Season nine of AMC’s The Walking Dead will premiere on Sunday, October 7, 2018, with the upcoming season marking the beginning of the end for Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes. With the new season just days away from its debut, AMC’s released the opening credit sequence which was created by Huge Designs.
“The opening credit sequence is indicative of the new look and feel to the world this season and we wanted to give a nod to the show’s graphic novel origins,” said executive producer and showrunner Angela Kang. “As we jump into a new chapter of the story, we wanted to present something fun and fresh for our viewers to reflect the changing landscape, where nature will be playing a bigger role. While our survivors work to rebuild and adjust to the crumbling infrastructure, the threat of the dead is constantly looming. And true to the spirit of our show, there are Easter Eggs for the fans to find if they’re looking close!”
The Walking Dead Season 9 Plot:
“Last season brought the culmination of ‘All Out War,’ which pitted Rick Grimes (Lincoln) and his group of survivors against the Saviors and their cunning leader, Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan). With Negan’s life in his hands, Rick had a character-defining choice in front of him. By making the unilateral decision to spare Negan, Rick upheld the values his late son, Carl, championed in order to build for the future, but created conflict within his group.
Now, we see our survivors a year and a half after the end of the war, rebuilding civilization under Rick’s steadfast leadership. It is a time of relative peace among the communities as they work together, looking to the past to forge the future, but the world they knew is rapidly changing as man-made structures continue to degrade, and nature takes over, changing the landscape and creating new challenges for our survivors.
As time passes, the communities confront unexpected obstacles, danger, and of course, walkers, but nothing quite prepares them for the formidable force they are about to encounter, which threatens the very idea of civilization that our survivors have worked so hard to build.”
Andrew Lincoln as Rick Grimes, Danai Gurira as Michonne, and Chloe Garcia as Judith in ‘The Walking Dead’ season 9 (Photo Credit: Jackson Lee Davis/AMC)
History’s Vikings has brought on board New York Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard for the show’s sixth season. Syndergaard, who’s nickname is Thor, is a natural fit for the dramatic series, physically.
According to the network, Syndergaard made the trip to Ireland this week to shoot his season six guest starring role. History also revealed Syndergaard will be playing a character named Thorbjorn. Thorbjorn is described as a Viking warrior who is loyal to Ivar the Boneless (Alex Høgh Andersen), who he sees as a God on earth.
The series will return for the second half of season five on Wednesday, November 28, 2018 at 9pm ET/PT. The sixth season will consist of 20 episodes which are expected to premiere sometime in 2019.
Season five part one averaged 11.2 million viewers and was in the top five of all cable dramas.
Oscar winner Michael Hirst (Elizabeth) created the series and writes each of the episodes. Hirst also serves as an executive producer along with Morgan O’Sullivan, James Flynn, Sheila Hockin, John Weber, Sherry Marsh, Alan Gasmer, and Arturo Interian.
Details on Vikings Season 5 Part 2:
“Season five returns with the arrival of a legendary Viking, the famous Duke Rollo (Clive Standen), who causes further upheaval in a Kattegat still reeling from Ivar the Boneless becoming its King. As Bjorn (Alexander Ludwig) and Lagertha flee Ivar’s murderous forces with Bishop Heahmund (Jonathan Rhys Meyers), Ivar’s tyrannical reign over Scandinavia ushers in a new Dark Age, the likes of which have never been seen.
Ultimately, Ivar’s reign will not go unchallenged by the sons of Ragnar and old enemies will become allies to defeat the despot who has declared himself a God on earth. Meanwhile in Iceland, Floki (Gustaf Skarsgård) battles the elements, and his own settlers’ desire for revenge, to forge a Viking colony on the beautiful and desolate landscape.”
The CW’s Supergirl‘s Mehcad Brooks was among the show’s cast members who made the trip to the San Diego Comic Con this summer. In addition to taking part in the series’ panel with fans, the cast participated in roundtable interviews in which they did their best to not give away any real spoilers for the show’s fourth season. Brooks came close to giving away what he described as a huge spoiler, but censored himself before he could provide any really juicy details about season four.
The new season of Supergirl arrives on Sunday, October 14, 2018.
How did you feel about Guardian’s identity being revealed and what’s going to happen with that moving forward?
Mehcad Brooks: “Good question. How I felt about it was amazing because it not only was dealing with unmasking, it was dealing with how people feel about the cultural dynamic of being African American. It’s almost like we got to put racism where it belongs in the cultural concept of bullying. It’s the same thing as a kid talking about this person’s weight. It’s the same thing as this kid talking about this person’s sexuality. It’s something that this person never chose and can’t help but just because it’s the status quo, we’re supposed to deal with it. It’s not right.
