Tag Archives: yahya abdul-mateen II

Liminal, based off of the comic Telepaths by J. Michael Straczynski, Steve Epting, and Brian Reber, moves forward with Apple Original Films

Posted on by
Telepaths

The new sci-fi thriller Liminal will star Vanessa Kirby and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and will be directed by Louis Leterrier. The film is based on the critically acclaimed AWA graphic novel Telepaths by J. Michael Straczynski, Steve Epting, and Brian Reber.

In Telepaths, an electromagnetic disturbance results in the sudden awakening of telepathic powers in a tenth of the Earth’s population. In the moments after the world comes to grip with this development, newly-telepathic Boston police find themselves sent against a wrongly convicted prisoner who becomes a hero and leader of other telepaths trying to escape a world in which their powers will make them targets. Both are heroes of their own story, and the future may depend on whether or not trust can be found between them.

For AWA, this is an exciting next step for a story that began on the page and is now moving forward with an extraordinary team behind it. Zach Studin will produce for AWA Studios, with Kevin Walsh producing for The Walsh Company. The project is written by Justin Rhodes, with J. Michael Straczynski, Steve Epting, and Brian Reber serving as executive producers.

Marvel Television’s Wonder Man gets its first Official Trailer

Posted on by

He was born to play this role, but the spotlight reveals everything.

We’ve got the first trailer for Marvel Television‘s Wonder Man, which gives us a tease of a rather self-aware series that pokes fun of the superhero genre.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II plays the title character of Simon Williams who in the comics becomes Wonder Man. He’s no stranger to comic films, having play Black Manta in the Aquaman movies for DC and was Cal Abar in the Watchmen television series. Ben Kingsley returns as Trevor Slattery. That character debuted in Marvel Studio’s Iron Man 3 in 2013 and returned in multi Marvel projects like the All Hail the King one-shot and most recently in 2021’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.

Wonder Man, an 8-episode series, premieres January 27 at 6PM PT only on Disney+.

Marvel Television’s Wonder Man Official Trailer is Here!

Posted on by

“Simon Williams. Reading for Wonder Man.”

We’ve got a first look at Marvel Television‘s Wonder Man, which gives us a tease of a rather self-aware series that pokes fun of the superhero genre.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II plays the title character of Simon Williams who in the comics becomes Wonder Man. He’s no stranger to comic films, having play Black Manta in the Aquaman movies for DC and was Cal Abar in the Watchmen television series. Ben Kingsley returns as Trevor Slattery. That character debuted in Marvel Studio’s Iron Man 3 in 2013 and returned in multi Marvel projects like the All Hail the King one-shot and most recently in 2021’s Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings.

Wonder Man premieres January 27 at 6pm on Disney+.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is Marvel’s Wonder Man

Posted on by
Wonder Man

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is shifting the world of DC’s Aquaman and Watchmen to the lead role in the Disney+ Marvel Studios series Wonder Man.

The character debuted in The Avengers #9 in 1964 and was created by Stan Lee, Don Heck, and Jack Kirby. The character has ion based powers including super strength, later joins the Avengers, and has been in a relationship with the Scarlet Witch. The character has been both a hero and villain and generally has been absent from the Marvel comic universe in recent years.

Announced in June, the series sees teh involvement of Shang-Chi‘s Destin Daniel Cretton and Hawkeye‘s Andrew Guest. Cretton will direct while Guest is the head writer. The series will also see the return of Ben Kingsley’s Trevor Slattery.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II has history with comic properties having won an Emmy in 2020 for his turn as Dr. Manhattan in HBO’s Watchmen. He also plays Black Manta who was in 2018’s Aquaman and will return in Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom.

