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thomasgouldsbrough
9 - Outstanding. Very close to 10, but just not quite on the same tier.
8 - Excellent. Very good content, and can make you feel emotions. Would certainly rewatch and recommend.
7 - Good. Enjoyable to watch.
6 - Passable. Probably wouldn't rewatch, but time isn't wasted by watching it.
5 - Mediocre. Very average content, and wouldn't recommend.
4 - Unacceptable. Not good content, and gets to the point where it feels slightly uncomfortable to watch.
3 - Bad. Gets to the point where it feels like time has been wasted.
2 - Terrible. Gets to the point where it's difficult to finish, but not quite as bad as 1.
1 - Insulting. The worst conceivable content. At this point, it's stopped being watched. It has absolutely no redeeming qualities, and it's unable to be watched to the end without feel insulted or angry.
Ratings
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Reviews
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes (2024)
Doesn't hold a candle to the other planet of the apes films
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes isn't a bad film, nowhere near as impressive as the other films in the franchise. Whereas Rise and Dawn had really interesting explorations of the human condition, and presenting human nature as being both inherently selfish and inherently altruistic in an engaging manner, Kingdom fails to present human characters of much substance. The female lead lacks depth, she's just inherently selfish throughout the entire film, even as going so far as to use Noa to get the satellite link.
The opening to the film, after the egg scene which was very strong, was a little weak. Caeser strives incrediblely hard to find his oasis, and yet it gets destroyed within the first 15 minutes of the film, in about 5 minutes? It effectively retconned the last film, Caeser's sacrifice was for nothing.
The ending is quite good. By introducing the concept of the human survivors, it makes for an interesting way to introduce a new trilogy. Kingdom isn't necessarily a bad film, but nowhere near as impressive as the complexity of Rise and Dawn, or even the original Planet of the Apes and Beneath the planet of the apes.
Srpski film (2010)
An absolutely depraved film
A Serbian Film is a paradox. It spends most of the film trying to make the point that society has gone downhill, that society is gratuitous and disgusting and porn obsessed, and yet A Serbian advances these messages by being gratuitous, sensationalist and downright disgusting. The most redeemable factor about this film was the acting of Vukmir Vukmir, although as much as his eccentric personality was interesting to witness, his cause he was advocating was barely convincing. Maybe if he justified what he was doing by giving power to victims, he could have come up with a somewhat convincing cause.
A Serbian Film is gratuitous for the sake of being gratuitous. It's certainly better than most grindhouse films, but unfortunately it lacks any real substance.
Doctor Who: The Power of the Doctor (2022)
A nice nostalgia trip
Well, at least the worst era of Doctor Who is finally over. Jodie Whittaker will without a doubt go down in history as the worst Doctor of all time. It's nearly impossible to have a worse Doctor than her, and this episode reinforces that fact. She continues to childish, annoying and lack character.
In true Chibnall fashion the plot continues to be all over the place, impossible to follow, until the viewer gets to the point where they're too lost to care. The only redeeming factors of this episode is that despite it being awful, it has a somewhat likable charm, with the appearance of the past Doctors, and the twist regeneration at the end.
Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Boy in the Iceberg (2005)
A decent introduction
This was a pretty good opening episode. It introduces the character's well, giving them immediately identifiable character traits, such as Aang's child like nature, introduced in his opening line about penguin sledding, or Sokka's uptight nature, shown in how he constantly doubts Aang.
As an opening, it's nothing particularly special. It doesn't subvert expectation, and the plot isn't anything special. However, the characters are engaging enough to keep the viewer interested, and to watch the next episode, with the episodes after being consistently better than this one. Therefore, by itself this is a weak episode compared to other Avatar episodes, but still good in of itself.
Avatar: The Last Airbender: The Avatar Returns (2005)
"well you're just a teenager!"
