Workout Update: Lift 4/Beginner Pilates Doubles Day 43

Day 43 was flow 1 in Pilates and the first workout of the two "sculpt" weeks of Lift-4. That means switching up the workout order a bit, so the first workout was a chest and back circuit workout. It follows the same three rounds of four exercises, doing 10 reps of each exercise. In each round you do a chest exercise, then a back exercise, then another chest exercise, and a final back exercise, with no rest between the sets and 30 seconds of rest between rounds. After you do the three rounds, then you have three rounds of burnout in which you do regular push-ups, lying back extensions, and then wide push-ups, back-to-back without stopping, with again 30 seconds between each round. Then you finish with three rounds of alternating two core exercises.

This is a tough workout, number one because your body will be used to the chest-triceps, and back-biceps workouts from the first six weeks, so even though it seems like a small tweak, it is not. Plus, Joel is again encouraging people to up their weights, especially for the first round, from the prior week. I would have liked them to do a different workout sheet for the last two weeks because it is harder to keep track of what of things when the chest and triceps and the back and biceps exercises are all bunched together. When I do my workout wrap-up at the end I will explain in more detail. But, overall, it was a good workout.

Workout Update: Lift 4/Beginner Pilates Doubles Day 42

 Day 42 was a rest day from the Lift-4 workouts and then the hips, buns, and thighs workout in Pilates. I actually felt that one went a little better than it did the last time. I had a bit more range of motion in the exercises and in some of the moves in which I had to pause or skip a couple of reps, I could do more of. So, again, I am making progress.

Workout Update: Lift 4/Beginner Pilates Doubles Day 41

For Day 41 I took a rest day from Pilates and did the two Lift-4 recovery workouts. There is nothing really new to say about the recovery workouts. They went the same as they have the past few weeks.

Product Review: Smart RGB Floor Lamp

 

This is a smart lamp that has multiple color and brightness options. It is a tall floor lamp (it stands about six feet tall, give or take) and can be controlled using the provided remote control, via the magic home app, or using a voice assistant like Amazon Alexa. In the app, you can set it up to turn on and off at certain times, including using a sunrise and sunset feature which allows it to light up or dim over the course of time (up to an hour). So, for example, you can set it to turn on at 7AM on the lowest brightness setting and get brighter over the course of five minutes, twenty minutes, etc. It does not have a replaceable bulb. The top is a transparent material and the LED lights shine through it. 

It is a bit of a pain to assemble. Everything screws together and according to the instructions you start at the top and then screw the base on last. The base, however, is the hardest part to get on if you do not have help because the top sections can come apart as you are screwing the base onto the pole, and it is hard to get the base to line up correctly. Once it is assembled, it is pretty much ready to go. If you have used the magic home light bulbs before, which required you to go from the magic home app to the phone settings and back, this is much easier to set up. It is recognized right away in the app, and you can tell it what Wi-Fi network to connect to from the magic home app without having to go into your phone settings (at least when you are using an iPhone). It would be nice if they made a table lamp version of this, but if you are in the market for a smart lamp, this is a good option.

Book Review: Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendency - Chaos Rising

 

Chaos Rising is the first book in a new trilogy of novels (called the Ascendency Trilogy) based on the character of Thrawn, who is probably the most popular character outside of the legacy characters like Luke, Han, and Leia with people who have been reading the Star Wars novels for years. Thrawn was introduced back in the 1990s in a now non-canon or Legends trilogy of novels (widely called the Thrawn Trilogy) written by the same author Timothy Zahn. After Disney's takeover of Lucasfilm, the character of Thrawn was brought into the canon through a new trilogy of books and in the animated series, Rebels.

