Quick Reviews: Shows I Watched In Lockdown (Part 1)

Since the Coronavirus lockdown started earlier this year, there's been more time to watch new television shows and revisit some of my older faves. I didn't think there would be so much time to watch as many series as I have so far and probably more to come with how Florida has been doing such a good job handling this whole crisis.

Below are my quick reviews of shows that have entertained me (or at least tried to) along during the lockdown and social distancing - Space Force, Hunters, Once Upon A Time, Survivor: Winners At War, True Detective, Jericho, and E.R. There are no specific plot spoilers below. (Part 2 of more quick reviews will be coming along soon.)

Defending Jacob (2020) Is A Dizzying Search for the Truth

Does it ever become a conflict of interest for a parent to protect their child? It seems like a dubious question at best and an easy answer on the surface. Familial ties and love are meant to be unconditional, but if an innocent kid commits an unspeakable crime, the line between devotion and justice can become blurred. Based on the novel by William Landy, Defending Jacob explores the pain of facing the truth of what someone you loved is capable of.

There are no major spoilers based on the plot or big reveals - however, please read ahead at your own risk.

Lambs of God (2020) Unfolds a Fantastical Tale of Belief and Passion

The stories we watch are just as influential as the stories – personal, religious, or otherwise, we tell ourselves. Here the lives of three women cast aside fantastically crossover to the blurred path of their personal histories and what the world would like them to believe.

Based on the novel by Marele Day, Father Ignatius (Sam Reid) seeks to examine the grounds of a secluded island and confronts three nuns living in a dilapidated monastery. As Ignatius discovers that hospitality comes at a price, the fears, faith, and secrets of Sister Iphigenia (Essie Davis), Sister Margarita (Ann Dowd), and Sister Carla (Ann Dowd) forces them to defend their way of life.

Quick TV Reviews (The Bachelor, The Good Doctor, and The Conners)

The Bachelor, The Good Doctor, and The Conners are close to wrapping up their latest seasons. I'm not even waiting for the finales to share my two cents because it's been quite a doozy watching them through the winter break. None of my reviews contain major spoilers. Have you watched any of these shows or watching something else in 2020? Feel free to share in the comments!

Best Reactions from Stranger Things Season 4 Teaser

Stranger Things season three left fans heartbroken but optimistic. To save face from spoilers, for those who don't know, a beloved character was seemingly killed off in the latest season finale. Fans mourned their death with the characters' loved ones and assumed that was the last we'd see of him.

Cue to the teaser of Stranger Things's season four and fans suspicions - ones who believed the character was still alive - were surprisingly confirmed before more details of the next season came to light.

Of course, the fandom responded as it does - with the best reactions on social media. Here are some tweets helping us celebrate and anticipate the next season. 

This post contains spoilers. Read at your own risk.

Quick Tv Reviews (Big Little Lies, Animal Kingdom & The Bachelorette)

Big Little Lies, Animal Kingdom, and The Bachelorette recently wrapped up their latest series, and were some of the shows I enjoyed this past summer. None of my reviews contain major spoilers. Have you watched any of these shows or watching something else this summer? Let me know in the comments!

Watch On Netflix: Stranger Things 3 (2019)

There’s just no avoiding Stranger Things. When a new season releases on Netflix, you run towards the Upside Down arms open – Mindflaying domination over Hawkins, Indiana be damned.

The third season of the popular series kicked off with another edition of Nancy Drew adventures for our heroic misfits: Steve, Robin, Erica, and Dustin investigate a mysterious code at the new Starcourt Mall. On the other side of town, Eleven with Mike, Lucas, and Will try to discover why the Upside Down is having a sadistic affect on Max's brother Billy. Meanwhile Nancy and Jonathan struggle with their new responsibilities after high school, as Joyce and Hopper discover that the Russians are coming (or have never truly left).

If that seems like a lot to read, it might not come as a surprise that it’s also a lot to digest while watching the newest episodes. As the third chapter in the Stranger Things saga, the series finds a balance in righting and recycling some of its previous flaws.

As a precaution, if you haven't seen Stranger Things 3, read at your own risk. This post contains spoilers!

