The Orville

Yesterday, I talked about how cool I thought "Star Trek: Discovery was, so today I'm going to talk about the other, unofficial, Trek show being talked about lately - "The Orville." There has been a very vocal group of Star Trek fans out there saying that "The Orville" is more Trek than "Discovery," and while that might possibly be true, you all know how I feel about Star Trek fandom.

The first hype that was out there about "The Orville," from creator Seth MacFarlane of "Family Guy" fame, was that it was a plagiarization of Star Trek, with fart jokes. But as reviews began to come in on "Discovery," with its wholesale changes to the Klingon mythos, weird ship designs, and shaky retcons of established Trek timelines… the Trek fans began to warm to "The Orville," almost as if in retaliation. Some may say it's about content, but I think it's about paying for it, because "Discovery" airs on the pay service CBS All Access. Apparently, Trek fans will take fart jokes as long as they’re free.

Personally, as I said yesterday, I think "Discovery" is brilliant, but, hold on to your drinks, so is "The Orville." I think with the involvement of Seth MacFarlane, most folks expected a big joke-filled parody of Star Trek, but the fact is, he is a huge Trek fan himself. He not only created a loving homage to Trek mythology, but did it so well, that when vulgar humor does show up, it feels out of place. Yes, it's true, MacFarlane has out-Trekked Trek. This show is damn good.

The humor has brought up situations that we know must happen in the Star Trek universe, but no one has tried to tackle before. Not only is it hilarious in those moments, it's thoughtful, refreshing, and in some cases, daring. In the space of three episodes, we have seen on "The Orville" both the best elements of the original series and TNG, with fart jokes. That is impressive. This is a show to watch, and you should watch it because it's good, not just because it's free. Two thumbs way up.

Star Trek: Discovery

There have been reports before the fact about this series that are the stuff of nightmare, and there is of course the whole concept of having to pay for it as part of CBS' new All Access network, so even before it started, "Star Trek: Discovery" had a hard road ahead of it. First imagined as an anthology series, taking place at any time or place in the mainstream Trek universe (as opposed to in the Kelvin timeline of the last three cinematic films - here, here, and here), this series now might just be about one ship, one crew, and one time - time will tell.

I have been impressed with the previews myself, especially the acting and casting, but not so much with some of the designs, particularly the Klingon ones. Further while I was very happy with the casting of "The Walking Dead"'s Sonequa Martin-Green as First Officer Michael Burnham and one of my favorite actresses Michelle Yeoh as Captain Philippa Georgiou, I was disappointed that Green would take lead as the POV protagonist with Yeoh in a more background role. That said, as with all such things, I should have an opinion until I actually see it, right? It's what separates the Trekkers from the Trekkies, I suppose, pre-perception.

I loved the opening of the first episode, "The Vulcan Hello," as well as the new theme. The composition by Jeff Russo incorporates elements of the original theme, and while it's no country song like in "Enterprise," which I found original, refreshing, and catchy, it is adequate. The visuals are much less exciting, and disappointing. But as noted, the acting and lesson of the intro with Green and Yeoh showed much promise and dedication to the cause. It had my hopes up that I was able to get through the less-than-stellar credit sequence.

Ten minutes in, introduced to Doug Jones' paranoid science officer Saru, and others in the diverse crew of the USS Shenzhou, this was feeling very Trek, from the dialogue, to the uniforms, to the procedural, and I was digging it. This crew gets along, knows each other's quirks, and has a camaraderie similar to later seasons of "TNG." There is however an annoying Motion Picture conceit of showing off special effects and model building, almost like a child jumping up and down and yelling, "Look what I can do!" and it results in scenes dragging and taking much longer than they should.

And then there are the Klingons, some might say drastically different in appearance and conduct to what we have known before. They have been known to change their physical appearance in the past, but this is quite different, and quite possibly what drove fans up the wall when images surfaced. We have more gothic, more bestial, more feudal Klingons here, with a darker, larger, more sinister and menacing bird of prey. I am willing to accept this, after all, who knows how much and how fast Klingons might evolve physically or change culturally.

A more sophisticated explanation from the showrunners suggest that the Klingon Empire is huge, and not all Klingons come from Kronos. Their various cultures and styles and even physical manifestations vary from house to house, their system of power, similar to that of "Game of Thrones" in a way. Just like a New York businessman would look different from an Aborigine shaman for instance, these Klingons are just as different as say Kang and Worf are to each other. Seems like a lot of dancing to just make more fearsome alien monsters and not change the name. And once the thought that they were more like "Doctor Who" monsters than "Star Trek" villains entered my mind, it would not leave.

