Hey Everyone, Paul here. This a great teaser. It doesn’t show us much, but it gets us in the mood. Now we finally know, the End Begins… April 14! Winter Is Coming.
Category: TV Articles
Doctor Who Series 11: Review
A little over a year ago, I wrote about What I Wanted to See from Doctor Who, going forward, specifically because Jodie Whitaker was about to become the first female Doctor in the show’s history. The big thing that I didn’t want to see was the over sexualization of the Doctor, just because she would now be female, and they did that. Arguably of all the Doctors of the modern run, she was the least sexual, or sexualized, and I’m happy with that, because after all this is an near immortal alien being with untold thousands of years of accumulated knowledge, whose consciousness never really dies. The Doctor is nearly a goddess (formerly a god), hanging out with people who are merely decades old, and extremely mortal. The sexual/romantic nature of that is always a bit questionable, so steering away from it, at least in her first season as a woman, was probably a good idea.
Now, by that single metric the show was a success, but as you can imagine, whether or not a show’s main character is or is not over-sexualized isn’t the true determination of its quality. This season was incredibly divisive, from what I saw on some Facebook pages, and the Doctor Who subreddit, this was a love it or hate it season.
Many were claiming the show wasn’t Doctor Who anymore, citing that the new format of “Team TARDIS” with the Doctor and three season long companions, changed the dynamic too much from the Doctor and single companion model, which had been the case in most of the previous season, the only change being when a companion would bring on a boyfriend (Mickey, or Rory), or when they’d meet other aliens/time-travelers (Captain Jack, River Song). Personally, I liked the dynamic, it was definitely different, but I don’t want to watch the same old thing over and over.
The dynamic, and the characterization of the four TARDIS inhabitants was for me the strength of the season. The writers and actors had clearly worked to flesh out the characters. Graham and Ryan had unresolved issues that became very naturally resolved, as step-grandfather and step-grandson, and really played out well. Yas learned that her family were not all the tradition following people she had thought, and that her wanting something different and adventure weren’t that far off from her grandmother. Finally, the Doctor, who is always a bit different after regenerations was just that a bit different, but really not too different, enough to reinvigorate, but not so much as to alienate… at least for most.
One of the major complaints that I saw on Reddit, was that the Doctor is too much of a feminist, and more specifically a dreaded SJW. Honestly, I don’t really see it. The Doctor of the 1960’s may have been much less feminist than Jodie Whitaker’s Doctor, but I don’t think the last couple of iterations have been. The truth is, like much of serialized sci-fi, Doctor Who is a show about striving for the fullest of human potential, and much of that is in a social aspect. Star Trek boldly went with the first interracial kiss on American broadcast television, and as early as season one of this reboot, we had a character of Captain Jack Harkness, who for lack of a better term seemed omni-sexual, but was certainly as attracted to Christopher Eccleston’s Doctor, as he was to Rose. This isn’t really new for the show, nor for the character.
What was new about this dynamic for the character is that suddenly the Doctor is being taken less seriously because of her gender, and this is frustrating when she is for all intents and purposes the most authority on nearly every subject in the universe. So, there was a little time dedicated to it, but it was a surprisingly little amount of time, usually no more than a line per episode (sometimes nothing at all). So, personally I assume that this criticism of the ‘overwhelming feminism’ is little more than Trolling.
But there are certainly some genuine criticisms, and I think it’s really important to take those seriously, because I personally want the show to be its best, and it cannot do that if the writers and show-runner bury their heads in the sand. The big piece of genuine criticism, I think, was overuse and clunky exposition. Lots of people online have mentioned it, but it bears repeating. This show, like a lot of heavy sci-fi uses exposition more than some other genres, and that’s ok, but I would say this season seemed to do it the most, and that’s not a good thing. I don’t any of the episodes were ruined by exposition, but in a show like this, they need to show and not tell as much as possible.
I would say that this season gets either a C+ or maybe (if I’m being generous) a B- from me. There was plenty of fun, and the characters were really done, but other than that I think there wasn’t enough there for me. Some seasons have multiple episodes I would point people to, to get a feel for what the show should be, and this season really only had one (two if you count the New Years special, which is really Season 12 Episode 0).
