The Cottage Again, 90s Love And Game Time

And once again, here we are with a catch up of everything I've been watching since the last time I did one of these.

911: Will this show ever give audiences what they truly want with Buck and Eddie or are doomed to this weird place both characters are stuck in for eternity? They continue to act like a couple without actually being one and Eddie went into protective boyfriend mode during Buck's kidnapping episode. It's really long past time for this show to either go there with Buddie or give them permanent love interests.

911: Nashville: There's no denying that this show might be the weakest in the brand but there's a few moments where some hints of improvement are creeping in. I liked Don's flashbacks with Dixie and Blythe, the Blue/Taylor romance has potential and we even got some backstory for Roxy. Not to mention having Buck and Eddie appear certainly didn't hurt things.

Bridgerton: Into the second half of the love story between Benedict Bridgerton and Sophie Baek. While their wedding was a mid credit scene (odd choice), the show did an excellent job with building towards their romantic conclusion. Luke Thompson and Yerin Ha absolutely delivered in their scenes together. Also, who the hell is the new Lady Whistledown? There was also Anthony/Kate's return, Francesca losing John, Violet choosing herself and good scenes with Queen Charlotte/Lady Danbury but the show could've done something with Cressida and Araminta. 

How To Get To Heaven From Belfast: How do you follow up a show like Derry Girls? Lisa McGee certainly had a task on her hands but this turned out to be a worthy follow up. Saoirse, Robyn and Dara working together to solve the mystery of their "dead" friend. Some familiar faces in the mix with Bronagh Gallagher on fine form as well as the more skittish Saoirse Monica Jackson. Oh and that ending nicely set up a potential second season.

Love Story: Ryan Murphy will forever stoke ire for these anthologies based on real people but the more they're watched, the more he's gonna keep making them. Paul Anthony Kelly and Sarah Pidgeon are on great form with the show giving a good depiction of John F. Kennedy Jr and Carolyn Bessette's turbulent relationship. I do think Pidgeon's the stronger actor of the two but Kelly held his own. Saying that, Naomi Watts was a bit wasted as Jackie Kennedy.

Vladimir: You know what, I totally get it. Netflix wanted a more unhinged version of Fleabag and this show kind of did that. I can't blame Rachel Weisx going cuckoo for Leo Woodall's titular character and her obsession with him was oddly entertaining to watch. Less interesting was anything involving the family of Weisz's character and some of the MeToo commentary just didn't land as well as it could've done. Given it's viewership numbers, I wouldn't expect a second season though.

• Netflix have officially cast their Scooby Doo live action show. McKenna Grace, Tanner Hagen, Abby Ryder Forston and Maxwell Jenkins will play Daphne, Shaggy, Velma and Fred respectively. Frank Weller will voice Scooby Doo.
• Amazon Prime has renewed Cross for a third season. The second season is currently being released weekly.
• The White Lotus has added more to its cast including Max Greenfield, Kumail Nanjiani and Chloe Bennett to name a few. Filming begins in France next month.
• Danielle Deadwyler has been cast as a lead in the reboot of Hulu's The X-Files.
• Firefly is being revived as an animated series with the original cast slated to reprise their roles.
• The Bear will end with it's upcoming fifth season. It'll air on FX during the summer.
• AMC have renewed The Audacity for a second season, ahead of it's first one airing next month.
• The Harry Potter series will film it's second season later this year. The first will premiere on HBO in 2027.
• FOX have renewed Doc for a 22 episode third season.
• ABC have renewed both 911 shows for further seasons.
• Family Guy is getting a Stewie based spin-off. FOX have given a two season order for the show, due to debut in the 2027-2028 TV season.
• The Vampire Lestat (aka Interview With The Vampire Season 3) will premiere on AMC from June 7th.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day - First Trailer Released

It's been a long time coming and we've had a whole series of Wonder Man and teasers for Avengers: Doomsday. This morning, Sony/Marvel released the first trailer for Spider-Man: Brand New Day.

So, what were the highlights of the trailer then? Highlights and some facts as well.

• It's the fourth solo movie with Tom Holland as Peter Parker/Spider-Man and it's been four years since the events of the previous one.
• Written by Chris McKenna and Erik Sommers and directed by Destin Daniel Cretton (Shang-Chi, Wonder Man).
• Both MJ (Zendaya) and Ned (Jacob Batalon) are back and still don't remember their prior connections to Peter.
• Peter is shown to be in a cocoon and to be developing organic webbing.
• For the gays he's also in a nice black tank top, shirtless and in boxers at different points. Like the MCU don't know their audience.

