Michael Bridgett's Media Mix Up #2

Let's go over what my life is like in all the Movies and TV... Again!

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Let's go over what my life is like in all the Movies and TV... Again! 🌞

You business-y guys know how it is. You decided you wanted to build a cool website to complement all the things you're doing. You're checking out different places to set it up. You're thinking of names! You feel like you're finally there... and then you break your whole damn website. Awesome...

Let's give it up for customer service and hope for the best.

While I wait for them to help me, I've kept going out and checking out new movies and TV shows that I'd love to bring you guys in on, especially if you've never managed to see them and want to bless those flicks with your vision. I know exactly where to start too. 

TRACK #1: Babes: A Story About Best Friends Giving Birth Back-to-Back

Hawt Pregnancies: The Movie

I was excited for this movie. It wasn't a topic I was used to, but two of my favorite actors were in it, so I had to check it out. Michelle Buteau plays Dawn, a dentist with a great attitude until her second child and Ilana Glazer plays Eden, a woman who runs "4th Floor Walk Up Yoga" from her apartment. Two of the best actresses in the business as far as I'm concerned as I loved Broad City and Survival of the Thickest.

Babes starts with Dawn about to have her second child. Eden is taking her pregnant friend out to see a movie, but every seat she tries in the movie theater is wet. Eden does what any friend would do and checks her vagina... obviously. Dawn's water seems to be breaking, but it's really slow. Did you know that was possible? I didn’t! So they abandon a movie go out to the world’s largest brunch instead. Dawn goes into labor while eating everything on the menu. Eden has use her mouth to explain the size of Dawn’s baby maker to her. They rush her to a hospital, and after having that shit covered second child, Eden goes out for $500 worth of sushi she ends up eating alone. 

On that same trip home, she meets this man wearing a tux on one of the trains. His name is Claude (Stephan James) and he and Eden have a connection you can feel. They share the sushi. They share their life stories. They take it back to Eden's place. They try doing it without protection because because they’ve both gotten tested by “the twins.” Eden's on her um... cycle though, and figures she can't get pregnant. They’re so beautiful together. They have fun all night, and Claude sticks around all morning, but Eden can't find him after that. He seems like a real asshole until Eden hears from the twins that he died. She also finds out that she's pregnant just like Dawn was. It's the world's darkest one night stand. 

Should You See Babes?

Absolutely. It's fun watching them touch on everything to do with pregnancy, especially if you're not the type who knows a lot. We see the excitement, the love, the depression, the Omen, the friend break up, and their reconnection. It's gross at times, hilarious at others, and absolutely worth your time. 

TRACK #2: I Don't Care What The Internet Says: Secret Invasion Was Great

Fury looking scary, but now I know his wife won’t let him do nothing.

That's right. Secret Invasion was amazing. It was fun, it was topical, it was erotic. I give it a 9.5, I still got wood. Don't worry that I'm a huge fan of Samuel L. Jackson. Don't bother with the fact that I've been reading Marvel Comics since I was 5 years old. All you need to know is that I'm right and everyone else is wrong. 

Secret Invasion was great. 

I need to go into why that is.

They Say: They Don't Take Advantage of The Plot

So the writers of this show used Secret Invasion to tie up a lot of loose ends in MCU continuity. They answered questions like, "What happened to the Skrulls they saved in Captain Marvel, how long have the Skrulls been collecting information for Nick Fury, how to make a Super Skrull in a world with no Fantastic Four, and Nick Fury was married this whole time?! I'm a Marvel baby and I love this stuff. 

The plot unfolds with the MCU version of Maria Hill (Cobie Smulders) and a Skrull Talos (Ben Mendelsohn) working together to find a faction of Skrulls that grew upset and resentful during Nick Fury's departure. Obviously, Nick Fury was blipped away from the Thanos snap. Once he came back, he got himself stationed on the "stay off Earth" space station we saw in The Marvels. Some people hate all this plot connectivity, but I am not one of them. 

So these Skrulls are angry because Nick Fury took too long to find them a new home. Instead, he used them as his own personal spy team. That's why Nick Fury knew everything all the time. He turned a group of warrior people into groups of spies that work only for him. Unfortunately, Nick never did what he said he would in finding a new home. This faction is angry enough about it to use their shape-changing powers to try and create World War III and take over the Earth once most of the humans are dead. If this were real life, I'm sure many people would welcome an alien invasion, since the planet is run by lizard people already. 

