2026 NFL Mock Draft (3/30)

1.Las Vegas Raiders: Fernando Mendoza, quarterback (Indiana)

2.New York Jets: Arvell Reese, edge rusher/inside linebacker (Ohio State)

3.Arizona Cardinals: David Bailey, edge rusher (Texas Tech)

4.Tennessee Titans: Jeremiyah Love, running back (Notre Dame)

5.New York Giants: Sonny Styles, inside linebacker (Ohio State)

6.Cleveland Browns: Francis Mauigoa, tackle (Miami)

7.Washington Commanders: Mansoor Delane, cornerback (LSU)

8.New Orleans Saints: Carnell Tate, wide receiver (Ohio State)

9.Kansas City Chiefs: Spencer Fano, tackle (Utah)

10.Cincinnati Bengals: Caleb Downs, safety (Ohio State)

11.Miami Dolphins: Makai Lemon, wide receiver (USC)

12.Dallas Cowboys: Ruben Bain Jr., edge rusher (Miami)

13.Los Angeles Rams: Jordyn Tyson, wide receiver (Arizona State)

14.Baltimore Ravens: Olavaega Ioane, guard (Penn State) 

15.Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Kenyon Sadiq, tight end (Oregon)

16.New York Jets: Omar Cooper Jr., wide receiver (Indiana)

17.Detroit Lions: Jermod McCoy, cornerback (Tennessee) 

18.Minnesota Vikings: Dillon Thieneman, safety (Oregon)

19.Carolina Panthers: Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, safety (Toledo)

20.Dallas Cowboys: Avieon Terrell, cornerback (Clemson)

21.Pittsburgh Steelers: Ty Simpson, quarterback (Alabama)

22.Los Angeles Chargers: Akheem Mesidor, edge rusher (Miami)

23.Philadelphia Eagles: Kaydon Proctor, tackle/guard (Alabama)

24.Cleveland Browns: Denzel Boston, wide receiver (Washington)

25.Chicago Bears: Peter Woods, defensive tackle (Clemson)

26.Buffalo Bills: Caleb Banks, defensive tackle (Florida)

27.San Francisco 49ers: Monroe Freeling, tackle (Georgia)

28.Houston Texans: Blake Miller, tackle (Clemson)

29.Kansas City Chiefs: Colton Hood, cornerback (Tennessee) 

30.Miami Dolphins: Cashius Howell, edge rusher (Texas A&M)

31.New England Patriots: Keldric Faulk, edge rusher (Auburn)

32.Seattle Seahawks: Chris Johnson, cornerback (San Diego State)

2026 NFL Free Agency Recap: Winners and Losers, Best/Worst Deals and Best Players Still Available

Biggest Winners: Los Angeles Rams

The Rams are coming off a season where they reached the NFC Championship Game and had just one real weakness on their whole roster at cornerback and they were somehow able to land both Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson?!? The other 31 teams in the league should be ashamed of themselves for allowing this to happen. McDuffie has already established himself as one of the most well-rounded top corners in football and he's not even in his late 20's yet (he turns 26 in September) while Watson is one of the most reliable #2 outside corners in the league when he's healthy. On top of their talent, these guys have the added bonus of established camaraderie as they played together with the Chiefs over the past 4 seasons and were the biggest reason their consistently strong corner group could afford to let guys like Charvarius Ward and L'Jarius Sneed walk. 

Beyond these headline-grabbing additions, the Rams were relatively quiet but efficient with their moves. Extending Kamren Curl made a ton of sense as he's really helped stabilized their safety group over the past 2 seasons with his savvy play, bringing Tyler Higbee back ensures they retain the depth and dynamism that makes their TE room so dangerous and Grant Stuard is an established special teams piece that should help lead the needed overhaul in that group that really hurt them with their poor, undisciplined play at times last season. There's presumably a domino or two left to fall as their receiver room took a hit with the departure of vertical threat Tutu Atwell and Jimmy Garoppolo-whose served as Matthew Stafford's backup for the past 2 seasons-remaining unsigned (it's hard to believe that Sean McVay is going to entrust someone as green as Stetson Bennett to backup Stafford as he enters his age 38 season), so there's a chance that this offseason gets even rosier for this longtime NFC powerhouse. 

