Here you will find things about fitness and nutrition, mainly (but not exclusively) in relation to the Beachbody programs like P90x and Insanity. And, I will start adding reviews for Books, DVDs and Blu-Rays, and other products. All views and opinions on this blog are my own.
Welcome
Welcome to my ever-evolving blog. It started out as a blog on Beachbody workouts and products, mainly when I was a Beachbody coach. I no longer coach, not because I don't believe in Beachbody's programs (I subscribe to Beachbody on Demand and use their workouts every day), I am just not a salesperson and hated that aspect of it. I am more than willing to answer questions about my experiences with their products and the various workouts, and I feel freer to do so without the appearance of giving a biased review of something.
I have also started adding reviews for various things I have purchased like movies, books, CDs, and other products. This was brought about by a fight with Amazon in which all of my reviews were removed over a completely bullshit allegation that I posted a review that violated their terms of service. After going back and forth with the morons in the community-reviews department (even after they admitted that my posts did not violate their guidelines) they restored my account (which took them six months to do), but I have been posting my reviews on my blog to have them preserved in case something like that happens again. And here, I will post uncensored reviews so I will swear from time to time and post reviews that may be longer than Amazon's character limit. Everything I post here on any topic or product is my personal opinion, and I take no compensation for any product reviews I post. I am a member of Amazon's vine program and because I get those products for free, I keep those reviews on Amazon only, but everything I have purchased with my own money, whether from Amazon or some other store/website/outlet, I will post here.
I also plan to do some longer blog posts on various topics, such as how to learn physics, how to get through calculus, and longer reviews of workout programs as I do them. Basically, whatever strikes me as interesting at the time. As you can see if you navigate around the blog, I had many years in between postings. During that time I was going back to school to get an engineering degree, and learning material that I avoided my first time through college was a different experience and one that gave me a lot of insight into how to do well in those classes, which I will try to impart here for those who are looking to get a science or engineering degree.
Wednesday, December 28, 2022
DVD/TV Series Review: American Dad!: Volume 11
Friday, December 23, 2022
DVD/Movie Review: Beavis and Butthead Do America
Sunday, November 27, 2022
DVD/TV Series Review: Beavis and Butthead - The Complete Collection
Sunday, September 18, 2022
DVD/TV Series Review: American Dad Volume 10
The show is definitely not family-friendly, especially the DVD versions which have uncensored episodes which often include the actual swear words (including f-bombs) which are not beeped out. There are no DVD extras, just the episodes themselves, but so the only reason to get the DVDs is to have the uncensored episodes (which are not included when streaming the show). The episodes this season include a spoof on the movie Poltergeist, a parody of the show Breaking Bad, and the first evil Christmas-themed episodes, which would become a running gag throughout the run of the series. The episodes are mostly self-contained, but occasionally there are two-part episodes, and the episodes sometimes refer back to prior episodes.
Overall, the show is still good. It found a formula that works and has stuck with it. It can certainly be argued that it is getting a bit long in the tooth, but I do think they still tell entertaining stories. I would say that there are not as many laugh-out-loud moments as the earlier seasons had, but it is still funny. So, if you are a fan if the show it is still worth watching. If you have never liked the show, however, this season is not likely to change your mind.
Sunday, September 4, 2022
DVD/TV Series Review: American Dad: Volume 9
The DVD release is an Amazon-exclusive MOD release. So, it just has the episodes and no extras. However, the episodes are uncensored, so the jokes are sometimes dirtier, and swear words are not bleeped out as they are in the broadcast and streaming versions. But, if you only get DVD sets when there is a lot of bonus material, then you may just want to stick with streaming the show.
Overall, the series continues to be funny even though, like Family Guy, it is getting a bit long in the tooth. As the years have gone on, the series has changed the focus being Stan's job, which in some ways has been good and in other ways (e.g., with some of the crazy apocalyptic episodes) has not been so good. By this time into the show's run, however, you pretty much know what you are getting. If you like it, you will probably enjoy this season. If you don't then this season is probably not going to make you a fan.
DVD/TV Series Review: Family Guy: Season Twelve
By now, people who have watched Family Guy, especially after it was revived by Fox after having been canceled, know what the show is. It has followed the same formula for years and continues to do so in this season. The season has the typical story of the week shows, a couple of the larger adventure-type episodes, and "the" storyline that caused fans to lose their shit. It played out over multiple episodes and was definitely a topic of conversation. Chances are most people reading this know what it is, but for the few who may not, I will not spoil it. This season also sees the return of Cleveland after the cancellation of the spin-off show.
