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After a stellar first season of Shadow and Bone, it's safe to say that expectations were high once the series was renewed, and I fully expected to love Season 2. Unfortunately, a promising first few episodes quickly yield to a messy sophomore effort that jams too many storylines in at once and gives away far too much, too quickly.
While Season 1 did a fantastic job of combining Leigh Bardugo's novels, Shadow and Bone and Six of Crows, Season 2 crams in the plotlines of no less than six of her Grishaverse works — including not only Shadow and Bone but the other two books in the trilogy, Storm and Siege and Ruin and Rising, both of the Crows books, Six of Crows and Crooked Kingdom, as well as parts of King of Scars and The Lives of Saints. While these are all wonderful books (especially the Crows duology), it's a shame that the stories are all combined into one season, which leaves little time to fully appreciate what's going on in one plot before we're whisked off to a different one entirely.
That's not to say that Season 2 doesn't lend itself to truly awesome scenes. The Darkling's (Ben Barnes) return is both epic and badass. He's the villain of the story, but it's hard not to be thrilled that he didn't really die from a volcra attack at the end of Season 1. He's more menacing and more unhinged than he's ever been before, and he's hell-bent on revenge. Even then, Barnes' portrayal has a trace of humanity that makes you almost root for him, even when he's doing terrible things.
There's the main star of the show, of course, in Alina (Jessie Mei Li). After learning to own her power in the first season, she's hungry for more. This season sees her on the hunt for not one, but two of Morozova's legendary amplifiers, the Sea Whip and the Firebird. Once she learns that the Darkling has survived, she's even more determined to tear down the Fold and defeat him for good.
Among the season's new characters are the privateer and adventurer Sturmhond, aka the prince of Ravka, Nikolai (Patrick Gibson), as well as the warrior twins Tolya (Lewis Tan) and Tamar (Anna Leong Brophy). Each of their entrances to the series makes you want to cheer; they're perfectly cast, almost exactly as you likely pictured them in the books.
The relationship between Jesper and Wylan (Wesper, for the shippers out there) is a fan-favorite part of the Crows duology, but in Netflix's version, there is no such thing as a slow burn. In fact, when we first encounter Wylan, we quickly learn that he and Jesper have met before; not only that, they've already spent a night together. This is a huge departure from the books, and it's beyond disappointing not to see the affection between them slowly build across the season.
There is so much happening in this season, distraction is not necessarily a good thing. Alina and Mal join with Nikolai, Tolya, Tamar, and others to try to find the last two amplifiers and defeat the Darkling. At the same time, Kirigan is building his own army of Grisha and wielding the deadly shadow monsters he created in the Fold, called nichevo'ya. Meanwhile, in Ketterdam, our beloved Crows are in a battle for control of the Barrel, and at the same time, find themselves tasked with yet another heist for the Sun Summoner. It's tough to summarize Season 2 with so much happening.
Despite all the setbacks, there are some flashes of brilliance in Season 2. The first episode, directed by Bola Ogun, is what I wish the whole season had been like. The initial appearances of all the characters, both returning and new, are well done, and the choice to include animated maps of Ravka, Novyi Zem, and Ketterdam is also a nice touch. Where this season of Shadow and Bone all goes awry is in Episode 3, when too many stories begin to be told simultaneously.
Episode 7 reintroduces a glimmer of hope for awesomeness with a few kickass battle sequences, but the finale throws in some unexpected curveballs, including a few WTF events that may leave fans more confused than delighted. Overall, Shadow and Bone Season 2 is more of a lackluster and uneven follow-up, but still remains an entertaining ride from start to finish.
Despite the potential to build on the strong foundation set by Season 1, the Shadow and Bone series falters in Season 2, weighed down by too many plots, overacting, and rushed character development. Despite this, the incredible visuals and exciting action sequences make it an entertaining watch. Fans of the Grishaverse will still appreciate the nods to the books and the breathtaking cinematography, even if it's not as good as it should have been.
Shadow and Bone Season 2 premiered on March 16, 2022, on Netflix.
Credit: https://collider.com/shadow-and-bone-season-2-review/
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Miley Cyrus’s eighth studio album, "Endless Summer Vacation," was leaked a day before its official release, indicating the high level of anticipation surrounding its launch.
