"Major League 2" is on the Short List of Worst Sequels Ever Made

About a month ago I decided to revisit one of my favorite movies when I was a kid, "Major League". It holds up. It is still as funny and biting and cool as I remember. It makes me laugh harder than some modern comedies. I also find myself as intrigued by the ending as the first time I saw the movie. I know what the outcome is going to be, but I still get nervous. So, due to my OCD and other issues, I have decided to rewatch all three "Major League" movies. I like to finish what I start.

The other day I turned on "Major League 2". It is streaming on Netflix and I had some laundry to fold. It was an easy choice. I remember the movie not being that good, but hey, it is an old sports movie so I figured I'd enjoy myself. Well, I finished it this morning, it has been raining all damn day here, and this is a bad, bad movie. There is really nothing that is redeeming or good about it. I was trying to find something, anything that would bring me back to thinking it may be okay. Tom Berenger is okay in this movie. He is still moving along like the original Jake Taylor. But, the bite from the first movie is gone. He is old, a has been now. He has settled down. He is a coach. He isn't the same guy we all grew to love in the first movie. Charlie Sheen cannot handle the role of trying to be the good guy millionaire that is trying to leave his old life behind. He is dull in this movie. He is boring. He is not funny. There aren't any jokes like he was popping off in the first movie. They completely recast Willie Mays Hayes. Wesley Snipes is gone. Omar Epps takes over. Epps is fine, but they never address the fact that it is a totally new actor playing a beloved character from the first movie. I think the writers just figured we wouldn't notice. That is a spit in the face to the viewer. I found this to be the most annoying part of watching this sequel. They totally changed Dennis Haysbert's Pedro Cerrano. He is a buddhist now, which I'm cool with, but what made him so great in the first movie is gone here. He was a silent homerun hitter who would curse out Joboo in the first movie. Now he is saving birds when he hits them with a ball. It is a bizarre, unnecessary change. Corbin Bernsen's character is relegated to owner, which is fitting, but he is annoying and flat out stupid in this movie. I do think Rachel Phelps, the old owner, knows what type of movie this is supposed to be, and she is okay in her very minimal role. And Bob Uecker is always electric. He is wonderful as the announcer. He always delivers. They bring on a few new characters, but they add nothing. Rube has a good joke in a minor monologue, but he is so dumb and so oblivious to the real world that it is hard to watch his performance. The "bad guy", Jack something or another, is a cliche dickhead of a baseball player. You hate him from the moment he steps on screen. He has none of the charisma that Clue Haywood had in the first movie. Randy Quaid's crazy ass is in this movie. He is dreadful and we all should have known that he wasn't all there just by watching him put on an abysmal show in this movie. And I cannot go without mentioning Tanaka. This is a very, very offensive portrayal of an Asian baseball player. I understand that work is work, and I'm sure he got paid well for this movie, but it is really tough to watch on screen. I don't get how some writers got away with this.

This is such a disappointing sequel to what I consider to be a classic. This is case and point for why some things are left at one. Certain movies and tv shows don't need sequels or prequels. It is fine to just leave some stuff in one version. I know that the third version of this series is even worse, but I'm still going to watch it. From what I remember there is a young Walton Goggins in the third movie. But man oh man is "Major League 2" a terrible, horrible, not nearly as fun sequel to the incredible "Major League". 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "Paul T. Goldman"

I just finished the Peacock series "Paul T Goldman". I loved it. I heard about the show when Jason Woliner was guesting on "Comedy Bang! Bang!" I love that podcast and I am a fan of Woliner's. The fact that he had a new series piqued my interest for sure. I loved his shows like "Eagleheart" and "Last Man on Earth". He did some "Nathan For You" episodes. He directed the reboot of "With Bob and David". He directed the second "Borat" movie. The guy does comedy, comedy that I like and I have been a fan for some time now. After listening to "CBB" I did some research on the new series. I was immediately interested in the show.

For people that may not know, "Paul T Goldman" is a show about a guy who claimed to be married to a madame of a big time sex worker ring and how she took his money. The twist of all of this is, Goldman played himself. Woliner wanted to do the story, he wanted to get it out there so we all could get our eyes on this wild story. He agreed to let Goldman, who's real name is Paul Finkleman, play himself. So the series follows this story based on a book that Goldman wrote called "Duplicity" Throughout the six episode run we see Goldman recreating the scenes in the book with real actors and directors. The only thing unchanged is the words that Goldman wrote and the fact that he is playing himself. The actors that they got to work on this show are real actors. There are some big names involved in this show. Frank Grillo is in an episode. Melinda McGraw plays the madam. W Earl Brown plays the supposed "pimp". Dennis Haysbert has what turns out to be a cameo. Paul Ben-Victor plays a mob boss. I mean, these are working actors who have been in some big time shows and movies. I have to believe this is due to Woliner's name being attached. And they all appear opposite Goldman.

