Some Thoughts - August - December 2019
Published 22nd May 2020
The later half of 2019 was a busy period of my life, and as such I stopped writing about the stuff I love, but I never stopped watching/listening/reading. Now I'm going to try and finish off that last half of the year with this mega post, so I can jump right back on the band wagon with 2020. Get comfy because I'm about to info dump.
Music
PUP - PUP (4/5)
I finally got round to listening to the debut record of PUP, I thought it was apt as the new album was coming out, and I was seeing them live a little later in the year. You can clearly tell from this album that it isn't as tight as their second or third records, but even despite that PUP still brings you screeching pop punk anthems, the band hasn't managed to create a cohesive album experience like they would later on, but it doesn't mean they lack any potential singles. That is what this LP kind of feels like, a collection of incredible singles.
Fave Tracks: Reservoir, Dark Days, Back Against the Wall, Factories.
Tropical Fuck Storm - Braindrops (4.5/5)
The audacity of TFS to release a new album the next year after releasing their incredible debut, not only that, but to release it and it be as good if not better than the previous. TFS still have their sound here, but it isn't without experimentation. One of the most notable changes here is on the track 'Who's my Eugene?' where Liddiard steps back from the lead vocals role for the first time and it instead goes to Erica Dunn who is usually in backing vocal duty with Fiona Kitschin. Also sonically the track feels a little funkier than anything on the previous record. For me, this album wasn't as instantaneous love as the debut, but I found by the time I started loving the album, I was in LOVE with the album.
Fave Tracks: Paradise, The Planet Of Straw Men, Who's My Eugene?, The Happiest Guy Around.
Billie Eilish - when we all fall asleep where do we go (4/5)
First hearing about Billie Eilish mean't my snobby side kicked in, look at this uber young, talented popular singer/songwriter that creates hip-hop/pop/something or other songs, everyone loves her, this means I must hate her. I listened to the album just through pure buzz, really expecting to hate it. I liked 'bad guy' but nothing really clicked with me at all. So I put it down and said that was a job done. But the hype for Billie never dissipated, which led me to rethink my finality on listening to her. A friend of mine started telling me that he was loving the album, I asked him what really convinced him about her, he said that seeing a live performance really changed how he listened to the album afterwards. So I went ahead and watched her short set at Glastonbury on iPlayer, he was right. I loved the performance, I thought she was incredibly talented and doing something completely different in the modern charts. I re listened to the album and everything that didn't click suddenly did. I looped that album over and over again, now I listen to her tracks regularly. Billie is the next big change in popular music.
Fave Tracks: bad guy, you should see me in a crown, my strange addiction, bury a friend.
Tool - Lateralus (3.5/5)
Lateralus is considered one of the greatest Metal albums ever made, as a self proclaimed metal fan I really should've come to this sooner. Regardless I listened to it this year. What I found is a band I really like and an album that I really like, but also an experience I have never had before. This is the firt time I have had an immediate connection with a band and on more listens have liked the record less and less. It is so strange, I still think all of this album is great, but I find after my third or fourth listen I started getting tired of the LP. I'm not totally sure why that is, regardless it has led me to the 3.5 rating.
Fave Tracks: The Grudge, The Patient, Schism.
Brockhampton - Ginger (4/5)
Brockhampton come back with a record that feels so satisfying after everything they have been through, especially the previous record being a little lacking as well. Finally the emotions of the bands loss and betrayal come into the frame and give off an extremely catchy, sad and dense album. I had another great situation of the right album coming around at the right time. I started listening to the record in the winter months which felt apt due to the depressing nature of the LP and the time of my life at that point. It helped me through my own feelings. A great record from the world's best boy band.
Fave Tracks: SUGAR, HEAVEN BELONGS TO YOU, ST. PERCY, DEARLY DEPARTED, BIG BOY
slowthai - Nothing Great About Britain (3/5)
I'm glad I listened to this album, I quite like slowthai and his style, I like his lyrics and I think he has great things to come. That all being said, as an album I wasn't massively enthralled, nothing was bad on here I just didn't fully gravitate to all of it, there are some great tracks but overall I just think it is an ok/good album.
Fave Tracks: Northampton's Child, Drug Dealer, Doorman.
Movies
Fyre (3.5/5)
If this films aim was to make me think one guy was a slimey, disgusting, bag of trash. THEN IT WORKED!
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (2.5/5)
A funny and goofy film with prime Jim Carrey that is let down with the ending stretch playing a trans person for laughs. Obviously hasn't aged well at all.
Neon Genesis Evangelion: The End Of Evangelion (5/5)
I love this show and I love this film, it gave me a new outlook on life and changed my world view in a way I didn't think a mech robot show could when I first started watching the series. Heart wretchingly sad as well.
Jackie Brown (4/5)
Out of Tarantino's filmography it is easy to see why this is the one that is overlooked. It doesn't have the traditional hallmarks of Tarantino movies. Instead it weighs itself on the less 'in your face' ones where almost the violence, gore and flashy directing take a back seat to dialogue and story. I honestly think this is one of his best films, it feels like a pulpy detective/crime TV show from the 60s/70s and it is such a breathe of fresh air from his other films, but it still has that extremely captivating dialogue that you instantly recognise as Tarantino.
Once Upon A Time... In Hollywood (4/5)
Another outstanding film from Tarantino, a snapshot and love letter to the crazy place that was Hollywood in 1960s. The movie is mainly a story about a pair of actors trying to evolve in an industry that is leaving them behind, with the underlying narrative of the Manson murders of 1969. A really great piece of cinema for lovers of cinema.
Kill Bill Vol 1 & 2 (3.5/5 & 4/5)
I watched Kill Bill 1 on it's own not really knowing anything about it, just knowing people loved it, and I found it horrendously disappointing, it sets up this large epic and it feels like it barely touches it in anyway, it left me feeling completely dissatisfied, although there was moments I really liked I was upset about it feeling so short. I left it for a while and I came back to it with the intention of watching Kill Bill 2 immediately after, a double feature. The movie holds up much better this way, but I also found, that everything I wanted to see in the first movie came in the second, and that's where the story felt like an epic martial arts action flick of revenge. As such I think I will always prefer the second film, although it is clear that this should have been one film.
The Image Revolution (3/5)
As a movie the production, editing etc feels extremely low budget, to the point where i think i could've done better. But as a movie displaying interviews and talking about a topic that interests me it is a solid movie that is very interesting.
Inglorious Basterds (3.5/5)
A great fun movie, and Tarantino to a tee, but it is also my personal least favourite of his filmography. A very good movie but just didn't land as strong as others have for me.
It Chapter Two (3/5)
Movie is fine. As a follow up to a great movie its disappointing but its not outwardly awful. There were some strange decisions made but also some absolutely amazing moments. No where near as scary or as charming as the original but it was fine i guess.
From Dusk Till Dawn (3/5)
First half is a weird creepy version of a Tarantino movie and the second half is ALL Robert Rodriguez. It's fun because when Tarantino's character dies in the movie, that's when the switch between the two halves happen. Almost like a meta nod to the making of the film. It's a weird one.
Ad Astra (3.5/5)
Lots of lovely world building and some real solid acting but fails to retain attention for me once it slips into 'One Man Mission' mode. Maybe feels too much like DEEP SPACE MOVIE than carving out its own thing? Still enjoyable.
The Hateful Eight (4/5)
A wonderful western movie that is mainly based in one building and follows a range of characters and their relationships with each other, an exceptionally great movie, Samuel L Jackson as the stand out in this one.
Dracula (1931) (3/5)
An enjoyable old flick for its age, and a classic story, definitely a fun thing to watch around Halloween season.
Frankenstein (1931) (3/5)
Another wonderful classic film, felt bad for Frankenstein's monster. Also Fritz is a dick!
The Mummy (1932) (3/5)
I preferred this movie to the previous two classic horror monster movies from Universal. I love the way Boris Karloff plays The Mummy and Zita Johann's overall performance from normal fancy lady into possessed mummy god thing.
The Invisible Man (1933) (3/5)
Way goofier and funnier than the other classic horror moves so far, but still a great 70 minutes.
The Wolf Man (1941) (3.5/5)
By far, heads and shoulders my favourite out of all these movies, the story is compelling, the acting is great, especially Lon Chaney Jr. He Was extremely likeable even when he was doing things that weren't that likeable. Great movie.
Creature From The Black Lagoon (1954) (3/5)
Another fun classic, I think a lot of it is decent but some of it seems slow and plodding. I can totally see why Del Toro wanted to remake this and how this inspired what he eventually made 'The Shape Of Water'
Joker (3.5/5)
I'm not a massive fan of the movie on a whole but it's another one of those strange cases where enough of it was likeable to get this score. I love Batman, and his rogues gallery, but I feel like this doesn;t really have the spirit of Batman at it's core, and that might be a plus if it didn't feel like an empty, hollow Scorsese rip-off. At least Joaquin Pheonix was good.
Alien 3 (3/5)
Although clearly the weakest out of the first three films, it is still a fun a different movie with the core ideals of the original film still in place. Campy but fun.
The Blair Witch Project (3.5/4)
I can see why this was such a major film for horror and how it has evolved a whole different type of horror genre. But in the years that have pasted it seems the climax of the movie has become tepid in the face of modern horror, regardless the movie is still a great watch and frightening.
Alien Resurrection (2.5/5)
It seems I may have watched a Dvd version that had a slightly better cut of the movie than the theatrical release, that has made it a much tighter film overall. Which has kinda given me the view of this movie being a overtly ridiculous clusterfuck that I loved to watch, though objectively I have to say, it's a poor movie.
Your Name. (3.5/5)
An emotional and romantic little anime feature, music is incredible and has an interesting premise.
Zombieland: Double Tap (3/5)
I thought this was on par with the first movie until the final big sequence where they clearly made it too long and in the editing room tried to cut it shorter, resulting in a sloppy and confusing sequence of quick cuts. Took all the wind out of the momentum of the movie until they got back on track with the ending. Also, I have never seen such a young actor get worse at acting the older theyve gotten, its usually the other way round and I can see why shes got the least amount of screen time in the movie.
But for the most part this movie hits the funny notes it hit previously with the stand outs again being Harrelson and Stone. Also I wondered if they were gonna use another Metallica song for the intro, and they only went and bloody picked the best one.
Terminator: Dark Fate (2.5/5)
I may not have seen any other Terminator movie before. But why would you hinge future sequels to this movie on the two worst actors in the movie. The most blockbuster ass blockbuster.
Prometheus (3.5/5)
Yknow, vibe and visuals really get you through this plot holed movie. Also super risky, weirdly super into it.
Climax (3.5/5)
There's not much I can sit here and say that will describe this movie accurately, I'll just say I really like it and it's also the worst.
Alien: Covenant (4/5)
This movie has made me love all the other movies in this series more. It's like all the best parts of Prometheus, made better, and then took out all the plot holes and rough parts of that movie. I love this movie and I also love Katherine Waterston.
Inside Llewyn Davis (3.5/5)
I'm so sad. I'm so hopeless. Thanks Llewyn Davis for reminding me that I'm you and I'm a fuck up. Thanks for that, Llewyn.
Polar (1/5)
Imagine John Wick, but awful in every way.
Dolemite Is My Name (3.5/5)
Considering I know little to nothing about Rudy Ray Moore, this movie was a really feel good in a way I really needed right now and I thought Eddie Murphy nailed it. Man this one really hit the spot!
Velvet Buzzsaw (2/5)
I really like the concept of this movie, especially the art setting, but the way it begins compared where we end up, i don't understand why this was even made? The initial weird, different character driven exposition stuff was kinda admirable, and interesting, but considering it went from that to... bad horror movie, tells me that, along with the visuals, this movie had no direction whatsoever.
The Cabin In The Woods (3.5/5)
Think about a movie that capitalises on its stereotypical preconceived plot and then adds the most incredible world building with a sprinkle of comedy. Delicious.
Triple Frontier (3/5)
An alright war/heist flick but kinda bland and forgettable in the long run.
Booksmart (4.5/5)
I'm happy, I'm sad, I'm laughing, I'm crying, life is beautiful, life is awful. Fuck.
Gone Girl (3.5/5)
Felt like the back end started to slow down after a pretty high peak and left the ending, although crushing, less impactful than it could have been.
Sorry We Missed You (4/5)
A movie that feels less like a feature of fiction and more like a documentary on class in the UK, powerful and meaningful. It got shafted at all the award shows, and it deserved to be put on a pedestal and shown off to the world. Everyone should watch this.
The Great Hack (3/5)
An interesting doc though I feel like it floats over the actual issue more than I would've liked. Regardless a good watch.
Isn't It Romantic (2.5/5)
Maybe it's my shit sense of humour but this got a couple of chuckles out of me and I think the general premise is fun, but it's not a good movie, however it is surprisingly watchable overall.
The King (3.5/5)
It's not some superb piece of cinema, but I love the setting and I found all the acting to be very good, sure this is probably Chalamet's weakest performance, and sure Robert Pattinson had a questionable accent, but honestly enough of it is compelling to me for me to ignore that stuff. It was a really interesting and enjoyable watch.
The Ritual (3/5)
The World's End but depressed and spooky.
The Red Sea Diving Resort (1/5)
I haven't watched something so excruciatingly dull and boring. A bad cast led by a boring Chris Evans performance doesn't help either. The story isn't even that compelling. If you combine all that, it also really doesn't help that the messaging in this movie is essentially a propaganda movie for Israel, which is worse when you realise they are a main causer of refugees being held captive and abused in the world right now. But anyway the movie was bad.
The Knight Before Christmas (2/5)
Is this dumb? Yes. Is this silly? Yes. Is this very low budget? Yes. Is this another crappy Hallmark Christmas film? Yes. Did I still find it enjoyable? Yes.
Klaus (3/5)
Beautiful looking movie animation and design, as a movie, decent and fun but a bit average. Though the music choices were a bit weird.
Dumbo (1941) (3.5/5)
I wish I had someone who was as kind and loyal to me as the mouse is to dumbo
Midnight Sun (2/5)
I made way too many inappropiate jokes about death during this
Beautiful Boy (4/5)
A movie of two halves, from perspectives of a father and a son, and the battle of addiction. A stressful and agitating watch that also has a melancholy and dream-like glaze over everything. Much like the title, it is beautiful.
Cyberbully (1/5)
Hahahahahahahaha How The Fuck Is Cyber Bullying Real Hahahaha Taylor Just Walk Away From The Screen Like Taylor Close Your Eyes Haha
Ford v Ferrari (4/5)
A tremendous feel good film with a great visual direction, allowing for an amazing sense of speed which is all you really want out of a movie about fast cars and racing.
Dumbo (2019) (2/5)
Millie: Happy 😐, Sad 😐, Excited 😐, Scared 😐, Shocked 😐
Danny DeVito: hilarious and fun then has no lines for the rest of the movie
The Report (3.5/5)
This is so incredibly dense and interesting. Laser focussed on delivering a gripping political drama with performances that are incredible. Unfortuneately, I feel like this movie might be in the charity shop in a year just because of just how niche the movie is, I dont think there is many people out there looking for this kind of movie.
Alita: Battle Angel (3/5)
Yo someone should make a Motorball video game, where the campaign is Alita rising through the qualifying to get to the champions league. Someone should hire me.
Tall Girl (0.5/5)
I'm so glad this movie told me I can be a creepy weird stalker to the girl I like and manipulate her situation that she'll eventually like me.
Lady and the Tramp (3.5/5)
I swear too god he was saying bitch
Knives Out (4/5)
The most fun whodunnit you'll see around, an all star cast who are all great especially Daniel Craig who you can tell is having the time of his life and the leading lady Ana de Armas who I'm really happy to see gets such a great role here. Rian Johnson basically cements himself as one of the best current story tellers, with this and Last Jedi, for me it's indisputable.
I Lost My Body (4/5)
A beautiful and unexpected ride, when I played this animated feature on netflix that night I knew nothing about it and came out of it loving it.
Let It Snow (2.5/5)
Yo they should've just done that Stuart/Jennie movie rather than the other bad storylines
Lady and the Tramp (2019) (3/5)
Surprisingly good, cgi much better than it should be, comedy was much funnier than it should've been, additions and slight changes to the story don't feel awkward or bad, overall a good remake unlike Dumbo
The Lion King (4/5)
Yeah this is exceptional and I'm amazed i recognised a lot of this from that one time i watched it as a kid.
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle (3.5/5)
Why was this as funny as it was? Seemingly a perfect mix of right actors, right roles, right script.
The Lion King (2019) (3/5)
Its a word for word remake of the original. So why? Regardless, its fine. But didn't hold a candle to the original. Hopefully this will be forgotten in time.
