Laundry, TV, Minecraft and Friends

Today I had to get several chores done, since my job I haven't been able to do any sort of laundry. Luckily for me I have quite a few pairs of socks, underwear, jeans and tees that I can go a month without washing anything but today I had to do laundry so I loaded up my car with my seven loads and headed over to my local laundry mat. Washing and drying seven loads look about three hours to finish.

When I got home I watched a bit of recorded TV as my TIVO is starting to get full. I watched the latest episode of Scorpion, I'm still loving these series. I'm so happy that it's doing well in the ratings.

Around 5pm my buddy Chris asked if I wanted to play some Minecraft. Now my buddy Chris and I use to talk everyday but the past five months or so we barely say hello online so when an opportunity comes up to "hang out" with him I can't say no. We played some Minecraft games and had so much fun. We played for about 2 hours before calling it a night.

During the evening I skyped with my buddy Erik and we watched the latest Flash episode together. Like Scorpion, The Flash is good and doing well in the ratings. I'm loving the special effects and we're getting a bit more info about the overall story. So far it's pretty much the "meta" human of the week story.  It kind of reminds me of the early seasons of Smallville with it was Kryptonite infected human of the week, but it's still fun to watch.

So it wasn't the most relaxing Sunday.. but it was a productive one as well as I got to hang out online with several friends.. so that's always good.

Podcasts & Pathfinder (Final Battle)

Well today I'm suppose to release a new episode of my MASH 4077 podcast but I haven't even had time to edit it yet. So I spent the first four hours or so of today editing like crazy. I did mange to finish, upload and post it by noon. So Episode 91 of MASH 4077 podcast has been released. You can download or take a listen to it HERE.

The bulk of my day was taken up by our final D&D/Pathfinder session for the year. This was the conclusion of this current adventure. Most of us arrived around 2:30 as the session was to start at 3, but we got word that Will wasn't going to be there until 3:30 and then we had to wait for our Queen to arrive which wasn't until around 4:30 so there was a bit of a delay to start.

Once we started it was non-stop action. We broke out of the dungeons and made our way to the docks to rescue the Queen (who we thought was kidnapped). All of our magical items were stolen so it handicapped alot of us. It was a long and tough battle for over 9 hours. Will's character Giddeon died early on with several others getting close. Giddeon was resurrected about 2/3'ds through the game but many people were either unconscious or drowning for many hours of game play. At the end we did manage to win and I'm happy to saw that my little Halfing Mage did a pretty good job at holding his own. It was a great way to end this quest. We now take off the month of December and start our fifth adventure mid January.

I have been debating on taking off an adventure or so as these session take up some very valuable weekend time (twice a month). But when I think of not playing my little Halfling Mage it makes me sad.. so for now I'll continue to play Mr. Dashel Greenbottle.

No Hobbit Marathon For Me

So Hobbit tickets went on sale today and I was so pumped to pick up tickets to the IMAX Marathon of the first two Hobbit movies and then the premiere of the third Hobbit movie. I was ready to pounce on my computer at 9am when tickets went on sale. Days prior to this I tried to find someone to go with me and had no takers but I was determined to go even if it was solo. The main reason no one could go with me was because it's on a Monday, and at this moment I do not have a job after next week. So it would be okay for me to sit in a theater for 10 hours.

When 9am hit I jumped online and center seats were already selling out. I was going to buy two and try and find someone to go with me as it's still a few weeks away. But the prices for the tickets are $40 x2 = $80 and it got me thinking that I'm so far in debt and my job ending that I can't justify spending that kind of money on a movie.. even for a series that I love. Also if I do find a job I don't want to have to say I can't work that Monday because of this marathon. So I came to the conclusion that I shouldn't attend this marathon. I'm bummed as I have done the other marathons for LOTR and when the first Hobbit movie was released. But what can you do.

I'm holding out for a marathon of all six Peter Jackson's movies.. now that will be something amazing!!!

Geeky Underoos

Not much going on today in the geek world, but I have one thing I want to share with you guys.. 

Hot Topic is selling Underoos.. yes Underoos for Adults!!! How awesome is that. I haven't worn underoos in a very long time. Of course I went to the website and they are already sold out of the one I wanted..  Superman. I don't know how long they have been selling them but alot of the other men underoos are sold out so it may have been a while or they are just super popular. Hopefully they will restock them soon as they are on currently on sale. You can check them out HERE.