This episode is quite a step up from the previous episode. It remains continuously tense, yet very lighthearted at the same time, eventually ending in a satisfying ending. The fight scenes with Aang is very enjoyable to watch, owing to his unique fighting style, unseen in other TV series. The animation is very smooth, making it quite exciting to witness. This episode can even be lighthearted during tenser moments, such as when the Fire Nation invade the South Pole. It's quite a serious situation, yet it manages to be quite humorous, by showing the inability for Sokka to fight them off. A pleasure to watch.
The Boys: Butcher, Baker, Candlestick Maker (2020)
A little on the nose
This episode was just..............weird. The opening scene was clever, but it could have been executed so much more intelligently. Stormfront clearly represented Trump, but the conclusion of the opening scene was so badly executed, that it was quite frankly embarrassing.
The porn segment was just...... uncomfortable. The references to the 7 being in pornography was pretty funny, but the jokes should have just ended there. After that, it lost its novelty very quickly.
The ending however, was shocking. Whether it has a point to it, remains to be seen but even so, it was a very surprising ending. Generally this episode was very mixed, thus it's 7/10 rating.
The Boys: The Bloody Doors Off (2020)
"You cannot punish him as much as he punishes himself"
This is one of the best episodes of the season so far. The tension builds up very well, resulting in a good standoff towards the end of the episode.
Starlight's character arc develops in an interesting way, resulting in an interesting scene where the character of Butcher and Starlight are almost comparable, when Starlight states "he was just another person in our way". This is of course a reference to Butchers philosophy, whereby people become pawns, and simply there to be used, and if they object, they are simply "another person in our way". Starlight also makes an excellent point as to Butcher hating Starlight to a predetermined characteristic, that she simply cannot change. How does this make him any different to Stormfront?
The Boys: The Self-Preservation Society (2019)
"Better to be loyal to a dead woman who doesn't know and doesn't care - how's that working out for you?"
This episode continues to justify as to why The Boys is a well crafted TV series. The tension builds well, resulting in a satisfying ending, appropriate for a penultimate episode of a season.
The Boys: The Innocents (2019)
Weakest episode so far, but enjoyable
This is certianly weaker than the previous episodes, as it's a lot slower, and not as subtle or as intelligently written, but neverthe less it's still enjoyable to watch. The scene where Mesmer meets his daughter is heartbreaking to witness, which is probably the most redeeming aspect about the episode.
The Boys: Good for the Soul (2019)
"it must be hard being so alone"
A great exploration into the theme of loneliness. Starlight's story continues to be very interesting, especially the scene where her mother states that it's all about her, and that Starlight is letting her down. The Christianity theme was also pretty funny to watch, as it wasn't the anti-christianity message wasn't too forced, and so as a result it was genuinely quite funny to witness. One of the best scenes was probably the suggestion that "you should believe, because I said so!". Another interesting aspect of this episode was the idea that Butcher is becoming very morally questionable, to the point where it's hard to see if his actions are right.
The Boys: The Female of the Species (2019)
"How do you know so much about the Spice Girls?"
This episode is weaker than the other's, but it's still pretty good. It develops the story arc quite well by exploring the downsides to being a part of Butchers vigilante group, and that is the lack of freedom, aswell as the questionable moral decisions.
The Boys: The Name of the Game (2019)
"Since when did hopeful and nãive become the same thing?"
A very solid opening to a TV series. The themes of corporatisation, celebrities and idolisation are subtle, and as a result very well written. The scene with Hughie and his girlfriend is incredibly unsettling, and probably one of the best scenes of the series.
The Boys: Cherry (2019)
"Keep your hands clean!"
Another fantastic episode. To say it was only an hour, the story telling was incredibly tight. The Annie storyline continues to be very well written. Of course the standout of this episode had to be the girl in the alley storyline. According to the logic of Corporate, Starlight's actions are only morally justified so long as her reputation stays in tact. At this point in the story it's clear that the superheroes aren't vigilantes at all - they've become corporatised, and turned into empty idols, devoid of any morality or anything of substance.
