Arrow Season 2, Episode 2 recap/review

As I said a week ago, "Arrow" has turned into my must-see program, and the stage is certainly setting up for a big season. Here is my recap/review below.



Follow me at twitter.com/seantherebel and like my page at www.facebook.com/SeanNetworkBlogs.

Legend of Korra Book 2, Chapter 6 review

THAT is how you do it! I finally am excited for the direction of Korra's second book. My full thoughts are in the audio blog, but I'll hit you with a few quick notes below as well.



-- It's a little unsettling that Korra seems to always be on the peripheral whenever I really like an episode. It's most likely a coincidence, but I could really go for a Korra character-building episode.

-- The main plot did what the Airbender family subplots have been doing well: Introducing a situation that allows characters to grow and bounce off each other as the situation progresses. It's storytelling 101, but comparing this episode to previous ones, I'm floored by how much this season seems to have been bathing in its own melodrama before today.

-- I really tend to avoid talking about the actual animation of an episode unless something is particularly good or bad. (If a story is good and compelling, the medium's quality could be $3 puppets and at least some quality should still come through.) That said, the characters' eyes are creepy and remind me of glass doll eyes. Horror movie stuff right there.

-- Lin Beifong and the police force flat out irritated me. After the madness that occurred last book, Lin is actually letting seniority determine the validity of an officer's ideas. Poor characterization aside, Mako was considered a major part of Team Avatar II's success last book, and Lin's refusal to entertain an alternative notion approaches Commissioner Loeb in Batman Begins level of clueless.

-- Also, Asami is unbelievably weak in this episode and has managed to reignite the love triangle no one was clamoring to see get revived. Did the writing staff forget how to write IQs into female characters? Could we give Kelly Sue DeConnick or Greg Rucka a call to work on this?

-- Speaking of no IQ, Bolin is a freaking moron and appears to be the Chris Griffin of the show when it comes to handling social situations.

-- ALL OF THIS SAID... the introduction of noir/pulp era detective work more than makes up for the problems and has managed to redeem Mako for me. Seriously, I saw glimpses of the Green Hornet, the Shadow and even Joe Friday from Dragnet in this performance. You can't have that much cool and have a bad show.

-- Also, the reveal of Varrick as evil is EXACTLY where this show should have gone. He's now obviously been pushing for a war because the subsequent military-industrial ties would lead to massive profits, especially now that he owns Future Industries and its military-grade applied sciences division.

-- So to summarize, we've got war for profit on one side and war for spirituality on the other. If this doesn't amp you up for the season then I feel sorry for ya, son. I got 99 problems but a dull plot ain't one. (Had to do it.)

Follow me at twitter.com/seantherebel and like my page at www.facebook.com/SeanNetworkBlogs.

Arrow Season 2 premiere and Blue Beetle #2 reviews

As I said before, here are my thoughts on the Arrow season premiere as well as my weekly review of a Blue Beetle comic!

Briefly, I will say that Arrow is quickly becoming a new favorite of mine and I am loving all the twists in direction it has taken so far.

Also, Blue Beetle's first two issues, while good, have yet to give me something to make me feel like it's a must-read. Nothing has been bad, though, and it really may just be a matter of getting enough time with the characters.

For my more detailed thoughts, check out my audio blog above.

Follow me at twitter.com/seantherebel and like my page at www.facebook.com/SeanNetworkBlogs.

We'll have to get someone to edit Tommy out of this shot.

Comic Book Reviews: Batman #24 and Nightwing #24

So the Blue Beetle review will come in later today with my review of Arrow's premiere. For now, though, let's talk about the slew of sheer awesomeness that were the books this week. (As well as some of the new Batman announcements in my audio blog.)

Batman #24 was a double-length issue valued at $7 over the traditional $4. Mostly, I attribute this to the fact that the book got derailed thanks to Villains Month.

And man, oh man, did they make up for lost time.

This issue is going to compete with the Batman & Robin Annual and B&R 18 (the silent issue) as DC's best individual Bat book this year.

