Saturday is Haul Day 41!!

With the release of Mad Max: Fury Road less than two weeks away I figured it was a good time for me to revisit the original Mad Max, starring Mel Gibson.  It's been years since I saw this movie and I'm really looking forward to watching it again.

Today was also Free Comic Book Day, and Galactic Quest was hopping.  It was a smallish pull list this week, and here's what I got!  Batman #40 by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo, Danny Miki and FCO Plascencia, Moon Knight #14 by Cullen Bunn, Ron Ackins, Tom Palmer, and Dan Brown, Postal #2 by Matt Hawkins, Bryan Hill, Isaac Goodhart, and Betsy Gonia, and Princess Leia #3 by Mark Waid, Terry Dodson, Rachel Dodson and Jordie Bellaire.

Arrow: Season 3, Episode 21

Arrow

Episode Title: “Al Sah-Him”

Channel: CW

Director: Thor Freudental

Writers: Brian Ford Sullivan and Emilio Ortega Aldrich

Genre: Action, Adventure, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi

Runtime: 42 min

Rated: TV-14

Original Air Date: April 29, 2015

This week on Arrow we heard a new intro voice over from Stephen Amell, proclaiming that he was Oliver Queen. What followed was a montage of his training at the hands of Ra's. We're supposed to believe that he was broken down and brain washed into following Ra's orders without question. There just wasn't enough in the montage to give me the feeling that such a thing had happened over the course of the three weeks he'd been there. Even with the herb they've been giving him making him think he'd killed Diggle I didn't really get the feeling that Oliver had gone to the dark side. After three weeks of training Oliver was ready to go out and do Ra's' bidding, and he was sent out to deal with Nyssa, who is apparently a threat to his heir-ship (Heir-ness? Heirity?). This sets “Al Sah-Him” up as a villain of the week episode, with Oliver as the villain.

The rest of team Arrow is learning how to do things in Oliver's absence, again. Nyssa is still training Laurel, and we saw that the training isn't coming along very quickly as Nyssa had to step in and keep Laurel from getting hurt. This is important to a gripe I have regarding a moment later in the episode. Then they went to a diner for food, which was actually a good scene. Seeing Nyssa act more like a human was important because otherwise we wouldn't really care that she was Oliver's target. After Laurel told her that Oliver had accepted Ra's' offer Nyssa realized her time was short and went out to meet the threat headed her way. Diggle carried the load for the rest of the team, doing his best to pull them together during such a trying time. When Laurel told the team that Oliver would be coming for Nyssa they decided to face him and see if they could talk some sense into them.

The confrontation didn't go well for Nyssa. She was quickly subdued by Oliver and only saved when Diggle and Laurel made an appearance. We got our first look at Laurel's 'Canary Cry' and it was a underwhelming to say the least. Laurel looked as if she was screaming, but the sound coming out barely resembled a voice at all, which made her look a trifle silly standing there with her mouth hanging open. Oliver fled the scene and realized that now the team would be protecting Nyssa so he'd need to draw her out. What better way to get them to do what he wants than to kidnap and threaten Lyla? Diggle did the predictable thing and advocated turning Nyssa over to Oliver and the League.

Of course it was a swerve from Diggle and Co. Once Lyla was handed over they started an all out battle with Oliver and the League. During the rumble Laurel held her own for a period of time against two assassins, which is ridiculous after seeing her have trouble with a single mugger. The battle turned in Oliver's favor and he was prepared to strike a killing blow to Diggle when an arrow pierced his arm. The camera panned over to reveal Thea, in full vigilante regalia, with another arrow aimed at Ollie. She threatened to shoot him in the eye, and he retreated with Nyssa as his prize. There were moments each time we saw Oliver that make me think he's pulling a long con on the League. He gave up easily twice when confronted by his former friends and family, and if he's really wanted to get a reaction out of Diggle, little Sara would've made a far better incentive. Maybe it's wishful thinking, but I just can't see them making him the villain in his own show, no matter how briefly he may occupy that role.

The flashbacks this week were more of the same. Oliver, Maseo, and Tatsu doing their best to stop the release of the Alpha/Omega virus, and failing. In the last flashback sequence they're trying to get out of Hong Kong when Akio develops a nosebleed, signifying that we may finally see what drove the wedge between Maseo and Tatsu. The flashbacks this season have felt like there was enough content for half a season and it's been stretched to cover all twenty three episodes. At least the importance of the events in Hong Kon was finally made apparent when Ra's revealed the final part of Oliver's transformation.