Honorable Mentions: Carolina Panthers, New York Giants, Pittsburgh Steelers

Biggest Losers: Miami Dolphins

The Dolphins were one of only two teams in the league to fire their head coach and general manager this offseason. When new brass takes over a team, the expectation is that they will offer up some clear vision to retool or, in the case of the Dolphins, rebuild the operation after a period of underwhelming performances. We're barely even 2 months into the Jon-Eric Sullivan/Jeff Hafley administration in South Beach and they've already managed to mystify the football world with how they're approaching roster-building. Everybody knew that there was going to be some cap difficulties here after they released Tua Tagovailoa, Tyreek Hill and Bradley Chubb, but the baffling string of moves they've made following these cuts can't be attributed to a huge dead cap number limiting who they could sign.

When top free agent quarterback Malik Willis elected to sign here, there was some notable confusion as their roster situation wasn't as favorable as some of the other places he could've went to that presumably would've given him the opportunity to start (Vikings, Steelers, Cardinals). Early last week, Willis' decision to sign in Miami became even more confusing when they shockingly dealt Jaylen Waddle to the Broncos. They have since publicly come out and said that their star running back De'Von Achane is not available in trade, but can you really take them at their word when they just dealt away the only other young star player they had on their roster?

Waddle's shocking exit has lowered Willis' already pretty long odds of becoming a viable start with the Dolphins. Their receiver room is now headed up by Malik Washington-who posted a whopping 317 YDS on 46 receptions last season and a pair of free agent pickups (Jalen Tolbert, Tutu Atwell) who have exclusively been 3rd, 4th or 5th options throughout their careers, their already questionable offensive line added yet another shaky piece with the signing of Jamaree Salyer-who has been a key cog in the woeful play of the Chargers o-line over the past 4 seasons and is expected to start at right guard- and merely looking at defensive depth chart-especially in the secondary-could be enough to make someone nauseous. They're going to have to have themselves one hell of a draft for me to stop thinking that they're a completely aloof organization that is barreling towards another prolonged stint at the bottom of the league hierarchy.  

Dishonorable Mentions: Los Angeles Chargers, Tennessee Titans, Atlanta Falcons

Best Individual Signing: Devin Lloyd to the Panthers (3 years/$45 mil/$25 mil guaranteed)

Despite ultimately finishing 8-9, the Panthers showed enough promise during Dave Canales' 2nd year on the job to start making some major investments in the roster. Lloyd in particular is the kind of player that could change the entire complexion of their defense-which was largely average on the whole but had some flashes of excellence during 2025. He's one of the few inside linebackers in the league that truly makes a huge impact against the run and in coverage and Ejiro Evero is the kind of creative defensive coordinator that could really unleash his full potential as a dynamic, electrifying weapon as he's set to enter his prime. 

Honorable Mentions: Jamel Dean to the Steelers (3 years/$36.75 mil/$12 mil guaranteed), Kenneth Walker III to the Chiefs (3 years/$43.05 mil/$28.7 mil guaranteed), Jaylinn Hawkins to the Ravens (2 years/$10 mil/$5 mil guaranteed)

Worst Individual Signing: Mike Evans to the 49ers (3 years/$42.4 mil/$16.3 mil guaranteed) 

After George Kittle's Achillies exploded in the second quarter of the 49ers Wild Card victory over the Eagles in January, a conspiracy started going around online that the electromagnetic fields emanating from an electrical substation that is located near their practice facility in Santa Clara was responsible for the notoriously high injury rates the team has dealt with in recent years. Whatever the cause may be, this team has been the face of the chronically injured ever since Kyle Shanahan took over as head coach back in 2017 and this admittedly hilarious conspiracy theory is only to going further popularize this sentiment. 

