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matt_zimmerAlso reviews for the latest DC Showcase short, the latest episodes of Stargirl, Harley Quinn, Transformers: Rescue Bot Academy, and American Dad!, as well as a review for a collection of Winnie The Pooh comic strips.
Justice League Dark: Apokolips War
Hi, I'm Matt. I'll be your turd in the punchbowl this evening.
I suspect anyone who has read my reviews might have expected that. But it has nothing to do with the stomach-churning violence or f-bombs for once. It's that this movie is a total bummer and made me feel like all of the previous New 52 movies were an utter waste of my time.
As the movie was going I assumed I'd do a long review going over each of the wild new scenarios and how I responded to it (Evil Batman! Harley in charge of the Suicide Squad!). But ultimately this review will be briefer than I planned because none of that stuff actually matters.
I don't know about you, but I like happy, satisfying endings. Call me crazy. And if we do get a sad ending it needs to be earned. Killing off most of the cast and potentially destroying Earth is not earned as a sad ending as long as you plan to reboot the Universe. Is that how it's gonna go with every continuity? Misery and destruction for characters and scenarios we wind up caring about simply to reboot things to get out of it? Is that how the comic book DC Crises work? If so, I'm glad I don't read comics. That would freaking infuriate me. Rebooting the Universe is a deus ex machina of the highest order, and basically leaves us off on a sour note for a group of movies that had its ups and downs for sure, but I think deserved better than to have the last thing in it being the Justice League losing and Darkseid destroying Earth. Am I crazy for thinking that? This movie has 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. I don't get it. What am I missing? How is it an unearned unhappy cheat ending has resonated with so many fans and critics? I don't understand. I do not value or like or want the same thing as comic book fans do from my entertainment. And let me tell you, I don't think my wants and needs are unreasonable. And since Game of Thrones, pop culture hands us downer ending after downer ending and expects acclaim for it. Which people crazily give it. I don't operate that way. I don't want to operate that way. I think it's unhealthy to operate that way.
I don't know how many of y'all read my comic book, but if it comes out and is finished, it's gonna have a sad ending. And you'd love it because it's gonna be the kind of sad ending that makes you feel good for hurting. That movie I just saw made me feel bad. Why does pop culture believe that is the right way to deliver a sad ending? It's not just this movie, it's not just comic books. It's a toxic mindset that has infected fiction that makes everything markedly worse for existing. The U.S. is literally on-fire right now. I don't take much entertainment from a movie where the Earth is on-fire. There is nothing wrong for using entertainment to escape how horrible real-world events are. I should not have to be punished repeatedly with bummer endings from things I watch and like. I'm not the bad guy. None of us are. We didn't do anything wrong. We deserve better from our endings. And if not happier endings, than at least more satisfying, and more earned endings, and endings not using a reboot trope to cheat your way out of the dire corner the writers have painted themselves into.
I don't know what bothers me more. The movie itself, or the fact that it is highly regarded. There is something deeply wrong with popular culture. I remember back in the days where you could actually chill out and enjoy what you watched. And it's crazy to me that outside of maybe the Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Orville, and the She-Ra reboot, we aren't allowed to do that anymore. That movie was wrong, did wrong by the audience, and it disturbs me that it receives cheers for that. That sucked. *.
DC Showcase: Adam Strange
Unfavorable impression.
First things first. I was totally confused by that and had no idea what was going on. Now as a rule, as a fan of Lost and Twin Peaks, a little unexplained confusion and mystery can be a very good thing if the project is strong. That wasn't, so it's annoying instead.
Are the Thanagarians supposed to be the good guys or the bad guys? I've never been clear on that.
I think the thing that annoyed me most is that this short, (and the rest of the DC Showcase shorts) all play as Pilots for characters and continuities we will never, EVER return to. Which makes cliffhanger endings seem quite crazy to me. I don't like the format, I don't like the new continuity every short. Outside of Death, I haven't responded very well to this round of shorts. **.
A Sneak Peek At Superman: Man Of Tomorrow
I think this looks really great. For one thing it seem optimistic and positive. For another the stylized animation looks beautiful.
Opinion: Ryan Hurst would make a great live-action Lobo. Contrary thoughts? Didn't think so.
