Commentary #41: Rec’d and Wreck’d – Movies!

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Image Credit: Shealea at That Bookshelf Bitch.

I saw this post on Getting Through Anxiety, written by B.G.


The Rules:

  1. Download the Rec’d & Wreck’d header and include it in your post.
  2. Specify what you’re going to Rec’d & Wreck’d. If you were tagged to do a Rec’d & Wreck’d post, let us know and mention the person who tagged you.
  3. List three things you would recommend (rec’d). Rave until your heart’s content.
  4. List three things you would like to wreck (wreck’d). Rant until your heart’s content.
  5. State your challenge for the next Rec’d & Wreck’d post. Here’s an example:
    Rec’d & Wreck’d challenge:
    – Type: Books
    – Genre: YA Contemporary
    – Prompt: I’m looking for a book that can make me ugly cry
  6. You can open the challenge to all your blog readers, but you should nominate at least seven (7) people to do your challenge.
  7. Do not forget to link back to the original post on That Bookshelf Bitch. That way, more people can learn about the feature and join in on the fun!

To find out more about Rec’d & Wreck’d, click here!

Ready?

Here we go!


Rec’d

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(1) Forrest Gump – This is one of my all-time favorite movies. If it’s on TV, I almost always watch it. I love the perseverance that Forrest has, and how he makes his impact on history. It has a wonderful mix of humor, charm, wit, fear, determination, triumph, and tragedy.

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Image Credit: collider.com

(2) A Few Good Men – I didn’t watch this one in full until a few years ago. It came on TV one Saturday night when I was living alone in my apartment. Since the military has been a huge part of my life, I was naturally drawn to this movie. It does a good job in showcasing what the Navy and the Judge Advocate General’s Corps (JAG) do every single day. It’s become one of my favorite movies. It’s full of drama, intrigue, and suspense!

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

(3) Grosse Pointe Blank – Al’s brother, Nick, introduced me to this movie around 2009. I had never heard of it, and Nick was shocked. We immediately sat down and watched it. It’s a bloody dark comedy – Literally – but it’s so good. I’m able to ignore much of the violence because of the humor and the way the characters interact. John Cusack and Minnie Driver absolutely shine, and Joan Cusack and Dan Aykroyd are roaringly funny. I’ve seen it several times, and whenever it comes on TV, we usually catch part of it.


Wreck’d

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Image Credit: amazon.com

(1) Requiem for a Dream – This one was really confusing and tough for me to watch. I don’t think I even finished it. I was in college, and the way the movie opened threw me for a loop, and I spent the next hour trying to figure out what exactly I was watching. I know that it’s an acclaimed film, but the parts I did watch, I was just confused and lost.

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

(2) Snow White and the Huntsman – Al and I saw this in the theaters. The trailers looked interesting, but the movie itself fell flat on its face almost immediately. We’re not partial to Kristen Stewart, and Charlize Theron’s character was just weird in this film. The special effects were good, but that was about it.

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Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

(3) Reservoir Dogs – Several of my friends are huge Quentin Tarantino fans. I’ve seen almost all of the movies he’s made. The premise is good, the story is intriguing, but it’s just too bloody for my sensitive stomach to handle. I don’t do well with a lot of violence in movies, and this one was just too much.


I love this idea. I plan to do another post on TV shows, and possibly books!

What movies do you think should be Rec’d, or Wreck’d? I’d love to hear about it!


Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

Commentary #40: Thoughts on “Girl Meets World”

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Image Credit: quotesgram.com

I didn’t watch Boy Meets World growing up, but I watched a good chunk of it in syndication in college (Yay, ABC Family!)

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Image Credit: pinterest.com

Then, Disney announced that they were producing a sequel – Girl Meets World.

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Image Credit: disney.wikia.com

Well, it’s safe to say that I’m hooked.

We’ve already blown through the first two seasons on Netflix! I can’t wait until they get a hold of season 3!!


I love that Disney basically picked up right where Boy Meets World left off, and then proceeded to update it for today’s kids and parents.

At the same time, it’s a bit surreal to think that the kids who watched Boy Meets World are now adults and probably have kids of their own now, just like the characters Cory, Topanga, Eric, and Shawn.

