End-of-the-year-best-of-extravaganza-2017

It's officially 2018! Yayyyy bust out the banjos, we made it another year around the sun. It also means that 2017 is no more and everyone is just jonesing at the bit for End of the Year Top 10 lists. Well, I never want to disappoint so I figured I'd try my hand and really go all out this year. So here are some of my favorite things from 2017 in...

And while favorites are nice and all, I wanted to start things off with a couple goals I had. I gave myself two tasks at the beginning of the year: watch 100 movies I've never seen before and read 12 books. I accomplished one, but not the other, so I'll take it as a partway success.

Here are the movies I watched in 2017, separated by films that came out this year and those that came out prior that I just hadn't seen yet (or I had forgotten I'd seen).

Movies

1. Take the 10
2. XXX: Return of Xander Cage
3. Mindhorn
4. Split
5. Get Out
6. Logan
7. Lego Batman Movie
8. Beauty and the Beast
9. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
10. Power Rangers
11. The Belko Experiment
12. Wonder Woman
13. Kong: Skull Island
    
14. John Wick: Chapter 2
15. Spider-man: Homecoming
16. Bleed For This
17. Baby Driver
18. It
19. Alien Covenant
20. Icarus
21. Cult of Chucky
22. The Babysitter
23. Gerald’s Game
24. Annabelle: Creation
25. Don’t Kill It
26. War For The Planet Of The Apes
27. Daddy’s Home 2
28. The Big Sick
29. Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi

1. Clown
2. Don't Breathe
3. Blair Witch
4. La La Land
5. Doctor Strange
6. Now You See Me 2
7. Sisters
8. The Brothers Grimsby
9. Unfriended
10. Mama
11. Poltergeist
12. The Green Inferno
13. Victor Frankenstein
14. Central Intelligence
15. Cop Car
16. Lolita
17. Inside Llewelyn Davis
18. The Bronze
19. The Good Dinosaur
20. The Lobster
21. Hardcore Henry
22. The To Do List
23. Riddick
24. The Visit
25. The Martian
26. Tomorrowland
27. Cooties
    
28. The Purge
29. Purge: Anarchy
30. Purge: Election Year
31. Kill Your Friends
32. Lords of Salem
33. Ouija: Origin of Evil
34. Assassins Creed
35. Piranha 3DD
36. Don't Think Twice
37. Willow Creek
38. Wait Until Dark
39. The Forest
40. Swiss Army Man
41. What If
42. Sleeping With Other People
43. Search Party
44. Café Society
45. Dirty Grandpa
46. Children Shouldn't Play With Dead Things
47. Demolition
48. Almost Famous
49. Man Up
50. Secret Life of Pets
    
51. Hacksaw Ridge
52. Hesher
53. Nerdland
54. Other People
55. Unfinished Business
56. Big Hero 6
57. Mud
58. Pop star: Never Stop Stopping
59. Chopping Block
60. Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them
61. Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy
    
62. Torso
63. Ghost Team
64. War On Everyone
65. Man Vs
66. Backcountry
67. Wreck It Ralph
68. Infestation
69. Jack Frost
70. Stagefright
71. Alice, Sweet Alice
72. Prom Night 2 Hello Mary Lou
73. Blood Rage
74. Halloweed
75. Dreamworks’ Scary Stories
76. Why Him?
77. Boy
78. My Man Godfrey

Damn that's a lot of movies. Still, I slowed down considerably halfway through the year and then picked up again around Halloween time. I was on pace to blow my goal out of the water and only ended up surpassing it by a little bit so that's disappointing. Just means I need to try a little harder next year.

Books

Unfortunately, I didn't quite make it with my 12 book goal. Oh well. Here they are.

1. A Series of Unfortunate Events: A Bad Beginning
2. Shock Value
3. Allstar Superman
4. Stephen King's IT
5. Modern Romance
6. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
7. Bossypants
8. Crazy is My Superpower
9. Dracula
10. Alice in Wonderland

Favorites

It's been a pretty good year for a movies and a lot of films have surprised me. As with most years, I've seen mostly the big movies, with a few indies sprinkled in here and there. However, I've noticed in past years that I tend to catch up on all the smaller movies the following year as they come onto Netflix/Amazon Prime. So my list is pretty vanilla in terms of big releases.

