nasloranger Reviews

The White Lotus: Ciao (2022) Season 2, Episode 1

not yet sure about S2

[5/10 · 2 November 2022]

For the most part I enjoyed S1, except for how stupid Kai was to even think of B&E the room for the jewelry... the whole scene with Paula trying to convince him to do it was just exactly what I would expect a couple of very ignorant, immature kids to say - it was painful to watch... if they had any brains at all they would know that you get pennies on the dollar when trying to sell - or fence - jewelry!

AND I definitely could have done without the overly explicit gay sex scene between Armond and Dylan!

Now, as for S2: so far, there are no new characters I care about - they are all annoying in one way or another... Bert, the "dirty old man", makes my skin crawl...

I realize one or more of these people will not make it out alive by the end of the series, and at this point I really don't care who it is - well maybe except for Portia and Albie...

there is no word to describe how I feel about the reappearance of Tonya and Greg - now married... she is still a needy, psycho - and he's a class-A creep... it doesn't take a genius to know his motive for being with her is $$$...

the thing that bothered me the most about this first episode is how Tonya treated Portia!

Telling her she needed her, but to stay in her room so Greg wouldn't know she was still at the resort! Seriously, she expected her to spend an entire week in Sicily in her room - not even coming out to eat in the dining room?!?

And when Tonya did see her in the dining room she made a hideous face and mouthed the words, "GO TO YOUR ROOM!" at that point if I had been Portia, I would have marched right up to their table and said, "Go f-- yourself - I"m here! Deal with it!" but of course, that wouldn't work for what, I am sure, is the upcoming "situation" between Portia and Albie...

so, all that said, I'm not sure if I will watch this whole thing through - the first episode was such a turn-off for me... but maybe curiosity will get the best of me, because I want to know who dies...

Dexter: New Blood: Sins of the Father (2022) Season 1, Episode 10

ARE. YOU. KIDDING. ME?!?

[1/10 · 11 January 2022]

I finally decided to join the dozens and dozens of Dexter fans who gave this finale episode a 1.

I've had a really hard time coming up with the words to describe how totally upset I am without having my review censored for using foul language, so I'll just do my best to keep it clean.

Here's what the idiot writer(s) should have done with the final scene: Dexter wakes up in a cold sweat, realizing that he just had a bad dream - a very, very bad dream!

Everything that happened, well, never happened!

That would explain the utter stupidity of everything we watched that made absolutely no sense at all.

From the very first moment that Harrison showed up as a street savvy teenager, I was pissed off.

I had a real problem with the "age thing", and couldn't get past it throughout the entire 10 episodes.

When Dexter left his son in Miami he was a little boy of 4, so 10 years later Harrison would have only been 14!

And yet the writers made him 17 or 18, as if we were so stupid we couldn't add 4 + 10 and come up with 14!

We had to accept the fact that 4 plus 10 equals something more than 14!

On top of that, they turned this new kid in town into an overnight hero and high school wrestling team phenom! Yeah right!

Moving on: A bad dream would explain how Dexter's girlfriend was the airhead sheriff in town, and she was smart enough to figure out what the Miami PD and the FBI couldn't - that Dexter was the BHB. Yet she wasn't smart enough to figure out that Kurt Caldwell was a psychopathic, serial killer of dozens of runaway females!

A bad dream would explain why Deb came back as a screaming banshee hag.

A bad dream would explain why Dexter's "dark passenger" never resurfaced for 10 long years, but suddenly came back when his son showed up... OR why he suddenly became so dumb and clumsy in New York, when he was so good at what he did in Miami.

A bad dream would explain why Dexter's son would shoot him to death and then leave town with a smile on his face, as if everything was right in the world, and he would never be messed up because he murdered his own father!

Only a bad dream would explain all the drek that happened in those 10 freakin' episodes, and just maybe they could have come up with a second season that some of us might have considered watching.

Dexter: New Blood (2021–2022)

Major timeline problem and other stuff...

[1/10 · 15 November 2021]

I wrote about this after the first episode, and it still bothers me.

Timeline : If this reboot is taking place 10 years after Dexter left Florida and his son Harrison was only 4 years old back then he should only be 14 now. So, why does he look, act, and talk as if he's 18 - or older?