COREY FOGELMANIS, PEYTON MEYER, SABRINA CARPENTER, ROWAN BLANCHARD, BEN SAVAGE, AUGUST MATURO, DANIELLE FISHEL

GIRL MEETS WORLD – Disney Channel’s “Girl Meets World” stars Corey Fogelmanis as Farkle Minkus, Peyton Meyer as Lucas Friar, Sabrina Carpenter as Maya Hart, Rowan Blanchard as Riley Matthews, Ben Savage as Cory Matthews, August Maturo as Auggie Matthews and Danielle Fishel as Topanga Matthews. (Disney Channel/Edward Herrera) Image Credit: thewrap.com

I love that the show is mostly centered around the kids – Just like Boy Meets World was, back in the day. It certainly involves the adult characters, but the show is a decent role model for today’s kids. For me, I’ve seen many lessons about independence, friendship, moving, responsibility, choices, talent, and growing up, among other things.

It shows the struggles of middle school, mixed in with struggles of the adult world – Teaching, funding, helping others, making difficult decisions, supporting your family.

Now that I’m on pins and needles waiting for season 3, I want to go back and revisit Boy Meets World as a whole. There are some awesome flashbacks featured in Girl Meets World, and seeing those little snippets makes me even more nostalgic!


Overall, I think Disney’s done a good job with keeping a lot of the old elements, but also updating them for the new generations. Although it’s clearly designed for a younger audience, as a 28-year-old, I appreciate the show based on the nostalgia factor, the variety of social issues that are covered, and the feel-good atmosphere that surrounds the show as a whole. I’m happy that they’ve included a lot of the characters from the original show, as well as balanced those characters with new, fresh ones.

For me, this is similar to the feelings I felt when Netflix created Fuller House, but this experience is on a slightly different scale. I’m happy that Disney took this idea, knowing that they were taking a big risk with all of the Boy Meets World fans, and ran with it.

From what I’ve seen, it’s been a big success, so far.


What are your thoughts?

Did you watch Boy Meets World?

Have you watched Girl Meets World?

Let me know what you think!


Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

Commentary #39: “‘I Wasn’t Crazy.’ A Homeless Woman’s Long War To Prove The Feds Owe Her $100,000.”

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Image Credit: pinterest.com

I found this link somewhere online last week, probably through Facebook. I like The Washington Post, for the most part. This was a fascinating story.


Here’s the link to the original story:

I hung on every word of the story. This woman, Wanda Witter, age 80, is the prime example of perseverance and determination!

She refused to give up. She was convinced that something was wrong, and was determined to fight it tooth and nail!

For me, if I were homeless at the age of 80, I don’t think I would have the same courage, determination, and spirit!

This story also cast a light on the homeless in Washington, D.C. It’s a lot worse than I ever imagined. Yes, I know D.C. is a major city, but seeing the numbers and facts about its homeless population was stark and grim.

However, seeing the story written with both sides of the coin – Good and bad, facts and figures – made it better.


For Wanda, this battle has gone on for 16 YEARS.

That’s completely unacceptable.

But, it was her reality. The story cited the backlog that the Social Security Administration has faced for a long time. It makes me upset and a bit more critical of the U.S. government and its agencies.

But, maybe that’s just me, coming off a long weekend of organizing a mountain of receipts, a wave of bills, tabulating monthly paychecks, plus arguing with agencies such as Social Security and the DMV.


Aside from all of that, I have good news to report.

Right before I published this post, I found an update to Wanda’s story!

Here it is:

I was thrilled that the Post did an update so quickly.

It warmed my heart, and put a tiny little bit of faith back in the system.

I’m celebrating Wanda’s success with her. I’m excited and happy that she persevered, never gave up, and got every single penny that she deserved (and, there’s probably more money down the line). According to the update, she wants to get dental implants to fix her top teeth, then go see her four daughters, plus grandchildren, that live in different states.

And that makes me a happy blogger today.


Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

Commentary #38: “In Defense of Villainesses”

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Image Credit: azquotes.com

One of my dearest friends, Michaela Leigh, tagged me, along with 31 other amazing women, in a Facebook post the other day with this article and the following script:

“this one is for all the vibrant and ambitious Outlaw Women, Cowgirls, Gunsmoke Gals, and Femme Sharks in my life. your dreams and accomplishments inspire and delight me. may every day be filled with such unbridled joy that all you can do is throw your head back and laugh.”


Entitled “In Defense of Villianesses,” the author brilliantly starts to describe characteristics of powerful, confident, self-assured women.

Then, she applies those characteristics to Disney villianesses.

