West Week Ever: Pop Culture In Review – 1/15/16

So, on the movie front, I watched X-Men: Days of Future Past (The Rogue Cut). Now, I’d already seen the movie in theaters, but I really wanted to know what this edit was about, seeing as how it has been called the “definitive” version of the movie. Well, for starters, Rogue doesn’t appear until an hour and a half into the movie. I didn’t even notice that the opening scenes had been shuffled to the middle of the movie, but they were. As for Rogue’s inclusion, it’s pretty ambitious that it’s called “The Rogue Cut”, seeing as how her addition adds nothing to the movie outside of pleasing a few True Blood fans. Oh, and Iceman dies twice instead of once. Other than that, the movie is pretty much the same. I still enjoyed it, but some of the editing tricks were a little jarring (flashing back and forth between Magneto’s past plan and his future heist). I did notice a few things this time around, though. For example, the future Sentinels are pretty sadistic, in that they actually got creative with their killing. And there’s a mid credit stinger in this version, with Trask in Magneto’s cell. Now, why would they put him in that expensive ass cell when he ain’t got no powers? Anyway, I think I prefer the theatrical cut, but seeing as how everyone seems to think this is Singer’s true vision, it’s probably the one that’s gonna go the distance (after all, it was airing on Cinemax instead of the theatrical version).

Next, I watched the drama We Don’t Live Here Anymore. Starring Mark Ruffalo, Laura Dern, Naomi Watts, and Peter Krause, the film’s about two couples experiencing marital woes in a small town. So, they pretty much just start cheating on their spouses…with each other. It’s a really powerful and emotional film, and I’ve got nothing snarky to say. I’m not sure I recommend it, as it can be uncomfortable to watch at times, but everyone in it gives a great performance.

On the TV front, I caught the MADtv 20th Anniversary Special on The CW. That sentence should say it all: Fox, the network on which MADtv aired, didn’t even care enough about the show to air the special. The rumor’s been that Fox was always somewhat hard on the show because they didn’t own it, but it still carried their late night division for FOURTEEN YEARS, and garnered 35 Emmy nominations. If we’re being honest, though, this anniversary special never would’ve happened without the success of Key & Peele. After all, the duo was introduced to viewers on the show (even though it was when MADtv was at its weakest). With that in mind, it was pretty glaring that Jordan Peele did not participate in the special (Keegan Michael Key recorded a pretaped segment). The special was basically a clip show in the guise of an awards ceremony. At the end, fans were going to vote for their favorite character, and that actor would have to recreate the character onstage. Surely, a classic character like Miss Swan or Stuart would win, right? Nope, it was Bon Qui Qui – a forgettable ghetto caricature from the later seasons. Still, it was nice seeing some of the core cast members again, like Nicole Sullivan, Will Sasso, Michael McDonald, and Debra Wilson. MADtv never really gets enough credit, as it was in the shadow of Saturday Night Live, but there were a few seasons where it gave SNL a run for its money. I’m not really sure it has aged as well as SNL, though. They tried to show some clips, but they weren’t exactly funny. And it’s harder to see MADtv archives, as the only way to see episodes is to watch the 75 that are available on the CW Seed streaming channel.

In movie news, the shortlist for the Star Wars Han Solo…solo film has been revealed, and it includes Miles Teller (Whiplash), Dave Franco (21 Jump Street), and Logan Lerman (Percy Jackson franchise). Apparently, there’s still a month left of shooting Star Wars: Rogue One, and it seems like they want this actor to make an appearance as Han in the film (similar to how Tom Holland was cast to appear in Captain America: Civil War prior to his solo film). Some folks feel like Teller lacks charisma, but he’s really grown on me and I think he’s kinda smug like Han. I’d actually LOVE Franco in the role, but that feels more like a Funny or Die sketch to me instead of a full-length film. And I enjoyed Lerman in Fury, but I don’t know if he’s “Han Solo”. Anyway, the Han movie is scheduled to be released May 25th, 2018.

