DCEU Blog - Movie Lineup Changed, Spin-Offs Ahoy And Oscar Love?

Well, this has undoubtedly been one of the most chaotic months for DC fans and that's putting it mildly. A roundup of things that have happened this month.

First of all, we've got movies being shifted around the place. Black Adam will now be released October 21st and Shazam! Fury Of The Gods has been brought forward to December 16th.

For 2023, Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom will now open March 17th, The Flash on June 23rd while Blue Beetle will still open on August 18th and Batgirl to be confirmed on HBO Max.

The Flash has also had a test screening so there are rumours surfacing about certain characters fates. Take everything with a pinch of salt until a verified trade confirms anything.

Zack Snyder's Justice League won the Oscar for Fan Favourite moment for The Flash scene.

At this point in time, The Batman is nearing 700 million at the box office while US audiences can watch the movie again on HBO Max from April 19th.

Matt Reeves released a deleted scene featuring Robert Pattinson's Batman talking to Barry Keoghan's Joker at Arkham. 

Colin Farrell has officially signed on for his character's HBO Max spin-off, titled The Penguin.

Paul Dano will be releasing a six part Riddler: Year One comic from October, serving as a prequel to the events of the movie.

Sharon Stone will play Victoria Kord, the main antagonost of Blue Beetle with Raoul Max Trujillo as Carapax The Indestructible Man.

Rounding off the cast for this movie are George Lopez, Adriana Barraza, Elpidia Carrillo, Damian Alcazar, Belissa Escobedo, Bruna Marquezine and Harvey Guillen. Filming begins in April for the movie.

Meanwhile Batgirl is currently in it's final week of filming in Glasgow.

Rachel Zegler may have also hinted that a certain character will be appearing in Shazam! Fury Of The Gods.

Gotham Knights for the CW has it's main cast which includes Fallon Smythe (Harper Row), Tyler DiChiara (Cullen Row), Olivia Keegan-Rose (Duela), Oscar Morgan (Turner Hayes), Nadia Zaraili Robinson (Carrie Kelly), Anna Lore (Stephanie Brown) and Misha Collins (Harvey Dent).

The CW have renewed both The Flash and Superman And Lois for next season. The fates of their other DC shows will be revealed likely in May if not sooner.

James Gunn will play a version of himself directing a Thomas Wayne movie for the upcoming season of Harley Quinn with Harvey Guillen also voicing Nightwing. 

The current seasons of Peacemaker, The Flash and Legends Of Tomorrow are on Sky Showcase/Max for UK viewers. DMZ was also recently released on HBO Max.

That's it for this month. Let's see what the next one will bring.

My Review of Superman And Lois 2x09: "30 Days And 30 Nights"

 

Written by Katie Aldrin And Jai Jamison

Directed by Ian Samoil

Lois (to Jordan): "That's not our Jonathan."

This episode certainly changed up the format, didn't it? You had an opening scene that felt like the cliff-hanger to a mid season finale and then the title of the episode really did become appropriate. Is Superman really gone for good?

The smart answer would be not very likely but whatever has happened in Bizarro World certainly seems to be dealing him from coming back to our one and as a result, it's taken both John Henry Irons as Steel and a vigilante Jordan to fill the Superman shaped void. So far, both are doing an excellent job, evening there's been some personal fallout for both.

For Jordan, playing hero naturally brought conflict between himself and Lois with Sam trying to remind the latter of her son being capable of handling himself. Lois's concerns for Jordan do make sense but at the same time, if it wasn't for Jordan's intervention, both her and Sam would've been killed this week as well. Another plus side also seems to be the possible end of the X-Kryptonite plot as well for.

However while Jordan managed to get Lois on side, he wasn't as fortunate with Sarah. I've bee expecting the pair to break up and I thought it would be Jordan doing the dumping but Sarah did it instead. The relationship was doomed the moment they added the Aubrey story into the mix, so this seemed very inevitable nonetheless.

Anyways breaks up to one side, let's talk about Jonathan. He suffered from public fallout over getting the football season cancelled but he did get Candice to help Lois and Sam deal with the X-Kryptonite problem. However the arrival of his Bizarro world counterpart at the end definitely meant the we are finally going to get some proper Bizarro world action in the next episode.

Meanwhile and getting back to the personal consequences bit, we did have conflict between John and Natalie over the former forgetting about the anniversary of other Lois's death but we did have some nice scenes where they watched an old scene as well as Natalie and Sarah hanging out again. 

As for the Cushings segment of the episode, when Sarah wasn't breaking up with Jordan, she was quite harsh in telling Kyle that he might not get back with Lana so easily. Speaking of Lana, she won the election and now has become the Mayor of Smallville. I wonder how long that will last.

- I didn't really see John and Lana flirting as such but if the latter doesn't get back with Kyle, I could see the show pairing up the characters.

- Ally Allston sprung out of the DOD and went through that portal rather effortlessly. It'll be interesting to see how she gets on with her other self.

- While we had Steel and Jordan stepping into Superman's shoes, it does make you wonder why the show doesn't mention another Kryptonian.

- Chronology: Exactly as the title says lol. The show will be back on April 26th.

30 Days And 30 Nights certainly mixed things up in an interesting way. The lack of Superman definitely isn't something I want to see often with this show for obvious reasons but it did work here, considering the strength of the storylines we got this week. It's gonna be a long month waiting for the next episode.

Rating: 9 out of 10

Finding Religion, Then Losing It

As I head towards the end of the month, a look at some of the shows I watched recently.

911: Seven episodes into this current season and it's been one of the strongest we've had so far. In the space of these episodes, we've had a chaotic blackout, an old enemy of Athena's taking her son captive, Buck settling  into a relationship with Taylor, Eddie ending a relationship as well as a temporary exits for Maddie and Chinmey with Ravi also getting more screen time and a prison riot to boot. Oh and some zoo animals on the loose.

Batwoman: Although a fourth season has yet to be confirmed, it's safe to say one will come. As for the last few episodes of the season that just aired, they were decent enough. Marquis might not have been a convincing Joker successor but it does seem like he'll be around next season for him and Ryan to actual'y build a family dynamic along with Jada. Ryan basically got her family, friends and a girlfriend in Sophie while Alice might get some form of redemption or not. It really could go either way.

