Can you believe it’s the last day of January? It felt like this month took years again and it sure wasn’t that much easier than anything in 2020 … but that’s a topic for tomorrow’s wrap-up. Let’s talk trailers today!
Month: January 2021
My Year Abroad by Chang-rae Lee (eARC Review)
Publisher: Riverhead Books 
Page Count: 496
Release Date: February 2, 2021
Further synopsis taken from Goodreads:
In the breathtaking, “precise, elliptical prose” that Chang-rae Lee is known for (The New York Times), the narrative alternates between Tiller’s outlandish, mind-boggling year with Pong and the strange, riveting, emotionally complex domestic life that follows it, as Tiller processes what happened to him abroad and what it means for his future. Rich with commentary on Western attitudes, Eastern stereotypes, capitalism, global trade, mental health, parenthood, mentorship, and more, My Year Abroad is also an exploration of the surprising effects of cultural immersion–on a young American in Asia, on a Chinese man in America, and on an unlikely couple hiding out in the suburbs. Tinged at once with humor and darkness, electric with its accumulating surprises and suspense, My Year Abroad is a novel that only Chang-rae Lee could have written, and one that will be read and discussed for years to come.
*I was provided with an eARC by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review!*
CW: parental abandonment, suicidal ideation, mental illness, forced labor, forced sexual intercourse, sex work
Let’s get it out of the way. Unfortunately, I was not the right reader for this book.
I had been very eager to pick up this novel, because of my own experiences abroad. Be it during my formative High School years or later on in life, every time I went to a different country for a longer period of time, I learned something about the world, about people and most importantly myself. No matter where I stayed, it changed me and taught me valuable lessons. I cherish those experiences and thought it would be a great connection to this story. But no matter how hard I tried, I constantly found myself losing interest.
Told between alternating timelines of now and the adventure that got Tiller to his present situation, I couldn’t always quite make the connection between the different scenarios. I felt that the story was disjointed and didn’t evoke the emotional effect I had hoped for. The journey abroad and its aftermath were so important, yet Tiller doesn’t even leave his country until about 40% into the book.
While everything Tiller describes has a purpose, it’s still hard to follow him as he finds value in situations you wish he had never gotten into. I don’t think anything ever goes smoothly when you set out for something potentially life-changing, but where he found himself along the way was among the worst that could happen. There are some clear themes around parenthood, taking action (which Tiller does very late in the book, mostly being an inactive protagonist who things happen to rather than someone who makes things happen – but that’s all part of the journey!) kinship and the privilege of certain opportunities. And yet, I still couldn’t always grasp the fondness for certain people and experiences I would have rather never thought of ever again, while Tiller had them on the highest of pedestals.
Ultimately, I think that this style of writing just wasn’t for me. I can see many literary fans rejoicing in the details, but I found myself drifting off mid-sentence as the descriptions became ever more elaborate and lengthy. In general, this book was just too long, offering pages of minute details of various foods and drinks or other things, just information on top of information, but not the connection to me as a reader I really sought. I am certain others will be able to appreciate Lee’s craftsmanship and skill more than I could.
Fazit: 2/5 stars! Unfortunately, My Year Abroad failed to capture me.
Have you spent some time abroad? What was it like for you? Can you see yourself picking up a book like this?
WandaVision: Episode 4 “We Interrupt This Program” Review
Once again, I’d like to reiterate that this review of mine is filled with SPOILERS and should only be read after having watched the episode! Proceed at your own risk.
What was it about?
In a look back, it is revealed how S.W.O.R.D. and other organisations are involved with the monitoring of Westview and the information they have learned.
My thoughts?
This was definitely a change of pace. I’m not 100% sure how I feel about the disruption of the storytelling style, but I can understand why they wanted to provide background information as well as a different perspective.
First of all, we learn that Monica Rambeau was one of the people who were snapped out of existence by Thanos. Upon her return, she discovers that Maria Rambeau, her mother and vital founding member of S.W.O.R.D., had passed in her absence because of cancer. Despite the heartbreaking news, she returns to work right away, although being grounded and only cleared for terrestrial cases. This puts her in the way of Jimmy Woo (former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent who now works for the FBI and who we have met previously in Ant Man and the Wasp), who is looking for a missing person, someone who is in witness protection.
That person was supposed to be in Westview, a town no one knows or remembers. The 3,892 people inside forgotten by everyone they once knew … except that Jimmy does remember the missing person. And he can also see the town, just like Maria. It is not clarified why they aren’t affected by the selective amnesia, except for not having a personal connection to the town.
