[Movies] Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015)

So we managed to catch an early morning screening of Star Wars: The Force Awakens last Saturday at SM Mall of Asia's IMAX Theater, and it was quite the experience. And while I'm sure a lot of folks entered the theater with a mixed feeling of excitement and fear. After all, the infamous prequels are hard to forget even now.

Plus I will always have the struggle of being a big fan of the Star Wars Expanded Universe that covered the more creative period when the various books and comics handled the responsibility of telling the stories of the Star Wars universe beyond Return of the Jedi. This new movie invalidates all those books and years of reading about the stories and adventures of a particular version of those popular characters. So the excitement for a new movie was a little bittersweet because of this shift.

And despite my being more of a Star Trek fan than a Star Wars fan, I'd like to think that I still have a decent appreciation for such big science fiction entertainment experiences. So yeah, this was still a big event to be excited about. And it's always rather fun to join in the enthusiastic cheers of a fandom as large as folks who love Star Wars.

[Movies] Star Trek And The Furious

This morning I woke up to find the first trailer for Star Trek Beyond all over social media and the end result was a lot of disappointment. Welcome to our first Star Trek reboot movie not directed by J.J. Abrams and instead directed by Justin Lin, who is best known for his work on The Fast and the Furious movies.

Thus we get another trailer with a weird soundtrack with a ridiculous number of jump cuts, an exploding Enterprise and even some motorcycle stunts. I understand that the reboot movies have been a significant effort to open up the franchise to younger audiences. So I've appreciated the efforts to sort of keep the core spirit of the franchise intact while embellishing here and there with little twists and turns.


But this latest movie is looking pretty crazy. And while I respect Simon Pegg as a screenwriter, I've often found that his creative vision isn't always translated well as depending on the director. And the manner in which they've chose to sell this latest movie with this trailer is just confusing as heck and pretty offensive to longer-term fans. This was supposed to be a world where things like precision transporters were a challenge and yet the trailer features a number of highly dynamic transporter shots that make no sense at all. And I can go on a full fanboy rant about the many things that feel wrong about this movie, but I have better things to do with my life.

I'm living a life where I feel like even some of the Michael Bay Transformers movies feel more true to their original franchise than this movie at this point. Maybe my opinion will change with future trailers or once the movie officially comes out. But for now, I'm really not happy with the direction this franchise seems to be taking.

[TV] Fringe: Season 5

So it was only while reviewing the Fringe tie-in novel, The Zodiac Paradox that I realized that I had never gotten around to writing a review of the final season of Fringe. I thought I had addressed it, but repeated searches of this blog reveal that no such post exists. So I guess not.

So this is my effort to finally rectify this gap in the Geeky Guide record to complete my reviews for what remains to be a pretty awesome show. My partner Tobie and I became major Fringe fans over the course of the show and while there were a number of arguments against the manner in which the show wrapped up.

Now just because we're fans doesn't mean we can't look at the show with a critical eye. I understand that the show took a rather unusual direction in this final season. But it still made a pretty good resolution to things. And with a show that reached the geeky heights that it did, I doubt there would have been any ending that would have truly satisfied fans.

[Books] Fringe: The Zodiac Paradox

I rarely get into tie-in books for most TV shows that I watch. Sure, I have dabbled in Star Trek books and I have a ridiculous collection of Star Wars books, but for most shows I've generally stayed away from the medium. Such books are rarely considered "canon" from a story perspective, plus there are those instances when the stories are just...not great. They're passable and they use the characters from the show decently enough, but at the end of the day it doesn't quite feel right in terms of the original show.

But I took a gamble on Fringe: The Zodiac Paradox, primarily given how much I enjoyed the show and I was curious as to see what they would do the explore the characters further. And while it would be rather controversial to try and continue the Fringe story beyond the final episode (side note: why haven't I posted a review for the final season???), it was safe enough that they opted to explore the Fringe world before the show.

Admittedly I wasn't expecting all that much from this prequel adventure but the end results were pretty awesome. Certainly made for an enjoyable read and a nice glimpse at what their lives might have been like before all the science madness of the main show.

[TV] Revolution: Season 1

Is it just me, or is J.J. Abrahms executive producer for like every other show on US television these days? I mean seriously, it feels like everywhere I turn, I'm bound to come across yet another show that has his name attached to it. I can understand why this might be desireable for a show since a good name helps launch just about anything. But at the same time, it sorta cheapens what he represents. And this is considering that I do like J.J. Abrams.

Revolution is another such TV show, but at least it wasn't too bad. I can't say the same for Alcatraz, which was another J.J. Abrams related project that sorta bombed and didn't get renewed. And I don't exactly feel bad that it didn't continue.

