Lone Wolf and Cub: Omnibus Editions (2013-16)

LW+C: Omnibus Editions (2013-16)

Author: Kazuo Koike | Illustrator: Goseki Kojima | Page Count: LOTS! [1]

"Good fortune and ill, twisted together like a rope..."

Nine Inch Nails: Hesitation Marks (2013)

NIN: Hesitation Marks (2013)

The return of NIN after a five year hiatus was something that I anticipated greatly, but when it came it came with disappointment. [1]

Reznor was (happily?) married, rich, and had been free of record label interference for a number of years prior to its release — allowing for, one supposes, a pleasing level of creative freedom — all of which meant he'd less to get upset or angry about.

A nice place to be, for sure, but it eliminated many of the things that had traditionally been a source of inspiration and/or a motivational factor in the artist's music.

Consequently, lyrically it skims still waters while trying to remain as close to the deeper NIN formula as possible.

Jeff Wayne's Musical version of TWotW: TNG (2013)

Jeff Wayne's Musical Version of TWotW: The New Generation: Alive from the 02 (2013)

Dir. Nick Morris | London 02 Arena, ?? December, 2012

Didn't I review this already, just last month? Nope. That was the Richard Burton-head on a dangling egg version. This is the Liam Neeson semi-transparent '3D holo-gimmick' version.

As before, it's a live performance of Wayne's musical adaptation of H.G. Wells' The War of the Worlds novel featuring The Black Smoke Band and the ULLAdubULLA Strings orchestra, with a large cinema screen behind them onto which is projected a mix of pre-recorded footage and CGI animation. But there are a few differences:

The CGI is better; the towering tripod ship now shoots fire; and it was recast to appeal specifically to a 'younger audience'; that last part put my 'older audience' mind on the alert. [1]

'Wayne wouldn't extend that train of thought to the music, would he?' I pondered. 'For the love of all that stands on three legs, he wouldn't mess with a classic formula just for 'younger audience' recognition, right?' But he did. Damn, he did.

Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex: Manga (2010-14)

Episode 001: Section 9 (2010)

Author + Illustrator: Yu Kinutani | Page Count: 248

"[W]e've determined the contents of the brain are fake. So where's the real one?"

A number of cyborg Geishas have taken clients hostage, among them a high-ranking government official who at the time of his capture was engaging in some odd activities with the pretend ladies.

The Prime Minister summons the country's best counter-terrorist unit: Public Security Section 9. Led by the cybernetically enhanced Major Kusanagi, the team are called upon to not only resolve the situation, but to find out who's behind it, and why.

It's a manga adaptation of an anime TV series that was inspired by a film adaptation of a manga. If you're familiar with all of those things, then the book might be of interest to you, but know that it's the entire first episode of the GitS SAC anime in manga form - it's almost verbatim, except for some minor changes in the action scenes that don't alter the main storyline one bit. It's arguably less fun than watching the anime, so is probably best recommended for super-fans or folks who prefer manga, only.

Sadako 3D + Sadako 3D 2 (2012-13)

Sadako 3D (2012)

Dir. Tsutomu Hanabusa

A Ring Cycle movie revival based on author Koji Suzuki's novel, S (2012). I've not read it, so can't comment on how faithful the film is or isn't.

A new cursed video is uploaded to the internet, meaning every PC, laptop, tablet, phone, etc, offers a possible entry point for Sadako's return.

It sounds like a natural progression of what came before, but whereas Nakata's first two films were mature horror that made me soil myself, Sadako 3D is teen horror that made me yawn and check my watch periodically.

Silent Hill type creatures work just fine in a Silent Hill setting, but in Ring's world they were ridiculous. The only saving grace was Satomi Ishihara, who deserved to be in a better movie.

Under the Dome: Season One (2013)

Under the Dome: Season One (2013)

Dir. Various | 13 episodes, approx 43 minutes each.

I'm so bored of 'edgy' US dramas, but I'm a huge fan of sci-fi and a sucker for a Stephen King adaptation despite their tendency to have a great buildup and then fall flat on their ass in the latter half. Under the Dome bucks that trend by falling flat on its ass even earlier. It kills off the most interesting character in Ep 01 and leaves the chaff to pick up the slack, meaning that from Ep 02 it drags its shitty heels through the corn.