In an attempt to investigate, Maria gets sucked into Westview, prompting S.W.O.R.D. to step in and hiring a couple experts. Enter Doctor Darcy Lewis (known from Thor), who finds the broadcasting waves that let the agents watch the Wanda and Vision show.
In general, I feel like this episode answered a lot of question, even if it opened up some new ones in the process. We now know that things/people that pass the threshold to Westview forget who they are (except for rare moments of lucidity) and get transformed to fit into whatever time period is currently the most recent one.
We also have confirmation of Wanda’s awareness of the situation. Not only did we get to see how exactly she threw Geraldine/Monica out of town, but we also see her reassuring Vision that she has “everything under control”. As sinister as that already sounded, it is yet again verified when Monica comes back to herself and tells S.W.O.R.D. “It’s Wanda. It’s all Wanda.”
One of the things I adored was that Jimmy Woo had pretty similar questions to those we as viewers had the past couple of weeks as well. Let’s take a look at what he put on the whiteboard:
- Why hexagonal shape? – good question! That shape has been present everywhere and could be an indication of so many different things. Is it just hex as in magic? Does it have something to do with Hive? All still very unclear.
- Why sitcoms? – they sure are entertaining, but why indeed? With their silly logic and happy world, they might just be a comfort for Wanda. Who knows?
- Why the different decades? – this is similarly unclear as the previous question. However, S.W.O.R.D. also asked themselves whether the broadcast was live, which I could not tell. It was hard to know how much time had passed outside of Westview and if they saw more/less than what we did. It seemed to me like they only had access to “episode 1” for a long time before things changed, but I could be wrong about that.
- Is Vision alive? – I think the answer here is no. For a brief moment, we saw Wanda acknowledge that Vision’s death happened, but it wasn’t enough to startle her back to reality. I think, in part, this just might have made her more determined to stay in Westview and keep everything neat and tidy, especially after Vision suggested they could always leave. However, he does seem to question the world they are living in, which might hint at part of his mind having been preserved before Thanos took the mind stone from him. Otherwise, why would Wanda allow him to question the perfect little world she made for them?
All in all, I believe this episode might not have been as much for the casual viewer as previous ones. It required a lot of information on what had happened in the Marvel universe before and if you wanted any kind of connection to the characters introduced, you would have had to watch a variety of movies (from Ant Man and Captain Marvel to Thor) to have known them from before. I personally love the connection to all those previous works, but I am still not sure how I feel about the POV change. If it’s only for this episode, I think I can live with it, but it was still quite the info dump buffer episode.
If you have missed my previous reviews, you can check them out here:
How was this episode for you? Did it catch you off guard or did you enjoy it? Let’s chat!
TMP – TV Edition: 2020 Freshmen Series
It’s Thursday, which means it’s time for the Thursday Movie Picks feature. This series is hosted by Wandering through the Shelves and offers you a weekly prompt to post some movie recommendations/talking points according to the theme. Usually, you are supposed to post about 3-5 examples, which I find a very manageable amount.
I am sorry if this getting a bit repetitive, but today’s theme is all about 2020 Freshmen Series, which means TV shows that aired for the first time last year. Now, I did a whole post on that already when I ranked my favourite new TV shows of 2020 (which you can check out here if you need a reminder). Seen as I don’t want to do the exact same thing again, I’m going to focus solely on the shows I liked (maybe not my top picks, but still good ones) that I think went unnoticed by the public. A lot of series managed to reach quite a large audience, but others not so much, especially in terms of international content. I’m not just going to showcase foreign shows, but there’s going to be some! Let’s celebrate them!
Little Voice
2020 was surprisingly full of amazing music-centric shows. We had Julie and the Phantoms for a predominately younger audience and Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist for everyone else. I adore both those shows and would 100% recommend them to anyone who wanted something emotional and upbeat at the same time. But, I would also recommend Little Voice. With a beautiful cinematography and amazing songs from Sara Bareilles it is sure to capture your hearts! (Yes, once again, I am strongly advocating for Apple TV+ content)
Ragnarok
If you enjoy Norse mythology, but prefer a modern setting, this might just be for you! Tackling subjects such as climate change, Ragnarok feels current, but also captures the intrigue of old myths. It might not be the retelling you’d expect, but the lines on who is the villain and who is the hero aren’t always as clear as they seem. (Season 2 is already filming!)
