Sometimes a satellite is just a satellite until it becomes Exhibit A in an act of foreign aggression. This is episode 2 of Space Force (Netflix) titled “Save Epsilon 6!”
General Mark Naird (Steve Carell) and Dr. Adrian Mallory’s (John Malkovich) celebratory cigars and scotch are short-lived as they peal out and make haste to HQ to investigate what foreign meddling may be afoot. It’s just too bad his daughter Erin (Diana Silvers) and her date and (and not to mention Mark’s colleague) Yuri Telatovich (Alex Sparrow) just missed him.
At HQ, as Adrian crunches the numbers with his team, it’s estimable that they have a 10-hour window to amend this atrocity. With Mark’s can-do fervor, anything is possible, right? According to the crack team lead by Dr. Chan Kaifang (Jimmy O. Yang), if they don’t do anything quick, the costly mission will literally burn up in front of their eyes.
With a “No is unacceptable” attitude, Mark suggests they split into different groups to brainstorm, set to the very overly used to the point it is parody tune of Creedence Clearwater Revival’s “Fortunate Son.”
Once the cerebral smoke clears, Mark isn’t satisfied with any of the brilliant but theoretical solutions put forth, save for his own which is simply: Bomb!
Erin, majorly confused by her trig homework calls out to General father, who is currently trying to discern what projects in the 100-mile radius the Epsilon 6 will come in contact with that could help. This includes Mission X-12, which was a classified endeavor to send Assault Rifles into orbit, ordered by the POTUS himself to prove that Assault Rifles will work in space. Being never in doubt, it was more a glorified ad for the Machester Arms Company to tout their R-9 as the first official Space Force gun.
Additionally, assorted food for an adult male chimp and an adult male dog. It was more of a PR stunt ordered by the President, but Mark thinks this could work to their advantage. But it’s shot down by the animals’ trainer, Dewey Pantowski (Paul Jurewicz). The obdurate Mark wishes to make contact with Marcus the chimp anyway. What ensues is a miscommunication of the highest order, as Marcus simply wants food but Mark wants success, which is something oddly you can materialize, but can never be literally tangible. With the helmet on and still confused, Marcus seeks out a tool while Dr. Mallory seeks out some real help from his team.
Back at home, Erin receives a call from her grandfather (Fred Willard) who is glad to hear she is safe and sound from being captured in Mexico. Clearly, he was scammed and wired money to them. I think this scene is meant to be played up for laughs more than anything, but looking at how bad Fred himself was looking, though his mind was sharp as a tack, it comes off as more sad than anything else.
At Mission Control, Marcus finally grabs the right tool for the job, but as we know, congratulations shouldn’t be in order yet, especially when Fuck Tony (Ben Schwartz) drops on by to witness… something being made.
Just as Marcus approaches the satellite with both the fin and drill in hands, he gets frustrated and freaks the shit out. He’s calmed down though by the promise of food and begins to drill the piece back on- though a slight wrench has been thrown into this drilling operation. Poor guy didn’t let go of the drill, sending him into a tailspin before the tether breaks off, sending him hurtling towards the sun. Damn, Marcus, you deserved better, you know, for an animal that eats their young and all.
After learning that Marcus has eaten the dog, Mark and Adrian are not at square one, but at square minus-two, as someone in the ranks is secretly observing this and makes a call. With 11 minutes left, the Chinese have been spotted making a full orbit and scoops Marcus up- or maybe the Chimpstronaut just fucking defected.
Just when things couldn’t possibly look any worse, the Secretary of Defense is learned of Mark’s failure. He’s granted some clemency and is driven home by Captain Angela Ali (Tawney Newsome). She offers a kind word and an open ear. With the first space casualty under Mark’s belt (Theodore), he returns home to his passed out daughter.
Just like the mission that went awry, Mark vows to give his daughter all the attention she requires to achieve success, no matter how fatigued he may be.
This episode tends to show a bit more tenderness in the headstrong Mark Naird, but the centrifugal plot is in Mission Control and it doesn’t shy away from that. The chimpstronaut gets the bigger laughs to me and while John Malkovich’s Adrian Mallory plays very understated and dry, he’s not used as much as Carell. They give the team of scientists a bit more shine and personality, which is great to see them in their element.
Courtney gets a reality check from Pat as the new JSA assembles for a mission.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YShucVNXcVg
I want to talk a bit about something silly that I think fits very well in the realm of Stargirl. Something that we’ve seen repeated several times thus far. Something that the show does well in the sense that it’s got this “I think I can though I’m not sure if I can” approach to superheroism. A tactic that’s tried-and-true and about as relevant today as it was when we first learned about it years ago. I’d like to talk about…
Basically, that as a kid, sometimes on the playground, you accidentally give away more than you’re supposed to and must ask for that very same thing that was given away, back. And. when confronted by a parent, like Courtney was with Pat, the parent requests that their child take back the things given and/or obtain. Only this case very much being Pat requesting for the JSA’s equipment back.
I say this because that’s the entire plot of this episode.
It’s a game of Takesies Backsies. I wish there was more, but that’s pretty much entirely it. While it’s fun, it’s also a little undeveloped, though we get some nice new characters and what’s easily the greatest fight sequence in the series thus far. But it all starts with a game of Takesies Backsies.
Takesies Backsies with The Justice Society
Photo Credit: Jace Downs/The CW
It’s pretty obvious in this one, that the team is going to assemble. But just like in the Avengers or Justice League movies, the story can’t make it that easy.
With Pat having been underutilized the past few episodes, we see him return front-and-center with Courtney, as the two work out their relationships as both Father/Daughter and Superhero/Sidekick. It’s fun, fatherly, and definitely the warm teenage drama we’d come to expect and see from the show.
And that’s not the only sentimental beat in this episode, as we see each new member of the new JSA really come to terms with accepting their heroic identities. Yolanda is becoming more of her old self and very much seemingly becoming a female Black Panther in that she’s extremely talented and more than capable of holding her own, Beth is becoming best friends with her AI and slowly embracing the responsibility that comes with it as the new Dr. Mid-Nite, and Hourman seeks to avenge his deceased family.
Which is why, when Pat calls for the return of the objects of the JSA, we get a silly yet poignant theme of Takesies Backsies: with each hero finding a reason to take up their calls and embrace whom they’re trying to be. All in order to find purpose and meaning. The children effectively finding different ways of saying: No, no Takesies Backsies.
Also, it’s sort of not fair because Courtney conveniently threw this destiny upon them randomly…
But I digress, being heroes, we know the majority of the JSA will say no when it comes to Pat’s request. We also know that they’ll likely suit up and do what they’ve been called to be in this series: Become the new JSA. We know this because… it’s in the episode title. And, while its all very predictable, it’s also sentimental and sweet. Stargirl is very much the case of a show with simple writing but a good heart, featuring some seriously badass female characters.
Without spoilers, you should watch to see how each person has changed for the better. You should also watch because DC’s fan-favorite, Artemis, is awesome in this one, as is her family, and their jock-like in-your-face approach. Sportsmaster and Tigress are easily the fiercest combative duo this show has seen to date.
The only thing that felt off was how Pat’s being portrayed as somewhat of a Beta male and is seen so by quite literally everyone in the JSA.
Oh, and stuff happens with Mike Dugan and Barbara Whitmore. I believe it’s a science fair and she goes to support him, and he makes a volcano, which in my honest opinion, is the dumbest and easiest project to make at a science fair. It’s incredibly pointless for Mike to do given his video game camp backstory. Seriously, if video games are the only thing he’s done in this series, why pivot away from it in this episode? Have Mike make a game! I really wish I could say more, but the show, much like myself, has made both of these characters a complete afterthought. So here I mention them as an afterthought, in what’s easily the most pointless B-story of the series.
The Take
I’m enjoying the series for its light entertainment. To me, Stargirl is like enjoying a Coke Zero or a cold can of White Claw. Still, if it weren’t for all the entertainment shutdowns due to Corona, I’m not sure Stargirl would make the cut for today’s modern entertainment. Though, for right now, it works, and what it chooses to do by this season’s end will definitely determine it’s future.
It’s also obvious that this show is trying to represent and be a young, predominately female version of the Justice League. It’s campy and corny but also… I think just the right degree of fun.
What happened to Octavia? What will everyone do without Clarke and the gang?? You’re about to find out!
As with most of the episodes this season, “Welcome to Bardo” is split into two storylines: there’s Octavia in Bardo, and Indra in Sanctum.
We start the episode off with Octavia’s plot. After a bit of a scuffle, she winds up strapped to a chair with a neural interface device attached to her head. Why? So the scientists in Bardo can get information from her. One of them – super hunky of course (hi, Levitt, played by Jason Diaz) – helps our girl out. He’s reasonable, allowing Octavia to hide the memory of Hope, in exchange for any other information they want from her. After watching part of her mental movie, Levitt is 100% team Octavia – seeing her for the awesome warrior-woman she’s grown into – even trying to help her see that for herself. Then, Hope shows up, and, I’m not gonna lie, this storyline gets pretty confusing, pretty quickly.
There are two different Hopes here. We’ve got 19 year-old Hope, who succeeded in getting to Bardo after her friend Dev is killed, and we’ve got 24 year-old Hope, who is traveling with Echo and Gabriel.
Hope-19’s storyline gives us the explanation for why Octavia winds up in Gabriel’s arms in Sanctum with a giant back tattoo, a fucked-up arm, and no memory of what happened (this also explains why Diyoza didn’t come back through the Anomaly, but Octavia did). Additionally, this is the Hope that stabs Octavia with a tracker in order to help Bardo pull her back to their Anomaly Stone. Anders, the man in charge (played by Arrow’s Neal McDonough), gives her these instructions before sending her through the bridge – I guess there’s some kind of unspoken agreement that if she does this, they will save Diyoza? Maybe they make the deal off-screen? There’s still some time unaccounted for between when Octavia escapes and Hope goes off to find Diyoza, so you can bet explanations are forthcoming.
Hope-24, along with Echo and Gabriel, arrive in Bardo, intent on finding Octavia and Diyoza. This time, it’s Hope who is kill happy, much to Gabriel’s displeasure. We do learn a little more about the people we’re dealing with – turns out they aren’t from the Eligius mission. There was a stone on Earth! They do sound about as batshit crazy as any of the other factions we’ve met throughout the series. Anders believes Clarke is the key to their success, which is why he’s so hell-bent on getting Octavia back – her memories are chuck full of Clarke.
Despite the temporary distraction, Hope and the gang manage to find Octavia (this would be the Octavia that got pulled back after Hope-19 stabbed her). She’s in a kind of trance following Levitt’s instruction to use a mantra to avoid having her thoughts rifled through again.
Echo forces the current scientist (played by I believe Jonathan Scarfe) to tell her where Bellamy is; this leads to a flashback showing Octavia being informed by Anders that her brother has arrived. Naturally, since this is The 100 and our first reaction to anything is murder, Belmay has…not made a good introduction. He’s holding someone hostage when Octavia shows up, and, though she tries to negotiate for his safe release, one of the Bardo soldiers on the ground has other plans.
The bridge opens up, there’s an explosion, and, by the end of it, Bellamy is gone. Did he explode and all his parts get sucked up into the bridge? Did the explosion merely throw him back into the bridge? It’s important to note that, after the flash-bang goes off, there is NO ONE left behind. Not even the bodies of the soldiers he subdued. Hmm…curiouser and curiouser…Oh yeah, and Echo goes kill crazy and murders the scientist, because…Echo. You know, for a spy, she does not handle her emotions well.
Meanwhile, in Sanctum, things are…well…going poorly. Russel Prime’s followers – lead by Trey (Tom Stevens) – are getting restless, demanding he be freed. Indra, without Clarke around, is left with the burden of running things. Everything’s business as usual until Trey announces the Faithful will commit suicide by self-immolation one-by-one for every hour Russel Prime isn’t released.
Murphy’s response to their threat is probably my favorite just because it’s the one I had – let them burn! I mean, come on, it’s win-win! Not only do you get rid of the crazy cult of Prime lovers, but, without them around, you can kill Russel without any fear of riots! But, of course, when he finds out these nutbags are willing to kill children, he’s less enthusiastic. I guess I’m more of a Sheidheda at heart…It also doesn’t help that, since Indra refuses to send Russell, and Emori is still recovering from radiation poisoning, it’s up to Murphy to play his part as Daniel Prime.
This goes as expected: badly. And, when Russell comes in at the last minute to save Murphy from being set ablaze (after the Faithful realize he’s not the real Daniel Prime), he tips off Indra that he’s no longer Russell Lightbourne VII. She tests him with a bit of native tongue, and, in private, she confronts Sheidheda directly. Unfortunately, both of them know she can’t kill him. Fortunately, both of them know he can’t reveal himself without causing a riot – which would allow Indra to kill him without impunity. Bit of sticky situation, eh?
One of the bright moments to come out of all this is when Indra takes the memory-drive out of Russell. This ensures that, when Sheidheda dies, he dies for good. I also appreciate that she lets him feel it.
Overall, this is another solid episode. Filled with interesting stories told in a fun, if not confusing, structure. The theme of blind faith being generally BAD is heavy here. You see it with the Faithful, and the Bardo bunch.
What exactly is so special about Clarke? What happened to Bellamy? Or, for that matter, Diyoza??? There are a lot of mysteries piling up, and I, for one, am a little worried.
Not that this series can’t handle all of them, but that it might choose not to. Or, worse, it might choose to introduce new mysteries as a cruel series-ending cliffhanger. The time dilation angle really introduces the potential for so much confusion. Hope alone is a good example of that. What kind of explosion did the Bardo soldier set off? It was a bright, white light of some kind, but not a typical flash-bang…it almost looked like a portal. As for Sheidheda and Indra, that’s another fun set up with some heavy backstory to give it merit.
See, Sheidheda conquered the Trikru. In the war, Indra’s father died, but her mother kneeled to the Dark Commander. This made Indra resent her mom, which probably isn’t fair because if his mandate is “kneel or die” then…wouldn’t you kneel to protect your family? This also brings up the main sin of our series: Pride.
Pride is the one thing that seems to run in the veins of every character in The 100, except for maybe Murphy. Which, to me, makes him the most novel of the bunch. I mean, here’s a guy that’s willing to survive no matter the cost. Sure, he’s grown in a lot of ways, but he’s never let a little thing like honor or pride stand in the way of survival. He might be the most reviled character in the series (well, not recently), but to me, he’s the most practical.
Pride is the single most destructive driving force of the human race, and this series is all about showcasing that to the extreme.
Ah…an episode that really makes you think. That’s television I can get into.
As for next week, well, we finally catch up with Clarke and the gang on the Ice planet – which appears to have hostile beings living on it. You may have noticed redemption and karma are about to rear their thematic heads, at least if Raven’s brief words to Clarke are any indication. I’m definitely staying tuned!
Will Harley take Joker‘s advice and tell her how she feels?
These questions and more are answered!
Credit: DC Universe
Takeaway
God, this episode is just sheer brilliance. Every single component of the penultimate season finale is solid and consistently high quality.
There is not enough that can be said about the story. I know I am a broken record at this point, but the storytelling for this show keeps outdoing itself and exceeding expectations. I think I know what’s going to happen, and, even if I am right, the way it is set up and delivered to me is a curve ball.
I always have and will continue to gush over this show. It is a compelling series that rewards viewership with interesting characters, layered narrative threads, and a vibrant tone and animation style.
This is not hyperbole: Harley Quinn is one of the best shows on today.
SPOILERS are present for the rest of the article. Proceed with caution!
Credit: DC Universe
S2E12 Recap (Spoilers)
The episode opens in Gotham suburbia (really pretty to be honest with you) with a return to Bethany’s house. Harley, who’s with the Joker in the living room while the host is in the other room, has answered the door, and Poison Ivy, unbeknownst to the others, is under Doctor Psycho’s hypnosis. Ivy declares she’s there to kill Harley, who’s confused because she hasn’t discussed her potentially problematic and upsetting feelings yet. Ivy uses a vine to launch Quinn outside.
As Ivy is trying to kill Quinn, Joker relaxes with a cup of coffee watching the fight. He remarks how his relationship with Harley had violence before asking Beth if she was to get Thai food or Italian food.
Back outside, Harley tries to reason with Ivy, but to no avail. Ivy wraps her up in vines to detain her, but Kite Man swoops in and saves Quinn. He mentions how she wasn’t at the dress fitting. Quinn is confused and tells him to watch his hand; in swooping her up, he’s holding her with one hand under her legs and one under her breast. Oops! He reveals that Psycho is controlling his “forever babe.” Quinn says she’s going to kill Psycho, which relieves Kite Man since he loves Ivy . . . and the wedding’s tomorrow. She reassures him the wedding will be on and he can put the tux he bought to good use. He clarifies him for renting it, and Quinn chastises him saying “you’re going to use it anyway.”
Meanwhile, in Gotham proper, Parademons are destroying everything, per usual; however, this time, the Justice League are here to put an end to the chaos. Superman takes a few out mid-flight, Batman evades and throws three explosive Batarangs to neutralize a Parademon trio, and Wonder Woman introduces her sword to the rest of them. Superman is incinerating Parademons with his heat vision when he notices the Parademon nest. He goes on to separate it from the surrounding buildings and chucking it into space, not before spouting a corny line with literally no one to hear except for Batman in the distance. Wonder Woman uses her Lasso of Truth and rounds a Parademon. She asks it where Doctor Psycho is, and it responds, just not in English. Baffled, she looks towards Superman, who is immediately insulted that she assumed he might know the language “just because he’s an alien.” Wonder Woman looks disappointed in herself. Superman then admits he knows a little, but it’s still a racist assumption.
Credit: DC Universe
At the abandoned mall, Doctor Psycho and the Riddler are laughing as they torment Clayface and King Shark. Psycho reads Shark’s mind to find his most embarrassing moment, which upsets Shark since he thought they were friends or at least coworkers with a begrudging respect for each other.
The memory is revealed: A young King Shark, with braces and a Party Naked shirt is underwater with his brother and his father. His father warns him to play nice with his sibling, but King Shark has his brother in a headlock before throwing him on the ground. The younger brother, wearing glasses and a propeller hat, scrapes his knee and bleeds. The blood goes to King Shark, who smells it and goes crazy, killing and eating his brother.
King Shark covers his face in shame, while a shocked Clayface says he ate his brother like an apple’s bouche. Psycho thought he was going to see a memory like crapping his pants but states that was dark. Suddenly, a Parademon crashes through the roof.
Seemingly lifeless, its eyes glow and project a hologram of Darkseid, who asks about the head of Harley. Confidently, Psycho tells him that it is underway and any minute now, she will show up dead. While he says all this, Riddler turns around and sees a TV, showing breaking news of the Justice League beating up Parademons. He interrupts the convo to deliver the bad news and adds that the heroes are on their way to the hideout. Psycho yells “Fuck,” and Darkseid senses failure is imminent. The doctor says everything is fine, and the Fuck was merely a happy exclamation before going on about the words versatility. Darkseid says that he has been betrayed before by Harley, and he wants a head by nightfall: whether it’s hers or Psycho’s. Darkseid Out. Clayface mocks Psycho’s predicament as being shitty and sings the praises of the Justice League. Shark jumps in saying that the mind helmet can’t overtake Superman. Riddler ponders their situation, saying if the JLA makes it to the mall, Game Over. Psycho refuses to acknowledge defeat. A new plan is made: Kill the Heroes, Kill Harley, Kill the Earth.
Gliding into a small apartment is Kite Man and Harley. The apartment is his, and it’s a typical apartment, except for all the kites and equipment scattered around. He apologizes for the mess, blaming it on his “roommate.” Harley doesn’t care, as she’s upset about Psycho and his “magic yarmulke” that allows him to do Jedi Mind Tricks. She wants to destroy the helmet. Kite Man reminds her that, if they get close, they will be brainwashed too. She says she knows because of what happened to Clayface and King Shark, but Sy —
Kite Man says sighing is right, and goes on a mini-soliloquy. Harley corrects him. Sy Borgman was immune to Psycho’s mental powers. She pulls out Sy’s robotic eye, which he gave her at the end of the “Dye Hard” episode before he sacrificed himself, and ponders what made him immune. The eye blinks on its own power, and Harley shrieks, dropping it.
Credit: DC Universe
She goes to destroy it with her handle end of her bat, screaming “zombie eye” but is stopped by Kite Man; his Kite Senses are fluttering. The eye is blinking, and he deduces its Morse Code, which he knows because sailors and kiters use it to communicate without being detected. There is a brief pause, and Harley says she can’t believe Ivy has sex with him. He says she does, before reading the code. The eye is saying: Plug, Me, In. Kite Man asks what it means, which prompts the eye to change its loose wires to AV cables.
Harley plugs in the eye into Kite Man’s TV and — TA DA — it’s Sy, which is what he says! Harley yells his a zombie robot ghost, which he corrects (whenever Sy talks, its static and breaks up/repeats). He explains he has a case of the “human consciousness being transferred into the machine eye-tis” (something that was in his robot handbook he didn’t read). Harley cuts him off and asks why he wasn’t affected by the mind control. “Because the COMMIES!” Sy says, explaining the US government didn’t want him becoming a Manchurian Candidate or President of the United States. They used cutting edge tech to prevent mind control and put it in his mind. Kite Man asks if they can make it, which Sy says is easy. He then goes to list a bunch of 90’s tech that would be difficult to find in today’s day: a floppy disk, a VHS tape, and an 8-Track recording of the Monkees’ song “Daydream Believer.” Harley asks what if they can’t get the things, and Sy says it will take a bit of elbow grease. Just then, Superman, Batmam, and Wonder Woman fly (well, Bats is swinging) by the apartment window; they are on their way to massive vines, presumably Ivy’s location. Quinn yells that Superman is going to kill Ivy, which leads to Kite Man questions how the heroes got out of the book. Harley has a look on her face that says “welllll.”
A live news broadcast from GNN shows Ivy’s vines coming from the ground, and the heroes arrive to the scene, with the lower third saying “Citizens: Romaine Calm!” It’s playing on Psycho’s TV, who’s accompanied by a nervous Riddler that’s trying to suggest they run (have you seen his calves). Psycho wants nothing to do with his idea or his legs because he won’t sleep with him. Psycho says Riddler can leave, but he can’t expect to rule Scandinavia when Psycho wins (Riddler has a “type”). Riddler decides to stay because he loves Scandinavia and thinks everything in it looks like a fairy tale. He goes to have some of Psycho’s chips but is immediately swatted away by the doc.
Credit: DC Universe
In the city, the hero trio tell Ivy to stand down, but she doesn’t listen. The vines attack, capturing Wonder Woman and Superman. Batman throws some grenades, but they are bounced off. Superman escapes with his heat vision and takes a second to appreciate himself.
At the mall, Riddler ponders how Psycho will win when the odds are three heroes against one villain, which the Dr. immediately rectifies with the helmet, but not failing to come up with an one-liner similar to a Wesley Snipes catchphrase (the episode is dripping in the 90s).
Back at the battle, the heroes are all free. Superman gives a long-winded way of giving Ivy a way out because she is under mind control (this is sped up by Wonder Woman, who quickly summarizes). Out of the multitude of Ivy’s vines appears King Shark and Clayface, both under mind-control as well. The decks are now stacked. Batman downplays the two additions as non-threats, which is immediately proven wrong. Batman is off his game.
Credit: DC Universe
Meanwhile, in Kite Man’s apartment, Quinn is getting impatient. Kite Man is doing his best to solder random equipment together: some of it looks like a TV antenna, giant batteries, a coat hanger, and some computer motherboards. He’s Kite Man, not Soldering Man (that guy lives in Milwaukee). He solders something, but Sy tells him it’s wrong. He has to attach the Thing-a-ma-jig to the whatchayaacallit, not the whosawhat. Kite Man doesn’t know how to do this because kites are electricity-free, and he went to Oberlin. Harley freaks out saying, if he doesn’t do it, the person she loves is going to die. Kite Man stops. Harley stammers and clarifies as a friend, the friend she loves. Kite Man points out it was an intense declaration. Quinn downplays saying she’s impetuous and kisses people (callback to the post-kiss meltdown in the “Inner (Para) Demons” episode). She kisses Sy on the TV, and he reacts as hearts fly all over the screen. Kite Man is confused at everything happening, and Harley has had enough. She doesn’t have time to wait for him to graduate from DeVry and grabs one of his kites. Kite says the kite is extremely difficult to fly and needs training, but Harley has already flown away, majestically.
In the three-on-three match in downtown Gotham, Batman is facing off with King Shark, riding on his back. Bats pulls out his trusty Shark Repellent. Before he can spray it, his hand is caught by a vine, and he is yanked off. Wonder Woman intercepts and cuts the vine to free him. Ivy is proving to be difficult to defeat, and, just as WW advances, her sword is intercepted by Clayface. He consumes her in his clay and traps her in his body. Batman try to advance and is hit by a vine. Superman tries to fly to Ivy but is stopped; King Shark is biting his leg, which seems to stop him from flying. The Man of Steel struggles, commanding the “angry dolphin” to get off of him. Wonder Woman breaks out of Clayface but is hit by a car. Ivy’s vines are now throwing cars at everyone. Harley finally arrives to the scene.
Credit: DC Universe
Wonder Woman uses his crossed-arm-push power to Ivy, and Harley tries to draw sympathy by telling her about the bachelorette party and how her and Ivy saved Themyscira from the clutches of Lex Luthor. WW isn’t having any of it. Harley has no choice but to jump into action; Quinn jumps towards Wonder Woman but is repelled off. The jump caused WW’s sword to cut her face a bit. The slight bit of blood triggers King Shark, who goes mental and engages the heroine. Harley hears her name being faintly called.
Clayface, now the size of a building, has Batman, trapped in his hands. Harley is upset Clayface never did that when he was in the crew and only did terrible acting bits. She throws a rock at his face, temporarily hurting him and freeing the Dark Knight.
Also happening is Superman repeatedly punches Ivy’s vines, trying to muscle his way in. Quinn throws a stone at him, who retorts that Man of Steel is not just a clever nickname. Harley warns Ivy that, if she doesn’t snap out of it, they will kill her. Quinn is subsequently hit by a vine. Ivy wraps up Superman, but he manages to turn the tables and springs Ivy into the air, which releases him. Ivy manages to manifest a bush to soften her landing and uses it to escape. Superman quickly follows. Harley needs to catch up and looks at a tall building with a fire escape. If only Kite Man was Jet Pack Man.
The two other villains are chasing the other heroes: Batman is running away from Clayface on the rooftops and King Shark is chasing Wonder Woman.
She diverts the chase to what looks like a giant snow globe (I want to say this is Fries’ old hideout, but I’m not sure). Shark runs in and immediately starts to slip on the ice that’s below him. Wonder Woman comes in and delivers a flurry of quick attacks that’s reminiscent of Injustice: Gods Among Us. She finally knocks him out and subdues him. This only happens though after a fake out where Shark plays dead and goes to bite her, only to break a tooth on her gauntlet.
