wakandawarrior

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5

If last year's Top Gun Maverick gave everyone the slightest bit of hope in regards to films that click with the general audience and blow up at the box office, this is the kind of film that'll make any self-respecting film fan lose all hope. Here's the deal: kids will pretty much like this by default, adults who are looking for validation of their childhood obsession will like it, and people who show up to see an actual movie won't. It's pretty much the blandest, calculated, do-nothing film they could've made out of this material. The animation is devoid of style and looks like it was originally rendered for a Dreamworks project back in 2008, the voice acting is mostly ass, it triggers the nostalgia & reference button way too often, the story & characters are watered down to a point where they're almost non-existent, it's not funny and its boomer rock soundtrack choices make absolutely no sense. It's irredeemable trash, like every product that rolls of the Illumination Entertainment conveyor belt. Nevertheless, I'm willing to bet that due to the large fanbase of the IP, this will be one of those films where in the short term some of the discourse will insist that "some people/critics don't know how to have fun" or "it's made for the fans" (only for those same people to deny ever liking it in the long haul, of course). Here’s hoping Illumination doesn’t listen to those voices in the same way that DC did after the release of Suicide Squad. This is not a foundation to build a franchise on.

2.5/10

Watching order

Because there are some issues with watching this, here is the order.

Copying from the site in case it ever goes down, but this info came from here: http://thunderpeel2001.blogspot.com/2010/02/battlestar-galactica-viewing-order.html

It's probably more confusing here on trakt, so go to the above linked site for a better layout.

The Miniseries
Night 1
Night 2

Season 1
1.01 33
1.02 Water
1.03 Bastille Day
1.04 Act of Contrition
1.05 You Can't Go Home Again
1.06 Litmus
1.07 Six Degrees of Separation
1.08 Flesh and Bone
1.09 Tigh Me Up, Tigh Me Down
1.10 The Hand of God
1.11 Colonial Day
1.12 Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part I
1.13 Kobol's Last Gleaming, Part II

Season 2
2.01 Scattered
2.02 Valley of Darkness
2.03 Fragged
2.04 Resistance
2.05 The Farm
2.06 Home, Part I
2.07 Home, Part II
2.08 Final Cut
2.09 Flight of the Phoenix
2.10 Pegasus (56 minute extended version)
2.11 Resurrection Ship, Part I
2.12 Resurrection Ship, Part II
2.13 Epiphanies
2.14 Black Market
2.15 Scar
2.16 Sacrifice
2.17 The Captain's Hand

Razor (101 minute extended version - not the 81 minute broadcast version)

Important note: This was originally broadcast just before Season 4, but chronologically it fits here, telling more of the Pegasus's story. Some people argue it's better to watch after Season 3, as originally broadcast, but it makes most sense to watch it here.

The reason that the placement of Razor is a hotly contested issue among BSG fans is because of a bit of dialogue at the very end (in the last 10 minutes) which sets the tone for Season 4 (barely even a spoiler). Everything else in this TV movie is not a spoiler.

So why place it here, and not where it was originally broadcast, if there's any sort of issue? Because, chronologically, the story is set here, and by the time you reach the end of Season 3, the story of Pegasus will feel like ancient history. Indeed, that was the complaint echoed around the internet from fans after Razor originally aired -- it had nothing to do with what was going on in the story at that time.

As a result of this, most fans agree it's better to watch Razor here. In doing so, you'll appreciate the story more and it will have greater emotionally resonance. In short: I highly recommend that you follow my advice and watch it here.

There is one small caveat, however: In order to deal with the above dialogue issue, and so not to unintentionally alter the tone of Season 3, I have two, very specific instructions that I recommend that you follow for your absolute optimum enjoyment.

I will try not to spoil anything with these instructions, so pay attention. You need to press MUTE on your TV (and/or turn off any subtitles) in the following two moments. Both of these moments occur in the last 10 minutes of the story, so you can relax and enjoy the first 90 mins before you need to worry.

Press MUTE when:

1. The hybrid touches Shaw. (You can unmute as soon as the hybrid lets go.)

and shortly afterwards:

1. When Red One contacts Pegasus. (You will literally hear the dialogue, "This is Red One come in" and see Pegasus respond -- mute before Red One can give their message to Pegasus.) You can unmute when you see Red One on your screen -- actually before that, but there's no other visual clue I can give you.

That's it! That's all you have to worry about. Two very small moments, and even if you don't unmute it, it's not a huge spoiler, it just unintentionally alters the tone of Season 3 if you don't, so do try your best to follow my instructions.

2.18 Downloaded
2.19 Lay Down Your Burdens, Part I
2.20 Lay Down Your Burdens, Part II

The Resistance
A 10 episode web-based series bridging seasons 2 and 3. (25 mins.)

Season 3
3.01 Occupation
3.02 Precipice
3.03 Exodus, Part I
3.04 Exodus, Part II
3.05 Collaborators
3.06 Torn
3.07 A Measure of Salvation
3.08 Hero
3.09 Unfinished Business (70 minute extended version - Note: Not included on Region 2 DVDs, but is included on ALL Bluray releases.)
3.10 The Passage
3.11 The Eye of Jupiter
3.12 Rapture
3.13 Taking a Break From All Your Worries
3.14 The Woman King
3.15 A Day in the Life
3.16 Dirty Hands
3.17 Maelstrom
3.18 The Son Also Rises
3.19 Crossroads, Part I
3.20 Crossroads, Part II

Razor: Yes, this again. (Well this is where Razor was originally broadcast, after all.) Remember the last 10 minutes where I told you to MUTE two small moments? Well, guess what, now is when you get to go back and hear what was said. Watch the last 10 minutes of Razor here.

Season 4
4.01 He That Believeth In Me
4.02 Six of One
4.03 The Ties That Bind
4.04 Escape Velocity
4.05 The Road Less Traveled
4.06 Faith
4.07 Guess What's Coming to Dinner?
4.08 Sine Qua Non
4.09 The Hub
4.10 Revelations

Season 4 Continued (aka "Season 4.5" or "The Final Season")
4.11 Sometimes a Great Notion

The Face of the Enemy
A 10 episode web-based series (although it plays together like an intense mini-episode). (36 mins.)

4.12 A Disquiet Follows My Soul (53 minute extended version - only on Bluray releases)
4.13 The Oath
4.14 Blood on the Scales
4.15 No Exit

The Plan (DVD/Bluray movie)
A stand-alone movie that shows (approximately) the first two seasons from the Cylons' perspective. (You finally get to see "The Plan", mentioned all those times in the opening sequence!) Although The Plan was originally released after the show had finished, it is generally agreed that it should be watched here, so that everything is all tied up when you do reach the end.

