Lone Wolf and Child: Assassin on the Road to Hell (1989)

LWaC: Assassin on the Road to Hell (1989)

Dir. Tokuzô Tanaka

Tanaka's film attempts to tell the entire Lone Wolf and Cub story in just 140 minutes, which is an insane undertaking. Nevertheless, it's a valiant attempt and an enjoyable evening's viewing for samurai fans.

Hideki Takahashi stars as the Shogun's one-time executioner, Ogami Ittō. He does a damned good job at it, able to show compassion when the situation calls for it, but just the right amount because too much might compromise his stoic attitude. He's also deft enough with the dōtanuki to be believable.

Young Daigoro is played by Koji Aeba. It's a wholly subjective view, but for me young kids in Japanese films tend to be much less irritating than young kids are in most American films. Daigoro isn't just a third wheel in the Lone Wolf story, or some kind of amusing gimmick, he's an integral part of the tale and, thankfully, while Koji was likely too young to understand the importance of what he was asked to do onscreen, he at least carried it without fault and without ever being irritating. GJ, kid.

Supernatural: Season 07 (2012)

Supernatural: Season 07 (2012)

23 episodes, approx 42 mins each.

My hope going into Season 07 was that it would be an improvement over Season 06,  even just enough to lift the series out of the shit-heap that showrunner Sera Gamble had put it in, but I don't feel that that happened.

A large part of the reason is the new ongoing threat, first mentioned in the season opener.

Known as Leviathans, the carnivorous bitey things (as pictured on the cover art) were created by God before even the Angels, but for reasons that I won't go into were imprisoned in a holding place that was made just for them. Naturally, they find a way through into the world  of humans. And that's as good as that particular story arc gets.

Scream!: The Specials 1985-2024 (2025)

Scream!: The Specials 1985-2024 (2025)

Author + Illustrators: Various (Too numerous to mention here. See CREATOR INFO at the bottom of the page for full list of known names.) | Page Count: 400

'It was three o'clock in the morning and Billy Billings was having his nightmare again... Only it wasn't a nightmare any more, it was real!'

A companion volume to 40 Years of Scream!: The Archival Collection (2024) that collects together much of the post-cancellation Holiday Specials, including those from the revived era (2017-24).

Slightly more than half of the book is vintage content from 1985-89. The reminder reprints everything Scream! related from 2017-24. See footnotes for a full list of what's included. [1]

It makes my day to see the 1980s specials get a second life, but it's not as complete as it could've been. I'm not trying to deter anyone from buying it, but I feel it's important to note certain details.

Jacob's Ladder (1990)

Jacob's Ladder (1990)

Dir. Adrian Lyne

Jacob's Ladder has never had a poster or home release cover that did it justice, on any medium, so I chose the image that I consider to be most iconic. It was used to promote the film in UK Video Stores, and is the one that I had taped to my wardrobe door for many years as a teenager.

It doesn't give any real indication of what the story is about, but, after viewing, you'll maybe agree that it does at least capture the tone of the film's more unsettling, thematically dark moments.

I'm deeply sympathetic to whoever initially chose it because I now find myself wanting to convey why I feel the film excels in its genre, but also want to avoid providing info to anyone who hasn't seen it, because a first viewing is best experienced with as little foreknowledge as possible.

It's a psychological horror in which a Vietnam vet named Jacob (Tim Robbins) struggles with fragmented memories of at least two traumatic events: one that occurred before the war, and one that occurred during it.

Batman: The Animated Series: Movies (1993-03)

Batman: TAS: Movies (1993-03)

inc. The New Batman Adventures

01. Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993, Dirs. Eric Radomski + Bruce Timm) was the first film in the DC Animated Universe (TAS).

Its Bruce Wayne (Kevin Conroy) isn't just an angry orphan fighting against a world that he feels took something irreplaceable from him, he's a flawed dark avenger, suffering emotional conflicts as he weighs the lure of a normal, loving relationship against an earnest vow to protect others from the pain he weathers. He's fully aware of why he does what he does, but finds reasons to justify it.

The emotional twists and turns in the story are supported by a number of flashbacks that, among other things, tell the story of his first few forays into night-time vigilantism.