Star Wars: Tales of the Underworld

 

Image Credit: Disney

May the 4th Be With You! In celebration of Star Wars Day, Disney+ released a new six-episode animated show entitled Star Wars: Tales of the Underworld. While I haven’t jumped on the latest few Star Wars offerings, this one is right up my alley. My favorites in the Star Wars universe have always been the rogues, the criminals, and the bounty hunters and that’s what this mini-series is all about. In particular, the show splits three episodes each between former Sith apprentice and assassin Asajj Ventress after she leaves the employ of Count Dooku and an origin story for bounty hunter and crime boss Cad Bane. The episodes are short so binge-watching is easy and if you’re a Star Wars fan like me, I highly recommend them. The animation is excellent, as is the voice-acting, and I’d put the scripts above most of Star Wars’ recent streaming shows. Below are my brief descriptions of each episode.

 

A Way Forward

While trying to lie low from Imperial forces, Asajj Ventress runs across a young Jedi who she ends up protecting and then joining on a search for The Path for Jedi trying to escape Order 66.

Friends

Asajj Ventress decides her best option for obtaining information regarding The Path is to help an old acquaintance pull off a heist but things don’t go as planned.

One Warrior to Another

Following the information received at the end of the heist, Asajj Ventress ends up on a desert planet where she and her young friend get caught between a former Imperial officer and the locals in a battle for control of a dwindling water supply.

The Good Life

Cad Bane is just a young street rat who survives by stealing from unsuspecting citizens alongside his best friend when they get recruited to help a violent gangster named Lazlo.

A Good Turn

Years later, Lazlo gets killed and Cad Bane goes to even the score despite his female companion’s objections. When he arrives, he is surprised to meet up with his old street rat friend who is now a lawman.

One Good Deed

Cad Bane and his gang get revenge for Lazlo which leads to a standoff between Bane and his old friend. By the time the proverbial smoke clears Bane learns a secret that contributes to his notoriously bitter disposition.

5 Actors Who Could Be the Next Baylan Skoll

 

Image Credit: Disney+

Season 1 of the latest Star Wars series Ahsoka is over and for my money, the best character of the show was antagonist Baylan Skoll. Sadly, the actor who portrayed Baylan, Ray Stevenson, died shortly before the series debuted. Far from being written off, his character is front and center in the biggest cliffhanger of the last episode, leaving a dilemma for Season 2. You can’t leave Skoll out of the upcoming storyline. So how do you recast such a well-acted and central character as Baylan Skoll? I don’t think anyone can replace the excellent work of Ray Stevenson, but there are some actors who might be able to step into his Jedi boots and do him justice. Here are my Top 5 picks for Disney and showrunner Dave Filoni to consider. 

Image Credit: Gerhard Kassner

Clive Owen

My favorite pick is English actor Clive Owen. He’s almost the same age, has a similar deep voice, similar stature, resembles Stevenson a bit, and most importantly, has proven himself to be a good actor in such films as Children of Men, Inside Man, The Bourne Identity, and Sin City. Rumor is he was once a front runner for James Bond before Daniel Craig won the part in 2005. He’s done some series work in the past few years. Perhaps a role in the Star Wars universe is in his future.

Image Credit: Rebecca Bana

Eric Bana

Australian actor Eric Bana is almost the same age as Stevenson, nearly identical in height, and he has the deep, raspy voice the character of Baylan Skoll calls for. Bana could add Star Wars to an acting resume that already includes Black Hawk Down, Hulk, Munich, Star Trek, and my favorite of his performances, the doomed warrior Hector in Troy.

Image Credit: AMC

Pierce Brosnan

If Filoni wants to stick with a fellow Irishman to follow in Stevenson’s footsteps, 90s’James Bond actor Pierce Brosnan might be a good choice. He’s a couple inches shorter than Stevenson and over a decade older, but he’s still in remarkable shape. He’s starred in plenty of great projects. Besides four Bond films, he was also in Mrs. Doubtfire, The Thomas Crown Affair, The Tailor of Panama, and even played a bad guy in the recent Dwayne Johnson superhero film Black Adam.

Image Credit: Warner Bros.

Dolph Lundgren

This might be a bit of a stretch, but if Filoni wants a match for Stevenson’s stature and deep-set, menacing eyes, he could go with Dolph Lundgren. At 6’5” Lundgren is even taller than Stevenson and the Swede knows his way around playing violent men. He’s played one in plenty of films including The Expendables series, Johnny Mnemonic, Universal Soldier, and most famously, Rocky IV as the towering Russian boxer Ivan Drago.   

Image Credit: Filmweb

Götz Otto

If you want a choice completely out of left field, how about German actor Götz Otto? He’s been in a ton of movies and series, but given that most of them were overseas, the name might not ring a bell. What you probably WILL remember him for is his role as the towering henchman Stamper in the 1997 James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies. At 6’6”, he’s the tallest actor on this list and if Stamper was any indication, he knows how to quietly intimidate on screen.

 

Who is your pick to take over the role of Baylan Skoll? Have an actor in mind that isn’t on this list? Share it in the commentsavbe.

The Importance of a Good Villain

 

Image Credit: Disney+

There isn’t a whole lot on TV that I’m enjoying at the moment, but at least one exception is the latest Star Wars offering on Disney+, Ahsoka. This week’s fourth episode was the best so far and a large part of that success is the increased focus on the villains. Now I’m not suggesting that the collective girl power of the title character, her sidekick Sabine Wren, and her ally Hera Syndulla doesn’t have its own appeal, but the best thing about the show is the pair of villains, Baylan Skoll and Shin Hati. Recently deceased actor Ray Stevenson brings a menacing dignity to Skoll and actress Ivanna Sakhno delivers a ferocity to Skoll’s apprentice Hati that demands attention. It got me thinking about the importance of a good villain in just about any speculative story.

Stories, whether they’re short, novels, or screenplays tend to focus on a main character who serves as the hero. He or she may not start off as heroic, but over the course of their journey, they grow to become that way. They rise to the challenge. What often sets apart a good story and a great one is the quality of that challenge, the hero’s opponent. Who is Luke Skywalker without Darth Vader? Clarice Starling without Hannibal Lecter? John McClane without Hans Gruber?