Review: The Matrix Resurrections

Posted on by
The Matrix Resurrections

18 years after the previous installment, director, producer, and co-writer Lana Wachowski returns to a world of choices, hacking, philosophical monologues, and yes, kung fu in The Matrix Resurrections. Writers David Mitchell and Aleksandar Hemon help her shape a script that treads a narrow line between a J.J. Abrams-esque remake, or the approach George Miller took in Mad Max Fury Road where he took familiar iconography and characters and used them to explore new themes and turn the set pieces up to eleven. The basic premise of the film is that Neo (Keanu Reeves) and Trinity (Carrie-Anne Moss) are somehow still alive after the event of The Matrix Revolutions where they still died. However, Thomas Anderson and “Tiffany” are a video game developer and soccer mom who have never even spoken and see the events of the previous trilogy as a video game developed by Anderson. But the appearance of the enigmatic and energetic Bugs (Jessica Henwick) and a new take on a couple familiar faces from the original films cast this reality into doubt…

From the opening scene of The Matrix Resurrections, which is a shot by shot recreation of the opening fight sequence in The Matrix until Bugs and the new look Morpheus (Yahya Abdul-Mateen II) shake things up, this is a film that is in deep conversation with its predecessors as well as Hollywood’s propensity for reboots, remakes, sequels, prequels, and expanded universes. Wachowski, Mitchell, and Hemon take potshots at the studio that has been trying to make this film since 2004 with or without the Wachowskis in a pitch perfect parody of focus groups and the committee approach taken to most tentpole films in 2021. However, The Matrix Resurrections doesn’t drown in metafiction and uses these early scenes to set up Reeves’ more forelorn approach to an aging Neo that is tired and haunted as well as Jonathan Groff‘s new-look Smith, who is Anderson’s business partner and is generally doing the most during both his condescending monologues and physicality-filled fight scenes. Honestly, I was fatigued with Neo and Smith’s relationship after the Burly Brawl in The Matrix Reloaded, but Lana Wachowski breathes new life into the rivalry by making it a metaphor for binary thinking versus fluidity, safety versus risks, and nostalgia versus something new.

The theme of humans and machines (Now called “synthients”) working together was explored in The Matrix sequels to mixed reviews with Chingy Nea nailing the contemporary audience reaction by saying “Perhaps audiences [at the time] were more attuned to sequels like Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, which was just as full of Judeo-Christian imagery but was a more obvious story of fantasy heroes and didn’t tend as much toward existential philosophy and horny latex vignettes.” In The Matrix Resurrections, synthients have made getting in and out of The Matrix and real world much easier with a couple of them playing a key role in Neo’s second unplugging. They also are crucial to the ecosystem of Io, the new human city, that is more garden oasis than warzone. Old age makeup sporting Niobe (Jada Pinkett Smith) fights to protect the status quo at all costs, and she barely sees the irony of putting Neo in house arrest after his mind was freed from a simulation as her soldiers geek out at a man, who has inspired them so much. After all she’s been through, no one will begrudge Niobe a bit of piece and quiet (The sound mix and score are tamped down during the Io sequences.), but freeing minds has started to play second fiddle to caring for plants, which is why she is in conflict with Bugs and her crew.

Breaking the binary and playing with well-established formulas is always on the margins of The Matrix Resurrections from dialogue about the red and blue pills to a new context for the famous sparring program. Wachowski, Mitchell, and Hemon weave in tons of callbacks and motifs from the original both visually, verbally, and even sonically in Johnny Klimek and Tom Tykwer‘s score that melds orchestral and electronic music. It can be annoying at times, and I’m not a big fan with the film’s actual ending. However, where it works best isn’t Henwick or Abdul-Mateen mugging at the camera, but when the film puts meat on the bones of an idea or plotline that didn’t land in the first three films like Neil Patrick Harris‘ The Analyst, who replaces the Architect’s math and metaphysics for psychology. And this is where I say the best part of The Matrix Resurrections isn’t its expertly choreographed fight scenes (You can follow Neo’s character arc through the way he fights.), cool chases, or even that it abandoned Christianity for The Invisibles as its spiritual mentor: it’s the romance and relationship between Neo and Trinity.

