28
Apr
This SUPERGIRL article contains spoilers for Season 6, Episode 5, “Prom Night!” Supergirl Season 6 Episode 5 Supergirl’s first trip to Midvale back in season 3 was an incredibly special episode, a moody mix of winding roads and the sense of home, taking inspiration from Smallville and Veronica Mars, while giving viewers an insightful look at a true moment of growth for the Danvers sisters that also offered perspective on where they were in their modern continuity. For the final season’s return, take all those expectations and add in the promise of a young Cat Grant and two episodes to build the…
21
Apr
This Shadow and Bone review contains no spoilers. Millions of readers worldwide love young adult fantasy fiction, but even the most wildly popular titles—Sarah J. Maas’s Throne of Glass series, Cassandra Clare’s Shadowhunters books, Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games trilogy, and many more—are generally written off as “guilty pleasure” escapism, shallow, meaningless stories for people who just aren’t ready to take real literature seriously. (Barf.) Part of this reaction likely stems from the widespread public backlash to the few young adult fantasy series to gain mainstream popularity, like the Twilight saga or the aforementioned Hunger Games. But, in truth, the…
19
Apr
Blackwood, the latest chapter in The Elder Scrolls Online’s ongoing “Gates of Oblivion” event, is poised to be a particularly special experience for fans of the all-time classic Bethesda fantasy RPG The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. While the chapter is set 800 years prior to the events of Oblivion, Blackwood’s versions of the sprawling cities of Leyawiin and Gideon, as well as the devilish Deadlands, will undoubtedly feel familiar to veterans of the 2006 classic. But as we learned during a hands-on demo period in April, the expansion also features new areas and characters that bring these iconic locations to…
06
Apr
K.M. Szpara‘s debut Docile was one of the most binge-able, divisive reads of 2020. A near-future drama set in a world in debt crisis (imagine that), Docile explores the violence of capitalism at the most intimate of interpersonal levels, as we follow Elisha as he sells himself to trillionaire Alex in order to pay off his family’s debts. With Docile, Szpara, a queer and trans Baltimore-based author, proved himself willing to dive into some complex, culturally loaded subjects to tell a science fiction story that reflects some central yet ignored truths about our contemporary society. For me, a White reader,…
30
Mar
There are times when it’s hard to believe the Kingdom Hearts franchise even exists. In an age of copyright strikes, brand protection, and corporate concepts that often clash with creativity, how were we so lucky to get a game that allowed us to explore the wonderful worlds of Disney and Final Fantasy? Kingdom Hearts‘ greatness comes down to a variety of factors, but discussion about the game really do seem to always circle back to those worlds. Each new area of the Kingdom Hearts franchise takes you on an almost impossible journey through some of the most imaginative environments ever…
23
Mar
In a somewhat surprising move, Nintendo and Pokemon Go Niantic have revealed that they’re teaming up to develop a new mobile AR game based on the Pikmin franchise. That game will formally mark the start of a new partnership between the companies that both sides hope will eventually result in a series of AR games based on famous Nintendo franchises. “As we continue to expand our games portfolio, it was a natural next step to team up with Nintendo,” said Niantic chief executive officer, John Hanke. “We’re looking forward to shaping the future of AR together, bringing Nintendo’s beloved game…
27
Feb
Warning: contains spoilers for A Discovery of Witches season 2 episode 8. Near the end of A Discovery of Witches season two, episode eight, Peter Knox walks into the hospital room where new parents Sophie and Nathaniel are recovering from the birth of their daughter Margaret (no, nobody else is much keen on the name either). As a powerful witch who represents his people on political assembly the Congregation, he’s there to verify that the baby is – as he’s been told – a witch born to daemons, and then to kidnap the child so that she can be raised by her own species.…
26
Feb
This article contains spoilers for WandaVision Hello, and welcome to our WandaVision episode 8 magic explainer. Before you go any further, please be aware that we’ll be going into big spoiler territory, so if you haven’t yet seen this week’s installment, avert your eyes immediately. The eighth episode of Marvel’s first MCU spinoff was largely expository in nature, as Agatha Harkness (Katherine Hahn) forced Wanda Maximoff (Elizabeth Olsen) on a trip down memory lane. First, we saw the incident Wanda originally described in Avengers: Age of Ultron where she and her twin brother Pietro were trapped by a Stark Industries…
07
Feb
Sisu may not be what’s expected by a large portion of the audience that sits down to watch Raya and the Last Dragon next month. A long serpentine creature of watery origin, the dragon in the movie’s title does not breathe fire or lay waste to cities. Rather she’s a protector, a martyr who according to legend saved the mythical land of Kumandra 500 years ago. And when heroic loner Raya resurrects Sisu in the present, the lead character, plus her young fans, will discover greater layers still. By virtue of Sisu’s voice casting alone, parents in the audience will…
01
Feb
