Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Fleece Works Its Magic Too Well [S2E8] & Season 2 – TV Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – Percy Jackson sticks the landing while making a significant change that intrigues me.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Disney+ service that viewed this series.

Post-Credit Scene – There are mid-credit scenes.

Luke raises a sword in combat.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians Review –

Well, we have reached the end of season two, the part when loyalties are defined, battles are fought, and futures are determined. The series has been good at building up to this point, but shows have failed in the final execution before; indeed, that has been the very fate of a previous adaptation. Well, will a second chance work for this story? Let’s find out.

So, to set the scene, as Percy (Walker Scobell), Annabeth (Leah Sava Jeffries), Grover (Aryan Simhadri), and Tyson (Daniel Diemer) make their way back to camp, they find out that Clarisse (Dior Goodjohn) never made it to Camp Half-Blood and now monsters and enemy demigods surround. It looks like things are about to fall apart, but never underestimate a Jackson when he is backed into a corner. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode and season as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

Continue reading →

Nuremberg (2025) – Movie Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – A fascinating film that inevitably feels flawed in its very focus.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid to watch this film.

Warning – Contains scenes which may cause distress.

The Tribunal.

Nuremberg Review Introduction –

Today, in the last film we will be looking at for 2025, we have come across one that has given me pause as to how conflicted I am towards it. On the surface, we have a film that could not be timelier as a reminder to a lot of people out there that their time will come and “I was only following orders” will not stand. But it also feels like a film that found the wrong anchor to focus on, and that is an issue for me.  

So, to set the scene, Adolf Hitler is dead. It is in the closing days of WW2 and Nazi Germany is falling apart. The remaining members of the regime are working out whether to run, hide, turn themselves in, or follow Hitler. On May 7th, 1945, the last day of the war in Europe, Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring (Russell Crowe) surrendered himself in Austria. In Bad Mondorf, Luxembourg, Dr Douglas Kelley (Rami Malek) and his translator, Sgt. Howie Triest (Leo Woodall) had been tasked with a secret mission to look after the mental health of the German regime as they prepared to put them on trial. Kelley sees this as an excellent money-making exercise, but is he truly prepared to investigate the awfully benign face of evil incarnate?

Continue reading →

Frankenstein (2025) – Movie Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – A fascinating reinterpretation of the classic work that both works as an adaptation for a modern audience, but also holds true to the core of the original work, creating a fascinating juxtaposition to find a muse about the nature of life itself.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that screened this film.

The Monster looms on the horizon.

Frankenstein Review Introduction –

It is time for the final review before we start our best of 2025 list. We started the year with a rich Gothic-Horror romp with Nosferatu; it is only fair that we finish it returning to that same world, and if we are going to dabble in this world, it is only right to return  to where it all began with one of the greatest minds that helped build the foundation of Science Fiction with the eminent Mary Shelley’s work.

So, to set the scene, in Farthermost North, 1857, the snows and ice creep over the sea as a ship becomes beset in its cold embrace on its way to the North Pole. While stuck, they find an injured man near a pile of blood and being hunted by a monstrous visage, one who cannot be stopped by bullets. Sinking The Monster (Jacob Elordi) to the bottom of the ocean, they wake the wounded Baron Victor Frankenstein (Oscar Isaac), who tells the tale of how he came to make the very monster that has come to kill him.    

Continue reading →

The Long Walk – Movie Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – A brutal, uncomfortable film that is anchored in some of the best performances I have seen all year.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid to watch this film.

Warning – Contains scenes which may cause distress.

The group walking through a field.

The Long Walk Review Introduction –

Few people have had as many adaptations to their name as Stephen King. Indeed, we already got The Running Man this year. However, before I wrap up my 2025, I knew I needed to explore the other adaptation out this year. A film full of brutality and also camaraderie in a combination that I don’t think I have watched before.   

So, to set the scene, after suffering a brutal civil war in the 20th century, America now lives under a brutal military regime amidst an economic collapse. As a way of ‘bringing the country back together’, every year there is The Long Walk, where one boy from each state has to start walking and keep walking at three miles an hour until there is only one left. If they win, they win money for their family; if they stop, they “get their ticket taken”. Raymond “Ray” Garraty (Cooper Hoffman) is assigned number 47 under the harsh visage of the Major (Mark Hamill). One gunshot, and the slow march begins with all 50, but it doesn’t take long for the first ticket to get punched.

Continue reading →

The Lost Bus – Movie Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – A film filled with tension from almost the opening minutes that keeps you hooked for every spark, every change in wind, and every explosion.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the AppleTV+ service that screened this film.  

Smoke rises over people fleeing.

The Lost Bus Review Introduction –

Today is the last day of 2025 movies catch-up before I complete my best of lists [yes, I have said this before, but I mean it this time]. I am catching up on the films of technical excellence that I want to see unfold. The first cab off the rank is a film based on a real event of a fire catching a city unprepared, which does hit a bit close to home as I look out my window at a dry forest sitting there.   

So, to set the scene, the land is parched, the grass is dead, and the trees are tinder in the town of Paradise, California, as it has been 210 days without rain. It is the sort of situation where one spark is all that is needed for tragedy. It is here that local bus driver Kevin McKay (Matthew McConaughey) is not having a very good time at all; he can’t catch a break anywhere. What he does not know is that today is the day that California will experience its worst wildfires in its history so far when wind damages an electricity tower and the sparks set all the grass ablaze. With wind gusting and an isolated location, there is very little anyone can do to stop it from becoming something.       

Continue reading →

The Rip – Movie Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – This is a film that purposely wades into the murky world of drugs, money, and crooked cops. You will never know when the bullets will start flying, but you know for a certainty that someone is going to be shot before the closing credits.   

