3 Short Paragraphs (Or Not): Star Trek: Section 31

2025, Olatunde Osunsanmi (Star Trek: Discovery) -- download

I learned a new phrase the other day -- NuTrek. Its a bit debated, but its apparently all the Star Trek media that started after Star Trek: Discovery. It includes a collection of shows that are widely disliked by some of Star Trek fandom, but in the 2020s, hating something is as much part of the identity of fandom as loving it. I don't hate any of it, but I strongly disliked season three of Picard and this "movie" seems to come from the same producer-influence / state of mind as that series. I air-quote movie because this was meant to be a series until Paramount pulled the plug, so they cobbled together what they could into a really bad movie.

I was never a fan of making Emperor Georgiou (Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All at Once) into a sympathetic character, but watching Michelle Yeoh do anything on screen is always fun. Once the rest of Discovery (ship, not show, but also show) was tossed into another century, she had to be abandoned as a character. But we all knew that Section 31 would snatch her up. Again? Or was it that they always intended on her going back for Section 31, so that is why they did the whole, "Mirror Universe + Time Displacement = Disaster" plot? Who knows; I quickly forgot.

P.S. You likely don't care, but I will spoil the fuck out of this movie, that seems to pride itself on reveals.

BUT the series movie starts with her not in Section 31, but running a bar/resto/nightclub/space-station in contested space, i.e. outside the Federation's direct influence. So, they send in a team/rag-tag-band-of-misfits to get her assistance with the latest in galaxy wide catastrophes about to happen --- this time, some sort of bomb-shaped red-herring. And the bomb comes from the Mirror Universe! And it was so bad, even the Emperor decided to have it destroyed, before she grew a 0.01% conscience and came to our universe.

Oh, sorry there is also a preamble where we see some sort of Hunger Games contest to become Emperor of the Terran Empire. Really? That's how they do it? I just assumed it was a long line of assassinations and coups from within. Teenage girls killing their boyfriends and assuming the cloak/throne/mantle was not on my bingo card.

Anywayz, the rag tag bunch includes a neurotic shapeshifter (ahem.... Chameloid; Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country; Sam Richardson, Werewolves Within), a neurotic miniscule alien riding inside a Vulcan robot robot Vulcan (Sven Ruygrok, Pulse) with an Irish accent, a stupid Australian cyborg (Robert Kazinsky, Pacific Rim) wearing a spiky/sharp-edged exo-skeleton, a horniness-inspiring Deltan (Star Trek; the Motion Picture; Humberly González, Friends & Family Christmas), a time-displaced Augment (Omari Hardwick, Army of the Dead) from the 20th century and a Starfleet Officer (Kacey Rohl, Hannibal) who is supposed to be babysitting them all but has her own issues.

They succeed in stopping the sale of the bomb, but not the stealing of the bomb. But at least they have the seller, who turns out to be from the Mirror Universe himself, but really, they should have used the opportunity to make him the Mirror Universe Harry Mudd -- I guess Rainn Wilson (beardless I guess?) wasn't available. They head back to a "safe house", an old mining base on an abandoned junker planet, so we can get some exposition and get to know the ragamuffins a bit better -- they are all pretty much at each other's throats. They then get betrayed by one of their own, their ship blown up and end up flying a literal garbage scow off the planet. Star Trek attempt to do Star Wars is kind of fun, but... not?

Of course, in Star Trek tradition, but entirely obvious to us watching, the Bad Guy turns out to be Georgiou's old boyfriend who has decided that the dying-from-within Terran Empire could use her old bomb to destroy a good amount of our universe, and give them a whole new territory to conquer. It doesn't work out.

The problem with cobbling a movie from a failed series is that not everything was likely filmed or even reach post-production. And in this instance, what was left appeared to be nothing but hand-to-hand fight scene after hand-to-hand fight scene. Oh, there is some fun to be had with Star Trek trying its best to be quirky not-Star Trek but there is a reason it was killed on the vine. Seriously, if they were going to do something with Section 31, they should have gone the darkest of the dark, and told stories of the Federation that most fans would shudder at, instead of this eye-rolling event.

31 Days of Halloween: Trap

2024, M Night Shyamalan (The Visit) -- download

Full disclosure, its definitely more a thriller than a horror, but we approached it as Shyamalan's latest flick about a serial killer, and thought it would turn down the horror road, but it did not. That said, the road it did turn down (one near the Roger's Centre) was very satisfying. Well, maybe for me the Proud Shyamalan Apologist, but I did enjoy myself immensely and liked how so much of the movie was not trying to have us Root For the Bad Guy, but literally see the tables turned on him at every turn. I also liked that  he (he Shyamalan) knew we would see trailers, and the "twist" (or premise FFS) was revealed almost immediately. The movie was all about how it would play out.

An anti-Shyamalan from Shyamalan???

So, we have Cooper (Josh Hartnett, Oppenheimer) and his daughter Riley (Ariel Donoghue, Wolf Like Me) off to see a big concert for a popstar Lady Raven (Saleka Shyamalan, feature debut; she actually is a popstar) who at this point in time would be a Taylor Swift analog. We are talking a young singer with LEGIONS of fans packing a stadium in the middle of the day, a stadium also mysteriously (not mysteriously, remember trailer) packed with cops and federal agents. Cooper learns quickly, from one of my favourite Toronto actor / Skittles Guys Jonathan Langdom (No Tomorrow), they are indeed here for him, a serial killer known as The Butcher because he disassembles his victims. We also learn quickly that he has a young man trapped in a basement who he keeps checking in on via a phone app.

I wonder, is it an off the shelf serial killer app, or did he have it custom written on the Dark Web?

So, on his mind: find a way out, and keep his daughter oblivious. There is a bunch of fun cat & mouse game stuff where once again, I get distracted by Shyamalan's film techniques popping up here and there, his usual nods to directors like Hitchcock. By distracted, I mean I love it, because I do so love a well framed shot. Eventually his machinations lead him to positioning his daughter in the place she would love the most -- on stage with the popstar. If anything this derails her suspicions, because she has constantly asked him, "Dad, why are you being weird?" He knows his only way out of the stadium is through the pre-approved entourage of the popstar, so he... corners her and admits all, but with the not-veiled threat of murdering the young man trapped in the basement. Lady Raven has no choice but to help him escape.

You are now entering Spoiler Territory.

This led to my favourite plot turn. Lady Raven is no meek fraidy-cat and positions herself in a situation where she forces him to reveal himself, tragically to his oblivious suburban family, and she can use the power of her Lady Raven Army of Fans to find & release the trapped young man. The act is not entirely realistic, but its a beautiful thriller technique wherein she has less than two minutes to mobilize thousands of fans, crowd-sourcing the location of the trapped man from only a few scant clues.

Lady Raven gets to play a hero for proud daddy M Night. Of note, while I so did not enjoy the music in the movie, I was so impressed at how real it all felt. Sure, Saleka is a real popstar so she probably has a fanbase, does stadium shows, has real music she has produced and performed, but it was how it was presented and how the teen girl fans reacted that felt so very real.

But no, again, the movie is not over yet. Sure he's revealed, and sure the FBI shows up immediately to arrest him, but the movie reminds us that he is actually smart, and he has been evading the authorities for years through meticulous planning. BUT again his machinations are foiled by a woman he thinks he can easily manipulate, his wife (Allison Pill, Star Trek: Picard). Whether you like them or not, I always love that Shyamalan movies make active choices and you rarely feel like you are just a plot on rails.

So, not a horror movie, but a solid thriller in my books.

And yes while the movie is obviously shot in Toronto, it is still Philadelphia.

T&K's XMas (2023) Advent Calendar - Day 23 - A Biltmore Christmas

2023, John Putch (American Housewife) -- download

The Draw: Primarily because of Bethany Joy Lenz, of royalty among Hallmarkies. And also, time travel !!

Of note, you have not actually ever seen a Lenz Hallmarkie.

HERstory: OK, so Lucy Hardgrove (Bethany Joy Lenz, ) has been given the privelage of writing the remake of a classic 40s Xmas movie called "His Merry Wife". In fact this movie starts with a black & white clip of the movie! They are diving whole heartedly into the cheese! But the studio exec (booo, not in a purple suit) is not happy with Lucy's bittersweet re-do of the ending. "Everyone wants a happy ending!" he claims.

