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matt_zimmerAlso reviews for the season finale of The Mandalorian, the latest episode of Spidey And His Amazing Friends, the short Oswald The Lucky Rabbit (2022), the latest episodes of Titans, Bob's Burgers, Family Guy, and American Dad, the special Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always, the latest episode of The Blacklist, and the novel Dreamcatcher.
Star Trek: Picard "The Last Generation"
Well, it wasn't the greatest Star Trek series finale of all time ("All Good Things..." remains champ there) but it hit the right notes. I was not as moved as I perhaps should have been during Picard and Jack's stuff on the Borg cube, but in fairness to me, their relationship is new and simply does NOT have the context to move me the way the stuff with the rest of the Next Generation characters do.
The unexpected Q tag is a little frustrating, but what it says is there is probably another spin-off in development for the Enterprise-G. I don't object to that. But still, it felt to be taking a little wind out of the sails of THIS series to set that specific thing up in a tag.
Clearly Whoopi Goldberg was unavailable. The ending in Guinan's bar says they would have used her if they could have contracted her.
Data's stuff is amazing. He is so genuine and funny now (and shall never get to finish the limerick). And speaking as someone always annoyed by the poker scenes on the old show, the one felt real and pleasurable. The last episode of Next Gen had Picard join for the first time ever, but we didn't get to see them play. And we didn't really get to the mechanics of them playing during the rest of the series either. It was an excuse to make jokey quips. But here you see a little of the hustling Picard does in the end credits montage.
Riker's "Do you hear yourself?" to Worf is hilarious to me because if Worf had said that on The Next Generation, the writers would have been too square to see the double-entendre, much less joke about it. I value this show because Riker can make fun of him for it.
Unfinished business in seeing Tuvok freed, and I loved getting Walter Koenig to play Anton Chekov, Pavel's son and current President of Earth. But that being said I was hoping for more 24th Century cameos. I could have sworn I heard Quark was supposed to appear this season, and I'm disappointed he must have been cut.
It feels right that the ship we've been following all season IS the Next Enterprise. Whether the Enterprise G spin-off happens or not, that's the right narrative move.
And it's the Enterprise G instead of the Enterprise F because the writers of this era actually DO get how double-entendres work. Berman and Braga would have called it the Enterprise F, no matter how stupid it sounded. And they would brag in interviews for decades afterwards how proud they were of that storytelling decision. I pretty much HAD it with Star Trek by the ends of both Voyager and Enterprise, and the Kurtzman era never hit me as wrong as it did for many Star Trek fans because of that fact. I'll admit Discovery is the hugest missed opportunity in the franchise's history. But not a second of it is as bad as either Voyager or Enterprise, so hearing fans whine about it as the worst Star Trek ever sounds totally hollow to me. Perspective: Kurtzman era Star Trek viewers need it.
Not loving the fact that Beverly wasn't given a reunion with Wesley. Feels like a loose end that SHOULD have been followed up on.
Another loose end is Varis. Picard leaves her at the beginning of the season for this adventure and to not have her brought up at the end doesn't feel right after what they've been through. I know this IS the Next Gen season, but those first two seasons DID exist. And I liked Varis and wanted to find out what happened to her. A disappointment.
It was a great series finale and the proper swan song the Next Generation cast deserved by never got. But is it the greatest Star Trek series finale of all time? Weirdly enough, no. Both The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine had better final episodes. It's for that reason I'm not willing to declare this show better than DS9 like I was last week. I'll call it a tie for now, but I'll probably be back to boosting DS9 as the best Trek ever in the months and years ahead. I know me.
I'm glad the Next Generation cast was finally given this. I'm also glad it looks like our time in the early 25th Century may only just be beginning. *****.
The Mandalorian "Chapter 24: The Return"
Do I declare that disappointing or not? It checked off all the Star Wars and action series boxes. The ending was far more satisfying than either of the first two seasons. And yet, I feel it was lacking in stakes and focus compared to the season finales of Andor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and even The Book Of Boba Fett. Yes, on some level it's rewarding for Din to officially adopt Grogu as a son. But for me? He always was. The paperwork there is a mere formality, and the "twist" isn't telling the audience anything we don't already know or believe.
Worse, I feel a bit cheated out of a truly dire climax because the Gideon clones were all terminated before they drew breath and could do any damage. I could excuse that specific cop-out in even the penultimate episode. For the actual finale? We deserved a little punishing violence there. And Din doing that basically neutered Gideon's grand plans and won the season even before they took Gideon himself down. Like Grogu's adoption the final battle became a mere formality at that point.
