Altered Carbon

I’ll start by saying I love cyberpunk and film noir, so I am a little shocked and disappointed that I didn’t give this show a chance sooner. I remember seeing advertisements along Santa Monica Blvd that looked like real people encased on the sides of bus stops, but other than that, I wasn’t really sure what it was about.

I watched the first episode a few weeks ago, and I instantly thought it was a lesser version of Dollhouse, and I was incredibly mistaken. I don’t know if one is better than the other, as I love both for different reasons. I do wonder what Dollhouse could have been had it been a Netflix show rather than Fox, but that’s a different topic for a different blog.

The first episode confused me a bit. There was a lot of information to take in, but something I learned from being a Whedon fan (though this is not a Whedon show) is sometimes you have to let a show warm up a little bit, and I found myself hooked by the third episode.

I’m going to try not to spoil anything and just go into the things I really loved about the show. One, I love, love, LOVE Dichen Lachman. I first discovered her in Dollhouse and for some reason, I expected her to just have a side role (don’t ask me why I thought that), but she was pretty integral and I loved her character. I thought the acting, in general, was done really well. I felt I cared for all the characters, be they good, bad or in-between, though aside from Rei (Dichen’s character), my favorite character is Poe, an AI inspired by Edgar Allen Poe with a fascination with humanity.

One of the things that drew me to Dollhouse was the theme of what makes one human, and Altered Carbon also asks this question, though I fell the two shows went about it in different ways. Altered Carbon is definitely more violent and sexual than Dollhouse was (and even if Whedon had made Dollhouse on Netflix, I don’t see a lot of violence and sex being his thing.) In Dollhouse, it is a secret from the world that there are dolls. Dolls are blank slates of people, people who willingly, most of the time, signed away a set amount of time to live as dolls. Who they are is wiped from their body and stored away and they are imprinted with personalities for engagements, which are usually sexual. After the engagement, they are wiped and go back to the infantile doll state. Dollhouse is all about exposing the Dollhouse exists, led by Agent Paul Ballard, played by Tahmoh Penikett, who is also in Altered Carbon. (Sidenote, learning Dichen and Tahmoh were in Altered Carbon is what made me decide to start watching.) Dollhouse is also about the client favorite, Echo, played by Eliza Dushku, starting to remember engagements even after being wiped.

Altered Carbon is more like the Epitaph episodes of Dollhouse. The technology is out there already and widely used and the world has changed. We start with Takeshi Kovacs being killed, and then he wakes up 250 (I believe) years later. Everyone has a slack, which is essentially what makes them who they are, and they can be implanted into sleeves (bodies). So long as the slack remains intact, the person can just go from sleeve to sleeve.

The concept is so fascinating to me because it really questions what makes you, well, you. Is it your body or is it something more. You inevitably get to the question of the soul. Would I still be the exact same person if I were in a different body, and what if that body had originally belonged to someone else? How would that alter my interactions with people? As the show progresses, you learn that Takeshi’s new sleeve is no accident and it does affect how he is treated.

Something else I found fascinating, and both Dollhouse and Altered Carbon touch on this, but I’m hoping maybe Altered Carbon will get a chance to explore it further, is the concept of love in the world full of dolls/sleeves. One example from Altered Carbon, as it is fresher in my mind, is a mom is resleeved, but in a man’s body. She has a husband, and when they reunite, Poe says something about love transcending all, and they do continue their relationship, despite her being cross-sleeved. In Dollhouse, a male doll in imprinted with a female personality (I can’t remember the why at this moment), but in the Dollhouse universe, multiple dolls can be imprinted with the same personality (one of my favorites was episode 4 of season 1, called Gray Hour. Echo and Sierra, Dichen’s character, are imprinted with a personality that reminded me a lot of Faith, my favorite Buffy character.) In Dollhouse it seemed more for comedic effect though. It really makes you, or at least me, think, if you love someone and they come back in a different body or their body alters in some way, would you still love them? (And I would really like to see someone reference that part of the show in an argument for the LGBT community in a paper or something.)