I’ll go so far as to suggest we as an audience often root for the villain. Not because we really believe they’re going to win, or even should, but because they’re so fun to watch. I’ll freely admit that I much prefer Wile E. Coyote to the Road Runner or Tom to Jerry. I’m happy for the Fellowship of the Ring, but it bums me out that both Sauron and Gollum had to die in order for them to succeed.

An intriguing villain often makes or breaks a story. It doesn’t matter how much we love the hero, if that hero isn’t faced with an equally great bad guy, the tale just falls a bit flat. As a writer, I try to keep this in mind as I plan a story. Who is my hero up against? What is that villain’s motivation? What sets apart that villain from your standard thug with a gun or big muscles and a bad attitude? If I don’t spend as much time fleshing out that villain as I do my protagonist, the result often suffers.

Sadly, the fact that Ray Stevenson died shortly before Ahsoka premiered means we won’t see more of Baylan Skoll after Episode 8 next month no matter what series creator Dave Filoni planned. I’ll miss the character, but the fallen Jedi’s quality and his lasting impression is a fitting conclusion to the resume of an actor who stole more than a few shows with his ability and charm.  

The Book of Boba Fett – Season 1 Review

 

Image Credit: Disney+

 

Season 1 of the latest Star Wars offering from Disney+ wrapped up last night and being the Star Wars geek that I am, you know I watched every minute of it. If you haven’t seen it yet but plan to, I do share some mild spoilers below but I tried to avoid spilling the best stuff. If you’re on the fence about seeing it, I’ll say up front that it isn’t as good a show as The Mandalorian, but it’s still a fun ride. Boba Fett always struck me as a galactic High Plains Drifter. I assumed this series would depict that same quiet, cruel bounty hunter who just happens to now be more interested/invested in punishing bad guys instead of good ones. That isn't what we get. Instead, Fett is an aging, softening man who just wants to settle down and get the locals to like and respect him.  For me at least, this makes for an uncompelling lead. There’s no doubt that the show is an entertaining piece of nostalgia, it's just not everything I hoped it would be.

That said, here are brief summaries and my thoughts on each episode written immediately after I watched them.

 

Stranger in a Strange Land

Fett’s appeal in the original Star Wars trilogy was his quiet menace. We didn’t hear much from him. We just knew he looked and moved like a bad ass. This new version of the infamous galactic bounty hunter does a good bit of talking and frankly, most of it isn’t very bad ass. I would have enjoyed seeing his sidekick Fennec Shand do more of the talking on his behalf. Like Netflix’s The Witcher, allowing the warrior to rely on grunts and growls would let him keep more of his air of mystery. I also think a set of hand signals between the pair similar to the House Atreides battle language in Dune would underline the importance of their relationship and Fett’s ability to act swiftly and mercilessly with a minimum of words. Robert Rodriguez’s direction of the Mos Espa fight sequence left something to be desired as well. It felt more Spy Kids than Desperado. Improved stunt choreography and editing would have dramatically improved the scene and our belief that Fett and Shand are forces to be reckoned with. This first episode is fun in that it takes us back to a planet and characters that we love, but I think it does less to set up a strong series than what we saw in The Mandalorian.

The Tribes of Tatooine

This second episode has some weak spots, but it’s a definite improvement over its predecessor. The arrival of the Hutt twins and their Wookie enforcer, Krrsantan who want to lay claim to Jabba’s former domain and run off Fett in the process is a highlight as is the appearance of the Ithorian mayor of Mos Espa, Mok Shaiz. However a large portion of this episode is backstory and while interesting, it further damages our image of Fett as a bad ass as we see him repeatedly get beat up by Tusken Raiders. Eventually he earns their respect by saving one of their youths from a desert monster whose odd appearance and movement wouldn’t be out of place in Clash of the Titans. Fett follows that victory with another against a gang of ruffians in a bar brawl, cementing his place in the Tusken tribe. Our protagonist then goes on to lead the sand people in a high-speed spice train robbery that could have been great, but like the Mos Espa fight in Episode 1, feels short-changed by the stunt performers and special effects. It ends up coming off a bit like Fury Road-lite. All-in-all still underwhelming, but the series is at least moving in the right direction.

The Streets of Mos Espa

Fett reflects on the tragic fate of his former Tusken tribe then wakes from his bacta tank dream to an assassination attempt by Krrsantan. He survives thanks to a new gang of young bikers he’s recently taken under his wing and he soon accepts an apology from the Wookie’s Hutt twin employers. The Hutts have decided to leave while they still can and they offer both the Wookie and a rancor as payment for the trouble they’ve caused. I didn’t dislike the teens and their colorful speeder bikes nearly as much as many critics on Twitter did, but I did take exception to director Robert Rodriguez again choosing cheap-looking Spy Kids-type special effects in a chase scene through the busy streets of Mos Espa that could have been a series highlight if done well. Cheers to the casting of Danny Trejo as the rancor keeper though!

The Gathering Storm

The quality of the special effects continues to disappoint, the most glaring example in this episode being Fennec’s cybernetic surgery scene, but watching Fett rescue and befriend Fennec was fun as was the mission to retrieve Fett’s ship from Bib Fortuna, and Krrsantan’s dismemberment of an unfortunate gambler in the Sanctuary club. The highlight of this episode is Fett and Fennec’s exploration of and subsequent battle with the Sarlacc while inside Slave 1. I thought it was a great way to tie the show to Fett’s last scene in Return of the Jedi and yes, for this old-school fan, the name of his ship will never change.