"Yes, but...." she counters unsuccessfully. To further inspire her, he gives her a plane ticket and sends her to the actual Biltmore Estate, where the original movie was shot. She is expected to be influenced into providing the familiar popular happy ending. No buts lady! And yes, you'll be back by Xmas.

Of note, the Biltmore Estate is a thing, IRL, one of those chateau inns I was referring to in my Chateau Christmas writeup. Its a huge huge estate that is known for going all out at Xmas. I am surprised this is the first Hallmarkie shot there. So, Lucy shows up, and is instantly given the special treatment by concierge extraordinaire Winston (Jonathan Frakes, Picard). She is even shown an off-tour room where a special hour glass has been pulled out of storage just for her visit, to show her more props and items that were shown in the original movie.

So, she touches the hour glass and POOF, she's back in 1947, in the hotel, on the same date, and the movie is being made! She's in her own clothes and she shouldn't be on set, and she's quite confused, so she pretends to be an extra, and ends up in a scene, but also catches the eye of leading man Jack Huston (Kristoffer Polaha, Backstrom). When the hour glass runs out, she returns back to the current day.

Lucy is freaked out but catches on pretty quick, and so for her next trip, which she controls this time, she makes sure she has money (ummm, that money would be prop money...) and proper clothes, and an alibi. She's telling people she's on the set because the studio has sent her there, due to some tension between the leads. 

And then she accidentally breaks the hour glass, which strands her in the past. But she recalls that the hour glass she touched in the current day had been repaired, so she is desperate for the props guys to fix it. Trouble is, it will take a while. So, she's stuck. And she'a also stuck with dashing Hollywood actor Jack following her around. Despite initially rebuffing him, she actually finds him charming and let's him make his moves.

Lucy is also aware that the movie had a different ending, closer to her ending, but as time goes by and she interacts with people on the set, and the making of the movie, she sees that the happier ending is more appropriate. She also accidentally causes the lead actress to quit the movie in a major misunderstanding, and has to chase her down at the train station to convince her that the movie needs her, and nobody else will do!

Eventually everything leads to the final scenes being shot and big party held on Xmas Eve to celebrate the closing. She's in a dashing silver age of Hollywood dress and dances with Jack but suddenly the studio head (Robert Picardo, Star Trek: Voyager) shows up and wants her head! She dashes off, but not before she learns that the hour glass has been fixed and its out in the parking lot. She explains to Jack who she is, and how she has to return home, and he distracts everyone so she can run out to the parking lot and .... POOF, disappear.

Now, she's back current day, and she completes the movie and its back to a happy ending and everyone is happy.

Buuuuut, she knows that Jack died a year after the movie was made, so she returns to the Biltmore Estate a year later to ... find Jack. He tells her he has been trying to figure out for a year how to make it all happen, and just did so. He tells her that his supposed "death" would have been a studio cover story for his disappearance. They kiss and will live happily ever after, after she is able to set him up with a fake identity and teach him him how to live in the 21st century.

The Formulae: Not as much as one would expect. But there is a tree lighting ceremony, and an Xmas Event, in which there is dancing. And there is hot chocolate. There are tales of parents gone: her mom left her when she was a child, and his parents are dead (dead in the 40s as well as 2023). There is the classic misunderstanding that the leads have to resolve.

Unformulae: Well, I would say that time travel is not normal for Hallmarkies but there have been a few, right? But it doesn't do the formula of PST and Big City and lost job opportunity and old flame, or any of that standard bit. Also, they kiss loooong before the end of the movie, coming to a realization that they care for each other IRL. Also, while the silver number was stunning, I wants me red dresses !!

True Calling? Yeah, as its Christmas and it happens at the Biltmore, IRL.

The Rewind: More a snort and a chuckle as we see the final seen of Lucy's remake movie being shot, and it stars Rachel Boston and Wes Brown, who are both Hallmark Royalty. So.... the movie Lucy was writing was a.... Hallmarkie?!?!

The Regulars: Of course, Bethany Joy Lenz and Polaha has done a few.  I am very disappointed that Picardo and Frakes have not done more, and that I was just not aware.

How does it Hallmark? This is Hallmark "trying to be different" so from my point of view, not so much. I want our tropes, gawddammit !!

How does it movie? This might be the closest I have seen to a well done, properly done scifi romcom. Its still stuck in low-budget Hallmarkie land, but Lenz is just so easy with the role that this could have easily been done as a "proper" movie starring her and Polaha and it could have been good. I also have to say it pulled off the fun of the time travel hijinx rather well, especially when His Merry Wife uberfan sees Lucy in one of the set shots.

How Does It Snow? A decent amount of .... fake snow.

T&K's XMas (2023) Advent Calendar: Day 15 - Baking All the Way

2022, Yannick Bisson (Murdoch Mysteries) -- Amazon

The Draw: A) It's about baking, cookies in particular. B) Its starring and directed by Mr. Murdoch Mystery himself, Montreal-born Yannick Bisson. I am sure there have been other examples in the Hallmarkie world where the lead was also the director, but I would imagine they would be Hallmarkie royalty, instead of just one of the most familiar Canadian faces on Canadian TV.

HERstory: Julia Wilson (Cory Lee, Degrassi: The Next Generation) is a pastry chef & successful cookbook author in Chicago. Its almost Xmas but she hasn't submitted the final recipe for her latest book, which is all about highlighting the best cookie recipes from around the country -- basically people send her recipes and she reaps the fame. But one final cookie alludes her -- the gingerbread cookie -- because nothing compares to the one she made with her late mother. That is, until she gets an anonymous gift basket from a bakery in ______, Wisconsin. Perfection! 

Why can't I ever remember the names of these PSTs?

So, Julia has to head off to secure the recipe, at the beginning of the Xmas rush season, but she has a sous chef that can run the place while she is gone. She arrives in the PST, checks into the quaint B&B run by the weird Mr. Weaver (Colin Mochrie, Degrassi: The Next Generation [i guess he played the Picard character?]) and his wife Vicky (Debra McGrath; Colin's actual wife, Degrassi: The Next Generation), who fangirls all over Julia.

The HomeStead Bakery, from which the basket came, is your typical PST bakery run with love and care and tradition, so its losing all its business to the new "corporate bakery" across the street. Also, its owner Kris Kringle Thompson (Yannick Bisson, Degrassi: The Next Generation Murdoch Mysteries) never heard of Julia and definitely did not send her a gift basket. Also, his recipe is not for sale, as its a family recipe and not his to give away. You know Kris, your mom (Jayne Eastwood, Degrassi: The Next Generation) is right behind you, and if its her recipe, couldn't she give it away?

Anywayz, not to be defeated, industrious Julia comes up with a plan. If she can increase Homestead Bakery's business by X amount before Xmas, Kris will owe her big time. He's swimming in overdue bills so he regretfully agrees. But what will she bake? The gingerbread recipe, of course! But not just cookies, but a whole array of gingerbread inspired recipes!! The 12 Days of Gingerbread !!

Time to brainstorm!! Like most bakeries where the only employee is him, and occasionally his mom, it doesn't hurt that he avoids actually baking, or running the shop, because he has to plan plan plan. Its also accomplished by montages, so that helps. They come up with some great ideas, and dismiss some others (I dunno, gingerbread soup sounds like a great idea to me ;) 

Some days are winners, some days not so much but things are going well and Kris is all swoony for this young (15 years his junior) successful pastry chef and business owner, even warming up to her ideas that put him out of his comfort zone (radio hits!) and feelings that he hasn't had since his Dead Wife. Things progress so well that he even gives her the recipe before they hit Day 12. 

Meanwhile she's being pressure by her agent and the publishers, so she snaps the recipe with her phone to tide them over. Lo and Behold, it all ends up going to print without her review and approval, and she is asked to Come Back for Meetings. She regretfully agrees, but when she tells Kris she has business obligations, he goes ape shit, "You got my recipe and now you are running!!"  I mean, he's right, but she does have to work work work. 

Gramma sees the jig is up and finally shares with Julia the history of the recipe, which was as much her mother's as it was Gramma's. They have a tearful conversation, and Julia heads back to the B&B to check out early. Gramma chastises Kris for being a dick, and his heart grows three sizes. Meanwhile Julia is on the road when she hears the radio hit she and Kris worked on, for the bakery, and her heart grows three sizes. She turns around, returns to the bakery, they make up and kiss, and hopefully they will live happily ever after, but.... 12 days of good Xmas sales doesn't make for a successful business and she DOES have a resto to run, so... maybe until summer?

