Killing Joke- Killing Joke (1980)

 

This is uncannily of its time and quite brilliant. The soundscape, the production: both are so different from the much later singles from which I knew the band. Instead, we have a sound that echoes Magazine, Public Image Limited, the zeitgeist of 1980, a year when punk was fractured and all was in play for a decade of defiance.

The sound is exquisite. The vocals are surprisingly either absent or low in the mix. This is fine. In fact, within context, a plus. This is not what I expected.

I shall be seeing this band in March, with my awesome cousin... and a certain very lovely lady. The next Mrs Llamasttrangler. It will be a delicious occasion.

This is not, perhaps, too remisiscent of the later albums by which the band would come to be known. It's very post-punk, if very good. Yet this is a quietly seminal post-punk album, and one that prefigures greater things from the band.

Foundation: Barbarians at the Gate

 "Violence is the last refuge..."

"Of the incompetent. I know. That's an old man's doctrine."

As the above line shoews, this is a different Salvor Hardin in more than gender, while also similar in many ways. But Gaal's narration tells us that this is the tale of a legendary figure as a seriuous and huge Anacreonian assault threatens all Terminus stands for. Yet Hardin is an "outlier"- or is she? As Gaal tells us, Hari's plan accounts not for individuals. Is Salvor an exception to threaten the plan? Or is she its fulfilment?

Certainly things are breaking down in the galactic periphery, as well as unrest on Trantor and religious strife, with an heretical doctrine being promulgated that may indicate that clones do not have souls. Whatever the spin of imperial mathematicians, all is not well in the empire. Nor are things well between the imperial brothers. (Day, it seems, sits on the "middle throne" and is in charge). But were they ever? It appears that the empire is, unsurprisingly, too complex for a single monarch, or even three, echoing Rome after Diocletian- no doubt with intent.

All seems grim.Yet there is plenty to hint that Salvor will bring salvation. Also, those of us who have read the novels suspect what is likely within the Vault...

Better Call Saul: Switch

 "That's right. Not a lawyer. Bye."

This is a fascinating, tantalising, nuanced opening episode, scrutinising the two roads Jimmy can take. Yes, at the end, he relents and takes the swanky law job. But Slippy Jimmy, I have no doubt, is not going back into his box.

We start with a flash forward to Saul's new life in Nebraska, as he spends a night accidentally in a bank vault. Yet he leaves a bit of graffiti: "S.G. was here". Despite the moustache, Saul is still in there. And yes, the name is jarring after a season thinking of him as Jimmy. And Saul, I think, is a development of Slippy Jimmy, a persona whom Jimmy spends the episode exploring.

Not only that, either. He really likes Kim, and tries to seduce her into the Slippy Jimmy lifestyle, with some success. She has fun, and there's an enjoyable little Breaking Bad cameo.Yes, Jimmy relents at the end, but he's still tempted by the con man lifestyle... Kim too?

Meanwhile, Wormald is not a clever man. For a start, that car just screams "My penis is only slightly larger than Andrew Tate's. Ladies, bring a magnifying glass". Then, the moment he arrogantly dismisses Mike and decides he can deal with the crime stuff on his own tells you he's doomed. It's not in question. The only question is how. And it's actually fun seeing his pathetic, clueless performance in front of the visiting police officers.

The episode gives off so much nuance, so many uncertainties. Kim isn't in Breaking Bad. What happens to her? Which way will Jimmy jump? We know, of course, but when? I'm betting the end of the season.

Orphée (1950)

 "Men always come back. They're so absurd."

To describe this film as a mere updating of the Orpheus myth to mid-twentieth century France would be to do it a grave injustice. It is a thing of wit, profundity and poetic beauty on a level far deeper than I pretend to understand. It is not only a great work of cinema, but a great work of art. Nothing I say in this blog post has any delusions of adequacy in explaining why.

The myth, with no regard whatsoever for the fourth wall, is summarised in full by the narrator in the first few seconds. No shrinking from that modern concept of spoilers here. The narrator then makes the same plea that is made for modern dress productions of Shakespeare- that myths transcend this or that period of history. We then segue into contemporary France, the intellectual France of 1950, where poets have sway still. And Orphée, a poet, is a celebrity, a hero, surrounded by adoring fangirls. Nothing, perhaps, dates this film so much, sadly, as this cultural power of poetry, which here in the UK faded with modernism. But I digress. What else can one do with a film like this, upon which one feels unable to talk coherently?

