Gotham Episode 2 "Selina Kyle" Review

by Snow Drift

  On this episode, Patti (Lili Taylor) and Doug (Frank Whaley), a strange duo, of snatchers, work together to capture homeless children from the streets of Gotham to take them to their boss, the mysterious Dollmaker. When given this case, Detectives James Gordon (Ben McKenzie) and Harvey Bullock (Donal Logue) have to work together to save these children, if with several problems along the way.

  Plot-wise, the episode began to gather momentum as the snatchers captured the children and were eventually discovered by Gordon and Bullock. However, the episode ended anti-climatically. Selina Kyle (Camren Bicondova), or Cat, simply slipped away from their clutches and was saved by a deux ex machina-like arrival of Gordon. There was no tension if Gordon would have arrived on time to save the children; he was just suddenly there, right on time, with no explanation as to how he got inside a building that had armed guards around. The viewer is told to believe that the police were just that good in the nick of time. 

  Besides that, I liked the rest of the subplots. The power struggle between Fish Mooney (Jada Pinkett Smith), Carmine Falcone (John Doman) and even Oswald Cobblepot (Robin Lord Taylor), with his viciousness and cruelty, makes for an interesting dynamic and view of the criminal underworld. The corruption and lack of care from the mayor and most of the police department in regards to the well-being of the homeless and delinquent children help to readily show an environment of hopelessness and selfishness, all of which help portray Gotham as having a darkness that goes beyond mere physical violence and murder. 

  In a way, this episode felt more like a prelude to another than anything else. The importance of the snatchers was based more on giving information on a potentially new future villain and Selina Kyle’s presence in this episode seemed more to be about showing her skills, ruthlessness, cunning, and significance as to the identification of the Wayne’s killer than anything else. However, Kyle’s actions do help to establish the kind of person she is and how that might develop in future episodes.

  Bruce Wayne’s (David Mazouz) character development seems fascinating, for he, although already succumbing to the determination, and possible obsession, of his future self, still acts like the child he is. He does not know much of how the world works, nor how he must move on from the tragedy. He wishes for an answer and a way to help the innocent, but is still too young to understand how to reach the conclusions to those. 

  Alfred Pennyworth’s (Sean Pertwee) attitude on this episode was disconcerting, to be honest. His way of treating Bruce is a bit too harsh for his character, even at this stage of his life. One thing is being disciplinarian and attempting to stop Bruce from going too far with his antics, but it is entirely another to be constantly harsh to him at nearly every moment. However, he does show compassion towards him, but it would be nicer for the sake of his character for his attitude to be a bit more humbling.

In terms of acting, I’m still not entirely convinced by McKenzie’s and Logue’s; its seems as if Logue is trying to be as outwardly corrupt in attitude as possible to the point of it being a bit exaggerated, while McKenzie just seems to still need to get into his character. The acting of the snatchers, although successfully unnerving at times, felt a bit forced during others, as if the actors were trying a bit too hard to sound and look creepy. The rest were relatively good for the portrayal of their respective characters, Bicondova especially portraying her character as young but used to the horrors of Gotham, to an extent.  

Overall, the episode was decent, although it could have had a better-handled ending. The possible mafia war and the existence of Dollmaker do help establish the possibility of much more to come throughout the series.

Gotham Pilot Episode Review

by Snow Drift

 

Gotham is a new DC Comics television series created by Bruno Heller and starring Ben McKenzie (Detective James Gordon), Donal Logue (Detective Harvey Bullock), David Mazouz (Bruce Wayne), and Jada Pinkett Smith (Fish Mooney), among many others. The series, which aired its pilot episode September 22^nd, will broadcast through Fox.

Gotham’s scenery was a mix between modern and gothic architecture with some early 20^th Century aspects, which gives the viewers a relative feel of a city that is both of our time and unique in its existence. There is a sense of grim darkness to it without it being too overwhelming. Portraying Gotham and its population as mostly corrupt helps to quickly establish the kind of world James Gordon will have to deal with on a daily basis: one that has the power to break him if he even flinches. By additionally showing characters that believe in justice, such as Renee Montoya (Victoria Cartagena), and villains that are more than just cardboard cutouts, like Carmine Falcone (John Doman), the episode demonstrates that the series will neither be monotonous in its characterization nor dull in its plot. However, even though the general atmosphere of the episode is dark and gritty, there is a sort of over-the-topness, like when the butcher came to kill Gordon and Bullock, which may seem jarring to some viewers but enjoyable to others, depending on each person’s tastes.

In terms of characterization, the episode presented each character with a sense of distinguished identity and the possibility to broaden their stories. Gotham does not go with a superhero twist from the start, but it portrays characters as having a certain quality to them that might develop into a more identifying one in the future. Since this series is based on the early years of the Gotham-centric characters, it is understandable that none of them will necessarily jump right into tights costumes out of nowhere; although it feels strange when certain characters act differently from their usual selves. A few perfect example are Alfred Pennyworth’s (Sean Pertwee) more disciplined, annoyed and serious manner, and Oswald Cobblepot’s (Robin Lord Taylor) more outwardly cowardice portrayal. These characters still need to be developed into the ones that comic book readers know and love. In terms of acting, I’m still not entirely sold on McKenzie and Logue’s performance, yet but I did love Pinkett Smith and Mazouz. The rest, although well done, still need development.

