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Fantasy TV (Sep 2022)

Read more Television and Fantasy TV.

Read More The Sandman The next big title to be given the Netflix treatment will be Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman… it’s currently in development. Everyone is excited about the adaption, and hopefully it will bring the story to a bigger audience. … Constantine The new episode of Constantine is probably the best show so far! The best ones are the ones that is based on the comic book, and this new episode, the whole setup is quite similar to Mike Carey's Hellblazer: All His Engines. .…

The Sandman
netflix.com

It breaks my heart, but I don’t love the Netflix adaption of The Sandman.

I realized that the television show wasn’t meant for me, but for a wider audience that is not all that familiar with the original comic books. You see, I own all the original comics, starting with #1 when it first launched in 1989, when Vertigo Comics was in its infancy. I own all the spinoffs titles (including Death: The High Cost of Living, and various Specials). I am a superfan, when it comes to the Sandman.

So, that’s the problem. I’m just too close to the source material, it is hard for me to accept the new changes… especially, when I think it brought absolutely nothing to the story.

They followed most of the story correctly, making some minor changes to give the Corinthian a bigger role, and overall, the story still follows the books.

What I had a problem with is all the gender and race swaps. I know, I know, most people aren’t bothered by this… but when you are used to a character to look a certain way, you just expect them to look the same on screen.

The biggest changes were Death is played by Kirby Howell-Baptiste, a black actress, and John Constantine is played by Jenna Coleman, a woman, Rose Walker is played by Kyo Ra, a black actress, and Lucien, an old male elf librarian is played by Vivienne Acheampong, a black woman.

I know a lot of people argued that it doesn’t matter, but to me, it just didn’t feel like the Sandman from the comic books. I just wondered why they made these changes? For example, if they changed Cyborg, a black character, into a white character, wouldn’t it upset you? Another example, when they decided to make Snake Eyes from G.I. Joe to Asian, I wasn’t happy about that either. I would be upset if they changed Storm Shadow, who is Asian, to another race or gender. Another example, I was really upset that they wouldn’t show Constantine smoking in the Constantine television show... and yes, I was upset that Constantine was not blonde and English in the Keanu Reeves movie. To me, I just don’t like it when they make changes to the characters.

What The Sandman got right, such as The Corinthian, or Desire (maybe they could have gotten both a male and female to play the part!), or all the serial killers… they got it right! I’ve no complaints if they get things right.... Cain and Abel, they look like they’re from the bible. Even Fiddler’s Green looked the part, complete with his costume and glasses. When the show gets a character right, I’m going to praise it.

I guess, when it comes down to it, for someone not familiar with The Sandman, you are going to have a good time. You’re going to love the story of the Sandman, which combines the first two Sandman arcs, Preludes and Nocturnes and The Doll’s House, into 10 episodes. I think the story still holds up.

Also, don’t miss the bonus episode, a two-parter Dream of a Thousand Cats and Calliope, which are both excellent adaptions. No complaints here, the cats looks like cats, the muse looks like a muse.

Read More Game Of Thrones The Seven Kingdoms come to life in a way like no other as the Game of Thrones Live Concert Experience kicked off its all-arena twenty-four city North American tour at the Xcel Energy Center in St . Paul. .…

House of the Dragon
hbo.com

With bitterness of the last two seasons of Game of Thrones still fresh in my mind, I wasn’t looking forward to the prequel House of the Dragons… or as the kids are calling it, “Hot D”. Going into House of the Dragons, I realized how much I love the original Game of Thrones (Seasons 1 to 5). That’s because the story and writing is strong, as it’s based on George R.R. Martin’s Blood and Fire book.

The good news is that the book has a definitive ending, so if they are adapting this book, they won’t run out of material, unlike Game of Thrones, where the showrunners were just making it up as they go along (and it shows how poorly they understood the characters).

In many ways, House of the Dragons is making me fall back in love with the Westeros world. Since the story takes place over 150 years before Game of Thrones, there are no familiar characters.

We are introduced to the ruling House Targaryen. The king Viserys Targaryen is facing a problem of not having an heir to his kingdom. He chose to named his daughter, Rhaenyra, as sole heir to spurn his brother, Daemon. This sets up conflict within the Targaryen family.

I think the best part of the show is Matt Smith, who is straight up an evil man. To call him evil might be wrong, he’s more like a big jerk. Smith does such a wonderful job in portraying Daemon, that every time he’s on screen, he dominate. All the other characters are boring compared to Daemon.

