The second season opener of The Equalizer brings up some personal and professional history for Robert McCall (Edward Woodward). Prelude was written by Carleton Eastlake and launched the season on 8 October, 1986. McCall discovers that his son, Scott (William Zabka) is in town after the latest school term has started because he’s been ousted…
The Expanse (2017/2018) – Caliban’s War, and Fight or Flight
Season two of The Expanse roars to its conclusion with Caliban’s War. Written by Naren Shankar alongside Ty Franck and Daniel Abraham (collectively known as James S.A. Corey the authors of The Expanse novels), the season closed out on 19 April, 2017. While Chrisjen (Shohreh Aghdashloo), Bobbie (Frankie Adams) and Cotyar (Nick E. Tarabay) try…
Quantum Leap: Search and Rescue (1994) – Melissa Crandall
While I didn’t actively dislike this entry in the Quantum Leap novel series, it is arguably the weakest of the bunch so far, and the only thing that really makes it a Quantum Leap story is the fact that both Sam Beckett and Al Calavicci are in it. But there are a number of continuity…
The Equalizer (1986) – Unpunished Crimes, and Pretenders
John Cullum is the baddie in the penultimate episode of season one of The Equalizer. Unpunished Crimes was written by John Burke and Grenville Case, first airing on 1 April, 1986. Cullum is Stuart Cane, a brutal CEO with ties to a terrorist organization, and is set on ruining Frank Donahue (Dan Hedaya) and his…
The Apple Dumpling Gang (1975) – Norman Tokar
Like most people my age, I grew up with the Carol Burnett show and delighted in the antics of the comedic genius that was Tim Conway, so when he and Don Knotts found themselves in a family/comedy/western film for Disney alongside Bill Bixby, and familiar names and faces like Susan Clark, Harry Morgan, Slim Pickens,…
The Last Broadcast (1998) – Stefan Avalos, and Lance Weiler
The year before The Blair Witch Project came along and revitalized and re-created the found footage genre, The Last Broadcast told a similar tale of murder, mystery, and possibly the supernatural. And while I have some serious issues with the format change at the film’s climax, not to mention some of the less-than-stellar performances, I…
Hill Street Blues (1982) – Stan the Man, and Little Boil Blue
David Milch penned Stan the Man, which had an original airdate of 4 November, 1982. Joyce (Veronica Hamel) is assaulted at the precinct by a perp who gets away from his arresting officer, landing her in the hospital after Furillo (Daniel J. Travanti) takes the suspect down. And that is just the tip of the…
Transporter 3 (2008) – Olivier Megaton
Transporter 3 should work. Frank Martin (Jason Statham) is back in Europe, there’s a solid actor, Robert Knepper, as the film’s villain, there’s a solid supporting cast including Jeroen Krabbe and Francois Berleand returning as Tarconi, but this one just feels like it flounders. Part of that problem, sadly, rests on the casting of Natalya…
The Equalizer (1986) – Breakpoint, and No Conscience
McCall (Edward Woodward) was looking forward to an enjoyable evening at a wedding reception, but things go badly when the entire party is taken hostage by terrorists who were in the building for an assassination. Breakpoint was written by Scott Shepherd and Don Carlos Dunaway from a story by Shepherd. It first went out over…
The Expanse (2017) – Here There be Dragons, and The Monster and the Rocket
The crew of the Rocinante have their hands full, as Holden (Steven Strait), Naomi (Dominique Tipper) and Amos (Wes Chatham) as they continue to help Meng (Terry Chen) track down his missing daughter on Ganymede Station. Here There Be Dragons was written by Georgia Lee and first debuted on 5 April, 2017. While the crew…
The Mind Reels 