tv echo

Here's my take on Man of Steel. I really liked the origin story and even how Clark tries to hide himself in menial jobs all over the world. I thought Henry Cavill and Amy Adams had little or no chemistry together (and I like Amy Adams). However, I hated most of all the big fighting sequence toward the end, especially when he and Zod destroy tons of buildings (and probably kill hundreds of people) while they're fighting from Smallville to Metropolis. Clark agonizes over killing one person, Zod, at the end - but he probably killed a lot of people when he was flying through and destroying those buildings when he was chasing Zod and then fighting with Zod. That's what I remember, anyway. I'm in the minority, but I liked Thor. I thought Chris Hemsworth is a good actor and added depth and layers to a very colorful character that could easily become too cartoony. A big flaw of that movie, in my opinion, was the miscasting of Natalie Portman, who acted like a giggly school girl and had zero chemistry with CH.

https://www.facebook.com/colindonnell Odd that Colin doesn't mention KC, considering that she played his love interest when he was on the show. Maybe she wasn't on set when he was shooting, but stuff like this just contributes to the rumors that KC didn't get along with the rest of the cast.

I agree that Felicity has had some character development (as analyzed above), partly due to EBR's acting, but needs more back story. What I don't like is that, if she has reduced screen time, she's criticized as being a 2-D character or comic relief, but if she gets more screen time, she's criticized for that as well. (If you like Jensen Ackles' development as an actor, watch his early work in Dark Angel, Season 2. He was compelling even then.)

Thanks to shadow2008 for posting that "Arrow: 31 Things To Know About Season 3" article link. That was a very nice compilation of Season 3 spoilers. I too find that Laurel identity theme rather puzzling. Laurel's the older sister to Sara. It's usually the younger sister who either tries to be more like, or tries to find a separate identity from, the older sister, not the other way around. I do like the statement that Thea and Felicity may each get their own centric episode at some point. A Thea-centric episode will probably be universally loved, while a Felicity-centric episode will probably have some fans complaining about "pandering." It's funny but Thea, Diggle and Sara are not in the comics either (from the Green Arrow/Black Canary era), yet when they get character-centric episodes, there's no such complaint. I found GB's comment about BR's being Cary Grant to SA's John Wayne really interesting. Personally, I like the opposites attract theory. Post-island Oliver is broody, stoic and reserved, while Felicity is chatty and funny (one dark, one light). Barry and Felicity were too much alike (two lights). Ray sounds like he'll be too much like Felicity as well (two lights). I also find that MG statement quite ambiguous. After 5 nightmarish years (half of which we haven't seen yet), Oliver probably still has a lot of anger and rage buried inside him. That won't disappear overnight. Maybe he realizes that he himself could be dangerous to Felicity and tells her that she should not put her life on hold for him. There was a spoiler that after Oliver and Felicity have their talk, she goes off to Central City. Maybe in reaction, she goes off to see if there's anything with Barry that will help her get over Oliver and they end up talking as friends, and he helps her reach a decision about what to do about Oliver. After two seasons where Oliver goes from woman to woman while Felicity kinda pines after him, will we now have a season where Oliver nobly steps back and has to watch Ray pursue Felicity? Well, J.R. Ramirez is certainly attractive. Yes, Ted Grant probably will train Laurel and be her love interest. With his underprivileged kids, he'll be a great guy and will probably make her more likeable. Maybe he'll get killed (and bequeath his gym to Laurel), thus spurring Laurel's superhero journey forward. I agree that Orion's PR analysis is brilliant and makes a lot of sense. Yes, I'm also now being suckered into wanting to buy the digital comics when they come out in September.

Backstage with the Cast at Comic-Con: The Walking Dead: Season 5

A bit spoilery... "Walking Dead" Season 5 Preview at Comic-Con 2014 - TVLine

I don't think these have been posted here yet - the vids below were published on YouTube by 3HeadedMonkey on 7/26/14 (sorry, I don't know how to reduce these videos to a word link): Comic Con 2014 Once Upon a Time Panel Clip 1 Comic Con 2014 Once Upon a Time Panel Clip 2 Comic Con 2014 Once Upon a Time Panel Clip 3 Comic Con 2014 Once Upon a Time Panel Clip 4

I really hope that they don't use the Lazarus Pits and make Ra's al Ghul a younger guy - who could then be a potential love interest for one of the ladies on the show. That would just make it too CW for me and completely diminish the Ra's al Ghul character.

