Category Archives: Netflix

Squid Game S2 E3, E4, E5

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“001”

“Six Legs”

“One More Game”

The first two episodes of the season were character beats, setting up the characters we would be following in the Squid Game and developing them some. I found those episodes to be of great importance because we jump full into the games in episodes 3, 4, & 5.

The games themselves are always the most intense, stressful parts of this show. Even the Red Light, Green Light, which we saw in the first season and we know what to expect, was just insanity when it comes to execution. The show did a great job of giving us something different for us to stress over. In this case, Gi-hun taking the lead and almost directing traffic, despite several of the contestants not believing him or wanting to follow what he said. When Gi-hun ran back out to save the guy who had been shot in the leg, we saw what a heroic figure he had become from his days of season one.

The other characters all elicited some emotion from us as viewers, both positively and negatively. I hate Thanos, even if he does some funny things. I love Geum-ja. She is the ultimate mother figure in the games and she must be protected. There will be a time, I am sure, that the show will want to rip out hearts out and it will kill her. I do not want that to happen.

Player 001 turned out to be In-ho aka the Front Man (Captain). Much like last season, number 001 is a traitor, a man from behind the scenes inserting himself into the game. In this case, we are aware of the treachery unlike last year. In this case, In-ho is also a former winner of the Squid Game and his presence is curious. He sure seemed as if he was working with the group during the six-legged pentathlon.

By the way, that six-legged pentathlon was both the most invigorating and exciting game and the most stressful and horrendous game played. Watching the group of five try to make it through five children’s games in five minutes was unbelievably tense and suspenseful. It was also hard for the second game.

The show has done a tremendous job of building mood during the two votes we have had to try and end the games. The first vote coming down to the final player, 001, who voted to continue, and the second vote being more weighed toward the stay and do one more game.

I am afraid a bunch of the characters whom stated that they will play one more game and then leave are going to find their votes a tragic mistake.

I really thought doing a second season of this show was going to be a mistake, especially since the creators of the show had not intended on continuing the show past season one. However, this has been exceptional so far and it has taken an extra step in its exploration into human nature. It does not feel like a repeat of what happened in season one, and even when something similar happens, it is done in a totally different manner. The writing has been great so far as they have created a bunch of characters that I really want to see survive, even though I know they will not.

There are only two episodes left in this season, which I have heard ends in a cliffhanger, so I am excited about wrapping it up.

Squid Game S2 E2

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“Halloween Party”

I have really enjoyed the start of season two as the show has not even made it to the games yet. They have taken some time to dive into more of the story of the characters, and not just Gi-hun.

We have spent time over the first two episodes with Kang No-eul, who was a refugee from North Korea who is continuing to try and get her daughter back from the North as well. She worked at an amusement park as a mascot and we saw her relating to a little sick girl. We thought she was going to join the games, but, instead, she turns out to be one of the pink guards instead, which was a cool surprise.

Gi-hun and Jun-ho meet up after the Russian Roulette game and have the initial misunderstanding as you would expect. They team up to try and stop the games. We get to see how much Gi-hun has been preparing for this over the last couple of years.

The scene where Gi-hun is having one of his teeth pulled in order to put a tracker in a fake tooth is a wild one and showed you what Gi-hun has become. The scene with Gi-hun showing all of his money piled up on his bed was shocking and again gave us an insight into the character of Gi-hun and what was important to him.

Gi-hun is back in the games and they will most likely get started next episode.

Squid Game S2 E1

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“Bread and Lottery”

After season one was a massive, worldwide success on Netflix, Squid Game returned with season two dropping on the streamer. The initial season of Squid Game was designed to be a one-off season and there were no intentions on bringing a second season to screen. Then, it became one of the biggest shows on Netflix and the demand for more games became too overpowering.

So, I watched episode one of Squid Game and it was full of tension and drama, but a little different than what we had become used to in the first season.

Seong Gi-hun returned to the show after winning the games last season. It is three years later and Seong has become obsessed with finding the games once again. He hired an army of men to scour train stations in search of the man who recruited him into the games.

Meanwhile, Hwang Jun-ho had survived his gunshot wound and fall from the cliff and he was struggling with his own obsessions. He remembered being shot by his brother and he is trying to find the island where he had fallen.

Both men feel as if they are co-leads in this first episode as things are slowly working to bring them together.

The whole Russian Roulette scenes were really tense and difficult to watch. The mood these scenes built really give us an idea of what this season is going to be like, even if we have not yet arrived in the games. I think it is smart to focus on Seong and Jun-ho as the main protagonists of the season so far.

