2020: TV In Review

2020 undoubtedly has become the year that many of us would rather not have to live through again and while next year isn't going to get off to a great start, at least we can say that we watched a lot more television than usual, right?

UK soaps really did have to combat the restrictions of COVID like no other genre and were some of the first shows to resume filming after the first lockdown. The likes of Hollyoaks, Coronation Street and EastEnders all celebrated anniversaries specials while Emmerdale managed several lockdown themed episodes amongst some of the more divisive stories they've had this year. None of the soaps outmatched each other and all seemed to be on the same wavelength of some good stories and some rather poorly thought out ones to boot.

Reality TV - well, we did endure one more series of Love Island before first lockdown but were spared the summer series but it didn't stop the likes of I'm A Celebrity, Strictly Come Dancing, Great British Bake Off and The Masked Singer all from happening nonetheless. 

I didn't watch a lot of UK TV dramas this year. In fact, if I'm being perfectly honest, the only few shows actually bothered to watch were of course the twelfth series of Doctor Who, which definitely had it's moments, but the less about the Timeless Children arc, the better. Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss's take on Dracula, which despite a disappointing third episode, at least saw some excellent performances from both Claes Bang and Dolly Wells, so that was something.

The only UK TV drama that actually gripped me was I Hate Suzie with Billie Piper seemingly playing a character that heavily drew from some of her own personal life. It was a sublime performance and a further reminder how extremely talented an actor Piper is. Similarly David Tennant managed to impress with both Staged (featuring Michael Sheen and their real life wives) and the chilling Des, one of the few bright spots from ITV this year.

US television was once again dominated by cable and streaming shows coming hard and fast and with far too many to catch up on. HBO probably scored with the likes of The Undoing and the Christmas special of Euphoria, the latter likely to bag Zendeya another Emmy nomination/win while some of Netflix's most talked about shows included the likes of The Queen's Gambit, The Crown and quite recently as last week, Bridgerton. HBO Max has not quite hit anywhere close to the levels of other streaming platforms and it might be a while before it does but The Flight Attendant was a highlight and some of their upcoming content for the next two years certainly looks promising. 

I'm not much of a sitcom person but this year saw the end of Schitt's Creek and in my case, the discovery of it, if I'm being candid. I've blitzed through the first two seasons over the last few weeks and will be watching the remaining seasons as well as needing to catch up with the remainder of The Good Place - another show that's fallen victim of E4's terrible scheduling. Still though, both are shows I will likely finish up in the first quarter of next year and seeing as they've both ended this year, at least I know how much I need to catch up on.

This was also the year of some shows coming to an end as well. How To Get Away With Murder might have lost a large portion of it's initial audience as it went on, but it actually had a rather strong last season and it's series finale was a good way to bring Annalise Keating's story to a natural conclusion. Empire also seemed to end with little fanfare while both Arrow and Supernatural's endings certainly seemed to mix viewers.

With the likes of American Horror Story, American Crime Story and Pose all having to sit out 2020, you'd be mistaken in thinking that the only Ryan Murphy content you got this year was both 911 shows on FOX but Netflix had you covered. Out of the shows on the streaming site - The Politician and Ratched were entertaining but lacking in parts while Hollywood indulged in fantasy retelling of 1940's Tinseltown and was probably the strongest of the bunch. Of course I'm glad Murphy's FX shows will return in 2021, hopefully refreshed and I'm intrigued by at least two of his other upcoming Netflix offerings as well.

2020 wasn't much for Marvel content as none of the promised Disney+ shows were completed in time, so it was the last season of Agents Of SHIELD and the rather short lived Helstrom to barely fill that void. DC on the other hand came out swinging with Stargirl and hopefully the show's permanent move to the CW won't affect it's quality. Meanwhile Batwoman lost it's title character, both The Flash and Supergirl lost the plot at times, Legends Of Tomorrow embraced the Thong Song, Black Lightning prepped for a final season for next year and Arrow ended this year on a strong note. Doom Patrol kicked off an impressive second season, Lucifer continued to expand it's lifeline on Netflix and Harley Quinn did the very thing the comics cannot commit to by actually making Harley and Ivy a bonafide couple. With a slew of upcoming shows for HBO Max and Superman And Lois for the CW, TV and streaming will continue to be the most successful area for DC content.

