TV | Amy C. Shaw

The Top 10 Books I’d Love To See As Movies/TV Shows

June 2, 2015 • 26 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week’s topic is Top Ten Books I’d Love To See As Movies/TV Shows. This one was hard because I think we all have love/hate relationships with movie adaptations of our beloved books… sometimes it goes well, sometimes it doesn’t. Here are some I think I would like to see though… just please don’t ruin them! This week’s list is in no particular order…

1. The Lunar Chronicles as Animated Movies

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I never would have dreamed I would suggest this (I figured they couldn’t do the story justice), but once I saw the above image (+more!) from Tumblr I was sold. MAKE THIS HAPPEN.

2. The Scorpio Races as a Movie

I think The Scorpio Races could make for a really interesting movie. The book is a little slow and the movie would have to be faster, more focused on Puck’s family, training, her and Sean’s backstories, not to mention more of the island and these dangerous horses!

See my Scorpio Races dreamcast here

3. For Darkness Shows the Stars and Across A Star-Swept Sea as Movies

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I have a lot of love for these books, and I would REALLY like to see them as movies!

4. Code Name Verity as a Movie

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As long as the movie didn’t linger too much on the brutality and was more focused on the backstory and the aftermath, I think this would be a really good one to watch (though we’d all still need tissues for sure!).

5. Crime & Punishment (a good modern-day adaptation) as a Movie or YouTube Series

For my thesis project to graduate from the honors college years ago, I made a short film based on Crime and Punishment, set in modern times. While working on this project one of the things I did was watch a few film adaptations of the story, including a modern one called Crime and Punishment in Suburbia which, quite frankly, was terrible. So I would like to see a really good, modern adaptation of the story (to say my short film was “really good” would be an overstatement, ha).

The reason why I also added “or YouTube series” is because I can see this working out really well. Raskolinkov (we can rename him; I did for my project) is an ex-student with a lot of ideas, and I can see him doing YouTube videos to share these ideas. He would have to commit a crime not nearly as heinous and felonious as murder though if the audience is going to know what’s going on with him, or maybe we just watch his degradation from guilt without explanation until later. There would be interactions with his friend, his sister, Sonia… I just seeing it working if done well.

6. Finding Alice as a Movie

This story about a girl diagnosed with schizophrenia has stayed with me for years, and I think it could be a really good movie.

7. The Mistborn Books as an Epic, High-Budget TV Mini-Series

This would be amazing. I don’t think there is need for elaboration.

8. Ready Player One as a Movie

Images Found Via readyplayerone.com

I know the film rights were bought recently and I honestly believe that, if done well, I could really end up enjoying the movie more than the book.

9. The Silver Chair as a Movie

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I was talking with some friends recently and one of them said this supposed to be happening so I REALLY hope so! Aside from The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, this is my favorite of the Narnia books.

10. Leviathan Trilogy as Movies

I think these books adapted to film would be such a fun ride! Alternate history, steampunk, interesting creatures, and adventures all around make these books an excellent candidate for the big screen I believe!

Also check out Jessi @ A Novel Heartbeat’s recent post about upcoming YA adaptations!

What books would you like to see on the big or small screen?

Star Trek TNG Season 4: My Top 5 Fave Episodes

May 22, 2015 • 9 Comments

As my husband and I are going through our second full watch of Star Trek as a couple, I thought it would be fun to report on the highlights along the way. So I decided to copy the same format as Charlene at Bookish Whimsy, who is going through her first-ever run of Star Trek and sharing her favorite episodes for each season. To compare, see her top 5 favorite episodes of season four of The Next Generation.

So this was an interesting season for me. Season 3 I felt that most episodes were pretty consistently good, and I thought I probably felt the same way about Season 4… until I looked back on the list of episodes and realized there were more “meh” ones than I recalled. Some had some things I liked about them before something weird happened or the resolution was unsatisfying. However, I came with five that I did feel were pretty consistently good. I have to say I’m a little surprised by what I haven’t seen yet at this point, so these later seasons should be good as I see some of the episodes I remember from before.

5. Family

After his experience with becoming Borg, Picard goes back to his home on Earth and visits with his family. This episode has an extremely sad undertone if you’ve seen a certain TNG movie, but it is interesting to see Picard where he grew up and interacting with his brother, who has very different interests and ambitions.

4. Redemption, Part One

I am seriously appreciating the Klingon episodes more this time around. In this episode, we get some important set-up for the future of the Klingon Empire and important development for Worf’s character. This part one doesn’t end in a real cliffhanger, but it certainly sets things up in a shocking way with something that was alluded to in a previous episode (holy Deep Space Nine, TNG has continuity after all!).

3. First Contact

What I enjoyed about this one is that you get to see things from the perspective of those outside the Federation. No, it’s not told from their viewpoint, but you get to hear more of their viewpoint than you normally do in a typical Star Trek episode. You understand why someone who has never, ever heard of Starfleet would not necessarily jump at the chance to join them. You see aliens react to humans like we would to aliens. It makes for good food-for-thought.