So, sexism and racism belong in the culture concept of bullying. So, I was really happy that we got to do that. And in fact, let’s be real about it, most black superheroes wear a mask. Can anybody name one black superhero that doesn’t wear a mask?”
Luke Cage.
Mehcad Brooks: “Luke Cage! We got one! Anybody else? No. I think that in the writers room that came to our attention as well. We’re like, ‘Wait a second. That’s not cool.’ We take these black actors and we throw a piece of iron over their face or some sort of technology over their face. That’s not really the point.
When I was growing up, I didn’t have anybody who looked like me to look up to. Now when I go to these Comic Cons or I go to the grocery story, I see a young black kid five or six years old and he’s like, ‘Mr. Olsen…?’ I’m like, ‘That’s not my name.’ (Laughing) No, just joking! So, I’m really happy that we’re actually tackling those issues. It’s gonna be real.”
Where would you like to see James go as a hero this season?
Mehcad Brooks: “Mars. I love Mars. (Laughing) Oh, you mean like… I know where he’s going and I like where he’s going. Let’s just say that because of the unmasking there’s some fallout that happens and some support – some unexpected support because he’s human and he’s doing something that normally aliens do. Or mutants – genetically enhanced humans do. So, he just happens to be this human being taking his life in his hands being brave and heroic, and some people appreciate that. And then some other people don’t. It becomes really cohesive to the culture of the what’s happening… What can I say?”
Can you say if his suit changes?
Mehcad Brooks: “I can’t say any of that. Sorry. They just briefed me and I just almost just told you a huge spoiler.”
You were talking about the heroes you looked up to growing up. Does a film like Black Panther make a difference?
Mehcad Brooks: “I think it does. It made a difference to me. I’m sure it makes a difference to a lot of kids around the world. It is a movie for kids, right? I think it definitely made a difference in that realm.
For me, it made a big difference in the fact we had a majority black cast lead a $16 billion film…I don’t know what it is. And I think that myth that we don’t sell overseas has been shattered, has been absolutely shattered. Whether or not the story focuses on Africans or African Americans, I don’t think it matters. I think people were saying that hue of human does not sell in Germany. That hue of human does not sell in China. They’re wrong. They’re absolutely wrong.
So, some of that is Hollywood manifesting itself into its result, right? If you don’t make the movie people can’t go see it. Like, I didn’t notice the people were black in the movie. I was like, ‘This is a good movie,’ and then I went, ‘Oh, yeah, they’re black.’ That happened after. You’re probably like, ‘This is a good movie.’ And then somebody was like, ‘You know they’re black, right?’ and you’re like, ‘I don’t care.’”
I didn’t notice until they brought the one white guy in.
Mehcad Brooks: (Laughing) “You’re like, ‘There’s normally more of them!’ Here’s my thing with that. I don’t think there should be any tokens. Look around this room. There’s every shade of every person here. I don’t have one white friend; I don’t have one Asian friend. I have a bunch of different types of friends. I grew up in a place where it was very multi-cultural. This country was built on multiple diasporans. We don’t have… I love Friends the sitcom but they’re not friends of mine because they don’t have any black persons.
What I’m saying is, yes, we can make movies that are all African American if we want to. We can make movies all white if we want to. But why not just make the sh*t look like America? Make it look like the demographics that we actually have right here and that are coming. I think that if we as a town don’t do that then we’re missing out on a great opportunity.”
When the CW’s The Flash returns for its fifth season, Tom Cavanagh will once again be embracing a new version of Harrison Wells. Season five will find Cavanagh portraying a Wells who’s reminiscent of Sherlock Holmes, but with a The Flash twist.
During our interview at the San Diego Comic Con, Tom Cavanagh discussed taking on different versions of Wells and directing the show’s upcoming 100th episode.
The Flash season five premieres on October 9, 2018 at 8pm ET/PT.
What can you say about the character you’ll be playing in season five?
Tom Cavanagh: “Characters. I can tell you about one which we’re debuting shortly. As you know, one of the things we try and do when creating a new character is see what gaps we might be missing and what we can fill. I was Reverse Flash in the first season and we weren’t going to do that in the second season, but I thought, ‘You know what? He was like a giant antagonist in season one. It might be nice to have a daily antagonist.’ Enter Harry who was like a bit of a jerk. Social graces, didn’t have them. Kind of mean but ultimately a good guy. Helpful. And then the next season we thought, ‘You know what? We can amp up the comedy a little bit,’ and I was H.R. who Harry hated because he thought he was an idiot. H.R. thought Harry was the best thing ever.
And then this year we thought, I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s a combination, but I think there’s room for that comedic element as well as room for the intelligence that Harry has. One thing you could rely on was Harry – you could trust him. He didn’t care what anybody thought. He was just going to do what was right.