“Rosa,” which was episode 3, tells the story of our travels getting thrown into 1955 Montgomery, Alabama, and meeting Rosa Parks just days before her famous arrest for refusing to give up her seat on a segregated bus. This was a great episode in pretty much every way, and I don’t want to say too much as to ruin it, but I will say this, even though the show does a lot of historical episodes, and places the doctor into a lot of historical scenarios, I’m not sure any have had the possibility of alienating the audience like this before, and it doesn’t (at least not for the real reasons). You see in these historical episodes, a lot of times we find out that the Doctor was actually responsible for setting in motion some major historical event, and this hasn’t really ever been a problem, because it’s either played as a bit of a gag, or maybe it’s a historical event without an individual historically receiving credit, and so the Doctor isn’t stealing anyone’s credit. That’s a fine line for the show to thread, and watching it I was a bit worried “oh please don’t make it that the Doctor sets this up, or take anything away from Rosa Parks,” and it doesn’t. It’s brilliant in letting the plot of the show revolve around the show without setting really touching the moving parts of the actual history. Think about when Marty McFly tries really hard in Back to the Future 2 to not interact with or change anything Marty McFly from Back to the Future 1 does in 1955, it’s kind of like thbat. It’s by far the episode of this season that shows what Doctor Who can and should be.
Written by Micheal Cole
MUST WATCH: Gotham: The Final Season (Premiere Review)
Hey Everyone,
Paul here…
Tonight the final season of Gotham premiered on Fox and honestly I was very excited to watch it. It’s hard to believe that this is the same show that just a few years ago had some of the absolute worst superhero writing on TV. When Gotham began, it was more or less a shittier Smallville, with proto-versions of Batman’s rogues gallery popping up each week for Ben McKenzie’s Jim Gordon to deal with. It was a shame because the show was very well cast and all the actors were perfect in their roles. Since the very first episode, Ben McKenzie has made a great Jim Gordon (he was also the voice of Batman in the animated film adaptation of Batman: Year One). Many of the great Batman stories are also great Jim Gordon stories, so it was very important for them to get this character right.
We even got to see a part of Bruce Wayne’s life that is very rarely explored, the years immediately following the murder of his parents. David Mazouz is easily one of the most compelling live action versions of Bruce Wayne we’ve seen. He conveys Bruce’s dark, brooding intelligence without ever sounding like a whiny brat. With excellent actors memorably playing classic Batman characters like Alfred, The Penguin, The Riddler, Selina Kyle and more, the series felt like a frustrating waste of great talent. Terrible writing hamstrung what could otherwise have been an excellent take on the Batman mythos.
About halfway through Season 3, specifically the mid-season finale, something fundamentally changed about the show for the better. I think there are two big reasons for this and one of them was how the series began to use Bruce Wayne. First of all, David Mazouz had grown up enough that he was just old enough to start becoming more crucial to the action going on in the story. Pretty much from the pilot on, Bruce has slowly been learning important skills that would become crucial on his journey to becoming Batman. Season 3’s mid-season finale saw Bruce being taken hostage at a circus by Jeremiah Valeska. If you’re not familiar with Gotham, Jeremiah (played by Cameron Monaghan) is basically their version of The Joker, and a damn good one too. The episode culminated with a show down in a hall of mirrors between Bruce and Jeremiah, where Bruce comes very close to killing Jeremiah. The whole episode was pretty great and I found myself watching the rest of the season once the show returned from it’s hiatus. You started to see Bruce take a more active role as a vigilante even though he wasn’t dressed like Batman.