Cobra Kai S6 Part 2 E9, E10

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“Blood In Blood Out”

“Eunjangdo”

So I watched episodes 6-8 earlier this morning and I was truly underwhelmed. I would go as far as say that I disliked E6 while not being much of a fan of E8, with 7 saving the threesome a bit. I was disappointed and I even went as far as to wonder if they should have ended the series after season five with that tremendous finale.

Well, I’ll shut up now.

Episodes 9 and 10 of Cobra Kai Season 6 just said ‘hold my beer.’

Holy crap. What an amazing two episodes in a row. Everything that was weak about the first three I saw this morning was totally crushed in these two episodes. I can’t believe I have to wait for the next episode, whenever the part three of the season is released.

The show amped up the karate fights in these two episodes and ended the stupid conflicts that I complained about in the post this morning. The Miyagi-Do crew finally just put their cards on the table and got the stupid arguments and hurt feelings aside after their team got kicked in the first match of the tag team competition. The tag team battle was creative and awesome.

With the tag team competition done, and Cobra Kai out… you knew something was going to happen to bring them back in. Performance enhancing drugs for one of the non-important teams brought Cobra Kai back into the mixture with the Iron Dragons and Miyagi-Do.

Then, that twist led to something the show has not had in a long time, an epic all-out karate war with everybody fighting each other. It was something that Cobra Kai the show had been well known for, but hadn’t used lately. Certainly not on this scale, with the whole thing broadcast to the world.

And you could tell that someone was getting that knife that Kreese was brandishing all over the place. The show wouldn’t have kept showing it if it was not going to be used. I was afraid that Daniel was going to get that blade as it was being set up, but I never thought that Kwon would taste the dagger. I was sure it was going to be the giant Iron Dragon guy getting killed. But no, Kwon was stabbed int he chest and fell upon his own weapon, Kreese’s dagger which he had picked up from the floor.

Of course, Kreese had every intention of using that dagger to kill Terry Silver, but when he realized that he had dropped it, Kreese decided that they had to have an old man fight, hand to hand.

I may have actually grown to like Chozen and Kim Da-Eun as a pair. Them fighting side by side was cool, even if the show did make Da-Eun flip as a character really quickly. Reminded me of Hawk’s face turn a few seasons ago. Kind of our of nowhere.

Oh, and by the way, Daniel’s dream with Mr. Miyagi making the cameo was out of this world. Make you wonder about AI.

Unbelievable two episodes, especially after the first three of this second part of the season were so iffy. I am completely back on board with the show and can’t wait for the final five episodes.

Cobra Kai S6 Part 2 E6, E7, E8

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“Benvinguts a Barcelona”

“Dog in the Fight”

“Snakes on a Plane”

I watched the first three episodes of the second part of season six of Cobra Kai that came out on Netflix this weekend. The show had split into three sections for the final season. This middle part deals with the Sekai Taikai tournament in Barcelona, Spain.

Among the first three episodes, I thought there was one good one, and the other two were disappointing.

I thought episode seven was pretty good, as Daniel gets kidnapped by Kreese and put in a dog cage. The questions surrounding Miyagi’s past, which was a distraction in the first half of the season, was actually the only thing here that was interesting at all.

The rest of these episodes have so many immature, dumb moments. The first one started out with fart jokes. It went downhill quickly. The childish arguments between characters were meant to be conflicts, but they instead just seemed annoying. The conflicts were either easily resolvable, or not even worth the time.

Chozen arriving at the Sekai Taikai drunk was embarrassing. The whole issue between Hawk and Demetri is unrealistic. The apparent relationship between Chozen and Kim Da-Eun came out of nowhere as she took a totally flipped personality. The issue between Robbie and Miguel felt repetitive. Same with Sam and Tory. Devin’s whole arc is her guilt over giving Kenny a laxative and she drops that news to him over the phone.

There are a bunch of new karate fighters around with zero personality and crammed in stories, including one giant fighter whose sensei uses physical violence to train him.

They explained away Kreese’s availability here as the brushed aside the prison escape. And I guess Terry Silver is back, also somehow out of jail and backing one of the other dojos in the Sekai Taikai.

These have really taken a step back from previous episodes and I hope that it is just a matter of having to many episodes in a season (they have 15 overall, more than they usually have) and that this is not the way the remainder of the season would go, because, right now, I wish this show would have ended after the outstanding finale of season 5.

