Films and TV (Untagged spoilers)

[Dragaros]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Etv-L2JKCWk

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoOaKN4qCKw

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jY5Paugfurs

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YDVRIjV-kLY

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AjLKTz81bj8

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f-zqS2CiZqw

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y274jZs5s7s

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7DliLCfFmM

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=573GCxqkYEg

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avz06PDqDbM

[Dragaros]

Finally got an opportunity to see Guardians of the Galaxy 3.

I really enjoyed this movie! Easily the best film in the MCU since the Thanos/Infinity Stone saga ended, with the exception of Spider-Man: No Way Home. Blows all the others out of the water. All the characters are given spotlight and have their arcs reach satisfying conclusions, lots of visual spectacle, good action, acting is great since all these people know their characters so well, the score is nice(though not as nice as the previous two, since the best songs have already been used) and a ton of heart.
We even have an excellent villain, who's performance sells just how insane he really is despite his veneer of civility and claims of perfection and making things better. Seriously, they made the High Evolutionary really messed up and evil in this. If he was ever an altruistic scientist at one point in his life, that was a LONG time ago, and that person is dead and buried and only this horrific monster is left in his place. A narcissistic, psychotic, cruel, ruthless, egotistical, genocidal, god-complex maniac with a hell of a temper and zero regard for life. He's like a mad scientist from 40k. He's more menacing than Kang, the guy who's supposed to fill Thanos' shoes!
For all the comedy this movie has, it knows when to get serious and hit you with those emotional beats and let them cook before jumping to the next scene. Rocket is the soul of this story, and what they do with his character here really is exceptionally well done. His origin story in particular really hooks its claws in ya.
Nebula's story and development throughout all these movies has been very interesting, seeing how far she's come.
Every character gets to show off not only their badass credentials, but also the unique traits they bring to the table that the others don't have, even the ones that while might not be used for battle, are essential in making this team heroes. We really get to see just how much they balance each other out and how they're stronger together, highlight how they're a family that would do anything for each other, how much they've grown as individuals.
Lots of freaky animal-people, like a big budget Island of Doctor Moreau, or Planet of Doctor Moreau, I should say.
The film is overly long, the stuff with Adam Warlock is kinda lame, the plot's a little messy in places, and not every joke lands, but considering this is Gunn's swan song in the Marvel sandbox now that's rebooting DC for Warner Bros, I can understand that he wanted to throw in every idea he had because this was his last chance to do so. So I can't fault him too hard for indulging himself. And none of it ruins the narrative.
The ending of this feels similar to that bittersweet feeling you get when you finish the end of the Citadel DLC for Mass Effect 3: you get one last adventure with the characters you've grown to care about, get hit with all these things that remind you why you became a fan in the first place, while realizing it's the final goodbye, that "don't be sad it's over, be happy that it happened" vibe.
High recommendation from me. Captain America has the best trilogy in the MCU in my humble opinion, but the Guardians are a close second.

[Dragaros]

So Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire had a test screening recently, and we got some leaks. Take with a grain of salt, but so far seems legit:

► Show Spoiler

-same tone and sense of humor as the last film
-Film opens with Kong being chased by a pack of giant jackal Titans but he turns the tables on them and traps them, he was the one hunting them, not the other way around
-Kong is still in the hollow Earth, but is very lonely
-A threat trapped in a subterranean prison for ages is inadvertently freed by Kong
-2 villains, first is the red ape from the teaser called the Scar King who leads an army of renegade giant apes and the second is described as a pale reptilian monster with ice breath and large crystals on his body that's referred to as "The First Titan", the one that came before all others; might be called Shimu. (This is where those confusing Spacegodzilla rumors were coming from, it seems)
-Scar King was once part of a peaceful tribe of giant apes that protected humanity until he grew tyrannical and cruel, now has sights on claiming the surface
-Scar King does not have atomic powers; but he's a very good fighter and more agile than Kong, he also wields a whip made of Titan spinal bones for a weapon that he wraps across his shoulders like a bandolier
-a crystal shard on the tip of the whip that came from Shimu allows him to control the great beast
-Shimu has ice powers and can even freeze the world, he was the one who brought about the great Ice Age at the Scar King's command
-It was Godzilla that defeated Scar King and trapped him, Shimu and his army of renegade apes deep in the Hollow Earth long ago
-Human race is starting to warm up to Godzilla, realize he's not a menace, he's just trying to do his job
-After a battle, Godzilla takes a nap at the colosseum of Rome
-Military leaders constantly fighting with Monarch on how to handle the Titans
-Godzilla is woken from his sleep due to an energy signal from the Hollow Earth
-The signal is also having an effect on Jia, who starts to have strange visions
-new Titans will be featured, one is a giant arachnid monster that Godzilla destroys in the opening credits
-some of the Titans from KOTM make cameos
-Kong befriends and adopts a child ape-Titan named Suko who starts with the enemy tribe but switches sides (this likely where the early rumors of "Song of Kong" came from)
-Godzilla and Kong are said to get "upgrades", Kong supposedly gets some kind of armor or cybernetic tech courtesy of Monarch
-Godzilla and Kong team up to defeat Shimu, the Scar King, and the rogue tribe of giant apes
-no mention of Mothra or Rodan returning



That monster on the wall from the Call of Duty Monsterverse event is supposed to be Shimu, if the leaks are true.

