Sailor Moon Check In: Wait, hu

This was a weird week, but we did get to know Palla-Palla a little bit and I think I love her a lot.

Regardless, this was a weird little filler week.

First we got a Rei episode, which so reminded me why she’s my fave. Rei gets a spread in a magazine, praising her as a worthy shrine maiden. I mean, I totally get why an editor would do a story like this for a teen magazine. It’s doing wonders for the shrine and Rei’s, maayyybbeee letting the whole thing go to her head.

When a younger girl shows up and insists that she wants to be just like Rei, OMG! Rei takes her on as a little mini shrine maiden.

Obviously, Rei accidentally hurts the girl’s (Nanuko, I think?) feelings, and she gets attacked by an Amazoness (the red one, still not great on the names.) The Senshi beat her, and Rei gets a power up, and we all learn a lesson about being ourselves.

So, our next episode is SUPER weird. Palla-Palla decides to use a dental practice to lure in potential targets, and also the Usa’s have tons of cavities because you know, they eat a lot of sugar.

Oh right, and we learn the Palla-Palla is a just an adorable little psycho, and it’s sort of the best, and did I mention I love her?

So Usagi and Chibi-Usa go to get their teeth fixed, and Usagi and Mamoru get into a fight because the dentist and his assistant are hot, or something? Then Tuxedo Mask shows up and throws roses at everyone, which for some reason works?

I don’t know. These episodes were a little overly silly and the animation was super cutesy, and I wasn’t into it.

I’m kind of ready for Crystal to come back, just so I can get some of that long elegant slow stuff in, because this season feels SO manic.

OK, people that have watched the show before, level with me…are the outer senshi just gone? Do we never see them again? I NEED TO KNOW because every week that they don’t show up, a little piece of me dies inside.

Hope everyone has a Happy Halloween! Moon Love and Whatever!

The Man Who Stands

You know how every once in a while, you forget why someone is as acclaimed as they are, because you haven’t been thinking about them, or their work as fallen off, or whatever. And then you see, hear whatever, something of theirs and go, “Ooohh, yeah, I like that guy. That guy is awesome.”

That’s what Bridge of Spies is. This movie reminds us why Steven Spielberg and Tom Hanks are at the level they are. The film tells the story of Jim Donovan, an insurance lawyer from Brooklyn who is tasked with defending a Russian spy in the late 1950’s. This eventually leads to him facilitating a prisoner exchange in Berlin, saving an American U2 pilot being held by the Russians and a grad student held by the East Germans.

The movie it’s self reminds me of some of Spielberg’s best (although it’s not quite up to Schindler’s List and Lincoln’s level, it’s awfully close.) and it’s probably my favorite Tom Hanks performance since Philadelphia. But this is material that suits these men. It’s carefully optimistic, but not light. It’s critically patriotic, if that’s a way to describe a thing. Donovan is dedicated to American Ideals, explaining that our law, our constitution is the thing that makes us Americans.

This isn’t really a thriller. It has moments of suspense, of course, but it’s closer to a legal drama and it’s a very good one.

Rankings!

1. The Martian
2. Straight Outta Compton
3. Crimson Peak
4. Bridge of Spies
5. The Man From UNCLE
6. Ant-Man
7. Mad Max: Fury Road
8. Inside Out
9. Trainwreck
10. Tomorrowland
11. Jurassic World
12. Ricki And The Flash
13. Avengers: Age of Ultron
14. Minions
15. Fantastic Four
16. Terminator: Genisys
17. Entourage
18. Pitch Perfect 2

Trailers

Mostly the same as That Martian, but also Jungle Book! It looks pretty beautiful. And a Spectre trailer I hadn’t seen before. That’ll probably be my next review. I don’t think I’ll make it to the movies this weekend.

Sailor Moon check in will go up tomorrow. I really needed the movie time yesterday, hence the switch up.

Game of Thrones Winner: “Blackwater”

God, I’d forgotten what a truly spectacular episode of television “Blackwater” is. It’s so tight, and perfectly executed, and watching it again, I’m really sad that Michelle McClaren is not directing Wonder Woman any more, because MY GOD can the woman execute a battle scene.

Anyway, the winner! Let’s talk about that.

This week’s winner is Sandor Clegane, also known as The Hound.

Clegane defies the King to stay and fight at The Battle of The Blackwater. He challenges Bronn to a duel, and then decides that it’s time for him to leave, and asks Sansa to leave with him. (The Hound is kind of in love with Sansa, it’s probably the closest to traditional courtly love we see in this universe.) Basically, he wins because he does what he does best, survive and be a badass.