The 1940s- the esteemed M. Cocteau very much not included ( I've blogged La Belle et la Bete) disdained fantasy. Where fantasy was employed, there was deep allegory. This film deals with Death as an object of desire- a deep and frightening concept. I think of Keats. "For I am half in love with easeful death"... let us not go there. I know I'm mortal. I don't want to be. I'm not an arrogant person, but it outrages me that one day my ego will just end. A cruel fact. Films like this help us come to terms with that harsh fact, perhaps in the wake of A Matter of Life and Death. There are echoes. 

There's much I have not the wit to discuss, such as the film's use of mirrors. Just see it.

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law- Mean, Green and Straight Poured into These Jeans

 "I own who I am!"

Yet again this is short, bvery short, a thirty minute sitcom episode. And it's based on a very sitcom premise, of Titania frivolously patenting the name She-Hulk to sell a load of old tat. Personally I love it, and how the solution is for Jen to humiliate herse;f via parading her recent dating history.

Some won't, of course, and I see the iMDb ratings are low, which I assume reflects polarisation. Those who like loads of ultra-testosterone-fuelled action will find little to enloy here. But the rest of us are having a great time, and not only becaudse of the Daredevil tease (retro custume?) at the end. The idea of a superhero tailor is well-handled, so much so that we'll forget the idea having appeared in The Incredibles, another Disney property.

I love the Jen and Ginger double act. I love the courtroom stuff. This is pure sitcom. But it's bloody brilliant sitcom.

Foundation: The Mathematician's Ghost

 "It's just that you always leave me..."

Time passes. We see nothing of Gaal (though she narrates; we shall see her again)  or Raych, as decades have passed and a tenuous settement is set up on Terminus. Hari Seldon, statues aside, is not in this episode, yet his legend permeates everything.

We begin, though, with a fascinating examination of Cleons I through to XIV, all with Eto Demerzel and all very much knowing what she is. We see the life cycle of an emperor, from an embryo grown in a vat to the final "ascension", a kind of dignified execution. For each birth, there must be a ritualised death. Only three brothers may exist at once.

It's just as fasciniating to see Terminus, its frontier existence with its Encyclopaedia as contrast.There is a mysterious artifact, the Vault, which only Salvor Hardin can approach. Wde get to know Salvor, her active, thinking mind in a society of ossified fatalists who see no need to act as the Seldon Plan will save them. So when Anacreon seems to be invading they know not what to do.

There are so many nice little touches, too... Salvor's lover is pushing seventy but seems half that age from spending decades on "cryo-ships". No one on Terminus now understands the mathematics of Psychohistory; they're acting blind. And it's fascinating to see the dynamic between Salvor and her parents. This is absolutely brilliant.

The Incredible Hulk (1977 TV Movie)

 "Don't make me angry. You wouldn't like me when I'm angry."

There is, of course, no guarantee that I'll blog this whole series, and not only because only the extended length pilot is free on Netflix. Despite my childhood memories, I'm conscxious that thius is an American network TV show with a reset button as part of the format.

I admit, too, that after seeing interviews with Kenneth Johnson I'd assumed he was one of those people who despise comics and seeks to arrogantly change anything. Yet, despite the gratuitous changing of Bruce to David Banner (not even "Bob")... this origin story is probably as faithful as ot needs to be. Gamma radiation is involved, and a silly communist spy would not have fit the zeitgeist in 1977, a splendid year, certainly for those of us born in it.

The premise, the direction, the acting of Bill Bixby and Susan Sullivan are all superb. This is better telly than I'd expected. The origin has had so much thought given to ot, Banner's bereavement, his close conection with the brilliant Eleana, thegenuinely intriguing scientific mystery. Jack Colvin is a superb villain- a tabloid journalist, truly a soulless creature.

The connection between David and Eleana is central, and the chemistry is absolutely there. The script is thoughtful, full of concept and character, yet simple. There is an overarching theme of superhuman strength found in adversity. There's a lovely tribute to the first Universal Frankenstein film, for obvious reasons.

Shall I watch more? We shall see.

Persona (1966)

 "The hopeless dream of being. Not seeming, but being...."

