Wednesday, 11 May 2016

Legends of Tomorrow 'River of Time' Review


This review WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS, if you do not want certain plot points or story spoilt, please do not read further.


'Who are you to stand against me, Vandal Savage, destroyer of empires?!'
'Leonard Snart, robber of ATM's!'

The previous episode, 'Leviathan', seemed like a season finale episode throughout, with a scenario and level of action that most shows would be proud to showcase as an endpoint, so with three episodes left to go it was hard to know where the show was going to go.  Luckily, 'River of Time' proved to be a fantastic episode in itself and a great follow up to what came the week before.

'River of Time' follows our team as they try to pilot the still damaged Waverider through the time stream to vanishing point so that they can hand Savage over to the Time Masters.  Whilst it might not sound like the most thrilling plot in existence, the writing and acting help to elevate it to a really great level.  Surprisingly too, the episode is a bottle episode, with all but the final two scenes being set aboard the Waverider.  

Whilst some shows would struggle to make a bottle episode interesting and engaging, especially if they've been producing episodes in such varied and interesting settings as Legends of Tomorrow, this episode is one of the best of the whole series and a great example of how to produce a good bottle episode.

The drama in the episode comes in two forms, whether the ship can survive its journey to vanishing point, and the mind games that Savage plays on the team whilst their prisoner.  

Savage gets to give up on being the rather bland villain we've had all season and instead gets to channel a little Hannibal Lecter as he stands inside his glass cage and tries to push their trust issues and insecurities.  It's definitely the best we've ever seen him up to now, and gives him much more menace than simply striding around and commanding others to fight on his behalf.


For the most part his mind games actually work, as he not only gets inside Ray's head to play on the insecurities he has about his relationship with Kendra now that Carter is back but also begins to get the team to doubt Rips intentions and loyalty to them.  Thankfully this isn't a plot thread that will last beyond this episode, as Rip manages to prove his loyalty to the team by taking a bullet meant for Kendra, but it was a good little moment worth exploring over the course of this episode.

The mind games played on Ray will definitely have more lasting effects, as it would appear that the Ray/Kendra relationship may have finally reached breaking point now that Carter is back amongst them.  I'm not particularly sorry to see the end of this love story, as its felt more forced than anything else, and there is relatively little chemistry between the two of them.

This also, sadly, gives Ray what is without a doubt his most stupid moment ever, and I am counting all his time on Arrow here too, not just Legends.  Vandal Savage manages to goad Ray into opening his cell and getting him to enter it in order to fight him.  Not only is this one of the oldest tricks in the book (it's right up there behind 'oh my stomach hurts') but we've got someone who is supposed to be a genius thinking that it's a good idea to pick a fight with a multiple murderer who's thousands of years old and has probably mastered every form of unarmed combat around.  Frankly, Ray deserved to get the shit kicked out of him here.

When Savage finally manages to break out of his cell and run amok across the ship the episode gives us one of the smallest fights the show has done yet, but one that works surprisingly well at building up the tension.  The team are stuck in a small hallway between Savage with a laser gun and the still brainwashed Carter with his mace.  It's here that we get one of the best exchanges we've had in the entire history of the arrowverse as Savage and Captain Cold square off against each other, 'Who are you to stand against me, Vandal Savage, destroyer of empires?!'  'Leonard Snart, robber of ATM's!'


Once again Wentworth Miller proves that even when he's not given a great deal to do in an episode he can still become one of the best things the episode has to offer.  Whatever cast changes the producers choose to make going into season two, I sincerely hope that both he and Dominic Purcell get to stay around, even though they were the two characters I was most sceptical about when the show first began.

During the fight Carter remembers his past lives and manages to come to the aid of the team in time to prevent their defeat, though he does manage to get stabbed by Savage yet again (I'm starting to think he might not be the best at this superhero thing).  Luckily this time Carter isn't mortally wounded and survived his fight with Savage before the villain is once again captured by the team.

Also during this episode the team loses Jax, who after being exposed to the temporal radiation inside the time engine begins to age at a rapid rate.  It provides a nice solid story for both him and Stein as the older of the pair manages to figure out a way of saving his other half, albeit one that will probably lead to his own death from being separated from Jax.  It's nice to see Stein atoning for drugging Jax at the start of the season to force him onto the mission, by this time drugging him in order to send him home.  It's a good reversal of that initial episode, though it is beginning to worry me at how good Stein is at drugging people.

By the end of the episode Rip and the team manages to finally get Savage to the Time Masters, only to find that they are already aware of Savage's tampering in the timeline and are willing to not only let him go free, but then arrest Rip and the crew.