The second reason the series changed for the better in my opinion, was because it stopped being a bad prequel series, building up to some day in the future where we get to see Bruce put on the Batman costume in the last 5 minutes of the final episode. In the same way that Smallville was entirely built around the show teasing Clark eventually putting on the Superman costume, that we only see him wear for about three seconds in the series finale. Instead, Gotham became more of an Elseworlds Batman story. I think it’s the smartest thing the show could’ve done because they took the mythology and made it their own. They were no longer slaves to the mythology of the Batman comic books. They allowed their story to be an alternate take on the mythos. This choice gave the show its own identity. It also made it more exciting for the audiences because things weren’t necessarily going to play out exactly as they had in the comic books. As a result the back half of Season 3 was a hell of a lot of fun and frankly I love Season 4. One of the reasons I love the show Krypton on Syfy is that the show isn’t a prequel, it’s more about the DC Universe’s past being changed by time travel. Changing Krypton‘s history, changes the history of the entire Superman story and by extension the entire DC Universe.
So coming into this final season, which was going to be drawing from classic Batman stories like No Man’ Land and Zero Year (In fact this episode’s title is “Year Zero”), I was pretty psyched to see what they were going to do. I’m happy to say I wasn’t disappointed.
After the events of last season, Gotham has been completely cut off from the outside world. The bridges are down in the city and it’s been 87 days since Gotham was officially declared a No Man’s Land by the US government. Unfortunately, not everyone who wanted to had the means to leave the city before it was cut off from the rest of the world. Children, families, innocent people have been trapped in a city that has become an almost post-apocalyptic dystopia. Gotham’s been carved up into territories, with different factions controlling different neighborhoods. Penguin Control City Hall and the surrounding area. He’s also the only person in the city manufacturing bullets for guns, which are more or less currency in the city. Scarecrow, Firefly, Mr. Freeze, Poison Ivy, and other villains have also carved up their own peace of the city. Somewhat ominously, Jerimiah Valeska hasn’t been seen since the beginning of No Man’s Land. I have a feeling he’s waiting to make his own suitably dramatic entrance.
The only part of Gotham City for the average citizen who’d been left behind is the area controlled by the GCPD. Gordon with Bullock and Lucius Fox by his side, are not only leading what’s left of the GCPD, they’re also protecting and feeding hundreds of refugees and supplies are running out. A lot of this is straight out of some iconic Batman storylines, so as a longtime Batman comic book fan this is cool to see.
Fortunately, Bruce Wayne and Alfred decided to stay behind as well and Bruce is doing everything he can to get supplies smuggled in. Not only to the people suffering in the city, but medicine for Selena Kyle as well. She was shot in the stomach at point-blank range by Jeremiah in the season finale last year and unless something drastic is done she could be paralyzed from the waist down for the rest of her life. Of course this heavily weighs on Bruce, who blames himself for her condition.
Part of the fun of this season is seeing how close Bruce is to becoming Batman, even though he isn’t ready yet. There’s an early scene where Bruce takes down a bunch of thugs trying to steal medical supplies. The power has gone out, so he uses night vision goggles courtesy of the Lucius Fox to take them out one by one, in very Batman fashion. However, just when it looks like he’s saved the day, the lights come back on, the night vision goggles blind him, and the thieves get away. This is an important scene because it shows us that while Bruce is well on his way to becoming The Batman that we know, who could’ve easily taken down a group of bad guys in a situation like this, but he’s not quite there yet. He’s still making crucial mistakes and he still has much to learn. It’s important the series didn’t just suddenly turn him into Batman over night. Bruce’s journey throughout the series has felt earned. Based on his training it makes perfect sense for him to be exactly at the level he’s at now.
The episode largely sets up the status quo for the season and puts the pieces in play for things to come. We know things are going to get a lot worse before they get better because the episode opens with a flash forward to No Mans Land Day 391 and shows Gordon, Bullock, The Penguin, The Riddler, and the rest of the GCPD fending off a full blown siege by… someone. For Penguin and The Riddler to be teaming up with Gordon, it must be a pretty serious common enemy.
All in all I really enjoyed this episode and considering that it was mostly set up, I have a feeling once the story really gets going this has the potential to be a fantastic final season for Gotham. I couldn’t help but love the scene when Gordon and Bruce were standing on the roof of the GCPD together. With Gordon shining a spotlight on the sky to give people hope, foreshadowing so many of their interactions in the years to come. As Bruce walks away at the end of the scene, Gordon ask him if he regrets staying behind in Gotham, Bruce replies “No. You?”. Jim Gordons smiles and says “Hell no”. Am I looking forward to the rest of Gotham’s Final Season? Hell, yes.