There are quite a bit of extras included on the DVD set. These include commentary tracks for select episodes, deleted scenes for every episode, animatics, and a couple of character-specific featurettes. So, if you like watching the bonus material there is a lot there. Plus, you do get some uncensored jokes that were not a part of the broadcast episodes.
Overall, the show continues to be good. An argument can certainly be made that it is getting long in the tooth, but at this point, it appears that the show will be on the air for as long as Seth McFarlane wants to keep doing it. I think the show does a good job coming up with new storylines, although the is not really any more character development going on. If you have been a fan of the show the season is still worth watching. If you have not been a fan of the prior seasons, this season is not likely to turn you into one.
Saturday, September 3, 2022
DVD/TV Series Review: Family Guy: Volume 12
By now, most people reading this are aware of what Family Guy is like. It is basically a story-of-the-week show that usually focuses on one or two characters at a time. This season has a couple of obligatory Brian and Stewie adventure-centric shows. In one of them, Brian reverses the course of time and risks Stewie being "unborn", and in another, the two decide to teleport to Vegas and end up making duplicates of themselves. There is an episode in which Lois begins working at a phone sex line, and one in which Mayor West is put on trial for murder. The episodes are very adult, and the DVD episodes do have uncensored jokes that include some f-bombs that get bleeped out (or omitted entirely) on TV.
For those who get the DVD set, there are commentary tracks on seven of the episodes. None of the cast members appear in the commentary, it is just the writers, producers, directors, etc., of the various episodes. Then there are deleted scenes, a featurette on the 200th episode, a table read of the 200th episode, scene animatics of scenes from a couple of different episodes, and a full episode animatic for the ninth episode of the season, "Space Cadet". Then there is a portion of the 2012 Comic-Con panel. So, there is a lot there if you like the bonus material.
Overall, the show continues to be strong. Certainly, an argument can be made that after 200 episodes some of the jokes are recycled and a bit stale, but I think the show does a good job keeping the storylines fresh. The brand of humor is definitely not for everyone, and the show has not been as edgy in the later seasons as it was in the first couple of seasons (before it was canceled and then subsequently revived by FOX). That said, if you have been a fan of the show, you will probably like this season. If you have never liked the show, then this season is not going to change your mind.
Friday, July 22, 2022
DVD/TV Series Review: American Dad! Volume Eight
The DVD extras include audio commentaries on a few episodes, deleted scenes, and Stan's dance from one of the episodes. So, it is not quite a MOD disc when it comes to little or no extras, but this is really the season where the DVD releases started trending that way. Of course, the show (as of this writing in 2022) is still on the air but no longer being released on DVD in either a "regular" release or a MOD release. So, it is kind of a take-what-you-can-get scenario if you want the physical discs. The DVD releases do contain uncensored jokes that do get bleeped out in the streaming version, which is part of the appeal for some fans. While I generally do not think that the show is as good in this season as it was in the first couple of seasons, I do think it is still entertaining and the stories are not stale (as they have become in later seasons). So, if you are a fan of the show, this is a good pickup.
Friday, July 15, 2022
DVD/TV Series Review: Family Guy: Volume Eleven/Season 10
This set contains the 23 season ten episodes across three discs. As has been the case for pretty much the entire run of the series, most of the episodes are self-contained storylines but do refer back to things that have happened in prior episodes. This was especially true for the episode Back to the Pilot in which Brian and Stewie travel back in time to find one of Brian's tennis balls. The show basically plays the pilot episode with Brian and Stewie watching the events. This episode was also the subject of some controversy in that Brian prevented 9/11 (which was the first vague reference on the show to the fact that Seth McFarlane was supposed to be on Flight 11 and missed the flight because he got to the airport 10-15 minutes late and the gate had already closed), only to discover the world was worse off when it did not happen. Other standout episodes from the season include Mr. and Ms. Stewie, Tom Tucker: The Man and His Dream, and Internal Affairs.
The extras include an animatic version of "Seahorse Seashell Party" with Side-by-Side Commentary from director Brian Iles and artist Joe Vaux, a feature looking back at the pilot, an animatic version of the Back to the Pilot episode, an animatic version of "Seahorse Seashell Party" with Side-by-Side Commentary from director Brian Iles and artist Joe Vaux, and on "Family Guy Viewer Mail No. 2" with Side-by-Side Commentary from director Greg Colton and storyboard artist Francis Dinglasan. Then there are some deleted scenes, audio outtakes, and regular commentary tracks on select episodes. So, if you like watching the extras, there is a lot there for you.
Obviously, by now, most people know what Family Guy is and what the style of humor is. It is definitely not going to appeal to everyone, and is not exactly family friendly. This was the point where some started thinking the show was getting a bit long in the tooth, but I thought the storylines were still clever and did not feel stale. So, if you are a fan of the show it is still worth checking out.
