Watchmen Episode Two, Martial Feats of Comanche Horsemanship, Review: “Friends in High Places” Indeed.

The mystery deepens in the second episode of Watchmen “Martial Feats of Comanche Horsemanship”, with Angela beginning her investigation into the death of Chief Crawford.
Her prime suspect is the 105-year-old Will who claims to have “strung up your police chief”, despite looking physically incapable of doing so.
Directed again by Nicole Kassel, episode two dives head first into the interactions between Angela and Will as the costumed detective tries to learn the truth from him.
An interesting point to note is that, as far as I can remember, Will never outright says he murdered Crawford.
Again, he merely states that he “strung up your police chief.”
So, while he may have had a hand in hand in hanging Crawford, he may not be behind his murder.
Although, Looking Glass later says Crawford did die of asphyxiation, likely from being hung, so I may be wrong about that.
Or maybe he was killed elsewhere before being hung.
Either way, Crawford’s murder is not the only mystery surrounding Will because it is revealed that he is Angela’s grandfather at the end of the episode.
One thing I did find interesting was that it was mentioned that Will has two descendants.
This means, along with Angela, there is one other character who is descended from him.
Following the realization that Will is her grandfather and realizing he will not cooperate, she decides to take him in, ignoring his claim of having “friends in high places.”
This comes back to bite her when, after putting Will in her car, a magnet descends from the sky and picks up the car with Will in it, flying off.
“Friends in high places” indeed.

Will leaves.jpg — Will disappears with a smile as he is rescued from Angela’s custody.

The scenes between Angela and Will are great as they continue to build in suspense and anticipation for the reveal of the conspiracy Will claims is currently happening in Tulsa.
The only weak moment came in the aftermath of Crawford’s murder, where Angela lets out a cry of anguish that seemed kind of artificial to me.
Aside from this small moment, though, their interactions are very good.
There are already multiple theories surrounding Will, including one that he was Hooded Justice who appears on a TV show called “American Hero Story”in a brief yet interesting scene that speaks to Angela’s character.
Supporting this theory, is the opening scene where Will’s father is fighting in World War One and sees a German pamphlet that urges black soldiers to come over to their side where they will be treated fairly, and Hooded Justice was thought to be German.
Speaking of theories, I also like the one that Crawford was the Seventh Calvary member who shot Angela.
In a flashback of the White Night, Angela is shot and about to be killed by one of their members but then it cuts to her waking up in the hospital with Crawford beside her.
However, none of these scenes are my favourite of the episode.
That award goes to the scene where we get to see Ozymandias’ play.
This moment proves to be the most confusing yet interesting scene in the show so far, with his production of Dr Manhattan’s transformation being particularly disturbing and also somewhat comical.
We watch as he literally burns his assistant Mr Phillips to death to simulate Dr Manhattan’s transformation, upon which it is revealed that all of his assistants are clones.

Watching Ozymandias burn one of his clone servants to death, only for the next clone to eagerly take their place, is both disturbing and oddly comedic.

Why Ozymandias has all these clones and what exactly he intends to achieve by making this play for himself is uncertain.
One thing is clear, though, and that is that he has been deeply affected by his last meeting with Dr Manhattan, remembering his last words to him before he departed, “nothing ever ends.”
I am probably looking forwards to Ozymandias’ scenes the most in future episodes as Jeremy Irons is doing a great job.
Other notable scenes in this episode include the discovery that Crawford may have been in the Ku Klux Klan, and the touching moment where Looking Glass reveals that, despite seeming completely cold, he is actually crying under his mask.
Overall, I would say that “Martial Feats of Comanche Horsemanship” is another great episode of Watchmen that, while not as enjoyable as the first episode, deepens the mystery and creates more interesting questions for the show to answer.
Let’s just hope those answers will be satisfying.

Zombieland: Double Tap Review. Admittedly Fun But Unecessary.

When I first heard there was a sequel to 2009’s Zombieland coming out, I had quite a few reservations.
The first film came out ten years ago and, although it is a very enjoyable film, I thought it was very unnecessary to make a sequel now.
A few years after the first film came out, sure, but ten years later?
So, I admit I went in with a lot of skepticism.
Still, I enjoyed myself.
Zombieland: Double Tap is a fun film with a lot of great gags and zombie action.
Returning director Ruben Fleischer did a good job helming this film, which again follows the characters of Columbus (Jesse Eisenberg), Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), Wichita (Emma Stone), and Little Rock (Abigail Breslin) on their bloody adventures in Zombieland.
All four of the actors do a great job portraying the characters they played ten years ago, although Breslin sadly does not have enough screen time to stand out.
That aside, the team’s banter is great and it leads to a lot of exciting action sequences, my favourite of which is a long take fight sequence following the arrival of two characters that are hilariously similar to Columbus and Tallahassee.

elvis and cowboy.jpg — The introduction of Albuquerque (Luke Wilson) and Flagstaff (Thomas Middleditch) leads to the best action scene of the film.

