Betas

Yeah, so I have a new Kindle Fire, and instead of doing something useful like reading books, I've been binge-watching Amazon Prime with my free 30 days that came with it. I watched "Transparent," and "The Man in the High Castle," and most recently "Betas."

At first glance, less than ten minutes in, "Betas" appears to be a poor man's version of HBO's "Silicon Valley," just without the laughs. That just goes to show you how wrong first impressions can be. This show is great, and funny, and has as much in common with "Silicon Valley" as "Breaking Bad" has with "Weeds," yeah, two completely different shows.

The premise has a quirky group of young app developers trying to get their start-up off the ground. Unlike "Silicon," you not only get to know the characters, you feel for them and root for them. Subtle difference, but an important one. I really dig this series, but unfortunately Amazon has chosen not to grant a second season - a mistake as far as I'm concerned. I think I'd rather see this than some of the other shows up for this Pilot Season. Check it out, and decide for yourself.

The Man in the High Castle

Based on the 1960s novel of the same name by Philip K. Dick, this is the pilot for an Amazon Prime series that happens on an alternate world where the Axis powers won World War II.

In this world, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was assassinated in the 1930s before pulling the United States out of the Depression. Presidents that followed pursued an isolationist stance in world events, and the US was therefore unprepared for the crippling blow at Pearl Harbor. At the end of a prolonged war, the once powerful US is now divided into three puppet nations under the control of Imperial Japan and Nazi Germany. In this new timeline these two empires engage in a familiar yet more dangerous nuclear Cold War.

As the Fuhrer is dying and the power struggle to fill the void promises an oncoming American war between Germany and Japan, the pilot follows a handful of characters as they navigate this alternate political landscape. Complicating matters is a film called "The Grasshopper Lies Heavy," which depicts a World War II occurring as we know it, whether it's trick photography or an actual newsreel is left up in the air in this pilot.

"The Man in the High Castle" is a streamlined version of a very complicated book, with a few subtle twists not present in the source material. It sets itself up as an enthralling political thriller albeit taking place in a sinister yet fascinating parallel world. I hope it does well in Amazon's pilot season because I'd like to see more.

Poor Devil

Poor Devil ~ This failed TV pilot/made for TV movie is one I have been trying to locate for a while. I saw it a couple times as a kid and then never again, until recently I discovered it on YouTube. From 1973, Poor Devil stars Sammy Davis Jr. as a devil named Sammy. Sentenced to the furnace room of Hell, he's just trying to catch a break and get promoted, you know, up to a good devil position like buying souls.

In this case, the client is Jack Klugman, in his "Odd Couple" prime, trying to get revenge on his boss. He plays a similarly never promoted junior accountant who's just been overlooked after spending twenty-five years working at a department store in San Francisco. Frustrated, he finally says he'd sell his soul to get even with his superior. Along comes Sammy.

Klugman is always good, even as the nebbishy wimp he plays here. Sammy fills his scenes with class and enthusiasm, and sharp duds. This is the early seventies after all and everyone is dressed to the nines, especially in Hell, which is run like a corporate office (all in Satanic reds) that would make Don Draper proud. Christopher Lee rounds out the cast as the mod young Lucifer. The real standout of this flick however is Adam West as Klugman's slimy boss. This anti-Batman role was probably the template for Gary Cole's Bill Lumbergh from Office Space. Yeah, he's that big of a jerk.

Klugman's plan for revenge is to empty the department store the night before the biggest shopping day of the year - December 23rd. Yeah, this is also one of those Christmas movies that happens at Christmas but it's not really a Christmas movie. Yeah, I know, a Christmas movie with devils. I can definitely understand why NBC didn't pick it up as a series.

While it's hopelessly dated, but in a good way, and unfortunately slow in some places... I found that it still holds up. It was simple, but I enjoyed the flick. Catch it on YouTube if you get a chance.

Stan Lee's Mighty 7

When Stan Lee jumped to editor-in-chief of Marvel Comics in the late 1960s and early 1970s, he cut his writing down quite a bit. Letting go of Fantastic Four, Thor, and finally Silver Surfer, by the middle of the seventies when he moved to the west coast, Stan Lee wasn't really writing anything any more. Every once in a while he'd pop up for projects like the creation of She-Hulk, Ravage 2099, and when he recreated the DC Universe, but for the most part he was done writing.

More or less a figurehead, a promotions guy, a pitch man, and the godfather of modern comics, when he does write any more it's not really up to snuff, at least in my opinion. He's still a great concept man, but as far as execution… well, it's hard to be original when everyone else is already doing what you pioneered. He still does come up with great ideas however. Mighty 7 is a case in point.

Done initially for Archie Comics and animated for the Hub Network, Stan Lee's Mighty 7 does have an intriguing twist if old hat characters and execution. The twist is that it stars Stan Lee as himself. While trying to figure out a new comic idea for Archie he comes upon space refugees from outer space, who he teaches to become superheroes. His writer's block is solved.

As I said, the characters are kinda cookie cutter and indistinguishable other than their super powers, mostly unoriginal, but the Legion fan in me does like the idea of another hero with Bouncing Boy's abilities. The best part of the feature, and the reason to watch, is that Stan gives himself all the good lines, or rather the writers do. He is the star here. And that's saying something considering the voice cast includes Armie Hammer, Sean Astin, Teri Hatcher, Mayim Bialik, James Belushi, Flea, and Michael Ironside. Nice. Worth watching for Stan. The jury is still out as to whether this pilot will generate a series or not.

Quickies 2-10-2012

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows ~ I really liked this a lot. It was clever, and owed more than a lot stylistically to both "Psych" and "The Mentalist" in the way they showed how Holmes' intellect works. Whereas the first movie worked very hard to pull in new and old fans with its new twist on the characters, this sequel played it closer to the source material. Great ending in tribute to the old stories as well. If you're a reader, you'll see it coming a mile away. Loved it, and can't wait for the next one.

Three Inches ~ This SyFy pilot doesn't seem to know what it wants to be, a serious concept or a sitcom filmed like a drama. A teenaged boy discovers that he's telekinetic, but can only move objects a distance of three inches. Superhero antics without costumes that comic book fans will hate. It might as well be "Alphas" meets Mystery Men, but with a hesitant sense of humor. Me, I hope it doesn't become a series, but it's always nice to see Andrea Martin, and she's great here.

Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol ~ Now I slept through a lot of this apparently. That seems to be a problem because to me, it didn't seem like I missed much. Tom Cruise didn't talk much, and it felt like wall-to-wall action. Cruise hanging off the building, which I did see, is do not miss. The problem is that I only really saw an intermittent half-hour of this flick, and it's really almost two and a half hours long. Judge as you see fit.

Jazz Boat ~ Screenwriter Ken Hughes directed this 1960 pseudo gangster musical that was apparently supposed to be Britain's answer to Guys and Dolls. It's all youth gangs in London tussling over girls and money in a confrontation that finally takes place on a riverboat on the Thames, with musical interludes along the way. Much more entertaining than it sounds, we get to see what kind of star Anthony Newley could have been. I liked this a lot, serious guilty pleasure.