There are two criticisms the show had that I would like to address before I move forward. One was whitewashing and the other was violence, particularly against women. When I first watched the first episode, it did bother me that a man named Takeshi was being played by a white man. I thought if it is all about sleeves not mattering, why not make the sleeve another Asian man? From my understanding, as I did not read the book, and just learned it is based on a book, this is done intentionally, as part of his conflict and coming to terms with being an Asian man in a white man’s body. Also, aside from that, the cast on this show is quite diverse.

As for the violence, there is quite a bit of violence, and quite a bit of it done against women, and lots of naked women (though there were bits of full front naked men, which is quite surprising for an American production.) I don’t want to say it didn’t bother me because violence against women always bothers me, but I felt it was done intentionally as well. There are a lot of sex workers in this world, and they tend to get mistreated, even killed, as so long as their slack is intact, they can be given a new sleeve and continue on. For me, it made the final episode that much more rewarding to see those in power pay for what they had done (again, can’t give too much without spoilers.)

I felt both shows did an interesting job of discussing gender and class. In Dollhouse, though there are male dolls, a majority of the dolls you see are female. In Altered Carbon, though everyone has slacks, the sex workers are mainly female. You don’t see a male one until the final scenes of the finale (I hope it is just the season one finale, and not the end of the series.) In Dollhouse, as it is a secret organization, one must have a lot of money to be a client. In Altered Carbon, it is more about, even though everyone is essentially immortal, there is still a way to divide the haves from the have-nots. The Meths (I don’t know if that was short for something) are wealthy, they live in the sky, above the poor people. It made me think a bit about The Time Machine. They have more wealth than can be imagined, have the best sleeves and even clones of themselves. The show is really about how that wealth mixed with immortality causes them to lose their humanity.

There is also a relationship that felt a bit incestuous to me, but it is hard to explain it without spoilers. I will just say, there is a particular relationship that reminded me of Flowers in the Attic. I saw the film but didn’t read the book. In the film, a group of siblings, two boys, and two girls, are locked in an attic by their mom and become a family unit of sorts. As such, the oldest two, a boy and girl, become the mom and dad to the youngest two. In the book, I believe it leads to an actual romantic and sexual relationship between the two. Anyway, there is a brother-sister relationship, and I felt the sister’s love for her brother was more than just, well, brotherly. She was extremely jealous of any woman he showed interested in, and at one point she is in the sleeve of one of these women. It made her character all the more interesting, and I wonder if it had to do with them being abused and orphaned as children, and as such, having to be the mom and dad, much like the older kids in Flowers in the Attic, but that may be me just reading too much into it.

All in all, I’m glad I watched it, and I’m glad I gave it a second chance, as after watching the first episode the first time, I didn’t think I would watch it again. From what I hear, there is going to be a second season, though Joel Kinnaman may not be in it, despite playing Takeshi Kovacs, the lead character. However, in a show about people being slacks, not the sleeves they inhabit, the entire cast could change if they really wanted to do so.

The Broken Hearts Club

I find it interesting how certain things or people can come into your life with perfect timing. The other night I was randomly re-watching Queer as Folk. That show meant (and still means) so much to me. It helped me on my journey towards coming out. It was 2006 and I’d just turned 18 when I was introduced to the show by my college roommate. He was gay, and I got to ask him a lot of questions I hadn’t been able to ask before. Anyway, the show is comforting to me, but also reminds me of how I thought life would be once I came out versus how it actually was.

That same night, I watched the first episode of Santa Clarita Diet, which I really enjoyed, with a friend, and seeing Timothy Olyphant, made him think of The Broken Hearts Club, so we watched that after, as I’ve never watched it before. Sidenote, I find Timothy much more attractive now than then, not that he wasn’t attractive back then, but he’s grown finer with age.

I think I’d heard of the movie before, I just never got around to watching it. Even before I was 18 and on my own, I tried to get my hands on LGBT film and TV, I suppose in a way to seek comfort or reassurance that it was normal and everything would be ok. Around 20, right around the time I came out, this kicked into overdrive. I’d search Wikipedia and IMDB for gay films and find them and watch them. Side note, Latter Days still makes me cry because the end was finally the moment when I realized I was gay and it was ok.

It took a little bit for me to get into the film, as it is dated, to say the least, but I became intrigued when it was brought to my attention that they live in West Hollywood. For those who don’t know, so do I (two years in May), and it was interesting to see what it looked like back in 2000 (well, I imagine the film was filmed in 1999.)