There are plenty of creative moments in the film as well, including one at the start that actually made me jump in surprise.
Then there is the surprise cameo when the credits start to roll, which is also highly enjoyable.
So, if you are looking for a good time at the movies then Zombieland: Double Tap will definitely provide that.
However, the film does still have quite a lot of issues.
One of those is the lack of agency in much of the plot.
The film basically follows Columbus, Tallahassee and Wichita on a mission to save Little Rock but, honestly, I felt very little suspence in this mission for whatever reason.
On top of this, while many of the jokes do land a lot of them don’t as well.
This is mainly due to the new faces in the film, primarily Madison (Zoe Deutch) and Berkeley (Avan Jogia), who are both incredibly annoying and not at all funny.

Madison’s dumb blond, stereotype of a character provided no laughs whatsoever for me.

There is also a supreme lack of stakes.
I remember being concerned for the characters in the third act of the first film but here I felt much of the tension in that final act to be artificial and, thus, not investing.
So, in conclusion, while Zombieland: Double Tap does provide a fun experience, it has quite a few problems that make the sequel feel unnecessary.

My Hero Academia, Season Four, Episode Three, Boy Meets… Review: The Two Meetings.

“Boy Meets…” is the perfect title for My Hero Academia season four’s third episode because it is all about Deku meeting and interacting with multiple characters for the first time.
Sir Nighteye is the the most obvious meeting, with more than half the episode focusing on him and Deku’s interactions.
Their conversation and later game did a great job of emphasizing the parallels between them, with multiple similarities and differences.
Despite Nighteye not liking Deku because of how he views him as usurping Miro’s chance of inheriting One For All, they are still similar with the both of them being massive All Might fans with their own ways of showing that.
Nighteye looks past these similarities, though, still not believing Deku to be worthy of One For All and tests him by having Deku try to defeat his quirk foresight, which allows him to accurately predict his decisions for an hour.
Deku both fails and succeeds in the test, failing to grab the stamp Nighteye is holding but succeeding in making sure he does not damage all of Nighteye’s All Might merchandise.
This shows that Deku is able to multitask in his fighting, proving himself to Nighteye, even if he was planning to accept him no matter what.
However, Nighteye’s intentions in accepting Deku are not entirely pure because he hopes to convince him to give up One For All to Mirio.
This meeting sets up both Deku and Nighteye very well for their arcs in this storyline.
What is by far the most exciting scene, though, is Deku’s second meeting of the episode with Eri and Overhaul in the after credits scene.
I am overjoyed to see Eri make her appearance in the series because she is one of my favourite characters and the centerpiece of the season.
Deku’s meeting with her and Overhaul also gets the ball rolling for the big story of the arc so I cannot wait to see this first meeting truly play out next episode.
Aside from these two well done first meetings, the rest of “Boy Meets…” is more decent setup that is actually anime original.
The scene of Aizawa informing Uraraka and Tsuyu that Nejire wants to talk to them, and telling Kirishima that Amajiki wants to meet with him, is probably added to provide a starting point for where we will see these characters in subsequent episodes.
Most interesting, though, is the moment Aizawa tells Tokoyami that the Number Three Pro Hero, Hawks, has offered him an internship.
For those of you expecting to see the two working together, I would not get your hopes up.
This is because Hawks does not have a role in the arcs season four will be covering and will not get a big part in the story until the fifth season.
As a result, this mention of Hawks is most likely just fan service to hype up his future appearance.
Although, who knows?
Maybe we could get an anime only scene of Hawks and Tokoyami’s internship this season.
That would be interesting.
Overall, “Boy Meets…” is a good setup episode for My Hero Academia that both builds up Nighteye’s character arc and gets the ball rolling with Overhaul and Eri’s role in the story through them meeting Deku.
It will be great to see the first interaction Deku and Mirio have with Overhaul and Eri in the next episode.

Watchmen, Episode One, It’s Summer and We’re Running Out of Ice Review: A Solid Start.

