What Have You Watched Recently?

[Nolgroth]

When Harley Quinn is portrayed as more heroic than WW or Superman, there is a problem.

[Spence]

I started watching Bones on Netflix several months ago, only to get through about half of the second season when they lost the rights to show the first 4 seasons. I skipped ahead to the fifth season, and a friend gave me a rough capsule review of the stuff I missed. Just finished the last season on Hulu. I definitely enjoyed the show, especially the interactions of the various characters.

 

I liked Bones right up until the leads became "official" and they popped a kid out.   The show completely shifted from:

 

CRIME FIGHTING with a sprinkle of relationship stuff.

to

BABY AND MARRIAGE with a sprinkle of crime fighting.

 

Lost interest really fast and don't even know when it ended.

[Michael Hopcroft]

I've now seen the first couple of episodes of Disney's animated series Star vs. the Forces of Evil. It satirizes some genres I enjoy and have seen, so I'll probably see a few more.

 

Star Butterfly is a magical princess for another dimension. She is on Earth to train in her powers, and to gain some much-needed self-control. (The alternative her parents considered was the terrifying St. Olga's Reform School for Wayward Princesses.) After the principal of an American middle school is bribed to take her as an exchange student, said principal immediately decides she needs to be mentored by the school's safest student. Enter Marco Diaz, a very cautious youth who gets severely freaked out while giving her a tour of the school and even more freaked out when she moves into his house (his parents love her, even after she summons a little of puppies with laser eyes and little desire to aim). A villain from her own dimension, desiring her magic wand (Star's player really put too many points into her OAF), pursues her there -- but discovers that Marco is a karate master. After they join forces to fight off the bad guy, Star and Marco become friends. (They are intensely shipped in the fandom, of course, probably intentionally on the part of the showrunners, even though they're both substantially underage.)

 

I still can;t tell whether I like it. The central premise is that dimensional travel is as easy as cutting a hole in the fabric of space-time (literally, using special scissors that Marco quickly gets his hands on). Star's parents chose Earth as her place of exile precisely because it was a backwater where few if any people could cross dimensions. People in this particular multiverse use dimension travel for things like trips to extra-dimensional arcades and clubs (Star, you're really too young for raves, you know). Apparently tracking dimensional travel is also easier than it would seem at first, as people with all sorts of intents have no problem finding people in an infinity of possible states of existence.

 

Both Star's character design and her personality satirize anime conventions, She is enthusiastic about everything and wants to help, even though her help usually backfires spectacularly.

 

 

(In case you were wondering, yes that is the disembodied head of a magical unicorn, and it's very much alive.)

[death tribble]

The trailer for the Inhumans series. Looks good. Like the look of Lockjaw. Should be good.

[Michael Hopcroft]

This. They seem to regard "traditional" Superman as an embarrassing anachronism they need to distance themselves from.

 

I haven't played the Injustice games, but I read the first couple TPBs of the comic based on it. "What If Superman Decided To Take Over The World" isn't exactly a new idea, tho I thought the comic did a decent-ish job of showing what it might take to push Supes into that corner. My biggest beef with the comic was how easily half of the rest of the superheroes went along with it; in particular their portrayal of Wonder Woman as this Lady MacBeth-esque psychopath had me literally spitting.

 

 

When Harley Quinn is portrayed as more heroic than WW or Superman, there is a problem.

Isn't that the premise of Marvel's JLA pastiche Squadron Supreme -- the world's premier superteam taking control of the planet and getting things they hadn't bargained for?

[Dr. MID-Nite]

About 2 dozen flicks from the Japanese pantheon of kaiju flicks. I'm prepping for a convention. LOL

[death tribble]

The finale of Dr Who has been set up for the Christmas special. Two Masters, Mondasian Cybermen and a companion turned into a Cyberman. The pay off was good.

[bigdamnhero]

Season 2 finale of iZombie. Without spoilerizing anything: when the show first started Mrs BDH & I both thought "Neat concept, but I don't see how they'll make it last more than a couple of seasons." Well S3 did a good job of widening the scope of the show and raising the stakes beyond the original crime of the week format. And the finale upped the stakes even further, and promises a very different game for S4, so looking forward to that. I do feel like they tried to cram a bit too much plot into the last 2-3 episodes tho, so I wish they'd taken a bit more time there.

 

Binged Supernatural Season 12. Amazing that the show is able to keep delivering after 12 frickin' seasons, but they seem to have a good sense of how to fiddle with the metaplots each season without losing the core of the show. Apparently S13 is going to be their last which is probably just as well, but it's been fun.

[zslane]

Re-watched Dr. Strange. Fun movie. But it left me wondering what the Dark Dimension would be like, lacking the concept of time and all. I mean, Kaecilius described it as "a realm beyond time," which could mean lots of things (none of which I suspect the writers thought about even for a moment), but Strange himself referred to time as an utterly foreign concept that he imported from his own dimension. The implications of a realm without spacetime are too vast to ignore, but the writers clearly chose to ignore them anyway.

[Nolgroth]

Binged Supernatural Season 12. Amazing that the show is able to keep delivering after 12 frickin' seasons, but they seem to have a good sense of how to fiddle with the metaplots each season without losing the core of the show. Apparently S13 is going to be their last which is probably just as well, but it's been fun.

 

How long have they been saying that? Since like season 8 or 9? I fully expect that Sam and Dean will grow into their dotage before our very eyes, at this rate. Mind you, as long as the show is entertaining, I am not opposed to that. I just don't know how they plan to keep it fresh and relevant for that many years. Still, would be a neat experiment if they tried.

