Search This Blog

Saturday, 30 August 2025

Doctor Who: The Legend Of Ruby Sunday AND Empire Of Death Review


Whilst there are no plans currently for a third series of this new Doctor Who era this is despite the fact that Disney recently said that they want to get back the male demographic. We still have the past episodes of Ncuti Gatwa's run on the show to look back on and hopefully enjoy with the same thing also being true for the two parter that i'm going to be reviewing for you all today as yes I did watch Empire Of Death TWICE once without the invision commentary and once with it on and so then join me as I review the episode that sees a classic foe return and a companion temporarily leave the show for the episodes in question being called simply just "The Legend Of Ruby Sunday" and "Empire Of Death" enjoy.

The plot of this episode is when The Doctor and Ruby fly into U.N.I.T HQ to ask them about a woman that they both keep on seeing an ancient evil from The Doctors past makes itself known and The Doctor and his friends must try and find away to defeat this evil once and for all. Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty not that bad however tho this episodes plot wasn't all that good either as it did feel kind of anticlimactic alot of the time with The Doctor working out things off screen or the characters discussing things off screen which is great for drama but it isn't great storytelling and while the plot of this episode does feel epic enough to be a series finale it doesn't really resolve all that much as we don't get to find out why it snows when ever Ruby is hurt or distressed and nor do we really get to find out why Mrs. Flood was being shown alot of the time in this series which fair enough is something that does get resolved in the next series but it was a big thing in this series as well and therefor there should have been some level of resolution to it but to be fair tho this episodes plot is a really exciting one and one that does show alot of promise to be one of the more better Doctor Who finale's in Doctor Who history it just needed a much more better writer and production team to pull of a story like this one with the plot of this episode also being really rather entertaining and as well as being really rather engaging as well in my freaking opinions anyways / at least. 


Starring in this episode is Ncuti Gatwa as The Doctor , Millie Gibson as Ruby Sunday and Bonnie Langford as Melanie Bush. Also starring in this episode is Jemma Redgrave as Kate Lethbridge-Stewart
Yasmin Finney as Rose Noble , Alexander Devrient as Colonel Christofer Ibrahim , Lenny Rush as Morris Gibbons , Genesis Lynea as Harriet Arbinger , Aidan Cook as The Vlinx , Nicholas Briggs as the voice of The Vlinx , Susan Twist as Susan Triad , Fela Lufadeju as Bailey Sinclair , Michelle Greenidge as Carla Sunday , Anita Dobson as Mrs Flood , Angela Wynter as Cherry Sunday , Tachia Newall as Colonel Winston Chidozie , Gabriel Woolf as the voice of Sutekh , Jasmine Bayes as Corporal Alice Sullivan , Sian Clifford as Kind Woman and Faye McKeever as Louise Miller.

Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty not that bad. Which is something that does make alot of sense as not only is both parts of this episode filled to the brim with some really good actors but also this era of the show as a whole is known for having some really good acting in all of it's episodes and therefor it does make sense that that is something that would continue onwards in this episode as well with all of the episodes actors really giving there best shot no matter the size of the role that there playing in both of these episodes with Gabriel Woolf really nailing it as Sutekh which is all the more surprising as he is actually returning to the role of Sutekh after originating it back in 1975's "Pyramids Of Mars" with sounding as creepy as he did back then with him even being the episodes best actor due to the fact that he hasn't really played the character for such a long time and yet he very easily slipped back into character as if he just got through playing him the first time a few years ago with him even out shining both Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson alot of the time something which really couldn't have been an easy task to do as there both a pair of really good actors in their own rights as well with the acting that's in this episode not really being helped by the fact that the script for this episode is just so bad as it gives none of this episodes actors absolutely nothing to work with interms of what it is that there respective characters personalities are even meant to be in the first place which is something that really does hurt the overall quality of the acting that's in this very episode.


Doing the CGI for this episode is the legends and the greats that are currently over at Automatik VFX and Real SFX. Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual CGI that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought  felt that the actual CGI that's actually feature / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty really good which given that this is where a huge chunk of Disney money went does quite clearly make alot of sense and it is something that did mostly pay off for the large part as while there are some really good looking CGI effects in this episode ranging from Sutekh himself to even replacing Cardiff in reflections to make it look like London where are a few effects that do look a little bit to much like a cartoon with for example when the TARDIS enters U.N.I.T HQ at the start of The Legend Of Ruby Sunday the sparks coming off of it look really fake which if this was in 2005 would make sense as the show didn't have a huge effects budget back then but now the makers of this show don't really have that as an excuse and while the effects with Sutekh basically flying through the time vortex are passable they don't look as good as they should have done as while simple things like the lighting matching up when it hits Ncuti does work there's just something off about it that makes the whole thing look a little bit on the cheap of side things now weather or not they just ran out of money or they just gave more money to other effects in the episode is hard to tell but given that that scene is meant to see this classic Doctor Who villain die there should have been some more money thrown at that scene to make it look the best that it possibly could have done.


As was mentioned at the start of this review this is the episode that does see Ruby temporarily leave the show with this two parter even wrapping up the whole story line about her mother is. Which to be fair was a decent thing to do in the episode it's the justification behind making Louise Miller a "nobody" that's the problem as in the invision commentary for the episode Russell T. Davies states that he made her a nobody as his response to The Rise Of Skywalker walking back on Rey's parentage with him saying that he liked that her parents where nobody's however what he failed to realise was that the Star Wars fans hated that reveal as it didn't make sense given what we had seen from that character up until The Last Jedi where as with Ruby given everything that we know about her it does make sense for her mother to be this nobody character and to the credit of the fans of Doctor Who they weren't up in arms about it like the fans of Star Wars were as they had alot of time to get to know Ruby as a character and whilst some of them might not like her character the one thing that can't be denied is the fact that we got to know her and therefor seeing her mum was basically just like her was something that did make sense as was the fact that we get to see Ruby leave the show for a little bit as of course she would want to get to know her birth mum as she had spend countless years trying to find her so he would of course choose to stay on earth for a little bit and not go flying off to distant planets in the TARDIS with the scene of her leaving the TARDIS being a truly heartbreaking as while the relationship between The Doctor and Ruby wasn't that well developed you still got the feeling that he was loosing someone close to him and therefor it did make sense in this episode for The Doctor to break down crying instead of saying I love you which was the original plan.