The lead single "Flowers," from Endless Summer Vacation, has topped charts worldwide for seven weeks and has been widely analyzed by the media and fans searching for allusions to Cyrus’s ex-husband.
Throughout her career, Cyrus has oscillated between two impulses: to be a 21st-century pop star making electronic hits, or to be a more traditional or experimental artist whose records reflect the qualities of her voice.
Her new album attempts to combine these two competing impulses more effectively.
"Endless Summer Vacation" features well-written pop songs styled with arrangements, such as acoustic guitars, live recorded rhythm tracks, pianos, and soft synthesizer tones, reminiscent of mid-1970s LA.
The first half of the album largely maintains this sound.
However, the second half demonstrates a shift in instrumentation toward electronics, while still preserving the hazy mood.
The album frequently plays with the well-worn trick of seeding songs with apparent real-life allusions, and songs such as "Jaded" and "Rose Colored Lenses" follow this trend.
The album is divided into two parts, and although it loses steam towards the end with tracks like "Island" and "Wildcard," it does not feel like a pop star going through the motions or ticking boxes.
Endless Summer Vacation showcases Cyrus’s naturalness, flow, and charm, with songs like "Flowers," "Thousand Miles," and "Midnight Sky" highlighting her husky vocal qualities.
In short, it is a well-crafted album that combines Cyrus’s different impulses successfully.
Credit: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/mar/10/miley-cyrus-endless-summer-vacation-review
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The second season of "Sex/Life" sees Billie adjusting to her new life after separating from her husband, with a new man on the scene named Majid.
The show continues to offer plenty of sex scenes, although some are more pornographic and less believable than others.
In one elevator scene, the two characters have sex before they even reach their floor, while in another flashback moment, Brad fantasizes about a humorous conversation with Billie.
The show also features a lot of cunnilingus, and in one scene, Majid seems to experience prostate stimulation despite the questionable positioning of Billie's hand.
Despite its flaws, the show is still regarded as a steamy drama offering plenty of sexual tension.
Credit: https://slate.com/culture/2023/03/sex-life-season-2-netflix-sarah-shahi-reviews.html
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Austin Butler Possibly Starring in Michael Mann's "Heat" Sequel?
Recently, there have been rumors of Austin Butler potentially playing a role in Michael Mann's "Heat" sequel.
On the WTF podcast, Butler was a guest and briefly discussed seeing "Heat" again and putting Michael Mann's "Thief" on his list of movies to watch.
This has sparked speculation that Butler has already been in talks with Mann for the Kilmer role in the sequel.
The "Heat" series has developed a large fanbase over the years, leading to an intense studio battle in acquiring the rights to the recently published novel in the saga.
Mann has confirmed he is turning the novel into a movie, adding that there was no worry of getting the necessary financing due to its standing among fans.
Mann finished shooting “Ferrari” last year and is still looking for an American distributor.
Sky Cinema has recently acquired the UK version of the film and will be releasing it later this year.
Christopher Nolan has been a vocal admirer of the film and held a special Q&A session with Mann, Robert DeNiro, and Al Pacino at Tribeca last year.
With all the buzz swirling around this project, casting won't be too far off.
Austin Butler could very well be in the running for the Kilmer role and make for a fitting candidate.
There is still much to be learned regarding Michael Mann's "Heat" sequel, however, the film is sure to bring a lot of hype.
With Nolan heavily involved and the eager anticipation of fans all over, it won't be long until the story of the "Heat" universe continues for another sequel.
Credit: https://www.worldofreel.com/blog/6h596q2lq85wrbroo24bwqqmaxwdtt
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The International Basketball Federation (FIBA) recently apologized to the talented young French star Victor Wembanyama after publishing an interview that he claimed was fake.
The article was removed from the organization's website and all related social media posts were taken down to acknowledge the player's doubts about the veracity of the "exclusive" interview.
Wembanyama took to his Instagram account to express his confusion and frustration, asking "4 days ago, FIBA published a FAKE interview of me.
WTF???". It has been reported that the player had only given an interview to the French national public television during the Les Bleus training camp, ahead of their upcoming World Cup Qualifiers.
Wembanyama is well known to be the favorite for the Number 1 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, and made his debut for the team in November.