Cobra Kai S6 Part 1

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The final season of Cobra Kai, a series that started on YouTube Red (remember that?) before moving to Netflix, dropped five episodes today completing the first part of the final season. I binged them through the afternoon today. Honestly, Cobra Kai has no right to be as good as it is. However, there were a couple of things that made me uncertain about where they were heading.

The show felt like it was really struggling to inject conflict among the kids despite the fact that everyone came together at the end of the fifth season. It did not always work.

John Kreese continued to be a cruel villain, as he worked to get himself back into a position to assume his role as main antagonist. The flashbacks of Kreese were tough to watch at times, but they all made a lot of sense for this character.

The mystery of Mr. Miyagi’s background is iffy too. I hope this turns out to be more than what it feels like because the initial reveal is questionable. I understand the conflict that it creates in Daniel with the questions about his mentor’s past, but I hope it becomes more than just some minor thing.

I hated what the show did to Kenny. It was played for some humor, but it was not funny and I was mad toward the others in the dojo and their reaction to him.

Having said all that, there was little better than that reveal of Kreese at Sekai Taikai at the very end of episode five. That was awesome.

Overall, I enjoyed more things about this season than I had nitpicks about it. It does feel like the second part of this finale could be sensational.

Sweet Tooth S3 E6, E7, E8

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“Here, There Be Monsters”

“The Road Ends Here”

“This is a Story”

Okay, so about halfway through the Sweet Tooth finale, I was afraid that it was going to end with an unsatisfying conclusion. I did not like the way it appeared that the story was going, and I was about to be extremely unhappy in the finale after an incredible build up with excitement and tension.

Then, everything changed.

The finale of the story brought so many things to a head and I was very pleased with the fates of Dr. Singh and of Zhang. They needed comeuppance and the show provided it. Singh getting his ultimate redemption by saving Gus instead of killing him and Zhang, who survived, saw everyone turn their back on her and left her outside the collapsed cave to try and survive on her own.

The end of the human race was also a rough way to end the series, but it seemed very much the way the story was heading, and having them not die of the Sick and just die out naturally felt very satisfying.

The show also made the death of Jepp aka Big Man almost lacking. Gus telling the story and pretending that Big Man survived and made it back with Gus, but I think it is clear that he wound up dying from his injuries in Alaska.

I also was right about the narrator of the story turned out to be an older Gus. I had thought that was the case. Of course, I did not expect older Gus to be James Brolin. I did not recognize his voice so the reveal was a shock.

Sweet Tooth wrapped up with a really strong and exciting three episodes and I was pleased with the conclusion. I would have liked to have Big Man’s death to have been less pretend.

Sweet Tooth S3 E5

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“The Tail-Tell Heart”

We arrive in Alaska and all hell breaks loose.

Sweet Tooth, Dr. Singh and Big Man make it to Alaska and meet up with  Siana and Nuka. The other people at the outpost were not pleased to see them. One of Zhang’s men had seen Gus arrive and had radioed his boss to reveal that Gus was already there.

So many things are converging at the outpost. When Zhang arrived, she threatened the other people to reveal where Gus and the others were. I was surprised that this group, who did not love that Gus was here, held fast to the information.

Gus and Nuka had escaped through the vents but they were too small for anyone else. Jepp tried to buy some tie by stalling Zhang, but that was when Dr. Singh betrayed them all. He came forward and told Zhang that he knew where Gus was and he would lead her to him.

What a scumbag. I did not see his betrayal coming, although it was clear that he was more into the journal of Captain Thacker than anything else. His ominous look when he saw the page that said it all started when I sacrificed the deer was chilling. I still had hoped that he wasn’t a lowlife that he had always been. I had hoped that Gus’ kindness had won him over.

Nope. Still nothing more than a lowlife asshole. He burned the journal in front of Zhang so only he could lead her to the cave and do what was needed. Dr. Singh really needs to pay the price for his betrayal, hopefully in the next few episodes.

Wendy saving Becky was a cool moment in the episode as well. Loved when Wendy smacked little jerk off Jordan with that wrench (or whatever it was). That guy had been asking for it too.

The wolf hybrid grandsons of Zhang tracked Gus and cornered him by the pipeline, but he helped by Caribou Man. Gus saved Caribou Man after the wolves had nearly got him.

The show is getting quite tense and the end is coming soon. Singh has to get his though. He and Zhang are just horrendous people, even if they believe their overall goal is a good thing.