This book is set at the time of The Clone Wars but the story is mostly constrained to the unknown regions beyond the Outer Rim, where the Chiss Ascendancy rules on the Chiss homeworld. This book jumps in time between the present, in which Thrawn is a commander of a Chiss ship, and his time as a cadet, and establishes his role as a tactical and strategical genius (when it comes to battle and war tactics). He is investigating a threat to the Ascendancy by a race called the Nikardun. The novel basically serves as a backstory and origin story for Thrawn as well as the Chiss as a race. One of the interesting aspects of the story is that the Chiss travel through hyperspace (what they call the Chaos) using child navigators who are force sensitive (what the Chiss call the Third Sight) to get their ships safely through hyperspace. Much like Jedi younglings, the navigators, called sky-walkers, are taken from their families when they are young and act as navigators being raised by caretakers, until they are teenagers when they lose the Third Sight, at which point they are adopted into one of the ruling families of The Ascendency. 

The book has a good blend of action and suspense along with building the characters who will be the main characters in the trilogy. The author does a good job portraying Thrawn as a version of who he becomes when he is a Grand Admiral in the Empire, with traits that he shows later on, but not yet the fully developed character. We also get to see the lead-up to Thrawn's meeting with Anakin Skywalker in the story that was told in the second novel of the first canon Thrawn Trilogy, Thrawn: Alliances in which Thrawn helps Anakin find Padme when she is abducted. Basically, we get to see what Thrawn was doing when Anakin's ship showed up as he was looking for Padme.

Overall, the book tells a good story and does a good job of fleshing out Thrawn's backstory and establishing the new characters. While I am still partial to the original, Legends, Thrawn trilogy, I think this is the first of the new Thrawn novels that really showed that version of the character. It is definitely one of the must-read canon novels.

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: I, Tonya

 

I, Tonya is a 2017 movie that is a blend of drama and dark comedy that is a mockumentary-style biography of former Olympic figure skater, Tonya Harding's (played by Margot Robbie as well as McKenna Grace and Maizie Smith playing her as a child) career. The focus of the movie is the events that surrounded the lead-up to the 1994 Winter Olympics in which Harding's main competition, Nancy Kerrigan (played by Caitlin Carver) was attacked in a plan that was hatched by her ex-husband, Jeff Gillooly (played by Sebastian Stan), and executed ineptly by his friend, Shawn Eckhart (played by Paul Walter Hauser). The movie is basically from the point of view of Harding, who has always maintained that she had nothing to do with the plan (but the movie definitely leaves that up to the viewer to decide) and that she was a victim in the whole thing too. Allison Janney plays (wonderfully) Harding's batshit crazy and abusive mother, and pretty much steals every scene she is in. While the events of 1993-1994 were the main focus of the movie, the movie is semi-biographical and details Harding's life from the time she was a kid up to the point at which she retired from skating, and the movie does jump around in time a bit as the story is told.

For those who get the blu-ray, the A/V quality is good, about what you would expect of a non-special-effects-laden or CGI-heavy movie. For extras, there is a commentary track on the movie by the director, almost 20 minutes of deleted scenes, trailers, and 15 minutes of behind-the-scenes material that features clips of the real people involved being interviewed intertwined with cast and crew interviews. What was included was good, but you definitely do not get a ton of bonus features.

The movie is very good and captures the craziness of Harding's life and the absurdity of the attack on Kerrigan perfectly. Janney, Robbie, and Stan are all great with Janney basically owning the movie any time she is on screen. Even if you were not around for the real-life events the movie is based on, it is still a very entertaining movie that is worth watching, but it is definitely better if you know some of the backstory.

Workout Update: Lift 4/Beginner Pilates Doubles Day 40

For Day 40, I did the abs and core workout in Pilates and the Legs workout in Lift-4, which was another pure HIIT workout, meaning three rounds of four exercises that last 1 minute, 45 seconds, 30 seconds, and 15 seconds. Then, you do two burnout rounds in which you do all of the exercises for 30 seconds with no rest between the moves and then finish with three rounds of side planks for the core exercises. It was tough, but thankfully was very short. 