2. Data’s Day

This episode is a fun one. We get introduced to Spot (Data’s cat) and Keiko, who marries Chief O’Brien. I’ve actually forgotten a lot of the details of this one already, but I do remember enjoying it.

1. The Drumhead

This episode was a real standout for me this season. I think a large part of it is because I found it crazy relevant for something happening in my life right now, but even so, it’s not hard to think of just how relevant this episode is, period. Immediately your mind will take you to the Salem witch trials and the 1960’s Red Scare. This is an episode that you can appreciate even without really knowing anything about Star Trek, and I highly recommend it to really anyone reading this right now. Queue it up on Netflix if you have it.

What are your favorite episodes of TNG, season 4?

Star Trek TNG Season 3: My Top 5 Fave Episodes

March 20, 2015 • 16 Comments

Season three is definitely when TNG picks up, and I had a harder time narrowing my selection because of good options this time! I also wanted to be sure to mention an honorable mention, The Ensigns of Command, since I did have a hard time choosing it or my #5 choice.

5. The Defector

This was one of those episodes that left me feeling kind of depressed in the end, but it was pretty poignant. It reminds me a bit of the DS9 episode “Duet.” I really don’t want to say too much to spoil the episode for those who have not seen it, but there are some interesting twists in it.

4. Sins of the Father

I’m not a big fan of Klingon episodes, so I was surprised how much I liked this one. I have a feeling I got much more out of it this time around than I probably did the first time, simply because now I’m familiar with Worf’s journey, and his family is a big part of that journey (and I don’t just mean blood family). I also love what Picard does for Worf in this episode.

3. The Hunted

I have a definite love for the psychological episodes of Star Trek, and this one explores the fascinating psychological idea of engineering a group of people a certain way, in this case, to be soldiers.

2. Yesterday’s Enterprise

First off, from a purely productional standpoint, I love the dark lighting of the other timeline’s Enterprise. Second, we see another version of Tasha who is just so much more awesome for some reason. And third, there’s just something about this story, that I can’t really explain, that is just plain great. It’s a fan favorite so clearly I’m not alone.

1. The Best of Both Worlds

Just as a note, this is a wicked cliffhanger two-parter that comprises the season three finale and the first episode of season four. For the sake of simplicity, I am including both parts in my season three recap (though Charlene waited until season 4). I mean, I don’t know what to say about this episode other than the first time I watched it I was just FLOORED. It was the first really huge risk I feel they took in Star Trek and it worked really well. This time around, instead of watching parts one and two in the same fashion they were originally aired, we watched the enhanced Blu-Ray that edits the episodes together as one seamless film. Even when you know the outcome, you still feel the tension in these episodes. It’s one of the best stories of The Next Generation, period.

What are your favorite episodes of The Next Generation, season 3?

Agent Carter, Inhumans, & I Have No Idea What’s Happening in the Marvelverse Now

March 9, 2015 • 8 Comments

*Warning, if you’re not caught up on Agent Carter or Agent of SHIELD, there are spoilers below!

I watched the first half of this season of Agents of SHIELD excited every single week. The show was finally just consistently good. Then the mid-season finale hit and… I don’t know… I felt like my tires got deflated. It was really hyped up by Marvel, and in some ways it was good, but I felt sort of like I got punched in the stomach and then the offender just ran off. I wrote a long blog post about it that I never published on the blog, because after I wrote it I thought maybe I just needed to get my feelings out and I was actually fine now that the words had been written.

Thankfully, Agent Carter was there to divert my thoughts for a while. If you know me, you know I’m a Peggy Carter fangirl, and I was super stoked about the show. When it started I was… confused… about the direction it was going in and the plot. I thought it was sort of going to pick off where the Agent Carter one shot left off, but it actually feels more like it never happened. I thought Peggy was supposed to be in charge of the beginning of the SSR, I mean, this had been alluded to in the one shot, in Captain America The Winter Soldier, and in Agents of SHIELD. Instead, she’s just the glorified secretary to the boys. But after a few episodes, I decided to enjoy it for what it was. I still loved Peggy, as well as many of the new secondary characters, such as Jarvis, Angie, and Sousa.

I ultimately enjoyed the season. I still never completely understood what the plot of it had to do with the Marvel universe at large, but I hoped for a second season to help sort it out some more. And I still want that.

Then Agents of SHIELD returned, and we’re one episode in and while it was a fine episode, I’m still feeling uncertain about what’s happening. Fitz finds out what’s happening to Skye but he’s going to keep it a secret. Raina’s essentially a demented porcupine. Bobbi and Mack are up to something, but what? Are Fitz and Simmons ever going to talk again? OK, I know they won’t let that drop, but I want it now, dang it. I have a hard time caring about the Inhumans storyline at the present because I’m still very worried about the humans on the show. I am completely not over Trip’s death (that was what my unpublished ranting blog post was about, essentially), I worry about Fitz-Simmons, I worry about all of them.

