Author

Julian Cannon

Julian Cannon is a seasoned entertainment editor with a keen eye for capturing the pulse of the industry. With a career spanning over a decade, he has become a trusted voice in the realm of TV, movies, events, conventions, and red carpets. Julian's expertise lies in delivering insightful commentary on the latest trends, exclusive interviews with industry luminaries, and comprehensive coverage of high-profile events. Twitter: @Julianexcalibur Instagram: @Julianexcalibur Contact: Julian.theknockturnal@gmail.com

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Power Book III: Raising Kanan Season 2, Episode 7 Review

by Julian Cannon
written by Julian Cannon

On this week’s Power Book III: Raising Kanan, we got surprises, suspense, and a moment that will not be forgotten by the end of this season.

That is because Corinne catches Palomar and Kanan in bed together. I will not go on a tangent, but Palomar clearly took advantage of Kanan since he is a minor. That is sexual assault if you ask me. With that out of the way,  I wonder what this will do for Kanan in the long run. I will admit, I did chuckle a bit when the scene happened. But then I put the two together and realized how awful it was.

A nice scene that I liked is between Jukebox and Nicole’s father as they were both at her grave. It was great to see these two be at the same place without fighting over her death. Sure, Jukebox was indirectly involved, but the two were in love. This followed up towards the end of the episode as Jukebox gave Nicole’s dad the VHS tape of their singing session. To me, this signifies Jukebox is finally moving on.

The other plot points including Howard finding out that Scrappy wasn’t a snitch, it was really his mother, Burke discovering that Raq was once Howard’s informant, and Lou-Lou getting attacked by the men looking for Crown since nobody knows that he is dead yet. The stories are setting themselves up in a great way that can be built up properly. I also thought for one second that Raquel was going to kill Symphony at the last scene. She has it in her to do it, but what would it do for her.

With three more episodes of Raising Kanan after this week, we are in for an explosive finale. A great episode that picked up the pace from the previous episode!

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On The Scene: AMC Network’s Annual Summit

by Julian Cannon
written by Julian Cannon

For the first time in three years, AMC Network hosted their annual summit in Brooklyn, NY.

At this conference, talent and network executives were invited to participate in moderated discussions centered on the legacy company’s content, its past, its present and its future, as well as to discuss the new and epic worlds coming to AMCN’s platforms, as well as introduce the next seminal characters, which will capture the hearts and minds of viewers.

 As part of the event, AMC Networks’ President of Entertainment and AMC Studios, Dan McDermott (who hosted the event), was joined by cast and creatives from across AMC brands, including AMC, AMC+, Acorn TV, BBC America, Shudder, WE tv and ALLBLK. AMC Networks kicked off the morning by renewing Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire for a second season. The new series is expected to premiere on Sunday, October 2.

The first panel that took place was The World is a Dumpster Fire – Let’s Build New Ones moderated by Chris Hardwick. Scott Gimple, Chief Content Officer of The Walking Dead talked about several topics surrounding The Walking Dead’s universe. “With ‘The Walking Dead’… it’s a strange fantasy for the audience, that everything stops. That all of the things of society fall away and it’s just us with each other and we’re tested. We find out who we are. I think that was a weird fantasy that people dove into, to be tested that way and to look beyond this life. And I think they liked having those questions every week and they still do which is like ‘what would I do’. That certainly pulls you away from your everyday life.”

Gimple also went over the production changes over the years as the show has been filmed in digital since the third half of the tenth season. “Digital has been with us for a while. It’s only gotten better and better. It’s a huge part of production design, it’s a huge part of making that world,” said Gimple.

During the Love and Connection in the Black Community panel, the panelists that consisted of MC Lyte (‘Partners in Rhyme’), Da Brat (‘Brat Loves Judy’), David Shanks (‘61st St’), Colman Domingo (‘Fear the Walking Dead,’ ‘West Philly Baby’), Angela Simmons (‘Growing Up Hip Hop’), Diallo Riddle (‘Sherman’s Showcase’), Nikki Love (SVP, Development & Production, ALLBLK), they all talked about the importance of black and diverse talent that are on today’s landscape of television.

“Because the world would usually like to deny that part of ourselves, actually. So we need more love – we need to show accurate depictions and complex depictions of our families. It is our job as creators, as people who perform these roles, I think – it’s a responsibility we didn’t ask for but we have it,” said Colman Domingo on why it’s important to highlight this in TV and films.

