Steven Universe Review: "Bubble Buddies" (Season 1A, Episode 7)

(Note 25/11/15: Review edited because, in hindsight, the review I originally posted had a few errors in logic. Sorry.)

Steven and Connie roll on Dunkin.

Airdate: December 2, 2013

Synopsis: Steven's attempts to talk to a bespectacled bookish girl sitting on the beach (not his first attempt, apparently) result in him saving her life from a boulder... but also causes the two to become trapped in a bubble of Steven's own making. Any and all attempts to free them fail. Hilariously. And by hilariously, I mean they almost drown.

Review (SPOILERS): BUBBLES! Uh, I mean GEEKS! Uh, I mean GEEKS IN BUBBLES!

Uh, I mean, one of the biggest cliches in sci-fi history (if not TV history) has got to be the "first episode love interest". If I may be able to describe it, it revolves around two protagonists (often of the opposite sex) who both appear in the first episode. It's assumed from that moment on that the ship involving the two is to set sail and reach it's destination.

In that case, Steven Universe certainly subverts that cliche a bit off the bat by waiting for episode seven to introduce a probable love interest for Steven... and then subverts it even further by having the two actually communicate right off the bat, rather than just have a series of awkward stumbling conversations.

The end result is what I consider to be the closest thing to a "sublime" episode of Steven Universe so far.

Heads Up About The "Escape from Reality" Review

I mentioned this at the start of the month, but I have a few papers to do. While I was able to get a few posts out this month, the papers still present themselves.

Thus, the "Escape from Reality" review will likely come out sometime after the turn of the month. It might come out earlier than that, it might not. My review of Star Trek VI will likely come out closer to Christmas - consider it and a ranking (or various rankings) of all six Star Trek films a smaller Christmas Spectacular Thing.

Hey, Gravity Falls is an awesome show, but, y'know, school is school. And I will be watching the episode tonight.

(Oh, a review is coming out tomorrow, but that was written beforehand.)

Reaching the End of Gravity Falls

Yes, the rumors are true.

To condense everything in this link, Alex Hirsch has confirmed that Season 2 is the end of Gravity Falls. It is done. Finished. Bye bye, love. To condense the facts even further...

• Alex made the decision to bring the show to the end itself. This was planned from the start of season 2.
• This was done to make sure the show didn't fall into Lost Syndrome, that it wouldn't drive it's viewers away with a more and more complicated and pointless plot.
• Disney didn't want to mess with the ratings by announcing that season 2 was the end... until now.
• Two more episodes left - the next one ("Weirdmageddon II") and an hour-long event ("Weirdmageddon III"). After that... adios.

Sad as this may seem, I am honestly not surprised. It definitely felt like the show was going to wrap up sooner rather than later. Hell, I was glad that it got a season 2 in the first place - it just seemed so out of place on the Disney lineup, that I thought Disney was going to punt it. But hearing the news that it is coming to an end is certainly a bit sobering. 

I'll have a fuller eulogy out after the whole wrap-up, but to put it simply, this was one of the first "new" shows I really loved in a good while. I still love this show, and always will.

And fans, take solace in this fact - Twin Peaks got 30 episodes. Gravity Falls beat it's spiritual predecessor by 10 episodes. Also, the show's quality never imploded, a-la Lost or Heroes. Take solace in that, as well.

Besides, this show has practically guaranteed that Alex Hirsch will likely create another show. While time will tell if he does so (he might need a rest), I am confident that he isn't out of ideas or talent yet. As for what he might develop... again, don't be antsy.

So, we'll watch the end of the journey, and hopefully, Gravity Falls goes out with a bang so large, it shakes the fandom to it's core.

Steven Universe Review: "Cat Fingers" (Season 1A, Episode 6)

If you think this screenshot is creepy... AVOID THIS EPISODE AT ALL COSTS. In fact, avoid this review. Or keep reading, whatever.

Airdate: November 25th, 2013

Synopsis: Amethyst manages to impress Steven with her shifting into a cat. Shocked by this, Steven wants to know how he can shape shift, despite Pearl's objections. Amethyst teaches him to trust his id, and Steven... manages to create a cat out of one of his fingers. Unfortunately, Steven's own id takes over, and he's unable to get rid of the cats once tied of them.

Review (SPOILERS): Glad to know what my nightmares will be about for the next month or so.

Ah, yes - "Cat Fingers". This was the creepiest episode of Steven Universe amongst fans for quite a bit, and has only been surpassed by the likes of "On The Run", "Keeping It Together", "The Return", "Jailbreak", "The Message", ah, hell, the fact that this was scary at one time shows just how slow this show was to really start burning the oil.

Still, this episode is incredibly creepy - surprisingly so, even. Let's put the obvious aspect of the creepiness this way - cats aren't supposed to be scary. They're supposed to be cute, huggable, and relieve any situation of any stress present. This episode... doesn't use any of those aspects of the "kitten" cliche. Not by a long shot.

Gravity Falls Review: "Weirdmaggedon" (Part 1) (Season 2, Episode 18)

(Before we begin, I sincerely apologize for this review coming out so late. This accompanies a quick announcement about my Star Trek film reviews.)

500 Miles North of Normal, 500 Miles West of Weird.

Airdate: October 26th, 2015

Synopsis: At the end of the last episode, well, to quote Vyvyan from The Young Ones...

"This is the end! Armageddon! No future!"

