weekend event planner

Here are the top 12 things to do in Houston this weekend

Raise a glass to your Houston Astros at The Rustic on Thursday.

Judging by this weekend, Houstonians are getting out there en masse. Toast your Houston Astros as they toss the first pitch of the season, meet a winemaker at a happy hour, hit an outdoor market, stroll a waterfront art fest, and feast on crawfish.

Pet parents, look for two dog-friendly (and pet-friendly) events this weekend — including pilates for pets. And work of your stress with a free yoga class.

Whew, that's quite a list. Here are your best bets for the weekend.

Thursday, April 8

Astros Opening Day Celebration at The Rustic
The Rustic (aka the go-to destination for Houston Astros pre- and post-game celebrations) will open early for Astros fans to grab drinks and food before the first pitch. Starting at 3 p.m., DJ Dayta will perform while guests hang out and enjoy drink specials, including a Karbach Brewing Co. tap takeover with free swag and $25 buckets of five beers. They will also grill hot dogs and serve double queso for guests to quickly grab on the front yard. Noon.

The Great Garment Giveaway at SuitMart
SuitMart announces the first “Houston Strong” community-wide clothing giveaway (at its South Main location) to help those economically impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and the recent weather-related events. With more than 20,000 units of women’s apparel to be made available, the speciality retailer has invited local churches, shelters, charities and municipal leaders and dignitaries within the Houston area to give back to local organizations in need. 5 pm.

Friday, April 9

Savoir presents Meet the Winemaker happy hour
Armenian winemaking began over 6,000 years ago, making it the oldest winemaking region in the world. Savoir will be celebrating that by welcoming winemaker Vahe Keushguerian for a tasting of wine from Armenia. Keushguerian is the founder of a winery called Keush, which specializes in sparkling wine made from grapes indigenous to Armenia. Attendees will have the opportunity to meet Keushguerian and learn about the past, present, and future of Armenian winemaking. 4:30 pm.

Walk to End HIV Virtual Celebration
This weekend, AIDS Foundation Houston (AFH) will host a virtual celebration at AIDSWalkHouston.org to celebrate the 32nd annual Walk to End HIV. The event will recognize year’s top fundraisers, present grants to benefitting agencies and honor the 2021 AIDS Walk underwriters and agency partners. The celebration, hosted by a surprise local celebrity, will feature special performances and appearances from leaders in the community. 6 pm.

Saturday, April 10

Eastside Market at Tres Chic
The 3rd Eastside Market Pop-Up will be going down this weekend, and all the vendors will be showing up and coming correct. We're talking Aspire Accessories, Anna Irions, Collectivo, Lexington, Hila, Monica Haff Designs, and, of course, Tres Chic. The Bovine & Barley cocktail truck will be there, serving adult ice-cream specialties, from 10am-4pm. Other food trucks will also be in attendance. 9 am.

Citizen Pilates presents Pilates for Pets
Bring your own mat and meet us a free, 30-minute, outdoor Pilates workout, hosted by Citizen Pilates, benefitting Animal Justice League. Snuggle up to the furry guests that will be around, and don't forget to bring dog/puppy, kitten/cat food to donate at the event. Bully sticks are a bonus. This event is open to anyone and family-friendly. For every donation received, enjoy a complimentary queso from Valencia’s Tex-Mex Garage. 10 am.

Lone Star Flight Museum B-17 tours and peeks
This weekend, The Lone Star Flight Museum will offer free tours and peeks inside the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress to museum visitors for one last time this year. Thunderbird is preparing to head to the Mid America Flight Museum in Mt. Pleasant for the remainder of the year, but will return to LSFM next year. Tours and sneak peeks, normally $5 per person, will be offered for free throughout the day to all visitors with a general admission ticket. Members get in free. 10 am.

Saturday crawfish boils w/ a live DJ at B.B. Lemon
B.B. Lemon will be taking advantage of crawfish season three more times before it ends. They'll be having a regular, Saturday brunch with a live DJ this Saturday — and on May 8 and June 5. Enjoy tunes by a live DJ and mudbugs featuring Berg Hospitality's own Jeff Baron's NOLA recipe. For this weekend, the DJ will be DJ Friendster. Crawfish will be served from 11am-3pm — or until it runs out. Reservations are recommended and can be made by phone. 11 am.

Woodlands Waterway Arts Festival
This Saturday and Sunday, the scenic banks of The Woodlands Waterway and Town Green Park will be transformed into an outdoor art gallery featuring the work of over 150 international, national, and regional juried artists. A variety of original art, including painting, fiber, jewelry, photography, and mixed media will be on display. Live music and children’s art activities will provide a fun family experience, and local food, wine, and beer will add to the atmosphere. 11 am.