Watching Game of Thrones For The First Time

If anyone told me eight years ago I’d binge-watch Game of Thrones months ahead of its series finale, I honestly wouldn’t believe them. I was never a fan to brag about not watching a popular show, as if ultra-cool fans who weren't interested in the series act like they deserve some sort of medal for living off-the-grid. Game of Thrones, in the beginning and its peak, didn’t appeal to me because The Walking Dead was ruling my life, and after trying to watch one episode, I just didn’t connect. Giving it another chance, and having been 98% unaware of its biggest moments, felt like a fun challenge. And if there is one thing that I accept more in life than anything else, and what I actually think I'm decent at, it's live-tweeting a whole series on a ridiculous time limit.

But that's exactly how I decided to ring in 2019.

Quick Tv Reviews: The Orville, Survivor: Edge of Extinction, What We Do In The Shadows

With all of the streaming services available and tapping our fingers on apps to find exactly what we want, it's a little odd to talk about traditional shows - those old things we used to wait wait-to-week to watch an entire series unfold. The Orville, Survivor: Edge of Extinction, What We Do In The Shadows recently wrapped up their latest series, and were some of the traditional shows I enjoyed this past Spring. They may not be "on" or available right now, but thought it'd still be fun to share my thoughts on their latest seasons.

What are you watching right now? anything on streaming or traditional tv? Let me know in the comments.

Best of Game Of Thrones Series Finale Reactions

After eight years reigning as the biggest show around the world, there was no way Game of Thrones could've managed to please everybody. But there was also no way of knowing how it would unpack, overlook, and swerve from all of our theories and expectations. As the series finale dawned, the last episode delivered plenty of moments to make us feel every feel across the spectrum from outraged and shocked to confused and blase to relatively pleased and content. While I'll be posting my fuller thoughts on watching the series for the first time upon its last season, these are some of the best reactions to the show's love-to-hate or hate-to-love-it goodbye. What was your overall reaction to The Iron Throne? Let me know in the comments. And, this post contains spoilers. Read at your own risk.

Top 11 Favorite Game of Thrones Characters

So many characters on Game of Thrones, so little time to rank all of them. While watching the series for the first time, I wasn't quite sure if I was going to be able to keep track of everyone. For a show of this size with at least a hundred characters, coming up with eleven (with honorable mentions) was difficult.  Throughout its eight seasons, certain heroes and even villains always caught my attention and made me root for them.

Like most adaptations, the storylines for a show or movie is immeasurably changed from the books. That said, I haven’t read George R. R. Martin’s series yet, so my choices are entirely based on the television show. The challenge of picking my faves and ranking them in some kind of specific order was hard, but here they are. Who do you love or love-to-hate? How would you rank your own list if you could? Let me know in the comments below!

This post mentions plot and character development from season 1 through seven, and may be considered spoilers. Read at your own risk!

5 Ways to Recover When Your Favorite Show Ruins Everything

Sometimes we love a television show or fandom too much to let it go. Maybe the writing or direction declines but we hold on to see if it gets better...or out of respect for the actors we love, we want to see how their characters' arcs turn out. And, suddenly, or tortuously, the end of a series comes along and we're feel confused about where it all went wrong; tricked because the writers took stories in a completely different direction than what they had set up; robbed of having a satisfactory ending to what was a truly brilliant beginning. I've been there before over and over again, where I try to give a show every benefit of the doubt - Hello, Once Upon A Time, The Walking Dead, Mad Men, Castle, The X-Files - until I just inevitably accept that my favorite show ruined everything.

When a fandom takes a turn for the worst from character arcs to possible plots, it's quite the grieving process when it all goes downhill. Yes, I said grieving process because there's a big loss when a show fails to show up for you the way you supported it for over five, or even ten years. Fortunately, there's a small bit of light at the end of the tunnel, a little survival guide you can use to recover when your favorite fandom is truly a life ruiner. Well, here some things that I like to do and hope they help you out and enjoy! Has a show ever ruined everything for you and you still feel the effects years later? Let me know in the comments!

5 Actors That Should've Won (or Been Nominated) for An Emmy

The Emmys are the biggest platform for series to be recognized in the television industry. While everyone can't win or earn recognition for their work, there are a few performances that didn't earn Emmy gold which always amazes me. Some actors have either been entirely overlooked in their category year after year, or just managed to lose out to other nominees. Here are five actors, who now looking back should've been nominated or won an Emmy. Who do you think has been snubbed by the Emmys in the past? I'm interested to hear your picks!

