Sunday, March 25, 2018

Heroes Reborn/ Channel Zero/ This is Us

Jan. 3, 2017: I'm writing about old TV shows because I don't have a lot of TV shows to watch right now.
Heroes Reborn: I saw the original show Heroes when it first came out.  When the reboot came out in fall 2015,  I had to at least check out the pilot.  I loved the pilot and watched the whole season.
"A year ago, a terrorist attack in Odessa, Texas, left the city decimated. Blamed for the tragic event, those with extraordinary abilities are in hiding or on the run from those with nefarious motives."

 Pros:

 1. There is the anchor character Noah (Jack Coleman) from the original show.  There are some other characters who make appearances on it.

 2. I like how the show has Noah's memory erased and how he has to piece it together.  It's a good mystery.

 3. I like even the villians Luke (Zachary Levi) and Joanne (Judith Shekoni) because they are killing all the Evos (evolutions/ mutants) who are why their son died.

 4. Noah: Good memories fulfill your life with context, meaning, and clarity.  Others can deceive and make you believe you know the truth.  The ones that hold you hostage.  Look back at all the decisions you made, the 1 thing you don't want to feel is regret.

 Casper: A lot of people spend time waiting instead of making things happen.

 What good is a hero if he doesn't help people who need him the most?

 I'm going to put that in my inspirational quotes.

 5. I love all the characters.  It's just like the original with all sorts of characters with different powers and they are all over the world.

 There is the teen Tommy (Robbie Kay) in the US who is on the run with his mom.

 Carlos (Ryan Guzman) the soldier who comes to the US and adjusts to civilian life.

 Miko (Kiki Sukezane) in Japan who enters a video game.
Malina (Danika Yarosh) who is in the artic.

6. It's also shot in Canada so we see the Canadian actors get small parts.

Peter Mooney (Nick from Rookie Blue) and Aislinn Paul (Claire from Degrassi).

7. Erika (Rya Kihlstedt) is the main bad guy this season and she's got a big mission. 

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt3556944/?ref_=nv_sr_1

My opinion: I recommend you watch the pilot.  You don't have to watch the original.  This does stand on it's own very well.

 Jan. 17, 2018 Channel Zero: Candle Cove: This show came out in fall 2016 where there is a 6 episode season.

"An anthology series based on popular Internet Creepypastas, including Candle Cove, The No-End House, Butcher's Block and Hidden Door."

 The first season Candle Cove is about a TV show that makes kids kill people.

 Pros:

 1. It was a good start where there is a lot of drama, conflict and tension set in after years  later a massacre happened.  Mike Painter (Paul Schnieder from Parks and Recreation) comes back to town to visit his mom.  His twin brother died when they were 12.

 2. Good dialogue when the mom Martha doesn't have family pics up:

 "It's a matter of managing intrusive thoughts."

 I should put that in my inspirational quotes.  I just did.

 3. It's creepy when it seems the TV show Candle Cove is coming back on. 

 There are these disturbing images from the show.  It's not all blood and gore, but like a:

 -figure that is on fire and walking

 -a skeleton in a hood standing there

 Cons:

 None.  Maybe it's too scary for some people.

 My opinion: I watched the first season.  Then I watched the second season No- End House.  It's a different story about a haunted house, but it was still scary and the quality is good.  If you like scary stuff, then watch it.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4820370/?ref_=fn_al_tt_4

This is Us: 

"Follows a unique ensemble, as their paths cross and their life stories interwine, from sharing the same birthday, to so much more than anyone would expect." 

1. Interesting beginning of "18 million people have the same birthday."

2. There are big names like Mandy Moore and Milo Ventimiglia.  Justin Hartley, Chrissy Metz and Sterling K. Brown are good.

3. My favorite is when Randall (Sterling K. Brown) finds his long-lost father who abandoned him at a fire station 36 yrs ago.  They reunite.  

4. Alan Thicke makes an appearance as himself.

5. There was good acting with Kevin (Justin Hartley) getting angry and lashing out at the audience.  I re-watched that part and it should be on his acting reel.

6. There was a great plot twist with all the characters being connected.

Cons: None.

My opinion: I liked the pilot, but was unsure if I really would watch every episode.  I saw the 2nd episode and decided to record all of it.  It's not usually my kind of show.  I like to watch action- drama shows. 

I thought this show may be a bunch of phony sentimentality, but it's really heart-warming.  You should at least check out the pilot.


Mar. 15, 2018 Channel Zero: No- End House: I got the Showcase channel for free preview in Oct. 2017.  I was able to watch this 6 episode season.