Whilst this two parter does have alot of good things going for it it does also have alot of bad things that are going against it as well. Like for example the design for Sutekh just looks wrong as the original idea for the character was to have him be based of Egyptian gods hence why he looked sort of like a man but here he looks more dog like then anything else when it would have made more sense for him to look more cat like given the fact that Egyptians worship cats and treat them like they are gods with this not really being helped by the fact that much like what they would do with Omega in the very next series they made this version of Sutekh really tall when what made him scary in the first place wasn't his height it was the idea behind the character the ides that this god like character could do anything to anyone from this other dimension and you'd have no choice but to go along with it but here tho because of the fact that they keep him out of that other dimension and made him a really tall character it oddly makes him less threatening as a character as we don't really get to see him do anything that's scary or threatening where as in "Pyramids Of Mars" we got to see him mind control people so that they can kill off other characters and we got to see him have his own set of mummy type guards all of which do go along way into making what could have been seen as being a rather bland character seem all the more threatening but here in this two parter tho they rob him of both of those with him only mind controlling three people with two of them just standing around doing nothing and the third somehow knowing how to operate the TARDIS which doesn't really make him all that threatening as a villain.


To give this episode a bit more credit it did hide the twist of Sutekh returning really well all throughout not only this episode but this season as a whole. With The Doctor guessing that the anagram for the the tech company that the U.N.I.T was looking into was TARDIS without really looking at the full thing and while this does make The Doctor look kind of dumb as even this version of the character would look at the bigger picture he's also one to leap before he looks as well which is something that does make the big reveal still quite shocking especially as Sutekh is quite an obscure character to be brining back as he's not on the same level as say The Master for example but at the same time tho the makers of this episode could have done alot more with the character just by giving him an end goal as in this episode the only thing that he wants to do is wipe out all life on earth after doing so to the rest of the planets that this version of The Doctor has visited OFF SCREEN when this is something that really should have been show in greater detail as it would have given the makers of this episode alot more of a chance to show off just how scary that Sutekh is and just how powerful that he could be and yet by not giving him an end goal and by minimizing all of the damage that we see him do it oddly makes him feel more like a pantomime villain and not like a villain that should be taken seriously with the episode even omitting key things from The Doctor and Ruby's perspective as well as they work out that Mel had "died" and work out a plan to stop Sutekh once and for all OFF SCREEN when this is something that should have been shown on screen.

Now then both of these episodes has / had an exact grand total running time of exactly one hour and forty five minuets with the first episode being forty five minuets and five seconds long and the second episode being fifty four minuets and twelve seconds long. Which to be fair to this episode is a perfectly solid running tome for this episode to have as the episode does have more then enough plot there to really cover that amount of running time but in saying that tho this episode also doesn't use it's running time all that wisely either as the plot of the episode isn't that well developed this is despite it's extra long running time the episode still doesn't take the time that it really needs to develop it's plot as alot of the time it does feel like things are happening just for the sake of it and not because of the fact that there important to the actual plot of the episode with this even effecting the episodes character development as none of the characters get much in the way of actual character development which is something that does make sense for characters like The Doctor and Ruby as they get there character development in other episodes of the show but for a character like Rose Noble who goes through both The Star Beast and this two parter getting absolutely no character development whatsoever just makes her feel like a waste of a good idea as on paper a character like her could have worked she just needed to be more thought out and developed as a character but for one reason or another she gets no character development in this two parter with the same thing also being true for Sutekh himself but I really will admit that this very episode really does have some really good pacing to it tho.


So now then as this is an action show that really does mean that I have to actually talk about the actual action that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual action that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty not that bad. As this episode really does have some really good action scenes in it but in saying that tho this episode does do something really bad with the character of The Doctor during the episodes final chase scene he willingly kills of Sutekh which is so against the character of The Doctor and as he prides himself on being better then his foes by not killing them in cool blood and yet here in the second part of this two parter he does just that so now basically The Doctor no matter the incarnation is now no better then the Daleks or the Cybermen for example with the episodes best action scene being the chase scene all throughout London as that's were get to see just how deadly that Sutekh's power really can be with hundreds if not thousands of people including recurring characters getting killed off all the while The Doctor and Mel only just get away with there lives which is something that does make that action scene all the more fun to watch as while it i just a simple chase scene it is one that's really effective and is quite exciting to watch and while the ending chase scene with Sutekh hanging on to a bungy rope that's attached to the TARDIS is an exciting scene to watch it's let down by the bad character choice of The Doctor willingly killing him off in my freaking opinions anyways / at least. 


Overall while there are alot of faults to be found in this two parter there's also alot of good to be found in them as well all of which do make this episode be alot more better then what it really had any right to be the only thing is this episode episode isn't as good as it really could have been either in my freaking opinions anyways / at least. Now then i've talked about all of the good and as well as all of the bad things that are in this very episode in this very review and as such that really does mean that this very episode really does earn itself a grand old score of exactly a 7.5 out of 10 from me.

Now then as for where I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review well then boys and girls and as well as ladies and gentlemen I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review from the official Doctor Who fandom wiki page , IMP Awards . Cim and Google Images. With my personally preferred website to use to get the images from this very episode that I used in this very review being the really great the official Doctor Who fandom wiki page really simply just due to the fact that really alot of if not really all of the images that are all really from this very episode with alot of them being better quality then what you'd really think of and all of the images are really of course up and really on the official Doctor Who fandom wiki page are also really all fairly high in quality and as well as them all being really fairly freaking high in definition.