With this mind, signing Mike Evans to a multi-year deal is a completely fucking insane move. Evans has a lengthy history of soft tissue injuries, missed over half of the 2025 campaign with a broken clavicle and is about to turn 33 years old. He might not even make out of camp with all of his limbs intact! Admittedly, the guarantees are small enough for the 49ers to come out of this deal relatively unscathed if Evans ends up in a full body cast before season's end but still, trusting an aging star player with real injury concerns to anchor a receiving corps that has serious problems with fielding healthy bodies in back-to-back seasons is the kind of loopy dice-roll this organization can't really afford to make as their championship window continues to shrink with each passing day. 

Dishonorable Mentions: Wan'Dale Robinson to the Titans (4 years/$70 mil/$38 mil guaranteed), Quay Walker to the Raiders (3 years/$40.5 mil/$28 mil guaranteed), Zion Johnson to the Browns (3 years/$49.5 mil/$32.39 mil guaranteed) 

Best Player Still Available: Jauan Jennings, wide receiver (2025 team: San Francisco 49ers)

Jennings is a tough, physical outside receiver whose ability to make contested catches and get in the endzone has endeared him to every quarterback he played with during his 6 seasons with the 49ers. While the potential that all of the bumps and bruises he suffered in San Francisco catching up with him as he heads into his age 29 season will almost certainly lower the term of whatever contract he ultimately signs, his special, unteachable skills would make him a valuable addition to any contending team's receiving room.

Honorable Mentions: D.J. Reader, Stefon Diggs, Kevin Zeitler 

Samara Weaving Ranked

Welcome to "Ranked", a weekly series where I rank a franchise or filmography from worst to best and hand out assorted related superlatives. This week, I'm profiling the work of Samara Weaving-whose latest project "Ready or Not 2: Here I Come" is now playing in theaters. 

Samara Weaving's Filmography Ranked:

16.Monster Trucks (D)

15.Chevalier (C)

14.Last Moment of Clarity (C)

13.Borderline (C)

12.Snake Eyes (B-)

11.Eenie Meanie (B-)

10.Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (B-)

9.Mayhem (B)

8.The Babysitter: Killer Queen (B)

7.Azrael (B)

6.Bill & Ted Face the Music (B)

5.The Babysitter (B)

4.Guns Akimbo (B+)

3.Scream VI (B+)

2.Ready or Not (B+)

1.Babylon (B+)

Top Dog: Babylon (2022)

Damien Chazelle has been on quite the roller coaster since Babylon was released. His blockbuster ode to Hollywood's drastic transition from the debauchery of the silent movie era to the early days of the "talkies" where the whole industry suddenly got more buttoned up  received mixed reviews and ate shit at the box office to the point where he had to wait over 3 years to get his next movie-a considerably lower key prison drama starring Cillian Murphy, Daniel Craig and Michelle William that just started shooting last week-off the ground, but quickly found a passionate cult following that views it as a misunderstood masterpiece. While I'm not quite willing to label it a masterpiece myself, I do believe that Babylon is an excellent movie that is better than the vast majority of prestige flicks that have been released so far this decade. Chazelle's blistering epic doesn't even think about coming up for air during its 3-hour runtime as it really revels in how unforgiving and dysfunctional the industry can be and how none of the madness that occurs behind the scenes matters when audiences see the beauty that was birthed from this off-camera chaos on screen. It's a really exhilarating, fascinating piece of work and definitely my favorite thing Chazelle has done since Whiplash. 

Bottom Feeder: Monster Trucks (2017)

The only inspired thing about Monster Trucks is that it's not a movie about the preferred vehicle of county fair main attractions all across the United States, but instead monsters that live inside of trucks. Everything else about it is incredibly dull and based on how poorly it performed throughout its initial theatrical/VOD life cycle 9 years ago, I don't think its intended audience of young kids liked it very much either.  

