Reason for the Season- Venture Bros. Season 3

      Alright, Season 3, let's gooooo:

      This is the first fully strong season of the show, in that there isn't a bad episode in the bunch. The first season starts off rough, and season 2 has some episodes that aren't as good as they could be. Every episode of this season works, it fits into the continuity of the show, and serves some sort of purpose, whether it's building the characters, building the world or just being a straight comedic or adventure episode. Dr. Quymn, Medicine Woman" is an example of this. It has some small connection to continuity, but it serves more as a comedic episode, focusing on the awkward sexuality of the Venture clan, and the comedic possibilities inherent in it. It mostly works, and I'm surprised it hasn't been part of my rewatch cycle. Anyway, we get a nice mix of Monarch focused and Dr. Venture focused episodes, each exploring the characters and helping them become fully formed figures, especially as they are no longer official enemies. The Monarch has some great episodes, really showing his passion for loathing Dr. Venture and how difficult it is moving on from said hatred, cementing this key part of his character going forward. Dr. Venture being just as villainous, if not more, is firmly and decisively established in "The Doctor is Sin", which, again, becomes a key part of the character going forward. "The Buddy System", while another comedic episode, helps establish the dysfunctionality of the world and the very idea of "boy adventuring". "The Invisible Hand of Fate" is one of the best episodes of the season, perfectly balancing the worldbuilding and character origins. However, tied for the three best episodes, not only of this season, but the series in general are "What Comes Down, Must Come Up" for its sublime mix of humor, history, and plain insanity, balancing out each of its interweaving stories,  "Now Museum, Now You Don't", which is just a great episode exploring the characters just interacting and the inherent tension in those sorts of interactions, and of course, "ORB", which is a straight adventure, which manages to exhibit the very best of the show's writing, a great mixture of pulp and comic tropes and real world history and some good obscure references to follow, and in the grand tradition of great season finales, "The Family that Slays Together, Slays Together", sees a stunning, unbelievable status quo change which will come to mature the series as it reaches its fourth season, and upping the stakes for characters in a big way. (And a Babes in Toyland reference, so that's cool.)

   Alright, no big outro this time. Again, a link to my Ko-fi: https://ko-fi.com/rohithc and to my Paypal: https://paypal.me/rohithnc

Reason for the Season- Venture Bros Rewatch Season 2

     Alright, on to Season 2 for our Venture Brothers rewatch

    This is really when the show starts to pick up steam. You have first a great opening episode in "Powerless in the Face of Death", which satirizes the comic book tendency towards defaulting towards the status quo in the most hilariously dark way possible. It feels like a good season opener to reestablish the characters and the shocking ending of season 1. Then, a couple of weaker episodes, ... crap, haven't written in a few days. Christmas and all that. Anyway, yeah, the two next episodes weren't very memorable, and kind of still have that season 1 edginess to them. "Assassiniy 911" is one of those episodes that I didn't quite remember a lot of, at least the A plot... Actually, on second thought, the Hunter Gathers storyline stuck out. Some say it was dated for its trans politics. I didn't really feel that or at least didn't feel it was especially egregious. Maybe it was the later reversal that bothered people. Anyway, it wasn't a bad episode per se, but it wasn't memorable. Hate Floats was a little better, but again not memorable. Things really get into first gear with "Escape from the House of Mummies, Pt. II". This still stands out as one of the best episodes of the show for many fans. Certainly one of my favorite episodes. It combines the petty squabbles and disillusionment that is the show's bread and butter and combines it with a pretty insane adventure. I think this is a very good first episode to start off on if you don't want to do a full rewatch (though definitely check out some season 1 episodes for context). It's definitely when the series really becomes great. It cements its greatness with "Twenty Years to Midnight", which is also a favorite of mine, with its adventure and parody reaching some of the best in these early seasons. Those two episodes still hold up, and helped set the tone for how the show was going to go, so they're definitely the best of this season. "Love Bheits" is probably my least favorite not only of this season, but of the show. It really feels like filler, and it doesn't seem to have had any particular point to it, aside from just making strange references. After that, we get a trio of incredibly funny episodes (including the introduction of Dr. Orpheus' Defenders parody "The Order of the Triad", a welcome addition to the show, in "Fallen Arches", an extremely underrated episode in "Guess Who's Coming to State Dinner", and the insanely wild and funny "I Know Why the Caged Bird Kills"). Then, much as the first episode was a real knock-out, the season finale is incredible, endlessly rewatchable, and just is exciting. It fits with season 2 being when the show and its parody finally starts to get its streak of dark humor. I think season 2 shows why the show is so beloved. It has all of its best traits. Honestly, this is a really good place to start if you need a good intro. 