Catfish (3.5/5)
Extremely sad. Also 2008 is massively cringe.
6 Underground (0.5/5)
Michael Bay is like the antithesis of a director
The Irishman (4/5)
Just a great long dramatic epic, full of great stuff, it feels like the culmination of Scorsese, De Niro, Pacino, Pesci - Crime films.
Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker (3.5/5)
Tries to do too much when it wasnt neccessary, could be fixed by a longer edit to make each scene breathe a little more, or a rework of the script to tighten the story and cut the fluff. But when the movie is good, its great. Character arcs and moments makes the movie and multiple decisions means it doesnt shit on The Last Jedi like I thought it would.
The Dead Don't Die (3/5)
I just kinda wish it was more of a straight up dry, meandering, awkward, parody critique of zombie movies rather than any of this additional character and story stuff that add nothing.
The Two Popes (3.5/5)
A beautiful and hilarious story about two popes discussing life, policies and religion. Also I dont know why but I love how its shot. Jonathan Pryce and Anthony Hopkins are both excellenet.
Little Women (2019) (5/5)
I have no words for the type of feelings I get when I watch this movie. It's a perfect film in my opinion, I couldn't stop smiling and I couldn't stop crying.
Cats (0.5/5)
Ever since T.S. Elliot put pen to paper he has forever made sure the human race will hate the pet cat.
Games
Guitar Hero III: Legends Of Rock (5/5)
Another case where I played a lot of a game but never actually finished it. Personally, I believe this is the best plastic rhythm game, I think there are lots of really great games in this genre from both Guitar Hero and Rock Band, but when it comes down to game play and track list, for me this is the pinnacle. When it comes to the progression from Guitar Hero II to this, everything is relatively the same with the biggest changes being art direction, graphics and the career mode. I think this is the de facto 'I wanna play one of these right now', this is the one I will slot in over every other one. At least that's what I'm saying right now. I still have a fair few games from this Guitar Hero/Rock Band series that I have never even touched.
Super Mario Maker 2 (3.5/5)
Always heard great things about the original game but as a non-Wii U owner I never get to experience the game. I was hoping for a sequel for the Switch and I was hoping for story mode in the vain of a 2D Mario game. I got both of these in Mario Maker 2 and I was delighted with it. From a story mode perspective I think the game is great, and also shows you everything you can do with the level building, it really gets the creative mind going about how to build a level and the numerous ways you can combine the mechanics the level building gives you. The other side to this coin however is the lack of intuitiveness on the level building side. I personally have no other frame of reference for the level building, but it is just fiddly enough in docked mode to be a bit annoying when trying to make your level. This kind of leads me to believe if you were an avid player of the previous Mario Maker, then the level building here would almost be unbearable. I don't think it would be too bad if the touch screen functionality was still in the game, but what I've heard is that it has changed there too. It's especially evident when you realise that the release of the game didn't have a wide spread bundle with a stylus, only certain countries and certain areas. For me, I find building a level to be a great thought process, and maybe too much of a chore in practice. I try to dip in every once and a while and fiddle around, it is not completely devoid of fun, but I would much rather play all the levels that the experts online have been making.
The Dark Pictures: Man of Medan (2.5/5)
As a lover of Until Dawn and these type of story choice, character games, Man of Medan was an exciting start to the new 'Dark Pictures Anthology', unfortunately, the game falls into the traps of Hidden Agenda, rather than the positives of Until Dawn. It is clearly a step up from Hidden Agenda, but playing it through with the two player online co-op, it felt like all our choices really lead to nothing, the ending felt extremely abrupt. Although the fact we were seeing different things and getting spooked in different ways, I also felt it wasn't used as effectively as I would want it too. I hope with the next game in this anthology they go for a more intuitive uses for the different mechanics and games modes they've added in this time around.
Life Is Strange 2 (3/5)
As a franchise I just love Life Is Strange, even with this new direction and new set of characters, it stills feels like Life Is Strange to me. This time around they improved on graphics and improved on writing, but although I still enjoyed the game overall, I feel like there was a distinct lack of something special that the original game had in droves. As such, you just kind of wish there was more pulling you towards Life Is Strange 2, every fan of Life Is Strange should definitely check out the game, but maybe limit the expectations. For me, if you're looking for more Life Is Strange in the vain of the original game, Deck Nine's Life Is Strange: Before The Storm is the route to go.
Persona 5 (5/5)
I finally did it. I beat Persona 5. Persona 5 is easily one of the greatest games of all time, but for someone who has never sunk 100 hours into a game before, it was a struggle to keep my momentum going consistently. As such it meant I dipped in and out of the game for over 2 years. But that final stretch to finally beat the game this year made me fall in love all over again, just like I did back when I booted it up. There's nothing I can say here that hasn't already been said by better writers, reviewers and content creators. But I can say that I wish more turn based JRPGs existed in modern games and I wish a confidant system, with almost a visual novel styled format like here in Persona 5, appeared in more games as well. These two highly in-depth, completely separate game play loops, to me, are the key to why this game, and this franchise, is so beloved and so revered.
Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare (3.5/5)
Luckily for me I finally got round to playing the original Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare this year via the remaster, so I got to see the kind of changes made from that game to this game. For me I haven't played a newly released Call Of Duty since Black Ops 2, but I heard a lot promise from this new one and so I finally bit the bullet and got the game. Campaign wise I thought it was a little lack luster, I liked it and it definitely wasn't bad, but I still found the original Call Of Duty 4 to be the superior game on that front. Truly though, this game shines in it's multiplayer, maybe it's because I haven't played multiplayer of one of these in a long time, or maybe it is just that good, but playing the online, with all the different modes and maps felt extremely liberating and also nostalgia filled. I was transported to my younger days on the 360 while simultaneously getting addicted to the numerous different modes to play over and over again.
Wrestling
G1 Climax 29
Another great tournament this year, just absolutely the best of the best. It wasn't devoid of stinkers but there was so much good stuff that it is hard to be very angry. Ospreay and Shingo being moved up was a great call, Shingo felt in his element and Ospreay got to have classics with most of the Heavyweights. Lance Archer is now one of my favourite wrestler in the world right now. Just completely changed his whole vibe and it has brought on new life for him and great matches. Ishii as always was the MVP and now I have to believe that New Japan wouldn't be so stupid not to put the belt on this man soon. Jon Moxley has become one of the greatest wrestlers on the planet, not too bad for someone considered to be the least talented in ring from The Shield. Juice, my fave, had a barn burner of a tourney, the man is incredible and I can't wait for him to be reaping the rewards of his hard work. SANADA majorly disappointed this year for me, consistently botching and making mistakes, not putting a lot of effort into his matches and seemingly becoming very predictable with his matches. Ibushi, however much I love him, hasn't had a major tournament either, felt slightly underwhelming, and especially in regards to his selling of his ankle injury, aka not selling it really at all. Overall though this was one hell of a tournament.
MOTY Contenders: Shingo Takagi vs Tomohiro Ishii - Night 16 (8/8/19)
Fave Matches: Jeff Cobb vs Shingo Takagi - Night 12 (1/8/19), Tetsuya Naito vs Juice Robinson - Night 12 (1/8/19), Zack Sabre Jr vs Lance Archer - Night 13 (3/8/19), Tomohiro Ishii vs Toru Yano - Night 14 (4/8/19), Jay White vs Jon Moxley - Night 14 (4/8/19), Tetsuya Naito vs Shingo Takagi - Night 14 (4/8/19), Jay White vs Juice Robinson - Night 16 (8/8/19), Lance Archer vs EVIL - Night 17 (10/8/19), Zack Sabre Jr vs KENTA - Night 17 (10/8/19), Will Ospreay vs Hiroshi Tanahashi - Night 17 (10/8/19), Kazuchika Okada vs Kota Ibushi - Night 17 (10/8/19), Taichi vs Tomohiro Ishii - Night 18 (11/8/19), Juice Robinson vs Jon Moxley - Night 18 (11/8/19)
NXT Takeover: Toronto
Overall slightly better, but still feels like NXT is in a stunted area. Tag Title match was superb and was the highlight of the night, Street Profits really shone in ring, which I felt I forgot because of their hilarious segments on Raw. But they really showed their chops here. Io Shirai/LeRae was also very cool but it felt like a little bit of a special squash match, which is fine because I'm sure we will get a rematch down the line, but the focus was really on Io and how different and interesting and cool she was. Triple Threat was pretty good, Women's title was extremely disappointing, especially Yim, and the main event came across as a bit too self indulgent and was so invested in giving itself massive grandeur that it kinda took any grandeur away.
Fave Matches: Street Profits vs Undiputed Era, Io Shirai vs Candice LeRae.
WWE SummerSlam
I thought overall it was a fairly weak show but this launching point actually got interested into watching regular WWE again, which is where I really am enjoying the show again. But here at this event I only liked a couple of matches but nothing truly special here apart from The Fiend and Rollins/Lesnar.
Fave Matches: Kevin Owens vs Shane McMahon, Bray Wyatt vs Finn Balor, Seth Rollins vs Brock Lesnar.
NJPW Royal Quest
I got to attend this show live and I have never had such a visceral reaction to any wrestling show ever, specifically at this show it was the main event. I still intend to rewatch the whole show again on demand too. But yeah this show ruled and the main event is in the conversation for MOTY for me. So expect to see that in the end of the year list.
Fave Matches: Birds Of Prey vs Ishimori/El Phantasmo, Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Zack Sabre Jr, Kazuchika Okada vs Minoru Suzuki.
AEW All Out
This felt like the kick up the ass AEW needed just before their TV debut, nothing MOTY worthy in my opinion, but almost every match was decent to really good on some level. Which is exactly what you want. I am mostly surprised by the Young Bucks/Lucha Bros and Jericho/Hangman as for me nothing before these matches indicated to me that they would be any good, but they were both pretty good, The best Tag match these two teams have had so far and this is Jericho's best match since his hardcore bout with Omega at Wrestle Kingdom. Also can't forget the decent match between PAC and Omega, you could tell they wanted to continue and do more, and bring it up to a Main Event MOTY calibre match but the early placement meant they were a bit constrained. I also really liked Cody/Spears, though I really am a Shawn Spears mark so it shouldn't be a surprise. But best match of the show goes to the hardcore triple threat where MYBOY Jimmy Havoc finally got a showcase and finally got a win on AEW. Very very cool!
Fave Matches: Private Party vs Angelico & Jack Evans, PAC vs Kenny Omega, Jimmy Havoc vs Joey Janela vs Darby Allin, Cody vs Shawn Spears, Lucha Brothers vs Young Bucks, Chris Jericho vs Adam Page.
WWE Clash Of Champions
Overall a fairly forgettable PPV, I personally quite enjoyed a couple of matches but I know that wasn't all common consensus. Luke Harper's return was something I was really clamouring for, with the No DQ match itself actually being very enjoyable. Becky and Sasha had a great brawl (not as good as their 5 star from NXT). And I personally enjoyed the slower paced Orton/Kofi title match, thought it was a nice ending to their feud. And of course, the Fiend's attack on Seth Rollins setting up for the big title match we all wanna see.
Fave Matches: Becky Lynch vs Sasha, Roman Reigns vs Erick Rowan, Kofi Kingston vs Randy Orton.
Brock Lesnar vs Kofi Kingston on Smackdown
What more can be said, the "match" was such a tone deaf portrayal of Kofi and his character. If the ending angle is to see Cain Velasquez challenge Brock for his new title, which I think everyone can agree was the presumed direction WWE were going to take befoe the match even started, then why would you have Kofi, a people's champion, lose in such a unsatisfactory way. The man had a great run as WWE champion and I'm glad we got to have it, but this type of match indicates to me that WWE never really thought that highly of Kofi in the first place. If Kofi got to have a quick but at the very least back and forth match with Lesnar, similar to the first Reigns match, Goldberg, Rollins, Balor and Bryan matches, this is a completely non issue. But the disrespectful way of tossing out your 6 month champion is just heartbreaking. You would hope Kofi would still be in the main event picture after this but everything else here indicates the opposite.
WWE Hell In A Cell
Woof. Regardless of the hideous main event, that I actually thought started very promising, The show itself was actually alright. Legitimately was very into the Becky and Sasha HiaC and I thought the Roman/Bryan vs Rowan/Harper was the best WWE tag match in a very long time. Also Corbin and Gable have had a bunch of great matches together in NXT and now in the King Of The Ring Tournament, and their match here was also good fun! But yeah the main event kinda ruined the overall vibe of a alright show.
Fave Matches: Becky Lynch vs Sasha Banks, Bryan/Roman vs Rowan/Harper, Chad Gable vs Baron Corbin.
AEW Full Gear
Overall this was a great show all round, I honestly liked most of the matches, it would probably be easier to list the ones I didn't like. Jericho/Cody was a great match but also a superb angle for a new Cody/MJF feud, very exciting. Young Bucks and PnP had a great match, Hangman and PAC had a good one, The tag title match was a lot of fun. But of course, for me, match of the night and the first AEW MOTY contender, Omega vs Moxley in that thrilling Lights Out match. This was superb, I know it sounds like opinons are mixed but I was hooked on this one and seeing Kenny's interpretation of a No DQ match against someone who is a known former death match guy, it was just a great night, I loved a lot of the different weapon spots and honestly they left it all out in the ring that night. Loved it.
MOTY Contender: Kenny Omega vs Jon Moxley
Fave Matches: Young Bucks vs Proud and Powerful, Hangman Adam Page vs PAC, SCU vs Lucha Brothers vs Private Party, Chris Jericho vs Cody.
NXT Takeover: War Games
NXT has finally hit its stride in full force. You now can clearly see the effects the Wednesday Night Wars are having on both brands, and in this case NXT. They had a wonderful night of wrestling with the final War Games match being a MOTY contender for me. The women's division feels out of this world, the Finn Balor return wasn't exceptional but he is clearly on a higher level than where he was before on main roster. I thought the triple threat was a very lackluster But the two War Games matches really made the night, Dakota Kai's turn on Nox was unexpected and a great angle. Owens as the mystery last man for team NXT was another lot of fun, and both matches tore the roof off.
MOTY Contender: Team Ciampa vs The Undisputed Era
Fave Matches: Team Ripley vs Team Baszler.
WWE Survivor Series
Survivor Series over the past couple years has had a (fairly) decent track record, 2016 was exceptional, 2017 was poor, 2018 was good, and 2019 is good once again! The premise of the show is much better than any other brand warfare WWE did in history, and this time it's the first time NXT has been included, and I personally thought it made the whole show that much better. The main centre points of the show were the multi-person brand warfare matches, men and women. I also was a fan of Bryan and The Fiend. Overall a good PPV!
Fave Matches: Men's Survivor Series Match, Women's Survivor Series Match, Daniel Bryan vs Bray Wyatt.
Book/Comics
Batman Vol 10: Epilogue (3/5)
I dont think this is essential to the Snyder/Capullo run, and actually think some issues sour the amazing ending of the previous book. But some issues rule and some don't.
Star Wars Aftermath: Life Debt (4/5)
Far superior to the first book, the writing feels much more coherent and the actual character work is the biggest highlight. They feel like living and breathing characters with real affection for one another. It means actual twists and moments between them hit much harder than they ever did in the original.
Spider-Man: Life Story (4/5)
A really interesting take and spin on Spider-Man and I would personally love to see this done to more characters down the line. It is written cleverly to incorporate a whole spectrum of the characters history and recontexulise it to a character that has been aging ever since his debut. Watch Peter grow into an old man in the last issue was very entertaining. A cool read. Do it with Batman tbh.
Daredevil (Zdarsky) Vol 1: Know Fear (4/5)
Takes a really interesting look at Matt Murdock and his obsession to be Daredevil. This book puts him an interesting and tight spot which means the book ends in an unknown direction for the sequel. Zdarsky really pulls out the gripping dialogue here and done of the panels from Checchetto are iconic.
Some Thoughts - July
(G1 Climax 29, Spider-Man Far From
Home,black midi and More)
First Published 28th August 2019
Music
black midi - Schlagenheim (3.5/5)
A really cool and interesting debut math rock album, a lot of great songs but I think it fails to hit the heights of some of the underground rock that has come out more recently like Daughters or IDLES, regardless this is a great debut and I'm looking forward to hearing what black midi has in store next.
Fave Tracks: 953, Near DT, MI, Western, bmbmbm.
Black Sabbath - Paranoid (4/5)
I barely had to review this, it was more of a courtesy. I have listened to all these songs numerous times over the years but never in the proper album format. And yeah this is one of the greatest metal records ever.
Fave Tracks: War Pigs, Paranoid, Iron Man, Electric Funeral, Fairies Wear Boots.