Killing Eve: A part me is definitely glad this is the last season because half way in, I'm finding myself increasingly bored with it. I know the main plot seems to be about taking down the Twelve but even with that in mind, it just feels rudderless. Villanelle's religious awakening hasn't added to much and Eve's pursuit of Helene has been mildly entertaining at best. Hopefully the second half of the season can get inject a bit more excitement into it.

Pam And Tommy: Overall I did enjoy this limited series and there's no denying that Lily James, Sebastian Stan and Seth Rogen all did a fantastic job in their respective roles. The second half of the series did explore the fallout of the sex tape pretty well along with the Pam and Tommy relationship beginning to fall part, not to mention Rand's own epiphany of sorts. I hope this series does bag a few Emmy nods for itself.

The Flash: The more the CW keep renewing this show, the more I'm reminded that it's best days are definitely behind it. Armageddon wad a decent crossover event and the Bart/Nora episode was entertaining but the last two episodes were back to the mediocrity of the last two seasons. It's been obvious for a while that the show has been running on fumes and I'm somewhat tempted to drop the show if it doesn't pick itself back up.

The Gilded Age: It took me a while to get into this show but for now, I'm glad I stuck with it. While it doesn't quite have the same excitement factor that another show from Julian Fellowes had in it's heyday or even a certain Netflix counterpart, the second half of the season did move things along a bit. We learned more about the characters, saw new relationships develop and bloom and while the gay storyline is absolutely horrible to watch, at least everything seems to have mostly improved, so I'll tune into the next season.

• The Teen Wolf movie for Paramount+ will lead into a new spin off called Wolf Pack. Most of the original cast members are back for the movie.
• The second season of Only Murders In The Building will premiere on Hulu from June 28th.
• The final series of Derry Girls will air on Channel 4 from April.
• Star Trek: Picard will end after three seasons. Paul Wesley has been cast Captain Kirk for Strange New Worlds.
• And Just Like That has been renewed for a second season.
• The second season of The Flight Attendant will premiere on HBO Max from April 21st and premiere on SkyMax from May.
• Riverdale  has been renewed for a seventh season.
• Charlotte Ritchie has joined the cast of You for it's fourth season, currently filming in the UK.
• Angela Bassett will appear in an upcoming episode of 911: Lone Star as Athena.
• Denis O'Hare will appear in the first episode of American Horror Stories. He's rumoured to be playing a character connected to a past season of the parent series.

My Review of Superman And Lois 2x08: "Into Oblivion"

 

Written by Juliana James And Kristi Korzec

Directed by Sudz Sutherland And Gregory Smith

Ally (to Chrissy): "The greatest story in human history."

Well, kind of. I mean we did see a bit of the Inverse world but again, not quite as much as I thought we would do. Ally nearly got everything she wanted but she gravely underestimated Anderson having his own agenda. On the other hand, there was also Lucy.

Lucy being revealed as Ally's Plan B was hardly a shocker. She was missing during the big event at the mines, had sent both Lois and Sam cryptic texts, appeared randomly at the farm and then drugged her own father to get his DOD card to free Ally. All of it was thoroughly predictable. At this point, I'm wondering what it will actually take to snap Lucy out of Ally's grip.

Ally herself had been far too smug in that interrogation scene with Sam that her having another trick up her sleeve made total sense. Ally definitely knew how to play on Sam's insecurities and she definitely got the better out of him during their scenes together. She continues to shape up as one of the most dangerous foes though we have yet to see her and Superman go head to head.

Outside of the Inverse plot this week, there was plenty of other personal drama. Clark really couldn't contain his disappointment with Jonathan and the latter's need to protect Candice even put him at odds with Jordan when the latter had to step in protect the two from a drug dealer. Maybe Candice does have genuine feelings for Jonathan but this story has definitely started to drag now.

Speaking of things in danger of dragging, we all know that Sarah and Jordan are heading for splitsvillle, right? The fact that she's now trying to stay in contact with Aubrey should be the sign for Jordan that their relationship will not last much longer. Then there's the Lana and Kyle subplot. I think they will reunite but it seems for now that Lana will not forgive Kyle just yet, even if they were communicating better  in this episode.

Last but not least, this episode also delved into Natalie's issues with Clark. I get that like her father, Natalie would have the same issue with accepting that this version of Clark isn't a homicidal maniac and I did like that Clark came up with a way to make things easier and earn Natalie's trust. As for John, it really show how much things have changed for him over the space of a season given that he defended Clark a lot here.

- Anderson told the other Ally about killing Superman during his own trip to the other side. 

- Jonathan's actions have caused the football season to be cancelled ans he hot a job in the same story owned by Sarah's friend's father.

- Sam has assumed his old job back on a temporary basis until they can get a replacement.

- Chronology: About a week has passed since the events of the fifth episode.

Into Oblivion had it's moments but it wasn't quite as strong as previous episodes. As much as I liked seeing more of the Inverse World, I still feel like there's more that needs to be done with the idea. Also some of the subplots need to wrap up and other characters need to get more involved in the main story.

Rating: 7 out of 10

My Review of Superman And Lois 2x07: "Anti-Hero"

 

Written by Max Cunningham And Michael Narducci

Directed by Elizabeth Henstridge

Anderson (re pendant): "Can you tell me what this is?"

Ally: "That is a way to change the worlds."

Oh, Anderson. The bar was incredibly low for you as a character and now that we've gotten tot he halfway point of the season, I suppose I should've seen this coming. Of course he was going to end up being a bad guy this season. It probably would've more shocking if he wasn't.

He took way too ,much pleasure in locking Superman up this week and accusing him of being a traitor and then seemed only too happy to have Tal-Rho tortured for good measure. Then there was taking the X-Kryptonite and killing Bizarro. Yup, he better not be making it out of this season alive.

Also with Anderson's career in ruins over his overzealous stupidity, his only other option was to throw in his lot with Ally Allston. Those two together definitely should be a dangerous combination, especially now that Ally has both pendants that she can use to her own advantage. I'm hoping though she doesn't keep Anderson around for too long and that he outlives his usefulness to her sooner than later.

As for Bizarro, it was a shame that he was killed off so quickly bur he had great scenes with Superman, Tal-Rho and Lara in this episode. Tal-Rho in particular was a highlight this week too as some traces for potential redemption seem to be creeping into the character. It also might have helped that Superman stepped in to save him when the chips were down too. I'm liking what the show has done with  Tal-Rho this season in his appearances so far.

