Roddingham Reviews

Justified: City Primeval (2023)

Just because you can.........

[1/10 · 25 July 2023]

........doesn't mean you should. I'm a Big fan of T. O. and anything he stars in going back to Deadwood. No one does cool under pressure as good as T. O. Justified was good although a little thin at times on the production. I love stoic heros and Harlan is written just that way with a cocky edge that comes from skill. This new show.....stopped it after 20 minutes. Bad writing and illogical situations and premises. I really want to like the show so perhaps I should keep trying. I'll keep reading reviews and hopefully see the momentum continue. If the shows renews I'll definitely try again. But for now, it's a no.

Farmer Wants A Wife (2023– )

Can't believe they live on farm

[6/10 · 19 May 2023]

I like it but something doesn't add up with this show. There are 4 women left for each farmer and all of them including the farmer keep making remarks about a lack of talking and 1 on 1 time after 3 weeks. How could that be? Are the women just sitting in the house all day while the farmer works. I don't think they are actually living together 24/7. I think the women are in a hotel most of the time and spend limited time with the farmers, which would explain the comments from everyone involved. Show is most likely a fraud but I can't find proof or testimony on the internet either way. Anyone know?

Forever Summer: Hamptons (2022)

Good location, bad casting

[1/10 · 4 August 2022]

You don't watch a show with Hamptons in the name to see 18 yr olds work counter service and food truck jobs. Even my 17yr old daughter yawned at it. Not sure who this show was made for but if you like Summer House this will bore you.

The Old Man (2022– )

Not woke and awesome to boot

[10/10 · 22 June 2022]

Plot is a familiar trope with the twist being the protagonist is really really old but the acting by Jeff, John, and Amy is top notch. The writing is also very good overall with an excellent conversation between John and Jeff when he is on the run and later in a restaurant between Amy and Jeff in Ep2. Some issues stand out...dogs running off down the road while the owner is fighting for his life and a sobriety check point which cops don't do anymore. The casting of younger Jeff and John is spot on, not only the uncanny looks but also it's like the younger Actors studied both John and Jeff to imitate their speech patterns. The Direction is unobtrusive and allows the story to play out without weird takes or angles, The music is also well done and only adds to the ambiance, never distracting. Excited to see Ep3.

Hacks (2021– )

Jean makes it fun but show is losing steam

[6/10 · 23 May 2022]

Season 1 we liked very much 10 out of 10. Season 2 stumbled out of the gate and by episode 4 had jumped the track and ran through the parking lot (3 stars so far).

Jean Smart is awesome in this role and carries the show. Without her it collapses as the other characters and storylines are not that interesting. I'm rooting for Deborah Vance and want more of the story to be about her.

Season One's focus on Deborah's acceptance of Ava and how Ava found a way to help Deborah was well done. Near the very end of Season One it felt like that part of story had been well told and they are now a team that can take on the world.

Season Two's start refunded that story and put us back to square one with Deborah and Ava in a contentious relationship again. Going backwards is boring. Doing so shows a lack of creative writing ideas for character growth. In fact, the character of Ava has gone backwards overall and is now a mewling bowl of self pity. I much prefer the strong Ava that stood up to Deborah in Season 1. I'm not sure who this Ava is and don't like her.

Season Two is very much about sexual identity with a huge focus on the mostly gay characters in this show and their love-life. Very little of the writing is about the "come-back" of an aging female comedian. There also seems to be a lot of cringe writing of moments with over the top characterizations and dialogue (the New Tour Bus Manager is super cringe and way over the top). I suspect the team of writers has changed a lot from Season 1 to 2 or perhaps someone new has been given creative control and thinks they know best.

As with most modern day productions there is the typical Woke tropes....all white hetereo men are either evil (Marty, Jimmy's boss) or bumbling idiots (Comedy Club Host, DJ's husband, car driver from bus). Ava's father could have been a counter-balancing influence as he seemed grounded but forget that. There is also quite a bit of "Down with the Patriarchy" from this feminist oriented show.

