Tag Archives: movies

Resident Evil (2026)

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The Resident Evil franchise is one that I have only ever saw one film prior to this new version from director Zach Cregger. I saw the Resident Evil: The Final Chapter which I soundly hated. I do have the first film of the franchise schedule to be among the October the 13th-watch films this year. However, I went into this new Resident Evil film with a very hopeful attitude. I have found Zach Cregger’s recent films, Weapons and Barbarian to have been exceptional horror/thriller films and I had heard a lot of positive word of mouth. Still, I was not totally convinced of the quality this film would be.

After seeing the film, I am ready to declare that 2026 is truly the year of the horror film. Not only did we get Obsession, Backrooms, Buddy, Exit 8, Send Help, The End of Oak Street, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, Deep Water, Hokum, Leviticus, and still have sever such as Clayface, The Other Mommy, Werwulf, and Godzilla Minus Zero still to come, but the new Resident Evil film was a fabulous film.

Bryan (Austin Abrams) was a hapless courier who was enlisted to take a medical package to the hospital in Raccoon City. As he made his way through the snowy conditions, Bryan encountered some monstrous creatures trying to kill him.

The number one thing that made this movie so awesome was the performance of Austin Abrams as our protagonist. Abrams had appeared in the HBO show Euphoria as well as Weapons and Wolfs before this role, and he showed that he was a charming, wonderful lead for the film. He delivered every line with such a flair that you could not help but cheer for the guy.

Again, with much thanks to Abrams, this film was just unexpectedly funny. I did not expect to laugh as much as I did in Resident Evil, and laughing when the film wanted me to laugh. I credit Austin Abrams’ work in the film for a large part of why it was so funny.

There were moments of the movie that were extremely tense too. The jump scares were kept to a minimum and were remarkably successful when they did show up. The tension was created from the situation and by placing Bryan into circumstances that the audience responded to effectively.

Without spoiling, the ending of Resident Evil (2026) did leave me a little dissatisfied overall, but it was not a deal breaker as some films have been. This third act resolution is not unwatchable by any means. I just wanted a different result.

I never played the video game that this franchise was based upon, so I do not know how the hardcore Resident Evil fans would take it, but I know I was never confused by what was on the screen. Could there be some Easter eggs that I did not realize? Sure, possibly, but I absolutely feel as if previous viewing was unnecessary to enjoy this movie.

This was a scary, funny, hoot of a good time movie with a lead actor who I think is going to be a superstar soon.

4.4 stars

Hope

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My friend Chris asked me if I was going to see Hope this weekend. I had no idea what it was. He sent me a link, which introduced me to this Korean action/sci-fi/monster movie. I also heard some chatter about how wild this movie was, so when I saw the film available at Cinemark, it moved up my list.

Wild is not the appropriate descriptor for the film.

According to IMDB, “A mysterious discovery is made on the outskirts of the remote harbor town. The residents find themselves in a desperate fight for survival against something they have never encountered before.“

The movie starts off with the Chief of Police (Hwang Jung-min) getting called by his cousin Ko Sung-ki (Zo In-sung) to investigate a dead cow on the road that had gaping claw wounds on its body. This led to a pursuit of some kind of monster that is rampaging through the heart of the small town.

Another character that I enjoyed a great deal in this movie was Im Sung-ae, who was played by Jung Ho-yeon- one of the stars of the first season of Squid Game.

The first act of this movie is basically the monster and Chief going through the city and it was tremendous. There were so many epic action moments that were amazingly shot. Some of the CGI was a touch shaky, but there were also some awesome CGI as well. There were no moments of bad CGI that took me out of the movie.

There was a switch along the line when we discover something unexpected and it changes the perspective. It is still some greatness, as there are a ton of great action chases and exciting, thrill ride scenes.

There were some extremely funny scenes too. Especially some of the dialogue of the film was hilarious and my entire theater was laughing at it.

Hope, though I am not sure where that name comes from, is so great for most of this movie that the long run time of over two and a half hours did not feel that way for me. I really was considering this being the second 5 star review of the day.

However, without spoiling anything, the ending of this movie dropped a gigantic HUH??? on the audience and came from out of nowhere. I was totally confused at the end of the film, and it hurt a film that I thought was superb so far. It felt like the film was incomplete. It does sound like they are working on the sequel.