A part of me wishes I had been an adult in the 90s. My friend was in his early twenties when the film came out, he saw it in theaters. He’s a wealth of random information, which proved useful as he was able to tell me where things were shot and what they were referring to if they referenced a certain movie or store. I think me wanting to be an adult (or maybe teen) in the 90s is a grass is greener on the other side situation. I mean, would I have had more fun, as I tell myself, would living in a different time somehow make me a different person?

Thanks to Queer as Folk, I longed for a core group of gay friends for a very long time, even before that, I’d longed to belong to a core group. It never really worked out for me. I was able to move in and out of friend groups, some that couldn’t stand others, but didn’t belong to one solely. I realize as I’m the common denominator in these equations, it must be me, but I never really figured it out and no one has brought it to my attention. I’ve always felt like an outsider looking in, and perhaps I manifested it through that thinking. Nonetheless, I thought I’d come out, find three gay friends and we would do everything together… and it didn’t quite work out that way.

The Broken Hearts Club reminded me of how I felt when I first started watching Queer as Folk. I related the most to Kevin, though I’ve been out almost 10 years now, I still find myself learning and trying to navigate the gay world. I relate to his naivety in falling for someone because of a hook up (which may explain why I avoid them.)

It’s fascinating, and I talked about this in the G.B.F post, but a lot of gay men come out and go through a hookup phase. Like Dennis says in the film, he is 28 and wasn’t able to be gay for 25 years, so he had time to make up for. I never had that phase, and I often wonder if that is something to be thankful for or to regret.

I think a problem with being a writer is I always have these grand ideas, as my imagination tends to run wild, and real life tends to pale in comparison. It’s odd, Queer as Folk and The Broken Hearts Club bot have a bittersweet effect on me. They comfort me, as I see it is possible to develop meaningful relationships with other gay men (not to say I haven’t done so, as I do have some close gay male friends), but I also feel in some way that I have and am wasting my youth.

One of my favorite films is Nowhere, it is this 90s film that is really hard to explain, I’ll have to re-watch it and write a post about it. Rachel True, whom I LOVE, is in the film, and she is dating a guy, but they are both bi and have an open relationship, though he wishes to be monogamous. She essentially tells him that our bodies are for connecting with other people and she wants to do that now before she is old and no one wants her anymore. That always stuck with me, though I’ve done very little to implement that philosophy into my own life.

Back in my early gay Phoenix years, my friends would joke about me being asexual, and I think that has come up here in West Hollywood too. And, in all honesty, sex scares me for a number of reasons. I’m afraid to catch something, I’m afraid I’ll be terrible due to lack of experience, I’m afraid of expecting more or growing attached, and I’m afraid of intimacy. A lot of people can have casual sex, but I’m not one of those people.

This one time, years ago, I had recently broken up with my boyfriend at the time and was hanging with some friends. One, in particular, was always flirting, and there were drinks involved and I sought solace. It started innocently enough, just touching and being close, nothing sexual, as we were in the living room and other people were around. Then it got late and it was time for bed and I went in his room with him and cuddling lead to kissing and that led to close coming off, but when it came time to, well, do it, I was so scared for some reason, I was literally trembling. I wasn’t afraid of him, I’d known him a while and found him very attractive, and he hadn’t pressured me or forced me into anything. I was just scared (and he was a gentleman about it and we just cuddled the rest of the night, which was nice.)

One may think, one doesn’t have to have casual sex, one can go on dates and whatnot, well I don’t do that either. And I just keep thinking of Rachel’s character in Nowhere and wondering if I am wasting my youth. I’m not blaming it on anyone other than myself, I don’t put myself out there or flirt or ask anyone out or any of that stuff because that also scares me. A have a lot of fear hindering my life, perhaps why I sense I’ll regret my wasted youth.

Queer as Folk made me think I’d come out and get all this attention but that was not the case (though I did get some attention.) And for some reason, despite it not happening in Phoenix, I thought it would happen here in West Hollywood upon moving here, and again, not the case (though I did get some attention.) That being said, I feel we all mature at our own pace, some slower than others. I feel that I am finally starting to learn who I am as a person. Focusing more on writing these days has also helped me to focus more on what I like about myself, what I’d like to improve upon, and what issues and insecurities I need to work through to become the best me.