'River of Time' is a small scale episode that manages to take a limited setting and a lot of character moments to make one of the best episodes of the show to date with an ending that sets the stage for an interesting penultimate episode.


Amy.
xx
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Tuesday, 10 May 2016

Labour Party's First Transgender Councillor Elected



The Labour Party has become the latest British political party to have an elected transgender politician.

Anwen Dawn Muston was elected for Wolverhampton City Council during last week's elections, where she secured the East Park ward with 1,022 votes.

'I'm proud to have been elected, as the first openly out elected transgender politician at any level within the Labour Party.  I was not selected or elected because I am transgender, nor to tick an equality tick box.

'It's because of my qualities and experiences in dealing with local issues, along with all the hard work that I put in during the election campaign - proving that I can do the job required and represent all communities regardless on a range of issues.

'I have had a good experience with no prejudice when attending local meetings or meeting residents who have had issues that need to be resolved.

'Being transgender is secondary, however I would encourage other trans people who have the neccesary skills and ability to have a go at public office.  We still need to see an elected MP, PCC, Assembly Member or MEP.

'This is about getting on with your own life once you have transitioned and being seen to be taking on everyday tasks that others do every day which will break down the barriers of the wider public and will pave the way for future generations to come.  It's taking part that counts whichever political party you belong to.'

A number of other parties currently have transgender councillors, including UKIP, Conservatives, The Green Party and the Liberal Democrats.  However, there are currently no transgender MP's in Britain.


Amy.
xx
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Stop Letting Kevin Smith Make Films


Why do people praise Kevin Smith so much?  I know that when 'Clerks' came out way back in 1994 it was a big deal on the indie cinema scene.  It spoke to a lot of people of a certain generation and appealed to young 'regular' people who liked it for its pop culture references, as well as the more highbrow critics who like it for being all talk and made in black and white.

Kevin Smith burst onto the scene and looked like he was going to change cinema in a big way, along with both Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino, the three of whom appeared to be combining the dialogue of high class art house productions and the sleaziness and grimy aesthetic of the grindhouse genre, all mixed in with liberal amounts of pop culture references and geek ephemera.  

At these first few films from these directors were making a big impact upon a generation of film fans who finally felt that there were people making movies that not only appealed to them, but could almost have been made by them.  They were directors that the audience could identify with and aspire to be.

Whilst at the time 'Clerks' was an important part of this movement and new form of cinema, to look at it now there's not much of the film that can actually stand on its own.  It's not particularly funny, the scenarios are all contrived and predictable, the dialogue is stilted and unnatural, there's no creativity when it comes to the cinematography and the acting is amateur and hammy at best.

'Clerks' only succeeded in becoming something notable at the time because there wasn't much like it on the market.  As time went on and Smith made more films it became apparent that what little there was in 'Clerks' that made it successful was missing completely from his other projects.  Along with the development of the 'askewniverse' and the self-indulgence of the Silent Bob character Smith went from one poor project to the next.

I thought that his body horror film 'Tusk' was the complete low point of his career, with the plot and characters based on crappy jokes from his 'SModcast' show in a moment of terrible self-reference and self-adulation.  The film wasn't funny in the slightest, the plot was ridiculous and the whole thing seemed to be made only to appeal to Smith himself and his unquestioning fans.

Kevin Smith as the Bratzi
Well, I guess I was wrong as Smith has just launched a trailer for his new film 'Yoga Hosers', a follow-up to 'Tusk' that follows the characters of Colleen and Colleen, as played by the daughters of Kevin Smith and Johnny Depp, Harley Quinn Smith and Lily-Rose Depp, who appeared briefly in the previous film as they combat an invasion of evil Nazi sausage monsters called 'Bratzis', played by Smith himself.

So yet again we have another film based around frankly ludicrous 'jokes' from his show, built as a platform for him and Johnny Depp to get their daughters into a lead film role and with an absolutely stupid premise.

Now, I'm not against schlocky films, they're definitely a genre that I love, but the reason they're good when they're good is because they're trying to make genuinely good films, but they fail making a serious film and instead create something so crazy it's great.  'Yoga Hosers', just like 'Tusk' before it, appear to be trying to make a film with that same ridiculous schlocky feel, the problem is those kinds of films aren't made intentionally bad.

It would appear that Kevin Smith fails to understand this and thinks that just by making something with a stupid premise, crappy monster effects and awkward dialogue will make them good films by virtue of being 'so bad it's good', when instead they're just plain bad.


I fail to see who these films are being made for other than as a product of Smiths terrible humour and self-love, whilst feeling that he can make his daughter a film star simply because people let him do whatever he wants in his films.  I just don't understand why he keeps being allowed to do whatever he wants and keeps getting to make complete and utter crap.