So, if you had a guy that could be that with that level of intelligence and maybe not do always what’s right or not always be trusted all the time. So, it’s a Sherlock Wells character but we’re trying to put that trope or myth, whatever you want to call it, sort of on its ear a little bit. So, it’ll be called Sherlock Wells. I don’t want to get ahead of myself because maybe you’ll see it and judge it and go, ‘Oh, that’s terrible,’ but I’m looking forward to doing it.”
Is it difficult playing so many different versions of the character?
Tom Cavanagh: “No. It would be obnoxious to go (indicating exasperation and annoyance), ‘Oh, I just have to keep them separate.’ No. If you’re fortunate enough to be on a long-running show which The Flash is, generally you’re going to be assigned a character. What’s nice about being on a show that’s part of this superhero genre is there are kind of no rules. We have a multiverse; we created that idea of a multiverse that allows us free rein and for me in particular to get to do character after character after character.
The show is the same, the guys all have the same name, but the character reinvention or invention is something that I, being in this business for almost 30 years, is something that I’ve never had. I’ve never seen anything like that. For myself to be able to check that box is spectacular. It’s a real privilege.”
Are we going to see you directing this season?
Tom Cavanagh: “Yeah. I’m going to direct the 100th episode.”
How nice. Congrats.
Tom Cavanagh: (Laughing) “Say that after you see it. But I’m very much looking forward to it. My overall rule when directing the show is like basically they’re all so incredible, they’re such good humans and they’re so incredibly talented, essentially it’s like try not to mess it up. Point the camera at them and get out of the way. So, I’m looking forward to that.”
JD Pardo as EZ Reyes in ‘Mayans M.C.’ episode 5 (Photo by Prashant Gupta/FX)
FX Network’s Mayans M.C. season one continues with an episode that finds the net seeming to be closing around Adelita and her rebels. Season one episode five also found EZ and Angel’s side deal coming close to being fully exposed to the club.
Episode five opens with EZ (JD Pardo) arriving at the hospital to check on Emily’s condition. Officer Franky Rogan (Edwin Hodge) meets him before he heads inside, explaining what happened at the Fiesta. Rogan warns him Miguel Galindo’s men are all over the place watching over Emily, but EZ’s nearly frantic wanting to check on her himself. A nurse conspires with Rogan, and EZ is able to see Emily without Galindo or his men being aware of what’s taking place.
Emily (Sarah Bolger) blames herself for pushing through the crowd at the church, and EZ’s confused as to why the rebels would kill a nun. Emily rages that the rebels are dangerous and the nun was killed to hurt Miguel. She asks after her baby and EZ lies and tells her he hasn’t heard anything.
Galindo’s main enforcer, Nestor (Gino Vento), spies EZ leaving a room followed by Emily.
EZ calls his brother, Angel (Clayton Cardenas), and briefly fills him in on what went down. After Angel hangs up, he hears someone in his house. His window’s open and he spies the back of Alice’s head. It turns out that’s the only body part of Alice’s that’s in his house, and Cole’s the one who delivered it. Cole’s helping himself to orange juice in the kitchen when Angel finally realizes what he’s seeing.
Cole (Branton Box) admits to the slaughter of Alice’s men, and they sit down to have a surprisingly civil discussion. Angel reveals his little group inside the club has six kilos of heroin to move that the club doesn’t know about. Cole describes his group as being “unf*ckable” and Angel is up for making a deal.
Back at the hospital, Devante (Tony Plana) assures Miguel (Danny Pino) the photo of Adelita’s gone out to everyone. Also, the church is pleased Galindo’s paying to repair the damages. Miguel admits Emily’s, understandably, upset about the death of the nun.
Nestor interrupts to inform Miguel he saw Emily and EZ meeting on the sly. “It’s good to know my wife is talking to someone,” replies Miguel, sarcastically.
EZ pays a visit to his dad, Felipe (Edward James Olmos), breaking the news Emily was injured at the church. He thinks Emily’s in trouble and he tells his dad the Feds want Emily to flip. EZ believes it might be her best option because it would keep her safe. Felipe, wisely, advises him not to do it because he’d have to disclose the whole story and Emily’s been with Miguel too long.
After the visit, Felipe closes his shop and removes a gun from its hiding place.
Over at the clubhouse, Angel, Coco (Richard Cabral), and Gilly (Vincent Vargas) discuss the Fiesta and the church. Coco’s learned Adelita’s telling the town Galindo was behind it. Angel passes along the news Cole wants to buy the heroin. He describes Cole as part of a group of ex-military mercenaries who have contacts everywhere. The rebels need the cash, so a deal has to be made. Cole also wants Angel to provide passage into the country via the tunnel for an Afghanistan interpreter who’s on the no-fly list.
