Category: Television: U.S.A.

Trisha’s Take: Marvel’s Luke Cage

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(c) Marvel Television/Netflix
(c) Marvel Television/Netflix


Created by Cheo Hodari Coker
Directed by Paul McGuigan (Eps. 1 & 2), Guillermo Navarro (Ep. 3)
Written by Cheo Hodari Coker (Eps. 1 & 2), Matt Owens (Ep. 3)
Starring Mike Colter, Simone Missick, Mahershala Ali, Alfre Woodard
Also Starring and/or Featuring Theo Rossi, Frank Whaley, Jade Wu, Frankie Faison

If there’s something I know about myself it’s that if I am really hooked into a show, I am not going to let anything silly like self-imposed deadlines and restraints keep me from watching as much or as little of it as I like. This explains why I watched all of the excellent and riveting first season of Jessica Jones series almost straight through and then took forever to finish the second season of Daredevil, finally throwing in the towel 26 minutes into the last episode because the story and all the characters annoyed me so much.

My friend Kara Dennison likes to give everything she watches three episodes to capture her eye. I decided to do the same with the latest entry in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Marvel’s Luke Cage; judging from my reaction to the last bit of “Who’s Going to Take the Weight?”, I think I’m going to have to plow right through the rest of the episodes today and tomorrow. Note: Oh yes, there will be spoilers for these first three episodes.

Introduced as private investigator Jessica Jones’ stalkee-fixation, then revealed to be a nigh-invulnerable powerhouse of his own as well as a tragic figure, creator Cheo Hodari Coker has moved Luke Cage from midtown Manhattan to black (and gentrifying) Harlem, and populated it with a host of characters who rarely get screen time in such a mainstream production. I lived in Harlem for about six months back when I was an assistant to a luxury real estate broker and seeing its streets and its people engendered both a feeling of nostalgia as well as a feeling that I had never really been part of Harlem.

But Hodari Coker (who also co-wrote the 2009 biopic Notorious about the life and death of rapper Notorious B.I.G.) is familiar with these streets, these people, its struggles, and its dichotomies. This is most evident in the writing of cousins Councilwoman Mariah Dillard and nightclub owner/gangster Cornell “Cottonmouth” Stokes, played by Alfre Woodard and Mahershala Ali respectively. The former is a person who believes that Harlem can begin a new Renaissance and return to its glory, the latter is one who believes that Harlem should retain its status quo where people like him run the show. And yet, both of them are tied to each other, connected by both family and a money laundering scheme because they know and recognize that both of their goals are nigh-impossible to achieve without a little cheating of the system.

In these first three episodes, Luke Cage (Mike Colter) stands outside of that system. After his destructive rampage in the latter episodes of Jones, he’s become a fugitive, working under the table as a dishwasher at Cottonmouth’s club and in a barbershop run by a former hoodlum named Pop who claims that his barbershop is “Switzerland” for the feuding gang and street elements of Harlem. Of course, one can’t make a claim like that in a hero’s journey story and so Pop gets gunned down by accident in Episode 2, prompting Cage to re-enter the world and to embody perhaps a third point of view when it comes to Harlem’s destiny.

I find that I like all of these characters and I want to find out more about how they will fit into the new landscape which Luke Cage is creating for the MCU Harlem. I like how Detective Misty Knight (Simone Messick) has a Sherlock-ian kind of “mind palace” where she can visualize how a crime scene actually happened just by having been there and viewing the photographs. I like how Cage’s Chinese landlord Connie (Jade Wu) speaks almost perfect English because her husband’s family (and she) have been Harlem residents for years and are also part of its community. This wouldn’t be the case if the wrong actors had been cast, and everyone in this series (so far) seems to be perfect for their parts.

This is a story that I’m really excited to continue watching despite some rather stupid blunders in the second episode (secrets shouldn’t be shouted about in the middle of your shop in the daytime, Pop!). I hope that I don’t get disappointed.

Around the Water Cooler: Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “T.R.A.C.K.S.” (spoilers!)

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This is the face of someone who is going to eviscerate you via your nostrils. © ABC/Marvel Studios
This is the face of someone who is going to eviscerate you via your nostrils. © ABC/Marvel Studios

It’s less than a week until Christmas, so let’s dive into another episode of Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., fresh off of my Netflix streaming queue:

  • And now, we’re kicking it “mystery on a train”-style. Because it wasn’t enough for Joss Whedon to have one episode of a tight-knit ensemble TV series set on a train, right?
  • I love the way May casually reveals to Ward that she told Coulson about their affair, especially when how she revealed it in the previous episode wasn’t so casual. And from his reaction, it’s almost like he wanted to either be found out a different way or that he was upset that she told Coulson first without consulting him.
  • Gyah, I love Fitz’ fake American accent. Knowing how the entertainment industry works, I’m not surprised that a Scottish actor like Iain De Caestecker would have an American accent in his back pocket. And it makes sense from a character perspective that Skye would not have a similar Scottish accent in her arsenal; here’s hoping the same isn’t for Chloe Bennet.
  • I had to turn the subtitles on for the beginning of the next scene because I wasn’t sure at first what Fitz was upset about. But then I realized that he was upset that he couldn’t “show off” in front of his crush and that Skye’s getting more Operations-savvy rather than Tech-savvy. Her comment about him building things with his hands isn’t the soother that she thinks it is. I gather that his outing with Ward gave him a real confidence boost in his abilities as an Agent, but to be busted back down to being the “gadget guy” in her eyes could be seen as being real condescending.
  • Yeah… love that Stan Lee cameo. But you have to admit that it was very jarring (no pun intended) to have it happen, and then the diversion. It’s almost as if they were diverting us from the diversion.
  • I think I rather like how they played a little bit with time to show how things happened from Coulson’s perspective, then from Ward’s. Also, I wonder if May’s the one who hot-wired the truck, maybe. But I don’t know why she would have left it there.
  • Oh, Ward… this is why Ops and Tech need to be better friends and learn how to do things that the other divisions know how to do.
  • “If it’s really just sex, Ward, you should really get comfortable using the word.” Aw, yeah, Papa Coulson.
  • I’m not sure if I’ve said this before, but I think I love how in their “no benefits” relationship, Ward is really not getting any benefits at all. I believe that Coulson’s comment about combat ops was meant to reassure May that he didn’t mean for them to get involved in this kind of sticky situation, the kind that earned her the nickname “the Cavalry.” It was a great moment between two veterans, and then Ward came into the infirmary and made it seem like less than that. He’s being pouty and sulky, and it makes him just a little more likable.
  • I rewound the fight scene in the baggage car three or four times and I still can’t figure out if the assailant grabbed Simmons or if she grabbed him to try and shield her team from the grenade. If the latter, my respect for her has gone up trillions.
  • My heart was pounding really loudly while Skye was going down the stairs. Great job of establishing that atmosphere. However, she split the party and didn’t wait for backup, so that’s negative points for her.
  • And now I’m wondering if Quinn’s got an eye-cam as well. That would kind of make some sort of sense. But what I don’t understand is why the whole deal went south.
  • Ah, I see the stinger is for hardcore comics fans and people like me who like looking stuff up after the show’s over. Nice.