Dude, you burning out on these already?

The Formulae: Utterly by the numbers for a Hallmark movie, even to the point that the elevator for this pitch is the same pitch as last year's A Gingerbread Christmas, minus the Food Network style competition. The Big City Girl, the PST, the failing business, the homey PST Guy, the successful Gal, the reason to stay in the PST for Xmas, the sudden return for work work work and the final realization that making googley eyes overshadows all. But  there are also some cookies (duhhh!) and hot chocolates (finally, a gingerbread latte).

Unformulae: A strange lack of the usual Xmas Tropes that I usually use to pad out the list above? There is no Xmas Event, there is no Xmas Fair, there is no Xmas Tree Hunt, there is a brief snowball fight, but there is a decidedly lack of Xmas in this Xmas movie. No red dress, but Julia does have a lovely red winter coat.

True Calling? There is references to baking, and cookies galore, but not a whole lot of actual baking to be scene, if you don't count seeing Kris slam down some gingerbread dough in anger just after Julia heads back to Chicago. Hey Kris, don't take it out on the cookies!

The Rewind: I did pause to look at the gingerbread recipe list (ok, I fess up, there was no Gingerbread Soup on it) but the pause and rewind, and a bit of Googling was for the chuckle bit at the end of the movie. When Julia is on the road, she hears a song come on the radio, and turns it of with, "Nope, enough of that!" Yeah, Cory Lee is a pop singer (though, I never heard of her) and that was her Xmas Song. 

The Regulars: Gramma Jayne Eastwood is not only a queen of Canadian TV movies, but definitely a staple in Hallmarkie land, and was even in the starting movie of Netflix's brief foray into the Hallmarkie Cinematic Universe, A Knight Before Christmas. Lead Cory Lee has done a few before this one, but this is her first Lead. 

How does it Hallmark? Entirely by the book of Hallmark in structure, but sorely lacking for a Hallmarkie XMAS movie.

How does it movie? Bleah.

How Does It Snow? Grrr. Even though there was a brief snowball fight, after which Julia leaves the snow on her face (don't ruin your makeup by wiping it away!!) there are so many scenes where they come in covered in "snow" which just stays on their shoulders and hair for the rest of the scene, cuz soap flakes don't melt.

Migawd I hate that poster, and while there was a better "all the cast" version, I had to use this most common poster cuz its so terrible. Look at my cookies!  LOOK ! And who is she looking at? Its not Kris.

Also of note, is that my Amazon Hallmarkie Inception might soon come to an end. In November, when I conceived the idea as an alternate to my usual "read lists, download ideas", there were TONS of "free to view" on Amazon. These have slowly dropped off, to be replaced by more on Stack TV, which despite being a source of legit W Network Hallmarkies, I refuse to entertain because of their inserted-commercial setup. If I am PAYING for a service, why would I also have to watch ads?

1-1-1-K'sMIRT:

K'sMIRT is Kent's Month in Reviewing Television, where each month(ish) I step through the TV series I completed watching each month in the 1 Great-1 Good-1 Bad format.

This Month:

Never Have I Ever Season 4 - 10 episodes, Netflix

Human Resources Season 2 - 10 episodes, Netflix

Ted Lasso Season 3 - 12 episodes, Apple TV+

Deadloch Season 1 - 8 episodes, AmazonPrime

Star Trek: Picard Season 3 - 10 episodes, CTV SciFi

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Never Have I Ever Season 4

The Plot 100: Davi's tryst with Ben at the end of grade 11 goes completely awry as Ben starts dating another girl. Davi's fued with this other girl jeopardizes her academic standing, and, as typical for Davi, she self-sabotages her efforts to get into the most prestigious schools. Meanwhile Paxton finds his superstar rep hasn't preceded him at college, Eleanor's acting aspirations are dashed, and Fabiola is worried she may be taking Davi's "spot" at Princeton.

1-1-1:
(1 Great) I love this show, and I love spending time with these characters. This season really emphasized both Davi's knack for getting in her own way, but also her growth as a person, represented largely in her ability to recognize when she is in the wrong, instead of doubling down like she used to. The gimmick of John McEnroe as her inner monologue never ceases to pay comedic dividends, though it has dawned on me that maybe a white, male Boomer as the inner voice of an Indian-American teen girl should've been problematic, but never was.

(1 Good) Paxton's return to Sherman Oaks HS as a coach after quitting college is one of the most depressing stories of the series. It seemed to be a real forced element to keep Paxton in the cast, but, surprisingly the show was well aware of how awkward a situation it was and it deals with it pretty perfectly. The friendship that persists between Davi and Paxton is one of the best gems of the later seasons.

(1 Bad) The end. The series finale is charming and beautiful and hopeful, but I'm still not ready to accept that it's over. Can we get a new show of Davi in college, please?

Meta: Never Have I Ever used to be a high school-based romcom, but this final season really needs to be about the characters focusing on their education, which makes for less appealing drama.  It is easily the weakest season of the series, but that's largely because it needs to advance all the characters on their own journeys. Senior year is the time when everyone is preparing to go their own way, a major time of transition, thus most of the characters' story arcs here have little to do with the other characters, and some of the efforts to connect them do feel forced. This season kind of forgets to give Kamala a story, though it does provide some nice romance sub-plots (with some really manufactured drama) for Nalini and Nirmala. It's a satisfying season, even if it doesn't provide quite the same hilarious roller coaster of hormonal emotions that the previous seasons did.  It's an all-time favourite, and I'm going to miss it.

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Human Resources Season 2

The Plot 100: Emmy becomes obsessed with her new charge's logic rock, Van. After Rochelle gets dumped, she turns into a hate worm and begins having hate sex with Pete, which leaves him emotionally conflicted. Connie and Maurice have a hard time accepting that their child Montel wants to be a shame wizard instead of a hormone monster. And more.

(1 Great) For what is ostensibly a dick-and-fart-joke comedy series that trades heavily in what could traditionally be considered low-brow humour, Human Resources may just be the most progressive show on television. The seemingly effortless (though absolutely the effort is put in) incorporation of all types of cultural, sexuality, identity and neurological backgrounds exposes the rich tapestry of human existance, while also leaning heavily on poop and queef humour.  It's absolutely shameless about its comedy, which is what makes it so funny, but it's also got its heart in the right place and puts the work in to make sure its representation is meaningful (the sub-plot with real life disability rights activist Alice Wong is a season highlight).

(1 Good) Holy shit, this cast. Aidy Bryant, Kiki Palmer, Randall Park, David Thewlis, Nick Kroll and Maya Rudolph are just the main voice actors. There's also Thandiwe Newton, Rosie Perez, Hugh Jackman, Maria Bamford, Chris O'Dowd, Florence Pugh, Miley Cyrus, Eugene Levy, Niecey Nash-Betts, Jemaine Clement, and Isabella Rossellini, among many others.  Newton and Perez deliver gold with every line, it's just a shame they're not in the series more.  Sam Richardson pops up in the season's best and most conceptual episode that tracks his existence as a germ that infects the office.

(1 Bad) This season felt a bit more vignette-like than last season, juggling a lot of disparate story threads but lacking a central figure.  Emmy last season was the focal character but this season she's given pretty much equal time and importance, which is very democratic but leaves the show feeling just a tad unfocussed.  We still binged it rapidly though.

Meta: I don't know the story behind it, but both Human Resources and the series it was spun off of, Big Mouth, are ending after their current seasons. Big Mouth has had a substantial run (with seasons 7 & 8 still in the production pipeline) but I feel Human Resources was just scratching the surface of the stories it could tell. If anything it was a much more pliable and flexible storytelling vehicle than Big Mouth but in not embracing the workplace sitcom vibe (instead it used its animation to really explore the fantastical and absurd reality) or leaning into centralized character stories, it's maybe harder for an audience to embrace? I dunno. Though it's never been explicitly stated that it was "cancelled" it feels like it was cancelled too soon.

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Ted Lasso Season 3

The Plot 100: Having made it to the Premiere League, Ted and the Richmond FC need to prove themselves worthy, which Rebecca hopes is aided by securing the sport's premiere primadonna, Zava.  Keeley starts dating the investor in her PR firm.  Roy helps Jamie reach the next level of his game, and they solidify their bond in the process. Ted struggles between his duties as a coach and a father, Rebecca wants something more, and Nate finds self respect.

