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Part 2 of 2 (Part 1 here)
The first two seasons each have two arch-villains: one from the underground, another from the government. In the first season, Tony’s position is threatened by Uncle Junior and by Jimmy Altieri, who turns informant for the federal government. In the second season, the danger escalates on the government front as the primary threat comes from the subversive and patient Salvatore “Big Pussy” Bonpensiero, (more…)
2,513 words
Part 1 of 2 (Part 2 here)
It’s been twenty years since it premiered, and twelve since it concluded, so we can now claim with a dose of certainty that we have a historical perspective on it. Yes, folks, I’m talking about The Sopranos, David Chase’s crime drama that redefined modern television. Ditching the episodic format for season-long sagas while still presenting slice-of-life vignettes centered around Tony Soprano, The Sopranos made such hits as Breaking Bad, The Shield, and The Wire possible.
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The third season of The Handmaid’s Tale is well-crafted in almost every way. The cinematography is outstanding. The dialogue is good. The acting is excellent. Its fictional universe is interesting, and it has a dark, dystopian beauty to it. However, the season doesn’t hang together. I got quite bored with it and stopped watching after getting enough information to scrape together a review. (I know what happens in the rest because I cheated and read the plot summaries after watching two-thirds of the season.)
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Star Trek: Discovery (henceforth referred to by the fitting abbreviation STD) is the sixth Star Trek television series, and a direct prequel to Star Trek: The Original Series. The first season premiered in 2017, and the second premiered this January. The plot centers around the exploits of the USS Discovery amid a war between the Klingon Empire and the United Federation of Planets.
Six Feet Under‘s main characters
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It is well known that death is as much a part of life as taxes, and yet there are very few creative works that deal with the mechanics of death. Who digs the grave? Who cuts and engraves the headstone? What happens behind the scenes at a funeral parlor? What is it like to grow up in a house where the remains of the recently departed are embalmed in the basement? (more…)
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There needs to be formal recognition of the genre of TV shows where the protagonists “walk the Earth.” The best explanation of these was given by Jules (Samuel L. Jackson) to his partner Vincent (John Travolta) in the film Pulp Fiction:
Jules: First, I’m going to deliver this case to Marsellus, then, basically, I’m just going to walk the Earth.
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“You know the kind of guy who does nothing but bad things, and wonders why his life sucks? Well, that was me.” So began the early episodes of My Name is Earl, a comedy series which ran from 2005 to 2009 and followed the life of working-class white man Earl Hickey on his quest to make up for all of his past sins. This series from writer and director Greg Garcia combined genuinely funny and creative writing with an unfortunate proto-SJW mindset which elevated “victim” groups and denigrated white people in a way that is increasingly prevalent in popular entertainment today.
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About a month ago, a friend suggested I check out The Punisher, Netflix’s 2017 series. Wary though I am of the Marvel Comics Universe and modern entertainment, I must say what he said about the series was rather appealing. So, I bit the bullet and watched the thing. Now, recently, Netflix announced that it would be canceling the show due to attempts by Disney (more…)
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Few outside England and under 50 will have noted the passing last month of one of Britain’s great comic character actors: Windsor Davies. Although born in North London, he was actually Welsh by parentage, gifting him an accent he made much use of, delivered in a timber-shaking baritone. (more…)
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Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann (more frequently Gurren Lagann) is a 2007 fantasy adventure by Gainax. It’s an explosive, white-knuckle roller-coaster ride of mecha action, as well as featuring stunning dialogue and character design. (more…)
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Monty Python’s Flying Circus sent a shockwave through 1960s England as its anarchic and surrealist comedy completely overturned televisual orthodoxy. The show was the result of a collaboration between a group of supremely talented, middle-class Englishmen (and one American) who, whilst challenging the norms of mainstream comedy, still kept the irony and biting satire that have always been the staple of English comedy at its core.
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Girls’ Last Tour (2017)
Directed by Takaharu Ozaki
Written by Tsukumizu
Girls’ Last Tour is a short (twelve episodes, manga-based) slice of life/adventure anime. Unlike the cutesy and safe setting of contemporary Japan common to the genre, Girls’ Last Tour is a post-apocalyptic journey through an industrial wasteland. (more…)