I'm looking forward to this. ****1/2.
Stargirl "Icicle"
Usually the second episode of a series is the first "regular" episode of a show. But last week's episode played more like the second part of the Pilot. This week seemed like the first regular episode. How are the fundamentals of the show in an "average" week?
Honestly? It doesn't interest me as much as when the big mythology stuff happens, but it's still better than most other superhero stuff. It's very clear DC is giving this show its all. They are even allowing Justice Society versions of the Flash and Green Lantern. That's usually the kind of thing the company embargoes for no good reason whatsoever. Maybe DC is starting to learn from its mistakes.
I find Icicle both a compelling and despicable character. He truly cares about his family and believes what he doing is for the best. And his wife's death scene is truly moving. And yet, both her and him are utter monsters. I think Icicle will be a very good demonstration of the ends not ever justifying the means. It was very clearly intentional that the Injustice Society named itself that because they believed they were fighting injustice. So perhaps they are closer to terrorists than supervillains.
But the bus incident means they ARE the bad guys, no matter what you call them. I assume it will be eventually revealed that their grievance with the Justice Society is legit. And they are STILL the bad guys because of that which fascinates me.
On the side of Courtney's "Let's get 'em!" and Pat's "Slow down there, kiddo," arguments, I am 100% on Pat's side. What Pat should have said is that the kid wouldn't have died at all of they hadn't fought Icicle in the first place. It is actually partly on her. The thing that most alarms me about Courtney's gung-ho attitude is that I wouldn't object to it if she were taking things seriously and being careful. Pat seems perfectly willing to get involved. If they do it right, have a plan, and try to keep themselves safe. And that's boring to Courtney, and I don't like that she is unwilling to put in the legwork it takes to be hero. It is not an entirely glamorous job. If it were, more people would be doing it.
Prediction: If I do not mention in every review from this point forward that the show will be markedly improved if the next week kills off Mike Dugan in the first scene, I'll be very surprised. It probably won't actually happen every review (Mike is almost certainly not going to be in every episode) but I can't imagine that kid ever turning in an acceptable performance either. He is such a little turd.
I liked the episode fine, but unlike the first two weeks, I didn't love it. Which, shocker, is fine. I think it is perfectly fine for shows to deliver good, solid episodes, and I don't demand a show be great every week. Here is another opinion that is unusual: I also don't mind the occasional bad episode if the story itself is needed. I think demanding perfect television week after week, which seems to be a default expectation with modern audiences, boxes in a show, and can make them do rash storytelling decisions a show shouldn't make simply to top themselves week after week. There is something to be said for watching a decent, or even mediocre episode of a show that CAN be great. And I think the more people who realize that, the better off television will be.
Favorable impression this week, even though it wasn't actually amazing. ****.
Harley Quinn "Bachelorette"
That was surprisingly good. The stuff with Harley and Ivy was shockingly sexy.
Honestly, I think Harley is being unfair. She's making Ivy be the bad guy. She's her best friend. She shouldn't be placing her in that position. Ivy is being forced to say No. She shouldn't have to do that. It shouldn't even be an issue still.
They are slowly walking back Ivy and Kiteman in the episode with Kiteman realizing that some women can actually dig you, but I'm think King Shark's new contemptible wife is literally the worst example about love Kiteman could be following. The show could have and should have handled that better.
For the record, birds bloodily smashing into the Invisible Jet is completely realistic. The selling point of the joke is that it's just showing what would happen in real life. The idea of an Invisible Jet is terrible on every level you can think of.
I don't like how Nora Fries was portrayed in the episode. I also the thought the fish pooping Little Mermaid tribute was outright awful. There were definite things in the episode I didn't like.
But as a whole it worked, it explored the characters and showed them making good and bad choices.
Here is my opinion about the Harley and Ivy ship: I agree with Ivy that it is far too soon to trust somebody who tolerated the Joker for that long with her heart. Stipulated. But while Harley is being unfair to her, she's being unfair to Kiteman. What Ivy needs to do is call off the wedding and sort her feelings out from there. Pretending it was simply a mistake and can never happen again is clearly not working.
I liked it. ****.
