Showing posts with label TNT. Show all posts
Showing posts with label TNT. Show all posts

Thursday, February 5, 2015

TNT's "Titans" Line-up Revealed!

 
 
As a kid, one of my favorite series growing up was Marv Wolfman and George Perez's standard-setting New Teen Titans run.  The Justice League was always flashier, with epic storylines that spanned the galaxy, but something always seemed more...mechanical and straightlaced about the League of the time.  The Teen Titans, on the other hand, were tight-knit, character-driven personalities that acted like real people trying to grow up, and I've always had a soft spot for the band of sidekicks trying to reach independence as a family.

After a number of animated incarnations since the start of the millennium, the Teen Titans have graduated to the growing live-action DC Television Universe with TNT's order of an Akiva Goldsman / Mark Haines pilot for "The Titans".  Let's look at some of the history behind the characters that we may see brought to the screen -- and some of the glaring omissions from Teen Titans history.

Thursday, January 22, 2015

Second hour of the season finale - The Librarians and the Loom of Fate



The season finale's last hour episode was a wonderfully exhausting ride. I spent the whole hour yelling at the T.V. as I watched it - "Whu-WHAAAAT?!?!" "Oh holy hell!" "Are you freakin' KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW?!" I also shouted many obscenities followed by various deities' names. I laughed, I got angry, I cried and I melted. I wanted to slap some characters, and I wanted to hug others. I wanted to be right in the middle of the fights with them. I wanted to die for them. But most of all - I came out of this with an insanely intense desire. 

I really, REALLY want to be a Librarian. Specifically, I want to BE Jacob Stone, Cassandra Cillian and Ezekiel Jones all rolled into one. I want a friend and a mom and a sister like Eve Baird and Lamia. i want an uncle, dad and brother like Jenkins and Flynn. I wish my grandparents were Charlene and Judson. And I want someone like DuLaque in my life to make sure things stay interesting.

 I wish that all those characters were real people in my life. I got so attached to each and every one of them - so much so that I got incredibly depressed when the credits rolled and I realized that there is a chance that the series may not get renewed for another season. I desperately hope that's not the case. This season overall has been a wonderfully wild ride - and it made me FEEL stuff. I haven't been touched so deeply by stories and characters in a very long time.

Personal note from a fangurl: Props and thanks to the whole team of producers, directors and writers, and to the whole cast of this wonderfully crazy, creative and imaginative show!

And now - the last of the recaps for the season... 


Monday, January 19, 2015

Season Finale - First hour: The Librarians and the City of Light recap



This episode turns out to be heavier than what I expected. The early dialogue is the usual, smart-assed, funny-filled fare, but it becomes rather serious towards the end of the episode. The kids are showings signs of growing up - and growing closer as a family. I was totally caught off-guard by the emotions that Zeke and Jake expressed, and it was awesome. The casts' dialogue delivery is beginning to feel very natural, and I'm actually starting to feel that these people really do exist in the real world, and they are very much becoming people that I would want in my life.


And now, here's the recap:

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

The Librarians and the Heart of Darkness

Using this header just once, since I think this is how most fans see the show. -Ed

Ok - this one's definitely an E-ticket. Whoa. Creepy house, creepy pictures, creepy girl... yeah. Creepy! This episode's guest star is Lea Zawada as Katie, the girl that the team comes across at this house.

There are a lot of things that really worked here. The lighting, the camera angles, the diffusion and blur filters all combined to give that really cool, creepy feeling - you know, the one that happens when you get completely sucked in to a story.

Lea Zawada delivered a fantastic performance, as did Lindy Booth. And we see a bit more development in the relationship between the guys - they are just starting to act more like brothers, and it's great. We also see Cassie find strength, and that's really awesome to have her be the strong one.

Read on past the jump for the recap. SPOILER WARNING!



Monday, January 12, 2015

The Librarians and the Rule of Three Recap!


This episode opens in a high school student's bedroom. He's getting ready for a science fair presentation. While he puts on his tie, he reviews the periodic table and rehearses his presentation. As he finishes tying his his tie, his body starts to petrify and something strange flows through the veins of his outstretched arm. The paralysis completes as a single tear runs down his cheek.

