Holy crap! She’s alive… with green eyes… and she is clearly one of the Latveria Witches in Doomsday. I actually cried out when Doom brought her back from beneath that mountain.
VisionQuest was great too.
Even the Billy-Ex Machina that came at the end of the episode so the brothers could save Vision together. In what could have been a moment of cheese, the Maximoff brothers working together was awesome. I liked how they had Tommy find Billy with the water thing earlier in the episode so he does not just come out of nowhere.
Billy was also in New Jersey. Is that coincidental that Kamala Khan lives in Jersey as well. Young Avengers or Champions anyone.
This show does a fantastic job of bringing Ultron to the forefront and the circular way the show developed. Returning to the sitcom world with UltraVision was so clever.
James Spader continues to be the sensational scene stealer. When Virgil Horton was doing the dance to “Rhinestone Cowboy,” he was absolutely unbelievable. Then the James Spader in Ultra Vision was a hilarious hoot.
Of course, I was really scared that they were going to kill Vision again. I could not believe it… I am so grateful that Vision was not going to die again.
I loved this series. I am not sure how I would rank it among the trilogy: WandaVision, Agatha All Along and VisionQuest. These are three of my favorite shows from Marvel with Loki and Wonder Man.
That appearance of Wanda at the end… just fabulous!!!
Episode 7 of VisionQuest was a spectacular tour de force for Paul Bettany. People forget that Paul Bettany is a tremendous actor. He absolutely reminded people tonight.
Vision had to go into himself to find the source code, the sixth key (surprise Jocasta) preventing her from opening up the cask of her family, where the nanotech was stored.
I had guessed that JIM would be the client who hired Paladin, but that turned out to be inaccurate. However, JIM was going to play a major role, as he was inside Vision, and, also played by Paul Bettany, had an amazing scene opposite himself. JIM was able to finally get Vision to accept that he was a sum of all the parts and that Tommy was actually his son.
When Vision mentioned Wanda, it was remarkably powerful and emotional.
The reveal of the Client, someone being played by James Spader, was a wonderful reveal. I am not sure how that worked, but I think it is an intriguing answer. I am excited about seeing the story play out in next week’s finale.
I am concerned that FRIDAY just bit the big one in the last few moments because of Ultron. I hope that is not the case, but it did not look promising. It also looked like Paladin got blown up. I hope he was able to escape as well considering how cool he turned out.
I loved that we finally had the mention of Billy. Vision mentioned him and finally showed Tommy the WandaVision highlights, which would show him that he had a brother. Intriguingly, Vision still believes that Billy is dead. I am hoping that we get a guest appearance of Agatha and Billy next week… maybe in a post credit.
I was so invested tonight, and it was heavily because of Paul Bettany. There was less from James Spader than previous weeks, and this episode was highlighting the chops of Paul Bettany and the remarkable character of Vision.
Next week, we have a finale that could make this one of the best Marvel series on Disney +.
Two fun episodes of the Muppet Show, with two distinctly different performers. Jean Stapleton and Alice Cooper.
I actually found the Jean Stapleton episode one of the better written episodes of the third season so far, but I was not a huge fan of the duet at the end with Crazy Harry.
Then, what an odd episode with Alice Cooper, but equally awesome. I mean, it had Alice Cooper trying to get the Muppets to sell their souls to the Devil. Dark.
Both of these celebrities were real good sports with the show. Both were actually written a little crazy, and they both seemed to embrace the roles.
Robin the Frog broke up the weird Alice Cooper episode with a sweet version of Somewhere Over the Rainbow.
We also learned that Jean Stapleton’s favorite Muppet was Crazy Harry. Who knew? She also speaks mock Swedish, though what she spoke did not sound anything like the language spoken by the Swedish Chef.
Miss Piggy was very funny in the melodrama skit. Her disappointment was palpable. Her using the train tracks to hit Kermit was some funny slapstick bit that just never fails to gain a laugh from me.
I love the fact that I watched the Alice Cooper episode on Halloween Eve. It was very fitting.
So much happened. We started the episode “Firewall” with Ultron in control of Vision’s body and trapping him and the other AIs in the same “prison” that Vision had stored Ultron for all these years. Turnabout…
We ended with Ultron and Jocasta together, readying to turn the world’s humans into something more.
We had a sensational showdown between Vision and Paladin with Thomas’s life in the balance. In Madripoor of all places. When we went to Madripoor, I really thought that maybe the Power Broker was actually going to be involved. That did not happen though.
