Review Day

There are no major spoilers in these reviews.

Upload, Season Three:
The second season of this show about the digital afterlife was a miss -- meandering and just gaining momentum when it ended. Season three is slightly better but the tone is uncertain. The show can no longer decide whether it's leaning into the funny sight gags about a future world completely sponsored by advertising companies or trying to bring the more serious "who owns your consciousness on a hard drive?" plotline to a close. I enjoyed the subplot about the AI helper learning to be more human, but felt like the main characters were too split off into their own plotlines to be much fun. On Amazon Prime.

Final Grade: B-

The Bear, Season Three:
I thought I would hate the first episode that takes place almost entirely in dreams (PTSD to the later seasons of The Sopranos), but it hooked me in spite of myself. From that excellent start, the show just treads water for the entirety of the season -- overusing some of the comic characters and preventing Carmy from doing much more than recognizing that he needs to change. The final episode full of real chef guest stars felt more self-congratulatory than good TV. (We almost stopped completely during the pregnancy-themed episode, but that episode ended surprisingly more lightly than expected). On Hulu.

Final Grade: B-

Cobra Kai, Season Six Part One:
I hate the slow place that shows are being released in modern times -- the final season of this karate show is coming out in 3 chunks of 5 episodes each over the coming 12 months. These first episodes are fun but not game-changing, and probably can't be fairly judged until we see where they lead. On Netflix.

Final Grade: B-

Elden Ring:
I tried out Elden Ring during a gaming drought in August, but it never hooked me. It seemed to have all the right ingredients -- open world, challenging combat, great graphics -- but everything in the introductory sequences is poorly explained and the world felt shallow and sterile. I only lasted 80 minutes.

Final Grade: Not Rated