The Devil Returns Home!!
By Paul Anthony
If you are a big Marvel fan then you know this week was a big deal for one of our favorite characters and that character was Daredevil. That’s right Daredevil is back home as of November 29th. This a big deal to me because let’s get right into it the show was a massive hit for Netflix and fans loved it. Let’s go even further back to the 2003 film Daredevil which starred Ben Affleck as our hero. The Movie was a modest hit but it could have been bigger. Year after year the idea of a sequel started to fade away and then there was talks of an reboot and even that fell through. By this time Disney now bought Marvel and rights were coming back home which included Daredevil. The MCU was born and was killing it at the box office. So it was Natural for fans to want another shot at seeing Daredevil. Then News broke that Disney worked out a deal with Netflix. That’s right we would see the devil again but this time it was show rather than a movie yet it would still take place in the MCU, just on a smaller skill since at times we knew Marvel had many heroes but they all weren’t big time players like the avengers.
Then on April 10th, 2015 the show was released and just like that fans went crazy for the show. They went on to binge watch it and beg for season 2 and even season 3. the show help bring characters to screen and into the light. Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist got their own shows and we got a New Punisher as well. The casting of these shows and storylines what made the shows magic and it was all thanks to Daredevil. However little did we know Disney was working something else that would soon change the landscape of this great relationship.
Disney was working on their on streaming service which we know would be Disney plus which would launch in November 12th 2019, just one year later after Daredevil was canceled. At some point I would have guess Netflix got the word that Disney was going to have their own streaming service and decided to cancel the show. When they did this fans assumed the show would just be on Disney plus but we were wrong. We learned that the contract between Netflix and Disney would prevent the show from being saved and going to Disney for two years.
There could be a few reasons why this deal was in place and why Netflix did what they did. It all depends on which side of the coin you want to look at. Maybe Netflix wanted to keep a good relationship with Disney but also wanted to maintain ratings and to get both they needed to cancel the show, so Disney could have the rights soon as possible, this seems most likely instead of them punishing Disney, I say this because Netflix had all the rights to do a fourth season and they could have done it and that would basically slapped Disney in the face but they didn’t and they are smart enough not to do business like that. The good news is that Jessica Jones and The Punisher are the only ones left of the deal that is waiting to come and come February 18th they will. Now the question becomes will they revive these great shows? Time will tell.
What is an Easter Egg episode
Listening to “What is an Easter Egg??” at https://www.buzzsprout.com/285696/4704698-what-is-an-easter-egg
What is a Movie Easter Egg??
https://youtu.be/yYCq-w3IgbA
Saturday Sequel Presents DR. Dolittle 2
By Paul Anthony
I have seen plenty of films, since I was born and some films and one film that I haven’t watched and forgot about was DR. Dolittle 2. Now I haven’t seen the latest Dolittle film which I am guessing is a true reboot because it stars Robert Downey Jr. The franchise once had another big name star and his name is Eddie Murphy. In this era Murphy had to become the most famous Actor and everything he was in was gold though that would start to change the next year with Pluto Nash. The film franchise overall has been up and down with fans. The very first film was a bomb in the 60’s though it became a cult classic and the 2020 reboot was a failure. But the Murphy led films were hits. Part 1 came out in 1998 and grossed nearly 295 million on a 70 million dollar budget and you knew what that meant, a sequel was coming and three years later we got a second film. This film didn’t need a bigger budget, which is something you don’t see often like the first film this budget as well was only 70 million. The gross numbers weren’t the same however but it was still a hit because it grossed 176 million which was down nearly 120 million but never the less it made money. This would be the last Murphy film as the following 3 sequels were direct to DVD and focused on his youngest daughter who inherit the family trait, something we saw her trying to do in this film.
The plot starts a few years after the events of the first film and now Dolittle is more famous than ever because his ability to talk to animals. Just when Dolittle thinks his life can’t anymore busier, raccoon shows up telling him a godfather beaver wants his help to save the forest, which will be torn down and the animals are asking for his help. Of course he agrees but learns the only way to save the forest is to have two endangered animals breed there. That’s when he comes across Archie whos is a circus bear but also the last male pacific western bear and he recruits the bear to help him which Archie must breed with AVA the last female pacific western bear. This is no easy task because he realizes Archie is use to the good life and not a bear life. At the same time Dolittle begins to realize since he has become famous he hasn’t focused on his family and everyone is drifting apart but his family comes back together when he needs their help and even learns his oldest daughter can talk to animals as well and even Archie learns the bear life just in the nick of time because the log company owner begins the process of tearing the forest down but the animals band together and attack him every way they can. In the end the forest is saved and Dolittles return home and Archie and AVA breed and have two cubs and the movie ends on a high note.