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: House M.D.: Season 7

 

+++Warning this contains spoilers from the end of season six and a minor spoiler of the season seven plotline, but has no major season seven giveaways+++

The seventh season of House aired during the 2011/2012 television season. It would end up being the second to last season of the show and, in my opinion, the last very good to great season of the show. This season is all about the House/Cuddy romantic relationship that was teased (yet again) at the end of season six when Cuddy showed up to stop House from taking drugs. The big serial story arc that runs throughout the season is their relationship, its function, and dysfunction, whether House can be as good of a doctor when he is happy, and whether he will end up sabotaging the relationship. Then, the show also does the case-of-the-week procedural storylines that have been the backbone of the show for the first six seasons. The series undergoes more cast turnover with Olivia Wilde taking a leave of absence from the show to go shoot movies, which allowed the show to bring in former soap opera actress Amber Tamblyn for a multi-episode arc. And of course, Jennifer Morrison had completely left the show after season six. Wilde makes a very short appearance in the season premiere and then returns about 3/4 of the way into the season in what is one of the season's best episodes (and for me, one of the top five episodes of the entire series). The season ends with a relatively big moment that will have a major impact on season 8.

For those who get the blu-ray set, the 23 episodes are spread across five discs. The show looks good, but not great in the HD format. Of course, it does not have a ton of special effects or CGI (although what is in the show does look good), and while the A/V quality is a step up from the DVDs, it is not huge. The extras include commentary tracks on three episodes, features on the characters of Thirteen, Cuddy, and Martha Masters (Tamblyn's character), and featurettes on the episodes Bombshells and The Dig, all of which are carried over from the DVD release. There are also some BD-live and U-Control extras that are specific to the blu-ray set.

Overall, the season is very good. It has a good blend of action, drama, and comedy, the latter mostly at Taub's expense. The storylines are well-written and the medical cases continue to be entertaining and interesting, and the acting is still top-notch. The show also continues to get a good slate of guest stars which this season include Candice Bergen, Cynthia Watros, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Jack Coleman, Jennifer Gray, Donal Louge, and Matthew Lillard. If you have liked the show up to this point, this season is definitely worth watching. In some ways, it is really the payoff to seasons 1-6 much more than season eight is. I definitely recommend it. 

Product Review: PILOT FriXion Gel Ink Refills for Erasable Pens, Fine Point, Black/Blue/Red Inks, 3-Pack

 

This is a pack of refill ink for the Pilot Frixion erasable gel pens, one red, one blue, and one black. The pens write great, and it is very helpful that they erase, but the ink runs out much quicker than the ink in a "regular" gel pen, especially if you are using them to do something like take notes for school in which you are writing with them multiple times per day, almost every day of the week. The refills run out quickly too, but they are much less expensive than getting a new package of pens all the time (which I was doing when I ran out of ink initially). 

Blu-Ray/Movie Review: Below Her Mouth

 

Below Her Mouth is an erotic drama from 2016 about a woman named Jasmine (played by Natalie Krill) who cheats on her fiance with another woman named Dallas (played by Erika Linder) while her fiance (played by Sebastian Pigott) is away on business. Jasmine and Dallas originally meet at a lesbian bar when Jasmine agrees to go out with her friend Claire, to be her wing-woman for the night. Dallas and Jasmine make out, much to Jasmine's initial shock and horror and then discover that Dallas (who is a roofer) is working on the house next door to Jasmine, and the two begin a sexual relationship. Of course, the drama comes when Jasmine's fiance returns from his trip.

The movie is basically about a torrid affair and a woman figuring out she is bisexual. If it were made with a male-female affair it would probably not have gotten as much notoriety as it did, but because it was about a woman cheating on her male fiance with another woman, it got more buzz than an indie film would normally get. That said, I do think that, even though the plot is fairly cookie-cutter, the acting is good and the movie does not drag on. The movie looks fine on blu-ray, but because it is low-budget and does not have any special effects, the transfer is not outstanding and would be just fine on DVD. And, there are no extras, just the movie itself.

Certainly, the movie is not going to appeal to everyone. There is a lot of nudity and sex, and of course, because it involves lesbians, some people who would otherwise not care about the nudity and sex will be turned off by that aspect of it. If that does not bother you, it is an okay movie that will help kill an hour and a half, but it is not a must-see movie by any means.

