The Punisher episode 12: 'Home'

Thus, we come to the penultimate episode of the show's first season.  I figured we'd get the big showdown and the last episode would be sort of a denouement.  Instead, we get a starter showdown, but all is not wrapped up quite yet.

While the show has benefited from a strong cast from the get go, they really shine here.  The Lieberman family reunion is amusingly awkward, but still fairly powerful in its own right.  The fact that they have to watch Micro "die" again a few minutes later certainly doesn't help matters.  Everything works out for them pretty well, all things considered, but there are probably going to be some awkward nights at the dinner table going forward.

As a result, however, Frank ends up getting captured by Billy and Rawlins. Even though, Frank spends most of the episode tied to a chair, he still gets some standout scenes.  His conversation with Russo when he first wakes up is one of the episode's major highlights.  It's clear that Bill still has some degree of loyalty to Frank, and while he won't hesitate to do what needs to be done, his talk about regretting the way things turned out seemed legit.  Conversely, the history only acts as fuel for Frank's hatred.  

Rawlins is also in rare form, as the sight of Frank up close seems to have driven him completely insane.  The actor is hamming it up something fierce, but it is still chilling.    The drastic turn contributes to it, but even putting that aside, it's still pretty creepy.

Rawlins' raving loon does contrast nicely with Russo's more no nonsense approach to the matter.  The disparity becomes clear when the two have achieved their goal.  Russo wants to end Frank quick and be done with it, but Rawlins is enjoying the torture session too much and insists that it continue unabated.  The two were never really simpatico, but seeing the two diverge the way they did was interesting to watch.

While the episode is more dialogue driven, it does give you some Frank Castle bad-assery, as he dispatches Rawlins in a particularly gruesome display.  Considering that Frank has done quite a bit up to this point, it says something that this still manages to leave an impression.  It's glorious, but also horrifying.  It's a good thing Micro's kids didn't see that, they'd never want to get within 10 yards of him again. 

It's been a long road, but we're finally coming to the end of the season.  While the final confrontation with Russo looms, a part of me hopes he lives to fight another day.  It seems like the conflict between the two is finding its groove and I want to see more of it.  We'll see how things will play out, though.  

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''Legends of Tomorrow' Season 4, Episode 5: 'Tagumo Attacks!!'

 This episode tries to manage three different sub-plots.  It's not an easy task, but this one manages to do it fairly adequately.

Naturally, one of them follows Ray, as he attempts to recruit Nora Darhk to save Constantine. For a girl who was trying to remain hidden, she was surprisingly easy to find. It was nice seeing Sara use her dad as a frame of reference to add a piece to the puzzle, but it still seemed surprisingly quick.

Nora is initially willing to cooperate, but wavers a bit due to not wanting to succumb to the influence of dark magic again.  It's an understandable and even admirable motivation for the character.    Just as she was found rather quickly, she was convinced to change her mind rather quickly, but the episode has time limits and there are other plots to cover.  I was surprised that Nora didn't make some pun surrounding her last name when Ray asked why "dark magic" had to be what was necessary to save John.

Seeing her willingly turn herself in was appropriately sad, but still a great moment for her.  On the one hand, it seemed like the time bureau was really overdoing it, but at the same time, you have to be watchful for the old "I surrender, suckers' trap.  It would be something that her father would do.

Overall, this plot line worked, but was hampered by time constraints. Like I said, parts of it feel abrupt, but overall, the good stuff  was more than enough to make up for it.

There's a sub-plot with the Time Bureau that somehow becomes two sub-plots.  You have Nate and Ava attending a Heywood family thanksgiving, but you also have Gary trying to woo the delivery girl (something he's surprisingly good at) and then deal with a breakout of mythical monsters.

Nate's dad gets some highlight moments.  Him not hesitating to invite Ava to dinner was nice (as was the whole family welcoming her with open arms) and he also shows "papa wolf" tendencies when he is finally informed of what's going on and wants to do whatever it takes to make sure his son is safe.  It allows the two to develop a better understanding of each other and grow closer as a result.

I was a little underwhelmed by the "awkward nightmare" that the family gathering was supposed to be.  I didn't see anything that really felt hellish. Rowdy kids and having to wait for the turkey to cook seem like small potatoes all things considered.  Nate comparing the monsters' behavior to his family's was pretty funny, though, I'll give it that.  So was the air rifle bit.