This one ended up being more about me than the film, which I suppose is ok. I’ve rambled on long enough. Part of me wishes I’d watched it sooner. I wish I’d been more comfortable with being gay sooner, and in some ways, I’m not sure if I’m completely comfortable with it yet, but that’s another post for another day.

Looking

So, I’m realizing these are less reviews and more how these shows/films/video games/books made me feel, and I’m just going to stick with it.

A friend and I watched Looking back when it first aired. We’d meet up once a week at his place, watch the episode and then discuss. I LOVED the first season. The series really spoke to me for a few reasons. First, the series that really helped me on my journey to coming out was Queer As Folk (US), and I’ll likely re-watch it in the near future and write something about it. Looking reminded me a lot of QAF and made me feel how I felt when I watched QAF (more on that in a bit.) Second, I had set my plan to move to Los Angeles, and seeing gays living in a big city in California resonated with me.

The second season, I still loved the show, but I was really upset with the characters, especially Patrick. Patrick is the one I identify with the most, though I feel far removed from any of the characters, also Jonathan Groff is adorably hot (which I feel is a rare find, being adorable and hot at the same time.) With QAF, I identified most with Michael, and he is the Michael, in my opinion, of the series. I loved him and Richie, and I hated him and Kevin.

Going through the series a second time, I feel a bit differently. I still love Patrick/Richie and hate Patrick/Kevin, but I could understand Patrick’s decisions a bit more. I don’t know if having been in Los Angeles almost two years (officially two years in 16 days… how crazy) made me think differently about things (or how it would.) I finally watched the film too. I just finished watching it, and it moved me so much.

When I would critique the series, up to about yesterday, actually, I would say the thing that bugged me about the characters was they were making mistakes I felt people in their early 20s would make, not people in their late 20s and 30s. Yet, I feel completely different about it now. The mistakes they were making were relationship mistakes, and those have no age limit. Though I think Patrick shouldn’t have been a homewrecker.

I remember being more critical of the show when it first aired, and I think my friend still has this opinion, because it shows a very promiscuous and drug-friendly side of the community that I couldn’t relate to, though I was happy it had more diversity than I saw in QAF. However, I started watching before I took my LGBTV (LGBT Television) course and learned that minorities tend to be more critical (and if I’m anything, I’m critical) of portrayals they see in media, as there is less representation. Example: You can see a junkie who is white in a show/film, and that can be the only junkie, and most people will not have a problem. However, if you have one black character in a show/film and they are a junkie, that is problematic.

So, I have less issue with the sex and the drugs than I did before, because though that is not my experience, I know that is the experience of gay men out there. If you don’t believe me, by all means hit up The Chapel on a Sunday night, the dance floor is like a mini circuit party.

The movie makes me wish I’d done more to support the show so it would have continued. I don’t know what I could have done, maybe watched it more, posted more about it, I could have written this two, three years ago?

My friend felt all the characters, except Richie and Doris, were terrible people. I agree less now. I think now that they were just navigating through life, and it isn’t always going to be right or even remotely perfect.

Now onto how it made me feel. I remember the first time I watched Latter Days, I was 20 and somehow stumbled upon it in my quest to find more gay cinema. I cried like a baby at the end. It was a touching moment, but for me, it was the moment when I finally admitted to myself that I was gay, and I finally admitted to myself that one day I wanted to be in love. Watching shows like QAF and Looking remind me of that.

The end of the film made me so happy (I won’t spoil it, in case you, like me, didn’t watch it when it originally came out,) and it reminded me of that longing I have. I’m aware I stand in my own way though (when you want to be a writer, you kind of have to be self-aware). I keep people at a distant, and those who get too close I push away, so I still have some learning and growing to do, work out my inner demons and childhood traumas and such.

I feel like a cliché sometimes. It’s crazy, because even before I was out or would admit to myself that I was gay, I’d have this fantasy, and it would recur all the time. I lived in this apartment that had a front porch and a guy would walk me to my door after some date (the fantasy never included the actual date) and he’d kiss me goodnight. I was 18, and I’m 29 now (I’ll be 30 in seven months) and it has yet to happen… and now I don’t even have a damn front porch…

I feel like an anomaly among my gay friends. I don’t hook up. The last (official) date I can remember being on happened back in… 2013 or 2014… I think? Which is why I don’t relate to the characters in many gay films/shows (not that I’m actively seeking to change any of this.) I’ve been told many times throughout my life that I’m an old soul. From a young age, even before I knew I was gay, I knew what I wanted.