Unlike last week, I really want to know what happens next, especially given that we know that Coulson was brought back to life by S.H.I.E.L.D.’s technologies.

Around the Water Cooler: Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “Seeds” (spoilers!)

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The kids from Pacific Tech only wish they had an underground club this cool. © Marvel Studios/ABC
The kids from Pacific Tech only wish they had an underground club this cool. © Marvel Studios/ABC

Once again, it’s time to check in with Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., thanks to the kind folks at Netflix.

  • For a second there, I thought the girl they were calling “Callie” was actually Skye. Perhaps this means there are too many brunette or darker haired women on this show.
  • Yay! An episode set at S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy! Or at least one of the Academies. Makes sense that there’s a huge rivalry between the Sci-Tech and Operations divisions. And yet I wonder why more emphasis or respect isn’t placed on Communications or Data Analysis. Ops can’t do stuff without analysis. Sci-Tech may not know how the data they’re collecting meshes with everything else. I also wonder if the Academies promote these rivalries.
  • Of course it makes sense that a Sci-Tech-driven investigation isn’t going to turn up the culprits. What else would Ward and Skye have to do in this episode? And given what happens in Winter Soldier, and this episode originally aired two months prior to that film’s release, it nicely sets up the fact that there are whole parts of S.H.I.E.L.D. which don’t know what the other parts are doing.
  • At first I thought that the guy in the car on the phone was the same person as the partner of the dead Agent who dropped Skye off. This is what happens when you cast too many people who look alike. Let’s get some diversity in here, people! Am I really the only person who is having this problem?
  • “These aren’t my big ideas.” Oh, why did I feel a sudden frisson of unease when he said that? (I’m very proud that I didn’t say I felt a chill— dammit!)
  • Okay, I’m not sure what May and Coulson’s plan is here. They know that someone in Mexico took a selfie and S.H.I.E.L.D.’s facial recognition software pinged it as being their man. They know where the picture was taken. Are they really going to do a stakeout on the shop and hope that he randomly walks by there again? Or has he been seen elsewhere in the town and they aren’t conveying that information to us well?
  • “I’m tired of secrets. I’m glad we’re here. We need to root out all the secrets.” Oh, I cannot wait until I start seeing the post-Winter Soldier episodes. Break the Cutie, indeed.
  • Yes, Coulson is a cutie. At least in this context.
  • Aw, and magical Skye (whose “power” we don’t know of yet) makes Coulson all better again. In a way, I’m glad that he was the one to deliver those lines because if they’d come out of Skye, I think I might have thrown something at my computer screen.

Onward to the second half of the show!

Around the Water Cooler: Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “The Magical Place” (spoilers!)

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And yet, he still didn't reveal a thing © ABC/Marvel Studios/Netflix
And yet, he still didn’t reveal a thing © ABC/Marvel Studios/Netflix

You have no idea how freaking happy I am that Netflix is streaming the entirety of the first season of “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” right now. I was afraid that due to living in a cord-cutter household and being on a very tight budget, I wouldn’t be able to justify spending the money to get the series on iTunes. And I couldn’t justify the ongoing cost of a Hulu Plus membership either. But now I can at least watch the whole first season and get caught up, so let’s pretend that an entire season and a bit hasn’t gone by, okay?

  • Again, the “Previously on” is well-edited and after seeing it, I feel the same sense of satisfaction and excitement I did almost a year ago when I stopped watching the show.
  • And let’s talk about May saying that “Fitzsimmons” was up. I’m not sure what to make of Fitz’s newfound steely-eyed nature when using his scanner drones as weaponry. Simmons’ dismay at the same thing is also a very nice character point for her.
  • Victoria Hand is back! Thanks to a friend on Facebook, I now know why so many Marvel fen squealed in excitement when she showed up in “The Hub.” And now, I’m appropriately excited, too.
  • I’m going to make a prediction that the reason why May answered “No” when she was asked if Skye would be an asset on the plane is that she knows that Skye works best when she’s not surrounded by the type of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who are currently with Hand on the plane.
  • Aww, I love how this team has bonded, even to the point of where they’re willing to bend a few rules in order to let Skye have her shot at finding Coulson.
  • Some points of order and questions regarding Skye’s escape sequence: 1) All of that? Took longer than 12 minutes. 2) I forget the reason why she can’t just take the bracelet off. Is it connected to her somehow? Is there a magnetized chip embedded in her skin under it, keeping it in place? 3) Why did she need the jacket? 4) Wouldn’t a newspaper have more recent intelligence on whose vehicle she could steal? 5) Why didn’t the air bags deploy in the SUV?
  • Ugh, and now I remember why I have a love/hate relationship with this show.
  • Aha, so that’s why she needed the jacket. And I love how the mark isn’t exactly dumb either, triggering the silent alarm like that.
  • “No single agent is that important.” “Coulson is.” I think I love this conversation because it reveals a lot about how segmented S.H.I.E.L.D. itself is and how—spoilers for Captain America: The Winter Soldier—HYDRA was able to infiltrate it so deeply.
  • Boom. I love it when I’m right about characters in general, and Melinda May in particular.
  • It makes sense that Raina’s power (if we’re calling it that, and why not?) is that of persuasion. How else could she get reasonable people to agree to become Centipede’s playthings?
  • Ron Glass! I’m glad that he’s back and that his character wasn’t in this just for the pilot.
  • Why am I not surprised that S.H.I.E.L.D. has 3D brain matter printers? Also, is this the MCU version of a Life Model Decoy? If so, that’s pretty rad.
  • No lie; my heart was racing during the entire sequence where Coulson confronts Ron Glass’ Dr. Streiten (Doctor Straighten?) about what happened to him. The “thunk” as the scene faded to the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo made me jump.
  • When I think about it, I shouldn’t be surprised that S.H.I.E.L.D. has been working or has this kind of technology. How were they able to get Captain America out of his cryostasis without significant nerve and tissue damage, if they didn’t? However, it’s through reading other science fiction—specifically Old Man’s War by John Scalzi—that I’m able to accept the idea of consciousness being something that can be stored and moved or re-implanted somewhere else.

I think I’ll go ahead and make Sunday nights my time to review episodes of this and other TV shows going forward. Tune in next time to see what else I’m watching!

Around the Water Cooler: Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “The Bridge” (spoilers!)

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"Riding along in my automobile / My agent beside me at the wheel." © ABC/Marvel Studios
“Riding along in my automobile / My agent beside me at the wheel.” © ABC/Marvel Studios

It’s been a crazy week, but now I can get back to talking about the latest episode of “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”, now available to watch on the official website.