Alan Moore’s Watchmen is one of the greatest graphic novels of all time, and while a lot of people did not like its 2009 adaptation, directed by Zack Snyder, I enjoyed it for what it was.
So, when it was announced that HBO would be creating a follow up series to graphic novel, under Damon Lindelof, I was pretty excited.
And, after watching the first episode, “It’s Summer and We’re Running Out of Ice”, directed by Nicole Kassel, I can say that this new show looks to be just as layered and complex as Moore’s original graphic novel, even if Moore has disowned the series just like the 2009 film.
The series takes place 34 years after the story of Watchmen in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where police now wear masks to protect themselves from a white supremacist terrorist organization, inspired by Rorschach, known as the Seventh Calvary.
Before this is revealed, though, the first episode picks up in 1921 with the Tulsa massacre, one of the worst incidents of racial violence in American history where potentially hundreds of black people were brutally murdered.
I found the inclusion of this disturbing scene to be very interesting because not only does it highlight the issues the series will be dealing with but also because it is made clear that this tragedy is somehow influencing the plot of the story.
In fact, one of the child survivors of the massacres appears in the present story as an old man (Louis Gosset Jr.) who goes on to hang the chief of police, Judd Crawford (Don Johnson), at the end of the episode, or at least he claims he did.
What exactly a massacre that happened nearly 100 years ago has to do with the current conspiracy in Watchmen is an interesting question and one I am anticipating to be explored in the future.

Tulsa Massacre.png — I wonder what the Tulsa massacre could have to do with a conspiracy happening close to a hundred years later?

As for the present events of the episode, it all does a solid job of building up the story and characters.
Our lead character is Angela Abar, or Sister Night, (Regina King), a police detective who joins in on the manhunt of the Seventh Calvary after they gun down one of her fellow officers.
She already seems to be a very good protagonist, with her looking to eventually be caught up in whatever conspiracy is going on.
Another interesting character is Looking Glass (Tim Blake Nelson), a costumed detective who has learned how to tell when someone is lying.
Along with these interesting characters and the so far compelling story, the episode also raises a lot of questions.
There are the tiny alien squids that fall from the sky, which are smaller versions of the one Ozymandias sent to destroy New York in the graphic novel.
Then there is Ozymandias’ play about “the watchmaker’s son”, and his incredibly creepy servants.
Finally, there is the question of who really killed Chief Crawford.
This last one looks to be the big question of the season, with Crawford’s death being built up as a mystery just like the Comedian’s was in Watchmen.
The final shot of the episode sees a drop of blood drip onto Crawford’s badge in a clear homage to the blood that dripped onto the Comedian’s badge in the graphic novel.
“It’s Summer and We’re Running Out of Ice” certainly does raise a lot of interesting questions and, with its good story and characters, this provides a solid start.

It's raining squids! Hallelujah!.jpg — It’s raining squids! Hallelujah!

My one big issue with the episode is how the Seventh Calvary are inspired by Rorschach.
As far as I can recall, Rorschach was not a white supremacist in the graphic novel.
Sure, he was far from a moral character and was bigoted in other ways but he interacted with black characters, like his prison psychologist, who he did not seem to hold prejudices against.
If anything, I think the Seventh Calvary is a group that Rorschach would be fighting if he was still alive.
So, the series acting like he was a white supremacist is actually problematic because anyone watching this show, without reading the graphic novel, would just assume he was one.
Because of this, I do hope the show makes it clear that the Seventh Calvary has warped Rorschach’s ideals to suit their own ends.

Seventh Calvary.jpg — The Seventh Calvary warp Rorschach’s quote from “all the whores and politicians will look up and shout save us, and I will look down and whisper, no”, to “all the whores and race traitors will shoout out, save us, and we will whisper, no.” I hope this appropriation and warping is addressed.

Other than this problem, though, I found “It’s Summer and We’re Running Out of Ice” to be a solid first entry in the Watchmen TV series and I am interested to see where it goes from here.

My Hero Academia Season Four, Episode Two, Overhaul Review: Bloody Beginning, Hilarious Ending.