Sweet Tooth S3 E4

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“Beyond the Sea”

We are now half way through the final season of Sweet Tooth and this was a dark, very emotional episode all around.

This is probably the best episode of the final season so far because it centered so much on Gus and what he had to do, not only to continue his quest to Alaska, but to honor the dead on the Whale’s Song, the boat they were trying to get to at the end of episode 3.

The boat had been shut down because the crew and passengers had all been exposed and died from the sick. All except one person, named Darwin. With Darwin’s help, Gus was able to remove all of the bodies from the ship while giving them all burials at sea.

The powerhouse moments of watching this little boy drag wrapped up bodies and throw them into the ocean, while providing a voice over eulogy, was truly a beautiful and touching homage to these people. Understand, we knew none of these people on the boat, but the way the moment affected Gus was how it affected us as the audience.

It made it even worse when we discovered that Darwin had also contracted the sick and he killed himself by falling overboard. Not before he set the boat up to continue its trek to Alaska.

I really thought that this was where Jepp was going to get his. The show teased that he had been exposed to the sick and that this was where Big Man was going to die. However Singh was able to test him and proved that he was free of the sick. I really do have a bad feeling about Jepp’s fate this season and I think that if something does happen to Bog Man, it is going to be crushing.

Meanwhile, we continue to see how horrific Mrs. Zhang is as she does not care what gets in her way in her wish to capture the ‘deer boy’ as she puts it. Her total dismissal of her grandson’s injury shows what she thinks of hybrids and her coldness toward her own daughter makes her a cruel individual.

The flash of hope at the end of the episode helped to place the rest of the episode into context. It was an episode about death, about remembering, about honoring, and about surviving. Gus remains perhaps the strongest character on the entire show.

Sweet Tooth S3 E3

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“The Pack”

I guess my idea that the father from last episode was going to be a problem for Gus and his group was dead wrong.

That character was finished off in the first five minutes of episode three by the hybrid wolf pack that is chasing after Gus. Turns out that Rosie is more of the threat than he ever was. And I have to say that Rosalind Chao’s Zhang is one cold-hearted monster. These are some serious antagonist for our heroes to avoid.

Looks like Gus, Jepp and Singh are making it to the boat, which had left before they all got to the coast. Poor Becky and Wendy get separated and have to deal with Rosie and her pups.

I’m not sure that they would have been able to fix that little boat the way they did, but I can suspend my disbelief for that. Gus continues to be the most heroic character on the show, showing his bravery and how excellent he is.

I am curious to see what happens now that their party has been split apart.

Sweet Tooth S3 E2

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“Thank God I’m a Country Boy”

The second episode of Sweet Tooth sees Gus and his crew, including Dr. Singh, who wanted to help Gus find the cave in Alaska, come across a family that was anything but friendly.

The couple were in the middle of labor and the father was anything but responsive to the hybrids among them. In fact, it took Dr. Singh offering to help with the birth in order to have him allowed inside.

As that is going on, Gus and Wendy meet a young girl about their age named Theo (Jonah Wren Phillips). Theo, dressed as a super hero, speaks to Gus and Wendy as if their being hybrids made them less than human. These were ideas from her father. Gus and Wendy are able to befriend her and she shows them that she too is a hybrid with, what looks to be bat wings.

The baby was a breech and Dr. Singh was able to save it, but it did turn out to be a hybrid. The father tried to cut off the baby’s ears because of it. This father is clearly demented and is going to cause trouble down the road. I thought Theo might wind up going with Gus, but she wanted to stay and help her new brother. He’s going to need it with the father here.

This was a side quest on the season and it was fine. It seems as if the father is going to be back at some point this season.

Sweet Tooth S3 E1

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“The Beginning is also the End”

The final season of Sweet Tooth dropped on Netflix this weekend. This is based on a comic book from one of my favorite writers, Jeff Lemire, and has been a great two season series. Now, Gus, Big Man, Bear and Wendy are on their way to Alaska to find Gus’s mom, who happens to be in bunch of trouble herself.

Christian Convery returned as the titular character and shows, once again, how perfectly he was cast as the deer hybrid, Gus. The young actor exudes charm and warmth, making this character the perfect protagonist for this world filled with sickness and cruelty.

Jeb, aka Big Man, has to face his own problems as he is trying to continue to protect Gus. Big Man is getting older and life’s conflicts just don’t bounce off him as they used to do.

