Star Wars Rebels 'Shroud of Darkness' Review

This review WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS for the episode to be discussed, if you do not want certain plot points or story spoilt, please do not read further.

After several weeks focusing on the individual members of the Ghost crew and exploring their pasts 'Shroud of Darkness' heads back into the main story of season two and the fight between the Jedi and the Sith in spectacular fashion.

The episode opens with Kanan and Ezra scouting out a planet to see if it can serve as a base, but instead of finding a new hiding place they find the Inquisitors.  Despite having improved in their combat skills and developing some cool dual fighting techniques the two of them are forced to flee.

Despite the viewers having not seen the Inquisitors for a while it would seem that they've been more active off screen as Kanan and Ezra say that they've been encountering the two of them regularly, and come to the conclusion that if the Inquisitors are tracking them their presence within the rebel fleet might be putting the whole rebellion in danger.

The two of them meet with Ahsoka to discuss the problem.  When Ezra arrives Ahsoka is using a Jedi holocron to watch some pre-recorded lessons from her former master, Anakin Skywalker.  This little inclusion of Anakin is great, as it not only gives us a look at the former Jedi in the Rebels art style, but it goes to show that even after leaving the Jedi order Ahsoka cared deeply for him and saw his teachings as being important.  With the show seeming to be building to a confrontation between Ahsoka and Vader this makes this scene especially poignant.

Kanan, Ezra and Ahsoka discuss the problem with the Inquisitors and decide that the advice of a much older and wiser Jedi is needed, and as such set off to Lothal to try and make contact with Master Yoda in the Jedi temple there as Ezra did in the previous season.

Once the three of them reach the temple they begin to meditate together and each have a very different experience.

Kanan meets with a Temple Guard in a training room (that feels very similar to a Star Wars version of the Matrix construct training area where Neo and Morpheus fight) and receives a warning that Ezra is edging closer to the dark side, and will soon be tempted to turn against Jedi teachings.  Kanan refuses to accept this fate and enters into a fight with the Temple Guard.

Ezra manages to make contact with Yoda, this time being able to see the Jedi Master thanks to having increased his abilities.  Yoda laments at the fate of the Jedi, and their involvement in the Clone War, raising questions for Ezra as to whether fighting, even for the right thing, is the best thing that a Jedi can do.  Ezra passionately defends the idea of using his Jedi abilities to fight against the empire.  unable to reason with the young man Yoda simply tells him to seek Malachor for answers.

Ahsoka's vision is perhaps one of the most important and packs the biggest emotional punch.  Having come close to Vader in the season opener Ahsoka was left with the troubling suspicion that Vader was in some way connected to Anakin, this time the Force chose to reveal the truth of that connection.  The moment is well acted and choreographed, and the pain and guilt that Ahsoka feels is evident, giving the show one of it's most emotionally impactful moments since Ezra learnt of the death of his parents,

All three of them are broken out of their visions at the arrival of the Inquisitors, who are trying to break their way into the temple.  It is then that the Temple Guard Kanan is facing remove his mask and answers one of the mysteries the show has had since its very first episode.  The Temple Guard is the Grand Inquisitor, revealing that before the rise of the Empire he was a member of the Jedi order.  He knights Kanan, then tells him to flee, promising to buy him the time he needs to escape.

The Grand Inquisitor, and several other Temple Guard spirits confront the Inquisitors and distract them long enough for the three Jedi to escape.  The episode ends with Vader arriving at the temple, and states that the Jedi's growing power will be their downfall.

'Shroud of Darkness' is one best episodes of Star Wars Rebels to date and gives us a closer look at our Jedi heroes, as well as giving us hints of things to come.  The episode is all about the lure of the darkside, from the warning by Yoda and the Grand Inquisitor to Ahsoka learning the truth about Vader, it's everywhere in this episode.

At this point I wouldn't be surprised to see Ezra end up going to the dark side at some point, and I'm both excited and scared for the possibility of an Ahsoka Vader fight.  There have been fan theories that Ezra will be in Episode Eight as a member of the Knights of Ren (that's who a lot of people are suggesting who Benicio Del Toro will be playing) and this could very well be the groundwork for that.

Malachor has been mentioned in Star Wars lore in the past, mainly with connections to the dark side and the Sith.  Is this the place we've seen in the trailers that has the Sith temple?  Will this be where Ezra finds the cross-guard sabre?  Is this where we will see Darth Maul again?  I think there's a very strong chance that the answer to all of these questions will be a yes.


Amy.

xx

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Legends of Tomorrow 'Star City 2046' Review

This review WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS for the episode to be reviewed, if you do not want certain plot points or story spoilt, please do not read further.

After several episodes exploring the past of the TV DC Universe 'Star City 2046' (as the title may suggest) takes a lengthy look into a possible future for the franchise as the show jumps forward 30 years into the future.

With the Waverider damaged in an attack from Kronos (is that guy ever going to be used as more than a plot device?) the ship has to set down in Star City in the year 2046.  The team leaves the ship to have a look around to find a very different Star City to the one they left behind.  The city is in ruins and gangs of criminals rule the streets, with a new Green Arrow the only one left to stand against them.