Gotham (Season 5) “Year Zero” – 8.5/10
Thanks for reading!
-Paul
FIRST LOOK: DOOM PATROL TV Series On DC Universe!
Hey Everyone,
Paul…
Last week, the DC UNIVERSE Streaming Service wrapped up the first season of it’s flagship original program, Titans. Considering that, initially, there was some negative buzz about the project, Titans turned out to be a damn good superhero show with a unique take on the DCU and a killer teaser for Season 2. There really isn’t a superhero show quite like Titans airing at the moment.
One of the coolest parts of the season was how the show alternated episodes by focusing on the overarching, season-long story in one episode. While the next showcased great, but more obscure characters from DC lore and giving them time to shine. We met characters like Jason Todd (the new, borderline psychotic Robin), Hawk & Dove, Donna Troy aka Wonder Girl, and Doom Patrol.
Doom Patrol popped up around the 4th episode of Titans and was a early highlight in Season 1. Raven is rescued by Garfield Logan aka Gar aka Beast Boy in his tiger form and then takes her to see the rest of his “family”, The Doom Patrol. The Doom Patrol lives in a mansion under the eye of The Chief whose real name is Dr. Niles Caulder. Each member of the Doom Patrol had been in some kind of sever accident and Dr. Caulder’s very bizarre methods saved their lives. However, though his strange methods saved their lives, the side effects of his treatments gave them special abilities. Some are so extreme that that they see themselves as freaks and become more or less shut ins. When Raven is ready to leave, Beast Boy decides to strikes out on his own with the Titans. The Doom Patrol will always be his family, but he needs to start his own journey. As happy as the rest of the Doom Patrol are for him, there’s a sense of tragedy because none of the rest can ever do that themselves. Gar’s the only one of them who can remotely pass as human. They want Gar to have what they can’t: Freedom to live his own life. Basically Doom Patrol is really, really, fucking weird.
I can’t say I was much of Doom Patrol fan or knew that much about them besides Grant Morrison’s acclaimed Doom Patrol run from the comics years ago. Seeing an episode with those characters front and center made me kind of like them. They’re kind of goofy, but if you don’t take it too seriously the Doom Patrol characters are a lot of fun.
For the moment, the plan for DC UNIVERSE is to make at least one episode of an original series available on the app each week. Of course, all of the the content the app provides, like free comic book downloads from DC’s library, DC films, and more.
Young Justice: Outsiders (Part 1) will be available on DC UNIVERSE January 4, with 3 episode blocks coming out each week. Young Justice returns for Part 2 of the season this summer.
Shorty after Part 1 of Young Justice: Outsiders finishes up, the Doom Patrol series will premiere on February 15th. Even though these are the same characters, in the same universe, there are 2 big differences from the Doom Patrol series and the Doom Patrol episode of Titans. The Chief, the somewhat menacing Dr. Caulder, will be payed by Timothy Dalton. While Cyborg has been added to the team in Beast Boy’s absence. Out of the many comic book series premiering in 2019, this has the potential to be a very fun and weird superhero show, so make sure to keep an eye out for this one.
Check out the teaser below and these cool character posters in our first official look at the series. I’ll sat this it looks weird as hell and I really dig that.
What do you guys think of Doom Patrol? Are you going to give it a try? I’d love to hear your comments below.
-Paul
PODCAST: Movie & TV Fan Theories!
Hey Everyone,
Paul here..