• Sadie Sink's mystery character only very briefly appears. She's got to be playing someone major for this level of secrecy, right?
• MJ has a new boyfriend played by Eman Esfandi.
• There's scenes that Peter and Spider-Man share with Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo) and Frank Castle (Jon Bernthal).
• Villain wise, there's an appearance of Scorpion (Michael Mando) as well as Boomerang, Tarantula and The Hand.
• Charlie Cox is expected to appear as Daredevil/Matt Murdock as well as Tombstone (Marvin Jones III).

As a trailer, I think it did a really good job in selling it. It definitely feels like a smaller scale one, compared to Tom Holland's original trilogy but that's certainly a good thing. I think it's going to do very well.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day will be in theatres from July 31st. The trailer is on YouTube.

My Review of Calvary (2014)

 

Written And Directed by John Michael McDonagh

Father James: "What do you want to say to me? I'm here to listen to whatever you have to say."

Jack: "I'm going to kill you, Father."

Father James: "Certainly a startling opening line."

After watching The Guard (2011), of course I had to catch up with Calvary (2014). Brendan Gleeson going from an amoral garda to a cantankerous priest and the way this movie opened, it's not hard to see why he'd be pissed off.

The movie started with Gleeson's priest, Father James taking confession with a mystery man. The latter informed Father James that he was a victim of sexual abuse by the priests and even though James wasn't an abuser, he was going to be killed on the next Sunday.

Now, given this advanced warning, you'd think James would've just relocated and avoided death but alas, he didn't. Even after getting rather unhelpful advice from fellow priest, Father Leary (David Wilmot) and Bishop Garret Montgomery (David McSavage), he stuck around.

Then again when Father James wasn't contemplating imminent death, he was spending time with estranged daughter, Fiona (Kelly Reilly). They had something of a complicated relationship, though there was a clear affection between the two of them. Perhaps James should have gone with her instead of waiting to be killed.

Then there's the mystery man himself. The local butcher Jack Brennan (Chris O'Dowd). He wanted revenge for the abuse he suffered. His wife Veronica (Orla O'Rourke) was sleeping with another man named Simon (Isaach de Bankolé) and he didn't care. He just wanted revenge for his past trauma.

There's a great dramatic performance from Chris O'Dowd on that beach as Jack succeeded in actually killing Father James. Then he went to prison with Fiona paying him a visit. It certainly ended this film on a complex note.

- There's an array of well written supporting characters played by Killian Scott (the porn addled Milo Herlihy), Aiden Gillen (the arrogant Dr Frank Harte), M. Emmett Walsh (a writer named Ger Ryan) and Owen Sharpe (a rather talkative rent boy named Leo). Domhnall Gleeson also appeared as Freddie Joyce.

- Father James never finished Moby Dick so Jack had to be a dick and spoil the book. At least Jack wasn't responsible for the death of James's dog.

-Standour music: Fred Neil's The Dolphins.

- Chronology: In a small parish, likely Sligo as that was where the movie was filmed.

As a follow up movie, Calvary (2014) did lose a point for the dog death. Saying that, it's very funny and very bleak in parts and the cast are on excellent form. It's definitely worth watching.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of The Guard (2011)

 

Written And Directed by John Michael McDonagh

Everett: "You have anybody you want me to call?"

Boyle: "Nah, I don't have anybody. Just pin a medal on my body like those boys coming home from Iraq."

Everett: "Fuck you again Sergeant."

Catching up with more Irish movies this month, would you believe this one was a first time watch? No, seriously. I only watched it for the first time last night and I nearly burst my sides laughing. 

Brendan Gleeson has given many a career best performance (and long may he do so) but pairing him with Don Cheadle might be one of the most genius double acts to happen. They're the perfect combination of chalk and cheese and bring out the best in each other.

With Gleeson, he's playing Sergeant Gerry Boyle. The character's coarse, vulgar, rude, a tad racist but also surprisingly sympathetic, savvy and quick on the draw when people least expect him to be. The things Gerry would say rightfully cause offend but it's really hard not to root for the guy.

He's got a sick mother, Eileen (Fionnuala Flanagan) who brought out his softer side. Her death also caused quite the blow to him, though it happened off screen. Gerry's also got a soft spot for the ladies as his escapades with two prostitutes resulted in a blackmail. He was more angered about one of them being physically assaulted than he was about being blackmailed by the villains of the piece.

