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[JohnIan101]

Best Buy - January 31st, 2017


Jack Reacher: Never Go Back
Exclusive steelbook; 4K BD/BD combo $29.99 or BD/DVD combo $19.99

Pinocchio (Disney)
Exclusive BD/DVD combo $22.99

Inferno (available now)
Exclusive steelbook; 4K BD/BD combo $29.99

[JohnIan101]

Past Tense - The Girl, The Specter And Detroit Part II


Season Three: Mom is broken out of jail, that night. Danger is not only restarts, but grows. She misrepresented herself, not The Boss. There is a master she answers to.

Final season is about finding that shadow person, stopping him before he can do them harm. Detroit unmasked the sex underworld to the public through Mom. The rest of the pimps were untouched; Mom had many criminal enterprises running.

The mystery person had been secretly consolidating territories, all of that planning out the window.

Revenge!!!

Mystery person was more than grabbing regions - was compiling blackmail material. The gang discovers that this includes compromising footage of a presidential candidate and illicit photos of senators including industrialist Harmon Rausehorn.

Rausehorn was played by Andrew Duggan in the feature; wealthy alumni who saves the college. Not here, I'll cover in a few.

Series finale is at the Player's Ball like the movie, but on a larger scale, more at stake than a donation. I don't want to say conspiracy, but really, yeah. The end is a sword fight; Detroit vs. Mom and the Mystery Man, a three way battle in the dinner hall.

Before the movie bombed at the box office, a treatment was written, "Doctor Detroit 2: The Wraith Of Mom" by Dan Aykroyd. No idea what's that is about.

I liked that all the girls were fully aware, nobody was forcing them into prostitution. Not stupid, no ditzes (not even the blonde), nor victims. Which was unconventional at the time, not Hollywood tropes. I suppose that upset some who didn't understand or made them angry. Each of the ladies WANTED to be there.

They are for the most part having fun, using their assets to make money for later goals; the gig won't last forever. The series will cover these dreams and how Smooth screwed them.

Walker took his cash and all of theirs, money they gave for him to hold; the girls are shocked - they're broke too, futures stolen; found out when Cliff goes through Smooth's belongings.

Thelma and Jasmine want to own a beauty salon. Not a common business; a two story, high end establishment, catering to the rich and famous with serious money.

Karen wants to own a decent restaurant franchise, whole thing. Hire a competent manager to run it so she can fully retire and travel the world. She has scrapbooks of places she wants to visit; posters of tourist spots in her bedroom and a box of postcards from exotic locales.

Monica is still considering her post-vocation. Not indecisive; she has ideas, but nothing she wants to do for the rest of her life. What she wants is options, options that real money can buy.

By the way, this is a drama with humor mixed in - the absurdity of the situations, NOT from cracking jokes.

While not officially their pimp, the girls feel that Cliff is doing the job of one; keeping them safe, allowing them to operate, a functional call girl service. When not escorting, Karen mans the phone for bookings. They decide to give a cut to Cliff.

In season one that would be a full "no", but not now; a small explosion at the Skridlow home, early season two.

The first fear is Mom finding out his real identity, retaliating - no. It was a minor gas leak; an undisturbed cigar left by his father to fade in an ashtray, resulted in a back end of the home blown. The rear has a large blue tarp covering the hole.

No money to fix the house because of collage funds trouble. Because of structural weakness, Cliff's room can't be occupied. Hush money was paid to keep that bit a secret, allowing his parents to live at the damaged residence.

Cliff takes the girls' money, hires postgrads students to fix the house on a fixed dollar.

With the home under repairs, little choice but to move into the penthouse (Diavolo driving him to collage each day). During this time, something occurs to him. Not of his own design, but this bizarre state of affairs has him considering his life.

Throughout season one; we are exposed to other professors and students on campus - Cliff's professional life. The fight over dwindling money has a cold fact thrown at him.

His position and tenure was gifted by his father, the Dean (George Furth) - nepotism. He lives at home for free, no expensive (food or utilities). True - he did earn his degrees and is qualified at his job. He never had to compete for that position, it was always a given, unlike the other teachers; that reality was never pondered until now. The call girl operation, shady as it is - is his.

Cliff decided to makes sure it's stable, for the now and later when he leaves. It means going through all of Smooth's books.

One of the good things from it; discovering Walker had paid the penthouse a year in advance. And the car is in the clear. But the credit cards are nearly maxed. The place has a pricey utility bill. Plus all the other things needed to run an escort business; fancy/sexy dresses and cleaning of said outfits.