  • I believe this is the first episode to include a “Previously on…” which means it’s mid-season plot building time! I’m looking forward to seeing the mysterious woman in the flower dress again, mostly so I can figure out exactly what her role in the Centipede project and/or organization is. She’s definitely not the head honcho, but she seems to have more savvy than a regular minion or hench. Perhaps she’s like Mirage from The Incredibles: non-powered, but extremely vital? Hopefully I’ll get to find out more about her soon—including her name.
  • I already don’t like Jailbreak because of how snotty he was to the people rescuing him. Consider how easy it could have been for the squad to say, “Oh, whoops… that dude you wanted us to break out of federal prison? We experienced some turbulance and he accidentally fell out of the helicopter while it was a mile up. Sorry. Sir.“
  • God, the more I see May with Ward, the more I like it. I know that’s breaking the heart of at least one of my friends who’d prefer to see Ward with Fitz, but I really think that May is good for him.
  • “Did I beat Captain America’s time?” “Not even close.” Oh, lookit how adorable you are, Mike Peterson.
  • So recently, Geena Davis published a guest post with The Hollywood Reporter about how one way to make media less sexist and more inclusive is by writing into scripts that at least half of the extras in a scene should be female. I’d like to note that perhaps the casting directors of “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” are keeping this in mind with respect to non-whites as well with the inclusion of the Asian field agent who was talking to Mike Peterson.
  • Aw, Simmons! And now you have to go around being adorable. Which begs the question: Does she get this flustered around Ward, whom we already know looks good shirtless? Or is she more intrigued by Peterson on a scientific level as well?
  • Is that a genuine example of a scene between two men where they’re talking about women and their relationships with them and it moves the plot forward as well as establishing character? Stop the presses!
  • “The Avengers thought I was dead, so I had to keep that up.” Does that mean that at this point in time, they know he’s alive now?
  • From this first scene between Poe and Raina, I got the sense that that while he is working with her, he is not working for the Centipede organization. Hmm, so he’s not one of our Big Bads, and that makes an amount of sense.
  • May turning on Skye like that makes me sad, but it also makes sense because she’d just been rattled by Ward and didn’t get back to her center fast enough. Proves that she’s human. Good for her!
  • Of course, I am now fearing the scene where Skye runs to Papa Coulson, whining about how May is being a big ol’ meanie. I do hope they manage to pull something great out of that or subvert my expectations completely.
  • The more I look at the “bedrooms” on the Bus, the more I realize how important it must be to carve out any kind of personal space and private time while inside it. At least Coulson has an office and May has her cockpit. Fitz and Simmons have the lab, but sharing that could be a bit of a pain. Where does Ward go?
  • “The staying away, not being there? I’ve seen first-hand the kind of damage that can do.” Is Coulson referring to Tony Stark?
  • J. August Richards’ face after speaking to Raina? Awesome.
  • Yeah… nice mid-series plot-twist.

Thoughts?

Around the Water Cooler: Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “Repairs” (spoilers!)

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I would be smirking, too, if this were a part of my morning routine. © ABC/Marvel Studios
I would be smirking, too, if this were a part of my morning routine. © ABC/Marvel Studios

After a hell of a morning, I definitely needed to relax with this commentary on the latest episode of “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”, now available to watch on the official website.

  • This may be a bit rude of me, but I totally love how Ward’s complicated plan to hide his “no-strings attached” relationship with May is circumvented by her just leaving the hotel room—thus, subverting the regular gender norms regarding casual sex. I do have to wonder, however, why she didn’t wear a bra. Even smaller breasted women need support.
  • I love how this entire ensemble worked together in this episode. The way Ward almost instantly picked up on Fitz and Simmons’ prank on Skye regarding May’s reputation was perfect and did much to make him that much more likable.
  • Tangential to this, I think I wouldn’t mind if they did a small web series during the hiatus about Skye attending S.H.I.E.L.D. Academy training.
  • The Monster of the Week was a bit weak—more of a MacGuffin, really—for the great character moments between the core cast. I haven’t read other reviews or reactions yet, but I think I’m totally okay with this.
  • I’m also totally okay with the “explanation” of the “Cavalry” nickname, even if I’m not sure I understood its import and how the situation was more dramatic with her going in with no weapons and a facing a cult with hostages inside rather than the outlandish stories that Ward, Fitz, and Simmons spun.
  • Perhaps the weakest bits were when Skye and Hannah were talking about God. I cringe whenever mainstream shows touch upon religion when it’s not normally a part of its makeup; this was no exception.
  • Of course, I love the post-credits scene here. It’s a nice, natural progression and I can’t wait to see May open up a bit more.

What were your favorite bits?

Around the Water Cooler: Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – “The Well” (spoilers!)

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And the awesome guest star streak continues with Peter MacNicol. © ABC/Marvel Studios
And the awesome guest star streak continues with Peter MacNicol. © ABC/Marvel Studios

Beware of the spoilers in this commentary on the latest episode of “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”, now available to watch on the official website.

  • I sure hope I’m not the only one who’s getting tired of these unimaginative episode titles.
  • Watching this opening sequence, this is the first time that I’m now starting to feel like I’m being pressured to keep up with the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I was totally going to see Thor: The Dark World, but life got in the way a little. At least my copy of X-Men: First Class arrived from the hold I’d placed on it at the library and I can watch that today before seeing X-Men: Days of Future Past. Also, at least the only things that are being spoiled so far are the fact that more Asgardians came to Earth, they brought a spaceship this time, and it destroyed buildings in London.
  • What was up with Ward’s sudden prissiness regarding the clean-up? Is it that he didn’t want another incident happening like the one where Simmons almost died? If so, he could have alluded to it better.
  • I call total and utter “bullshit” on the Norwegian dude’s tree-felling technique. There is no way he could begin at about waist or torso height with a vertical cut and then end up with the tree being felled with a horizontal cut near the bottom. This is sloppy, sloppy work on someone’s part and I have no idea who to blame.
  • And now he’s being Mister Nice Guy? Ward, why does it seem like you’re a completely different person now? Also, I’m somewhat glad that Simmons didn’t bust out a Dune/“Fear is the mind killer” speech because a) they probably would have had to pay for that reference and b) it establishes that Simmons is not your average Whedonesque snarky geeky scientist. I totally love her more now.
  • In the scene where Coulson is being debriefed by the witness, I couldn’t tell him apart visually from the male antagonist. I honestly thought they were the same person at first. Does that make me racist against Norwegians?
  • Peter MacNicol! One of the best guest stars they’ve had so far, not including the cameo by Samuel L. Jackson in the second episode. Of the few episodes of “Numb3rs” I saw, I loved his appearances as Dr. Larry Fleinhardt, Charlie Epps’ academic associate.
  • Here’s what I don’t get about myth and epic tales. The Berserker Warrior doesn’t want his staff to fall into the wrong hands, yet verses survive telling about where he hid the pieces. These verses were specific enough for the antagonists to be able to hike into the forest and find a specific tree, which was “marked” by a ring of stones around it. These stones are protecting something that’s not supposed to be found, yet they’re very conspicuous in this forest. None of this makes any sense whatsoever.
  • Despite the excellent character moments between Skye and Ward just now where she called him by his first name and he flashed back to a near-drowning incident, I am starting to hate this episode due to the sheer stupidity in it. Clearly, an important plot point was that Ward needs to get his bare hand on the staff, so I understand why it wasn’t completely in Randolph’s bag when they’re underground in the catacombs under the cathedral. But he’s now on the run after the encounter and the staff is still sticking out of his bag? And a short and squat duffel bag at that? Why not a poster tube? It would have had the same visual impact of knowing that Randolph still had the staff without having it just sticking out of the bag.
  • Perhaps the only thing that makes sense is that a university professor would have a car that doesn’t have power locks.
  • Interesting statement about hyperaggressiveness as it relates to being hateful and petty just now. I think I rather like it. I also love how professional the rest of the team is about his little display.
  • OMG. Whatever doubt I had just now regarding the part about this epic myth has now just gone away with the reveal that Randolph is the Asgardian Warrior. My point about the staff in the bag still stands, however.
  • It’s so interesting seeing Skye’s civilian reaction to Ward’s new-found inner dick as compared to May and Coulson’s. It makes sense, too, because she is only learning how to act as a part of a team and when to trust certain people.
  • And…. I am so freaking happy that this episode ended with Ward and May rather than Ward and Skye. The “Terror in Tahiti” scene is pretty awesome, too.

