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.

My Review of Legends Of Tomorrow's 7x10: "The Fixed Point"

 

Written by Matthew Maala And Paiman Kalayeh

Directed by Maisie Richardson-Sellers

Sara: "Get ready Legends because this time, there are no do overs."

We are near the final stretch of episodes and after last week's bombshell where Gideon gave Gwyn's suggestion of saving Archduke Franz Ferdinand and preventing World War 1 some serious thought, this episode quickly turned the idea on it's head.

Instead of the Legends trying to break a fixed point in time, they'd use it to smoke out Evil Gideon and the Android Legends and get the other Waverider. A delightfully cunning idea that could've gone without a hitch but then this episode would've been only five minutes long. Of course there was a hitch and then some.

The first hitch being the Legends getting roped into a time traveller's bar where they were the laughing stock among their peers while also waiting in line to try and prevent Ferdinand's assassination. This also resulted in Sara getting killed multiple times as the gang realised that a mystery man was there, derailing their attempts.

Had the promo pics and press releases for this episode and the next one not spoiled things, the return of Eobard Thawne/Reverse Flash would've been a genuine surprise. Either way, it's nice to see the character again and it's even better that it's the Matt Letscher version of the character too. On a surprising note, Thawne's purpose for this episode was to make sure the fixed point remained intact and he was more grudging ally than dangerous foe for Sara and the Legends this week.

Now with the Legends in a prime position to reclaim the Waverider, what else happened in this episode? Oh, there was the rather understated manner in which Spooner came out as asexual to Zari as the two of them became friends this week. That was a lovely little moment in this episode and one that proved yet again, why this show has been the best for LGBT representation.

Speaking of LGBT representation, I never loved Ava Sharpe more than I did in this episode. With both her and Gwyn mostly sidelined in this one from the main story, there was a beautiful moment between them here. Gwyn's plan to save Alun but to deny himself happiness with the latter was heart-breaking and I loved that Ava seemed to have gotten through to him.

As for the other romances of the episode, both Astra and Behrad seem to be in the early days of their romance while Gideon went from self doubt about her knowledge of time to being elated about Thawne's arrival and being openly affectionate with Gary. As for Nate, we did learn that art was not a talent of his while he was also a great support for Sara.

- The credit sequence came back to normal for this episode after the last two doing something different with them.

- Zari's "smash, marry, avoid" game was a good catalyst to have Spooner open up about her feelings. 

- This episode had way too much with the amount of ways that Sara got killed this week.

- Chronology: June 28th 1914, Sarajevo.

The Fixed Point was another triumph for Maisie Richardson-Sellers on the directing front and on the front of everything else, this has become one of my favourite episodes of this season. Brilliant character moments, a welcomed baddie return. Everything about this one was a winner.

Rating: 9 out of 10

My Review of Superman And Lois 2x03: "The Thing In The Mines"

 

Written by Katie Aldrin And Juliana James

Directed by Gregory Smith

Sam (to everyone): "There's a bizarre version of Superman on the loose."

Well, not to put too fine a point on it, Sam, but it's actually a Bizarro version of Superman. Close enough though. It also looks like that it's not Doomsday that was causing all that ruckus in the mines but it was Bizarro and now he's on the loose.

This also means that Tyler Hoechlin will be on double duty, acting wise this season and the episode did a great job in introducing Bizarro to both Superman and Steel where the former also made himself at home in the Fortress of Solitude. While Bizarro doesn't seem like a great conversationalist for now, he also doesn't appear to be very dumbed down either.

Bizarro's arrival certainly had Clark on edge all throughout the episode. Not only did he have to put his Superman duties on hold but he also snapped at both Jordan and Jonathan  in a way that even shocked him. Again, I'm so glad this show doesn't drag these plots out for too long. We know it's Bizarro that was the cause of Clark's recent distress and now so does everyone else.

As for Sam, he's helpful when the script needs him to be and a hindrance for the same reasons as well. He wanted Clark to tell Anderson everything about Bizarro while also clashing with Lois at first  over Lucy's past with Ally Allston and the latter's dangerous cult. Of course Sam did come good for Lois but unfortunately for the latter, it was made painfully clear that Lucy was still part of Ally's toxic cult.

As for Jonathan and Jordan, their woes were personal this week. The former found out his girlfriend was supplying Timmy with the drugs that was enhancing his football performance and decided he wanted in while the latter decided to continue seeing Sarah. That can only mean their relationship really will be doomed as the season goes on.

