owlmoose | Monday Media Musings: 09/12/22

Top Gun: Maverick: I've seen the original of course, a few times I think, but it's not a deep and unshakeable part of my youth the way it is for many of my generation (including T). It's also been many years since I've seen it, but fortunately I was recently reminded of most of the major plot beats by Legal Eagle's video on all the laws Maverick broke (tl;dw: he's lucky if he's just in jail). Anyway, this movie is entirely a love letter to Top Gun, so if you like that movie, you should enjoy this one. I thought it was a bit silly, very predictable (I called a major twist at the end because "I have seen a movie before"), and riddled with plot holes and characters making ludicrous choices, but it tugged the heartstrings in the right time and places, so I found it worth watching, if impossible to take at all seriously.

She Hulk: Attorney at Law, Episodes 3-4: I'm continuing to enjoy this show. It's not particularly earth-shaking, but it's a fairly light comedy -- it doesn't need to be earth-shaking. I enjoy Jen a lot, her relationships with her work friends and with Wong are great, and the fourth-wall breaking asides work really well.

Thor: Love and Thunder: I admit, I'm not sure how to feel about this one. There was some fun stuff in here, but overall I found it a convoluted mess, mostly because its tone was all over the place. I was spoiled for Jane's cancer going in, so I didn't feel the whiplash from the fun romp vibe to the serious drama plot as jarring as I might have, but I still had a hard time playing along. Also, too much Korg, not enough Valkyrie -- the latter was a welcome presence, but I wanted her to get more of a character arc instead of feeling somewhat stuck in place. Maybe if we get another Thor movie. I will say that Brett Goldstein as Hercules is an inspired casting choice, so I hope he gets a real role later.