The boxy Droids with the blinking lights reminded me of the Scutters from Red Dwarf.
It was all right. It was also workmanlike and took zero narrative chances. And nothing in it surprised me. A step down from not only this show, but the rest of Star Wars' recent live-action TV output too. I hope Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni haven't finally taken on too much, but that sort of thing is actually inevitable, isn't it? It happened to Kevin Feige, why wouldn't it happen to them at some point too?
Sigh. A passing grade. But an amazing grade? No. ***1/2.
Spidey And His Amazing Friends "The Maltese Kitten / A Day With Black Panther"
The Maltese Kitten
I have decided from this point forward to give ANY episode of this show that features Black Cat zero stars on general principle. Worst character ever.
If you happen to think this is unfair of me, I should like to point out that this episode did a bit where the villains sneak into the museum filled with priceless artifacts via an unlocked window. A window that is STILL unlocked, despite the valuable exhibits and Black Cat having used it to enter the museum and steal the statue once already. This episode EARNED the lowest grade possible with that nonsense.
The show doesn't need to be this stupid and lazy to function. It simply choose to be. 0.
A Day With Black Panther:
That was one boring-ass day. *.
Episode Overall: 0.
Oswald The Lucky Rabbit (2022)
I didn't like it. Aside from being a let-down for being barely over a minute long, the animation didn't feel authentic to the old black and white silent cartoons. I'm sorry, but there is just a certain FEEL to cel animation you simply can't get across with with digital coloring.
Or is there? I seem to recall "Get A Horse!" had animation that looked believably old--timey. And if that used digital paint too, then there is really no excuse for this looking as fake as it does. **.
Titans "Dude, Where's My Gar"
The show needed that. For that matter I needed that.
My reviews were late this week. Because of this show. There is no sugarcoating that fact. I enjoyed the amazing series finale of Star Trek: Picard, and decided I wasn't going to allow this show to make me furious and ruin that good feeling I had yesterday. And when I woke up, and ostensibly could safely watch this, I still put it off. I just did NOT want to watch it. I had no idea it would be a good episode, much less dealing with the Multiverse, but I just couldn't bring myself to suffer through this again.
I don't expect this or next week to turn the show around, or change my dark opinion about it. But this will probably help me power through to the end.
I was in a similar moment of crisis with Riverdale in the third season. I was constantly unhappy with that show, and just hated feeling enraged week after week. I stopped watching that show, which is unusual for me once I've put in a commitment. The problem is it was less easy to do for Titans. Not just because of its ties to the DC Multiverse (which it proved its bonafides here) but because it's the final batch of episodes from the final season. Quitting now would mean I wasted all that time for nothing. Even if the series finale were to suck (and I expect it will) I would feel better about how terrible this show makes me feel if I got there.
I had similar problems with the last seasons of both House M.D. and The Office. Both of those so-so shows utterly imploded in their farewell seasons and I didn't feel I had the luxury to quit them, no matter how bad they were after the years I invested in them before the shows destroyed themselves. I feel that way about Titans. This Multiverse crossover helps though. Big time.
I'm glad Geoff Johns wrote it. A different writer than him, when visiting Stargirl's Universe, would have her dropping f-bombs because of the format change just to provide contrast for the Universes. Utterly unnecessary, and the fact that that DOESN'T happen makes the cameo and transition into that Universe feel very seamless and unobtrusive. A LOT of Multiverse stuff also occurred in the timestream. Them trying to include cartoons into the Multiverse at large is something I'm not really crazy about, but in fairness, I believe the comics already said every DC story, no matter the medium, was a part of the DC Multiverse, so maybe I'm wrong.
The tag with Cyborg and waffles was pretty great too.
This is the first live-action appearance of fan favorite DC hero B'wana Beast. He's a fan-favorite because he's very easy to make fun of. I'm disappointed he isn't CALLED B'wana Beast here to be honest. I don't know if it was rights issue or not. I hope they didn't decline to call him that simply because the name is silly. The entire character is silly, and the show trying to treat him seriously is doing it pretty unsuccessfully.
I've heard of The Green in the DC Universe, but not The Red. Although, when it comes to actual concepts and plotlines from DC Comics, I actually know very little.
I'm glad that was good. That will help me to get along until the series finale. I don't think I'll ever like this show. But this episode occurring when it did means I'll probably be able to endure it to the finale. And that was sorely needed for me. I didn't see how I could have done it otherwise. ****.
