Insecure Writer’s Support Group, Father Dragon, Series Updates, and June Movie Preview

It’s time for another group posting of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group! Time to release our fears to the world – or offer encouragement to those who are feeling neurotic. If you’d like to join us, click on the tab above and sign up. We post the first Wednesday of every month. I encourage everyone to visit at least a dozen new blogs and leave a comment. Your words might be the encouragement someone needs.

The awesome co-hosts for the June 4 posting of the IWSG are PJ Colando, Pat Garcia, Kim Lajevardi, Melisa Maygrove, and Jean Davis!

The June 4 question - What were some books that impacted you as a child or young adult?

I read Sword of Shannara shortly after its release in 1977, and I was swept away in the epic adventure. I’d never read anything like it before. It kindled my love of fantasy and science fiction where anything was possible.

Ironically, it would be movies that influenced what I actually wrote – Star Wars, Battlestar Galatica, etc.

Dragon and Ninja, Together Again

Some of you probably remember Father Dragon Al. One of the best friends a Ninja could ever have and I miss him in the blogging world.

Quite the talented artist, he decided to send me the original artwork of his blogging icon.

Al, this is quite the honor! I shall treasure it always. You are a good friend and an excellent dragon.

Series Updates

I spoke too soon in my last post – The Bondsman with Kevin Bacon has been cancelled! Ended on a huge cliffhanger as well. And it was doing well. Jerks.

The Wheel of Time was also cancelled. Nowhere near finished with the story. Ten million an episode was too much for their budget.

And they wonder why people don’t want to invest themselves in a series?

Thankfully, Resident Alien’s next season starts June 6! It ended on a huge cliffhanger, so small miracle we get to see how it is resolved. One of the funniest series out there today. Alan Tudyk is a comedic genius.

June Movie Preview

Here are the theatrical releases for June. Descriptions courtesy of the IMDB. Snark provided by me.

6 –

The Ritual
Director: David Midell
Stars: Al Pacino, Dan Stevens, Ashley Greene Two priests, one in crisis with his faith and the other confronting a turbulent past, must overcome their differences to perform a risky exorcism.
I’m out of order? The devil’s out of order. This whole freaking exorcism is out of order!

20 –

28 Years Later
Director: Danny Boyle
Stars: Jack O'Connell, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Ralph Fiennes
A group of survivors of the rage virus lives on a small island. When one of the group leaves the island on a mission into the mainland, he discovers secrets, wonders, and horrors that have mutated not only the infected but other survivors.
One of the best trailers I’ve seen in a long time. Fingers crossed the movie lives up to it.

27 –

F1
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Stars: Brad Pitt, Javier Bardem, Kerry Condon
A Formula One driver comes out of retirement to mentor and team with a younger driver.
Basically, an old Brad Pitt in Days of Thunder: AARP Edition.

M3GAN 2.0
Director: Gerard Johnstone
Stars: Allison Williams, Jemaine Clement, Ivanna Sakhno
Two years after M3GAN's rampage, her creator, Gemma, resorts to resurrecting her infamous creation in order to take down Amelia, the military-grade weapon who was built by a defense contractor who stole M3GAN's underlying tech.
M3GAN 2.0 – Electric Boogaloo!

What books influenced you? Any of your favorite series get cancelled? Remember Father Dragon? And what movies will you be seeing this month?
Ironically, I haven’t seen a film in the theater since last year. Our theater added reserved seating. Couple that with fifteen minutes of commercials before the movie begins (and not on time) and the ever-soaring price of tickets and drinks, and movie theaters are destroying the entire movie-going experience.

#IWSGPit, Bollywood with Damyanti, Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio Review, and the Best Shows of 2022

#IWSGPit is this Wednesday, January 25 from 9:00 am - 8:00 pm Eastern Standard Time!

Create a Twitter-length pitch for your completed and polished manuscript and leave room for genre, age, and the hashtag. On January 25, 2023, Tweet your pitch. If your pitch receives a favorite/heart from a publisher/agent check their submission guidelines and send your requested query. 

Many writers have seen their books published from a Twitter pitch - it’s a quick and easy way to put your manuscript in front of publishers and agents.

Get the full details here.

Bollywood! By Damyanti Biswas

In my literary noir set in Mumbai, THE BLUE BAR, Bollywood plays a significant role.

