X-Men: First Class (2011)

So....was this a prequel or a reboot? I'm going to go with requel. We have 3 X-Men movies that are more less consistent, we have the X-Men Origins movie which messes up some stuff but is trying to be part of the timeline and now this. Let's overlook for the moment the fact that some characters are out of place with the comic books, let's just think about the movie universe. Xavier is one of the main problems - we never know in the movies how he lost the ability to walk and this movie gives that to us which is all fine and good, except he loses the ability to walk as a young man, but in the 3rd movie, Xavier, portrayed by Patrick Stewart is accompanied by Magneto to the house of young Jean Grey, and he is walking. Speaking of Magneto, he has pretty much decided to wage war on humanity at the end of this film which is 1962 and roughly 20 years later he's back working with Xavier finding mutants? I will buy that he could have changed his mind and then changed it back, since that happens in the comic every time a new writer comes on board. Ororo Munroe is the next problem - we see her briefly the first time that Xavier uses Cerebro. If she's 10 in 1962, that makes her close to 60 in the first movie, and while it's not unheard of for mutants to age more slowly, that is not one of her abilities. For example, this is not a problem with Mystique who we know to be aging at half the normal rate, plus she can make herself look younger if she wanted to. I'm going to be generous and give Beast the slow aging power to, because he is almost the  same age as Xavier.
The other main concern of mine and I imagine a lot of fanboys around the world is when they take an already existing character and drastically change one or more things about him or her. Case in point, Alex Summers, a.k.a. Havoc a.k.a. Scott Summers younger brother in the comics. Is he supposed to be Cyclops father in this timeline? And moving the Hellfire Club from NYC to Las Vegas and making it basically a casino with a secret. Um, how does that fit in with Shaw thinking he and the members superior to humans? And while I certainly don't mind seeing Robe Byrne and January Jones stripped down to their undies, I really liked the aesthetic of the comic book Hellfire Club, it gave it a much more sexual aspect and also explained why the men treated the women the way they did. Speaking of January Jones, I've been watching Mad Men and her Emma Frost, whom I wish they had given the white blond hair to in the film, reminds me a lot of Betty. I haven't seen her in a lot of other things, so maybe Ms. Jones's characters are always like this, I guess the character she played in the Tourist was very similar as well. I'm also not so sure about Emma Frost being able to become diamond, does that happen in the comics? I don't ever recall it. Is Emma Frost one of the mutants that Wolverine frees in the Origins movie? Or, is that someone else who can turn to diamond?
I don't mind the movies creating mutants to fill roles, but it seems a shame to not use existing mutants from the comic books. I'm not sure if Riptide, Azazel, Angel or Darwin are in the comic books. They are all pretty cool. If they're not in the comics, I think it's cool that Singer added them to the film, especially as Azazel being on the same team as Mystique certainly explains Nightcrawler's origin. I also wonder why these characters, not counting Darwin, are not in the trilogy? If Storm can still be young and vibrant, why not Azazel? I'm betting it's just a case of retrofititis like Lucas did with the Star Wars Prequel - just throw in all this shit because it looks cool and never worry about why that stuff has disappeared by the later timeline stories.
Other than the above, which is certainly not enough to keep me from enjoying this film, I thought it went off quite splendidly. The story is wonderfully over the top and all the actors really get into their roles (I'm pretending that January Jones being really into a role looks like Emma Frost). I love the way the Governments of both the U.S. and Soviet Union are portrayed. Even better is the way the CIA is shown. Who would have thought that in the CIA, the only cool guy would be Oliver Platt? I also liked the way that the two opposing navies were portrayed in the stand-off. American and Soviet sailors doing their duty and not wanting to go to war, but willing to go to war if that's what their commander orders.
I enjoyed this movie enough, that unless something drastically changes, I'm going to watch the rest of the X-Men saga again in timeline order, so that means next will be X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and then X-Men 1 through 3.
I almost finished this without even talking about the goodness that are James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender and Jennifer Lawrence. I think these are three of the finest young actor working today, maybe even going so far as to say that these are the three of the five top young actors working in movies right now. Two of the three were faced with the same daunting task that Ewen MacGregor was when he took on the role of Obi-wan Kenobi. Partick Stewart and Ian McKellen are two of the best actors alive and I would go so far as to say two of the best actors period. McAvoy and Fassbender had big shoes to step into, respectively. I think they handled it marvelously (no pun intended). Rebecca Romjin-Stamos is not a world class actress, so it was easy for Lawrence to overshadow her acting wise, but Romjin-Stamos is a world class beauty who lets it all hang out in her role as Mystique and Lawrence followed suit, or no suit as the case may be.