Bob's Burgers "Gift Card Or Buy Trying"
I was mostly annoyed by that. And yeah, Gene IS super annoying. And Louise is annoying. And Linda is annoying. You see my problem? Are you sensing a theme?
Sigh. Not great. **.
The Great North "A Bear-tiful Find Adventure"
I like Honeybee saying that she had met her share of quirky Alaskans but the mayor of Ted's Folly was next level. And she's right. Dude's nuts.
The episode was pretty funny, although nothing special. ***1/2.
Family Guy "The Bird Reich"
I don't feel like the resolution worked. Stewie is jealous he's never accomplished all his goals... at the age of 1? Yeah, that's kind of stupid.
Asking about who would follow Hitler's ideals and it being 40% of America is I believe lowballing it.
The Fox News joke was a LITTLE obvious, wasn't it?
Only this show would believe a person could use the white privilege argument as a form of bullying passive-aggression. I'm sorry some people are fed up with your racism and sexism, Seth MacFarlane. How terrible that must feel for you.
In fairness to Seth, Stewie claiming a signed copy of his book is worth less than a new copy sort of makes me forgive him. ALL the Family Guy writers are being self-deprecating in that moment.
I love Brian claiming you can stop a Prius by cupping the wind.
Still, eh. **1/2.
Family Guy "A Bottle Episode"
I loved the previous attempt to show Lois' petty obsession and psychopathy "Customer Of The Week" but this felt less successful. "Customer Of The Week" was a comedy of errors and the arc here of Lois getting the upper hand with Dottie felt less earned. Also not to put too fine a point on it, but Customer was pretty much strong enough to carry an entire episode. It didn't need a lame Brian and Stewie B story.
Calling MAGA people stupid is on-brand for the politics of the show, but it strikes me as low-hanging comedy fruit. I understand how the show is finding comedy hard without racism and sexism to sustain it. But having the only real cruel shots it takes be at that one specific thing makes the show feel uncreative and repetitive. The show isn't always that. But it needs to find a new axe to grind. It's worse than the fact that they aren't changing anybody's minds. They simply aren't impressing or amusing even people who agree with them. That's how you know it's been overdone.
I like Lois telling Peter he's very close to being a sitting in the chair to watch guy.
The size of the shampoo bottle was pretty damn huge. And the idea that Lois did it intentionally fits in with what we know about Lois, but it also makes us feel worse she doesn't get the comeuppance she did in "Customer Of The Week".
No, Lois, this is NOT being canceled. Idiot.
Alex Borstein's performance in the rant at the end is pretty great. I don't think this episode is as great as Lois' bits in "Customer". But that was a pretty pleasurably unhinged moment.
Carly got the helicopter in the divorce.
I was hoping for better from a "Lois is a cruel sociopath" episode. Not a great night for Fox Toons but The Great North won on points. ***.
American Dad! "The Pleasanting At Smith House"
I really love the resolution to the Wraith at the end and what she DID want really WAS pleasant.
Loved the return of Old Ulysses. This show is nerdy about its canon in a way Family Guy is not.
Stan may be the worst husband ever. But in fairness, Francine's the worst wife ever, so they're a good match.
I liked it. ****.
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always
I shouldn't be as surprised as I am how well that worked but I kind of am.
That was pretty great. It was imperfect, but if you had seen every single episode of Power Rangers (and I have not) and told me that this was the best one, I'd believe you. It's TV-Y7, but the movie is allowed both pathos and conflict between the heroes, things entirely absent in every other project. And since both of those are the things that MAKE most projects good, the blandness of everything else seems to be the culprit to how shoddy it always is.
But if it were just that, the movie would be far less effective than it is. As a scene in the original Power Rangers TV show, Kimberly singing that corny song to the Rangers back in the 90's was corny as hell. As seen 30 years later, with a title card dedicated to the memory of both Thuy Trang and Jason David Frank? I have a freaking lump in my throat. How did they do that? It's perfect.
The voices of the special remain imperfect however (Alpha is somehow even more annoying sounding NOW than he was back then) but the dialogue, the characterization, the humor, the franchise upped its game, far beyond Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie ever bothered to.
And I can't fault the movie for this, but the truth is making a decent Power Rangers project should NOT be hard. The fact that every single series is low quality and awful is an artistic choice on the producers end. They COULD actually up their game the way they did here if they wanted to. It's makes how bad the recent seasons are even MORE unforgivable.
