Help Me Watch

Chris hosts Help Me Watch with Franco and Jonathan, announces they’ll cover only one week of new releases to realign scheduling, then shares quick thoughts on recent viewing: the live-action One Piece season two as a feel-good, anime-faithful show; Resident Alien returning with a likely final season four (two episodes in); The Secrets of Skinwalker Ranch season four as a gripping paranormal-reality series; and the documentary Michael Jackson: The Verdict (two of three parts). Chris also reviews Masters of the Universe (fun, meme-aware, strong end credits; Jared Leto as Skeletor; wanted more Orko) and Disclosure Day as a grounded, believable conspiracy thriller. They note critic Gene Shalit’s death at 100, list June 23 physical releases, then review Muppets Take Manhattan—cast, cameos, trivia, gags, songs, and craftsmanship—each rating it 85. Next movie: Muppet Treasure Island; July host picks: Madame Web, The Book of Eli, and The Birds.

Chris, Franco, and Jonathan record early and share one-minute reviews: Chris discusses watching From (prefers waiting to binge), the intense season finale of The Testaments (recommends Netflix’s Wayward), and finishing season five of For All Mankind, which he feels has shifted from technical space challenges to political drama with a sidelined Titan-life subplot. Jonathan reviews Amazon Prime’s live-action Spider-Noir starring Nicolas Cage, available in black-and-white or color, calling it fun, cheesy noir with a sudden gory moment. They run through June 9 and June 16 physical media releases (including Bowfinger, Scream 4, Spielberg 8-film 4K set, The ’Burbs, Cloud Atlas, Day of the Dead, Eraser, Hamilton, and odd titles Last Shark and Love Shark). The main review covers 1984’s Cloak & Dagger, noting its bare-bones DVD, plot, cast, ’80s tropes, and implausibilities; ratings are 65, 84 (joke), and 65. Next movie: The Muppets Take Manhattan.

Chris, Franco, and Jonathan share one-minute reviews, including mixed feelings on From Season 5, relief that The Boys ended despite a coming spinoff, enthusiasm for The Testaments, a positive take on Netflix’s The Burrows (produced by the Duffer Brothers), and thoughts on the Daredevil: Born Again finale and possible Defenders return; Chris also quits La Brea after one episode, then reviews The Mandalorian and Grogu as a fun theatrical Star Wars outing with some trope complaints. Jonathan recounts a live-broadcast sequencing flub during the Survivor Season 50 finale. They list new Blu-ray/4K releases for late May and early June (e.g., Explorers, Harry and the Hendersons, Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, 10 Cloverfield Lane). The main review covers the anime film The Girl Who Leapt Through Time, praising its animation, emotional storytelling, and small-stakes time-travel focus, scoring it 80–85. Next episode: Cloak and Dagger.

Chris hosts Help Me Watch with Franco and Jonathan, catching up on recent viewing (Chris binges From on MGM+ and watches The Testaments; Jonathan finishes Daredevil: Born Again and rewatches The Mandalorian) before discussing upcoming summer releases, including Mortal Kombat 2, The Sheep Detectives, The Mandalorian and Grogu, and more. They also note physical releases like Avatar collections, Fallout Season 2, and 4K editions (Fight Club, Moneyball, Conan the Barbarian, The Da Vinci Code). The main review covers Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001), its $137M budget and box-office loss, Hawaii studio, Square’s financial fallout, uncanny CGI, and a JRPG-like story better suited to a game. Next film: The Girl Who Leapt Through Time.

Hosts Chris, Franco, and Jonathan chat about recent viewing, including Star Wars: Maul—Shadow Lord (stylized, paint-like animation), The Boys’ final season (less political commentary and toned-down gore), Invincible season 4 (frustrating cliffhanger), The Testaments, live-action One Piece season 2, From season 1 (a town trapped with night monsters), and Daredevil season 2 (Jessica Jones appears). With little movie news, they cover home releases for April 28 and May 5, including Captain’s Courageous, Dust Bunny, Innerspace, Throw Momma from the Train, Alice in Wonderland (4K), Gilmore Girls (Blu-ray), The Goat, Welcome to Derry season 1, Solo Miol, and Top Gun (4K). They review the 30-minute “bad movie month” double feature Thumbtanic and Thumb Wars: The Phantom Cuticle, discuss commentary/production notes, and score them around 70–75. For May’s anime picks, they select Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within.

Host Chris and cohosts Franco and Jonathan open with Chris’s impulse purchase of an AMC Yoshi popcorn bucket while seeing the Super Mario Galaxy movie, then share quick takes on Invincible season four, Daredevil: Born Again season two, Netflix’s four-part FLDS follow-up documentary Trust Me: The False Profit, Hulu’s The Testaments, an Amazon Prime Bob Lazar/Area 51 “S4” documentary, and Disney+/Hulu’s #SkyKing about the 2018/2019 Seattle ground crew worker who stole and flew a plane. They note upcoming physical releases (including Life of Brian, The Phantom, 28 Years Later: The Bone Temple, Send Help, Shelter, and Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow) before reviewing the low-budget “trailer trash” comedy Mangus, criticizing its DVD presentation, audio mix, implausible wheelchair plot beats, and odd telegram gag while acknowledging a few funny moments; scores are 30, 25, and 30. Next episode continues the April “bad movies” theme with Thumbtanic and Thumb Wars: The Phantom Cuticle.