Most Underrated: Guns Akimbo (2020)

All of the common criticisms of Guns Akimbo are hard to argue with. It's a juvenile movie with video game-esque action and obnoxious characters that almost exclusively talk like Reddit posters circa 2018. Personally, I found all of these things to be absolutely perfect for the aesthetic that writer/director Jason Lei Howden was going for here. It would've been weird if a movie about an internet troll (Daniel Radcliffe) who gets forced to participate in an illegal online deathmatch game called Skizm after the founder of the game (Ned Dennehy) tracks his IP address following a shit-talking session gone wrong, goes to his apartment and glues a pair of pistols to his hands after knocking him out didn't great pride in being deeply immature. It's really the only movie I've seen recently that recreates the vulgar breed of manic action filmmaking that Neveldine/Taylor were delivering in the late 2000's and the cast-which also includes Weaving as Skizm's most lethal player Nix and Natasha Liu Bordizzo as Radcliffe's ex-girlfriend Nova who gets dragged into this messy situation-do an excellent job of operating on the trashy wavelength of a bygone era that makes up whatever percentage of the film's DNA that isn't pure Mountain Dew Code Red. 

Most Overrated: Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017) 

I'm still stunned by the great Martin McDonagh's choice to largely sideline his signature sharp darkly comedic writing here in favor of bland melodrama that is often shockingly on-the-nose and manipulative. Strong performances from Frances McDormand, Sam Rockwell and Weaving-who is easily the comedic highlight of the film as the ditzy, much younger girlfriend of McDormand's ex-husband (John Hawkes) prevent Three Billboards from completely falling apart, but it's still a baffling, frequently maddening film that falls well below the high quality standard McDonagh has established with his other work.

Movie Review: Project Hail Mary

Long before I began to publicly share my thoughts on various movies via the written word, I've regularly found myself in a position where I'm far removed from the consensus opinion on something. It's a lonely and frankly, obnoxious place to be as you're not only on an island, but susceptible to ridicule and being viewed as a contrarian asshole by the people that are on the popular end of the opinion spectrum. This place particularly sucks to be in when you're the person who isn't in love with a crowd-pleaser that is sparking joy amongst the masses. Well, here I am once again in this dreaded position as I am seemingly one of the few people that saw Project Hail Mary on the big screen during its opening weekend that wasn't absolutely smitten with it. 

Phil Lord and Chris Miller's adaptation-which marks their first film directorial effort since 2014's 22 Jump Street-of Andy Weir's 2021 hit sci-fi novel is a very nice movie. It tells a story that values things like friendship, using science as a tool to find solutions to big problems in the world and maintaining hope in the face of substantial adversity. At a time where the world is consumed by unrelenting darkness, cinematic escapism fueled by warmth, connection and the possibility of a better future makes for a mighty refreshing remedy. The problem with having a film that features the backdrop of a dangerous, last-ditch deep space mission to try and prevent the sun from dying and wiping out the entire solar system be anchored in non-stop positive feelings is that it does a real number on the substantial weight of the mission's sole objective.

Admittedly, there's a strange paradox behind this line of criticism as Weir's hopefulness is a signature trait of his writing that has allowed him to standout in a genre that is often defined by widespread destruction, dystopian hellscapes, etc. However, Weir's sunny source material and the similarly cheery disposition of the screenplay from Drew Goodard (who also handled the script for the adaptation of Weir's other hit novel The Martian back in 2015) guarantees that there's not even the threat of anything bad happening at any point during the story. This "Hail Mary" space mission to save the entire universe from incinerating is treated like it's a run-of-the-mill construction project on Earth itself. Are there a few hiccups to overcome? Of course, but a bad measurement here and some shipping delays there don't pose any threat to the completion of a construction project and the ones that materialize here also take the form of minor obstacles that can be overcome simply by having the resolve to power through the headache that you're dealing with in that moment. While it's not exactly an uncommon phenomenon that a movie plays out in a predictable, suspense-free manner, it's not very often that a movie built around a dire threat to the entire fucking solar system doesn't even bother to create the illusion of danger. 

