And it’s a dark, twisted, violent story that is worth staying up late for.

Last year, FX and BBC released Taboo in unison, an 8-episode series created by Steven Knight with Tom Hardy and Chips Hardy. Yes – that Tom Hardy. Not only has he helped create this epic story, but he also stars in it, bringing his incredible dedication to his characters to the small screen. Having watched the season three times so far, I can’t imagine a better actor for the story and brutality that is brought from the very start. While only available for one season so far, it in its self is cohesive without reliance on the second season (ordered, air dates unannounced) for a story to be completed. In all honesty, it is almost as if the producers were not prepared for the success of the show which ultimately leads to Season 1’s success as a binge-worthy show.

Set in 1814, Taboo follows James Keziah Delaney (Tom Hardy), a man who has been to the ends of the earth and comes back irrevocably changed. Long believed dead in the wilds of Africa, he returns home to London to inherit his father’s crumbled shipping empire, attempting a rebuild of his life and the company. But with enemies lurking in every dark corner and a family legacy that tells more of a tale of betrayal than love, James must navigate the world the only way he knows. Filled with conspiracy, murder and, betrayal, a dark family mystery unfolds in a combustible tale of love and treachery.

Season 1 of Taboo is available for streaming on Hulu today: https://www.hulu.com/watch/1170756

The post Taboo Needs to Be Your Next Binge appeared first on FactoryTwoFour.

“Outwardly, Archie looks pretty much how you’d expect him to, updated for the millennial crowd, some 70 years after the original comic character’s creation. The same goes for the town of Riverdale itself, but this isn’t post-WWII suburbia anymore. Look beyond the perfect façade, and you see the small town has dirty roots, and everyone is tangled up within.”

That these beautiful actors are legally older than the high school kids they portray hopefully makes that statement a little less icky. But let’s be honest, I’m just buying what the show is selling. And selling it well, too, as we are talking about high school, and that’s a time when most people are at their horniest, most curious, most rebellious, and most willing to follow their hearts. So yeah, sordid situations are going to pop up.

Though mostly pure of heart, the reimagined Archie Comics characters of Riverdale High can’t seem to avoid the town’s multi-generational dirt, which all comes gurgling up when the captain of the football team, Jason Blossom, gets murdered. Against the background of this murder mystery, a high school drama unfolds, starring awkward yet glorious ginger KJ Apa as Archie Andrews, Blossom’s former teammate, aspiring folk singer, and the letterman-jacket-wearing embodiment of the perfect kid.

Outwardly, Archie looks pretty much how you’d expect him to, updated for the millennial crowd, some 70 years after the original comic character’s creation. The same goes for the town of Riverdale itself, but this isn’t post-WWII suburbia anymore. Look beyond the perfect façade, and you see the small town has dirty roots, and everyone is tangled up within.

Personally speaking, the only thing I remember about Archie Comics is that Archie did not deserve the love of Betty the blonde, and Veronica the brunette, that Jughead wore a funny hat and may have been hungry a lot, and that Josie and the Pussycats played all the school dances.

Somehow 2017’s version (the comics have been updated as well, btw) satisfies all those memories, while at the same time serving up surprising takes on the archetypes. For example, Betty Cooper isn’t just a hot blonde, she’s also one of the smartest, most sensitive girls in school, who isn’t about to take any bullying, slut shaming, or murdering going down in Riverdale. And the Pussycats still play “Candy Girl (Sugar Sugar),” but now it’s just the hook of a dope hip-hop/dance tune.

Essentially, this same-America-but-different theme is what makes Riverdale so fun, and of course the high school aspect, heck I even get Luke Perry playing Archie’s dad, just to scratch that Dylan McKay itch I didn’t realize was acting up. Who knew I’d grow up to miss such a place as high school?

The post Riverdale Might Actually Make You Miss High School appeared first on FactoryTwoFour.

Not convinced by all those adverbs and the corny extended metaphor? I get it, taking on a new show is a commitment, and not something to be taken lightly, particularly if you’re the type who doesn’t give up on a show easily. If you even kind of like it (which you positively will!), you could very easily be in for some 50 hours of programming ahead, if you follow through to the end of this season, the show’s declared last. That’s a lot of time spent with clones. But these clones are all played by last year’s insanely deserving Emmy winner, Tatiana Maslany.