Black people continue to struggle for quality roles on both the small and big screens, despite having won Academy Awards in acting, screenwriting, music production and other categories. “What we have here is a cast of people who are willing to do what’s right over what’s ‘sellable’ or ‘satiable,'” said MC Lyte on avoiding Black stereotypes. The topic of the next generation of Black queer content also came up as every panelist were passionate to talk about this since representation matters. “I think you have to be creative and I don’t know what that is- I mean, maybe it’s me and my wife having a baby. Whatever it is, I’m willing to show it so people can relate to it and understand what it’s about,” said Da Brat.

There were other great panels that took place such as Horror as a Safe Space, and AMCN’s Next Legacy Lineup Panel that I enjoyed too. It was a great event to not only mingle with the key executives of the AMC Network, but to also see them talk about the franchises that they are part of. The panels were not live streamed at the summit so you would have to be there in person to witness this.

 

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I saw the first four episodes of AMC+’s Interview With The Vampire. Here are my thoughts!

by Julian Cannon
written by Julian Cannon

This highly anticipated TV series, based on the first novel in the series, is now debuting on AMC. It features a macabre and sexually-charged retelling of Louis and Lestat based on Rice’s novel, while maintaining a much closer relationship to Rice’s novels than the 1994 film, while adding new layers of depth to the story of a vampire pondering a century of change. Essentially, this retelling is a modernized version that restores a lot of what was stripped from its previous version and sets the stage for a broader universe of Rice adaptations to come in the future. I got a chance to watch AMC”s Interview with the Vampire’s first four episodes last month. Here are my thoughts.

This modern-day adaptation follows vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac (Jacob Anderson) as he interviews Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian) about his life as a bloodsucker. The story is now set in the 21st century, with the pandemic being an integral part of the overall narrative while the updated flashbacks shift the beginning of the story from 1791 to 1910. 

In addition to Louis being a Creole, there is also a subtext of racism and bigotry surrounding the vampires. Despite the fact that Lestat, played by Sam Reid, is one of the last remaining relics of the 19th century, he is still a debonair and foppish aristocrat. The first thing that becomes apparent from the onset is that Brad Pitt plays Louis in this film differently from the version of Louis that our attention was wowed by when he played the forlorn landowner before he became a vampire. In Anderson’s portrayal of his character, he depicts him as a pimp and hustler who works to provide for the family. It is evident that Louis’ and Lestat’s relationship begins very differently from what is depicted in the movie when Louis meets Lestat.

We get a more layered look at Louis and his family in the first two episodes, which are directed by Alan Taylor (Game of Thrones). The evolution of Jacob Anderson’s character from man to monster is accentuated by the way he portrays his contemporary and flashback performances in different styles.

Eric Bogosian gives a more mature performance in the role of Daniel Molloy, through which he asks questions of Louis, who fawns over the love/hate relationship between him and Lestat, and gives his best performance to date. Throughout the next three episodes of the show, we continue to follow Claudia, who is an older version of Kirsten Dunst’s child vampire, as decades pass and we learn more about her relationship with Craig, played by Bailey Bass, who also plays Craig’s father. As familiar as this relationship has always been between Lestat, Louis, and Claudia, the relationship here is just as demented as ever, but somehow even more believable given that there has been a greater investment in developing the relationships in this series.

Whether you’re a fan of the novels or not, this series does a great job setting up the world, along with the other supernatural creations of Anne Rice. In spite of the fact that only the first four episodes were available for this review, there is a richness and grandness to this world that exceeds anything in the movie. This story’s queer undertones make little sense to those unfamiliar with the source material it draws from and somehow manages to improve upon. There is a lot of nudity in the series, something I wasn’t expecting from an AMC show, but not the least of which is the gore. The erotic side of vampire stories has been brought back to life on the screen in this series.

Unlike the film adaptations of Rice’s novels, this show has better actors and is difficult to top Cruise, Pitt, Banderas, and Dunst. It never ceases to intrigue and horrify while making each episode of this series look eerie and ethereal. Directed by Taylor, Keith Powell, Levan Akin, and Alexis Ostrander, it never ceases to look enticing and absolutely beautiful.

 

 

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The Walking Dead returns with two explosive episodes to kick off the final half of season 11

by Julian Cannon
written by Julian Cannon

The last time The Walking Dead graced our screens was nearly six months ago. Now the wait is over to see where the story is heading after that cliffhanger from episode 16.

The beginning of one of these episodes have some of the best stunt choreography i’ve seen on The Walking Dead in ages. before I get there, I have to say that based on the two episodes I saw, the rest of the seasons will open with narration monologues from Judith with video compilations of past scenes to set up the plot of each episode. It is something different so I welcome it.

