"Awkwafina is Nora from Queens" Season 1

This show is stupid in the sense of The Office, but it is outrageously hilarious. It's kind of a throwback to when comedians had a TV show based on a fictional account of their lives (Home Improvement, Roseanne, Martin, Newhart). I know that's still happening today, but this one appears to have the heart of those heyday shows rather than just looking for cheap laughs (¡Rob!, Marlon).
Nora is young woman in her late twenties, and still living at home. Like her, her father is just coasting through life, and the only person keeping both of them alive is Grandma. Nora is annoyed by her perfect cousin, Edmund, who is getting all kinds of deals and earning money. She is struggling to land a decent job, and actually hold it. She's gone from a discount Uber driver to counting cards at a blackjack table, to defrauding focus groups, to selling haunted houses. But when perfect Edmund needs her help, she steps up and creates an app that could bring them both money. But as she gets her job, in China, she gets busted for possession of cocaine. Well, her assistant was caught with it, but Nora took the blame.
In between Nora and Edmund's antics, Wally, Nora's dad, slowly starts to enter society and begins dating. He happens to meet a free-spirited woman with the same situation as him, and understands the frustration he endures.
Grandma even gets some screen time, duking it out with old Korean ladies at the casino, being the most feared woman in Elmhurst, and having a K-drama inspired backstory of how she was once heir to a rich fortune in China.
It's hard to imagine a girl with no job can have such a captivating story that you want to keep tuning in. Maybe it's because she is so relateable to many people's situation: meager jobs that seem to come and go while still forced to live with their parents. Often you feel like you fail at everything you do. But it's the people around you, who care about you, that makes it all worthwhile, and a comfort that there's always a chance to try again.
It's uncertain that this will get a second season, and I won't be surprised if it doesn't return next year. But I will be returning to Queens as long as Nora is still living there.

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I hope you liked this. Be sure to subscribe and leave a comment about what you thought or if you want to recommend a movie or TV show for me to review. I will be taking a break for the summer to try and relax during this social distancing. Please stay safe, stay home, save lives. We'll get through this together. Thank you for reading. I'll see you next time.

Aired on Comedy Central: January 22 - March 25, 2020
Rating: TV-MA
Stars: Awkwafina, Lori Tan Chin, BD Wong, Bowen Yang, Jennifer Esposito
Directors: Lucia Aniello, Jamie Babbit, Natasha Lyonne, Steven Tsuchida, Anu Valia, Daniel Scheinert, Daniel Kwan
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 80%
IMDb Score: 7.3/10 (Average)

"Saturday Night Live: SNL From Home"

This is truly an Emmy-winning episode. When I learned that they're putting together an episode from home, I, I'm sure like everyone else, wondered how it would work. And they pulled it off. I can't wait to see another one.
Of course that had to have Tom Hanks host this episode as he was recently diagnosed with the Coronavirus and recovered. But what about John Krasinski and Dua Lipa? Their episode was scheduled for March 28 until governors across the country issued stay-home orders. Will they get to perform in an Home Edition episode? Also, are we going to count this as Tom's 10th time hosting?
What probably helped sell this episode is that the cast managed to establish personas that are able to function in their own homes. The "Zoom Call" sketch featured Aidy Bryant and Kate McKinnon as two people who struggle to break in new technology and break down when it doesn't work. Aidy and Kate built up a reputation of playing socially awkward characters, so it was fitting to see them portray characters that aren't taking social distancing very well. It also holds up a mirror to our current society as many struggle with having to stay home all the time.
Video game sketches have been a small staple in the SNL pantheon. The early seasons featured two guys playing Pong while discussing their lives. Recently, they've made a surge in video game testing sketches that feature avatars going haywire. The "Twitch Stream" sketch may have taken the cake where we witness a gamer play Call of Duty: Warzone and hilariously die almost immediately in live streaming. I find it hilarious because I can sort of relate that detailed games like Call of Duty are frustrating. The closest thing I played was LEGO Star Wars. I know it's not the same as Call of Duty, but I can relate to the frustration he has in playing the game.
The "Whatcha' Cookin' On" sketch is another episode of the Kyle and Beck show. Unless you haven't been watching because John Belushi isn't on anymore, you know about the series of pre-recorded sketches displaying Kyle Mooney and Beck Bennett's friendship. This one is just so them in terms of being able to create a rap out of their FaceTime conversation on trying to decide on a sketch idea.
The Weekend Update segment is just something I think we needed after all this time, and Colin Jost and Michael Che kill it every time. Can we please have a show with these two? A Deesus & Mero sort of thing. The pictures they use for their stories blended into the background so it looks like Dr. Fauci and President Trump were in Colin's living room.
Bailey Gismert, played by Heidi Gardner, made a few appearances on Weekend Update, but this is the first time we see her YouTube channel, Bailey at the Movies. Both here and on Update, she gives her reviews on popular movies, but she often gets distracted and seems to forget the rest of the movie and just complains about it. Kind of reminds me of someone....
Kate McKinnon and Larry David helped bring their celebrity impressions to the home as Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Senator Bernie Sanders respectively. This helps bring their "fans" to the same level as them in funny ways to show that they are in the same boat as us; no one is spared from this virus.
Speaking of which, music coordinator Hal Wilner had passed away from the COVID virus, so the show ended with many cast members past and present discussing fun memories with Hal and saying how much they'll miss him. The segment was also spliced with Hal's own words about his love for the show and how proud he was to be part of it.
Aside from the Hal Wilner tribute, I enjoyed the musical performance by Chris Martin, who played "Shelter from the Storm", by Bob Dylan. I thought it was a great pick since we are all riding this storm together, and we are trying to shelter each other by staying inside and flattening the curve.
This special episode was an absolute hit, and I can't wait to see more. I also can't wait for them to be back in Studio 8H when all of this is over.