EDIT: a little research shows that the actor who plays Harrison is 22 y/o irl... ha ha!!

He talks about being put in multiple foster homes, as a teenager, after Hannah died; he talks about traveling all over the place to find Dexter; he talks about finally finding him, but doesn't actually explain just how he did it - or where he's getting the money to pay for his travels and search.

Then Dex's girlfriend talks about getting him registered for high school and getting him prepped for college entrance exams. Does the question of how old his is even come up? No!

It seems as though the writers of this reboot didn't even watch the original series - or if it is the same writers of the original, then they forgot some critical timeline points.

Other stuff : The women in this show are annoying as hell!

The girlfriend talks in this breathy whisper most of the time - annoying... Debra yells like a screaming banshee most of the time - also annoying... The teenage daughter - who also looks about 25 - is an obnoxious twit!

Overall, this "New Blood" just fails on way too many levels for me to be interested- or to continue watching.

Oh yeah, who the hell is the champagne drinking chick Lily, who's locked up in the room? Did I miss something?

EDIT: A quick rewatch showed me she was the "lost kid" in the bar who was ordering a hamburger; her scene lasted less than thirty seconds and if you blinked, you missed it... so, how does she fit in?

Dexter: New Blood: Cold Snap (2021) Season 1, Episode 1

o.k. - I'm confused!

[7/10 · 9 November 2021]

There's one "not-so-small" problem with this "New Blood" series...

When Dexter left Miami his son Harrison was 4 years old. Now 10 years later he should be 14. But in this reboot his son appears to be at least 18 - maybe 20.

Apparently the writers are really bad at math, or they think us real Dexter fans have a bad memory and forgot that Harrison was just a little boy 10 years ago.

AND how did he find his father anyway? I hope they explain that real soon.

I'll give it another couple of episodes before I decide whether or not to keep watching.

Debris (2021)

I'm done!

[3/10 · 4 May 2021]

The original premise of the show was interesting, but it has just gone downhill for me during he last few episodes. Episode 10 was the final straw, with he endless 45 minute loop of repetition - Bryan & Finola trying to reconnect over and over and OVER again with different partners each time! It literally gave me a headache! And you knew they would reunite in the end because, well duh, they're the main characters in the show!

The plot lines have become way too convoluted, and I really don't care what happens to the characters anymore. The boss' "divorce plot" is really unnecessary and stupid, imo. Why do they even have the "unhappy wife" in the show?

The last thing is: I like Johnathan Tucker. He's done some good work in other shows, but in Debris he always looks so "weepy" - like he's about to burst into tears any moment. 10 episodes in and they haven't explained why he's "on the edge" all the time?

But I'm not going to stick around to find out why.

Genius: Aretha: Respect (2021) Season 3, Episode 1

Why oh why?

[5/10 · 22 March 2021]

I waited so long for this Genius: Aretha series to finally air, and now that it has I'm really disappointed.

I'm a real fan of Cynthia Erivo - her voice is amazing! And Courtney B. Vance as the Reverend Franklin is surprisingly good! Overall the acting by the entire cast is very entertaining.

But after watching the first 2 episodes what's ruining it for me is the excessive commercial breaks which seem to be thrown in right in the middle of a scene, and the constant switching back and forth between time periods. It's an editing disaster!

I'll watch the rest of the series because of the aforementioned acting and singing, but I think it could have been soooo much better...

Run (I) (2020)

Interesting - or not?

[6/10 · 29 April 2020]

First of all, I wonder if this was meant to be a one-off/1 season series? I just cannot imagine it going into a second season.

If Ruby and Billy can't come to a decision by the end of 7 episodes then I'll probably lose interest. I'm already wondering what they're going to do to fill the remaining 4 episodes - I've just finished watching episode 3...

There are the lives of other people involved in their decision to "RUN". Unfortunately, as I see it, no matter what they decide IT. WILL. NOT. END. WELL. for some of them.

The Sinner: Part IV (2020) Season 3, Episode 4

o.k. - I'm done!