Confirmation: Kat and Tommy ARE the actual Pink / Green Ranger 'ship. They've hinted it, but this is the first confirmation. And I'm sad Frank was not in a place where he felt he could participate, and I'm sad he was in a place where he took his own life. But I found that sort of rewarding and frustrating in equal measure.
I am glad the franchise finally resolved its tension with David Yost. I hope they offered him a sincere apology for how they treated him on the original series (people on the set used to gay-bash him). The fact that they must have is probably the only reason Walter Jones is back too.
Power Rangers delivering a decent script with actual conflict and drama and interesting character dynamics is NOT impossible, and this movie makes it seem almost easy and effortless. And again, since it clearly is, there is no part of the rest of the recent seasons that is acceptable. *****.
The Blacklist "The Troll Farmer, Pt. 2"
Quite good week. Lots of moving parts, satisfying twists and turns (and callbacks), and freaking Herbie being adorable. Red and Agnes with the cake was delightful. Less successful was Red's story to his doubtful partner about the green door and the goat. Usually stories like this from Red are great allegories, because they get across the larger truth in a plain manner, but since he's using the story to dissemble instead, it's much less effective than the rest of his shtick.
Dembe suggesting that he and Red keep secrets from each other to protect each other is a cool notion because it sounds true.
Strong week. This show has stopped making me cringe week in and week out, and it's been that way for a year and a half. God bless the decision to kill off Liz Keene. The show is tolerable now. ****1/2.
Dreamcatcher by Stephen King
I never looked back too fondly on this book (and King doesn't like either) it but the truth is every time I read it I'm reasonably entertained and enjoy it at the time. Not sure why I always look back on it less fondly, but I do want to point out it's one of those supposedly "poor" works of fiction that doesn't actually feel that way when you are going through it and you only think that when it's in the rear-view mirror. The movie UHF is another one of those projects, although in fairness to "Dreamcatcher", even now having just put the book down, there isn't the exact same sense of shame for what I just enjoyed and laughed at in UHF. For whatever that's worth.
My favorite part of the book is Owen Underhill telling Henry to keep repeating that they were going to be heroes. There is something very funny and comforting about it, and it gets Owen off his ass at least.
Science fiction has never been King's strong suit, but there is no question this is better than "The Tommyknockers". Don't know if King feels that way or not (he hates both books) but it is.
Kurtz is one of King's better (and crazier) villains too so that's another reason this book doesn't deserve all the crap it gets.
I had a couple of problems with the book that I can safely discuss. I thought the ways Beaver and Pete died (or in Pete's case went to his fate) were too "horror movie". I can't really sympathize with Henry and Dudditz's grief over those deaths when they occurred solely because those characters were doing unbelievably stupid and careless things. Usually King avoids characters, specifically the good guys, behaving "horror movie stupid" but he didn't bother doing that here and it irks me.
The other problem is something that has always been a weakness of King's. King clearly distrusts psychiatry for his own petty reasons, and thus his portrayal of Henry's job and his suicidal ideation is just... pure crap. No reputable psychiatrist would let that gross patient get away with using their session to simply discuss the gross things they were eating. King also having Henry identify his failure with that patient as having been a psychiatrist who told his patient the truth is another thing that says King's irrational fear of shrinks is really hindered him in creating a believable one. Reputable therapists tell their patients the truth all the time. That's how the patient is able to work through their stuff.
Henry's plans to commit suicide also don't feel credible because King focuses on Henry's various plans to do it rather than the pain that is causing him to WANT to do it. It's like King believes that mindset is purely random and occurs for no actual reason. Which is b.s..
Just for the record, this novel contains some King language I can't stand, that he's used before, but I couldn't really call him on it before this. Beaver tells his friends if they ever tell anyone he sang to Dudditz to stop him crying "I'll never chum with you guys again." No kid would EVER say that in the 1970's. Just because people in 1950's spoke in such a square manner doesn't mean kids from later eras ever would. Nobody uses the phrase "chum with" anymore. The only person I ever hear use it is Stephen King. Uncle Stevie, stop trying to make "chum with" happen. It's not fetch.
King Connections: Much of the novel takes place in Derry and the Losers Club, Pennywise, the Great Flood, and the Standpipe from IT are all either mentioned or seen. Also mentioned are Shawshank Prison from "Rita Hayworth And The Shawshank Redemption" and the town of Jerusalem's Lot from "'Salem's Lot".