[magnuskn]

Just came out of Fast & Furious 10. Definitely one of the better superhero movies of the year. :p

I especially liked the scene where Dom in his X-Wing was towed in the tractor beam of two Star Destroyers and then he mumbled "Feel the Force of my Family!" and supercharged the hyperdrive of his X-Wing with a blood sample of his son, which had the highest midichlorian count ever, even higher than that nerd Anakin Skywalker. And then the two Star Destroyers crashed into each other and exploded and then the entire Imperial Fleet did spontaneously explode as well! Woah!

Jason Momoa sure had a lot of fun. ^^

[Dragaros]

Fast X was absolutely ridiculous, absurd, ludicrous, nonsensical, and insanely over the top. I loved it.
After being very disappointed with the last one, this one brought back some of that charm to go with all the cheese. This is one of those "dumb but fun" films, dialed up to 11. It knows what it is, and embraces it unapologetically without shame as it jumps off a cliff with napalm explosions going off behind it. Turn your brain off and enjoy the ride.
And holy shit, Jason Momoa's Dante character just might be the best movie villain of 2023, at least so far; he's having a blast channelling his inner Joker by playing an unhinged, unfettered psychopath that chews the scenery so much its a miracle there's any scenery left!

[Dragaros]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x00np5nRdzA

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zWGnlAQsRaE

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jprhe-cWKGs

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=69mzZqcM0qw

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=02ojIO5T5hw

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hEFj0Qxdec

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QBpN8G98uZU

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdNkGq4kroQ

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[Dragaros]

"Netflix has launched paid sharing in the United States.
Netflix will charge $7.99 per month extra to add another user outside of the account holder’s household. Premium tier subscribers can add up to two additional users while Standard tier subscribers can add up to one additional user. The standard with ads tier subscribers won’t be able to add an additional user.
Starting today, we will be sending this email to members who are sharing Netflix outside their household in the United States.
A Netflix account is for use by one household. Everyone living in that household can use Netflix wherever they are — at home, on the go, on holiday — and take advantage of new features like Transfer Profile and Manage Access and Devices.
We recognize that our members have many entertainment choices. It’s why we continue to invest heavily in a wide variety of new films and TV shows — so whatever your taste, mood or language and whoever you’re watching with, there’s always something satisfying to watch on Netflix."

[Dragaros]

"Universal sets Mason Thames and Nico Parker as Hiccup and Astrid in the live-action film adaptation of How To Train Your Dragon."

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ON10Q8ormdM

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BBM24hn1Imk

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBk4NYhWNMM

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rblA5nul1Mg

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHvzw4Ibuho

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SS4xaLNVqfc

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sXE0iivivzc

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrMdXEtAse8

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJN4_KVEG3Y

[Dragaros]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yT84alxVa-A

Man, that's a reminder of the passage of time that hits especially hard. I still have vivid memories of my father taking me to the theater to see JP when it first came out, and the whole pop-culture dino craze that took place in the 90s. Good times.

[Dragaros]

Across The Spider-Verse was pretty damn good! The animation is spectacular, the visuals are gorgeous, it overflows with creativity, the comedy is mostly solid, the action is breath-taking, soundtrack is catchy, fun characters, there's some scenes with a lot of heart, good stakes, emotional payoffs, an engaging plot, themes with impact, and it sets up a part 2 very well and leaves you wanting more in the best way possible. Worth the wait. Very recommended.

Though there are a few little things that bugged me, they're minor gripes that didn't hurt the overall experience.

I thought they did a good job of here of making Miles his own character, instead of just being trapped in Peter's shadow, which is something that happens to him a lot when in the hands of bad writers. But problem avoided here, so no worries.

There's a huge meta-commentary on top of the theme of fate vs free will, the idea of canon and how much you can bend it before it breaks a character or narrative and the whole story falls apart, metaphorically or very literally as the case may be here, and the idea of stories evolving and and forging their own path and where's the balance between the two. Both sides get their points across that could inspire some very interesting conversations and debates.

They utilize the whole multiverse concept here better than most, though I did have a few questions.

I liked how they took The Spot, a D-list villain usually reserved for being made fun of for humorous effect, and made him a real threat.

It's a little long and the pacing dips in places, but all and in all it's a well told story. The first movie manages its time and length better; that film was sleek and efficient. But this is part 1 of a 2 part story, so I need to see the resolutions of the final chapter before I can judge in totality.

If you're a Spider-Man nerd, you'll be drowning in references, shout-outs, Easter Eggs, and whatnot. Comics, video games, animated series, movies, the whole nine yards. It's No Way Home multiplied by a million. And dude, there are some hardcore deep cuts here!

Can't wait to see how this all concludes.

[magnuskn]

So.... Across the Spiderverse. It's fantastic. It's probably the best animation movie (stress on "movie"... Arcane is the best animated TV show of all time.) I've seen in my life. The animators are basically flexing on everyone in the animation industry, except Fortiche Studios (who did Arcane) and doing it for two hours and twenty minutes. The story is just great. I can't recommend this movie enough to anybody who enjoys being entertained.

One tiny little warning, though. This is very much the second part of a trilogy.

[Dragaros]

[Dragaros]

"The cast of Zack Snyder’s ‘REBEL MOON’, releasing December 22 on Netflix."

[Dragaros]

[Dragaros]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtuFgnxQMrA

[Dragaros]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiGqWuSHW80

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GljnUA6Ll0

Nice.

[Mazder]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiGqWuSHW80

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GljnUA6Ll0

Nice.

Yay!!!

[magnuskn]

Huh, that Vanity Moon thing looks interesting. Zack Snyder is a red flag, but sometimes he manages interesting stuff as well.