Tag: tv

Week in Review (Jun 5 – 18, 2022)

~ colourfulgranny ~ Leave a comment

What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

Movies

Top Gun: Maverick (2022)

I have to admit, I wasn’t a fan of the original film when I watched it about a decade ago for the first time, finding it overly dramatic with little plot. On a second viewing, I did like it better, but still didn’t understand the reason for the melodrama. When a sequel was announced, I expected more of the same, so I was quite surprised to see the generally positive reception to the film. Of course, I had to watch it for myself.

I was incredibly surprised that I enjoyed the film. It had so many things going for it, from nostalgia to great chemistry, to having an actual plot to it. While I wasn’t a huge fan of the need for violence and subterfuge in the film (something I didn’t like about its over-patriotic prequel either), the film definitely built the tension in a way that kept me on the edge of my seat. Add to that the charisma that Tom Cruise exudes, and figuring out the dynamics of the young class of Top Gun recruits, and the film had plenty to draw me in.

Was it a cinematic masterpiece? Absolutely not. But that didn’t stop it from being fun.

TV

James Acaster: Repertoire (2018)

I didn’t realize it was possible for a stand-up show to tell a hilarious, heartfelt and insightful narrative, but James Acaster manages to do just that in his 4-part comedy show, Repertoire. Told out of chronological order, it deals with a fictional James Acaster’s difficulties navigating jury duty, leading a life of crime, being in the Witness Protection Program, and infiltrating a gang of drug dealers as an undercover cop. All of this is, of course, a façade to talk about the very real Acaster’s life, using the veneer that his persona allows him.

I’ll admit, this isn’t the first – or even the second or third – time I’ve watched this series but his style of writing and the way he weaves the story together is absolutely brilliant. Acaster has an awkwardness to him that juxtaposes his confidence on stage (whether real or put-on is up to the viewers to decide), and he thrives in that dichotomy.

Most other comedians do a form of observational humor to draw the audience in, talking about mundane everyday things but in a new light to bring out the humor in it. Acaster on the other hand purposely chooses obscure topics to talk about in this style, things like oven gloves and posing for pictures in front of famous landmarks, but are still somehow completely relatable.

However, it isn’t done just for the purpose of being edgy. He uses metaphor after metaphor, and with one turn of phrase or gesture or well-placed pause, manages to not only make the audience laugh, but also look inwards and contemplate the grander meaning of life.

Week in Review (May 30 – Jun 4, 2022)

~ colourfulgranny ~ Leave a comment

What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

When the Weather is Fine (2020) – Ep 6-7

My slow and steady watch of WtWiF continues, and with the school reunion upon us, we learn a little bit more about the town and its people, both their younger selves as well as the people they have become. The whole of Episode 6 had a nostalgic vibe to it, with old friends reuniting and rekindling past friendships (and rivalries).

This episode introduced guest star Kim Young-dae as our convenient plot device – I mean, past flirtation, to push Hae-won (Park Min-young) into realizing her feelings for Eun-seob (Seo Kang-joon). The episode ended with Hae-won’s moonlit confession of her feelings – only for the next one to start with Eun-seob  awkwardly responding “okay” and then running away. To add insult to injury, Hui (Kim Hwan-hee) witnessed the whole thing, but is luckily there to guide her through the rejection with all of her 15 years of life experience. Hui is slowly becoming my favourite character, maturing and growing and putting stupid boys in their place where necessary.

Another one of my faves is Jang-woo (Lee Jae-wook), who is somehow bumbling yet confident, surly but warm-hearted. The fact that such a genius can be so stupid sometime amuses me to no end, and I’m happy that he’s there to provide a link between our characters and act as a bridge between the sometimes disjointed aspects of the narrative.

Speaking of disjointed, I feel like sometimes the tone of the show shifts too far in one direction or another, starting off extremely light-hearted but getting melancholic quickly. There seems to be a sadness that the writers like to lean into more than I find necessary, and the end of Episode 7 is a prime example of that. There seems to be something greatly bothering both our leads, but they seem unable to express themselves or move forward from it, so rather they wallow in their despair.

I’m quite ready for springtime to come to this sleepy town, and with it bring new life and joy to our characters as they find their own paths to happiness.

