Tag Archives: Netflix

TV Review – Chilling Adventures of Sabrina: Season One

Posted on by
1

TL;DR – Sabrina is a show that blends the occult with whimsy in a way I have not seen in a long while. It is a show where cannibalism and finding your one true love go hand in hand, and that is either going to interest you or put you right off.

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

 

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. Image Credit: Netflix

 

Review –

I do not envy the task of anyone who is given the job of rebooting something that has not one but two beloved incarnations. Whether it was the original comic or the 1990s TV series, a lot of people have grown up with Sabrina being a touchstone in pop culture. So, will bringing Sabrina to a new generation create that same moment, well only time will tell, but today we take a look at how the first season came together.

Continue reading →

TV Review – Chilling Adventures of Sabrina – Chapter One: October Country

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – A fascinating first episode that is both full of charm, determination, and also gets super dark … it had to be spiders …

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

 

Chilling Adventures of Sabrina. image Credit: Netflix

 

Review –

When I was growing up there was this charming fun show on TV called Sabrina The Teenage Witch. It was this fun romp through the dangers of high school when you have to hide half of yourself away, though in this case, that half was the fact that you are part-witch. It had everything you needed in the 1990s, fun adventures, hilarious scenarios, oh and a sassy talking cat. So when I heard it was being resurrected, I was a bit concerned, and then when I heard it was part of the Riverdale universe I was more concerned because I get why Riverdale is popular, but it’s not for me. But this year we have already had one successful reboot from Netflix of an old beloved TV show in Lost in Space (see review) so I thought I would give it a look and well what an interesting first episode it was.

Continue reading →

TV Review – Daredevil: Resurrection

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – This is a more quiet character driven episode than pilot episodes of the past, but all that means is that the actors get a platform to shine.

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

 

Daredevil. Image Credit: ABC Studios/Netflix

 

Review –

Well, we are back to where it all started, the very first entry into the Marvel world on Netflix was the first season of Daredevil all the way back in 2015. For many people, me included, that the first season is still the high water mark for the Netflix project, so there is both a hope and a trepidation when you start that first episode. Also, it felt like just last week we got a new Iron Fist, and I am wondering is it all getting a bit too much. Well, today we explore if Daredevil Season Three can be the touchstone that it was.

Continue reading →

TV Review – The Good Place: The Brainy Bunch

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – Season Three blasts forward at the speed of light blowing through what might have been a full season in a single episode

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

 

The Good Place: The Brainy Bunch. Image Credit: NBC/Netflix

 

Review –

One of the things that you have to get used to when you watch The Good Place, is how quickly everything moves. Sometimes the show completely changed up its entire structure in a single click of the fingers. It also means that it does not waste any time whatsoever, and sets up premises that a usual sitcom would play out over a bunch of episodes or a whole season, and then resolve it in 20 minutes.

Continue reading →

TV Review – Chef’s Table Season 5

Posted on by
1

TL;DR – Chef’s Table returns to its core by using its platform about chefs and their food to explore deeper issues in society

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

 

Chef's Table. Image Credit: Netflix

 

Review –

If you have read any of my past reviews about Chef’s Table (see here) you will know that I am in love with this series that explores the lives of impactful chefs right across the culinary world, their lives, their philosophy, and their impact. However, last season I found myself walking away from Chef’s Table feeling like something in the recipe just didn’t work. Was it the shorter run time, or the format, or was it on me because I am not really a dessert person. Well whatever the case, I approached this season with a bit more trepidation than I have in the past, and I am happy to say it was just as impactful as ever.

Continue reading →

Map-It: Chef’s Table

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – With Volume 5 just released and Volume 6 just around the corner we take a moment to map out all of Chef’s Table

 

Chef's Table. Image Credit: Netflix

 

Map-It –

 

If you have been reading my reviews for a long time then you will undoubtedly know that I have a deep love for David Gelb’s striking food documentary series Chef’s Table on Netflix. It is a world full of beautiful food, fascinating stories, and a deep exploration into a world that I don’t really get to visit. Well today the fifth volume (six if you add in France which we do) has dropped and I wanted to take a moment to combine my love of both food and cartography and thus chart out every restaurant visited throughout the series so far (and even into the next volume since the names of the chefs have already been announced). With the maps, if a chef had more than one location featured, we picked the central place explored in the episode.

Continue reading →

TV Review – Ultimate Beastmaster Season 3 (Survival of the Fittest)

Posted on by
3

TL;DR – Another iteration and they have refined the formula even more and it works really well … also Aussie Aussie Aussie, Oi Oi Oi.

Score – 4 out of 5 stars

 

Ultimate Beastmaster Season 3 (Survival of the Fittest). Image Credit: Netflix

 

Review –

There are many reasons people watch Beastmaster, for some, it is the athleticism, for other, it is the face plants into the water, and for some, it is the unique format of the multi-country multi-format show that only Netflix could pull off. This is the third iteration of the series and this time the format has been changed up, and we have new contestants, new obstacles, new countries, new hosts, and still one angry beast.

Continue reading →

TV Review – Iron Fist: The Fury of Iron Fist

Posted on by
2

TL;DR – A good first episode that has me quietly optimistic for the rest of the season.

Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars

 

Iron Fist. Image Credit Marvel/Netflix

 

Review –

The first season of Iron Fist was … well, it was a bit of a disappointment, to say the least. You can read all about in our past review (see here), but the TL;DR, and we are all about the TL;DR here, is that every part of the production felt rushed. It was clear to anyone watching that Finn Jones had not enough time to prep the action sequences which were the hooks that the show was using to propel everything forward. Were there moments when the season got interesting? Yes, but not enough to really recommend it. Well since then we have had The Defenders (see review) which was a step in the right direction, and Finn popped up in Luke Cage and was actually engaging for a change. All of this had me hoping that they had learnt their lessons and would take their time with pre-production this time around, and from the first episode, I think they have.

Continue reading →

TV Review – Disenchantment: Season One

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – What we get is a series with some interesting moments and characters, but feels more of a prologue to something than a season in its own right

Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars

 

Disenchantment. Image Credit: Netflix/Rough Draft Studios

 

Review –

When you think over the parody genre, it is surprising that there are not more quality entries into it. Part of this is because many take the easy way out and just fill their shows with pop-culture references that instantly date them. To really do a parody justice you really have to understand the genre and works you are parodying to an almost obsessive level. These are your Galaxy Quests, and your 22 Jump Streets. Today we take a look at a new series working in this territory Disenchantment which delves into the myriads of tropes around the Fantasy genre, and mostly succeeds. Now we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

Continue reading →

Movie Review – To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before

Posted on by
1

TL;DR – It looks at the complicated emotions of love and how we respond to it.

Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars

Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit scene

To All the Boys I've Loved Before. Image Credit: Netflix

Review –

The teen romance is a genre that use to be very popular but you don’t see it as much anymore in recent times. Part of the reason is that quite often these were the mid-tier films falling between Indy and Blockbusters that got squeezed out of oblivion in the rush for everyone to make their tent pole crossover franchises. Also the genre has gone through some shifts in the wake of works like John Green’s The Fault In Our Stars. However, as people realise that the big multi-film franchise can’t happen all the time, we have started to see the resurgence of these mid-tier budget films and all of this brings us to today’s film To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before a Young Adult/Coming of Age film about love and loss and the need to hide your letters better from well-meaning but potentially destructive siblings.

Continue reading →