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Dianne Robbins (1738 KP) rated Resident Alien in TV

Mar 31, 2021 (Updated Mar 31, 2021)  
Resident Alien
Resident Alien
2021 | Comedy, Drama, Sci-Fi
The main actor (6 more)
The warped humor
Over-the-top situations
Suspense
Drama
The Native American culture influences
The location and scenery
The sheriff is super annoying (0 more)
Not a sci-fi fan, but LOVE Resident Alien
I saw commercials for this show all over basic cable and thank goodness the ad outreach was so great. It has quickly become one of the favorite shows in my household and one that my boyfriend and I look forward to watching and one we talk about several days a week, often while laughing about something from the show. It's goofy, warped, hilarious, but has depth and heart, as well. My boyfriend thinks the main character is like Larry David in alien form, saying and doing all the awkward things as Larry David does. I don't know if I believe his line of thinking but I do know that Alan Tudyk is a comic genius and uses everything in his arsenal to get a laugh and to make a scene weird and wonderful. Turn it on and watch the hilarity ensue.
  
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Joe Goodhart (27 KP) rated Hounded in Books

Nov 30, 2020  
Hounded
Hounded
Kevin Hearne | 2011 | Fiction & Poetry
2
7.1 (7 Ratings)
Book Rating
A 21-Centuries-old Celt, and he has an Irish Wolfhound named Oberon, with whom they share a telepathic bond/communication? Look, you had me at the inclusion of a furry/fuzzy dog! However, it went downhill thereafter!

From the first page, there is a playful sense of adventure within, and that is good. Unfortunately, having the lead character "knock boots" with any of the Tuatha Dé Danann who appear in the book left an unpleasant taste in mouth. Further exacerbating the taste was the objectification used in his description of anyone of the opposite sex! Wow! It started to feel like a ride on the Misogynist Express..and that was only the first six Chapters (I couldn't go any further)!

It's a shame, too, because the series has garner a more than fair amount of praise, and with the upcoming Dabel Brothers comic adaptation of the series, I was looking forward to this. Ah well, there's other, less sexist/misogynistic/etc. fantasy/urban fantasy out there. You (and I) can do better to search elsewhere..
  
Black Panther Vol. 1: A Nation Under Our Feet
Black Panther Vol. 1: A Nation Under Our Feet
Ta-Nehisi Coates, Brian Stelfreeze | 2016 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
So what can I say? I liked it, yes. A bit dry in spots, felt like a bit of a slow burn in the very beginning, but really quite liked how Coates wrapped up the first arc of his run. Only thing not likable in this collection was the Jonathan Hickman-written material from NEW AVENGERS 18, 21, and 24 (if wasn't for this inclusion, I would have given it 5 Stars). Other than that, good stuff, great handling of the socio-political aspects of Wakanda. Looking forward to starting the 4th volume this week!

One concluding thought I want to put out there.. Don't go into Coates' BP run expecting a Marvel "paint by numbers" superhero book. This series is so much, offering a solid interpretation of the character. Coates has incorporated so much of what is going on in the world today, bringing into the comic, as well as stirring in Wakanda's rich historical background as well as the Wakanda pantheon of gods! If you go in with the approach I am recommending, you, too, will love Coates' BLACK PANTHER run!
  
Sometimes Always Never (2019)
Sometimes Always Never (2019)
2019 | Comedy, Drama
Bill Nighy's deadpan comic performance as a obsessive Scrabble player trying to reconnect with his family is the best reason to go and see this movie. Nighy's character has a strained relationship with the rest of his clan, partly because one of his children walked out, never to return, after a row over a contentious two-letter word. The film, which is not exactly over-burdened with plot, shows them trying to work out their various issues.

Not nearly as wacky as it possibly sounds; it is certainly a very whimsical film, but handled in an extremely dry and low-key way. There is something very quiet and English about it, possibly due to the fact it has clearly been made on a vanishingly tiny budget. Nighy is excellent, and there are some very funny moments (such as when he hustles Tim McInnerny's character into playing Scrabble for cash). No real flaws, but at the same time it does feel a little under-powered as a piece of drama.
  
The Spy Who Dumped Me (2018)
The Spy Who Dumped Me (2018)
2018 | Action, Comedy
I don't feel like a lot needs to be said about this one. It's a fun action comedy, and while like most films of this ilk it's slightly predictable it still has a great outcome.

If Sam Heughan wanted to make the jump over to "serious" action and play Bond, I think I'd watch that. Hell, if Mila Kunis wanted to do that I'd watch it. There were a lot of entertaining actors, it might not be the highlight of their career but I'm certainly glad they signed on for it.

The only reason there's a half star off this is because of Kate McKinnon. For a moment at the beginning of the film I thought she might not be playing that same character again... it's a funny character but there are those awkward moments where you stop and scrunch up your face at the screen a bit. I like her, but I don't feel like these roles are doing her justice, and I'm not sure that they should be anything other than bit part comic relief.
  
Moms' Night Out (2014)
Moms' Night Out (2014)
2014 | Comedy
7
6.0 (2 Ratings)
Movie Rating
Mom's Night Out combines the most prolific Christian film makers of its time to make a comedy centered around a mother at wits end who decided to attempt to have one night out with her lady friends that goes hilariously wrong at every turn.

While similar stories have been told before, it's actually refreshing that I have the option to watch this particular movie with my younger kids whereas I am not able to in many cases due to either language or extremely vulgar content.

Patricia Heaton provides a different tone of her ability as a preachers wife who is attending the night out and finds herself disclosing a quasi sordid past which aligns well with the story while also adding a bit of comic gold. Trace Adkins' sweet sweet baritone is included and is shockingly probably the biggest voice of reason as a hardened biker.

Definitely a movie I could recommend for families. Kids will stay interested and parents won't be bored out of their minds for the duration.
  
Enter the Dragon (1973)
Enter the Dragon (1973)
1973 | Action
Irresistible slice of 70s schlock. Bruce Lee goes off to the island of the drug dealing white slaver who's a renegade from his temple and whose men killed his sister (he's certainly not short of motivation) to take part in a martial arts tournament and bring the bad guy to justice. The plot is as rudimentary as that: there's a good guy, a bad guy, and a hell of a lot of fighting.

You do sense the American producers didn't quite understand what they were dealing with in Lee, for it's obvious he had a range and charisma far beyond what's required here. He's also partnered with John Saxon, who's an able leading man but really supernumerary (Saxon may have been a black belt in real life but his fight scenes have a whiff of dressage about them). Sleazy to the point of tackiness in places, and not much more than a live-action comic book, but tremendous action and some iconic sequences (the fight in the mirror-maze, for instance). Terrific entertainment if you're in the right mood.