I'd say this was one of the strongest Top 5's of any year in recent memory.

ADDENDUM: I saw a film right after I made this list that I felt needed to be added, so here it is, just an extra, with the original list entirely intact.

1.  The Shape of Water

I can't stop thinking about this movie. Who could have pulled off a modern Creature From The Black Lagoon retelling but GDT? He somehow was able to create a love story between a mute girl and a sea creature and it fucking works! Not only that, audiences are actually seeing it and loving it. This isn't just some random weird movie that few appreciate, this has been a tour de force. If it's playing near you, please seek it out and treat yourself to one of the finest films this century.

1. It

I fucking loved this movie. That should be apparent with the rest of these films but this one especially. I saw it twice during the opening week which is something I hadn't done since probably The Dark Knight. Skarsgaard's Pennywise is incredible and seemingly reached the pop culture pantheon. Now to see if he really has staying power.

2. War For The Planet Of The Apes

The new Apes trilogy may be the best modern trilogy since Lord of the Rings. Not only do I think that Andy Serkis needs to be nominated for an Oscar, I think he should win. I don't think there's been any other performance that's as impressive as the one he gives here.

3. Spider-man: Homecoming

Tom Holland is the perfect Spider-man AND Peter Parker. Michael Keaton gave us the most layered comic book villain we've seen in an MCU film. Honestly, I think this film just got me even more hyped about the future of the series and all the awesome places they can take it.

4. Kong: Skull Island

John C Reilly stole the show. Hell all of the side characters stole the show. This is probably the most well layered blockbuster (especially for a series that's not really established) we've gotten in terms of character.

5. Baby Driver

This is Edgar Wright's baby and it really shows that off in the editing. As an editor that loves cutting to the beat, this was an absolute treat. This is going to be one of those movies that I show people for years to come since so many failed to give it a chance upon release (seriously, everyone I spoke to had no clue what this movie was even about and would just scoff at the title).

6. Split

M Night Shamalyan sure made one helluva comeback. And the fact that James McAvoy didn't get more praise for his performance is a damn shame.

7. Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

I loved so much with this movie but I think the reason it stood out to me is the story between Quill and Egon. It's a complicated Father/Son relationship that just gets even better once Yondu really comes into the picture again.

8. Star Wars Episode VII: The Last Jedi

What a Star Wars movie. This is definitely one of the more shocking films in the series and, in general, did a good job. Was I a little disappointed? Sure but it's hard not to be when a movie takes a different turn than what I was expecting. While I really appreciated those changes, this uneasiness still remained with me. Here's hoping that a second viewing helps to iron out any of the minor issues I had (mostly with how slow the film felt). Why am I venting so much about this movie? I really liked it. I swear.

9. Get Out

There was a twist that was obvious and one that wasn't. I don't consider that a bad thing yet this film has been knocked for being "too obvious" and I'm not sure I get that.

10. Bleed For This

I love a good boxing movie. I don't have much more to say about it than that but dammit, this movie deserves a watch while knowing as little about it as possible. Thank me later.

Honorable Mentions: Logan, Wonder Woman, Power Rangers

Films I still haven't seen: Blade Runner 2049, Thor: Ragnorak

I've said this before and I'll say it again: I don't see many of the years Indie films until the following year, so my list is mostly mainstream stuff I was able to catch.

I won't go too far into what I hated this year but definitely avoid Alien Covenant like the plague. Actually it's worst than the plague because at least that kills you. You're just stuck to let the memories of Alien Covenant stew and fester in your brain hole. Ergh.

Television

I don't watch enough of a variety of TV in order to properly create a list, so here are some shows I've watched that I really enjoyed this year. Note: There aren't many dramas as I kind of stayed away from those this year as comedies just seemed better suited to my mood. I'll be catching up on shows like Legion, Fargo, and Better Call Saul at a later date.