I’m only three episodes in, and knowing that HBO has already green-lit a second season, I have a good feeling about this series. I haven’t read the book, so I’m very much looking forward to how the story unfolds, and who will live and who will die, playing the Game of Thrones?

PS, I don’t like how House of the Dragons re-used the theme song to Game of Thrones. I wish it was a different theme song, so that it stands on its own, rather than being related to GoT.

Read More Lord of the Rings The Banner Saga, a game by Stoic, released on Tuesday, January 14th, is one of the best games I've ever played. The graphics is hand drawn and reminds me of Ralph Bakshi's Lord of the Rings and pre-CGI Disney animation. .…

Rings of Power
amazon.com

Yes, I do have Amazon Prime, and no, I haven’t wanted to watch The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power show from Amazon. The show is based on the The Lord of the Rings and its appendices by J. R. R. Tolkien.

One of the main reasons I am avoiding this show is that the diehard fans are ridiculing the show for its terrible writing and that the show is changing race and gender from the books. As someone who was not happy that they gender or race-swapped characters on The Sandman, I fully understand why these fans are upset that the Rings of Power show is getting their characters wrong.

I don’t know the whole story, but I think part of the problem is that Amazon only has rights to some books, so they can’t touch anything that appears in the Peter Jackson movies. They might have to make up characters or introduce a new race that was not mentioned in the books. For example, since the Hobbits didn’t exist in the time that Rings of Power takes place, the showrunners used a race called the Harfoots.

I haven’t read the books, so those kind of things probably wouldn’t bother me, but seeing as so many fans hate all the changes to the books, I am avoiding the fantasy series for now.

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

State of Play: G.I. Joe: Classified

Product Description G.I. Joe is a highly skilled, on-demand, special operations force of men and women from around the globe. These extraordinarily talented heroes are selected for their elite abilities and tasked with defending the world from Cobra, a ruthless criminal organization bent on total domination. With unwavering courage and steely determination, the brave members of G.I. Joe are prepared to seek out Cobra in any environment on the planet. From hostile jungles to ice-clad arctic peaks…wherever there’s trouble, G.I. Joe is there. This Heavy Artillery Roadblock figure comes ready for action, with multiple points of articulation for high poseability and character-inspired accessories, including a heavy artillery blaster. And with custom artwork by Mike Thompson, the G.I. Joe Classified Series Roadblock package will make a mark on shelves. Read More Hasbro This year, Hasbro wanted to update the toy line to 6”, giving these soldiers updated looks and additional details you can’t see on a smaller figure. The first wave is solid, with Snake Eyes, Duke, Scarlet, Roadblock and Destro (the only Cobra in the wave). ....

I previously mentioned how difficult it was to find and collect G.I. Joe: Classified toys. After their disastrous Target releases for their Exclusive line, Cobra Island, it made fans, such as myself, completely giving up on collecting the line. Last year, as part of Hasbro’s effort to win back the fans, they put back production on the the early Cobra Island figures as a “last chance to own these figures”. I knew I shouldn’t have, but I caved in and ordered the figures I was missing (however, to this day, I’m still missing a Major Bludd figure…)

Anyway, now that it’s two years in since I started collecting the Classified Series, I know for a fact that I have not seen any figures on store’s shelves, except for the Snake Eyes: Origins movie figures. The movie, and action figures, proved to be unpopular with the fans. Of course, I bought the figures, to add to my collection… but if it wasn’t part of the Classified line, I probably wouldn’t have cared either.

Recently, I got roped back into collecting the Classified Series when Amazon had some new figures in stock: Alley Viper, B.A.T., and Heavy Artillery Roadblock. I believe the reasons why I was able to get the Viper and BAT is because fans were cancelling their pre-orders. I truly believe this, as it would’ve been one year in pre-order (and Hasbro was already announcing figures for 2023). I do not believe I will see these figures (or any future figures) in stores, so I am forced to buy them online.

As for Roadblock, fans were fed up with seeing him re-released. This Amazon Exclusive figure was the fourth version of Roadblock: The first Classified figure, a Cobra Island version, and finally a re-colored of the first figure. If you ask me, the Heavy Artillery Roadblock is really the figure that everyone was asking for… it’s his classic look.

Anyway, remember how impossible it was to buy the Target Exclusive Cobra Island? I will bet you it’s going to be just as difficult to get the upcoming Target Exclusive Tiger Force. Pre-Orders have long sold out, but I’m hoping to just randomly find them in stores (I doubt it… but I can always hope).