By the way, I am now even more certain that the person who originally hired Paladin to reclaim Vision was Jim Hammond, the original Human Torch.
We had a shocking appearance by a character that we haven’t seen since Iron Man in 2008. Raza, as played by Faran Tahir, a man connected to the Ten Rings, arrived in Madripoor in hopes of collecting the Vision body. At first, I thought he was the guy who hired Paladin, but it turned out he had not. It was an amazing cameo from out of nowhere.
FRIDAY is out of the house, unhappy when Vision dropped the firewall allowing Ultron to escape into the weird matrix stuff. She went into it too, and I am not sure exactly her part in this.
Jocasta, with Ultron at her side, sent a miniscule bot into the eye of Lisa, transforming her into a synthezoid being. Vision stopped her, but I am not sure that he will be able to save her.
The whole Jocasta/Ultron pairing is extremely unsettling and it makes me very scared for what the future of the series will hold. James Spader is, once again, spectacular and had tremendous chemistry with T’Nia Miller.
The first episode this week was shot in such an astonishingly creative way, that I truly enjoyed the journey they were putting us in. The whole Ultron/Vision conversation on the prison phones was amazing writing.
I was completely enveloped by these two episodes. Where as last week, I liked the VisionQuest episodes (especially E4), these two were just a brilliant work.
Next week there is only one episode, but it is over an hour in length. I have loved the length of these episodes and the manner in which Disney + has released them.
The next two episodes of VisionQuest dropped on Disney + tonight and there are some big time stuff.
Jocasta made her first appearance in the MCU as a brutal AI killer. We get a background on her. And she was kicking Vision’s butt.
The first episode this week dealt with Vision’s damage from Paladin’s attack, and the relationship between Tommy and Vision is handled. Admittedly, Tommy was a little whiny in that episode, but that is understandable.
One of the funniest parts of the first episode was that they had to fix Vision by shutting him off and restarting him. Just like any tech.
My first thought about “Reboot” was it felt a little silly at times, but I loved how it developed through the episode.
By the end though, my mouth was so agape. When Vision let Ultron take over the body to stop Jocasta and he helped her kill her target, I was shocked. Then, Ultron was was going to keep Vision’s body. Whoa!
I am amazed at this twist at the end of episode four. Holy cow, it was chilling. I loved how they dubbed James Spader’s voice over Paul Bettany’s acting. It was so smooth that it almost seemed as if Bettany was doing the voice. It was definitely Spader’s voice, but if you told me it was just Bettany doing a Spader imitation, I would believe you.
I enjoyed the path of E.D.I.T.H. looking at her past in the real world. They mentioned how Tony Stark based the AI’s on real people (in the MCU). Ultron actually had a good scene with EDITH about this.
Oh, and Paladin was fired by the mysterious benefactor. There was a ton of mentions of JIM… Jim Hammond, the original Human Torch, and that is my guess right now about the benefactor. JIM is absolutely going to be a part of this show.
James Spader is so great. Ruaridh Mollica is a fabulous Tommy so far. I am not sure how I felt about Dum-E and U suddenly speaking. The whole U singing at JARVIS’s “funeral” was too sappy for me.
Still, I can not wait for next week. It was extremely well done.
These three episodes in the third season of the Muppet Show are starting to show how the talent level is going up. These three stars, Roy Clark, Gilda Radner and Pearl Bailey, were sensational performers and they are able to do so much.
Roy Clark is so talented with his ability to play multiple instruments. In the one song, he played the fiddle, the guitar, the banjo and the mandolin. Impressive as always. He sang one of my favorites, Yesterday When I Was Young too.
Gilda Radner showed off both her singing skills and her comedy chops as some Muppet Labs super adhesive glue got out and wound up having everyone stuck to each other. Radner was chewing the scenery, almost literally.
Pearl Bailey has a remarkable voice and they took advantage of it with several numbers.
These episodes had several editions of the standbys, Pigs in Space, Muppet Labs and At the Dance.
It still amazes me when this kids show pulls out stuff like the “jousting scene from Camelot.” It never missed to elevate the acts intended to not only entertain, but to educate.
VisionQuest debuted tonight as a third series in the WandaVision trilogy which kicked off with WandaVision and was followed up by Agatha All Along, and there is not a possible debate that this show is not dependent on those previous ones. WandaVision and Agatha All Along are required viewing for VisionQuest.