As with any foreign language film, I forgot the fact that I was reading the English dub on the screen as the film progressed. It just becomes part of the experience. I prefer reading the subtitles over having English actors dub the words because the performances always seem to suffer in that way. The tone of voices is as important as the words that they are saying.

This was a lot of fun even though the ending dinged it. It is a bat-shit crazy film that flipped the script a couple of times and kept me tense and anxious the whole time.

4.5 stars

Practical Magic 2

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I was in the theater watching Practical Magic 2 and there were a couple of young women sitting a couple seats away from me. They were enjoying this movie so much. They were crying, gasping, leaning on each other and reacting to everything that was happening. It made me remember how I reacted to Avengers: Endgame on the first watch. There was an energy coming from them that was wonderful.

I wish I would have liked the movie anywhere near what they did.

I just watched Practical Magic for the first time earlier this week in preparation for this movie, and, while I did not like it that much, I am glad I watched it, because you needed to know the story of the original in order to know what is happening.

The curse of the Owens sisters (Sandra Bullock & Nicole Kidman) takes front and center once again as Sally’s husband Gary died off screen, confirming that the curse was still going on. The story transferred to Sally’s daughters, Antonia (Maisie Williams) and Kylie (Joey King), as they were coming to celebrate the birthday of Aunt Jet (Dianne Wiest). Sally had kept her daughters in the dark about their background as witches so when Kylie came with a boyfriend (Xolo Maridueña), things take a turn for tragedy.

The actors are all likeable. I have to admit to only seeing Blue Beetle when Xolo Maridueña was on screen. I was also happy to see Stockard Channing, who I really thought was dead.

The story felt very shaky and I found it to be the biggest weakness of the film. The writing was silly and it was really predictable. I was rolling my eyes several times.

I am glad the young ladies in my row enjoyed this so much. I did not hate the film, but I did not find it any better than the original, which I thought was below level.

2.8 stars

Buddy

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I have been trying to get to the movie, Buddy, for the last two weeks, but it just was not working out. So when I went to schedule this week’s movies, Buddy was the priority.

Man, am I glad I made this a priority. I loved this movie.

Buddy reminded me of the late WWE superstar Brey Wyatt, who had a stretch where he was playing a demented children’s host, much like Mr. Rogers. Instead of Mr. Rogers, this is a demented Barney.

Buddy is an orange unicorn who hangs out with a bunch of little kids who sing to Buddy and tell him how much they love him, but it turned out that there was something much more sinister than you expect.

The film started off showing what seemed like an episode of “It’s Buddy” and the first one felt fun. However, it definitely took a turn soon after. Everything looked like it was one of those cheap ’90s kiddies show, but that was what the creators of the film wanted it to look like.

I just thought this was so great as the kids slowly learned about Buddy’s true nature, and i found myself really cheering for these kids. Wade was my favorite one (played by Caleb Williams), and the kid seemed like her was absolutely in a Barney episode. I think that was intentional. Another of the lead kids were Freddy (Delany Quinn) and she did a great job as the overall protagonist.

After a point in the film, the story left the “It’s Buddy” set in the middle and we were in the real world. It was discombobulating at first, but the craziness of these scene, plus the awesome Cristin Milioti and Topher Grace were involved in the story. I was so into this movie that I was trying to guess what was going down during this time and I found myself yelling at Topher Grace for his character.

There are some legitimately horrifying moments in the film with some awesome gore. It was such an entertaining film that I was completely invested in. I was alone in the theater, which allowed me to be as expressive as I could be, and I loved what happened.

There were some real funny moments in the film too… in a really dark comedic manner. It is one of the most creative films of 2026. I loved Buddy and it is another odd film that I absolutely enjoyed completely.

5 stars

The Runner

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Amazon Prime has had some big “winners” from their original films. Anyone who saw War of the World a couple of years ago knows to what I refer.

I did know that the latest Gal Gadot movie, The Runner, was being dropped on Amazon Prime. I saw that it was available to see free and I could not believe it.

I can see now why it was available free.

No one would pay for this movie. What in the heck was this?

First, Gal Gadot played Maia, a high-powered lawyer, whose son was kidnapped and the kidnapper blackmails Maia. The kidnapper (played by Damian Lewis) put her son into a diabetic coma and threatened to give him another dose that would kill him. He gives the boy an IV with a drip so there is a counting clock on Maia.