The Imitation Game - My Review

So my buddy Robert and I got to see a pre-release screening of Benedict Cumberbatch's new movie The Imitation Game. Here's a brief synopsis: The film portrays the race against time by Alan Turing and his team of code-breakers at Britain's top-secret Government Code and Cypher School at Bletchley Park, during the darkest days of World War II. The motley group of scholars, mathematicians, linguists, chess champions and intelligence officers had a powerful ally in Prime Minister Winston Churchill who authorized the provision of any resource they required. The film spans the key periods of Turing's life: his unhappy teenage years at boarding school; the triumph of his secret wartime work on the revolutionary electro-mechanical bombe that was capable of breaking 3,000 Enigma-generated naval codes a day; and the tragedy of his post-war decline following his conviction for gross indecency, a now-outdated criminal offence stemming from his admission of maintaining a homosexual relationship.

:::: THIS REVIEW WILL HAVE SPOILERS!!!!::::

I hadn't heard of Alan Turning (which I am ashamed/disappointed in) or seen any promotional material for this movie but when I got the invite and saw that it involved Cumberbatch, WW2 and Homosexuality I wanted to see it.. and I'm so glad I did.

The movie is set during three different key time periods of his life, his early teens, WWII and about 5 years after the war. Though the bulk of the movie does take place during the war. They jump back a forth between the time periods but I'm going to talk about each one separately. I really enjoyed his early teenage years. The young actor who they got to play a young Turning was amazing. I could really identify with this kid as he was different, bullied and lonely. But he did have one true friend a kid named Christopher. They had a special relationship, he was there for Alan when he was being bullied. They use to send cryptic message back and forth. It was heartbreaking what happens about midway through the film. Back from a two week vacation Alan writes in code " I love you " and plans to give it to Christopher but Christopher never returns. He dies while on vacation from Tuberculosis. Alan pretends that he doesn't care but you can see that it's killing him inside. And as an audience member your heart is just breaking.

As I said the bulk of the movie takes place during the War. We see lots of conflict at the beginning between Alan and his team before Joan (Keira Knightley) joins the team and teaches Alan how to work with others. Soon the team is a well oiled machine. Joan and Alan have a close relationship and when her parents want her to return home, Alan proposes. Later in the movie he confesses that he's a homosexual but she doesn't care, she loves him and enjoys his company. It's a very sweet moment but he's worried for her life as things are getting more and more complicated, so he claims he's never cared for her and the proposal is off. She knows somethings up and sticks around anyways. There is a great scene when they are about to pull the plug on his machine but his team stands behind him and says if they fire Alan the entire time will walk as well.

When they finally break the code they realize that they can't tell anyone as Hitler would know they broke it and create a new one. So this group has to decide mathematically which events they can stop and help and which ones they can do nothing about so they don't raise suspension... They have millions of lives in their hands.. they were playing god, I couldn't even imagine the pressure or guilt they felt... it's crazy.

The final time period is set about 5 years after the war and a detective is investigating a robbery at Alan's home. He suspects something is up with Alan but can't figure it out. He soon things Alan is a spy during the war but what he finds out, is that he's not a spy, Alan Turning is a homosexual. You can tell that the detective can care less that he's gay and when he finds out the truth as to what Alan did during the war you can see the conflict in his eyes. During this time in British history being a homosexual was against the law. You could tell the detective fells horrible as what he's uncovered. Turning is exposed and arrested for indecency. He has two choices to go to jail for 2 years or be medically treated for his "sickness" (aka chemical castration). There is a scene at the end when Joan visits Alan and you can tell that the medication is taking it's toll on him. She asks why he's doing it (taking the medicine) and he says he can't go jail and leave Christopher (the name he gave his machine/computer) and then he pleads with her to not let them take Christopher from him and leave him alone. 

I cried on and off during this film but with that scene I lost it. Blogging about it now is making me tear up. This man was so lonely and lost his true love when he was just a teenager. He was a national hero (though unknown at the time) and what the British government did to him was horrific. 

The very end of the movie there are titles that come up over video informing the viewer that Alan endured a year of this horrible medication treatment before committing suicide, he was only 41 years old. Also over 45,000 men were convicted for indecency (being homosexual) and also chemically castrated under that barbaric law.

On September 10th 2009, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown made an official public apology on behalf of the British government for "the appalling way he was treated." The Queen granted him a posthumous pardon on December 24th 2013.