I really did enjoy this film, to me everything was on par with the first film, the only drop I saw was the comedy wasn’t there as much as the first film. That could be because the plot required less comedy giving the subject but it was still a good family comedy. The drop in the gross could honestly come from other films because this film went up against the fast and the furious as well as other summer hit of that year and there was a lot of them. In all I am giving this film a high B for a review and say its good film to watch with the family.
The Mandalorian season 1 review
By Paul Anthony
It has been nearly a week since the season final aired on Disney+, so at this point I figured it was a good time to do a review since most of what I say shouldn’t be a spoiler. Honestly if it is a spoiler then I feel sorry for you because this had to be the show of 2019 even though we had a few other shows and not to mention that this show came at the very end of the year with only 8 episodes but that was part of the magic. this show had every thing the Star Wars fan nation wanted and it didn’t have too much of one thing, let’s take a look back.
The show came out the same day Disney+ started but after that each episode was released on a Friday ever since then minus episode 7 which was second to last. I know this was to help build up Rise Of Skywalker but I thought it also made sense to build up the last episode by making us wait even longer to see how it would end. Soon as it ended of course many of the fans were wondering when was season two coming which would find out would be in the fall of 2020 so looks like every year around the same time we will get a new season.
The show follows A Mandalorian bounty hunter who goes by the name of Mando since no one knows his real name. The first real mission is to retrieve what we all called baby Yoda which is actually 50 years old but slow to age which explains why Yoda was so old and so powerful with the force. Anyway Mando gets the baby and his reward but comes to his senses and break the bounty code which makes them an enemy of pretty much everyone who wants money. They hop from planet to planet and do small jobs for cash and parts but each episode is an adventure for Mando with people trying to kill him. Until he is needed and people are willing to wipe the slate clean and he knows this is what is best for the child and himself. In the end it is no easy fight, he learns most of the Mandalorians are killed because of his actions, everything leads to this epic battle against storm troopers and their leader vs Mando and his little team and hope seems lost until the very end in which we learns Mando real name and it is Din Djarin and the villain Moff Gideon survives his battle and cuts his way out of his fighter jet or X Wing for your hardcore fans with a Black Saber which is a Mandalorian artifact, leaving us with questions going into season 2. Mando in the end is determine to find the child’s parents though he had develop relationship with the child.
This show in the end had a good story to tell which did shock me, then it had good fight scenes nothing over the top, they did a few callbacks to tell you where they tied in the Star Wars timeline. Best part of it all was that it created new characters to follow without being caught up with the old characters. It will be a long wait for me for season 2!
Disney Plus review
By Paul Anthony
Here in this blog we are soon approaching the first full month of Disney Plus and I sat back thought man I should review this streaming service that had so much hype. This streaming service once had the nickname Netflix Killer just like how Netflix killed the rental industry. So did it really have that type of impact? My answer is no in the end Disney plus is great but never lived up being the so called Netflix killer. I’ll break it down for you.
Day 1 here we go people were so excited since we heard stories of all the shows they were going to have but the problem most of those shows weren’t actually finished just yet. Sure we had a few new shows and few movies, the biggest show that is taking center stage is the Star Wars show The Mandalorian with the bounty hunter who has no name yet and baby Yoda which isn’t his name but that is what everyone is calling him. When they bought Fox we knew the Simpsons would be on their way to Disney plus and sure enough they were on there. Yet Family guy wasn’t once again there is a fan base that is lost that Disney didn’t jump on. As a Marvel fan I am exciting for all the Marvel shows that are coming yet they were no where near ready which is bummer. We all know we love to binge watch shows on these streaming services and I get it Disney wanted to be different but not having resume feature at first was a joke. They did add this feature but only after the fact when the fans started to cry that this didn’t make sense and they were right. How could they could they miss something so simple, I’m not sure.
Last also go back to the launch and how it nearly crash the website, I get that certain things you can’t predict but you should have expected people would flock in the millions to sign up and log in and right off the bat watch their favorite shows, I mean Darkwing Duck was trending at one point and I loved singing the Chip and Dale Rescue Rangers song over and over again. If there is one thing Disney plus did was it brought back our childhood but that is all, no it is not a Netflix killer as many people called it, truth is as of right now it is another streaming service with great content at a cheap price and in the end its the cable companies that need to worry not Netflix.