4.16 Deadlock
4.17 Someone to Watch Over Me
4.18 Islanded In a Stream of Stars (62 minute extended version - only on BluRay releases and Region 1 DVDs)
4.19 Daybreak (150 minute extended version - only on BluRay releases and Region 1 DVDs)

The Plan : This is where this DVD/Bluray movie was originally released (after the show had finished). It seems universally agreed that it's preferable to watch this after No Exit, instead of after you've finished the entire series, but there's no harm in waiting until now.

Then Caprica the series: http://trakt.tv/show/caprica

Just let me get two things out of the way I think were weak storytelling.

First, putting the drive on the hub was the stupidest thing to do as it could only lead to her getting caught. It also was illogical as it was clear that they would just override it and/or claim it as false. Granted she didn't know about the Janitor room but she knew there was surveilance everywhere and because of that might reach the conclusion that all those feeds had to be watched somewhere. But the story needs to go on so I'll take it.

Second, its hard to believe that they didn't inspect the stuff they brought to Juliette or they would have found the note. Even not knowing what it meant they would not have let it through. Plus, from a storyelling point of view it was giving too much away. Would have been better to not show it. Instead they could insert a scene when Juliette is about to break down to explain that she didn't die. And speaking of dying, Where are all the others that went out? Does someone actually go out to collect the bodies ?

Now, for the big reveal at the end I have to say I didn't see that coming. After making us believe (and I did) that it is safe outside, not only do we learn it is not, but there are literally dozens of silos out there. Does that mean the whole of mankind lives underground ? My guess is that each one thinks they are the only one and each one does have someone taking care that it stays like that. But we still don't have an idea about why ?

There is one thing I noticed that I want to point out. When Juliette told Holland about the door below he seem genuinely surprised. As if he didn't knew. That was the moment he ended the conversation. Just saying.

So, I don't know the books but from reading elsewhere I understand we barely scratched the surface of the story. I wonder how slow they will go with this one. The second season is already confirmed but thre is always the chance of not getting a third, or forth, or however many they need to play this out.

I sure hope we're not getting left hanging in the air atsome point.

Shit. That ending took me completely by surprise. I can't believe Yo-Yo did what she did. Okay, Ruby was a total psychopath with a knack for violence, but in her final moments, she really was just a scared kid who was in way over her head. In some way, I felt bad for her. She had no chance from the beginning, spent her whole life getting indoctrinated by HYDRA and being pushed beyond her limits. If she wasn't crazy before, fusing with Gravitonium definitely would've driven her insane. I get that Yo-Yo truly thought she was saving the world and there was no other choice, but I have a feeling that she's only made things worse.

I was 100% convinced that Talbot would really shoot himself. Smart move on Coulson's part to use HYDRA's programming to stop him.

Deke's crush on Daisy is annoying, but the lemon thing made me laugh. We should totally start confessing our feelings like this.

I'm seeing Infinity War in 3 days. I can't tell you how terrified I am. It's going to be a total game changer for the entire MCU, and I'm sure that it will impact the show in some way. And I'm even more scared because this episode had the lowest ratings in the show's history, plus the show has already crossed the 100-episode mark, so Marvel might decide to end it here. I want to cry just thinking about it. All I want is one more season, even a shorter one. I want a proper ending and closure. We deserve that.

It’s funny to know that this movie was intended to come out before the pandemic, because by releasing it now it might provide some unintentional food for thought for the morons who believe that a certain virus was actually conceived in a lab.
I genuinely wonder if those people will read that far into this film, I’d find it deeply amusing.

The good news is that there are definetely a lot of things this does better than Spectre.
The action is memorable and way more visceral (though it doesn’t quite surpass the Mission Impossible Fallout bar) and the characters are generally more interesting.
I loved the women in this in particular, they all have distinct personalities and they’re not flawless human beings or overpowered (e.g. Ana de Armas is bubbly and fun, but at the same time she’s inexperienced and chaotic), like some blockbusters tend to do.
At the same time, we shouldn’t pretend that this film invented strong female characters for Bond, especially after we’ve had Eva Green and Judi Dench.
Meanwhile, James Bond himself has a very satisfying arc in this film, which isn’t too dissimilar to Tony Stark’s arc in Avengers Endgame , with a bold pay off in the third act. I’m happy that this film gave us confirmation that Mads Mikkelsen didn’t end up castrating Bond during that scene in Casino Royale.
It’s paced very well, more like a traditional action film and less like a drama, which was the case for Skyfall and Spectre. Don’t let the runtime intimidate you, it doesn’t feel longer than 2 hours.
And finally, the whole thing just looks great, it’s produced excuisetely. The cinematography isn’t quite Skyfall level, but Roger Deakins is an impossible bar to clear for any cinematographer.

Unfortunately, this film really struggles with its tone, bouncing between some cartoony stuff and very dark, dramatic moments.
It wants to honor the traditional Bond stuff, but at the same time it can’t let go of the roots of the Daniel Craig iteration, which makes it feel like an uneven artistic vision, because the foundation of Craig’s Bond rests on this idea that this isn’t the traditional Bond.
It’s going for the same tone as Skyfall, meaning its pretty serious, while also incorporating some campy stuff with the plot and the villain (but never going into straight up silly territory, like Spectre).
The problem is that you could still take the villain and the plot seriously in Skyfall (Bardem is still scary despite the camp, the hacking plot feels grounded), and that isn’t the case here, the plot goes too much into sci-fi territory for that.
Also, Rami Malek didn’t leave much of an impression on me, the accent is wonky and he feels like a stock villain (very much like Waltz in the last film). There’s not really an interesting motivation there, or an interesting evil plan. It’s a campy and theatrical plan, and it feels very familiar.
Finally, this film can be fairly predictable at times (for example: Matilde being Bond’s daughter was extremely obvious, but they still try to somewhat play it as a twist. The same goes for Lea Seydoux being framed in prologue.).

So, it’s good, it pushes the creative boundaries of what a Bond movie is in some ways, which is the best stuff.
But I kinda hope they bring in someone with a fresh, fully realized artistic vision to really shake things up again for the next reboot.

7/10

Ps for the Bond producers: please, please make a spin off with Ana de Armas’ character.