   Alright, that's it for this month's rewatch. I'm still debating whether to do my annual list, because it's been a rough year and I don't know how I would do it. Anyway, if you like this, donate to my Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/rohithc, and I'll see you soon with Season 3

Reason for the Season- Venture Bros Rewatch Season 1

Much to the shock and sadness of its many fans, the Venture Bros has been canceled by Adult Swim. Over the past year, it has basically become my all-time favorite show, with its blend of comic book parody, adventure genre homage, and obscure references very much in my own wheelhouse. I spent the first part of the year eagerly waiting for a Season 8, in the midst of this godawful pandemic. Well, there are hopes to revive it at HBO Max, but until its confirmed, why not at least go back through the seasons and see how the series changed and evolved to become something truly special. A beloved classic now of television. So, with that, lets begin our rewatch with, of course, how it began. 

  I frequently rewatch Venture Bros, but I don't really rewatch Season 1. Mostly, it's just because, in comparison to later seasons, it doesn't have the right elements yet. Sure, a lot of the best episodes and characters are built on these early episodes, but they don't have that same ... zing that later seasons often have. Honestly, most of my rewatches begin after "Escape from the House of Mummies, Part II" in season 2, where the show's parody actually starts to begin more decisive and its world building clearer. However, in rewatching the first season, I find a lot more episodes hold up better than I thought. The show's thesis statement of generational toxicity and the idea of the show being "between adventures" (as expressed by the creators in the show's art book) is very present in these early episodes. The episodes focus on the characters not going on adventures with jokey villains and gags, but is more of a Woody Allen-esque look into the character's particular quirks and personalities and how between adventures, they suffer from their own neurosies and often have failure in their personal lives. If you've seen the show, you already know that, but it's very clear in these early episodes, and it helps set up how the series will progress in its later seasons. Still, honestly, the first few episodes are rough. Especially the pilot, which doesn't have the best animation and it feels very "mid-2000's Adult Swim", which means a lot of weirdness and oddity in place of actual jokes. Luckily, it starts to pick up with "Careers in Science", which sets the format for many episodes of the show, dealing with the main characters as they each deal with their own crises, and how these characters handle (or don't handle) their own problems. Even still, the show really doesn't pick up until  "Eeney, Meeney, Miney... Magic!", when it really feels like the parody is spot on with the introduction of the ever loveable Dr. Orpheus, whose introduction is bombastic. The episode helps transition the show less from its original as yet another weird Adult Swim riff on an old Hanna-Barbara property into something a lot more interesting. An examination of the comic book world, through the lens of Gen-X disillusionment in the vein of Dan Clowes. That, "Tag Sale, You're It", "Past Tense", and "Ice Station Impossible" are the few episodes I do rewatch from this season. "Tag Sale, You're It" is not only the best episode of this season, but of the whole show even now, because it really shows the satire of it at its best. It shows the sheer ridiculousness of the whole "hero/villain" conflict is as portrayed in comic books and genre fiction and also really cements the idea of failure and self-propellment in this world. The Monarch has the best line when he realizes he doesn't want to wreck Dr. Venture's lab: "What can I do that life already hasn't", which sums up the theme of the show in a nutshell. "Past Tense" is second best, merely because it is very funny and it shows the writers had bigger plans. Worst episode..... None of them are bad, per se, but the first few are rough and forgettable. Maybe .... "The Incredible Mr. Brisby", because it feels superfluous in the continuity, but even that has some good moments. It's weird to say, but the pilot is likely the worst episode, just because it feels like the initial concept with nothing on it. Like I said, another Adult Swim animated show deconstructing an old Hanna-Barbara property.  It feels very different from what it would become, while still retaining the same structure and some of the same themes. Anyway, rewatching it, Season 1 is actually a little better than I remember it. I might start adding these episodes to my rewatch list. Oh yeah, and the season 1 ending was really when this show sold me on itself. No spoilers, but you don't see it coming, and its resolution really helps the show develop. 