Storm Shadow and Spirit

To me, the Classified Series is incredibly popular, I just don’t understand why Hasbro just doesn’t produce more figures to satiate the demand. We’ve seen Mattel get a lot of Masters of the Universe on the store shelves, which I love. I just wish Hasbro would do the same.

Update: Yes, I was able to get the new Storm Shadow and Spirit. Very happy about the details on the Spirit figure, it’s simply the best version of this character in toy form, no doubt about it. Again, I’m not sure why Hasbro is limiting these toy’s release, because as of this writing, they're “sold out” and you are forced to pay double the price from scalpers.

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Target Super Clearance Day

Read More Target I just bought the Razer’s Kishi Controllers (for the iPhone) on clearance from Target for $15. This is a massive saving, considering when it was originally released, it was $50 or more. …

You know, just the other day, I was complaining about the lack of good deals on Amazon Prime Day. Forget Amazon Prime Day, it’s all about the Target Super Clearance Day for me. I’ve never seen so many 70% off yellow clearance tags. Of course, limited to stock on hand, but I did find some really amazing deals.

Sure, I didn’t need all those extra things in my life, but I couldn’t pass up these deals. The prices are Black Friday level (even better in many cases).

I don’t know how long the sale will last, but I am assuming it’s only for a few days, if that. I know that several Targets in my area are doing renovations, so I think they just want to clear out inventory.

Some things I bought for 70% off:

Target Exclusive 4k Discs for $11 (normally $36)

Some 12” vinyl for $9 (normally $30)

Mego Action Figures for $5 (normally $20)

Various Cable Guy Phone Holder for $8 (normally $30)

Various McFarlane Action Figures for $5 (normally $20)

Various Headphones for $15 (normally $50)

Razer Keyboards and Accessories for as low as $8 (normally $30)

Some gaming controllers for $5 (normally $20)

There were more 70% off products (like all the phone cases), but I had no interests in them. Tomorrow, I will visit another Target store to see if I can find more deals.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

Target Clearance

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Weekend Gamer: Prime Day

Read More Video Games I take that back, Mass Effect: Legendary Edition is on sale, and it’s a game (three games actually) that I’m interested in checking out the new “remaster”. It’s currently on sale for $35 on Amazon, …

Every year Amazon Prime Day comes and go, and every year, there’s never anything good! This year, the two-day event is taking place July 12 to 13, and promises “epic deals on top brands and small businesses.”

Having scrolled through countless items, the sales and discounts are just not enough for me to want to buy something. Most of the sales are 10% off, to me, that’s not enough for a product I don’t need now. Some items that never goes on sale, such as Apple products are slightly discounted - for example the new Apple Watch 7 is $309 (normally $420) and Airtags 4-Pack are $85 (normally $100).

Undoubtedly, the biggest deals are on Amazon’s own products: the Echo Show (not the new models) and their Fire Tablets.

If you’re already a member of Amazon Prime, Amazon is giving away some free digital games, including Mass Effect: Legendary Edition. Originally when this re-mastered game came out in 2021 for a full $60… but since then the game is heavily discounted (as low as $20 on Xbox), and, if you have Xbox Game Pass, the game is “free”. Many gamers interested in the game, including myself, have already bought it. Still, getting another free copy from Amazon Prime is a nice bonus.

There are a few catches in redeeming the Amazon Prime free games. Some games requires you to have an account with a third party, for example, Legacy Games or Origin account. Personally speaking, if I don’t already have an account, I just won’t redeem them… but there are others that might sign up, just to get some free games.

The other catch is that Amazon is promoting their streaming game service, Luna, so some of their “free” games requires you to sign up for their gaming service (which I won’t do).

So, even though I poo-poo the “sales” of Amazon Prime Day, I have to admit that it is good for everyone. That is because Amazon’s competitors, such as Best Buy, are also reacting to Prime Day, with their own sales, which they are calling Black Friday in July.

Yours,

- Weekend Gamer

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Strangest Things

Stranger Things: Season 4 It's been eight months since The Battle of Starcourt, which brought terror and destruction to Hawkins. Struggling with the aftermath, our group of friends are separated for the first time - and navigating the complexities of high school hasn't made things easier. In this most vulnerable time, a new and horrifying supernatural threat surfaces, presenting a gruesome mystery, that if solved, might finally put an end to the horrors of the Upside Down. Read More Stranger Things For me, synthwave started with Stranger Things. In late July I went on a date with a fellow dungeon master who mentioned this show which started with some kids playing D&D (Dungeons & Dragons). …

Read more Television.

