In the second part of the Geonosian planetary war campaign it’s time for a calming influence on the whole proceedings as Jedi General Luminara Unduli is brought in to take command of the assault on the droid factory. Along with the four Jedi, the whole operation is backed up by a couple of battalions of clone troopers who Anakin thinks are best to use in a full on frontal assault on the heavily fortified factory....

Star Wars Rebels Season 2 Episode 16 Rebels twines a lot of threads together in “Shroud of Darkness.” Ezra and Kanan both learn well-trodden but powerful Jedi lessons, Ahsoka takes her place as the mentor figure (sort of), and several cameos spice up the spiritualism-heavy episode. Unexpected turns, a fantastic cold open, and connections to the Prequel Trilogy make for an episode that ramps up toward the end-of-season arc nicely. The fierce cold open shows that the Inquisitors have been making it hard for the Rebels to set up a secret base, tracking them to any planet that seems likely....

Steven Universe Season 5 Episode 7 Anytime Steven Universe focuses on Peridot and Lapis it strikes gold. Peridot’s observation that Lapis doesn’t like surprises and that she needs consistency hit way too close to home. Speaking as someone who’s also been through abuse I instantly identified with that. After sometimes years of being in a volatile situation of course you’d enjoy consistency. You’d enjoy not having things just sprung up on you....

Supergirl Season 3 Episode 15 I think it’s safe to say that Supergirl has recovered from any of the melancholia that plagued the first half of the season. A multitude of light touches like Kara slowing down to make sure she doesn’t ruin her shirt, Winn being excited to say “suit up,” and the photobooth pictures of Kara and the Kaladarian really restore the show’s overall sense of levity. The cold opens, which have focused on the gang having fun with a side of exposition, have also done wonders to restore the joy inherent to the show....

It wouldn’t be a season finale for Supernatural without “Carry On Wayward Son” playing through the intro, glossing over the big events from the entire season to lead to the opener. We come back right where the last episode left off. Dean is practically foaming at the mouth after attacking Gadreel and must be restrained to keep from killing the turncoat angel. Dean calls on Crowley, and they share a lightly amusing moment at a diner....

2.3 Ice Pick Since Scott McCall had a run-in in the forest with an angry monster and discovered it gave him mystical powers, agility, speed, strength, and killer sideburns, his life has been turned upside down. Scott didn’t ask for the gift; it was thrust upon him. However, what if you could choose to accept it, becoming a werewolf at the cost of your humanity? Would you do it? For the misfits of Beacon Hills High School—Isaac the abused son of the mortician and Erica the epileptic with the myriad of maladies—having the choice is no real choice at all....

My first copy of Terry Pratchett’s Mort was a paperback that bore, upon its cover, artwork by Josh Kirby. Those Kirby covers are immediately recognisable to all Discworld fans; packed with energy, movement, the figures almost falling over each other, they always promise an adventure that will, above all, make you laugh. And Mort certainly made me do that, but I didn’t take it too seriously. Nobody did, back then....

One of the biggest surprises of the time jump was that Clarke managed to survive the most recent apocalypse. We obviously knew this was true heading into the post-Season 4 hiatus, but let’s recap how it happened for those who have trouble remembering the ins and outs, and break down why Clarke’s Nightblood may be a plot-changer moving forward into Season 5… So, how did Clarke survive Praimfaya? Good question....

It was the beginning of the end for old school Hollywood for much of the next decade, and their precious good old boys club of the Academy and Oscars too. Independent filmmakers—directors, writers, actors, and cinematographers—a goodly handful of them alumni of the Corman School of cheap and dirty low-budget moviemaking, quietly began infiltrating the studios, sneaking in through the back doors while no one was looking, and taking over....

A more truthful title might have been ‘The Art of Being Neil Gaiman’. It’s a look back over all of his projects with a focus on how they evolved from events in his life. He doesn’t work so much as travel, make friends, read, watch things and people that form ideas that become other things, and eat sushi. The process of connecting is everything – connecting childhood to adulthood, thoughts to paper, ideas to people....