I don’t just want a boyfriend, I want a boyfriend that will become a husband. I want monogamy, the house, the kids, the whole nine yards, just that hetreonormative life, I suppose, and maybe I shouldn’t want it, but I do. I don’t judge anyone living differently, and I’m not saving myself for marriage or anything. I just, I don’t know, I find sex to be very intimate, so I’m not good at trying to do it casually, and part of me, which some may find very stupid, is saving myself for a relationship. I obviously can’t expect a future boyfriend/partner to do the same for me, but I find something about it to be rather romantic on my part.

I’m aware of the whole love yourself before you love somebody else thing, and I’m still working on the first part, so I’m in no rush to find someone or for someone to find me. But scenes in the show and the film pulled at my heartstrings. I couldn’t help but think, oh, that would be nice when I’d see the flirting, the hand holding, the relationship in bloom. So. Freaking. Charming.

This was definitely a series that was gone way before its time.

The Punisher

This weekend, I actually stayed in, for once, and managed to finish watching The Punisher. I’m not sure what took me so long to finally start it or why I didn’t finish it sooner, as I loved it. If not for my love of Daredevil and Elektra, I would say The Punisher is my favorite Netflix/Marvel show… but alas, it is my second favorite.

I don’t know if it is a Virgo in me or what, but I am really drawn to a tough guy who is also sensitive. When I would post that I was watching I kept referring to Frank Castle as Daddy Frank and Billy Russo as Zaddy Billy. In the end, I found myself drawn more to Zaddy Billy (as far as attraction), though I think it may be because he reminded me of a guy I had a crush on once upon a time…

Back to the review, I really enjoyed the vulnerability of both characters. The juxtaposition of them being these ruthless killers made to the moments when they were emotional and/or lighthearted just pulled me in. I felt like tearing up any moment Frank let his guard down, especially the moments he had with Karen. There was SO much tension and I can’t wait until season two (and Daredevil season three) to see what happens next.

Before Daredevil season two, I didn’t know much about The Punisher. I knew his background and I knew there was a film that didn’t do well. I like him for similar reasons that I like Elektra, they are killers and you don’t really know if they are good or bad (I suppose it depends on who you ask). I consider them both to be tragic heroes, and that is probably way I’m drawn more to Billy than Frank. Frank is to Daredevil as Billy is to Elektra (minus the romantic/sexual relationship).

I also loved Dinah. She was such a bad ass and I loved that she was relentless in achieving her goal. Her relationship with Billy also reminded me of the Daredevil/Elektra relationship. I don’t want to give away spoilers for anyone who may be reading this who hasn’t watched, but I’ll just saw both know more about the other than they let on. And even though Billy is this pretty boy, and one would expect him to be some type of player, he would open up to Dinah and show this strange emotional side that I found charming.

The one thing I didn’t like about the show, which is a bit nitpicky on my part, was the fucking kids. So, early in the series, Frank teams up with a guy named Microchip, much like himself, the world thinks Microchip is dead. This was an excellent pairing, as it gave some comedic elements and, it warmed me to Frank to see him bond with someone. But Microchip’s fucking kids, his son in particular were annoying as fuck.

Since his family doesn’t know he is alive, he spies on them, and from time to time has Frank go check on them. His annoying ass son is rude and angry, and towards the end of the season, he and Frank have this really touching moment where he reveals the reason he is such a little bastard… only for him to go right back to being a little bastard shortly after, which results in him putting his entire family in danger. It reminded me a bit of Gabe’s annoying ass from The Walking Dead: A New Frontier.

Other than that, and a few times when the gore was a bit much for my taste, I thoroughly enjoyed the season. I’m hoping Elektra returns in a future season of one of these Netflix shows (also, I love that she is the focal point of the thumbnail for The Defenders), as I’m curious how she would interact with Frank. Better yet, if there is another season of The Defenders, can we exchange Iron Fist with him?