On this episode of The World’s Best Podcast, Writer and Filmmaker Mike Cole returns to the podcast as guest co-host where we discuss movie and TV fan theories. We cover popular fan theories from Harry Potter, Pixar films, The Flash and more. Of course with some fun detours along the way! Enjoy! Listen here or subscribe on Stitcher and iTunes:
https://www.spreaker.com/episode/16421489
iTunes:
https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-worlds-best-podcast/id1246038441?mt=2&i=1000425462176
Stitcher:
https://www.stitcher.com/s?eid=57632995&autoplay=1
Also, if you get a chance, check out our Facebook page, World’s Best Media, to see my video breakdown of the new trailer for the highly anticipated Avengers: Endgame! It’s one of my best trailer breakdown videos, so I’d love for you all to give it a watch. Please feel free to leave any questions or comments below. We love hearing feedback from you guys, good or bad! Thanks for listening!
-Paul
TV REVIEW: Elseworlds (Part 1)!
Hey Everyone,
Paul here…
Tonight, Part 1 of the 3-part DC superhero crossover event Elseworlds aired on The CW. As I’ve often said, these annual crossovers are always a delight for me to watch. They’re always wildly entertaining and they seem to get more ambitious year after year. After watching the first episode of Elseworlds, I came away from the episode thinking of one word: Fun. This episode was fun as all hell.
All of the Arrowverse crossovers have been really fun, but compared to something like last year’s epic Crisis on Earth–X, Elseworlds feels more exuberant and joyful. Don’t get me wrong, Crisis on Earth–X was an absolute blast. However, watching Elseworlds, I don’t think I’ve ever seen this cast looking like they’re having more fun and It’s easy to see why.
Barry and Oliver are very different characters and the episode gets a lot of entertainment mileage and comedy out of them switching lives and abilities. I don’t think I’ve ever laughed more watching an episode of an Arrowverse show. It’s really funny seeing Oliver’s bewilderment at suddenly waking up with superspeed and the world believing that he is Barry Allen. While Oliver immediately feels out of his element, Barry seems to be getting much more of a kick out of suddenly having all of Green Arrow’s skills and fighting ability.
For the purposes of this review, I’m not really going to touch on the overarching threat and the circumstances that altered reality. This episode focuses more on the “What do we do now?” than “How did this happen?”. Though we briefly see how this was set in motion, it’s a very minor part of the episode. I’m sure they’ll be covering much more of that territory in the next 2 installments.
I only have one real criticism of the episode. Considering all of the insane things that Team Flash have seen and been through over the years, I found their reluctance to believe that Barry and Oliver had somehow switched powers and identities a little odd and out of character for the team. It really only exists in the story to give Barry and Oliver an excuse to go to Supergirl’s Earth and seek out Kara’s help. They figure that if something is wrong with their reality, another universe like Supergirl’s may not be affected. Of course they’re right and Supergirl recognizes them for who they are right away.
To my utter delight, Kara just so happens to be visiting her cousin, Clark Kent and his wife Lois Lane, on The Kent Family Farm when Barry and Oliver pop up in her universe. In a nice Easter Egg that will make many long time superhero TV show fans happy, The Kent Farm where they filmed this episode is the same Kent Farm that was used on the TV series Smallville. When we see the farm for the first time “Save Me” by Remy Zero, the them song to Smallville, kicks in and I’ll admit that had me grinning ear to ear. It was a hot mess at times, but I’ll always have a soft spot for Smallville.
As a long time DC Comics fan, it was so much fun seeing Barry, Oliver, and Kara interacting with Clark Kent and Lois Lane on The Kent Family Farm. In what I think was my favorite moment of the episode, as soon as Oliver meets Clark, he immediately starts puffing up his chest and Barry instantly calls him out on it. It’s great.
Though we’ve seen relatively little of him over the last few years, Tyler Hoechlin is probably my favorite the live action Superman right now. Anytime he shows up in the Arrowverse is cause for celebration and his inclusion here does not disappoint. While it seems like he may be out of the picture at the end of the episode, I know for a fact we’ll be seeing him again throughout the crossover. I was equally impressed with Elizabeth Tulloch as Lois Lane. In what little screen time she has, she instantly embodies Lois Lane. She’s tough, funny, smart, and likable. As much as I like Amy Adams’ Lois Lane, Tulloch seemed really dialed in to the character and I can’t wait to see more of her as the crossover progresses.
