DVD/TV Series Review: Psych: Season 6

 

+++Warning, this contains spoilers from the prior season, but no major season six spoilers+++

Season six of Psych included 16 episodes that aired from the fall of 2011 to the spring of 2012, including the mid-season break that lasted almost two months. The show continues with the formula that has worked well for the show up to this point. It is still mostly a case-of-the-week procedural crime comedy with a bit of drama mixed into it. It does have some ongoing story arcs. One of the big ones this season is Shawn and Juliet's relationship since they finally got together during the prior season. Another multi-episode arc involves Lassiter getting a love interest, played by the movie version of Buffy in a vampire-themed episode. And, as has been the case in all of the seasons, there are several pop-culture references, including an episode that is a total spoof on the movie The Hangover and an episode that is an homage to Indiana Jones. That episode brings back Cary Elwes' character Pierre Despereaux and brings in the nearly ageless Mädchen Amick, who was not a part of the Twin Peaks homage in the prior season but whom James Roday said he really wanted to work with. This season ends on a pretty big cliffhanger that leaves the life of one of the main characters in doubt going into the next season.

The DVD set is a four-disc set with the extras and the episodes spread evenly throughout the discs. The extras are pretty consistent with what has been released for the prior seasons. There are deleted scenes for nearly every episode, a gag reel, montages (which are almost gag reels themselves), psychouts, and commentary tracks (audio and/or video) for many of the episodes. So, if you want to go through the bonus material then there is a lot for you, although you will have to watch episodes multiple times (which, I'm guessing most people will not mind).

Overall, if you have liked the prior seasons, you will probably like this one. Yes, the show is on the sixth season and some of the jokes are getting recycled now, but on the whole, I think the writers do a good job keeping the stories fresh, and the cast seems to really enjoy their characters. The show is mostly a comedy, but does have some moments of drama mixed in that works well. So, it is definitely worth watching.

Supplement Review: EAS Myoplex Original Protein Shake Mix Packets, Chocolate Cream

 

Myoplex hit it big in the late 90s/early 2000s when Body for Life was all the rage. It is not a straight protein supplement (although it does have 42g of protein), instead, it is meant to be a meal replacement which means it has a lot more carbs, vitamins, and minerals than straight protein powder has. It tastes okay when mixed with very cold water and better when mixed with milk. Since EAS has gone out of business it is no longer being produced so chances are if you can track down a box of it, it most likely expired (if these things had expiration dates). It is on the more expensive end of the meal replacement spectrum, but if you use it as a snack between meals it is economical (assuming you can still track a box of it down for a reasonable price).

Workout Update: Insanity Max 30/Chalean Extreme/Body Beast/P90X Hybrid Day 37

Day 37 was the second time doing the Max Out Power workout. I was able to get a little bit farther into the workout, maxing out at about 14 minutes, but the push-up sequence is still killer, even doing them all modified. I do like the core sequence that comes about 2/3 of the way through the workout, and generally think that the program could use a bit more core work. 

CD/Music Review: The Monkees - Good Times

 

This is really the last "real" Monkees album. It was released in 2016 when three of the four members of the group were still alive (Mickey, Peter, and Mike). The album is pretty much a collection of new 2-3 minute songs that are a mix of more upbeat "pop" numbers with a couple of ballads thrown in there. To me, the best song on the album is "Me and Magdelena," and a very slightly remastered version of "Love to Love," through which they found a way to include Davy on the album.

Overall, I do not think the album is as good as what you would get on one of their greatest hits albums or even as good as the album Justus, but it is still good. It is also, now that Peter and Mike have both passed, the last album that can be attributed to the group. Definitely worth the listen if you are a fan of the group.

CD/Music Review: Then & Now...The Best of the Monkees

 

This is primarily a Monkees greatest hits album released in 1986 to honor the 20th anniversary of the TV show and spawned a reunion tour by Mickey, Peter, and Davy. It was the album that, along with the show's re-runs, made me a fan of the group. I was not even born when the show originally aired but was pretty much the perfect age in 1986 when the group had a huge resurgence in popularity because the show was being played on Nickelodeon and MTV almost constantly. It does also have a few new songs that feature just Mickey and Peter (Davy did not sing on any of the new songs because he did not think they were paid fairly, and Mike was still pretty bitter about the whole Monkees experience and pretty much-avoided anything to do with the anniversary and the reunion aside from making one appearance at one of the tours stops).