On paper, Neo and Trinity’s love for each other was the lynchpin of The Matrix trilogy, but their on-screen relationship seemed stiff and clinical (See Trinity’s overlong death monologue in The Matrix Revolutions.) although Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss are fine performers. The Matrix Resurrections makes spark fly between them by sneaking in a romantic film under the guise of an action/science fiction one in addition to making Neo and Trinity saving each other the main crux of the plot instead of extra nonsense with the Oracle, Architect, or side characters from a video game. Neo and Trinity get to have full adult conversations about being dissatisfied with their jobs or marriages, and how they deal with these issues through therapy or repairing motorcycles. (Some things never change.) Because they have lived full lives over the past decades, getting out of The Matrix is a much tougher road, and The Matrix Resurrections spends a decent about of time showing the pods where Neo and Trinity are plus the pain to get them unplugged. Finally, there are new dimensions to Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss’ performances of these characters with Reeves getting to be sweet and charming while Moss gets to hide that she’s a total badass for about two hours before cutting loose in what is sure to be several crowd pleasing moments.

The Matrix Resurrections isn’t a pop culture shifting blockbuster and may rely on grace notes from its predecessors a little too heavily. However, it uses action to build tension and shape character relationships, which also extends to the special effects and production design. Let’s just say the old dog of bullet time might have one last trick. Reeves and Moss also explore growth, love, and aging in a tender way through the characters of Neo and Trinity, and Yahya Abdul-Mateen and Jonathan Groff add humor and physical brutality to the iconic characters of Morpheus and Smith respectively. Lana Wachowski has crafted a film that is an engaging work of cultural criticism, a showcase for setpieces and worldbuilding, and also happens to be romantic as hell.

Overall Verdict: 8.0

Watchmen Makes History Winning the Emmy for Limited Series

Posted on by
Emmy

The winners for the 72nd Emmy Awards were announced today. The ceremony became a virtual event this year due to COVID-19 doing an impressive job of balancing the jokes, the seriousness, and rotating through so many video feeds.

The 72nd Emmy Awards were hosted by Jimmy Kimmel who also served as executive producer.

Watchmen is one of the most nominated shows of the year with 26 nominations which also saw recognition for The Mandalorian as well. Watchmen made history as the first comic adaptation to win the top prize of best “Limited Series.”

Check out below for how the two shows did, winners will be marked as such and in bold.

Drama Series

“Better Call Saul” (AMC)
“The Crown” (Netflix)
“The Handmaid’s Tale” (Hulu)
“Killing Eve” (BBC America/AMC)
“The Mandalorian” (Disney Plus)
“Ozark” (Netflix)
“Stranger Things” (Netflix)
Winnter – “Succession” (HBO)

Limited Series

“Little Fires Everywhere” (Hulu)
“Mrs. America” (Hulu)
“Unbelievable” (Netflix)
“Unorthodox” (Netflix)
Winner – “Watchmen” (HBO)

Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie

Jeremy Irons (“Watchmen”)
Hugh Jackman (“Bad Education”)
Paul Mescal (“Normal People”)
Jeremy Pope (“Hollywood”)
Winner – Mark Ruffalo (“I Know This Much Is True”)

Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie

Cate Blanchett (“Mrs. America”)
Shira Haas (“Unorthodox”)
Winner – Regina King (“Watchmen”)
Octavia Spencer (“Self Made”)
Kerry Washington (“Little Fires Everywhere”)

Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie

Dylan McDermott (“Hollywood”)
Jim Parsons (“Hollywood”)
Tituss Burgess (“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. the Reverend”)
Winner – Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (“Watchmen”)
Jovan Adepo (“Watchmen”)
Louis Gossett Jr. (“Watchmen”)

Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie

  • Holland Taylor (“Hollywood”)
  • Winner – Uzo Aduba (“Mrs. America”)
  • Margo Martindale (“Mrs. America”)
  • Tracey Ullman (“Mrs. America”)
  • Toni Collette (“Unbelievable”)
  • Jean Smart (“Watchmen”)

Outstanding Cinematography For A Limited Series Or Movie – 2020

Outstanding Fantasy/Sci-Fi Costumes – 2020

  • Winner – Sharen Davis, Costume Designer Valerie Zielonka, Costume Supervisor (“Watchmen”)

Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing For A Limited Series Or Movie – 2020

  • Winner – Henk Van Eeghen, ACE, Editor (“Watchmen”)

Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Limited Series Or Movie – 2020

  • Winner – Douglas Axtell, Production Mixer, Joe DeAngelis, Re-Recording Mixer, Chris Carpenter, Re-Recording Mixer (“Watchmen”)

