Tag Archives: Space Opera

Star Wars: Skeleton Crew: We’re Gonna Be In So Much Trouble [S1E6] – TV Review

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TL;DR – We are jumping from strength to strength, making this one of the things I look forward to during the week.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

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

The barrier of Ad Attin is a gas layer.

Skeleton Crew Review –

For quite a while now, Star Wars has been a product filled with animosity and frustration where it felt like those with their hands on the wheel didn’t know what they wanted and with no clear leadership at the top, the community became toxic, or more toxic. That is why it has been such a joy to find Star Wars: Skeleton Crew, which has seemingly punctured through that malaise and is linked back to what made Star Wars good in the past yet with a modern veneer.

So, to set the scene, well, things are finally looking good for the kids: Wim (Ravi Cabot-Conyers), Fern (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), KB (Kyriana Kratter), and Neel (Robert Timothy Smith/ Kacie Borrowman). At the end of Zero Friends Again, they reclaimed the Onyx Cinder and are on their way to At Attin. The only problem is that Jod (Jude Law) and their pirates might have gotten there first. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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Dune Prophecy: Season One – TV Review

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TL;DR – A fascinating look into the Dune world when it was just starting, but it felt more like half a season than a full one.  

Rating: 3.5 out of 5.

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

Dune Prophecy Review –

Before we dive into our best of 2024, there is one final review we have to finish, and that is for a TV version of one of my favourite novels and movie series: Dune. I have always loved diving into this world, even if I would never want to live there. Today, we have had the chance to catch up with the entire first season of Dune Prophecy, so it is time to see if it all worked.

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 season as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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Star Wars: Skeleton Crew: Zero Friends Again [S1E6] – TV Review

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TL;DR – It’s a fun little romp to get us moving towards the end game.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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

Skeleton Crew Review –

If there is one thing that I will always appreciate Skeleton Crew for, okay, other than for making me learn how to spell skeleton correctly, is that it brought the fun back to the Star Wars universe. Now, I don’t mean that they brought jokes back. Every film in the modern era has had its fair share of quips. I mean that joy you get when you have a smile on your face because what you are watching is fun. Today, we will see if they can continue that moving forward.

So, to set the scene, well, things are not looking good for the kids, Wim (Ravi Cabot-Conyers), Fern (Ryan Kiera Armstrong), KB (Kyriana Kratter), and Neel (Robert Timothy Smith/ Kacie Borrowman). For in You Have a Lot to Learn About Pirates, Jod Na Nawood (Jude Law) betrayed them all by forcing SM-33 (Nick Frost/Rob Ramsdell) to declare that the dubious force user was now captain. Not wanting to be a part of his dastardly plan anymore, Wim has a quick thought and yeets the kids through a trap into the floor. Now they all have to work out where to go from here, trapped on the bottom of a mountain, away from their ship, betrayed by the one person they trusted. 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: The New Next Generation & Season 5 – TV Review

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TL;DR – I am sad that our time with Lower Decks is over. However, I am glad that it went out on such a high note.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

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

The USS Cerritos.
The USS Cerritos

Star Trek: Lower Decks Review –

One of the many wild swings this new era of Star Trek undertook was jumping back into the animated world with a show that would be more farcical and self-referential than ever before. Playing off one of the most famous episodes of The Next Generation, Lower Decks rode the line between being a love letter to Star Trek fans and telling a good story in its own right. Now we have come to its final episode, and the question is: did they stick the final landing?

So, to set the scene, after William (Jack Quaid) poured all the rift energy into his universe, our Prime-Star Trek world, there was only one chance to stop it. Well, after Boimler (Jack Quaid) has had an acceptable freakout, he lets Captain Freeman (Dawnn Lewis) know, and while Starfleet Command would have preferred any ship but the Cali-Class USS Cerritos to be the ones to fix it, time is not on their side, and the Cerritos is already near the Klingon border. The only problem is that The Federation might not be the first one to find the rift. We will be looking at the episode, season, and probably series as a whole from here, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead. 

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Star Trek: Lower Decks: Fissure Quest – TV Review

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TL;DR – It has been a long time since an episode of Star Trek made me audibly explain, but that was this week’s outing.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

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

USS Anaximander coming out of a rift.

Star Trek: Lower Decks Review –

I honestly can’t believe that today’s episode of Lower Decks is potentially the second last one that we will ever get. There is just such a wealth of joy here that I am sorry to see it go. While this final season has been a bit hit-and-miss for me, I was hoping that it would end the season on a high. Well, after last week’s Fully Dilated and today’s outing, I think they just might do it.