GLOW

I love wrestling, I love acting, and I love Marc Maron so really, what's not to love about this show?

Games of Thrones

I almost didn't even post this because I feel like it should be obvious but just in case it isn't... god damn this season was amazing.

Lovesick

Originally titled, "Scrotal Recall" this may be the best comedy that Netflix has produced and no one has seen it or knows about it. I can't sing this shows praises enough. It is both hilarious and so heartwarming that you can hardly believe it comes from a show based around a guy informing his past conquests that he has the clap, and they may too. The lead girl is on that "The Good Doctor" show so I'm not sure about the shows future but at least we got three perfect seasons.

Stranger Things 2

I loved season one but this season just took things to a whole...nutha... level. They were able to take the original concept and expand it in such a way that it still follows along the path of nostalgia while still providing more than enough original and satisfying story progression. And hell, I'm even a fan of the Eleven standalone episode which seemed to be universally disliked.

Superstore

This show is so much better than it has any right to be. I should state that I have a soft spot for fun single-camera comedies so this one really hits the right stop. Outside of a few faces, the cast is mostly unknowns and they really nail it.

Life in Pieces

I'd put this in a similar category as Superstore but maybe a tier above in terms of pure quality. This is almost a more complex version of Modern Family.

American Vandal

I never watched Making a Murderer and even then I found this parody to be absolutely hysterical. While it may have gone maybe one or two episodes too long, I love how much it shows how absurd most crime documentaries are, in that they're trying to push a dramatic narrative.

Games

Games are one of my primary stress relievers these days and 2017 was a decent year for them. I'm not going to include any annual sports entries because... well they're pretty much the same every year anyway and there weren't any that I played that really stood out.

I pretty much just play Xbone these days so that's where all of these happened to have been played. I have a gaming PC but I really just haven't bothered with it much this year. If I'm on the computer, I'm usually writing. I like making the distinct different in my head between work and play. And Microsoft has really been killing it with their Backwards Compatible/Remaster model making damn near everything I want to play all on one console. So here are some of my favorites from this year.

1.  Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus

Goddamn what a unique game. And so fucking badass. You are literally killing nazis. And there are so many twists and turns that there was at least half a dozen times where I was left with my jaw dropped and repeating "No way did that just happen." Few games provide that level entertainment and dammit if this didn't blow everything else out of the water.

2.  Assassin's Creed Origins

Sure, it's an AC game so it certainly has its fair share of repetitiveness but the game is what you make it. Not liking having to do "Hunt down and kill so and so" missions over and over again? Build your character up by hunting. Or go discover some tombs. Or just explore. There's more than enough to do to always make the game feel somewhat fresh.

It's likely the best AC game ever and part of me doubts they'll ever outdo it as the franchise has the tendency to add unnecessary elements after a good outing.

3.  South Park: The Fractured But Whole

There's no other game in the history of video games that properly make you feel like you're in your favorite TV show quite like these South Park games. They have broken the code for how to make an incredible game and I'll be very sad if we aren't treated to another one before they decide to hang it up. They teased a sequel at the end but I'm not sure if that was just a dig at Superhero movies or an actual tease for a new game. Let's hope it's both.

4.  Mass Effect: Andromeda

If this hadn't been such a good year for video games then this would have easily been game of the year but you wouldn't know that by the response. This game has gotten more hate than I even knew was possible for such a well made game. But who cares about them, this is my opinion dammit! I loved it. Love, love, loved it. The story was great, as well as providing the best combat the series has ever seen. So I'm one happy Mass Effect fan.

5.  Cuphead

Maybe the theme of this video game season is something familiar yet unique because while this is a standard side scroller in terms of gameplay, it's fucking HAND DRAWN! And it's presented in that 1930's

I've got some news...

It's not gonna happen. I really thought I could do it but it seems that life had other plans.