I don't think it matches those two completely, as some scenes are kind of hard to decipher because of their disjointed nature. But those are made up for easily with some iconic imagery, callbacks to every notable Batman incarnation, excellent dialogue (especially between Bruce and Alfred) and an addition of depth to the Batman-Red Hood showdown at A.C.E. Chemicals that has never really been hit on before.

It's an expensive issue, but if you can swing it, it is more than worth it in my view.

Nightwing #24 was a good finish to a good story, and admittedly, it came across better in this chapter than any other. The book is hitting a high point just as the universe is about to see his identity revealed, so it's nice that there is a building level of trust as we move closer to January.

The Tony Zucco stuff was tragic but well-done and the only downside to it is that the Prankster came across as kind of pathetic in comparison to his earlier issues.

I like the showdown that appears to be building for the Nightwing annual and the final pre-Forever Evil issue, though, so overall, I'd say give it a look.

Follow me at twitter.com/seantherebel and like my page at www.facebook.com/SeanNetworkBlogs.

Legend of Korra Book 2, Chapter 5 review

Once again, it's time to talk about the Legend of Korra. My more detailed thoughts on the show, as well as my theory on where the season is probably going, is in the audio, but I will share a quick summary here as well.



 -- Congrats on somehow making Mako the likable person in this breakup with Korra. (Didn't know that was possible.) I go off on this in much more detail in the audio blog, but I basically said that Korra is a character you can empathize with, not sympathize with.

You can understand where she's coming from because she's young and had a sheltered lifestyle with ideals as to how the world should work. That said, her position is so myopic and so blind to other factors that she is hard to respect as someone who holds unbelievable levels of power and influence.

-- In the audio, I compare Mako's tantrums at people in late Book 1 to Korra's during this break-up. I am not equating the situations; I am merely saying that they're reactions to the situations at hand were proportional given the level of drama going on. If these two are a match in any way, it is their ability to throw hissy fits like 7-year-olds.

-- Bolin and Varrick's plot has gotten bizarre and only makes the situations at-hand worse when they actually have a bearing on the story. Oh, and Asami is wasted in this season.

-- Meelo and Tenzin had easily the best portion of the episode. While the material was rushed through, I love this family dynamic and I think seeing this family go about their lives is the kind of thoughtful, feelings-based writing Nickelodeon needs more of.

Overall, the show remains on that fence where it could be good and could be bad. This episode was about on par with all the others, but at some point this show needs to make its move into that high-level territory it hit toward the end of last year. If the last sequences are any indicator, though, business is about to pick up. As such, I will maintain cautious optimism about this show going from above average to epic by the end of the pending hour-long special.

Follow me at twitter.com/seantherebel and like my page at www.facebook.com/SeanNetworkBlogs.

Comic Book Reviews: Forever Evil #2 and Blue Beetle #1

My comic reviews for the first week of October conclude here!



Forever Evil continues to hold my interest and the last page implies that business is about to pick up. The art was solid and most of the writing was great. The only downsides are the new origin for Bizarro Superman and the poor use of the Teen Titans, but otherwise, it was a good read all the way through.

I also am diving into Blue Beetle Vol. 6 (1986-88) over the next few months and this week is Issue #1. Ted Kord comes across as really likable and a lot of story threads are introduced for future issues. Overall, a solid start, though my thoughts are better heard in my audio blog above.

Follow me at twitter.com/seantherebel and like my page at www.facebook.com/SeanNetworkBlogs.

Comic Book Reviews: Detective Comics #24 and Green Hornet #6

I have four books to review today, and here are two right here!



For those who don't have time to listen to the audio blog, I gave a high recommendation to Detective Comics #24. The way this arc ended was unbelievably satisfying and I think I've become a huge John Layman fan because of these last few issues. Definitely give the title a look.

Likewise, Green Hornet is really strong. Its art remains spotty, but Mark Waid's writing remains its usual awesome self and I am interested to see what the actual villains' plot is here.

Follow me at twitter.com/seantherebel and like my page at www.facebook.com/SeanNetworkBlogs.