Comic book fans were already excited to see this new version of Green Arrow, and based on his costume fans guessed correctly that he was Connor Hawke, though to change things up a little for the television universe the show had him be the son of John Diggle rather then Oliver Queen.  This change worked well in keeping a connection to one of the shows more popular original characters, but it also instantly told the audience why he was fighting for Star City without having to go into deep back story.  He's John's son, that's all we needed.

In this dark future we also get to meet an older Oliver Queen, sporting his much beloved pointy beard and moustache combo and, in a nod to The Dark Knight series, missing an arm.  In this version of the future Ollie lost his arm, and the city, to Deathstroke.  This future Deathstroke isn't Slade Wilson though, but his son Grant Wilson (the first Ravager in the DC Comics universe).

With the ship needing repairs and a piece that technology that Ray believes can be found in the old Palmer Tech building (now Smoak technologies) Rip, Sarah, Captain Cold and Heatwave set out into the city to find the parts they need.  Sarah and Rip end up running into the new Green Arrow and have to tag along with him when confronted by Deathstroke, whilst Cold and Heatwave end up taking over a gang of criminals.

Whilst at first the idea of Cold and Heatwave running off and doing their own thing might feel a little pointless and possibly even stupid, it's probably one of the best aspects of the episodes.  We've seen over the past few episodes how Captain Cold has been affected by his time with the team, and how the idea of being a hero appeals to him, and he doesn't want to give up on that chance, Heatwave on the other hand just doesn't care.  He doesn't want to be a hero, he doesn't care about stopping Vandal Savage and the idea of living in a world where criminals rule Star City is like Disney World to him.

This vast difference has been building for a while, bu this is the first episode where the wedge between them really falls, with violent results.  Cold and Heatwave have had some of the best moments of characterisation in the series so far, and this episode is taking that development to the next logical place.  Thankfully it would appear that whilst Cold won out this time it might not be the last we've seen of this particular disagreement.

Whilst Rip is initially reluctant to get involved in the events of the future Star City, even stating that it's only a possible future and may not even exist if they succeed in their mission, Sarah makes the argument that if the team really are going to go on to become 'legends' they have to be willing to stand up for what's right and fight evil wherever and whenever it is.

Sarah's argument wins out and the whole team turns up to help her, Connor and Ollie to take down Grant and his army.  The final action sequence isn't the best one the show has done (I still think that that title goes to the arms deal fight in the second episode) but it still delivers and looks very cool.

Some of that could come down to the visual design of the episode, where with the roving gangs, burning streets, boarded up buildings and piles of broken cars the whole episode has a very Escape From New York kind of feel to it.  Having watched that film only days before seeing this episode it was actually one of the first things to jump out at me.

The main two weaknesses that the episode has are that they didn't take enough time to show us more of this future world and the pasts of both Connor and Grant, along with a rather forced romantic triangle with Kendra, Ray and Jax.

With so many flashbacks in the main Arrow series it would not have felt out of place at all for the episode focusing on the Green Arrow part of the shared universe to feature flashbacks too.  Showing us the downfall of Star City, Ollie losing his arm, the deaths of the other main characters and the war between Connor and Grant would have all added to the story of this future world and given us a bigger sense of triumph when the good guys won.  It would have also let the show runners have a little bit of fun of killing off a lot of main characters without having to undo those deaths.

The biggest flaw had to be the romance plot that crashed into the episode out of nowhere.  With no previous set-up we suddenly find ourselves watching both Ray and Jax trying to flirt with Kendra in order to pursue a romantic relationship with Professor Stein stuck in the middle.

I might be alone in thinking this, but this was not needed at all.  It added nothing to the characters or the over all story, and if anything if felt very uncomfortable that two of the men on the ship would try to become romantically involved with a woman who has just lost the love of her life (and all her other lives over the last 4,000 years).  Neither character has had much screen time with Kendra in the previous episodes, and neither have shown any real romantic feelings towards her.  It feels like the show runners forced it into the plot because they feel all television needs romance, and it feels like the characters are only interested in Kendra because there's only two women on the ship and Sarah scares them more then Kendra does.

The unwelcomed romance story aside this is one of the more fun episodes of Legends of Tomorrow that we have had so far, and some of that must come down to the fact that we're getting to see a future setting for the first time and the Vandal Savage story gets put on the backburner for a while.  Whilst the show is telling some great stories centred around Vandal Savage I hope we get some more of these adventure of the week style stand alone episodes every now and then.


Amy.

xx

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Trans Woman Takes Her Own Life - More Media Misgendering

A young transgender woman named Lucia Anderson, 22 years old, died last month after taking her own life.  It is only now that the news of her death has hit the media, after her mother spoke out about the incident.

Lucia, who had only recently come out as transgender and expressed the wish to transition to female, was the victim of bullying and hate on line and at school, and took her own life with the use of a seed from a Pong Pong tree.

Lucia's mother found her daughter laying on the bathroom floor after being sick for hours.  Lucia was struggling for breath and told her mother that she couldn't feel her heart.  She eventually revealed to her mother that she had taken a Pong Pong seed.  She was rushed to hospital but later died.

The Pong Pong plant seeds, which can be purchased on line for less that $5 contains a powerful toxin that blocks the calcium ion channels in the heart muscles, causing disruptions in the heartbeat with fatal results.