The setting is ten years before the original series, and the USS Shenzhou has discovered a Klingon ship. Burnham, who has a history with the Klingons who haven't but rarely been seen in generations, goes to investigate and ends up killing one of their Torchbearers. Burnham, we learn was the only survivor of a Vulcan-Human space station attacked by Klingons. Her parents killed, Sarek (yes, that Sarek) took her in, educated, and trained her. So this discovery is a hot issue for Burnham.

As the episode continues we see more of Burnham, as well as Saru and Geogiou, all doing fantastic jobs. The performances are on mark. Meanwhile we are also learning of Klingon culture and how one house is trying to unite all twenty-four houses against the Federation. The cliffhanger on the first episode is a tight one, and must have been very frustrating for those not subscribed to CBS All Access. My take on this however, based on the first episode, would be it's worth it.

Lucky folks outside the United States got to see it on Netflix, it should be noted. And in watching the second episode, "Battle at the Binary Stars," it's evident that the structure of the show fits Netflix to a tee. This is a binge series, and watched best as a binge. It's episodic, with a binge-worthy flow, interspersed with character-revealing flashbacks - this is a Netflix show, and CBS couldn't have found a better formula to copy. It's damn good. I dug this a lot, recommended.

Remembering Late Nights with David Letterman

As I watched the finale of "The Late Show with David Letterman" last night I couldn't help but remember how much a part of my life the man was and is. Now I have to be honest, I haven't really paid all that much attention to Letterman since he moved over to CBS, but I did watch both "Late Night" and "The David Letterman Show" which aired on weekday mornings in the early 1980s.

As far as the morning show went, I remember laughing out loud at it, and my mother thinking I was weird because she couldn't figure out what was so funny. I also recall when "Late Night with David Letterman" came along he would refer to that morning show as 'way back in the late fifties.' Before this of course I knew Letterman from his stand-up comedy and guest-hosting on "The Tonight Show."

I remember that Philadelphia came to "Late Night" late (pardon the pun), not airing the show until a few months after it had begun. However, back in the analog day of pre-digital cable, I could precariously hold the dial between Philadelphia NBC affiliate channel 3 and NYC affiliate channel 4, and get a reasonable broadcast of "Late Night" from New York.

This is the way I first met Larry 'Bud' Melman, Chris Elliott, and Stupid Pet Tricks, the most memorable (and disturbing) of which had a dog drinking milk from his owner's mouth. I remember frequent guests Sandra Bernhard, future frenemy Jay Leno, and fellow only-New Yorker (at least at the time) Howard Stern. I was much happier when I could see the show on channel 3 finally, and remember seeing great acts of the day like R.E.M. and Indigo Girls.

Still, even though I hadn't watched much of "The Late Show," I'm sad to see Dave go. Last night's viewing only cemented the reasons that I should have been watching. Have a great retirement, Dave, come back and visit some time.

Leonard Part 6

Leonard Part 6 ~ For those who weren't around, it's difficult to explain what a gigantic television phenomenon "The Cosby Show" was back in its day. It was such a ratings blockbuster for NBC that the other networks either programmed around it, or counter-programmed. CBS started "The Flash" (the 90s version) at 8:30 after "Cosby." Fledgling Fox went head to head, moving "The Simpsons" to Thursday nights and adding Michael Jackson whenever possible. For a time "Cosby" was unbeatable.

Bill Cosby chose this time to go back into the movies. The problem was that his popular TV series was derived mostly his then-new family style stand-up, as seen in Himself, but his comeback to film, Leonard Part 6 was more old school Bill Cosby. At least a decade out of date and mocking what the mainstream loved, this action adventure comedy tanked big time. 1971 audiences would have loved Leonard Part 6.

The 'part 6' of the title is explained away by our narrator, the titular Leonard Parker's butler, who says his retired secret agent boss' first five adventures had been confiscated because of national security. He's pulled back into action to stop a madwoman who can control the world's animals. Yeah, it's Ace Ventura without the laughs.

