2022 - The Year that was

2022 is about to be over and lots and lots of things happened. Below are some of the highlights from the usual suspects.

What a year it was.

Thank you, 2022. 🫡 pic.twitter.com/xN5RSSa2bt

— Los Angeles Rams (@RamsNFL) December 31, 2022

Looking To The 2023 Horizon

2023 is opon us and it looks like there will be more and more movement to streaming as a default. Let's hope that the non-super-hero movies can draw folks back. I'll be out for the Marvel movies fo shizzle. But the rest? Prior to the pandemic, I would move mountains to go watch something in the theatre. Now, outside of Marvel, I have to be completely free to go watch. Streaming has made things too easy as well now. I often choose to just wait.

As 2022 comes to a close, 2023 has lots of stuff to look forward to. Here are a few trailers based on my interest.

2022 December Netflix Releases

Netflix has lots of things that come and go every months. And its a bit of a struggle to keep up. Here are some highlights.

2022 December Disney+ Releases

Friday, December 2

• Akashinga: The Brave Ones
• Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules (Premiere)
• Heroes of the Mediterranean
• Patagonia Wings
• Pentatonix: Around the World for the Holidays (Premiere)
• The Territory

Wednesday, December 7

• Alice’s Wonderland Bakery (Season 1, 5 Episodes)
• Animal Fight Night (Seasons 1–6)
• Beyond Magic with DMC (Season 1)
• Botswana (Season 1)
• Gigantosaurus (Season 3, 8 Episodes)
• The Mysterious Benedict Society (Episode 208 “A Two-Way Street”) (Season Finale)
• Raven’s Home (Season 5, 2 Episodes)
• The Santa Clauses (Episode 5: “Chapter Five: Across the Yule-Verse”)
• Sumo Do, Sumo Don’t! (Episode 8)
• The Villains of Valley View (Season 1, 1 Episode)
• Willow (Episode 3)

Thursday, December 8

• Solo Amor Y Mil Canciones (Premiere)

Friday, December 9

• Area 51: The CIA’s Secret
• CMA Country Christmas
• Idina Menzel: Which Way to the Stage? (Premiere)
• Night at the Museum: Kahmunrah Rises Again (Premiere)
• Ocean’s Breath
• Shark vs. Tuna
• Retrograde

Wednesday, December 14

• Alaska’s Deadliest (Season 1)
• Broken Karaoke (Shorts) (Season 1, 1 Episode)
• Drain the Oceans (Season 5)
• The Great Christmas Light Fight (Season 10)
• National Treasure: Edge of History (Episode 1: “I’m a Ghost”) (Episode 2: “The Treasure Map”) (2-Episode Premiere)
• The Owl House (Season 3, 1 Episode)
• Positive Energy (Season 1)
• The Santa Clauses (Episode 6: “Chapter Six: A Christmas to Remember”)
• Sumo Do, Sumo Don’t! (Episode 9)
• Willow (Episode 4)

Thursday, December 15

• A Very Backstreet Holiday

Friday, December 16

• Beauty and the Beast: A 30th Celebration
• Heroes of the Long Road Home with Martha Raddatz
• If These Walls Could Sing (Premiere)
• Mafia Confidential
• Muppets Most Wanted (Sing-Along Version)
• Le Pupille (Premiere)
• Where Oceans Collide

Wednesday, December 21

• Ancient X Files (Season 2, 5 Episodes)
• Born in Africa (Season 1)
• Danger Decoded (Season 1)
• The Flagmakers
• Port Protection Alaska (Seasons 1–5)
• National Treasure: Edge of History (Episode 3: “Graceland Gambit”)
• Sumo Do, Sumo Don’t! (Episode 10)
• Willow (Episode 5)

Friday, December 23

• From the Ashes
• Jaguar Beach Battle
• Little Giant

Wednesday, December 28

• Encanto at the Hollywood Bowl (Premiere)
• Generation X (Season 1)
• National Treasure: Edge of History (Episode 4: “Charlotte”)
• Savage Kingdom (Seasons 1–4)
• Street Genius (Seasons 1–2)
• Wicked Tuna: Outer Banks Showdown (Season 1)
• Willow (Episode 6)

Friday, December 30

• Black Pharaohs: Sunken Treasures
• Generation Youtube

Source: D23

2022 December Amazon Prime Video Releases

'Tis the season for new shows and movies! pic.twitter.com/G3eN770yri

— Prime Video (@PrimeVideo) December 1, 2022

🔥 LIVE IN U.S. PRIMETIME 🔥 Your updated ONE on Prime Video 5 fight card headlined by 3 World Title fights, the highly anticipated debut of Roberto Soldic, and more! Predictions? pic.twitter.com/CYvVj7bxNO

— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) November 28, 2022

2022 December Blockbuster Movie Guide

Here are the movies to look out for this month, US Edition.

