I have been spending more of my time reading other blogs than simply writing for my own. I find I can always come across a post that moves me in some way. This happened when I read a post written by John Siebelink titled “Why So Much Hate for the Star Wars Prequels”.  The prequels are flawed films, but underneath there are great elements of storytelling within the movies. I personally grew up with the prequels as I remember the release of The Phantom Menace. I had so many of the action figures along with Qui-Gon’s Comlink with little key cards which activated the voices of the characters. I wanted to share a few of my favorite moments from the prequels because I’m sure I’m not the only one who has fond memories of watching these movies.

Darth Maul

As a kid, I thought Darth Maul was one of the best villains I had ever seen on a movie screen. I loved the double-bladed lightsaber. Watching The Phantom Menace again I realize one huge flaw in the movie was not utilizing Darth Maul. It would have been neat if Obi-Wan in the Revenge of the Sith would have had an epic lightsaber battle to finally avenge Qui-Gon’s death. The fact that Maul appears in Solo: A Star Wars Story has me hyped for the future of other Star Wars films.

The Flaws of the Jedi

The Jedi are seen as these tremendous leaders whose ultimate goal is world peace however, they’re incredibly flawed in their logic. Not allowing their disciples to love is what led Anakin astray. He only wanted to save Padme which is how the Emperor was finally able to turn Anakin into his personal killing machine. If the Jedi were able to see how love can really strengthen someone’s resolve maybe Anakin could have still been a Jedi.

Also when Mace Windu has Emperor Palpatine pinned down and is planning on killing him, Anakin sees the hypocrisy of the Jedi’s teachings. Jedi claim they’re “good” and are on the “light side of the force” yet Mace Windu is willing to make an exception for killing Palpatine. As a kid I always thought the Jedi were the “good guys”, but after re-watching the prequels when I was older, I realized how the Jedi are flawed heroes.

Battle of Geonosis in Attack of the Clones

Another one of my favorite sequences in the prequels is the arena battle sequence in Attack of the Clones. When Obi-Wan, Anakin, and Padme are tied to the poles, Padme is the first one to escape. Watching this as a kid, I saw Natalie Portman hold her own against the two main male characters in the story. She knows how to use a blaster and doesn’t need Anakin’s help to save her. Padme (even though her character arc is poorly written) was still one of the first female science fiction characters I was exposed to.

Battle on Mustafar in Revenge of the Sith

I will say this fight sequence between Anakin & Obi-Wan is hands down one of the best lightsaber duels in the prequels. I still cannot believe Obi-Wan lets Anakin burn to death because again isn’t he a Jedi who represents the good in the force, but no let’s leave your former student to burn alive. I also get chills as I watch this scene with the score that goes along with it. The music amps up the battle between these former Jedi.

The prequels are flawed films with some redeeming scenes in them. Part of my childhood was spent watching these movies so I can’t fully hate them like other Star Wars fans can. I’m interested to see what your favorite prequel scenes are.

Me and the boyfriend have made regular plans to watch a series together. After just coming off of Parks and Recreation, it was my turn to pick the next show to watch. I had seen Mindhunter on Netflix and it attracted my interest. DePepi wrote about Mindhunter on her blog and described it as “witty, harsh, and intriguing”. The boyfriend was all for watching this show. By the end, he was disappointed as there was only one season. Mindhunter has been picked up for season #2 and I know me and the boyfriend will be anxiously awaiting its release date.

SPOILERS AHEAD OF COURSE 😀

Mindhunter gets its inspiration from a book written by FBI agent John E. Douglas. Douglas has interviewed Charles Manson, John Wayne Gacy, Richard Speck, and more psychotic individuals. Thomas Harris based his character Jack Crawford off of John Douglas (the author who wrote the Hannibal book series). I haven’t personally read the book myself, but it might be a book I may be interested in.

