My Review of Titans 1x01: "Titans"

Written by Akiva Goldsman & Geoff Johns & Greg Berlanti
Directed by Brad Anderson

Rachel: "My mom says there's no such thing as monsters. I think she was wrong."

And here we are. A month since their launch, the main selling point of DC Universe was going to be their own original content and with four live action shows in various stages of production, it was time to see if the first one could cut the mustard. Enter Titans.

This opening episode introduces us to a young goth girl named Rachel Roth (Teagan Croft) whom her mother seems to be afraid of and for good reason as Rachel might have a bit of a demon working with her. There's also the fact that Rachel's mother isn't actually her mother, is killed off a little too quickly and Rachel is forced to head to Detroit in order to avoid a creepy man that seemingly needs her dark powers for his own reasons.

Taking the action to Detroit also means the addition of Dick Grayson (Brenton Thwaites) into the mix where he's attempting to forget his past and do his job as detective, which also manages to annoy his new partner, Amy (Lindsay Gort) for good measure, though they do seem to come to an understanding as the episode progresses.

What's interesting is that while Dick seems to want to get away from his past, he also has no problem donning the Robin costume and beating the shit out of some nasty blokes. The "Fuck Batman" lines which has been made into an excessive meme is surprisingly less jarring on screen than it was in the trailer but the episode in itself does seem to go overboard with the swearing at times in some misguided attempt to appear gritty.

The opening episode is certainly dark in places, mainly with the implications of Rachel's demonic powers and the various people trying to get to her as well. Another person we can add into the mix is Starfire herself (Anna Diop) or simply Kory Anders, who has been looking for Rachel and wasted no time in incinerating some more generic looking and sounding baddies as she grew close to her search for the girl.

The main focus of the episode is Dick and Rachel as the former did initially seem reluctant to help the latter (who also had visions of the Grayson family deaths) but by the end of this episode, it seemed apparent that Dick was willing to look out for Rachel while also being a little perturbed by her abilities.

As for Beast Boy (Ryan Potter) - his appearance came towards the end of the episode but it was a rather amusing one as he morphed into a tiger in order to steal a video game. Given the dark tone of this episode, it was a nice little note to end the episode on but hopefully it won't take too long for both him and Kory to catch up with Dick and Rachel.

- The logo for the show managed to show all four of our main characters. DC Universe are releasing the episodes weekly, while UK viewers will get the series on Netflix.
- Kory was in Vienna while Gar was in Ohio. They should be in Detroit by next episode.
- Standout music: Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel certainly got put to good use in this episode.
- Chronology: I'm going to assume it's 2018. Dick has been in Detroit for over a year.

Titans isn't the strongest pilot episode we've had and it definitely did feel like it was trying too hard to be too dark in parts. On the other hand, the cast are solid and engaging, the fight scenes look great as does the cinematography. Overall, the series has potential.

Rating: 7 out of 10

My Review of How To Get Away With Murder's 5x03: "The Baby Was Never Dead"

Written by Erika Harrison
Directed by Valerie Weiss

Connor (to everyone): "Anyone seen my husband?"

And we can cross Connor off the list right, just leaving the seemingly missing Oliver, Asher, Tegan and Gabriel to be accounted. Given Michaela's gloomy look at Bonnie, she clearly seems to think the latter might have done something to Oliver. Of course that's not the only thing that we have to worry about with Bonnie this week.

Now we know she's got an older sister and I get the sneaking suspicion that fired nurse that Nate conversed with in this episode will probably be her. It does seem a little cliched but it'll be interesting to see how Bonnie interacts with another family member, considering the flash forwards and her current ongoing relationship with Roland, which nearly came undone this week as well.

Asher's meddling this week was somewhat annoying. When he wasn't trying to sabotage Annalise's case of the week, he also told Roland about his previous relationship with Bonnie, which did put the break on things momentarily before Roland showed his own acceptance of Bonnie and her murky past. I like that the show is making him a genuinely sympathetic character, even if I don't predict things ending well for him.