Paul Bettany returned as Vision, the same android that had been reconstructed by SWORD, this time white, and who left in the finale of WandaVision.
We all have wondered where Vision has been all these many years since he flew off out of Westview, and we get a glimpse into that in the first two episodes, which dropped on Disney + Tuesday, a day early than what it originally was intended.
James Spader returned to the MCU as Ultron, but existing inside Vision’s head, in a strange world where Vision exists in his attempt to determine what humanity is and how he is connected to it. Vision brought us a crew of former AIs from the MCU to help him in his efforts including JARVIS, EDITH, FRIDAY, DUM-E and U. Ultron was included among these AI as well. The interactions between this group of MCU AI was great, making a kind of family.
But family was more intricate to the story than just the AI. We meet Tommy, the boy that Billy sent his brother’s spirit into at the end of Agatha All Along. The scene with the swimming pool, which was one of the more dramatic moments with Billy, was alluded to several times, and Tommy had been struggling with his identity ever since. His memories of his mother Wanda and his father Vision played havoc on his mind, grappling with the confusion of exactly whom he was.
We are introduced to the character Paladin. He is a bounty hunter and he has been hired by someone to capture Vision. This is one of the mysteries of the show, and I have to say that I am extremely intrigued by the identity of this benefactor. I liked Paladin as well, played by Todd Stashwick. He used adamantium rounds… I mean… cool. Was this the first time adamantium was used as a weapon in the MCU? The metal was introduced in Captain America: Brand New World so i wonder how long the timeline is between that film and this show.
There was some sacrifice in these first two episodes as well. Vision’s friend at the bar in Edinburgh where he worked, was shot by Paladin’s forces. Then JARVIS, played by James D’Arcy (who played a real life Jarvis in the Agent Carter series on ABC) sacrificed himself after Vision had been shot by those adamantium rounds in order to keep the Vision alive and to keep the other AI’s active. I did not see that coming and his self-sacrifice (suggested by Ultron, by the way) was a powerful moment.
Vision and Tommy are together, on the run from Paladin, and certainly something will come from this.
I have to say I loved the longer episodes, with the two episode release coming in at over 100 minutes (episode one: 56 minutes and episode 2: 46 minutes, albeit with credits). This gave the show a feel of significance. Some times that was lacking among the shorter 30-35 minute episodes we were used to on Disney +.
The conflict of Vision and his efforts to figure out who he actually is feels compelling, and the acting is exceptional. And I love James Spader! I do hope that the person who hired Paladin does not turn out to be Ultron, although I do expect him to be an antagonist during this show. That would seem too conventional for a show that is using two of the best Marvel Disney + shows as its lead-in.
I am in on VisionQuest, and I am excited about next Tuesday.
Season three kicked off with a few little changes. The first episode featured the first time when there are two named guest stars-Kris Kristofferson and Rita Coolidge, who were married at the time. They each performed one song and then did one together.
We got a new set with the backstage cafeteria and the lunch lady Gladys.
One of the coolest songs was Floyd Pepper singing New York State of Mind.
Then, episode two has three songs from disco singer Leo Sayer. It was funny because Kermit had said that it was rare when they get rock and roll. Rock and roll, Kermit? Anyway… he does “You Make Me Feel Like Dancing,” “The Show Must Go On,” and “When I Need You.” I had heard two of them, but I could have never have named another except “Dancing.”
The second episode has the debut of Annie Sue Pig, a new female singing pig that really makes Piggy jealous.
The opening does not change much, but they do add the audience response in the song. They are getting closer to the Statler and Waldorf singing.
I have to say that the Muppet Show truly got some of the biggest stars of the time to guest star on their show. Bob Hope, Cloris Leachman, Peter Sellers, John Cleese and Julie Andrews were iconic names that, even today, would be recognized by the public as superstars. Sure there was Cleo Lane, who I swear I have never heard of before, but most of this list was remarkable.
That was the power of Jim Henson and the Muppets. Everyone wanted to appear on the show and the entire second season was littered with amazing superstars as guests.
Even with the ton of superstar celebrities, it seemed that Rowlf had plenty of time to play the piano. Rowlf was given time to play a variety of musical pieces, even if they had to speed a few of them up because of time. My favorite one during this block of episodes was when he and Fozzie played the piano. I laughed out loud when Rowlf said to Fozzie that he didn’t know Fozzie played the piano, and Fozzie replied that he did not know it either.
