Fluid Sexuality in ‘Striking Vipers’
If you’ve seen the new season of Black Mirror, you’ll have seen the show’s heavily lauded first episode, “Striking Vipers”. And boy, was it a real doozy – from its strong cast, unpredictability, and the way it tackled certain societal topics, it has easily become one of my favourite episodes. Warning: Major spoilers for Black Mirror‘s “Striking Vipers” below (S5E1). Read at your own risk. The episode begins with two people, Danny (Anthony Mackie) and Theo (Nicole Beharie). They seem to be strangers at the bar at a busy club, only to reveal a few moments later that they were…
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Game of Thrones: Final Season Review
Foreshadowing Isn’t Character Development (And Here’s Why) WARNING: There are major spoilers for Game of Thrones, Seasons 1 through 8 including the series finale, below. Read at your own risk. Seriously, stop reading now if you aren’t up to date on the show. Let me start by saying that Game of Thrones has been a show that I have fiercely loved since the very beginning. Though I must admit that the first five or six episodes were overwhelming for a newcomer, it was precisely the moment that Eddard Stark got his head chopped off (RIP Ned) that I was in…
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‘Comeback’ Television
Cobra Kai Season 1 When I first saw the trailer for Cobra Kai, distributed by YouTube Premium, my first reaction was shock. It’s been 34 years since the first Karate Kid film, an 80s classic both in style and content. It’s one of those classics that you can offhandedly reference, and almost everyone will understand what you’re referencing (particularly the name Mr. Miyagi, and the phrase “wax on wax off”). I was interested to see how this would go – and interested to see that television series are actively picking up on narratives from the past and canonizing it, even…
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The New Age of Superheroes
The Umbrella Academy TV Review Many of you have probably watched, or are planning to watch, the new addition to Netflix: The Umbrella Academy. The sci-fi superhero show is based on a graphic novel created by Gerard Way, who is best known as the former front man of My Chemical Romance, and artist Gabriel Bá. Right off the bat, I could tell that this show was quirky, goth-y, and slightly surrealist, which aptly fits with the Gerard Way circa MCR brand. The Umbrella Academy revolves around a group of children who were all born on the same day to women…
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5 Best Period Dramas for Valentine’s Day
It’s that time of the year again when we see flowers everywhere and the price of chocolate is blasphemously high again. Last year, I did a list of my favourite unconventional Valentine’s Day movies to watch. This year, I’m feeling a little more old-fashioned, feeling the nostalgia for the kind of romance that my grandparents or great grandparents would have experienced. It’s easy to feel romanced by the quiet desires and subtle interactions that have you feeling warm and fuzzy on the inside just because of a slight hand graze. Sure, it’s not realistic, and it’s definitely not the world…
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