skribs Reviews

Resident Alien (2021– )

Came for Alan Tudyk, stayed for Alan Tudyk

[6/10 · 29 February 2024]

I've been an Alan Tudyk fan since I first saw the show Firefly. I found this show, saw his face on the poster, and decided to give it a watch.

His performance and interactions are what keep bringing me back to the show.

The writing is all over the place. There's a lot of weird, random things that are thrown in that don't make sense. For example, one character takes off their boots to walk in the snow. It would have made more sense in a warmer time of the year. When the show gets political, it gets pretty cringe.

The pacing of the show is way off. There's a lot of scenes of people singing or dancing badly that add nothing to the plot and are just cringe. They juggle so many plot threads that some plots disappear for several episodes before returning, and don't seem to tell a coherent story.

Alan's performance as "Harry" is captivating. His inhuman mannerisms and behaviors have me in stitches. His interactions with the various cast members are what keep the show rolling. But when other cast members are interacting with each other, there are far less hits.

One Piece (2023– )

Most fun I've had watching a TV show in ages

[10/10 · 6 November 2023]

The main character of this show, Monkey D. Luffy, is a fun character. He wants to be king of the pirates, and he wants everyone to fulfill their dreams. His optimism rubs off on his crew, and on the audience.

It really helps that Inaki Godoy is having just as much fun playing the character as the character has in the world. The joy is infectious. He's said in interviews how much he loves the character, how honored he is to play it, and how fun it is.

It's refreshing in an age where a lot of adaptions are trying to change the source material into something it wasn't, because they reject and hate it. Or is written by someone who doesn't understand the source material enough to do it justice.

This is now the gold standard for anime-to-live-action.

Violent Night (2022)

The best action movie I've seen in a long, long time

[10/10 · 7 September 2023]

This movie is an homage to the original die hard and several other action movies in the most glorious way possible.

The main plot is a high-stakes heist with hostages on Christmas Eve, just like Die Hard. There's many scenes that remind me of Die Hards 1-3, True Lies, and a host of other great action flicks (even Home Alone and Return of the Jedi). There's also a lot of creative use of Santa's magic in his fighting.

I've talked more about the action than the plot, because this is an action movie and it knows it. The plot does just enough to carry us from action scene to action scene, and that's perfectly fine.

If you want to watch a cute movie about Santa saving Christmas, watch The Santa Clause or Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer. If you want to watch Santa go full beastmode on terrorists, watch Violent Night.

Night Court: Da Club (2023) Season 1, Episode 12

Activism is not entertaining

[2/10 · 7 April 2023]

I watch TV as a distraction. I watch TV to have fun. When I watch a TV show, I want to be entertained.

This episode isn't preaching at me, so I can at least give it a 2. But watching someone preach at someone else for a half hour isn't fun.

In the original night court, Judge Harry Stone would do unconventional things, which the other cast members would initially fight against, until they realized it was in their best interest all along. He would let them come to that realization.

A great example of this is the episode where a female lawyer's Dad gets arrested for contempt of court after getting mad at Judge Stone, because he made her cry. However, upon talking with her client, she realized that he was listening. She realized that she had gotten in her own way, and so did her father.

In that episode, we the audience see both sides of the story, and we see how it unfolds and how they come to an agreement.

In this episode? We just get told up front what's correct because that's what Abby Stone wants, and we see her trials and tribulations as she has to convince someone else to do what she wants.

The original was about Harry Stone pushing a domino and watching them fall into place. This is about Abby badgering people into submission. It's just nowhere near as entertaining to watch it unfold, nor as satisfying when it does.

True Lies (2023)

A step down from the original, step up from most TV shows today

[7/10 · 20 March 2023]

True Lies was an absolute masterpiece of a film. The leads do a good job in this, but the Arnolds are sorely missed. There's just no replacing Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Tom Arnold's comedic timing was perfect.

