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nishkaflower
Reviews
Watchmen (2019)
Not a grandly brilliant beginning
The show's been built up quite a bit in the media leading up to this, so I just expected a bit more oomph from the first episode. I probably would've kept watching it anyway because I've watched worse shows for a less reward.
But honestly, seeing all the white crybabies clutching their pearls in the other reviews is placing the show on my permanent watchlist.
Shadowhunters: The Mortal Instruments (2016)
If you think this show is terrible
- with a capital T, you're not wrong. I've watched every single episode so far, and while the plot improves somewhat in season 3, the acting stays atrocious throughout. Even the rare couple of actors who are relatively decent in other roles, are absolutely terrible in this show. The dialogue is awful too, and while the budget seems to be larger for each successive season, a lot of special effects look like they've been put together with a piece of string and chewing gum. I cringe, I groan, and more often than not, I'm embarrassed for everyone involved.
All that said, I religiously watch every episode, even when it feels like torture. And this is why:
- Latina actors Emeraude Toubia and Alberto Rosende. Emeraude plays Isabelle Lightwood, who is defiant, fierce, and loyal. She is shows as an equal to her brother Alec in strength and skill, and is often portrayed as the more levelheaded of the two. Alberto plays Simon, a vampire known as a Daylighter, whose ability to walk in daylight earns him the awe, respect, and envy of other vampires around him. Even though he is occasionally used as a comic relief, his character is the one that most often reminds us of the importance of friendship, family, and caring for others.
- Costa Rican-born Chinese American actor, dancer, singer and choreographer Harry Shum Jr. who plays Magnus Bane, the High Warlock of Brooklyn. Magnus Bane is a canonically bisexual character, who is more than secure in his sexuality and he is quite vocal about his relationship with other men.
- Matthew Daddario who plays Alec Lightwood, a Shadowhunter in love with Magnus. In Season 2, Alec becomes the Head of the New York Institute. Season 1 does a decent job of portraying Alec's struggles with his sexuality, and gives him a happy ending, which is beautiful and rare.
- Relationship between Magnus and Alec, which is so far the most stable, wonderful relationship between two individuals that one can find on cable tv. While most shows rely on conflicts and miscommunication to boost their ratings, Shadowhunters portrays the relationship between Magnus and Alec as healthy and loving. They constantly reconnect and rediscover each other, and while certain insecurities in new relationships are inevitable, open lines of communication and mutual respect between them addresses these insecurities in mature manner, allowing them to grow as individuals and as a couple.
- Isaiah Mustafa, a black actor playing Luke Garroway, a police officer and an Alpha of the New York werewolves. Luke is a capable leader, who is often portrayed as a father figure to most of the other characters in the show.
- Alisha Wainwright, a black actress playing Maia Roberts, a werewolf in Luke's pack.
- The fact that none of these characters conform to their stereotype in any way.
In addition to the diversity of the cast, Shadowhunters doesn't pull any punches. They blatantly address racism, elitism, sexism, and sexuality, and as clumsy as their plot and dialogue can be, the message is never lost. This show is doing it right. They might be doing it with string and chewing gum, and the some of the worst actors under the sun, but this doesn't change the fact that the diversity of the cast, the tackling of relevant issues, and positive messages for all those who watch, regardless of their ethnicity or sexuality, makes Shadowhunters one of the most progressive and inclusive tv shows on cable tv.
The 100: Perverse Instantiation: Part Two (2016)
What even
******** SPOILERS***************
So the Kill Switch was an actual switch. I'm not even kidding.
The chipped people climbed the outside of the tower? Basically a bad zombie movie flashback.
Ontari was reduced to a blood bag. Oh, and then Abby had split her chest open and massage her heart because being reduced to a blood bag was just not powerful enough. Wow.
Jasper ate an ice cream cone. This isn't the most ridiculous thing about the City Of Light, but it comes pretty close.
Lexa is back, but then she sacrifices herself to an angry mob for Clarke. I would say this is the only not-crappy part of the episode, if it didn't have the "trying to fix the lesbian-killed-by-a-stray-bullet trope a little too late" all over it.
I've seen a lot or TV show rock bottoms but this one takes the cake.
The 100: Demons (2016)
This show has gone from 10-0 in 46 episodes
When I complained about Sinclair's death and this insistence to kill one minority per episode this entire season, I actually had someone tell me "not everything's about color, you know." And I'm just
Even if you insist that "color has nothing to do with it" when it comes to Sinclair, the fact still remains that he's been there from the very beginning of the show, a character many people loved, and that he was pretty much a father to Raven who now truly has no one left
The fact that she was grinning by the end of the show was an insult to both their characters and the connection they had, and the fact that Sinclair got killed off in what was essentially a crappy horror movie filler episode is insulting to fans who have loved him from the beginning
But when you bring color into it, on top of Bob Morley having the worst arc ever this season which negated all the progress Bellamy has made from Season 1, their bright idea for Raven was to have her attempt to commit suicide against her will AND suddenly grow all-knowing, not thanks to her own considerable intellect but because she had a chip installed into her at some point (which was designed by a white woman btw whoop) + the fact they killed off Monty's mother for shock effect (how original another minority dead, they must think they're so progressive), have had two black men cast as the biggest villains in the show, treated Ricky Whittle like crap then killed off Lincoln, resorted to dead-lesbian-killed-by-stray-bullet trope, and finally Sinclair, all these are examples of a TV show that's turning out to be a disaster of epic proportions, and the fact that it still exists and people can't see how problematic it is makes me lose the last bit of faith I have for human kind
It must be nice to live in a world where "not everything's about color" when in some people's lives, everything is about color, including whether they get to live or die, in the real world, every day
But no, by all means, I suppose ignorance is a privilege not many people get to have, so they should enjoy it