Watching Leonard Part 6 again after many many years, I had to wonder, pitifully, if a laugh track might have helped at all. Some of it is amusing in a Naked Gun or Pink Panther way, some of the situations might be funny on a skit show, but the fact is its a movie and it goes on and on. Saddest of all is Cosby himself who seems to sleepwalk through this mess with all the energy of the Boris Karloff Mummy. As someone who grew up on the man's comedy records, this was heartbreaking.

Leonard Part 6 would make an excellent double bill with Hudson Hawk, or maybe as a lead-in to the inexplicably entertaining and successful True Lies. They are all essentially the same type of flick. Only seek out as a curiosity, otherwise avoid this.

Arrow S02 E08: "The Scientist"

This is it, the episode, no, make that the two-part mid-season finale episode, we have all been waiting for. "Arrow" has been teasing us with comic book Easter eggs throughout the first season, and it has taken on a manic pace in the second - now we will see the debut of Barry Allen, destined to soon become, in a CW pilot, the Flash.

Now this isn't Barry Allen's first merry-go-round on television. He was animated by Filmation in the 1960s, and Hanna-Barbera in the 1970s. He made his first live-action appearance in the much-maligned "Legends of the Super-Heroes," and over a decade later starred in his own short-lived and low-rated TV series on CBS in the early 1990s. It was an expensive show, disliked by the comics community at the time, but it has aged well. Many look back on it fondly, myself included, but I liked it at the time as well.

The Flash was a mainstay of the DC Comics Animated Universe as a member of the Justice League, and was even in the TV pilot that some folks hated more than "Legends." Probably the less said about that the better. The character is almost a lock for a cameo at least, if not more, in the upcoming Man of Steel sequel, Batman vs. Superman.

In the comics, the Barry Allen was the first of the Silver Age superheroes, imbued with super speed after being splashed with electrified chemicals. He was my brother's favorite, and thus became my favorite. I've been reading Flash comics for almost five decades. So yeah, I'm psyched to see Barry Allen, even pre-Flash.

In "Arrow," Grant Gustin, formerly the warbling villain from "Glee," is our Barry Allen. Initially I thought he was miscast, but five minutes after he first appears I am sold. You can say he's a bit nerdy, but let's face facts, Barry Allen is a nerd, a comic book geek, and a police scientist. Gustin, except for his hair color (but then again, the 1990s version, John Wesley Shipp, also had dark hair), is perfect.

With all the myriad plots and subplots going on in this series, this episode starts with a new story. A man with super strength has stolen a centrifuge from Queen Consolidated. Similar crimes in Central City brought CSI Barry Allen to Starling City. I love that he's always late, he runs after a cab in the rain (just like in his origin story), and there seems to be foreshadowing lightning in the sky over Starling City. And he and Felicity are smitten with one another. I guess Iris West must be in another area code.

While I suspected it was one of our subplots, our perp turns out not to be Deathstroke or Solomon Grundy, but a partaker of Professor Ivo's super-serum. Oliver says Ivo is dead, as were all his subjects, but apparently someone's trying to make more. Turns out I was two-thirds right, as that someone is Brother Blood, and the guy who beat Oliver down is none other than our buddy Cyrus Gold, the as-yet-named-thusly Solomon Grundy.

Meanwhile, Barry Allen is not all he seems. He's not in Starling on assignment, but in a personal agenda. Similar to his post-Flashpoint origin, Barry's mother was murdered when he was young, by 'a man inside a tornado,' and his father went to prison for it. We know that man was Professor Zoom the Reverse-Flash. Since then Barry investigates other unexplainable cases of superhuman beings, and also idolizes folks like The Hood who could've saved his mom. Nice set-up. Outed by Oliver, he hits the road.

In the subplot department, Roy finds an overdose that was caused by Ivo's serum, The Hood tells him to stay out of it, and puts an arrow in his leg to make sure he does. Malcolm is still adamant that Thea is his daughter and he's going to take her away, but Moira puts the fear of the demon in him - by informing Ras Al Ghul that Merlyn is still alive. Oliver has one mean momma. She is positively icy when she tells Malcolm he should run.

After the ersatz Grundy (actor Graham Shiels growls and moans perfectly for the part) nearly beats Oliver to death, and our hero is accidentally jabbed with an unknown drug, Diggle and Felicity need help. In a scene reminiscent of a Bat Gas moment from the 1960s "Batman" TV show, they kidnap Barry. He wakes up in the 'Arrowcave,' secrets unraveling, cue credits.

