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matt_zimmerAlso reviews for the latest episodes of Star Wars: The Bad Batch, Teen Titans Go!, The Great North, and Night Court.
X-Men '97 "To Me, My X-Men"
I thought it was pretty good. But I also want you to keep in mind I found the original series deeply flawed. So I like that the tone felt similar. But I was a bit underwhelmed by the story. But I often was on the old show too so I won't raise too big a fuss.
The ending was a good hook, but I suspect Magneto is twisting the knife because he's a jerk, not because he's evil. That was never really his deal on the old show. Calling Charles a fool is more likely a term of endearment than an actual disparagement.
I love that the main title is a tribute to the original series with Morph and Bishop added to the roster. End credits recalling Season 1 are pretty cool too.
Promising opener. ****.
X-Men '97 "Mutant Liberation Begins"
If they take Storm out of the main title next week I'm gonna be pissed. Loved seeing Magneto there this week though.
They REALLY leaned into the January 6 parallels but X-Men has always been a very political story. The Saturday Morning nature of the old show muted that a bit but it makes sense with fewer restrictions the allegories will feel more current and real-world credible.
And I love that Cooper actually is freaked out by what happened to Storm and insists to Magneto she didn't want it to happen. Bet that bit of real regret is the actual thing that tells Magneto to honor his promise to Charles, despite every fiber of his being crying out for vengeance instead.
First time this incarnation of the franchise has acknowledge Magneto is a Holocaust survivor.
One of the strengths of the old show was that it discussed philosophy and the debates of forward thinking and hatred. I like that this show is very much leaning into that.
Cautiously optimistic. There were a couple of good debut episodes. ****1/2.
Star Wars: The Bad Batch "Bad Territory"
And the moral of the story is to never trust Fennec.
My favorite part of the episode is when Hunter tells Omega she has to stay behind and she protests, he does something really cool. He suggests that while they're gone she needs to convince Crosshairs to look into what's bothering his hand. What I love about him doing that is Omega knows it's both an equally important mission, and something only she alone can do. She's not missing out or being benched because Hunter believes her incapable. She being used where her strengths actually lie.
I liked it. ****.
Teen Titans Go! "50% Crew"
Zero stars of course, but that's not even the main takeaway. I don't think the series has ever been worse. This miniseries is a series low point. I can't even picture kids tolerating it. If the show is canceled after this season, I'll pinpoint this going on for weeks as being the reason why. 0.
The Great North "The Mighty Pucks Adventure"
I love that Judy ends the "Yes and..." round with "Dumb" herself.
I really am not happy with Aunt Dirt being made a series regular.
Great resolution and ending.
It was only pretty good, but the season has been awful so far, so I'll take it. ***1/2.
Night Court "The Duke's A Hazard"
Saw Quiet On Set this week. And I knew watching this week's Night Court would suck. The broad unfunny humor, painful dialogue, and gross innuendo is the exact same humor as the trashy Nickelodeon kidcoms. While we as a society are taking the week to look down at that genre in disgust, I can hardly give a free pass for modern shows designed for "adults" engaging in those exact same embarrassing tropes.
THIS close to dropping the show. It might be my last season. *.
X-Men '97 "To Me, My X-Men"
I thought it was pretty good. But I also want you to keep in mind I found the original series deeply flawed. So I like that the tone felt similar. But I was a bit underwhelmed by the story. But I often was on the old show too so I won't raise too big a fuss.
The ending was a good hook, but I suspect Magneto is twisting the knife because he's a jerk, not because he's evil. That was never really his deal on the old show. Calling Charles a fool is more likely a term of endearment than an actual disparagement.
I love that the main title is a tribute to the original series with Morph and Bishop added to the roster. End credits recalling Season 1 are pretty cool too.
Promising opener. ****.
X-Men '97 "Mutant Liberation Begins"
If they take Storm out of the main title next week I'm gonna be pissed. Loved seeing Magneto there this week though.
They REALLY leaned into the January 6 parallels but X-Men has always been a very political story. The Saturday Morning nature of the old show muted that a bit but it makes sense with fewer restrictions the allegories will feel more current and real-world credible.
And I love that Cooper actually is freaked out by what happened to Storm and insists to Magneto she didn't want it to happen. Bet that bit of real regret is the actual thing that tells Magneto to honor his promise to Charles, despite every fiber of his being crying out for vengeance instead.
First time this incarnation of the franchise has acknowledge Magneto is a Holocaust survivor.