Thursday, 28 August 2025

Thomas & Friends TV Series "Coal" Review


When you think of things that are British institutions you might very well think of Doctor Who or football or as the Americans call is soccer. However what you might not think of or what might come to mind at first is a TV show about a little tank engine and all of his friends and well it's one of those episodes that i'm going to be talking about today and so then join me as I review the episode that sees Henry the green engine get some new coal with the episode in question being called simply just "Coal" enjoy.

The plot of this episode is when The Fat Controller finally has enough with Henry being ill all of the time he decides to take a ride on him and find out what's wrong with him once and or all. Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very film well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty really good with it being a really simply and very easy to follow plot and for a show that's made with very little kids in mind that is the kind of plot that you want but at the same time tho this episodes plot is alot more better then alot of the plots that you see in modern kids media today as it doesn't talk down to the audience rather it instead talks to them on a level with the episodes plot doing something that alot of early episodes of Thomas The Tank Engine And Friends did and that's explain how trains work which was a nice little touch as it's something that does make it easier for us the audience to work out just why Henry was so ill alot of the time in these early episodes with the plot of this episode even being alot more fun then what it's initial premise would suggest as just by the premise alone you'd think that this was quite a scary episode but no it's one that knows when to be fun and is instead more focused on giving us a good and solid story and whilst it's debatable on if this one that alot of the die hard Thomas fans love or not it is an episode that has a really well done plot with it's plot getting alot of the focus of the episode with the plot of this episode also being really rather entertaining and as well as being really rather engaging as well in my freaking opinions anyways / at least.


The main storyteller for this episode is Sir Ringo Starr with his voice in this episode being oddly soothing and relaxing. While this isn't something new for the show as the whole first season of this show has this very calm quality to it it's not something that you'd expect from the former drummer for The Beatles and yet it's something that does oddly work for this episode with the only thing that does let his narration down being the fact that he doesn't use any voices for this entire first season which might have been because of the fact that the makers of the show wanted the adult audience to know that they've got a famous face in the show which is fair enough but at the same time it does it hard to tell just which of the characters are speaking at any given moment and while he would slowly introduce character voices in the shows second season it is something that could have been done in this episode just due to how many characters talk in the episode but at the same time tho given that they do start to have Ringo do different voices for the characters in the shows second season it does say that the makers of this show realized that it was getting harder and harder to tell just which characters were meant to be talking and so they had him give there characters some different accents in the second season of the show just to make it a little bit more easier for people to work out just who is talking at any given moment but his narration skills are still pretty top notch as you can tell just from he delivers his lines that he really was a fan of the franchise before it became a TV show and as such he wanted to give it his all so much so that when Shining Time started in America he flew over there to join that show as Mr. Conductor for it's first season and even redub the episodes as well for various reasons.

Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty really good. With Ringo Star really starting to come into hos own as the series narrator and while he might be not be good as alot of the other UK narrators he does have his own charm that makes the role his own and to many myself included he was the first narrator that they were introduced to be it as a like kid or a toddler however tho with that being said he still does need to improve his skills a little bit like showing alot more emotion during certain scenes and knowing when to hold back on the emotion as with this show the narrator has to do all of the leg work for the characters as the characters faces can only show some vague expressions and that's really it and therefor it's up to the narrator to get across just what that character is thinking and feeling and that's something that Ringo just doesn't do in this episode this is despite him being the episodes best actor by default of him being the shows only actor at this point in time as he still does add some charm to the episode be it for the nostalgia factor of seeing something that you grew up with again or for the more laid back and relaxing voice that he naturally has there's just something about his performance as the narrator that works really well within this episode with the acting that's in this episode really being helped by the fact that this episodes script is just so good that all this episodes only actors has to do is just say the lines as they are written and a good performance will come out f him naturally which is something that really does help to raise the overall quality of the acting that's in this very episode.


This episode much like alot of the early episodes of the show that have Henry in them do a good job of making you feel sorry for the character. With alot of the early episodes frequently showing him not really working as well as not only he but his crew as ell know that he can do with it being in this episode that we get to find why he's always so unwell as it's due to the fact that he has a small firebox and therefor needs special coal which is a great idea as it does show then even some of the larger engines have troubles as well with some of them being more severe then others like when James originally had wooden brakes that caught fire playing a part in him crashing but here with Henry it worked more because of the fact that we the audience had seen more of the character prior to him taking on of his very few starring roles in this episode and therefor we had gotten to know him as a character and heck it could even be argued that finding out what it was that made him so unwell all the time does mark the end of a major storyline for the character even if it's one that was being told more in the background as alot of the other stories featuring the character in a major role all focused on different aspects of his character with next to none of them having to do with the fact that he has a small firebox and while the fact that he needed special coal and possibly having a small firebox lasted all of one episode it's the fact that the makers of this show included those aspects in the first place that does show that they cared more about the shows characters and doing them well then what the later showrunners of the show did in the first place.


For some odd reason the makers of this episode gave Thomas a really creepy face which wouldn't be a bad thing except that it's the face that ends the entire episode. With even Edwards eyes glitching out a little bit in one scene which makes you wonder why the makers of this episode didn't take steps to fix these issues as while you very easily could have cut to the credits alot sooner with Thomas's creepy face you also could have taken measures to fix the glitch in Edwards eyes as when he's reversing to collect Henry's train his eyes move from left to right awkwardly with that being something that you could have fixed and then reshot that portion of the scene and while this first season of the show was made on a shoestring budget and therefor they most likely didn't have it in the budget to do much in the way of reshoots and second takes given the fact that they don't even hide those mistakes by say for example cutting to a close up of Henry's face and then cutting back to Edward when he takes off with the train it oddly makes what was an expensive show to produce somehow seem cheap but at the same time tho the models used for both Thomas and Edward do look really good as do all of the models for that matter but it's the fact that the makers of this episode saw these issues with the faces and still thought that they were OK to include in the episode that just feels wrong somehow as fair enough they might not have had it in the budget to reshoot these scenes with less glitchy and less creepy faces but there's always a work around for these kinds of issues but in saying that tho series one is filled to the brim with these kinds of technical issues as the makers of the show were still trying to work out how they were going to actually make the show and therefor this isn't an issue that's just relevant to this episode as it's one that could also be relevant to several other episodes in this season as well.