Yet another show by Netflix that's sub-par. Superhero nuns fighting demons and monsters shouldn't be this dull of a dud.

It starts with a massive bang with a squad of women wearing stealth suits, crashing into church shouting about being ambushed by mercenaries. They pull an angel's halo out of their wounded leader. A nun dies to protect this artifact from a demon possessed solider. The opening scene felt like a mix of John Wick with John Constantine stories.

But then the action & show grinds to a halt. Nothing really happens for the first 5 episodes. Things slowly pick up & we get to last 10 mins where bad ass action once again picks up only to end with a massive cliffhanger (you will literally say "what the fuck").

This show was a waste of 10 hours of my life. What great potential this show had, but as usual Netflix gives you dud.

The entire 10 episodes are designed for the show creators to get budget for season 2 (where hopefully something happens that moves the story forward).

I would say wait for season 2 or even season 3 to be released before wasting your time watching this show.

It wasn't bad. But honestly I'm very very disappointed this isn't a TV show. I misread the trailer and wasn't expecting a movie. I think this would have been amazing as TV show. It could have done what the True Lies tv show failed to do. It would have done what I expect the upcoming Mr and Mrs Smith show will fail to do. Kaley did a solid job as an action character. She's no Megan Fox in Rogue (2020) [awful movie but Fox was excellent] but she was solid. I'm not her biggest fan but I don't hate her and, respect where respect is due, her acting was more than okay. David however, like the plot, was under-fulfilled. I think he could have done more with his character of the straightman muggle husband. The script just didn't give any room for it. They did have more chemistry than I expected they would. I saw the trailer and in no way did I think I would buy them as a couple 100%, I was expecting maybe 60% buy in, but I kinda do.

Antagonists Bill Nighy and Connie Nielsen were enjoyably bad. Though Connie was under written. I didn't really get that slightly psychotic character from her the way the script seemed to want me to.

The tone of the movie was uneven. You're never really quite rocked out of the mood of the movie, but you've never sitting comfortable in it either. Mr. and Mrs. Smith the movie was very much a sexy spy "kill a bunch of guys" movie with likes of whiplash pans. True Lies the movie was very much an Arnold comedy with a bunch of one-liners and amusing growls. There are others that are more about the romance like say Mr Right or This Means War. Which are all very much comedic spy stuff with a heavy heavy dose of RomCom. The ingredients were there to make this the variation that focused on Romance with a capital R. I haven't seen one of those in a while and like I said they had the chemistry for it. But the movie wants to be an R-rated comedy so it tries to have it's cake and eat it too.

Almost every problem I had with this would have been resolved if it had been a full season length. Heck I might have even bonded with the kids. They could be given personalities and then maybe I'd care when their health is threatened.

Me: Agents of SHIELD is one of my favorite shows ever!
Also me: * falls practically an entire season behind and frantically scrambles to catch up before the finale *

Ah, the duality of man.

I do have to say though, binge watching 10 episodes in the last one and a half days has made one thing quite clear: this season truly had everything and the kitchen sink, didn't it? Space travel! Daisy and Jemma high on alien LSD! FitzSimmons trapped in a mind prison (yes, best episode ever)! Fake Coulson! LMD Coulson! Space bats turning people into zombies! An ancient alien deity kinda thing in a terrible wig! Deke's influencer girlfriend! The Monoliths! Time travel! I could go on! And I loved every second of it!

Good season finale overall. It went by so fast, there was so much action and thrills. It set up season 7 really nicely and I personally cannot wait for the next adventure. To be honest, halfway through the episode I expected them to kill most of the team so that the rest could pull an Avengers: Endgame and go back in time to try and fix things, but I like this outcome too. Sure, I could complain about a thing or two (like the fact that the writers apparently forgot about Snow or that making us think May might be dead just to turn it around 2 minutes later kinda takes the emotional impact out of the whole thing), but if y'all know me, you know I'm not really the type to focus on the negatives. And I don't mind the fact that they cannot seem to stop bringing Clark Gregg back. I didn't expect anything else. He is who the show was created for in the first place, after all.

Now, recently it's been announced that season 7 will be the final season. And I'm not even gonna pretend that I'm not devastated about it. Yeah, yeah, I expected this show to get canceled last year, so the fact that we know it's coming to an end a year ahead of time and that they're getting to end it on their own terms is a blessing. That's the best any of us TV watchers can hope for. Plus, 7 seasons is a terrific run for any show, much less one as criminally underrated as this one.

But then I think about the fact that the cast has already wrapped up filming the final season. I think about this SHIELD family going their separate ways. And my heart grows heavy with sadness.

I'm not ready to say goodbye.

Still, we as viewers have that last hurrah to look forward to. Bring it on.

What the hell did I just watch? What? So in the end the last surviving Original is Kol? Seriously? WTF?

I hate everything about this series finale. Well, not everything. There's one tiny upside, and that's Rebekah finally getting to be human. Girl's wanted to have a baby since the days of The Vampire Diaries. So I'm really happy she'll get her happily ever after. Really, she deserves it.

Everything else? No.

It would've been so much better for Elijah to sacrifice himself, after all the crap he put everyone through this season. He should've redeemed himself from his selfish actions from the beginning of the season by being selfless in the end. Klaus dying and leaving Hope an orphan is bullshit. And unnecessary. He could have lived happily ever after with Caroline keeping him on a well behaved leash. Or at least, he could've become a human, too.

To me, this feels like a cop out. The writers didn't know how to deal with him being alive in the Legacies time-line, and so they went the easy route and got rid of Klaus, one of the best, most complex characters I've ever seen on a TV show.

I'm upset and disappointed. I mean, c'mon. Since when is killing off practically all of your main characters considered to be a good ending?

Episode S04E03

It's getting harder and harder to ignore the Woke nonsense coming from the show. In the first scene of the episode, they have people who are essentially interviewing for a job(New residents looking to get hired by the hospital) talking about their sexual preferences. Why would anyone go: "I graduated from so and so, did so and so projects, and also, I'm gay." Why?

Later Browne and Reznic are having a heated argument and a guy tries to diffuse the situation, so they snap at him for 'mansplaining' after which they forget about their argument.

And then later, they asked the residents an open question and one of them hesitates goes like "Emm...." so the same guy steps in and gives his answer. What do they do? Of course, chastize him for daring to interrupt a woman. Even though the woman didn't say anything besides 'emm' they tell him that "He doesn't always need to be the one to speak first". And who chastised him? Dr. Reznic. A character who has 'do whatever it takes to win" personality and will do anything to advance her career even at others' expense. Suddenly this character cares sees something wrong with being the first to speak, when she did the exact same thing to Claire Browne when they were residents.

