What are you watching right now?

[DragonFox91]

More college gymnastics. It’s the National Tournament

I know I post a lot of superhero stuff, but the truth is, I wouldn’t describe myself as a big fan. I’m more into other kinds of sci-fi & fantasy, plus animation. But my friend is a big fan & gives me them to watch & so I do.

Suicide Squad, the extended cut
Saw the original cut in theaters. This cut seems to get rid of most of the songs, which I kind of missed, b/c the original cut seems to play songs non-stop so in that way felt like a different movie & makes me want to watch the original cut again.
This movie is widely disliked, but I’m not sure why? I liked both cuts & thought they were fine enough.
I think a lot of people were disappointed the Joker isn’t in it more & his role seems rather pointless. But I like his scenes. It’s not that Jared Leto is a bad Joker, it’s that he’s not in it enough. (but all the tattoos & piercings are dumb). (Also I have heard rumors DC has wanted to kill Batman & Superman to make room for Batgirl & Supergirl. I do wonder if they wanted to kill the Joker to make room for Harley Quinn, but that’s just speculation on my part)
Most people will praise this movie’s Harley Quinn, but I thought the true star was Will Smith as Deadshot. I’ve watched the cartoon SS movies & Deadshot’s becoming one of my favorite lesser-known DC characters. I’d love to see Will Smith come back as Deadshot.
My biggest disappointment with the movie is Amanda Waller. In other interpretations, she’sa imposing, corrupt, mastermind, & I find her very interesting. In this movie, she doesn’t really have much of a personality. I barely notice her at all when I first saw the movie in theaters, which was my introduction to her.
I think one way to improve the movie is there’s too many characters in the Squad, so should’ve been reduced. I was watching some of the Blu-Ray’s bonus features, & it comes across they were just throwing characters in to meet diversity quotas. I think this should’ve been the Squad in the movie: Deadshot, Harley, Diablo, Captain Boomerang, Rick Flagg (the leader). This squad still is 3/4 diverse. (Deadshot Black, Harley woman, Diablo Hispanic). (Captain Boomerang is too much of a well-known Squad character to cut him & you can’t really race swap him.) Then you could’ve race-swapped Rick Flagg to get one more quota in. With a Smaller squad you can focus more on each one. This is why in most movies / show, the principal cast of heroes is usually about 4-5.
Anyways, I did like this movie. It just feels like it has a lot going on & a bit more development (both by characters & another re-write or 2) was needed. I recommend this if you like superhero movies. It’s really not as bad as a lot of people think.
I give this a 4/5


Mandalorian Season 3
I loved the 1st 2 seasons but Season 3 is a GIANT step back. It’s Last Jedi bad. Episode 1 erases everything the past few things Season 2 did (too much to list here). Then Episode 2 erases everything Episode 1 set up in 10 seconds. Episode 3 was an episode from another show. Episode 4 was filler. Episode 5 was just boring. I’m either taking a long break or being done with this show completely. It’s not worth my time & I’m not sure the "creators" really care either

Searching
This is a movie about a missing persons case. It’s told entirely on computer screens, news casts, smartphone screens, webcams, etc. I love creativity & thought this was an excellent idea & it worked very well. The twists & turns are great. I loved the theme of family & calls for the bond between parent & child. This one’s a father & daughter (& mother to lesser extent). I liked how the movie calls people out for expressing sympathy at the time of tragedy when previously they had been cold & unfriendly to the victim. Only negative side is, & this isn’t something I usually criticize, I thought the acting was very flat. I recommend this movie if you like anything creative or true crime.
5/5

 

[DragonFox91]

The Boys TV show
Be warned: this is R, borderline X, rated. But it’s about what superheroes would probably be like if they really existed: corrupt, narcissist, & constantly bending the rules. I’m not the biggest superhero genre fan, so I find a take like this welcome. The shows just good in general. B/c the ‘heroes’ are corrupt, it makes them easy to root against & not like. Shows & movies are more interesting when you can feel emotion about the characters, & that’s definitely what you get w/ this & why I like it.
The show makes fun of politics. It makes fun of both sides. I find that very welcome in an age where it’s non-stop attacks on the Right that’s supposed to be comedy but is just someone saying their opinion. This show doesn’t do that. I’m sure a lot of the narrative is supposed to be an attack on the Right, but I find it VERY applicable to the Left as a Right-winger watching it.
I have season 2 so I’m going to watch that as well, but I’ve heard season 3 is bad so not sure how interested I am in checking it out.
I recommend this if R rating doesn’t bother you & you’re looking for a more serious take on superhero shows / movies.