Last but not least there was Lana's mayor plot, which although made for decent screen time, it did feel too separate from the main plot strands this week. Lana did gut her first stumbling block in her campaign but thanks to Sarah getting her to do a cooking live stream, she might have recovered a little faster than expected. I'm guessing she'll win or lose before we get to the halfway point of the season. 

- I love the title card going backwards at the end of the episode. Very inline now that we have Bizarro in the mix.

- With the amount of mentions of Lois's mother this season, I get the feeling she'll be appearing later on. Natalie had some great scenes with Jordan and Jonathan this week.

- Not only are John and Natalie going to fix the former's suit but also the barn. I'm surprised that Sam didn't have more of a reaction to Natalie as well.

- Chronology: From where the last episode left off and we're still in 2021, going by Lana's homemade campaign posters.

The Thing In The Mines didn't waste time with the Bizarro reveal and it was nicely handled. We're three episodes in and this season has definitely been as strong as it's first one, balancing the family elements and the superhero ones too. 

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of Legends Of Tomorrow's 7x09: "Lowest Common Demoninator"

 

Written by James Eagan And Emily Cheever

Directed by Eric Dean Seaton

Astra (to the Legends): "We are on a reality show in Hell."

Following last week's focus on the Android version of the Legends, this week saw the return of our guys, who thanks to Gideon landed in the pocket dimension of Constantine's manor in Hell. Could've been and of course, it means the gang would have the opportunity to come up with a strategy against Evil Gideon.

Except for the fact that Gwyn opened a door in the manor and let inside the cursed crew who sold their souls to a demon named Harris Ledes (Giles Panton) in order to make a hit reality show. Yup, the Legends have found themselves living out a reality TV series and all the tropes that came with it.

To cap off things, you had Nate and Zari 2 almost fall into 'friends to lovers' trope before both of them fell out over their own feelings about Zari 1 while a self doubting Gideon switched off her emotions to stir the pot among the feuding housemates. Gideon being a massive contrast to a very overly emotional Gary, who also made things worse for the Legends.

Then there was Sara and Ava with the former more fixated on planning a vacation than trying to get out of reality show hell while the latter grew tired of being the den mother of the gang and snapped. Meanwhile Spooner took Survivor a little too much or heart and Gwyn went from wanting to save Alun to wanting to prevent World War 1 altogether.

As for Astra, she had a plan to get Ledes to pull the show but Behrad's snooping just put them in the periphery of things instead. However it was also Behrad opening up about his own past experience and a commentary on being a stoner and chill dude that basically resolved this plot. As someone who found Behrad a weak character last season, I really like how much he's improved as a character this season. 

As for the potential romance between Astra and Behrad, I think the former has more chemistry with Spooner but I don't mind the pairing either. Both of them were the only ones who were more savvy about the main plot of the week and I do think the actors play off each other rather well. Likewise the same with Gideon and Gary and how the latter also castigated the Legends for being judgmental about their blossoming romance.

- The premise of this episode was set in Constantine's manor. There's a Hellblazer comic with this very premise and the title sequence were very Constantine themed. He was also mentioned in the episode. That's it really.

- Harris Ledes production company was named after the title of the episode. 

- Gwyn's constant praying throughout the episode being censored was funny as well as Nate's Jersey Shore look.

- Chronology: From where the mid season finale left off for the Legends.

Lowest Common Demoninator definitely and shamelessly went overboard with the reality TV tropes but only this show could've pulled this episode off with aplomb. Add some genuinely funny scenes with the main characters and development for both Behrad and Astra and this was a winner for me.

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of Superman And Lois 2x02: "The Ties That Bind"

Written by Kristi Korzec And Michael Narducci

Directed by David Ramsey

Tal-Rho: "Aren't you gonna thank me for reuniting you with your long lost mother?"

Superman: "She could've been a mother to us both if you had chosen a different path."

Well, this was a family reunion I didn't expect so early in the season. Tal-Rho reappearing actually took me by surprise and it was a pleasant one nonetheless. Is it me or is this show going for a potential Loki vibe with the character?

I mean, sure his resentment towards Kal-El isn't going anywhere anytime soon but I do think a part of him wanted to help his brother this week as well as himself. On top that, he also seemed a little dejected when Superman didn't believe there was any good in him but wanted there to be. I feel a potential redemption story might be on the cards for Tal-Rho.