2020 was also the year where The Boys seemed to properly blow up, It felt like from September onwards, the show was unavoidable so I bit the bullet, watched the first two seasons and yeah, I can see the fuss behind this one. The second season was certainly the strongest with Stormfront being one of the more abhorrent villains seen on TV/streaming this year. The Umbrella Academy also had a particular strong second outing, making great use of the main characters 1960's setting and the game changing cliffhanger should be interesting to see explored next season.

Genre TV wise, the second season of The Mandalorian seemed to be fan pleasing event from start to finish with many Star Wars shows guaranteed by Disney+. HBO and HBO Max also delivered with the likes of Westworld, Lovecraft Country and Raised By Wolves. Netflix might be ending Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina but it's last season certainly is a good way to conclude the year for the station while His Dark Materials continued to perform well for BBC. 

In terms of LGBT TV, there was a lot of it this year. More than I could possibly highlight but if I had to pick a few underrated gems, I'd go with Spanish Netflix miniseries, Someone Has To Die, starring Alejandro Speitzer as well as Hulu series, Love Victor, the spin-off a certain 2018 movie. A lovely feelgood series with a great central performance from Michael Cimino, it was a highlight in a year that personally didn't have that many. 

2020 was certainly a year for television and streaming content. There's probably some things I've forgotten or simply did not watch but those were some of the highlights for me. What were yours? Is there any upcoming show you're looking forward to in 2021?

Girls Get It Done

My last TV jumble blog for this year (though not my last blog, lol) and while I didn't watch a lot over the Christmas period, here's a few things I did finish up on.

A Recipe For Seduction: Without a doubt the strangest thing I have ever watched in my life and if there wasn't proof enough that 2020 really was that off a year, this 15 minute telemovie in which Mario Lopez played a silver fox version of the infamous KFC creator really drove that point home. With some hammy as hell acting, a gay supporting character and a soap opera romance along with a scheming love rival and even more scheming mother, this was pure daft but surprisingly entertaining. Sequel for next Christmas, yeah?

Schitt's Creek: Okay, so I watched all of Season 2 in the space of a few days (took a break for Christmas though) and yes, I get the buzz for this show now. The second season only built on the premise of the first season with Moira running for Mayor and not being shy in being underhanded, Johnny standing up for Roland and the town in a lovely scene during the finale, Alexis dumping Ted, getting with Mutt, losing Mutt and then working for Ted while David's adventures working for Wendy, making an old family recipe with Moira and the fun rivalry with Stevie and the addition of Jake. I'm totally sold on this show and will get through the remaining four seasons. 

The Boys: Season 2 continued on a very strong streak of episodes. While Billy has been one of the worst characters for me, I did like learning more about his family and by the finale, he probably did the right in relation to Ryan. The downfalls for both Stormfront and Homelander were glorious to watch, though I suspect both will come back with a vengeance next season. I loved the 'girls get it done' montage, the use of Lamplighter and even the arrival of Victoria hints at some interesting stuff for the next season. 

The Flight Attendant: HBO Max has undeniably gotten off to something of a shaky start but over the last few weeks, things have been looking up for the new streaming app. One of those things was this particular show and while it originally seemed like it was meant to be a miniseries, it's breakaway success has gotten it a second season. As for the episodes itself, the second half of the season upped the ante with Kaley Cuoco giving a sublime performance as Cassie while Alex's death was solved, Buckley turned out to be more dangerous than expected while Miranda proved to be a handy ally to have and even Shane surprised in the finale. Annie and Max proved to be great supporting character, Megan not so much but I'm hoping we see more of Davey next season.

• Matt Smith has bagged a leading role in the upcoming House Of The Dragon series. The show will begin filming next year but will not debut on HBO Max until 2022.
• Cobra Kai will debut it's third season on Netflix a week earlier. It'll now be released on New Year's Day.
• Expect to see two certain characters from Sabrina The Teenage Witch in the final season of Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina, which streams New Year's Eve on Netflix.
• HBO and BBC have renewed His Dark Materials for a third and final season. 
• The Mandalorian has been renewed for a third season but will possibly debut in 2022. Expect several more Star Wars properties on Disney+ over the next several years.
• BBC will be airing A Teacher next month over the course of five nights and in double bills.
• HBO Max are going to revive Sex And The City for a limited series, but it will likely not feature Kim Cattrall.
• The upcoming Clarice series, set to debut in February on CBS All Access will not be able to mention Hannibal Lector nor feature the character. 
• A drama inspired by Nyle DiMarco's life called Look At Me is in development for NBC.
• UK viewers can see the Stephen King miniseries The Stand on StarzPlayer from next month.

