Ty Watches "Spider-Man: No Way Home"

Over the weekend my wife and I finally saw "Spider-man: No Way Home". We had planned on seeing it when it was in the theaters, but that was when Omicron was ravaging the US, so we waited. Not to worry, I still got Omicron, and it stunk. Anyway, the movie was streaming and on VOD, so we opted for VOD. It was only six bucks, so that was even better. We settled in after dinner, put our daughter to bed, and watched.

I really enjoyed the movie. I do want to point out that I like "Into the Spiderverse" more, but "No Way Home" was still very well done. I actually like the multiverse stuff. And being that I had seen "Everything Everywhere All At Once" a few days before, the idea of a multiverse movie was on my mind. I was in. I do want to say that I personally think that Tom Holland is the best Peter Parker/Spiderman. He is the only one of the three that truly reminds me of a high school kid. He acts dorky, he seems in over his head and he talks and, more importantly, acts like a teenager. My wife and I said that a lot when watching the movie. But, spoiler alert, seeing Andrew Garfield and Toby Maguire was incredible. It was so neat to see the three of them interact. Maguire was great. He is the oldest and he played that well. When he was stretching his back, that was gold. But I actually think Garfield was the best Spiderman in this movie. He was funny and nice and sweet and willing to goof on himself. I loved the inside jokes, how he called himself lame and kept being referred to as "Spiderman 3", it was awesome. I also appreciated that the movie makers let him save Mary Jane. That was a nice touch.

It was incredibly rad to see the villains from the other movies in this universe. Alfred Molina is a true, true gem as Doc Oc. It was glorious to see him reprise the role. He was amazing. Rhys Ifan as Lizard was crazy because I barely remembered him from the movie he was in. But he did a solid job. I already enjoy Jamie Foxx, and seeing him reprise Electro was totally worth it. He did a very, very good job in this role. Even Thomas Haden Church as the Sandman was fine. Hell, it was even better than what he did in "Spiderman 3" by a mile. But Willem Defoe stole the show. He was creepy and terrifying and diabolical and awesome. He was so god damn scary in this movie, and that was exactly what this movie needed. He was great.

Hell, even the side characters, Zendaya, Ned, Aunt May, J Jonah Jameson, Happy, they were all wonderful. Marisa Tomei is Aunt May now. And her death scene was brutal. Jon Favreau as Happy has never been better. Zendaya is the only MJ I truly enjoy. Ned is so, so much better than Franco's friend character. And JK Simmons is the best person to play Jameson. He embodies that role.

The story was great. Again, it was like a live action version of "Into the Spiderverse", just not as good. But it still worked. They found a way to do it. Adding Dr Strange was exactly what they should have done to make this story work. And Benedict Cumberbatch and Benedict Wong, as Wong, were also great in their roles. And, as always, the imagery in the movie was top notch. Sony/Marvel know how to make superhero movies, and this was no exception. It looked magnetic.

All in all I really did enjoy this movie. My wife and I watched bits and pieces of it yesterday just to rehash some stuff we thought we missed, and that was a totally worthwhile revisit. "No Way Home" is another very good Tom Holland Spiderman movie. Go watch it if you haven't yet. It is great.

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 Jerrod Carmichael's "Rothaniel"

Jerrod Carmichael's new HBO special "Rothaniel" is a masterpiece. I watched it last week and have since watched it two more times and still think about it on the daily.

For those that may not know, Carmicheal is a strong stand up performer, had a very good, very underrated tv show, "The Carmichael Show" and has written a ton of great things for movies and tv. He was also in both "Neighbors" movies, and he was memorable in those as well. He wrote on "Loiter Squad", which is where I assumed he met Tyler, the Creator, and he does the interstitial parts on the epic "IGOR" album. But I think "Rothaniel" is going to open up a whole new level of stardom for this young man.

He opened the show and told the audience that he was going to leave no untold secrets for the hour-long set. He was going to let it all out. And he most definitely did as much. For instance, he revealed that his first name is Rothaniel. He went into a long bit about how he got his name. He said it was two names pushed together, the two names coming from two people in his life. One of which was his father. He then proceeded to tell us all about his father and how he was a lothario. The best part of this bit was when he told the crowd that his best friend saw his father at his house one day and his father lied about who he was. He told this young man that his name was Jerry Rice. This was so hilarious. But underneath it all you could see the pain and anger Carmichael had towards his father for what he was doing. He then told his dad he knew and he wanted him to tell their mom. She needed to know. And he did. He kind of skirted it and made his son's deal with the mom beforehand. But his dad told her, and she forgave him. This also seemed to irk Carmichael.

It was after this reveal when Carmichael told the biggest unknown secret of the evening. Carmichael revealed to the audience that he is gay. This was a powerful and moving moment in the special. And he did not sweat it or skirt it, he just came out with the news, and it was received perfectly. The crowd applauded and told him how much they loved him and how brave he is. He seemed a bit put off by the reaction, but he talked about that too. He said he is still trying to feel good when hearing people applaud him. He is still trying to accept the love. It is just tough. He then, and the rest of the set was about him coming out, telling many stories, both funny and moving, about coming out to his friends and family. I loved when he talked about telling his best friend, and his best friend told him he felt "forced to be friends with a gay guy". He said a lot of his friends actually felt "lied" to. But he did say that his girl friends were super supportive, until he told them he dated white guys. This was a riot. The crowd interaction was tremendous. I loved the back and forth. I also really adored Carmichael's openness. It was nice to see him getting all of this off his chest.

The last fifteen minutes of this set is what puts this special apart from others. He talked about his father accepting it, but his mom not. He is, obviously, devastated by this. He talked about his love for his mom, but he is clearly upset that she is using church and god as an excuse to not accept him. This was when the audience interaction was at his best. It was almost like a live therapy session, which can be intrusive, but this felt right. It was not awkward or intrusive, it was a breath of fresh air. Carmichael let it all out, and he fielded every question from the audience with grace. He was speaking his truth, and I loved it. I was moved by it. It was amazing. Carmichael used his talent to do an extremely brave and commendable thing. Bo Burnham's direction was spot on too. You can tell these two have worked together before.

I loved "Rothaniel". I think everyone should see it. It is one of these HBO specials that will resonate with anyone anywhere. It is a work of art. Check it out.

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 "Everything Everywhere All At Once"

I just finished "Everything Everywhere All At Once" about half an hour ago. I went to a theater again, this time with my dad to see it. Let’s discuss.

I thoroughly enjoyed the absolute hell out of this movie. The actors, writing, directing, set design, costumes, literally everything worked in this movie's favor. I had heard very little about the movie prior to seeing it too. That is the way to go. I had heard about it about a month ago, only watched one preview and stayed away from reviews until I saw it. I have not read a review yet in fact. But I am here to give you all a spoiler free review of this epic movie.

The long and short plot synopsis of the movie is an immigrant family from China is trying to pay their taxes, they have some family trouble and all of the sudden the matron of the family is thrown into a multiverse. I loved the idea. We have seen multiverse stuff in movies and in comic books, but it is all within the world of superheroes. This movie takes a regular family, one that is struggling financially, has problems within the family and throws them into this crazy situation that changes everything they ever knew. I loved how they showed the shift from universe to universe. It was so cool. I also adored how many jokes were in this movie. The first half, hell, the first 2/3rds has so many jokes. There were times where I was cracking up. So were the other patrons in the theater. I went to another vax only theater, and this one was packed. When I saw "The Batman" a month ago, around the same time, there were five total people, counting me, in the theater. Today, it was pretty full. I'd say there were maybe four or five empty seats. The theater is not too terribly big, but still, an 11:35 am showing of a A24 multiverse movie being that full, I found that impressive.

