DVD/TV Series Review: Community: Season 5

 

Season five saw a lot more turnover, both behind the scenes and on camera for the show. Behind the scenes, series creator Dan Harmon returned after being fired, and the resulting mess of a fourth season. The show also saw the departure of Chevy Chase (who appeared as a hologram in the first episode and then was written out from there) and Donald Glover, who appeared on just a handful of episodes. The show was a blend of what it was in the first couple of seasons and what it had become. The zany, offbeat, episodes still occurred, including one where the cast were turned into animated characters and brought into a 1980s G.I. Joe episode (that included many of the original voice actors from the cartoon), a hot lava episode that was another school-wide competition, and another Dungeons and Dragons themed episode. But, it also did return somewhat to a focus on the school aspect and had people actually taking classes, and Jeff, who had graduated the year before, taking up teaching. It also brought back John Oliver as Professor Duncan for a few episodes (who was great in seasons one and two when he appeared) and brought in Jonathan Banks (from Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul) as a criminology professor.

For those who get the DVD set, the extras include commentary tracks on every episode, a forty-minute feature on the writing process, a seventeen-minute feature on the G.I. Joe episode, and a short gag reel. So, a lot of good content for those who like the bonus material.

Overall, the show returns to its quality form over the dud that was season four. While I would have liked it to go even more in the direction of being in actual classes and then the study group, the show does balance the wackiness that has become a hallmark with things that do not require a ton of suspension of disbelief. Losing Glover, and even to some extent Chase, was a blow, but there are a lot of good guest stars this season that helped make up for that including LeVar Burton, Padget Brewster, David Cross, Ben Folds, Gina Gershon, Vince Gilligan, Walton Goggins, B.J. Novak, and Robert Patrick, among others. So, if you have hung with the show, even if you did not like the fourth season as much, this is a good rebound season, even if it is a bit short.

Workout Update: Power-90/Chalean Extreme Hybrid: Day 66

Day 66 was sweat 3-4 and ab-ripper 200 again. I was a bit tired during the workout today so I did have to pause a couple of times, but I was still able to push pretty hard when I was moving. And, ab-ripper was easier this time around than it was the last time. So, overall, it went well. 

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Arrow Season 2

 

+++Warning, this contains spoilers from season one, but no major season two giveaways.+++

Season two of Arrow picks up in the aftermath of the events of the Season 1 finale, with Malcolm's undertaking being successful, but taking Tommy's life. Oliver, having defeated Merlin retreats to the Island, and Laurel relapses into drugs and alcohol after Tommy's death. Diggle and Felicity are trying to find Oliver to convince him to return to Starling City to save Queen Consolidated from a takeover by a woman named Isabel Rochev (played by Firefly's Summer Glau). Moira is in jail awaiting trial for her role in The Undertaking, Quentin has been busted down to beat cop, and Roy is trying to protect The Glades in Oliver's absence. The show continues to be a combination of a procedural story-of-the-week show and a serial multi-arc show. The show continues to alternate between the present and then flashing back to events on the island to show to set up Oliver's origin story. There are several new villains and heroes introduced during the season. While early on it appears that Brother Blood will be the big bad of the season, as things play out, Deathstroke (played by Manu Bennett) is revealed as the real threat to Oliver.

For those who get the Blu-Ray, the extras include a recap episode titled "Year One" that summarizes the events of the first season, a 24-minute making-of documentary, about 23-minutes of deleted scenes, a short gag reel, about 25 minutes of the 2013 Comic-Con panel and a couple of shorter featurettes focusing on the stunts and visual effects. So, a good amount if you like going through it.

Overall, the season amps up the action and takes the show in a lot of different directions. It introduces the Arrowverse's version of The Suicide Squad, sets up the League of Assassins, which would be a huge plot throughout the rest of the series, and has a two-part episode that serves as a backdoor pilot for The Flash (which would be added to the Arrowverse the next year), introducing Barry Allen (played by Grant Gustin), Caitlin Snow (Danielle Panabaker), and Cisco Ramon (Carlos Valdez). The acting and writing for the series are very strong with Manu Bennett and Emily Bett Rickards as standouts this season. Susanna Thompson also does a great job as Moira Queen, especially later in the season. The show is still very violent and does have some sexual content throughout, so it is not something that is going to be suitable for younger kids. If you are a fan of superhero shows and movies, this is definitely a great one and is well worth watching.