So, to set the scene, all the way back in Season Two’s Kayshon, His Eyes Open, our Brad Boimler (Jack Quaid) got duplicated by a transporter accident, and William Boimler (Jack Quaid) was created. Thought dead, we know that William was recruited into Section 31, but we were wondering what he has been up to. Today, we discover that he is the captain of the USS Anaximander and part of the mission to find out why quantum fissures between universities have been opening all over the place. His crew are full of dimensional castaways, but when there is a chance to find the people doing this, the question is, how far will William go? 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: Upper Decks Review: A Love Letter to the Crew of the USS Cerritos

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TL;DR – This episode feels like a love letter to the crew of the USS Cerritos, and as such, it was honestly moving in a way I was not expecting.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

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

The rings of Bhungar V

Star Trek: Lower Decks Review –

One of the things that has always made Lower Decks stand out in the vast landscape of the Star Trek Universe is that much of its focus is not on the command crew of the ship. Of course, they are all still there, but they are more side characters and foils for our core cast. Over time, those lines started to blur as we had space to explore characters more, and the Lower Deckers spent more time on the bridge. However, today, we put that all aside to give a love letter to the crew of the USS Cerritos.

So, to set the scene, in the Buhgood Feeding Grounds around the rings of Bhungar V, the USS Cerritos crew are steeling down to explore an old Earth ritual, Halloween. As Tendi (Noël Wells), Rutherford (Eugene Cordero), T’Lyn (Gabrielle Ruiz), and Boimelr (Jack Quaid) all dig into their gourds in a carving session. Mariner (Tawny Newsome) got stuck in painting. All the good things only happen to the bridge crew, which, as fate will have it, is who we will be following today. 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: Prodigy – Ouroboros, Part I, Part 2, and Full Season – TV Review

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TL;DR – A beautiful end to a season, and hopefully not an end of a series.

Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

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

A time portal opens up over Earth.

Star Trek: Prodigy Review –

Alas, we have come to the end of the second and hopefully not last season of Star Trek: Prodigy. What a season it was. We will take some time a bit later to explore the season as a whole, but before that, we need to dive into this incredible season finale that went places I was not expecting at all.

So, to set the scene, after Asencia (Jameela Jamil) attacked the USS Voyager-A and the USS Protostar, it became clear that something had to happen before she did irreparable harm to The Federation with her time weapons. The problem is that Starfleet is already spread so far that there is no one else about to get out that far to help them. The combined crews need to stop them fast because, little do they know, Asencia has captured Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton) and mined his mind for secrets she can use to cause galaxy-wide chaos. 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 Acolyte (Star Wars: The Acolyte) – The Acolyte & Season 1– TV Review

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TL;DR – While the finale felt incredibly rushed, I did find the series to be a grand entry in the franchise.  

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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

Qimir tries to take the helmet of Osha.

The Acolyte Review –

Well, we have reached the end of what has surprisingly become one of the most controversial Star Wars entries since at least The Rise of Skywalker. I am not sure why a series that revelled in the mystical side of The Force that George Lucas loved garnered such a negative response, but here we are. Today, we will first pull apart the season finale before taking some time to explore the season as a whole.

So, to set the scene, at the end of Teach/Corrupt, Sol (Lee Jung-Jae) promised Mae (Amandla Stenberg) that he would tell her what really happened that one fateful night all those years ago. It was a sad series of consequences that led to Sol killing the twin’s mother in Choice. But while Mae has a revelation, Osha (Amandla Stenberg) wakes up in a cave on an unknown planet, where she is captured by Qimir (Manny Jacinto), who wants her to unlock her powers. 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: Prodigy – Ascension, Part I & Part 2 – TV Review

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TL;DR – Honestly, wow, I was sitting on the edge of my chair for the whole episode.

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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

The USS Voyager-A and the USS Protostar.

Star Trek: Prodigy Review –

Have you ever been sitting watching a show and suddenly thought, “Hey, whatever happened to [insert important plot point here]”, only to get slapped in the face with that plot point a few moments later? Well, if you have ever had that happen to you, then you will know what I felt like as we jump into the episode today.  

So, to set the scene, after getting the USS Protostar back into orbit during the Last Flight of the Protostar and a number of struggles, we finally get back into contact with the USS Voyager-A. While Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) and Chakotay (Robert Beltran) get a moment to reconnect, things go from bad to worse. First, Starfleet wants them back to Earth so that they can deal with the Protostar themselves. But before that can happen, a danger from the past comes back with a vengeance. 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: Prodigy – Last Flight of the Protostar, Part I & Part 2 – TV Review

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TL;DR – It is time to escape a world and find who we are.  

Rating: 4 out of 5.

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

The Protostar sails across the planet.

Star Trek: Prodigy Review –

After a season-long hunt for one Chakotay (Robert Beltran), there was always going to be a question of whether the series would be able to stick that landing. That is a huge emotional weight with a payoff that is needed given they are a legacy character … and you know what, I think they did it.    

So, to set the scene, at the end of The Devourer of All Things, as the time vultures circled in, there was only one hope left for the future. That was our team of Dal (Brett Gray), Gwyn (Ella Purnell), Jankom (Jason Mantzoukas), Zero, Murf (Dee Bradley Baker), Rok-Tahk (Rylee Alazraqui), and now also Maj’el (Michaela Dietz) had to jump through a portal to places unknown. Good news: they found the USS Protostar and Captain Chakotay. Bad news: they are stuck on a sand bar on a K-class planet and have no way to get off it. Now, from here, we will be looking at the episode as a whole, so there will be some [SPOILERS] ahead.

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