Equal time for DC from SDCC 2014 (two different videos of same intro). Ben Affleck must've been working out because he looks bigger than Henry Cavill, and Gal Gadot looks like a cross between Angelina Jolie and Ashley Judd... TFP Comic Con 2014: BATMAN v SUPERMAN (Panel Footage) BATMAN V SUPERMAN Panel, Comic Con 2014; feat: ZACK SNYDER, BEN AFFLICK, HENRY CAVILL

John Barrowman Interview - Arrow Season 3 John Barrowman "Arrow" Interview at Comic-Con 2014 - TVLine

A little spoilery... Some video clips from the Sleepy Hollow panel at SDCC 2014: Tom Mison and Nicole Beharie "Sleepy Hollow" Interview Nicole Beharie and Tom Mison on the overwhelming fan response for 'Sleepy Hollow' Comic-Con 2014: Panel | SLEEPY HOLLOW | FOX BROADCASTING https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxdU7rxuPnM

Lenny will probably win, but I still find him and Sarah really fake.

From SDCC 2014: Ben McKenzie says 'Gotham' is the opposite of the original Batman Cast of Gotham Talks Batman's Origins - Comic Con 2014 "Gotham" Interview at Comic-Con 2014 - TVLine

I find Lexi's fake blonde hair very off-putting. Wasn't the half-alien child in the old V series also cocooned and transformed? The dream scene of Ben and Maggie made me want to gag. The age gap was really apparent. I would feel the same if Maggie was a guy and Ben & Hal were girls. I also really hate brother-swapping (or sister-swapping). When Tom was defending Lexi against the mob and said that he would do the same for anyone else, he was lying. A minute later, when Hal confronts him about killing Karen, Tom says 'but Lexi's your sister'. So clearly, Tom is willing to kill someone who's a danger as long as that person isn't a Mason.

Ben McKenzie says 'Gotham' is the opposite of the original Batman Cast of Gotham Talks Batman's Origins - Comic Con 2014 "Gotham" Interview at Comic-Con 2014 - TVLine

I remember watching an earlier interview with EBR (on Youtube) when she said that she found herself taking on more characteristics of Felicity the longer she played her. You have to remember she's only 23 and relatively new to acting and stardom. Felicity is older than EBR. Brandon Routh is 34, SA is 33, and GG is 24. So to EBR, BR would seem like a man while GG seems like a boy her age.

I've been watching the comic con interviews and there were two things that SA said that really struck me. In one interview (SDCC Arrow panel or DC WB panel), someone asked him if Oliver was going to be the sarcastic Oliver Queen of the comics. SA answered something like Oliver's character has to change over the course of the series - he can't start off as a cartoon character and remain static. It's about a journey - his character changes from pre-island Oliver to vigilante to Arrow and eventually to Green Arrow. In another interview (Nerd HQ), SA said that he doesn't care if you love or hate Oliver, as long as you aren't indifferent. So if Oliver is going to be a realistic, three-dimensional character, then he'll do stupid things, learn from his mistakes, and evolve into a better human being.