[1/10 · 29 February 2020]

First of all, this series is slowwwww - and repetitious! It's not moving forward at all. It just keeps telling the same thing over and over again. I get it! Jamie had this weird and unnatural connection/fascination/relationship with Nick.

Secondly, this episode has "Detective Harry Sciatica" chasing Jamie all over NYC. going from hotel bar, to hotel room, to party, and down a deserted street in a high speed car chase. After all that chasing, he takes a crazed Jamie back home and tells him he's not leaving until he tells his wife Leela what going on.

Then what does Harry do? While he's parked out in front of Jamie's house he takes a pain killer - and proceeds to fall asleep! Fast forward to 7:18 a.m. the next morning, and Harry gets a phone call that there's been a murder back in NYC that he might want to check into - because it just might have a connection to Jamie.

So why the hell did Harry go chasing Jamie all over NYC only to fall asleep in front of his house? Did he think the guy was just gonna have a talk with his wife and go to bed? Didn't he think he just might slip out and go on the run again?

When a show "goes stupid" on me - like this one has - I just give up! At this point, I could care less what happens to any of them.

Oh, one last thing: They didn't show any scenes of Jamie with his newborn son this week, but would you leave someone who is exhibiting signs of some serious mental problem all alone with a tiny baby (like they did in last week's episode)? His wife and their "birthing buddy" just put the baby in Jamie's arms and leave the room. Now that's really, really stupid!!

Luther: Episode #5.4 (2019) Season 5, Episode 4

What a waste!

[1/10 · 24 June 2019]

Let me say I love Idris Elba - I could watch him read the phone book and be happy... As a matter of fact, I wish he had been reading the phone book instead of appearing in this latest series of Luther.

All four episodes were a disjointed, unbelievable mess - but especially this last one! Why did they have to kill off so many people? Not only were 3 main characters eliminated, but the senseless murders of at least a half-dozen innocent victims by the psychopathic killer was over the top! It was figureitively - and literally - a bloodbath!

Did Alice love or hate Luther? Who knows? She just decided to shoot him full of holes because, wellll, she's a psychopathic killer, too, and that's what she does best, I guess.

Of all the streets in London how did Luther know exactly where to find the killer? Who knows? It must have been his "magic powers of elimination", eh?

I just wish they had killed off Luther in the end, too, instead of simply stripping him of his longcoat and taking him off in handcuffs to end the episode/series.

I read that Idris has signed on for a 6th series of Luther, but why bother? Alice is gone - for real this time. Benny is gone, and a promising new partner was quickly, and needlessly, eliminated as well.

I was so disappointed in this hot mess that I've decided not to waste my time on any more future episodes. Nothing the writers create can salvage what they did to Luther - or what was once an interesting story and cast of characters. There was so much they could have done with this series 5, and they really botched it!

Goodbye my sweet Luther. 😢

Big Little Lies: What Have They Done? (2019) Season 2, Episode 1

Unbelievable!

[1/10 · 14 June 2019]

I wasn't going to write a review about this show, but I won't stop thinking about it until I do, so here goes...

First of all, I didn't read the book so I have no idea how the story ended; I can only go by what I watched in the first season. I started to watch Season 2 out of curiosity to see where they took the story after the conclusion of Season 1.

That said, I guess I just didn't get it - or believe it - when Jane recognized the wife-beating Perry as her rapist/father of her son Ziggy. Call me naive, but I honestly thought she was imagining it was him during the whole attack during the costume party. I thought because of the trauma she suffered during her rape that she simply put his face to her attacker. But to find out it was actually him who raped her years earlier had me thinking WTF?!

What are the odds that Jane would move to Monterey and become friends with Celeste, the wife of her rapist? Of all the people she could have met in that town, she meets her? That's just too much of a coincidence to be believable! Others have mentioned this also, but how is it that Celeste and Madeline and Jane all knew, without saying a word, that Perry was the rapist? Was it some sort of telepathy that these three women shared? Unspoken words and eye contact told them that, "OMG! it was HIM?!"

And now we find in the Season 2 opener that Celeste is giving Jane checks (which she isn't cashing, btw) because Ziggy "is part of Perry's estate". Are we to assume that an actual DNA test was performed to prove definitively that Ziggy is Perry's child? Wow, what a stretch in believability!