Return of the Mandalorian

Chapter 5 isn’t so much an episode of The Book of Boba Fett as it is a lost episode of The Mandalorian. We follow Din Djarin as he stops in to show off the Darksaber to The Armorer, dukes it out with Paz Vizsla over which of them is the rightful wielder of the legendary blade then promptly gets booted from the Mandalorian ranks when he admits he broke their code to remove his mask for Grogu. This leads Djarin back to Tatooine where he commissions a small, Phantom Menace-era ship to replace his destroyed Razor Crest. The new ship is ridiculously fast but also completely impractical for a bounty hunter who needs to be able to live on, sleep in, and transport prisoners in a cargo hold. The episode ends with Fennec showing up at the shipyard to ask Djarin for his help, finally tying the story back to Boba Fett. While out-of-place in regard to telling Fett’s story, this episode is a blast. I don’t know if it is the superior direction of Bryce Dallas Howard, the superior acting of Pedro Pascal, or if writers Jon Favreau and Noah Kloor are just more in tune with Djarin than Fett, but chapter 5 is far more satisfying than the four episodes before it.

From the Desert Comes a Stranger

The penultimate episode of Season 1 is again mostly about characters other than Fett and it’s even better than episode 5. Not only do we get more Djarin, we get the return of Luke Skywalker, Ahsoka Tano, R2-D2, Cobb Vanth, and maybe coolest of all, the first live action appearance of Star Wars: The Clone Wars baddie, Cad Bane. All of this fan service and world building seems to be leading to a big battle for control of Tatooine between Fett and his allies against the spice-smuggling Pyke Syndicate and their hired guns. Meanwhile Grogu faces the choice between his friendship with Djarin and his Jedi training with Skywalker, a decision which should clear up which direction the next season of The Mandalorian will take.

In The Name of Honor

The final episode of the season is all action and while some of it doesn’t hit as hard as it should, quite a bit does. We get the Star Wars version of Godzilla vs. King Kong, we get Fett and Djarin fighting side by side against overwhelming odds, we get a great showdown between Fett and Bane that’s practically lifted straight out of a Clint Eastwood spaghetti western, and we finally get to see Fennec Shand act like the deadly assassin she was built up to be. This finale isn’t as strong as the two episodes that preceded it, but it’s a fun wrap up of Boba Fett’s rise to power on Tatooine and a nice segue into the upcoming third season of The Mandalorian.

Star Wars: Visions is Pretty Yet Dull

 

Image Credit: Disney

Star Wars: Visions was released on Disney+ yesterday to plenty of hype. Reviews are in and most are glowing so I spent the evening watching all nine of the short animated episodes. The concept is an interesting one; give various Japanese anime companies a shot at telling a short story set in the Star Wars universe. It comes off as Disney’s branded response to Netflix’s Love, Death & Robots – a show I’ve written about twice on this blog.

Visually, as the name suggests, Star Wars: Visions is impressive. Several of the episodes are beautifully rendered and while I’m not a fan of some of the more cartoonish styles, I’m sure they please those who enjoy the anime genre. What I noticed most about the show however wasn’t the stunning landscapes or cool lightsaber effects, but the lack of variety in the storytelling.

Personally, as much as I love the Star Wars universe (and anyone who reads this blog knows I LOVE the Star Wars universe) I think the whole Jedi/Sith angle is a bit played. There are so many incredible planets, races, and guilds in this universe, why does every story require a young person take up a lightsaber and dedicate themselves to defeating the Sith? Three of the most refreshing recent entries Disney has delivered were entertaining because they purposely distanced themselves from this storyline. Solo focused on the origin story of our favorite space smuggler. Rogue One told the tale of a group of rebels stealing the Death Star plans and delivering them to Princess Leia. Perhaps best of all, The Mandalorian follows the exploits of a bounty hunter capturing wanted creatures across the galaxies while protecting a young adoptee.

Eight of the nine episodes that make up Star Wars: Visions involve lightsaber fights. Three of them follow the inexplicable idea first seen in Rey of The Force Awakens that a person can pick up or inherit a lightsaber and immediately be capable of defeating powerful enemies without a hint of training. What I’d love to see if they follow this up with a Season 2 is a broader spectrum of stories. Off the top of my head I came up the following in about 10 minutes:

• A protocol droid acting as translator for a negotiation between a Hutt and a bounty hunter watches it go terribly wrong.
• A pair of bickering Gamorrean guards escalates a grievance in Jabba’s palace until one traps the other in the rancor pit and gleefully watches him meet his doom.
• A mistreated Imperial worker on the Death Star sabotages the laser pistols he is forced to maintain then plays dumb as Stormtroopers continually find they can’t shoot straight.
• A hermit tinkerer who lives alone in the rusted husk of an AT-AT on Hoth builds a droid out of spare parts to keep him company.
• A Kaminoan is tricked into sharing her cloning secrets with an Imperial Officer who then steals them for the Emperor to use on himself.

That’s half a season of content right there and not a lightsaber to be seen. I’d pay to watch those stories. Wouldn’t you?

 

So should you watch Star Wars: Visions? If you’re a fanboy like me, yes. Completists must complete. If you’re a more casual viewer I’d recommend catching a few and skipping several. My brief episode guide is below.

The Duel

This is the opening episode of the series and the best of the bunch. If Akira Kurosawa did a Star Wars film, it would look something like this. A lightsaber-wielding Ronin and his trusty droid save a village from a group of Stormtroopers and their Sith leader.

The Elder

Episode 7 starts off with some cringey Jedi/Padawan dialogue ala Kenobi and Anakin in Attack of the Clones but then settles into an entertaining tale as the two explore a village then do battle with an ancient dual-lightsaber-wielding villain.

Akakiri

The final episode of the series shows us a Jedi who suffers visions of a tragic loss only to be faced with accepting that fate or joining the dark side.

The Ninth Jedi

This is where the episodes begin to get a little too cartoonish for my taste. The story of a young girl delivering lightsabers to what she believes are the last remaining Jedi is interesting enough, but every twist is seen from a mile away and the dialogue is tough to bear.

The Village Bride

Similar to “The Duel” in that a Ronin-like Jedi comes to a remote village to save it from bandits, this fourth episode just does it in a less satisfying style.

Lop and Ocho

The eighth episode of the series could have been one of the better ones if not for the odd choice of making the heroine look like Lola Bunny of Space Jam. Call me old-school but the idea of a bunny picking up her adoptive father’s lightsaber then kicking her warrior-sister’s ass with it came off as dumb.