 

I like the show for what it is, but long ago it ceased being a show about urban, supernatural horror and became an action show with a very thin veneer of horror elements. There was some extra cheese in this past season ("I killed Hitler!"  <blank stare> "...thank you?") but it a way, it tied into the secondary metaplot with the British Men of Letters. The big shocker in the finale...uh, both of the big shockers of the finale never sold me on their permanence. Yet, both actors sold me on the emotional impact it had on them. I would be interested in seeing them flex their acting muscles in other roles, disassociated with Urban Action Fantasy Horror.

[bigdamnhero]

Mongol. A joint Russian-Chinese movie about the early life of Genghis Khan. Very well done & entertaining, tho more mythological than historical per se. It was actually a much slower-paced film than I expected, because for most of the movie he's just trying to stay alive and get back to his bride, and it ends with him uniting all the Mongol tribes which is where the historical "fun" began. Apparently it was intended to be the first in a trilogy, but it's not clear if the remaining movies are going to happen or not. But still, well worth watching if you're not put off by subtitles.

 

[Nolgroth]

YouTube videos regarding Sim Settlements, a mod for Fallout 4 where the settlers actually build homes, farms and businesses on plots that you designate. The end results are very random, lore friendly, and fun. The author, gathking, has a pretty darn good YouTube voice/presence, so it makes the videos entertaining. For the record, I have installed and have been using the mod for a little over a week. I will never go back to the old, plodding DIY method. This one is just more fun. In fact, I would say this has become one of my favorite mods (and I have nearly two hundred active mods and probably a dozen resource replacers installed).

 

EDIT: Oh a video link might be appropriate

 

[bigdamnhero]

So you ever play in that game where no one seems sure what the plot is least of all the GM and there are cyborgs and demons and ninjas and wizards and cybernetic-demon-ninja-wizards and characters appear and disappear more or less at random with bizarre powers that also seem random and it's not clear who's fighting who let alone why and you suspect the GM may be drunk and/or high but everyone is having so much fun that no one cares? Yeah, that pretty-much describes Daemonium, a bat-shit insane Argentinian post-apocalypse (I think?) movie. I defy you to make sense out of what's happening, but who cares when it's this much fun? Streaming on Netflix. (Note the movie is subtitled in English; this trailer is not, but it gives you an idea just how over-the-top it is.)

 

[bigdamnhero]

Mrs. BDH was away for the weekend so I've been catching up on my Netflix queue...

 

Ragnarok, a 2013 Norwegian action/horror/monster movie about a team of archeologists (and kids, because of course) on the trail of an ancient Viking mystery. A fun movie, fairly predictable, but well-acted with decent effects and a minimum of gaping plot holes. It takes a long time for the action to get going, but if you don't mind a slow start it's an enjoyable flick.

 

[Cassandra]

Cannonball Run.

[zslane]

That's a fun movie. I remember when I saw that in theaters during its original theatrical run. I fell instantly in love with that black Lamborghini Countach (a car I'd never seen before). Most of my buddies were drooling over its drivers, but I couldn't keep my eyes off that car.

[slikmar]

Went and saw Despicable M3. Was fun, especially if you liked the other 2. Worst of the 3, but still fun. Minions were a hoot, as usual.

I especially found funny:

They Spy vs. Spy stuff in the final credits

 

[csyphrett]

Just got back from Despicable Me 3. Favorite parts were the opening heist, the minions on stage, and the dance battle at the end. 

CES

[bigdamnhero]

Broadchurch, Series 1 & 2. British crime drama series starring David "10th Doctor" Tennant, who once again shows he's really good at playing dark. Small town shocked by the brutal murder of a child; damaged cop who's new in town racing to solve the crime while hiding a dark past; resentful local partner who knows everyone in town and doesn't want to believe any of them could have done it; and lots of local characters who all seem to be hiding something... The formula isn't entirely original, but the writing is great and the acting is absolutely top notch, especially for the 1st series. The 2nd series got a little soap-opera-ey for my tastes, but was still good.

 

Also watched the first episode of Wynonna Earp. There are elements of a decent urban fantasy story in there somewhere, but...yeah no.

[pinecone]

Broadchurch, Series 1 & 2. British crime drama series starring David "10th Doctor" Tennant, who once again shows he's really good at playing dark. Small town shocked by the brutal murder of a child; damaged cop who's new in town racing to solve the crime while hiding a dark past; resentful local partner who knows everyone in town and doesn't want to believe any of them could have done it; and lots of local characters who all seem to be hiding something... The formula isn't entirely original, but the writing is great and the acting is absolutely top notch, especially for the 1st series. The 2nd series got a little soap-opera-ey for my tastes, but was still good.

 

Also watched the first episode of Wynonna Earp. There are elements of a decent urban fantasy story in there somewhere, but...yeah no.

Yeah, Wynona Earp could be good, but...its not. I can imaging the pitch.." Its Supernatual, including a magic revolver, but with Sisters!" "And! it all happens in a small town, so lowered production costs!"

[Joe Walsh]

Yeah, Wynona Earp was a real disappointment.

[Christopher R Taylor]

I watched "Five Came Back" on Netflix, about five great movie directors that went to WW2, what they did, and how it affected them.  These are not minor names either.  John Ford, Frank Capra, John Houston, etc.  They made several movies that are also on Netflix at that time for the war department and I'm watching them, like Thunderbolt, Memphis Belle, etc.  Great stuff.

[Bazza]

Trollhunters was fun & enjoyable.

[Dr. MID-Nite]

King of Comedy....another Stephen Chow movie in the vein of Kung Fu Hustle and Shaolin Soccer.

[Michael Hopcroft]

The finale of Dr Who has been set up for the Christmas special. Two Masters, Mondasian Cybermen and a companion turned into a Cyberman. The pay off was good.

By "finale", you don't mean end of the series, do you?