The album includes all of their major hits like Last Train to Clarksville, Daydream Believer, and Plesant Valley Sunday, as well as some of the more obscure songs like DW Washburn. The last three songs, Anytime, Anyplace, Anywhere, Kicks, and the song that got them back into the top 40, That Was Then, This is Now, are the only new songs on the album. They are not the only new songs that the trio of Mickey, Peter, and Davy put out around that time as there was another album "Pool It" that included new material, but did not do nearly as well as this album did.

Overall, it is a very good greatest-hits album. It is probably even more of a desired item now that three of the four members of the group have passed away, but whether you were a fan of the group in the 60s or became a fan after that, it is definitely a must-listen.

Workout Update: Insanity Max 30/Chalean Extreme/Body Beast/P90X Hybrid Day 36

Day 36 was the second go around with Max Out Cardio. I was able to get much farther into the workout (almost 20 minutes) than I did versus the last time (just over 8 minutes) when I was still feeling kind of crappy. The modified version of the workout is definitely easier than the non-modified version, but it is still tough, especially since there is some kind of plank-based move in each of the circuits, which are the hardest moves for me.  

Workout Update: Insanity Max 30/Chalean Extreme/Body Beast/P90X Hybrid Day 35

Day 35 was the Recharge workout from CE. Thankfully, I did not lose any flexibility despite having skipped last week as I was feeling crappy after getting my Covid and Flu vaccines at the same time. My flexibility did not improve from two weeks ago, but it did not backslide either. 

DVD/TV Series Review: Psych: Season 5

 

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

The fifth season of Psych included 16 episodes that aired in the summer and winter of 2010 (after its usual break about midway through the season). Season five of Psych continues the formula that made the show a hit for the USA network, combining a case or mystery of the week with a ton of 80s and 90s pop culture references and some ongoing story arcs. This was the first season to pull an all-out pop culture-themed show, specifically, an episode called Dual Spires, which is a combination spoof/homage of the early 90s cult classic show Twin Peaks. The show actually managed to get quite a few of the actors from Twin Peaks to play spoof versions of their characters from Twin Peaks, including Sherilyn Fenn, Ray Wise, Sheryl Lee, and more. There is also an episode that is a spoof of the Fast and Furious movies that, while not as good as the Twin Peaks episode, is still funny. The season finale continues the Yang storyline, with Ally Sheedy reprising her role and finding a clever way to include Jimmi Simpson's character, Mary, who was killed in the Yang episode in season four. The show also continues to develop all of the characters, including teaming up Gus and Lassiter for an episode and Henry coming out of retirement to be in charge of all the consultants for the Santa Barbara PD, making him Shawn and Gus' boss.

The DVD set is a four-disc set, and like the prior season releases, it has a ton of extras. There are deleted scenes for pretty much every episode, extended versions of some episodes, commentary tracks (audio and/or video) on many episodes, and a gag reel. So, if you like bonus content, there is a lot there for you. Overall, the season is very good. The acting and writing are both top-notch, and the show finds new ways to tweak the formula that makes it work. It is still playing the will-they-won't-they-together dance between Shawn and Juliet, drawing out the tease of a relationship for as long as possible. So, if you were a fan of the prior seasons, you would probably like or love this one. It is absolutely worth the time to watch.

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

 

The second season of Fargo, like the first (and the movie) is, despite the tag at the beginning of the episodes, a totally made-up story. It is actually a prequel to the season one story, telling the events that Lou Solverson (played by Keith Carradine in season one, and Patrick Wilson in season two) related during one of the scenes in season one, in which he discussed an old case that was as crazy as what was playing out. The season starts off with a member of the Gerhardt crime family (Rye, played by Kieran Culkin) based in Fargo, North Dakota trying to extort a judge in a diner in Luverne, Minnesota (which is nowhere near Fargo). Things get murdery (as they do in the Fargo storylines), and Rye ends up being hit by a car driven by Kirsten Dunst's character, Peggy Blumquist. Things go off the rails from there as the Gerhardts, lead by Jean Smart's character Floyd Gerhardt, try to figure out what happened to Rye, and head off members of the Kansas City mob who are trying to take over in Fargo. And Lou, ends up in the middle of everything.

