DC TV Weekly #42

Legends of Tomorrow 'Guest Starring John Noble' Review
Well that episode was all over the place...but kinda in a good way. I'm starting to understand why they gave it such a meta title because really there's no one plot to focus on, if anything this feels like three episodes all shoved together, but all of them are equally good. We've got Grodd, an evil psychic gorilla travel back in time to kill a young Barack Obama, and honestly that one sentence is the most Legends of Tomorrow thing that can be said, it's insane, it's goofy and it's fun as all hell. Then we have Amaya going back to save her village, leading to some good character development for her and Nata, also makes me think this might be Amaya's last season. Then finally we have Damien Darhk working with the Legends to prevent Mallus from escaping, giving us a lot of plot development. Three good plots achieving three different things, unfortunately each one is far too short to leave the impact it should do. The Obama stuff is fun but far too short, Damien's sudden but inevitable betrayal happens too fast, and Amaya's stuff...actually turned out pretty well, but to be fair they've been building it up all season. Some other things worth pointing out: I don't know why but I find it hilarious that Mick is a fan of Lord of the Rings, the cgi and fight during the Esi/Grodd throwdown was awful, yet again Wally is still getting underutilised because really the dude could solve all these problems in a literal millisecond. 7/10.

Black Lightning 'Black Jesus: The Book of Crucifixion' Review
Guys, seriously, you're really pushing it with the whole no one knows Jefferson is Black Lightning thing. His disguise is a terrible disguise that we only accept because superhero logic, when you draw attention to it, it makes it worse. At least this episode created someone of a loophole for them, people seeing Black Lightning when Jefferson is clearly in a different location so they can somewhat get away with it. But when your show specifically points out all the very obvious evidence to suggest Jefferson is Black Lightning, it means you're just not trying hard enough to hide it. Some positives on the other hand, it's nice seeing Henderson get some more development outside of just being the cop friend of Black Lightning. Well, technically it is still around him being a cop, but actually developing him into doing some actual police work and coming into his own obstacles. Also the Gambi/Jefferson relationship seems to have finally been repaired. And apparently Jefferson's Vice-Principal is an important character, even though she's been completely irrelevant for the entirety of the season until now. Meanwhile Tobias is nowhere to be seen and Lala is still completely separate from everyone else without his resurrection being close to explained. There are only two episodes left of the season and I am starting to doubt if everything will actually get resolved by the end of it, especially when very little of this episode seemed to have consequence, except that Henderson is now Deputy Chief (Why do we care?) and the Gambi relationship is restored, even if it had very little to do with this episode. 5/10.

Arrow 'Brothers In Arms' Review
How could an episode with so much emotional weight feel so boring? Yes, Arrow has had emotionally gripping storytelling wrapped in formulaic plots before, so why didn't it work this time? The debate between Oliver and Diggle has been building up for a while now, hell, you could argue all season, and it finally reached breaking point here, and the scene itself was really damn good. Both sides had solid arguments, the actors were giving 100%, even the way it was shot gave it peak tension and drama, but my god, I just didn't care at all. Perhaps it's because the rest of the episode building up to it was generic, maybe it's because I'm sick of all the arguments over "Oliver doesn't trust people" which has been done dozens of times, maybe it's because this season's main plot isn't even that interesting, or maybe it's a mixture of all three and more. Even if the one scene was really good, it's hard to care all too much when everything around it is just simply dull, even Diggle leaving the team I seriously doubt will last long. 5/10.

Best Things March 2018

Can I just include Persona 5 again? Cause that took up the better half of the month yet again. No? Okay.

The Good Place
The Good Place is an American sitcom following Eleanor Shellstrop, a woman who dies and goes to 'The Good Place' even though she's actually a terrible person and was meant to go to The Bad Place. I binged watched the first 2 seasons on Netflix and I very much enjoyed it. The series was created by Michael Shur, the creator of Parks & Recreations and it definitely has that same style of humour. It's a very non-offensive series with a diverse cast that could appeal to everyone, but they still get a lot of great jokes out of the creative setting, as well as giving the actors plenty of room to improvise-in particular D'Arcy Carden who plays Janet, someone with godlike powers, the personality of a robot servant and is the funniest character in the show (In my opinion). While the series isn't necessarily laugh out loud, and I find some of the character development to be forced, it is very much the type of enjoyable show that you can have on after a long day and just want to unwind.