Unfortunately, there are some aspects I did not particularly like. The dialogue at times felt a bit too poetic when the moment didn’t necessarily call for it. For an episode that established itself as down-to-Earth, to an extent, those instances came on felt out of place. This also goes for the cinematography, which was relatively well done except in a scene that zoomed in on Gordon’s face, which broke the flow of the scene. Meanwhile, although I do love to see comic book characters making an appearance in television series, there must be a reasonable introduction to them. This was something Gotham lacked. It was nice to see Edward Nygma (Corey Michael Smith), Ivy Pepper (Clare Foley), and Selina Kyle (Camren Bicondova), and but it was a bit too much for a first episode. Their individual introductions should have been more dispersed and less cluttered. It would have helped the shows progression flow instead of shove characters in the viewers’ face. 

However, because this is a pilot there is a chance for improvement. One episode does not necessarily represent the style, characterization and plot progression of the rest of the series. The important thing is that it captures the attention of potential viewers; the rest of the series has the objective to maintain that audience and possibly make it grow as time progresses. In truth, one can only wait and see the true potential that Gotham holds.

TV Series Review: Community

by Rogue

The Basics:

Community is not your typical geeky sitcom. It’s a show by the great Dan Harmon (cocreator

of the Adult Swim animated television series Rick and Morty) and it stars an

ensemble cast. The premise of the show is a group of seven different personalities form

a study group for a Spanish class (taught by a Chinese professor) in Greendale

Community College. The comedy of the show is fresh and original and literally

indescribable. It’s aired on NBC for five seasons, while the sixth will air on Yahoo!

Screen.

The Cast and Characters:

1. Jeff Winger (Joel McHale) - a con artist at heart, he got caught at his law firm lying

about having a bachelor’s degree and enrolls at Greendale Community College for a

“quickie” degree.

2. Britta Perry (Gillian Jacobs) - a high school drop out, former anarchist and social

activist.

3. Abed Nadir (Danny Pudi) - a Palestinian-Polish film student suspected of having

Asperger’s syndrome but has an encyclopedic knowledge of TV shows and movies.

4. Shirley Bennett - a recently divorced single mother and vocal Christian.

5. Annie Edison (Allison Brie) - the youngest, people pleasing and over achieving

student who lost her scholarship to a prestigious university when she became

addicted to Adderall.

6. Troy Barnes (Donald Glover a.k.a. Childish Gambino) - a former high school star

quarterback who lost his scholarship due to injury, he instantly bonds with Abed and

embraces his geeky, goofy side

7. Pierce Hawthorne (Chevy Chase) - an old, racist and sexist millionaire who enrolls at

Greendale out of boredom

8. Ben Chang (Ken Jeong) - the slightly deranged Chinese Spanish teacher. Together

they study for Ben Chang’s ridiculous Spanish class and have to put up with the

antics of the exuberant and lively Dean Craig Pelton.

9. Craig Pelton (Jim Rash) - the exuberant and lively Dean who desperately wants

Greendale to be taken as a university, instead of a community college.

My Top 5 Episodes:

1. “Modern Warfare” (S01E23) - after the Dean announces the prize for the winner of

the school paintball game, it breaks out into an out all war. The episode heavily

references and parodies action movies and post apocalyptic films such as Die Hard,

Terminator, Rambo etc.

2. “Abed’s Uncontrollable Christmas” (S02E11) - a freaking STOP MOTION Christmasthemed

episode. STOP MOTION ANIMATION!

3. “Advanced Dungeons & Dragons” (S02E14) - the study group notice a fellow student

nicknamed “Fat Neil” is lonely and suicidal so they play a game of Advanced

Dungeons and Dragons with him, but Pierce feels left out and does his best to ruin

the game.

4. “Digital Estate Planning” (S03E20) - Pierce’s father has died but in order to claim his

inheritance he and the study group have to play an 8 bit console game reminiscent of

Nintendo and Sega systems, with a bit of Minecraft thrown into the mix.

5. “G.I. Jeff” (S05E11) - A FULL animated episode stylized after the 1980’s show G.I.

Joe.

Other Fun Bits:

These are just MY top 5 episodes, but there’s TONS more. Zombie themed episodes, an Apollo 13 episode, a glee parody episode, conspiracy theory episode, a Law & Order episode, hidden jokes and easter eggs everywhere. This show is genius and EVERYBODY needs to go check it out now!

Comic Review: Avengers vs. X-Men 0-12 (April to October 2012)

Publisher: Marvel Comics

Language: English

The Writers:

1. Jason Aaron

2. Brian Michael Bendis (winner of 5 Eisner Awards)

3. Ed Brubaker (winner of 4 Eisner Awards)

4. Matt Fraction (winner of 1 Eisner Award)

5. Jonathan Hickman

The Pencillers:

1. John Romita, Jr.

2. Oliver Coipel

3. Adam Kubert

by Rogue

Synopsis:

The Phoenix Force is approaching Earth, and in the events of Avengers: X-Sanction we

learn Hope Summers is its next host. Unfortunately the X-Men and Avengers have very

different ideas on how to handle the situation and it breaks out into a war.