The show has a great guest and recurring cast, including Ted Danson, Jeffrey Donovan (from Burn Notice), Zahn McClarnon who plays a Native American Hitman for the Gerhardts, Jesse Plemons (from Breaking Bad), Bokeem Woodbine, Brad Garrett, Nick Offerman, Rachel Keller, Michael Hogan (from Battlestar), and more, and Bruce Campbell. We also do get cameos from some of the season one actors.

For those who get the Blu-Ray set, the extras include five featurettes; titled "Lou on Lou: A Conversation with Patrick Wilson, Keith Carradine, and Noah Hawley", "Waffles and Bullet Holes: A Return to Sioux Falls", "The Films of Ronald Reagan: Extended Fargo cut", "The True History of Crime in the Midwest", and "Skip Sprang TV Commercial". The commercial is the shortest of them (just under a minute), and the Waffles and Bullet Holes featurette is the longest at just under 45 minutes. So, there is a decent amount for those who like watching the extras.

Overall, the show is good. It does get a bit weird at times, even introducing the hint of aliens. But, it is a good mix of drama and very dry, dark, humor. There is some sexual content and a lot of violence, so like season one, it is not family-friendly. That said, the acting is great and the writing is very good. So, if you were a fan of season one, this is definitely worth watching.

CD/Music Review: Demi Lovato - Confident

 

You pretty much know what you will get with a Demi Lovato album, a mix of pop/dance numbers and ballads. While the bit hits from this album are Confident and Cool for the Summer, the song that I think is the best is one of the ballads, Wildfire. Overall, I think that Demi's ballads tend to be better than the pure pop songs that tend to be geared more toward younger listeners. This is definitely the most adult album that she had put out (as of when it was released) and the songs definitely touch on some of the struggles she has had. And, some of the songs do contain f-bombs, so that is something to be aware of. Overall, it is a good pop album, but whether you like it will really depend on your musical taste.

Workout Update: Insanity Max 30/Chalean Extreme/Body Beast/P90X Hybrid Day 34

Day 34 was going to be the first Body Beast workout, but I decided to switch and do one final back and biceps p90x workout. It went well. I was hitting the max reps in the 8-9 rep range for all the exercises that used weights and doing about 10 reps for the band pull-down moves.

DVD/TV Series Review: Psych: Season 4

 

+++Warning, this contains minor spoilers from season three, but no major season four spoilers+++

By the fourth season, people will really know if they love Psych or not. It is really a show that you are going to (probably) love or hate. I do not think there are a ton of people out there that are lukewarm to the show. It is about a guy named Shawn Spencer (James Roday) with extremely high observational skills who has convinced the Santa Barbara Police that he is actually psychic, and works as a consultant for them along with his best friend Gus (Dule Hill). If you combine a sitcom with a prime-time police procedural, throwing in a ton of 80s and 90s pop culture references, you would get Psych. This season continues to mostly be a case-of-the-week procedural, but there are tiebacks to prior episodes, most notably the Yin-Yang killer, with Ally Sheedy reprising her role as Mr. Yang, and Jimmi Simpson reprising his role as Mary. And we get closer to the totally pop-culture-themed episodes that the series would become known for, with a Halloween episode that paid homage to the 1930s and 1940s monster movies, and an episode that starred Ray Wise that was a total spoof on his Twin Peaks character.

For those who get the DVD set, there are a ton of bonus features that are very similar to what was included in the seasons 1-3 released. There are deleted scenes for most episodes, commentaries for select episodes, a gag reel, and several montages (usually of Shawn or Gus saying the same thing over and over). So, if you like watching the bonus content, then you get a lot (which is becoming rarer and rarer as time goes by).