Product Review: AquaOasis™ Cool Mist Humidifier {2.2L Water Tank} Quiet Ultrasonic Humidifier

 

This is a very small, but effective, misting humidifier. It is mostly good, but I do have a couple of observations after using it for part of a day and overnight. First, it is impossible to totally fill the already small tank. Even if you add water to the point where it starts to overflow as you fill it when you turn it over and put it on the base, a significant portion of the water goes into the base so that the tank is about 3/4 of the way full before you even turn it on. Second, you absolutely have to use the cap, otherwise, it just shoots a cloud straight up into the air that then comes back down and gets whatever you have it sitting on wet. The cap allows you to control the direction the mist goes and makes it finer so it is not just a huge cloud of water. Third, if you dial it up to full power, which is pretty much required if you have a large room (especially if you also have vaulted ceilings) it will not run an entire night. I turned it on at about 8:30 PM and it was shut off before I woke up in the morning. Finally, it will shut off even when there is a bit of water left in the tank and there will be water in the base when you take the tank off. Just be aware of that because if you lift the tank without being careful you will get water on the table or shelf you have this on. 

Ultimately, I do think that this is a good deal, but, for $30 it would be nice if the tank was a little bit bigger so that it could run longer. I do like the auto shut-off feature when the water gets low so you are not running the motor when it is not doing anything, which should allow it to last longer. That said, the big plus is that it does not require a filter, so you do not have to keep paying to use it after you buy it. And, you do not have to take it apart and risk breaking it in order to clean the parts that need to be cleaned from time to time. So overall, it is a good deal. 

Workout Update: Lift 4/Beginner Pilates Doubles Day 39

Day 39 was Flow 2 in Pilates and Shoulders in Lift-4. The shoulders workout is an interval workout, so three blocks of three rounds of two shoulder exercises followed by a 30-second HIIT exercise.  The Lift-4 workout went fast but was again tough. Two of the cast members had to drop their weights for the last few reps on the last round of in a couple different blocks. One thing to know if you are going to do Lift-4 is that there is very little rest between sets. Unlike say P90x, where you often get 30+ seconds between sets while Tony talks, in the Lift-4 workouts you get 15 seconds, at best, and on some workouts, not even that. Sometimes you get just enough time to put your current weights down, pick up new ones, and that is it. But, you definitely get a burn in the muscle group you work after every workout.

4k-UHD/Movie Review: Jumanji - Welcome to the Jungle

 

This is the 2017 movie that is mostly a reboot and quasi-sequel to the 1995 movie, Jumanji, which starred Robin Williams. This version starts out with almost a vibe of the movie The Breakfast Club with four high school students named Spencer (played by Alex Wolff) who is a gaming and science nerd, Fridge (played by Ser'Darius Blain) who is a football star, Bethany (played by Madison Iseman), a self-absorbed hot chick, and Martha (played by Morgan Turner), an introverted loner, are assigned detention and forced to clean the school basement. They find an old video game that sucks them into the game when it boots up, with the twist being that they inhabit the bodies of the game characters, and find out they each have three lives with which to finish the game. Spencer becomes the leader Smolder Bravestone, (played by The Rock), Fridge becomes Smolder's sidekick, Mouse (played by Kevin Hart), Martha becomes Ruby Roundhouse (played by Karen Gillian), and Bethany becomes the cartographer played by Jack Black. 

The movie is about the video game characters playing people who are totally opposite themselves, so the Rock is a sickly nerd who suddenly becomes a 6'5" musclebound tank, Karen Gillian plays an introvert who basically becomes Laura Croft (inappropriate jungle attire included), Kevin Hart plays a football player turned into a 5'3" loudmouth, and Jack Black has to play a hot high school girl turned overweight middle-aged man. The movie is a good blend of action and comedy, and the cast all play off each other very well. There are some very funny moments, including Karen Gillian commenting on the short shorts she is wearing and Kevin Hart's character's inability to eat cake. There are some tie-ins with the original movie, including paying homage to Robin William's character from the original movie. The movie has to walk a fine line between honoring the original with doing its own thing, which it does well. 