Natosha Anderson, Lucia's mother, spoke about the incident (using male pronouns to describe her daughter) 'I'm pretty sure he thought it was going to be easy, but it wasn't.  He died in pain.  It was slow, and it was painful.'

The tragedy of Lucia's death has been added to as a large number of media outlets have reported on the incident referring to her as male and using her deadname.  Making this another in a long line of incidents where transgender people are disrespected and have their identities denied by the media.

It's very likely that Lucia took her own life because of bullying and harassment aimed at her because she was transgender, at the very least it cannot be completely ruled out.  When someone has suffered through bullying and harassment to the point that they take their own life to end it and the media continues the abuse after their death by disrespecting their gender and their identity it's heartbreaking.

Just some of the articles that have denied Lucia's identity include, ABC7 News, Q13Fox News, and Milwaukee Community Journal to name a few.

Yes, Lucia's mother referred to her daughter using male pronouns but that does not mean the media should not respect her identity.  My parents still sometimes accidentally use the wrong name or pronouns, this doesn't mean that they deny my identity or that I am trans, but comes from a place of being so used to saying something else.  If Natosha says her daughter was trans, but accidentally calls her 'he' it's not reason enough for the media to report on her death as a male.

Far too often the media misrepresents or falsely reports on trans people to the point where trans identities are forgotten or even disrespected.  Media influences the way people think, and news reports play a large part in that, as such they have the responsibility to report the truth rather than what they feel comfortable reporting.

The loss of Lucia Anderson is a tragedy, the media reporting her death as a male is a crime.

#HerNameWasLucia


Amy.

xx

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Retro Review: Star Trek Deep Space 9 'The Siege of AR 558'

Plot Summary:  Captain Sisko takes a small team aboard the Defiant to bring supplies and medical aid to the planet of AR 558.  Sisko is accompanied by Worf, Dax, Bashir, Nog and Quark, who has been sent along by the Grand Nagus on a fact-finding mission on the war for the Ferengi government.  When the senior team (minus Worf) beam down onto the surface of AR 558 they find a group of starfleet officers who have been under siege from Jem'Hadar for five months as they try to maintain control of a potentially important Dominion communications array.

Bashir treats a number of the wounded and tells Sisko that both the physical and mental state of the soldiers is precarious.  The troops, first numbering 150 but now down to less than 50, have seen their captain and commander killed, were supposed to have been taken off the planet two months before and are under constant threat of attack from both enemy troops and subspace mines that can appear at any time.

When a Jem'Hadar ship attacks Sisko orders Worf to take the Defiant out of orbit to safety.  The Dominion lands ground troops, forcing Sisko to take command of the situation on the planet and engage with the Jem'Hadar troops.

Sisko sends Nog on a recon mission with two of the personnel stationed on AR 558, but when the group is attacked one of the team loses their life and Nog is injured, resulting in Bashir having to amputate his leg.  Meanwhile Dax is able to make the subspace mines visible and is able to reprogramme them to be used against the Jem'Hadar, who are approaching their position.

The mines manage to kill many of the Dominion troops, but dozens still make it through to the Starfleet camp, resulting in a bloody battle that costs many lives on the Starfleet side.  Sisko manages to lead his troops to victory and they hold out until reinforcements arrive, but it leaves Sisko, and several others, wondering if the victory was worth the price they payed.

Analysis:  'The Siege of AR 558' has been called one of the best episodes of Deep Space 9, and one of the best episodes of Star Trek ever, but it's divided many fans, as some feel that it's too dark in tone and shows the horrors of war in a way that is far removed from Gene Roddenberry's optimistic and peace loving vision of the future.

Deep Space 9 took a brave approach to the Star Trek franchise, it gave us a space station instead of a ship, meaning that events unfolded over the course of multiple episodes and seasons and decisions had lasting consequences, rather than the shows usual adventure of the week format.  They also took the incredibly risky step of showing a darker side of the Star Trek universe, one that dealt with oppression, terrorism and war.

The Dominion War was one of the most impactful story lines in the Star Trek universe, and no other episode in the whole Star Trek catalogue goes as far to show the horrors of war than 'The Siege of AR 558'.

In the episodes leading up to this point we'd seen huge space battles, secret missions behind enemy lines and even prisoner of war camps, but we hadn't seen the reality of the ground troops during the Dominion War.  For a television show of the time when DS9 was made to put their main cast in genuine risk and actually kill them off was virtually unheard of, so this kind of episode couldn't be done with just the main cast, which is one of the main reasons for the introduction of the troops on AR 558.  It gives the episode disposable characters to kill.

Despite being made purely for this episode, and made to be expendable, the four main characters found on the surface of AR 558 are all surprisingly well rounded and represent different effects of war on soldiers.  Larkin is the junior officer forced to step up to command responsibility when her commanding officers are all killed.  Reese is the hardened veteran who takes trophies from dead Jem'Hadar, yet turns out to have surprising depth and compassion.  Kellin is the quiet and almost peaceful engineer working in an impossible situation.  Vargas is the damages soldier who has seen too much war and is close to breaking point.