(1 Great) The most satisfying arc of the season, and the series, as well as the greatest love story within, is that of Roy and Jamie.  Jamie idolized Roy as a kid but between his arrogance, and Roy's dismissive, "fuck off" attitude, the two couldn't help but butt heads initially. They really needed each other to grow as people and their friendship is, perhaps even more than Ted's relentless positivity, the most endearing part of the show.

(1 Good) Rebecca's arc this season showed her growth as a character.  Even if the writers never really landed on a single solid thread to put her on, her entire journey this season was one of self discovery, wholly earned confidence, and leadership. Where she started her journey with Richmond FC as a vengeful ex-wife, she ends the series as a savvy business woman who commands (and has earned) respect.  Her exceptionally charming and flirtatious encounter with a mountain of a man in Amsterdam is a season highlight.

(1 Bad) If there's a problem with this season of Ted Lasso (and there's not just one) it's that it separated its character sub-plots so distinctly. There's a sitcom happening within the rest of the show that is just the team itself, on and off the field. All these weird, fun and distinct personalities that have their own quick little side adventures, sometimes on their own, sometimes apart, but rarely spanning more than a couple episodes. Keeley's story is almost completely separate from everyone else's, save for a few check-ins with Rebecca and a couple of moments with Roy and Jamie, but unlike Rebecca's empowering journey, this one takes all the control out of the character's hands, and seems to say all the wrong things about empowerment (for example, she's in PR, and when a sex tape of her leaks, she doesn't in any way use her PR skills to take control of the narrative...it's absurd).

Meta: I think Season 1 of Ted Lasso may be one of the most perfect seasons of television ever.  It just clicks and is so unflinchingly positive and joyous. Season 2 got lost in presenting a darker side of all this relentless positivity, and primarily in turning Nate into a villain by season's end, painted itself into an ugly narrative corner that this season really needed to contend with to get out of. I think it was mostly successful in doing so, but it never really addressed Nate's confidence issues head on. He just found the cliched "love of a good woman" and that was all that was really needed to turn the character around without really much introspection.  

Of course, the larger meta story is about whether Richmond FC was being set up to continue following Jason Sudekis' departure. Everything that has been said is that no decisions have been made and that this was always written to be the final season.  Yet it seems 100% evident that this season was operating as proof of concept for keeping the show going without its lead.  Ted is basically demoted to supporting player this season in this show of which he is the title character, and he didn't go on much of a journey that wasn't completely telegraphed.

I still enjoyed this season, much more than season 2 (certainly not as much as season 1), and I would totally watch a Richmond FC tv series, but I do wish Ted had been more present in this season and that it had been more tightly focussed on him.

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Deadloch Season 1

The Plot 100: The small Tasmanian town of Deadloch has been going through a transition the past few years. It's toxic factory was shut down, and its transformed itself into a destination point for feminist arts and lesbian culture. But when it is rocked by a murder, the tensions of the resentful long term residents and its new pro-feminine regime begins to bubble up.  Centered around the murder investigation itself, it's up to the town's ill-prepared police force led by Dulcie Collins, as well as Eddie Redcliffe -- the hot mess of a detective sent from the mainland to take charge of the investigation -- to solve the case. What their superiors thought to be a simple, slam dunk spirals out into something pretty large. 

(1 Great) The characters on this show are wonderful. Dulcie has returned to her home town with her partner Cath, and seems to be depressed being there. We learn why and our sympathies always lay with her.  She finds herself between a rock and a hard place constantly. Cath is exhuberant and controlling, and is all in on developing the new lesbian community within Deadloch.  She's a lot to take, but the relentless enthusiasm is kind of infectious. Eddie is perhaps the most rough-around-the-edges detective character in existence, and her abrasiveness does pivot to endearing as we get to know her. Abby is one of Dulcie's officers whose meek and seemingly reticent personality hide a fierce intelligence and keen eye for detail. Her growth over the series is a joy to behold. Sven, another of Dulcie's officers, is utterly apathetic about his role and  has to be forced to do his job. But even he proves himself to have his own unexpected competencies that back up the team, and he becomes a surprisingly necessary part of the team. These are the most charming players of the series, but the show also builds out its cast of townsfolk incredibly well, to the point that we get a good sense of history and a lot of the mystery revolves around the connectedness between residents.

(1 Good) Here is a murder mystery that telegraphs, over and over again, who the murder is, yet, each turn proves that the evidence is incomplete and all is not as it seems. It's a show that does such a great job with its narrative that it leads you to believe (just as the detectives do) the clues that it presents are the answer, such that every time they approach the next possible suspect I was saying "I knew it".  Only, I didn't know it, because they got me again.  The investigative process unfolds with plenty of challenges in the way, from characters who clearly have something to hide (and there are varying scales of how what is being hidden relates to the case) to rampant misogyny and homophobia.   

(1 Bad)  I appreciated how the show slowly unfolded its feminist and queer topics, starting gently by noting particularly how rural populations still tend to want to uphold patriarchal structures and rebuff anything other. There are slight jabs at lesbians and expected slurs from some of the middle-aged male population, but as the episodes progress, we find it's more widespread than just from the expected characters. Ultimately the misogyny and homophobia reach a kind of ludicrous and satirical crescendo in the final two episodes, which unfortunately the tone of the show can't really handle.  It just goes too broad in a way that the humour of the show hadn't  yet, and it doesn't really fit, though the point is certainly made. 

Meta:  Deadloch was recommended on a podcast, and so I went to the show on AmazonPrime thinking it was already complete, and that the four available episodes were all there was to the series.  By the third episode I was confounded by how slowly they were progressing Eddie's character (she's only starting to turn the corner into a likeability by that point) and the mystery seemed to just be getting deeper, as more and more of the townsfolk seemed viable suspects.  To learn that Amazon was shuttling out Deadloch week to week really showed the confidence they had in this Aussie production to draw and sustain their audience.  It was a bet that paid off, as we were hooked, and waited with tremendous anticipation each of the final few weeks for the new episode to drop.  By the final episode I was both hoping that the mystery would wrap up, but that there would be reason to spend more time with our main crew of detectives. I wasn't ready to give them up yet.  No word on a follow-up season, but it is teed up and I'm ready for it.

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Star Trek: Picard Season 3

The Plot 100: Beverly Crusher needs help, and contacts Jean Luc, whom she hasn't seen in 20 years, to come to her rescue, but trust no one. Except Picard trusts Will Riker more than anyone, so the two of them hatch a plot to ostensibly hijack a Federation starship and rescue their friend outside of Federation space. The ship they get has 7 of 9 as first officer, and the three of them basically put a ship of 500 crew in tremendous danger to rescue Beverly, and, *gasp* Jean Luc's son. But in the process they slowly get the Next Gen gang back together as they uncover a Changeling plot to destroy the Federation that serves to justify their treasonous actions.

(1 Great) Captain Liam Shaw (Todd Stashwick) is the captain of the Titan (the ship Riker once commanded, and the one he and Picard are trying to commandeer) and he's a great prickly pear of a man.  He's dubious of everyone, and a man of great caution. He has no desire for adventure, even less for appetite for risk, and he's unimpressed by the reputations of these men who are trying to manipulate him into taking his ship somewhere it doesn't belong. It's only through 7 of 9's insubordination that the plot continues, and where the show kind of wants to paint Shaw as antagonist to our heroic adventure, one can't help but admit that, at nearly every turn, he's absolutely right in his decisions, and as abrasive as he may seem, he's actually practical and sensible and responsible. I thought Stashwick's performance was outstanding, navigating the unlikeable edginess with a charm that most actors wouldn't think to pull off. It's a shame that you know from moment one, that this guy's a total red shirt though.

(1 Good) There is definitely plenty of warm tugs seeing the old crew back together. My favourite moments were the little, sentimental moments, and the reunion scenes of these old compatriots reuniting.

(1 Bad) Holy shit is the writing in this season ever bad. It's only through the likeable performances that it's even watchable at all. It's like clunky fan fiction on an oversized budget, as characters make weak-tea jokes that are typically fan-service in nature, and there's so much exposition and forced finagling in bringing the old crew together.  The story is enjoyable enough, but scripts are terrible, the editing is frequently awful, and the trope of introducing a grown up son for Jean Luc (hasn't he had one or two come and go already?) seems like a hoary Star Trek cliche at this point.