This Batwoman review contains spoilers. Batwoman Season 2, Episode 3 In this week’s episode of Batwoman, a contract killer is let loose on Gotham, and Ryan has to stop them before they set their sights on Mary. I want to first give kudos to the writers for being intentionally inclusive with their verbiage but not self-congratulating when they are. Victor Zsasz (Alex Morf) calling themself a hitperson is a small but not insignificant thing. Zsasz, the killer in question, is a fun creep of the week, just committing murders all willy nilly and not bringing any politics or personal feelings…
30
Jan
In this terrifying tale of buried secrets and supernatural revenge, a man brings his family to the rural orphanage where he was raised. Once there, sinister, terrifying events bring the orphanage’s dark history to light. Rated: NRRelease Date: Jan 28, 2021
18
Jan
Every trading card game has those rare cards that are so few and far between, getting a glimpse at one in real life feels special. In Pokémon Trading Card Game, you’ve the likes of the pre-release Jungle Raichu, or the Pikachu Illustrator, and in Yu-Gi-Oh there’s the original print of Dark Magician Girl, or the Chinese Blue Eyes White Dragon. For Magic: The Gathering, there’s the Power Nine, the most valuable of which is Black Lotus, and one’s about to become available – if you’ve got the money for it. The Power Nine are a set of cards that stretch…
08
Jan
If the first season of A Discovery of Witches was like cooler, sexier Twilight for grown ups then season two might be likened to the later, less sexy installments of that saga. There’s nothing that ruins a fizzy will-they-won’t-they relationship like the couple getting together and being happily in love. Season two finds our protagonists witch Diana (Teresa Palmer) and vampire Matthew (Matthew Goode) hiding in time. Just beginning to get a handle on her considerable powers, Diana has discovered she’s a ‘timewalker’ and transported her and Matthew back to Elizabethan era London where the two plan to search for…
02
Jan
This Vikings review contains spoilers. Vikings Season 6 Episode 18 “Here is the grave of the most famous Viking who ever lived.” There’s an element of truth to the well-known axiom that says it’s always calm before the storm, and as we near the end of the saga, Vikings allows its characters a moment to catch their collective breaths before taking steps that will drastically alter their respective political and personal landscapes. “It’s Only Magic” delivers a series of emotional interiors that lays the groundwork for resolutions in Kattegat and France and provides a fresh beginning in a wondrous new…
22
Dec
It takes nearly 12 minutes before Disney and Pixar show their title cards in Soul. By then, we’ve met a guy named Joe, basked in his dream to be a professional jazz pianist, and watched him fall down a manhole that’s led him to the other side. Now he’s being confronted with a bright multi-hued light called the Great Beyond, which draws souls to it like a bug zapper collects flies, and he’s understandably fleeing in the opposite direction To say that Soul is ambitious for a kids’ movie, or even a Pixar film, is an understatement. Here is a…
25
Nov
The different colors in Magic: The Gathering represent different types of magic. Black mana, for example, is drawn from swamps, and is parasitic and destructive, leeching power from its victims before destroying them completely. Red mana, from mountains, is chaotic and explosive, dealing lots of direct damage to opponents. Wizards of the Coast would clearly want an artist to represent these themes in the art on the cards. Who better to represent the death and destruction of mountains and swamps than Bob Ross? Starting Cyber Monday (November 30th), Wizards of the Coast is releasing one of its periodic Secret Lair…
23
Oct
This article is presented by: October means we’re officially in spooky season, so what better time to explore some of the more terrifying corners of Magic: The Gathering? Plenty of monsters and villains occupy each color of Magic, but it’s the black swamps that host the most vile and decrepit. Among the infinite shadows of these landscapes, few threats are as immediately fear-inducing as zombies. If you’re looking to build a deck that’ll send shivers down your opponent’s spine, or just devour anything they throw at you, an army of the living dead is the way to go. Though often…
16
Oct
It was one of the most challenging shots in Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Sitting before Roman Coppola’s second unit camera was a 50/50 mirror, the kind that was once commonplace in any illusionist’s magic shop, but which hadn’t seen the inside of a Hollywood studio in decades. On the other end of the glass lay Winona Ryder in bed, ostensibly asleep but soon to be bedeviled by a monstrous vampire. Yet co-star Gary Oldman wasn’t on hand that day. Instead, at about a 90-degree angle away from Ryder’s boudoir, stood a duplicate set of the same size and shape, but buried…
10
Oct
This A Discovery of Witches article contains spoilers for the ending of Season 1. A Discovery of Witches, like Outlander, is one of the few big-budget genre TV shows that is also unabashedly romance. Based on the All Souls trilogy by Deborah Harkness, the screen adaptation follows Diana Bishop (Teresa Palmer), a historian and witch who, after discovering a bewitched manuscript in Oxford’s Bodelian Library, is pulled further into a world of magic and danger she has been trying to avoid since she was young. In the process, she meets and falls in love with geneticist and vampire Matthew Clairmont…
