Comparing the sci-fi bars
A bar or tavern in a sci-fi space opera setting can be a lot of things. It can be a place of potential danger, as in the Mos Eisley Cantina in Star Wars. It can be a place of opportunity…
Author: Steven Birkner
Comedy Meets Horror: When blending genres works
It seems incongruous at first glance to bring together the genres of comedy and horror, and to have this recipe be a success. The blending of the two genres can go very much awry if the execution isn’t done in…
Solo, and the appeal of smaller storylines
What do you get when you take away the usual ingredients of a Star Wars movie, such as lightsaber duels, the Jedi, and the Force? What happens when you tell a more prosaic, character-driven story that delves into the background…
5 burning questions about Star Wars: The Last Jedi
In a review of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, I wrote that it turned out that one of the least interesting questions about The Force Awakens was “is it a good movie?” The reason is that it was so…
5 ways to make The Last Jedi great
Let me start by explaining where I’m coming from with respect to Star Wars: The Last Jedi. First, it’s a sequel to a movie that I had a mixed reaction to. I found The Force Awakens enjoyable and some of…
Top 6 metafictional TV episodes
Metafiction in TV and movies is a technique or style that’s getting a lot of attention these days. Whether writers feel comfortable going meta due to audiences demanding increasingly sophisticated material, or due to the way that new forms of…
Exploring Star Trek's spiritual side
Star Trek’s relationship to the subjects of religion or spirituality has been complicated. Star Trek’s creator, Gene Roddenberry, was known for being a secular humanist with a skeptical attitude toward religion, and few of Star Trek’s main human characters delve…
Wolverine, Hulk, and Raphael: When rebellious loners struggle to go solo
Wolverine from X-Men and Raphael from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have a surprising amount in common. Both are hot-tempered and quick to turn to violence to deal with problems. Both characters are mutants. They both have weapons that are sharp,…
Why movie villain schemes have gotten ridiculously complicated
If the Joker’s plan from 1989’s Batman is an obvious called strike right in the middle of the plate, The Dark Knight’s Joker’s plan is the equivalent of the infield fly rule.
Rogue One: A mediocre EU novel on the big screen
While watching Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, I noticed that I was feeling something that I was unaccustomed to experiencing while watching a Star Wars movie. That feeling was boredom, which is an understandably unusual reaction to movies famous for space battles, blaster shootouts, and lightsaber duels.
Star Trek’s best time travel episodes, part 2: DS9, VOY & ENT
Last time, I looked at the best time travel episodes from the first three Star Trek television series: TOS, TAS, and The Next Generation. In this article, I'll look at what are, in my view, the best time travel episodes from the next three series, Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise.
Star Trek's best time travel episodes, part 1: TOS, TAS & TNG
Within the six Star Trek TV series, there are dozens of episodes that involve time travel, and I'll be looking at the ones that did it best.
10 reasons Pee-Wee's Big Adventure has aged so well
Why was this fairly modest mid-'80s comedy enough of a hit to be the auspicious start of so many creative careers? And how has it enjoyed such a lasting impact?
The Matrix, Revisited: 50% of a great trilogy
“...By which I mean the greatness rests in the first one and half of Reloaded. Matrix: Revolutions contains 0% greatness, 40% stupidity, and 60% boredom.”
Masters of the Universe (1987)
“The movie deserves a reappraisal. Leaving aside the association with the cartoon and toy line, it’s a decent but not great sci-fi movie of the ‘80s.”
Marvel’s Civil War: How not to do a “heroes in conflict” story
“Unfortunately, what you often end up with is one side representing a ludicrous, straw man position either out of the laziness of the author or as a result of the author clearly choosing a side and letting that choice dictate the direction the story takes.”
Lightsabers make movie posters better
“Take that satisfaction and multiply it by a coolness factor of ten if we’d heard the snap-hiss of a lightsaber activated in George McFly’s hand as he prepared to confront Biff.”
The Force Awakens is a surprisingly dark new vision of Star Wars
“For all of the criticisms of what the prequel trilogy did to the backstory of the original trilogy, it didn’t wipe away the accomplishments of the original trilogy in the way that The Force Awakens does.”
Batman & Mr. Freeze: SubZero (1998)
“This movie got a pretty good reception, but I think that’s just the result of looking good in comparison to Batman & Robin, in the same way that a mediocre baseball team looks good compared to the 1899 Cleveland Spiders.”
Why the audience didn’t need Superman Returns (2006)
“All of these plot points could be used to write three good Superman films. It is a waste that we didn’t even get one.”
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