Transformers: Rescue Bots Academy "Turning The Tide"
2 notes:
1. Hotshot is the worst.
2. This episode was super boring. *.
Transformers: Rescue Bots Academy "Blame Game"
Awful. Nothing more needs to be said. 1/2.
American Dad! "One Fish, Two Fish"
Stan is the show's worst husband, but Hayley is the show's worst wife. Telling the singing waiters it's her birthday instead of Jeff's because she wanted them to sing to her? Divorcing him and turning into a fish to marry Klaus is the least of her sins.
She's a cute fish though. I'll give her that.
I love the idea that Francine opens pickle jars by smashing them on the floor. That is not only funny but it also sounds totally in character.
Kiwis are the fruit that look and feel like balls that were shaved exactly one week ago. This show can make anything sound appetizing.
Great stuff with Criss Angel at the end.
I laughed a lot tonight. ****.
365 Days With Winnie The Pooh
This is a thick hardcover book of classic Winnie the Pooh comic strips over the years from Dark Horse. They aren't a chronology at all and are more of a "Best of" situation. The book contains Daily Strips, Sunday Strips, and some Sunday strips loosely based on some of the animated featurettes.
How is the strip? It's actually quite funny at times with its share of corny jokes and old-timey comedy. The characters often talk to the camera and bemoan whenever they can't think of a joke to end the strip. It's all charming and funny stuff.
And yet that specific mindset is antithetical to everything Winnie The Pooh is about. Practically every Winnie the Pooh project is mainly geared towards preschoolers, or at least those were the people who responded strongest to it. The comic strip is the only thing in the franchise that seems to be geared towards kids ages 10-12, and even has some humor adults would dig. It's interesting in that respect, but I also feel that it doesn't really feel like Winnie the Pooh. I talk a lot of smack about the DuckTales reboot for doing wrong by the Disney Ducks and rejecting the entire reason the Ducks are cool to begin with. I shouldn't give this comic strip a free pass for doing the same thing after I did that.
The artwork is beautiful and I'll tell you why I responded so well to it, and why I responded so well to both Carl Bark and very early Floyd Gottfredson. Everything is completely on-model and has the exact same designs as the cartoons. Nowadays artists like Don Rosa, Casty, Romano Scarpa, and William Van Horn have their own distinct styles and interpretations of the Disney characters in their artwork. What I appreciated about Barks and very early Gottfredson is that they all hewed very closely to the Disney "House style". It's not all that common. The only other Disney artists who do that to spring immediately to mind are Vicar and Daan Jippes, and Daan Jippes can be hit or miss in that department, especially when doing comic book covers. But Richard Moore did all of the artwork completely on model
I'll tell you the actual selling point of the book and why you should get it. The colors are beautiful. The Daily Strips were originally black and white, so seeing color in the strip with the sunset is great, especially with the shading modern coloring allows. And the old Sunday strips used to have very basic newspaper coloring, and unlike the Fantagraphics Collections of Mickey Mouse strips, which took pains to keep the coloring consistent with how the strips were originally presented (which led to a white Pluto and a yellow Donald Duck) this collection redoes the colors so that they look fantastic. Honestly? I wish Fantagraphics had both done that for the Sunday strips, and actually colored the Daily Ones while they were at it. Make no mistake. The Fantagraphics libraries for Carl Barks, Floyd Gottfredson, and Don Rosa are far superior to this book because they are for completists. But the presentations and colors in this specific book look SO much better. Book Overall: ***.
Dailies:
A lot of funny jokes including Pooh and Piglet riding on word balloons. My favorite joke was when Piglet informs Pooh that grasshoppers smell with their knees, Pooh asks him if he ever says anything sensible. Remember me saying some of these strips are funny? That! That! Remember me also saying these strips are totally not in the spirit of Winnie The Pooh? Also that! That! ***.
Sundays:
The longer format usually contains strips with less dialogue and more visual action. The corny jokes remain. ***.
Featurettes:
Loosely based on the early Winnie The Pooh animated theatrical featurettes, these Sunday strips are somewhat serialized, and don't use the "gag a day / strip" formula the rest of the strip does. Also the humor and sensibility is far closer to the books and cartoons simply because they are adapting the material rather than telling snarky jokes. I probably liked it more because of that. ****.