Also the acting in this movie, my goodness was amazing. Michelle Yeoh as the mom and business runner, she was tremendous. She deserves awards consideration. Stephanie Hsu as the daughter, simply terrific. And her costumes were the best. Ke Huy Quan, you may remember him from "Indiana Jones" and "Goonies", was a total delight. James Hong, as the dad and grandpa was awesome when his character shifted into gear. And Jamie Lee Curtis was incredible. Her performance was one of the best in a movie filled with great performances. Even Jenny Slate, Harry Shum and Biff Wiff, all in very small roles, did great.

The set design as previously mentioned was dope as hell. The scenery and imagery was amazing. I mentioned Hsu's costumes, and boy oh boy were they cool as hell. I could not take my eyes off the screen.

The writing was the most impressive thing going on in this terrific movie. The idea was original. The jokes were on point and delivered with perfect timing. The story was awesome and moved along really well.

This movie is great. It is a must see. More and more people need to check this out. I'm sure it will be streaming soon, and when it is I will most definitely watch it a bunch more times. I cannot recommend "Everything Everywhere All At Once" enough. It is one of the best movies I have ever seen. Full stop. Go see it.

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 "The Alpinist"

After doing my regular activities on a Thursday I had a few hours to kill. I like to watch movies when I have down time, so I fired up the Netflix account and went searching. I was in the mood for a documentary, and when you can make it about sports, I will be fully in. I found a great doc that was recommended on my account called "The Alpinist".

I am a big fan of extreme sports docs. And when I say extreme sports I do not mean skateboarding or snowboarding or surfing, none of the cliche extreme sports that I have no ability to do. When I say extreme I mean ultra running, ice climbing, stuff like that. "The Alpinist" is about a person who many consider to be the best solo climber that ever lived. I saw "Free Solo", and thought that guy was the guy, but he was in this movie talking about Marc-Andre Leclerc. Marc-Andre is the person who many consider to be the best solo climber there ever was. This guy did some wild and crazy things that many people thought were impossible, and he did it, mostly, by himself. Sometimes he would bring a helper, or a guy that would film his climbs. But he was usually doing the climbs alone, filming alone and putting everything out there on his own time. The filmmakers decided they needed to make a movie about this guy, and when they approached him he was on board. But they soon found out that Marc-Andre was a free spirit who did not succumb to the everyday norms. He wasn't a social media guy. In fact, he barely ever truly owned a phone. He did not do these climbs for the recognition. In fact he shied away from it when possible. He simply wanted to see what he could do, and how far he could push the limits. Like I have said, this guy did some solo climbs that people considered impossible. He did this big time climb in Patagonia, Argentina that was the thing of lore amongst the climbing community. And when he filmed it, and we the viewer got to see what he put out there, I was blown away. I could not believe what I was seeing. I am afraid of heights, and while watching the movie at home, I was getting weak in the knees and sitting up in my seat. It was so high and dangerous, and he was doing this with a minimal pack and low food and water. But he was fast and figured things out quickly. They also would show him climbing other mountains, after he did one solo he would allow the filmmakers to film him doing it again, and it was silence and him climbing and it was beautiful. It was also mesmerizing. I was completely wrapped up in what I was watching.

After the Patagonia climb, I thought that was where the movie would end. Unfortunately, and this is all too often the case, Marc-Andre went on a climb in Juneau, Alaska with one other climber, and they never returned. There was some video of them at the top, but after that a big storm came along and an avalanche pretty much ended their lives. It was sad. I felt awful for his girlfriend and mom and all the people who came to know him and truly love him. It was a bleak ending to a very moving and fascinating movie. Marc-Andre was only 25 when he passed away. That is far too young. But near the end the movie showed his girlfriend still climbing and making videos for him. His mom spoke at his memorial service, and the place was packed to the brim. She said that Marc-Andre always lived his life to the absolute fullest, and she knew he would want everyone to do the same. It was a sad ending with a very uplifting message.

I loved this movie. I cannot recommend it enough for people that love sports documentaries. "The Alpinist" is a must watch.

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 “The Tinder Swindler”

Recently I finished the Netflix documentary "The Tinder Swindler".

I have been in a doc mood lately, and this one spoke to me when I was searching the other day. I have been married for almost 13 years, and been with my wife for 15 years, so online dating has never been a thing for me. I never used it. I did have an eHarmony account at one point, but then I met my wife, and deleted it very soon after because I knew I was going to marry her. I was lucky enough to meet her in real life when a friend set us up. And for that, I am forever grateful. It is so much better that way, in my opinion. I know plenty of people who have met and married someone through the internet. But for me, it is way easier, and way better, to meet in person. The online dating life seems very hard and very easy to scam someone. That is what "The Tinder Swindler" is all about.

The movie focuses on three ladies that were scammed by the same man. But it is not like "Catfish" or movies and shows like that. This was a real person who found a way to scam these very real women. When the movie opens we meet a young lady from Sweden. She is very adept at using Tinder. She breaks it all down. She is very smart and very beautiful. She mentions that she "swiped right" on this gentleman named Simon, and soon after a relationship started. He took her on private planes. They went on exotic vacations. They ate all the best food. They exchanged very expensive gifts. It was all a fairytale, until one day, when he simply seemed to vanish. No contact, nothing. Just gone. He would return, but only to ask for money. We then meet another woman, also from Sweden, and she seems like she knows what she is doing on Tinder. Again, just like the first lady, knows how to game the system to get a guy she likes. She too, eventually, matches with the same guy, Simon. And while it is not a romantic type relationship, she seems to like him very much as a friend. She likes to hang out with him and go clubbing and go to parties. Nothing romantic happens, but they do make a deep, friendly connection. But then, just like the first lady, Simon falls off. And, just like the first lady again, Simon comes back online and asks for money. These ladies give him the money because they have made these connections, but it all seems rather fishy. It is all very weird. Through some deep digging, and after talking to journalists in Sweden, the ladies come to realize that Simon has been scamming them, and many, many other women, for many years. He uses their credit cards to buy all the things he wants. He uses the money they have given him to fly out other women and buy them whatever they want. It turns out he is a very prolific con artist. At this point we meet yet another woman who claims to be Simon's girlfriend. She says they have been together for 15 months. She found out, only after the investigative journalists released a tell all story, that Simon was galavanting with these other women during their "relationship". She is rightfully furious. She decides she is going to swindle him. She pretends to still be in love with him, to tell him what he wants to hear. But, instead of giving him money, she makes mention that she could sell his designer clothing to help him pay for his lavish lifestyle. He agrees, and she starts to sell. But she never tells him that she is making any money. Anytime he asks, she says she hasn't sold anything. It gets so bad that Simon claims to be homeless. All the while, this lady has made over 10,000 dollars selling his clothing. I loved it. She was beating this jerk at his own game.

Eventually Simon gets caught and arrested by Interpol. All three of the women featured feel like they have finally caught him. That Simon is going to pay for what he has done. His picture and story was everywhere. He did get sentenced to 15 months in prison for fraud. I was stoked. So were the ladies in the movie. It felt like a good punishment for what he had done. I assumed the movie was going to end right there. It needed a happy ending after all the wild shit I had watched for 90 minutes.

