Geekly News: November 2, 2018

Published on November 2, 2018November 1, 2018 by KyraLeave a comment

Elder Scrolls VI Release Window Announced

This bit of news doesn’t amount to much. It’s a slow news week, so eh. Bethesda announced that the Elder Scrolls VI Redfall will be a PS5 and Xbox (whatever they’ll call it) release. That’s pretty much what I figured. I said as much two or three weeks ago; this is just confirmation.

Starfield may have a chance of gracing current consoles, but there was little to no chance Redfall would make the PS4 or Xbox One. Fallout 76 counts as one of Bethesda’s flagship releases and the company likes to release one flagship title every three or four years. That means that Starfield should come out around 2021—maybe 2020 because they’ve been working on it for 6 years already and 2020 sounds like an awesome release year. Okay, there’s little chance Starfield will be a current generation console release.

Elder Scrolls VI should be released three to four years after Starfield, so that puts its release year at 2023 through 2025. Oh boy.

Guardians of the Galaxy 3 on Hold (Again)

Okay, maybe this is a pretty busy week of news. The third volume of Guardians of the Galaxy may not survive the firing of James Gunn. Here’s a quick recap of what’s happened. James Gunn posted insensitive tweets and was eventually fired as the director of Guardians Vol. 3. Some of the franchise’s actors back Gunn and Disney/Marvel has had a devil of a time finding another director they like. This has led to a stop-start every week or two.

MCU boss Kevin Feige announced this week that the franchise is on an indefinite hold. If the sides can’t find common ground (Bautista has no contract that covers a third Guardians movie), there’s a good chance that Guardians of the Galaxy 3 may not happen at all. Don’t worry. The gang will make an appearance in Avengers 4.

Boba Fett Movie Cancelled

Kathleen Kennedy confirms that the Boba Fett Star Wars spinoff movie is “100% dead.” While the cancellation of a Boba Fett movie helmed by Logan director James Mangold may upset some, the reason for this move is a shift to the Jon Favreau penned live-action TV series The Mandalorian. I couldn’t see both projects taking off, so a little focus for the Fett man may be in order. Let’s hope The Mandalorian delivers.

Andy Muschietti to Direct Attack On Titan

It director Andy Muschietti has just signed on to make a new Attack On Titan live-action film adaptation. The first one didn’t land well with manga readers. Why must every movie have a love story—especially when there isn’t a love story in the original work? Muschietti is a big fan of the original manga and if his work on It is any indication, the new Attack On Titan film will get the blockbuster treatment with plenty of chills.

PlayStation Classic Games List Confirmed

PlayStation announced that it’d join Nintendo with its line of diminutive classic systems with 20 preloaded games several months ago, but this week they announced the full list of games that’ll come with the system. They are as follows:

Battle Arena Toshinden
Cool Boarders 2
Destruction Derby
Final Fantasy VII
Grand Theft Auto
Intelligent Qube
Jumping Flash
Metal Gear Solid
Driller
Oddworld: Abe’s Oddysee
Rayman
Resident Evil (Director’s Cut)
Revelations: Persona
Ridge Racer Type 4
Super Puzzle Fighter II Turbo
Syphon Filter
Tekken 3
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six
Twisted Metal
Wild Arms

A lot of these are classic games or the first game in genre defining series. The PlayStation Classic hits shelves on December 5, 2018.

Video Games

Taiko no Tatsujin: Drum ‘n’ Fun! and Drum Session! (Switch, PS4)

Drum ‘n’ Fun (Switch) and Drum Session (PS4) mark the first time that a Taiko no Tatsujin game made it to the West. This series is a huge arcade/rhythm game in the East and it’s only a matter of time to see if the States and other countries will take to its catchy beats.

Movies

Bohemian Rhapsody

This is the big one this week for me. I’m a sucker for biopics and I like Queen. I don’t watch too many biopics in theaters, but I may make an exception for Bohemian Rhapsody, the biopic for Queen front man Freddie Mercury.