Violent Night (暴戾夜)



Avatar: The Way of Water (阿凡達:水之道)



Babylon (巴比倫)



Sources:
IMDB Coming Soon
Box Office Mojo
Wikipedia.org
Taiwan Yahoo! Movies
WMoov Hong Kong

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever - 黑豹2:瓦干達萬歲

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (黑豹2:瓦干達萬歲) is an 2022 film. The movie stars Letitia Wright and Tenoch Huerta. The supporting cast include Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, Winston Duke, Dominique Thorne, Mabel Cadena, Martin Freeman, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Angela Bassett. This movie is a direct sequel to Black Panther (黑豹) from 2018. Due to the blip, there's an extra 5 years added to the timeline that hasn't been fully explained yet. The movie does address T'Challa's, played by Chadwick Boseman, Black Panther's passing since the last movie. Chadwick Boseman shows up in flashback footage. Michael B. Jordan also makes a cameo appearance.

A year after the blip, Black Panther is brought back, but is now dying from an incurable disease. Shuri is seen trying to figure out the DNA strain for a cure. But it is too late. A year later, at an UN council, the US and France representatives ask when Wakanda plans to share its vibrannium. To which, they reject them and bring in mercenaries whom tried to steal vibrannium from a Wakanda outreach center. When the US gains a machine that can detect vibrannium, they find it in ocean, but are attacked. Wakanda is blamed, but we come to find out that it is the people group from the waters, led by Namor. Can the two nations play nice or will they battle it out?

Coming into the movie, the month of November seemed to be promos for Black Panther everywhere. I got so into the hype that the movie was a bit of a let down. I felt the same for the first movie too, Black Panther (黑豹). But it is a Marvel film and it delivers a good movie. Might not be great, but very good for sure. I was at the edge of my seat while watching and researched the movie afterwards.

I have a gripe with the ending scene. We’re use to the mid credit and end credit scenes for Marvel movies. To prime us for the next thing, the next storyline. This was just an scene from the last scene, extended. Sad. They couldn’t have done something different? My daughter thinks the movie was so serious that a traditional post credit scene would have lessened the movie. I have started to lean that way.

Go watch the movie. It is Marvel at it’s finest. It deserves a watch on the big scene before you see it on Disney+ next month. For me, once will be enough.

誰是被害者 - The Victims' Game

誰是被害者 (The Victims' Game) is an 2020 drama series out of Taiwan. The series stars Joseph Chang, Hsu Wei-ning (Tiffany Ann Hsu), and Hsu Hai-Yin. This was releases in the US via Netflix.

The story is about forensic scientist with Asperger's syndrome Fang Yi-jen, played by Joseph Chang. When a crime scene leaves clue for its victim, the police must find the clues to prevent the next one. When a investigative journalist Hsu Hai-yin, played by Ann Hsu gets wind of the serial killer, she digs her way into the investigation. Can the two of them solve the riddle and stop the killings?

I actually took almost two years to finish this series. Before the pandemic, when the trailers for this came out, I was super stoked to watch it. But at the time it came out, I was not in the mood for a super depressing series. I watched part of the first episode and picked up 9 months later. I went a couple of episodes and as it got really dark, I stopped again. I finally finished it recently, having to rewatch a bit to remember the story.

Ann Hsu really impressed me. I haven't see her in anything since 16 Summers. Hsu has really matured as an actress and pulled me into her world. A "go get them" journalist character was needed to move the story along as it was a very slow moving storyline. At 8 episodes, it could have been reduce to 6 or so in my opinion. A sequel was annouced, but I have not seen anything about it's release recently.

It is an investigative series in nature. From one clue to the next, the pieces of the puzzle start to take shape and form a picture. I liked how it was in filmed in Taiwan and made me a bit nostalgic. Someday, I will visit my birth country again.

