Thoughts from the Professor

Grab your seats, class is in session.

Hey gang. Professor checking in. Been away for a bit, not entirely ready to start posting full-time again just yet, but I have a ton of things floating through my head so I figured I’d share some of my feelings on some things lately.

Daredevil

I had to start with Daredevil for this one simple reason: it’s the best thing I have seen this year. I have watched this single season show four times already and fully plan on watching it through again. If you consider everything Marvel has put together over the last seven years, and rank them in order, the Daredevil Netflix show is probably in my top two, definitely my top three. There was not a single beat missed with this show. From the story to the casting to the acting to the cinematography, you name it. It was all on point. I absolutely want season two to be available already and am now very much looking forward to see how things turn out now with AKA Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, and Iron Fist.

Age of Ultron

I can’t post something and not start with the latest release in the Marvel cinematic universe. There was some fear going into this movie as a few of the reviews I had been reading did not love it the way I thought people would. Fortunately, I ignore those reviews and I went to see the movie anyway. Best decision I made. All three times so far. While yes, Age of Ultron had some issues and had some things I would have liked to have seen differently, this was by far one of the best Marvel movies they have made. Easily in my top three. Without going into a full-blown review, just know that this movie had everything it needed: good characters, great action, and continued this fantastic story that the Marvel movies are telling us. I can not wait til AntMan later this year and Captain America 3 next year to see where this all goes next.

Arrow/The Flash

If you take Daredevil off the board, you have to give DC the nod when it comes to their television programming. While Agents of Shield has gotten tremendously better over the last year, Arrow and The Flash continue to put out amazing seasons. As someone who is really a Marvel fan over DC, this is a lot for me to say, but the writing on these two shows is fantastic, the acting has gotten much, much better over time, and even the crossover events they use to play each show off each other are done incredibly well. The shows are killing it and really deserve your attention. Alas, while I give DC the props for putting out these great shows, I also have to blast them for making the biggest mistake they could make at the same time. For whatever reason, DC has decided that their television shows and movies are entirely different worlds, and never the two shall meet. This could not be a larger mistake to make and I will never understand why they do it. One of the things that makes Marvel so successful right now is keeping the whole world together and being able to have both interact with each other. It’s keeps cohesion and kills confusion. You don’t have to spend time wondering why there are two versions of the exact same character and why they don’t seem to know the other exists. I truly believe this will hurt DC in the long run.

The Joker in the Suicide Squad

I’ll keep this one brief as it’s really just my opinion. Recently we posted some pictures of the Joker from the upcoming Suicide Squad movie. In these pictures we saw what the Joker is really going to look like in the movie, and honestly, I think it looks awful. The facial tattoos, the bright neon hair…it just looks silly. One of the things that made Ledger’s Joker so fantastic was the look. It wasn’t completely over the top. It didn’t try to scream “HEY I’M CRAZY! LOOK! LOOK I’M CRAZY!” It was subdued. While I’m willing to wait and give it a chance anyway, I’m not holding hope that it will be a decent portrayal.

Supergirl

I’ll close out these ramblings with my thoughts on this Supergirl pilot. I was able to view the “leaked” episode (no, like most people I don’t believe this was an accident) and was slightly disappointed. While I liked most of the actors, including the main star, I think the writing on the show is going to need some serious revamping. The first episode spends more time telling you “You don’t think she can do it because she’s a girl” that it takes away from everything else. While I understand the need for strong superheroine role models, and can appreciate bringing them to life, you don’t need to spend the episode shoving the fact the she is indeed a woman down our throats. At least three or four times, the viewer is told someone on screen thinks she’s “just a girl” and can’t do what the boys can do. Um. It’s Supergirl. You’ve already explained to us that she’s Superman’s cousin and that she has the same powers he does. That means we all know she’s a bad ass and that she can do pretty much anything. Stop worrying that people don’t think she can and let the character stand for itself. She will, trust me. Also, try doing away with ALL the stereotypical things we see in other shows, like the aging boss who thinks she’s hot, treats everyone like dirt, and is only in it for the money. Don’t give us the friend that she completely trusts enough to tell her secret too who is also secretly madly in love with her, even though she has no idea he is. I spent a good portion of the episode waiting for the arrogant, brash guy who covers sports at the paper she works at to constantly be hitting on her too. Hopefully part of the reasoning behind this “leak” was to judge the reaction to the show so some changes can be made, otherwise this show may go the way of Constantine.

That’s all I have for now. I’ll be trying to get back into things more frequently for y’all soon as I can.

Until next time…

Class dismissed.