The final episode of season two with Cloris Leachman featured the Muppet Show being taken over by pigs. They locked Kermit, Gonzo and Fozzie in the boiler room and they replaced all the main acts with pigs. Kermit the Pig took over the emceeing, there was a Swedish Chef-pig, Vegetarian’s Hospital among others. Miss Piggy was angry about Kermit being taken away until she found out that she was being featured in the opening number. The call of the stage was just too great for Miss Piggy.
It was nice to see Jaye P. Morgan on the show. I used to love her on the Gong Show, hosted by Chuck Barris, and she was funny. Jay P. Morgan passed away this year, so it was a nice way to honor her. RIP.
The Bob Hope episode was funny as Bob Hope was shown as so busy that he had to go between other gigs and kept returning to the Muppet Show. His “Don’t Fence Me In” song with a sarcastic horse was a highlight of the season.
Three guest stars who could handle the entertainment section of the show. While Rudolf Nureyev may not have been the singer in comparison, he did do some great dance routine. As I have said before, the Muppet Show would use some classic culture or high brow stuff. In this episode alone, they had a couple of ballet routines and jokes about Shakespeare.
However, you can also tell when they have a huge musician on. Elton John did four songs. This would have been my introduction to Crocodile Rock. Elton John also did Benny and the Jets and Goodbye Yellow Brick Road and sang Don’t Go Breaking My Heart with Miss Piggy.
Elton John worked out great since he was basically a Muppet himself. He displayed such a wardrobe on this episode.
Sam the Eagle was very active in the first two episodes as he was so excited about Rudolf Nureyev bringing culture to the show only to be disappointed by him (I mean… Swine Lake? Can you blame Sam?). Sam also was not sure about Elton John’s attire.
The Elton John episode included a running gag with the Swedish Chef and a chicken. Chef was chasing the chicken with a hatchet. Then, the tables turned and Chef was being chased by the chicken.
I did not recognize many of the song done by Lou Rawls, but his jazz scat with the Electric Mayhem was truly epic. He did have a remarkable voice.
In that third episode, Fozzie was going to do an act on roller skates. It was a running joke throughout as he rolled uncontrollably around backstage.
This finale, like much of the season, had ups and downs.
The battle between the X-Men and X-Force/X-Factor was solid with some great mutant on mutant action. Cable vs. Cyclops and Jean.
Rogue’s whole arc was fascianting.
The final battle with Apocalypse and Celestial Rogue was a little anti-climactic. However, the end with Nightcrawler’s sacrifice was heartbreaking, but felt like it needed something more. It felt as if they almost had me emotionally, but it ended so suddenly that it did not have the impact they wanted.
Apocalypse in his little ball form was silly looking.
One must wonder about Storm’s definition of a light touch.
The ending scenes with Mystique killing and replacing Val Cooper as announcement of President Creed set up next season.
Season two has been enjoyable, but a noticeable step backwards. It seemed to be too rushed and lacked some of the depth of season one. In fact, without season one, season two would probably be considered a great success. As of now, ZI liked season two. It just was not what I hoped for overall.
We got a couple of iconic bits during the first episode. Kermit singing “Happy Feet” is one of my favorites of all time. I will start singing this just out of nowhere many times in my life. Then, Gonzo singing the “Wishing Song” which is one of the sadder songs you’ll hear.
Of the guest stars, Bernadette Peters was easily the best. Her song with Robin was so beautiful. Robin was feeling ignored and her song (with the other Muppets) was just amazing and nearly gave me goosebumps. It helps when the guest star is actually a singer with a great voice.
The George Burns episode was fun and they had a running joke, “Gonzo fiddles while George Burns.”
I was not that much of a fan of the Dom Deluise episode, but I did enjoy his song at the end with the Muppets, “We Got Us.”
Kermit and Piggy had a lot of songs in these episodes. Kermit and Piggy sang “I Won’t Dance” on the set of At the Dance. Piggy even went as far during the Dom Deluise episode paying off the audience to cheer for her.
The running joke of the Bernadette Peters episode was other Muppets showing up behind Statler and Waldorf in their box and forcing them to cheer or boo as wanted. Piggy was especially jealous of Miss Mousy, who sang with Kermit.
Apocalypse, whose skeleton was found last episode by X-Force, was apparently killed by this reanimated Gambit, but he is just inside the mind of Remy.
I think this episode was one that we were waiting for since “Remember Me” from last season, and this, while fine, there was not that emotional punch that I was expecting from the return of Gambit. I think a big reason behind it has been one of the issues with season two, which was that the stories have felt too rushed. I think this whole Gambit return could have been two or three episodes. The emotions were not allowed to breathe in the story.