The Unbelievable Gwenpool
Alright, this isn't really something new I experienced in March, and the series technically ended on 28th February, but I saw someone on Twitter insult Gwenpool just because of the concept, so I just wanted an excuse to talk about why Gwenpool is amazing. The Unbelievable Gwenpool is a 25 issue comic series following a character named Gwen Poole, a teenage girl from our universe who somehow gets transported to the Marvel Universe, being a huge fan of Marvel comics means she knows the basics of how everything works, knows everyone's identities and is capable of breaking the fourth wall. At first she tries to become a hero (Because if you wanna survive in the Marvel world, ya gotta be in a costume) but through a series of wacky hi-jinx she ends up a villain. Throughout the 25 issues we see her bounce back and forth between multiple heroes and villains, and unlike a lot of Marvel comic series, we actually get to see proper character development for both her and her supporting cast, as she becomes more accustomed to the ways of living in a world of superheroes, eventually reaching a lot of inner conflict between her place both in the real world vs the Marvel world, and her place as a hero or a villain. The book is hilarious and isn't over the top with its 4th wall breaking like something like Deadpool, which even the book describes as being a little too "lol memes". The artwork by Gurihiru gives it a manga style, making it cute while not taking away from the action. Unlike most Marvel books this one actually got a satisfactory conclusion and made me hope the character actually stays gone, because in the hands of any writer apart from Christopher Hastings, I worry if it'll even be the same character. So to that one rando on Twitter and anyone who judged Gwenpool based on her name (Even though she has nothing to do with Gwen Stacy or Deadpool), just know you're missing out on a really excellent book here.

Paddington 2
Again, I'm cheating with this one, as I saw Paddington 2 in cinemas back in November, but I didn't get a chance to talk about it, now that it's out on blu-ray here in the UK, I think it's a good enough reason to put it in here. Paddington 2 is a perfect family film; it's absurdly precious, has plenty of humour and is visually creative. It's able to subtly establish elements in its first act, passing them off as charming character quirks that then pay off in the third act without feeling forced or obvious, the humour is mature yet simple, never downgrading itself to pander to its audience, but most of all what makes this film as good as it is, is it's heart. Paddington 2 is as sweet and honest as a film can be, it wears its emotions on its sleeves, never compromising or feeling embarrassed to be genuine, the film's main thought "If we're kind and polite the world will be right" is told with such affection that even the biggest sour puss won't be able to help but be charmed by the film's message and characters. There's far too many things about the film to compliment, I didn't even get a chance to discuss the cast, the action, the music, etc. Just know that this is a film that I feel comfortable recommending to everyone of any age, and should be viewed by everyone if they wish to see what pure joy is like when placed on screen (Also see the first one if you haven't, it's really good).

My Favourite Films - The Graduate

The 1960s is often viewed as a revolutionary time for cinema. The Golden Age had died out and most of its stars were losing their appeal. The rise of television created the first real competition for films and was considered "The Death of Cinema" (Good call on that!). It was a time where the old talent was being brushed out to make way for the new, the young, the experimental. While The Golden Age introduced many of the storytelling elements we still use today, a lot of the films themselves seemed rather conservative, safe, and eventually audiences were getting tired of it. The 60s saw the birth of Bonnie & Clyde, Easy Rider, 2001: A Space Odyssey, films that were rebellious, liberal and pioneering in ways they weren't before. It also saw one of the earliest (And to this day best) examples of the Coming of Age film, The Graduate (1967).

I say "one of" because one could argue Rebel Without A Cause would count as a coming of age film, I'm not inclined to disagree, but when I think of the standards and conventions expected of the genre, I usually think of The Graduate being the one that formed them. Also while Rebel is without a doubt a fantastic film-and may one day be talked about in this series-it's not so much a story I think people love because they identify with, it's a character piece about an individual who is forced into a stereotype and a critique on the failings of the prior generation (Okay, maybe we do relate to it a little), and it certainly opened the gates for The Graduate to exist.

