Oscar winner Cate Blanchett is voicing a character in an animated TV show.
That is an amazing thing. It speaks to the MCU that there are so many of the actors who are willing to come back and provide lines for this project. Idris Elba was also back for just a few lines in this episode. It was really cool.
Of course, they did not get everybody back for their characters. Odin was in this episode and it was not Sir Anthony Hopkins, and Wenwu was not voiced by Tony Leung. Oh well.
Blending Hela and Wenwu (from the Shang Chi movies) was an interesting trick. Taking the whole Thor-banished-to-earth-until-worthy bit and making it work for Hela was a neat addition to the story. The set-up was strong and the execution was really solid too.
I found Hela’s character arc to be a very done one, reminding me of the Loki arc, and, of course, you give a strong character arc to one of the best actors working today, you get some great storytelling. Plus, Cate Blanchett has experience in the voice over world, which does have its benefits in performances.
It sounds like a skipping record, but I’ll say it again. The animation of this season of What If…? has been stellar. I love the parallels drawn between scenes from the MCU movies and what we see animated in What If..?. For example, the scene where Hela cannot budge the crown was very similar to the scene when Thor could not move Mjolnir in the first Thor movie. These echoes are throughout the series and show the cleverness of the writers and creative personnel working on What If…?.
There are only two more episodes to go on this daily release of season two. I have loved watching these episodes in this manner and I hope there will be other opportunities to follow this in future times.
Up to DateRunning Order:
E3 ”What If… Happy Hogan Saved Christmas?”
E1 “What If… Nebula Joined the Nova Corps?”
E5 ”What If… Captain Carter Fought the Hydra Stomper”
E6 ”What If…Kahhori Reshaped the World?”
E7 ”What If…Hela Found the Ten Rings?”
E2 “What If… Peter Quill Fought Earth’s Mightiest Heroes?”
E4 ”What If… Iron Man Crashed into the Gamemaster?”
There are so many TV shows! It is impossible to watch everything.
This is my list of 30 TV shows that I have watched this year from 30 to 1.
#30. Secret Invasion (Disney +). I wasn’t going to put this on the list, but there were enough moments in the show to be enough for this list. Much of the one on one scenes were decent. The rest of the story was lacking.
#29. Bonus Action Vol. 1 (YouTube). Jay and Adam play D&D with their friends and it was great. Surprisingly great characters with development. Watched on YouTube.
#28. Percy Jackson and the Olympians (Disney +). I have only seen two episodes so far (waiting for #3 tonight). Good so far.
#27. Goosebumps (Disney +). RL Stein’s classics were reimagined for this Disney + series. Justin Long starred. This was okay, up and down.
#26. Whose Line is it Anyway (CW). I wish I could see this more, but it sneaks past me. Ihave to catch it on the app if I can. It is in its last season with the regular cast.
#25. American Horror Story: Delicate (FX). First half of the season aired near the end of 2023. Typically creepy horror show. Having to do with pregnancy.
#24. The Muppets Mayhem (Disney +). Muppet series featuring Dr. Teeth and the Electric Mayhem. This was fun and had some great music. Loved Janis’s version of True Colors.
#23. Monarch: Legacy of Monsters (Apple TV +). Godzilla has some cameos. Follows two groups of humans, one group in 2015 and one in 1954. The 1954 group is more interesting.
#22. Bodies (Netflix). Limited series on Netflix, based on a graphic novel. Four time periods, same body. Mystery on how this is possible.
#21. Fall of the House of Usher (Netflix). Amalgam of Edgar Allan Poe’s best stories in a new series that watches a group of men and women from the same family die and the patriarch confess.
#20. Invincible (Amazon Prime). One of the top animated shows on TV. It only had 4 episodes in 2023, with the rest of the season two in 2024. Violent and dramatic.
#19. Silo (Apple TV +). Futuristic, apocalyptic drama where humanity has taken up residence inside a giant silo to protect themselves from the environment. Or is there something else going on?
#18. Schmigadoon (Apple TV +). Musical. Season two used classic musicals such as Hair, Chicago, Sweeny Todd as inspiration. Darker. Very funny.
