Science Fiction

Darth Vader #17

/ / Comics

Darth Vader #17 comic reviewWhat does it mean to be a Jedi? Darth Vader #17 finally brings the Jedi Barr and Darth Vader face-to-face. While Vader is serving his own murderous impulses and the interests of the Emperor and Barr is pushing a Rebellion on Mon Cala that definitely isn’t in the population’s best short-term interests, the comic shows that neither is actually serving the Force.

Darth Vader #17 also features the hard line that Grand Moff Tarkin chooses to take on the rebelling planet, in an attempt to teach a lesson to any who would rebel in the future, even after their leader agrees to stand down and end the Rebellion. Barr and Tarkin bring equal amounts of destruction to Mon Cala as each plays a small role in a much larger game.

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Samurai Jack – Episode X: Jack and the Lava Monster

/ / Television Reviews
  • Title: Samurai Jack – Episode X: Jack and the Lava Monster
  • wiki: link

Samurai Jack - Episode X: Jack and the Lava Monster television review

Throwback Thursday takes us back to the adventures of the time-displaced samurai and his quest to make his way home. Following a mysterious call in the wildrness, though a valley of bodies and a mountain of traps, leads Jack (Phil LaMarr) to a cursed warrior (Richard McGonagle) deep within the mountain. Cursed by Aku (Mako) and left for eternity encased in a rocky prison, the warrior awaits for an opponent worthy enough to defeat him in battle and send him to Valhalla. Initially refusing to fight, Jack agrees to a one-on-one battle which frees the viking and delivers his long-sought peace.

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The Toys That Made Us – Star Trek

/ / Television Reviews
  • Title: The Toys That Made Us – Star Trek
  • IMDb: link

The Toys That Made Us - Star Trek

While the other episodes of the documentary series look at the phenomenally successful toy lines that defined a generation (or several generations), the Star Trek episode is an interesting departure that focuses far more on the franchise’s mistakes, false starts, stumbles, and decades of poor marketing that led to frustration from their target audience. While there are some interesting items here and there, and the quality did improve in later years, the stand-outs here are the toys that either failed (such as the constantly beeping walkie-talkie tricorder) or the bizarre (what exactly is that flashing helmet for?). Of the three episodes I’ve watched from the show’s Second Season, it’s the most interesting allowing collectors and toy makers to celebrate and bemoan the byzantine ups and downs of Star Trek merchandise.

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Anon

/ / Television Reviews
  • Title: Anon
  • IMDb: link

Anon movie reviewThere’s an interesting idea inside of writer/director Andrew Niccol‘s (Gattaca, In Time) Anon but the film, released straight to Netflix without a theatrical release, flounders. A sci-fi whodunit, Anon takes place in the future where every person has a camera inside their eyes which records every waking moment of their life. When a crime happens, police are able to view the events from the victim’s perspective. However, a hacker has learned how to hack the cameras not only giving them access to an incredible amount of sensitive data but also allowing them to kill without leaving a trace.

Clive Owen stars as Police Detective Sal Frieland who searches for a hacker (Amanda Seyfried) who can alter a person’s recorded history for a price. Going undercover, Sal hopes to find the hacker and murderer who the department believes is the same person (although Sal’s bosses are far more interested in plugging the leak into how the hacker is breaking into the network than solving the murder). Part post-noir mystery and part attempted indictment on social media and sharing your life online, Anon fails on both counts.

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