STRANGER THINGS
netflix.com

I’ve been enjoying Stranger Things since it debut in 2016, and, personally speaking, I think Season 4 is one of their strongest season yet. The show’s really matured, and that’s not to mention how all the child actors have all really grown up in the four years we’ve known them. I mean in both story and, the fact that the real actors have really grown up. Just look at the actor Finn Wolfhard, he looks like a fully grown young man. It’s clear to me that the Duffer Brothers couldn’t possibly continue telling their stories forever.

The story of Season 4 goes back to the first time we meet 11. We’re reminded that 11 killed everyone in this secret base in a flashback. The story goes deeper, and you’re given more back stories. Somehow, at least how I perceived it, that it was that 11 created “The Upsidedown”, a twisted version of Hawkins, Indiana. It’s really cool, I bought it.

Season 4 also has some of the most horrific death scenes, featuring some gruesome body breaking/eyeballs destroying moments. I feel like sometime the show borders on Rated R and PG, especially with some of its goofy moments, like the Suzie’s mad house or the crazy greedy Russian pilot.

My biggest complaint about the new season is that they’ve introduced (or focused more on) a lot of new characters. I wish they just stick to the original group of fans. Instead, we’re seeing characters like Hellfire Club’s Eddie, Robin (who was introduced last season and plays a bigger part this season), and Argyle. With so many characters, it just seems like the writers tried to devote more time to everyone… making for very long episodes. In fact, the last two episodes (which just released by Netflix) are one and half hour, and two plus hours, respectively. They are movie length!

Stranger Things Soundtrack Stranger Things: Soundtrack from the Netflix Series, Season 4 includes essential music tracks evoking various classic eras and styles as featured in "Stranger Things 4." The soundtrack album is conceptualized and produced by The Duffer Brothers and Nora Felder.

STRANGER THINGS: SOUNDTRACK
legacyrecordings.com

As you know, one of the best thing about Stranger Things is their amazing 80s soundtrack. With Season 4, the soundtrack helped Kate Bush back on the music charts, over 35 years after “Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God)” was originally released!

I actually own a few Stranger Things Soundtrack, so I’m looking forward to Legacy Recordings’ release of Stranger Things: Soundtrack from the Netflix Series, Season 4. The soundtrack is available now on digital and CD.

If you’re a vinyl collector, like I am, be on the look out for the double LP 12” on November 4th. The vinyl will come in standard black (with 12inch poster insert), or exclusive retailers’ editions.

Walmart will have a Creel House cover and puzzle, Target will have a California cover and diorama, Barnes & Noble will have a Russia cover and stickers, and Amazon will feature a Lab cover with a 12x12 Butcher Billy lithograph (details here).

Surfer Boy Pizza Surfer Boy Pizza Pepperoni Pizza, 23 oz. Each mouth-watering variety contains rich tomato sauce, delicious mozzarella cheese, and a gnarly range of toppings.

SURFER BOY PIZZA
palermovillainc.com

The first time I saw Surfer Boy Pizza, I was so confused. This is an imaginary pizza brand from Stranger Things… yet, here it is, in real life at my local Walmart. I decided to try one out.

To my surprise, it was really good. Especially for only $7. Don’t believe all the food snobs on the internet, I really like the pizza. I would cut it in thirds and air fry a piece for about 9 minutes, and it’s crisp and tastes great.

The frozen pizza is made by Palermo Villa Co. and comes with a fake pair of punch-out 3D glasses. There are four types of topping available: supreme, multi-meat, pepperoni, and pineapple & jalapeno. I’ve tried them all, they’re all pretty good, except for my least favorite, the pineapple & jalapeno. It’s just the topping, the crust is still good. The best value is the supreme, so I would recommend trying that first.

At the moment, I believe the pizza is only available from Walmart. Right now, they are phasing out the pizza, since the show is over… but you can still buy a 4-pack from their website for a high price of $50.

If you can find it for $7, it’s worth checking out.

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Disapointment Television

Read more Television.

Read More Dexter Do you remember how I absolutely hated the final season to Dexter? I guess everybody hated the final season, so the show producers is going to do a do-over. The fresh start will be called Dexter: New Blood …

DEXTER: NEW BLOOD
sho.com

How do mess up Dexter twice?!!??? Universally, everybody hated the final Dexter Season 8. No one was satisified with the last season, especially the “Lumberjack” ending. After ten years, Showtime said they were going to go to fix all that by introducing a brand new series: Dexter: New Blood. Guess what? They blew it again. This new ending sucked.

Overall, New Blood was a good, solid season. I had some problems with it, but it would have been forgiven, if they stick to the landing. Unfortunately, the ending wasn’t satisfying and it ultimately made Dexter an idiot.