The Twins

The third episode features two Vader-rip-off twins spitting overwrought dialog at each other as they duke it out with more lightsabers over control of a kyber crystal that can power a Death Star-like laser.

T0-B1

The sixth story tells of yet another young dreamer, this one a droid no less, who picks up his mentor’s lightsaber and immediately defeats a battle-hardened Sith in order to carry on his mentor’s legacy.

Tatooine Rhapsody

And finally the second and silliest of all the episodes, sadly this is the one tale that follows my advice and veers away from lightsabers, but comes off as if Nick Jr. took a shot at Star Wars. A rock band’s bass player is nabbed by Boba Fett and only a great performance for Jabba will set him free.

Where Does The Mandalorian Go From Here?

Photo Credit: Disney

There are a handful of television shows I would love to write for, perhaps none more than the Disney+ show, The Mandalorian. If you haven’t watched all 16 episodes released so far but plan to, you might not want to read further. Spoilers await!

 

Now that Grogu has gone off to train with Luke Skywalker, where does Season 3 take the story next? Boba Fett and Fennec Shand are leaving for their own show as is Ahsoka Tano so it’s doubtful any of those characters will play a large role. Greef Karga and Cara Dune have been major parts of the tale so far and both are still alive and hunting down bounties but Disney announced the firing of Gina Carano, the actress who plays Cara Dune, last night based on her "abhorrent" political posts on social media. Showrunners Jon Favreau and Dave Filoni could always recast the role, but a clean break might be best. Perhaps they’ll kill her off but continue Karga’s friendship and business arrangement with Din Djarin.

Moff Gideon seems set for a return as one of the primary antagonists, but who else is likely to play a large part and what is their objective?

Bo-Katan and Koska Reeves

It’s pretty clear that the Darksaber and the battle for control of the Mandalorian home planet will be one of if not the major storyline next season. Bo-Katan and Koska Reeves formed a mutually beneficial alliance with Din Djarin in Season 2, but now that our hero has possession of the weapon Katan needs in order to claim the throne and the only way to legitimately wield it is to win it via combat, it seems a fight between these allies is on the horizon. Katan and Reeves didn’t interest me as much as some of the other characters the show offered up in its first two seasons, but a visit to the heretofore unseen planet of Mandalore could prove interesting.

 

Migs Mayfeld

Of all the new characters introduced beyond Djarin and Grogu, none of them are more fun than Migs Mayfeld. Played by funnyman Bill Burr, this mercenary and sharpshooter is always good for comic relief. Marshall Cara Dune freed him from a long prison sentence after he helped with an assault on the Imperial refinery on Morak where he proved to be a valuable partner to Djarin. It isn’t out of the question that their paths might cross again someday soon.

 

Maz Kanata

One of the best characters to come from the final trilogy of the Skywalker saga holds a mystery that Season 3 could solve for us. How did the Pirate Queen of Takodana, Maz Kanata wind up with Anakin’s old lightsaber? She gifts it to Finn, but we never learn how she came to possess it. Adding Maz to the cast for Season 3 via a visit to her castle and showing us these events would tie a welcome knot in one of the series most frustrating loose ends.

 

Fan Service

The first two seasons brought us an ugnaught, the AT-ST, jawas, Tusken Raiders, banthas, the Krayt dragon, Twi’leks, the Mon Calamari, Bib Fortuna, a Gamorrean, and a host of other callbacks to the original film trilogy. Which additional old friends and enemies might make an appearance in Season 3?

I think one of the most likely things we’ll see is a return of one or more of the remaining six bounty hunters introduced in The Empire Strikes Back. Boba Fett of course played a major role in Season 2. The bandaged but human Dengar probably isn’t a good candidate since the role would need to be recast based on how long it’s been since his first appearance. Bossk was alien, but mouth articulation might prove difficult if the character were to have more than a few lines of dialogue based on the mask the actor would need to wear. IG-88 is the same type of assassin droid as seen in Season 1 with the IG-11 character so its return is unlikely as well. The two remaining hunters, the insect-like 4-Lom and Zuckuss however would be great callbacks. Din Djarin watched his ship get destroyed near the end of Season 2 so he’ll be in the market for a new one. Ships aren’t cheap. What better way to earn the credits to buy a replacement for the Razor Crest than to sign up for another big job with a crew of similar hard cases.

Speaking of shopping for a new spaceship, how about a visit to the Corellian shipyards? Han Solo’s home planet made its first film appearance in Solo: A Star Wars Story. A return visit might prove eventful, especially if Djarin runs across the nefarious bounty hunter Mercurial Swift, a character introduced in The Aftermath novels by author Chuck Wendig.

You don’t get much cooler than riding tauntauns across the snowy tundra or fighting giant AT-ATs in a snowspeeder. Episode 10 of The Mandalorian mostly took place on an icy planet named Maldo Kreis so another snow-filled adventure might be deemed repetitive, but if Djarin visits any more of the planets from the original trilogy, I’d love to see Hoth from The Empire Strikes Back as one of them.

And finally, what about the rancor? We saw Luke do battle with one of these giant monsters in the small confines of a pit below Jabba’s palace toward the beginning of Return of the Jedi. How about dropping Djarin into the middle of a pack of these things roaming free on their home planet of Dathomir? Even better, while stuck on the planet, The Mandalorian could give us our first live action peek at the Nightsisters, an order of female Dark side wielders who were introduced in Dave Wolverton’s novel The Courtship of Princess Leia and later appeared in an episode of the animated Star Wars: The Clone Wars series.

There is no shortage of places, characters, and creatures to visit in the Star Wars universe. We have at least another year to speculate just what Season 3 will bring!

Let’s Go to the Movies

Image Credit: igorovsyannykov/Pixabay

There’s something about going to the theater to watch a movie that can just never be matched by a night at home watching television. These days I tend to see more kid’s movies than anything else since date nights are tough to come by when you have three children, but my wife and I still manage to catch several films per year. With four months left in 2019, here are the half dozen I’m most excited to catch on the big screen before we ring in 2020.

