Maybe I'm Not A Psychopath...

“I’m James, I’m 17, and I think I’m a psychopath” the series opens up with this gut wrenching memorable quote. The End of the F*cking World is a recently added Netflix Original that focuses on the journey of James and Allison in what seems to be a dark adaptation of Bonnie & Clyde. This rollercoaster of emotions had me on the edge of my seat (my bed) the whole time.

The story is not very clear for the first couple episodes. A lot happens in the first few episodes with no apparent linear progressive story. The story ties itself back around in a way that is not expected. The biggest thing that kept me watching through the entire series was the fact that there was not a dry moment at all. From the time that the episode starts, to the time that the title appears on the credits screen, continuous jaw-dropping moments occur. A big issue that I had with the way the television series was created, is that nearly every episode, they will show the ending of the episode, and then retract to show what led to it. This bothers me because I know what happens before its shown. For most episodes, the ending that they show is not giving away many details, but for a few, it made the episodes very predictable.

The graphical representation throughout the series was incredible. The use of blood and the graphic content of doing so was very well done. There was a specific scene where the main girl Allison is being attacked and James stabs the guy. Blood pours from the guys’ neck all over the girl. The visuals of this scene were absolutely throw up provoking, it really displayed the feelings of the scene for all characters. Another issue that I found with the show, is that the cast is British. The lingo and vocabulary was different than that of my culture, and I found myself, sometimes not quite understanding what was said. I didn’t know any of the cast members, so it was a little difficult to find a relation between myself and them. The advantage of having a cast of unknown actors and actresses, is that an audience member doesn’t have a relation to another movie with that character. For example. When viewing Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls, Jim Carrey portrays a very whacky and goofy individual, but when viewing The Number 23, I find it much harder to take Jim Carrey seriously in a drama/thriller role.

The End of the F*cking World is a Netflix Original series that explores the love and adventure of an almost couple on the run. The rise and fall of emotions and characters keeps the tension at maximum. Like a book that refuses to let you stop turning the pages, The End of the F*cking World is a series that will provoke a massive binge. Already knowing the story, I

Would find it hard to watch it again, but watching it for the first time will definitely not be a regret.

Not A Marvel Series

Well after tragically losing time do to my watching the show I'm going to make highlights on. I find myself writing this at two A.M. After watching my way through all of the Marvel Netflix shows, I decided I had to do something totally different. So naturally I chose the show that everyone is always talking about, Stranger Things.

Stranger Things is the horror, thriller, suspense show that people won't stop talking about. It doesn't matter if you've seen it or not, someone has definitely spoiled things for you. It is a show that is kind of funny to write about. The best way to watch the show is to go in as blindly as possible. Minor spoiler warning ahead.

The show is set in the 80's, in a small town, with a mysterious government operation set up near it. The plot really gets kicked off when a boy named Will goes missing. Soon after some of Will's friends (I'm just going to call them the Loser's Club), find a girl with telekinetic powers going by the name Eleven. The show clearly draws inspiration from a lot of government conspiracies, most of them outright stated. This is always a good idea in my mind, it makes the story slightly closer to home while adding intrigue and an alien feel, all at the same time.

I really don't like talking about actors, but the kids in particular are well written and acted. I've never been a huge user , or advocate of them as a child, but kids swearing is so natural. I can't stand it when kids in movies are angels, naive, and stupid, it just isn't right. Kids are actually quite smart when they put their minds to things, and more than that, they are devils at times.

Big thing I want to talk about is a slight thing I've begun to notice after my three episode session of the show. This movie seems to have an obsession with doubles, and counterparts. The monster, is referred to as the Demigorgon. I do have a knowledge of Dungeons and Dragons, and I can tell you that the Demigorgon in universe has two heads. There are two worlds, I've picked up on the fact that the other world is basically a copy of ours. The research lab is doubling as a company and a government conspiracy. Of course Eleven, two ones, same way forwards and backwards.

I'm not sure how correct any of this is, but I'm quite certain the monster and Eleven are one in the same. Whenever the monster appears or Eleven uses her powers, lights begin to flicker, and electronics stop working. Also a few scenes of theirs have some parallels in what they do and the way scenes are shot. I'm not saying they're the same thing, but they're definitely connected. Although this may be obvious to some I felt like it was worth mentioning.

I do like this show. I do recommend it, I'm not sure if the show is trying to say something or if I'm over analyzing again. But seeing as duality is already showing to be a constant theme, we can make the assumption that I am correct. It will be next week before I can verify my guesses, but I actually do for once plan on watching this all the way through.