The Nutcracker and the Four Realms

Could this film be so bad that it’s good? I’m not sure. A lot of critics have called it “soulless” and “incoherent,” but the visual effects are good. It sounds like an impressive cast that includes Keira Knightley, Helen Mirren, and Morgan Freeman can’t help The Nutcracker and the Four Realms from becoming Disney’s worst reviewed film in history. Yikes!

Suspiria

This one won’t be for everyone. If this movie follows the 1977 original, Suspiria tackles some heady material, and its trailer depicts vampires who let the blood flow even more. This lends itself to multiple watches, once to get over the gore and the second to dig deeper into what the film is about, but a run time of two and a half hours may be a little long.

Nobody’s Fool

This is the latest Tyler Perry comedy. In this one, Tanya (Tiffany Haddish) is released from prison and is reunited with her family. The family learns that she’s in an online relationship with a mystery man who may be “catfishing” her. It’s a fun premise, so I may watch it. It also doesn’t hurt that Whoopi Goldberg, Amber Riley (Glee), and Mehcad Brooks (Jimmy Olsen from Supergirl) are in the cast.

Bodied

Eminem produces this odd fusion of comedy, battle rap. Eminem has a knack for the theatrical and it looks to continue here. Bodied has received a lot of praise and high marks, so it may be worth a watch.

The Front Runner

This one starts early next week. It’s another biopic, this time based on Matt Bai’s All the Truth Is Out: The Week Politics Went Tabloid. In short, it’s Hugh Jackman portraying Senator Gary Hart during his 1988 presidential campaign where he’s caught up in an extramarital affair with Donna Rice.

TV

Friday, November 2, 2018

Homecoming (Amazon)

I’ve talked about this one in the past. Julia Roberts stars as a caseworker who helps military members transition to civilian life. Years after she starts a new life as a waitress when a Department of Defense auditor questions why she left the program. There may be more to her being placed as a former caseworker than she realizes.

House of Cards (Netflix)

Today marks House of Cards’ final season. I lost interest a long time ago, and the Kevin Spacey scandal didn’t help, but hopefully Netflix’s first original series ends on a high note.

The Other Side of the Wind (Netflix)

This film may be the biggest thing Netflix has ever produced; it’s one of Orson Welles’s lost films. Being locked away in a Paris vault (due to legal issues) for decades didn’t prevent The Other Side of the Wind from influencing other films that came after it. It all but created the Mockumentary. What’s even better is that Netflix plans to release a follow up documentary on the film’s history which may be just as interesting.

Watergate (History)

History beats The Front Runner (Gary Hart) to the punch with this series about Watergate. This scandal may have marked the United States’ loss of innocence; it definitely gave birth to scandal journalism.

Sunday, November 4, 2018

Mickey’s 90^th Spectacular (ABC)

Mickey Mouse made his first appearance on May 15, 1928 (Plane Crazy), and Steamboat Willie was released around Thanksgiving of the same year. Mickey’s 90^th Spectacular is a special that celebrates Mickey throughout the decades.

Outlander (Starz)

Based on the historical time travel book series of the same name, Outlander returns for a fourth season on Starz. The premise sounds interesting and it’s received good ratings, so I may give it a try.

Board Games

Betrayal Legacy

I may be a little late with this one, because tabletop games are difficult to track down with their new releases. Betrayal Legacy holds my interest with a death grip. Rob Daviau was involved with the original Betrayal at House on the Hill (think of a Joss Whedon’s Cabin in the Woods in board game form) and he adds his patented legacy game mechanism to the mix. For the uninitiated, legacy games are games that change the board through multiple plays, so Betrayal Legacy should play out more like a movie and the choices players make will have lasting consequences.

I may pour a little cold water on this writeup with saying that legacy games aren’t always executed as well as they could be. Gamers may want to wait and read a review (a spoiler-free review as this board game will play like a movie) before purchasing it.

That’s all we have for Geekly news this week. Be kind to one another and stay geeky.

Geekly News: October 26, 2018

Published on October 26, 2018October 26, 2018 by KyraLeave a comment

Iron Fist and Luke Cage Cancelled

I just missed Iron Fist’s cancellation last week, and Luke Cage joins it this week. This may or may not be a sign of things to come with Marvel-Netflix’s shows. Several factors led into the decision to cancel the Heroes for Hire (Luke and Danny). I’ll try to keep this brief.