*Spoilers Ahead*

The Graduate follows the story of Ben Braddock, a recent college graduate who is now left with one simple question "What next?" it's a question everyone asks him, everyone expects him to have a plan and go on to do something big, the problem is: He has no idea. He spends the majority of his summer seemingly ignoring the problem, focusing on other unimportant and even deplorable things, such as starting an affair with a much older woman, and after breaking it off, dating her daughter.

I've said in the past that for a coming of age film to work, you have to identify with the character's specific problems, which is incredibly difficult to do because every teenager goes through different problems depending on things such as personal identity, social status, popularity; meaning to have a character you identify with means alienating a large audience that didn't go through the same struggles you/the character did. Note: This is why The Breakfast Club works so well, it doesn't have one specific character, it has five, so chances are you will relate to one of them. The Graduate is the exception to the rule, there's nothing unique about Ben, nothing about him to make him standout from the rest, but chances are you either are, are going to, or will have gone through exactly what he is going through-hell, I'm going through it right now. Finishing University and having absolutely no idea where you go from here. It's a confusing time of our lives, we're technically adults, about to enter "The Real World" yet we still feel like children, these people who are supposed to be our peers are still light years ahead of us in maturity, along with the added pressure of everyone expecting you to have the next 60 years of your life figured out, it's easy to see why Ben regresses into such immature and poorly thought out scenarios.

There are very few people Ben's age in the film, his relationship with Mrs Robinson is very clearly not one of equal ground, it's uncomfortable and feels like a grown woman grooming a boy. Yet his relationship with Elaine Robinson-a woman his own age-isn't any better, it doesn't feel like two young adults, but rather two teenagers who's entire relationship is basically an act of defiance, a chance to rebel and embrace young love even if it's against their parents' wishes. The final shot of the movie basically confirms this, the two proclaiming they're in love, having a dramatic 'crash the wedding' scene, and then ends with them realising their actions have not been well thought out and and probably going to make them suffer in the long run.

Granted, I'm not saying everyone will end up like Ben, making horrible decisions and risk ruining their life, but the idea of returning to your teenage ways certainly is a lot more comforting, especially with the little consequences young love can lead to.

Also I'd be remiss to not mention the soundtrack by Simon & Garfunkle, it's fantastic, iconic and features songs that are still beloved to this day, even if the internet slightly ruins 'Sound of Silence' by playing it all the time.

In Summary, The Graduate is fantastic because it's timeless. It's somehow a film that helped define a generation of filmmaking, while still remaining relevant for modern audiences. People can connect to it, laugh with it, sing to it, and in the end remind you of that pit in your stomach as you still don't have the answers to the question "What next?". Just as long as you don't crash any weddings, you should be fine.

-Danny

DC TV Weekly #42

Legends of Tomorrow 'I, Ava' Review
The advantages of a show like this with a big ensemble means that they can do these kind of stories, where the team splits off into several groups and goes on their own adventures, some dramatic, some funny, all character based. The A-Plot sees Sara learn about Ava's mysterious backstory - oh, and Ray is there because he needed something to do - Nate & Amaya try to redeem her granddaughter and fight of Damien Darhk & Nora - oh, and Wally's there because he needed something to do - and finally Zari has to teach Mick how to use his totem. This final one is probably my favourite of the three, mostly because every character has is used, each scene has a purpose, and the relationship between the two is finally developed. Mick & Zari definitely make a great combo, they're both stubborn, relaxed and independent individuals and both are now Totem Bearers. This episode just got to see their personalities bounce off of each other and by the end of it they have a better understanding of one another, it's a simple yet effective story. Nate & Amaya's story is also engaging because it further addresses the issue that the two simply can't stay together as Amaya has a pre-written destiny, and now she seems dedicated to fixing it. Strangly the main plot of the episode was the one I was least invested in, I'm not sure if it's because I'm not too invested in Sara & Ava's relationship or I can't tell if Gary is funny or annoying, or even just small nitpicks like Ray hacking a government computer even though he's a physicist not a computer science wiz. Most likely a mixture of all three, which thankfully means no major complaint to be had about the episode, just a bunch of small ones. I'll give it a 7/10.