The TV show mostly skips through the plot of the movie in the first episode. I think that was the right call here. Other shows based on movies (such as Shooter) spread the movie out over the first season. I think it works in the other shows, but it wouldn't here. Instead, the pilot episode sets up the rest of the series, that Harry and Helen are married spies, with Harry relying on his experience and Helen relying on her wit.

The show is definitely on the lighter and campy side of things. I personally feel it was a little weird for Helen to already be a gymnast in addition to everything else she is, and the CGI gadgets go way over-the-top. It reminds me of the change from Vin Diesel's XXX to Ice Cube's entry in the series, where it went from spy gadgets to CGI and holograms.

Overall, I would say the show reminds me more of the series Get Smart than the movie True Lies. There's spies that are a couple, and the house is rigged with all sorts of security systems just like Max's was.

The show is fun. It's not on par with True Lies, but I don't know that it ever could have been. My family and I enjoyed watching it, and that's the most important thing.

Commando (1985)

The most Arnold an Arnold movie can get

[10/10 · 14 March 2023]

If someone asks you to show you Arnold's best movie, you show them Terminator 2. If someone wants you to show them one movie that will show peak Arnold, it's Commando.

This movie is over the top action all the way through. It knows it. It even says it. Arnold is having so much fun making this movie, and that fun is transferred into the audience watching it.

This movie has lots of guns, explosions, and all 240 pounds of pure muscle Mr. Universe himself. He's performing insane feats of strength. It is pure 80s action at its finest.

This movie is not a smart movie. But you don't judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree. This movie was never supposed to be a smart one. It was just supposed to be big macho fun.

Astonishing Tales of Terror: Rocktapussy! (2022 Video)

The octopus was barely in the movie

[4/10 · 7 March 2023]

This is the kind of movie that only makes sense if you've seen a bunch of movies like it already. It's very random, very weird, with horrible writing, acting, and CGI.

The semi-titular Octopus is somewhat behind-the-scenes throughout the whole movie. But if you were expecting a giant octopus eating people as the plot of the movie, you were sorely mistaken. The movie is more like a mummy movie than a monster movie.

The biggest draw of this film is the main character's outfits, or lack thereof. On this one point, the film delivers. But it doesn't deliver in any other way. If you watch this movie, you know why you're watching it.

Night Court: Justice Buddies (2023) Season 1, Episode 6

This episode is everything wrong with TV today

[1/10 · 26 February 2023]

Up until this episode, I had been enjoying that the episode is here to entertain instead of to preach. This episode broke that promise. This episode preached.

It preached that courts are evil. It didn't use that word, but that was the general idea. That the court was unjust and unfair. That it's a problem we've had in America for 400 years.

The problem is that this is a show about a courtroom. So it does what so many other shows have done in the 2020s. The justice system is corrupt...except for our stars! I've seen it The Rookie, in Brooklyn 99, in shows I've previously enjoyed.

This is a very politically charged episode, and it doesn't do anything to present the other side of the debate. You have a group of people who are already supporting the protest, and the other side is a group of people who already agree and just need to be pushed into following. There is no other voice.

I had previously rated this show a 9/10 for being good family fun. This episode was not. This episode was preaching. Another episode like this and I won't watch anymore of it.

Night Court (2023– )

Good clean fun

[9/10 · 20 February 2023]

My family and I stumbled on this show. My parents had seen the original. I had seen only a few clips here and there. We gave it a try, and we really enjoy it.

The first few episodes are slow burners, but they do a good job of introducing the characters. Once the characters hit their stride, it's worth it.

The show isn't perfect, and some of the jokes don't land very well. But more hit than miss, and even the ones that miss help set up the characters for better jokes down the road.

It's very hard today to find a show that is just good clean fun. This show is that. It's not crude. It's not preaching some sort of message. The show is just here to entertain you, and it does that job well.

The Sandman: 24/7 (2022) Season 1, Episode 5

This episode was the final nail in the coffin for this series.