What could have made this episode all the more better was if we got to see Henry really struggle to not only pull coaches but also pulling and possibly even shunting trucks as well. As this would then really hit home just how badly unwell Henry is and while it might be seen as being a bit of overkill it is something that also could have worked for this episode as well as while showing him struggle to pull one set of coaches is more then enough to hit home that he's really not that strong of an engine right now what would have helped to sell that even more would be if we got to see him struggle to do all of the other things that all of the engines can do very easily as this would home the fact that there's something not quite right with Henry even if his crew haven't quite worked it out yet but at the saying time tho apart from being told that he got new paint in The Sad Story Of Henry constantly showing how he's not as strong as the other engines right now might also seem out of place as it might make it seem like the fact that he's unwell all of the time is his only character trait when that's just simply not the case at all and therefor going the less is more route with this character and this episode as a whole for matter does work really well as it is as we don't need to constantly be told that he's not really feeling all that well and is unable to pull coaches alot of the time we just need to see it the once and the sad music and Henry's sad face and lack of steam would be more then enough to tell us the audience that he's not his best right now and that's really it with that being something that would work for the episode as it would also feel more in line with the book that this episode is based off of called "Henry The Green Engine" which to fair also took a very similar less is more approach to tings as well.


This is possibly the first episode to show us The Fat Controller actively riding one of his trains after he's already brought them. With it in this case being to help to work out just what it is that's wrong with Henry in the first place with this being a very good idea as it does show that he does care about all of his engines and not just Thomas and it's something that the series could have done with showing us alot more as at times it does feel like that he only cares about Thomas due to the fact that it's his name that's the name of the TV show when it would make more sense to show him actually caring for all of his engines as well as that would then give each of them there own special bond with him something which do get to see in the episode "Toby & the Stout Gentleman" and again in the following episode "Thomas in Trouble" when we see that he had rode on Toby with his grandkids whilst they were on holiday to Toby's old railways line and brought him when Thomas got in trouble with an angry policeman thus giving Toby his own special connection to The Fat Controller as he saved Toby and his coach Henrietta from being locked up for a long time and from being tuned into a chicken coup in the case of Henrietta and in this episode it could be argued that Henry gets his own special connection to him as he willingly pays for the more expensive Welsh coal in order to give Henry a fighting chance at showing all of the the engines just what it is that he can really do as a steam engine and it is something that does work for both the show and for the character as well as now Henry does have a reason to keep on working for him as he believed in him when none of the other engines would do.

Now then this episode has / had an exact grad total running time of exactly five minuets and thirty three seconds. Which is pretty much the exact grand total running time for alot of the very early episodes of this show and to this episodes credit it really does have the right amount of plot there to really cover that amount of running time as this show doesn't really need longer running times to tell simple stories like this one and while the fact that it doesn't really develop it's plot would normally be seen as being a bad thing here it's really not as the plot is so simple in the first place that it doesn't really need developing all that much in the first place as all we need to know is what the basic premise of the episode is and that's really it and therefor we don't need the plot to be that well developed but in saying that tho it would have been nice of the plot was a bit more developed however tho the other way that this episode doesn't really use it's running time all that wisely is in it's characters as it doesn't really develop it's characters all that well but much like with the plot the episode doesn't really need to develop it's characters all that well due to the fact that alot of the characters in this episode appear in other episodes of the show and therefor it could be argued that they get there development in those episodes but with that being said tho it would have helped this episode out quite alot if we did get more developed characters as we don't get to find out why The Fat Controller is willing to take a ride on Henry in the first place especially when Henry's crew could and do tell him exactly what the problem is with Henry but I really will admit that this episode really does have some really good pacing to it tho.


So now then as this is a comedy that really does mean that I have to actually talk about the actual comedy that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual comedy that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty. As while there not that many laugh out loud moments in this episode the episode is filled to the brim with moments that are cute and funny as a result of it with this episode putting of an effort into it's more dramatic elements which in this episode is something that does make alot of sense as the episode is all about trying to work out why Henry is so unwell in the first place and that kind of premise doesn't really allow itself for laugh out loud funny moments but in saying that tho it would have been nice if near the start and the end of the episode we did get a few moments that were funny as those moments would have told us the audience that it's OK for us to laugh with the best and only funny moment in the episode being near the end of the episode where it's revealed that Henry's driver will now have to hold Henry back from going to fast instead of forcing him to go fast which is something that was a cute funny moment and it's something that works for that character due to the fact that he's spent the past several episodes being ill on and off and therefor it would make sense that his driver and The Fat Controller would have that little joke together as they would make that kind of a joke knowing full well that Henry now has a fair chance when it comes to working with all of the other engines in my freaking opinions anyways / at least.


Overall while "The Sad Story Of Henry" and "Edward, Gordon & Henry" might be the best Henry centric episodes of this season due to how dark "The Sad Story Of Henry" could possibly be this is still a really good in it's own right as it does show us just how good of a character that Henry could be in my freaking opinions anyways / at least. Now then i've talked about all of the good and as well as all of the bad things that are in this very episode in this very review and as such that really does mean that this very episode really does earn itself a grand old score of exactly a 6.5 out 10 from me.