Overall, the season is very good. The show continues to get a ton of great guest stars including Rachael Leigh Cook recurring in her role as Abigail Lytar, Kurt Fuller who made his Psych debut as Woody the Coroner and would recur for the rest of the series run, Ally Sheedy, Jimmi Simpson, Christopher Turner, Cary Elwes as art thief Pierre Desperaux (who would also recur through the series), Ray Wise, Jaleel White, Christine Baranski, Jim Beaver, Josh Braaten, James Brolin, John Cena, Jay Chandrasekhar, Tim Conlon, Miguel Ferrer, Azita Ghanizada, Stacy Keibler, Joshua Malina, David Naughton, Judd Nelson, Larisa Oleynik, Robert Patrick, Sendhil Ramamurthy, Lisa Ray, Michael Rooker, Jeri Ryan, Sarah Shahi, Kenan Thompson, Tony Todd, Beverley Turner, Arnold Vosloo, and Thomas F. Wilson. With the most recognizable guest stars, the show usually makes at least one or two jokes that referred to the character and/or show/movie that made the person famous. So, if you liked the first few seasons, you will most likely feel the same way about this one. It is definitely worth watching.

Book Review: Star Wars: Dark Disciple

 

Dark Disciple is a story that was reportedly being worked on for the Clone Wars animated series before it was canceled, that involved a plan by the Jedi to take out Count Dooku. Thus, the story is set between Episodes II and III. The plan is to team Quinlan Voss with Dooku's former apprentice and Sith acolyte, Asajj Ventress, who has come to hate Dooku. As you can expect, the plan does not go off without a hitch (given that anyone likely to read this knows what Dooku's ultimate fate was), and even though you know going into it, that Dooku will survive, the novel still tells a great story. It is partly a good-versus-evil action story, partly a love story, and partly a story of redemption, both for Voss and Ventress.

Ventress is one of the best new canon characters who was introduced in the Clone Wars series. This continues to develop her character and really rounds out her character arc. It also gives a lot more depth to Voss who was only seen a few times during the Clone Wars series. So, if you liked or loved the series, and especially if you liked the character of Ventress, this is a must-read. Even if you have not seen the series and only read some of the canon novels, I would still categorize this one as a must-read.

CD/Music Review: Selena Gomez - Revival

 

This was the album that Gomez used to break out of the "Disney kid" mold. While there are certainly pop songs on the album that are probably only going to appeal to a younger audience, there are some really good songs, especially a couple of ballads, that are very good. For me, the best songs on the album are Kill Em with Kindness, Same Old Love, Sober, and Camaflouge. I would not put Gomez in the same category as someone like Adele; with this album, she shows that she is more than just a teeny-bopper pop star.

Workout Update: Insanity Max 30/Chalean Extreme/Body Beast/P90X Hybrid Day 33

Day 33 was the first Friday Fight Round 2 workout. The workout has the traditional warm-up, rotating four moves for two rounds, then it launches into the regular workout with one-minute long moves, back to back, for 15 minutes, then a break, then more moves until 26 minutes, and then it goes the final four minutes. Most of the exercises are ones that are seen in the other max-out exercises, with a couple exceptions. It is much easier to do the modified version than the regular version. I was able to make it to just under 20 minutes before maxing out, but the people doing the non-modified exercises were maxing out around the 7-minute mark.

Study Aid Review: A Student's Guide to Maxwell's Equations (Student's Guides) 1st Edition

 

Maxwell's equations are some of the most important things that you will learn if you are taking physics and/or working on an electrical engineering degree. They basically describe the concepts of electricity and magnetism, which apply to things like the power to our homes and semiconductor chips that are in every single device we own. Unfortunately, a lot of the textbooks (both physics and EM engineering textbooks) give them a bit of short shrift, giving a basic explanation and maybe deriving one or two of them, but do not give a good explanation of why they are useful and, thus, what they represent can be lost on students.