When Oliver returned to Nanda Parbat, with Nyssa in tow, Ra's found the item Nyssa had stolen from him. The culmination of Oliver's metamorphosis into the Heir of the Demon is to be his destruction of Starling City. His tool for doing so is to be the stolen item, a vial of the Alpha/Omega virus. Ra's told Oliver to kill Nyssa, which he seemed willing to do, but Ra's stopped him at the last second to reveal his real plan. He intends for Oliver and Nyssa to marry and assume control of the League in his stead. Neither of the two seemed thrilled at the prospect of their union.

Conclusion: The flashbacks finally matter to the present day in a more important way than simply containing the Yamashiros, but they feel as if they were spread too thin over the course of the season. Seeing a cold-blooded and detached Oliver do whatever it takes to get to Nyssa was a fun concept, but I just can't shake the feeling that Oliver is still in there and waiting to make his move.

Rating: 7.75/10

The Flash: Season 1, Episode 20

The Flash

Episode Title: “The Trap”

Channel: CW

Director: Steve Shill

Writers: Alison Schapker and Brooke Eikmeier

Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy, Sci-Fi

Runtime: 43 min

Rated: TV-PG

Original Air Date: April 28, 2015

With a big confrontation on the horizon, and only a few episode left to set it up the audience knew this week was going to be a big one. “The Trap” picked up right where we left off in “Who is Harrison Wells?” with Barry, Caitlin, and Cisco in Dr. Wells secret hideout. The new facts being discovered by the team came fast, the newspaper article we've gotten so used to Wells staring at contains a lot of information. For one, Iris ends up married to Barry. Also the Flash teams up with the Green Arrow, the Atom, and Hawk Girl to take on the Reverse Flash. When Gideon, Wells' AI companion, awoke she revealed that the Flash is a founding member of … before Barry cut her off, which has to be a Justice League reference. Also, she will follow any orders Barry gives her, because he's her creator. Although in light of the ending of the episode I don't think we can trust anything she said, after all, Wells has been planning for every contingency.

The team concludes that the visions Cisco has been experiencing are memories left over from Barry's foray into time travel. They concoct a convenient to the plot, but completely unbelievable way for Cisco to relive his dream in a lucid state and relay what he's seeing to the others. It was chilling to see that moment play out again, and Cisco's terror at seeing his death approaching made me worry for his well being, even in a dream. After learning the particulars they came up with a plan to coerce a confession out of Wells, by recreating the circumstances of the dream.

This week contained several flashbacks dealing with Barry's time in a coma and how those around him handled it. Joe was distrusting of Wells from the beginning, Iris told him how important he was to her, and Wells laid out his master plan, speaking mostly of his hate for the Flash. Besides some vitriolic background from Wells the most important part of theses scenes was a tiny static spark in the scene with Iris. It would play a big part by the end of the episode.

There were a couple of distracting side-arcs that threatened the pace of the show. The major one dealt with Eddie's plan to propose to Iris. Joe refused to give his blessing and Eddie went to Barry to see if he could change Joe's mind. Joe is convinced that it would be a mistake for Iris to marry Eddie, since she would realize she was with the wrong man, but would stay out of commitment. It was an awkward situation, with Barry arguing Eddie's case despite his feelings for Iris. The other distraction was a brief building fire, in the exact building and floor where Capt. Singh's fiance works. I guess the purpose of this scene was to provide a bit of action and to reiterate to the audience that Wells so often appears helpful that it's hard to believe he's the villain. It just felt extraneous though. We've had plenty of moments when Wells has seemed like a good guy, and the episode didn't need any action; there was plenty going on to keep it interesting.

The team set their trap for Wells and waited for him to show up. When he did everything proceeded just as it should. Cisco had set the force field they intended to trap the Reverse Flash in to keep speedsters out instead, it was intended to be his safety net upon getting Wells to confess to the murder of Nora Allen. He doesn't quite confess, fearing for his life Cisco activated the force field, which Wells walked right through. Joe fired three bullets at Wells, Barry manages to stop two of them, but one hit Wells in the chest and killed him. I'm not sure they'll broach the subject, but in the next couple of episodes Cisco might wonder if Barry was willing to sacrifice him to get the confession they needed.

