Fall Finales: Barry - Season Four/Series Finale

Did Barry go for a season too long? HBO had a real run of series/season finales this week! Onto Barry which first lit up our screens late March, 2018.

Following a long ass break between seasons two and three, three and almost aired exactly a year later. So following COVID normality in HBO programming was returning. Well until the writers strike. 

Created by Alec Berg and Bill Hader, Hader is Barry Berkman. Barry and Sally Reed (Sarah Goldberg) have a couple of time jumps in the final season, with the ending tying up nicely.

The fourth and final season premiered mid April, concluding on Monday.

In the finale moments of the dark (sometimes amusing) HBO 30 minute drama-comedy (after another time jump) Sally basking in applause after directing a high school production of Our Town, with a teenaged John in the audience. 

A male teacher at the school invites Sally out for coffee, but she gives him a firm “no.” Instead, she drives home alone and happy, with flowers beside her on the passenger seat, while John hangs out with a friend, who shows him a movie called The Mask Collector. 

The Mask Collector for me wraps up the series perfectly for me. It's a movie about Barry’s life, with a former soldier getting off the bus in L.A. and stepping right into an acting class. The movie version of Gene encourages Barry to find his acting voice.

However Gene also has a nefarious mob connection, and Barry finds him standing over Janice’s dead body. Gene orders him to help him cover it up and Barry ends up in prison, later breaking out and rescuing Sally and John from armed thugs before Gene shoots him dead right on the theater stage.

The movie’s end card tells us that Gene is now serving a life sentence for killing Janice and Barry, and Barry was buried at Arlington with full military honors. John seems satisfied with this ending — no matter how far it is from the truth.

The "movie" tells the four series of Barry in around three minutes. Could I maybe have just watched that in place of 32 episodes of the latest HBO series to wrap. Thank god a new The Weeknd led series The Idol and exceptional The Righteous Gemstones is almost back on our screens. Via Binge all these HBO series stream right now.

Tomorrow another Fall Finale. Music posts again live HERE. Bye!

Fall Finales: Yellowjackets - Seasons Two

Yellowjackets kept Showtime on a winning start to 2023. Following the excellent second season of Your Honour, the second season of Yellowjackets has just concluded on Paramount+ in Australia.

Starring Sophie Nélisse, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Sophie Thatcher, Samantha Hanratty, Liv Hewson, Melanie Lynskey, Tawny Cypress, Juliette Lewis, Christina Ricci, Lauren Ambrose, Simone Kessell, Ella Purnell, Steven Krueger, Warren Kole, Courtney Eaton and Kevin Alves

In December, the series was renewed for a third season, ahead of the second season streaming. With a shorter nine episode run, this season really flew by on Fridays.

So after smashing season one in a massive binge ahead of season two. I was ready for the nine episodes that dropped almost weekly recently.

Spoilers ahead. In a massive hour long finale, in the times lost in the cabin in the woods...

The women return Javi’s body to the cabin, where they dismember and begin to cook him. Lottie is alarmed with the team's decision to hunt each other, but Misty tells the team that Lottie's pleased. Coach Ben arrives to tell Natalie about Javi’s hiding spot, but is told that he no longer belongs among them as he is a good person. 

Lottie tells the group that the wilderness no longer needs her as its leader because they can all communicate with it now, and declares Natalie as the new leader, who will help them survive the winter. Later, while the Yellowjackets are sleeping, Coach Ben burns the cabin down with the doors barricaded, prompting them to escape for their safety and left alone with no shelter.

Then we fast forward to a dramatic present time. Where the women agree to go forward with Lottie’s ritual, deciding they should once again draw cards for a sacrifice. However, they secretly plan to botch the ritual and have Lottie committed. 

Walter lethally poisons Kevyn at the compound and works with Jeff to frame him for a conspiracy, ending the investigation surrounding Adam Martin. 

Shauna draws the Queen of Hearts during the ritual; Taissa and Van reveal that they called off the crisis team they contacted for Lottie, and the hunt begins. 

Callie shoots Lottie in the shoulder to protect her mother. When Lisa arrives, Misty intends to stab and inject her with a fatal solution, but Natalie throws herself into the fray and dies as a result of the drugs.

Lottie is taken away by EMTs, but tells the women that the wilderness is pleased with their sacrifice and will reward them.

Yellowjackets is an interesting survival series with excellent music. I have enjoyed binging the two seasons on my latest half priced Paramount+.

With Succession, all the USA network series ending, this could be your next winter stay in series. 
Until tomorrow....