There is also a nice shout out to Kord Industries, an indirect reference to the Blue Beetle, and the countdown has begun for the particle accelerator in Central City. I'm not sure if this will play out on "Arrow" or the new Flash series, but I can't wait. See you next week, same Arrow time, same Arrow channel.

The Big Brother Racists

I haven't really talked about "Big Brother" this year, mostly because I've been bored by it. There was no one I liked, no one I wanted to root for. They even included Rachel's sister in the cast this season. One would think, as a Rachel fan, I'd be excited, but no. Please take this the wrong way, but her sister, Elissa, is just Rachel with all the charisma and sexiness removed. And her personality consists of just her being Rachel's sister. Yawn.

There is even a new twist with the eviction process, an added candidate, but none of it was really enough to catch my attention. It really comes down to cast. Cast someone I'll want to like, not a bunch of bland rejects from "90120" auditions. No one here clicked for me.

Then something happened, something both exciting, and fully explaining why I didn't like anyone. There wasn't anyone to like, except for a couple racists, whom are just built for the audience to hate. Trouble is, we haven't been privy to their hate until just recently. Now CBS has opened the doors to reveal these imbeciles to the world.

Houseguests Aaryn, and to a lesser extent, Ginamarie, have been showing their 'true colors' as they have made serious anti-Asian, anti-black, and anti-gay remarks about their fellow houseguests. Really? A twenty-two year old with views like this? I am shocked in this day and age. Are there really monsters like this still walking around in America? Thank the gods she has lost her job while in the house. At least someone is clear thinking.

Now I have a reason to watch "Big Brother" this season, and someone very specific to root against, boo, hiss, and wish misfortunes upon. Don't cry, Aaryn, maybe the neo-Nazis are looking for a new cover girl…



I cannot wait for Aaryn's exit interview …with Julie…

Arrow: Vertigo

Back in the day, let's say the 1950s, back when Green Arrow was literally Batman with a bow, he had a serious rogues gallery. There were a multitude of bizarre criminals who menaced Star City on a regular basis. True, most of them spun on the unoriginal twist of using some sort of bow and arrow motif, but Green Arrow and Speedy had lots of enemies.

The 1970s came along, Speedy got hooked on heroin and left his mentor, Green Arrow, who had changed his costume and facial hair to a more modern look, and turned his aim on social issues rather than super-villains. By the end of the decade however, things had come full circle, and costumed criminals came back in vogue. The powers that be decided Green Arrow needed a rogues gallery, albeit a more believable one, without the mandatory bow and arrow.

Enter Count Vertigo. With a name like Werner Vertigo, what else could he become but a super-villain, right? The Count part comes from being the last member of the royal family of Vlatava, so he has the resources of a small eastern European nation behind him. Afflicted with a balance problem he had a device implanted in his head that prevented vertigo. After years of tinkering with it he found he could affect the balance of others, causing dizziness, and yes, I'll say it, vertigo. He can also fly. No idea how he does that though.

Merlyn the Magician may the king of super-villains who use bows and arrows, and Green Arrow's natural opposite number, but when most folks think of the emerald archer's archenemy on the scale of a Joker or a Luthor, they think Count Vertigo.

But that's the comics, on the "Arrow" TV series, things are a bit different. Vertigo is a new drug, one that got Oliver's little sister in a car accident, and arrested in but one of last week's cliffhangers. And the drug lord pushing vertigo onto the streets is called The Count.

The hot button comics reference this episode is Thea's middle name - Dearden. Not only is her nickname Speedy, but in the comics, Mia Dearden is the young girl who was the second person to take on the Speedy identity as Green Arrow's sidekick. Is this homage or foreshadowing?

The Count, as played by Seth Gabel of "Fringe," is very manic, theatrical, and dangerous in that mad villain unpredictable way. Brilliant casting, and great costuming, I kinda got a Captain John Hart vibe as well.

Nice to see the writers haven't forgotten Oliver's Russian Bratva connection, I just hope that they don't forget to explain it. It's also good to see The Count has not lost his Eastern European origins as well. I also like the explanation of his name. Nice touch. And the color of the drug itself? It's green, like Count Vertigo's color scheme in the comics.

Detective Quentin Lance's outrageous grudge against Oliver is getting old, and kind of silly too. I do however like the cast addition of Janina Gavankar from "True Blood" as Detective McKenna Hall. With Laurel tied up with Tommy, Oliver needs a good potential romantic interest. Please don't bring back the Huntress.