During that time, he achieved an impressive 24 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 1.5 steals in wins over Bosnia and Lithuania.
In an attempt to make amends, FIBA stated that the article and accompanying social media posts had been promptly deleted once doubts were expressed by Wembanyama, and stressed the difficulty behind confirming whether the interview was authentic or not.
The organization then issued a formal apology to the player, and sincerely hoped that no further actions were necessary in order to repair any damaged relationships.
Credit: https://www.eurohoops.net/en/fiba/1466347/fiba-apologizes-to-victor-wembanyama-after-accusation-of-publishing-fake-interview/
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The last night's commitment ceremony on Married At First Sight was a mix of emotions - and it was Melissa and Josh that stole the spotlight, though, not in a good way.
Melissa told Kyle and Jackie O on the radio show that it seemed like Josh was two different people during their time together, one who'd be so kind to her face and another who would breakdown alone.
Additionally, Josh had hinted at Melissa being too controlling while they lived together.
During the ceremony, Melissa had mentioned not feeling satisfied with the couple's sex life, leaving Josh visibly upset.
Despite her changing her mind and wanting to remain in the relationship with Josh, the experts decided it was not to be.
Melissa revealed she was heartbroken by the turn of events, while Josh told 9Entertainment he had fears about whether he was enough for her.
On Nova's Fitzy and Wippa, Josh added he was dismayed to see Melissa facing harassment because of the show and said she shouldn't be punched down on.
He also said he had a brief conversation with her the morning after the ceremony but hadn't heard from her since.
Credit: <a
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Nigerian Grammy award-winning artiste and record producer, Burna Boy has recently mourned his colleague AKA.
It should be recalled that on the 10th of February, the South African rapper, Kiernan Jarryd Forbes fondly known as AKA was shot dead in front of a restaurant in Durban, South Africa.
In a recent post Burna Boy, took to his Insta story to mourn the singer. According to the "Last Last" singer, he admitted that although he and the South African rapper were not on good terms, he never wished him dead.
Burna wrote; "WTF is all of that about/ I just heard he died, seen that video at that restaurant/Took me out of a positive mood/ Took me back to that day when you saw me and you said I was wild/ Then I told you you should have one too/ Cuz it wasn't like niggaz wasn't dying but I thought you knew/ And I ain't fuck wit you/ But I didn't want you dead, it was like that with me and you/ Wicked!/I hope they catch whoever did you wicked/ I hope you rest in peace, even though we ain't kick it/ At the end of the day we some grown ass niggaz.
Burna Boy and AKA have been good friends during the early stage of their careers. In 2015, they released a track called "Baddest". Although, the duo's friendship came to an end after AKA gave unpleasant remarks about Nigerians during the xenophobic attacks in 2019.
The rapper's comment made Burna Boy cut ties with the singer and stopped him from visiting South Africa.
Read the original article on Daily Trust.
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Credit: https://allafrica.com/stories/202302170014.html
Afrobeats singer, Damini Ogulu, popularly known as Burna Boy, has expressed shock over the death of South African Rapper, Kiernan Forbes alias AKA.
Ogulu took to his Instagram stories where he shared an unreleased track in which he sang about the tragic death of the artiste.
According to him, he had advised AKA to purchase a gun after the latter had called him “wild” for owning one.
“WTF is all of that about? I just heard he died, seen that video at that restaurant. Took me out of a positive mood/ Took me back to that day when you saw my gun and you said I was wild/ Then I told you you should have one too,” he sang.
The ‘Last Last’ singer also referenced his beef with the rapper and stated that despite their differences, he never wanted him dead.
“Wicked! I hope they catch whoever did you wicked/ I hope you rest in peace, even though we ain’t kick it/ At the end of the day we some grown ass ni**az,” he continued.
At the height of the 2019 xenophobic attacks on Nigerians and other Africans in South Africa, Burna Boy condemned the act and threatened not to step foot in the country.
However, the issue escalated into a spat between him and the South African rapper on Twitter.
In a now-deleted tweet, Burna Boy had threatened AKA and asked the rapper to beef up his security.
“Next time, I see you, you better have a big security bro, on Gambo’s Grave, ur gunna need it(sic),” he wrote.