Maslany’s performance is nothing short of astonishing. You’ll think you’re watching a whole troupe of gifted actresses. Flawlessly, ever convincingly, she completely differentiates the myriad roles, beginning with the first scene of the series, where she plays both Sarah Manning and Beth Childs, face to face on a train platform staring into the sameness of each other’s eyes — a tense moment of surprised recognition, which ends with Beth jumping in front of an oncoming train. A hustler with a host of bad guys on her trail, Sarah sees the jumper’s purse, snatches it up, and bolts.

And so we get the first two characters Maslany becomes. But there are many more, all with their own distinct identity. According to Wikipedia, throughout the course of the series, Maslany also plays fellow clones Cosima Niehaus (the dreadlocked, lesbian, genius gene scientist), Alison Hendrix (the headbanded, high-strung soccer mom), Helena (the psycho sister who gets her own freaky theme music), Rachel Duncan, Krystal Goderitch, Veera “M.K.” Suominen, Katja Obinger, Janika Zingler, Aryanna Giordano, Danielle Fournier, Jennifer Fitzsimmons, and Tony Sawicki (who identifies as male). And they’re all totally different people. You don’t doubt it for a second. How the hell she didn’t win the Emmy every season merely comes down to the fact that not enough voters saw the show initially. Had they, it would have been impossible to vote otherwise.

The show is much more than just Tatiana’s tour deforce, though. The science, which seemingly could (…may… likely does) exist without too much imagination, is endlessly fascinating, though I do find myself most lost at those points. And that’s saying something too, because of how complex the detective story is, which centers around Sarah — one of the smartest, toughest, coolest female characters on television — taking on Beth’s cop identity to figure out why her fellow Clone Club members are being hunted, as well as how they came to be in the first place.

That initial mystery gets solved quite satisfyingly in season 1, for the most part. But I’m well into season two now, and we’re just scratching the surface of who made these clones, why and how they did it. And though there’s perhaps a little bit more story fat that needs trimming at this point, my interest is so thoroughly piqued, I’m pretty sure that 50 hours is going to be gone soon enough. Wanna hop onboard so we can talk about it?

The post It’s Not Too Late to Start Watching Orphan Black appeared first on FactoryTwoFour.

Dear White People, if you’re too thin and light skinned to handle the title of Justin Simien’s new Netflix series (based on his excellent 2014 movie, Dear White People), then maybe the show just isn’t for you. Actually, on second thought, perhaps it’s precisely for you.

I suppose it all depends on how woke you are. That’s the phrase of the day at Winchester University, a trumped up, modern-day Ivy League school, that likely looks a lot like any of the real ones out there (I wouldn’t know, I couldn’t get into one). But while I get the concept of woke – being fully aware of the world’s pervasive and deplorable social injustices – until I watched all ten half-hour episodes of Dear White People this week, I didn’t realize how sleepy I’ve been, even though I’m fundamentally a believer in “inter-racial harmony in a post-racial” world. See, how woke you are depends not just on believing, but on doing. And in the face of a black-face party taking place on campus, the character’s in Simien’s world take action.

The show gives each of the main characters at least one full episode of POV, which serves to thoroughly expose not just their actions, but also their wants, needs, motivations, fears, and, most importantly, their rage. Not just from realizing that a black-face party could actually happen at a modern-day Ivy, but just from watching the nightly news.

Our main rager is the indignant, powerful, and witty Dear White People radio show host, Samantha White (Logan Browning). Being half black/half white may be a source of personal confusion, but her public stances on the issues have the campus hanging on her every word, even when that word is “protest.” Then there’s Reggie (Marque Richardson), her fellow justice demander, who slings slam poetry as well as he creates “Woke or Not Woke” phone apps; and Lionel (DeRon Horton), the timid, coming-to-grips-with-his-gayness gifted journalist who finds wells of inner strength while leading his fellow black students into the black-face party to properly break up such horseshit. There’s also Troy (Brandon P. Bell), the son of the dean and a nominee for Student Body President, who would just love to be anything but perfect. And finally, there’s Coco (Antoinette Robertson), nee Colandrea, who was plucked from the inner city by a benevolent white philanthropist, and seems to be the perfect model of superficial assimilation until she shows herself to be the deepest and most interesting of all these fully-realized characters.

While such a thematically-serious show might sound like a piss-poor excuse for casual entertainment, I assure you, Dear White People is quite fun, particularly in the satirical sense of the word. Oh, it’s barbs are sharp! The show is also fun in the reminiscing about college sense, as well. God, I miss college. Funny that this show should make me feel so nostalgic, too, as my white-boy, frat-guy ways may be the most thinly represented, and my causes back then far more inclined towards saving goals in Sega hockey, then towards saving the world. So yeah, maybe I was the ideal audience, which makes me even happier I tuned in. And more woke, too, hopefully.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvulsveZeTE

The post If You Don’t Think ‘Dear White People’ Is For You, Think Again appeared first on FactoryTwoFour.