The lack of peril and minimizing of the potentially catastrophic situation this universe is facing would be something that I'd be much more willing to accept if the buddy relationship between motormouthed science teacher-turned-reluctant astronaut Dr. Ryland Grace (Ryan Gosling) and the rock-shaped alien "Rocky" (voiced by James Ortiz, who also served as the primary puppeteer for this practical creature) that is designed to be the heart of the movie moved me in any meaningful way. Gosling is well-cast as this affable fella who is stuck by himself on a spaceship after the other two members of his crew (Ken Leung, Milana Vayntrub-both treated with the type of reverence typically reserved for an empty bag of potato chips or a dinnertime visit from the Jehovah's Witnesses) died during their multi-year space flight and the connection he builds with this alien he crosses paths with shortly after he regains his bearings following a battle with retrograde amnesia brought on by the prolonged induced coma he put into ahead of the trip leads to him finding the key to solving this whole dying sun problem that he wouldn't have been able to discover if he had remained alone. No matter how much paling around and science shit Grace and Rocky do together, their bond just isn't substantive enough to serve as the emotional anchor for a story. They're just two lonely guys far from home sharing some laughs and stories as a way to pass the time before they have to extract the magic space dust that will save the galaxy. It's basically the equivalent of two co-workers hanging out on a work trip because they have nowhere else to go or anybody else to spend time with. Project Hail Mary wants the viewer to believe that this friendship is that rare breed of bond that will endure forever, but the circumstances in which it was forged under and the lightweight nature of their conversations make that about as improbable as not running into any major obstacles when embarking on a deep space mission designed to prevent the sun from dying. 

This review will inevitably read like I believe that Project Hail Mary sucks, which isn't the case. The movie tells its story in a completely competent manner, is beautifully photographed by Greig Fraser and features some of the best VFX of any movie released this decade. I just never truly connected with the material and left the theater not overly impressed with what I had just watched. This was especially disappointing given how much I revere Lord and Miller as filmmakers. I would say don't let my lack of enthusiasm detract you from seeing the movie, but there's basically zero chance that this outlier take would prevent anyone from going to see one of the most widely celebrated films to come out in recent memory. Hope you are all able to enjoy the movie on the big screen in the coming weeks and feel free to hurl insults at me through your preferred channel of communication after watching it  

Grade: B

2026 NFL Mock Draft (3/23)

1.Las Vegas Raiders: Fernando Mendoza, quarterback (Indiana)

2.New York Jets: Arvell Reese, edge rusher/inside linebacker (Ohio State)

3.Arizona Cardinals: David Bailey, edge rusher (Texas Tech)

4.Tennessee Titans: Jeremiyah Love, running back (Notre Dame)

5.New York Giants: Sony Styles, inside linebacker (Ohio State)

6.Cleveland Browns: Francis Mauigoa, tackle (Miami)

7.Washington Commanders: Caleb Downs, safety (Ohio State)

8.New Orleans Saints: Carnell Tate, wide receiver (Ohio State)

9.Kansas City Chiefs: Spencer Fano, tackle (Utah)

10.Cincinnati Bengals: Mansoor Delane, cornerback (LSU)

11.Miami Dolphins: Makai Lemon, wide receiver (USC)

12.Dallas Cowboys: Ruben Bain Jr., edge rusher (Miami)

13.Los Angeles Rams: Jordyn Tyson, wide receiver (Arizona State)

14.Baltimore Ravens: Olaivaega Ioane, guard (Penn State)

15.Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Avieon Terrell, cornerback (Clemson)

16.New York Jets: Omar Cooper Jr., wide receiver (Indiana)

17.Detroit Lions: Jermod McCoy, cornerback (Tennessee) 

18.Minnesota Vikings: Dillion Thieneman, safety (Oregon)

19.Carolina Panthers: Kenyon Sadiq, tight end (Oregon)

