Capsule Review: Lanterns and More

Now that I’ve finished the script for the next issue of Rob Hanes Adventures, I’m finally catching up on some shows and films.

Lanterns (HBO/Max)

Though I’m not up to date on most current comics and recent Green Lantern continuity, among comics fans, this series has been very divisive.

Though the series jumps around in time, it primarily focuses on the relationship between an incredibly cynical and embittered Hal Jordan, the first Green Lantern from earth, who is training the person who will eventually succeed (or, rather, replace) him, John Stewart, who has experienced his own trauma by essentially being groomed into being fearless from a young age by his parents (the term “tough love” doesn’t come close to describing the way he was raised).

A main complaint of the series is that both Lanterns are very unlikable and don’t feel particularly heroic—indeed, one must wonder why they were chosen for these jobs. There also are lapses in logic that sometimes don’t make sense or ring true. That said, the series has kept my interest because of its unpredictable twists, often leading to episode cliffhangers that have kept me looking forward to the next one.

It will be interesting to see whether the series will stick its landing and, hopefully, explain the reasons for Jordan’s bitterness.

The Gentleman (Netfix)

Though on paper, this series also has “unlikeable” characters since it’s set in the drug trade underworld, it nevertheless possesses a sense of humor, as well as the usual stylish bravado typical of producer/director Guy Ritchie, who created and is involved with this series. In fact, I’d describe the series as positively Shakespearean.

Actor Theo James plays Eddie Horniman, a British aristocrat who discovers on his father’s death that the family estate is part of a huge illicit international pot trade operation (he soon discovers other old estates in the country are involved). Initially anxious to get out from under the thumb of the crime family that runs the operation (his main contact is the sardonic Susie Glass, daughter of the man who heads the organization, played winningly by Kaya Scodelario), Eddie soon discovers that he has more of a gift for thriving in the criminal underworld than he cares to admit. In essence, this show, Downton Abbey meets The Godfather, follows Eddie's ascent (or descent?) into becoming a ruthless crime boss.

Like Lanterns, the show is incredibly bingeable from episode to episode. It too suffers from some lapses in logic that made me question whether Eddie’s presence and decisions were actually helpful to the Glass crime family (leading me to half-joking with my wife that they should have named the show, “A Series of Unfortunate Incidents,” but it nevertheless is fun and addictive, boosted by a terrific supporting cast that includes Joely Richardson, Vinnie Jones, Daniel Ings, and the ubiquitous Giancarlo Esposito.

Margo’s Got Money Troubles (Apple+)

This winning series comes from legendary tv creator David E. Kelley, starring Elle Fanning as Margo Millet who, after becoming a single mother as the result of an ill-advised affair with her college professor, turns to OnlyFans and the sex work industry to make ends meet.

I admittedly approached this show with a little bit of trepidation because of Kelley’s reputation as a creator of “chick shows” that have never really been in my wheelhouse. That said, even though the series has some of Kelley’s trademark glibness, the characters and performances are winning and makes the audience emotionally invested. It helps that it has an outstanding cast, including Fanning, Michelle Feiffer as her partying single mom (Feiffer is married to Kelley in real life), Greg Kinnear as Feiffer’s pastor fiance, Nicole Kidman in a recurring role as a former female wrestler/now lawyer, and Nick Offerman as Margo’s former wrestling father. The entire cast is terrific, but the show really took off for me when Offerman’s character, a recovering alcoholic and drug addict, comes into the picture.

Ted Lasso (Apple+)

Back for an unexpected fourth season, the popular show picks up a little where the original three series run ended, when Ted is hired to coach Richmond’s new women’s football team, dubbed the Lady Greyhounds. With him along with this journey are his ex-wife and son, and many of the show’s familiar faces have returned.

The main arcs appear to be Ted re-finding love (including for himself) and the woman coach who Ted takes over from, Alice (played by Tanya Reynolds, who I first saw in the Netflix series Sex Education), who must overcome her resentment and bitterness over a football career cut short. Of course, the show also features the ongoing relationship between Roy Kent (Brett Goldstein) and Keeley Jones (Juno Temple), and other original cast member characters like Coach Beard and team owner Rebecca, while also focusing on the lives and relationships of the women’s team.