For those in the know, I've been working on the sequel to The Crimson Summer. My goal was to release the book on Halloween. Unfortunately, this isn't me going "hey, the book is here and ready to go!" I really wanted to make that happen but the more things began to pile up, the more I knew the quality would suffer if I just tried to rush it to hit a deadline. And seeing as how my goal for this book is to make it as high quality as possible, I didn't feel that was fair to the readers.

The one lesson I really learned from the first book (and as obvious as it may be) was that the book is there forever. All the dumb little mistakes will always be staring back at me. I rushed the editing on Crimson Summer in order to hit a release date and I regretted it immediately. It's still acceptable and complete strangers have failed to point it out in their reviews, so it must not be too jarring. But I hold myself to a very high standard. So I really wanted to rectify that this time around.

Because of this delay (is it a delay if no one really knew my planned release date?) I do have something special. There's been a hell of a lot that I haven't even released about this book so the least I can do is a little bit more info. So how about the plot?

Liz and Chase were key survivors from the Camp Watanka Massacre. They knew The Killer would be back. They just didn't know when. 

Returning to high school, Liz and Chase do what they can to survive, as the Killer returns and the body count rises all around them. Can they survive? Do they even want to?

Unfortunately just providing a plot blurb isn't exactly groundbreaking. I felt like I needed to do things with a little more pinache. A little more zest. A little more... I'll stop. I received so many compliments about the cover for the first book that it was a no brainer to bring back by artist for book two. He's done an absolutely fantastic job, recreating something that's been in my head since I thought of the sequel.

So here we are with the cover for my second book, Crimson High.

Oh yeah.

Title announcement.

art by Alvaro De Cossio

How fucking cool is that? I still can't get over how great it turned out. I've had this cover in my head for so long that I've day dreamed about a million and a half tweaked versions and yet somehow Alvaro was able to absolutely nail it. I can't express enough just how excited I am concerning this book and the cover kicking so much ass just makes me even more pumped!

I hope you join me for another ride into my little slasher world.

COMING SOON!

31 Days of Halloween '17 - Day 31 - "Jigsaw"

Jigsaw (2017)

It's October and there's a new Saw film coming out?! Pinch me because I must be dreaming. This used to be a Halloween tradition for me through High School and College and that all came to a screeching halt with Saw: The Final Chapter. They ended the series on such a sour note that I felt there was no way the series would be coming back, unless it was through a full blown reboot. Well I guess they proved me wrong.

If you're coming into this expecting me to avoid spoilers then turn back now.

Seriously, don't read any further.

I'm about to spoil the shit out of some Jigsaw.

Okay, I warned you.

First of all, I was just happy to be in theaters watching another Saw movie. It was cool to relive that feeling. My palms were sweaty and my leg bounced with anticipation. It was finally time for another Saw. But unfortunately nothing really lived up to my sky high expectations.

I really love this series and the trailer had me pumped. I thought we were getting the kind of film that would properly reboot the series, while also paying homage to the many films that came before it. Instead we're left with a hackneyed attempted at such a thing. Fuck, that made it seem like I didn't like it. I did. I just felt it could have done better.

The writing is mostly what I have an issue with. While the twist helped to stifle some of the issues I had, that wasn't entirely the case. There was a lot that just sort of felt circumstantial and actually escapable. I liked the change of scenery to the barn but it made it so much harder to see them as being unable to escape. When there was cement and rusty old pipes, it was implied they were underground, or off in some warehouse somewhere. You're not breaking through metal and concrete. But wood? They could have 100% gotten out of there.

Then there's just a lot of silly stuff happening. Like how does Jigsaw know that Martin (I think that's the black guys name) is going to get caught in that trap and not someone else? Same with the guy that got his leg fucked up too. Everything was far too reliant on strange circumstance. I wasn't a fan. It really took me out of it, which sucked because Saw is definitely a series where you place yourself in the characters shoes. I know I wouldn't be able to get out of 95% of the traps in the series but this movie? I could escape them all. Literally every single one. It's like the writers didn't even try.