Except Ward. He wasn’t in this last episode and I did not care or miss him for two seconds. They made me hate him that much. (Or maybe that indifferent to him.) I just don’t like feeling this way. I guess I’m not supposed to like feeling this way. No one said this was a Hallmark movie. But just the thought of him popping up again just makes me feel… ugh. I just don’t care about him. I want him to leave. I want Trip back (not matter how impossible). I want to smoosh Fitz and Simmons’ faces together, and then we can carry on with Hydra and Inhumans and whatnot.

I’m happy that this next episode features Lady Sif, because I love me some Sif (not quite as much as Peggy, but still a lot). I just hope things will make sense soon. When the season ends, I want it to feel like the story is heading in the right direction. The season one finale left us hanging, but it was good and left me wanting more in the right ways. I know there’s some time and I shouldn’t worry, I suppose I just hoped that after such a long hiatus I would get something I was hoping to see, instead of basically nothing at all that I cared about (other than Coulson yelling and bringing down some Hydra folks, because that was good stuff).

Also, how is this going to tie into Avengers 2? What the heck is that movie about anyway? That first trailer really gave me chills in the best way, and this newest one is just not nearly as interesting to me. I’m sure it will all work out, but I’m just curious about what direction the Marvel universe is actually going if there’s supposed to be Civil War and so much other crap going on. I’m sure someone with comic book cred could help me out.

What are your thoughts on Agents of SHIELD, Agent Carter, and the various Marvel storylines?

My Top 10 (Er, Or So) Movie/TV Heroines (& Maybe Books Too…)

February 24, 2015 • 22 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Today’s topic is Top Ten Favorite Heroines From Books, but I did this topic just barely over a year ago for a TTT Rewind, so I thought I would focus on my favorite heroines that I know exclusively from movies and TV. And I got carried away. Ahem.

This week’s list is in no particular order…

1. Peggy Carter from Captain America/Agent Carter

What an amazing coincidence that today is the day of the Agent Carter TV season finale! If you’ve read this blog for a while you know I love me some Peggy Carter. I think she is awesome in basically every way.

2. Jemma Simmons from Agents of SHIELD

You know who is also a big fangirl of Peggy Carter? Jemma Simmons from Agents of SHIELD! Jemma might not have the ability to kick butt the way Peggy does, but she’s incredibly gifted in science and uses her abilities to fight for what’s right.

3. Lady Sif from Thor

And one more from the Marvel universe! Lady Sif is basically like Peggy Carter from another realm. She is also way more awesome than Jane Foster, who I don’t dislike, but she’s not Sif.

4. Kate Beckett from Castle

I’ve been watching Castle since day one, and I’ve always liked Beckett, but I think I’ve come to really like her more and more these past two or three seasons. I’ve definitely enjoyed watching her character grow.

5. Olivia Dunham from Fringe

Speaking of character development, there’s also quite a bit for Olivia Dunham in Fringe! Some of you were here for my Fringe journey back in 2013, and you saw just how crazy hooked I got on the show. That passion has definitely died down now, but I still have a lot of love for Olivia.

6. Dax from Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

Now that Charlene has finished DS9 (sorry for anyone else who hasn’t but might one day) I can safely say Jadzia AND Ezri Dax! This might be a cheat, because they are two different people, but oh well, too bad. They are different but I love them both. Jadzia is so spunky and smart, and Ezri I can just completely relate to.

7. Princess Leia from Star Wars

I mean, she’s a princess who can shoot and fight for the cause. She’s pretty awesome.

8. Kaylee from Firefly

I love Kaylee. She’s sweet and fun and loyal and good at what she does.

9. and 10. Susan Ivanova and Delenn from Babylon 5

I debated with myself for a while about whether or not to include these two before I finally decided to. I feel quite separated from the show these days, even though I only saw it 2-3 years ago, I think because it doesn’t have the community like Star Trek; and also unlike Star Trek and Fringe, I didn’t find any Babylon 5 podcasts to enrich my experience. But when I think back to the show, and these two women, I’m just blown away all over again. Both of these women exhibit strength in different ways and they go through such interesting arcs. I’ll say it again: if you are a fan of science fiction, you should really watch this show (just look past the production value, they were on a budget).

BONUS Runner-Ups: Deanna Troi from Star Trek: The Next Generation and Molly Mahoney from Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium.

AND BECAUSE I CAN’T STOP…

BONUS #2: My Top 6 Fave Heroines from Books That I’ve Read Since Last Year!

(1) Hermione from Harry Potter, (2) Vin from Mistborn, (3) Cress from The Lunar Chronicles, (4) Seraphina from Seraphina, (5)Alina from The Grisha Trilogy, and (6) Deryn from The Leviathan Trilogy

OK I AM DONE NOW.

Who are your favorite heroines from books/TV/movies?

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