Saturday, May 28, 2022
DVD Review: Family Guy, Volume Ten
The DVD extras include deleted scenes, scene animatics for scenes in different episodes, commentary tracks on selected episodes, and the Adam West Star Ceremony (getting his walk-of-fame star). So, if you like watching the extras, there is a lot there. Plus, you get the episodes uncensored. Overall, I would say that the show still has funny moments, but it as not as consistently funny as it has been in the past. Fox is definitely not putting a ton of effort into the DVD releases, but this is the last DVD set to contain just a partial season.
Thursday, May 26, 2022
DVD/TV Series Update: Family Guy Volume 9
The DVD extras include commentary tracks on some, but not all, episodes. It has a bunch of deleted scenes, several making-of featurettes, an excerpt from the 2010 Comic-Con panel, and an episode of The Cleveland Show that was a spin-off of Family Guy that ran for a handful of seasons. A good amount of material for people who like watching the bonus content.
Overall, the show follows the same format that it has for many seasons. By now people know if they like it or hate it. If you hate it, this will not change your mind. The DVD releases continue to be a pain with not releasing full seasons of the show in a single set and omitting episodes. But, if you prefer the physical discs over streaming if nothing else to get the uncensored episodes and the bonus content, it is your only option unless a complete series set is ever released once the show ends its run.
DVD/TV Series Review: Family Guy Volume 8
The DVD extras are pretty similar to what has been released for the prior volumes. There are commentary tracks on most of the episodes, mainly with the writers and producers, but they occasionally include members of the cast. There are a bunch of deleted scenes, a featurette on the road to the multiverse episode in which Brian and Stewie enter different universes, including the Robot Chicken universe. There are also a bunch of Family Guy Karaoke musical numbers.
By now, anyone reading this likely knows what the show is and knows if they like the humor. It can definitely be offensive and makes jokes about nearly everything. I do not think that the show was as good by this time as it was in the first couple of seasons, but that said it still has some very funny moments, so if you are a fan, the set is definitely worth picking up.
Tuesday, May 24, 2022
DVD/TV Series Review: Family Guy Volume 7
As far as DVD extras go, each episode has a commentary track and there are deleted scenes for most of the episodes. There are animatic versions of three episodes that also have commentary tracks, and then four featurettes, including a portion of the 2008 comic-con panel.
Ultimately, Family Guy is a show that people tend to love or hate. If you love the show you will probably like this set, even if you do not like (or love) it as much as you did earlier seasons. On the other hand, if you have never liked the show, you are probably not going to change your mind because of anything on this DVD.
Monday, May 23, 2022
DVD/TV Series Review: Family Guy Volume 6
The DVD does have a ton of extras. There is a commentary track on every episode, and this was released at a time when Seth McFarlane still participated in the commentary tracks and he is on almost every one of them. Then there are deleted scenes, a couple of featurettes on the 100th episode, a favorite scenes featurette, and a Family Guy Live segment that is basically a live table read.
At this point in the show, it had found its formula and stuck to it. It is mainly a story of the week but it does do callbacks from time to time. The humor does not change much, but it was around the 5th season that the series was clearly far less edgy than it was when it first aired. Realistically, it had been watered down from the time it came back after the initial cancelation. So, I cannot say that everyone who loved the show in seasons 1-3 are necessarily going to love the show at this point, but I still think it has enough funny moments to be worth watching.
Monday, May 16, 2022
DVD/TV Series Review: Family Guy: Season 17
The episodes are split over three discs, and they are uncensored. They definitely use jokes that cannot be used on the broadcast versions and drop multiple f-bombs. The extras include deleted scenes for most of the episodes, a commentary free track of the You Can't Handle the Booth episode, and a traditional commentary track on You Can't Handle the Booth that includes the writer, producers, and editor in which they discuss the process of making the episode and the layers of doing a regular episode, having the characters do a fake commentary track, and then including dialog by the actors talking to their characters (and including Sarah Paulson as a guest commentator). The episode seems to be either loved or hated by the fans, but it was very complicated to pull off, so the "regular" commentary track is actually pretty insightful.
Realistically, the show has been on long enough now that you will know if you like it or not. The show has definitely evolved over the years, but for those of us who have been watching from season one up to now, it is actually nice that the show does some callbacks to the early episodes (including a return of Lacy Chabert, who voiced Meg for the first thirteen episodes before Mila Kunis took over the role), and making fun of how characters (especially Stewie) has changed over the years. If you are a fan of the show and have the other DVD sets, this is worth picking up to keep your collection complete. But otherwise, you may just want to stick with streaming it.