Ad Astra (releasing on 9/20/19)

Brad Pitt plays an astronaut sent to the far reaches of the solar system to save it from disaster while investigating that pending catastrophe’s relationship to the disappearance of his father years earlier while on a space mission of his own. Rated PG-13 and also starring Tommy Lee Jones, Donald Sutherland, and Liv Tyler.

Joker (releasing 10/4/19)

Two years ago I speculated on this very blog about who might be the next actor to play my favorite comic-book villain, the Joker. What do you know, one of my picks got the part. Joaquin Phoenix plays the titular role in this new and rumored dark take on Batman’s arch nemesis. Rated R and also starring Robert De Niro.

Zombieland: Double Tap (releasing 10/18/19)

All four of our humorous zombie-killing heroes from the 2009 hit are back for this long-awaited sequel. Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, and Abigail Breslin are joined by a slew of additional stars including Rosario Dawson, Luke Wilson, and Thomas Middleditch in what looks like another fun post-apocalyptic hack-and-slash trip through America.

Motherless Brooklyn (releasing 11/1/19)

One of my favorite actors, Edward Norton, wrote, directed, and stars in this tale of a detective suffering from Tourette’s Syndrome in 1950s New York City who tries to solve the mystery of his mentor’s murder. Based on an award-winning novel by Jonathan Lethem, this film is rated R and also stars Bruce Willis, Willem DaFoe, and Alec Baldwin.

Jumanji: The Next Level (releasing 12/13/19)

I told you I watch a lot of kid’s movies. 2017’s Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle was a pleasant surprise. I didn’t go into it expecting much yet I thoroughly enjoyed it. Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, and Karen Gillan are all back for this sequel along with Nick Jonas and several newcomers in what looks like another fun, comedic adventure.

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (releasing 12/20/19)

Sure, Star Wars: The Last Jedi wasn’t everything I hoped it would be, but it was still pretty darned entertaining. J.J. Abrams is back to direct this final installment and like just about every other Star Wars geek, I can’t wait to see how it all ends. Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Mark Hamill, Oscar Isaac, and John Boyega are all back alongside archive footage of Carrie Fisher and the return of both Ian McDiarmid as Palpatine and Billy Dee Williams as Lando Calrissian. Come on Disney, take my money now!

There are quite a few other films I bet will prove worthy, but these are the six I’ve got to see on the big screen. If you know a good babysitter, get in touch!

Solo and Where It Ranks in the Star Wars Universe

Photo Credit: LucasFilm

Unless you’ve been living on Ahch-To or some similarly remote planet in the galaxy, you know the latest Star Wars movie came out this weekend. This time it’s a spin-off origin tale for Han Solo. I’ve been opposed to the idea from the start. Harrison Ford is Han Solo and at 70-years-old, he’s not going to be doing any origin roles. However the trailers looked better than expected so once again, Disney got my money. Per the norm, I took my oldest son and his cousin and the trailers didn’t let me down. We enjoyed it. Alden Ehrenreich isn’t ever going to be mistaken for the real Han Solo, but he wasn’t terrible. Donald Glover was great as young Lando Calrissian, there were plenty of cool aliens and chase scenes, and Woody Harrelson was as entertaining as ever playing Han’s smuggler mentor, Beckett.

So where does Solo: A Star Wars Story rank among its peers? Well I ripped off my 2016 Rogue One post for most of this list, but read on to find out how I scored all 10 films from worst to best.

The Phantom Menace (1999)

This film is the George Lucas equivalent of Godfather III. Younger versions of many of the characters you loved as a kid have returned to star in an abomination that does its best to tarnish the image of the great films that came before it. New baddie Darth Maul and John Williams’ excellent score are the only reasons to watch this dismal effort.

Attack of the Clones (2002)

Lucas’s second attempt in the new millennium has several cool battle scenes and some impressive CGI, but Hayden Christensen is simply awful as our newly grown-up hero. Every line of dialogue lands with a thud and his scenes with would-be love interest Padme (Natalie Portman) are excruciating.

Revenge of the Sith (2005)

Retaining the terrible acting and dialogue of its two immediate predecessors, this film improves upon those two outings based on having the most interesting story to tell, but it’s still pretty bad. Ben defeats Anakin simply because he stands on a taller rock?

The Last Jedi (2017)

Director Rian Johnson knows how to make a good film and this movie has plenty to like, but two crucial flaws doom this entry to the lower half of my Star Wars rankings. First and foremost, I don’t buy what he did to the character of Luke Skywalker at all. It just doesn’t fit the hero I grew up watching as a kid. And second, the Leia floating through space thing... just no.

Rogue One (2016)

As much a war movie as a Star Wars film, the storyline and several of the secondary characters are what make this one special. The effects and battle scenes are as amazing as always, but the two major CGI characters were disconcerting. Of larger concern, I just didn’t find the main protagonist as engaging as last year’s similar hero, Rey.

Solo (2018)

Despite my misgivings over the casting of young Han Solo, the rest of the cast was excellent. Ron Howard did a great job taking over what was rumored to be a troubled shoot before he was brought in to handle directing duties and I wouldn’t mind seeing a sequel if Disney decides to tell us the tale of just how badly Han screwed up to convince Jabba the Hutt to put a price on his head.

The Force Awakens (2015)

As many pointed out, this one is largely just a remake of the original Star Wars, replacing the boy protagonist with a girl. Nevertheless, it hits almost all the right notes. If J.J. Abrams had done a better job with the ending of this one, I’m looking at you Chewbacca and R2-D2, it might have rivaled the original trilogy.

Return of the Jedi (1983)

Ewoks and George Lucas’s increased focus on selling toys over storytelling takes this film down a notch or two, but it still has a ton going for it. The opening sequence alone is worth the price of admission. Luke Skywalker showing off his new powers inside Jabba’s palace and again on his barge are some of the best scenes of the series.

Star Wars (1977)

The movie that started it all, George Lucas proved that there was a huge audience for sci-fi if done right. Despite his later efforts to mess this one up with new edits and even a new title, Star Wars remains a classic. And Han shot first.

The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Rarely do sequels improve upon the original, but this one did. Empire has more bad guys, more lightsabers, and the tightest script of the series so far. If Boba Fett doesn’t get his own standalone film at some point, Disney might just find itself with a date in the Sarlacc Pit.