While some of the traps were cool, they mostly felt lazy. There wasn't much impact and we were mostly just left with the aftermath of them. Even the spiral saw, which seemed like it was going to be the film's coup de grace, ended up being a simple quick cut to the carnage. That's not Saw. Saw is trying to make you cringe. They didn't even create much tension with the guy hanging down. It just sort of happened.

I gotta say though, it was all worth it for that final trap. Holy shit did that look fucking crazy. Part of me wonders if they held off on showing too much in order to greaten the final blow. It's disappointing that Callum won't be back for another movie because I've loved him since Battlestar Galactica and was really hoping he'd be the new Jigsaw but that would have just been too obvious, wouldn't it? Still his death was amazing and may have been the best of the entire series.

I should say that I really think this movie is going to be better on repeat viewings. Finding out the film is half prequel is something that I think is going to greatly benefit another watch. A lot of the annoyances I had with the characters came with their ignorance to Jigsaw and how to play his games, yet it wasn't nearly as annoying once the twist happened.

And boy what a twist. Kinda.

I was pumped when John Kramer showed up in the flesh. That was my favorite moment because seeing Tobin Bell back in the role of Jigsaw is an absolute fucking treat. I liked that he could actually watch the Game happen in real time and affect the game, rather than just have everything be predetermined. But the whole "I ran this game twice" part of the twist was just fucking silly. And by silly I mean really fucking stupid. The new Jigsaw is fine but he didn't really seem to have much motivation to continue doing it. Seemed more like he was all about taking down his wife's killer and the Jigsaw things just happened to work as a means to an end.

Either way, I enjoyed what I saw and think it'll get better the next time I watch it. I think some of my character annoyances won't be nearly as prevalent and I'll enjoy it more. As of now, it's a decent entry in the series and an okay starting point for a new continuation.

31 Days of Halloween '17 - Day 30 - "Stranger Things 2 (part two)"

Stranger Things 2 (2017)

Here we go. I'm continuing from where I left off and attempting to finish the second season of Stranger Things. It's been absolutely incredible so far and I'm really excited about where this is gonna go.

Chapter Five: Dig Dug

The story between Nancy and Jonathan may be my favorite one going this season. I just find the entire thing to be so fascinating, especially with the addition of them going full on investigative journalist. They seem to have a lot better plans this season than their whole, Home Alone-style trap for the Demagorgan.

Is Will ever going to not be suffering in this show? I feel like he easily has the toughest role among the young cast and it doesn't seem like he's ever going to get better. In fact, it seems like he's just going to have to live with traveling to the Upside Down for the rest of the show so it's likely to remain the toughest role for the young actors.

Chapter Six: The Spy

That. Ending. Wow.

I knew when they introduced us to the idea of "Him" spying on them through Will that it'd be used and boy was it. Really seems like that tunnel system is going to lead to an IT-like finale and I'm so down for that. I love the different influences that this show takes on. Oh yeah, I guess I should talk about other parts of the episode.

I love this developing dynamic between Dustin and Steve. I can't say I was ever expecting to enjoy that pairing as much as I have. Though I'm pretty sure you could pair Dustin with just about anyone and it would work. He's just that kind of character.

Chapter Seven: The Lost Sister

Woah a whole episode devoted to Eleven? I feel like this is something that fans have been wanting since the shows inception and it came across...weird. Don't get me wrong, I really loved the look of the episode of the themes it explored but the tone shift felt very jarring. We went from a Spielberg movie to something else entirely and it really stood out amongst the other episodes this season.

This may seem like I didn't like it but believe me, I did. I really like that they're adding layers to Jane's personality (should I refer to her as that? It feels weird. I'm not sure if I'm going to. She'll always be Eleven to me. Wait. Is that the same as knowing someone by their holocaust number. It's not something she exactly chose or is a good memory for her... dammit.)

Ongoing...

Also, tomorrow's entry won't be in right away because I'll be actually seeing the film tomorrow afternoon, so a 6am entry would be pretty impossible.