Sunday, May 15, 2022
DVD/TV Series Review: American Dad!: Volume Seven
The show continues to include a lot of good guest stars, some of whom are easy to recognize and others, no so much. This season, the guest lineup included Jason Alexander, Sarah Chalke, Anthony Michael Hall, Hector Elizondo, Lucy Lawless, Hayden Panettiere, Lou Diamond Phillips, Burt Reynolds, Edward Asner, and Carl Reiner.
For those who get the DVD set, the extras include commentary tracks on selected episodes, deleted scenes, a feature on Patrick Stewart, who voices Stan's boss at the CIA, and a portion of the 2010 comic-con panel. So, a good amount of material if you like watching the extras.
Overall, the show is good. While not every show is great, most of them are clever and there are a lot of funny moments. It is much different from Family Guy, which in the long run is good, but it definitely has a similar brand of humor. So, if you like the prior seasons, this is definitely worth picking up.
Tuesday, April 12, 2022
DVD/TV Series Review: American Dad Volume 6
For those who get the DVD set, there are commentary tracks on selected episodes that include the writers of the particular episode and usually the director. There are deleted scenes for most of the episodes, a making-of feature for the episode Rapture's Delight, and uncensored audio (although some audio does get bleeped out).
The show continues to be clever and funny. I do think the shift away from Stan's job being the focus of the show did hurt it a bit, but not so much that it was unwatchable. As most people are aware, even though it is animated, it is still very much an adult show and not suitable for young kids. The show makes fun of pretty much anything and everything, and there are a lot of off-color jokes. But, if you like the brand of humor, it is still worth watching.
Monday, April 11, 2022
Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Harley Quinn The Complete First and Second Seasons
As I said above, the show is very adult. While the original DC animated series showrunners are involved in this show, it is not family-friendly. They drop f-bombs left and right, and there is a ton of animated violence (which is pretty over the top) and sexually suggestive material. There is really only one word that is bleeped, said by Dr. Psycho, but done for comedic effect, not because they had to bleep it. The show has a strong supporting cast including Diedrich Bader as Batman, Giancarlo Esposito as Lex Luthor, Michael Ironside as Darkseid, Wayne Knight as Penguin, Christopher Meloni as Commissioner Gordon, Alfred Molina as Mr. Freeze, Jim Rash as The Riddler, Jason Alexander as Sy Borgman, and J. B. Smoove as Frank the Plant.
For those who get the Blu-Ray set, there are, unfortunately, no extras. Just the twenty-six episodes spread across three discs. There are English captions that you can play if needed, but there are no deleted scenes, commentary tracks, or making-of features. So, it is a pretty basic MOD set.
While I cannot say that this will appeal to everyone, if you are a fan of the character, a fan of the other animated series (like the Animated Batman and Superman series from the 1990s, or the animated Justice League series), and are not easily offended, then this is definitely worth checking out. Cuoco's take on Harley is not a carbon copy of how Arleen Sorkin voiced the character but Tudyk channels Mark Hamill's Joker so much it is hard to tell sometimes that it is not Mark Hamill doing the character. It is a very well-done series, the actors seem to have a great time playing their characters, and it is definitely worth checking out.
DVD Review: Family Guy: It's a Trap!
For those who get the DVD, the extras include a commentary track on the movie with Seth MacFarlane, writers David A. Goodman, Cherry Chevapravatdumrong, Shannon Smith, and director Peter Shin. Then there is a "Special Message from Darth Stewie, that is just a random joke as a separate extra, a Star Wars Trivial Pursuit that is basically the writers answering Star Wars questions for a half an hour, and a twenty-minute feature on drawing the characters, a short outtakes clip, an animatic version of the show, and a making the scene feature in which the director explains on the evolution of a couple of different scenes from the animatic version to what ends up in the final product. So, there is a lot of bonus material for those who want to watch it.
Overall, it just seemed like this had to be made because they had spoofed the other two movies, not because anyone involved in the process actually wanted to do this one. That definitely comes through in the final product as it is not nearly as good as the first two, but then again neither was the source material. As I said above, some of the jokes were good and some fell flat, which really made for an inconsistent final product. But, if you are a fan of Family Guy and have the other DVDs, you probably will want this to keep your collection complete.
Monday, April 4, 2022
DVD/TV Series Review: American Dad Volume 5
For those who get the DVD set, there are commentary tracks on every episode, deleted scenes, and an option to play the uncensored version of the episodes. There are also trivia and drinking game featurettes. So, there is a lot of bonus material if you like going through it.
Overall, the show continues to be very strong. It is a story (or stories) of the week format, but it does sometimes refer back to events from prior episodes. It is most definitely not a show for kids despite being animated as there are a ton of adult jokes and swearing. So, if you are a fan of the show, this is a good pickup.