The Count is taken down, of course, but with the possibility of a return, and possibly more like the comics version next time. We'll see. He reminded me a bit of Mark Hamill's turn as the Trickster on the old "Flash" series on CBS. Maybe we will get powers and costumes next time.

In this week's island flashback, we learn more about Yao Fei, Ed Fyers, Deathstroke and the terrorists there. We also see a slick trick make folks look dead. Don't try this at home, kids. We also see, much too briefly, Emily Bett Rickards as Felicity Smoak with some bad news for Oliver. But I'm sure we'll get more of that next week, and hopefully more Felicity as well.

How CBS Is Ruining Big Brother

Since the first season of "Big Brother" viewers in the United States have not really been watching the real "Big Brother." American audiences were not receptive, read as low ratings, to the format that had been so successful everywhere else in the world, so US producers made up their own rules. It's become a unique entity, and that's not even getting into oddities like US censorship, editing, and limited viewing or prerecorded broadcasts. "Big Brother" US is its own thing, and it's killing it.

I could get into how incestuous it's become. The only excitement seems to come from having old houseguests return, or having them transplant from and to other CBS reality TV programs. New viewers tend to be turned off by all of this internal continuity faster than a newbie reading an X-Men comic.

There is also the censorship issue. If CBS doesn't want you to see something, and it doesn't happen in the seemingly regulated Showtime late night hours, or you're not subscribed to the paid feed (and even then sometimes), you're just not going to see it. Like the rumors of houseguest Chima threatening to take a dump on the bed - the real ratings-getters never make the grade.

The most infuriating way CBS is ruining "Big Brother" is with their Big Brother Network email subscription service. They apparently don't understand the simply concepts of subject lines, and most importantly, spoilers. I tend to watch my television on DVR, hours, sometimes days later than the original broadcast. More times than I want to admit, I have gotten an email from the BBN with "So-And-So Evicted" in the subject heading. Wtf??

You better straighten up, CBS, I don't know how much longer I'll be hanging around the Big Brother House.

Futureworld

Futureworld ~ I was just talking about Peter Fonda and this flick on this blog recently so when I saw Futureworld was on Encore Action, so I DVRed it. It's been at least a serious three decades or so since I've last seen it. It's nowhere near as good as I remembered it, and despite being a feature film, looks barely above television quality, bad for even a Samuel Z. Arkoff production. it does still have its merits though.

Futureworld is the 1976 sequel to the popular 1973 scifi thriller Westworld, and was followed a few years later by the very short-lived CBS TV series "Beyond Westworld," which was even worse, as demonstrated by it only lasting five episodes.

In Westworld, written and directed by Michael Crichton, the Delos Corporation has created three 'amusement parks' - WestWorld, MedievalWorld, and RomanWorld - populated by lifelike androids where guests can indulge in any fantasy they can imagine in each park genre, including having sex with and/or killing the androids. A malfunction affecting all the robots makes them suddenly attack and kill all the guests, highlighted by the Gunslinger, as played by Yul Brynner, and terror ensues. So ends WestWorld.

In Futureworld, Delos seems to have recovered from this PR nightmare and gone back into business. Fonda and Blythe Danner are newspaper and television reporters invited to see what the new Delos is all about and make sure it's safe. They elect to visit FutureWorld, one of the new parks that have been added. There is some great dialogue between the two regarding newspapers being dead, nice call from 1976.

Most frightening about the film is how much the parks resemble Disney in design and visuals, but I suppose that's on purpose. On the down side the acting is abysmal and the sexism is humiliating. That the technicians must be gay or robots if they don't succumb to Danner's charms is one of the more pitiful bits. There's also a painful conspiracy subplot about Delos replacing world leaders with robot doubles.

Yul Brynner as The Gunslinger does appear in footage from the first movie and in Danner's bizarre dream sequence. Too bad he couldn't be in more. As a true scifi movie villain, perhaps he could have dragged this flick up a few notches from its bad telemovie level.

Mike Wallace Dead at 93

Over the weekend one of television's pioneers passed away. Multiple award-winning journalist, TV host, and media personality Mike Wallace is dead at the age of 93 from natural causes.