Movies

Molly’s Game (2017)

This movie is so Sorkin. I didn’t think that Aaron Sorkin would ever be used as an adjective, but there it is. Molly’s Game encompasses so many aspects that I have come to associate with the man’s writing and directing style, that it’s almost like a signature, a style of the auteur.

The film starts with Molly Bloom (Jessica Chastain) waxing poetic about the worst thing that can happen in sports, all as a lead up to describing her own horrific skiing injury and resilience, before the film cuts to the future where Molly is being arrested for running illegal gambling games. The film then continues to jump back and forth between future-Molly looking for a lawyer to defend her case and past-Molly as she declines into the questionable world of gambling and the various vices that accompany it.

The film banks a lot on star power: Idris Elba player the big-shot attorney who tries to hold Molly accountable for her past actions and delivers inspirational monologues; Kevin Costner plays Molly’s father, who pushes her to the point of breaking, and is the cause of much of her rebellion; Chastain herself brings a strong performance to the table, making us question her character’s morality and whether she is worth the effort of rooting for, just to have her much-anticipated moment of victory by the end of the film. There are also a slew of cameos throughout the film, the most prominent of whom is Michael Cera as Player X, who I can only think  to describe as scummy and questionable.

Overall, the film delivers a fast-paced, high-intensity mystery packaged as a drama, and it was a thrill to watch. Sorkin manages to pull off what he does best, taking morally grey characters and getting people to root for their cause by slowly peeling back the layers of their characters and showing us that they’re just like the rest of us.

Week in Review (Apr 17 – 23, 2022)

~ colourfulgranny ~ Leave a comment

What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

When the Weather is Fine (2020) – Ep 5

As our Hae-won (Park Min-young) continues to navigate the difficulties of living in the tiny city, another complication arrives in the form of her mother. Myung-joo (Jin Hee-kyung) has an imposing presence and her daughter follows her around silently, despite it being clear that she is dying to say something. Even Aunt Myung-yeo (Moon Jeong-hee) is uncharacteristically well-behaved around her sister, while simultaneously being fully willing to throw her niece under the bus if it means she looks good. It absolutely cracked me up when Myung-yeo told Mom that Hae-won is living with a man.

Speaking of said man, Eun-seob (Seo Kang-joon) seemed to have his own things to deal with this episode, and we soon find out that said ‘things’ happen to be a meeting with Bo-young (Lim Se-mi), who seems to be using his closeness to Hae-won to get to her. I really hope she stops trying to impose herself on the people in Hae-won’s life after she was the one who was at fault. I do understand that they’re both adults now and should communicate better, but what Hae-won has been through left a scar on her psyche, and she’s going to need her time with it.

Despite all the difficulties that Hae-won went through as a result of her mother’s actions and resulting incarceration, it seems that the two have a cold relationship. It’s clear that Hae-won craves her mother’s attention, but Mom just doesn’t seem willing to give it, and things reach a boiling point by the end of the episode, where Hae-won spills her guts to her mother about wanting even a smidge of love or affection from her.

Sadly, despite all that, Myung-joo is still a difficult person to read, and when she has a strange encounter with Eun-seob later, it only further solidified this sense of confusion for me. I’m not sure how much more involvement Mom will have in this story, but I feel like she was mostly there for Hae-won to have some catharsis, and then move on. And it seems like we’re moving on into love triangle territory (which I’m not happy about) but our third vertex will be Kim Young-dae (which I am happy about).

Week in Review (Mar 27 – Apr 2, 2022)

~ colourfulgranny ~ Leave a comment

What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

When the Weather is Fine (2020) – Ep 4

After over a month, I came back to WtWiF, and I was glad to see that this episode picked up where the last one left off. So often in dramaland, the writers and directors choose pretty scenery over proper character development, but this show is like a breath of fresh air, in that it lets us get insights into our characters through their stories.

Mok Hae-won (Park Min-young) shares some of her insecurities with Eun-seob (Seo Kang-joon), however we see Eun-seob more closed off than ever. It seems like there has been a complete reversal of their characters when they are in private, whereas in public Hae-won is usually closed off where Eun-seob seems open-hearted.