Meta: I liked Season 1 to a point, and couldn't keep watching Season 2, I thought it was so bland and bad. I basically was going to pass on Season 3, except it kept coming up in various podcasts as being something great.  Toasty had already panned it, and affirmed that this writing crew on Picard wasn't delivering what I wanted, yet those raves from elsewhere kept coming in.  I was a fan of ST:TNG so surely I would get some thrill out of this reunion, right?

I mean, yeah, I did. I enjoyed the process of getting the gang back together, and the moments of the gang being together, and even the idea of the story, a Secret Invasion-style "the aliens are hidden in plain sight" plot, is not a bad one, and it kept me watching, but it was so close to being a hate watch. Toasty was absolutely spot on with his assessment. 

To me, the most rewarding parts of the show wound up being the non TNG aspects: Captain Shaw, 7 of 9, Amanda Plummer's scenery chewing pirate... I even liked Ed Speelers as Jack Crusher, despite rolling my eyes at the sheer concept of him being Picard's son, and every single time they mentioned it or tried to force the bond between him and Patrick Stewart.

I've had great admiration for Stewart for all of my adult life. I was 11 when TNG started and so he's been a welcome presence in my life for over 30 years, but whatever Stewart is dealing with as he ages has made him pretty frail, and he can't act very well anymore. He is not in control of his actor's arsenal anymore, which would be his voice and his face. His expressions often seem out of his control and frequently seem scene inappropriate, and the quaver in his delivery has become dramatically more pronounced as the series has gone on, to the point that he doesn't seem like fierce and commanding Jean Luc Picard anymore. Aging is a bitch, and it's less delightful, more painful to see him like this.

The Flash Scale: this is a The Flash 

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KWIF: Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (+4)

KWIF is Kent's Week in Film, where each week (or so) I have a spotlight movie, of which I write a longer, thinkier piece about, and then whatever else I have watched that week I do a quick little summary of my thoughts.

This week:
Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023, d. James Mangold - in theatre)
Asteroid City (2023, d. Wes Anderson - in theatre)
J.S.A.: Joint Security Area (2000, d. Park Chan-wook, tubi)
Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance (2002, d. Park Chan-wook, plex)

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With the Mutt-tinted, jungle-vine-swinging, giant-fire-ant-crawling bar set pretty low, the latest Indiana Jones adventure delivered a far more engaging and entertaining movie than I thought possible with an octogenarian Harrison Ford. Although he does seem pretty creaky, the still dashing and far from frail-looking Ford seems to be delighted with some of his more recent co-stars, like the cast of Shrinking (most specifically young Lukita Maxwell) and definitely Phoebe Waller-Bridge. He seems to - like we all should - bask in the luminous presence of a fiery, energetic talent, absorbing their energy like rays of the sun (I haven't watched 1923, but I can only imagine he does the same with Helen Mirren).

Waller-Bridge here plays Indy's estranged goddaughter, Helena Shaw. As the film reminds us, Indy is terrible at family, and if you pay close attention to Raiders of the Lost Ark, he's kind of not a good guy, despite being the hero of the piece. Helena enters the picture as a seemingly chipper acolyte of the Indiana Jones brand, but very quickly proves that her allegiances are her own, as are her less-than altruistic intentions. She draws a mournful, self-loathing Indy out of his funk and back onto an adventure that he wouldn't otherwise survive if not for having good fortune, good friends, whip-smarts and a smart whip. 

Helena gets to be the action hero stand-in for moments where old-man Indy would otherwise seem far-fetched (and has to play the rescuer of her aged godfather on multiple occasions, not unlike Indy had to with a still robust Sean Connery back in The Last Crusade), but that does not deprived Ford of his own adventurous moments as well. Indy is definitely not "along for the ride", but the film, both in world and in a metatextual sense, is well aware Indy is not the man he used to be.

If that's a sticking point for the fans, I get it. It's painful to watch your heroes age and be sort of shadows of what they once were. One could look at Star Trek: Picard, or Rick Flair wrestling at 75, or Top Gun:Maverick (or, as a recent knock-off action figure called it, "Top Pilot Maverich"), these kind of sad attempts to recapture the boomer magic, or one's youth, or to validate ones worth as they see themselves replaced. I didn't feel that with Dial of Destiny. Mangold, with Logan, seems to understand the melancholy of aging, how to let it exist within a story without ignoring it when it nor overwhelming it. He seems to get how to present it as the flavour text of an action-adventure film. If you just don't want to see it, or dislike seeing it, that's understandable, but it is well done here.

The film opens with a cracking half hour, an end-of-war 1945 set piece that feels like prime Indiana Jones. It's a pretty satisfying short on its own. After the terrible, godawful, upsetting CGI face-swapping effects of The Flash, the deaging/deefakery of this film is pretty solid (seriously guys, we need to stop complaining about the quality of deepfaking in films, because it's just going to incentivize "them" to try and perfect it, and then we'll be in serious trouble when we can't actually tell). The alternative would be throwing Alden Ehrenreich in there (former Young Indy portrayer Sean Patrick Flannery is almost 60 now, and River Phoenix would've been 55). It's *barely* distracting, at least to me, your milage may vary.

With both Crystal Skull and Dial of Destiny I've heard heaps of complaints about going too far with the finale, as if aliens or time travel are any more fantastical or unbelievable than the wrath of god, hearts being pulled out of chests in ritualistic sacrifice, or meeting a centuries-old knight guarding they holy grail. What Dial of Destiny maybe doesn't get right is it spends too much time there, and the longer it spends the more problematic it becomes (especially from an archeological standpoint). It could have been more swift and clever but it ultimately didn't bother me in the viewing, nor in hindsight

Timing is a problem with much of the film, action sequences or set pieces do have a tendency to  overstay their welcome. There's a chase to kick off the second act that takes us through the streets of Tangier that seems to be exploring every street and alley the city has to offer. Earlier this year, Dungeons & Dragons put on a masterclass on setpiece economy, and a lot of films could stand to learn from it, this one included.

Like with the sequel trilogy of Star Wars, this film will please or displease depending on your ability to accept characters having moved past their heroic archetype mode into more complex people. If you love the Indy series from the 80's and always wished there were more adventures of the characters you love from the time when you first loved them, well, that's really not going to happen, at least not on film, and not with the performers who made the roles what they are. Is it better to let sleeping dogs lie than to watch your heroes become old and fragile, and possibly die on screen? Why are we okay with heroic sacrifice of the young in films, but seeing them age, and confront their flaws is a step too far? Does it ruin what came before to see where they wind up? Or does it just expose our own discomfort with acknowledging the years have crept up on us too? Should our escapist movies be total escapism, or can't something real, even meaningful, not slip through? 

This is a legitimately fine, enjoyable, often fun adventure movie, with sharp dialogue and John Williams giving one last horn-filled kick at the can (it's not his best or most memorable work, but it helps carry the through line of the series). Even better, it's a legitimately fine, enjoyable, often fun Indiana Jones movie that at least closes out the series with a truly beautiful moment that made me weepy.

Letting go of nostalgia, this is total middle of the road, but having seen Indy at its most offensive, middle of the road will certainly do.  I'd rank it 3rd in the series. Certainly not better that Raiders or Last Crusade, but Far less problematic than Temple of Doom, much less aggravating than Crystal Skull, and far less ridiculous than either (but with the right level of ridiculousness for an Indiana Jones movie).

The Flash Scale: better than The Flash

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Asteroid City is the new Wes Anderson movie. If you like Wes Anderson movies, there's a pretty good chance you'll like this one as well. If you despise Wes Anderson movies, this won't change your mind.

Where often an Anderson movie can dazzle with ornate imagery, full of precision details that kind of boggle the mind, the nesting-doll structure of Asteroid City with it's mid-50's setting, is much more spare but exactly as precise. In the theatre setting that frames the film, the stage is evocatively decorated, rather than built up to the nines in usual Anderson fashion, all coded perfectly to pop in black and white. In the story-within-the-story of the town of Asteroid City, it's a very orange-saturated midwestern desert landscape with not a lot to see along the vista but a few clouds and mountains.  A (puppet? stop-motion? cgi?) road-runner darts across the screen from time to time, eliciting a "meep-meep" implying this exists within a surrealist Looney Tunes environment.