Near the end of Episode 4 we stopped the show and I think we are done with it. Perhaps if we hear the show returns to form we will come back but for now it's off our list.

Moon Knight (2022)

Bait and Switch

[1/10 · 11 May 2022]

I was a fan of Moonknight comics as a young teen. I probably still have them in storage. But, there is very little of Moonknight in this show that is dominated by a female superhero I've never heard of. Writing is a jumbled mess and cgi is a cross between comical and just bad.

The Morning Show (I) (2019– )

Written by the Twitter generation

[8/10 · 11 May 2022]

First off,.....excellent casting. Lots of high quality actors bringing their A game. Season One's plot and writing around the MeToo movement was awesome, 10 out of 10. Season Two looked to be about COVID from the beginning but was peppered with too much identity politics for my taste. 6 out of 10. I am looking forward to Season 3 and hope they focus on COVID with something uplifting coming out of the Kessler situation.

Mr. Corman (2021)

Woke within seconds

[2/10 · 8 April 2022]

The opening dialogue is about gender politics implying that rarely do modern day women have any authority. Drivel. I stopped it right there as when any show opens with "down with the patriarchy" you know the show will be loaded with "the message". Not going to waste my time.

Peacemaker (2022– )

Irreverent on purpose

[8/10 · 23 March 2022]

Like "The Boys" this show has a different take on Super Heroes. The show really tries to be funny and it's hit the mark crudely, on purpose. It has the making of becoming a "Cult" type favorite and if I was a lot younger I would probably appreciate it more. I've watched 3 episodes, might continue, might not, thus the 5 stars for me. Btw, it is woke by many standards (sometimes subtly and sometimes overtly) so if you think yourself the opposite of "woke" you might not like the show at times. Typical Hollywood tropes for the most part.

Mar 24 Edit: I have revised my rating to an 8 star after viewing episodes 4-7. Only Episode 8 remaining. I must say this show grew on me and the character development helped a lot. I found myself laughing more and more. The van conversation between Peachmaker and Harcourt about Deep State was funny. Looks like I have drank the cool-aide and joined the cult that is growing around this show.

The King's Man (2021)

Shallow

[5/10 · 23 March 2022]

Although I enjoyed the historical elements of the movie the character development is shallow, too shallow. Flashy, well choreographed scenes do not make up for card board protagonists. Great production, costumes, and direction do make it watchable. I guess every movie can't be Lawrence of Arabia or even The Wind and the Lion but if you go into this movie wanting fast paced action then you will be pleased.

All Creatures Great and Small (2020– )

Blue Ribbon

[8/10 · 21 March 2022]

I have truly enjoyed this show. Never saw the last adaption that ran for so many years., nor read the books. But the writing, casting, production, acting, and direction are spot on for me. In a competitive streaming market full of course language and unsavory plot lines this throw back to the 30s stands out as a gem where the worst you will hear is "bloody" and no one is out to murder anyone else.

Pieces of Her (2022)

See-Saws

[6/10 · 11 March 2022]

Mix of great actors (Collette in particular) and not so great . The mystery of her background is interesting enough. There are many non-sensical choices made by the character though so you will find yourself asking "why?" a bit. I just try to ignore those moments and go with it because the script needs it to.

The usual trope of hetero white men being the evil behind everything in the world is so boring and predictable though. The Direction and Production is good. Wife and I are both watching it although neither of us are super into it. It is better than most choices on Netflix for sure though. I think we will finish it.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (2017–2023)

Marvelous Maisel and the Multiverse of Madness

[1/10 · 21 February 2022]

Season 1 was awesome, 10 out of 10. Season 2 was also very good. Season 3 was ok. But Season 4.......15 minutes into Season 4 and it's like they hired some Stranger Things Writers or Kevin Feige for the scene at the Insurance Company with massive incongruity to the period, or any period. I had to stop it. Not sure I will keep watching as I was completely turned off by the alternate reality.

Apr 23 edit: tried to watch again, within 3 minutes of the twilight zone insurance company scene someone in a bar teleports to the other side of the room. Stopped it. Reduced to 3 stars.