Mindhunter takes place in the 70s when Charles Manson’s recent crimes shocked the United States. FBI Agent Holden Ford (played brilliantly by Jonathon Groff), admires from afar as to why the killers do what they do. He wants to understand these violent criminals to help prevent the crimes from happening in the first place. When he brings this idea of criminal profiling to his director, his director rebuffs him saying the FBI is only meant to solve the crimes when they happen. Holden is eventually paired with special agent Bill Tench (played by Holt McCallany) whose job is to reel Holden in before he does something he regrets.

The drama from the show stems from Holden Ford’s actions. In one such episode, he secures a confession from a man who rapes and kills a 12-year-old girl. As Holden interrogates him, he appeals to his mind by talking about how the 12-year-old looks older and how fresh her vagina is < not even joking this was how he secures this confession. His mode of questioning works, but at what cost. Holden is an FBI agent can he really talk this way while representing the federal government?

David Fincher is an executive producer on this show which probably explains why I enjoyed it so much. Fincher is a miraculous director and has directed some of my favorite movies (Se7en, Girl with the Dragon Tattoo adaptation, Gone Girl, and Fight Club). 

To be honest with you, this show starts off slow. Me and the boyfriend were three episodes in when we contemplated starting another show. Once you watch the episodes, they get more intriguing as Holden discovers more cases to get involved with. The season ends with a cliffhanger as Holden appears to be having an extreme panic attack after visiting with Ed Kemper and scenes showing the BTK killer in Kansas.

I encourage you to give Mindhunter a chance. It starts slow, but the pace picks up leaving me and the boyfriend wanting more to watch. If you have ever been a fan of Criminal Minds, think of this as a prequel to that show. Without the impact of Mindhunter, Criminal Minds wouldn’t have ever existed.

I find The Office both the British and American versions to be overrated. I know a couple of you reading this are already thinking, “How could you say that?!?!”. I have seen both versions and sure, there are some funny episodes, but I wasn’t a big fan like other people I know. When me and the boyfriend were debating on what to watch, he suggested Parks and Recreation. I told him because I disliked The Office, I didn’t think this show was for me. He persuaded me into watching the first season and I was hooked. I cannot believe I missed out on this show when it originally aired, but I finished season #7 a couple days ago and I wanted to sum up why I love this show so much.

Parks & Rec is filmed similarly to The Office but instead takes place in Pawnee, Indiana in the Parks & Recreation department of the local government. Leslie Knope, (played wonderfully by Amy Poehler) is an over-achiever who is passionate about having clean parks for her town. In the first season, she meets Ann Perkins (played by Rashida Jones) and they work with the local government to fill this big hole outside of Ann’s house. Ann’s fiance Andy Dwyer (played by Chris Pratt) fell into the hole and was seriously injured. This show tells their stories and how they get into a bunch of shenanigans.

What’s so endearing about the show is all the characters. Leslie is a feminist who believes women belong in the government. Ann Perkins makes Leslie more level-headed which helps her succeed. Ron Swanson (played by Nick Offerman) is a realist who believes the government shouldn’t be so involved in his affairs. Also, he enjoys breakfast food, bourbon, and living outdoors. Tom Haverford (played by Aziz Ansari) is a sophisticated wannabe socialite who helps Leslie live a little. Andy Dwyer is the lovable goof who’s kind of an idiot. April Ludgate is the person who you really identify with. She hates everyone initially but ends up coming around. Donna (played by Retta) is confident and emphasizes that you “treat yo self.” All of these characters help create the love for the show.

I can’t talk about Parks and Rec without including Leslie & Ben’s relationship. Ben Wyatt (played by Adam Scott) is Leslie’s husband and her other half. He’s introduced in season #2 and I don’t think I have ever “shipped” an on-screen couple more. He allows Leslie to achieve her dreams while also being successful in his own field. As an added bonus, Ben is a real geek. He comes up with his own board game series, makes a great calzone, and is from Minnesota. They are so perfect together.

I could write way more about how I love Parks & Rec, but my post has to end sometime. Me and the boyfriend have different TV tastes which comes in handy when he introduces me to a show I wouldn’t have normally watched. With that said, leave me a comment about why you adore Parks & Recreation.