If you like CSI and other shows like it, this will be a fun watch. Seeing how it is done in non-US setting was pretty fun.

2022 November Netflix

Netflix has lots of things that come and go every months. And its a bit of a struggle to keep up. Here are some highlights.

2022 November Disney+ Releases

Wednesday, November 2

• Airport Security (Seasons 1-3)
• Andor (Episode 9)
• Cesar Millan: Better Human Better Dog (Season 2)
• Critter Fixers: Country Vets (Season 4)
• Dino Ranch (Season 2, 6 Episodes)
• Donna Hay Christmas (Premiere) (All Episodes Streaming)
• Locked Up Abroad (Season 3, 9 Episodes; Season 4, 3 Episodes; Season 5-9, 10 Episodes; Season 10, 10 Episodes; Season 11)
• The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers (Episode 206: “Twigs”)
• The Mysterious Benedict Society (Episode 203: “A Gold Bar in Fort Knox”)
• Sumo Do, Sumo Don’t! (Episode 3 )
• To Catch a Smuggler (Seasons 1-3)

Thursday, November 3

• Marvel Studios’ Assembled: The Making of She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (Premiere)

Friday, November 4

• Director by Night (Premiere)
• The Gift
• Marvel Studios Legends (“King T’challa,” “Princess Shuri,” “The Dora Milaje”)
• Ocean’s Breath
• Saving Notre Dame
• Shortsgiving

Monday, November 7

• Dancing with the Stars (Episode 9) (Live)

Wednesday, November 9

• Andor (Episode 10)
• Breakthrough (Seasons 1-2)
• Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted Showdown (Season 1)
• The Lion Ranger (Season 1)
• The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers (Episode 207: “Spirit of the Ducks Part 2”)
• The Montaners (5-Episode Premiere)
• The Mysterious Benedict Society (Episode 204: “Free of Pointless Command”)
• Save Our Squad with David Beckham (Season 1 Premiere) (All Episodes Streaming)
• Sumo Do, Sumo Don’t! (Episode 4)
• The Tatami Time Machine Blues (Season 1 Premiere) (All Episodes Streaming)
• World’s Deadliest (Season 3)
• Zootopia+ (Premiere) (All Shorts Streaming)

Friday, November 11

• Eyewitness: D-Day
• Fire of Love
• Mary Poppins Returns (Sing-Along Version)
• Port Security: Hamburg
• Sea of Shadows

Monday, November 14

• Dancing with the Stars (Episode 10) (Live)

Wednesday, November 16

• Andor (Episode 11)
• Atlas of Cursed Places (Season 1)
• Ice Road Rescue (Season 6)
• Limitless with Chris Hemsworth (Season 1 Premiere) (All Episodes Streaming)
• The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers (Episode 208 “Trade Rumors”)
• Minnie’s Bow-Toons: Party Palace Pals (Season 2, 11 Episodes)
• The Mysterious Benedict Society (Episode 205: “Blank Expression”)
• The Santa Clauses (2-Episode Premiere: “Chapter One: Good to Ho,” “Chapter Two: The Secessus Clause”)
• Sumo Do, Sumo Don’t! (Episode 5)
• Ultimate Survival WWII (Season 1)
• World’s Deadliest Snakes (Season 1)

Friday, November 18

• Best in Snow (Premiere)
• Disenchanted (Premiere)
• Game of Sharks
• Genoa Bridge Disaster
• Me & Mickey (Shorts) (Season 1, 20 Episodes)
• Mickey and the Roadster Racers: Diggity Dog (Season 1)
• Mickey Mousekersize (Season 1)
• Mickey: The Story of a Mouse (Premiere)
• Virus Hunters
• The Wonderful Autumn of Mickey Mouse (Premiere)

Monday, November 21

• Dancing with the Stars (Episode 11) (Live) (Finale)