Bollywood originates from two words, Bombay and Hollywood. As the name of the city has changed from Bombay to Mumbai, so have the movies in a burgeoning Indian economy.

Bollywood influences more than 1.4 billion Indians, and Bollywood songs form a major part of that. Unlike in Hollywood movies, songs play a huge role in the success of a movie in India—in terms of downloads, YouTube hits, as well as selling movie and dance show tickets to the sprawling Indian diaspora.

Songs are not just about glitz, glamor, and humming quotient, they also move the plot along. They can swallow up to half the movie budget. Characters can fall in and out of love, become rich or poor, or travel to several countries all in the space of a five-minute song, in montages that resemble Tiktok sensations.

In THE BLUE BAR, Bollywood songs bring atmosphere and commentary to the story, just as in any Bollywood movie, and in some ways, it is a small homage to a storytelling culture that has been the background to so many of my childhood memories.

Find Damyanti and her books HERE.

Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio Review

This won the Golden Globe for best animation, so I had to check it out.
I will preface this by stating I have never cared for the story of Pinocchio. I find it dark and disturbing. This version is also a bit dark and disturbing just in different ways.
The stop-motion animation is just stunning. And at two hours long, a lot of work went into that animation.
The outstanding voice cast includes Ewan McGregor (as Sebastian J. Cricket, the narrator), David Bradley, Gregory Mann, Ron Perlman, Finn Wolfhard, Cate Blanchette (as the spazzy monkey!), Christoph Waltz, and Tilda Swinton.
This is certainly the best version of Pinocchio I have ever seen and there are several big differences between this and the Disney version. For one, the boys don’t turn into donkeys – they are sent to Nazi Youth Camp! (The story is set in Italy during WWII.) It’s also the only animated film I can think of that features Mussolini. There are also these skeletal death rabbits. Definitely unique to this version.
If you like Pinocchio or just want to see an amazing animated film, definitely check it out. However, I would say it’s not for kids – probably twelve and older.
Recommended

Best 2022 Shows

Two weeks ago, I rounded out the top movies and albums of 2022. Now for the shows. And there were some good ones last year!

Wednesday
My favorite of the year! Most shows have issues with pacing, but this series had perfect pacing. Add to that the perfect young lady playing Wednesday – she had the best lines and I wish I’d said most of them!

1899
Season two was cancelled (hiss!) but that should not stop you from watching this inventive, bizarre, creative show.

House of the Dragon
Second best fantasy soap opera with dragons. I hated almost every character, but it was the most fascinating train wreck to watch.

The Rings of Power
Started out strong, dragged a bit in the middle, but had a solid finish.

The Sandman
I’m partial to the graphic novel, however it seemed to capture the spirit of the book better than most.

What We Do in the Shadows
Season three a bit better than season two and still one of the silliest things on television.

Love Death and Robots
Season three was the strongest season yet, and the Jibaro episode was the most stunning animation I’ve ever seen.

Outer Range
If you like your shows trippy, this is the second trippiest (behind 1899) from last year.

Resident Alien
Continues to be the most consistently hilarious show with characters you wouldn’t mind spending time with. Alan Tudyk and Corey Reynolds (the sheriff) steal the show – they are hilarious!

Raised by Wolves
Sadly there will be no season three. Watch it for the bat-crap craziness but be warned, season two ended on a cliffhanger. (Such a crappy thing to do fans!)

Tokyo Vice
Fascinating show that really delves into the culture of Japan and the influence of the Yakuza.

Mystery Science Theater 3000
With three hosts (and I’m partial to Jonah Ray), it was a little inconsistent but still funny and put a huge smile on my face.

Reacher
They finally did Jack Reacher right and gave him the show and the actor the character deserved.

Book of Boba Fett
Die-hard fans weren't impressed but I enjoyed it. We got to learn about Tusken Raiders!

Peacemaker
Crude, rude, but completely hilarious!

Clarkson’s Farm
I learned so much about farming by watching Clarkson do it oh-so wrong and laughed my ass off.

Are you participating in #IWSGPit? Have you read The Blue Bar? Have you seen Pinocchio? And did you watch any of those shows last year?
I’ll be back on February 1 for Insecure Writer’s Support Group day! But be sure to check out the site today as we are honored to have Janice Hardy visiting.