The South African artiste was shot dead in a drive-by attack at a restaurant in Durban, South Africa. His longtime friend, Tebello ‘Tibz’ Motsoane, was also killed in the shooting.
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Credit: https://punchng.com/i-advised-aka-to-buy-gun-for-defence-burna-boy/
Philo (played by Orlando Bloom) and Vignette (Cara Delevingne) are finally back on screens this week with a second season of Carnival Row premiering on Prime Video on Friday. This highly anticipated follow-up will bring an end to the epic fantasy crime series, and Express.co.uk exclusively chatted with some key members of the cast about what to expect over the coming weeks.
Series regulars Arty Froushan and Caroline Ford promised the second season will step things up for Carnival Row after nearly four years of waiting for the final season.
The final outing will pick up after half-human human inspector Philo finally made his feelings for Vignette known and joined the ranks of the fae.
However, a series of gruesome murders stokes more turmoil in the Burgue while Vignette plots to strike back against human leaders Jonah Breakspear (Froushan) and Sophie Longerbane (Ford).
“We just can’t talk about this stuff without giving stuff away!” Froushan said of the show’s highly anticipated return.
READ MORE: BBC 'lines up' Alan Carr for new primetime show after BGT 'snub'
“But there are some pretty gory, eye-popping moments. Which you’ll have to wait and see.”
With a new mystery to solve and more monsters in the mix, Froushan confirmed new showrunner Erik Oleson stepped up to the plate with even more shocks and surprises for season two.
“It’s in a similar vein to the first season, but a lot more ‘WTF’,” he teased to Express.co.uk. “What can we say that doesn’t spill the beans?”
His co-star Ford replied: “That was a very good answer. But there are definitely twists and turns, some shocks to come, for sure, that people will not see coming.”
Froushan added: “There’s new worlds and parts of the world that you’ve never seen. You discover new corners of the universe and new creatures and monsters to go with it.”
“It’s incredible what they create,” Ford agreed. “There are a few scenes where you’re walking through the Row and you’re surrounded by creatures that they’ve made.
“It’s all prosthetics and makeup and costumes. There’s so many beasts that they actually make.”
However, Froushan did reveal there was some “tennis-ball acting” this time around, which probably refers to a larger CGI monster his co-stars Jay Ali and Jamie Harris have teased.
“The audience is going to love the new monster,” Harris said. “The monster in season two is a whole different beast from season one.
“He’s colourful, he’s beautiful. I don’t know about Jay, but I found him slightly seductive! I don’t know what it says about me but I loved it.”
Ali laughed and added: “Obviously when we shoot it, we don’t know exactly what it’s going to look like.
“It’s only where we saw a glimpse of some of the footage and saw what it was, I mean - it’s horrendous.
“And it’s really scary, it really is. And Nick [Dudman], who you all know from his work in Harry Potter, was the monster creator and just did a phenomenal job.
“When you see the brutality of how this monster kills, it’s shocking! When we do it it’s a guy holding a thing on a stick, but when you see it, it’s insane.”
Fans were disappointed when Prime Video announced the second season of Carnival Row would be the last, but the cast are confident the series will deliver a satisfying albeit violent conclusion over the coming weeks.
Carnival Row season 2 premieres Friday, February 17 on Amazon Prime Video.
Credit: https://www.express.co.uk/showbiz/tv-radio/1735650/Carnival-Row-season-2-monster-gory-finale
“Don’t go down to the woods today,” warns a newsreader at the beginning of “Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey,” a new micro-budget slasher which follows the story of A.A. Milne’s classic characters Pooh and Piglet – now out of copyright – after they’re abandoned by Christopher Robin when he goes off to college. Left to their own devices, the animals (which are supposed to be a combination of flesh and plush, director Rhys Frake-Waterfield tells Variety) starve before morphing into monstrous killers who lurk in the Hundred Acre Wood.
As Maria and her friends pitch up in a secluded cottage in the middle of Hundred Acre Wood, audiences know the women are going to be anything but safe. But even slasher fans may not anticipate quite how bonkers this movie, which opens in U.S. theaters today, really is.
Which is why Variety sat down with Frake-Waterfield and producer Scott Jeffrey to unpack some of the most WTF moments in the movie.