'Clerks' might have meant something to a lot of people when it first came out, and it might have helped to create a new age of cinema for a whole generation, but it's cultural significance does not automatically make it a good film.  It is allowed to have done all of that good stuff and still be a poor piece of cinema.  You don't have to hold it, and by extension Smith, up on an untouchable pedestal because of what it did at the time.

Kevin Smith is not a good filmmaker, he is not a good writer, and he is not particularly funny.  Don't just keep letting him do whatever the hell he want and actually question whether people should waste so much money, effort and time on another of his pointless and terrible projects that will amount to nothing more than further feeding of his ego.


Amy.
xx
Posted by at 1 comment:
Labels:

Is Fox Too Scared Not To Include Wolverine?



When the latest trailer for the upcoming X-Men: Apocalypse landed fans were promised a 'surprise mutant reveal'.  A lot of fans speculated that it would be the reveal of Wolverine's inclusion in the film, whilst some hoped that it would be the inclusion of a new character to the franchise, such as the much hinted at Dazzler.  The people in the first camp were the ones who were correct, though, as the final shot of the trailer revealed that Wolverine would indeed be included in the film.

To some this was a good thing, as there are certain viewers who feel that it wouldn't be an X-Men film without his inclusion, even if it were just in a cameo role like his part in X-Men: First Class.  It does however,1 confirm a slightly annoying trend of the series, the fact that they seem incapable of producing an X-Men film without using Wolverine, with Deadpool being the only one so far that he has been absent from.

It's not known how much of the film he will be in, whether or not he has a large role that has been cunningly hidden from the promotional material so far, or if he has a much smaller part in just a handful of scenes.  Considering that the heroes are going up against their most powerful and deadly enemy to date, and the fact that other than Mystique and Beast the whole team are inexperienced teens, it would need some clever writing to introduce the character into the film yet leave him out of the climactic battle without it feeling forced (yes, I'm looking at you 'Days of Future Past' and having Magneto throw him away into the sky).

If you were to remove the last scene in the final trailer, which is so far everything we've seen of the clawed mutant, the film would still look like a well-made and competent picture.  Up until that point everyone was still excited for the film, people were saying that it looked amazing, so the studio can clearly make an X-Men film that appears to be good without his inclusion.  X-Men: First Class is a prime example of this, where if you removed his thirty second cameo the movie would still be great.

I can't help but feel that the studio gets cold feet every now and then though and feels that they have to put Wolverine in the films or fans will protest against his absence.

The simple fact is thought that Hugh Jackman has said that Wolverine 3 will be his last time in the role, and that that film will be the next superhero film on Fox's schedule.  If they're going to continue to make X-Men movies they're going to have to either recast, which I don't think they'll do, or get used to the fact that they will have to get by without him.

X-Men: Apocalypse could have been their first chance to get away from the character before they're put in a situation where they don't have a choice but get by without.  Sadly it would appear that they've fallen into the trap of clutching at their metal clawed safety blanket.

Perhaps I'm wrong, because the studio has proven that they can make perfectly competent X-Men movies without him, but I'm starting to get tired of always seeing him in these films, and usually in a much more central role than he really should have.  It's one of the bonuses of the Avengers films that every character gets their moment to shine and feels like an important part of a whole, but the X-Men films are starting to feel more like Wolverine's film with an extended supporting cast.

'Days of Future Past' was a great film, but it would have been great if Wolverine wasn't the person sent back in time.  'Apocalypse' looks like it's going to be a great film, and it built up massive hype without Wolverine.  Please, please Fox, stop pushing Wolverine into every X-Men film.  If you think that they need his involvement in some way at least rethink how you're going to go about doing that.  Why not use Wolverine 3 to introduce us to X23 and then use her as part of the team in the regular X-Men films, and a genuine part of the team rather than the front character like Wolverine?

If you really feel that this franchise needs to be connected to Wolverine in some way in order to survive at least get a little more interesting and inventive in how you do that.  Or perhaps come to the realisation that there are enough great X-Men characters that you can produce a film without him that would still be a hit.


Amy.
xx
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Monday, 9 May 2016

North Carolina Governor Suing Obama Rather Than Repeal HB2


Following a letter from the Justice Department informing North Carolina that they are in violation of federal statutes over their HB2 legislation the Governor of North Carolina, Pat McCrory, has announced that he plans to sue President Obama rather than repeal BH2.

Along with the letter, North Carolina were warned that the state could lose billions of dollars in federal education funding.  This is along with dozens of celebrities, such as Bruce Springsteen, who have cancelled public appearances in the state and hundreds of business leaders who have condemned the law that unjustly targets and discriminates against members of the LGBT+ community.