Gerry also felt sadness for the widow (Katarina Čas) for the closeted Garda Aidan McBride (Rory Keenan). The latter was murdered at the behest of crime boss, Francis Sheehy-Skeffington (Liam Cunningham) and his cohorts Clive Cornell (Mark Strong) and the unhinged Liam O'Leary (David Wilmot). The way that Gerry dealt with them all was particularly brutal but deserved.

Circling back to Don Cheadle, his character FBI Agent Wendell Everett was the straight man in this buddy cop dynamic. He was certainly appalled, perplexed and even admiring the utterly batshit antics of Boyle. I absolutely loved their scenes together.

- Gabriela (McBride's widow) was from Croatia. She wasn't shocked by the fact that her husband was gay. Boyle pointed out that Croatia had good football players.

- Boyle was an expert swimmer, which came in handy for how this movie ended the character.

- Standout music: There's a good use of traditional songs and artists such as N.E.R.D. to boot.

- Chronology: Set predominantly in Connemara but Everett was also from Wisconsin.

The Guard was an absolute riot of a movie. Hysterically funny from start to finish and with an incredible double act from Brendan Gleeson and Don Cheadle. Not exactly politically correct mind you.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

Buffy The Vampire Slayer: New Sunnydale Not Picked Up By Hulu

Yesterday certainly threw out the biggest pop entertainment media story it could have with this one, didn't it? On the week of the show's 29th anniversary and all.

Sarah Michelle Gellar took to social media yesterday to announce that Hulu opted to not pick up Buffy The Vampire Slayer: New Sunnydale as a series after the pilot had been filmed last year. A later statement had been made about exploring other possibilities within the popular IP. 

I have to say that my initial reaction was mixed to this news. A part of me was disappointed with the news as I had been looking forward to reconnecting with one of the most iconic television characters of all time. Then another part of me was relieved that perhaps Buffy Summers herself had been spared a fate that might not have done wonders for her enduring legacy.

This also lead to the obvious speculation that in spite of Chloe Zhao's best efforts, perhaps the pilot itself just wasn't good enough for Hulu to risk it. Leaks in the last twenty four hours had revealed that Buffy herself would've only appeared in the last scene. She would've been an insurance broker that was living in New York and going by Anne for some reason.

The rest of the pilot would've focused on both old and new versions of Sunnydale coexisting with long buried vampires coming out of the ground and a young girl named Nova (Ryan Kiera Armstrong) being activated as the new slayer. Also one of her teachers would have become a vampire during the episode. 

On paper, this didn't sound awful but a bit generic. I do think relegating Buffy herself to a mundane role wouldn't have been the best way to reintroduce the character as well. Could the pilot leak? Possibly. It took years for the original Buffy pilot to leak (currently on YouTube) as well as the opening scene from the planned animated show. 

Oh well, at least we still have the 1992 movie, the TV show, Angel, those follow up comics and that audio series from a few years ago. Perhaps this decision will be a blessing in disguise.

My Review of Young Sherlock - Season 1 (2026, Amazon Prime)

 

Written by Matthew Parkhill And Peter Harness And Steve Thompson And Melissa Bubnic

Directed by Guy Ritchie And Anders Engström And Dennie Gordon And Tricia Bock

Moriarty (to Sherlock): "When you've eliminated the impossible, whatever remains must be the truth."

Ah, yes. For the latest take on Sherlock Holmes, let's go younger with the character and keep John Watson out of his orbit. That might sound a little snarky but it was my gut reaction. Fortunately, it didn't deter me from actually watching the show.

The show itself introduced a nineteen year old version of the amateur detective. This Sherlock (Hero Fiennes Tiffin) spent some time in prison, got released by his oldest brother, Mycroft (Max Irons) and ended up with a porter job at Oxford's Candlin College. This would be where Sherlock would meet future enemy/current friend, James Moriarty (Dónal Finn).

Now the biggest strength of this show undoubtedly would be the Sherlock/Moriarty dynamic. Both Hero Fiennes Tiffin and Dónal Finn are fantastic in their scenes together. Both are smart and both were outcasts from their peers, so the both they form as the series unfolded made total sense. It's an incredibly strong partnership that made for the best viewing.