Outside of the main plots, the B plots also had some good focus too. Jonathan paid the price for protecting Candice and both Lois and Clark gave him both barrels for it. I did feel a bit sorry for Jonathan in this episode but I also thought he was being extremely stupid as well. 

As for the Cushings plot this week, it was interesting to see Sarah reach out to Aubrey to talk about her parents split before reaching out to Kyle while Lana managed to put Dean in his place over his own cowardly attacks on her family values. Also points for that nice conversation that both Lana and Lois had about parenting as well. 

- We now know that Inverse Lana is the wife of Inverse Tal-Rho. I get the impression we'll be seeing her again very soon.

- Another episode in a row not to feature Chrissy, John and Natalie. The latter two are back in the next one though.

- Sarah confiding in Aubrey instead of Jordan though. I think they're showing the seed for Sarah and Jordan to break up later in the season.

- Chronology: The day after the previous episode.

Anti-Hero was another success. Former Agents Of SHIELD actor Elizabeth Henstridge did a fantastic job here and while the episode had plenty of highlights, for me, it was Tal-Rho who stole the show. It's a shame that Bizarro was killed off but at least the story continued to move at a good pace.

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of The Batman (2022)

 

Written by Matt Reeves And Peter Craig

Directed by Matt Reeves

Batman: "Our scars can destroy us, even after the physical wounds have healed. But if we survive them, they can transform us. They can give us the power to endure, and the strength to fight."

It's felt like an eternity since this movie was announced and even since the first DCFanDome event debuted the first trailer. It's been a long time but now that the movie has finally arrived, the obvious question has to be asked - does it live up to the hype? Yes, and then some.

With a new Batman film and a new actor in the role, you'd be forgiven for thinking this movie would rethread familiar territory but this movie has Batman (Robert Pattinson) in his second year as the Caped Crusader and while there are reminders of the Wayne family murders, there are no particular flashbacks to that particular key moment. Saying that though, the legacy of the Wayne family does play a large part in the motivations of the main villain in question.

The main villain of course being the Riddler (Paul Dano) aka forensic accountant Edward Nashton. Going down a clearly inspired Zodiac killer route, this might be the most ruthless live action version of the Riddler we've had as Nashton has taken it upon himself to expose the true corruption of Gotham City while using his famed riddle motif to great effect.

The Riddler's victims are not the most sympathetic of people but their deaths certainly leave an opening for power grabs. Mayor Don Mitchell, Jr (Rupert Penry-Jones) got the ball rolling but his demise resulted in at least bright hope for Gotham City with Bella Real (Jayme Lawson) genuinely wanting to make Gotham into a better place. The way she also stepped up during the Riddler's final act of terror also spoke volumes of her sincerity to succeed where her predecessor failed.

As for the Riddler's other victims, there was Commissioner Pete Savage (Alex Ferns), who we barely knew and the limited screen time he had did not present the character in a positive light. DA Gil Colson (Peter Sarsgaard) certainly got the most explosive exit while Alfred Pennyworth (Andy Serkis) almost paid the price for Thomas Wayne's (Luke Roberts) past connection with Carmine Falcone (John Turturro). The Riddler definitely had a list that he was crossing off with no mercy.

The most interesting part was that while Riddler was determined to make the reclusive Bruce Wayne pay for his family's sins, the former also felt a connection to the Batman and even believed they made a great team together. Paul Dano will definitely lap up the acclaim that Heath Ledger did as the Joker for The Dark Knight and he definitely deserves it. His Riddler truly delivered in this movie.

Of course while the Riddler might be the main villain of the movie, he's not the only rogue member causing havoc in Gotham. The movie goes to great lengths to show how much power Falcone has moved the city and due to that, both Catwoman (Zoe Kravitz) and Penguin  (Colin Farrell) have their motivations, largely driven by Falcone throughout this movie as well.

Zoe Kravitz takes on the mantle of Selina Kyle in the beginning of her Catwoman journey very well. She plays off Robert Pattinson's Batman extremely well and her determination to get justice for her friend, Annika along with her past with Falcone all help to cement her in a sympathetic light. Not to mention this movie also helped to lay the ground work for a potential Catwoman spin off that the WB would be crazy not do.

As for Colin Farrell's Penguin, it's the start of his career, he's given fantastic scenes with both Batman and Lt James Gordon (Jeffrey Wright) and his hunger for power will be something that we know will get explored as this franchise continues. Farrell's a highlight throughout the movie and I definitely want to see more of him.

Last but not least, there's Batman's emotional journey from criminal bogeyman to full blown hero during the Riddler's final act. It's a beautiful character that Robert Pattinson acted the hell out and it was great to see this Batman not only working with the likes of James Gordon (their rapport was fantastic), Alfred and Selina but also to see him move past the need for vengeance and to truly step into the light as a hero.  

- Officer Martinez (Gil Perez-Abraham) went from being hostile towards Batman to willing to help him during the third act. I found it funny that he seemed to be a bit of a Bruce Wayne fanboy.

- This movie brought some more recent comic lore into the mix with Martha Wayne also being a member of the Arkham family and having her own history of mental illness.

- The influences for this movie do seem to be The Long Halloween, Ego and a certain element of Year One, despite being set during Batman's second year.

- As for Barry Keoghan's character, I won't spoil it here but trust me, you won't be shocked by the reveal either. A brief post credit scene does feature one last message from the Riddler.

- Standout music: Michael Giacchino's score for the whole movie, the chilling use of Ave Maria as well as Nirvana's Something In The Way.

- Chronology: October 31st to November 6th. The Riddler's spree almost lasted a week before he was sent to Arkham.

The Batman could've collapsed under the weight of the enormous expectations that it had but it didn't. In fact Matt Reeves has managed to give audiences one of the best Batman movies with a gripping story, drenched in comic book goodness and noir delight. Robert Pattinson easily proves everyone wrong and delivered immensely in the title role. I don't want to bandy the term 'masterpiece' but this movie certainly deserves it though. 

Rating: 10 out of 10

My Review Of Legends Of Tomorrow's 7x13: "Knocked Down, Knocked Up"

 

Written by Phil Klemmer And Keto Shimizu

Directed by Kevin Mock

Booster Gold (to the Legends): "I hope you don't have any plans for the near future because we're about to spend a lot of time together .... in jail."