Batman is still jumping from rooftop to rooftop until he swings on a rooftop that has two crates of dried ice. Clayface stands between the two crates, and Batman throws explosive Batarangs to spread it on him and freeze the giant villain.
Ivy is still fleeing and goes onto the campus of Riddler University. Superman charges in after her, only to be ambushed by five or six giant vines that form a hand and smack the Man of Steel. Harley finally catches up and tries to reason with Ivy, who fashions her vines to make her look like Doctor Octopus and apprehended Harley. They walk away, and Superman eventually escapes the campus. This is not before he is spotted by three bystanders filming him. Seeing them, Superman releases a looong sigh and says for the cameras, “I guess Poison Ivy should have hedged her bet.” The bystanders are unimpressed, and Superman leaves. All three heroes are now in pursuit of Ivy, who’s heading to Wayne Tower.
Back in the apartment, Sy says that Kite Man has something finally that should do the trick. Sy tells him to try it out, and, when Kite Man does, the contraption releases an electric surge that puts out the power for a second and messes up the TV signal. Kite Man worries he killed Sy, but FEAR NOT! Sy is not dead, no, he is now . . . inhabiting a blender. The blender tells Kite Man they have work to do, and , if they have time, they can make some fresh pasta. Kite Man is on board.
At the top of Wayne Tower, the heroes have caught up, and Harley tries to diffuse the situation. She suggests that they don’t use violence (a personal first), which Batman agrees because Wayne Tower has seen a lot of damage, and Mr. Wayne’s insurance plan doesn’t cover a Metahuman battle (he’s a friend). Batman uses his grapple hook to pull Harley away from Ivy, and Superman uses his heat vision to burn the vine and free her. Then, Supes shoots down Ivy’s vine legs, leaving her open for Wonder Woman to apprehend her using her Lasso of Truth.
Credit: DC Universe
Harley pleads for them to spare Ivy since she is tied up and pursue Psycho. The trio say they can’t let Ivy possibly escape. Harley begs for them not to kill her, to which Superman says he won’t kill, just put her in the Phantom Zone for all of eternity. Harley says to put her there too, which a confused Superman agrees to do. All of the sudden, Ivy starts to talk and moves around.
She is speaking in an over-exaggerated manner, similar to how Dr. Psycho speaks. Psycho says they are being overdramatic, like a CW show (sick burn). He also says that they should have killed her because they are right where he wants him to be: in the middle of a trap. Ivy sprays her scent that neutralizes the heroes . . . by making them horny. Wonder Woman flirts with Batman, asking if his pecs are real, while Superman tries to flirt with Harley, ensuring her that his pecs are real. It’s Ivy’s love pheromones at work. Wonder Woman wants to take off Batman’s costume while Superman is fine playing voyeur. Ivy grabs Harley and scales down the building. Quinn hears a faint whistle and sees Kite Man flying above in stealth.
Back at the lair, Dr. Psycho and the Riddler are celebrating at the heroes’ defeat. Psycho is a static that Ivy is bringing Harley to the base, his Ramen noodles are almost here, and the world will soon be his. He exclaims that he is the most powerful person on the planet, cueing in the entrance to Darkseid, who immediately grabbed him by the throat. Darkseid demands to know we’re Harley Quinn is.
Time has passed, and Dr. Psycho is stalling by showing Darkseid around the mall at the different stores they were there. He is describing a store that’s called “Things U Want” (which is next to a shake/beverage store) as a store that sells random gadgets like something you’d see in the Skymall. Darkseid asks what an Orange Julius is, but Riddler warns them Harley has arrived. She curses that psycho, and Darkseid says to kill her so he can reward him with the armies of Apokolips. Psycho tells him to cool his jets and take his time because he’s been thinking about the agreement they made. He wants to rule planets, galaxies, i.e. more than just Earth. He wants to be Darkseid’s right hand man and promises to do something big.
As Darkseid listens to the plan, Kite Man flies in and talks to Harley. He tries to recap everything that happened but read the room and sees it’s not time. He gives her two ear plug made of the anti-mind-control material but says he only has to, so put one in Ivy’s ear while he does his plan. The plan is: rely on true love to break the telepathic hold with none other than a kiss. He announces out loud to Ivy that it’s him, Chuck (Darkseid asks what is a “Chuck”), and goes on a mini-monologue of how they are “soulmates” and true love will conquer all before kissing her.
He is mistaken and, therefore, punched in the face by a vine and knocked out. Psycho’s plan is revealed: Harley will be killed by Ivy, her best friend and secret lover. He found out the secret during his time of controlling her mind. Quinn tries to play it off that they’re not lovers and the random fling is over, but Psycho tells her to stop lowering the stakes. Darkseid is mildly intrigued by the idea of evil usurping love and agrees. Ivy starts to attack Quinn.
Quinn doesn’t want to fight but eventually does to protect herself. Psycho continues to hype up the battle, while Harley gets the advantage in the fight. Quinn tries to put the earpiece into Ivy‘s ear, but the earpiece is knocked away. Ivy gets on top of Harley and tries to choke her. In a desperate attempt to save her life, Harley tries true love and kisses Ivy. Dr. Psycho, shocked, gets a boner and loses focus. The ridiculous plan works, and Ivy is broken of Psycho’s hold. Riddler ridicules him for being immature and tells him to focus. While this is going on, Quinn gives the ear prices to Ivy.
Credit: DC Universe
Psycho tries again to get her under control, but, this time, it doesn’t work. Harley critiques him for thinking he’s an A-list villain while actually only being a sub-par goon. Darkseid questions if he has failed, which Psycho denies. He says he can kill them by himself because he is all powerful but is quickly subdued by Ivy’s vines. The two ladies take turns talking down to him and insulting men on Tinder that wear hats. Harley uses her bat to destroy the helmet for good.
Darkseid addresses Harley, who struggles to explain herself for backing out of the deal. He says she’s proven to be more formidable than original imagined and still offers her the deal. Harley declines the offer and admits she ain’t a real supervillain (heck, she may be a little good). She brings up her past actions and the wrong motivations attached: joining the Legion of Doom to get back at Joker, stopping the Justice League to get revenge. She admits she didn’t know what she wanted and that indecision pisses off Darkseid, who vows to return and destroy the Earth. He leaves.
Now the two ladies are alone, and Harley opens her soul up to Ivy. She talks about how Ivy always makes her happy and makes her want to be her best self. Quinn says she’s in love with her, and, even though it may be messy and possibly destroy their friendship, she wants to risk it all instead of never trying. She holds her hand and asks Ivy to take a leap of faith and be with her.
Kite Man finally comes back to consciousness and wants to know if his plan worked. Dr. Psycho, who is tied up and lying right next to Harley and Ivy on the floor starts to laugh maniacally. Kite Man, confused, asks if all the laughter means that everyone is friends again and says he hates missing inside jokes. Psycho assures him he will fill in a Kite Man and uses all his mental energy to project something.
In the sky, in front of everyone is a mental protection screen of the night Harley and Ivy had sex. Snippets are seen, but everyone sees it. A defrosting Clayface is taken aback, a recovering Killer Shark says the crew dynamic is going to be messed up in a complicated way, and Bane sees it from down in his pit (not really surprised to be honest. Commissioner Gordon and Batgirl see it: Jim covers her eyes, and Babs covers his in return. Joker watches from Bethany’s place, laughs and says “She’s still in there”, and Alfred closes the blinds, before taking another peek. Doctor Psycho finally finishes, says he needs a cigarette, and passes out.
Kite Man has seen it all and just stands there, in front of his fiancee and her best friend, stunned.
This review of Betty Broderick takes a horrifying look at gaslighting.
Gaslighting, or the practice of sowing seeds of doubt in another person’s view of reality, is a manipulative form of psychological abuse that’s conducted by undermining another person’s perspective, essentially manipulating a person into bending to the abuser’s personal will.
It’s a meticulous practice to pull off and is often outright cruel. This episode showcases Dan Broderick’s gaslighting in his marriage to Betty. He spent years outright lying to her face and then effortfully spun the truth to convince the courts that she was crazy.
In the last episode, Betty had confronted Dan about the attractive young receptionist he was talking about with his business partners. A woman with no real skill being groomed to be a paralegal always at his side. He’s grooming Linda Kolkena, whom we know as his eventual wife, and, though, he is not immediately sleeping with her, it’s obvious he wants to, and eventually does.
But, this is noticeable to Betty. Things are getting mysteriously different at home. As Dan works long hours, Betty spends his money on luxuries out of revenge, all in desperate cries for attention. She argues that she knows he’s been dumping the kids off on her while he avoids being home. Yet, Dan argues that he’s the victim and that he can’t prove that he’s not having an affair because no matter what: she’ll always suspect him.
This, of course, is pure gaslighting.
Dan knows he’s brainwashing Betty. He needs to convince her into believing there’s nothing wrong with their marriage. When confronted about it, he goes into denial and blames Betty’s craziness. Yet, when months of this pass, he gets closer to Linda, and the people in the office start to question their relationship. Dan tells them it’s not their business. You can see those same people later suddenly disappear around the office.
It’s all very tactful and a great example of how gaslighting works both in this episode and in real life. The person in power dictates who gets to see and say what, and the victim consistently is undermined for extended periods of time.
Credit: USA Network
It should be unsurprising then, that soon after, Dan starts to look into new divorce laws through his practice partners who’ve been through divorce. It’s evident to the audience that Dan wants to come out on top in a divorce. Also, Linda wants to be open about her new relationship with Dan to her parents so he’s pushed into making his move.
He tells Betty he needs time apart. He packs his bags, but, eventually, buys them a house for them to move into. Somehow, he convinces Betty to move her things into the new house there, with the deception that he promises to move the family to the house and eventually start a new life.
It’s a cunning move meant to make it seem like Betty wanted to move out and leave the family, all while Dan, tactfully, would move back in after she’d left. This makes it seem like the purchase of the house is an unreasonable selfish purchase on Betty’s part. To make it more confusing, he even goes over to make love with her to convince her that they’re still in good standing.
Expert. Level. Gaslighting.
Soon after, Betty’s life falls apart. Dan refuses to answer her phone calls, instead utilizing the invention of the answering machine (which she always gets, never being able to talk to him about what’s suddenly happening). At a breaking point from being silenced, Betty wants to show the kids what Dan is doing to her. She wants them to see the affair and how Betty’s being used to babysit them at their second house, while he fucks his secretary behind everyone’s back. And, though the ploy fails, the intentions weren’t unfounded, as he wants to show he can parent Betty’s kids without her. This escalates the legal situation with the now pending divorce.
It’s all horrifying for the audience to watch unfold because it’s real. When finally confronted, after a good amount of attacks back-and-forth, she asks Dan why he is doing this when they have everything they ever wanted together. He finally admits he’s been gaslighting her all this time (though it’s not on record). Worse, he’s in love with Linda.
The solace is that Betty isn’t crazy. That’s her small win in itself for this episode.
The live action adaptation of Artemis Fowl was released this past weekend and perhaps it was best that the film made its debut on the small screen. Based on the young adult novel of the same name by Eoin Colfer, the story follows twelve-year-old Artemis, a genius level criminal mastermind looking to save his father who has been mysteriously kidnapped. Along with his faithful companion Domovoi Butler (who acts as bodyguard) and Juliet (Domovoi’s younger cousin), the trio find themselves dealing with magical forces living beneath the earth.
Artemis is played by new comer Ferdia Shaw and is joined by Colin Farrell (Artemis Fowl I), Judi Dench (Commander Root), Josh Gad (Mulch Diggums), Lara McDonnell (Captain Holly Short), Nonso Anozie (Domovoi Butler), Nikesh Patel (Foaly), and Tamara Smart (Juliet Butler). Kenneth Branagh directs with Connor McPherson and Hamish McColl penning the screenplay.
The film is set in Ireland where Artemis spends his time between being bored in school and moments with his father who makes certain that his son knows everything there is to know about faeries, or the People are they are called in the novel. Artemis I appears to be involved in some big projects that have him gone from the ancestral home often. One day he plans on involving Artemis but soon he is kidnapped by a mysterious individual. This kidnapper calls up Fowl Manor tells the kid genius that he must retrieve the Aculos in exchange for his dad’s life. The Aculos is a magical object of immense power that’s gone missing.
This is how Artemis learns that faeries are real and that his family has been studying them and collecting artifacts for generations. In order to rescue his father he hatches a plan to capture one of the magical creatures. He succeeds and manages to trap Holly Short of the Lower Elements Police. Artemis ends up using her to negotiate with Commander Root who has gone to the surface with all of LEPRecon to rescue their fellow officer.
As far as film adaptations go this one isn’t terribly good. Full disclosure I’ve only started to read the first few chapters of Artemis Fowl but there are already some stark differences that makes the book more compelling. The most important distinction in my view is that the live action version went for an origin story while in the novel Artemis is already controlling his family’s enterprises with his father missing and his mother indisposed with severe mental health issues (in the film Mrs. Fowl is dead). Part of the allure of his character is that he is incredibly calculated and remorseless in achieving his goals. In the film, Artemis seems quite watered down and more kid-friendly as an emotional boy who desperately wants his father back.
The film’s storyline combines parts from the first two novels loosely and unfortunately made for a weak and rushed plot. There was too much time spent setting up Artemis as a bored young genius and the rest was a lot of action with little substance. Granted there were parts that I enjoyed, namely the troll attack in Italy that does a good job in establishing Holly Short as a determined young elf with a heart. The giant dwarf Mulch Diggums was also a bright spot as narrator and lovable thief. I also appreciated Colin Farrell and Nonso Anonzie performances, the latter having surprising comedic chops that I hadn’t seen displayed in previous roles. The action sequences were fun and the beauty shots of Ireland was gorgeous.
Source: Disney+
Still, everything else from the elder Fowl’s kidnapping all to the end of the movie felt hurried. From Artemis trying to figure out a plan to save his father, capturing Holly Short, the arrival of LEP forces to the manor, discovery of the Aculos, and overall clever plan to triumph over the adversaries was a bit bland. While the film tried show that other dangerous faerie forces were at work through antagonist Opal Koboi, we don’t get a sense of the magnitude of her character as a future arch nemesis for Artemis. She very much seemed like a one-dimensional villain who wanted the Aculos for herself to launch an attack on surface dwellers.
My biggest overall gripe with the adaptation though is that audiences are just told significant information through dialogue instead of being shown. From the beginning the film has journalists from around the world explain that the head of the Fowl family was involved in criminal activity related to daring thefts shrouded in mystery. We never see any of these daring escapades, only that Artermis’ father disappears on trips.
Disney+ does provide additional deleted scenes including the trip to Hanoi where Artemis poisons a faerie to temporarily get his hands on the book of the People, a tome that each magical creature has that contains the laws they abide by. If only this wasn’t cut from the film because it actually showed a hint of how ruthless his character is.
At the end of the day though as a folklore and mythology geek I’m excited that Disney is interested in books of this genre. With a new Percy Jackson series in the works for the streaming service, perhaps a sequel to Artemis Fowl will prove to be better should it be greenlit.
As of this writing, it has been approximately 1,192,504,513 seconds ago when America established a branch of the military that would rival Sputnik. I guess you could say, they were lightyears ahead. It took us until now to designate an independent branch and it comes off the Achilles heel of a moron. Welcome to the inaugural episode of Space Force (Netflix).
From the brain trust of Steve Carell and Greg Daniels comes a series that finds General Mark R. Naird (Carell) tasked by the POTUS with undertaking a new branch of the military: Space Force. This is to ensure the complete dominance of the Lunar landscape. General Naird is also tasked with working in tandem with his Airforce rival, General Kick Grabaston (Noah Emmerich).
Later that night, Mark’s wife Maggie (Lisa Kudrow) notices her husband’s uneasiness about taking the reigns on this endeavor, as he was hoping to take the helm of Airforce instead. General Naird is anything but a quitter, however, and takes on the duty with dignity and poise with a steel trap conviction. Maggie doesn’t seem to be handling the prospect of moving to Colorado, however, and is pretty distraught though her hubby imagines in a year’s time to have boots on the Moon.
One year later in Wild Horse, Colorado, Mark seems to still have his work cut out for him. It’s the big day of the inaugural launch. Mark’s assistant, Brad Gregory (Don Lake) is enthusiastic but always a step behind, his civilian advisor Dr. Adrian Mallory (John Malkovich) is a quick-thinking, mordant-mouthed scientist that is imploring his boss to postpone liftoff, his PR person F. Tony Scarapiducci (Ben Schwartz) is in touch with Generation Z but sorely sucking at reaching the person he’s trying to rep up, his new Helo pilot Captain Angela Ali (Tawny Newsome) is smart and speaks freely and his 18-year-old daughter Erin (Diana Silvers) is rebellious teenager, lording over her father’s head moving from D.C. to a formerly decommissioned NORAD base in the middle of bumblefuck U.S.A.
Oh, and Mark’s wife? Yeah, it turns out the only way he can turn to her for any semblance of co-parental advice is behind a goddamn Plexiglass window. Oh, that’s right. For reasons unbeknownst to us right now, Maggie’s in the slammer doing 40 years, which she constantly encourages Mark to seek physical affection elsewhere, despite Mark’s staunch protestations.
Upon testing a Yellow Jacket missile, confidence is not instilled in this General. This is even more evident at a luncheon with the Congressional Delegation. Epsilon-6 is in spake words on track to meet its launch, equipped with technology to Tango (I mean tangle) with enemy satellites. Everything’s riding on Mark’s shoulders, including billions of taxpayer dollars.
Adding to his woes are his ailing father Fred (Fred Willard) and mother. Luckily, Dr. Mallory made an executive call on this and I like it.
NOT ON HIS ‘RENTS, YOU MORBID S.O.B.! Rather, the launch. Yet, no matter how much he crunched the numbers and reminds Mark of the numbers including (that button cover debacle), so Adrian takes him out to the site.
In front of a team of scientists, spearheaded by Dr. Chain Kaifang (Jimmy O. Yang), inform their General of the high probability of failure. The only dissident of opinion is Eddie (Chris Gethard), the maintenance man, so with a lot to think about and the delegates breathing down his neck Mark goes into his office for a bit of zen. This has been before in shows, but the song of choice is always of interest to me. He sings to himself. In this instance, it’s “Kokomo” by the Beach Boys.
Emerging from his cocoon of anxiety, he sets the go for launch (and not accidentally.)
Addressing his colleagues and constituents, he proudly sends Epsilon-6 into orbit, and while everyone gets a chance to breathe easy, it’s merely just a breath.
Someone’s bigger and redder satellite comes and dismantles the pride of the United States Space Force and the only toasting will be of the enemy, whoever it may be.
Overall, I thought at first viewing the episode was mediocre, but it was the pilot and as a screenwriter, I give free passes to pilots unless I really love or really hate them. I get it had to establish a satire in something and someone. Granted, this is an actual thing. The only is that Netflix gave it a chance, and you can’t skewer something off the bat that’s undercooked. We’ll see in the next episode how this goes.
Brec Bassinger as Courtney Whitmore and Luke Wilson as Pat
DC’s Stargirl S1 Ep. 5 “Hourman and Dr. Mid-Nite”. Credits: DC Universe
Courtney recruits some new friends, as we learn of the tragedy that befell Hourman and his family.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFeAZyVAGEI
Loss is a difficult topic to talk about. How do we deal with it and move on? How do we productively be better and get better, becoming more than the damage we used to be? This episode very much opens on that loss: with the death of Rick Tyler’s parents.
It’s a story of loss that we’ve seen time-and-time again, though for some reason, works really well for this series. I’d even argue it makes for a solid individual pilot episode. It feels heartfelt and looks gorgeous to watch, especially at the Halloween party.
Cameron Gellman as Rick and Adam Aaderks as Matt DC’s Stargirl S1 Ep. 5 “Hourman and Dr. Mid-Nite”. Credit: DC Universe
Probably the biggest takeaway from this episode was Rick Tyler and his entire origins story, which I deem worthy of a spinoff or new pilot. It has a similar feel to it as a Batman or Superman origins: parents fleeing and leaving their child in the hands of an inevitable surrogate parent, in this case, Rick’s uncle, Matt.
It’s a sad story that sees Rick grow up as a delinquent, given his reluctant parenting, as his uncle dislikes him for ruining his life. Rick’s obviously, in a PG-13 way that sees him sell alcohol instead of something like drugs, a troubled kid. He is also, much like Courtney (or so she thinks), the child of a JSA member. He is someone who, when given Hourman’s hourglass, gains his abilities of super strength for one hour (not unlike Courtney’s staff and how it reacted/glowed to her presence).
Rick Tyler, whom we learn is really Rick Harris, is the son of Hourman. His tragic origins story: a murder we see (and already know given the bits of ISA history with the league) unfold at the hands of Solomon Grundy, thanks to some help from some JSA technology. Rick is this show’s relatable bad boy and likely love interest. He’s got a thing for cars not unlike Courtney’s stepfather Pat (also the child of a superhero killed by the ISA), is a “reformable bad boy,” and just so happens to be the only male members in Courtney’s team.
Pretty much every sign that he is going to be her romantic interest.
Heroes and Villains
Amy Smart as Barbara Whitmore DC’s Stargirl S1 Ep. 5 “Hourman and Dr. Mid-Nite” Credit: DC Universe
I can’t stress enough this episode is all about assembling the team in a fun way. With Halloween upon them, it is the time for costumes and heroes. Courtney is very much your “Jane Everywoman,” leading the way to assemble and recruit Rick with the help of Yolanda, and, surprisingly, Beth.
Beth, using her wits and following the blatantly obvious trail Courtney leaves behind, finds the truth out about everything. She also stumbles upon goggles: effectively making her the next Doctor Mid-Nite (we all saw this happening for episodes now).
Her story is lacking, as she’s little more than an introverted super genius that seems to annoy everyone in her life away from her. What’s fascinating was that the original Doctor Mid-Nite, Chuck McNider, was blind. To compensate, he created goggles that let him see and know almost everything around him
Anjelika Washington as Beth Chapel DC’s Stargirl S1 Ep.5 “Hourman and Dr. Mid-Nite”. Credit: DC Universe
Beth Chapel inherits these super genius goggles, including the advanced AI that comes with them (aptly also named Chuck). And, though it’s sad no one wants to be Beth’s friend outright, it’s implied that maybe Chuck the AI can help, given how lonely of a character she is.
There is also a villain side story that Pat follows via his leads, though it doesn’t really develop much except that he once again, is one step closer to finding out who the ISA really is. Sadly, we don’t really care as there’s little at stake for him, and we already know/see what they’re doing: bad guy things. Like killing witnesses. And committing evil.
It is generic and moves the plot forward, though it doesn’t feel all that weighted. Likewise, Pat is conveniently finding these clues in this small town by repeatedly investigating things related to car accidents and totaled cars: his profession, which conveniently, keeps setting him on the path to discovering the ISA situation. He also figures out Courtney is still involved in rebuilding the JSA, making Pat really just a tool to eventually unite the JSA/ISA storylines at some point via his involvement.
Finally, I’ll mention we get a fun shout out to Artemis Crock, whom many Young Justice fans will remember as the beloved Green Arrow/Huntress protégé: Artemis. More on that allegedly next week.
The Takeaway
This episode does a really excellent job with the Hourman backstory history. It’s tragic, high school melodramatic, and noble in a revenge-for-dad kind of fashion. There’s really just a lot to like in this episode, and I think the series really steers the ship well. I also love how this team is mostly a group of superheroines.
The cinematography really steps it up in this one compared to last week too. We get scenic shots, several locations: including a school, farm, and party, and even digital recreations of a tragic moment.
Still, the episode is not without flaws. All this car talk is pretty boring to me (as is Pat’s story on the whole) as is the history behind Blue Valley, which just seems like a regular normal town that’s coincidentally populated by villains.
I like Mike Dugan not doing much. Any scenes where he shuts up and does nothing is excellent at this rate. Meanwhile, Amy Smart is still severely underutilized. Though, I hear both are featured in next week’s B story.
This week on Harley Quinn: Harley and Joker look for the storybook, Poison Ivy tries to get her wedding on a roll, and Doctor Psycho wants to take over the world.
The Clown Prince of Crime is back, and Harley must enlist his help to find the Queen of Fable’s story book..
Meanwhile, Doctor Psycho and the Riddler seek to take over Gotham, and then the world, with their newly acquired Parademon army, while Poison Ivy seeks to sit this one out and focus on her marriage to Kite Man.
Will Joker help Harley find the book? Does he even know where the book is? What will Dr. Psycho do next? How is Ivy coping with life post-bachelorette party?
These questions and more are answered!
Credit: DC Universe
Takeaway
This is building up to an epic season finale.
With two episodes left to hit lucky number 13, Harley Quinn keeps on building and building. At this point, the table is set, and now each team must pick their next moves wisely. I know I sound like a broken record, but this show really delivers on story elements introduced into the series. Even episode 8 “Inner (Para) Demons,” an episode I stated I was not a big fan of, has shown to play a bigger part than I imagined.
After constantly trying to make her mark as the baddest villain in Gotham, Harley finds herself looking to fix her past mistakes, and it requires her to do some good.
At this moment, I can say that this episode features some of the most visually-pleasing action from the series so far. When it comes to colors and framing, the episodes gives us a nice range of different color pallets and continues to have fun with painting the picture. The voice acting is consistently stellar, and, at this point, I cannot imagine Harley without hearing Kaley Cuoco’s voice (sorry Margot, it’s not your fault). Having Joker back is a treat, and the episode in total is such a joy.
Harley Quinn is on fire, and nothing’s putting it out!
SPOILERS are present for the rest of the article. Proceed with caution!
Credit: DC Universe
S2E9 Recap (Spoilers)
The episode starts in a familiar setting: the stoner’s basement from episode 5 “Batman’s Back Man.” This time, instead of a misogynistic nerd and his stoner friend, the stoner is accompanied by Frank the Plant (JB Smoove)!
While the stoner puffs away, Frank nerds out about this season of Harley Quinn and all the stuff that happened, causing him to recap the events of the previous episodes (also he mentions that his character has good feedback with audiences so the producers want more of him). Frank takes his hit, passes the joint back to the stoner, and gets us his recap:
Harley and her crew are betrayed by Doctor Psycho
Psycho was working with Riddler all along and used a helmet to control all the Parademons with his mind
In Ace Chemical, Harley looks to see if her plan was successful. Finally, after a long wait, the acid begins to bubble, eventually produces a hand that comes out, waiting to be grabbed. Harley pulls Joker out of the acid.
It worked.
Credit: DC Universe
The Man Who Laughs is back and then receives some slaps back-to-back-to-black. Harley lets out her anger and frustration on him before asking him where the book is.
Meanwhile, at Harley’s old hideout, Dr. Psycho, wearing the mind helmet, and Riddler are overlooking a map of Gotham with chess-piece sized figurines of Parademons. Psycho starts his plans to take over Gotham, using his telepathic and telekinetic abilities, simultaneously order the Parademons to attack the city and moving the figures on the map of Gotham.