They're all stereotypes and tropes we've seen before, but the way they are used is fantastically effective.  From the first time we see him Vargas is made out to be an antagonist.  He's angry, he's quick to violence and he resents the crew of the Defiant because they get to leave.  When Doctor Bashir treats him though that we get to see why he's the way he is as he breaks down telling Bashir how a man he hated patched him up and saved his life moments before he was killed in front of him.  We see the conflicting emotions of that moment for Vargas, the relief that a guy who annoyed him by constantly talking finally shut up, the anger at himself for not feeling sorry for the loss of a fellow soldier, the pain of having someone save you but not being able to save them, but above all you see that this man is seeing horrors every single day and doesn't know when they will end.  It's a shocking moment, and has impact because you never expected something like that to come from the most closed off and aggressive person.

As much as you grow to like the four characters in a relatively short space of time they were created to be killed off, and three of them do die, with each death serving a purpose.  Larkin is killed in an ambush, the same one that costs Nog his leg, but because Reese is so busy trying to save himself and the injured Nog there's no time to make anything of it.  It happens and then it's moved on from before you can even register it.  It shows that in war death isn't always a big, dramatic or emotional scene, it just happens.  It comes out of nowhere and there's nothing others can do except pick themselves up and carry on the fight.

Vargas and Kellin both die during the final battle with the Jem'Hadar.  Kellin dies in a moment where he protects Dax's life, but it leaves him open to attack from behind and it costs him his own life.  Whilst his death was possibly the most predictable, the fact that the last time you see both him and Dax on screen in this episode is with her cradling his body leaves a lasting impression.  Vargas is killed in one of the bloodiest moments of the episode, being stabbed in the back by his enemy.  His body hits the ground with the blood covered blade still sticking out of his back.  It's one of the more openly violent and bloody moments in any Star Trek episode, and shows the level of bravery that this episode took in pushing the boundaries of what was normally acceptable for the franchise in order to tell a truer and impactful story.

Whilst the troops on AR 558 were the only ones to die, the DS9 crew didn't come out of the episode unscathed.  As stated before, Nog ends up losing his leg in this episode, and it's something that the show would go on to explore in subsequent episodes as we see the physical and psychological impact that the loss of a limb had on the young man.

What's not as obvious at first glance though is the mental effect that this episode, and the war in general, has on a number of our main characters.  During the course of the episode Bashir talks about how he joined Starfleet to save lives, whilst field stripping and readying his phaser rifle without having to even look at it.  Ezri Dax opens up about how she has the memories of battle from her previous lives, but hasn't any firsthand experience on the battlefield herself.  The episode shows her with a strange mix of confidence and level headedness that we've come to expect from the previous Dax, yet a timidness and fear of someone who is still fairly inexperienced.  Dax is definitely forced  to mature during the course of the episode, with the trauma of the battle clear on her face at the end.

Most surprisingly it's Quark who has the most to say about war during the episode, as he continually questions everything.  It's not unusual for Quark to be at odds with most of the other characters, and in most situations he's used as an opposing voice to just about anyone, even if it's right or wrong.  In this episode though all his views have weight to them and come from a very valid place, and not one of selfishness or a quest for wealth.

Quark raises criticism of the choices Sisko makes that he sees as putting Nog in more danger than some of the other soldiers, and he constantly questions Nogs unquestioned love of soldiering and the admiration he feels towards the veterans.

The questions Quark raises, about the sense of going to war over trying to negotiate, of people fighting without questioning the reasons why or the effect it could have, they're all valid points to raise, and none of them are completely right or completely wrong.  There's no one view in this episode that's right or wrong.  It's not a pro-war or anti-war, it raises arguments on both sides of the debate without saying whether they're right or wrong.  It leaves those decisions open.

Quark also raises a point about humanity in this episode that Star Trek rarely likes to highlight, that despite how civilised and progressive humanity is every single human has the capacity to perform terrible deeds.  This fact is highlighted in this episode when Sisko has the option to turn the subspace mines against the Jem'Hadar.  A weapon that up until that point they all said were horrible and evil to use suddenly becomes acceptable when it can be used to their benefit.

War forces people into positions where they have to make impossible choices, where people have to chose whether or not they will compromise their morals and their ethics in order to survive horrors.  Sisko has to make that very choice himself, and whilst he may dislike using the very same technology that killed so many Federation troops, he has to weigh that option against losing even more troops.

No one is immune to these tough choices and having to cross lines that they wouldn't normally, even Quark who is so against the war and against fighting is forced to draw his weapon and kill a Jem'Hadar soldier in order to protect his nephew.  It's the first, and only, time Quark kills during the entire seven season run.  He doesn't want to kill, he doesn't want to be a part of the war, but he crosses that line to save his family.

There's an air of sadness and strain hanging in the air throughout the episode, there's pain and anger and no time to process any of it.  There's no glory in any of the fighting, there's nothing in this episode to take away as being enjoyable.  It's just grim and dark in a way that Star Trek has been unable to capture in their other episodes.

Perhaps part of this is down to the director, the late Winrich Kolbe, who himself lived through the horrors of the Vietnam war.  Once you find out that the director lived through war himself suddenly the episode begins to make a lot more sense.  The ambiguity as to whether war is right or not, the different effects it has on soldiers, crossing lines you don't want to.  This might be fiction, but it's using sci-fi to tell a very real story.

