December of 1979 saw two competing space epics trying to steal some of Star Wars’ juggernaut mojo. One of them was Paramount’s big budgeted revival of its cult TV property “Star Trek: The Motion Picture”, and the other saw Disney throw its mouse-eared hat into the big budget space epic arena with “The Black Hole”;…
The Orville, S2.13, “Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” is a blast from Kelly’s past…
****PLANETARY RING-SIZED SPOILERS AHEAD!!**** The Orville’s latest, “Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” (a title alluding to Shakespeare’s “MacBeth”) is, in many ways, another Star Trek: The Next Generation remake. In this case, the Commander Riker-centered “Second Chances”, which saw Riker facing a transporter-created doppelgänger unknowingly left behind on an away mission. The Orville comes at…
Star Trek: Discovery S2.14: “Such Sweet Sorrow,” part 2 is a season finale with the soul of a series finale…
Just finished watching the series–er, second season finale of “Star Trek: Discovery”; it was epic, sweeping, emotional and (as usual) a bit overstuffed, but damn, it was gorgeous, too. ****QUANTUM SINGULARITY-SIZED SPOILERS AHEAD!!**** The Story. Last time, on Star Trek: Discovery, “Such Sweet Sorrow Part 1”:https://musingsofamiddleagedgeek.blog/2019/04/12/star-trek-discovery-s2-13-such-sweet-sorrow-opens-the-floodgates/ Part 2 picks up at the very end of…
The Twilight Zone S1.4: “A Traveler” stops along a few familiar paths…
****AT THE SIGNPOST UP AHEAD: THE SPOILER ZONE!**** Story. An indigenous Alaskan policewoman, Sgt. Yuka (Marinka Sila) is taking her own drunkard brother Jack (Patrick Gallagher) to jail on Christmas Eve on a drunk & disorderly charge. There, he is expected to get some turkey, a slice of pumpkin pie, and the annual Christmas Eve…
“Shazam!” (2019) infuses its superhero story with loving homages to 1980s cinema…
My wife and I saw “Shazam!” yesterday after a week-long delay (technical issues with the theater’s digital copy) and I have to say, it was well worth the wait. “Shazam” turned out to be surprisingly witty, and a lot more nostalgic than I originally anticipated… ****SUPER-SPOILERS!!**** Without ruining a great big spoiler near the end…
The Orville, S2.12: “Sanctuary” tackles gender inequality…
“The Orville” continues to explore Star Trek-style allegory but with its own unique brand of humor, and this week was another quality entry that managed that delicate juggling act, delivering scathing commentary on international gender inequality with…Dolly Parton. The Story. Capt. Ed Mercer (writer/creator/producer/star Seth MacFarlane) and his first and second officers, Kelly Grayson (Adrianne…
Star Trek: Discovery, S2.13; “Such Sweet Sorrow” opens the floodgates…
The latest episode of Star Trek: Discovery, “Such Sweet Sorrow,” may be best remembered as the “The Big Goodbye 2.0.” The crew truly coheres as a family, which has been an ongoing struggle with the show. Many characters have been maddeningly underdeveloped, such as the supporting bridge crew, who were little more than faces in…
“The Twilight Zone” realizes its potential with “Replay”…
Jordan Peele’s newest incarnation of Rod Serling’s classic TV series “The Twilight Zone” got off to an uneven start last week with a two episode debut. The first was a solid offering (“The Comedian”) and the second was a haphazard mess (a miscalculated reimagining of the classic “Nightmare at 20,000 [30,000] Feet”). This week’s entry,…
“Pet Sematary” (1989/2019), a postmortem of both versions…
Stephen King’s 1983 novel, “Pet Sematary” (sic, sic, sic…), arguably one of his best books (certainly a favorite of mine) has been adapted twice into film; first in 1989, a version directed by Mary Lambert (Black List TV series, Madonna’s “Like a Prayer” video), and now a just-released 2019 version, directed by Kevin Kolsch and…
“Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace” still haunts my DVD cabinet, 20 years later…
May of 1999 was a heady time for me. I was 32, and getting married in a month. My bachelor days were melting away into a new chapter of my life. I was going from an apartment to a house. As my fiancee (present-day wife) and I were planning the details of our life together,…
Star Trek Discovery, S2.12: Heavy foreshadowing in “Through the Valley of Shadows”…
The latest Star Trek: Discovery has dropped, and it’s a doozy. The entire episode foreshadows future Trek or character destinies, and is impossible to discuss at any length without spoilers, so without further ado… ****SPOILER WARNINGS TO MAXIMUM!!***** The Story. Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin Green) is brooding over the loss of her quantum-leaping mother for…
Jordan Peele’s first two entries into “The Twilight Zone”…
Debuting auspiciously on April Fool’s Day, Jordan Peele’s take on the classic TV series “The Twilight Zone” has arrived on CBS-All Access streaming service. Peele is part of the sketch comedy duo of “Key & Peele” as well as the talented suspense filmmaker behind the Oscar-winning “Get Out” (2017) and the recent “Us” (2017), both…
