Stranger Things Season 5

 

Stranger Things has come to an end.  I liked the ending and thought it did justice to the series and characters.  I had a friend who saw the final episode in the theater and liked that experience.  I thought the final season was pretty well paced.  There are always a few things here and there you wish they had done differently but overall, I enjoyed it.  

Fear Street: Prom Queen (2025)

FSPQ:  I definitely wanted to do two separate posts in regard to the Fear Street movies.  This one isn't the same as those three movies and has a different tone.  It takes on the horror trope of prom gone wrong.  I liked many things about the movie while there were a few disjointed parts and pieces.  It's an easy watch and it has a classic horror vibe.  The connections to the original trilogy are subtle and they could be missed.  Watch the post credit scenes.  If you watch the trilogy then there's no reason not to watch this one but don't surprised with a bit different take here.

Fear Street Anthology: 1994, 1978, 1666

I'm not sure why I never posted something about the Fear Street anthology but it's worth the note.  This one came out on Netflix in 2021 and iss one I really enjoyed.  There were three movies:  Fear Street: Part One - 1994, Fear Street: Part Two - 1978, Fear Street: Part Three - 1666.  Residents on Fear Street are terrorized by a satanic entity.  The source of this evil goes back 300 years and is interconnected by the cities of Sunnydale and Shadyside. These movies do a good job going back through time to see how we got to where we are in 1994.  They weave this throughout the three timelines while not making it too complicated.  It's a fairly straightforward watch and enjoyable.  I thought Netflix did a good job on this one.

Frontier (2016-2018)

 The Jason Momoa Netflix series Frontier was one I'd wanted to watch for some time.  Momoa plays a half Irish, half native who is at odds with the Hudson Bay Company's fur trade in the late 18th century.  The supporting cast plays a very large part of the series, so Momoa doesn't consume the screen time.  While it falls under action adventure it really pulls at the different storylines and fleshes out the characters.  I enjoyed it but it wasn't quite what I expected.  It definitely feels like there are some plot holes or odd actions and/or decisions by the characters.  I don't want to take away from the series. Nothing is perfect and I was entertained by Frontier.

The Witcher

The Witcher:  I enjoyed this one.  It has completed three seasons.  It was a slow start but once it got going, I got into it.  I won't go into a lot of detail, but I like the main characters played by Henry Cavill, Freya Allan, and Anya Chalotra.  I know Cavill isn't coming back for season four.  While I like the series I'm not sure if I'll rush back to watch season four which will have Liam Hemsworth as Geralt of Rivia.  I liked the series, but I'm probably not as invested as the great fanbase.  Nothing against him, but we'll see.  

Surviving Black Hawk Down

 

Surviving Black Hawk Down: Surviving Black Hawk Down is a documentary from Netflix.  There are three episodes with each being just under an hour long.  We get interviews from both sides of the conflict including the gentlemen who shot much of the actual footage, civilians, Somalian fighters, and US soldiers who were in the operation.  It does a good job providing details you wouldn't otherwise know.  It really makes it real, no matter who's point of view you are listening to.  If anything, I wish there had been more.  It felt like there was much more that could have been explored.  But what was provided in the series was good.  I'm a big fan of the book as well as the movie.  This series is a good complement to both.

American Primeval Netflix Mini-Series

 

American Primeval is a Netflix series that debuted this year.  It's really good.  The series is set in 1857 around the events of the Mountain Meadows Massacre.  There are multiple storylines that are born from that event which centers around the Mormons and their clashes with outside cultures.  While the different stories move forward, the series centers a mother and her son trying to get to her husband.  But as with all the different arcs, nothing is that simple.  American Primeval is violent but well done.  Pop and I enjoyed the show and I highly recommend it.  

Heart of Stone (2023)

Heart of Stone:  Gal Gadot stars in this film.  The plot is "An intelligence operative for a shadowy global peacekeeping agency races to stop a hacker from stealing its most valuable and dangerous weapon."  Plenty of action in this movie thriller that was exclusive to Netflix.  Heart of Stone is an easy watch.  I'd recommend it to anyone who is a fan of Gal Gadot or of the spy thriller genre.

