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Rurôni Kenshin: Meiji kenkaku romantan (2023)
Great re-imagining, but..
The voices are all wrong. Otherwise, it's great. The newer production detail really shows, and feels fresh.
However, it was very disappointing when characters talk. It simultaneously saddens and annoys me, and that's why I have it a 7/10. It would be an 8 or 9 if I got further into the story. If the characters were at least relative to the originals, it wouldn't take me out of the immersion. Meanwhile, all of the original English cast are all alive and very active in the voice acting industry to this day, so it's confusing why they chose to replace the entire cast.
The situation feels quite similar to how Attack on Titan made me feel. When AoT was made by the original studio literally the entire production, and then switched studios for the final season. Suddenly, the art style changed quite aggressively, and I was confused most of the time because I had no idea which characters were on-screen anymore until the characters used each other's names. The way I feel is if I went blind, I would have no idea who I'm listening to on the new Kenshin.
Most people seem to love it for the nostalgia, but the story doesn't feel the same without the powerful actors behind the characters.
Obi-Wan Kenobi (2022)
Not bad, but not great
The show isn't bad, but it wasn't particularly captivating either. The story of the Inquisitors isn't very appealing, and the characters aren't the best. The story helps explain why Ben Kenobi knows Leia, but the child is way too involved. The best scenes were clearly between Obi-Wan and Darth Vader, and rehashing old memories that improved the story a bit. Besides, Lucas made it seem like Obi-Wan never left Tatooine for 20 years to remain hidden from the Empire, but Disney makes him go on a notorious excursion getting hunted the whole time and miraculously eludes certain capture. However, this was enough. I know Disney wants to milk Star Wars for everything it's worth, but this will certainly suffice for Kenobi.
The Terminal List (2022)
One of the best thrillers out of Amazon studios.
Chris Pratt's best performance since he becsme prime time for his role as Star Lord. He emulates James Reece very well, and his expressions are on point re-enacting a hardened Navy SEAL having endured insurmountable suffering. Reece himself has lost his will to live, but he's not ready to die until he's gotten revenge on each and every piece of scum that played a role in the death and suffering of his Brothers in arms and his loved ones.
That said, the show definitely departs from the book, so I'd recommend reading the book first to fully understand the heart and soul behind the show. However, despite that, the show portrays some brief moments of TV-MA brutality that I was wholly expecting from the beginning, and I'm glad Jack Carr didn't allow the writers and co-producers to neuter the show until it was a shell. I look forward to at least 4 more seasons, or however many more tales that await James Reece!
The Pentaverate (2022)
Misses the mark
Loved Mike Myers, love his older works, but I just find this one a bit weird. One episode was honestly enough for me. I had to see some reviews prior because I was waiting years for something more than an Austin Powers/Doctor Evil cameo, so I decided to watch despite the negativity.
My favorite part is his signature by portraying so many characters at the same time, but amplifies it tenfold. I literally forget that he's talking to his other characters in all of his scenes, and it also highlights how much work that goes into his costumes and personas that he creates.
However, I felt oddly disconnected and indifferent through 2/10 punchlines. There was some stale parts like the Canadian characters, and they let you know they're Canadian by their poorly chosen Canadian attire, at least one "soorry" joke, and their overly exaggerated accents. Secret organizations aren't exactly funny, either, and the conspiracy theory plot was a bit left-field. The jokes did seem a bit predictable, and some of the more covert jokes are immediately explained which causes the joke to lose all of its momentum. There was a brief and random dig at MAGA people with the Alex Jones reference, and I sort of wondered why it was even there because that whole scene didn't really have any jokes at all.
I don't really know who their target adult audience is, but I invested way more time writing a modestly negative review than sitting through any other episodes. All I can say is, don't get your hopes too high, and you won't be disappointed.. but you probably will anyways.