My Review of Dashing In December (2020)

 

Written & Directed by Jake Helgren

Heath: "We shouldn't be working together, even if you are out there."

Wyatt: "That's a good point. What if I were here?"

Heath: "Why would you be here?"

Wyatt: "Well, we're expanding out west and as the newly appointed Senior VP I should probably spearhead that venture. Not to mention I need to find my boss a new property. He's not too thrilled about me stealing this one from his buyers but most importantly I would really like to take you out on a date. A real one this time."

And again, 2020 has become the year for some gay Christmas romance movies and with this entry, you've got something that not quite as mainstream as Happiest Season was intending to be had it gotten a bigger theatrical release but at the same time, it's slightly above a Lifetime/Hallmark Christmas movie. Okay, maybe not quite.

This movie has the usual trappings of every single Hallmark/Lifetime romcom you've ever watched and will likely ever watch as well for good measure. You've got your nice setting - we go from the hustle and bustle of New York to a ranch in Colorado and you've got a pairing in which it's mutual snarky banter at first sight before the big romantic gesture at the last minute to cap things off.

The couple in question are financier Wyatt Burwell (Peter Porte) who returns home for Christmas to his mother, Deb (Andi MacDowell) and former girlfriend/friend, Blake (Caroline Harris) only to meet the new farm hand, Heath Ramos (Juan Pablo Di Pace) and it's not long before the two of them go through every romcom trope imaginable throughout this 88 minute movie.

Yup, both Wyatt and Heath badly read other, make snarky comments, question each other's motives over different things (notably Wyatt wanting his mother to sell the family ranch) before they end up connecting through shared stories of their own romantic woes and becoming more and more at ease with one another.

What gives the movie a boost is having two openly gay actors portraying Wyatt and Heath. Both Peter Porte and Juan Pablo Di Pace do well with the script and the slow burning romance with their characters feels organic enough. Porte arguably has the harder task as there are times when Wyatt steps over the prickly line with some of his lingering resentment towards his family home but the last minute dash to save his family business and get the guy of his dreams while a bit rushed did end things on a nice note. 

Heath on the other hand was adorable throughout the entire movie. His guarded stance towards Wyatt made sense when his backstory was revealed and I quite liked the rapport he had with both Blake and Deb. Not to mention it was hard not to be swayed by his dance moves, especially at the country bar too. Juan Pablo Di Pace has some moves on him.

As for the two prominent female characters of the piece. I think both Deb and Caroline were likable enough characters but they were mostly there to push Heath and Wyatt together. Still there was a nice subplot involving Deb's romance with former farm hand Carlos (Carlos Sanz) and Blake reuniting with her own husband, Sam (K. Danor Gerald) just in time for Christmas.

- Wyatt had a horse named Dasher, Heath a mare named Snowbell and even Blake had a horse named Nutmeg. 

- Funny how both Wyatt and Heath gave each other pet names - Applesauce and Sugar Cubes. I also laughed at the blatant product placement, though I do like that certain product that Deb used at the start of the movie.

- Standout music: Cody Below's Hang Your Hat On My Christmas Tree, Shania Twain's Any Man Of Mine and Sam Smith's Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.

- Chronology: Safe to assume, it's meant to be December 2020, though this movie is thankfully devoid of referencing you know what.

Dashing In December definitely has all the trapping of a cheesy Lifetime/Hallmark movie but damn, I enjoyed it a lot. It's overdue that we've gotten these movies and with two lovely leading men and some gorgeous settings and a convincing romance, I suggest sitting back and reveling in the sheer cheesy fun of this one.

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of Happiest Season (2020)

 

Written by Clea DuVall & Mary Holland

Directed by Clea DuVall

Harper: "I know! I just, please let me say this. You are my family! You are the love of my life. I was terrible and I wish that I could undo everything, but I promise you I will make it up to you. I will spend the rest of my life making it up to you, and I won't hurt you like this again. But please, give me another chance. I want to build a life with you. Please?"

Abby: "But, what about your parents?"

Harper: "I don't care what they think. I only care about you. If I have you that's all I need. Be with me?"

2020 might be one of the worst we've had to go through, but on a plus side, it's also been the year where studios have finally realised that audiences have been craving some LGBT romances with a Christmas setting and with four movies out (I'll be tackling two of them for now), let's look at the one that could've been a theatrical release had things panned out differently this year.

Instead this movie went to Hulu (Sky Stores for UK/Irish people) and my god, this was so lovely. Written by both Clea DuVall and Mary Holland, Happiest Season sees Kristen Stewart and Mackenzie Davis play a couple named Abby Holland and Harper Caldwell. Abby has a complicated relationship with Christmas while Harper loves it. In the heat of the moment, Harper invites Abby to spend Christmas with her family. Sweet, huh?