Product Review: Schlage BE365 V CAM 716 Camelot Keypad Deadbolt, Electronic Keyless Entry Lock

 

This is a very strong and sturdy lock. It has a key backup so if it runs out of battery power you can still get the door open. It was a bit tricky to install, mainly because the instructions are printed on both sides of the folded paper they are printed on, and I missed the first couple of steps to extend the lock mechanism if it was not fitting. Once I saw that it was fairly straightforward to get the lock installed. It is pretty easy to program a code into the lock to allow it to open.

It is not totally electronic in that you have to punch in a code and then physically turn the deadbolt knob on the outside to get the bolt to move. So, if you are looking for a good semi-electronic lock, but are uneasy about going to a wireless lock, this is a good option.

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Nikita: Season 2

 

+++Warning, this contains minor spoilers from season one but no major season two giveaways.+++

The 23-episode second season of Nikita aired during the 2011/2012 TV season. It picks up right after the events of season one, with Nikita and Alex's relationship effectively having ended and Nikita and Michael's relationship restored. Now, Nikita and Michael are on the run with a hard drive called "the black box" containing the Division's darkest secrets and they plan to right the wrongs that Division has committed over the years. This allows the show to keep the procedural case-of-the-week format and then tie in larger serial arcs throughout the season. This season sees Miranda in charge of Division and Percy locked up in a cell in the basement, with Miranda manipulating Alex to keep tracking Nikita down. The season does have some twists and turns, which are, like the case-of-the-week elements, sometimes work and are sometimes silly. It does not ever stray too far from the formulaic approach, which I think is partly good and partly bad.

The Blu-Ray set is a four-disc set. As with the season 1 release, the show looks and sounds great in HD. The extras include a commentary track on the season finale, a documentary on the writers and the writing process, a feature on Maggie Q's health and nutrition regimen, just under half an hour's worth of deleted scenes, and a short gag reel. So, there is a decent amount of extras, especially for a show that has more of a cult following than wide, mass appeal.

Overall, the season is good. You definitely have to like action shows (or movies) whose plots can get a bit silly at times and be willing to just go with it. If you overanalyze things too much, you will definitely not enjoy it. The fight scenes are good and all of the actors do a great job with their characters. Melinda Clarke's role as Amanda is expanded a lot this season, and as she did on The OC, when she got more of a leading role, she crushes it. As in the first season, there is a lot of violence and some sexual content. Obviously, since it aired on regular broadcast TV they could not get too extreme with either, but they do take every opportunity to show off Maggie Q in skimpy outfits. Just, just be aware if that is an issue for you.

DVD/TV Series Review: Northern Exposure: Season 3

 

The 23-episode third season of Nothern Exposure aired during the 1991/1992 TV season. Season three is a mixed bag for Northern Exposure, both for the show itself and definitely for the US DVD release. This is the first full season of the show after finally getting a full series pickup after the two abbreviated seasons. The first two seasons were very short, just 7 and 8 episodes. It was aired as an off-season summer show in 1990 for its first season and aired a handful of episodes late in the 1991 TV season for its second season. This season gets a full run of 23 episodes and continues Joel's story arc but with a bit less of the fish-out-of-water aspect and more of an acclimating to the town and the people storyline. The show also focused on the other residents and the overall quirkiness of everyone who lived there. It also did the will-they or won't-they story arc with Joel and Maggie to the extreme, having them seem like almost a couple in one episode and back to loathing each other the next. This is also the season where the contractual issues between Rob Morrow and the showrunners/producers started, leading to his role in the show being reduced and eventually writing him out of the series.

The big issue with this season's DVD release is the music. As most know, music was a critical part of the show, and certain songs were selected to tie into or wrap up the episodes' storylines. Universal, the company that owned the rights to the US DVD releases, did not want to pay for the rights to some of the original songs; they just replaced them with horrible canned instrumental music that rivaled Elevator Musak in quality. The first season had all the original music, and the second season had most or all of the original music, depending on which release you got. However, season three (and the subsequent season releases) replaces much of the music, which is more noticeable with each release. One good thing about this season's DVD release is that they eliminated the awful double-sided DVDs used for the first and second season releases.