How was there no mention of football games?  The Heywood guys seem like the type who would make that a priority, but there wasn't even a hint of a desire to sit down and watch.  It was a bit peculiar.

The main plot sees the rest of the team travel to 1950's Japan, where a mysterious giant creature is wreaking havoc.

Having the team go full force against a kaiju would have been really cool, but alas the show's budget doesn't really allow it and the team isn't really equipped for those types of battles anymore.  Even when Sara and Charlie face off against the monster, it seems a bit clunky.  The special effects and wire work weren't the best, but you could also see that as intentional, given the whole 1950's B-movie thing.

On the plus side, there are some great character bits.  The filmmaker with whom the team aligns gets a great speech talking about the aftermath of Hiroshima.  Yes, much like Godzilla, the monster here is tied to that event. The episode does something a bit different though, and in some ways, it works better.  It brings the horror down to a more individual level, but also shows the power of art.

Speaking of, Mick manages to save the day.  It turns out that the pen is mightier than the flame thrower, as he too brings a character to life to save the day.  It was a twist that, odd as it is, makes sense in context and was foreshadowed with the earlier revelation that Mick is an aspiring novelist.  While his creation is cool, seeing a Beebo vs Tagumo fight would have been interesting.  Maybe they're saving that for "Tagumo Returns!"

On other fronts, Charlie is slowly getting acclimated to being part of the team.  She's less useful here, but she does step up when it counts and does provide some contrast. Her line about humans using a magic book as a weapon really doesn't make any sense in context, given that that isn't what was happening, but it does foreshadow the closing wham line where Nate's dad reveals that, because the monsters can be controlled "Project Hades" is a go.

I'm guessing this is a DCAU Cadmus type deal, where the monsters are going to be used to protect the country from other monsters and/or threats.  I mean, the Arrowverse is a pretty weird place at this point so it's understandable that unconventional resources might be considered. That's just a guess on my part, though, we'll have to see how things play out.

This episode wasn't quite up to par with others this season, but it does provide some solid character development and does move the plot forward on a few fronts. The fact that it had so many things to cover kind of worked against it, but all things considered, it did pretty well.

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'Castle Rock' Season 2, Episode 1: 'Let the River Run'

 Thanks to some new tech, I can finally use my Hulu account again.  As such, I can dive back into "Castle Rock".  While it has been some time since I watched season one, the fact that this is an anthology series means that we're given a new arc with a new cast of characters.

One of the main characters is none other than Annie Wilkes.  Lizzy Caplan plays a younger version of the character here and she does a very good job of it.  There are shades of Kathy Bates' iconic take, but she is also able to put her own mark on it.  This is helped by the writing, which gives her a more layered and sympathetic motivation.

She's still a dangerous psychotic, and while she is a fugitive, she keeps a low profile and manages to keep her issues at bay by pilfering anti-psychotics from various hospitals where she works as a temp nurse.

Her main reason for doing this is her daughter, Joy.  It turns out that Annie is a quite good, albeit unconventional, mother.  She has her daughter's best interests at heart and genuinely does everything she can to give the girl a good life.

As a result, they are the best part of the episode.  Seeing secluded Joy find a group of friends was nice to see. Annie herself also gets some of the episode's highlights.  The scene when she comes clean after getting caught stealing meds was really quite heartwarming.  Credit where it's due, though, the doctor empathizing with her and agreeing to work with her to get her the medicine she needs helped seal the deal.  

Annie gets another highlight when she is confronted by Ace Merrill (yeah, this season seems to have much stronger ties to the King-verse than the first season.)  I don't want to spoil it, but it's freaking awesome. 

The whole mall/Merrill family rivalry wasn't the most compelling stuff, but it does play a pretty important role in the plot.   

The episode is also more grounded than the first season. There isn't that foreboding atmosphere and the episode is very light on supernatural elements.  There's talk of witches and satanists being a part of the town's history (this season appears to take place in Salem's Lot as opposed to Castle Rock itself) but that seems more like background information.  While we're on the topic, it is a little peculiar that the show relocated, but it is an iconic King town and it still has the dark and troubled past, so it's not that much of a deviation.  This also puts some distance between the two story arcs so that you're not constantly wondering where various season 1 characters are.