Another very pleasant surprise was the inclusion of an iconic DC villain that’s the perfect enemy to have a Superman, Supergirl, The Flash, and Green Arrow go up against. Apparently in this new altered reality, Professor Ivo, the psychopathic scientist responsible for torturing Oliver and his fellow castaways on Lian Yu, killing Shado, and indirectly creating Deathstroke in Arrow Season 2, somehow got off the island alive. He opened his own lab in Central City and created the iconic, ultra powerful android A.M.A.Z.O. using advanced robotics, computer programming, and the Mirakuru super soldier serum that was such an intricate plot point in Arrow Season 2. A.M.A.Z.O. has the ability to immediately replicate the powers of any meta-human it comes into contact with. In the comics, it’s so powerful that even the Justice League have a difficult time handling this thing. So this was the perfect bad guy for the heroes to go up against in the climax of the episode.
Elseworlds only has three episodes, unlike last year which had four episodes and a much bigger cast. Legends of Tomorrow isn’t officially part of the crossover this year (part of me thinks that’s a shame because I would have loved seeing someone like John Constantine interact with the characters featured in Elseworlds ). This year has a much tighter focus so far on Barry, Oliver, and Kara. As a result more money went into these 3 episodes and it really shows on screen. More money means better special effects. You can really see how well that money was spent because A.M.A.Z.O. looks incredible and his final fight with our heroes is really, really fucking cool. The Arrowverse in general and The Flash In particular, has always had excellent special effects considering they’re on The CW. Which makes the fight with A.M.A.Z.O. all the more impressive.
Last year the 4-part Crisis on Earth–X aired over two night, with each night featuring two episodes of the crossover. This year we’re getting 3 episodes spread out over 3 nights. So it definitely felt like the whole thing was over way too fast. Which is really a testament to how well Part 1 of Elseworlds was executed, because it leaves the audience wanting to see the next installment immediately. I know I certainly did.
Part 1 leaves you with one hell of a set up for Part 2. The episode wraps up with our heroes heading off to the legendary Gotham City in search for answers. We catch a glimpse of Wayne Tower and a quick glance at Batwoman looking out over the Gotham City skyline. After seeing how good this episode was and how so many amazing characters and pieces of DC lore show up, the promise of seeing iconic places like Arkham Asylum and Gotham City leaves me incredibly excited for the next installment of Elseworlds. I don’t want to speak too soon, but at the rate Elseworlds is going it’s shaping up to possibly be the best Arrowverse crossover yet.
Elseworlds (Part 1): 9/10
Thanks for reading!
-Paul
Elseworlds! New Poster & First Teasers!
Hey Everyone,
Paul here…
We’re taking a quick detour from The Wizarding World of Harry Potter Month to give you folks an update on the annual CW Superhero Crossover, Elseworlds, starting on December 9th. I fucking LOVE these DC TV Crossover Events. They seem to get better each year and up the ante on the scope and ambition. Last year’s event, Crisis on Earth-X was basically a Justice League movie that was WAY fucking better than the actual Justice League movie. With the premiere of Elseworlds fast approaching, The CW and DC have released some really cool promo art and our first teasers for the event.
This comic book cover style poster is dynamite. I eat shit like this up! (yes, I eat shit. Beat you to it!)
I really like this photo from EW.com, that shows Clark Kent and Lois Lane (who’s making her Arrowverse debut in this crossover) at the Kent Family Farm. It’s actually the same farm they used in Smallville, which is a fun reference that’s very in keeping with the Elseworlds concept. Considering The Flash from the early 90’s John Wesley Shipp (AKA Barry’s Dad/Jay Garrick) short lived TV series is making an appearance, I wonder if they’ll acknowledge Smallville as an alternate reality in their Multiverse.
Also from EW.com, we get this look at Batwoman in action with the classic grapple gun used by every member of “The Bat-Family”. According to EW.com, Batwoman makes her big debut in an action sequence taking place in Gotham City’s iconic Arkham Asylum. I really hope they nail Batwoman on this one (Get your heads out of the gutter!). She’s a fantastic character with huge potential if she’s handled well in her live action debut. I think Ruby Rose was perfect casting for this role and she seems to be really honored to be playing this character.
