Tag: netflix

Iron Fist Season 1 Episode 1: Snow Gives Way Recap/Review

~ Metacrone

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Before we get started: this is a show in which a grown man proves his identity by separating the brown M&Ms from the rest of the colors in the bag. It was the moment I knew the show was for me. It might mean that this isn’t the show for you, though, and that’s okay.

It’s most definitely not Jessica Jones, Daredevil, or Luke Cage, and, from what I can tell, if you loved the dark, gritty atmosphere and brutal fight scenes of those shows, you aren’t going to be happy with their lighter, brighter sister show. If, like me, you found Daredevil too dark and slow to get through, and grew tired of Jessica Jones using filmmaking tricks to replace storytelling, this might be the Netflix Marvel show for you.

(I haven’t been able to get myself to try Luke Cage yet, though I did enjoy the character in Jessica Jones, which I watched all the way through. I only watched a few episodes of Daredevil, up until the Russian brother gets his head smashed in the car door. I liked the Russian brothers.)

I’ve watched the first three episodes of Iron Fist. It’s not all fun, but the story is easy to follow and makes sense. It’s not trying overly hard to be artistic, but there are some nice touches, which I think other reviewers are missing in their haste to condemn it because it doesn’t put style over storytelling like Jessica Jones, or have intense, brutal violence like Daredevil (at least so far). Like its protagonist, it’s easy-going, laid back, and has a sense of humor, but there’s more to it than you realize at first, if you pay attention.

Danny Rand has a tragic back story, but he doesn’t walk around NYC with a broody cloud of angst surrounding him, so neither should his show. He’s an optimist, and a fighter. He Does Not Give Up. He lets people underestimate him. I don’t quite understand why our culture thinks being laid back and happy equals being weak and/or boring, but I suspect this show is exploring that, at least a bit. I’m not sure which one people think is worse at this point. He’s not actually well-adjusted, that’s made clear with his continuous flashbacks to the crash and his time away, and his reactions to being aggressively touched. He’s continuously triggered from being back where he grew up.

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The OA Season 1 Episode 5: Paradise Recap

~ Metacrone

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What is Paradise? It’s subjective, in the end. Growing up in one of the snowiest cities in the country, with a depressed, Rust Belt economy, paradise always sounded like a warm tropical island to me. But warm tropical islands have depressed economies and natural disasters of their own, making the people who live there want to find a different sort of paradise just as much. This episode looks at the expectations we have for escape, for each other, for paradise, for whatever we think should be perfect in our lives.

Hap is in a bar in Cuba to listen to a woman who plays flamenco guitar. After the performance, he approaches her on the patio. They chat, and he steers the conversation toward his study. She is an NDE survivor, and only took up the guitar after her experience. Hap makes her his usual offer, and includes helping her escape from Cuba. But she’s not as young or desperate as his other subjects. She rejects him, even though she wants to get off the island. He looks shocked, like it’s the first time this has ever happened. She dances away with a much younger man.

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Santa Clarita Diet Season 1 Episode 7: Strange or Just Inconsiderate? Recap

~ Metacrone

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In this episode of “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner?” the answer is: Dan! And he overstays his welcome, just as he did in life. Some people just can’t change, no matter what life, or death, throws at them.

Joel and Sheila are working hard to adapt, though. Their quick thinking skills are coming along nicely. After killing Dan with a shovel at the end of episode 6, Joel throws his body over the back garden wall into his own yard. Unfortunately, Sheila is having coffee and conversation with Alondra in the kitchen at that moment, in full view of the yard and wall. Fortunately, Alondra’s back is to the wall, so Sheila is able to cover for her surprise with some passionate sharing about kites and canning, then get Alondra out of the house. It really is a b*tch when the peaches go bad before you get to them.

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Santa Clarita Diet Season 1 Episode 6: Attention to Detail Recap

~ Metacrone

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Sheila and Joel have done the thing that criminals always do, and they really need to learn not to do, if they’re going to become serial killers: returned to the scene of the crime. They’re still having the “did she or didn’t she” debate about Loki. When you’re married, some disagreements are just never-ending.

Sheila thinks she didn’t accidentally bite Loki, because she didn’t get that satisfying tingle that she gets when she draws blood for a kill. In her vagina. Joel tries not to be disturbed by his wife’s new murder kink, but the compromises that he’s making for the marriage are adding up quickly. Even with frequent, adventurous sex, he’s having trouble keeping up with the rapid fire changes and new demands. He blames himself for letting Loki escape. Sheila reassures Joel that she loves him for who he is, not who he thinks he should be. And Loki has clearly skipped town.

