Tag Archives: Science Fiction

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 – Movie Review

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TL;DR – There were sad tears, happy tears, and ugly cry tears, as Vol. 3 did one of the hardest things in cinema. It landed a hat trick.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

Post-Credit Scene – There is a mid and post-credit scene

Disclosure – I paid to see this film

A Hero Walk.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 Review –

I don’t think I have ever walked into a film with such trepidation. Honestly, the last couple of MCU films has left me with a pause. Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness was missing the madness. Thor: Love and Thunder is fun but shallow, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever was messy, and I have no idea what happened with Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania. It was getting to the point where I would probably stop seeing them in cinemas. However, I love the previous films so much that I had to give it a go, and I am glad I did.

So to set the scene, as we saw in the Holiday Special, The Guardians have taken up residence on a rebuilt Knowhere. They may have a base of operations, but there is still a lingering pain from the events of Endgame, and it is not the first time they found Peter (Chris Pratt) passed out drunk. But after working together as a family to put him to bed, the quiet of Knowhere is shattered by a golden man as Adam Warlock (Will Poulter) takes the team apart before fleeing, wounded but not before hurting Rocket (Bradley Cooper). But when they go to heal him, they discover a kill switch on Rocket’s heart and must dive into his past to save him.

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Star Trek: Picard – The Last Generation and Season Three – TV Review

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TL;DR – They stuck the landing.   

Rating: 5 out of 5.

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

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

The USS Enterprise-D

Star Trek: Picard Review –

The third and final season of Star Trek: Picard has come to an end, and more like any season so far, this felt almost like Star Trek: The Next Generation season 8. There was a little concern coming into the start of the season as to whether they could make it more than just a nostalgia fest. Now, don’t get me wrong, there is a lot of nostalgia on offer here. But there is also a lot of heart. In today’s review, we will first look at whether they stuck the landing with the final episode and then at the season and maybe the series as a whole.

So to set the scene, in Võx, we discovered the terrible secret that Jack Crusher (Ed Speleers) had been holding so tight that even he did not know, he is The Borg. Or at least he had inherited some of the DNA changes The Borg made to Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart). This made him reach out to the voice in his head … The Borg Queen (Alice Krige/Jane Edwina Seymour) herself. Which sets in motion The Borg’s final plan to trigger the Borg DNA inserted in all the young officers and remotely assimilate them using Jack’s ability, and it works. The fleet is taken over, most of those not assimilated are killed, and only Spacedock stands between The Borg and the extermination of Earth. 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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The Mandalorian: Chapter 24 (The Return) & Season 3 – TV Review

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TL;DR – While you could say they spared their best to last, it was still frustrating that this energy went missing a lot during this season.     

Rating: 3 out of 5.

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

Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff) and The Armorer (Emily Swallow) decend.

The Mandalorian Review –

I am not sure we thought that at the start of the season, we would be feeling a bit odd now that we are drawing to an end. Indeed, I had to correct myself because I had inadvertently written this as the fourth season, though in hindsight, I don’t think that is far from the truth given how Book of Boba Fett turned out. However, as we come to the end of this season, and maybe even the series at the time of writing season 4 is not confirmed, I wonder what we got.   

So to set the scene, in The Spies, most of the disparate groups of the Mandalorians came together to help reclaim Mandalore after discovering that it was potentially inhabitable. However, Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito) realised their plan. He set a trap because neither of the Mandalorian groups knew is that Gideon always knew the planet was habitable and had made his base there. A realisation that happened after Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) was captured. Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff) was leading the survivors off to escape and warn the armada above that they were about to come under attack. Still, only time would tell if they would get the warning before obliteration. 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: Picard – Võx – TV Review

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TL;DR – This week’s episode was electric, with every reveal, every twist, and every moment landing perfectly  

Rating: 5 out of 5.

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

The fleet comes together.

Star Trek: Picard Review –

There have been a lot of beautiful episodes of Star Trek that have been aired in its 57-year history. Indeed, back in the year 2020, I made my own list of My Personal Top 25 Episodes out of the 743 episodes that had aired up to that point. I bring this up because, as of today, I know I have to amend this list because I just watched one of the finest hours of Star Trek so far.

So to set the scene, after securing the USS Titan-A from the Dominion invaders in Surrender. The whole old crew of the USS Enterprise D and E came together for the first time in an age. Picard (Patrick Stewart), Data (Brent Spiner), Riker (Jonathan Frakes), Troi (Marina Sirtis), Crusher (Gates McFadden), Geordi (LeVar Burton), and Worf (Michael Dorn). There are ill omens in the air because while the Dominion elements have been defeated, it is clear that something is set to occur on Frontier Day, and they have still not worked out what that is. But before they can do that, one question that can be answered is what is happening to Jack (Ed Speleers) because Deanna Troi can help him find what is locked away and is causing him such grief. But no one was prepared for what they found. 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 Mandalorian: Chapter 23 (The Spies) – TV Review

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TL;DR – Everything comes to a crescendo as the big players make their mark.    

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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

The Mandalorian fleet over Mandalore.

The Mandalorian Review –

To say that this season of The Mandalorian has felt a bit disjointed is a bit of an understatement. While clearly entertaining, it has felt like we had forgotten all these side quests we needed to do, and this season, we caught up on all those. But at some point, that all needed to come together, and this was the week for it.    