But then, before the credits rolled, they updated the viewer on the situation. Simon did go to jail, but only for 5 months. He was released and let back into the world. He started an online business for a nominal fee. He had all the fancy things again. He was dating an Israeli model. They were on private jets again. He was back in designer clothes and buying and doing whatever he wanted. He was even back on Tinder. As for the women featured in the movie, they were doing better, but still had pretty big debts they were paying off. The three women look to have become friends, and they have been back on Tinder as well. But I was kind of frustrated when I saw Simon doing all his nonsense again. He clearly hadn't learned his lesson, and the police let him go after serving only a third of his sentence. And when the people making the movie tried to contact him, he sent a very threatening message to them. He is still an asshole. He is still selfish. He is still doing what he wants when he wants to whomever will bite on his scam. He learned nothing and was going about his everyday life like he didn't perform multiple criminal acts. It goes to show that some scum can get away with what they want with minimal consequence. It is a frustrating world that we live in. It makes me sick that people can scam other people, and because they just happen to be rich, they can get away with it.

I do recommend this movie because it is fascinating, but know going into it that you will be angry at the end. Or, at least you should be.

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 "Atlanta", Season Three Premiere

Yesterday I was able to watch the season three premiere of "Atlanta". I was out of town last weekend, I left early Friday morning, so I did not have time to watch until we got back. But I made damn sure I would watch yesterday,

I did watch, and I was floored, in the best possible way. Season three kicked off with two new episodes, which was a very nice surprise. The first episode, "Three Slaps", was a different story than what we have usually seen on "Atlanta". None of the main characters were even in the episode, until the very end when Earn(Donald Glover) wakes up from a dream. This episode was about a little kid who gets put into foster care and finds his way back home. That is a very vague description though, from what I saw. Spoiler alert is coming by the way if you have not watched the premiere yet. "Three Slaps" shows a young kid in school who, upon hearing that he and his classmates are going to see "Black Panther", jumps on the table and starts to dance. He gets sent to the principal's office. His mom and grandpa come and they are frustrated. A teacher seems to think they can help by putting the kid in remedial classes, but the mom does not want to do that. She chides the young man, makes him dance in the hallway and the grandpa gives him three slaps. We see him at home and he lives a pretty normal lifestyle. His mom works all day, so he feeds himself, but his mom is present and she holds him accountable. Then Child Protective Services shows up, and the mom tells the boy to go. She packs his stuff, and says if he hates living there so much, he can leave. Again, she is tough, but not doing anything that I would consider wrong. The boy ends up at a house with two ladies who have fostered three other children. These ladies are not in good shape. They do not seem to be taking proper care of these kids. They make them work far too hard and they barely feed them. The young man tries his best to get away, but no one believes him because he is now a "foster child". He is miserable. The moms decide they are going to go to the "Grand Canyon". The kid asks one of them what they are really doing, but she gets cut off by her wife. We come to realize that this couple cannot pay bills, refuses to pay bills, has hurt people in the past, and they are going to kill themselves and the kids by driving off a bridge. The young kid figures it out and gets the other kids and himself free. The other kids are saved and the main boy walks back to his home. His mom says she was happy to see he made his way back home. He then eats some spaghetti and watches TV, telling his mom nothing of what happened. Then we see the kid turn to the camera and that is when Earn wakes up.

This first episode was incredible. It was gripping and scary and a great way to get back into this wonderful show. It reminded me of "Teddy Perkins", which is one of the best forty-five minutes of TV ever.

The second episode we get to see the original crew. They are overseas, in Amsterdam, while Paper Boi(Brian Tyree Henry) is on tour. Earn oversleeps and misses his original flight. It was great to see, now that Earn has achieved a little status as Paper Boi's manager, that he is still a screw up. But he works hard and he is trying. While Earn is trying to get on his new flight, he calls Darius(LaKeith Stanfield) and tells him he has to pick up Van(Zazie Beetz) at the airport. Here we see Darius is super duper high, but he does remember to get Van. He also tells Earn that Paper Boi is in jail. This messes Earn up. But he is sick and he is very tired, so he tells Darius he will deal with it when he gets to Amsterdam. He just needs Darius to get Van. Then we kind of have parallel stories. Darius and Van go on an adventure. Van buys a new coat that has an address in it. They decided to have their driver take them to the address. They find a group of people all dressed in white who are on their way to something. Darius and Van join them. When they arrive at the thing, they realize it is a party for a person who is about to die. It is a very weird and surreal scene. Then, Darius comments that he thinks it is Tupac. Van says he is crazy, but then she sees him. She goes to speak to him, and she realizes it is Tupac. After she speaks to him, the death dulla, yeah that is a thing in this world, drops a bag over him and "Tupac" dies. It was wild. But the way Van and Darius handle it, it made the surrealness of the whole situation relatable in a way. I loved their story because I feel like they truly portrayed how I would have acted in a crazy scenario like they were in a foregin country. Paper Boi and Earn have to get ready for a show that night, but first Earn needs to get him out of jail. Earn goes to the venue to get money from the guy putting on the show, and proceeds to bail Paper Boi out. Paper Boi is treated like a king in his cell. The guards love him. The fans outside love him. He is a star in Amsterdam. He likes his cell so much, it was beautiful by the way, that even when his bail is posted, he waits until after he has had lunch and a nap. Then, when he and Earn leave the jail, they head to the hotel before going to the venue. During this time they see a shocking number of people in black face. It was jarring for me as a viewer to see this. They question it, but never get a real answer. Then when they get to the venue Paper Boi says he will not do the show because the entire crowd is in black face. I kid you not. Earn tells the promoter that Paper Boi is not going to do the show and this pisses the guy off. He threatens to "ruin" him. When he chases Earn, he finds a guy that looks like him, but again, it is yet another person in black face. And again, I was uncomfortable. Earn gets out unharmed and heads to his room. He sees Van outside and they have a brief interaction. Then he crashes into his bed before receiving multiple texts from Paper Boi about hanging out. Then the episode ends. Again, I was in awe of what I watched.

"Atlanta" is, quite possibly, the best show on TV. There truly is nothing like it on TV. It is so unique, so original. Donald Glover and his crew really know what they are doing. They are truly creating new and fresh and, most of all, incredibly good content. I cannot wait to see where this season goes. I am fully on board. It was three years in between seasons, but it was more than worth it for what we got in these first two episodes.

If you are not watching "Atlanta" you need to remedy that. This is amazing TV being made by the smartest people in the business. I cannot wait for episode three on Thursday night. I will be watching it in real time. What an amazing, amazing show.

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 "Tickled"

For date night this week I was feeling a documentary. I love docs. I like when information is given to me in heaps. It makes for an interesting viewing in my opinion. My wife isn't as big a fan as me, but she still enjoys them from time to time. It is not like I picked a noir or an indie movie.

I went searching for something a little different from your everyday doc. Then I remembered listening to a recent episode of the pod "This Is Important" and Anders Holm mentioned a doc he recently saw called "Tickled". He described it wonderfully on the pod, so I went looking for it. And much to my surprise, it was steaming for free on HBO Max. I was stoked. So I told my wife the name of the movie, and not much else. I wanted us to both go in with as little info as possible. That was the way Holm said people should view the movie.