The Parademons swarm different parts of Gotham, like Riddler University and the Iceberg Lounge, decapitating and slaughtering civilians. Two Parademons fly into power lines and get electrocuted, shutting down power to parts of Gotham.
Credit: DC Universe
Riddler starts to ask a riddle but gives up (because Psycho reading his mind has made the Riddler rusty) and asks what the next step is, which Psycho responds with an order to call Darkseid. Riddler is busy flexing but, when he realizes the order, says he has no way of doing this because he doesn’t have an intergalactic data plan. This prompts Psycho to ask for his phone. Psycho’s contacts list is shown to reveal the following contacts in order: Deadshot, Deathstroke, Dee Dee, Doctor Aesop, Doctor Death, Doctor Hurt, Doctor Trap, and Doctor Rabinowitz. Riddler asks what Doctor Rabinowitz’ superpower is; Psycho says it’s skin care because he is a dermatologist that treats Psycho’s adult acne. Psycho finally finds Darkseid (listed under The Darkseid) and calls him.
Back at Ace Chemical, Joker questions Quinn’s slapping, saying he should kill her for that. She ignores this and asks again about the book. He doesn’t remember what happened until it all floods back to him.
A montage of Joker’s memories shows the following:
Him being pulled out of the rubble of Joker Tower by a woman. This is the first time Bethany is seen.
Him waking up in a hospital (covered in bandages and as the sane version of himself) with the woman by his side, He smiles at her
The two of them sharing a shake and then a kiss at a diner that looks like the Nighthawks painting. She shows a picture of her kids, and he smiles.
Him meeting the kids for the first time, where he surprises them with a puppy. Though Bethany doesn’t approve at first, the kids love it so she’s on board.
Him driving a car with Bethany besides him. Going in reverse, he backs into another car by accident. The driver comes out, and it’s a tall intimidating man with tattoos that is going to beat up the Joker. Joker is scared, and Bethany scares the man away with a brown glass bottle
Then finally, him reading stories out of a storybook to the whole family.
Joker is shocked at what he became (a suburban dad). Harley keeps pressing for the book, but Joker refuses to help. He blames her for being that version of himself for six months, dressed in khaki shorts, a Hawaiian shirt, and a cell phone clip for his belt. Foreseeing his rejection, Harley reveals she put a bomb in Joker’s head and holds up a detonator. Joker claims that’s something he would do so Harley presses it to start a series of beeps that act as a timer. Joker agrees to help when the beats speed up. Looks like they are going to Bethany’s house.
Meanwhile, in the Batcave, Batman is talking to Alfred about his difficulty finding the Batplane. Alfred mutters that he can use context clues, but Batman is busy scanning video frames from the city’s surveillance system for a clue. He finally catches a glimpse and follows that video channel to look at more frames.
Credit: DC Universe
The frames he sees are the Batplane:
Flying above some buildings
Blowing off the toupee of a man talking to a woman on a rooftop.
Flying past a dog pissing on a construction worker that is coming up from a manhole.
Flying past a small child in a bow tie picking his nose.
Flying through an alleyway where three people are drinking with a sign that reads “Alcohol Research Fund” and a dog humping one of their legs (I wanna say yellow lab?).
Flying over a street where a kid managed to get a rope attached to it so he can ride his skateboard while being pulled.
Batman finally sees video footage of the Batplane flying past Ace Chemical with two people in the window. He asks the computer to enhance, but Alfred informs him the computer has a new operating system where you have to say “Hey Batcomputer” first. Batman complies and the computer shows Joker and Harley Quinn, leading Bats to assume they are teaming up again and behind the chaos in Gotham. He says it’s time for Batman to Return. Alfred says no, which upsets Batman; he’s ready. Alfred reveals that Batman is ready, but the suit hasn’t been disinfected in a while. Batman agrees to wait for the suit to be cleaned, then Batman Begins . . . again.
The next day, a Parademon is eating a dismembered arm before trying to hide his prize from another Parademon. This is all happening over the planned site of Poison Ivy and Kite Man’s wedding, with the couple being led by the wedding planner. Ivy says it all looks great and wants to rush to the dress fitting; she’s clearly impatient and wants to get the wedding over with. Kite Man says to at least let Debbie (the wedding planner) show them around. He asks her what the rush is, and she does a terrible job denying it. Debbie reveals a fondue fountain, which Kite Man admits he loves to fondue by saying “Fondue I ever.”
All of the sudden, two Parademons crash through the tent and destroy the fountain. Kite Man is upset (“Fondamn it!”), but Debbie says they can fix it. He asks Ivy if she’s sure she wants to postpone the wedding while Parademons are causing mayhem; he’s not even sure he can kite down the aisle in these conditions. Ivy says absolutely not because she wants to move forward and leave some things behind because they might catch up with the couple if they don’t do it soon, which they can’t have. Also, she wants to marry him and love him and stuff, which she says painfully unconvincingly. That’s enough for Kite Man though, who is touched and moved by it. Ivy doesn’t care about Psycho’s plans because the wedding is happening. Debbie continues on but then is taken by a Parademon. Ivy’s phone rings; it’s Debbie, who’s immensely dedicated. She continues to tell them, while being carried by a Parademon, that they will have a photo booth with silly signs like “YOLO.” Kite Man is concerned, but Ivy says they are in great hands.
Credit: DC Universe
In suburbia, Joker and Harley stand in front of Bethany’s house. Joker loathes that he spent six months being a suburban stepdad, before turning off the sprinklers because it was too much for the yard. Harley, with her bat and Joker by her side, knocks on the front door.
Bethany opens the door slightly and pulls out a gun, telling them to back up. Harley says it’s not what it looks like, to which Bethany says Joker and Harley Quinn are at her door to rob her. Two out of three ain’t bad. Joker says they don’t want to rob her; they just want a big fairytale book that belongs to Quinn. Bethany wants more info so Joker recaps the last six months by adding the fairytale book he used to read out of to her kids is an actual fairytale book. Oh, and that he was actually the Joker and now is back to being him.
Bethany doesn’t buy that she dated the Joker for half a year, claiming it ridiculous. Joker retorts it’s just as ridiculous as pointing the gun at him, which she thinks her children, Sophia and Benicio, don’t know about and she’s never loaded or shot. He takes the gun and says “I am pudding” in Spanish. She recognizes it’s her love, opens the door fully, and then slaps him before going off on him in Spanish. Harley is enjoying watching Joker get scolded at, which, when he notices, causes Joker to interrupt her and threaten to kill her. Harley tells him he can’t kill anyone because of the detonator.
Credit: DC Universe
Bethany questions if anything they had was real: the trip to the mountains, the long walks after the kids slept, the Sopranos rewatch? Joker is unsure because he remembers enjoying them but says that he is who is his and that he can’t date a suburban mom. Bethany starts to cry and goes to get the book. Harley says that was harsh, and he says that he’s the Joker! Bethany comes back, talking about how she thought they had something. If he’s too much of a coward to try, then he can have the book back, which she throws in the air. Naturally, a Parademon catches it and flies away. She curses them off and closes the door, leaving them to figure out their next step.
Back at the mall, Riddler is sitting down next to Psycho, trying to figure out what the phone call is about. Psycho shushes him and says he’s still on hold. Finally, they get through. “Who interrupts Darkseid’s quest for the Anti-life equation?” It’s Dr. Psycho. Darkseid remembers him as the dwarf that called Wonder Woman the c-word (something he would never do), which Psycho retorts that it was two years ago and that dwarf is also a slur. Anyway, Psycho tells Darkseid that he’s taken over Gotham City and controls the Parademons, and he wants the same deal Harley Quinn had: if Gotham is conquered, Darkseid will help take over the world. Darkseid thinks of an excuse to leave, but Psycho stops him with an anecdote.
When Psycho was younger, he wanted to ride a ferris wheel at the county fair but was too short. His mom told him that he would grow when he got older, he tried over and over again over the years but never grew. He tried everything, hanging upside down to stretch himself and growth hormones. One day, while watching the ferris wheel from afar, the ride broke and everyone on it died (I think Pyscho did it with his mind powers). Psycho saw this and started laughing, enjoying the destruction. He says that is why he hates women. Darkseid doesn’t see the connection and wants to end the call.
Riddler steps in to give Dr. Psycho some information: insomniacs on Wikipedia would find that 87% of Apokolipian business transactions are fueled by revenge. Psycho laughs, having read Riddler’s mind and knowing the idea already (Riddler thinks that’s creepy). Psycho offers Darkseid that, if he can deliver the end of the woman that betrayed the deal to Darkseid, Darkseid would help Psycho. Darkseid agrees on these terms and conditions. Psycho hangs up and rejoices in the prospect of the world bowing to him. He tells a Parademon, who’s just been there the whole time apparently, to bring him Harley Quinn. The Parademon goes off to carry out the order. Riddler turns to watch the Parademon fly, which causes Psycho to comment on how big Riddler’s calves are. Riddler flexes.
Outside of Palmiotti’s Bridal Shop, Parademons are causing chaos and spilling acid everywhere. Inside, Kite Man is sitting on a couch, with a drink in one hand and wedding dresses in the other. Ivy comes out in a cream-colored revealing dress, matching shoes, and a different hair style. She asks Kite Man what he thinks, and he responds saying he shouldn’t be there. If his mom knew he was breaking the tradition of not seeing his wife’s wedding dress before the wedding, she would be passive-aggressive to him, and he would cry. He asks where Harley is, saying this is her duty as Maid of Honor. Ivy says Harley is busy and she has no friends. He asks if they got into a fight because Ivy has been weird since the bachelorette party.
Ivy answers, unconvincingly, by saying they are fine and are just busy doing stuff. Plus, Harley isn’t good with this stuff, but Kite Man is, which he agrees with. He asks if she is set on cream as a color, to which Ivy responds that she just thought it was white. Before the convo can progress, two Parademons burst through the glass window.
Credit: DC Universe
Ivy brings up two vines to fight, and the Parademons ask her, in their screaming language, where Harley Quinn is. The two don’t understand the Parademons so Kite Man does the cringe-worthy “talk louder and do hand gestures while telling them he can’t understand them” thing. Ivy calls him out on that. As she readies to fight, she notices that a piece of glass from the store front window got in the dress. Ivy is furious that she is stuck with a backless dress she wasn’t big on (Kite Man agrees). She kills the Parademons and flips out. She was able to avoid the Parademons when they were messing up the city, but now she is stuck with a the $13,000 Vera Wang dress. Kite Man is low-key panicking and asks if they are keeping with tradition of the bride’s family paying for everything. Ivy doesn’t hear this because she is focused on killing Psycho. She tells Kite Man to hold her hair and throws what ended up being a wig (that looks like her hair, just a different style) at him before leaving.
In what appears to be Downtown Gotham, Joker and Harley stand looking at a gigantic Parademon hive hanging between a few buildings. They enter the hive, pretty much unnoticed, looking for the book. Joker hates being in this predicament and doesn’t think they will find the book. He tells her she should just blow his head up; she says it’s his fault because he was mean to his ex, who decided to throw the book. Joker says she threw the book because she’s loca (also a tattoo she had on her lower back next to Tweety Bird).
Joker admits he and Bethany had some good times. Harley doesn’t want to hear it, but Joker carries on saying it was his most fulfilling relationship. Harley takes offense that Joker is getting sentimental, which he never did when they dated. He says she fell in love with him when he was famous and looked like the Joker. Bethany fell for him when he had nothing going for him, which is causing Joker to seem sad. He wonders out loud if he gave up something good with Bethany because seeing Harley give up on her and Ivy has him thinking of his love life. Harley freaks out, telling him she opened up, Ivy rejected her, and now they are both over it. Joker states that she is yelling about it so it must be true (sarcasm).
They finally come across the book, which is on the ground next to two Parademons cuddling in their sleep. Joker is reminded of how he used to spoon Bethany like that. Joker goes on how him and Bethany would sit on the couch and talk about nothing, laughing and enjoying each other’s company. This trigger’s Harley’s memories of her and Ivy doing similar things and being happy. Joker realizes he is describing true love so Harley tells him he can’t give up on it. One of the Parademons ends up burping acid on the other one, dissolving their face. They grab the book and run.
As they make their way off, they are cut off by a Parademon that recognizes Harley as “the one the master wants.” Harley suggests maybe it’s like Jurassic Park where no movement makes them blind to the Parademons like the kids to the T-Rex. The Parademon screams out orders, summoning many more; Joker doubts Quinn’s hypothesis. Quinn and Joker, in wingtip shoes, run away, until they are fully surrounded. Joker sees a crowbar and the ground and picks it up.
The two of them with their weapons fight off and kill many Parademons (the animation of this fight scene is beautiful to watch). As they get tired, more Parademons come and surround them yet again. They seem to have accepted that they will die.
Credit: DC Universe
Suddenly, a wall in the hive explodes up. The Batplane has arrived, shooting a net at Quinn and Joker and taking them away
Batman theorizes that Joker and Quinn are a couple again and working with Psycho. Harley says he’s 0-2, and Joker claims that being out of commission has hurt his detective skills. Harley does a quick recap to update Batman, and Joker realizes the book they have with them instead the Queen of Fable’s storybook. It’s just a storybook. Oh well, time to go back to Bethany’s. Harley tells Batman to contact Zatanna and tell her to meet them there with her wand. Batman asks who Bethany is. Joker says she’s his girlfriend/ex. Batman is confused.
Back at the lair, a Parademon is explaining to Psycho what just happened with Harley and Joker, which is revealed by Psycho repeating the information. While he tries to figure out what to do, now that Batman is back, Ivy breaks throw the wall. She tells him she wasn’t going to fight him, but he messed with her wedding. The Ultimatum: ground the Parademons until the wedding is over or — Psycho sees a new opportunity and mind-controls Ivy.
The Batplane lands in suburbia, and Batman is finally caught up on everything. He is shocked Joker was dating a nurse practitioner (technically she was still in nursing school) adnt that Harley professed her love to Ivy. Batman leaves the plane to go the house, but Joker says he must be the one to do it.
While Bats and Quinn wait on the end of the lawn, Joker knocks on Bethany’s door. She opens the door and isn’t pleased to see him, but he apologizes and says he wants to be with her again because he loves her. Batman is surprised Joker has gone through these changes. Joker tells Bethany he doesn’t want to lose her and ruin something that could be special (which he uses to take a jab at Harley). Bethany takes Joker back, and they get the book.
In Bethany’s living room, Zatanna puts the book down and, surrounded by Bats, Harley, Joker, Beth, and her kid, does a spell that successfully releases the Justice League (Superman, the Flash, Wonder Woman, and John Stewart Green Lantern) from their prison. The four heroes are glad to be back and away from that hell, where they heard the same song over and over again. Flash says something was too hard or too soft but was never right.
Credit: DC Universe
Batman brings them up to speed, and the Flash gets a head start (granted he trips and falls because he’s been in a book for six months). All the Leaguers leave, with Joker, Harley, and Bethany behind. Bethany offers to make them coffee, and Harley asks if Joker will embrace suburbia completely, taking the stepkids out for ice cream. Joker laughs, first saying Benicio is lactose-intolerant and, second, says he will continue being a serial killer clown but will love her and her family while doing it. Joker pushes Harley to talk to Ivy, but Harley says it’s too late. Joker asks if she’s prepared to live with that, and Harley says she’s prepared for anything.
Harley opens the door and there, waiting for her, is Ivy.
Harley is so happy and wants to tell her something, but Ivy is brain-washed and says she will kill Harvey.
After the credits, the story returns to the basement. Frank goes crazy about how well the show balances comedy and drama. The stoner leaves for a second. Frank keeps gushing, and, on the screen, the website url EGOTforharley.com flashes up. Frank asks the stoner (his name is Chaz) for more popcorn. Once he gets it, he tries the popcorn and spits it up because there is too much butter and he’s watching his cholestrol.
What will happen between Harley and Ivy, both fight wise and love wise? Will the Justice League stop Doctor Psycho? Will Bethany be okay with loving an active serial killer?
Watch this Harley Quinn episode and stay tuned for next week’s episode on DC Universe.
Goldface has some explaining to do! image c/o imdb.com
In Episode 4 “Hesperides,” Clarke gets word about missing people from her crew. The source: Mysterious Outsiders.
In tonight’s episode, we get to see Hope’s growing pains.
Hope’s time alone on Beta was pretty nice once a mysterious prisoner (hi, Dev! – played by Kamran Fulleylove) showed up and played house with her for nine years (in a father/daughter type of way, not a husband/wife situation). He showed her how to throw a knife, prepared her for an assault on the Disciples, and died tragically in her arms when said assault didn’t go so well (bye, Dev).
Meanwhile, back in the present, Gabriel and Echo are ready to dispatch of the crazy old kook (hi, Orlando! – played by a bushy faced Darren Moore) who just broke the device that would have enabled Gabriel to return them to Sanctum. Hope manages to stop them, allowing the poor guy to escape. Why? Because she says they have a five-year wait, which they should use to gain his support and assistance.
Meanwhile, in Sanctum, Clarke and the gang are dealing with an unexpected discovery – a dead Disciple (aptly named “Goldface” in honor of the helmet). Raven’s having PTSD from her little fallout (couldn’t help myself). And, a whole crew of Disciples (of a Greater Truth) have shown up outside the gate in hopes of getting Clarke to come with them.
Those are the three storylines playing out in this episode. Well, really just the two, the initial one plays through like the first 10 minutes of Up.
Beta’s up first, mostly because this storyline takes up the majority of our episode anyway:
Gabriel and Echo are down for recruiting Orlando to their cause (going to Bardo and fucking shit up), but they realize his interest in Hope is their best in, since for some reason he really hates Gabriel.
Over the course of the first year, with a few missteps, they manage to convert Orlando to their cause. He agrees on the contingency none of his Disciple friends are killed, which of course goes out of the window when the plan actually goes through. Ice Nation (no “the”)’s premiere spy taps into her roots and does the dirty work of taking out the Disciples before ultimately stranding Orlando behind. It’s not entirely surprising, since Orlando makes it very clear he’s still loyal to the Disciples, and, if you pay close attention, Echo never expressly agrees to NO killing (clever girl). Still, OUCH!
Raven and Jordan are going over the dead man’s tech in hopes of giving Clarke any possible legs up, but it reveals some other interesting information. For one thing, the “Anomaly” is actually a wormhole that connects the two planets, and, in their current galaxy, there’s a total of 6 “in network” as it were. For another, Clarke is in danger!
Speaking of Clarke, her meeting with the Disciples isn’t going great, until Jordan and Raven show up to save the day! It’s a double-edged sword for Raven since she’s still smarting from killing people in the last episode, and she has to kill eight people to save Clarke.
It is a good set up for the next episode though, as Clarke and the gang are gearing up to use the foreign tech (along with the Anomaly Stone) to find their friends. Gaia resolves to stay behind to brief the others, and watch Madi. However, that plan is disrupted when one of the invisible soldiers attacks her and shuts down the stone. Gaia isn’t having it and attacks him, but they both fall into the bridge (a.k.a. the Anomaly, a.k.a. the wormhole).
We are left with Clarke and the gang (to clarify the gang consists of Jordan, Raven, Miller – Jarod Joseph, and Niylah – Jessica Harmon), minus Gaia, stranded on an ice planet. The stone is now inactive – completing the initiated shut-down sequence.
Where did Gaia and the soldier go? If Clarke and co. find a stone on the ice planet, will they even be able to use it to get back to Sanctum?
Overall, this is a pretty standard The 100 episode, complete with almost all of our main players (sans Bellamy and Indra). It’s got your hard choices, heartbreaking back-stabbings, and, of course, insane futuristic science that just…works. The character building between Gabriel, Echo, and Hope, and then later Orlando, evolves quickly yet manages to still feel organic. It really does hurt Gabriel and Hope to see Echo turn on Orlando and his people in the end (though, Echo did warn him she would kill his people with or without his help, so is it even much of a surprise?).
I don’t think this was an easy choice for Echo to make, at least not abandoning Orlando. Killing his friends was always part of her plan, but leaving him behind? I doubt even she’s prepared for how that’s going to sting later (especially once she finds out he committed suicide!). Additionally, that move may cause Hope to retaliate against her down the line. They’ve had a playful rivalry from the start, but, if it turns serious, I’m curious who will win.
Finally, it’s nice to see Jordan having something real to do. Since his introduction, he’s been a fairly bland character. Even in these most recent episodes, he’s not a crazed worshipper of the Primes, instead, a far more reasonable believer (come on now, this show thrives on extremes!). What will he be like now that he’s stranded with Raven, and Clarke, and the others on this ice planet? I hope more interesting!!!
The preview for the next episode promises some shit hitting the fan, which is understandable considering most of the major players are now off-world. That leaves a power vacuum…and old Dark Commander is nothing if not thrilled, I’m sure. My only concern is that Indra might bite it. We are in the final season (long-standing characters tend to die in final seasons), and Gaia being off-world as well could only make the impact of her mother’s death worse. Though…they could go in the other direction: Madi vs. The Dark Commander: the Sequel!
Say My Name! In the season finale, Guillermo has left the vampires to their own devices, who are clearly struggling. They finally get their distraction: an invite to the most prestigious vampire theater show.
Underdog. When I say that, what does it remind you of? The reductive nature of others shitting on one so hard that they rise from the filth and foul that had kept them blanketed in a world of negativity? The negating a basketball player that comes through in the clutch, scoring a three-pointer with mere seconds to go? The journalist that comes running down the office when their paper needs a hot ticket at the last moment? Mine That Bird. James Polk. Robert Downey Jr. It is within this Parthenon that I can add one more name to this list: the finale of season 2 of What We Do In The Shadows(FX) titled “Noveau Théâtre des Vampires.”
We open up in on Nandor‘s (Kayvan Novak) coffin. It is stuck, and his Familiar is not anywhere to be found. Nandor, acting like the several-hundred-years petulant child opens it himself, scouring for him while also telling the camera that the guy is not reliable. Fuck that. Guillermo’s (Harvey Guillen) left. Oh, he’s left a send off.. “sorry.” I don’t even think it was with a capital S… but he’ll lead with an emotional capital F and then U. That will come in handy later.
A week later, Nadja (Natasia Demetriou) takes a tour of what a shit show the house has become. Completely in denial, amid the dust… I mean among the pooled blood and desiccated corpses, she thinks it’s just a bit of rubbish. Though the candles are making, oh, I’m sorry, making? No, melting a home on the wall. I swear, if the house looks like if Bram Stoker wrote it, he must have been on a bender. The housemates are uneasy with each other as well, but keeping to themselves. Nadja is in some sort of makeshift outfit with a polka dot kerchief, Nandor is rocking his bloody awesome ’92 Dream Team Jersey with an askew tie. These people really need Anna Wintour.
Nadja opens up on a half-drunk Laszlo (Matt Berry) donned in green track trousers, deep brown sharp toes, Nadja’s same polka dot kerchief, and a surprised pursed ‘cross his lips. She’s caught her beloved in flagrante delicto with a dude named Josephine, well, sipping blood from a human and the predator lets the prey go live another day.
With bodies everywhere, Colin (Mark Proksch) slips in a blood puddle, ruining his already milquetoast taste. The household is cold, and they are burning papers and sundries to keep up their warmth. They realize it’s laundry day, and Guillermo isn’t back from the cleaners. The thing is that Nandor doesn’t even acknowledge that Guillermo was the glue. Although he secretly does. He wants Colin to take a picture of him having fun and send it to Guillermo. If only they all could remember his last name. Ah well. They don’t care enough to recall it… no matter. The door rings, and it turns out they have an invitation to the Nouveau Theatre des Vampires. I mean come on guys, read the room. Oh, that’s right, you can’t because there are too many fucking dead bodies around to pay press attention!
It turns out they only travel to the US once every five years, and only the cream of the crop rises to the top to join them. But a high profile event calls for a high profile look, and they can’t get their fancy finery back until Colin Robinson rises to the challenge… with one demand (erm, bargaining chip).. he wants a better room. Nandor offers his room, but nope. A simply better room in the basement. It seems amendable to them. Little do they know, he was just going the dry cleaners anyway. The night is afoot!
Back in the BX, Guillermo’s moved back in back in with his mom, Silvia (Myrna Cabellos). She knows he’s filming a ‘movie’, but that doesn’t stop her from… being a mother? He just had to get out of that mess and get his head sorted. With the possibility of being a descendent of Abraham Van Helsing and also WANTING to be a vampire, he decamps to what he knows. What kind of witch madness is that? (I suppose we’re to explore that next season.)
Guillermo goes to retrieve a mini-fridge at the house for his mother’s apartment. Awww, he misses them! How cute.
At the theatre, the crews get media passes, and are all are seated in the grand playhouse, and, as the pit warms up, their shields are down. All the big players are there, Ohhh, but they are in for a treat.
Back at the ole homestead, Guillermo falls on the bloody mess they’ve never had the energy to clean up themselves. What the fuck, guys?! Nadja’s doll informs him they went out for a night at the Theatre. He studies the elaborately constructed invite but finds a little surprise… It’s hosted by the Vampiric Council. Realizing they attended their own funeral, Guillermo does what Guillermo does and rushes to their rescue.
As the group scopes out celebs of the Vampiric world, including the prick that is Mikhail the Awful and Maricela, Mistress of the Night, and Todd Smith and Pamela (other energy vampires) the fun is about to start. Please keep your seats upright and your tray tables fastened.
Guillermo, locked out isn’t about to stop there. He’s able to climb a pipe with Spidey-like reflexes. Guess that Van Helsing blood coursing through his veins is worth something.
In the theatre, a vampire with a red cape and Venetian doctor’s mask emerges in a plume of smoke. Kings, queens, princes, and potentates are now privileged to see not a magic show… but rather execution, with Colin, Nadja, Laszlo, and Nador being the main event. Compliments of Vladimir (Jermaine Clement).
Why may you ask? Well, of course, high treason, killing the Baron Afonas, the nameless vampire skewered on a stake in the episode. This is portrayed through what one could only imagine is horrible acting onstage and few real effects. Don’t worry. Those are soon to come.
While Laszlo isn’t impressed with the lack of total nudity he was promised and the part of the assassin, who comes in with the clan bringing the ruckus on vampire assassins (Colin Robinson’s knowledge of Wu-Tang references ain’t nothing to fuck with.)
However, their final iniquity is the showing of the slaughtering an entire family of vampires, punctuated with a Buffalo Stance. Ahem. Guillermo? Are you seeing any of this?
As a matter of fact, he is.
The four are aghast as the heads of four humans are chopped off. But that was just the end of the second act. Decapitation is simply an encore.
As the guillotine is set up and the crew is primed, an Oscar-worthy In Memoriam is displayed to hide what lies behind the curtain. These four won’t be featured next year on that screen. Bummer. Especially since one of those was a vampire that lost to daylight savings.
In the last moments of their imminent demise, Nandor throws out a confession, tying his Familiar to the murder of the Baron. The crowd is unFamiliar with his surname, so he’s not likely to be PEGGED as the culprit.
Just as Nandor throws Guillermo under the bus, he also saves his ass by admitting that he “killed” him. I mean, come on, Guillermo, this is your ticket out! Get the fuck outta dodge and never look back, like Jackie Daytona!
