The Toad's Burrow

      I had an interesting conversation with my friends yesterday, wherein we discussed our favourite Netflix TV shows, and I brought up Peaky Blinders as a show that had recently impressed me. Specifically, one of my friends mentioned the show was a bit of a slow burner, but absolutely worth it once it picked up, and I was incredibly confused at what he meant, considering the fact that I absolutely adored season 1. However, after watching the finale of season 2, I can understand the perspective my friend was coming from, as there absolutely is some pacing issues that could be amended with the second season.     While I didn't by any means dislike the second season, I just felt that it was a lot of set up for a lot of nothing? Like the idea of this season was to go bigger and better, with the Shelby's expanding to London, but while they claimed the scope was bigger, it didn't feel as if anything got bigger. While technically the family got bigger, with the intro...

      As someone who tends to love complaining about TV shows, when it comes to Peaky Blinders, I came out of season 1 surprisingly satisfied. Typically, I complain about the six-episode format, especially in regards to Disney+, feeling that it tends to cramp creativity and lead to mediocre slop that has ruined my favourite universes, however I feel the complete opposite with Peaky Blinders.  In fact, I'm tempted to say that it makes the most of the format, and that British television has seemed to master it to perfection, leading to a TV show that has left me more satisfied than I have been in ages.     Specifically, one of the aspects of Peaky Blinders  that I absolutely adore is the politics that must occur between different players of the game. Ever since Game of Thrones  ended so unceremoniously, I have been itching for the complex storylines where all pieces on the chess board are working to sabotage one another, and while this show is ...

      I'm going to be honest, I was a bit afraid that Grease was going to be hot garbage, I mean I'm not exactly the most versed in musicals, and West Side Story  left sort of a sour taste in my mouth. Luckily  Grease  holds up much better than West Side Story  ever could, and I definitely see why it was so iconic looking back at it. I mean what originally hooked me to the musical first was not only its status as a cult classic, but Olivia Newton-John absolutely pouring her heart out in Hopelessly Devoted to You.     However, that doesn't mean this film is without its faults, and frankly as far as musical goes its very weak story-wise. Luckily, it doesn't include much story in-between songs but during those moments of peace viewers simply end up feeling as if they're just waiting for the next musical number to be performed. I mean, the entire film hinges on the fact that Danny has too much of a bad boy persona that he's afraid might be tainte...

      I'm going to be honest, this movie kind of underwhelmed me, while I wasn't expecting anything spectacular, the only real scene that really even piqued my interest was basically bits of the abortion storyline and the final scene. I'm not too sure what I expected going into Dirty Dancing but I'm struggling to see what others saw in it that made it so memorable. I mean perhaps this was just a me thing but I didn't even realize the most iconic song from the movie "I've Had the Time of my Life" was from this movie, and had originally heard it sampled by the Black Eyed Pea's.     Personally, one of the biggest flaws of this movie is that it doesn't have enough of what it advertises, which is a mix of both Dirty Dancing  and music, like the dance they perform isn't even as raunchy or as dirty as I thought it'd be. Instead of a mildly corny storyline about dancing the way you want to and learning to express oneself despite the expectation...

         I really wanted to like Ms. Marvel, I really did, but the reality is, there was so much potential that just ended up being squandered throughout this show. I mean at the beginning I saw the seeds of something better, something more polished than the typical agreeable sort of things that Marvel puts out, yet by the end of the show it was reduced to the big stakes CGI fight it always ends up being.     Let me paint for you the picture I saw, because I feel as fans other than No Way Home  and the first run of Disney+ shows, fans have been absolutely shafted as mediocre content is continually shoveled into their gaping mouths. One aspect of Ms. Marvel I greatly admired and enjoyed was that it was not afraid to be itself, it heavily incorporated many aspects of Kamala's Pakistani culture, and it didn't try and shy away from being authentic, and more than just a stylistic change. Combine this with some nice graffiti like CGI and a heartwar...