While best known as a correspondent on the long-running news program "60 Minutes," Mike Wallace has worn numerous and varied other hats such as narrator on the "Green Hornet" and "Sky King" radio series, game show host, actor (under the name name Myron Wallace, although he played himself in one of my favorite films, A Face in the Crowd), and he also hosted several other news shows before landing "60 Minutes."

Wallace had semi-retired in 2006, but appeared throughout 2008. He garnered at least twenty Emmy Awards, had written two autobiographies, and was perhaps the last of the real television journalists (just my opinion). We have lost one of the greats.

The Lorax

Dr. Seuss' The Lorax ~ I learned to read very early, thanks to my big sister, starting with Dr. Seuss favorites like "Hop on Pop," "One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish," "Fox in Socks" and of course the classics like "The Cat in the Hat" and "Green Eggs and Ham." And although I quickly graduated to comic books, and then real books, I never lost my love of the Doctor (in this case, Seuss, not the guy with the TARDIS).

Though I had never actually read the book I do distinctly remember my first encounter with "The Lorax." The night the animated version premiered on CBS I was allowed to stay up later than usual to watch it. I was interested but not very because I thought that previous TV versions of Seuss' work, excepting the Grinch, we're inferior to the source material. Yes, even at seven, I was nurturing a critical mind.

I had not just a critic's thought process, but I was also pretty hip to propaganda, even if it was positive propaganda. I had seen the Justice League fight pollution and promote ecology in the comics, and it had hit a sour note with me. It's not that I don't believe in the causes, I do, it's just I'm very against being fed a message in lieu of a story or characterization. I saw that hand at work in "The Lorax." The bottom line is I don't mind being educated while I'm entertained - I just don't want to be preached at.

Which brings all the way back to 2012 and the movie Dr. Seuss' The Lorax. The Bride and I saw it in 3D, so we spent far far too much to get in. By my estimation, this would have been fine in just plain 2D. There's still a message here in this expanded tale of the Lorax, but really not enough to annoy me. Trust me, it's still there, but nothing like Lou Dobbs and other conservatives have exclaimed (and did I read right, did they call "The Lorax" a novel?). It is clear, not at all subtle, but not overbearing either.

Instead I got to enjoy the fun relationship between Ted (Zac Effron) and Audrey (Taylor Swift), watching Ted escape the city in interesting ways, and hearing the moral yet endearing story of The Once-ler (Ed Helms) and the appropriately annoying (here at least) Danny DeVito in the title role. There is also the predictable role for Betty White. No offense, honey, I love ya, but it's getting old. There were a few pointless scenes, like the chase at the end with the seed. I almost wanted to yell at the screen, "Give it to Wall-E, he'll keep it safe!"

All in all though, it was good, and non-offensive. Add a fun original soundtrack (no excuses for only two nominees in the Best Song category at next year's Oscars) and you have yourself an entertaining hit movie. I don't have a good record with Seuss properties turned into films (note the Grinch and Horton), but this one's a winner.

Andy Rooney Dead at 92

Some folks are their work. I can't help but think about that today as I write about the passing of journalist and writer Andy Rooney. He passed away Friday night from major complications of an undisclosed surgery, just weeks after signing off for the last time on his regular closing slot on the long running "60 Minutes." Even in his final piece, an interview for the program, he said he wouldn't stop writing - he couldn't stop writing.

Rooney was a journalist since the Second World War and had closed the CBS new program with his commentaries for over forty years. He was the curmudgeon's curmudgeon, always questioning the most mundane and puzzling of the day's mysteries. His voice was grating and his attitude confrontational and often sarcastic, but he was always entertaining, and if you weren't careful, informative.

Andy Rooney wrote for television and news for decades, He won four Emmys while on "60 Minutes," and many other broadcasting and journalism awards during his long career. We have lost a true legend and an epic voice in our times. He will be missed.

Darna The Return

Darna Ang Pagbabalik ~ I'm a big fan of Mars Ravelo's comics work and his sometimes brilliant pantheon of Filipino superheroes. I love me some Captain Barbell, Lastikman and Darna. But much like film versions of American superheroes, their Filipino cousins have hit and miss success. Sometimes they're great and sometimes they're not. Case in point - Darna Ang Pagbabalik, or as translated to English, "Darna The Return."

