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creepingde4th
Reviews
The King of Staten Island (2020)
enjoyable!
I didn't really have any expectations going into this movie. I wasn't a fan of Davidson's when it came out, so I didn't care to watch it at the time, but I recently decided to. After watching, I have to say, it was quite good! In fact, I'd even call it "recommending to my friends" good.
This movie just feels authentic. I've heard mixed opinions on Davidson's acting, but I think he did great in this movie (it helps that it's based on his life, too). It felt as if I was watching this kid's life, nothing really felt forced or out of place.
One of the only problems I have is that some sequences feel unnecessarily dragged out. The party scene is a big example of that. It didn't add a whole lot to the story, it could have been much shorter. The movie really didn't have to be over two hours long.
Overall though, great movie! I'd absolutely recommend this.
Girl Meets World: Girl Meets Farkle (2015)
ummm???
...how was this even allowed? this is such poor portrayal of autism/asperger's syndrome. they treat farkle as if he'd just been diagnosed with an awful life-threatening disease. disney had a great opportunity to teach kids that people with autism, although their brains work a bit differently, are still human beings. the end result is a pretty odd message which easily adds to the stigma surrounding neurodivergency. i was quite young when this came out and despite not understanding autism in any way, it still rubbed me the wrong way.
wasted opportunity
Victorious (2010)
can be enjoyed by anyone!
I'm not a kid and I STILL find myself rewatching this. Yeah, it's not an example of perfect television; some things make me cringe here-and-there, but I don't really care. This is actually really good for a kids' show. Most of the characters are interesting- I can't decide if I enjoyed Andre, Robbie, Beck, or Jade the most- and it's just a very charming show, even at its "cringiest" moments. I recommend this if you're looking for something fun to turn off your brain for a little bit and laugh at something silly.
Babysplitters (2019)
not bad!
I'd seen some less than great reviews so I started this movie expecting something bad, but it was actually pretty good. I only really knew about this movie because Danny Pudi is one of my favorite actors, and he was the only one I was familiar with, but I found every actor gave awesome performances!
It was a pretty original plot and it was pretty funny too, although the humor is more subtle (which I like). I've never been a fan of rom-coms whatsoever but this one was enjoyable. Totally worth a watch!
Community: Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (2011)
my favorite episode (in other words, netflix has disappointed me)
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons is my number one favorite episode of Community. Remedial Chaos Theory is an incredibly close second. THAT'S how much I love this episode. I'm not sure if I've reviewed this one before, but due to recent events, I'll do it again(?). Before getting into the Netflix crap, I'll explain why this episode is just amazing and brilliant, and the definition of perfection in my eyes. This will be a long review.
The episode revolves around a dude nicknamed "Fat Neil", for reasons I need not explain. I'm pretty sure Neil was mentioned a few episodes earlier maybe once or twice, but I'm not too sure. Either way, Neil is a new character to us. Technically, we shouldn't have a reason to care about him. He's not in the study group or anything; we don't KNOW him at all. Which is why I continue to find myself impressed with just how well this episode is written and directed, and how Charley Koontz's performance literally brings me to TEARS at times. I, along with pretty much everyone else, find myself feeling so bad for Neil and just wanting to give him a hug. It's such a convincing performance, it's incredible.
Anyway, the study group, except for Pierce, organizes a group of D&D to play with Neil after he gives Jeff all his books, saying "he won't need them anymore". They hope that maybe this game would cheer him up, and make him decide to continue living. It's a very dark and heavy subject, but the episode is FULL of funny moments as well. Personally, I thought the scene with Abed as the Elf Maiden and Annie as Hector the Well-Endowed "making a deal" was one of the funniest things I've ever seen.
Now, before I continue, let's get into why I'm writing this review in the first place: Netflix and Hulu's decision to remove it. They took the episode off of their platform because Chang was cosplaying as a "Dark Elf" for the game, and he was wearing black paint, elf ears, and a white wig. He was dressed like an elf, but the streaming services removed it for blackface.
I don't think they took the time to analyze what was actually happening, what the meaning behind the jokes were, and why they weren't offensive. Chang's similarities to blackface are IMMEDIATELY addressed in the episode by the characters, Shirley saying "so we're just going to ignore that hate crime, huh?", and Jeff wondering why Chang hadn't worn armor or something to be an elf instead.