And before I forget, I really enjoyed the commentary on veterans thorough the season. It is not unknown that veterans return from war and don’t know what to do with themselves for a number of reasons, such as PTSD, or not being able to find a decent job. The support group scenes were excellent and showed lots of different sides of the coin, some coping well and some not coping at all. There were certain storylines I didn’t expect to develop, i.e. Lewis, but then I was surprised that his story didn’t climax with Frank’s, Dinah’s and Billy’s, but, again, small nitpicky thing. If you haven’t watched it and are a fan of the other Netflix shows, I don’t know what you’re waiting for.

Sorry Not Sorry

I’ll start this by saying I’m not a religious person. I don’t necessarily believe in destiny, but I do believe in the Universe and each of us having an optimal path in life that we can achieve if we work hard enough.

That being said, I’ve been focusing on myself a lot more these days. That may sound funny coming for a self-proclaimed selfish person, but I’ve been thinking more about bettering myself and putting myself on that optimal path. I believe when you open yourself to the Universe, saying you are open and ready for change and the next step, It will deliver.

I’ve started getting back into writing and I’ve started reading again, which has been great. Growing up, if I wasn’t playing video games, I either had my nose buried in a book, or I was writing. It feels good to get back to that place, as I’d lost my way for a while. Typically, I’d read fiction, but I have been stumbling upon non-fiction these days. The most recent, which I just finished a few minutes ago (and started Wednesday or Thursday) as Sorry Not Sorry by Naya Rivera.

Glee was not my thing… at first. I am a rather contrary person. I will not like something solely because it is popular at the current moment. Back when Glee first was on the air, my friends were obsessed. My twenty-something friends. In the show’s defense, I hadn’t given it the time of day, I just knew if there was a bandwagon, I didn’t want to be on it.

The first song I heard from Glee that made me rethink things was “Rumour Has It / Someone Like You.” I loved it and I loved Naya Rivera. A short time later, I was sick around Christmas time (Christmas time tends to be the time of the year I get sick for some reason), and had nothing better to do, so I watched my roommate’s copy of Glee season one. By the time I got to “I Say A Little Prayer,” I was hooked. Santana was naturally my favorite character, as she reminded me of me. By the time I started watching, I believe the show was in season three (if not further), so a bit of the hype had died down, making me more comfortable to become a fan.

Watching Glee always hit some spark in me, as I wish I had the talent to sing and dance as everyone displayed on the show. In another life, with another skill set, I would imagine myself coming on the show to play Santana’s equally sassy, younger brother, or cousin or something (Naya is ever so slightly older than I).

Naya sings a majority of my favorite songs from the show and I instantly became a fan. When I heard she was writing a book, I knew I would read it… some day. Well, that day came this week.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book, and it found its way to me in a time when I’m going through my own journey of transformation (again, I believe you Universe provides to you what you put out to It.) I remember a time when I started to see more of Naya in things, such as interviews, rather than playing Santana, and I began to wonder if it was just Santana I liked, or if I liked the actress as well. Reading the book helped me realize I liked them both.

Reading about someone’s struggles and triumphs is quite inspirational, as it makes me feel I can do it too. Maybe one day someone will be writing a blog about how my memoir made the feel?

She talks about so many things. Love, childhood, marriage, work. It was entertaining and informative. I recommend it, especially if you are/were a fan of Naya’s. Reading it is yet another push I need towards chasing after my own dreams. One day I want my own version of Sorry Not Sorry. One day.

Big Brother S19 Episode 28

I’m losing interest in this show. I was so excited to get back into it, but seeing Paul control everything isn’t interesting to me.

The past few weeks, it has been the same thing. Someone wins HOH and they say they are ready to make “big moves” and then they vote out their target, who just so happens to be Paul’s preferred target. The annoying thing about it is, other than Jessica and Cody, these targets haven’t even been a threat to the HOH. Rather than strategically voting people out to strengthen their game, the HOHs are voting people out to strength Paul’s. I wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up winning, as if he were to go up to someone and tell them he was putting them up for eviction and they were leaving, at this point, I feel they would gladly go along with it.

The only reason I may continue to watch is to see the house finally implode when they have no more outsiders to target. I wish someone had decided to go after the biggest threat (Paul) rather than the weakest targets, as the more I watch, the less interesting it gets, as it feels Paul is being groomed to win.