What we then proceeded to watch for ninety minutes blew our minds. "Tickled" is one of the weirdest, yet most intriguing documentaries I have ever seen. The movie is about a journalist from New Zealand that covers the lighter side of life. He has very nice and heartwarming stories that he does from the clips we saw. But one day, when researching his next story, he stumbled across a website that was promoting a sporting event called Competitive Endurance Tickling. He was intrigued. As was my wife and I. What happened next, I never could have imagined. The journalist contacted the people from the website in the movie and asked to do a story with them. They responded with an email filled with threats and incredibly hurtful words and allegations. This only made the journalist, David Ferrier, more interested in what was going on. He could not let this story go. He was able to get a hold of three people who work at one of these CET areas, and he flew them out to New Zealand. The moment they landed and saw cameras, they went on the defensive. More threats came out. They refused to do anything on camera. It was all very strange. Ferrier dug even deeper, being able to get interviews with a few people who got involved with the website and CET. Their stories are harrowing. There is extortion and threats and real fear coming from these people. Their lives, since they have left the tickling world, are truly altered. And that is another thing, the tickling in this movie. Ferrier meets many people who have this fetish, and yes it is a total fetish, and it is uncomfortable to watch. They show long videos of people being tickled by other people, and it feels wrong. One of the people who have made a living doing these videos called it BDSM, and he is not wrong. I felt like I should not be seeing what I was seeing while showing these videos. It was worse than pornography in my opinion. It was, at the very least, way more uncomfortable. And all of this was being done all over the world, and seemingly run by one person. When the reveal of this person happens in the movie, I was floored. It was more intense than a villain showing their true colors, or someone who has been playing coy in a fiction movie the whole time. This person was real. And they were scary. And they were gross. And they had no bad feelings about the truly awful things they were doing to these young people.

"Tickled" had me shook. I was visibly shaken after we were done watching. So was my wife. But you know what? We both thought it was worth seeing. We were not disappointed when the movie ended that we had watched it. We found it disgusting and intriguing at the same time. "Tickled" is a movie that truly has to be seen to be believed. I for sure recommend to anyone that enjoys weird yet interesting subject materials. "Tickled" is a very good doc.

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 "The Batman"

I have just returned from my second in person theater experience since the pandemic started. I went to see "The Batman" by myself at a vax only show this afternoon. It was me, two other people by themselves and one couple. It was about as safe as I have felt inside an enclosed building in two years. I also really wanted to see this movie, so I found a way to make it work. I am at a point now where, to actually go inside a theater, it has to be a movie I really, really want to see, and I did not want to wait for it to stream. "Nope" fits that bill, and so did "The Batman".

Leading up to the movie I watched all the trailers, I like the actors, I like the director and I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. I'm usually a MCU guy, but Batman has always held a spot in my heart. I am pretty sure I have seen all the Batman movies, I used to watch the Adam West show, and I have even seen some of the campy movies they made with West. And as previously stated, I am a fan of the actors that were cast in this movie. I have pretty much enjoyed everything that I have seen Robert Pattison star in post "Twilight".

Getting to my thoughts on “The Batman” I think Pattison did a very good job as the lead in this movie. He brought a more emo version to the screen of Batman. He also used a lower toned voice, but it was not on the level of Christian Bale. He was also in shape, but not overly in shape. He actually looked like a somewhat regular ass person in this movie. I liked his take on the character. Zoe Kravitz was amazing as Catwoman. I think she might have been the best actor in the movie. She was very confident and calm and really held it together. I also like how she did not alternate her voice at all, or say any ridiculous cat puns. I truly adored Andy Serkis as Alfred. Serkis is a good actor, and to let him play actual people, not motion capture people or monsters or apes, seems to work. He was great as Klaue, and he was great in "The Batman". Jeffrey Wright is the consummate actor and professional and he was tremendous as Commissioner Gordon. I am a fan of his. I like John Turturro, but he felt a little overused here. He was important to the plot, but they could have cut a scene or two of his. I liked what they did with Colin Farrell as the Penguin, I just wanted more. He was hardly in the movie. Farrell went for it, and I was in, but he was only in a few scenes. I will watch the show that they have reported to be making about him on HBO Max.

Out of the main cast, Paul Dano hit an absolute homerun. He was terrifying. He was insane. He used social media, and the director and writers also did a great job of portraying how evil social media can be. Dano is almost too good at playing creeps. He legitimately frightened me in this role. The scenes where he films his criminal acts is downright stomach churning. I was terrified of him and his actions. That is the sign of an actor doing a phenomenal job.

I do think Matt Reeves did a fine job of directing. I liked this movie. I found myself invested. I wanted to see what was going to happen next. This is not a superhero movie, it is a crime drama, and I like that. But I did think it could have been a bit shorter. There were some cuts I would have made, but I am not a director. Also, the fight scenes were amazing, so Reeves crushed that component.

All in all though, I found this movie to be very okay. It was a very solid viewing experience. I'm glad I ventured to a theater and saw it on the big screen. It was worth it. I recommend "The Batman", but know going in that it is three hours long and it feels three hours long. But if you can deal with sitting around, go see this movie. It was solid.

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 "Winning Time" Season Premiere

Yesterday I watched the series premiere of "Winning Time" on HBO. The show is about the beginning of the Showtime Lakers. The premiere episode was pretty much all about the Lakers trying to decide if they were going to draft Magic Johnson first overall in the 1979 draft. There was other stuff that happened too, of course.

The show is shot in a very cool, old style type 70's look to it. There are times you can even see the burn marks on the film on the side of the screen. It is pretty neat. The actors also break the fourth wall quite a bit, and I am a fan when directors let actors do that. I just like it when it feels like the person playing a character is talking directly to me. It is a cool change of pace. John C Reilly, who plays Jerry Buss, talks to the audience a ton in the premiere. I love it. Reilly is also really, really good as Buss. I heard this is where the rift between Will Ferrell and Adam McKay started, but Reilly was one of the main reasons this premiere worked for me. I also love, love, love Quincy Isaiah as Magic Johnson. He moves like him, talks like him, looks like him and embodies the confidence and small town attitude Johnson had as a rookie. Isaiah should get so much more work from this role, and this is based solely on his performance in the first episode. I can only imagine it gets better and better from here. Jason Clarke is wonderful as Jerry West. He is angry and anxious and feels like his voice isn't being heard. Gaby Hoffman is going to be a star on this show. You can just tell. She crushed it. DeVaugh Nixon and Solomon Hughes are perfectly cast as Norm Nixon and Kareem Abdul Jabbar. They both look and sound just like them. The casting is almost as good as Isaiah as Johnson. We also meet a few other people in the premiere, but the people I mentioned are the stars of the first episode. I just can't get over how great Reilly is as Buss. He is confident when he shouldn't be. He is in over his head, but he could care less. He is willing to take a shot, even if everyone tells him he is wrong. The same could be said for Isaiah too. There is a scene where he is at a party and plays Norm Nixon one on one. It is a great insight to a soon to be rookie playing a vet. There are also great moments with him and his dad that felt really real. Those two are going to carry this show.

There are moments in the premiere that felt slow and a little tacked on. I did find myself a bit bored with some of the backstory. But when they shifted the story to Magic, and him being their pick for the draft, things kicked into high gear. I understand that pilot's have to be the table setting, and they have to give a good amount of backstory to people that may not know the whole story. But when the episode ends like this one did, where I am hyped to see what comes next, that is a sign of a, hopefully, good show. I also like McKay being heavily involved with this show. He has a true passion for the NBA, especially the era that they are talking about in this show, and it comes across like gangbusters here.

I have high, high hopes for this show. I think it is going to be a hit. I am pumped for what is going to come and how they are going to tell the story. Now I just have to wait until Sunday for the next episode.

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 "The French Dispatch"

For date night last week I picked "The French Dispatch" to watch. My wife and I are both big Wes Anderson fans, and before the pandemic we had planned on seeing this in the theaters. Then we all know what happened. The movie was recently put on HBO Max though, so we were good to go for a watch.

For the record, I adore Anderson's movies. I think "The Royal Tenenbaums" and "Rushmore" are two of the best movies ever made. "Rushmore" reminds me so much of RD it is crazy. I love "Isle of Dogs" and "Fantastic Mr Fox". I really enjoyed "Moonrise Kingdom". I even like "Bottle Rocket". The only movies of Anderson's that I am not so crazy about are "Life Aquatic" and "The Darjeeling Limited". Those two movies never hooked me. But I was excited for "The French Dispatch". After "Grand Budapest Hotel", I felt like Anderson was on a hot streak. He has such a unique style and he is going full bore ahead. No one can stop him seemingly. He is having a moment. And boy oh boy is "The French Dispatch" about as Wes Anderson as it gets.