It is exactly this generosity that makes Eun-seob the person that the townspeople rely on when a girl goes missing in the mountain forest. With his expansive knowledge of the forest, they ask – almost expect – him to assist in the search, despite the dangers it poses to him as well (and the giant team already looking for her). His mother is absolutely beside herself waiting for her son’s return, and even scolds his friend, Jang-woo (Lee Jae-wook), for sending him off on such a dangerous task. When Eun-seob finally breaks through the trees with the young girl on his back, she only has thought for how he is doing, and his family comforts him and makes him stay the night at their house.

It’s at this point that Hae-won realises that she isn’t in a place to express concern for Eun-seob, and it clearly weighs heavy on her. She finds comfort in him, and as their friendship grows deeper, I’m sure she’ll be more straightforward in telling him her thoughts, which will hopefully prompt him to be more concerned for his own well-being, too.

While the show has its fair share of drama (and the arrival of Hae-won’s mother will only fuel that), I enjoy the moments of humour and levity that are often sprinkled in. These usually come from Hwi (Kim Hwan-hee) and her boy troubles, as well as her constant mischief-making with her family. In general, I enjoy seeing the array of different characters that make up the town, and I’m waiting to see more as the story unfolds.

Week in Review (Feb 13 – 19, 2022)

~ colourfulgranny ~ 1 Comment

What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

When the Weather is Fine (2020) – Ep 3

Life has been rather busy for me, so I only got through one episode this week, but it was a rather eventful one for Mok Hae-won (Park Min-young) too. After avoiding her childhood friend-turned-enemy, she carried on with business as usual. This has become a defining feature of her character, and she seems to have an ostrich-like tendency of dealing with her problems by pretending they don’t exist. I have a feeling this is going to come to a head really soon.

With the Walnut House in disrepair, Aunt Myung-yeo (Moon Jeong-hee) being more and more concerning (I suspect she’s terminally ill), and her having to find a living space, it’s no wonder that she had a breakdown and realizes that she does want caring people around her. And lucky for her, she runs into the arms of someone willing to take her in.

We also got a slightly more melancholic look at Eun-seop’s (Seo Kang-joon) life. While it is still unclear what sorts of emotional scars he carries, he seems to want to shoulder the burden himself, and only let others see his cheerful side. However, Hae-won clearly picked up on it, and it seems that her finding him in the forest and realizing that he too has a place he wants to escape too made her feel closer to him.

I really enjoyed the stylistic choices of this episode, and I enjoyed how the book club tied the themes of this episode together. The retelling of legends, and their metaphorical application to our characters’ lives was wonderfully done, but I really just enjoyed them for what they were too. Tales like these are often indicative of what values those who tell them hold dear, and it was clear that our book club group are insightful, hopeful and self-reflective.

I’m sure going forward, our characters will only come to learn and grow, but even if they stumble or fall, there are those around them who are willing to help.

Week in Review (Feb 6 – 12, 2022)

~ colourfulgranny ~ Leave a comment

What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

When the Weather is Fine (2020) – Ep 1-2

In what has been a rather slow week, I only managed to get through two episodes of WtWiF. However, I found that enjoying this show at a more leisurely pace suits it. There’s a quiet surrealism to the way the show is shot, and I find I need time to sit with an episode after it is done, to let it sink in.

This show has been on my watchlist since it aired, but it passed me by at the time. It recently came across my radar again, and after having a bit of a k-drama – and TV shows, in general – slump, I felt I needed something light to ease me back into it. And so far, that’s exactly what the show has delivered on. The characters are mildly shrouded in mystery, and we get to slowly peel back the layers of their past from their interactions in the present. Mok Hae-won (Park Min-young) in particular seems to have a lot to unpack, as it seems life has not been particularly kind to her, and so far she’s taking the escapist route by running away to the countryside and living with her aunt.

Aunt Myung-yeo (Moon Jeong-hee) is an eccentric character, and I have a feeling that she will be the most tragic of the lot. It seems she has very little will to live well, barely scraping by. However, she’s hiding it behind a veneer of coldness and snaps at Hae-won often when confronted. They both seem to care about one another, but haven’t yet found a way to express it. I’m curious to see how this aunt-niece relationship develops as they both learn about what happened during their time apart.