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Aired on NBC: April 11, 2020
Rating: TV-14
Stars: Beck Bennett, Aidy Bryant, Michael Che, Pete Davidson, Mikey Day, Heidi Gardner, Colin Jost, Kate McKinnon, Alex Moffat, Kyle Mooney, Chris Redd, Cecily Strong, Kenan Thompson, Melissa Villaseñor, Chloe Fineman, Ego Nwodim, Bowen Yang, Chris Martin, Tom Hanks, Alec Baldwin, Larry David, Fred Armisen
Director: Don Roy King
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 87%
IMDb Score: 7.1/10

"Four Weddings and a Funeral" (2019)

I never thought I would be back here, because the 1994 film, this series is based on, was my first post. I didn't think of it at the time, but I realize that's it's weird to squish five major events into a two-hour movie. Now I realize that they're gonna have to make some sh*t up in order to stretch a two-hour movie into a ten-part miniseries.
So, they Americanized it, but still have it set in a fantasy version of London where the Brits aren't giving them sh*t for being Yanks, well except for the constable that warned Maya twice about littering the Thames. In order to make this series last longer, they front loaded the botched wedding to give drama to Maya and Kash. Both times, I don't think this counts as a wedding because it didn't happen. To quote Wesley, from The Princess Bride, "You didn't say it, you didn't do it."
Also, it was kind of tacky to reference the other well-known Richard Curtis film this side of the pond, Love, Actually. I'm actually surprised that Hugh Grant didn't show his ugly face in this one, since he was in both films. The Love, Actually Easter eggs include, but aren't limited to: the cue card messages, opening with "Love is All Around Us", a cheating American politician, a British politician voting against his party, a black singer appearing at a wedding to sing at the ceremony, a mysterious jewelry gift meant for someone else, a dumb, blond guy looking to get laid with an American girl, and a guy's best friend having feeling for his date.
Honestly, the person that stole the whole show was the Queen, watching the reality dating show, Love, Chalet (oh, forgot that Easter egg), saying, "Zara found love, how nice." That is really the best part of the series.
I had forgotten a few details since I saw the movie, but I was sure that the four weddings would be among the four friends. I remember now that they attended all the same weddings. I remember that when Kash's friend, Basheer, marries Fatima, whom Kash was dating in an arranged marriage.
The part that bothered me the most was when Maya was applying for a job, she gets hired by a young Parliamentarian who touches her inappropriately. When she confronts him about it, he said to remember that she came up to him, at a gym, in a sports bra. First of all, dude, just f*cking apologize. Second, she dressed the part for the situation. He was at the gym; the sports bra is the proper attire for the gym. It would have been weird if she showed up in a blazer asking for a job. It'd be like applying to be a police officer wearing an apron and a toque.
I know this is just a miniseries, but if there is one character that should get its own movie or show, it's Basheer. I've noticed this in movies, and this will get playfully racist, Indians and Pakistani people are the absolute wingmen. You never fly solo. Never. Basheer was very upset, much like Maya was for stealing Kash from Ainsley, that he wanted Kash to hit him with his car. When Kash needed a chaperone (that's a very Victorian way, that's not weird), he texted Bash, and Bash dropped whatever he was doing. Bash drove Kash to the airport to "stop" Maya's wedding and was willing to stay at the airport in case it didn't work out. We all need a Basheer in our lives.
The funeral was actually very nice, but of all the ABBA songs Gemma would've picked, she picked a breakup song. What about "Honey Honey", "Fernando", "Waterloo"? I feel Gemma and her son Giles play off of the plot of The Sound of Music (probably why Kash starred in it) with them struggling from Quentin's death and finding love again in Duffy. And Arsenal sucks.
This was a fun series and I recommend it, if you're not too busy bingeing Friends or The Office for umpteenth time this isolation time.