In an interview with Fox News Sunday yesterday, 8th March 2015, McCrory said that the state has not been given enough time to respond to the Justice Department's request (despite voting HB2 into power in just one day) and said 'It's the federal government being a - a bully.  It's making law'.  Yes, the state that feels that they have the right to ruin the lives of thousands of members of the LGBT+ community and label transgender women as sex offenders and paedophiles feels that they are the ones being bullied.  You couldn't make it up.

Instead of agreeing to repeal HB2 today, however, McCrory has instead chosen to continue backing his 'common sense' laws and has filed a lawsuit against the federal government.  Appearing in federal court today McCrory has launched a lawsuit seeking 'declaratory and injunctive relief' from the federal government.  The lawsuit names the Justice Department, Attorney General Loretta Lynch, the head of Justice's Civil Rights Division Vanita Gupta, as well as President Obama.

'We're taking the Obama admin to court.'  He wrote today.  'They're bypassing Congress by attempting to rewrite the law and policies for the whole country, not just NC.  Our lawsuit seeks to ensure that NC continues to receive federal funding until the court clarifies federal law and resolve this national issue.

'The Obama administration is bypassing Congress by attempting to rewrite the law and set restroom policies for public and private employers across the country, not just North Carolina.  This is now a national issue that applies to every state and it needs to be resolved at the federal level.  They are now telling every government agency and every company that employs more than 15 people that men should be allowed to use a women's locker room, restroom and shower facility.'

I'm not sure what more can be said about this situation other than that it is blatantly ridiculous that an elected official would rather attempt to sue their own government rather than allow people equality and understanding.  Hatred of this magnitude is staggering.
Amy.
xx
Posted by at 1 comment:
Labels:

Target Stores Terrorised By Christian Preachers



Videos have started to appear on line of 'Christian' street preachers who are entering Target stores around America to harass staff and customers by protesting the company's LGBT+ inclusively and their stance on transgender people being allowed to use the facilities that match with their gender identity.

The incidents started following the company announcing that they will allow staff and customers to use the changing room and bathroom facilities that they are most comfortable with.  This follows an on line petition started by a 'Christian' hate group that has urged people to boycott the chain whilst also spreading misinformation that transgender and gender nonconforming people are a threat to women and children.

These preachers have begun appearing in target stores wearing luminous shirts covered in phrases such as 'repent or perish' and are walking through the stores carrying bibles whilst shouting religiously motivated abuse at people.



The preachers have called for customers to rethink their choice of shopping at Target as well as trying to embarrass those that work for the company and encourage them to quit.  They have said things such as 'The Bible says that that from the beginning God made male and female!  He didn't make transvestites!', 'If you are a homosexual or if you support homosexuals, shame on you!' and 'You people who are working here, shame on you.  Find another job!  Find another job!'

In all of the cases reported the preachers have been escorted out of the stores by staff whilst some members of the public have even stood up to them and shut down their abusive rhetoric by telling them that they are in the wrong themselves.  At least one of these incidents ended in the protester being arrested.

These so called 'Christians' are failing to grasp the messages of peace, tolerance and love that the Bible teaches, and are picking an choosing which 'laws' in the Bible they should obey in order to justify their stance of hate.  I'm pretty sure none of these preachers scream at people in the street for having tattoos or wearing clothing made of two fabrics, but then again, those are things they like, so they very quickly forget about those parts of the Bible.

These men may be preachers, but they certainly aren't 'Christians'.  True Christians would be trying to help the LGBT+ community, they would be welcoming people of all genders and sexualities into the church, not condemning people and spreading hate.

Target are doing a fine job of setting a good example on how to treat people, and are refusing to be bullied into practising hate by religious fanatics who act no better than terrorist extremists.


Amy.
xx
Posted by at 1 comment:

Saturday, 7 May 2016

Supernatural 'Don't Call Me Shurley' Review


This review WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS, if you do not want certain plot points or story spoilt, please do not read further.


The big reveal at the start of this week's episode might not have been the most surprising one in the history of Supernatural, but it's definitely one of the most enjoyable as it finally gives some answers and addresses one of the biggest fan theories the show has had.

Chuck Shurley is God.

After having appeared several times before in the past, and hints that there might be something more than he first appeared, this is the first episode where the notion that Chuck is God is finally confirmed and the first time we have knowingly seen God on screen and it's brilliant.

He has so many of the qualities that we've come to love about Chuck, his slightly awkward manner, his enthusiasm and charming smile, but suddenly there's a darkness mixed in there too now that he's not hiding who he really is.  Some people might not like this new side to the character, but it's important to remember that God in the Bible is one of the most vicious and vengeful beings in existence.