Now then as for where I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review well then boys and girls and as well as ladies and gentlemen I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review from the official Thomas The Tank Engine fandom wiki page and Google Images. With my personally preferred website to use to get the images from this very episode that I used in this very review being the really great the official Thomas The Tank Engine fandom wiki page really simply just due to the fact that really alot of if not really all of the images that are all really from this very episode with alot of them being better quality then what you'd really think of and all of the images are really of course up and really on the official Thomas The Tank Engine fandom wiki page are also really all fairly high in quality and as well as them all being really fairly freaking high in definition.

Wednesday, 27 August 2025

Wednesday: If These Woes Could Talk SPOILER FILLED Review


It really is safe to say that Wednesday is one of the best shows on Netflix right now with the show even being confirmed for a third season before it's second season had even started airing. Speaking of the second season we are now just a week away before the release date of the final four episodes of this season as such it was only about right that I review the mid season finale for the show and so then join me as I give you my SPOILER FILLED review of the episode that might have a more obscure cameo from a member of the Addams Family in it with the episode in question being called simply just "If These Woes Could Talk" enjoy.

The plot of this episode is Fester and other members of the Addams Family find themselves helping out Wednesday in he investigation but something happens that will shake Wednesday to her very core. Now then interms of that I personally thought / felt about the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty really good with this episodes plot being the kind of plot that you could see working as a plot to an Addams Family movie as the plot of this episode is that big and is that epic but at the same time tho it is a plot that does work well enough for a mid season finale as well as while it does solve one mystery it doesn't resolve the other mystery either which is great as that then gives us more reasons to watch the second half of season 2 with this episodes plot also being an oddly fun episode as well with the only real downside plot wise being the fact that it feels more like the plot of a Fester spin-off show then it does an episode of this show as this episode is a little bit more weird and out there with it's plot where as with the typical Wednesday plot it's usually alot more mysterious with things being drip fed to us the audience and while having a plot that's kind of out there does work for this character as all of the members of the Addams Family are very out there characters it also feels like that it's going against the style of plots from the rest of this show as well with the plot of this episode also being really rather entertaining and as well as being really rather engaging as well in my freaking opinions anyways / at least.  


Starring in this episode is this shows executive producer Jenna Ortega as Wednesday Addams and Steve Buscemi as Principal Barry Dort. Also starring in this episode is Emma Myers as Enid Sinclair , Hunter Doohan as Tyler Galpin , Joy Sunday as Bianca Barclay , Moosa Mostafa as Eugene Ottinger , Georgie Farmer as Ajax Petropolus , Isaac Ordonez as Pugsley Addams , Owen Painter as Slurp , Billie Piper as Isadora Capri , Luyanda Unati Lewis-Nyawo as Sheriff Ritchie Santiago , Victor Dorobantu as Thing , Noah Taylor as Bruno Yuson , Evie Templeton as Agnes DeMille , Thandiwe Newton as Dr. Rachael Fairburn , Christopher Lloyd as Professor Orloff , Joonas Suotamo as Lurch , Heather Matarazzo as Judi , Frances O'Connor as Francoise Galpin , Christina Ricci as Marilyn Thornhill , Fred Armisen as Uncle Fester and Catherine Zeta-Jones as Morticia Addams.

Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty really good. With all of this episodes actors turning in some really good performances which is something that really does make alot of sense as alot of this episodes actors are reprising their roles from the previous season and therefor do have a better grip on how best to portray there respective characters but even those that joined the show in this season are still really good with alot of them being more then capable of holding their own acting wise when it comes to acting against the more established series stars and while it would be very tempting to say that Jenna Ortega is the best actor in this episode the fact is that that's not even close to being true as that honor goes to Fred Armisen who does make for a really good Uncle Fester with him more then capturing the characters more eccentric nature whilst also showing us that much like his niece he to does use people alot of the time and while Fred won't ever be able to top what Christopher Lloyd did with the characters in the nineties movies he does take the character and make him his own in this episode which is something that does make the character feel fresh and new all over again with the acting that's in this episode really being helped by the fact that the scrips for this episode is just so good that all this episodes actors have to do is just say the lines as they are written and a good performance will come out of them naturally which is something that really does help to raise the overall quality of the acting that's in this very episode. 


Doing the CGI for this episode is Alter Ego , CoSA VFX , Folks VFX , Herne Hill Media , Incessant Rain Studios , Monsters Aliens Robots Zombies , PowerHouse VFX , Rocket Science VFX , Rodeo FX , Scanline VFX , Take 5 VFX , VFX Legion and WeFX. Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual CGI that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual CGI that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty not that bad as this episodes CGI was for a streaming TV show really impressive but at the same time tho The Hyde creature whilst it does look better in this episode still looks a little bit like a cartoon with the only reason that it looks so good in this episode being due to the fact that the camera doesn't really focus on it much and when it does the episode quickly cuts away from it which does help things but at the same time tho the creature still looks pretty bad and if this is something that's not going to be fixed then the makers of this show will have to consider not using The Hyde as a character as the fans of this show have been saying since season 1 that it doesn't look that good and whilst it does look a little bit better this season it's still a bad looking creature with the rest of the episodes CGI mainly being background replacements and set enhancements all of which do look pretty good as those are the only reason as to why CGI should even be used in the first place as all your doing is changing things that couldn't be done on the day as there shouldn't be bad CGI doubles of characters as all those do is age the effects more quickly.

SPOILERS START HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!



While there is one major name that I didn't mention in this review that of course being the fact that we have Dame Joanna Lumley as Grandmama she really doesn't do all that much in this episode and so it really wasn't worth mentioning her. However the character that does get to do quite alot in this episode is Uncle Fester so much so that at times this does feel like a test episode of a possible Uncle Fester spinoff show as while the episode does still tie into the main plot of this season and feature alot of the main actors there's alot more focus given to Uncle Fester then what there was last season where he only appeared in a guest role in one episode where as here he takes centre stage with Wednesday enlisting his help in finding out just who or what Lois is and what she or it has to do with Willow Hill Hospital which he does by willingly getting himself committed there which in all fairness to the episode does seem like something that he would do as is the fact that to him a mental hospital is more like a holiday which only serves to make all of his scenes in the hospital all the more fun to watch but at the same time tho we come to a show called Wednesday expecting to see her be the main character of the episode and yet here she felt more like the side character which again in all fairness to the episode might have been because of the fact that they might have been filming other episodes of the show and so it just worked out easier to have only be in a few key scenes in this episode but again they could have had play a more active role in the plot of episode instead of just sitting around alot of the time until the third act of the episode.