He wanted her to go and shoot her key witness who is going to testify against some mob boss. Then he had her run across London in order to get to kill the guy. It is like Die Hard With a Vengeance meets Speed, but way stupider than either one.

Gal Gadot is just not a good actress. She absolutely peaked with the first Wonder Woman. There were some unbelievably horrendous scenes with her performances. There is one moment where a train was going past her that was some of the worst acting I have ever seen. It was Tommy Wiseau level acting.

The situation is as stupid as it could be. How did this guy get his hands on the kid? Maia dropped him off at school. He wanted his mom to walk him into the school, but she ignored him. It was just a few scenes later when Lewis had the kid in a room and had him in the coma. There is just no way this set up worked in any fashion. Suspension of disbelieve is one thing, but this is just not possible.

The entire film makes zero sense. There is a moment where Maia runs down a subway train. I wish I was kidding.

The one positive of the film is that I did not see any Amazon Prime product placement, which is something they must have learned from War of the Worlds. Now… Nike shoes is a different thing.

The editing of the movie is just terrible. It is so noticeable that it is so obnoxious that I can’t even explain it.

It is only a 85 minute film, but it really felt like it was double that.

It is truly one of the worst movies of the year. Way to go, Amazon. You’ve got another winner.

0.5 stars

The Muppet Show S2 E16-E24

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Spoilers

Guest Star: Cleo Lane

Guest Star: Julie Andrews

Guest Star: Jaye P. Morgan

Guest Star: Peter Sellers

Guest Star: Petula Clark

Guest Star: Bob Hope

Guest Star: Teresa Brewer

Guest Star: John Cleese

Guest: Cloris Leachman

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.

Season three… here I come.

Fall 2: Deadpoint

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I was excited for this movie. Honestly, I did not immediately recognize the original film from the title of the sequel, because the title Fall was so generic. However, once I refreshed my memory, I remembered how tense and thrilling that first film was and how it had a really great twist. I was excited to hear that it was getting a sequel.

After seeing Fall 2: Deadpoint, I’m at a mid level for it. There were moments where the film was tense and filled me with anxiety, but, unfortunately, there seemed to be more moments that were just so stupid and that they tried to force a twist in the movie at the end that really did not work for me.

According to IMDB, “Grieving her sister Shiloh’s death, Jax Hunter bonds with Shiloh’s bold friend Luce. Together they tackle dangerous Mount Kwan in Thailand. When a rockslide traps them on a narrow plank 4,000 feet up, Jax must face her fears to survive.”

I did like how they tied this movie to the original, by giving Shiloh (played by Virginia Gardner) a younger sister. This is part of the plot that worked as her sister Jax had to deal with her grief and her own fear.

I did like the new setting for the situation the girls found themselves in and there were some really tense and scary moments. If the film would have been happy just to build suspense in that manner, this would have been an acceptable film and a decent sequel. Unfortunately, you could tell that they were trying to one up the surprise twist of Fall, and that was where this film fell flat.

Because the fact is that the third act of this film was easily my least favorite part of this film. It felt added on that damaged the film dramatically.

Some of the images shot for the film was fine, but nowhere near as well done in the first movie. It felt like there were more shots that were obviously green screen compared to the first one.

This film has its positives, but the stupid stuff really hurt this movie for me. I didn’t hate watching Fall 2: Deadpoint, but there were enough issues with the film that made me disappointed.

2.7 stars

Onslaught

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Onslaught is a new movie this weekend that had some elements about it that I liked, but it was not a film that I would want to watch again. There were too many times where I rolled my eyes or found myself thinking that it was just too stupid for its own good.

According to IMDB, “When a rogue squad of genetically engineered super soldiers break loose in the desert, a badass Army sniper must unleash hell to protect her young daughter.”

Adria Arjona, who is rumored to be the next DC Wonder Woman (though unconfirmed), is the lead role of the film, the badass sniper whose daughter gets dropped off with her without warning. Then, a bunch of murderous super soldiers attack her for… you know.. reasons, and one of them turned out to be the most coincidental character ever in cinema history.

That might be hyperbole, or it may not. The plot of this movie, as it was, was lacking. It was really dumb and had really no reason to happen as it did. It all felt too unbelievable across the whole movie.

The film does have a fine cast, led by Arjona, who I liked as the protagonist. There were also roles for Dan Stevens (though nowhere as used as I anticipated), Reginald VelJohnson, Michael Biehn, Rebecca Hall (who was on screen less than Stevens), and young actress Blake Kennedy. At the beginning of the film as the names were flashing across the screen, I thought that this had a great cast. I then realized that the cast was, for the most part, wasted.