Finally, they’ve released these three brief teasers, one for each of the Arrowverse’s Trinity of major heroes: Green Arrow, The Flash, and Supergirl. In the comics Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman are often referred to as “The Trinity” of major superheroes in the DCU. According to the showrunners, this crossover will thematically focus on Oliver, Barry, and Kara as “The Trinity” of the Arrowverse. UPDATE:Hey guys, I wanted add in this very cool promo that gives us our first look at Batwoman in action and Gotham City. It also touches on Batman in a big way, which is pretty cool. Check it out below.
As always, thanks for reading and give us a follow if you want to support the site or get updates when new content is posted.
-Paul
PODCAST: The Walking Dead: Rick Grimes’ Final Episode! SPOILERS
Hey Everyone,
Paul here…
After our last podcast on The Walking Dead you may be thinking: “Another Walking Dead Podcast? I thought you hated this show!” Well, tonight is a special occasion because this Sunday’s episode will be the last to feature Rick Grimes on The Walking Dead. Andrew Lincoln AKA Rick Grimes himself is moving on to greener pastures. With Rick still alive, well, and the main character in the comics, what will be the final fate of Rick Grimes on the TV series? Will he live? Will he die? What impact will his departure have on the series and the characters? Can the show survive without Rick Grimes? All these questions and more will be answered as Paul Jr. & Sr. breakdown and review The Walking Dead: Rick Grimes’ Final Episode! I must admit, by the end the episode I was genuinely interested in watching where the series goes from here. So, we get into all of that on the podcast. Enjoy! Also, BEWARE SPOILERS! Listen here or subscribe on Stitcher and iTunes:
https://www.spreaker.com/episode/16137908
iTunes:
Stitcher:
https://www.stitcher.com/s?eid=57067137&autoplay=1
As always, thanks for listening!
-Paul
Elseworlds! Out First Look At The Monitor! & Much More!
Hey Everyone,
Paul here…
This year’s Annual Superhero Crossover Event on The CW, just keeps getting more interesting. Each new photo, each new piece of information that’s been released so has been great. This year’s Crossover, “Elseworlds”, seems to be,by far their most ambitious Superhero Event yet. Each announcement has been more intriguing than the one before. This Crossover will see the Arrowverse debuts of Batwoman, Lois Lane, and Nora Fries (which can only mean that her husband Victor Freeze can’t be far behind), they’re even making Superman a major player in this kind of story for the first time.
Sure, we’ve seen some pretty great Superman appearances on Supergirl, but seeing Clark Kent interacting with The Flash and Green Arrow for the first time is really exciting.
Over the past few weeks, set photos have shown that the miniseries event will take it’s “Elseworlds” namesake seriously. We’re going to see alternate versions of Barry and Oliver. Apparently we’ll see Stephen Amell playing not only an alternate version of The Flash, but Barry Allen as well. We’ve also seen Grant Gustin as Green Arrow. This isn’t just a costume and power swap, Barry and Oliver are switching their alter-egos as well
Plus, John Wesley Shipp (AKA Henry Allen AKA Jay Garrick) will return as The Flash from the short lived 1990’s Flash TV series. Which seems like another fun addition to this event.
At first, I thought only Barry and Oliver we’re getting fun alternate versions of themselves in this Crossover, but Superman will as well. When the photo of Superman in a black costume was released I didn’t think it necessarily meant this was an evil, alternate version of The Man Of Steel. This was definitely a Superman from another Earth, but not necessarily a villainous version of the character…
POTENTIAL SPOILERS HERE, I’ll BE DOING A LOT OF SPECULATING, WHICH DOESNT MEAN I’LL BE RIGHT. BUT IF YOU WANT TO GO INTO THIS CROSSOVER COLD, PROCEED WITH CAUTION….