I enjoyed most of it, but ask me again in six months, I'll have totally forgotten this review and tell you I didn't. ***1/2.
Star Trek: Picard "The Last Generation"
Well, it wasn't the greatest Star Trek series finale of all time ("All Good Things..." remains champ there) but it hit the right notes. I was not as moved as I perhaps should have been during Picard and Jack's stuff on the Borg cube, but in fairness to me, their relationship is new and simply does NOT have the context to move me the way the stuff with the rest of the Next Generation characters do.
The unexpected Q tag is a little frustrating, but what it says is there is probably another spin-off in development for the Enterprise-G. I don't object to that. But still, it felt to be taking a little wind out of the sails of THIS series to set that specific thing up in a tag.
Clearly Whoopi Goldberg was unavailable. The ending in Guinan's bar says they would have used her if they could have contracted her.
Data's stuff is amazing. He is so genuine and funny now (and shall never get to finish the limerick). And speaking as someone always annoyed by the poker scenes on the old show, the one felt real and pleasurable. The last episode of Next Gen had Picard join for the first time ever, but we didn't get to see them play. And we didn't really get to the mechanics of them playing during the rest of the series either. It was an excuse to make jokey quips. But here you see a little of the hustling Picard does in the end credits montage.
Riker's "Do you hear yourself?" to Worf is hilarious to me because if Worf had said that on The Next Generation, the writers would have been too square to see the double-entendre, much less joke about it. I value this show because Riker can make fun of him for it.
Unfinished business in seeing Tuvok freed, and I loved getting Walter Koenig to play Anton Chekov, Pavel's son and current President of Earth. But that being said I was hoping for more 24th Century cameos. I could have sworn I heard Quark was supposed to appear this season, and I'm disappointed he must have been cut.
It feels right that the ship we've been following all season IS the Next Enterprise. Whether the Enterprise G spin-off happens or not, that's the right narrative move.
And it's the Enterprise G instead of the Enterprise F because the writers of this era actually DO get how double-entendres work. Berman and Braga would have called it the Enterprise F, no matter how stupid it sounded. And they would brag in interviews for decades afterwards how proud they were of that storytelling decision. I pretty much HAD it with Star Trek by the ends of both Voyager and Enterprise, and the Kurtzman era never hit me as wrong as it did for many Star Trek fans because of that fact. I'll admit Discovery is the hugest missed opportunity in the franchise's history. But not a second of it is as bad as either Voyager or Enterprise, so hearing fans whine about it as the worst Star Trek ever sounds totally hollow to me. Perspective: Kurtzman era Star Trek viewers need it.
Not loving the fact that Beverly wasn't given a reunion with Wesley. Feels like a loose end that SHOULD have been followed up on.
Another loose end is Varis. Picard leaves her at the beginning of the season for this adventure and to not have her brought up at the end doesn't feel right after what they've been through. I know this IS the Next Gen season, but those first two seasons DID exist. And I liked Varis and wanted to find out what happened to her. A disappointment.
It was a great series finale and the proper swan song the Next Generation cast deserved by never got. But is it the greatest Star Trek series finale of all time? Weirdly enough, no. Both The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine had better final episodes. It's for that reason I'm not willing to declare this show better than DS9 like I was last week. I'll call it a tie for now, but I'll probably be back to boosting DS9 as the best Trek ever in the months and years ahead. I know me.
I'm glad the Next Generation cast was finally given this. I'm also glad it looks like our time in the early 25th Century may only just be beginning. *****.
The Mandalorian "Chapter 24: The Return"
Do I declare that disappointing or not? It checked off all the Star Wars and action series boxes. The ending was far more satisfying than either of the first two seasons. And yet, I feel it was lacking in stakes and focus compared to the season finales of Andor, Obi-Wan Kenobi, and even The Book Of Boba Fett. Yes, on some level it's rewarding for Din to officially adopt Grogu as a son. But for me? He always was. The paperwork there is a mere formality, and the "twist" isn't telling the audience anything we don't already know or believe.
Worse, I feel a bit cheated out of a truly dire climax because the Gideon clones were all terminated before they drew breath and could do any damage. I could excuse that specific cop-out in even the penultimate episode. For the actual finale? We deserved a little punishing violence there. And Din doing that basically neutered Gideon's grand plans and won the season even before they took Gideon himself down. Like Grogu's adoption the final battle became a mere formality at that point.
