Professor

I thought Morbius sucked. The script (or edit. Not sure which is to blame. I'll assume both) was the main weakness. Everything felt unearned. A lot of tell, not show. The friendship, the romance, the internal struggle all felt like boxes that were checked, rather than actual parts of the story. I think we disagree on the special effects. The vampiric effect could look good, and did from time to time. It also looked really bad more often than not. And the final fight CGI was just a mess that I struggled to follow. Very similar to how I felt in Carnage so it may just be the Sony 'house style'. Whatever strengths this film has are with Leto & Smith. They are trying, but are let down by the material. And even saying that, I kinda feel like they were in different movies. One thing about the ending that I do not understand, and since I'm not gonna watch this again

The Batman: I loved it. Then it kept going and now I really liked it. Yeah, I had a few little quibbles, but the main negative is the length. Along the way, most scenes could have been tightened a few seconds. Normally that would annoy me when I feel a movie is too long, however here it is done with a purpose and is effective. But that third act was the misstep. Estimating things, but could have cut most of the last 20ish minutes. Still, really enjoyable.

Superman Returns - First time watching. Good lord this was boring. And slow. And long. And I have issues with the massive logic gap that is that ending. I can see why this was a one and done. Do have to ask: were the effects good for this time? They don't hold up, but I can forgive if they were good at the time. The Rocketeer - Well that was just great. Great acting, good action, cool costume and an all-around fun time.

Much like the PWI Female list going from 50 to 150 over the last 3 years, I am really happy that in this dumb little business a QWI can be created. Not gonna pretend that I know most of these wrestlers, but the fact that the list is 200 deep is awesome. https://www.outsports.com/2021/12/9/22823126/qwi-200-lgbtq-pro-wrestling-wwe-aew-roh-impact-gcw-gay-bi-lesbian-trans-pan-nonbinary-day-7-top-20

The Eternals - I enjoyed it. It is a slower paced movie, to be sure, which I think has been a driving force on reviews. My only complaint is that it suffered a little from "X-Men (2000)" syndrome. That is to say, having to introduce a ten person team all at once is hard and could be overwhelming. A few hours later and I can't quite remember a few names.

They way I see it: WWE is the #1, AEW is #2, and Impact is a distant #3. I think that is pretty clear. Next tier I'd place NWA & New Japan Strong as the #4 & #5. Probably in that order, but razor thin line between the two. Both have something different than the bigger three to have carved out an audience. Then #6 & #7 would be MLW & ROH. I have MLW ahead of ROH, moreso because I've heard more about MLW in the past year (Battle Riot, Opera Cup & the Lucha Underground stuff) than anything ROH has done. And that is kinda the sad part. I listen to way too many wrestling podcasts each week. I am subscribed to so many wrestling YouTube channels. Yet, I think I've heard about them maybe twice in 2021. And that includes yesterday. As for GCW, they are on fire at the moment. But a lack of a weekly show (plus lack of contracted talent) puts them in a different category for me. They are the new PWG, more or less. King of the Indies basically.

First, Ring of Honor announced that they would be going on hiatus for Q1 2022 after Final Battle 2021. Seemed like a 'trying to figure out where we fit in the new wrestling landscape' type move. Interest in the product took a nose dive after all the future AEW people left and NJPW distanced themselves after the joint MSG show. Had a little buzz after re-signing their biggest remaining name to be head booker, but pandemic and Speaking Out scrapped all that and took interest to an all time low. And then it is reported that all talent have been 'released' from their contracts. Released in quotes as they still have to finish out their ROH dates for the year, but can work wherever immediately. That seems a bit more dire than initially thought. Given how they responded to early covid times (retained and paid all talent throughout when not running shows), I figured this 'hiatus' was going to run more or less the same. I was wrong. Such a shame, but I understand. Once they were the de facto #2 company in the US. Now, they are fighting it out for, what, #5 if I'm being generous? More realistically, probably closer to #7. I don't know what they offer that is different enough to stand out in a crowded (and ever-growing) landscape.

Venom: Let There Be Carnage - I think Casually Comics review summed up most of my feelings. The first movie was not a good movie, but was fun enough for a movie I never thought about again. This was probably better movie, but that makes it worse. Yeah, I'll go with that. Things happen with zero depth or interest. And I knew that we'd get CG fights, but these were horrible. Not the graphics themselves, but the way the camera kept moving gave me a headache.