The joke here isn't making light of racism or anything. It's quite simple, actually: the joke is that Chang is dumb, and doesn't realize what his elf costume resembles. Let's not forget that Chang is insane, and not very bright. It was too easy for Netflix/Hulu to see black paint, delete the episode, and call it a day, but they didn't understand the message behind the jokes. The Chang scenes, which by the way, is an insanely small portion of the START of the episode, show how tone-deaf people can be with their actions, even if their intentions aren't bad.
Now that I got that out of the way, let us dive a little deeper into why this episode is important and shouldn't have been deleted for reasons other than Chang.
This D&D game that takes place in the episode is referred to many times throughout the rest of the show. In A Fist Full Of Paintballs, one of season 2's final episodes, Neil says to Annie, "We're friends, remember? We played Dungeons & Dragons together". That's one of many examples, but I'm naming that one in particular because I'm thinking of the new fans, and how that would just seem like a random choice of a line to them. Since D&D is typically associated with "nerds" or "weird kids", new fans would probably just pass Neil off as some random nerd, instead of someone who was once suicidal but was saved by The Study Group, and Pierce.
Which brings me to my next point: Pierce Anastasia Hawthorne. In Advanced D&D, he sees his friends playing the game without him, and he's jealous that he wasn't invited. We watch him become something of a supervillain fueled by his jealousy, which again, repeats itself throughout the show, such as in A Fist Full Of Paintballs. As Abed would probably put it, this is like Pierce's "origin story". So many things will seem random or confusing to new fans, which is pretty unfortunate since Community tends to rely a lot on the dynamics between the characters. Without the source of Pierce's jealousy and slight character shift, some things might be left feeling empty or with a few holes in it for future viewers.
And finally, here's the biggest reason I believe the episode shouldn't have been removed, which kind of combines all of them but still: the message. This is a very well-done episode that deals with topics of bullying, depression, and suicidal thoughts in such a unique way. D&D, being associated with "nerds" as I mentioned earlier, suddenly becomes 1000x more important, as Neil's life depends on it. Maybe in any other type of episode or even SHOW, I wouldn't care too much about a little game, but the writers are able to make us care so much about a game that should be just that, a GAME, but they made it so much more than that.
I think this is an important episode because mental illness and bullying are real issues that many people struggle with in their daily lives, and Neil is someone that many people can relate to. Even if you don't relate to some of Neil's struggles, it's still an emotional journey. This is why I don't understand why those few MINUTES of "dark elf" Chang, which I've already dissected and explained earlier, overshadow the importance of the other aspects of this episode.
In conclusion, I'm disappointed in Netflix and Hulu, and whatever other streaming service removed/will remove this episode. It's clear to me that they're trying their hardest to be "woke", but failed. Honestly, I hadn't seen anyone bat a single eye over this scene/episode. There was no "outrage" from ANYONE. In fact, people only began talking about it because of the episode's removal. Even now, I've seen very few people online who were actually offended by the scene. Why, you may ask? Because most people understand the message behind the joke.
Netflix, Hulu, and/or others, PLEASE reconsider your decisions to pull the plug on this masterpiece of an episode. Listen to the fans. Listen to the people who found comfort in having a character like Neil to relate to. Listen to PEOPLE instead of removing anything you think makes you seem un-PC (if that's a word, I don't know) without hesitation, without even understanding the meaning or its importance.
The Tiger Hunter (2016)
not the most hilarious movie, but not bad!
This wasn't a laugh-out-loud kind of movie, but it definitely wasn't a bad one. It's easy for me to get confused during movies, but this one was easy to follow. It's a good story told from an interesting point of view that I haven't really seen before. Also, Danny Pudi is an awesome actor!
I wouldn't advise anyone to go into this movie expecting it to be a hilarious oscar winner or anything, but it was a good story that left me smiling. It's worth a watch, I'd say.
Fuller House (2016)
cringe
Although I wasn't alive in the 80s or 90s, Full House was a part of my childhood. It was one of my mom's favorite shows when she was growing up and when we got Netflix when I was about 9, that was the first thing we watched.