Well, it’s fair to say that season four of My Hero Academia has officially begun with its second episode, “Overhaul.”
The first episode of the season, “The Scoop on U.A Class 1-A”, was little more than filler designed to catch viewers up on the story so far.
“Overhaul” continues that story, delivering a great episode that has an intense beginning and a gut-bustingly funny ending.
After reading the events of the beginning in the manga, I could not wait to see it animated and it did not disappoint.
The new villain Overhaul’s meeting with the League of Villains sets him up magnificently as the big bad of this arc, with his charismatic personality, intelligence, and threat level.
Both the sub and dub voice actors, Kenjirô Tsuda and Kellen Goff, do an amazing job at voicing the character.
Instead of joining the League like Shigaraki expects, Overhaul instead criticizes him, pointing out all the mistakes he has made, and suggests he becomes their new leader because he has an actual plan.
However, this does not go over well for the rest of the League with Magne (or Big Sis Mag) attacking him.
This ends poorly for her, with Overhaul revealing his quirk by blowing her upper torso to bloody pieces.
Overhaul then obliterates Mr Compress’ arm as well, after he attempts to compress him only to be stopped by some kind of quirk removing bullet.
Following this, Shigaraki makes a move to kill Overhaul who is shielded by one of his men.
With a death on both sides, Overhaul leaves with his men to let the League cool off, stating he owes them an arm, something that will pay off spectacularly later.
This scene is over in a few minutes but really sets up how big of a threat Overhaul is with his destructive quirk and troops at his disposal.
Probably the worst thing about him, though, is his cruelty which will be expanded on in the next few episodes.
I also liked what this scene did for Shigarakai as well.
You can see the slow progression he has from the beginning of his meeting with Overhaul to the end.
Overhaul’s criticisms get to him and it will be interesting to see how he continues to grow in his villainy.
After this dark beginning, the episode then compensates for some stellar humor as Deku attempts to get an internship with All Might’s former sidekick Sir Nighteye.
There are numerous great gags in these scenes, from Bakugo’s gloating, to All Might’s reluctance to talk to Sir Nighteye, to Miro’s bad jokes.
By far the best joke, though, comes at the ending with Deku’s first meeting with Nighteye.
Deku walking in on him tickling Bubble Girl for not making him laugh is pretty hilarious but what follows is even better.
Realizing he has to make Sir Nighteye laugh to be accepted, Deku imitates All Might in a comical moment that is definitely a bad idea, proven by Mirio’s hilarious reaction and Nighteye believing him to be ridiculing All Might.
This ending to the episode, left me in stitches.
It honestly made me laugh harder than it did in the manga.
“Overhaul” is a great episode of My Hero Academia.
The one criticism I have is that Magne’s story with her friend before her death felt a little oddly paced.
I think it would have been better for her to reveal this before she tried to attack Overhaul as opposed to during because there it disrupts the pacing a little.
Otherwise, “Overhaul” is the episode where the story of the fourth season really picks up, delivering both a bloody and hilarious episode.

Attack on Titan Chapter 123 Predictions.

Attack on Titan Chapter 122 had the best cliffhanger of the entire series so far.
With the Rumbling having been initiated, the endgame of the story has truly begun.
I can only see the series go on for at least eight more chapters before it ends but, before that, there is going to plenty of bloodshed and plenty of reveals.
So, now I will predict what will happen.
Crazy theories incoming!

Now that Eren has activated the Rumbling how will he use it?

Eren’s goal has been one of the biggest mysteries of Attack on Titan‘s final arc.
It was clear right from the moment Zeke’s euthanasia plan was revealed that Eren would not go along with it because he is all about freedom.
So, now that Eren has successfully activated the Rumbling by appealing to Ymir, the question is how will he free his people with it?
The most obvious, and most sinister, theory is that he will use it to devastate the rest of the world, leaving only those on Paradis alive to begin anew.
This theory seems particularly likely considering Eren’s comments in Chapter 90.
Another big sign that he will do this is his statement that he might end up destroying the world in Chapter 100.
And, given that Chapter 121 revealed Eren knows what is going to happen, him saying this seems to support that he will use the Rumbling to crush Marley and the other nations.
However, one point I have heard that contradicts this idea is the fact the all of the Wall Titans are facing inwards, towards Paradis, rather than outwards.
Some have speculated that Karl Fritz built in a safety precaution where anyone who activates the Rumbling will cause the Wall Titans to crush Paradis instead of the world.
But, given that Eren has apparently been given complete control of the Founding Titan, he would easily be able to stop this from happening.
Another thing to consider, though, is that we do not know if this is a full scale Rumbling yet.
We have only seen the Wall Titans in Shiganshina being freed, we have yet to see the millions of other ones being released.
Still, I think Eren initiating a complete Rumbling to destroy the world is the most likely outcome of him gaining control of the Founding Titan.

Will Eren have Ymir’s Founding Titan form?

When Chapter 122 ends, Eren is in the process of transforming into his Titan form and is currently at the skeleton stage of that transformation.
Because of this, we do not know what Eren will look like when his Titan is fully formed.
From the perspective we get, he looks pretty big, which makes me wonder if he could have obtained Ymir’s Titan form when she gave him control of the Founding Titan.
One thing that supports this idea is that when Eren initiates the Rumbling, the source of all living matter, which gave Ymir her powers, is the thing that attaches Eren’s head back to his body, showing that Ymir may have passed it on to him.
Eren now having the Founding Titan power would make him the size of the Colossal Titan, bringing his destructive capabilities up another level.
It could also add a lot to the final battle as well, with a potential fight between Armin’s Colossal Titan and Eren’s new Titan form.
Although, I should say that when we see Eren at the end of Chapter 122 it is from Gabi’s point of view so he may just look bigger than he actually is.
Personally, though, I think the stakes would be risen by a considerable margin if Eren took on Ymir’s Founding Titan form.