I had a similar issue with the PWTorch podcasts. I'd get the 'premium' version sell, sponsored ad (singular ad, but played 4 times in a row) and up sell again. I got curious and timed out an episode. I got something approaching 35% of the two hour show was ads.

Sin City & Sin City: A Dame to Kill For - I did not care for these. All style, little else. Kinda confused as to why the sequel is thought to be much worse. They seem to be the exact same to me.

So I was experiencing some dental pain over the weekend. Thus I wanted to zone out and watch something with zero stakes and zero effort. Enter the rom-com. I like them. Your mileage may vary. Pretty Woman - Had just listened to Julia Roberts month the day before so I gave this a go. It's alright. Kinda long and a little repetitive. Destination Wedding - It has all the outward appearance of a rom-com. It most certainly is not. Kinda comes off as a two person stage show. The two leads are the only ones with any dialogue. And what dialogue they have. No two humans have ever had such unending, pretentious and just plain stupid conversations. Keanu & Ryder try, but the script is just horrid. Larry Crowne - I really like this and I don't know why. Nothing happens. There are no stakes. Just Tom Hanks playing a really likable guy. Nice to see him extend his acting abilities for once. The Rebound - I think this might be my favorite rom-com. All the characters are likeable, no outrageous scenarios, and the relationship conflict is reasonable. Also, CZJ. Felt a little better on Monday, so bring on some action movies. Painkiller Jane - Sci-Fi TV movie. Made in 2005, looks like it was made in 1999. Clearly intended to be a pilot for a series. 100% in my wheelhouse. Is it good? Probably not, but I had fun. Ava - Disappointed more than anything. I wanted more action, less personal drama. Maybe some more world building. Booksmart - I liked this, but not as much as others. Nobody - Don't regret the watch, but I don't think it lived up to the potential I had in my head. Good action and the final battle was good fun (specially with one character). And I think that might double the movies I've watched this year.

First new Liquid Tension Experiment album in 22 years. Sounds like 22 days. Best new album I've heard all year.

I remember when I said the same thing during my Bond watch-thru. 8 years later, the DVD is still sitting there unwatched.

Pretty much sums up my thoughts. I'll add that I thought it was a little long (might be the disconnected Harley stuff). But yeah, got what it said on the cover, so I cannot complain. Black Widow - I enjoyed it. Mid-tier Marvel, so your mileage may vary. Me? I happy with that. and randomly Head - Somewhere in the roughly year behind episodes of Dread Media I'm catching up on, I think Tom Deja passingly mentioned this film in a positive manner. I used to watch the Monkees and liked the show. But I had never heard good things about this film. Thought, why not? Well.... That may have been the worst movie I have ever seen.

Might not be exactly what you are looking for, but I've been using doubleTwist for a while now. It is a general MP3 app, but I manually load all my podcasts on my phone and it works wonderfully for me. Free & Premium versions are available, but the free version is really good.

Stumptown Vol. 1-4 - I watched the now canceled show first, then read these. That said, these were different enough from the show that I think I enjoyed them outside of previous influence. Only real downside: I have no idea how these would feel as single issues. As is, the trades were really quick reads that felt like a satisfying TV episode. I don't think the issues themselves have enough meat to be worth it.

https://www.postwrestling.com/2021/05/14/jerome-young-a-k-a-new-jack-dies-at-58-following-heart-attack/ ]

I, at some point, heard someone, probably on a podcast, say that knowledge of the Karate Kid sequels might be helpful with season 3 of Cobra Kai. Is that true? No idea. I'll find out soon enough. Until then... Karate Kid II - I liked this. It took the characters and progressed them. It wasn't a rehash of the first, which it very easily could have been. Karate Kid III - I did not like this. It is a rehash of the first, and really ignores the previous movie. And not entirely sure of the villains' plan. The Next Karate Kid - I'd seen this one before. Really 90s and goofy as such. Another one where I don't understand the villain, but generally inoffensive.