Fall Finales: Power Book II: Ghost - Seasons Three

Power Book II: Ghost is both a sequel and spin-off to Power. Which now has multiple spin-offs including the Chicago bound Tommy spin off. This will return for its second season in September. That is after Tommy had a bit of a cameo in the last two episodes of Power Book II: Ghost ended Season 3.

So what was Tommy up to? Well Diana Tejada, and not her mother Monet, made it possible for Tommy to find Tariq's mother Tasha. Yet another cameo in the final couple of hours of season three.

Ahead of the third season premiere, the series was renewed for a fourth season. However with the writers strike I can see us waiting a while to find out Monet's fate.

Yes it was an all guns blazing season finale. Like all season finales in the Power TV universe, there is always a lot of blood. This season saw a number of key players drop off the long running TV series.

SPOILERS INCOMING!

Shane Johnson as Cooper Saxe from the OG Power, will not be returning in season four after a bloody exit. 

Berto Colon as Lorenzo Tejada Sr is also out in a gruesome fashion.

Erik Hernandez as Gordo Castillo literally died in the nude.

So there was blood this season on Stan's biggest TV universe. 

It was a better season with seasons one and two not having huge gaps between them. So if you like your gangster mixed with university crime dramas, Power Book II: Ghost streams now.

Way more finales to come... Yellowjackets, Barry, Succession, Station 19 and Somebody, Somewhere to mention a few. Hence any music posts can be found HERE.

Laters, more TV to catch up on y'all!

Fall Finales: Citadel - Seasons One

With three finales last Friday across multiple streaming services, Citadel was the first I got to. Was it the best? Well first to the news of season two. It's officially coming!

Like previous Amazon action series, Reacher, Jack Ryan and Terminal List, Citadel is like and extension of Quantico for Priyanka Chopra Jonas. Josh Appelbaum, Bryan Oh, and David Weil with the Russo brothers acting as executive producers.

Alongside Chopra Jonas, Richard Madden, Stanley Tucci and Lesley Manville also star.

Citadel agents Mason Kane (Madden) and Nadia Sinh (Chopra Jonas) are the leas in the massive action series with budget of US$300 million.

With only six-episodes in the first season, it is an easy breezy week to week watch. Whilst ranking as one of the most expensive television shows. 

Despite costing loads of money, the series has received very mixed reviews. Alongside a second season being announced, spin-off shows in different languages set in the Italian Alps, India, Spain and Mexico are in the works. .With Citadel:Diana to be released in 2024, meaning maybe Amazon has more shows in the can during the writers strike, which is ongoing.

With some episodes clocking in under 40 minutes this could be one of the easiest spy thrillers to smash of recent times.

Unlike Chopra Jonas in Quantico, Citadel wastes no time getting to the point. With big budget action sequences, high stakes drama, this won't pick up any TV awards, however would Jack Ryan or Reacher?

Amazon have created a library now of these similar action series, so if your show is delayed, like The Last of Us, White Lotus or Euphoria, maybe sign up for a free Amazon trial and give this sexy action thriller a go. The sexy part is for Richard Madden BTW.

Fall Finales: The Flash - Season Nine/Series Finale

The ninth and final season of The Flash was way overdue.

Since commencing in 2014, The CW has aired close to 200 episodes. The 184th episode has just aired.

The final season follows Barry facing against his nemesis Red Death, Bloodwork, and Cobalt Blue. This officially closes Arrowverse, which started all the way back with Arrow.

Grant Gustin stars for one final run as Barry Allen / Flash, alongside Iris, played by Candice Patton, Danielle Panabaker, Danielle Nicolet, Kayla Compton, Brandon McKnight and Jon Cor.

So how does this average AF season conclude. Find out below the trailer. SPOILERS AHEAD!

Now a speedster known as Cobalt Blue, Eddie resurrects Eobard Thawne, Hunter Zolomon / Zoom, Savitar, and August Heart / Godspeed and gathers them in the Negative Speed Force. 

In 2023, they fight Team Flash and Nora. Cecile adopts her future costume and codename Virtue, Allegra saves Chester from Eobard, and Jay Garrick steals Eddie's speed. Eddie retreats into the Negative Speed Force to gain more speed. 

Not wanting Eddie to die, Barry follows him in and convinces him not to become like Eobard and that they can create a better world by coexisting. Eddie destroys the crystal and says he is happy for Iris and Barry returns to her at the hospital. 

Mark reveals that Chester is a metahuman with black hole powers. The next morning, Nora is born and Harrison Wells tells Khione to ascend as the natural order's protector. She bids farewell to Team Flash and returns her body to Caitlin. At a celebration one week later, Barry apologizes to Caitlin for how they left things and Joe and Cecile get engaged. 