The catch however is that Harper actually isn't out to her family, which Abby has to pretend to be her roommate and contend with Harper's image obsessed family. This included Harper's mother, the newly Instagram loving Tipper (Mary Steenburgen) and father, Ted (Victor Garber), the latter of whom plans to run for Mayor.

On top of that, there's also the rather quirky aspiring author Jane (Mary Holland), the more pristine and competitive Sloane (Alison Brie) whom has a rivalry Harper and while Abby gets to know her girlfriend's family, there's also the exes to contend with. Yup, we get to meet not one but two of Harper's exes.

First of all, there's the former boyfriend, Connor (Jake McDorman) who seemed a little confused as to why him and Harper broke while the ex-girlfriend, Riley (Aubrey Plaza) strikes up a rather nice friendship with Abby while encouraging Harper to fight for her at a crucial moment in the movie. Out of the two, I feel Riley was the better utilised but I also quite liked Connor as well.

Of course, it's at the worst time that Harper and Abby's relationship is revealed and the fallout largely tended to lean towards the positive. Abby and Harper came out of it stronger than ever, Harper and her sisters bonded more and their parents realised that they weren't perfect. Was it cheesy? Oh absolutely. Did this movie make me grin? Absolutely.

Kristen Stewart and Mackenzie Davis were wonderful to watch and the movie did a great job selling them as romantic leads and having you root for both of them. There's a nice supporting role for Schitt's Creek Daniel Levy as Abby's friend, John, though his role is very typical in the romcom setting here but he gets some nice lines and a lovely poignant moment that gives Abby some perspective at the right time.

- Not only did Mary Holland have the role of Jane (she was excellent, btw), but anyone catch the little cameo from Clea DuVall as well?

- Correction: some theatres, including Australia did have this movie in them. Given the reception, I think we'll get more LGBT led Christmas movies.

- Nice cameos from RuPaul's Drag Race alumni Jerick Hoffer (Jinkx Monsoon) and Benjamin Putnam (BenDeLaCreme).

- Standout music: Sia's Candy Cane Lane, Tegan & Sara's Make You Mine This Season and Brandy Clark's Only Time Of Year.

Happiest Season is an absolute triumph of a movie. It's gorgeous, it's cheesy in the right parts, emotional, romantic and funny everywhere and every single member of the cast just brings their A game. I knew I was going to enjoy the movie but I genuinely wasn't prepared for how much I would love this. 

Rating: 10 out of 10

My Review of Wonder Woman 1984 (2020) - SPOILERS INCLUDED

 

Written by Patty Jenkins & Geoff Johns & David Callaham

Directed by Patty Jenkins

Diana (to Barbara): "Nothing good is born from lies."

Well, this is an awkward situation. For many places, cinemas have unfortunately shut, and even I was lucky that I was able to get to a cinema to see this one. Not to mention US audiences will have to wait until Christmas Day to view this on HBO Max if they can't get to a movie theatre. I'm going to do my best here not to spoil things but I did put a warning in the title because some things I really do want to go in depth as best I can. Without further ado, here goes.

It's been no doubt that while the DCEU still has a way to go before it can truly capture the public's goodwill that the shining beacon from this franchise has been Gal Gadot. Zack Snyder, for many of his flaws absolutely nailed it when he cast her as Wonder Woman and Patty Jenkins did too, considering that Diana's first big screen solo outing is the most loved DCEU movie we've had.

Sequels are always a tricky task. You don't want to tread the same ground as the first one but at the same time, you don't want to stray too far from what audiences enjoyed either. Patty Jenkins clearly understands that but at the same time, there's no doubt that tonally things are somewhat different here.

Opening with a sequence on Themyscira, we see a young Diana (Lily Aspell) taking part in the Amazon Games - a tribute to a noble warrior named Asteria. Diana cheats at the games and gets reprimanded by Antiope (Robin Wright), who gives the young girl a life lesson, that Hippolyta (Connie Nielson) also reinforces for good measure.

We then cut to 1984 where our Diana (Gal Gadot) swoops in to foil a robbery of some precious artifacts at a shopping mall and if you want a clear demonstration of the shifting tones between movies, then the sheer cheesiness of this scene alone highlights that Jenkins has no problem being more playful and camp second time around.

