"Spectre" Review (Spoilers)
Also reviews for the latest episodes of The Mandalorian, The Wonderful World Of Mickey Mouse, and Teen Titans Go!, and the season final of Power Rangers Beast Morphers.
Spectre
Positive impression. I liked it much more more than Casino Royale, but not as much as Skyfall. About the same level of Quantum Of Solace for me.
I had a couple of frustrations, and this is me being a Bond newbie. But I don't like how the reboot always plays jokes about never doing things the way Bond movies are supposed to. Q's gadgets either don't work, or are completely underwhelming when he introduces them. Bond finally gets his "Shaken not stirred" line but the place doesn't even serve alcohol. Maybe Bond fans have had enough of that stuff, but I'm coming to this fresh, and I'm annoyed I'm not getting it. It's supposed to be the selling point of the franchise. It was okay to subvert that in the first reboot. But by this time I think we've kind of earned the old standbys, especially considering because of Skyfall's unprecedented success the franchise has a LOT more new and tentative fans than it used to. WHY not give us the whole experience? The movie was the perfect opportunity to be the selling point of James Bond's future. Why do the producers still shy away from the famous stuff?
Do you know what line I would have given M after he looks down upon C's broken body after pushing him out the window? "That's gonna require some paperwork." Maybe that would have been a dumb and obvious joke, but it's clear he's thinking it, so he might as well have said it.
I liked the moment earlier in the movie where M tells C how serious it is to take a life and how careful an agent must be. Somehow I don't think Bond is ever as disciplined as M is suggesting 00 Agents need to be.
I am unsure of the idea that Blofeld was behind everything bad happening in the first three movies. As far as retcons go, it might actually fit. But it might not. My problem is that I doubt it was the plan from the beginning. This take on the character has had a couple of different writers and directors. Even if the writers of Casino Royale planned to get to Blofeld down the line, I'm not sure they envisioned making Blofeld such a personal menace to Bond the entire time. But I could be wrong.
Blofeld being Bond's brother was NOT set up at all and was actually quite confusing. The timeline doesn't add up from Skyfall.
Was this a bit of redemption for Mr. White? I don't actually object to that at all.
Here is where the PG-13 rating starts to become a handicap. Hinx popping out that guy's eyes is barely allowed to be suggested (although broadcast television would let a more explicit eye pop air during primetime on a TV-14 rating) and when Hinx snaps the dude's neck, we aren't actually allowed to hear the pop. Here is an opinion: If they weren't allowed to show or suggest those things properly, maybe it would have been a better idea to come up with something else. I like PG-13 movies. What I don't like are PG-13 movie that accidentally reveal themselves to be PG-13 movies through the editing. Less blood and violence is good for me (I'm squeamish). But producers also need to take care that things also don't feel watered down. Do what you can with the rating, and leave the stuff you can't for a Blu-Ray director's cut.
I still liked it. A lot of fun. ****.
The Mandalorian "Chapter 15 "The Believer"
That was absolute dynamite. This was a turning point. I see the show entirely differently after seeing this. Before this episode I believed The Mandalorian to be a great Star Wars TV show. Now I believe it is a great TV show period. It's transcended and even surpassed the franchise with that.
One of the reasons I disliked Lucas' Star Wars tenure was its black and white view of morality, mostly preached by characters who behaved hypocritically or entirely against the values they were trying to sell to their gullible pupils. It enraged me at various points, and that's why I responded to the more nuanced Sequel Trilogy far more positively than most other Star Wars viewers. I can't even call myself a fan back then, because I didn't actually LIKE the franchise too much until The Force Awakens.
But Mayfeld was a pretty despicable character in his first appearance. I liked him questioning the logic here of when it's okay for Mando to remove his helmet. And when Mando uncovers his face in pure desperation I am very rewarded that Mayfeld doesn't sort of psychologically hold it over his head. He tells him it never happened and he'll forget about it.
I am very well aware and reminded how forcefully Mando believes in not only never removing the armor, but never revealing his face either. It is his most sacred creed, and what he did brought great private shame to him. Mayfeld saying "You did what you had to do," has extra resonance because of Mando's message to Gideon about how much the Child means to him. He literally did the last thing in the world he ever wanted to do to save Grogu. And I love and admire him for it.
That fight on the caravan was bananas, and I can't imagine how they pulled something like that off, much less in the middle of a global pandemic. That knocked my socks off.
Speaking of which, this is the first time I have ever been happy to see Empire fighters and Stormtroopers. The episode sort of reveled in how unusual it was for the audience to feel like they were saving the day.
