Why did I wait so long to watch Shang Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings? Am I the only one who felt that out of all the Marvel movies, Shang-Chi was the one that was least advertised? I have started to fall behind in watching Marvel content, as I still haven’t seen Black Widow or Hawkeye on Disney+. I’m hoping to get caught up shortly before I’m accidentally spoiled. I watched Shang Chi, and this film rocked.

Shaun aka. Shang-Chi (played by Simu Lee) is a valet in San Francisco alongside his friend, Katy (played by Awkwafina). During the bus ride to work, Shaun is attacked and fights in expert hand-to-hand combat, shocking Katy. Shaun reveals to Katy his real name, how his dad is evil, and his sister is someone he needs to protect. Throughout the film, Shang-Chi finds out more about his family and discovers a plane he knew nothing about.

One of my favorite action sequences is at the beginning, where Shang-Chi is fighting on the San Francisco bus. The bus served as a perfect backdrop as Katy drove through hilly intersections. Speaking of Katy, Awkwafina plays her perfectly. Katy is the getaway driver and provides the one-liners throughout the film. The best one-liner is after she hears about Shang-Chi’s identity, she says, “You changed your name from Shang to Shaun? No wonder your father found you.” Besides both Simu Lee and Awkwafina, this film features a ton of talent, including Michelle Yeoh, Tony Leung, and Meng’er Zhang. I have been a big fan of Michelle Yeoh ever since Tomorrow Never Dies, Yeoh abolishing the Bond girl stereotype.

One thing that surprised me about Shang-Chi was the nods to past Marvel films. I can’t say anything more without spoiling the film, but there was one tie-in to a previous Marvel film that completely changes that Marvel film for me. While Shang-Chi has been out for months, I don’t want to be the one to accidentally spoil a film for someone.

I’m glad I finally got around to watching Shang-Chi, and I wish I had been able to see it in theaters. I hope to see Shang-Chi, Katy, and Xu Xialing (Meng’er Zhang) in future Marvel films. I checked the Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness cast list, and I didn’t see Simu Lee listed, so I hope I’m wrong. Shang-Chi can be streamed on Disney+

I remember a former friend in high school who would sell her mom’s OxyContin pills. That was probably the first time I heard Oxy referenced. OxyContin has a turbulent history, especially seen in John Oliver’s Last Week Tonight episode on Opioids. I discovered Dopesick while browsing through Hulu, and while the series is harrowing, it’s well worth watching.

Dopesick is based on a non-fiction book written by Beth Macy titled Dopesick: Dealers, Doctors and the Drug Company that Addicted America. Dr. Samuel Finnix (played by Michael Keaton) is a doctor in the rural areas of Virginia. Finnix is targeted by Purdue Pharma sales rep, Billy Cutler (played by Will Poulter), who tells Finnix that OxyContin can help his patients who suffer injuries while working in the mines. Finnix is persuaded based on the fact that “less than 1% of users on OxyContin get addicted” even though OxyContin is an opioid. This is further from the truth as both Finnix and another patient, Betsy Mallum (played by Kaitlyn Dever), are addicted to Oxy. Besides following Finnix and his rural town, the DEA is investigating Purdue Pharma, along with the lawsuit about how Purdue Pharma blatantly lied about OxyContin to make money.

I hope Kaitlyn Dever wins an award because her story was the most heartbreaking. She tells her parents she’s a lesbian, and her father tells her to leave. It’s sad because it’s clear Betsy is trying to get off Oxy; however, Oxy and opioid use alter brain chemistry, so Betsy struggles to remain clean. Michael Keaton also did a great job, along with Will Poulter, who wants to succeed under the shadow of his successful parents. The acting in this was heavy.

Dopesick also highlights Purdue Pharma and how evil they are. Most pharmaceutical companies are iffy at best, but Purdue Pharma sucks. It’s clear that the Sackler family knew about their drug, but they didn’t care. If that didn’t piss me off, what’s worse is Purdue Pharma blaming addicts for getting addicted and not the drug itself. Purdue Pharma is the worst, and it sounds like the Sacklers won’t be penalized for the damage they have done.

One thing Dopesick doesn’t touch on is where Oxy is at now. While OxyContin caused a majority of overdose deaths, it’s now cheaper Opioids like Heroin or Fentanyl that are keeping the Opioid crisis alive today. Heroin and Fentanyl are cheaper than OxyContin, so they’re often at the heart of overdose deaths. I felt Dopesick could have touched on this more.

