Video Game Review: Tomb Raider 3

Tomb Raider 3

PlayStation

When I was a teen in the late 90's, Tomb Raider was a big thing for me. While a lot of the media focus tended to be on Lara Croft's physical appearance, I couldn't have cared less about that. I was all about the 3D environments (which were relatively rare in this age of gaming), action, exploration, and thought provoking puzzle solving that came with the series.

The original Tomb Raider was great. The second game was even better in my mind. I expected the series to grow and continue to get better with Tomb Raider 3. However, I find that it took a slight step back.

The first thing to note is that the controls are exactly the same as the previous titles in the series. Running, walking, swimming, side stepping, jumping, hanging onto ledges, and the lock on style gunplay are all identical to everything we've already seen from Tomb Raider in the past. There are a few additions to what Lara can do in this game, but nothing game changing. For example, you can hold down the right shoulder button while running for a brief burst of speed. Woot.

Lara also can pilot new vehicles. There's a paddleboat, an ATV, a handheld submersible thingamajig. While nothing too spectacular, these do offer a slight diversion from your normal running around style of gameplay.

What this all really amounts to is that as far as controlling Lara, nothing much has changed. This is basically the same game as Tomb Raiders past, only with new environments.

These new environments are pretty cool though. You start in the jungles of India. You've got greenery everywhere, quicksand, ancient temples, rivers full of deadly piranha, and - of course - bad guys out to claim the treasure before you can. Some of the atmospheric effects in this level are cool. I like the occasional rainfall. The coloring in the sky on on the ruins is beautiful. It just all feels really authentic. Pixelated, yes, but fun.

When you finish with India, you can actually select which level you want to play next. Each one is broken into three or four stages. First you've got the South Pacific, which is a cool level. It is the most India-like level in the game, however. Again, lots of clear water and green jungle ruins. This is different from India in the fact that it is more of a primeval setting. Angry villagers, hungry dinosaurs (!). There's even some white water rafting. And the sunset-y colors are pleasing to the eye. I like this level.

You've got London. You travel across rooftops, you explore the city's underground and subway tunnels. You poke through buildings and a museum owned by one of the major villains in the game. I'll admit to not liking London much. It is home to some of the hardest levels in the game, and a lot of your tasks seem to be particularly obscure. Where do I go? What do I do next? asasasasjlaslrtrgfddfg!!!!

And then there is Nevada, which is probably my favorite level in the game. First you explore a desert area, looking to find your way into Area 51. When you do get into Area 51, you lose your weapons and have to sneak around the facility, using the other prisoners to beat up the guards and do your dirty work for you. Eventually you get your guns back, and explore the rest of the facility. If you guessed that an alien spacecraft would pop up in Area 51, you guessed right.

All three of these levels can be played in any order. When you finish them, you are shipped off to the fifth and final level of the game: Antarctica. Expect snow, expect underground caverns. Expect minecarts. Asshole minecarts. Seriously, fuck these things. The whole area has kind of a "the Thing" feel to it, which is cool. Beat this level and all its stages, you beat the game.

I love the classic Tomb Raider gameplay. I love the levels. They are all fun to look at and very cleverly designed. Where the game goes off course for me is in its difficulty level.

The first two Tomb Raider games had some difficult moments, but nothing too overly challenging. Some of the puzzles took a while to solve, but after a little poking and prodding things would become pretty self evident. This game, however, not so much.

First of all, we'll start with the difficulty. Beware of cheap deaths, because they are going to happen. A lot. Running along, not a care in the world: bam. The ceiling collapses on you. The ground drops out from below you. A previously dormant grate blasts fire at you and burns you to a crisp. Fine. This is Tomb Raider. If you've played the other games at all, you should be used to stuff like this happening.

But they seem to happen a lot more than usual here. Throw in the fact that this game has a save system that limits the number of times you can save, and this makes things even more frustrating. Imagine you've been playing a half hour or so since your last save, trying to hold off and not waste a save crystal when - oh crap - something cheap and unexpected happens and kills you. Now you've got to go back and play the whole last half hour of the game over again. And this happens quite a bit in this game. My stats at the end of my playthrough said I had been playing for about 15 or 16 hours. I seriously doubt this. Throw in the number of times and I had to reload from my last checkpoint, and I bet it took me 30 to 40 hours to beat the game. Not that I mind a game that takes a little longer to beat, because I don't. But not when the only reason it takes so long to beat is because the game is screwing me over and over and over again and I keep having to backtrack over old ground. It is ridiculous, and at points I had to simply turn off the game and stop playing I was fuming so badly.

If I had to offer a bit of advice for future players, it would be to not worry about running out of save crystals. I tried to hoard mine and then when the last level came around I had about 15 of them saved. It would have made the game that much easier and enjoyable for me if I had just used them more liberally earlier in the game. Don't worry about running out. Because I was - and then I ended up not having to worry at all.

My other complaint is that the levels - while they may look nice and are otherwise brilliantly designed - often have a lack of direction to them. I usually don't like having to use walkthroughs to help me through a game, but I feel as if it was unavoidable here with Tomb Raider 3. Soooo often would I get stuck with absolutely no freaking idea of what I was going to do next. The levels are so big. Switches and items on the ground are so easy to overlook. I don't have any idea how in the world I managed to beat this game back in '98 or '99 without the help of the internet. I was completely lost at many points in this game, even with internet guides holding my hand every step of the way.

Couple that with the difficulty, the limited saves you get, and all the cheap deaths, and it really really detracts from the fun factor of this game. There are a ton of fun stages, but there are also a ton of stages that are a complete pain in the ass. Like, for example, all of London.

That being said, I do like the game. It holds a sentimental place in my heart, as do the first two titles in the Tomb Raider series. It is the last old school Tomb Raider game I owned. My brother played it, and actually did pretty well in it, which surprised me because he had never shown an interest in the first two games. I also used to bring the instruction booklet of this game to high school and read it at my desk so that other kids would see it and start talking to me about it (yeah I was a pathetic nerd, tell me something I don't know). Somewhere along the line I ended up losing the manual, so you can look directly through the case of my copy of the game and see the disc. I never did find out what happend to it.

It's not my favorite game in the series. In fact, I would rate it below Tomb Raider, TR 2, the 2013 reboot, and the Prince of Persia-esque PS2 versions of the game... well some of them anyway. But even with all its flaws, I still hold a soft spot in my heart for the game. Sure its frustrating. Sure it can be downright rage inducing at points. But it is a really good entry in an iconic series. I can't say it is a classic. I can't say its great. But I can say it is really good.

Overall: 

B

Video Game Review: Goldeneye 007

Goldeneye 007

Nintendo 64

Everyone knows that Goldeneye 007 is considered an all time classic, certainly one of the best games ever released for the Nintendo 64. But I can admit to not being too excited about this game when I first heard about it. This was back in the mid 90's. Some video game magazine ran a large 15 page preview on the game. They outlined the levels, the weapons, the gameplay, the controls, everything. The game looked like it might be okay, but I was not a big James Bond fan back then, nor did I know anyone else who was. I never thought in a million years the game would end up being as big a hit as it did.

When it came out, I rented a copy and played it over the weekend. I liked the game, but I wasn't able to finsh it as I couldn't make it past the damned jungle level. I think that the level is a walk in the park these days (especially on Agent mode, which I undoubtedly was playing back then), but I just couldn't finish it. I ended up renting the game one or two more times, finally finishing the level and completing the game both times.

I thought that was it, that I would never play the game again. Usually when I rent a game that many times and play the crap out of it like that, I don't bother to buy it. But with each renting of Goldeneye, I fell a little bit more in love with the game each and every time. Plus the multiplayer mode was a ton of fun, and I wanted to have a copy of the game handy if and when I had friends over.

So I bought it. The game was still relatively new and I paid full price for it. So it was kind of a waste of precious resources (especially for a 15 year old) renting the game three times and then paying full price for a new copy of it. But it was well worth it.

I played the hell out of the game, not only in single player mode but with friends as well. I became a multiplayer champion, the kid that everyone hated to play against. In fact, often times I would be ganged up on by people so they could take me out first when we'd play. Even going 3 against 1, sometimes they were still not successful enough to take me out of the game.

Multiplayer was a ton of fun. It offers pretty standard player vs player battle mode (up to 4 people could play at a time), but there were a ton of levels, a lot of different weapon modes to choose from, and a few variations of battles to pick from. I remember the man with the golden gun (one hit kills) being a fun mode to play. Finding secret hiding spots, ambushing players... walking around, having to constantly be on the lookout for proximity mines... keeping tabs on where weapon caches and bulletproof vests would respawn... the game was just an absolute blast to play with my friends.

