This week, we’ve said goodbye to the binging of an absolute favorite (sometimes it’s hard being caught up on things), finished a smaller series, and started a couple new ones. We might have finished a movie or two, too. So, we managed to get a lot of work done and quite a few things watched. Not bad!
After you check out what we’ve watched, make sure to let us know what you’ve been watching. You can let us know here in the comments or in the replies on Facebook when we share this post with our FilmDis Page. We can’t wait to hear what you’ve been watching. Throw us your recommendations!
Want to check out last week’s WWW? Here it is!
Ashtyn
Tracker: I got to check out the first two episodes of this new CBS drama, this week. Overall, I plan to keep watching. Justin Hartley stars as Colter Shaw. He’s what he calls a rewardist. Basically he tracks things and people down for reward money. He works with this fabulous older lesbian couple (played by Robin Weigert and Abby McEnany), who are like his handlers, and a tech guru named Bobby, a Black double amputee. He is played by Eric Graise. Tracker has an obvious element of drama and a b-story that is filled with drama, as well. Colter seems to be running from his past and the flashbacks of his youth, combined with the cases he’s chasing, make for an exciting show.
In terms of disability representation, so far, so good. Eric Graise is a double amputee in real life. You see that he is disabled in the first scene and that’s it. It’s not brought up (or at least it hasn’t been yet) and he’s a valued, badass member of this team. After the last few instances of disability representation I’ve had, this was a welcome surprise. I hope it continues.
You can watch Tracker on Paramount+.
The Great North: It is with absolute sadness that I say that we are now officially caught up on The Great North. For a few glorious weeks we were watching about four episodes a day and now I will have to watch something else. I refuse to sing the new show’s theme song though. “From longest night to longest day,” The Great North is my favorite animated comedy currently on TV. I love pretty much the whole family, but if I had to go in order it would be Wolf, Moon, Ham, Honeybee, Beef, and Judy. And honestly, as I write this, I’m only most positive about Judy’s position. The others I love more or less depending on the context of the episode. There’s not much that I can say that I haven’t in the past few weeks. If you need a laugh, just go watch The Great North. I highly doubt it’s anything like living in Alaska, but it’s harmlessly funny either way.
You can check out The Great North on Hulu.
Halo: I like to consider myself a gamer, so it comes with a small amount of embarrassment that I have never played Halo and apparently had no idea what it was about. I knew there was some sort of war and I knew that Master Chief was the big hero we all need to get us out of it. Other than that, no clue. So, in the first episode I was surprised to see a small village gearing up for a war with the Marines. Then the aliens showed up before Master Chief made his entrance. For some reason I had no idea that anyone was fighting aliens.
I don’t know that I’m the best judge to compare the quality of the show to the lore of the video game, because I apparently know nothing about the game. That said, so far I am enjoying the show. The acting is decent and the special effects are fun. I am definitely excited at the prospect to check out more and to continue with the second season, which is currently airing.
I started watching the show with Dom after the first episode, which has helped. Apparently the story isn’t too much like any of the games they have played, but they know enough about many characters that they can answer any of the questions I have. I’m enjoying the actors and most of the characters, but I have to say, the special effects and the spaciness of it all is just magnificently beautiful.
By the end of the week we finished the first season. So, next week we will be caught up with the second season, which is currently airing.
You can watch Halo on Paramount+.
Thanksgiving: The first movie I watched this week was a teen horror flick called Thanksgiving. It has Patrick Dempsey, Gina Gershon, and a few other famous names you’ve probably heard of. It’s one year after a Black Friday Massacre in Plymouth, Massachusetts. Apparently, Black Friday is one hell of an event at the RightMart. Everyone has dinner early before they can get into the lines. There are even coupons for free waffle irons, so you know shits about to get real!
And shit does get real. We’re talking shopping carts to faces, exposed jugulars, and people straight fucking each other up with those free waffle irons. The whole thing is considered an accident, but what will happen a year later? The Wright family is headed up by a rich, clueless guy who decides that having a sale the year after a massacre is alright. Unfortunately, as things happen with movies like these, someone is out for revenge.