For those who get the 4k set, the UHD disc just has the movie and then all of the extras are included on the regular blu-ray disc. The A/V quality of the UHD disc is very good, but it is not what I would call far beyond the a/v quality of the regular blu-ray disc. Both are pretty comparable. The extras include a gag reel, a music video by Nick Jonas (who has a role in the movie), and a handful of making-of and behind-the-scenes featurettes that vary in length from about four minutes to just under fifteen minutes. All totaled there are about 40 minutes, give or take, worth of extras if you like going through them.

Overall, the movie is very good. As I said above, it has a good blend of action and comedy, and all of the actors fit their roles very well. The Rock, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillian, and Jack Black all play their parts perfectly, and each of their characters get their moments to shine during the movie. It is definitely a more "adult" movie than the 1995 movie was and does include swearing and sex jokes. So, be aware that it is not as family-friendly as the original movie. That said, it is definitely worth watching. 

Workout Update: Lift 4/Beginner Pilates Doubles Day 38

Day 38 was Flow 1 in Pilates and a recovery day in Lift-4. I did both of the Lift-4 recovery workouts in the evening. I continued to improve during Pilates, especially in the side leg lifts, being able to get both legs up on each side a little bit more (although still not nearly as far as Lisa can get them up). It was nice to have a break from the heavy lifting workouts since my chest and arms were still pretty sore. 

Product Review: Pilot FriXion Gel Ink Pen Refills 3 pack

 

This is a pack of 9 black ink refills for the Pilot Frixion pens. They, like the original pens, are kind of a double-edged sword. They work well, but they run out of ink fast. Much faster (in my experience anyway) than regular gel pens. This is especially true if you are using them with the Rocketbook reusable notebooks (they are the only types of pens you can use on them). The good thing is that the refills are relatively inexpensive, especially when compared to getting a pack of new pens, but just know that if you get these you are probably going to run out of ink much faster than you expect to. 

Textbook/Study Guide Review: Fundamentals of Differential Equations : Solutions Manual

 

This is a student solutions manual for the corresponding textbook, Fundamentals of Differential Equations. It has, like most student solution manuals worked-out answers to most (but not all) of the odd problems from the book, and does not go into any explanation of the theory. I found the actual textbook to be a bit harder to read than some other math books that I used, but thankfully my professor did a fairly good job explaining the topics well. But this was definitely helpful to use when I got stuck on something. So, if you have to use the textbook for class, I would definitely recommend picking this up. If you are teaching yourself differential equations, then I would try to find a different textbook in which case you would not need this. 

Workout Update: Lift 4/Beginner Pilates Doubles Day 37

Day 37 was Pilates flow 2, which I am not as fond of as I am of the Flow 1 workout, but it is still easier than the last time I did it last month. Then, the  Lift-4 workout as back and biceps, another 50/50 workout and that was hard. I am writing this the next day, and I am very sore. Moving from one exercise to the next without stopping is definitely not easy to do, even when using lighter weights for some of the exercises. The HIIT portion was also tougher and included doing catcher jumps for a minute, then doing wide plank runs for 45 seconds and jump squats for 30 seconds. And, of course, it ended with alternating two core exercises for three rounds. 

Study Aid Review: The Humongous Book of Calculus Problems

 

This book is mostly a problems repository. Like the author's other "humongous" books, from chapter 1 it starts giving you problems with very little setup. It does have a chapter introduction page, but then it just starts in with example problems. But, unlike some of the other guides out there that have just a ton of example problems in them, the author does weave in the explanation of the theory in the form of margin notes that are added to explain how to tackle/solve the problems. Along with the theory, the author gives you tips for solving different problem types, advice on things to look out for, and marks the hardest kinds of problems with a skull and cross bones, which I think are good problems to go over before your exams.