Angel sends Gilly off to the ranch to find out more about the tunnel they uncovered when they were burying Dennis. Angel and Coco split up as the rest of the MC arrives.
Galindo thugs pull up alongside EZ and suggest he follow their car. They drive to somewhere close to the border where Miguel is waiting for the meeting. Miguel apologizes for handling it this way and reveals he knows EZ saw Emily at the hospital. Miguel explains he’s going to be buying this property, which is in no man’s land, for a major development. EZ compares Miguel to Michael Corleone, aware this will be a money-laundering operation for the cartel. They compare intellects by speaking Latin, equally surprised the other is capable of doing so.
As they’re talking another car pulls up. Miguel warns EZ to stay away from Emily, and EZ indicates he got the message loud and clear. Miguel finishes up his brief talk with EZ to greet the Mayor who’s arrived to discuss his business plan.
Over at the clubhouse, Marcus (Emilio Rivera) shows Bishop (Michael Irby) and two other Mayans the photo Galindo’s passing around. They didn’t realize the rebels are being led by a woman, and Marcus suggests they don’t show the photo to any other club member. Marcus still believes there’s a traitor among them.
Angel warns EZ to stay away from both Emily and Miguel. Angel thinks if they can finish the deal with Cole and get the money to the rebels, they can end the cartel’s hold over everything including the club.
Adelita (Carla Baratta) is told the church believes the cartel killed Sister Jane, but they need to break off their ties to the rebels (Los Olvidados) until things settle down. Adelita is determined to continue her work, convinced Sister Jane wouldn’t want the rebels to be deterred.
As Angel and EZ make their way through the tunnel and into a parked car in Mexico, Angel explains to EZ he’s not sure why Adelita needs so much cash. He’s only told bits of the plan at a time.
They follow instructions to pick up the Afghan translator, but unfortunately the cops have beat them to it. The translator and his wife are already handcuffed, and EZ and Angel are also placed in cuffs. The translator explains a doctor was called in to check on his pregnant wife and tipped off the cops.
Clayton Cardenas as Angel Reyes in ‘Mayans M.C.’ season 1 episode 5 (Photo by Prashant Gupta/FX)
Angel attempts to explain they were just following orders. The ranking cop tells them to return to whoever sent them and tell him it’ll cost $100,000 to free the translator (who the cops assume is a terrorist) and his wife.
The cops give EZ until the morning to get the money or they’ll kill Angel, the translator, and his wife.
EZ calls Coco, panicking about what just went down. Unfortunately, only Angel has Cole’s number so they can’t get the money that way. Coco sets up a place to meet EZ and then rides off without telling the club.
After Coco takes off, Chucky (Michael Ornstein) tells Bishop and the MC he believes Coco’s going through some issues. He reveals he saw Coco and a woman arguing at a diner but doesn’t know who she is. Bishop shows him Adelita’s photo and he says, “I don’t know. Maybe,” when they ask if she’s the woman who was with Coco. (Damn Chucky, keep your mouth shut!)
Bishop sends Tranq (Frankie Loyal) off to follow Coco, instantly suspicious that Coco is the traitor. However, Bishop doesn’t tell Marcus he suspects Coco. He confesses he hates the idea of spying on someone in his club.
Meanwhile, Felipe meets with an old friend at the La Iguana Bar in El Centro. It turns out the man is Agent Jimenez’s father.
Gilly checks out the tunnel under Dennis’ grave. It’s fairly large and he finds an exit that leads straight to the back of Vicky’s whorehouse. Riz and Creeper are there, and they’re surprised to see Gilly, dirty, at the front door. When he goes inside to clean up, they are clearly confused about how he got there and where he parked his bike.
Coco and EZ meet with Adelita assuring her they have a buyer for the heroin. She’s not sympathetic about Angel’s capture by the dirty cops and doesn’t think that even if they turned over $100k, they’d get him back alive. EZ’s angry Adelita won’t help, and then Coco suggests they give the cops heroin instead of the money.
At the hospital, Emily’s advised by Devante that she can’t pick and choose what she accepts about Miguel. She has to be all in or get out. She believes Miguel’s lost and swings between volatile moods. Devante suggests she has to tell Miguel everything and that secrets aren’t healthy. (Five episodes in and Emily remains my least favorite character of the series. It doesn’t help the role’s underwritten, at least thus far.)
Tranq calls in that he lost Coco in the tunnels.
EZ, Coco, Adelita, and one of her men arrive at the house where Angel’s being held. They brought heroin instead of the cash and the cops aren’t satisfied. They handcuff everyone, including Adelita.
The cops suddenly cut everyone free and let them go, except for Adelita. They show Adelita her photo on the computer, identifying her as the rebel leader. There’s a reward and the cops want to collect on that by turning her over. (It’s the first time EZ, Angel or Adelita are aware her identity has been made public.)
