West Week Ever: Pop Culture In Review – 5/13/16

On the movie front, I traveled back to 1988 and finally watched They Live. Yeah, I know it’s something of a cult classic, but I’d never gotten around to seeing the thing in its entirety. “Rowdy” Roddy Piper stars as a drifter who stumbles upon a pair of magic sunglasses that reveal the world has been overrun by aliens. They hide subliminal messages in marketing and advertising, convincing humans to “Obey” and “Consume”. In humanity’s quest to acquire more money and status, we ignore the conquest going on around us. Piper and his reluctant partner, in the form of Keith David, decide to stick it to the aliens and take back the night. Why am I even summarizing this film, when everyone reading this is probably more than familiar with it?  Anyway, I really liked it, but I feel like it was too short. Maybe it’s because we currently live in a 2.5 hour action movie society, and I’m spoiled. It’s probably great that the movie was made when it was, as it would’ve been completely different if made today. We would’ve gotten some drawn out origin of the aliens, and then we would be forced to believe that this manual laborer had the computer skills to hack them and take them down. For this film, all it took was a gun and a satellite dish. And what was up with Meg Foster’s eyes?! Was she blind? I’ve never seen eyes like that in nature before. Anyway, it’s a good 80s romp, but it’s just as poignant today as it was when it was released. Maybe even more so. Anyway, I’m sure there’s some unnecessary 21st century update sitting on some producer’s desk as we speak.

Next up, I watched Ted 2 and I really don’t get why it bombed so hard in theaters. I thought the film was just as hilarious as the first one, though not necessarily as good. In this film, teddy bear Ted and human Tami-Lynn decide to have a baby in order to repair their struggling marriage (’cause THAT works…), but their attempt at adoption fails when the courts decide that Ted is property and not a person. He loses his job, the marriage is annulled, and his credit cards are cancelled, so Ted and his Thunder Buddy, John, set out to prove that Ted is, in fact, human. The movie’s basically like a live action Family Guy, and even reuses a few gags from the show. Maybe America just needs a break from Seth MacFarlane. I mean, first A Million Ways To Die In The West bombed, and then this. MacFarlane just isn’t having a lot of luck at the box office, and the first Ted‘s success is starting to look like a fluke. The film’s got some fun in-jokes and cameos from folks like Michael Dorn, Patrick Warburton, and Nana Visitor. Which reminds me: is Michael Dorn OK? Like, has he been sick? ‘Cause he’s lost a LOT of weight, and not in a good way. Anyway, I think this is the first film to promote New York Comic-Con as a big deal. Sure, there are films that showcase SDCC, but this movie put NYCC on the national stage. Anyway, I feel kinda bad for the MacFarlane empire at the moment. This movie underperformed, and then we got the terrible Bordertown and an unmemorable season of Family Guy (which, conspicuously enough, hasn’t been renewed for next season yet). If you’re a MacFarlane fan, you’ve got to see this film. If not, then you should probably just keep moving.

I also finally caught Creed. What a great film! Seriously, it was uplifting and inspiring in all the right ways. Apollo Creed’s illegitimate son seeks out Rocky Balboa to train him to become a fighter outside of his father’s shadow. Michael B. Jordan is just so cool, and great in the role. Director and writer Ryan Coogler did a great job capturing the underlying Rocky themes of redemption and perseverance. It was a great “passing the torch” film, and while I’d welcome a Creed sequel, I’m also fine with it being the coda to the Rocky franchise. I’ve got nothing snarky to say. Just see this movie!

Sadly, I also saw Zoolander 2. I LOVED the first Zoolander, but this movie joins Anchorman 2 in the disappointing “Too Little, Too Late” bin. Seriously, 15 years for a sequel?! The movie is pretty dreadful, and doesn’t really gain any sort of spark until Will Ferrell’s Mugatu reappears halfway into the film. The film kicks off with a break-neck montage to show us what Zoolander’s been up to since 2001. The Center for Kids Who Can’t Read Good and Wanna Learn To Do Other Stuff suffered a structural catastrophe, collapsing into the ocean, killing Zoolander’s wife, Matilda. Derek, then a widower and single parent, has his son taken away from him by Child Protective Services, and he decides to live life as a “hermit crab”. Derek’s brought out of retirement when his son is kidnapped by Mugatu in order to sacrifice him for some mystical fashion ritual. It’s a really crazy plot, but that’s kinda par for the course when it comes to Zoolander films. It’s got a lot of fun cameos, and it features SNL‘s Kyle Mooney in a role where I don’t totally hate him. Like Anchorman 2, it was nice to see the gang back together, but the magic just isn’t there anymore. It had a very lackluster start, but it just barely sticks the landing. You can skip this one.

On TV, I caught the Comedy Central stand-up special Nikki Glaser: Perfect. She talks a lot about sex. A LOT. It’s not that that’s a bad thing. She does it in a funny, self-deprecating kind of way. The problem, though, is the same problem I had with Tosh’s last special: I didn’t watch it when it premiered, so I’d already heard all the jokes on Comedy Central Radio by the time I got around to watching it. Not Glaser’s fault, by any means.

