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Star Trek: Picard: Võx (2023)
The main villian is revealed and an old ship returns
While the eight episodes so far where there to reunite the old crew in the best way possible, this episode is finally revealing the main villian of this show. It is in the end the Borg. And that is good as it is. It isn't some villian from Deep Space Nine. It is the main villian from the The Next Generation. The first villian, that wasn't defeatable right away in one episode only. And their plan is as evil, as it gets. They secretly infiltrated with the help of the changelings the whole fleet and where able to take the whole fleet over in one single strike.
The biggest surprise however is, that Geordi was able to restore the Enterprise D. She has a different drive section, but it's the saucer section with the bridge, which counts. And yes it's the bridge from the show and not the bridge from Generations, which was enhanced. Which is btw commented by Riker, as he thinks the bridge is smaller.
We have wonderful moments from Data, where he salutes his old chair i.e.
There are some small downfalls however. We have only 45 minutes left to defeat the villian, which is too less in my opinion. There are a lof of loose ends which have to be sawn together. The changelings, Jack, the fate of the crew of the Titan and how all of this is interconnected. So we have too less time for all of this. Are they going to succeed to mix this all together in a satisfying way? Maybe the final fight should have been much longer, at least in the length of a feature film. They have invested so much time into the fight against the shrike. That could have been shortened in favor of the final fight against the Borg.
Shaw was killed off, which is a shame. Hew was a wonderful character and it would have been interesting to see him in the future. It was a down to see him die in the manner they did it. It wasn't even heroic.
Interestingly the second season of Picard is left out of the narrative, as of course there was "a" Borgqueen in it. So that the last time they have seen the Borg wasn't ten years ago. Yet this Borgqueen was much different than these Borgs, which now are present in the third season. But how much they departed from the season before is the most obvious here.
Il ragazzo invisibile (2014)
Best in italian
As with many films, translations and dubbed versions are a big problem when seeing them. I had the opportunity to see this film in Italian, first as Amazon in Germany only offers it in Italian and second I speak it fluently.
Bad reviews lament on the bad acting. In the original language there is no bad acting. So it might be that the dubbing ruined some of the experience.
I personally had a lot of fun watching this film. First of all because with Valeria Golino one of my childhood stars was in the film. At the time I saw her for the first time in Rain Man I had no idea she was an italian actor. It was with "Il ragazzo invisibile" that I realised it.
The acting was rather good, considering that it was the first acting job of Ludovico Girardello (the invisible boy) and Noa Zatta (his love interest). Ludovico is likeable as it is possible to connect with his fears and trauma being bullied. Being able to disappear into thin air fits his personality at the beginning of the movie and makes the transition to a stronger self towards the end believable. He has a character-arc which so many teenagers have, just in a shorter time.
The origin of the Specials is an interesting and not more or less credible than any other superhero-take.
Considering the low budget the certainly had, the special effects are good, the scenes are nicely filmed and the low budget is never visible.
Overall a good european production. It's a shame it was only in cinemas in Italy. I would love to see how it would have performed with a dubbed version in Germany. There is a sequel which I am hopefully able to see soon.
Star Trek: Picard: The Next Generation (2023)
There is the feeling again
For the past weeks I have been rewatching Star Trek: The Next Generation again. And if something gets clear from the moment that Picard and Riker join again, the feeling of a wonderful familiarity has returned.
These two characters combined have an incredible chemistry. And although the first two seasons where good in their own way, the always lagged the right chemistry between Picard and the rest of the cast.
When Riker punches a line and Picard responses to it, you get the vibes of the later seasons of The Next Generation and the films. Two scenes underline this in particular. When Riker and Picard are in a double bed, with Riker on the upper bed, telling Riker that this reminds him about being a cadet, except for the fact, that he now needs to pee more often during the night. And when they get ready to enter Crushers ship. Riker refers again to their age, nominating the shaking hand of Picard and his own knees, that are killing him. It makes Riker and Picard so loveable and relatable and that is just wonderful.
There are many more scenes, which are wonderfully written and played. The introduction of Geordis Daughter for example. The confrontation between Picard and Seven of Nine. Great dialogs here and actors who are willing to play these scenes out in a great way.
I for myself cannot wait to see the rest of the original cast joining Riker and Picard. Right now at the beginning of season 3 it seems that the show creators have understood that the finale must be something extraordinary. I am very hopeful that this is going to continue this way.
She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022)
Makes me wanting more
I really don't understand the negative reviews here. I really like and enjoy the show so far. It is the right mix between fun and seriousness. The first episode is hilarious, when Bruce Banner / Hulk realizes, that his cousin is way better in controlling her being a Hulk. He is sometimes a bit jealous and Mark Ruffalo makes a great job showing concern for her in the first place and all these other emotions in the second place.
I loved the fight between the two and how it was played out. I even don't understand why everyone seems to disagree with the quality of the CGI. In the end it's a TV show and still the CGI is very descent. The Hulk looks as in the latest Avengers-films.
The second episode is also very nice. That Jennifer has to take the case of Abomination was a good surprise. And the reaction from Banner was wonderfully written. A great example how different actors for the Hulk can be described.
I really do like, that Jennifer from time to time breaks the fourth wall. It reminds me of another hilarious charakter in the MCU: Deadpool. I would love to see a crossover.
I will continue to watch the show and I assume it will be with great gusto.