And, just because I can, here’s the picture I’d originally wanted to use to head up this blog post but didn’t due to spoilers above the cut:

MAOS_Ep8_MayStaff_sm

Damn, I could look at Agent Melinda May forever.

Trisha’s Take: Four ways I would fix the second season of “Heroes of Cosplay”

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Anime/Star Wars mash-up cosplay before it was cool © Geeking Out About
Anime/Star Wars mash-up cosplay before it was cool © Geeking Out About

See that picture up there? The girl in the purple cheongsam wielding the double-bladed lightsaber? That’s me as Darth Shampoo—an irreverent take on a character from the Ranma 1/2 franchise—the first cosplay costume I would ever do. That picture was taken during the second Anime Expo I ever attended back in 2000; since then, while I’ve worn outlandish outfits to conventions, I’ve only cosplayed one other time at an anime or other genre convention.

However, I’ve always appreciated the art and artistry of people who do choose to go to conventions and dress up as their favorite characters for an entire weekend. In the several years since I started going to genre conventions, I’ve watched the fandom cosplay community grow and change in part due to the Internet and rise of dedicated forums and social media as well as the change in conventions themselves.

Nowadays, instead of waking up and hoping to see your picture in the galleries of the now defunct A Fan’s View website run by Kevin Lillard, a cosplayer attending a convention can hope that their picture made it into cosplay galleries of national media outlets like Business Insider, websites for internationally funded cable channels like BBC America, or even your local Fox affiliate station such as this one in Salt Lake City, Utah.

And then, of course, there’s the reality TV series called “Heroes of Cosplay.”

Announced this year in April as “Cosworld” and purporting to be a documentary about cosplayers and the costuming world, what premiered instead on August 27 on the SyFy network was instead something more similar to the TLC show “Toddlers and Tiaras” than SyFy’s own competition reality series “Face Off.” Eight women (Holly Conrad, Chloe Dykstra, Yaya Han, Riki LeCotey, Monika Lee, Jessica Merizan, Victoria Schmidt, Becky Young) and one man (Jesse Lagers) were cast to appear in the show. The format of each episode followed this rough formula:

  • Cosplayer decides to attend a convention and plans a costume.
  • Cosplayer goes shopping for materials for the costume and plans its design.
  • Cosplayer has various difficulties with making the costume (with or without help from friends and/or significant others).
  • Cosplayer goes to convention with or without a finished costume along with a voiceover “announcing” their arrival; attendees gush over the costume and take many pictures.
  • If costume isn’t finished, cosplayer attempts to finish costume: Will they succeed?
  • Cosplayer enters masquerade contest.
  • Masquerade contest is over: Who will win the cash prize?

Interspersed with taped interview segments and tons of B-roll from Anime Expo 2013—seriously, anyone who’s been to the Los Angeles Convention Center knows what it looks like!—viewers could watch all the drama that comes with the cosplaying world take place at five genre conventions across the U.S. ranging from Wizard World Portland in Oregon on the West Coast all the way to MegaCon in Orlando, Florida in the East.

When episodes started to air, there was a great uproar from the cosplay community and other geek-adjacent media venues. Amid the outcry that the show wasn’t really representative of the experiences of the majority of the people who cosplay and parts of it were staged and/or manipulated by the producers, there was also the charge that the show just wasn’t that good.

I am not responsible for any liver-related trauma suffered by anyone reading this blog.
And it even inspired a drinking game. (If you’re the person who created this, please contact me so I can credit you properly!) © The RPF Forum

 

Which made me wonder: If I had the crew, the budget, and the opportunity, what would I do to make the upcoming second series of “Heroes of Cosplay” better?

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Trisha’s Take: “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.”

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rsz_marvel_agents_of_shield
Created by Joss Whedon
Directed by David Straiton, Joss Whedon
Starring Clark Gregg, Ming-Na Wen, Brett Dalton, Chloe Bennet, Iain De Caestecker, Elizabeth Henstridge
Guest Starring J. August Richards, Cobie Smulders, Ron Glass

Like most people, I loved and adored Agent Phil Coulson ever since he started bothering Tony Stark in Iron Man. And throughout the new Marvel movie universe, Clark Gregg’s Coulson has slipped in and out, around, and through dense blockbuster movie plotlines to deliver bon mots, a practical everyman’s view, and a certain insouciance that can’t be analyzed but rather just needs to be enjoyed.

So when I first heard that Agent Phil Coulson would return to the ‘verse in a TV series called “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” as the leader of a small strike force within the S.H.I.E.L.D. organization and that the TV show would be created by Joss Whedon, I was conflicted. Would this be awesome, like “Firefly”? Or problematic, like “Dollhouse”?

Note: There will be spoilers in this review. Oh yes, there will be spoilers.

Having missed all of the pre-show hype at Comic Con in San Diego and other places completely, I went into the episode blind to most of what the rest of the Internet has already known about the series: Agent Phil Coulson would be returning from his movie death in The Avengers to lead a team of non-super-powered humans from within the S.H.I.E.L.D. organization. I didn’t know exactly how they were going to pull off the Coulson-reveal, but I have to admit the way it was scripted and the way Gregg delivered it, I couldn’t have asked for more. And a bit reminiscent of the unsettling nature of Cabin in the Woods and “Dollhouse,” just when the audience could sit back and bask in his triumphant return, Ron Glass’s generic S.H.I.E.L.D. doctor character revealed that there’s even something sinister involved with Coulson’s return to active duty. (Please let it not be Mister Sinister?)

As far as the first episode goes, the formula for the ongoing series seems fairly simple: S.H.I.E.L.D. gets wind that someone is exhibiting supernatural powers, Coulson’s team goes in to investigate, something goes wrong, the team saves the day. It’s a formula which works for many a mystery novel and has worked for cop dramas since those things were invented; as any fan of these knows, it’s the characters doing the investigating which keep viewers and readers coming back for more.

