Criminal Minds: "Amplification"

Views: 13703

Reply to This

Replies to This Discussion

I finished the 3rd series of GHOSTS (UK) last night, too. There will be a Christmas Day special follow-up to the 4th series, just as there were for series 2 and 3. I've read that series 4 will be on HBO Max around the end of this month or early next month.

The final show of Morning Express with Robin Meade. CNN canceled it after 21 years(!). In its place, the network will simply air CNN This Morning on both CNN and HLN.

This hurts. Morning Express was a bright morning news show like what I liked about HLN back when it was Headline News: a place where you could get a complete half-hour news program at any time of day, with a friendly, warm team of anchors and correspondents. Morning Express had a nice balance of the serious and the sentimental and the goofy and the fun, and it will be missed. 

We binge-watched Wednesday. (Eight episodes, four nights.) We even stopped The Great (we'll return to it) to do so.

We were hooked after the first episode, as Jenna Ortega is a revelation as the lead character. Purists may not like how some of the established lore is mildly altered or added to -- after all, Wednesday is now 15-16, not a child like the TV show and Charles Addams cartoons, or 11, as in Addams Family the movie -- but will enjoy how certain elements of the original TV show are woven organically into the narrative (e.g., a secret door is opened by two finger snaps).

The actress playing Wednesday's roommate Enid bounces off Wednesday really well (she's into bright colors). Those two make the show, but Catherine Zeta-Jones is pretty good as Morticia, and the fellow playing Gomez more closely resembles the original cartoons than John Astin.

I saw some familiar faces, notably Christina Ricci (Wednesday in Addams Family, Addams Family Values), Riki Lindholme (Another Period), Gwendoline Christie (Game of Thrones, The Sandman), Jamie McShane (Gone Girl) and Percy Hynes White (The Gifted).

One question that arose in my mind while watching was how they were making Ortega (with whom I was not familiar) look so young, especially her height. It's not hard for most people to look short when standing next to Gwendolyne Christie (6'3"), but she looked short next to the other actors as well, like the teen boys. I thought maybe she was standing in a hole (or the others were standing on boxes) to make her look small, but it turns out she really is small: She's a "shade short of 5'1" and petite. In other words, in a shool uniform she really passes for a high school student, despite being 20. (Unlike, say, everyone in Riverdale.) The actress playing Enid is also 20, but also passes.

Something that her frame doesn't sell is all of Wednesday's ersatz skills; Ortega did that herself. According to various stories, she learned/practiced fencing, German, the cello and other things Wednesday had to do flawlessly. I'm happy to say she delivers. (Her German is much better than mine.)

Recommended.

This is on my to-be-watched list.

I've loved the character of Wednesday ever since Christina Ricci asked if the girl scout cookies were made of real girl scouts.

Apropos of nothing, I recently learned that American English has the word "cookies" (as opposed to biscuits) because it originated in pre-New York New Amsterdam, from the Dutch word for them.

While the adults were watching Sandman over Thanksgiving, the kids were in the other room watching Wednesday. Tracy's keen to watch it. It may be a while until we watch the U.S. version of Ghosts. It's on Paramount+, which we dropped after  the recent seasons of Strange New Worlds and Picard and Discovery. We plan to pick it up again (and to watch Ghosts) after those other shows return for new seasons. 



Richard Willis said:

Apropos of nothing, I recently learned that American English has the word "cookies" (as opposed to biscuits) because it originated in pre-New York New Amsterdam, from the Dutch word for them.

This is interesting. I don't know anything about Dutch, so perhaps it could explain a few other British/American diversions, like flat/apartment, lorry/truck, lift/elevator, etc. 

Like driving on the left or the right*, I suspect these fairly modern creations were just locally named when they came into existence. Like here the train tracks underground are called the subway while in Britain it's the underground. In Britain a subway is a walkway under a busy street.

