Civilization Leader: Eleanor of Aquitaine
Leader Agenda:
English Capital:
French Capital:
Leader Bonus: Court of Love – Great works in Eleanor’s cities leads to a loyalty deficient in other civilization cities withing 9 tiles. If a city leaves a civilizastion and Eleanor is the the Civ with the most loyalty pressure the city skips the Free City phase.
TL;DR – This week we take a moment to look at many of the other stories swirling around Discovery, with a return of a few old friends.
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Review –
So far this season we have been focusing very much on the Red Lights, the Red Angels, and the potential threat (maybe) that they pose. However, at the end of Season One, there were a lot of plot threads still hanging there and this week we take a moment to say hello to some old friends, and also kick a bit of ass while we are doing it.
So to set the scene, in last week’s episode New Eden, we discovered that Spock is not only on leave but that he has checked himself into a mental health facility, and is refusing all contact from his family. Well, that’s great but no one told Amanda (Mia Kirshner) that she could not find a way to reach her son. She arrives with Spock’s medical files and one request to Michael (Sonequa Martin-Green) break the encryption, which would be a breach of protocol if everything had not just changed. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.
TL;DR – Today is a goodbye, but then it also was the perfect goodbye to have
Score – 4.5 out of 5 stars
Review –
The last-minute renewal of Brooklyn Nine-Nine was both a joy, but it was also tinged with a little bit of sadness. This is that even though B99 got a half and then a full season pick up, it was also announced that Chelsea Peretti would be leaving the show. Well, that time has come, but with all things Gina, it was a joy to watch.
So to set the scene, at the end of The Tattler Jake (Andy Samberg) had a heart to heart with Gina (Chelsea Peretti) about where she saw her future, and was she being held back at the 99? Well at the start of Four Movements we get to hear her answer as she announces to the whole team that she is leaving the 99 and then she hands in her two-week notice with a four-part interpretive dance movement. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.
TL;DR
– When it is a Road Trip film it works
really well, with two charismatic leads, as a social commentary film which it
is desperately trying to be, well it fails dismally.
Score – 3.5 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
As it gets close to February, I continue my yearly tradition of trying to see all of the Best Picture nominees before the Oscars ceremony. While this is the plan, it is rarely successful, however, I thought it best to at least see all the films with a strong chance of winning on the night. Well, this leads us to Green Book which is actually a very interesting film. For it is a film of two halves, one that works and one that doesn’t, and both of these halves are in direct competition with each other.
So to set the scene, it is in the early 1960s and Frank “Tony Lip’ Vallelonga (Viggo Mortensen) works for the Copacabana at night as a combination bouncer/maître d/driver. As well as this, Tony always finds an opportunity to make a quick buck “bullshitting” people. When the Copacabana closes for a couple of months for renovations Tony is left with very little money to keep his family going when he gets a call about a driving opportunity at Carnegie Hall for a Dr Shirley (Mahershala Ali), only to find that he is not a medical doctor but a musician, he is black, and that he is about to embark on a tour of the deep south. Tony needs the money, but he also has problems with African-Americans to the point that he threw out two glasses that African-American plumbers used when fixing the pips in his house. Well eventually Tony agrees to take ‘Doc’ Don Shirley on his tour, well only after Don called his wife Dolores (Linda Cardellini) to check if it was all right.
Civilization Leader: Dido
Civilization Agenda: Sicilian Wars – wants to settle coastal cities. Likes those who settle inland. Dislikes those with mostly coastal cities.
Civilization Capital: Tyre
Civilization Bonus: Mediterranean Colonies – embarked Settlers get +Movement & Sight, Cities on the coast on the same Continent as the Capital will always be Loyal
Leader Bonus: Founder of Carthage – Can move the Civilization Capital to any city with a Cothon by completing a Special Project, +Trade Route for every building in the Government Plaza, +Production to Districts in the same city as the Government Plaza.
Unique Unit: Bireme – +Combat Strength & Movement, protects near by Trader Units
Unique District: Cothon
Rivers: Litani River
Deserts: Tanezrouft Basin
TL;DR – The Pilot combines a great story, with fascinating animation, and a voice cast that is here for it, so much fun to watch.
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Review –
A while back there was some mention of Michael B. Jordan staring in an animated
mecha series from Rooster Teeth, and you have to believe that this immediately caught
my attention. This of course was added to when we got the little hints as to
what the series is going to be about and the sheer bonkers voice cast that was
coming on board. Well, today we get to
see the final product, and well it does not disappoint.
So to set the scene, in 2068 the world is a very different place with a
totalitarian government The Union rising up and slowly taking over the world
with their nano-tech. There are very few governments left to stop them and all
attempts to find a diplomatic resolution have failed. As The Polity trains for
the coming war, Julian Chase (Michael B.
Jordan) and Miranda Worth (Dakota Fanning) take some time away from The Anvil,
their base of operations, to visit Chase’ mum Roberta (Shari Belafonte) in Brooklyn,
New York. However, they are not visiting in person but through VR Holograms.