The movie is told in three stories from three writers from a newspaper in the 60's I assume. The setting is very whimsical and very colorful, when the movie uses color. There is a ton of black and white in this movie. But when the color shows up, boy does it pop. The sets are also very Anderson-esque. They look quaint and old timey and are like a mashup of all of his movies in one. It has feelings of everything he has made prior to this movie. The movie also takes place in a city called Ennui Blase. It does not get anymore Wes Anderson than that.

Outside the sets and the look, this movie moves and is written in Anderson's singular style. The actors, and my goodness is this a murderers row of actors, all talk fast but look sad. Bill Murray is the head editor, and he is as ennui as they get. Some of the writers we meet, played by Tilda Swinton, Jeffery Wright, Frances McDormand and Owen Wilson, just to name a few, really go for it in Anderson's style, and they nail it. Tilda Swinton is as weird as ever. McDormand is rough and tumble and sweet and straightforward. Wright is fast talking and smart and unique. And Wilson has the silliest and quirkiest story of them all. Some of the actors who play the people being portrayed, like Timothee Chamaleet, Benecio Del Toro, Adrien Brody, Lea Seydoux, Lyna Khoudri, Mathieu Amaric, Steve Park, Bob Balaban, Henry Winkler, Saoirse Ronan, Willem Defoe, Liev Schrieber, Edward Norton and Tony Revelori all really crush their respective performances. I enjoyed the Del Toro story the most, he plays an insane painter who is in jail. But the story Wright tells, which features Ronan, Defoe, Amaric and Park is fast paced and has a kick ass animation scene attached. Also, Chamaleet is the main character in the McDormand story, and he does just a tremendous job. I have become a big time fan of his as of late. He has made some great choices on the roles he has picked recently.

When we were done watching the movie I asked my wife what she thought. She said she enjoyed herself, but it wasn't her favorite Anderson movie. She is partial to "The Royal Tenenbaums". I have thought about it since Friday, and I liked the movie too, but I prefer many of Anderson's other movies. "The French Dispatch" is a very good, very Wes Anderson movie. But it is dark at times. It can also be a bit slow. But Anderson is at a point in his career where he can do what he wants, and what comes out is fun and interesting to watch. I definitely recommend checking this movie out, especially if you are already a fan. I had a good time, and I think you would too.

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 "High Flying Bird"

Yesterday I was finally able to see "High Flying Bird". I have been putting this movie off for various reasons. I forgot about it. The pandemic started. I stopped watching movies on my own for a while. Sports movies depressed me during the start of the pandemic. There were just a myriad of reasons. But then my interest was reignited when I watched a trailer for it on Netflix. Then I watched the trailer again. Then I read some things about it, and with my wife on a work trip, it was as good a time as ever.

"High Flying Bird" is about a future NBA player, his agent and his agent's assistant trying to find an end to the lockout and get this rookie paid. Oh, and the movie was filmed on an iPhone. It was directed by Steven Soderbergh. This movie has a lot of things going for it for me as a movie watcher. I love basketball, and as I am getting older, I am really into the stuff behind the scenes. I like to know how the people who do not play the game work amongst each other. I mean, I still prefer to see things from the player's perspective, but it is cool to get another look from time to time. The agent is played by Andre Holland. I am a Holland fan. He is really good in most things he is in, and this is no exception. He is fast talking yet level headed. He is the guy who figures out how to get through all the nonsense. He is the smartest one in the room. He knows more than any person he works for or with. Holland was tremendous in this movie. He is the star and the person you cannot take your eyes off when he is on screen. Zazie Beetz plays his assistant, or as she puts it, "former assistant", and she does a great job. She is passionate and as hardworking as anyone. She knows what she wants and how to get it. She also knows how to help players and agents. She is a strong, independent person, and that comes across with Beetz's performance. Melvin Gregg plays the soon to be NBA player. Gregg was also a basketball player in the second season of "American Vandal". But this time he uses his dramatic chops, and he does a solid job. He has the look and attitude of a young rookie trying to find his footing in the league. Then you add on the lockout, and Gregg does a great job of portraying an uncertain future. I also like how he became his own person near the end of the movie. We also have Kyle MacLachlan as a greedy owner, Sonja Sohn as the strong headed president of the Players Union, Zachary Quinto as the head of the sports agency who is way in over his head and Bill Duke as Holland's buddy and tough nosed coach for a youth basketball program.

This is a fast talking, very inside basketball movie. I love how they went from scene to scene in a snap. I also found it easy to watch, even though it was filmed on an iPhone. You could tell it was filmed on something small because there are never anymore than five people in a scene together. I really enjoyed the close up shots of two people talking hoops at any time. I also really liked how Holland was in command and wanted to give his players the most leverage they could have. He was in it for his players. He wanted this lockout to end so they could get paid and he could take over. It was a great story of a person trying to help other people in very, very high profile situations.

I fully recommend this movie for basketball diehards. It is so good, really interesting and a great watch. Check it out.

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 "Titane"

So I just watched the movie "Titane", and boy oh boy what a ride. This has to be one of the most insane things I have ever watched. I have been thinking about the movie since I finished it last night, and I was thinking about it during my morning run. Hell, I am still thinking about it while I write this right now.

For those that may not know, "Titane" is about a child who gets in a horrible car wreck, gets a metal plate inserted in her head, grows up to become a go go dancer and a killer, pretends to be someone else, meets that person's father, works and lives at the dad's firehouse and eventually has a baby. Seems like a lot, huh? Well that is just the tip of the iceberg. I have heard many people talk about this movie. The first person who told me about it was my dad. He showed me the trailer months ago and I was intrigued. We had talked about going to see it in theaters, but opted not to because of COVID concerns. Then we both forgot about it. Then I heard Tatiana Maslany talk about it on a podcast and that jogged my memory. I read, after listening to the podcast, that it won the top prize at Cannes. I read that it got a nine minute standing ovation. I read that people were saying it is unlike anything they have ever watched. I even read that someone fainted at a screening. Needless to say, I was going to find a way to watch. It was simple enough when I checked Amazon Prime and saw it was available for rental. And since my wife is not into movies like this, and she is on a work trip, it was the perfect time to watch.

I mentioned the plot before, but as I said, there were so, so much more insane and wild things that happened in the movie. First off, the main character has sex with a car and a firetruck. You read that correctly. She has actual sex with an automobile and a firetruck. I do not know how that works, but the movie made it seem possible. She also becomes pregnant with the car's baby. Again, you read that right. All the while she is some kind of serial killer that the police cannot find. She is also super distant from her mom and dad, and seems to do her own thing all the time. The movie is also hyper violent and an extreme version of a body horror movie. I had to stop eating my dessert while I watched. The sex scene with the car was just the tip. The murders are absolutely brutal. There is a scene with a stool and a random dude that will haunt my dreams. She also stabs people with a knitting knife. But when you think it cannot get any crazier, the main character goes on the lam and takes on the life of a random guy who went missing ten years ago. The missing child's dad sees her and just accepts her as his lost son. And then we get some weird dance scenes, especially the one on top of the firetruck near the end. The dad also does steroids for some reason. The two of them together made me uncomfortable. They were too close. As the main actor gets more and more pregnant it just gets grosser and grosser. She leaks oil instead of milk. She scratches her body to the point of ripping her skin apart. As she gets bigger her skin continues to rip apart. When she is on the verge of having the baby, it is pure body horror. All the oil and blood and everything, it was nutso. And the dad helping her out, it was crazy.

