Doctor Who Series 9 - Episode 11 – Heaven Sent

Writer: Steven Moffat

Director: Rachel Talalay

Cast:

Doctor Who Series 9 - Episode 10 – Face The Raven

Writer: Sarah Dollard

Director: Justin Molotnikov

Cast:

Yesterday, WB announced when some of their new shows will be launching and returning.  Tops on the list for me is the much anticipated Legends of Tomorrow!   Legends of Tomorrow is a spin-off from Arrow and Flash.  Arthur Darvill (Rory from Doctor who) plays Rip Hunter who comes back from the 22nd century to put together a team to stop Vandal Savage (played by Casper Crump).  The team consists of Atom (Brandon Routh), White Canary (Caity Lotz), Heat Wave (Dominic Purcell), Captain Cold (Wentworth Miller), Hawkman (Falk Hentschel), Hawkgirl (Ciara Renée), and Firestorm—the new team of Martin Stein (Victor Garber) and Jefferson “Jax” Jackson (Franz Drameh).

Here's the trailer:

THE LEFTOVERS, an HBO series, is a complex story that takes place three years after an “event” happens where 120 million people -- 2% of the world’s population -- disappeared in an instant. It centers on the town of Mapleton, New York where 100 people disappeared and the local sheriff, Kevin Garvey (Justin Theroux), is trying to hold his family together while simultaneously trying to keep the peace and help people get on with their lives.

Some people said, and still say, that the event was the Rapture, while some say it isn’t that because not everyone was a good person that disappeared. Others still look to some sort of scientific physics-based explanation to the phenomenon.

BATMAN: SEASON 3 DVD
Warner Bros. Entertainment
$39.98 SRP

Being a kid growing up in the late ‘70s and ‘80s, you didn’t have the television world at your fingertips.  There were literally seven channels for me to watch until I was about ten years old.  During the week, the only kid-friendly shows were on in the early morning till maybe 9 o’clock then in the afternoon from say 3-6pm.  Oddly, a lot of the shows weren’t even cartoons.  Instead it was shows like GET SMART, THE BRADY BUNCH, and the Adam West BATMAN that helped keep me entertained.  

After his battle with Zoom, Barry (Grant Gustin) was left without feeling in his legs. In case you were worried, don't be; he's got a very fast metabolism, and he heals pretty fast. His broken back is already mostly stitched back together as this episode opens.

However, while Barry is almost walking, his running speed isn't back. It's not the physical damage, but the emotional damage that leaves The Flash crippled. He was dragged all over Central City by Zoom, and the city that depended on The Flash to be their hero has now seen him defeated, and that has given him a mental block about using his abilities.

(By the way, this isn't the first time the hero has faced this kind of a physical challenge.)

Writer:  Mark Gatiss
Director: Justin Molotnikov

Cast

This is the episode of THE FLASH that should have been one of the better ones. And as much as I love the show -- it's not.

Following on the heels of last episode, "The Darkness and The Light", Barry confronts Doctor Light (Malese Jow) in her cell to probe her about Zoom. She's not very forthcoming, and when she ultimately escapes (using her power over light to render herself invisible), she hacks STAR security and high-tails it, leaving her costume behind.

Which brings up my first question: If she has the power to bend light, why can she only bend it around herself and not her costume? And if her powers were focused through the devices in her gloves, wouldn't she have needed those? And isn't she cold, running around naked?

Doctor Who Series 9 – Episode 7 and 8 – The Zygon Invasion/The Zygon Inversion

Episode 7 - Written by: Peter Harness
Episode 8 – Written by Peter Harness & Steven Moffat
Both Episodes - Directed by Daniel Nettheim

Welcome back, Flash fans! The latest CW episode, "The Darkness and the Light" has a lot of big things happen in it -- things that you probably have to read about rather than catch from watching the episode. So let's catch up...

One of the staples of my childhood television schedule was THE CAROL BURNETT SHOW. I was often too young to get some of the humor, and I'd sometimes watch the dance numbers and wonder what was supposed to be funny about them (because I expected the entire thing was meant to be comedy, not variety). But even so, it was something I watched as often as I could catch it.

Now grown (and with a greater appreciation of the arts), I can catch it whenever I wish, thanks to the sorcery of digital video discs. And while the entire series has yet to see any sort of collection, TIME LIFE has put together quite a few mini-collections, including this one: THE CAROL BURNETT SHOW: THE LOST EPISODES -- so called because they come from the first five seasons, and are episodes that had very few -- if any -- reruns.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, former Daily Show host (and part time WWE superstar) Jon Stewart just signed a four year deal with HBO...

Jon Stewart has a new home: HBO.

Stewart has signed a four-year production deal with the premium-cable network and will kick off the pact with the creation of topical short-form digital content.

The deal will see the short-form digital content showcased on HBO Now, HBO Go and other platforms. Also included in the pact is a first-look option for other film and TV ventures.

