Author Archives: Ellen Lloyd

Grade A, Choice Picks: Ellen’s Most Anticipated Movies of Summer 2015

Posted in Choice Picks, Movies by

Maybe you can’t tell from this blog, but I am a bit of an indoor kid, so I will be spending most of summer bingeing “crap” television (i.e. amazing television) and going to the movies.  Granted, the “official” summer movie season has already begun and at least three movies that would have made this list have already come out: Avengers: Age of Ultron (awesome), Pitch Perfect 2 (fun), and Mad Max: Fury Road (epic awesomeness).  But I’m getting the list out before June, which seems like the actual start of summer, so cut me some slack.

Honorable Mentions: Vacation (July 29), Magic Mike XXL (July 1), Dope (June 19), Mr. Holmes (July 17), Paper Towns (July 24), Minions (July 10), The Fantastic Four (August 7)

masterminds10. Masterminds (August 19) Not a lot out for this one yet, but a movie starring Zach Galifianakis and Kristen Wiig as bank robbers and Jason Sudeikis with a ‘stache?  That will at least guarantee a good time even if it ends up not being any good.

9. The Diary of a Teenage Girl (August 7) The trailer for this Sundance darling just dropped this week and it seems to be my brand of quirky and weird.  I am also a sucker for a good coming of age summer movie.  I am not going to even touch the skeevy Alexander Skarsgard, even if I may want to with some degree of shame.

8.  Spy (June 5) The track record of Paul Feig and Melissa McCarthy teaming up for a summer comedy is pretty stellar and I am quite excited to see a comedic Jason Statham and Jude Law.  The summer season is not a place for your broody period dramas.  Give me a lot big action sequences or a lot laughs and I’m happy.  I get both with this one.

n-MISSION-IMPOSSIBLE-ROGUE-NATION-large5707. Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation (July 31) Little bit about my family, my dad is a pilot and any time there is a plane in a movie, he is bound to be complaining about the inaccuracies.  Any time I see that trailer with Tom Cruise hanging off the side of that plane, I can hear my dad screaming in my head.  The M:I movies may be a bit inaccurate, but they are always a good time.

6. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (June 12) I recently went to an even where they were handing out promotional items for this movie.  I was quite pleased to be intrigued by the trailer for the movie that is plastered on my new towel and beach chair.  Another quirky coming of age story (see number 9).

5. Jurassic World (June 12) If you know me at all, it will come a surprise that I am putting Chris Pratt at number five, but even the glory of Chris Pratt leading a pack of velociraptors apparently couldn’t surpass my excitement for the top 4.

manfromuncle4. The Man from U.N.C.L.E. (August 14) Guy Ritchie movies tend to have a particular cool vibe that speaks to me and this one looks even more fun than most.  The movie looks good, but do you know what looks really good?  Henry Cavill.

3. Inside Out (June 19) Even better than Paul Feig and Melissa McCarthy’s track record is Pixar’s.  A Pixar movie fronted by Amy Poehler about a teen girl’s emotions is sure to be an Ellen-pleaser if maybe not a crowd-pleaser, but it will probably be a crowd-pleaser, too.

2.  Ant-Man (July 17) I feel like I can just leave it at “Paul Rudd in a Marvel movie”, but I’ll try to say a little more.  The movie may have a bit of a storied production process, but remember that at this same time last year everybody was referring to Guardians of the Galaxy as “that Marvel space movie”.

trainwreck-trailer-pic1. Trainwreck (July 17) Bit of a disclaimer: I recently binge watched all of Inside Amy Schumer, so I am on a bit of Amy Schumer kick.  The movie is also getting some good buzz from it’s SXSW premiere.  At this point in my life, Amy Schumer and Bill Hader in a romantic comedy is probably going to be number one in my book, so I just went ahead and put it at number one.

– Ellen

Fangirl Correspondence: A Letter to Whitney

Posted in Fangirl Coorespondence by

My Dearest, Darling, Lovely Whitney,

Words cannot express my exuberance upon the receipt of your letter. Your aptitude for the written word is quite unparalleled.  I think often of our time together with great fondness.

I imagine that this was swiftly followed by a viewing of some film featuring Sir Brendan Fraser.  As I remember, for you, his superior was never met back in those days.