Seeing as the episode needs to set up the key players, the lack of horror elements makes sense. In Annie's and Joy's cases, it worked to the episode's favor.  

This was a solid opening. The cast is strong and it was well paced.  It does seem like a lot was wrapped up.  On the one hand, that's a good thing, but at the same time, I'm not sure where the plot can go. I guess I'll just have to watch and find out.

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'Legends of Tomorrow' Season 4, Episode 4: 'Wet Hot American Bummer'

 A horror movie date night inadvertently prompts the team to travel to 1990's Maine where reports say several kids died at the hands of a monster while attending summer camp.

Naturally, this leads to several members of the team posing as counselors.  You'd think that the episode would draw humor by putting characters least suited for the job in the role.  Instead, some of the highlights come from watching the two characters who take to it the most, Sara and Ray.  The latter would obviously love it, but seeing Sara brighten up at the idea of going back to camp was a real treat.

John does accompany the group, and his magic does prove integral, but the episode doesn't really do much with him as counselor.  He just sticks to himself.  To his credit though, when he does interact with the kids, he's more impressive than his surly personality would suggest. 

Ava as counselor is an interesting case  Yeah, her "drill sergeant" persona isn't an act, but fraternities and sororities do similar schticks. On the other hand, her getting pranked was to be expected. You'll probably see that twist coming, but it was pretty funny and it did allow for a nice nod to the "Friday the 13th" movies.

This episode was actually not all that reliant on pop culture references.  It's surprising, as given the premise, you'd think that it would be chock full of them.  Instead, it puts more focus on character.  That being said, "Swamp Thaaaang" is a pretty brlliant movie title.  That joke alone would have been enough, but it prompts John to allude to the character actually existing in the Arrowverse proper. 

The biggest beneficiaries from this are Sara and Ava.  Their relationship has always been adorable, but it really shines here.  Even when the two turn into kids, the chemistry remains.  Props to the two child actors, as they did a great job capturing the characters' essences.

Charlie, the shapeshifter from the previous episode, also got some progression, as she is brought into the team.  It was a little rushed, but theydid go through the trouble of bringing Sellers back.  How long could they keep her in the cell throwing tantrums and screaming?  

The fact that she knew specifically which shtriga the team is facing is a little convenient and might be a possible red flag, but they needed something to prompt her being brought into the fold. Even having her as the team's resident "Hannibal Lecter" might have gotten repetitive after a while.

The bigger disappointment is Zari who doesn't really do much besides fall for the most obvious prisoner trick in the book.  

Even Mick gets more to work with.  Not only does he quickly undo Zari's epic screw up, but he manages to forge a solid bond with the shape shifter in a pretty short amount of time.  It's impressive, as it still feels completely natural despite only having a couple of minutes to be showcased.

All in all, this was a solid showing.  The humor was there, but it wasn't too out there.  The characters mostly had highlights and growth.  There are even some plot threads for the next episode, as John is still on death's door, forcing the team to seek the aid of Nora Darhk.  It did occur to me, that with all this magic, this could be a prime opportunity for Zatanna to be brought in.  Might happen, might not.  It would be cool though, as I'm a fan of the character.  In any event, it'll be interesting to see how things play out as we move further into the season.

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'The Punisher' Episode 11: 'Danger Close'

 It's been quite a while since we last talked about this show, hasn't it?  Let's say we get back into it.  With the Lewis subplot all wrapped up, this episode shifts the focus back to the bigger story regarding Russo, Rawlins, and the Kandahar cover up.

The conflict with Russo takes most of the focus, as Frank is surprisingly shaken by the revelation that his old comrade in arms is actually now his major opponent.  I think the sporadic viewing hurt this as, it did take me a minute to remember why Frank is so despondent.  Still,  it seems like we needed more time seeing these two as allies so that the sting of betrayal could really be felt.  Madani's venomous attitude toward him has more weight to it as we saw that bond to a much greater extent.

Speaking of bond, the one between "Pete" and Micro's family is put into jeopardy, with the prior's real identity exposed to the public.  I'm kind of surprised the son didn't latch on that more.  A kid his age should be blown away by the fact that he's friends with the Punisher. Then again,the news does frame him as a straight up terrorist as opposed to a vigilante, so that might have had something to do with it.