Movies
Spider-Man: Far From Home (4/5)
Another excellent movie in the MCU and another excellent Spider-Man movie. trails off from Endgame in a really nice a pleasant way and Mysterio is a very good formidable villian for Peter once again, played amazingly by Jake Gyllenhaal. Also how about JK SIMMONS BACK AS JJJ.
This is Spinal Tap (3.5/5)
A really hilarious mockumentary with actually great hilarious rock music, very funny and goofy, wonderfully shot and directed. It's clear most of the movie was improved and its to the benefit as the jokes are all around quite funny, there is a couple jokes that didnt age well but they are fleeting and they dont stick around very long, nothing that hinders the experience.
A Grand Night In: The Story of Aardman (3.5/4)
A very pleasant documentary about the history of Aardman, something I wasn't familiar with, and the subsequent movies they made, a lot of them I have watched and loved, so it was a pleasure to look back and have fond memories. Makes me want to rewatch some of them too.
Midsommar (4/5)
This is extremely creepy and frightening in all the right ways. The setting of this movie being in broad day light with a shining sun made the experience coming out of the cinema absolutely terrifying, looking over my shoulder the whole time. An excellent movie, with some moments that made me unintentionally laugh, but that is always gonna happen when you make something witha weird angle to it.
Reservoir Dogs (4/5)
Probably one of my favourite movies I've seen in a while, only really hindered by the liberal use of the N word, but honestly that is just a preference, I personally loved this movie and I think the rating might go up over time. Though this should be no surprise as Tarantino made a movie I consider to be 5 stars after this one, Pulp Fiction, one of my favourite movies ever made.
Games
Devil May Cry
A game that initially I wasn't over the moon with, I am not really a character action hack and slash player, and although I felt I had to cheese the game a little to get past some of the harder bosses, when I finally beat the last boss in one go I was over the moon, and honestly my time reminiscing on the game since has only been positive, even though it felt like it dragged on much too long.
Spider-Man DLC
I loved this game last year and it became my game of the year. But I felt that the DLC made the game kinda unbearable, maybe all the content in the three separate packs were too much and too repetitive, it didn't help that the story didn't feel like it was very long in each pack. If anything this soured the experience of the original game for me. Luckily I can separate the experience from one another.
Guitar Hero II
This year I have had the itch to get back and play those plastic guitar rhythm games. Back when they were out I was a fan but I only played them on Wii, so they were usually off sync and in 2019 where it is easily affordable to get the best version of these games, I went out and bought them all again on Xbox 360. I thought this time I should explore all the games in this genre I never played, and in order of release to see how they progressed over time, so that meant starting here at Guitar Hero II. To be honest, I see the charm of Guitar Hero II, but I think it lacks everything I really love about the franchise, but I don't think theres much that can go wrong with these games so I still think it is great. My issues really just revolve around the bits you can o outside the core gameplay. No character creation (which isnt essential but as we will see later) no alternate modes that feel like it fleshes out the game, and some of the songs being covers really does drag down the experience for me. I understand why they did it but it is distracting especially when I've listened to many of these songs over and over. But this is all minor really, it is the early stages of this franchise and the developer who would go onto the Rock Band series instead. Still a really solid Guitar Hero game.
Smackdown! Just Bring It!
I have played this game many a time but I was a kid with friends and there was never any point of playing the career modes, well I decided it was about time to experience what that mode had to offer. It was interesting to see where the WWE games used to be, the career mode is not that fascinating by itself but once you start to delve into the unlockables and how to unlock them it was quite fun. It is a pretty primitive game by current standards and is super short even if you do everything. So I just made Jerry Lynn WWE Champion and that was a lot of fun for me. Gameplay wise it is quite similar to everything before it and a couple games after it. Overall fine.
Wrestling
G1 Climax 29
Only half of the nights for G1 is on this month, so more about it next month.
MOTY Contenders: Lance Archer vs Will Ospreay - Night 1 (6/7/19), Juice Robinson vs Shingo Takagi - Night 2 (13/7/19), Tomohiro Ishii vs Jeff Cobb - Night 2 (13/7/19), Taichi vs Tetsuya Naito - Night 4 (15/7/19), Zack Sabre Jr vs Hiroshi Tanahashi - Night 5 (18/7/19), Will Ospreay vs Kota Ibushi - Night 5 (18/7/19), Jon Moxley vs Tomohiro Ishii - Night 6 (19/7/19), Tomohiro Ishii vs Juice Robinson - Night 10 (28/7/19).
Fave Matches: Sanada vs Zack Sabre Jr - Night 1 (6/7/19), Kenta vs Kota Ibushi - Night 1 (6/7/19), Toru Yano vs Tetsuya Naito - Night 2 (13/7/19), Lance Archer vs Bad Luck Fale - Night 3 (14/7/19), Will Ospreay vs Sanada - Night 3 (14/7/19), Kazuchika Okada vs Zack Sabre Jr - Night 3 (14/7/19), Evil vs Kota Ibushi - Night 3 (14/7/19), Kenta vs Hiroshi Tanahashi - Night 3 (14/7/19), Juice Robinson vs Hirooki Goto - Night 4 (15/7/19), Tomohiro Ishii vs Jay White - Night 4 (15/7/19), Evil vs Sanada - Night 5 (18/7/19), Shingo Takagi vs Taichi - Night 6 (19/7/19), Jeff Cobb vs Juice Robinson - Night 6 (19/7/19), Hirooki Goto vs Tetsuya Naito - Night 6 (19/7/19), Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Lance Archer - Night 7 (20/7/19), Kazuchika Okada vs Will Ospreay - Night 7 (20/7/19), Juice Robinson vs Toru Yano - Night 8 (24/7/19), Jon Moxley vs Shingo Takagi - Night 8 (24/7/19), Tetsuya Naito vs Tomohiro Ishii - Night 8 (24/7/19), Kazuchika Okada vs KENTA - Night 9 (27/7/19), Jay White vs Shingo Takagi - Night 10 (28/7/19), Zack Sabre Jr vs Will Ospreay - Night 11 (30/7/19).
AEW Fight For The Fallen
Bar some of the really fun prelim matches at the beginning of this card, again I really hated the main event matches. Especially Hangman/Sabain, as well as the main. The CIMA/Omega match was also a disappointment to me. This really took the wind out of the whole company for me and my hype is kinda gone.
Fave Matches: Bea Priestley & Shoko Nakajima vs Britt Baker & Riho, Dark Order vs Angelico & Jack Evans vs Luchasaurus & Jungle Boy.
black midi - Schlagenheim (3.5/5)
A really cool and interesting debut math rock album, a lot of great songs but I think it fails to hit the heights of some of the underground rock that has come out more recently like Daughters or IDLES, regardless this is a great debut and I'm looking forward to hearing what black midi has in store next.
Fave Tracks: 953, Near DT, MI, Western, bmbmbm.
Black Sabbath - Paranoid (4/5)
I barely had to review this, it was more of a courtesy. I have listened to all these songs numerous times over the years but never in the proper album format. And yeah this is one of the greatest metal records ever.
Fave Tracks: War Pigs, Paranoid, Iron Man, Electric Funeral, Fairies Wear Boots.
Movies
Spider-Man: Far From Home (4/5)
Another excellent movie in the MCU and another excellent Spider-Man movie. trails off from Endgame in a really nice a pleasant way and Mysterio is a very good formidable villian for Peter once again, played amazingly by Jake Gyllenhaal. Also how about JK SIMMONS BACK AS JJJ.
This is Spinal Tap (3.5/5)
A really hilarious mockumentary with actually great hilarious rock music, very funny and goofy, wonderfully shot and directed. It's clear most of the movie was improved and its to the benefit as the jokes are all around quite funny, there is a couple jokes that didnt age well but they are fleeting and they dont stick around very long, nothing that hinders the experience.
A Grand Night In: The Story of Aardman (3.5/4)
A very pleasant documentary about the history of Aardman, something I wasn't familiar with, and the subsequent movies they made, a lot of them I have watched and loved, so it was a pleasure to look back and have fond memories. Makes me want to rewatch some of them too.
Midsommar (4/5)
This is extremely creepy and frightening in all the right ways. The setting of this movie being in broad day light with a shining sun made the experience coming out of the cinema absolutely terrifying, looking over my shoulder the whole time. An excellent movie, with some moments that made me unintentionally laugh, but that is always gonna happen when you make something witha weird angle to it.
Reservoir Dogs (4/5)
Probably one of my favourite movies I've seen in a while, only really hindered by the liberal use of the N word, but honestly that is just a preference, I personally loved this movie and I think the rating might go up over time. Though this should be no surprise as Tarantino made a movie I consider to be 5 stars after this one, Pulp Fiction, one of my favourite movies ever made.
Games
Devil May Cry
A game that initially I wasn't over the moon with, I am not really a character action hack and slash player, and although I felt I had to cheese the game a little to get past some of the harder bosses, when I finally beat the last boss in one go I was over the moon, and honestly my time reminiscing on the game since has only been positive, even though it felt like it dragged on much too long.
Spider-Man DLC
I loved this game last year and it became my game of the year. But I felt that the DLC made the game kinda unbearable, maybe all the content in the three separate packs were too much and too repetitive, it didn't help that the story didn't feel like it was very long in each pack. If anything this soured the experience of the original game for me. Luckily I can separate the experience from one another.
Guitar Hero II
This year I have had the itch to get back and play those plastic guitar rhythm games. Back when they were out I was a fan but I only played them on Wii, so they were usually off sync and in 2019 where it is easily affordable to get the best version of these games, I went out and bought them all again on Xbox 360. I thought this time I should explore all the games in this genre I never played, and in order of release to see how they progressed over time, so that meant starting here at Guitar Hero II. To be honest, I see the charm of Guitar Hero II, but I think it lacks everything I really love about the franchise, but I don't think theres much that can go wrong with these games so I still think it is great. My issues really just revolve around the bits you can o outside the core gameplay. No character creation (which isnt essential but as we will see later) no alternate modes that feel like it fleshes out the game, and some of the songs being covers really does drag down the experience for me. I understand why they did it but it is distracting especially when I've listened to many of these songs over and over. But this is all minor really, it is the early stages of this franchise and the developer who would go onto the Rock Band series instead. Still a really solid Guitar Hero game.
Smackdown! Just Bring It!
I have played this game many a time but I was a kid with friends and there was never any point of playing the career modes, well I decided it was about time to experience what that mode had to offer. It was interesting to see where the WWE games used to be, the career mode is not that fascinating by itself but once you start to delve into the unlockables and how to unlock them it was quite fun. It is a pretty primitive game by current standards and is super short even if you do everything. So I just made Jerry Lynn WWE Champion and that was a lot of fun for me. Gameplay wise it is quite similar to everything before it and a couple games after it. Overall fine.
Wrestling
G1 Climax 29
Only half of the nights for G1 is on this month, so more about it next month.
MOTY Contenders: Lance Archer vs Will Ospreay - Night 1 (6/7/19), Juice Robinson vs Shingo Takagi - Night 2 (13/7/19), Tomohiro Ishii vs Jeff Cobb - Night 2 (13/7/19), Taichi vs Tetsuya Naito - Night 4 (15/7/19), Zack Sabre Jr vs Hiroshi Tanahashi - Night 5 (18/7/19), Will Ospreay vs Kota Ibushi - Night 5 (18/7/19), Jon Moxley vs Tomohiro Ishii - Night 6 (19/7/19), Tomohiro Ishii vs Juice Robinson - Night 10 (28/7/19).
Fave Matches: Sanada vs Zack Sabre Jr - Night 1 (6/7/19), Kenta vs Kota Ibushi - Night 1 (6/7/19), Toru Yano vs Tetsuya Naito - Night 2 (13/7/19), Lance Archer vs Bad Luck Fale - Night 3 (14/7/19), Will Ospreay vs Sanada - Night 3 (14/7/19), Kazuchika Okada vs Zack Sabre Jr - Night 3 (14/7/19), Evil vs Kota Ibushi - Night 3 (14/7/19), Kenta vs Hiroshi Tanahashi - Night 3 (14/7/19), Juice Robinson vs Hirooki Goto - Night 4 (15/7/19), Tomohiro Ishii vs Jay White - Night 4 (15/7/19), Evil vs Sanada - Night 5 (18/7/19), Shingo Takagi vs Taichi - Night 6 (19/7/19), Jeff Cobb vs Juice Robinson - Night 6 (19/7/19), Hirooki Goto vs Tetsuya Naito - Night 6 (19/7/19), Hiroshi Tanahashi vs Lance Archer - Night 7 (20/7/19), Kazuchika Okada vs Will Ospreay - Night 7 (20/7/19), Juice Robinson vs Toru Yano - Night 8 (24/7/19), Jon Moxley vs Shingo Takagi - Night 8 (24/7/19), Tetsuya Naito vs Tomohiro Ishii - Night 8 (24/7/19), Kazuchika Okada vs KENTA - Night 9 (27/7/19), Jay White vs Shingo Takagi - Night 10 (28/7/19), Zack Sabre Jr vs Will Ospreay - Night 11 (30/7/19).
AEW Fight For The Fallen
Bar some of the really fun prelim matches at the beginning of this card, again I really hated the main event matches. Especially Hangman/Sabain, as well as the main. The CIMA/Omega match was also a disappointment to me. This really took the wind out of the whole company for me and my hype is kinda gone.
Fave Matches: Bea Priestley & Shoko Nakajima vs Britt Baker & Riho, Dark Order vs Angelico & Jack Evans vs Luchasaurus & Jungle Boy.
Some Thoughts - June
(Best Of The Super Jrs, Toy Story 4,
Dominion, AEW Fyter Fest and More!)
First Published 11th July 2019
The very very late June thoughts blog AHHHH
Music
Chai - Punk (3/5)
An enjoyable album if not a bit of a slow ending. The first half of this album is stellar in my opinion, every track delivers a catchy punk tune that makes your blood pump. But the second half peters out for me, it feels less urgent, and more tepid, the catchy choruses are still there but the sound from the beginning is lost.
Movies
Little Miss Sunshine (3.5/5)
A really touching, funny, heartfelt movie about a dysfunctional family on a road trip. The characterisation is amazing in this movie, the father is initially despicable but as the film progresses you also get moments of him being thoughtful and kind. It is stuff like this that make the movie, definitely a watch.
Vice (2/5)
I don't wanna spend much time on this, overall it is just a bunch of naff messaging about how we the people need to be more aware of the world even though people were aware of Cheny and his shit. Film making wise I do think the way this movie is made is at least interesting albeit messy and a bit shit. Overall pretty awful, at least Bale and Adams were putting on great performances.
Toy Story 4 (4/5)
I am a huge fan on the original 2 Toy Story movies, I consider both of them 5 stars, I was however a little disappointed with Toy Story 3, not because it was bad, it definitely wasn't, but I felt it failed to capture what was so great about the original two movies. Toy Story 4 corrects that, not only do we go back to original characters, we get new characters that feel fresh but still feel like they would fit right in those originals. A great movie with the only downside that we didn't get to see some of those original characters more like Jessie, Rex, Hamm etc.
Bad Times At The El Royale (3.5/5)
A really fun movie that feels like anything can happen at any moment, with great character moments and flashbacks. Everyone pulls out a great performance in this movie but I have to give the biggest applause to Cynthia Erivo who is the best in this movie. Although everything in this movie is really interesting while watching, after the movie finishes you start to reflect on the movie and for me, it feels like it has to many similarities to Pulp Fiction, and for me that ruins a bit of the films magic. But overall a pretty good movie!
Wrestling
NJPW Best Of The Super Juniors Last Night & Finals
The Last night of official tournament bouts didn't produce much for me so we're going to leave that and go straight into the Finals as it had my top 2 matches of the year so far and another excellent top 10 contender on the same card. So lets start off by saying that I think Jay White and Tanahashi have had some bad matches and some ok matches, and this one was clearly the best they've had, a far cry to their STINKY Wrestle Kingdom 12 match. Next up is the debut of John Moxley in New Japan up against MY BOY Juice Robinson, amd yeah this is my second favourite match of the year, the intensity the brawling nature, Juice specifically came out of the match looking like one hell of a star, he always is in my mind, but I hope this showing enlightens people behind the camera as well as us fans because I really want this new attitude to shine through in his G1 points. Moxley also just came out all guns blazing, when he said he was devising a new moveset he wasn't kidding and it really added to the match here. Extremely excited about him in th G1 aswell. Finally the main event and Final of the BOSJ Ospreay vs Shingo, my match of the year so far, just incredible from start to finish, just could not be touched, Ospreay is his own competition this year and he still rose to the top with this, Shingo as well is in line for being one of the wrestlers of the year, just exceptional.