This is a glorious mind**** of a film, shockingly only the second example of the oevre of the esteemed Mr Bergman that I've blogged. We begin- and punctuate the film- with random, surreal imagery, freminisscent in spirit of Un Chien Andalou, something which must surely be intentional. At one point a nail is hammered into the fleshy part of a palm. Lovely. Not only is this as icky as it gets, but it's a blatant allusion to Christ, which is brave territory: comparing characters to Christ is the definkition of uber-pretentious.

This is, lof course, nothing of the sort: the surreal imagery is surreal imagery. The beautifuly arty direction is beautifully artbdirection- and this film really is superbly shot.

Yet the film is, sort of, a straight drama.Elisabet Vogler is an actress, successful enough to play Electra. Yet she suddenly deases to speak or act, ending up in a mental insyitution. Alma looks after her. That really is it.

 SPOILERS

Yet the script, the character, the acting, the everything is sublime, terrifyingly so. The two women are intimate, at once close and antagonistic. Complex gamesof friendship, power, love and betrayal play out. Yet, beneath it all lies a socially unacceptable hatred of motherhood, a fear of childbearing and childred upon which a person with a y chromosome should probably not comment. All I can say is that this film is awesome.

Foundation: Preparing to Live

 "The more human I act, the more human I am."

Here we begin to branch out from the original novel. There are divergences, the four or five year trip to Terminus beuing the most obvious, a good way of establishing characters and the dynamics amongst the proto-Foundation. Yet there are also elements from later retcons in the novels- I now remember who Raych is, for a start. And it's startling to hear Hari mention the "Robot Wars" and, all the more so, to have it revealed- not only to us but Brother Dawn- that Eto Demerzel is a robot, apparently the only one. Why, then, does the share this knowledge with Dawn?

There is utter horror in this episode. The Cleons, or certainly Dusk, know the two ambassadors and their worlds are innocent... but their entire retinues are judicially killed anyway, by slow, tortuous hanging. And their worlds are bombed to bits. All for the sake of a scapegoat for the satisfaction of the masses. Such is the Empire.

We see the Foundation develop and grow, with Hari Seldon revered. We also see Gaal and Raych grow closer and plan life together, yet Raych and Hari seem to grow apart. And the end is seemingly shocking. With the maths of psychohistory seemingly unfinished, Raych stabs Seldon and forces Gaal into an escape pod, ejecting her into space after, er, telling her he loves her. Why? What happens next?

The dynamics between the three clone emperors are fascinating too. This is superb, deep telly.

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law: Is This Not Real Magic?

 "You can't own magic!"

This is, essentially, a sitcom. And, despite Jen's frequent fourth wall breaking ways, we're not talking WandaVision. This is a straight sitcom.

So both story strands here lampshade the suer-hero genre. We begin with a rather good magic show falling flat, because this is the MCU, and people hear magic all the time. We then learn that the magician is a failed student of the Mystic Arts, using just a little crap real magic. The joke is, of course, that Wong wants to sue him. And it's fun. Wong- played with nuanced excellence by Benedict Wong- is a funny character while also being dignified and heroic, not an easy thing to pull off.

The other strand is, of course, the tragedy of Jen's love life. All the men she meets are self-obsessed losers. At last, as She-Hulk, she meets a seemingly perfect man... and he takes right off as soon as he sees her as Jen. Ouch.

I'm loving this, despoite the Sopranos spoiler. But I suspect those less humour-inclined may not be.

Foundation: The Emperor's Peace

 "Oh, it's not a theory. It's the destiny of the human race, expressed in numbers."

You may have noticed I've blogged the original three Foundation novels from the wonderful mind of Isaac Asimov. I've also read the others, plus all linked novels, although admittedly it was some decades ago. But let's say I broadly know how the story pans out in the novels. I shall endeavour to keep these blog posts free of any potential spoilers from the novels.

I've wanted to see this for some time, but wasn't sure whether Apple TV was worth subscribing to as it doesn't look as though there's much else on there I particularly want to see, especially with the lack of archive content. But now I randomly seem to have three free months, so I might as well watch this while I can. It's intriguing; an adaptation of a series of novels that absolutely needs the expansiveness and seriality of TV rather than two hours at the pictures. David S. Goyer is showrunning, so hopes are high.

