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matt_zimmerAlso reviews for the latest episodes of Grimm, Fringe, Once Upon A Time, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, MAD, Haven, and 666 Park Avenue.
I put Major Spoilers in the heading because I spoil which actor is going to voice the Joker in Part 2. If you either already know or don't care the review is otherwise safe.
Upcoming reviews on this journal include Marvel's The Avengers (Blu-Ray), ThunderCats: Season 1 - Book 3, Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation Volume 1, Pac-Man: Season 2, The Pirates! Band Of Misfits, Transformere Prime: Season 2, TRON: Legacy (Blu-Ray), The Adventures Of Youn Indiana Jones Volume 2: The War Years, The Adventures Of Young Indiana Jones Volume 3: The Years Of Change, and Heathcliff: Season 1 Volume 1.
Grimm "The Bottle Imp"
I cannot believe I didn't see the kid being the killer coming. It was SO obvious and I totally missed it. I guess I just didn't realize they were doing a mystery this week so I was blindsided.
Love that Hank finally learned that it was Monroe who saved his life from Stark. I can't wait till he finds out Adalind is a Hexenbeist.
Worried about Captain Renard and Juliet. Not loving this plot turn but we'll see where the writers go with it.
Good episode. ****.
Fringe "The Recordist"
I liked the episode but I didn't love it. It was good for what it was but I hope they delve deeper into the Observer mythology next week. I want to see September again or at least learn what happened to him.
The father leading them on a wild goose chase so he could sacrifice himself was unsurprising.
The make-up in the episode was really bad and unconvincing. The people didn't look sick, they looked like they had mud smeared on their faces.
All right. ***1/2.
Once Upon A Time "Lady In The Lake"
Surprisingly, even though the episode is about Lancelot it isn't the Lady in the Lake of Arthurian legend.
About the only thing I enjoyed in this episode were Henry's scenes with Jefferson. Everything else really got on my nerves.
Emma once again has the world's most unreliable superpower for even trusting Cora for a second. I KNEW that lie-detector thing would be trouble one day and the writers of this episode proved it. She also is REALLY stupid for firing that gun and a) wasting a bullet and b) alerting the ogres where they are after she was told they were guided by sounds. Idiot.
Plus, just when you think they are going to add a strong black character to the cast, they kill him off. Sickening.
Snow and Charming's plot faired a little bit better but it was still really sappy.
I didn't like the episode. **.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles "New Friend Old Enemy"
Mikey is REALLY stupid. Raph got the best line at his expense: "What are you, an idiot? Let me rephrase: you are an idiot." I'm going to remember that one.
Fun but dumb episode which is pretty much all you can ask of the Turtles. ***1/2.
MAD "Outtagascar / Fiends"
The Madgascar spoof made me REALLY sad because what it said about Cars 2 was absolutely true (even though Toy Story 3 belongs nowhere NEAR the list of sequels that ran out of gas). Fiends was dumber but I still dug the episode. ***1/2.
Haven "Over My Head"
I'm starting to warm up to Duke this season which is a first. I like his reasoning for wanting to help and I believe him.
Nathan and the tattoo chick was interesting but it's SO obvious they are going to hook up and I don't want that.
The game of oneupsmanship between Vince and Dave and Boen was delightful. I loved how when Boen reads them the riot act they pretend to be intimidated and then burst into laughter once he leaves the room. Awesome.
Fun episode. ***1/2.
666 Park Avenue "The Dead Don't Stay Dead"
Marginally more interesting than the past two weeks because of the revelation that Sasha Dorand killed herself because she found out her father was evil. I actually believe that Olivia is probably the brains behind the Dorand household though and that the writers are intentially trying to fake us out about her.
That writer inventing a serial killer was an idiot. She deserved to get killed for that. Use your superpowers wisely, kids. It's like the invisible man walking in front of a speeding truck.
Better than the last two weeks, but that's not saying much. ***.
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1
I'm shocked that I actually liked this. I didn't love it, but I didn't go in expecting too much (I HATE Frank Miller) so I was pleasantly surprised.