Obviously, Clark Gregg as Phil Coulson is the top draw, but what about the rest of the team? Here are my impressions of them in no particular order:

Brett Dalton plays Grant Ward, a covert ops agent who is assigned to work on Coulson’s new team. It was hard to tell from the debriefing session between Ward and Agent Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders, reprising her role from the movie) whether or not he was a particularly good agent because while he did get the job done in an action-filled sequence near the beginning of the movie, you could have plugged another competent agent into that job due to the nifty gadgets he used and the end result would have been the same. The character flaw that he’s given is that he has “poopy” people skills; that’s probably why he works alone so often. (Also, he’s supposed to have combat skills on the same level as Natasha Romanov? I don’t buy that for one second.) I don’t think it’s Dalton’s fault that I didn’t like Grant Ward; I’m going to have to blame Joss Whedon and his two co-writers (and family members) Marissa Tancharoen and Jed Whedon for not giving him enough pleasant things to do. At one point, though, I did feel a lot of empathy for Ward, and that was when he was being reverse-interrogated by Skye.

Ah yes, Skye. Played by Chloe Bennet, Skye is a social anarchist, a hacker, and currently not a favorite character of mine. Perhaps I’ve been watching too many “NCIS” or “Criminal Minds” reruns, but when I think of competent hackers and other “Fuck the system, man!” character-types, I don’t picture a woman who looks like Skye. I think that the character might have rung a bit more true with me if she’d been styled to be a bit more plain (hoodie, T-shirt and jeans as opposed to stylish preppie clothing) so that she could later surprise me with her brilliance the same way Miracle Laurie did at the end of the Dollhouse episode “Man on the Street.” I also had a lot of difficulty believing that Skye had enough skill to break into a secured S.H.I.E.L.D. communications line; then again, hacker groups have been breaking into lots of supposedly secure systems left and right these days, so perhaps I should go a little easy on her.

The technology team consists of Leo Fitz (Iain De Caestecker) and Elizabeth Henstridge (Jemma Simmons), who are introduced together. He handles all things mechanical, she all things biological and together their characters fill the roles of both a forensics team and a Q-like quartermaster in one. I’m pleased to note that both actors are from the UK; hence, any ardent cries of “Their accents are so fake!” can be met with equally ardent defenses. In the few scenes they had to show off their characters’ strengths, it’s revealed that Simmons has the cooler head among the two, but Fitz has more genius under pressure as it’s he who’s able to come up with the magical cure to guest star J. August Richards’s “exploding head” problem.

Finally, rounding out the group is Agent Melinda May (Ming-Na Wen) who is pulled out of a self-imposed, mind-numbing clerical job and back into action as the team’s pilot. (Did I mention their command center is a gigantic plane? Just checking.) There’s a lot of juicy background to her character as even hot shot Ward is dismayed (or astounded) that they were able to get her to be on the team. I’m actually pretty glad to see that the “One They Pull Out of Retirement” is a woman this time, and Wen embodies the role just perfectly.

As far as pilot episodes go, the plot and story arcs that were introduced were both standard and unique, sometimes at the same time. For example, J. August Richard’s character is first seen as a hero, but then as the investigation proceeds, he becomes the antagonist. A scene with the “innocent bystander” he saved swings him back around into “good guy” territory again, his rampage through Union Station with the captive Skye in tow has him doing another heel-face turn. And by the end, you’re not entirely sure whether or not to agree with Ward’s proposal to kill him with sniper fire or Coulson’s assertion that he needs to be saved. Considering that many of us live in countries who have decided that personal freedoms can be overridden in the name of “national security,” this kind of flexible thinking and plotting is a refreshing change from shows where the line between protagonist and antagonist are never crossed or blurred.

There’s one major problem I have with the plot, and it revolves around Phil Coulson. In the debriefing scene, Maria Hill tells Grant Ward that because the Avengers only have Level 6 security clearance, they haven’t been told about Coulson’s return. I take this to mean that any information about Coulson being alive is going to be severely restricted. At the same time, however, the final standoff between Coulson and Richards’ character takes place in the middle of a busy Union Station. And while I understand that S.H.I.E.L.D. would have cordoned off the area and evacuated all the civilians, when the camera pulls back a little, two civilians can be seen on the second level, watching the scene. And who’s to say that they won’t tell their friends about the Man in Black they saw?

So was this a perfect pilot? Heavens, no. Is there enough to make one want to continue watching it? Perhaps, and for me it entirely depends on how the characters are developed further.

Which means that even though he’s surely capable of doing it, Phil Coulson definitely can’t save this situation on his own.

“Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” airs on ABC channels at 8 pm Eastern/7 pm Central if you have cable TV; if you don’t you can see full episodes (with commercials) on the ABC website and on Hulu.

Geekly Speaking About… “Top Gear USA” Episode 2

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I still say the blue Aston Martin is prettier

My ongoing technical difficulties have persisted, but now that I’ve finally got a clue and later edited out the parts with the poor audio, I’m happy to say that the analysis and live commentary on “Blind Drift,” the second episode of Top Gear USA is ready for your listening pleasure.

You can check it out below or in the right sidebar:

Please join us next week on Sunday, December 5 at 10:00 pm Eastern, when Kara Dennison and I (and perhaps a special guest) will be concluding our three-episode test and hope to answer the question: “Is this show actually any good?”

Geekly Speaking About… “Top Gear USA” Episode 1

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From l to r: Adam Ferrara, Tanner Foust, and Rutledge Wood hope you'll enjoy the U.S. version of "Top Gear"

Thanks to some technical difficulties which were not present when we conducted our tech test about 1.5 hours before its premiere last night at 10:00 pm, we were unable to produce the audio for the live commentary between myself and Kara Dennison as we watched the first episode of the U.S. version of “Top Gear.”

Thankfully, there was nothing wrong with our fingers, and so just in the nick of time, we hied ourselves over to Google Chat to record our thoughts about the first episode of “Top Gear U.S.A.” on the History Channel:

10:05 PM Kara: Okay, here we go. Right … things I’m noticing to start.
TrishaLynn: And already I’ve got problems with this as well. You go first 🙂
10:07 PM Kara: One, their set is similar but smaller; two, they’re giving the same sort of talk as the original hosts do; three, they’re working on getting a similar level of cinematography going.
Kara: It looks like re: the ‘Challenges’ they’ve got the right idea.
TrishaLynn: The addition of the missile detection system system to this kind of challenge is a nice touch. And that Tanner Foust is cute, though.
Kara: I’m gonna say right now … I’m not coming in intending to hate this. Just skeptical. One thing I will say about the hosts is you can tell it’s gonna be a bit ’til they’re comfortable with each other. On the set, they looked like they were still working on how to talk to each other and the camera at the same time.
TrishaLynn: “We’re the only two dudes riding in a red convertible together right now” = That’s cute. I appreciate that they’re doing this in a live city.
Kara: Now, this sponsor message actually has to do with something I was talking with my family about over dinner. One of the reasons Jay Leno turned down the show.
TrishaLynn: Go forth and expound!
Kara: The Beeb gets its money via taxpayers; American TV via commercials. I think there’s a legitimate concern that this sort of thing could keep them from getting too critical of certain cars for fear of losing possible sponsors. That’s really gonna depend a lot on how ballsy the hosts and producers are. If they’re smart they’ll avoid running commercials from c…… oh, wait, the first ad out of the gate was for Mercedez-Benz.
10:15 PM TrishaLynn: What I love about original TG is that they do have the autonomy to say, “Screw you” if/when the auto manufacturers don’t comply.  Like in the drive from San Francisco, Calif.  to the Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. Dodge didn’t want to provide a Challenger, so they just went out and bought one
10:16 PM Kara: For the record, there are other international Top Gears: Australia and Russia. So we aren’t the first. “We are going straight to hell, my friend.” “Just turn left here on Blasphemy Blvd.” Okay, that got a giggle.
TrishaLynn: I recall that there are other versions of Top Gear out there. And how are those guys doing on their shows? Still tops in their country? Do they have the same kind of sponsorship issues? And speeding in a cemetery? Not sure if even Jeremy Clarkson would do that.
Kara: Not sure about Russia, but the Australia one does have a fair following as I understand it. Not sure about their finances. Richard Hammond might do it, with that chasing him. Aaaand, there’s Ride of the Valkyries. Was wondering when they’d do that.
10:19 PM TrishaLynn: I recall reading somewhere that of the bloggers who got to see the first three eps, it appeared as if some of these were totally staged. Which would make sense with the cemetery run and the fact that we didn’t see any other car on the road while they did their thing.
Kara: I see a banner in the back, and that did look like the Stig. They say they’ll have their own masked racer. Hopefully they won’t call him the Stig.
A lot of people accuse the original of being staged, and I think they admitted to the caravan fire … the rest, I think people just sort of stand back and let them be at this point so there’s no need to stage them.
TrishaLynn: Yay for their “Stig” reveal…?
Kara: … Oops.
TrishaLynn: Heh. I do like how they show where he is on the track during these power laps.
Kara: That is nice, yes.
TrishaLynn: Their straight is nice. Nice bit of a drift round that last corner
Kara: Not bad.
10:23 PM TrishaLynn: So far, we like their improvement on how they broadcast the power laps.
Kara: Yes. That’s good from a technical standpoint. People who’ve been watching for a while (or have played Gran Turismo) know the TG track already, but I like having an overhead of the new track.
10:24 PM  TrishaLynn: And the improv’ed banter between the hosts could use work, but it’s good that they like each other. See, here’s my thing about TG UK and the BBC. The thing that works is that these guys were somewhat already known as presenters so seeing these guys talk about cars was good. I’m speaking of Clarkson, Hammond, and James May. Each of these guys are almost totally unknown.
Kara: Yeah. Though Hammond auditioned for TG.
10:26 PM TrishaLynn: Ah, see this is why I’m glad I have you as my TG historian 🙂
Kara: He’d been doing sparse work before then as a radio personality. Clarkson and May were both on the old format. Clarkson from 88-00, May in ’99
TrishaLynn: Hmm. Okay, I understand that. So do you think Leno would have been a better co-host?
10:27 PM Kara: I think it’s important for the hosts to have both a ‘presence’ and the geekery to go with it. Oh God. They’re using a Suzuki for the ‘Big Star, Small Car’ segment.
10:28 PM TrishaLynn: “You’re gonna wear a helmet”?  Heh….
10:29 PM Kara: These three look like they’re gonna be more of the ‘frat guy’ sort with each other. Will be interesting.
TrishaLynn: First guest is Buzz Aldrin. “You had a 51 Chevy?” “They weren’t that expensive in those days”. I like how they’re showing the pictures of the cars they owned.
10:31 PM Kara: Adam Ferrara is a far less aggressive interviewer than Clarkson, but that’s sort of like saying someone is less intimidating than Andre the Giant, so…
TrishaLynn: Ah… gearbox problems. So it’s not just a right-hand drive thing.
Kara: Absolutely not. Buzz Aldrin officially the fastest lap TG USA has had on their show.
10:33 PM TrishaLynn: Officially since he’s the first guest on their track. 🙂
Kara: So far, yes, I like the overhead of the track and the actual visual aids for the cars in the interview segment, like you said. I wonder if any of that will be taken into account for the UK show.
10:35 PM TrishaLynn: I don’t know. But it’s a good change.
10:36 PM Kara: I don’t think they’ll bother with the former, since most people watching know the hell out of their track. I’d sort of like the latter since, despite the fact that I enjoy looking at shiny cars, I cannot recall how most look offhand.
TrishaLynn: But back to Leno… who else do you think would be a good co-host for this show instead of these guys? Personally, I would like to have seen Adam Carolla and/or Jimmy Kimmel. Because of how awesome “The Man Show” was.
Kara: I think Adam Carolla was an early choice. Sadly, I am not as well-versed in what American sorts are car geeks. And I do think that’s important. Being one, or being willing to learn.
TrishaLynn: Nice fun cinematography here.
Kara: For those playing the home game, bullfighting with a Lamborghini.
10:38 PM TrishaLynn: Nice trivia bit there. Re: Names of Lamborghini cars versus bulls.
10:39 PM Kara: I know I got quiet, I’m just drooling over the pretty supercars.
Kara: “It’s like being aroused at gunpoint.”
TrishaLynn: Talk about being inappropriate… and ballsy
Kara: Their talk is a lot more straightforward, I think. In original TG, you get Clarkson coming in talking about cars being fueled by diced lions …
TrishaLynn: For a second there, I was thinking that the tone was entirely too fawning and not critical enough. But the metaphors are what make Clarkson’s car films so fun to watch!
Kara: Oh, they absolutely are. At the same time I’m glad they’re not trying to cast themselves in those three roles. Like, “Okay, you’ll be our Hammond” or some such.
TrishaLynn: Yes. I’m glad of that as well. But this means that Tanner Foust (who is a stunt driver) is also a bit of a pussy because he’s the one who wore a helmet when they took the Suzuki for a spin and the other guys did not.
10:43 PM Kara: I think of the three, Rutledge Wood seems to be most grounded (at least for now) in the spirit of the show.
10:44 PM TrishaLynn: Rutledge also feels like he’s the most “good ol’ boy”
Kara: The sensibility is very different. There’s this sort of ‘OH WOW CARS’ aspect to them.
10:45 PM TrishaLynn: Nice callback to the original metaphor.
Kara: At the 45 minute mark, my main impression: I feel equally informed but far less ‘drawn in.’
10:46 PM TrishaLynn: How much is that because … DRAG RACE!
Kara: The upcoming drag race might help. And here’s a preview for next episode…
TrishaLynn: Teaching a blind man to drift? AWESOME.
10:47 PM Kara: They certainly seem to be getting similar amounts of leeway to the original.
TrishaLynn: Meaning? Getting or giving?
Kara: If they can put a blind man behind the wheel, even in a controlled environment. And I’m talking safety-wise. So, okay, no one involved in production is particularly inhibited.
TrishaLynn: It’s safer for them to be critical of Lambos because they’re not sponsoring this episode.
10:49 PM Kara: True.
TrishaLynn: But yes, I do feel awesomely informed. And I think the problem we’re having is that because we are expecting or comparing the new show to the UK show, we’ve got problems with the beats. YEAH, DRAG RACE!
10:51 PM Kara: I’m gonna say, though, the people behind the UK show are why I started (and kept) watching.