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene.

Disclosure – I paid for the Netflix service that screened this film.

A cop cruiser approaches at night.

The Rip Review Introduction –

Today, we look at a film that is trying to do something different in the streaming space, trying an experiment to re-add residuals back into a system that has systematically ripped them out of the industry. But while the backend mechanics of the film are very fascinating, that doesn’t mean much if the film lacks any substance. That means it is time to have a look and see if it has some depth to it.  

So, to set the scene, we open with Captain Jackie Velez (Lina Esco) of Tactical Narcotics Team (TNT) in Miami getting gunned down in a car park. This sends ripples through the force and agitates Lieutenant Dane Dumars (Matt Damon) and Detective Sergeant JD Byrne (Ben Affleck) as Internal Affairs and the Feds are looking at everyone at the TNT. There is money on the line, and where there is money, there is potential for corruption. All the cops in the department are feeling the pinch, but one of their own just got murdered, and no one seems to care. But when the police are tipped off to a massive stash of cash, everyone’s loyalties will be tested, because what if IA is right and one of them is dirty?   

Continue reading →

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy – Beta Test [S1E2] – TV Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – I think this episode shows the potential best and also the possible worst for the series moving forward.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Paramount+ service that airs this series.

The Cadets in a line.

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy – Beta Test Review

Apparently, it is tradition in the year of the Lord 2026, when you drop a weekly series order, you need to drop two episodes, which usually feel like they could have been one movie-length episode, but weren’t because of weird Hollywood economy reasons. Star Trek: Starfleet Academy is no stranger to this phenomenon, but to give it its credit, this did feel like a whole new episode in its own right.  

So, to set the scene, Caleb Mir (Sandro Rosta) is trying to acclimatise to a world defined by rules, order, and, strangely for him, safety. Meanwhile, Captain Nahla Ake (Holly Hunter) is championing student learning wherever she can. One opportunity is being given to Admiral Charles Vance (Oded Fehr) because, for the first time since The Burn, the Betazed delegation is coming out of their psionic barrier that was put up around their territory. This could be a big win for the Federation to get Betazed to return to the fold, but it was the Federation that abandoned them during The Burn, and memories can be long. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

Continue reading →

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy – Kids These Days [S1E1] – TV Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – This is a bit of a rough first episode, but underneath all the mess is a lot of promise.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Paramount+ service that airs this series.

The USS Athena.

Star Trek: Starfleet Academy – Kids These Days Review –

Well, it is a new year, and also it is time for some new Star Trek, well, I say new Star Trek, but the idea of setting a show in Starfleet Academy has been kicking around since at least the 1980s. However, it might have taken forty-odd years to get it going; its time is now, and of course, we must take a look, even though I suspect it is a show that is not pitched to me. But then Star Trek Prodigy was also not pitched to me, and that turned out to be a real gem.  
So, to set the scene, at the end of Star Trek Discovery’s Fifth Season, we discovered that things had stabilised enough in the remnant of the Federation and Starfleet to restart the Starfleet Academy back on Earth. Admiral Vance (Oded Fehr) had the tough job of choosing a commandant for the Academy, but he settled on Captain Nahla Ake (Holly Hunter), who left Starfleet because it was not living up to its ideals. However, on its maiden flight from Bajor to Earth, the USS Athena detects an anomaly. She stops to examine this possible teaching opportunity that turns out to be more than they bargained for. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

Continue reading →

Fallout: The Wrangler [S2E5] – TV Review

Posted on by
Reply

TL;DR – This is an episode that, while bursting with lore at every seam, also gives one of the best performances of the series so far.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Amazon Prime subscription used to watch this series.

Welcome to Freeside.

Fallout: The Wrangler Review Introduction –

Well, we have passed the halfway point of the season, and quite often, this is where modern TV series flounder around until they find their feet towards the finale. However, Fallout looks to be doing something different this week, because not only do we get an episode filled to the brim with fascinating lore that people will be debating for weeks, but we also get some of the best character moments of the series so far. Now it is time to dive in to see what Season 2 Episode 5 brings us.   

So, to set the scene, things have gone from bad to worse in the Wasteland. The Brotherhood have started a civil war that may have been helped along a bit, okay, a lot, by Maximus (Aaron Moten). Um, is that New Vegas, or is that a Deathclaw nursery? Also, just saying, having Lucy’s (Ella Purnell) dad, Hank (Kyle MacLachlan), out there doing experiments with people without any oversight, is not the most comforting prospect around. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there may be [SPOILERS] ahead.   

Continue reading →

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: I Go Down With the Ship [S2E7] – TV Review

Posted on by
1

TL;DR – We get to the pointy end of the season as characters clash together as the gods manipulate from the side-lines.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Disney+ service that viewed this series.

Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid-credit scene.

The tree guarding the camp.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians Review –

We are getting to the final stretch of the season as we enter the penultimate episode, and it is time for all the storylines to start colliding together. It’s a precarious moment, we haven’t even upset a god yet, and time is already ticking on the finale.

So, to set the scene, it is a kind of good news/bad news situation. The good news is that they know where the Fleece is, and they have escaped the clutches of the Cyclops, oh, and Tyson (Daniel Diemer) is still alive. The bad news is that Clarisse (Dior Goodjohn) and Grover (Aryan Simhadri) had to watch Percy (Walker Scobell) give the Fleece to their enemy, Luke (Charlie Bushnell), and he also stole a wounded Annabeth (Leah Sava Jeffries) with him. Now the Golden Fleece is resting on the tomb of Kronos (Nick Boraine), and soon he will be resurrected from Tartarus to wreak havoc on the world. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

Continue reading →