Justice League Dark: Apokolips War
Hi, I'm Matt. I'll be your turd in the punchbowl this evening.
I suspect anyone who has read my reviews might have expected that. But it has nothing to do with the stomach-churning violence or f-bombs for once. It's that this movie is a total bummer and made me feel like all of the previous New 52 movies were an utter waste of my time.
As the movie was going I assumed I'd do a long review going over each of the wild new scenarios and how I responded to it (Evil Batman! Harley in charge of the Suicide Squad!). But ultimately this review will be briefer than I planned because none of that stuff actually matters.
I don't know about you, but I like happy, satisfying endings. Call me crazy. And if we do get a sad ending it needs to be earned. Killing off most of the cast and potentially destroying Earth is not earned as a sad ending as long as you plan to reboot the Universe. Is that how it's gonna go with every continuity? Misery and destruction for characters and scenarios we wind up caring about simply to reboot things to get out of it? Is that how the comic book DC Crises work? If so, I'm glad I don't read comics. That would freaking infuriate me. Rebooting the Universe is a deus ex machina of the highest order, and basically leaves us off on a sour note for a group of movies that had its ups and downs for sure, but I think deserved better than to have the last thing in it being the Justice League losing and Darkseid destroying Earth. Am I crazy for thinking that? This movie has 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. I don't get it. What am I missing? How is it an unearned unhappy cheat ending has resonated with so many fans and critics? I don't understand. I do not value or like or want the same thing as comic book fans do from my entertainment. And let me tell you, I don't think my wants and needs are unreasonable. And since Game of Thrones, pop culture hands us downer ending after downer ending and expects acclaim for it. Which people crazily give it. I don't operate that way. I don't want to operate that way. I think it's unhealthy to operate that way.
I don't know how many of y'all read my comic book, but if it comes out and is finished, it's gonna have a sad ending. And you'd love it because it's gonna be the kind of sad ending that makes you feel good for hurting. That movie I just saw made me feel bad. Why does pop culture believe that is the right way to deliver a sad ending? It's not just this movie, it's not just comic books. It's a toxic mindset that has infected fiction that makes everything markedly worse for existing. The U.S. is literally on-fire right now. I don't take much entertainment from a movie where the Earth is on-fire. There is nothing wrong for using entertainment to escape how horrible real-world events are. I should not have to be punished repeatedly with bummer endings from things I watch and like. I'm not the bad guy. None of us are. We didn't do anything wrong. We deserve better from our endings. And if not happier endings, than at least more satisfying, and more earned endings, and endings not using a reboot trope to cheat your way out of the dire corner the writers have painted themselves into.
I don't know what bothers me more. The movie itself, or the fact that it is highly regarded. There is something deeply wrong with popular culture. I remember back in the days where you could actually chill out and enjoy what you watched. And it's crazy to me that outside of maybe the Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Orville, and the She-Ra reboot, we aren't allowed to do that anymore. That movie was wrong, did wrong by the audience, and it disturbs me that it receives cheers for that. That sucked. *.
DC Showcase: Adam Strange
Unfavorable impression.
First things first. I was totally confused by that and had no idea what was going on. Now as a rule, as a fan of Lost and Twin Peaks, a little unexplained confusion and mystery can be a very good thing if the project is strong. That wasn't, so it's annoying instead.
Are the Thanagarians supposed to be the good guys or the bad guys? I've never been clear on that.
I think the thing that annoyed me most is that this short, (and the rest of the DC Showcase shorts) all play as Pilots for characters and continuities we will never, EVER return to. Which makes cliffhanger endings seem quite crazy to me. I don't like the format, I don't like the new continuity every short. Outside of Death, I haven't responded very well to this round of shorts. **.
A Sneak Peek At Superman: Man Of Tomorrow
I think this looks really great. For one thing it seem optimistic and positive. For another the stylized animation looks beautiful.
Opinion: Ryan Hurst would make a great live-action Lobo. Contrary thoughts? Didn't think so.
I'm looking forward to this. ****1/2.