NXT Takeover: XXV
Overall a pretty good show, NXT seem to be treading water a little bit, theres always somethingt good, but never anything truly amazing. Though saying that Adam Cole vs Johnny Garagano was the best match these two have had and if it wasn't for some of these other matches that happened this month it would pretty high on my MOTY candidates as well. Not just that but I also enjoyed Breeze/Dream, I know it's clear that Breeze was a little different stuck in Main Roster mode perhaps? But I still thoroughly enjoyed this match and him.
NJPW Dominion
Show was pretty good, not the best of the year that has been before but it had some really cool undercard matches, Moxley/Umino was a fun match showcasing more Moxley. Shingo/Kojima was a great new guy vs veteran big boy beat down that was enjoyable. Taichi surprised against Ishii in a really good match, makes me excited for his G1 run. As well as some good main event matches, Ospreay/Lee was a good match but no where near as good as Ospreay/Shingo. Naito/Ibushi had my favourite match they have ever had, usually with their matches they go too far and too fast that I am no longer invested and I'm like 'ok now its just crazy' but this match felt like they restricted it correctly and it gave them their best bout.
AEW Fyter Fest
Overall another good event by AEW, some slip ups but nothing too awful I didn't think. Private Party really got over in their first match which was the triple threat tag. I usually hate the way those work as why would you ever tag in another team, which means you always have to book the match as one team gets in by tagging themselves in, and you can only do that so many times before its just annoying, I think, but for the most part here they basically treated this as a tornado tag match where everyone was doing everything everywhere. Lots of people hated The Librarian gimmick and match, I think the gimmick is actually interesting tbh, idk I just got an old school gimmicky vibe off of the two of them, I'm way in the minority and I concede that if this was on WWE I would probably have a way different opinion, but I think because this is a new company and a new set of bookers and writers I'm willing to give them some faith before I start shitting all over them. As for the match however, it wasn't great. Nakazawa/Jebailey was a goofy, stupid, enjoyable, comedy, hardcore match, I know I'm in the minority again but anyone who is taking this too seriously obviously lost the point of the match, and that was to have a light comedy match. As for the other matches not much stuck out apart from the Women's triple threat which was phenomenal, I thought Cody/Allin was extremely lack luster as Cody is so in love with the long slow matches that it didn't allow Allin to be the crazy, guy that they should've shown him off to be. Although people went crazy at the post match chair shot I kinda just wanna focus on the storyline implications here, as Shawn Spears is one of my guys so I'm happy to see him in a prominent role. The Elite vs Lucha Bros and Laredo Kid had the match of the night in my opinion, they just had a classic Elite match but it just ticked all the right boxes for me, more than the 2v2 match from DoN. and Moxley/Janela also had a really good match, Moxley is completely different here to how he was in his New Japan matches, different gear, different moves, and different name for the finisher, but overall it was great.
Music
Chai - Punk (3/5)
An enjoyable album if not a bit of a slow ending. The first half of this album is stellar in my opinion, every track delivers a catchy punk tune that makes your blood pump. But the second half peters out for me, it feels less urgent, and more tepid, the catchy choruses are still there but the sound from the beginning is lost.
Movies
Little Miss Sunshine (3.5/5)
A really touching, funny, heartfelt movie about a dysfunctional family on a road trip. The characterisation is amazing in this movie, the father is initially despicable but as the film progresses you also get moments of him being thoughtful and kind. It is stuff like this that make the movie, definitely a watch.
Vice (2/5)
I don't wanna spend much time on this, overall it is just a bunch of naff messaging about how we the people need to be more aware of the world even though people were aware of Cheny and his shit. Film making wise I do think the way this movie is made is at least interesting albeit messy and a bit shit. Overall pretty awful, at least Bale and Adams were putting on great performances.
Toy Story 4 (4/5)
I am a huge fan on the original 2 Toy Story movies, I consider both of them 5 stars, I was however a little disappointed with Toy Story 3, not because it was bad, it definitely wasn't, but I felt it failed to capture what was so great about the original two movies. Toy Story 4 corrects that, not only do we go back to original characters, we get new characters that feel fresh but still feel like they would fit right in those originals. A great movie with the only downside that we didn't get to see some of those original characters more like Jessie, Rex, Hamm etc.
Bad Times At The El Royale (3.5/5)
A really fun movie that feels like anything can happen at any moment, with great character moments and flashbacks. Everyone pulls out a great performance in this movie but I have to give the biggest applause to Cynthia Erivo who is the best in this movie. Although everything in this movie is really interesting while watching, after the movie finishes you start to reflect on the movie and for me, it feels like it has to many similarities to Pulp Fiction, and for me that ruins a bit of the films magic. But overall a pretty good movie!
Wrestling
NJPW Best Of The Super Juniors Last Night & Finals
The Last night of official tournament bouts didn't produce much for me so we're going to leave that and go straight into the Finals as it had my top 2 matches of the year so far and another excellent top 10 contender on the same card. So lets start off by saying that I think Jay White and Tanahashi have had some bad matches and some ok matches, and this one was clearly the best they've had, a far cry to their STINKY Wrestle Kingdom 12 match. Next up is the debut of John Moxley in New Japan up against MY BOY Juice Robinson, amd yeah this is my second favourite match of the year, the intensity the brawling nature, Juice specifically came out of the match looking like one hell of a star, he always is in my mind, but I hope this showing enlightens people behind the camera as well as us fans because I really want this new attitude to shine through in his G1 points. Moxley also just came out all guns blazing, when he said he was devising a new moveset he wasn't kidding and it really added to the match here. Extremely excited about him in th G1 aswell. Finally the main event and Final of the BOSJ Ospreay vs Shingo, my match of the year so far, just incredible from start to finish, just could not be touched, Ospreay is his own competition this year and he still rose to the top with this, Shingo as well is in line for being one of the wrestlers of the year, just exceptional.
NXT Takeover: XXV
Overall a pretty good show, NXT seem to be treading water a little bit, theres always somethingt good, but never anything truly amazing. Though saying that Adam Cole vs Johnny Garagano was the best match these two have had and if it wasn't for some of these other matches that happened this month it would pretty high on my MOTY candidates as well. Not just that but I also enjoyed Breeze/Dream, I know it's clear that Breeze was a little different stuck in Main Roster mode perhaps? But I still thoroughly enjoyed this match and him.
NJPW Dominion
Show was pretty good, not the best of the year that has been before but it had some really cool undercard matches, Moxley/Umino was a fun match showcasing more Moxley. Shingo/Kojima was a great new guy vs veteran big boy beat down that was enjoyable. Taichi surprised against Ishii in a really good match, makes me excited for his G1 run. As well as some good main event matches, Ospreay/Lee was a good match but no where near as good as Ospreay/Shingo. Naito/Ibushi had my favourite match they have ever had, usually with their matches they go too far and too fast that I am no longer invested and I'm like 'ok now its just crazy' but this match felt like they restricted it correctly and it gave them their best bout.
AEW Fyter Fest
Overall another good event by AEW, some slip ups but nothing too awful I didn't think. Private Party really got over in their first match which was the triple threat tag. I usually hate the way those work as why would you ever tag in another team, which means you always have to book the match as one team gets in by tagging themselves in, and you can only do that so many times before its just annoying, I think, but for the most part here they basically treated this as a tornado tag match where everyone was doing everything everywhere. Lots of people hated The Librarian gimmick and match, I think the gimmick is actually interesting tbh, idk I just got an old school gimmicky vibe off of the two of them, I'm way in the minority and I concede that if this was on WWE I would probably have a way different opinion, but I think because this is a new company and a new set of bookers and writers I'm willing to give them some faith before I start shitting all over them. As for the match however, it wasn't great. Nakazawa/Jebailey was a goofy, stupid, enjoyable, comedy, hardcore match, I know I'm in the minority again but anyone who is taking this too seriously obviously lost the point of the match, and that was to have a light comedy match. As for the other matches not much stuck out apart from the Women's triple threat which was phenomenal, I thought Cody/Allin was extremely lack luster as Cody is so in love with the long slow matches that it didn't allow Allin to be the crazy, guy that they should've shown him off to be. Although people went crazy at the post match chair shot I kinda just wanna focus on the storyline implications here, as Shawn Spears is one of my guys so I'm happy to see him in a prominent role. The Elite vs Lucha Bros and Laredo Kid had the match of the night in my opinion, they just had a classic Elite match but it just ticked all the right boxes for me, more than the 2v2 match from DoN. and Moxley/Janela also had a really good match, Moxley is completely different here to how he was in his New Japan matches, different gear, different moves, and different name for the finisher, but overall it was great.
Some Thoughts - May
(AEW Double Or Nothing, PUP,
John Wick 3 and More!)
First Published 2nd June 2019
Just slightly too late with this annoyingly. I've been away on holiday a lot this month so I'm lucky I watched, listened or read anything to be quite honest!
Music
PUP - Morbid Stuff (4/5)
Another amazing album from PUP, truly the front runner now for me, this hits all the right notes lyrically and musically, I can't get enough of it, and I think the biggest knock to this great album is knowing it follows up their last album The Dream Is Over which is one of my favourite albums of recent memory, thus maybe makes this album less memorable by comparison. But every time I came back to it I remembered how good the whole album was.
Fave Tracks: Morbid Stuff, Kids, Free At Last, Bloody Mary Kate and Ashley, Sibling Rivalry, Full Blown Meltdown
Band Of Skulls - Love Is All You Love (3/5)
For a while there I thought Band Of Skulls weren't gonna make a return. After their last album By Default, which I wasn't a tremendous fan of, their drummer Matt Hayward, who I felt was an integral part of the bands sound, left the band pretty abruptly and left the two remaining members in almost a limbo state, the band continued on but it felt like an eternity, lots of silence and lots of posts about one off, every so often, acoustic gigs. At some point during 2018 however it seemed the band had found a friend in Julian Dorio, drummer of The Whigs, and he started to play with the band, it is unclear at the moment if he is on this album or if he is just a touring member for the band. Regardless after this friendship not soon after did an album. Now clearly from an immediate listen, this album is going for a different tone that Band Of Skulls have taken before, a more upbeat, positive sound. However for me, I think although the song writing and riffs are all solid, the positive feeling from the album doesn't hit me in the way I'm sure it's supposed to. Instead of having this album as a hideout from the outside dreary world that is 2019, instead I feel disconnected to the feelings it's trying to give me, or more accurately, the positive aspects of the album feel disingenuous. Regardless I don't think it is an awful album by a long shot, I do think it is better than By Default but it does not reach anywhere near the heights of their debut or Himalayan for me.
Fave Tracks: Carnivorous, That's My Trouble, Cool Your Battles.
Movies
Eighth Grade (4/5)
Eighth Grade is so nostalgic even though I am a 22 year old British male, it manages to encapsulate the feeling of middle to high school so perfectly and life as a high schooler that it just hits me hard. This movie also does something we will talk about more in John Wick, but the movies plot is almost non existent, in favour for an almost exclusive story based movie, the story is just atmosphere and character moments and it allows the movie to be way more endearing to me and focus on capturing that time period rather than giving you an intense story about eighth grade life. It works wonders here and it makes the movie almost comforting. Love, love, love.
Pokemon Detective Pikachu (3/5)
Let's be real, this is a kids movie, it's a highly enjoyable and goofy kids movie, but this is a kids movie, it is very clear that if you DO NOT LIKE POKEMON there will be NO REASON for you to like this even remotely, not to say this is a badly made movie or is incoherent, it is a perfectly solid feature, but what tips over into just plain enjoyable for me is just seeing this Pokemon infested world, seeing that Tokyo-esque Pokemon city, seeing the Pokemon come to life in the great designs and CGI. If you love Pokemon, you gonna love seeing the Pokemon do Poke-Things, if you aren't a Pokemon fan and not a kid, you should probably skip it.
John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum (3.5/5)
John Wick is a fantastic series, this one is crazy fun, plot is razor thin, lore is laid on thick, action is perfectly choreographed, and directed in an amazing way. These are all must watch action movies, just go, and watch and enjoy. Have the escapism you need.
TV
The Good Place Season 2
The arc of season 2 takes season 1's whole arc and changes it into mere seconds, I love the different directions this show goes, I love how the whole show is just laser focused on how the characters interact and how they change, this is one of the most character driven shows, the plot is all about the characters literally changing. It's a great show and I can't wait to sit with my girlfriend and BINGE Season 3.
One Punch Man Season 1
For no reason whats so ever, I flicked through Netflix, saw this in my list and just stuck it on. I don't think I have fallen in love with a show so quickly. One Punch Man is just the funniest and sweetest piece of animated TV I've ever seen. I love it dearly (even though I don't love this one character that feels very homophobic in nature, I'm unsure when it comes to Japan) and I love Saitama, he is such a cool guy. I LOVE THIS SHOW.
Wrestling
NJPW Best Of The Super Juniors (so far)
The second big New Japan Tournament this year, I've really enjoyed it so far especially certain wrestlers. Specifically MY BOY Robbie Eagles, he's great.
Fave Matches: Marty Scurll vs Jonathan Gresham - Night 1 (13/5/19), Robbie Eagles vs Rocky Romero - Night 2 (14/5/19), Taiji Ishimori vs Marty Scurll - Night 3 (15/5/19), Robbie Eagles vs Ren Narita - Night 4 (16/5/19), Will Ospreay vs Rocky Romero - Night 4 (16/5/19), Jonathan Gresham vs Dragon Lee - Night 5 (18/5/19), El Phantasmo vs Robbie Eagles - Night 6 (19/5/19), Will Ospreay vs YOH - Night 6 (19/5/19), Shingo Takagi vs Marty Scurll - Night 7 (22/5/19), Will Ospreay vs El Phantasmo - Night 7 (22/5/19), Will Ospreay vs Bandido - Night 8 (23/5/19), Shingo Takagi vs Dragon Lee - Night 8 (23/9/19), Jonathan Gresham vs Taiji Ishimori - Night 9 (24/5/19), Rocky Romero vs El Phantasmo - Night 9 (24/5/19), Robbie Eagles vs Will Ospreay - Night 10 (26/5/19), Bandido vs Robbie Eagles - Night 12 (30/5/19), Marty Scurll vs Dragon Lee - Night 13 (31/5/19), Shingo Takagi vs Taiji Ishimori - Night 13 (31/5/19).
WWE Money In The Bank
Money In The Bank was kinda super boring man. Ahahaha! Sorry!
AEW Double Or Nothing
Not as good as All In for me, with their big matches disappointing for me, but regardless, it doesn't even matter, they prevailed on the wrestling buffet that they did last time and the under card basically was a major success for me in every single way. And OBVIOUSLY seeing Jon Moxley return to the 'indies' in a sense at the end of this show was just the biggest pop I have ever done. AEW is now so exciting and I cannot wait to see where they go next.
Fave Matches: SCU vs Strong Hearts, Best Friends vs Angelico & Jack Evans, Joshi 6-Man Tag, Cody vs Dustin.
Books & Comics
Batman Vol 9 - Bloom
An amazing finale for Snyder/Capullo's run. it has a perfect mix or new things, gritty Batman, Gotham and a little bit of fantasy to just keep it refreshing. I think this is probably the one of if not the best book in this whole run, if you only read this run, a bit like me, it might be jarring for characters to just be added to a story that have not had a proper introduction, but for me I was slightly familiar for who the character was and I just kind of let it in my stride, it didn't really bother me but I know some have that complaint. I love this book and this run, I think it's excellent.
Get prepared, E3 IS COMING, as always I will be blog posting about my excitement for E3, lots of stuff is different this year but I'm still excited to see what happens. Stay tuned!
Some Thoughts - April
(Avengers: Endgame, Shazam!,
Little Simz, WrestleMania 35 and More)
First Published 30th April 2019
Music
Little Simz - GREY Area (4/5)
GREY Area is definitely my favourite Hip-Hop album since DAMN., maybe because Simz is close enough to home to talk about a life that I feel apart of in some capacity. Along with the lyrical content let's just say the whole album is banging, great beats, great sung choruses by the features. Just a great solid album.
Fave Tracks: Offence, Boss, Selfish, Wounds, Pressure.
Movies
Shazam! (3.5/5)
Feels like DC finally got one. Shazam is a breath of fresh air not just from their previous DC movies, but in the MCU dominated Superhero Movie scene. Shazam feels much more willing to try things that aren't very conventional. Yes it's an origin story but one with laughs and wonder, one with directing that feels more refreshing than it should in a Superhero movie, and one that is surprisingly got some scary and freaky looking visuals. I think this is probably gonna be my 'Solo' of this year. A lot of people kipped on it because it was DC, but I think it is a really great romp.