In other movie news, it’s reported that Amber Heard is in talks to portray Aquaman’s wife, Mera, in both the Aquaman film, as well as the Justice League film. At this point, all we know is that she’ll be playing opposite Jason Momoa’s Aquaman. At the rate Warner Bros is going, however, if they can lock up the deal soon, they’ll probably try to shove her into Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice somehow. I mean, everyone else is in that damn film. The latest rumor is that the whole Justice League will show up, which is suspect seeing as how they haven’t even cast Green Lantern yet. Ya know, I used to consider myself a DC fan foremost, but nothing they announce about these movies gets me excited for them. On Twitter this week, I said that DC is the Republican Party of the comic industry: no matter what they do, they will never be seen as cool or hip. It has taken them so long to get their movies off the ground that they can’t help but be in Marvel’s shadow, at a time when folks are starting to tire of the superhero movie. DC stays losing.

Somehow, JJ Abrams managed to film the sequel to Cloverfield without anyone knowing. A bootleg trailer went online last night for 10 Cloverfield Lane, which appears to star John Goodman and Mary Elizabeth Winstead. They appear to be in some sort of bunker and Goodman doesn’t want Winstead trying to get outside. Abrams has implied the movie is in the same universe as Cloverfield without being a direct sequel. And to make things even more exciting? It comes out March 11th! How this was kept a secret this long is pretty amazing in the Internet Age. Anyway, it looks really good and I can’t wait to Redbox it. What? You thought I was actually going to the theater?

In television news, every media outlet was running around, screaming about a FRIENDS reunion. That was a bit misleading, however. You see, NBC is planning a two-hour special to honor legendary director James Burrows who recently shot his 1,000th episode of television. Since FRIENDS was one of his shows, it’s natural that the cast would show up to honor him, right? Well, NBC isn’t even sure how they’re going to pull it off. They seemed to have secured the involvement of all 6 cast members, but they’re not sure they can get them all physically in one place, so expect some pretaped segments. Also, this clearly isn’t the “reunion” that folks were expecting. Still, it made for good clickbait this week.

In other TV news, a bunch of shows nobody watches won Golden Globes last Sunday. First up was Mozart in the Jungle from Amazon. Despite its name, it apparently is not about Mozart trying to survive in the jungle while teaching music to animals. I really have no clue what it’s about, but it’s got that guy from Y Tu Mama Tambien. Remember that movie? A 17 yr old and his friend have sex with an older woman? Coming of age tale? Just me? OK. Anyway, the real surprise was that Rachel Bloom won Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy for Crazy Ex-Girlfriend. Anyone familiar with Bloom knows that she already has two golden globes (hey-o!) but this win pretty much means that The CW can’t just outright cancel the struggling series. That reminds me that I still have about 5 episodes to catch up on…

The new Sesame Street will debut on HBO this weekend, and some of the changes are coming to light. For example, Oscar the Grouch still lives in a trash can, but that can is now ensconced in a recycling and compost bin. Friggin gentrification! A lot of folks are worried about the show’s transition to HBO, but insiders are saying that this was the only long-term plan for the show’s survival. The show will still air on PBS 6 months after episodes air on HBO.

In music news, sources are saying that One Direction’s recently announced “hiatus” is a permanent split. Whoop-dee-doo! Anyone surprised by this is a moron. After all, *NSYNC has been on “hiatus” since 2002. This is pretty common in the pop world. They don’t really know how their solo careers are gonna do, so they leave the door open for a return. Anyway, Harry Styles will probably get in the studio with some known producers, and he won’t even look back at those other guys. That’s right, Directioners – the end is now.

Yesterday, Marvel announced an ongoing Poe Dameron comic by writer Charles Soule and artist Phil Noto. Ugh. I don’t CARE about Poe Dameron, but I LOVE Phil Noto. I’m sure Disney will have oversight, but don’t folks realize that nothing can really *happen* in this Poe comic? That’s the problem with licensed comics. Nothing can happen. They just give you a bunch of filler stories that fit within movie events. The thinking of “I really loved Poe Dameron, so I can’t wait to learn more about him” isn’t really gonna pay off with a comic. The writer might write in Poe’s “style”, but it’ll ultimately be a throwaway story, dancing between the raindrops of continuity. The Lando comic was pitch perfect. Fully captured who he was. Was great seeing him again. But did it “matter”? At the end of the day, it was like spending time with an old friend. I didn’t learn anything new. Just more of the same.