The DVD extras include deleted and expanded scenes for most (if not every) episode, unexposed scenes (which amounts to basically a gag reel), and lost storylines (which are really more deleted scenes. There are no commentary tracks, behind-the-scenes material, or the like.

This season does have some outstanding episodes, for example, the season premier in which we meet Adam's (Adam Arkin) wife, appropriately named Eve (played wonderfully by Valerie Mahaffey), an episode in which Joel and Maggie are stranded in the wilderness, an episode in which a small traveling circus troupe is temporarily stranded in Cicely, an episode in which Joel gets adopted into a tribe by a tribal elder, and an episode that flashes back to the founders of Cicely.

The season is very good, but the DVD release leaves much to be desired. The acting and writing are great, and the show continued to put things on TV that other shows at the time did not (e.g., lesbian relationships, Native American themes, etc.). It was not always politically correct, and some things would not fly today. The US releases are fine if you do not care about the music issue. But, if you really want to see the show as it aired and with the best picture quality, picking up the Region 2 Blu-Ray is the best option (if you can find a copy and are willing to pay the increased price).

Workout Update: Power-90/Chalean Extreme Hybrid: Day 65

Day 65 was the sculpt workout again. This one went really well as I was able to max out at 10 reps on quite a few exercises. I tried a new pre-workout powder about an hour before the workout and I think that did help with my energy level a bit. As I have said before, I am not a huge fan of total body circuit workouts. I tend to like to focus on one or two body parts at a time, but that said, this workout does have a pretty good pace which helps me get though it. 

Product Review: Secure SWCB-1 Wireless Remote Nurse Alert System

 

This is a good idea that is poorly executed. I am a caregiver to a disabled parent and used this so that my mom could get my attention if I could not otherwise hear her (such as if I was sleeping and could not hear her yelling for me, or if she was outside and needed my help). It did work initially and would work well even if she went outside to take the dog out (as long as she did not stray too far away from my townhouse). However, after a short amount of time, it just stopped working, even replacing the supposedly new battery with a brand new battery. So, if you get one that does not fritz out within a few months, it is a five-star item, but it seems that it is made very cheaply and if you get one that does not last long, it will basically be a waste of money.

DVD/TV Series Review: Castle: Season 6

 

+++Warning, this contains a minor spoiler from the prior season, but no major season six giveaways.+++

Season 6 of Castle picks up immediately after the marriage proposal by Castle to Beckett. We find out her answer, and whether she takes the potential new job. From there, the season follows its combination of procedural and serial storytelling, with more of the supporting characters getting in on the action. This could be due to the fact that the reported bad blood between Katic and Fillion had started because, even though they still had good chemistry in their scenes together, they definitely had fewer scenes together and the Castle-Beckett focus of the first five seasons was reduced in season six. The season ends on yet another major cliffhanger after the resolution to the storyline of the murder of Beckett's mother.

For those who get the DVD set, the extras include commentary tracks on select episodes, an on-location featurette with Stana Katic, character commentary by Ryan and Esposito, deleted scenes, a blooper reel, and a karaoke track that is an extended version of Ryan's karaoke performance.

Overall, the season is good but is starting to feel different. As my title says, I think it is the last really good season of the show, but even so, it is not as good as it was in the first handful of seasons. If Fillion and Katic really did end up not being able to stand being around each other, and if that started this season, they hid it well because, when they did have scenes together, you bought the chemistry between the two of them.

Product Review: Akro-Mils 10164, 64 Drawer Storage Cabinet

 

If you have a lot of small objects that you need to store and sort, this is a good option. I used it when I was in school working on an electrical engineering degree to keep resistors and capacitors of various sizes sorted so I could find them easily when I needed them. It would also work well to sort beads or any other small craft items that you are likely to have a lot of. The drawers are not very large, but they are big enough to store many small items without overflowing.

Workout Update: Power-90/Chalean Extreme Hybrid: Day 64

 Day 64 was the Power-90 cardio and ab-ripper 200 workout again. Overall, the workout went pretty well. I was able to keep up during the cardio workout but still had to pause a couple of times during ab-ripper. But, I got through all 200 reps. 

