Category Archives: TV Reviews

Star Wars: Ahsoka – Part Two: Toil and Trouble – TV Review

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TL;DR – We move from making introductions to giving a plot a needed kick-forward, but I am not quite there with it yet.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

Ahsoka feels the force.

Ahsoka Review –

While Star Wars has arguably made several fumbles in recent years, releasing these first two episodes simultaneously was not one of them. They make an intriguing double act, one introduction, the other plot, one nostalgia, the other vibes. It also meant we didn’t have to suffer through a useless cliffhanger, which I always appreciate.

So to set the scene, at the end of Master and Apprentice, tragedy struck when Sabine Wren (Natasha Liu Bordizzo) was stuck down by Shin Hati (Ivanna Sakhno) after the mercenaries working for Morgan Elsbeth (Diana Lee Inosanto) stole the map that Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) recovered. The bad guys now have the map that could lead them to Admiral Thorn (Lars Mikkelsen), the last remaining Imperial heavyweight left after their defeat by the New Republic. The heroes are on the defence, but can they make up lost time? Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.  

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Star Wars: Ahsoka – Part One: Master and Apprentice – TV Review

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TL;DR – This was an exciting introduction that intrigued and frustrated me in equal measure

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

Opening Title Crawl: The evil galactic empire has fallen and a new republic has risen to take its place.

Ahsoka Review –

Ahsoka is an interesting series because it is the first Star Wars live action work based on a previous property with which I have no experience with. I did not watch Star Wars: The Clone Wars or Star Wars Rebels growing up, and sorry to be blunt, I don’t have time in my life to catch up on 208 television episodes before jumping in here. The question is: does the team behind the show understand that this is where a large, probably a majority, of their viewing audience is coming from? Well, that is what we will look at today.

So to set the scene, we open on a deserted planet full of ruins built by the Nightsisters of Dathomir. But somewhere in this ruin is an old map, a map to the location of a formidable enemy, and Ahsoka Tano (Rosario Dawson) is here to find it. The only problem is that she is not alone, while she might have gotten good intel from Morgan Elsbeth Diana Lee Inosanto). The former Imperial magistrate is not without her resources, as the crew of the rebel prisoner transport discover when they are boarded by the Dark Jedi mercenary Baylan Skoll (Ray Stevenson) and his apprentice Shin Hati (Ivanna Sakhno). Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.  

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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds – Hegemony & Full Season 2 – TV Review

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TL;DR – A tense end to a remarkable season.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Paramount+ streaming service that viewed this episode. 

La'an looks through blood stained glass.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Review –

Well, it has been a rollercoaster of a season, with episodes flying, time-travelling shenanigans, and cross-overs happening, but we have now come to an end for now. So in our review today, we will first look at the season finale, Hegemony, which brings up back to the Gorn question hinted about back in The Broken Circle, before looking at how the season went as a whole.

So to set the scene, the USS Cayuga, under the command of Captain Batel (Melanie Scrofano), is visiting a new colony on Parnassus Beta just outside of Federation space. The colonists wonder if Federation Membership is the protection they need or the target on their backs. But the subspace communications go down out of nowhere, shuttles fall out of the sky, and a Gorn battleship appears in orbit. Admiral April (Adrian Holmes) cautions Pike (Anson Mount) that this could cause a war between The Federation and The Gorn, and he is only to engage in reconnaissance to see what happened. But that is not what Pike has planned. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode and season as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

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Deadloch: Season 1 – TV Review

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TL;DR – This might be one of the most absurdly fascinating, profane, and profound shows I have watched.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Amazon Prime service that viewed this series.

Looking down at a murdered body.

Deadloch Review –

I always wonder how profoundly Australian things translate to a more global audience. Can you make the jump across the ocean without getting hacked to pieces? Well, anything is possible in the era of Bluey, but today might be the biggest test yet.

So to set the scene, Deadloch is a small coastal town on the tip of Tasmania in Australia. Once the purview of loggers and fishing, it is going through a sort of renaissance as those from the big cities look for a country escape. There, two teens, Miranda Hoskins (Kartanya Maynard) and Tammy Hampson (Leonie Whyman) stumble across a naked body missing a tongue washed up on the beach. The Mayor/Doctor Aleyna Rahme (Susie Youssef), is upset because the Winter Festival is about to start, and Phil McGangus (Shaun Martindale) and the old guard are upset that a good-old-boy is dead. The local police force Senior Sergeant Dulcie Collins (Kate Box), Abby Matsuda (Nina Oyama), and Sven Alderman (Tom Ballard) are stuck in the middle, made even worse when the brass sends in detective Eddie Redcliffe (Madeleine Sami) from Darwin who just wants to close it and leave. It is a recipe for disaster, which is when a second body appears. Now we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there may be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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Twisted Metal: Season 1– TV Review

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TL;DR – It could have been more intense, but it becomes a surprisingly interesting car chase when it gets going.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

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

Warning – Contains scenes that may cause .

St Louis behind a wall.

Twisted Metal Review –

It is a very odd time for video game adaptations, where we are oscillating wildly from adaptations that still feel embarrassed about their source material to those that are perfect recreations. In this shifting dichotomy, we get Twisted Metal, a game that I think few have considered since its PS2 days, bar that image of the clown. But the question is: can you turn that into a compelling narrative? Well maybe.