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Released on Hulu: July 31 - September 11, 2019
Rating: TV-MA
Stars: Nathalie Emmanuel, Nikesh Patel, Rebecca Rittenhouse, John Reynolds, Brandon Mychal Smith, Zoe Boyle, Sophia La Porta, Harish Patel, Guz Khan
Directors: Charles McDougall, Tristram Shapeero, Catherine Morshead
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 42%
IMDb Score: 8.0/10 (Average)

"Ally McBeal" Season 1

It is such a shame that this show isn't talked about more nowadays. Instead of watching Friends, maybe give this show a chance.
This show is wildly funny, entertaining, and very boundary pushing as the main characters face all kinds of prejudice in and out of the workplace. First off, it was obvious that sexism was going to play a strong role since the titular Ally was sexually harassed, and she quits and joins a law firm featuring her ex-boyfriend from childhood, and later his wife. As the season progresses, we dive into racism, physical appearances, marriage preferences, and discrimination.
Some of the cases the law firm takes on are often outlandish and silly, but it opens up, as it should, conversations that weren't discussed out loud before. Georgia, Billy's wife, was fired because her boss's wife didn't like that she was pretty. That isn't fair to the boss, and that isn't fair to Georgia. It makes you realize how we as human beings are quick to judge people based on the premise of their cases rather than listen to their motives.
The start of the series depended on cutaway gags that help define certain moments, one of which involves a dancing CGI baby that rocked the Internet in the late nineties. As the season goes on, they become less dependent on them, and it makes me struggle with the fact of whether it's a good thing. The gags help you become engaged in the show, and you'd keep watching. By the season finale, you'd be committed enough to keep watching so it becomes less reliant on gags. With that being said, the gags are a staple part of the show, and seeing them less makes me wonder if it would do away with them eventually, which would suck because they are an essential part of the story.
Whether we lose the sight gags or not, we do have the amusing and uplifting habits displayed by the cast, from Fish's "Fishisms" to Cage's bells to Elaine's eccentric inventions. Richard Fish, one of the senior partners of the firm, has a habit of spouting gibberish that he passes off as a thread of philosophy. He comes at a very weird angle on discrimination in the sense that he practically tears down the victims while uplifting them at the same time, like women using flirting to move up in the workplace because men are pigs and can't think of anything other than sex. Then the men act on the flirtations, and then the women are objectified. It is a very tough conundrum both men and women have to face in order to achieve gender equality, which still rings true today.
John Cage, the other senior partner, is an oddball of a lawyer with a gift of controlling the space to his advantage. He has an automatic flusher so that he'd have fresh toilet. He hears ringing bells to get him pumped for trial. He calls witnesses to the stand but doesn't question them. And yet, he manages to sway the jury and win his cases.
Elaine is Ally's secretary and the firm gossip. She is always up in Ally's business believing to be helpful in every situation. In the meantime, she creates wild gadgets she believes would help extend physical beauty in some form, from the face bra to the ice pack glasses.
Whenever, they're not winning cases, they're enjoying a drink at the bar downstairs, dancing with a pair of twins, and listening to music by the real life Vonda Shepard, who also sings songs for the show.
Ally, is a young lawyer trying to figure out her life as well as trying to recover from the breakup of a childhood relationship. It doesn't help that she works in the same firm as the ex-boyfriend, and what's worse, his wife soon joins the firm. She is tortured by his presence, meanwhile she pushes every boy away that comes near her, feeling no one can replace Billy, the ex. But as the season progresses, Ally and the wife become close friends and even allies in some cases, and Ally and Billy manage to reestablish their relationship as friends.
I find this to be a very entertaining show, and I can't wait to see what's in store in season two.