Workout Update: Power-90/Chalean Extreme Hybrid: Day 63

Day 63 was the jump back to CE doing the recharge workout. My flexibility level has definitely plateaued for the moment. Still, I hope that the short yoga sequence at the beginning of the Power-90 cardio workouts that I will be doing three days a week will help me bust through that a little. 

Supplement Review: Dr. Martin's Saw Palmetto

 

It is pretty much impossible to know how well a supplement is or is not working based on the fact that what it claims is not backed by any official organization. While I cannot say that I notice my hair getting any thicker (which is not why I take it anyway), I have not had any issues with my prostate (knock on wood), so there is that. I can say that they are very easy to swallow and do not leave any kind of aftertaste. A bottle will last a few months, so it is a good value, and you can (as of this writing anyway) include it as a subscribe and save item so you can have it delivered at whatever frequency works for you.

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Banshee: Season 1

 

Banshee was a crime-drama/action series that aired on Cinemax from 2013 to 2016. The 10-episode first season aired during the winter and spring of 2013. The series starred Anthony Starr, Ivana Milicevic, Lili Simmons, Hoon Lee, Ullrich Thomsen, Ben Cross, Trieste Kelly Dunn, Matt Servitto, and  Frankie Faison. 

Starr plays Lucas Hood (not his real name), a recently released ex-con who has spent 15 years in prison and who, through a crazy twist of fate, becomes the sheriff of Banshee, a small town in PA abutting an Amish community. There, he finds that his ex-girlfriend, played by Ivana Milicevic, is married with a couple of children and hiding out from a NY crime boss named "Rabbit" ( played by Ben Cross). Lucas discovers that the town is basically run by an ex-Amish gangster named Kai Proctor (played by Ulrich Thomsen), and the two immediately become enemies. Lucas struggles to stay on the right side of the law while pretending to enforce the law.  Frankie Faison plays Sugar Bates, a retired former boxer and ex-con turned bar owner. Hoon Lee plays Job, a computer hacker, and Hood's criminal accomplice; Matt Servitto plays Brock Lotus, the longest-serving member of the Banshee Sheriff's department who was passed over for Sheriff. Trieste Kelly Dunn plays Siobhan Kelly, another deputy sheriff and Lili Simmons plays Rebecca Bowman, who lives a double life as a devout Amish by day and a rebellious and sexually promiscuous party girl by night. She also happens to be Proctor's niece.

The Blu-Ray set is a four-disc set with episodes and a decent amount of extras. The show's A/V quality is very good, and it looks and sounds great in the HD format. It is probably not a must-see in HD because there is not much in the way of special effects or things of that nature, but I think the colors pop very nicely and some of the landscape shots look great in HD. For extras, there are commentary tracks on six of the ten episodes, a making-of documentary called Banshee Origins that is split into 15 segments, a featurette on the opening title sequences and all the easter eggs and clues that are in each opening credit sequence, deleted scenes, and a trailer for season two.

Overall, the show is great. It is well-written and very well-acted. Be warned, however, that there is a lot of violence, sexual content, and nudity (mostly by Milicevic and Simmons, but pro wrestling fans may also recognize C.J. Perry, who was Lana in WWE topless in a sex scene with Starr). So, it is definitely an adult show that is not family-friendly. So, if that would turn you off to a show, you are best to skip this. If, however, you are looking for a drama that is compelling and not like anything else out there, this is definitely something you should check out.

Product Review: Evelots Door Draft Stopper

 

If you have a door on which the other style of draft guards (those that slip under the door so that one side of the guard is on each side of the door) do not work, this is a great option, if you have a metal door. There are clips that can be used to secure it to a non-metal door, but those go under the door so if there is not enough space for the other kinds of draft guards to work, your door may not be able to close if you use the clips. However, if your door is metal this will stay in place without having to use the clips and does a great job keeping drafts from coming through.

Workout Update: Power-90/Chalean Extreme Hybrid: Day 62

Day 62 was the last strength workout of the week. I was able to hit the 10 rep max on many more exercises in the circuits this time, so those weights will all be increasing with the next workout on Tuesday. I am probably going to add light weights to the lunge and squat sequences just to bump up the intensity level a bit.  

