Revisiting the 80s in Absurdist Fashion. Night Court is Back!

In Night Court, the mix of humour and empathy made the early series special which the new continuation strives to achieve.

Night Court 2023NBC’s Night Court is back in session, and instead of giving us a series laden with nostalgia, there’s some updates to show that life has moved on for some, others stuck in a rut, and the new faces are replacing familiar ones. That is, a few members of Harry Stone’s courtroom have either retired or have passed away. Although the first two episodes don’t have the zest that the original series had, I waited for the next releases to judge if the series is solid sitcom gold or not.

So far, John Larroquatte still got it as Dan Fielding, the character he plays. He’s a far cry from the irrepressible version from long ago, and to see how he developed to that state is why I’m loving this show. Although he was really hesitant to return to working at the old haunting grounds, the new young magistrate has high hopes that he can do what his collegue from long ago could offer. Be empatic and keep people from going to jail.

In the latest, “Dan V. Dating,” he’s certainly getting challenged in more ways than one. So far, this is the best episode to date, and it suggests that this series is more about Dan than the other characters. Hopefully that’ll change as the character arcs for the others get better. This new Night Court needs to better balance the narratives between the five. I’m finding the newcomers are basically replacements of those those performers who sadly passed away. Nothing’s been said about what happened to Christine Sulliven (Markie Post) or the others. She will always be that perky ray of sunshine and Abbey Stone (Melissa Rauch) gives similiar vibes. Had she lived, I’m willing to bet the producers would have put her on the bench once again.

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Is The Really Loud House Absolutely Needed? Weighing In 10 Episodes Later.

After ten episodes, The Really Loud House is showing some semblance of enjoyability. We have tales that don’t always focus on the hijinx Lincoln is up to.

The Really Loud HouseOn Nickelodeon and YTV
(Please check local listings for showtimes)

Catching up with The Really Loud House during the winter break was tough. This series debuted back in November of 2022 and I had reservations. What I really wanted was a better output of the cartoon series than this live-action version. And although a new season is promised, it won’t be coming soon.

Not everyone will like the fact this adaptation tries too hard to be just like the animated counterpart. All the wigs and turning an otherwise beautiful family to their drawn version doesn’t really work. A handful of performances are even spot on; Out of the entire cast, Brian Stepanek stands out as the least zany. His approach isn’t as over the top emotional as the drawn version, and somehow he channels just the right amount of pathos from his toon persona to real life.

Even though some of that magic is gone in this adaptation, I see the direction is no different from the classic sitcoms, namely Brady Bunch and Saved by the Bell. Somehow, I managed to continue watching past the cringe worthy first four episodes. It’s mostly about Lincoln Loud (Wolfgang Schaeffer) who sometimes break the fourth wall and his best friend, Clyde (Jahzir Bruno). The latter is one of the few voice over talents making the transition to the reality show. The side stories concerning his sisters are just that.

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You Can’t Dodge This! Badges and Bullets Hilarious Debut At The Victoria Fringe Festival 2022

The show must go on! And just how well Vincent manages the talents for Badges and Bullets depends on who you ask. This old time radio drama began as an idea to put on the tuner, but after some talk between co-creators Mitch and Jo Barnes with director Terry Rowsell, the idea to make it a live show for Victoria Fringe Theatre Festival was green lit!

Badges and Bullets
Badges and Bullets

Victoria Fringe Theatre 2022
Roxy Theatre (2657 Quadra Street)

The show must go on! And just how well Vincent (Rob Friesen) manages the talents for Badges and Bullets depends on who you ask. This old time radio drama began as an idea to put on the tuner, but after some talk between co-creators Mitch and Jo Barnes with director Terry Rowsell, the idea to make it a live show for Victoria Fringe Theatre Festival was green lit!

“This is our gift to the Victoria Theatre Community because I tell you, we’ve had lots of support,” said Mitch of HB Productions theatre company.

I wasn’t expecting a similar experience as Casino Royale (review) back in 2015; I saw this performance at the Victoria Fringe. The difference is that instead of seeing a complete radio play from one perspective; we have two. The main story concerns how each of these talents are dreaming big. Charlotte (Jo Barnes) desires to be recognised in Hollywood, and Allen (Gerald Schieven) worries his work with this little radio station may tarnish his reputation elsewhere. Another subplot concerns the foley guy, Tom (Jesse Setka) at odds with Allen, and the feeling is mutual. Had this 45-minute performance been longer, I’m sure it could have been developed into a television show.

Meanwhile, Vince, also the producer of Badges and Bullets, cares more about keeping his operation afloat. However, when the lead. Eddie (Mitch) is supposed to carry the show, it’ll be difficult. He’s far worse than Robert Downey Jr. when he was in love with the bottle at the early part of his career. Add on top us, a real audience watching, not only do we become part of the experience, but also realise a few dirty secrets…

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When Hotel Transylvania: Transformania Invites Change…

I don’t expect more films to happen because it’d be copying from DreamWorks The Croods. Both share a similar DNA.

Hotel Transylvania Transformania.jpgSony Pictures
Available to Stream on Amazon Prime

Three movies and a television series mark how long Hotel Transylvania has been in business. Drac the vampire (now voiced by Brian Hull) is immortal, and he’s been this establishment’s custodian for ages.

In the fourth film, Transformania, this overseer knows it’s time to retire and hand over the family operation. But this patriarch still dislikes the man whom his daughter Mavis (Selena Gomez) fell in love with and thinks Johnny (Andy Samberg) will destroy everything he’s created. This lad feels down and thinks the only way that his father-in-law will accept him is to become a monster like them. He asks the wonderfully crazed Dr. Van Helsing (Jim Gaffigan) for help. He has a transmogrifying ray gun that’ll do the job, but its not perfect.

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The Croods: Family Tree Needs to Grow

The Croods: Family Tree retains much of the humour from the sequel, and it seems a lot of the family dynamic has reset.

The Croods: Family Tree - Hulu Series - Where To WatchBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

YTV (Canada)
Saturdays 9:00 AM EST/PST

Also on Hulu and Peacock Network (USA)

The Croods: Family Tree is a surprisingly short animated series which is now available across specific cartoon networks and streaming services. YTV in Canada is stretching the six episodes out, and hopefully, more episodes will be released sooner than later. Waiting this series out for new tales in 2022 is a long way away.

This series is decent enough for fans to enjoy. It retains much of the humour from the sequel, and it seems a lot of the Croods family dynamic has reset. Grug is even more overprotective of Eep, and instead of her and Guy leaving the compound they are in, they are all staying safe within. Plus, they have another clan to annoy, whom they met in Croods: New Age. If this series is supposed to take place within the time frame of this sequel as a whole, it’s not been said at all.

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