The book is good in that it does not just dive into the calculus material. The first 8 chapters (about 120 pages or so) are a review of algebra and trigonometry, making sure you have the fundamentals down in case you need to brush up on them, and then it gets into the calculus material. The calculus material covers all of the topics that you will be exposed to in the first year of calculus (which in most schools is split up into two semesters, one focusing on derivatives and one focusing on integration), starting with limits and ending with using integration techniques on sequences and series problems.  It also goes over the introduction to differential equations that students usually get in the second semester, and has good examples for solving related rates problems and optimization problems. 

This does not cover multivariable calculus, linear algebra, or the more complicated differential equations problems you will get in later classes if you need to go beyond Calc I and II. This will, however, definitely help you get through the first year of calculus, especially if you have a hard time understanding your textbook and/or your teacher. 

Book Review: Rage

 

This is the second book written by famed journalist Bob Woodward about the 2017-2021 US presidential administration. Woodward covers events from throughout the administration but has a heavy focus on the response to Covid-19 and the relationships between the president and key members of his administration.

Specifically, Woodward talks about the relationship between the orange genital wart and members of the cabinet like Mattis, Tillerson, and Dan Coats (who was the Director of National Intelligence), and how all of their relationships soured with dipshit until they were fired or resigned. Woodward also discusses at length the love-note relationship between it and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Then, towards the end, Woodward goes on to discuss the disastrous Covid response that actually started out promising then went off the rails as t***p became more worried about getting reelected than he was about listening to medical experts. The big deal about this book as opposed to Woodward's first book is that t***p agreed to be interviewed, and taped, so Woodward uses t***p's own words throughout the book. 

The big takeaways from the book for me are, first, just how big a dipshit t***p really is, and two how much of an unjustified overinflated ego he has. For example, thinking he knows everything about science and technology just because his uncle taught electrical engineering at MIT when it is clear if you put any kind of physics or engineering problem in front of t***p and told him to work it out, his brain would explode. Secondly, just how stupid everyone around him found him to be and how frustrating it was to deal with his stream of consciousness jumping from topic to topic while still managing to say (or know) anything of substance. That is really borne out when Woodward reprints the exact questions he asked and exact quotes in response from t***p. 

Woodward does admit that many people he interviewed for the book only agreed to talk to him anonymously, but he also has about 400 endnotes that point to publically available sources for a lot of the material. Woodward is very critical of t***p and is clearly not a fan. But, he does give t***p credit for some things, such as his initial response to Covid, like restricting travel from China and Europe and then instituting the initial lockdowns. Unlike a lot of the journalists who have written books about t***p, Woodward does give his overall impressions and opinions of t**p and does not just stick to reciting facts and quoting sources. Woodward does not go as far as someone like Michael Wolff and actually call t***p batshit crazy, but you can tell that seems to be his impression of t***p. I do think Woodward can be fairly criticized for keeping what t***p truly knew about Covid versus what he was saying in public under wraps until his book came out. 

There is not a ton of new information in the book, especially if you are one who kept up with the news about that administration from reputable news sources. But, Woodward did manage to uncover details that flesh out the events he discusses in the book that I had not heard before. So, I do think that it is worth reading and definitely recommend it.

4k-UHD/Movie Review: American Assassin

 

This is a 2017 film based (very loosely) on the series of spy novels written by the late author, Vince Flynn, centered on the character of Mitch Rapp (played in the movie by Dylan O'Brien). The book series started out with the novel Transfer of Power, which was actually Flynn's second novel, but the first to feature the character of Rapp. In that book, Rapp was a 31-year-old off-the-books CIA agent who hunted down terrorists in the prime of his career as a spy/assassin (think Jack Bauer in the series 24). After writing about 11 novels set around the older Rapp, Flynn wrote two prequel novels, "American Assassin" and "Kill Shot", which basically filled in Rapp's origin story. 