Which we'll get back to next time. If you like my writing, you can support me on Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/rohithc. Just a one-time donation should be sufficient. I'm trying to gradually move my writing towards getting money, and I'm hoping the Ko-Fi is a good start. Please check it out, and I'll see you next month for Season 2.

Reason for the Season- Twilight Zone (2019), Season 2

       Alright, Season 2 of the 3rd reboot Twilight Zone. Just a reminder that these are not traditional reviews, but stream-of-consciousness reviews where I just ramble off immediate thoughts on a show, and don't really have any recommendations on whether to do it or not. Anyway, let's gooooo.

         Alright in 1963, for the 4th season of the original Twilight Zone, Rod Serling tried an experiment where he would expand the stories out from a half-hour to one hour (with commercials). This turned out to be a failure, with the 4th season being regarded as the worst, even by Serling himself and the half-hour restored. I bring this up because a huge problem with the first season was that the episodes were all too long. The structure of a Twilight Zone episode necessitates a half-hour structure, and an hour just feels too long and the story overstays its welcome. Unfortunately, for this season, the problem persists. There are several episodes that are too long and have very superfluous elements to them. The first episode, "Meet in the Middle", is a prime example, with its premise being stretched out far beyond its breaking point. Ditto "Who of You", which has an interesting body switching element, but drags on with this really odd chase element to it. If you can get over the lengths, overall, this season is actually a lot better than the first. My biggest problem with the first season was that it was trying way too hard to be too contemporary, so we had episodes like "Kid Trump" and "Not All Men", which fell flat in execution despite promising premises. Here, all episodes do work, and while not as political, manage to have their own commentary on society or individuals, which makes the season as a whole a lot stronger. The individual episodes, while starting off slow, do have good pay-offs and at least interesting endings. My favorites of this bunch are probably the aforementioned season premiere; "8", about an Antarctic research station terrorized by an intelligent octopus; and "A Small Town", which was the closest this series gets to feeling like a classic Twilight Zone episode. The other ones vary in quality, but none of them were bad in the way "Kid Trump" was last season. My least favorites are probably "Among the Downtrodden" (which took an interesting premise, but stretched to a 40 minute length, making it kind of boring. However, Sophia Macy, daughter of William Macy and Felicity Huffman, is quite good in, and I hope she does other things and shakes off the whole college admissions scandal thing.), and "You Will Also Like," which had the potentially interesting concept of creating a sequel to the classic episode "To Serve Man", but got caught up in its own satire and was also just boring. Really, if there is one big problem with the bad episodes this season, it's that they are boring, which is exacerbated by the long lengths. This is true of "Try, Try", which takes a horror riff on the "Groundhog Day" formula, milks it, and ends up with Topher Grace just spouting Gamergate propaganda out of basically nowhere. Again, though, as an overall season, it  works better than the first season. Hopefully, they can continue this trend into the next season.

Alright, there's the review for you. If you like my work, you can see my Ko-Fi page. Not anything there right now, but I will start posting exclusive content for those interested: https://ko-fi.com/rohithc. And in a few days, I will start my Summer of Terror annual horror reviews, and with the new decade coming up, I will be looking at a diverse range of films about Gods.... and Monsters.

Reason for the Season- Rick and Morty, Season 4

       It's been a while since I've done one of these. This is a season review for the most recent Rick and Morty season. Both parts of it, because I figured that I needed the whole season to make a proper evaluation. As always, this is a stream-of-consciousness review, where I just go off on a series, and state what comes to mind about it that I can think of at the moment. As a result, there will be spoilers. So, with that out of the way, let's.... go!:

     Better than the last season. Definitely better than Season 3. It had more good episodes, and even the one bad one (the penultimate one) was still slightly better than the worst of season 3. It feels like they're at least trying to inject some fun and insanity back into the series, with a lot of the heavier elements of the series largely kept to the side. This can be seen most in the 5th episode, "Never-Ricking Morty", which is probably the best of the season. There is a lot of meta fun and weirdness to the episode that really satiates my taste for the adventures of Rick and Morty. It also has some nice jabs at the increased continuity fixation of some fans. That said, there is some continuity pay-off with the final episode of the season, so it doesn't really feel like the writers are just dicking around with us.  The commentary on consumerism at the end is interesting, given how Rick and Morty has become an advertising fixture over the years. I suppose it's a result of the writers trying to grapple with the implication of the show's popularity. The fact that it has become a cultural phenomenon, more or less, and easily recogniseable. Another thing the show is grappling with is the fact that viewers seem to take the wrong lessons from Rick. How they try to constantly emulate him despite him being an amoral sociopath. A lot more focus is given to that, though the constant problem of Rick ultimately being right (despite his cruelty) is still present in a lot of this. A particular example is "Rattlestar Ricklactica", which was actually probably one of my favorite episodes of the season, but definitely had Rick's (fairly regressive) viewpoint validated at the end. However, the worst example of this was the penulitmate episode "Childrick of Mort", which has Rick validated, despite him committing mass murder at the end. That episode, like the penultimate episode last season, starts off alright, but then just gets somewhat lame, with a confused Greek mythology riff, and a bizarre message at the end. Other than that, it does feel like a return to form for a fairly smart, funny show. Honestly, the weakest episodes (which were bad period, not just bad relatively) were this and "Claw and Hoarder". The latter just being a bit generic and boring, with again, some confusing elements. The best ones are definitely "Never-Ricking Morty", Rattlestar Ricklactica", and "One Crew over the Cuckoo's Nest", which, despite the rather punchable presence of Elon Musk, manages to be compulsively rewatchable. The season finale is a definite improvement over last season, with Rick being further distanced from his family thanks to his actions and realizing just how bad he really is to his family and friends. A much better conclusion with a more poignant tone to it than last season.

     So, that's all I could come up with. Thanks for reading. If you like this, you can check out my Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/rohithc. I'm doing a "Top Ten Venture Bros. episodes" list, and I'm thinking of posting on Ko-Fi first a week before the blog, just as an experiment.

Reason for the Season- Twilight Zone (2019)

    A couple years ago, I did a piece on this very blog lamenting that science fiction anthologies were not as common (relegated to season long anthologies at that time). In that piece, I mentioned that they shouldn't do another *Twilight Zone*, because there were at least two others before it. Well, they went and did it anyway, so that's why I decided to review it: to see if this lives up to any of the previous incarnations and to see how the anthology format holds up now. Just a reminder, these are more free-form, stream of consciousness than my typical reviews, and I include spoilers with abandon.  Also, I want to make this an official series, so there's a title. (Get it? Because TV series are organized into seasons and... you get it.)