I also became quite good at the game in single player. I beat the game on the three main difficulty settings, unlocking the secret levels and each and every hidden character in multiplayer. Man, it was an incredibly difficult task. To this day, I don't know how I did it. I struggle now to get through the game on Secret Agent difficulty, but I will get to that later. Still, it was quite an accomplishment. I don't know if I could do that today, even if I invested all of my time into playing this.

Over time, the Nintendo 64 gave way to a new generation of consoles. This game got shelved. Unlike a lot of other titles I put away when I am done playing them, I still would pick up Goldeneye every few years or so and give it a good play through.

I'd say it has been at least five years since the last time I played the game. I had wanted to play an N64 game for my next review, and it was a no brainer that I was going to pick this.

Right away, I was able to pick up the game and get into the swing of things as if I had just played it yesterday. The control scheme is very accessible, the game easy to handle and play. Although the game is 20 years old (damn, I am ancient) - it still holds up relatively well. The graphics are vibrant and colorful. Your weapons damage the environment, enemies react to where you shoot them. This was groundbreaking stuff for 1997. The characters look, for the most part, like their film counterparts. But what really stands out to me is the game's music. Goldeneye has a classic soundtrack that I found myself humming along to one more than one occasion.

The level design is classic, this isn't just a "shoot everyone" brainless first person shooter. Each stage has missions and objectives you must complete before you can move on. No two levels are alike (well, except for a couple later stages in the game where you revisit old haunts) and each stage seems to have its own life and personality. Every level of the game feels new and fresh, and that is something that can not be said for a lot of games. The variety in the stages and the various tasks and objectives you must complete in each one definitely keeps you interested and wanting to play more and more each time you finish a stage. Plus, when you play on higher difficulties, new objectives in each stage open up, giving the game even more replay value.

On my most recent play though, I set out to beat the game on Secret Agent difficulty, which is the second of two difficulty options presented to you at the beginning of the game. Apparently, on my last several play throughs I must have played the game on just plain old Agent difficulty, because holy crap I had a tough time beating this game. I was fine until the level with the bunker, when a nearly endless supply of enemies would gang up and slaughter me time and time again. I must have spent two or three hours trying to beat this one level, which I could never remember having problems with in the past. And it only got harder. The tank level (don't get me started on that), the level where you start in the elevator (I forget its name), and the god damned Aztec level. Ugh, please kill me now. And to think, I beat this game as a teenager on the difficulty ABOVE Secret Agent. How I did that, I have no fucking idea.

As classic as the game is, I was able to find a few flaws with it that people probably don't think of when they bring this game to mind. I'm sure a ton of people play the game on Agent difficulty, which is pretty easy. But the jump in difficulty from Agent to Secret Agent is soooo steep. The thing that irritated me the most: definitely the respawning enemies. So many levels send an endless flood of foes in your direction, to the point where it starts to become very tedious to finish a level. You can clear a room, check it, and advance to the next room only to have an enemy appear out of nowhere behind you and start shooting the living crap out of you, taking out half your health in the process. This irritated me immensely. As you progress in the game, the enemies do more damage and become sharpshooters as well. Sometimes you get blasted the second you step around a corner, without even a split second to react. It can get very frustrating at times.

Still, there is no denying that this game is amazing and is still a great classic. Playing it brings back so many memories to my mind. Great single player mode, great challenges. Kicking my friends' asses in multiplayer. Experiencing this game as a teen in the 90's definitely changed my opinion on first person shooters and what they were capable of. I had only played games like Wolfenstein and Doom at this point in my life. This was a total eye opener for me. Shooting people in the foot and seeing them hop around in pain, shooting them in the head and killing them instantly - these were things that you just didn't see in the mid 90's. You could shoot out windows, destroy items sitting on tables. Even shooting the differently textured walls and floors and hearing the different sound effects was a thing of beauty back then. Not even doing the missions, just walking around and firing at things to see what would happen was an amazing experience. Plus it transformed me from someone who couldn't care less about Bond to a big fan. I wouldn't say hardcore, but I do love the series.

It's just a really great game. If you had asked me what I would grade it coming into my most recent play through of the game, I would have said an A+. No question. Playing it again in 2016, nearly 20 years after its initial release, I was able to spot a few of the game's flaws. The respawning enemies and frustrating difficulty on the non Agent difficulty levels definitely brings it down a wee bit for me. I'm all for a challenge, as long as the challenge is fair. But this was just ridiculous in some spots. The point of playing games is to have fun, and there were definitely many spots in the game where I was just getting pissed off rather than having fun.

I won't let my chuck the controller through the wall moments ruin my memory of the game though. Goldeneye is a classic. Its impact not only on the genre but on my life as a young adult in general is something that can not be denied. Maybe I didn't have quite as much fun as I thought I would, plus I don't have anyone to play multiplayer with so that whole aspect of the game was skipped over for me, but it is still amazing.

Overall:

A

2016 Movie Ranking Countdown: April

Another month, another 5 movies will move on to my ultimate movie ranking list at the end of the year. I watched 12 films in the month of April, so narrowing it down will be a little bit harder than usual. Which 5 will move on and what will be left in the dust? Let's find out!

---

I watched this movie late last year and it ranked in my top 3 favorite movies of the year, if I remember correctly. The movie was so good that as soon as it ended, I considered firing it up again and immediately watching it one more time. That NEVER happens with me with movies. I didn't watch it again, but instead decided to wait a few months to give it another shot. See if I would like it even more with it being not so fresh on my mind.

Turns out that may have been a bad mistake. This is still a great movie, but that sense of wonder and "wow did I just see that?" which I experienced the first time around was not present on my second viewing. I had a hard time getting into it, I thought things moved a little too fast. I wasn't as enchanted by the world of Mad Max as I was the first time. In fact, I hate to say this, but I pulled my phone out about 10 minutes into the movie and started playing games. No, Dan! Noooooo!

But luckily I pulled my head out of my butt, and I put the phone away and started paying attention during the second half of the movie. It may have been too little too late though. While I did enjoy the second half, and I started to notice things I hadn't the first time around, it was really like I was only watching a half of a movie. I tend to zone out everything around me when I am playing on the phone. Which is a shame because this is an amazing movie, and as a result of my foolishness it may miss out on cracking the top 5 for this month. I haven't made up my mind yet though. Let's see how these other movies stack up.

I've been on a big Stephen King kick lately, and when I noticed that this short story from Full Dark, No Stars had been made into a movie, I had to see it. This is by far the story from Full Dark, No Stars that stood out to me the most. It is about a female author whose car breaks down while returning from a book signing. A good Samaritan stops to help her, but quickly things go wrong and she finds herself raped, beaten, and left for dead in a drain pipe. When she wakes up, she goes on an epic quest to find her rapist and would-be murderer and track him down to kill him.

There are twists and turns along the way, but I won't spoil anything if you haven't seen or read the story. The movie does change some things from the book, but I actually liked the changes here. This is a very worthy movie version of a very disturbing short story. Even though it is only a made for TV Lifetime movie (which I didn't realize until after watching this), it was still quite good.

I'm a fan of the Maze Runner books, but the first movie was only just okay by my standards. I had heard the second film was good, so I decided to give it a shot.

It turned out to be true that this film is better than its predecessor. It is sleek and beautifully filmed. Great action scenes, nice looking scenery. It is fast paced, it is intense. And it has a lot of really great appearances from actors from nerd shows that I like to watch. Want to see Littlefinger square off against Gustavo Fring? You have come to the right place.

I really, really wanted to love this movie. But it turns out I only just liked it. While it is true that the film is very well made and is infinitely better than the original, there is just something about it that screamed forgettable to me. Once again the urge to pull out my phone and play games in the middle of this turned out to be too strong to resist. I don't know what is wrong with me. I am either playing games while watching movies or falling asleep. I wish I could just enjoy things like normal people do, but that doesn't seem to be in the cards for me.

It may still make my top 5 for the month, just because I realize how well made the movie is. I liked it enough to revisit it at some point later on in the year, so it has that going for it.

I've read the book version of the Martian. While it is funny and has some really tense moments in it, there were quite a few pages filled with boring techno babble and science chatter. While it made the book seem scientifically accurate, like the events in it could have actually happened, it also was enough to bore me from time to time.

I figured the movie version of the Martian would play out very similarly, and I was not mistaken. Visually the movie is a masterpiece and one of the best looking films of all time. I like the cast, I like the characters. I am not a huge Matt Damon fan, but he was great in this, as were all of the supporting characters. Ned Stark is a bad ass here.

