Phase I of the Marvel Cinematic Universe was, in retrospect, a densely plotted affair, with several story threads all tying together – and paying off to glorious effect – inThe Avengers; everything from the Tesseract to Loki himself was properly introduced and fully integrated with the rest of the films’ burgeoning continuity, allowing the first phase’s climax to only worry about telling its particular story instead of pulling the narrative dead weight of exposition.
Phase II (which consists of last year’s Iron Man 3 and Thor: The Dark World and this year’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Guardians of the Galaxy), in contrast, has largely eschewed world-building in favor of smaller, more character-driven tales – Tony Stark’s post-traumatic stress disorder, say, or Thor’s world-weariness and simple desire for love over the needs of either his family or an interstellar monarchy. Even The Winter Soldier’s Shield upheaval...
Phase II (which consists of last year’s Iron Man 3 and Thor: The Dark World and this year’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Guardians of the Galaxy), in contrast, has largely eschewed world-building in favor of smaller, more character-driven tales – Tony Stark’s post-traumatic stress disorder, say, or Thor’s world-weariness and simple desire for love over the needs of either his family or an interstellar monarchy. Even The Winter Soldier’s Shield upheaval...
- 8/22/2014
- by Marc N. Kleinhenz
- LRMonline.com
"The Vampire Diaries" should probably just change its name to "All of the Tears," because Thursday (Oct. 31) night's emotional hour was jam-packed with tearjerking scenes. Long lost mother-daughter reunion? Check. Heartbreaking breakup? Check. Devastating confession? Check.
As you can tell, a lot went down in "Monster's Ball," and while others were out trick-or-treating (for kids) or partying (for the older kids), we were sobbing our eyes out on the couch. Let's discuss, shall we?
Last week's cliffhanger -- Dr. Dickfield killing Jesse to create a new vampire -- was tackled first thing. After keeping Jesse strapped to a table for three days without allowing him to feed, Dickfield has been performing tests and experiments on poor Jesse. He won't even talk to him or help him out. He's just a test subject for the scientist. Dickfield seems satisfied with his results, and he calls Jesse a "perfect candidate." What kind of mad scientist is he?...
As you can tell, a lot went down in "Monster's Ball," and while others were out trick-or-treating (for kids) or partying (for the older kids), we were sobbing our eyes out on the couch. Let's discuss, shall we?
Last week's cliffhanger -- Dr. Dickfield killing Jesse to create a new vampire -- was tackled first thing. After keeping Jesse strapped to a table for three days without allowing him to feed, Dickfield has been performing tests and experiments on poor Jesse. He won't even talk to him or help him out. He's just a test subject for the scientist. Dickfield seems satisfied with his results, and he calls Jesse a "perfect candidate." What kind of mad scientist is he?...
- 11/1/2013
- by editorial@zap2it.com
- Zap2It - From Inside the Box
Well this looks absolutely insane. Three different stories directed by emerging directors Andy Lo, Henri Wong and Chong Siu Wing, starring hot young stars Dada Chan, Michelle Wai, Christine Kuo, Kelvin Kwan, Oscar Leung and William Chan. No stone is left unturned in Hardcore Comedy, serving up a heady mix of sex, gambling, drugs and Hong Kong culture. Undoubtedly a large slice of hit and miss, but the trailer is exhausting (in a good way) and an English subtitled DVD is available from October 18th 2013, and you can pre-order your copy here. It'll probably be a good idea to keep the aspirin on standby if the trailer is anything to go by. You have been warned... Synopsis: In "Erotic Dream," two college geeks (Kelvin Kwan, Terence Siufay) move into an old building packed with brothels. Over time, they turn into superheroes trying to save these women from selling their bodies.
- 10/12/2013
- 24framespersecond.net
"Taxi Driver" was ultimately about the second God trial that Sam needed to complete in order to forever close the gates of Hell, but I was left far more focused on the characters swept up in the particular task than the actual undertaking itself.
I mean, Bobby Singer was back!
It's been a while since we've seen Jim Beaver in the role with his last appearance in Supernatural Season 7 episode "Survival of the Fittest," and although we've had mentions of Bobby here and there, it was nice to see him back in the flesh.
I know, I know, technically it was Bobby's soul, but actually seeing his face when he turned around in Hell was a surprise. I thought it might have been some other poor sap stuck in the eternal dungeons.
The character has always had a great personality, that gruff exterior but loving interior, and getting Bobby back into action was a treat,...
I mean, Bobby Singer was back!
It's been a while since we've seen Jim Beaver in the role with his last appearance in Supernatural Season 7 episode "Survival of the Fittest," and although we've had mentions of Bobby here and there, it was nice to see him back in the flesh.
I know, I know, technically it was Bobby's soul, but actually seeing his face when he turned around in Hell was a surprise. I thought it might have been some other poor sap stuck in the eternal dungeons.
The character has always had a great personality, that gruff exterior but loving interior, and getting Bobby back into action was a treat,...
- 4/4/2013
- by smckenna412@gmail.com (Sean McKenna)
- TVfanatic
This week on ABC’s Castle, Rick went rogue in the name of tracking down Alexis — but what he found instead was someone who’s been missing from his life for decades.