In that Nerd HQ interview, I liked that SA said that his favorite Olicity scene, aside from one in the Season 3 premiere, was the first scene that he shot with EBR (his first guest star) and also that that scene will be referenced in the Season 3 premiere. SA is a funny and charming guy, OK, it's no secret that I don't like the Laurel character, but I can understand why AK feels that KC and WH need to be 'rewarded'. When Arrow first debuted, it was pretty clear that Laurel was intended to be both the hero's main love interest and the future Black Canary. However, as Season 1 transitioned into Season 2, a new character, Sara Lance (CL), became both Oliver's love interest and the Canary, and in Season 3, an originally recurring character, Felicity (EBR), will be Oliver's love interest. Laurel did get a lot of story lines in the past two seasons, though, so I don't think KC's being rewarded for getting messed up story lines. I think she's getting rewarded for having her character's original role usurped by other characters. On the other hand, WH's character, Thea, who was also an original cast member, has had reduced screen time in Season 2, so I think WH is being rewarded for that. Using AK's baseball analogy, KC and WH signed on to the show to be the starting first baseman and shortstop, respectively (SA is the pitcher), but KC was switched around to different positions around the field, while WH was reduced to a benchwarmer who came off the bench from time to time. Now while I may disagree on whether or not an actress hit a single, double or homer, AK seems pretty loyal to his cast. So maybe he's just saying that he believes they give 100% with what they're given. I'm sorry to hear that some Laurel/KC fans are villifying SA for saying what he said. My response is that no one is forcing you to watch the show. If you don't like what's happening, change the channel, If the show ever stops being enjoyable for me, I'll just stop watching it. The comic book canon offense/defense argument really makes no sense. Comic book "canon" changes. As already noted ad nauseum, Black Canary isn't even connected to Green Arrow in the comic books any more. Also, did you see the recent Marvel comic headlines about changes to Thor and Captain America? So comic book canon is not inviolable.

A little spoilery so I'm putting it here... EP Andrew Kreisberg talks about Season 3 at SDCC 2014 (video link below). -- This season is all about human identity. Can Oliver be both the Arrow and Oliver Queen? The O/F date is a "microcosm" of that season-long struggle for him. -- The episode where Felicity crosses over to The Flash "comes at a point when Felicity and Oliver have had a discussion" and "she finds it's the right time for her to take a trip to Central City". -- As bad as the date is, Felicity says "I've had worse" and "the way Emily delivers the line, you're almost not sure if she's kidding". -- We meet Katana in the premiere episode, and AK loves her new costume. -- We meet Ray Palmer, played by Brandon Routh, "who we know one day becomes The Atom". -- Because of their familial losses (son Tommy, mother Moira), "the three of them [Malcolm, Thea and Oliver] are sort of the only family they have left, in an odd way... it's a really messed up family". -- -- This season is a "reward" to KC and WH for being a "team player" in past seasons. AK feels that both WH and KC have been "such amazing team players" and "whenever we needed them to hit a double or a triple, they both of them hit grand slams.... This season in a way is their reward" and "for the audience as well who have been impatient for some aspects of both of their characters, that this season is really going to see people excited for their character journeys". -- CL is booked for 3 episodes, they just came up with a 4th, and there's always the possibility of more. -- Last year they started doing flashbacks out of sequence. They'll be doing even more of those flashbacks this season. Flashbacks will include Felicity when she's in college. Arrow Season 3: What To Expect

Some more video tidbits from SDCC .... Paul Blackthorne Interview - Arrow Season 3 Colton Haynes Interview - Arrow Season 3 Colton Haynes "Arrow" Talks Arsenal Outfit & Future with Thea - Comic-Con 2014 Willa Holland "Arrow" Talks Thea's Return - Comic Con 2014

I was going to put this in the Public Appearances thread, except SA says something about Episode 1 of Season 3: Stephen Amell "Arrow" Talks Oliver/Felicity Relationship & IVs - Comic-Con 2014

Arrow Cast Interview - Roy Harper, Felicity Smoak, and Thea Queen - Comic Con 2014 Arrow Cast Interview - Black Canary, John Diggle, and Detective Lance - Comic Con 2014

For anyone who's interested (no Arrow actors on this panel)... Comic Con 2014: TV Guide Fan Favorites, Part 1 Comic Con 2014: TV Guide Fan Favorites, Part 2

Includes some spoilery stuff... "Sleepy Hollow" Season 2 Preview at Comic-Con 2014 - TVLine

My correction: The actress playing Wonder Woman, Gal Gadot, is contracted to appear in the Batman v. Superman movie, a solo Wonder Woman movie, and probably the Justice League movie. http://www.hypable.com/2014/07/26/first-look-gal-gadot-wonder-woman-batman-v-superman/ Kate Bosworth played Lois Lane in Superman Returns.