Seven seasons. 110 episodes. More cast members that you can shale a stick at and least multiple versions of certain characters and it finally happened. Yup, Booster Gold has entered the Waverider and he's our hook for this show very likely getting renewed for an eighth season and I will genuinely be surprised if the CW don't announce it at once.

When I say entered the Waverider, I mean he stole the damn thing after reneging on his promise to help the Legends with their Alun dilemma and then setting everyone (including Alun) to get arrested for time crimes. Mike, you certainly know how to make a first impression.

Former Scrubs actor Donald Faison was originally meant to be a regular cast member of the CW's Powerpuff Girls live action series but with that looking less likely to happen, it's safe to assume he'll be a regular next season. So far, he's off to an interesting start as Booster Gold and I can't wait to see what the show intends to with the character.

As for Alun, we know that his death was a fixed point but we also know that both Gwyn and the Legends had their own plan. It worked and as a result while we've gained Alun as a regular for next season, we've sadly lost Nate as a character. Nate's exit was a tad rushed but at least he'll get to live in the town with Zari Tomaz even if he's lost his steel powers.

As for Sara and Ava, their pregnancy plans took a hell of a turn in this episode. I didn't have Sara actually being the one to get pregnant but Gary did manage to fill in the gaps of the logistics of her pregnancy as well as her now being vulnerable as a result of it. A good plot for the Avalance fans but something I would've left for a series finale, which this episode isn't intended to be.

Last but not least and before Mile decided to steal the Waverider, there was the Evil Gideon plot to do away with. Getting our Gideon into tricking her evil self into self destructing was a nice move. I've enjoyed Evil Gideon as a baddie but it was time for that storyline to come to an end and it was dealt with swiftly here.

- Even though he didn't wear the classic suit and likely won't next season, Mile certainly had other ways of telling us who he was before actually revealing his identity.

- Outside of Sara/Ava, the rest of the Legends seemed eager to avoid talking about the fates that evil Gideon had shown them.

- Standout music: Booster Gold certainly had fun with Here Comes The Hotstepper by Ini Kamoze.

- Chronology: 1916 Mametz Wood, France for the main action of the episode as well as 30,000 year B.C. for a brief Gary subplot. Of course Gary survived lol.

Knocked Down, Knocked Up loses points a little for Nate's lowkey exit even though this season was heavily hinting at his departure but everything else was spot on though. Like I said earlier in the review, I'd be genuinely surprised if the CW don't renew this show for at least one more season, especially given that they've finally added Booster Gold into the mix.

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of Superman And Lois 2x06: "Tried And True"

 

Written by Max Kronick And Patrick Barton Leahy

Directed by Amy Jo Johnson

Sergeant (re Superman): "Where are they taking him, sir?"

Anderson: "To be with his brother."

Six episodes into this second season and the worst character can definitely go to Lt Mitch Anderson. Last season when Sam was n charge, there was at least an attempt to male the character sympathetic even when he didn't agree with Superman. The same hasn't been done with Anderson and as a result, the character has been fairly intolerable to watch.

His refusal to take accountability for the young lives his SOA project endangered was one thing but even when Superman tried to reach out to him to help destroy the pendant Bizarro, Anderson thought it would be a better idea to have Superman arrested for treason instead. The only slight plus side to this development means that we'll at least see Tal-Rho for another episode.

Prior to Superman being arrested for treason, Bizarro had actually provided both the former and Lara information on the dangers of people merging with their other selves. The idea of someone as dangerous as Ally Allston becoming a god like being upon being whole certainly makes Bizarro's need to kill her all the more understandable.

Speaking of Ally, she might not have had a  major role in this episode, outside of an opening flashback for Bizarro but her influence on Lucy remained ever present. Sam got close enough to getting both Lois and Lucy to reconnect, only for them to fall out yet again over the fact that Lucy won't see the danger that Ally possesses.

As for Jonathan, this week saw him turn on Jordan after the latter realised that his powers were the result of X-Kryptonite and even his own victory during the game wasn't as enjoyable as he hopes it would be. It did seem that Jonathan was seeing the error of his ways so hopefully this plot will be ending soon.

Last but not least, the Lana and Kyle segment of the episode. The fallout of Kyle's adultery was mostly textbook stuff. We had Sophie wondering of Kyle was coming home while Sarah was mad at him. Then we had Lana talking to Tonya about the affair before deciding that she wanted Kyle out of the house. There was also a good scene between Lana and Clark as well, highlighting the strength of their friendship and we need more scenes like that with the two of them.

- In Bizarro's world, he confronted but didn't kill Ally Allston. Lana also has powers in that world and could hold her own against Bizarro.

- Lucy still hasn't referenced anything that would indicate she was previously in Supergirl. At this point, I don't think she will.

- We had a scene where Superman saved a Russian village from an avalanche, which didn't please Anderson one bit.

- Chronology: A day from where the previous episode left off.

Tried And True continued the strong path we've had this season with more information coming out about Bizarro's world and Allston's overall scheming. The subplots had their moments too and former Power Rangers actor Amy Jo Johnson did a great job directing too.

Rating: 8 out of 10

DCEU Blog - Wonder Twins Go, World Needs Heroes And More

It's been a busy month and with The Batman finally releasing this week and review embargoes about to be lifted, it's an interesting time for DC fans everywhere.

Early in February, DC/WB released a trailer titled The World Needs Heroes showing new clips from The Batman, The Flash, Black Adam and Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom, confirming that all four movies will release in 2022.

More scoopers have been confirming that Gal Gadot, Jason Momoa and even Henry Cavill appear in The Flash movie. Jason Momoa and Ezra Miller recently appeared in the first season of Peacemaker.

Constantine: The House Of Mystery, which sees Matt Ryan reprising the role in animated form will be released on May 3rd. 

Matt Reeves has also confirmed to the absolute shock of no one that a sequel for The Batman is currently in development.  

Black Adam scribe Adam Sztykiel will write and direct a Wonder Twins movie for HBO Max.

Zack Snyder's Justice League is up for a fan favourite Oscar nod. You can vote for the scene where The Flash runs through time.

An upcoming episode of Superman And Lois will see Jonathan Kent (Jordan Elsass) don a Superboy look. The second season is currently airing on the CW.

Michael Keaton has been spotted on set filming for the Batgirl movie. A recent report has suggested that the movie will get a December release on HBO Max.