I’d venture to say I’m not the only one finding it difficult to identify with the uber-wealthy and viciously-petty inhabitants of David E. Kelley’s Monterey. And here I thought California’s central coast would be an idyllic place to live. Alas, in Kelley’s true crime, dark comedy, outside appearances mean nothing.

Kelley, as you’ll recall, created such hits as The Practice, Ally McBeal, and Boston Legal (among many others). None of which honestly intrigued me, as they were all a bit too soapy for my taste. But this is an HBO show, so attention has been properly paid.

Who else but HBO could wrangle so much talent into one project? Reese Witherspoon leads the cast as meddling Madeline Martha Mackenzie, a “bulldog” of a full-time mom, who seems to be at war with all of Monterey, particularly Renata Klein (Laura Dern), a bigwig in both tech and the PTA.

Madeline and Renata’s precarious relationship is set tipping towards freefall when Renata’s first-grade daughter gets choked on the first day of school. She accuses Ziggy, the son of mysterious newcomer Jane Chapman (Shailene Woodley), who Madeline has already warmly befriended. Ziggy denies the claim, and battle lines are drawn.

Adding to that tension are the myriad other battles of the other wealthy, broken, and vindictive residents of Monterey, including those played by Nicole Kidman, Alexander Skarsgård, Adam Scott, and Zoë Kravitz.

We learn early on that a murder occurs at the school sometime shortly after the choking incident. So the stakes are immediately raised. Now here we, are three episodes in, and we still haven’t learned who was killed, let alone whodunit.

Wrangling all these juicy plotlines together is Reese’s Wild director Jean-Marc Vallée, who showed her the way to an Oscar nod. He also directed Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto to Oscar gold in Dallas Buyers Club. So yeah, there’s plenty of talent involved. Indeed, the only reason you stick with these vile characters is because the acting makes them seem somewhat human, though still not relatable.

Indeed, now that I’ve gotten a good, dirty look inside the beautiful homes of these truly ugly people, I’m not sure how much I really want to step back inside. They’re terrible, insidious, ruthless people, who I’m happy to have nothing in common with. Perhaps that’s the best reason to continue watching: to feel better about my own, ocean-view-less lot.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=chJ4mcy1cpY

The post Big Little Lies Will Make You Happy to Be Poor appeared first on FactoryTwoFour.

Flirc: The familiarity of a remote control is a game changer.  Using a remote control allows even the most basic users to easily navigate interfaces without a keyboard or mouse.  This USB dongle allows you to do just that by transforming any IR code into a keyboard stroke.  Flirc makes it possible to use any of your existing IR remotes to control any device that supports a USB keyboard.

Kodi:  It isn’t very often that an open-source software product rules the roost.  Kodi (formerly XBMC or Xbox Media Center) has deep set roots in helping users take control of their own media.  These roots first found purchase during the original Xbox “mod” rage.  Users created Xbox “mods” to function as an Atari or Nintendo emulator, content pirating machine, or media center.  Kodi left the Xbox branding behind as it has branched out to almost every platform.  This powerful and stable center is used by most cord-cutting devices to organize or stream media.  Almost every review in this series will include the functionality and performance of Kodi.

Input Devices:  Even if you have a Flirc, keep a keyboard and mouse handy.  Initial configuration and testing will require some typing.  Most devices do provide an on-screen keyboard.  If you liked the 2003 style of texting (multiple button pushes per letter) skip the keyboard.  Just prepare yourself for a maddening configuration.

Cables, Cables, Cables:  Most of the devices are going to come with an HDMI cable.  Not one of the devices has arrived with an HDMI cable that supports CEC.  A $10 cable may bring your TV’s native CEC control to life.  I will also discuss the following cables:  USB extension, Optical / Coaxial audio, and micro-usb hub / OTG devices.

Router: When streaming media, your router can make all the difference.  Every review will compare the connectivity between a two year-old N router and a high-end AC model.  If your router doesn’t support at least N, plan on using wired connections only.

Now the introductions are made and the stage is set – all we have to do is review each device and its optimal configuration.  Do you have a device that FactoryTwoFour should review?  If so, please contact me here.

The post Make your own smart tv – Part 2 appeared first on FactoryTwoFour.

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