TV The Continental This miniseries is full of amazing fight scenes that make no sense, weapon damage that is beyond the realm of normality, and slower than the snail that has finally catching up to you.
Books Lay Them to Rest This was an outstanding book and I applaud Laurah Norton for her ability to bring a lay mans understanding to an extremely technical process. Follow her as she works with her friend to solve a cold case from 30 years ago where the only item they have of the decedent is a head.
Movies Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom I am so mad at how dumb this movie is. Scene stolen from Star Wars, the Cantina line and the Jabba the Hut intro scene, the characters from Street Sharks, and lastly "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids". It was corny, bro-y, and just over the top stupid.
Books Die Trying I read this and honestly was more surprised by how plausible it could be with some notable exceptions as compared to others. There are a lot of things that would stop someone like Jack from helping with an investigation like in the first book, but not much would stop someone from trying to escape.
Movies The Courier You can’t mess up a true-life spy story and they sure did not. No gun fights, not war stories, just 2 men who changed the world and stopped the Cuban Missile Crisis. Benedict Cumberbatch is a superb actor and I love watching his movies. I can’t think of anything that he has done that he hasn’t fit
Books Bind, Torture, Kill This story is so much more than the history of serial killer and his victims. In fact, it is more about the police who investigated and the city the suffered under his terror. You do learn more than enough about his acts of evil, it focuses on those that put in the work to capture him.
Books Red Notice Bill Browder tells an excellent story about how his passion for Eastern Europe lead him to learn about exceptional opportunities in the newly independent Russia. However, his money making leads to corrupt government individuals working to take him down which includes the death of Sergei Magnitsky.
TV Reacher Where I think this show did a disservice to the books and character is not continuing the idea of the loner that he is. In the books, what makes him a what he is just a guy doing the Lord's work because he is in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Movies Self Reliance I am not sure what I was thinking I'd get from this movie after watching the trailer, but it is not the movie I got. I am happy for Jake Johnson getting to write this and being in more things, but I don't think he ever plays a different character from the same character as in New Girl.
Books The Art of War The Art of War was on the Commandant's reading list, when it still existed when I was in the Marine Corps, however I never read it. Figured I should, and I finished another book while on my run within the first half hour, I needed a short book.
Movies The Marvels This movie was ok, but so full of plot holes that even to the most enamored, it doesn't make sense. The fight scenes are lazy and short, the story is half complete, and it just feels rushed and CGI heavy.
Books Assassin's Apprentice My "Book in 1 Sentence" is dead on. I have never been so looking forward to something to happen, and it never did. This kid grows up in a keep where half the family hates him, the other half is ok with him or loved his dad, and so he is given a modicum of freedom and support.
TV Echo Alaqua Cox has done an outstanding job on this character and her stunt work was fantastic. The inclusion of the Choctaw people and their heritage was so well done to provide history and depth without being forceful, overbearing, or dragging it out.
Movies Aliens Newt is the best character in my opinion from the thumbs up, the empty look in the beginning, and finally the salute. She was great. Also, I think Ripley was a true heroine in this movie with intention rather than just being lucky and in the right place at the right time.
Movies Alien This movie may be a classic, but in 2024, it feels slow and overly quiet. The story and practical effects hold up, but the lack of engaging sound design makes it feel lifeless. While it's iconic for the genre, the pacing and suspense don't hit as hard as they once did.
Movies Alien Romulus Before I watched this, I was at Spec's getting a new bottle of Scotch, and the sales rep I was talking to made a good comment about this movie. It is a really nice blend of [[Alien]] and [[Aliens]] in the mix of horror vs. action.
Movies Aliens Covenant I think that this movie and Prometheus were not tied to the future Aliens movies, you'd get so much more enjoyment out of them. This was an entertaining, scary, creeping, and beautiful movie, but the story relies so much more on other information and fill in the blanks that are not explained
Movies Prometheus You have to know that this is a prequel to really understand some of the significance of what you are watching. However, this story still leads to some great questions, cliffhangers, and story that makes you want to go watch the others. That is what a movie should do.
Movies Alien Resurrection This movie is for sure a mess. The jump forward of 200 years, then somehow they found enough genetic material to clone Ripley and separate it from the Queen. Speaking of dumb things, the plot holes that are covered with one line.
Movies Alien3 Also, just looking at the poster, the tagline "3 time the suspense, 3 times danger, 3 times the terror" doesn't make sense to the movie. There isn't 3 of anything really. Maybe because it was 8 years or so in between movies they could make that claim, but I don't think so.
Books The Devil in the White City "The Devil in the White City" claims to link the Chicago World's Fair and H.H. Holmes, but it's mostly about the fair's architects and history. I expected more on Holmes, but got 70% fair details and only 30% on him. It was disappointing, too focused on biographies and not enough on the crime aspect
Games Ghost Recon Wildlands and Breakpoint What kills both of these games is the size of the map. Wildlands already felt big being that it is 625 sq kilometers, but Breakpoint is outrageously large at 2500 sq kilometers. While there is a ton of different vehicles to use from planes, helicopters, motorcycles, and a verity of other
Movies The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes The first half of this movie is solid and sets up an awesome double feature, but then dies in complete and utter failure. Viola Davis is the absolute powerhouse of this movie and everyone else pales in comparison.Correction, Peter Dinklage also killed it.
Books Shadow of Doubt The action is high, the tradecraft is high, and you get scenes of heart thumping suspense. There are some issues of Deus Ex Machina (plot armor), but that might be the worst part of the book.
Games Starfield If it were my first playthrough of the game, this DLC would have been great additional content. However, it being a year after the initial release, it just seems phoned in. Also, the fact that it doesn't extend beyond the planet is just a waste especially since they point out that it could.