And rightly so, This is a fairly faithful adaptation of the opening of the first novel. The framing sequence on Terminus features Salvor Hardin. The main flashback to Trantor, perfectly realised, gives us Hari Seldon, Gaal Dornick and Eto Demerzel. There are changes, of course. The novels are a sausage fest, so certain characters need to made female. And the world is fleshed out a little. Gaal's background from an anti-science, religious culture gives her a hinterland. We have the character of Raych. And, intriguing, the empire is ruled by Cleon I... and has been for centuries, with three differently aged  clones at one time, a perfect example of the cultural stasis of a Galactic Empire that no longer grows nor changes. These added bits of depth work well.

This is a superbly made and written piece of television. More please.

Better Call Saul: Marco

 "It's like watching Miles Davis give up the trumpet."

This is both an extraordinary episode and an extraordinary finale. Interestingly, it's not exactly a Breaking Bad style finale with lots of action; it's a superb character piece that pushes Jimmy in a new direction.

After the revelation about Chuck, Jimmy is at a crossroads. There's a nice scene with Howard which is nicely done, the first time they meet since Jimmys realisation that Howard was never actually the problem. It's nice to see the mutual respect between the two of them. 

The next scdene, at the bingo, is superbly done, though. We see Jimmy gradually fall apart as the mask slips, as well as finally learning why he went to prison in the first place, ruining his life. It's dar, human, superbly written and performed.

And so it's back to Michigan, reconnecting with his old mate Marco, and for a week he's Slippin' Jimmy again. He gets to escape from reality for a while, and hilariously we get a grifting montage. And then... Marco suddenly dies, a symbolic death of Jimmy's past. It's back to Albuquerque and reality.

And things are looking up. Jimmy is offered a new lawyering job, with real prospects. All looks good. Yewt Jimmy is at a crossroads... and he decides not to take that path. He resolves that he's sick and tired of scruples and honesty. Ouch.

This is an extraordinary episode, extended character piece as season finale.

Petticoat Pirates (1961)

" You long haired idiot.

Meh. I mean, this film isn't exactly terrible, but there's a reason why it- and Charlie Drake- are pretty much forgotten.

Yes, the social attitudes on display here are different from today, and one must make allowances. But that's not really an excuse. The same could be said of the Carry On films, and they are far superior to this mildly amusing but underwhelming comedy about the hilarity that ensues when a Royal Navy frigate is taken over by women. The sexism on display is not particularly extreme by the standards of the time, and the whole "battle of the sexes" angle is good humoured, and the ladies pretty much come out on top. Regardless of social attitudes, a film is either good or not, and this film is not.

No, it's not that. And nor is it the script, which may not be brilliant but is perfectly serviceable. Nor, mostly, is it the cast. Anne Heywood, in particular, is superb.

No: it's Charlie Drake. He's just not very good. He's a very generic Norman Wisdom type comedy actor, with no charisma and no discernible talent. For him to have apparently become a star simply beggars belief.

Perhaps I'm being a little harsh. The film is harmless enough, and passes the time. But any humour is mild, and much of the interest comes from the fact that this film is an artifact from another time. I'd suggest, sadly, that this isn't exactly a film greatly worth bothering with.

The Bed Sitting Room (1969)

 "Radiation's rising. Still, one mustn't grumble too much.

I'm full of sesations from this extraordinary film. It contains multitudes. It is, I admit, my only experience of a Spike Milligan (co-)script, full of irreverent absurdity, the sort which wqould later begat a less overtly successor in Monty Python.

Thetre is much more, though. Despite the very British humour that anchors everything, this is a cinematic adaptation of an absurdist play that feels like Joan Littlewood's Theatre Workshop, which is high praise indeed. It's a post-apocalyptic world, set in the near future to 1969, with absurdity upon absurdity. Yet it's grim, in the traditions of Ionesco and Beckett. Indeed, the constant cynicism in the face of nuclear annihilation and the equally cynical, yet glorious, skewering of the British "stiff upper lip" denies us even the consolations of existentialism.

Despite this, the humour is exquisite. Realism being abandoned, we may use the setting to skewer British behaviour. Hence Arthur Lowe (genius casting) as the father, leaning heroically and deeply into another sort of comedy. I suspect, in person, over a pint, he would have been no Captain Mainwaring. Despite Peter Cook, Michael Hordern and others, his performance stands out. Beyond, even, that of Nurse Marty Feldman.