At times the show feels forced as it tries to recapture the lightning of the original series, but in the end, the show still successfully ultimately embodies the same heart and heartfelt commitment to showing often wounded human beings trying to overcome disappointments and the obstacles in their lives, and becoming their best selves.

Reacher (Reacher)

Though I’ve enjoyed Reacher, it’s a very workmanlike series—it doesn’t really break new ground, simply featuring a Shane-like character who rambles into town, comes across trouble and injustice, often breaking and bending the rules to get the job done. In fact, I’ve often compared it to the Lethal Weapon franchise, where the good guys investigate a mystery, then attack the bad guys’ lair and shoot its up, often with the help of a team. 

But, at the end, the series is very watchable, helped by the presence of its star, Alan Ritchson, a beast of a human being (and I mean that as a compliment) who perfectly embodies the superhuman bigger than life titular character.

I greatly enjoyed this third series, which I felt opened up the series a little more, particularly compared to the second series, with international intrigue becoming part of the backdrop.

Coyote vs. Acme

Notoriously shelved by Warner Brothers as a tax write-off, Coyote vs. Acme was released after being saved from the dustbin by Ketchup Entertainment.

The movie features perhaps some of the best animation mixed with live action since Who Framed Roger Rabbit. SNL alum Will Forte plays an accident compensation lawyer who halfheartedly agrees to represent Wile E. Coyote in a lawsuit against the Acme Corporation (represented by a slimy lawyer played by John Cena). It’s a fun bit of nostalgia and silliness that features many familiar players from the Warner Brothers cartoon catalog, including Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Tweety Bird, and many more—the deepest cut (and a personal favorite) being Peter Lorre who famously appeared as a caricature in a Warner short back in the day.

I enjoyed the film though, in truth, the hype over the film perhaps raised my expectations too much. But it certainly deserved to be released

Capsule Reviews: Fremont, Rental Family and EPiC

In this era of big Marvel and DC superhero action films, it was nice to recently come across some films that were much smaller in scale and much quieter, yet nevertheless indelible in ways that only arthouse films can be.

Fremont (Prime)
From 2023, this quiet moving film about a young Afghan woman who has resettled in the Northern California city of Fremont (near San Francisco) after having served as a translator for the U.S. in Afghanistan. Though not many details of her previous life are offered, it’s clear she has suffered some trauma and feels isolated and adrift, as she tries to adjust to her new life. This is in spite the fact she lives in an Afghani community and holds a job at a fortune cookie factory. The one star in it was Jeremy Allen White. It’s in black and white. But there really isn’t much about Fremont itself lol, though that is where she lives. A very quiet film of small moments, but I liked it a lot.

Rental Family (Hulu)

Another quiet moving film about an American expatriate (Brendan Fraser), a struggling actor living in Japan who finds work at a family rental agency. I’m not sure how accurate the film is in terms of the kind of work these workers actually do (though I had vaguely heard about people paid to attend funerals), but it explores the sticky ethics of such work (especially when it involves deception), and whether it’s possible for the workers to keep their work and personal feelings and lives separate. Full of warmth and humor, Brendan Fraser anchors the film, joined by a dominantly Japanese cast.

EPiC: Elvis Presley in Concert

When I heard about this film, I opted to see it in a theater to enjoy a full theatrical and sound experience. Part documentary and part concert film, it mostly strips away Elvis’s bigger-than-life image to focus on his music chops and performance, particularly his early in residence Vegas years. (Though you do see a bit of weight fluctuation in some of the footage, there’s little of the later “Fat Elvis” years—in fact, in the earlier footage, The King looks downright terrific and slim. Kind of a mini-version of the Beatles’ Get Back documentary, the film provides a brief bio of his early musical and movie career, then focuses on both studio rehearsals and concert performances. It was a treat to see Elvis in concert, he was truly electric, giving 110% in every performance. And to go back to the Get Back comparison, it was a blast seeing him perform three Beatles tunes: Yesterday, Something, and, live in concert, a terrific mashup of Little Sister with Get Back!

Hot Takes: Boots and Teenage Bounty Hunters

Boots (Netflix)
Set in the 1990s before the ban on gays serving in the military openly was overturned, Boots is a coming of age 10-part dramedy series that follows a closeted teen’s experiences as he goes through boot camp after he joins the U.S. Marines. While the show is primarily told through the eyes of the teen fresh out of high school, it actually is an ensemble piece as we follow the journey of several of the aspiring marines, as well as some of the senior non-coms and officers, and the teen’s single mom (played by Vera Farmiga).