Runner Up is Shae, who does what she can to keep Sansa sane, during the weirdest drinking game ever.

Missandei and Grey Worm Watch

No Dany. No movement here. We are SO CLOSE to meeting the unsullied y’all. I’m pretty excited about this.

Sansa’s Agency Watch

All hail Sansa Stark, Queen of Snark! Sansa gets two of her best zingers in this episode. “I will pray for your return, My Lord, just as I pray for the kings,” to Tyrion, and of course, “They say my brother Robb goes where the fighting is thickest, and he’s only a pretender.” To Joffrey. DARING HIM TO DIE. It’s amazing. Then, when she’s holed up with Cersei, she holds her own. (By the way, Drunk Cersei is the best, always will be.) Then she comforts the other women as they fear they’re about to be raided. And she refuses to bend to The Hound. Lots of good Sansa action.

Arya Bad Ass Watch

No Arya this week. But! The Hound leaving leads to Arya and The Hound road adventures. It’s pretty great.

Who Was Jamie A Dick To This Week?

No Jamie this week. So he was not a dick to anyone.

Robb Is A King And Kind of Bad At It

No Robb this week. So, no bad kinging. But Cersei almost poisons Tommen, so that’s like, a terrible decision on par with Robb being terrible at being King. Sort of!

“The World Needs You To Fly”

Like today wasn’t going to be about the Supergirl pilot?

What, have you not been paying attention?

OK, so let’s get this out of the way.

It was not the most transcendentally amazing hour of television ever made.

OMG whattashock right?

It is most certainly the pilot episode of a superhero television show. Which means that it was a little bit clunky, a little bit overstuffed with mythology and a lot of bit ridiculous.

I knew all of that going in, because I was like, one of the last people on earth who hadn’t watched the pilot yet. I’ve been watching TV long enough to know that a pilot isn’t always indicative to how a show is going to be overall.

Need we rehash things like Glee and Smash? Or in the opposite direction, 30 Rock?

But let’s not focus on the negative. (Clunky writing, tell don’t show all over the place), and let’s focus on the good. We get a quick crash course in Supergirl lore, that is, Kara is sent as a protector and companion to her cousin, Kal-El. She is delayed (cryo sleep in the Phantom Zone), and when she arrives on Earth, the already adult Kal-El sets her up with a family, scientists named The Danvers.

Literally, all you need to know about her origins and we knock it out in the first five minutes. Great.

Now all grown up, Kara is working for Cat Grant (yay!) and not using her powers until her sister Alex is on a plane that’s going down and she decides to save the plane. Now she’s Supergirl, and her friend Winn is helping her. Oh, also James Olsen (seriously, only Superman is allowed to call him Jimmy), is around and he’s going to mentor her.

That’s the show. She’s also going to be tracking down a bunch of escaped Phantom Zone prisoners, because, believe it or not, a superhero show does require a plot engine and this is a good one for this.

The show has a lot of promise, shown especially in the really great cast, and the way they click. Melissa Benoist was a brilliant choice for Kara. She’s immediately appealing, and has the hard to pin down it factor that makes for a good lead. Calista Flockhart seems to be having the time of her life with Cat, which is great, (I thought she was the perfect choice for this character.) Jeremy Jordan brings his trademark sweetened smarm to Winn. Mehcad Brooks is dreamy and perfect as James.

And I think we really need to talk about Chyler Leigh as Alex Danvers. I figured from even the previews that the relationship between Kara and Alex was going to be the show’s heart. I love the prospect of it and I like that they delivered it here. These two feel like family. It’s not an easy dynamic to sell, but it’s still pretty great.

The show did more right than it did wrong and didn’t shy away from girl power, though, even I was starting to feel like, “maybe we back off after this, we get it.” It’s already won the numbers game. The ladies on this show outnumber the dude folks. (Oh, and two of the dude folks are black!)

I’m really excited to see where this goes, and the implications for my little sequined corner of nerd-dom are huge, to the point where I can’t even begin to verbalize it. The hastags last night of #Supergirl and #SupGurl will fill you in in ways that I never can.

Do The Math, Solve The Problem

I realize that I said this same thing last week, but GOD this has been a killer movie season! And I assume it’s just going to keep getting better, because otherwise I will have to assume that it will get worse, which would mean that Mockingjay and The Force Awakens are probably not good.

Anyway, this is all a way of saying that The Martian is insanely good and I can’t believe I waited a month to see it, what is wrong with me exactly?