Next Up: Jigsaw

31 Days of Halloween '17 - Day 29 - "Jason X"

Jason X (2001)

We're taking a little bit of a detour, mainly because I moved today and it was pretty hectic. I was hoping to get this up sooner but I'm on the verge of falling asleep at my keyboard and figured I'd do one of my silly guilty pleasures, good ole Jason in Space itself, Jason X.

The main reason I chose this was because How Did This Get Made recently picked this for their Halloween film and it reminded me of just why I love all the dumb stuff that inhabits its 90 minute runtime. Is it even 90 minutes? I feel like you could say this movie was 75 minutes long and I would believe you.

As I said before, I love this movie. It's silly and doesn't ever try to be anything more than a fun time at the movies. There's a high body count and they even do their best to introduce an entirely new element to Jason: Uber Jason. I liked how ridiculous it was while somehow taking place almost entirely in space and still feeling like a Friday the 13th movie. Don't get me wrong though, it also feels like a Sy Fy Original Movie.

I love how this movie randomly shifts into Aliens partyway through. It's not surprising when you hear that Todd Farmer had that in mind when he was writing the script and had it intended it to be even closer.

Next Up: ??????

31 Days of Halloween '17 - Day 28 - "Tales of Halloween"

Tales of Halloween (2015)

Good anthology films can be hard to come by but dammit if this film doesn't do a great job. I had avoided it for so long because it looked like some Trick R Treat rip-off. And while it's sort of still that, it still puts forth an effort both in the writing department, when it could have easily slacked off.

The first segment was pretty by the numbers but featured a nice little twist at the end which I enjoyed. I felt like it was odd placement as I'd say its the weakest of the entire film so could easily turn off any would-be watchers.

The segment with the little Devil kid was absolutely hilarious. What a fun concept for a horror anthology. This was easily my favorite segment, if not for the childish pranks mixed with horrific ones then for the absurd comedy. Adam Green popping up at the end was surprising but, like many of the cameos, didn't really distract from anything.

While I appreciate that they used Night of the Living Dead for the through-line of the movie, it always comes across as "We don't have any money so are just using a Public Domain movie" to me. While this may not have been true and could have been used for creative purposes but it certainly didn't seem that way.

My only real issue with the film is the segment with the kid's killing the random get together of friends. It's simply poorly directed. They didn't do a good job of showing that these people were demented and were torturing some kid, instead it looked like a bunch of staged photos for Halloween. And the fact that none of the supposed torturers showed any signs of being fucked in the head made the twist even more annoying and out of left field. They didn't even show veracity once it was shown they were getting fucked.

Next Up: The Void

31 Days of Halloween '17 - Day 27 - "Stranger Things 2"

Stranger Things 2 (2017)

This review will be updated throughout the day as I watched the episodes. No promises that I'll finish the season all in one day but dammit, I'm pumped. This is a once in a generation show and cannot be missed.

Chapter One: Max Max

Holy shit. This fucking show. I wrote that prior part before watching this episode and I can't say enough how true that statement is. There's no show quite like this and we're blessed to be around while its on. That's how good it is. Or as I like to put it: Breaking Bad-good.

I loved the expansion of showing that there are more out there like Eleven and that not all of them are good like her. Although Eight didn't show that she was malicious, as she could have killed those cops but instead just tricked them, she was clearly still stealing and in a criminal element. So she's not exactly a saint. But I love that. It makes me very curious to see how many other numbers there are out there. My theory is that most of them are dead and we'll only be treated to a select few, rather than there being a bunch to be revealed.

How about that scene with Mike trying to contact Eleven? Talk about heartbreaking. It's moments like those that really show off these kids' talents. This isn't an easy scene to pull off and he nailed it. Just like the Duffer Brothers, who continue to understand exactly what to give the fans, while also providing so many twists and turns that it falls into the rare category of unpredictable.