This is a small book (about 130 pages) that covers all four equations, one per chapter. That breaks down what each equation represents and what the variables in the equation mean and provides both the integral form of the equations and the differential form. I think the best way to use this guide is to supplement your textbook material so that when you get to the point in the textbook where one of the equations is discussed, use this to flesh out the theory behind the equations that your textbook may not cover (or cover in as much detail). To be clear, this is not something like "Maxwell's Equations for Dummies" or something like that, which assumes you have little to no background going in. You do need to have some understanding of calculus (if you have taken multivariable calculus, that will definitely help because there is a lot of discussion of surface integrals and vectors), and know some of the physics concepts you will learn before getting to the electricity and magnetism topics (which is covered in the second semester of physics). So, if you are taking calculus-based physics and/or have to take an electricity and magnetism class (electric and magnetic fields) as a part of an engineering program, this will be very useful. It is probably overkill for those who just have to take algebra-based physics because it will go way beyond what you will be exposed to in class or expected to learn.

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Charmed: Season Three

 

The third season of Charmed was one that put the series in flux. It would serve as a transitional season for the show, with a huge cliffhanger that would allow for major cast turnover. After all this time most people likely know how it played out, but I will not spoil anything here.

Season three mostly follows the freak-of-the-week format (much like the series Smallville was doing) but it did start to interweave larger story arcs. The two big ones this season involved Piper and Leo's relationship, and the second one involved a relationship between Phoebe and the new District Attorney, played by Julian McMahon, who is more than he appears to be. There are a couple of really good time jump shows, one that sends the women back into Salem at the time of the witch trials, and one that is a flashback episode that included Finola Hughes and Jennifer Rhodes (both of whom make more than one appearance this season).

For those who get the blu-ray set, it is basically an MOD set. There are no extras, but there are captions in both German and English. So, it is very, very, bare bones. The Blu-Ray transfer is okay, but it did not get what you would call a high-quality HD upgrade. Although, since these episodes were filmed in 2001, and the show had a bigger budget than it did the first couple of seasons, the CGI special effects did look a bit better. The show did get a good slate of recognizable guest stars (and included the occasional early 2000s musical guest and/or songs in the show). Some of the guests this season included Harry Groener (who played the Mayor in the best season of Buffy), Rainn Wilson (from The Office), Ron Pearlman, Kevin Weismann (from Alias), Dana Ashbrook (from Twin Peaks), Ashley Tisdale, and a handful of WCW wrestlers, who appeared in a pretty cheesy episode. The musical guests included The Coors, Orgy, and The Barenaked Ladies.

Overall, the season is good. It does have some weak points, certainly, and some of the things that they wrote into the show (like the go be with your man when your sister is in danger stuff) would probably not be done the same way today. And, I am not sure they would get away with putting Alyssa Milano and Shannen Doherty in skimpy cleavage-baring tops in every single episode as they did back then. I think some things about the show hold up well, but some things most assuredly do not. This was also the season where the feud between Milano and Doherty came to a head. While they have both addressed it vaguely and acknowledged it was a thing, it did not seem to actually boil over into their on-camera work together. The one big complaint that I had about the season is that the character of Daryl was rarely given anything important to do this season, and he was an also-ran character for a big part of the season. Other than that, I think that the writers did a pretty good job giving the other characters storylines with substance. The acting was always good, even when the actors did not have great material to work with, and the show and the actors could switch from comedy to drama within a couple of scenes. While I do not think it was as good a show as Buffy, the other girl-power-empowered supernatural-themed show of the time, I do think it was worth watching.

DVD/TV Series Review: Psych: The Complete Third Season

 

+++Warning, this contains a minor season two spoiler, but not major giveaways about season three+++

Season three of Psych actually evolved the show quite a bit. First, it branched out the storylines of having Shawn and Gus consult for the Santa Barbara police department but take on their own cases (usually with an attractive woman involved). Second, it started to incorporate serial story arcs into the show so it was not just a case-of-the-week procedural. At the beginning of the season, the tease from the last second of the season two finale is paid off, revealing Shawn's mother (played by Cybill Shepherd) has returned, and she plays a large role in the show throughout the season. Then, at the end of the season, there is the introduction of a character and a storyline that will span multiple seasons of the show. Of course, the case-of-the-week stories did remain, as did the multiple 80s and 90s pop culture references.