Pros: 

1. It's scary with lots of drama, conflict and tension of a creepy house at the end of the street.  It's very creepy.  I feel tense watching it.

2. Good cinematography.

3. Good acting.

Cons: None really.  I don't really care about the characters who are 4 teens Margo, Jules, JD and Seth.  I don't have anything bad to say about them.

Comparisons:

People being trapped in a town: The characters are trapped there.  It was like the other shows called Under the Dome, Wayward Pines, Between and Containment.


My opinion: It's scary so if you like to get scared, go watch it.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt4820370/?ref_=nv_sr_1
My week:

Mar. 20, 2018 Design the Life you Desire telesummit: I signed up for this video interview.  You should sign up for it too.  It's going to be inspirational:



Mar. 21, 2018 Lindsay Lohan Lawyer.com commercial: I was at work and the staff room TV was on.  It was on The Talk about Lohan's commercial.  The question is: "Do you find it irresponsible that Lohan his making this light of a serious issue?"  

The audience says yes.

My question is this: You are:

A. This is offensive.

B. This is funny.

C. Both.

D. Neither.

I would say it was light, fun and funny.  She was making fun of herself about how she got DUIs.  She is doing this to be the spokesperson for the company and to make money.  She is not here to offend people.

It's not like Tosh. O TV show where they seem to want to be funny and offend people at the same time.

If you don't like her, don't look at her.
  

The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina: Today I was reading "The master of Vancouver's TV universe" by Ian Bailey in the Globe and Mail.  He profiles Greg Berlanti and it mentions this show.  I will check out the pilot:

A dark coming-of-age tale that follows Sabrina, as she wrestles to reconcile her dual nature as a half-witch, half-mortal while fighting evil forces.


James Patterson donates to charity:
NEW YORK — James Patterson is stepping up his game.
The bestselling author has increased his annual donations for classroom libraries from $1.75 million to $2 million. Scholastic Inc. told The Associated Press on Monday that Patterson is distributing 4,000 gifts of $500 each to teachers around the country, from Mechanic Falls, Maine, to Cheney, Kansas. The so-called “Patterson Pledge” was launched in 2015 and is run in co-ordination with Scholastic Book Clubs, which adds book club points to Patterson’s contribution. More than 80,000 teachers applied for donations.
“I can’t underscore enough how important books and reading are to a child’s development — better readers make better people, and ultimately better citizens,” Patterson said in a statement. “I’m so grateful for the teachers who are doing imperative work with students every day, in every school in the country. These grants are my way of acknowledging their extraordinary efforts.”
“Teachers often have to find their own funds and use their personal money to buy books and build fresh classroom libraries. This is why we at Scholastic Book Clubs are truly inspired by James Patterson’s commitment to offer real help to teachers in this work,” Judy Newman, president of Scholastic Book Clubs, said in a statement.
Over the past few years, Patterson has also given millions of dollars to bookstores and literacy programs and endowed thousands of college scholarships for teachers.

Mar. 23, 2018 "Air Bnb hosts can kick you out after you've checked in": I watched the TV show Adam Ruins Everything and he has mentioned about how hosts have discriminated guests from staying in their home, and also how a guest has damaged a house in thousands of dollars.  Air Bnb then only reimbursed by less than $100:
Last month, Logan Kugler checked into the home of a Los Angeles-based Airbnb host. The plan was to stay there for about one month, but Kugler found himself checking out just three days after checking in. That’s not because he wanted to, but because the host cancelled his reservation.


This story is not about any one party being right or wrong. Instead, let this serve as a reminder that we are living in an age of non-traditional services -- be that via ride-share, home-sharing, bike-sharing and so forth. That means, as it stands now, anyone has the right to kick you out of their car, house or apartment if they feel so inclined. That's essentially what happened with Kugler when he used Airbnb to rent a home in LA last month.


“I woke up to a message on my phone that said Airbnb had changed my reservation and that it ended in 36 hours and I was to leave," Kugler told TechCrunch. “This was a 31-day rental.”

The host asked Kugler to leave because she felt uncomfortable with the amount of requests he was making, such as to change the layout of the refrigerator and install different lights, she told TechCrunch. That's when she contacted Airbnb to let the company know she wasn't going to be able to let him stay there anymore.

The host gave Kugler 48 hours' notice to leave the premises. Kugler, however, said he wouldn't be able to pack up and leave that soon. So he asked for a couple of extra days, which the host declined.

Meanwhile, Kugler was in contact with Airbnb over the course of a couple of days to find a new place to stay with the same nightly rate, according to messages reviewed by TechCrunch. Before Kugler was able to find a new place to stay, the time ran out on his original reservation. Because he hadn't left yet, the host called the police to help her get him off her property. Part of her rationale for calling the police, she said, was because Airbnb wasn't helping her to get him to leave.

