The Sandman: Volume V (1993)

A Game of You (1993)

Author: Neil Gaiman | Illustrators: Shawn McManus / Colleen Doran / Bryan Talbot | Page Count: 189 

"We will all die, and the land will die, and the world will die, and the Cuckoo will reign in bleak dominion over all."

Volume V of X in the Sandman saga. For the folks that feel Gaiman too often sacrificed character development so that he could focus on fantastical and whimsical situations, this one is for you; it'll prove that he once did characterisation as well as the best of them in comics.

It picks up the story of someone last seen in Volume II: The Doll's House (1991) and treats readers to the details of how her life has changed since then. Lives may begin and end in Sandman, but the stories go on.

All the characters are beautifully crafted; each has a perfect part to play in the tale within a tale - and out of it, becoming a critique of the genre as a whole.

Cilla (2014)

Cilla (2014)

Dir. Paul Whittington | 3 episodes, approx 45 minutes each.

I was born in the decade after the swinging sixties had swung their last, so my experience of Cilla Black while growing up was primarily as the red-headed woman on TV who said "lorra lorra laughs," and "Here's our Graham with a quick reminder..."

I knew her musically for having performed the emotionally stirring theme song to the film Alfie (1966), the UK version at least, but I knew nothing of how she rose from being a music fan to embracing fame as an actual singer, so watching the miniseries was a real eye-opener. It's also damn good; although that ought not to be too surprising given that it's from the same writer, producer and director team that made Mrs Biggs (2012).

It begins in 1960, Liverpool, the same year and location in which The Beatles formed. Cilla's own evolution runs parallel to theirs and even overlaps on occasion. As you'd expect, almost everyone speaks in a Liverpudlian accent. The hard 'g' and '–ckk' sounds are better performed by some of the cast than by others, but everyone is easily identifiable as being Scouse.

We'll Always Have Paris (2009)

We'll Always Have Paris (2009)

Author: Ray Bradbury |  Page Count: 210

'There was a sense of loss, a vacuum, an emptiness, a vast silence. The walls ached.'

If you're new to Ray Bradbury's work, it'd be advisable to start with one of his more famous collections, such as the sublime Dandelion Wine (1957) or, if you prefer a novel, the darker in tone Something Wicked This Way Comes (1962) because I'm confident that most folks will have a more rewarding time with either of those books than with We'll Always Have Paris, a collection of twenty-two previously unpublished works that showcase the author at his less than stellar best.

Culled from a lifetime of writing (he was aged 88 at time of publication) the included stories range from familiar to surprising, frustrating to satisfying, but there's nothing offered herein that equals his earlier successes. Some of the works are little more than vignettes, borderless musings that in their brevity remind us how brief and fleeting a life can be. Most noteworthy is a Green Town story and one about Mars that may please long-time fans.

Yakuza 0 (2015 / 2017)

Yakuza 0 (JP: 2015 / WW: 2017)

Genre: Action/Adventure | Players: 1 | Developer: Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio (SEGA)

A prequel set in December, 1988, seventeen years before the events of the first game in the long-running Yakuza (Ryū ga Gotoku) series.

It begins with main protagonist Kazuma Kiryu (box art, front right, white suit) on the streets of Kamurocho, Tokyo, having just kicked seven shades of shit out of some guy. But it's not just violence for the sake of it; the act itself is central to the story and to Kiryu's development and decision making, here and in the aforementioned first entry. How a man responds to violence is a measure of his character, and for Kiryu that measure is a large part of what defines him.

The earlier era means Kiryu is younger (and a little more arrogant), but it influences gameplay in other ways, too, such as the technology on offer (e.g. a pager instead of a mobile phone) and the layout of the map. Anyone familiar with the layout of the streets and alleyways of Kamurocho will find it slightly different to how it will look seventeen years hence, with one omission being particularly notable.

The Sandman: Volume IV (1992)

Season of Mists (1992)

Author: Neil Gaiman | Illustrators: Malcolm Jones III / P. Craig Russell / George Pratt / Dick Giordano | Page Count: 218

"To absent friends, lost loves, old Gods, and the season of mists; and may each and every one of us always give the Devil his due."

Volume IV of X in the Sandman saga introduces more of the Endless as they gather for a family meeting. What invariably happens at family gatherings? Shit hits fans. It seems anthropomorphic personifications of abstract terms aren't exempt. It's a hard life being an Endless.

Lord Morpheus' conscience gets the better of him and he attempts to right a wrong that he committed centuries before (see Volume II: The Doll's House) by going somewhere that he's no wish to ever go to again (see Volume 1: Preludes and Nocturnes). Now seems like a good time to stress again how beneficial it is to read them in order, despite claims make by the publisher.

Pietà (2012)

Pietà (2012)

Dir. Kim Ki-duk

I can’t recall the last time I felt such vehement hatred for a main character as I did for Gang-Do (Jung-Jin Lee). He's a deplorable, detestable shit-bag money collector for a loan shark.

The realism that South Korean Dir. Kim Ki-duk strives for makes the actions that Gang-Do takes all the more affecting. If his attitude wasn't already in stark enough relief, when a woman (Min-soo Jo) approaches him and claims to be his mother it becomes even clearer.

The film explores many things, among them whether or not being judged or having someone around to make proud will cause us to act differently (essentially nature Vs nurture).

It's an intense journey that will no doubt shock and offend many who watch it, repeatedly, so be warned. Both leads rise to the challenge of their role superbly and deserve the maximum praise that I can give.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Season 4 (1995–96)

Star Trek: DS9: Season 4 (1995–96)

26 episodes, approx 44 minutes each.

S4 kicked off with another two-parter, the fan-favourite The Way of the Warrior, which saw a new regular crew member join the existing family. It's a character that was new to DS9 but not to Trek.

Unusually, after his timely and eventful introduction he isn't used much for the next few episodes. It's a situation that I rather enjoyed because it meant that he wasn't brought in with the intention of upstaging anyone else. He was treated as just another crew member, equal in stature and screen-time.

Also of note, at least to me, is that Sisko finally looks just like he does on the box art that was used for all seven seasons. He shaves his head and, like some kind of reverse Samson, turns into a stronger character.

There's a saying amongst DIY enthusiasts that if you have a roll of gaffer tape and a can of WD-40 then you can mend 90% of anything. Which brings me to one of my favourite DS9 crew members, the underappreciated miracle-worker that is Chief O'Brien (Colm Meaney). The Chief can mend 90% of everything with just his hands, but give him a hyperspanner, an ODN recoupler and enough time and he'll hit the 99.9% mark.