An addition on IMDb Pro has suggested that a Nightwing movie may be in development. Take that one with a pinch of salt though.

UK viewers will be able to see the current seasons of both Legends Of Tomorrow and The Flash on SkyMax from March 22nd. Edit: It may be April instead.

Titans fourth season have added Joseph Morgan, Franka Potente and Lisa Ambalavanar to the cast. They will play Brother Blood, Mother Mayhem and Jinx respectively.

Doom Patrol will add the character of Casey Brinke, the heroine also known as Space Case. Casting has yet to be confirmed.

The CW are going ahead with Gotham Knights and the main roster will comprise of Dick Grayson, Stephanie Brown, Tiffany Fox, Julia Pennyworth, Harper Row and her brother, Cullen. The pilot should begin filming later next month.

That's a round up of this month's stuff. Let's see what next month brings.

My Review of Legends Of Tomorrow's 7x12: "Too Legit To Quit"

 

Written by Morgan Faust And Leah Poulliot

Directed by Sudz Sutherland

Gideon (to the Legends): "We are all retiring."

Okay, while I'm definitely certain that any day now the CW are going to confirm this show for an eighth season, this episode very much felt like the beginning of the end for the Legends. Or more likely a false ending as Evil Gideon really cannot be trusted at all.

Anyways the Legends had to use Evil Gideon's services in order to save the Good Gideon and as a result, the latter made a deal with her bad self. The Legends would retire and live out their lives away from one another while both Gideons would keep an eye on the timeline instead. Of course, Evil Gideon wouldn't be satisfied with that.

With Gary being somewhat of a hindrance, it wasn't too much of a shocker that he'd get ejected into the time stream while our Gideon had made her own reckless decisions in order to prevent the Legends from reneging on the deal they had made with Evil Gideon. However neither had banked on sparking a new determination in Gwyn to save his lover.

I knew it was a little too good to be true when Gideon stopped Ava and Zari's plans to rescue Alun (Tom Forbes) and when Gwyn realised that he was an android, it was obvious what was going to happen next. Given that Alun's death has been revealed to be a fixed point, it's hard to tell what will happen with Gwyn after next week's finale. Will he accept that fate cannot be changed or perhaps have his own changed for the worst? 

As for the futures in questions, we certainly got some interesting things to ponder. Shippers must have been happy with Sara and Ava winding up with a daughter and they themselves seemed excited by the prospects. Personally I would've liked Ava to have had her own Only Murders In The Building style podcast but this kind of works too.

Of course with Nate penning a book, Behrad becoming a children's entertainer, Astra for president, Spooner setting up a mental health centre with her mother and Gwyn getting a cottage in Wales, Zari found herself less satisfied with her prospective fate. It also influenced her decision to save Alun and there was a lovely scene between both her and Nate on the nature of heroism.

- We just got the title card for this episode as well as a lot of references to past characters on this show. 

- Astra's impression of Spooner was pretty funny, even if the real,one nearly got sent out of the airlock by Evil Gideon.

- While this episode talked about audible lips in Zari's future, we also had three kissing scenes in this one. Sara/Ava, Behrad/Astra and Gwyn/Alun.

- Chronology: From where the previous episode left off. Gideon visited 1916 offscreen during her initial attempt to rescue Alun.

Too Legit To Quit under different circumstances definitely could've been the groundwork for a series finale but given that this show's very likely coming back for another and Evil Gideon might not be totally honest in what she was showing, I think it's safe to say that Legends and retirement won't be going hand in hand just yet. A good thing as I'm not ready for this show to end either.

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of Superman And Lois 2x05: "Girl .... You'll Be A Woman, Soon"

 

Written by Rina Mimoun And Adam Mallinger

Directed by Diana Valentine

Bizarro (to Superman): "Ally Allston will destroy everything you love. Your friends, your family. She'll destroy everything unless you kill her first."

There we have to, our true villain of this season. I assumed Doomsday, then Bizarro but nope it's Ally Allston who has been revealed as the real Big Bad of the season and this episode revealed a bit more about her and the danger that she will bring.

First of all her ascension gimmick very much turned out to be true. She's in tune with the bizarro world and had zero problems in drugging Chrissy where the latter met the opposite version of herself. On the plus side, while Ally might have been telling he truth, it was also enough to bring Chrissy back to Team Lois, so at least those two are on the same page with one another.

This episode also revealed that Bizarro himself isn't a villain at all, just more someone willing to cross lines that Superman himself will not. Bizarro's desperate to save both his own world as well as this one and Ally poses a danger to both worlds. At some point, both Superman and Bizarro will have to team up, especially given that Ally has become a bigger danger in Bizarro's word and seems to be heading the same way with this one too.

Moving away with from the Ally side of things this week, we also had a lot of focus on the Cushing family this week and in particular, the events of Sarah's quinceanera. What should've been a nice night for Sarah somewhat got marred by the fact that she learned about Kyle's affair with Tonya and walked out of the father and daughter dance before Lana managed to save some public face.

The affair plot definitely feels like a story for the sake of story and it might have been more interesting had we seen this play out in a far less rushed than it did. Still though, the episode gave a lot of great scenes with Sarah, Lana and Kyle and we even got to meet the latter's mother and learn a bit more about the Cushing family history.

Last but not least, Jonathan let his own jealousy of Jordan get the better of him during those training scenes with the latter and Sam but lying to his brother than he now has powers definitely won't end well. Jonathan's story definitely has been one of the weaker storylines this season, although I'm looking forward to upcoming episodes where he'll don a certain comic look. 

- Kyle's family were actually called Cortez and Sarah was taking back the surname as part of her quinceanera. 

- Not surprised that Anderson wouldn't give Superman the pendant back. How many pendants are they as we know Ally has one too?

- Although being mentioned and given Lois's banana muffins, both John and Natalie sat out this episode. We did get to see Lara though interrogating Bizarro in the Fortress of Solitude.

- Chronology: We had a 1979 flashback in Metropolis which saw a young Ally Allston taking on her father's legacy.

Girl .... You'll Be A Woman, Soon definitely delivered on both Bizarro and Ally Allston and the Cushing subplot was pretty strong overall too. Saying that, I do want to start getting glimpses of this other world than having characters describe it and hopefully that'll be happening soon.