Later the senior residents talk about the new residents, they say they want to convince Dr. Lim not to hire the mansplaining guy. Because he's arrogant. Yet they praise another doctor(a woman) who is more opinionated than the mansplaining guy as confident. And that's a plus. So when a guy talks first and gives his opinion, he's a bad doctor, because he's arrogant. Yet when a woman does the same thing, it's good, because she's confident.

Also, can you guess what ethnicity this 'asshole' guy is? Do you really need to guess? It's obvious it's the only white straight male in the resident pool. And of course in the end they did not hire him, because he's 'obnoxious' and 'arrogant'. As if Dr. Mendez wasn't obnoxious and arrogant and as if arrogance isn't a common trait in surgeons.

An underwhelming effort from a company that seems to have fallen behind the curve. Creatively it’s pulling too much from Zootopia and Inside Out while not adding much of its own flavour, almost every choice in this movie is predictable. Sure, the racism/prejudice commentary is more aggressive now that we’ve entered the post-Trump era (seriously, you should go back and look at how Zootopia handled that same topic, it feels quaint now), but besides that it doesn’t bring much to the table. The worldbuilding lacks the clever intricacies of Zootopia, the pretty animation style has some unique textures but it’s no Across the Spider-verse, and emotionally it feels more like Illumination than Pixar. It’s a very straightforward, cheesy romcom with a formulaic set-up for the main characters (think Notting Hill, Crazy Rich Asians, and countless other movies your mom loves), some ok comedy (bad puns notwithstanding) and a boring adventure (fixing pipelines, how exciting). The score’s pretty interesting because it seems to pull a lot from Indian folk music, on the other hand the songs sound generic and overproduced. Overall, I’d easily recommend this over some other animated films from this year, as this does genuinely try as a movie. However, that doesn’t change that I expect both children and adults to be mostly bored by this.

4.5/10

I'd say that in general this season had some of the best Jodie episodes for me, and Dan quickly became my favorite of her companions... but nothing changes the fact that there was just too much going on. Too many characters, too many plots to tie together. I shouldn't be very surprised by my disappointment... but I was surprised anyway, there was so much wasted potential.

In the end, there was zero pay-off with Swarm, Azure, and Passenger, they were gone in seconds and there was never any big revelation. Swarm loved to talk as if he was secretly someone tied to the Doctor's past (in the same vein as The Master or another past Time Lord), but was just someone going up against "Division" I guess? (I'm starting to think they're overestimating how interesting the "Division" plotline is.)

The Grand Serpent was absolutely of no consequence other than to bring back Kate Stewart I suppose, yet her interactions with the Doctor were small, and not really as fun as they could've been? And also... so... many... Sontarans. Why so much focus on the Sontarans and their plans, when they already had an entire episode about their conquest, and were defeated before? I don't know if it's because COVID affected the amount of episodes, but everything just fell flat as hell.

I hate being so negative - I really did enjoy these episodes more than the past couple of seasons and there were plenty of memorable moments, including great supporting characters. But it feels so frustrating that they didn't capitalize on all the buildup. I'm definitely looking to the Thirteenth Doctor's specials though - maybe we will see some of it come back and get a better resolution. All I hope is Jodie gets the sendoff she deserves, because even though I had plenty of issues with this era of Doctor Who, she's a great performer and wonderful Doctor.

This show can be either fantastic, a complete boredom, or unbearable. This episode had a bit of the three of them. The prison scenes are completely badass and although I'd like Ollie to suit up real quick, I want to see that badass Oliver again. Btw, Ollie's prison buddy is totally gonna be bad at the end of the season. The dude was way to happy and thrilled to use the guard's family to threaten him. Also, "What's the plan? Beat him up? Torture him for info?" "No, we do it my way". Question here, since when is that not Oliver's way?

The flashforwards are on their own interesting enough. I'm dying to know what the help has happened with Oliver and Felicity anyway the hell is Roy doing there all alone.

I'd watch 42 minutes of Dinah and Laurel teaming up and being absolute badasses. Their scenes together were gold and they have great chemistry together. I loved how Laurel came back at the end to apologize for killing Vince (justice for him, lol) and how she wants to be good despite all the evil she's done. Also, trying to kill the DA is nothing new. I'm amazed as to how Star City manages to find new police officers and new DA who either end up getting killed or are inherently evil.

I started the season liking Felicity. Itlasted only 1 episode. How exactly does seething she's get Diaz? By whining at him u til he surrenders? I'm starting to count Felicity's fuck up from now on.Id hate if Diggle or anyone elsestarts making excuses for her, like-new always do. I mean, she almost got John killed and he apologized to her. Seriously, wtf?

Is it me order anyone else disconnect when Felicity and Curtis aretrying to magically hack something? I feel like if I paid attention, I'd just go crazy. Did they just hack a trip to separate the wagons?
And how did Diaz get that flamethrower? Did he summon it or what? because it just appeared in his hands.
I can't believe the writers gave us Prometheus, a badass villain, for just one season and that we're stuck with Diaz for two.

Wasn't a fan of Brie Larson, and that might have been influenced by how social media depicted her... regardless, began watching this expecting not to like it... given her character having a robotic personality, being socially clueless, and seemingly preachy, I thought this was going the same way that I had expected from the oddball that she, as an actor, was painted to be... infact, episode 2 being a dog's POV had me heaving a sigh of relief, to not have to deal with the actress...

Then imagine by surprise by end of episode 3, I was totally invested in the character, and her ordeals... so much so that, by end of episode 4, I couldn't stand to wait anymore; and picked up the book it was based on... it is one of the very few instances, when I have picked up a book, mid-series... by the end of episode 8, the series had sufficient changes to the book's narration, regardless, it was all in character... though I must confess to have liked the book ending better, I can't fault the choices that the character of Elizabeth Zott, makes in this series... very very plausible...

The rest of the casting is brilliant at the role they play... and have great chemistry between them (pun intended)... this is one mini-series, where I have felt the need to update my rating, almost every week... I might possibly rate this a 10, if I ever revisit this... my favourite show in 2023 by a mile...

Mixed feelings as a book reader.

I like how they stuck to source material for the Wallfacers bit, even quoting lines from the book verbatim. It was kind of like an apology for episodes 6 and 7 being 100% original material, not in the books, and both episodes sucked...