    Okay, of the three version of this show, this is easily worst. I've said this for weeks as it has been released. For a long time, I regarded the 2002 version as the weakest one. Even that had some highlights and some good episodes (especially the sequel to "It's a Good Life," with Bill Mumy himself). This, however, has the weakest set of episodes so far. And it starts off fine. The Comedian episode with Kumail Nanjiani was pretty good, with a Twilight Zone-esque twist and very universal themes. It goes downhill from that almost immediately with the second episode, a very loose remake of Nightmare at 20,000 Feet called Nightmare at 30,000 Feet, which had... a podcast, I think, and Adam Scott running an airplane. Honestly, I don't remember a lot of it, and that's the problem with a lot of these. They don't really have those clincher moments that the standard Twilight Zone episodes do. Like, take the classic episode *Time Enough at Last*, of course about a dude who just wants to read, but is constantly distracted by the people in his life. At the very end, he has the time to read all the books he wants, since everyone else was wiped out by the apocalypse, but just he is about to, he breaks his glasses. That is a very iconic and very memorable moment. That is largely absent from this new incarnation, and in its place is... attempting to comment on modern social issues. Like, in the least subtle manner possible. The worst offender is "The Wunderkund", about John Cho as a political advisor who gets an 11-year old elected President. It is very clearly about Trump, and it is so painful to watch. Like, imagine all those hacky Trump jokes from like, Jimmy Kimmel and Bill Maher, and make them into a *Twilight Zone* episode and here's what we've got. "Not All Men" could've been interesting exploration of toxic masculinity, but doesn't really demonstrate that and has an ending that just contradicts itself. "Point of Origin" could've been as biting as an episode of the original, with a focus on the current immigration crisis. Again, though, it doesn't really explore these issues or really makes a point about them. It's just "yep. This is happening." People have defended (correctly) that the Twilight Zone from the 60's was political, but it always felt complete, and further more, held up as stories in their own right with universal themes. "The Monsters are Due on Maple Street" could be held as a commentary on McCarthyism and the Red Scare, but could be seen as a simple story about mass hysteria and the dangers of paranoia. Hell, the 2002 one had an update that was pretty good, while also commenting on the hysteria following 9/11. A lot of these, beside being unsubtle, are just not really good or memorable. Okay, there is one, and it's the best one of this season "Replay". There is a strong undercurrent about police brutality and racism, but it never feels too attached to that. Instead, it has more of an overriding theme about changing the past and trying to build a future. That makes it work a lot better, since it combines contemporary themes with more universal ideals. Aside from that, it just isn't very memorable. I've heard "Six Degrees of Freedom," was touted as a highlight, but I didn't care for it, especially the end. I can't tell you anything that happens in "A Traveler" or "Blue Scorpion". The very last episode of the season "Blurryman" is also pretty mediocre for the most part, though its message about how people ought to explore and expand art in all different directions and explore new ideas and worlds, and that something can be both good art and good entertainment was decently handled in the closing narration (the episode leading up to it was decidedly less adept at this message). That narration reminded me a lot of how Rod Serling, a long suffering TV writer who had scripts regularly censored by sponsors for their too-close-for-comfort stories, was able to use SF/Fantasy to explore contemporary themes and new ideas. (They might've also taken influence from the old Tower of Terror ride in Disney California Adventure with their TZ homages) The thing with this is that it has potentially good ideas and has a stellar cast and crew. Thus, none of it is really bad per se, but at that point, it just doesn't reach the level of being good. It's solid mediocrity, and that's probably the worst part. It just doesn't evoke an emotion within you. I'll probably never see any of these episodes again, and I've rewatched plenty of the *Twilight Zone* from all its incarnations. It is revived for a second season, and hopefully, it does get a lot better, because I do see potential in this series, if they can look at what didn't work for people and fix it, this could be a great show. Finally, Jordan Peele does a decent job as narrator. I honestly preferred Forrest Whittaker during his short stint, or even the unseen narrator from the second season of 80's series. 

Well, with that out of the way, join me in a little bit as this year sees the next Summer of Terror with the Nightmare on Elm Street series.

TV review: Bojack Horseman, Season 5

     So, given the minor success of my previous Television review, I've decided to do it again. This time, it is one show, but that I've followed since last year. We are going to explore the continued adventures of our favorite equid former sitcom star Bojack Horseman and co. as they enter their fifth season. Just to recap, I don't have a structure to these. I just go off on more of a stream of consciousness, just what I want to say about this. There will also be spoilers for this and the other four seasons, and I really want people to see this show. It is one of the best shows on television right now.