One of the strengths of the old show was that it discussed philosophy and the debates of forward thinking and hatred. I like that this show is very much leaning into that.
Cautiously optimistic. There were a couple of good debut episodes. ****1/2.
Star Wars: The Bad Batch "Bad Territory"
And the moral of the story is to never trust Fennec.
My favorite part of the episode is when Hunter tells Omega she has to stay behind and she protests, he does something really cool. He suggests that while they're gone she needs to convince Crosshairs to look into what's bothering his hand. What I love about him doing that is Omega knows it's both an equally important mission, and something only she alone can do. She's not missing out or being benched because Hunter believes her incapable. She being used where her strengths actually lie.
I liked it. ****.
Teen Titans Go! "50% Crew"
Zero stars of course, but that's not even the main takeaway. I don't think the series has ever been worse. This miniseries is a series low point. I can't even picture kids tolerating it. If the show is canceled after this season, I'll pinpoint this going on for weeks as being the reason why. 0.
The Great North "The Mighty Pucks Adventure"
I love that Judy ends the "Yes and..." round with "Dumb" herself.
I really am not happy with Aunt Dirt being made a series regular.
Great resolution and ending.
It was only pretty good, but the season has been awful so far, so I'll take it. ***1/2.
Night Court "The Duke's A Hazard"
Saw Quiet On Set this week. And I knew watching this week's Night Court would suck. The broad unfunny humor, painful dialogue, and gross innuendo is the exact same humor as the trashy Nickelodeon kidcoms. While we as a society are taking the week to look down at that genre in disgust, I can hardly give a free pass for modern shows designed for "adults" engaging in those exact same embarrassing tropes.
THIS close to dropping the show. It might be my last season. *.
no subject
Date: 2024-03-20 11:07 am (UTC)*sigh*.......this concerns me. I just hope they don't do what I think they're gonna do with this series.
I'm still gonna check out the show, though. I love the X-Men and nothing can take that away from me.
no subject
Date: 2024-03-20 11:23 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-03-20 02:38 pm (UTC)But it's also true that X-Men was always based around political themes. To me, the most prominent political theme was undoubtedly the theme of fear of the unknown and the people that come with it, like the Civil Rights Movement, the resurgence of hatred towards a certain ethnic group after an act of terrorism against a country, and the ongoing fight for equality that often gets rolled back many times.
The whole idea of how humankind perceives mutants is very similar to one country's reaction to outsiders; the first reaction is fear, giving fuel to the ideology of "the other". Thing is, one of the two parties plays the hate card first by judging an entire race/ethnic group based on one violent member of that group. Then when the opposing fights back after decades of systemic oppression, the group that "fired the first shot" suddenly accuses their adversaries of playing the "hate card", only to be chastised by the opposing group for "firing the first shot." Thus begins a seemingly endless fight for who is "right"...
no subject
Date: 2024-03-20 06:08 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2024-03-21 12:16 am (UTC)The new generation doesn't give a shit about White Christianity; they've seen the damage this uniquely Republican traditionalism has done to the country through personal experience and detailed history classes in public schools. That's why the GOP is relentlessly attacking public education with book bans, leeching public school funds, and letting school shootings ravage the country unabated while callously suggesting homeschooling as an alternative. But today's youth isn't having it, and they're continuing to push back against GOP fundamentalism.
My dad always had a saying that learning never ends, and sometimes, learning is painful. Every marginalized minority, women, and children have learned through this persistent suppression that the world is moving forward, whether the stuffy old White men in the GOP like it or not. And they'll be damned if they let "conservatives" impose this ideology on every aspect of their lives because the "conservatives" are too scared to learn about the changing times and WHY they're changing because learning will be painful, and the GOP is all about comfort for old conservative White men still living in the past.
Entertainment media, particularly animation, has really brought the fight to this persistent scourge. Last week at work, our Pop Culture class showcased a 2024 remake of a Peanuts Thanksgiving film; the difference in this new version was that at the iconic "dinner table scene", Franklin was invited by the rest of the Peanuts gang to join them on the same side of the table, a stark difference from the original in which Franklin, the only Black kid in the film, remained sitting on one side, alone, while the other kids -- all of them White -- sat together on the other side. This, along with films like Barbie and Nimona, were not coincidence; these films are coming out at a time when certain politicians worldwide refuse to "get with the times" because it's too painful for them to entertain changing their authoritarian lifestyle (taught to them by their elders).
no subject
Date: 2024-03-21 12:26 am (UTC)