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Aired on Fox: September 8, 1997 - May 18, 1998
Rating: TV-14
Stars: Calista Flockhart, Greg Germann, Peter MacNicols, Jane Krakowski, Lisa Nicole Carson, Courtney Thorne-Smith, Gil Bellows
Directors: James Frawley, Jonathan Pontell, Dennie Gordon, Arlene Sanford, Sandy Smolan, Victoria Hochberg, Michael Schultz, Mel Damski, Dan Attias, Thomas Schlamme, Joe Napolitano, Allan Arkush, Elodie Keene, Jeremy Kagan, Dennis Dugan
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 84% Certified Fresh
IMDb Score: 7.3/10 (Average)

Awards

Primetime Emmy Awards

• Outstanding Comedy Series - Nominated
• Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series (Calista Flockhart) - Nominated
• Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series (Allan Arkush) - Nominated
• Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series (David E. Kelley) - Nominated

Golden Globe Awards

• Best Television Series (Musical or Comedy) - Winner
• Best Actress in a Television Series (Musical or Comedy) (Calista Flockhart) - Winner

(Click here to view more awards for "Ally McBeal".)

"Dickinson" Season 1

When Apple announced they were establishing a streaming service, I'm sure we all laughed. That's ridiculous! Why would a computer company be interested in competing with Netflix, Prime Video, and Hulu? Why would a computer company be interested in competing with J.P. Morgan? But that's another story. The point is Apple TV+ is here, and it's very serious. Their mission is to stream original content only, things only Apple Studios would produce. However, when I signed up I found Star Wars. So, it's not all original. But that's another story.
You know that boring reclusive poet we are supposed to read in English class? Well, what if she was a rebellious teen, speaking in 21st Century lingo, and dating Wiz Khlifa? While still set in the late 1840s, we witness Emily Dickinson argue with her old-fashioned parents about marriage and her place in the home, dream of the independence and the poems she'll never see published, and suffer as her secret girlfriend marries her brother.
The show is written for you to understand and feel Emily's predicaments, especially when she meets other accomplished authors of her era. We see Henry David Thoreau as a weirder shut-in than she is, and Louisa May Alcott is in it for the money. While it adds to the sympathy we have for Emily not being able to share her words, it stands to understand how she is more remembered than her counterparts. Let's face it: no one reads Thoreau or Alcott willingly, except for Greta Gerwig who wrote and directed Little Women last year. I'm sure no one reads Dickinson willingly either, but she is among the first to come to mind when you have to list American authors and poets.
Hiding behind Emily's ever-widening shadow is her sister, Lavinia, who is desperate to find a boy and get married. There is an episode in which she gives a bad boy, she was seeing, a nude sketch of herself that she drew, and he went and showed it to everyone. You'd think she'd hide in her room until she died, because that's what you would do if your nudes get leaked. But I think she took a page out of Emily's confidence book, and released the rest of her sketches showing she has nothing to hide. And there was nothing risque about the sketches, as far as TV-14 will allow, it was something she's proud of.
The part that annoys me the most, and I think it's the whole point of the series, is that Emily never truly runs away. Today, she would have struck out on her own, be an accomplished poet, and win all kinds of awards. But she's stuck living in her parents' home. Everyone around her puts her down saying she isn't an author, women shouldn't read, shouldn't write, shouldn't have a legacy. Well, that can't be true. Though possibly made up for the show, we see Emily's got quite the following in her lifetime from lovesick boy, George, to closeted gay man, Ben. And let's not forget about Sue. Her best friend growing up, and actually more than friends, we see the two struggle with their relationship as know they will never be legally together. What hurts more is that Sue marries Emily's brother, Austin, who is extremely jealous of their friendship. So jealous that Austin bans Emily from their wedding.
Emily Dickinson may have died alone, but her story, real or make believe, is an invigorating one, and I can't wait to see what season two has in store.