Godless (TV Mini-Series 2017)

 Godless:  Pop and I finished this series last week.  It's really good.  It follows a town that is populated mostly by women after most of the men folk are killed in a mine explosion.  Notorious outlaw Frank Griffin, played extremely well by Jeff Daniels, finds his way to their town looking for one of his former gang members who did him wrong.  The movie can be brutal, honest, new and realistic all in one.  The characters are easy to like and given lots of depth.  The story is really good, and it keeps you coming back.  The series is seven episodes, and I highly recommend it.  It can be violent and has elements of sexuality so I will throw that out there for those who may not care for that sort of thing.

Damsel (2024)

Damsel is a fairly lighthearted action-adventure movie starring Millie Bobby Brown.  Damsel is a fantasy movie that sees a princess get married and then things go horribly wrong.  I won't give anything away but I'll say it wasn't as good as it could be.  It wasn't bad, and there was lots of promise but it felt like they didn't pressy any boundaries or give us anything that different with the storytelling.  I like Millie Bobby Brown, but this movie fell short for me.  This can be an easy watch if anyone wants to watch it.  I watched Damsel earlier this year and have no regrets giving it a shot.

 

The Last Kingdom TV Series (2015-2022) and The Last Kingdom: Seven Kings Must Die (2023)

The Last Kingdom: Today I'll provide some brief thoughts on the series as well as the follow-up movie Seven Kings Must Die.  I enjoyed the heck out of the series.  The characters, drama, battles, visuals.  It all worked for me.  Recap:  Uhtred's father is killed during battle when he is a young boy and taken by the Viking Danes.  From there he is raised as a Dane until, as a young man he finds himself forced to return to the Saxons.  As a born Saxon raised a Dane, he is cautiously trusted, but his knowledge of the Danes becomes key in his ability to help the Saxons during battle.  Uhtred's overall goal is to get back to his home of Bebbanburg and reclaim his kingdom

The series and movie are a long winding road.  There are continuous battles between Saxon and Dane as well as infighting that drives most of the intrigue.  There are plenty of great supporting characters helping Uhtred along the way that help makes this a good watch.

Brida who, like Uhtred, is a Saxon raised a Dane.  She aligns with the Danes putting her in constant conflict with Uhtred and the Saxons throughout the series.  She was also a love interest early on and someone who always holds a special place in Uhtred's heart.  Very strong character who I liked.

The latter seasons see Uhtreds children play a bigger part in the series including his daughter Stiorra who marries Dane Viking warlord Sigtryggr.  While this causes issues with Uhtred and the king, Sigtryggr becomes more of an anti-hero over time as opposed to a full-on antagonist.  Both characters and actors are really good and added a lot to the storyline.

King Aethelred carries on the leadership of what will be England.  As always there is plenty of drama in doing so.  I liked the character and how he was portrayed.  This is the King and Queen mother, played by Eliza Butterworth who did a great job.  The link for my post on Seasons 1-3 of The Last Kingdom is here. Yes, that was 2019 and I'm finally finishing up the final two seasons.  I primarily watched this while travelling for work but that has really slowed down. 

Lots going on in this series and the movie and there's no way I can do it justice.  The bottom line is I liked both.  The first half of the movie did give me pause but it finished strong.  If this era is something you like, you'll like this one.  I think I want to watch Vikings next.  Hopefully it doesn't take me near as long but life and all the different things out there to watch take up a lot of time.

Wednesday Television Series

Wednesday:  Always been a fan of The Addams Family and when I saw this one coming out I was as excited as anyone.  The visuals looked good and Jenna Ortega seemed like a natural fit for the character.  This is not an Addams Family series.  It focuses on Wednesday and her adventures at boarding school.  There is plenty here to like.  They build out a good supporting cast of characters and we of course see rest of the Addams family albeit in shorter spurts of action.  I really like the great visuals as well as the "who dunnit" plot that drove the plot.  I really enjoyed Wednesday and hope we'll see a season two.

 

The Midnight Club Television Series

 

The Midnight Club: This one is a good watch.  Not a straightforward thriller or horror series though.  The club at its core tells stories at midnight but what you'll get is a deep dive into the characters and what haunts the hospice they are at.  It can feel like a long road at times but I think you'll enjoy it if you see it through.