Outstanding Music Composition For A Limited Series, Movie Or Special (Original Dramatic Score) – 2020

  • Winner – Trent Reznor, Music by, Atticus Ross, Music by (“Watchmen”)

Outstanding Main Title Design – 2020

  • Paul Mitchell, Creative Director, Olga Midlenko, Art Director, Maciek Sokalski, Lead Compositor, Gabriel Perez, Animator, Benjamin Woodlock, Designer (“The Watchmen”)

Outstanding Casting For A Limited Series, Movie Or Special – 2020

  • Winner – Victoria Thomas, CSA, Casting by, Meagan Lewis, CSA, Location Casting

Outstanding Sound Editing For A Limited Series, Movie Or Special – 2020

  • Winner – Brad North, Supervising Sound Editor, Harry Cohen, Sound Designer, Jordan Wilby, Sound Effects Editor, Tiffany S. Griffith, Dialogue Editor, Antony Zeller, Foley Editor, A.J. Shapiro, Foley Editor, Sally Boldt, Music Editor, Zane Bruce, Foley Artist, Lindsay Pepper, Foley Artist

Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance – 2020

  • Taika Waititi, as IG-11 (“The Mandalorian”)

Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing For A Drama Series – 2020

  • Dana E. Glauberman, ACE, Editor, Dylan Firshein, Additional Editor (“The Mandalorian”)

Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing For A Drama Series – 2020

  • Jeff Seibenick, Editor (“The Mandalorian”)

Outstanding Guest Actor In A Drama Series – 2020

  • Giancarlo Esposito, as Moff Gideon (“The Mandalorian”)

Outstanding Prosthetic Makeup For A Series, Limited Series, Movie Or Special – 2020

  • Brian Sipe, Department Head Makeup Artist, Alexei Dmitriew, Key Makeup Artist, Carlton Coleman, Makeup Artist, Samantha Ward, Makeup Artist, Scott Stoddard, Makeup Artist, Mike Ornelaz, Makeup Artist, Sabrina Castro, Makeup Artist, Scott Patton, Prosthetic Designer (“The Mandalorian”)

Outstanding Fantasy/Sci-Fi Costumes – 2020

  • Joseph Porro, Costume Designer, Julie Robar, Costume Supervisor, Giovanna Ottobre-Melton, Assistant Costume Designer, Lauren Silvestri, Assistant Costume Designer (“The Mandalorian”)
  • Winner – Sharen Davis, Costume Designer, Valerie Zielonka, Costume Supervisor (“Watchmen”)

Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing For A Drama Series – 2020

  • Andrew S. Eisen, ACE, Editor (“The Mandalorian”)

Outstanding Special Visual Effects – 2020

  • Winner – Richard Bluff, VFX Supervisor, Jason Porter, VFX Supervisor, Abbigail Keller, VFX Producer, Hayden Jones, VFX Supervisor, Hal Hickel, Animation Supervisor, Roy Cancino, Special Effects Supervisor, John Rosengrant, Supervisor, Enrico Damm, Environment Supervisor, Landis Fields, Virtual Production Visualization Supervisor (“The Mandalorian”)

Outstanding Cinematography For A Single-Camera Series (Half-Hour) – 2020

  • Winner – Greig Fraser, ASC, ACS, Director of Photography, Baz Idoine, Director of Photography (“The Mandalorian”)

Outstanding Sound Mixing For A Comedy Or Drama Series (Half-Hour) And Animation – 2020

  • Winner – Shawn Holden, Production Mixer, Bonnie Wild, Re-Recording Mixer, Chris Fogel, Scoring Mixer (“The Mandalorian”)

Outstanding Sound Editing For A Comedy Or Drama Series (Half-Hour) And Animation – 2020

  • Winner – David Acord, Co-Supervising Sound Editor/Sound Designer, Matthew Wood, Co-Supervising Sound Editor, Bonnie Wild, Sound Effects Editor, James Spencer, Dialogue Editor, Richard Quinn, ADR Editor, Richard Gould, Foley Editor, Stephanie McNally, Music Editor, Ryan Rubin, Music Editor, Ronni Brown, Foley Artist, Jana Vance, Foley Artist (“The Mandalorian”)