Streaming Services
By: Justin Hopkins
It can be pretty intimidating huh. What started out as a few, allowing you to cut the expensive cord of cable. Has seem to grow into a monster. Even doing research for this list they just kept coming and coming. Every Channel and Brand and Sport all seem to be rolling out new one every month it seems and if you want to keep up with your favorite form of medium. You have to sign and pay up to do so, and of course, they can’t seem to share among themselves to help out, but we are not helpless. We have the power to go through and check them out ahead of time, and see which ones are best suited for our viewing needs and today we are going to do just that. I am going to go through them and talk about them in some detail and whether or not I would suggest it. Without further ado, let’s start with one of the originators, Netflix.
Blogger Note. I am going to skip Youtube and Twitch. I know you can get great material on both. Binge watch a lot of Youtube myself. Just don’t really count either as streaming services. No matter what they say about Youtube red. Don’t pay for Youtube. If you find a Youtuber or Streamer you like, give to their patron and help them out directly.
Netflix
I remember running to and from the post office. Eager to get my DVD from Netflixs. God, I feel old. Anyways, Hulu may have beat them to the punch on streaming, but in my opinion, Netflix seemed to perfect it. They had a good blend of movies we were looking for and their own original programing. House of Cards, Orange Is The New Black, Marvel, Castlevania, Disenchantment, Stranger Things. Even their movies deliver. They seem to be taking a lot of hits in the wake of Disney Plus and an even bigger one when HBO Max debuts, but for my money. Netflix is still a must have in my book. For their original content alone. Prices can bit much, but worth every dollar.
Hulu
I have never seen the appeal behind Hulu. Always just been kind of boring. Mostly, because what I watch I can find through other services. When there biggest selling point is based on catching up on shows you missed and those shows will soon be accessible through other means. Think Hulu may be in more trouble than any of the rest. There original content has never appealed to me and the prices range from cheap at 5.99 to the more crazy at 50. I understand going the Hulu route, but do yourselves a favor and combo them up with Disney and Espn Plus.
Disney Plus
The newest one to the table and one of the best. There is very little that I don’t enjoy about it. Mandalorian has been enjoyable and the clone wars cartoon. The world according to Jeff Goldblum has been a blast. The entire run of the simpsons, and can binge watch them over and over again. They have so many of the cartoons from my childhood. Multiple Spider-man ones. Some that I was too young for and Earth’s Mightiest and Avengers Assemble. There was an issue with episode order for the X-men, but that is such a minor problem that it is barely noticable and will probably be worked out soon. Then we go to Bug’s Life and Lilo and Stitch and we are talking my language. A steal for 6.99 a month or 12.99 if you bundle it. This is a must for streaming services.
Espn +
The third in the combo, and make it quick. If you don’t combo it, don’t. Even if you are the biggest sports fan. Can’t imagine this being worth while. You can always listen to the game on radio and stats almost anywhere. It is cheap, at 5 dollars a month, but still five dollars to much. Bundle or skip.
Amazon Prime
Had no interest in this till I got it for free and now one of my most used. Especially for B Movie Sunday. I am not quite sure the price, but seems you need a membership to Amazon Prime first which is 119 dollars a year, 12.99 dollars a year. As much as I love it, it drives me up a wall at the same time. While they have a massive selection of movies. Seems a large chunk of movies you want to watch, you’ll be paying to rent or buy. The buying part is nice, but when you are already paying for the service. Kind of feeling a bit ripped off paying again, but can understand why. The original content is solid, with the likes of The Boys and Good Omens. For what you get though, and the amazon benefits. It ain’t that bad of a deal. Especially for movie junkie.
Shudder
This is one I don’t have ad it infuriates me so much that I can’t get it, cause I want it so bad. It’s library consists of horror movies and the remake of Creepshow, but because they don’t accept my card. Shudder please fix this. Meanwhile, if you are a horror movie fan, this should be high on your list.
Basic Cable Channels
Alright, I am kind of cheating by combining them, but since only one is getting the nod here. It’ll be fine. Can’t imagine why I would want CBS Access or NBC and I don’t even think they cost anything. Peacock maybe when they launch to watch the new Psych movie, but that would be it. Would suggest The CW, because as far as TV programing. They have the best shows on television. Arrowverse is still going and getting better by the week. You can find older stuff on CW Seed, such as Constantine and the animated movie. Birds of Prey and Everyone Hates Chris and Whose Line Is It Anyways. The CW and CW Seed are the only one of the basic channel ones I would even bother with.