So, here are the facts as I understand them: Matt Damon is phenomenal actor who’s natural charm and charisma makes me emotionally invested in whether or not a potato is going to grow. (This is literally what happened, I’m not using hyperbole.) Ridley Scott has once again proven why he’s a master of his craft and has created a new gold standard of hard science fiction for me. (Granted, this is not a genre that I’m terribly literate in…)

Also, this is a supporting cast full of actors I love. Michael Pena is giving Keegan Michael Key a run for his money in “Movie Season Supporting MVP” between his role here and in Ant-Man, he’s wonderful here. Kate Mara is moving far away from “that actress who I always want to punch everytime I see her on screen” territory, and Sebastian Stan and Donald Glover have both restoked the crush fires by being distinctly adorable and handsome. Jeff Daniels, Kristen Wiig and especially Chiwetel Ejiorfor all deliver as well.

And then there’s Jessica Chastain, who has now reached, “just put her in everything,” status in my eyes. I have never seen this woman give a performance that isn’t exceptional.

The Martian is diverse, smart, funny, adult, engaging, moving and beautiful. So there’s that.

Rankings

1. The Martian
2. Straight Outta Compton (Let’s all take a minute to mourn it’s place at the top. I still, given what I’ve seen, think it should win Best Picture this year. But I think Scott should get Best Director and Matt Damon Best Actor. Note, I have not seen Bridge of Spies yet, and which might change this opinion.)
3. Crimson Peak
4. The Man From UNCLE
5. Ant-Man
6. Mad Max: Fury Road
7. Inside Out
8. Trainwreck
9. Tomorrowland
10. Jurassic World
11. Ricki And The Flash
12. Avengers: Age of Ultron
13. Minions
14. Fantastic Four
15. Terminator: Genisys
16. Entourage
17. Pitch Perfect 2

Trailers

Secret In Their Eyes,  oof, this movie looks like it’s going to be tough to get through. But I am excited to see Julia Roberts take on this role. It’s so different from what any one would expect from her.

Mocking Jay Part 2: I have cried at the Hunger Games trailer, which means that we’ve fulfilled all of the movie season traditions. It looks pretty great. I’m excited.

The Revenant: Hey! Leo grew another beard! I generally like when he grows beards, but usually only when it’s for Scorcese…hmmm….

In The Heart Of The Sea…zzzzzzz…Oh, I’m sorry, I fell asleep.

Joy It’s time for, “how are David O. Russell, Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper going to entertain us this year?”

Time To Get Personal: Depression, Invisibility and Coping Mechanisms

I’ve been reading Jenny Lawson’s book, Furiously Happy, and it’s been striking a chord. The book is Lawson’s story about fighting through mental illness with positivity and embracing your brokenness.

I also read Emily V. Gordon’s Super You, which is all about embracing your best self, but framing it as a superhero narrative.

Both books talk about moving through your issues to be something bigger and something better. Both books lead me to write this.

My struggles with depression have been long and varied, and while Lawson’s are much more intense, something about her upfront attitude about her illness and specifically how it manifests has given me courage.

I’ve had two major bouts with depression and a few smaller hits. The major ones were when I was twenty one and the other just under two years ago.

Depression is not the same for everyone. But here’s what it looks like for me. The world becomes too big and I am sure I am invisible. I’m too small and no one will notice if I’m not there.

So I stop being there. When I was in college this meant I didn’t attend classes. Two years ago, when I lost my job, I simply kept leaving the house and told NO ONE what happened. No one cares, no one notices anyway.

As everyone who’s ever come out the other end of it (or loves someone who has) can tell you, depression lies. And it lies BIG TIME. When my first bout hit and things got really bad, I couldn’t tell anyone. My parents had just gone through a similar situation with my brother and why would they care about mine? I was invisible, remember? My friends had fled from me. (This was, by the way categorically untrue, but remember the lying?) So I flunked out of school, came home, got better, went back to school, still struggled, but finished. Was A LOT better, and then things got bad again…well, rinse, repeat.

I’m not good at therapy. I get why it’s important, but because my depression specifically pushes me to believe that I’m invisible and unimportant, I have trouble unloading, especially on a stranger. Why should they care?

In August, my mom and I had a long talk about this. “You have so much more to lose now,” she said, “I know you’re doing better, I’m proud of you, but if it happens again, if when you have children and you get post partum depression, if anything knocks you off your equilibrium, you need a support system.”

I smiled and nodded, as I had a million times, but didn’t really move on it.