The Last Jedi vs. Logan

Photo Credit: Fandango

WARNING. This post is chock full of spoilers. If you haven’t seen The Last Jedi or Logan and have any plans to do so, abort now. I repeat. ABORT!

OK, for those of you still with me... I watched both The Last Jedi and Logan last week, the former at the theater and the latter via DVR. I consider myself a big-time fan of the Star Wars series and a reasonably enthusiastic fan of the X-Men series. I’ve seen all the films multiple times. I can carry on just about as geeky a conversation about these universes and characters as you’d want to have so I feel fairly comfortable stating that I’m confused. X-Men’s dedicated fanbase seemed almost universal in their praise of Logan. Most of what I see online from rabid Star Wars fans is disappointment in The Last Jedi. This makes no sense.

These films serve the same purpose. Both these movies kill off the old characters you love in order to usher in younger characters as our new heroes. As Yoda states, “We are what they grow beyond.”

Logan establishes very early on that every single mutant we’ve seen in any of the previous films is dead except our beloved Wolverine and Professor Xavier along with lesser known sidekick, Caliban. Every. Single. One. Magneto, Mystique, Storm, Cyclops, Jean Gray, Rogue, Beast, Angel... DEAD! It then goes on to kill Caliban, followed by Xavier, and ending with Wolverine six feet under. That’s right, even the title character is X’d out. (Sorry, I couldn’t resist.)

I sort of get it. Logan is No Country for Old X-Men. It’s Unforgiven X. It’s a dark, dystopian western that feels appropriate given the shit-stained world we currently live in under Herr Trump. But director James Mangold and star Hugh Jackman turned our favorite good guys into sad, old, weakened fugitives then killed them all. And as an audience, we thanked him for it. So why the hate for Rian Johnson?

2015’s The Force Awakens already took out Han Solo like a punk, skewered on a lightsaber by his long-lost Sith-emo son. In The Last Jedi, director Rian Johnson gives Jedi-turned-wizened hermit Luke Skywalker a heroic death. He steps out of his self-imposed retirement to become “the spark that will light the fire that will burn the First Order down.” He literally stands alone against the entire First Order and sacrifices himself to save all the good guys including his sister General Leia and all the new characters that are meant to carry the Star Wars torch. Fans hate him for it. Why?

Sure, floating-thru-space-Leia was bad CGI and desperately needed some brief explanation of how the Hell that was possible. Yes, Admiral Akbar’s untimely demise deserved more than one sentence of exposition. And I'll give you, a space-chase scene built around the idea that the fully powered bad guys would just sit around waiting for the good guys to run out of fuel was silly, but was every beat of Logan well thought out? Xavier owned a massive school with its own super-jet and mega-satellite. Now he lives in a rusted shed and Wolverine works as a chauffeur?

It seems to me that both these films were engaging, well made movies tasked with a morbid purpose. If you loved one, I don’t know why you don’t love the other.

The Top 10 Sci-Fi Films of All Time

Photo Credit: Warner Bros.

It seems like sci-fi has been riding high at the cinema lately. In the past year we’ve seen such major releases as Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Star Trek Beyond, Arrival, and Passengers. With the highly anticipated Ghost in the Shell opening this weekend and movies like Blade Runner 2049 and Alien: Covenant scheduled to be released later this year I thought it was as good a time as any to list my favorite sci-fi films of all time. Here they are from number 10 to number 1.

10. Jurassic Park (1993)

Written by Michael Crichton, directed by Steven Spielberg, and featuring some of the coolest-looking dinosaurs you’ve ever seen, this one was bound to please and it didn’t disappoint. It’s spawned three sequels so far with more on the way, but this one starring Jeff Goldblum, Sam Neill, and Laura Dern is still the best of the bunch.

9. Interstellar (2014)

Matthew McConaughey stars as a single father and space traveler charged with leading a mission to save the Earth but torn by the fact his journey will likely result in never seeing his daughter grow up. Emotional, thought-provoking, and well written, this film is the best sci-fi Hollywood has produced in the last few years.

8. Moon (2009)

Sam Rockwell puts on a one-man show under the excellent direction of Duncan Jones and an assist from Kevin Spacey who voices his robot sidekick. There are no big action scenes or expensive CGI. This film is simply a magnificent study on what it is to be human and how easy it is for corporations to dehumanize us all.

7. Aliens (1986)

Sigourney Weaver proved guys weren’t the only badass sci-fi heroes in Ridley Scott’s Alien. In James Cameron’s 1986 sequel, she was even bigger and badder. This time she’s up against a whole slew of the space monsters and when she finally comes face to face with their queen, it’s a battle you won’t soon forget.

6. Gattaca (1997)

Ethan Hawke and Jude Law try to find their place in a future where your DNA determines your lot in life. Hawke plays a flawed young man willing to do anything to fulfill his dream of space travel while Law plays a genetically superior man that’s destroyed his potential but might just be able to help Hawke achieve his own.

5. Star Wars (1977)

The film that proved sci-fi could appeal to the cinematic masses and that hooked a certain seven-year-old boy in Ohio on the genre for life. As I sat in my parents’ car watching Luke, Leia, Han, Chewie, and Darth Vader on the big screen at the drive-in I knew I was watching something special. Forty years later, it’s spawned a host of sequels, prequels, and spin-offs that show no sign of losing steam.

4. Inception (2010)

Christopher Nolen, director of the best superhero movie ever, also directed two of my favorite sci-fi films. Interstellar is great, this one is even better. Leonardo DiCaprio leads a fantastic cast deep into the mind of an industrial scion to complete a complex mission with one very simple goal: to plant an idea.

3. The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Sequels rarely do the original justice, but this one did that and more. As great as Star Wars is, this follow-up is even better. Creator George Lucas handed over the director and screenplay reins to Irvin Kershner and Lawrence Kasden and those two men took Lucas’s vision to the next level. Boba Fett, the carbonite freeze scene, the lightsaber duel, the big reveal concerning the relationship between Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader… simply awesome.