Complaints from across the political spectrum—with some accusing the series of being “woke,” while others see it as a glorified recruitment poster for the military—suggest that the show has managed to thread the needle of shining a light on the harshness and intolerance of military culture, while also acknowledging that it instills toughness, confidence and discipline into its recruits (as well as unapologetically turning them into efficient killing machines).

I found the show entertaining and engaging, and full of heart—even many of the drill sergeants, while certainly hard asses, are given moments to show their human side. While the entire cast is terrific, particularly Miles Heizer as the main protagonist, Cameron Cope, actor Max Parker, as a closeted drill sergeant and decorated marine, to be a standout in a heartbreaking and conflicted role.

Teenage Bounty Hunters (Netflix)
This 10-part dramedy series was quite a gratifying find—produced back in 2020, I had never heard of it and stumbled across it by accident. Thanks to a great fusion of writing and actors, I found the show charming and hilarious, and full of heart.

The series follows two non-identical twin sisters named Sterling and Blair Wesley (adorably played by actresses Maddie Phillips and Anjelica Bette Fellini), who by happenstance become bounty hunters under the mentorship of a gruff but kind-hearted bail enforcement agent named Bowser (Kadeem Hardison). Set in Atlanta, the girls are typical teens who nonetheless also come from a conservative right wing family (hence their comfort with handling guns), though they have good hearts and are ingrained with tolerance. While clearly genuine about their Christian beliefs, perhaps reflecting their generation, they nevertheless are less strident in how they interpret the Bible on issues like sex, race, and the environment.

That said, this is not an action series—indeed, it’s more of a coming of age story that focuses on the girls’ high school lives, friendships and first loves (and sexual awakenings), as much as their bounty hunter side hustle, if not moreso. And this includes their relationship with Bowser with whom they form their own familial bond. Tying this all together is the girls’ growing suspicion that their parents are harboring a dark secret about their past that eventually intersects with the girls’ bounty hunting.

While the first season did not end in a completely unresolved cliffhanger, it nevertheless ended with some revelations and loose threads that clearly would have driven the next season. Unfortunately, the show was not renewed for a second season, which I suspect might have partly been due to COVID. Given the great ensemble—and particularly the incredible chemistry between the incredibly charming and comedically gifted two leads—it’s criminal the show was not renewed.

  

Capsule Reviews – What I’m Watching Now

Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning 

While we’ll see whether Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning is indeed the final entry of the series, it’s a great send off. As I have said before, this is a franchise that has gotten better and bigger with each succeeding film, an impressive feat.

Concluding a saga that began with the previous film where we saw a powerful AI entity—called The Entity—essentially become sentient while nations and bad actors compete to gain dominion over it so that they, in turn, can control the world. Of course, it’s up to Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) and his Impossible Mission team to stop and destroy it.

I greatly enjoyed the film’s many twists and turns, and the fact that many characters got a chance to step up and shine, and enjoy a hero moment. These include mainstay co-stars like Simon Pegg and Ving Rhames; new team members played by Hayley Atwell and a very fine Pom Klementieff; and cameo appearances by people like Nick Offerman. And while I mentioned this film wraps up a story begun in the prior film, the movie also circles back to storylines that reach back into earlier films, including several characters and callbacks from the very first M:I film.

Doctor Who (Season 3) (Disney+)

A year and a half ago, I reviewed the Doctor Who specials that introduced the new Doctor, played with wonderful exuberance and energy by Ncuti Gatwa. Though I greatly enjoyed the specials, I never returned to it, though it remained on my to-watch list.

But an episode involving an animated character coming off a movie screen in the 1950s (Season 2, Episode 2: “Lux”) piqued my interest. So I started watching it again, picking up a few episodes before that one in season 1. And every single episode turned out to be amazing, so now I have been all in. Nearly every single episode  has managed to knocked it out of the park—by turns funny, thrilling, clever, and deeply moving and emotional. It really has it all. 

The Studio (AppleTV+)

The Studio is a self-described cringe comedy limited series about Hollywood, centered around new studio head Matt Remick of Continental Studios, played by Seth Rogan who co-created the series. In addition to featuring topnotch production values, the show also is distinguished by long single take scenes—in fact, one episode is entirely in one take.