Phantom Thread (4/5)
It's a beautifully shot movie, a wonderfully acted movie and a very interesting movie, I don't have much to add to the conversation of this movie, look it up and have fun thinking about it and delving into it.
Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping (3.5/5)
Obviously a Lonely Island film from the get go, that humour is here and in droves. It's also a short film, even though I think it probably still goes slightly too long. The movie is funny and the songs are funny. Good movie to watch when you're looking for a chill night in with some laughs.
Safety Not Guaranteed (3/5)
Although I thought it was pretty obvious what the ending of the movie would be after the first couple of scenes, it is still enjoyable, it's very twee and sombre overall, and aims for a emotional core with a comedy crust. But really it ends up making the movie just ok. The subplot also seems entirely meaningless within the movie, it adds nothing to the main plot, so seems like an attached story to a plot that could only last an hour episode of TV.
Kill Bill Vol. 1 (3.5/5)
This is one of those movies I've been meaning to watch for a long time. All of Tarantino's movies for that matter, apart from Pulp Fiction, one of my favourite movies. So when somebody asked me if I wanted to watch it, I agreed. But I really wasn't prepared for it, plus the experience while watching it led to me not enjoying it as much as I was hoping. I didn't know how long the movie was, and I wasn't aware that the movie was only going to focus on one person from this infamous gang that our main character was going to kill. Meaning I was expecting half of this gang to be killed in this movie but instead only got one long assassination that felt like it was really stretched out for unknown reasons. The Anime section took me off guard, and the dark humour really rubbed me the wrong way in 2019. I wanna see the movie again because I really felt like me being tired and watching it with other people, and not being prepared for what the movie was going to be really hindered my viewing.
John Wick: Chapter 2 (3.5/5)
Just more of the brilliant ridiculous action that you get from the first one. Again, this movie really knows what it is. What's great about this series is that after I finished the movie I wanted to put in the first one and watch that again and then put in the second one and watch it again. And truthfully I probably will watch these two again just before the 3rd movie comes out. So I expect the ratings to go up for them because they are just such a barrel of fun.
Once Upon A Deadpool (3/5)
As an interesting re-edit viewing, this is cool. But coming from someone who's seen the original quite a few times now, this is just an inferior version. Editing seems weirder and joke dubs are obvious. But all the original stuff filmed for the movie is VERY FUNNY.
Little Simz - GREY Area (4/5)
GREY Area is definitely my favourite Hip-Hop album since DAMN., maybe because Simz is close enough to home to talk about a life that I feel apart of in some capacity. Along with the lyrical content let's just say the whole album is banging, great beats, great sung choruses by the features. Just a great solid album.
Fave Tracks: Offence, Boss, Selfish, Wounds, Pressure.
Movies
Shazam! (3.5/5)
Feels like DC finally got one. Shazam is a breath of fresh air not just from their previous DC movies, but in the MCU dominated Superhero Movie scene. Shazam feels much more willing to try things that aren't very conventional. Yes it's an origin story but one with laughs and wonder, one with directing that feels more refreshing than it should in a Superhero movie, and one that is surprisingly got some scary and freaky looking visuals. I think this is probably gonna be my 'Solo' of this year. A lot of people kipped on it because it was DC, but I think it is a really great romp.
Phantom Thread (4/5)
It's a beautifully shot movie, a wonderfully acted movie and a very interesting movie, I don't have much to add to the conversation of this movie, look it up and have fun thinking about it and delving into it.
Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping (3.5/5)
Obviously a Lonely Island film from the get go, that humour is here and in droves. It's also a short film, even though I think it probably still goes slightly too long. The movie is funny and the songs are funny. Good movie to watch when you're looking for a chill night in with some laughs.
Safety Not Guaranteed (3/5)
Although I thought it was pretty obvious what the ending of the movie would be after the first couple of scenes, it is still enjoyable, it's very twee and sombre overall, and aims for a emotional core with a comedy crust. But really it ends up making the movie just ok. The subplot also seems entirely meaningless within the movie, it adds nothing to the main plot, so seems like an attached story to a plot that could only last an hour episode of TV.
Kill Bill Vol. 1 (3.5/5)
This is one of those movies I've been meaning to watch for a long time. All of Tarantino's movies for that matter, apart from Pulp Fiction, one of my favourite movies. So when somebody asked me if I wanted to watch it, I agreed. But I really wasn't prepared for it, plus the experience while watching it led to me not enjoying it as much as I was hoping. I didn't know how long the movie was, and I wasn't aware that the movie was only going to focus on one person from this infamous gang that our main character was going to kill. Meaning I was expecting half of this gang to be killed in this movie but instead only got one long assassination that felt like it was really stretched out for unknown reasons. The Anime section took me off guard, and the dark humour really rubbed me the wrong way in 2019. I wanna see the movie again because I really felt like me being tired and watching it with other people, and not being prepared for what the movie was going to be really hindered my viewing.
John Wick: Chapter 2 (3.5/5)
Just more of the brilliant ridiculous action that you get from the first one. Again, this movie really knows what it is. What's great about this series is that after I finished the movie I wanted to put in the first one and watch that again and then put in the second one and watch it again. And truthfully I probably will watch these two again just before the 3rd movie comes out. So I expect the ratings to go up for them because they are just such a barrel of fun.
Once Upon A Deadpool (3/5)
As an interesting re-edit viewing, this is cool. But coming from someone who's seen the original quite a few times now, this is just an inferior version. Editing seems weirder and joke dubs are obvious. But all the original stuff filmed for the movie is VERY FUNNY.
Avengers: Endgame (5/5)
I don't know how much I want to talk about here. I guess I wanna go FULL SPOILERS. So do not read this SPOILERS AHEAD, if you haven't seen the movie yet. I think this is by far the best MCU movie, the sense of wonder and happiness I got from this movie is immeasurable, it felt so big and unique and truly refreshing. It felt like it crossed boundaries that felt like it shouldn't be possible. This movie is basically 3 great different movies. First you have the beginning which is a 'coming to terms' movie, it has a time skip that really shocks, audible gasps from my audience, and we deal with the aftermath. The Second Movie is the part I thought we would never see, but hoped we might. Time travel, and it is filmed in such a way that makes everything so nostalgic, The Avengers section is by far my favourite bit but I also had such a giant nostalgia burst when it played the beginning of Guardians 1. We get some other cool stuff in this, which I can't label all right now, and then the third movie is the greatest MCU battle I've ever seen, an action sequence that is chocked full with great moments. I honestly haven't been this excited for the MCU since Guardians 1. The most anticipated for me is Guardians 3 with Thor, but also Spider-Man which comes out in like 2 months or something ridiculous. The MCU is always going to be my favourite series of films now, just because of this. I'm also super excited about Black Widow, Doctor Strange 2, and the Captain America Show/Movies? I'm not sure! Loki show too. Queen Valkyrie too. GOD THERES SO MUCH. CAP USED MJOLNIR!
TV
The Good Place Season 1
What a hilarious and fun show this is, the whole arc of Season 1 really is a great watch and it is so enjoyable. I don't have a lot to say it just hits all the right notes for me!
Black Mirror Season 1
Charlie Brooker loves technology and SEX. That's kind of the main vibe I get off this. I really enjoyed the first and third episodes, with the second having one particular stand out moment. The acting really puts this stuff above normal shows I feel. But the vibe I get off the show is just.. weird? Like I get it it's trying to be grim and introspective for the viewer, but the constant use of sex being portrayed in this really strange taboo way gives it an edgy/creepy vibe, almost like it's some 2006 emo fan fiction. I'm gonna continue on watching the show because I think its episodes are interesting enough to keep me going but that's my feelings right now.
Wrestling
Welcome to the Mania weekend wrestling DUMP, I didn't watch everything but I did watch a fair few things, the greatest part about WrestleMania weekend isn't just the show itself, but all the weird niche wrestling shows companies run around it too.
GCW Josh Barnett's Bloodsport
Last year Matt Riddle did Bloodsport, and while the idea seemed really fun, I felt like the show didn't hit the mark on what was really promised. This year however I felt like every match knocked the different types of match this kind of weird MMA/Wrestling hybrid can bring. It brought some attention to some guys that I hadn't heard of before as well as some old faces. I was especially impressed by Simon Grimm, J.R. Kratos and Josh Barnett. Fun time all round, and this cements this for me as a must watch every year.
Fave Matches: J.R. Kratos vs Simon Grimm, Josh Barnett vs Minoru Suzuki
Impact United We Stand
This is the first time in a long long time, I've watched a full Impact show, as someone who was a big fan of the company back in the 05-07 days it's crazy to see how far they have fallen when it comes to production. As a general Wrestling fan I have always kept my eye on TNA/GFW/Impact, but never watched a full show in a while. This was less about great matches and more about great performances by wrestlers. People who caught my attention were: Ace Austin, Taya Valkyrie, LAX, Low Ki and Flamita. There were other god performances too but all from people who I'm aware who can put on good performances. The show overall wasn't going to be anything amazing but as a fun pass the time wrestling show on Mania weekend it did the job, I think every finish of every match fell completely flat though, so that was a shame.
NXT Takeover: New York
A great night a wrestling overall, but I felt almost every match fell for some pacing issues. I really enjoyed isolated moments of the show, maybe solid few minutes in every match, but no one match had a full package the way Takeover's usually do. War Raiders vs Black & Ricochet was a fun match but it wasn't anything that I hadn't seen before and nothing truly hype or insane. Dream and Riddle were the closest to a match that felt cohesive but unfortunately I wasn't completely won over by it. Walter/Dunne would be my favourite match if we were only counting those last few minutes at the end, but the middle dragged, and going too long meant most of the match I was bored. Women's Fatal Four Way felt like a match that I didn't have to feel so invested into because of the many competitors and the nature that Shayna always seems to win, so in that respect I felt more relaxed to watch it. Cole and Gargano felt like a match that's should've been far better than it turned out to be, the first two falls basically being pointless as they were not as interesting as the last fall and felt like they played no part in the later match. I did enjoy the last moments on the ramp though.
Fave Matches: Velveteen vs Riddle, Walter vs Dunne
ROH & NJPW G1 Supercard in Madison Square Garden
Overall a pretty lack luster show in my opinion, as has already been stated by everyone under the sun the ROH part of this show really dragged the whole thing down, couple that with my sleep deprived state and by the main event I was completely checked out, I really shouldn't have been and I wish I gave that IWGP match the chance but I was gone passed caring. Despite all that I did like a couple of matches from the show, Strangely my most enjoyed was the Pre-Show Honor Rumble, apart from the winner and some crappy ROH stars, the rumble is enjoyable because, well, it's a rumble. The ROH Title match sucked so much that I wish I could get the time back.
Fave Matches: Honor Rumble, Cobb vs Ospreay, GoD vs LIJ vs Brisoces vs Villain Enterprises
WWE WrestleMania
Honestly the best Mania since 30 probably, what a great time and what a great set of balls on WWE to go for ALL 3 babyface wins on Mania. Honestly really fucking enjoyed almost everything so I'll just list them here.
Fave Matches: Hawkins & Ryder vs The Revival, Rollins vs Lesnar, Styles vs Orton, Shane McMahon vs The Miz, Kofi Kingston vs Daniel Bryan, Triple H vs Batista
Books & Comics
Batman Vol 7 - Endgame (3/5)
This is one of the most talked about Snyder/Capullo Batman stories, and honestly I don't think it is worth the hype. I love Snyder and Capullo's Batamn run up until this point, they both really get Batman, but I think they crossed some unwritten rules in this story, and not in a fun or good way. I'm specifically talking about The Joker, some big rules get broken, he finds out that Bruce is Batman and he also wants to kill Batman. These two things I think really betray the reason why the character is so interesting. I really think the terror of the character is from the fact he doesn't care about who Batman is and he doesn't want him to die, he wants to continue to 'dance' with Bruce because it gives his life meaning. we also have some plot issues here, that kind of derail the story at the end, Joker's fair on the streets seem super rushed, Batman's villains helping him out seems a bit ludicrous and just general bits and pieces, things happen that don't feel like they are mentioned again. But this still gets a 3 out of 5 because the initial couple of issues are super solid, Justice League fight is rad, Joker's reveal is cool. Overall a great start that fails to stick the landing.
Batman Vol 8 - Superheavy (4/5)
Now to follow up from the Death of Bruce is something super rad, and where I think Snyder/Capullo really nail, which is innovating and just trying something weird with Batman. In this case Commissioner Gordon becomes Batman. My only issues here are his updated look, he becomes more buff for Batman, that is a fine update, makes sense for what happens, I'm not a fan of the stache and the haircut, it means Gordon loses his iconic look, and usually Capullo's art is really stellar all round, but the way he draws Gordon's face here doesn't seem to resemble anything different to me than if he drew Bruce. Maybe that's just me, but sometimes it's hard to connect with Gordon when he doesn't look like Gordon. But the writing for Gordon does feel very much in line with that character coming into the role of Batman. I also really appreciate Snyder/Capullo skipping the step of having a period where a character is dead and then they come back to life, by just having Bruce be a secondary character with his very own subplot from the outset, it actually makes the story a little more interesting, knowing that he survived but Batman died. Also Gordon's design as Batman really rules, a lean slender Batman is a new interesting take, and a Police, sentient, mech suit. Bloom is an interesting character but I feel the focus isn't really on him right now. Which makes the dedicated flashback issue inside this TPB extremely annoying, not only do I think the origin of Bloom is unnecessary at this point, the writing style really does not blend well with the main story, also, I enjoy the illustration style of Jock, but I feel like it is hard to read here. Overall for me it takes a lot of steam out of the main story right here, and the introduction of a new Batman. Overall though the book is enjoyable and seeing an old policeman try and live up to the Batman name is just a great read.
TV
The Good Place Season 1
What a hilarious and fun show this is, the whole arc of Season 1 really is a great watch and it is so enjoyable. I don't have a lot to say it just hits all the right notes for me!
Black Mirror Season 1
Charlie Brooker loves technology and SEX. That's kind of the main vibe I get off this. I really enjoyed the first and third episodes, with the second having one particular stand out moment. The acting really puts this stuff above normal shows I feel. But the vibe I get off the show is just.. weird? Like I get it it's trying to be grim and introspective for the viewer, but the constant use of sex being portrayed in this really strange taboo way gives it an edgy/creepy vibe, almost like it's some 2006 emo fan fiction. I'm gonna continue on watching the show because I think its episodes are interesting enough to keep me going but that's my feelings right now.
Wrestling
Welcome to the Mania weekend wrestling DUMP, I didn't watch everything but I did watch a fair few things, the greatest part about WrestleMania weekend isn't just the show itself, but all the weird niche wrestling shows companies run around it too.
GCW Josh Barnett's Bloodsport
Last year Matt Riddle did Bloodsport, and while the idea seemed really fun, I felt like the show didn't hit the mark on what was really promised. This year however I felt like every match knocked the different types of match this kind of weird MMA/Wrestling hybrid can bring. It brought some attention to some guys that I hadn't heard of before as well as some old faces. I was especially impressed by Simon Grimm, J.R. Kratos and Josh Barnett. Fun time all round, and this cements this for me as a must watch every year.
Fave Matches: J.R. Kratos vs Simon Grimm, Josh Barnett vs Minoru Suzuki
Impact United We Stand
This is the first time in a long long time, I've watched a full Impact show, as someone who was a big fan of the company back in the 05-07 days it's crazy to see how far they have fallen when it comes to production. As a general Wrestling fan I have always kept my eye on TNA/GFW/Impact, but never watched a full show in a while. This was less about great matches and more about great performances by wrestlers. People who caught my attention were: Ace Austin, Taya Valkyrie, LAX, Low Ki and Flamita. There were other god performances too but all from people who I'm aware who can put on good performances. The show overall wasn't going to be anything amazing but as a fun pass the time wrestling show on Mania weekend it did the job, I think every finish of every match fell completely flat though, so that was a shame.
NXT Takeover: New York
A great night a wrestling overall, but I felt almost every match fell for some pacing issues. I really enjoyed isolated moments of the show, maybe solid few minutes in every match, but no one match had a full package the way Takeover's usually do. War Raiders vs Black & Ricochet was a fun match but it wasn't anything that I hadn't seen before and nothing truly hype or insane. Dream and Riddle were the closest to a match that felt cohesive but unfortunately I wasn't completely won over by it. Walter/Dunne would be my favourite match if we were only counting those last few minutes at the end, but the middle dragged, and going too long meant most of the match I was bored. Women's Fatal Four Way felt like a match that I didn't have to feel so invested into because of the many competitors and the nature that Shayna always seems to win, so in that respect I felt more relaxed to watch it. Cole and Gargano felt like a match that's should've been far better than it turned out to be, the first two falls basically being pointless as they were not as interesting as the last fall and felt like they played no part in the later match. I did enjoy the last moments on the ramp though.