Fuller House started when I was about 11 or 12 and I was so excited since Full House was my favorite show at the time. I got home from school and was so excited to watch it, and... I don't even know how to explain my reaction.
I was a kid, yeah, but even then, something was weird to me. Full House was such a family-friendly show but right from the start, Fuller House was full of sexual innuendos and swearing, while still advertising itself as a family show. This is a pet-peeve of mine, because if something is meant to be for kids, keep it that way.
As I got older, and more seasons kept coming out, I realized how bad it was and stopped telling myself it was decent. Like, I kept watching the show, but I was cringing the whole time.
I'm not sure if this is a common complaint, but this show just seems full of product placement? An example would be when DJ needed shoulder-pads and instead of saying "I didn't have any so I used diapers instead", she said "I didn't have any so I used Huggies instead". Those moments made me cringe the most. Who uses brand names like that in normal conversations? Nobody! Except for maybe iPad or something, but other than that.
All this show does is make me want to rewatch Full House so I can appreciate it before the disaster happened.
The VelociPastor (2018)
the best worst thing ever created
I love this so much. It knows exactly what it's doing and I literally lose it every time I watch it. It's on YouTube so if you have the time, WATCH IT. Truly a life-changing experience.
Arrested Development (2003)
seasons 1-3 are incredible but netflix ruined it
Arrested Development is one of the funniest shows I've ever seen in my life, and it's one of those shows I just recommend to everyone because it's that great. Everything about this show is amazing. The clever, joke-filled writing, the running gags, even the foreshadowing in this show is insane! The characters and the crazy situations they get into are hilarious, and the actors are incredible. There are no laugh tracks, which makes this show so much better.
So I've listed all positive things, and I think I made it pretty clear that it's one of my favorite shows of all time, so why did I give it 9 stars? Well, this show would have been an easy 10 if Netflix hadn't removed it from its grave to try and revive it with a 4th season.
Season 4 of Arrested Development was... a let down, to say the least. My main issue with it is that each episode only focused on a few characters at a time because of the actors' schedules, so the story moved along very slowly. The intro says "Now the story of a wealthy family who lost everything, and the one son who had no choice but to keep them all together", but they're all split up. Season 5 wasn't great either but at least they were all together for the most part.
The 3rd season ended beautifully, and they could've left it at that. Sure, people are left to wonder what happened next, but by attempting to revive the show, they've also slightly tainted their reputation. Now, instead of saying "This show is so funny, the best thing I've ever watched", it's more like "The first 3 seasons of this show were so funny, don't bother with the last two", or something along the lines of 'the first 3 seasons are the best'.
I think that nowadays there seems to be way too many remakes/reboots of classic movies or shows, and creators might not understand that sometimes it's okay to let a show end, even if it's on a bit of a cliffhanger.
In conclusion, I do highly recommend this show, it's comedy gold, but know that seasons 4 and 5 aren't quite as good, so do with that what you will.
Community: Heroic Origins (2013)
not bad, but harmon would've done it better
Honestly, I thought this was a pretty good episode. Despite season 4 being overall "meh", this was wasn't bad in my opinion. It's a great idea, and definitely seems like something Abed would do, although it does feel a little forced. To me, this point sums up how most of season 4 feels; like the new writers were trying so hard to be like Dan Harmon and replicate his writing style that it flopped. but back to the episode.
Overall, I didn't think this was a bad episode. The idea was interesting and I never found myself bored while watching, it was cool to see how connected their lives were, but there were a few small details that weren't quite right. It's like the new writers had read a quick summary of each character but never bothered to make sure what they were writing made sense. The detail I'm talking about is Troy's injury that cost him his scholarship. In this episode, he fakes a knee injury at a party, but in reality, Troy dislocated his shoulders on purpose because he couldn't take the pressure of the final football game. He didn't FAKE any injuries, and even if he did, it wasn't his knee.
This is why I think Dan would have done this episode way better. He know his characters. And I feel like if Dan had written the episode, it would have felt more natural instead of feeling like some random show trying too hard to be like Community, if that makes sense.
So yeah, t'was a good episode for season 4, but still inconsistent in some areas. Little details being wrong just bothers me a lot so if you're able to look past small errors, this episode will be just fine.
(i haven't written a review or anything before so sorry if this is kinda all over the place)