The boxy Droids with the blinking lights reminded me of the Scutters from Red Dwarf.
It was all right. It was also workmanlike and took zero narrative chances. And nothing in it surprised me. A step down from not only this show, but the rest of Star Wars' recent live-action TV output too. I hope Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni haven't finally taken on too much, but that sort of thing is actually inevitable, isn't it? It happened to Kevin Feige, why wouldn't it happen to them at some point too?
Sigh. A passing grade. But an amazing grade? No. ***1/2.
Spidey And His Amazing Friends "The Maltese Kitten / A Day With Black Panther"
The Maltese Kitten
I have decided from this point forward to give ANY episode of this show that features Black Cat zero stars on general principle. Worst character ever.
If you happen to think this is unfair of me, I should like to point out that this episode did a bit where the villains sneak into the museum filled with priceless artifacts via an unlocked window. A window that is STILL unlocked, despite the valuable exhibits and Black Cat having used it to enter the museum and steal the statue once already. This episode EARNED the lowest grade possible with that nonsense.
The show doesn't need to be this stupid and lazy to function. It simply choose to be. 0.
A Day With Black Panther:
That was one boring-ass day. *.
Episode Overall: 0.
Oswald The Lucky Rabbit (2022)
I didn't like it. Aside from being a let-down for being barely over a minute long, the animation didn't feel authentic to the old black and white silent cartoons. I'm sorry, but there is just a certain FEEL to cel animation you simply can't get across with with digital coloring.
Or is there? I seem to recall "Get A Horse!" had animation that looked believably old--timey. And if that used digital paint too, then there is really no excuse for this looking as fake as it does. **.
Titans "Dude, Where's My Gar"
The show needed that. For that matter I needed that.
My reviews were late this week. Because of this show. There is no sugarcoating that fact. I enjoyed the amazing series finale of Star Trek: Picard, and decided I wasn't going to allow this show to make me furious and ruin that good feeling I had yesterday. And when I woke up, and ostensibly could safely watch this, I still put it off. I just did NOT want to watch it. I had no idea it would be a good episode, much less dealing with the Multiverse, but I just couldn't bring myself to suffer through this again.
I don't expect this or next week to turn the show around, or change my dark opinion about it. But this will probably help me power through to the end.
I was in a similar moment of crisis with Riverdale in the third season. I was constantly unhappy with that show, and just hated feeling enraged week after week. I stopped watching that show, which is unusual for me once I've put in a commitment. The problem is it was less easy to do for Titans. Not just because of its ties to the DC Multiverse (which it proved its bonafides here) but because it's the final batch of episodes from the final season. Quitting now would mean I wasted all that time for nothing. Even if the series finale were to suck (and I expect it will) I would feel better about how terrible this show makes me feel if I got there.
I had similar problems with the last seasons of both House M.D. and The Office. Both of those so-so shows utterly imploded in their farewell seasons and I didn't feel I had the luxury to quit them, no matter how bad they were after the years I invested in them before the shows destroyed themselves. I feel that way about Titans. This Multiverse crossover helps though. Big time.
I'm glad Geoff Johns wrote it. A different writer than him, when visiting Stargirl's Universe, would have her dropping f-bombs because of the format change just to provide contrast for the Universes. Utterly unnecessary, and the fact that that DOESN'T happen makes the cameo and transition into that Universe feel very seamless and unobtrusive. A LOT of Multiverse stuff also occurred in the timestream. Them trying to include cartoons into the Multiverse at large is something I'm not really crazy about, but in fairness, I believe the comics already said every DC story, no matter the medium, was a part of the DC Multiverse, so maybe I'm wrong.
The tag with Cyborg and waffles was pretty great too.
This is the first live-action appearance of fan favorite DC hero B'wana Beast. He's a fan-favorite because he's very easy to make fun of. I'm disappointed he isn't CALLED B'wana Beast here to be honest. I don't know if it was rights issue or not. I hope they didn't decline to call him that simply because the name is silly. The entire character is silly, and the show trying to treat him seriously is doing it pretty unsuccessfully.
I've heard of The Green in the DC Universe, but not The Red. Although, when it comes to actual concepts and plotlines from DC Comics, I actually know very little.
I'm glad that was good. That will help me to get along until the series finale. I don't think I'll ever like this show. But this episode occurring when it did means I'll probably be able to endure it to the finale. And that was sorely needed for me. I didn't see how I could have done it otherwise. ****.
