Ashley McConnell turns in another Quantum Leap novel, and except for a quick moment when we are given another limbo moment for Sam between leaps it is a really powerful tale about domestic abuse, alcoholism and breaking the cycle. Sam leaps into Missy, a six-year-old girl (something that couldn’t have been pulled off believably in…
Fringe (2012) – Black Blotter, and Anomaly XB-6783746
Walter (John Noble) is in crisis. He’s trying to recall his plan to defeat the Observers and along the way, he decides to drop some LSD that he’s rediscovered in his lab. What follows is a troubling confrontation with himself as he, Astrid (Jasika Nicole), Olivia (Anna Torv) and Peter (Joshua Jackson) continue in their…
The Green Knight (2021) – David Lowery
The Green Knight is a stunning and lyrical film that completely blew me away with its storytelling and visuals. Using the 14th-century poem, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight as its launching basis, Lowery’s tale is fantastical and beautiful, telling the tale of a young Gawain (Dev Patel) looking to make his way in the…
The BFG (2016) – Steven Spielberg
This one seemed like a surefire winner, you’ve got Spielberg working from a script by Melissa Matheson who wrote E.T. The story is adapted from Roald Dahl’s story, and Mark Rylance brings The Big Friendly Giant to life. But no matter how good, the computer-generated images were, combining the computer characters with live-action ones, specifically,…
Hill Street Blues (1982) – Of Mouse and Man, and Zen and the Art of Law Enforcement
There’s a lot going on this week when a prominent public defender is murdered in a robbery gone wrong, something that shakes Joyce (Veronica Hamel) to her core, and makes her question her own future, and if she wants to keep working as a lawyer. Of Mouse and Man was written by Steven Bochco, Anthony…
Sherlock Holmes (2009) – Guy Ritchie
Guy Ritchie brings his trademark rough and tumble style to the iconic Arthur Conan Doyle creation, Sherlock Holmes. Robert Downey Jr. steps into the titular role, and while the script plays with the literary canon and text, it remains a fun interpretation of the character. Jude Law plays the loyal Doctor John Watson, Rachel McAdams…
Fringe (2012) – Five-Twenty-Ten, and The Human Kind
Both Peter (Joshua Jackson) and Walter (John Noble) are having issues with their brains this week in Five-Twenty-Ten, and Olivia (Anna Torv) learns what Peter has done. Written by Graham Roland, this episode first debuted on 16 November, 2012. Peter is keeping secrets from Olivia, specifically the fact that he has incorporated Observer tech into…
The Expanse (2016) – Critical Mass, and Levithan Wakes
The final two episodes of the first season of The Expanse aired together on 2 February, 2016. The first part, Critical Mass was written by Robin Veith, Dan Nowak, and Naren Shankar. Leviathan Wakes, which was the title of the first novel in the series, was penned by Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby. We go…
Skeleton Crew (1985) – Stephen King
Stephen King’s second short story collection, Skeleton Crew looked like a giant sitting on my mom’s bookshelf. It was a hardcover and had that creepy monkey on the front. And while I didn’t recall all of the stories as I did this re-read, some sent me right back to the first time I read it,…
Midsummer Night’s Doom (1999) – Raymond Benson
Jame Bond has had a long history with Playboy and for the magazine’s 45th anniversary, novelist Raymond Benson penned a short story to be featured in the celebratory issue. In fact, this time around 007 interacts not only with some Playmates from the previous years but also with Hugh Hefner himself. It seems there’s going…
The Mind Reels 