I personally believe that the show writers did not understand Dexter.

There were so many problems with Dexter, the reason why Dexter kills is that he has a Dark Passenger. He is compell to kill… so when his foster father, Harry, saw this darkness in him, he gave Dexter a code. There’s are a few rules, but the main ones you should take away from this is, “Don’t Get Caught” and “Never Kill an Innocent”. The thing is, Dexter has to kill, so I don’t buy it that Dexter, hiding in a small town in New York, for ten years, has never killed anyone in all that time. It doesn’t make any sense at all.

The writers of Dexter: New Blood didn’t get Dexter’s character. Dexter is now killing out of revenge, and he’ll kill an innocent cop to break out of jail. That doesn’t make sense at all.

Then the ending is absolute garbage.

I thought I read somewhere that Showtime wants to give Harrison (Dexter’s son) his own TV show. I’m certainly not going to watch it. Horrible.

Read More Expanse Possibly the best Science Fiction television show on air right now is The Expanse (no, it’s not Star Trek: Discovery). As I previously mentioned, I love this show. ....

THE EXPANSE
amazon.com

It is the six (and final) season for the Sci-Fi epic The Expanse. If you have Amazon Prime, which I have through a family account, you can watch the show for free.

Our team seemed weary, spending a lot of time in space hunting down Marcos’ men. Plus, morale is bad, because they lost pilot Alex Kamal last season. What’s strange is that his death had nothing to do with the story, it’s because the writers had to take him out due to some real-life sexual misconduct from the actor.

So this season, we have one-less core member, now Captain James Holden, engineer Naomi Nagata, and mechanic (and badass brute) Amos Burton. The crew is joined by Clarissa “Peaches” Mao, apprentice mechanic and, as of, episode two, Martian Marine Bobbie Draper . I still feel that the crew is missing a pilot for the Rocinante, especially during that space chase where they had Holden manning the ship and then joining the boarding crew.

Unfortunately, for the final season, it didn’t quite feel like a conclusion. The final defeat of Maros felt unsatisfying. I mean, they just made him vanish in the ring? I don’t think he’s actually dead… but we’ll never know, since we aren’t get any more Expanse.

The other big problem with the final season, is the stupid girl and space dogs that opens each episode. First of all, the last season only had six episodes, because Amazon refused to pay for any more. Instead of telling the story in those six episodes, they devoted like 20 minutes to this space dog story that went nowhere. Book readers were delighted, but for the show viewers, I felt like it was a giant waste of time.

I also wished that they would’ve just killed off characters, knowing it’s the final season. I know book readers probably won’t like it, but it would make sense to end Clarissa Mao (she found out she was going to die anyway), or have Bobbie Draper die as she takes out the giant cannon.

Read More Star Wars Beginning with a new interview with Joker’s voice actor Mark Hammill (Star Wars) and ending with a music feature, featuring composers Kristopher Carter, Michael McCuistion, and Lolita Ritmanis. ....

THE BOOK OF BOBA FETT
disney.com

No one likes The Book of Boba Fett. The story is slow, and more than half of it is told in flashback. No one seems to know what the point of the new Boba Fett show is all about.

The worst part is when he employed a local cyborg street gang (on Vespas), the show suddenly felt like it was made for children.

Then when the all-Mandalorian episode showed up, it really demonstrated how awful Boba Fett has been. Mando shows up, he cuts this guy in half, it’s all-action! Meanwhile, Boba Fett, in four episodes, had not moved an inch in story.

To recap: Boba Fett takes control of Jabba's criminal empire on Tatooine. This causes the Jabba's cousins, "The Twins", trying to assassinate Boba. Boba then hired a gang of cyborg street gang, and then we find out that the Pykes are the real enemy.

The other storyline is told in flashback, which tells the story about how Boba Fett escaped the sarlacc and his long journey. Personally speaking, I didn’t need this backstory, to me, it’s always better to keep his backstory a mystery. The more you find out about Boba, the less cool he seems to be.

I guess the biggest disappointment for me is that Boba Fett just sucks in this show. Clearly, The Mandalorian is the much cooler character… and seeing him in Episode 5, made me really wish I was watching the new season of Mandalorian.

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Fantasy TV

Read more Television.

Read More Squid Game If you haven’t heard, Squid Game is Netflix’s blockbuster television show. Everyone, at least over 111 million, is watching this South Korean drama/thriller. …

HELLBOUND
netflix.com

Thanks to Squid Game being the number television show at Netflix… audience looking for the next big South Korean horror/thriller series.