The movie is really funny in places which was great because so much of it was so dark. It helped alleviate some of the dourness and tension so I was able to enjoy it. I was REALLY looking forward to those newscasts as the movie went on. My favorite gags were the TV writers strike being in it's fourth year (while Jimmy Olsen heads the network) and a fat Lana Lang being the Editor of The Daily Planet. And I know we only got one line out of him here but Micheal Emerson is a genius casting choice for the Joker. I can't wait to hear him in the next movie.
This was the most gruesome and brutal death we've ever seen for the Waynes. I didn't like that at all. It felt almost indecent and in VERY bad taste.
Peter Weller makes an excellent middle-aged Batman. I thought Micheal Ironside from "Legends of the Dark Knight" couldn't be topped but Weller might have gone and done it.
Speaking of the DC Animated Universe, because of Batman: The Brave And The Bold's "Night Of The Batmen" I now consider this movie DCAU canon. And you can't prove to me it isn't.
MUCH easier and more fun to watch than Batman: Year One. It wasn't up to the quality of the Batman: Under The Red Hood DTV but it wasn't as depressing either. I had a great time watching this. ***1/2.
A Sneak Peek at Batman: The Dark Knight Return, Part 2: It's funny how Mark Valley doesn't seem to understand that Superman is a villain in this story. Keep telling yourself he's a hero, Chance. ****.
Her Name is Carrie... Her Role is Robin: Featurette about the new female Robin. ***1/2.
Batman: The Animated Series: Two episodes of the classic Batman toon. I think it is absolutely appalling that Legends of the Dark Knight isn't one of them. The 80's Batman portion was practically a shot for shot remake of the Mutants' story. Both episodes overall: ****.
Two-Face Part 1: The animation and voice work (ESPECIALLY by Richard Moll) is top-notch. But at the same time I think the episode is QUITE insensitive about the stigma of mental illness. I know that's partly the point of the episode but the whole episode makes it seem as if going to see a psychiatrist is something that is shameful and rightfully deserves to be hidden from people. ***1/2.
Two-Face Part 2: I liked this episode better even if the animation wasn't that great (although the still background of Two-Face reading that paper while only his eyes were animated was SO cool) but I really liked the hopeful tone the episode took at the end for Harvey's redemption. It's too bad the rest of the series never took the same stance. ****. Two Part Avenage: ****
Batman and Me: The Bob Kane Story: Archival footage of Bob Kane being interviewed on TV by a guy with a truly awful mullet and cool new interviews with people such as Mark Hamill and Stan Lee. Most interesting thing to learn for me was that Kane had an affair with Marilyn Monrie. Hubba hubba. ***1/2.
Digital Comic - Batman: The Dark Knight Returns: 2 pages. An all-time WHV low. *.
Trailers:
The Dark Knight Rises: This trailer makes the last Batman movie look extremely unpleasant and no fun to watch. So in other words, it was accurate. ***1/2.
Before Watchmen: Pass. *1/2.
DVD / Blu-Ray Menus: So-so. ***.
I put Major Spoilers in the heading because I spoil which actor is going to voice the Joker in Part 2. If you either already know or don't care the review is otherwise safe.
Upcoming reviews on this journal include Marvel's The Avengers (Blu-Ray), ThunderCats: Season 1 - Book 3, Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation Volume 1, Pac-Man: Season 2, The Pirates! Band Of Misfits, Transformere Prime: Season 2, TRON: Legacy (Blu-Ray), The Adventures Of Youn Indiana Jones Volume 2: The War Years, The Adventures Of Young Indiana Jones Volume 3: The Years Of Change, and Heathcliff: Season 1 Volume 1.
Grimm "The Bottle Imp"
I cannot believe I didn't see the kid being the killer coming. It was SO obvious and I totally missed it. I guess I just didn't realize they were doing a mystery this week so I was blindsided.
Love that Hank finally learned that it was Monroe who saved his life from Stark. I can't wait till he finds out Adalind is a Hexenbeist.
Worried about Captain Renard and Juliet. Not loving this plot turn but we'll see where the writers go with it.
Good episode. ****.