In other comic news, my pal @TimDogg98 runs the site The Kliqnation, so imagine my surprise when I looked at the back of the Chrononauts trade paperback at my local shop, and saw that his five-star rating had made it to print. Congrats, Tim!

Things You Might Have Missed This Week

• The Al Jazeera America news network is shutting down in April. USA! USA! USA!
• NBC is in early talks to develop Chicago Law, to join the existing Chicago Fire, Chicago PD, and Chicago Med.
• Speaking of NBC, there will be no season 2 for Heroes Reborn
• Creed director Ryan Coogler has officially signed on to helm Black Panther – which, being a superhero film, automatically gets a snub from the Academy unless it’s for Sound Editing or some shit
• Tuesday was the 50th anniversary of the 60s Batman TV series. Nobody did anything special for it, though, so that’s pretty much all there is to say…
• Jonah Hex will appear on Legends of Tomorrow, which means WESTERN EPISODE! Not sure why I typed that like I was excited about it. I’m not really a western fan…
• Weeks after finishing its run on The CW, America’s Next Top Model has been revived by VH-1.

Links I Loved

Finding Rey: #WheresRey, Really? – Idiot Nerd Girl

The Forgotten Way African Americans Stayed Safe in a Racist America – The Washington Post

Tom Brevoort Confirms “No More 616” – And It’s The Last Fantastic Four Story – Bleeding Cool

It was quite the week for the Power Rangers franchise. At the beginning of the week, it was announced that Saban is in fact skipping a season of the Japanese source material, and is instead adapting Shuriken Sentai Ninninger as Power Rangers Ninja Steel. For those not in the know, the skipped season was train-based, and The Powers That Be decided that “kids don’t like trains”. So, Ressha Sentai ToQger was thrown out, and the ninja-based series was subbed in. By Wednesday, we even had the official synopsis for the series:

“Saban’s Power Rangers Ninja Steel starts deep in space, where Zircon is the reigning champion of the most popular intergalactic game show in the universe, and monsters battle to prove who is the mightiest warrior. Zircon is determined to become invincible by controlling the mythical Spirit Crystal, which contains six supernatural Ninja Power Throwing Stars. The only thing standing in his way is a new team of heroic teenage Power Rangers who possess the Spirit Crystal. The evil Zircon sends his warrior contestants down to Earth to steal the Crystal, where each epic battle against the Rangers is broadcast throughout the universe. Together, the Rangers must master their arsenal of Throwing Stars, Zords and Megazords, each made of legendary ninja steel, in order to stop this evil threat and save our planet from destruction.”

Yeah, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to me, either. Basically, it’s a game show where the regular Power Rangers tropes take place. Colorful spandex kicking the shit out of aliens, who eventually get big, and get the shit kicked out of them by robots. The end. The show will debut in 2017, and continue to air on Nickelodeon. I’m not in love with the suit designs, but I like them a Hell of a lot more than that train series. Plus, this one includes a 6th Ranger who’s a space cowboy with an electric guitar sword and a ninja star cheeseburger phone! How Japanese is THAT?!

Meanwhile, the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #0 comic was released by BOOM! on Wednesday to rave reviews. Focusing on the events following the “Green With Evil” miniseries, it focuses on Green Ranger, Tommy, as he learns to be accepted by the team of heroes. On the show, they were basically like “We know you were possessed, so welcome to the team.” In actuality, though, something like that wouldn’t be such a smooth transition. The comic even shipped with 1:50 (Green Ranger) and 1:100 (White Ranger) incentive variant covers, and the sales reports from retailers have been positive. The ongoing series will launch in March.

It wasn’t all good news for the Rangers, though. Remember when I wrote about Ricardo Medina Jr murdering his roommate? While he was released shortly afterward, it seems he’s being formally charged for murder. He’s currently being held on $1 million bond, and he could face 26 years in prison. Medina portrayed Cole, the Red Ranger in the 2002 iteration of the series, Power Rangers Wild Force.

As you can see, the Power Rangers have been on everyone’s lips in some form or fashion this week. Sure, there was the unfortunate Medina situation, but two out of three ain’t bad. So, Power Rangers had the West Week Ever.