By contrast, perhaps the most open character is Lim Eun-seop (Seo Kang-joon). Because we get the most insight into his character through his narrations, he makes for a good contrast to Hae-won, and I have a feeling that he will be a driving force in getting her to be more confident in herself. Since his bookshop provides a refuge and a mental stimulus for her, she seems to be turning often towards it as a safe haven. Add to that the various townspeople that treat her with kindness and compassion, as well as allowing her to revert back to her more carefree childhood day. (Lee Jae-wook was a pleasant surprise as one of their classmates.)

The story will have its fair share of drama, but I expect it to be of the day-to-day life variety as opposed to the sweeping kind we’re used to. I’m curious to see how the show continues to pace itself, and I’m hoping it maintains this lazy meander as we get to learn more about our characters.

Week in Review (Jan 23 – 29, 2022)

~ colourfulgranny ~ Leave a comment

What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

The Red Sleeve Cuff (2021) – Ep 13-17

I spent a large part of these final few episodes going back and forth between being sad for Deok-im (Lee Se-young) and angry at Yi San (Lee Junho), to being angry with Deok-im and sad for Yi San.

Yi San’s continued obsession with having Deok-im become a consort, and her continued refusal became the central plot for the last leg of the show, and despite knowing how things turned out historically, it was still incredibly heartbreaking to see the show’s interpretation of these events.

San’s part seemed largely confined to bullying Deok-im into reciprocating his affections for her, and while I strongly agree to her unwillingness to give in, the reasoning the writers give her felt incredibly weak. It made it seem largely like she doesn’t wish to share him with the nation, so she’d rather not have him at all. Once she does finally submit, she seems to resign herself to living like an object rather than a person, waiting to be called upon. Where did all the fire of the young Deok-im we knew go? Where is the woman who was willing to speak her mind and demand what she wants even if she knows she may not have it? Why is the Royal Consort experiencing so much existential angst?

By far some of the most difficult scenes to watch were those involving the death of their son, followed by a pregnant Deok-im’s own death. After striving so long to be with the woman he loved, to lose the children born of that love, and then to only get a short decade with her breaks San in ways beyond his capacity. To add insult to injury, Deok-im never truly told him how she felt for him, and he lived not knowing if she truly loved him or not. That he should pass her by should they meet in their next lives and that would have rather had her friends by her side than him on her deathbed. It’s no wonder the man threw himself into his work so violently that it drove him to an early grave. Though a beloved and well-regarded king, remained rather distant from most relationships in his later life, it seems.

I was rather disappointed with the “it was all a dream” ending that the show pulled. I’m not sure what the intention was in showing their final moments that way, but perhaps it was to spare us from even more death. To give us this final hopeful message that perhaps San did meet Deok-im in death, and got to spend the afterlife with her by his side.

While I may have had my issues with the plot, I will say, I was rather impressed with both Lee Se-young and Lee Junho’s performances throughout the run of the show. Both delivered extremely nuanced and well-balanced insights into the workings of their characters’ minds, and I was laughing, crying and raging alongside them the whole way. I’m looking forward to what these two have in store for us with their future projects.

Week in Review (Jan 16 – 22, 2022)

~ colourfulgranny ~ Leave a comment

What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

The Red Sleeve Cuff (2021) – Ep 3-12

I’ve finally had the chance to return to The Red Sleeve Cuff after an extended hiatus (handling two sageuks at once proved to be a bit much for me), and I’m ready to give my full attention to Seong Deok-im (Lee Se-young) and her life as a palace court maid. Life has been particularly challenging for her since her assignment as Yi San’s (Lee Junho) personal handmaiden.

It’s quite obvious to everyone in court that Deok-im has caught the prince’s eye, which paints a target on her back for all his enemies. However, Deok-im proves herself smart and resourceful at every turn, and when she isn’t saving her own skin she has any number of people that she’s befriended to help her out.

By far the most interesting element of the show for me was the secret society of court ladies, who referred to themselves as the Fairy Palace. I love learning about the people that make a place function like a well-oiled machine, and oftentimes the court ladies in sageuks are there as a part of the background and oftentimes expendable. I like having them take the forefront here, and seeing what their hopes and dreams are outside of just serving the masters of the palace. While Head Court Lady Jo’s (Park Ji-young) moral compass seems to have broken, I can fully understand where she might have been coming from in not wanting to have just anybody on the throne.