Diana's life in this time seems to be a mixed bag. She's saving people, but she's also trying to do it in secret while also working at the Smithsonian and striking up a friendship with the somewhat messy but charming Barbara Minerva (Kristen Wiig). It's through this friendship that the pair also encounter a wish stone and this of course becomes the root of this entire movie's plot.

The stone comes from a god of lies and wishes have consequences. In this movie, three of our four main characters wish for stuff that comes at a cost. Diana for example wished to be reunited with Steve Trevor (Chris Pine). The latter returned her, taking on the body of another man (Kristoffer Poloha) but Diana only sees Steve and it's an interesting reunion.

I'm glad that Steve was able to return for this movie and while this was an odd way of him to reappear, there's no denying the chemistry between Gadot and Pine as their loved up characters are given plenty of romantic and beautiful moments before once again, a sacrifice has to be made in order for Diana to save the day. The consequence of Steve's return was Diana slowly losing her strength and durability. Renouncing her wish, though taking a while do so made sure that she was back to her normal self.

While Diana struggled to renounce her wish, we saw the consequences of Barbara's own wishing. She wanted to be like Diana and enjoyed the newfound strength she got, even at the price of losing her humanity. There's a comparison to be made to Michelle Pfeiffer's depiction of Selina Kyle and Catwoman to Wiig's eventual turn as Cheetah and it's a fairly apt one too.

Speaking of Cheetah - overall, I liked the look of the character, but she's not the main villain here, more of a henchwoman and the movie spends more time with Wiig as Barbara that Cheetah herself has less than five minutes of screen time, which undeniably is disappointing. Also the way in which Barbara becomes Cheetah should be obvious from the general premise of the movie but will likely disappoint those who prefer the character's origins in the comics. It's still a strong performance from Kristen Wiig though.

However the performance in the movie for me, outside of Gadot herself was of course, Pedro Pascal as struggling oil baron/media personality, Maxwell Lord. It might sound hyperbolic but Pascal truly steals the movie at times. For those fearing that he might be a glorified parody of a certain exiting President, I won't lie, there are moments that feel that way but Maxwell Lord is a more complex character than that.

I'd even go as far as to say that Maxwell Lord comes across as more desperate than evil. He's losing money and sees the wish stone as a means of ensuring power and having his son be proud of him. He wastes no time in seducing Barbara to get the stone and then when he has it, a lot of chaos happens throughout the movie, down to his desperation.

However it's his "defeat" that really made this movie for me. If you want a look at Diana's true compassion, that scene will absolutely floor you. I was in tears watching that scene and I love that Lord himself was treated as a more complex villain. Overall, he's a bigger success than Cheetah but both characters are truly engaging to watch.

As for Diana, she learned a lesson twice over on the concept of cheating and lies but on top of that, I loved the backstory surrounding the golden armor she used during the third act and while the sword and shield were retired, there was plenty of fun to be had with the lasso and it's many uses. Not to mention the scenes with an invisible jet and with her flying were magical to watch. Jenkins have kept the first movie relatively grounded but she clearly had fun embracing the more whimsical elements of Diana's mythos to great effect here. 

- SPOILER ALERT: The mid-credit scene saw Asteria alive in the present day and just wait until you see who they cast in that role. You're gonna love it.

- There's an actual nod to something from Superman VI: Quest For Peace very early in the movie if you can spot it.

- Nice pics of Diana with Etta, Charlie, Sameer and the Chief to fill in some gaps between movies. 

- Both Gal Gadot and Patty Jenkins family members briefly cameo in the movie. 

- Standout music: Hans Zimmer knocked it out the park with his score choices, including the use of a certain piece of music from Batman V Superman, which got used to stunning effect here.

- Chronology: July 1984 for most of this movie, with a flashforward to Christmas where Diana briefly encountered the man whose body Steve took over. He's credited as Handsome Man.

Wonder Woman 1984 admittedly starts off slow, it's very cheesy in parts and for some, it might feel like a tonal whiplash compared to the first movie, but for me, it's every bit as excellent as the first movie. The actions sequences might not be as many as you'd like for a lengthy movie but they all deliver when seen, the emotional bits definitely deliver as do the funny moment. The main cast are on excellent form, there's a nice hook for another movie and overall, I just loved this movie to bits.  However you see it, this is definitely one of the best sequels to any movie.

Rating: 10 out of 10

My Review of The Prom (2020)

 

Written by Bob Martin & Chad Beguelin

Directed by Ryan Murphy

Emma/Alyssa: "All it takes is you and me and our song!"