Video | Spoiler Alert! Has an Update on Castle‘s Season 6 Renewal Outlook
‘I’M Getting My Daughter Back’ | As Rick tries to process last week’s big reveal — that Alexis and Sara are being held in Paris — FBI agent Harris says the next step is to acquire the necessary “permissions” from the U.S. embassy there to continue their hunt abroad. And that does not fly with Rick:...
Video | Spoiler Alert! Has an Update on Castle‘s Season 6 Renewal Outlook
‘I’M Getting My Daughter Back’ | As Rick tries to process last week’s big reveal — that Alexis and Sara are being held in Paris — FBI agent Harris says the next step is to acquire the necessary “permissions” from the U.S. embassy there to continue their hunt abroad. And that does not fly with Rick:...
- 2/26/2013
- by Matt Webb Mitovich
- TVLine.com
Previously, On Reven8e
This week saw Nolan learn the truth of a betrayal, Emily gives Aiden some possibly bad advice, and Jack gets help from an unexpected source.
Victoria is delighted that Ashley has returned.
It's Charlotte's 18th birthday, and everyone is ready to celebrate! Well, except her brother ... and her mother. They both have one thing on their minds - Stone Haven, which is supposed to be a major Disaster Recovery Firm, but to me sounds like a mage outpost in Dragon Age.
Daniel surprises Emily by whisking her off to Los Angeles (And we know how much our anal, meticulous heroine loves surprises) to meet with the rep from Stone Haven and plead his case. Victoria has the same idea, however, and arrives to meet Jason to "convince" him to go after the company. Question - How many private jets does Grayson Global have? We saw Daniel...
This week saw Nolan learn the truth of a betrayal, Emily gives Aiden some possibly bad advice, and Jack gets help from an unexpected source.
Victoria is delighted that Ashley has returned.
It's Charlotte's 18th birthday, and everyone is ready to celebrate! Well, except her brother ... and her mother. They both have one thing on their minds - Stone Haven, which is supposed to be a major Disaster Recovery Firm, but to me sounds like a mage outpost in Dragon Age.
Daniel surprises Emily by whisking her off to Los Angeles (And we know how much our anal, meticulous heroine loves surprises) to meet with the rep from Stone Haven and plead his case. Victoria has the same idea, however, and arrives to meet Jason to "convince" him to go after the company. Question - How many private jets does Grayson Global have? We saw Daniel...
- 1/21/2013
- by snicks
- The Backlot
About half of Revenge‘s characters take a cross-country trip in this week’s episode, and the mileage they rack up is just slightly smaller than a deductive leap Emily makes toward the end of the hour. Meanwhile, Conrad schmoozes some future constituents, Charlotte sheds her identity and Aiden’s hopes are raised… and then dashed brutally. Let’s take a look at what went down in “Collusion.”
Related | Revenge Boss Previews a ‘Powerful’ Tragedy, Emily/Aiden at Odds and Amanda’s ‘Darker’ Path
Two Men Too Many | Emily has a disturbing sex dream where she’s sleeping with an...
Related | Revenge Boss Previews a ‘Powerful’ Tragedy, Emily/Aiden at Odds and Amanda’s ‘Darker’ Path
Two Men Too Many | Emily has a disturbing sex dream where she’s sleeping with an...
- 1/21/2013
- by Kimberly Roots
- TVLine.com
2012 has already delivered one big-budget movie based on the classic Grimm Brothers' fairy tale "Snow White." Earlier this spring arrived Tarsem's fizzy, Bollywood-ish "Mirror Mirror," which saw Julia Roberts vamping it up as the evil queen, surrounded by the most cheesily phony-looking sets this side of a Hammer horror movie -- if the movie had been any lighter it would have blown off the screen. And this week lands another: "Snow White & the Huntsman," an oppressively grim (pun very much intended) take on the fairy tale that instead favors mood, menace, and a kind of earthy grittiness, over the airier "Mirror Mirror." The problem is, that for all its frequently jaw-dropping visual panache, in narrative terms it sputters and stalls, sagging under the weight of its visual opulence.
"Snow White & the Huntsman" starts off well enough, churning through its predictable bedtime back-story – Snow White is a young girl born...
"Snow White & the Huntsman" starts off well enough, churning through its predictable bedtime back-story – Snow White is a young girl born...
- 5/31/2012
- by Drew Taylor
- The Playlist
I said it once before in a previous recap, and I’m saying it again: the key to understanding and enjoying this show is to accept that the story never really “ends.” It's not about season-long story "arcs" with "resolutions" – instead, it just goes on and on for however long it goes on, with the wheel of fate rising and falling over and over again for each character (until they ultimately bite it and – just so you know – sometimes even that isn’t the end).
Basically, it’s just like life. Well, minus the dragons and mysterious winter creatures, but with all the raging a**holes fully intact.
The fact that there’s never really any final “respite” to anything – that every resolution-of-sorts just leads to more storylines, more questions to be answered – is both the show’s sometimes frustrating weakness, but also one of its most interesting achievements, Imho.
Basically, it’s just like life. Well, minus the dragons and mysterious winter creatures, but with all the raging a**holes fully intact.
The fact that there’s never really any final “respite” to anything – that every resolution-of-sorts just leads to more storylines, more questions to be answered – is both the show’s sometimes frustrating weakness, but also one of its most interesting achievements, Imho.
- 6/20/2011
- by Brent Hartinger
- The Backlot
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