So to set the scene, on Coruscant, the spy Elia Kane (Elia Kane) has let slip to Moff Gideon (Giancarlo Esposito) that his failures with the pirates at Navarro came from a team-up of Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal) and Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sackhoff). Two figureheads of the opposing divisions of Mandalorians coming together for a common goal. Moff sees this as the apparent threat that it is because the combined Mandalorians are a genuine threat to the purposes of the resurgent empire. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.  

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Tron: Identity – Video Game Review

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TL;DR – A very old-school kind of game with not much complexity mechanically, but with a story that gets its hooks into you wanting to explore this world

Rating: 4 out of 5.

Disclosure – I paid for this game

Tron: Identity Review –

If anyone has met me before, you probably know of my love for the Tron universe. Everything from the visual aesthetic to the story and worldbuilding brings me in and excites me. Things have been light on the ground for the world since the third film went in and out of production. So when I heard there was a new game set in the universe, I was interested. When I discovered that it would be a narrative novel type of game leaning into the old Point & Click genre, well, now you have me intrigued.

So to set the scene, it has been many years since the failed Clu revolution in Tron: Legacy, and even longer since the origin grid in Tron. Long enough, the ‘Users’ have been almost relegated to myth or, for some, a religion to venerate. There have been wars for control. Some programs have even broken off to form their own societies, while Core has taken control of many things in the city. You play a Disciple of Tron, an investigator, an outsider within and without the system. You have been summoned to The Repository, where dangerous items and knowledge are stored. There has been an explosion, and something has been looted from their secure vaults.

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Star Trek: Picard – Surrender – TV Review

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TL;DR – This week’s episode had me on the edge of my seat for the entire runtime

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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

The Shrike looms over the Titan.

Star Trek: Picard Review –

There is an art to naming an episode. You want it to be relevant, and the more esoteric, the more disconnected you leave your audience. Indeed, Chuck famously titled all their episodes a version of Chuck Versus the Colonel for that reason. However, you can’t be too literal with the title because why watch a show when you already know what will happen. The goldilocks of episode titles are those that are relatively straightforward but then can have multiple meanings. This is what we get this week with Surrender.

So to set the scene, well, things are actually at the darkest [I hope] for the crew of the USS Titan-A. Because in last week’s Dominion, Seven (Jeri Ryan) didn’t sacrifice Shaw (Todd Stashwick), Vadic (Amanda Plummer) was able to storm the bridge and take over the ship. She is looking for Jack Crusher (Ed Speleers) and is now using the crew as pawns to lure him out of hiding. Picard (Patrick Stewart) and Crusher (Gates McFadden) do not want him to turn himself in, knowing they will destroy the Titan once they have their prey. But that is easy to say but hard to do when you hear the voices of the crew being killed around you. 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 Mandalorian: Chapter 22 (Guns For Hire) – TV Review

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TL;DR – While we may have started ticking off some side quests, if you are going to do that, you should at least make them as fun as this.   

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

Plazir-15

The Mandalorian Review –

I have not been sure how to feel about this season of The Mandalorian, and viewing statistics has shown that I am not alone on this front. This week’s episode does not help that feeling in any way. But in all its weirdness, it might have at least found something weird and wonderful.

So to set the scene, at the end of The Pirate, Bo-Katan (Katee Sackhoff) was given a mission to go out into the universe and gather all the disparate Mandalorian groups and bring them back together. The first stop on this quest is the outer-rim planet Plazir-15, where a group led by her former crew member Axe Woves (Simon Kassianides) is located. 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: Picard – Dominion – TV Review

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TL;DR – It does what Star Trek does best and explores complex morality problems as the world implodes around them.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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

A nebular.

Star Trek: Picard Review –

Can you make someone have a moral quandary in the middle of an action scene? That feels almost like an area that few would dare to tread, but where else will you learn about someone as well as you can when you have engaged them in a dance of battle? Whatever the case, this week brings emotions to the fore, or is that to the Lore?

So to set the scene, the USS Titan-A is all alone but with the knowledge that there is a conspiracy that has gone to the top of Starfleet as the Changelings are out for revenge. The crew is trying to find allies that are left out there when Seven (Jeri Ryan) gets in contact with her old crewmate Tuvok (Tim Russ), but the reach of the Changelings is extensive, and time is running out. Which means that maybe it is time to throw the hail Mary. 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 Mandalorian: Chapter 21 (The Pirate) – TV Review

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TL;DR – A fun return to form, with two adventures romping across the galaxy.  

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

Navarro

The Mandalorian Review –

The Mandalorian has come from a long line of inspirations encompassing grand space operas, the gun-slinging westerns, and the samurai dramas of Japan. When the show taps into these elements, it always shines. This is good because that is the episode we get today.

So to set the scene, Greef Karga (Carl Weathers) has been busy as Magistrate of Navarro building the planet up as an independent trade location outside of the New Republic and Imperial Remnant control. He was nearly getting it self-sufficient when the pirate Gorian Shard (Nonso Anozie) descended in his corvette and rained fire on the town. With nowhere else to turn, Greef calls out to Carson Teva (Paul Sun-Hyung Lee) for help, but maybe the New Republic is too tied up with its own problems at the moment. Now from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.  

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