Fave Matches: Velveteen vs Riddle, Walter vs Dunne
ROH & NJPW G1 Supercard in Madison Square Garden
Overall a pretty lack luster show in my opinion, as has already been stated by everyone under the sun the ROH part of this show really dragged the whole thing down, couple that with my sleep deprived state and by the main event I was completely checked out, I really shouldn't have been and I wish I gave that IWGP match the chance but I was gone passed caring. Despite all that I did like a couple of matches from the show, Strangely my most enjoyed was the Pre-Show Honor Rumble, apart from the winner and some crappy ROH stars, the rumble is enjoyable because, well, it's a rumble. The ROH Title match sucked so much that I wish I could get the time back.
Fave Matches: Honor Rumble, Cobb vs Ospreay, GoD vs LIJ vs Brisoces vs Villain Enterprises
WWE WrestleMania
Honestly the best Mania since 30 probably, what a great time and what a great set of balls on WWE to go for ALL 3 babyface wins on Mania. Honestly really fucking enjoyed almost everything so I'll just list them here.
Fave Matches: Hawkins & Ryder vs The Revival, Rollins vs Lesnar, Styles vs Orton, Shane McMahon vs The Miz, Kofi Kingston vs Daniel Bryan, Triple H vs Batista
Books & Comics
Batman Vol 7 - Endgame (3/5)
This is one of the most talked about Snyder/Capullo Batman stories, and honestly I don't think it is worth the hype. I love Snyder and Capullo's Batamn run up until this point, they both really get Batman, but I think they crossed some unwritten rules in this story, and not in a fun or good way. I'm specifically talking about The Joker, some big rules get broken, he finds out that Bruce is Batman and he also wants to kill Batman. These two things I think really betray the reason why the character is so interesting. I really think the terror of the character is from the fact he doesn't care about who Batman is and he doesn't want him to die, he wants to continue to 'dance' with Bruce because it gives his life meaning. we also have some plot issues here, that kind of derail the story at the end, Joker's fair on the streets seem super rushed, Batman's villains helping him out seems a bit ludicrous and just general bits and pieces, things happen that don't feel like they are mentioned again. But this still gets a 3 out of 5 because the initial couple of issues are super solid, Justice League fight is rad, Joker's reveal is cool. Overall a great start that fails to stick the landing.
Batman Vol 8 - Superheavy (4/5)
Now to follow up from the Death of Bruce is something super rad, and where I think Snyder/Capullo really nail, which is innovating and just trying something weird with Batman. In this case Commissioner Gordon becomes Batman. My only issues here are his updated look, he becomes more buff for Batman, that is a fine update, makes sense for what happens, I'm not a fan of the stache and the haircut, it means Gordon loses his iconic look, and usually Capullo's art is really stellar all round, but the way he draws Gordon's face here doesn't seem to resemble anything different to me than if he drew Bruce. Maybe that's just me, but sometimes it's hard to connect with Gordon when he doesn't look like Gordon. But the writing for Gordon does feel very much in line with that character coming into the role of Batman. I also really appreciate Snyder/Capullo skipping the step of having a period where a character is dead and then they come back to life, by just having Bruce be a secondary character with his very own subplot from the outset, it actually makes the story a little more interesting, knowing that he survived but Batman died. Also Gordon's design as Batman really rules, a lean slender Batman is a new interesting take, and a Police, sentient, mech suit. Bloom is an interesting character but I feel the focus isn't really on him right now. Which makes the dedicated flashback issue inside this TPB extremely annoying, not only do I think the origin of Bloom is unnecessary at this point, the writing style really does not blend well with the main story, also, I enjoy the illustration style of Jock, but I feel like it is hard to read here. Overall for me it takes a lot of steam out of the main story right here, and the introduction of a new Batman. Overall though the book is enjoyable and seeing an old policeman try and live up to the Batman name is just a great read.
Some Thoughts - March
(Us, Captain Marvel, Russian
Doll, New Japan Cup and more)
First Published 31st March 2019
Music
Denzel Curry - TA1313O (3/5)
A really awesome album that I feel really suffers from a massive track list in my opinion. A lot of the songs really do SLAP and I really love Denzel's intensity. But there are quite a few that I have no strong opinions on, dragging down the whole record for me.
Fave Tracks: Taboo, Sumo, Switch It Up, Clout Cobain, Vengeance.
Movies
Fighting With My Family (3/5)
Really heart warming tale about Paige and her family. I already knew the story and I had watched the documentary this was based off a couple of years ago. It's funny and a good time, for me the weird and emotional part was seeing wrestling and a British wrestler get this great movie treatment. Florence Pugh has a good performance throughout, she is destined for bigger things, Nick Frost and Lena Headey become the roles they are playing, like it feels like I was just watching the Knight parents on screen. Stephen Merchant does a great job here overall, I can see the Extras jokes in here at parts, I hope he gets more chances to direct more movies, he really did good here.
Captain Marvel (3/5)
Denzel Curry - TA1313O (3/5)
A really awesome album that I feel really suffers from a massive track list in my opinion. A lot of the songs really do SLAP and I really love Denzel's intensity. But there are quite a few that I have no strong opinions on, dragging down the whole record for me.
Fave Tracks: Taboo, Sumo, Switch It Up, Clout Cobain, Vengeance.
Movies
Fighting With My Family (3/5)
Really heart warming tale about Paige and her family. I already knew the story and I had watched the documentary this was based off a couple of years ago. It's funny and a good time, for me the weird and emotional part was seeing wrestling and a British wrestler get this great movie treatment. Florence Pugh has a good performance throughout, she is destined for bigger things, Nick Frost and Lena Headey become the roles they are playing, like it feels like I was just watching the Knight parents on screen. Stephen Merchant does a great job here overall, I can see the Extras jokes in here at parts, I hope he gets more chances to direct more movies, he really did good here.
Captain Marvel (3/5)
In another weird twist of fate, I keep changing my mind on Captain Marvel. After first watching the movie I believed that it was a 3.5, pretty good movie, but didn't reach the heights of the other recent MCU flicks. I then thought, 'no this was definitely a 4/5', because it felt right to say I really enjoyed the movie, and then I realised that I didn't like a lot of things about it and maybe it was a 3. That's where I have been since, and I'm going to probably stay that way until I see the movie for a second time. My issues lie in the chracterisation of Carol, she feels like a bit of a jerk, not immediately likeable, I jokingly said in my letterboxd review that she was Becky Lynch, but I have come to realise she's more like Ronda Rousey. (All you none wrestling fans hear me out) Becky Lynch has been compared to Stone Cold because that character is an underdog because the powers of authority try to get rid of someone who is the most powerful person in the room, Ronda Rousey is not an underdog because she walks in the room without any struggle and just IS POWERFUL, there is nothing for the audience to get behind Carol Danvers, she is immediately powerful, even with her chip on her neck, and she acts like an jerk to everyone she meets. Couple that with some other issues, like the muddled character writing and acting for Carol over what she remembers and what she doesn't, in some scenes shes a fish out of water, in others she is the sassy, witty modern hero like she grew up on earth and never missed a beat. Carol is also completely undermined by the most likeable performance by Samuel L Jackson. Another issue I found is that MCU action scenes have been getting worse, and this kinda became the ultimatum for me, after recently watching Mission Impossible: Fallout again this past month I started to question why the MCU aren't doing action like this, this movie and Fury Road are the pinnacle of modern action sequences, so why isn't the MCU reaching that level. It turns out that the directors of MCU movies don't get to actually direct their action scenes, because most of the time they are all CGI the CGI department of Marvel just do it, apparently a director who was interested in taking on the new Black Widow movie turned it down after Marvel told her 'not to worry' about the action sequences. They don't feel exciting and they don't look especially real. The last great MCU action scenes may have come from Infinity War, but the even best the ones that have come out around that haven't been nearly as good since The Avengers from 2012. However, the movie has some pretty great stuff as well, Ben Mendelsohn gets to play a really cool and funny character, the scene at the end of the movie of Captain Marvel makes you wanna fist pump, and it's overall a very enjoyable movie, the story is spot on for a movie like this, its paced well, looks great, but I just think that Marvel, in the next phase of Movies need to start making these movies truly unique, if they wanna stay at the forefront they have to keep inovating and I think that starts by letting the action be the best it can be.
Ralph Breaks The Internet (3/5)
Ralph Breaks The Internet (3/5)
I love the visual representation of everything, the internet, the users, the different websites the way people move around, it's all so amazing, it's funny and heart warming. I think it's a bit cheesy at times but the ending still get genuine emotions from me. Also the Disney bit was great.
Us (4/5)
Realistically I believe this will probably be higher rated over time with multiple viewing but THIS MOVIE JUST FUCKING RULES. It does a couple things right for me, it starts as a really cool home invasion eerie horror movie, and then it turns into a revenge killing spree type movie that really itches my 'Film Bro' part of my brain that likes Tarantino and Fight Club. The script feels extremely tight knit allowing every sentence to mean something in the wider context without feeling dysfunctional. Every shot has details that also feel meticulously crafted, allowing for multiple re-watches. Unlike Jordan Peele's debut Get Out, the political message is not as obvious in this movie, allowing the movie to have multiple interpretations, which I think is a plus, but it also means the movie watched of face value as just a horror movie is also superb. Acting performances all round are superb, all of the main cast are playing 2 roles and they both feel separate from each other, it feels genuine and I think that's down to the fact that all of their physical acting is so good. The posture of characters and their mannerisms, it is extremely effective of giving off the feeling of doppelgangers that aren't just carbon copies, that actually have brains and thought. The soundtrack as well is creepy and perfect, especially its implementation in key moments in the movie, also I got 5 on it is just a banger. All around great movie loved it.
Games
Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Remastered
I did hop on the Cod train back in the day but it was only ever really for Black Ops 1, that story mode was really great and I really loved the multiplayer and Zombies maps that the game had. But that was about the extent I played Cod, I did play Black Ops 2 a bit but not much from there. So when I got this for free through PS Plus I just thought I should give it a go, and after an initial relearning period on how these games work, I had a real good time with it. There wasn't a massive story with this game, but enough to give myself motive from level to level. I really enjoyed the levels where you play as someone else other than Soap, the character you play the most. More specifically the flashback level where you play as the captain you've been following up until this point back when he wasn't a captain. A really fun game, reminds you how good FPS campaigns were when Cod became the best FPS series on the planet.
Hitman: Season 1 (Played through Hitman 2 Legacy Pack)
I don't wanna sit here all night gushing about this game a I wanna try and keep this short and sweet. Hitman is probably one of the modern classics of this generation, the sheer amount of variety from this game itself is insane, but it also the game is so sure of itself, it knows what its good at and it knows whats stupid and funny, it knows whats fun and it strives on that stuff, it means the whole time you are playing the game you're always feeling good. Hitman feels more like a puzzle game, stealth game hybrid, but it also has surprisingly great feeling action underneath too, in a game where shooting your gun may feel like a failure. The game pushes you to replay over and over, finding new secrets and strategies. And as always with a game like this, map design is what it lives and dies by, I found 2 maps here that I wasn't completely enamoured with, but everything else I truly felt like almost impeccable map design. This game is just an amazing time, everyone who owns this generations console needs to give this a try.
Life Is Strange 2 - Episodes 1 & 2
Really enjoying the story so far, it is a considerable VA, graphics, and story bump up for DontNod from the first game, however much I love it. The game feels harder to make the smaller choices because of the dynamic of your brother and how it effects how he acts. However I did find Episode 2 to have too many plot conveniences that felt like they could be choices for me as the player to pick. Usually these types of games hide those really well making the player feel like they also want to do where the plot is moving, though this episode failed that and had me pulling my hair out, I'm excited to see where the rest of the game goes however.
TV
Russian Doll - Season 1
A really funny and thoughtful show, it goes some pretty crazy places. I understand the general jist of the shows message but I feel like there was so much I missed through those last few episodes, Natasha Lyonne has shown herself to be the amazing creative that I always wished she was, as she co wrote and starred in this series. It's a great show definitely worth a watch.
Wrestling
WWE Fastlane
A really forgettable show all around, I skipped the last Shield match just because I felt disinterested by the rest of the show, not exactly the best way to kick off the last month of Mania build up, but I'm still looking forward to Mania nonetheless.
NJPW New Japan Cup
The New Japan Cup ran a lot of shows this month and I didn't watch every show to full completion but I did watch the tournament matches.
Fave Matches: Juice Robison vs Chase Owens - Night 1 (8/3/19), Yuji Nagata vs Tomohiro Ishii - Night 1 (8/3/19), Will Ospreay vs Bad Luck Fale - Night 2 (9/3/19), Satoshi Kojima vs Minoru Suzuki - Night 4 (11/3/19), Will Ospreay vs Lance Archer - Night 6 (14/3/19), Toru Yano vs Colt Cabana - Night 8 (17/3/19), Kazuchika Okada vs Tomohiro Ishii - Night 11 (23/3/19),
Rev Pro: Live In Northampton
I got to attend this show LIVE, in the very small venue and had the absolute time of my life, I got to meet PAC, and then watch him crack his head on the wall I was leaning on, I then freaked out genuinely shook up, wrestling is great. If you know what I look like and you watch that show on Rev Pro's On demand service you can watch me pull a lot of unintentional but hilarious facial expressions to the whole show. The whole show was pretty much great just for vibe alone and no match was straight up awful. Great Time.
Books & Comics
Star Wars Aftermath
I'm not a huge book reader and this took me over a year to read and finish, but here are my general thoughts of the book, I think the book NAILS feeling like Star Wars, which I feel like most other pieces of media struggle with nowadays, I think the writing is generally messy all around, apparently thats due to being written in present tense, again I don't read a lot so I don't really know. But the characters, their back stories, their interactions, the stories moments, the whole book is so entertaining and it really nails the vibe that I feel Rogue One was trying to nail, a fun read despite its messy nature.
Captain America: White
This book is kind of disappointing to me, Daredevil: Yellow is one of my favourite comic books I've read so I was excited about reading the other Sale/Loeb colour books, I picked this up during a clearance sale and I guess that should have been a telling moment. I like parts of the book, but for some one who knows the the dynamic of Steve Rogers and Bucky pretty much exclusively through the MCU, their dynamic here is strange and off putting, Steve feels more milk toast in this and he feels more like a dad, which isn't what I like about Steve in the movies. Overall I think it's an ok book.
Games
Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Remastered
I did hop on the Cod train back in the day but it was only ever really for Black Ops 1, that story mode was really great and I really loved the multiplayer and Zombies maps that the game had. But that was about the extent I played Cod, I did play Black Ops 2 a bit but not much from there. So when I got this for free through PS Plus I just thought I should give it a go, and after an initial relearning period on how these games work, I had a real good time with it. There wasn't a massive story with this game, but enough to give myself motive from level to level. I really enjoyed the levels where you play as someone else other than Soap, the character you play the most. More specifically the flashback level where you play as the captain you've been following up until this point back when he wasn't a captain. A really fun game, reminds you how good FPS campaigns were when Cod became the best FPS series on the planet.
Hitman: Season 1 (Played through Hitman 2 Legacy Pack)
I don't wanna sit here all night gushing about this game a I wanna try and keep this short and sweet. Hitman is probably one of the modern classics of this generation, the sheer amount of variety from this game itself is insane, but it also the game is so sure of itself, it knows what its good at and it knows whats stupid and funny, it knows whats fun and it strives on that stuff, it means the whole time you are playing the game you're always feeling good. Hitman feels more like a puzzle game, stealth game hybrid, but it also has surprisingly great feeling action underneath too, in a game where shooting your gun may feel like a failure. The game pushes you to replay over and over, finding new secrets and strategies. And as always with a game like this, map design is what it lives and dies by, I found 2 maps here that I wasn't completely enamoured with, but everything else I truly felt like almost impeccable map design. This game is just an amazing time, everyone who owns this generations console needs to give this a try.
Life Is Strange 2 - Episodes 1 & 2
Really enjoying the story so far, it is a considerable VA, graphics, and story bump up for DontNod from the first game, however much I love it. The game feels harder to make the smaller choices because of the dynamic of your brother and how it effects how he acts. However I did find Episode 2 to have too many plot conveniences that felt like they could be choices for me as the player to pick. Usually these types of games hide those really well making the player feel like they also want to do where the plot is moving, though this episode failed that and had me pulling my hair out, I'm excited to see where the rest of the game goes however.