After the prerequisite embarrassing
stories about Chase’s childhood, the pair leaves
just as The Union start their main attack on New York. The team race to defend
the city but sometimes the only option left is a sacrifice. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a
whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS]
ahead.
TL;DR – We come full circle as we explore what happens when Eleanor has to take over for Michael, oh and then the show kicks you right in the feels.
Score – 4.5 out of 5 stars
Today
we have reached the end of The Good Place’s
third season, and what a ride it has been. We have been from Australia to The
Good Place to the Interdimensional Hole of Pancakes, and more.
Throughout that time we have discovered the source of the problem plaguing the
afterlife and watched as people continued to grow and develop even after they
are dead. With that in mind today we will be looking at both the season finale Pandemonium and also an overview of the
season as a whole.
So to set the scene, in last week’s Chidi
Sees the Time-Knife, The Judge (Maya Rudolph) set out the rules that
would be used to govern this new experiments, and of course both Shawn (Marc
Evan Jackson) and Michael (Ted Danson) were not happy, which probably means
that it is a fair system. But we all know that The Bad Place does not play fair
as they rattle Michael so much that Eleanor (Kristen Bell) has to step in a
pretend to be the architect. However, as we soon find out, that is not the only
way The Bad Place is playing dirty, because they are here to torture, and that
is what they are going to do. Now we will be looking at the episode as a whole,
so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.
TL;DR – This is a film that revels in the tonal whiplash, but aside from an interesting performance from Mads it never quite comes together.
Score – 2 out of 5 stars
Post-Credit Scene – There is no post-credit scene
Review –
One of the things I have been really enjoying the last couple of years is how
action films are taking leaps and bounds with their cinematography and storytelling.
This has led to some interesting films being made that explore weird and
wonderful scenarios. Today we are looking at a film that first came into being
as a graphic novel and you can see that DNA all throughout this film. Though
while Polar has made the jump from
the page to the big screen, or at least
as big a screen as you want with Netflix,
I am not sure it was a completely successful transition.
So to set the scene, we open in the wilds of Chile where Michael Green (Johnny
Knoxville) is very much enjoying the last few days before his retirement, with
drugs, booze, and of course women. Just one problem, one of those things is
about to kill him, and sure enough, he is
not long for this world. Back in America, Duncan (Mads Mikkelsen) is a
fortnight away from his own mandatory retirement when he finds out that many of
the agents form the hitman company he works for has been killed in recent days.
Vivian (Katheryn Winnick) his contact and his handler for Mr Blut (Matt Lucas)
lets him know that they have found the person killing all their agents and
Duncan is tasked with going to Belarus to send a message. Just one problem, all is not what it seems.
TL;DR – It explores what you would do in a First Contact situation when everything is taken out of your hands.
Score – 4 out of 5 stars
Review –
First Contact is one of those big deal moments in Science Fiction, it can be a
moment of pure joy or a moment of devastation.
When you first put that call out into the universe you do not know who will
answer it and indeed, for those answering the call what will you find when you
make planetfall. Today we explore one
such scenario, with of course The Orville’s
unique spin on it.
So to set the scene, we open on the planet Regor 2 as the scientist and First
Prefect (John Rubinstein) send a simple message into the void asking if there
was anyone else out there. A couple of years later the crew of the USS Orville were doing another run, this
time picking up their new chief of security Talla Keyali (Jessica Szohr), and
discussing upcoming birthdays when they receive a faint message. Quickly
finding out that this is an unknown civilization the whole crew jump with the excitement of going on their first First Contact
mission. After some initial pleasantries,
everything was going fine until Kelly (Adrianne Palicki) mentions her upcoming birthday
and everything falls apart. Now we will be looking at the episode as a whole,
so there will be [SPOILERS]
ahead.
TL;DR – We get to see what Discovery will be exploring for the first half of the season, and it is an area Star Trek does not often venture.
Score – 4.5 out of 5 stars
Review –
There are some areas of discourse that Star Trek has not really delved all that much in to in its fifty odd years, and one of those is faith. Now, of course, there are references to it in The Original Series and Enterprise, and we do get more of it in Deep Space Nine, but still, the show has been very hands off. Well, last week in Brother we dipped our toes into faith, well today we dive all the way in.
So to set the scene, Captain Pike (Anson Mount) is continuing to command the USS Discovery to find out what the deal is with these red lights that appeared with purpose across the galaxy. Today they have found another red light but this is deep into the Beta Quadrant 100s of years away at maximum warp. There is no way any ship could get there, but then no other ship has the Spore Drive. So off to the Beta Quadrant, we go, and nobody was quite expecting to find what they find. Now we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.
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50,000 Monkeys at 50,000 Typewriters Can't Be Wrong
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freelance film critic with an interest in multilingualism, feminist perspectives in cinema and crime dramas.
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