Now back to the action. I was on the edge of my seat when the battles took place between team family vs. The Commonwealth soldiers. This started with a plan in which Negan had to participate since Lance never saw him before. I wish I can give further detail, but the plan works Speaking of Lance, he is more blood thirsty than ever before. He is doing everything he can in these two episodes to make it known that he is the ringleader even though Pamela does not approve. Josh Hamilton is fantastic with his delivery in each scene that he is in.

Two people that I never thought of having a scene together is Negan and Mercer. I will not say what they talked about, but it is something to keep in mind for the rest of the season. Also, Negan finally drops an F-bomb in one of the episodes. As much as I wanted this to happen for years since the character was introduced in season 6, when it happens, it is not for comedy. It is used on a serious manner.

Over at The Commonwealth, there is a huge protest going on due to the story Connie put out on the newspaper. I do wish that it was not resolved this quick, but I have a feeling that a full scale riot is brewing. Also, watch out for Carol’s big knife and Jerry protecting the children! There is also a scene that I like between Carol and Negan as they are both now working together to solve an issue for the time being.

I did not forget the walkers. There are two scenes that stood out as the gore involving them is disgusting, but great to look at. Be on the lookout for those moments.

Of the characters that I like for these two episodes, it will go to Eugene, Daryl, Negan, Jerry, Rosita, and Yumiko. They all had stand out performances that kept my attention. I will not spoil a major sequence in these two episodes, but it happens after a wrestling match (Note, I know the two independent wrestlers that were on this scene). And finally, there is a major character death on one of the episodes. It is so huge that it deviated from the comic book series.

Overall, I enjoyed “Lockdown” and “”A New Deal” as i personally think these two were better than the opening episodes of 11A and 11B. Where will this all lead to on The Walking Dead? We will see in the weeks to come!

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Tales of The Walking Dead Season 1 Finale Review

by Julian Cannon
written by Julian Cannon

After watching this week’s finale of Tales of The Walking Dead, I am convinced that this series has no identity.

In a nutshell, Alma died suddenly in the house, leaving Eric and Idalia to take refuge there after her death. The crucifixes on the wall begin to animate and attack Idalia, and she hears voices. As a result, Idalia feels guilty over taking advantage of the woman’s house. It takes Eric a while to accept the mysterious energy of the house, but it doesn’t last for very long as by the end, they are both dead.

Sounds familiar? It is because we just saw this nonsense on episode 2 of Tales of The Walking Dead in a familiar  structure.With awful writing and unrealistic supernatural elements that do not contribute to the plot, I felt as if I was watching the same episode over and over again.

It does not help that the talented actors were given a terrible script to act out the lines that did not sound natural. Such a waste!

Tales’ first season felt like a chore to watch rather than a coherent story. Sure it is an anthology format, but that did not work for this season as five of the six episodes’ writing and directing took a step back in quality as each week progressed. “Dee” is the best episode of the first season which outclassed all the other episodes this season. There are many shows that does the anthology format much better than this show and there should not be an excuse to why the quality of Tales is awful.

I hope that the next season goes away from the repeated tropes of the supernatural, hallucinations, and random characters that nobody cares about. Tales of The Walking Dead had potential, but it is not good as a show. And please, can each episode for the next season take place in different filming locations other than the woods, a cabin, and a basement? We see this across the three other shows. Why did it need to happen here?

 

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Power Book III Raising Kanan Season 2, Episode 6 Review

by Julian Cannon
written by Julian Cannon

This week’s edition of Power Book III: Raising Kanan is the best episode of the season.

It was highlighted with phenomenal acting performances by Mekia Curtus, Patina Miller, Joey Bada$$, and Malcom Mays all added extra layers of flavor in their scenes that moved the plot forward. It was a slow build episode, but the pacing was perfect.

We got our first glimpse into the original Power’s Kanan through the eyes of his younger self. Not only did he get the money back that the thugs stolen from him, he also taught the guy a lesson. I love everything about that scene since it has been a long time coming to see the start of the Kanan that we all know. It is too bad that this lead to Famous getting detained as they were running outside the house. Not even his rap lyrics entertained the prisoners there.

Perhaps the biggest scene in the episode is when Lou-Lou killed Crown. Lou-Lou wanted to make it known that he is in control of Bullet Proof Records and he did that by taking out his biggest threat which was Crown. It makes me wonder if he will do the same with Zisa since he is the only person who saw him do this. Wherever this will lead to, I am intrigued.

With Unique being involved with Raquel’s business, it is a matter of time before this will backfire for Raquel. I also sense that Unique and Worell are plotting against her behind the scenes.