At the start of the review I mentioned that this episode might possibly feature a cameo from an obscure member of the Addams Family as if you recall when Fester and Wednesday are looking at the Lois inmates where there at Willow Hill. There's one character that doesn't get name checked in the episode and it's also the only one that Wednesday willingly helps at the end of the episode as well as I do very strongly believe that that character is Ophelia Addams as it does seem weird that they would shout out the names of alot of the other inmates but not her and given the fact that the character was said to be at that hospital it does sort of make sense that that unnamed character would be her with the episode even ending on a cliffhanger with Tyler in fully on Hyde mode throwing Wednesday out of a top floor window in the hospital and leaving her severely injured and while we know that she won't die as the show had already been renewed for a third season it was still weird that the trailer for part 2 of season 2 would straight up reveal that not only does she survive this incident but also that Larissa Weems is her new spirit guide something which would have been more of a surprise if we didn't know it was coming as then you could have the shock value of seeing Gwendoline Christie again in the show and we could also be left wondering if and how Wednesday did survive the fall at the end of this episode but now none of that is possible because of the fact that the first seconds of the trailer tells us not only is Wednesday alive and well but also just who her new spirit guide is in the first place as all that does is ruin what could have been some really cool surprises when the makers of this show wouldn't have had to have done that much promote season 2 part 2 as alot of people would have been watching it in the first place due to how popular that this show is in the first place.


Whilst this show has always had horror elements to it even dating back to it's first ever episode the show especially in the first season always found that perfect mixture between horror and comedy. This is something that was kind of lost in this half of season 2 with there being more of a focus on the horror aspect of the show then the comedy aspect of it with the worst example of this being in this episode where we get to see several characters including Marilyn Thornhill who quite literally gets stabbed in the back by The Hyde with other characters getting their brains eaten by Slurp and while it does make sense for them to have a heavier focus on horror in this episode in particular due to the fact it is the mid season finale and they do need to give us a hook for the rest of the season by focusing more on the one aspect not enough on the other it makes the comedy aspect of the episode seem alot more weaker in comparison when even the makers of this show have proven in season one that they can balance the two of them out really well by having these really dark jokes happen either just before or just after someone is killed off and yet here they got rid of all of that just to focus more on the horror aspect of the show and while yes there is still some jokes in this episode it kind of felt like that they were taking a backseat when compared to the shows horror elements and while yes The Addams Family has always been a horror brand they all knew when to tell a joke and when to be creepy and cooky as well with even the recent animated movies still having that fine balance between horror and comedy as you have to have that fine balance in order to be a horror comedy.

Now then this episode has / had an exact grand total running time of exactly one hour and nineteen seconds. Which to be fair to this episode that is a perfectly solid running time for this episode with this episode having the right amount of plot there to really cover that amount of running time and while this episode doesn't really use it's running time by fully developing it's plot or it's characters it could be argued that both the plot of this episode and it's characters get developed in the previous episodes of the show which would be a fair argument as they do get alot of development in the other episodes and therefor they don't really need developing in this episode as there's nothing that the makers of this episode could have done without repeating themselves and with this episode being the mid-season finale they don't really need to develop any of it's plot or characters but what they could have done is give more screen time to characters that we're going to get to know about in part 2 like Grandmama for example who only appears in a few scenes before not being mentioned again in the episode and Barry Dort who again only gets a few scenes all of which just hit home the point that he's got something to do with the seasons big mystery and that's really it it still would have been nice if we got more scenes with either character as that could then make us the audience think either there evil or there good guys but because of the fact that the episode doesn't do that we get to find out very little about Grandmama and nothing new about Barry Dort is revealed in the episode but i really will admit that this episode really does have some really good pacing to it tho.


So now then as this is a comedy that really does mean that I have to actually talk about the actual comedy that's actually featured / presented to us in is very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual comedy that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty not that bad. As while the episode doesn't have that great of a focus on it's comedy we still get alot of really decent jokes in this episode with Fester getting alot of this episodes jokes which is something that does make alot of sense as the character does allow for there to be alot of weird jokes due to his own eccentric personality but at the same time tho it would have worked more in the episodes favor if the episode did have a fifty fifty balance between its horror aspect and its comedy aspect with even Wednesday getting a few decent one liners in tis episode but they don't top anything that Fester says or does in this episode as he does have alot of really funny jokes in this episode with the best joke in the whole episode being when Fester zaps Agnes DeMille just because of the fact that he can hear her lurking but then what really sells the joke is the fact that he then gives her advice on how to lurk in silence something which she happily takes on board which is a really solid joke and one that feels true to both characters and while the hotel bathroom scene with Fester is also really funny just due to how well done that that joke is it's also one that you know is an act because of the fact that he's openly trying to get himself committed where as the one with Agnes is one that you don't really see coming and therefor it catches you of guard due to how good of a joke that it is in the first place in my freaking opinions anyways / at least.

SPOILERS END HERE!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Overall if the ending of this episode is anything to go by then we are in for hell of ride next week when part 2 of this current season drops as this episode despite it feeling more like an episode for a Fester spinoff show then a Wednesday show is still a really good episode in it's own right in my freaking opinions anyways / at least. Now then i've talked about all of the good and as well as all of the bad things that are in this very episode in this very review and as such that really does mean that this very episode really does earn itself a grand old score of exactly a 7.5 out of 10 from me.