Wednesday, November 23

• Andor (Episode 12) (Season Finale)
• Daddies on Request (Premiere) (All Episodes Streaming)
• Egypt with the World’s Greatest Explorer (Season 1)
• Last of the Giants: Wild Fish (Season 1)
• The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers (Episode 209: “Summer Breezers”)
• The Mysterious Benedict Society (Episode 206: “Commitment to All Things Cozy”)
• Puppy Dog Pals (Season 5, 2 Episodes)
• The Santa Clauses (“Chapter Three: Into the Wobbly Wood”)
• Sumo Do, Sumo Don’t! (Episode 6)
• The Villains of Valley View (Season 1, 4 Episodes)
• Witness to Disaster (Season 1)
• World’s Deadliest: Jaws and Sins (Season 1)

Friday, November 25

• The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special (Special) (Premiere)
• Heroes of the Sky: The Mighty Eighth Air Force (Special)
• The Hip Hop Nutcracker (Premiere)
• Life and Death in Paradise: Crocs of the Caribbean (Special)

Monday, November 28

• Mickey Saves Christmas

Wednesday, November 30

• Buried Secrets of WWII (Season 1)
• Firebuds (Season 1, 3 Episodes)
• The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers (Episode 210: “Lights Out”)
• The Mysterious Benedict Society (Episode 207: “A Joyful Lens”)
• The Santa Clauses (“Chapter Four: The Shoes Off the Bed Clause”)
• Spidey and his Amazing Friends (Season 2, 4 Episodes)
• Sumo Do, Sumo Don’t (Episode 7)
• Willow (Premiere) (Episode 1)
• The Witch Doctor Will See You Now (Season 1)

Source: D23

2022 November Amazon Prime Video Releases

Never have I seen a better November lineup. 🤌 pic.twitter.com/l0ULOrhoB6

— Prime Video (@PrimeVideo) November 1, 2022

2022 November Blockbuster Movie Guide

Here are the movies to look out for this month, US Edition.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (黑豹2:瓦干達萬歲)



The Son (愛.子)



Sources:
IMDB Coming Soon
Box Office Mojo
Wikipedia.org
Taiwan Yahoo! Movies
WMoov Hong Kong

Side Story of Fox Volant - 飛狐外傳 - The Young Flying Fox - 2022 Version

飛狐外傳 (Side Story of Fox Volant) is a 2022 wuxia series out of Zhong Guo. The series stars Qin Jun Jie, Liang Jie, and Xing Fei. The supporting cast include Lin Yu Shen, Peter Ho, and Zhao Ying Zi. The story is based on The Young Flying Fox from Jin Yong. The last adaption was quite a few years ago.



Hu Yidao, with wife and new son in hand, is heading to see his family members. Along the way, he meets many enemies. Amoung them is Miao Renfeng. However, Miao and Hu get along and battle each other to a tie. After many days of a tie battle, they decide to switch weapons. When Miao accidently grazes Hu, Hu goes down in pain and his wife tries to suck the poison out of his wound. Both Hu and his wife die from the poison. Miao swears to avenge his death. Down the hill, Ping Si, Hu's attendent escapes with Hu Hei, the son. Hu Fei grows up and learns part of his fathers Hu family style. Ping Si finds the person that has the remaining pages and risk his life for it. With the full manual, Hu Fei grows up to become a decent martial artist.



This is just the summary of the first few episodes of the series. I watched this series through Viki. I was kinda mad I had to wait week after week for the episodes to release. I do not need the subs! But I waited.



Jin Yong has such a way with drama that is hard to replicate. If you follow the story and do not deviate much, the series will be good. When you do, it shows. In the case of this 2022 edition, the series was very well written, but strays from the book according to the interwebs.

At 40 episodes, its a little long and its does not contain the older adult Hu Fei storyline of 雪山飛狐 (Flying Fox of Snowy Mountain). Which is a bummer. With the change from the book and the twist at the end, the makers have no intention of making a series about the older Hu Fei.

Highly recommend this series.

2022 October Netflix

Netflix has lots of things that come and go every months. And its a bit of a struggle to keep up. Here are some highlights.