I mean, how could it?

My time has been spent caring for a certain Mr. Steve Rogers.

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I’ll let you decide which Steve Rogers I am talking about?  I will give you a hint, though.  This Steve Rogers delights in waking me up in the morning to go potty and not for more, ahem, enjoyable pursuits.

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Most of this month has been spent getting through the season finale… season.  It has been exhausting.

Difficult life

Also, reading more stupid/wonderful romance novels than I would care to admit, but here is an accurate reenactment.

reading

You would think that amidst all this CRUCIAL reading and TV watching I could have maybe found time to keep writing, but…

I regret nothing Also, and this is of the utmost importance, I need to know when you are coming to visit me.  This will be an accurate reenactment:

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Think about and know that I miss you quite dearly.

Everlastingly yours,

Ellen

Run-On Sentence Review: Daredevil

Posted in Run-On Sentence Reviews, Sweet Streams, TV by

marvel-netflix-daredevil-trailer-860x442I spent my weekend watching all Netflix’s first collaboration with Marvel and maybe you did, too or maybe you have more of a life than I do and spent your weekend being social and getting outside, but I digress, as I usually do with these things, but if you haven’t checked out this new series I definitely think you should give this a watch because it completely redeems the character from his previous, lesser, portrayals and this is quite a departure for Marvel because it is grisly, dark, and layered, without ever having the DC and that is something I can get behind because if you like superheroes and/or Breaking Bad this just might be the show for you because it puts a troubled hero with some super powers (keen senses due to radiation, which is pretty par for the course in comic books, apparently) into the seedy underbelly of the crime world and it is fantastic with really great performances all around but especially by Charlie Cox as the titular masked vigilante and some of the most kick A fight sequences that I have seen and certainly that I have seen on TV (well, Netflix).

Verdict:  Only you can know if this could be up your alley, but if it even sort of sounds like it might, you need to check it out.

Fangirly Crush of the Week: Aziz Ansari

Posted in Crush of the Week by

azizListen, we have given a lot of love to some of the other Parks men on this site.  Specifically, Adam Scott and Chris Pratt, because why wouldn’t we?  But with the debut of Aziz’s new stand-up special on Netflix today, I thought it was time to spread the love because I have a lot of love in my heart for Aziz.  Much like Tom Haverford, he is smooth like chocolate.  I may not lust after Aziz the same way I do some of our other crushes of the week (looking at you, Chris), but I crush on Aziz in much the same way that I crush on puppies in that I think both are adorable and they make me laugh.  Granted, I laugh at puppies when they fall over or make funny noises and I more often laugh at Aziz when he is calling tortillas bean blankies or doing bits on getting concert tickets on Craigslist, but the love is still there.  Aziz is up there with former Crush of the Week, John Mulaney, for having my most quoted stand-up and I can never look at sheets, TNT dramas, or Kanye West the same way.

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Here’s to someday getting to see Tom Haverford’s sexy times ritual.   “I have a ritual and it starts on the couch. We sit down, clap my hands, lights dim, Boyz II Men fades in…”

– Ellen

Sweet Streams: Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt

Posted in Get with the Program, Sweet Streams, TV by

unbreakable_kimmy_schmidt_a_lNetflix released the first season of their new show Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt today, so of course, I have already watched the whole thing.  And I loved it.  That is going to be pretty much a guarantee if you attach Tina Fey to a new project.  Tina and fellow 30 Rock executive producer Robert Carlock bring us this new show about an unbreakable girl named Kimmy Schmidt (get it?) who moves to New York for a fresh start after being released from an underground bunker where she has been living for 15 years with her apocalypse cult sisters.  Did you follow that?

Admittedly, I wasn’t immediately sold on this show after the first episode, but much like 30 Rock and every other comedy, it really finds its groove as it moves along.  Ellie Kemper is utterly charming as the titular Kimmy, who is just rife with sunny optimism, 90’s pop culture knowledge, and a middle school naivete (she was kidnapped 15 years ago, remember?).  The rest of the cast gets plenty time to shine with Tituss Burgess as Titus Andromedon, Kimmy’s new roommate, Carol Kane as Lillian, their eccentric landlord, and Jane Krakowski as Jenna Maroney, I mean, Jacqueline Voorhees, Kimmy’s rich boss who hires her as a nanny.