Secondhand Danger

Dear my friend who shall not be named,

This week I watched Travelers. That thing was freaky. It had the longest intro I think I have ever experienced of a pilot and I felt anxious and confused throughout it. It had a very thriller-esc mood or vibe to it. They kinda just throw the audience in the middle of it. We jump from one unpleasant situation centered around one character to an entirely different unpleasant situation with another character. This show uses a wide array of tools to influence the audience's experience. In the first scene, we see there is a blonde girl that seems the be the character of focus. She seems to be a grown woman. She is in a dim lit building. We subconsciously infer that it is closing time based on the conversation she has with another woman and the window that depicts a dark night and the ground wet from recent rain. We get a little short scene of her trying to read, telling us that she has some sort of mental handicap. Before a group of at four men start physically harassing her female co-worker as she watches and yells in horror. She starts banging on the glass yelling at them, but then seems a little disoriented when they turn their attention to her as her friend escapes. Like somehow she didn't realize that if she did that, it would call her to attention. She runs away from the big glass window after they throw a bottle of alcohol at it. Now, this is all just a play by play of the first sequence we see and I haven't even finished it. The sounds, the lighting, and camera angles make the audience feel as if we are there. We hear muffled screaming as her friend is attacked until it catches the main character’s attention, then the audience is suddenly outside of the building watching and hearing the assault first hand and then back inside as the main character responds. Which is pretty explanatory of my own personal discomfort watching the intro because the audience experiences four different scenarios with four different characters that are equally dangerous, but two of them are particularly frightening. The first is the one I began describing above which we will just summarize in short as Woman almost getting gang-raped and the second, we will just put in short as BabyDaddy under the influence smashes Young Mother’s head into the wall. Now the other two scenarios were just as dangerous but didn't have as much power to them. Now some might say that the reason the other two aren't as significant is because the main characters are guys and I disagree. The reason why the other two aren't as powerful is because the two characters are in danger by choice or at least more so than the other two. In the two scenarios where the main characters are guys, the first is a guy that looks to be getting his ass handed to him in an underground fighting ring and he chooses to ignore his friend urging him to stop and the other is a guy in a house or something with a friend sitting in chairs and injecting themselves with what I assume is heroin. Now I stopped watching not long after that, but I thought it was very interesting and frustrating how they put the audience in and make us feel scared, helpless, anxious, and confused. At least that was how I was feeling watching all these horrible situations play out and not being able to intervene. Whelp, that's all I've got for this one. I could probably talk a ton more about this show, but considering how it's not my favorite I think I'll end it here.

Till next time,

happylittlepenguin

A Narcos Letter

Dear Titus Andromedon,

This week I watched something that I can’t decide if you would like or not. I watched Narcos. Narcos is a show based off the true story of Pablo Escobar and his drug trafficking ring. While I think you would like this show because the entire thing is a drama, and therefore dramatic. I don’t know that you would enjoy the violence and greed that come with the show.

Anyone who knows you knows how much you love drama. Drama makes you happy. This show, while not the epitome of drama, is pretty dramatic. The way the camera follows Pablo and shoots quite a few of his scenes from below, makes him seem more powerful. Now don’t get me wrong, he was powerful. The camera angles just make him seem a little more dangerously powerful. When the camera isn’t shooting from below it is shooting at eye level. This makes Pablo seem more approachable because you see him at the level you would in everyday life.

The other thing that intensifies the drama in Narcos is the voice over. The voice over, that is supposed to be one of the DEA agents, is very intense. This intensity would be great, if it weren’t going overboard sometimes. Don’t tell me, show me. The voice frequently tells you things that you could have inferred or would be better just shown. People say a picture is worth a thousand words. Well, what is the point if you aren’t just experiencing? Suspense. The DEA agent is trying to build the suspense to leave you on the edge of your seat. This is great. But, in the intensity it is  good to also have someone filling you in. Without the voice some scenes might lose their touch or leave you confused.

Stories can be confusing sometimes, especially true ones. This is where I think you would not enjoy this show. While, dramatic, it is based off true lives. Albeit, the show has taken some liberty with the story. That doesn’t make it any less true, and in that regard, I find myself almost wanting to look up where they took those liberties. I don’t think you would enjoy that by it being a true story, that means other people know it, and that you could easily just look up the information and spoil the entire show for yourself. That waiting, the suspense, is what you live for in a TV show. Having the information available about what could be next  whenever you want it is a dangerous game to play.

The thing I know you would have the most though is the fashion. The show is set in the 70s-90s for the most part. That means that all of the following were in: big hair, tight miniskirts, horrible prints, and other things from the 70s. The wardrobe in this show, while accurate was not very appeasing. Pablos wears sweaters to go to drug related activities. The moms/women are all wearing dresses, skirts, or pantsuits. The police wear hideous prints and Pablo does too. While I appreciate the authenticity, I don’t appreciate the every changing patterns and colors. I think if you looked at some of the outfits the characters wear you would cry and refused to watch.

Overall Titus, it is a good show and is dramatic enough to be up your alley. There are some downsides but everything has those and so I say try it. Give it a shot.