:::: END OF SPOILERS::::

Needless to say, I loved this movie. The performances were amazing especially Cumberbatch's, I see an Oscar nomination in his near future. This film was not only about the War and Enigma but also about social norms and sexism (with Joan's character). It's well paced and though the jumping back and forward in time is a bit jarring at first it, you do get use to it. It's uplifting, heart wrenching and though provoking. It's a movie that I won't watch everyday but like with most of my favorite dramas it's nice to watch once in a while. I will be purchasing this movie on Blu-ray when it comes out. I'm still hoping to get a screener of it in the next few months. 

I give The Imitation Game a solid A. I saw a quote from James Rocchi of Film.com that said it best. "Strong, stirring, triumphant and tragic, “The Imitation Game” may be about a man who changed the world, but it’s also about the world that destroyed a man."

Screeners and Hobbit Marathon

So I got a slip from UPS last night informing me that I had a delivery. I knew that it was some screeners and I also knew that I would not be home for them to delivery it today to I contacted them and asked for them to hold it and I'll pick it up.

I was up extra early to I could still get my 30/45 walk/jog in before getting ready for work. On my way to work I made a detour to Van Nuys to the UPS customer service building. I stood in line for about 20 minutes before finally getting my package. I was right it was screeners..

So screener season has officially begun... my first two screeners are from Warner Brothers, The Judge (which I have not seen yet) and The Lego Movie (which I have seen and loved). I'm super excited to see what I get this season. On average I should get about 30 screeners so this is just the beginning.

I heard today that IMAX theaters will be doing a Hobbit marathon before the release of the third and final movie, The Battle of the Five Armies. They are holding it on Monday Dec. 15th, which is a few days before the actual release. Luckily for me it's playing at the Universal City Walk IMAX. Tickets aren't on sale until Thursday but I plan on doing this.

The first Hobbit movie starts at 12:30 and the second will be around 3:30 and then the premiere of the third and final movie around 7pm. I did the same with Lord of the Rings when the third and final film came out for that. So it's kind of a tradition for me and for all I know this will be the last time I can do this for a Middle Earth movie. I'm still hoping for someone to join me but if not then I'll enjoy it solo. I'm still debating on dressing up in my Hobbit outfit or not.  Either way it's going to be a blast!!!!

Mom's 60th & Happy Veterans Day

No geeky news today.. just two personal items..

First I want to wish my Mom a happy 60th Birthday. She doesn't read my blog or even know what a blog is but I still wanted to wish her a very Happy Birthday.

Second I want to thank all the service men and women who have served, are serving and will serve in the future. I know that I could never serve in the military and I'm thankful for each and everyone one of you.

Happy Veterans Day

Looking for Work

Starting my fourth week working on this CNN Pilot. Things are moving along nicely. Though they have another month of editing ahead of them they can only afford me for another week so I'll be looking for another job starting Monday November 24th. So if you hear of a post production supervisor position opening up please let me know.

I might actually start another pilot that being done by a different company across the hall from where I am now. Nothing is set yet.. so I'll continue to search. I'd love to get on a show that's more then just a few weeks... finger crossed.

Podcasts & Pathfinder

Today I finished up my Alien Nation podcast that will be released tomorrow. And I got started on my next MASH 4077 podcast which is due to be released on Nov. 15th. I still have a few days but with my work schedule and being so tired after work it's tough to get in the edit time. I manged to get about 50% of the podcast edited. Since it's due next Saturday I'll have to force myself to work on it during the week after work sometime.

The bulk of my day was taken up by D&D/Pathfinder. This is our second to last session before this adventure is over, but with that said this session takes place before the session we did a few weeks ago (the LARPing Masqurade Murder Mystery Party), which actually takes place a few months before the trial we've been on for this adventure.. it's all kinds of Wibbly Wobbly Timey Wimey kind of stuff.

So we start off this adventure with the Queen ill and only the tears of some sort of toad creatures could help her. So we head out to find these creatures. First we had to travel across this fast moving river. There was a rope ferry with an old man working it. He said it would take 3 crossing to get all of us and our horses/ponies across.. there was a big a shenanigans but we did manage to get everyone over safely.

We made our way into the bog and heard a young girl scream, the party went to help and ran into lizard type creatures. They were more formidable then we expected and it took longer then we planned but we did manage to defeat them.