May2 edit. My sister said to keep trying so I resumed the episode and within 1 minute a main character was teleported to another alternate reality/landscape like they were sent into Marvel's multiverse of madness. Who green lit this break from reality. Show is totally ruined now. Reduced to 1 star.

Reacher (2022– )

Slightly better than many streaming shows

[2/10 · 13 February 2022]

Most times I want the source material respected but In this instance I wish they would have ignored the author's book and created their own story as I like the characters but the portrayal of a town in Georgia is beyond comical. Makes it really hard to suspend disbelief with the occasional attempts at fake southern accents. Most times they don't bother. Why didn't they just film it in GA instead of Canada? Also, some bad writing and illogical contrivances. But, as of episode 2 I'm still watching.

Feb 17 edit. Just finished Ep 5. Revising my rating to a two. The writing is just too bad to continue watching.

The Wheel of Time (2021– )

Tried to give it a chance

[1/10 · 6 December 2021]

I was a teenager when Jordan started this series. My Mother would buy me the next book in the series every Christmas (if one came out). Toward the series end, the time between each book got longer and many said Jordan would never finish it. Well, he didn't. And then he died unfortunately. Luckily, he left plenty of notes and his family was wise in their partnership with Sanderson to finish the series. He did a great job. When I changed my reading format to Kindle this collection of books was one of the few I didn't donate to the local library.

Now, it's been a long while since I read the first book but I do remember many things. The Amazon Series has potential. They are not trying to be GoT so don't expect a gritty and brutal story arc. Jordan and Martin have different story telling styles for sure and WoT would have never worked for HBO. The books offer a deep and complex world with finely developed details down to every day interactions. The Amazon series is rushing through some of this like they have some goal to reach a part of the book series by a certain episode. I wish they would slow down a bit.

As you might expect in this day and age there are some "woke" contrivances inserted for no reason that supports the adaption or adds to the story. I can overlook these with the exception of the "Dragon can be a man or a woman". No, the Dragon can NOT be either for very specific reasons super important to the story. I won't try to explain it but there is a reason why only Women can touch the One Power without fear of madness. Saying a woman can be the Dragon destroys the complete story arc. Sticking to the author's plot would have actually been more "woke" than what they did as Men who touch the One Power are dangerous thus only Women can be trusted to wield the One Power.

Obviously who-ever wrote the Season 1 show script didn't read the books all the way through or they would have realized this. The Jordan family should have protected this in their contract as it's an abomination of the story. I almost stopped watching the series because of this.

All that aside I will continue to watch and hope we get a Season 2. But for goodness sake please do better on the Trollocs who shouldn't look like Muppets from a 1980s fantasy movie. And their handling of visually showing use of the One Power doesn't quiet feel right but I can't say why exactly (need to reread the books).

Dec 10 edit. I just watched the latest episode and have now changed my rating from a 5 to a 1, would choose negative if possible. This last episode went too far in the wokeness and I am done with trying to give it a chance.

Dune (2021)

Faithful

[9/10 · 25 October 2021]

I've read all the books numerous times and was so pleased that the film truly stuck to the book with no added elements like the 1985 film. Casting, direction, and music score was great. Hope it's successful enough to make a part 2.

The Boys (2019– )

Starting to reflect divisiveness going on

[1/10 · 13 September 2020]

Loved Season 1 although the show is unapologetically bloody, 8 stars anyway as the storyline of Heroes as a business is new. Season 2 releasing every week is a 0 star. And introducing racial politics in episode 4 is also a 0 star, I see enough divisiveness and hate on the news, I don't want it in my entertainment. So, average a 5 right now and I suspect with the next episode I will be disgusted enough to stop watching altogether. But, at least we had Season 1

The Old Guard (2020)

Held my attention

[6/10 · 29 July 2020]

Typical PC theming here....women and minorities are the hero's, any straight white men are evil or weak (I just described nearly everything new on streaming). We probably have another 50 years of this mindset to offset the Old Guard (no pun intended). If you liked the Highlander then you should like this team based twist.