Revolution does show promise, but it does have a fair number of issues with it as well. But in a network television landscape that is rather starved for decent science fiction, I suppose beggars can't be choosers. So I'm making the most of this show while it's still on the air.

Plus it has Elizabeth Mitchell. And she's a bit more like her old Juliet self in this show versus, well, the V reboot. And yes, she will always be Juliet to me.

[TV] Person of Interest: Season 2

So the first season of Person of Interest wasn't as bad as we had feared but it wasn't quite a home run either. It certainly had an interesting enough premise at its core and they made an effort to show the wide variety of cases that the Machine could pick up.

But despite the always amazing acting of Michael Emerson, the show still lacked a true sense of focus and it took it a long time before they started to more fully explore the meta-plot driving the show. And one can enjoy the crime of the week format for only so long before you start to look for more.

But in the end the first season certainly left us with a lot of interesting plot threads and story angles to explore. And with Finch now kidnapped, it was up to John to figure out where he is with the help of the nearly intelligent Machine that has been giving them their cases. And that's quite a challenge for even a guy like John, who is practically Batman without the costume.

[TV] Alcatraz: Season 1

The 2012 TV season saw quite a number of shows with J.J. Abrams attached to the project one way or another. Alcatraz was one such series that involved Abrams as Executive Producer and even dragged in LOST actor Jorge Garcia as part of the cast. The things we do to get the attention of one fanbase (in this case LOST) and use that to get viewers for a new show.

But the show had a pretty short life and was cancelled after the first season concluded. And I totally get why - the show just lacked a strong enough hook to keep audiences truly committed to the show. And maybe if the writers worked on a stronger "villain" of sorts or a more interesting meta-plot to keep things interesting and other typical concerns for shows like this.

As is the case with shows like this, it sort of slipped past my radar in terms of my reviews, hence the rather significant delay in terms of posting this. And while the show died mid-2012, thought it might be good to tie up loose ends with the current shows work towards the end of their respective seasons for the 2012-2013 term.

[TV] Fringe: Season 4

The fact is not lost on me that the fifth season of Fringe is well underway and I'm only getting around to posting a review for the fourth season now. Then again, this is one of those those that are best savored instead of rushed through - plus it hurts when there's no new Fringe to watch for extended periods of time. Case in point, we're actually still at least 2 episodes behind in terms of the current season since we don't want to be left without the option of going forward to the next episode in case we end on a particularly compelling cliffhanger.

And let's face it, Fringe loves its cliffhangers.

This penultimate fourth season wobbled a bit for me, but in the long run it still makes a lot of sense in terms of the overall progression of the series. And things do look increasingly grim for the realities / universes covered and perhaps inevitably complicated as well.

But that's really part of the fun of the series, when you really get down to it.

[TV] Person of Interest: Season 1

I am forever thankful that Tobie managed to get me into the TV show LOST or I would never have experienced the artistic mastery that is Michael Emerson as Ben from that show. Seriously, why that man did not walk away with more Emmys or Golden Globes is beyond me.

So when his involvement in Person of Interest was announced, I have to admit that I was more than willing to watch the show just for him. And that seems kind of shallow - okay, it is shallow, so sue me. But you have to understand how much I came to respect his character on LOST and so I definitely wanted to see what he would do with this particular role.

And to be fair, the premise behind the show was interesting enough in its own right. I just didn't feel all that committed to finding out more about the show since Emerson alone had pretty much sold me.

Thankfully the show wasn't as bad as I had feared, although it wasn't quite as great either.

[TV] The 2011-2012 Season Continues to Disappoint

What's with all the crap TV these days? Seriously.

I'm not that difficult a geek to please, when you get down to it. I admit that I actually felt that Dollhouse had a lot of potential. I concede that I watched all 18 episodes of Caprica even though it got yanked off the air before SyFy could finishing broadcasting all the episodes. And I even watched the entire first season of No Ordinary Family, as bad as that was. So I'm not all that rigid when it comes to my TV watching, really.

But as of the Fall 2011-2012 TV season for US television, I seem to be finding it harder and harder to stay tuned in for a lot of the newer shows that stepped up to the plate to try their luck. And typically I try to see shows all the way to the end of their pilot seasons in order to give them a decent enough chance of proving their worth.

But starting with some of the shows that debuted last year, I've actually reached that point where I decide to actually quit a TV show mid-season since I can't stand it anymore. And I'm not totally alone in my thinking - my partner Tobie agrees with my line of thinking.