* Being island nations, Britain and Japan driving on the left doesn't affect other countries. (except for the car from Germany I saw driving on the wrong side of the street where one of my uncles lived)

Captain Comics said:

This is interesting. I don't know anything about Dutch, so perhaps it could explain a few other British/American diversions, like flat/apartment, lorry/truck, lift/elevator, etc. 

GHOSTS (American version): We watched the British version, then decided to transition to the American before we realized it was on Paramount+. We dropped that channel after the latest round of Star Trek shows were over and didn't plan to re-up until they came back, but Tracy couldn't wait. (Besides, there is, like, nothing else on TV we are interested in that we haven't already seen.) I enjoyed comparing the American counterparts to the British originals. The ones I don't like as much are the straight-up copies: the scout instructor with the arrow trough his neck; the pantsless businessman; the beheaded guy. Those seem too derivative to me. I'm sure they'll grow on me as the show is (expectedly) very similar in tone to the original.

ANDOR: We tried this one two months ago, watched the first episode but couldn't get into it. In sheer desperation we tried again last night but, knowing nothing happened in E1, we started with E2. So many characters, but not a single one of any interest. When does it get good?

While you have Paramount+, you should check out the show Evil. A group of three are engaged to investigate alleged demon possessions. It's pretty elaborate. Good writing, acting and special effects. There are high stakes involved and the "alleged" part turns out to be a very secretive conspiracy.

We'll keep it in mind!

January 6th Committee Hearings: series' finale. 

Me too.

Jeff of Earth-J said:

January 6th Committee Hearings: series' finale. 

Reply to Discussion

RSS

Groups

Latest Activity

Richard Willis replied to Steve W's discussion A Cover a Day
"There would be a lot of Thor-Rainbow Bridge covers. Tomb of Dracula #44 from 1976"
2 hours ago
Peter Wrexham replied to Peter Wrexham's discussion A Cover A Day: Nominations, Themes and Statistics
"Add "Pride covers, intended and accidental" to the list of possible themes, maybe next…"
3 hours ago
Rob Staeger (Grodd Mod) replied to Rob Staeger (Grodd Mod)'s discussion DC's Digital Backlist - Secret Society of Super Villains spotlight!
"Yep, it's the original Warlord series. I think we'll be getting the first 12 issues, as…"
3 hours ago
Jeff of Earth-J replied to Steve W's discussion A Cover a Day
"Here are a few..."
3 hours ago
JD DeLuzio replied to Steve W's discussion A Cover a Day
"Hey, could that be a theme next June? Pride covers, intended and accidental? Tomb of Dracula #44…"
4 hours ago
The Baron replied to Jeff of Earth-J's discussion Post-Crisis Superman
"Why, you on a schedule? "
4 hours ago
Irma Kruhl replied to Steve W's discussion A Cover a Day
"Tomb of Dracula #44 from 1976"
5 hours ago
Jeff of Earth-J replied to Jeff of Earth-J's discussion Post-Crisis Superman
"I have been feeling the need to pick up the pace of this discussion. The means to that end is to…"
5 hours ago
Jeff of Earth-J replied to Cavaliere (moderator emeritus)'s discussion What are you watching right now?
""A Quality of Mercy" (the last episode of the first season of Star Trek: Strange New…"
7 hours ago
Lee Houston, Junior replied to Steve W's discussion A Cover a Day
"Since Phillip mentioned her on the previous page during his Mary Marvel reference... (Image…"
8 hours ago
Dave Palmer replied to Steve W's discussion A Cover a Day
"Thoroughbred racing is more popular in the US, but harness racing is still a billion dollar…"
9 hours ago
Peter Wrexham replied to Steve W's discussion A Cover a Day
"Oops!  I've moved the index thread so that they're now both in "Mr Silver…"
10 hours ago

© 2023   Captain Comics, board content ©2013 Andrew Smith   Powered by

Badges  |  Report an Issue  |  Terms of Service