Fringe "The Recordist"
I liked the episode but I didn't love it. It was good for what it was but I hope they delve deeper into the Observer mythology next week. I want to see September again or at least learn what happened to him.
The father leading them on a wild goose chase so he could sacrifice himself was unsurprising.
The make-up in the episode was really bad and unconvincing. The people didn't look sick, they looked like they had mud smeared on their faces.
All right. ***1/2.
Once Upon A Time "Lady In The Lake"
Surprisingly, even though the episode is about Lancelot it isn't the Lady in the Lake of Arthurian legend.
About the only thing I enjoyed in this episode were Henry's scenes with Jefferson. Everything else really got on my nerves.
Emma once again has the world's most unreliable superpower for even trusting Cora for a second. I KNEW that lie-detector thing would be trouble one day and the writers of this episode proved it. She also is REALLY stupid for firing that gun and a) wasting a bullet and b) alerting the ogres where they are after she was told they were guided by sounds. Idiot.
Plus, just when you think they are going to add a strong black character to the cast, they kill him off. Sickening.
Snow and Charming's plot faired a little bit better but it was still really sappy.
I didn't like the episode. **.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles "New Friend Old Enemy"
Mikey is REALLY stupid. Raph got the best line at his expense: "What are you, an idiot? Let me rephrase: you are an idiot." I'm going to remember that one.
Fun but dumb episode which is pretty much all you can ask of the Turtles. ***1/2.
MAD "Outtagascar / Fiends"
The Madgascar spoof made me REALLY sad because what it said about Cars 2 was absolutely true (even though Toy Story 3 belongs nowhere NEAR the list of sequels that ran out of gas). Fiends was dumber but I still dug the episode. ***1/2.
Haven "Over My Head"
I'm starting to warm up to Duke this season which is a first. I like his reasoning for wanting to help and I believe him.
Nathan and the tattoo chick was interesting but it's SO obvious they are going to hook up and I don't want that.
The game of oneupsmanship between Vince and Dave and Boen was delightful. I loved how when Boen reads them the riot act they pretend to be intimidated and then burst into laughter once he leaves the room. Awesome.
Fun episode. ***1/2.
666 Park Avenue "The Dead Don't Stay Dead"
Marginally more interesting than the past two weeks because of the revelation that Sasha Dorand killed herself because she found out her father was evil. I actually believe that Olivia is probably the brains behind the Dorand household though and that the writers are intentially trying to fake us out about her.
That writer inventing a serial killer was an idiot. She deserved to get killed for that. Use your superpowers wisely, kids. It's like the invisible man walking in front of a speeding truck.
Better than the last two weeks, but that's not saying much. ***.
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1
I'm shocked that I actually liked this. I didn't love it, but I didn't go in expecting too much (I HATE Frank Miller) so I was pleasantly surprised.
The movie is really funny in places which was great because so much of it was so dark. It helped alleviate some of the dourness and tension so I was able to enjoy it. I was REALLY looking forward to those newscasts as the movie went on. My favorite gags were the TV writers strike being in it's fourth year (while Jimmy Olsen heads the network) and a fat Lana Lang being the Editor of The Daily Planet. And I know we only got one line out of him here but Micheal Emerson is a genius casting choice for the Joker. I can't wait to hear him in the next movie.
This was the most gruesome and brutal death we've ever seen for the Waynes. I didn't like that at all. It felt almost indecent and in VERY bad taste.
Peter Weller makes an excellent middle-aged Batman. I thought Micheal Ironside from "Legends of the Dark Knight" couldn't be topped but Weller might have gone and done it.
Speaking of the DC Animated Universe, because of Batman: The Brave And The Bold's "Night Of The Batmen" I now consider this movie DCAU canon. And you can't prove to me it isn't.
MUCH easier and more fun to watch than Batman: Year One. It wasn't up to the quality of the Batman: Under The Red Hood DTV but it wasn't as depressing either. I had a great time watching this. ***1/2.
A Sneak Peek at Batman: The Dark Knight Return, Part 2: It's funny how Mark Valley doesn't seem to understand that Superman is a villain in this story. Keep telling yourself he's a hero, Chance. ****.