The Boys: Get Some (2019)
"We'll cross that bridge when we burn it"
This episode certianly continues the momentum of the series so far. Despite having less screentime, the highlight has to be Annie's story, and the costume. The scene where the young girl meets Starlight and states "it's your old uniform, but I'm saving up for the new one!" Is quite unsettling, as her naivety contrasts with Annie's awareness of the oversexualised constume. Not quite as good as Ep1 and Ep2, but still throughly enjoyable.
Royal Navy School: Episode #1.4 (2016)
More forgettable, but very human
This is probably one of the weaker episodes, but nevertheless it's still watchable. It feels very human, with a story about not feeling like one fits in. Keir's story is pretty generic, and as a result he's pretty forgettable.
Royal Navy School: Episode #1.3 (2016)
The infamous "discharge" episode
It's amazing how everyone knows this series, based on RCT Dunbar's pillow incident. Nevertheless, the incident almost deserves to overshadow the entire series. It's entirely incomprehensible. The only downside to the episode is that it reinforces the stereotype of the Navy being a group of homosexual men.
Royal Navy School: Episode #1.2 (2016)
Interesting, but weaker than the previous episode
This episode is generally enjoyable and interesting to watch, despite it lacking from the previous episode. The story of Dackcombe's partner is incredibly frustrating to watch, owing to her selfish, controlling tendanices. However, generally this episode is a step down. It's harder to emphasize with the recruits shown, and this shouldn't have been the 2nd episode. As this is set towards the end of training, this episode should have been much later on in the RNSS series.
Royal Navy School: Episode #1.1 (2016)
An interesting introduction to the first 2 weeks
Generally, this was a pretty solid episode. The recruits are likeable, and HMS RALEIGH's main points of training are shown - drill, kit maintenance and PT. The recruits have very real stories, such as teenage boy missing his Dad, or a Dad wanting to provide a better life for his family, making the episode quite engagable to the generic viewer, regardless of whether they're interested in the Military.
However, there's some parts of this episode that's quite all over the place. The drill exam segment felt rushed, the PT segment felt rushed, which is quite a shame, as they're interesting aspects of Navy training. The Royal Navy Fitness test was skipped all together, which again is another shame, as it's an interesting aspect of Navy training.
Regardless, this episode is still a good introduction to the series, owing to it's focus on interesting characters who develop later on in the series.
The Walking Dead: The Game - Season 3 (2016)
An enjoyable experience - but a stepdown from the average Telltale game
The Walking Dead: A New Frontier is a pretty solid game. It mostly lives up to the elite status of a Telltale game, but is generally one of the weaker Telltale games.
The ending analysis screen is incredibly well crafted. Unlike other Telltale games, the analysis is highly detailed, resulting in an interesting point of view on player decisions. The player decisions genuinely feel like they make an impact on the game, resulting in many possible endings as detailed in the closing credits. Many endings are possible, and many different moral issues are explored, such as the protagonist questioning his loyalty towards his brother, when he begins to develop romantic feelings towards his brother's wife, and whether he should act on said feelings. By including the ability for the player to interact with the game like this, makes for a more intimate playing experience, which makes the player have the ability to truly craft the game's story.
However, this game isn't quite as good as Season 1 or 2 of the Walking Dead. The story is very well written, hence it's 8/10 rating, but it doesn't quite offer the emotional blow that the 2 aformentioned games deliver. Javier is a relatable character, who feels very real, and yet he just isn't as well written as Kenny, Lee or Clementine, causing the player to view Javier as simply forgettable. When thinking about the Telltale games in retrospect, most players would agree that season 1 and 2 are masterpieces, and are able to view and recite the game like a work of art. The Final Frontier in comparison just feels like another video game.