I can see why some people will turn around and say that the episode goes against the vision of the future that Roddenberry created, and you can't argue with the fact that no other episode is so much a polar opposite to the original series than this one, but I believe that it tells a very important story for the Star Trek universe that makes a statement on real war.  No matter how enlightened a society we have, no matter how much we advocate peace and cooperation there is always a capacity for war amongst any civilisation.

'The Siege of AR 558' is not only a great episode of television, but an example of just how amazing Star Trek can be.

Amy.

xx

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The Retro Box

Starting this month I will be producing content with The Retro Box, a part of Black Hole Media.  The Retro Box is a podcast and blog about television shows from the past.  Nothing that appeared later than 2006 will be featured on The Retro Box, so expect some classic television, shows you loved, shows you can barely remember watching and some you may have even actively tried to forget.

As part of working with The Retro Box I will be posting retro television, film and video game reviews here at Trans-Scribe.  Just click on our new Retro Reviews tag to see them all.

Please feel free to head over to Black Hole Media now to check out not only The Retro Box, but other fantastic productions such as Black Hole Cinema, Pick-A-Flick and Dead Meat to name but a few!

Visit Black Hole Media Now! 

Amy.

xx

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Supernatural 'Beyond The Mat' Review

This review WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS for the episode to be discussed, if you do not want certain plot points or story spoilt, please do not read further.

Before this episode aired I saw the promo and my heart sank a little.  I don't like wrestling and have never really found it my kind of entertainment, and was a little worried that the episode would have a heavy focus on wrestling to the point where I would find it off putting.  Luckily, the episode was less about wrestling, but about exploring a part of Sam and Dean's childhood we haven't seen much of in he past, their positive and happy memories.

Every now and then the show offers us a glimpse into the childhood of our heroes, and it's usually an unpleasant one, with their unhappy upbringing and John's absence as the the thing that brings the brothers close.  'Beyond The Mat' gives us a different type of back story as it shows us that John used to take his sons to travelling wrestling shows, and was even a fan himself.  

It helps to humanise John more, which is something the show has sometimes had trouble doing in the past due to his extreme views and desire to hunt no matter the cost to his son's upbringings.  It also gave us a pair of Winchesters who were happy, and actually having the time of their lives watching their childhood heroes and crushes again, recapturing those happy times.

The main story of the episode, of mysterious murders following the travelling wrestling show and their possible supernatural connection is fairly standard, and fairly dull.  Thankfully the episode is so well acted and has so many great little moments in it to keep it feeling fresh and entertaining.  

Dean is at his comedic best in this episode as he's reduced to almost childlike hero worship of the wrestlers he used to watch with his father, and watching him trying to live out his fantasy of being a wrestler in the ring is awesome, with his not so graceful fall out of the ring being a genuine laugh out loud moment.

Elsewhere the episode is packed with great guest actors, who really sell themselves as performers entering the final years of their careers doing the only thing they know how to do.  In a lot of ways, despite being one of the villains of the piece, Gunner Lawless is one of the most sympathetic and relatable characters in the episode, and his final scene is a bittersweet one.

The episode also featured the guest appearance on The Miz (who I understand is an actual famous wrestler), and if I wasn't looking into the episode after I would not have known he wasn't an actor.  The whole cliche of being a wrestler means that you can't act certainly wasn't present during his performance as he played his part just as well as any other actor on the screen.

Whilst the main story didn't add much to the season arc we also got a chance to catch up with Lucifer and Crowley, which did move things forward a little.  

Lucifer seems to finally be doing something as the king of Hell now, using his hordes of minions to search the globe for more Hand of God artifacts to use against Amara.  It's during all of this that Crowley is approached by Simmons, and is told that there are still demons who support Crowley and want him back on the throne.

Simmons and Crowley engineer an escape and head off to one of Crowley's secret storehouses.  It's full of useful artifacts and weapons (along with copies of the Supernatural books), including another Hand of God artifact, the Rod of Aaron.

In a shock turn of events (or rather something completely expected) Crowley is betrayed by Simmons as it turns out the whole thing was a plot by Lucifer to find out what Crowley would do.  In a scene dripping with sexual innuendos and phallic jokes ('I don't think you can handle my rod') Crowley uses the power of the weapon to try and kill Lucifer, unfortunately Simmons gets in the way and the one-shot weapon gets wasted.

It's not much, but these scenes not only get Crowley away from Lucifer and free (hopefully to go and team up with the Winchesters) but also confirms that there are definitely more Hand of God artifacts that can be (hopefully) used against Amara in future episodes.

A fun episode that takes the time to build on Sam and Deans childhoods, giving us something new and interesting about the two of them eleven years into the shows life.  

Amy.

xx

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Arrow 'Code of Silence' Review

This review WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS for the episode to be discussed, if you do not want certain plot points or story spoilt, please do not read further.

It's been a few weeks since Ollie and Team Arrow have had to deal with Damian Darhk, and whilst there's not a direct confrontation this week things have started moving towards a rather dramatic confrontation.

