Geeky Regards

After a very strong start, The Mandalorian had a bit of a stumble. The finale needed to be a strong, assertive, all encompassing and satisfying story. Luckily, it was exactly that.

The final chapter in the Skywalker saga is here, and just like that, Disney accomplished what they set out to do when they bought the storied franchise in 2012. Star Wars: The Rise Of Skywalker had the monumental task of wrapping up over 40 years of storytelling. So did it pull it off?

After 3 episodes of side quests, filler, and nonsense, The Mandalorian  finally got back to business in episode 7. Mando had to return to settle the score and protect the child once and for all. This should have happened 2 episodes ago, but better late than never.

Just when you think The Mandalorian has put the toughest thing behind him, up comes something even more challenging. Episode 6 of The Mandalorian put him up against a rebel prison, and a dangerous crew.

The Arrowverse's biggest crossover is finally here. For the most part they delivered everything they promised, and more. The first episode was Supergirl . The second was Batman , and the third was The Flash . This will not be formatted as usual, but instead it will be one big rundown.

The Mandalorian  may be one of the best things on TV, but it is still TV. It fell into that common pitfall of TV, by treading water for a couple of episodes before it gets back to the main story. Episode 5, called "The Gunslinger" was entertaining enough, but definitely a side quest instead of contributing to the main story.

This week brought midseason finales, final stands, new identities, and preparation for Crisis On Infinite Earths ! Below is a breakdown of all of the Arrowverse stuff that aired this week. It is part review, part speculation, part analysis, and part rambling. It is organized in the order they aired throughout the week, so feel free to scroll down to whatever ones you watch. If you want to get caught up, you can use my Arrowverse Viewing Order guide to help you navigate! You can read this season's previous breakdowns here .

Chapter 4 of The Mandalorian introduced ex-Rebel shock trooper Cara Dune, played by Gina Carano. Her introduction added a unique and necessary layer to the show. It took until episode 4 for there to be any female representation in The Mandalorian . Which was a bit too late. There were 4 females who had anything of significance in this episode, so a 400% increase is a good start.

Below is a breakdown of all of the Arrowverse stuff that aired this week. It is part review, part speculation, part analysis, and part rambling. It is organized in the order they aired throughout the week, so feel free to scroll down to whatever ones you watch. If you want to get caught up, you can use my Arrowverse Viewing Order guide to help you navigate! You can read this season's previous breakdowns here .

Knives Out  is a good ol' fashioned "whodunnit" with very modern sensibilities. The Last Jedi director Rian Johnson crafted a smart, fun, and wildly entertaining murder mystery with an all-star cast.

It is rare when a TV show continually gets better week after week. But the first episode of The Mandalorian  was merely "good", so the rest could be great . Chapter 3, subtitled "The Sin", took everything good about the first 2 episodes and expounded on it ten fold. There will be a few spoilers throughout if you have not watched the episode yet.

This week, allegiances were tested, families were torn apart, but also brought together. There were a lot of betrayals, but not a lot of costume time. These episodes really focused on the human aspect of the characters.  Below is a breakdown of all of the Arrowverse stuff that aired this week. It is part review, part speculation, part analysis, and part rambling. It is organized in the order they aired throughout the week, so feel free to scroll down to whatever ones you watch. If you want to get caught up, you can use my Arrowverse Viewing Order guide to help you navigate! You can read this season's previous breakdowns here .

While "Chapter 2" was a couple minutes shorter than "Chapter 1", it seemed to accomplish a whole lot more. Rick Famuyiwa crafted wonderful action sequences, and an intimate story that pleased all of the senses.

42 years after Star Wars  changed the world (and subsequently shaped my entire life ), the first live action Star Wars  show is finally here. The Mandalorian  comes from Iron Man  and Chef  filmmaker Jon Favreau. The following review will be spoiler free.

This week there was the return of old villains, focus on supporting characters, and seeds planted for the future. Below is a breakdown of all of the Arrowverse stuff that aired this week. It is part review, part speculation, part analysis, and part rambling. It is organized in the order they aired throughout the week, so feel free to scroll down to whatever ones you watch. If you want to get caught up, you can use my Arrowverse Viewing Order guide to help you navigate! You can read this season's previous breakdowns here .

Below is a breakdown of all of the Arrowverse stuff that aired this week. It is part review, part speculation, part analysis, and part rambling. It is organized in the order they aired throughout the week, so feel free to scroll down to whatever ones you watch. If you want to get caught up, you can use my Arrowverse Viewing Order guide to help you navigate! You can read this season's previous breakdowns here .

This week there was a big death, true intentions revealed, family at odds, a main character exit, and one of the most emotional moments yet. Crisis  still looms large, and it is felt more so now than ever before. Below is a breakdown of all of the Arrowverse stuff that aired this week. It is part review, part speculation, part analysis, and part rambling. It is organized in the order they aired throughout the week, so feel free to scroll down to whatever ones you watch. If you want to get caught up, you can use my Arrowverse Viewing Order guide to help you navigate! You can read this season's previous breakdowns here .