Spoilers from this episode below - - - - - - - -

Ok, I'm really confused what the writers were thinking. They made up the entire brain rocket plot, only to have it fail. Why make up a bunch of dumb shit up only for it to be entirely inconsequential? Were they trying to make it more emotional? The book was plenty emotional if they didn't strip away all the depth and nuance in their adaptation. Also, the author goes into detail about how nukes don't work in space, so they can't just nuke the alien fleet. Then these moron writers make an entire plot line around nukes in space. While writing adapting the very book that says that's impossible.

I'm glad they at least included the bug scene at the end as a nice way to wrap up until next season. Like, ok, maybe we are bugs, but we still have hope for survival.

I think this was a reasonably good episode overall, it somewhat brought the spark back after extinguishing it in episodes 6 and 7.

Now I'd like to see the show directors forced to write "Stick to the source material" on a chalkboard 900 times before they work on Season 2.

I don't really know what to make of this show or how to rate it. Two identical twin sisters who constantly swap their lives back and forth, all apparently because of some incident that triggered their bizarre behaviour. The story starts off OK, to such an extent that I thought it might actually be good, for the first 3-4 episodes but in the later episodes, where they actually start to explain (some!) of the story it starts to tail off drastically. The acting isn't particularly good, which doesn't help, but there are just too many things that just aren't explained. At first we are led to think that there's some reason for their behaviour and some sinister secret that the story is heading towards but as the story unfolds there are just too many threads that are revealed only to go nowhere. It then changed from being confusing because likely there's some plot and a reason to just plain confusing where the confusion, rather than the story (which largely gets ignored and dropped mid-stream), becomes the whole point of the show, such that, other than the confusion over who is who at any given time, there's no actual point to watching as it constantly goes nowhere. The show was definitely at least 2 episodes too long and identity switching just isn't a compelling enough story in its own right to make for good viewing, that coupled with the lame acting and poor writing (the incompetence of the Sheriff's Dept in the final episode is beyond belief, along with the totally eyebrow raising vanishing and re-appearance of one or both of the twins with zero thought given to how credible it is) means that I certainly won't be around for any season 2! I find it also quite surprising that for a mini-series, the ending seems to be a set up for a season 2, either that or ending was even more lame than I thought!

That season ending though.

This series was a delight binge watch, it's not an earth shattering artistic masterwork light but it's sweet, cute, touching, a bit crude and lewd, and sometimes, heartwarming. A bit predictable, but not enough to put me off it. It's Misfits but with a more lighthearted tone. I feel like it was very good, but also missing some thing. It could have been done better.

What I didn't like:

• For me, the whole Kash vigilante side story was forced, something just didn't click and was neither funny nor interesting. I'm glad Carrie broke it off with Kash, he was way to childish and had no ambition. I also cringed hard at the Jizzlord nickname. The rest of show is decent/watchable.

• My other issue is that the whole premise of the show isn't addressed in the final. I know it's so they can have a Season 2, but I felt a little disappointed by the final episode.

• There are some production issues with the show. The special effects are really bad. It’s not a huge issue, especially because the show has a goofy tone to begin with, but you'll be very aware you’re watching a low-budget show.

• The sound mixing is also really bad; as much as I liked the soundtrack, I felt it was poorly balanced for volume. The music is way louder than the dialog, so you end up having to constantly fiddle with the volume unless you want extremely loud music blasting you every five minutes.

It’s very watchable and I do recommend that you at least check out the first episode.

THE UGLY: ‘WE CAN BE HEROES’

WRITING: 45
ACTING: 40
LOOK: 65
SOUND: 50
FEEL: 45
NOVELTY: 50
ENJOYMENT: 55
RE-WATCHABILITY: 20
INTRIGUE: 35
EXPECTATIONS: 40

The Good:

The early 2000s style, colourful and campy superhero film is awkwardly dated and fascinatingly old-school at the same time. This film really embraces that Spy Kids or Sharkboy and Lavagirl vibe.

I love the lighthearted and comical approach to superheroes and how that creates some of the most outrageous superpowers I've ever seen.

Even though they are goofy and over the top, the actions scenes are fun and imaginative, utilizing the wide cast with varying powers fairly well.

Pedro Pascal seems to have a great time so it's a shame his part is smaller than I expected it to be.

The twist at the end is pretty good, to be fair.

The Bad:

A lot of the comedy is very childish and goody, but then again, I'm not part of the target audience.

The child actors are pretty atrocious, which is a shame since there are loads of them.

There is much of a plot. It's mostly one goofy action scene after another, followed by montages of different kinds. There is next to no narrative content in between.

The lack of compelling villains for adult viewers and the monotonous tone make this film less engaging for those who aren't children or young at heart.

Ultimately, there are too many characters involved, which means that the plot is busy and moves along with such a speed that it doesn’t allow for breathing space and barely has time to develop the charcters properly.

The Ugly:

Man, slow-motion superpowers really make life hard to live!

VERDICT:

A nostalgically childish, mostly nonsensical and colourful superhero adventure for the kids doesn’t feel satisfying for adults unless toyäre a huge fan of Rodriguez’s earlier work.

45% = :heavy_minus_sign: = UGLY

Why was Doctor Who serialized from 1963 to 1989? Partially because that's how most scifi shows were aired at the time, but also because the stories they wanted to tell couldn't be told within one or two episodes.

Flux is a story that didn't need six episodes. Most of the content doesn't even need to be here. Instead of inserting things that are mentioned every episode only to pay off one tiny, insignificant detail, maybe find a way to get to the payoff without cluttering up the rest of the narrative. They should have had that first Sontaran episode and the Weeping Angel one be standalone, then have the Sontarans come back for their original plan for a three part finale. No 19th century miner digging tunnels, no weird crystal people, just a nice tight story.

You know, for a universe-ending event, there sure doesn't seem like there's a rush. They just make it more confusing by making the Flux affect the past, but not really? They introduce too many new things, people, and worldbuilding to keep track of. Plus, the editing is a bit wonky.

This had some potential. If only they'd trimmed the fat and kept a focused vision, we might have had something halfway decent.

Netflix loves to cancel its shows without warning, and it especially loves canceling them after 3 seasons, so I'm about 60% sure this is goodbye. But then again, Sex Education has been a huge hit for them, so I guess we might get a renewal.