Stargirl "Icicle"
Usually the second episode of a series is the first "regular" episode of a show. But last week's episode played more like the second part of the Pilot. This week seemed like the first regular episode. How are the fundamentals of the show in an "average" week?
Honestly? It doesn't interest me as much as when the big mythology stuff happens, but it's still better than most other superhero stuff. It's very clear DC is giving this show its all. They are even allowing Justice Society versions of the Flash and Green Lantern. That's usually the kind of thing the company embargoes for no good reason whatsoever. Maybe DC is starting to learn from its mistakes.
I find Icicle both a compelling and despicable character. He truly cares about his family and believes what he doing is for the best. And his wife's death scene is truly moving. And yet, both her and him are utter monsters. I think Icicle will be a very good demonstration of the ends not ever justifying the means. It was very clearly intentional that the Injustice Society named itself that because they believed they were fighting injustice. So perhaps they are closer to terrorists than supervillains.
But the bus incident means they ARE the bad guys, no matter what you call them. I assume it will be eventually revealed that their grievance with the Justice Society is legit. And they are STILL the bad guys because of that which fascinates me.
On the side of Courtney's "Let's get 'em!" and Pat's "Slow down there, kiddo," arguments, I am 100% on Pat's side. What Pat should have said is that the kid wouldn't have died at all of they hadn't fought Icicle in the first place. It is actually partly on her. The thing that most alarms me about Courtney's gung-ho attitude is that I wouldn't object to it if she were taking things seriously and being careful. Pat seems perfectly willing to get involved. If they do it right, have a plan, and try to keep themselves safe. And that's boring to Courtney, and I don't like that she is unwilling to put in the legwork it takes to be hero. It is not an entirely glamorous job. If it were, more people would be doing it.
Prediction: If I do not mention in every review from this point forward that the show will be markedly improved if the next week kills off Mike Dugan in the first scene, I'll be very surprised. It probably won't actually happen every review (Mike is almost certainly not going to be in every episode) but I can't imagine that kid ever turning in an acceptable performance either. He is such a little turd.
I liked the episode fine, but unlike the first two weeks, I didn't love it. Which, shocker, is fine. I think it is perfectly fine for shows to deliver good, solid episodes, and I don't demand a show be great every week. Here is another opinion that is unusual: I also don't mind the occasional bad episode if the story itself is needed. I think demanding perfect television week after week, which seems to be a default expectation with modern audiences, boxes in a show, and can make them do rash storytelling decisions a show shouldn't make simply to top themselves week after week. There is something to be said for watching a decent, or even mediocre episode of a show that CAN be great. And I think the more people who realize that, the better off television will be.
Favorable impression this week, even though it wasn't actually amazing. ****.
Harley Quinn "Bachelorette"
That was surprisingly good. The stuff with Harley and Ivy was shockingly sexy.
Honestly, I think Harley is being unfair. She's making Ivy be the bad guy. She's her best friend. She shouldn't be placing her in that position. Ivy is being forced to say No. She shouldn't have to do that. It shouldn't even be an issue still.
They are slowly walking back Ivy and Kiteman in the episode with Kiteman realizing that some women can actually dig you, but I'm think King Shark's new contemptible wife is literally the worst example about love Kiteman could be following. The show could have and should have handled that better.
For the record, birds bloodily smashing into the Invisible Jet is completely realistic. The selling point of the joke is that it's just showing what would happen in real life. The idea of an Invisible Jet is terrible on every level you can think of.
I don't like how Nora Fries was portrayed in the episode. I also the thought the fish pooping Little Mermaid tribute was outright awful. There were definite things in the episode I didn't like.
But as a whole it worked, it explored the characters and showed them making good and bad choices.
Here is my opinion about the Harley and Ivy ship: I agree with Ivy that it is far too soon to trust somebody who tolerated the Joker for that long with her heart. Stipulated. But while Harley is being unfair to her, she's being unfair to Kiteman. What Ivy needs to do is call off the wedding and sort her feelings out from there. Pretending it was simply a mistake and can never happen again is clearly not working.
I liked it. ****.