Hollywood often likes nothing more than poking fun at itself and this series leans into that, perhaps a little bit too much at first, featuring people who often, of course, come off as terrible human beings. While Remick actually is a fairly good guy, he nevertheless manages to always make the worst decisions, especially in the early episodes, usually making things worse. 

While this ran the risk of making the series and Remick tiresome, the series picked up for me in the last several episodes, particularly the two-part season finale, which truly made me laugh my ass off. 

Rogan is surrounded by a terrific cast, including Catherine O'Hara, Patty Leigh, Ike Barinholtz, Chase Sui Wonders, and Kathryn Hahn, as well as memorable recurring turns by an always strong Michael Krum and a deliciously unhinged performance by Bryan Cranston as the studio company’s CEO. Playing themselves in both guest and cameo appearances are a host of Hollywood icons, including Martin Scorcese, Charlize Theron, Antony Mackie, Ron Howard, and in hilarious substantive appearances, David Franco and Zoe Kravitz. 

The Residence (Netflix)

The Knives Out film franchise has launched a plethora of delicious mystery shows and series like Murders In the Building, The White Lotus, Elspeth, and Poker Face. In addition to being great whodunnits, they are fun mystery romps, often featuring a somewhat off-kilter lead detective and a plethora of big name guest stars.

One of the more recent, The Residence, is particularly high concept—in addition to featuring a “world’s greatest detective” in the form of bird watcher Cordelia Cupp (Uzo Aduba), this is essentially a drawing room murder mystery set at the White House, with the homicide occurring during a state dinner. As the story slowly unwinds and reveals its many layers and red herrings, we are treated to a zany cast of characters played by an amazingly diverse cast, including Giancarlo Esposito, Ken Marino, Randall Park, Jason Lee, Bronson Pinchot, and others. Framing the story is a Senate hearing looking into the investigations, with a perfectly cast Al Franken (of course an actual former senator himself) and comedic actress Eliza Coupe. And, of course, the White House and its storied history also is a character.

This is yet another mystery that builds great momentum each episodes, coming to an exciting and thrilling climax and reveal—and its pleasures are as much about the journey as it is the solution.

Murderbot (AppleTV+) 

Based on its first five episodes, Murderbot is a deft blend of dystopian science fiction and action comedy, with a compelling mystery at its center.

Set years in the future, earth has expanded into the galaxy, apparently dominated and run by an interplanetary corporation known as the company. Murderbot is a robot/android security unit (SecUnit) who secretly disables his control mechanisms so that he essentially has free will and is sentient. (It secretly names itself Murderbot).  

While keeping his autonomy a secret as he decides what to do—his primary interest being to download and stream in his head hundreds of hours of entertainment shows—he is assigned to provide security for a group of researchers on a mission to a remote planet. Though he finds humans and their behavior completely illogical (in fact, he considers humans assholes and idiots), as the story unfolds, he gradually begins to form bonds with his human companions as they begin to respect and appreciate him. For me, the show was somewhat reminiscent of Resident Alien.

The show consists of zippy half hour episodes which usually end with great cliffhangers that compel you to watch the next episode, and I have found it incredibly fun and engaging.

 

More Capsule Reviews

Brooklyn

I’ve wanted to see this film, starring Saoirse Ronan, since its release in 2015. After I missed it in theaters, it never seemed to show up on one of my streamers (yes, I probably could have rented or purchased it digitally, of course). But recently, I happened to be on Max, looking for something to watch, and there it was.

My patience was rewarded—set in the 1950s, it’s a quiet but emotional and touching film, about a young woman who immigrates from Ireland to the U.S.—specifically, Brooklyn where she is aided by an Irish immigrant community—in search of opportunities for a better life. She meets a young man and marries, but briefly questions her decision when she returns to Ireland for a visit.

There is nothing earth shattering or deeply traumatic here—and though people have their foibles, most mean well—but it nevertheless is a wonderfully warm human drama about a young woman's immigrant experience.

Long Way Round

After recently seeing Ewan McGregor during his recent appearance at the L.A. Comic Con, I was inspired to watch the first season (from 2004) of his travelogue series, Long Way Round, where he motorbiked around the world with chum and fellow actor Charley Boorman, after the series came up during his panel conversation.