Workout Update: Power-90/Chalean Extreme Hybrid: Day 61

 Day 61 was the third sweat 3-4 workout this week. This one went much better than Wednesday's workout since I had more energy and did not eat before working out. So, I was able to put more effort into it. I did still have to pause a couple of times during ab-ripper, but I did eventually hit 20 reps for each of the moves.

Workout Update: Power-90/Chalean Extreme Hybrid: Day 60

Day 60 was the second sculpt 3-4 workout this week. All of the weights I used for the various exercises are the same as I used on Tuesday. I was, however, able to hit the 10 rep max on a couple of the moves so the weight I use for those will go up on Saturday.

Workout Update: Power-90/Chalean Extreme Hybrid: Day 59

Day 59 was the sweat 3-4 workout again. I did not have a ton of energy during this workout (it did not help that I ate too soon before working out) so I did a lot more modified moves and took a couple of rest breaks.  But, I did get through the entire workout and ab-ripper and got it done.

Workout Update: Power-90/Chalean Extreme Hybrid: Day 58

Day 58 was the sculpt 3-4 workout from Power-90. This one is mostly the same workout as the 1-2 workout but adds a fourth circuit with different exercises (upright rows, forearm curls, max squats, max push-ups, calf raises, and supermans). As is the case in the 1-2 workout, one of the extras uses bands and the other uses weights and Tony uses weights. It is a good circuit workout that has a nice pace that flows well. It does switch things up quite a bit from the CE Push workouts, which is helpful to keep my body from adapting to the push workouts.

DVD/Movie Review: The Good Girl

 

The Good Girl is an independent movie from 2002 that stars Jennifer Aniston, Jake Gyllenhaal, John C. Reilly, Zooey Deschanel, and Tim Blake Nelson. Aniston, who was probably at the height of her "Friends" popularity, and Jake Gyllenhaal play cashiers at a large discount store. Justine (Aniston's character) is in a rut in her marriage to John C. Reilly, a house painter who smokes dope with his best friend constantly and pretty much ignores her. Gyllenhall plays a guy obsessed with the novel Catcher in the Rye, so much so that he gives himself the name Holden. Justine ends up having an affair with Holden, which goes sideways for her when she discovers how unstable Holden is.

The DVD includes a handful of extras. There is a director's commentary track on the movie, scene-specific commentary by Aniston, and a gag reel. Overall, the movie is very good. It has the feel of a smaller-budget independent movie, but that does not detract from its quality. Both Aniston and Gyllenhall do great work in their respective roles. Reilly is far outside the comedy realm he is known for and does a great job in his role. Of course, the movie has one of the few (if not the only) topless scenes Aniston has ever done, but it is definitely not gratuitous as the movie does not focus on sexual content. So, if you are looking for a good drama that is definitely not cookie-cutter, this is a good one to check out.

DVD/Movie Review: Just One of the Guys

 

Just One of the Guys is a 1984 comedy starring Joyce Hyser, Clayton Rohner, William Zabka, Sherilyn Fenn, and Billy Jayne. The movie is partly a cookie-cutter 1980s coming-of-age teen comedy, but it does deviate partly from being completely cookie-cutter. The story does not start as the "typical" teen romantic comedy. It starts with a theme of sexism and misogyny as a journalism student named Terri, played by Joyce Hyser, is not entered into a competition by her teacher that would land her an internship at a newspaper. She decides that it is because she is a girl and decides to enroll at a different school as "Terry" and hopefully get entered into the competition on her journalistic merit. From there, it does get into the cookie-cutter 80s teen comedy with Teri falling for one of her classmates, Rick Morehouse, played by Clayton Rohner, having to fend off a bully, Greg, William Zabka, and being pursued as Terry, by another classmate, Sandy, played by the utterly gorgeous Sherilyn Fenn. Of course, hilarity ensues as she tries to hide being a guy and then, in the end, has to reveal, in spectacular fashion, that she is not a boy.