How will the other characters react to the Rumbling?

One thing I am certain of is that Chapter 123 will be absolute chaos.
The Rumbling will create a lot of confusion among the surviving characters as they struggle to deal with this new colossal threat (pun intended).
A theory I have had for a few chapters now is that Eren activating the Rumbling to destroy the world will motivate those of Paradis island to team up with the Marleyeans and Warriors to stop him.
This could be a great way to end the cycle of hatred between the two groups as they find a common enemy to defeat in Eren.
I can just picture Armin and Jean negotiating with Magath and Pieck for a temporary alliance to deal with the threat of the Rumbling.
And, if Eren eventually makes it so that Eldians can no longer turn into Titans, like I think he will, then this could turn this temporary peace into something more long term.
Although, given that this idea of peace is too happy for Attack on Titan‘s dark tone, I expect that in order to compensate for such a happy ending, Isayama would have Eren succeed in his plan to destroy the world first.
As for specific characters, It is almost certain that Yelena and the rest of Zeke’s followers will try to stop Eren as well because they want to save the world not destroy it.
Honestly, the only characters who will probably be on Eren’s side during the Rumbling is Floch and the other Yeagerists.
Sure, Mikasa and Armin may be conflicted fighting against Eren but I still believe they will do so in the end.
Speaking of Mikasa, I think we will get a reveal of what Eren was thinking when he said he hated her soon, which will most likely be because he wanted to free her from being enslaved to him as an Ackerman.
Another character that I think will contribute to Mikasa’s arc is Louise, who may have taken her scarf when Mikasa left it behind and whose death may motivate Mikasa to take some drastic measures.
Then there is Armin, who will have to go Colossal Titan now, which could lead to some great fight moments.
Even if Eren does not gain Ymir’s Founding Titan form, Armin will still have a fight on his hands as he will have the Wall Titans to face.
It would be amazing to see some Colossal Titan vs Colossal Titan combat.

Death Predictions.

This is a very tricky thing to consider because it is hard to predict which character will live and die at this stage.
Honestly, I see every single one of them as capable of biting the dust before the story ends.
Does that mean I think all of the characters will die?
No, but we are certainly in for a high body count.
The only characters I am pretty sure will die before the story ends are Zeke, Yelena and Floch.
I just honestly do not see them surviving to the end of the story.
I see more than just them dying but they are the only ones I am currently sure will not make it.
As for the other characters, it is all 50/50 for me.
Personally, though, I just hope that, no matter which characters die, they will do so with a fitting conclusion to their arc.

Is Kyomi the one saying, “see you later Eren” in the first chapter?

We are going to end this prediction post with a pretty wild theory.
Before I get into it, though, I have to say this theory is not mine.
I heard it from the YouTube channel Manga Horse in his video, “The Mysterious Hidden Memory.”
In the video, Manga Horse states his belief that the person who says “see you later Eren” in the very first chapter of Attack on Titan is actually not Mikasa but a younger version of Kyomi.
As evidence he points out that this scene was not included in the anime, possibly so audiences would not notice the change in Mikasa’s voice actor, and that Kyomi herself wears a scarf.
But if this is a young Kyomi how can she be talking to Eren who would not have even been born yet?
Well, that is because she is actually talking to Eren Kruger, Eren Jaeger’s namesake and previous Attack Titan holder.
Manga Horse provides more evidence but it is too much detail to get into here so I will include the link to his video and suggest you watch it because it is a really good theory video; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-1Hi2wcQ0ME&t=818s.
Now, if Manga Horse’s theory is correct, then Kyomi knowing Kruger could have big ramifications for the story as the “see you later” moment is in the very first chapter, which sets it up as important.
Not only this, but when you factor in the hints that Kruger knew Tom Xaver as well it seems to point that he would know Kyomi as well.
So, Kruger, Kyomi and Xaver could have been involved in some super secret conspiracy the entire time!
Or maybe I just need to take off my tin foil hat and reconsider my life.
In any case, I am excited to see what the “see you later” moment could really mean and hope it will be explained later.
And, whether or not any of my predictions about Attack on Titan Chapter 123 turn out to be correct or not, I know that the chapter will be just as insane as the previous ones, if not more so.

My Hero Academia, Season Four, Episode One Review: The first episode is here!… And it’s filler.