   So, that intro was written a couple weeks ago. I just decided to wait on writing the rest of it until it had fully settled in my mind. I wrote the intro right after watching the season, and I felt I needed time to fully let it settle in before I express my opinion. Similarly, it allowed me to read some other opinions to help me understand this season. So, at the end of the last season, I predicted, based on Bojack's reaction upon opening the script, that Philbert would be considered bad, and well, it was. The show seems to be a satire of various so-called "Peak TV" shows with mysteries and unlikeable characters and the like. The showrunner seems to follow this. I read about a book (didn't read it myself) called "Difficult Men", which followed many of the writers of those kinds of shows, and how they were, well the title explains it all. Flip McVicker seems to exemplify this. Despite his alleged genius, he is condescending, callous, and just overall unconcerned with the well-being of his actors. Anyway, Bojack had a good moment at the end of the last season, having managed to reunite Hollyhock with her mother, and leaving that relation off on a high note. Now, it deals with his deteriorating relationship with Diane, especially when she finds out more of the disturbing things that Bojack had done, and in her capacity as advisor to Philbert, has incorporated into the show itself. The season can be seen as the culmination of a series wide theme of consequences. Bojack has to deal with the consequences of his actions all the time, and here, all the things he's done finally start to collapse around him. Creator Raphael Bob-Waksberg addressed this in a few interviews I read, where he discusses how this season was meant as a reminder that Bojack was never a particularly good guy, but the audience, after last season, forgot that, and were glad that he had one good achievement. After reading that, I saw the pattern. Even after the relative high note of last season, Bojack's actions continue to hang over him, and it continues to have consequences. The best episode of the season, as I imagine others will list, is "Free Churro", which boasts a stunning performance by Will Arnett as he effectively turns Bojack's eulogy at his mother's funeral into a one man show, where he goes into his relationship with his parents, his difficult feelings about them, and his feelings in general. It is truly stunning, and shows why Will Arnett does so well on this show. This is his showcase through and through, and he gives what I consider an Emmy winning performance. My second favorite is probably "Mr. Peanutbutter's Boos", which boasts the best laughs of the season, and was a nice spotlight on Mr. Peanutbutter. My least favorite episode of the season was probably "The Dog Days Are Over". Not because it was bad, (in fact, it was good, with the formula of last season's "The Old Sugerman Place" now focused on Diane), but of all the episodes, this was probably the weakest. I also predicted last season that Diane and Mr. Peanutbutter would divorce based on the penultimate moment of season 4, and they are divorced at the beginning of the season. However, the two have lingering feelings, even as Diane grapples with her relationship with Bojack and Mr. Peanutbutter has a new relationship (which is increasingly become a case of history repeating itself). With Princess Carolyn, it was nice that, after the harshness inflicted on her last season that she got a relatively happy ending this season. She also had a nice origin episode this season that makes her miscarriage last season even more tragic in retrospect. But, after the struggle of attempting to adopt, she finally gets a child, which is a nice end. Todd is entertaining as ever, managing to stumble into the President of Ad Sales at Philbert's sponsor "What Time is It Right Now.com", and continuing with his wacky adventures through life. He even creates a sex robot in an attempt to woe his friend Emily (because he is asexual), and said Robot ("Henry Fondle") becomes the head of "WhatTimeIsItRightNow" by virtue of his sexual phrases being mistaken for casual corporate talk (itself being a decent satire). I mentioned accountability as a theme for Bojack's storyline this season, but it is also a general theme for the season. There is a character based clearly off Mel Gibson, who is given forgiveness despite the wretchness of his actions, and the theme revolves around how he slithers out of taking responsibility. The season ends with Henry Fondle being forced out due to (in a reverse of the aforementioned joke) his statements on low power being taken as sexual harassment (with, as said before, his earlier legitimate sexual comments being mistaken for corporate speak) but being offered a job anyway because he had "done his time" (a common defense of celebrity sexual assaulters. I saw it unironically with Roman Polanski a couple weeks ago.) Todd decides to destroy his creation rather than that happen. So, yeah, once again, the cast and crew of this show hit it out of the park with another season of intelligent, interesting, and brutally realistic storylines and humor.  It's a recommendation for seasoned watchers, but I say watch the earlier seasons because this season is very dependent on past events.

   So, thanks for reading, and on Sat. , we begin our annual look at horror films in Masterpiece of Horror Theatre, starting with, in honor of its 50th anniversary, Night of the Living Dead (yeah, I know I did all those Romero films last year, but I needed to acknowledge this anniversary, probably because I've spent most of the year celebrating 2001's anniversary. )

TV review: "Rick and Morty, Season 3" and "Stranger Things 2"

  Today, I'm going to do something a little different. I'm going to review a television series. Two in fact. A quick change of pace for the holiday season. This will also have a different structure than my other reviews, in that I'll do more of a stream of consciousness, as if I were talking off the top of my head. If it comes off disjointed, I apologize. Rest assured, my normal reviews will return very soon, but for now, let's dive into Rick and Morty, season 3, and Stranger Things 2. Oh, yeah, obviously, this will contain spoilers for both shows. Non-spoiler version, I did like both of these seasons, and I would recommend seeking them out (though if you haven't seen the shows, watch the previous seasons to catch up).

