Movie Review Monday: Justice League - Flashpoint Paradox

Welcome to another edition of Movie Review Monday!

This week's film is the 2013 animated film, Justice League - The Flashpoint Paradox.

I love this movie. I watched it for the first time with my brother a little while back, and revisited it recently since it is now available on Netflix.

The plot follows Barry Allen (The Flash) as awakes in an unfamiliar world, ravaged by war, and where he is no longer the beloved Scarlet Speedster. He eventually discovers that something happened to alter the timeline, and he has to work together with these very different versions of superheroes from his world to get back to his own reality.

This is not a great movie for kids. It is rated an appropriate PG-13, since there is visceral violence, dark themes, and the story may be a little too much for a child. This isn't to say it is bad however. It is a really great story and overall movie. There are emotional moments, intense action sequences, and intriguing changes to the stories we all know about the members of the Justice League.

The animation in the movie is also well done from what I can tell. Watching it over again, I can notice some sequences of obvious CGI, but they're brief and don't take away from the overall experience. The entire package of this movie is fun to watch, and sets up a cool world that just begs to be explored (and you can in Flashpoint comics that were released). DC strikes gold again with this movie, and continues their positive streak of animated films.

Go check out Justice League - The Flashpoint Paradox, streaming right now, on Netflix.

Thanks for stopping by!

Weekly Geek Outs - 05/27/16

Greetings!

I've been busy this week but was able to catch the season finales of some of my favorite shows on the air right now (still need to catch up on SHIELD...) so I wanted to share my (spoiler-free) thoughts on those episodes and their respective seasons here:

• Arrow

I've ordered these bullet points generally in order of my least to most favorite season finales. Arrow has been struggling for a little while now, with weak flashback stories and frustrating plot points. It's a shame since it was the genesis of the DC TV Universe, but the show hasn't really figured out a good path forward. With major characters being killed off or quitting being heroes, lackluster villains, and character moments being rushed or poorly done, Arrow has some structural flaws to address going forward. I would hate to see this show go on life support in terms of quality, but it seems to be trending that way. I have faith it can shape up, but I could also see it becoming a show that gets too comfy and gets lazy. I'll be watching season 5 but might let go of the show if it doesn't keep me engaged since there is plenty of other great TV on right now.

• Legends of Tomorrow

On a more positive note, LoT grew in a positive way over the course of its first year. Struggling with similar flaws like Arrow with its villain, LoT eventually got to a good place by investing better in the great cast of characters they have and keeping the tension at a decent place. Strange that time travel adventures could feel a tad boring at times, but nevertheless, LoT looks to be heading in the right direction with season 2, especially with the teaser that happened at the end of their satisfying season finale.

• The Flash

The Flash is still easily my favorite show of this bunch. It fully embraced its comic book roots early on, has kept a good pace (for the most part), and Barry Allan and the crew are just great fun to watch. While season 2 got a little darker, it was still great TV, and wasn't afraid of going down some different dramatic and intriguing turns, especially with the finale. I loved the inclusion of time travel within this show (for the most part) as well as the acknowledgement of alternate Earths. There still seems to be so much they can explore with all of that, so I'm more optimistic for The Flash than some of its sibling shows.

Thanks for stopping by!

Weekly Geek Outs - 02/05/16

Greetings!

Here's what is going on in my world this week:

• Flash and Supergirl Crossover

I am super excited for the recently announced crossover episode of The Flash and Supergirl to finally happen! Ever since Supergirl premiered, fans have been hoping for this to happen, and the creators of the shows have been playing coy for a while about it, but we got the official announcement on Wednesday that the episode of Supergirl featuring Grant Gustin's Flash will air sometime in March. It's so soon! I'm assuming they'll utilize the multi-verse premise to easily segue into the crossover without having to do much narrative legwork. These are two solidly entertaining heroes that will be a lot of fun when they team up. I need to watch more Supergirl to prepare!

• Maine Craft Beer & Growlers

Something I've really enjoyed about living in Maine has been all of the fine local, craft beer there is to enjoy. I've been getting into bringing home my own growlers of beer since it is a bit more sustainable and cost effective to do so, and especially for the beer that I can't buy in a store. Some of my favorites around here are Orono Brewing Company, Black Bear Microbrew, and Baxter Brewing Company. There are so many more good ones, but I encourage anyone to check out if they have any cool local breweries in their area. Support local business and enjoy some uniquely tasty beer at the same time!

• Fitness Trackers

My partner and I have been researching different fitness trackers, like FitBit and Pacer. We have settled on getting an actual physical tracker of some sort, with most of our friends recommending FitBit (in addition to the plethora of mostly positive reviews on Amazon). It's been tough though to figure out exactly which brand to choose and which version of which brand's fitness band to get, especially since I have never had one before and they are just enough money I feel like that I want to make sure I get something I like. I'm hoping to settle on one soon with my partner, so that we can share the same technology and work together toward our wellness goals!