For those looking to get the movie on disc, there is a Blu-Ray version out there that does have a commentary track with at least some of the cast members included. The DVD version just has the movie itself, no extras. It would be nice if there were a bit of behind-the-scenes material, but given that the movie was not anywhere near as big as some of the other 1980s teen comedies, it is not surprising that the release is pretty bare bones.

Overall, the movie is good. Probably better than it got credit for being at the time. It definitely does require some suspension of disbelief, just like movies like Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead require. The whole scheme is not something that a kid could pull off in real life. But, if you accept it for what it is and do not overanalyze it too much, the movie is enjoyable. The acting is very good, with Billy Jacoby, who plays Terri's little brother, Buddy stealing nearly every scene he is in, and Fenn doing sultry about as well as she did in Twin Peaks. While I would not call it a must-see, if you are into 80s comedies, especially the coming-of-age movies like Fast Times, this is a good one to check out.

DVD/Movie Review: The Outlaw

 

The Outlaw is a 1943 western directed by Howard Hughes and starring Jane Russell, Jack Buetel, Walter Huston, and Thomas Mitchell. The movie is what passes for a comedy in the 1940s. It is a fictional story involving the character of Billy The Kid, played by Jack Buetel. He is being pursued by lawman Pat Garrett, played by Thomas Mitchell, and Doc Holliday (played by Huston) but ends up shacking up with Garrett's girlfriend, Rio, played by Jane Russell. Russell, who grew up in the Midwest (in a very small town in Minnesota), was passed off as being Mexican in the movie. The comedy (I guess) comes in when pretty much all the male characters are much more interested in a horse than they are in Jane Russell. Of course, the movie starred Russell in her heyday, and the movie was, in its time, a bit controversial in the outfits that they put her in to show off how insanely hot she was back then. Of course, by today's standards, it is nothing, but back in 1943, it was a bit risque (although they never showed as much of her in the actual movie as they did on the posters for the movie). 

Overall, it was probably a decent movie for its time, but it definitely does not hold up well nearly 80 years later. There are several versions of the movie on DVD and even a Blu-Ray copy. The one I have just has the black-and-white version with no extras. There are colorized versions out there, as well as some that have a commentary track by Russell, so you have to pay attention to what version you are getting if you are looking for the extras.

Book Review: Fall and Rise The Story of 9/11

 

Fall and Rise started as a newspaper article telling the stories of a couple of people's experiences during the terrorist attacks on 9/11 and eventually evolved into a full book. The book is told in basically three sections. The first focuses on the planes, telling the stories of the various passengers (with brief biographies of some and why they were traveling) as well as detailing the movements of the hijackers to the point where the planes take off. The book gives the most detailed account that I have seen (from what can be pieced together) of what happened during each of the flights without going into speculation about things that are not definitively known.

The second portion of the book details what happened inside each of the buildings after the planes hit, including stories of people heroically helping each other inside the Pentagon, which is often given short shrift when compared to those of people in the Twin Towers. Again, the author tells the stories of people who made it out and those of people who did not, piecing together as much information as he could about where various people were and the actions they took.

The third section of the book is about the aftermath, basically how people tried to put their lives back together after everything was over. This section discussed how people healed, or did not, moved on with their lives, or did not, and the overall impact the events of that day had on them.

The book is long, about 460 pages of the main text, but it is very hard to put down and can be read pretty quickly. Then there are a couple of appendices, one that lists the names of all the people known to have died in the attacks as well as the location of their names on the reflecting pools at the memorial, and one that lists a timeline of the major events of the day. Then, there are about 50 pages of endnotes listing the various sources of information and adding additional detail. The book gives a lot of information, including some that I have not heard before, even after watching many of the documentaries and reading many of the books about 9/11. It really focuses on the human story and the toll that it took on the people who lived through that day and the family members of those who did not. It is very well-written and evokes a lot of emotion. It is definitely worth reading.

Product Review: WalterDrake Clear Magazine Storage Bags

 

These are decent, but not great, magazine storage bags. They can rip, especially if you lift one of them by a single handle. However, I generally use the handles and hold them under the bottom. The zipper is not heavy duty either, but I have not had a problem with any of the zippers getting stuck or breaking. So, if you are one of those who have physical magazines still this is a good way to keep them somewhat protected at a reasonable price.