Annihilation (I) (2018)

Missing proper antagonist

[5/10 · 17 April 2020]

I like Garland's work and style but honestly this movie didn't connect me in any way with the antagonist of the story (the Shimmer). Probably too much of a challenge for creating a widely popular considering the scenario. I like science fiction so it was worth a shot for me.

Devs (2020)

If you like "Near Tech" and have patience

[10/10 · 12 April 2020]

As a fan of SciFi and Near Tech Fiction the concept of this series captured me instantly. It centers around irretrievable loss and as a father touched me deeply although the antagonist is morally lost. Nick Offerman as Forest was awesome. Alison Pill as Katie was also great. Sonoya's portrayal of Lily is challenging and many will not appreciate it. I had trouble believing the casting choice of Kenton but Grenier is a good actor. I liked the screen writing and each character's dialogue was well done. I appreciated the Direction and cinematography although some will think it slow or boring. I liked the music but episode seven's intro lost me, I think I'm missing something that would allow me to understand the choices for that opening. I'm looking forward to the final Season 1 episode.

Apr 16 edit. Just finished the final episode. I was not disappointed with the ending and still think it deserves 10 stars from my perspective.

Question: Why does Garland use the name Amaya is both this project and in the movie Annihilation?

Tales from the Loop: Loop (2020) Season 1, Episode 1

Eureka without the comedy

[5/10 · 5 April 2020]

First episode was interesting but predictable. Some of the casting is great, some feels wrong. Production is good but Direction is boring. This is not hard science fiction but rather more how some unexplained phenomenon impacts personal stories. Nothing new to see here but I might watch more......or I might not.

Altered Carbon (2018–2020)

Just go read the books

[2/10 · 29 February 2020]

Another great book series with a promising start in Season 1 cratered with agenda driven creative choices and bad writing in Season 2.

Star Trek: Picard (2020–2023)

Better than I had hoped but too bad it's behind a paywall WITH commercials

[7/10 · 24 January 2020]

I'm a U.S.A. Southern middle aged Christian male that was born the year the first Star Trek aired (thank you Lucy). I really loved TNG and nothing after lived up to that standard for me. I haven't even tried Discovery. But, I enjoyed the first episode of Picard. I know some conservatives are reacting to Stewart's comments but if you refuse to watch any show with a liberal then you are stuck with Goliath. Yes, its got some typical angles (women/minorities are the heros, white men are evil or weak, and an obvious substitution of synthetics as the sympathetic illegals for the time). I would like to continue to watch it but refuse to pay a monthly fee AND watch commercials. That is freaking ridiculous. So, I'll wait for Season 1 to air and at some point do a trial subscription again to binge watch the whole season then cancel. Or perhaps someone at CBS will wise up, not holding my breath,lol.

World War II in Colour (2009)

Inaccurate from the jump

[1/10 · 18 January 2020]

Started episode one on Netflix but stopped when they inaccurately labeled Hitler as Right Wing. His policies were classic socialist (Left Wing) and mirror modern day socialist in the Democratic Party. It's scary how Bernie sounds like him on many issues (employment guaranteed for all, free education, nationalized healthcare, gun control, abortion, anti-semitism, facist police state, and more). Hitler and Bernie (and 99% of the Democratic Party) agree on these issues.

Messiah (2020)

Worth my time

[8/10 · 13 January 2020]

As a middle aged Christian from the U.S.A. south I was apprehensive about anything religious oriented coming out of Netflix. Let's face it, their programming is not curated for me 90% of the time. And I've come real close to canceling my subscription many times lately. But, this show surprised me, in a good way. Excellent casting, acting, production, and direction. Sure, there is the usual SJW slant (heroes are women/minorities, men are dubious at best or downright evil, white men especially). And there is a bit of TDS in the politics and a little anti-semitism in the depiction of Jews and Israel vs Palestine (all that is expected out of Hollywood these days). Overlooking all that you will find an interesting story that makes you think.