Enter Hellbound, a new series from Yeon Sang-ho, the person responsible for directing Train to Busan and Peninsula. The show is about these people who are given judgement sentences to hell. Three demons will appear on the date of their judgement to beat and incinerate them.

At first you think it’s only judgement against criminals or sinners… but you soon find out bad people aren’t the only ones being judged.

I find that the world’s fantasy rules aren’t exactly spelled out for the audience. In fact, it felt like the writer/creator was making up the rules as they were going along. Why were some people judged, and not others (like the cult that rose to punish the judged)? If the demons can appear anywhere and carry their punishment, why bother chasing the humans? Why haven’t the judged encased themselves in a fireproof box? What if the judged killed themselves before the demons arrived? Why are some people given weeks, while others are given only seconds to live? It just made absolutely no sense to me.

In other films, like The Ring, you have three days before the girl in the well kills you. In Death Note, if you know the person’s real name, you can write their name in a book to kill them. In One Missed Call, the supernatural phone killer will call everyone in your contact list. These rules are established so you can follow and understand what is happening. With Hellbound, it just seems like anyone can be judged… and there is no escape from it.

The ending of the show is somewhat predictable, even though it made no sense to me. I don’t want to talk about it in details, but it did leave me puzzled. You can’t approach this show with logic.

While the show will like thrilled audience, I just didn’t enjoy it.

Read More Game of Thrones HBO's Game of Thrones Season 5 is set for April 12, 2015, and traditionally they've released their Blu-Ray and DVDs just months before the premiere to get fans caught up or excited about the …

WHEEL OF TIME
amazon.com

The long-running Wheel of Time books are finally being made into a television series from Amazon Prime. If you have Amazon Prime, as I do, via my brother’s family account, then it’s free for you to watch.

I’ve never read the books by Robert Jordan, and later, Brandon Sanderson, but I understand it’s epic and spans 14 books, including a prequel and two companion books. I can only assume the television show follows the first book. So far, the pilot ends with a sneak attack by the Minotaurs (or orcs?) on this small village. I don’t know about you, but based on the snarls and brutishness of these creatures… there’s no way they can ninja their way to the village.

The two characters that I’m most interested in are the powerful sorceress and her swordsman companion. They seem to be roaming the country, searching for someone who can stop “the Dragon”. By the end of the pilot, you understand that it’s one of the four or five characters from the village that will become Dragon. We don’t know who it is, and personally speaking, I don’t really care.

The show was sold to me as the next Game of Throne-ish series, and, indeed, it does feature a cast of hundreds, based on viewing the pilot, I can tell you that it’s nowhere near the budget or scale of the HBO series.

I think where Game of Thrones succeeds, it is that the show starts off in realism. It’s a world without magic… and slowly through the series, it introduces us to fantasy and magic (with the birth of three dragons). In Wheel of Time, you’re hit with magic and fantasy right away.

vu (vu@weheartmusic.com) ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com

Psycho Killer, better run, run, run away

Read More Crime Drama While I’ve enjoyed and intrigued by the early episodes of Clarice, I have to admit that the show is running in circles right now. The show suffers from two major problems: the COVID pandemic …

Read more Television.

YOU
netflix.com

The third season of You recently aired on Netflix and it got everyone talking about the series. So I decided to check out the first season (which originally aired on Lifetime).

The story is about this weird stalker, Joe, and his obsession with this girl, Guinevere Beck (who just goes by “Beck”). The majority of the show is seen through Joe’s eyes… in his eyes, he’s not doing anything wrong. He thinks he’s protecting Beck, but, in truth, he’s really a serial killer.

The Beck character is really an awful person, she is living this lie, her life is a mess, she has terrible friends, I’m not entirely sure why Joe was so obsessed with her. I guess love’s in the eye of the beholder.

The show reminds me a little of Dexter, a serial killer who kills other serial killers. Dexter’s father taught him his “code” and it’s that principle that makes Dexter who he is. In You, Joe also has a code, taught by the bookstore owner at an early age.

Part of the reason why the first season is so good is that it’s full of twists of turns. You never really know what the truth is and what is a lie. The other part is that it’s based on Caroline Kepnes’s You novel.

Since Kepnes wrote two other books, Hidden Bodies and You Love Me, I’m hoping Season 2 and 3 should be good too.

