Tag Archives: American Television

Dune Prophecy: The Hidden Hand – TV Review

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TL;DR – This first episode is mainly about the vibes, but if you click with it, you will be there for the long haul.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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

A lone figure in a red dress appears during a nightmare.

Dune Prophecy Review –

One world that I have always loved diving into is the world of Dune. It is a weird and wonderful world full of texture waiting to be explored. It also has a history that stretches for tens of thousands of years, giving you a wide range to place a story without banging up against the story of the films. A world of intrigue teetering on the edge of the abyss for many.   
So, to set the scene, in the years after the Butlerian Jihad against the Thinking Machines, humanity had to find a new way forward. There were many competing forces during that time, one of which was the witches of the Bene Gesserit. On Wallach IX, those same sisters are grieving the death of their first Reverend Mother. The sisterhood is at a future point. Which way forward would they proceed? Shall they point people in the right direction, or should they be the ones controlling things from the shadows? Thirty years after blood was shed in the Bene Gesserit cloister, 116 years after the end of the Great Machine Wars, and 10,148 years before the birth of Paul Atreides. It will be time to see which direction the sisterhood takes. 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: Lower Decks: Starbase 80?! – TV Review

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TL;DR – A weird little fun episode that gets to put the cap off the running joke of Starbase 80

Rating: 3 out of 5.

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

Starbase 80.

Star Trek: Lower Decks Review –

One of the recurring jokes on Star Trek: Lower Decks is that no one ever wants to get transferred to Starbase 80. The very joke of it is enough to put a pause on any dubious activity. We have known how bad it was since way back in Season One and now it is time to find out if the legacy lives up to the reality.

So, to set the scene, after cataloguing a bunch of algae on the ocean planet Piskes 9, the USS Cerritos was meant to head to a Captain’s Conference on Casperia Prime. However, after a navigation malfunction, the ship had to drop out of warp because they were flying blind. That is no problem. There is a Starbase they can reach by impulse. The only problem is that base is Starbase 80: Insert creepy music here. We will be looking at the episode as a whole from here, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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Star Trek: Lower Decks: A Farewell to Farms – TV Review

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TL;DR – Crack out the Bat’leths and open the good Bloodwine casks because it is time to visit Qo’noS

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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

Lower Decks Title Card looking over a Qo-noS sunset..

Star Trek: Lower Decks Review –

When you have been watching shows for quite a while, you pick up telltale signs that something big is about to happen. One of those is the lack of a Title Sequence. Wait, the cast names not on the backdrop of a coming calamity of Borg, Tholians, Klingons, Romulans, Pakleds, oh and is that V’ger? But instead, it was on a warm sunset in Qo’noS. Well, you know something big is about to happen.

So, to set the scene, we are on Qo’noS, and Captain Ma’ah (Jon Curry) has been sequestered/banished to labouring work on the family farm. He is making Bloodwine (from worms, most likely Gagh) and raising Targ. He stubbornly avoids the comm call with a Federation signature. But if Mariner (Tawny Newsome) is one thing, it is persistent. He is stuck because the one who stripped him of his captainship is now the one who decides if he can get it back. Although Boimler (Jack Quaid) does know a lot about Klingon Bureaucratic minutia, and the Ritual of J’ethurgh is right there. We will be looking at the episode as a whole from here, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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The Penguin: Top Hat – TV Review

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TL;DR – While this is an episode of big action beats, I was more interested in the small conversations that spoke loudly.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

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

Oz returns home.

The Penguin Review –

Goodness, we are already at the penultimate episode of this series, which is astounding. This season has flown by, but it never felt rushed because it was always captivating. However, as main cast members start dropping like flies, can it keep what is unique about the show all the way to the end?

So, to set the scene, at the end of the last episode, things were starting to look precarious as Sofia Gigante (Cristin Milioti) walks into the house where Oz (Colin Farrell) is trying to keep his mother Francis (Deirdre O’Connell) safe. Vic (Rhenzy Feliz) doesn’t even see it coming, but Sofia does not kill the pair. Only take Francis hostage because she is the best bargaining chip, the only person in all of Gotham City Oz might actually care about. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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Agatha All Along: Maiden Mother Crone & Full Season – TV Review

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TL;DR –  The season finale trades in the bombast for the emotions as it resonates with its story and pushes forward for the future.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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

Death Approaching.

Agatha All Along Review –

Well, Death makes it clear that all good things must come to an end, so it is time for us to dive into the final episode of the season for Agatha All Along. After that, we will take some time to explore how the season went as a whole and some of the wild choices that they made that I am still thinking about now.