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of Peacemaker - Season 1 (2022)

 

Written by James Gunn

Directed by James Gunn (eps 1-3, 6 and 8), Jody Hill (ep 4), Rosemary Rodriguez (ep 5) and Brad Anderson (ep 7)

Peacemaker: "Eat peace, motherfucker!"

Following the title character's abrasive introduction in The Suicide Squad and the somewhat antagonistic role he had in that film, I'd be lying if I said that I was eagerly anticipating his HBO Max series but over the course of eight episodes, I soon became a convert to both the idea of this show and it's less character.

Last time Peacemaker (John Cena) was seen, he was in a coma, courtesy of Bloodsport (Idris Elba) and as punishment for disobeying her, Amanda Waller (Viola Davis) put him in the care of Emilia Harcourt (Jennifer Holland) and John Economos (Steve Agee) in order to either help save the world to make him into a future patsy. The show does present both options for Christopher Smith upon waking from his coma.

Saddled with a team also comprising happy go lucky psychopath, Vigilante (Freddie Stroma), first team leader Clemson Murn (Chukwudi Iwuji) and new recruit, Leota  Adebayo (Danielle Brooks), the latter revealed to be Waller's daughter very early on, Peacemaker finds himself going up against the Butterflies as they have their own plans for humanity that are not as black and white as their first appear to be.

For a group of antagonists, they're an interesting bunch, able to possess humans, which we see them do with various characters such as Detective Sophie Song (Annie Chang), who became a host body for their leader Goff. Murn himself was later to be revealed as a rogue member of the race, opposed to their plan and overall as a character got a rather nice character arc, even if he didn't quite make it to the finale.

The main characters definitely have some strong arc and there's none stronger than the title character himself. We see Christopher Smith openly question his militant stance for peace while his relationship with his racist father, Auggie Smith/White Dragon (Robert Patrick) undoubtedly motivated a lot of his behaviour. Ultimately while Peacemaker can be set in his ways as a person, his experiences throughout this first season alone start to shape him into being a better person, so there might be hope for him yet.

Then there's Leota herself, who for the most part tried to see the good in Peacemaker and formed a rather believable friendship with him while struggling to get out of her mother's shadow and maintain her marriage to her wife, Keeya (Elizabeth Ludlow). She's easily one of the best characters on the show and also the one who truly brought about the downfall of both the Butterflies and Task Force X.

As for Emilia Harcourt, she started the season being openly hostile to everyone, only to truly step up as a leader by the finale. Vigilante and Economos aren't quite as developed as the others but both characters do have their moments and the more said about Peacemaker's pet eagle, Eagly, the better. As for Judomaster (Nhut Le), there's potential with the character and hopefully the second season will explore that as he's likely to encounter the gang yet again.

- The episodes are A Whole New Whirled, Best Friends For Never, Better Goff Dead, The Choad Less Traveled, Monkey Dory, Murn After Reading, Stop Dragon My Heart Around and It's Cow Or Never.

- The Justice League were referenced several times and in the finale we got to see to both Aquaman (Jason Momoa) and Flash (Ezra Miller) with body doubles standing in for Superman and Wonder Woman.

- The penultimate episode implied that Peacemaker himself  was bisexual, which genuinely surprised me. We can thank John Cena for that development.

-  Like with many shows, this one had flashbacks of Christopher's childhood and accidental killing of his brother, Keith.

- The title sequence might be one of the best ones seen in a DC production with Wig Wam's Do You Wanna Taste It being a catchy theme tune for the series.

- Chronology: Five months following the events of The Suicide Squad. 

Peacemaker's first season was something that I had very moderate expectations about and it was a show that turned out to be far better than expected. James Gunn had his fans with The Suicide Squad but this for me was even better. A true testament in giving a character a second chance with fantastic results. I will definitely watching the second season. 

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of Catwoman: Hunted (2022)

 

Written by Greg Weisman

Directed by Shinsuke Terasawa

Catwoman: "You know I appreciate the classics but I like to move with the times."

I have to admit that when I saw the first trailer for this animated film, my expectations were not exceptionally high for this. Catwoman's a fan favourite character with many iterations out there. In terms of animation, she's not been always as utilised well so I was cautious about what this solo/team up movie would bring. To my pleasant surprise, a lot in the best way.

Donning a classic look, Catwoman (Elizabeth Gillies) decided to crash a party hosted by Barbara Minerva (Kirby Howell-Baptiste) in order to steal the cat's eye emerald. By doing this, Selina quickly put a target on her back, courtesy of Leviathan as both Black Mask (Jonathan Banks) and Tobias Whale (Keith David) gave chase, only for Catwoman to soon encounter Batwoman (Stephanie Beatriz) and soon the pair of them are forced to work together.

Namely because Julia Pennyworth (Lauren Cohen) and King Faraday (Jonathan Frakes) make Catwoman an offer she can't refuse and as the movie developed, it also turned out that Catwoman had her own personal agenda for targeting Barbara Minerva. It's funny how things tend to line up, isn't it?

Having both Catwoman and Batwoman form an unlikely pair (minus the "faux" sexual tension) along with the former's cat, Isis definitely made for an entertaining movie. The bickering, slight flirting and competitiveness along with the two working together to take out both Cheshire (Kelly Hu) and Nosferata (Zehra Fazal) was definitely a highlight of this particular feature.

Of course the big highlight was Selina's motives for going after Leviathan and the set up of a future confrontation with Talia Al Ghul (Zahra Fazal) as well as a genuinely engaging fight between Catwoman and Minerva in her true form as the Cheetah. That along with a Solomon Grundy (Steve Blum) and this movie definitely doesn't lack in the action sequences. 

As for Selina, with this being her movie, it made sense that everything would end up going her way, even if it took a while for her plans to come to fruition. Then again, Selina did prove herself to be the expert at playing both the long game and those who underestimated her throughout. She might be a jewel thief but she's also got a bigger cause as well.

- The anime style worked better here than I expected it to and aside from the costume party, I'm actually impressed this movie didn't have a Batman appearance.

- There was brief arc back in 2015, which explored Catwoman's bisexuality, so I guess the flirting with Batwoman might have been an allusion to that.

- The anime Lupin III was an influence for this, according to producers.

- Location wise we had Spain, Shanghai, Paris and the English Channel.