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Released on Apple TV+: November 1, 2019
Rating: TV-14
Stars: Hailee Steinfeld, Toby Huss, Anna Baryshnikov, Ellen Hunt, Adrian Enscoe, Jane Krakowski
Directors: David Gordon Green, Lynn Shelton, Silas Howard, Stacie Passon, Patrick Norris
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 74% Certified Fresh
IMDb Score: 8.5/10 (Average)

"The Handmaid's Tale" Seasons 1-3

It's amazing that this story was able to be adapted into one of the most talked about shows of the decade. I read the book, and I found it 85% world building and 15% actual plot. As I read it, I found it extremely teachable, something we'd be taught in school. My school was big on dystopian societies and rebuilding governments, Watership Down, Alas, Babylon, Lord of the Flies, A Tale of Two Cities, Les Misérables, The Scarlet Letter, 1984, and I thought why wasn't The Handmaid's Tale one of them? Especially in a time when it's scarily relevant? And it's now an award-winning series.
The first season follows the book, my guess they never intended to go beyond one season. It sets up this world where America has fallen and Christian radicals have taken over.
Offred serves as a Handmaid to a high ranking Commander. As she endures her living situation, she recalls past memories of the time before to keep her sane. She remembers her husband and their child, and she wonders where they'd be. She also recalls her suffragette mother, whom she's sure she's dead. Meanwhile, she engages in a dangerous relationship with Commander as well as the driver, who is also a secret Eye. With the Commander she is drawn to the time before when women had more freedom. She engages in luxuries that many, including her, took for granted: playing Scrabble, reading Cosmo, applying face cream. With Nick, the driver, she feels the companionship she once had with Luke. Every night she's with him, she wishes it would last forever, and when they weren't together, she longs for him at night.
Seasons two and three are more action based with many plot twists that often lead nowhere because the Handmaids' plans, to overthrow their leaders, get foiled by some nosy neighbor, or Serena Joy reminds Offred that she's in charge, or that Offred changes the plans last minute. It makes it frustrating that she is all about trying to sticking it out as a Handmaid, then she's given an opportunity to break out, but she can't leave without her daughter, but her daughter disappears, so she decides to break out the other children, but she stays behind for some God forsaken reason. It makes you rethink about staying committed to the show that can't stay committed to the plot.
I guess what keeps us committed is often Offred's flashbacks are filled with people who question her relationship with Luke as well as her mothering her daughter, like when she doses her up with Benedryl so June could send her to school sick. Aside from that, the characters established as evil robots in the show are given origin stories showing them once human, like Aunt Lydia. I think that may have to do with the publishing of The Testaments, which she plays a major role in.
Season four is coming soon, and producers believe they can go forever. Maybe not with Offred/June in the lead, but the world of Gilead is constantly building, so there are plenty of stories to be told. I don't know, you can do so much world-building before it starts becoming tiring. Ahem, Marvel. But, I anticipate Season four's arrival.

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Season 1

Released on Hulu: April 26 - June 14, 2017
Rating: TV-MA
Stars: Elisabeth Moss, Joseph Fiennes, Yvonne Strahovski, Alexis Bledel, Madeline Brewer, Ann Dowd, O. T. Fagbenie, Max Minghella, Samira Wiley
Directors: Reed Morano, Mike Barker, Floria Sigismondi, Kate Dennis, Kari Skogland
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 94% Certified Fresh
IMDb Score: 8.5/10 (Average)

Awards

Primetime Emmy Awards

• Outstanding Drama Series - Winner
• Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (Elisabeth Moss) - Winner
• Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (Ann Dowd) - Winner
• Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (Samira Wiley) - Nominated
• Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series (Reed Morano) - Winner
• Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series (Kate Dennis) - Nominated
• Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series (Bruce Miller) - Winner

Creative Emmy Awards

• Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series (Alexis Bledel) - Winner
• Outstanding Casting for a Drama Series (Russell Scott, Sharon Bialy & Sherry Thomas) - Nominated
• Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series (One Hour) (Colin Watkinson) - Winner
• Outstanding Period/Fantasy Costumes for a Series, Limited Series, or Movie (Ane Crabtree & Sheena Wichary) - Nominated
• Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Contemporary or Fantasy Program (One Hour or More) (Julie Berghoff, Evan Webber & Sophie Neudorfer) - Winner
• Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Supporting Role (Brendan Taylor, Stephen Lebed, Leo Bovell, Martin O'Brien, Winston Lee, Kelly Knauff, Zach Dembinski, Mike Suta & Cameron Kerr) - Nominated

Golden Globe Awards

• Best Television Series (Drama) - Winner
• Best Actress (Television Series Drama) (Elisabeth Moss) - Winner
• Best Supporting Actress (Series, Miniseries, or Television Film) (Ann Dowd) - Nominated