Vampires
(would recommend watching it in French with subtitles, but could only find a French trailer without subtitles)
Vampire content fluctuates in popularity and doesn’t always manage to grab audiences. Vampires, on Netflix, felt pretty refreshing to me. Yes, I will admit to still shipping something that’s problematic and there must be some gene in vampires that makes them inherent stalkers, but it also felt different like so many other shows and movies I had seen with those creatures before. (Season 2 has yet to be confirmed)
The Mess You Leave Behind
This is (I think) a limited series, so it wraps up nicely. My main draw for the show was Aron Piper, but eventually I just wanted to know what had happened. Moving between present and past, the viewer learns about what happened at a Spanish school in the country and the mess the new teacher inherited. Not going to lie, it’s sometimes tough to root for … well, anyone? But the intrigue was kept nicely, even with a slow pace.
Blood & Water
Being one of South Africa’s first Netflix productions, it centers around the divide between the poor and the rich as well as child kidnapping and corruption – all things that hook you easily. True to being the teenagers they are, they sometimes trust too easily or are so closed off, it seems ridiculous. I wouldn’t hold it against them, but just be aware of the drama that comes with that. (Season 2 is confirmed)
If you are looking for more recommendations on TV shows that don’t have an onslaught of seasons out already, I’d love to redirect you to my 2020 ranking once again (click here). Did you watch any of the shows I mentioned? What were some shows you think deserved more attention in 2020?
What I’ve Been (Binge-)Watching #52
Looks like I have fallen into a bi-weekly rhythm of updating you on my viewing habits! I think that usually gives me a nice amount of time to catch up on some new (and old) releases, so, I hope you enjoy this as a probably established schedule now. Here we go!
Fate: The Winx Saga (Season 1)
Okay, where to start?
If you are a fan of the original animated Winx series or the comics … this ain’t it? Even if I disregard the casting choices and the erasure of certain characters of color or with a diverse background, it just doesn’t say Winx to me. Neither in cinematography, nor the pacing, nor anything else. They just took some names and abilities and made something different in my opinion, which is okay, but the Winx-connection makes it weird.
I watched the whole thing in a day, so there must be something not horrible about it, but a lot of the characters (*cough* Riven *cough*) made me cringe so hard with their more than problematic statements. It’s not … great? But I did end up really enjoying their take on Musa as well as the new addition Terra, Sam and Silva.
If you feel like giving it a go, sure, why not? Just lower your expectations considerably.
For fans of: drama-filled teen fairy stories
Sanditon (Season 1)
I fully understand why this was recommended to people who enjoyed Bridgerton, as it’s very much in the line of Daphne and the Duke’s love story in part.
For those of you who don’t know, Sanditon was Jane Austen’s final novel, which she never got to complete herself. She gifted it to her niece, who also didn’t finish it, but it eventually did get an end. The itv series decided to do their take on the material and I thought they did a great job. Some characters were insufferable, but the main love triangle was interesting to me, because I could see the woman end up with either one of them. (We shall not speak of the other love-hexagons that were just iffy in part) I was so invested in the fates of everyone, I felt genuinely sad whenever a new problem arose.
Since this is not a mini-series, but something that is designed to go on for a couple seasons, I am so very happy that the fans of the show rallied in support and got it another season. It completely flew under my radar before that.
For fans of: Jane Austen, Bridgerton, Poldark maybe, regency romances
Cobra Kai (Season 1-3)
Why has it taken me so long to watch this show? I do not know. For one, I don’t really consider myself the target group for it. I literally have no recollection of ever watching Karate Kid (any version of it) and I only really associate it with HIMYM for some reason. However, I do understand the hype around it.
But, and this is really a very me thing, while I did enjoy it, I think I didn’t take away what you were supposed to. All I could feel for the majority of the three seasons was sadness. I would not want my kid in any of the dojos, because people repeatedly kept ending up in the hospital and juvenile detention/prison. For many characters, karate was their saving grace. It gave them confidence, purpose and something to believe in, but I was just so pissed at the adults most of the time. They had these kids look up to them and believe their every word and what did they do with that? Fight. Some of them are actual psychos and I don’t understand the point of their “war”. What is the end of it? Someone literally dying??
So, while the show does have some emotional moments, I think it’s mostly supposed to be fun? And I do love some of the characters, but … yeah. I was mad a lot.