The best praise I can give this show, though, is that it is very similar to 30 Rock in it’s pacing and humor with the sunny optimism of Parks and Recreation.  If you know me at all, you know that is high praise indeed.  The jokes are rapid fire, making rewatchability high, the guest stars are high caliber (I wouldn’t dare spoil some of them for you), the pop culture references are a plenty (the Olsen twins are actually the Olsen octuplets), and there are  moments so bizarre that they rival “Werewolf Bar Mitzvah” (VH3’s Joe Invisible Millionaire, anyone?).  Kimmy, who responds to someone calling her a bitch with “A female dog? The thing that makes puppies?”, has the same can-do spirit as Leslie Knope.  Also, at first glance she may be misjudged as weak given the whole cult thing, but really she is a strong, independent woman who doesn’t get taken down easily.  Also, if you like snappy theme songs that are based on fake viral videos, then this is the show for you.

To sum it all up, I’m already eager for season 2 (the only issue I have with the Netflix model of entire seasons at once) and I recommend that you join me in the wait.

–Ellen

Sweet Streams: Friends

Posted in Sweet Streams, TV by

friends-milkshakes-netflixHave you heard of this quaint little show?  It’s kind of under the radar, but I really think you should give it a shot.

Friends is the first show I remember actively watching. I’d tune in every week or, if that wasn’t possible, get my neighbor to record that week’s episode on an old VHS tape.  If you have ever read this blog or know me at all, then you know that this was the beginning of a beautiful friendship between TV and myself.  And as they say, you always remember your first.

Like I’m sure a lot of you, I have been taking advantage of Netflix’s recent addition of the show’s 10 seasons to binge my old fav and it really is like hanging out with an old friend. But only if that friend ended up being a lot more dirty than you remember them being, to the point of calling your mom and asking why she let you hang out with said friend, to which your mother may respond that you didn’t understand any of their dirty jokes anyway. However, I’m fairly certain it is this humor (that went over 8-year old Ellen’s head) that is causing me to enjoy it more this time around because I get the jokes!  And these friends are some dirty birdies!  Am I the only person who didn’t realize how much this show was about sex?  Why did I love it so much if I didn’t understand what was going on?  How I’d love to remember what I thought they were talking about when discussing things like erogenous zones.

Besides the flip phones, Rachel haircuts, and clothes that I tried to mimic in middle school, this show totally holds up.  Perhaps I am enjoying it more now because I am the same age as the gang circa season 3.  Give me a moment.  I have to stop and let that sink in, I mean, Ross had already been married.  Just the first marriage, but still.  Or maybe I am just enjoying the nostalgia factor, but either way I’m finding it very enjoyable.

So let Friends be there for you, like it’s been there before.

– Ellen

TV Obituaries: RIP Parks and Recreation

Posted in TV, TV Obituaries by

Parks and Recreation - Season 7Thank you all for being with me during this trying time.  Parks and Recreation left us peacefully two days ago and there is no other show that more deserved to go out on its own terms.  Whitney already gave Parks a moving and appropriate tribute, but this show more than any other deserves an extra.

If I have recommended Parks and Rec to you in the past, you have heard my pitch, but it remains the same.  Parks and Recreation is truly a special show because it is that rare breed of comedy that is all at once optimistic, smart, joyous, and oh, hysterically funny.  This breed is so rare that I’m not even sure there is another.

Comedies are my jam, but what I have always loved about Parks is that I leave every episode feeling uplifted because (Jerry jokes aside) the humor rarely comes from malicious place.  The show is truly special because it is about a group of people who are crazy degrees of different but who still love each other and (to varying degrees) love what they do.  Mainly because they get to do it together.  The show’s series finale was the perfect encapsulation of this, the perfect send-off to our little band of weirdos and I cried more times than I would like to admit because it wasn’t really that sad.  I cried because I am losing my best (TV) friend.

I’m really going to miss Pawnee and all of its eccentricities, because the town is a character in and of itself, but more than anything I am going to miss watching the Parks department and the genuine love that they have for each other.  It truly is the most enjoyable show that you could ever watch and I highly suggest that you get on Netflix if you have never had the extreme pleasure of watching this show.