So what's up with TV now? Let's dig through the debris, shall we?

[TV] Fringe: Season 3

Science fiction shows get a really bum rap in network circles these days. For any series that is even remotely related to the sci-fi genre, it's a small miracle in itself for a show like that to survive past its first full season, if even that.

And don't even get me started on Fox. *coughs* FIREFLY *coughs* Dollhouse *coughs* Sarah Connor Chronicles *coughs*. Sorry, must have been something that ate. =P

But still, we still have those glimmers of hope amid all the other geek tragedies we've witnessed in recent years. And thus we take whatever we can get in this regard and end up enduring some of the stranger science fiction ventures (read: FlashForward) just to support geek TV.

But then some real gems come along and just blow everyone away. You know what I mean - the shows that come in with brass knuckles and steel-plated leather boots that show everyone else who's boss and what it means to be really, really geeky. And in this regard, we have one J.J. Abrams to thank for this show getting as far as it has.

[Movies] Super 8 (2011)

Movies are stories. Beyond the flash and flair of special effects, big name movie stars (and all the controversy inevitably attached to them), they're just stories. And when the story doesn't work, the movie won't work either. It's a very simple fact and yet many movie makers forget about this and we end up with special effects bonanzas that are barely held together by a semblance of a plot.

But then every now and then a movie comes along and reminds us that Hollywood isn't totally without a soul and hope remains for the future of movies as an artistic medium. And while these movies don't always have the same amount of flashiness about them, they do step up the plate with a whole lot of heart and ultimately a good story. And what would we be as a species without our ability to tell new stories, right?

This definitely felt like a slight different path for J.J. Abrams to take, with respect to his other projects. Instead of your typical science fiction or thriller type concept, he went with one that was a lot more oriented towards younger audiences. But just because kids are at the forefront doesn't mean there isn't a great story at the heart of this piece In fact it becomes a reminder how the simper stories tend to be the better ones since they don't get distracted by their own cleverness (or attempts to appear so).

[TV] Best of 2010

This was another weird year for geek television. While not quite as traumatic as when Firefly was cancelled in 2003, it still wasn't particularly great either.

Image via WikipediaIn terms of shows that disappointed me the most, I definitely feel that award has to go to FlashForward. It had a pretty good premise at its core and had a strong story to tell, but it got totally lost in terms of how it wanted to tell it. Thus the end result was pretty pathetic when you get around to it. A very close second to this category is The Event, which again had very strong pre-release buzz but totally failed to deliver. I can't believe that it's still alive.

Most tragic cancellation for the year has to be Caprica. Sure, the story was a really slow burn and it was taking the writers forever to get anywhere. But come on, the story in itself was pretty gripping towards the end. Plus once the linkages to the core BSG series were there, I was definitely excited to see where all this was headed.

The series that surprised me the most this year is definitely Misfits. The superhero drama was edgy, hard core and with some pretty compelling characters. These are not your run-of-the-mill super power teens who had a lot going for them. Their juvenile delinquents who have a nasty habit of killing people in order to protect their secrets.

The animated series that I liked the most this year was definitely Ugly Americans. The disturbing dark comedy from Comedy Central is a nice take on the whole supernatural sub-culture with some pretty compelling writing.

And the best TV show of the year without a doubt is Fringe. The current J.J. Abams creation is absolutely brilliant and gripping in ways that are distinct from but equivalent to what made Lost such a great series.

What did you like the most about 2010?

[TV] Lost: Season 6

I know, I know - this show ended a few months ago and the "hype" period is already over. But hey, I never really claimed to write these just to ride the wave of blogoshere popularity - I blog when I ready for it! And darn, it did take me a few months to really let my feelings about this final season fully form in my head and perhaps other bits of me. At the very least, I did post an initial reaction to the series finale.

When it comes to the final season of any show, it's hard to evaluate it on the merits of the season alone. This problem is even harder when you talk about epic shows who manage to get past the five-year mark (and then some). After all, the final season is supposed to be the culmination of all the seasons that had come before. This is the climax - the height of all storytelling and the realization of years of writing, re-writing and manipulating various characters, events and plot lines. All these have to come together to work somehow.

We all knew this was coming once the folks behind Lost announced that the should would definitely end. It was a bold move to give the show and end date when any studio executive holds fast to the silly belief that there's never too much of a good (and profitable) thing. But still they kept to their word and worked their way to this final ending in all its glory.

[TV] Fringe: Season 2

With so little science fiction television around these days, the surviving shows end up being the stronger ones. It's Darwin's Law of Natural Selection applied to network television, or something like that. As much as lesser shows are sadly thrown to the curb in the aftermath, one has to admit that the shows that remain are pretty kick ass.