20.Dallas Cowboys: Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, safety (Toledo)

21.Pittsburgh Steelers: Ty Simpson, quarterback (Alabama)

22.Los Angeles Chargers: Akheem Mesidor, edge rusher (Miami)

23.Philadelphia Eagles: Monroe Freeling, tackle (Georgia)

24.Cleveland Browns: Denzel Boston, wide receiver (Washington)

25.Chicago Bears: Keldric Faulk, edge rusher (Auburn)

26.Buffalo Bills: Peter Woods, defensive tackle (Clemson) 

27.San Francisco 49ers: Blake Miller, tackle (Clemson)

28.Houston Texans: Kaydon Proctor, tackle (Alabama)

29.Kansas City Chiefs: Colton Hood, cornerback (Tennessee) 

30.Miami Dolphins: T.J. Parker, edge rusher (Clemson) 

31.New England Patriots: Cashius Howell, edge rusher (Texas A&M)

32.Seattle Seahawks: Chris Johnson, cornerback (San Diego State)

Maika Monroe Ranked

Welcome to "Ranked", a weekly series where I rank a franchise or filmography from worst to best and hand out assorted related superlatives. This week, I'm profiling the work of Maika Monroe-whose latest project "Reminders of Him" is now playing in theaters.

Maika Monroe's Filmography Ranked:

12.Independence Day: Resurgence (D+)

11.It Follows (D+)

10.The Hand That Rocks the Cradle (C)

9.100 Nights of Hero (C)

8.Hot Summer Nights (B-)

7.Reminders of Him (B)

6.Villains (B)

5.After Everything (B)

4.Longlegs (B)

3.Honey Boy (B+)

2.Watcher (B+)

1.The Guest (B+)

Top Dog: The Guest (2014)

The next movie that Adam Wingard and longtime writing partner Simon Barrett have coming out is an A24-backed action horror flick called Onslaught that was conceived as a return to their genre movie roots. If Onslaught-which is expected to release later this year-can ultimately rise up to the level of The Guest, there's a non-zero chance that I'll joyously levitate out of the theater. This movie takes such great pleasure in being a ludicrous thrill ride full of demented surprises and the destination it ultimately arrives it is pure B-movie bliss. It also happens to be a great early showcase for the talents of Dan Stevens and Monroe-who are completely in tune with the twisty, schlocky vibe of the movie every step of the way. 

Bottom Feeder: Independence Day: Resurgence (2016)

Independence Day: Resurgence would be at or near the top of worst sequels released this century if most people hadn't forgotten it existed. Resurgence replaces the dumb blockbuster charm that made its predecessor one of the greatest TNT Saturday Afternoon Movies of all time with pure uncut, joyless idiocy and a group of actors both new and returning that don't seem particularly excited to be there.  Director/co-writer Roland Emmerich has attributed the absence of Will Smith for Resurgence's failure, but I honestly think Smith's magnetism would've been no match for the substantial level of stink that was emanating from this project. 

Most Underrated: Watcher (2022)

While Watcher's profile has raised a bit over the last couple of years thanks to streaming, I still feel that it doesn't get the level of respect it deserves. Chloe Okuno's impressive directorial debut viscerally captures feelings of paranoia and isolation in this story of an American woman (Monroe) living in Bucharest with her husband (Karl Glusman) who becomes fixated with a man (Burn Gorman) that lives across the street who appears to be watching her through their apartment's picture window. Monroe is stellar as a woman forced to confront the potential peril she's facing alone as everyone around her either doesn't believe she's in danger or can't speak English, the final 20-25 minutes are tense to the point where I thought my heart was going to fall out of my chest and the last shot is one of my favorites in recent memory. I'm very eager to see what Okuno cooked up on her sophomore feature Brides-which shot last fall and will be theatrically released by Neon at a TBD 2026/27 date.  

