With the final season of Game of Thrones nearly here, I’ve been rewatching the first seven as a refresher. It’s been fun examining how characters have developed, remembering departed heroes and villains, seeing glorious battles, and chuckling at comedic lines. Out of the first seven seasons, one stood out as my favorite — season four.
Sure, the battle at Castle Black wasn’t as grand as Blackwater or The Battle of the Bastards, but it was still pretty damn entertaining. More importantly, Game of Thrones season four had some of the best moments in the show — both comedic and dramatic — and introduced one of my favorite characters.
Out of curiosity, I’d love to learn which Game of Thrones season is your favorite and why. Kindly share your thoughts in the comments section. Below are three reasons why Game of Thrones season four is my favorite.
The latest trailer for Game of Thrones season 8 has dropped. It’s full of excitement, drama, intrigue, and (pending) death. RPadholic smartguy suggested that it would be a great time for us to make our predictions on the final season of Game of Thrones. As you’d expected from him, that’s a fine idea.
Below are the trailer and a bunch of questions about Game of Thrones season 8. Kindly answer the questions when you have a chance, but don’t let them limit your thoughts. If you have any theories and musings that aren’t covered by the questions, I’d love to hear them.
Iron Fist season two reminded me of how we used to make fun of the “Most Improved” award in high-school sports. My friends and I would joke, “Most improved just means that you used to suck.” The first season of Iron Fist was easily the worst show in the Marvel Netflix universe, but the sophomore season is worth watching. It’s not among the best Marvel Netflix shows and it still has the same core problem that the first season had, but numerous improvements have taken Iron Fist from “used to suck” to “reasonably enjoyable.”
Here’s a breakdown of Iron Fist season two in the traditional RPadTV binary style. Be sure to summon your chi and make a spoiler shield fist.
Did you ever wish that Netflix had more social features? It’s something that I think about often. In many ways, it seems like a great opportunity; adding a social layer to Netflix would give it stickiness, increase the amount of time people use the service, and help the company retain subscribers. In my head, social features on Netflix would be fun and useful for several reasons.
You could get recommendations based on what your friends are watching.
You could see when friends are done binge-watching new shows and see who you can have spoiler-free discussions with.
You could see what your friends are watching and make fun of anyone that watches Maid in Manhattan.
Danny Rand (The Defenders) and Brandon Stark (Game of Thrones) tell everyone that they’re the Immortal Iron Fist and the Three Eyed Raven, respectively. It doesn’t matter if the person listening to them is interested or not. They’re happy to share their exalted titles with anyone that will listen…and several people that don’t give a damn.
Now let’s play a game! Imagine that these two suave (not really) heroes are in a bar. Imagine that they share their fancy titles with the ladies they chat with. Which one is more pathetic as a pickup line? Saying, “Hi, I’m the Immortal Iron Fist,” or, “Hey there, I’m the Three Eyed Raven.” Kindly make your choice in the poll below.
March is going to a be a glorious month for nerds and people with nerdish tendencies. There are so many wonderful things to look forward to — potentially fantastic movies, a new videogame console, and an all-new, all-different television series from Marvel. While I’m still adjusting to life in America after a month in Asia, these things will certainly make the transition easier. Let’s take a look at all the brilliant nerd stuff coming in March 2017.
Another year is in the books! Thanks so much for making RPad.TV a part of your 2016. To celebrate and reflect on the year that was, let’s take a look back at some of the best things of 2016. Naturally, when I mean “best,” I really mean “favorite.” (The idea of a movie or a record being “best” is…stupid.) Below is a “Best of 2016” list of my favorite movie, vaping gear, album, WWE Superstar, and more. I’d love to hear about your favorite anything and everything of 2016. Please share your personal highlights in the comments section. Now let’s do this!
The mid-season finale of Lucifer was the best thing I’ve watched on television in 2016. The writers, directors, and actors did a stellar job of deftly mixing comedy, drama, and action. The big reveal at the end was fantastic…though a bit evil (*snicker*) considering that the next episode won’t air for seven weeks. Lucifer S02E10 was, quite simply, the show at its best. Here are some random thoughts on the mid-season finale. (Kindly put on your spoiler wings!)
After an almost shockingly strong second episode, Arrow S05E03 was a mild letdown. The show wasn’t bad, but it moved things in a direction where the writers have failed before. There were too many characters and too many storylines going on. The show is best when it has a clear focus and often falls apart when it tries to do too many things at once. Certainly there were several elements introduced in Arrow S05E03 that are meant to pay off later in the season, It will be interesting to see if the writers will be able to keep all the plates spinning. Oh yeah, WWE fans also had a special treat this week. Now it’s time to wield your anti-spoiler recurve bow and get ready for 10 random thoughts on Arrow S05E03.