Angel protests but the cops have the upper hand. Adelita warns the cops they’ll suffer the consequences if they don’t let her go since they’ve received their payment. They don’t listen and Adelita’s taken to the bedroom.
However, she didn’t enter the house without backup. Her man signals to the rebels that she needs help and they spring into action, gunning down the cops. Just as quickly as her rebel backup assembled, they disperse.
Adelita kisses Angel on the lips when he apologizes for the deal going south. She then warns him not to do that again.
The translator and his wife are brought across the border and delivered to Cole. Cole offers $50k for each of the kilos of heroin and Angel accepts.
Felipe’s doing undercover work, parked outside a house where a woman and her children are unloading a car. He surreptitiously snaps a few photos and then drives away.
The Mayor pays a visit to Bishop at the clubhouse, upset Miguel will pull the building project if she doesn’t change the zoning and lie about the EPA reports. Bishop reveals Miguel’s son was kidnapped by the rebels and he might not be thinking straight. Bishop promises to keep her informed about the kidnapping and assures her he has her back.
EZ, Coco, and Angel arrive as the Mayor leaves and they’re grilled about where they’ve been. After they’ve walked away, Bishop whispers to his guys to keep an eye on Coco and Angel.
EZ heads into his trailer and is shocked to find Emily inside. She confesses she had an abortion out of spite after EZ went to prison and told her to stay away. EZ takes all the blame (as usual) while Emily cries (as usual) about doing it to hurt him. She thinks her baby’s been taken as a punishment by God for what she did.
EZ comforts her and is about to confess the truth when Angel opens the trailer door. Emily leaves and Angel won’t allow his brother to go after her. Angel yells at his brother not to see Emily until everything’s done. They wind up in a fistfight and accidentally knock down a photo of them with their mom. The punches stop flying as they apologize to her picture.
EZ agrees to what Angel said, telling him he has his back. They hug and then Angel takes off to call Adelita about the deal with Cole.
Felipe tracks down Agent Kevin Jimenez (Maurice Compte) as he’s about to get into his car after work. Felipe informs Kevin he visited his dad and then hands over his real paperwork. It turns out he was a drug inspector with the Federales. He then shows Jimenez the photo of him and his partner with the severed heads, explaining he did very bad things to corrupt people. He left that life behind and wants Jimenez to forget about exposing his story to his boys. If Jimenez continues down this path, Felipe promises he’ll become that man again and ruin him and everything he loves.
Jimenez wants to know what that means but Felipe just drives away. Jimenez gets a text as Felipe’s truck disappears and it’s photos of his wife and kids taken by Felipe.
Emily returns home and Miguel’s in a rotten mood. She doesn’t explain where she went other than to say she took an Uber to clear her head. Miguel follows her and continues asking about what she was up to. He wants to know if she was with EZ, and Emily doesn’t answer. Miguel confesses he knows she saw EZ at the hospital, and Emily claims it was nothing.
Miguel tells her not to take Ubers anymore because he can’t protect her. The argument turns to who’s to blame for Cristobal being kidnapped. Miguel places the blame squarely at Emily’s feet since their baby was with her when he was taken. She slaps him hard across the face demanding he take it back. He won’t, and he grabs her by the hair and slams her down on the couch. He slaps her and suddenly the fight shifts from just anger to anger/lust.
The episode ends with Emily and Miguel having sex. Over at the whorehouse, EZ is doing the same.
Melissa Roxburgh as Michaela Stone and Josh Dallas as Ben Stone in ‘Manifest’ season 1 episode 2 (Photo by: Peter Kramer/NBC)
“The answers lie with the passengers of Flight 828,” says the lead FBI agent investigating the disappearance and reappearance of Flight 828 in season one episode two of NBC’s new dramatic series, Manifest.
The episode picks up right where the pilot ended, with 20 of the passengers of Flight 828 gathered outside the fence surrounding the airplane just in time to watch it explode. Following the explosion, the FBI interrogates each of them asking why they were there. After a few hours, Michaela (Melissa Roxburgh) calls out the FBI. She tells them she’s a cop and unless they’re going to charge them with something, they have to let everyone go. The FBI informs the 20 passengers that everything involving Flight 828 is a matter of national security and they’re not to discuss it with anyone.
Ben (Josh Dallas) returns home to find his wife, Grace (Athena Karkanis), still uncomfortable around him. She even covers herself up in his presence. He’s not home long before he starts hearing music no one else is hearing. While he looks for the source, his daughter, Olive (Luna Blaise), whispers to her mom she needs to tell Ben her secret. Grace confirms she will soon.