 Rick and Morty, Season 3

After the whole Szechuan Sauce debacle, I decided to wait a bit to this. Just let the dust settle. With that out of the way, Season 3 started out well, went down hill, had a really good middle part, and ended on a low note. I'm guessing a lot of "Top 10 Worst Rick and Morty episodes" lists will contain a lot of season 3 episodes, because of the three seasons thus far, this has some of the least good episodes. However, there are big highlights from this season, which save it from being a complete disappointment. My favorite episode of the season, as with others, is the "Ricklantis Mixup", whose anthology structure and world-building were a good change of pace, and an interesting look at things to come with it's ending. It provided good self-contained stories as well. My second favorite was probably "Rest and Ricklaxation", simply because it was very funny and had something substantive about Rick's character, which was not revealed earlier. Third is the "Whirly Dirly Conspiracy", another funny one with an inventive setting and a good B-Plot. The worst episode is "Vindicators 3: The Return of Worldender", simply because it was not funny, and it wasn't even a good superhero spoof (it relied more on expressing the most cliched, most common complaints about the genre through Rick, instead of actually parodying it.) I was disappointed that more stuff from the actual comic books (which has material for parody in abundance) wasn't used, instead, once again, focusing on cliched (and sometimes completely inaccurate) complaints about the films. The second worst is "Rickchurian Candidate", which was completely disappointing as an finale, considering it feels, aside from Beth and Jerry getting back together and the entire family turning against Rick, like nothing was really accomplished. No story was really wrapped up, aside from the arc of Rick gradually destroying his family finally coming back to haunt him. Third is probably "The ABC's of Beth", which wasn't funny, and had a very forced ending, instead of one that naturally came from Beth's characterization and the events of the episode.

Whenever I talk about this season, I usually compare it  to the later seasons of Community, another Dan Harmon show. The problems with Community as it went on are, well there are two major problems. Inconsistent character development and an increased reliance on being subversive for the sake of being subversive (instead of it  serving a purpose), and an overt insular self-referential nature. Neither of these are huge problems with this season, but they are elements one can discern. Much is made of Rick being "too powerful" and almost never suffering consequences. I think those criticisms miss the point. He is god-like. That's the point. He is less a man, and more a force of nature. The real after-effects come to the people around him. Morty is gradually desensitized to the horrors he is regularly exposed to, and is disillusioned by his adventures. Summer is becoming more and more cold and methodical in her demeanor, much like Rick is. And of course, he purposefully broke up Beth and Jerry's marriage. However, while these characterizations hold for most of the season,there are moment where they more resemble their season 1 and 2 counterparts (most notably, Summer in "The Whirly-Dirly Conspiracy"). Beth and Jerry suddenly having a moment, and getting back together feels forced, and unsupported by the rest of the season. It feels inconsistent, however, most with Rick. While his power is part of the point of his character, I feel like the season opener was hinting that Rick was going to be a darker, more sinister character, and while that is hinted at a few times, he really is no more bad than he was in the past seasons. This season didn't really have much self-reference (and those moments worked, like in "Ricklantis"). However, that smug "subversiveness" is very present in this season. The show is good at subverting traditional sci-fi plots, that's the whole point of show. However, the subversion of "this seems important, but it's actually pointless", seems like Harmon is trolling the audience. The problem with this is that, while the show aspires to have a strong narrative undercurrent, continuing subverting it or not following up on characterization stalls that narrative and makes the viewer feel like nothing was accomplished.

Am I excited for the fourth season? Yes, I am. I didn't hate this seasons, but I'm worried the show is going into the same rot that affected Community. Granted, it's animated and science fiction, so if it goes off-the-wall, it's fine, but the same sort of insularity and increased focus on fan-pleasing, than on actually moving the narrative forward with these characters. Hopefully, I'm wrong, and am able to actually follow this to the end (instead of give up as I did with Community.

Stranger Things 2

This was pretty good, though not as good as the first season. I honestly thought I'd have more to say, but that's really the gist. Favorite episodes feels pointless here, because this is more of a serialized TV show with an ongoing plot, so any individual episode works mostly on how it fits into that narrative. Once again, it manages to supplement nostalgia for 80's horror and science fiction with a legitimately engaging narrative and likeable characters. I enjoyed this season's new addition of Max and her budding romance with Lucas. Oh, yeah, with romance, I disliked the love triangle (sort of) between Nancy, Jonathan, and Steve. It felt like a repudiation of what made their arc in the first season work, which rejected the traditional way these stories end.

