This week we get several interesting choices, starting with The Maze Runner based on the great YA novel by James Dashner. I expect this one to pull the best numbers at the box office because of the popularity of the book, so it got the first mention. In limited release we have the new Terry Gilliam film The Zero Theorem, about a computer hacker trying to figure out the reason humans exist. While this one might be the hardest to find on a local screen, it could be the most interesting film out of the group. Space Station 76 definitely gets my vote for silliest movie this time around, with the tag line A 1970s version of the future, where personalities and asteroids collide. I have seen more than one review saying it is the best sci-Fi comedy since Galaxy Quest, which I dearly love. It isn’t the only comedy choice, since we also have Simon Pegg’s rendition of a psychiatrist searching the world in Hector and the Search for Happiness.
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The Movie top pick this week is the 2014 reboot of Godzilla. It comes out on disc this week, but it actually came out as a digital download about a month ago. Digital download-to-own before the disc release rather than at the same time is something we are seeing more and more often these days, driven by more and more people watching on their personal devices rather than on a traditional TV.
Where we really make out this week is TV shows, because they want you to rewatch them before the next season starts and get all excited about it again. So this week we get Arrow: The Complete Second Season from the CW, Grimm: Season Three from NBC, and Sleepy Hollow: The Complete First Season from Fox. While it is not genre, it is fun, so I will also mention Castle: The Complete Sixth Season from ABC. In the interest of completeness, I ahould also mention From Dusk Till Dawn: Season One.
In Anime, Fairy Tail – Part 12 brings us episodes 132 through 142, and trust me when I say the wizard guild’s collateral damage track record is just as bad as ever. Meanwhile, in Majestic Prince: Collection 2, the Mecha combat is getting more dangerous with every round of fighting.
Not an aspect of Korean pop music you usually hear much from on this side of the Pacific, K-Jazz has some quite tasty examples, and I thought I would share a few this week. The first track is Bank by Puer Kim from her new mini-album Purifier. She isn’t singing about money here, but how to save up good deeds in your spiritual bank account, so you end up making a positive difference in the world with your life. The second track is the Girls Generation 2013 hit Twinkle, a jazz/rock fusion K-Pop masterpiece. There are a lot more where these came from, be sure to explore this musical category when you have a chance.
You can jump over to Nickelodeon if you want to watch the next episode of the new animated version of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles before it airs on Friday on their cable channel. I don’t know if they plan on doing this on a regular basis, or if it is just the A Chinatown Ghost Story episode that gets to be seen early on their site. Thanks to the folks at Comic Book Movies for the heads up on this one.
There are a couple of choices, but I don’t know how many screens they are going to be on as neither film is spending a lot of money on publicity. Alas Shrugged: Who Is John Galt? is the third film in the series and finishes the story with the romantic bits. The Ayn Rand book was too big to do as just one movie, it seems. Bird People is a French fantasy romantic drama/comedy that looks pretty interesting, but it may not get a lot of screens because many audience members don’t like to read subtitles.
Movies lead off with Captain America: The Winter Soldier which is the second movie in its franchise, and it is even better than The First Avenger. In fact, Marvel movies as a whole just seem to be getting better and better. Their TV offering is doing nicely too, and we get Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: The Complete First Season this week. Which is appropriate, since the new season starts on September 23rd.
Also in TV, The Vampire Diaries: The Complete Fifth Season and Supernatural: The Complete Ninth Season are both out from the CW. I generally only mention series, but for those who like to collect their TV one episode at a time, be aware that Doctor Who: Deep Breath is out this week as well. Interestingly enough, they had to cut out the same sex kiss from the episode before it could air in Asia.
Sadly, there is no genre Anime this week,, just the slice-of-life drama/comedies Listen to Me, Girls. I Am Your Father! and Tamako Market: Complete Collection.