Outstanding Production Design For A Narrative Program (Half-Hour) – 2020

  • Winner – Andrew L. Jones, Production Designer, Jeff Wisniewski, Art Director, Amanda Serino, Set Decorator (“The Mandalorian”)

Outstanding Music Composition For A Series (Original Dramatic Score) – 2020

  • Winner – Ludwig Göransson, Composer (“The Mandalorian”)

Outstanding Stunt Coordination For A Drama Series, Limited Series Or Movie – 2020

  • Winner – Ryan Watson, Stunt Coordinator (“The Mandalorian”)

OUTSTANDING WRITING FOR A LIMITED SERIES, MOVIE OR DRAMATIC SPECIAL

  • Mrs. America • Shirley
    FX Networks • FX Productions
    Tanya Barfield, Written by
  • Normal People • Episode 3
    Hulu • Hulu Originals in association with BBC
    Sally Rooney, Written by
    Alice Birch, Written by
  • Unbelievable • Episode 1
    Netflix • CBS Television Studios
    Susannah Grant, Teleplay by
    Michael Chabon, Teleplay by
    Ayelet Waldman, Teleplay by
  • Unorthodox • Part 1
    Netflix • Studio Airlift and RealFilm
    Anna Winger, Written by
  • Winner – Watchmen • This Extraordinary Being
    HBO • HBO Entertainment in association with White Rabbit, Paramount Television, Warner Bros. Television & DC Comics
    Damon Lindelof, Written by
    Cord Jefferson, Written by

OUTSTANDING DIRECTING FOR A LIMITED SERIES, MOVIE OR DRAMATIC SPECIAL

  • Little Fires Everywhere • Find A Way
    Hulu • ABC Signature Studios / Hello Sunshine
    Lynn Shelton, Directed by
  • Normal People • Episode 5
    Hulu • Hulu Originals in association with BBC
    Lenny Abrahamson, Directed by
  • Winner – Unorthodox • Netflix • Studio Airlift and RealFilm
    Maria Schrader, Directed by
  • Watchmen • It’s Summer And We’re Running Out Of Ice
    HBO • HBO Entertainment in association with White Rabbit, Paramount Television, Warner Bros. Television & DC Comics
    Nicole Kassell, Directed by
  • Watchmen • Little Fear Of Lightning
    HBO • HBO Entertainment in association with White Rabbit, Paramount Television, Warner Bros. Television & DC Comics
    Steph Green, Directed by
  • Watchmen • This Extraordinary Being
    HBO • HBO Entertainment in association with White Rabbit, Paramount Television, Warner Bros. Television & DC Comics
    Stephen Williams, Directed by

Watchmen Leads Emmy Nominations While The Mandalorian Gets Some Love

Posted on by
Emmy

The nominations for the 72nd Emmy Awards were announced today. The ceremony became a virtual event this year due to COVID-19.

The 72nd Emmy Awards will be hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, who will also serve as executive producer. The show will be broadcast at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Sept. 20 on ABC.

Watchmen is one of the most nominated shows of the year which also saw recognition for The Mandalorian as well.

Check out below for the entire nomation list and we’ve highlighted the “comic relevant” nominations as well.

Drama Series

“Better Call Saul” (AMC)
“The Crown” (Netflix)
“The Handmaid’s Tale” (Hulu)
“Killing Eve” (BBC America/AMC)
“The Mandalorian” (Disney Plus)
“Ozark” (Netflix)
“Stranger Things” (Netflix)
“Succession” (HBO)

Comedy Series

“Curb Your Enthusiasm” (HBO)
“Dead to Me” (Netflix)
“The Good Place” (NBC)
“Insecure” (HBO)
“The Kominsky Method” (Netflix)
“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (Amazon Prime Video)
“Schitt’s Creek” (Pop TV)
“What We Do in the Shadows” (FX)

Limited Series

“Little Fires Everywhere” (Hulu)
“Mrs. America” (Hulu)
“Unbelievable” (Netflix)
“Unorthodox” (Netflix)
“Watchmen” (HBO)