If this is the series finale, it's pretty good. Unlike last season, there aren't any major loose ends left. The only storyline that hasn't been resolved is the paternity of baby Joy. Judging by Jean's reaction, it's not good news for Jakob.

As much as I disliked Hope all season, I enjoyed her conversation with Otis. It made her feel a bit more human, even if she is still deeply terrible.

The Groffs had a great storyline. I loved seeing Adam and Michael grow in their own ways. If we do get another season, I hope they explore their relationship a bit more. It's sad that things didn't work out for Adam and Eric, but maybe it's for the best. Eric clearly has some things to work through before he's ready to commit to one person. And seeing Adam discover his talent and passion was lovely. He didn't win, but he still achieved something really impressive all on his own.

I'm glad Aimee knocked some sense into Maeve. Their friendship is genuinely one of the best parts of the show. We didn't get a lot of Otis and Maeve in this episode, but if this is the end of the road, Maeve got a very fitting and satisfying ending. She finally has a family and she's off to do her thing in America. She deserves the world and finally she's getting it. And things with her and Otis are left open ended and hopeful. Even though they can't know if they'll still be right for each other when she returns, they're both willing to give it a shot. That's good enough for me.

I do hope this show comes back. I really do. There's something so quirky and unique about it, the storylines are great and the cast is excellent. It's truly a gem. But I'm keeping my expectations low just in case. Netflix has disappointed me many times before.

Having fought for this film since 2017, organising and running the majority of major events in that time, I was afforded the great honour and privilege of getting an early access pass for this film.

What can I say about "The Snyder Cut"? Overall I thoroughly enjoyed it. While it does not reach the heights of it's predecessors BvS and MoS on an emotional or philosophical level, it is a film packed with "oh my God moments" and action sequences that set the standard for all future action movies.

The film is a crowd pleaser. It will be the best received film in Zack Snyder's filmography by critics and the general audience. I do wonder if it will also be for Zack Snyder's fans.

In this movie the villains outshine the heroes by far. Steppenwolf is vicious and menacing, but it is Darkseid (or more accurately his presence) that dominates this movie. Everything is in service of him. With so many heroes it is a challenge giving them a chance to shine. Batman and Superman are particularly short changed, and there was a higher expectation regarding feeling the absence of Superman following the events of BvS. Others such as the Flash and Cyborg saw their roles vastly improved in this cut of the film.

As far as differences with the theatrical cut go, there are plenty. Purely by nature of being 4 hours vs the 1hr 50minute theatrical cut. There are also differences with respect to the nature of characters, specifically Wonder Woman. However, I must admit, a large number of edits to existing scenes by Joss Whedon in the theatrical cut served absolutely no purpose. The changes made being for no apparent reason to serve any narrative or plot in Whedon's story (eg the Cornfield scene and the discussion between Aquaman and Mera). Other edited scenes were wildly different, primarily the history lesson where the unified peoples of Earth held the forces of Apokolips at bay.

So after 3 years the question is "Was it all worth it?"

That this film exists at all is a victory for artistic freedom, and that it is so much better than the version from 2017 defacto means that it was worth it. But will this film hold a place in my heart beside Man of Steel and Batman v Superman? Time will tell. Zack Snyder films are famous for standing the test of time and improving with every viewing. I hope this one does too.

I can see why Marvel wanted to start with this show rather then WandaVision. I liked Wandavision, but this show felt more like the movies and had more of a direct relationship with them. It dealt more with "the blip" and seems like a more natural beginning of phase 4. Episodes of this length and substance are also more rewarding to watch week to week then the short run time of the wandavision episodes, especially given you had no clue what was going on until a few weeks in.

The opening action sequence was great, they made a good choice starting this story with Falcon and moving to Buckie mid way in. It was great learning a little more about Falcon being that they've really shed very little light on his story at all in the movies other than his loyalty to Steve. We know more about Bucky, so the focus here was correct. I like that these shows add more substance to the characters then the movies can fit in, it was sad watching Bucky come to terms with the damage he caused, but something his character needed since he was really only used for action scenes since the winter soldier all those years ago.

Very solid start for this show, I can't wait to see more but also felt satisfied with what I got which is something I struggled to feel with the short and mostly irrelevant WandaVision episodes.

And then the ending comes where everyone let out a collective "oh hell nah."

When coming up with the idea for this film, I imagine Nolan asking himself: can you take a Roger Moore era Bond plot, up the amount of sci-fi and dial down the camp? Yes, you can, but this isn’t exactly the way to do it.

Pros:
- I love it when directors aim big. Give me someone who tries something as ambitious as this over the average blockbuster anyday.
- Directing & cinematography, as is to be expected from a Nolan film at this point.
- Score. Especially during the opening scene and inversion stuff.
- Action sequences, especially the car chase.
- Most of the acting is solid. JDW is excellent, Robert Pattinson and Elizabeth Debicki are great.

Cons:
- This film has been edited to shit. It’s got pacing that’s all over the place, and there’s a rushed sense to it all. Scenes aren’t allowed to breathe, exposition is delivered so rapidly that you barely have any time to process it. I’m lucky to have a brain that can keep up with difficult plot mechanics, and yes, I could follow what was happening all the way through, but it all makes for a film that’s inaccessible for most people on their first watch. Unfortunately, it definitely doesn’t feel like the film that mainstream audiences are going to embrace during the time of a pandemic.
- Just like with Dunkirk, Nolan once again deliberately chooses to not flesh out his characters, resulting in a film that feels emotionally shallow. It’s very hard to connect with the film on a personal level in that regard. Take Inception, for example. Even when you strip away all the amazing stuff from that film (rotating cities, hotel fight), there’s still an emotional core about a man who’s been estranged from his kids because of what happened to his wife. There’s a reason why we want Leonardo DiCaprio to succeed at implanting this idea into Cillian Murphy’s head. Tenet has none of that. Who’s the protagonist? Who’s Robert Pattinson? What’s this agency they’re working for? We just don’t know.
- The sound mix. The dialogue just isn’t very clear for a lot of the film. Why they didn’t use ADR for some scenes (especially when people wear masks, as that’s easy to edit around) is beyond me. I honestly started to read the subtitles after the opening scene.
- Kenneth Branagh. He’s a great actor, but his hammy performance feels like it comes out of a different movie (a campy Roger Moore era Bond movie, that is)
- I found the climax to be uninspired, and a little dull.
- Minor point, but there’s some really unsubtle foreshadowing during the fight at the airport ( when you have a character unmask an inverted person offscreen, and they look surprised, who do you think it’s going to be? )

Overall, I feel like this could’ve easily been an 8 if the film was about 30 minutes longer, thereby taking its time to flesh out the characters, world and mechanics of the plot. It almost feels like WB forced Nolan to trim a lot of scenes in order to get a shorter runtime, but that’s also doubtful as WB isn’t beyond releasing movies that are way shittier at 3 hours (It: Chapter 2). Besides, he’s Christopher Nolan, so I assume he has final cut. As it stands, I just cannot recommend it.

