack of subtlety or surprise has become a predictable motif in every episode. It makes watching this version of the great original show a chore, rather than a pleasure.