Thirty years ago, the war tore a hole in the sky and left America a cannibalistic wasteland of roaming nomads who rape and plunder without mercy. Wandering through the desert is a lone man with a backpack, a machete, and a very special book. Eli (Denzel Washington) is a man with a goal. That goal is to get to the west coast, no matter what happens. He’s carrying what he says is the last remaining copy of The Holy Bible....

The third and fourth parts hadn’t been too bad, especially the one of those not written by the show’s creator. But any semblance of continuity, or even logic, got thrown out of the nearest hatch pretty early on. The wholly predictable reappearance of Clem, not dead, only then to kill him off in a scene where everyone does something remarkably stupid, was ridiculous. Clem attacks Stas, one of the people on the Volos that could help him, then Vincent alerts Raymond to Clem’s attack allowing him to shoot Clem, and then Captain Zubov operates a weapon that killed most of his crew without any idea in what direction it’s currently pointing....

The Flash Season 3 Episode 16 For, I dunno, the third or fourth time this year, I was prepared to write some kind of 500 word variation of “this episode was okay” and then “Into the Speed Force” decided to shake things up. Again. I’ve loved this season, and I’m pretty sure that by this time last year the wheels were already starting to come off. There’s been no sign of the central premise collapsing this time around and The Flash has gone from strength to strength recently....

The Gifted Episode 8 FENRIS! The show has been feeding us little nibbles of a greater story for its entire run now. “threat of eXtinction” isn’t particularly revelatory – there’s no “OH CRAP” moment that shows where in the X-Men cinematic universe’s timeline it fits, or a discovery about what happened to the X-Men and the Brotherhood. But where it succeeds is in giving long-time X-Men fans a concrete tie to the comics (or several – check the Phoenix Eggs below), and in giving us a deeper understanding of Reed and his family....

An offshoot, or maybe you could call it an anteroom, of that place is where some of us gather to swap stories, histories, recipes, philosophies, daily joys and tragedies and, as it is a more ‘private place’, where some will bare their souls among their friends. There is a gentle quality to the communication there. More than just respect and caring, but a compassion and unconditional love between the friends....

I never really did get ‘involved’ with the Boba Fett saga. I just didn’t get on with Darth Vader. But I gather that Angela Merkel is taking on the role now, which, even if interesting, doesn’t bode well for the future of Europe. Appropriately, some enthusiastic astronomer has concluded that there was, in fact, a high probability of there being an actual phenomena in the skies at the approximate year of the Nazarene’s birth....

It was lovely working with Clint. I loved taking my clothes off. I haven’t got a favourite actor and the Casting Couch is a myth! Well, as an actual Couch, anyway. But myth or not, it has led many a simple young girl astray. The problem with the CCS (Casting Couch Syndrome) is that it has the opposite effect to what it is supposed to manifest. Promises of leading roles and a bright future are the lure....

There is, allegedly, a motion picture based on the war-strategy board game Battleship in development (I’m visualising The Battleship Potemkin in plastic) and, though not strictly a board game, Michael Bay’s intentions to craft a Ouija board film have also been made public (though this may end up being a hack-job remake of The Exorcist with hyperactive editing and lots of big explosions). Out of ideas, the high-rollers of Hollywood have gone, not so much back to the drawing board, but rather back to the board games....

As Prince Wu’s coronation approaches, people begin to express their doubts about his ability to rule, none more so than Kuvira, who hijacks the ceremony to announce the subversion of the monarchy and the dissolution of the Earth Kingdom in favor of a new Earth Empire. Meanwhile, Toph tries to help Korra get her groove back, a task that proves easier said than done. Toph reveling in kicking Korra’s ass was… man, I missed Toph....

This review contains spoilers. There are times when I wonder just how much is going over the heads of children watching this show. There were two moments in this episode in particular where subtle commentary was being made and I’d venture that only older audiences truly understood it. We’ll get to that later, but first: I asked for Mako development, and I got Mako development. This episode serves two functions: one, to give us our first real look at Amon, why he started the Equalists movement, and what he can do to further that goal, but also to give us time to get to know Mako....