moviemanMDG's Status Update (July 2020 Edition)

Greetings, fellow followers, this is moviemanMDG, and today, I’m going to be talking about something different.  That’s right, there’s no movie for me to review (for now, at least) and there’s no “Movie Talk”.  It’s just me talking about something that I haven’t talked about before: the status of my blog so far since the pandemic started back in March.  If you can’t already tell, the world is still at a standstill thanks to the you-know-what and everyone is still wondering when this whole mess is going to disappear.  Not only is it affecting a bunch of businesses like restaurants and cinemas, but also my blog.  While I do have some extra time working on my crossover projects and my additional stuff due to the pandemic closing down the cinema that I’m working at, my film reviews are a different story.  For those who are new to my blog, the last film that I reviewed in the theater before the pandemic trapped me inside my own home was the superhero film “Bloodshot” starring Vin Diesel.  Spoiler alert: it was mediocre.  Ever since then, I’ve been trying to keep my blog alive by reviewing the latest films that made their way to several streaming services like Netflix and Disney+ as well as some older films that caught my attention.  It felt different reviewing films at home compared to the experience of watching them in the theater, but it’s better than nothing.  As I was working on my blog, I kept asking myself what will my plan be for the rest of the year during these troubling times.  Well, in today’s special update, I am going to answer that question by providing my upcoming plans for my blog/business in terms of my reviews, my crossovers, and a special milestone.

Let’s start things off with the main purpose of my blog: my movie reviews.  As I mentioned earlier, I’ve been spending a few months reviewing specific films on multiple streaming services as well as some classic films that I haven’t talked about before in my blog.  Most of the films I’ve watched were either tolerable or fantastic.  Others, not so much.  There are plenty of films that are still set to hit theaters during the fall season, but since most of the major theaters are still closed, there’s a good chance that they will be delayed indefinitely like the live-action remake of “Mulan” or pushed back to next year with the other 2020 films like “F9” and “Godzilla vs. Kong”.  If the theaters do manage to reopen during the pandemic (with the proper conditions, of course), it will probably take a while for me to go back to reviewing theatrical films for the sake of my health and my family’s.  So, there’s a good chance that I will be extremely late for reviews of upcoming films like “Tenet” and “The King’s Man”.  If not, then I will continue to review movies on the streaming services, both old and new, until I feel confident enough to return to my second home: the cinema.  This August marks the end of one of the worst summers of our lives, but it also offers plenty of new choices that should keep us from going insane.  While I may not be able to look at certain films that are set to come out in a small amount of theaters like “Unhinged”, “Antebellum”, and “David Copperfield”, I am planning on reviewing several films that are premiering on a couple of streaming services.  We got the first original film from HBO Max, “An American Pickle”, starring Seth Rogen coming out as well as the latest action film from Netflix, “Project Power”, so be on the lookout for those reviews.  We’re also getting a couple of films that will be appearing on Disney+ in August like “The One and Only Ivan”, “Magic Camp”, and the new “Phineas and Ferb” film “Candace Against the Universe”.  I’m definitely planning on reviewing those movies for the families who are still struggling with their film choices.  Throughout September and October, I will be attempting to review “Bill & Ted Face the Music” since the film is releasing simultaneously in theaters and through video on demand as well as the upcoming film from writer/director Aaron Sorkin, “The Trial of the Chicago 7”, which is set to premiere on Netflix this October.  There are also a couple of streaming films that make me question whether to review them or not like the Netflix film, “I’m Thinking of Ending Things”, and the Disney+ original, “Secret Society of Second-Born Royals”, both of which are set to come out in September.  If you want me to review those films, don’t be afraid to let me know.  As for the classic films, I might be planning on looking back at an underrated gem that is celebrating its 10th anniversary this August.  I’ll give you a hint: it’s “Scott Pilgrim”.  I’m also open for any suggestions on what classic film I should talk about for my blog, so if you have one, let me know and I’ll do what I can to check them out.

The next topic I want to talk about are my crossovers, or in this case, my upcoming crossover, “Ed, Edd n Eddy’s Frozen Adventure Chapter Two”.  I’ve been spending some more time working on it since the beginning of July, but not without a day off or two, and so far, I only managed to complete the first two parts.  It took a lot of brainstorming and creativity to get them done.  There are only a couple of things I can share without giving away spoilers, such as the plot and the direction I’m going for.  For those who haven’t been following my crossovers, “Ed, Edd n Eddy’s Frozen Adventure Chapter Two” is the second half of the “Ed, Edd n Eddy’s Frozen Adventure” story arc.  It was originally set to appear as one big crossover event before I decided to split it into two separate chapters back in late May/early June.  Like “Ed, Edd n Eddy’s Frozen Adventure” (now renamed “Ed, Edd n Eddy’s Frozen Adventure Chapter One”), the crossover will combine the main plot elements of “Frozen” and “Transformers: Dark of the Moon” with a story that puts the friendship between the Eds and Sora, Donald, and Goofy to the test.  The crossover will also include a flashback sequence that showcases how the Eds first met Sora, Donald, and Goofy in order to provide some more depth in their friendship.  My personal goal in “Chapter Two” is to continue the representation of a friendship being torn apart by people’s different beliefs while maintaining the themes that made “Frozen” and my past “Ultimate Ed-Chronicles” crossovers special.  I also want this to serve as a conclusion to phase one of “The Beginnings Saga” that started with “The Rise of Maleficent”, with phase two beginning with “Edventures in San Fransokyo”, so be prepared for plenty of surprises.  As of right now, the crossover is still set to be released on my blog around Thanksgiving, so if you guys are still stuck at home during that time, you’ll know what you’ll be watching with your families.

The last thing I will mention is the fact that this year marks the fifth anniversary of my website.  Better late than never.  I created my own website back in October 2015 in order to share my movie reviewing skills and my creativity with the world, with my very first review on it being Guillermo Del Toro’s “Crimson Peak”.  Ever since then, I gathered many followers and my interest in reviewing films continues to grow and grow by the minute.  It’s pretty amazing to see how far I’ve gotten considering the fact that I created my blog using the Weebly website, and I have you guys to thank for inspiring me to keep going.  I wouldn’t have gotten that much attention without you.  As of now, I don’t have a lot of big plans to celebrate this milestone, but I’ll let you guys know if I come up with anything.

So there you have it.  These are my upcoming plans for the rest of 2020 in terms of my website.  I’m still reviewing films despite the closure of movie theaters, I’m still working on my crossover project, and I’m still going strong after five years of working on my blog.  Once again, I would like to thank you all for visiting my site every now and then during this difficult time.  I always aim to please people with my sense of humor and my source of entertainment.  The future still looks pretty uncertain because of the pandemic, but I can easily bet that whatever lies ahead, we can get through it together.  With that in mind, please remember to stay safe, wear a mask, and practice good hygiene.