Jerry Orbach is the baddie in Space Rockers! Written by Chris Bunch, it first aired on 21 February, 1980. There is a music group, Andromeda (who only seem to have the one song), that has a huge influence on the youth of the galaxy today, broadcasting from their converted space fortress, christened Musicworld, and Lars…
Mission: Impossible (1971) – The Catafalque, and Kitara
Paul Playdon wrote Catafalque, which first aired on 6 February, 1971, and features John Vernon as Ramone Fuego, who gets manipulated by the IMF in an attempt to get sensitive information into the hands of the American government. And while most of the story is really engaging, as Phelps (Peter Graves) and his team set…
Star Trek: First Frontier (1995) – Diane Carey and Dr. James I. Kirkland
It has been a while since I’ve explored the final frontier as documented in Simon & Schusters’ Star Trek novels. I’ve been craving lots of Trek recently, so it seemed like a perfect time to dive back into the adventures of Kirk and company. This time around Diane Carey, who has written several Trek novels,…
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1980) – Olympiad, and A Dream of Jennifer
Buck (Gil Gerard) finds himself in a political mess that probably played pretty well with the folks at the time, considering it’s a story about defectors wanting to escape to a better world. Written by Craig Buck, this episode first debuted on 7 February, 1980, and sees Buck Rogers taking in an in-person look and…
Scream 4 (2011) – Wes Craven
Kevin Williamson is back with a script that gives the Scream (and Stab) franchise the course correction it needed following the Scream 3 misstep, and right off the bat, the film has the sense of fun, and play that was messing in the third film. In fact the casting seems steps above the third film…
Nightmare Alley (2021) – Guillermo del Toro
Based on the novel of the same name del Toro’s latest is a lush, shining example of the noir genre, and features strong performances and visuals. I loved how faithful it was to the spirit of the novel, there were a few necessary changes, but none that change any of the overall arcs for any…
M*A*S*H (1981) – Oh, How We Danced, Bottoms Up, and The Red/White Blues
Oh, How We Danced written by John Rappaport, and with an original airdate of 23 February, 1981, has a fantastic A-story, that really touches the heart (even as it messes with series continuity), and a completely forgettable B-story. The B-story first then. Charles (David Ogden Stiers) delivers a substandard sanitation rating to a nearby American…
A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge (1985) – Jack Sholder
One year after Wes Craven changed the horror genre (again) with the introduction of the dream stalker, Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund), New Line Cinema delivered the first follow-up sequel. All of the Nightmare sequels can be hit or miss, with the third one arguably the best of the bunch. And while the film was successful…
Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1980) – Ardala Returns, and Twiki is Missing
Princess Ardala (Pamela Hensley) is back in Ardala Returns. Written by Chris Bunch, this episode first debuted on 24 January, 1980. Ardala and Kane (Yay Michael Ansara!) are having issues with the new Draconian Ratchet fighters, since Kane updated them, none of the pilots are good enough to handle them. So a plan is concocted,…
Mission: Impossible (1971) – The Field, and Blast
The IMF team, led by Jim Phelps (Peter Graves) has a tough assignment this time with The Field. Written by Wesley Lau from a story by Lau and Judy Burns, it first aired on 23 January, 1971. An enemy nation has control of an island in the Adriatic, and they have turned it into a…