A few weeks ago I started to feel the numbness and thoughts of invisibility creeping in. I know enough about my own self care to keep it from consuming me, but I also have health insurance now, so I’ve decided to start shopping therapists. Yes, counting down the days to something I was looking forward to, listening to my “Hang In There Kiddo” playlists, and letting myself eat some chocolate helped, but I want to be healthy, I want to thrive and I never want to lose 6 months again. I’m incredibly nervous, but I owe this to myself and the people I love.

So that’s what’s going on with me…Thanks for letting me get it out as usual. Hope everyone is doing great. If you’re not, that’s cool too. Talk to someone, listen to Katy Perry and Taylor Swift and dance until you can’t stop laughing, go to your happy place, wherever that is and know that you’re loved and special and someone sees you.

Sailor Moon Super S Check In: Episodes 150-151 Golden Dreams

We’ve got a new opening! And new bad guys! And a big bad who is calling herself “The True Moon Queen” and has black hair and a bunhead. There’s a lot of stuff happening here!

In our first episode, we get to know the Amazoness Quartet, I don’t know their names, except the baby, who is Palla Palla, and who I adore already. Anyway, we meet them at the arcade and we see Motoki and Chibi-Usa’s friend Momo.

I feel like Naru is left out, everyone else’s random friends are there. Anywho, everyone goes to the circus, The Amazoness Quartet try to steal Momo’s dreams. Everybody fights.

Oh, right and our new Big Bad, informs Madame Zirconia (Middle Bad?) that Pegasus’s Host will have a golden dream mirror.

That is good information to have.

Our next episode has Ami fall in love with a composer over the internet, and decided she wanted to write lyrics for his music. Of course the rest of the Senshi are very cool about it.

Except not at all, they basically stalk the guy, and then of course they all become best friends, because Senshi Magic.

The Red Amazoness Girl tracks them down, and Ami has a crisis of confidence about this whole situation, but then she passes out and talks to the spirit of Sailor Mercury or something. It wasn’t super clear what was going on there.

That isn’t the most important part of this episode though, the most important element of this episode is that the cats explain the Internet to the girls that aren’t Ami. Seriously. Because they are magic future cats, so they know what the Internet is and the girls don’t, and it’s very 90’s and great.

So that’s what’s happening there. Sorry this is brief, I sort of was planning on watching Back To The Future Part II last night, and then changed my mind, so watched this, and it was late and you don’t care.

See you guys next week!

Game of Thrones Winner: “The Prince of Winterfell”

Blah, I hate this run in the series. The beginning of this season is so strong and this is when things start getting really stupid. That said, a winner must be picked each episode, because I made the rules.

This episode, the winner is Yara Greyjoy!

Yara rides into Winterfell, tells Theon he’s an idiot, and reminds him that he doesn’t belong at Winterfell. He doesn’t listen, of course, because Theon is the worst, but hey, at least she makes the effort. And she tells him that killing “Bran and Rickon” (not Bran and Rickon) was a terrible idea.

Runner up goes to Davos, who gets his job as Stanhnis’s hand. This is the most thankless job in the seven kingdoms, but I mean, it means a lot to Davos and he’s great.

Missandei And Greyworm Watch

There wasn’t even much Danerys this week. But, well, from a shipping watch standpoint? Ygritte saved Jon, so that’s pretty cool. Because she’s pretty great. That’s about all there is to say here.

Sansa’s Agency Watch

No Sansa this week. I didn’t miss her.

Arya Badass Watch

Arya, with the help Ja’quen, breaks her friends out of Harrenhall. Also she tells Ja’quen to kill himself because she’s angry. She gets that temper from Cat, I think.

Who Was Jamie A Dick To?

Jamie was a dick to Brienne. This will continue for a little while, and I’m pretty excited about it. I love these two. Both separately and together. But mostly together. They’re great together. Brienne is also great with Pod. Brienne is great with everyone.

Robb Is a King And Kind of Bad At It

Robb puts Catelyn under guard. This was actually good. Good Kinging Robb! He also bones Talisa in his tent. This is not so good. Because we all know where this leads.

Also Roose Bolton talks about “his bastard” taking Winterfell again. MAYBE WE DON’T DO THAT ROBB.

The Force, It’s Calling To You

Hey! A piece of <em>Star Wars: The Force Awakens</em> marketing that didn’t make me cry! I did get choked up, but the newest trailer managed to get me choked up and more than a little bit excited.