Read More Dexter Dexter: Okay, I love season 1-3. This final season 8 was absolutely the worst. It was such, such, such a disappointing ending that it neglect all good things about Dexter. Absolutely a terrible season to end on. …

DEXTER: NEW BLOOD
sho.com

Do you remember how I absolutely hated the final season to Dexter? I guess everybody hated the final season, so the show producers is going to do a do-over. The fresh start will be called Dexter: New Blood, and it will air on Showtime on November 7th, 2021. I can’t tell you how excited I am to see new Dexter content… especially, if it’s good. I guess we’ll find out this November.

If you don’t remember Season 8, which originally aired in 2013, the writers wrote him into a corner. Deb, Dexter’s step-sister, falls in love with him, which is so weird. What were the writers thinking?

In the end, Dexter disappears in a hurricane. The epilogue shows Dexter, working as a lumberjack. I thought New Blood was going to continue that storyline… but apparently this upcoming series will be totally different.

Star Michael C Hall explained the lumberjack thing was received negatively, so they decided New Blood was going to take a different direction. In fact, they don’t even want to call the new series Season 9.

Watching the trailer on YouTube, you see that Deb is back. She died in Season 8, sorry spoilers, so it looks like maybe she’s replaced Dexter’s dad as the new Dark Passenger. The trailer also shows Dexter’s son, so this should be quite interesting (although I don’t really like kid actors).

I hope Dexter: New Blood is good… and if it is, it will save the series for me, since Season 8 ended on such a bad note.

Read More Scream Also, I was sad to learn that horror legend Wes Craven passed away last Sunday (August 30th). As you know, I actually own a lot of his films, including Last House on the Left (not shown, but I own it on DVD), Nightmare on Elm Street, and Scream. …

I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER
amzn.to

I’m just going to say it, I Know What You Did Last Summer television show from Amazon Prime is absolute trash. Just terrible. I know I’m not the audience for it, it’s meant for teenagers.

The movie I Know What You Did Last Summer was loosely based on the novel of the same name, but it definitely had similar vibe to Wes Craven’s Scream (both movie scripts were written by Kevin Williamson).

While the television series shares the same premise of the movie about a group of friends who accidentally killed someone in a car accident. Instead of going to the police, they decided to get rid of the body and keep this secret. A year later, after returning from college, the group of friends are stalked by someone who knows their terrible secret. The killer would write things like, “I know what you did last summer”, hence the title… the tv series is very different in its approach. I think it’s more based on the book, and I can’t tell if it’s the acting or the film making… but it is just not a good story.

Again, I think I’m just not the right audience for this show.

Rotten Tomatoes has less than 50% rating, some citing “the show's many plot holes and unsatisfying twists.”

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TV: Bosch and Lisey’s Story

Read More Television The pilot does an incredible job of setting the tone and style of the show. This was a police procedural crime drama with two parallel storylines: Detective Bosch on trial for the murder of an alleged serial killer …

BOSCH
amazon.com

Out of nowhere, I got notification that the new Season 7 of Bosch just dropped on Amazon Prime!

I was so excited that I launched the pilot and after viewing the “Last Season on Bosch” recap… I realized I had totally missed the entire Season 6. Basically, I had to binged through Season 6 so I can start on Season 7.

Since these Bosch seasons are based on the Bosch novels, the mysteries are all really well-crafted. The characters are wonderful and unique… and it’s the great writing that kept me interested since I watched the pilot in Feb 2014.

In Season 6, the storylines are based on The Overlook (Book 13) and Dark Sacred Night (Book 21). The FBI/radioactive storyline wrapped up mid-season, but the aftermath (and court trials) would take a backseat as other stories (such as the serial killer copycat) surfaced and resolved.

Overall, Season 6 was solid. I do have some issues, like I didn’t particularly enjoyed the Jerry Edgar/The Butcher storyline. The story felt unsatisfying. We, along with Harry Bosch, knew the truth behind the fatal shooting of the Butcher, but what was the point… and why go in this direction? I suppose, it’s all to setup Edgar’s actions in Season 7.

Season 7 is the final season of Bosch. The storyline was based on The Burning Room (Book 17). Once again, Detective Harry Bosch is doing all he can to solve the death of a 10-year-old girl in an arson fire. This season also heavily focused on Bosch’s daughter, Maddie, who is on a hitlist.

The Inter-Police Division fighting Plot B of Season 7 was just plain silly, in my opinion. I understand that they want to spotlight the other supporting characters in the police department… but it just felt like it was time-consuming and going nowhere.

While it’s true that this is the final season of Bosch, Variety wrote that there will be a spinoff series… From what I’ve read, it seems like the new spinoff series will be focused on Maddie Bosch. Which makes sense to continue the story in this new direction, considering that Maddie was such a main focus in Season 7.