In the film’s animated opening credits audiences see Pooh and Piglet turn on their equine friend for sustenance. “I knew I was completely fine with killing [Eeyore] because he’s so hard to portray well cinematically,” says Frake-Waterfield. The director explains that to depict Eeyore on screen the options were to make him CG (“which on these budgets would look absolutely terrible”) or have two actors in a donkey suit. “So I thought, ‘Okay, he needs to die.'”
It doesn’t hurt that grumpy Eeyore is one of people’s least favorite characters. “He’s like the perfect one to die,” says Frake-Waterfield. “They wanted him put out of his misery because he’s just so glum and gloomy. So I thought he makes sense to kill early on.”
Chronically late Tina (played by May Kelly) is the last of her friends to drive into Hundred Acre Wood but the first to die after she stumbles into a creepy abandoned barn where she is swiftly dispatched by Pooh and his pal. Most of the scene was improvised, reveals Frake-Waterfield. “I got there, saw the space and then we were like, ‘Okay, we can’t do what I wanted to do,’” he says. But then they stumbled across the woodchipper and quickly re-worked the scene around it.
In the opening scenes, the audience sees a grown-up Christopher Robin and his wife Mary creeping around Pooh and Piglet’s ramshackle lair in the dark depths of Hundred Acre Wood. Between the blood, torture instruments and skulls strewn across the hideout there sits, somewhat incongruously, an exercise bike. Which Piglet hops on and starts pedalling. “We wanted to try and come up with a fun way to explain how this really rural isolated cabin had a little bit of electricity going around,” says Frake-Waterfield, who as it happens, used to work for an electricity supplier before becoming a director. “So that’s why he goes on the bike and generates the power at points.” Now you know.
While it’s easy to dismiss “Blood and Honey” as just another mindless slasher, Frake-Waterfield has peppered the film with symbolism. In one scene, where Piglet and Pooh chloroform Tosini in a hot tub before tying her up and running over her head with a car, the director deliberately chose to shackle the actor with a particular type of restraint. “I specifically wanted her to be hogtied because Piglet,” he says. “I thought it was a nice little link.”
Frake-Waterfield adds that originally, because the film was so constrained by time and budget, Tosini’s death was going to be off screen. “So you see the car bump over, but you don’t see any of the gore and the effects,” he says. “But I realized in the edit, it was about seven or eight minutes of build up and then when you don’t see anything after it’s a bit of a downer, because you want some sort of payoff. So the gore shots, they were all re-shot and they were a mixture of practical and VFX. We got the SFX artist to have her eyeball hanging out of her head from the pressure of the car. And then in VFX just squished it a little bit as the car wheel’s going there.”
They may once have been best friends but by the time Christopher Robin returns to Hundred Acre Wood there is no love lost between the tubby little cubby and his erstwhile owner. As demonstrated in the scene in which he strings Christopher up by his arms and repeatedly whips him with an instrument that eagle-eyed fans may notice looks uncannily like a donkey’s tail. “The rest of Eeyore’s dead, but they’ve kept [the tail] as a memento,” explains Frake-Waterfield. “Now he’s using that to like, punish Christopher.”
The director adds he’d planned to put a bow on the tail during the shoot but “I was running out of time on the day.” Instead, viewers should listen out for the faint sound of a donkey as Pooh selects which device to torture Christopher with. “That’s meant to just give you a little clue,” Frake-Waterfield says.
Giving us the poetic “blood and honey” of the film’s title, we see Piglet coat a woman’s face in honey before mauling it. “Piglet is a bit sadistic,” explains Frake-Waterfield. “So I kind of had this idea, with those scenes, that what would happen is Pooh would always put honey on her face and then Piglet would be using that to like maul and bite and eat off some of the honey along with some of her flesh. That’s like the blood and the honey mixing together.”
As befitting a culture obsessed with both wellness and turning kids’ cartoons into slasher films, there is also a more practical reason for the honey. “It’s got antibacterial properties,” the director says. “It kind of helps keep [the victims] fresher for longer.”
Jeffrey adds: “But also the honey is a bit like ketchup, do you know what I mean? It’s like what you’d dip your chips in sort of thing.”
Credit: https://variety.com/2023/film/global/winnie-the-pooh-blood-and-honey-spoilers-most-wtf-moments-1235511657/