Lead Actor in a Drama Series

Jason Bateman (“Ozark”)
Sterling K. Brown (“This Is Us”)
Steve Carell (“The Morning Show”)
Brian Cox (“Succession”)
Billy Porter (“Pose”)
Jeremy Strong (“Succession”)

Lead Actress in a Drama Series

Jennifer Aniston (“The Morning Show”)
Olivia Colman (“The Crown”)
Jodie Comer (“Killing Eve”)
Laura Linney (“Ozark”)
Sandra Oh (“Killing Eve”)
Zendaya (“Euphoria”)

Lead Actor in a Comedy Series

Anthony Anderson (“Black-ish”)
Don Cheadle (“Black Monday”)
Ted Danson (“The Good Place”)
Michael Douglas (“The Kominsky Method”)
Eugene Levy (“Schitt’s Creek”)
Ramy Youssef (“Ramy”)

Lead Actress in a Comedy Series

Christina Applegate (“Dead to Me”)
Rachel Brosnahan (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”)
Linda Cardellini (“Dead to Me”)
Catherine O’Hara (“Schitt’s Creek”)
Issa Rae (“Insecure”)
Tracee Ellis Ross (“Black-ish”)

Lead Actor in a Limited Series or Movie

Jeremy Irons (“Watchmen”)
Hugh Jackman (“Bad Education”)
Paul Mescal (“Normal People”)
Jeremy Pope (“Hollywood”)
Mark Ruffalo (“I Know This Much Is True”)

Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie

Cate Blanchett (“Mrs. America”)
Shira Haas (“Unorthodox”)
Regina King (“Watchmen”)
Octavia Spencer (“Self Made”)
Kerry Washington (“Little Fires Everywhere”)

Supporting Actor in a Drama Series

Giancarlo Esposito (“Better Call Saul”)
Bradley Whitford (“The Handmaid’s Tale”)
Billy Crudup (“The Morning Show”)
Mark Duplass (“The Morning Show”)
Nicholas Braun (“Succession”)
Kieran Culkin (“Succession”)
Matthew Macfadyen (“Succession”)
Jeffrey Wright (“Westworld”)

Supporting Actress in a Drama Series

Laura Dern (“Big Little Lies”)
Meryl Streep (“Big Little Lies”)
Helena Bonham Carter (“The Crown”)
Samira Wiley (“The Handmaid’s Tale”)
Fiona Shaw (“Killing Eve”)
Julia Garner (“Ozark”)
Sarah Snook (“Succession”)
Thandie Newton (“Westworld”)

Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series

Andre Braugher (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine”)
William Jackson Harper (“The Good Place”)
Alan Arkin (“The Kominsky Method”)
Sterling K. Brown (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”)
Tony Shalhoub (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”)
Mahershala Ali (“Ramy”)
Kenan Thompson (“Saturday Night Live”)
Dan Levy (“Schitt’s Creek”)

Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series

Betty Gilpin (“GLOW”)
D’Arcy Carden (“The Good Place”)
Yvonne Orji (“Insecure”)
Alex Borstein (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”)
Marin Hinkle (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”)
Kate McKinnon (“Saturday Night Live”)
Cecily Strong (“Saturday Night Live”)
Annie Murphy (“Schitt’s Creek”)

Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie

Dylan McDermott (“Hollywood”)
Jim Parsons (“Hollywood”)
Tituss Burgess (“Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt: Kimmy vs. the Reverend”)
Yahya Abdul-Mateen II (“Watchmen”)
Jovan Adepo (“Watchmen”)
Louis Gossett Jr. (“Watchmen”)

Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or Movie

Holland Taylor (“Hollywood”)
Uzo Aduba (“Mrs. America”)
Margo Martindale (“Mrs. America”)
Tracey Ullman (“Mrs. America”)
Toni Collette (“Unbelievable”)
Jean Smart (“Watchmen”)

Reality Competition

“The Masked Singer” (FOX)
“Nailed It” (Netflix)
“RuPaul’s Drag Race” (VH1)
“Top Chef” (Bravo)
“The Voice” (NBC)

Variety Sketch Series

“A Black Lady Sketch Show” (HBO)
“Drunk History” (Comedy Central)
“Saturday Night Live” (NBC)

Variety Talk Series

“Daily Show with Trevor Noah” (Comedy Central)
“Full Frontal with Samantha Bee” (TBS)
“Jimmy Kimmel Live” (ABC)
“Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” (HBO)
“Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (CBS)

TV Review: Watchmen S1E2 Martial Feats of Comanche Horsemanship

Posted on by
Watchmen

Watchmen‘s second episode focuses on the fallout of the murder of the police captain Judd Crawford played by Don Johnson. The episode goes beyond that but also builds on its history of Tulsa as well as Angela Abar’s.