"I felt uncomfortable," she said. "I lived in the main house and I wasn't comfortable having this man on my property.
There are 900 comments:
roadscolar
20 hours ago
I've had short term guests (less than a month) ask me to install a ceiling fan, an outside shower for the pool, and buy a garage door opener that works of their phone. The problem with declining such absurd requests is you don't know if this strange person is going to behave vindictively and damage your house when you refuse their request - and that's why you end up evicting them.
https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/airbnb-hosts-kick-apos-ve-163951961.html
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Sunday, March 4, 2018

Jurassic Park 1, 2, 3/ Max Payne/ Gran Torino

Dec. 24, 2017: Most of my shows are on hiatus right now and there is a bit of a break (like a week) before new shows come on.  That's why I'm writing about these movies.

Jurassic Park: I saw this movie on Feb. 2016.  I saw the beginning of this movie in 1998.  I went to San Francisco with my family when I was in gr. 7 during spring break.  I saw this at my family's friend's house.  Now I got to watch the whole movie when it came on TV.

"During a preview tour, a theme park suffers a major power breakdown that allows its cloned dinosaur exhibits to run amok."

Why did you watch it?: It seemed interesting.

Pros:

1. It was fun and entertaining to watch humans interact with dinosaurs.  It's a crazy adventure.

2. 30 min in, there was a good exposition on how dinosaurs are recreated.

3. There is good drama, conflict, and tension because dinosaurs are dangerous.  There is lots of suspense.

4. It's got mass appeal with the kids and the adults.  All kinds of people will watch this movie. 
 
5. I like the line "Creation is the act of sheer will."  I'm going to put that in my inspirational quotes.

6. It was a actually pretty smart movie when the characters talk about the morals of bringing animals that are extinct.

Cons: None.

Would you watch it again?: There is a low chance I would watch it again.  I thought it was a solid average movie.  I was interested in watching the sequels.



Dec. 25, 2017 The Lost World: Jurassic Park: I saw this movie in Mar. 2016.


"A research team is sent to the Jurassic Park Site B island to study the dinosaurs there while another team approaches with another agenda."

Why did you watch it?: I saw the first one and liked it.

Pros: 

1. They do up the ante.  On this island there are no fences in a new island.

2. Good special effects of the dinosaurs.  I like it when they're running with the dinosaurs.

3. There is the mass appeal with a kid in there with the adults.

4. Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) was from the first movie.  He is a likeable character.

5. There is good drama, conflict, and tension because dinosaurs are dangerous.  There is lots of suspense.

Spoiler alert: There is a scene where there are 2 T-Rexes on both sides.  They push the trailer off the cliff.  The characters are stuck in the trailer and they hand onto something.

Cons: None.


My opinion: There isn't a pro or a con about it, but I noticed a satellite phone in a bag.  


Would you watch it again?: There is a low chance I would watch it again.  I thought it was a solid average movie. 



Dec. 26, 2017 Jurassic Park III: I watched this move on Mar. 2016.

"A decidedly odd couple with ulterior motives convince Dr. Alan Grant to go to Isla Sorna (the second InGen dinosaur lab.), resulting in an unexpected landing...and unexpected new inhabitants on the island."

Why did you watch it?: It seemed interesting.


Pros:

1. Dr. Alan Grant (Sam Neill) is a likable character.  He was in the first movie.

2. The couple does have a very good and deep reason for wanting to be on the island.

3. There is the mass appeal with a kid in there with the adults.

4. There is an interesting part with the dinosaur eggs.

5. There is good drama, conflict, and tension because dinosaurs are dangerous.  There is lots of suspense.  

It is scary.  I jumped once.

6. It's unpredictable.  Spoiler alert: They hear a ringing sound.  It leads to the phone inside a dinosaur.

7. It was fun to watch as they run all around the island with dinosaurs chasing after them.

Cons: None.

Would you watch it again?: There is a low chance I would watch it again.  I thought it was a solid average movie. 




Dec. 27, 2017 Max Payne: I saw this movie back in May 2016.

"Coming together to solve a series of murders in New York City are a police detective whose family was slain as part of a conspiracy and an assassin out to avenge her sister's death. The duo will be hunted by the police, the mob, and a ruthless corporation."

It's based on a video game.

Why did you watch it?: It was an action movie.