So bye, bye, Parks and Rec.  I already miss you in the saddest fashion.

– Ellen

Run-On Sentence Review: The DUFF

Posted in Movies, Run-On Sentence Reviews by

DUFFwebThis generation needs a good high school movie because the 80’s had the John Hughes catalog, the 90’s had such cinematic classics as Clueless and She’s All That, the early 2000’s brought us Mean Girls, and most recently we’ve had Easy A, but these tweeting, vining, posting, snapchatting, tumblring, blogging, vlogging young scamps need a film of their own and The DUFF is the best we’ve had in a while because it is funny, sweet, has a great soundtrack, and a hot guy, which are basically all the makings of a great teen movie and the cast is great fun with, dare I say it, the hotter Amell and the always endearing Mae Whitman (her?) as the leads and the latter playing what always felt like a real representation of a teen girl to me because she is strong but still goes through some self-doubt, which we just all do at that age, and I know the acronym for DUFF (Designated Ugly Fat Friend) is a bit off-putting to some but the film ends with a good message and some confidence building for our young friends and this is coming from someone, who I’ve come to realize, was (and still probably is) the DUFF of every friend group she has ever been a part of and someone who is okay with that.

Verdict: If you are an adult and still enjoy some of those movies I mentioned, then you will prpbably enjoy this one.

– Ellen

Indisputable Proof that Tina Belcher is My Spirit Animal (and Maybe Yours)

Posted in Fangirly Exposed! by

It does not bode well for me that the TV character I most relate to is an awkward, hormonal, 13-year old but that’s where I’m at right now.  That’s right, Bob’s Burgers‘ Tina Belcher is my spirit animal and there is a lot of proof in the pudding.

We are avid romance readers and writers and sometimes our art imitates life. Guilty, so, so guilty.tina fiction

tinatina fiction 2

The athletic arts are not exactly our strong suit.  I got a C in PE in the sixth grade because I couldn’t throw or catch a ball.  tina

Sometimes life is hard on us and we respond accordingly.  I feel ya, sistah.  tina ugh

We have curious minds and aren’t afraid to get straight to the facts.  I settled for Cosmo articles, but she is more ballsy.  tina questions

We are not the smoothest operators.  But Tina gets more action than I do.  tina pants

We are not the best with makeup.  This one hits so close to home.  I am about as capable of keeping makeup on my face as a toddler.  tina mascara

We have very sensual, realistic dreams. I mean, I don’t want to reveal too much…tina kiss tina fantasy

tina dram

Our glasses are both our identity and our struggle.  Four-eyed salute.  tina glasses tina glasses 2

We are not exactly graceful.   I can’t do yoga in public places because it is far too embarrassing.tina fall

Hence the reason we like to practice at home.  I am a fan of the at-home workout due to the uncoordinated thing.

tina exercise

Our first times driving were pretty much the same.  Our dads were about the same, too.  tina driving

We stand out at dance parties.  For our awesome but subtle moves.  I go for the shoulder shimmy.tina dance

We agree on the real reasons to go to sporting events.  I once spent an entire Dodgers game checking out right field’s hinder. tina 25 guys tina butt

And to cap it off, we both wanted the same thing for Christmas. 

Tina Christmas

Some of these qualities are not quite enviable or flattering but I could not be more proud to be like this strong, sensual woman.

– Ellen

Fangirly Crush of the Week: Hozier

Posted in Crush of the Week, Music by

Hozier-608x363It has been so long that I have almost forgotten how to do tYPing THIng, but I imagine I’ll get the hang of it again.

While I may have been crap at posting Fangirly updates, worry not because I have remained diligent on the crushing front. One such victim over the past couple months has been Hozier. This only seemed fair after a friend and I spent the entirety of his performance at the Victoria’s Secret runway show discussing the various things we would let him do to us, some of which I could mention here but won’t. You will undoubtedly know Hozier from his now overplayed hit “Take Me to Church”, but I highly recommend you check out the rest of his self-titled album because it is all great and his voice is so swoony. If you already indoctrinated in the tunage of Hozier, check out these amazing covers he did of Arctic Monkeys and Ariana Grande.