One last note, I did get a bit emotional when Mark talked about being introduced to Big Brother by his mother, and how she passed away (much as I did when Jessica talked about her dad’s passing and him introducing her to Big Brother), as my mom introduced me to the show (she passed almost a year and a half ago) and watching reminds me of her.

Defenders

I powered through Iron Fist so I could watch Defenders and have it make sense. I’m glad I did, as a lot of what happened in Defenders picked up where Iron Fist left off. Again, I’ll try to avoid spoilers, but this is all stream of conscious, so, there may be some.

First of all, I commend the writers, as I can only imagine how difficult it must have been to blend these four different heroes, all with their own shows that had their own styles. I thought it was done really well.

Second, ELEKTRA!!!! I was very excited for her return. Those who know me know she is my favorite Daredevil character, favorite Marvel character, favorite comic book character, hell, she is one of my favorite fictional characters. I loved the homage to her original costume. I also really enjoyed the Jill Valentine tease (Resident Evil 5) they did with her… and I’m already searching for a black trenchcoat with red lining.

It was interesting to see the characters interact with one another. Up until this point, Claire was the only one (I believe) that knew them all. It felt a little exposition-y at times, them explaining powers and all, (and maybe I just felt a certain way as I had just watched Iron Fist and did not need/want to hear him tell his damn story again) but I was able to live with it.

This is likely my bias, but I felt Elektra stole the show. I couldn’t help but compare her to Harld Meachum. Had she lost part of her soul upon resurrection as he had? I also felt a bit of Illyria tease with her as well. She was a vessel, a weapon. Black Sky was now inhabiting Elektra’s body, much like Illyria infected and took over Fred’s in Angel. I felt so bad for Matt when he realizes she was brought back to life and his efforts to get her to remember him were endearing.

I also really enjoyed her kicking Iron Fist’s ass multiple times.

Some people had issues with the pacing, but I felt it moved well, especially considering it was only eight episodes. It brought the characters together and got them fighting (something I wish Iron Fist had done more efficiently).

I was a bit confused by The Hand. Their goal didn’t make sense, the more I think about it, and reminded me too much of Buffy, which Dawn being the Key Glory needed to get back home. I wanted to see them do more, as a majority of the time, they just stood around while Elektra kicked ass.

Defenders ending with me wanting more. It’s a catch 22, I enjoyed the series and binged it quickly, but now I have to wait for the next entry, be it Daredevil, Punisher, etc. I’m also excited to see if there will be any other shows, perhaps Daughters of Dragon? I read somewhere that Defenders is looking to big Netflix’s biggest premier, so only time will tell.

Iron Fist

I’ll make this short and sweet. I was not a fan of Iron Fist. It is hard to pinpoint one specific thing, I just wasn’t able to really get into it. I didn’t like Danny, I didn’t like Colleen, for most of the show I didn’t like the Meachums. The characters I liked were characters from the other shows, like Claire and Hogarth (Hogarth’s one liners slayed me), though I really loved Davos and Ward Meachum became my favorite character. I’ll try my best not to put in any spoilers.

It felt like there was a lot of story crammed into one season. Maybe it is my love of Buffy that clouds my judgement, but I like the formula where a big bad is introduced in the beginning of the season and the gang works their way towards the big showdown at the end of the season. In Iron Fist, I couldn’t tell who was meant to be the main adversary, the Meachums? Gao? Bakuto?

I found it hard to relate to Danny or care about what he was going through. A lot of people describe him as whiny, and I don’t know if that’s what I saw. He just seemed juvenile for someone who studied under monks for 15 years. At the beginning, it seemed the season would be about his fight against the Meachums to prove his identity and get his company back, but that was quickly resolved (I’ll dive a bit more into that later). I really, really did not like when Danny was in the hospital. It slowed the pacing down way too much for my tastes.

The season was enjoyable when Danny had purpose, which was to stop Gao. I started to really get invested in the show, and dare I say, start to like Danny and Colleen… and then her sensei, Bakuto, popped up, and I started not liking the show again. It was a sudden change in direction, which made it difficult to determine, ok, who is the real threat here? Things became interesting when Davos hit the scene (his personality is what I expected and wanted from Danny), but at that point, I really just wanted the show to be over so I could watch Defenders and have it all make sense.