Best line of the entire movie, “Sorry Jessica, this year there will be no leftovers!”
This is one of those movies that transcend good or bad. The kills are inventive and fun, the acting is decent, and the overall story has all of the elements of a popular yet campy horror film. It’s definitely worth the watch.
You can check out Thanksgiving on Netflix.
Miss Scarlet and The Duke:
We watched the last episode of Miss Scarlet and The Duke this week. It actually aired last week, but I had fooled myself into believing there would be more episodes because I didn’t want to imagine the season ending without William. We are kind of left on this cliffhanger in the fact that half of the show feels missing with William gone.
Still, this was a pretty good episode. Scotland Yard still hasn’t found a replacement for William. Fitzroy is a nepobaby (even if he doesn’t want to be one), and his Dad attempts to put him in charge of a murder case. The decision proceeds to make the entire episode a dramedy. They are looking for a murderer and it could be Patrick Nash. More interestingly though may be Fitzroy’s growth in the episode. He learns that respect isn’t just given because someone puts you in charge.
Overall, the episode was fine, but I really need the next season to come back and include William. It’s Miss Scarlet AND The Duke. They complement one another perfectly and the show only really works when both of them are there.
You can watch Miss Scarlet and The Duke on PBS or through the Masterpiece Channel on Amazon.
NCIS: Hawai’i:
When we do the study, we have a rule (to make things easier) that as we divide the shows, if someone gets a show – they also get all of the sequels. Somehow this meant that over the years I ended up with all of the Law & Orders, Chicago shows, and every NCIS. Currently, of the lot of them, I am only watching NCIS: Hawai’i.
One of the reasons I love this show so much (general copaganda aside) is the main cast. Jane (Vanessa Lachey), Kai (Alex Tarrant), Jesse (Noah Mills), Ernie (Jason Antoon), Lucy (Yasmine Al-Bustami), and Whistler (Tori Anderson) are all very complimentary of the others. Not only is it a diverse cast full of fun and interesting characters, there is some excellent lesbian representation, which you never seem to see enough of. I am such a huge Lucy + Whistler fan. Of course, if I had to pick a favorite it might be Ernie.
This season is a much smaller 10 episodes due to the strikes that recently ended. And a new addition, at least for now, is Sam Hanna (LL Cool J) who is coming over from the now canceled NCIS: Los Angeles. Jane is back to work after a devastating series of events and Sam is her unofficial babysitter that is there to make sure she is mission ready.
Each episode is pretty standard with a crime or crimes that need to be solved and the team working through it until the crimes are solved. Because of the predictability of this type of show, the right cast is necessary, and they have that here. It also helps that the writers really work to give the characters some type of balance – so you know more about them beyond what you see at work.
You can watch NCIS Hawaii on Paramount+.
Criminal Record:
Criminal Record was a quick and easy watch. The basics are about police corruption, as uncovered by another police officer that won’t let things go. As the officer that uncovers the potential corruption is a Black woman, you can bet there is a fair amount of racism, sexism, and some good old fashioned gaslighting. It’s Peter Capaldi versus Cush Jumbo. The good news is that the acting is top notch and the story is simple.
A 911 call reveals the possibility that a man was falsely arrested for the murder of a local woman. The caller claims they know who did it, but does not want to give any information. This leads to the man in prison and whether or not he is innocent. At the same time we learn about the son the murdered woman left behind and how he is doing without anyone to look after him. I don’t know if there are plans for a second season. It can be a little far fetched at times, but the acting made it palatable. If you like police dramas, this one isn’t the worst I’ve seen.
In terms of disability, there is a character, one of the corrupt cops named Tony, that has MS. They show him in some scenes sitting in a manual wheelchair and others he would be lifting the chair to put it in his car. To my knowledge (and that of IMBD), the actor, Charlie Creed-Miles does not have MS and does not use a wheelchair. In terms of representation, it’s good that not too much is about his disability. He’s too busy being a racist douche to worry about pitying himself, so I guess that’s something!