In television news, NBC has officially picked up the DC/Warner Bros series Powerless, which stars Vanessa Hudgens as an insurance agent who handles claims after superhero battles. It’s a workplace comedy set in the DC Universe, and is set to showcase some lower-rung DC heroes. NBC had success with The Office, so they’re going back to the well, but this sounds like a terrible show. Also, I feel it’s way too similar to Damage Control, which is the company in the Marvel Universe that handles repairs after superhero battles. Not coincidentally, a Damage Control show has been rumored to be in development at ABC, but DC and NBC beat them to the punch. Anyway, the show also features Danny Pudi and Alan Tudyk. To me, Tudyk is something of a modern-day Ted McGinley, so I’m not sure that bodes well for this series.

There was a LOT of TV news last night, as the culling began in preparation for the network upfronts next week. On the ABC front, Marvel’s Agent Carter has been cancelled, as well as 8-season stalwart Castle. Meanwhile, the Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. spin-off Marvel’s Most Wanted will not be going ahead at the network. The Muppets has also been canceled after a lackluster first season that required a midseason retooling. Musical Galavant has also been canceled after 2 seasons. In a somewhat surprising move, ABC also canceled the cult favorite Nashville, as well as freshman drama The Family. Over at Fox, Second Chance has been canceled, meaning it won’t be getting, well, a second chance. As a dagger through my heart, Fox also canceled comedies The Grinder and Grandfathered. I kinda bailed on the former (even though I really enjoyed it), but I really felt the latter had grown into something special, with a lot of heart. Oh well, I guess it means Stamos will be more of a presence in season 2 of Fuller House now. Seth MacFarlane’s Bordertown also got the axe. Meanwhile, it’s official, as Supergirl will be moving to The CW in the fall. The Archie series Riverdale has been ordered to series, while Containment has been canceled. Also, NBC has ordered Chicago Justice to series, therefore basically handing their network to Dick Wolf.

If you watched last night’s Legends of Tomorrow, then you’ll understand why Wentworth Miller won’t be a series regular next season. Instead, he’s entered into an interesting deal with Warner Bros TV that essentially makes him a regular in the “Berlantiverse”, not tied to one particular show. His talents will primarily be spread across Flash and Legends next year, but he could even appear on Arrow or Supergirl. I guess WB realized they had something special on their hands with that character and, while I’m sad to see he won’t be part of the Waverider crew next year, I am glad to see it’s not the end of the road for Leonard Snart.

On the music front, Justin Timberlake released his first song since 2013 last Friday. Called “Can’t Stop The Feeling”, it’s from the soundtrack to the upcoming DreamWorks animated film Trolls. It’s already being called “the song of the summer”, but it’s only May so let’s not get carried away. Still, any chance to see Ron Funches and Anna Kendrick dance (for different reasons, of course!), is a good thing. It’s a fun little ditty, so check it out.

In the world of video games, Disney Infinity has been discontinued, and Disney is exiting the game publishing industry. Reportedly, they’re taking a $147 million loss, which is surprising considering the platform featured Star Wars and Marvel characters in addition to Disney ones. I mean, if you can’t make money with Marvel and Star Wars right now, you’re doing business wrong. Anyway, I never trusted any of those “figurine switcheroo” games because they just seem like cash grabs. Skylanders seemed kinda groundbreaking, but then we ended up with Infinity, LEGO Dimensions, and amiibo – not to mention Hasbro’s own failed Playmation platform. Are they in the game industry or the collectible figure industry? Because it doesn’t seem like you can successfully be in both for long.

Things You Might Have Missed This Week

• It was reported that Alden Ehrenreich has been cast as Han Solo in the Star Wars character’s solo film. Never heard of him, but good for him!
• Ben Affleck was named an executive producer on the Justice League film, amid rumors that Zack Snyder and Warner Bros are currently fighting over the project.
• Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne split up after 33 years together, after Sharon allegedly caught Ozzy having an affair with a celebrity hairstylist
• Victoria “Posh Spice” Beckham admitted that her mic was never on during Spice Girls performances
• The Superman prequel Krypton has been ordered to pilot at SyFy. Seriously, though – who gives a shit about Krypton?
• After 30 years with the company, Steve Lombardi, also know as the Brooklyn Brawler, was released by WWE.
• Gentlemen, start your engines! Topanga’s back on the market! Danielle Fishel has divorced her husband after 2 years of marriage
• Chris Evans is reportedly dating Jenny Slate. I’m not sure which one I’m more jealous of!
• CSI: Cyber was cancelled by CBS, ending the CSI franchise for the foreseeable future

I had the pleasure of joining @TimDogg98, @ClassickMateria, @Agent_70, @Roddykat, and @blackastronaut1 for a special treasury edition of The Comic Book Chronicles, as we discussed Captain America: Civil War. It was a fun chat, so be sure to check it out.

It’s currently the #1 movie in the WORLD. It opened in the US to $179 million last weekend. It introduced the man on the street to Black Panther. It’s loved by almost everyone. And I’ve gotten 2 podcast appearances out of the whole thing. I won’t get into story beats, as not everyone’s seen it, plus I’ve already discussed it ad nauseam on the aforementioned podcasts. So, I think it’s fair to say that, for the second week in a row, Captain America: Civil War had the West Week Ever.