Now then as for where I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review well then boys and girls and as well as ladies and gentlemen I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review from the official The Addams Family fandom wiki page and Google Images. With my personally preferred website to use to get the images from this very episode that I used in this very review being the really great the official The Addams Family fandom wiki page really simply just due to the fact that really alot of if not really all of the images that are all really from this very episode with alot of them being better quality then what you'd really think of and all of the images are really of course up and really on the official The Addams Family fandom wiki page are also really all fairly high in quality and as well as them all being really fairly freaking high in definition.

Saturday, 23 August 2025

South Park "Ike's W** W**" Review


As has been proven in recent weeks South Park really is still culturally relevant today as it was back in the mid to late nineties. While there really are longer breaks now between seasons and even longer breaks between specials when we do get a new episode it is usually gold however I want to take you all back to a time when it really was cool to talk about the latest episode of South Park behind your parents backs at school with your friends and so then join me as I review the episode that makes Mr. Mackey the main character of the episode with the episode in question being called simply just "Ike's W** W**" enjoy.

The plot of this episode is when school councilor Mr. Mackey is fired he goes down a dark road all the while the boys try and prevent Kyle's brother Ike from going through something called bris. Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual plot that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty really good with this episodes plot being one of the more better examples of just how fresh and different that the show was back in it's nineties heyday as while yes this episodes plot is dumb and simple it's dumb and simple in all of the best ways possible as this is a show that really doesn't need deep and thought provoking plots for it's episodes to work it just needs simple plots that can then be blown up to the point where they become comical because of how much that they've been blown way out of proportion but at the same time tho this is a plot that isn't the strongest plot out there as well as both plots even when there put together aren't that strong enough to support an entire episode of the show with the episode even making it harder to work out just which is meant to be the main plot of the episode and which is meant to be the side plot as there both as ridiculous as each other but you could also argue that that's the not only the charm of the show as a whole but also the point of the episode as both of these plots are ridiculous and there both of them could very easily be both the main plot and the side plot of any given South Park episode with the plot of this episode also being really rather entertaining and as well as being really rather engaging as well in my freaking opinions anyways / at least.


Starring in this episode is the is episodes writer , director and the shows co-creator Trey Parker as Stan Marsh , Eric Cartman , Mr. Garrison , Mr. Mackey , TV Announcer , Homeless Man , Hippie 2 , Nebraskan Man , Bris Attendee and Dr. Schwartz and this show co-creator Matt Stone as Kyle Broflovski , Kenny McCormick , Heckler 2 , Bartender , Mr. Freely , Gerald Broflovski , Ticket Salesman , Hippie 1 , Priest Maxi , Barman and Jimbo Kern. Also starring in this episode is Mary Kay Bergman as Principal Victoria , Mrs. Crabtree , Heckler 1 , Sheila Broflovski , Woman At Train Station , Hippie Woman and Miss Social Worker , Bruce Howell as Uncle Murray , Jesse Brant Howell as Ike Broflovski and Isaac Hayes as Chef.

Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual acting that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty really good. With all of this episodes actors turning in some really good performances which is something that really does make alot of sense as all of this episodes actors are a bunch of really good actors in their own right an really do know hoe to deliver a good performance and with alot of them being in the show from the very beginning they would of course have a much more better handle on all of their characters and would really know how best to perform there characters and what kind of performance would best suit there respective characters in any given situation with the best actor in this episode being Trey Parker with him really making sure that all of his characters both sound vastly different from one another and act differently from each other as well with him also being the shows director he really does know what kind of performance would suit that scene that he's currently putting together in his head and nine times out of ten in this episode he was right to go with his gut with the acting that's in this very episode really bein helped by the fact that this episodes script is just so good that all this episodes actors have to do is just say the lines as they are written and a good performance will come out of them naturally which is something that really does help to raise the overall quality of the acting that's in this very episode.


Doing the animation for this episode is the legends and the greats that are currently over at South Park Studios. Now then interms of what I personally thought / felt about the actual animation that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual animation that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty really good with there being alot of depth in the episodes backgrounds which does oddly enough make the quality of this episodes animation seem to be a whole more higher then what it really had any right to be as with this show being down using cut out animation it does make it easy for the makers of this show just to not give that much attention to detail when it comes to the episodes animation and yet the very fact that there is alot of attention to detail in this episode from an animation point of view it does go to show that this shows animators really do have a love and care for the show and while it is hard to judge the characters movements as again this show is down with cut out animation or in the case of the series as a whole a computer programme that emulates that look and style but what can be said for sure is that this episodes animation is of a really high quality with this being due to the fat that instead of working on several episodes at once the animators instead send the entire week just working on the one episode and therefor they can give that one episode there full attention with that being something that really does shine through in this episode as it makes the animation in this episode be alot more better then what it really had any right to be.


What felt really odd during this episode is the fact that Mr. Mackey is essentially the main character of the episode. With the makers of this episode showing us things like where he lives and just how dedicated that he is to his job but even so it's hard to picture this character as the main character of an episode as just outside of the way he he says OK and the fact that he has a big head there's nothing quirky enough about this character that demands that he lead his own plot in an episode of the show but in saying that tho given the fact that he is one of the shows longest running characters and is a bit of a fan favorite character it was nice to see him get an episode that's dedicated to him but what would have made the episode feel worth it was if the episode actually showed us some of his backstory something which they could have gone into when he was sleeping next to the homeless man as that's kind of the point of a focus episode as this would then allow for us the audience to feel more for the character then what we already do in the first place but again just like with the plot it could be argued that not finding out that much about him is kind of the point of the episode as this whole episode is pretty much a spoof on anti drug PSA's and in those you never really get to know the main character with the only thing here that makes Mr. Mackey still be himself is the fact that he openly to never taking any kind of drugs even people are insisting that he did which is something that does add to the satire that the show is known for but it really would have worked more to this episodes advantage if we got to know about more him as a character as that could have made the episode better and the character himself all the more likable then what he already is in the first place.