One of the goals I set for March was to watch season #2 of Jessica Jones. Jessica Jones is my favorite “Defender” introduced thus far on Marvel’s Netflix series. The first season did a fantastic job wrestling with several difficult topics including PTSD stemming from sexual assault. Season #2 is phenomenal although, not all fans agree with me. I have heard the criticisms regarding this season, but I am going to offer my opinion as to why I enjoyed this season as much as Kilgrave’s season.

This season focuses heavily on Jessica’s past. Season #1 ignored how she got her powers instead focusing on how Kilgrave manipulated her. The beginning of season #2 shows Jessica drinking heavily, insulting Malcolm, and trying to survive in NYC. She is approached by a man in a yellow coat claiming to have “powers” who believes someone is trying to kill him. Jessica unsurprisingly blows him off. When he dies in a terrible accident, Jessica starts to investigate and discovers a connection with IGH. IGH should be familiar as it was hinted at with Officer Simpson at the end of season #1.

Besides Jessica’s powers, we really see her relationship with Trish becoming more strained along with why Jessica named her PI business Alias Investigations. Additionally, Jessica meets her mother who apparently didn’t die in the car accident. Her mother gained powers through illegal experiments performed at IGH. Unfortunately for Jessica’s mother, she cannot control the people she kills and the anger she exhibits. Ultimately, Trish kills her in the last episode due to all of the crimes she committed.

One of the biggest criticisms of this show is there really isn’t a “big bad villain”. Kilgrave led season #1 while season #2 centers around Jessica’s mother. Karl Malus could be considered a villain, but his intentions are good. However, I want to argue the reason why season #2 is as great as season #1 is because of character development. Malcolm has a bigger role this season besides just being a drug addict controlled by Kilgrave. He takes charge of his future and eventually sticks up for himself telling Jessica he’s done being mistreated by her. He has a heart and even though Trish completely uses him, he still wants to make sure she’s okay.

One last thing I want to mention is I adore Jessica’s relationship with Oscar and his son Vido. Especially the end scene where Jessica has dinner with the two of them and talks about her day. She isn’t in a good place mentally so instead of drinking her sorrows like her usual, she spends time with them.

Season #2 of Jessica Jones has a different tone from season #1, but I loved it.

If a new Marvel TV show is released on Netflix, I will watch it within the week.  Daredevil blew me away with the inner battle between Daredevil & Wilson Fisk. The Punisher was officially introduced in the second season of Daredevil and Jon Bernthal blew me away with his performance of the character. One scene in season #2 I always think back to is when the Punisher is at a pawn shop when the owner acknowledges to him he’s selling child pornography. The Punisher barely bats an eye as he walks back to the owner and seals his fate. This is realistic to The Punisher as a character because of how he uses violence to achieve justice. The Punisher season #1 is addicting, thrilling, and at times hard to watch.

The Punisher is probably the most violent graphic show Marvel has to offer. Frank is often severely beaten in some episodes along with a video being shown of a man being tortured. If violence is something that provokes you or prompts any memories you may have, I do not recommend watching this and instead quickly scrolling through Wikipedia for a summary of the show.

The Punisher begins with Frank Castle attempting to live a normal life. He’s contacted by a supercomputer hacker named Micro who believes there is a conspiracy involving the murder of Frank’s family. This first season details Frank’s struggle with PTSD in losing his family and also trying to move forward.

At first, I thought the first couple of episodes were a little bit slow. I did find by episode 3 or 4, I was more likely to watch the rest of the season. I also found 13 episodes seemed a little long. I would have been fine with 8 or 10 and I think it could have still effectively told the story.

I am so glad Karen Page is included in this first season. I like how Marvel turned her into a character that fights for the truth and she’s often seen defending the Punisher. My only wish is that she had a bigger role in the plot of the show.

I’m curious to know all of your thoughts on this first season. I’m interested in having the Punisher cross over into Daredevil or Jessica Jones because I think Jon Bernthal does a great job at accurately bringing the comic book character to life.

