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JosephFabeetz
Reviews
Law & Order: Organized Crime: The Last Supper (2024)
Really?
OK. NYPD and FBI have THE key witness to take down an arm of the cartel dumping fentanyl on the city. And they let them stay at home guarded by a few detectives who didn't even bring enough ammo. C'mon! So cartel machine guns start blasting in an elite neighborhood and somehow our hero arrives from his family dinner before NYPD and FBI SWAT? Then, despite running out of ammo, our heroes defeat an armed to the teeth cartel hit squad with hand guns. Really? Real cops must roll their eyes watching this. I'd like to hear from a reviewer who knows law enforcement protocol and technique.about how this "protection" would have been done in real life.
Blacklight (2022)
Embarrassing to All Involved
A pathetic effort. The writers totally missed what could have been an engaging character and story. The early scene where Neeson saves the undercover agent was good stuff. Though of curse the bad guys were White red necks. That's the only group Hollywood is comfortable turning into villains!
Why didn't they make the movie about Neeson saving undercover agents in trouble? Hero being a grizzled old pro finding ways to save the day! Instead the plot sunk to an insipid conspiracy larded with a tired domestic father/daughter/granddaughter story. Creative writers could have concocted undercover agents in all sorts of trouble. Our hero reports to the Director and works alone due to need for plausible deniability. But no, writers decided to go stupid.
Pity.
NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service: Too Many Cooks (2023)
Entertaining when my eyes weren't rolling ...
I agree with other reviews, i. E., geography makes such collaboration implausible. Would NCIS really pay for a few agents to attend a retirement party? Wait. I take that back. Our government pays for far stupider things. I digress.
The plot - evil CIA - is trite but the story moved along. My eyes roll at usual absurdities:
- 110 pound female agents routinely, even when jumped from behind, whup arses of 200 pound highly trained killers and hardly a bruise;
- Already knowing they're in pursuit of a secret army wielding "military grade" munitions, our agent still wander off in pairs with no back up;
- When attacked by said killers wearing body armor and armed with automatic weapons and grenade launchers, our team efficiently takes them all out with hand guns (amazing how thousands of bad guy bullets hit nothing)!
And finally ... PLEASE spare us another in house romance! Dialog amongst these couples makes me gag.
NCIS: Los Angeles: Of Value (2022)
PLEASE!!!
Have Kenzie and Deeks quit to become teachers in Montana. It can be a nice goodbye. This shtick about parenting Rosa is so insipid. Please stop. This is a crime procedural, not Leave it to Beaver.
Their cutesie relationship has eyes rolling week after week. Let them keep solving crime and keep their personal life in the cutting room. We're already incredulous about how a Federal law enforcement agency would let a married couple be partners. It is a hoot to see 110 pound Kensi kick ass of a 200 pound killer. But I digress.
Good guys find and take down bad guys. Zotz everything else because the audience does NOT care.
FBI: Flopped Cop (2022)
Agree with other reviewer
I thought it was a good story until the end. Tiff didn't need to kill the ex-cop who helped her catch the gad guy. No FBI agent would kill him at that range.. She could let the ex-cop first zotz the creep (which he deserved and Tiff shot him anyway!)! I gave it an extra 2 stars because it was otherwise a good tale. Tiff isn't credible. She should leave NYC andmove to Montana.
It's time for this show to deal with political corruption within the FBI. Be real, the FBI is dirty. Also highlight day-to-day crime in NYC.
Also answer this please: FBI launches a full SWAT attack with dudes in helmets and body armor, but our stars lead the way with FBI vests. Sure.
Fire Country (2022)
Awful
Fire Country is actually worse than awful. An interesting premise, i. E., convicts given a path to redemption, ends up dripping with soap opera plot and acting.
Did writers have a contest to see who could invent the most oddball relationships to stuff into this mess? Maybe these relationships (family, romantic, political, etc) could be established over a season of episodes. But no, the writers launch them all in episode one. As no relationship was compelling, I won't be tuning into episode two.
The fires have more personality than the actors. There's no way to sustain this travesty beyond 4 episodes the network has in their can.
FBI: Most Wanted: Inheritance (2022)
Much Better With McDermott
The show has more edge to it. The team is chasing bad people without delivering sermons on social issues. I hope it stays on this course. This episode was clever and interesting.