Black Lightning 'Sins of the Father: The Book of Redemption' Review
Is it me or has the show someone completely switched plots? Or at the very least lost focus on one seemed like the main story. A month ago I was complimenting Tobias Whale for being the best thing about the show, and now it feels like he's barely in it. The only plotline that was established from the beginning that has maintained momentum is Gambi's secret, which I will give it credit for being a very well told story. The initial mystery was engaging, Jefferson's reaction was understandable, and now the rebuilding of their relationship from Gambi's sacrifice was dramatic and well done. However when it comes to the villains, it seems as though Tobias has been dropped for this plot of Lala coming back to life, and I'm sure they'll tie together in the end eventually, but considering the last time we saw Tobias was his sister - the one person he loved - dying in front of him, that should have been the peak of his fury, and now he's just dropped off the face of the Earth. Furthermore there's this government conspiracy of kids with superpowers being kept in stasis for 30 years, and this does not feel like it goes along with this season at all. The show started off being about Black Lightning trying to keep his city safe from crime and gangs, this has taken a huge jump and doesn't seem connected to the main plot at all, I'd argue it should have been saved for season two. Overall this is the first time I've felt the show has been inconsistent with it's pacing and story, which are the main things I've been praising it for. Each story is still good on their own, but they don't go together at all. 7/10.

Arrow 'The Thanatos Guild' Review
"Conflicting" is the word of the day kids. Not one thing in this episode did I like or dislike without a "but" being attached to it. The main plot of this episode very much felt like a return to form for season three but no one likes season three, it was the worst season and the League of Assassins is boring but it was character driven and the main plot of this season isn't exactly engaging but I am still glad they developed it in the B-Plot with Curtis & Dinah but I still think Dinah & Curtis aren't that interesting on their own. Honestly the most interesting thing about the B-Plot of the episode was Curtis asking out that police officer, because that was entirely a character growth moment and that's always the best thing to focus on. It also made me realise that they really have kept Malcolm Merlyn dead for nearly the entire season. I still don't think he'll ever be really dead because superhero show ya'know, but still, props for upholding his death for near an entire season. Finally the main motivation behind this episode is to give Thea & Roy a proper send off. A big part of me wishes that they could have just given them the happy ending, driving off into the sunset. But (Last one) at least this means that they can come back at some point after having their own adventure which we can only hope that'll lead to something good. Oh, and Roy was wearing a trucker hat, nice touch. 7/10.

Tomb Raider Vs Tomb Raider

Neither Tomb Raider films are very good. I think both of them are fine, which in the grand scheme of videogame movies practically make them masterpieces. Yet I can't stop thinking about the two and comparing them, as both are wildly different interpretations of the iconic character of Lara Croft, yet they also share a decent number of similarities. So which one is truly better, and is there any merit to either of them? Let's discuss.

*Spoilers Ahead*

The first thing to consider is simply the timing of these films, and how that changed the production of them. The 2001 film was released back when the videogames were still an over the top, fantastical, overtly sexual adventure series. Meanwhile in the world of blockbusters it was filled with simplistic Indiana Jones inspired family adventure films with little logic but a lot of charm (Think The Mummy/National Treasure type scenario). Because of this, the film really doesn't put all too much focus in developing things such as plot or characters, but is just trying to be an extreme and stylish action flick, filled with impractical stunts, techno music and a heavy use of cgi & slo-mo. It's certainly got a lot of charm to it, if you can accept the tone of the film then it's easy to let go of most of the flaws, because there are tonnes of them, cliched characters, nonsensical story, dated cgi. Yet because that's not the focus and instead the focus is just on having cool stunts and badass one-liners, making everyone look as awesome as possible, even some of the more dated elements have somewhat of an endearing factor to them, ironically a movie all about uncovering relics of the past is a relic in itself of action movies of the early 2000s.

Meanwhile the reboot film is coming from a different background, taking more so from the 2013 reboot of the franchise (Even repeating several major plot points), this is a story more grounded and brutal, showing the birth of what would become Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, rather than highlighting her in her prime. Toning down the goofiness & sexiness, and replacing it with more brutality and emotion, the film is basically the polar opposite of it's predecessor, meaning both its pros and cons are also switched.