5/10

They are all the ingredients to make it a classic comedy, but it just doesn't take.

The casting is amazing, that's for sure. It's full of cool ideas and nice jokes all along the way.
- the daylight time being weird
- Most of Tilda Swinton character
- The make up for the dead
- The zombies looking for chardonnay and wifi instead of brains
- Driver's character direct assumption that it's zombies
- The "Is it a wild beast ? Several wild beasts ?" bit
- Zombie Iggy Pop
- the wtf exit of Tilda Swinton
- Murray and Driver discussing the theme song or the script
- etc.

And for all this I can't count it as bad. But it just doesn't fit into a story. Between this bits it all seems long and boring. And most of them are not even exploited correctly. A 20 minutes version of it would have worked a lot better.

The daylight times being weird ? Nice, but what about it ? Nothing.

Murray and Driver talk as themselves instead of the characters could have been interesting, but it's not even correctly used. When asked how he knows it end badly, Driver answers he read the script and Murray says he only had his scenes. Well, he IS in the litteral last scene of the film, the one that ends badly... So he should have known too. It just feels like it's been added there to add a few lines and that's it, it's not been though through.

Swinton's character is good with a sword. But it's 5 scenes of her decapitating zombies behing her back. OK. Show me her fighting 50 zombies, give me something new not 5 copies of the same scene!

As for the chatacters, Bill Murray has been playing various versions of the same character since what ? Lost in Translation ? And I usually love it. It kinda works here too. But not enough.

Adam Driver is actually quite ok. So I'm starting to think it's not his fault and Kylo Ren was just an horrible miscast.

Tilda Swinton is creepy af, just as usual, and has the best character. The way she speaks, the way she walks, her makeup for the deads, her sword skills, etc. Every scene where she's in is good.

Nice to see Steve Buscemi and Danny Glover, but again, they're like the usual cinematic version of themselves here. They feel more like cameos.

And then several characters seem to have been added just as fillers. The kids in detention center ? They do nothing, do not interact with anybody, or with zombies. They just go through it. You can totally erase them and lose nothing. The Selena Gomez crew ? Same thing. Well, you lose some scenes of various guys drooling over Gomez's small shorts and yes, the great head chopping scene, ok, but it could have been done with any other character. Hermit Bob is observing as an outsider. Doesn't bring anything to the story. And Chloe Sevigny's character is just painful to watch.

I get the concept, I loved some slow movies and watching some characters that are on the side and do not bring anything to the story. But here nothing ever works. It's almost heartbreaking to see the movie try so hard, imagine what it was supposed to be and see it fail so hard.

Are you kidding? What the hell? I mean sure I was pissed at the conclusion of season 2, but really that was about the half-arsed setup for season 3 considering they'd tied everything off & needed an excuse for more episodes, & the actual story arc was properly concluded. Here, we didn't even get that much. I get that sometimes an arc needs space to play out & sometimes that means spreading it across more than one season but that's not the case here. There was so much going on, but at the same time it felt like nothing was happening.

They've woven disparate elements in before, & the action has always taken weird twists & turns, but everything always still felt like it was part of the same mystery. Here everything just seemed hastily cobbled together into a poorly paced mess as they desperately tried random stuff to see what would work.

Let's spend the first chunk of the season with Jane working against the team - cool idea! Oh wait now she's been found out! Now she's sick & needs a cure! Zapata is a traitor! Only not really, but she can't prove it! Oh no wait Keaton woke up so he can vouch for her! Madeleine is a threat! Only she got caught easily! But there's still Dominic who is out there just kinda being an annoying loose end I guess? Oh hey Psycho Hacker Girl is here too because why not everyone else is! Here's Boden, & Hirst! Oh & that lab tech who got murdered it just terrible at trusting people. Oh hey Shepard left Jane something must be a big deal... Oh no it's just a random collection of stuff! Oh, but who is this mysterious figure??! Oh wait it's Kurt's mother, who has never been mentioned before (& for some reason has no contact with anyone in the family, even Kurt's sister, who was willing to stick up for & spend time with their accused-of-child-murder dad but apparently a few drugs are a step too far) & this is a pretty big deal... for like one episode. Oh, look, the team are fighting over secrets. Again. Aaaaand it turns out that this was all Madeleine's plan all along & all the murder & terrorism & power-grabbing was just to screw with the team so she'd have an excuse to take over the FBI because she's mad about her father or something.

And that's just the shit I can remember.

Oh & don't get me started on them pairing off Reade & Zapata. They had an awesome ride or die friendship, & then the show randomly throws in romance there, because OF COURSE a man & a woman can't be just bros. And they make it worse still by milking this shit for maximum drama.

I was gritting my teeth & pushing through hoping it would be worth it in the end. The finale was never gonna make up for this shitshow of a season, but I'd hoped for some payoff. And what's gonna happen next season? There surely can't be a whole season worth of material in the team clearing their names? So it's just gonna be a few episodes at best... & then what?

Words cannot express how excited I was for this show to finally return. Remember that agonizing month last year when we thought we'd never see the resolution of THAT cliffhanger? Thank you, Netflix. I wasn't remotely ready to say goodbye to these characters. Even though season 3 was a bit hit-and-miss in terms of storylines, I knew this show still had so much potential left and I'm so looking forward to seeing what this season has in store.

As far as season premieres go, this one definitely delivered. I loved how they handled Chloe seemingly accepting Lucifer, then revealing she's not as fine with it as she claims, then seemingly accepting him again, only to hit us in the face with that ending! I actually wasn't expecting it at all and I'm genuinely shook. I assume she and the priest are working to possibly banish Lucifer from Earth? That was my first thought at least, but who knows. I already feel gutted for Lucifer, imagine what will happen when he inevitably finds out. But at the same time, I kind of love the fact that we're getting a meatier storyline out of this. Bring on the angst!