TUBI TV
Okay, here me out. I know, that it comes with ads, but it is nowhere near as bad as TV, and they really do offer so much. They got some really good TV shows and thousands of movies. From great ones in the past to some strange and bizarre ones. You can literally get lost in all of their content. It’s completely free so costs nothing to give it a shot. You’ll really enjoy yourself and if not, haven’t lost anything.
Funimation
My most neglected one. I really enjoy what little anime I have watched and am all ears if you want to drop your favorites in the comment section to guide me to the good ones. I definitely suggest it, for Dragon Ball Library alone and they have just, so much anime to pick from. I know Crunchyroll is a big one as well, but suggest Funimation over it, and will go more into why later down the line.
DC Universe
I love this streaming service. The access to Comic Books and there lineup is vastly Underrated. DC animated has always been the gold bar and you can find it all there. The Batman animated show in all its glory. Old School Justice League and Adventures of Lois and Clark. The animated movies are all spectacular and Their shows. Swamp Thing, Doom Patrol, Titans and Harley Quinn Animated soon to join the frey. There is no other streaming service I will pull for harder, than DC Universe. At 7.99 a month, you won’t be disappointed and hope they don’t merge with the next one on the list.
HBO Max
This one has yet to debut, but is boosting a powerhouse of a library. Rick and Morty, Friends, Big Bang Theory, Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air, and Doctor Who. Movies such as Conjuring, 2001 A Space Oddity, Matrix. Looney Tunes, Sesame Street. They have TNT, TBS, Adult Swim, CNN, Max, And Tru. With TNT they can look to add AEW PPVS and rival WWE even more than they are now. Along with access to DC and Crunchyroll meaning they could very well combo CrunchyRoll and DC Universe into the 14.99 dollar price, which would be the only way I am going to sign up for this one. This may well be a massive hit, and do hope them the best, but for the asking price. Just don’t see any reason to add it on to my budget without Crunchy and DCU along with the mix.
I know I missed a handful. Probably some obvious ones, but has to end at some time. I know my opinion will not be shared by some, but that is the best part of this. Yes, there is so much streaming going on, but that means there is so much more for us to explore. New shows to discover. Old ones are back for us to reminisce and bring back memories of when we first watched them and share with friends.
Thanks for reading.
The Mandalorian episode 1 review!
By Paul Anthony
To say that I am blown away by the first episode of this sure to be a hit show is an understatement. Let’s talk about the overall show itself. When I first heard about this show I didn’t want to give it chance because it was about a new character and a bounty hunter nevertheless, I know people go crazy over Boba Fett the bounty hunter that was in a lot of films but had amount screen time around 10 minutes was a joke. But here we are, Star Wars first live action show and it is based on a bounty hunter that is new and honestly that is best part of show so far.
Each episode will be around 40 minutes which is long enough to tell a story without dragging it on and on. Now as of right now there will be eight episodes and starting tomorrow, they will be released every Friday. I have to admit I do like the idea of not releasing every episode at once, something we all knew Disney wasn’t going to do. Now the total time of season one will be 320 minutes. If you don’t want to do the math I will tell you how long that is in hours. Season one is five hours and 20 minutes long, which when you are talking about a season isn’t bad at all.
Episode 1 starts with a bang, the show opens with our Bounty Hunter showing how much of a bad ass he is and pretty much will take one anyone to get to his target. He doesn’t say much, I would say the entire episode he might have spoken two paragraphs of words which was okay actually. After we see he can be a badass his boss gives him his next mission but he has to meet the client in person, which he does but he is also greeted by imperial guards nonetheless the client tells him the last location and that the target is 50 years of age. The bounty hunter sets out and there he battles bad guys with the help of an Bounty Hunter Droid, then they see the target and its actually a baby looking Yoda and the droid explains that some beings age slower then others which explains how Yoda lived as long as he did. Our guy kills the droid and the episode ends there.
With the ending I am pumped to see what happens next try to see what makes this baby so important that certain people want it killed. A show like this is costing money because the graphics and effects and everything like that is on par with something you see at the theatres. In All Disney spent 120 million on this season alone, so I expect nothing short of a movie quality show. I am giving this first episode a good A rating and I hope the rest of the episodes can be as great as this one and have to say this show is a must watch!
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