Vladimir has a laugh at a Familiar killing a vampire, as an on-stage reenactment is portrayed by a child effetely swinging on a way taller Master, with no results. Blood. It’s all essential to vampires, but right now, it’s more essential to Guillermo because his fucking shit is boiling.
What ensues is a ballet of Guillermo going full John Wick on the audience of vampires, stabbing dudes, knifing others, choking someone with Holy Water, and warding off others.
When the smoke has cleared, Guillermo has one little secret to divulge.. his name is Guillermo de la Cruz… and he ain’t nuttin to fuck wit.
A gut-wrenching tale about a woman, who loses everything, and her revenge
I’m not usually a fan of true crime. I think it is repetitive, often-times boring, and even a little bit exploitative, depending on the severity of the crime and what you can imply on TV.
There is something to the Betty Broderick story. Maybe, it’s the romanticization of a woman who had the potential for anything, yet sacrificed everything to the will of her man? Maybe, it’s the fact that the story is a cautionary tale of divorce and to not base one’s life solely on the prospect of husband and family?
Yes, Betty Broderick murdered her husband, but, at the same time, she was emotionally abused, used, and painfully discarded. So, could you fully blame her? It’s a sympathetic tragedy where we know how it ends: with Betty murdering both her ex-husband and his wife.
How we get there is what makes the series intriguing.
It begins as sweethearts at Notre Dame. Then a life in La Jolla with four perfect children.
It ends in a double homicide. With failed good-intentions and broken dreams.
MARRIAGE ENCOUNTER
Betty Broderick dressed well for her husband to try and patch things with him. Credit: USA
This episode focuses on reconciliation and communication, with attempts at patching-up a distant marriage through material means, as Dan Broderick (Slater) finally sees his career take off as an attorney. After episode 2’s flashback episode dedicated to seeing the initial romance between Betty Broderick (Peet) and Dan and a dedicated look at the couple’s struggles balancing work, finances, and family — with Betty laboring to provide for the family and Dan’s schooling — the two celebrate Dan’s newfound success. Betty comments on how much better they are away from that life of poverty.
Yet, therein lies the touchy taboo, as Dan refuses to admit in public — let alone, to his law firm partners — that their life was shit. He dislikes having been on food stamps and doesn’t want anyone to really get to know him: as that could be a sign of weakness and possible vulnerability.
This sentiment echoes not only his work but Dan’s marriage to Betty. But divorce is a popular and new type of law, with an increasing rise in divorcees, settlements, and new approaches. The law firm itself seems to be experiencing a bit of that with the partners and their wives, as gossip leads to hints of an unspoken inspiration for Dan in this episode.
Still, not all seems lost. Betty emphasizes that, when times were hard, she felt appreciated, and, now that Dan just works, they’re losing each other and touch with the world.
To save things, it seems Betty, like many respectable reasonable wives, wants to seek marriage counseling. She and Dan attend Marriage Encounter, where the church and their priest opens the floor like couples therapy. There, they share their hopes and dreams: she wants to be close to her husband again, and he wants to provide, as it’s important to his values. More than anything, Dan wants to show Betty that the happy sacrifices they made to get here where they today are worth it.
And they are. For a time. As years of marriage are allegedly fixed by things done in a single session, the two get over their issues (not really) and build-up a life of luxury. Yet, over time, Betty continues to be jealous of Dan’s office. She buys things to fill the void, as things grow distant again. This, of course, is in fact due to the law firm’s new receptionist (and Dan’s future wife Linda Kolkena), who is soon turned personal assistant, despite having no qualifications. Like an episode of Mad Men, Dan gets close to working with this woman.
Betty, infuriated as to what she’s seeing, threatens to kick Dan out as she knows something is happening. Yet, Dan fights back declaring final authority: because he pays for her life. Years of proclamation promises and desires are shattered: in the end, it all comes down to who owns the money.
It’s an unfair power shift, highlighting major stresses in most marriages: who earns more and who has the higher say. Because of this, Betty is practically owned by her husband.
This week’s Stargirl talks about slut-shaming and teen bullying by tastefully taking on the topic with a well-rounded approach.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=snS7vo4HW80
I wasn’t a part of the age of image sexting. At least, not in high school. The term, and the practice, of taking nude selfies and sending them to a partner was not as big of practice compared to today.
I attended school when the age of the internet and social media was just blooming. When Myspace was still a thing, smartphones didn’t exist just yet, and the only image you could take was a blurry low-resolution photograph on a $200 digital camera.
Overall, it was a different generation.
Then, the internet took off in an unprecedented fashion. As online pornography rose, so did access to information on things, such as Wikipedia. Reddit began a hub of the best and worst of the internet. The use of social media, like Facebook, rose along with recording your own material via YouTube.
The cultural zeitgeist started incorporating digital identities. Parts of ourselves accessible to everyone online. This fostered a lot of the initial culture of the internet, leading to trends, such as image sexting, making matters more taboo, intimate, yet also: much worse in terms of its usage with the youth.
Because there were no guidelines to this. About people sharing naked imagery, digital intimacy, and the legality of it all. Entirely new grounds that, initially, people were not sure of how to approach. I say this because this episode starts by tackling this difficult-to-talk-about subject.
And the show isn’t afraid to steer away from such heavy material, which is good.
We follow this journey in this week’s episode with the story of Yolanda Montex (Yvette Monreal), who, so far as we know, is the girl that’s been slut-shamed throughout the school. She bonds with Courtney over a shared dislike of her ex-partner Henry King, the son of the supervillain Brainwave.
Needing to make new friend, and strangely, recruit new Justice Society of America members (I know. That’s crazy to do with someone you just met. Just go with it), Courtney very much dedicates the episode in befriending Yolanda and the two bond. While the two learn a lot about each other, and Courtney sees if Yolanda is a good fit to become the new Wildcat, they decide to take their friendship to the next level and become superheroes (which only works because of the campiness of this show). The duo go and check on Brainwave to find any clues, leading to several surprising encounters and secrets.
I liked it. I normally hate this kind of thing, but I absolutely liked it. The positivity is infectious, and it’s the only reason it’s buyable. Courtney’s affirmations and Yolanda’s need to find herself again after having her identity publicly tainted feels real and makes for good dramatic tension.
It also ties back to the idea of destiny (also, just convenient/lazy happenstantial writing). As Stargirl believes Starman is her father (I have a feeling he’s not) and her destiny is to stop the injustice society, I believe it will most likely happen with her stepfather S.T.R.I.P.E. (Though I say this only because it’s Luke Wilson and the comic is about Stars and Stripes and the justice that’s due for his friends, too).
We also get to follow Pat’s investigation and see the fate of Denise Zarick and the deaths of the Wizard’s family. The B plot highlights that the show has consequences, reminding the audience that despite the campiness: lives are on the line.
Wildcat/Yolanda
Credit: DC Universe
Wildcat is pretty much the show-stealer in this episode. She simply nails it in every scene. We learn that she’s sort of the Jill-of-all-trades and seems like a highly capable girl, albeit is publicly scorned and ridiculed, having no chance to step up to the plate in life because of her shame and desire to keep a low-profile. It’s obvious Yolanda/Wildcat is set up to be the Batman to Stargirl’s Superman, the stealthy ninja with her head on straight, to Stargirl’s brute force and star-spangled spirit.
What I like most about Yolanda is that she’s her own person. A strong girl, who had fallen for the wrong boy, inevitably dealing with her own public shaming, thus forcing her into an exploration of self-identity. Her family issues, I believe, mirror a lot of the drama you’d expect from a modern family of someone these events had happened to. And I love how unforgiving it is in regard: the family, particularly her mother, and how she handles it by grounding, shaming, and punishing Yolanda.
It’s probably the best thing about this episode as it yet again subverts the pilot’s wholesome pre-established expectations. Like the town, the image of the goodhearted community seems to be slowly giving way to shadier roots, systemic patriarchy, and outdated notions of slut-shaming.
It now makes sense of how the town is run secretly by supervillains. Everyone is apparently fake, holds a secret identity, and has biased built-on evil. I like that they lean into this as I was dreading the latter acts of this episode — especially in regards to how I thought they’d handle Yolanda’s story — only to be pleasantly surprised in the outcome and how the series did not take the easy way out.
It’s a complex issue that deserves its discourse and the show bravely did not pivot away: bravo.
Justice Society Assemble!
Credit: DC Universe
Early on this episode, we see Courtney, friendless, though with different items she’d taken from the justice society of America: things like the Green Lantern, Flash’s helmet, and, for this episode, Wildcat’s suit. Courtney is forced to make some friends at her high school in this episode. Inevitably, she spends half-the-day befriending one who will also become a member of the new Justice Society of America. Because, why not make complete high school strangers as you superhero partners? It’s absurd, but it works because we sort of expect this by now: that everyone in this town is a hero or villain of some sort.
Despite this development, I have to admit the masks look stupid in this series. They’re clunky, oversized, and pull away from the actor’s facial expressions. Just awful. Atop of this, the effects seem to be very low-budget compared to the pilot and it’s becoming noticeable. Wildcat’s climbing and her and Stargirl’s CGI outside of a hospital was just plain awful in this one. The kind of special effects I could emulate with some Photoshop, $50, and a YouTube tutorial.
Still, the assembly of the Justice Society running parallel to the villain-of-the-week member reveals of the Injustice Society are honestly the biggest arcs and hooks that the show is going somewhere. It’s also heavily implied that Beth Chapel is going to become a superheroine too.
The Takeaway
Overall, Stargirl is finally going somewhere, and I do not dread the show as much as I had initially. My only concern is that there are a lot of loose threads involved and I wonder how Pat/S.T.R.I.P.E.S. will find his way back in Stargirl’s superhero life.
Likewise, I feel like Amy Smart is being severely underutilized. And I could very much do without the younger brother, Mike Dugan — who is often there just so Luke Wilson or Amy Smart have someone to talk with. Mike’s role so far is to simply scream: I’M A KID WHO EATS JUNK FOOD AND PLAYS VIDEO GAMES.
Which so far, has meant as much to the story as it has for this review: absolutely nothing.
Either give him a purpose to the show or send him off to video game production camp.
When I’d heard Netflix was adapting his The Last Days of American Crime graphic novel, I thought to myself: finally, we can see Rick’s work unhinged and uncensored. And though it will not have the backing of the MCU heavyweights the Russo Brothers (Anthony and Joe) in this go around… I’d like to see where it can go…
And the answer was absolutely nowhere for over an hour.
And I say this, as someone who looks on the bright side of things. I’m a writer that finds redemption in almost every work of art because I know, being a floppingly desperate screenwriter myself, just how hard it is to get things made. But it is unbelievably difficult to take pride in anything in The Last Days of American Crime is trying to accomplish.
The movie is misogynistic, boring, tasteless, and, in my honest opinion: an outright waste of time. A D-rate attempt at filmmaking, whose plot about escalating police violence and a surveillance state, comes at a troubling time when society, on the whole, is experiencing that same exact police violence and surveillance state. Except minus black people (despite being shot in South Africa). Plus a whole lot of police violence. Coincidentally there is also choking out in this movie: but it’s mostly women.
There is a reason Netflix didn’t promote and buried this movie: it is beyond distasteful, with both poor timing and subject material. A masturbatory attempt at edginess without any sorts of context, save for shock value, which it fails at that. Still, I hope this movie makes you laugh. I hope you watch this movie – awful as it may be – with friends like a MST3K parody. Where you poke-fun-at and have at just how bad this movie is, and see for yourself, how it deserves all of its heckles.
That said, here are some reasons why this movie is downright awful.
Nor does the cast as almost no one looks enthused to be in It. Edgar Ramirez as Graham Bricke, carries the same stoic facial expression throughout the entirety of this film. Worst was actress Anna Brewster as Shelbee Dupree.
A staple to Rick Remender’s style, Shelbee is a tattooed femme fatale, much like Saya from Deadly Class. Yet, unlike Saya, Shelbee’s character seems to do little but provide arrhythmic dry humping with an always disappointed-looking Graham. And though it’s obvious actress Anna Brewster is trying her best, but, unfortunately, the script writes her character as little more than a fuckhole.
I know that sounds awful. But it’s true. And it’s appalling.
Shelbee is sleeping with the two other male leads, her only motivation is to use all means (including sex) to save her younger sister? I don’t fully know why, but we’re reminded of this, and her duplicit nature, several times throughout this movie. And when she’s not being fucked, both literally and metaphorically, she’s being threatened by police, fucked with a heroin needle, and almost raped.
Again, I iterate: the writing is tasteless and utter drivel simply for shock value.
It’s an Awful Premise
I think the original story might’ve held some merit, but, from the get-go, this movie makes no sense. Especially, with what is happening in America.
Its premise is that a button could effectively release a brain wave that will pacify the masses by short-circuiting neurons whenever it wants to do something illegal. Thus, removing the ability to decide. So, naturally, the goal of this movie seems to be: Steal Billions and flee to Canada.
Immediately, you can tell this doesn’t feel all that important. Especially, when given that the world is filled with crime lords, cops, and loopholes around this very system. Making the threat of this API/brain wave signal feel convenient… and stupid. Because most of the movie’s plot is threatening that the API is releasing for well-over an hour.
Also, if policing by mind control could happen, why bother having aggressive trigger happy cops? Why even warn the American people? Particularly, if you’re a totalitarian state?
The only real purpose of the API is to serve as a ticking time-bomb to bring us to the movie’s climax. But by that point, I don’t think anyone really cared. I know I didn’t.
Bad Plotlines
There are so many convoluted storylines and characters. A cop, played by District 9 actor Shalto Copley, seems like he wants to redeem himself yet doesn’t? That’s it. He has one boss fight towards the end with Shelbee. The end. I don’t really understand the point of his character and that’s not sloppy journalism… it’s literally the progression of his character.
Also, NOTHING HAPPENS for the first hour of this film. The guns aren’t fired, there are no chase scenes, and there’s no action… IN AN ACTION MOVIE. It’s just a copious amount of exposition over voice-over meant to fill dead air. Oh, that and overly-sexualized nudity —it’s mostly just very, very bad framing with painful-to-watch actors shaking their bodies, sometimes-clothed-sometimes-not, depending on the mistakable editing.
So terrible, I’d actually put it on the same quality of thrust motions of Tommy Wiseau’s belly humping in The Room.
BUT THE BEST OF ALL…
Is an impossibly bad sequence in this movie, where a mob boss’ son fights with his father about having sex with his stepmother, after, moments earlier, kissing his sister. Or as I call it: “Jerry Springer: The Mobster White Privileged Edition”…. With a BEAUTIFUL low-SFX kill shot featuring a hilarious hatchet to the brain, in a pull-away double-take, you’d expect in a Horror-B movie shot in high school.
Oh, and, somehow, this movie is about fleeing away to Canada from the American government, despite being obviously shot and set in South Africa. We even have District’s 9’s protagonist and setting to prove it…
The Take
This is “The Room” of all action dramas. With bad writing, bad editing, bad acting, and a poor budget — The Last Days of American Crime is a travesty featuring a good amount of police brutality — a poorly-timed flop that’s best not to be taken seriously what-so-ever.
Still… today, it was ranked the 5th most-watched thing on Netflix. So hey, at least someone’s entertained.
This week on Harley Quinn: After a devastating rejection, Harley returns to Gotham and seeks a distraction, only to come face-to-familiar-face with her past mistakes. Gordon hears from an old friend and looks to take action yet again.
Go party and have a one-night stand so she can forget about her problems!
Unfortunately for her, she picks a restaurant in Wayne Tower where all her problems seem to converge into one, and it all starts with a bartender that has a familiar face. I guess the joke is on her.
Commissioner Gordon, off his most recent “win,” receives a message from an old friend that is working their way back into cleaning up the city. It’s time for Gordo to show his worth!
Will Harley succeed in getting laid?
Does the bartender play a prominent role in things to come?
What exactly is Gordon going to be doing?
These questions and more are answered!
Credit: DC Universe
Takeaway
The episode is a solid one overall, but takes a bit to ramp up. It is great to follow up the bachelorette party weekend and see Harley reacting to her personal collapse.
What this show has excelled at doing recently is giving viewers a glimpse of what they are building up to. There are so many aspects and loose ends finally tied. The writing has done a great job rewarding us for continuing to watch and seeing how Harley evolves and adapts.
This episode, like the past few, has put Quinn in a position of having to examine herself. Where as other episodes have seen her make decisions that can be argued as selfish, we see her in a situation where her decisions are more understandable and selfless.
The episode does take us on a fun ride as there is a Die Hard feel of making way through a building. It provides some great visuals, especially for the episode climax.
The Harley Quinnride has just made a wild turn, and I’m all for it.
Credit: DC Universe
S2E10 Recap (Spoilers)
At the crew’s hideout in the mall, King Shark talks to Clayface about Batman using his name and not being part Bat. He equates it to animal appropriation as the two go to leave the mall, but the two stop at the door.
Harley Quinn has returned from Ivy’s bachelorette weekend, drinking a martini and wearing sunglasses, a Cobb Squad hat, and a shirt that says “I went to Themyscira, and all I got was this lousy t-shirt.”
She greets them and asks about Kite Man‘s bachelor party, which Shark responds by telling her he got married and saved the Oceanic Trade Federation, but other than that it was pretty chill. Clayface asks her about her weekend, which Quinn responds multiple times with it being great and having emotional low stakes. She clarifies things like Ivy and her sleeping in different beds, which confuses the guys, before declaring that she wants to keep partying and drinking till she forgets. She asks them to join.
Shark can’t because he is going to spend time with his wife because it’s Sunday and his in-laws are religious, due to Jesus really being a shark. Clayface can’t because he is spending time with Tony, referring to watching the Tony Awards. Harley is alone, again, and sighs while looking at her phone at a picture of her and Ivy in front of a burning building (with a guy jumping off in the background).
In rolls her landlord, Sy Borgman, who sees that Quinn’s upset. He tells her a landlord knows two things: when an oven’s busted (because you can’t charge rent) and when a tenant is blue. Harley spills that everyone has someone special in their lives. Sy says being with someone isn’t necessarily important to her happiness and that she should do something that feeds her soul. Harley disregards this and declares that she is going out for a night on the town to get laid.
Credit: DC Universe
Dressed up and down to clown, she barges into the bar in Wayne Tower and announces her arrival, expecting to party, but it’s actually a fancy restaurant vibe. With everyone staring at her, the host guides her to the actual bar because she doesn’t have a reservation. There, a man flirts with her by talking, in depth, about John Mayer‘s discography. Unsurprisingly, Harley rejects his attempt to sleep with her, causing him to leave. Harley laments and says the guys in the bar suck, to which the bartender (whose facing away) says it’s better than the food, but what do you expect from a Wayne? Harley laughs and says that’s the first funny thing she’s heard all night. The bartender says he has more jokes and turns around.
At GCPD Headquarters, Gordon orders for all men and one woman in uniform to report for action. He wants one unit to go to Gotham’s Oil Refinery District because Parademons are chugging oil like “a desperate teen to Benadryl.” Then, he wants another unit (same gender ratio) to Gotham Park, and a third crew to —. He’s interrupted by a map of Gotham, which shows the Parademons have spread faster than “Chlamyd(ia) on his knob” (his words, not mine). An uncomfortable cop asks him where, which Gordon answers with on his genitals. The cop clarifies he was asking about the third unit, which, after an uncomfortable beat, Gordon says the Harbor.
Another cop comes and tells Gordon he’s got a gift, which excites the Commish because he’s expecting the Dave Barry book he ordered. He opens the book and sees a note, telling him to go to the roof and is signed by the Bat Symbol. Gordon realizes he is needed and runs to the roof where he finds the Batplane. He silently whispers that Batman remembered and cries.
The cockpit opens, and a post-it note is seen that says “For Jim” signed by the Bat Symbol. A video feed pops up of Batman telling Jim to get in, who is ecstatic.
Back at the headout, Sy is sleeping in his wheelchair, snoring and sleep talking (he says don’t go in there). Suddenly, a crash is heard, and he wakes up with his wheelchair producing three types of machine guns, a small laser gun, a missile launcher, a mace, a saw, and a longsword.
The noise was from Dr. Psycho, who seems to be grabbing the last of his things (telekinetically). Sy says he thought Psycho left the crew, which receives a sarcastic remark about the doctor not getting the landlord’s phone number. Sy starts to say it, but Psycho cuts him off. Sy questions him leaving after Harley helped him, which Psycho replies with him and Harley having different end goals (his being far more sinister).
Their conversation is briefly interrupted by a riddle from the Riddler, who is, yes, still running on the hamster wheel. He is incredible swole at this point. Dr. Psycho shuts him down immediately, revealing he’s trying to be nice about ending the conversation so he can leave. He then tells Sy that he fortified the Riddler’s shackles so it’s pretty much impenetrable and leaves instructions to “feed him at 5, shock him at 7, and maybe give him a snack at 9 if he’s good.” Psycho then shocks the Riddler before he leaves.
Credit: DC Universe
Back at Wayne Tower, which is being circled by a swarm of Parademons, Harley is texting Ivy telling her to guess who she ran into, again. In this moment, we see a picture of them two back-to-back that she sent previously but got no response from Ivy. Joker bartender tells Quinn that she looks familiar and if they’ve met before. He doesn’t have any of his previous memories and only remembers a happy life with his girlfriend and his—errr-her kids. Harley shrugs it off as saying she has a common look, but he remembers: that time at bar with Ivy. He talks about how he worked his way up from barback to bartender, but, after making a round of drinks, he looks up to see Quinn walking away.
He calls out to her so she won’t leave. He offers her a Wayne Fashioned (an Old Fashioned but more expensive). Harley is insulted, thinking that his intention is to make her a drink so she would fall for him. He is taken aback, clarifying that he isn’t hitting on her because he is happy in his relationship. He gushes over his girlfriend and her kids, and Harley wants to leave to go to another bar. The bartender tells her all the other ones closed because they can’t keep away the Parademons at bay. The bar at the top of Wayne Tower with its bullet-proof glass is the safest bar in Gotham city.
All of the sudden, a group of criminals in ski masks bust in. Cue a hostage situation with a surprisingly calm and polite ring-leader. Everyone hit the deck, and the bartender crawls from underneath the bar. He sees Harley about to leave and tells her she shouldn’t go because surrendering in the best chance of survival. She would normally just beat the bad guys up, but she doesn’t want to ruin her dress. She wants to get away from him as far as possible, but, since she is distracted, she accidentally bumps into the head baddie. He looks at her before pistol whipping her, knocking Quinn out cold.
She comes to on the floor, handcuffed to and face-to-face on the floor with the bartender. The head baddie is watching security cam footage of a SWAT team advancing, while walkie-talkieing with the hostage negotiator that only wants the richest hostages. The ring-leader says it won’t happen until he gets $50 million dollars; a hostage offers to wire him the money right away. He is taken aback but pushes on. He then asks for W762 nuclear warhead and a Trident 2D5 missile; a different hostage says he’s a military contractor and will give him the weapons. The ring-leader is now flabbergasted and tries to think up of something else. He finally says a pair of “Game-Worn Air Jordan 2 OGs.” He looks to see if a hostage will volunteer, but they are all confused at what he is asking for.
Back on the floor, Harley tells the bartender to stop starting at her. He apologizes and reveals that after their interaction at the dive bar, he had a dream about the two of them: they were on a yacht, as a couple, with bankers; he was so full with rage, he robbed the bankers. Harley asks him if, in the dream, he set them on fire. He says yes and asked if she had the same dream, which Harley quickly agrees with to claim it never happened. He says seeing her felt like it triggered a past life. Harley, scoping out the place, sees an air vent and drags him to it. She sees a guard and asks the bartender how much he weighs. He goes on about doing this paleo diet and how it helped him fit into his skinny jeans, so like 170? She takes him and swings him around, smacking the guard. She uses her heel to kick in the guy’s face, as the bartender stands in horror. They get into the vent.
As they shimmy in the vent, he states that she killed the guy back there. He asks if she wants to talk about it. She says no, but, after he badgers for a bit (bartenders are like therapist), she finally lets it out. She says she told her best friend that she loves her, and her best friend doesn’t trust her enough to love her back. Harley says she thought she was fine being single after her relationship with Joke—Jokesa Finnastein (sounds Flemish). She exclaims he was abusive, and the world is better off without him.
Back in the skies, Parademons are being caught with nets from the Batplane. Gordo isn’t piloting the jet; he is bored with the occasionally pushing of buttons. He complains to Batman, who says he has an important job of pushing buttons.
Batman is in the Batcave with his mask on and a lounging robe. Gordon wants to shoot a missile, but Batman says it takes years to learn how to fly the Batplane. Batman complains to Alfred, who is bringing him a mug of tea, that he should let Batman go back into the field, but Alfred reminds him he is not ready yet and must heal. Batman takes a sip but spits the tea out because it’s too hot. Alfred tells him he could wait, which Bruce repeats but clearly doesn’t want to. Alfred sighs and starts blowing on the tea.
Gordon captures another Parademon but hears shots. He looks and sees something is going on at Wayne Tower. Batman takes Gordon to the tower.
In a hallway, Harley Quinn kicks open a vent grate, and she and the bartender leave the vents. Harley is still venting, telling bartender about how Ivy broke up with her because she is too impulsive and never cleans up her messes. She comes up to a balcony and hears someone call her name.
It’s the Riddler, who, standing next to a fancy helmet with light bulbs on it, is belittling her. She sees him and asks how he, which he interrupts to explains how he escaped his cell, orchestrated the hostage situation as a distraction so he could steal the helmet. She replies that she was going to ask how he got some buff, which he answers that being on the hamster wheel got him muscles. He sees the bartender and, shocked, asks if that’s the Joker. The bartender, hearing this, thinks its funny and starts to laugh, slipping into a Joker laugh. Harley immediately covers his mouth, denies it, and tries to shift attention. Riddler shoots at the both of them with his Question Mark cane that can shoot beams, apparently. They run away.
Inside what seems to be a classified tech room, two ski mask baddies are sitting, smoking cigarettes. One of them, the bigger one named Carl, is talking about how he moved back to Gotham because he wants to see his kids but doesn’t know if the kid feels the same way. The smaller one, Kev, tries to be optimistic, but Carl says he’s been gone for seven years and left when they needed him the most. Kev tells him to stop blaming himself for the past and move on. Carl doesn’t know.
Enter Harley and bartender. They lock eyes with the two baddies, and a gunfire ensues. Harley and bartender hide behind a table that has a laser shooting upwards for some reason. Harley’s head is a bit exposed and a bullet heads straight for her. Luckily, it goes through the vertical laser, splitting it in half and saving her. She sees this happen and uses the laser to cut their handcuffs. Bartender runs, and Harley grabs the closest gun she can find and shots it Carl. Carl gets covered with some strange ray for a second. He asks what happens, but no one knows. That is, until they see that the gun Harley used was on a table that said Cancer Ray. Kev, tearing up, tells Carl he got cancer. Carl is shocked she gave him cancer, which Quinn is upset about, wondering why the gun even exists. Carl says he’s going to see his family now and leaves.