For those who get the DVD set, there are, again, a lot of extras, including deleted scenes for most episodes, video and/or podcast commentary tracks for many of the episodes, a hilarious gag reel, and more. The show also continues to get a ton of great guest and recurring stars including Rachael Leigh Cook, Phylicia Rashad, Kieth David (who replaced Ernie Hudson as Gus's father), Ally Sheedy, Jimmi Simpson, MacKenzie Astin, Justine Bateman, Jere Burns, F Gary Cole, Barry Corbin, Jeff Fahey, Frank Gifford, Mickie James, Jane Lynch, Christopher McDonald, Ted McGinley, Richard Riehle, Alan Ruck, Jonathan Silverman, Steven Weber, and Mykelti Williamson are among the most recognizable.

Overall, if you liked the first couple of seasons of the show, you will probably feel the same way about this one. The show does a good job of continuing to develop the characters, keeping the tension between Shawn and Juliet amped up without getting them together too quickly, and generally just being really funny. It is about 90% comedy, 10% drama, and pretty much 100% tongue-in-cheek. If you grew up in the 1980s and 1900s the jokes probably land a bit better than if you are older or younger, but that said, it is a great show that is well worth the time to watch.

Workout Update: Insanity Max 30/Chalean Extreme/Body Beast/P90X Hybrid Day 32

Day 32 was the first Max Out Power workout. This is a tough one, especially in the middle where there are a ton of push-ups. It is another workout that is 45 seconds per move, then you get a 15-second break, and move on to the next move. So, none of the moves are repeated. There are a few 30-second breaks mixed in too, but fewer than in other workouts. I maxed out at the 13:15 mark.

Product Review: Samsung Galaxy Prevail LTE Core Prime G360 Cyber Defender Case

 

This is a good case that can definitely protect a phone against falls (within reason). It is, however, very hard to get one because of the side buttons on the phone. So, expect to take a bit of time fighting with it. But, once it is on the phone, it does a good job.

Software Review: MATLAB & Simulink Student Suite

 

I purchased this when I was working on an electrical engineering degree. My school made MATLAB available through a Citrix web portal, but that was glitchy and slow, so I decided to get this to have it on my home computer. It was a bit of a pain to install because it does not have CD, it just gives you a code. As of 2015 when I purchased this, instead of having a dedicated website to download the student version you had to poke around on the website, which was not super intuitive. Once the download started it was fairly straightforward. You do have to enter an academic email address, so you cannot use a yahoo or Gmail address, but I had no issues getting it to work once I found the download link on the website.

DVD/TV Series Review: Psych: Season 2

 

The second season of Psych aired during the 2007/2008 TV season. Approximately half of the episodes aired during the summer of 2007 and half in the winter of 2007 into 2008. The season continues the procedural case-of-the-week format as the first season, in which fake psychic Shawn Spencer (James Roday) and his assistant Gus (Dule Hill) consult on some particularly tricky cases for the Santa Barbara police department. The season has the same kind of witty banter and tongue-in-cheek comedy as the first season ramps up the sexual tension between Shawn and Juliet (Maggie Lawson) and the outright tension between Shawn and Lassiter (Timothy Omundson) and expands the role of Cheif Vick (Kristen Nelson) promoting her to a series regular. The show almost always starts out with the young version of Shawn (and sometimes Gus) learning a lesson from Henry (Corbin Bernsen) that ties into the theme of the episode.

There are many extras for those who get the DVD set. There are multiple commentary tracks, deleted scenes for most, if not all, of the episodes, a gag reel, a find the pineapple game, a montage that shows all of the crazy names Shawn has used to introduce himself and Gus, fake scenes (called "psych outs"), and some animated adventures of Shawn and Gus as kids. A ton of stuff for those who like going through the extras. The commentary tracks are pure gold, especially those in which Roday and Hill participate.