This is probably one of my favorite categories on my blog to write about. I love watching TV shows because once you watch a good show you become obsessed with it for weeks. A couple days ago I was browsing through my Netflix “list” and stumbled upon Riverdale and decided to give it a watch. I finished watching season #1 in two days. I wanted to type my final thoughts on this Archie Comics reboot.

I can’t say I have ever been a fan of the Archie comics. They just didn’t intrigue me and it seemed like a comic about two beautiful women fighting over one guy and I was just over that cliche. The TV show though… I want to go back and read the comics.

Let’s dive into the characters first if you are unfamiliar with the Archie comics. Archie Andrews (played by KJ Apa) is a conflicted teen who is on the football team. He finds solace in playing his guitar. Betty Cooper (played by Lili Reinhart) is the stereotypical girl next door, literally as she lives next door to Archie. Veronica Lodge (played by Camila Mendes) is the opposite of Betty as she’s sophisticated and edgy. Jughead (played by Cole Sprouse) is the social outcast of the group.

The TV show revolves around the mysterious disappearance of Jason Blossom who later is found shot to death in a river. All of the characters mentioned above have somehow been interwoven into solving Jason’s murder. Just when you think you have an idea of what’s going on, the show basically delivers a scene leaving you asking yourself what the heck did I watch? This is surprising since this seems like a creepy/eerie Gossip Girl show.

Usually, in my Bizarre Brunette Binges posts, I talk about spoilers, but I’m going to leave out all spoilers in this post. The next season of Riverdale airs on October 11th.

The joy of being an adult is driving home to & from work in rush-hour traffic. Listening to a podcast while I drive helps make traffic less stressful and allows me to get lost in the episode. Sometimes I learn something new or I get a new recommendation on a book to read. Plus I just cleaned the bathroom and the kitchen while listening to a podcast so I can be productive while hearing about Ixalan the new Magic The Gathering set.  I wanted to give you a couple podcast recommendations to get through rush hour traffic.

Panels & Pizza:

Panels & Pizza is hosted by Adam Vermillion a local Minnesotan comic book fan. He recruits local Midwest comic writers/illustrators on to his show to promote their work. This podcast is the reason I am able to support indie comics and become more of a comics fan. If you’re not from MN this podcast will introduce you to comics you didn’t know existed.

Once Upon a Crime

This podcast should be downloaded if you’re a true crime fanatic. Esther Ludlow is a fantastic storyteller as she describes the murderer, the suspects, and the towns in which horrific crimes took place. Sometimes it’s so detailed that I cannot even listen to this podcast in the dark because it freaks me out. I usually am listening to this podcast in daylight when the boyfriend is home in the apartment with me.

Dorky Diva’s Podcast

Savannah Kiefer is a Star Wars fan with a geeky sense of style. She writes her own blog which includes Star Wars fashion and does monthly episodes on her podcast.

Coffee With Kenobi:

Coffee with Kenobi is another podcast for Star Wars die-hard fans. What I like about Coffee with Kenobi is that it breaks down the Star Wars fandom into different themes. For example, I like the Comics with Kenobi series along with Lattes with Leia because of the female co-hosts. Also if you’re a Star Wars Rebels fan, there are episodes that discuss the Rebels season. It took me some time to get caught up with this podcast since the first episode debuted in 2014. This podcast will keep you busy for some time.

Magic the Amateuring

Magic the Amateuring is hosted by Megan and Maria and they talk about Magic the Gathering. It’s a great podcast for new players to turn to if they’re starting to play Magic. I like the two female co-hosts as they are energetic and passionate about the game. It’s helped rejuvenate my own Magic the Gathering fandom.

How We Roll

How We Roll is a D&D-based podcast with a couple guys from England and Ireland getting together with alcohol and Cthulhu. The DM creates an intricate story for the players and I enjoy hearing the players laugh when they epically fail a roll. It’s also a great podcast to learn the vocabulary of D&D if you have always wanted to play.

These couple of podcasts should keep you busy for a while. I am a podcast fanatic now and I can’t believe it took me so long to use the podcast app on my phone. What other podcasts are you enjoying right now?