Today is Juneteenth.Yesterday, was my best friends birthday, which is relevant only to those who keep wondering how I chose or got Mac The Movieguy. Because I’m old, I grew up in the internet rollout period, and I had been friends with him since before kindergarten because our Moms were friends. So, I saw him even after moving away. We slowly became two very different people, so on one trip back, from my small town in rural Missouri, to Fort Myers, FL, he had a computer set up in his bedroom, complete with internet.I had just gotten a computer, but no internet, because it was back in the days of paying by the minute, which was a lot, and everyone got those AOL discs. But, he signed me up for my first email, even though I wouldn’t be able to check it just yet. He chose MacDaddyNLS. He thought he was cool, and NLS stood for No Limit Soldier, by the way. I felt silly telling people this was my email, so after a little while of having to actually tell adults what my email was, I switched it to something more me, but I kept the Mac part, so he could feel like he still contributed to the creation of this alter ego. I’ve been that so long, and used it for so many things, that people have called me Mac, without ever it being a part of my name. His birthday would have been yesterday, and I would have told him Happy 43rd, but I can’t, because he isn’t here anymore. So as long as I can, I will continue to be Mac, even if it makes no sense, to anything I’m doing. Macthemovieguy lives on because he does not.
TV Shows Watched: Stranger Things: Tales From 85: S1E5 (Netflix) with audio description, For All mankind: S5E8 (Apple) with audio description, Stumble: S1E13 (Peacock) with audio description, Invincible: S4E5 (Amazon) with audio description, The Comeback: S1E8 (HBo MAX) with audio description, and Marshals: S1E7 (Paramount) with audio description
Stranger Things- Holy shit. The guy voicing Hopper doesn’t even sound close to David Harbor. At least some of the cast sounds like an attempt, but they might as well have just cast John Mulaney or something. There was zero effort made here. The episode follows the gang as they try and retrieve a revealing photo of Elle. Best thing about the show is the audio description. This was an ill advised venture for the Stranger Things universe.
For All Mankind- Mars is preparing for war with Earth,and Miles knows how to develop a bomb in a way that makes no sense for his character. He rattles off how to do it off the top of his head, but that’s not what his job is, and the series has never reinforced anything that would suggest he knows how to build a bomb. So while I love For All Mankind, sometimes it’s OK to actually think through things, and make sure the right character is suggesting the right things. The audio description here is terrific, and the song Mission Control was pretty good. The big question now is with Earth sending forces to Mars, how far is the series willing to go, and what does this mean for the future of Mars and presumably Titan.
Stumble- Finished this underrated sitcom, which deserved another season. The next season would have had Katey Sagal recurring, along with Kristin Chenoweth, and I have a hard time believing this show couldn’t have found an audience. The AD is on par with the other Peacock sitcoms like St Dennis Medical, but occasionally has a cheer sequence where they get to shine. I’ll miss Stumble.
Invincible- Omniman returns to earth to recruit Mark for this great space war, because if they don’t stop it now, eventually it will destroy earth. Oliver overhears, and of course has to be involved.A really strong episode emotionally, and also in terms of the fights. Those final moments between Invincible and Conquest are so gory and brutal they could only really pull it off in animation. The AD in that section really nailed it.
The Comeback- I don’t mean to be insulting, but even for this format, this AD isn’t good. They constantly change locations, without recognition from the AD team. We went from laying on deck chairs pool side, to a golf course, with no attempt. Not even a “later”. Sorry, sports fans, this doesn’t meet the moment.
Marshals- If you’ve ever heard Media access Group do Taylor Sheridan narration, then you have experienced all of it. It really is mostly the same, and this episode where Casey is trying to protect a judge from assassination (with a twist!) is pretty basic stuff.