Thanks for stopping by!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 12/04/15

Greetings!

Here's what is going on in my world this week:

• Thanksgiving Break

I enjoyed the holiday break last week by taking some time away from the blog (why there was no new post last Friday) and having a wonderful dinner with my mom and my partner. I also was able to just sleep in and take care of my life by getting all my dishes and laundry done. It's funny how such simple things can make a positive impact on our lives by helping us not feel so overwhelmed. I also always feel better with an empty sink and my favorite clothes ready to wear, but that's just me.

• Jessica Jones, A Retrospective

I finished watching all of season one of this spectacular Netflix show with my partner this past week. I was excited for it before watching and it lived up (or even exceeded) my expectations. On several different levels, I so glad this show exists. It explores themes of trauma, heroism, recovery, and so much more. It had a compelling story and great characters that I'm excited to continue to explore, like Luke Cage especially. I highly recommend it to anyone to check out. The fact that this exists in the Marvel Cinematic Universe but also just as a stellar comic book property. It continues the long positive trajectory of all the recent adaptations and I feel like it is an engaging and entertainment property for any viewer, comic book lover or not.

• Arrow/Flash Crossover

It has been a big week or so for comic book movie/TV geekery. In addition to my previous geek out, there was the first big Captain America: Civil War trailer, the newest Batman VS Superman trailer, and we had this awesome DC TV crossover event this week too! My heart has been happy with all this good stuff coming out. The trailers both look great and the two episodes of Arrow and Flash this week were a lot of fun. We got introductions to Hawkgirl, Hawkman, and Vandal Savage in this event. There was a lot of legwork for both shows to do on top of the plethora that has been done already to set up the upcoming Legends of Tomorrow. Nevertheless, this was an entertaining team up with all the comic book fun we've come to expect from these two shows, especially Flash (which is more of my favorite).

Thanks for stopping by!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 10/16/15

Greetings!

Here's what is going on in my world this week:

• Fear the Walking Dead

Over my long weekend break back in NJ (the reason for no posts on this past Monday or Friday), I sat with my partner and watched the entire first season (only six episodes) of Fear the Walking Dead (FTWD), the new companion series to hit show, The Walking Dead (TWD). My partner and I are big fans of TWD so we wanted to check out FTWD to see how it holds up. The answer is that FTWD is both similar and different to it's counterpart, in good ways and bad (I'm a very relative person). It's slower moving and smaller scale but also leads nicely to a different focus than our badass survivors in TWD. These people are still figuring everything out and aren't as hardened yet but are becoming acquainted with their new normal in terms of what kind of things they'll have to do to get by. I'm intrigued to see where the show goes, and I hope it doesn't just become The Walking Dead: Los Angeles since they have an opportunity here to tell a very different kind of story with FTWD.

• Arrow

After what many deemed (myself included) to be a rocky third season, this new season of Arrow is hopefully going to right the ship a bit. I like the bit of a lighter tone the show has been taking, as well as getting deeper into the relationship Oliver has with his team. I'm still a big fan of this show and have been for a while since I think it has some of the best action sequences on TV and builds up in its own way to the expanded, shared universe with The Flash. I look forward to it helping to expand the universe even further as it works to set up the new mid-season series, Legends of Tomorrow.

• The Flash

The first two episodes of season 2 have aired so far and this show is keeping the positive momentum going from their debut season. They're still going all in on pulling from their awesome comic book lore, introducing the multi-verse, the original Flash Jay Garrick, and continuing to maintain the expanded, shared universe of the show. I can't wait to see threads from season 1 picked back up as well as fun uses of the multiverse such as seeing different versions of our core cast in Earth 2 for example. If you haven't watched this show yet, get on Netflix and watch the whole first season, you'll be glad you did!

Thanks for stopping by!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 08/14/15

Greetings!

Here's what was going on in my world this week:

• Constantine on Arrow

Constantine was a short lived but beloved show focusing on the famed demon hunter of the same name. It was really given much of a chance to succeed from what I could tell, and in an act of respect (as far as I can tell), the character of Constantine depicted in the show (portrayed by Matt Ryan) will be making his way to Arrow this upcoming season. I'm really excited to see Oliver Queen and Constantine interact, as it continues to build out the amazing TV DC universe that is being created (more on that in the next bit). While admittedly I did not watch the show Constantine, I know this is an awesome thing to exist in the first place, and maybe it will inspire to check out the episodes of the show that are out there.