      One of the aspects about The Boys  tv show that I absolutely adore, is that it respects the source material, while being its own entirely different canon, allowing for two very enjoyable pieces of media without ever feeling as if I know what is coming. However, this season, I felt like sometimes it flew a little too far from the source material, and while I appreciate the attempts at reaching newer heights, sometimes the finished product is a bit too messy for my liking.     Specifically, this season was split up into many different storylines, ranging from Hughie and Butcher finding Soldier Boy, to Annie leaving Vought, to Homelander's gradual turn to right wing extremism, whatever Mothers Milk was doing, whatever The Deep and A-Train were doing, and lastly Kimiko and Frenchie. If that previous sentence was hard to stomach and follow, then its intended purpose was fulfilled, as I was attempting to depict that there were a lot of moving threads all to...

Honestly, I was a little skeptical of The Testaments when first picking it up, as while I wasn’t actually too sure of how much more I needed to know about the world portrayed, as its not as if this “sequel” was well known. Moreover, I appreciated The Handmaids Tale and enjoyed it’ artistic decisions, such as obvious exclusions of information, and a clear attention to creating a story that exuded both dullness and hopeless. However, while I understood these decisions and appreciated its execution, I always longed for more, as I was a reader who loved two things in particular, lore and action, both things The Handmaids Tale was obviously missing, as it was meant to be an accurate depiction of what the daily goings of a handmaid would be. Therefore, I am happy to report that The Testaments absolutely destroyed any expectations I had for it, and would most definitely recommend it as an accompanying novel to the first. Personally, I felt like this novel gave me everything that I wan...

      I'm going to be honest with you, I was never the biggest Stranger Things fan. While I thought that this season one and two were both very good, season three sort of lost me. Personally, it just felt like everything was becoming too stagnant and the series was experiencing many of the same pitfalls of other Netflix shows, leaning too much into "Teen Drama" rather than the "Horror" that made people fall in love with it in the first place. Luckily, its safe to say that season five is like a return to roots, with the shows sights set on much larger ambitions than before.     Personally, I'm not too sure how to feel about the release cycle of this show. While I do enjoy binging, it just felt like these episodes were so long that this show would have definitely benefited from a weekly release cycle. I mean when the final episode is quite literally 2 and a half hours long surely you could have cut something out? This is very much a hard season to digest for ...

    I'll start this review off by saying I absolutely adored it, and thought that it was a sign that Teen Titans  had more left in the tank after an unceremonious exit in Season 5. I mean after all, this cartoon was heavily inspired by anime, so it only made sense for them to finally explore the roots it so obviously admires. Moreover, this film was allowed to stretch its legs both creatively and visually, exploring more mature themes of death and love, while also having fantastic visuals to go along with it.     One of the things I really loved about this movie is that it understood its strengths and never overstayed its welcome. While this movie is still catered towards children like most comic book movies of the time, it made sure that it didn't stretch or drag anything too long in order to reach the 1:40 + mark that many movies tend to do. What this creates is a movie that never gets too boring, allowing the series to successfully shift mediums without ...

      If there's one aspect of this season that I had to define it by, it would be its ambition. Straying from the tried and true formula that produced masterpieces like Seasons 2 and 4 Teen Titans season 5 decides to kick it up a notch taking the Titans to newer heights never seen before. Overall, while it doesn't hit every landing, this season tries it best to ensure fans don't miss the formula of old with the variety of the new season.     One major complaint with this season is that, it sort of lost a bit of the charm that made it the Teen Titans. Rather than exploring the main plot during the beginning and end of season, the entire season is dedicated to fighting The Brotherhood of Evil, as they attempt to destroy an entire generation of heroes. While I actually enjoy the showcasing of all these new teen superheroes I must admit I miss the general laid back atmosphere that came from having a stable setting. Titans Tower has simply been around for so long an...