The series reminded me of a wonderful book, Lone Rider, by Elspeth Beard, that I read and reviewed here several years back, who undertook a similar journey, alone and much less heralded, as well as other excellent travelogue shows like Michael Palin’s journeys and even the original British television series, Top Gear, that frequently embarked on journeys to places both touristy and remote. 

It’s a fascinating series, partly because time is spent on the logistical planning for the trip. And there are some amazing moments, particularly as they traverse areas with literally no roads, sometimes with the help of random Russian truckers. 

I partly enjoy these shows because I’ve found them to be beneficial for the “globe trotting” aspects of my comics work, showing remote, nearly inaccessible places and first hand experiences that don’t come up in ordinary research, that sometimes even inspire my stories.

My Adventures with Superman (Max)

Finally finished the second season of My Adventures With Superman—thought it was terrific. When I went into the first season, I thought it was going to be an episodic villain-of-the-week series, but it turned out to be more ambitious than that with a season-long arc involving Superman learning about his Kryptonian/alien identity. Season 2 builds on that as Superman learns more about his roots, deals with the fears that the public (and government) have for him, and the show opens up into space and science fiction.

I don’t know whether season 2 was based on any of the recent comics, but frankly, I thought the story arc was impressive enough on both an emotional and thematic level to serve as the basis of a full-length live action Superman film, bringing in Supergirl, Brainiac and even touching on the existential threat AI potentially poses to civilization. 

Bad Monkey (AppleTV+)

This series has been a fun watch. Set in the Florida Keys, this black comedy crime drama features a diverse cast of characters, many with their own secrets, flaws and agendas, but all driven by a central mystery set up in the very opening scene involving a severed arm. Although the “mystery” of that arm is revealed early in the series, the twisty storyline never loses its momentum.

At the center of it is a demoted and suspended police detective, played by series’ lead Vince Vaughn, whose distinctive persona and improv chops serve to elevate and distinguish the character and the series. In some ways, Bad Monkey is a shaggy dog story that is as much about the journey and character arc of suspended police detective Andrew Yancy as the mystery—indeed, the final payback of the main villain, almost a deux ex machina ending, seems almost like an afterthought and could easily have felt like a bit of a cop out and unsatisfying, had the other loose ends had not been tied up so satisfyingly.

Jeeves and Wooster

I recently re-watched the British Jeeves and Wooster television series. My wife and I discovered the series when it first aired in the 1990s, which not only introduced us to the world of P.G. Wodehouse, but also made us fans of the series’ leads, Hugh Laurie and Stephen Fry. Fry and Laurie were already known in Great Britain—particularly due to their comedy sketch show, A Bit of Fry and Laurie—but this series introduced them to American audiences. Indeed, we were so taken by the series, with both actors so perfectly cast, that we became fans and delighted in following their careers. 

Though the series ran four seasons of six episodes apiece, there were a few episodes I didn’t recall. Watching the series in their entirety made the reason fairly obvious—the PBS series didn’t air about three of the episodes, partly I’m sure due to the use of black face in some of the episodes (including the finale). Nevertheless, the series—capturing an era that  never really happened—remains a delightful and hilarious watch.

First Roundup of Capsule Reviews for 2024

Below are mini-reviews of some of the series I’ve watched or binged over the past year, or am watching currently. For some reason, I’ve gotten into the habit of juggling several series at once and not binging any straight through unless they’re exceptionally compelling. Although I recently posted my year-end entertainment wrap up for 2023, what follows is a data dump of sorts of mini-reviews. I’ve been meaning to write more full-length reviews but fell behind, so hopefully these will allow me to catch up and clear the slate as we enter the new year…

Doctor Who Specials 1–4 (Disney+)

At the risk of losing some of my geek cred, I’ve never watched a full episode of Doctor Who, though I’m familiar with the series. But when I heard that Ncuti Gatwa had been cast as the new Doctor—an actor with boundless exuberance and charisma who I first encountered on the Netflix series Sex Education—I made it a point to keep an eye out for the new series since it seemed like perfect casting. Come the holidays, I was surprised to discover that four Doctor Who Specials dropped on Disney+. The first three specials featured the return of a popular past Doctor Who, David Tennant, which included a fun turn by Neil Patrick Harris as a villain in the third special. The fourth and final special was the Christmas Show, which featured Gatwa’s first full adventure as the new Doctor. I’m now a convert—the episodes were fun, funny, thrilling, and emotional and full of heart. I look forward to the first full season with Gatwa this spring.