Dog Day at Buffalo Bayou Brewing Co.
Bring your pup to celebrate National Pet Day at Buffalo Bayou Brewing Co., which will be referring to itself at "RuffBrew" this weekend. Join them out in the tents for flavorful, homemade dog-friendly eats and treats both you and your pup will enjoy. A special appearance from Houston PetSet, puptastic raffle items, and brews on tap are waiting for you. Leash up your furry friend and come "pawty" with the pack. Noon.

The War on Pleasure at The Plant House
Back by popular demand, 5th Wave Productions presents Robin Goldstein's informative musical comedy. This one-man musical will bring health food fanatics, fast food lovers and theatre aficionados together to listen to the story of the 200-year fight against delicious food, started by 19th-century Puritan radicals who originally created the health-food industry as a cure for adolescent sexuality. Tickets are $20 and includes free beer. 6 pm.

Sunday, April 11

YogaSix Restore - free yoga class
YogaSix will be having a free yoga class this weekend, outside their new studio at West University. The class will develop your strength, flexibility, comfort level, and stamina as you challenge your body and mind. You will receive an experience that is energizing, empowering, and fun. After the class, receive 20 percent off from Fellini Cafe and a free, avocado hummus voucher from Flower Child. Please arrive up to 15 minutes before to register and get yourself "sixuated." 9 am.

event-planner

Movie Review

Toy Story 5 proves that Pixar's toy box still holds some surprises

Photo courtesy of Pixar

Bullseye, Jessie, Atlas, Smarty Pants, and Snappy in Disney and Pixar's Toy Story 5.

For fans of Pixar, the idea that it’s been over 30 years since the original Toy Story came out is a little mind-boggling. While the animation studio has had varying degrees of success with their other properties, they’ve always managed to make something special with each installment of their signature franchise. They’re now rolling the dice yet again with Toy Story 5.

The story is mainly focused on cowgirl toy Jessie (Joan Cusack), who — along with Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen), Hamm (John Ratzenberger), Forky (Tony Hale), and others — is concerned that new owner Bonnie (Scarlett Spears) is falling prey to the scourge of technology in the form of the tablet Lilypad (Greta Lee). They’re worried that the “friends” she makes through games online pale in comparison to those she could play with in person.

Woody (Tom Hanks) and Bo Peep (Annie Potts), living an on-the-go lifestyle but still in touch with the main group, come to help when Jessie goes missing while trying to help Bonnie. And — just because — a large group of new-and-improved Buzz Lightyears that have fallen out of a shipping container that has crashed on an island go on a mission that puts them on course to meet up with everyone else.

Written and directed by McKenna Harris and Andrew Stanton, the film is a mixed bag, mostly because of the disjointed nature of the story. When the group was separated in previous films, things rarely felt out of sync as everybody was still heading toward the same goal. But the different factions in this film seem to be after something different, especially the wholly superfluous addition of the fancy Buzz Lightyears, whose ultimate purpose doesn’t live up to the time dedicated to them.

There’s no way around it: While Jessie is a good character and has a lot of great moments in this film, the relationship aspect of the series is not as strong this time around. She mostly spends time with her mute horse Bullseye, but even when she interacts with new characters like Smarty Pants (Conan O’Brien), that ineffable magic is not there. Woody and Buzz have scenes together, but since they’re secondary to the main story, they don’t add as much to this film as they have in others.

However, even if the film can’t live up to the first four movies, it still makes for a fun time. The storyline about technology turning kids (and adults, for that matter) into zombies is a strong one, and the way they incorporate different devices is clever. The large number of characters is unwieldy, but when the filmmakers truly dig down to the personal lives of certain toys or humans, the film is as effective as Pixar has ever been.

Cusack, Hanks, Allen, and other returning voices are so attuned to their respective characters that you know they’ll deliver each line perfectly. People like Lee, O’Brien, and Craig Robinson are welcome additions to the group, but it’s tough to get used to new voices taking over for actors who’ve passed like Don Rickles, Estelle Harris, and Carl Weathers.

The pitch-perfect ending of Toy Story 3 made the idea of Pixar making Toy Story 4 seem strange, but then that film proved the studio knew what it was doing. While Toy Story 5 is not a disaster, it’s not to the standard set by the previous films. It should finally be time to put the franchise to bed, knowing that the toys have given all the joy they can give.

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Toy Story 5 opens in theaters on June 19.

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