I can only urge you to saee this triumph of British comedy cinema which, deaspite its clear absurdist bent, is full of genus humour of the type one may expcct. You MUST see this film.

Update

 Bear with me as real life means I won’t be able to blog much if at all for the next couple of days. I should be back to normal by Sunday or Monday.

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law- The People vs Emil Blonsky

 "I don't know about you, but I'd smash."

This is where She-Hulk really hits it's stride. I love everything about this episode, from Jen's little fourth wall breaking asides to the last minute, unexpected appearance of what is surely the Wrecking Crew. But the best bit is, of course, when Wong gets told he's confessed to unlawfully helping a prisoner escape... and promptly teleports away.

The A plot with Emil Blonsky's parole hearing is fun, with the inevitable comedy with Tim Roth being superb, and Wong's dramatic late entrance. There's also a nice little linked thread of She-Hulk's reputation being generated by the stupidity of the media and online world, with its incels and pathetic little boys. So she submits to an interview, which, er, goes well.

The B plot, with a shape changing Asgardian elf and Jen humiliating Dennis to win his case, is hilarious. But I'm sure Dennis will do somewthing nefarious before the season is over.

The Day of the Triffids (1981): Part 6

 "We were walking on a tightrope for a Hell of a long time..."

The sixth and final episode and, appropriately, six years have passed. The extended family, including Susan and Bill and Jo's son, exist in a state of continuous siege which functions as a metaphor for the precarious state of civilisation. It seems the Triffids are fated to win. London is slowly rewilding. Fuel is becoming scarce.

There's a moving and very human conversation between Jo and Bill. Despite the peril, Jo is happy with their little family. And Bill echoes our current concerns with civilsation being precarious- the climate crisis, nuclear war, the Singularity- by pointing out that we begat the Triffids- and even the humanity-blinding comet may not have been a natural phenomenon. "Sooner or later a foot had to slip." Indeed. Are we so different?

We get a welcome visit from Coker, who has established a community on the Isle of Wight; small islands seem ideal for keeping Triffid free. The Channel Islands too. But Jo wants to spend one last summer at the farm... until peace is interrupted by militaristic morons, played for laughs, who want to set up some kind of feudal society.

The last scenes are funny as the family escapes to the Hampshire coast and beyond, and we end with a nice little monologue. This was an excellent and thought-provoking adaptation of a novel that I simply must revisit.

Gremins 2: The New Batch (1990)

 "I've got rabies, and I'm supposed to get the flu this week."

Oh, I love this film. It is- and I know this is a weird thing to say for a Hollywood sequel-a different level of wit, enjoyment and fun from ther original. fourth wall? you're dead?

Yes, this is a sequel. We have Billy and Kate, moved to New York. We have some very real, surreal and, I suspect, very dated satire of Wall Street and the absurdities of thre reagan era. Reagan was no Trump, but, well, he was stupid. It's all excellent stuff. Poor Mowlgli.

But that barely scratches the surface. The first breath in the fourth wall comes from the mime artists being escorted out of the police van. Then we have, yeah, the Hulk Hogan interview. The fourth wall dies at this point, even after the review of the first movie which has hilarious consequences. It's sad to see the great Christopher Lee in a character part, but he's superb.

The knowing wit is hilarious throghout. This cannot, sutely, have been written by committee. Halleluljah. And I can't even begin to touch on the satire. This is the Reagan era. Corporate culture was insane.

There's so much to talk about. The old man- Kato in the old Green Hornet movie serials- dues. Poor Gizmo is bullied. So is Billy, unappreciated at work. The whole satire on 80s corporate excess is exquisite. At one point the lift asks for a car to be removed beause it's cheap and old.

I adore this film. If you don.'t ,then I shall challenge you to a duel. Sith Re Leicrster cheese. Be warned.

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law- Superhuman Law

 "That name better not stick."

After last week's superhero origin story, we now have the introduction of the format. After getting reluctantly fired by the firm and unemployed, Jen is hired by the opposition and given a swanky new office heading up a new Superhuman Law Division. But there's a catch. She has to practise, in the office and in court, as She-Hulk... and, yeah, she, er, loves the name.

And there's another catch: she has to represent Emil Blonsky, the Abomination, at his parole hearing, and Blonsky tried to kill her cousin. Fortunately, Bruce is fine with it, so all is seemingly well.