There were some fun kills along the way and Arjona was definitely a bad ass, but this is one of those films that really did not have much to it. It was paper thin, and it depended on the blood and gore. That’s fine for some movies, but this one felt like it should have been more.

2.7 stars

Mayday

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The new Ryan Reynolds film debuted on Apple TV + this weekend, called Mayday. One wondered why this was not released theatrically. That did not make me optimistic about the quality of the film. However, those fears were squashed after I watched Mayday.

Co-starring Ryan Reynolds and Kenneth Branagh and written/directed by John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein, who also directed Dungeons and Dragons, Mayday was just a lot of fun. I thought this movie was really funny and had some really good action. I’m not sure why this was not released in the theater, but it would have certainly been a worthwhile addition to the big screen.

Navy Pilot Lieutenant Troy Brennan (Ryan Reynolds) was recruited for a top secret surveillance mission over the Soviet Union. The mission led to the plane being shot down and Brennan being injured after falling through trees in a forest. Nikolai “Nick” Ustinov found the injured pilot and took him to his cabin to nurse him back to health. Nick was an American-loving Russian who was more than what he seemed. The buddies tried to find a way to get Troy home.

Ryan Reynolds and Kenneth Branagh had a tremendous chemistry and they carried the film. The friendship developing during the movie was one of the standout keys to the film. Reynolds’ one-liner quips were very clever and funny.

The action was fun, if not silly at times. There is a chase scene that takes place in Moscow that is one of the most original and ridiculous chase scenes I have seen, and yet, somehow, this bizarre scene worked.

The film had a surprising heart to it. There were some wonderful moments between Nick and his daughter Anna (Maria Bakalova).

The film is highly entertaining and I enjoyed watching this film. Is it perfect? No, of course not, but it is definitely worth watching. Mayday is streaming on Apple TV +.

4.2 stars

Silo S3 E10

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Spoilers

“Troy”

During this awesome season finale, my first thought was… I don’t know the time frame happening in this show. I originally thought that the Juliette timeline was really a long way into the future. But… now…

We saw Victor, who was the doctor who helped Daniel back in the flashback timeline, watching the events of Silo 18. Turned out that Victor was the voice of the Algorithm. We see Daniel wake up from a cryogenic sleep, only to be called Troy and not remember anything about his past. We see Daniel’s sister Charlotte, now called Susan, and neither Troy or Susan recognized each other.

I have to say, the people looking generally the same age in the present timeline threw me for a loop. I was not expecting it. I assume they all have some time in cryo to account for it, but it took me a good deal of time trying to decipher the answer.

Big swerve. Camille helped the rebels in silo 18 as she delayed the failsafe just long enough for the crew to cap the pipe that would have delivered the poisonous gas into silo 18. I did not see Camille’s turn coming at all.

Another big swerve. After the failed failsafe attempt, Victor ordered Troy awakened. Before that could happen, Victor ends his own life with a handgun he had hidden in his desk. He left a message for Troy, answering a question Troy had been asking… about a woman he had been seeing in visions as he is awaken. Victor told him her name was Helen.

I did not mention that we saw the massacre of the people of silo 17, and that Troy was the person who ordered the deaths. In one of the hardest scenes of the series, we saw the poison released after the people had left their silo and how the drones would mow them down with weapons.

After all the drama, Juliette led a small group of people including Camille to the door. It was here when Troy spoke using the Algorithm voice and offered Juliette a deal. There would be no further failsafe attempts if the people of silo 18 promise to not try to contact other silos. Juliette accepted, but it was part of her rouse. Juliette has a better idea, something that the people of silo 1 would not expect. Juliette wanted to have an all out assault on silo 1.

So many questions still up in the air. I believe the creators of the show hinted at a connection between Troy/Daniel and Juliette. Could she be the descendent of Daniel and Helen’s baby?

I love how everyone in silo 18 now seems to be working together instead of against each other. About damn time.

I do think an actual timeline of events would help picture all that there is. It seemed as if the massacre that Troy led in this finale was the same one that Solo (Steve Zahn) experienced as a child.