I really do not know what to think of this movie. I have gone back and forth. I do not know if I love it or hate it. I do not truly know if I understand it. I am just confused. But the fact that it is stuck in my head has to mean something. At the very least the, the movie leaves a mark. I really do not know if I would recommend this movie or not. It is nuts and gross and sad and gory. But it does not leave you after you watch it. It stays in your head and makes you try to figure out what you just watched. All I know, "Titane" is the most insane and interesting movie I think I have ever seen.

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 "The Righteous Gemstones" Season 2

My wife and I just finished season 2 of "Righteous Gemstones" last night. Much like "Eastbound and Down" and "Vice Principals", "Righteous Gemstones" is another big time hit from Danny McBride and Jody Hill. I adore these guys and the content they make. I have recently sung the praises of "Eastbound and Down" and "Vice Principals" on this very site. I was very curious to see how they would do this season of "Righteous Gemstones" since it was filmed during the pandemic. Well, any fears I may have had were easily put to rest after the first episode.

This season was a great follow up to one of the most memorable seasons of TV ever. The first season of "Righteous Gemstones" was amazing. I thought it was going to be pretty hard to follow that up with anything close to what they had accomplished. Well I was wrong. They did an amazing job. They brought up new storylines while still keeping the story very dark and very comedic. I will try to keep the rest of my piece as spoiler free as possible.

When they opened season two, with a good amount of church people around a big table, there was some big news dropped on everyone and a guy tried to end his life, only to fail and hurt his legs very, very badly. From that point on I knew we were in for some wild and crazy times in the second season. This season more focused on Eli Gemstone's, John Goodman, checkered past. We found out about him being a wrestler and bodyguard and "gun for hire". Eli did some wild things back in his day. He was helped out by Junior, Eric Roberts, who was such a wonderful addition. He was funny with a mean streak and ended up becoming a big time ally. I loved seeing him and Goodman as kids and where they were now. It was great. Jesse and Amber mended their ways, but Jesse still wanted more. He wanted to become head preacher. He wanted to work with Eric Andre's, another massive and wonderful addition to the cast, church and their new development. Danny McBride is so good at playing a guy way in over his head but does not realize it. McBride was simply the best this season. Judy and BJ showed a ton of growth this season. They helped out Tiffany. Judy started to work with other wives in the church. BJ was accepted into the family by Eli and Jesse. There was also an awesome scene of BJ rollerblading this season. I highly recommend checking it out. Kelvin and Keefe were so pathetic and so funny and then, at the end, totally redeemed themselves. It was a great journey for them this season, especially the stuff with Kelvin and Eli. That was incredible.

As the season had its twists and turns, everything came to a head in the finale. And what a wonderful finale it was. I never seem to know how they are going to end this stuff. And with this season being nine episodes as opposed to the usual ten, they found a way to wrap things up nearly perfectly. Even the Jason Schwartzmann character, a journalist exposing these mega churches, had his story all wrapped up by the end.

I adore this show. I am so amped it is coming back for a third season. I think this may be McBride and Hill's best work to date. And the fact that they are giving actors like Edi Patterson, Adam Devine and Tim Baltz a chance to shine, I love that. And I cannot forget the greatness that is Walton Goggins. He is tremendous as Uncle Baby Billy. That character may be as great as Stevie Janowski. Uncle Baby Billy is amazing. Oh, and they even got MaCaulay Caulkin to appear in a few episodes. Please go watch "Righteous Gemstones". It may be the best show on TV right now.

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 the Trailer for "Nope"

When the Super Bowl was on, during a commercial break, they aired the trailer for the new Jordan Peele movie "Nope". I, like everyone else for that matter not involved in the movie, had no idea what the movie is about, but I am damn sure going to see it. Hell, I will even go to a theater if I have to.

The thing with Peele, he has knocked two grand slams out of the park with his first two movies. "Get Out" is original and hilarious and scary and wonderful. Peele got a much deserved and well earned Oscar for that movie. And I liked "Us" even more. Again, it was original and unlike any type of psychological horror movie I have ever seen. I still, to this day, think about the ending of that movie. So when he announced this new movie I knew I was going to see it. I also told myself I would not make the mistake of waiting to see this movie. I do not want a thing spoiled for me, and nowadays, people are spoiling movies left and right. Even if you ask them not to, they will spoil minor details that prove to be major. Luckily I avoided spoilers for "Get Out" and "Us", but I feel like it will be next to impossible to avoid spoilers for "Nope". They will be on the internet moments after the movie is released. So, like I said, I may have to go to a theater on opening night to see this movie. I do not mind wearing a mask, and I can go to an early afternoon show with the hopes that the theater will be pretty empty.

I did watch the trailer during the Super Bowl. I watched it intently. I went so far as to ask my guests, don't worry it was my mom and in-laws, to be quiet so my wife and I could focus, and it was amazing. I have since watched the same trailer four times, just trying to parse what I saw. The good thing about this trailer, there is little to nothing in the way of giving away what the movie may or may not be about. There are horses. I see that Keke Palmer, Daniel Kaluuya and Steven Yeun are, possibly the leads. There also seems to be some kind of thing that blocks out the sun, causing all the lights to go out and the electronics to turn off. We also see people running away, some getting sucked into the sky and Kaluuya riding away on a horse. There is also a commercial shoot in the beginning with Palmer talking about her ranch, at least I think.

When watching this trailer, and then analyzing it, this is exactly what modern movie previews should be. Most trailers give away far too much. Some will spoil major plot lines or twists. It can be very frustrating. But Peele did not do that with this movie or any of his others for that fact. He is so good at showing the littlest bit, but at the same time making you want so much more. Like I said, I have watched the trailer five times and I am still trying to figure out what I saw. But that is great. That makes me want to see what this movie has in store. I want to know what is coming to this town. I want to know what is sucking people into the sky. I want to know about the ranch. I want to know about Yeun's character and his job and how this affects him. I want to know why Palmer runs away screaming "NO NO NO". I want to know why Kaluuya is so calm, yet he rides that horse with a fire in his belly. I just want to know what "Nope" is about. And I also want to see what kind of brilliance Peele has in store with this new movie.

I cannot wait for July 22. And until then, I will be here analyzing the trailer.

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 "Game Over Man", Again

During our date night on Friday it was my turn to pick the movie and I chose "Game Over Man". I had seen the movie twice prior to this viewing, but my wife had not watched it yet. I wanted something light and fun and goofy to watch, so it seemed like a great time to show her this movie.

For those that may not know, "Game Over Man" was written, directed and starring the Mail Order Comedy guys. To go even deeper, the MOC guys are the dudes behind "Workaholics", one of my all time favorite shows. I adored that show when it first premiered, I have watched it several times since, I listen to their podcast, I am a fan. So we watched the movie, and I am here to say, I still like it. My wife liked it as well.