NCIS: Los Angeles: Down the Rabbit Hole (2022)
Good Episode!
It seems writers are wrapping up tired story lines! Yay. Episode even better because Deeks is in South America! Leave him there and have Kensi join him. My skin crawls when they're riffing about their lives and illegal immigration ... oops .... I mean adoption. I digress. This episode was clever and enjoyable.
The Last Kingdom: Episode #5.3 (2022)
When will she die?
Writers let Brida hijack the show. A villain must be interesting; Brida is not. A lunatic has dramatic value for an episode or two before being tedious.
I thought this would be the episode she is zotzed. So disappointing as her story arc is beaten to death (pun intended).
Knowing UK history, I'm glad writers are pulling the story back to actual events. Soap opera-ish drama (e.g., Edward's affairs) leading to actual events makes good TV. Edward the Elder was no fool.
I resist using IMDb to look ahead and "spoil" future episodes. I am encouraged that this Season will end the story.
The Endgame: Happily Ever After (2022)
One and Done
After executing complex capers featuring an army of ferocious confederates, Elena and Sergei make their escape from the FBI and their sworn enemy driving an SUV alone through the woods. Oh, let's let bodyguards go on vacation. What could go wrong? Then when her husband is killed and child kidnapped, who does the head of an international crime syndicate call for help? Why the FBI of course! A second season plot is more predictable than sun setting in the west. Good cast. Elegant production. Ridiculous story. NBC should let sun set on this franchise.
FBI: One Night Stand (2022)
Good TV
OK. There were plot holes and head scratching moments. But this was a straight on cop drama with no political BS and no clearly stupid scenes. I lie. There was the classic scene where bad guys - oops, bad people = confront our heroes with automatic weapons only to be zotzed by our team armed only with hand guns. (In reality, there would have been a pile of dead FBI'ers. Amazing how our heroes avoid an avalanche of bullets!)
If writers stick to their mission, i. E., to entertain, this series can last.
The Endgame: Sleepover (2022)
Writers have confused themselves ...
Each episode is more convoluted. Characters are out of a Marvel comic book. Could America's top Black Ops site be taken down so easily by one man? And if all power went down (no backup generator?) and Command Central knew it, why weren't attack helicopters immediately sent? Ah, but why send the Calvary when one agent can drive out in his car! Weapons are all old and locked up, but there was a medical kit capable of saving a chest stab wound. And, of course, the FBI Director was once a Marine Medic.
Still, it was hard not to laugh when the CIA's top assassin, after slaughtering 7 armed and armored FBI SWAT gorillas, is dispatched by two unarmed 110 pound women in designer outfits. I can't identify good guys - oops good persons -- and bad persons anymore.
The plot is absurd, eyes role at fake accents, and dialogue ridiculous. But the show is elegantly visual and.stars are attractive. So I'll hang in and watch to conclusion! Perhaps. A rebound in final episodes is nigh?
NCIS: Los Angeles: Perception (2022)
IT'S OFFICIAL!!
NCIS LA is now unwatchable. Apart from insipid social commentary, the plot (insider stealing Navy equipment) has been done100 times. Deeks and Kenzie are insufferable. Let's have them move to Montana. The finale (perp grabbing a hostage) talked down by our hero is featured by every procedural every week. I get it ... after 12 seasons writers run out of ideas. Wrap this up. [BTW: LAPD should ban any further cooperation with producers of this show. Portrayal of LAPD cops was beyond insulting.]
Message Man (2018)
Standing Ovation!
This flick delivers EXACTLY what it intended to do. Pure action. Just enough soap opera to justify the action. Is it John Wick "Lite?". Well maybe. But if you're going to copy ... do it with style! Make your popcorn and watch this.
A Walk Among the Tombstones (2014)
When you have to shoot. Shoot. Don't talk.
Kenny should have heard Eli Wallach's advice! Instead he ends up dead.
I give this a 6 as it's watchable on Netflix. A solid 5. Plausible plot though needs more action. Glad I didn't pay for a ticket and popcorn to see it.
The ending is so stale. The bad guy somehow gets loose after the better bad guy doesn't just shoot him. Meanwhile, the good guy (Neeson) gets his ass kicked before he does follow Eli Wallach's advice.