Pros: 

1. Mark Wahlberg was good as the cop Max Payne.  Mila Kunis was good as an assassin Mona.

2. There is a good flashback scene of how three guys murdered his family.

3. There are good action sequences like a slow motion shoot out.

4. Spoiler alert: It leads to a drug for super soldiers.  Super soldiers have been done before like on the TV show Dark Angel.

5. Cool graphics of these birds around Max. 

Cons: None.

My opinion: This isn't a pro or a con. 

There are a lot of movies where characters have to solve a family member, friend or loved one's death/ murder. 

A character has to avenge a family member, friend or loved one's death/ murder. 

Would you watch it again?: There is a low chance I would watch it again.  It was average at best, mediocre at worst.


Dec. 28, 2017 Gran Torino: I saw this movie in Aug. 2016.  

 "Disgruntled Korean War veteran Walt Kowalski sets out to reform his neighbor, a Hmong teenager who tried to steal Kowalski's prized possession: a 1972 Gran Torino."

 Why did you watch it?: I don't really watch dramas.  However, this did seem interesting.

 Pros: 

 1. Clint Eastwood as the lead Walt Kowalski was good.  It shows his transformation as racist and mean, to a nice and understanding guy.

 2. Thao (Bee Vang) as a young guy who needs direction and gets that from Walt is good.

 Ahney Her as Sue, a smart young woman is good.

 3. There is good ethnic diversity with lots of Asians.

 4. There is drama, conflict and tension because Thao is pressured to join a gang.

 There are dangerous situations as the gang closes in.

The community is too scared to go against the gang.

5. A good line about being a soldier: "Ordered to kill, killing to save yourself, killing to save others."

Walt: The things that haunt a man the most or what isn't ordered to do.

6. There is a good ending.

Cons: None.

 Comparisons:

 A movie about neighbors and race: There was the movie Lakeview Terrace.

Would you watch it again?: There is a low chance I would watch it again.  I liked it.  It was a movie that was good at best, and average at worst.


Dec. 29. 2017 Johnny Mnemonic: I got this movie on my 90s movies channel free preview. I saw the 1st 20 min. of it and I found myself cringing when I was watching it.  This was supposed to be set in the future, but it looked so dated.

It came out in 1995.  I may have liked it if I saw it when I was a teen.  I didn't watch anymore of it.

I watched the beginning because I like action movies, but this doesn't seem that good.

"A data courier, literally carrying a data package inside his head, must deliver it before he dies from the burden or is killed by the Yakuza."



The whole plot is on Wikipedia.  Here's part of it:

Johnny Mnemonic is a short story by American-Canadian writer William Gibson, which served as inspiration for the 1995 film of the same name. The short story first appeared in Omni magazine in May 1981,[1] and was subsequently included in 1986's Burning Chrome, a collection of Gibson's short fiction. It takes place in the world of Gibson's cyberpunk novels, predating them by some years, and introduces the character Molly Millions, who plays a prominent role in Gibson's Sprawl trilogy of novels.

The film plot differs considerably from the short story, and a novelization of William Gibson's screenplay written by Terry Bisson was published in 1995 under the title of Johnny Mnemonic.[2] In 1996 a film tie-in edition of Gibson's original short story was published as a standalone book.[3]
"Johnny Mnemonic" is a data trafficker who has undergone cybernetic surgery to have a data storage system implanted in his head. The system allows him to store digital data too sensitive to risk transmission on computer networks. To keep the cargo secure, the data is locked by a password known only to the intended recipient. Johnny enters a trance-like state while the data is being transferred or the password is being set, making him unaware of the contents and unable to retrieve it. He makes a modest living in the Sprawl by physically transporting sensitive information for corporations, underworld crime rings or wealthy individuals.

Street Cents: I remember watching this show in elementary school.  There was a part about movie theatres.  You can watch 15 min. of a movie, and if you don't like it, you can get a refund.

This may vary from different movie theatres.

Flashback: I'm getting another flashback of my friend Yasmine in jr. high school.  She and her mom walked out of the movie Blues Brothers 2000 and got a refund.  They then watched the movie Simply Irresistible. 

I'm sure some of you guys are like: "How do you remember that?"

It's TV and movies.  I can remember that.

Mar. 3, 2018: I guess I'm posting this now because the Oscars awards show is on this weekend.  Also the TV show Timeless is coming on for season 2 on Sun. Mar. 11, 2018.

I don't watch the Oscars, but I'm looking forward to Timeless.

"An unlikely trio travel through time in order to battle unknown criminals and protect history as we know it." 