What I really loved about this episode was the fact that Clark took direct action about his visions. Once his family knew he was afflicted by them, he reached out to his estranged brother and the latter reunited them (and Jordan) with Lara (Mariana Klaveno). It was nice to see Lara both sympathise with Tal-Rho while also giving Kal-El a bit more information on what's causing her other son's visions.

At this point we know it's Doomsday and the antics down the mines certainly keep confirming that. There's also the fact that Dr Faulkner did her best to keep both Lois and Chrissy away from the mines while also confirming to a mystery person that something powerful was down there. I want to assume the mystery person Faulkner was talking to was Anderson (who's still a charmless pain in the ass) but I wouldn't rule out someone else altogether.

Meanwhile outside of the main plot, we had some interesting personal stuff too. Last week, Sarah was extremely distant with Jordan and this episode saw her and Natalie bonding over a car that the latter managed to get up and running. The reveal of Sarah possibly being gay or bisexual (she kissed a girl named Aubrey at camp) - it's too early to tell but I wouldn't be surprised if the show pairs her and Natalie before the second half of the season.

As for Lois, she had a lot of strong moments here too. Her attempts at bonding with Natalie over a big breakfast might have been a bust but she had some great scenes with both John and Chrissy this week. The latter especially as it was revealed that Lois's sister Lucy was in a cult and nearly killed herself. The show definitely has been laying the ground work for the character's imminent arrival.

Last but not least, I mentioned in my review for the season premiere that it wouldn't take the show long to go with Lana running for Mayor and it didn't. This episode had Daniel Hart quickly drop out of the race, Kyle get his fire station to vote for Lana and the latter to fill out the paperwork. Again, it's nice to see the show just speed through some of these plots.

- Superman nearly got defeated by an X-Kryptonite infused Philip Karnowski, also known as Barrage in the comics. He also got rescued by Tag, who has become of Mitch's soldiers.

- Jonathan figured out one of his lazier teammates was on steroids while still happy with his new girlfriend.

- I noticed the blog that was giving that cult leader a platform was from the same person that Lois didn't want Chrissy to hire last week.

- Chronology: From where the premiere episode more or less left off.

The Ties That Bind was definitely a better episode than the premiere. So many fantastic character moments, plots continuing to be moved forward while the Doomsday arc nicely being teased without feeling dragged out. This season definitely has gotten off to a great start.

Rating: 9 out of 10

My Review of Scream (2022)

 

Written by James Vanderbilt And Guy Busick

Directed by Matt Bettinelli-Olpin And Tyler Gillett

Ghostface (to Dewey): "It's an honour."

The horror franchise that galavanised the horror franchise of the 1990's and after an unrelated MTV series, it's back again to see if it adds little more bite in the horror genre one more time. The results are definitely something alright.

We open with a very familiar scene. Teenager Tara Carpenter (Jenna Ortega) at home on the phone, thinking she's talking to her friend, Amber Freeman (Mikey Madison), only for Ghostface (Roger L. Jackson) to show up and kill her. Except, it's a new decade and there are new rules and this time, the supposed opening kill managed to survive their encounter with Ghostface.

With Tara not ending up the first victim hut still hospitalised, her estranged sister, Samantha (Melissa Barrera) came back to Woodsboro with her boyfriend, Ritchie Kirsch (Jack Quaid) in tow and it's soon revealed that Samantha has a noteworthy history with Ghostface. The noteworthy history being that her father was Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich) and he's been haunting her subconscious ever since she found this out.

Unfortunately for Samantha, the new Ghostface also knows her secret and it's not long before she enlisted a retired and divorced Dewey Riley (David Arquette) while getting to know Tara's friend circle, which included Randy's niece and nephew Mindy (Jasmin Savoy Brown) and Chad (Mason Gooding), the latter's girlfriend Liv (Sonia Ben Ammar) and Judy Hicks (Marley Shelton) son Wes (Dylan Minette).

As a younger generation, they're a mixed bag of characters that while mostly likable enough don't really stand out too much. Having most of these new characters, including a creepy guy named Vince (Kyle Gallner) who was revealed to be Stu's nephew did feel a tiny bit contrived, even though the movie went to lengths to point out the necessity of bedding both old and new in this 'requel'.