For fans of: Karate Kid
Disenchantment (Part 3)
Not gonna lie, I was massively bored this season. Except for one big reveal, which I won’t spoil, I feel like we barely moved anything along and Richard Ayoade voicing a character was its saving grace for me. In general, Disenchantment is a show I tend to just let run in the background rather than pay a lot of attention to, but this time I didn’t even feel bad for doing that …
For fans of: animated stuff but for adults and make it magic?
Promising Young Woman
This movie was everything I had hoped it to be!
The mix of sugary-sweet cinematography with a very jarring look at our grueling society that favors promising young men over the fate of women over and over was *chef’s kiss*. Carey Mulligan shines as Cassie and will always keep you in suspense about what she might do next. The entire movie makes so much sense, hits hard in many, many moments, but also surprises you constantly. The casting of actors who formerly played absolute sweethearts and lovable characters as the douchebags and predators was another a stroke of genius. Also, top notch soundtrack!
I don’t even want to tell you too much about it, because it’s best to just experience it for yourself.
Side note: I don’t think any other movie could have managed to bring back Paris Hilton’s “Stars are Blind” the way Promising Young Woman did.
For fans of: empowered women, social issues such as rape culture, anyone from the cast
Lastly, I wanted to include something new. The shows I mentioned above are all ones that I have watched the entire seasons of, as I otherwise loose track of what I have “reviewed” or talked about already, but for the first time in a long time, network TV shows are back on the weekly. So, here is my viewing schedule and you are always free to talk to me about anything on here and can expect me to be up to date on the program. (Also, have watched the pilot of Walker, but it’s not listed)
Did you watch any of the shows or movies mentioned? Do you plan to? Let’s talk!
Trailers You Might Have Missed … (Jan 18-24/2021)
I am glad there are more trailers again than there were around the turn of the year. Let’s hope all those things will actually release in 2021 (or for whenever they are planned at the moment). Here’s the trailers I found!
Book to Screen Adaptations 2021
I feel like I am often skimming on the book content for the blog, but have plenty of movies and TV shows to talk about. In an effort to combine those elements, I wanted to share with you a post about 2021 book to screen adaptations. This list is neither complete nor have I read all the books the material will be based on. However, I am known for liking my movie covers and reading books once I have seen trailers, so, I want to share some that I found interesting.
WandaVision: Episode 3 “Now in Color” Review
As promised, I am back with another WandaVision review! As with the previous post, I would like to point out that this is meant to be read after watching the episode to avoid any kind of spoilers. I will not hold back!
What was it about?
After discovering Wanda’s fast pregnancy, the pair tries to prepare for the imminent birth as best as possible, all the while fighting off their growing suspicions of something being off in Westview.
My thoughts?
As we are hurtling through the decades with WandaVision, now squarely in the 70s, I adore how easily recognizable they make their inspiration in terms of intro and style of the episode. This time we clearly got an homage to the Brady Bunch, which seems fitting as it was the birth of the (at least to Wanda and Vision) unexpected twins.
In the comics, their sons William and Thomas (on the show only lovingly called Billy and Tommy for now) mirror the powers of Wanda and her late twin brother Pietro. It will be interesting to see where they go with the boys on the show as their lore in Marvel history thus far is quite scattered. It does, however, point to the much suggested involvement of Mephisto in whatever is happening to Wanda. Since it has been said that WandaVision will also heavily tie into Doctor Strange’s Multiverse of Madness and Mephisto is a main antagonist of Doctor Strange (and often Spider-Man too) as well as Stephen Strange being a big part of the twins’ lives, things are shaping up to go even more into that direction. We shall see!
I do enjoy the general progression of the show! Much of the appeal is due to the dichotomy between fun, silly sitcom tropes and the complete tonal shift to dread and more serious matters. Both, Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany, deserve a tremendous amount of praise for how quickly they manage to switch between these contrasting emotions and portrayals. It’s often quite chilling to go from discomfort to bliss in an instant. I wasn’t sure how soon they would get into the nitty-gritty of their world, but I thought there were some incredible revelations this week.
I’ve mentioned before that I believed that important moments were shown mostly through Wanda’s eyes, but this week had an interesting shift to include major moments with Vision alone. He seems to be more plagued by whatever is off about their town and neighbors than Wanda is, which makes sense in that we believe she is partially responsible for what is going on. Once again, he got cut off by Wanda when he started asking too many questions (prompting me to believe my internet wasn’t working right, when it really was some smart editing choices). It shows an awareness and consciousness on his part that I probably did not expect in a character that is supposed to be deceased and possibly only imaginary.