TrishaLynn: I agree with you on that.
Kara: I DO like drag races, though.
TrishaLynn: Me, too. Wait… they’re not racing each other? I am less excited about this now.
Kara: This is individual times.
10:52 PM TrishaLynn: I like how Tanner can tell by the sound how he’s shifting. And I am totally forgetting the third guy’s name.
10:53 PM Kara: Adam? Or Rutledge?
TrishaLynn: Which goes to show how forgettable he is right now. Yes, Adam.
Kara: Given the fact that BBC America is running TG far closer to its initial airdate and releasing things (from series 10 onward) on DVD, I don’t think this is necessarily an attempt to oust/replace the original. Which I think is a lot of people’s major concern.
TrishaLynn: I agree with you on that.
Kara: And now we’re putting the comedian in the car. I trust the other two far more and am not entirely sure why he is here. “That shaking is near death.” But yeah … original TG is heavily pirated to the point that they actually worked it into their marketing this past series.
TrishaLynn: Did they?
Kara: “Back with episodes you’ve never seen before … Unless you’re a filthy Internet pirate!!!”
TrishaLynn: Heh!
Kara: I am a little unnerved by the fact that their Stig banner is animated. It keeps catching me unawares.
10:58 PM TrishaLynn: It is?
Kara: Yeah, he’ll move every once in a while.
TrishaLynn: I think I like their dynamic a bit. Chicane sounds too similar to Chicago. I love how the two regular guys (Rutledge and Adam) love busting on the professional driver. “It was so fast it changed colors!”
Kara: Yeah, they found their punching bag pretty quick. John Deere sports car. Ohhh dear. Or is that “Ohhhh, Deere.”
TrishaLynn: I would love to see that happen. Them turning a John Deere tractor into a super car or a racing car. That’s a great challenge idea.
11:01 PM TrishaLynn: Final thoughts?
Kara: Final thoughts … interesting guys (though Adam feels a little forgettable, I like Tanner and Rutledge), like some of the technical things they’ve done differently, I like that they’re starting out at least somewhat fearless, but there’s one thing that keeps nagging at me. Which is … why?
11:02 PM TrishaLynn: Why remake TG for the U.S.? Then you should also ask why did they do it for Australia and Russia.
Kara: I do.
TrishaLynn: Hah!
11:03 PM Kara: I understand that the auto industry is very different in different areas of the world.
TrishaLynn: In comments I’ve seen on other articles, people have said that they once thought the U.S. version of “The Office” would be terrible, and it actually wasn’t.
11:04 PM Kara: I can’t get behind the US or UK version of “The Office,” but I think that’s just because I can’t get behind office humor in the first place. I do know it’s done rather well, and even people leery of remakes like it.
TrishaLynn: “Sanford and Son” was also based on a British TV show.
11:05 PM Kara: Sadly, the good remakes are so few and far between. When they’re good, they’re amazing. When they’re bad …
TrishaLynn: And if we’re asking why does a franchise allow itself to be remade for a different country, I think the answer is so that it can be more easily understood in the target country. What I don’t think people who are proponents for localization understand is that what makes it popular in the foreign country is that it is different from what they’re used to.
Kara: TG has a very British sensibility to it. A lot of the things we remake over here thrive on that sensibility, and I think things like “The Office” weren’t so reliant at their core on that. And that’s how you can tell if something’s gonna fly or not.
TrishaLynn: I remember when I was working at a media database company and was working on Geneon’s DVD releases of eps from a Japanese car show. They were just subtitled, but reading the synopses of these shows were just so interesting to me. And I can imagine a show like that celebrating the Japanese car culture and just Japanese culture in its own way and if I could remember what those DVDs were called, I’d watch the shite out of them.
Kara: Sounds actually like something I need to start looking for, as well. The idea is interesting. When I was first sat down to watch TG, it wasn’t “Here’s a car show,” it was “Here’s three crazy middle-aged British guys doing a car show.” Nothing to say the TG producers can’t expand their media empire. I think it’s just going to attract a different demographic entirely.
TrishaLynn: I totally agree with you. Thinking about who this show is for, it’s not for the original TG fan.
Kara: Thing is, it’s really hard to tell who they think it’s for.
TrishaLynn: Explain?
Kara: I’m not sure I can because I’m still turning over all the elements in my brain … best I can describe it… On the surface it’s very much like the original. It’s going with the format Clarkson pitched to the BBC in 2002. They even shoot it the same. But it’s hard to tell if that’s meant to attract people who like the original, or if it’s just transposing a formula that works to a different audience.
TrishaLynn: Hmm. Interesting thought.
Kara: Like … have they put out this shiny thing for me or for someone else? BBC aren’t dumb. Usually.
TrishaLynn: And who knows, maybe once these guys get into a groove, we’ll like them more?
Kara: Maybe.
11:16 PM TrishaLynn: Because has the U.S. ever put out a show about cars that has lasted long? Maybe that’s what they’re trying to do?
Kara: Maybe. The original TG — by which I mean the original format going back to ’77 — stuck around for a good long while. I’m not sure we have an equivalent in U.S. car shows.
11:17 PM TrishaLynn: You know, for having such a car culture in so many parts of this country, we haven’t had any TV shows about cars. Which aren’t about the cars themselves. “Speed Racer” does not count. 1) Because it was orignally Japanese and 2) Because it’s about drivers.
Kara: I know someone who could put us right if we’re wrong, but sadly he is unavailable. I’m sure we’ll hear in the comments if there’s one we’re missing.
11:18 PM TrishaLynn: “M.A.S.K.” doesn’t count. “Transformers” doesn’t count.
Kara: Aw.
TrishaLynn: Well they transform into “not cars”! They don’t count.
11:19 PM Kara: TG in the UK actually has a competitor — “Fifth Gear” — so they’re still ahead.
TrishaLynn: (Although “M.A.S.K.” was a hella awesome show). We do have magazines about cars. So why hasn’t Car & Driver done their own show?
Kara: Excellent question.
TrishaLynn: And the Japanese show I mentioned was also done magazine format.
Kara: That was the original TG format. It was just one person doing car news and reviews. Well, initially one.
TrishaLynn: Because why mess with a format that works?
Kara: Well, back before ’02 it was much more straightforward.
TrishaLynn: So I’ve heard.
Kara: Very basic news, reviews, occasionally an outing to a car show.
TrishaLynn: I can see why that format won’t work anymore.
Kara: Clarkson’s the one who started stirring that up in ’88.Because he came in and … er … was himself … and the ratings went through the roof.
TrishaLynn: And the Japanese show was based on a magazine, that’s what I meant by its format. But it had crazy-awesome stuff like we see in Clarkson’s re-imagining.
Kara: Yeah, the spectacle.
11:22 PM TrishaLynn: Yes, the spectacle.
Kara: And how just straight-up ludicrous some of it is. And by “some,” I mean most.
11:23 PM Kara: So the questions become: Can we do that here? 2. If we can’t, should we bother, or should we just do our car show and let the boys on the home front keep blowing up caravans for themselves? I don’t think the existence of a US version really threatens the livelihood of the UK one in any way. Which sounds obvious, but I think that can be a knee-jerk reaction. Especially considering a lot of UK-to-US remakes really DO muck things up by way of international distribution.
TrishaLynn: I think the success of this show will eventually rely on several things happening: 1) That people will enjoy watching the three hosts have fun with cars. 2) That they will find their own “new thing” which will differentiate their TG from the original TG. 3) That they can and will have the balls to call an American car rubbish.
11:26 PM Kara: 3 is a big one.
TrishaLynn: 4) That Americans can accept that it’s okay to enjoy and love cars but to still be responsible about the environment at the same time.
11:27 PM Kara: I do note that there’s not been a marketing push to attract fans of the original.
11:30 PM Kara: And yeah … there are people out there who just plain aren’t Anglophiles. The opposite, in fact.
TrishaLynn: Those people are kinda weird. 🙂
Kara: Ha!
11:31 PM TrishaLynn: So in other words…. reserving judgment? Cautiously okay?
Kara: I’m trying very hard to.
TrishaLynn: Giving them a shot?
Kara: While reminding myself that I am not their target audience.
TrishaLynn: Noted.
Kara: I’m gonna do my three-episode rule here, I think.
TrishaLynn: Alright… back in a week then? And this time we’ll try to actually coordinate audio again?
11:32 PM Kara: That’d be pretty cool.