In an amazing twist Barry's phone rang and Wells was on the other end of the call. The body on the floor we thought of wells reverts to last week's villain, Everyman, and Wells revealed that he has been watching every aspect of Barry's, and his friends', lives and knew exactly what they were planning. This explains some of the subtle, significant looks we've seen out of Wells in the past few episodes. Fearing for Iris' safety Barry speeds out to find her, but the Wells gets there first. He interrupted Eddie's proposal and threatened Iris before Barry showed up. When Barry arrived Wells made off with Eddie, and the Flash promised Iris he would get him back. They touched hands briefly and the same static discharge happened again. It dawned on Iris that Barry is the Flash. I'm glad she figured it out for herself, instead of being told. We are left to wonder why the Reverse Flash took Eddie with him. Since he is a descendant of Eddie I supposed Barry could end all of his problems by getting rid of the present day Thawne, but that just doesn't seem like a move Barry would make, so I guess we'll have to wait and see.

Conclusion: I'm really excited to see how they wrap up the first season of The Flash. There was so much going on in this episode I'm glad they decided to forgo the villain of the week formula and focus on the story. Hopefully, now that Iris knows Barry's secret she can get back to being a good character, and not just a source of conflict. The middle dragged a bit as everything lost focus, but overall “The Trap” was a great episode.

Rating: 8.5/10

Gotham: Season 1, Episode 21

Gotham

Episode Title: “The Anvil or the Hammer”

Channel: Fox

Director: Paul Edwards

Writer: Jordan Harper

Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller

Runtime: 42 min

Rated: TV-14

Original Air Date: April 27, 2015

Here we are, the next to last episode of the inaugural season of Gotham. It's also the third part of a running villain arc, which has been a rarity on the show so far. Last week the audience was left with a bit of a cliffhanger, as the Ogre revealed to Barbara his true nature, and she didn't immediately go screaming into the night. What did her apparent acceptance mean?

Unfortunately, it didn't mean much. Her freak out was just saved for this episode. Instead of doing something new with her character the writer fell right back to the Barbara's life is in danger schtick that we've already seen before. Instead of finding a kindred spirit the Ogre managed to push her to the brink of her sanity. When she finally broke he told her to pick his next victims. I was briefly allowed to believe that she had named Dr. Thompkins, but shortly after the Ogre made a taunting call to Gordon it's revealed that the real targets are Barbara's parents. On the phone Gordon and Bullock recognized noises distinctive to a certain path out of the city and began pursuit. They were too late to save Barbara's parents, but after a struggle they did managed to bring the Ogre down. Barbara is in a shell-shocked state, seemingly unable to cope with recent events. I had a brief thought of Barbara assuming the role of the Joker, but I doubt the writers will take such a leap away from the source material.

Bruce finally has the key to Bunderslaw's safe and managed to gain entry to the man's office. The safe proved to be empty and Bunderslaw confronted Bruce. The executive admitted to the illegal activities of Wayne Enterprises, but also told Bruce that his father had known the same things Bruce has uncovered. He claimed that Thomas Wayne was on board with the company's criminal ventures, which just doesn't match up with what Bruce knows of his father. Lucius Fox made an appearance and covertly encouraged told Bruce that his father was a good man. With the new revelations Bruce added a picture of his father to the investigation board. Whether he believes Lucius or Bunderslaw didn't seem apparent at the time.

On the Penguin front, the Penguin's plan to take out Maroni is in full swing. The crew is hired, the weapons are hidden, and the final words Maroni will hear are decided upon. But of course Maroni is supposed to survive until the time of Batman, so we knew something was going to go amiss. Penguin double-crossed the hitmen and set them up to be slaughtered by Maroni and his men. The statement Penguin had asked the gunman to make before shooting Maroni implicated Falcone in the hit. So Penguin is once again using the two crime families against each other. Some serious movement needs to come of it this time, this is something that we've seen before, and this is still the first season. It's a little early to be returning to that particular well.

Nygma spent the entire episode disposing of his first victim's body. Those scenes were relatively uneventful, with one close call when Ms. Kringle stopped by the forensics lab to get a report from Nygma. Then he left a letter from her missing boyfriend telling her she was going away. In a particularly ridiculous moment he mentions reading between the lines when dealing with men, and then revealed that the first letters of each line of the letter spelled out his name. That's not between the lines, it doesn't make sense in the context of the clue he offered, and in general just doesn't seem like a good idea. Instead of seeing Nygma become more than the just the strange medical examiner following his first homicide he's been returned to his usual goofiness.