It appears that having lost the League of Assassins Malcolm Merlyn has managed to work his way into the upper ranks of HIVE, in another grab for power and a shot of revenge at Oliver, by giving Darhk information on Oliver's son, William.  

This week HIVE and Darhk move their plans to take over the city forward by trying to bring down Oliver's mayoral campaign, quite literally.  Darhk has hired the Demolition Team to destroy the building that will be holding the latest debate in order to kill Oliver and leave his wife, Ruve, unopposed in her bid to take over Star City.

Whilst it's a fairly by the numbers type of episode (the bad guys perform a number of crimes around the city before building up to their big plan in such a way that it leaves a trail for the heroes to follow) some good directing by former stunt coordinator James 'Bam Bam' Bamford gives the fight scenes a little extra flair that can sometimes be lacking in other episodes of the series.

Despite dealing with Darhk and HIVE a lot more the episode also managed to build up the story of Oliver running for Mayor and the rivalry between him and Ruve.  It was a shame that some air time wasn't given over to actually see Oliver in debate, winning over the public and actually being a competent candidate.  The show tells us that he's good, the news reports and villains talk about how he's winning over the most public approval, but we never get to actually see him doing it.  It feels like a little bit of a missed opportunity to see him in this role and doing something a little different for once.

Elsewhere in the episode it was really enjoyable to see more screen time given over to Quentin Lance and his relationship with Donna.  For something that took me as a surprise when it first happened I've actually found myself really enjoying the notion that he and Donna could be a couple, and have become more invested in their relationship than I have Oliver's and Felicity's.

Despite some rocky moments this week kind of cemented their relationship and made it more than just a fling, which is great, but it also makes me a little worried that it will be one of them who ends up in the grave towards the end of the season as part of HIVE's revenge against Lance betraying them.  Considering how upset Felicity is in the flash forwards and the fact that Barry wanted to be at the funeral makes me think that it may be Donna destined to die.

Quentin and Donna were definitely the highlight of the episode for me, and it was really cool to see Quentin hanging out in the Arrow Bunker so casually after years of hating the Green Arrow and Oliver.  It feels like the show is finally moving forward from what was becoming a tired character trait and actually making more of Lance then just 'disapproving, angry police man' trope.

Despite enjoying the Quentin Lance stiff the most, the scene with Curtis giving Felicity her engagement gift at their party.  He's gone and created a microchip that could enable her to walk again (further pushing Felicity to have more in common with Barbara Gordon).  Despite not being the biggest fan of the Oliver/Felicity relationship there was something about this scene that was just so sweet and genuine that it actually moved me a little.  It also delivered the line that made me smile a lot, 'Curtis, you're terrific'.

The final scene of the episode managed to close with a shock as we discover that Damian Darhk has already used the information given to him by Malcolm Merlyn to kidnap William, setting the stage for what is sure to be an intense and emotionally fuelled episode next week.

Amy.

xx

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Star Wars Rebels 'The Honorable Ones' Review

This review WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS for the episode to be discussed, if you do not want certain plot points or story spoilt, please do not read further.

The first thing that I noticed about this episode, and something that got me very excited when it happened, was the fact that the episode opens with the crew of the Ghost travelling to Geonosis to investigate the Empire building a huge mystery project.  Yep, the episode dipped into Death Stat territory!

Unluckily, or possibly luckily, whatever the Empire was working on has since left Geonosis.  Disney have said that Rebels will be tying into the new films, but most people assumed that they meant the new trilogy only.  Is this episode laying some extra ground work for the upcoming Rogue One film, which is all about stealing the Death Star pans?  It could be, after all, once the crew of the Ghost file their report on the mission the Rebels are still going to be looking for whatever the Empire built.

Whilst the episode begins with this little dip into the larger lore of the Star Wars universe the main bulk of the episode is much smaller and personal, as after infiltrating an Imperial station Zeb and Agent Kallus end up in an escape pod that crashes into Geonosis' frozen moon.

Kallus is injured and the two enemies are forced to work together for survival as they wait to see whose allies will arrive first.  Initially I was surprised to find that the episode would focus on Zeb just a few weeks after he got the spotlight in 'Legend of the Lasat', but it wasn't so much about Zeb as it was Kallus.  

After so long of Kallus being an adversary it was a pleasant surprise to see the show spend the time to explore a little of the background of one of their main antagonists, and to show that he isn't the two-dimensional villain that we were led to believe.  

Despite previously bragging that he was responsible for the destruction of Lasan we find out that Kallus' role was not as grand as he wanted the Rebels to believe, and that he was just another soldier following orders as the people above him executed the destruction of a world.  We also find out that Kallus didn't take his bo-rifle as a trophy of war, but it was gifted to him by a defeated Lasat as part of their warrior traditions.  Kallus is also given a little humanity as he tells Zeb a story of how his entire squad were wiped out and killed by a single Lasat mercenary and how he was almost killed in the process.  

It's nice of the show to give us this back story for one of the villains, and make them into a character you can kind of understand and feel sorry for.  He's not just an enemy combatant, he's seen the horrors of war and is as much a victim of the Empire as anyone else.  Which is a point that's driven home when Kallus finally makes it back to the Empire, and despite being around his people, finds himself alone.  He sees admiral Constantine, but isn't even given a second glance despite being injured.  

