May TV Finales - Black Lightning - Season Four/Series Finale

The fourth and final season of Black Lightning concluded this past week. Making it the first of two Arrowverse shows take take their final bows this TV season.

The DC Comics character Jefferson Pierce / Black Lightning, premiered on The CW back in 2018.

The final season continues to follow Jefferson, now a high school principal in his second stint as the superhero Black Lightning, as he fights against local corruption in his community of Freeland. 

Cress Williams stars as Jefferson, alongside China Anne McClain, Nafessa Williams, Marvin "Krondon" Jones III, Christine Adams, Jordan Calloway, and James Remar. 

I was mostly lost throughout the season as I lost interest in the show maybe partly though last season. Who knows, however the spin off that was once planned for Painkiller now is DOA.

The show struggled in the USA with poor overnight ratings this year, possibly leading to the spin off being canned way before it was set to take off.

I hoped for a bigger more enjoyable farewell season, but sadly it didn't really deliver. I am Supergirl really goes out with a bit more of a bang after six long seasons.

The May TV Finales have been a lot so far. There are a few more to come. 9-1-1 OG season, Mare of East Town and The Equalizer.

Stay warm this weekend Sydney and Melbourne chin up, six days to go.

Binged 2021 - Fisk

The ABC delivered a sleeper hit that aired in March/April with Fisk. I really don't know why I missed this whilst it was screening week to week, but the six episode comedy was an easy AF binge.

The Kitty Flanagan series revolves around the life of lawyer Helen Tudor-Fisk (Flanagan), who leaves Sydney after her career and marriage fall apart. Returning to Melbourne Tudor-Fisk takes a job at Gruber & Gruber, a small suburban firm specialising in wills and probate. Where Helen works alongside a number of misfits. Marty Sheargold as Ray Gruber, Julia Zemiro as Roz Gruber & breakout Aaron Chen as George.

Also featured in the six part, 30 minute series, John Gaden as Anthony Fisk, Glenn Butcher as Victor & as Helen's ex husband Bert La Bonté as William.

The series is a super easy watch, Flanagan and the cast all have great chemistry. It actually looks like the show was a bunch of fun to make. I am also hoping to catch up with the Wakefield series as well when all the US dramas simmer down. But for now Fisk is a 5 star watch! Get on it now on iView.

Return to Cinema 2021 - Those Who Wish Me Dead

Those Who Wish Me Dead is Angelina Jolie's return to cinema. Like most of us the return to cinema has taken us a while. This is a long way from Maleficent for Jolie.

Meanwhile Jolie is joined by Australian Finn Little as Connor, Jon Bernthal, Medina Senghore, and Jake Weber.

Directed by Taylor Sheridan (Sons of Anarchy, Yellowstone and Veronica Mars) Those Who Wish Me Dead follows a boy (Finn Little) who witnesses the murder of his father and goes on the run with a smokejumper (Angelina Jolie) in the Montana wilderness to escape a pair of assassins (Nicholas Hoult and Aidan Gillen). Meanwhile a bushfire is raging and shit is going down all over the shop. 

There is a lot happening in this film.

I was lucky enough to see this film at my local independent Palace Cinemas for $5 and putting a price on this action, thriller, adventure, drama (so many genres all in this film) I would say the price is right @ $5 per ticket.

The film literally jumps all over the shop but Jolie completely shines as the lead as does Finn Little.

So much drama compacted into 100 minutes. It's passable at 3 Stars.

May TV Finales - 9-1-1: Lone Star - Season Two Finale

9-1-1: Lone Star concluded its successful second season with a dust storm finale. Yes a full blown dust storm. In 9-1-1 tradition usually the season openers open with massive disasters so this has flipped it on its head, concluding with a massive dramatic ending. However unlike most series, there is no cliffhanger but a change of operating moving forward for the already renewed third season.

I enjoyed 9-1-1: Lone Star more than the parent show all the way up until the finale. I haven't seen it yet but the set up for the 9-1-1 season four finale looked awesome!

So 9-1-1: Lone Star didn't have the biggest and best closer, but I see a bright future for the third season. I also can not get enough of TK and Carlos. Best gay couple on TV hands down.

Honestly if you haven't discovered 9-1-1 or this the spin off Lone Star in Austin, Texas, get on it!

Two seasons deep and this might be Ryan Murphy's most consist series in a while.