Speaking of the old, this movie certainly gives our three OGs the least amount to do of any movie by far. Dewey probably fared the best in some respects and also worse in a lot of others. As for Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell), she's determined to stay away from Woodsboro but like Gale Weathers (Courtney Cox), it only took one thing to draw them both back into the thick of things.

In terms of who Ghostface are, I won't spoil their identity but I will say they're the worst killers since Roman and I found myself generally uninterested in them as characters even before the reveal. The motive thought about wanting to make the perfect sequel while framing Samantha as the bad guy and commentary on toxic fandoms however did work as did the team up with Samantha, Sidney and Gale to take them out. While Samantha might not be quite as compelling a protagonist as Sidney, I do respect this movie for making her as different to Sidney as possible.

- This movie had a For Wes credit and of course, Dylan Minette's character was also named after him. I actually wish we had seen more of Wes. 

- Rian Johnson apparently directed the last Stab movie that sent the current Ghostface on their mission for that perfect sequel.

- Gale got a morning show in LA and Dewey left her. Dewey also had nerve damage from previous attacks, Sidney married Kincaid and had kids with him and Kirby survived the previous movie.

- Chronology: 25 years since the events of the first movie with the third act being set in Stu's house to really bring things home for all concerned.

Scream (2022) definitely had it's moments and while the third act didn't pack as big a punch as it could've with the killers being somewhat lacking, I do think this movie did manage to breathe a bit of new life in the franchise. Will it lead to another? Maybe it should but I'd be fine if it didn't either.

Rating: 7 out of 10

My Review of Legends Of Tomorrow's 7x08: "Paranoid Android"

 

Written by  Phil Klemmer And Marcelena Campos Mayhorn

Directed by David Geddes

Android Sara: "We are the real Legends Of Tomorrow."

Well, this was certainly an episode to come back to after nearly a two month break. I knew there was potential in Evil Gideon coming up with her own Android version of the Legends and this episode really scratched the surface of that concept. 

Having our Android version of the Legends firmly believe they're the good guys made absolute sense and of course would make Evil Gideon's plan seem just that bit more nefarious. However it shouldn't be a surprise that Doctor Sharpe would be the one enabling Evil Gideon's scheme and it was less surprising that Android Sara would be the one to suspect that things weren't quite as they appeared.

Watching the cast play somewhat exaggerated versions of themselves as Androids who didn't know they were for most of the episode was entertaining as hell. Although they're slightly better at cleaning up the timeline as the real Legends as Evil Gideon got them to fix up the mess that Gwyn caused with Chernobyl from two episodes ago.

So let's talk about the Android team shall we? There's Nate who seemed to have gotten Mick's old personality and seriously looked roided up to the hilt when he wasn't belittling the completely alien and always hungry Gary. Then there was Behrad and Spooner who for some reason seem to be locked in a permanent game of trying to up the other, which was also funny.

The Android version of Astra didn't feel that different or exaggerated from the version we already know while Android Zari was both the cause of Sara realising the truth and her eventual downfall. Not to mention the more antagonistic dynamic between Sara and Doctor Sharpe, which was definitely the highlight of the episode.

Unfortunately with Android Sara posing a potential threat to Evil Gideon's overall plans, it was up to the rest of the Android Legends to relieve her of command, regress her into only being an assassin and for Citizen Steel to take charge of the Waverider. Yup, this will definitely be fun to watch play out for the remaining five episodes of the season.

- The actual Legends themselves were confined to a scene from the previous episode as seen by the Android versions perspective. Gwyn for now does not have an Android double.

- The Android Legends got their own title sequence and Citizen Steel got a bullying ad where kids compared him to John Cena. That was timely considering that Peacemaker premiered today.

-  Even this episode seemed to be hinting at a future Behrad and Astra hook up while Spooner referred to the latter as her best friend.

- Chronology: 1943 Seattle, 1986 Ukraine and 1992 Norway for the Legends to assassinate a surviving Soviet scientist.

Paranoid Android definitely had far too much fun in parking our main heroes and giving us the spin off within a show with their Android versions. I had so much fun with these characters that I actually didn't miss any of the main players this week. 

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of Superman And Lois 2x01: "What Lies Beneath"

 

Written by Brent Fletcher And Todd Hellbing

Directed by Gregory Smith

Lt Anderson: "America can have more than one Superman."

And it's back. It's been nearly six months since the show went off the air, finally acquired itself a UK home on BBC1 and snaring the old Doctor Who timeslot. The first season raised the bar for what a CW DC could do. The question - can this new season continue to raise the bar? We'll definitely have to see, won't we?

