Eclectic Pop

A devastating piece of overlooked cinema, 2013’s “How I Live Now” stars Saoirse Ronan as a teen with a flair for punk rock fashion and a bad attitude. Daisy (Ronan) is a 15-year-old with a loud internal voice. Her father has pretty much abandoned her into the care of her aunt in England. A decision made in spite of the world being on the verge of all-out war.

Hello Readers: I hope this missive finds you all doing exceptionally well. Firstly, I would like to thank Steph Wanamaker (+StephWanamakerGingerNinja) for re-sharing the link on her Google+ page that ultimately led to the following opportunity. I would have probably never learned about it, if she hadn't.

If you noticed the recent flurry of Tweets and Google+ posts linking to articles on Hidden Remote's website, there is a reason. I am thrilled to announce that I am now contributing to HiddenRemote.com as a Staff Writer and will be covering the following shows for them:

Beauty and the Beast (The CW)
Bloodline (Netflix)
Narcos (Netflix)
Penny Dreadful (Showtime)
Pretty Little Liars (Freeform)
Scream: The TV Series (MTV)
Teen Wolf (MTV)
The Blacklist (NBC)
Twin Peaks (Showtime)
Tyrant (FX)
Vikings (History)

Bates Motel – Season 4, Episode 9 – ‘Forever‘

Micro Synopsis: 

As Romero (Nestor Carbonell) and Dylan (Max Thieriot) take a stand to get Norman (Freddie Highmore) re-committed to the mental institution, Norma (Vera Farmiga) makes the fateful decision to stand by her afflicted son. (Major Spoiler Ahead...)

The Rundown: 

I once heard a story on morning radio. A caller said that she loved sleeping with her pet python, lying in the bed beside her. Eventually she started noticing her beloved snake lying completely vertical, stretching itself to its fullest length.

Alarmed, she asked the vet about this odd change and they explained the snake’s behavior. It was physically preparing itself…to eat her. This is in a lot of ways, the perfect parable to describe what became of “Bates’” tragically flawed, central figure in the penultimate episode of its fourth season.

April showers brought an interesting downpour of viewer traffic on Eclectic Pop. There was a spring of new activity as movie reviews dominated reader interest for the second month in-a-row, landing 6 of the Top 10 spots.

'Penny Dreadful’ – Season 3, Episode 1 – ‘The Day Tennyson Died'

Micro Synopsis: 

Thanks to Lyle (Simon Russell Beale), Vanessa (Eva Green) begins recovering from her mental breakdown by seeking psychological help from a shrill doctor with a familiar face (Patti LuPone).

Miss Ives also makes an intriguing new acquaintance in a Dr. Sweet (Christian Camargo). Elsewhere in England, Dr. Frankenstein (Harry Treadaway) recruits his old friend Dr. Jekyll (Shazad Latif) to assist in his attempt to save Lily (Billie Piper) from herself.

Reign: Season 3, Episode 11 – “Succession”

What Happened: Mary (Adelaide Kane) bonded with Gideon (Ben Geurens). Catherine (Megan Fellows) meticulously planned Charles’ (Spencer MacPherson) coronation. The identity of the serial killer stalking the castle halls was revealed. Lola (Anna Popplewell) proved useful to Elizabeth (Rachel Skarsten) in an important way.

The Rundown: The regal series finally returned and in as high a fashion as it left. Tying up loose ends and beginning new strands of story, “Reign” featured its three queens learning shocking truths about the people around them and discovering deeper ones about themselves, in the process. As Mary contemplated a marriage to a prominent Protestant to calm tensions in Scotland, issues of personal politics quickly arose. Her idealism dashed upon the rocks of reality’s need for compromise.

Since there is only so much time in the day to read 750+ word reviews and there are many things that have been seen and not yet written about, it seemed right to boil down all of the sentiments expressed on Eclectic Pop into a simple question and answer format; getting to the point in a concise and clear manner that transforms those broader analyses into various bite-size reads.

This special Netflix edition addresses the movie content available on the streaming giant…

Bates Motel: Season 4.Episode 6 – “The Vault”

What Happened: Norma (Vera Farmiga) struggled to find a way out of Chick’s (Ryan Hurst) blackmail scheme. Norman (Freddie Highmore) In his session with Dr. Edwards (Damon Gupton), he was told for the first time that he has D.I.D. (dissociative personality disorder). Dylan (Max Thieriot) told Norma he was moving to Seattle with Emma (Olivia Cooke).

I reviewed the season six premiere of  “Game of Thrones” for We Got This Covered and here’s why you should read the full review over there. If you tuned in on Sunday night, you know “The Red Woman” was more eventful than previous season openers.

 From revealing the possible fate of Jon Snow (Kit Harrington) to unveiling the unvarnished face lying beneath true evil’s mask; “Thrones” was certainly making an effort to generate some major waves for its first, completely off-book season. Read my full review of the Season 6 premiere here.