And how about that Eleven reveal. I'm sure the next episode is going to show exactly how she got out of the upside down but it really made me appreciate the marketing for this show. I've figured that most of the promotional stuff was from episodes 1 and 2 as to avoid spoiling Eleven's big inclusion in the group again, since she's gone at the end of Season 1. But damn near everything has only shown Eleven with the short hair again, despite her longer locks that are already on display. I think it means we're in store for a very surprising season, unspoiled by trailers--a rarity in this day and age.

Chapter Two: Trick or Treat, Freak

I feel like I'm going to get really repetitive singing this shows praises so I guess from this point on you need to just assume the episode is phenomenal unless I say otherwise because goddamn, this show is phenomenal.

Millie Bobby Brown really gets to shine in this episode, showing more range than we got from Eleven in Season 1 (that's not a knock, more that she's developing a less stoic personality with bits of lunacy peppered in). I already can't wait for her to reunite with Mike. Their scene in the basement was heartbreaking. Made me wonder just how many times she had seen Mike, knowing he still was looking for her.

Are we getting a Gizmo style monster in the next ep? That's seems to be whats in store and, goddamn am I beyond excited for that. This show just takes every right step when it comes to story progression and including so many different elements from beloved films from the 80's while still maintaining its originality.

Side note: I had someone ask me if I thought IT was a rip-off of Stranger Things and was dumbfounded. Ohhhh my generation, everyone hates you/us.

Chapter Three: The Pollywog

So it definitely looks like we're getting a little Gremlins mini-story going on. I really like Dustin, but his odd connection with the little monster is so obviously going to turn bad that I'm surprised, given his nerd status, that he doesn't see that. I feel like writers sometimes don't give enough credit to nerds for their recognition as these types of scenarios are what these types wish would happen to them in real life. I know I did.

I also made the mistake of watching episodes three and four back to back without writing a review in between, so those two episodes have kind of blurred together a tad. So forgive me if I screw something up.

How great is it that the standard parental advice of "Stand and face your attackers" ended up completely biting Will on the ass. I mean, I'm not sure that Sean Astin's character is ever worth really taking any advice from. Speaking of which, I definitely thought Astin was going to be someone working for The Man (this is what I'll be referring to those dummies since I don't think they've been given a specific name... outside of the Department of Energy haha). He seems to be just a goofy Radioshack employee though, without even the hint of maliciousness. I hope that sticks.

Oh! I know! This didn't happen this episode but how great is the hint towards a past relationship between Hopper and Joyce. I like that it's not directly addressed but really tenses up any scene that they're in together.

Chapter Four: Will The Wise

I really wasn't expecting Eleven to get an actual name. I'm not sure why but it just never occurred to me that it was even something that would be brought up. I like the name Jane but also felt it was a little... plain (pun definitely intended). I think that scene when she goes and sees her mom through the radio for the first time may have been enough to earn her an Emmy. It was that good.

I'm glad that Nancy and Jonathan weren't actually stupid enough to get caught by The Man. It's always a pleasant surprise when character exceed my own expectations of them and, after Nancy's ridiculous proclamation that she had killed Barb (she didn't... at all. That's a dumb level of guilt. Quit being a dummy, Nancy), I wasn't sure if she'd redeem herself. Well boom, redeemed.

Ongoing...

Next Up: Tales of Halloween

31 Days of Halloween '17 - Day 26 - "Residue"

Residue (2017)

Dammit. God. Dammit. Why can't I catch a break when it comes to these stupid movies? I was probably tricked by Costas Mandylor in the photo (he's Jigsaw's protege in the Saw series, which I'm a huge fan of). I thought it would at least be cool but unfortunately the film really fails in its lead and doesn't provide much of anyone to root for.

The cover really made this look like some crazy Re-Animator/Demon hybrid but it's not really that. It's more like a monster film that doesn't really know what it wants to be. Is it a crime film? Is it gross out horror? Is it demonic horror? It kind of does a mix of all of it but doesn't really commit to any of it so we're left with a rather soulless film.

There are some decent parts, I particularly liked how the environment reacted when the book was read. It was more than just the simple lights flashing and things shaking and even added a kill element that I thought made it stand out a little.

Next Up: Stranger Things 2