Since Harry Bosch is such a jazz enthusiast, you can expect that same music language in the upcoming spinoff series.

While there’s no official soundtrack for Season 7, Titus Welliver (who plays Bosch) curated his Bosch Playlist, which includes The Soul of John Black and Etta James.

Read More Television The concept is pretty cool, especially because it’s based on the characters and stories of Stephen King... but the execution is just not that great. The same can be said for all of Stephen King’s TV …

LISEY'S STORY
apple.com

Stephen King’s favorite novel that he’s ever written, Lisey’s Story, is being adapted to a limited series on Apple TV+. I’ve previously mentioned that I did not enjoy any of King’s stories to television, based on the horrible Under the Dome and The Mist. It’s the same for Lisey’s Story… the pilot was down-right boring to me, that I gave up. For a pilot, you really need to hook the viewer, and the first episode did nothing for me.

The only Stephen King television I like are Creepshow and, I will admit to liking The Outsider (except for that ending).

Critics are also hit or miss on the new Lisey’s Story show, citing that it’s very slow-paced. I can agree with that, but given that it is based on a long novel, that it would make sense to let the show interpret the story to television form. Even though some people hated the show, they all agree that actress Julianne Moore is doing a great job, playing the lead character.

If you were interested, the Lisey’s Story Apple TV+ Original Series Soundtrack is available on Loud Robot and WaterTower Music. The soundtrack was composed by Clark (aka Chris Clark) and he wanted the music to sound threatening and uneasy: “The idea was to capture the demented threat of Long Boy's presence in a way that made it sound beautiful, like the maws in an H.R Giger painting. So much detail and there's a visceral shock factor that works on screen, but the malevolence is crafted with love and care.”

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Free Games: Control, Hellpoint, and Batman TellTale

Read More E3 It’s E3 week (June 12th-June 15th). The Electronic Entertainment Expo took a break last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but it’s back… although it’s mostly live-streams with some small in-person coverage …

As previously mentioned, it’s E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) week… so a lot of gaming websites are taking advantage of the event and giving away lots of free games.



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CONTROL (2019)
epicgames.com

I’ve heard a lot about Control, from Remedy Entertainment/505 Games. The game got a lot of positive reviews from critics, and to be honest, I’ve always wanted to check it out. Unfortunately, I just didn’t have the time, and thought maybe I would just wait for a sale.

When the game was re-released in 2021 for the PS5 and Xbox Series X, it was met with some criticisms, because it was sold as full price – and fans who already own the original base game didn’t want to pay for it again.

Based on the negative reactions from the Control fans, it did sour my interest in the game and I did put a pause on buying it.

I guess all that waiting was worth it, as currently, the game is free on the Epic Game store. I know a lot of people hate on Epic, saying they’re a bully, saying that they’re own and controlled by China, saying their software sucks (it does!)… but still, despite the jank, at least this company is giving away free games. The rich/powerful Steam won’t (and has never) done anything like this.

Like all the free games, I just log in to claim the game… and when I have time, I’ll install and play it. So if you’re not sure you want the game… why not just claim it now and think about it later.



HELLPOINT
gog.com

I wasn’t expecting it, but my favorite game retailer, GOG (Good Old Games), was giving out Hellpoint for free. To be perfectly honest, I have never heard of this action role-playing game before. It was developed by Cradle Games and published by tinyBuild.

It looks interesting enough, I’m practically fond of RPG, so when I get the time this weekend, I’ll definitely be looking forward to checking out this game.

Perhaps if I like it enough, I might try and get it for the Nintendo Switch.



BATMAN: THE TELLTALE SERIES
twitch.tv

Like many video game fans, I have dabbled in the TellTale games. They basically make visual novels… set to these “choices”. I’ve often felt that none of the choices you make actually affect the game. I could be wrong, but that’s the impression I get.

The two games I’ve tried out is The Walking Dead and Game of Thrones, both based on popular television shows. After playing the games, I’ve decided that these type of games were just not for me. I find that the graphics are bad and the game engine (called Telltale Tool) is really dated/doesn’t really run that well.

After years of licenses… TellTale filed for bankruptcy in 2018, and its assets were sold to LCG Entertainment… who is still selling these aging games.

The Batman: The TellTale Series is currently free on Twitch, but only if you have Amazon Prime. Since I have Prime, it was an easy free claim for me.

The bad news is that you’ll have to download the Twitch Desktop App to be able to download the Batman game.

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