Kallus and Zeb both find their expectations of their enemies subverted in this episode, and Kallus has some of his core beliefs shaken by what he goes through with Zeb.  I hope that this plays out into the future, that it has lasting effects.  I'd really like to see Kallus begin to question his allegiance more and possibly become an informant for the Rebellion, or even turn on the Empire fully.

'The Honorable Ones' uses the sci-fi trope of being stranded with an enemy, but does it with great effect.  There is a reason it's such a heavily used storyline in television, because it's a great one to explore characters and their motivations.  

Whether or not he events of this episode change Kallus in any lasting way it was definitely enjoyable to be able to see him as more than just a villain for once.

Amy.

xx

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The Flash 'King Shark' Review

This review WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS for the episode to be discussed, if you do not want certain plot points or story spoilt, please do not read further.

Earlier this season we were teased with a brief appearance of King Shark, one of the show's most visually stunning villains, but the moment was gone quickly and overshadowed with the surprise return of Harrison Wells.  An entire episode being given over the the hulking villain was both a surprise and visual treat.

With King Shark in the custody or A.R.G.U.S., now headed up by Arrow's Lyla Diggle after the death of Amanda Waller, the Earth-2 villain manages to escape from the facility he's being held in (with gruesome results) and heads to Central City to finish his mission of killing the Flash.  John and Lyla travel to Central City to warn Barry and the gang of King Sharks return and stick around with A.R.G.U.S. to help capture him.  

We only get a handful of scenes with King Shark, coming to only a few minutes of screen time, but the episode uses him brilliantly, building tension as our heroes hunt him down and giving us lots of destruction as he tears apart people and buildings like they were nothing.

Other than Gorilla Grodd no other villain has been used to show just how amazing the shows visual effects team are, and when viewed in high definition this episode definitely deserves a round of applause.  Every time King Shark is on screen you can see the texture of his skin, you see his veins and muscles move under his skin and they even manage to show different expressions in a face that's much harder to do that with than a gorilla's. 

King Shark is without a doubt one of the most impressive moments of the entire Flash/Arrow universe and I'm sure will get the show more nominations for it's visual effects work.  From the brief looks we get at Doomsday from the Batman V Superman trailer King Shark actually looks better than the big threat from a multi-million dollar blockbuster.  King Shark is definitely going to be remembered as one of the standout's for season 2.

The action in the episode is sparing, but well thought through, with the final ocean based battle not only looking great, but showing just how adaptable Barry's powers have become and how adept he is at using them.  King Shark chases him across the sea as Barry runs on water, creates a whirlpool to capture the monster, then throws lightning at him repeatedly until he falls unconscious.  

To break up the shark hunt the episode also takes the time to deal with the fallout of the teams visit to Earth-2 and focuses on the effect that those events have had on the team.  The two most damaged by the events of last weeks episode are Barry and Caitlin, both of whom suffered loss due to Zoom.

Caitlin spends much of the episode dealing with watching Jay killed in front of her by Zoom (maybe, 

I still think the man in the iron mask is the real Jay Garrick) and having lost another person she loved. 

It's not an easy subject to handle, as during the course of the last two seasons Caitlin has possibly suffered the most emotionally.  Yes, Barry went back in time last season and saw his mother killed again, but this was something Barry knew would happen and has lived with for 20+ years, in the space of a year Caitlin lost her husband, and then when she finally started having feelings for someone else saw him die too.  

Having witnessed a dark version of Caitlin on Earth-2 Cisco becomes worried that the loss of Jay might be forcing their Caitlin down a path that will lead to her becoming more like Killer Frost.  The episode even teases us with this notion with an angrier and more abrupt Caitlin, but Caitlin herself points out how crazy the notion is when she finally forces the information out of Cisco.  She's grieving, and part of that is her shutting off her emotions so that she can process everything, it doesn't mean that she's going evil.

The fact that Cisco could think that shows that despite being a genius he's a little stupid sometimes, but it does help to show the bond that he and Caitlin have and how much the two of them really do care for each other.  I'm sure this isn't the last we'll see of the pain Caitlin is going through, but her journey in this episode does feel real and satisfying to watch.

Barry goes through most of the episode carrying the weight of what happened to him on Earth-2 as well, and we start to see the effect that this entire season has had on him.  He blames himself for opening the breaches between the two worlds, he blames himself for the death of Joe on Earth-2 and he blames himself for what happened to Jay.  He's struggling to see that not being able to save someone isn't the same as being responsible for their death.

It isn't until he's finally confronted by Joe and Iris to talk about what's going on that he's lifted of this burden.  He tells them everything that happened on Earth-2 and gives us one of this best emotional performances this season (other than the heartbreaking conversation with this mother on Earth-2).  Gustin steps up in this scene and gives us a Barry one we haven't seen in a long while, a man haunted by everything that he's been through and finally thinks he's had enough.

Luckily his family are there to pick him up and help him move on, and by the end of the episode he's done feeling sorry for himself.  He assembles the team and tells them that he's had enough with dealing with Zoom and the pain he's been putting them all through.  He's resolved to taking the fight to Zoom and ending things once and for all, and it looks like everyone else is ready to do the same too.

