It's Thursday, 2021 is - to paraphrase my countryman Dylan Thomas - going gentle into that good night, so let's get some comics-y superhero-y goodness!
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Film Trailers
Dr Strange in the Multiverse of Madness trailer!!!
(Warning: major flashing images, some potential SPOILERS (although I honestly can't even tell what's a SPOILER with a lot of MCU things any more))
All the Marvel's What If...? fans are just like:
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A new The Batman trailer!
Still looking pretty good, still Robert Pattinson's version of Bruce Wayne getting make-up tips from The Winter Soldier, while listening to My Chemical Romance (#HereForIt)
And Catwoman being all Catwoman-y too! Gotta love it.
(Warning: major flashing images, general violence including gun violence)
Films
I saw The Suicide Squad (2021) - you know, the one with the 'The.' The James Gunn one.
It was OK. I enjoyed it.
I can practically hear the spluttering of the people who LOVE this film, as well as those who HATE this film. Sorry - it was OK.
I'm going to blow your minds further by saying that I actually preferred Suicide Squad (2016) - the one without the 'The.'
Aesthetically, the 2016 film had a lot more of a cohesive gritty/punk-comic-book vibe - and that is my sh**, dearest nerdlets.
...And I love Cara Delevigne.
Plus, unpopular opinion time: I like Jared Leto's Joker. #Don't@Me
I think this one (the 2021 version) can be categorised into The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.
The Good:
Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn is a scene-stealing bad-a**, as always.
Like Hugh Jackman as Wolverine, Robbie owns this part - no matter what you think of any of the films themselves (fairly or unfairly,) Margot Robbie's suitability and talent in this role is undeniable.
David Dastmalchian as Polka-Dot Man made my heart hurt for one of DC's most ridiculous villains.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again - Dastmalchian is amazing.
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Peter Capaldi did a good job and was surprisingly believable as The Thinker.
I say 'surprisingly' because after Dr Who, he's in the 'hero' box in my head - it can't be helped - and The Thinker is firmly on the villain side of things.
Idris Elba put in his solid action-hero-role performance.
Dude can act - we probably take him too much for granted, but it's because he's consistently solid and talented.
I appreciated the questioning of the US government's shady dealings, and motives in getting involved in over-seas 'missions.'
It's good to see US media starting to intelligently question their country's place in the world, albeit with comic-book storylines.
The Bad:
I feel like David Dastmalchian was under-utilised.
Which happens a lot, and should never happen at all. But here we are.
There was a lot more points that could have been made with his character related to mental health, childhood abuse, and the prison system - rather than the light touch and slight Ableism that we got.
And yes, I know that's heavy: but Suicide Squad sh** has adult themes, and that doesn't have to just mean sex jokes and gore.
Perhaps more egregiously - Harley Quinn/Margot Robbie was also under-utilised.
She lit up the film, every time she came on. She has a proven track record with audiences. She could start wars in that dress (...and kinda does, I guess,) *fans self*.
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And yet - still under-used.
It makes no sense.
I think the under-utilisation is the symptom of why this film didn't shine the way that it should have: it's the X-men problem.
When you try and introduce too many characters at once, while also including a lot of plot and action scenes, everything ends up getting rushed and squished in, and you don't get enough of one thing - let alone all the things.
The Ugly:
My god this film had some gory moments! Like, gory.
Trust me, I watch horror films. This was gory. Down-right unpleasantly, in places.
Not throughout, granted, but when the gore came, you noticed it - sheesh!
TV Shows
Hawkeye episode 6! The finale! Dun-dun-duuuun!
Non-SPOILER section first, with a SPOILER section, clearly marked at the beginning and end of said section. K? K!
Clint and Kate's father/daughter vibes continue here and are stronger than ever.
- And of course, we love to see it!
I love, love, LOVED, the speech Kate gave.
Because Clint is important. Hawkeye is important.
He doesn't have any special powers. He doesn't have super-advanced tech - in fact, the opposite: he has a bow and arrows.
And he fights against gods and titans, alongside super-soldiers and sorcerors and a talking raccoon. He's human. And a hero.
...And Kate can see how much that matters.
This final episode had a lot of moving parts - and managed to keep them balanced, which is one hell of an achievement.
I'm actually kind of loving the character of Jack now - like, he's still a douche, but at this point he's our douche, y'know?
The kind of douche that you can make fun of, but if anyone else does, you will come for them. Lol.
And the LARPers paid off in a way I was not expecting - and is totally awesome.
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At some point in this last episode, Clint moves on to the point where he's like 'I'm just rolling with it now, because why the f**k not?'
He gets that Bucky-esque look on his face, best exemplified when Bucky met Rocket, and was like all of us in 2020-2021: y'know what, WTF is my life? Yeah, let's go with it - because why TF not!
Quick side-note:
I'm pretty sure that the making of the trick arrows breaks more laws than all the rest of the stuff they managed to do - some of those are chemical weapons dammit Clint!
You're making them in just a normal apartment! WTAF?!
SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!
The bit with Clint and the tree and the owl and all of *waves hands to incorporate muchness* THAT -
That was just amazing.
Seriously, whoever wrote that earned their pay-check - I love you, thank you! 😅
Yelena and Kate flirt-fighting was...
Well, it was freaking awesome, of course. (And hot as all hell *blushes*)
But if this turns into more Queer-baiting Marvel... *sighs*.
You know how I feel about this, dearest nerdlets. Queer people are tired of being toyed with, OK? Don't get our hopes up if you have no intention of following through.
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OK: The Kingpin.
Wow.
To play Wilson Fisk, it's not enough to be a big man physically, you gotta have the presence of a big man.
Your presence has to say: look at me, because I am the most important - and possibly deadliest - thing in this room.
And this guy? He has that. Wow, does he have that.
Fisk is played here by Vincent D'Onofrio, who also apparently played Kingpin in the Daredevil series. I can see why they didn't want to re-cast this. Wow.
END SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!
I think that shows the stand-out thing about this series for me: the casting and the acting was... just amazing.
That balance between comic-book and action-movie was kept up by everyone, and it just all came together amazingly!
I know it sounds like I'm gushing - but it's because I am. This was Hawkeye done right - down to the hearing aids and sign language.
And after so many disappointments in the MCU, all my fellow Hawkeye fans will agree that this was a breath of fresh air.
Other Stuff
To end, as is traditional, with some shameless self-promo: you can catch up on my thoughts on episode 5 of Hawkeye on Medium here, or right here on Dora Reads in last week's Comics Wrap-Up post here
What do you think of the trailers?
Have you seen The / Suicide Squad?
What did you think of Hawkeye?
Talk to me! 😀💬
Previous Comics Wrap-Up Posts:
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'Two armies are coming at me' is from How Villains Are Made by Madalen Duke
So I just started watching Hawkeye, I'm on episode three so I skipped the spoiler section. First impressions so far is that I like Kate a lot, her chaotic nature is very relatable. But I don't see this show getting anywhere near my favourites.
ReplyDeleteOoh, sh** gets interesting after that! Lol.
DeleteGlad you're enjoying it - not everything has to be a fave, sometimes it's nice to just enjoy things for what they are :) <3