From here, looking at their intake; creates a budget for daily operations (phone bills to gas money) and putting cash aside to pay for another year. The ladies live here. More than Smooth's bachelor pad, it's a home. In short, living within their means while keeping appearance even if it's paper thin.

To save long term money, he has the postgrads convert one of the smaller rooms for hydroponics; fruits and vegetables not wasting cash on groceries. As expected Diavolo turns one of the corners for pot, personal and business use.

He also invests in a heavy-duty washer and dryer, stop paying laundry services; minus the outfits which require dry cleaning. The appliances installed by those students - who are in the dark.

Cliff still does not see himself as a pimp, but it's obvious, his actions and assistance says different. We see at the end of season two; Detroit no longer needed, he's sad to go, but keeps it to himself. He turned the failing venture around, the enterprise in now in the black. Done by him, not his father's hand.

White lies...

Cliff told his parents after repairs were done, that the place he's staying has a non-returnable deposit. And decides to stay until the lease is up. The gang know that Skridlow's residence is fixed. But having him there is a good thing, considering how things things are going - don't ask. Cliff also told his parents the money was a bank loan - which why he hired students.

After a point, Cliff realizes that 'Detroit' can be MORE than just an imaginary pimp, that this persona could be a force for good. He has Detroit save a women's shelter from closing in season two.

In the film, once finished playing the Doctor, Skridlow returns the props to their home, the theatrical department. With all that's happening, Diavolo decides it's best to keep it all at the penthouse in a suitcase; change at a moment's notice.

It starts off as a joke by the girls, Detroit's wardrobe. The outfits gets louder and louder; each of the girls tries to top the other with outrageous pieces from Goodwill, saved for later Doctor use.

And should be noted that Skridlow uses some make-up for his transformation into Detroit. Not just Cliff in a wig with glasses which bugged me about the film. Also in that suitcase.

For the finale - it is the girls who save Monroe College, not Rausehorn. Learning of the dire troubles midway through season three (doors are going to be closing soon); the girls start fielding wealthy customers if they want a tax write off for a good cause. It leads one of them to donate half a million.

In the movie it's a one million donation, that felt odd; too much for mid-range collage, especially for one in the early 1980s. Half a million is a lot of money in '83, more reality based.



In the end, it is Monica that Cliff marries, not Karen. She fell into the position of being his companion and something more blossomed - a close friend, not lover. She got him and is a good listener who encouraged Cliff. Above pix, Cliff and Karen, that's Smooth on the right, early in the film. Yeah, looks like he's wearing make-up.

Because of Monica's encouragement, he becomes more loose and inventive; Cliff impersonating a Southern lawyer happens early in season two when Thelma is jailed for hooking - result of a job at a party gone wrong. Nothing had happened, yet.

Guilt by association; Thelma was with two other escorts in the bathroom, full clothed when the shindig got raided.

It's Karen who marries Rausehorn, here.

Why didn't the Mystery Man take out Detroit in season one?

Mom didn't tell; fearful to be excluded from the endeavor - money and power spillage coming her way, as long as she delivered the goods. Which at that point, Detroit had not interfered. Just lots of hurt pride; she thought she could destroy the Doctor, a notice to all those who go against Mom.

Back to the our PT...



Jon Heder was used sparingly. His character, Darryl does move the story forward with needed exposition, but doesn't overstay his welcome. He plays the same guy in EVERY movie he's in; actors Jesse Eisenberg and Michael Cera have made a career out of it - though many would argue they are interchangeable (myself included).

The above outline is a great concept.

Have a sway Valentines Day!

Our next PT will smack you with vengeance on February 16th, 2017, a budgeted super hero will not be silenced. Take that villainy!

[JohnIan101]

Best Buy - February 7th, 2017


Trolls
Exclusive party edition; book and packaging - BD/DVD/DC combo $19.99

Justice League Dark
Exclusive Constatine figurine and graphic novel; BD/DVD/DC combo $29.99

[JohnIan101]

Best Buy - February 12th, 2017


Underworld: Awakening (available now)
* Exclusive steelbook; BD only $9.99

Underworld: Rise Of The Lycans (available now)
* Exclusive steelbook; BD only $9.99

Underworld (available now)
* Exclusive steelbook; BD only $9.99

Underworld: Evolution (available now)
* Exclusive steelbook; BD only $9.99

Resident Evil: Apocalypse (available now)
* Exclusive steelbook; BD only $9.99

Resident Evil: Afterlife (available now)
* Exclusive steelbook; BD only $9.99

Resident Evil: Extinction (available now)
* Exclusive steelbook; BD only $9.99