We found out that this girl's sister had been taken by these toad like creatures that we were in search of but she was no help in finding them. Luckily we have some good trackers on our team and they found what looked like frog like foot prints. The tracks lead us to these tree frog creatures, these were not the toad like creatures we were looking for. Some of the members of our party wanted to attack them, some wanted to leave them be as there were women and children present and we don't attack things just for the fun of it.

Our Gnome Phlig was able to talk to a boulder and he lead us in the right direction. As night fell we made it to a large open swampy area. Towards the back stood a tent and three old croons were standing in front of the entrance. There was no sign of the toad creatures but there were these large ponds in the clearing and we just knew they were going to spring out.. and that's what happen. As we battled the three croons they used some powerful magics on us and if they touched you they would do some serious damage.

But in the end we managed to get the tears to save the queen, finish off the croons and rescue the girls sister.. all in the days work for this gang.

This was another fun session.. not as hard as some of them in the past but defiantly not easy. As always I want to thank Dallas for putting in a ton of work on making this all happen. Just one more session to go before we call it quits for the year.

Podcasts & Parties

Spent the first four hours of my day editing my next Alien Nation Podcast. The next episode is due to be released in two days and I haven't even started working on it. I didn't get it all done with this one session but it's about 90% done and I should be able to finish it off by tomorrow.

The reason I couldn't finish editing the podcast because I had to head out to my Mom's 60th Birthday party. It was happening at my aunt Joyce's house, she lives in Yorba Linda which is about an hour and 15 away from me on a good day.. well today wasn't a good day. It took me about 2 hours to get there. Even though I was late I was the first guest to arrive. Soon after people started showing up. My aunt went all out for my Mom's party, she even had this beautiful cake made for her (and I found out that my Mom's favorite flower is the same as mine.. Sunflowers). It was a good night, I got to see some family and meet some of my Mom's friends. I left around 7:30ish and managed to get home by 9.

I ended my evening by chatting with my buddy Erik. He just returned from his 2 week work trip to Florida and during this time we don't talk every night like we usually do. So it was a great way to end my night.

Week Three & Too Many Cooks

Today I finished the third week at this new job.. only two more weeks to go and then I look or work once again... the life of a Freelancer. I actually start looking today but didn't see anything that fit the bill. I hope to find someone soon after this one ends but it can be tough to find a post supervisor job during the holidays as most production companies go down then.

Saw "TooManyCooks" trending on Twitter so I had to check it out and I have to say it's one of the most bizarre yet courteously addicted videos that I have seen in a long time. It's 11 minutes long and after the first minute you could stop but there is just something about the video that makes you continue to watch. Of course I "get" this video being a kid of the 70's/80's and loving TV sitcoms. 

RGQ: Opinionated Fans

Today I posted a Random Geek Question on Facebook and Twitter: Which Fans are the most critical/opinionated when it comes to their fandom. Star Wars, Star Trek, LOTR, Who, etc... I got a few serious comments.

From Facebook:

Josh Spivack - I gotta go with Doctor Who. There are flame wars about virtually everything from Stephen Moffat, to River, to opening credits. With the others the debates always seemed more for fun, such as Picard vs. Kirk. etc.

Corby Kennard - Internet.

Samantha Inoue-Harte - omg....Japanese Anime fans can be hardcore critical and vocal about their likes and dislikes. I was sitting in an autographing session and some fan came up and slapped me because he didn't like how I played one of his fave characters.

Jay Regenye - Pssst Kenny the answer is all of them! XD Seriously all fandoms are critical of things. Heck I would judge you if you dressed up as Justin Timberlake and said you were Nick Carter from Backstreet Boys. I have had people jump down my throat for catching and using a bug pokemon on my team because people think they are weak.

Jennifer Luchsinger - Star Wars and Star Trek, fans.

Kevin Komonyi - Drat! I wanted to post a picture and it won't let me.

Simon Meddings - I've said before I think fandom of all kinds has created a collection of immature, argumentative bores. I've left near on all Dr Who related sites because near on 80% seem to just moan. Jog on and just enjoy it.

Christopher Setts - Football geeks are the worst!

Kevin Komonyiv - American football or soccer? I just watched my first rugby match the other day and was surprised how similar it is to American football.

Matthew Luchsinger - I have to go with Star Trek.

And from Twitter:

@danmartin26 - Trek, and it's probably not even close

@luisbermudez - I imagine LotR fans; only based on the fact that they have specific complaints when comparing to source material.

