INSIDE VIKTOR HARGREEVES

 Number 7 of the Umbrella family always felt outside of everything. Living under his siblings’ shadows, believing he wasn’t good enough, fighting to earn his place in his own family and in life. His personality is suppressed by his evil father, who makes him think he is not special for years, and it’s only when he breaks free from his control that he starts to get to know his real self.

While learning how to use his powers, Viktor also begins to comprehend who he really is. In the series’ first season, his abilities (and himself, too) begin to conflict the family, something that could work as a metaphor of what usually happens when somebody comes out to his relatives. He only searches for love and acceptance, and it’s very sad to see him being used and manipulated over and over again.

In season two, he grows stronger, but after an accident he has amnesia and can’t remember anything. This is partly beneficial for him because it gives him a fresh start to find out about his true personality. Sissy is paramount in this process, helping Viktor to come out of the “box” in which he is trapped, and even though their relationship doesn’t last for long, it’s what makes Viktor reflect on his identity and finally embrace it.

It’s only in season three that we see him truly comfortable in his own skin. His transition is organic and beautiful to watch, because it’s the culmination of a journey of self-love and acceptance, and also his transformation in the person he was always destined to be. Consistently with this growth, Viktor ultimately understands the magnitude of his powers and we see him empowered and confident.

I think his evolution from Vanya to Viktor is authentic and natural, and I love The Umbrella Academy for the respectful way in which it dealt with his transition.

LET'S TALK ABOUT... IT

 

Every 27 years in Derry, Maine, a diabolical entity terrorizes children in the shape of a clown named Pennywise. In the 1980s, a group of seven kids called The Losers get together to try to destroy him, but they have to deal with their own personal demons in the process.}

In his literary work of the same name, master of horror Stephen King (whom I love and admire beyond any limit) tells us the story of a group of friends who face their worst fears, and the consequences that those events have on their adult lives. I can speak for hours about the book, because I believe it is one of the best King ever wrote, but I want to talk about the beautiful adaptation Andy Muschietti made.

In his two films, It and It: Chapter 2, the argentinian director takes us to the dark world of Derry, where terrible things happen and everybody seems to ignore it. The atmosphere is terrifying, and it shows us the desolation our protagonists feel. Pennywise is amazingly interpreted by Bill Skarsgård. And the way in which Muschietti develops every character while maintaining the essence they have in the novel is astonishing. I think that only a few have been able to accomplish something similar, showing on-screen the soul that King’s heroes have.

It works perfectly as a scary movie (I literally screamed while watching it at the movie theatre) but it also functions as a coming-of-age story, in which we see the Losers grow up and connect with them in a special way. This is not only because of the script and directing by Muschietti, but also because of the cast. The young Losers and the adult ones do a spectacular job, and complement each other with a rarely-been-seen chemistry in such an ensemble of characters.

All in all, I believe that the Muschietti siblings have created one of the best movies of the last decades, and its success was due partly to the magnificent mind of Stephen King, but also because of the creative minds behind this project.

FIGHT LIKE A GIRL

 NEBULA

In the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there are many strong female characters, and that’s one of the things I love about said universe. But today I would like to talk about a woman in particular who, in spite of having been tortured, hurt, beaten and trained to be a merciless assassin, ends up becoming one of the bravest heroes in the battle against Thanos.

When she was a kid, Nebula’s planet was invaded by the cruel titan Thanos, who murdered her entire family and took her with him to train her. Nebula did everything she could to please her father, but she was never able to be as good as her sister Gamora. The evil titan usually made the girls fight each other, and her sister would defeat her again and again. So each time Nebula fell, Thanos tortured her replacing her body parts for machinery, to improve her and make her better. Gamora never let her win, and this created a friction between the sisters, and is the reason why they don’t have a close relationship. Nevertheless, in the end she realices that they were both fighting for survival under their father’s commands.

Nebula’s transformation from villain to hero in the MCU is wonderful to watch. If there is something nice in this universe, is that it’s perfectly capable of developing the narrative arcs of its characters, and I think Nebula has a great one. We see that she’s desperate to be better than Gamora, to be what her father expects from her, to defeat and fight anyone who opposes her, and afterwards we see her reconsider her actions and joining the Avengers to destroy the cause of all her suffering: Thanos.

I admire this character because she’s an example of resilience, self-improvement, spirit, redemption and liberation, and I wish for the MCU to continue writing these type of characters that fight like a girl and kick ass.

LET’S TALK ABOUT… THE MANDALORIAN 📽

The story is straightforward: a gunslinger and bounty hunter travels around the galaxy with an adorable baby and has epic adventures. With this in mind and the fact that it takes place in the Star Wars universe, I have already given you enough reasons to watch it. But there’s so much more than that.

Even if you are Star Wars nerds or not, The Mandalorian is a thoroughly enjoyable series. The story is simple and forthright, it hasn’t got many plot twists or narrative devices like that, but it’s so effective that there is not a person who watches it and doesn’t feel absolute satisfaction. It’s entertaining, it has amazing cinematography and visual effects, and the characters are interesting, lovable and well developed. Besides, each one of them serve their unique purpose, which helps to make this story fantastic. And if you are true fans of the universe created by George Lucas, you will find references everywhere which makes the whole experience even more fun.

The episodes are short, they’re directed by great people such as Dave Filoni, Deborah Chow, Bryce Dallas Howard and Taika Waititi, among others, and its main character is so nice that it’s impossible not to love him. Mando never takes off his helmet but Pedro Pascal managed to show us his soul through his performance. The cast is very interesting, it has high-quality actors and actresses, a beautiful character called The Child that is probably the most adorable thing I have seen on TV in decades, and a compelling soundtrack. For me, The Mandalorian has it all.

So I would love to tell the great Jon Favreau, showrunner and creator of the series, that he put the Star Wars universe on his shoulders and he didn’t disappoint. Well done Jon, this is the way.