Ryan Murphy has been a busy man on Netflix this year and with his final entry, he's gone with something so unashamedly sugary, you could get the worst dose of toothache. If you thought Glee could be saccharine at times, then The Prom goes that extra mile.

The story is simple enough - seventeen year old Indiana girl, Emma Nolan (Jo Ellen Pellman) has come out as a lesbian and as a result, the PTA's Mrs Greene (Kerry Washington) has cancelled the prom. Of course this won't stand and it seems that Emma will go to the prom, courtesy of Broadway's finest taking on her plight as a personal cause.

Broadway's finest including chorus girl Angie Dickinson (Nicole Kidman), the somewhat narcissistic duo of Dee Dee Allen (Meryl Streep) and Barry Glickman (James Corden) and Juliard graduate, Trent Oliver (Andrew Rannells). They quickly rock up in the town, cause a stir, get the prom mobilised and at least Dee Dee makes something of an impression on principal Hawkins (Keegan Michael-Key) with a nice subplot romance between those two bubbling throughout the movie.

Now to get the elephant out of the room first - James Corden. That guy is definitely one of the most polarising actors out there and while I'm not entirely against straight actors playing gay characters, there were times in this movie where Corden's take on Barry positively grated at times. He's definitely the weak link in regards to the main cast, though he does have a few decent moments, as Barry served as a decent mentor to Barry and even reconnected with his mother, although the latter bit felt a tad rushed.

Emma's love story with Mrs Greene's daughter, Alyssa (Ariana DeBose) of course was the main plot and it was handled rather nice. Yes, there was the cliche of Alyssa not being able to come out and the other cliche of Mrs Greene accepting her daughter's sexuality in the last ten minutes but both DeBose and Pellman (both of whom identify as queer in real life) brought a lot of heart and believability to their respective roles. 

Speaking of romances, I also thought the one between Principal Hawkins and Dee Dee was also nicely handled with some great banter between Meryl Streep and Keegan Michael-Key. Meanwhile both Andrew Rannells and Nicole Kidman who had slightly less focus than Corden and Streep were excellent in their roles as well. Rannells in particular is a rather underrated actor and Kidman was just delightful and I was happy when Angie got the role of Roxy Hart at the end of this one.

The musical numbers definitely were a delight. Some were undoubtedly stronger than others but the choreography was strong, the scenery was definitely chewed in parts but also looked genuinely beautiful throughout the entire movie. 

- Nicole Kidman turned down the part of Roxy Hart and Meryl Streep had auditioned for the title role in Evita, so those references were interesting.

- Ariana Grande was originally attached to the role of Alyssa Greene but pulled out and to be fair, I think having Ariana DeBose was the better call here. 

- Standout music: My Top 5 from this movie include Just Breathe, We Look To You, Zazz, The Acceptance Song and Dance With You. 

- Chronology: I'm just gonna assume this is meant to be set in 2020. 

The Prom ends a rather interesting year for Netflix contributions, courtesy of Ryan Murphy. An all star cast, an impressive debut for Jo Ellen Pellman and Ariana DeBose, gorgeous musical numbers, a lovely love story. The cheesiness is off the scale, even for Murphy but it's December, so I suggest just embracing the cheesiness here.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Spider-Man 2021 Movie - Let's Go All Multiverse

I think what I'm gonna post here will be less of a shocker and more of an inevitability. Also don't be surprised if this blog is edited in the next week or so when more information surfaces. 

It's safe to say that in the space of four years and several appearances in the MCU that Tom Holland has made the role of Spider Man his own and with his first two solo outings being overall crowd pleasers, it's probably the right time for his third outing, currently filming in Atlanta to really up the ante. Basically, it's time for the multiverse.

Rumours have been spilling for a while that Holland's upcoming third movie would delve into it's own Spider Verse and this week, that was probably confirmed. It seems that both Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield will be joining Tom Holland for the upcoming movie but they won't be alone. Nope, along with two other Spidermen, it's also been confirmed that Kirsten Dunst and Emma Stone will be reprising their roles as Mary Jane Watson and Gwen Stacey respectively.

The returns of Maguire, Garfield, Dunst and Stone come after it was also revealed that Jamie Foxx and Alfred Molina would also be reprising their roles as Electro and Doc Octopus respectively. It seems that this current movie might not only be exploring the multiverse (along with WandaVision and the upcoming Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness) but rumours are rife that this movie may also be giving Spidey fans the Sinister Six as several other villains (yet to be confirmed) will factor into the film. 