@qimster - definitely who fans lol so much hand wringing

@jkeats - I would go with Game of Thrones. It's a nasty fandom full of a lot of complaining. Check tumblr

What prompted this question was the release of the title for the next Star Wars movie. I mean moments after it was announced "fans" and I use that term lightly were ripping it apart. I don't understand how these supposed "fans" can be so harsh on something that they supposedly love. I know you shouldn't blindly love something just because it's part of something that you have loved in the past.. but there is a difference between constructive criticism and being mean, just to be mean.

Marriage Fail, Star Wars Title & Hobbit Trailer

Today I have several pieces of geeky news (good) and one piece of personal news (bad).. which to talk about first.. let's go with the bad news.  So after a year of wins for marriage equality and lower courts declaring banning of gay marriages as unconstitutional. Today's ruling by the sixth circuit upholding the bans of gay marriage in four states was a shock. Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee still have bans on same sex marriage. Though this is bad news it might be a blessing in disguise as this might make the Supreme court have to rule on this marriage equality issue. So let's hope we can make some lemonade out of these lemons.

Now on to the awesome geeky news.. Disney released the title of Star Wars Episode VII... drum roll... the next installment of the Star Wars movies will be called Star Wars: The Force Awakens. First you might noticed that they didn't add Episode VII to the title like they did with the prequel movies, instead the opted to go the route of the original trilogy, I like it. I am actually ambivalent to the actual title, I mean I don't love it or hate it... it's a title of the next movie. I'm more interested in seeing the movie but I will admit that the title does intrigue me. Has the Force been dormant all these years? Guess will have to wait another year before finding out.

The other big geeky news is that Warner Bros released the full trailer for the next Hobbit movie, The Battle of the Five Armies. This got me super excited. I must have watched it six or seven times in a row and again several times during the day. I'm really looking forward to seeing the final chapter in this Hobbit trilogy.  Check out the trailer below:

Pizza & Babylon 5

It was another crazy day at work so it was nice during the evening that I was able to hang out with my best bud Robert. We haven't done a TV night in a few months and though we didn't have a lot of time we did manage to get one episode of Babylon 5 in before calling it quits but even more important was that we had pizza for dinner. Since finding out that I was pre-diabetic I haven't had any pizza so this was a real treat. I know that I won't be able to have it every week like I have in the past but every once in a while is fine.. and actually pizza isn't horrible for my GI as the bread is the only bad part it's more of a fat/losing weight part. But it was a nice evening with a friend.. which is what I needed after today.

As I mentioned we watched S5 Ep14 "Meditations on the Abyss" On a mission to the edge of Centauri space, Lennier both teaches and learns. Sheridan struggles to keep the Interstellar Alliance together. And Vir grows up fast learning more of the nuances of Centauri diplomacy.

This was a filler episode, nothing of huge significances happens. It was really a Vir and Lennier episode and it was nice seeing those guys as they haven't been in much of this season. We also got a nice moment between the Doctor and G'Kar. I did like the Vir stuff, I liked that he found his back bone, I also liked that Londo announced that Vir will be taking over as Ambassador on B5 when Londo heads back to the homeworld. So overall a good episode but as I mentioned nothing really in it to move the plot forward.

Voting, Elections, DVD's & Scorpion

I got up this morning and did my 30 minute jog/walk before getting ready for work but before heading in I went to my local church to vote. There was only a few people ahead of me so I got in and out in no time. Last time I went to vote I wasn't registered with my new apartment so I had to do an absentee ballet.. but not this time.

I headed into work and got word that another state's marriage ban was determined unconstitutional. So congratulations to all my gay and lesbian brothers and sister in the state of Kansas who can now join hand n hand and take the plunge.

Towards the evening I started hearing election numbers coming in and it wasn't looking good, at least not for us Democrats. When all the dust settles the Republicans will have a majority vote in the House of Representatives as well as the Senate. This makes me sad because marriage equality has come such a long ways in the past two years and I don't know if this new Republican run government will hurt us, but I do know for sure that it won't help us.  There are already hateful Republicans representatives making derogatory statements about gay rights and marriage. I guess time will only tell.

It was a rough day not only at work but with the election so I wanted to treat myself... so I headed over to Walmart to pick up Maleficent and The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug Extended Edition as both of these came out on blu-ray today. And yes I went to Walmart which I would never have done if the prices weren't the lowest. As soon as I pulled into the parking lot I was regretting this plan, it was a rough day and now this experience was going to be rough but I really wanted these DVD's and I'm on a strict budget so I have to go where the deals are, even if it means Walmart.