Season 2

Released on Hulu: April 25 - July 11, 2018
Rating: TV-MA
Stars: Elisabeth Moss, Joseph Fiennes, Yvonne Strahovski, Alexis Bledel, Madeline Brewer, Ann Dowd, O. T. Fagbenie, Max Minghella, Samira Wiley, Amanda Brugel
Directors: Mike Barker, Kari Skogland, Jeremy Podeswa, Daina Reid
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 89% Certified Fresh
IMDb Score: 8.5/10 (Average)

Awards

Primetime Emmy Awards

• Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series (Elisabeth Moss) - Nominated
• Outstanding Supporting Actor in Drama Series (Joseph Fiennes) - Nominated
• Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (Alexis Bledel) - Nominated
• Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (Ann Dowd) - Nominated
• Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (Yvonne Strahovski) - Nominated
• Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series (Kari Skogland) - Nominated
• Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series (Bruce Miller) - Nominated
• Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series (Daina Reid) - Nominated
• Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series (Bruce Miller & Kira Snyder) - Nominated

Creative Emmy Awards

• Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series (Kelly Jenrette) - Nominated
• Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series (Samira Wiley) - Winner
• Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series (Cherry Jones) - Nominated
• Outstanding Casting for a Drama Series (Sharon Bialy, Sherry Thomas, Russell Scott & Robin D. Cook) - Nominated
• Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series (One Hour) (Colin Watkinson) - Nominated
• Outstanding Fantasy/Sci-Fi Costumes (Ane Crabtree & Natalie Bronfman) - Nominated
• Outstanding Makeup for a Single-Camera Series (Non-Prosthetic) (Burton LeBlanc, Talia Reingold & Erika Caceres) - Nominated
• Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Contemporary Program (One Hour or More) (Mark White, Elisabeth Williams, Martha Sparrow and Caroline Gee) - Winner
• Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Contemporary Program (One Hour or More) (Elisabeth Williams, Martha Sparrow & Rob Hepburn) - Nominated
• Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Drama Series (Wendy Hallam Martin) - Winner
• Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Comedy or Drama Series (One-Hour) (Joe Morrow, Lou Solakofski & Sylvain Arseneault) - Nominated
• Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Supporting Role (Stephen Lebed, Brendan Taylor, Kelly Knauff, Kelly Weisz, Kevin McGeagh, Anderson Leo Bovell, Winston Lee, Xi Luo and Cameron Kerr) - Nominated
• Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series (Bradley Whitford) - Winner
• Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series (Cherry Jones) - Winner
• Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series (One Hour) (Colin Watkinson) - Nominated
• Outstanding Cinematography for a Single-Camera Series (One Hour) (Zoë White) - Nominated
• Outstanding Fantasy/Sci-Fi Costumes (Ane Crabtree & Natalie Bronfman) - Nominated
• Outstanding Music Composition for a Series (Original Dramatic Score) (Adam Taylor) - Nominated
• Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Drama Series (Wendy Hallam Martin) - Nominated
• Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Contemporary Program (One Hour or More) (Elisabeth Williams, Martha Sparrow & Robert Hepburn) - Winner
• Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Comedy or Drama Series (One Hour) (Joe Morrow, Lou Solakofski & Sylvain Arseneault) - Nominated

Golden Globe Awards

• Best Actress (Television Series Drama) (Elisabeth Moss) - Nominated
• Best Supporting Actress (Series, Miniseries or Television Film) (Yvonne Strahovski) - Nominated

Season 3

Released on Hulu: June 5 - August 14, 2019
Rating: TV-MA
Stars: Elisabeth Moss, Joseph Fiennes, Yvonne Strahovski, Alexis Bledel, Madeline Brewer, Ann Dowd, O. T. Fagbenie, Max Minghella, Samira Wiley, Amanda Brugel, Bradley Whitford
Directors: Mike Barker, Amma Asante, Colin Watkinson, Dearbhla Walsh, Daina Reid, Deniz Gamze Ergüven
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 81% Certified Fresh
IMDb Score: 8.1/10 (Average)

Awards

Primetime Emmy Awards

• Outstanding Drama Series - Nominated
• Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series (Bradley Whitford) - Nominated
• Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series (Samira Wiley) - Nominated
• Outstanding Guest Actress in a Drama Series (Alexis Bledel) - Nominated