Here’s some of the examples she used:

  • Maleficent
  • Cruella de Vil
  • The Queen from Snow White
  • Yzma from The Emperor’s New Groove
  • Shego from Kim Possible
  • Ursula from The Little Mermaid

I eagerly started searching the Internet for quotes and images:

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Image Credit: pinterest.com

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Image Credit: pinterest.com

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Image Credit: quotesgram.com

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Image Credit: pinterest.com


One line stuck out to me instantly:

  • ” … Why is it that I can easily remember the faces and voices of female cartoon villains, but if asked about female cartoon heroes, all I can remember is the clothes?”

Wow.

She’s absolutely right.


And then, towards the end of the piece, she blew me away again:

  • ” …How might you laugh if you’d burned every bridge that needed burning, and there was nothing standing in the way of your ambition? How might you look, if the only person you needed to please with your fashion choices was you? It’s delicious and frightening to think about becoming the type of woman that a Disney illustrator would light from below, surrounded by billowing smoke, with your henchmen cowering in the background and every opportunity spread before you. It’s thrilling to imagine a life where your only fear is mortality, and even that can be negotiated out of the way if you know the right people or brew the right potions. It’s wonderful and terrible to think about having that much power, because as we all know, that much power makes you a villainess. …”

Her writing blew my mind.

I grew up admiring the Disney Princesses, especially Belle. I wanted to live in the Beast’s castle and fawn over that gorgeous, amazing, stunning library.

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Image Credit: kardsunlimited.com

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Image Credit: pinterest.com

As a child, and then transitioning into a woman, I remember fearing these villainesses.

The Queen from Snow White gave me nightmares for a while.

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I pictured Glenn Close as Cruella de Vil for several years.

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Image Credit: disney.wikia.com

Maleficent made me instantly cringe.

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Image Credit: pinterest.com

Ursula gave me goosebumps.

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Image Credit: disney.wikia.com

Yzma’s voice sounded like nails on a chalkboard.

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Image Credit: pinterest.com


But, in a way, Sarah’s right.

Most of the Disney Princesses are portrayed as brave, heroic, ambitious, and determined.

However, the villainesses also have those characteristics.

And they don’t get the credit they deserve.

Like Sarah, I stand in defense of these villainesses.

I still admire Belle, but I admire her for her love of books.

I hope to have children one day, and because of this, I want to show them both sides of these characters. Yes, these women may be portrayed as villainesses, but they’re not all bad.

In fact, some of their qualities are significantly better than those of the princesses.


What do you think?

I’d love to hear your thoughts!


Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

Commentary #37: Thoughts on “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver”

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Image Credit: huffingtonpost.com

Disclaimer: This post contains strong language.


If you haven’t seen the hilarity and truth-bomber that is John Oliver and his show Last Week Tonight, I highly encourage you to do so.

Here’s the link to Oliver’s channel on YouTube:


Oliver started out in stand-up comedy. You may also recognize him from the very funny show Community.

In July 2006, he joined The Daily Show with Jon Stewart as its Senior British Correspondent.

Admittedly, whilst watching The Daily Show, primarily in college, I didn’t like Oliver.

At all.

I thought he was immensely annoying!


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Image Credit: ecuadortimes.net

Fast forward just a few years:

My, my, how things have changed.

Oliver is fucking BRILLIANT.

He struck gold with HBO.

The show started on April 27, 2014.

The best way I can describe the show’s popularity:

Meteoric.

If you take a few minutes and just casually scroll through the uploads on his YouTube channel, almost every single episode has at least two million views.

Two MILLION.

And then, if you find his EPIC Donald Trump video, behold:

TWENTY-EIGHT MILLION views.

Yup, 28 million views since it was uploaded five months ago.

Wow!


Aside from his humor and parodies, he’s a major truth-bomber.

Since Al and I started watching Last Week Tonight every week, about a year and a half ago, part of me has immediately wanted to pack up, leave southeastern Virginia, and head straight for New York to beg for a job on his staff.

I love what he does:

Researches the shit out of a topic, and then makes fun of it. With facts!

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Image Credit: imgur.com

Last Week Tonight airs on HBO on Sunday nights at 11:00 p.m.

New episodes are uploaded to the YouTube channel on Mondays.

Here’s the links to a few of my favorite episodes:


Let me know what you think!

Did you watch The Daily Show with Jon Stewart?

Do you watch Last Week Tonight?

If you haven’t seen it, do you plan to start watching it?

If you have watched it, let me know what your favorite episode is!


Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

Commentary #36: “July TV Show Photo Challenge” (Day 31)

Image Credit gettingthroughanxiety

Image Credit: gettingthroughanxiety.wordpress.com

Favorite Season Finale

Wow, I can’t believe it. We’re at the last day of July!

I really enjoyed this challenge – Many thanks to B.G. and Carla! They created this challenge together, and I’ve heard that there are more challenges in the works!

If you haven’t already, please go check out their blogs – Getting Through Anxiety and The Melodramatic Confessions of Carla Louise. They’re both talented writers, and they blog about awesome things!

Okay, now to wrap up the challenge.

This one was really, really hard. I had to dig deep.

The season 1 finale of Glee – Season 1, Episode 22 – “Journey to Regionals”

It was harder than I thought to find good photos for this post. The two I found show the climax – Their performance at Regionals, with all Journey songs.

I remember loving this episode, singing along shamelessly at Mom and Dad’s. It aired on June 8, 2010.

I fell in love with Glee with the pilot episode’s rendition of “Don’t Stop Believin’,” so I was thrilled when I learned they were doing more Journey songs.

To this day, the CD based on this episode is one of my all-time favorites. When I need a pick-me-up, I pop this one in my car and turn the volume all the way up. It’s so worth it.

I couldn’t wait for season 2 to begin.


Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

Commentary #35: “July TV Show Photo Challenge” (Day 30)

Image Credit gettingthroughanxiety

Image Credit: gettingthroughanxiety.wordpress.com

Saddest Character Death

Like yesterday’s post, this was almost too easy. When I was first reading the list a few weeks ago, this one popped into my mind almost immediately.

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Image Credit: hercampus.com

Glee – Season 5, Episode 3 – “The Quarterback”

Saying goodbye to Finn Hudson, and honoring Cory Monteith, who played Finn.

Cory died on July 13, 2013, as a result of an overdose of alcohol and heroin in a Vancouver, British Columbia hotel room.

I still remember getting the CNN News Alert on my iPhone. I had to read it twice, and then I burst into tears. It was all over Facebook. Someone else tagged me in a link to one of the articles, and I just remember feeling incredibly sad for his family, Lea Michele (who played Rachel Berry, Finn’s girlfriend, on-screen, and was also Cory’s real-life off-screen girlfriend), and the entire Glee community.

When his death was announced, I knew an episode like this was coming. I spent most of Thursday, October 10th preparing myself.

Al offered to come over to my apartment that night and watch it with me, even though he didn’t watch the show. I thanked him, but declined. I wanted to watch it alone.

I set up my full box of tissues, comfort food, and favorite blanket on my futon before the episode aired. The tears started well before the episode did.

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Image Credit: billboard.co

Glee - eonline

GLEE: The McKinley family of the past and present join together to remember and celebrate the life of Finn Hudson in “The Quarterback” episode of GLEE airing Thursday, Oct. 10 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. ©2013 Fox Broadcasting Co. CR: Eddy Chen/FOX Image Credit: eonline.com

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Kurt (Chris Colfer) wears Finn’s letter jacket. Image Credit: autostraddle.com

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Mr. Schuester (Matthew Morrison) attempts to comfort Rachel (Lea Michele) in the choir room. Image Credit: glee.wikia.com

I thought the choices of music for the episode were good, overall:

“Seasons of Love”

“I’ll Stand by You”

“Fire and Rain”

“If I Die Young”

“No Surrender”

“Make You Feel My Love”

Every cast member had their emotions running high, for obvious reasons. Finn was on the show from the beginning. Seeing his character sing helped me fall in love with the show in the first place! You could tell that everyone was literally singing their hearts out. Singing for Finn.

This is one episode that I haven’t dared to watch again. Not yet.

I’ve seen some of the clips of the songs online, but until recently, I would start to tear up within seconds of the song / video starting.

I can’t believe it’s been three years since he died. Wow.

Santana’s (Naya Rivera) rendition of “If I Die Young” still haunts me. It’s a tear-jerker in general when The Band Perry sings it, but when she sang it, solo, it hit me straight in the heart.

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Image Credit: screencrave.com

Finn Hudson

1994-2013

“The show must go … all over the place … or something.”

Thank you, Finn Hudson.

Thank you, Cory Monteith, for helping bring Finn to the world.

You had an amazing voice.

You were funny.

You were human.

I’m so sad that you left this world so early, but you will never be forgotten.

Rest In Peace.


Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

Commentary #34: “July TV Show Photo Challenge” (Day 29)

Image Credit gettingthroughanxiety

Image Credit: gettingthroughanxiety.wordpress.com

Worst Finale Cliffhanger

This one – It was almost too easy.

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Image Credit: screenrant.com

The Flash - collider

The Flash — “The Race of His Life” — Image: FLA223b_0092b.jpg — Pictured (L-R): Keiynan Lonsdale as Wally West, Grant Gustin as Barry Allen and Candice Patton as Iris West — Photo: Katie Yu/The CW — © 2016 The CW Network, LLC. All rights reserved. Image Credit: collider.com

The Flash season 2 finale started out pretty good. But, by the end, I was furious. My jaw was open, watching in disbelief.

The minute it ended, I looked at Al and I said, “I DID NOT want THAT to happen!!”

I was disgusted. Everyone knows, by now, that going back in time or disrupting the timeline will screw things up, usually in a huge, royal, honking fashion.

Argh.

I tried to understand why Barry went back to save his mother – I really did. But now, because of that on action, it will literally change everything. And I’m so sad. To me, it was really selfish and self-centered of his character to do that.

Oh, well. I’ll still watch season 3, but begrudgingly. This episode will always piss me off!


Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

Commentary #33: “July TV Show Photo Challenge” (Day 28)

Image Credit gettingthroughanxiety

Image Credit: gettingthroughanxiety.wordpress.com

Favorite Season Finale Cliffhanger

I hadn’t really given much thought to season finales and cliffhangers, but I found one!

ATTENTION!

SPOILER ALERT!

There are some details in this post that may be spoilers.

If you haven’t watched The Big Bang Theory season 8 finale …

STOP NOW!

Okay. You’ve been warned.

Here we go!

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Image Credit: cinemablend.com

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Image Credit: ibtimes.co.uk

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Image Credit: etonline.com

The title of this episode was “The Commitment Determination.” It aired on May 7, 2015.

By way of the title, the season finale focuses on everyone’s relationships – Sheldon and Amy, Leonard and Penny, Howard and Bernadette, and Raj and Emily – But all in different ways.

Everyone is facing certain obstacles: Howard and Bernadette want Stuart to move out. Leonard tells Penny that, while drunk, he kissed another woman while on the boat in the North Sea. Raj is having a tough time with Emily’s idea of having sex in a graveyard.

Amy wants to take a break from Sheldon. No surprise there – I would have been immensely frustrated too, on the fifth anniversary of their first date, when Sheldon is debating watching The Flash instead of focusing solely on her. So sad!

Surprisingly, I teared up at the very end. Right after Amy tells Sheldon that she needs to step back and reevaluate their situation, Sheldon is seen, alone, at his desk. Then, he looks at his Gollum statue, as he opens the drawer and pulls out that symbolic black ring box.

“Well, Gollum, you’re an expert on rings.”

“What do I do with this one?”

End of episode.

Maybe it was because this episode aired about halfway between my own engagement and wedding. I can’t really explain it, but in spite of all the emotions, I liked this finale / cliffhanger.

I couldn’t wait for season 9 to start!


Did you watch this finale?

What’s your favorite season finale cliffhanger?


Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂

Commentary #32: “July TV Show Photo Challenge” (Day 27)

Image Credit gettingthroughanxiety

Image Credit: gettingthroughanxiety.wordpress.com

Best Special Effects

This one was really difficult to narrow down. There are so many shows that I watch or have seen that use amazing special effects!

But, I wanted to showcase a series that I haven’t highlighted yet.

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Image Credit: crimemuseum.org

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Image Credit: pbs.org

If you haven’t seen Sherlock, it is an amazing show!

I struggled with it, at first. Each episode is 90 minutes long. Al and I would attempt to watch just one episode, and I would fall asleep!

However, once I made it through the first season, I was amped. I wanted to see more!

The premise of the show is a modern adaption of the Sherlock Holmes detective stories, and it’s basically brilliant.

We just watched the Series 4 promo, and my jaw hung open the whole time. I don’t think I can wait until it premieres! I’m ready now!

The special effects are awesome, among other aspects. My mind is usually blown in some way by the end of each episode. Since each episode is 90 minutes, it’s definitely a bit of a marathon. But trust me, it’s completely worth it!

The last time I checked, everything was still available on Netflix streaming.

Series 4 is scheduled to premiere at some point in early 2017.


Have you seen Sherlock? What do you think?


Until the next headline, Laura Beth 🙂