The massive cast of Anderson devotees and new conscripts descend upon the town where five brainiac children who have created wild inventions of science are being given an honour from science and/or military (there's a point to be made about how often advancements in science tend to be as a result of military backing) as well as gathering to witness a unique solar phenomenon.  When that solar phenomenon attracts a strange visitor, and word leaks through the military lockdown, pandemonium happens. But that's all the story within the story. The ur-story is about the writer of "Asteroid City", his casting process, fears and triumphs, which are displayed as a stage play that surrounds the making of "Asteroid City" as a stage production itself. This tier has Bryan Cranston in a Rod Serling-esque role standing outside of it all, narrating from a distance creating yet another level of separation from the telling.

The common thread between both the story and the story within the story is the connection between characters, how they interact and relate, which is all in that expected Anderson dead-pan snappy patter. The fact that both levels are still presented as fiction seems to allow Anderson to push this rapid-fire dialogue even further away from emotional performance.  What I noticed here, and can likely be applied to most, if not all Anderson films, is everyone is forthright and honest. There's little to no inference nor subtext to the dialogue. People speak their truth in an Anderson world, which I think is what makes it so disarmingly funny, but also what Anderson haters likely rebuke.  If one were to accuse Anderson of artificiality, it's not a false accusation, it's kind of the whole point. I have to wonder if Anderson is trying to understand human emotion, or if he understands it so intimately it allows him to explore it with such dispassionate interest.

I found Asteroid City an absolute delight, full of all the usual hallmarks, but also many, many surprises. I came out of it wondering what exactly Anderson was trying to say through the artifice and still have no idea. But I have no problem just enjoying what is presented at face value, and maybe, upon repeat viewings, it will unveil itself.

The Flash Scale: you better believe it's better than The Flash

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Being a comic book nerd, I took notice of J.S.A many many years ago, because to me "J.S.A." means "Justice Society of America", the original superhero team from the golden age of comics. Here, "J.S.A." means "Joint Security Area" as in the bordering area between North and South Korea where each side have their own military police, but the location is administered by United Nations Command.  Not quite the same thing.

I don't think I ever knew, until quite recently, that J.S.A.: Joint Security Area was a Park Chan-wook film, nor did I have any concept of what the film was about. I knew it was a record-setting film from South Korea, but I gauged that film against the typical American blockbuster, which is my own dumb bias. The poster/DVD cover looked pretty drably like S.W.A.T. or some other cliched police action drama, so I never bothered to explore what the film was actually about.

Turns out its a fascinating dramatic tragedy about cross-zone agents from both sides who wind up becoming incredible friends, but can't ever seem to fully shake the conditioning that each of their respective governments have instilled in them about the "other side". Eventually they are discovered, and an incident erupts.  This brings in neutral forces from the U.N. to investigate the incident.  

The film opens with Lee Young-ae's Swiss-born, but of Korean descent, Major Sophie E. Jean as she starts her investigation, with persons of interest on both side of the border having delivered clearly fabricated, conflicting reports of the incident.  Sophie's investigation takes up the first act of the film, but is almost an extended red herring as to what the film is actually going to be.  Where we think it's to be some form of investigative procedural, the second act backtracks to the beginning and through the development of the friendships between the North and South Korean men, and then the third act is largely about the incident, and how the fallout impacts the men, as viewed through Sophie's eyes.

It's a surprisingly delicate story that ponders the complicated history between the Koreas, and really wants to assess how the two countries view each other. The point, I think, is to portray both sides as human, and not as something "other".  I don't know that the procedural element of it is fully necessary, and, aside from providing some key history about the post-war division tied to Sophie's origins, I don't think it contributed much.  But, overall, a captivating, enlightening, and heartbreaking film, though light on the visual flourishes that would become benchmarks of Park's directorial style.

The Flash Scale: better better than The Flash

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Park had done two poorly-received films prior to J.S.A. which caused him to quit directing for a time (during which he returned to film criticism).  The success of J.S.A. really bolstered his confidence and boosted his career, and led him into the torturous revenge dramas that would come to be known as his "Vengeance Trilogy".

Old Boy is Park's most famous film (in North America, at least), the one that crossed over, and Lady Vengeance is seen as the, let's say... enjoyable one of the trilogy, but Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance really set the tone for what Park's career would become. It's clear from J.S.A. and Sympathy that Park is really fascinated by tragedy, and while J.S.A. takes it very, very seriously, Sympathy is a whole different beast altogether.

The "Mr. Vengeance" of the title isn't a single individual. The story of the film is a two sided coin, always connected but one side cannot see the other. The first side finds Ryu (Shin Ha-kyun), a deaf-mute factory worker laid off just as he's trying to save his ailing sister with a necessary kidney transplant. Ryu is not a match, and so he "trades" his liver for another, only to wake up post-surgery to find he's scammed. Ryu's anti-capitalist, revolutionary girlfriend, Yeong-mi (Sens8's Bae Doona) convinces him to kidnap his ex-boss's daughter, with the promise that they won't be evil kidnappers but to have the child love hanging out with them.  Without saying too much, things don't go well. 

The flipping point finds the boss, played by the impeccable Song Kang-ho (also from J.S.A. and Oscar-winner for Parasite) out on his own mission of vengeance against the Ryu and Yeong-mi, with its own disastrous consequences.

It's all just a pile-on of misfortune and misery, but it's (attempted at least) to be tempered with an exceptionally irreverent sense of humour throughout. This would be devastatingly funny if director Park weren't so good at elevating the tragedy out of the surreal. As is, it's too painful to laugh.  It's a visually stunning picture, with shot composition and colour sense that still seem utterly unique 20 years later.  Park is clearly criticizing the health care system in South Korea with this film, as well as satirizing its capitalistic nature. It's clear he's not a fan of either, but without more knowledge, I'm not well versed on the true impact of the critique, except to say that I felt it.

I didn't like watching this movie, I found it challenging to enjoy, but it's so purposeful and well crafted that  it's really, really hard to dislike, and impossible to dismiss.

The Flash Scale: can't really even be put in the same conversation as The Flash. It's like comparing apples to The Flash.

What I Have Been Watching: Back to the TV - Pt C

 What I Have Been (or Am) Watching is from The Domein of Toast, he (i) admittedly spending too much (almost all?) time in front of the TV. Kent's not stepping on toests but yeah, he (me) has a piles of TV shows in progress (and done) and maybe doesn't have has too much to say about it.

Pt. A is here. And Pt B is there. 

The finished.

Tales of the Walking Dead, 2022, AMC+

I stopped watching The Walking Dead after a single episode left me despondent. Yes, it was that episode in Season 9, Episode 15, a climax in the Whisperer's storyline, as adapted from the comics. I just found it all so unnecessary, it surpassing even my immense capacity for bleakness. I have many times been tempted to pick it up again, but always refrain, as I know it will treat me badly again.

But a contained series of short stories unrelated to the other series but in shared world? I am always up for anthologies!

mid-writing insert -- I am thinking your 1-1-1 format works really well for anthology commentary where you need to get it out, but might not have a lot to say, as I often do not.

Evie/Joe begins with Joe (Terry Crews, Brooklyn 99), a prepper who was ready for the zombie apocalypse, who finally reaches his limit of solitude, and decides to make the 700 mile trek to meet face to face with another prepper whom he kept in contact with, while it was possible. Joe is not good with people, but he was good with her, so off he goes. And then he bumps into Evie (Olivia Munn, X-Men: Apocalypse), whom he is very not good with.

Its a road story, a dialogue between two contentious people, which is helped along because they are such recognizable faces. Its funny and its touching, and sets the tone for what this series wants to be - to approach living in this apocalyptic world, and how it affects people, without all the dramatic baggage of the main series. In the end both of them arrive at their destinations, neither gets what the expected or wanted, but maybe they found something better, in each other.

Meh. Good summary, but it doesn't actually SAY anything about the episode. What really makes the ep is how different the two characters are. Joe is paranoid, anti-social and defensive while Evie still somehow remains upbeat and positive, almost hippie dippie, despite all that is going on. And yet both of these traits are walls the pair need to maintain to keep sane.

Blair/Gina is probably the best of the lot, but I am biased because its a Loopty Loo! No, they don't try and explain the why or  how a time-loop connects to the Zombie Apocalypse but it does have a trigger, and it does have a break, and that's all that matters. 