Still here? Ok… t turns out I may have been wrong about this version of Superman. He is indeed a bad guy. In the set photo below (and others you can find online) we see Supergirl, Green Arrow, and “our” Superman facing off against the (presumably) evil, black suited, Superman holding Barry hostage and, possibly, considering crushing his head like a grape. Now, take a good look at “our” Superman, the good Superman in the foreground. He’s holding a large, old book that other set photos have seemed to suggest, evil, black suit Superman is after in a big, bad way. This is just a theory, but if I’m right, that book could have a massive significance for the entire ArrowMultiverse, but more on that in a minute…
With all these alternate Earths and alternate versions of heroes in play, it’s unsurprising, but no less cool, that LaMonica Garrett will be playing a key role as The Monitor. An extremely powerful entity that’s part of a race of beings called The Monitors, who safe guard The Multiverse. Courtesy of EW.com we have our first look at The Monitor it’s pretty fucking awesome. Take a look:
Remember the book I told you to keep an eye on in the superhero standoff photo? Well, it looks like The Monitor is holding the same book in photo above. What’s this book and why’s it so important? Because, in my opinion, it looks a lot like The Book Of Destiny. Destiny is one of The Endless. Siblings who personify states of being for sentient life: Destiny, Death, Dream, Destruction, Despair, Desire, and Delirium.
Destiny is the oldest of The Endless and forever chained to his book. The Book Of Destiny contains everything that ever was and will be. So if The Monitor has it, this story is possibly a lot bigger than we’ve speculated. This wouldn’t be the first time The Endless were referenced, or at least hinted at, in The Arrowverse, so it’s a possibility. If someone could find a way to get The Book away from Destiny (a presumably impossible task), they’d have the knowledge of all of creation at their finger tips. Unlimited power. However, like I said this is just a theory. But it would be really fucking cool.
Another exciting idea is, with The Monitor in play, his evil counter part The Anti-Monitor could the villain of the Crossover or will at least make an appearance.
The Anti-Monitor is arguably the most powerful and dangerous villain in the DC Universe. He was the main antagonist in Crisis On Infinite Earths, a story that’s been hinted at since the first episode of The Flash. The Anti-Monitor and The Book Of Destiny, if they’re in play, the stakes don’t get any higher.
The newspaper headlines from the future, “Flash Missing, Vanishes In Crisis” and “Red Skies Vanish” are both references to this seminal miniseries. It seems like regardless of how this plays out, this is going to be one epic crossover.
Despite any problems you may have with the individuals shows, The Arrowverse always seem to really pull it off in a spectacular way when it comes to the crossovers each year. They have yet to disappoint and this one doesn’t look to break that trend. I know I can’t wait for December to see exactly what crazy adventure our heroes find themselves in.
As always, thanks for reading!
-Paul
PODCAST: Daredevil Season 3! SPOILERS!
Hey Everyone,
Paul here…
Daredevil is by far one of my favorite shows. When Season 1 premiered on Netflix, I was blown away. This was superhero storytelling in a format I’d always wanted, but hadn’t seen before. An adult, character driven show that took the amazing characters from the comic books and told a dark, complex story. With the first two seasons of Daredevil and the first season of Jessica Jones, superhero storytelling had reached a new level of excellence, these shows were game changers. Even though we got a decent dose of Matt Murdock in The Defenders, it’s been far too long between Season 2 and 3. With the future of Marvel and Netflix in doubt, I’m happy to say Daredevil Season 3 delivers BIG TIME. In this episode, we discuss characters, story, deaths, twists, connections to the comic and more. So this episode is FULL SPOILERS. We had a blast recording this one, so we hope you enjoy listening to it. Listen here or subscribe on Stitcher and iTunes:
https://www.spreaker.com/episode/16068431
iTunes:
Stitcher:
https://www.stitcher.com/s?eid=56922667&autoplay=1
I also wanted to include some graphic novel recommendations. Daredevil Season 3 draws heavily from a few different Daredevil stories, but they’re all phenomenal. You can pick them up on Amazon at the links below.
Daredevil: Born Again
Daredevil: Guardian Devil
Daredevil: Underboss
As always, thanks for listening!
-Paul
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