On my way home I resisted all kinds of fast food for dinner instead I made some dinner at home.. so yay me.

Before heading to bed I was able to watch an episode of Scorpion. Tonight was S1 Ep  7 "Father's Day" When Ralph's absentee father Drew calls the Scorpion office to talk to Paige, it triggers the familial memories of everyone. The team tries to protect Ralph by running a background check on Drew, who is a struggling minor league baseball player. Meanwhile, the team is tasked with finding out how three convicts, including a high IQ hacktivist, escaped from a high-tech prison and as to what their plan really is.

Another fun episode, I liked getting a bit deeper into the Walter and Cabe backstory, they also addressed Happy's daddy issues and we even get to meet him at the end of the story. I hope we see this relationship grow. I liked how Paige dealt with Ralph's father. I don't think will be seeing him around in future episodes. I liked how the gang were all concerned for Ralph and his well being and it did annoy me a bit when Paige was so resistant to their help. Overall another great episode and I can't wait for the next one.

Beanies, Minions & Fairytales

Starting my third week of six at this new job. It's starting to get a bit crazy as post tends to do. There are things that happen that remind me why I took off a year from this kind of work but then I remember that I need the funds to help pay down some of the debt I went into while off work. So I have to bite the bullet and get through it.

This morning it was cold enough outside at 7am for me to wear a beanie. I love wearing my beanies, not only does it keep me warm but I think I look cute wearing them... and believe me I don't say that about myself often. So hopefully it will remain cool for the next few months so I can do beanie caps everyday.

I came across a trailer for a Minion movie. I had no idea they were making this movie. Of course I knew Despicable Me 1 & 2 did well at the box office and the Minion were the breakout stars so it was only a matter of time but this news kind of snucked up on me. But of course it looks great and I can't wait to see it.. check out the trailer.

After work I managed to get one episode of TV in before calling it a night. Tonight I watched Once Upon A Time S4 Ep 6 "Family Business"

Belle attempts to use Rumplestiltskins dagger to find out where the Snow Queen is hiding. Hook and Emma search for answers about the snow queen. Back in fairytale land of the past Anna returns home from her time in the enchanted forest but doesn't know what to tell her sister about what she found out.

I enjoyed tonight's episode, I'm a big fan of Belle and we got some backstory and her encounter with Anna (because everybody knows everybody in Fairytale land). I really liked seeing Anna and Belle visit Grandpappie rock troll. OMG and we got to see Oaken, who was prefect. I'm really disliking Rumple more and more with every new episode. We find out the Snow Queens plan and how Emma and Elsa are part of it. I don't know if the end goal of the Snow Queen is to just have a family, I'm sure there has to be more to the story. We also learn that the Snow Queen has a "secret" weapon that can turn the entire towns people against each other. So will see how this story continues to unfold in next weeks episode.. can't wait.

Rebels, Downton, Once & Who... So Much TV

Today was all about relaxation... I really should have edited a podcast as several are due very soon but it was a long week of work and I wanted to do nothing but catch up on some TV as it's starting to build up on my Tivo.

So today I watched 2 episodes of Star Wars Rebels, 3 episodes of Downton Abbey, 2 episodes of Once Upon a Time and 2 episodes of Doctor Who. Here are my thoughts...

First up was Star Wars Rebels S1 Ep 3 (or 2 if you don't count the pilot as episode one) "Fighter Flight" Hera sends Ezra and Zeb out on a supply run together to keep them from bickering with each other, specifying that they do not return without a rare meiloorun fruit. The two find that the market's sole supply of meilooruns has been purchased by the Empire. Ezra's attempt to steal the fruit leads to an entanglement against the stormtroopers, forcing Zeb to hijack a TIE fighter for the two to escape in. En route to their rendezvous with the Ghost, the two find farmer and Ezra's friend Morad Sumar being arrested along with his family. Using the TIE fighter to their advantage, Ezra and Zeb are able to rescue Sumar and retrieve the fruit, and return to the Ghost after crashing the fighter.

This episode is pretty much all about Ezra and Zeb, these two act like brothers through out the entire episode. Both are a bit immature but in the end they have each other's backs. I enjoyed this episode, it's building some nice relationships between the characters.