There are still some good moments, specifically between Gambit and Rogue inside Gambit’s mind.
Surprisingly, this did not play out like we all thought, with Gambit as Death leading a new formation of the Horsemen of Apocalypse (maybe with Magneto beside him). Instead, Gambit was shown as more of an individual who killed Apocalypse. That is, clearly not the case, but it was interesting that the show took this different path.
We got the huge X-Men team shot that we saw in the trailers early on, and it is awesome, as is the controlled Nightcrawler fight scene as he just dominated the X-Men. Nightcrawler has always been a personal favorite of mine and to show his capabilities (in a cool POV shot) was great.
There is just one more episode remaining in season 2 and I assume it will have something to do with Apocalypse, but I am not sure what the focus will be on. With the remaining members of X-Force teaming up with X-Factor, I am wondering exactly how this will resolve itself.
This week’s X-Men’97 brings back Graydon Creed and bring him to the Savage Land.
I do not know as much about Exodus and the Acolytes of Magneto as some of the other areas this show has covered. Like everything on this show, the storylines adapted from the comics over the years do feel as if they are rushing through a lot of stuff.
The main focus of the episode was Nightcrawler trying to rescue Creed, his half-brother, from Exodus and the Acolytes, and the return of Colossus. There was a character developing episode that looked at what makes a person do what they do.
I am not sure why it was set in the Savage Land, outside that this is where it took place in the comics. We got a T-Rex and two pterodactyls. The setting certainly does not play into the story much, if at all.
Nightcrawler and Exodus have a fun teleporting sword fight.
The episode was quick and I did feel the shortness of the episode with the story they were telling. I think this could have easily been spread out over two episodes and I do think the overall story is hurt by rushing it. The show is moving toward the big showdown with Apocalypse and I just believe this was to bring Colossus back.
The moment at the end with X-Force and the skeletal remains of Apocalypse was a great tag for, I assume, the final two episodes of the season.
Some fun episodes from the second season highlighted the Muppet Show rewatch today.
Starting with the Rich Little episode. Honestly, his imitations of the Muppets were fairly weak. I have heard many better over the years. I did enjoy the final number where Rich Little sang as famous celebrities songs from musicals including “Singin’ in the Rain,” “Did You Ever?,” and “I Remember It Well.”
That first episode also started Gonzo’s affection for chickens, as he was auditioning them for a dancing act. Of course, these were live chickens.
Judy Collins came next and she sang a whole bunch of songs. I guess when you have someone with her voice, you try and use it as much as possible. The performance of “Send in the Clowns” is one of the most iconic guest songs of the show. I enjoyed her version of “I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly” too. It was neat seeing her do a piano duet with Rowlf with “Do-Re-Mi.”
We get the backstage storyline with Scooter’s uncle J. P. Grosse, who is ready to tear down the theater to put in a parking lot.
The Nancy Walker episode saw Kermit at home sick and Fozzie trying to run the show. Things do not go well for our favorite furry funnyman. My favorite bit was the accidental mixing of Veterinarian’s Hospital and At the Dance. They worked very well together.
Edgar Bergen brought his ventriloquism act to the Muppet Show, which fit in beautifully. Charlie McCarthy was very smart mouthed when it came to the Muppets. It was a lot of fun.
My favorite number on that episode was the “Time in a Bottle” song where the old scientist was making a formula to turn him younger.
Then, the best episode of this chunk was with Steve Martin. They took the typical Muppet formula and flipped it around as Kermit cancels the show for the night because they accidentally scheduled it on a night when they were supposed to be having auditions. Kermit sent the audience home and they spent the time auditioning new acts.
Steve Martin stuck around to “entertain the boys” and did a bunch of fun things from his act, including balloon animals, banjo playing, doing “Ramblin’ Guy.”
Some of the new acts we saw audition included Statler & Waldorf singing/dancing to “Varsity Rag,” a little girl named Carrie Louise and friend (who was a frog, and she would sing while the frog added the word ‘ribbit’ to the songs), Baskerville the Hound and his comedy act that reminded us all of Fozzie Bear and Marvin Suggs and his All Food Glee Club.
The show had removed the laugh track since the audience was gone and we would hear just a few guffaws from, apparently, the Muppeteers.
I loved how they took the format and tried something totally different and it really was a fresh episode.