Quinn turns to apologize to him, giving Kev time to throw a device at Harley that shocks her. Then, Kev corners the bartender, who is begging to not get hurt. Kev starts to chock the bartender, who sees a pencil on the table. The bartender grabs the pencil, and he stabs Kev in the eye. He sees the dead body and starts to laugh; the Joker is starting to slip out. Harley slaps him to stop the laughing, which resets the bartender. He thinks his blood sugar is low and wants to find a vending machine, as Harley ushers him into an elevator. As the doors close, he sees the dead body and asks Harley if she did that.
In the elevator, Harley pushes the button for the Helipad, hoping to find a chopper to leave. The violence upsets the bartender, who says it is the reason he can’t enjoy television shows today. Harley says violence ups the dramatic effect (hint, hint, wink, wink). He says he has enough drama in his life and, just once, wants to see two people fall in love with no complications (and they don’t have sex until they’re married).
As they get to the roof, the Batplane lands on the Helipad. The bartender is excited that it is Batman. Gordon jumps out of the plane. He says Harley Quinn and (he studies the bartenders face for a second) the Joker! Gordon leaps at him and handcuffs the bartender. The bartender is laughing as he struggles (from the cuffs and trying to hold back his true self). Gordon takes the victory of nailing Batman’s Archenemy. The bartender laughs and calls the Commish “Gordo,” telling him it’s good to see him. The Joker is coming out more and more. The bartender is thrown in the Batplane, and the cockpit closes. Snapping back, he yells that he is claustrophobic.
Credit: DC Universe
Gordon says he knew that Harley and Joker would get back together again, which she denies. They are joined by Harley’s crew, as Sy choppers in on his wheelchair with Clayface and Shark hanging out. They said they got her text message and came as soon as they could. Clayface states that he paused the Tony’s, and no one spoil it for him, though he assumes it’s spoiled already and starts to cry. Harley says she never sent a text message.
They are joined by Riddler, whose carrying the helmet from before as he ran up 19 1/2 flights of stairs. They question how he escaped from Psycho’s jail, while Clayface asks how he got so hot. Enter Dr. Psycho, who walks between Riddler’s legs and puts on the helmet. Psycho reveals he lied and did have everyone’s phone numbers, for he was the one to text everyone. Harley claims the two were working together all along, but the new duo reveal that Riddler is with Dr. Psycho.
No, not that way. They like each other and respect each other. No, not in a romantic way, as partners. No, work partners.
Psycho says Riddler respects him and recognizes his talent, something he claims Quinn never did. Quinn just calls out that he never liked working for a woman, which he also confirms. Harley doesn’t see the two currently as a threat, which cues Psycho to activate the helmet.
The helmet amplifies his telepathy (which has gotten better with him taking care of his mind with the use of guided meditation), which allows him to control all the Parademons in Gotham, who converge on Wayne Tower. The bartender yells to Quinn that maybe Ivy can help, but Harley doesn’t want to get her involved in another one of her messes. The intention is clear, Psycho wants to do the plan that Harley couldn’t, team up with Darkseid, and take over Gotham. Psycho calls her a pussy, which Quinn argues is powerful because they birthed humanity. Gordon chimes in saying he was a C-section. Psycho commands to Parademons to attack.
Clayface and King Shark step up and start battling the Parademons. The bartender, locked safely in the Batplane, panics, and tries to escape. He flips a random switch that shocks him as a part of a counter-thief measure. The bartender is out. Sy holds his own in battle, even using his helicopter blade to kill a Parademon that picked him up. Harley goes to take on the Riddler, whose swoleness has made her normal physical attentions useless. Riddler says a riddle as he advances to her: “What’s black and blue and red all over? Your ass when I beat it!” He breaks the staff in half so he can have one in each hand. Harley comments that working out has made his mind weaker, and they engage in combat. She’s able to get some shots in as the rest of the crew are holding their own against the swarm (save Gordon whose kind of useless). Harley calls out to Psycho, who’s now riding a Parademon, to give up and maybe she’ll let him live. He declines.
Credit: DC Universe
Psycho pulls out his next trick: making a mind-dome around Wayne Tower. He then hypnotizes King Shark and Clayface to fight for him. He tries to do the same to Sy, but it doesn’t work because he has a metal plate in his head. Harley, Gordon, and Sy do their best, but they get thwarted at every turn. Dr. Pyscho goes on a typical villain monologue. He says how, with Batman and the Justice League gone, Gotham was for Harley’s taking, but she never pull the trigger. He thanks her for making him feel so small; otherwise, he would have never realized how big he could be. Clayface and Shark are about to attack Harley and Sy.
Suddenly, a net flies out and captures them both. It’s Gordo in the Batplane, and he is operating it. Sy brings out his missile launcher and shoots one towards Psycho, killing his Parademon. Gordon asks for Harley’s help to break through the mind-dome. Harley suggest Gordon use a missile, which he makes up excuses on why he can’t until finally revealing he’s not allowed to by Batman. Sy steps up and says he will break through the dome. Harley says it’s suicide. Sy reflects on his day and manages to stand up on his own power. Harley is amazed, and Sy says this is him feeding his soul. He is willing to sacrifice his life in order to take down Psycho. Gordon wants them to hurry up the conversation before Psycho gets up. Harley tearfully hugs Sy, calling him a good landlord for fixing their oven so fast and never judging her for flushing her tampons down the toilet. Sy reaches in and pulls out his eye, which is mechanical. He says as long as she has the eye, she always has a friend. She kisses him on the cheek and runs, while he gets back in his wheelchair, prepping for takeoff.
Credit: DC Universe
Sy, while transforming into some kind of robotic form, monologues to Psycho about the Maccabees and the miracle of the oil, which he says runs through his veins. His chair sprouts jets, and he starts to launch.
Harley Quinn is watching from the Batplane, when Gordon is happy because the Parademons destroyed the plane’s communication. Looks like Gordo’s gonna fly!
Sy flies up. Quinn watches with a single tear falling down her face. As he is about to make impact, Sy says he regrets lots of things.
BAM! The impact occurs and the mind-dome collapses. The Batplane escapes.
Gordon and Quinn try to figure out how to take down Psycho. Quinn remarks it would take the whole Justice League to do so, which prompts the bartender to reveal he had another dream about the Justice League being stuck in a book (the Book of Fables that belongs to the Queen of Fables). He dreamed he held the book but can’t remember any other details. Quinn tells Gordo to drop them off somewhere.
An old metal door opens, revealing Harley, in her regular outfit, and the bartender close behind. The two of them are back at Ace Chemical: the birth place of the Joker and Harley Quinn. She is flooded by powerful memories, while the bartender innocently tries to help the situation by suggesting he call Beth to stay with family in Central City.
Harley denies a way out because Ivy was right. She keeps making messes and runs away from them. Harley wants to make things right. The first step: get the Justice League out of the story book. The bartender is shocked that it’s a real thing. She asks him one more time if he remembers more details from the dream and where the book is. He says he doesn’t know, which kills Harley Quinn because she doesn’t want to do it. He asks what, and she says she will be seeing him real soon, Mister J.
She grabs the bartender and throws him over the railing into a vat of acid.
Will the Joker come back from the vat of acid as the old him? Will he remember the details needed and want to help Harley? Is Gordo in trouble for scratching the Batplane?
Catch this episode of Harley Quinn and next weeks on DC Universe.
Toil and Trouble! In this episode, in the care of witches, we find out what’s Nadja’s beef and what Guillermo is capable of, being left to his whims.
Apotropaic. That’s a funny word. Its power may ward off evil… or it may do nothing. It’s all in what you believe… or have left behind. Triumvirate. That’s a pretty word, too. It may bring up the pealing of death knells. We’re fortunate to live past our skin suits because the Witches grant us that ability. It is in this ninth episode of What We Do In The Shadows (FX) titled “Witches,” there may be a brew haha afoot, but nobody is laughing.
We open in on the weekly house meeting. Laszlo (Matt Berry) is in absentia and Guillermo (Harvey Guillen) won’t fetch him. He has conditions, uber Alles. Even with his day off though, Guillermo takes into consideration his stance in life. He can do so much better, and he’s smarter than his housemates give him credit for. I mean, he could patent a fucking blood remover! He has been watching a lot of Shark Tank lately.
Could we just open the floor up and laugh for a moment that Laszlo hates rotten apples and laughs at them when he chops them off?
A disembodied vox calls to him. “Laszlo Cravensworth.” I guess it’s is government name, but he’s shaken nevertheless. This is the GOAT. This is his penance, and his presence is requested at a meeting. Turns out Witches make really good portals.
Whilst Nadja (Natasia Demetriou) is convinced her beloved has gone to the Coven, which, in history, she’s always been loathed to accept and blames all misfortunes on them, Guillermo isn’t the one to look for him. In fact, it’s currently above his paygrade.
The GOAT calls to Nandor (Kayvan Novak) as well and, the besotted lovable vamp he is, gets swooped up into the ceremony that awaits him. It’s now up to Guillermo to ferry Nadja and Colin Robinson (Mark Proksch) to the party, and, when Nadja takes the wheel, it’s not pretty.
Once the Familiar enters Satchel Serafina, all is well. Guillermo has infiltrated the ceremony being mortal… and boring in his roommates’ eyes… But in here, he’s in heaven. Weed is on the table and inhibition is off, compliments of the owner (Clara Wong). Massage is on point and the mind is out. Nadja and Colin look at with a medium concern, but, before they could make sense of it all, they are whisked away by the GOAT.
As Guillermo is guided into the room where Nadja and Colin are being held, we are taken to the chamber where Laszlo and Nandor are held captive in their respective coffin. A fire is burning inside. It turns out the head Witch, Lilith (Lucy Punch) welcomes the group in for documentation. Whereas Guillermo is holding area with Nadja and Colin in a room of a hundred doors, he guides them through the muck and mire of what can be seen as Dali crossed with MC Escher.
At the ceremony, Nandor fires a shot across the bow and warns the Coven of imminent death if they aren’t released. A guffaw is heard before they realize that hip hop isn’t on the menu (only Tuesdays and Thursdays.) Regardless, both Laszlo and Nador seem seduced by the coven, as their dancing makes them… compromised.
Back in the room of failure, Colin happens to open a room, a live painting of Whistler. This turns out to be horrible and has the trio starting out at square one.
Nadja abhors this, but Colin (go figure) knows a thing or two about Escape Rooms. He fails, opening a portal to Hell. Nadja has had enough and calls out to her betrothed, but he is happily en flagrante delicto with the Witches to extract his and Nandor’s semen… until they realize there is more to this game.
Ostensibly, there’s like a Mafioso toolbox, basically reserved for the likes of Queens, Kings, and murderous vampires. This prompts Laszlo to hit the fucking speed dial and call up his beloved. Yes, they are both fully engorged.
The Coven returns to their true state and though both Nandor and Laszlo wouldn’t say no to really anything, Nadja hates her place at that point and calls out to her beloved. He, in a moment of true extraction of semen, is interrupted by his better half.
This is all due to Guillermo, because while Colin ruminates on the term of ‘epicurious,’ Guillermo actually gets shit done. While Colin takes the credit for the extraction, Guillermo was the one that found their magical door out.
This isn’t an easy exit, however, as Nadja and Lilith have it out in the church. As it turns out, Lilith used to run a rococo boutique that was a mere front for selling of semen. Naturally, both of them hit it off, until one did so horrid, so unforgivable, they had to break it off and warrant five spits… Lilith slept with Laszlo.
Ya done fucked up, son!
Or did he? It turns out Lilith was at that point a proxy of Nadja, just slightly different. More of a pin-up model than what he’s now known. He was always in love with her, regardless of the state. Nadja, quite literally beside herself cannot argue with that sentiment and with the combined semination of the vampires, the Coven can stay young forever… oh and they can make magnets from it as well!
Guillermo is for the win though, as his fast thinking leads him to pimp out all of the vampires for their semen. I mean, we all masturbate, right? Like a Lincoln Lawyer, he sells them out, netting 3% of the profit and labeling it “Memo’s Man Milk.” He’s had his Shark Tank moment. Let’s put a pin on that.
The gang heads home, but they are treated to a shit show, compliments of that awesome GOAT.
The night winds down, and Nandor and Laszlo are horned up, ruminating on the exciting night they just experienced. They agree to “finish” each other off and not to speak of it again. (They’ll do it again.) Wash, rinse, repeat.
We close this out with Guillermo going back into his old haunt, Satchel Serefina for a cup of joe. Now, he’s just a regular Familiar to them, as exemplified by his new friend the GOAT. Oh, sorry, his name is Black Peter. (Search it up.)
Murphy and Emori before the shit hits the fan
image c/o https://www.hypable.com
In Episode 3 “False Gods,” Raven is forced to take action when a problem surfaces from within, while tensions become violate in Sanctum, threatening peace among the people.
As I’ve mentioned in my recap, one of the big themes throughout the series has been redemption. Can someone “evil” redeem his/herself? Is it possible to balance out horrible past deeds with noble present ones? Maybe, maybe not, but you’ll die either way if The 100 has anything to say about it!
We’re back on Sanctum for this storyline. Two plots emerge: One involves the tensions surrounding Russell Prime’s impending death sentence, the other is a The 100 standard: threat of nuclear meltdown! Yep, that old chestnut again.
We’ll deal with the nuclear storyline first, as it’s deceptively simple. The reactor’s cooling rods got fucked up somehow, and they need to be repaired before the core overheats and everyone dies. Raven’s confident, if they handle the problem quickly, no one has to get hurt, maybe a few days of vomiting, but that’s it. She needs one crew to fix the leaking pipes and another to go into the core and fix the busted rods. Anyone with welding skills can fix the pipes, but the rods require a Nightblood (since they are resistant to radiation poisoning). Naturally, Clarke volunteers but that’s out because the other plot needs her (you’ll see), so Murphy and Emori (Luisa d’Oliveira) are up.
Murphy is our resident survivalist: regardless of what society deems “right” or “wrong,” he’s going to survive above all. He gets a lot of shit for this attitude throughout the series, even earning himself the nickname of cockroach, which is very apt in this case. Raven understands that all of his motives revolve around what situation benefits him the most and sends Emori in to fix the rod, knowing Murphy won’t let her fail. It’s interesting to note that in a series replete with horrible people and decisions, infidelity has only really come up once. For all Murphy’s “me-first” prioritization, he’s surprisingly loyal when he wants to be (though one could argue that’s also in the interest of self-preservation).
Emori is another character I didn’t get to cover in my series recap, she is Murphy’s girlfriend. They met in Season Two, when Murphy was off on Jaha’s spiritual journey towards the “City of Light.” While that may not have worked out, meeting Emori did. She’s turned out to be the best thing that’s happened to Murphy in the whole series. She becomes his moral compass and often times the only person that can reason with him when he’s got a crazy idea in mind.
This time though, it’s Raven who has the crazy idea (well, not so much crazy as just dangerous). She initially tries to recruit members of Wonkru to help, but, since there’s drama going on over there, she settles for the prison miners (not an easy choice for her given their volatile history). They have a leading pair, Hatch (Chad Rook) and Nikki (Alaina Huffman). Hatch seems like a reasonable fellow (so you know he’s fucked), while Nikki is more of a Lady Macbeth type. She’s tired of the prison miners being treated like second class citizens (they’ve served their time after all! So, what if they tried to destroy the only habitable planet when they realized they were losing?) and refuses to join her husband in helping Raven. This works out for her in so much as she doesn’t die.
Our redemptive theme comes into play when Murphy and Emori realize the miners are doomed. They are both horrified, but Raven pulls a Clarke and makes the best out of her bad situation. Yes, it sucks, but, while they are already doing the repairs, they might as well finish the job before they die. Murphy gets trapped in the room with them (batting a thousand, Raven!) and has a conversation with miner Macbeth. He explains that he went to jail for robbing banks, not such a bad crime all in all, except that his trigger-happy Lady decided homicide was an option. Hatch clearly feels bad about it, going so far as to say that kind of thing can never be redeemed, which I think goes a long way to making Murphy feel better when they all die around him. Phew! Thank the Commander, Murphy doesn’t have to feel guilty!
Anyway, the second plot point centers around Russell’s execution and the discovery that the Commander is no longer a thing.
Russell, as we know, is now the Dark Commander, and I’ve been eager to see what he’ll do to save himself from the pyre (his idea). Gotta say, his work around is pretty clever. He gets one of his followers to call him a false god (hi title!) and try to shoot him. The assassination attempt fails, but Clarke and Indra realize they can’t kill him because he’ll become a martyr. Meanwhile, Gaia gives up the ghost that the Flame had to be destroyed because the Dark Commander had taken over Madi. Apparently, the crew, from which Sheidheda originates, isn’t pleased their Commander was ousted, and they leave Wonkru. Ouch. The loss of people means less forces to keep the peace.
Overall, I enjoyed this episode. I think the decision Raven makes to sacrifice the miners is especially weighted, considering she was at one point captured and tortured by them. Is she doing what’s best for Sanctum or getting some much-desired revenge? A little of column A, a little of column B. When she traps Murphy in with the dying miners, it’s a calculated strategy since Murphy wanted to tell them they were going to die, and Raven didn’t trust they would finish the job if they knew. When Murphy is trapped (metaphorical gun to his head), he doesn’t reveal their fate to them. When everything is over, he does seem to revel just a little in Raven’s entrance to the “world of grey”.
This episode was definitely food for thought – which is funny to me because the nuclear plotline brings it out all the real juicy moral stakes, and, if you think about it, the heavier consequences. Sure, Sheidheda staged his execution and shows an aptitude for manipulating blind followers that will most certainly go south quickly, but, with Wonkru breaking up and now the miners set to revolt, Sanctum is well and truly fucked!
Things get heated in this episode of Stargirl as power dynamics change, big players are revealed, and histories come to light.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xex7w7o6ogo
Unlike the previous two episodes, which were mostly a buildup establishing our heroes, Stargirl and S.T.R.I.P.E.S., this episode the story’s conflict finally come to a head. An episode that was by all means: a game-changer. Taking the story and what we’ve come to expect of the campiness of this series and subverting our expectations.
It was tragic. It was touching. It was Stargirl.
Credit: DC Universe
And it all began with a flashback, a humanizing portrayal of the least likely of characters. Where every hero finds a calling, this one delved into a motivational tragedy: as a society’s neglect leads to the creation of a monster of epic proportions.
The audience will see this major storyline reveal coming throughout the episode, especially as it runs in conjunction with the progression of Stargirl and S.T.R.I.P.E. as heroes. Though their deeds so far had been successful in stopping the Injustice Society, Pat desires to retire and wants Courtney to remain casual: to live a normal life as a high school girl.
Meanwhile, we see Mike Dugan get into some school trouble and receive some parenting from Pat, all while Barbara takes her career to the next level, impressing the town’s big business hotshot: Jordan McKain. And while these stories seem unrelated, there’s more to it, especially in regard to their own safety.
We also delve into some of the friendships in Stargirl. As more villainous sons are revealed, bad guys enter comas, and, for the most part, we learn: the younger and older generations all had a part to play in the events that led to the death of the JSA.
Though these developments feel promising, the show feels a tad lackluster. As Icicle seems sinister, Stargirl and her staff continue to amaze at butt-kicking, and the surprise in this episode really retools and reworks everything we’ve thus seen in the series.
Credit: DC Universe
Still, I didn’t appreciate that this episode deconstructs the series as we’re only 3 episodes in… and that’s not very encouraging to have your villain(s) destroy or take certain big players out when we’ve barely gotten to know them: hence, the stakes aren’t really there nor developed.
Also, I loathe Mike Dugan and think he’s a stereotype of a video game kid that the network seemed to have thrown on for representation points. His whole storyline feels like it’s trying too hard and conflicts starkly with the old town feel of the setting: making the story feel out of place in a bad way.
Also, the CGI in this episode was poor.
I don’t know if I’ll keep reviewing Stargirl. I think the show has promise and that it’s going places finally, but I don’t like that they’re resorting to these particular story techniques this early; it’s a sign of a weak plot.
With little original ideas, not much on the line, and a lot riding on your investment on the JLA and Stargirl’s origins, watching the show may lose its enjoyment, especially since we the audience can see developments coming from a mile away with insufficient build-up.
At BookCon 2020 day 2, authors Cassandra Clare and Holly Black had a virtual conversation about books, writing, reading, and dealing with the challenges facing everyone today.
Clare has written multiple novels within the Shadowhunters Chronicle and recently published Chain of Gold (the first novel in The Last Hours series), a look into the lives of the Nephilim of the London Institute during Edwardian times. Up next will be The Lost Book of the White, which is the second piece in the The Eldest Curses series.
The two have also collaborated on The Magisterium, a five book children’s fantasy series centered around twelve-year-old Callum Hunt as he finds himself thrust into the world of magic his mage father walked away from.
The whole panel can be viewed below and starts at the 2 hours and 40 mins mark.
They began with discussing how complicated life currently was as they are often asked how writing is during this time of COVID-19. Clare noted that it’s a different feeling where there is one fear for the pandemic but there is also being afraid for the protestors and the need to help them in any way. She also added that every writer she’s talked too is having trouble figuring out a way to be creative, but she believes there’s a way to channel one’s pain, anxiety, and message into one’s work. At the same time however Clare acknowledges that it’s completely legitimate to be too upset to work.
The two also mentioned how it has been strange for them to be seeing each other virtually on Zoom since they normally get together daily to work in the past. They’ve spent many years building a writing community and it’s been hard to have that separation. Black confessed that she’s been writing and re-writing the same section over and over again because in the past someone would stop her and now she’s alone in her office.
Currently Clare is working on editing Chain of Iron (book two in The Last Hours) and then she’ll be returning to the first draft of Sword Catcher. The latter is a high fantasy series for adults.
In a 2017 she wrote on a Tumblr post, “Sword Catcher will be the first book in my new series written for adults, my first ever high fantasy project. Many of my readers have been with me for years, and have grown along with my characters. And over those years, readers of all ages have come to me both to say that they would like to read books about older characters, and also to say that they’d love to see me build my own new world from the ground up.”
In writing adult characters, Clare is excited to delve into the question of whether characters are happy with who they are. Black commented on how she is very used to writing under a YA framework and now that she herself is also working on an adult focused novel she has to determine what that new framework will be. The author also has some new projects in the works though unfortunately can’t disclose anything quite yet.
Audiences were also able to ask questions via chat including how the two writers approached world building.
Clare noted that she tends to think about what is the central piece of business that she wants for the world and then everything else is crafted around that. She stressed the importance of rules because it will determine how characters behave and what kind of power they will have whether it be political, intellectual, etc. Clare adds that there’s another layer to consider when you have a closed world vs. an open one. For instance in the Shadowhunters Chronicles humans don’t know about the shadow world and she had to consider how the Shadowhunters stayed hidden, governed themselves, how they got money, and other circumstances. In Sword Catcher as an open fantasy she’s had to think about trade, exporting, and a myriad of other elements.
“You will need to know 100% of this stuff even if just 10% shows up in your book,” she said.
In the meantime, Black said that she needs to understand how the magic system works first. Pushing it one direction or another helps her understand tonally what kind of story belongs in this new world.
In addition, both were asked faeries in their writing.
Black explained that what she loved most about faeries was that they had a different moral compass. She gives the example of the faerie fruit, where one bite will have everything else taste like ash. Black sees this as ruinous beauty where something can ruin you but you want it regardless. This is what keeps her coming back to the subject.
In contrast, Clare for the longest time felt that she couldn’t write about faeries because of the way they talked. Eventually though she realized that their inability to lie allowed her to flex creative muscles on how these characters can deceive without really lying. She admitted that she made fun of how faeries spoke a lot and then they featured prominently in The Dark Artifices series and will continue to do so in The Wicked Powers because of Kit Herondale’s heritage. Black was gleefully unsympathetic to her friend’s situation.
Another interesting question was on what makes a good villain.
Clare starts by noting that no villain is a villain in their own mind. A great antagonist is someone you can sympathize with and understand where they are coming from. In addition, having the villain be connected to the protagonist is important because they can shape each other.
Black also adds that having a connection is vital because what the villain brings out of the protagonist is essential.
The Shadowhunters author ends the panel talking about the Joker’s relationship with Batman and how the two have a push-pull dynamic. It’s the connection between the two characters that makes it interesting.
The panel began as each author talked about the YA genre, specifically how, in many ways, it was a way to practice and voice the things that they weren’t able to do when they were younger. The writers unanimously agreed on the genre’s importance, for a multitude of reasons.
YA was about stories of rebellion and optimism, agency and a budding responsibility. Being a young adult meant stories about untethered youths seeking to rebel and develop as individuals that are coming to terms with their place in the world. There is a power as a YA author to translate reality into fiction. The genre gives a voice to those underrepresented, underplaying adversity, while including politics intentionally within their works.
The following is an abridged version of how each author utilized their talking time:
Nic emphasized how her life as a black woman gives her inherent responsibilities of writing representation fiction, especially in 2020. She admitted how the weight of always needing to write about black representation is difficult, as she can’t avoid the hard-hitting issues about Black Americans. She revealed how she’s always receiving pushback if her stories goes too far or aren’t political enough, and the pressures of always writing about identity.
Victoria talked about history and how current events, framed by historical rebellions, mirror scenarios in her Red Queen series. Elements of her story can be seen in the times of Benito Mussolini, and her series had grown over time from the Occupy Wall Street movement to the Trump Administration. The book showed a reflection of real-world villains and an oppressed group uprising. Surprisingly, Aveyard is shocked that, despite writing about this and tyrannical histories, people can’t incorporate this narrative into the real world — though she finds joy about making rebellions that stress on the importance of the quality of living, not just survival.
Adam talked about his transformation as a writer, inevitably writing about queer characters, who finally get to be the heroes. He defended the power of representation and the importance of finally being able to make characters that represented both his circle and his life — especially, as a guy growing up in South Bronx. He also stressed how difficult it was currently to be able to feel normal, or even just be, given our moment in time and the crazy things happening on a daily basis. He talks about depression and how human beings are complex and layered characters, filled with joy and sadness, happiness and chaos, and how some days are very difficult.
Marissa talked about her career and characters on opposite sides of the morality spectrum. She wanted to change the world initially by writing and finding grey areas between good and evil. She also stressed that her favorite scenes to write are just characters hanging out and being people, domestic moments in times of normality, and what that means.
And that was basically it. The Epic YA was a solid and informative panel stressing on the importance of representation and why the voices of youth mattered. All for a solid segment in an informative online BookCon.
“S’ing the D,” is what, according to graphic novelist Simon Hanselman, the kids are calling listening to Tenacious D.
At BookCon 2020, Simon Hanselman interviewed Kyle Glass and Jack Black about their film-turned-album-turned-tour-turned-turned-graphic novel with accompanying audio: Post-Apocalypto.
The Panel Begins at 2 hours and 40 mins in. You can also see half the day’s panels here.