Disney still intends on beginning its own streaming service soon and is looking to reclaim the licenses of many of their characters; this also incited the proposed Fox buy-out. Netflix ordered fewer episodes of future Luke Cage and Iron Fist seasons as an effort to lower costs (fewer episodes mean less money for the license), but lowering costs means that they would give Disney less money and that makes Disney less interested in maintaining the agreement. But the chief reason may be that Netflix has matured (as a television network of sorts) to a point where they don’t overpay for licenses they don’t need or want, and they’re less likely to continue shows that don’t earn them new subscribers or downloads. Early Marvel shows like Daredevil and Jessica Jones brought in new subscribers, but Luke Cage and Iron Fist struggled.

Netflix still has the license to use Luke Cage and Iron Fist in their shows, so the cancellation of their individual series doesn’t mean that fans won’t see them on other Marvel-Netflix shows. Of course, things could change if Disney insists on reclaiming as many Marvel licenses as possible. The Mouse House could rescind their Netflix licenses or make the premiums for keeping any licenses untenable for Netflix.

Marvel Game Universe (MGU) Announced

And now for some lighter news. Spider-Man for the PS4 (released last month) is the official launch of an interconnected series of games that will feature Marvel Universe characters. The Marvel Game Universe, or MGU, will function in many ways like the Marvel Cinematic Universe with Spider-Man acting as 2008’s Iron Man.

Rumors swirl with numerous game developers attached to various Marvel properties. Sony’s Insomniac will continue with future Spider-Man games, but they’ll take on at least another character or two, Square Enix (of Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest fame) will produce Marvel titles (and Sony hinted that they may be involved with the larger project), and Rock Steady (Batman Arkham series) has been mentioned as well. I’m not sure who’ll be in the final production line as far as developers, but the main Avengers and stars of future Marvel films are a safe bet for getting their own games, and if the results of future Marvel games are as good as Spider-Man, it’ll be a fun ride.

Video Games

Red Dead Redemption 2 (PS4, Xbox One)

The long wait for Red Dead Redemption 2 is now over. This game is a prequel to the first Red Dead Redemption (2010) and follows the story of outlaw Arthur Morgan of the Dutch Van der Linde gang. Let’s hope this Western ends in a more positive light.

My Hero: One’s Justice (Switch, PS4, Xbox One, PC)

My Hero Academia gets the fighting game treatment. There’s a strong possibility that I’ll pick this one up on the secondary market. Plus Ultra!

Call of Cthulhu (PS4, Xbox One, PC)

This game will share more with the 1981 pen and paper role-playing game than the H. P. Lovecraft short story of the same name. What makes me interested is that Cyanide game studio contacted the original writers of the 1981 RPG, so this survival horror/role-playing game has some serious roots.

Movies

Hunter Killer

This one sounds like a good old-fashioned action adventure and that’s okay sometimes. The Russian president is captured and a U. S. submarine must rescue him while avoiding World War III.

TV

Friday, October 26, 2018

Castlevania (Netflix)

The first season of this Netflix original anime followed the source material closely, but it dragged in a few places. I’m hoping the second season will build on a promising cliffhanger.

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (Netflix)

Sabrina the teenage witch has largely been a comedic character and in 2014, Archie Comics gave her a grittier reboot. I can’t wait to see how Kiernan Shipka and the rest bring this reimagining of the character to life.

Wednesday, October 31, 2018

Stan Against Evil (IFC)

This series is still on? I kid—sort of—because this series can scratch the itch left by a dearth of new Evil Dead material. I’ve always liked John C. McGinley (“Scrubs”), so I may give this comedy-horror series another shot.

Tell Me a Story (CBS App)

I like the premise of Tell Me a Story. This series takes the world’s most beloved fairy tales and reimagines them as dark and twisted psychological thrillers. Unfortunately, CBS is at it again with making some of its content only available on its streaming service. Ugh!