Meanwhile, Michaela heads to the NYPD to resume her job. She’s told by her captain she has to do a few procedural things to get reinstated, including passing the firing range test and undergoing a psych evaluation. When Michaela sees the shrink, she’s on the defensive and is sure she won’t get a passing grade. The doctor tells Michaela she had already been through so much before the flight, mentioning the car accident in which her friend Evie died. Michaela is quick to point out she was exonerated after the investigation.
Ben follows the music and it leads him to one of the passengers of Flight 828, Radd (Curtiss Cook), who’s playing the same tune Ben hears in his head on his violin. Radd begs Ben to help him. It turns out Radd’s teenage son is in jail and he needs Ben’s sister’s connections with the police to see him.
Ben asks Michaela to pull a few strings and she gets both her brother and Radd in to see Radd’s son at Rikers. The son, Adio, claims he’s innocent. He’s been framed for a jewelry robbery at the store where he worked. Radd and Ben promise they’ll look into it.
Ben’s son, Cal (Jack Messina), and Grace are hitting the toy stores trying to replace Cal’s belongings which Grace got rid of when she believed he was dead. A woman comes up to Cal and says, “He is Risen.”. Grace pulls him away from the stranger and takes him home.
Ben and Radd talk to the jewelry store owner and his son who both believe Adio must have been involved in the robbery.
The FBI holds a meeting and agree that if they’re going to solve the mystery of what happened to Flight 828, they need to focus on the passengers, especially the 20 who were there when the plane exploded.
Michaela talks to Jared (J.R. Ramirez) about her former best friend and he encourages her to try to reconnect with her. He adds that he never replaced her.
Ben and Michaela meet to talk about Radd and his son. Michaela informs Ben she looked up his file and he’s done some penny-ante stuff. However, a jury or judge will see this new crime as him going down the wrong path. Ben is convinced Adio is innocent. Why else would the music lead him to Radd? Michaela and Ben get into a little dispute over faith, God, and logic.
When Ben returns home his wife is still a little distant and his daughter keeps blowing him off. When he asks her to go with him on an ice cream run, she replies, “Another night, dad.” When Ben heads to bed later that night, he and Grace talk and she tells him about trying scuba diving a little while back.
The next day Grace is on the phone talking to someone. (It’s obviously her lover.) When she hangs up, she turns around and Michaela is standing there. Michaela tells her she needs to confess to Ben what’s going on before he finds out. She can’t believe Grace hasn’t already ended the affair.
Ben’s with Cal on one of his treatments and asks Dr. Saanvi (Parveen Kaur), who was also on Flight 828, if she’s been hearing voices. She hasn’t, but she admits to feeling odd and having intuition. Cal’s drawing a family picture and Ben notices another adult man in it. He asks Cal who it is and Cal replies that he doesn’t know. Ben’s attention is drawn to the television where a passenger from Flight 828 is on a talk show revealing she believes it’s a government conspiracy involving the disappearance and time loss.
Michaela checks out her former best friend’s Facebook page and discovers she had made it a “Remembering Michaela” page with posts and video messages to Michaela while she was missing. Michaela cries watching the videos.
The next day, Michaela visits her therapist and opens up about the time she’s lost and watching her best friend’s videos. The therapist tells Michaela she’s going to clear her to go back to work but on the condition that she continues with their sessions.
Ben comes home to find Cal upset because he’s missing all his old stuff. Olive tells Ben she wants to go for a ride with him…now.
Olive has Ben take her to a storage facility and tells him she never believed Cal was dead. She could feel he was alive. “It must be a twin thing,” offers Olive. She has Ben open a storage unit and all of his and Cal’s old stuff is in there. When Grace had Goodwill pick it up three years ago, Olive got everything back and put it in storage. Ben also notices two sets of scuba gear in there and asks Olive who Grace went scuba diving with. Olive tells Ben “a friend” and suggests he ask Grace about it.
Ben hears the music again and makes Olive stay put. Ben follows the music and discovers the jewelry owner’s son in front of another storage unit with all the jewelry from the robbery. “You set him up!” says Ben. The thief tries to bribe Ben and that’s when he punches him, knocking him out. Ben calls the authorities and has the thief arrested. Radd’s son is cleared of the charges. As the police take the thief away, Michaela looks at Ben and asks, “Still don’t believe in miracles?”
Michaela pays a visit to her former best friend, Lourdes (Victoria Cartagena), and thanks her for the videos. Lourdes asks if they are still best friends and Michaela says they have to play it by ear. Michaela tells Lourdes she has her blessings for marrying Jared. Lourdes knows Michaela was supposed to marry him and Michaela lies to her telling her saying she was going to give the ring back.
In a flashback, Michaela is shown putting on the ring when she was on the plane just before it landed and trying to text Jared, “Yes.”