You can watch Criminal Record on Apple TV+.
Avatar: The Last Airbender:
I forgot this was coming out this week, but we had a chance to watch the first two episodes on Date Night. So, a couple things. I’ve watched the whole series, The Legend of Korra, and the unfortunate M. Night Shyamalan version, which should not have ever been a thing. There is no way that this ends up being better than the animated version. That’s true with almost every media franchise ever worth a grain of salt. That said, this is miles ahead of anything live action created about Avatar, thus far.
It’s been years since watching the original. From what I remember, things are going about how they did with the original. I am sure there have been some changes, and there will continue to be some throughout the series, but any changes they’ve introduced through episode two were small enough that I didn’t notice them.
I am a huge fan of the authentic casting in this. The kids all remind me of the characters. I think my favorites in terms of remind-ability right now are Prince Zuko (Dallas Liu) and Katara (Kiawentiio). But my favorite character across the board is Uncle Iroh (Paul Sun-Hyung Lee). I was also so excited to see that Yvonne Chapman is Avatar Kyoshi.
I’ve heard some complaints about the bending – specifically the water bending, but it didn’t look that bad to me. Apparently, it did not look incredibly realistic. I’m not sure what that means, but I thought it looked alright. I’m excited to watch the additional episodes next week!
You can watch Avatar: The Last Airbender on Netflix.
Dom
Abbott Elementary
Abbott Elementary’s latest episode has a storyline that explores disability again and the realities for disabled students. Janine, who is heavily involved with her fellowship at the district, is trying to get an ASL interpreter in class for the Deaf student who is in Jacob’s class. Jacob is able to sign a little bit, but it’s clearly not accurate and the student falls behind in social settings.
Janine really believes that she can get things done at the district but there is massive amounts of paperwork and red tape that make it seem impossible. When Janine is set to give up because it is too hard, Ava reminds her that she never gives up. Manny reminds her she’s an out-of-the-box thinker, which is why she got the fellowship in the first place, so this inspires her to get creative and she manages to get the ASL interpreter.
It’s a good storyline and it really examines how inadequate schools are when dealing with disabled and Deaf students. A lot of times students’ needs go unmet. This also allowed for the young Deaf actress who introduced her storyline last year, to return for another episode.
In another storyline, Tariq is now dating the mother of one of Barbara’s kindergartners. He is responsible for picking up and dropping off the child. He calls him TJ for Tariq Jr, and the child constantly is annoyed at him. Barbara has to get him to call him by his actual name, Nick. By the end of the episode he is doing better, but this is still Tariq, so there will remain drama.
Overall a great episode. Check it out!
The Great North
We knew this day was coming. We are finally caught up with The Great North.
We watched the first two episodes of the fourth season, and while they were fantastic, not singing The Great North theme song at least 4x a day is going to take a toll I think on Ashtyn’s and my mental health. It truly has been a mood booster to sing that song and enjoy the Tobin family on a daily basis.
The first episode is a Ham forward episode. He has to give a presentation to another class and it is Moon’s class who is notoriously famous for being assholes and making kids fail and cry. Ham’s presentation is called, Alaska Wow! And he’s terrified of Moon and his class. Judy, Beef, and Honeybee tell exciting made-up stories based on movies that they think will save Ham.
Judy, à la Bob Ross, tells a story inspired by Top Gun. Beef tells a story about the person who made the first Alaskan flag, meshed with multiple Ben Affleck/Matt Damon films but specifically Good Will Hunting. Honeybee tells a Matrix inspired story. None of them are particularly great though, so Ham ends up making cupcakes so the kids don’t complain.
The second episode has Beef having a near-death experience which makes him realize he hasn’t got laid in a while so he ends up having a one night stand that becomes public knowledge thanks to a poem about him in the local paper. This grosses out his two youngest children especially.
Moon, meanwhile, gets a gig with Jerry as his little brother, baby Bigfoot. This episode was fun and cute and lighthearted. I love how silly this show is and how much it makes me laugh. If you need some humor in your life I highly recommend the entire series.