X-Men: First Class at IMDb

Breaking Bad Season 1 Disc 3

Episode 7: A No-Rough-Stuff-Type Deal
This episode was all about changes. From the obvious like Walt and Jesse change the way they make meth or the way Skyler views her sister after the whole tiara incident, to the subtle changes like Walt bringing up to Hank that he doesn't [any longer] see the bright line between what is legal and what is illegal or Jesse stepping up when he needed to because his sense of self worth is improving.
I like that when Walt and Skyler go to visit his doctor, that even though they're into his round of treatment still refuses to say anything other than to stick with the treatment. You want to try Eastern medicine? No problem as long as you keep doing the treatments here. You want to sacrifice heads of cabbage to a saint to banis the demons inhabiting your lungs? No problem as long as you keep doing the treatments here. Maybe he's a great guy, but I can't help but see it in terms of money and how the doctor wants more.
There were a few more outright humorous moments in this episode, like Walter Jr. using his position as camera man at the baby shower to look down women's dresses or when Walt and Jesse steal the chemicals, but can only find this giant and heavy drum that they sneak out past the guard locked in the porta-potty.
While not funny, per se, I love when Jesse first sees Walt with his new do and says he looks like Lex Luthor. What? I can be a little proud of myself for coming up with that comparison before I heard them use it. And I think we do get to see a little bit of the evil genius playing out in the open when Walt explains cordite to Jesse.
This is the season one finale. There were no cliff-hangers, but also no real wrap-up of anything either. I think what we got were some set-ups for the season two story arc. I'll just have to wait and see. It might be a long wait, as this season is the only one in the library system and I need to request that a library buy it to add to their collection, which entails me hoping that some other people have already requested it, or shortly will request it, so that there are enough for the library to think it will circulate, which it totally will.
I would be remiss if I didn't mention my little crush on the vice principal at the high school where Walt teaches. We don't get to see many other adults at the school, not in a meaningful manner at least and she is very sweet to Walt and also has taken up Hugo's defense. I'm sure that she'll somehow get fired over the break in at the school that led to Hugo's arrest.

Breaking Bad at IMDb

Breaking Bad Season 1 Disc 2

Episode 4: Cancer Man
They know. They all know. Well, not Jesse, but everyone else in Walt's life, not counting his mother whom we've yet to meet, knows that he had lung cancer and that it's bad. I guess Skyler didn't trump Walt's confession at the end of the last episode. But that is because this is turning out to be more of a drama than the light led me to expect. I'm pretty okay with that so far, though wouldn't mind seeing some of the humor added back.
We got to see another side of Jesse this time out and experience one of his hallucinations. I thought it was hilarious that Jesse hallucinated to mild mannered missionaries who ride up to his on bicycle's as big, tough, dirty bikers sporting a machete and hand grenade, respectively. The scene at Jesse's folks was a nice way to add more depth, even if the joint turning out to be his brother's was a little predictable.

Episode 5: Gray Matter
What an interesting episode. We learn more of Walt's past and find out that had things been a little different he would have been rich and famous. We also find out that Jesse suddenly cares about doing something the right way instead of just doing it.
What was really key about this episode is the long discussion that was had about whether or not Walter would have radiation and chemo-therapy. This is a topic that is never dealt with in non-news or non-news magazine television shows. Then instead of just talking about why he should have the treatment, Walt explains in depth with great clarity why he doesn't want to have it. You don't even get that in a news show. At best you can hope for the person with cancer fighting bravely on as they undergo treatment. The option of not being treated is never discussed, unless it is an economic issue and then the treatment is still seen as the only good way to deal with the problem.
I had already been told that Bryan Cranston was going to prove that he could do more than comedy, that he was in fact a very talented actor. It's one ting to hear this and believe it, but then when you see a defining moment like this episode, it's really the next level of your understanding to what she actually meant.