Creative Primetime Emmy Awards

• Outstanding Casting for a Drama Series (Sharon Bialy, Sherry Thomas, Russell Scott and Robin D. Cook) - Nominated
• Outstanding Fantasy/Sci-Fi Costumes (Natalie Bronfman, Helena Davis Perry and Christina Cattle) - Nominated
• Outstanding Contemporary Hairstyling (Paul Elliot and Ewa Latak-Cynk) - Nominated
• Outstanding Contemporary Makeup (Non-Prosthetic) (Burton LeBlanc and Alastair Muir) - Nominated
• Outstanding Production Design for a Narrative Contemporary Program (One Hour or More) (Elisabeth Williams, Martha Sparrow and Robert Hepburn) - Winner
• Outstanding Special Visual Effects in a Supporting Role (Stephen Lebed, Brendan Taylor, Leo Bovell, Rob Greb, Gwen Zhang, Marlis Coto, Stephen Wagner, Josh Clark and James Minett) - Nominated

(Click here to view more awards for "The Handmaid's Tale".)

"Crazy Rich Asians"

Are you ready for a stir fry of movie tropes set in a topical location and served with half a compelling plot? Because Crazy Rich Asians is the movie for you. Based on the best-selling novel, and Meet the Parents and The Proposal, Rachael stars as an economics professor who goes with her dashing boyfriend to his cousin’s wedding in Singapore. But before they even left the airport, they are escorted to first class, where she learns that her dashing boyfriend is heir to a titular wealthy family. Then she reunites with her friend from college, Awkwafina, and they head to the mansion. She gets invited to a bachelorette weekend where she gets ambushed with a gutted fish in her hotel room. Instead of running away knowing that the family doesn’t approve of her, she fights back by chatting up the royal princess about an economic article the princess wrote. Then comes the MOST! B*TCHING! WEDDING! EVER! I mean, HOLY SH*T! I stand, and I APPLAUD! They decorate the church with plants and grass, which was okay. A woman starts singing “I Can’t Help Falling in Love with You,” the flower children walk down the aisle, then the woman stops singing, and the aisle floods with water, and here comes the bride. Mind blown. Movie weddings are ruined forever. There is no way you an out do this. Well, I would have added a cello bit when the music resumed. Still great though.

Then Mother decides to play dirty and hire a private investigator to uncover Rachael’s dirty past that even she didn’t know about; her mother was married to another and had an affair, and Rachael was the fruit of that passion. Rachael runs away. Her mother comes to town to take her home. Rachael defeats the dashing boyfriend’s mother at mahjong and telling her that she’s leaving to give her dashing boyfriend the happiness he deserved, but the dashing boyfriend chases her down at the airport, proposes to her, and takes her back to his house where everyone is suddenly all besties with Rachael, including Dashing Boyfriend’s mother.

The only thing keeping this film from being hailed as super brilliant is the fact that they cast two of the most American Asians Hollywood has to offer, Awkwafina and Ken Jeong. With them in the movie, you’re getting a low rate comedy with cat fights, you know, like some Mean Girls sh*t, and we almost the got that. The trailer seemed like there was going to be. The girls did some bawk-bawking but hardly any walk-walking. Instead of a cat fight, we get a casual win at mahjong and Rachael walking away like a smart comedy. You can probably do both good and bad comedy, but this movie couldn’t do it. It needs to pick a lane and stay in it.

One thing that happens in the beginning, and never shows up again, is the communication thing inspired by an episode of Gossip Girl; I thought it was going to be a reoccurring thing throughout the movie, but it doesn’t, with the exception of the “Hook, line, and sink her” text. Instead it gets this perfect movie thrown out of proportion and it goes downhill from there. See the paragraph above.

“There are children in America that are starving” is the cheapest shot put to film since Parzival virtually kicking Sorrento in the groin. And it was only funny because Dr. Ken said it.

For hopes in the coming sequel, I expect the film to work out whether it’s going to be a high rate or low rate comedy, give us the plot where Rachael is pregnant before the wedding, since we’ve already met the Focker in this movie. Oh…I think I just wrote the next film. Credit me. XOXO!

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Rotten Tomatoes Score: 92% Certified Fresh

IMDb Score: 7.2/10

Awards
Golden Globes

• Best Motion Picture Musical or Comedy - Nominated
• Best Actress in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy Constance Wu - Nominated

(Click here to view more awards for "Crazy Rich Asians".)