[1/10 · 30 January 2023]

Up until this point, the show has been very boring and very woke. This episode pushed both of those to 11.

The episode plays very similar to any other time loop that most people have probably seen in one way or another. Except, each time, the characters are more carnal and sexual. You get to a point where every single character is gay, except for the female CEO who establishing a cougar/cub relationship with someone applying for an internship at her company.

I can only guess the reason this currently sits at 8.4 is that the vast majority of people who did not enjoy the show at all quit watching it, and only those who are into this super progressive snoozefest remain.

This episode has only one twist, and it uses it every 5 minutes. And none of it matters, because none of it is connected to the main storyline.

The premise could have been interesting if they had some idea what to do with it. The one twist they had would have been fine if it is was used once. But when its used for every character...it's just repetitive and dull. In a series that is already very dull and poorly executed.

Jean-Claude Van Johnson (2016–2017)

This is bad. It knows its bad. And it does it so well.

[10/10 · 15 January 2023]

This is not a good show. So why did I give it a 10/10? Because it knew exactly what it wanted to be, and it did it so well.

The premise of this show reminds me a bit of Zoolander. Famous people are actually spies, who do famous things in places where the agency needs them. This is a little bit of a different take, since JCVD isn't being mind-controlled.

The show is riddled with clichés and contrivances. But it knows it is. Done on purpose, and done the right way, it works better than a poorer writer who's trying to avoid them. The show is full of in-jokes and lampshaded tropes. It just works.

The action scenes were gripping. The story was unique. The jabs at JCVD's career and relative drop-off since he got older and action heroes are a dying breed are.

I haven't seen a bad show this good since Velocipastor.

Eureka (2006–2012)

Fun sci-fi, ruined by the writers trying too hard

[6/10 · 11 January 2023]

Eureka is a perfect example of what often happens in science fiction. You have an interesting idea and some fun science-fiction adventures, which are then ruined by the writers trying too hard to be "good writers".

What do I mean by "good writers". If a show has an A plot and a B plot, that are thematically linked but otherwise separate from each other, that's an acceptable show. A good example of this is any number of CSI-type shows where you have an A pair and a B pair working on separate mysteries. If those A plots and B plots are woven together into a single story, you have good writing. But if those plots are forced together into a jumbled mess, then you have a situation where the writers are trying too hard.

Eureka will often have this. A great example is the second episode, which is designed to funnel two plots with very different themes into one conclusion. The problem is the rest of the episode is bouncing back and forth between paranormal horror and psychological thriller. Either on their own would have been fun, but the two don't really pair well together.

Many episodes or season arcs kick off with an idiot plot, and/or end with some sort of deus ex machina. Again, this is the writers creating an idea that could be fun, but either not knowing how to kick off the story or not knowing how to conclude it.

Then there's the characters themselves. Some of the characters are generally fun. The main character (Sheriff Carter) and his deputy Jo are a blast. So are many of the side characters. But there are some problems with many of the others.

Allison Blake and Nathan Stark are important people in Eureka. They are both boring characters (especially Stark), who mainly serve to put Carter into a love triangle. Stark's personality is so nonexistent that the only reason we know he has a history with Blake or that he hates Carter is because he says so.

Zoe Carter could be an interesting character, except she's rarely used in the show's main plots. Her relationship with her Dad is very weird, for example not being allowed to drink caffeine. It's never established that she has a bad history when she drinks caffeine, it's just weird.

Then there's some weird side characters, such as Taggart (whose fake Australian accent is even worse than the Outback Steakhouse commercials). Or Beverly, who I'm not sure if she's an innkeeper, a psychiatrist, or an escort, but then later you find out she's also a spy and is good? Bad? Whatever the episode needs her to be.

The same problem follows Henry, who is the local handyman and probably the smartest person in town. At the start of Season 2, he is holding a grudge for emotional reasons, that he scientifically knows he shouldn't, because of a death of a person close to him. At the end of season 2, he is acting the exact opposite (based on science and logic) for someone who is directly responsible for that person's death. The problem is that while there might have been character growth during this time, you never see it, because all of it has happened off camera.