The climax of the episode does put Frank in a more ruthless light.  Where his appearances on "Daredevil" made it clear he leaves innocents unharmed, here he guns down mooks without hesitation. Yeah, they're working for the bad guys, but there are some who are clearly retreating or trying to surrender and they still get bullets for their trouble.

For his part, Frank does admit to Leo that he is scarier than "Pete".  I still think an attempt to play up that he only goes after bad guys might have helped assuage her fears  Also, bring up that time that he killed some ninjas.  That would certainly score some points with the kids  How that doesn't come up more in conversations is beyond me.

Speaking of Micro's family, it was nice to see him reunited with his daughter.  It's something he's clearly wanted from the beginning and the payoff was worth it.  There's still the wife and son, but that'll come later.

Using them as hostages was a little on the trite side, but they do have a bond with both Frank and Micro, so it does enable the pair to maintain their alliance, even if they are approaching their mission's endgame.

To her credit, Sarah does make a valiant effort to fend off her kidnappers, and only relents when her son is taken hostage.  

This was a good "jump back in" episode.  It did move the plot forward, but it also managed to naturally get me up to speed on all the goings on.  It also brought a healthy does of action, as well as good character moments.

With the final confrontation between Frank and Russo looming, I'm not sure how there's still two episodes to go.  The season could have the big climactic battle in the next episode and have the finale be a sort of loose end tying character driven affair.  A lot of shows have been doing that recently.  I guess I'll have to find out.  Hopefully, it won't be four months before the next one.  There's still a lot of other Marvel shows to cover.

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'The Stand' Trailer Reaction

 It's been a while since we've done a trailer reaction.  It's content that runs hot and cold.  For a while, it seemed like I was doing a bunch and then it just stopped.  But, with CBS releasing an adaptation of "The Stand" on All Access, I have an opportunity to dive back into the well and analyze the teaser we were given.

Not too shabby all things considered. It's got a pretty strong cast.  Gary Sinise as Stu Redman is a high bar to jump, but James Marsden isn't a bad pick.  Alexander Skarsgard looks pretty solid as Flagg.  Having Matthew McConaughey play the role would've been an interesting way to go, but he looks like he's capturing the character's essence quite well.  

The song choice worked well for the first part and brought the right atmosphere in terms of the aftermath of the Captain Trips outbreak, but as the trailer went on, it didn't seem like it really fit with what was being presented.  It seemed like the trailer was trying to drop it, but felt the need to keep bringing it back, maybe for the sake of cohesiveness? I don't know.

Speaking of, the virus itself isn't really brought up.  We see abandoned roads and headlines, but aside from a shot of Stu escaping the facility, there's no mention.  It's odd, as you'd think that they would, if for no other reason than to use current circumstances to augment the tension in the story.  

According to the comments in the video, this is partly due to the fact that the series is going to pick up in the free zone and then flash back to the virus outbreak.  I'm hoping this isn't the case.  I know some shows have done it ("Lost" and "Arrow" being the two most notable ones) but it can prove to be frustrating and in both circumstances, the format wore out its welcome after a while.  

Given how the virus only really plays a role in the first act, it could only be a temporary thing; but at the same time, if that's the case, why not just tell the story in chronological order?  

I'm not sure how many episodes they plan on running this, but I think that it will be a better fit as far as adaptation formats go.  The original mini-series did what its could, but this would give the plot and characters time to grow and progress.  

Some expressed concern about this, specifically citing the "Under the Dome" fiasco, but where that took too many liberties, this looks more like a straight adaptation.  That could change, things may be changed for the element of surprise or to draw things out so that the series can keep going, but as of now, it seems like a different circumstance.

I'm probably going to have to wait until this hits DVD to check it out, but based on what I've seen here, I'd be interested to see how well it pans out.

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What Can Challenge the Z-Fighters?

 Goku and Vegeta are incredibly powerful beings, as such, it can be something of a challenge to come up with threats that would give them a run for their money.  Now, according to "Death Battle', the two are still weaker than Superman, which would appear to help.  However, it's also been made explicitly clear that these two were the strongest beings in the universe and that was before they acquired literal god modes.

"Super" has made an effort to show that even Goku and Vegeta can still be severely outclassed, but it still seems like we're getting close to hitting a potential ceiling.  I mean, there are only so many ancient beings that can be reawakened and the more mortals you introduce to challenge them, the less impressive their powers seem.  Still, the story must go on, so what do you do? Some ideas have popped up and I figured, why not lay them out?