   

Stranger Things Season 4 (NO SPOILERS)

 

Stranger Things Season 4: I really enjoy Stranger Things and I did enjoy this season.  Not quite there with season one but right there with season 3.  All your favorite characters are back and a few more sprinkled in for good measure.  And some of those new faces will be favorites of yours after you're done watching.  If you've seen the previous seasons, you'll enjoy this one.  It is the most intense and I've had a few folks I know say the same thing when talking about it.  I won't give anything away so I'll keep it short.  We learned a lot in season four and we know where it's going in season five.  And that last episode...phew.  Stranger Things is a fun watch from the beginning of season one and highly suggest the series to everyone.

As always there is plenty of craziness.  That's a big part of the fun.

You'll love Eddie!

Red Notice

 

Red Notice came out on Netflix last month and looked fun.  It was.  It's not going to win any academy awards but it's a movie you can just sit back and enjoy with some popcorn.  It brings together Ryan Reynolds, Gal Gadot and The Rock.  Johnson plays an FBI profiler chasing an art thief played by Reynolds and the fun begins.  There's a bit of over the top fun at times but that is the appeal.  You don't have to get wrapped up in this being serious.  It's great seeing Gal Gadot outside of her Wonder Woman character and she shines.  You'll get a lot of what you expect from Reynolds and Johnson but I'm okay with that in a movie like this.  I say give it a shot if you are at all interested.

Masters of the Universe: Revelation Action Figures

 Masters of the Universe: Revelation: I'm a big fan of this animated series by Netflix as is my grandson who I picked up these figures for.  They are from wave one of the action figures.  The current series is a different take on MOTU that has these really cool figures.

Probably my favorite figure.  He just really looks good and what I'd expect from Skeletor.

Moss Man is the grandson's favorite figure.  He comes with a cool "branch" arm great for taking out adversaries. 

He-Man is a good looking figure.  His sword and shield are great compliments and he works well in the group.

Evil-Lyn is my favorite character in the series and her figure with the white hair is right there with Skeletor amongst these figures. Something about that look is too cool.

Chillin like villians...

These are fun figures and Mattel did a really good job matching them to the series.  I'll post a review of the series as soon as I finish season two.  Had to show these guys off before they get too much "battle damage" courtesy of the grandson.  Check out the series and these figures when you get the chance. 

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina Season 4

 

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina: I'm a big fan of the show but season 3 was a bit of a let down.  Season 4 started out well for me as I liked it's focus.  Over the course of the season though it started to feel a little lazy.  I'm not saying I didn't like it but it just wasn't on par with the first two seasons.  The characters also seemed to have lost some focus and while present throughout I didn't see the growth you saw previously.  And the ending...  I try not to be negative in reviews and will normally tend not do those that aren't kind.  So again watching it wasn't hard but I definitely didn't find it satisfying in the end.  I still look back on the series as one with great characters that started really well.  This was the final season.  Sorry to see it go but it was time given where it was that is the right decision.

Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey

 Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey is a new Christmas movie from Netflix I watched last night and it is good.  I really enjoyed watching it.  Our adult kids suggested it to me and it didn't let me down.  Jingle Jangle is a fun tail about a toymaker who loses his his way after all his ideas are stolen by an apprentice.  The characters are done so well.  Actors Forest Whitaker and Keegan-Michael Key are excellent but the star is Madelen Mills, the toymaker's granddaughter who helps him find who he is again.  The energy and spirit she brings is infectious.  It took me a few minutes to recognize her but Phylicia Rashad also has a big part in the movie.  There are songs in this movie that are done well and one of the movie's producers is John Legend.  Plenty to like here and I wanted to share before the big day tomorrow.  Merry Christmas Eve!

Klaus (2019)

Klaus (2019) Netflix:  I watched this one last night and I really enjoyed it.  A unique take on the Santa Claus mythos it was very fun to watch.  As I've gotten older I'm a bit more leery of animated movies but this one impressed me.  The humor, story and characters were all wins. I will admit it took me a few minutes to get into it but once it got going I was hooked.  It's definitely going into my holiday movie rotation.  That's all I got but wanted to share some thoughts about this one.