2022 October Disney+ Releases

Monday, October 3
• Dancing with the Stars (Episode 3) (Live)

Wednesday, October 5
• Andor (Episode 5)
• The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers (Episode 202: “Out of Bounds”)
• Puppy Dog Pals (Season 5, 1 Episode)
• Shipwreck Hunters Australia (Season 1 Premiere) (All Episodes Available)
• The Simpsons (Season 33)
• World of Flavor with Big Moe Cason (Season 1)
• Zombies: Addison’s Monster Mystery (Shorts) (Season 1)
• Zorro (Seasons 1–2)

Thursday, October 6
• She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (Episode 8)

Friday, October 7
• “Calling All Monsters” Music Video (Short)
• Drumline
• Werewolf by Night (Premiere)

Monday, October 10
• Dancing with the Stars (Episode 4) (Live)

Wednesday, October 12
• Andor (Episode 6)
• Big City Greens (Season 3, 4 Episodes)
• Big Shot (Season 2 Premiere) (All Episodes Streaming)
• The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers (Episode 203: “Coach Classic”)
• Sofia the First (Seasons 1–4)
• Ultra Violet & Black Scorpion (Season 1, 6 Episodes)

Thursday, October 13
• She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (Episode 9)

Friday, October 14
• Into the Woods (Sing-Along Version)
• The New Mutants

Monday, October 17
• Dancing with the Stars (Episode 5) (Live)

Tuesday, October 18
• Dancing with the Stars (Episode 6) (Live)

Wednesday, October 19
• Alice’s Wonderland Bakery (Season 1, 4 Episodes)
• Andor (Episode 7)
• Bear in the Big Blue House (Seasons 1–4)
• The Incredible Dr. Pol (Season 21)
• The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers (Episode 204: “Draft Day”)
• PB&J Otter (Seasons 1–3)
• Raven’s Home (Season 5, 8 Episodes)
• The Spectacular Spider-Man (Season 1)
• Spider-Man: The New Animated Series (Season 1)
• Wicked Tuna (Season 11)

Friday, October 21
• Hall of Villains

Monday, October 24
• Dancing with the Stars (Episode 7) (Live)

Wednesday, October 26
• Andor (Episode 8)
• The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers (Episode 205: “Icing on the Cake”)
• The Mysterious Benedict Society (2-Episode Season 2 Premiere) (Episode 201: “A Perilous Journey”) (Episode 202: “A Bit of Light Chop”)
• Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi (Premiere) (All Shorts Streaming)
• Sumo Do, Sumo Don’t (2-Episode Premiere) (Episode 101) (Episode 102)

Friday, October 28
• Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel
• Marvel’s Hulk: Where Monsters Dwell

Monday, October 31
• Dancing with the Stars (Episode 8) (Live)

Source: D23

2022 October Amazon Prime Video Releases

A list of titles for you to watch as you carve your pumpkins. 🎃 pic.twitter.com/6rmJRCwfKv

— Prime Video (@PrimeVideo) October 1, 2022

2022 October Blockbuster Movie Guide

Here are the movies to look out for this month, US Edition.

Black Adam (黑亞當)

Amsterdam (阿姆斯特丹)





Ticket To Paradise (幸福入場券)





The Banshees of Inisherin





Sources:
IMDB Coming Soon
Box Office Mojo
Wikipedia.org
Taiwan Yahoo! Movies
WMoov Hong Kong

2022-2023 NFL Predictions

As the Los Angeles Rams defend their 2021-2022 championship title today, I thought I'd throw out my predictions for the 2022-2023 NFL season. I have been following the Rams very closely since they moved back to LA from St. Louis with Jeff Fisher and Goff in 2016. Goff did not even start the 2016 campaign, but they were doing so bad, Fisher gave in to the pressure and put Goff in, losing the last 7 games of the season. McVay took over in 2017, foundamentally changing the Rams orgainzation, making it to Super Bowl LIII and winning Super Bowl LVI. McVay starts his sixth season as the Head Coach.

I have watched almost every game since the 2016 season and there have been mostly ups starting in 2017. I am very happy that the season is starting. Without further ado, here are my predictions for the 2022-2023.

AFC EAST

1. Buffalo Bills (Champions)
2. Miami Dolphins (Wildcard)
3. New England Patriots
4. New York Jets

AFC NORTH

1. Baltimore Ravens (Champions)
2. Pittsburgh Steelers
3. Cleveland Browns
4. Cincinnati Bengals

AFC SOUTH

1. Indianapolis Colts (Champions)
2. Tennessee Titans
3. Jacksonville Jaguars
4. Houston Texans

AFC WEST

1. Los Angeles Chargers (Champions)
2. Denver Broncos (Wildcard)
3. Kansas City Chiefs (Wildcard)
4. Las Vegas Raiders

NFC EAST

1. Philadelphia Eagles (Champions)
2. Washington Commanders (Wildcard)
3. Dallas Cowboys
4. New York Giants

NFC NORTH

1. Green Bay Packers (Champions)
2. Minnesota Vikings (Wildcard)
3. Detroit Lions
4. Chicago Bears

NFC SOUTH

1. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (Champions)
2. Carolina Panthers
3. New Orleans Saints
4. Atlanta Falcons