Barry unleashes a lightning bolt and chooses Avery Ho, Max Mercury, and Jess Chambers to become new speedsters.

Now if that wasn't enough episodes of The Flash. All 184 episodes. A new The Flash movie lands next month. However without Grant Gustin.

For a full recap on a professional TV blog, go HERE. I have a bad habit of sticking with some of these average shows till the end. This was literally the bitter end. In the current TV climate with writers striking, networks scaling back, there is NO WAY nine seasons of this would have been made.

So in the new world order of The CW, Riverdale, Nancy Drew have finales locked in and loaded. While Superman and Lois, Gotham Knights are still awaiting their verdicts.

Only All American of my shows, will see the light of day in the upcoming TV seasons, whenever that may be given the above mentioned writers strike.

Still to come HBO mega finales, Succession, Barry and Somebody, Somewhere. Alongside Power and Yellowjackets. Plus with Disney+ delaying the Station 19 finale in Australia, that's on the way too. So until then!

Fall Finales: The Equalizer - Seasons Three

The Equalizer has just concluded it's hectic 18th episode of season three.

Action stars usually don't look like Queen Latifah, however she stars as The Equalizer. 

In May last year the series was double renewed, for its third and fourth seasons. The third season started last October. Concluding on Sunday. USA Sunday that is, Aussie Monday.

In the finale, Robyn, Mel, Harry, Dante, Delilah and Aunt Vi all are in various amounts of danger in the finale.

“Eye for an Eye,” opens with Robyn and Mel being chased, ultimately trapped in a building by men with guns. 

Then, there’s a rewind to a much more joyful period six hours earlier. While happily working on her dad’s old car, Robyn gets a call from Aunt Vi and Delilah, who are planning a day of fun themselves. 

After making a plan to join them for dinner later, Robyn heads to the auto store. That’s when things take a turn for the worse: She’s being followed.

There is no resolution for Fisk, who is now being injected with the truth serum or Robyn and Mel, who are now trapped by the men, as shown at the beginning of the episode. 

They are separated, and Robyn is taken to a room where she is confronted by her old CIA colleague, who isn’t dead after all. 

Upset at being abandoned by Robyn and the CIA, she reveals her plan for revenge: She will burn Harry, Mel and Dante alive in front of Robyn, who helplessly watches on camera as her friends are tied up and surrounded by flames.

Robyn fights, but is overpowered. As she watches the fire grow more intense around her loved ones, all she can do is scream.

We also have no idea when The Equalizer will return for a fourth season with the writers strike in full swing. CBS could have some episodes written or plans with the series receiving a two season order ahead of season two concluding.

Either way there could be less episodes than the last two seasons, however season one did start with a tight ten episode order.

CBS have had a decent TV season with Fire Country being possibly the biggest new show of the season. Will the Equalizer change lives? Absolutely not. However it is fun watching Queen Latifah swan around in the action sequences. This season Kelly Rowland also guest starred.

Until next time, when The Flash finally concludes!

Stay in da House Cinema 2023 - Air

Air is currently screening limited sessions at the cinemas around the place. However on Amazon Prime it streams now.

Directed by Ben Affleck and written by Alex Convery. The film is based on true events about the origin of Air Jordan, a basketball shoeline, of which a Nike employee seeks to strike a business deal with rookie player Michael Jordan. 

With the Damon/Affleck (Matt Damon, Ben Affleck) team back together, Air also stars Jason Bateman, Marlon Wayans, Chris Messina, Chris Tucker and Viola Davis. So it's an all star cast really!

While Michael Jordan was not involved with the production, he did meet with Affleck, offering several suggestions, including the casting of Davis as his mother. 

This film was originally set to premiere on the streaming service Amazon Prime Video, distributor Amazon Studios opted to release the film theatrically first after positive test screenings, making it the first Amazon title since Late Night (2019) to be released in cinemas without also premiering on Prime Video.

Air had its premiere at South by Southwest on March 18, 2023, and was released theatrically in the United States on April 5. 

Air has received positive reviews from critics, while grossing $88 million worldwide. Not bad for a film which was just going to stream alongside Jury Duty and Citadel, right?

I was lucky enough to head off to two NBA games in my youth. One in Orlando to see Shaq and one in Seattle to see Shawn Kemp. There is no other experience like an NBA game. Michael Jordan was a legend. And still is.

The story of how Nike won him over via his mother, the amazing How to Get Away with Murder queen, Davis, is remarkable.

This business deal has helped shape future business deals within the sports world. I love a peek behind the curtains film, even if it is at home.

The dialogue is grand, the acting, cast awesome.

This was a terrific story with a super soundtrack. 3.5 Stars.