The problem I had with the movie is the same problem I had with the book. It tends to drag in parts and get bogged down by scientific gobble degook. If you have ever seen Apollo 13, this movie is very similar to that one. Except instead of 3 guys trapped in space, it is 1 guy trapped on Mars.

Despite the lulls in action, I still enjoyed myself. I think it could have been a little better, but overall it is a really solid movie. And the end made me tear up a little bit, so it has that working in its favor. Usually I don't cry in movies, so when a film can elicit such a reaction from me, it has done a good job.

I had heard this movie was terrible, so I had very low expectations for it. I came in expecting it to suck, but at the same time I was prepared for the chance that I would like it. I think my low expectations actually served in my favor here, as I truly did enjoy the movie.

It has a great cast, a fun story line. And it is a story line I can relate to, growing up hanging out in video game arcades and playing a lot of the same games that these guys did. Pac-Man, Centipede, Millipede, Defender, Space Invaders... hell yeah! If aliens ever invade Earth using characters from these games as their attack vessels, sign me up to fight them off!

I am sure that by no means is this a world beating film. I am sure that, watching this in a different context, the sappy love story and outrageous plot would have put me off to the film. But I don't know, I just had fun watching this. It's not meant to be an award winning film, it is meant to entertain kids, families, and people like me that grew up with these kind of games. I liked it a lot.

And visually it is really stunning too. I wouldn't be surprised to see this make my top 5. Which is funny when you consider how critically bashed this film is, and you compare it to the heavyweights it is up against.

I referenced in my Big Driver evaluation that I've been on a Stephen King kick lately. One of the reasons I am so into his work again all of a sudden is partly because I have recently read 11/22/63 and watched the Hulu miniseries. The story is about a man who goes back to save JFK, and it really got me thinking about the assassination and all the conspiracy theories.

When I saw this on Netflix, I decided to give it a chance. This is a documentary that deals with JFK's last day alive. Why he is in Dallas, what he did leading up to the assassination, and the assassination itself. This was a nice little miniseries, but it was nothing earth shattering for me. This didn't dive into any conspiracy theories, didn't speculate much on why it happened. It was more of a fact based narrative explaining the events of that fateful day.

It was good and I enjoyed myself watching it, but it left something a little to be desired for me when I was done with it.

After watching the Day JFK Died, I was still starved for more information on the Kennedy assassination. Searching for JFK on Netflix, I found this documentary as well. This is more of what I was looking for in the first place.

Why was Kennedy killed? Who could have done it? Who had a reason to do it? Why was the trajectory of the bullets so screwed up if they were fired from 1 gun? Why did people on the street smell gunpowder if the shots were fired from such a high vantage point with the wind blowing out?

This was the documentary that dealt with all the conspiracy theories regarding the assassination. Some of these theories were pretty interesting, some were stupid. I thought the theory about him being accidentally shot by a Secret Serviceman going for his weapon was an interesting theory, especially since it was backed by a ballistics expert, but I have read about this theory since watching this documentary and it has been proved false.

I enjoyed this a lot, and it really got me thinking as to what could have happened back on November 11, 1963. It is a mystery that may go unsolved in our lifetime. If it ever gets solved.

I watched this movie last year, in 2015. I fell asleep about halfway through it and missed a good chunk of it, but I still ranked it on my list. I believe it got a somewhat middling ranking if I remember correctly.

I decided I owed it to this movie to go back and watch it again this year, while attempting to actually stay awake for the whole thing. I succeeded in my goal, but I didn't really enjoy the movie as much as I thought I would. Sure there are some genuinely scary events in this movie. It is rare when a film can scare me or creep me out, and this one was able to do it on a few occasions.

I just think that knowing the twist of the film, plus having seen most of it so recenty, kind of ruined it in my mind. I wasn't able to get into it like I was hoping I would be able to. I kept pausing it and doing other things, and I think it took me over 3 hours to finish a film which really isn't that long to begin with.

I gave it a chance. I do like the film, but it is too similar to other things I have seen to really stand out too much in my mind.

I've always been intrigued by the premise of this film. It has Arnold Schwarzenegger, which is a big plus. It's about zombies: another plus. But for some reason I had my doubts.

Just because Arnold is in this doesn't mean it is an action movie. In fact, it is far from it. The film is mainly a psychological drama. Arnie is dealing with the impending death of his daughter, who has been bitten by a zombie. There is no cure for this. She is going to die and there is nothing he can do about it.

Usually when I watch movies like this where there is this kind of impending shroud of doom surrounding the characters, I get really into it. But for some reason I just wasn't feeling this movie. It's not the characters, it is not the acting. As far as I can remember the movie seemed to be pretty well made. I just couldn't really get into it, and now that I think back on it, I can barely remember anything about it. Maybe I just wasn't in the proper mood to watch it.

Some other day, some other time, perhaps.

This isn't typically my kind of movie. FBI vs drug cartel. Lots of shootouts and elaborate scheming.

But I had read in the Entertainment Weekly that this was supposed to be a really intense, hardcore movie. I like Emily Blunt. I like movies that put me on the edge of my seat. Why not give it a shot?

The movie gets off to a really good start. The FBI raids a drug house, they find dead bodies in the walls. People are shaken, they puke. A sense of dread and foreboding settles in. I am like - okay, this is gonna be good.

Unfortunately the rest of the movie doesn't hold up to the strong beginning. Emily Blunt's character is drawn into some kind of a plot to battle the Mexican cartel. There is a lot of elaborate scheming and double crossing going on. Benicio Del Toro's character is a double agent, or something. There is a big conspiracy uncovered at the end. Emily Blunt's facial expression never changes.

I just felt very "eh" about the whole movie. This is a subject that doesn't particularly interest me. I kind of got bored after a while. I started doing other things and only half paid attention. The movie didn't grip me like I had expected it to. I recognize that it is a well made movie, I just wasn't feeling it for some reason or another.

That's several movies on the list now that I have recognized as well done films, but for some reason or another I haven't been able to get into. I think its an attention span problem on my end, but who knows?

This is something I have wanted to see for a long time, if only because it stars the actress who plays Margaery Tyrell in Game of Thrones. In this movie, she travels to Japan to track down her sister, who has vanished into the "suicide forest" thing they have over there.

The movie delivered some legitimate scares. Just the whole forest thing itself was creepy, not to mention the fact that the whole movie takes place in a foreign country where nothing is familiar. That makes the whole thing just a little bit more unsettling.

I really liked the movie, although I did think the ending was kind of stupid and didn't make a whole lot of sense. If it doesn't make the top 5 for this month, you can blame the ending.

I was surprised to see that this movie got harsh reviews from the critics, because I had a good time. My tastes are weird. I like Pixels and the Forest which everyone seems to hate, yet I didn't really care for Sicario, Maggie, The Others, etc.

The last movie I watched in April!

I came into this movie not really knowing what to expect. I knew that the trailers for the film looked good, but as far as its actual story line, I had no idea what it was about. Something with ghosts.

The story revolves around a girl named Edith. She sees ghostly visions of her mother warning her of a place called Crimson Peak. Some of these ghost scenes are kind of creepy. Again, I don't scare easily but some of the scenes put me on the edge of my seat a little bit.

She meets some dude played by Loki from Thor - you know, the guy that all 20 to 30 year old chicks seem to go nuts over. Turns out he and his sister are running some kind of black widower scheme where he marries women with money and then they take the money and share it between the 2 of them. The sister gets upset because Loki is falling in love with this woman, and that's not part of the script. Edith finds out that the place where she and her new family are living is called Crimson Peak.

Fights break out. Stuff happens. You are led for most of the movie to believe that ghosts are the main antagonists in the film, but they aren't. It was a good movie. Not sure if I liked the very end, but I think the movie as a whole was solid enough to earn an entry into my top 5 for the month, especially seeing as how I watched a ton of movies I couldn't get into.

---

It's a tough call, but I must choose only 5 from the list to make my ultimate year end ranking.

The 5 moving on are:

Big Driver

The Martian

Pixels

JFK: The Smoking Gun

Crimson Peak

It was a really, really tough call. I wanted to include Mad Max. I really did. I also wanted to include the Forest. Even the Scorch Trials probably deserved to move on. But 5 and only 5 were selected.