With Raising Kanan taking a two week break, it left us with a cliffhanger that will be addressed when it returns. Awesome episode all around as I believe it is the beginning of Kanan’s rise.

 

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EntertainmentTV

Power Book III: Raising Kanan Season 2, Episode 6 Sneak Peak

by Julian Cannon
written by Julian Cannon

STARZ is excited to unveil a sneak peek clip from episode six of “Power Book III: Raising Kanan” season two.

On Sunday, September 18 at midnight, the episode will debut on the STARZ app, all STARZ streaming and on-demand platforms, and on the STARZPLAY streaming platform internationally. As for linear television, “The Serpent Queen” will debut on STARZ in the U.S. and Canada at 8:00pm ET/PT, followed by “Raising Kanan” at 9:00pm ET/PT. In “It’s A Business, Man,” Kanan (MeKai Curtis) assumes greater responsibility within his family’s business, but things quickly spiral out of control. In his partnership with Crown (Quincy Brown), Lou (Malcolm Mays) feels the pressure.

Set in the early 1990’s, the third series in the “Power” Universe tells the origin story of fan favorite character, “Kanan Stark,” and follows his coming of age in South Jamaica, Queens.

Raised by a single mother, who ruthlessly runs the family’s emerging criminal empire, Kanan charts out a path through some of the city’s most volatile streets while, at the same time, navigating his way through adolescence, which has its own dangers and pitfalls.

Be sure to catch our review of the episode this Sunday!

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Exclusive: AEW Superstar Thunder Rosa Talks AEW All Out, Her Importance on Community Outreach, and her Injury

by Julian Cannon
written by Julian Cannon

Thunder Rosa has been part of the AEW Roster since 2020 and she has made an impact on the women’s division.

Rosa has had several matches with Britt Baker thorough 2021 into 2022 which became one of the best women’s rivalries in AEW history. Thunder Rosa was set to defend her AEW Women’s Championship during All Out weekend this year. But unfortunately, she had to surrender her championship due to an injury.

But there is more to Thunder Rosa than her wrestling. She is active in her communities and she has a huge reach in the latino demographic. We recently spoke with the AEW Superstar about all of this in our exclusive interview.

The Knockturnal: When did you find out that you were not able to compete at All Out?

TR:”I really can’t pinpoint it, honestly, but I know my back was hurting for a couple weeks. And then the announcement was made on Wednesday (8/29) that I was unable to compete. So because I just literally got the news last week that I was hurt. But it was more serious than that. And I was encouraged to go and do the MRI to make sure to rule out any bad stuff. I did it and I got the news and I was very shocked to announce that I was actually lhurt. So now I’m trying to focus on getting better and it makes me sad because this is the first All Out that I miss.I mean, I’ve been to the last two All Outs and and there’s always been amazing moments and just being in a big show that’s so special because that’s where everything started at with AEW And that was a humongous opportunity. I say sometimes you are an athlete little things can really become big things until you get diagnosed with certain stuff. And I’m really blessed. I know God had me under his wing because I didn’t need to have surgery.”

 

Thunder Rosa AEW

Photo Credit: Julian Cannon

 

The Knockturnal You have a great reach in the Latino demographic. How much does this mean to you?

TR: “It’s very special because I wanted to portray when I became mainstream was me and my culture and how proud I am to be who I am to come where I come from. Other guys and girls that are not Latinos, they feel like a piece of Thunder Rosa that means something to them. For a person to be accepted into a new culture, they have to leave behind things they know and assimilate into that culture. I feel amazing about being able to bring color, flavor, loudness, everything that comes with being a Latina, and getting accepted because for so long, so many different companies weren’t willing to work with me. They wanted something else. And now I’m able to bring that in and just have people saying that they identify with it, it’s super awesome.”

The Knockturnal: With AEW’s roster being very diverse, what are your thoughts on why representation matters?

TR: “It is very important to to show representation and to show that it doesn’t matter where you come from, you can achieve your goals. And that goes into any aspect of life. Let’s say that somebody wants to be an astronaut and then they see a person of color that is an astronaut and they are inspired by the person of color. As they saw someone like them in this world making a difference, this will push them to become a part of that when they grow up.It’s a bit far-fetched, but I’m talking about women who would not have imagined themselves as athletes otherwise. Despite the fact that they are trying something new, they are pushing themselves and they are representing themselves, and that, to me, is so important because after all, no matter what you put in the ring, it’s about how you treat people and how you make them feel outside the ring. That’s what they’re going to remember all the time. It’s very powerful if you are able to inspire someone or influence them to change their mind about things, about perspective, about life.”