The complaint of Secret Invasion is that they had this cool plot they didn't take advantage of. On the one hand, I can understand that. This spy thriller could have been more thrilling if we had to wonder who was who all along. The Secret Invasion series in the comics were great with this. Spider-Woman, Hank Pym, and Jarvis all turned out to be Skrulls in that story, but in the MCU there is no Spider-Woman, Hank Pym is old, and Jarvis is a computer program. 

On the Secret Invasion show, they tell us who is a Skrull in a way that takes a lot of the edge off a later reveal. Personally... I liked this. It made the show easier to watch. They focus more on answering important questions so I can enjoy my popcorn. The simplicity makes it easier to think bigger. It's not that I'm some kind of Sam Jackson or Marvel stan... You guys know what I mean. I just bought a month of Disney Plus just to watch this. That doesn’t mean I love it or anything.

TRACK #3 We Are Lady Parts: Of Course Muslim Women Should Make Punk Rock!

Yay! Women in bands!

Season 2 of We Are Lady Parts came out sometime at the end of May. I almost missed it, but I love this show so much watched all six episodes in two days. 

As a musician myself, I can't get enough about people in bands doing things people in bands do. In the first season, we spent a lot of time watching Amina (Anjana Vasan) try to get over her stage fright, and keep two different sets of friends. She's awkward and very bad at this. However, she loves Lady Parts as soon as she steps into the room. She's afraid to join, but the rest of the band hits the streets to find her because she's so damn good at playing the guitar. It feels right to her. Eventually, they are finally able to get Amina out of her shell, and she's able to play the band’s biggest show ever. 

In the 2nd Season, Amina's life has turned around. She's in her Villian Era! Her microbiology job is going well, Lady Parts goes on tour, and now they want to record their first album together. This season focuses more on Saira (Sarah Kameela Impey) and Bisma (Faith Omole) and the firing of their manager Momtaz (Lucie Shorthouse). They all have to deal with a lot get the chance to make the album of their dreams. Amina has some trouble with boys, but congrats on telling people what you think and not taking shit off anyone. 

I think more people need to watch this show. It's fun, features diverse music in most episodes, and focuses on Muslim identity and LGBTQIA issues particularly with Ayesha (Juliette Motamed). It's great to see this show, focus on women making the kind of music that we like. Breath of fresh air. Go to Peacock (The Cock to the kids) and breathe it in with me. 

TRACK #4: Backspot: A Movie About Cheerleading Produced by Elliot Page

Riley and Amanda sitting in a tree…

This movie was a different kind of fun, and don't you look at me like that. Cheerleading movies are surprisingly fun. From Bring It On to Fired Up and even the more gymnastics based movie Stick It, these types of movies seldom disappoint. Cult classics, all of them, and each one holding a special place in my heart. I didn't know what to expect when I walked into the Alamo Drafthouse. I saw cheerleaders and figured it could be interesting. 

Backspot is a little different and a lot darker than those other films. The camera angles are close and the drama is high. Devery Jacobs plays Riley, an ambitious cheerleader with something to prove. Everything in her life is about competitive cheerleading. That includes her relationship with her girlfriend Amanda (Kudakwashe Rutendo) who's her biggest fan and supporter while turning flips and sticking landings like a pro.

One of the most interesting elements of this movie is how most of the main characters are queer. Riley and Amanda are together, their coach Eileen McNamara (Evan Rachel Wood) is an out lesbian, Eileen's assistant coach Devon (Thomas Antony Olajide) colors up and dances at a Gay Bar (but don't tell Eileen. He's sober now and she's hardcore). Even the other girls that show up to a cheerleader party are together, and one gets an earful from Riley about letting cheerleaders "wear their bows and turn their flips." Nobody in the film cares that anyone is queer. Any danger around coming out is not in this movie. People are just cool, and I think that might be it’s most important thing Backspot does.

Should You See Backspot?

5 Easy Ways to Backspot. Thanks WikiHow!

If you love cheerleading, working out, and close shots of girls flipping and having panic attacks, absolutely. Some of you may not think it's your vibe and that's ok. I expect to keep thinking about it now that I've seen it. I waited for injury to happen in the movie and when it finally does, I feet bad. That uncomfortable feeling is worth having. Go catch it in a theater if you can find it.

Media Mix Up #2 COMPLETE! 

I've watched a lot this month and wanted to share it. It helps me remember what I've seen, but also sets you up to join me in the observations. Feel free to drop your comments and yell at me if your opinions are different. That's ok. Feel free to be wrong and get told, sucka. 

News Flash!!!!

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News Flash!!!! 🔥🔥🔥

Customer service DID help me make a website! If you’re here, you’re checking it out right now! How is it? Do you like it? If not, let me know!

Feel free to support me with your dollars if you want. Let's keep this thing going and have a lot more fun.