4 months into the year, and here are my top 20 movies so far, based on me pulling 5 each month:

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed
Cake
American Sniper
Predator
Friday the 13th Part 2

Locke

Evil Dead

Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter

Elysium

Snowpiercer
Room
Manson Family Vacation
Deadpool
Goodnight, Mommy
Unforgiven

Big Driver

The Martian

Pixels

JFK: The Smoking Gun

Crimson Peak

My TV show rotation in review version 8

Anyone who has been following this blog knows that this is something I like to do every couple months or so. But if you are new to the blog, I will bring you up to speed. Basically, I always maintain a pretty steady rotation of 15 to 20 TV shows that I watch. I'm not a huge binge watcher. Instead of focusing on one specific show at a time, I jump around from show to show, watching an episode here or there. As a result, it generally takes me a very long time to work my way through a series. But I am okay with that.

The premise of the blog entry is this: Over the course of the week, I will watch one episode of each and every show in my rotation and blog about it. I open each episode write-up with my thoughts about the series in general. I'll then watch the episode, and as a follow up I will write down my thoughts about that episode in particular. Then, on to the next show.

Once I've made my way through one episode of each and every show in my rotation, I publish the blog and you all can read it. Or not read it. Whatever. I mainly do this for my own entertainment. Sometimes I will go months between watching episodes of certain series, and this is a good way to refresh my memory and try to get me back into shows I have strayed away from.

Sound simple? Good, because it really is. I shall now begin.

Season 1

Episode 10

"Peter"

Note: this is the American version of the show. I watched the French series to completion earlier in the year and thought it was fantastic. I had heard that the American version was not as good - but I've been watching it regularly over the last week or so and I am enjoying it. True, it is not as good as the French version, but it is still enjoyable.

In a small mountain town, people who have died over the years have suddenly started coming back to life, unchanged from the day they died and with seemingly no recollection of their death. We have seen this basic premise before, but the Returned handles things a bit differently from other shows and movies with similar concepts. This show is all about the people, all about character development. Watching how the characters react to this bizarre circumstance, watching them cope with grief and personal demons they thought they had recovered from is fascinating to see.

There are many mysteries and questions that have yet to be answered swirling around the show. The bad news is that the Returned was cancelled in the USA after just one season, which means these questions will go forever unanswered, unless the show miraculously gets picked up again. The good news is that the French version is still out there, so if you like this show, you can turn around and watch the French version for answers. I prefer the French version anyway, but it is still disappointing to see the American version of the show cancelled.

This is the final episode of the show's one and only season, so once I finish this episode - the Returned falls out of my rotation. I pretty much know what happens because I've seen the French version of the show, but I'm still curious to see how the US version handles the season one finale. So far, this version of the show has been relatively unchanged from the French version, so I'll be surprised if they stray from the script here.

*watches episode*

Well darn. Through the first nine episodes I had thought that this show was going to be a simple rehash of the French edition, with a few minor changes thrown in here and there. This is the episode where the show finally starts to veer away from the French version and do its own thing, and of course this is where the show ends because of its cancellation.

The show takes quite a few dramatic turns. Camille kills Ben by sleeping with him. We find out Peter is one of the returned, and has a completely different backstory than in the original version. Victor leaves town, Simon foresees the dam bursting and the town flooding. What's her name gets married to the cop, who apparently doesn't get killed off this time around. There are many other changes too, but I will not go through all of them.

It is a shame that this show has ended, especially with so many unresolved stories dangling around out there. Overall I still prefer the French version of the show. Better, creepier atmosphere. More believable characters. A much more ominous tone. But this was still pretty good. I like how they started to do things differently at the end. The whole swarm story line seems to have been dropped, and I am curious what they were going to do here. Fingers crossed someone picks this up and continues the story line some day, but I doubt that is going to happen.

Well, now the Returned is out of my rotation and opens up a spot for a new show to take its place. Maybe I'll finally get around to season 4 of House of Cards, season 3 of Bates Motel, or perhaps I'll finally fire up Jessica Jones. We'll see. For now, I will stick to the shows that I am actively watching, and if I determine my rotation has room to squeeze another show in, I may do so.

Season 8

Episode 10

"Reynolds vs Reynolds: The Cereal Defense"

Hey look at this, back to back season finales in my rotation. This is the last episode of season 8 of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. I am not a huge comedy fan, so I tend to only keep one or two comedies in my rotation at any given time. I think once I finish this season I will take a break from this series for a while and bump it out of my rotation. Then I'll add How I Met Your Mother (which I have been on break from) back into my rotation, since I've been on break from it for several months now. Sound like a plan? Wonderful, because I was doing it anyway.

This is not my favorite show in the world, but I like it a lot better than other comedy shows with their moral lessons and obnoxious laugh tracks. This show attempts to teach you nothing. In fact, it does quite the opposite. The humor is rude, crude, about as non PC as you can get. At times the show is very funny. At other times it is very stupid. But for the most part I like it.

No idea what this episode is about, but from its title I am guessing it involves some kind of court room action. Probably over something stupid.

*watches episode*

Well, I was sort of right. This episode does revolve around a trial, but this trial doesn't take place in an actual court room. Dennis is rear ended by Frank while at a red light. Dennis, for obvious reasons, holds Frank responsible. But Frank says that Dennis should be held responsible because he was eating a bowl of cereal in the car when the collision occurred.

The gang stages a trial at Paddy's. As you would expect from this show, the trial gets out of hand and veers wildly off course. Everyone's credibility is called into question. Shenanigans ensue. It was a fun episode, but in the grand scheme of things not too horribly memorable. Usually each season ends with a stronger quality of episode, but this one was just okay. Still, okay for this show is a lot better than okay for a lot of shows, so at least it has that going for it.

Season 4

Episode 2

"Chuck Versus the Suitcase"

This show has been in my rotation for a long time, a few years at least. It is taking me a quite while to get through it. I like the show. The characters are great, it is funny, there are a lot of awesome guest appearances by some of my favorite people in the nerd universe. Its a nice, fun, fast paced show. My problem with it is that I don't find the story line very gripping.

The show focuses on an ordinary computer repair guy named Chuck, who becomes a CIA asset when a program is inserted into his brain that helps him identify suspicious characters, drawings, symbols, etc. He is forced to work as a spy while also trying to juggle his "real" life and keep his involvement in spy activity secret from his friends and family.

The show started slowly (for me anyway) but it has picked up as of late. Most of his friends and family now know what is going on with him, and have been caught up in his adventures. Also - the program in his brain has advanced to the point where he can learn things like fighting styles, lock picking, safe cracking, and other activities which could help him become a better spy in the blink of an eye.

It's been a few months since I've watched an episode of this. It dropped off my "recently watched" list on Netflix, and I forgot about it for a while. But now it is time to resume watching again and see if the show pulls me in to the point where I watch more than one episode every three months or so. The show only has 5 seasons, so I am getting to the end. Slowly.

*watches episode*

Hey, hey. I actually liked this episode. A lot.

I could tell it had been a while since I'd seen the show because I had forgotten most of what was going on (like the side story with Chuck's mom and everything). But I think the break will end up being a good thing for me. I was sort of not feeling the show for a while (hence it falling off my recently watched list). But now that I've taken a break and recouped, so to speak, I find the show to be a lot more fun than I had previously. Absence makes the heart grow fonder? In this case it may be true.

In this episode Chuck and Sarah headed to Milan to track down an arms dealer who also happened to be a supermodel. Chuck and Sarah were in the middle of a small tiff, mainly focusing around Sarah's reluctance to unpack her bags and settle in with Chuck. The situation was not improved when Chuck showed obvious attraction to the woman they were supposed to be apprehending. Back home, Morgan showed his worth to the team by pointing out the flaws that Buy More was showing as a front for the CIA/NSA base, and how someone with spy training could see right through that front. He fixed the problem by bringing back all the old crappy employees like Jeff and Lester to make the appearance of an actual Buy More more believable.

Fun episode, I really enjoyed myself. There was humor, there was action, and we got to see a bunch of incredibly hot scantily clad women. And this episode's special nerd cameo was Lou Ferrigno, otherwise known as the dude who used to play the Incredible Hulk.

I can easily see myself getting back into this show now that I've watched this episode and had fun with it. And that's one of the main reasons why I started doing this one episode from each show blog in the first place. To rekindle my interest in shows I hadn't seen in a long time. So bravo, Dan. You done good, son.

Season 1

Episode 5

"Pretty Poison"

This was my absolute favorite cartoon when I was a child. I planned my schedule around the show. I rarely, if ever, missed an episode. I loved it. I remember at some point my schedule changed, or maybe the time the show aired changed, and I was no longer able to watch the show anymore. It was devastating.