Dolemite Is My Name is a true story about comedian Rudy Ray Moore, and his rise to fame. The comedy is elevated by its cast, and brings a cult legend to the forefront with this new Netflix film. Eddie Murphy is one of the funniest people alive. Unfortunately he hasn't had much to sink his teeth into lately that proves that fact. Luckily that all changes with Dolemite Is My Name . It is a role that showcases every one of Murphy's talents, and it pays off big time. Dolemite has a cult following from the handful of films that showed the titular character, but this film is a good "in" for people who are unfamiliar. It lays out the story well, and Moore's journey into stardom and fame is entertaining from beginning to end. Playing a real person is always difficult, but Murphy managed to portray Moore with care and heart, while still having some signature "Eddie Murphy" moments. Even if you aren't familiar with Moore or Dolemite, the film stil...

This week we had a ton of returning faces, new costumes, big revelations, and emotional resonance that took us one step closer to Crisis On Infinite Earths . Below is a breakdown of all of the Arrowverse stuff that aired this week. It is part review, part speculation, part analysis, and part rambling. It is organized in the order they aired throughout the week, so feel free to scroll down to whatever ones you watch. If you want to get caught up, you can use my Arrowverse Viewing Order guide to help you navigate! You can read this season's previous breakdowns here .

Kevin Smith made a shared cinematic universe that featured a Stan Lee cameo long before Kevin Feige ever did it with the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Smith's "ViewAskewniverse" was a series of screwball stoner comedies, that seemingly ended with Clerks II . But everything that is old is new again, and Smith returned to his roots with the very meta Jay And Silent Bob Reboot .

This week we had the start of Arrow 's farewell tour, more Crisis preparations, and people being challenged in ways that they aren't used to. Below is a breakdown of all of the Arrowverse stuff that aired this week. It is part review, part speculation, part analysis, and part rambling. It is organized in the order they aired throughout the week, so feel free to scroll down to whatever ones you watch. If you want to get caught up, you can use my Arrowverse Viewing Order guide to help you navigate! You can read this season's previous breakdowns here .

Breaking Bad is one of the greatest television shows of all time. The way it ended was brilliant, and perfect for Walter White's story. But one character never received the closure he deserved, and that was Aaron Paul's Jesse Pinkman. El Camino provides that closure, and serves as the perfect epilogue to Breaking Bad .

The Arrowverse is back for its biggest season yet! This week we saw 4 out of the 6 shows premiere, including newcomer Batwoman . There was lots of spectacle, intrigue, mythology and even a Crisis on Infinite Earths  tease. Below is a breakdown of all of the Arrowverse stuff that aired this week. It is part review, part speculation, part analysis, and part rambling. It is organized in the order they aired throughout the week, so feel free to scroll down to whatever ones you watch. If you want to get caught up, you can use my Arrowverse Viewing Order guide to help you navigate!

The "comic book movie" genre is vast, providing many different takes and feels to comic book movies. Every now and then a film comes a long to challenge the meaning of the genre, and transcend it completely. The Dark Knight did that. So did Logan and Avengers: Endgame. The latest to do that is Joker and it might be the most severe departure of the genre yet.

Space adventure films have been top notch lately. Films like Gravity  and The Martian  take the genre and offer something new. Ad Astra  is the next film in that line, and does the same thing.

Jurassic Park is one of the best movies ever made. The premise was executed flawlessly, and it gave audiences something they've never seen before. The same cannot be said about the sequels, which either offered more of the same or squandered the franchise completely.

Carnival Row is a romantic, urban, gothic, mysterious, steampunk whodunnit with a talented cast and a deep mythology that provides rich stories. The show had a lot of information that it had to get to its audience who knew nothing of the world that Travis Beacham and Rene Echevarria created. It did it masterfully, giving pieces of information that made the story consumable to the masses. It has a lived-in feel, like the first Star Wars  movie did. It feels that this world actually exists, and we are just getting a peek of it.

The Fast & Furious  franchise has been going longer than the Marvel Cinematic Universe , and is still going strong. 2019 brought the franchises very first spinoff in Hobbs & Shaw, a ridiculous action adventure movie that is just pure stupid fun!

The latest Netflix film,  The Red Sea Diving Resort,  attempts to provide a powerful commentary on refugees by taking true events and dramatizing them so they work in a movie. The wonderful cast is the only reason this film makes it to the finish line.

The market is littered with every type of superhero story and comic book adaptation available. You can find one on almost any channel, streaming service or studio that makes pretend for a living. Superhero projects are the modern day western - they come built in with a guaranteed audience.  It used to just be Marvel and DC in the game, but now all types are making their way to a screen. The Boys on Amazon Prime is the latest example of that, and it is unlike anything you've seen in the genre before.

Sometimes movies supersede being merely entertainment and become and event. The Avengers  films are like that . So are Star Wars movies . But outside of that genre, there are only a handful of "event" films. Quentin Tarantino's movies are "events". His latest,  Once Upon A Time... In Hollywood,  is an unexpectedly sweet fairy tale that serves as a love story to 1960s Hollywood.