Bob's Burgers "Gift Card Or Buy Trying"
I was mostly annoyed by that. And yeah, Gene IS super annoying. And Louise is annoying. And Linda is annoying. You see my problem? Are you sensing a theme?
Sigh. Not great. **.
The Great North "A Bear-tiful Find Adventure"
I like Honeybee saying that she had met her share of quirky Alaskans but the mayor of Ted's Folly was next level. And she's right. Dude's nuts.
The episode was pretty funny, although nothing special. ***1/2.
Family Guy "The Bird Reich"
I don't feel like the resolution worked. Stewie is jealous he's never accomplished all his goals... at the age of 1? Yeah, that's kind of stupid.
Asking about who would follow Hitler's ideals and it being 40% of America is I believe lowballing it.
The Fox News joke was a LITTLE obvious, wasn't it?
Only this show would believe a person could use the white privilege argument as a form of bullying passive-aggression. I'm sorry some people are fed up with your racism and sexism, Seth MacFarlane. How terrible that must feel for you.
In fairness to Seth, Stewie claiming a signed copy of his book is worth less than a new copy sort of makes me forgive him. ALL the Family Guy writers are being self-deprecating in that moment.
I love Brian claiming you can stop a Prius by cupping the wind.
Still, eh. **1/2.
Family Guy "A Bottle Episode"
I loved the previous attempt to show Lois' petty obsession and psychopathy "Customer Of The Week" but this felt less successful. "Customer Of The Week" was a comedy of errors and the arc here of Lois getting the upper hand with Dottie felt less earned. Also not to put too fine a point on it, but Customer was pretty much strong enough to carry an entire episode. It didn't need a lame Brian and Stewie B story.
Calling MAGA people stupid is on-brand for the politics of the show, but it strikes me as low-hanging comedy fruit. I understand how the show is finding comedy hard without racism and sexism to sustain it. But having the only real cruel shots it takes be at that one specific thing makes the show feel uncreative and repetitive. The show isn't always that. But it needs to find a new axe to grind. It's worse than the fact that they aren't changing anybody's minds. They simply aren't impressing or amusing even people who agree with them. That's how you know it's been overdone.
I like Lois telling Peter he's very close to being a sitting in the chair to watch guy.
The size of the shampoo bottle was pretty damn huge. And the idea that Lois did it intentionally fits in with what we know about Lois, but it also makes us feel worse she doesn't get the comeuppance she did in "Customer Of The Week".
No, Lois, this is NOT being canceled. Idiot.
Alex Borstein's performance in the rant at the end is pretty great. I don't think this episode is as great as Lois' bits in "Customer". But that was a pretty pleasurably unhinged moment.
Carly got the helicopter in the divorce.
I was hoping for better from a "Lois is a cruel sociopath" episode. Not a great night for Fox Toons but The Great North won on points. ***.
American Dad! "The Pleasanting At Smith House"
I really love the resolution to the Wraith at the end and what she DID want really WAS pleasant.
Loved the return of Old Ulysses. This show is nerdy about its canon in a way Family Guy is not.
Stan may be the worst husband ever. But in fairness, Francine's the worst wife ever, so they're a good match.
I liked it. ****.
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once & Always
I shouldn't be as surprised as I am how well that worked but I kind of am.
That was pretty great. It was imperfect, but if you had seen every single episode of Power Rangers (and I have not) and told me that this was the best one, I'd believe you. It's TV-Y7, but the movie is allowed both pathos and conflict between the heroes, things entirely absent in every other project. And since both of those are the things that MAKE most projects good, the blandness of everything else seems to be the culprit to how shoddy it always is.
But if it were just that, the movie would be far less effective than it is. As a scene in the original Power Rangers TV show, Kimberly singing that corny song to the Rangers back in the 90's was corny as hell. As seen 30 years later, with a title card dedicated to the memory of both Thuy Trang and Jason David Frank? I have a freaking lump in my throat. How did they do that? It's perfect.
The voices of the special remain imperfect however (Alpha is somehow even more annoying sounding NOW than he was back then) but the dialogue, the characterization, the humor, the franchise upped its game, far beyond Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie ever bothered to.
And I can't fault the movie for this, but the truth is making a decent Power Rangers project should NOT be hard. The fact that every single series is low quality and awful is an artistic choice on the producers end. They COULD actually up their game the way they did here if they wanted to. It's makes how bad the recent seasons are even MORE unforgivable.