1. Replicators   

For those who haven't watched Stargate SG-1, the Replicators were these creepy robot spiders that consumed matter (organic or inorganic) and used that to multiply (or replicate, if you will.)  They were a force to be reckoned with in the show, repeatedly overpowering the show's normal big bads, the Go'auld, and posing a threat to the galaxy as a whole.

Now, you could point out that the robots were taken out by regular gun fire, so the Z-fighters should be able to easily take these things out, right?  Not necessarily.  While the robots themselves aren't all that formidable, there are a large number of them and the number only gets bigger.  As such, it wouldn't be that much of a stretch to see Goku and Vegeta get either overwhelmed or just worn out trying to take the robot horde down.  

In fact, this particular enemy gives the other characters a prime chance to shine without it feeling forced or clunky.  This isn't one super powerful being, but a massive amount of weaker ones that make up for said weakness with an unending swarm.  If that isn't enough to make the case,remember that the animated version of the Justice League took on a similar opponent in an episode and even the full might of their then 50+ hero roster was barely able to keep them at bay. Thus, saying that they could give the Z-Fighters a good go isn't too much of a stretch.

Even fitting them into the established universe isn't that difficult as it's just tech (nano-tech specifically).  All you need is a scientist (Bulma, an aspiring rival, or an alien one) who creates these things, perhaps even with good intent, and it just goes awry.  

2.  Zombies

Like the Replicators, zombies are a threat that thrive on numbers.  The individual zombies aren't so daunting, but the massive numbers would be the factor that makes them a threat.  Some tweaking regarding the rules of infection would be needed so that characters can get bitten, but not immediately turned, but other than that, I could see this working out well.  

While they don't have regenerative abilities like Cell or Buu, the take out the head rule means that the Z-fighters can't just blast off limbs or blow holes in torsos.  They'd either need to aim rather well or make large enough blasts that the brain gets taken out with everything else.  One interesting twist here is that Krillin's Destructo Disc would be a useful and even formidable technique.   Speaking of, like the Replicators, the zombies are a threat that could incorporate the other Z-fighters in a believable fashion.

You might be thinking that they can fly, thus just rain down ki blasts with impunity; but remember that collateral damage is still a concern and they have to land some time. On top of that, this approach doesn't guarantee results.  They could ki spam an area and only take out a few zombies if the blasts don't land right. Fatigue would very much be a factor that  could make this a tougher fight than you might think. 

Incorporating them into the universe wouldn't be too difficult either.  You can go with a virus or some sort of mystical incantation that brings the dead back wrong.  It's simple and still fits within the established rules of this universe.

3.  New Life

The main job of the Supreme Kai is to create life to populate the universe.  Unfortunately, the Tournament of Power arc showed that universe 7 is sorely under-populated.  As such, it wouldn't be too much of a leap to have him make an effort to rectify this short coming.  Still being something of a novice, some of these could end up posing a problem.  Maybe he tries to create beings that can compete with the saiyans and the forced rushing of the process is what does it, or maybe it's just law of averages and there are some "bad eggs" that go along with the more benevolent beings that he creates in his endeavors.  Either way, it would give the writers room to work with going forward.

This doesn't just aid the villainous end of the scale, more new beings means more potential allies who could offer assistance from time to time.  It could widen the scope in many respects and create a more expansive universe both literally and figuratively.  

4. Multi-versal threat

With the multiverse established, it makes sense to threaten it all.  This would likely be another ancient being that's been imprisoned for eons, but rather than just pose a threat to Earth or universe 7, it would threaten all of them  Not only would this bring in the other Z-fighters, but the characters from other universes to all stand together to take this thing down. Unlike the last multi-versal threat (the ToP), this would have the fighters fighting alongside each other as opposed to facing off.

Whether it results in a universal consolidation like DC's "Crisis on Infinite Earths" or not, it would still be a huge story with massive scope.  Seeing the Z-fighters, Pride Troopers, the Trio de Dangers, the universe 6 fighters , and the rest all banding together would be a hell of a sight, if I do say so myself.  

Any thoughts? Suggestions about what else the heroes could face gong forward?  I'm interested to hear your thoughts on the matter.

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