Alice in Borderland

Hello y’all!
Today I bring a show with a funky Battle Royal vibe that is based on a graphic novel. It’s one of those things where I saw a ton of content on tumblr, so of course I had to check it out!

The Plot (as found on RT):

Arisu—a listless, jobless and video-game-obsessed young man—suddenly finds himself in a strange, emptied-out version of Tokyo in which he and his friends must compete in dangerous games in order to survive. In this strange world, Arisu meets Usagi, a young woman who’s navigating the games alone. Together, they set out to unravel one mystery after another as they risk their lives and confront what it means to live.

Alice in Borderland on RT

The Rating:

I. Am. Fascinated!
This show surprised me, thrilled me, mesmerized me. The games the protagonists have to play are well thought out and I enjoyed trying to come up with solutions myself. I just love a show that is smart and also treats its audience like we have two braincells.

The show was renewed for a second season so I’m not surprised that the mystery behind what kicked off the series had not yet been revealed. I’m very curious though if we will actually find out or if they just never tell us. Since I haven’t read the graphic novel I don’t know there actually is a background to that. I mean, I could just google it but I’d rather just wait for season two spoiler-free. 😅

Book vs. TV Show: The Witcher (Season 2)

Hello, guys!
I binge-read all the Witcher books right after season 1 came out. You can imagine how sad I was that season 2 was delayed. Well, it’s finally here, so time to compare it to the novels!

The Plot for Blood of Elves (as found on Goodreads):

For over a century, humans, dwarves, gnomes, and elves have lived together in relative peace. But times have changed, the uneasy peace is over, and now the races are fighting once again. The only good elf, it seems, is a dead elf.

Geralt of Rivia, the cunning assassin known as The Witcher, has been waiting for the birth of a prophesied child. This child has the power to change the world – for good, or for evil.

As the threat of war hangs over the land and the child is hunted for her extraordinary powers, it will become Geralt’s responsibility to protect them all – and the Witcher never accepts defeat.

The Witcher on RT

Book vs. TV Show:

Guys. Guys. GUYS. I hope you were just as excited as I was when the second Witcher season finally dropped. I know the first season wasn’t without its flaws but I had a great time watching it, so – of course – I binged the second one the day it came out.

What I can say right off the bat, I know many people had *a lot* of issues with this season, but I enjoyed it. Sure, I bitched about a bunch of stuff while watching it, but that doesn’t mean I didn’t like it. We started off with an adaptation of one of the short stories. Since in the book Ciri wasn’t in that, they had to rewrite it a bit but overall this was amazing. The acting was great, the CGI on point. Two thumbs for that. We certainly were off to a great start. Not just in terms of the show but just in terms of book-to-screen adaptations in general, this was really well done!

Lucifer: Season 6 – A Review

The Plot (according to Rotten Tomatoes):

Based on characters created by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth and Mike Dringenberg, this series follows Lucifer, the original fallen angel, who has become dissatisfied with his life in hell. After abandoning his throne and retiring to Los Angeles, Lucifer indulges in his favorite things (women, wine and song) — until a murder takes place outside of his upscale nightclub. For the first time in billions of years, the murder awakens something unfamiliar in Lucifer’s soul that is eerily similar to compassion and sympathy. Lucifer is faced with another surprise when he meets an intriguing homicide detective named Chloe, who appears to possess an inherent goodness — unlike the worst of humanity, to which he is accustomed. Suddenly, Lucifer starts to wonder if there is hope for his soul.

Lucifer on RT

The Rating:

Okay guys, we made it to the sixth and final season of Lucifer. At this point it is basically impossible to discuss what’s going on without spoilers, so click the *read more* tag at your own risk!

What I can say without giving anything away is that I tremendously enjoyed the season and thought that it made a worthy end to the show. The writing was great, the acting impeccable. The story comes with twists and surprises. I’ve grown to love the cast so much and the writers really managed to pull at our heartstrings with this season – and not just because I know that there won’t be more.

Squid Game

Hey y’all!
Everybody and their grandma were talking about this show a little while ago. As usual, I am late to the party but I finally checked out Squid Game!

The Plot (according to RT):

Hundreds of cash-strapped contestants accept an invitation to compete in children’s games for a tempting prize, but the stakes are deadly.

Squid Game on RT

The Rating:

Okay, this was certainly interesting. I was all in at the beginning of the show but they lost me a bit along the way. Hear me out! I was definitely intrigued by the exploration of the darkness inside people. They stared the ugliness of greed and (gambling) addiction in the face and showed how far people will go. That part was really well written and made you want to see more.

The Squid Games themselves were mysterious and I was beyond curious to learn the background. Just the games they picked along the way were enough to keep me watching. What would they choose next? And then they hit you with the marbles episode and your heart is ripped out. I hadn’t seen that coming and goddamn that was well written. I think we can all agree that the acting was also absolutely on point. There wasn’t a single performance in the show I wouldn’t give a thumbs up.

However, we need to talk about some stuff I wasn’t too fond of. That will include loads of spoilers, so click the *read more* only if you are prepared for that!

A Boy Called Christmas

Hello, hello!
For today’s Christmas movie review, I bring you a brand spanking new release. A Boy Called Christmas hit Netflix this year and after seeing the trailer, of course, I couldn’t skip it!

The Plot (as found on Rotten Tomatoes):

An ordinary young boy called Nikolas sets out on an extraordinary adventure into the snowy north in search of his father who is on a quest to discover the fabled village of the elves, Elfhelm. Taking with him a headstrong reindeer called Blitzen and a loyal pet mouse, Nikolas soon meets his destiny in this magical, comic and endearing story that proves nothing is impossible.

A Boy Called Christmas on RT

The Rating:

This movie definitely wasn’t on my radar but when I opened Netflix and saw Maggie Smith looking back at me, I knew I had to check it out. It is not the most amazing Christmas film I have ever seen, but it certainly is a cute flick and I enjoyed watching it.

I absolutely love Maggie Smith (who is telling the story), her character almost reminded me a bit of the dowager in Downton Abbey. This was a layer they didn’t have to include the movie would have been long enough and would have had enough of a story with just the tale she tells but I like that we get this frame. It did make me chuckle a few times, and that’s always appreciated!

This is your typical Christmas movie in as far as you can tell where the story is going to end approximately two minutes in. But the film is cute enough that I really don’t mind. There are some interesting (and even dark) twists to the story that are somewhat unusual for a movie that appears to be geared towards little kids in most other regards. I like that they did try to do a bunch of different stuff here!

Halloween/ TMP Television Edition: Horror

Hey, guys!
Welcome to another entry for Thursday Movie Picks.
It’s a series hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves, so if you want to join the party, head over to her blog! It’s pretty easy: check out each week’s topic and come up with 3 to 5 movies that fit the theme.
We’ve made it to the last Thursday of October and to the last Halloween TMP for this year. It’s all about horror TV shows today!

#1 Stranger Things

I was a bit late to the party with Stranger Things but it’s such a cool show! It definitely has horror elements and I can’t believe I never picked it before. Also, the new season is coming soon and I’m very excited about that!

#2 The Haunting of Hill House

This is such a good adaptation! I didn’t really like the book The Haunting of Hill House, but Netflix really nailed the horror vibe with the show!