Picking up from the finale, both Lois and Natalie Irons (Tayler Buck) have different reactions upon seeing one another. While Natalie struggled with meeting a woman who looks like her dead mother hut isn't her, Lois struggled to talk to a child that also isn't hers. It's a struggle that both Buck and Elizabeth Tulloch articulate throughout this opening story.

Lois's struggle with Natalie's existence affected her relationship with Clark and her sons during the episode, leading to some harsh words as well as her partnership with Chrissy at the Smallville Gazette and finding extra staff. It also led to Lois getting a breakthrough of her own and confronting the Natalie situation full steam ahead.

Having John and Natalie move back from Metropolis (where the latter was miserable in) to the Kent farm definitely could go either way. Clark did seem to support Lois's decision but both Jordan and Jonathan seemed apprehensive about it as did even Natalie. Either way, it's going to be a very interesting family dynamic with these characters this season.

Speaking of dynamics, one episode in and Lt Mitch Anderson (Ian Bohen) already has me missing the days of General Sam Lane and Superman butting heads. Anderson already comes across as a less flexible version of Sam Lane and he absolutely didn't waste any time in letting Superman know that he had his own way of maintaining America's interests at heart.

This season already seems to be tackling the theme of Superman's loyalty and whether he should be more loyal to the country he grew up in or the planet he feels responsible for. Anderson's use of those students from that school definitely feels like something that will put both him and Superman at odds for the majority of the season.

Then there's the actual baddie itself. Last season made viewers think that Captain Luthor would be the main threat, only to reveal that he was John Henry Irons/Steel all along while Morgan Edge was actually Superman's half-brother, Tal-Rho. This season definitely feels like Anderson and his militant devotion will be one threat while the thing that has been pounding it's way up through the Earth will be another. The thing in question might also be Doomsday, so that's gonna be a fun ti,e ahead for Superman.

- Lana has found herself campaign for potential mayor Daniel Hart and Kyle seems to be a tad jealous of him. 

- Jonathan got a new girlfriend named Candace and Lois caught them neatly having sex. It also seems like Sarah might be on the brink of dumping Jordan.

- Nice reference to Lucy by Lois in this episode. Jenna Dewan will be reprising the role from Supergirl this season.

- Chronology: Three months from where the previous season's finale left off.

What Lies Beneath got off to a relatively slow start and perhaps was a little too angsty in some parts. Saying that, the new dynamics set up here with various characters are definitely interesting and I'm looking forward to seeing how the show will be able to handle Doomsday. 

Rating: 7 out of 10

My Review of The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)

 

Written by James Vanderbilt And Alvin Sargent And Steve Kloves

Directed by Marc Webb

Peter: "We all have our secrets: the ones we keep and the ones that are kept from us."

With this movie hitting it's tenth anniversary later this year and Andrew Garfield's tenure as the web slinger getting a certain appraisal from audiences, I thought now was the perfect time to take a look back at this movie.

Sandwiched between Tobey Maguire's trilogy and Tom Holland's dominance in the MCU, Garfield's movies have definitely had their fair share of scrutiny in the past. It's a shame really because this first movie alone while not quite as strong as Spider-Man (2002), I feel definitely was a bit stronger than Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017).

Andrew Garfield to me might be the best actor to ever play Peter Parker and likewise, Spider-Man himself The movie embarked on a straightforward origin story of the high schooler becoming the masked hero of the piece, learning more about the burden of responsibility, falling in love and battling his first major enemy.

The major enemy of the piece being Dr Curt Connors (Rhys Ifans) whose own experiments not entirely of his volition resulted in him mutating into the dangerous Lizard and Peter along with some help from Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone) and her cop father, played by Denis Leary have to work together in order to prevent the city from suffering the same fate as Connors.

For a first villain threat, the use of Lizard felt like a nice call back to the 1990's animated series and outside a few petty criminals here and there along with a wider conspiracy regarding Oscorp and Peter's parents (played by Campbell Scott and Embeth Davitz), just focusing on one major threat managed to keep things reasonably contained. The CGI for Lizard also looked pretty decent as well.

As for the more personal side of things, the flashbacks to Peter's parents helped to set up an ongoing mystery while both Sally Field and Martin Sheen did an excellent job as Aunt May and Uncle Ben respectively. Of course the start of Peter getting powers inevitably resulted in the latter's death and his determination to be a hero.