The episode also starts to build on the Barry Wally relationship, something that hasn't really happened yet.  The television version of Wally is very different to either version of his comic counterpart (pre and post New-52), so building a similar relationship between the two on screen was going to be a very different prospect.  Wally doesn't like Barry much, he doesn't like that he's such a big part of the family he's trying to be a part of and because of the things Barry is working through this episode their relationship still looks a little frosty, but they've definitely started to find some common ground to build a relationship on.  The scene with Joe and Wally in the coffee shop is an important one too, as it helps Wally to understand Barry a little more and maybe not view him as the rival he thought he was.

The episode ends with a scene that fans have been waiting months for, the reveal of the identity of Zoom.  After so long building the character up and masses of speculation from viewers it was a big moment.  Zoom returns to his lair with the body of Jay Garrick in his arms.  The man in the iron mask sees this and reacts badly (it's hard to know exactly what he's feeling with only his eyes visible) and then Zoom removes his mask to reveal....Hunter Zolomon.  

The show's producers have already spoken to confirm that Zoom is Zolomon, not Jay Garrick, but it's still a surprise moment, and one that doesn't actually go to explaining anything.  We don't know if this is the Zolomon we saw on Earth-1 or another version of him, we still don't know if that was really Jay Garrick who died and we still don't know who's inside the iron mask.  It's definitely a fun way to leave the show as it goes on a break for the next month.

Amy.

xx

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The Walking Dead 'The Next World' Review

This review WILL CONTAIN SPOILERS for the episode to be discussed, if you do not want certain plot points or story spoilt, please do not read further.

After the grim events of last week's episode The Walking Dead jumps forward in time (two weeks within the show) and takes the time to tell a lighter episode that even included a little humour after 'No Way Out's grim events.

The change in pace is a welcome one, and lets us avoid some of the banality of the post-horde events.  We know that they'd have to get rid of all the walker's bodies, but it was nice to not have to see that.  We know that they'd have to rebuild their walls, and again, it was nice not to see that.  And it was nice that they didn't inject false tension around Carl, and simply showed us that he is healing and adapting to his wound and is almost back to his old self.

It meant that the show has been able to keep its pace without having to cover these more dull moments.  We don't need to be shown them recovering immediately after the events of the last episode.  We can see them back to normal a few weeks later and believe it.  It's a pleasant turn that the writers don't feel the need to spoon feed the story as they have had a tendency to do in the past.

The episode sees Daryl and Rick going on a quick supply run, and judging from the casual manner in the way they act on the road, and the fact that Daryl begs Rick not to put his CD on before he's even done so implies that this isn't the first time the two of them have been out together since the last episode.

It feels like the past seasons, where the two of them spent a lot more time together than they have recently and they slip easily back into that comfortable relationship.  It feels very natural and relaxed as they try and enjoy this time of calm.

Whilst on the road the two of them find a truck filled to the brim with supplies that they need for the citizens of Alexandria, unfortunately things don't go according to plan when they run into another survivor on the way back home.

Readers of the comic book series will be jumping for joy as we're introduced to Jesus for the very first time, the wisecracking kung-fu prankster that looks like the son of god.  A lot of people knew that Jesus was going to be introduced this season, and were expecting him to be brought in as a way of saving Glenn during the first half of the season when we were led to believe he'd been killed.  Bringing him into the show now, after the dark and dramatic events of 'No Way Out' is a much better decision, as it allows him to bring some lightheartedness to the show without it feeling out of place.

Jesus steals the truck from Rick and Daryl and lead the two of them on an almost comical chase around the surrounding countryside, with Daryl running after him through a field as one point in a scene that has since been recut with Benny Hill music to great effect.  

All of the scenes with Jesus are great fun to watch, and despite the fact that our heroes lost a massive pile of supplies because of him you just can't quite bring yourself to hate, or even dislike the character.

As this is still The Walking Dead, there was some dark to counterbalance the fun Rick and Daryl were having, as Michonne and Spencer find a zombified Diana in the woods outside of Alexandria after Carl leads her towards them.  It's a sad moment that reminds us of some of the losses the community has been through recently, and makes the audience miss Diana again.  It also helps to resolve some of Spencer's story and will hopefully make him a better part of the community then he was in the past.

Michonne confronts Carl as to why he didn't just kill Diana himself, knowing that he's more than capable of doing it.  Despite maybe trying to make us think that being shot in the face may have resulted in Carl going a little disturbed, his reasoning was almost touching.  He felt that it should have been someone who loved Diana who killed her.  It's in this moment that Carl tells Michonne that he loves her and would do it for her if the time ever came.

Despite the weirdness of telling someone you love them enough to kill them if they become a zombie it's a very sweet moment, and one that helps to show how much of a family they have become.  This developing relationship between the Grimes' and Michonne reaches a boil this week as Rick and Michonne finally kiss on screen for the first time.  I say on screen as I have a feeling this isn't the first time these two have done so.

With all of the loss that Rick has suffered through it's a rewarding moment to see him become close to someone again, and unlike Jessie it just feels right and natural with Michonne.  The two of them work brilliantly together, and Michonne is closer to Rick, Carl and Judith than she is with any other members of the group.  They already felt like a family, I guess now they really are one.

Amy.

xx

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