So to set the scene, 20 years ago, the world fell apart as a virus destroyed the world’s computers. This apocalyptic event split the world in two. Some walled themselves up inside cities, and those who got booted outside. It is a lawless void, but people must still take supplies between the cities. Insert the milkmen, of which there is no better than John Doe (Anthony Mackie). But it might be worth driving into the unknown when he is allowed to find a home. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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Twisted Metal: WLUDRV – TV Review

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TL;DR – This episode works very well as a vibe check because you probably will have a fair assumption about whether this is your bag for the rest of the season by the time the credits roll.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

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

A vulture on the roof.

Twisted Metal Review –

There are some video games that you know from the iconography alone. One of those is Twisted Metal. I never played the game myself, but some aspects are instantly recognisable. But can the show take those elements and turn them into a story? Well, that is what we are finding out today.   

So to set the scene, 20 years ago, the world fell apart as a virus destroyed the world’s computers. This apocalyptic event split the world in two. Some walled themselves up inside cities, and those who got booted outside. It is a lawless void, but people must still take supplies between the cities. Insert the milkmen, of which there is no better than John Doe (Anthony Mackie). But it might be worth driving into the unknown when he is given an opportunity to find a home. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.  

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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds – Under the Cloak of War – TV Review

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TL;DR – This episode brought a smile to my face from the moment it started till the second those end credits rolled.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Paramount+ streaming service that viewed this episode. 

USS Kelcie Mae

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Review –

Well, this week, we get the incredible joy of having not one but two episodes of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. However, they could not be more different as we jump from the joyful romp of Those Old Scientists to a deep exploration of grief and loss and the wounds of war are laid bare.

So to set the scene, the USS Enterprise has rendezvous with the USS Kelcie Mae to collect the Federation ambassador Dak’Rah (Robert Wisdom) from the Prospero System. An ambassador who is a Klingon who defected during the War. This is difficult for many of the crew who fought during the Federation-Klingon War, for example, Chapple (Jess Bush) and M’Benga (Babs Olusanmokun), who were posted on the Moon of J’gal. How do you break bread with a man soaked in the blood of innocents? Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.  

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Secret Invasion: Home and Full Season – TV Review

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TL;DR – This was a series that felt like it could be something spectacular, but it never came together, leaving a frustrating mess.

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

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

Nick Fury.

Secret Invasion Review –

I know many people that have struggled with the MCU post-Endgame, and I can see where they are coming from. I have pretty much liked or at least found fine everything bar the miss that was Ant-Man, but as I sat down to watch Secret Invasion, I had concerns, which turned out to be justified. In today’s review, we will first look at the series finale and then a broader look at the season as a whole.

So to set the scene, Gravik (Kingsley Ben-Adir) continues to push the world’s nations into all-out war, wanting it as a prelude to the extermination of the Human Race. Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson) is on the run with very few pieces he can play, but one of them is the one thing Gravik wants, the Harvest. Here is the DNA of all the superhuman/alien/Norse gods etc., in one place, the thing needed for the Super-Skrull technology. But can Nick Fury stop Gravik before he starts his war with a replaced Rhodes (Don Cheadle) whispering in the president’s (Dermot Mulroney) ear. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode and season as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.  

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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds – Those Old Scientists – TV Review

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TL;DR – This episode brought a smile to my face from the moment it started till the second those end credits rolled.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Paramount+ streaming service that viewed this episode. 

The Strange New Worlds title sequence done in the style of Lower Decks.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Review –

A cross-over episode used to be the mainstay of network television, with some franchises building their worlds upon it. But for every Brooklyn Nine-Nine/ The New Girl moment that is so perfectly placed that it lives on in memes. You have a sea of awkward messes that fail to elevate either side. Star Trek saw this and went, you know what, let’s take this issue of trying to get two different shows with different vibes to work and add the extra difficulty of both shows being a different medium. But does it work? Oh, yes, it does.   

So to set the scene, it is 2381, and the USS Cerritos has arrived at Krulmuth-B to take a regular scan of the portal on the surface. It has not been active since the time of Pike, but you always need to make sure. Ensigns Boimler (Jack Quaid), Mariner (Tawny Newsome), Tendi (Noël Wells), and Rutherford (Eugene Cordero) beam down to the planet to make sure. It was all going well until the portal is accidentally activated when Boimler is posing for a photo and is sucked in before Mariner can grab him. Waking up after being jettisoned, Boimler looks up to see himself in the sickbay of an old Constitution Class ship to see the one and only Captain Pike (Anson Mount) staring down, and well, he ain’t in Kansas anymore. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.  

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Foundation: A Glimpse of Darkness – TV Review

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TL;DR – This week, we continue to see the outworking of NJ Demerath III’s adage that “politics and religion are like a moth to a flame.”

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Apple TV+ service that viewed this episode.

A sun sets over a ring world.

Foundation Review –

It is no shock that I love me some Science Fiction. Indeed, I will take it in just about any form I can get it. But deep down, I think my favourite must be a good Space Opera with all its pontifications on show. It is a universe full of pomp and circumstance, and I am here for it.

So to set the scene, things are fraying all across the Empire, and no one is immune to its changes. On a water planet now home to a dead civilization, Hari Seldon (Jared Harris), Gaal Dornick (Lou Llobell), and Salvor Hardin (Leah Harvey) confront each other as old wounds are laid bare. As the Empire retreats from the outer rim, the Foundation starts to slip out, coming as magicians and priests to those planets that have lost everything. But not everyone is happy with a potential new master after just getting rid of the last one. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.     

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