This time, I have no useful theory about the “commercial break”. It was obviously a Hydra reference again, prompting the potential customers to find their inner goddess. If my suggestions last time had been correct, with the ads pointing to significant events in Wanda’s life in chronological order, there should have been an Ultron or Quicksilver reference, but we got that from Geraldine instead.
UPDATE on Hyrda Soak and it’s possible connection to previous Marvel content:
While Vision was off on his own, getting warnings about Geraldine having no home, family or husband in Westview, Wanda also had a confrontation with the very same woman. If the final scenes of the episode are anything to go by, it looks like Westview is a very real town, but shut off from the rest of the world and suspended in old-timey sitcom bliss. Whoever lives there is bound to it and cannot leave. It looked like Wanda was not pleased to have her possibly self-made reality disturbed by a S.W.O.R.D. agent and therefore kicked Geraldine/Monica out, once again confirming that she has tremendous power over what is happening.
Now that we know all that, I simply have to wonder why Agnes and Herb showed concern about Geraldine’s presence in Westview and why Agnes stopped Herb from saying anything more to Vision. Clearly, they are stuck in that town as well, but do they not want to get out or are they worried that confronting Wanda (and Vision) with reality would end up putting them in danger? As Agnes is rumored to be Agatha Harkness, a fellow witch and potential villain, she might also have her own interest at heart in keeping Wanda put. It’s fair to say that I am curious! While the episode definitely answered some questions, it also opened up an onslaught of new ones!
I have to say, I wish they would continue with airing two episodes each week. On the one hand, I am glad that I am forced to be patient instead of binging it all in one go and then being miserable it’s all over, but on the other hand, 30-minute-long episodes are just not enough. This show is so much fun and so brilliantly intricate, I just want more.
Are you all caught up on WandaVision? Did you enjoy their take on the 70s? Let’s chat!
Thursday Movie Picks – Police Detective
It’s Thursday, which means it’s time for the Thursday Movie Picks feature. This series is hosted by Wandering through the Shelves and offers you a weekly prompt to post some movie recommendations/talking points according to the theme. Usually, you are supposed to post about 3-5 examples, which I find a very manageable amount.
This week the theme is Police Detective, which, again, isn’t one of my strong suits if I am being completely honest here. Maybe it’s because I just generally am not the biggest fan of the thriller and crime genre, but we shall see what I can come up with. (I was gonna put Knives Out there because of Benoit Blanc, but then … I realized he wasn’t an actual police detective, but a private investigator, so … yeah). Maybe it won’t have to be about detectives, but they could just be in the movie? This is going to require some pondering.
Kindergarten Cop
I want to make one thing clear for today and that’s that these movies (and shows) aren’t really recommendations so much as my brain trying to think of ANYTHING cop related I have watched. Also, as a fellow Austrian, I guess Arnold Schwarzenegger is just someone at the back of my mind? I’ve seen this movie so many times since I was a kid, but it’s still so cheesy.
Hollywood Homicide
It’s a ridiculous film but the Josh Hartnett and Harrison Ford combo worked for me. Bear in mind that this was early 2000s and so inappropriate at times, but a cop who’d rather be an actor is funny to me.
Young Wallander (TV show)
Because I am unable to think of many more cop movies, I have decided to just list shows … well, frankly because this is my blog and I can.
My dad likes watching the Kurt Wallander movies and this is basically a more aesthetically pleasing prequel series about how Kurt became a high ranking detective. It’s filmed in Sweden with Swedish actors, but in the English language. I guess they wanted that international appeal.
Frequency (TV show)
I KNOW that there’s also the Frequency movie, but I haven’t seen that and I am therefore not sure if the show was a reboot or a sequel, but it’s cancelled either way? I did enjoy it while it was on though. I guess I liked that it wasn’t just crime, but also had a supernatural element to it.
What are some movies and shows with police detectives you liked? I can’t say I am seeking them out very much, but maybe you can pitch something interesting.
Trailers You Might Have Missed … (Jan 11-17/2021)
What a week! With shows slowly returning on networks, I have felt so much more excited about TV again. I didn’t realise how solemn it was to wait for Netflix releases every week. Anyway, let’s take a look at what else we can expect this year!
Life and Other Disasters 