Ben comes home and tells Grace he can’t imagine what she’s been through, but he believes they have been given a second chance. He wants her to try to love him the way she once did. They go to bed together.
Jared finds the engagement ring he gave Michaela in his drawer.
The episode ends with the woman who talked to a television talk show about the government being involved in the disappearance of Flight 828 watching the rebroadcast of the interview. A shadow moves behind her. She’s shot in the back of the head and her blood splatters onto the TV screen.
Manifest Season 1 Episode 2 Review:
Better paced with more drama and time for the two main actors to really shine, episode two of NBC’s Manifest starts to slowly reveal how Ben and Michaela seem to be chosen to help people in trouble and how maybe disappearing for five and a half years is part of some larger plan. The stand-out performance in this episode is delivered by Melissa Roxburgh who shows wonderfully how robbed and still lost Michaela feels over losing her fiancé, best friend, and mother. The scene with the therapist where she admits how she feels, although short, feels very real.
With the first person of Flight 828 now apparently dead after talking about a conspiracy, it appears as though the survivors of 828 have at least one deadly enemy watching their every move…if not more.
Robert Jordan’s bestselling The Wheel of Time book series will be adapted into a television series. Amazon Studios has just given the greenlight to begin work on the adaptation with Rafe Judkins (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Chuck) attached as the writer, showrunner, and executive producer.
Amazon Prime Video’s one-hour series has Rick Selvage and Larry Mondragon of Red Eagle Entertainment, Ted Field and Mike Weber of Radar Pictures, and Darren Lemke also on board as executive producers. The series will be co-produced by Amazon Studios and Sony Pictures Television.
“For so many people, including me, this book series has served as a world to escape to, to lose yourself in, to devour and inhabit completely,” explained Judkins. “And I couldn’t be more honored to be the one finally bringing that world to life on screen, for old fans to lose themselves in all over again and new fans to discover for the very first time.”
Robert Jordan’s fantasy book series has sold more than 90 million copies.
“The Wheel of Time is endlessly fascinating and resonates hugely with fans as one of the best-selling global properties, and we were drawn to its timely narrative featuring powerful women at the core,” stated Jennifer Salke, Head of Amazon Studios. “We’re thrilled to extend our relationship with devotees who’ve found the book series transformative and welcome new ones by bringing it to life on Prime Video for viewers worldwide.”
“Developing and producing Robert Jordan’s beloved fourteen-books-series for TV is a big undertaking, and we don’t take it lightly,” added Sharon Tal Yguado, Head of Event Series, Amazon Originals. “We believe that Rafe’s personal connection to the material and soulful writing will resonate with the book’s passionate fans.”
The Wheel of Time Plot:
“The Wheel of Time is set in a sprawling, epic world where magic exists, but only women can use it. Meaning that in this series — women hold the keys to power. The story follows Moiraine, a member of the shadowy and influential all-female organization called the ‘Aes Sedai’ as she embarks on a dangerous, world-spanning journey with five young men and women. Moiraine’s interested in these five because she believes one of them might be the reincarnation of an incredibly powerful individual, whom prophecies say will either save humanity or destroy it.
The series draws on numerous elements of European and Asian culture and philosophy, most notably the cyclical nature of time found in Buddhism and Hinduism.”
Ansel Elgort joins ‘West Side Story’ (Photo credit: Nino Munoz)
Oscar winner Steven Spielberg has found his ‘Tony.’ Spielberg has tapped Ansel Elgort to star in the new feature film adaptation of West Side Story.
Ansel Elgort will take on the role which was originated by Larry Kert on Broadway in 1957. The iconic screen adaptation of 1961 starred Richard Beymer as Tony and Natalie Wood as Maria.
Oscar nominee and Pulitzer Prize winner Tony Kushner is writing the latest adaptation of the musical which was inspired by the star-crossed lovers story in William Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet. Arthur Laurents and Stephen Sondheim wrote the original play and Leonard Bernstein wrote the music. Jerome Robbins was the original choreographer and Justin Peck will be handling that duty for Spielberg’s film adaptation.
West Side Story will be produced by Spielberg, Kevin McCollum and Kristie Macosko Krieger.
Spielberg’s been busy searching for actors and dancers to fill out the roles of the Sharks and the Jets. He recently held open casting calls in Puerto Rico, Miami, Los Angeles, and New York.
Ansel Elgort’s feature film credits include The Fault in Our Stars, Billionaire Boys Club, the Divergent film series, and the remake of Carrie. He recently wrapped up work on The Goldfinch directed by John Crowley and co-starring Sarah Paulson, Nicole Kidman, and Jeffrey Wright. He earned a Golden Globe nomination for his work in Baby Driver and a Critics’ Choice Awards nomination for his performance in The Fault in Our Stars.
