Tag Archives: Science Fiction Television

Foundation: Season 3 – TV Review

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TL;DR – This season has started to diverge considerably from the source material, and among its bombast and stunning visuals are some creeping worries.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Apple TV+ service to view this episode.

Looking at a sun.

Foundation Introduction –

When I first started watching the third season of Foundation with A Song for the End of Everything, I was concerned they would be trying to force all of The Mule’s story into this one season. While they avoided that particular pitfall, the season still shows signs of strain as it pushes further from Asimov’s framework, as you can start to feel the show beginning to wobble a bit and potentially head towards disaster as we move farther away from the source material.

So, to set the scene, it has been 152 years since the Second Crisis, and while the Empire continues to collapse, the Foundation grows, expanding further out of the outer reach. Now both the Empire and The Foundation are fighting to control Kalgan, a pleasure planet, and the key to controlling The Middle Band. But there may be a third player out there, ready to tear everything up. For after much prediction, or perhaps, not enough prediction, The Mule (Pilou Asbæk) is on the move, and both sides should fear him because with him comes calamity, and the galaxy is not prepared for what he is about to wreak. Now, from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.    

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Silo: Season 2 – TV Review

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TL;DR – The sophomore season suffers from some significant pacing issues, but when it clicks together, it is like no other.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

Juliette Lives.

Silo Review –

As it is the end of the year, it is time to catch up with all the shows that I didn’t get a chance to finish during the year, and the first on my list is Silo. Conceptually, I love this show, the brooding treatise on humanity, control, and rebellion. However, I dropped out halfway through. Well, today, I go back to see why.

So, to set the scene, after being set up by Bernard Holland (Tim Robbins) and Robert Sims (Common), Juliette Nichols (Rebecca Ferguson) was forced to go outside and ‘clean’ in the season finale. However, thanks to some work from Martha Walker (Harriet Walter), Juliette’s suit was fitted with tape that actually worked so that the poisonous air would not leak in. It is here that she discovers not only is there still a barren, poisoned world on the surface, but their Silo is not the only one. Not knowing how long the tape will last, she runs to the next Silo over, only to discover thousands of dead bodies spilled across the ground. But there is no time to wait as she escapes death by entering a dead silo. Now, from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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Fallout: The Golden Rule [S2E2] – TV Review

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TL;DR – A riot of whimsy as we delve into the world of Fallout, as the characters try to make sense of everything that goes on.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

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

The destruction of Shady Sands.

Fallout: The Golden Rule Review Introduction –

One of the great things about Fallout has been its ability to be filled with contrasts, yet still manage to keep the whole from being ripped apart. Which, as we have seen from a multitude of adaptations, is a difficult thing to pull off. Grounding something this inherently silly is a rare skill, and the show pulls it off again here.

So, to set the scene, many years before the time of the show, there lived a town called Shady Sands. Life was still hard, but they had found their niche in the wilderness, and they were starting to rebuild the world that had been lost during the Great War that rained down nuclear fire on the earth. However, their success drew the attention of forces they did not know were out there, or in this case, under there, which is why they may not have acted quickly enough when the trader walked into town acting odd. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there may be [SPOILERS] ahead.   

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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds – New Life and New Civilizations [S3E10] & Season 3 – TV Review

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TL;DR – An odd end to a strange season of Star Trek.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

The USS Enterprise.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Introduction –

Well, we have gotten to the end of what has become a very odd season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. It rolled from one wild entry to the next, giving such tonal whiplash that you have to look back on it in awe. However, there was also a thematic throughline throughout the season. And. Well. Look. It’s not great. But let’s take a moment to dive in and see if they at least stuck the landing before we look back at the season as a whole.  

So, to set the scene, the USS Enterprise is getting ready to take Captain Batel (Melanie Scrofano) back to Earth so she can take up her position as the head of Starfleet JAG. Captain Pike (Anson Mount) is feeling a lot of emotions as he is happy to see Batel finding her place in the world, but it does mean that they have to go back to long-distance. But as they start giving the Enterprise a much-needed detail, Scottie (Martin Quinn) finds that someone has patched himself together in the medical transporter and escaped. But who would do such a thing? 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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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds – What is Starfleet? [S3E7] – TV Review

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TL;DR – An experiment that has its frustrating points but is made better with one of the best performances in Star Trek history.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

In Accordance with the United Federation of Planets " Freedom of Information Act" This documentary includes security footage that has been declassified by Starfleet Command in the spirt of Transparency"

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Introduction –

One of the lingering plot points that has been bubbling away since Wedding Bell Blues is that Beto Ortegas (Mynor Luken) is going to film a documentary. What kind of documentary he’d make has been debated. In a world where ‘following orders’ faces growing scrutiny, it feels like a timely reminder.    

So, to set the scene, the USS Enterprise has been tasked by Starfleet to lend aid to the Lutani, a people that had been previously hostile-adjacent to the Federation, but who are now under attack from the nearby Kasar people trying to lay claim to their home system and all its resources. Millions have died. However, there is a quandary with The Enterprise’s orders; they have to deliver ‘supplies’, obviously weapons, but also help escort the Jikaru, which is an ethical time bomb waiting to go off. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

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Foundation: The Shape of Time [S3E6] – TV Review

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TL;DR – A calamity of events comes crashing together like a wave hitting a cliff wall.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the Apple TV+ service that used to view this episode.