Goldman is a weird dude. That much is on display from the start. He continually tells everyone to laugh at his story while constantly claiming it is true. At times I feel bad for him but that will switch quickly to me not liking him at all. He seems desperate. He wants to be liked. He doesn't leave people alone. He makes stuff up in the book and when he is asked about it by Woliner, he tries to change the subject. He is rude to his first wife. He claims his son is unhappy when he is clearly happy. He treats people poorly and that makes me not believe his story. People he hired, PI's lawyers, the FBI, they all end up leaving him when it becomes too much. The show is presented as a true crime series, but it is funny. When he shows it to a focus group they all make fun of him and flat out do not like him. There are times when it looks like Woliner has had enough. He wants to be done with it. And without him, this would've never been made. Goldman reminds me of an even less certain Tommy Wiseau. Wiseau has at least owned the fact that his movie is trash. Goldman is so delusional that he doesn't seem to realize how outlandish all this sounds. I am leaving out main points because I think people should watch this show for many reasons.

The story is nuts. Goldman is a wild television character that will be talked about for years. It has Woliner's signature all over it. It is a very well done show. Check it out. It is worth your time. 

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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Ty Watches "Chip 'n' Dale: Rescue Rangers"

I used to watch "Chip and Dale: Rescue Rangers" as a kid. It is one of the few shows, outside "The Simpsons", that I actually remember watching when I was young. I did not watch many cartoons as a kid. There were other shows, like "American Gladiators", "Sportscenter" and "Good Times" that appealed to me. I just liked real people as opposed to cartoons I guess. But "Rescue Rangers" was different. It was goofy and silly and fun. It was like a lighter "Pinky and the Brain", a show I got to later in life. And I loved "Pinky and the Brain".

When I heard that they were doing a reboot, and making it a movie, I was skeptical. I am usually not the biggest fan of remakes or reboots. Why rehash an old idea that they got right the first time? I just do not like it. Some stuff has worked, but it is few and far between. And fans will argue with other fans if the show or movie or miniseries or whatever is any good. Those people need to calm the hell down. Stop fighting about useless nonsense on the internet. That is for kids. Anyway, I was hesitant. But then I found out that Akiva Schaffer was directing it. I adore Schaffer. I have liked pretty much everything he has done. His group, The Lonely Island, does things that speak to me. I also found out, through Schaffer's internet presence, that Andy Samberg was going to be voicing a main character. This was when I was fully on board. Samberg is one of my all time favorite actors. The dude is funny. He gets it. He knows how to construct, write and deliver jokes. When he teams up with Schaffer and Jorma Taccone, the other Lonely Island member, they make magic. As I said, the three of them know how to get it done. Then I saw that John Mulaney was attached. I like his comedy, so I was happy about it. Then Tress MacNeille signed on. Then Eric Bana. Will Arnett was next. Then I started to see names like Dennis Haysbert, Flula Borg, Keegan Michael Key, Tim Robinson, Seth Rogen, JK Simmons and Rachel Bloom attached to voice characters. This was an even bigger selling point for me. I also saw that Kiki Layne, from "Coming 2 America", was cast as the human lead in this movie. She was great in that, so I figured she would be just fine here.

This movie really worked for me. I loved that they went the "Roger Rabbit" route with it. This movie mixes a bunch of different animation styles with real life situations. And it is from the jump. We meet Chip and Dale in elementary school where they go with all kinds of animated characters and humans. The movie continues this trend when they show them getting their show. This was a great walk down memory lane. And then when we find them away from the show in modern times, they keep up the "Roger Rabbit" aesthetic. The movie is even in the crime/noir/comedy genre. It mixes all three, but it is not as adult as "Roger Rabbit". This is a kids movie. This is made for the family to watch. My son watched it the day after my wife and I, and he thought it was fun. But being that it is a kids movie at heart, I told my wife while watching that I feel like this movie was made for us. This was made for people who are going to be 40, or already turned 40. This is like going back in time. It brings back all your favorite characters from the original, while taking some old classics and making them look not so great. I loved that about this movie. It was nostalgia for me, and I was all in.

I highly recommend “Chip ‘n’ Dale: Rescue Rangers” for everyone, but mainly for people my age that used to watch the cartoon. It is a great walk down memory lane. It was a ton of fun.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.