The first episode provides some further insight into the relationship between the two hybrids, Gus and Wendy. They both seem to be the most good hearted characters you could hope to see, and I hope that does not lead to their eventual downfall.

With the first episode cliffhanger, the arrival of Dr. Singh wanting to talk about Alaska, the show kicked off with a bang. There was an avalanche in the Rocky Mountains that was awesome, placing another challenge before our foursome.

Jeff Lemire has written some of my favorite comic series from outside of Marvel, but I never read Sweet Tooth. It has that same feel that one might get when reading Fishflies. I do not know how much the series has stuck to the comics, but I can definitely feel the touch of Lemire in the story.

Sweet Tooth on Netflix has a total of 8 episodes in the final season.

Bodkin S1 E4, E5, E6, E7

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I chose to finish this series up this morning with the final four episodes on Netflix. I found Bodkin to be a fairly enjoyable romp that had moments of messiness. Still, I think the strength of the show was the characters and the shades of grey that they all displayed.

The mystery of what happened to the missing kids from 25 years prior is dealt with by the sixth episode, where we basically knew everything that we needed to know. It would lead into a climatic confrontation with all the forces in episode seven.

Honestly, episode seven was convoluted and, as I already mentioned, messy. Still, I think the show stuck to our characters, Dove, Gilbert and Emmy, and provided a satisfactory end to the series.

I did like how the mystery itself played out. When we discovered that one of the bodies in the trunk of the car that had been sunk in the bog was not Fiona, that took the tale in a different direction… back to the Yoga-using nuns.

The mystery aspect of the story did blend together very well, with all of the different tentacles of the story fitting together well.

Then there was the eels.

Apparently, eel smuggling is a major crime in Northern Europe and the producers, after discovering this, felt as if they had to include this bizarre fact in their series. It did work with Seamus, as he was known to be a major smuggler from his past.

And when Seamus discovered that he was the father to Sean, who was the son of Fiona, who died in childbirth and was buried by the nuns, things got really chaotic.

It all took place on the night of Samhain and the big celebration going on in Bodkin. And a bomb? Yes, a bomb. This is the part of the story that felt over-the-top and messy as everything is set up for a major showdown.

Overall, I enjoyed this series. It was passable entertainment, and it was carried by the three main characters. I especially liked how none of them were necessarily great people. Dove, in particular, would be clearly defined as an arse.

You can stream Bodkin on Netflix.

Bodkin S1 E3

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“Perfectly Innocent Life”

Bodkin episode three saw Dove, Gilbert and Emmy head to an Irish wake.

The wake of Darragh led to a lot of drinking, dancing and some intriguing clues to what happened on Samhain when the three strangers went missing.

They discovered more about the connections among Seamus and both Malachy and Fiona. Seamus was Malachy’s brother.

Dove and Emmy also found a suspicious image in a local bog. It looks like a car. Several comments about a car crash that night sent them to this bog to see what might be in it. Dove went into the water finding a car.

It was pulled out, but it was empty. At this point I was saying out loud to my screen for them to look in the trunk, but they seemed to not plan on doing that. Fortunately, Dove kicked the back end of the car in frustrations and the trunk popped open revealing two bodies that had been in the trunk, in that bog for 20 years.

With the bodies in the trunk, it supports the theory that these two were murdered.

The Netflix series has been a decent watch so far. I really do enjoy Will Forte in his role.

Bodkin S1 E2

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“Who We Are”

Episode two of Netflix’s Bodkin was pretty decent as the show seems to be starting to grab some footing in both the mystery aspect and the characterization of the group.

The trouble between the investigative Dove and the more relationship-building Gilbert is an intriguing conflict with them. Both seem to have success and failure in their methods of going about their jobs, even if their overall goals are different. Dove is after the story, the answers to the mystery of what happened to the three boys who disappeared, but Gilbert is more about the path that the story takes and presenting it in a manner in which people can relate.

It does feel like the journalist vs. podcaster theme is in full effect. Meanwhile, Emmy is caught between both worlds.

The mystery at the center of the story feels slight at this point. They seem to be trying very hard to make it feel more compelling and I hope that there is more coming from it, but this series right now is more about the conflict between Dove and Gilbert than it is about this mystery.

There are also a few background details finding their way into the story, but none of that feels like it will have the needed kick to elevate the characters into more than the simplistic characters that they have started out as.

Still, I liked the second episode and I think there is enough here with the talented cast to keep watching the remaining five episodes on Netflix.