Conclusion: The Gordon side of this episode didn't seem to do much to set up next week's finale. The content regarding Bruce and Penguin is what promises to carry the finale. Of the two I'm anticipating what Bruce might find regarding his father and his company more than the imminent Mob war. It seems like there have been so many false starts in the Penguin, Falcone, Maroni story line that the finale must be where it all comes to a head.

Rating: 7/10

Game of Thrones: Season 5, Episode 3

Game of Thrones

Episode Title: “High Sparrow”

Channel: HBO

Director: Mark Mylod

Writers: David Benioff and D.B. Weiss

Genre: Action, Drama, Fantasy

Runtime: 55 min

Rated: TV-MA

Original Air Date: April 26, 2015

It's starting to look like the most interesting things to happen in season five of Game of Thrones are going to happen in the North. Whereas the other characters' stories have taken on a very localized feel the North is continuing a broader story. The other stories are sure to be engaging in their own way, but the big moves are happening away from King's Landing, and I'm all right with that.

Following his election as Lord Commander, John Snow formally refused Stannis' offer of legitimacy and his father's castle. It was a great moment between the two characters as Stannis remarked on Jon's stubbornness and sense of honor reminding him of Ned. Jon chose to take the comment as a compliment despite that not being Stannis' intent. After the meeting concluded Davos stayed behind to work on Jon from a different angle. If one of those characters can convince Jon to take the name of Stark it would be Davos, but I don't see it happening. Later, in an attempt to mend fences and shed enemies, Jon named Alliser First Ranger, which seemed to placate the older man. Then he ordered Janos Slynt to take command of a ruined castle, which went about as well as expected. Janos railed at Jon with insult after insult and refused the order, the punishment for which is death. After some crying and begging from Slynt, Jon did the deed himself, perhaps convincing Alliser to keep in line and earning a measure of respect from Stannis. Seeing one of the bad guys get what he deserves seems to happen far less often than seeing our favorite characters die, so this was a rewarding scene for the vindictive among the audience.

Elsewhere in the North, Littlefinger is hatching his own plan to establish a Stark in Winterfell, by marrying Sansa to the newly not-a-bastard Ramsay Bolton. I'm finding it hard to believe that he has anything but his best interests in mind with this plan, despite him telling Sansa that this was her opportunity for revenge. For one thing, the talk he had with Sansa, convincing her to go to Ramsay, seemed a little too much like a talk he would've given one of his new girls back in his brothel running days. Also, what exactly is he expecting out of Sansa in this situation? If it were Arya I wouldn't doubt for a second that she'd stab Ramsay to death the first chance she got, but Sansa? Maybe she'll surprise us, I really hope she does. I just want it to be believable if it's taken in that direction.

Back in King's Landing the marriage of King Tommen to Margaery Tyrell is officially consummated in a scene that can only be described as awkward when you remember that he's supposed to be a young teen. It seems as though she already has her hook planted deeply in the impressionable young man, which is made apparent when he begins to hint that Ceresi might be happier back home at Casterly Rock. The High Septon was accosted by Sparrows at a brothel and made to walk the streets naked while being beaten. Ceresi went to visit the High Sparrow and seems to have acquired a new ally in her struggle to maintain power, although her endgame isn't clear.

Tyrion finally got some time outside of his carriage when he and Varys arrived in Volantis. Although a brothel was his obvious first stop he found himself unable to resume his whoring ways. This was the first significant thing we've seen from Tyrion this season, drinking doesn't count. In the same brothel we were reacquainted with our old friend Jorah Mormont, who recognized Tyrion and kidnapped him when the eunuch wasn't looking. It seems clear that Jorah is planning on bringing Tyrion to Daenerys, a move that he probably thinks will put him back in her good graces.

And finally, in Braavos, Arya has been sweeping the floor in the House of Black and White. It appears that they have a shrine to every god in the world there, and people show up there to die. A fellow apprentice exposed her for caring too much about who she was, and not what she wants to become, and in an attempt to prove she's ready she threw most of her possessions into the sea. Needle was hidden in some rocks, so she's still not ready to forgo her revenge but apparently it was enough to begin the next step of her initiation. So she was promoted from sweeping to washing dead bodies. It's hard to say where her story is headed right now, just that she seems so far away from her stated goals at this point that she may never find the revenge she's looking for.

Conclusion: So far this season Jon Snow has been given the most interesting things to do, which is good for a character that had been boring in large stretches up to this point. While I can see everyone's arcs this season being important, they seem important at a much more personal level than in previous seasons. Between Margaery's passive-aggressive harassment of Ceresi and Ceresi's past actions it is hard to choose who to root for in their coming power struggle.