There are some genuinely unnerving moments between him and Metatron where you believe that God might actually be willing to do something quite nasty to his former scribe, especially the moment when Metatron calls him a coward.

The scenes between the two of them are definitely the best part of the episode and they go a long way to both fleshing out God whilst still maintaining a lot of mystery about the kind of person he is or his motivations, as well as giving Metatron the chance to redeem himself a little for some of the things he's done in the past.


He admits that his past actions were a mistake, that he was wrong to try and take over heaven and was a terrible god, but he also brings believable reasons for his actions.  Now that he's face to face with his father again you can begin to understand that he was lashing out, that he was trying to get his father to notice him and come home.

These scenes humanise Metatron in a way we've never seen him before, and when you factor in that by the end of the episode he has convinces God to finally take notice of the world, to see that humanity is worthy of his notice and his love and gets him to actually get involved.  This is big, God has ignored humans and angels for countless years, he didn't step in to stop the apocalypse, the Leviathans or Eve, he has ignored prayers from Sam, Dean and Castiel, he has never once appeared to have cared about the Earth once but it's Metatron who talks him around.

In a lot of ways I guess it makes sense that a character that has spent thousands of years reading the length and breadth of the works of mankind is the one who can see the beauty in humanity in such a way that he can make God see that too.  Whether this means that Metatron will get to be an angel again, or that he might be considered more of a good guy than a villain is yet to be seen, but he's already played a massive part in the fight against Amara by getting God involved.

Sam and Dean are definitely the back-up story for this episode, with their scenes not being anywhere near as important or as interesting as those between Metatron and Chuck.  When the two of them think they have found a lead that could help them track down Amara and Lucifer they head to a small mountain town where Amara has unleashed her infectious fog once again.

Things in the town very quickly escalate from one or two infected people to most of the town turned into rampaging maniacs as the fog descends from the mountains and swallows up everything.

As Sam and Dean take shelter inside the local police station with a group of civilians and try to stop the fog from getting inside the story starts to take on a very 'Jus in Bello' vibe to it, and I was half expecting the two of them to have to try and fight their way through a horde of people whilst trying to save those left.


That doesn't happen, though, as Sam ends up getting infected by the fog when it seeps into the building.  Realising that he can't be infected because Amara has given him some level of protection Dean promises to stay with Sam, even though a horde of infected are breaking their way in and Sam will soon turn on Dean and try to kill him.  It's then that we realise that this is the end for the two of them.  There's no way out, there's nothing that they can do to win in this situation.

Thankfully for the two of them Metatron has been able to get God to change his mind about helping.  Yes, it's a deus ex machina, literally, but God shows up in time to make the fog disappear, cure those infected and return the people already killed back to life.  It's not the first time we've seen God save our heroes, and as he says during the episode he's had to put Castiel back together more times than he can count, but it does feel like a little bit of a let down here.

The episode ends with Sam and Dean coming face to face with Chuck and realising that he's God, and the looks on their faces sells the moment brilliantly.  I can only begin to imagine the kind of conversation that's going to come in the next episode, on the one hand the two of them are going to be seriously pissed that he never told them he was God, on the other they're going to be trying to avoid pissing off someone so powerful, especially when they need his help against Amara.

However the events of the rest of this season plays out, and the future going into season twelve, this is an episode that changes Supernatural in a huge way and things will never be the same.


Amy.
xx
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Friday, 6 May 2016

51 Families Sue School District, Claiming Transgender Student Is Ruining Lives



Last year Illinois School District 211 fought a hard legal battle to try and maintain discrimination against a transgender student (only ever identified as 'Student A') who wished to have access to facilities that matched their gender identity.  The District failed in its legal battle and was ordered to comply with the Department of Education and allow the student access to those facilities.

Now, a group of 51 families have filed a federal suit to challenge the decision based on a claim that allowing Student A access to locker rooms is harming their children's rights by infringing on their privacy.

The families, who wish to remain unidentified, are calling themselves 'Students and Parents for Privacy' are being represented by Alliance Defending Freedom (a conservative Christian non-profit organisation) and The Thomas More Society (a conservative pro-life law firm).

The lawsuit is making multiple claims that the female students at the school are suffering by having a transgender student amongst them.  The parents are saying that knowing a transgender student may be present in restrooms and changing facilities has been causing students to feel anxiety, fear, fright, apprehension, humiliation, intimidation, degradation, stress, embarrassment, discomfort and loss of dignity.