I then watched Star Wars Rebels S1 Ep 4 (3)  "Rise of the Old Masters"The Ghost crew discover an underground transmission reporting that Jedi Master Luminara Unduli has survived Order 66 and is being held in a high-security Imperial prison on Stygeon Prime. Kanan leads his crew to rescue Luminara for her to train Ezra, frustrated with his own inability to teach the boy. Upon reaching her cell, Kanan and Ezra discover that Luminara is long dead and that her remains used as bait by the Inquisitor to lure the Jedi into a trap. The two work together to escape the Inquisitor before Hera rescues them aboard the Phantom. Afterward, Kanan comes to understand the meaning of Master Yoda's saying, "There is no try," and resolves to train Ezra himself.

I really enjoyed this episode. This one had a lot of Star Wars themes attached to it. It was interesting to see that Kanan really isn't a teacher, but that's understandable as he was barely taught himself before the Jedi purge happened. He was probable in his early teens when his master died. So it's going to be interesting to see this Jedi train his padawan Ezra. Both are going to learn from each other. I really like the Inquisitor, he's going to be a good villain. I don't know if he's a sith but he diffidently has the force working for him. Can't wait to see where this storyline goes.

After Star Wars I moved on to Downton Abbey and started with S5 Ep 4,  Violet and Isobel visit the soup kitchen Rose is running for the Russian refugees and Isobel is surprised when Violet confesses that Prince Kuragin once asked her to run away with him. Isobel herself is flattered by Lord Merton's sincere marriage proposal but asks for time to consider whilst Mary travels to London to reject Tony's offer. He is persistent but by chance she meets and dines with Charles Blake. Edith hears that Michael may be alive but in prison in Germany for opposing Fascists though is upset when the Drewes refuse to let her see Marigold. Bricker's reappearance angers Robert, as does Sarah Bunting's continual challenge to his authority, causing him to ban her from the house. Baxter discovers that Barrow is attempting to 'cure' his homosexuality whilst the police continue to rake up Green's death, especially as, whilst in London with Mary, Anna visited the spot where he was killed.

Another great episode, it's hard to review these episodes as so much happens. I'm interested to see where Mr. Barrow's storyline goes. He's a horrible human being but part of me feels so bad as he's so extremely lonely and I think that's a big contributor to nasty ways. I hope they do something with this Edith story soon. She just needs to take her child back and deal with the consequences. It's funny when Mary tries to break up with Tony he refuses her and pretends everything is just fine and they will work through it.. I wonder how she's going to get out of this. Sarah has to go, I know she likes to speak her mind and she may be in the right but there is a time and place for everything and that fight was completely uncalled for. 

Next was Downton Abbey S5 Ep 5, Tom breaks off his friendship with Sarah but, on learning that she is moving to another job in Preston and encouraged by Daisy, wishes her well and thanks her for reminding him who he is. Rose meets Atticus Aldridge, a young lawyer of Russian-Jewish descent, who invites her to call on him when she is in London whilst the police interview Anna regarding Green's death, to the interest of Barrow, whose unhealthy complexion is getting noticed. Baxter relates her crime to Molesley and the pair grow closer. Violet's daughter Rosamund visits and the dowager tumbles to the fact that Marigold is Edith's daughter. The two older women want to get her away to France but Edith hopes to take her to London instead. Bricker tries to force himself on Cora but is interrupted by Robert. Whilst Cora resists Robert is still unsure as to whether she is attracted to the art expert.

Roses new beau Atticus is very cute and sweet. Can't wait for the family to find out he's Jewish. I want them to resolve this Mr. Green's death storyline. I just want Anna and Bates to be happy. I'm loving the budding relationship of Molesley and Baxter. I hope it goes well.. I feel like Mr. Molesley keeps getting the raw end of the deal. The entire Bricker/Cora/Robert thing finally came to a head, I'm glad Cora rebounded Bricker's advances

And finally Downton Abbey S5 Ep 6, Violet has a new maid, Denker, who makes it clear to her what she regards as the limitations of her duties. She accompanies Violet to see Prince Kuragin with news of his wife's whereabouts but the dowager is shocked when Kuragin reveals that he still loves her. An anonymous letter to the police has them questioning Baxter as to whether John ever went to London though she is unable to help. Aware that it was sent by Barrow she is forgiving enough to take him to see Dr Clarkson, who tells him that he cannot 'cure' his sexuality. Robert and Cora reconcile as Robert accepts Mary and Tom's view that they should build decent houses on Downton land whilst John convinces Anna that he did not kill Green. An unused train ticket, evidence to support him, is however in the pocket of a coat donated to charity. Edith learns that Michael Gregson has been murdered by Fascist thugs and that she now owns his publishing company. Most of the family attend a point to point race, where Blake parades new girlfriend Mabel in front of Mary and Rose introduces Atticus's aristocratic parents to the Crawleys. Edith uses the opportunity to take Marigold and flee with her to London.