We learn about Angela’s history with Judd and her history with Judd. That history becomes closer due to the White Night, a coordinated attack by the 7th Cavalry murdering police officers. Through that we also find out about Abar’s children, who are the children of her former partner who was killed during the attack. It’s an interesting scene as it explains why an officer would be so close to her superior and also why the police now hide their identities.

The series continues to entwine itself into the history of the Tulsa Race Riot. It becomes clear as to why Judd was murdered as Angela discovers what looks like a KKK outfit in Crawford’s closet. We also discover Louis Gossett, Jr.’s Will Reeves is indeed the young boy from Tulsa as well as his connection to Angela.

What makes Reeves interesting is his talking in riddles which has the viewer parsing everything he has to say. It forces you to listen to the dialogue and question everything said. It puts the viewer in a similar position with Angela as she attempts to discover the truth.

We also learn more about Veidt and his servants. It’s now much clearer as to what’s going on and the oddness of them. It shows Veidt is up to his old tricks and has lost his mind even more than before. Is he still the villain?

The episode has a lot of revelations and adds depth to each of its characters in small moments and big ones as well. It also deepens the mystery as we, like Angela Abar, discover each new piece of information. For each answer, there’s so many more questions presented.

Watchmen is proving itself to be every bit the worthy successor of the original comic material delivering a layered story and fleshed out history. This is much watch television. One that deserves multiple viewings.

Overall Rating: 8.5

TV Review: Watchmen S1E1 It’s Summer and We’re Running Out of Ice

Posted on by
Watchmen

Based on the classic graphic novel and comic series by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons‘, HBO‘s Watchmen is the latest attempt to build off what is considered one of the greatest comics of all time.

Opening with the Tulsa Race Riot of 1921, the series is an interesting exploration of fascism on all fronts. Taking place after the events of the classic comic series, police now don masks and personas in a battle for justice using less than just means. A white supremacist group who seem to worship Rorschach has risen.

While it’s clear who the bad guys are (unless there’s some twist yet to come), it’s an interesting spin to deliver a series where we’re supposed to emphasize with the police. An attempt is made towards the beginning when one is gunned down but from there it’s a series focused on bad all around. Bad and weird.

It all feels a bit overkill in the middle America this takes place. The police force has a version of Nite Owl’s Owlship which while used for a rather exciting sequence all feels a bit over the top.

And maybe that’s part of the point?

Like our local police force having military grade hardware in real life, it all feels like it’s an exaggeration of the broken down rule of law and order that exists today. Police kill innocent individuals going for the gun when other methods may due. Here, the police ignore civil rights and revel in military assaults.

But, what stands out the most of this debut episode is how much it nods to the source material while not relying on it. It’s set in the world of, but is its own thing. A man with a sign is in a scene as a character walks back. The sign reads the opposite of Rorschach’s doom and gloom of the comics. The squids falling from the sky is a reminder of how the comic ended.

Watchmen‘s debut episode also delivers some depth to each of the main characters. Don Johnson‘s Judd Crawford and Regina King‘s Angela Abar feel like the two characters the series revolves around. Despite their fascist tendencies, there’s enough there to like them as people and empathize with them. King’s Abar especially seems to have nice depth to the character and her husband Cal Abar, played by Yahya Abdul-Mateen II is one of the more fresh aspects of the show.

And then there’s that ending… So many questions. So much history playing out on the screen. Much like the comics, the story we witness is just one of a story that weaves in and out of other aspects.

While the title might be Watchmen, this show stands on its own delivering an intriguing adaptation of the source material. One that makes the viewer think and ponder right from wrong, good and evil.

Overall Rating: 8.5

« Older Entries