NFC WEST

1. Los Angeles Rams (Champions)
2. San Francisco 49ers (Wildcard)
3. Arizona Cardinals
4. Seattle Seahawks

AFC Conference Champs - Kansas City Chiefs

NFC Conference Champs - Los Angeles Rams


Super LVII Champs - Los Anngeles Rams

2023-2024 NFL Predictions >>

2022 September Netflix

Netflix has lots of things that come and go every months. And its a bit of a struggle to keep up. However, Netflix has many orignal content that comes out. If I continue to see these Youtube videos, I'll post them here.

2022 September Disney+ Releases

Thursday, September 1
• She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (Episode 3)

Friday, September 2
• Al Davis vs. The NFL
• The Band That Wouldn’t Die
• Dickie V
• Elway to Marino
• Nature Boy
• Run Ricky Run
• Siempre Fui Yo, Detrás de la Historia (Premiere)
• Small Potatoes: Who Killed the USFL?
• The Two Bills
• Year of the Scab

Wednesday, September 7
• Edge of the Unknown with Jimmy Chin (Season 1)
• Europe from Above (Season 3)
• Europe from Above (Season 4)
• High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (Episode 307: “Camp Prom”)
• Prime Survivor: Mighty Mekong (Season 1)
• Puppy Dog Pals (Season 5, 3 Episodes)

Thursday, September 8 (Disney+ Day)
• Cars on the Road (Premiere) (All Episodes Streaming)
• Dancing with the Stars: The Pros’ Most Memorable Dances (Premiere) (Special)
• Epic Adventures with Bertie Gregory (Season 1 Premiere) (All Episodes Streaming)
• Frozen (Sing-Along)
• Frozen 2 (Sing-Along)
• Growing Up (Premiere) (All Episodes Streaming)
• Marvel Studios Assembled: The Making of Thor: Love and Thunder (Premiere)
• Mickey Mouse Funhouse (Season 1, 5 Episodes)
• Obi-Wan Kenobi: A Jedi’s Return (Premiere)
• Pinocchio (Premiere)
• Remembering (Premiere)
• She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (Episode 4)
• Thor: Love and Thunder (雷神索爾:愛與雷霆)
• Tierra Incógnita (Premiere) (All Episodes Streaming)
• Welcome to the Club (Premiere)

Friday, September 9
• United Sharks of America

Wednesday, September 14
• First Alaskans (Season 1)
• High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (Episode 308: “Let It Go”)
• In the Womb: Animal Babies (Season 1)
• Short Circuit (Episode 206: “Reflect”)

Thursday, September 15
• She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (Episode 5)

Friday, September 16
• The Art of Racing in the Rain
• Coco (Sing-Along)
• Mija (Premiere)

Monday, September 19
• Dancing with the Stars (Season 31 Premiere) (Live)

Wednesday, September 21
• Andor (3-Episode Premiere) (Episodes 1-3)
• Firebuds (Season 1, 12 Episodes)
• Super/Natural (Premiere) (All Episodes Streaming)
• Wicked Tuna: Outer Banks (Season 8, 8 Episodes)

Thursday, September 22
• She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (Episode 6)

Friday, September 23
• The Call of the Wild
• Saving Giraffes: The Long Journey Home
• Spies in Disguise

Monday, September 26
• Dancing with the Stars (Episode 2) (Live)

Wednesday, September 28
• Andor (Episode 4)
• Life Below Zero: Northern Territories (Season 2)
• The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers (Season 2 Premiere) (Episode 201: “Ice Breaker”)
• Minnie’s Bow-Toons: Party Palace Pals (Season 2, 11 Episodes)

Thursday, September 29
• She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (Episode 7)

Friday, September 30
• Hocus Pocus 2 (Premiere)
• Hocus Pocus 25th Anniversary Halloween Bash (Special)
• Under Wraps 2

Source: D23

2022 September Amazon Prime Video Releases

You could say we're ready for fall. pic.twitter.com/Fa61QFccN6

— Prime Video (@PrimeVideo) September 1, 2022

Are you ready?#TheRingsOfPower debuts:
🕘: September 1 at 9pm ET
🕑: September 2 at 2am UK

Weekly episodes available Fridays at 12am ET, only on @PrimeVideo. pic.twitter.com/siaqYZvQmK

— The Lord of the Rings on Prime (@LOTRonPrime) August 31, 2022

2022 September Blockbuster Movie Guide

Here are the movies to look out for this month, US Edition.