He’s the sweet, grungy rocker of my dreams.

– Ellen

Grade A, Choice Picks: Top Dogs in Pop Culture

Posted in Choice Picks, Movies, TV by

The readers of this blog can be split into two camps: those who we know in real life and those who we don’t.  I think we are now to the point where we have more stranger-danger-readers, which is awesome!  If you DO know me in person, this will not be news to you because I have not stopped instagramming pictures, but this past week I got a puppy and named him Steve!

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As you can see, he is pretty much the cutest thing ever.  However, he is also a massive time suck so I have had little time to think of anything but dogs.  That being said, I give you a list of my favorite dogs from pop culture.  I know that some of you are going to give me grief for leaving off some of the more iconic pop pups so I have made sure to include them in the honorable mentions.

Honorable Mentions: Pluto, Scooby Doo, Tramp from Lady and the Tramp, Chance and Shadow from Homeward Bound, Hooch from Turner and Hooch, the 101 Dalmatians, Beethoven from Beethoven, Clifford the Big Red Dog, Blue from Blue’s Clues, and Nana from Peter Pan

10. Ren from The Ren & Stimpy Show – Sure, he’s got some anger management issues but I’m pretty sure that I would too if I was always having to put up with Stimpy’s “happy, happy, joy, joy” “eediot” schtick.  I respect occasional control and this is coming from someone who doesn’t usually like chihuahuas.

triumph-insult-comic-dog9. Triumph, the Insult Comic Dog – Right along with Ren, Triumph doesn’t take any crap and, in fact, will insult you right to your face.  Whether he is calling out nerds at the premiere of a Star Wars movie or humping fellow dogs at the Westminster Dog Show, Triumph’s humor is always biting and not in the way that is going to get him sent to the dog pound.

8. Snoopy – As my new little buddy is a beagle, I have a newfound respect for this ace flying pooch.  I suppose I have an affinity for wise-cracking dogs because Snoopy is also not a dog to be pushed around.  He isn’t one to take Lucy’s ribbing lying down and he doesn’t have much respect for his owner, but then who does?

airbudgoldenreceiver_photo_037. Air Bud –  What other dog can play basketball, football, soccer, baseball, and volleyball?  And yes, those are all real movies in which a dog plays all those sports.  That happened. Makes you feel pretty lame about your dog, huh?  Oh, big deal, your dog can play dead?  Air Bud can make the penalty kick that wins the championship game.  Probably.  I don’t know for sure.  I didn’t actually watch any of these movies.

6. Brian from Family Guy – There are few dogs out there with the class and sophistication of Brian.  This dog can croon with the likes of Frank Sinatra Jr., get some serious tail from a myriad of pretty hot chicks, travel through space and time with Stewie, and may someday finish that book he has been working on.

ScreenShot2013-04-03at4_38_48PM_crop_exact5. Hercules from The Sandlot – The dog, the myth, the legend.  This poor guy gets quite the bad reputation for being a man-eating beast from hell who got locked up FOR-EV-ER when in actuality he is just a protective, slobbery softy with an affinity for baseballs signed by the Great Bambi.  “That wimpy deer?”

4. Dug from Up – There is no other dog in pop culture that more perfectly captures the happy-go-lucky loyalty of real life dogs.  He instantly loves people upon meeting them and he is always on the lookout for squirrels, just like pretty much every dog I have ever met.  Dug and his high tech speaking collar perfectly give voice to dogs everywhere.

wishbone as robin hood3. Wishbone – This Jack Russel Terrier has played Tom Sawyer, Romeo, Sherlock Holmes, Rip Van Winkle, Mr. Darcy and Ichabod Crane, to name a few.  I would like to see you get that kind of range from another dog, let alone another human.  He’s basically this generation’s Laurence Olivier.

2. Rowlf from The Muppets – I may be in the minority but Rowlf has always been my favorite Muppet, both as a puppy on Muppet Babies (I watched that show so hard as a kid) and an adult dog.  He is a cool cucumber who always keeps it together despite the madcap shenanigans that the Muppets get into.  As long as he’s got his piano and deadpan sense of humor, it’s all good, baby.