Board Games

5 Colors

This is an understated card game. The game is played with a deck of 100 cards, 20 cards of each of the titular 5 Colors. Players simultaneously play a card from their hand. The most played color gets scored and each player that played the most commonly played color gains points on the card they played. It’s simple to understand, but once players catch on with how to play, the strategy begins.

Atlandice

Atlandice has a lot more going on than 5 Colors. This game’s main feature is a rondel (a circular device that changes throughout a game) and in the center of the rondel is a doom clock. Players draft dice and items during their turn, trying to get the most points before rooms get swallowed by a flood and the doom clock ends the game.

It’s an interesting game with a lot going on. I can’t wait to get my hands on it and get a closer look.

That’s all we have for Geekly news this week. Be kind to one another and stay geeky.

TV for Fall 2018

Published on October 1, 2018September 30, 2018 by KyraLeave a comment

TV? I know what you’re thinking. The last iteration of JKGeekly devolved into nothing but TV posts. Don’t worry, we’ll get back to other geekery. Today we’re going to warm up with a new type of post: 3 Lists of 3.

This particular type of post will feature three small, interrelated lists of three. I hope you like the format because I have more than this one planned for Mondays. Here are three lists of three for television that I’m sure will offend someone. I don’t care. Do your worst.

Underrated or Overlooked TV Series

The Magicians (7.5 out of 10 on imdb)

This particular list of 3 was difficult to compile. I’m starting with a series that isn’t that lowly rated, but it’s still rated a 7-point-something; it’ll be hard to find something good to say about a 6 or less. The Magicians gets a lot of gratuitous nudity and over-sexed hate that Game of Thrones gets—more on GoT in a bit—but like Game of Thrones that hate may go too far. It also gets saddled as a Harry Potter clone, and again, that’s as unfair of a comparison as GoT and Lord of the Rings. The Magicians is an interesting take on magic in a modern setting and is one of the better, binge-able SyFy shows.

BBC’s Skins (8.2 out of 10 on imdb)

Did I mention how difficult this list was to compile? The BBC version of Skins makes this list despite being rated an 8.2 because fewer people have seen it, and they should. Skins is an odd show. It centers around teenagers making their way in the world and the bizarre things that happen to them. We’re talking a musical number breaking out of nowhere and someone who suffers from anorexia getting phantom text messages to tell her to eat. I received text messages for weeks, telling me to eat more fiber. Those were some angry butt dials.

Anyway, Skins is also an odd show to watch as several of the cast regulars, who were in their late teens or early twenties at the time, have since appeared in major films and television shows.

Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (7.7 out of 10 on imdb)

Yeah, Skins may have two or three sneaky musical numbers in the series run, but Crazy Ex-Girlfriend has two or three musical numbers in each episode. It’s not for everyone. I even pause the show every once and a while because it’s getting too ridiculous. She’s singing about period sex again. Turn on the red light.

It’s also a bit of a cheat having the show on this list because the critics at Rotten Tomatoes rate it in the 90s, but Crazy Ex-Girlfriend is very good and tends to get overlooked.

It’s a CW show that satires other CW shows. At first, it subtly suggests that someone who lives their life according to romances (books, TV shows, and movies) should seek psychiatric help because life doesn’t follow a romance plot. After a while it flat out says, life isn’t a romantic comedy. It’s okay to enjoy them, but don’t expect your life to be one. There is more love in life than romantic love. You can love your family and friends. Sorry. Uncle Geekly has a long, complicated history with CW shows, so this sentiment is refreshing, but Crazy Ex-Girlfriend also does a good job at handling mental illness and behavioral problems without stigma. And some of the musical numbers are catchy and fun—even the ones about period sex.

Overrated TV Series

Game of Thrones (9.4 out of 10 on imdb)

I’m not saying that Game of Thrones is bad by any means, but 9.4 is a little high. As of this write-up it’s the fourth best TV show of all time according to imdb, edging out Breaking Bad. I’d place Breaking Bad ahead of Game of Thrones and there are plenty of shows further down the list that I’d happily place ahead of the gang from Westeros too. Oddly enough, some of the reasons I’d knock Game of Thrones down a few dozen spots are the same reasons George R. R. Martin believed that it wouldn’t make a good TV show: too many characters, and at times, unfocused storytelling.