As an adult, I've looked high and dry for this show online with no luck. You'd think Netflix would have it, but no. Hulu: no. I finally struck gold finding it on Amazon. All 4 seasons, all 85 episodes. Hallelujah amen.

For some reason the episode order is all out of whack on Amazon. For example, episode 2 is listed as the Christmas episode that I remember taking place near the end of season 1. It seems like the episodes were put up there in random order. I'm sure it has something to do with production order rather than airdate, but it is still annoying. As a result, I have been picking and choosing which episodes to watch, trying to watch them in as close to chronological order as I can. Although according to this I am only on episode 5, I have in actuality watched probably about 10 to 12 episodes so far.

Unlike other cartoons such as TMNT (which I gave up on) this show has actually aged well. I am excited to watch more and eventually get around to the episodes that I missed the first time through the series.

*watches episode*

This was a classic Batman episode. I knew what episode this was just from its title. This is the introduction of Poison Ivy to the cartoon canon, and it is quite the introduction. Ivy is a rabid environmentalist, and when Harvey Dent decides to destroy a biological preserve in Gotham to build a prison, she takes her revenge. She kisses Harvey while the two are on a dinner date with Bruce Wayne. Little does Harvey know, her lipstick is poisoned. Harvey collapses into his dessert, and is rushed to the hospital.

Bruce puts two and two together and determines that Ivy was the one who poisoned his friend. He dons his bat suit and comes to investigate Ivy's lair, where he battles some evil plants and finally subdues the villainess in green. It was a very simple and straightforward episode, many of these Animated Series episodes are, but there is no doubt that it is a memorable one. As a kid, this was my first experience with Poison Ivy, and this version of her is the one that has stuck in my head over the years.

Uma Thurman? Puh-leeeeease.

Season 22

Episode 8

This Game Respects Big Moves

I have seen every season of Survivor to date, but in the last 6 or 7 years I have been going back and rewatching the old seasons over again from the beginning. I started at season 1, and now I find myself all the way up to season 22: Redemption Island. It has taken me a while to get here, but pretty soon I should be all caught up and will have seen every season out there twice.

My initial thoughts on this season were kind of "meh", and nothing I have seen so far up to this point in my rewatch has changed my mind. Rob dominates and everyone falls all over themselves trying to please him. I am a Russell fan, and I hated how his tribe threw an early challenge to get rid of him. What a terrible idea. Throwing team challenges in this game always seems to come back and bite people in the butt, and it definitely has here, as Russell's old team is now down 6-5 at the merge.

The only saving grace this season is Philip. You just never know what the guy is going to do or say. If it wasn't for him, dear Lord would this be an awful season. Anyway, this next episode is the merge episode, so I am kind of looking forward to seeing it. I know who wins, but I don't really remember what happens to get to that point. Hopefully it is not as boring as I seem to remember.

*watches episode*

Merge episodes are typically better than your average episode, as there are a million ideas floating around out there, so many different ways that the vote could go. This episode was no exception, in fact it may have even been better than your typical merge episode with Matt returning from Redemption Island and adding a whole new wrinkle to the game.

Boston Rob's team was up 6-5 at the merge, and with Matt returning, that made it 7-5. Matt dug his own grave, however, flip flopping back and forth between which way he wanted to go with the vote. And then he made the dumb mistake of telling Rob about it. He thought that God was telling him to stay loyal to his old team (you know, the one that voted him out first) so he decided to stay true to his original team.

But it turned out to be the wrong move. He should have went with the Zapateras, who were offering him final 3 or 4. True, they possibly could have turned on him before that point, but he would have made it further than this. Plus, he had proven how strong he was at the challenges. He could have won his way to the end if need be. But nope. Matt was blindsided in an epic split vote and sent straight back to Redemption Island. I guess God is a Boston Rob fan.

Speaking of Rob, I have never been a huge fan of his, but I have to admit that he has played this game beautifully so far. It took him 4 tries to finally win the game, so no one will say he is the best player ever. But I think of all the people who have played the game, he "gets it" the most. Each and every single time he is gold. He has won me over with the way he plays the game, which I never would have thought possible back in the first All Stars when I hated him so much.

Season 1

Episode 12

Romeo and Romeo

On we move to the second comedy currently in my rotation - Raising Hope. I like this show a bit more than It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. It's smarter, the humor involves more than just people being dicks to each other all the time. There is still a lot of gross out humor and "low brow" jokes that the other show is famous for. I think why I like this show better is because of the characters. They are more relatable, they aren't so one dimensional, and they actually have a little bit of good in them as well.

If you've never seen it, this show revolves around a young man named Jimmy and his dysfunctional white trash family. They try to raise a baby that Jimmy had as a result of a one night stand with a convict on the run. The convict has been caught and executed, and now this single father, who is still living at home with his crazy parents and even crazier grandma, finds himself in the awkward position of having to raise this baby.

It's a fun show, I think I've enjoyed pretty much every episode I have seen. I'm not a big binge watcher, especially of comedy series, but I could see myself at some point getting on a roll with this one and racing through its 4 or 5 seasons in a pretty quick time. A quick time for me, anyway.

*watches episode*

Yeah, this was yet another good episode. Surprise surprise.

In this one, Jimmy is struggling with the fact that as a single father raising a small child, he has no friends who know what he is going through. His lady friend at the grocery store decides to "set him up" with a customer she knows who is also a single father raising a small child.

The two hit it off right away, but when the two families meet each other for dinner, they clash and all kind of shenanigans ensue. Matters aren't helped when Jimmy's new friend (I forget his name. I wonder if he will become a regular on the show?) tries to pick up Jimmy's lady friend and he takes offense. And by lady friend, I mean a friend who is a lady. She has a boyfriend. But Jimmy keeps holding out hope they will break up and he will be first in line.

Like I said, another good episode. I don't know why this surprises me every time I watch this show. I keep expecting the show to crash and burn or fall apart, and so far it hasn't. Hopefully they keep this up for the remainder of the show's run, because so far I am a pretty big fan.

Season 1

Episode 9

Fortunate Son

I've been a pretty big Trekkie my whole life, but for some reason or another I never bothered to watch Enterprise. Now that the series is long over and done with, I have decided to go back and watch the whole thing on Netflix. I've heard mixed reviews about the show, but so far I am enjoying it. I mean, of course it is not up to par with the classics like The Next Generation and Deep Space Nine, but it is fun.

Plus I like seeing how primitive things were in the days before The Original Series. I like seeing the Federation as we know it come into being, plus I like observing the strained relationship between the Vulcans and the humans. It is interesting stuff.

The god awful opening theme song has GOT to go, though. Here is to another good episode!

*watches episode*

Just like with Raising Hope, I don't know why I am surprised every time I watch a new episode and enjoy it. Probably because I've heard so many bad things about this show, I keep expecting it to crash and burn. But I liked this one a lot!

The episode focuses around a conflict between these big slow moving, human manned freighters and the Nausicans, who keep coming in to attack these humans and steal their shit. The Enterprise is called in to help out a freighter called the Fortunate after it is attacked, and they find that the crew has a Nausican prisoner on board that they are torturing for information. When the Enterprise demands the release of the prisoner, the freighter's crew attacks the Enterprise and runs off to take revenge on the Nausicans.

The Enterprise pursues, and after a tense stand off with the Nausicans, the prisoner is returned and the situation is defused.... for now.

Like I said, it was a really solid episode. I like the story line, I like that we got to see a little bit of the Nausicans, who I mainly remember from the DS9 episode where Bashir is attacked by one of them. They may be in other episodes too, but if they are I do not remember them. So it was cool to see a little more of them.

But mainly I enjoyed the fact that we really got to dive into the backstory of the black crewman aboard the Enterprise. Uhhhh.... I forget his name. Aside from the show's featured regulars, I have a hard time keeping track of the names of the side characters. But he had a great role in this episode, and I look forward to seeing more of him in the future. Good episode, hopefully Enterprise keeps churning them out.

Season 2

Episode 1

Scattered

If you are reading this blog right now, you probably think I am the biggest TV watching freak in the universe. This actually used to not be the case. In my spare time I would watch movies, play games, or mess around online. If I did watch a TV show it would be a reality show like American Idol or Survivor, but that's it. I did watch Lost religiously, but that was the exception rather than the rule.

Battlestar Galactica is what got me hooked on watching TV series' on a regular basis. I thought Lost was a one time fluke. I never knew that there was this whole universe of amazing TV shows out there that I was missing out on. A friend of mined loaned me the boxed set for Battlestar Galactica, and I binge watched it like you wouldn't believe. In fact, this may be my most watched show of all time. I have seen the series in its entirety 3 or 4 times, making this my 4th or 5th watch through of the show.

