suj's Reviews

The Winchesters (2022–2023)

3/10

Completely negates 15 seasons of Supernatural

22 October 2022

I invested a decade & a half of my life in Supernatural. Turns out, everything we learned about John & Mary over the course of 15 seasons is apparently a lie. Now, we're going to learn "the real story." It's an insult to the fans.

The Scooby-Doo episode of Supernatural was meant to be a one-off parody. Now, it's the entire show. Hot girl, nerdy girl, straight-laced guy, hippie guy, and I guess that leaves Ada as Scooby (rude). But here they all are, riding around in a van, wearing bell bottoms, chasing ghosts. Every time they excorsise a demon, I expect it to say, "and I would have gotten away with it, too, if not for you meddling kids!" before the smoke shoots out if his mouth.

Disappointing, to say the least. Watch this if you're a teen with no knowledge of the source material because you weren't born in 2005 when Supernatural premiered. Fans should steer clear.

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Astrid and Lilly Save the World (2022)

7/10

Satire, spoof, and empowerment

20 February 2022

For the people saying the show is just fat-shaming, you obviously haven't really watched it. Yes, Astrid & Lilly get picked on by their classmates, but they refuse to buy into the negativity. They constantly uplift one another.

For the people saying the show is not funny, I think you may be missing the point that it is spoofing teen shows. They are satirizing familiar tropes. The principal & teachers kowtow to the popular kids instead of mentoring them. The "nerdy" teachers are trying to get in good with the "popular" teacher. It's funny!

Is it the best show on TV? No. But it's entertaining & silly, and fun.

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Filthy Rich (2020)

7/10

I'll give it a shot

29 September 2020

First, to all the people who are commenting on "what did Kim Cattrall do to her face?" Nothing, from what I can tell. However, in multiple scenes with close-ups, her face has been CGI air-brushed. They have made her look like Jeff Bridges in the new Tron or Kurt Russell in Guardians of the Galaxy 2. But she didn't do it to herself. They have some *bad* CGI effects on this show, from the house burning down in the opening sequence to the jet engine on fire to, yes, Kim Cattrall's face. I'm hoping these bad CGI effects are only in the pilot, but we shall see.

Second, this is at least the 3rd show with the same title. This one is directly adapted from the recent New Zealand show, but there was a sitcom in the 80s with a similar theme starring Dixie Carter. I have a vague recollection of that from my childhood.

I find this show to be fluffy & light, and sometimes, that's all I need from a show. I have a lot of serious shows that I watch, and sometimes I just really want to watch something that doesn't take a lot of effort but makes me smile. Jury is still out, but I enjoyed the pilot.

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The Rookie (2018– )

4/10

Can't make up it's mind what kind of show it wants to be

17 April 2019

Warning: Spoilers

When Castle ended, an idea was floated to kill off Kate Beckett and have Castle, Ryan, and Esposito relocate to California & the LAPD. The Gerald McRaney episode was a pseudo-pilot for the idea. Instead, Castle ended, and we got The Rookie as the Nathan Fillion Cop Show Project.

Promos for The Rookie highlighted all the comedic bits of the pilot & first few episodes. After all, comedy is what Fillion fans have come to love & expect, especially fans of Con Man.

Instead, we are given a much more serious show that is trying (and failing) to be the next Southland. Instead if following YOUNG fish-out-of-water rookie Ben Mackenzie, we ste following OLD fish-out-of-water rookie Nathan Fillion. But ABC is clearly not interested in giving viewers as gritty a show as Southland. Besides, Southland has already been there, done that. It's just serious enough to give Fillion some DRAMA for his resume, but not gritty enough to be off-putting to Castle fans who are unfamiliar with Fillion outside of Castle.

The show still must pay lip service to those fans who expect Comedic Fillion. Every episode begins with self-deprecating comedy moment for our Rookie star. Sadly, it is these comedic moments that make the show suffer from split personality. Is it a fun Nathan Fillion comedy? Or is it a gritty Southland-esque drama? Sadly, it is neither.

And what's the deal with writing off Mecedes Mason & bringing in Sarah Shahi? That screams of a struggling show trying to make changes to retain viewers. Or maybe it screams of Fillion's inability to work with female costars??? We all know Fillion & Stana Katic were at odds for a bulk of the series run (prompting some strange storylines & that Gerald McRaney LA episode/pilot). Did something happen between Fillion & Mason that led her being written off? Total supposition on my part, but it's where my mind immediately went.

And tonight's episode features Felicia Dey. Whedonverse Stunt Casting!! I mean, I LOVED every time there was a Firefly reference or cast member on Castle. So, while my first reaction is "YAY! Felicia Dey!! Captin Hammer FTW!" My second reaction is, "oh. Stunt casting. The show must be hemorrhaging viewers." And again, bringing in Whedonverse actors means pulling viewers through the 4th wall, and making the drama less believable.

What kind of show do you want to be, Rookie? Southland? Castle? Comedy with Whedonverse Stunt Casting? Make up your mind soon! It has already gone from "must-see" to "that show I watch while I fall asleep & don't really care how it ends."

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Black Lightning (2018–2021)

8/10

Realistic portrayal of a city with a large African American population

24 January 2018

This show is not supposed to be set in Atlanta, but it is filmed in Atlanta, and it has the feel of Atlanta. Other reviews say that this show is not realistic in its portrayal of African Americans. One criticism was lack of diversity. But this is what large parts of Atlanta look like! There are schools here that are almost 100% African American with no other ethnicities in the schools. If you don't think it's realistic, then you don't live in an urban area with a large African American population.

A lot of complaints also seem to be that it's "too black" it's "shoving BLM down your throat," etc. "It's too stereotypical. All the black people have problems like gangs." I have to assume that these reviews are written by people who who have never experienced urban America. Living here, I know that this is what my city looks like and these are the issues that people face.

If you really want to know what Atlanta is like, watch Donald Glover's "Atlanta." But Black Lightning is also doing a good job repping the A.

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Cracking Up (2004–2006)

Charles in Charge on acid

15 August 2004

Long ago in the mid-80s, Scott Baio had a little family-oriented sit-com called "Charles in Charge." Premise: male college student becomes live-in nanny to a family with 3 kids (2 boys and a girl). Every problem was easily solved at the end of the half hour, and a lesson was learned. Very clean cut. Cancelled after 2 seasons.

But it didn't die! A couple of years later, "Charles in Charge" was resurrected in syndication. Scott Baio and the house were the same, as was good, albeit dumb, friend Buddy. Yet, the family changed. It morphed into a family with 2 girls and a boy. This always made me wonder if the original family sold the house, but put a rider in the contract declaring that the new family had to keep Charles as their nanny. Eventually, the 2nd version of "Charles of Charge" was cancelled, too.

But it still didn't die! More than 15 years later, Jason Shwartzman revived the premise. He's a college student and live-in nanny to a family with 3 kids. They even kept the same theme song! But instead of the happy-bubble gum, "Charles in charge of our days and our nights. Charles in charge of our wrongs and our rights. I want Charles in charge of me," it was instrumental -- and very punk. And the family went from happy-bubble gum to very skewed. I mean, Jack Black as a drug counselor? Totally surreal. "Charles in Charge" on acid.

Sadly, most people didn't get it. I think if people had realized what the show was trying to do, they would have appreciated it a bit more. It's a spoof, people! But no one got it, and it was cancelled after about 3 episodes. Oh well. Perhaps one day, we'll be able to see the rest of the episodes that never aired.

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