It's also nice to see Jen's family, including her parents, her cousin Ched and, I think, Bruce's parents. The scene is a joy, especially her close bond with her dad.

So many nice touches, too. I'm an old school fan, I know of Titania. Here, she is... an influencer?! Also, I love her dad asking the very pertinent question of whether Hawkeye retrieves his arrows. I noticed Blonsky's prison was run by Damage Control.

The format looks fun. I'm excited. Also, I presume the fact that Bruce is in that flying saucer from last episode will be followed up out of the confines of this particular serial. And I loved the Shang-Chi bombshell at the end.

The Day of the Triffids (1981): Part Five

 "Hey! Can't you kiss her indoors?"

This, like its predecessors, is a gripping and thought-provoking episode. Plot-wise, it's simple. Bill finds a disillusioned Coker, they bond, they philosophise, they find a rather naive community of unworldly Christians, they philosophise some more. Coker then returns to bash the community into shape while bill goes on a quest for Jo, picking up a little girl called Susan along the way.

Yet the plot is not the point. The core is Coker's monologue- one day the loot and the petrol will run out. By then, they will need to have learned how to farm, to plough, to make things. And for that they will need a large community so there's enough surplus labour to read up on these things. He's right.

For we see, everywhere, Triffids triumphant over the stung or diseased corpses of human beings. Humanity is not winning. I expect the ending to be downbeat and open, but I also expect it to be bloody good.

She-Hulk: Attorney at Law- A Normal Amount of Rage

 "The triggers are anger and fear."

"Those are like the baseline for any woman just existing."

The above quote sums up this hilarious, clever, delightfully meta first episode. Jennifer Walters is Bruce Banner's cousin and, this being an origin story, gets her powers. But the conceit is that, wonderfully, because she's a woman and has to control her anger every day, she stays totally in control when green and can just change at will, sometrhing which Bruce still cant do after fifteen years.

Jen is witty, likeable, very well written and portrayed, and her desire to just continue practising as a lawyer rather than be a superhero is fun and intriguing. Just as awesome, the breaking of the fourth wall, with Jen constantly addressing the camera, is present and correct, including the fourth wall breaking, which is going to be such fun.

I love the banter between Jen and Bruce, and the subtle, fun, feminist commentary. This is such a fun firsat episode. I'm excited.

The Day of the Triffids (1981): Part Four

 "I'm like a drug they give to patients to keep them going a bit longer."

The fourth episode further develops the existing themes and takes a darker turn; Bill, separated from Jo, is kidnapped by Coker's people and forced to help blind friends to find food. He's kind, helpful even when no longer forced, and a gentleman in that he refuses to sleep with a girl whose motive is to persuade him to stay. Yet it's all futile. The blind are doomed. As Bill knows and no one else will get past their cognitive dissonance, no cavalry is coming.

Yet things are worse. A plague is developing, and only plot armour really prevents Bill from catching it. There are nasty people with guns. Worst of all, there are Triffids. Their menace is finally coming to the foreground, as presaged by much of Bill's dialogue in earlier episodes.

The desperation has increased. I quite like the fact that I've long since forgotten how the novel ended so I don't know what to expect. This is a superb adaptation.

The Mezzotint

"By virtue of all that is reasonable, Nisbet, this is a rank impossibility." 

I somehow missed this last year, so I'm watching and blogging it when it's still the season, sort of. This is, of course, magnificent. Horror via existential dread. The pacing is magnificent and Rory Kinnear, as ever, gives a superb performance.

I've yet to read any M.R.James, I've just seen the adaptations. But there's so much going on here, beyond the idea of a picture changing whenever it's observed which may have influenced one Steven Moffat. But it's far more existential and far more gothic than that: this is M.R. James. Williams is a man of his time, yes, but he's nice enough- friendly, amiable to his housekeeper, harmless. Alas, as he discovers, he is the last of his line and thus inexorably doomed. There's nothing he can do. The moving figure in the mezzotint exists to doom him and him alone.

This is creepy, gothic, existentially dreadful. In short, full of Christmas cheer.What's not to love? Happy New Year, all. Now we are back to normal it's back to The Day of the Triffids and Better Call Saul, plus films, and I'll be starting She-Hulk: Attorney at Law.