Let's compare two scenes in both films that are very similar, Lara Croft coming face to face with her father for the first time in years. Both scenes are supposed to be emotionally heavy, yet because the original film didn't spend any time showing the vulnerability of Lara, or even that great a range of emotions, the moment feels completely hollow. However in the remake, the relationship between Lara and her father is the core of the film, and the majority of the movie up to this point is about exploring their relationship and how Lara never gave up on finding him, making it quite an effective scene.

On the other hand, because the first film is just a simple adventure film, it can get away with having stock characters or scenes seeing as they're just there to help progress things along, meaning everyone is easy to understand and their relationships are more clear. The new film, trying to be more realistic, whenever it fails to develop something in greater detail, it suddenly stands out more than it would in the other film. Take the supporting cast for example, the original film doesn't explain to us how these people became friends with Lara, but they give them such energetic personalities and play off of each other really well, that you just accept it. However the new one, trying to be more realistic, needs to give us a stronger reason to believe the relationships these people (Okay, one person) would be so dedicated to Lara, and you just don't get it.

Then there is Lara herself, yet again, two very different characters, but I'd argue both equally compelling. The Angelina Jolie one somehow has one of the thinnest, yet also most engaging motivations behind what she does - She's just an adrenaline junkie. She doesn't do it for the knowledge, the glory or the money, she does it all just because she's good at it, and gets a kick out of it. After all, this is a woman who regularly trains against giant killer robots just because she can. Honestly...I can't think of any other film like this that does that, it's so simple and could so easily be seen as lazy, but the fact that it's so rarely done, it's surprisingly refreshing. The downside of this is that because she's like this, she's too good at what she does, at no point does the danger ever seem too much, or that she isn't constantly on top of things, she always seems to be the smartest, toughest and most in control person in the room. This type of character certainly can lead to a lot of cool action and one-liners, but not necessarily an engaging protagonist.

Then there is Alicia Vikander, who has a much better defined motivation (Finding her father), has a clear arc throughout the film, and still gets a lot of well done action scenes, without ever ruining the tension. For example, her first scene in the film is her losing an MMA match, and later on in the film we see her get in a fight similar to this, where she learns from her mistake the first time round and winning the fight. This is a Lara that's allowed to be vulnerable, we see her get beaten down and be emotionally honest, meaning we connect to her more and get excited to see her overcome obstacles and grow as a character.

It's hard to say which one is better, it really depends on what you prefer, the perfect badass who you want to be, or the stubborn survivalist you relate to. Personally I would say I have a preference for the Vikander version, seeing how broken a character can get just makes them more engaging to watch and root for, someone who never screws up loses my interesting rather quickly. But which film is better? Honestly it could go either way. Again, neither of these are great films, I'd say they're decent at best, but even decent films can still strike up an interesting debate, and this is one that I'd say I've had fun thinking about, even if I didn't come to any sort of conclusion, but comparing movies doesn't have to be about definitely deciding one film is better than the other, just seeing how two films can interpret the same source material differently.

-Danny

DC TV Weekly #41

Wow, only two DC Shows to talk about this week. CW has always had weird scheduling, but this is quite in consistent and confusing, certainly makes these reviews harder to keep track of.

Legends of Tomorrow 'Necromancing The Stone' Review
Well hey, guess John Constantine had more to offer than just a one episode stint. Unfortunately I'd say this is a waste of a Constantine usage. Don't get me wrong, Matt Ryan is amazing as always, it's just that now that it's been announced he'll be joining the show as a series regular next season, I'd say there are other things that could have been done with him. What we got felt far too similar to his prior appearance, I'd have liked to see him interact with other members of the crew and create a rapport with them, establish more of his dynamic amongst the crew. We've seen him with Sara and Mallus before, and I feel the main plot of the episode didn't need him, Ava & Mick could have taken down Demon Sara without him. Speaking of, let's actually discuss Demon Sara, a story that allowed for more development for one of the main characters who so far this season has seemed emotionally in control of everything, also allowing the show to play around with tone and attempt a more horror-themed episode. Whether it worked or not being a horror episode is dubious, but no one expected the show to be capable of going full horror, it still gets points for effort. 7/10.