Of course there were mysteries afoot to keep things interesting. One of them involved Princess Gulun Shou'an/Xiao Wei (Zine Tseng). Throughout the series, there was some switching back and forth between identities and there were times when she went from being an ally as well as a nuisance to both Sherlock and Moriarty. Colin Firth popped up in the first half of the season as Sir Bucephalus Hodge but he's one of the few weaker elements of the show.

The second half of the season made things more into a rather complicated family affair. I enjoyed the gentle bickering between Sherlock and Mycroft along with the presence of their mother, Cordelia (Natascha McElhone). The latter in particular spent time in an asylum being recorded before she was released. This also played a part into the main plot of the season.

Of course it's the Holmes patriarch, Silas (Joseph Fiennes) and the not so dead daughter, Beatrice (Holly Cattle) that made up our final villains of the piece. There's shades of Guy Ritchie's movies and the 2010-2017 BBC series in this show but that's to it's strength and there's a few nice hooks for future seasons. 

- Episode titles are The Case Of The Missing Scrolls, The Case Of The Burnt Photograph, The Case Of The Unarmed Man, The Case Of The Missing Button, The Case Of Young Sherlock Holmes, The Case Of The Killing Jar, The Case Of The Two Corners and The Case Of Beatrice Holmes.

- Steve Thompson previous wrote for Sherlock and Guy Ritchie directed the Robert Downey Jr movies.

- Standout music: Kasabian's Days Are Forgotten, which was the theme tune for the show.

- Chronology: The show takes place in 19th century London along with Constantinople for the last two episodes.

Young Sherlock definitely hit the right spots. If you've missed the Robert Downey Jr movies and Benedict Cumberbatch TV show, this show's a perfect blend of both. Both Hero Fiennes Tiffin and Dónal Finn are excellent young versions of the iconic frenemy duo.

Rating: 8 out of 10 

My Review of The Bride! (2026)

 

Written And Directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal 

Frank: "The Bride of Frankenstein."

The Bride: "Just the Bride."

I was really hoping that the critical were going to be wrong about this movie. I really wanted them to be. This movie had talent both in front and behind the camera and an interesting variation on a classic monster story. How did it go so wrong?

I think maybe the bouncing back and forth between Mary Shelley (the author of Frankenstein) and a young woman named Ida, both of whom were played by Jessie Buckley certainly didn't help matters. For some reason, Mary was able to possess Ida but the movie made no effort to explain it as such.

When Ida was possessed by Mary, she went on feminist rants that were written in a very purple prose sort of way. Ida's rants eventually got her killed but death wouldn't be the ending of her story. Instead, it was a prelude to a literal rebirth for her.

This was where Frank aka Frankenstein (Christian Bale) and mad scientist Dr. Cornelia Euphronious (Annette Bening) factored into things. Frank needed a lover and Euphronious went along with in spite her initial misgivings about playing with the dead. If anything, she could have resisted a bit more before resurrecting Ida.

Now we had three women at once for Jessie Buckley to play. She was Mary Shelley who had another story to tell. She was Ida who was conflicted about her past. She was also The Bride determined to make her own choices, including rejecting Frank's proposal attempts as she grew closer to him. I mean they did have a Bonnie & Clyde dynamic in the second half of the movie.

As a duo, both The Bride and Frank caused a lot of chaos, which included terrorising an actor named Ronnie Reed (Jake Gyllenhaal) when The Bride wasn't ripping out a corrupt cop's tongue. There was also a detective duo with Ida's ex, Jake Wiles (Peter Sarsgaard) and his protégé Myrna Malloy (Penelope Cruz).

The movie hurtled towards a hamfisted conclusion that combined elements of the original source material and the criminal couple that our leads tried so hard to emulate. The feminist messaging on the other hand kind of got lost in the shuffle as it turned out that death really wasn't an obstacle.

- The Bride Of Frankenstein (1935) had the same idea of Mary Shelley and The Bride being played by the same actor. It worked better there.

- This was the second time that Maggie Gyllenhaal had directed both Jessie Buckley and Peter Sarsgaard and cast them as volatile exes. 

- Standout music: Jake Gyllenhaal's My Sin and Luther Allison's Maelstrom.

- Chronology: 1930s Chicago for the duration of the movie with flashbacks to Mary Shelley in the 1800s.

The Bride! had all the potential in the world to be one of the best movies of 2026. It had the right people behind and in front of the camera but it's a misfire all round. The performances are erratic, the script's clunky and the messaging just didn't land. A genuine shame.

Rating: 6 out of 10