Episode 6: Crazy Handful of Nothin'
In this episode, we get to see Walter White fully transform into Lex Luthor, if Lex were a bad-ass. We learned two things, mercury fulminate is goddamned volatile, and don't fuck with chemists. And if they're from Texas, you should probably turn and run the other way. Not that Walt or anything about this episode had anything to do with TX, it's just the saying. Oh never mind. It's ruined in the explaining.
It's interesting to compare the two types of collateral damage that come with the crystal meth trade. On one hand you've got the unintended human collateral damage shown by Hugo getting pinched for Walt's crime and by Jesse getting horribly beaten trying to do right by Walt. On the other hand you have the intended consequences of Walt using the mercury fulminate to impress upon Tuco the importance of doing tings Walt's way.

Breaking Bad at IMDb

Breaking Bad Season 1 Disc 1

Episode 1: Pilot
Bryan Cranston is my hero. He just puts it all out there, literally, and goes for it. I love the mustaches, because with the staches and the hair do, he kind of looks like Ned Flanders, but more because I have a friend who is a teacher and has this exact same look going on. For all I know, he watched this show and decided on the look.
At first glance, the show seems like it has a crazy premise. A good guy who is an upstanding member of the community, a teacher, discovers he is mortally ill with inoperable lung cancer, decides that the only way he can pay for the super expensive chemo-therapy and maybe hope to leave his wife some money is to 'break bad'. Which he then does in a big way by deciding to cook methanphetimenes. It turns out he's brilliant at it, from the standpoint of the drug dealers because his product is so pure, but Walt is all like, "it's just basic chemistry". I would like to think that at that point that many of the teachers watching with the know-how to do this entertained for at least a brief moment the possibility that they might make some money cooking up some drugs.
The best part of the episode is the awakening that Walt has throughout. He realizes likely for the first time in his life that he doesn't have to take the crap that the jackholes are dealing up for him. Not only that, but when Walt does take charge of his own life in these situations, he's kind of a bad-ass.

Episode 2: The Cat's in the Bag
The mustaches are gone and somehow Walt doesn't look right. We don't see him shave it off, and this episode starts 12 hours after the first one ends. I guess before he passed out on the floor in the bathroom, he must have shaved.
Not as much happens in this episode. It is much more the story about Walt and Jesse and Walt and Skyler than about Walt versus the world like the pilot was. It's really neither good or bad, just different. It did yield more conversation and less action, particularly hijink action.
I've got to say, that if I found out my husband was buying and smoking pot and I didn't want him to do it, I would not figure out where the drug dealer lived and go over there and tell him to stop selling to my husband. I would either have it out with the husband, or you know, just talk to my brother-in-law in the DEA.

Episode 3: ...And the Bag's in the River
Even less action this episode than the previous one, but way higher emotional content. It was good. Things seemed way less goofy for Walter and Jesse and Skyler, though the brother-in-law DEA agent has no clue about what is going on. When he tries the scared straight tactic on Walter Jr. you understand why Walter Jr. keeps cracking up. I've got to side with the meth-whore (not quite the ring to it that 'crack-whore' has), that it just seems like the cop wants to buy some pot.
I really thought for a while that Walter was going to let Domingo go free. They were having their moment and I felt like Walter was generating that memory of buying the crib on the spot, just to have a reason not to kill the guy. When he sees the pieces of the broken plate and puts them back together to discover that a dagger sized shard is missing, two things happened for me. First, I felt the heart break as Walter realized that he was going to have to kill Domingo to protect himself and his family. Second, if I had been in Walter's shoes, I would have been stabbed to death because I never would have thought to piece the plate back together like that to find that a piece was missing. My hat is off to Vince Gilligan for coming up with that simple, yet very powerful and believable plot device.
I write each of these entries immediately after watching the episode. So, when I see a cliff hanger like I did here with Walter, all serious, walking in on Skyler, crying, and he says, "I've got something to tell you." I am willing to bet money it's not that he has lung cancer, or maybe that's what he's intended but she is crying for a reason (maybe baby related) that will trump him telling her about the cancer. Also, the DEA now has enough evidence in their possession to lay some strong suspicions on Walter, if they can only figure out what they have.

Breaking Bad at IMDb