Spy X Family (Hulu)

This anime series was recommended by a friend, because the lead character reminded him of my own comic-book character, Rob Hanes. The superficial resemblance is obvious, with the lead character—a super-spy codenamed Twilight—being a sort of anime version of my character. But the two series, if I can say with some modesty, share somewhat similar tones too, as seemingly high gloss adventures on the outside with humor and tongue in cheek underneath. In the series, based on a manga series of the same name, Twilight is given a mission that requires him to create an instant family to use as a cover—this leads to a kindergarten-aged girl at an orphanage to pose as his daughter and a young woman in need of a companion to get her family off her back. However, unbeknownst to him, his new “daughter” is a telepath (due to some sort of government experiment) and the “wife” a highly trained assassin. Along with Twilight’s role as a super spy, these are secrets each keeps from the others, while also leading their double lives. Hijinks ensue.

Though the series on the surface seems to be a high stakes spy drama with plenty of twists and turns, it’s also a sly comedy with over-the-top characters. While Twilight must “act” the role of devoted father and husband in the same way the others must play traditional roles in the family, the series ironically also shows them actually coming together as a family. But who knows how this will come to a head....

This series frequently made me laugh aloud and featured characters like a a school headmaster obsessed with “elegance” and a dodgeball game portrayed as a life-and-death epic battle in the minds of the student players. My daughter is the big anime fan in the family and she told me that this is a well known, popular series. I may have to check out the manga next!

Lessons in Chemistry (Apple+)

This was one of my favorite series this year, based on the book of the same name, that was both moving and immensely entertaining. Set in the 1950s, it follows the life of a brilliant young woman named Elizabeth Zott who’s dream to be a research chemist is sidetracked when she meets a young man, falls in love and, despite not wanting to marry or have children so that she can focus on her career, soon finds herself a single mother. Though the social mores and institutional sexism of the era close the doors to a career in scientific research, her skills as a culinary artist—perfected by her scientific approach to cooking—leads to her becoming the successful host of a television cooking show, á la Julia Child. Overcoming grief and obstacles, Elizabeth eventually gains happiness, fulfillment and even a new family of sorts in her journey. 

Though Elizabeth is very much the focus of the series, the show features a diverse cast and widens its scope to explore the inequities of the era faced by women and people of color, both in the workplace and in the community. The show is incredibly moving as Elizabeth (and others on the show) challenges the system to forge a career path and be a single mom. I must admit I found the final episode a bit of a letdown relative to the rest of the series, but this was a story that stayed with me nonetheless. Full credit to Brie Larson, in a wonderful turn as Elizabeth, and the entire cast and production for a terrific show.

Julia (Max) - Season 2

This is a wonderfully written and acted series about the life and career of tv personality, author and chef Julia Child. Like Lessons in Chemistry, the show features a large, talented ensemble cast (even broader than Lessons) that are similarly deployed to explore a wide range of issues, such as the growing desire of women to advance in the workplace and to be heard and respected, the sexual revolution, civil rights, McCarthyism, and more. Though the figure of Child is the anchor, the series features a rich cast of characters (including David Hyde Pierce as Julia’s husband Paul Child, Bebe Neuwirth, Isabella Rossellini, Judith Light and more) as they navigate their careers and the changing culture, as well as evolving and complex personal and professional relationships. This description doesn’t do justice to the depth of the show and its characters and the excellence of the writing—like many outstanding shows, I continue to be surprised and delighted by the series. Highly recommended.

Ms. Marvel (Disney+)

Although the Marvel film, The Marvels, was considered a box office disappointment (and a target for those who engage in the culture wars), I very much enjoyed it. So much so, that it encouraged me to watch the Ms. Marvel series. I tried the show when it dropped, but initially couldn't get past the first episode, for some reason turned off by the teen energy of the show, lol. But I’m glad I gave the series another try because I loved it and ended up binging the entire series over a few days—in fact, I consider it one of my favorite Marvel series to date. As the child of immigrants myself, I identified with Kamala (who soon becomes Ms. Marvel, played with great enthusiasm by newcomer Iman Vellani) and her efforts to reconcile her East Asian and first-generation American identity. I also appreciated the show’s efforts to integrate the character’s Pakistani and East Asian roots and history into the series, while also offering viewers with a suspenseful adventure that offered a Home Alone vibe at the end, as Ms. Marvel and her school friends grapple with rogue federal agents. It was great fun and a tribute to Marvel's efforts to appeal to different audiences.

