Tim reviewed the “Thor: Love and Thunder” and Season 1 of “The Terminal List”) with guest host Sheletta Brundidge on the “Adam and Jordana” show on WCCO-AM on Friday. Tim’s segments are brought to you by Michael Bryant, and Bradshaw and Bryant.
Tim Lammers reviews movies weekly for “The KQ92 Morning Show” with Tom Barnard on KQRS-FM, “Paul and Jordana” with Paul Douglas and Jordana Green on WCCO Radio, “It Matters with Kelly Cordes” on WJON-AM, KLZZ-FM, “The Tom Barnard Podcast” and “The BS Show” with Bob Sansevere, and reviews streaming programming on WCCO Radio’s “Paul and Jordana” as well. On TV, Tim has made hundreds of guest appearances on NBC affiliate KARE on the news program “KARE 11 News at 11”.
The 50th annual San Diego Comic-Con is finally here, beginning with a preview night Wednesday before it kicks into high gear Thursday. The bigger it becomes (it’s already massive, with a reported average of 130,000 fans from all over the world), the more stars it seems to attract, particularly from the superhero, sci-fi and horror movie realms.
And while throngs of fans descend upon the San Diego Convention Center’s famed Hall H to see panels of stars from upcoming films and perhaps some teaser footage not available anywhere else, there’s a large contingent of fans also attending the annual gathering to get some exclusives: toys and collectibles not available to the general public.
This year’s offerings features a gaggle of new and cool movie playthings, including action figures of actors being produced for the first time, including NECA’s retro eight-inch action figure of the villainous “Karate Kid” coach Kreese (Martin Kove), which comes on the heels of releases of eight-inch figures of Daniel (Ralph Macchio), his coach, Mr. Miyagi (the late Pat Morita) and Daniel’s chief rival, Johnny (William Zabka), as seen in the 1984 film.
Fans who purchase the Kreese figure will also get another special opportunity: to meet Kove, who will be on-hand at NECA’s booth to sign packages of the miniature version of himself. In addition to the Kove figure, NECA’sSDCC exclusive offerings include a special “etched” seven-inch version of Pennywise the Dancing Clown (Bill Skarsgard), just in time for the release of “IT: Chapter 2” in September; and a seven-inch scale figure of the young version of John Connor (Edward Furlong) and his motorcycle from the 1991 blockbuster “Terminator 2: Judgment Day.”
As NECA’s offerings prove, there’s a big enough market for action figures from classic films to justify the release of action figures of them, even if only in limited quantities.
Continuing its “Jurassic Park” legacy line of three and three-quarter-inch figures in the past year, figures of paleontologists Alan Grant (Sam Neill) and Ellie Sattler (Laura Dern), as well as mathematician Ian Malcolm (Jeff Goldblum) have already been released, Mattel is about to debut a figure as a SDCC exclusive: Jurassic Park founder John Hammond (the late Richard Attenborough). Hammond’s figure not only features packaging that looks like the gateway to Jurassic Park, it includes a stand that holds a cracked open egg with a baby dinosaur.
While some toy and collectibles companies are concentrating on releasing exclusive products of vintage movies, others are concentrating on more modern fare. Among them are Hasbro, which is selling an exclusive “Star Wars” Black Series six-inch figure of a Sith Trooper (think of Stormtrooper’s armor, but molded in red), the first new character being revealed for the December film “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.”
Also being offered by Hasbro are pair of six-inch figures from the Marvel Cinematic Universe: The Collector (Benicio Del Toro) from “Guardians of the Galaxy” and Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum) from “Thor: Ragnarok.” While the exclusive figures are packaged separately (with their respective movie title treatment), they are being sold as a set. Per Marvel lore, the Collector and Grandmaster are brothers, after all.
VIDEO: See Tim’s review of the film with Adrienne Broaddus on KARE-TV (NBC Minneapolis).
Chris Hemsworth is back and funnier than ever as the God of Thunder in “Thor: Ragnarok,” an action comedy-style adventure that diverts from the path established by the first two “Thor” movies and as a result, thrives through the kaleidoscopic vision of director Taika Waititi.
The film doesn’t waste any time raising the stakes for Thor, who learns while in the capture of the fiery demon Surtur (voice of Clancy Brown) that his home planet of Asgard is facing Ragnarok – the end of days – which he thinks he puts a temporary stop to.
That all changes, though, when his father, Odin (Anthony Hopkins) warns Thor and his brother, Loki (Tom Hiddleston) that Hela, the Goddess of Death (Cate Blanchett) has broken out of her imprisoned existence and is coming to Asgard to wreak havoc. In their first attempt to stop her, both Thor and Loki are cast off to the junk planet of Sakaar, where its savvy ruler Grandmaster (Jeff Goldblum) features Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) in gladiator-style battles to entertain the planet’s inhabitants.
But with his powers restricted after being captured by the bounty hunter, Valkyrie (Tessa Thompson), Thor must first find a way to convince Hulk (Mark Ruffalo) to revert to Bruce Banner to escape from Grandmaster’s clutches to get back to Asgard to face off against Hela, whose powers are growing stronger by the minute.
While the first two Thor films weren’t overly serious, “Thor: Ragnarok” establishes almost from its opening frames that it will be marching to the beat of a different – and very funny – drummer. Yes, serious things do happen in the film, but through Waititi’s lighthearted approach, we’re treated to a fast-moving, neon-infused adventure romp that’s loaded with action, colorful costumes and sets, and hilarious dialogue created largely through the improv skills of the gifted ensemble cast.
All told, Waititi injects a burst of energy that’s so welcome in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. And while the previous films in the MCU were hardly lacking, it’s exciting to see a filmmaker take risks and break free from the studio’s other offerings and establish its own identity. While some sequels face the danger of falling into a trap and becoming formulaic with each passing film, that’s never the case with “Thor: Ragnarok.” It’s a (Hulk) smashing great time.
Lammometer: 9 (out of 10)
AUDIO: Hear Tim’s review of “Thor: Ragnarok” with Tom Barnard on “The KQ Morning Show.”