Blair and Gina work together; technically, Blair (Parker Posey, Lost in Space) is Gina's (Jillian Bell, Workaholics) asshole boss. Despite hating each other, the two are tied together at the start of the Zombie Apocalypse, with each loop ending in their deaths. Once they stop trying to kill the other, they try to figure out how to not only move forward but perhaps even end the loops. Dark comedy was not something I expected the bleak zombie series to riff off.

I skipped over Dee because I wasn't interested in revisiting what made me quit the main series (The Whisperers storyline). You are allowed to not watch things.

Amy/Dr. Everett must be set at some future time in the world of the Walking Dead for it centres around a Dead Sector, a large swath of land surrounded by a trench where the dead walk but humans are not allowed. So, that implies outside the sector there are ... fewer walkers? Anywayz, Dr. Everett (Anthony Edwards, Top Gun) is a reclusive scientist in a (the?) zone, studying tagged & tracked walkers. Things must be bad outside the sectors because Amy (Poppy Liu, Sunnyside) is part of a group that has decided to live in this one, despite the dangers. She needs help after losing contact with her friends, is rescued by Everett, but he would prefer she just piss off.

Its a story about loss and dedication, isolation and madness. Amy thinks Everett should reconnect with the world, connect with her people in their makeshift camp of tents, camper vans and trailers. Alas, the walkers have other ideas...

Davon is built around the idea that he wakes up with no memory of how he got where he is, in a village that seems surprisingly walker-free but also disconnected from reality. He (Jessie T Usher, The Boys) has a head injury but is unsure how he got it. And the villagers are just weird, dressed almost period, speaking French, but the village itself seems to be normal suburban homes. The episode has an eerie Outer Limits feel to it, otherworldly and disjointed, which tracks with a head injury. It is part murder mystery, part horror movie.

Its not worth going through the details of the story, given it is about revealing. Why does he have a head injury, why was he in the village to begin with, why is handcuffed to a zombie who doesn't try to bite him and whispers words to him? So many questions appear only to dissipate as his head clears. Its typical of horror anthology episodes and works decently enough, with some fun easter eggs for The Walking Dead universe.

And the final note is La Doña, a haunted house story.

TWD fans probably hated this, as it adds proper supernatural elements to their vague universe of "it's not about zombies, it's about people!" conceit. Idalia (Daniella Pineda, Cowboy Beebop) and Eric (Danny Ramirez, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier) are running from the dead, as all good people in TWD are, and come across the well protected house of La Doña Alman (Julie Carmen, In the Mouth of Madness). They are not welcome, nor does Idalia want to be there, as she's heard stories of the house and the woman who owns it. But Eric has to have his way.

The two are haunted, both literally and metaphorically, as the house and the spirit of its owner tries to drive them from it. Finally, it has its way.

As a series, I had hoped it would explore the world of the TWD universe more, giving us stories that expanded on things happening elsewhere, but for the most part, exploring other types of stories in that universe was.... well, as TWD universe stories are, only mildly satisfying and often frustrating.

American Born Chinese, 2023, Disney+

Of note, I had to correct what I had titled this, previously Chinese Born American, which would be an entirely different, but similar identity issue.

One of the most fun things we watched this year. And that it comes on the heels of Everything Everywhere All At Once is purely intentional, and I love that it makes use of the cast while also addressing some of the challenges Asian Americans still live with living and working in America.

Jin Wang (Ben Wang, Chang Can Dunk) is a typical American teenager dealing with identity, bullies, crushes and the new "exchange student" who happens to be the son of the Monkey King. Wei-Chen (Jimmy Liu, Light the Night) is hiding out on Earth looking for a mythical Fourth Scroll to assist his father against the rebellious Demon Bull, who's pissed at Monkey King for stealing his thunder all those years ago. He is supported by goddess Guanyin (Michelle Yeoh, Tomorrow Never Dies) and is convinced that Jin is destined to help him.

The show navigates the avenues between the action-comedy of the Monkey King story and Jin's family & school life brilliantly, with background commentary of a returning sitcom from the 90s called Beyond Repair about cliche Asian Freddy Wong (Ke Huy Quan, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom). The actor Quan plays mirrors his own real life, and Jin is desperate to not be the joke his character was, and just wants to Fit In.

Pacing, acting, action sequences and the balancing of heart-felt stories was just brilliant here. I am not sure how close it followed the graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang, but I suspect it was severely condensed. The Ke Huy Quan story thread did seem a little inserted, especially the exposition that obviously drew from his own real life story (he left acting because he was only getting one type of role), but it just felt.... necessary and important.

Chemistry of  Death, 2023, Paramount+

The bleakness of British crime drama of late is disappointing (to you, cuz the market just laps it up). I think I would prefer more procedural Death in Paradise than Broadchurch which is interesting, because all those years ago when I began searching for interesting crime drama from the UK, it was the hard hitting series I searched for. But I think the depressing nature of these "single theme to a show" series that finally got to me. At least Luther still had episode to episode investigations, for the most part. 

Again based on a novel series, by Simon Beckett, we are introduced to David Hunter (Harry Treadaway, Star Trek: Picard), a forensic pathologist who escapes to rural Norfolk after a deeply traumatizing personal tragedy, where he works assisting a simple country doctor. But he cannot escape death and is asked to help investigate a local murder which, of course, goes down a dark rabbit hole, revealing a long darkness in his seemingly quiet community.

The first investigation is followed by him being asked to travel to the Outer Hebrides to assist in another death investigation, to find out if the burnt remains of a young woman were accidental or murder. Yes, murder, yes another rabbit hole. Yes, bleak underbelly of isolated rural communities. Yes, tragedy abounds and one death leads to more leading to a darkness he seemingly cannot escape.

All the while the series is only hinting at what happened to him. His wife died, his child died. But was it an accident? Or at his wife's hands? Or at his own hands? We never find out.

Satisfying acting, brilliant settings but please provide an uplifting Murder of the Week next time, please?

Rabbit/Hole, 2023, CBS

Oh look, a Kiefer Sutherland thriller shot in Toronto! Oh look, there's a TTC bus in the background! Oh look, there's a place on Queen W I recognize! Alas, its not set in Toronto. We will leave that to the Star Trek: Strange New Worlds episode.

Sutherland (24) is John Weir, a ... corporate fixer? Freelance business espionage expert? Professional Ruiner of Lives? His exact job defies easy description but he runs a small company of people adept at manipulating situations, changing perceptions of reality in order to change outcomes. Being investigated by the SEC ? Why not set up a row of dominoes wherein the SEC agent doing the investigation is caught on camera seemingly accepting a bribe. Doesn't matter he didn't nor that there's no evidence he did, as long as the public perceives he did, it will change the validity of his investigation.

Except his own methods are turned against him and he is framed for murdering his own team. This begins a twisting serpentine tale against a shadowy enemy who is literally out to control the world. Weir's supposedly dead dad (Charles Dance, A Game of Thrones), once a CIA agent after the shadowy enemy, is mixed up in it all so Weir has to work with him despite hating the man with unmitigated passion. It doesn't help that Weir is a broken man, caused partially by his father's faked suicide during his childhood AND the recent suicide of his best friend, all part of The Conspiracy.

This show quadruples down on the deception and misdirection often leading us to question each scene and the outcome of each episode. Nothing is What It Seems is too mild a term for what the show wants us to believe. Its somewhat successful, and unlike many other shows going this way, it actually does pull everything (well, most) threads together. And Sutherland is ... well, his own type-cast character, but still does it wonderfully.

The Muppets Mayhem, 2023, Disney+

Muppets shows since the 70s success are a grab bag of quality. I thought, at first, it was because they tried to tie Story to the comedy and gags and funny characters, based on the success of the movies, wherein I enjoyed the one-liners and intentional Vaudevillian comedy. But even a later rendition of "variety show" did not do so well, and that is probably because nobody really knows what variety shows are now, at least in English North America. Last I checked, they were still popular in Quebec. But in American and English Canada, the concept was already dying out when Muppets: TOS started.

When this limited series started, I was somewhat turned off by the story, the gimmicky, "let's get the band to record an album" focus on Doctor Teeth and the Electric Mayhem. They were never my favourite buncha muppets, but I get that its a decent plot to hang a series on. But as more and more episodes went by, I found myself chuckling more and more and even guffawing a few times. Its not the story that matters, nor the humans involved, but as long as they sink enough of the one-liners and gags, I was satisfied with it, as a muppet show.