This movie is loosely based on the novel American Assassin (and to some extent Kill Shot) but changes elements of the story significantly (such as how Rapp's college girlfriend is killed which set him on his path to the CIA). Some elements from the book do make it into the movie, but it basically tells its own story (largely involving a rouge agent). While the movie does include character traits and heavily adapted plot elements from the books, it does not use the actual storylines from either of the books as Vince Flynn wrote them. 

For those who get the 4k disc, the A/V quality of the UHD disc is very good, and all of the extras are included on the UHD disc, although you do get a regular blu-ray disc as well. The extras include a making-of featurette that runs about 10 minutes, a featurette on casting O'Brien as Rapp, a featurette on the character of Stan Hurley (played by Michael Keaton), and a featurette on the main antagonist. Then there is a featurette on the stunts from the film, and one on the locations in which the movie was shot. Finally, there is a Q&A session with O'Brien and Taylor Kitsch, that runs almost a half an hour (and is the longest of the extras). All totaled, you get about just under 90 minutes of bonus material.

This is a good action movie, but it is definitely better if you have not read the books and are not already invested in the characters. I had not yet read the books when I saw the movie, but now that I have started reading them, I can definitely tell why some fans really felt that the movie did not do enough to hold true to the books. I remember Flynn being interviewed when he was negotiating the movie rights before he passed away and basically admitting that he would have to give up control of the story and that if the characters made it to the big screen, the stories would be a lot different than what he wrote. That is absolutely what happened and I think if the movie would have been more faithful to the book, and been set in the late 1980s, it would have been better received by the fans. That said, I think O'Brien did a very good job as a young Mitch Rapp, and Michael Keaton was great as Stan Hurley. Since the movie pretty much bombed in its theatrical release, the chances of there being a follow-up movie or a franchise of movies are pretty slim, but as a stand-alone action movie, it is definitely worth watching if you can accept that you are not going to get the story from the book.

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: The Flash: Season 4

 

+++Warning, this contains spoilers from the prior season, but no major spoilers from season 4+++

Season four of The Flash aired during the 2017-218 TV season. The show picks up six months down the line from the end of season three in which Barry exiled himself in the speed force to maintain balance after his defeat of Savatar. Iris is leading team Flash from Star Labs, with mixed results, and Cisco eventually finds a way to get Barry out of the Speed Force without destabilizing it. Of course, once Barry is back, not all is right with the world. This season finally moves away from the speedster "big bad" instead bringing in the character Devoe, who was mentioned by Savatar during season three. The show does still have a bit of the case/villain of the week procedural aspect to it, but it has become, like the other Arrowverse shows, a show with a serial story arc that spans throughout the course of the season. The big Arrowverse crossover, Crisis on Earth-X, occurs eight episodes into the season and includes episodes from Supergirl, Flash, Arrow, and Legends. The season ends on a huge cliffhanger reveal that will have a big impact on season 5.

For those who get the blu-ray set, the A/V quality is the same as it has been for the prior season releases and for the other WB/DC shows. The 23 episodes (plus the three other crossover episodes from the other shows) are spread across four discs, and there is no "play all" feature, so you cannot pick back up from where you stop. For extras, you get the episodes of Arrow, Supergirl, and Legends of the crossover so you can watch it all at one time. Then there is a featurette on the crossover and the 2017 best of DC TV at Comic-Con that are common to all of the Arrowverse DVD and Blu-Ray releases from that season, a gag reel, deleted scenes, and a handful of other featurettes specific to the show.

Overall, the season is strong. There are a lot of recognizable guest and recurring actors this season including Katee Sackhoff (from Battlestar), Jessica Parker Kennedy, Jessica Camacho, Kim Engelbrecht, Neil Sandilands, Bill Goldberg, and Danny Trejo. And, of course, actors from the other Arrowverse shows make appearances throughout the season. I do think it was nice to mix the main bad guy up a bit this year and not do another evil speedster storyline while still giving the team a challenge. So, if you have liked the show up to this point, it is definitely still worth watching.

