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THE BOOK OF BOBA FETT: Watched episode one tonight. Half of it is flashback to how he escaped from the belly of the sarlac and what happened afterwards, which is all I really wanted to know anyway. I asked the biggest Star Wars fan I know (no, not him) and all he said was, "It happened in the comics." I never did really understand the fascination with Boba Fett. Now that he's taken over Jabba's crime syndicate of Mos Bespa from Bib Fortuna he's made some surprisingly merciful decisions, but I still don't trust him.
I only know of it because the guy you didn't ask has mentioned it on FB a few dozen times. I never understood the fascnation with the character, either.
Jeff of Earth-J said:
THE BOOK OF BOBA FETT: Watched episode one tonight. Half of it is flashback to how he escaped from the belly of the sarlac and what happened afterwards, which is all I really wanted to know anyway. I asked the biggest Star Wars fan I know (no, not him) and all he said was, "It happened in the comics." I never did really understand the fascination with Boba Fett. Now that he's taken over Jabba's crime syndicate of Mos Bespa from Bib Fortuna he's made some surprisingly merciful decisions, but I still don't trust him.
Favreau and Filoni hit it out of the park with The Mandolorian but The Book of Boba Fett has been a bit of a slog. Boba is best as a minor character. The character, and the actor who portrays him, simply can't carry an entire show.
We watched episode two of Boba Fett last night. It's set in two time periods: the present (after The Maldalorian) and the past (after Return of the Jedi). The Mandalorian tried to make Fett something more than a bounty hunter (i.e., scum), but at the end he reverted to type when he assumed the mantle of crime lord. The new show seems to be trying to make him into a likeable character again. The action, so far, has been set entirely on Tantooine. I enjoy that they are digging deeper into the native Tatooine culture(s) that we have seen in the movies. At one point, Fett leads a party of Tusken Raiders against a "sand train" (whose riders pick off Sandpeople like Native Americans while violating their territory). It's visually exciting, but it's hard to pick a side. I'm rooting for Fett's side I guess, but only because I want to see the plot progress, which it won't if he loses.
Episode V watches just like S2, E1 of The Mandalorian; Boba Fett isn't even in it. (If one were interested in a strictly linear story, the first four episodes of this series and it wouldn't affect the story.) Episode VI features Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker training Grogu. I don't know how they got him to look so young* (CGI, I imagine), but I wouldn't mind seeing more of The Adventures of Luke Skywalker; that's what Star Wars is supposed to be all about, after all. Usually I complain when series are this short, but this one was just about the right length. I still don't buy that Boba has turned over a new leaf, but overall the series was enjoyable. The next one will be about Obi Kenobi so I'm expecting to enjoy that one more.
*How did they get him to look so young?" is something of a catchphrase in our house. Back in the '90s I was visiting my brother and decided it was time to introduce my nephews to James Bond. They only knew Sean Connery from The Hunt for Red October, and when he first came on screen one of them asked, "How did they get him to look so young?" (He eventually figured it out.) When I pointed out that James Bond had a phone in his car they were singularly unimpressed.
With Tracy out of town I have reverted to Kung Fu and Ultraman (Tiga). I may even thrown in a Hanna-Barbera cartoon or two.
We just binge-watched both Vikings: Valhalla and season 5 of Last Kingdom. The latter is more historically accurate, but still has its eye-rolling moments. With Valhalla, it helps to think of all this happening on Earth-Two. In both cases, once I checked my irritation over historical errors, I warmed up and enjoyed the story.
Second season of Raised by Wolves
Current season of Mrs. Maisel.
I checked out Astrid & Lilly Save the World but it feels like too much of a low-rent retread, despite addressing some issues with its obvious inspiration, Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
I watched and enjoyed the first three seasons of The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel. Now that all of season four is available I'll be watching it (and looking forward to final season five). It's a tribute to female standup comics and is a lot of fun to watch.
I haven't watched Raised by Wolves yet, but it sounds good. I'm adding it to my to-be-watched list.
I've watched every episode of Astrid & Lilly Save the World. At least a couple of times they nodded to Buffy, once having "Good Monster" Brutus refer to himself as "your Giles." The lead characters are likable and it's probably closer to a real high school than Buffy was (though I love Buffy).
We're enjoying The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, and have seen most (but not all) of this season's episodes. Here's hoping there won't be another two-year gap between this season and the next (like there was with this season and the previous one).
I think Astrid & Lilly is a little closer to high school, but it still feels a lot like, you know, TV. I mean the school parts; obviously, the fantasy is clearly marked as fantastic, as it was on Buffy. I may go back and catch up on the episodes I missed, but that would be sometime in the future.
It can be difficult coming late to the party. We were joking, with the most recent ep of Raised by Wolves, about how someone might react if they'd never seen the show. Two androids have a conversation that includes the line, "Believers of today have used a biotech tree to weaponize a serpent."
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel remains a must-watch show at our house, but I'm glad next season will be its last. This season feels slightly less marvelous than the first three. The matchmaker mafia subplot is leaving me cold for some reason, even though the show has always been stylized.
Just finished re-watching Monty Python Live (Mostly): One Down, Five To Go *, a recording of the last Python show from the O2 Arena in London in 2014. It consists of the following.
Overall: It was OK, for what was a nostalgia trip and a "greatest hits" show. The guys weren't too doddery, and I'm sure no one went to this expecting to see anything else.
Obviously filmed before the passing of Terry Jones