That being said, Yi San continues to be punished for the crimes of his father, and no one is able to stand up for him since it would mean defying the King (Lee Deok-hwa) himself. In my research, I found that Yi San was a mere 24 years old when he took the throne, and had been his grandfather’s heir since age 7. Constantly being watched to see if his father’s madness was showing in him would make anyone insecure and upset, but unable to react for fear of being branded the same. The way the show portrays his relationship with his grandfather is rather complex, and at times confusing because it shows very little of his personal opinion of the man.

With the king’s own illness taking hold of him, Yi San becomes regent to the throne, and shortly thereafter ascends the throne properly upon the king’s death. The show does a 3-year jump forward in time, and it seems that quite a bit has changed at court. However, there appears to be a stalemate in Deok-im and San’s relationship. She continues to wait on him as one of many court ladies, although it looks like palace life is wearing on her. He continues to wait for her, hoping that she will agree to becoming queen consort. When last I left them, he had just confessed to wanting to make her family, but I’m not sure if Deok-im is in a place to accept his offer just yet with her own ambitions still unfulfilled.

With most of his opposers now dead or banished, it would seem like the road ahead will be smooth for San, but I don’t think that will be the case for very long. For one, it would make for very boring television. Secondly, there still seems to be plenty of opposition to his way of thinking and his vision for Joseon.

I’m looking forward to seeing how both our leads navigate the challenges ahead of them, and I’m hoping they get to be individuals before they are together. However, I’m sure once they are together, it will be absolutely explosive (tragic historic ending aside). Let’s see how it goes.

Movies

83 (2021)

Sports films, especially underdog biopics like these are usually ripe for drama and high stakes action. 83 is no exception, but it sets up its premise very well. It helps that the events of the film don’t take place too long ago, so it is still fresh and relevant for a lot of people who were around and saw the Cricket World Cup that is depicted here. It also capitalizes on a sense of nationalism that is an essential element in stirring people’s hearts.

Where the film excels, however, is in its performances. Ranveer Singh embodies Kapil Dev’s character, and the writing here supports him really well, making an iconic historical figure a relatable and down to earth man.

While the film did have issues in its editing, and it was sometimes hard to follow who the opponents were or when a particular match was taking place, I liked the element of mixing in real footage into the film. Where a lot of films have tried and failed at this, 83 managed to pull it off smoothly by having it blended in on screens, in newspaper clipping and other unintrusive way.

I came away from the film having enjoyed it, feeling a sense of pride in this team that no one believed in and wanting to know more, despite already being quite familiar with the Indian cricket team and having a good outline of their history. And if that isn’t a sign of an engaging film, I don’t know what is.

Books

A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J. Maas – Ch 1-53

Just as I’d predicted (and secretly hoped, if I’m being honest) the third part in Maas’s Court series is absolutely bonkers, and I’ve been simultaneously reading and yelling at my copy of ACOWAR.

If that sounds dramatic, it’s nothing compared to the drama unfolding in the book, which is on an unrivaled level. Maas seems to delight in delivering one plot twist after another, and it is giving me emotional whiplash trying to keep up. When the book opened, Feyre had safely infiltrated the Spring Court and gotten almost everyone there to believe that she’d been brainwashed and held captive in the Night Court with Rhysand. She’s also apparently turned into the biggest mastermind manipulator and just with a few well-placed words and hands manages to overturn the entire court, while also simultaneously dragging the unwitting Lucien along with her. How convenient, especially considering her now Fae sister happens to be his mate.

Once she’s learnt of their enemy’s plans, planted the seed for civil unrest in Spring and made a rather perilous journey back to Night, it’s only a matter of time before their real planning begins. War with Hybern is imminent, and apparently none of the other courts seem particularly inclined to helping them. This is a particularly hard pill to swallow, considering that the war will be happening on their lands, so the people that have the most to lose – and therefore the most to gain from preventing it – are those very same High Lords of Prythian. It’s these kinds of inconsistencies in writing and character that really bother me.