Monday, January 5, 2015

The Librarians and the Fables of Doom recap!



It was brought to my attention by one of our readers (OK - my daughter) that I have been messing up the numbering of the episodes. I am one behind on my numbering, because I took the two-hour premiere as a single episode. It's considered two episodes. So I apologize for that, and it will be corrected going forward. Today, I have some thoughts that I'd like to share about the characters.

"The Librarians" has fast become one of my favorite TV shows - one that I choose to set the DVR for, as opposed to waiting for it to post online. I love how the team is becoming more cohesive and their roles are becoming more clearly defined. Their family dynamic is becoming more evident as well. Here are my observations:



Flynn Carsen is still the same Flynn that we saw in the movies, His rapid-fire speech and sudden starts and stops provide the shot of comedic effect, but his presence is a chaotic distraction from the stability that Eve is trying to provide for the team. He's like an absent father who comes back once in a while to make sure they still know he's alive and trying to be in charge. I'm thinking that this role is transitional, as are the roles of Judson and Charlene. As the series goes on we will see less and less of them.



Eve Baird is becoming a "mama bear" type, a true Guardian and protector. After all, who better to protect the kids than a mom? Moms will fight fiercely to keep the kids safe, and try to make sure that they don't have a bad day... even if it embarrasses them. Yet she does avoid becoming a helicopter mom. She remembers that the kids do have their own skills and talents, and they'll be alright.



Jake Stone is becoming the quintessential big brother, especially where Cassandra is concerned. He can get her to focus when she starts overloading, and keeps her balanced. He doesn't trust her anymore, but he does provide the kind of support she needs. He always seems to be keeping an eye on her, in spite of - or perhaps because of  his distrust. He's also a good back-up for Eve in situations where a second gun (or sword, or fist) is required. That fits in with the concept of a household with an absent father, with the oldest son taking on the role of "man of the house."



Cassandra Cillian is the little sister who keeps getting shoved to the back of the line until her skills are needed. She wants to be recognized for what she can do and hasn't figured out yet how to effectively assert herself, so she patiently waits until called upon. But don't piss her off. As we saw in the last episode, the potential for her to be really bad-ass lurks deep in her dark side. I'm hoping a way will be found to rid her of the brain tumor without taking away her skills, because her character really is a valuable part of the group.



Ezekiel Jones is definitely showing that he's more than just a snot-nosed little brother. He still wants to be the rock star, but he's learning the value of being a part of a team - and a family group. He has the street smarts to get out of sticky situations, but lacks the discipline and experience to do it in a way that doesn't have an "oops, didn't think really think that through" attached to it.

Jenkins is definitely the uncle who acts as a mentor - he's picked his favorite kid, and that would be Zeke. The growing respect between them is becoming more evident the more they learn about each other. Jenkins has both the discipline and the experience to guide Zeke through things in such a way that Zeke can learn from it and follow through, without the "oops" factor. I hope that we see more of their teamwork - and possibly some shenanigans from them too. Jenkins seems so serious sometimes, but I am sure he is hiding a wicked sense of humor in his coat pocket.

What do you think? Do my observations make sense, or am I missing something? I'd love to hear about it in the comment box below!



Monday, December 22, 2014

The Librarians Episode 3 Recap: Santa Campbell!


Last week's episode "...And the Horns of a Dilemma," was based on the Minotaur and Labyrinth mythos. I wasn't impressed with it - the dialogue was boring, and the situations were predictable. I started to lose hope for the series, and wondered if my fun ride was over already. Happily, it is not!

In this week's episode, "... And Santa's Midnight Run," the dialogue is much better than it was last week, and the writing overall is better. The cast is really starting to gel - their performance as a group actually feels more like a family than a bunch of strangers thrown together. Their roles are becoming much more established - the weird uncle (Jenkins), the mom (Eve), the big brother (Jake), the little sister (Cassandra), and the kid brother that you just want to slap sometimes (Ezekiel).

I really enjoyed this one - I had to pause the DVR towards the end to catch my breath during one particularly moving sequence, because I realized that I was actually feeling something. I was pleasantly surprised when I figured out that I was actually worried about the situations in the sequence, and then relieved when it all resolved.