It seems it’s hard to suppress the New Zealand accent.
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Dexter: New Blood is building to the finale that the original series should have had.
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I’ve just finished Superman & Lois (or Middle-Aged Smallville as I like to call it) on iPlayer. Overall I really enjoyed it. It was a really good modern interpretation of Superman and I like that they had advanced his story beyond where we’ve seen it on screen before showing Clark as a husband and father.
However I do have one gripe with the handling of a particular character which is a pretty big spoiler so…
Summary
The first episode sees Superman fight ‘the Stranger’ who is later identified as ‘Captain Luthor.’ As the series progresses we learn that he was from a parallel Earth, which makes sense as this is technically a Supergirl spin-off which already had its own Luthor. But the stroke of absolute genius was that he was a heroic Lex Luthor who fought against a rogue Superman. Not only have they found a way to give this Superman his own Luthor but they’ve found a fascinating new angle to explore; what’s the difference between a heroic and a villainous Luthor? Is it simply that heroic Luthor was right about Superman or do they diverge in other places too? And then add on the fact that on his Earth Luthor was married to Lois and I honestly believe the dynamic between these character could have sustained multiple seasons…
… if they hadn’t pulled a second twist and revealed it wasn’t Lex Luthor after all but John Henry Irons, aka Steel.
Steel is fine as a character and they do some cool stuff with him but he really didn’t need to be from another Earth and his presence really didn’t need to be a twist. Especially when the decoy was so much more interesting.
And the reason we think Steel is ‘Captain Luthor?’ A glitchy AI who apparently calls everyone ‘Captain Luthor.’
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I think it was just to wrong foot the audience. The series does…later…make clear that they are still very aware they spun out from Crisis on Infinite Earths where this very Lois and Clark had a face off with…
That’s the risk of a deception though, on this occasion I think the ‘fake’ character was more interesting than the one we got.
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I’m curious as to how they’ll approach this, given there isn’t really a single story in the games, more a general lore.
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I’ve been on a run of old adult cartoons that I forgot how much I liked. The Simpsons, King of the Hill, South Park, Futurama Family Guy and Archer. All classics for me. I’ve been also avoiding Chuck Lorre shows. They’re all the same! He’s like the Woody Allen of sitcoms. Too mean spirited.
Yes… The finale would have been appropriate 10 years ago, but don’t you feel that
Spoiler
all this ‘kill your idol’ or [anti-]hero thing is getting a bit same old same old, now?
I also did not like how the writing used Harrison as a tool, screwing him up even more in the same move. The ending is hardly a redemption for him. Bishop too is not done any justice, bei g robbed from her closure.
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I tried a few spy shows, and here are those that stood out:
- The Bureau (French ‘Le bureau des légendes’)
Masterful, probably the best spy show ever. Could not recommend it enough.
- Deutschland 1983 - 1986 - 1989
Very good show that follows a German spy-by-accident from East Germany in the 1980s. A very good surprise.
- Fauda
Follows the missions and personal lives of the members of an elite Israeli counter-terrorism unit (the lead actor being himself a veteran from such a unit). This is probably the most violent show I have ever watched. Not in terms of graphic violence, but it’s a show made in a country at war, about their war, and the violence depicted feels all too real and all too endorsed by the show at times.
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Summary
At least they addressed the problems of the original ending and did what they should have done back then: kill Dexter. It also points out that Dexter has no problem killing anyone and only targets killers because of the code. He really just likes killing and it breaks the idea of Dexter being an anti-hero. He’s just a killer and deserves his fate.
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Midnight Mass (Netflix)
I have seen the first fourth episodes, and yes, I am a fan of Mike Flanagan, but…
… so far this is so magnificently great that I am completely and utterly mesmerized.
I will review this after completing the series. But man, this is absolutely fantastic.
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Spoiler
I don’t dispute that Dexter deserved his fate. I find it unfair that Harrison was used as accessory to his fate. That was unnecessary, and contradicts Harrison’s moral epiphany before shooting, when he realises that Dexter killed his beloved wrestling coach. Killing another person in cold blood just after this, even a ‘bad’ person, is not great.
I think having Bishop end Dexter, after shooing Harrison away like she did, would have been a more fitting solution. She had earned it, she was in her role, and he could have had a ‘suicide by cop’ rather than a cold blood killing that inevitably taints the shooter.
As it is, the ending makes me sorry for both Harrison and Bishop. I believe the reason the showrunners used Harrison for the killing is because they entertain the hope of a Harrison spin-off (which, I read, they do entertain, that’s not just me guessing)
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Just finished Squid Games.
I can see why this has become a phenomenon. The themes of poverty and desperation are universal, the imagery is striking, the cast and characters are great and the games themselves are thrilling and inventive.
As our media becomes increasingly IP driven I’m genuinely glad to see an original idea from South Korea is taking the world by storm. It gives me hope for creativity and audiences.
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That looks nothing like the Bowie version, but I’m still intrigued nonetheless.
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Oscar Issac being in this has me intrigued.
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First episode of new show" Somebody Somewhere": promising, I’ll be waiting for the next.
Just finished watching After Life - Season 3. The final season.
Funny, sad, profound. Make sure you have tissues handy for the sad scenes.
You’re in for a treat
The Expanse - Season6
To be honest I felt shortchanged. Everything gets wrapped up so quickly and neatly I felt my head spinning. I wanted it to be more than what it obviously was but sadly for me, it fell flat.
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