Star Trek: Prodigy
I continue to make my way through the first season of Star Trek: Prodigy. The episodes just keep getting better and I sometimes have to remind myself that this is a show geared towards younger viewers. A lot of that is reminded through the actions of Rok Tok. I’m honestly wondering if her actress had a growth spurt because her voice sounds a little bit older in the second 10 episodes of the first season. They still try to keep her very young though, and that is the only real sign this is for kids.
A lot has happened since leaving Gwyn’s father with his memories lost thanks to Zero. Unfortunately, the real Janeway and her crew end up finding him and taking him with them as they search for the Protostar. Gwyn had forgotten that her father and the people of her species had placed a weapon from the future on the Protostar, because she also was exposed to Zero accidentally. If any Starfleet technology connects with it it will be corrupted and they will be destroyed from the inside.
Dal and crew discover this when they end up at a Federation outpost that ends up blowing itself up. Of course, the one Starfleet officer there blames the crew, not knowing that they had no idea what would happen. Hologram Janeway continues to be a great mentor and supporter of the young crew. I kind of like her better than the actual Janeway. Of course, Janeway and the rest of Starfleet have no idea that the patient they are taking care of actually wants to destroy Starfleet.
At the point I am at, Janeway and the crew are pursuing the Protostar who are going into neutral space. They are hoping they can lose her there. Janeway is going to pursue them until Romulans warn them about it being an act of war to enter the neutral zone. The protostar is shielded and invisible, so they think this is dangerous, but also their only course of action. I can’t wait to see what comes next.
This is actually a great show and I highly recommend it.
Halo
Full Disclosure: I have actually played multiple games in the Halo franchise. My favorite games are Halo 3: ODST and Halo Reach. I’ve been playing Xbox for 20 years. Halo was a fundamental part of my videogame history. That being said, I never really was as big into the lore because I felt like that was secondary to the gameplay. I just liked being out and shooting a bunch of Covenant and/or Flood baddies. I even really love Halo: Spartan Assault. What can I say? I just endlessly like killing the Covenant.
So, if you are a Halo loyalist, who is obsessed with accuracy with the lore you are not gonna like this show. There are changes they make to characters and storylines that are essential to the series that completely diverge from the game’s canon. That being said the show is entertaining, well acted, and action-packed. Fans will have to decide whether they can get past all of the changes and look at this as its own media.
The visuals really are what made me think of the games most and made me a little giddy with excitement. There are moments that feel like you are in Halo.Those were my favorite moments.
The acting is really superb and probably the best part of it. I’ve never been a huge Pablo Schreiber fan but he does a decent job as Master Chief. That being said, my favorite character is Kai. At one point it looked like they might pursue something with Miranda and Kai (for some reason I get big lesbian energy from both of them), and I was all for it but that has completely not happened and I totally want it to.
I know that Master Chief’s team is different than in the games but I don’t really remember his teammates being that important in the games. I don’t mind the addition of Kai (obviously), Riz and Vannak. I also like Cortana and love that Jen Taylor is her voice! I want to see more of her with Master Chief.
I love how much I hate Dr. Halsey. This is partially because of Natasha McElhone, who is particularly good at being cold and calculating. I also feel like I understand the Spartans a whole lot better after watching this.
An interesting aspect of all this is how the UNSC is almost the main villain of this. While we recognize the Covenant and the Flood as enemies in the games, the fact that Spartans were initially made to quell civil war/rebellion is something that I didn’t really remember from the games. But it makes sense, in general, with the way humanity is. This is the biggest change from the game I believe.
At the end of the day you need to decide whether you can look past all of the changes they made to the show. I was not intensely into the Halo lore, so it doesn’t really bother me, but I’m certain it will bother others. If this was not called Halo it would be a really fun show.
