2. Star Wars: Skeleton Crew - This is a cute show, but I fully admit that I'm only here for Jude Law. I LOVE JUDE LAW. I thought that maybe he wasn't going to be in it very much and that they were just using his name to advertise, but he's in a lot of it - and it's one of the main plot points to figure out if he's good or bad, if he lied about being a jedi, etc. He's also very funny in this ("you know what, just shoot me" lol). I also like Kerry Condon (not sure why they didn't just let her keep her accent though? The hints of her Irish accent in every piece of dialogue is hard to ignore). You don't really have to know much about the Star Wars universe either, although it will obviously help. But it feels more of a Stand by Me, Super 8, Goonies vibe that I definitely dig. I can't help but wish that the child actors were better actors though. I was hoping that the little girl from the Firestarter remake just had the bad luck of being in a bad movie, but she's really terrible in this too. I also think that it gets a little boring and repetitive about 1/2 way through - I almost gave up on it, but decided to watch it as background noise while I cleaned my house. I think my husband would have liked this way more than I did, but he refused to watch it. He's done with the whole "universe" of certain franchises (Star Wars, Marvel, etc.). It's too much, and I get it.
3. Laid - I like this show, but I hate the actress from Girls so much that she almost made me hate this show. But first, the good stuff! I'm here for Stephanie Hsu!! I love her so much - she's so adorable and funny, and the perfect lead for a show like this. The character is not exactly likeable, but we still do like her because we like Stephanie. I love the opening credits song - a cover of the song "Laid", which is one of my favorite songs ever (I was a teenager in the 90s! It can't be helped.). The concept reminds me of that movie What's Your Number?, but A LOT darker, with her having to track down all the people she slept with to tell them that they are going to die. It's very funny with a lot of fast-moving, quippy dialogue (my favorite was the jab about Ruth's Chris because that is such a weird name for a restaurant. It's never made sense to me...does Ruth own Chris? And the fight about Malignant had my DYING). But....about the bad stuff: I think it's a little too pop-cultural focused - it's going to feel very dated, very quickly. And they do make the main character a little too morally reprehensible - *spoilers ahead* sleeping with your best friend's boyfriend??? That's unforgivable. As for the actress from Girls, I didn't hate her going into this show. I hated the show Girls immensely (I only made it through the first season), but some of the other actors have won me over - I actually love both Allison Williams and Jemima Kirke, and I sometimes like Adam Driver. So I was hopeful that Zosia would win me over, too. But she's horrendous in this - she gets a lot of the funny dialogue, which is a shame because she couldn't get the line delivery right for ANY of them! It's always a beat or two off and it drove me insane. She just becomes this super annoying, super grating character. If it weren't for Stephanie, I probably would have stopped watching this because of Zosia. But if you can get past her, then this is a super cute, and darkly funny show.
4. Apple Cider Vinegar - I hesitated watching this show about the falsehoods of health gurus and natural remedies because the title Apple Cider Vinegar implies that ACV doesn't have health benefits and if that's what this show is going to try to tell me then I'm going to be mad. I use ACV regularly for my scalp and health of my hair and I have GREAT hair. It's like my best attribute. And, let me tell you, I've gone full natural remedies on a ton of shit. I use peppermint oil to reduce my headaches (it works!), frankincense oil for arthritis in my collarbone (it works!), magnesium powder for my leg pain (it works!), and I'm now getting really into turmeric - I've been drinking turmeric & carrot juice and using turmeric body lotion, and I feel GREAT. ANYWAY, I'm happy that the show isn't actually about apple cider vinegar at all (I don't even think it's mentioned??), and is instead about these two influencer women who promote wellness gimmicks as a cure for cancer, which is far more serious than I was expecting. One is a compulsive liar who knowingly deceived her followers and FAKED having CANCER (and it's based on a TRUE STORY that I wasn't aware of because I don't follow influencer garbage), while the other is a fictional character who actually does have cancer, does a "hippy-dippy" treatment that she believes cures her, and writes a book about it. The series switches back and forth between these two - their lives intersecting at different points, even unknowingly spurring the other to go "further in their journey". It's all very interesting, but not because of these actual characters, but because of the millions of people who buy into this shit. "Wellness" has become a billion dollar industry, but to pray on cancer patients is the line that shouldn't be crossed. The unfortunate thing is that this a biproduct of the medical profession becoming more focused on pharmaceuticals than patient care. Like, I don't blame someone at all for looking at other options to help their health. The sad thing is that both "wellness" and "medicine" can live together harmoniously if doctors actually cared about patient health. There are a lot of benefits to natural remedies, but it's so hard to get a doctor to admit that, while they just push whatever prescription drug will put money in their pocket. And it's not even just an American epidemic (this story actually takes place in Australia). I also think that it's up to an individual to do their own research - and not just listen to whoever is popular on Instagram that week. Anyway, those are my thoughts on the ideas behind the show, but as far as the actual show goes - I think it's done really well. I love Kaitlyn Dever SO MUCH, and let me tell you - that Australian accent is fucking perfect. I *knew* that she wasn't Australian, but it's so convincing that I actually double-checked to be sure! And I also really like the girl from Fear the Walking Dead (sorry, I'm being too lazy to look up her name), but she's fantastic in this. I think it does a really good job at taking down the industry, while also telling the story from multiple angles. It kind of reminds me of that movie that came out a few years ago called Not Okay about the girl who faked being a survivor of a terrorist attack. This very real sickness of needing to be Instagram famous and living a fake life "online" so that people follow you, like you, want to be you, etc., even though none of it is real is going to keep getting worse - you just have to disconnect from it and find peace for yourself and be happy in your own life.
5. Paradise - *spoilers* Okay, so I *knew* from the very first shot of the the suburban area that he was living in some sort of simulation or something (it's all very Truman Show-esque), but it's still interesting watching it all unfold. I heard that there was a "crazy twist" in the first episode, but I don't know - I think if you were paying attention, you would have guessed what was happening before it's revealed that they are in an underground bunker type place after an apocalyptic event (more like Greenland). I think there's a much bigger twist in episode 3 (or maybe it was 4?), in which the true nature of one of the characters is revealed ("You better make sure it's the biggest motherfucker you've got". LOL, what a GREAT reveal). I love Sterling K. Brown so fucking much - he just oozes charisma, plus he's so fucking funny and genuine. I'm also a big fan of James Marsden (especially after Jury Duty) and Julianne Nicholson. And the woman from For All Mankind!! I love her! Then Enuka Okuma shows up?!!! I haven't seen her since Rookie Blue! Overall, it's just a great cast (the weak links are probably the kids - especially the kid playing the president's son). There is also an incredible soundtrack - each episode focuses on a song (mostly from the 80s, I think?), and the song is played in the beginning and notes of it throughout and then there is a slowed-down dramatic version of the song at the end (usually when a twist is being revealed). "We Built This City" is probably the best one - because it goes so perfectly with the theme of the show, and I really loved the cover of it that is featured. I also just like that it's got a strong original premise, mixes in a really interesting mystery of "who killed the president?" mixed with "how did they all get here?", but it's all still very character focused. The penultimate episode that reveals the natural disaster and how the world reacts is terrific. They built the suspense for it so well. Overall, I really fun, twisty show - it feels like those old-school "water cooler" shows.
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