The fact that the parents are using a 'Christian' standpoint to justify their stance of hatred is both laughable and disturbing.  The concept seems to go against one of the most basic tenets of Christian faith, 'love thy neighbour', and is using religion as a weapon to legitimise violence and hate.  It is also worth considering how people like these 'Students and Parents for Privacy' would feel if another group tried to change laws in America based on Muslim, Jewish or even Buddhist teachings.  I doubt very much that they would believe that to be acceptable.

It's also shocking that they seem to be trying to blatantly use the very same kind of language that members of the transgender community would use when describing their experiences in using public facilities.  Even though I haven't had a negative experience in a bathroom for a very long time now, each and every time I use a bathroom outside of my own home I experience fear, apprehension and anxiety at the thought that 'perhaps this will be the time something bad happens'.  Those feelings would be pushed to the extreme if I were to be forced to use the male facilities as I would become even more of a target.

It's insulting that the people who are opposing the transgender community and inclusion of trans people are painting themselves as the victims, that they seem to understand the levels of trauma that trans people go through in these scenarios enough to be able to try and apply those words to themselves, yet fail to grasp at the level of harm they will be putting this young woman through by their actions.

It's clear to anyone with a degree of intelligence that this lawsuit is based not out of fear for the safety of students, but of the hate of transgender people.  This is further backed up when looking at the very first page of the suit, where these 'upstanding Christian' citizens and 'concerned parents' refuse to even acknowledge or respect the gender identity Student A.

The lawsuit identifies Student A as a 'biologically male student who perceives himself to be female'.  Male pronouns and the phrase 'biologically male' are used throughout the document, and the idea that a transgender person's core gender identity is their self-perception is used as an argument to deny Student A their rights.

Any doubt as to the bias of the 'Students and Parents for Privacy' were removed when Jocelyn Ford, a lawyer from the Thomas More Society, spoke at a press conference to announce the suit.  He explained, 'We sympathise with children who have difficult personal issues to work through, but a young man shouldn't be permitted to deal with those issues in intimate settings with 14-year-old girls'.

He also went on to demand that the government should stop it's 'bullying tactics', claiming that it is conducting a 'dangerous social experiment' by allowing transgender people the same rights as cisgender people, going so far as saying that they are pushing an 'extreme political agenda' in schools.  As opposed to this group's extreme religious agenda, but then I forget that those kind of agendas are okay if they're 'Christian' ones.

Originally Student A was denied access to female facilities by District 211, who were forcing her to use the private bathroom in the school nurse's office and changing in segregated spaces.  Now the group who are trying to get her access to female spaces are claiming that it would be unfair to ask female students who are uncomfortable with a trans student to go through these same alternatives.

They are claiming that students cannot use the bathroom facilities in the nurse's office because they would not be given enough time to get to their next class.  This is the same scenario that these parents feel would be more than accommodating for Student A if she did not feel comfortable using male facilities, but is now apparently unfair for their own children, clearly showing that they never considered these same issues when Student A was concerned.

The parents and students have even gone so far as to claim that alternative accommodations for female students is unfair because any student who has pursued these alternative has been labeled as a bigot and a transphobe by their peers.

The suit is claiming that the comfort of cisgender students takes priority over the inclusion of Student A and her comfort and would rather she be victimised for being transgender and forced to be treated differently by the school than those people who thrive on exclusion and bigotry being challenged for their backwards and hateful views.

Things become even more distressing when the suit claims that the inclusion of Student A constitutes as sexual harassment against the other female students.  'Allowing people to use restrooms and locker rooms that are designated for the opposite biological sex violates privacy and creates a sexually harassing hostile environment.  Exposure to opposite-sex nudity creates a sexually harassing hostile environment.  It is the significant and real differences between the biological sexes that creates the hostile environment, which is harassment'.

The suit claims that this apparent harassment is 'ongoing and continuous' for students every time they use the female facilities.  They are trying to make the claim that the very possibility that a transgender student could walk into a bathroom or changing room, and has the right to do so, is sexual harassment towards cisgender students.  The lawsuit is essentially trying to make the claim that the very existence of a transgender student in the school is creating an environment that threatens others.

A number of the families presenting the suit, and the organisations that are supporting them, make it clear that they are approaching the situation from a religious point of view, stating that they are devout 'Christians' whose faith is the reason that they are opposed to equality for Student A.

The admission that they feel that these equality rules are wrong based on religious beliefs, the fact that they are refusing any kind of accommodation other than the exclusion of Student A, that they are offering no alternatives for Student A and that they are equating her existence to being a sex offence all make it clear that these people have no reasoned argument and are acting out of hate and bigotry.

These people have no place to demand that their religious beliefs should trump the laws of the land, they are no better than religious extremist terrorists demanding that regimes change to fit their views on the world and they have no right to call themselves Christians.