Other confirmed returns (as well as Holland's own cast, including Zendeya as MJ) are Benedict Cumberbatch's Doctor Strange along with Charlie Cox's Daredevil. The latter's return has especially generated excitement as many were disappointed when Netflix cancelled his show back in 2018. In the film though it seems like Cox's Matt Murdock will be representing Peter Parker in court but I don't doubt we'll get to see him briefly as Daredevil in the movie. There's also been rumours of Deadpool showing up but that hasn't been confirmed yet. Either way, this is exciting stuff. 

Press release: https://news.sky.com/story/spider-man-3-tobey-maguire-and-andrew-garfield-to-reprise-web-slinging-roles-alongside-tom-holland-reports-12156004

The yet to be titled third Spider Man film is currently in production in Atlanta with a scheduled release for December 17th 2021.

My Review of Home Alone 4: Taking Back The House (2002)

 

Written by Debra Frank & Steve L. Hayes

Directed by Rod Daniel

Kevin: "Robbers were trying to rip off your house!"

Natalie: "So you chose to trash it?"

Kevin: "No I was trying to protect it!"

Natalie: "By trashing it?"

Well, this one is a bit odd, innit? After the third one going down the reboot route and having no ties to the first two movies, this decides it wants to be both a reboot and a sequel to said first two movies. Except this time, Kevin McCallister is played by Mike Weinberg and he's lost a few family members along the way.

In this movie, it seems that Kevin's parents (Clare Carey and Jason Beghe) have separated and Peter himself has hooked up with a rich girlfriend, Natalie (Joanna Going) who doesn't do much to conceal her obvious disdain for Kevin and to be fair to her, Kevin does trash her house in order to stop a returning foe and new accomplice. I mean, he really trashed her out. I know we're not supposed to like Natalie but even I was kind of on her side there.

The returning foe in question would be Marv from the first two movies, only this time around he's played by French Stewart and seems to have more of Harry's personality than his own. He's also got a wife named Vera (Missi Pyle) who definitely comes across as a female version of her husband's former personality at times.

They're decent enough foils and there's something amusing enough in Marv's clear displeasure of being reminded of Kevin being a thorn in his side. Their scheme to kidnap some rich kid never comes to plan and there's the usual trope of Kevin warning people of danger and not being believed. At this point, Kevin probably shouldn't bother as the adults never listen to him until it's too late.

There's also the trope of Kevin misjudging one adult figure - in this case Natalie's initially standoffish butler, Mr. Prescott (Erick Avari) but not seeing that seemingly kindly (and very Irish in that US kind of way) Molly Merchants (Barbara Babcock) was actually Marv's mother and the brains behind this operation. She's a decent enough antagonist, but not clever enough to outwit Kevin though.

As for the rest of the movie, Natalie's a cartoonishly bad stepmother that it's no surprise that Peter and Kate reunite but it's horribly unearned. Buzz is nowhere near as effective as the previous two movies and like I said, the rest of Kevin's extended have seemingly been yeeted out of existence. 

- This was the first movie to be a television one and it's follow up also would share the same fate.

- Originally this was going to be a sequel to the third movie (and it probably should've been) before it was decided to focus on Kevin once again.

- Kevin's not actually home alone at any point in this movie, in either house he's staying at. That did make me laugh tbh.

- This was the final film to be helmed by director Rod Daniel.

Home Alone 4: Taking Back The House is definitely by far the weakest entry of the bunch in this franchise (I say at the time of not seeing the fifth one) and I do think if they didn't want to focus on Alex again, maybe they should've gone with a different kid than bringing Kevin back but none of the original cast. 

Rating: 5 out of 10

My Review of Home Alone 3 (1997)

 

Written by John Hughes

Directed by Raja Gosnell

Alex: "You're not gonna find me up there, you big, dumb, law-breaking knuckle-heads!"

Earl Unger/Alice/Burton Jernigan: "He's outside!"

Alex: " Recognize this?"

When a franchise is so successful but your main cast don't really want to do more, what the hell do you do? Do you let it rest and try your luck with something else or do you just get a group of new people in to effectively tell the same story, yet again?

While it should've been the former with this particular franchise, it definitely became a case of the latter as once again, a group of baddies find themselves getting royally outsmarted by a child. Looks like Kevin McAllister isn't the only bane for a baddie's plans.