Overall, this is the show's curse. Nearly every episode has a great premise that could've been a lot of fun. But it also has something that makes you roll your eyes and groan. If the writers had taken a step back and focused on giving us fun, high-concept sci-fi misadventures, then we could have had a great show. But they tried too hard to be "good writers", and every time they failed to meet the bar they set for themselves, it shows.

Eureka: Once in a Lifetime (2006) Season 1, Episode 12

The worst time travel plot I think I've ever seen

[1/10 · 7 January 2023]

Time travel features heavily in this episode that takes place 4 years in the future. It is not handled well at all.

The overall plot is the idea of the butterfly effect. Change an event, and it will have significant changes on the future. Unfortunately, that's not what we actually get. What we actually get is just one version of the future, and then that future is suddenly falling apart for...reasons.

The end of the episode features a cardinal sin of time travel. Someone dies. A second person goes back in time to stop the death. A third person goes back in time to stop the second person and restore the original timeline. However, with that timeline restored, there is no reason why the second person wouldn't simply start the process again.

The version of the future that we see ships the current relationships that are being hinted at as the ones we end up with. It's another time the writers make a nice tidy bow of a plot, which only serves to make the world seem small. It would make more sense for some of those relationships to have been nonstarters or been broken up along the way, than for all of them to work out.

I wanted to see what the next season had to offer, and so I forced myself to watch this episode. In previous episodes, I've at least enjoyed the A plot for the first two acts. There was not a single redeeming point in this episode.

Eureka: H.O.U.S.E. Rules (2006) Season 1, Episode 11

Can Fargo do anything right?

[7/10 · 7 January 2023]

I think the writers flip a coin when they start an episode. Was this episode's plot driven by a one-off scientist, or Fargo? In this case, it's how lazily he built SARAH that causes the chaos.

Carter is depressed and thinking about moving out of Eureka. SARAH stages a surprise intervention, which turns out to be a surprise for everyone involved. A surprise that might be deadly.

There's more episodes after this, so it's not really a spoiler to say that at least most of the characters make it out alive. What is surprising is that Carter continues to live there with his daughter after this episode.

The episode has some fun moments, some genuine moments, and some forced moments. Overall, a decent episode.

Eureka: Purple Haze (2006) Season 1, Episode 10

A blast of an episode

[9/10 · 7 January 2023]

This episode proves how great the characters in the show are (except for Stark).

The characters in the town are not acting right. They don't see it. Carter does, and so do we, the audience. We recognize who isn't in character, because of how strong the characters are.

With one exception. Stark. That man has no character. His sole purpose is to hate Carter and to yearn for the artifact. Luckily, he's not featured much in this episode.

With that said, where some characters shed their inhibitions (such as Allison being more forward with Carter or Taggart's nudism), others just completely change personalities, like Jo acting like a teenage party girl.

Overall, a strong, fun episode.

Eureka: Primal (2006) Season 1, Episode 9

Lost potential

[6/10 · 7 January 2023]

In past episodes, I've accused the writers of trying too hard to be "good writers" and wrap everything in a bow. In this episode, it works. The A plot, B plot, and C plot actually do wrap up into a nice bow.

However, there are missed opportunities along the way. A great monster movie doesn't show the monster in full until the end of the movie. Look at Jaws, Alien, or even how we didn't see the full endoskeleton of the Terminator until the surprise final act.

Unfortunately, there is a lot that happens off-camera on this episode, which is never realized in any way. People are attacked, and their remains are discussed, but not seen. Others are attacked, and we don't even know their fate.

The B plot has Stark implanted with an emotion chip. The chip has charts for anger, happiness, depression, and fear. Unfortunately, we don't ever see happiness or fear explored, only anger (and a little bit of depression). An interesting concept, but not explored as well as it should be.

