Thursday, June 23, 2016

"The League" - Season 7



I thought season six of "The League" was the final season, until I posted the trailer on here for season seven back in September, 2015. The last episode of season six could've easily been the series finale. I've been a fan of this show since season one, but I'm surprised this show has lasted this long without losing any momentum. Jeff Schaffer and his wife Jackie are the creators and directors of this popular show about Fantasy Football and the group of adult friends that take it WAY too seriously. Jeff Schaffer is responsible for most of Sacha Baron Cohen's films and has also worked with Larry David on "Curb Your Enthusiasm" before creating this awesome comedy series. "The League" is a show that has been consistently funny and original from the very beginning, but this latest season fell short. Between "Ruxin's" hot wife dying, "Pete" winning a million dollars, and "Kevin" getting his testicles cut off accidentally by his wife, this season seemed completely random and strange (not to mention morbid).

Unfortunately, this was the final season of "The League". So the seven-season series ended in a bizarre and lackluster way. There were only a couple of good episodes this season, such as the first episode, which features Marshawn Lynch sitting with "Taco" and poking fun at the way the Patriots vs Seahawks Super Bowl ended. Another good episode was "Taco" training "Pete" for the "Beer Mile" that he is competing in. The only other episode that was actually funny, was when "Kevin" gets jealous because "Pete" becomes buddies with a different "Kevin". Other than that, it was easily their worst (and last) season EVER! This season also featured other NFL players such as Brandon "Golden" Tate and Randall Cobb. What a shame to end such a great series with such an awful season! (should've stopped on the sixth season)

Monday, June 20, 2016

NEW Series - "Angie Tribeca"




Rashida Jones stars as "Angie Tribeca" in this new, satirical comedy TV series. It's a funny crime show that parodies other shows like "Law & Order", "NYPD Blue", and "CSI". In fact, the opening theme song is similar to that song by The Who, "Who Are You" track from the original "CSI" series. This show was actually created and produced by Steve Carell and his wife, Nancy Carell (Both starred in "The Office" together). This show also stars some unknown actors as well as Hayes MacArthur, who's career has had trouble taking off. He had some small parts in TV shows like, "King of Queens", "How I Met Your mother", "Entourage", "Perfect Couples", etc., He really got noticed after playing small roles in popular movies such as, "She's Out of My League", and "Lower Learning". So, he finally got a starring role in the comedy film, "Someone Marry Barry" in 2014. 

Now he's got a starring role alongside Rashida Jones as her "partner" in this off-beat, hilarious, detective-comedy. It Reminds me of other parody shows like "NTSF:SD:SUV" and "Childrens Hospital". To sum up this series in one word, it would be...CAMEO! There are so many celebrity cameos in this first season. Including, James Franco, Lisa Kudrow, Heather Graham, Adam Scott, Jon Hamm, Ryan Hansen, John Michael Higgins, Kerri Kenney, David Koechner, Gary Cole, Danny Pudi, Keegan Michael Key, Danny Trejo, Gene Simmons, Amy Smart, Sarah Chalke, Jeff Dunham, Bill Murray, and even show creator, Nancy Carell. This is a hilariously silly and random series from the mind of Steve Carell, and Rashida Jones does a brilliant job playing detective "Angie Tribeca"

Thursday, June 2, 2016

"Captain America: Civil War" - Review



This was the most anticipated movie release of 2016, and it has become the highest grossing MARVEL film of all time (including "The Avengers"). It's definitely the best "Captain America" movie out of the trilogy. The second and third movies in the franchise were directed and produced by Anthony and Joe Russo, and both films are much better than the first "Captain America" movie! The Russo brothers are also expected to direct the "Avengers: Infinity War" films. If you haven't seen it yet, it's based on the original MARVEL "Civil War" comic books, and it's packed with more mutants than "The Avengers" movies. In fact, it seems like this could easily be the third installment of the "Avengers" franchise. In the beginning, this film features the NEW "Avengers" team that we saw at the end of "Age of Ultron". They come together to easily defeat "Rumlo", who returns as "Crossbones" after nearly dying at the end of the second movie. 

However, they become divided in this movie when "Captain America" directly disobeys government orders so he can protect his friend "Bucky" (AKA "Winter Soldier"). The government is looking for "Bucky" and still sees him as the enemy and a fugitive after the villain, "Zemo", frames him for a bombing. "Zemo" wants to destroy the "Avengers", but he knows he can't beat them. So, he tricks them into fighting each other and destroying themselves. But how did he know that his plan would work so well? It's only by chance that "Iron Man" finds "Captain Rogers" and "Bucky" in Siberia at the end of the movie....So how could "Zemo" possibly predict that was going to happen??! (That's a BIG plot hole) "Rogers" knows that "Bucky" is innocent, so he helps him stay on the run and becomes a fugitive himself in the process.
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The U.N. tells the "Avengers" that they can no longer operate privately and without restrictions. "Stark" is almost a villain in this movie- he agrees with the governmental  and helps arrest his own friends. The only people on "Tony Stark's" side are "Vision" and his buddy "Rhodes/ War Machine", so he recruits a very young "Spider-Man" to join his side. This is the third actor to play "Spider-Man"..... it's getting a little confusing and ridiculous. Why couldn't Andrew Garfield just continue playing the role of "Peter Parker"? In this movie, he is played by Tom Holland (an unknown British actor). 

This film also introduces "Black Panther"- a skilled warrior with a "vibranium" suit, who is also the King of "Wakanda". He eventually joins "Iron Man" in capturing "Captain America" and his best friend, "Bucky Barnes"/"The Winter Soldier". But "Captain America" is not alone either; he is joined by "Agent 13", "Bucky", "Falcon", "Ant-Man", "Hawkeye", "Scarlet Witch" and eventually "Black Widow". These two groups of powerful mutants battle each other in the most epic fight scenes. The airport battle was probably the best part of the movie. There's no question as to which side you're on. Obviously, the audience wants "Captain America's" team to win. "Tony Stark" is a jerk in this movie and he gets his ass kicked by "Steve Rogers" and had the better team. After all, this is a "Captain America" movie! I take back what I said about Paul Rudd being a bad casting choice for "Ant-Man"; he was perfect as the comic relief in such a tense fight. I definitely like the "Captain America" trilogy way more than the "Iron Man" trilogy. 

The "MCU" is expanding quickly introducing more and more characters in each film. The secret scene at the end of the credits is a setup for the upcoming "Black Panther" movie and the new "Spider-Man Homecoming" movie, both set to release in 2017. I give "Captain America: Civil War" a  8/ 10 rating - It's absolutely phenomenal, but I'm sad to see the end of this "Captain America" franchise.