I have referred to these people as 'Christians' instead of Christians as I believe that anyone who chooses to use their religion to deny the rights of others, or claim that they have more right to exist than others are not Christian people.  They are people who use faith as a shield to hide behind hatred and bigotry.

These 'Students and Parents for Privacy' are just the latest in a long line of extreme hate groups who put their ignorance and bigotry above other people's rights to exist and live their lives without fear of condemnation and threat.


Amy.
xx
Posted by at 3 comments:
Labels:

Arrow 'Genesis' Review


This review WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS, if you do not want certain plot points or story spoilt, please do not read further.


Following the death of Laurel Lance the conflict between Damian Darhk and team arrow intensifies as Hive turn their attention towards the Diggle family before putting their final plans into motion.

Darhk's murder of Laurel seems to have had an effect on the series as a whole, not just the characters, as 'Genesis' gives us yet another episode that stands out as one of the best of the season.  Knowing that they have no real way of combatting Darhk's magic the team choose to take some time to regroup before trying to eliminate the villain.

Diggle goes to spend some time with his family, who are still in protective custody, whilst Thea leaves Star City for the weekend to have romantic getaway with Alex.  Luckily for the team Oliver is able to get in contact with John Constantine, who gives Oliver some advice on getting help resisting Darhk's magic, so he and Felicity head for Hub City to meet their magical tutor.

Whilst the story with Oliver and Felicity seeking out help is an important one to the overall story, it's not the most prominent part of this episode.  That falls to Diggle and Lyla.  The two of them, and their infant daughter, play a dangerous game of cat and mouse around Star City with Hive as first Andy and John get into a gunfight that results in John being captured and tortured by his brother, then as Darhk himself turns his sights on Lyla and some important technology that she possesses.

The fight between Andy and John through the back alleys are well orchestrated and shows just how far John has come in such a short time.  His willingness to try and save Andy is well and truly gone as he fights to kill his brother.  The loss of Laurel and the blame that he puts on himself for that have pushed him to a much darker place than we've seen him for a long while now and that really shows in this episode.

David Ramsey really stands out as the best part of the episode, the scenes where he's being tortured by his brother, the interaction between him and Lyla and the moment where he finally takes his own brothers life are all some of the best moments he's had in all four seasons.  The moment he kills Andy is one that clearly weighed heavy on him, despite what has passed between the two of them Andy is still his brother, and taking the life of his brother is something that will haunt him for a long time.

Whilst the Diggle family falls apart in Star City Oliver and Felicity meet their contact, an immortal sorceress that tries to help Oliver to control the light within himself to combat the dark magic that Darhk uses.  It's not the most imaginative magic training the show could have come up with and feels like something of a let-down for what could have been a really novel new area for the series to explore.


It also feels a little of a waste for not taking the chance to introduce a new magical character the the CW universe from the comic books, with Esrin Fortuna being completely bland and rather forgettable.  This would have been a great opportunity to introduce us to a television version of Madam Xanadu, Zatara or even the iconic Zatana, even if they didn't want to bring a new magical character into the universe (or possibly can't for some legal reason) they could have at least used Constantine a second time.

The 'training' basically boiled down to Oliver needing to get over all of his negative emotions and embrace the things in life that make him happy.  Whilst he may have failed in the training the lesson seems to pay off when he goes up against Darhk and surprises the villain by resisting his magic.  This seems less of a way for the hero to overcome the villain, and more of a move on the show's behalf to try and force Oliver to get rid of some of the angst and negative emotions he's been carrying around for the last four years.  I also wouldn't be surprised if the writers use this as a way of repairing the relationship between Oliver and Felicity.

The episode ends with Darhk's plan finally revealed as we learn that his attack on the Diggle's was just a way for him to steal a computer chip from Lyla that would allow him to take control of every nuclear missile in the world.  Full blown global nuclear apocalypse is definitely a big step up from what villains have tried to do in previous seasons and does raise the stakes for the team considerably.

It does however set up for a potentially silly scenario if team arrow are the only ones to try and stop Darhk in the finale.  Lyla is the head of Argus, a major government organisation.  If she doesn't end up using every resource available to them, plus getting other government and military agencies involved in an-all out war on Hive then it would seem a little ridiculous, especially as it's the fate of the entire world on the line rather than just one city.

We also discover that Hive has built a giant underground dome where its people in Star City will be able to survive the nuclear holocaust.  In a twist that I think absolutely everyone saw coming we also discover that Thea has been drugged and kidnapped by Alex and is inside the dome, though we have no explanation as to why, but I'm guessing Merlyn is behind it as he is once again trying to keep his daughter safe.