Chris, Franco, and Jonathan open with Lord of the Rings banter and a story about Massachusetts replacing EZPass transponders with windshield stickers, plus a thrift-store reseller arguing with an AI. Chris gives quick reviews of Project Hail Mary (Andy Weir; favorite of the year), Paradise season two, Invincible season four (through episode four), and Netflix’s Radioactive Emergency about the 1987 Brazil cesium-137 disaster and its toll. Jonathan discusses Daredevil: Born Again season two and the Super Mario Galaxy movie. News includes Criterion physical releases for K-Pop Die Hunters and Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein, an HBO Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone series dated for Christmas, and Stephen Colbert co-writing a new Lord of the Rings film with an official logline shared. They preview upcoming TV (For All Mankind season five, a Darth Maul animated show, the final season of The Boys, The Testaments, and a Malcolm in the Middle special), note Chuck Norris’s death, list Blu-ray/4K releases, then review The Return of the King, praising its epic scope and scoring it 10/10. After initial next-movie picks, Chris announces April as “bad movie month,” selecting Mangus (2011) for the next episode.

Chris hosts a Help Me Watch episode with Franco and Jonathan, discussing recent watches including Fallout (season two), Paradise (season two’s topside post-apocalyptic focus), One Piece live-action season two, and Invincible season four, plus excitement for Ryan Gosling’s Project Hail Mary. They cover trailers for Spider-Man: Brand New Day (July 31) featuring power issues, Bruce Banner, and Punisher, and Dune Part Three (December 18), along with March 17 and March 24 physical-media releases (including For All Mankind season two, Jurassic Park 4K set, Return to Silent Hill, anime titles, and others). The main review is The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (extended), highlighting Rohan, Helm’s Deep, Ents, Gollum’s performance/VFX, and small nitpicks, with Return of the King planned next.

00:00 LOTR Cold Open Banter

One Minute Review: Fallout season 2 | Paradise season 2 | One Piece season 2 | Invincible season 4

Movie News:

New Spider-Man: Brand New Day (July 31) trailer

New Dune Part 3 (December 18) trailer

New Releases: 

March 17th

March 24th 

Chris, Franco, and Jonathan return after a scheduled break, joking about Jonathan’s Disney vacation and discussing annual passes, passholder magnets, and the pin-trading scene, including early-morning pin drops, limited Muppet pins, fake pins, and Hidden Mickey pins. In one-minute reviews, they cover Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die (Sam Rockwell time-travel sci-fi comedy) and an early AMC screening of Pixar’s Hoppers, described as “Avatar for kids,” mention missing Cold Storage due to late showtimes, and reference an NDA film. News includes a new Wayans Brothers Scary Movie trailer they dislike, Netflix backing out of a Paramount/Warner Bros. merger, and several reported deaths. They list March 3 and March 10 physical-media releases, then review The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring with cast notes, filmmaking trivia, favorite scenes, and scores, previewing The Two Towers next.

00:00 Second Breakfast Intro

One Minute Review: Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die | Hoppers

Movie News:

The new Scary Movie trailer was released, and I’m not surprised at how the Waynes Brothers are bringing back all the bad parts of the previous movies https://youtu.be/7Uo6XPz_RhI?si=wl2Qk_rsqMb3UoWR

Looks like the Paramount/WB merger is a done deal as Netflix backs out, which will be “good” for all of us.

RIP:

Eric Dane (53): Grey’s Anatomy and Euphoria actor, died Feb. 19 of ALS.

James Van Der Beek (48): Dawson’s Creek actor, died on Feb. 11

G.G. Santiago (creator of Rainbow Brite) Dies at 82

New Releases: 

March 3rd

March 10th 

Chris, Franco, and Jonathan discuss Franco’s one-minute review of Edgar Wright’s remake of The Running Man, describing its cyberpunk corporate-controlled game-show premise, action tone, cast notes (including Glen Powell and Michael Cera), and that it’s fun but not mind-blowing. They then debate why the next Avengers film feels less hyped, citing post-Endgame irreproducibility, MCU cohesion issues, Disney+ oversaturation, COVID disruptions, Jonathan Majors fallout, release spacing that reduces momentum, marketing strategy, and hopes tied to X-Men/Fantastic Four crossovers and Spider-Man’s Sony constraints. The hosts list upcoming Feb. 17 and Feb. 24 physical releases before reviewing Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith, highlighting Clone Wars context, dialogue and pacing complaints, Order 66 impact, and Padmé’s death, ultimately rating it 90/100. They end by randomly selecting The Lord of the Rings (extended editions) for the next episode.

00:00 Order 66 Cold Open

One Minute Review: Running Man (2024)

Discussion:

Can we talk about how there appears to be no hype for the new Avengers movie? The movies have been few and far between, and haven’t been all that connected, and haven’t had the best reception.

New Releases: 

February 17th

February 24th