Iron Fist Review

Eh, procrastinating. Decided to get a MacBook Air, but...I don't want to take a 45 minute ride into the city with my current laptop, in 90 degree heat, and wander about a store hunting someone to help me. I hate shopping for things. And I have three days of vacation. Thinking of going in around 10 AM tomorrow morning and doing it. Be less crowded.

Binge watched The Iron Fist on Sunday, and as a result have done a complete 180-turn around since my last review. The short non-spoilery review? I enjoyed it. A lot. It held my attention throughout, all the characters were compelling, it was more noir/action/mystery, than comic-bookish fantasy. The casting didn't bother me that much. And over time, the lead, portrayed by Finn, actually grew on me. He emotes well with his eyes. I did not see it as a board room drama, and I disagree with the critical assessment of the series. Not for the first time, I'm thinking the problem with television critics is they watch too many television shows.

The series felt more like the graphic novels that Frank Miller and Alan Moore wrote in the 1980s, then the bright colored comic books of earlier decades. Or another way of looking at it? Shared more in common with Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight series, than Arrow. Although that's an oversimplification. I found it to be layered, with layered and complex villains and heroes, not to mention themes and plot (far more complex than the DC tv shows and Marvel film verse). It said some interesting things about violence, corporations, and machiavellian politics. I actually prefer the Marvel TV shows on netflix to the movies, and the Marvel/DC series on broadcast television. I like the darker take on the verse, and the examination of how there's a fine line between being a superhero and a vigilante.

What I especially liked about Iron Fist is that it comments on how something, in this case "the iron fist legend" can be interpreted in various ways. And is often interpreted in the manner most likely to benefit the interpreter. It also looks at violence, and machiavellian politics from various angles.


( Iron Fist spoilery review )

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Posts that I found interesting...

1. Missy Proves Doctor Who can handle a Woman as the Doctor Personally, I thought River Song could.

I'm ambivalent. It's a tv show. Although, I'd admittedly be more interested in watching the series if there was a female doctor. But that's only because I think they've run out of new ideas for a male doctor.

Weirdly, the US is ahead of the Brits in how it depicts women on television shows and movies from a power/role model perspective (not in a let's cast pretty model/actor types over frumpy older theater actors - although I have a feeling British Television would do this if they could), but the Brits are ahead in allowing a woman to have an actual role in power - as Queen or Prime Minister. [ ie. the US has no problem casting a female Captain of the USS Enterprize, or a female version of Star Buck or a female Jedi, or a female super-spy or a female version of name the superhero. We do it a lot. I think due to the vast quantity of television shows, movies and theater at the US's disposal, we really don't care that much. While the Brits appear to, which is rather perplexing if you are an American. OTOH, the US elected a male chauvinist pig over a qualified and well-established female politician for President, while the Brit's elected a woman Prime Minister, more than once and has a history of powerful Queens. Probably because of the Queens.)

So, I don't really think it matters all that much from a cultural perspective which gender plays Doctor Who. Also, it may be a big deal to the Brits, but it isn't to most Americans. Again, see Starbuck and Riley.

2. Wonder Woman Highest Grossing DCEU Movie in US

DCEU - means DC Universe.

Hardly surprising considering how horrible the previous three DC movies were. I saw two of them, it was like watching a video game. Actually that's been my problem with a lot of superhero films...I feel like I'm watching a video game. The last two Avengers films felt that way. I much preferred Captain America - Civil War.

3. Now I want to see the new Spiderman movie Sigh. -- also the kid playing Spiderman appears to be a Brit? I do however like Michel Keaton being cast as the Vulture, and how they are rendering the villain as sort of a poor man's Tony Stark, who much like Stark is salvaging weapons to make the world better.

4. Six Girls Denied Travel Visas for an international robotics competition

A team of six girls from Afghanistan has been denied travel visas to the United States, where they were hoping to compete in an international robotics competition with other STEM kids from around the world. The girls traveled twice to the U.S. embassy in Kabul, which is more than 500 miles from their hometown of Herat, to interview for their 7-day visas, and they were denied both times without explanation.

The evil things we do in the name of fear and security.

5. PG Films From Yesteryear , Wow a Lot of PG Films Were Really Screwed up

I'm guessing whomever made this video hasn't been watching television in the past few years? Because seriously, the stuff on tv right now is worse than what is shown in those films.

6. The Book Will Change Your Life - Victor Hugos Les Miserables

Now, I feel this overwhelming desire to read Les Miserables. It was short lived. I'm going to read the third volume in the Captive Prince trilogy entitled "King's Rising" instead. (This is a m/m fantasy series...in which the first few chapters had once been posted online in livejournal, prior to being published.)

7. The daily dot...headline... that made me chuckle aloud... All evidence to the guantry, "There is no way this guy was masturbating when a volcano killed him." Hehehhehe.

8.
House Bill Puts Together a Commission to Determine if Trump is Fit for Office

Well about bloody time. Although the fact that they require a commission to determine it is rather perplexing. All they need to do is read his twitter account and interactions with, well, just about everyone.

9. I give up. I was scrolling through The Mary Sue and Daily Dot looking for a great quote that I found on why virginity doesn't exist and can't be proven. But alas cannot find it. It was in association with the whole virginity auction bit that apparently was a big plot point in Big Little Lies. The gist? Most women break their hymen riding bikes, playing soccer, or riding horses. Also it rules out other types of sex that have nothing to do with vaginal penetration. So, you really can't prove someone is a virgin. It's impossible and also meaningless.

But something that is deeply ingrained in our culture, and with little to no positive value. It's been used to demean and shame women (and to a degree men) by both genders, and across the divide. You'd think we would evolve to a point in which we did not use this to demean one another, but alas no.

I find this interesting because as you know I've been reading historical and contemporary romance novels, and in all of them, virginity comes up as a plot point or a subject for discussion. I've also seen off and on -- online --- it being used to shame people in fandoms. "What are you, a Virgin?" as if that's a crime or something. Or "you slut!" Which seems silly in this day and age.

I honestly don't care what people do in the privacy of their homes, as long as no one is being hurt and it is all consensual.

10. PS: The Defender's Trailer looks fantastic. Danny and Powerman buddy team, and Jessica Jones and Daredevil buddy team. I adore Jessica Jones. She's my favorite. We need a S2 JJ and a S3 Daredevil.

I also want a spin-off with Collen Wing, Clair, Electra, and Misty.