We also had some nice moments like Trixie reuniting with Maze, who obviously now knows that Chloe simply didn't want an actual demon around her child, and Dan being comforted by Amenadiel. Those were very sweet moments. It's also nice that Amenadiel has accepted that he wants to stay on Earth. Character growth, baby!

I thought I would try to pace myself and not swallow the whole season in one day, but now my resolve is fading fast. I guess I'll have to ignore my responsibilities for one more day (it's not like I haven't done it for the past two months, at least today I have an excuse).

This show has definitely lost it's charm. I was really hoping to find some of the spirit of the first iteration but as the "CW" logo in the corner would already tell you... it's just a generic/cheesy fantasy show now with nothing to show for it. The new sisters have a dynamic I just don't care much about and where as the Halliwell's had a lot to work on, including their powers these ladies already decide after the first episode that they have to science the heck out of magic (which hardly ever comes up anymore). No one really cares about the "Book of Shadows" anymore (which was turned into a voice activated search device) or exploring witchcraft since their power level is just too convenient (and that is not even relying on the power of three). Heck, they even added in Phoebe's premonition power in form of a device now... Maybe it's because I'm bored at this point but they really cram a lot into the episodes but it's all moot story threads. There have been multiple episodes now with major mood whiplashes too so yeah... it's bad; and this is not even mentioning the "woke" writing which can be in a league of it's own. I should have dropped this way sooner...

[7.4/10] Good example of this show satirizing all sides of an argument by having this group take seemingly reasonable positions only to argue in the most self-serving, bad faith manner possible. This one started a little slow, with the episode going through the usual “we’re all bad people discussing something topical” notes, but gained steamed as it went. The third act in particular was really strong, with Dennis trying to shrug off Frank’s racist support, everyone twisting the basic principles to suit their needs, and Charlie being swung by hats and shiny shirts.

I also got a big kick out of the humor at the margins. Again, Charlie’s failure to understand what’s going on is always a funny note. The Gang mixing up what songs were actually written/performed by Jimmy Buffet (replete with amusing Pina Colada stingers) got a consistent laugh out of me. And everyone admitting that they would just violate the rules to suit their own needs anyway was amusing in the group’s typically awful way.

I don’t know if there was all that much effective commentary here, though there was something a little potent about Mac and Dee not wanting to go to the concert that speaks to people being left out in one area not feeling enough a part of their community to participate in others. But on the whole, this was more a commentary on the gang’s ability to twist anything to fit what they want than any real position, which just makes it something of a rorschach test. Still, the solution is random but kind of sweet in a solid late era IASIP way.

Overall, not as strong a topical episode as some others this season, but still solid work.

[8.4/10] My first (semi) live IASIP premiere! Huzzah!

Like everyone, I wondered how the show was going to deal with Dennis’ absence, but I probably should have expected what we got, a delightfully meta riff on what the absence of an essential character means, replete with boatloads of raunch and comedic takes on co-dependence and remaining static.

Maybe that’s a little high-falutin for a show as juvenile as IASIP, but I don’t think so. Especially as this show has gotten older, it’s gotten more ambitious, and dare I say deeper, even as it slings episodes where people play a sex doll like a tuba.

I think my favorite thing in the episode is how it explores the ways in which The Gang is fixated and dependent on Dennis as an ingredient in their group, while being blind to the ways in which he holds them all back. It’s striking how better situated and successful everyone seems to be with Dennis gone and with Cindy (Mindy Kalig, ably taking part in the show’s particular banter) calling the shots. The plans are better formulated, there’s more positivity, and everyone seems do be doing well overall.

Everyone except Mac, that is. I appreciated the tack where Mac, most of all, is still fixated on Dennis, and without his sexuality to repress, he’s now just repressing his crush on Dennis, replete with a lifelike and disturbing sex doll. The meta humor of Charlie and Dee assuring Cindy that no one knows why Mac does what he does (probably just a cry for help or attention) and to ignore it and move on was well done in that vein.

But Mac gets The Gang stuck on the “Dennis-shaped hole” in their lives in the same way that Mac does. The bell tolling as the camera zooms in on the unnerving face of the Dennis-esque sex doll is a great running gag, and I like how the episode uses it. Dee is feeling self-confident, Mac is proud of his body, and Frank and Charlie are competently executing (and appreciating) the plan for once, only for them to hear Dennis’s negging and have it still bring them down.

It’s a frickin’ neurosis, and the show uses it both for humor and for its dark character explorations. The way everyone instantly regresses, and falls back into old habits is well done. I even like how they tie things in with The Waitress, using the whole “absence” thing to tie into Charlie never wanting to talk to her and then tying that into her hearing the Dennis doll too, showing that he’s burrowed into everyone’s brains. Community’s pulled the same trick (and with a similar, albeit more network-friendly version of the same archetype), but it still works in IASIP’s more sophomoric setting.

And I like how the show turns that into a miniature referendum on whether the show itself will evolve (which it has, despite maintaining much of the same style and humor) or whether it will remain the same, reuse the same ryhthms, and so on. It’s not the first time the show’s tackled this sort of thing, but it does it well here, with Cindy representing change and something new, and a surprise return from Dennis himself representing the comforting but sclerotic business as usual.

Of course, this is The Gang, so they go with the easy and familiar. Dennis returns, the status quo is maintained, and with it, the rest of the group are doomed to confidence-shattering insults and failure once more. There’s something implicit in that -- the show kind of admitting that it’s not inclined to evolve or get better in a self-aware but kind of cynical way -- but then again, maybe they know that those familiar rhythms are part of what we love about the show, even if tired bird jokes start to grow thin for both writer and audience. Either way, it’s good to have IASIP back.

The concept of the show kind of perfectly represents the show itself. You go out with a bunch of old friends thinking it's going to be a great time, and in the end, things don't turn out the way you were expecting and everybody just kind of ends up disappointed.

I went into this expecting a laugh out loud comedy with a great cast, and there was some of that, but by the end it became more drama, and nothing really ended in a satisfying way either.

I do think the cast was good, and there are some good funny moments, and well done serious moments, but I think overall the show has a weird balance, and doesn't really pay off in a way that leaves any of the characters or audience satisfied. But then again, that's very similar to the night out with old friends from college the show describes, so maybe it achieved exactly what it wanted to achieve.

On one hand I do kind of hope there's another season, only because there's so much left unresolved in the end, but you're never going to get a resolution that satisfies everybody, so I'm not sure if the show should have one either. It's just a strange show. It definitely kept me interested enough to binge it though, so I'll give it that.