Gromit_thumbs_up1. Gromit from Wallace & Gromit – I considered naming my puppy Gromit, that is how much I love this claymation pooch.  Gromit is far too wise for his dorky owner but that doesn’t stop him from being a loyal pet.  Gromit faithfully protects Wallace from a thieving penguin, a sheep-napping cyber dog, and a were-rabbit and is still able to kick back and share some cheese with his “old chum”.

I know that nobody is going to agree with me on the ranking, but who is your favorite pop pup?  Feel free to leave comments about how cute my puppy is.

– Ellen

Fangirly Crush(es) of the Week: The Property Brothers

Posted in Crush of the Week, TV by

Property-Brothers-SingleHappy Halloween! To celebrate, you are getting two for the price of one today.  I have been stuck in a Netflix vortex since they recently added bundles of HGTV and Food Network shows.  My favorite?  Of course it’s those snarky twins, The Property Brothers!  A guy who can give me my dream house on a budget all while cracking wise?  What’s not to love?

Do you like Drew’s more upscale, businessman vibe?  Or maybe Jonathan’s more casual, handyman persona is more your style?  Ideally, I like the man can get his hands dirty, but with Drew’s hair.  Can I get that?

Good news is that they made a video to help you decide (if you are a fan of the show at all, you should definitely watch).

– Ellen

GIF Reactions to the Marvel Phase 3 Announcements

Posted in Movies by

In case you live under a rock or are maybe just less obsessed with any news coming out of Marvel HQ than I am, you may not have heard about Marvel’s presentation today.  Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige took the stage at Hollywood’s El Capitan Theater and gave us, yeah, some news that we have been expecting for a while, but it still set the nerd world into a tizzy.  So much of a tizzy, that I don’t have words so I’m going to rely on GIFs.

First up,

1adoctor

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Now just officially cast Benedict Cumberbatch as Doctor Strange and we’ll be in business.

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Strange will be delving more into the supernatural than the other films from the studio and is yet another more out of left field pick for Marvel. I cannot wait. Just remember that only 3 months ago most of us were saying, “Guardians of the what?”

Speaking of that, they moved up the Guardians 2 release date to May 5, 2017.  Who else can’t wait?

raise your hands

So.  That’s awesome.

Now, for one of our oldies, but goodies…

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And not only is Thor back, but his devious brother, Loki AKA Tom “Yes Please” Hiddleston.

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They announced that Thor’s story would take a dramatic turn post Ultron, so I’m excited to see what happens with Hemsworth and Co.

Moving on to one of their bigger announcements…

1ablackpanther

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This one has been long speculated by Marvel diehards due to little Easter egg hints throughout the previous films (for example, Captain America’s shield is made of Vibranium, an alloy native to Black Panther’s nation of Wakanda) and it sounds like there are more allusions to come in Ultron.

Also, they later announced that 42′s Chadwick Boseman will be taking on the title role and I don’t think they could have made a better choice. Boseman is a great actor and I am excited to see him in something other than a biopic.

Fans have long been clamoring for more diversity from this cinematic universe, so following Black Panther will be…

1acaptainmarvel

beyonce

Who runs the world? My guess will be Carol Danvers. No casting announcement was made but I have faith that she will kick ass.

If nothing else, it is exciting to see such a change-up with the Avengers.  Whether Captain Marvel and Black Panther end up being additions or eventual replacements, they should be fun additions to the team.

1aainhumans

I have just met you i love you

I admittedly don’t know a lot about the Inhumans, but I’m still excited. What I DO know is that they are the test subjects of Kree’s attempts to create a sort of super race, so this will obviously be more in the universe of Guardians, which for me just means epic amounts of awesome. Also, we have some pretty solid proof that Marvel does good “team” movies.

1acivilwar

scared baby

I knew this was coming but TWO PARTS!  While many will see this as a gimmick to get more money, I don’t care. Gimme more. Heck, split both of those and make it four movies.

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The “Infinity” subtitle implies that the big bad here will be Thanos and it will be the culmination of the infinity stones story line (so probably an appearance by the Guardians universe, as well).

After trying to fake out the fans with a misleading Cap 3 subtitle, Fiege revealed the real title card.