A lot of things that I’ve extrapolated, and much of it is just theory:

• Leia voice over! Which is pretty great. And we saw Carrie Fisher. WHO LOOKS AMAZING. I’m very excited about her being back and seeing her. My guess is we’re getting one more trailer where we’ll finally see Luke. I could be completely wrong about that.
• The Force appears to have sunken even further into myth and legend after The Fall of The Empire. To the point that Han has to reassure Rey and Finn that it’s real.
• HAN is the one assuring people that The Force is a thing. Mr. “I’ve been to one end of this universe to the other” himself! Awesome.
• Kylo Ren has Darth Vader’s melted helmet and is vowing to “finish what you started.” That is Skywalker talk, if I’ve ever heard it, for better or for worse
• Rey refers to herself as “no one.” OK, pookie, no one buys that for a second. But those shots of her climbing around the crashed Star Destroyer are awesome.
• Finn, what is his deal exactly? I do like his jacket though.
• Captain Phasma. Captain Phasma is everything.
• Not enough BB8. He’s all over Disney World, so I assume that he’s important. Also, he’s adorable.
• The complete lack of Mark Hamill in this trailer and the poster is an interesting move. We know he’s in the movie. We’ve seen his Jedi beard, and we’ve heard the voice over, but still. I worry.
• These trailers seem really serious. I sure hope there are some jokes in these movies. Star Wars requires jokes.

Anyway, that’s where I am! I’m excited, I got my opening night tickets this morning. (Didn’t feel like sorting through the mess last night). May The Force be with you all!

Ghosts Are Real, This Much I Know

I think my favorite thing about movie season this year is that I’m remembering what I love about movies. Last year was very much a year of being afraid that I’d become too much of a critic and forgotten that I love this medium.

Turns out that the movies just weren’t as good last year.

Friday night Aless and I went to see Crimson Peak. The idea of a haunted house and naked Tom Hiddleston was too much for us to resist, plus we’d both heard that Guillermo Del Toro had made the movie with “the sensibilities of bookish 14 year old girls in mind.” In that aspect, he absolutely succeeded.

Crimson Peak takes every gothic cliche, and throws it at the wall. Our heroine Edith Cushing is a spunky American heiress who wants to write spooky stories. She falls in love with Sir Thomas Sharpe, a penniless aristocrat who speaks in broody cliches. Thomas’s sister Lucille is a monstrous spinster control freak. Edith has a childhood sweetheart in the beautiful young doctor Alan. If you even have a passing familiarity with the Bronte sisters, you can see every twist coming, but that doesn’t make them less fun.

More and more, I’m coming to accept that Del Toro, in addition to making beautiful movies, knows how to make a movie be exactly what it should be. Pan’s Labrynth is childhood horror incarnate. Hell Boy is everything wonderful about indie comics. Pacific Rim is the best possible movie about giant monsters fighting giant robots.

This cast is also a delight. It is impossible not to be in love with Tom Hiddleston and Jessica Chastain is terrifying. Mia Wasilkowska is appropriately blank. (The Gothic Heroine should be something of a blank space, for the reader to project herself onto her. It’s the Bella Swann principle, but on purpose.) And Charlie Hunnam is…well, he’s awfully dreamy. (Hunnam is like, not a great actor you guys.)

Aless and I walked out of the movie giggling for about twenty minutes straight. The movie is perfect. It’s campy, ridiculous, sort of scary (the ghosts themselves are twisted and horrifying and rank high on Del Toro’s creations) and exactly what it needs to be. A whole generation of kids who shop at Hot Topic are going to be wildly obsessed with this movie and rightly so.

Rankings!

1. Straight Outta Compton
2. Crimson Peak
3. The Man From UNCLE
4. Ant-Man
5. Mad Max: Fury Road
6. Inside Out
7. Trainwreck
8. Tomorrowland
9. Jurassic World
10. Ricki And The Flash
11. Avengers: Age of Ultron
12. Minions
13. Fantastic Four
14. Terminator: Genisys
15. Entourage
16. Pitch Perfect 2

Trailers

The Forest, which I will not be seeing, looks interesting. Among other things, I don’t think I’ve ever seen Natalie Dormer in regular clothes. But why does a movie about a Japanese forest have an entirely white cast?

Victor Frankenstein, actually looks good. I thought it seemed really stupid. But I’m definitely going to see it. And in Aless’s words, “It can’t be worse than that one with Aaron Eckhart.” Oh, too true.

Krampus. Is Taco in this? Oh, you mean it has nothing to do with The League? Then why did you make this movie?

Star Wars. Cried. So excited. Apparently we’re getting a new trailer this evening. Who’s excited?????