Which is so bad that there are no blockbuster movies of note for this month! September boost some high profile re-releases to fill out the space. Sad.

The industry for in person movies is shifting as well. The parent company of Regal/Edwards in SoCal, Cineworld, is on the brink of bankruptcy. AMC is staying afloat with their killer meme game. There's even a National Cinema Day on September 3 where movie showings are $3. Let's hope the in person movie medium can survive. Seeing things on the big screen is still unreplicable at home.

Pitch Perfect (歌喉讚)



Spider-Man: No Way Home (蜘蛛人:無家日) - 11 Minutes of Extra stuff



Avatar (阿凡達)



Sources:
IMDB Coming Soon
Box Office Mojo
Wikipedia.org
Taiwan Yahoo! Movies
WMoov Hong Kong

披荊斬棘 - Call Me by Fire - Season 2 - Premiere

披荆斩棘 (Call Me By Fire) Season 2 is a 2022 variety show out of Zhong Guo. The premise of the show is 32 "brothers" whom come from different walks of the entertainment industry come together to form a final group. In essence, it is a survival show format.



The second Season premiered this pass weekend. I was able to watch it and see a lot of folks I grew up watching. In my opinion, this second season is more to my liking than the first season. I just know more people from the second season so I react to them more.



For me, I really like Will Pan and Darren Wang. Those two are among my favorites. Will Pan has been a regular IQIYI guy these last few years. Darren Wang is just a funny dood.

I’ve played the Will Pan Group performance multiple times this week.

全职高手 - The King's Avatar

The King's Avatar (全职高手) is an 2019 drama out of Zhong Guo. The series stars Yang Yang and Jiang Shuying aka Maggie Jiang. There is a large list of supporting cast that go in and out of focus. But the focus stays on Yang Yang's character. I caught this on and off on Netflix from December 2020 through January 2021. But stopped. I finished the last 2/3s during 2021 March and April.



Yang Yang plays Ye Qiu, who is the captain of a Glory team that just won the championship. However, Qiu's management wants to make changes to make more money. Qiu is forced out in a bad way. Qiu wants to keep a low profile and changes his name to Ye Xiu. As Xiu, he applies as a IT network admin working at an e-games shop. There Xiu, regains his love for Glory and re-builds a team to compete. Can Xiu resurrect his gaming life after being forced out.



This series runs a quick 40 episodes. At the end, our family was hoping for another 20. It is rare that we feel this way from a 40 episode series. But we did. There are so many 50+ episode series that do not deserve it. This one did.

I recently started rewatching here and there and I cannot believe how well made it is. This is 2022 now and it has held up against the test of time. Yang Yang is the highlight of the series. But the concept and the many storylines of the team that is built was done extremely well too.

Our whole family is waiting for the 2 series, but it looks like there are no plans. So sad. Yang Yang is a little older and moved over to other types of roles since. E-sports is huge in Zhong guo, but the other series about this are mainly based on LOL, vs a fictional one of Glory.

My Love For Los Angeles Sports Teams

I have lived in Los Angeles most of my life and have been following sports here for awhile. I started with basketball during the showtime era. In the old days, basketball was on local television for most road games. The home games were blacked out so you can go to them. When cable came around, they started to broadcast the home games, but my family did not have it. I remember watching the Lakers and UCLA basketball with my grandfather growing up. That's where I watched 4 of the showtime championships. UCLA basketball was on as well, but there were not as many games. My grandfather became a UCLA fan because of John Wooden as he was a basketball PE coach back in Taiwan.