It's the story of a town trapped under a mysterious dome. What that means for the people within differs depending on their ability to cope with disaster, the unknown, and the depravity of the secrets they want to keep hidden. Their focus is on getting out, naturally, but Season One's overall focus is on exploring the inner aspects of each individual and the community as a whole.

Beyond Rue Morgue (2013)

Beyond Rue Morgue Anthology:
Further Tales of Edgar Allan Poe's 1st Detective (2013)

Editors: Paul Kane / Charles Prepolec | Authors (in the order presented): Edgar Allan Poe / Mike Carey / Simon Clark / Weston Ochse + Yvonne Navarro / Jonathan Maberry / Joe R. Lansdale / Elizabeth Massie / Lisa Tuttle / Stephen Volk / Clive Barker | Page Count: 332 

"Between ingenuity and the analytic ability there exists a difference far greater, indeed, than that between the fancy and the imagination, but of a character very strictly analogous. It will be found, in fact, that the ingenious are always fanciful, and the truly imaginative never otherwise than analytic."

The detective in Edgar Allan Poe's short story Murders in the Rue Morgue (1841), Le Chevalier C. Auguste Dupin, was used by the author in two more of his works, The Mystery of Marie Rogêt (1842) and later The Purloined Letter (1844). Considered the world of literature's first mystery detective, Dupin was solving horrific crimes long before either Sherlock Holmes or Hercule Poirot.

Famously, the word 'detective' hadn't even been coined when Poe penned his first Dupin mystery. His crime-solver used what the author called 'ratiocination'. But you can read about all of that in the book's introduction, so I won't spend any more time on it. Commenting on the stories in the pictured book is why I'm here. As the full title says, it's 'further tales' of Dupin, written by a number of different authors and in a number of different styles.

The Unwritten: Tommy Taylor and the Ship That Sank Twice (2013)

Tommy Taylor and the Ship That Sank Twice (2013)

Author: Mike Carey | Illustrator: Peter Gross | Page Count: 160

"You mustn't touch the box."

A standalone comic book prequel to The Unwritten that functions as a dual origin story for scheming fantasy author Wilson Taylor's two special projects: the Tommy Taylor™ novels and Wilson's actual son Tom Taylor.

The Tommy side of things makes up the bulk of the work and is like reading a standard fantasy comic book. The Tom side of things is slotted in-between the other. One of them is passable, but both have their problems.

Firstly, the 'boy-wizard at wizard school' story is as dull as it sounds. In the original The Unwritten series the Tommy character was as bland as Hollywood - it was solely the juxtaposition with Tom that gave him anything of value. That juxtaposition is in its infancy herein, which means Tommy has almost nothing interesting to say.

Senn (2013)

Senn (2013)

Dir. Josh Feldman

Writer/Dir. Josh Feldman's first and only (at time of writing) directorial work is a low budget, socially-aware science fiction set on a world that's part industrial workhouse and part slum.

Senn (Zach Eulberg) is a small cog in a much larger, exploitative, corporate machine. He's so small that he doesn't even know what shape the machine is, but he's able to recognises his own insignificance within it. However, unlike his co-workers, Senn has a way out - even if he isn't yet fully aware of that fact himself.

There's some slow-mo padding that's at worst functional but mostly serves a dual-purpose that's powerful when it hits its mark, stirring heart and head in the process. Most of the cast are still learning their trade, but special mention must go to Lauren Taylor and Wylie Herman.

The Bible: Miniseries (2013)

The Bible: Miniseries (2013)

Dirs. Crispin Reece (Eps 01, 02, 05, 06) / Tony Mitchell (Eps 03, 04, 10) / Christopher Spencer (Eps 07, 08, 09)  | 10 episodes, approx 45 mins each.

A ten-episode miniseries based on The Bible. A disclaimer at the beginning of each one states that 'it endeavours to stay true to the spirit of the book.' That's another way of saying that the series makers haven't always remained faithful to the accepted scriptures.

Personally, and without trying to offend anyone, I don't have a problem with things being that way because I perceive the work as a TV show that's taking dramatic licence with a text that itself took dramatic licence with historic events; the precedent for deviation was already set. If, on the other hand, you're deeply religious and take every word as it's written in The Bible as a literal truth, then you may have issues with both the series and my personal appreciation of it.