#17. The Mandalorian (Disney +). Season three was not as awesome as past seasons, but it still has Pedro Pascal and Grogu.
#16. Blue Eye Samurai (Netflix). Another series that I have recent started and have yet to finish. Amazing animation and a deep character. Love this.
#15. The Rookie (ABC). The ABC drama featuring Nathan Fillion continues to be entertaining after four seasons. Fillion shouldn’t be considered a rookie any more.
#14. The Bear (FX). Fantastic show that takes place inside a restaurant. At least, the rebuilding of a restaurant. Stars Jeremy Allen White.
#13. Shrinking (Apple TV +). Jason Segal and Harrison Ford star on this drama/comedy about psychiatrists and the troubles they face in life, specifically dealing with loss.
#12. Poker Face (Peacock). Natasha Lyonne stars as Charlie Cale who has a special power… she can tell if someone is lying. Case of the week style… from Rian Johnson.
#11. Fargo (FX). Season five of the series has been kicking some butt… particularly by Dorothy “Dot” Lyon, a housewife who is more than what she seems. Jon Hamm stars too.
#10. Monday Night RAW (USA). RAW has really improved this year. There was a time not too long ago that I was thinking about not watching RAW. It is now appointing viewing with CM Punk, Seth Rollins, Cody Rhodes etc.
#9. Friday Night Smackdown (FOX). More WWE action with the show that rode the Bloodline storyline all year long. There were some moments in that storyline that could have been Emmy worthy. Acknowledge Smackdown.
#8. Ted Lasso (Apple TV +). The final (?) season of the show had its ups and downs, but usually was hilarious and it gave us a satisfying conclusion.
#7. What If…? (Disney +). The MCU telling stories about what might have happened. The What If.. Happy Hogan Saved Christmas? and What If…Nebula Joined the Nova Corps? are two of the best episodes of the whole series, let alone season 2.
#6. Gen V (Amazon Prime). The Boys spin-off, featuring as many shocks and gory moments as its parent show. There are some wonderful characters that are less corrupt as the Boys.
#5. Only Murders in the Building (Hulu). Third season brought both Paul Rudd and Meryl Streep to the show involving a mystery centered around Oliver’s Broadway show. Some great music coming from it too.
#4. Jury Duty (Freevee). One person on a jury is a real person and the rest are actors. The court case is not real. How will things go? This is exceptionally funny and engaging. James Marsden appears on the show.
#3. The Last of Us (Max). Maybe the best video game adaptation of all time. Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey play Joel and Ellie, two people trying to survive in a post-apocalyptic world. Emotionally devastating.
#2. One Piece (Netflix). Live action Manga with a group of characters that are the key to this show. The chemistry of this crew, led by Monkey D. Luffy, played by the charismatic Iñaki Godoy, is the most important part of the series. Creative, fun and thrilling.
#1. Loki (Disney +). The God of Mischief is back with more time traveling hijinks. Loki is desperately trying to save the TVA from being destroyed and, in the same way, save the multiverse. Tom Hiddleston has mastered this character after all these years of playing Loki and his chemistry with Owen Wilson’s Mobius is amazing. Their friendship takes this series to a different level. The end of episode four may be the most shocking cliffhanger ever.
“What If… Peter Quill Fought Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.”
Episode two is a bit of a step back from the excellent first episode of season two.
Peter Quill gets taken by Yondu and given to Ego. They go about on the Expanse and Peter comes back to earth, leading Peggy Carter to bring together the best heroes the earth could muster at the time.
It was sort of a different style Avengers formation, including Bill Foster, King T’Chaka, The Winter Soldier, Hank Pym, and Dr. Wendy Lawson (Mar-Vell). Things picked up when Thor arrived too.
As with all of the What If…? episodes, one of the cool things is that the most actors who played these characters in the MCU films reprise their roles on the animated show. That led to an astounding cast for an animated show including Chris Hemsworth, Michael Douglas, Laurence Fishburne, Kurt Russell, John Slattery, Sebastian Stan and Hayley Atwell all on the call list for episode two.