Workout Update: Lift 4/Beginner Pilates Doubles Day 36

For Day 36 I switched to the flow workout week in Pilates, which will alternate Flow 1 and Flow 2 M-Th, and then do hips, buns, and thighs on Friday and Abs + Core on Saturday. Then, this was another Chest and Triceps workout in Lift-4.

The flow workout went very well. I was actually able to get deeper into the stretches and get both of my legs farther off the ground for the side leg lifts. The Lift-4 workout was another circuit workout, doing two quad sets for three rounds, then a burnout set with wide push-ups and triceps push-ups back-to-back for three rounds, and then finishing with three rounds of alternating core/ab exercises. My arms and chest were definitely toast by the end of the workout and I felt like I was doing a HIIT workout by the end of the quad sets. So, both workouts today went very well.

Blu-Ray/TV Series Review: Supergirl: Season 3

 

+++Warning, this contains spoilers from the second season, but no major spoilers from season three.+++

The third season of Supergirl aired during the 2017-2018 TV season. This season mostly does away with the villain of the week (as have the other Arrowverse shows) and basically has interweaving serial arcs. The season starts out with Kara still reeling from the loss of Mon-EL after the defeat of the Daxamites at the end of season two.  Kara has to deal with a new threat in the form of an industrialist named Morgan Edge (played by Heroes Adrian Padsar) who wants to take out Supergirl and buy Catco, which is being run by Jimmy since Cat is now the White House Press Secretary. Then, the series shifts to a threat from a rouge Kryptonian named Reign, who wants to take over Earth and form a new Krypton, and Kara learns a surprising truth about her mother Alura, now played by Erica Durance, who of course played Lois Lane in the series Smallville. Eight episodes into the season, the big Arrowverse crossover happens with episodes of Supergirl, Flash, Arrow, and Legends each devoted to the crossover. Supergirl's episode is the first episode of the crossover (Crisis on Earth-X), and more characters from Supergirl are included in the event this year than were included in the prior season's crossover. The season ends on a big reveal that sets up the storyline for the next season.

For those who get the blu ray set, the 23 episodes (plus the three other episodes from the other shows of the crossover event) are spread across four discs. The A/V quality is on par with the prior season releases, and the releases of the other Arrowverse shows. The extras include a featurette on the character Reign, a gag reel, and deleted scenes. Then, there is a featurette on the crossover event (which is the same one that was included in the release of the other Arrowverse shows from that season) and a best of DC TV at Comic-Con, which was included on all of the season releases for the DC TV shows. 

Overall, this is another strong season. There are more changes to the cast, some of which would be permanent and others that are not. This season's additions to the cast include Odette Annable, Andrea Brooks, Carl Lumby (from Alias), and Jessee Rath. This would be the last season with Jeremy Jordan as a series regular, and Floriana Lima had a reduced role this season. Helen Slater makes another appearance as Eliza Danvers, and Katie McGrath is upgraded to a series regular as Lena Luthor. Ultimately, if you liked the second season of the show (which is much different from season 1) then you will probably like this season. If you preferred season 1 of the show over season two, then you may not like this as much, but it is still good and fits better into the Arrowverse.  

Workout Update: Lift 4/Beginner Pilates Doubles Day 35

For the day 35 workout, I went back to doing the regularly scheduled (although a day later) abs and core Pilates workout. Again, I feel like the workouts are getting a bit easier over time, and my flexibility is very slowly getting better. So, I definitely plan on sticking with it. I did not do the Lift-4 recovery workouts today since I think they are a bit redundant when also doing Pilates. Plus, I did the workout later in the evening than I intended to, so I just wanted to do the 23 minutes of Pilates and not bump it up to 40 minutes by adding the two recovery workouts from Lift-4. 

Workout Update: Lift 4/Beginner Pilates Doubles Day 34

For Day 34 I just did the two recovery workouts from Lift-4, which went well. During the foam roller workout, I felt like I had fewer "knots" in my calves and hamstrings and it does not hurt as bad to roll my IT band (on either side).  I'm still not to the point where I would dare try it with the rumble roller, but it is getting better.