And speaking of believability, can anyone tell me how Jane can afford to live in a beach house - even a small one - in Monterey, CA? She is basically unemployed, and rents in that area are astronomically high! I mean high!! Again, what a stretch in believability!

So now Madeline has magically become a real estate agent over the summer months - and according to her, a successful one. She says the money is practically printing itself. But then we see her yakking on the phone, all the while rudely ignoring the clients she's showing a property to. Yeah, that's the kind of agent I want when I'm looking to buy a house! Once again this self-centered, ignorant, rabble rouser is just as annoying as she's always been.

I'm not going to even discuss the rest of the original cast, except to say that none of them have changed, imo. They are all a bunch of pathetic losers, and I could care less what happens to them - except for Ziggy. That little boy deserves better!

I'll finish by saying I can't stand the character that Meryl Streep portrays. The woman is creepy, and a total head case. Even if she did lose her son, who in their right mind let's out a primal scream at the dinner table, scaring the hell out of a couple little kids? Get a grip, lady! Meryl Streep is probably loving this role, but I just hate it!

Like I said in my subject line, the story is Unbelievable! I don't care what happens to any of the characters, and I'm not going to waste my time on watching whatever unbelievable junk the writers create for the rest of this season 2.

I'm done! Now that I've written this review maybe I'll stop thinking about it.

Manifest (2018–2023)

I'm done!

[2/10 · 30 November 2018]

I really liked the first couple of episodes, but like so many others have said it's become more soap opera than mysterious drama...

the character of Grace, Ben's wife, has become unbearable to watch - with her constant bitchin' and whining - and now she's kicked him out of the house!

add to that, the acting has become really sophomoric, too...

but the one thing that sticks in my mind most of all is the character of Danny, Grace's hunky boyfriend, when he told her that he could live without her now that her husband is back, but he couldn't stand not being around her 15 year old daughter! now that's just icky!! he said he felt like her father... sorry, but to me that grown man's behavior around that 15 year old girl looked anything but "fatherly"...

so, all that said, I won't be back when the show returns in January... I really don't care anymore more about where the plane disappeared to for 5 and a half years - or what happens to anybody...

like I said in my subject line - I'm done!

Sharp Objects (2018)

What a waste of time!

[1/10 · 21 August 2018]

I never write a review about a movie or tv show, but Sharp Objects is just begging me to write about it.

The following are random comments/thoughts in no particular order of appearance in the episodes:

First off, to say this production draaaaaggggs is being kind. I find myself thinking, "Move on already!", but it doesn't! It just keeps repeating the same drek over and over and over again!

It appears that everyone in Wind Gap is either really weird, a total wacko, or a drunk. No one in that town is normal - not a one!

Are Amma and her roller skating buddies supposed to be 13 year old 8th graders? If so, that's the oldest looking trio of "little girls" I've ever seen - they look like they're in their late teens, early 20s.

Why do we never see anybody out on the streets besides the kids rollerskating , or the main characters driving around town in their cars? Where is everybody?

We all know that Adora is a mental case/drama queen, but now we learn in episode 7 that all along she has been a "Munchousen by Proxy" wackadoo! Wow! Creepy!

So, Camille is a cutter, right? Can anyone tell me how she cut words into her back? Unless she's double jointed and can write backwards and upside down, that's a real trick! I can't believe one writer of this scene thought this would get past any viewer with half a brain.

IMO, the viewers who give Sharp Objects a high rating have set their bar for entertainment very, very low. It's hard for me to even give it a zero - it's that bad!

The hinky, kinky sex scenes with Camille and the two guys (don't remember their names and don't care) look forced, phony and just done for the requisite HBO sex in their shows.

So, why am watching this? 1) Because I thought it would be good with Amy Adams and Patricia Clarkson... (I was wrong!!) and... 2) Because I haven't read the book, and I want to find out who the killer is. I have my suspicions, but I'll just have to wait for the final episode; at least I think we'll find out in episode 8. I hate to think they're going to drag this whole mess out for a second season! They honestly wouldn't do that, would they?