I highly recommend watching Dopesick, but it’s a dark show. I hope Dopesick wins an award or two because it highlights the reality of living in rural America and how one company destroyed and keeps destroying small communities.

My husband commented the other day about how the only thing I watch now is Critical Role. He’s right. I haven’t found a TV show that has captured my interest. I tried watching True Detective on HBO Max, but I quit watching halfway through. With Critical Role, I’m watching campaign #1 and campaign #3 at the same time, which takes up most of my time. One standout character from campaign #3 is Laudna, played by Marisha Ray. Laudna’s one of my favorite characters from this campaign, and I wanted to share why.

Laudna is a witch who seems like a sweetheart deep down. She’s close to Imogen (played by Laura Bailey), and it seems like Laudna is Imogen’s confidant. When Marisha described her look, it reminded me of Enchantress from the 2016 Suicide Squad movie, except less smoky. Laudna is dressed in red, and her gray, ashy skin seems pale and sickly. She’s a Warlock Sorcerer interested in death and decay. I like the creepy aesthetic of Laudna, as I think it hasn’t been explored in any of the characters from Critical Role thus far. (As a side note, I haven’t watched campaign #2 yet, so there might be characters similar to Laudna that I haven’t been exposed to.)

I like how Laudna has links back to the previous campaigns for Critical Role. Laudna is from Whitestone, which is Percy’s hometown from Vox Machina. Laudna mentions how when she was young, the DeRolo family was killed, and the Briarwoods took over. This was a big arc in Vox Machina. I’m curious as to how Laudna leans. Was she involved in the Briarwood rebellion? Was she associated with the Briarwoods? I’m intrigued as to what Laudna’s true origin story will be.

I’m happy for Marisha, as it seems like Laudna has become a fan favorite from the beginning. Marisha has been roleplaying characters from both of their campaigns. Keyleth, Marisha’s character from Campaign #1, received a lot of hatred based on the decisions Keyleth would make. Keyleth’s persona is that she’s inexperienced and a bit immature, which didn’t resonate with some fans of Critical Role. Based on watching campaign #3 so far, it seems like Marisha is genuinely having fun and enjoying playing Laudna. The fans also enjoy Laudna, and some of the fan art that’s been shown on Twitter is so good.

It’s been a blast to watch a Critical Role campaign live. I came into Critical Role late, so I have been playing catch-up. While the episodes air on Thursdays, I wait till Monday to watch because I can’t stay up that late on Thursday nights to watch the full episode. I’m excited to see how campaign #3 plays out and how Laudna plays a role in the group.

No Time to Die was one of the movies I was most looking forward to. With the pandemic, the release of No Time to Die was pushed back until finally, it was released this year. The release of No Time to Die is a big deal, as this is Daniel Craig’s last Bond film. It’s a much easier transition for the next Bond actor if the previous film ends on a high note. I enjoyed No Time to Die as I thought it took the franchise in a different direction and explored Bond in a way that the other films have not.

James Bond (Daniel Craig) is on vacation with Madeleine Swann (played by Lea Seydoux). As James visits Vesper’s grave, he’s attacked by Spectre. As he and Madeleine flee, he is under the impression that Madeleine betrayed him. As such, James leaves her. Five years later, James is retired. He is approached by Felix Leiter (played by Jeffrey Wright), who wants his help to find an MI6 scientist who helped create a biological weapon. James is swayed into helping and ends up reconnecting with Madeleine under extreme circumstances.

One major highlight of the film is the appearance of Paloma (played by Ana de Armas). She’s in the movie for a short time, and I think her appearance is important. The Bond films are notorious for killing women in violent ways, especially once these women sleep with him. With Paloma, she’s introduced and helps James, and once her role is done, she is on her way. She’s still alive and doesn’t suffer. This was something I loved. It also leaves the door open for Paloma to come back in another film with a different James Bond.

Besides the women, the Bond films are known for classic villains. In No Time to Die, the villain Safin (played by Rami Malek) was seeking revenge against Spectre for the murder of his family. When I heard about Rami Malek’s casting in this film, I was excited. There are certain types of Bond villains. Some villains pose a physical threat to Bond. An example would be Jaws, although he may be considered a henchman, not a villain. Some villains are a psychological threat to Bond. I think of Raoul Silva from Skyfall to fit this category. I would put Safin in this category as well.

The main critique I had of this film was the run time. No Time To Die is 163 minutes or 2 hours and 43 minutes. I find it difficult to keep my attention if a movie is longer than 2 1/2 hours. While watching No Time to Die, it didn’t feel long. However, I think this could have been made into a 2 1/2 hour movie.

