Aaron Arndt

I loved it. It was the best movie I’ve seen in a while. I actually went to the movie theater to see it with my family—first movie in a theater in years. It was funny, had an interesting plot, moved along quickly, and had likable characters. I also like how well it stayed true to dnd lore. I highly recommend it to people who like action/comedy and fantasy movies, and people who play dnd.

I really appreciated it. The frustration of the characters to get people to care about such an obvious threat seems on point for the issue of climate change. This is a movie for people who are already frustrated with inaction on climate change. People who don’t already care about climate change probably won’t like this movie.

On one hand, the acting was excellent and the episodes were addictive. I particularly loved how well the actor portraying the younger Mia was able to replicate Kerry Washington with such accuracy. On the other hand, this show was steeped in social messaging and I strongly disliked the ending. I am rather horrified by the social messaging regarding adoption and childcare. The message seems to be that loving parents who provide a stable home are villains. While it is theoretically possible that Mia could “live free” and still raise a well adjusted healthy daughter, the odds would have been against her. Her daughter Pearl was somehow well-read despite limited access to books, had straight teeth despite limited access to a dentist, was healthy despite limited access to a doctor and poor access to a safe place to sleep, and seemed mentally stable despite all she went through. This feels more like a fairytale than reality. Without spoilers it is difficult to discuss the letdown in the final episode but suffice it to say that we get an “uplifting” clip showing the same mom who left her starving baby outside in a box because she was afraid of deportation driving with a toddler to Canada in the winter without a home, job, money or legal status. So the message seems to be “the wants of parents are more important than the needs of their kids.” I finished watching this show and went to bed angry.