NCIS: Los Angeles: Murmuration (2022)
PLEASE!! Enough with Kensi and Deeks soap opera.
This episode was good. AI and cluster drones are worthy to build a plot around. Always fun when they go aboard a Navy ship! I was pleased by (rare) absence of insipid social commentary. This a solid NCIS LA episode. But ... the Kensi / Deeks repartee is so stale. Further, they're both about 40 years old and are clucking like teenagers. Have a baby. Don't have a baby. Better yet, have a baby and move to Toledo. Time for more serious agents.
The Snowman (2017)
Watchable ... but very confusing
I'll echo other reviews suggesting this could have been SOOOO much better. The snowy landscape was elegant throughout. Cast was very attractive. The snowman was properly creepy. It just didn't come together. A fine distraction on Netflix though glad I didn't buy a ticket to see it. I'll digress: What is is with movie makers and smoking? I don't smoke, but I'm not an anti-smoking zealot. But Harry Hole's constant smoking became a distraction hindering the flow.
The Blacklist: Arcane Wireless (No. 154) (2022)
Finally!!
Now THIS is the Blacklist we once knew and loved! Multi-layered plot with twists and turns, familiar characters, no WOKE BS, and wry dialogue all leading to a satisfying experience. I rate it at 9 only because I still can't get past Dembe being an FBI agent. Hmm ... since Raymond is back, I wonder who Dembe really works for. I guess we'll see.
The Baytown Outlaws (2012)
Exactly what a B Movie should be!
Starring names you know, ridiculous plot, action, yuks, and (best of all!) no BS social message. For mindless entertainment, far surpasses network offerings. Actors must have had a blast (pun intended) shooting this romp. It's worth watching just to enjoy bad guys (and bad girls) trying to zotz bad guys. Two vignettes during credits made me laugh. We won't see this on Oscar night, but you'll like it more than whatever wins Best Picture this year.
FBI: International: Close to the Sun (2022)
More Awful Writing
OK. This plot - our hero tries to get her innocent informant off the hook for murder - has been done by every crime procedural since the genre was invented. This is a boring plot executed by bored actors. Hey writers: How about making informant GUILTY of killing a cop. Then we have real drama. Does the FBI protect an informant who can expose arms sales to terrorists thus saving hundreds of lives? Or let him fry for being a dirtbag murderer? Now we have a story.
This Means War (2012)
Mindless Entertainment
There is nothing remarkable about this script, but very attractive actors/actresses are having fun. You'll enjoy it more than another infuriating episode of NCIS or FBI. It was so dumb in spots that I had to laugh. A solid 6.
Jolt (2021)
ENTERTAINING!
Ridiculous premise, but carried off with flair! Far better than anything you'll find on network tv. Rather than suffer through another insipid episode of FBI or NCIS LA, get a JOLT.
NCIS: Naval Criminal Investigative Service: False Start (2021)
Yay!
Back to the good old days of solving crimes directly related to the Navy! No political lectures. No explosions and gun fights. No soap opera schmutz (and no office romance appears to be on horizon). Nice transition to new boss. NCIS, unlike its spin offs, is entertaining. Let's hope they stay on track!
NCIS: Los Angeles: Indentured (2021)
GAME ... SET ... MATCH
When producers and writers lose touch with their audience, it's time to say goodbye. This show won't survive, but hey, actors will have 13 years of residuals to let them live lavishly in LA.
Other reviews will surely detail absurdity and hypocrisy laced into what was, for many seasons, a good action show. Now it's a campaign advertisement. I won't watch anymore. Pity.
NCIS: Los Angeles: Fukushu (2021)
Oh my ... new season starts 0 for 2
Let's put aside insipid treatment of hate crime issues to sadly say story telling, character development, and acting of this once fine show are now abysmal. I don't know how actors didn't retch delivering this script. Audiences - particularly in NCIS LA demographic - expect entertainment. Other media are awash in social commentary should audiences choose to indulge.
Regarding characters: Writers should "fix" Kensi and Deeks pronto. Their quest for parenthood is a back hole in every script. The Callen character teeters on brink of repetition. Do we care about his "identity?" No. Give him a mission so he stops examining his navel on Navy time.