We learned that season four will be the final season of the show and that we do not have to wait long for Silo to return. It showed us clips from season four at the end of the episode and told us that it would release in the summer of 2027. We are under a year away from the final season. I found this season of Silo to be filled with surprises and fantastic character work. Even when it was frustratingly slow at times, it always felt like they had a destination in mind, and the end of season three paid off dramatically.

Daily Countdown: Animated Movies #33

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#33

Zootopia

Released: March 4, 2016

Runtime: 108 minutes

Rating: PG

Animation Style: 3D computer-animated style

Studio: Disney

The original Zootopia is a movie that came out of nowhere to be a highly entertaining film. A big part of the film’s success could be given to the characters of Judy Hopp and Nick Wilde.

Voice cast:  Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Idris Elba, Jenny Slate, Nate Torrence, Bonnie Hunt, Don Lake, Tommy Chong, J. K. Simmons, Octavia Spencer, Alan Tudyk, Shakira, Phil Johnston, John DiMaggio, Katie Lowes, Gita Reddy, Jesse Corti , Tom Lister Jr., Josh Dallas, Leah Latham, Rich Moore, Fabienne Rawley, Peter Mansbridge, Byron Howard, Jared Bush, Mark Rhino Smith, Josie Trinidad,John Lavelle, and Kristen Bell. 

Coyote vs. Acme

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This is the story of a movie that fought back against cancelation and low expectations to make a release date several years after being filmed.

Coyote vs. Acme is a live-action/animated mix in the vein of Who Framed Roger Rabbit, but featuring the Looney Tunes. When Warner Brothers had the rights to the film, they decided that the movie would not make any money and they shelved it. Eventually, WB put the film up for sale but there were no takers. Everyone had the same fear… this would flop.

Finally, Ketchup Entertainment purchased Coyote vs. Acme and the film was going to be seen. While the film may eventually prove WB correct with its box office, at least the movie is able to be seen. The Looney Tunes are not as well known of an IP as they once were, and the struggle for the film is real. However, I can be happy to say that the film absolutely needed to be released because it is fabulous.

Rapscallion Wile E. Coyote, tired of Acme’s products constantly backfiring on him, saw an advertisement on TV from a lawyer named Kevin Avery (Will Forte) claiming to be able to get a settlement for any cartoon against Acme.

Actually, he was looking very low level, in the hundred dollars range. Kevin did not have the confidence that it would require to go up against a major corporation like Acme, with their top notch lawyer Buddy Crane (John Cena) and CEO of Acme, Foghorn Leghorn (Eric Bauza).

As they dive into their case, they discovered more than just a case of some misfiring rocket skates.

This was great. It was funny. I was laughing the entire time. Will Forte did an amazing job of playing against the animated Wile E. Coyote, as well as John Cena, who was in full cheese-mode as Acme’s lead lawyer.

There were a ton of jokes that would be considered either inside jokes or Easter eggs that would reward the longtime viewers of Looney Tunes. I do worry that people who were not fans of Looney Tunes would not appreciate the jokes as much as I did. The writing was extremely clever, but was, potentially, too insider for the general audience.

The animation was excellent and it was such a fun film with the returning characters of these iconic Looney Tunes. I really loved seeing the characters such as Road Runner, Taz, Tweety, Daffy Duck etc. It was so awesome to see them all back.

I am so glad that this movie had a chance to be seen on a big screen. In a perfect world, this would be a huge film at the box office. Coyote vs. Acme was such a good time and such a wonderfully written film.

4.5 stars

Lanterns S1 E2

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Spoilers

“Trust Fall”

Episode two of DC’s Lantern’s series stuck it out in the 2016 timeline, leaving last week’s shocking conclusion during 2026 for a later date.

Instead, the episode split Hal and John into different places. John is sent to retrieve the Lantern to charge the power ring, and Hal sticks around to go see Macon again.

Hal ends up getting shot as a warning and John gets nabbed and dragged away when we hear the term “Manhunters” for the first time.

I know enough about Lantern lore to say that this is not the Martian Manhunter, aka J’onn J’onzz, but not much more after that so I am curious to find out what this piece of DC history is all about.

The show brought out some awesome Green Lantern stuff this episode. First, as I mentioned, they showed us the power charging Lantern that Hal needed to recharge the power on his ring. It was stored in a cool pocket-dimension found in Hal Jordan’s house.

Second, we get to see the Green Lantern costumes. There were three of them hanging in Hal’s closet. Hal did not seem overly anxious to put it back on.