A fun episode, but left a lot on the table. Or should I say, left a lot off the screen.

Eureka: Right as Raynes (2006) Season 1, Episode 8

Fantastic episode

[9/10 · 7 January 2023]

This episode is absolutely fantastic. There is a lot of great character work throughout. It's one of the few times we see Stark actually have a character, and where he has interactions with Carter that aren't just "I hate you."

The episode features one of the best plot twists in season 1. It is a double twist. One for the characters, and then the camera pans to give another for the audience.

The episode features some great growth between characters, especially Carter and Stark, that unfortunately is gone by the next one. After this, they're back to "I hate you, you hate me." It's a shame they couldn't keep that up.

Eureka: Blink (2006) Season 1, Episode 7

An idiot A plot and a cringe B plot

[2/10 · 7 January 2023]

If there's two things I hate about a TV show, it's cringe and idiot plots. This lovely episode has both!

The A plot is just one big idiot plot. Something that happens a lot in Eureka is that for some reason, everyone forgets that they live in the town of the weird and the geniuses, and can't imagine that something out of the ordinary would happen.

There's a death that occurs because someone was running really fast and hit a car. I'm going to ignore that the speeds they're running are way too slow to make them invisible, and instead focus on how nobody believes Sheriff Carter when he suggests this, until they see it with their own eyes. It's not compelling that he's right and everyone else is wrong, because it makes no sense why they wouldn't at least entertain the idea.

The B plot is Carter wants to start a baseball team. And the town makes fun of him, because he stuttered through suggesting it when put on the spot in the town's virtual meeting. It's just cringe, and cringe isn't fun.

If the episode would have focused more on the speedster aspect instead of on Carter trying to convince everyone to listen to him, it might have been an interesting episode. Evil Flash is a lot more fun.

Eureka: Dr. Nobel (2006) Season 1, Episode 6

Another episode that falls apart at the end

[5/10 · 7 January 2023]

I'm starting to think that the writers of Eureka were under a time crunch and never had time to finish an episode, so they just threw something on the page last-minute to wrap everything up. This episode is a prime example.

There is a lot of good in this episode. A lot of good. This is one of the few episodes with actually entertaining banter between Carter and Stark, as most of their banter is just "I hate him." The old folks getting involved because of some booby traps they set 50 years ago makes for a fun episode. The show leans heavily onto the 60s theme, with callbacks to the nuclear arms race AND the moon landing.

However, when you watch the finale, remember two things: 1) There were silos all over town.

2) Not even a nuclear bomb hitting the town could have stopped this weapon from hitting its targets and starting a chain reaction that could destroy the world.

Keep those in mind, and you'll see what I mean about the writers writing themselves into a corner and just phoning it in for the solution.

Eureka: Invincible (2006) Season 1, Episode 5

Chalk full of cliches

[4/10 · 7 January 2023]

The episode starts off very well. We get a scientist that's got really bad OCD, who supposedly has a big day. The character setup is absolutely great.

However, the episode quickly falls off the rails. For one, the "big day" involved performing a relatively routine experiment. It was only a big day because of the accident that occurs to kick off the episode. He would have had no way of knowing this until after the accident.

However, the accident gives him super powers! At first, he seems to be invincible (as the title suggests). For a time, this boosts his confidence. Later we learn the true source and nature of his powers, and this is where we just delve into cliches.

This is an example of a plot twist that actually makes the story worse. Had the writers continued the character as an invincible man who is coming to grips with his own immortality, it could have been a truly fascinating episode. Instead, it ended with a series of eye-rolls.

Eureka: Alienated (2006) Season 1, Episode 4

A very strong episode

[9/10 · 7 January 2023]

I've been harsh on some of the other episodes because the writers try too hard and don't edit themselves well, and you end up with mismatched plots trying to be braided together. This episode is not that.

This episode starts off with a senator coming to assess Global Dynamics to see if it's worth continuing to fund. However, things are thrown awry when a group of side characters watch a movie about aliens, and then one of them is abducted by aliens!