Book VS Series: Sharp Objects

Gillian Flynn's novels are easily some of the most difficult contemporary stories to adapt. She's one of the most hardcore voices out there that dives deep into her anti-heroines' psyche, often weaving their experiences into a disturbing, no-holds-barred thriller. Even after the successful adaptation of Gone Girl (and the forgettable flop Dark Places), one never knows how her rage-filled worlds will come to life. With three generations of complicated female characters tackling everything from misogyny to self-harm and abuse, her original debut novel Sharp Objects becomes a damn fine mini-series.

This post deals with themes of the book and show - self-harm, abuse, rape, etc - and contains spoilers - you've been warned.

Top Nomination Picks for the 70th Emmy Awards

Summer is winding down, but the new season of television is just around the corner. Which means it's almost the biggest time of the year for TV land. On September 17th, 2018, the Emmy Awards will celebrate actors and series nominated by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Will Donald Glover make history again? Will underdogs like The Americans have a chance to sweep? I thought it might be fun to share my top picks of major award categories (check out the full list of nominees here). Who do you hope will win at the 70th Emmys? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below!

The X-Files Mini Reunion Reveals The Truth at MegaCon Orlando 2018

For almost fourteen years, fans of The X-Files waited for the resurgence of Chris Carter's extraterrestrial series to come along. When the television show returned to Fox for two more seasons, devotees were all-to-eager to continue the investigation of aliens, demons, and everything in-between alongside FBI Agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson). Following the series' brief return for its eleventh and final (never say never) season earlier in 2018, the truth was still out there as the supporting cast touched down in MegaCon Orlando for a mini-reunion. Mitch Pileggi, who played FBI Assistant Director Walter Skinner, Annabeth Gish as former agent Monica Reyes, and William B Davis as Cigarette Smoking Man were on hand for a spooky question and answer session with fans to dish about the latest season and what it was like to work on one of the most mind-boggling series ever.

The following contains spoilers for the final season of The X-Files. Read at your own risk!

The Arrangement (2018) Season Two Has More Cards To Play

E! / The Arrangement

When The Arrangement first premiered on E! in 2017, the first element that drew attention from fans and the media was “the contract”. Those two words made almost everyone think of E.L. James’s series Fifty Shades of Grey; E! used the "S&M" phenomenon to even promote their series about an unknown actress Megan Morrison (Christine Evangelista) who signs on the dotted line to have a make-believe relationship in front of the cameras to benefit the most famous actor in the world Kyle West (Josh Henderson). While the two actually fall in love, Kyle’s ties to Scientology-esque mentor Terence Anderson (Michael Vartan) and the Institute to the Higher Mind tests their relationship much more than Megan could’ve ever dreamed. Coming back for its second season, any assumptions or comparisons to James’s series falls away as a more exciting premise of love, deception, and power unfolds for its leading lady.

Spoilers for the first and second season are included below – you’ve been warned!

The Walking Dead Do Not Send Us Astray and Still Gotta Mean Something

Photo Credit: AMC / Gene Page

The Hilltop Colony is ready for whatever the Sanctuary throws at them, but they might not be that prepared for a few extra deadly tricks they have up their sleeve. It's the Sanctuary's move in this All-Out-War, but will it be enough to take down our communities once and for all? Below includes spoilers of the series' eight seasons so far and recaps for episode thirteen Do Not Send Us Astray and episode fourteen Still Gotta Mean Something. You've been warned but hope you enjoy!

The Walking Dead 08x12 The Key

Photo Credit: AMC / Gene Page

Clinging to victory over Negan, the community's leaders are facing some of their biggest challenges yet: providing for their fellow survivors to ensure a better future. An odd proposition in trust catches Maggie by surprise. A chance to eliminate Negan from the equation is too tempting for Rick to pass up. And, one of Negan's right-hand man takes advantage of an opportunity to get ahead. Below includes spoilers of the series' eight seasons so far. You've been warned but hope you enjoy!

The X-Files (2018) Struggles To Keep Its Legacy Going

Photo Credit: Fox

After fourteen years of waiting for The X-Files to return, its initial reboot in 2016 wasn't the greatest. While it was great catching up with Mulder and Scully as they thwarted Cigarette Smoking Man's bit for world destruction, the highly anticipated tenth season was a bumpy start. A question weighed on the fandom's mind: could the series eclipse the disappointment with season eleven? Below includes spoilers of The X-Files series so far. You've been warned but hope you enjoy!