Black Lightning 'The Book of Little Black Lies' Review
Now this is more of what I would have expected behind the whole 'finding out your loved one had powers' storyline. Jennifer learning the truth about her family and of course is very upset, but they actually make it more interesting here. The focus isn't just on the family lying to her, but it's also on her new found responsibilities. Jennifer doesn't want to become a superhero, she wants to be normal, and now with powers, whether she uses them or not, it has severely stricken her chances of just being normal. I also appreciate the fact that every member of the family has a different conversation with her, showing different perspectives. Something I haven't praised this show for is how natural a lot of the dialogue is, characters talk like real people, meanwhile in other DC Shows whenever people sit down to have a dramatic conversation, the whole thing always feels staged. I think the best way to enjoy this show is to focus on the familiar elements reflecting reality, because they really are the stand out moments. Jefferson as a principal and as a father are far more interesting than Black Lightning as a superhero, so an episode that mostly focuses on those aspects often means a better episode overall. Unfortunately those superhero fight scenes are still here, and they're not getting any better. Thankfully they weren't the focus of this episode so they didn't drag it down too much. 7/10.

DC TV Weekly #40

The Flash 'Run, Iris, Run' Review
These past two episodes have been perfect examples of how to do filler episodes well and how to do them poorly. Last week's filler was creative and against formula, this week's filler is just that, filler. A random meta with generic fire powers tries to rob a bank...without a mask...in the city with the Flash...dumbass. However there's another bus meta who can take people's powers, and at first he seems to want to help people, but then he holds Iris hostage and runs away...for no reason. Then another guy gets the powers and instantly goes into crime because apparently everyone is evil. For nothing else at least they addressed an issue I've had since season one, that being Iris' uselessness. I'm not convinced they've fixed that issue in the long run, but having at least one episode of her being physically active is nice, plus the purple lightning made for a nice change of effect to look at. Then there's the subplot of Harry trying to recreate DeVoe's experiment and everyone except Cisco is totally up for it, even though Cisco has a very reasonable argument that it was this same experiment that turned DeVoe from a smart pacifist to an evil genius, and they give no reason to why the same won't happen to Harry...speaking of this subplot, it also contained the line "Have you not seen Spider-Man 2?" which means Marvel movies exist in this universe, except in the first Sam Raimi movie they reference Superman, who is canon in DC Television and this creates one heck of a paradox that I'm obviously thinking way too deep into but this episode as a whole was kinda meh and that's one stuck out to me the most and now I'm just babbling. 5/10.

Legends of Tomorrow 'Amazing Grace' Review
Perhaps Legends has just gone so far down the path of weird & wonderful that an episode all about Elvis having the power to summon ghosts with the power of music seems rather underwhelming by their standards. Not that there's anything wrong with the concept, more so the execution. At no point in this episode did there actually feel like there were any stakes, no villains, no tough obstacles, if the characters used their powers even once then any "problem" would disappear in an instant. Elvis didn't push back against the Legends, the ghosts didn't turn out to cause any problem, there was nothing, because of that, this whole episode just felt hollow. The closest I got to caring about anything was Axel the rat, and when I find myself caring more about the rat than any of the actual characters on the show, I think we can sum it up as a dud. Nothing bad about it per se, but nothing good either. 5/10.

Black Lightning 'The Book of Revelations' Review
And we're back to everything the way it always was, where everything is simply decent, mostly the plot progression. Jennifer's powers are starting to activate, but we all knew that was going to happen eventually, it's another case where there are certain story beats it has to hit before it can get interesting, but I'm glad they got through most of them in this one episode. That's another positive I can say about Black Lightning, it knows when it has to deal with specific story tropes that most superhero shows go through, so it tries to rush through them as quickly as possible to get to the good stuff. For example, Anissa is already going out on missions as Thunder, because wasting time with Jefferson saying no when we all know it's gonna happen eventually is boring, they dealt with it last episode and now they're just acting like a superhero duo. Then there is Gambi admitting his history to Jefferson and of course he's pissed and I'm excited for where that's gonna go. So yeah, good balance between advancing already established storylines and establishing entirely new ones with Jennifer and Lala. 7/10.