As for Gwen Stacy, it was a departure after Mary Jane Watson being used in both the 1990's animated series and Tobey Maguire's movies. I really do like Emma Stone as an actor and there's no doubt that she had fantastic chemistry with Garfield's Peter Parker and Spider-Man alike. It also helped that throughout the movie Gwen was written as both a sympathetic and competent character. Of course this would a romance very much destined to be doomed though.

-  Mid credit sequence saw Connors taking to a mysterious gentleman in prison. A gentleman who also seemed to have a rather keen interest in Peter.

- Flash Thompson (Chris Zylka) quickly went from being openly antagonistic towards Peter to being friendly to him, following Ben's death.

- Apparently both Big Wheel and Proto Goblin were considered for the movie. The latter would've been played by Irrfan Khan who played Dr Rajit Ratha here.

- Chronology: The movie came out in 2012, so I'm assuming that time as well.

The Amazing Spider-Man definitely has it's moments as a movie. For an origin story, it dies a good job in setting up this Spider-Man, has an engaging central romance and a pretty solid main antagonist in Lizard. I'm glad this duology has gotten a renewed sense of enthusiasm from fans and critics and I'll be holding on to that energy when I review this sequel for this one. Overall, a very enjoyable first outing for Andrew Garfield.

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of Doctor Who's "Eve Of The Daleks"

Written by Chris Chibnall

Directed by Annetta Laufer

Dan (to the Doctor/Yaz): "Anyone get a proper sense of deja vu?"

It's somewhat incredible for a show that's getting closer to it's 60th year that it's only now that the show decided to do an unashamed take on Groundhog Day complete with our TARDIS trio, a trio of Daleks and two guest characters for good measure.

After the universe destroying events of Flux, perhaps it was necessary for the Doctor, Yaz and Dan to have a more small scale adventure and this time loop themed one managed to fit that in. Taking place in Elf Storage, this was going to be the New Year's Eve adventure that would play over and over and over. Well, until finally there was a way for everyone to work and beat the Daleks at their own game.

The Daleks have been served well in Chris Chibnall's era. They've been one of his more successful stories here. From a modest start with a Recon Dalek to two different Dalek groups playing off one another , this story had them wanting revenge on the Doctor for the events of Flux and though their plan was definitely repetitive, it did almost work. Then everyone got a bit wiser, loop got broken and Daleks went up in bits. 

With the Daleks on a loop as a threat, what of our guest characters? We had storage owner Sarah (Aisling Bea) who clearly hated her business and for the first half of the episode, her admirer/stalker Nick (Adjani Salmon). She also wasn't best pleased with getting repeatedly killed by the Daleks or the three strangers that she had to rely on to save her life.

Needless to say as guest actors go in this era, Aisling Bea was a delight as Sarah. She could've easily made the character unsympathetic but managed to hit all the right notes, even when Sarah was rather prickly to everyone. Adjani Salmon did well too as Nick but the romance between their characters definitely felt somewhat off. I don't think someone like Sarah would date Nick in real life, especially given his penchant for keeping stuff from his exes.

As for the TARDIS trio, well this was an enjoyable enough adventure for them. Dan had a brilliant scene with a Dalek that might be one of my favourite scenes with the character. On top of that, it seems that fans of the Doctor and Yaz might get their wish as Yaz finally admitted that she has feelings for the Doctor, which might even be reciprocated. At this point, why not? There's only two specials left. 

- Karl from The Woman Who Fell To Earth made a brief appearance. I have to admit, I had completely forgotten about the character.

- Pauline McLynn appeared as Sarah's mother, Mary and the use of her bad timing did help with Daleks defeat.

- Aside from the lack of Davros, I was also surprised there wasn't much continuity from the previous Dalek specials.

- This is the first episode to air on a Saturday and the TARDIS problem from Series 13 has now been resolved. It also caused the time loop problem here though.

- The next special, due to air in Spring was revealed to be Legend Of The Sea Devils.

- Chronology: New Year's Eve 2021/New Year's Day 2022.

Eve Of The Daleks might have been a bit of a lowkey start to the 13th Doctor's final specials but it was rather solid as a story. Some nice scenes with the main and guest characters as well as the Daleks getting some nice one liners ("I am not Nick" for example). Saying that, I do hope the next special packs a bit more.

Rating: 7 out of 10