Catwoman: Hunted turned out to be a delightfully entertaining romp and the sort of story that would be perfect as a live action vehicle for the lovable cat burglar. Elizabeth Gillies did a terrific job as Catwoman and I enjoyed the character's hi-jinks throughout.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Money Isn't Everything

Took the month of January off from these sort of blogs but any more, I will try to make them monthly affairs going forwards. Anyways, a look at stuff I've been watching recently.

And Just Like That: It's been an undeniably divisive return for the ladies of New York (minus Samantha) but at least it's been discussion worthy to a point. With Charlotte mostly relegated to comedy mishaps and stuff involving her children, it's been Carrie and Miranda getting the dramatic stuff with mixed results. Carrie's  had hip problems, apartment problems, neighbour problems and finding the right place to scatter Big's ashes. She's also gained a solo podcast and a new love interest. Miranda also gained a new love interest in Che, thus breaking up her marriage to Steve and losing a bit of her former self. I'm all for Miranda discovering herself but Che was the wrong character to do this with. At least Seema proved to be a strong addition to the series. Will it gets seconds? Who knows.

Batwoman: Ah, this season has been surprisingly strong for the most part. What hasn't worked in my opinion has been Ryan's family, especially Marquis, who is a very poor version of this show's attempt of a Joker baddie while Jada still hasn't really clicked as character either. What has clicked was the Poison Ivy arc (short as it was and convenient in exiting Renee Montoya) along with the sisterly bond between Mary and Alice and Luke finally syncing with his Batwing suit. Even the Ryan and Sophie pairing, despite being a tad contrived has worked better than expected. Hopefully these last two episodes can end the season on a good note.

Dexter: New Blood: I think this show has managed to strike a record for coming up with a finale more polarising and controversial than the original one it did. To me, that's crazy because what we got in 2013 was a terrible way to end the show while we got in 2022 while not entirely perfect, at least made more thematic sense. Harrison being the one to kill his own father after Dexter's whole web of lies came crashing down felt oddly right. This limited series didn't fully recapture the heights of the original series glory days but it definitely made up for it's original ending.

Pam And Tommy: Is there anyone not watching this limited series? Last week Hulu/Disney+ dropped the first three episodes and it made for some interesting viewing. Needless to say both Lily James and Sebastian Stan absolutely nail it as Pamela Anderson and Tommy Lee and they're ably supported by Seth Rogen, Nick Offerman and Taylor Schilling. These episodes provide quite the education into the title characters turbulent relationship as well as the role that Ran Gauthier played in their sex tape being leaked. Lily James herself has completely disappeared into the role and the 90's soundtrack, I just love. As for Tommy's talking penis in the second episode. Um. 

The Gilded Age: Julian Fellowes is a writer who found his comfort zone a long time ago and has never stepped out of it since. That might sound harsh but can you tell me if it's untrue? Fortunately for Fellowes, his comfort zone continues to be very much appreciated and while this show feels too familiar and comparisons to Downton Abbey are completely justified, the first two episodes were enjoyable. It's beautifully shot, the cast are excellent with Christine Baranski and Cynthia Nixon being obvious standouts. There's even a closeted gay love story in between fabulous costumes, old versus new money discoveries and a young female protagonist in Marion trying to make her way in an ever changing world. It's also performed well enough to quickly earn itself a second season.

• Nyle DiMarco will play a graduate student in the upcoming reboot of Queer As Folk.
• National Treasure for Disney+ has found it's lead star in Catherine Zeta Jones.
• The CW have ordered pilots for Gotham Knights, The Winchesters, Walker: Independence and a female led Zorro reboot.
• Aubrey Plaza, Michael Imperioli, F. Murray Abraham, Tom Hollander, Adam DiMarco and Haley Lu Richardson will make up the main cast of the second season of The White Lotus with Jennifer Coolidge also returning.
• Murray Bartlett will be appearing in both The Last Of Us and the second season of Only Murders In The Building.
• Legends Of Tomorrow has added Donald Faison as a fame hungry mystery character for it's seventh season finale. If the show gets picked up for an eighth season, the character will likely be a regular.
• The L Word: Generation Q has been renewed for a third season by Showtime.
• Euphoria has also been renewed for a third season by HBO. The show is currently having a record ratings boost.
• The second season of Bridgerton will be released on Netflix from March 25th.
• Arielle Kebbel will appear in an upcoming arc of 911 as a character named Lucy. 
• Moon Knight will premiere on Disney+ from March 30th.
• The Lords Of The Rings: The Power Of The Rings will premiere on Amazon from September 2nd.

My Review of Legends Of Tomorrow's 7x11: "Rage Against The Machines"

 

Written by Mark Bruner And Mercedes Valle

Directed by Jes Macallan

Zari (re Android Legends): "We really are our own worst enemies."

As we head into the final stretch, it was time for the Legends and their Android doubles to meet up and boy, did this episode have fun with that idea. Possibly too much fun with it, but that's no bad thing. This episode had so much in it's favour.

I have to give Nick Zano a shoutout for his comedic timing because he had clearly had way too much fun in playing up Android Nate's toxicity and capped with an Arnold Schwarzenegger accent made the character's scenes even more priceless. It also made the character's final fate more interesting as a certain promise that Sara made Thawne was nicely capped off as well.

Sara had hoped that she could reason with the Android Legends but them killing Thawne and even her put Gwyn in a leadership role that he excelled at. It was fantastic to see the character in his element, using his military knowledge to bring about the downfall of the Android Legends. After this episode, I'm starting to think that Gwyn might be sticking around after all.

Watching the team working together to take out the other Legends was fantastic. Spooner turned her double and Gary in each other, Gary sent the Ava and Astra doubles into hell after Behrad gave them a lethal dose while Astra killed the Behrad double as did Zari with her double and Gideon tricked the Sars and Nate ones into their own destructions. Then another fate befall Android Nate.

However while it seemed like things were working out for the Legends, something had to go wrong. Ending the episode had Gideon stabbed by a toasted Android Astra and this was only moments after the real one said she was proud of Gideon. I guess we did need that cliff hanger moment as the show took a break for the Winter Olympics.

However now that the Legends have control of the other Waverider, there's the problem of the other Gideon. The trailer for the next episode made it clear that Zari's pulling the plug didn't have the desired effect. With two episodes left to go, how do you solve the problem of an evil AI?

- With Jes Macallan on directing duty for this one, it made sense that the episode sidelined Ava for most of it.