However, third, he did put it back on and he flew into space to a satellite of some kind where we meet, for the first time, Sinestro. Sinestro is Green Lantern’s arch enemy, and is being played by Ulrich Thomsen.

John Stewart could not fly when using the ring, but he was able to create a bird that followed him the whole episode, even when he did not have the ring on, even when he was unconscious after being snatched at Hal’s house. I get a feeling that the bird has a deeper meaning for down the road.

I am excited about the mysteries of the show, and I am wondering when we will be heading back to 2026. Next week looks to be a John Stewart-centric episode with more of his past coming to [Green Lantern’s] Light.

Boston Legal S1 E10, E11, E12

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Spoilers

“Hired Guns”

“Schmidt Happens”

“From Whence We Came”

One of my favorite quotes from Boston Legal happened in episode 11. It is a thought have many times in the restroom…

“I keep an extremely clean penis“

Alan Shore is in response to a woman who had entered the men’s restroom and had introduced herself, while Alan was at the urinal. He extended a hand to shake and she said that he is going to wash that.

Hence, the clean penis comment from Alan.

That woman was Shirley Schmidt, named partner in Crane, Poole & Schmidt, played brilliantly by Candice Bergen. Shirley Schmidt becomes one of my absolute favorite characters on this show over the next four and a half years. This was her first appearance and Candice Bergen immediately was placed as a powerhouse, keeping Denny Crane off balance.

In “Head Games,” Alan winds up getting held at gunpoint by a disgruntled father who had recently lost his children because of Alan. Yes, the father would take his children without permission to Peru over Christmas. The mother asked for help from Alan. I mean… it is kidnapping.

This whole situation led to another classic moment of the series. Denny Crane using his rifle to shoot the father. Denny had the gun in his desk and had Tara open the door when he yelled “Pull!” As Denny said, he was a Marine, “trained as a sniper… or was it a pilot?”

We also get the debut in episode 11 of Bernard Ferrion, a small man who killed his mother by hitting her on the head with a skillet. Alan was able to free Bernard on a technicality, and then gave him a kindly speech about being good. Then next episode, Bernard is back after killing his neighbor with a skillet as well. Alan was disappointed, and sent Bernard to Tara.

Bernard is a surprisingly complex character for the short arc that he appeared. You could tell how lonely he was, and how he had a kind heart, despite being, as Alan called him, evil.

Betty White arrived as Alan’s new assistant, Catherine Piper. White had played this role on The Practice and had come in contact with Alan then. Seeing her resume this role was an awesome thing.

The arrival of Shirley put a charge into this show and gave the show a foil to Denny that was every bit as formidable as he was. Certainly, she was more capable of standing up to Denny than Paul was. All Shirley had to do was whisper those two little words… “Denny Crane” and Denny would shiver.

Lanterns S1 E1

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Spoilers

“Pilot”

The first episode of DC Studio’s latest TV show premiered on HBO Max this Sunday night. Lanterns started off with Hal Jordan training John Stewart as his replacement.

We start the story in 2016, with a gruff Hal Jordan being very tough on his trainee, John Stewart.

The show ended in 2026 with Hal Jordan dead on the bleachers of a football field.

There had been rumors about Hal Jordan dying at the end of the pilot, but with the 2016 story going on, this is how we will get a full season of Hal alive and John moving forward.

Of course, there will be some story in 2026 too since the dead body of Hal nor John had the Lantern ring. Where is it? Who took it? Who killed Hal? These points I expect will correspond to the storyline from 2016.

I do like shows that play with the manner in which the narrative is presented. Of course, LOST is the immediate show to come to mind, and former LOST writer Damon Lindelof is a writer and executive producer on the show. That always could hook me.

I have enjoyed Green Lantern as a character, despite not collecting his comic title. I think the way this show has been set up, kind of a True Detective-style show, with this mystery of what is going on in this little town in Nebraska where Hal Jordan originally received the ring was some solid writing.

I found Kyle Chandler to be excellent as an older, grumpier Hal Jordan, who was training his replacement John Stewart despite not wanting to have a replacement. Aaron Pierre as John Stewart, was good, but I do not think he had the amount of material by comparison yet. Pierre is a solid actor and I think he will get better as the series goes on.

I am invested in the mystery that has been set up and the ending with Hal’s death only served to increase the interest I have in this series. I expect to be watching this every Sunday night until October.