To conclude, The Final Frontier isn't a bad game in itself. It's enjoyable, has an interesting story with a somewhat satisfying ending, which makes for a good playing experience. However, it isn't the best Telltale game, and there's certainly other Telltale games which rank better than The Final Frontier.
The Walking Dead: The Game - Season 2 (2013)
A Telltale game worthy of the title
The Walking Dead Season 2 is a perfect example on how to make a game sequel. It captures the charm and appeal of the first game, while expanding the universe of the game, to create it's own unique story, having a completely different identity to the first season. The stakes seem to increase, and the ending has a lot more choice, which greatly improves the playing experience.
In terms of improvement to the first season, and an element which makes the 2nd season completely unique, is the choice Clementine has in terms of her loyalty to Kenny. In the first game, Lee is completely loyal to the group, and there was never a clear divide, so as a result Lee never took sides, whereas in the 2nd season there's a clear split between Kenny and the result of the group. Therefore, Clementine's loyalty is greatly tested. This makes for really interesting gameplay, as the player has to consistently choose between the 2 sides. As a result the player has more autonomy over the events of the story, something that is greatly improved from the first season. The theme of loyalty towards Kenny becomes a contentious issue, one that has the potential for a great deal of analysis.
This game's just as well made as it's predecessor. It leaves an emotional impact and the characters are well crafted and memorable. As a result the Walking Dead Season Two is a masterpiece, and one of the greatest video games on the market.
The Walking Dead: The Game - Season 1 (2012)
The greatest telltale game
The Walking Dead is one of the best games of all time. It's possibly the best Telltale game, alongside the Walking Dead season 2. It's emotional, poignant and most importantly, incredibly human. The story follows Lee in his struggle to care and nuture for Clementine, in a new world that's cruel, depraved and twisted. Lee, at face value, is a jealous murderer, and someone who would be regarded as scum and looked down upon in the normal world. However, past the surface, Lee is actually a good man, a man guided by principle.
The theme, Alive Inside, is nothing short of a masterpiece. It's genuinely comparable to some phenomenal violin scores, such as Schindler's list. It captivates everything the game is about: Loss, adversity, faith and hope.
The main downside to the Walking Dead is that it's not really a game. It's an interactive film, the game elements are lacking. Nevertheless, the story is tells makes it's more enjoyable than playing most video games.
To conclude there's several aspects which make the Walking Dead a masterpiece. There is hundreds and hundreds of video games out there, each with a plot that's easily consumble, and quickly forgetton. The Walking Dead seems to leave a permanent impact, a story buried into the mind of the player.
BoJack Horseman: Still Broken (2015)
Weaker episode, but still enjoyable
This is one of the weaker BoJack Horseman episodes, but nevertheless it's still enjoyable. The most redeeming part of this episode had to he Todd, and how his ego got ruined by BoJack. Funny, but also deep.
BoJack Horseman: After the Party (2015)
"I'm 35 and have no purpose"
BoJack Horseman hits the mark yet again. This episode had interesting character development, and some pretty funny, stupid humour, which is was Bojack Horseman excels in. Diane doesn't usually seem as interesting as the other characters, but this episode helped to change that perception by delving into her pysche, and how she has a strong desire to have a sense of achievement.
Batman: The Animated Series: Almost Got 'im (1992)
One of the best episodes
Almost got em is regarded as the best episode of TAS, and it's easy to see why. It features all of the most infamous villains from Batman's rogue gallery, except the Riddler, and has a tightly written, interesting plot. It has all the trademarks of a good TAS episode - original storytelling, dark undertones, and plot elements that subvert one's expectations in a clever way.
Personally, I hold The Man Who Killed Batman, or Harley and Ivy to a higher esteem. Nevertheless, this is a fun, original plot with a very satisfying ending.
Educating Essex: Episode #1.4 (2011)
A lot less entertaining than its predecessors
What makes the Educating series, is when they focused on troubled students. This episode lacks that, and instead focuses on a pregnancy, which isn't particularly interesting.