The Deuce (Max) - Season 3

This show ran for three seasons from 2017-19. I loved and binged the first two seasons in 2021 then took a break…two years later in 2023, I finally picked up and finished where I left off. It’s a sprawling series that fictionalizes the colorful history of Times Square in the 1970s (located in the general area of Manhattan known as “the Deuce”). I grew up in New York City during this time—a period I describe as the “Ford to City: Drop Dead” years—though, as a preteen during most of much of this time, I was comfortably sheltered in a very suburban outer borough, though I still have some memories of Times Square from those days. It was an area rife with drugs, prostitution, brothels and sex shops and the series portrays this era in its gritty, sordid glory, touching on the involvement of organized crime and the rise of the golden age of porn, including the industry's transition from dirty loops, to feature-length x-rated movies, to home video. Though the cast is led by actors James Franco (playing twin brothers) and Maggie Gyllenhaal, the show features a large, talented ensemble who portray the denizens of Times Square and their dreams, both broken and fulfilled. (Ralph Macchio has a small recurring role as a somewhat shady but amiable vice cop who knows how to play both sides of the street.)

While it’s hard to feel nostalgic for a time rife with crime, drugs and prostitution, the show nevertheless exposes the downside of gentrification. The area may have been cleaned up and made family friendly (and Disneyfied), but it also lost some of its color and character—and of course became less affordable and hospitable to the working class and disenfranchised inhabitants who populated the area. Indeed, the show makes clear that this transformation was achieved through a somewhat shady partnership between land developers and city officials, who made sure they procured those properties—many admittedly distressed and some run by "slum lords"—at a bargain without paying existing property owners a fair market rate for properties that would eventually be developed and become valuable real estate in one of the priciest markets in the world. As the series shows, Times Square was ignored and allowed to fester until the city and its real estate barons saw money in it (it should be noted that Rudy Giuliani, mayor of New York at the time, played a role in cleaning up the area and is name-checked in the series). In the last season, the series time-jumped to the 1980s to portray the final throes of sordid Times Square and sticks the landing in its finale episodes.

Minx Starz) - Season 2

Like The Deuce, Minx covers the same era of the sexual revolution through the lens of the rise of a fictional Playgirl–like magazine called Minx, founded by an uptight feminist and a dirty magazine publisher of the old Larry Flynt school. (I reviewed the first season here.) However, while The Deuce is gritty and doesn't shy away from showing the underbelly of the porn world, Minx is a playful comedy of manners that's both sex-positive, and even more graphic in its portrayal of sex and nudity (including the most full-frontal male nudity I’ve ever seen anywhere!). Like many of the other top shows I’ve listed here, such as Lessons in Chemistry and Julia, the show gets better, richer and broadens its scope with each episode. After a somewhat critically acclaimed first season run on the streaming platform Max, the show was cancelled following Warner Brothers’ merger with Discovery, but then was picked up by Starz. I found the second season just as well done and fun, but alas, shortly after the season dropped, Starz announced that it too was ending the series. Which is a shame since the season clearly had set the table for another season.

My Adventures with Superman (Max)

Some have decried this “anime” version of the iconic character, featuring a Black Jimmy Olsen and an Asian Lois Lane, but I found it incredibly fun and engaging. At first I thought the series was simply episodic, but though the episodes feature stand alone stories, the first 10-episode season builds an engaging arc for both the series and the characters, among them being Superman/Clark Kent trying to find out more about his alien identity—unlike the comics, he has no awareness yet of his origin as the last son of Krypton. It’s an entertaining series that feels like a good welcoming entry point to the character and I look forward to the next season.