Footnote about the Boys season 1:
There’s one episode where they make fun of evangelicals, but I didn’t mind even tho I consider myself an evangelical. I didn’t mind b/c the show makes fun of both sides. I also found it a poor mockery of evangelicals b/c the stereotypes were so bad. For example, we wouldn’t just baptize people standing in line but would make them take classes, ask for commitments during the classes, etc. I did find the ending cringe tho when the character we’re supposed to like goes on a rant about how God thinks eating shrimp is a sin & Jesus’s death on a plank didn’t do anything. I was really hoping this character would stay a believer. I think having her be a Christian (but a very flawed one) would be more interesting than her just flat-out rejecting Christ. One Christian in a series where all the other characters don’t believe in God is called giving your characters character & making them dynamic. Instead now she’s just a flatter character. (I think a couple other characters are potentially Christian, but they say very little about what they believe)

Footnote 2: I don’t think Christians s/b opposed to R rated material or even material that’s belittling Christians. I think it helps learn. For example, as I said, the Christian stereotypes seemed incorrect but I think it shows clearly that’s what non-believers think of us. & I think it’s good not to be sheltered – for most of human history, we didn’t live such sheltered lives like we do now. Violence, gore, corruptness, etc. exists. I also think it’s very important to know what material is out & why it should be rejected or accepted.

NHL Hockey Ducks vs Avalanche. Ducks ahead 4-2 late but Avs win in OT

College softball. Just trying to watch sports I don’t usually, like w/ gymnastics before

The Dr Strange Cartoon movie
So I actually have never seen the MCU Dr Strange movie although I have seen him in his other MCU movies. This was my introduction to his origin. This movie can be slow at times, but the good parts are good & the action is easy to follow. My favorite parts are when he’s training - The wall he’s building only exists until he can get rid of the walls in his mind. I liked this movie’s addition or horror elements far better than the Dr Strange Multiverse movie (which I thought was completely terrible). I recommend this if you like Marvel in general (the cartoon shows, comics, etc).
4/5

 

[Divide]

 

[MehGuy]

God's Not Dead clips on Youtube, lol.

 

[Niels]

 

[Niels]

 

[peaceful-forest]

Earlier I was watching a YouTube channel called Life Plus Cindy. I used to watch her Sims channel; she hasn't uploaded anything on that channel for months. She has had dramatic things happen in her life this year and last year. It's sad.

 

[Niels]

 

[DragonFox91]

Had some Golf on in the background

Had some SportsCenter on in the background – haven’t watched ESPN talk shows in a long time. NBA + NHL playoffs going on

NBA Playoffs Game 3: Celtics at Hawks. Hawks won

MLS: Fire at Atlanta, Atlanta won on a last minute goal

The Conjuring
This is a haunted house / exorcism movie. Like w/ other movies I’ve seen in this genre, the more rational scares work better, like sleep-walking, things just crashing to the floor for no reason, some characters being able to see the ghost & other not, etc. than the characters being thrown across the room & actually fighting the ghost.
But those what I’m calling rational scares, work so good in this movie. This movie does them really well.
The one thing I didn’t fully understand w/ this movie is the point of the doll. Was she the ghost? I don’t think so, so why include her?
I watched this b/c I heard there’s a whole franchise based on this that’s really taken off the past few years. I recommend this if you like haunted house / exorcism movies.
I give this a 5/5

Descendants
I’ve been wanting to watch this! This is the movie where the children of 4 classic Disney villains try to redeem themselves. It’s very lovey-dovey & that’s what I liked about it! At first I didn’t like the real villains were so cartoony, but as the movie went along, it grew on me.
My biggest criticms w/ the movie is that all the male characters are buffoons or dumb jocks, other than the prince. I’m so tired of movies (Disney especially) doing that, it’s like every time a male character is introduced now it’s ‘yeah, he’s gonna be an idiot.’ There’s also the ‘forget what your parents taught you’ message in this which also I get tired of.
But I don’t want to be overly critical of the messages the movie’s pushing. I did find it entertaining & am now curious about the 2 & 3. I recommend this if you like Disney Channel shows, b/c that’s what this pretty much is.
4/5

George of the Jungle
I saw this growing up once & loved it & rewatched it now. It’s still pretty good, not good as I remember, but it’s funny & characters are likable.
4/5

 

[.Mikha'el.]