The panel began with a small chat about the phrase “S’ing the D” and what Tenacious D have been up to: promoting Post-Apocalypto. Black himself emphasized that the concept was in response to the election win of Donald Trump, a white supremacist (as quoted by Jack Black), and how the world seemed to be leaning toward neo-fascism, with Post-Apocalpto, being their protest album.
“The project is going to be an opportunity for us to indulge ourselves in our favorites post-apocalyptic action genres: Road warrior, Terminator, and Wizard of Oz — mixed in a soup, and strained through the Donald Trumpism nightmare that we are currently living in.” – Jack Black
Originally a 6-chapter animated movie hand-drawn by Jack Black, along with a startling concept album, the duo decided in to make the story into a comic book. Post-Apocalpyto, follows Jack and Kyle, who survive a nuclear bomb by hiding out in a 1950’s refrigerator. The two are then are thrust into a post-apocalyptic nightmare, with conflicts such as full-blown aliens, catastrophes, and…Elon Musk —Though I’m not sure if this was a joke given the times?
A story about hope and peace, political satire, and time machines, that’s loaded with action and fapping, Post-Apocalypto is a graphic novel comic funny book… with a strong positive message, that’s lovely cut, with many dick jokes (again… all of this is abridged quoting from the panel).
Though not all was fun and games. The latter half of the talks got serious, talking a bit about the race riots happening all across America, regarding the murder of George Floyd and the Police Brutality against African Americans, as well as topics about hopes for a vaccine.
Still, for the most part, the panel was comedic and when asked about final words about Post-Apocalypto Black had this to say:
“Greatest masterpiece, a rip snorting good time, and a hell of an action adventure with lots of twists and turns…. That’s also, going to save the world.”
Octavia, what you been up to girl? Image from https://www.hypable.com
We finally get the scoop on what happened with Octavia and Diyoza back in season 6!
Last episode Gabriel, Hope, and Echo went into the anomaly together but where did they go? Or…rather when did they go??? Turns out the answer is where, and it’s to another planet. Hope has been here before – she named it Sky-Ring when she was little cause she looked up and there were rings in the sky, but its official name according to Gabriel is Beta.
Beta is a prison planet (what is with this show and space prisons, right?), separated from Alpha by a “bridge” that creates a time dilation where well, time works differently between the two planets. You go to Beta via the bridge, you show up in a different time then when you left Alpha (essentially, time moves faster on Beta – if you were in Sanctum for a day nearly a century has passed on Beta). The Disciples realized prisoners could serve life-long sentences in mere days using the unique properties of the two planets. Ok, that’s about all the higher physics I can take for now, let’s focus instead on the story.
Octavia arrives in Beta three months after Diyoza, despite having followed her into the green only a few seconds after. Once Hope is born, we have a happy family of three. Except for the fact that Octavia is desperate to get back to her brother. This storyline is fairly straight forward: Octavia winds up torn between trying to go back and staying with Diyoza and Hope (hello Auntie O!). Diyoza is happy to make that decision for her when she destroys a suit Octavia finds while they are planting a garden. Oh well. Octavia seems to resign herself to the quiet life (though Hope is eager to get battle training from her) and writes a farewell letter to Bellamy. The disciples find the letter and come looking for the person who wrote it.
Now, technically this interaction comes off as menacing, but I was thinking about it and, if you consider the fact that the disciples are running a prison planet, wouldn’t it make sense they would be concerned for any wayward civilians that might accidentally stumble upon it? Granted, if they have information on Diyoza and Octavia, it’s possible their discovery of them would be of a more hostile nature, but I’m curious to see how this pans out because that’s where their storyline ends. Diyoza is captured while Octavia manages to hide Hope before running away herself. How does Hope get to Alpha? What happens to Diyoza? What happens to Octavia? We shall see…
The other storyline is a little trickier and it involves Gabriel, Hope, and Echo. Echo has Octavia’s drive – get back to Bellamy, while Gabriel is super curious about where they are, and Hope is just trying to get to the disciples while explaining things to her two tag-alongs. We learn that Diyoza might be dead and that Hope wasn’t trying to kill Octavia just tag her so the disciples could pull her back (due to “science” people can be tracked, tagged, and transported via their biometric signatures – this is also the “science” that allows for the existence of the mind-drives and explains how exactly that shit works). Fun fact: mind-drives are really called memory drives and they are the equivalent of black boxes for people’s minds. Another fun fact: it all comes back to Becca.
Yes, The 100, is one of those sci-fi shows that actually builds upon the foundation it created in season two, rather then, you know…just going crazy with new shit that in no way connects to the old. I like it, even if I’m not entirely sure it works. It’s always been a cuckoo-bananas show, but one that has the characters and mythology to support all the nutso twists and turns. It is also, and I can’t stress this enough, one of the few shows (sci-fi or otherwise) that really puts lady characters front and center. Granted, men aren’t left high and dry – it isn’t a reversal of situations where say women get all the good lines and agency and men are just left to look pretty and get rescued, rather this show really promotes the feminist ideal: equality! Ok, off my soapbox I go…
Becca – the scientist we discovered in season two who created the AI A.L.I.E. who caused the nuclear fallout that lead to mankind fleeing to space – is back! She somehow led an expedition to Alpha, or, at the very least helped Russel Lightbourne I (along with the other Prime families) in their expedition to Alpha. She created the memory drives, she appears to have discovered the temporal link between Alpha and Beta, and we know for a fact she tried to go back to regular Earth and use her science for good. I’m wondering if the end reveal of this show will be that there is some highly advanced society trying to manipulate the events of the past using the scientific discoveries our protagonists are only just now stumbling upon. That would be cool.
One last thought – it’s interesting to note the similarities in this show and The Magicians. Not only did the Dark King make an appearance (as Russel Lightbourne I), but a similar storyline appears between Octavia and Diyoza as happened with Eliot (Hale Appleman) and Quentin (Jason Ralph). Also, that show had a Dark King and this one has a Dark Commander. Granted, the conditions and outcomes are different, but still…
Overall, I liked this episode. It gave us lots of information about not only what happened to Octavia, Diyoza, and who the hell Hope is, but a deeper understanding of the show’s underlying mythology and how it works.
Next episode promises to take us back to Sanctum, let’s see if Russel really gets that death sentence he’s been itching for, and if the Dark Commander can get around it!
This week on Harley Quinn: Harley, Poison Ivy, and group of ladies travel to celebrate Ivy’s bachelorette weekend on Themyscira, and King Shark is forced to face the past he has been swimming away from during Kite Man’s bachelor party at sea.
Credit: DC Universe
S2E9 Review (Spoiler-Free)
What will Harley Quinn do? Deal with her feelings? Find a healthy way to address her relationship with Poison Ivy?
Nope! Bachelorette Party!
Maid of Honor Harley organizes a girls trip to Themyscira with the goal of giving Ivy the time of her life. The challenge? A group of unenthusiastic ladies and her own repressed feelings (she’s totally fine, you guys!).
Meanwhile, the remaining crew and Kite Man are off on a boat conducting the bachelor party. It’s a pretty quiet affair until a person from King Shark’s past shows up. Shark now must face the things he’s been running away from for years.
Can Harley deal with her feelings-errrr-plan the ultimate bachelorette party? Will King Shark be able to face his past and destiny? What’s the best part about living under the sea?
These questions and more are answered!
Credit: DC Universe.
Takeaway
Boy, does this episode ramp up.
Where last week’s episode had a lot of physical action and roundabouts, this week’s episode is selective with its action and really drives up the emotional conflict.
With some important developments being unveiled, the episode gives us a wide range of characters (both old and new) that help flush out the story. This includes a fun secondary story focusing on King Shark, which highlights how Ron Funches consistently delivers on the series.
We get some beautiful backdrops to enjoy the episode, and we’re rewarded with some bright color palettes. You can definitely tell the creators had a lot of fun with this one, and you will too.
SPOILERS are present for the rest of the article. Proceed with caution!
S2E9 Recap (Spoilers)
Credit: DC Universe
The episode starts in the skies, following a calm bird on its peaceful flight pattern. That is until an invisible airplane zooms by.
Welcome to Apollonian Airlines! The small passenger plane, getting ready to land, is taking a handful of guests to Themyscira, home island to Wonder Woman (and a place where any man would be killed on arrival). A flight attendant offers Harley a glass of champagne, which she chugs before handing Ivy all the necessary bachelorette party necessities: a crown, a sash, a dick shaped straw made out of reusable metal, and a kit to clean it. Ivy is impressed by the preparation, as Harley is taking her Maid of Honor duties very seriously. She goes back to check on the other guests.
First is Norma Fries, who for some reason has decided to come along after receiving a “pity invite.” Is she still upset about the whole Mr. Freeze dying incident? Yes. Harley tries to get her excited about the trip, but Norma doesn’t see the prospect of an only female island promising, unless it’s for crying.
Then, there is Jennifer. Hailing from Michigan, married with four kids, she’s been Ivy’s childhood friend since kindergarten. She is clearly upset that Harley was chosen as Maid of Honor and not her (especially since they made a pact when they were kids). She also hates being called Jen. Harley tries to get Jennifer pumped up for the weekend, but a bird flies into the invisible plane, dying on impact and leaving blood splatter. Quinn remarks how that must happen often, only for it to happen immediately after. Jennifer asks if the champagne is free, which Harley says it is and fills her glass back up.
Finally, Quinn goes into first class, which is in the back of the plane. There getting herself comfortable is Catwoman. Selina does not want to be interrupted and is waiting on her ambien to kick in. She admits that she is planning to cat nap as much of this weekend as physically possible.
Harley goes back up to Ivy and is trying (too much) to pump up the trip and her Ivy’s marriage to Kite Man. Ivy says (in a less convincing tone) that she is excited to marry Kite Man and loves him, which Harley repeats in an over-the-top-compensating-for-her-feelings tone. This eventually leads to a hug, which Harley enjoys too much and sniffs Ivy’s hair. The two sit back in their seats and wait for the plane to land. The moment is topped with another bird flying into the plane.
Awkward.
On Themyscira, the ladies drive to their resort in an invisible van (apparently every vehicle is invisible). The landscape is beautiful, with ancient architecture and colorful nature. Ivy is in awe of the natural beauty, which Harley Quinn compares to her. A bird flies into the windshield, ruining the moment.
Credit: DC Universe
They are greeted by the resort manager, Heiress, and some Themyscirans that give the ladies leis and brochures. Ivy finds the corporate aspect strange since it’s unlike what Themyscirans believe in with their secret island. The brochures boasts Soap Concierge and something called the Zonian Experience.
*A Zonian usually refers to a group of people that lived and maintained the Panama canal during the early 1900s. These people considered themselves US citizens and Panamanians, so maybe it’s a nod to the Themyscirans engineering and maintain this beautiful island while not being a part of the world in the same way that other countries are.*
Annnnyyywaaayyy, Heiress explains that, since Wonder Woman left, the island’s economy has been booming, and Queen Hippolyta hired her to manage it. Heiress welcomes the ladies and reminds them to talk plenty of photos and tag the resort.
The ladies are at their rooms, and Harley, donning her “Head B**** in Charge” hat, gives everyone their instructions and itineraries. Ivy’s shocked at Harley’s dedication to planning and checks to make sure she is okay. Harley says yes and brushes off all the worries. When Ivy goes into her room, Harley sighs and the feelings come back. Catwoman witnesses this and calls out Harley’s over-preparation as a response to the two hooked up. Harley then uses this interaction to confess how she thought her feelings would go away, but they haven’t. Catwoman doesn’t care, but Harley keeps rambling on anyway. She says she will get over her feelings over and over again, clearly trying to tell herself it’s true but not believing it.
Credit: DC Universe
Simultaneously, Kite Man’s bachelor party is happening on a boat at sea. He, dressed in casual attire (minus his mask) is sitting with Clayface (who’s in a bathing suit) and Frank the Plant (who’s in shades) as they work on a landscape puzzle. As Frank and Clayface argue over if the piece is a part of the sea or a cloud, Clayface asks King Shark why he is hiding inside. Shark is inside the boat, hidden away, reading a book. After being questioned, Shark says that the ocean used to be his home but he left for “unspecified reasons” he doesn’t want to discuss. But that’s about to change.
All of the sudden, a lobster jumps on the ship. The boys are curious, but Shark is terrified. It speaks, telling Shark that he’s been searching the Seven Seas for Shark. The lobster talking leads to the boys asking questions, but, eventually, the lobster states his purpose: to bring Shark home.
King Shark’s father is the head of a shark kingdom, and, in order to save the kingdom, King Shark has to marry a hammerhead princess named Tabitha. Shark argues that what he wants is important, leading to an argument. Kite Man thinks this is an elaborate prelude to mermaid strippers, which he does not want. Shark comes out with the truth that he is the heir to the Shark Kingdom and left the sea to avoid an arranged marriage. Clayface tries to defend Shark, but the lobster slices off his head. King Shark agrees to go with him but only to face his father. He asks the guys to not finish the puzzle without him.
Back on Themyscira, Harley checks in on her fellow partiers while Ivy is changing her tampon, but all the women are complaining about something. Norma is hungry and waiting for food, Jennifer complains about the patio heaters not working, and Catwoman says small talk makes her “claustrophobic.” Harley flips out and yells at all of them for not being excited. It’s Ivy’s party, and they all have to be excited for her marriage (just another example of Harley’s insecurities popping out).
Credit: DC Universe
Later that night, the girls are all having dinner. The guests are making up compliments to seem as they are having a good time. They all cheer, and Ivy is impressed that everyone is having a good time and Harley is making the weekend work. Heiress, flanked by Queen Hippolyta and guards, approaches the table and asks for the ladies to redo their cheers for social media. The queen is clearly hypnotized. Ivy questions Heiress’ motives and the queen’s involvement, but Heiress has an answer for everything. She also plans on making the island the destination resort for A-listers. Jennifer asks if there is anything to do on the island besides relax, and Heiress lists some options. She mentions a small island a ferry ride away called Hedonikka that has men. Immediately, she is interrupted with Harley saying that’s the plan.
Under the sea, King Shark is following the lobster and explaining that he is only going to tell off his dad (and maybe get some laundry). Lobster tries to convince Shark that his home is here in the sea. The two argue about which is better when Shark asks the lobster to name one thing that is better about living in the sea. This leads to the lobster singing a song about how, in the ocean, you can poop wherever you want. In an “Under the Sea” type parody, the lobster and other random fish rejoice in the fact that they can poop wherever, whenever. While we go through the different fish pooping, Shark sees some of his old friends. After the minute-long song, Shark says he gets the point (there’s poop everywhere) and compliments the argument and choreography. He is still unconvinced, leading the lobster to tell him that, if he is not to wed, hundreds of fish will die and two shark bloodlines will end. Shark says the song should have been about that, but lobster explains it’s more difficult to work a song around that. Shark says he will consider marrying the hammerhead.
Back on Hedonikka, in what you would imagine an Ancient Greek strip club would look like, the bachelorette party is kicking off. The head MC introduces the next stripper, who is dressed like Ares, the God of War. Jennifer, very drunk, is really enjoying herself and comments on how she can see the outline of the stripper’s penis. Norma decides to jump on the MC and start making out with him, which Catwoman uses as an opportunity to pick-pocket the man. Ivy and Harley come up and hug Catwomen, with Ivy referring to the three as the Cobb Squad, a reference to their first meeting. Selina walks away, leaving Ivy and Quinn to dance, both seemingly very drunk. Ivy thanks Quinn for going the extra mile for her, with both saying they are each other’s best friends.
Credit: DC Universe
Fast forward to the next morning. Harley is in bed sleeping, and, when she wakes up, she realizes that she is in the same bed as Ivy! Ivy is super upset at the mistake they made last night (the mind-blowing orgasmic sex), with Harley disappointed at her reaction. Ivy leaves the room and walks away while Harley tries to convince her and herself that they can get past this. Ivy goes to the hotel concierge and asks for the first flight off the island. She is told that there is nothing until after the weekend. Quinn is upset at Ivy wanting to leave Furious, Ivy announces that she will be locked in her room until they can leave.
Meanwhile, in the ocean, King Shark swims towards what looks like a sunken ship (very Titanic-like). At the door, which is strings of seaweed covering an opening, are two jellyfish guards and a hammerhead lady shark that seems older, in a plain dress and hoop earrings, and smoking a cigarette. King Shark approaches the lady shark, asking if she is Tabitha. Yes, she is the betrothed for him. She’s surprised he showed, and he gives a brief summary of what led up to this moment. “Did they give you the song?” he asks Tabitha, to which she replies “I live the song.” Shark is getting the feeling that she doesn’t want to marry him either, which she easily confirms. He enters the ship.
Inside the ship’s ballroom, Shark’s father (the actual king of the kingdom) and Tabitha’s father, are sitting at a table with the lobster. They shake hands as if they had just come to an agreement. The king notices his son has arrived and is pleased with his return. King Shark, who is extremely sheepish in front of his father, starts to deliver the news. He says that Tabitha doesn’t want to get married, and neither does he. This brings outrage to everyone.
Back at the resort, Harley is walking down the corridor and bumps into Catwoman. She comments on Harley’s long night (because of the paper thin walls), and Harley opens up again about how the feelings aren’t going away. She asks for advice, and Catwoman refuses before walking away and pointing out that Jennifer is passed out drunk in the hallway. Ivy is sitting in her room upset. Harley tries to talk to her, and they have a conversation through the door. Harley wants Ivy to enjoy the weekend, and Ivy wants to make it clear that the sex cannot happen again. Harley agrees, saying it was only a two time thing due to adrenaline from the pit escape and them being drunk (though it happened twice during their drunken night). She promises it won’t happen again and eventually gets Ivy to come down to brunch (not before returning her bra).
At brunch, all the ladies are hungover, and Jennifer wants more mimosas. Harley announces that she has a big surprise! Norma asks if it’s the strip club again because she left her fanny pack (no, it’s not, and no, it was stolen). Harley reveals that the hotel manager, Heiress, is actually an enemy of the Amazons and is using mind control on the queen. Heiress’ plan is to make the queen sell the island to Lex Luthor so he can throw an upscale music festival (essentially his version of the Frye Festival). Ivy catches Harley’s drift: kill Heiress and save the ecosystem of the island from being used and abused. Harley has been planning this for weeks, and Ivy loves it. Ivy wonders what took Quinn so long to tell the plan, who reveals that they should enjoy the services before destroying the resort. Jennifer is not really on board until she finds out that the mimosas aren’t bottomless. Now she is game for some murder. The ladies chug their drinks and suit up. Time for the Cobb Squad to roll out.
Credit: DC Universe
Back in the ship’s ballroom, everyone is stunned at King Shark’s declaration. The lobster is trying to mediate the situation, but Shark is determined to tell off his dad. His speech, scored by heartfelt music, talks about how he has a good life for him on the land and friends that won’t finish a puzzle without him because he’s so important. He wants to marry for love, which his dad disregards. Tabitha agrees with King Sharks sentiments (she’s not jazzed up about the wedding either). Shark’s dad says that if he leaves the kingdom now, he can never return. King Shark accepts this and walks away but not before declaring loudly that he likes pooping in the toilet. This receives a louder gasp than his previous declaration about the marriage.
On land, Heiress and Queen Hippolyta sit in a conference room with Themyscirans. Heiress is talking about uniting Themyscira and Lexcorp, revealing Lex is on a video call with them. He says he’s ready because Wonder Woman is not going to stop them, but he wishes he could be there in person, if it wasn’t for his sick dog, Little Lexy.
*By this way, this is my favorite scene in the whole episode because of the little “dog” cough that’s clearly the voice actor. Perfect.*
Heiress puts a pen in the queen’s hand to sign the paperwork, but, before anything can happen, the Cobb Squad appears. Ivy proudly announces their plans to foil the plot and reveals her Cobb Squad tattoo, that apparently no one else got. The ladies fight the guards and make good work of them, even Jennifer, who, for some reason, has a sword. During the melee, a vase flies and hits Heiress in the breast, leading her to try to rush the signing. Before the hypnotized queen can give her signature, Catwoman whips the papers away from the table. Luther tells Heiress to hurry and get the contract that’s now scattered all over the ground. As she frantically tries, Harley works her way there. Luther tells Heiress that Harley is on her right, no her other right, his right. It’s too late. Harley knocks her with her bat and throws the TV Lex was off the balcony. Jennifer follows suit and throws Heiress off the balcony too. Ivy claims vengeance for trying to harm the environment while Jennifer claims vengeance for no bottomless mimosas.
Credit: DC Universe
The queen is now free from the hypnotic trance she was stuck in, coming to surrounded by the Cobb Squad. They explain to her what had happened and that Harley saved the day. She thanks them and decided to use an ancient tradition to celebrate the Cobb Squad: throwing a f******* rager.
At the rager, everyone is drinking and having a great time; Harley checks to make sure that Ivy feels the same way. Ivy agrees saying that, besides the terrible mistake (not well received by Harley) the weekend has been perfect. She thanks Harley for putting it together, who responds by saying Ivy is easy to celebrate. They both share a tender moment.
The next morning, Ivy is asleep in her bed. She wakes up and turns over, only to see Harley sleeping. It happened again. Ivy is furious with herself and the both of them for letting this happen again. She repeatedly says she can’t keep doing this. Harley then finally asks the question: why can’t they? Ivy answers by saying that Harley is her best friend and that she doesn’t want to lose the relationship (notice no mention of Kite Man). Harley refutes this and says it can make their friendship only grow closer (though the closest they’ve been was the crazy sex the night before, which both of them agree on). She tells Ivy to picture travelling the world together, and saving the environment, freeing female armies, and partying.
Credit: DC Universe.
Harley professes her love to Ivy, asking her to think about it. She then leaves the bachelorette to think about the decision.
Back on the bachelor party boat with the boys, Clayface suggests maybe finishing the puzzle after all this time, but Frank slaps his hand, saying they must wait for King Shark. Kite Man talks about how he can’t wait to see Ivy and theorizes that she will complain about the airline food. Frank sarcastically says they have a deep connection.
Suddenly, King Shark leaps from the ocean and lands on the boat. They are all excited to see him. Shark tells them about how he stood up to his dad, immediately following it up with the fact that he ended up going through with the marriage. King Shark says he can’t say no to his dad but takes solace in the fact that he expressed his ill feelings about the proceedings. Kite Man is shocked he married someone he doesn’t even know and didn’t get rejected. He asks Shark how many times he proposed, to which Shark responds with none. Shark reveals that he and Tabitha agreed on being married publicly but can have secret relationships with other people. The compromise was met because Shark can’t imagine being with someone that he doesn’t love. He wants a dangerous love that excites him, a soulmate. Kite Man compares that description to what him and Ivy have, which everyone on the ship groans against (no one believes they are good together).
In Gotham, Apollonian Airlines landed, and the ladies are leaving the plane. Harley looks out to the others. Jennifer is greeted by her husband and one of the kids, but, when he calls her Jennifer, she corrects him and tells him to call her Jen. Norma Fries is going into a limo with the MC from Hedonikkas as they are making out. She wants to take him home. Ivy finally exits the plane and approaches Harley.
Ivy tells Quinn that the weekend together has been amazing and that the two of them have had their highs together. She follows this by saying that Harley is erratic and runs from one thing to the next, and Ivy doesn’t want to be abandoned by her for something else. Ivy trusts Harley with her life but can’t trust her with her heart.
Kite Man swoops in to greet his fiancee. He asks her about the trip, which she says was good. He follows this up by asking her if she wants to go back to his place, make chili, and watch TV for 4-6 hours. She looks at Harley one more time before looking back at Kite Man and saying yes (choosing the boring and stable love).
They leave, and Harley is all alone. She sits on the steps of the plane and cries.
How will Harley and Ivy’s relationship be moving forward? Does Ivy really want to be with Kite Man? Will King Shark ever find love?
Catch this episode of Harley Quinn and next week’s on DC Universe.
Johnny and June. Sonny and Cher. Tina and Ike. These are names need not be spoken with their surnames affixed. These names, however, are seldom seen simply solo. Their pairing elicits thoughts of crazy canards and even crazier music. These were power duos that will go down in the annals of Rock and Roll history together and for very good reason. A very magical thing happens when two contrapuntal voices hit your tympanic membrane. These duets sometimes dissolve, due to infighting, addiction, violence, or simply a lost voice. It is in this eighth episode of What We Do In The Shadows (FX) titled “Collaboration,” that we may be able to bear witness to a feat of nature- capturing lightning in a bottle for a second time.
It’s nightfall, and Laszlo (Matt Berry) has poached a midnight snack in the form of a jogger. He’s punctured the pouch but just when he’s about to stick the straw in, HARK! Some oddly familiar yet rather mellifluous notes fill the air. As informed by his human Capri Sun, “Come On Eileen” is the song in question, and back at the house, Guillermo plays the gang a recording of a song that Laszlo penned in 1852, but Dexy’s Midnight Runners stole in 1982. Of course, back then, it went until its original name of “Chum On Irene” and was about the wife of a local fishmonger. Nadja (Natasia Demetriou) is seemingly peeved as well since she claims her hubby also wrote “For (I’m) A Jolly Good Fellow” and that was only wrested from him.
No time to dither about the past though, as it seems the house suddenly has a guest in the form of a septuagenarian named Benjy Everett. He’s Nandor’s (Kayvan Novak) past Familiar from the 1970s, whose expressed desire to become a vampire gnawed at his Master more than a vampiric Truman Capote would at the bartenders of Studio 54. This left Nandor with no other recourse but to hypnotize his Familiar to forget about the whole thing, ultimately abandoning him at a Delaware rest stop. Through the majesty of Lumosity, memories flooded back and this not-so-spring chicken has come home to roost and collect on a 40-year-old promise: to be made a vampire.
Elsewhere in the house, Laszlo and Nadja dust off some old vinyl and sheet music. Did you know Laszlo was the original architect of “Row, Row, Row Your Boat?” Back then, though, “Stroke, Stroke, Stroke Your Cock” was more en vogue. It wasn’t until he met Nadja though, that his creative juices really shot out of him. Their album Nadja & Laszlo Sing Songs of Love & Terror featured some bangers including but not limited to “Hoop Skirt, Poop Skirt”, “Witches Are Snitches”, “Horse-drawn Carriage Full of Ass” and “Wannabe” (as popularized by the Girls Spice.)
Upon hearing them recite old hits, Colin Robinson (Mark Proksch) suggests they hold a showcase to potentially gain a new fanbase with 300 years’ worth of classics. This isn’t because Colin has their best interest in mind, but rather his, as there’s nothing that stirs up boredom and anger than old-timey tunage. As the couple entertains this idea, Colin’s already figuring out which bib to wear to the occasion.
Back in Guillermo’s (Harvey Guillen) room/closet, Benjy looks around a time capsule and is brought back to the days of his youth. He asks his replacement if he can accompany him to the Familiar mixer later. I mean, how could Guillermo deny an old man that used to beat into the very pillow he now rests his head on?