Stranger Things (8.9 out of 10 on imdb)

If neuroscience is correct in saying that nostalgia provides a similar chemical brain reaction as methamphetamines, then Stranger Things is TV’s version of crystal meth. Hey, another Breaking Bad reference. Yay! There’s little else to this series than a ton of callbacks that include frame-by-frame recreations of 80s shows and movies. I like plenty of 80s properties, but if I have a hankering for 80s nostalgia, I’ll watch the originals.

House of Cards (8.8 out of 10 on imdb)

House of Cards can be fun to watch. I like seeing how the various traps are set and schemes come to fruition, but the show gets a little too ridiculous at times. Perhaps even random musical number ridiculous. One needs to suspend disbelief to an absurd measure with this title. While I’m okay doing that for the occasional fantasy or science fiction story, it’s a little difficult to do so for shows that are supposed to be more grounded.

It also doesn’t help that Kevin Spacey’s recent sex scandal and subsequent firing from the show make House of Cards difficult to watch.

Intriguing Upcoming TV Series

The Romanoffs (October 12, 2018)

The Romanoffs is the first TV show from the creator of Mad Men since Mad Men ended in 2015. It also features a great cast of Diane Lane, Aaron Eckhart, and Paul Reiser and centers around various people who believe they’re descendant of the Russian royal family. This could get trippy, and I look forward to watching the Amazon original.

The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina (October 26, 2018)

The reboot of the campy teen series Sabrina the Teenage Witch airs just before Halloween and The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina pits a young witch against the forces of evil that threaten her family and the world. Mad Men star Kiernan Shipka stars as Sabrina, and the reboot shows plenty of promise. But if there’s no talking cat, I might reconsider.

Homecoming (November 2, 2018)

I may need to listen to the hit Gimlet Media podcast of the same name, but the excellent cast (Julia Roberts, Sissy Spacek, and Dermot Mulroney to name a few) and Mr. Robot creator Sam pique my interest.

Are there any shows we missed with our lists? Which shows do you think are overrated or underrated? Which shows do you look forward to this upcoming season? Let us know in the comments.

CW Orders Flash-Arrow Spinoff DC’s Legends of Tomorrow

Published on May 7, 2015May 7, 2015 by KyraLeave a comment

Kyle’s Take

It’s official, The CW produce and air The Flash-Arrow spinoff that’s been setting the rumor mill ablaze. You didn’t have too much in the way of facts prior to now because The CW was on the fence about the series – who are they kidding, we knew they were going forward with the series – but now that CW has confirmed the series and named it Legends of Tomorrow, they’ve leaked plenty of information about the upcoming series.

The tentative tagline for the show reads When heroes alone are not enough, the world needs legends. The tagline reveals that we won’t just have heroes in this new team; some villains will grace this team. The title, Legends of Tomorrow, hints at a time-travel, but we now know that our time-jumping hero will be Rip Hunter, played by Arthur Darvill. Hunter has seen the future and will try to prevent something big from happening but he’ll need the help of The Legends to stand a chance of defeating this unstoppable threat.

And here’s our team of Legends:

Arthur Darvill as Rip Hunter

Rip Hunter isn’t this time traveler’s real name because as Rip says, “As a time traveler, I can’t let anyone know what my own past is. What’s to stop my enemies from suffocating me in my crib? Or doing the same to my father?”

We may not know what Rip’s real name is but with the help of his Time-Sphere, he’s had a lot of time traveling exploits. We also know that Rip’s part of the Carter family and that Booster Gold is his father. Don’t get any ideas, dastardly villains, or our next Legend will shrink you down to size.

Brandon Routh as Atom

Starling City isn’t big enough for Atom and the Arrow, so Ray Palmer’s taking his talents to South—actually, I don’t know where this show will be set. If we assume that Starling is in Wisconsin (check out our DC Comics Cities Map for more details), Ray should be headed south and my best guess is that the Legends of Tomorrow could have some scenes in Pittsburgh, PA.