The evolution of Ward and Harold Meachum fascinated me. Ward is my favorite character of this series, as he is so complex and I felt he had a great story arc. Harold was interesting because you know he is a villain from the beginning, but the whole thing about coming back from the dead and each time losing a piece of one’s soul was intriguing to me, it made it interesting to watch him interact with other characters, especially those close to him (poor Kyle), as there was so much tension. Would he snap? And if so, how far would he go?

A lot of the character motivations felt confusing, especially Joy’s. She was very back and forth, and it seemed to be for the sake of moving the story forward rather than from her character’s own doing. Example, towards the beginning, there is a scene where Danny confronts her and her brother, she tells him they are not his family and they do not want him there. They are trying to keep the company from him, despite him being the rightful heir. Everything that connects him is gone, except one clay creation Joy has… and she gives it to him… WHY?!? Another time, later in the season, she sides with her father over her brother, which makes absolutely no sense, especially considering the previous episode, she is begging her brother to let her in on what’s going on.

The other three shows had a nice flow to them, and I may not have liked all the characters, but I at least liked the main one. That being said, I’m always willing to give a show a chance, so if there is a second season, I’d be open to watching it.

Big Brother

I recently started watching Big Brother again. The last time I devoted myself to this show, I was in high school. My mom introduced me to the show, as she introduced me to others, like Alias. That was at least 10 years ago.

I was reintroduced to the show while in San Diego visiting some friends. We watched two episodes, and I was hooked all over again, plus it reminded me of my mom, which was nice. With the wonders of the internet, I rarely watch TV shows while they are airing, I’m a Netflix kinda guy, but I came out of my room every Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday to watch Big Brother.

I was team Jody. I’m more a fan of Jessica than Cody, but he won my vote by association. I was sad to see Jessica leave last week and Cody leave this week (as well as Elena, as she was my second favorite in the house). Now I am rooting for Mark, because he is the only one left that isn’t in the Paul alliance.

Granted, I haven’t watched in about a decade, but it seems odd that the whole house created an alliance so quickly, and it also makes the show less interesting, as each week, Paul seems to decide who is going home, and that person goes home. I’m hoping things will be more interesting once the alliance has to turn on each other, but even then, I wouldn’t be surprised if Paul just said X, you’re going up and you’re going home, and they just said, OK.

That being said, I already sunk my teeth in, so I’ll continue to watch because I want to know how it ends.

Being Mary Jane

I stumbled upon this show one night thanks to Ray and Ricky. I heard about it before and heard a bit of controversy about it, but it hadn’t peaked my interested. Truth be told, I was never that big a fan of Gabrielle Union. I always thought she looked mean and angry and she always played mean characters, it is silly to judge an actress by the roles she plays, I know.

However, they were watching an episode as I came home from work one day and I was instantly intrigued. I discovered it was on Netflix and sat down and watched the first season. I fell in love with the show instantly for several reasons.

First, I love Gabrielle Union as Mary Jane. I couldn’t see another actress in the role. To her credit, I only watcher her earlier teen roles, and then Deliver Us From Eva, and wasn’t aware of the great range of emotions she can give to a role. Mary Jane is strong and successful but also vulnerable and, at times, less than smart. I love the complexity of the character.

Second, I love, love, LOVE Mara Brock Akil, the series creator. For those who don’t know, she also created Girlfriends and The Game. Girlfriends was everything to me. It was the black LA answer to Sex and the City. I watched the first three seasons of The Game, all that Netflix has to this day, but wasn’t as big a fan of it as Girlfriends. I love that her shows are about successful black men and women and she weaves in discussions about race and other important social issues in all of her shows.

Third, the show inspires me, just as Girlfriends inspired me. When Mary Jane is helping her niece to eat better and lose weight, it made me think more about the food I put into my body. Seeing Mary Jane bust her ass for her job and her career makes me want to give my all to my writing and the pursuit of my career.

Now, Mary Jane is a bit messy; too messy for some people, but it just makes me love her even more. Even the most put together people, even the most successful, have shit to deal with in their lives. Everyone has issues. It is all about how we work through them.