So much happened in this episode.. I'm so happy that Baxter helped Barrow though he did just throw her under the bus. I liked how the doctor handled his issue and explained that he just has to enjoy the life he was given. I hope we see him find a fella and can change his nasty ways. I feel so bad for Edith and totally understand why she does what she does and leaves Downton with her daughter. Violet's reaction to finding out that Rose's new beau is Jewish was priceless. I'm happy to here that Mrs Crowley is accepting Lord Merton's sincere marriage proposal. I'm so happy that she's gonna find happiness (at least I hope she does). And we finally find out that Bates did not kill Mr. Green and he and Anna are good again. Well for the time being as the cops still think Mr. Bates is a suspect.

Only a few more episodes for this season.. can't wait to see how this all ends.

Next up after Downton was Once Upon A Time. I started with S4 Ep 4 "The Apprentice" Hook asks Gold for his hand to be reattached for a first date with Emma. Henry and Mary Margaret try to help Regina when she becomes frustrated over not being able to find a cure for a frozen Marian. Back in the Fairy Tale Land that was, Rumplestiltskin uses Anna to acquire a magical box from the Sorcerer's apprentice.

This was another good episode. In Fairy Tale land we are finding out more about Anna, we meet the Sorcerer's apprentice and I love that Rumple turns him into a mouse (very Disney). The date with Hook and Emma was cute. I'm not liking present day Rumple, he's up to no good and I hate that he is lying to Belle. I know he loves her but at some point it's all going to fall apart. I hope Hook can get away from Rumple and not follow in his footsteps.

And then I watched Once Upon A Time S4 Ep 5 "Breaking Glass" Regina reluctantly teams up with Emma to search for the Snow Queen after Sidney, who is once again Regina's prisoner in the mirror, discovers her whereabouts and agrees to lead her to the location. With Belle babysitting baby Neal, a nervous Mary Margaret and David prepare for their first date night away from their child and find themselves on a mission to track down Will Scarlet, who has escaped from the town jail, and Elsa sees Anna in the Storybrooke woods. Meanwhile, back in the past, young Emma finds herself a kindred spirit when she befriends a girl who, like her, is a runaway orphan.

I like the Emma and Regina are somewhat friends again. I love that they use their powers together to defeat the ice creature. Elsa find her courage and Rumple up to his nonsense again. I liked that we got to see a young teenage Emma. I'm not sure who the girl was that she befriended but with that special star scar on her wrist (which they made sure the audience saw) I'm sure will see her again at some point. The shocker was that it was finally revealed how the Snow Queen knows Emma.. she was her foster parent when Emma as a young teenager.. dun dun dun...

Next up was Doctor Who.. I start with S8 Ep 10 "In The Forest of the Night" One morning in London, and every city and town in the world, the human race wakes up to the most surprising invasion yet: the trees have moved back in. Everywhere, in every land, a forest has grown and taken back the Earth.

I knew what the trees were doing after it was reveal that the sun was being wonky. Don't know why it took everyone else so long to figure it out. I enjoyed this episode for the most part. The doctor didn't really annoy me as much and was somewhat nice to Clara. Not an amazing episode but fun.

And the final TV episode I watched for the night was Doctor Who S8 Ep 11 "Dark Water" In the mysterious world of the Nethersphere, plans have been drawn. Old friends and old enemies manoeuvre around The Doctor, and an impossible choice is looming over him.

Now this was an amazing episode, Pink (Clara's boyfriend) dies and Clara loses it and forces the Doctor to help bring him back. Enter the mysterious Missy who we come to find out is none other then The Master or The Mistress (Missy for short). I had seen things online about who Missy was but I never though of the Master so this was a total OMG moment and I loved it. Can't wait to see how this storyline is resolved in the finale next week. It's going to be interesting as Pink will still be dead when it's all said and done.. I wonder what's going to happen to Clara.

A long but awesome day of TV watching.. and though I watched all those shows I still have a ton more to try watch soon. Luckily for me the holidays are coming up and alot of TV shows go on hiatus so I'll be able to fully catch up then.