Capsule Reviews (17)

The White House Plumbers (mini-series on Max)

I know the story of Watergate fairly well, but here’s a fresh take, told as high black comedy, primarily from the point of view of Watergate plumbers Howard Hunt (played by Woody Harrelson) and G. Gordon Liddy (Justin Theroux). Playing it as farce fits the story and characters—whatever success and respect Hunt and Liddy may have achieved working for, respectively, the CIA and FBI, as political fixers (they called themselves plumbers because they promised to plug the leaks), they are portrayed as bungling amateurs ith delusions of grandeur. Too caught up in self regard and confidence—and, indeed, initially only a sideshow to Nixon’s re-election campaign—they tripped themselves up and ultimately brought down the entire administration. (As shown in the series, those in the campaign wondered why dirty tricks were even necessary with polls showing Nixon comfortably well out in front of his opponent, McGovern, who was in meltdown.) Indeed, in many ways, when one looks at the basic incompetence at the heart of the January 6, 2021, attempted coup—and in Trump’s brain trust in fighting the election results—it’s hard not to see that the GOP hasn’t changed all that much. Nor has the far right’s zealous and somewhat irrational hatred and fear for liberals, also on display in the show.

Theroux nearly steals the show as Liddy—while Hunt clearly is as much a true believer in their cause, Liddy makes Hunt seem like the sane one. (In one hilarious scene, as Liddy makes a presentation of proposed dirty trick operations, each one more half-baked than the other, Hunt desperately tries to shut Liddy up when he is unable to read the room of Nixon staffers who are appalled at the inanity and extremes of their suggestions). Ultimately, however, it’s Lena Heady as Hunt’s wife, Dorothy, who steals the show. A competent agent herself, Dorothy is the glue that holds their family together and tolerates her husband’s efforts to get back in the game to salve his ego. But in the penultimate episode of the series, in which she is the focus, both the character and the actress become a force of nature as she tries to open her husband’s and Liddy’s eyes to the fact that they are being made scapegoats. She knows there is no true loyalty in their world and they owe nothing to those who would gladly have them take the fall for all the President’s men.

Powerless (CW)

Powerless was a short lived mid-season sitcom that only aired 9 of 12 episodes on NBC. I vaguely heard of the show and after it came across my radar again, I decided to seek it out and found it available for streaming free on the CW app.

Set in the DC universe, actress Venessa Hudgens plays Emily Locke, who is hired at a subsidiary of Wayne Enterprises in a second-tier metropolis called Charm City, as the new Director of Research and Development at Wayne Security, a subsidiary of Wayne Enterprises that develops products to help superheroes and ordinary people fight and protect themselves against supervillains and the collateral damage they cause.

The show has the trappings of a typical offbeat workplace comedy, á la The Office, Community, and Parks and Recreation. The strong cast of quirky characters includes, among others, Hudgens, Danny Pudi (who was in the cast of Community, and currently is part of the ensemble of another great workplace comedy, Mythic Quest), and Alan Tudyk. (As one would expect, Tudyk is particularly hilarious and unhinged, as Bruce Wayne’s jealous, resentful, narcissistic, and much less intelligent cousin.)

This is a comedy that definitely finds its rhythm with well defined quirky characters who drive the stories and comedy, with a bit of heart and character growth and self-revelation in most episodes. Unfortunately, I suspect that the show’s very low-rent special effects and production values, and the second/third string superheroes making cameos in the show, undercut its appeal. Existing in the netherworld between superheroes and sitcom comedy probably limited its appeal to comics fans and general audiences alike. In many ways, Disney+’s She Hulk mini-series more successfully pulls off what this show tried to do, more effectively integrating into the Marvel universe than this show does into the world of DC Comics.

Rogers: The Musical (YouTube/Disney Theme Parks)

After referencing and showing, largely as a goof, a short number from a fake (but hilarious) Broadway musical about Captain America called “Rogers: The Musical” in Disney Plus’s Hawkeye miniseries, Disney has produced an actual live full-length mini-musical (about 40 minutes) that currently be seen at its theme parks, including at Disney’s California Adventure.

In terms of catchy music and reflecting the tropes of musical theater, it’s a terrific and entertaining show, essentially telling much of Captain America’s story from his first film (Captain America; The First Avenger) to the first Avengers film, the Avengers, using the romance between Cap and Agent Carter as its spine. The musical includes fun songs and show stoppers like “Save the City” and “I Can Do This All Day!” The full show, with music and lyrics by musical theater stalwarts Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman, is now viewable on YouTube.

Shortly before the San Diego Comic-Con, friends of mine told me they were planning to go to Disneyland (before attending Comic-Con), so I suggested they check it out. They loved it lol!