This time around, it's a young boy named Alex Pruitt (Alex D. Linz) who has come down with the chickenpox and also a case of cabin fever when he spies on some rather suspicious looking people - Peter Beaupre (Olek Krupa), Alice Ribbons (Rya Kihlstedt), Burton Jernigan (Lenny Von Dohlen) and Earl Unger (David Thornton) enter his neighbourhood looking for a rather lucrative microchip.

While Harry and Marv were smaller scale in terms of their crime antics, this lot are somewhat more ambitious and when Alex tries to warn the police, his parents, Jack (Kevin Kilmer) and Karen (Haviland Morris) are of course sceptical, along with his scornful siblings, so it becomes up to Alex to save the day and his neighbour, Mrs Hess (Marian Seldes) from the baddies in question.

The jokes effectively write themselves as Alex wastes no time coming up with as many traps and stunts to get the better of the gang in question and of course, there's also a nice friendship that builds up between him and Mrs Hess. His family on the other hand do seem a lot less focused on than Kevin's were. 

- This movie might be notable for being one of Scarlett Johansson's first movie roles. She plays Alex's sister. 

- Raja Gosnell who directed this movie, also edited the previous two.

- Despite being set in Chicago, there are no references to any characters from the first two movies. 

- In spite of the winter setting, it's actually set after Christmas, breaking away from the tradition of this franchise.

Home Alone 3 is much less of a sequel but more of an attempt of a reboot. The real question is that while it's nowhere near as good as the infamous first two movies, is it actually a bad movie? Truthfully, not really but nor is it a great one either. It lacks the magic of what went before but it's diverting enough to watch.

Rating: 6 out of 10

In Case Of Emergency (Try Not To Make Things Worse For Yourself)

First day of December and here's a rundown of some of the shows I've been watching just of late.

911: Lone Star: With Season 2 slated to air in January, it's nice that SkyLiving finally have the first season done and dusted. Overall, it's been a decent spin-off. Not quite as 911 itself but it's definitely had a certain charm and it does feel like we've gotten a clean slate in regards to the Michelle and Iris subplot along with TK and Carlos getting closer. I'm not sure where they're going to go with Owen's illness next season (will they really kill him off?) but I'll definitely give the next season.

Schitt's Creek: Thanks to E4 relegating the show now to a terrible graveyard slot, I decided to watch the remaining half of the season online. It's taken me a while to really get into this show but I'm glad I stuck with it because now I can see the fuss behind it. The last few episodes had me in stitches with Moira's sister, Alexis and Mutt as well as David and Stevie and of course, Johnny's unsuccessful attempt to sell the town. Looks like I'm gonna be watching the rest of the series over the next few months.

The Boys: After the first season, I decided to wait a fortnight for some breathing space for the second season and now I've blitzed through the first four episodes of the second season. Four episodes in and this season is so much stronger than the first one. The addition of Stormfront has been fascinating and proves that if you think Homelander is bad, there really is someone capable of being worse. Other than that, we've had a delightful roadtrip with Hughie, Starlight and Mother's Milk, Kimiko reuniting and losing her brother so quickly as well as Frenchie trying to help and Maeve being outed on live telly. Weak elements though would include Billy and Becca as well as the Deep getting roped into a cult and A-Train just being generally awful/ Still, a great batch of episodes.

The Flight Attendant: HBO Max seem to have the strangest of strategies with the release of this eight part miniseries as they seem determined to get it out of the way before Christmas. They really should've started this earlier then. Anyways, the first three episodes of this miniseries sees Kaley Cuoco's alcoholic flight attendant Cassandra getting way in over her head following the death of well connected hook up, Alex. Throughout the episodes, there's intriguing enough flashbacks as Cassandra tries to remember the fateful night while the supporting cast are also pretty strong, including lawyer, Annie (Zosie Mamet) and the rather deadly Miranda Croft (Michelle Gomez). The show is arguably more bonkers than gritty though but that's a good thing.

• The third season of American Gods will air on Starz from January 10th. The season will consist of ten episodes.
• Upcoming spin-off American Horror Stories (FX on Hulu) will have sixteen episodes in it's first season. 
• The Flash has temporarily halted production due to a COVID case. 
• The Mandalorian may have a spin-off focusing on Rosario Dawson's Aksoka for Disney+.
• Amazon have cancelled Utopia after one season.
• A crossover event between 911 and 911: Lone Star is currently being filmed.
• Anne Heche will recur in the second season of All Rise.
• One Day At A Day has been cancelled for a second time as POP have chosen not to renew the show.
• Netflix have renewed Dash & Lily for a second season.
• The Serpent, starring Jenna Coleman will premiere on BBC1 from January 1st.