The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy  is getting a TV series adaptation on Hulu. Hitchhiker's has been adapted to screen before with different results. The last one was a movie in 2005 starring Martin Freeman. The book is one of my favorite books ever, and the story means a lot to me. So I am going to do a fancast of the TV series. Actors who I think would be great as the characters. This is a pipe dream, so I am obviously not expecting this to happen. The only criteria I have is that the people I choose are alive and currently working in the industry. I am only going to do some of the more prominent roles, because casting every  character in the series will be tedious.

At San Diego Comic Con this year, Marvel announced their Phase 4 slate. The Infinity Saga ended with Avengers: Endgame , and Phase 3 ended with Spider-Man: Far From Home . So let's talk about what the future holds for the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

The Lion King is very special to a lot of people. So the concept of a hyper-realistic CGI remake had people talking. Let's get this out of the way though: Regardless of what you think of this one it doesn't "ruin" the original. The 1994 classic will always stand on its own in a bubble, regardless of what comes after. The sub-par sequels didn't tarnish that film. Neither should this.

Trailers are a work of art on their own, and sometimes they can be better than the actual movie (see  Suicide Squad ). But for the most part, trailers do a great job selling the movie they are for. So let's look at a trailer and see what we can glean from it.

Trailers are a work of art on their own, and sometimes they can be better than the actual movie (see  Suicide Squad ). But for the most part, trailers do a great job selling the movie they are for. So let's look at a trailer and see what we can glean from it.

Point Blank  reunites Captain America: The Winter Solider  stars Anthony Mackie and Frank Grillo for a fun (albeit predictable) action romp. The Netflix original is a story about the lengths people will go for their families and that there is a lot of gray area in being "good" or "bad".

Trailers are a work of art on their own, and sometimes they can be better than the actual movie (see Suicide Squad ). But for the most part, trailers do a great job selling the movie they are for. So let's look at a trailer and see what we can glean from it.

Spider-Man's second solo outing in the MCU is the first follow up to the massive universe-changing event Avengers: Endgame . The film is bigger in almost every way than Spider-Man: Homecoming , and the shadow of Iron Man looms large. Iron Man gave Far From Home its story, but he also prevented the film from reaching its full potential. There will be some light spoilers throughout. I suggest not reading until you've seen the film. Bookmark this, and come back later!

Netflix is becoming more and more known for their original IP. One of the biggest things to help with that identity was the launch of Stranger Things . The show was an incredible mix of 80s nostalgia, child wonder, and sci-fi horror. The second season, tried some new things with mixed results, but was overall entertaining ( review here ). The third season got back to basics, which resulted in the strongest season to date.

The first half of 2019 had some interesting films released, both theatrically and on streaming platforms. There was a 5 or 6 week stretch that I was at the movies every weekend - sometimes twice in the same weekend. Below are my favorite films from the first half of the year. There are 3 honorable mentions, and then my 10 favorite.

Danny Boyle has made some wonderfully entertaining films. 28 Days Later is one of the greatest zombie movies ever made. Slumdog Millionaire is still poignant a decade later. His latest venture Yesterday was worth paying attention to due to the very interesting premise. What if one struggling musician was the only person on Earth to remember the Beatles?

It is very rare to see a fully realized trilogy that ends as close to perfect as can be. Toy Story did that with the beautiful, poignant, and emotional Toy Story 3 . So it was natural to be skeptical about Toy Story 4 's existence. Luckily, most of the fears were unwarranted. Toy Story 4 is a beautiful and worthy entry into the franchise.

The first season Jessica Jones  is some of the best television I have ever seen. I've been a fan of the character ever since, in both The Defenders  and the second season of Jessica Jones . The third and final season finally aired, and while she got a complete journey, everything else in the season didn't quite land for it being the last hoorah.

Men In Black   used to be king of the summer blockbuster. The franchise has seen diminishing returns since its debut in 1997. The first Will Smith-less entry into the franchise, Men In Black: International  is finally here and it gave us something familiar, but not enough new and fresh to warrant an argument for.

High concept television isn't as hard of a sell it used to be. After all, Game Of Thrones  is high concept, and it was one of the most popular shows of all time. Amazon's newest show, Good Omens  is deep, complex, joyous and absolutely hilarious thanks to its charming cast, brilliant writing, and strong direction. It is one of the strongest word-to-screen adaptations ever, and if you can buy into the concept, you should experience it ASAP.

Godzilla is a property that will never go away. It has been around for decades, and will always be in the pop culture lexicon in some way. The latest version, Godzilla: King Of The Monsters  shows that the franchise still has a bit more work to do.

This review was originally published on RevengeOfTheFans.com Netflix’s newest film, Rim of the World is an adventure filled with emotion and excitement. The intrigue, heart, humor and spectacle of the characters are what makes this story tick. The film, written by Zack Stentz and directed by McG, has a Spielbergian sense of adventure, with a John Hughes coming-of-age feel. It’s a throwback to the 80s, with a modern sensibility.

Another Disney live action remake of one of their animated classics was released this month in the form of Aladdin . While I had my reservations about Guy Ritchie’s live action version, for the most part it was a perfectly entertaining crowd pleaser that did exactly what it was supposed to.