No Time to Die was an entertaining and fitting end to what Daniel Craig brought to the role. I will miss Daniel Craig, as I think he took James Bond in a different direction than the other actors did. One of the things I enjoy about the Bond franchise is each actor’s take on the character. It makes me excited for the future Bond films and to see who is willing to take up the mantle of Bond, especially because they will have big shoes to fill.

If you’re curious, I did include a couple of paragraphs summarizing some major spoilers from No Time to Die. Feel free to read at your own risk.

SPOILERS DOWN BELOW

I can’t write a review about No Time to Die without revealing some spoilers. The biggest spoiler was James’ dying in the end. James is trapped in Safin’s lair as he doesn’t have time to escape the island before the missile strike happens. Additionally, Safin gave James the nanobots specifically to kill Madeleine and their daughter, Mathilde. I thought this was a shocking yet fitting end to Daniel Craig’s tenure as the character. He lost his first love, Vesper, and now he dies saving his second love, Madeleine. I know some fans were disappointed by his death, but I figure in the next film, James Bond will be cast as the new 007 to take over anyway.

I loved how James ended up having a daughter. The character of James Bond is depressing in the sense that his parents were killed, and his entire focus is on his job. Daniel Craig brought some humanity back into the character, and while James is flawed, he’s grown so much as a person throughout the films.

I go through phases when I listen to podcasts. Sometimes, I listen to podcasts daily, or I go months without listening to a single episode. I’m in a phase where I haven’t been listening to podcasts as frequently as I used to. When I drove home from Kansas City, I found myself getting bored by listening to the same playlist. Instead of listening to music, I decided to get caught up on one of the most entertaining role-playing podcasts, Ain’t Slayed Nobody. Ain’t Slayed Nobody kept me on the edge of my seat while I drove through Iowa, which is quite the achievement. I actually got to the point in my drive where I didn’t want to get home because of this podcast.

Ain’t Slayed Nobody is a Call of Cthulhu podcast. Ain’t Slayed Nobody takes place in the Wild West in the 1800s. There are five characters within this game: Sheriff Ellie Bishop (played by Alex McDaniel), Outlaw Lance Kilkenny (played by Jay Arnold), Priest Father Flint Westwater (played by Brandon Wainerdi), Miner Jeremiah Fensworth (played by Wes Davis), and Nomadic Drifter Johnny Rhodes (played by Chuck Lawrence). The centered story arc is solving the murder of Ellie’s father. As the investigation continues, the group stumbles upon several bizarre incidents that test their sanity.

Ain’t Slayed Nobody does a brilliant job at storytelling. Immediately after listening to the first episode, I was hooked. The episodes often end on cliffhangers, and I’m left waiting for the next episode to air. As I listen to each episode, I feel like I’m in the Wild West with the characters as they learn more about each other. Eventually, Ellie does realize what happened to her father, which leads to a shocking twist I didn’t see coming.

With the characters, it’s tough for me to pick a favorite. Jay’s Irish accent attached to Lance is so well done. Jeremiah is another fan favorite with his one-liners, including “I’m going to turn his femur into mist”. Wes attaches an accent to Jeremiah as well, which helps solidify his character. I’m listening to the season finale of Ain’t Slayed Nobody, and it’s clear there are major character deaths. Out of all the roleplaying podcasts I have listened to, Ain’t Slayed Nobody feels like there are actual stakes. These characters could become insane, die a painful death, or have another horrific event happen to them.

Listening to a role-playing podcast, the keeper or the dungeon master can make or break a podcast. For Aint Slayed Nobody, cuppycup is the keeper, and he does a great job narrating the podcast. He doesn’t talk too quickly, so I never felt unable to follow the story.

Ain’t Slayed Nobody made driving through Iowa fun, which is not something I thought I would say. The last episode in the first arc is releasing on Tuesday, August 31st, and I have never been more excited for a podcast episode to air.

In one of my recent posts, I wrote about having a free weekend and being able to unwind. Over the weekend, I devoted some time to watching whatever I wanted on Netflix. One documentary I had my eye on for a while was Pray Away, a documentary detailing the rise of conversion therapy and why it’s so psychologically damaging. For those who are unfamiliar, conversion therapy is a form of “therapy” (I put therapy in quotes because I wouldn’t call this therapy) surrounding the idea that someone’s gender identity or sexual orientation can be cured and converted back into being straight. Pray Away was a heartbreaking documentary, but one I would highly recommend watching.