Confirmation: Kat and Tommy ARE the actual Pink / Green Ranger 'ship. They've hinted it, but this is the first confirmation. And I'm sad Frank was not in a place where he felt he could participate, and I'm sad he was in a place where he took his own life. But I found that sort of rewarding and frustrating in equal measure.
I am glad the franchise finally resolved its tension with David Yost. I hope they offered him a sincere apology for how they treated him on the original series (people on the set used to gay-bash him). The fact that they must have is probably the only reason Walter Jones is back too.
Power Rangers delivering a decent script with actual conflict and drama and interesting character dynamics is NOT impossible, and this movie makes it seem almost easy and effortless. And again, since it clearly is, there is no part of the rest of the recent seasons that is acceptable. *****.
The Blacklist "The Troll Farmer, Pt. 2"
Quite good week. Lots of moving parts, satisfying twists and turns (and callbacks), and freaking Herbie being adorable. Red and Agnes with the cake was delightful. Less successful was Red's story to his doubtful partner about the green door and the goat. Usually stories like this from Red are great allegories, because they get across the larger truth in a plain manner, but since he's using the story to dissemble instead, it's much less effective than the rest of his shtick.
Dembe suggesting that he and Red keep secrets from each other to protect each other is a cool notion because it sounds true.
Strong week. This show has stopped making me cringe week in and week out, and it's been that way for a year and a half. God bless the decision to kill off Liz Keene. The show is tolerable now. ****1/2.
Dreamcatcher by Stephen King
I never looked back too fondly on this book (and King doesn't like either) it but the truth is every time I read it I'm reasonably entertained and enjoy it at the time. Not sure why I always look back on it less fondly, but I do want to point out it's one of those supposedly "poor" works of fiction that doesn't actually feel that way when you are going through it and you only think that when it's in the rear-view mirror. The movie UHF is another one of those projects, although in fairness to "Dreamcatcher", even now having just put the book down, there isn't the exact same sense of shame for what I just enjoyed and laughed at in UHF. For whatever that's worth.
My favorite part of the book is Owen Underhill telling Henry to keep repeating that they were going to be heroes. There is something very funny and comforting about it, and it gets Owen off his ass at least.
Science fiction has never been King's strong suit, but there is no question this is better than "The Tommyknockers". Don't know if King feels that way or not (he hates both books) but it is.
Kurtz is one of King's better (and crazier) villains too so that's another reason this book doesn't deserve all the crap it gets.
I had a couple of problems with the book that I can safely discuss. I thought the ways Beaver and Pete died (or in Pete's case went to his fate) were too "horror movie". I can't really sympathize with Henry and Dudditz's grief over those deaths when they occurred solely because those characters were doing unbelievably stupid and careless things. Usually King avoids characters, specifically the good guys, behaving "horror movie stupid" but he didn't bother doing that here and it irks me.
The other problem is something that has always been a weakness of King's. King clearly distrusts psychiatry for his own petty reasons, and thus his portrayal of Henry's job and his suicidal ideation is just... pure crap. No reputable psychiatrist would let that gross patient get away with using their session to simply discuss the gross things they were eating. King also having Henry identify his failure with that patient as having been a psychiatrist who told his patient the truth is another thing that says King's irrational fear of shrinks is really hindered him in creating a believable one. Reputable therapists tell their patients the truth all the time. That's how the patient is able to work through their stuff.
Henry's plans to commit suicide also don't feel credible because King focuses on Henry's various plans to do it rather than the pain that is causing him to WANT to do it. It's like King believes that mindset is purely random and occurs for no actual reason. Which is b.s..
Just for the record, this novel contains some King language I can't stand, that he's used before, but I couldn't really call him on it before this. Beaver tells his friends if they ever tell anyone he sang to Dudditz to stop him crying "I'll never chum with you guys again." No kid would EVER say that in the 1970's. Just because people in 1950's spoke in such a square manner doesn't mean kids from later eras ever would. Nobody uses the phrase "chum with" anymore. The only person I ever hear use it is Stephen King. Uncle Stevie, stop trying to make "chum with" happen. It's not fetch.
King Connections: Much of the novel takes place in Derry and the Losers Club, Pennywise, the Great Flood, and the Standpipe from IT are all either mentioned or seen. Also mentioned are Shawshank Prison from "Rita Hayworth And The Shawshank Redemption" and the town of Jerusalem's Lot from "'Salem's Lot".
I enjoyed most of it, but ask me again in six months, I'll have totally forgotten this review and tell you I didn't. ***1/2.