Miss Scarlet and The Duke
I mentioned previously that I suspected the final episode of the season would have nothing to do with Duke or Miss Scarlet’s relationship and I was right. I assume the actor that plays Duke was unable to film. However I personally feel that it’s horrible to have a show where the lead character (which the show is about) is missing for nearly half of the season. At the beginning, he was out of commission due to getting shot, and by the end he was completely gone.
This has opened up more stories about and with Nash, whom it feels like they were testing out whether he had the same amount of chemistry with Scarlet. He doesn’t. At least not that unbridled sexual tension she has with Duke. It’s kinda like watching siblings solving cases together, which is a great story, but not if your show is supposed to be a romantic show. I’m sure there are a few people who are team Nash who are hoping this inevitably happens, but we were promised Eliza and the Duke not anyone else. Otherwise the show is bad advertising.
As for the actual episode, it was actually kind of entertaining especially because I really like Fitzroy. I also really like Ivy and they are both in multiple scenes although Ivy has less to do than Fitzroy. I feel a lot of the secondary characters are underutilized and underwritten, but I don’t care as long as Duke and Eliza have good moments. Unfortunately, with him missing, I feel like there’s a huge gap in the show. Stop toying with us PBS! We deserve better. Otherwise, the next season might be my last.
Avatar: The Last Airbender
I have been a huge ATLA fan since the show first aired. It’s something I, as a young parent, watched with my son while he was growing up. It was something we bonded over together. That being said, I’ve watched the animated show so many times I’ve lost count of it. However, not recently. The last Avatar show I watched was actually Legend of Korra. I love that show more for so many various other reasons I can’t even get into, but needless to say it’s been a while since I’ve seen the original.
I was so angry about the movie version that I never watched it. I am for authentic casting, so I was looking forward to this, even as I was nervous that the original creators walked away from it. Instead, an Asian showrunner would be running it. I truly feel that Albert Kim tried his best to respect the lore and pay homage to the original series. I feel it does a much better job of representing the series than the movie did.
The fundamentals of the story are the same. Aang, the last airbender, who is also the avatar – the only person in the world who can learn all four bending elements and protect the world, disappears on the night that his home and everyone he knows is destroyed and murdered by the fire nation. They have attacked the air temple because all of the air nomads are together for a special festival, the night when the firebenders are most powerful.
For 100 years, it seems that the avatar has disappeared but Aang and his flying bison Appa have been encased in ice, protected by Aang in his avatar state. When siblings, Sokka and Katara discover him, it sets them off on an epic adventure to save the world and discover who they all really are. It’s a beautiful story in animated form, and while it’s not perfect, there are so many elements from the original, I personally find it to be quite a good time.
In the cartoon, many of the voice actors were white people playing Asian and Indigenous characters, and while many of the characters remind me of the original, some of them sound vastly different. I would expect that because this is much more authentic casting and I would rather take the trade in authenticity as opposed to worrying about the character sounding exactly like the voice actors.That being said all of them remind me of the characters. Just some more than others.
One thing that is different from the cartoon that some people will not be cool with is that in order to condense 22 half-hour episodes into eight 1-hour episodes, they had to combine some stories. For example, In the opening you see some of the events that you learn about later on in the cartoon. It serves as the opening sequence so you know about things that you don’t know until later in the cartoon series. Ultimately, something had to be done to the change in format, but it feels like the show tries to do so respectfully to the source material IMO.
We watched the first two episodes and some of my favorite moments: Appa and Aang (Appa is so freaking adorable I just love him in everything – and he is equally as adorable here), Prince Zuko and his steampunk ship (Dallas Liu is fantastic casting who not only looks the part but also feels like Zuko. I also like that they did not over embellish his scar.), Uncle Iroh and his love for tea (all the nostalgia), the cute way Suki and Sokka fall for each other, Yvonne Chapman as Avatar Kyoshi letting loose on the fire nation, and how cute Katara and Aang are together. Their relationship is so important to the story so I’m glad they are trying to establish that now.
All in all, I’m going to keep watching and nothing can be as bad as the movie. Nothing. Go into this looking to have fun and you will be reminded of why you love this series. And if you really want to watch the original cartoon, you know it’s there for you to watch.