#93: COBRA KAI

Cobra Kai.

Elgin and Paul chat about #CobraiKai:

YouTube Red’s Cobra Kai, created by Josh Heald, Jon Hurwitz, and Hayden Schlossberg and starring William Zabka and Ralph Macchio. A sequel set some 30 years after the events of the original The Karate Kid, the hit dramedy has already been renewed for another season on YouTube’s paid streaming service.

We discuss the tone, performances, and the original characters’ relationships with each other and the new generation of characters (played by an ethnically diverse cast, including Korean American Jay Seo). We also chat about the fan service the show clearly provides, as well as the long legacy of the Karate Kid film franchise.
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#92: FAHRENHEIT 451

Fahrenheit 451, with briefer takes on Dear White People (season 2), The Handmaid’s Tale (season 2), The New Girl (the final season), Avengers: Infinity War, and director Hiro Murai’s work on Barry and Atlanta, among other topics.

Paul and Elgin review #Fahrenheit451:

Fahrenheit 451 (29:30) on HBO, adapted and directed by Ramin Bahrani and starring Michael B. Jordan and Michael Shannon. Based on the 1953 novel (of the same name) by Ray Bradbury, this latest adaptation, starring big-name Hollywood talent, must not only compete with the futuristic dystopias depicted in several recent dramas but also address the technological advances (including the rise of e-books and cloud computing) of our present time. Do Bahrani and his creative collaborators succeed in updating the source material to make a compelling piece speaking to contemporary attitudes toward literature, mass media, and critical, nuanced thinking? We explore that central question and also discuss the state of the TV network-originated movie more broadly.
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#91: THE LAST O.G.

The Last O.G., with briefer takes on Pacific Rim: Uprising and The Lost in Space reboot on Netflix.

Elgin and Paul chat about #TheLastOG:

TBS’s The Last O.G., created by John Carcieri and Jordan Peele and starring Tracy Morgan and Tiffany Haddish. After a terrible auto accident in 2014, the controversial SNL alum Morgan returns to the small screen–this time on basic cable–to play Tray Barker, a Brooklyn man who’s just finished a 15-year sentence for selling drugs. In modern day, gentrified Brooklyn, Tray tries to win back the woman he lost, Shay (who’s played by Haddish), while getting to know the two kids he didn’t know he had. We discuss what this show, which by turns is raucous, poignant, silly, smart, and potentially offensive, offers fans of the “Tracy Jordan” persona and others less familiar with Morgan’s previous work.
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