Yep - all hell broke loose. Bill is practically unstoppable - he turns Ford into a backscratcher, steals Deputy Durland away from Sheriff Blubs, unleashes his friends, and screws up Preston Northwest's face. (You don't want to see the end result of that.) Most damningly, he kidnaps Mabel, and locks her in a bubble. Alone, Dipper is left looking for any sort of help. Fortunately, it turns out Wendy is an excellent survivalist, and the two plan to go through the bubble to rescue Mabel. Unfortunately, old enemies come back to settle a score.

Review (STUFFED WITH SPOILERS): If I might borrow a philosophical statement from Pauly Fuemana, "how bizarre!" If madness in Gravity Falls was quantified, this would break the scale on a level that the Jockey Elves would be jealous over. Granted, this is a genuinely good episode we're talking about here.

This episode is sci-fi horror at it's finest, thriving on the macabre and the concept of a world gone mad. Bizarrely, though, the ending makes it one of Gravity Falls's more optimistic episodes, even in the face of the apocalyptic setting.. The question is, does that bit of optimism work?

Before we begin, another reminder - spoilers. They are legion.

Real Life Interferes With My Review Plans... Again.

So, yeah... my plans to get my "Weirdmageddon" out by the week after it aired seemed to go off the rails a little bit.

Yup, real life happened. I had to write a couple of papers for school. Thus, I had to push my review of "Weirdmageddon" back a bit more than I wanted. It will go out tomorrow, but still. And if that wasn't enough, I still have other papers to write for the rest of the semester.

It doesn't exactly give me joy to announce that this will also affect my plans for my Star Trek movie reviews. My intent was to review the four TNG movies over December. However, with the amount of stuff I have to do involving school, I no longer see this as feasible or realistic without compromising the quality of the reviews.

Going further, to try and keep my time straightened out, I have decided to push my review of The Undiscovered Country back to late November. The earliest. It might wind up pushed back to mid-December - the latest. Reviews of shorter-length shows (such as my reviews of Steven Universe/Gravity Falls/The Simpsons) will almost certainly go out in the meantime.

Scullyfied Simpsons: "Treehouse of Horror IX" (Season 10, Episode 4)

Airdate: October 25th, 1998

Last October, I reviewed "Little Gift Shop of Horrors". The November before (which is close to October), I reviewed "Treehouse of Horror VIII". Three Octobers ago, this blog didn't exist. Since we are coming up on Halloween, I figure it's time we review the ninth Treehouse Of Horror trilogy. (SPOILERS BELOW.)

Steven Universe Review: "Frybo" (Season 1A, Episode 5)

This is one of the reasons why I don't trust fast food mascots. Except for Jack Box. He is awesome personified.

Airdate: November 18th, 2013

Synopsis: After rescuing his jeans from the negative effects of a Gem Shard - used to animate articles of clothing, amongst other inanimate objects. - Steven goes into town. There, he meets up with Peedee Fryman, a disillusioned fast food mascot man working for his father's fry business. Feeling sympathy for Fryman Jr, he takes the gem shard and animates the costume. Unfortunately, the effects don't include "sell more fries" as much as it does "attack the patrons."

Review: Over the past four episodes, Steven has established himself as one of the most idealistic characters to ever make his mark on TV. He's warm, affable, and does things such as make breakfast for his guardians/roommates/whatever-they-are-at-this-point. Satisfied with his lot in life, his largest desire (so far, at least) is that he wants to be more involved with the Crystal Gems and their various adventures. His largest flaws, thus far, are his naiveté and inexperience. His idealism would make him fit right in amongst, say, the Bartlet administration.

So, just to emphasize how optimistic he is, let's pair him up with Peedee Fryman, a character so nihilistic, he gives the Underwood administration a run for it's money. Oh, and also, have Steven's idealistic viewpoint deconstructed to the point where his actions help damage a small business.

Review "Schedule" Update

Just informing you that, due to some things I have to do for school (and some overall busyness in my life), my review of the newest Gravity Falls episode, "Weirdmmageddon Part I", might not be out until sometime early next week. I do intend to have the "Treehouse of Horror IX" review out by or on Halloween, though.

Sorry for any inconvenience.

Movie Review: Star Trek V: The Final Frontier

This movie's name was almost prophetic.

Premiere: June 9th, 1989

Synopsis: A Vulcan by the name of Sybok promises the desperate eternal knowledge, with just one requirement - they need a spaceship to get to the source. Thus, they decide to storm the capital city of "The Planet for Galactic Peace" and hijack the ship that responds. Hilariously enough, the ship is the still broken-down Enterprise A. Sybok lures the crew of the Enterprise in, and through the power of reading "hidden pain", directs it to Sha Ka Ree.

Review (SPOILERS): 

Wow. Two hundred posts. Not a major milestone, but still a bit cool. If I celebrated my 100th with the best Star Trek movie, I may as well "celebrate" by looking at what many fans consider to... not be the best movie.

But first, being that this is something of a minor landmark for this blog, I figured I'd start with a mention of the show that really started it all.

I've mentioned time and again that Red Dwarf is, if not my all-time favorite show, one of my top five favorites. If I might give a brief elaboration on my favorite episodes, some of them, in hindsight, are quite theological. "The Last Day" questions whether people should constrain themselves strictly to their religion's set of values, if they subscribe to said values. "Lemons" gave something of an analysis of Jesus - to many the great prophet, to many others the greatest teacher ever. Most importantly, "The Inquisitor" wonders whether or not we should actively strive to live life to the fullest, and whether we get another shot.

What made these all stand out is that they all did so while being downright hysterical. Whether the comedy connected to the theology, or divulged from it, I was rolling.

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier also tried to mix theology with comedy. The results? Let's just say, it almost killed the franchise stone dead.