Oh, the humans. Lily Singh (A Little Late with Lilly Singh) stars as the "record label exec" (not quite) trying to get them to record. Taj Mowry (Baby Daddy) is the band's superfan. And there are a ton of celeb cameos because what would the Muppets be without celebrities pretending they are real.

Wait, dude, they aren't real?

Mrs Davis, 2023, Peacock

O... M... G... This will be in my top 5 for the year, a totally WTF, funny series about destiny and AI and religion and spirituality. To summarize it will not do it justice, but can be a whole lot of fucking fun anyway. 

So, a nun named Simone (Betty Gilpin, GLOW) living at a strawberry jam making convent is tasked by Jesus Christ (Andy McQueen, Coroner), who runs an other-worldly diner, to deal with an emerging AI, calling itself Mrs. Davis (in the US), which is ... well, taking over the world. Assisted by a child hood friend (Jake McDorman, Limitless) who happens to be working for a covert organization of extremely macho, but not toxic, men also tasked with taking down Mrs Davis, she also comes to learn of a group of women who care for the Holy Grail, which happens to be semi-sentient and demands to be shown to the world. These women are assisted by men with aprons. Mrs Davis makes a deal with Simone, that she will turn herself off, if Simone destroys the Holy Grail. Simone is also dealing with her traumatic upbringing by a pair of grifting Vegas-style magicians. She witnessed her father (David Arquette, Scream) die in a horrific Houdini act, and her mother (Elizabeth Marvel, House of Cards) refuses to believe it was real, and blames Simone for being in on it. Meanwhile the Grail has actually been swapped out with a fake, the real one eaten by a whale. Also, Simone is actually married to "J", like literally, doing all the normal husband & wife stuff (y'know, sex), and that's sort of complicated as he is Jesus, and Jesus loves EVERYONE.... biblically. Eventually they do find the Grail, understand its origins and .... well, go watch ! Because, there is also a great TV commercial for British Knights sneakers, a sweet scene about a man finding his wife's piano, a heist episode, a rollercoaster of death, a "keep your hands on the car" contest but with a giant representation of Excalibur, and a conspiracy involving The Pope.

Almost every episode is a WTF episode, and some are almost entirely WTF. Even the characters begin to catch on to the gonzo style uttering their own WTFs as new stuff is revealed. In standard Lindelof style, he likes to introduce more questions than answers, but honestly, in this utterly bonkers context, its a perfect choice. And I loved every moment of it.

What I Have Been Watching: Back to the TV - Pt A

What I Have Been (or Am) Watching is from The Domein of Toast, he (i) admittedly spending too much (almost all?) time in front of the TV. Kent's not stepping on toests but yeah, he (me) has a piles of TV shows in progress and maybe doesn't have has too much to say about it.

So say we all.

Inspired by Kent's last (TV) post, I am returning to Writing About TV. The last time I did was back in 2022 with one which was already a collection of the ancient past. I imagine I will miss a few, but I will do my best to actually curtail the rambling (and even the mumbling of this louder, second italics voice; third voice replies, "why curtail? why not embrace?").

Picard S03, 2023, Paramount+

Or better known as Star Trek: The Next Generation S08. Despite originally giving a strong attempt to do something new and fresh, albeit with a heavy dose of nostalgic referential material, the Picard series gives up any pretense and goes all-in on simping for the fanboys (ooooo look at Toast using the "fellow kids" language). This season brings back the entire bridge crew, minus Wesley who got his ten seconds last season. Even Ro Laren gets her ten seconds. 

TBH I hated how much TOS ended up relying on its aging cast, and despite hitting that age myself, I am just not interested in seeing doddering old fuddy duddies saving the galaxy. But as we already said, the series has dispensed pretending its not just another season of an older, beloved series. There is no way this is Picard at 96, because NOBODY in the cast looks that old, even if the Federation has made growing older more graceful. And this season pretty much ignores that he is a synth, but for one comment. That said, the cast does pull it off for the most part, and this show does not smack of Fat Kirk as the movies did.

This season finally answers the question of whether Picard and Beverly ever Got It On. They did, they had a son, she abandoned Star Fleet and didn't even tell JL about the kid. Its now twenty-odd years later and the kid & his mom are being chased by the spiritual successor to Romulan Nero from the Chris Pine movies (big, spiky spaceship, loves monologuing, mat as a hatter). She drags Picard into it, and he drags Riker and a few others into it. AND Rafi is already mixed up in something for Starfleet Security, which we know will end up tying to Picard's story.

If the Mission Impossible movies are always about the IMF being disavowed, and then reinstated, this series is about Picard needing Starfleet to help him with something, being told to go fuck himself, and he absconding with the resources anyway. I know they lampshade it (oooo Toast learned a new literary term and just had to find a way to use it) but you would think his status in saving the galaxy a hand full of times would give him no end of people lining up to offer him help.

Anywayz, Bad Guys are Changelings and Borg, but annoyingly and strangely enough, NOT Agnes Jurati and her new Kinder Nicer Borg Queen Amalgam. The season forgets about that endeavour completely and just brings back the original Borg Queen, voiced by Alice Krige -- RIP Annie Wersching. She pulls off her own Borg: The Next Generation and uses all the young folk of Star Fleet to attack Earth. Now THIS would have been the perfect opportunity to fan-boy even more, having a whole BUNCH of aging, but fondly remembered, secondary cast members appear on screen briefly stating, "We've successfully fought off our grandchildren and taken back our ships!!" Alas.

And Picard as Loving Dad saves the day (rolls eyes).

Nice to see Worf still pining for Deanna. 

Ted Lasso S03, AppleTV+

Season Three in a three season arc show, that has been very loud about its intent to come, to impress, and to go. So, what will they give us this season? Of course, we need a Redemption Arc for Nate, but ... what else? Maybe they can finally.... win? Well, so many episodes in and Not Yet.

At this point in the series, I am no longer seeing it as A Whole, but as individual episodes and points in each episode. Its not so much about Ted anymore, which is always expected from later seasons in shows named for a character. Some stories I care about (Rebecca's, Keeley's), some I don't (Ted's, Nate's) and some, I am just enjoying the progression of the character (Jamie's, Ted's). There are touching moments, and heart breaking moments, and funny moments, but nothing is truly all tied together like Season One.

But I will still keep watching.

The Mandalorian S03, Disney+

Feel the same here?

Grogu didn't become a Jedi, so he is back with Mando (why DOESN'T anyone call him Manda? *snicker*)  and Mando has set his sites on his own redemption, in the eyes of the cadre. So, that means a trip to Mandalore. Admittedly, I am constantly reminding myself, having not seen all the interstitial shows that this one draws upon for lore, that the death of the planet of Mandalore was not thousands of years ago. Not sure why that idea is cemented in my head... So yeah, Mando is off the planet bombed into green glass to find forgiveness for taking his helmet off.

And along the way, he brings along Bo Katan, who has lost face in the eyes (weird turn of phrase?) of her own cadre, having lost the Black Sabre to Mando. But, you know, it all works out. This season will be all about things working themselves out, tying up some loose ends, and ... kicking your feet up?!?!

Again, when a first season was soooo fucking distinctive, and the follow up, lesser so (but with it's incredible moments) I am not sure I can expect much more than Just Enjoying It for a third season. Hopefully they will kick it into higher gear for coming seasons? No. More. Resting. On. Laurels. Please?

Will Trent, S01, ABC

Every season, we hope to find a new, light procedural. Again, you ask, what do you mean by light? As in not a dark, heavy, gloomy procedural that is primarily about something horrible happening, usually via a single story, full season. I want something with crimes to solve, interesting characters, and a bit of humour. This was this season's.

Will Trent, of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (state agency as opposed to Federal) and is, as expected, a bit of an odd ball. He grew up in the foster care system and was extremely abused. But he pulled himself up by his tweed suits and earth tone ties to become the best investigator in the state. With a hidden dyslexia, which he supplements by talking through cases into a cassette audio recorder, he annoys other investigators, as well as the entirety of local Atlanta police forces, primarily because he also brought down a beloved Police Chief for corruption.

Its another cop show based on another book series, this time by Karin Slaughter. Its doing exactly what I wanted it to do, but not any more than that. I am still looking for my next Longmire.