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Santa Clarita Diet Season 1 Episode 5: Man Eat Man Recap

~ Metacrone

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Today seems like a good day to get back to recapping the show about sentient, flesh-eating, undead realtors who live in the suburbs, doesn’t it? Between sweeps and the  crimes ethics violations antics of the current resident of the White House*, it’s been hard to find time for this show. Let’s see if they’ve solved their food shortage and health care issues yet. Those rare chronic illnesses that insurance won’t cover and doctors dismiss can be devastating for families in so many ways.

Abby enjoyed her ride on Rick’s bike in the last episode so much that she’s decided to try to fix up her dad’s old high school motorcycle. She finds it in the family storage unit, along with the body of the week in the freezer. Oops. Parenting mistake #212. You have to do a certain amount of baby-proofing, no matter how old your kids are.

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Travelers Renewed for a Second Season by Netflix

~ Metacrone

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Okay, we can all breathe now. Netflix and Showcase, the network that airs Travelers in Canada, have announced that they’ve picked up another season of Eric McCormack’s time travel show. There’s no word yet on the number of episodes in the season, or when the season will premiere.

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Santa Clarita Diet Season 1 Episode 2: We Can’t Kill People! Recap

~ Metacrone

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Joel and Sheila have driven out into the desert to dispose of Gary’s remains. Sheila’s gossiping about friends who might sell their house. She’s excited about the listing. Joel seems a bit tense. They have a Rubbermaid bin full of Gary, but Sheila couldn’t find the lid. They have an argument about the lost lid that has been had by every single cohabitating couple since the invention of Tupperware. They might be the first ones to have it over a container holding the body parts of a coworker. Let’s hope so, for our peace of mind.

Another car appears in the desert. They rush to push Gary toward the hole they’ve been digging, but without a lid, he slops over the sides and ends up all over the place. Joel and Sheila prove how strong their marriage is by putting aside the argument and shoving the Gary mush toward the hole together. The other car pulls right up in front of them. By now, they’re covered in blood, holding shovels, and surrounded by a bloody mess on the ground. Joel suggests they act casual. They should pretend to be helpful Mormons who’ve stopped to clean up a murder site. Mormons do have a reputation for being helpful during crises. It could happen.

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Santa Clarita Diet Season 1 Episode 1: So Then a Bat or a Monkey Recap

~ Metacrone ~ 1 Comment

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Santa Clarita Diet is Netflix’s latest offering. It stars Drew Barrymore and Timothy Olyphant as a pair of upper middle class,  married, suburban realtors who live in sunny Southern California. They are devoted to each other, and seem to be living the American dream, until something goes terribly wrong. But this couple has a can-do spirit and a willingness to work through their problems together, which is frankly refreshing to see on a TV series these days.

What goes wrong and threatens to ruin their nearly perfect lives, you ask? Well, Sheila, the wife, dies during a house showing and comes back as a zombie. Now she needs to eat people to survive. And her impulse control is nearly nonexistent. Other than that, she feels great!! Better than ever, in fact. As long as she doesn’t get too hungry.

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Netflix’s Santa Clarita Diet: Trailers and Promotional Posters

~ Metacrone

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So, I haven’t been paying much attention to the upcoming Netflix show Santa Clarita Diet. Based on the title and what little I knew, it seemed like it was going to be something like another Desperate Housewives, which, not interested. This evening, instead of pushing the button for the next episode of The OA, I accidentally hit a button for the Santa Clarita Diet. It’s definitely not Desperate Housewives.

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The OA Season 1 Episode 3: Champion Recap

~ Metacrone

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The beginning of episode 3 looks like a normal family shopping trip out to a discount store, until Nancy Johnson is accosted by a reporter and the illusion is shattered, for her and for us. The reporter, Patricia Knoller, specializes in telling the stories of young people who have been held hostage for long periods of time, and then returned to their families. She wants to turn Prairie’s story into a book. Nancy is unhappy with the intrusion into her family’s privacy, and dismisses Patricia. Before she goes, Patricia gives Nancy a copy of one of her books and her business card. She explains that she works closely with the victim and the family, and tries to make the experience something that is beneficial to the family, especially financially beneficial.

Nancy shops for a little longer, then sees Prairie, who is trying on a sweatshirt that reminds her of Homer. They look at each other across the store aisles. The love shared between the two women is palpable, but so is the concern and fear Nancy has for her daughter. She invites Patricia to dinner to discuss the book deal. Everything is going well, until Patricia mentions the sense of closure that finishing telling their stories can give the victims. Prairie gets upset, and tells her that she can’t give her that. Her story isn’t over. It’s just beginning. Prairie runs from the room. Nancy, Patricia, and Abel all look at each other, confused and worried.

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