1acivilwar1

In other words Cap Vs. Iron Man.

heating up

We all knew this was coming but it will be pretty awesome to see this discord between Cap and Iron Man. Two words: Ep. IC.

Now the only problem is the waiting.

Difficult life

–Ellen

Run-On Sentence Reviews: Birdman

Posted in Movies, Run-On Sentence Reviews by

birdman-doubleA run-on sentence review is actually quite perfect for this movie and its almost freestyle jazz pacing that is accompanied by its freestyle jazz drum score but I should say that I am having a hard time recommending this one  but not because it’s not amazeballs good and only because I don’t think it is for everyone because it does have a mystical-ambiguous element that may turn some people off and it has a lot going on because I am pretty sure that I will have to see it at least 5 more times to pick up on all the little things and throwaway lines that are going on in this movie but really this movie came down to the performances because between just Keaton and Norton you have a great movie but then you throw in Emma Stone, Naomi Watts and a surprising Zach Galifianakis and you’ve got a great movie.

Verdict: If you are into your more arthouse picks, then definitely check it out.

Get With the Program: Jane the Virgin

Posted in Get with the Program by

jtvAirs: Mondays at 9:00/8:00c on The CW

UPDATE: The show just got picked up for a full season!

TV show equation:  Jane the Virgin  =  telenovella / Spanish language + occasional Spanish language x better production quality x cheeky self-awareness.

Premise in a Sentence:  At its most basic, Jane accidentally gets artificially inseminated after spending her life maintaining her virginity.

But this show has gone absolutely bonkers.  In the best way possible.  She was inseminated with a sample from her boss, Rafael, who she also had a romantic moment with 5 years ago.  Jane had gone in for a simple exam, but her doctor, Luisa, was discombobulated after walking in on her girlfriend cheating on her.  Luisa realized her mistake when she walked into her next appointment and saw her sister-in-law, Petra.  Oh, yeah, Luisa is also Rafael’s sister.  Also, Jane’s boyfriend, Michael, who she has been holding off for two years, proposes in the midst of all this.

I think that is all I am going to give you for now, because some of the other reveals are far too delicious to spoil for you and I really want you all to give this one a shot.  Even though it has only had two episodes, I’m going to go out on a limb and declare this one my favorite new show of the season (the only possible competition is Marry Me, which get the Happy Endings bump).

If you are anything like me, you heard the premise or saw the promo and had to keep from rolling your eyes, but this show won me over in it’s clear awareness of the ridiculousness of the premise.  If you watch some of those more soapy dramas like Scandal and Revenge and find yourself thinking “Oh, boy, that would never happen in real life but I love it anyway”, then you are really going to like this one.  The show’s humorous narration basically calls out how unbelievable some of the plot can be and to great effect.

This cheeky quality helps the plot to be a lot more fun, but it also helps the show to have tender moments without getting too schmaltzy.  Gina Rodriguez plays the titular Jane with a lot of heart and strength.  Jane’s romantic entanglements are already promising to be intriguing and the other relationships already range from sweet to over-the-top scandalous.

I triple dog dare you to get to the last 10 minutes of last night’s episode,  in which they dropped at least 5 bombshells, and tell me that you are not hooked.  You can’t turn down a triple dog dare.

Fangirly Crush of the Week: Stephen Amell

Posted in Crush of the Week by

Stephen-AmellStephen Amell is pretty crushworthy, especially if you are a fan of Arrow.  His Oliver Queen is the broody, tough guy who really has a heart of gold and is currently wooing the nerdy IT girl.  Le swoon.

More than that, Amell is good to his people.  When I sat in the show’s panel at Comic Con, Amell talked a lot about his presence on social media and how he feels that everyone should be interacting more with their fans because it is so easy to do these days.  He runs all of his own sites but is especially active on Facebook.  He now has about 2.6 million likes and gives a lot back to the fans.  Every Friday is Fanart Friday, every Monday is Meme Monday, with Amell featuring his favorites on those respective days.  He does fan Q & A’s, on set updates, and fan shout outs and I just think it is pretty awesome.

So here’s to you, Stephen Amell.  You’re a pretty cool cat and you’re pretty hot.

I’m just going to leave this here.

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If you like that, there is plenty more where that came from on Arrow.

– Ellen