Then again, what else can you expect from Hollywood's golden boy of science fiction, J.J. Abrams? Most of his television projects have gone on to become long-lived and well-watched TV shows (e.g. Alias and Lost of course) with a few lesser projects here and there (e.g. Six Degree), but overall he's been pretty reliable in the ratings game. And that's really all that the networks care about - it's not about creativity or how novel your ideas are. It's all about reliability and whether or not you can draw in the ratings.

Thankfully, Abrams is both reliable AND highly creative, thus satisfying both the geeks in the audience and even the studio executives. As much as I want to support independent and new talent, one has to take the time to pay homage to this man's geekily creative vision.

So yeah, I'm really happy this show got renewed for a second season.

[TV] All Hail Jacob

Continuing our Holy Week religious theme challenge, today we're venturing into the convoluted and sometimes confusing realm of TV's Lost.

One of the most central figures of the show that remained pretty much behind the scenes most of the time was the enigmatic Jacob. He had been somehow controlling the actions of the figures that had been referred to the "Others" for most of the series who apparently have some sort of a near-sacred mission to keep the secrets of the Island safe from those who would use its unique properties for their own goals. Now who exactly represents the "best" interests of the Island remains more and more unclear during the show's progression and has become the subject for much debate.

So let's go explore what we may or may not know about Jacob and where the show might end up going to. If you haven't watched the first five seasons of the show, this is going to be highly spoilery and you might not want to continue past this point.

[TV] Lost: Season 5

I've always had a bit of a soft spot for time travel and parallel worlds in terms of science fiction stories. I can't quite put my finger on it - it's probably something that started when I first read William F. Wu's series, Isaac Asimov's Robots in Time. It was a nice combination of what remains my one of my favorite concepts, robots, merged with time travel.

Time travel is never easy and there seems to be thousands of interpretations and speculations of how time travel might work and the potential implications of such ventures into our past or our future. Some same time is fluid and easy to shift into new directions while others still postulate that time is constant and no matter what you change in the past, the universe does what it can to restore a sense of "order" by making sure key events persist and still occur. Regardless of whatever school of time travel theory you subscribe to, you have to admit that it's always a fascinating subject.

It isn't often that time travel is presented in interesting and new ways, most especially on network television.

[TV] Lost: Season 4

So with some degree of irony, it appears that I've become a "Lostie" - a fan of the show Lost. For most of you casual readers of the Geeky Guide, I suppose you might think that such a "revelation" isn't much of a surprise. After all, Lost is a rather geeky show. I am a geek. Therefore, I must like Lost. However for the past few years I allowed myself to be horribly scarred by the first half of the second season of Lost, hence the reason I never returned to the show. Ironically enough, I was initially a self-professed Heroes fan until things really started to go downhill in its own second season.

So in the past few weeks I've been devoting a lot of my idle time to trying to catch up with four season's worth of Lost in order to be able to watch the final season of the show that started airing this month. Believe it or not, I managed to accomplish this feat despite how busy my work life has been and now I stand ready to join my partner in closing out the show.

As we wait for the new episodes to come out, feel free to enjoy my weekly reviews of each season as I had perceived things.

[TV] Lost: Season 3

It's not very often that a show keeps me guessing for long these days. I'm not trying to brag or anything - you have to admit that it's not very often that TV shows are written well enough to give viewers like myself a good run in terms of plot twists and story complexity.

The way that I was raised in terms of watching TV shows and movies was to constantly stay on the alert and try to predict the next step in the plot - or even the ultimate end of the episode or movie. It's something that my mom really was keen on and given the number of cop shows and mystery stories we watched together, I'd like to think that I got pretty good at it. I mean seriously, I'm pretty spot on when I really put my mind towards speculating my way to the end of a House episode.

It's not perfect mind you but it does happen more often than not. However there are those shows that do genuinely surprise me from time to time, and that deserves some degree of commendation.

[TV] Lost: Season 2

When a show really hits it big on its debut season, you can imagine all the pressure that goes along with the production of the second season. How do you follow-up a smash TV hit? We see movies fall into the same trap over and over again and naturally TV productions aren't immune from this kind of a scenario either.

Given how shaky I was when I first started watching Lost, it was very important for the second season of the show to somehow make more sense and do a better job of hooking me. The first season was relatively able to attract my interest but I wasn't quite sold on the show just yet.

So let's just say that the first time I tried my luck with the second season of Lost, I gave up on the show. A few years later and with a lot of prodding by my partner, I finally gave in and decided to give Lost another chance.