2. The Matrix (1999)

The Wachowski’s mind-bending film blew away audiences at the turn of the century with its excellent script, bullet-time cinematography, and iconic performances by Keanu Reeves, Lawrence Fishburne, and Hugo Weaving. The concept, the pacing, and the action in this film make it one you can enjoy again and again. The movie’s two sequels didn’t measure up, but this one is an all-time great.

1. Blade Runner (1982)

Simply the best sci-fi film ever made. It wasn’t a big hit when it was released, but over time it’s grown into a classic. Based on a novel by Philip K. Dick, this futuristic noir features stand-out performances by Harrison Ford and Rutger Hauer. It also includes a great cast of secondary characters played by Edward James Olmos, Sean Young, Daryl Hannah, and William Sanderson. In my opinion, it’s the masterpiece of director Ridley Scott’s long and stellar career.

And to avoid short-changing some other favorites, here are a dozen Honorable Mentions: Alien (1979), The Road Warrior (1981), Predator (1987), Total Recall (1990), Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), Stargate (1994), The Fifth Element (1997), Cube (1997), Contact (1997), Dark City (1998), Pitch Black (2000), Minority Report (2002)

Rogue One and Where It Ranks in the Star Wars Universe

Photo Credit: Lucasfilm

I’ve been a Star Wars geek since my parents took me to the drive-in to see the first film upon its opening almost 40 years ago. Now I have the pleasure of watching my kids discover this universe for themselves and an excuse to keep scoping out the latest action figures in the Target toy aisle. I took my oldest and his cousin to go see the latest installation in the series, Rogue One Christmas night. So how does it rank in comparison to the rest of the films? It doesn’t match the excellence of the original trilogy, but it is well worth going to see. Read on for my ranking of all eight films, least to greatest.

The Phantom Menace (1999)

This film is the George Lucas equivalent of Godfather III. The characters you loved as a kid have returned to star in an abomination that makes you long for a return to your childhood. New baddie Darth Maul and John Williams’ excellent score are the only reasons to watch this dismal effort.

Attack of the Clones (2002)

Lucas’s second attempt in the new millennium has several cool battle scenes and some impressive CGI, but Hayden Christensen is simply awful as our newly grown-up hero. Every line of dialogue lands with a thud and his scenes with would-be love interest Padme (Natalie Portman) are excruciating.

Revenge of the Sith (2005)

Retaining the terrible acting and dialogue of its two immediate predecessors, this film improves upon those two outings based on having the most interesting story to tell, but it’s still pretty bad. Ben defeats Anakin simply because he stands on a taller rock?

Rogue One (2016)

As much a war movie as a Star Wars film, the storyline and several of the secondary characters are what make this one special. The effects and battle scenes are as amazing as always, but the two major CGI characters were disconcerting. Of larger concern, I just didn’t find the main protagonist as engaging as last year’s similar hero, Rey.

The Force Awakens (2015)

As many have already pointed out, this one is largely just a remake of the original, replacing the boy protagonist with a girl. Nevertheless, it hits almost all the right notes. If J.J. Abrams had done a better job with the ending of this one, I’m looking at you Chewbacca and R2-D2, it might have rivaled the original trilogy.

Return of the Jedi (1983)

Ewoks and George Lucas’s increased focus on selling toys over storytelling takes this film down a notch or two, but it still has a ton going for it. The opening sequence alone is worth the price of admission. Luke Skywalker showing off his new powers inside Jabba’s palace and again on his barge are some of the best scenes of the series.

Star Wars (1977)

The movie that started it all, George Lucas proved that there was a huge audience for sci-fi if done right. Despite his later efforts to mess this one up with new edits and even a new title, Star Wars remains a classic. And Han shot first.

The Empire Strikes Back (1980)

Rarely do sequels improve upon the original, but this one did. Empire has more bad guys, more lightsabers, and the tightest script of the series so far. If Boba Fett doesn’t get his own standalone film at some point, Disney might just find itself with a date in the Sarlacc Pit.

Never Tell Me the Odds

Photo Credit: Lucasfilm

Like many writers, I’m currently looking for a literary agent. I self-published my first novel Storm Orphans without even attempting to go the traditional publishing route and I learned a valuable lesson. It didn’t matter that readers enjoyed the book. I simply couldn’t reach a broad audience without mass media exposure. Social media and word of mouth only travel so far for us non-celebrities. I needed professional reviews, magazine interviews, and brick and mortar bookstore shelf space. Without those, my book and hence my writing career to date have been doomed to obscurity.

So I’m querying agents with my new book, a piece of middle-grade fiction that I believe will appeal to the same kids that enjoy stuff such as Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, Narnia, and The NeverEnding Story. It’s a fast-paced, fun story but after doing my research, it’s become clear to me that I need to approach the task of finding professional representation in the same fashion Han Solo approaches navigating an asteroid field in the Millennium Falcon. I simply can’t worry about the odds being stacked against me.

Several of the agents I’m targeting post statistics regarding how many queries they receive, respond to, and ultimately sign. The odds aren’t good. Here are a few comparables.

On one hand…

The lowly Atlanta Braves are five times more likely to win the World Series this year than I am to sign with an agent.

I have about the same odds of being assaulted by a firearm as I have signing with an agent.

I also have about the same odds of impregnating my wife post-vasectomy as I have signing with an agent.

That baby is twice as likely to be a genius than I am to sign with an agent.

But on the bright side…

I’m ten times more likely to sign with an agent than Han is to successfully navigate that asteroid field according to C3PO.

And I’m 20 times more likely to sign with an agent than I am to be named the new lead singer of Stone Temple Pilots.

So there you have it. Though the odds may be stacked against me, I’m confident that I’ll find the right literary agent in time. Even if I am a stuck-up, half-witted, scruffy-looking nerf herder.

Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Image Credit: Disney

First, what you’ve undoubtedly heard by now is true. The Force Awakens is the sequel all of us Star Wars fans have been waiting for. It’s much better than the cinematic abominations George Lucas delivered between 1999 and 2005. No more awful dialogue, no more leaden acting, and no overwhelming amounts of CGI. The Force Awakens looks and feels like the original trilogy. It’s fun; it’s exciting, and it offers the kind of magic that will make you forget that you’re sitting in a theater. For 2 hours and 15 minutes, director J.J. Abrams transports you to another universe.