Most Overrated: It Follows (2014)

It needs to be said that I haven't seen It Follows in over a decade and it could be something that benefits significantly from a rewatch. As it stands, I think it's a dull and silly affair that is very high on the list of most overhyped horror movies of the past 20-25 years. 

Movie Review: Reminders of Him

After a couple of movie adaptions of her books, I've started to develop a pretty good understanding of what makes Colleen Hoover's media empire tick. While her stories aren't technically part of the fantasy genre, they might as well be with the insane situations she uses to plant the seed for the romantic melodramas she writes. She's become quite the polarizing figure in certain circles-particularly since her novels started being made into movies-for this very reason and that's not likely to change anytime soon as she has a whole lot of novels in the archives that are waiting to receive the big screen treatment (Verity starring Dakota Johnson, Anne Hathaway and Josh Hartnett is next up in October). Reminders of Him is the third Hoover adaptation to be released theatrically in the past 17 months and to me at least, it's easily the best of the bunch.

For those out there that haven't read the novel or arrived early enough to see the trailer play in front of The Housemaid, Wuthering Heights or Bugonia in recent months, Reminders of Him tells the story of a young woman named Kenna (Maika Monroe) who was just released from jail after serving 5 years for vehicular manslaughter after getting into a car accident that killed her boyfriend Scotty (Rudy Pankow). Kenna has returned to her Colorado hometown with the hopes of finding work and eventually reuniting with her daughter Diem (Zoe Kosovic)-who she gave birth to in jail and is being raised by Scotty's parents (Lauren Graham, Bradley Whitford). Her first unsuccessful day of job hunting after securing a place to live in a rundown cheap motel leads to her seeking out a bookstore that her and Scotty used to frequent, which to her surprise has been turned into a bar that's owned by Ledger (Tyriq Withers)-Scotty's lifelong best friend who Kenna never met as his NFL career made him absent from Scotty's life during their time together. Kenna and Ledger have a nice conversation without knowing who the other person is, but Kenna makes a quick exit once she hears someone call out his name from across the room. 

A couple days later, the pair is reunited when Kenna shows up at Scotty's parents house with the hopes of meeting Diem and discovers Ledger-who sees her get dropped off- lives across the street. Ledger promptly freaks out upon learning who Kenna is and shields her from Scotty's parents-who blame her for their son's death-before covertly giving her a ride home while telling her to keep her distance from Diem. This animosity proves to be short-lived as Ledger quickly develops empathy for what Kenna is going through and strikes up a friendship with her that turns into something more once they start spending more time together. Conflicted between his loyalties to Scotty's parents-whose grudge with Kenna is so severe that they haven't even told their granddaughter that she exists, Diem and Kenna, Ledger gets handed the unenviable task of trying to find a path forward that includes all of these people that loves that won't hurt any of their feelings. 

What separates Reminders of Him from It Ends with Us and Regretting You is director Vanessa Caswill's ability to find something human underneath all of the Hoover-isms fans and haters alike have come to expect from her work. The foundation of Kenna and Ledger's relationship may be built on a massive foundation of contrivances, but their characters and eventual connection both feel very feel. Being able to ground a story that is so deeply absurd at its core in something authentic is a testament to the individual performances of and strong chemistry between Monroe and Withers. Even during the most melodramatic moments the script forces them to work through, no emotion feels unearned or sensationalized to bait the audience into having a certain emotional reaction. These are people that are consumed by regret, shame and guilt for their past mistakes and their parallel quests for redemption just so happen to bring them close enough where they realize they're perfect for each other. Quite frankly, I never expected a Hoover adaptation to have a romance this convincing at its core and it's kind of remarkable how much having this key but often hard to find ingredient elevates everything else surrounding it. Being able to replicate the formula that Reminders of Him uses to bring a dose of reality to a far-fetched story without disrespecting the tidy, crowd-pleasing romantic arc of the source material is going to be a tough ask for any of the creatives tasked with bringing a Hoover adaptation to life in the future and I'm eager to see if they'll be able to pull it off.

Grade: B