Rating: 8/10

Saturday is Haul Day 40!!

Just comics this week, nothing else really caught my eye.  Even so there is so fun stuff here.

Beyond Belief #1 by Ben Acker, Ben Blacker, Phil Hester, Maurico Wallace, and Marshall Dillon, The Empty #3 by Jimmie Robinson, Intersect #6 by Ray Fawkes, Postal #3 by Matt Hawkins, Bryan Hill, Isaac Goodhart, and Betsy Gonia, Star Wars #4 by Jason Aaron, John Cassaday, and Laura Martin, and finally Tomb Raider #15 by Rhianna Pratchett and Derlis Santacruz.

Arrow: Season 3, Episode 20

Arrow

Episode Title: “The Fallen”

Channel: CW

Director: Antonio Negret

Writers: Wendy Mericle and Oscar Balderrama

Genre: Action, Adventure, Crime, Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi

Runtime: 42 min

Rated: TV-14

Original Air Date: April 22, 2015

“The Fallen” was a drama heavy episode. Ra's has finally forced Oliver's hand, and with Thea's life hanging in the balance he had no other choice than to accept Ra's offer and become the Heir to the Demon. Throughout the entire episode Stephen Amell shined, conveying his grief over Thea's circumstances and leaving his friends behind, and the resigned acceptance of his place in Ra's plans. He was asked to carry the majority of the episode, and succeeded.

In an episode filled with powerful scenes the audience was treated to a good one very quickly. With Thea stabilized, but likely to never awake, Oliver was at her bedside when Malcolm came in. The devastated look on his face was a perfect moment from John Barrowman. His sorrow helped humanize a character that has become easy to dislike over the course of the show. After Maseo revealed to Oliver that there was still a way to save Thea's life, by accepting Ra's offer and joining the League, Malcolm argued against it. He claimed that the Thea that emerged from the Lazarus Pit would not be the one that she had been in life. His prediction proved briefly correct as she attacked Oliver and had severe gaps in her memory, but seems to have returned to normal after her initial confusion. This was a bit disappointing and I hope in coming episodes we are treated to more side effects of her resurrection.

Both Maseo and Ra's were the recipients of important character moments. One of the best scenes in the episode occurred between Maseo and Diggle. With Diggle accusing Maseo of cowardice, Maseo finally revealed what we all had presumed to be the case, Akio, his son is dead. That conversation would prove to be very important later on in the episode. Ra's himself was the focus a good piece of dialogue between himself and Felicity. He explained how he had come to be who and where he was an encouraged her to do something that had been impossible for him to do and tell someone she loves how much he means to her. This wasn't just a great scene because of the background information the audience got regarding Ra's, but it also served as one of Felicity's better moments this season.

Really Felicity was good this whole episode, which isn't something that can be said for her character much this season. She told Ray Palmer and Oliver how she really felt about her romantic entanglements, did her best to verbally confront the Demon himself, and when it looked like everything was lost formulated half of a plan to get Oliver out of Nanda Parbat. Even if that plan didn't go the way she wanted it was good to see her do more than flip flop her stances on things and follow others around. During her failed rescue attempt Maseo showed up trying to help, showing the audience that maybe the good man Oliver knew is still in there somewhere.

At the end it was all for naught, there's just no way for Oliver to break his commitment to the League. Although it seems like team Arrow has to say goodbye to each other far too often; this week's round of goodbyes was pretty touching. Oliver told Diggle how highly he thought of him, and once again had to leave Felicity teary-eyed and convinced that she'll never see him again. The whole scene was handled well and featured quality performances from everyone involved.

As has been the case for this entire season, the flashbacks were rather lackluster. This week they were used to inject some action into what was a drama heavy episode. The chase involving the cargo truck was fun, although I'm not sure how the team missed that transfer of the bio-weapon to the food cart. It was a little ridiculous that the vial Oliver and company were after was robust enough to survive the fight between Oliver and the street vendor, but shattered on the ground. They were hitting each other with the fist holding the vial, it simply broke when it could conveniently add to the tension in the scene. With failure apparent in the flashbacks it's hard to say where they go from here.

Conclusion: Having been placed in a situation he could no longer avoid, Oliver was forced to assume the role of Heir to the Demon. The character interplay in the present day scenes helped to keep the action-lite episode engaging. Now if only the flashbacks could be so successful.

Rating: 8/10