TV
Russian Doll - Season 1
A really funny and thoughtful show, it goes some pretty crazy places. I understand the general jist of the shows message but I feel like there was so much I missed through those last few episodes, Natasha Lyonne has shown herself to be the amazing creative that I always wished she was, as she co wrote and starred in this series. It's a great show definitely worth a watch.
Wrestling
WWE Fastlane
A really forgettable show all around, I skipped the last Shield match just because I felt disinterested by the rest of the show, not exactly the best way to kick off the last month of Mania build up, but I'm still looking forward to Mania nonetheless.
NJPW New Japan Cup
The New Japan Cup ran a lot of shows this month and I didn't watch every show to full completion but I did watch the tournament matches.
Fave Matches: Juice Robison vs Chase Owens - Night 1 (8/3/19), Yuji Nagata vs Tomohiro Ishii - Night 1 (8/3/19), Will Ospreay vs Bad Luck Fale - Night 2 (9/3/19), Satoshi Kojima vs Minoru Suzuki - Night 4 (11/3/19), Will Ospreay vs Lance Archer - Night 6 (14/3/19), Toru Yano vs Colt Cabana - Night 8 (17/3/19), Kazuchika Okada vs Tomohiro Ishii - Night 11 (23/3/19),
Rev Pro: Live In Northampton
I got to attend this show LIVE, in the very small venue and had the absolute time of my life, I got to meet PAC, and then watch him crack his head on the wall I was leaning on, I then freaked out genuinely shook up, wrestling is great. If you know what I look like and you watch that show on Rev Pro's On demand service you can watch me pull a lot of unintentional but hilarious facial expressions to the whole show. The whole show was pretty much great just for vibe alone and no match was straight up awful. Great Time.
Books & Comics
Star Wars Aftermath
I'm not a huge book reader and this took me over a year to read and finish, but here are my general thoughts of the book, I think the book NAILS feeling like Star Wars, which I feel like most other pieces of media struggle with nowadays, I think the writing is generally messy all around, apparently thats due to being written in present tense, again I don't read a lot so I don't really know. But the characters, their back stories, their interactions, the stories moments, the whole book is so entertaining and it really nails the vibe that I feel Rogue One was trying to nail, a fun read despite its messy nature.
Captain America: White
This book is kind of disappointing to me, Daredevil: Yellow is one of my favourite comic books I've read so I was excited about reading the other Sale/Loeb colour books, I picked this up during a clearance sale and I guess that should have been a telling moment. I like parts of the book, but for some one who knows the the dynamic of Steve Rogers and Bucky pretty much exclusively through the MCU, their dynamic here is strange and off putting, Steve feels more milk toast in this and he feels more like a dad, which isn't what I like about Steve in the movies. Overall I think it's an ok book.
Some Thoughts - February
(Green Book, Apex Legends, Tetris 99,
The Umbrella Academy and more)
First Published 28th February 2019
Music
Slint - Spiderland (4.5/5)
The most poignant and special Post-Rock album you'll ever here, stories spoken over some really mood setting guitars and drums, it perfectly encapsulates tween and young teen years for me, and subsequently that is what the album is all about. The cover shows the band in a river or pond insinuating that childhood skinny dipping day out adventure on the weekend, while also being black and white, as in old, the past. It is really quite wonderful, lyrical content here is just so amazing but metaphorical and interesting to see what the lead singer was thinking about. Great fucking album.
Fave Tracks: Breadcrumb Trail, Nosferatu Man, Washer, Good Morning Captain
James Blake - Assume Form (3/5)
Slint - Spiderland (4.5/5)
The most poignant and special Post-Rock album you'll ever here, stories spoken over some really mood setting guitars and drums, it perfectly encapsulates tween and young teen years for me, and subsequently that is what the album is all about. The cover shows the band in a river or pond insinuating that childhood skinny dipping day out adventure on the weekend, while also being black and white, as in old, the past. It is really quite wonderful, lyrical content here is just so amazing but metaphorical and interesting to see what the lead singer was thinking about. Great fucking album.
Fave Tracks: Breadcrumb Trail, Nosferatu Man, Washer, Good Morning Captain
James Blake - Assume Form (3/5)
On a recommendation from a friend I decided to try out the new James Blake album, this is the first music I've heard from Blake, even though I've known about him for a while and he may have popped up as some features. I can see the attraction of this music, sweet, solemn, sad, passionate, all of it really well made, for me though it doesn't quite hit that melancholy vibe I want out of slow and personal hip-hop. Maybe it's because I'm not in the right frame of mind right now, maybe I'm just not into it a lot. That being said there are some really great tracks here, Mile High is the main one that I find wanting to listen to the most. I also found that once the Spring weather kicked in, warm sun with a cool chill, I found the music much more enjoyable, the first time I feel like the weather has truly changed the way I listen to an alum without it being indirect. I like it but I don't think I'm looking for this music right now.
Fave Tracks: Mile High, Tell Them, Where's The Catch?
Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (4/5)
If you told me from 10 years ago that I would be listening and loving a Kanye West album, old me would be ashamed, hell if you asked me 4 years ago he wouldn't believe it, but not only is it true, but it rules. This is the best production on an album I think I have ever heard, song after song is a catchy pop rap track, some of these songs are literal 5 STAH songs. So why haven't I rated this 5 stars? Well it's simple, I don't love everything, I think some of the middle tracks aren't to my liking and they drag the rest of the album down a leel for me. Monster is an ok song, but I don't find the beat as catchy as others plus Jay-Z has an awful feature on it. But let's talk about the 5 STAH songs, the biggest singles, POWER and All Of The Lights. They are FUCKING BOPS, couple that with the intro two tracks of Dark Fantasy and Gorgeous, you got yourself a STRONG start. then the ending doesn't pull punches either, other single Runaway is another jam, along with Blame Game and Lost In The World. The whole thing is pretty impeccable to be honest. It's a shame some of those tracks didn't hit me as hard.
Fave Tracks: Dark Fantasy, POWER, All Of The Lights, Runaway, Blame Game, Lost In The World.
Movies
Fave Tracks: Mile High, Tell Them, Where's The Catch?
Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (4/5)
If you told me from 10 years ago that I would be listening and loving a Kanye West album, old me would be ashamed, hell if you asked me 4 years ago he wouldn't believe it, but not only is it true, but it rules. This is the best production on an album I think I have ever heard, song after song is a catchy pop rap track, some of these songs are literal 5 STAH songs. So why haven't I rated this 5 stars? Well it's simple, I don't love everything, I think some of the middle tracks aren't to my liking and they drag the rest of the album down a leel for me. Monster is an ok song, but I don't find the beat as catchy as others plus Jay-Z has an awful feature on it. But let's talk about the 5 STAH songs, the biggest singles, POWER and All Of The Lights. They are FUCKING BOPS, couple that with the intro two tracks of Dark Fantasy and Gorgeous, you got yourself a STRONG start. then the ending doesn't pull punches either, other single Runaway is another jam, along with Blame Game and Lost In The World. The whole thing is pretty impeccable to be honest. It's a shame some of those tracks didn't hit me as hard.
Fave Tracks: Dark Fantasy, POWER, All Of The Lights, Runaway, Blame Game, Lost In The World.
Movies
I'm aware that as I'm about to post this blog, I've already talked about most of these movies here in my previous post from a few days ago, I wrote all these short things after I saw the movies back at the beginning of the month, and wrote everything in the previous post literally the other day. So sorry for the same topics being touched on again.
Roma (4.5/5)
Roma (4.5/5)
Realism isn't something I thought would draw me into a movie so much, especially when I have been playing Red Dead Redemption 2 which uses realism to poor effect. Obviously a different medium but Roma feels like a real life story happening all over the world right now. I haven't felt so connected to a protagonist, I feel like I have so much in common with her, she lives through my worst fear, even as a male, and that's where it's hard to come to terms with my feelings, most responses I've seen are all about how sad it is, but I found that it was sad, but I also found myself squirming in my seat throughout the duration of the whole movie. Children screaming and playing loudly and annoyingly coupled with the impending nature of pregnancy and then the inevitable place that story ends with it being like nothing ever happened. I can't say I want to watch it again for a long time, but I can say it is fucking amazing.
Stan & Ollie (3.5/5)
A funny and heartwarming look into the incredible friendship of one of the most famous comedy duos in history. This was a super enjoyable movie, and makes me want to look into and investigate Laurel & Hardy in all there avenues. The comedy in this movie is done to such great effect that part of me believes that the writers for this movie did their research or added in some skits that Laurel wrote that were never made. Steve Coogan is a great Laurel, but John C Reilly completely sinks into the role of Oliver Hardy, he comes across as such a warm and likeable human to the point where I feel like I can't see any John C Reilly in there. Really great watch.
Green Book (3.5/5)
The best way to describe this movie is, racism for the white privileged person, that's not to say this isn't a good movie, but it treats racism in such a way to almost explain it to a white person, using the two distinctly different characters as the contrast to show off how stereotypes are dangerous etc. Almost all the comedy comes from class and personality differences between the two main characters which is great appreciated and done very well. Much funnier than you would think, Mahershala Ali is the stand out here, he is wonderful actor and it shouldn't be a surprise. Viggo Mortensen however is very hammy as the Italian American New York gangster, I don't actually hate it but it very 'EYY I'M WALKIN' 'ERE', which makes it, at least in my mind, a bit silly to believe he was the best lead actor this year. Regardless I think it is a good movie.
The Wife (3/5)
Yknow, I think bar some poor story choices, sporadic bad acting and some boring cinematography, the story is really compelling, Close, Pryce and Slater are all the stars here and make the whole movie work, I also think the score was used really effectively here and added a lot. Overall surprisingly better than anticipated.
Stan & Ollie (3.5/5)
A funny and heartwarming look into the incredible friendship of one of the most famous comedy duos in history. This was a super enjoyable movie, and makes me want to look into and investigate Laurel & Hardy in all there avenues. The comedy in this movie is done to such great effect that part of me believes that the writers for this movie did their research or added in some skits that Laurel wrote that were never made. Steve Coogan is a great Laurel, but John C Reilly completely sinks into the role of Oliver Hardy, he comes across as such a warm and likeable human to the point where I feel like I can't see any John C Reilly in there. Really great watch.
Green Book (3.5/5)
The best way to describe this movie is, racism for the white privileged person, that's not to say this isn't a good movie, but it treats racism in such a way to almost explain it to a white person, using the two distinctly different characters as the contrast to show off how stereotypes are dangerous etc. Almost all the comedy comes from class and personality differences between the two main characters which is great appreciated and done very well. Much funnier than you would think, Mahershala Ali is the stand out here, he is wonderful actor and it shouldn't be a surprise. Viggo Mortensen however is very hammy as the Italian American New York gangster, I don't actually hate it but it very 'EYY I'M WALKIN' 'ERE', which makes it, at least in my mind, a bit silly to believe he was the best lead actor this year. Regardless I think it is a good movie.
The Wife (3/5)
Yknow, I think bar some poor story choices, sporadic bad acting and some boring cinematography, the story is really compelling, Close, Pryce and Slater are all the stars here and make the whole movie work, I also think the score was used really effectively here and added a lot. Overall surprisingly better than anticipated.
Games
Apex Legends
Releasing out of nowhere, Apex Legends is now not only my first real Battle Royale experience, but I think it is the best. The game has systems that are completely ground breaking for multiplayer games in general not just for this young genre. The ping system seems like something that will be used to great effect in multiplayer shooter for years to come. The smart equipping and item management in this game is also just an amazing rendition, I have to commend the designers behind this mechanic and the UI designers making sure that is so easily readable at such a quick glance. But all that stuff aside, this is a great battle royale game because it is Respawn and Titanfall 2 at its core, and that's why this is connecting with a lot of people who weren't on the Fortnite bandwagon. Also I'm so happy this is what Respawn has been working on, I love Titanfall 2 and would love a sequel, but this is a smart move and a great game by it's own right, plus it is blowing up in a major way and I'm so happy for them. I want to give them some money, I'm just looking for the right time to do it.
Tetris 99
Tetris 99
From one sneaky release free-to-play battle royale game to another, yep what are the fucking odds, it's Tetris 99. Tetris but it's a battle royale, and guess what? It fucking rules, big time! It's quite difficult to get a win if you're bad at Tetris like me, but it's so addictive and you can lose hours to playing this small little thing. Much better than it has any right to be. You can only get this if you have Nintendo Online subscription, I got the 7 day free trail just to give it a go and fell down the rabbit hole.
Super Mario Bros. (4/5)
Speaking of the Nintendo Online, I downloaded the NES package that you can only get with the online too. Booted it up and decided that Super Mario Bros would be the one to try as it is THEE classic game. I have never played this game for more than 10 minutes and I expected the same to happen here. And then I just kinda got sucked in. It's some fucking superb platforming, like much better than it has any right to be, and I'll be honest, I fucking cheese'd it so hard, there was a save state feature that I abused, and I'm sure that meant I missed a lot of the things that make it special, but the truth is I would never have played it over the 10 minutes if this feature wasn't included and it allowed me to finally experience this classic game that I would never have beaten otherwise. Hopefully this opens the flood gates to me actually trying to beat this game without the emulator save states.
TV
The Umbrella Academy - Season 1
Umbrella Academy is weird and kooky with a soft and warm interior, It feels like a band of misfits, but truly a family, it feels like this should be an X-Men TV show to be honest. It's characterisation of every single character is astonishing, and it wouldn't be half the show it is if the cast wasn't this good, we have the very well known and great Ellen Page, but we also have the standouts in Aiden Gallagher who play Number 5, a literal old man inside a CHILDS BODY, this is a child actor putting on a better performance than anyone. Robert Sheehan, a possible familiar face here in Britain from Misfits, but here he play Klaus, a tortured drugged up soul. This is another astonishing example of how Netflix just kills it in the TV department.
Super Mario Bros. (4/5)
Speaking of the Nintendo Online, I downloaded the NES package that you can only get with the online too. Booted it up and decided that Super Mario Bros would be the one to try as it is THEE classic game. I have never played this game for more than 10 minutes and I expected the same to happen here. And then I just kinda got sucked in. It's some fucking superb platforming, like much better than it has any right to be, and I'll be honest, I fucking cheese'd it so hard, there was a save state feature that I abused, and I'm sure that meant I missed a lot of the things that make it special, but the truth is I would never have played it over the 10 minutes if this feature wasn't included and it allowed me to finally experience this classic game that I would never have beaten otherwise. Hopefully this opens the flood gates to me actually trying to beat this game without the emulator save states.
TV
The Umbrella Academy - Season 1
Umbrella Academy is weird and kooky with a soft and warm interior, It feels like a band of misfits, but truly a family, it feels like this should be an X-Men TV show to be honest. It's characterisation of every single character is astonishing, and it wouldn't be half the show it is if the cast wasn't this good, we have the very well known and great Ellen Page, but we also have the standouts in Aiden Gallagher who play Number 5, a literal old man inside a CHILDS BODY, this is a child actor putting on a better performance than anyone. Robert Sheehan, a possible familiar face here in Britain from Misfits, but here he play Klaus, a tortured drugged up soul. This is another astonishing example of how Netflix just kills it in the TV department.
The Punisher - Season 2
I loved The Punisher Season 1, it was on par with the amazing first seasons of Daredevil and Jessica Jones, Season 2 however, I'm not such a big fan. I really like this season, but there is one episode and multiple elements throughout the series that I violently hate. The episode in question is Episode 8, which previously to this felt like a completely different show, characters have interactions that don't add up, Frank has a sudden turn that feels unwarranted with what his actions in previous episodes mean. Also my least favourite part about the whole show is the Billy Russo storyline, and specifically Russo and Krista. The relationship minus the last two episodes of the show, doesn't have any real conversations, it's this dumb, melodramatic, goofy and "CRAAaaAaZY" story and it derails what up until this point has been a really great season of a show. The start of the show has Billy Russo as a crazed maniac, and by the end he is just a normal murdering criminal? You know what DOESNT SUCK though? THE PILGRIM STORYLINE, everything involving Josh Stewart acting as John Pilgrim is GREAT, everything where John and Frank cross paths is GREAT. THE FIRST LIKE 3 EPISODES OF THIS SEASON IS AMAZING! Like it sucks hard that there is a middle point which just crashes hard. I also found all the IS FRANK KILLING A GOOD THING, just got derailed a lot too, during the actually great fight scenes you don't think about that, but what happens around that is problematic, the beginning of the show feels like Frank after a year or so not killing finally being able to put that life behind him, but seeing a poor girl in trouble comes back to his old ways, he eventually starts to wonder if killing is really the right way he should go about this, he has doubts, because his morales are there but the murdering is the only thing that muddys the waters, it feels like he may stop killing, WHAT AN INTERESTING PLOT, well when Episode 8 comes around Frank is just KILLING and BRUTALISING people ignoring everything else before this. This is the first time where I've wanted to actually sit and possible rewrite a piece of media, because I think a season of The Punisher where the focus is The Last Of Us Daddy/Daughter connection along with The Punisher turning into Batman, ideals wise, is SO MUCH MORE COMPELLING. so we'll see if I ever do that, if I do I will definitely share it out. Overall really good show!