This is a great series, perhaps my favorite show ever. It is a sci fi series that centers around a group of humans who survive a nuclear holocaust at the hands of an army of robots (Cylons) that they created over, what, 50 years ago? These humans form a fleet and take off into space, away from the Cylon threat. Their goal is to find the mythical planet of Earth where they can settle down and rebuild the species once again. Little do they know, that there are Cylon models out there that look and act just like humans, and they have traitors in their midst. There is a lot more to the show than this, but that is just the basic, generic summary of events.

It is a fantastic show. It is loaded with action, mystery, suspense, intrigue. It keeps you guessing at every corner. The characters really make the show go. It is such a strong cast. I you haven't seen this, I can't recommend it enough. Watch it now! Stop reading and go watch it!

The last episode I watched was a few days ago - the season 1 finale. Now I'm starting season 2. There is a lot going on, and I can't wait to dive back into this super amazing show.

*watches episode*

Sometimes when I have seen a movie or a TV show multiple times, my attention will start to drift and I don't enjoy the movie or show as much as I normally would. That's exactly what happened here. I turned on the phone, started playing Candy Crush Jelly Saga, and that was it. The show simply became background listening for me.

I'm not too concerned, as I have seen this show a number of times and I knew exactly what was going to happen. If I had never seen BSG before, playing on my phone while watching the episode would have been an inexcusable lapse of judgment. But I still followed the episode, I still knew what was going on. I wasn't as immersed as I should have been, though. For future episodes I am definitely going to have to make sure the phone is as far away from me as humanly possible.

I still found it to be a very good episode, definitely worthy of being the pilot episode for season 2. Things picked up right where they left off. Adama shot, the "away teams" crash landed on Kobol, and Starbuck confronting Helo and Sharon over Sharon's being a Cylon. The main focus of this particular episode was on the fleet and Adama's health. A Cylon base star jumps in after Adama's wounding, and the fleet is forced to jump away and strand the away team on Kobol. Confusion ensues when the Galactica jumps to a system and finds itself alone. Where did the fleet go?

Apparently there was some kind of confusion with the coordinates. Not only is the fleet defenseless, but now Adama does not have access to a doctor. Gaeta saves the day by coming up with a plan to temporarily link the ship's systems, jump back to Kobol, and rejoin the fleet after an extra jump there.

It was an action packed episode. There was a good space battle, some tense fight scenes on the surface of Kobol, and some heart pounding medical drama regarding Bill Adama's health. Good episode overall.

Season 2

Episode 7

"The Gold Violin"

Due to all the hype surrounding Mad Men, I really expected this show to be better. Not that it is bad, but it just isn't at all what I was hoping for. I thought it would be more intense and drama filled. I thought it was the kind of show that kept viewers on the edge of their seat. It is nothing like this, however. It is a very slow, methodical, and occasionally boring character driven drama set in the office of an advertising firm in the 60's.

I am hoping there will be a big payoff coming soon. I am halfway through season 2 now and there haven't been any big events, nothing that has shocked me. No moments where I am like "OMG I must see what happens next!" and binge one episode after another. The show sure is taking its time to get somewhere, if it even is indeed going anywhere at all.

Let's hope this is the episode things start to heat up, but I am not going to hold my breath.

*watches episode*

Uh uh. Good thing I didn't hold my breath because this is exactly the type of episode I expected it to be. The main focus of this episode was about a new painting the big boss of the ad company had put up in his office. Everyone is curious about the painting, and an adventurous group of thrill seekers goes up there and sneaks in to take a peek. One of the perpetrators, a secretary, is fired over this transgression. But then she comes back after appealing to another one of the company's bigwigs. Thrilling stuff. Truly.

That's sarcasm by the way.

Another story line for this episode revolved around one of the firm's account managers who also doubles as a fiction writer. He gives one of his stories to a coworker to read over - and the coworker then invites him to dinner with his wife. When the writer comes to the coworker's house, they eat dinner and talk. More thrilling stuff! The only interesting thing about this whole plot line is that it seemed as if the coworker dude was displaying homoerotic tendencies towards the writer guy. Scandalous! Oh yeah, and Don Draper's wife finds out that he has been cheating on her, which is probably like the biggest event that's happened on the show so far.

That's basically how the entire show has gone so far. Little office dramas. Some minor character spats. A lot of characters fuck a lot of other characters. The show sounds boring, and I know I like to poke fun of it at times, but it really isn't that bad. Despite the fact that it can be dull at times, I am genuinely interested in these characters. The acting on the series is strong, and although it seems like nothing is happening half the time, the 45 some minutes always inexplicably seems to fly by each time I watch an episode of this. It's weird. I'm just waiting for it to really get good. This has got to happen at some point, right? I mean there has got to be a reason this show is so popular.

Season 4

Episode 4

Shadow Warrior

Slowly but surely I am making my way through this series. I feel like each episode of this show is very hit or miss for me. There have been some really great episodes throughout this show's run, but there have been some very boring, simple minded ones as well.

Being a huge Star Wars nut, I want nothing more than to love this show, but I just can't. It is too inconsistent for me. Visually, it never fails to impress. But as far as actual quality of episodes... meh. Hopefully this is a good one, though. From reading the episode description on Netflix, it sounds like Jar Jar Binks is going to be heavily featured here. I know most people hate him, but he never fails to amuse me.

*watches episode*

Meh sums up this episode pretty well. It wasn't amazing, it didn't completely suck. It was just okay.

Anakin, Padme, and Jar Jar return to Naboo to investigate claims that the Gungans are looking to betray the Republic by joining the Separatists and declaring war on the Naboo. Upon further investigation, our heroes discover that the leader of the Gungans, Boss Lyonie (what happened to Boss Nass?) is being controlled by the Separatists through an enchanted necklace. The necklace is removed, but before the Boss can refute his claim to war, he is stabbed and slips into a coma. Jar Jar, who looks like this new Boss, is forced to impersonate him in an attempt to keep the Gungans from joining the Separatist forces. The Gungans turn on the Separatists, capturing General Grievous in the process.

Anakin is lured into a trap and captured by the Separatists. He is ransomed for the safe return of General Grievous. The exchange is made, and the Separatists leave, their plot to destroy Naboo and lure the Gungans to their side squashed. Jar Jar is hailed as a hero, and the episode ends.

As I mentioned, it was an okay episode. It had a few funny moments, but the story line of the episode seemed to do nothing to advance the overall story arc of the Clone Wars. It didn't affect anything, and it just seemed like kind of an irrelevant happening in the grand scheme of this war. This whole episode could have never happened, and we would never have known the difference. Plus: General Grievous, the badass who the entire Republic army couldn't bring down, is captured by a group of Gungans. Really?

I had noted before watching this episode that the Clone Wars has been mainly hit or miss for me. This was definitely a miss episode. Not that it was awful or anything, it was just a bit boring and inconsequential. I am a little over the halfway point of this series, and I kind of can't wait for it to be over.

Season 1

Episode 13

"The Fix"

This was a show that everyone went nuts over in the mid 2000s, but somehow I missed out on the Heroes phenomenon and didn't start watching it until late last year. Seeing as how I have been watching it for several months now and I am only to episode 13 should tell you that I am not digging it as much as I thought I would.

I expected this to be epic, mind blowing TV that would keep me coming back for more, sort of like Lost, which I have heard this show compared to. But I just can't get into it for some reason. I don't dislike the show, I just find myself struggling to care much about it. I keep waiting for a hook of some kind to grab me and pull me in. That may still happen, but as of right now I continue to watch this show at the pace of about 2 episodes a month. Sometimes more, sometimes less.

And the sad thing is is that this is supposed to be the show's strongest season. Some of the later seasons are supposed to suck. Heroes is supposed to get worse as it progresses. If I can't get into the show now, what in the world am I going to think of the show when seasons 3 and 4 come around? I'll stick with the show for now, but if I am still feeling the same way by the end of the first season, I may consider dropping it from my rotation or taking a good long break from it for a while. We'll see what happens.

*watches episode*

I am still not particularly blown away or impressed by this show. It was just another run of the mill episode. It was... fine I guess. Nothing particularly memorable happened in it. Again, it wasn't terrible. It just wasn't very interesting to me.

I guess if there is one upside to what I have seen of Heroes up to this point it is that it seems to be building towards something special. I am willing to ride things out for a little while to see if there is some kind of a big payoff coming soon.