My Hero Academia season four is finally here but off to a less than stellar start.
That is not to say that the first episode “The Scoop on U.A Class 1-A” is bad but it is a filler episode that is mainly used as a recap.
Now, for viewers who do not keep up with the story of My Hero Academia and need to be reminded of what has happened, episodes like this are necessary.
However, for those of us who keep up with the story and remember what happened at the end of season three, like me, recap episodes like “The Scoop on U.A Class 1-A” can be a bit annoying.
While there is a some enjoyment in the story of reporter Tokuda Taneo looking for All Might’s successor, it is clear that he will probably never reappear in the story again and, even if he does, it will likely not be in any meaningful way.
Although, I will say the filler of “The Scoop on U.A Class 1-A” is at least entertaining because of the humor.
I burst out into laughter twice when watching this episode, with the anime original jokes really hitting a home run.
These comedic moments, along with more set up for Deku eventually taking All Might’s place as the new Symbol of Peace, were enough to keep me engaged in this mostly filler episode.
As for the new intro and outro, I thought they were both very good.
The intro, “Polaris,” is a great song with a lot of very good visuals, my favourite of which being when we see Deku and Eri falling from the sky trying to reach one another.
There is also a lot of symbolism for what is going to happen later in the Overhaul Arc, which I enjoyed.
One aspect that I did not like about the new intro, though, is its lack of emphasis on Mirio, Kirishima, and even the main villain of this arc, Overhaul.
These characters only appeared in group or fighting shots, and very briefly, so you would not guess from looking at the opening that they have a big role in this storyline.
Aside from that, though, “Polaris” is an enjoyable opening.
The same can also be said for the outro, “Koukai no Uta,” which is a really good song with great visuals and symbolism.
More than anything, the outro highlights the importance of Eri in this arc, with her being a character I am looking forward to seeing very much because she will be the center of many emotional scenes.
Overall, though, the first episode of My Hero Academia‘s fourth season, “The Scoop on U.A Class 1-A” is a decent filler episode.
There is enjoyment to be had but if you don’t watch it and just skip to the next episode you will not miss anything.

El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie Review. The Fitting Conclusion we didn’t Know we Needed.

Breaking Bad is one of the greatest television series of all time.
The story of chemistry teacher Walter White (Bryan Cranston) deciding to break bad by selling Meth, after he receives a terminal cancer diagnosis, is a thrilling one of crime, betrayal, and amazing moments.
It also has an incredibly well done ending.
Unfortunately, when it comes to many other great TV shows, they fizzle out during the final seasons, resulting in many less than stellar finales.
This is, thankfully, not the case with the Breaking Bad finale, which tied up all of its loose ends perfectly.
Such can be seen with Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul), who rode off into the night, towards an ambiguous but optimistic future.

Jesse driving off laughing and crying hysterically is the last we saw of him until *El Camino.*

No follow up was required.
And then the Netflix movie was announced.
Honestly, when I first heard of El Camino and how it would finish Jesse’s story, I was concerned.
Even though it is directed by Vince Gilligan, Breaking Bad‘s creator, to me, Jesse’s story had already been told and I was worried that adding anything could ruin the stellar ending he had.
But, a few days ago, I watched El Camino and found it to be a great follow up to that ending.
It also preserved the ambiguous but fitting conclusion for Jesse, which I really appreciated.
El Camino follows Jesse after being freed from Jack’s white supremacist gang in a final, sacrificial act from Walter, leading to him trying to find the money he needs to start a new life.

Aaron Paul Jesse Pinkman.jpg — Aaron Paul is great as Jessie, struggling through trial after trial to hopefully get somewhere better.

From there, Jesse experiences interference after hectic interference with him being helped and stalled by familiar characters from the series.
It was good to see these characters again, like Skinny Pete (Charles Baker), Badger (Matt Jones), and Ed the disappearer, whose actor Robert Forster tragically died from cancer recently.
However, while it was great to see old characters return, some of them look very different to how they did in the show, which can be quite distracting.
This is especially the case for the shilling sociopathic Todd Alquist, whose actor Jesse Plemons does not match how he looked in the series.

As you can see Todd looks quite different from how he appeared in “Felina” the final episode of *Breaking Bad.*

Despite this distracting detail, though, Plemons scenes with Aaron Paul are some of the best in the film.
There is also a mini action scene toward the end that I found quite surprising because of the direction it took, making it highly entertaining.
This said, not everyone will find El Camino to be so enjoyable, like I did, because of its slow pace.
Still, for fans of Breaking Bad it is a must watch.
El Camino wraps up the story of Jessie Pinkman in a fitting way that does not ruin the original series’ ending, giving us the conclusion for Jessie we did not know we needed.