Rip Hunter has spent some of his formative years in the Steel City and so did the next member of The Legends.

Victor Garber and Robbie Amell as Firestorm

Two heads are better than one or so this nuclear man on fire would have you believe. Well, Firestorm’s two heads do come in handy and we get some great dialogue that’s more of a monologue. Would that make it a monialogue?

Anyway, Firestorm may be the most overpowered member on The Legends. Here’s a quick breakdown of the powers he’s had over the years:

Density Control: He can manipulate the density of solids, liquids, and gases—from elements as light as hydrogen to ones as heavy as uranium (you know, because he’s a nuclear man).

Eidetic Memory: Anyone tied to the Firestorm Matrix can access the memories of anyone else (human or otherwise) who has ever been fused to the Matrix, and they can do so with moment to moment clarity. Thanks, but I’m good with not having the memory of another man’s birth.

Energy Absorption: Whether it’s solar, nuclear, petroleum, or even life-force, Firestorm and sap energy from just about any source. How does he stay so thin?

Energy Projection: Nuclear blasts, plain and simple.

Enhanced Vision: Anything you can see, Superman, I can see, too—only I have Thermal Vision.

Flight: Yeah, we know he can fly.

Molecular Reconstruction: How else could he reform his body after he implodes in a ball of nuclear fire?

Phasing: Wow, you couldn’t let Shadowcat (Kitty Pryde) from the Marvel Universe have one cool thing about her. You just had to be able to pass through solid objects, too.

Psychic Link: Eat your heart out, Grodd.

Regeneration: That’s another neat trick. He can already reconstruct his molecules, so why not?

Self-Sustenance: Firestorm can survive in space and doesn’t have to eat.

Superhuman Durability: He can survive bullets and stab wounds.

Superhuman Strength: But can he challenge Supes to an arm wrestling match?

Fortunately, The Flash weakened Firestorm or else The Legends would be playing cheerleader and we’d have no use for one of the next members on our list.

Wentworth Miller as Captain Cold and Dominic Purcell as Heat Wave

Why have one Rogue when you can get two? Miller and Purcell reprise their roles as Captain Cold and Heat Wave in The Legends. I’m not entirely sure why the team needs Heat Wave but the more the merrier. And there may be another addition to The Legends that might make some Arrow merrier.

Caity Lotz as Black Canary?

All we know is that Caity Lotz will be in The Legends. We don’t know if she’s only in flashbacks, portrays a different character, or if she returns as an alternate reality Sarah Lance/Black Canary or if she’s Sarah post-Lazarus Pit. We’ll have to see how The Legends plays her character but we do know the identity of the other female member of the team.

Ciara Renee as Hawkgirl

Hawkgirl was the new hero I most wanted to see in The Legends but this may not be the hard but clean nosed heroine from the mid-80’s to 2011. This Hawkgirl’s alter ego is Kendra Saunders and she might share the New 52’s Hawkgirl origin as a reformed treasure hunter/grave robber. Either way, I can’t wait to see Hawkgirl get some air time and she’s by no means the most mysterious member of The Legends.

Franz Drameh as Jay Jackson

First thing’s first: there is no Jay Jackson in the DC Universe.

He could be a new character or his name could be used as subterfuge for the true identity of the character Drameh’s portraying. This wouldn’t be the first time that DC has introduced a new character in a TV series (Harley Quinn, anyone?) but it also wouldn’t be the first time that DC changed a character’s alter ego name so that fans would keep guessing who the character was over the course of a summer.