Last night debuted the second episode of Supergirl's maiden voyage and it continued to soar. SPOILER ALERT: Don't participate in the discussion unless you've seen the episode or don't care to have elements of the show spoiled!

Well, they finally said it.

Superman.

While there were many references and mentions of the Man of Steel in last night's episode titled 'Stronger Together', it was primarily focused on Kara stepping out from his shadow. This episode gives us a reason why Supergirl's story can be told in a way her cousin's never can.

Flashbacks.

STUDIO CITY, CALIF. AND NEW YORK, N.Y. – Nov. 2, 2015 – CBS Television Studios announced today it will launch a totally new “Star Trek” television series in January 2017. The new series will blast off with a special preview broadcast on the CBS Television Network. The premiere episode and all subsequent first-run episodes will then be available exclusively in the United States on CBS All Access, the Network’s digital subscription video on demand and live streaming service.

The next chapter of the “Star Trek” franchise will also be distributed concurrently for television and multiple platforms around the world by CBS Studios International.

Within the last year I've finally gotten into THE X-FILES with a vengeance. I'm not a complete noob to the seminal series, but I had never been a regular viewer either. I had seen some episodes and caught both films in theaters, but that's about it. My wife was an immense fan growing up, and I had other friends that swore by the series, so I was pretty aware of much of the mythology, the best episodes, and even the big baddies like Krycek and Cancer Man (i.e. Cigarette Smoking Man). I always planned on hitching my wagon to the series and watching it through. A while back I purchased the first few seasons on DVD, but I never went on a huge run. Finally, Netflix made it simple to digest each episode.

Now, I don't want to come on like the mayor's wife or anything, but aren't you excited for the six-episode event in January?

Okay, Flashophiles, there's a lot of story happening in this episode that pre-empts a lot of the "How do we take down the bad metahuman" game. However, it's definitely worth the time -- and the closing 30 seconds is probably the biggest OMG moment since Harrison Wells stood up from his wheelchair and showed us his newspaper from the future.

For the past few episodes, Martin Stein (Victor Garber) has been declining in health. With Ronnie Raymond out of the picture, there's no stabilizing factor for his half of the Firestorm persona, so he's breaking down. Doing some of their patented superspeed research, Team Flash finds two people affected by the Dark Matter Explosion of two years ago in such a fashion as to be potentially a match for Stein to merge with -- which isn't creepy at all.

Never mind Matt Damon. The Martian at the top of my list will always be Exigius 12 and a half -- but every else just calls him Uncle Martin.

With his lengthy and historical life span, his pithy wisdom of the ages, and his technology that was so advanced as to be indistinguishable from magic (HT: Arthur C. Clarke), MY FAVORITE MARTIAN was a trendsetting show. While it only lasted three seasons, it predated both BEWITCHED and I DREAM OF JEANNIE -- shows with similar constructs, similar effects, and featuring producers and directors whose names also conveniently appear from time to time in the credits of MY FAVORITE MARTIAN. (In the third season, Martin's "levitating finger" is put out of commission, so he decides to try using his nose -- something he says he saw on one of our American television shows.)

Doctor Who Series 9 - Episode 5 and 6 – The Girl Who Died/The Woman Who Lived

The Girl Who Died

Written by: Jamie Mathieson and Steven Moffat
Directed by: Ed Bazalgette

Cast:
Peter Capaldi - The Doctor
Jenna Coleman  - Clara Oswald
Maisie Williams – Ashildr
David Schofield – Odin
Simon Lipkin – Nollarr
Ian Conningham – Chuckles
Tom Stourton – Lofty
Alastair Parker – Limpy
Murray McArthur – Hasten
Barnaby Kay – Heidi

The charge is "STAR WARS has dumbed down the perception of science fiction in the popular imagination." Jeff Ritter of CriticalBlast.com represents the Prosecution. 

The very notion of STAR WARS being somehow responsible for “dumbing down” modern science fiction seems preposterous. Of course, the notion is not entirely objective—how does one quantify merit or mediocrity in art, which by its very nature is subjective? How does one quantify the tangible effect of a film from 1977, that wasn’t expected to do much business itself, has had on movies, television, video games, novels, graphic  arts, American and even global pop culture more than 30 years later? I’m sure somebody with a better mind for statistical analysis could find numbers to crunch in this regard, but I find it to be less of a matter of arithmetic and more of a matter of personal taste. Since I can only speak for myself, allow me to take you on a little flashback to the halcyon days of my youth.

After a series of really cool teasers, Marvel has finally released the first real trailer for Netflix's Jessica Jones:

This is a real good trailer.  David Tennant seems like he's going to be absolutely terrifying as "Purple Man."  And Krysten Ritter looks like she is going to be perfect as Jessica Jones.  That has to be a real tricky role to play.  Jessica is a character with great physical strength and a strong cynical shell, but inside, she's dealt with great trauma that continues to haunt her and effect her judgement.  Ritter seems to have all that down pat, and even if this quick trailer shows that she's going to be very different from anyone else we've seen in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.