Space Battleship Yamato (2010) – Takashi Yamazaki

When I was a kid I would occasionally come across the odd anime cartoon, I always found them fascinating, there was the Americanization of Gatchaman that I adored until I discovered how much cooler the original was. And every now and then I would stumble across Star Blazers which took what looked like a naval…

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…

Godzilla Raids Again (1955) – Motoyoshi Oda

Even before Godzilla came ashore in North America with the recut 1954 feature Godzilla (Gojira)/Godzilla: King of the Monsters!, a sequel was unleashed on Japan with Godzilla Raids Again. Gone are the more serious overtones of the first film, the commentary and subtext; the exploration of radiation and its effects on the Japanese, the still…

Black Order (2006) – James Rollins

Sigma Force is back in their bext adventure from author James Rollins, who once again combines high adventure, with science, technology, and little known corners of history to deliver another rollicking adventure. This time out, both Painter and Gray find themselves out in the field and caught up in the action in a tale that…

Millennium (1996) – Pilot, and Gehenna

On 25 October, 1996, the creator of The X-Files, Chris Carter (who brings along Mark Snow to deliver the score) introduced us to Frank Black, played by the incredible Lance Henriksen in Millennium, and despite the fact pilot episodes always have a lot to set up, this one gets all the pieces on the board…

The X-Files (1996) – Grotesque, and Piper Maru

Howard Gordon delivers a script for Grotesque, a monster of the week episode, that won the series an Emmy for cinematography, and gives us a moody piece that first aired on 2 February, 1996. Mulder (David Duchovny) and Scully (Gillian Anderson) are requested by Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) to help the head of the Behavioural Unit,…

Monster From Green Hell (1957) – Kenneth G. Crane

The atomic mutations chapter of DK Canada’s Monsters in the Movies continues to entertain with some wonderfully bad movies, featuring creatures affected by radiation. This time around it’s a giant wasp stalking the grasslands and jungles of Africa. Combining a jungle picture (using lots of stock footage) with a creature feature (which has some enjoyable,…

Attack of the Crab Monsters (1957) – Roger Corman

Another atomic mutation menaces in today’s venture into DK Canada’s Monsters in the Movies. Produced and directed by Richard Corman, I enjoyed this one much more than his Day The World Ended. This one is so bad, you can’t help but to enjoy it. It also features Russell Johnson, recognisable to most as the Professor,…

Day The World Ended (1955) – Roger Corman

Atomic Mutations is the next chapter in DK Canada’s Monsters in the Movies, and the first one I chose to dive into is a Roger Corman film from the mid-50s. Nuclear war has happened, and seven survivors have holed up in a remote home, safely enclosed in a protected valley. Jim Maddison (Paul Birch) and…

Star Trek: Enterprise (2002) – Precious Cargo, and The Catwalk

Captain’s log: 12 September, 2152 David A. Goodman pens the teleplay for this episode from a story by Rick Berman and Brannon Braga. It originally aired on 11 December, 2002. Trip (Connor Trinneer) is at the centre of the story when the Enterprise comes to the aid of a pair of aliens and their mysterious…