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Reviews
Catherine the Great (2019)
Not Particularly 'Great'
I postponed watching this for two years after seeing the mediocre reviews on it when it first came out. Well, after deciding to give it a watch, I can say that the reviews..... are right. As many have pointed out, this series had so much going for it. It had Helen Mirren as the lead, it had the production capacity of HBO, which has already produced several fantastic historical miniseries (including my favorite show of all time, Band of Brothers), and had the chance to explore a relatively unknown piece of history to most people, with a powerful, FEMALE, figure at its center. So what did this show do with all this potential? They made it into a historical SOAP OPERA that was more focused on Catherine's love interests rather than her achievements, both as a ruler and as a WOMAN in the 18th century.
If, like me, you go into this not knowing a whole lot about Catherine the Great, then all you'll have learned by the end of the show is that she was Empress of Russia, she fought two wars against the Ottomans, and she had a lot of sexual relationships, that's it. What you won't know is that she also had to deal with wars against Persia, Sweden, and Poland, as well as Pugachev's Rebellion. This latter fact is depicted in the show, but it has a screen time of less than 15 minutes spread over the course of one episode, and only serves as a plot device to make Catherine more enamored with her main lover, Potemkin. Besides wars, Catherine also made significant advances in the arts and sciences, reorganized the government, reformed the economy, and overall was a very enlightened monarch. Her major goal was to make Russia a recognized power in Europe, which she succeeded in doing. Yet all of these are never mentioned throughout the 4 episode runtime. I had to look this all up on my own once I was finished watching in order to gain more knowledge on her.
Speaking about Catherine in the show, I think Helen Mirren did a good job with what she was given. I will agree though that having her depict a woman 40 years younger than she is herself, at least in the beginning of the show, was not a good idea. This meant that Catherine's promiscuity couldn't quite be shown well, as it's a bit difficult to pull of a steamy scene with a grandmother. Catherine's relationship with Potemkin is also severely overplayed, and while I do think both actors did a good jump, having this be the main focus of the show made it rather dull. It also proved to be a bit detrimental as Catherine always becomes upset when Lover-boy heads off to fight the wars, and all she does is mope and write letters to him about how much she misses him and wants him to return. They make the Empress of Russia unable to function without her man there to give her strength and comfort. So much for a powerful female figure.
The history being told is also a major problem. I understand historical shows and films can't show every single detail in history, as it would be too much, and so certain elements have to be omitted for the sake of plot. However, there is no comprehension of time within this show; it flies by. The first episode starts at the beginning of Catherine's reign in 1762, but by the end they are already talking about going to war with the Turks, which is in 1768, and the time it took to get there only feels like a few days. Unless you know you're history, or look up the events as they are mentioned, you'll have no idea what time they are supposed to be in and how much of it has passed. It is also clear that the writers had little to no care for the history they were showing, and one of these biggest aspects for me is actually quite a minor detail overall. There are several German diplomats and aristocrats that appear throughout the show, and they are all referred to as coming from Germany. However, Germany wasn't a name on a map until the mid-1870's, 80 years after Catherine died. So it seems to me that the reasoning for this, rather than saying they are from one of the German speaking states such as Prussia or Wurttemberg, is because the writers instead assume the audience is dumb and won't know what those places are and so makes it easy by simply saying they are from Germany. While this may be simpler for those unfamiliar with German history, for those who do, it's a slap in the face. This wasn't the only aspect of the show that irked me, but it was the one that made me realize the lack of effort being put in to showcase the history.
If there is one positive thing I can say about this show, it's the sets, costumes, and colors. All are amazing to look at, and it's why I love watching shows that depict this period in history.
Overall, while my comments have been very negative, Catherine the Great is NOT a show I can say I don't recommend. It is watchable, just not as a biography. If you're into Soap Operas and would like to see one in a historical setting, then by all means give this a look. However, if you're looking for an insight into the life and reign of one of Russia's greatest monarchs, you'll probably get more enjoyment from reading her Wikipedia article instead.