Similarly inconsistent is the way in which Tamlin is written. From reading the way he interacts with Feyre and Rhysand, you would think he’s never been slighted in his 500+ years of life. He behaves like a petulant child that’s had his favorite toy taken away, that too in front of his peers, with little shame. Beron of Autumn Court is similarly shallow and immature, seeking petty revenges. His eldest son’s history, however, seems to be getting conveniently altered to give him some redemptive qualities and I suspect he will soon be replacing his father. Beron’s youngest is also having his history altered, namely in the direction of being a child of his mother’s affair with Helion of Day Court.

I will say that by far my favourite sequence of the book so far was the meeting that took place in Dawn Court. Getting introduced to all the High Lords of Prythian, getting a sense of their histories and personalities was very enlightening, and this is where Maas excels in her writing. She is incredible at universe building, which is what drew me into her first book initially. It’s only unfortunate that she goes off on these tangents at the cost of building the plot and characters.

I’m honestly not expecting much improvement in terms of the writing in the last third of the book, and now that the war is upon them, it’s very likely that there are going to be a number of shortcuts and last minute solutions that appear. I’m most likely going to see the rest of this book through and put the rest of the series aside.

Week in Review (Jan 9 – 15, 2022)

~ colourfulgranny ~ Leave a comment

What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

The King’s Affection (2021) – Ep 11-20

My k-drama watching had fallen by the wayside a little bit, but there’s nothing like a sageuk to pull me back in. While The King’s Affection is pretty light on the history part of historical drama, it has only amped up the drama in its second half.

As our young Crown Prince’s (Park Eun-bin) identity is revealed to more and more people to be that of his twin sister, the scheming political struggles also increase. Park continues to be one of the strongest performers, but it seems that she is largely relegated to sitting around waiting for things to happen to her rather than taking action. That gets left largely in her court members’ hands. Whether that be her being sent into exile, her father’s demise which forces her return, or the impending war with her grandfather’s army, Lee Hwi, is forced into a passive role.

Jung Ji-un (Rowoon) also vacillates a lot, and when we last left him, he had decided to distance himself from the court and from the Crown Prince, unaware of her identity either as a woman or as his childhood love. After learning of the danger on her life, he jumps at the opportunity to protect and as a result discovers the prince to in fact be a princess. He returns to court, and they decide that they can weather any storm that comes their way, as long as they are together (cheesy, but very beautifully shot), only for him to nearly marry someone else, before he comes to his senses when he learns that Hwi is Dam-i, his childhood sweetheart.

That’s all well and good when you have only minor troubles to deal with, but with Lee Hwi’s sudden ascension to the throne, and the resulting power struggles with his uncle and cousins, it’s easier said than done. Ji-un’s father is also another force to be reckoned with, who in turn is also bound by the Left State Councillor (Yoon Je-Moon). All this means that they ultimately come down to a small team of 6 truly trustworthy people and, especially for those like Court Lady Kim (Baek Hyun-joo) and Eunuch Hong (Go Gyu-pil), their reach is particularly limited.

While all this is ripe for a large battle and major strife, I felt like the last few episodes fell a bit… flat. The promised grand war didn’t happen, there was unnecessary loss of life (why did they need to kill a child?) and in the end it came down to Lee Hwi and his grandfather sharing a poisoned pot of tea. There was no explanation whatsoever about how Hwi survived his own poisoning or the toll it took on Ji-un that she was willing to do that.

The writing was a little too convenient in the final episode, with everything wrapped up neatly and our couple getting to ride off into the sunset. While this is standard practice for most k-dramas, here it felt a bit artificial and therefore unearned. While it was very pretty to look at, the show had its fair share of issues, and I didn’t come away with the fuzzy feelings I think I was expected to.

Week in Review (Dec 19 – 25, 2021)

~ colourfulgranny ~ Leave a comment

What have I been doing this week? I’m glad you asked! Here’s what’s been on my watchlist this week:

*Note: My reviews usually contain spoilers. You have been warned. Proceed at your own risk.*

TV

Succession (2018) – Season 3 Ep 9

After a busy week out in the wilderness, I’ve finally returned to see the season finale of Succession; and what an episode it was! After several long months of being poked, prodded, goaded and generally mistreated by Logan (Brian Cox), the Roy siblings finally put up a united front and stood up against him.