At the monthly Familiar mixer, which is just a place for networking, bitching and hooking up, a plethora of robins to their bat-men and women fill the room, all ages. Just as Guillermo’s being thirstily hit on by Karen (Rakhee Morzaria), he spots Celeste (Greta Lee), a Familiar he used to help dispatch of bodies when her Master, a 12-year-old girl (really 162) went a little HAM. Celeste is holding court, now being granted the gift of everlasting life. Yes, she’s a vampire and though she greets “Elmo” warmly (in sentiment, not body temperature), he is a bit more than livid… He is heated!
Celeste looks like an IG vampire and vapes blood. She rolls with a cadre of Familiars, as she promises a more swift and friendly way of turning them, within a matter of 8 months tops. This is to build a new vampire community, built not on archaic ways of apprenticeship or subservience, but rather trust and exploration… and Guillermo wants a ticket to ride. The only problem? The cost of admission is no Master.
As Nadja and Laszlo noodle around with a few song ideas, something is amiss. They fear they might be a bit too contemporary, but then again their paean to 1936 Olympics may not have aged equally as well. Back to the drawing board.
Already annoyed with his thirsty blast from the past, Nandor casts Benjy away as Guillermo arrives with a stick in his craw. As he’s asked in the past, Guillermo would like a final word on whether his Master will ever turn him. Though he skirts the conversation, he’s confronted with his Familiar telling him he may have a better deal and this is relationship dynamics at its finest. Though only one is human, they both have feelings and Nandor tells his bestie to take the opportunity, bereft of emotion. Clearly, there are things left unsaid and their only parting gift is hurt feelings.
Onto bigger and better things, right? At Celeste’s residence, Guillermo is greeted by not only a welcoming group of Familiars, including Sam the Cat from that one time he had to be put in a boiler room with other familiars awaiting their Master’s fate at the fangs of a tribunal. Spoiler alert… the digs are fucking PLUSH! Walls adorning her Master’s friends, including Warhol adorn the walls in this nouveau riche palace. This is a safe space, where the addressing of “Master” is fucking verboten and everyone is encouraged to pursue personal growth before they are turned. Oh, and Shake Shack is not a luxury but a promise. Where do I sign with my blood?
At the house, where Nandor remembers why he got rid of Benjy in the first place, Nadja and Laszlo try recapturing some of that old high with a jaunty piece about the Lindbergh kidnapping. There’s a reason they haven’t collaborated in decades. They are two egoists than have a hard time just getting their shit tight and Colin picks up on this. He wants the occasional energy shot and suggests them shoehorn in some new material to break the monotony of just the hits. Oh, Colin.
Having spent what seems an interminable amount with Benjy has Nandor reassessing the way he’s treated, Guillermo. The guy is more able-bodied and isn’t as intent on becoming of a vampire… right? He pays a nicely garbed out Guillermo visit in his flat and realizes that his Familiar is with others that have taken advantage of them. He has better lodgings and people that are in his spot. They got a drop of paradise that was lost. So Nandor relents and leaves.
Colin’s set Nadja & Laszlo up for the success of failure, as they are performing their horrible songs in front of an audience. They’ve already an ode to making love in Staten Island.
What happens when Familiars stop being polite and start being real? The commander of the party stalls and suggests an orgy!
At the open mic, the duet is sinking faster than a lead balloon. Songs exalting bat transformation, being horny for sex and cellular advancements aren’t winning their crowd over, which has Colin Robinson lit up like a fucking Bally’s pinball machine.
De-robed and then freshly robed, the gang is about to get into shenanigans when suddenly Celeste’s Master bangs on the door, then bangs down the door. It turns out they were never going to be vampires, as she is a Familiar and only wanted a moment in that glory. Hmm. The only turning these guys had in the cards was turning up, turning in and turning out food.
Bedlam is the only mattress the three vampires sleep on and bloodshed paints those white walls. It could be considered art. Guillermo escapes with Sam as per Celeste’s request and books the fuck out of there.
As the crowd grows uglier with every song Nadja and Laszlo have, even with a disco number ode to Laszlo, they have one last card up their billowy sleeves. This is “The Seafaring Song of 1792” which eerily what the Beach Boys inherited (read: stole) for “Kokomo.” Much to their dismay, the crowd sings along.
Ultimately, as Guillermo releases Sam to his freedom, Nandor swoops in and accepts Guillermo’s stipulations for coming back.
The only thing I don’t feel bad about is Benjy left off at a rest stop… which is being a bat and some rest for the wicked.
Brec Bassinger is ‘Stargirl’ in Episode 2: “S.T.R.I.P.E.” Credit: DC Universe
In this episode, Courtney and Pat team up as full-blown superheroes, becoming campy Captain America and Iron Man archetypes.
DC Daily Reviewed the series last week. Video above.
Last week’s pilot of Stargirl left me compelled for more but also feeling somewhat annoyed; It’s not a bad story, just a very vanilla one. The episode plays it safe and utilizes many-a-super-heroic tropes that I think we’ve all seen before: from the misfit character with no friends to the grand destiny chosen for greater heroic deeds. Although I like the show’s promise of its premise, I cannot help but feel lukewarm about its setup.
This episode of Stargirl only exacerbates that concern. It’s obvious by design and color scheme that Stargirl and S.T.R.I.P.E.S. is a nod to another heroic duo in Captain America and Iron Man — an All-American and a Metal-Man respectively — I cannot help but feel like the world needs to establish its own identity. Stargirl needs to step away from what has been done before.
This episode is a small step towards that direction.
Credit: DC Universe
In “S.T.R.I.P.E.,” Courtney (Brec Bassinger) continues her battle against a surviving member of the Injustice Society of America. As a result, Pat, in wanting to help his stepdaughter not only as a dad but a fellow hero, reveals intel including the sad truth about what happened to the Justice Society — including his good friend, Starman.
While this unfolds, Barbara is happy to see her daughter and new husband finally bonding, allowing her the time to take charge of her life more at work and in town — at least, until things become complicated.
Because hero and secret identities cross! Hands are revealed! And nefarious plots come to light, putting loved ones in the line of fire.
More than anything, we learn that there’s something special about Blue Valley as it seems that everyone here is both old fashioned, and yet, interconnected. This episode is purely a backstory look into the roots of the JSA and IJSA. It also humanizes Pat by ironically putting him inside of a rusty tin can and reveals surprisingly complicated layers to Brainwave.
Pat with his Iron S.T.R.I.P.E. robot he built to combat bad guys. Credit: DC Universe
Probably the most entertaining thing about this one was the transformation of Courtney and Pat into their heroic forms: one decides to stitch Starman’s old costume together, the other makes an embarrassingly clunky robot that’s more Iron Giant than Iron Man. Both are getting into parallel antics and excuses of ‘falling down the stairs’ while going through the beats of their developments. (with a nice “You’re the best around” Karate Kid montage that again plays towards the campiness of the series).
The most annoying thing about this episode is Pat’s son Mike and his video game high school? That feels out of place, especially in an old-fashioned All-American town. I also cannot pin down where Mike’s accent seems to come from for the life of me — if it’s New York or Bostonian? — as Pat doesn’t have any trace of it.
I also dislike how ‘convenient’ the writing is for this series. Frequently, villains “stumble” upon heroes too coincidentally, and, instead of natural drama, we’re thrown into conflict mostly by accident — like overhearing a conversation or having the villain’s kids interact in school with heroes with perfect serendipitous timing — in a not so well-established game of cat and mouse.
Still, we get a good couple of action scenes with Stargirl in this one, whose style is still fun to watch. Though it’s obvious this show desperately seeks to attract a youthful audience, I’m not sure how well it is doing in succeeding. What is working is that the show is entertaining enough.
Hope's got some explaining to do!
Image from https://www.hypable.com
Our season seven premiere picks up directly where the season six finale left off, with Octavia disappeared and Bellamy crying her name. From here it takes three paths.
The first path we immediately follow is that of Gabriel (Chuku Modu), Bellamy, Echo (Tasya Teles), and Hope (Shelby Flannery). Hope stabbed Octavia, but once the anomaly moves along she doesn’t remember why or anything else that is going on. Gabriel tries to reason with her, but in true 100 fashion she solves her problems with violence and then runs. Outside, where Bellamy is mourning his sister, there is some invisible force making life harder for him. When it drags him away, Echo gives chase only to also be harassed by it. She joins up with Gabriel, and they eventually meet up with Hope who has a note in her arm instructing her to trust Bellamy (gee, I wonder who wrote that). Three’s company is on the hunt for Bellamy. Will they find him? Will they discover who or what is standing in their way?
The second and third paths involve the powder keg that is Sanctum post Primes.
Madi doesn’t have the Flame anymore, and Wonkru can’t know that or they won’t continue following her. Indra (Adina Porter) explains that keeping them Wonkru is vital, and Clarke agrees, but she also wants Madi to have a childhood. But, Gaia (Tati Gabrielle) reports that Madi is drawing pictures from a past that isn’t hers…is Sheidheda still in there?
Meanwhile, Russel Lightbourne the VII (JR Bourne) isn’t dead which is pissing off a lot of people: there’s the true believers who want him freed because they drank the Kool-Aid and won’t stand for their god being imprisoned, while everyone else wants the remaining Prime dead because of…well, all the body snatching of course. Will Russel get what he really wants? Spoiler: it’s death.
The first path ends on a bit of a cliffhanger with Echo, Gabriel, and Hope getting “beamed up” for lack of a better term by whoever is running the time machine. Because, it is a time machine. The invisible enemies are folks from (assumedly) the future who were sent to capture Bellamy and kill Hope. What they might have in store for Echo and Gabriel, if anything, is yet to be seen.
The second path leads to the conclusion of the third path (or, more appropriately, its evolution). Russel pushes Clarke’s buttons to try and get her to kill him and it works, but we finally found out what happened to Sheidheda (Dakota Daulby). While I’m not sure if it was Clarke’s beating him around that did it, or if the upload just took this long to finally finish, either way we see the original Russel Lightbourne (Sean Maguire who played the Dark King in The Magicians final season) make a brief cameo before being quickly dispatched by Sheidheda who promptly takes over. The Dark Commander has no intentions of dying, even though Clarke has finally come around to the idea of killing Russel, and he taunts her into saving his life. This turns out to be more of a stay of execution as she goes on record to the whole of Sanctum promising Russel Prime will die.
Overall, I really enjoyed this episode. It hit the ground running and reminded me why I love this series as much as I do.
First, there’s Clarke, who is always trying to do the diplomatic thing while being pushed closer and closer to the nuclear option (yes, pun very much intended). She failed to take charge in season one when Bellamy grabbed the reins and all hell broke loose, so this time around I think she’s really intent on getting it right. Unfortunately, she’s also fresh off the death of her mother, Abby, and not dealing with it – which we all know leads to poor decision making. It seems like she’s doing great, until Russel decides to dig into that wound. Though, to be fair, Sheidheda wouldn’t have a home to hunker down in if she had only killed Russel from the get-go. Ah well.
Then there’s Indra and Gaia. Now, I didn’t get to these two on my recap because A LOT has happened on the show and it’s hard to cover all your bases, but suffice it to say that Octavia wouldn’t be the kick-ass warrior princess she is if it weren’t for Indra. I’ve loved her character throughout the series because while she may seem stubborn and unmovable, she actually adapts incredibly well to what unfolds around her. Indra’s willingness to go with the flow allows her to survive where many of her Grounder brethren don’t. She even grows in her ability to accept her daughter Gaia’s faith in the Flame. Gaia has survived because of her faith. She has complete confidence in her Commander and her job as Flame Keeper, and it will be fascinating to see what happens to her now that the Flame is gone.
Lastly, there’s the myriad directions this season looks to be taking. You have the time travelers, Clarke’s efforts to rebuild Sanctum, and Sheidheda. The time travelers have already proven fruitful, bringing us a Prince Roan (Zach McGowan) cameo! The Dark Commander will most certainly take advantage of the Prime true believers to divide and conquer, though how he’ll manage to turn all of them into violent blood-bathed warriors should be something. Clarke’s got a fight on her hands, not to mention what happens if Madi really does have some sleeping Commanders in her subconscious. Will it be similar to that whole mind fuck with Clarke and Josephine Lightbourne (Sara Thompson)? Will, Madi have to kill the ghost in her head!?
In this week’s episode of Harley Quinn, Harley and Ivy must deal with the fallout of their kiss. Ivy focuses on her relationship with her fiance. Harley, on the other hand, is focused on taking over Gotham.
Credit: DC Universe
S6E8 Review (Spoiler-Free)
The kiss happened, and now it’s time to deal with it.
Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy finally address what happened last episode, and they come to the same conclusion: it was just a crazy thing that happened.
Or did they?
Harley is clearly struggling with this as she decides to turn her attention to her original goal: taking over Gotham. As the title suggests, she may be looking for some help that is out of this world.
Ivy focuses on her loving fiance, Kite Man, and faces one of the most difficult challenges within a relationship: meeting the parents.
Meanwhile, Commish Gordon is back on top of his game and wants to put Gotham back on the map (figuratively and quite literally). But one thing stands in the way of Gotham rejoining the USA: Harley Quinn.
Can Harley deal with her feelings-errrr-conquer Gotham? Will Ivy impress Kite Man’s parents? Will Gordon save Gotham?
These questions and more are answered!
Takeaway
This week’s episode to me was one of the few times, if not the only time, that an episode felt like filler until the last scene. Sure, some important steps are taken, but the way we got there was a bit tedious. It reminded me of the “Pickle Rick” episode from Rick and Morty.
The visuals were definitely a treat, as the episode explores a fun color pallet when Harley is working on her grand plan. We do also get some screen time for the crew, who we haven’t seen in a while.
I am curious to see how things move forward from here, but it is the first time during this series where I didn’t love the episode.
SPOILERS are present for the rest of the article. Proceed with caution!
S6E8 Recap (Spoilers)
Credit: DC Universe
The episode starts in GCPD with Commissioner Jim Gordon, fixing himself up, both attire and hair, showing he’s got his groove back. He takes it in and picks up his phone to call the Oval Office. He says that he is the commissioner again and that the president should call him the “Commish” or “Gordo.” He begins to talk about the state of Gotham until he is told by a man on the phone, the presidential secretary, to hold for the president. Gordon thought he could just call the president directly. He is also thought the secretary would be a woman.
Awkward.
Finally, he gets on the phone with the president and tells him that Gotham is ready to rejoin the U.S., thanks to his “solo effort” in bringing down the Injustice League (he didn’t). The president, asking if he can call him “Gordo,” says that he cannot allow Gotham to rejoin because of the presence of Harley Quinn. Gordon reassures the president that she is not a concern and compares her to an anal polyp, which he describes in uncomfortable detail (being somewhat of an expert). The president doesn’t care and tells him taking down Harley is the only way. Jim has no choice: he needs to take down Harley Quinn.
Meanwhile, at their lair, Harley is pacing back and forth while Ivy sits on a couch. They are both uncomfortable, but Ivy breaks the silence to give them the opportunity to talk about if they want to talk about it. Quinn says it was crazy, which Ivy agrees with. Quinn then continues to reveal her thoughts but is interrupted when Ivy blames the adrenaline of escaping the pit for the pair kissing. Harley agrees, but it’s clear she is only doing it to save face with her friend. She feels differently but goes along with it, exclaiming that Harley is “crazy and is always doing crazy things.” She picks up a passing Doctor Psycho and kisses him to prove her point, but he is not pleased. In fact, she isn’t his type.
Ivy, finding the behavior bizarre, double checks one more time if Harley is cool and is happy when Quinn reassures her. Ivy wants to focus on her plans moving forward to wed Kite Man. Harley understands because she has moves of her own, so many moves (she has no moves). Ivy is happy because she doesn’t want anything ruining her and Harley’s friendship. Harley then asks if Ivy will tell Kite Man about the kiss. This dawns on Ivy, who never considered doing it until now.
In his apartment, Kite Man is clearly upset. What is thought to be in response to the revelation of the kiss is actually a reaction to the fact that today is the day that Ivy meets Kite Man’s parents. Ivy forgot to call ahead and get a reservation for the four of them at his parents’ favorite brunch spot in Gotham, Senior Mexico’s Authentic Mexican Adobe House. Ivy is upset, leading Kite Man to ask if she is okay. She says she has a lot on her mind. Kite Man apologizes for putting some much pressure on her but then proceeds to put more pressure on her because, if Chuck’s parents don’t like her, they won’t come to the wedding. Ivy assures him that they will love her because parents always love, though she realizes she has a terrible track record with parents (including her own). She promises that she will “blow them away,” and Kite Man tells her he loves her. She smirks but looks away.
Back at the lair, Harley chats with her crew to figure out what big thing she is super busy with. King Shark is upset that Harley wants to make big plans because she promised the crew they were going to “chill out and have fun” after taking down the Injustice League. Quinn promises them they will have fun when she fulfills her quest to become the most feared supervillain. Shark and Clayface both tell her that she doesn’t have what it takes to have that title, which Harley takes offense to. Psycho puts down the rest of the crew and fully supports Harley’s desire. He says they should do some evil things and float the idea of killing puppies.
Credit: DC Universe
Just then, Batgirl rides in on her motorcycle. She’s come to warn Harley but is interrupted by Pyscho asking her who she is. She says Batgirl, and he is upset about the lack of creativity in superhero and supervillain names. Shark interjects to compliment her on her costume. Harley brings the conversation back to its point, why is the hero here? Batgirl warns Harley of Gordon’s mission to take her down. She reveals the president’s condition but states that, though Gordon sees Harley as a villain, Batgirl disagrees. Harley is furious, claiming she is 100% a villain. Barbara then lists all the good things Harley has done: getting rid of Joker and the Injustice League. Harley and Batgirl argue back and forth, with Batgirl saying Harley should lay low because Gordon is out to get her, and he took down Two-Face and his goons solo. Harley hears this and decides she needs an army. She proclaims she is the baddest villain that does what she wants and kisses who she wants (she kisses Batgirl). She throws out Batgirl and tells her to let Gordon know she’s coming for him and Gotham with her army. Now, she needs an army. The crew, minus Psycho, say this isn’t like her, wanting to be a warlord. Psycho is all in and tells her he knows just the place to show her worth and get an army. Harley agrees (though kind of not sure if she actually believes that this is what she wants). She restates that she is Harley Quinn and that she kisses whoever she wants, which leads her to kiss King Shark.
At Senor Mexico’s Authentic Mexican Adobe House, Kite Man and Ivy try to get a table but are told the restaurant is full and that there is a three-hour wait. Kite Man tries to not have a meltdown in the restaurant when Ivy notices an older couple that look like “a country club banged a yacht club” waving at them. It’s Kite Man’s parents. He introduces Ivy to the, but they only care that Charles didn’t make a reservation for their favorite booth. Ivy takes care of that by using her powers to remove the patrons with vines from the booth. Kite Man’s mother sees this and is impressed. The four order some food and drinks.
At the Iceberg Lounge, Mister Miracle is performing a magic show where he is hanging upside in shackles above a bed of spikes. In attendance is Harley and the crew. There, Psycho reveals the reason they are there: to steal the Mother Box, a device that can create a Boom Tube, which is a portal that can take the crew to the planet of Apokolips, which is the home world of Darkseid, who, if Harls proves herself worthy to him, will give control of his army of Parademons. Got it? Good. Harley is immediately up for it and runs away, while the other two are skeptical. Psycho tells the two his plan: Clayface plays the role of a drunk, which he gets too into, so he can stumble on the stage to distract security. Psycho goes through the details of his plan while, behind him, Harley is executing her own plan. She captures the Mother Box, which was in Miracle’s dressing room, and knocks him silly with her baseball bat. Harley and Psycho are excited to use the Boom Tube, but Clayface and King Shark aren’t. The crew moves forward with the plan.
Credit: DC Universe
In the restaurant again, Ivy is telling Charles’ parents a story about how she captured Aquaman once, and the parents are loving her. Ivy is happy she is winning them over. Kite Man goes to the bathroom to wash his hands before dinner, and his parents are pleased with him getting married to someone with powers. Ivy then learns that his parents both have super powers: the mother can fly and the father can harness the power of cold. They reveal to her that they were disappointed that Charles wasn’t born with any powers, which upsets Ivy. Then, they say they are happy he is with her because they want their grandchildren to have superpowers, which makes her uncomfortable.
Returning to the GCPD, Gordon prepares for war, arming himself with a plethora of weapons. While arming himself, a tattoo is revealed on his upper left arm: a memorial tattoo for the Arm, which was Clayface’s old hand from the first season. Batgirl tries to dissuade her dad from going after Harley, which he writes off. She tells him that there are rumors that Harley will have an army of thousands, which gives Gordo pause. He comes to the conclusion that he needs an army, which upsets Batgirl.
Gordo goes to the steps of Gotham courthouse and addresses a large crowd of citizens. He paces back and forth and gives them a speech about how they want Gotham to rejoin the United States of America. Being overly armed, a gun falls down and fires by accident (not harming anyone luckily). The crowd is listening attentively, with some signs that say “Gotham’s Got HAM” and “Make Gotham Great Again.” He says he has to take down Harley, which the crowd agrees with (after he has to clarify because her name brought upon cheers). The crowd cheers with Gordon as they all shoot their guns together, killing some birds in the process.
Credit: DC Universe
Now on Apokolips, the Parademons fly and flames light up the skies. Darkseid is addressing a vanquished foe, until he is interrupted by a Boom Tube. When the crew stumbles before him, he pops the head of his enemy before catering to his new guests. Seemingly knowing why they are there, Darkseid asks Harley if she is capable of controlling his army. She tries to answer, but he keeps cutting her off. Finally, she says yes in a very flippant way. He says that he senses a pain and void in Harley that not even an army of Parademons can fulfill, but she denies that continuously. Harley asks what she must do, to which Darkseid responds that Pyscho should know. The doc reveals that he came up here once to ask for an army, which he failed to mention before. Darkseid states the task: Defeat Granny Goodness in combat and her scepter will be gifted to Harley to rule the Parademons.
The Granny, ready for combat, is an amazing fighter, and very easily subdues Harley to knock her unconscious. King Shark doesn’t want to engage because the American Healthcare system does the killing when it comes to old people, and Clayface passes on getting involved, especially since it’s made clear that Harley has to win by herself. This leaves Psycho to finish the job, who uses telekinesis to make Harley look like she has super strength and bashes Granny’s head with a boulder. Darkseid delivers on his promise, and Harley is rewarded with the Specter, a new outfit, and an army of Parademons. She, her army, and the crew Boom Tube off the planet.
Back at the restaurant, Ivy pulls Kite Man outside the restaurant to question him on why he lets his parents belittle him. He gives a weak response about how he can’t do anything because they’re his parents, who happen to come outside as well. They say goodbye and ask to meet up again next week, with a parting shot at Charles for not making the reservation (a simple task). Ivy flips out at the dig and tells them off. She reveals that she was the one that forgot to make the reservation, and she defends Charles for being a great individual, despite their parenting. They walk away and the couple make out.
While they are smooching, Ivy recognizes the Boom Tube, which Kite Man thought was a reference to his boner. They both see that the Boom Tube is over Harley’s lair.
Gordon is also on his way to the Boom Tube, riding a tank and leading an army of tanks to converge on the mall. Barbara calls her dad and tries to warn him one last time not to do this, but Gordo says if he has to gun down “another lady clown” to save Gotham, he will do it. Barbara (and us) both question the “another part.” He hangs up and the tanks reach the mall, where Harley and the crew arrive from the Boom Tube. Harley and Gordo exchange insults and she warns him that she has an alien army. Gordon says he refuses to back down, which he openly acknowledges is a toxic trait. Harley doubles down on her threats, which Gordo interprets as her overcompensating for something. She is upset that she keeps getting called out, and her army eventually enters through the Boom Tube, with Psycho riding a Parademon.
Credit: DC Universe
The battle for Gotham commences. Though Gordon’s tanks do some damage, the Parademons eventually overtake the tank army and start disseminating Gotham. Ivy arrives with Kite Man to the scene of the battle and is shocked at the chaos. People are being torn apart, the crew is hiding, and Gordon empties his clip to kill a Parademon before coming face-to-face with warlord Harley. Harls is about to kill Gordon until she is confronted by Ivy, who wants to understand what’s going on. Harley explains her part of the episode to fill Ivy in and reiterates that she is a crazy baddie and does whatever she wants and kisses whoever she wants. Ivy asks Quinn if this is what she wants and how she wants to go about conquering Gotham. Harley says not exactly, and Ivy follows up with asking her if this is what she really wants. The shot is framed beautifully as Ivy is center screen showing us exactly what Harley wants.
Harley looks at her, contemplates, then breaks the scepter, relinquishing her power of the army. She gives Gordon the city and walks away. Dr. Psycho is furious with the decision and is flung from this Parademon mount. He picks himself up and rage quits the crew. Gordon looks around, realizing he’s won (by default) and celebrates his decision to not back down.
Credit: DC Universe
Harley approaches Ivy to explain her “Game of Thrones Khaleesi thing” was a way to avoid talking about something. Just as she tells Ivy the truth, Kite Man interrupts the tender moment. He tells Harley how Ivy is the best fiance, which Ivy appreciates so much and confirms she wants to spend the rest of her life with Kite Man. Quinn is devastated, which the couple don’t see because they are kissing. Kite Man then sees some Parademons dry-humping a taco truck and goes to take a picture. Harley, not willing to tell the truth, comes up with the lie about wanting to plan for Ivy’s bachelorette party.
Can Harley keep it together and handle her emotions? Is Dr. Psycho gone for good? What will Ivy’s bachelorette party be like?
Stay tuned next week for another episode of Harley Quinn, available on DC Universe.
You look like you should eat a sandwich. Oh wait, you can't!
The word “hospitality” is derived from the Latin hospes, meaning “host” or “guest.” Likewise, the word hospes is formulated from hostis, meaning “stranger.” The Latin word ‘hospital’ refers to guest-lodgings or an inn. Why do we need this briefing on the etymology of the word? For one, not all guests are the most welcomed, but we, in general, have a tendency to be sympathetic to the plights of others, especially if they are a friend that’s fallen on hard times. It is in this seventh episode of this season of What We Do In The Shadows (FX) titled “The Return” that we realize that hostis also has one additional meaning: “enemy.”
We open up on the streets of Staten Island, as Laszlo (Matt Berry) and Nadja (Natasia Demetriou) saunter back from a date-night at the “talkies,” of which they care little for. Suddenly, a disembodied voice emerges, calling out to Laszlo and beckoning both down into the sewers. I mean, call me old fashioned, but usually, nothing good can come out of the sewers unless they are four ass-kicking Testudines headed by a rat with pearls of wisdom in his back pocket. Yet, because the magic word “please” was deployed, Laszlo and Nadja continue underground. After being lead down a few corridors, sorry, “shit pipes” as the couple so labels them, they arrive at the source of the voice- Simon the fucking Devious (Nick Kroll).