Wrestling
A preface, annoyingly behind my New Japan right now, I wanted to catch some New Beginning matches, and Honour Rising just kinda happened without me knowing so no opinions on that right now unfortunately, if I get to it next month I'll write about them. I've been kinda watching odd matches here and there instead of full events. So maybe I shall write about some matches I've watched as well next month. I want to get around to PAC vs Ospreay from RevPro's High Stakes, as well as OTT' Homecoming 3 with Devlin/Starr and PAC/WALTER on it, so hopefully I write something about those next month.
WWE NXT Halftime Heat
It was only one match but I thought I should give it a shout anyway, one of the best sprint matches I have seen in a long long time, I wish we had some more world class sprints more often but yeah, this was just an excellent 6-man tag.
NJPW The New Beginning in Osaka
THIS HAS BEEN ADDED AS OF 7TH MARCH 2019
So it turns out I actually did watch one event from New Japan this month, I didn't watch the full event but I did watch the last 3 or 4 matches. Which were all fairly poor apart from the main event that showed a White shock win over the ace Tanahahi for the IWGP Heavyweight belt. I honestly don't remember much about the match other than the finish and being really excite that they decided to make Tanahashi effectively a transitional champion for the new biggest western star. It was a cool moment.
WWE Elimination Chamber
Overall I think the show was a bit lack luster, with Braun/Corbin being really awful and Ronda/Ruby being a squash, I didn't mind the others, and the Women's Tag Chamber was entertaining if not a little messy. But really it didn't matter because the main event is one of the best EC's, and is already on my MOTY list. More specifically the last two stretch with Bryan and Kofi, is really putting into perspective 1. Kofi is way better than anyone realised for a long time, 2. Bryan might legitimately be the best wrestler in the world right now and he's probably best of all time behind Shawn Michaels. Bryan has been my favourite wrestler for a long time now but this heel run, and the matches he's putting on aswell, it just shows me that he is legitimately one of the best wrestlers we've ever seen.
Books & Comics
This was added as of 17th March 2019, because I FORGOT THAT I ALSO READ. I don't read very often so maybe the section won't appear very much, I'm trying to get better, but it has also been my new years resolution fr the past 3 years to get better.
The Infinity War
The book before this, The Infinity Gauntlet was the basis for the movie Infinity War, and although not a lot of the characteristics between that story and the MCU version are really similar, they are both great in their separate ways. Infinity Gauntlet focuses on the heroes and them stopping Thanos. Infinity War is much more of a mess and less good because of it. The book really lacks any direction from the get go, almost all the characters you have heard of get almost no lines in replacement of Adam Warlock, Thanos, Galactus and the evil Adam Warlock that I can't remember. The dialogue is so flamboyant, but fails to say anything meaningful, and just leaves the reader confused. honestly not worth the time if you were interested in following the whole Infinity story line after Gauntlet.
Some Thoughts - January
(The Favourite, Spyro The Dragon,
WWE Royal Rumble, Daughters and more)
First Published 31st January 2019
Hi! Thought I try something a little different this year, I'm going to be posting a blog at the end of each month with some thoughts on somethings I watched/listened/played that month. So here it is:
Music
Daughters - You Won't Get What You Want (4/5)
A really amazing atheistic choice for the music, I still maintain that the opener 'City Song' sounds like a Slipknot track, but the rest is some hardcore, dirty, scary and anxiety driven noise rock. I can totally see why this is a lot of peoples favourite record, and honestly this would definitely have place in my top 5 if I had listened to it before making my list.
Fave Tracks: City Song, Satan In The Wait, The Flammable Man, Less Sex, The Reason They Hate Me.
Nirvana - Nevermind (4/5)
Never properly listened to this album all the way through and I'm glad I finally did, it's a treat, I read somewhere that Kurt didn't like how clean the production on this album was, and honestly I agree with that statement. I feel I gravitate to some songs from the debut album, Bleach, more cause of the punky and dirty production. Nevermind clearly has much better writing though, genuinely a classic.
Fave Tracks: In Bloom, Come As You Are, Lithium, Polly, Territorial Pissings, On a Plain, Something In The Way
The 1975 - A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships (3/5)
A really enjoyable emo poppy album, and some track really do stick with you, but for me this isn't usually stuff I gravitate to, and it also suffers from a long run time and track list, it means it really meanders in the middle, even with the hot start.
Fave Tracks: Give Yourself A Try, Love It If We Made It, The Man Who Married A Robot/Love Theme, It's Not Living (If It's Not With You), I Couldn't Be More In Love.
Nirvana - In Utero (3.5/5)
I can totally see why people think this record is the best out of the three, but for me, and maybe this cause I listened to Nevermind directly before this album, I think In Utero might be my least favourite of the three LPs Nirvana released. It is clearly the blend between the first two albums, and in that respect it should be the best, but I feel like overall it just falls a little short overall. I still really love the album, it's a pretty close call, I guess I was hoping this one would be a 5/5. Heart-Shape Box might be my favourite Nirvana song now though.
Fave Tracks: Heart-Shaped Box, Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle, Milk It, Tourette's.
Ghost - Prequelle (3.5/5)
By far the best Ghost album they have released so far, I feel like Ghost has a large catalogue of great songs, but they all don't sit in one record where you can enjoy them all in a sitting, and this is the closest they've come to that. Let me be clear, the best Ghost songs aren't on here, but quite a few real good ones are.
Fave Tracks: Faith, See The Light, Miasma, Dance Macabre
Movies
Sorry To Bother You (3/5)
Fucking weird, but also has funny moments. I think this needs a rewatch but my overall feeling is that it was fine.
Music
Daughters - You Won't Get What You Want (4/5)
A really amazing atheistic choice for the music, I still maintain that the opener 'City Song' sounds like a Slipknot track, but the rest is some hardcore, dirty, scary and anxiety driven noise rock. I can totally see why this is a lot of peoples favourite record, and honestly this would definitely have place in my top 5 if I had listened to it before making my list.
Fave Tracks: City Song, Satan In The Wait, The Flammable Man, Less Sex, The Reason They Hate Me.
Nirvana - Nevermind (4/5)
Never properly listened to this album all the way through and I'm glad I finally did, it's a treat, I read somewhere that Kurt didn't like how clean the production on this album was, and honestly I agree with that statement. I feel I gravitate to some songs from the debut album, Bleach, more cause of the punky and dirty production. Nevermind clearly has much better writing though, genuinely a classic.
Fave Tracks: In Bloom, Come As You Are, Lithium, Polly, Territorial Pissings, On a Plain, Something In The Way
The 1975 - A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships (3/5)
A really enjoyable emo poppy album, and some track really do stick with you, but for me this isn't usually stuff I gravitate to, and it also suffers from a long run time and track list, it means it really meanders in the middle, even with the hot start.
Fave Tracks: Give Yourself A Try, Love It If We Made It, The Man Who Married A Robot/Love Theme, It's Not Living (If It's Not With You), I Couldn't Be More In Love.
Nirvana - In Utero (3.5/5)
I can totally see why people think this record is the best out of the three, but for me, and maybe this cause I listened to Nevermind directly before this album, I think In Utero might be my least favourite of the three LPs Nirvana released. It is clearly the blend between the first two albums, and in that respect it should be the best, but I feel like overall it just falls a little short overall. I still really love the album, it's a pretty close call, I guess I was hoping this one would be a 5/5. Heart-Shape Box might be my favourite Nirvana song now though.
Fave Tracks: Heart-Shaped Box, Frances Farmer Will Have Her Revenge On Seattle, Milk It, Tourette's.
Ghost - Prequelle (3.5/5)
By far the best Ghost album they have released so far, I feel like Ghost has a large catalogue of great songs, but they all don't sit in one record where you can enjoy them all in a sitting, and this is the closest they've come to that. Let me be clear, the best Ghost songs aren't on here, but quite a few real good ones are.
Fave Tracks: Faith, See The Light, Miasma, Dance Macabre
Movies
Sorry To Bother You (3/5)
Fucking weird, but also has funny moments. I think this needs a rewatch but my overall feeling is that it was fine.
Teen Titans Go! To The Movies (3/5)
A fun movie that is overall quite funny and charming, but has cheesy/cringy moments. I remember when this came out people had this very positive voice for it, being unexpectedly very good, but for me, watching this for the first time in a post-Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse world, this is no where near up to the standard that it could be.
Aquaman (3/5)
A fun movie that is overall quite funny and charming, but has cheesy/cringy moments. I remember when this came out people had this very positive voice for it, being unexpectedly very good, but for me, watching this for the first time in a post-Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse world, this is no where near up to the standard that it could be.
Aquaman (3/5)
Cool sequences, beautiful underwater shots, very good CGI, charming and funny performance by Jason Momoa, coupled with the DCEU trait of being, a bit all over the place, feeling weirdly paced, disjointed, strange editing decisions and being too fucking long.
The Favourite (4.5/5)
I need to see this movie again right now, every performance by the main three actresses, Olivia Colman, Emma Stone and Rachal Weisz, are all absolutely amazing. The story, all about love told in this really interesting way, with lots of beats, told in a period which is unusual with characters that are unusual, all boils down to nothing really actually changing in the long run and it's just so fucking COOL MAN. WIN ALL THE OSCARS.
The Favourite (4.5/5)
I need to see this movie again right now, every performance by the main three actresses, Olivia Colman, Emma Stone and Rachal Weisz, are all absolutely amazing. The story, all about love told in this really interesting way, with lots of beats, told in a period which is unusual with characters that are unusual, all boils down to nothing really actually changing in the long run and it's just so fucking COOL MAN. WIN ALL THE OSCARS.
Games
Spyro Reignited Trilogy: Spyro The Dragon (4/5)
Just completed the game with the full 120% you can get, it is a lot of fun and you can see the tight map and level design coupled with simple controls and abilities to create a really challenging platformer. I'm looking forward to play the next game and seeing the evolution of the design of these games, as I am a big fan of Jak & Daxter 1 which wasn't made by Insomniac but it was made by Naughty Dog who were working right next to Insomniac during the PS2 days. I see a lot overlap between Spyro and Jak 1. The remaster side of it is gorgeous, I really love the audio design too, but I have some gripes with the controls, I found myself slipping off the edge when doing jumps sometimes when I should be making them, but apart from that there doesn't seem to be any glitches or bugs, it feels really polished and fun to play.
TV
Sex Education - Series 1
Hilarious and Heart-warming, the correct way inclusion should be done, and a coming-of-age tale that still has a lot to go. Also great casting full of actors I haven't seen before bar one. Just a really great British comedy show, go watch. Also, this show has a really weird but cool aesthetic, of the whole show looking like a USA coming-of-age, romantic comedy, teen movie, think The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller type deal, but it's set in the modern day. I noticed this almost immediately when I realised, 1, England is not that sunny, 2, the school doesn't have a school uniform.
Friends - Season 2
Not much to say here, slowly going through the series, Friends, although aged in places, still feels incredibly relevent and also sometimes ahead of the times. It's a strange mix, the show is awesome. Rachel and Ross being an actual couple rules, Monica and Richard was also a great storyline.
Wrestling
NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 13
As always a stellar show by New Japan, I didn't love everything but Ospreay/Ibushi, White/Okada and Omega/Tanahashi are really standouts and the ones I'll keep in my mind for my End Of The Year Match candidates.
NJPW New Years Dash
Really shocking and lack luster to see no Elite members that night, it kinda put into perspective the kind of wierd situation New Japan is in now that AEW is around. I'm still holding out hope New Japan will make a deal with AEW and we can get some cross promotional shows between them.
NXT UK Takeover: Blackpool
As a British wrestling fan and someone who considers themselves to be in touch with that wrestling scene, I was dissapointed at the waste of potential here in the first ever NXT UK Takeover. I thought the opening Tag Match was really good, but considering the two teams involved and their history in a place like PROGRESS, felt that it could've been better. Rhea Ripley and Toni Storm had my favourite match of the night, which felt genuine and was just a joy to watch from start to finish. But the whole show ended with a main event which I frankly believe is abysmal. Slow and boring from the outset, multiple botches especially at the end with the top rope spot firmly points it at being really quite awful.
NXT Takeover: Phoenix
For me, I thought this show didn't hit the high points you expected Takeovers to have now. I thought the opening tag to be really good, Gargano/Ricochet to be a bit too dense in their spots and pace, but still a good match, Belair and Shayna to have an alright bout where Belair really shone and The main event to be really quite lack luster considering the match up, the main problem being the finish of the match where Aleister Black hits a Black Mass and then 2 minutes later tries to do it again but hurts his leg and gets pinned. Really quite dumb.
WWE Royal Rumble
TV
Sex Education - Series 1
Hilarious and Heart-warming, the correct way inclusion should be done, and a coming-of-age tale that still has a lot to go. Also great casting full of actors I haven't seen before bar one. Just a really great British comedy show, go watch. Also, this show has a really weird but cool aesthetic, of the whole show looking like a USA coming-of-age, romantic comedy, teen movie, think The Breakfast Club, Ferris Bueller type deal, but it's set in the modern day. I noticed this almost immediately when I realised, 1, England is not that sunny, 2, the school doesn't have a school uniform.
Friends - Season 2
Not much to say here, slowly going through the series, Friends, although aged in places, still feels incredibly relevent and also sometimes ahead of the times. It's a strange mix, the show is awesome. Rachel and Ross being an actual couple rules, Monica and Richard was also a great storyline.
Wrestling
NJPW Wrestle Kingdom 13
As always a stellar show by New Japan, I didn't love everything but Ospreay/Ibushi, White/Okada and Omega/Tanahashi are really standouts and the ones I'll keep in my mind for my End Of The Year Match candidates.
NJPW New Years Dash
Really shocking and lack luster to see no Elite members that night, it kinda put into perspective the kind of wierd situation New Japan is in now that AEW is around. I'm still holding out hope New Japan will make a deal with AEW and we can get some cross promotional shows between them.
NXT UK Takeover: Blackpool
As a British wrestling fan and someone who considers themselves to be in touch with that wrestling scene, I was dissapointed at the waste of potential here in the first ever NXT UK Takeover. I thought the opening Tag Match was really good, but considering the two teams involved and their history in a place like PROGRESS, felt that it could've been better. Rhea Ripley and Toni Storm had my favourite match of the night, which felt genuine and was just a joy to watch from start to finish. But the whole show ended with a main event which I frankly believe is abysmal. Slow and boring from the outset, multiple botches especially at the end with the top rope spot firmly points it at being really quite awful.
NXT Takeover: Phoenix
For me, I thought this show didn't hit the high points you expected Takeovers to have now. I thought the opening tag to be really good, Gargano/Ricochet to be a bit too dense in their spots and pace, but still a good match, Belair and Shayna to have an alright bout where Belair really shone and The main event to be really quite lack luster considering the match up, the main problem being the finish of the match where Aleister Black hits a Black Mass and then 2 minutes later tries to do it again but hurts his leg and gets pinned. Really quite dumb.
WWE Royal Rumble
Well isn't this a really nice surprise! WWE had a really great PPV for the first time in a while and has firmly brought me back on board from just about under a year away from watching PPVs. The standouts here were the Women's titles matches for me, Asuka/Becky really quite great, Ronda/Sasha a really close second to that. I also really love the cool chemistry between Bryan and AJ, I know it isn't this big fast paced indy-tastic feud that people would expect from those two names, but I think they have a really good flow and it grabs you really quite well. Finn/Brock was a spectacular match, Brock has really gone all out on these past two matches here with Bryan and Finn. Women's Rumble was quite shaky for a long time and only really picked up right at the end. Men's Rumble was much better overall, nothing too shocking or crazy but a really enjoyable rumble all round.
Yeah so that was my January, I hope I convinced you to try out something, brought something to your attention, or made you avoid something you were gonna try, I had fun doing this, dipping into this blog over the month and just adding a few lines of my thoughts. See you all next month I guess!
Yeah so that was my January, I hope I convinced you to try out something, brought something to your attention, or made you avoid something you were gonna try, I had fun doing this, dipping into this blog over the month and just adding a few lines of my thoughts. See you all next month I guess!