Usually in this show it's Kyle , Stan , Kenny and Cartman that are the main characters of the episode as they are the main characters of the show. However here they feel more like side characters with there plot with Kyle's brother Ike having nothing to do with the Mr. Mackey plot line with the only thing of note to come from this plot is the fact that this is the episode where it's straight up confirmed that Ike is Kyle's adopted brother and is from Canada something which had never been mentioned before now with that revelation being something that does play a big part of the episode and Kyle is then forced to question if he and Ike really are brothers which does see him refuse to take part in Ike's bris as to him Ike is no longer his brother and it's only when Ike goes and talks to him and pretty much says that even tho there not related blood they are still a family and shows him all of the pictures of the two of them happily playing together that Kyle does finally come to accept the fact that even tho they aren't related he and Ike are still brothers something which was a pretty scene to see as even tho we've seen Kyle get outright angry at Ike several times throughout the early episodes of the show they are there for each other when it matters the most but at the same time tho it was still odd seeing the characters that you usually think of as being the main characters of the show be reduced to being side characters and while neither plot line is strong enough to lead the episode the bond between Ike and Kyle is as that bond really does make there plot in the episode all the more worthwhile and while the Mr. Mackey plot is still a fun plot he still feels more like a side character coming out of the plot where as Ike feel more like a main character coming out of his plot due to how strong his relationship is with Kyle.


For some reason even tho both the fandom wiki page for the show and the shows Wikipedia page both of which have this episode listed as being episode three of the shows second series. Both IMDB and the DVD for the shows second season have this episode listed as being the fourth episode of the season with the order just being swapped with the episode "ChickenLover" this is a really odd thing to as does make it hard to judge which episode of the season that this episode is mean to be with there being no reason for this odd little thing and no one can say that this show was produced first and therefor that's why it's the third episode because the show was always produced on a weekly basis they've never made the entire season before airing one singular episode which does make it odd that in some sources this is episode three whereas according to others it's episode four with there not being a DVD commentary on the DVD either as that would have been something that could have helped to clear the matter up but if official sources like the DVD for season are saying that this is fourth episode then why are the more fan made source like the shows fandom wiki page and to a lesser extent Wikipedia saying that it's the third episode of the show as surly just going by the more official sources would have been more then enough to clear up any kind of confusion and while this has nothing to do with the episode it is something that does make you wonder not only which one it is as for all we could know the numbers were switched after airing and while the show and the season isn't of course effected by this is it is something that could possibly confuse some people.

Now then this episode has / has an exact grand total running time of exactly twenty three minuets and forty six seconds. Which in all fairness to this episode this is pretty much the exact grand total running time for the rest of the show as a whole as well with this episode really having the right amount of plot there to really cover that amount of running time but in saying that tho this episode really doesn't use it's running time all that wisely as neither plot is that well developed with it feeling like that things are just happening not to advance either plot of the episode but rather it's just for no apparent reason whatsoever which does lessen the Mr. Mackey plot as there is plenty of stuff there that could have been added that would have made his plot for the episode all the more better and stronger then what it already is and while the main four boys don't really need any more character development in this episode as they have several other episodes in which to get across alot of there development the one character who really did need some character development in this episode was Mr. Mackey as the makers of this episode could have used his plot to develop his character a bit more by adding some backstory to the character instead of keeping him as a very one note character albeit one that does have alot of mileage in him but for whatever reason the makers of this episode chose not to give him any character development whatsoever but in fairness tho his lack of character development doesn't harm the episode as a whole as the episode still does work but it is something that would have made the episode be a whole more better in the long run then what it already is in the first place but I really will admit that this episode really does have some really good pacing to it tho.


So now then as this is a comedy that really does mean that I have to actually talk about the actual comedy that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode well then in all honesty I in all honesty personally thought / felt that the actual comedy that's actually featured / presented to us in this very episode was in all honesty really good. With this episode having alot of painfully funny jokes in it like the fact that when the people of South Park stat making fun of Mr. Mackey after he gets fired the camera then pulls back and reveals that people are quite literally causing a traffic jam just to insult hm which is a really good joke as is the fact that the Kyle just sends his brother on a train to the furthest place that the train goes to that being Nebraska and the fact that everyone there all mistake Ike for something other then a baby but none of those have a candle on the best joke of the episode which is the simple joke of the boys just making fun of how Mr. Mackey talks by copying his speech pattern something which he has no idea that there doing in the first place which is such a simple joke that it works really well as it doesn't require much set up and it adds nothing to the plot of the episode it's just a simple and silly joke and it's one that does work really well in the episode so much so that they then bring it back at the end of the episode as well with all of this episodes jokes also being some really funny jokes in their own right as well as they all do show us just how funny that this show not only is but also was when the show was at it's height as this episode really does have some really funny jokes in it all of which while there not the shows best jokes are ones that do work really well in my freaking opinions anyways / at least.


Overall this was a really good episode and is a really good example of just how good that this episode can be and with the show still being as funny and a relevant as ever in it's more recent season 27 episodes then it's safe to say that this show really does have alot more milage left in it in my freaking opinions anyways / at least. Now then i've talked about all of the good and as well as all of the bad things that are in his very episode in this very review and as such that really does mean that this very episode really does earn itself a grand old score of exactly an 8.5 out of 10 from me.

Now then as for where I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review well then boys and girls and as well as ladies and gentlemen I personally got all of the images that I personally used in this very review from the official South Park fandom wiki page , IMP Awards . Com and Google Images. With my personally preferred website to use to get the images from this very episode that I used in this very review being the really great the official South Park fandom wiki page really simply just due to the fact that really alot of if not really all of the images that are all really from this very episode with alot of them being better quality then what you'd really think of and all of the images are really of course up and really on the official South Park fandom wiki page are also really all fairly high in quality and as well as them all being really fairly freaking high in definition.