The Terror: All the Demons Are Still in Hell (2019)
Being Patient
I love the idea of a historical horror anthology series. I really like the premise of this season; an evil spirit haunting the community of a Japanese Internment Camp. But I don't find much to like in our main character Chester and would like The Terror to start terrorizing a bit more. But I'm patient. I'm sure these first few episodes are set up for something bigger to come. That's how the first season went and in the end I enjoyed it very much. So here's to hoping the season begins to pick up from here and ends up being a great bit of television, because I really want this show to get good enough ratings to continue on and see what they come up with for future seasons.
Game of Thrones: The Last of the Starks (2019)
Waste of 80 minutes
It's upsetting to see such a quality show fall into the trap of thinking it's the greatest ever and therefore the writers know that no matter what they write, people will watch. The party scene was slow, not seeing Arya and Sansa's reactions to Jon's news was infuriating (I get we want to move on, by I hate when shows and films do that!), the dragon's death, while a surprise, didn't really have the emotional impact it could have, and Messandei being executed felt so lack luster. I feel the writers are moving everything quickly because they just want to get to the "good bits". We really hope that's the case, though I fear that these next two episodes are screwed ratings-wise as , with this episode, many won't even bother giving it a shot and just give it a low rating without looking back. Had things been different in the last episode, maybe this one wouldn't have fared so poorly, but we got what we got and now all we can do is pray the end isn't as bad as we're now thinking.
Gojira (1954)
You Just Can't Beat Him!
What more can you ask for, hmm? I saw trailers for Godzilla movies in a special features section of some movie but I can't remember which. Needless to say, what I saw introduced me to the greatest monster of them all, and it was perfect that the first movie I got to see was this one. Of course it's just a guy in a rubber suit, but the low camera angles and the slowed down motion make the thought disappear. The fact that the movie is in black and white along with the music adds a more ominous feeling to the film. The movie has a very serious tone about nuclear weapons, and Godzilla himself is treated as a natural disaster. This is definitely one of my favorite movies in the franchise and it goes for just about everyone else who is a fan. This is a perfect introduction to the series, one that anyone who is looking to get started on should watched. Yes, Godzilla doesn't fight any other monsters in this one, but it doesn't take away what this film is about. A giant fire breathing monster that destroys everything in his path and is completely impervious to all human weapons, it just doesn't get any better. Not my favorite, but defiantly on the top ten list, and one that should not under any circumstances be passed up. Plus it makes for a pretty good film to watch on Halloween. You just can't beat him!
Game of Thrones: Hardhome (2015)
They're Gonna Need a Bigger Wall
*Spoilers* Holy Crap! I saw the rating for the episode before I watched it and was astounded as to how high it was rated with the amount of people who had already rated it, so I was very much looking forward to it. Boy was I not disappointed. This episode started off a bit slow with Arya and Cersei, but I did enjoy the scenes with Tyrion and Daenerys. We can probably expect more things to come with Jorah in the future trying to win back Daenery's heart. I also thought the scene with Sansa and Theon also had a nice impact, now that Sansa knows the truth. But the question is will she forgive him? But enough of that, obviously the biggest and most exciting part of the episode is when it turns into a Medieval version of the Walking Dead. Now we finally get to see what the White Walkers are truly capable of. We see Jon and the rest of the Knight's Watch who came with him fight side by side with the Wildlings where they finally realize who their true enemy is. The battle was incredible and had some of the best special effects of the entire show. I am very glad the giant was able to get away. Personally, I think the battle between the Wildlings and the Knight's Watch was better, but this is by far my second favorite episode in the show. I hope we can look forward to an equal episode next week if Game of Thrones continues it's tradition of saving the best episode of the season for the ninth one. Needless to say, Jon's going to have quite a story to tell when he gets back, and they're gonna need a bigger Wall.