For those not in the know, Darna is basically the Wonder Woman of the Phillipines, but not enough to create litigation. She was bestowed power from the gods, given a magic stone to transform into her super-identity, and has other powers like heat vision, telekinesis, and telepathy, that keep her out of court even though she also frequently plays 'bullets and bracelets' like a certain Amazon Princess. She's been around since 1950 in comics, movies and television.

Darna Ang Pagbabalik is pretty traditional superhero fare, if a bit campy. Darna fights crime, loses her magic stone, and romances her leading man, while her snake-haired archenemy Valentina tries to take over the nation via evangelist television. The beautiful and athletic Anjanette Abayari is more than suitable in the title role and Pilita Corrales is very creepy doing "V" imitations with mice as the heavy. The special effects are pretty cheap for the mid-1990s but about on par with the CBS Marvel telemovies of the late 1970s.

If you don't mind subtitles and some hokey special effects and dialogue, this isn't a bad flick for superhero fanboys and girls. However I would recommend the 2000 versions of Captain Barbell and Lastikman if you're looking for a proper introduction to these wonderful Mars Ravelo characters.

Mike and Molly

The Bride and I watched quite a few of the new series that debuted these new Fall TV season. We watched episode after episode, unsure if we really liked what we saw or not, and asking each other, sometimes comically, after each one - "Did we like this?" and deciding sometimes hesitantly - "We'll give it another episode."

One of these shows was "Mike and Molly." Being proud geeks and nerds with no shame, we both like Chuck Lorre's "The Big Bang Theory" quite a bit and were saturated with promotion for "Mike and Molly" during that program. It seemed like worth a look, so we gave it a shot. The series follows a couple, both quite overweight, a cop, Mike, and a teacher, Molly, as their relationship slowly evolves from dating to serious. As far as a relationship show, it's successful, but the humor often flows from their size and weight.

We were not fans of "The Big Bang Theory" at first. We eventually caught up with it after a few seasons. The reason we didn't dig it at first was that most of the humor was based on nerdiness, and was more of the laughing-at-us type rather than the laughing-with-us stuff. We tired quickly of being made fun of. Now, the show is more edgy and in sync with the subculture, and for us, funnier.

"Mike and Molly" operates on much the same formula, only against bigger people instead of nerds. I might be making much of this as fat people have always been made fun of, but really, isn't this just lazy writing? Taking the cheapest shot possible. Racial humor is only a step below. It's all discrimination.

All that said, "Mike and Molly" has a lot going for it. Their romance is heartwarming and awkward and real. Other than fat jokes, a lot of the more recent humor has been sexual in nature, much of it coming from the comic genius of Swoosie Kurtz. And the wonderfully talented Nyambi Nyambi as the coffee shop owner is the highlight of every episode. We'll stay with this a while, and hopefully it can mature past the fat jokes.

Devil Dog

Devil Dog: The Hound of Hell ~ I'm seeing this telemovie for the first time since 1978, but I have vivid memories of the first time this movie of the week was on television.

I remember not the night it first aired so much as the next day at school. In English we were doing a creative writing exercise, and had been doing it for a few weeks, and it was finally due that morning. One kid, who shall remain nameless, but he knows who he is, and anyone reading this who was in the class remembers who he is, handed in his story and its name was "Evil Dog: Hound from Hades." I wonder what he had been doing the last few weeks, but I sure do know what he had been doing the night before! Man, would I love to read his 'story' now!

The original movie, plagiarism lawsuits aside, starred such television luminaries as Richard Crenna, Yvette Mimieux, Ken Kercheval, Lou Frizzell, and those two Witch Mountain kids Kim Richards and Ike Eisenmann. The flick was written by mediocre television writers Elinor and Steven Karpf and directed by Curtis Harrington, who actually used to be an interesting director. But it doesn't show here, the writing obviously overshadows the directing, and the performances, which are worse than the usual movie of the week.

The story is a fairly simple one. The devil mates with a dog (don't laugh, yet) and a Satanic cult sends the litter of subsequent puppies out into the suburbs to raise havoc. Our feature family receives a German shepherd named Lucky who likes to play mind games with the family, killing a maid and basically effs with everybody.

There's so much telekinetic stuff going on here I would have thought the Witch Mountain kids would have caught on right away, but no go, they quickly becomes Lucky's slaves, and total brats. Father Richard Crenna seems to be the only one hip to the dog's evil and faces off with the devil dog that has taken over his family. Great z-movie fun, this would have been prime real estate for "Mystery Science Theater 3000."