Fox will be bringing this one back mid season next season, so a slightly longer wait for more TK and Carlos here we come.

Return to Cinema 2021 - Spiral

Spiral (also known as Spiral: From the Book of Saw) is the ninth instalment in the Saw film series. This time with an all star cast. Including Chris Rock, Max Minghella (The Handmaid's Tale), Marisol Nichols (Riverdale), and of course Samuel L. Jackson.

So basic plot, a Jigsaw copycat killer starts acting on particular police station run by Marisol Nichols. Rock also works at the station, whilst Jackson was his father.

James Wan and Leigh Whannell, serve as executive producers alongside Rock. As Chris Rock wanting to branch out into the horror genre. James Wan is one busy ass man.

Regular readers of this blog no I have ZERO time for gore porn so for a few good minutes in this film my head was in my scarf. Yes its finally winter in Fortress Australia. Why Fortress Australia? No one in, no out out, unless you are a cricket player or want to take part in this years Olympics.

So does Spiral take Saw back to its glory days? Nine films in it's a big ask but with talents like Max Minghella on board you would hope so. He delivers but Chris Rock is just loud and annoying for a good 80% of the time he is on the screen.

In these troubled cinema times though the film has already made budget meaning the sequel is definitely on the way. Yes a sequel and spin off TV series are now apparently in the works.

So the storyline was average at best, Rock was horrible, Jackson was hardly present and the torture scenes were hard to watch. At least in this film it felt there was more of a storyline and not just gore, gore, gore.

It is hard to pass with Rock's character (the main character) being so dislikable. Not to mention some of the dialogue. It was basic at best.

2 Stars for giving it another go.

May TV Finales - Big Sky - Season One Finale

Last week (in the USA) saw a number of seasons/series conclude. Prodigal Son, City on a Hill and Zoeys Extraordinary Playlist. Now it's time to look at Big Sky. Already renewed for a second season, the ABC crime drama thriller by David E. Kelley based on The Highway series of books has been a rare hit this 2020–21 television season.

Starring John Carroll Lynch, Dedee Pfeiffer, Ryan Phillippe, Katheryn Winnick, Brian Geraghty and Omar Metwally. Although spoiler alert, Ryan Phillippe bails out early on.

I have to say I enjoyed the series more when I believed it was going to be a 10 episode first season/mini series.

The second half of the season (when it returned from a two month break) felt a little forced. The first half of the season with the girls in the truck was way more interesting/compelling compared to the Yellowstone light secondary storyline.

The show was a massive hit for ABC (in the USA) placing just behind Shonda hit series like Grey's and Station 19 as one of its most popular drama series.

That said the show will join Grey's and Station 19 on Thursday nights in the USA. I will be interested to see if all shows return late September taking the US series back to their OG scheduling. A September through May season.

Big Sky in Australia airs on Star/Disney+.

May TV Finales - Prodigal Son - Season Two/Series Finale

Prodigal Son is the latest series to get the axe. All season two episodes now airing on Binge juts as season two/the series concluded.

This is yet another Greg Berlanti series (one of few that live outside the The CW) making him almost as busy as Ryan Murphy. Actually he may be busier. Now Blindspot, Sabrina and Prodigal Son are done he already has a number of new series on the way. Including a new Green Lantern.

The show centered around Malcolm Bright, whose father, Martin Whitly, also known as the killer the Surgeon. 

Malcolm (in his younger years) was responsible for his fathers arrest. In the present, he is now a profiler with the NYPD. Malcolm finds himself drawn back into constant contact with his father as he must both use Whitly's insights to help the police solve horrible crimes and battle his own inner demons. 

The show starred Lou Diamond Phillips, Aurora Perrineau, Frank Harts, Michael Sheen, Bellamy Young, Keiko Agena, Halston Sage, Tom Payne, Dermot Mulroney and last but not least Catherine Zeta-Jones.

So the show had a stacked cast and Berlanti behind the series. So what lead to the cancellation? Well first up, low ratings. The show also had little buzz while not being overly critically acclaimed.

In a crowded market of cop shows this wasn't the biggest series currently airing on network US TV.

I enjoyed the first season, however season two was a bit of a drag. I think the lower episode count helped, however if this was on Netflix with a ten episode count per season it may have lived on.

RIP Prodigal Son.