The Unwritten: Volume 07 (2013)

The Wound (2013)

Author: Mike Carey | Illustrator: Peter Gross | Page Count: 144

'There were no winds. It came on them in complete silence. The perfect whiteness of an unwritten page.'

The opening chapter / issue of Volume 07 is another of those secondary character asides that Mike Carey is damn good at. It doesn't even have Tom Taylor in it, but it's great and was my favourite part of the book.

It's followed by a four-part story, the one for which the collection is named. Tom features in it, but he's in the background often, allowing a few more of the supporting cast to have time in the spotlight, including an Australian police officer who's investigating The Church of Tommy.

The Church is a religious cult whose doctrine is based upon the Tommy Taylor™ books. The boy-wizard's most recent novel had some Christ-like parallels, which is the kind of happening that can cause such fanatics to crawl into the light, believing they have something to prove.

Doctor Sleep (2013)

Doctor Sleep (2013)

Author: Stephen King  |  Page Count: 485

"When you couldn’t sleep, when you were afraid to look around because of what you might see, time elongated and grew sharp teeth."

A very belated sequel to King's The Shining (1977) novel. While many of the author's current fans probably weren't born when the first book came out, it's assumed that anyone reading Doctor Sleep will have read the previous book, and I'll be proceeding under the same assumption, so there will be at least one major SPOILER for The Shining hereafter.

For anyone that actually wanted a sequel, thirty-six years is a long time to wait. A similar amount of time has passed for the book's main protagonist, Danny Torrance. Despite his experience as a boy, Danny has taken on some of the more vile traits of his father, including his self-destructive alcoholism.

But for much of the novel Danny is a hospice worker in a small town in New Hampshire, attending to the terminally ill. It's a role in which his peculiar ability, his 'shining', can play a productive part.

Arcane Quest (2013)

Arcane Quest (2013)

Genre: RPG | Players: 1 | Developer: Nex Game Studios

Arcane Quest is a FREE mobile phone game (subsequently also on PC, with HD graphics, but I'll be referring specifically to the Windows Phone version). The game isn't actually HeroQuest on your phone, because that would be plagiarism, or trademark infringement, or something equally as nefarious and icky, but, put simply, Arcane Quest is HeroQuest on your phone. Rejoice!

Jonathan Creek: The Clue of the Savant's Thumb (2013)

Jonathan Creek: The Clue of the Savant's Thumb (2013)

Dir. David Renwick | Approx 89 minutes

Jonathan's life has changed. He's retired from the crime solving business, but seems ill at ease in his new role and awkward in his new clothes.

I accepted the changes without much affront, but one thing bugged me: where the hell is the windmill? I'd never move out of a windmill, not for anyone!

When a dead body turns up and mysteriously disappears from a locked room on the same day, Jonathan's curiosity is piqued. How could he resist?

Joey Ross (Sheridan Smith) is on hand to both complicate and help, in equal measure. I really like Sheridan and she doesn't disappoint in the role. Her chemistry with Alan Davies is good and her eagerness is only equalled by her sassiness.

The Past (2013)

The Past (2013)

aka Le Passé

Dir. Asghar Farhadi

A French and Persian language drama about a separated couple who agree to meet up in order to finalise their divorce after years apart. I picked it up because it was released by Artificial Eye (R2), a company that distributes films that are almost always stirring, engaging and/or intriguing.

The story goes to places that I wasn't expecting, but it gets there via an organic methodology and never feels forced. That the unseen barriers and coverings are strengthened by having visible reminders in the environments is surely no coincidence. The locations themselves are utterly believable, each one beautifully lived-in.

It's often heavy going, almost like sharing in someone else's emotional baggage for a few hours, but it has the power to hold the attention without overwhelming or smothering the viewer.

Child's Play / Chucky Movie Collection (1988—)

Child's Play (1988)

Dir. Tom Holland

Charles Lee Ray, aka the Lakeshore Strangler, is hunted by police. As a last resort, and thanks to some convenient knowledge of voodoo magic, the killer manages to transfer his consciousness to a popular kid's toy, the Good Guys doll.

Six-year-old Andy Barclay (Alex Vincent) loves the Good Guys franchise; he watches the cartoon on TV, eats the breakfast cereal, and wears the branded clothing. Andy's mom, Karen, a single parent, does her best to give the boy what he wants, and what Andy really, really wants is a Good Guys doll, naturally.