*NOTE: This event closes an arc that started with House of M in 2005 and it launches

Marvel into their Marvel NOW! relaunch initiative.

Review:

Story:

The concept is not particularly original since we’ve already read heroes battling heroes

(Civil War), but AvX does contain some unexpected twists and turns. It should not be read

as a stand alone, it has a poor introduction to the events and characters, and references

past events. I suggest reading the “Dark Phoenix Saga” (The X-Men #129-138), Avengers:

Disassembled (Avengers #500-503), House of M, Messiah Complex, X-Men: Second

Coming, and Avengers:X-Sanction. The event starts out action packed and well written,

but as it reaches the middle it loses focus, it gets boring and drags on forever. If the writers

would have used a couple more issues for the set up and premise of the story instead of

rushing headfirst into the action and conflict, they wouldn’t have had a climax at the 5th

issue and then had to drag out 7 issues of falling action. It’s not a bad story, it simply didn’t

need 12 issues to be told.

Execution:

Some issues were more successful than others. Issues by Brian Michael Bendis (#0, #1,

#8, and #11) were the best executed in my opinion, but sometime after issue #6 it gets

messy. Everything from issue #7 to #10 is the equivalent of a Zack Snyder movie (300,

Watchmen, Man of Steel), loud, lots of explosions, and could be done in one issue. It was

just too much. The most worrying thing was that I could identify which writer wrote which

issue, they had their stamp all over the page making it impossible for the story to flow. One

writer (or two at the most) should have done the script for the entire 12 issues to keep the

event clean and consistent.

Artwork:

Out of the three artists that illustrated AvX, I would have to single out Oliver Coipel as the

most successful, and occasionally John Romita, Jr. They were able to illustrate clean and

concisely a battle between a cast of 78+ characters. Unfortunately Adam Kubert wasn’t as

successful and it shows in his panels, they’re crowded, muddled and inconsistent.

Characterization and Character Development:

For an event called Avengers vs. X-Men, there’s not a whole lot of Avenger action going

on with the exception of Captain America and the Scarlet Witch (who is not exactly an

Avenger at this moment). On the other hand the X-Men are everywhere; Cyclops, Hope

Summers, and a random cast that I still don’t understand why they were chosen.

Personally, the only character who I saw change throughout the event was Cyclops, who

despite not being a favorite of mine, I was glad in the shift in his demeanor after 48+ years.

Issue #11 is my favorite out of the entire event, because it illustrates the relationship

between Cyclops and Xavier that has been strained since the events of X-Men:Deadly

Genesis (I highly recommend this title). Other than that, the characters weren’t nearly as

interesting as they have been in past events.

Conclusion:

This event is not essential for anyone interested in reading Marvel NOW! I appreciated

some aspects of it but it is not at the quality that it should have been. It’s not awful, but it’s

not great either.

Grand Budapest Hotel Review

By.DigitaLoz

Plenty of films are released each year, yet most of them are throwaways made for the audience to sit back, watch for 90 minutes and have a good time. But a percentage of these movies are made by directors worth following. One of said outstanding directors is Wes Anderson. Anderson’s films are all full of stunning visuals, quirky characters and captivating camera work. Incidentally, I was looking forward to his next project: The Grand Budapest Hotel.

The Grand Budapest Hotel tells the story of the famous concierge M. Gustave (played by Ralph Fiennes) and his adventures with his new lobby boy, Zero Moustafa (played by Tony Revolori and F. Murray Abraham). With a cast of academy award nominees and winners, this Anderson flick pulls its weight in its troupe alone. And even the new comers, like Revolori, do a fantastic job. Yet among the A-list stars and big names there are two that shine brighter than the rest: Ralph Fiennes and Wes Anderson.

M. Gustave is a compelling character; he is a womanizer with an exclusive type of woman—rich, blonde, and old. Beyond his tastes in women, there is a sense of pride in Gustave’s work as a concierge for the Grand Budapest. His loyalty to his job is unquestionable. Fiennes manages to make an otherwise unlikable character into something enjoyable. He portrays Gustave with so much gusto that he seems to be having a blast.

 

Nevertheless, it is Wes Anderson’s directing style that really hits the nail in the head. All of Anderson’s trademark tricks, from the outdated look yet colorful environment to the use of symmetry in every shot, are all present in The Grand Budapest Hotel. The film is beautiful. It possesses the old timey feel that make all of Anderson’s films stand out.

However, The Grand Budapest Hotel is not all about pretty colors and engaging settings. In a way, it is a coming of age story for the character of Zero, which unfolds before a murder and the last will and testament of the victim. I was thoroughly entertained by everything this film had to offer, yet I’m not sure it is quite as good as Moonrise Kingdom. And even taking that into consideration, it still ranks in the top of Anderson’s work.