Hari's shrine opens again.

Foundation Introduction –

When I first started watching the third season of Foundation with A Song for the End of Everything, I was concerned they would be trying to force all of The Mule’s story into this one season. I still have those concerns, but as the season leans into a more schlocky vibe, I have been more intrigued to see where they go.  

So, to set the scene, calamity is erupting across the galaxy, much stemming from the work of The Mule (Pilou Asbæk). He has put the plans of the Foundation, Second Foundation, Traders, and Empire into chaos, and could have put the human race on the path to its extinction. But the one person that The Mule is obsessed with is now in sight, which is not good news for that person, Gaal Dornick (Lou Llobell). Even worse news for Gaal is that she has picked up an unwanted visitor on her ship, Demerzel (Laura Birn), the last robot left in the galaxy, and she is not happy. Now, from here, we will be looking at the season as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.    

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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds – The Sehlat Who Ate Its Tail [S3E6] – TV Review

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TL;DR – A fascinating exploration of leadership and command when time is running out and your back is against the wall.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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

The USS Farragut in orbit of Helicon Gamma.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Introduction –

Today’s episode gets to the heart of the very premise of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds. When you have a prequel so connected to the very origin of Star Trek, you always knew the direction the show was heading towards, the endpoint. But to get there, you need to lock some key features in, and today is just one such time.

So, to set the scene, the USS Farragut is off surveying an uninhabited planet called Helicon Gamma. It was a standard, almost dull mission for Second-In-Command Commander James T. Kirk (Paul Wesley). Until a gravitational beam tears the planet apart and heavily damages the ship. The USS Enterprise was able to arrive and help, only to discover the thing that was destroying the planet had returned and swallowed the Enterprise whole. 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 – Through the Lens of Time [S3E5] – TV Review

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TL;DR – This is one of those episodes that, structurally, I should love, but is filled with these moments that pull you out of the narrative.

Rating: 3 out of 5.

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

The away team down on the planet.

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Introduction –

Today, we are looking at a bit of a frustrating episode of Star Trek, because it is filled with incredible highs and, unfortunately, deep lows. It is one of those contrasts that can derail an episode, which is what happened here to an extent. It is filled to the brim with all these classical elements that make it shine, but which crash against serial elements that pull it all apart.  

So, to set the scene, the USS Enterprise have been invited by the M’Kroon to the planet Vadia IX. The M’Kroon are a very wary people and have politely declined Federation involvement in the past. But Roger Korby (Cillian O’Sullivan) has found a magnetic anomaly in one of their most sacred locations. After much work from Nurse Chapel (Jess Bush) and Christopher Pike (Anson Mount), the M’Kroon have allowed a small landing party to explore the site. Only to discover there may be more to this place than meets the eye. 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 – A Space Adventure Hour [S3E4] – TV Review

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TL;DR – Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Adventure. Its episode-long mission: to make meta commentary; try and outdo Lower Decks with a Riker reference; and serve shade on William Shatner like never before!

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

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

Maxwell Saint

Star Trek: Strange New Worlds Review –

Today, I might have watched one of the profoundly odd episodes of Star Trek that has ever Star Treked across the universe. That is, on one hand, a deep love letter to the Original Series in all its camp glory. But it is also a strong critique of the era, while it skirted the edge of canon. It is an episode where you spend most of the runtime wondering: just what did I watch?

So, to set the scene, while the USS Enterprise is at station watching a pulsar starting to collapse, the admiralty thought that this would be the perfect time to test the new holodeck, because if ships are going to be away from base for more than five years, they will need more entertainment opportunities. Thinking of the best candidate to test the holodeck to the limits, there was only one candidate, La’An Noonien-Singh (Christina Chong). So, she decides to base it on the Amelia Moon novels that she loved as a child. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be [SPOILERS] ahead.

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Murderbot: Season 1 – TV Review

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TL;DR – While this was a ridiculous romp of a show, beneath that exterior lies a fascinating character piece about identity, free will, and community.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for the AppleTV+ service that viewed this show.

Murderbot standing outside of the habitat.

Murderbot Review –

Well, we have come to the end of what was an exciting, if odd series. I love my Sci-fi in almost every flavour, and sometimes you want a lighter, silly flair to it. Today’s series that we are exploring has that, indeed, it has that in spades. However, what it also has is an honest heart, which was the bigger surprise, and one that I deeply love to discover.

So, to set the scene, we open on the Mining Station Aratake in the Corporation Rim. Here, all the miners are celebrating the end of the mining expedition 115-24TTX. The one person not celebrating is the Security Unit, which has to follow human orders and tries to keep them safe. But as he is sitting there, he is able to hack the Governor Module in his head, thus Security Unit 238776431 did not have the right ring to it, so it became Murderbot (Alexander Skarsgård). He was a free bot, but given the corporation would kill him the moment they discovered he was rogue, which is how he ended up on Mining Survey 0Q17Z4Y, with more humans, ones who just might care about him, because they were weird. Now, from here, we will be looking at the series as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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