I really want to like this show. I truly do. But it isn't quite working for me, for one reason or another. I just feel really impatient and fidgety when I watch this, and I often find my mind wandering to other things like checking Facebook or playing on my phone. Maybe I just have to accept that this show isn't for me. Which is weird to me because I had heard so many good things about Heroes. I thought for sure I would love it. But I don't.

Season 1

Episode 5

"The Priest"

I don't really consider this a part of my TV show rotation, but I saw it pop up on Netflix and it made me realize that I still haven't finished the series. I am a fan of the basic story; I have read all of the books by Ken Breun. But I have been taking my sweet time watching all the episodes of this on Netflix. I believe it has taken me about 2 or 3 years just to get up to episode 5. Which obviously is a snail's pace. I think since this is only one season with 6 movie length episodes, I consider this more of a movie series than a TV series. So I have been using that to justify taking my time. If you compare that to the Hunger Games, which took 5 plus years to release 4 movies, than I guess I'm watching this quickly in comparison.

For those who don't know what this is about, this is a series about a drunken private detective that takes place in Galway Ireland. I was first drawn to the series because it stars Iain Glen, who plays Ser Jorah on Game of Thrones. I am a fan of this actor, and he does a terrific job here. It is a very dark show that explores a lot of touchy subjects such as molestation, violence against women, and abuse at the hands of "the institution".

On the surface Jack seems to be a rough, gruff drunkard with a tough guy demeanor, but he has a strong sense of justice and often will do whatever it takes to do the right thing, even if his methods don't necessarily follow the strict rule of the law.

Having read the books, I have a vague memory of what the story of this episode will be about, but they change so many things from the book to the TV screen that I am not sure just how accurate my memories will be.

*watches episode*

This was super good. It kind of makes me sad that there is only one more Jack Taylor left after I finish this. The episode centers around the murder of a priest. After doing some digging, Jack discovers that the priest had molested some kids when he was younger. One of the kids grew up to be a successful businessman, the other a junkie who turned into a sexual predator himself.

Obviously, he turns his attention to these two people. An intense investigation is launched. Expect lots of sex, violence, swearing, drinking, the usual kind of hard boiled Irish PI stuff. Of course, things are not as straight forward as they seem to be and the killer turns out to be a surprise that no one sees coming (well, I kinda did). The episode ends on a cliffhanger too, as something terrible happens to Jack's partner right at the very end of the episode. I seriously wanted to just go ahead and watch the final episode, but I had to restrain myself. I'm a firm believer in delayed gratification.

Great episode, great series in general. If you like a good PI story, and you like dark gritty dramas that aren't afraid to take on the seedy underbelly of the criminal element, you'd probably love Jack Taylor. I tend to not even like the detective genre, but I am a big fan of this.

Season 1

Episode 4

"The Sixteen Millimeter Shrine"

Don't let the fact that I am only on episode 4 fool you. I have been watching this show out of order for a while now. About 2 years ago I began watching the series by firing up season 1. I quickly found myself disappointed that the iconic theme song for the series didn't come along until season 2. So I skipped ahead to season 2 just solely because of the theme song. I am weird, I know. But it didn't feel like the Twilight Zone to me without it.

Now that I am done with season 2, I have gone back to season 1 to mop up the episodes that I skipped the first time through. A lot of these episodes are pretty good. Some of them are kind of lame. I can never tell what I am going to get when I fire up the Twilight Zone.

Episode 4 is next. Let's see what this one is all about.

*watches episode*

Like I had mentioned, some of these episodes can be hit or miss. I think this one was a hit. It wasn't like OMG AMAZING!1@!@ or anything like that, but I enjoyed myself. The episode is about an aging actress who is stuck living in the past. She has a movie theater in her home, and spends the majority of her days hanging out in the theater watching old movies that she had starred in in her youth. Friends and acquaintances are always trying to get her to come out and face reality, but she just won't have it.

Finally one day, the maid comes in and is shocked to find that the actress has physically entered the movie on the screen. She rushes to find someone to help, and when they come back, they beckon her to return. But onscreen, she ignores them and walks away. Lost to the real world, finally getting what it is she's wanted this whole time. To live forever on the big screen.

It was a simple episode, but it was a lot of fun. I knew there was going to be some kind of a twist at the end, but I didn't know what it was going to be. I thought she would kill herself, or the movie would come to life. Something like that. And it turns out I wasn't too far from the truth. I thought a clever twist might be that she would be cast for a movie where she'd play an actress who couldn't let go of her glorious past. That way she could live a normal life to all outside appearances but in her mind playing a role in a movie at all times 24/7. But that didn't happen.

Still, a fun episode. Sometimes I hit a poor episode when I watch this show and that turns me off to the Twilight Zone for weeks or months at a time. This one was definitely good enough to keep me watching.

Season 3

Episode 10

"New Warriors"

This has never been my favorite cartoon in the world. It is fun, and I like how Spider Man interacts with other characters throughout the Marvel universe. But the humor of the show can be a little annoying at times. Most of the episodes seem to consistent of constant fighting and obnoxious character banter. I can usually only tolerate watching one episode every week or two.

This season has been a little different. Instead of each episode being its own entity, there has been a continuing story line. Spider Man has been battling Taskmaster, trying to recruit "gifted" people to join SHIELD, while Taskmaster has been trying to recruit them to his evil cause. I'm curious to see where this is all going, and it looks like this episode may be a big turning point in the series.

*watches episode*

This was nothing to get excited over. The continuing story line continued this episode. Spider Man is training his recruits at SHIELD headquarters. He is looking to turn them into a team called - you guessed it - the New Warriors. These New Warriors are put to the test quickly when Taskmasker and his team attack the helicarrier.

This was your typical Ultimate Spider Man episode. It was basically all fighting. There were bad jokes aplenty. Like I said before, nothing to get excited over. I do like the fact that they are building up this New Warriors vs Taskmaster story arc, but at the same time I find myself tiring of it. I can see from reading the episode descriptions that it should be over soon, so at least I have some change to look forward to.

Season 2

Episode 8

"Empty Planet"

I like this show, but I am not watching it at a very rapid pace. Each episode is its owned contained story line, so there is really no reason to binge watch this or watch it quickly. I'm taking my time, enjoying it at my own pace.

Sometimes this show can be super good, sometimes super predictable. Occasionally there are episodes that can hit you hard emotionally. Most of the episodes are pretty detached and methodical, though. I'm hoping for an intense, emotional episode. Let's see what I get this time around.

*watches episode*

This was one of those detached, methodical episodes. In this one, a bomber is targeting locations that seem to be very high tech. The team assembles, and determines that this must be someone who is an anti technology activist.

More bombs go off, a new victim pattern is discovered. Clues lead our super team to a young man who believes his mother (a science fiction author who wrote a book about advanced technology and its cons) gave him up at birth. He is bombing people to get to her and send her some kind of message. To bring her book to life. He is caught at the end when he approaches his mom, who tells him that the child she gave up in her youth was a female. So there is no way that he could be hers.

Typical Criminal Minds episode. The team investigates a killer, all the leads and clue following turn out to be pointless in the end as the killer slips up and exposes himself. It was a fun episode though. They usually are. But a lot of these episodes feel like filler to me sometimes, and no way in hell will I remember this in five years. Decent episode, but it left virtually no impact on me whatsoever.

Season 3

Episode 20

"Jose Chung's "From Outer Space'"

To say that I am watching the X-Files slowly would be an understatement. I started season one over three years ago, and I am still not even through season three yet. I find a lot of these episodes to be quite boring. True, some can be really great. But the dull/boring episodes seem to far outnumber the good ones.

To me, this show majorly lacks the binge-worthy quality of so many other series' out there. Each episode is its own case, and even when there are continuing episodes I don't find them very interesting. I am toying with taking an X-Files break after season three, and possibly bumping it out of my rotation entirely in favor of something new that I (hopefully) would like more. We'll see what happens. I don't think I will ever stop the X-Files completely since it brings back so many fun memories from my youth, but I don't think I'll ever watch any faster than at my current snail's pace. A good episode here would go a long way in determining this show's fate for me.

*watches episode*

I had heard that the X-Files liked to throw in a funny episode here and there, but this is the first time I've actually seen one of them. I wasn't sure if I'd like it or not, and having seen it, I am still not sure whether or not I do.

In this episode, an author comes to interview Scully about a case involving aliens that she and Mulder had investigated so that he can write a book about it. The episode is told from many different perspectives, and often shows things that are silly and unbelievable, even by the X-Files standards. This was meant to be an off the wall episode, lighter in tone than many of the series' usual episodes.