The creepy Southern General's stuff with Mayfeld was great because it again explored issues of right and wrong, and the morality of war when the innocent civilians all around the fighters suffer for it. And Mayfeld has unforeseen nuance and nobility for arguing what he does, with who, and when he does it. Shooting him was the only way that conversation SHOULD have ended, and I think it took everyone else by such surprise they weren't even sure how to respond until it was too late. Which is when Mando and Mayfeld shot 'em all.
This is the first episode in which the Child doesn't appear. It's very strange that this is also the best episode so far since he is arguably the best part of the show.
Anyone who tells me Disney ruined Star Wars just does not have credibility with me. This show is amazing and I think it's entirely consistent with the kinds of messages the Sequel Trilogy was sending. I love it very much and I feel like that was the best piece of television I've seen in awhile. *****.
The Wonderful World Of Mickey Mouse "The Brave Little Squire"
I love me some super happy endings.
Good use of Mortimer.
I liked Joanna Lumley as the Narrator.
Mad Madame Mim cameo.
I like the end credits music.
Fun! ****1/2.
The Wonderful World Of Mickey Mouse "An Ordinary Date"
Not feeling it.
If the Cockney birds can talk, why are they being treated like pets? The waiter being a bird didn't help my confusion.
I could have lived without seeing Clarabelle smack Daisy with one of her udders.
I liked Goofy forgetting his line and that he's not actually supposed to know what Daisy said.
The animation as the fireworks went off while Mickey and Minnie were rushing to escape the restaurant WAS pretty great.
Didn't love it. **1/2.
Teen Titans Go! "The Cast"
Robin is pretty much the most ineffective crimefighter ever. Plus he spoils surprise parties so you know he sucks.
Every crimefighter needs a whale launcher. Because you can never be too careful these days.
I love Raven nonchalantly telling Robin to put all of his weight on his leg. "Did it hurt?" Love that girl.
I also love that Beast Boy smooshes the telescope eyehole into his eyeball when he looks through it. Because he is super dumb.
That was sort of funny. ***1/2.
Power Rangers Beast Morphers "Evox Unleashed"
Oh, God, return of the dance number! It's too bad because until then it was an all right send-off.
It's the last episode. No reason not to suggest Ben and Betty are professional with an extra year of training in them.
The proper line for Zoe's Mom upon her removing the helmet would have been "That explains a LOT!"
Steel becoming human was a bit of a wish fulfillment for the resident Pinocchio. But it wasn't handled perfectly. Either they should have hired his voice actor to play the human, or they should have had the kid they hired use his own voice. It feels very fake that they tried to do both.
I was sort of on-board until the dance number simply made me throw up my hands and say "Good riddance". **1/2.
Spectre
Positive impression. I liked it much more more than Casino Royale, but not as much as Skyfall. About the same level of Quantum Of Solace for me.
I had a couple of frustrations, and this is me being a Bond newbie. But I don't like how the reboot always plays jokes about never doing things the way Bond movies are supposed to. Q's gadgets either don't work, or are completely underwhelming when he introduces them. Bond finally gets his "Shaken not stirred" line but the place doesn't even serve alcohol. Maybe Bond fans have had enough of that stuff, but I'm coming to this fresh, and I'm annoyed I'm not getting it. It's supposed to be the selling point of the franchise. It was okay to subvert that in the first reboot. But by this time I think we've kind of earned the old standbys, especially considering because of Skyfall's unprecedented success the franchise has a LOT more new and tentative fans than it used to. WHY not give us the whole experience? The movie was the perfect opportunity to be the selling point of James Bond's future. Why do the producers still shy away from the famous stuff?
Do you know what line I would have given M after he looks down upon C's broken body after pushing him out the window? "That's gonna require some paperwork." Maybe that would have been a dumb and obvious joke, but it's clear he's thinking it, so he might as well have said it.
I liked the moment earlier in the movie where M tells C how serious it is to take a life and how careful an agent must be. Somehow I don't think Bond is ever as disciplined as M is suggesting 00 Agents need to be.
I am unsure of the idea that Blofeld was behind everything bad happening in the first three movies. As far as retcons go, it might actually fit. But it might not. My problem is that I doubt it was the plan from the beginning. This take on the character has had a couple of different writers and directors. Even if the writers of Casino Royale planned to get to Blofeld down the line, I'm not sure they envisioned making Blofeld such a personal menace to Bond the entire time. But I could be wrong.
Blofeld being Bond's brother was NOT set up at all and was actually quite confusing. The timeline doesn't add up from Skyfall.
Was this a bit of redemption for Mr. White? I don't actually object to that at all.