Overall, the show continues to be great. The acting and writing are both great. While the show had not quite gotten into the homage episodes yet (those that were spoofs and/or homages to some 1980s or 1990s movie, TV show, or trend), there are plenty of pop-culture references, and the show did start getting the great guest stars that the show would become known for. They include Phylicia Rashad and Ernie Hudson playing Gus' parents, John Amos, Curtis Armstrong, Obba Babatundé, Malcolm Barrett, W. Earl Brown, Matt Cedeno, Tim Curry, Cristián de la Fuente, Amanda Detmer, Gina Gershon, Ben Giroux, Philip Baker Hall, Howard Hesseman, Telma Hopkins, Katharine Isabelle, Christopher Jacot, Bianca Kajlich, Eric Keenleyside, Melanie Lynskey, Shane Meier, Alex Meneses, Brian Doyle-Murray, Dylan Neal, Amanda Pays, Lou Diamond Phillips, Saul Rubinek, Corey Sevier, Kerry Washington, and Calum Worthy. If you liked or loved season one, you will probably feel the same about this one. It is definitely worth the time to watch.

Book Review: Star Wars: Bloodline

 

Bloodline was the first of the canon novels under the Disney umbrella to really focus on one of the legacy characters, in this case, Leia. The novel is set six years before the events of The Force Awakens. Leia, having abandoned the idea of following Luke's path to becoming a Jedi, is a senator in The New Republic. However, she is aware of something sinister happening in the background of the Republic (which ultimately ends up being The First Order) that becomes more apparent over the course of the story.

Han is in the book a bit but is not a focus, and it is mentioned that Ben is off training with Luke. But, again, Luke is just sparingly mentioned, and that is it. The novel is really about political maneuvering and backbiting, definitely using our Earthly politics as an example, but there is some action intertwined with it. Probably the biggest reveal of the book is that Leia had been able to hide her true parentage for many years after the Empire fell as most of the galaxy has no idea that Darth Vader was her true father.

Overall, the book is very well-written and has a good story. It is not as action-packed as some of the other books, but it was nice to finally have a new book that focused on a major legacy character. You could really envision Carrie Fisher delivering Leia's lines and it does set up a bit of the sequel trilogy storyline. So, if you are one of those who reads some, but not all, of the canon novels, this is a good one to read.

Workout Update: Insanity Max 30/Chalean Extreme/Body Beast/P90X Hybrid Day 31

Day 31 was the first time doing the Max Out Sweat workout. It is a very hard workout (even the modifier who is in great shape maxes out at the 23-minute mark), and follows the format of rotating through three rounds of three moves, then doing a "power move" for a minute before taking a break. Ironically, the end of the workout is probably the easiest part, especially if you are modifying, but the first 24 minutes are pretty brutal.  

Book Review: Star Wars: Aftermath - Life Debt

 

This is the second novel in the Aftermath trilogy, which are the first canon novels after Disney's purchase of Lucasfilm that started filling in the story between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens. Like the first book, this one focuses mainly on the group of new characters led by Norra Wexley. She and her team, which includes Jom Barell, former Imperial loyalty officer Sinjir Rath Velus, her son Snap, and the bounty hunter Jas Emari, are trying to mop up the last vestiges of the Empire. But, this book does include some of the legacy characters, specifically Leia, Han, and Chewie, in a storyline that involves the liberation of the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk. Eventually, the two storylines merge, and we get some interaction between Han and Norra's team.

The one thing the book really still suffers from is excluding Luke. My guess is this was done so as to not give away, or inadvertently conflict with the storyline that would play out in the sequel trilogy. However, I think Wending could have and should have been allowed to include Luke in the continuing fight against the Empire without touching on his potential training of any new Jedi. Once Disney announced plans to make everything going forward canon, people wanted more stories involving the legacy characters, and I think putting the focus on them while incorporating new characters around them would have worked better for the first few new canon novels, especially since the first canon novel, A New Dawn was set before the events of A New Hope and did not include any of the legacy characters beyond mention of Vader and The Emperor. But, the storylines in this were good and flowed well. There was a lot of action that kept the story going and made it easy to stay engaged, which has not been the case with some of the newer canon novels. So, while I do not think this falls into the "must read" category, I think it is worth reading.