I liked that there were more 80's references in this. The first season, the only one I could think of was The Thing, but they had more references, and it feels more in setting, with the arcades, and the new movies from '84 like Ghostbusters. Normally references are grating for me (*Cough* Ernest Cline), but it works here as setting dressing. It also helps the plot doesn't rely solely on references, but uses them as foundations for a larger villain. Oh, yeah, I really enjoyed the twist where it turned out the creature was so massive, that it is essentially everything that has been seen (the cave, the little creatures, the cells inside Will).

On the controversial episode 7, I enjoyed it. It may not have had anything to do with the rest of the story, but it was a nice sojourn towards a more urban setting, and it provided a little more motivation of Eleven to come back. It seems like a backdoor pilot, for a later arc. And I did enjoy these characters, and do want to see more of them when the time comes.

Not much else to say. I enjoyed this, and if you enjoyed season 1, you'll definitely like this.

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So, that was fun. If a new season of a show I've following comes out (I don't really watch that many shows), I might do this again. For now, I will be reviewing Justice League in the coming week.

Whatever happened to Science Fiction Anthologies?

   I don't watch much television anymore, at least new ones. I tend to watch Netflix shows on weekends, and I watch the occasional sitcom. However, mostly, I don't have the time to watch television, nor, in some cases, do I have the interest. However, I do follow the news somewhat infrequently, and I am aware of new TV shows. Some of the new shows include anthologies, such as True Detective, or American Horror Story. However, both of the aforementioned series are both season long anthologies, not episode based anthologies. What prompted this article was the announcement of "Scream Queens," another anthology produced by Glee's Ryan Murphy (The announcement included that Murphy hoped to create a new genre "Horror-Comedy", a genre which has existed since the Forties, and has even had modern examples, like "Scream," and "Cabin in the Woods," but that is neither here nor now.)  This one is said to be an episode anthology series, meaning each episode tells a different story. This got me thinking: What about science fiction? There haven't been any good science fiction anthology shows in a while. Could there be another sci-fi anthology on the horizon, given the recent interest in anthology shows.
      Science Fiction anthologies have been around since the 50's, largely shows like Science Fiction Theatre (remembered primarily for a reference in Back in the Future). However, the show that would forever codify the genre was Rod Serling's seminal 1959 series "The Twilight Zone." In the Twilight Zone, Serling used science fiction and fantasy tropes to comment on social or everyday ills. He made modern-day parables, using strange events to hammer the point. Another show to use similar devices was the 1961 show "The Outer Limits." Whilst never as good as the Twilight Zone, it nevertheless used a similar approach (albeit with monsters and aliens, and primarily sci-fi elements): use fantastic elements to give a moral to the story. And those are just the most famous examples. Britain had "Out of this World," and Journey to the Unknown," several short-lived shows of the 80's and 90's included "Amazing Stories," "Ray Bradbury Theatre", and "Masters of Science Fiction."
     So, could a science fiction anthology show be successful? Well, one might say that the Twilight Zone could be revived. That would work... except they already did that. Twice. One in 1985 (ran for three seasons), and one in 2002 (ran for only one season). Whilst neither of those were bad (I actually quite like them), reviving it again might ring out any sort of potential from the franchise. The Outer Limits was also revived in 1996 (and the revival actually ran longer than the original did.) So, instead of reviving old series, why don't we stick to creating new ones? Creating one shouldn't be hard: the effects for tv SF is not the greatest, so the budget can be kept low. The CW can create effects for supernatural tv shows on a TV budget, so a Sci-fi show should fare the same. Also, there are plenty of stories to adapt. There are many science fiction magazines, and fanzines, which publish great stories. So, given these facts, are new science fiction anthologies on the horizon. Well, SyFy is slowly returning to its roots (hopefully abandoning that asinine name as well), making a fairly hard science fiction show "Ascension." Perhaps they could create an anthology show. Or perhaps another channel looking for interesting material, like AMC or HBO. So, will there be another great science fiction anthology show? Only time will tell.