My week:


Feb. 21, 2018 "First, you must suffer": Today I found this life essay by Greg Blanchette in the Globe and Mail.  It is about how he struggles to live in Tofino, BC:
"I have observed Tofino for 20 years and lived here for nine, and I too feel the brunt of the housing situation. In 2017, between house-sits, pet-sits and couch-surfs, I moved 19 times, and it's not unusual for me to jolt awake at 5 a.m. in a panic about where I'll be living next month."


Feb. 24, 2018 "Cruise Control": Today I found this in-depth article about working on a huge cruise called Harmony of the Seas.

It was really fun to read like "There is a cruise ship burn book" about people who ask really dumb questions like: "How long does it take the crew to get home every night?"

 There is this one comment:


ADM 24 Feb 2018 10:36 AMFollow
This article has been floating around news papers for months How many times are you going to publish this bore? Come on post media! Get some quality in your life.


 My opinion: It was really fun to read the article because it talks about what goes on behind the scenes.  Also it talks about all these fun activities like restaurants, shopping, ice skating, etc.  It reminded me of going to West Ed mall.

Feb. 25, 2018: The last 2 weeks were so busy.  I was working full-time and hardly looked for a job on the internet.

 Writing event: My friend Sherry sent me this:

 Unblocking: a look at writers’ reluctance and ways of circumventing it.

Candas Jane Dorsey will use a variety of media and techniques to help participants unlock creativity and circumvent temporary writers’ blocks. A combination of exercises, writing prompts, short readings and Q&A will allow participants to address particular problems in their own practice.
My opinion: Dorsey was one of my teachers at the Professional Writing program at MacEwan.

 Feb. 27, 2018 Asian restaurant job interview: I did an interview last week.  I had passed my resume to them last year.

 Pros:

 1. It was in downtown.

2. It was weekday hours and daytime.

3. I can do the job.

Cons:

 1. You have to be able to read and write in Chinese because the cooks only know that.
I have done a lot of interviews at Asian restaurants and not all said that you have to be able to do that.

My opinion: I would work there if I got hired, but I won't be hired because I can't read and write Chinese.  The boss seemed nice and all.  Also my brother said he went there to eat and it was good.

The Olympics on The Simpsons: I remember an ep where Lisa wrote a letter to the UN and brought the Olympics to town.

Marge: That's great that you brought the Olympics to Springfield Lisa.
Lisa: Yeah, well it was for school.  Everybody else wrote to the Backstreet Boys.

The choir of kids sing: Children, children.  Future, future.

My brother P told me about the ep where Homer steals the Olympics torch so it won't be lit.  Homer was mad that the Olympics make all the other TV shows he watches go on break.  Here's the ep:


Mar. 1, 2018 My Pet store closed at WEM: I found this article by Juris Graney in the Edmonton Journal:
A member of the public alerted society staff earlier this week that animals may have been abandoned at the My Pet store in West Edmonton Mall.
Peace officer Danika Bodnarchuk, the society’s supervisor of animal protection services, said Wednesday the concern was deemed justified and the seizure began. It did not involve any cats or dogs.
Early Tuesday, 10 humane society staff members — including a specialist vet — went to the store and began shuttling the animals to the society’s shelter in north Edmonton, where another 20 staff were waiting to sign the animals into care, Bodnarchuk said.
The pet store is no longer open.


Egyptian singer jailed over "sexually suggestive" music video: I found this in the National Post in the Edmonton Journal:
Egyptian pop singer Laila Amer has been sentenced two years in prison for a "sexually suggestive" music video. The sentence has since been reduced to one year after an appeal on Monday.

Amer appears on a video for her song called "Bos Omak (Look At Your Mother)," dancing while a man, clearly titillated by her dance moves, watches her on a TV screen.
Ahmed Mahran, the lawyer who filed a complaint, was quoted by various websites saying that video was a "great risk" to Egypt and that it was a "moral disaster." He pointed out that the song's title rhymes with "Kus Emek," which is an Arabic insult, meaning "Your mom's pussy."


My opinion: There is the video on the page.  I thought the video was low-budget and kind of boring with images of her cooking and cleaning in a house.  A little sexy dancing.

It was so tame compared to these music videos:

Nicki Minaj's "Anaconda":


Jennifer Lopez and Iggy Azalea's "Booty":


This sure makes me appreciate that in Canada and the US, we can have as sexually suggestive music videos as we want.

I find that it is funny and stupid and sad and unfair that a singer is going to jail for releasing a music video.

 http://www.okayafrica.com/laila-amer-jailed-over-video/

 "How we became a 0 waste family": Today I found this article by Alex Mlynek in the Edmonton Journal.  It's very good about saving the environment.  There is some work, creativity, but after awhile it's a good habit. 

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