In what was my favorite scene this season, Kendall (Jeremy Strong) has a breakdown after his near drowning (which he insists wasn’t an attempt at suicide) and admits to what happened at Shiv’s (Sarah Snook) wedding with the waiter. His siblings comfort him in whatever way they know how, Shiv saying it isn’t his fault and Roman (Kieran Culkin) resorting to his usual dark humor. The framing, the writing and the performances – especially Strong’s – were flawlessly executed, and this moment felt like a long time coming.

It’s unfortunate that they hardly have any time to process before they have to gather their wits for their most difficult challenge yet: stopping Logan from letting GoJo take over Waystar. They make every effort they can think of from trying to get information from Gerri (J. Smith-Cameron) on Logan to finding the ideal company structure in a post-Logan era, with Shiv pushing for Tom (Matthew Macfadyen) front and center.

The one thing that really bothered me is how much they exclude Connor (Alan Ruck) from their group. He finally expressed his opinion on how ignored he feels by his younger siblings, the first real interest or emotion he’s shown in family affairs.While he ultimately has the be the bigger person and let it go, I was glad to see him take a stand. Despite this, they still don’t consult with him in the slightest with regard to the takeover.

However, in the end it probably wouldn’t have made any difference. The dark horse turned out to be Tom, who tipped Logan off, and even recruited his favourite lackey Greg (Nicholas Braun) in the process. Though it is unsurprising that Tom would turn against Shiv, since he has been becoming more and more disillusioned by her over the course of the season, it still hurt to see him side with Logan of all people.

The repercussions of this promise to be severe, and Season 4 should be rife territory for the Roy clan’s civil war to continue, albeit with a few of the players moved around and loyalties changed. The show continues to be as strong as ever, in the writing, performances and directing and I can’t wait to see what’s in store for them to come.

Movies

Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

Our friendly neighborhood Spider-Man is back, however it seems that the world is rather divided on whether he’s friend or foe in this third installment of the series. After Quentin Beck’s “confession” at the end of the last film, and Peter’s (Tom Holland) identity being revealed, he and his inner circle have been having a tough time living their lives normally.

Rather than deal with things within the confines of his reality, he turns instead to Doctor Strange (Benedict Cumberbatch) and magic to fix his problems. Except that magic is very complicated and Peter wants a bunch of caveats added in, and somehow he even manages to fracture the spell that Strange is casting.

This results in a number of villains from other universes to bleed through to Peter’s world, these universes of course being those of the previous two Spider-Man film franchises. Peter encounters the likes of Doc Ock (Alfred Molina), Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe) and Electro (Jamie Foxx). However, rather than fight them as instinct initially tells him to, he follows his Aunt May’s (Marisa Tomei) advice to instead help them be better. Through technology, they find ways to to stop whatever causes their mental imbalances, but that also largely means removing their abilities for a number of them, which doesn’t sit well with Electro especially.

Eventually Peter gets overpowered by the multitude of villains, which results in the unfortunate death of his aunt, and sends him spiraling into grief and murderous rage. Ned (Jacob Batalon) and MJ (Zendaya) are at a loss on how to even find him let alone help him, but with his newfound magic and Strange’s ring Ned manages to find two people who might be able to help them out: the Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield Spider-Men.

After a lot of meta jokes and banter, the team work together to help the villains out, and send them back home, but in order for it to happen, Peter tells Doctor Strange to cast a spell that will make the world forget who he is, or that he’s Spider-Man. Naturally, this does not sit well with Ned and MJ, but they agree, telling him to find them when this is all over.

He does, but at the last minute, decides not to introduce himself when he realizes that they may be better off without him. The film end with Peter adjusting to life after visiting May’s grave, the world having forgotten him and with no one to really lean on for support.

I absolutely loved the film, the cameos (especially Charlie Cox‘s Daredevil) and the nostalgia that the film drew on to give us a larger universe. However, I couldn’t help feeling a sense of sadness for Peter, seeing him alone in the world, his friends moving on to bigger and better, while he takes the brunt of the punishment. I do hope we revisit Peter in a future film where he is thriving and living life much more happily than how we left him here.