Back at the house, Colin (Mark Proksch) is utilizing the internet for his own thirsty whims. No, it’s not porn but it’s equally addictive. It’s trolling. He finds that through social media and a wireless connection, energy can be culled from different people staring at blue-light and seeing red. Though the energy harvested through Colin’s constant trolling isn’t as pure and uncut through a vis-à-vis, having enough accounts simultaneously opened can do the trick. He’s certainly on his goddamned game, too. “Jesus hates horses”, “Jason Mraz is just too weird for me” and “Childhood obesity? LMFO” are but a few of the gems he’s doled out. True, he’d forgotten one vowel in his last bon mot, but what he lacks in being hip he certainly makes up for in creativity insofar as going the incel route with “Women are getting too tall.”
Back in the sewers, behind the keys of a piano, seemingly playing it, Laszlo and Nadja are reintroduced to Count Rapula (Michael Dara) and Simon’s other flank, Carol (Christine Ebadi), a ghastly hissing bug-eyed vampire who looks like she was born from the very shit pipes she now resides in. So yeah, that’s basically the extent of Simon’s crew as the rest presumably perished in the night club explosion last season.
Simon turns off his Zune filled with piano music and we’re left questioning his intent. I mean, his honorific is “the Devious,” so is he truly down on his luck? For one, he looks relatively malnourished and does feel humbled and ashamed, going from being King of the Manhattan Vampires to living in the sewers of Staten Island. Nadja takes notice and offers Simon an invite to drop by the house to say hi to Nandor. Bad move.
At the house, Guillermo (Harvey Guillen) is immediately put off the table for the three guests. In Nandor’s (Kayvan Novak) words, he’s analogous to the last donut in a display case- nobody wants to eat him. Harsh words, though Carol has taken an interest in him nevertheless as he’s forced to show Carol his living arrangements.
The gang heads into the bowels of the house to find a spare coffin for Simon but instead runs into Vampire Elvis (Shawn Wayne Klush), who Laszlo turned back in the 1970s. It turns out the room they were going to put up their guests in is used from time to time as a recording studio for the King. Hey, the King of Manhattan is dead. Long live the King. Regardless, Simon seems very grateful for them even considering to be going through this trouble for him.
Nadja feels guilty but only because they are in this position because of Laszlo and his hexed headwear. He assures her that it’s lost to the aether, but we know better.
It seems as though outside of Simon, nobody is getting a win tonight. Colin becoming increasingly peeved, as a user is staving people off of his engagement of them and getting the stable of accounts suspended. They say “don’t feed the trolls” and this is really fucking up Colin’s supper time as this anonymous user has been watching War Games, telling others essentially the only winning move is not to play. This has Colin vexed, as now the hunter’s now become the prey.
Elsewhere in the abode, Laszlo’s hot on Simon’s trail. He knows that his guest maybe homeless and he maybe emaciated, but he ain’t a simpleton. And just at the moment of catching his rival red-handed, his cynism justified at the zenith of his pride… Bat eats Crow. As luck would have it, Simon was simply making a gesture of appreciation in the form of a bat sculpture formed from sewer trash because others had abandoned him and these guys didn’t. Turns out the only one standing alone right now is Laszlo.
Later, when the house is in a state of quietude with everyone nestled in their coffins, Guillermo gets a surprise visit from Carol. She knows what he is and confronts him about it. Slayer. Though denying it, he cannot deny the power of Carol’s his which sends him tumbling down the stairs. Colin hears it and is curious to check on him, but is simply roped back into his flame war with a human nerd.
Checking on the situation wouldn’t help anyway, as Carol is intent on outing the house Familiar. Not that he wants to, but when cornered, Guillermo can dispatch anyone in his path, as displayed by a wooden broomstick sticking to his hand like a magnet to its mate and like clockwork making short work of Carol, rendering her to a pile of dust. Just before he can make any sense of this, Master is right by his side and Guillermo has no reason to hide the truth about this one death on his hands… or technically, on the rug.
Nandor knows the severity of this and advises Guillermo not to tell a soul. This isn’t because of him trying to protect his Familiar but rather to protect his own image, as it would reflect back on him as a vampire, but on the bright side, should this come to light (hissss), it will be the first time a vampire is reflected on anything!
It’s now daylight and as Guillermo shamefully cleans his mess up, Colin is looking to make one. Though a little woozy due to lack of energy, the energy sucker continues on through Uber to Medford, Massachusetts, where through a series of hacks and backdoors, he was able to pinpoint a location. Oh, plus, his online nemesis actually sent him an address to get his ass handed at.
At the house, Simon has the temerity for calling a house meeting. Having a three-pronged approach to this, as he begins with a thank you to his hosts, informs them that Carol has left his side and questions Laszlo about his Witch Hat. Feeling vindicated in his suspicions, Laszlo goads Simon on by wearing it. Not standing for any of this Simon engages in a game of capture the flag. I guess the puckering of a witch’s anus on the back of your skull is totally worth the price of admission of having kept the hat… which Nadja does NOT like.
As dusk falls on the sleepy town of Medford, Colin has arrived at the currently closed cafe. Just about when he comes to his wits and aborts the mission due to its pettiness, he is invited to meet his online anal polyp in the alleyway. It turns out his troll is an actual… troll, swinging cudgel and all (and we ain’t talking about a club.) His name is Chunt (Michael-Misha Sinkovsky) and Colin’s been just as annoying to him, as the term “trolling” as an internet colloquialism is extremely offensive and he will let his vampire pain in the ass know.
Back in the sewers, what turns out to be a long night only gets longer. Simon lives up to his name, as he has remnants of his crew back, including Gunthrapal, Klaglad the Exsanguinator, Wesley Sykes, Impusa, the Freak Sisters (not related), Ken (the zombie of his former accountant) and three new additions: Neil, Patrick, and Harris. Oh, let’s not forget the traitorous Vampire Elvis. The one not joining the fray? Carol (may she R.est I.n the T.rash).
Elsewhere, Colin’s name had transformed into David as he slew the Goliath of an enemy (dude’s like 5 times his size!) with history about bridges, because, as if using Chunt’s race against him weren’t enough, he might be going on old stereotypes.
Simon reveals his true intent for coveting the hat- he wants what Laszlo and Nadja have which is happiness and love through settling. He reveals that his crew doesn’t satisfy him anymore and in a twisted sense of logic wants a new drug, one of which Laszlo possesses. Before that high can hit though, he’s immediately married to the curse, as he becomes one with the sewer, drowning in the waste of others. His crew won’t help him, as they feel betrayed. His name is Simon the Devious! Did nobody else put it into their mental bank before befriending him?!
As dawn approaches in the town of Medford, Colin’s victory is within his sights as trolls turn to stone with the sunlight. However, as any troll needs to get the last jab in, mere moments into his turning to stone, Chunt gets the last laugh as he grabs Colin, suspending him. He may not have won the war, but he won the battle and isn’t that what trolls ultimately care about?
Welcome to The 100, a series about…finding a place to live. Yep. That’s it. That’s the whole series in a nutshell. The details of that nutshell tend to vary a little from season to season, but overall the main mission never changes.
Why so desperate for a home? Well, turns out mankind had to hightail it to space round abouts 97 years ago because of a huge planet wide nuclear fallout. They’ve been waiting ever since to see if the Earth has become habitable again, and, unlike the pudgy baby-people in Wall-E, these humans didn’t have the resources of a billion-dollar conglomerate or the kindness of robots. The “Ark”, as it is aptly named, is a much darker version of our “let’s escape to outer space and wait out all our problems” fantasy. See, after nearly 100 years away food, air, and other supplies are running dangerously low causing the implementation of some pretty rough methods to keep the peace.
This actually leads to our premise, and the name of series. On the Ark criminals are “floated” – sent out into space to die – except for children. Children get volunteered for a special experiment. Go down to Earth and see how it is. If it’s bad, the kids die and that’s 100 less mouths to feed, if it’s good, then the rest of the Ark-folk can come on down and try to make a life of it.
Season One:
Image from http://the100fl.weebly.com/
Season one introduces us to most, if not all, of our main players. There’s Clarke Griffin (played by Eliza Taylor), daughter of the Ark’s doctor Abby (Paige Turco), Bellamy (Bob Morley) and Octavia (Marie Avgeropoulos) Blake, Jasper Jordan (Devon Bostick), Monty Green (Christopher Larkin), Raven Reyes (Lindsey Morgan), John Murphy (Richard Harmon), Marcus Kane (Henry Ian Cusick), and Thelonious Jaha (Isaiah Washington). For a show about an apocalypse they really don’t kill off main characters often or easily, and the ones they do kill off tend to have a HUGE impact (which is very satisfying).
Let’s cover the most important moments in the first season:
The 100 are sent down to see if Earth is habitable. It is! But…they are not alone. Aside from the new plants and animals that came out of the last 97 years, there are also people who survived the nuclear blasts from the past. These are the Grounders – clans who fight amongst themselves, and against the Reapers – a cannibalistic enemy of the grounders. There’s also the Mountain Men but we’ll get to them in season two! The Grounders are not a fan of the 100 and they have many confrontations throughout the season.
The 100’s mission is simple – land, make sure Earth doesn’t suck, and go to Mount Weather to gather supplies. They have bracelets on that let the Ark know if and when they die. Bellamy tries to convince the many that leaving the Ark behind completely is for the best. This makes sense since the Ark hasn’t exactly been kind to the Blakes (Octavia was an illegally born baby who spent her childhood terrified of being discovered, when she eventually was, their mother was floated, ouch!). I’d say leaving a bunch of teenagers on their own to accomplish a ridiculously important task is maybe the stupidest plan ever, unless you stop to consider all of these kids are technically criminals, which makes it officially the stupidest plan ever.
Luckily, Clarke, Wells (Jaha’s kid played by Eli Goree), Finn Collins (Thomas McDonell), and a few others are more inclined to do the right thing. Clarke and Bellamy are mainly enemies this season.
Finally, there’s the people on the Ark. They can’t stay up there. By the end of the season Kane, Abby, and Raven all make it down to Earth, with Jaha and the rest of the Ark crash landing soon after.
Season one does a good job of establishing some of the reoccurring themes in the series. There’s class warfare, between the 100 on Earth, the Grounders, the Reapers, and those up in the Ark. There’s choosing between the good of the many and the good of the few. There’s being part of a group vs being just for yourself. Then there’s one of the biggest themes throughout the series: redemption. How far can you go and still come back? How evil can you turn, and still have a chance of being good? It’s got a lot of basic themes that wind up being highly relatable despite its sci-fi trappings.
Season Two:
Image from http://the100fl.weebly.com/
Season two digs deeper into these themes, especially with the introduction of the Mountain Men. These are the humans that went underground to survive – they get their name from their base of operations: Mount Weather. We find out they have been poisoning Grounders and turning them into Reapers. They’ve also been capturing Grounders and experimenting on them in an effort to become immune to radiation. They get extra excited when it turns out Clarke and her friends’ bone marrow might be the key to going outside at long last.
Important events of Season two:
Clarke starts her habit of making the best of a bad situation. When Finn (Clarke’s main love interest for the first and second seasons) kills 18 Grounders and is sentenced to death as repayment by Grounder Commander Lexa (Alycia Debnam-Carey), Clarke stabs him to death to spare him torture. Later, when Bellamy and Raven have established radio communications from within Mount Weather, Clarke allows an entire peace committee to be killed in order to keep the communications a secret (Lexa talks to her into it, but still). And of course, a season-ending moment, Clarke kills ALL of the people in Mount Weather through radiation in order to save her people (47 of the original 100). She does this with Bellamy but is so racked with guilt she refuses to return to camp with him.
Octavia and Lincoln’s relationship grows and deepens. Lincoln (Ricky Whittle) is a Grounder the 100 captured back in Season one that Octavia took care of, and then naturally fell for. Octavia herself becomes a stronger more capable individual. Though she’s been reckless in the past, now she seems determined to show her big brother Bellamy that he no longer has to take care of her.
Meanwhile, back at “Camp Jaha” (later renamed “Arkadia”) the Ark survivors are trying to establish some kind of understanding with the Grounders so they can live in peace. Commander Lexa is open to negotiations. Welcome to the coalition, Sky people (aka Skaikru)!
Finally, another season-ending moment, Jaha and Murphy – who went off on some rando journey of their own earlier in the season – come upon a mansion. Surprise! Turns out an A.I. named A.L.I.E. (Erica Cerra, a great character actress who has appeared on other CW shows) destroyed the world, and because Jaha used a nuclear missile to get back to Earth, she’s planning on doing it again.
Season Three:
Image from https://telltaletv.com
Season three is tricky. On the one hand, the mythology that goes along with the Commander is fascinating and deserves high praise. On the other hand, the side plot about Jaha spreading Alie’s good word is fairly annoying if not downright boring at times.
Important moments in Season three:
Pike (Michael Beach) takes over as the leader of Arkadia. This isn’t great since Pike hate the Grounders and wants to destroy them. He kills Lincoln which leads to Octavia vowing blood for blood. Kane tries his best to undermine Pike and side with the Grounders. In the end Octavia gets her revenge, which is even sweeter because Pike really believes she’s forgiven him since she was fighting alongside him. This storyline really made me respect Octavia as a character, because if I were her, I would have killed that asshole too.
In Grounder news, there’s a contender for the throne. The Ice nation wants to overthrow Lexa, and while they kind of succeed (Lexa gets killed), their queen is murdered, and her son Prince Roan (Zach McGowan) actually becomes leader. Now, the most interesting part of this plotline is that it ties in with the whole Commander/Flame mythology.
The Commander is chosen by the Flame. The Flame is a bio-interface device that was developed by a scientist named Becca (she’s played by the same actress who plays A.L.I.E.) who, it turns out, was the first Commander. Becca also created the A.I. Alie, you know, the one who destroyed the human race way back when. She escaped, came to Earth, and tried to better mankind (we know how that goes). Somehow all this science got twisted into religion and we ended up with the Flame and the Flamekeeper. Basically, this device gets implanted into individuals who have the right conditions (black blood) and they are the undisputed leaders of the Ground clans. Sure, it’s a coalition at heart, but when push comes to shove, it’s the Commander who gets the last word.
The Commander plotline is also awesome because of how they choose a candidate. Obviously, you get tested for black blood, but once you have it, you’re trained to fight. Why? Because the only way to become Commander is a trial by combat that ends in death (the conclave). Mind you, most of the Commanders we have heard of or met, and the candidates, are female. Lady warriors abound in this series, and this is why. Don’t get me wrong, there have been references to male Commanders, so clearly some dudes get to carry the Flame, but most of them are ladies.
The last little bit I’ll say about this is the group of Grounders who dwell on a boat. They do this in order to get away from the conclave. They allow any nightbloods (a cool name, right?) that don’t want to fight to seek sanctuary. When Clarke and her crew come a knocking in hopes of finding a Commander, the leader, Luna (Nadia Hilker), says no thanks and sends them packing. It might fuck the other clans, but it saves her people, right? Mind you, the entire scene with Luna is amazing. She doesn’t reject the Flame because she can’t win, she rejects it because she knows she would win. She doesn’t want to kill others to gain power, it’s a pretty good message.
Lastly, we have the Alie storyline. Alie uses pills to lure people to her “City of Light”, a virtual reality that will upload their consciousness and store it digitally while the rest of the world sinks into nuclear oblivion (yes, again). With Jaha as her physical emissary, passing out pills to the unhappy masses, her success seems assured. Clarke, with the help of a blood transfusion, becomes a nightblood long enough to take the Flame and beat Alie in her own world. It’s great until Clarke learns that nuclear Armageddon is definitely on the way, and Alie was really just trying to help.
Season Four:
Image from https://www.tvguide.com
Season four starts with a ticking clock. Alie is destroyed, but nuclear winter is coming.
Important moments in season four:
There are three main attack ideas when it comes to the nukes. One: find a bunker and hunker down for the however many years it will take for the Earth to be safe again. Two: leave Earth and hunker down in outer space for the however many years it will take for Earth to be safe again. Three: make yourself a nightblood so you’re immune to radiation.
Clarke, and most of the other main teen characters opt for option three, with only Clarke succeeding and the others forced to take option two. Octavia, the Grounder clans, and the Arkadians are forced to take option one, once a bunker is discovered.
Since a lot of problems in this series seem to be solved through violence, this one isn’t much different. The newly discovered bunker can only house 1200 people so the Grounder thing to do would be to fight for it. Luna (pissed off because someone she loved was killed) decides if she wins the conclave no one gets the bunker. Octavia has one of her many kick-ass moments and beats Luna, giving each of the clans a chance to pick 100 of their people for the bunker, but it turns out Skaikru is a dick and took the bunker while everyone was fighting. This gets resolved, and a lottery is used to pick the 1200 people.
Meanwhile, Raven learns that Becca was creating nightblood on the Ark. She suggests they go up and make more so their people can become immune to radiation. This plan kind of succeeds. Mostly, that Raven, Bellamy, Murphy and a bunch of others get a rocket to work and jet out to space before being killed, and Clarke is successfully made a nightblood and survives the wave after missing the rocket.
This season ends with us discovering Clarke made it, has a friend, and a ship is landing.
Season Five:
Image from https://collider.com
Season five isn’t one of my favorites. To be fair, if this series had been a one season series I think I would have been OK with that, but I felt by season four they were really stretching things. Either way, the story continues post Clarke’s survival.
Important moments in season five:
Clarke isn’t the only surviving nightblood – she’s got a kid buddy named Madi (Lola Flanery). She’ll die and kill for this kid (it’s Clarke, that’s pretty much the only way she knows how to love someone), and she does kill some folks this season in defense of her “daughter”.
Octavia becomes the leader of the bunker people, renaming them Wonkru and killing anyone who disagrees with her. Her management style is…very bloody to say the least. What I like most about Octavia vs Clarke is that Clarke will do the hard thing for the right reason (or what she perceives as the right reason) but feel horrible about having to do it, while Octavia will do the hard thing for the right reason (or what she tells herself is the right reason) and then lock down any negative emotions about it. It makes her an interesting character and a kind of polar opposite to Clarke.
Here are two extremely strong, complex, women forced to make brutal life and death choices throughout their teenage years. One is a reluctant queen of sorts, taking the hit when she has to but trying her best to get around death if she can. The other is a blood queen – literally, that’s the name she gets from the Grounders – willing to solve any problem in the simplest way if it will solve the problem quickly. Let’s also not forget that Octavia fully embraces the ways of the Grounders, and theirs is a society built on brawn. Her actions throughout the series (once she really joins the Grounders at least) can be largely attributed to her adaptation to their culture. She understands that they only understand violence, so violence becomes her go-to. It’s a pretty nifty character study if you think about it. Aside from her burning the garden and forcing her people into war, I don’t see a lot of Octavia’s moves as leader being too terrible (yes, that includes the trials by combat to deal with infractions and as a means of population control, and the cannibalism that inevitably happens).
Anyway, getting off that tangent, we also have the prison ship that lands. I don’t really give a shit about this plot point because, as I’ve said, this season’s turn of events is hardly my favorite. Essentially, six years after the end of season four, there’s only one spot on Earth that’s doing well. Clarke and her nightblood kid-sister are already living there when the prison ship lands, claiming it for themselves. Once Wonkru is introduced into the mix all hell breaks loose.
The end of this season is not too different from the end of the last season except that everyone chooses the go up into space option this time. A lot of the prisoners are killed, but not all of them, and everyone except Monty and his girlfriend Harper enter hyper-sleep in order to let the Earth recover. When Clarke and Bellamy get woken up by Monty and Harper’s kid Jordan (Shannon Kook) we learn that 125 years have gone by, Earth is fucked, and Monty found another planet for them to live on then set course before he died. Uh…so did Monty live to 100? The timeline is super tricky unless his kid got put into hyper-sleep too (which, according to a recap I watched on YouTube, he did).
Season Six:
Image from https://www.rottentomatoes.com
Season six, otherwise known as the “Get Out” season, is crazy trippy. It goes in some out-there directions, seeming to abandon the usual “us vs. them” structure of the show in the beginning, only to be extremely “us vs them” by the end.
Important moments in season six:
Ah remember the Flame? Yeah…the whole idea of it is taken into new territory this season. Through a series of flashbacks, we discover that Earthlings colonized this stupid planet already. Hello Sanctum. They had a scientist named Gabriel who created a device called a “mind-drive”. It allows a person to upload their consciousness into the drive, then download themselves into another person’s body so long as the host is of a certain age. Once the uploaded consciousness is downloaded into the host, the original consciousness is effectively destroyed. This process (a LOT like Get Out if you ask me) allowed the first inhabitants of this planet to keep living forever. They would just take new hosts. The catch? Only nightbloods can be hosts. Poor nightbloods man…they can’t catch a break.
The leaders of Sanctum are the Primes – not very subtle here, Prime means first. They figured out a way to brainwash their followers into believing they are gods and when they take someone to body-snatch there’s a whole fun ceremony around it. Which, honestly, is clever. Why scare them? Why make them feel like the sacrificial lambs they are? No, better to soothe them with mythology and the idea of a higher purpose. You get a “naming day” and you get to “become one with the primes”, oooo! Sounds a lot better than, you get to be erased while your body is handed off to someone else. If this isn’t a nod to religion, I don’t know what is.
Though it is interesting to note how these two religions compare (three if you count the Children of Gabriel). The Flame is considered an honor that is hard-won, you have to kill to get it. And you don’t lose yourself. Lexa explained to Clarke waaaaay back that the Flame allows a Commander to talk with past Commanders – to get advice (kind of like that whole reincarnation thing in The Last Airbender where Ang could commune with the Avatars of the past on the spiritual plane), or, in poor Madi’s case, get harassed (thanks a lot, Dark Commander).
Meanwhile, becoming one with the Primes requires nothing more than good genes (or bad, depending on how you look at it). It is still considered an honor, but it isn’t hard-won by any means, and you don’t get to keep yourself. Unless you’re Clarke, because that girl is a walking deus ex machina.
The Children of Gabriel believe that death is natural. They don’t like the Primes for corrupting the natural order, and they are very pro-killing to get their point across. Man…for being the more evil of these three religions, the Prime religion is the least violent!
Second big moment of season six would have to be the storyline involving Octavia and Charmaine Diyoza (Ivana Milicevic) on their respective roads to redemption. Now, Octavia is Blodreina, so you know she’s got a lot to make up for, but, since I didn’t identify any of them by name, Diyoza is one of the prison ship people. She’s pregnant. She ultimately just wants her baby to be allowed to live in Sanctum, even if she can’t (because apparently back in the day she was just horrible). The Primes promise her if she kills Gabriel her baby gets sanctuary. She eventually meets up with Octavia, who got banished.
Why was Octavia banished? Oh right, cause she has zero interest in being redeemed. She’s resigned herself to being a murderer only good for murdering, and her first order of business is to kill whoever gets in her way. While this helps the 100 not get killed by the Children of Gabriel, it does cause Bellamy to kick her out of the group for being a bit much. Initially, she’s pissed and hates him, but, once she meets up with Diyoza, it works out because, again, it’s a killing mission. It turns out to be much more than that for her though. They do find Gabriel (Chuku Modu), but they don’t kill him. Octavia realizes, after almost dying (for the umpteenth time), that she too can find redemption. Yay! Right? Kind of, but we’ll get back to that.
Last thing to really note about season six is the setup for our upcoming season seven. First there’s Madi and the Dark Commander (called Sheidheda, played by Dakota Daulby). Raven and friends are successful in deleting the Dark Commander from Madi’s Flame, but before he can be deleted from the computer, he uploads himself to somewhere else. Where? How? Not important. There’s a good chance we’ll deal with this in season seven. Second: Jordan and possibly others who believed in the Primes thanks to drinking their blood (not sure if it actually is blood, but it is effective at the very least), could still be Prime worshippers. Third: Octavia’s back and the time anomalies.
So, Alpha has temporal anomalies that occur. No one knows why no one knows what they are. Gabriel has been studying them to no avail, but when Octavia and Diyoza ran into the time anomaly, and only Octavia came out, she got some new marks on her back. Once Gabriel sees them he brings her and her friends to a stone he’s been trying to figure out. The markings on the stone match those on her back and boom – set up for season seven – Diyoza’s daughter, Hope (Shelby Flannery), all grown-up, shows up and stabs Octavia, but before Bellamy can help her she disappears into green dust. Did she die!? Will she survive!?
Speaking of the dead, season six marked the deaths of some pretty big regulars. Kane and Abby specifically; Monty also died though he was one of the rare “of natural causes” death on this show. Poor Clarke, her mom did everything she could to save Kane, but in the end, he couldn’t live with the means, and she had to float her own mother (though to be fair, her mother was already dead, having been body-snatched by one of the Primes).
Where will it go from here?
Do you see why I’m glad this show is ending? Don’t get me wrong, I love this show, but it’s getting long in the tooth. I’ve always said the perfect number of seasons for any show is five, seven tops, and since the upcoming last one is number seven, I’m relieved.
Predictions for the next season? I personally don’t have any. If we’re throwing time travel into the mix then anything is possible. Characters who died way back in season one could find a reason to show up.
I’m looking forward to seeing how this all ends, and who makes it. Murphy has been one of the biggest surprises of the show (you want a redemption arch character that isn’t Octavia, look no further). I really thought he would have been long dead by now, but damn…that kid is tenacious! Will he survive the last season? Especially now that he’s immortal (thanks mind-drive!)?
The 100 Returns for its Seventh and Final Season on Wednesday, May 20, 2020 on The CW.
‘Umbrella Academy’ Season 2, is set to debut July 31st
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsigH18Brs0
In a surprise announcement, the Netflix acclaimed hit had the cast reenact their infamous dancing scene, all for a special confirmation that Season 2 will debut in July of this Summer. For those out of the loop, we reviewed the superheroic first season last year along with produced one of our first episodes of TheWorkprint podcast’s TV talk.
Based on the hit Dark Horse Comic by My Chemical Romance frontman, Gerard Way, and illustrated by Gabriel Bá, The Umbrella Academy was one of the highest-ranked and most-watched series throughout all of 2019. It is, the show stars a dysfunctional family of misfit superheroes, not unlike and very much inspired by the DC Universe’s Doom Patrol, who were all inexplicably born on the same day in 1989. Each member and case, born to random women, who weren’t pregnant up until that glorifying moment when they were immaculately conceived. Afterward, the children are adopted by a mysterious Billionaire, who upon realizing their unique abilities at birth, forms the superhero fighting force of children: The Umbrella Academy, all in efforts to save the world. A bizarre superheroic tale that’s more character case study than actual bouts against villainy, season one saw the family reunited after the passing of their benefactor, Reginald Hargreeves, as they worked through their dysfunction, but more importantly, tried to stop an incoming apocalypse.
Utilizing more than its fair share of unique plot devices, including time travel, forbidden romance, know-it-all know-nothings, de-aging, martian gorillas, mind control, tentacled ghost monsters, and synesthesia sounds that can alter reality – the show is to be frank: unique in its delivery. The series is also frontrunner by acclaimed Hollywood savant Steve Blackman, whose works in the industry thus far include major hits such as: Fargo, Legion, Altered Carbon, and of course: The Umbrella Academy. What’s also surprising and fantastic is the show’s taste for music, with a soundtrack filled with selections picked by Gerard Way himself.