Reading around online, it seems that this is a very popular episode, often ranked in people's top 10 X-Files episodes. I didn't hate it, but I didn't particularly like it. If this is the best the show can do, and I still don't like it... I don't know. I'm beginning to think it is time to put the X-Files on hiatus, maybe permanently. Seeing how I am almost done with season 3, this seems as convenient a stopping time as any. I've given this show 3 seasons to pull me in, and it hasn't succeeded. If I don't like the show by now, chances are I will never like it. X-Files, you had a good run (well not really) and it is time I put you to rest. It's not a you thing. It's a me thing.

Season 3

Episode 2

"We're Not From Here"

With season 8 of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia wrapped up, it is time to put How I Met Your Mother back in my rotation. Once I finish season 3 of this show, I will put this on hiatus and go back to It's Always Sunny again. Back and forth, back and forth. It's how I do things. Comedy is one of my least favorite genres, so I try to not have too many in my rotation at the same time.

It has been a while since I've seen an episode of this, but if memory serves me right, Ted and Robin are broken up? I seem to remember Ted drunkenly getting a tramp stamp in the last episode but that's about all that stands out to me. I'm sure things will come crashing back to me quickly. This is not the most overly complex show out there.

*watches episode*

I'm glad this show is back in my rotation because I enjoyed this episode a lot. What really makes the show for me is the characters. I truly like each and every person on the show, and that makes it so much more enjoyable to watch. It is just a fun show. I won't say it is "realistic," but a lot of these stories feel like they could have been pulled from real life experiences of the writers, and I like that.

This episode had a couple things happening at the same time. Robin realizing that the guy who she met on vacation that she is seeing may not be right for her. Marshall struggling with writing a personal note to Lily for her to read in case he dies (this is a thing?). Ted and Barney going out and pretending like they are tourists to pick up chicks.

Too much stuff happens to the characters over the course of this series to be believable, but as I said it does feel like some of these stories are pulled from real life experience from the writers. They are almost too clever to be completely imagined. I'll have to look it up someday. I probably won't but who knows? Regardless, great episode. I am glad this show is back. It's like being with old friends again after a long hiatus.

Season 1

Episode 4

"The Things We Do"

I have mentioned the slow pace with which I am watching the X-Files and Criminal Minds, but they don't even come close to comparing the pace at which I am watching Wentworth. I started watching this show last year some point, and I am only up to episode 4 so far. Assuming I started this around October, that means that in about give or take 7 months I have managed to watch 3 episodes of Wentworth.

It's not even that I don't like the show, because every time I watch an episode I like it a lot. It is more that I am holding myself back from getting too deep into the show because I know that once I get on a roll I am going to want to binge this because it is so good. Maybe this will be the episode that finally kicks off my binge run of the show? Could be, could be. Only one way to find out.

*watches episode*

So far, the show hasn't let me down. This is yet another episode that I have liked.

It is easy to dismiss this is as an Orange is the New Black impostor, but this isn't the case. Despite the similar setting of a woman's prison, the two shows are very different in tone. This show is a bit darker. It is more violent. It places more focus on conflict between the characters in the prison, which can get scary at times. There is not much comedy to be found here. There is lesbian sex, but its not one of the focuses of the show.

I am terrible with names, so I don't know a lot of the names of the minor characters. But the main character is named Bea. She comes to jail for... something to do with her husband. Trying to kill him? This shows you how long it has been since I've seen an episode of this. The show is told mainly from her perspective, although several of the supporting characters get episodes of their own, flashbacks and all. Bea is thrust into the middle of a conflict between two of the prison's bigger personalities - Jacs and Franky. Both want to be in control and both hate each other with a passion. And they both want Bea on their side.

This episode focused more on the conflict between those two inmates, and Bea's struggle to try to remain in the middle and not pick a side between them. But when Jacs threatens Bea's daughter in the outside world, that changes things. Other story lines this episode include a former alcoholic facing possible release who attempts to get straight. A woman busted when she attempts to smuggle drugs into the prison through her little daughter's body. A prison guard continuing the investigation of the murder of his wife (formerly another prison guard). And Jacs learning that her husband is cheating on her out in the "real world".

Great, that ought to improve her already surly disposition.

There is a lot going on with the show, and I really like it. I have yet to be impressed by an episode, so hopefully I can pick up the pace and start watching it a bit faster than I am right now. I don't see why this wouldn't happen, and soon.

Season 2

Episode 1

"It's Time to Move On"

I consider this one of the best shows in my rotation. It is fast, it is fun. Great characters. Great twists. A cliffhanger at the end of each episode. This is definitely one of the most binge worthy shows I have ever encountered. Shows like this are the reason that I watch other shows (such as Wentworth) at such a slow pace. I am surprised season 2 is out on Netflix already because it seems like I just got through with season 1. But this is fine by me as the show is a lot more fresh in my memory than it would have been if I had had to wait for a long time between seasons. Maybe now I will actually be able to catch up and watch this live on TV when season 3 comes out.

If you have never seen this before, you need to. It is about a lawyer who teaches a college course in law. She does whatever it takes to win the case and passes this information to her students. Ironically, she and the students get caught up in a murder case of their own. The students must rely on the teacher and her knowledge of the law to navigate a series of pitfalls that could expose their guilt at any time,

It's an intense, fast paced show that never gets boring. Last season ended on a whodunit as a major character was killed. So that is the main story leading into season 2. Now that this season is on Netflix I am going to start it up. No doubt I will finish with it pretty quickly, within a couple of weeks. Then I can plug something else into the rotation while I begin the long wait for season 3. Hopefully there is no 2nd season letdown!

*watches episode*

The show picked up right where it left off at the end of season 1. Fears of a letdown in season 2 are completely unfounded. The episode answered the big question that was posed to us at the end of season 2. While we know who the killer of Rebecca is, the case is far from over as everyone is so caught up in these murders that to implicate anyone in particular would be to implicate themselves. Most of the action in the episode centered around Annalise as she takes on a new case where two siblings are accused of killing their parents. A new character shows up, played by Famke Jansen (Jean Grey from the X-Men and the Russian babe Onatopp in Goldeneye). She has a history with Annalise and seems to know things about the murder that she shouldn't.

Basically all the characters are still walking on eggshells. No one knows what happened to Rebecca (some know she is dead, some think she just disappeared). They're still trying to cover up Sam's death. Things could come crumbling down at any moment. But they still must work cases and continue on like nothing is going on.

The episode ends with yet a flash forward to the future, when Annalise is found lying on the ground in her home, shot. I doubt she's been fatally wounded, but it is still a big event on the horizon. I bet the rest of this season plays up to that point, like how they played up to Sam's death and the bonfire last season.

No sophomore slump here! This show is just as good as I remember it. I don't know when the next time will be when I write a blog entry on my TV rotation, but I can guarantee you there is no way I will still be watching this when that time comes. This is a show I will binge and be over with (until season 3 comes around)  very very quickly.

---

So ends this blog entry. 19 shows were in my rotation, and I have watched 1 episode of all 19 of them. 1 of these shows I have finished completely (the Returned), 1 I have reached the end of the season and will take a break from (It's Always Sunny), 1 I am giving up on completely (The X-Files), and 3 I am nearly finished with the season and will take a break for a while when I do finish them (Survivor, Mad Men, and Jack Taylor). I will also take a break from Batman: The Animated Series when I finish season 1, since I have too many cartoons in my rotation with Spider-Man and the Clone Wars in the mix.

So that will mean that 7 spots will be opening up in the near future. I have several shows on deck to plug these holes. I have been taking breaks from House of Cards, Bates Motel, Friday Night Lights, the 100, and American Horror Story. I have new seasons of all these shows waiting in the wings ready to swoop in. I have been wanting to rewatch Better Call Saul now that I've seen Breaking Bad twice. I also want to start Walking Dead from the beginning again. I want to watch Jessica Jones on Netflix, and then follow that up with Daredevil season 2. I've been told I'd love Sherlock, so I want to watch that. I also want to see Ash vs the Evil Dead and Aquarius. But these aren't on streaming of any kind so it is proving to be difficult to find these shows to watch.

But the point is, I have an ungodly amount of shows already in my rotation, and an ungodly amount of shows waiting in the wings for me to resume again. It seems like I am never going to be caught up with having things to watch. The good news is that I have dropped Buffy and the X-Files out completely, so there are 2 extremely long shows that I don't have to worry about watching anymore. That's a sigh of relief.

Hope you enjoyed reading this and hope you don't think I am a complete psycho now for being caught up in so many shows. I need help, and fast.