For the most part, the twists in this episode work. They help drive the plot (unlike in Episode 1, where the identity of the fugitive did nothing for the plot than if we knew her identity from the start). They are clever enough, but without feeling like they come too far out of left field.

However, if you remember how the episode started, then the explanation you get at the end doesn't make a whole lot of sense. The crop circles seemed important at the start, but were a dropped thread. It's also very dicey how the group of moviegoers got hit with the bad rays, and there's no reason why Carter shouldn't have been autopsied at the end.

Overall, a very strong episode.

Eureka: Before I Forget (2006) Season 1, Episode 3

Great premise and build-up, horrible B plot and 3rd act

[6/10 · 7 January 2023]

There's a theme I've noticed with the show Eureka. There are some good high-concept sci-fi ideas, like what if someone could manipulate memory? And those ideas are done well, except for a B-plot that is horribly written, and eventually a 3rd act that ruins the setup.

In the case of this episode, we have the situation I described above - a man who is capable of messing with people's memory. This man has the girl of his dreams, a fancy car, and is seen as a hero in Global Dynamics, and it's very clear to the viewer he did not legitimately earn all of these accolades.

The problem starts with the B plot. The B plot centers on a character we've never met before, but who holds extreme importance to a main character. However, because the audience has no connection to this newcomer, we don't feel the same way the characters do.

These two had a history, and it's quickly made clear that the reason their history didn't live up to its potential is because it was stolen from them. But it doesn't really make sense, unless the bad guy was the clingiest 3rd wheel in history.

If the writers did not try too hard to be "good writers" and tie everything in the episode into a nice little bow, they might have had a great episode. Unfortunately, they did try too hard, and this is what we got.

Eureka: Many Happy Returns (2006) Season 1, Episode 2

Too much going on

[4/10 · 7 January 2023]

This episode feels like the writers were trying too hard, and they needed to edit themselves a bit to have the episode really pay off.

There are two scientific mysteries in this episode. The genres don't really mix, except that the stories eventually come together in the conclusion. It would have been better if only one of these stories were used, or if the two were spread out over separate episodes.

Additionally, we get introduced to the character of Nathan Stark, the head of Global Dynamics. His character is one of the least fun characters I've seen in television. He instantly hates Sheriff Carter. We only ever see this because of exposition. We never really see why he hates Carter. They don't have fun banter like most TV characters that hate each other. He mostly just exists to drag out the screen time of episodes by making Carter jump through hoops.

This episode could have been better if it were edited or split into two. The character of Stark could have been made more fun.

Eureka: Pilot (2006) Season 1, Episode 1

An unpolished start, as most pilots are

[8/10 · 7 January 2023]

Of all of the pilot episodes of all of the TV shows in the world, this is definitely one of them. It introduces us to most of the characters that we'll know at least for season 1, and it does a mostly good job of it.

The first main issue I have with the episode is that one of the first scenes involves the US Marshall and his passenger seeing themselves in a similar car driving the other way. That scene is never paid off.

Additionally, it is later revealed that the Marshall and his passenger have a history that goes beyond bounty hunter and fugitive. It is a plot twist that both could be spotted a mile away, and one that really doesn't make the episode better by hiding their history together.

Overall, a decent episode to start a fun show.

Community: Advanced Dungeons & Dragons (2011) Season 2, Episode 14

This should never have been removed from streaming services

[10/10 · 29 December 2022]

This is an incredible episode. Unfortunately, you can't watch it if you're following the show on streaming services like Hulu or Netflix. The episode was removed because it features a character in blackface. The character is known to be racist, and is immediately called out on this being racist.

At what point is censorship too much? Do we remove the movies Blazing Saddles and Django Unchained because the bad guys say the N word? Do we get rid of all villains because what they do is evil?

The episode is funny and imaginative, while tackling major issues such as bullying and suicide. Oh, and racism, which is ironically what it gets cancelled for.