Steven Spielberg’s most recent directorial efforts include The Post, Ready Player One, The BFG, and Bridge of Spies.
Filming is planned to kick off in the summer of 2019.
The West Side Story Plot:
“West Side Story explores forbidden love, and the rivalry between the Jets and the Sharks, two teenage street gangs of different ethnic backgrounds.”
The CW’s Supergirl moves to a new night beginning with its season four premiere. Supergirl‘s flying to Sundays, a new night of original programming for the network, where it will air at 8pm ET/PT followed by the new version of Charmed.
Season four premieres on October 14 with an episode titled “American Alien.” Season four episode one was directed by Jesse Warn from a script by Gabriel Llanas and Aadrita Mukerji (story by Robert Rovner and Jessica Queller).
The season four cast includes Melissa Benoist as Kara Danvers/Supergirl, Chyler Leigh as Alex Danvers, David Harewood as J’onn J’onzz, Jesse Rath as Brainy, Mehcad Brooks as James Olsen, Katie McGrath as Lena Luthor, Nicole Maines as Nia Nal/Dreamer, April Parker as Colonel Haley, and Sam Witwer as Agent Liberty.
The “American Alien” Plot: HOPE VS. FEAR — Diving back into reporting, Kara (Benoist) welcomes a new cub reporter to CatCo. Meanwhile, James (Brooks) and Lena (McGrath) argue about James’ impending indictment for acting as the vigilante Guardian, while Alex (Leigh) and Brainy (Rath) struggle to get in sync at the DEO.
Supergirl is called into action when remnants of the anti-alien terrorist organization Cadmus try to assassinate pro-alien leaders, but their endgame turns out to be much more sinister than she expected. J’onn (Harewood) relishes his peaceful new life, but an outing with an old friend causes him concern.
The CW’s Arrow season six ended with Oliver Queen (Stephen Amell) confessing he’s the Green Arrow. Season seven will pick up five months following the events of the season six finale, with Oliver locked up in the Slabside Maximum Security Prison. So, where does that leave the rest of Team Arrow? At the San Diego Comic Con, Rick Gonzalez did his very best to steer clear from season seven spoilers while discussing what’s in store for Arrow.
During our interview, Gonzalez talked about the team, season seven’s theme, and Rene’s journey in the upcoming season of the comic book-inspired series.
Arrow season seven premieres on October 15, 2018 at 8pm ET/PT.
What kind of headspace do we find Rene in at the beginning of the season?
Rick Gonzalez: “So, realistically, because Oliver’s in prison he’s given us a directive to keep on fighting. We are all going to interpret that in our own way. I kind of want to leave that for you guys to see. That’s going to be the interesting part, like, ‘Oh I didn’t see that coming. I didn’t see him interpreting it that way.’ So, for me, it’s important that we leave some things open, not teased, so you can genuinely have something to look forward to.
This season’s about redemption. Rene’s journey is going to be a story about trying to understand the choices he made becoming Wild Dog and why he made those choices. Being a dad. And, also having Oliver in prison what does that mean in terms of him continuing to fight back.
We still have Diaz still out there. We’ve never done that on the show before. We’ve never had a villain survive. So, there’s a lot of pieces in place that we left in six that still need to be resolved. So, that’s going to be the interesting part.
What I love about the show is the idea that we can not kill off a villain, that we can outlaw being a vigilante in Star City. So now the journey and the navigating as actors for the characters is going to be interesting to play and see play out.”
After the two teams were up against each other last season, what can you say about the team dynamics this season?
Rick Gonzalez: “I think that also lends itself to we did a lot of healing at the end of last year. We came together as a team and understood, ‘I’m sorry because I did this. I own it. I apologize.’ I think the team definitely grew. I mean, you have to have growth there, just people learning and growing with each other and respecting what they do. So, that won’t disappear.
I think that energy will permeate within the scenes when you see us next season. But it will also make it more interesting and complex to see characters make decisions that may feel like, ‘Wait, I thought we were good?’ Which is what makes the show awesome.”
His daughter knows what he does and has known for a while. How does that relationship play out this season?
Rick Gonzalez: “Interesting. I don’t know. I think William was okay with it, I think Oliver wasn’t in terms of revealing that world. William was like, ‘I’m fine knowing that.’ I think Zoe kind of proved that last season. Like, ‘Yeah, I know what you do.’
I think it’s interesting because kids are always like, ‘It’s not a big deal, dad.’ You know, like, ‘Okay, you like to play baseball. Cool. I don’t care.’ So is this that kind of thing of like Zoe is super smart, super mature, so I would imagine that she’d be totally fine with that idea. So, we’ll see how that plays out.”