Along the way, I also watched the Rams and Raiders on local Los Angeles stations back in the day. I gravitated toward the Rams more because of Dickerson, White, and Bell. I was also a fan of the Raiders as well. Both had mild success prior to their LA departures. I ended up going to college football until the end of Pete Carrolls run at USC. I followed both USC and UCLA.



My love for baseball is also there, but there are so many games and they take a long time. It is very hard to sit through games, so highlights are a very good thing. I have followed both the Dodgers and Angels. I was a fan or Reggie and the penguin as a youngster. I am big Ohtani fan.



When the Chargers moved to LA, I started to follow them a bit more. Now with Hubert, I am a fan and have enjoyed watching the games too.



When I got out of school, for the first time in my life, I had just a little bit more spending money, I got some really discounted Clipper tickets. They had just moved to Staples and could not fill it up like the Lakers. They ran these a package of 10 games with the likes of Iverson, Duncan, etc. for $200 in the nosebleeds. A bunch of us got the package. We would hang for dinner before the games. The games were always on the weekdays. It was fun and cheap. I always remember those years foundly.



Not sure why I like sports so much, but as I have gotten older, I have drifted more to football as it is the least commitment in terms of time. Basketball and baseball have too many games. Football is 20-21 games at most.

[Update] Vin Scully died Tuesday at the age of 94. Vin was the voice of the Dodgers for 67 years, retiring in 2016. Vin started Los Angeles broadcasting in 1958 when the Dodgers moved from Brooklyn New York to Los Angeles. My memories of Vin started in the 1980s listening to him on TV. When I started driving in the 1990s, I worked as a delivery driver for serveral years and caught a lot of games on the road, especially all the east coast games and day games. Vin was always a familar and calming voice. Vin's voice was so distinct that as he scaled back in his later years, I was never happy with the new guys.

I was also around for Chick Hearns last 20 years. I am very blessed to have regularly been in the preseence of these Los Angeles sports legends. It is very unlikely we'll ever get another Chick or Vin. RIP

2022 August Disney+ Releases

Wednesday, August 3
• Alice’s Wonderland Bakery (Season 1, 5 Episodes)
• The Ghost and Molly McGee (Season 1, 5 Episodes)
• High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (Episode 302: “Into the Unknown”)
• Lightyear
• Marvel Studios Assembled: The Making of Ms. Marvel (Premiere)

Friday, August 5
• LEGO Star Wars Summer Vacation (Premiere)
• The Lion King (2019) (Sing-Along Version)
• The Lion King II: Simba’s Pride (Sing-Along Version)
• Old Dogs

Wednesday, August 10
• Bluey (Season 3, 25 episodes)
• High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (Episode 303: “The Woman in the Woods”)
• I Am Groot (Premiere) (All Shorts Streaming)
• Running Wild with Bear Grylls: The Challenge (Season 1)

Friday, August 12
• Disney Summer Magic Quest
• Father of the Bride
• Father of the Bride Part II

Wednesday, August 17
• High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (Episode 304: “No Drama”)
• Meet Spidey and his Amazing Friends (Season 2)
• She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (Premiere) (Episode 1)

Friday, August 19
• Beauty and the Beast (1991) (Sing-Along Version)
• Beauty and the Beast (2017) (Sing-Along Version)
• Tangled (Sing-Along Version)

Wednesday, August 24
• black-ish (Season 8)
• Chibi Tiny Tales (Shorts) (Season 2)
• High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (Episode 305 “The Real Campers of Shallow Lake”)
• She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (Episode 2)

Friday, August 26
• Doc McStuffins: The Doc Is 10!

Wednesday, August 31
• America’s National Parks (Season 1)
• Andor (Premiere) (Episodes 1-2)
• Europe from Above (Season 2)
• High School Musical: The Musical: The Series (Episode 306: “Color War”)
• Secrets of the Zoo: Down Under (Season 3)
• She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (Episode 3)

[Update 15 August 2022] Andor has been pushed out to September 21, 2022 with 3 episodes. Most of the articles are suggesting the move from Disney is to give She-hulk more time without compeition. That also means that Andor may be tracking really well and set for a Mandalorian type release. I certainly hope so, the Andor trailer looks pretty amazing.

Source: D23

2022 August Amazon Prime Video Releases

It’s still summer, and we’re bringing the heat! pic.twitter.com/OYRjCtUzfv

— Prime Video (@PrimeVideo) August 1, 2022