Ranking The Walking Dead Telltale Seasons.

With Telltale’s The Walking Dead releasing a Definitive Series, I thought it best to buy it and play the seasons I had never got around to.
And, boy, was it an emotional ride.
I forgot how great the writing was for this game series (for the most part), and that made me decide I had to rank each season from the weakest to the best.
So, let’s get into it, starting with what I think is the weakest season.

4. The Walking Dead: A New Frontier.

A New Frontier is definitely the black sheep of all the Telltale’s The Walking Dead seasons.
It just does not live up to the quality of the other three.
Picking up years after Season Two, the third season follows playable character Javier Garcia in his efforts to save his family in the apocalypse.
After meeting Clementine, he learns of the titular New Frontier, a bad community who raid other communities for supplies.
Working with Clem and other survivors, Javier moves to take down the leadership of the dangerous New Frontier to protect his family.
Now, although this plot does sound interesting, there is sadly not that much to it.
In fact, I found there was very little that stood out about A New Frontier.
It was not bad, just very forgettable.
Almost none of the new characters are interesting, Clementine is relegated to a side character, the choices are way too easy, there are a few instances of bad writing, and the animation just looks really off.
This is most apparent in Clementine’s flashback scenes where characters like Kenny and Jane look atrocious.
Speaking of them, though, this is where my most hated part of A New Frontier comes in, which is the way it picks up from the great ending of season two.
Literally all of your choices in that ending are made completely pointless in the first episode.
If you saved Kenny or Jane both will die horribly written deaths in a flashback scene and Clementine will always end up in the same place before meeting Javi.
Now, with all my negatives out of the way, I will get into the few positives I have.
I like Javi as the playable character, comic book character Jesus was a nice addition, Conrad is a great example of a determinant character, and the resolution between Javi and David is well written if you make the right choices.
And those are pretty much the only positive things I have to say about A New Frontier.
Everything else about it is either bad or forgettable.
Thankfully, the other seasons are on a completely different level to season three.

3. The Walking Dead: Season Two.

It was very hard to choose between season two and the one that came in at number two.
Both are great seasons but, at the end of the day, what put season two in the third spot is its fourth episode, “Amid the Ruins.”
This is one of the worst episodes of Telltale’s The Walking Dead because of how aimless the plot feels and how absolutely no choice makes any difference.
If it had not been for this episode, though, season two would have easily taken the second spot because the other episodes are fantastic.
The first episode is a decent set-up episode with some great moments, but episodes two, three and five are amazing.
Episode two, “A House Divided” has a lot of intense moments but also some heartwarming ones with the return of fan favourite character Kenny.
Episode three, “In Harm’s Way” has a feeling of dread throughout as Clementine and her group attempt to escape the maniacal Carver.
And, finally, episode five “No Going Back” has one of the hardest decisions in the entire series, which results in a great ending.
This is all helped by a switch to playing as Clementine in this season, which really gives you the feeling of being a little girl in the apocalypse, even if it is a bit weird that said girl is the one making all the tough choices.
Overall, season two is an amazing season with some of the best episodes of the series.
If it had not been for the awful episode four it would have been higher on the list.

2. The Walking Dead: The Final Season.

After the highly problematic A New Frontier, many people were concerned that season four would be just as poorly done.
Thankfully, the final season is actually amazing, being the second best season of the game series.
The story is basically a reversal of season one, with Clementine looking after the young A.J just like Lee looked after her.
Playing as Clementine, you have to guide A.J through the apocalyptic world, teaching him how to survive and who to become.
A.J is also a great character which makes their bond all the more touching.
Along with him, the other characters introduced in this season are also well done, particularly Louis and Violet who are both possible love interests for Clementine and have great chemistry with her.
The episodes are all fantastic this season, with the best episode definitely being the third, “Broken Toys,” which is one of the best in the entire series.
Then there is the final episode “Take Us Back,” which, while still not as amazing as the penultimate “Broken Toys,” is very emotional and resolves Clementine’s story perfectly.
This season even incorporates gameplay that adds a lot to the experience, even if it is nothing special compared to other games.
Honestly, the only big problem I have with the season does not even have to do with the game itself.
That problem is the horrendous treatment of the Telltale Games employees who were let go with no warning after the company shutdown mid-way through the final season.
Thankfully, Skybound was able to finish the season but that does not change that fact that so many people lost their jobs without a moment’s notice.
This shameful event will remain a blotch on an otherwise fantastic season that ended the series and Clementine’s story right.