Action Jackson – please don’t let that be his character name if he’s a new character – could be anything from Karate Kid, to a reimagining of Kid Flash, to even Cyborg from The Titans. That last one might be interesting. TNT has a Titans TV show planned for later this year or next year but they don’t have Cyborg in the line-up. The CW could be changing Cyborg’s alter ego name (from Victor Stone) to Jay Jackson so that TNT could use Stone as Cyborg in a future season of Titans. It wouldn’t be the first time for that either but I don’t know what the CW has planned. All I know is that I’m intrigued by The Legends’ large cast.

iZombie versus Pushing Daisies

Published on March 24, 2015March 24, 2015 by KyraLeave a comment

iZombie is essentially Pushing Daisies—with a splash of zombie—for a younger demographic. I didn’t include this comparison in my review of iZombie’s pilot (if you want to read my review, here’s a link) because I didn’t want to marry the two shows to each other. I loved Pushing Daisies, so I’m leery to compare it to iZombie. But there are some lessons iZombie can learn from Pushing Daises.

We’ll get to these lessons in a bit, but first, let’s see how these two shows stack against each other.

By the numbers, iZombie resembles Pushing Daisies, but it doesn’t have the same whimsy. The zombie motif adds a dark streak. iZombie could overcome this by adding flare to the special effects and art direction. That’s not a knock on iZombie necessarily. The effects and art direction for Pushing Daisies was top-notch, Emmy worthy. But with its smaller budget, I’m not sure if iZombie can ever compete with Pushing Daisies in this regard, so they could make the subject matter even lighter and still, getting too light-hearted could be an issue.

Pushing Daisies balanced the goofy humor, mystery elements, and romance pretty well—the first season. It got a little too weird for its own good in season two and lost a lot of viewers. Likewise, iZombie’s pilot balanced its elements well. But will iZombie fall prey to the same weird just for weird’s sake? There are a couple of factors that might help.

iZombie grounds itself in police work more than Pushing Daisies ever did—that’s because Pushing Daisies was a fantasy—and you don’t have to explain a zombie as much as a magical pie maker, so that’s another obstacle averted. Then, you have a change in point of view. In Pushing Daisies, you gain distance from the dead because the pie maker brought people back to life: third person reanimated dead. In iZombie, Liv is a zombie and she experiences unliving first-hand: first person reanimated dead. I like the point of view shift. It helps to separate the two shows for me, gives a fresh perspective on the undead, and could keep the show afloat.

There’s plenty of room for both shows and for iZombie in the growing number of zombie media. We’ll have to watch tonight’s episode to find out whether or not iZombie’s elements fall out of balance and even later to see if it can match or beat Pushing Daisies’ number of twenty-two, total episodes. I’d love it if they brought back or rebooted Pushing Daisies.

Friday Night Premieres

Published on October 24, 2014 by KyraLeave a comment

We’re stoked to have two new shows to review tonight. Grimm starts its third season, and Constantine premieres.
I’m a little more excited about Constantine, but I’m concerned that the studio execs launched the show on Friday night—that’s where you put shows out to pasture. But who knows? NBC could dominate Friday night television, and that could be enough to keep the show afloat. I’m flying blind with the Constantine story and that’s refreshing. I read little of the comic and I vaguely remember the Keanu Reeves movie, so tonight should be fun.

Constantine should pair well with Grimm. Both dabble with the supernatural and detective work, but I fear that Grimm has lost some of its shine, and I hope that doesn’t negatively impact Constantine.

Don’t get me wrong. I enjoyed Grimm during its first couple of seasons, but the third season fell flat. Sure, the cliffhanger proved interesting, but the writers kept dipping into the same well. Nick encounters an odd wesen (pronounced vesen and the term refers to a fairy tale creature for those new to the show), brings it to Monroe’s attention, and Monroe tells him that it sounds like that’s a fill-in-the-blank, but it can’t be that because if it is that, you’re in big trouble.

And the series is in trouble if they don’t shake up the stories from time to time. What happened to misdirection? Or the stories that didn’t rely on a shiny new wesen, and actually involved some detective work based on what we already know of this world? Grimm lost its way in the third season. I’d like to see Nick as more of the detective he was in the first two seasons.

He might just have to do more detective work as he lost his Grimm powers—being able to see wesen—at the end of season three. But I fear that the new girl Grimm—nicknamed Trouble—will cause more trouble for Grimm’s fourth season as she adds to the growing soap opera and she may keep Nick from having to do some actual detective or Grimm work.

Still, I look forward to watching both show and will post a review soon.