The Unwritten (Vol. 1 -8) - Wasn't really into the story after the first trade. But, I got the all from the library so I pressed on. I think a lot of my early issues (with the early issues) was the split narrative that either went away after a while or I just got used to it. Did enjoy the story for the most part, until The Unwritten (Vol. 9): The Unwritten Fables - This was an utter piece of garbage. I don't know what the idea was behind this. This was not the ending of The Unwritten. This was a Fables trade. As such, having never reading said series, I have no idea who anybody is, what is going on and generally anything. And there was very little effort made to help me out. So either I'm to have read all those books or it was a bad idea. I seriously wonder if this was the planned ending to the series. This feels like a 'planned ending that pissed off all the readers, so we had to go back and make a better ending'. I don't think I've been this pissed at a comic in a long while. This sucked. (Edit: I had to look it up. This series ends Dec 13, and the next one starts March 14. Seems a little fast for my theory to work.) The Unwritten: Apocalypse (Vol. 1 & 2) - It gives a better ending, that actually involves the characters of story. Novel idea, right? Still kinda bull tho (probably would have annoyed me more if not for the other 'ending'.) I'll take a concrete ending over ambiguous any day. The Unwritten: Tommy Taylor & The Ship That Sank Twice - Its weird. The part of the first several issues (the story within the story), when self contained, was kinda my favorite out of all of this. Weird.

I just got the new warnings today as well.

Power Rangers (2017) - Not so random re-watch. To continue my endless saga of catching up on podcast, I listened to Will review the movie. 4 years ago. I don't think I have ever disagreed more with someone reviewing a film but still come to the same conclusion. It's a perfectly fine movie. Flawed to be sure, but in no way ruined the franchise.

UpUpDownDown Uno: I know Mike mentioned it on the episode, but this makes me laugh more than anything in the past year. The game meta they have created, the alter egos, and all the friendly banter. Personal favorite is https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZKaZ3IwxXw. NXT: Much like Ian with AEW, NXT gave me something to look forward to each week. Also, I really missed NXT UK when it went on hiatus and think it has been a welcome addition. Post Wrestling: Like Ian and Cultaholic (who are fantastic), the Post Wrestling family of podcasts kept me up to date on everything going on in the industry. It also helped that they were almost daily. Having 90ish minutes each day that I didn't have to think of something to do. Adam Savage's Tested: Been a fan for years. But Adam has always been so busy doing many things that the series I like the most (One Day Builds) were not the most plentiful. Well, that changed. He was on lockdown like the rest of us, so he went into the shop and did things. I find making to be very relaxing and the increase of output was great. Board Game Arena: Couldn't have board game nights. And I don't video game. But this site (and discord) allowed us to still hang out and play some games. Just learned Puerto Rico last weekend. Fantastic game. My own DIY projects: Not on the same level, but I had various project of my own around the house. I had the parts already, just now had the time. Felt good to wake up with a plan and have a finished thing at the end of the day. GrandPooBear: He a constant on YouTube. Watching someone play Mario Maker or Among Us is really mindless, but that is needed. Was great to have on in the background. And randomly, GPB playing Among Us with the UUDD Uno Crew always entertained. And finally: Massively outdated Dread Media: I've been hopelessly behind for a few years now. Once I went back to work, I was able to catch up on a lot of podcasts. Dread Media was not one of them. Basically I was home April-July. Everything podcast I listen to was in some way informed by pandemic. So fuck all that, I went back to Dread Media. Apparently I was in late 2018 when I fell off. Having over a year of content without the world being on fire was exactly what I needed. It finally came up Millhouse.

Alita: Battle Angel - It looked good (in that CGI vs. CGI fight kinda way) and I enjoyed the world that was established. But the story was a mess. Somehow this managed to shove 75 different plot lines into one movie, yet still feel like it is missing huge chunks of story and lack a real resolution. Felt more like a series of vignettes rather than a cohesive narrative.

Bloodshot - Came very close to being an inoffensive mindless action film, which are usually fun enough. Three things bring this down. The editing and direction being the worst. Quick cuts for no reason and a camera that is never still made this hard to physically watch. And then there is Vin Diesel. This is my first Vin Diesel movie in which he isn't a talking space tree. I was toying with watching the Fast movies to follow along with a podcast I listen to, but I think I'm good now.

I believe that was the last soundtrack I purchased. Fantastic Four (2015) - There are things to like in here. It just buried under a pretty uneventful script. Don't think it quite deserves the negative reputation that it has.