First off, the movie is not a good movie. It has issues, it is kind of sloppy and there is some problematic stuff. But I did not go into this on all three watches expecting to see something like "Uncut Gems" or "No Country For Old Men". I knew going into "Game Over Man" that it was going to be over the top, goofy and crazy action comedy. I also fully understood that it was going to be a hyper-realized version of the dudes they played in "Workaholics". I imagine when they wrote this movie they had to have a conversation along the lines of what Ders, Adam Demamp and Blake would do in a wild terrorist situation, and they worked at the place that was being taken over. It has to have happened. What I also imagine, and was confirmed by my wife, that all three of the stars got to pick their wardrobe and how their hair would look as the movie moved along. Adam Devine has his shirt open and he looks like a former athlete. Blake's shirt is tucked in, he has glasses and his hair is pulled back. And Ders has a vest, his bowtie is askew and he has shaggy, unkempt hair. I feel like they wrote perfect for their characters as well. Devine is a drug dealing big time thinker. He wants to be rich. Blake is a quiet worker that just wants to come out of the closet. And Ders is a former athlete who now has to smoke saliva just to get high. He has checked out. As they are helping out at a party for a famous person, all the craziness goes down and they get stuck in the hotel. From there on out it is filled with gory kills, great jokes and an okay enough story to move the movie along. We see a face go into a meat slicer, a guy get impaled by a computer, a guy fall from a big building, many gunshot deaths and even a dead guy get used as a decoy. We also see hilarious stuff like Devine pretending to be dead due to auto erotic asphyxiation, Ders getting super high on saliva, Blake trying as hard as he can to not be loud while using duct tape, the aforementioned zombie guy beating up tons of people and Shaggy performing "It Wasn't Me" at gun point. The story of the movie is simple enough too. The three main guys just want to get rich with a video game idea they have. They try to pitch their idea when all the shit goes down and they end up saving the day even though they are totally inept. They do sell their idea as a video game and do become rich, but it is all a joke how it happens, and my wife and I were laughing the whole way.

Again, "Game Over Man" is not cinema, but it is a damn fun and funny movie to go relax and watch. I will surely watch it 3 to 4 more times. I love putting it on and just vegging out while it plays. And it always finds a way to catch my full attention. Add on the fact that my wife enjoyed herself, and that is icing on the cake. "Game Over Man" is a very, very fun action comedy. Check it out.

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 "Grand Crew"

Back when RD and I did the what we are looking forward to pod for this year we talked about TV. One of those shows started in early December, as an early premiere, but the series did not officially start until this month. That show is "Grand Crew", and it is really good so far.

They have done six episodes so far, they have ten ordered, and each one has gotten better and better. When they did the first two episodes back in December they were good, but looked like they needed a little work. As with all pilots, they usually start slow. "Grand Crew" was no different. But unlike other shows, "Grand Crew" has blasted away as one of the best new shows on TV in some time.

First and foremost, the cast is incredible. They have wonderful chemistry. They play off one another. They play their characters to perfection. They are so goddamn good. The cast is led, in my opinion, by Nicole Beyer. She is so, so, so good in her role. She is funny and smart. She likes to hook up with dudes, but she always finds a silver lining. She is the funniest, looks the best and just crushes her role. She is so good. So is Echo Kellum. He is the first billed in the credits, so I guess he is the "star" of the show. He is almost as amazing as Beyer. He is the typical lover boy. He wants to find love. He loves romantic comedies and tries to live his life as if he is in one. Kellum is really good at portraying this, and he does a good amount of lifting. Carl Tart is hilarious. I am a big time fan of his as you all know. I love that he is getting a real shot to star on a network sitcom and he is crushing right now. Every time he goes off on a rant on the show I find myself rolling on the floor with laughter. He is so good at controlling the room and owning the scenes he is in. Aaron Jennings is the responsible working one of the group, but he has his comedic moments as well. There was an earlier episode where he thinks he is going to get a promotion, but they are just using him because he is a minority. This was some heavy stuff, but Jennings did a great job making it real yet comical at the same time. The most recent episode, where he is learning chess, is a great masterclass in subtle comedy from Jennings. Grasie Mercedes was an excellent addition. It appeared as if she was going to be a love interest, but they scrapped that and it has worked perfectly. She fits in seamlessly with the rest of the cast. And then we have Justin Cunningham. He is the married one, the settled down one, the one who may or may not have kids and he is so good. He is so funny and relatable. I see a lot of myself in him. My wife and I have said multiple times that he and his wife are us. I love the way he plays his role. The cast is wonderful. They have the same chemistry that the cast of "Happy Endings" had, and that is one of my all time favorite shows. And like I said before, they seem to be finding their groove. They have the relationships all figured out. They are connecting on all fronts. Everything they are doing is working right now. I laugh out loud while watching and none of it is forced.

I hope this show gets its due. I do not want it to leave after three seasons. They have a great thing going, and if they keep up at this pace, "Grand Crew" can become a mainstay. It is that good. Check this show out if you have not yet. It is more than worth your time, even if you just watch it to see this amazing cast. "Grand Crew" is excellent.

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 "Zola"

Yesterday I was flipping through the channels and I happened upon the movie "Zola". I had heard of this movie, but hadn't seen it yet. I also read that it was a pretty good movie. A lot of publications had it on their best of lists, the actors were getting high praise, Janicza Bravo, who I am already a fan of, was getting just due for a good job directing it and I had some free time so I watched it.

I loved it. This is a very good movie. All the praise is very due. I was enamored by this movie. I could not take my eyes off the screen. I needed to know what was going to happen. I was all in. For those that may not know, "Zola" is a movie about a Twitter thread from a dancer about a crazy few days and nights in Florida. Getting a little deeper into the movie, the Twitter thread is about one dancer being conned by another dancer to do some crazy stuff that she definitely did not sign up for.

The two stars of the movie, Taylour Paige and Riley Keough were exceptional. There were other actors in the movie, and they did a good job, but Paige and Keough are the reason to see this movie. They play the dancers. Keough is repugnant in this role, as she is supposed to be. She is a white girl that wants to be black. I read some stuff about how she was kind of uncomfortable doing the voice she uses in the movie, but that Bravo told her that is exactly what she wanted her to do. Her character is supposed to be the villain. She is supposed to be gross and disliked and have zero redeeming qualities. Even when there were times I may have felt bad for her character, she would do something that would immediately pull me back into simply disliking her. I realize that the fact that I was actively rooting against her means Keough did a great job. There is one moment in particular, where she tells her side of the story, that is amazing film making, and it made me loathe her even more. But Paige, my goodness did she carry this movie. She is Zola. She is the person that did the Twitter thread on which the movie is based. To open the movie with her meeting Keough and stating, "you want to hear a story about me and this bitch falling out", I was hooked. I needed to know this story and I needed to hear Paige as Zola tell the story. The way she embodied the character, the way she acted, the cool and calm she portrayed, the easy going demeanor, it was all perfect. She did such a great job as the only real adult in this movie. She owns every scene. She commands the viewers attention. It is a powerhouse performance from beginning to end. It was awesome. These two actors did a masterful job.

I was also super impressed with Bravo's direction. She shot the movie almost like a fairy tale, the craziest, messiest and grossest fairy tale ever. Some of the shots, for example, the beginning after the two meet, they are putting their makeup on to get ready to dance and Bravo has them in a fully mirrored room with haunting music playing while they stare at each other getting ready. I don't know why, but that resonated with me big time. I also enjoyed that, every time someone says a line that was an actual tweet, the bird noise comes up whenever you put out a tweet. It is a nod to let you know that it is a real thing that came from a real person's phone. It made for an even wilder viewing experience. I also appreciated that the movie was a quick 90 minutes. No muss, no fuss. There are no meandering or pointless scenes or shots. Everything that is in the movie is needed to push the narrative forward.

I cannot recommend this movie enough. It is a crazy story that actually happened, and the actors portraying the real life people did an exceptional job. Check out "Zola". It is worth your time.

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 "The Eternals"

Last Friday for date night my wife picked "Eternals". It was finally streaming, we both wanted to watch it, we are both Marvel fans and we figured if we started it early enough, we could watch it all in one sitting. We started it at 6:30pm our time, sent the kids downstairs and we were able to finish it in one sitting.