There were some good things that happened in the episode. It is not as if I hated this one. It just felt too rushed in some places. I did not love some of the character choices and a lot of what could have made the episode stronger was left out.
The animation continues to be a highlight of the show so far. Everything looked awesome and feels like a step up from season one.
Running Order:
Definitely…
E1 “What If… Nebula Joined the Nova Corps?”
E2 “What If… Peter Quill Fought Earth’s Mightiest Heroes?”
The Avengers: Endgame Ensemble Cast of the Year Award
Previous Winners: Avengers: Endgame (2019), The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020), In the Heights (2021), Mass (2021), Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022), Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022)
This year had a few solid ensemble casts. I generally consider an ensemble cast here as a cast without a main lead, although some of the previous winners did have lead performances too.
Runners-Up: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3. A great finale for this franchise within the MCU. Everybody got their awesome final moments. Dungeons & Dragons was a surprise hit of the year, at least critically. Their group of actors worked so well together. Air was another film that did great earlier in the year. The third Poirot film with Kenneth Branagh was the best of the three, A Haunting in Venice. Saltburn had a leading performance, but the ensemble around him was part of the weird film’s strength.
Winner: Oppenheimer
Sure, you could make an argument that Cillian Murphy is the lead of the film. I mean, it is named after his character. However, there are so many rich and complex characters populating this film that you could argue that this might be one of the best ensemble casts of all time. Oppenheimer was a huge hit and should be heard from again come Oscar time.
Previous winners: Rey (Star Wars), Mockingbird (Marvel Comics), Wonder Woman (DCEU), The Shirewolves, Captain Marvel, Kamala Harris, Wanda Maximoff, Pearl
I loved Anna Devane when I was younger and watched General Hospital. I loved how she could kick the butt of anyone placed in front of her. That is where this award came from.
You can call it a woke award if you wish. It doesn’t matter to me. I love a great female asskicker. Here are some of the best of 2023.
Runners-up: M3GAN kicked off the year in a great movie, although she is a robot technically and not necessarily a female.Spider-Gwen is a major star from the Across the Spider-Verse film and she has had a couple of series at Marvel Comics this year.I don’t care what anyone says, I loved The Marvels (Captain Marvel, Ms. Marvel and Monica Rambeau).They re definitely in this category.Barbie dominated the box office and found her way into the real world.Another one I will debate till the end is Hope, aka the Wasp, from Quantumania.Yes, she did not have as much to do, but she came up big a couple of times.Another comic character is Daredevil, aka Elektra Natchios.She was a major figure in Matt Murdock’s life and now is still in the DD costume during the Gang War story.Julia Page is a reporter from the No/One comic and she probably wouldn’t have made this list had it not been for the podcast that I listened to tied to this series.The podcast was inspiring to me and Julia was a great character.The biggest tour of the year kicked a lot of ass as Taylor Swift made ALL the money.The Last of Us debuted on HBO and gave us a perfect version of Ellie. Her confrontation with the cannibals was absolutely mind-blowing. Donna Noble returned with The Doctor for three specials on Disney + and showed why she was one of the best companions the Doctor ever had. Juliette Nichols battled through the first season of Silo on Apple TV + trying to solve a death inside the dystopian silo. Lucy Gray Baird dominated the screen in the new Hunger Games film. She was the winner of the Games and of our hearts. One of the top characters in the new D& D YouTube series Bonus Action was Bar’B Mourdusa, a barbarian, as played by Amanda Nicholas.
And our winner among this massive list of powerful and dominant females is…
Winner: Dorothy “Dot” Lyon.
Aka Nadine Tillman, played by Juno Temple on FX’s Fargo.
Dorothy has been the main protagonist in Fargo season five and she has been just so awesome. Being pursued by her ex-husband, Sheriff Roy Tillman, Dorothy had to fight off his flunkies while still trying to maintain her new life from crashing around her. She has been absolutely brutal all year and her wits and intelligence shone through everything. I am excited for her final showdown with Roy, which is clearly coming soon.
EYG- Embrace Your Geekness 