Transformers: Rescue Bots Academy "Turning The Tide"
2 notes:
1. Hotshot is the worst.
2. This episode was super boring. *.
Transformers: Rescue Bots Academy "Blame Game"
Awful. Nothing more needs to be said. 1/2.
American Dad! "One Fish, Two Fish"
Stan is the show's worst husband, but Hayley is the show's worst wife. Telling the singing waiters it's her birthday instead of Jeff's because she wanted them to sing to her? Divorcing him and turning into a fish to marry Klaus is the least of her sins.
She's a cute fish though. I'll give her that.
I love the idea that Francine opens pickle jars by smashing them on the floor. That is not only funny but it also sounds totally in character.
Kiwis are the fruit that look and feel like balls that were shaved exactly one week ago. This show can make anything sound appetizing.
Great stuff with Criss Angel at the end.
I laughed a lot tonight. ****.
365 Days With Winnie The Pooh
This is a thick hardcover book of classic Winnie the Pooh comic strips over the years from Dark Horse. They aren't a chronology at all and are more of a "Best of" situation. The book contains Daily Strips, Sunday Strips, and some Sunday strips loosely based on some of the animated featurettes.
How is the strip? It's actually quite funny at times with its share of corny jokes and old-timey comedy. The characters often talk to the camera and bemoan whenever they can't think of a joke to end the strip. It's all charming and funny stuff.
And yet that specific mindset is antithetical to everything Winnie The Pooh is about. Practically every Winnie the Pooh project is mainly geared towards preschoolers, or at least those were the people who responded strongest to it. The comic strip is the only thing in the franchise that seems to be geared towards kids ages 10-12, and even has some humor adults would dig. It's interesting in that respect, but I also feel that it doesn't really feel like Winnie the Pooh. I talk a lot of smack about the DuckTales reboot for doing wrong by the Disney Ducks and rejecting the entire reason the Ducks are cool to begin with. I shouldn't give this comic strip a free pass for doing the same thing after I did that.
The artwork is beautiful and I'll tell you why I responded so well to it, and why I responded so well to both Carl Bark and very early Floyd Gottfredson. Everything is completely on-model and has the exact same designs as the cartoons. Nowadays artists like Don Rosa, Casty, Romano Scarpa, and William Van Horn have their own distinct styles and interpretations of the Disney characters in their artwork. What I appreciated about Barks and very early Gottfredson is that they all hewed very closely to the Disney "House style". It's not all that common. The only other Disney artists who do that to spring immediately to mind are Vicar and Daan Jippes, and Daan Jippes can be hit or miss in that department, especially when doing comic book covers. But Richard Moore did all of the artwork completely on model
I'll tell you the actual selling point of the book and why you should get it. The colors are beautiful. The Daily Strips were originally black and white, so seeing color in the strip with the sunset is great, especially with the shading modern coloring allows. And the old Sunday strips used to have very basic newspaper coloring, and unlike the Fantagraphics Collections of Mickey Mouse strips, which took pains to keep the coloring consistent with how the strips were originally presented (which led to a white Pluto and a yellow Donald Duck) this collection redoes the colors so that they look fantastic. Honestly? I wish Fantagraphics had both done that for the Sunday strips, and actually colored the Daily Ones while they were at it. Make no mistake. The Fantagraphics libraries for Carl Barks, Floyd Gottfredson, and Don Rosa are far superior to this book because they are for completists. But the presentations and colors in this specific book look SO much better. Book Overall: ***.
Dailies:
A lot of funny jokes including Pooh and Piglet riding on word balloons. My favorite joke was when Piglet informs Pooh that grasshoppers smell with their knees, Pooh asks him if he ever says anything sensible. Remember me saying some of these strips are funny? That! That! Remember me also saying these strips are totally not in the spirit of Winnie The Pooh? Also that! That! ***.
Sundays:
The longer format usually contains strips with less dialogue and more visual action. The corny jokes remain. ***.
Featurettes:
Loosely based on the early Winnie The Pooh animated theatrical featurettes, these Sunday strips are somewhat serialized, and don't use the "gag a day / strip" formula the rest of the strip does. Also the humor and sensibility is far closer to the books and cartoons simply because they are adapting the material rather than telling snarky jokes. I probably liked it more because of that. ****.