Her Name is Carrie... Her Role is Robin: Featurette about the new female Robin. ***1/2.
Batman: The Animated Series: Two episodes of the classic Batman toon. I think it is absolutely appalling that Legends of the Dark Knight isn't one of them. The 80's Batman portion was practically a shot for shot remake of the Mutants' story. Both episodes overall: ****.
Two-Face Part 1: The animation and voice work (ESPECIALLY by Richard Moll) is top-notch. But at the same time I think the episode is QUITE insensitive about the stigma of mental illness. I know that's partly the point of the episode but the whole episode makes it seem as if going to see a psychiatrist is something that is shameful and rightfully deserves to be hidden from people. ***1/2.
Two-Face Part 2: I liked this episode better even if the animation wasn't that great (although the still background of Two-Face reading that paper while only his eyes were animated was SO cool) but I really liked the hopeful tone the episode took at the end for Harvey's redemption. It's too bad the rest of the series never took the same stance. ****. Two Part Avenage: ****
Batman and Me: The Bob Kane Story: Archival footage of Bob Kane being interviewed on TV by a guy with a truly awful mullet and cool new interviews with people such as Mark Hamill and Stan Lee. Most interesting thing to learn for me was that Kane had an affair with Marilyn Monrie. Hubba hubba. ***1/2.
Digital Comic - Batman: The Dark Knight Returns: 2 pages. An all-time WHV low. *.
Trailers:
The Dark Knight Rises: This trailer makes the last Batman movie look extremely unpleasant and no fun to watch. So in other words, it was accurate. ***1/2.
Before Watchmen: Pass. *1/2.
DVD / Blu-Ray Menus: So-so. ***.
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no subject
Date: 2012-10-17 09:36 am (UTC)As for Superman, take note, he thinks he's a hero because he thinks what he's doing is the only way to still do some good in the world. Don't want to elaborate as it goes into detail about the story in Part 2.
They should have picked "Legends of the Dark Knight" and "Second Chance" for the 2 bonus episodes. But the special features overall sucked in this release.
no subject
Date: 2012-10-17 11:40 am (UTC)Sounds interesting about Supes. Thank you for not spoiling anything.
Oooh, Second Chance would have been a GREAT choice. Talk about a missed oppotunity.
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Date: 2012-10-20 02:59 am (UTC)2) Superman: Unbound in summer, based on Geoff Johns' Superman: Brainiac story
3) Justice League: Flashpoint in fall, based on the Flashpoint event that led to the new 52 recently
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Date: 2012-10-21 07:50 pm (UTC)Once Upon A Time "Lady In The Lake" - I rolled my eyes at the black fairy godmother being killed (but I liked it just because of what it did for Rumple), but killing off Lancelot upset me (if, indeed, he is dead, he may not be). Santiago Cabrera plays him on Merlin, so he's a character that can truly transcend race, and adding Arthurian mythology to the show is fun (they've already got Greek). As for Emma, I did love seeing her out of her element and Snow knowing the ins and outs (quite the reversal from last season). I'm hoping there's an explanation for her powers going away, of, more accurately changing since she seems to be some sort of source of magic.
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1 - Frank Miller's early work is great, but he has gotten progressively more deranged as the years go by. DKR is a great piece of work, and this adaptation did an amazing job (Ariel Winter! Michael Emerson!). Loved Bruce still being haunted and having to get back into costume despite having aged. I'm eagerly awaiting the conclusion, and this NEEDED to be two parts or else it would've felt super rushed.
Should I hold off until you see part 2 until I do my big "End of Batman" post? I don't want to spoil anything.
...wait, Bob Kane did WHAT?!
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Date: 2012-10-22 06:15 am (UTC)Once Upon A Time: Lancelot's death upset me too. The reason Emma's superpower no longer works is bad writing.
Batman: The Dark Knight Returns: I look forward to it.
Bob Kane: I know. It's crazy how much play this guy got.
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Date: 2012-10-24 06:15 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2012-10-24 09:46 am (UTC)