• Jay Garrick on Flash

On the topic of the ever expanding DC TV universe, The Flash has introduced time travel and alternate realities, which has me geeking out over how this show is just going all in on cool comic book connections. One that has been confirmed is the inclusion of the original Flash from the comics, Jay Garrick. We'll have some double Flash action in an episode (or episodes?) of the upcoming season of the show, so get ready! (The article linked above does a great job of explaining the history and setting up the TV show depiction of Jay Garrick)

• Secret Warriors on Agents of SHIELD

While this isn't super new information, I'm keeping with the pattern of stuff in comic book TV shows. Which SHIELD has felt more like a companion series to the Marvel Cinematic Universe than a driver of it's own destiny like the DC TV universe, Season 3 of SHIELD should be pretty awesome, and will build up nicely to Captain America: Civil War, our next Marvel movie tent-pole. Season 3 will be including more superpowered folks in the aftermath of the events of Season 2, with Skye/Daisy Johnson taking a larger role as she accepts her mantle of Quake from the comics and seeks out her powered brethren for this special team of "Secret Warriors". With the introduction of Inhumans, the Kree, and now this, we're building up a far richer sandbox for the TV show to play in on it's own that is still beholden to the rest of the MCU, but it also feels like the stakes are higher now since more is happening on a bigger scale.

Thanks for stopping by!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 05/15/15

Good day to you!

Here's what is going on in my world this week:

• The Flash

Flash's first season has been amazing. It's pretty much everything I could want from a weekly superhero show; fun, action, good characters, and an expansive universe. It's been more entertaining than Arrow's frustrating third season (which is tough since season 2 of Arrow was so awesome). Next week's episode is the season finale and I'm excited for what they'll tease for season 2. They've already laid out a lot of groundwork for things to come, and I can't wait to see what they do next.

• Agents of SHIELD

This past week was the season 2 finale for SHIELD, and this has been an interesting ride for the show so far. It feels like it has gone in a really intriguing new direction with introducing the Inhumans and focusing a bit more on superpowered people while still holding to the basic premise of the show; being about ordinary people in an extraordinary world. While it still doesn't hold up as well to some of the other comic book shows I watch (Flash and Arrow), it is still an awesome companion to the ever expanding (and fun) Marvel Cinematic Universe. I foresee it playing an increasingly important role to the films, filling in gaps and establishing backstory to the events of the films. The show is definitely worth looking into if you're a fan of the MCU.

• Supergirl

CBS recently released an extended first look at their new superhero series (check it out above), which does a great job of showcasing the background and vibe of the show. Going for a more fun, lighthearted feeling, Supergirl looks like it is going to stake out its own place in the growing crowd of comic book shows on TV right now. I'm looking forward to seeing something different and am happy to see a female led superhero show come to the fray and hold her own with the likes of Arrow, Flash, SHIELD, and the new Legends of Tomorrow. Her and Agent Carter are important role models and are just awesome shows (or at least look like they should be in Supergirl's case).

Thanks for stopping by!

What I'm Geeking Out About This Week - 12/12/14

Here's some geeky stuff I'm into this week!

• Mid-Season Finales!

All my favorite major shows on the air right now have taken their winter hiatus (Arrow, The Flash, Agents of SHIELD) and I have caught up all the way with them. All these shows have been on point recently, with Arrow continuing it's strong stride it has had since the series premiere, The Flash coming strong out of the gate, and SHIELD finally figuring out a good flow and setting up some shock waves for the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). I recommend all of these shows and I feel like I talk about them often, so that should give you an idea of how much I enjoy them all. I'm glad there are so many great options for geeky, superhero based television right now. I can't wait for another good option to be premiering soon...

• Agent Carter

The hype has been building for this show recently, as it will be a filler during the hiatus of Agents of SHIELD. It will premiere with a two-hour event on January 6 and then continue on until SHIELD comes back on March 3. I'm looking forward to more Peggy Carter (never a bad thing) and to see more of the MCU and the origins of SHIELD. I am a fan of everything Marvel has churned out lately so I don't expect this to be any different. Peggy deserves her moment in the spotlight so I'm glad she's finally getting it.

• Reflection

I enjoy reflecting back on things that happen in my life. While it is important to be present in our lives, appreciating all that we've accomplished is important too. It often amazes me all that can happen in a year even when it feels like it flies by. This year was a big one for me, which I've detailed in several blog posts (here, here, and here). I'll be posting a year in review episode as the finale for the first season of The Student Affairs Spectacular podcast (check above or here) on Tuesday which will focus on looking back at that aspect of my life. 2014 was a landmark year for me, and I'm excited for 2015 and to live my life as a working professional, out of school and doing the things I love.

Thanks for stopping by!