Sincerely,

Taylor Shanders

Another mystery: The OA

What really caught my attention, besides the fact that I really liked this show, were the time jumps being made at the end of the first episode and the mystery that surrounds this storyline. I don’t want to give anything away in case anyone decides to start watching The OA. What I can tell you is: one, the time jumps are needed to dispose of some of the mystery and two, it makes the scenes more impactive. Without those scenes, you would be left hanging, which you still partially are (but it is a good hanging), and the impact of the storyline they are pulling you into would be partially lost.

You start this journey in the middle of the story. The result is suspense from the beginning, as you have no idea what is happening next, or what HAS happened before in the timeline, which not only pulls you in, but leaves you on the edge of your seat. You get more information little by little, but those scenes at the end are there to connect the information together.

The time lapses specifically pertain to the backstory of the main character who remains a mystery while the people around her are starting to open up. In this timeline you specifically find out more information about her relationship with her parents, and find out how she became impaired. Sorry, for the spoiler but you find that out pretty early.

Another thing to pay attention to is the effect the time lapses have on the other characters. Watching the flashbacks and the ‘real time’ characters reactions shows just how skeptical they are of the main character and whether they can truly trust her. The characters are already having issues with how they feel about our protagonist because she doesn’t have the clearest path, and what is happening seems very var fetched. This skepticism has already played a part in the actions of the characters and I expect this skepticism will show later in the show as well.

At this point in the show I have realized that my feelings have been directly affected by the mystery surrounding the show. To only add on to the mixture of feelings I had these scenes are continuing to pull at my heartstrings. My feelings are being intensified by the minute strictly because once you see something in the flashback, you are then thrust into the present when all you want is to find out what happened next to our mysterious protagonist. The desperation to continue this elaborate back story is real, and I will admit I had a hard time not fast forwarding to ease my burden.

When the end of the episode approached, I found that I didn’t want it to. Not only because I still have so many questions, but also because lately I cannot find a show or movie that captures my interest the entire time, and The OA is one of the best I have found that keep my attention and interest. So, if my analysis of The OA hasn’t convinced you to watch it, which I understand if it hasn’t, let me tell you that I am very hard to please apparently and between this show and Hemlock Grove (which I wrote about last week) I have found enough mysteries to last me a while. This will be added to the list of shows that I will have to try to find the time to watch but I will definitely be back to it, and the time lapses that have pulled me in deep.

Hemlock Grove

When searching for a Netflix Original to watch for this blog entry, I started to watch a couple of things that looked interesting, and after several hits and misses I ended up on Hemlock Grove. While I had heard good things about this show I was interested to know if the rumors of how good this show was were true, and I was not disappointed! What struck me as I was watching multiple episodes of this show was that I was glad this came around in a time where special effects seem to be at their peak, and only getting better. One scene in particular stands out to me, and if you have ever seen, at the least, season one of Hemlock Grove you can probably guess which scene I’m talking about.

While the special effects were not used for a lengthy period, they were used over a fairly large area and were quite extensive. The question then becomes were the special effects appropriate for that particular scene? In my opinion, yes they were appropriate. The special effects propelled the storyline further and only increased the intensity of the already mind boggling situation. While you seem to be questioning everything you know about this show and what could be happening next, they throw one more thing into the mix that only makes you want to keep watching to solve the mystery that is Hemlock Grove.

The storyline plants doubts in the audience's’ minds and makes them think about what they truly want from this t.v. show. The intimacy that is fostered in this scene between two teenage males that barely know each other, the secret they are both now forced to keep, and the possibly severe implications that could stem from this scene are carried through the next couple of episodes; the trial that seems to be happening on one side of the point of views keeps you on the edge of your seat doing the only thing you can do… hope things go your way and wait to find out in the next episode. (Although that wait isn’t more than thirty seconds most of the time, it is agonizing!)

Beyond the fact that the storyline greatly benefits from the this scene in particular, it also make the actually storytelling more effective. This added scene gives you a feel for the character and what they are going through, along with the simultaneous sense of security that the scene gives to the budding friendship between the two main characters, and the sense that nothing is ever as it seems. Watching this slightly cringe-worthy scene, makes the audience feel sympathy and stirs the want to know that everything will turn out the way they want it to. This scene while mildly unrealistic to the logically sound of mind, gives you an accurate feel for what this scene might  possibly be like in real life. Is it entirely realistic and accurate? Who knows, I certainly don’t, but if this were to happen this is how I would expect for it to go. The fact that it seemed agonizing, and terrifying is enough for me to expect that no matter what other movies and t.v. show portrayed this scene as, this is definitely the one I could see happening the most in my everyday life.

So final decision time: will I be watching this again? You bet I will! I foresee this becoming one of my many netflix staples that I come back around to when I have finished a series or all the available episodes on Netflix. We all have our staples that pass the time between new series, and are always a pleasure to rewatch, and I am happy to say that Hemlock Grove, if it goes the way I’m hoping it does or even if it doesn’t, has proudly made its way into my list of many other classic rewatch shows. Criminal Minds, CSI (all of them), Supernatural, 30 Rock, The Office, and many others have to make room for one more… Hemlock Grove.