Here is where the PG-13 rating starts to become a handicap. Hinx popping out that guy's eyes is barely allowed to be suggested (although broadcast television would let a more explicit eye pop air during primetime on a TV-14 rating) and when Hinx snaps the dude's neck, we aren't actually allowed to hear the pop. Here is an opinion: If they weren't allowed to show or suggest those things properly, maybe it would have been a better idea to come up with something else. I like PG-13 movies. What I don't like are PG-13 movie that accidentally reveal themselves to be PG-13 movies through the editing. Less blood and violence is good for me (I'm squeamish). But producers also need to take care that things also don't feel watered down. Do what you can with the rating, and leave the stuff you can't for a Blu-Ray director's cut.
I still liked it. A lot of fun. ****.
The Mandalorian "Chapter 15 "The Believer"
That was absolute dynamite. This was a turning point. I see the show entirely differently after seeing this. Before this episode I believed The Mandalorian to be a great Star Wars TV show. Now I believe it is a great TV show period. It's transcended and even surpassed the franchise with that.
One of the reasons I disliked Lucas' Star Wars tenure was its black and white view of morality, mostly preached by characters who behaved hypocritically or entirely against the values they were trying to sell to their gullible pupils. It enraged me at various points, and that's why I responded to the more nuanced Sequel Trilogy far more positively than most other Star Wars viewers. I can't even call myself a fan back then, because I didn't actually LIKE the franchise too much until The Force Awakens.
But Mayfeld was a pretty despicable character in his first appearance. I liked him questioning the logic here of when it's okay for Mando to remove his helmet. And when Mando uncovers his face in pure desperation I am very rewarded that Mayfeld doesn't sort of psychologically hold it over his head. He tells him it never happened and he'll forget about it.
I am very well aware and reminded how forcefully Mando believes in not only never removing the armor, but never revealing his face either. It is his most sacred creed, and what he did brought great private shame to him. Mayfeld saying "You did what you had to do," has extra resonance because of Mando's message to Gideon about how much the Child means to him. He literally did the last thing in the world he ever wanted to do to save Grogu. And I love and admire him for it.
That fight on the caravan was bananas, and I can't imagine how they pulled something like that off, much less in the middle of a global pandemic. That knocked my socks off.
Speaking of which, this is the first time I have ever been happy to see Empire fighters and Stormtroopers. The episode sort of reveled in how unusual it was for the audience to feel like they were saving the day.
The creepy Southern General's stuff with Mayfeld was great because it again explored issues of right and wrong, and the morality of war when the innocent civilians all around the fighters suffer for it. And Mayfeld has unforeseen nuance and nobility for arguing what he does, with who, and when he does it. Shooting him was the only way that conversation SHOULD have ended, and I think it took everyone else by such surprise they weren't even sure how to respond until it was too late. Which is when Mando and Mayfeld shot 'em all.
This is the first episode in which the Child doesn't appear. It's very strange that this is also the best episode so far since he is arguably the best part of the show.
Anyone who tells me Disney ruined Star Wars just does not have credibility with me. This show is amazing and I think it's entirely consistent with the kinds of messages the Sequel Trilogy was sending. I love it very much and I feel like that was the best piece of television I've seen in awhile. *****.
The Wonderful World Of Mickey Mouse "The Brave Little Squire"
I love me some super happy endings.
Good use of Mortimer.
I liked Joanna Lumley as the Narrator.
Mad Madame Mim cameo.
I like the end credits music.
Fun! ****1/2.
The Wonderful World Of Mickey Mouse "An Ordinary Date"
Not feeling it.
If the Cockney birds can talk, why are they being treated like pets? The waiter being a bird didn't help my confusion.
I could have lived without seeing Clarabelle smack Daisy with one of her udders.
I liked Goofy forgetting his line and that he's not actually supposed to know what Daisy said.
The animation as the fireworks went off while Mickey and Minnie were rushing to escape the restaurant WAS pretty great.
Didn't love it. **1/2.
Teen Titans Go! "The Cast"
Robin is pretty much the most ineffective crimefighter ever. Plus he spoils surprise parties so you know he sucks.
Every crimefighter needs a whale launcher. Because you can never be too careful these days.
I love Raven nonchalantly telling Robin to put all of his weight on his leg. "Did it hurt?" Love that girl.
I also love that Beast Boy smooshes the telescope eyehole into his eyeball when he looks through it. Because he is super dumb.
That was sort of funny. ***1/2.
Power Rangers Beast Morphers "Evox Unleashed"
Oh, God, return of the dance number! It's too bad because until then it was an all right send-off.
It's the last episode. No reason not to suggest Ben and Betty are professional with an extra year of training in them.
The proper line for Zoe's Mom upon her removing the helmet would have been "That explains a LOT!"
Steel becoming human was a bit of a wish fulfillment for the resident Pinocchio. But it wasn't handled perfectly. Either they should have hired his voice actor to play the human, or they should have had the kid they hired use his own voice. It feels very fake that they tried to do both.
I was sort of on-board until the dance number simply made me throw up my hands and say "Good riddance". **1/2.