Mary, Queen of Scots

 

[RileyG]

Random videos on YouTube

 

[RileyG]

Mary, Queen of Scots

The one with Margot Robie? It's a good movie!

 

[RileyG]

There was this YouTuber I used to watch. She no longer produces content on her main channel, but she was a vlog channel. I thought I would see what's new. Her husband left her last month. She struggles with a personality disorder and experienced abuse as a minor. She still practices witchcraft though...

Pleasant sims? Cindy?

 

[peaceful-forest]

Pleasant sims? Cindy?

Yes, her. It was called Life Plus Cindy. I enjoyed her vlog videos, but an incident has happened and she has decided to stop doing vlogs. She has either deleted or made private all her videos. She had a livestream recently where she explained what happened and she answered people's questions.

 

[.Mikha'el.]

The Boleyns: A Scandalous Family

 

[DragonFox91]

Batman vs Superman
Rewatch, but 1st time seeing the extended cut.
I really don’t understand why people don’t like this movie.
Batman & Superman are a little off-character (Superman a lot like Batman usually is; Batman is a little more vengeful) but Superman still tries to be heroic & do the right things & say the right things, Batman’s just going thru a particularly hard time in his life.
I really like Lex in this version. It doesn’t bug me he doesn’t look like Lex usually does because he can’t go toe-to-toe with Superman anyways, so why not make him more of a ‘Mark Zuckerberg type’. Personality-wise, you also do lose his calm, calculating coolness, but him being a little zanier adds to his insanity.
It also doesn’t bug me they jumped right into Batman vs Superman. People know who Batman & Superman are. Why would we need another Batman origin story or what would a random Batman vs Riddler (For example) story accomplish when we’ve seen that before? It DOES seem some stuff necessary was skipped over (the Joker killing Robin for example) but overall it works fine jumping right from Man of Steel to Batman vs Superman.
I prefer this to most pre Endgame Marvel movies TBH & recommend this if you like superhero movies & want a more serious tone.
I give this a 4/5

Alone
Pretty simple story of a woman chased by a man in the woods, exactly what I was looking for. Favorite parts when he’s chasing her after she leaves his cabin, him calling her in the woods at night, & when she’s hiding in his car. Those parts make the movie.
4/5

Howl’s Moving Castle
Hard for me to rate this movie. I thought the 1st half was slow with lots of build-up, & then the 2nd half is much quicker, but I think I actually enjoyed the build-up more. I love the boy dressing up as a wizard! I like the scarecrow! I like the Witch after she’s been de-spelled! I thought this movie was missing the heart you find in most Studio Giblhi movies, which is disappointing because it’s about Howl’s heart. I recommend this if you like Sudio Gibhli movies.
4/5

 

[DragonFox91]

 

[Niels]

I'll bet their owners talked through the security cameras for some of these. My old cat was similarly talkative and interested in the camera whenever I would do that. He was fluffy too, if not quite as much, and a tabby. More like a Maine Coon, whereas these are Ragdolls.


Speaking of fluffy tabbies, I keep rewatching this one. It has become one of my all-time favorite cat videos:

 

[angelsaroundme]

 

[DragonFox91]

NBA Playoffs: Denver @ Phoenix Game 4: Phoenix won to tie series 2-2

Psych Season 3: My friend’s having me watch this show. I like the wit & humor. I like the chemistry. But some of the cases get confusing for me. Episodes that stand out to me as good: high school reunion, roller skating, camp, Christmas. I didn’t like the Coast Guard episode & don’t care for the episodes where Shawn’s dad is the focus.


Justice League: The New Frontier
My DVD skipped 5 minutes about ½ way in so I feel cheated. The movie feels like a long TV episode. I also get tired of origin stories & that’s what this is.
I did like the ending action scene & the ending montage with the hope of heroes over JFK’s speech. There’s some interesting ideas in this, like the fall of the Justice Society & the remaining heroes having a negative public perception due to communism fears, but those ideas are glossed over too quickly. I recommend this if you’re a DC fan (of the comics & shows).
3/5

Avalon High
This was a rewatch. It’s a Disney Channel Original Movie about high schoolers who are reincarnations of King Arthur characters. It’s okay. Some things are dumb. As a football fan, my favorite scenes were the football game scenes & there’s a few of them in here. I recommend this if you like Disney Channel shows
4/5