Pray Away interweaves the stories of survivors of conversion therapy along with several prominent conversion therapy activists. As the history of conversion therapy unfolds, it seems that what was being sold to the public was completely false. John Paulk was a major voice in conversion therapy as he was a former gay man who was now married to a woman. His wife, Anne, also went through conversion therapy, and that’s how John and Anne met. John mentions in the documentary that he “ached to be loved by a man”. Hearing him tell his story about how he was selling something he didn’t believe in made me feel for him. Today, John has divorced his wife and is now openly gay.

Another story that the documentary focused on was Julie Rodgers. Julie came out to her family at a young age and was taken to conversion therapy. She was there for many years and was encouraged to speak at various religious conferences. During conversion therapy, she was coerced into telling a deeply personal story in front of many people. Julie eventually was able to get out and has just married her lovely wife. This story showed clips of her wedding and how she was able to get married in a church. I will admit, I sometimes have a negative bias towards religion; however, seeing Julie reclaim her religion for herself was so endearing to me.

I couldn’t imagine what it must be like to not be able to love the person you’re meant to be with. As I spent time writing my vows this week, it made me think back to the lives shown in Pray Away. While many who survived conversion therapy went on to live long and authentic lives, so many didn’t because of the psychological damage of conversion therapy. Suicide was prevalent amongst conversion therapy, and I’m glad to see strides being taken to ban this altogether.

Pray Away was a well-made, engaging, and thoughtful documentary. This documentary did take an emotional toll, so I would only recommend it if you’re in the mood for something a bit more emotional. Pray Away can be watched on Netflix.

The last movie I saw in theaters before the pandemic was Birds of Prey. It seems fitting that the first movie I see in theaters is The Suicide Squad. My fiancé was all about watching this on HBO Max, but I missed going to a movie. I convinced him to see this last Friday and get out of the apartment. The Suicide Squad rocked, and it’s probably one of my favorite movies DC has ever made.

The Suicide Squad is a ragtag team of supervillains sent out on literal suicide missions for the US government. Led by Amanda Waller (played wonderfully by Viola Davis), Waller puts chips in their necks. Any deserter gets their head blown off, which is featured quite gruesomely in the first half of the film. The squad is sent to Corto Maltese to investigate Jotunheim, where something of alien origin is supposedly housed. Their mission is to find what’s there and destroy it, so Corto Maltese doesn’t have access to it.

This movie is downright ridiculous. Harley (played by Margot Robbie) is flirtatious and fun to see on screen. Robbie did a great job and seems to genuinely enjoy playing Harley. While Harley is the one to watch, it feels like each of the main Suicide Squad members gets their time to shine. Ratcatcher 2 (played by Daniela Melchior) is one to keep tabs on. While controlling rats may seem like a silly power, she plays an important role later in the film. I found myself drawn to her when I didn’t think I would be. If you think controlling rats is silly, wait until you see Polka Dot Man. Yes, James Gunn, the director of Guardians of the Galaxy, brought Polka Dot Man into this movie. Polka Dot Man (played by David Dastmalchian) serves a purpose here. There are several hilarious scenes with Polka Dot Man that I won’t spoil.

John Cena plays Peacemaker, who is obsessed with peace and will kill for it. Hypocritical much? Rick Flagg (played by Joel Kinnaman) has a bigger role in this film than in Suicide Squad. He works as the leader and helps bring the team together to rely on each other, so they can all survive. As a fan of the Harley Quinn animated series, I was elated to see King Shark. King Shark is the MVP of this movie. He tears through enemies and gets to feast on flesh as he does so.

James Gunn does a marvelous job at balancing all these characters. Several story lines are going on simultaneously until everything converges at Jotunheim. This easily could have been a mess, but Gunn adds in various hints to keep the watcher aware of where everyone is. There’s jumping around at certain times, but it doesn’t feel out of place. The Suicide Squad can be a lot to handle, and James Gunn was the perfect director to make this film.

Without spoiling, there’s a certain character death that completely shocked me. I was fully expecting this to be a joke, and the character would get up and walk around, but no. This character was DEAD. This threw me for a loop.

Both my fiancé and I were blown away by how good this film is. As many know, DC’s films are a hit or a miss. There’s no in-between. I’m happy to say that this is worth watching. I’m excited to re-watch this on HBO Max. Let me know in the comments who your favorite character is from The Suicide Squad.