1. The Walking Dead: Season One.

As many of you probably expected, I consider season one to be the best Telltale Games Walking Dead season.
I remember when this game first got big and everyone was talking about it.
I played it and found it to be an emotional experience, but I honestly did not expect to be that invested when playing it for the Definitive Series because I knew what would happen.
You know what, though?
I still found season one to be incredibly heartfelt and sometimes tear inducing.
Playing as Lee trying to defend Clementine in a world of the undead is just as engaging as it was all those years ago when I first played it.
This is supported by the great bond between the two, and the excellent story, characters, and choices.
Probably the only bad thing I can say about season one is that it has not aged well gameplay wise.
When I was playing the second episode, I encountered a glitch that has been there for years, with no effort to fix, and it really drew me out of the moment.
Aside from this, and a few other glitches, though, season one of The Walking Dead is a masterpiece of a game.
There are so many amazing episodes, like the intense “Starved for Help,” and emotionally devastating “No Time Left,” which still makes me cry by the end.
Watching Clementine and Lee’s bond grow throughout this game and influencing that relationship with the choices will always be a joy.
It is for this and many other reasons that I consider season one to be the best season of Telltale’s The Walking Dead.

Joker Review: Amazing Film, Annoying Controversy.

When I first heard that there would be a Joker origin film, I was pretty concerned.
The Joker is usually depicted as a character with an unclear and self described “multiple choice” backstory, so I felt it would be weird to give him a clear one.
And then I saw the trailers, which absolutely floored me.
Everything about the movie looked great in those trailers, from Joaquin Phoenix’s performance, to the story, to the cinematography.
However, I still went into the film with a touch of hesitation because I have seen plenty of movies with amazing trailers that turned out to not be very good (I am looking at you Godzilla: King of the Monsters).
But, you know what?
The trailers were accurate.
Joker is an absolutely incredible movie and Phoenix and director Todd Phillips deserve all the praise for it.
The film tells the story of Arthur Fleck, an impoverished man who lives with his mentally unwell mother (Frances Conroy), and has a disorder that causes him to laugh uncontrollably when he is nervous.

poor arthur — Arthur’s laughing disorder was a stroke of genius, with it being painfully evident how much is hurts him both socially and physically.

As Arthur get beaten down by others again and again, he begins to hit back in increasingly violent ways, eventually leading to him becoming the infamous Joker.
First of all, I have to praise Phoenix for his amazing performance here.
He definitely deserves to get nominated for an Oscar, at the very least.
I was equal parts terrified of him and sympathetic towards him throughout the course of the film.

Arthur Fleck.jpg — Phoenix’s portrayal of the Joker is right up there with Heath Ledger and Mark Hamill in levels of greatness.

And, (I shouldn’t have to say this but apparently I do) no, Arthur being sympathetic does not glorify the violence he commits.
There is so much controversy surrounding Joker that I feel it has hit the height of absurdity.
At no time does it feel like the film is condoning Arthur’s horrific and evil actions, rather it portrays them in a tragic light with his slow descent into madness.
Arthur may think his life is a comedy by the film’s end but it is definitely a tragedy in my eyes, with the film commenting on the role everyone plays in what he becomes.
The film does not encourage violent people to strike out, rather it shows us the consequences of not getting help for these people, serving as a cautionary tale.
And, with that, my rant about the ridiculous controversy is over and I can get on with the rest of the review.
Along with Phoenix’s performance, there are many other brilliant things about the film.
The story takes many interesting twists and turns, with other actors Robert De Niro and Zazie Beetz doing great jobs.
Along with this, the film is supported by the amazing cinematography and soundtrack, which are both also Oscar worthy.

cinematography 1.jpg — The way the cinematography frames Arthur as he slowly begins to transform into the Joker across the film is brilliantly handled.

Hildur Guðnadóttir, who also composed the Chernobyl miniseries soundtrack, wrote the soundtrack for Joker and it is absolutely flawless.
It was not something I was expecting to be so entranced by going in, so it was a very pleasant surprise.
If I had to give any criticisms to the film it would be the ending, specifically the final scene.
I distinctly remember sitting in the theater, being absolutely enthralled by the second to last scene and thinking, “if it ends here then this movie will be a masterpiece.”
However, the movie does not end there because there is an additional scene which, at first, I did not really appreciate.
After looking up some info about the ending, though, I do see what Phillips was trying to convey with it.
I still think the movie should have ended with that second to last scene because it really helped to emphasize the tragedy of Arthur Fleck.
That said, though, I cannot say that the final scene was bad or that it did not work within the context of the film, so I won’t be deducting any points from it.
Overall, Joker is my favourite film of the year so far.
It is dark, twisted, and deeply uncomfortable, but in all the right ways.