So, to set the scene, at the end of Follow Me My Freind / To Glory at the End, we were left reeling when Billy (Joe Locke) escaped the clutches of Death (Aubrey Plaza) because Agatha (Kathryn Hahn) gave herself up in his place. It is a perfectly selfless act that is also profoundly unlike the witch. However, as Billy arrives home, he starts thinking about things and realises he is the one who made the Road come to life, which is when he hears a cackle in the distance. We then jump back in time to 1750 with a heavily pregnant Agatha in the woods about to give birth, when in the distance, a certain green witch arrives. 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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Agatha All Along: Follow Me My Friend / To Glory at the End – TV Review

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TL;DR – Our penultimate episode takes some big swings, and I think it nails them all.  

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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

Death approaches.

Agatha All Along Review –

We are fast running to the end of this. Well, if the viewing numbers are any guide, it will probably be the first season. However, we have been luxuriating on the road, but time is running out, and it is still an open question if this series can tie up all the many loose ends before those credits roll.

So, to set the scene, we open with Death (Aubrey Plaza) overlooking a sleeping Alice (Ali Ahn), but she is not there to wake her but to take her to the other side. Meanwhile, while Jen (Sasheer Zamata) and Billy (Joe Locke) lament over Lilia’s sacrifice, Death finds Agatha (Kathryn Hahn) alone and gives her a bargain, but only if Teen dies. But before they can process their loss, they come to the final trial and discover that the road is not a path but a circle. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.    

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Agatha All Along: Death’s Hand in Mine – TV Review

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TL;DR – This was an oddly poignant yet slightly unsettling episode that I am not quite sure how I feel about.   

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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

Lilia falls.

Agatha All Along Review –

We are looking down the barrel of the endgame for this series, and I always get a bit nervous when there is a lot left to explore and not that much time to do it in. There becomes a point where you don’t have the luxury to saunter around and have to hem those dresses and start running like Princess Diana at a children’s sports carnival. Thankfully, I think we are getting that today.

So, to set the scene, back in Darkest Hour / Wake Thy Power, we discovered that Teen (Joe Locke) was actually the reincarnation of Billy Maximoff, who was killed at the end of WandaVision. We found that when he forced Jen (Sasheer Zamata) and Lilia (Patti LuPone) to cast Agatha away and then jump off the road. But some witches just won’t be stopped, and even off the road, there is a chance to find the answers to what you seek. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.    

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The Penguin: Cant’anni – TV Review

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TL;DR – This is phenomenal character work that had me on the edge of my seat, wondering just what would happen next.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

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

Sophia in Arkham.

The Penguin Review –

When I first started watching this episode, I mused to myself, ‘Oh, tis the seasons of flashback episodes’. While that first gut reaction did have some truth to it, it did not prepare me for what followed. The depths that we would go to, and how the episode ended.

So, to set the scene, everything was going well in Bliss. That is until Nadia Maroni (Shohreh Aghdashloo) arrives and drops the bomb that not only is Oz (Colin Farrell) playing the two families off each other but that he was the one who killed Alberto Falcone (Michael Zegen) back in After Hours. While Vic’s (Rhenzy Feliz) surprise entry into the scene saved everyone from an execution, it still rocks Sofia’s (Cristin Milioti) world, which was already precarious thanks to her time in Arkham. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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Agatha All Along: Darkest Hour / Wake Thy Power – TV Review

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TL;DR – It was a frustrating episode, but maybe that was not its fault.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

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

Witches fly in front of a blood moon.

Agatha All Along Review –

Well, so far, I have been enjoying my time with Agatha All Along. The hijinks, along with the fun tone, are the sort of show that I need at the moment. However, we are starting to get to the pointy end of the season, and I wonder if we will start getting some of these questions answered before the closing credits?

So, to set the scene, in the wake of death, the Coven needed to find a new Green Witch, and much to Agatha’s (Kathryn Hahn) frustration, the universe sent her Rio (Aubrey Plaza), one of the many witches that she had crossed with over the years. But The Witches’ Road is proving to be a perilous place because not only is it testing the witches, but it is also shining a light on their past, something that many a witch would like to avoid. Especially since bringing in Rio may have opened a doorway for more things to enter The Road. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.    

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The Penguin: Bliss – TV Review

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TL;DR – A stunning character-focused episode that showed just what a powerful actor Rhenzy Feliz is.

Rating: 5 out of 5.

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

Vic watches the explosions.

The Penguin Review –


When we first heard that there was going to be a Penguin series, I was not sure how it was going to go. Sure, Colin Farrell was a great side character in The Batmanfilm, but was there enough there to build a series off? Well, if these first three episodes have anything to say about it, the answer is yes.

So, to set the scene, Vic (Rhenzy Feliz) is spending time with his family as he continues to be frustrated with his father that he won’t get paid for all the work he does. Staving off another argument, Vic goes to the roof of a nearby building to watch the fireworks with his girlfriend Graciela (Anire Kim Amoda). But it is not fireworks that go off that election day, but explosions across the city as the sea walls collapse and a surge of water crashes into Crown Heights. Today, Vic is working for The Penguin (Colin Farrell), and they are in a precarious position as two families are circling. Sofia Falcone (Cristin Milioti) is about to make her move, but now they need the Triad’s help. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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