That's the basic set-up. Young Alex Vincent isn't annoying at all, which is not something that can be said for a lot of kids in films, and actress Catherine Hicks is believable as a mother with a 'compensating for absent father' attitude. But the most memorable character is the doll, Chucky, voiced by Brad Dourif. He's a sadistic, vindictive, foul-mouthed and merciless little shit. If you're a fan of black humour, he's also pretty damn funny at times.

Star Trek: The Next Generation: Hive (2013)

Star Trek: The Next Generation: Hive (2013)

Authors: Brannon Braga (story) / Terry Matalas + Travis Fickett (script)  |  Artist: Joe Corroney | Page Count: 104

"The last world of the old Federation fell over a century ago. Resistance was futile."

That's quite the cover art: the USS Enterprise NCC-1701-E, Borg cubes, Borg spheres, Borg drones, the Borg Queen, Seven of Nine, Locutus of Borg and Captain Picard arranged like a first year art student's scrap book. Something tells me it might be a Borg story.

It also suggests that what's inside is either very exciting or a desperate 'all eggs in one basket' bullshit ploy.

With expectations set for the latter, I discovered that it's really neither. It's standard non-cannon comic book nonsense that's set sometime after the end of TNG's Nemesis (2002) film and the Voyager TV series.

Jean-Luc Picard is still captain of the Federation's flagship, but he has a new number one because Riker is off being beardy and smug on the Luna-class USS Titan.

Masters of the Universe: Origins of Eternia (2012-13)

Masters of the Universe: Origin of Skeletor (2012)

Author: Joshua Hale Fialkov | Artist: Frazer Irving | Page Count: 21

"The half-breed bastard child of a King and creature the world has deemed sub-human."

A trio of stand-alone comics, each one devoted to a particular MotU character, telling their origin story.

The evil Skeletor leads the way and at first glance it appears to be pretty damn good! But once you get to actually analysing the story the cracks begin to show and it becomes clear that issue one is all about the art.

Frazer Irving's artwork is amazing, perfectly capturing the drama of a single moment, with a modified use of colour to suit the era; e.g. as Skeletor walks the halls of his childhood home the flashbacks triggered by the location have much of the colour drained from them, like you'd sometimes see in a movie. It helps separate the past from the present and adds further commentary on the differences between the child and the man.

It's interesting seeing the genesis of the resentful feelings that skull-face nurtures and uses as strength, but at just 21 pages it's all too brief.

Hatchet Job: Love Movies, Hate Critics (2013)

Hatchet Job: Love Movies, Hate Critics (2013)

Author: Mark Kermode  |  Page Count: 272

'In a perfect world, film criticism would not be a series of rapid responses fixed for ever [...], but would rather be a slowly evolving debate in which nothing is certain and everything is up for grabs.'

I haven't read Mark Kermode's previous books yet, but nor was I unfamiliar with the London-born film critic, having seen him pop up on numerous film-related shows on British TV, most notably on the BBC 2 arts programme The Culture Show. His reviews were the main reason I programmed my VHS to record the show when I wasn't at home.

Kermode's views on film were the ones that most closely matched my own, and I began to believe that if he liked something, then there was a very good chance that I would too. It's a feeling that has lessened in recent years, but my respect for him and his role hasn't diminished in the slightest.

The Ballad of Halo Jones (2013)

The Ballad of Halo Jones (2013)

Author: Alan Moore | Illustrator: Ian Gibson | Page Count: 208

'I go out and buy a gun, second-hand. I tell myself it’s for self-defence, but that’s not true. It’s because I’m bored. […] I take the gun and go sit by the window.'

Halo Jones is an average eighteen-year-old. She likes clothes, shopping and parties. Halo likes to live. The problem is that living in the year 4949 isn't easy, especially in the Hoop, a cramped and dangerous ghetto created to house the unemployed. People of the Hoop have never even seen a tree.

Halo wants to escape, to see the outside. Quite often when someone experiences those kinds of feelings it's themselves they're trying to escape from, but that's just not possible, is it?

The Ballad is split over three Books separated by time and degrees of depth and poignancy. Without having an insight into Moore's mind I can only guess at the pitch he gave to the comic's publishers, and his reasoning for structuring the three parts like he did. Whatever it was, I'm glad they fell for it.