As I have been saying since 2022 started, I am being more hopeful this year, but man did I not like this movie much at all. It definitely had some solid parts. There was stuff that made me laugh. My son had to explain a few things, and when he did, I liked some of what I was seeing. I thoroughly enjoyed, spoiler alert, the mid credits scene with Harry Styles. I thought Kumail, the deaf lady and Brian Tyree Henry did a very good job in their roles. And it was visually beautiful. But this movie was boring. Angelina Jolie and Salma Hayek are barely in it. And Jolie's character had this cool glitch, but it was seemingly resolved with no real reason. I like the idea of giving no names, or up and coming names a shot, but when you throw Jolie and Hayek on posters, I was under the notion that they would be in the movie much more.

This movie did not feel like a Marvel movie. My wife and I almost simultaneously said it felt like a DC movie. Marvel movies are bright and fun and funny, even when they are bad. DC movies, even when they are good, are dour, sad affairs. That was what "Eternals" felt like to me. It was almost exclusively at night. And when it wasn't, the fight scenes were in the woods or in the clouds. Even the final battle was surrounded by erupting volcanoes which obscured a lot of my viewing experience. The villain was weird. There were absurd guitar riffs that seemed out of place. All of that stuff, the darkness and the crummy 80's esque hair metal music was so akin to what DC does. I mentioned a few times to my wife that this was more boring than "Thor 2", which is saying something when talking about Marvel movies.

What made me most annoyed, not even annoyed just kind of bummed out, the actors, minus the three I mentioned did not do great with the source material. The leading actors, Sersi and Ikaris, were way to melodramatic for these roles. I get they are supposed to be gods, but they were far too doom and gloom. They never seemed to have fun. Jon Snow, I do not know the actors names, sorry, was also barely in the movie, and he just seemed stuffed in for future "Eternals" movies. Everyone else treated the movie like it was a hard drama. I wanted so badly to have more Kumail in the movie because he was the only one that felt like he knew he was in a Marvel movie. He and Tyree Henry as well. They both had a good time with their roles. But not everyone else. And while I really enjoy Chloe Zao, "Nomadland" is amazing, she just does not seem to be a superhero movie director. And that is fine. She just took the material way, way, way too seriously. Superhero movies, for me, need to be like "Thor 3" or "Black Panther". Those movies are simply having a good time, with some little elements of drama. "Eternals" just took itself way too seriously and it made for a convoluted and dull movie. It simply wasn't for me.

Maybe I am not smart enough or I do not get what they were trying to do, but I did not like "Eternals". Oh well, maybe the second one will be more fun. I will be sitting here being hopeful.

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 Nicole Byer's "BBW (Big Beautiful Weirdo)"

Last week, before departing for our holiday trip, my wife and I were finally able to watch Nicole Byer's new stand up special "BBW" on Netflix.

We are Byer fans in my house. We love "Nailed It". My wife and I think she is tremendous on "Brooklyn 99" as Trudy Judy. She is the star of the new, very good show "Grand Crew". She is always a delight when she is on a podcast or hosting her own. But I have never seen her standup before. I have heard about it from other people. I have heard that she works very blue, that she is very funny and that she knows how to control the crowd. A buddy of mine saw her pre-pandemic and said she was amazing, but he did not know that she was so dirty. He knew her from "Nailed It" as well I believe. So I was pretty pumped about the special. I did know, or heard, that she does work dirty, but I could care less about that. I have seen a bunch of comics that work blue and the same amount that work clean. It does not matter either way. A good comic is a good comic. Hell, Tracy Morgan was incredibly blue when I saw him, and it was amazing. Brian Regan is known as a clean comic, and he was fantastic every time I have seen him. Jen Kirkman straddles the line, and she rules. The language does not matter. But make no mistake, Byer is blue, and that comes off right away in "BBW".

The special opens with a pole dance, those of us that follow her on Instagram know how much she has practiced this, and it is great. It is a perfect way to open the show. From there on out Byer touches on a ton of things. She opens talking about life during the pandemic. That can be tiresome, but she made it funny and personal. She talked about how it has affected her sex life. She cannot find a good and safe way to hook up with another person. It was very funny. From there the special just got better and better. Her whole bit about Karen's was simply wonderful. I loved her portraying the children of said Karen's. When she talked about flying on a plane with a humongous NICOLE chain and getting drunk, that was the best bit of the night. I loved the button she put on that bit, talking about getting Shake Shack in the morning when she landed, and eating it in the airport toilet. Another pandemic joke I loved was when she talked about the only people who oppose masks are the people who should be wearing them to hide their not so great looking faces. That was perfection. I really enjoyed the crowd work. That is always a plus for me. I like how she went after JK Rowling, and the Harry Potter stuff was gold. I related to her dropping pizza on the ground but deciding to finish it anyway. But what I loved the most was when she talked about singing and how she is not very good at it. This included some wonderful crowd work. She made some very solid jokes about how her appearance can fool people who may think she is a singer. But it was all wrapped up in a great bow when she was talking about Shake Shack and eating it in the toilet. This was when she was so hammered that she decided to sing to try and calm her nerves and let the other people in the bathroom know she was okay. This made me laugh the hardest. This had me giggling afterward. I am smiling thinking about it right now. It is a great bit of comedic storytelling.

Check this special out. Byer is finally getting the shine she has deserved for a long time now. Byer is a great actor, but she is an even better comedian. This special more than proves that.

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.

Ty Watches "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" Season 15

Last night my wife and I were finally able to watch the season 15 finale of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia". We are getting all caught up on the shows we missed while we were away celebrating the holidays.

This season may have been short, only eight episodes, but it was pretty damn excellent. I was fully in the whole time. They tackled the pandemic. They talked about owning a business during unprecedented times. They traveled to Ireland. They used CGI for the first time. We met Charlie's real father. They even got the waitress involved. And they did it as hilariously uncomfortable as they always do.

"IASIP" is a near perfect show. There are no real problems with it. Even if they have some past controversy, they owned up to it, and even talked about it and made an entire episode confronting it this season. That ep was phenomenal by the way. I also really enjoyed the CGI monkey they used this season. That was another great ep, and it was the nudge they needed to go to Ireland. When they got to Ireland, that was when this season went from good to great. It was some of the best stuff this show has ever done. I like that, the older they get, the more they touch on real life situations. Dennis got COVID, minor spoiler alert. And that brought out the horribleness in other characters, mainly Frank. Dee finally got an acting job, but things kept getting in the way for her. When she got the big bump on her head, and how they redistributed the blood, that was great. This was also how they got the waitress involved, and she becomes pretty important in the penultimate episode of the season. Mac was even looking to get involved with the church after he learned some stuff about his past. That was a great runner this season.

Charlie, at least for me, was the absolute star of the season. He meets his real dad. He finds his place. He knows the people of Ireland. They write and speak and act like him. He finally has a person he can relate to that seems to know him. He finally has someone that really loves him. But all the stuff that this brings up in Frank made it all the better. Frank and Charlie are definitely the best "love story" on the show. They are the only two that seem to genuinely enjoy one another's company. So when Charlie meets his new dad, and wants to spend all his time with him, Frank is noticeably upset. He acts out. But in the end, they come together. And that is not a spoiler for anyone that watches this show regularly. I was blown away by Charlie Day's performance, especially in the season finale. He went to some dramatic places and really shined. He is a good actor, but this performance truly shined through. I was super impressed.

I also love the way they closed out the season, being the usual obnoxious Americans that we have all come to know and love. It was a very fitting ending for this season. The finale reminded me a bit of the one where Mac came out to his dad. While not as moving and poetic, it was still pretty damn awesome and profound.

"IASIP" is a pantheon show. It is iconic. And season 15 is a feather in their cap. I cannot wait for season 16.

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.