- The Legends using the singing fish, Star Wars spoilers, VRs and tablets to smoke out their doubles was highly amusing.

- Is this Thawne really dead? At least he went on a heroic note.

- Chronology: Still 1914 Sarajevo for this episode.

Rage Against The Machines did a great job in tying up the fixed point storyline and certainly gave most of the main cast a perfect chance to shine against their Android doubles. With two episodes left, I cant wait to see how this season will finish up and hopefully news on a next season renewal will happen this month.

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of Superman And Lois 2x04: "The Inverse Method"

 

Written by Jai Jamison And Andrew N. Wong

Directed by Melissa Hickey

Chrissy (to Ally): "Can you meet me? I want you to tell me the truth about Lois."

Last season had a clear path when it came to enemies for Superman and Lois. The former thought he had an enemy in Captain Luthor who would later turn out to be an ally in Steel while the latter's battle with Morgan Edge soon back to Superman when Edge was revealed to be his half brother.

This season the enemy playing field feels different. While Bizarro has undeniably proven to be a great physical threat to both Superman and Steel, Lois has found herself a personal and psychological threat in Ally Allston (Riya Kihlstedt). So far, she's shaping up to be a very dangerous adversary for Lois. 

In the comics, Ally Allston became a version of Parasite and the opening flashback in this episode where Lois referred to Ally as a parasite preying on vulnerable people to Lucy (Jenna Dewan) definitely seemed to be laying the ground work for a future storyline this season. Make no mistake, Ally has certainly done a number on Lucy Lane.

It's been six years since we saw the character back in the first season of Supergirl and needless to say that Lucy has become a shell of herself. Depressed at the state of her life and lingering childhood anger towards Lois, I can see why Lucy fell in Ally's dangerous trap and joined the Inverse Society. Unfortunately the lengths in which Lois has gone to save her sister have only resulted in pushing Lucy further into Ally's grasp.

However it's not just Lucy that Lois will potentially lose to Ally. Lois's relationship with Chrissy has never been on an even keel and Ally was quick to exploit that when she gave Chrissy access to Lois and Lucy's conversation. She succeeded in creating a divide between Lois and Lucy and now has managed to do the same to Lois and Chrissy. To me, Ally has definitely shown to be a far more dangerous threat than Bizarro.

Saying that, Bizarro has definitely not lacked as a baddie so far. As I pointed out earlier in the review, he's a massive physical threat to both Superman and Steel and nearly killed the latter when he wasn't killing Anderson's own Superman team. However Tag managed to survive and took Bizarro's amulet away with him, so that's another potential problem for everyone in the next episode.

As for the Cushings this week, their storyline definitely feels too detached from the main plots this season so far. Also a tiny bit too predictable with Dean trying to get dirt on Lana's family by targeting Sarah. However the reveal that Kyle might have cheated on Lana with a bartender definitely felt cliched. I don't mind the story so much, but it's definitely needs to tie in to the main stuff at some point.

- Jonathan started using the X-Kryptonite due to Candace goading him to do so with Natalie spotting something off with him. Also Sarah's friend, Denise fancies him.

- We now have a plot where Jordan will be getting trained by Sam so that he can help Clark against Bizarro. Sam should've been involved in the Lucy story this week.

- Lucy talked about seeing another version of herself during her suicide attempt. Crisis related memories or something else?

- Chronology: From where the previous episode left off, also five years ago in the opening flashback scene, not to mention trips to New Carthage and Bolivia this episode.

The Inverse Method definitely added the tension this week with both Ally Allston and Bizarro causing havoc for our main players. Both are compelling villains for different reasons and both are bringing out interesting sides to the characters as well. I can see why Lucy's return has divided fans but I'm intrigued to see where tho story will go.

Rating: 8 out of 10

DCEU Blog - Batgirl Major Spoilers, Arrowverse Future Series And More

Yeah, this blog might as well be a special focusing on a certain movie, but I promise, other DC stuff has happened too. Here we go.

Earlier this month, Leslie Grace used her social media accounts to unveil her costume for Batgirl (currently filming in Glasgow). Very inspired by the Batgirl: Year One comics.

Keeping with this movie, Ivory Aquino was cast as Barbara's best friend, Alysia Yeoh, marking the first trans character to appear in the DCEU.

Other casting revealed for the movie included Ethan Kai (rumoured to be a love interest for Barbara), Rebecca Front and Corey Johnson. JK Simmons also started filming at the end of the month.

Michael Keaton will film his scenes as Batman/Bruce Wayne next month and there's rumours we will also be seeing Dick Grayson in the movie with casting due to be announced soon. The movie is due for a HBO Max release later this year.

Luke J. Roberts and Olivia Grant have been revealed as the actors playing Thomas and Martha Wayne for The Batman. Their characters will be seen in flashbacks. Gil Perez-Abraham is seemingly Stanley Merkel while Barry Keoghan might be playing a much bigger character.

The Batman will be 175 minutes long with tickets going on sale from February 10th. Spoilers are going to be a challenge to avoid until March 4th.

Looks like the Joker sequel might go into production around 2023 with both Joaquin Phoenix and director Todd Phillips slated to return.

Gal Gadot has also confirmed that the third Wonder Woman will not film until early to mid 2023.

Peacemaker not only seems to be likely to get a second season on HBO Max but James Gunn has admitted that another spin-off from The Suicide Squad could be happening too. I'll be doing a series review after the release of the finale.

A three part tie in comic for The Flash movie, titled The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive will be released from April to July and will be written by Kenny Porter with art by Ricardo Lopez Ortiz.

Aquaman And The Lost Kingdom has now completed filming while Shazam! Fury Of The Gods has had another test screening.

Blue Beetle will begin filming in April for an August 18th 2023 theatrical release. Expect a lot of casting news over the next few weeks.

David Ramsey's John Diggle may leading his own CW series as the network has ordered a pilot for Justice U, in which Diggle would be recruiting and training up young heroes.

Grant Gustin has apparently signed a deal for a ninth season of The Flash, which will be 15 episodes and will see Gustin earn $200,000 per episode.

Filming for both Titans and Doom Patrol's upcoming seasons will begin next month. 

HBO Max now have the first two seasons of Pennyworth available to stream. The third season has completed filming and will be released later in the year.

That's everything for this month. Next month, I could be covering some major casting reveals as well as some show renewals too.