Tune in next week, and we hope to have the technical difficulties with an audio commentary ironed out by then.

Trailer Watch: “Top Gear” USA

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Oh dear.

Mentioned during the “60 Minutes” segment on the original U.K. show, the U.S.-based version of the show will feature these three guys:

  • Adam Ferrara: A comedian and actor, his biggest credit to date is starring as Chief Nelson on “Rescue Me.”
  • Tanner Foust: A stunt driver whose credits include two of the The Fast and the Furious movies, he’s also a rally driver and has competed in the X Games.
  • Rutledge Wood: He’s the dark horse of the trio, having no major mainstream screen credits to his name, other than appearing on SPEED in a show called “NASCAR Smarts.” This show is so off the radar it doesn’t have its own Wikipedia page.

Now, I’m not the most car-obsessed person in the world and I love original-flavor “Top Gear.” I also loved “Initial D” when I first saw it. And yet something really bothers me about the approach they’re taking in the trailer.

Lemme backtrack a second: German race car driver Sabine Schmitz has been featured on the original “Top Gear” several times; the most recent appearance was in 2008 when she and her two “D Motor” co-presenters took on the lads in a series of crazy races, one of which involved the removal of a prosthetic arm.

The thing I noticed about the German team was that Schmitz seemed to have the most personality and charisma out of the three (and I am willing to concede that perhaps I like her a lot because she’s a female racer). However, all three were pretty fun to watch during the double-decker race because they were as aggressive and crazy as Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, and James May.

These three guys? I don’t get a sense of that kind of craziness, and that’s what keeps people watching “Top Gear.”

However, Jalopnik.com’s Ray Wert is on board after having been given a peek at the show’s segments and offers this perspective on one of the guys:

But, [Tanner Foust] rocks because he wears his heart on his sleeve. While riding shotgun in a Lamborghini with him around the Las Vegas Convention Center, I told him that fan-boys of the UK series were rooting for this version of “Top Gear” to fail. His first response was viscerally physical. His jaw set, his eyes narrowed behind his sunglasses and he gripped the steering wheel more tightly. For a split second I had a vision of him letting go of the steering wheel and lunging at my neck. Then he explained just how much the concept of Top Gear meant to him.

It was at that moment that I realized he looked so hurt by the comment because the guy’s just like us — a fan-boy.

Anyway, this is going into my DVR, and if all things go right, you may even be able to either read or hear a commentary of the show between me and our U.K. TV expert Kara Dennison.

“Top Gear USA” premieres on the History Channel on Sunday, November 21 at 10:00 pm Eastern/9:00 pm Central and will likely repeat.

Neil Gaiman’s Sandman + Supernatural‘s Eric Kripke = Gigantic mistake?

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If you’re a fan of British author Neil Gaiman’s former monthly comics series Sandman and have always wanted to see a live-action version, then The Hollywood Reporter has news for you.

Over at their Heat Vision blog, reporters Borys Kit and James Hibberd broke the exclusive news that Warner Bros. TV is “in the midst of acquiring television rights from sister company DC Entertainment and in talks with several writer-producers about adapting the 1990s comic. At the top of the list is Eric Kripke, creator of the CW’s horror-tinged ‘Supernatural.'”

That howl you heard around 6 pm Pacific, by the way? Was the wailing and gnashing of teeth of many a mature female comics fan who knows and loves both Sandman and “Supernatural” and knows exactly how Kripke could possibly fuck it all up.

The bit of good news from the blog that all fans are holding onto lies in these two sentences from Kit and Hibberd:

[Neil Gaiman] is not involved in the new developments, though since it is early in the process, that may change. In fact, securing Gaiman will prove key for the project to go forward.

Gaiman, who is currently in the U.K. taking care of business related to his upcoming “Doctor Who” episode, didn’t comment on his Twitter account when the news broke here in the U.S. because he was on a Skype call to the Melbourne Writer Fest in Australia as one of their events. (Damn, don’t you love technology, these days?)

Olivia Munn takes on Samantha Bee in battle of female correspondents

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Congratulations are in order to “Attack of the Show!” co-host Olivia Munn who graduated to the big times last week by booking her first “special BLANK correspondent” segment for “The Daily Show.”

According to James Hibberd at The Hollywood Reporter‘s Live Feed blog, Munn is likely to be taping a few segments over the next few weeks and the response to her bits will determine whether or not she’ll be able to continue on as a regular special correspondent.

I have a love/hate relationship with geeky shows who hire non-geek-aligned women like Munn to host them. Sure, they need jobs like any other women do, but at the same time why not hire a host who has a little more experience in the field and is also attractive? At the same time, I’m glad that Munn was able to book this job because any step forward for Asian-American women in media is a good step, right?

Look for more work by Munn on “The Daily Show” in the weeks to come.

Trisha’s Quote of the Day: Why some women shouldn’t fly spaceships

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Wheaton: This is the first time I’ve ever been on the stage with a fellow Starship driver. I have never shared the stage with someone who has also driven a Starship.
Burton: And how does it feel?
Wheaton: It feels pretty good. It feels like we could talk in a shorthand that no one would understand or care about.
Frakes: You wouldn’t consider being on stage with Marina [Sirtis, Deanna Troi from “Star Trek: The Next Generation”] being on stage with someone who could drive the spaceship.
Wheaton: I don’t think so.
Burton: She crashed the ship the one time we let her drive, didn’t she?
Frakes: That was a huge mistake.
Wheaton: That was a bad idea.
Burton: Right into a planet, as I recall!

—LeVar Burton, Jonathan Frakes, and Wil Wheaton, together again on the bridge at a panel at the 2010 Phoenix ComicCon.

[Editor’s Note: Thanks, so much, Versus the World Productions for getting such great audio. You guys wouldn’t be going to Dragon*Con this year, by any chance, would you? – TL]