 

The Knockturnal: Do you have interests outside of the ring?

TR: “I love singing. I been working on taking classes for singing. Last month, I began taking it on again. Since last month, I’ve been working on a song. My next project is to record it in a studio. Since this is Mexican regional music, which is what I’m mostly working on, I would love to share my culture with others, and the lyrics are very important to me because I’ve had a lot of struggles in my life, such as misunderstanding people and the fact that, no matter what, you have to be positive. I also have someone who coaches me too. So it is really cool that you can find somebody that is super positive too, and is pushing you to to really express yourself in such a different way. So I’m working also on writing some songs, and then we’ll find the music for it, which is like a different level of being an artist. It’s something I’ve never done before. So it’s going to be a very interesting thing, and I’m working on other things as well. I am very active in my community and am very dedicated to helping women, children, and educational groups, but I am also more interested in writing a book. With my brother, I’d like to write a children’s book and discuss different things. Throughout my career, I look forward to being able to share a lot more things I’m excited about.”

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Power Book III: Raising Kanan Season 2, Episode 5 Review

by Julian Cannon
written by Julian Cannon

Today is camping day on Raising Kanan and it almost finished with a death.

That is because Kanan and Raq had a brief encounter with the Italian mafia as they stalked the two since they left Queens. There was a slow build as I was wondering the whole time if Raq was going to get pulled over while the corpse was in the trunk. With all of that going on, we got good character development between Kanan and Raquel.

It is good to see these two really talk without any danger looming for a while. Regardless that Kanan found out why they were really there, I like the scenes when they were at the campfire. I say this because they really bonded and I think it was time to show character progression in a non-violent level.

The star of this episode is Jukebox as her high notes stood out like a sharp sword. The actress Hailey Kilgore can sing and I always look forward to her scenes that involve the character singing. It is too bad that Lou-Lou decided to use her written song for Zisa because it is better for Jukebox. I also feel bad for Jukebox as her and her mom seems like they will not reconcile. Those scenes are hard to watch!

My next question that is looming over my head is will Marvin kill Toni? He could do it so he can have full creative control of Bullet Proof Records. But what will it do for him in the long run if that were to happen? Also, I wonder what is the end goal for Howard since Burke is getting closer to the truth as well.

There are five more episodes left for the season and the story is still cooking for a huge payoff by the end.

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Power Book III: Raising Kanan Season 2, Episode 4 Review

by Julian Cannon
written by Julian Cannon

This week’s edition of Power Book III: Raising Kanan is raising the stakes with the turf war between Raq’s group and the Italians.

That is because the Italians were intercepting every one of Raq’s transports. I have a feeling that Unique had something to do with this to get back at Raq. My first suspicion was the phone call earlier in the episode. If this does come out true, then thgat means Unique is finding a way to get back on top. While Raq is also lying to Kanan and Jukebox, Symphony ended his relationship with Raq and I wonder where will things go from there.

Jukebox and her mom talked for the first time and I was happy to see this. But the conversation was all not reminiscing about past times. Jukebox wanted to get down to why she left her and she admitted that she was scared to raise her when she was younger. I honestly thought that Letoya Luckett is a great fit to play as Jukebox’s mom. I’ve seen her act on several shows prior to Raising Kanan and she is really good!

I must say that I thought it was funny how Kanan was in one room while Raq, Marvin, and Lou were talking. Kanan did steal the money and Marvin found out that some of it was missing. But he did not figure out that it was Kanan though.

Regarding the Italian group again, Raq rejected their offer and this could be dangerous on both sides. We saw what happened when a similar deal could not be reached on Power Book IV: Force so it will be interesting to see what the outcome of this will be.

The fun is not over yet as Kanan and Famous hosted a party. It is here that we see Kanan and Corrine meet for the first time. Do I think that these two will get together? No. But if this means that it could soon lead to Kanan meeting the younger Jarita since they had a son, then I am all for it. Also, good to see KJ Smith (from BET’s Sistas) on this episode.

Due to the fact that the decomposing corpse in the wall was alluded to in this episode, I believe that this will be one of the factors driving the cops to discover Raq’s operation in the projects as the result of finding the dead corpse. There is no doubt in Kanan’s mind that he sees right through Raq. It will only be a matter of time before he is free of her completely. During the first season, he completely trusted her and listened to everything she said. As this season progresses, we are starting to see that foundation beginning to crack, and he is becoming more and more doubtful about her. I believe he will be running the streets on his own by the end of the season or next season, mirroring what his Uncle Vernon told him about Defcon when he was a kid.

I cannot wait for next week’s episode!

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