'Genesis' not only keeps up the momentum and the emotions from the previous episode, but manages to set up for the final few episodes as the villain's plans are finally revealed.  The episode is full of great action sequences and amazing acting from David Ramsey, though does let itself down a little on the mystical side of things.


Amy.
xx
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:

Thursday, 5 May 2016

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. 'Failed Experiments' Review


This review WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS for the episode to be discussed, if you do not want certain plot points or story spoilt, please do not read further.


Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is finally moving into their endgame as Hive begins to put his plan to change the earth's population into inHumans into motion.

The first half of the episode is full of lab talk and experiments, from both our heroes and villains.  Whilst there are some good moments here, such as the awkwardness between Fitzz and Simmons as they realise that they have opposing views on how to handle a work situation, and over at Hive's compound as Dr Radcliffe tries to find a way to make his experiment work whilst also staying alive.

Yes, the first half of the episode is definitely slow because of these similar themes that are going on, but it's the personal interactions that set them apart and let them stand out from each other.  Fitzz and Simmons are still genuinely sweet together and watching them figuring out their new relationship and it plays well without feeling forced or unnatural as a lot of television romances have a tendency to do.

The scenes between Hive and Daisy on the other hand don't seem to add anywhere near as much.  It might be interesting to see the moment that Hive was taken by the Kree to be experimented on thousands of years ago, but learning that he's afraid of the Kree and that he has more emotion and depth than would first appear doesn't actually make him that much interesting.  

Some people complain of two dimensional villains on shows that have a new bad guy every season, and for the most part S.H.I.E.L.D. has managed to avoid falling into that trap, but Hive is one villain that I think would actually benefit from having less character development.  We know that he retains some of the memories of his hosts, and that' fine, but I liked him when he was just some ancient monster that was worshipped as a god.  To find out that he has an emotional range, limited though it may be, takes some of the mystery and creepiness away from him.

I'm sure that there are some people that will feel the opposite, and prefer more fleshing out for his character, but this is just my own personal opinion.


Thankfully the second half of the episode livens up as S.H.I.E.L.D. manages to track down Hive's location and heads to the old mining town he's holed up in, hoping to be able to launch a surprise attack and kill him.  Whilst they do manage to infiltrate the town successfully enough things get complicated as Hive activated the Kree device he'd gathered, which turned out to be a signal device.

Things take a turn for the dramatic when two Kree Reapers arrive to kill any inHumans that they come across.  They're not the first Kree that we've had in the show, but they're some of the more interesting ones.  They fall more in line with Ronan from Guardians of the Galaxy then other Kree we've seen, essentially powerhouse warriors that cut down anyone in their way.  The two of them kill several Hydra soldiers, as well as the final two versions of Alisha, killing the character for good this time.  

Showing the Kree as being so powerful and deadly only goes on to display the destructive ability that Daisy has developed when using her powers.  Wanting to capture one of the Kree alive in order to get fresh Kree blood for their experiments Daisy is able to disarm her opponent, then uses her earthquake powers to shatter the bones in his arms and legs, before destroying his spine.

We've seen Daisy use her powers to throw people around or destroy objects but this is the first time we've really seen her let loose on an opponent with such vicious and brutal consequences.  With her now firmly on the side of the bad guy it certainly raises the stakes for our heroes, especially as she then comes so close to killing Mack too.

To be honest I thought that Mack was something of an idiot when he tried to talk Daisy around, his insistence that the real Daisy was still inside and trying to call out for help seemed incredibly misguided and foolish.  To be fair, there is a little of the real Daisy there still as she does try to give Mack the chance to walk away, but then he goes and ruins Hives plans and Daisy beats the living hell out of him.  If May didn't show up at the very last moment and shot her then she would very probably have killed Mack.


With the revelation that the potential cure for Hive's control failed it's looking less and less likely that Daisy will be re-joining the rest of S.H.I.E.L.D. to fight against Hive.  The bar has definitely been raised in this episode, both in the story and the visual effects department.  Not only do we get three members of Hydra getting their faces melted off in one of the goriest moments in the show yet, but we also get to see Hive putting his powers into use in combat when he sandblasts the face off one of the Kree warriors.

The show might not be at its best storytelling (I still think the story of season two is better than season three) but its visual effects are definitely improving in both their quality and the way that they are being put into practical use in the story and action.  With only three episodes left, and two of those airing on the same night, the show is definitely beginning to speed up a little and raise the stakes as we get close to the finishing line.

'Failed Experiments' might start fairly slowly, and it does take away some of the mystery and threat that Hive had previously, but the second half contains a lot of action and drama that help to elevate the episode and prepares for what could be a spectacular final run.  A few less forced allusions to Civil War would have been nicer though.


Amy.
xx
Posted by at No comments:
Labels:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)