The film gives us several engaging new heroes to root for including the fierce scavenger Rey, the Stormtrooper turned rebel Finn, hotshot pilot Poe Dameron, and the thoroughly entertaining rolling droid BB-8. It also delivers a great new villain in the masked Sith called Kylo Ren. And of course several of our old favorites from the original trilogy are back as well, some in large roles, others in cameos.

One of the most refreshing aspects of this new Star Wars is lead actress Daisy Ridley. She carries her scenes with a conviction Mark Hamill never mustered no matter how much I might love the character Luke Skywalker. She’s tough, she’s scared, she’s determined… I believed her every emotion and decision.

As usual, Harrison Ford gets many of the best lines. His return as smuggler Han Solo is a great way to bridge the old and the new in this series. Writers Lawrence Kasdan and Abrams could have easily used the 73-year-old star as nothing more than a nod to longtime fans, but they didn’t. Without giving anything away, he plays an important role in this story and his performance is just as good as it was 30+ years ago.

Adam Driver is excellent as Kylo Ren and he’s something of a change of pace as the new main bad guy. While past villains Darth Vader, Darth Maul, and Count Dooku seemed fully in control of themselves and their use of the dark side, Ren seems almost unhinged. He rages, he doubts, he persuades, and he threatens. He’s a torn young man battling inner demons and striving for a level of power that’s just out of his reach.  Similar to what Anakin should have been in Lucas’s most recent trilogy, Ren actually makes us believe in his character’s turmoil and hatred.

All of this isn’t to say that The Force Awakens is perfect. It’s not. The reunion between Solo and Leia feels too easy when it could and should have been a scene filled with emotional tension and long-simmering hurt. The film’s MacGuffin seems remarkably easy to find given how long it’s been hidden and how many people have been pursuing it. And as much as I prefer the old-school effects over CGI, I could do without the tie-fighters that are clearly just models hanging by wires.

Despite its faults, Star Wars: The Force Awakens should please anyone that enjoyed the original films now known as Episodes 4-6 and will probably be a very pleasant surprise for the younger audience that’s more familiar with the prequel Episodes 1-3. It contains enough sci-fi violence that I won’t allow my younger kids to see it, but you can bet I’ll be in line again next week to take my oldest and his cousin. And I can’t wait to see what happens in the next one due in 2017!

Everything Old is New Again

Image Credit: Matt Handle

The travesty that was Sam Smith winning multiple Grammy awards last week for serving up a slowed down version of a song Tom Petty did much better 26 years ago reminded me of a well-worn saying. Everything old is new again. While this idea holds true in virtually all facets of life, it seems to be especially true in the world of entertainment. Reboots, remakes, sequels, prequels, and music sampling are just some of the ways artists (and non-artists) find a way to turn something old into something that people will happily plunk down their hard-earned cash for again.

One of the first times I ran across this trend was way back in 1983. I was still in grade school and too young to realize that everything fresh and new wasn't necessarily also original. I was singing along in the backseat to the band Naked Eyes' hit, Always Something There to Remind Me, when my mother sitting in the driver's seat explained that the song had been a hit 20 years earlier. It seemed some strange, ancient creatures named Burt Bacharach and Hal David had written it as a hit for a few different singers of the day, including Dionne Warwick, a woman I only knew from her appearance in the We Are the World video. I'll bet many of Sam Smith's young fans think of Mr. Petty in a similar fashion.

This trend hit me again today while in the Gap, of all places. While waiting for the film, Paddington, to start (a film based on a children's literature character that first appeared 57 years ago by the way) the clothing store of choice for suburbanites everywhere was playing a tune that sounded exactly like an up-tempo version of Lou Reed's Sweet Jane. Like Sam Smith's rip-off of Petty, the lyrics were different, but there was no mistaking the melody. And I'll bet none of the kids shopping there had any clue as to the song's obvious ancestor.

I hear this in music all the time these days and I'm sure this era isn't unique. My recollection of Naked Eyes on that car stereo is proof of that. Today it's Pitbull and Christina Aguilera sampling A-ha or Selena Gomez singing a tune such as Love You like a Love Song that would have sounded perfectly at home on one of Wham!'s mid-80s albums. Twenty years from now, some teenage pop-star will probably be rehashing old Taylor Swift tunes.

Earlier this weekend I saw two more family films on cable. Oz the Great and Powerful is a recent, but poor sequel to the classic 1939 film and Cheaper by the Dozen 2 is a sequel to the 2003 remake of a movie released in 1950. If that isn't enough for you, later this year we'll be treated to the big budget sequel to the original Star Wars trilogy, a reimagining of Mad Max and what I fear will be a terrible remake of the 1994 cult classic, The Crow.

Books aren’t immune to this phenomenon either. Stephen King released Doctor Sleep last year, a sequel to his excellent 1977 novel, The Shining. And that wasn’t the first time he revisited one of his earlier works. In 2001, he and Peter Straub wrote Black House, a follow-up with the protagonist from their 1984 collaboration, The Talisman. Of course, series are a literary staple as well. If we love a particular fictional world or set of characters, we’ll snap up book after book in order to keep up with their latest adventures. Some of the best known current series include George R.R. Martin’s Song of Ice and Fire and E.L. James’ 50 Shades trilogy.

My own debut novel, a modern tale of the zombie apocalypse entitled Storm Orphans, was compared by many to the hugely popular, The Walking Dead. I've never seen the comic or an episode of the TV series, but just the fact that they both feature the undead hunting down a group of survivors in and around Atlanta suggests they at least tread on some similar territory. While pitching my current Young Adult work-in-progress to friends, I've heard comparisons to The NeverEnding Story, Spy Kids 3, and The Matrix.

I think what all this points to is that it's become extremely rare for any new work of art to be truly original. Whether intentional or not, an educated audience is going to recognize aspects of any new work as reminiscent of something that came before. Always something there to remind me, indeed.