After two relatively weak episodes, The Flash strikes back with its strongest effort this season. A large part of why The Flash S03E03 rocked was that an outstanding character finally returned. It goes beyond that though. Most of the characters have more or less rebounded from “Flashpoint” and things are back to normal — or as normal as it ever gets for Barry Allen and his friends at STAR Labs. An excellent new villain (with one major flaw) debuted and a new hero showed up as well. Whether it was due to the first two episodes being weak or The Flash S03E03 being a genuinely good show, I was very much satisfied with this week’s outing. Now zip on your spoiler hoodie, because it’s time for nine random thoughts on The Flash S03E03 using the RPad.TV binary system!
I’m So Wild About Harry (Good): Usually I try to do these things in chronological order, but the return of Harry Wells destroys order. Early in the episode, Harry pops out of breach from Earth-Two and immediately goes about dominating the show. Going into season three, I was hoping that Flashpoint would create a third version of Harrison Wells, but after one episode, I’m thrilled that Earth-Two Harry is back. He’s funny, complex, formidably intelligent, excellent at throwing tools, and disarmingly endearing. Tom Cavanagh is fantastic at playing this character and makes the other actors he has scenes with better. Think of The Flash as the Los Angeles Clippers and Cavanagh as Chris Paul. Yeah, the Clippers are a decent team without CP3, but they’re so much better with him (until the second round of the playoffs, anyway *snicker*).
Oh yeah, Harry Wells’ angry use of “Not!” jokes completely ruled.
Harry Wells, multiversal master of “Not!” jokes.
Barry and Iris Suck at Dating (Bad): The show kicked off with Barry and Iris having an awkward date. We’re supposed to believe that they’re true loves, no matter what multiverse they’re in. Instead, they’re romance seems forced and uncomfortable. As I’ve noted in my previous “Flash Facts” columns, I’m not a fan of bumbling Barry. Unfortunately, that’s the guy Iris was on a date with.
The Debut of Jesse Quick (Good): Harry Wells came back to Earth-One because his daughter is now a speedster. Naturally, the overprotective Harry doesn’t want Jesse to be running around as a superhero. His paternal efforts to thwart her heroic aspirations were fantastic. While TV Jesse Quick’s origin is completely different from the comics’ version, I enjoy the actress and am looking forward to the seeing her in costume. Besides, any character or storyline that keeps Harry Wells involved is an excellent thing for The Flash.
Magenta Characterization (Good): This character was a pleasant surprise. I was concerned going into the episode, since Magenta is a Wally/Flash villain and not a Barry/Flash villain. Magenta also suffers from mental illness, which is easier to write about sensitively in print and more difficult to do in a television script. My worry was that the writers would butcher the nuance and simple make her a crazy bitch. Instead, the writers and actress delivered a great character. Joey King was wonderful at showing a damaged and frightened Frankie Kane. She was also good at playing the sociopathic Magenta. Playing split personalities can be tricky and I enjoyed the job that King did with the material she was given.
Aside from the arm acting, Joey King was surprisingly good as Magenta.
Magenta Physical Acting (Bad): The one aspect of Magenta that really bothered me was King’s arm motions. It was…bad. King’s arm-magnetism-powers acting in The Flash S03E03 reminded of Sophie Turner’s wretched fingers-on-the-temple telepathy acting from X-Men: Apocalypse.
Caitlin Dazzles (Good): First off, props to Danielle Panabaker’s stylist. Her hair looked amazing in The Flash S03E03. More importantly, Caitlin Snow had some good material to work with. Her reluctant talk-her-out-of-being-a-hero speech to Jesse was awkwardly cute. When Harry tries to chide her for failing, she lays into him and tells him what’s what. It was nice to see the forceful and logical side of Caitlin Snow come out. Or is that Killer Frost’s personality creeping to the forefront….
Seriously, Caitlin’s hair was amazing in this episode.
Malfoy is Still a Dick (Good): Although he didn’t have too much to do this week, I’m happy that Tom Felton is still around and still being a dick to Barry. British people excel at being snarky.
Wally Becomes Idiotically Reckless (Bad): Wally is still being mopey, but it appears he’s getting dumber too. The kid really wants to be a superhero. After hearing how Jesse’s powers activated, he runs in front of a car to try to replicate the process. Moron. Towards the end of the The Flash S03E03, you can see the wheels in his head turning when Frankie reveals how Dr. Alchemy activated her Magenta powers. It looks like a safe bet that Wally is going to do something extraordinarily stupid in order to become a superhero. (Like, I don’t know, make a deal with Dr. Alchemy?!?) He’s lucky that Barry is there to bail his mopey ass out.
Barry and Iris Git Gud at Dating (Good): Barry was so much better during his second date with Iris. He was more confident and had a rational (yet heartfelt) explanation for why the first date bombed. Grant Gustin is great at being confident and sensitive at the same time, and it really showed in this scene. This is his wheelhouse. Hopefully he stays in it for the remainder of the The Flash season three. Bumbling Barry only works in alternate timelines. Long live Confident-Yet-Vulnerable Barry!