Speaking of the case of the week - it was another interesting one with an obnoxious CEO going to prison for the death of his former business partner because he loved his wife enough to not let her get sent down for the crime. The case certainly seemed to thaw the hostility with Annalise and Tegan and there was a hint of misconduct from Emmett when he was in London, which I'm intrigued enough to learn about I guess.

As for the rest of the episode - Frank upped his stalking of Gabriel as the latter got more integrated with the Keating 4. I got the sense that the writers were potentially setting up a future hook up with Gabriel and Laurel while thankfully also avoiding a potential one with Frank and Michaela as the two briefly bonded towards the end of this episode.

- Any guesses on who attacked Connor? He did seem rather shifty during that brief scene.
- How long will it be before Gabriel moves in with the Keating 4? I'm also guessing that nurse is his "mom". I like that Christopher also laughs for Annalise all the time. Maybe Laurel just isn't funny after all.
- I could see a potential hook up with Annalise and Tegan, unless they plan to go there with the latter and Michaela, who really does seem too fixated on Tegan.
- Chronology: Two months until the wedding night from hell.

The Baby Was Never Dead is a strong enough episode, helped by an interesting case of the week but I do feel they need to get on with telling us what Gabriel is up and do it fast. Other than that, I am liking the build up towards Connor and Oliver's wedding though.

Rating: 7 out of 10

My Review of American Horror Story: Apocalypse - Boy Wonder

Written by John J. Gray

Directed by Gwyneth Horder-Payton

Cordelia (re Michael): "That boy will never be Supreme."

You could say that along with the misogyny with the warlocks, the misandry with the witches is just as bad and perhaps this whole battle of the sexes for supremacy between both groups is probably what will push the apocalypse onto things. It's also very likely to be true.

In this episode, both groups seem to up their hostility with one another as Cordelia reluctantly agrees to allow Michael to perform the seven wonders in order to ascend to a level no other Warlock has ever managed to do before. The Seven Wonders are easy for Michael to do, so Cordelia added the extra caveat of having Michael get Misty out of hell, which he also managed to do with relative ease, forcing Cordelia to accept him as her eventual successor.

Of course, while Misty was perceptive enough to spot the evil within Michael and instinctively fear it, Cordelia also revealed that she's using Michael for her own ends as well. Determined not to allow hubris to best her, Cordelia's long game plan seems to involve keeping Michael as close to her as possible and it doesn't seem to be much of a shocker that he might have figured that out himself.

I did like that by the end of the episode, Cordelia managed to get both Madison and Behold on board to take a trip to a certain house for next week's episode. This pairing is interesting, given that Madison did feel excluded from the Coven and that Behold had previously tried to stop John from seeking out Cordelia.

It does seem to be a splinter with the Warlocks in regards to Michael. Ariel seems blinded by the idea of Michael succeeding Cordelia that he aligned with Ms Meade in order to stop John from causing trouble and while Behold accused John of jealousy, it didn't stop him from wanting to work with Cordelia and Madison at the end of this episode. I guess it'll be interesting to see where Baldwin stands by the end of this one in relation to Michael.

As for the rest of the episode, we got our Stevie Nicks appearances and sing song moment to celebrate Misty's return, Myrtle tried to advise Cordelia against letting Michael perform the seven wonders, Queenie and Zoe were just kind of there while Mallory was clearly growing in her powers and Coco didn't really believe that she had any. That said, while I'm loving the witches vs. warlock stuff, we are going to have to get back to the present day at some point though. 

- No Venable, Gallant, Dinah, Andre, Timothy or Emily this week. Next week though, a few people from the first season are back though.

- When the Blood Moon got mentioned, I did think maybe we were going to see something or someone from Roanoke in this episode.

- Standout music was Stevie Nicks Gypsy. Loved the performance in the bunker of that song.

- Chronology: From where Could It Be Satan left off.  

Though not as strong as the incredible previous episode and partly annoying for the quick way of disposing of John, whom I was liking as a character, Boy Wonder did do a great job of upping the game with Cordelia and Michael while also adding Misty back into the mix. 

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of Doctor Who's 11x01: "The Woman Who Fell To Earth"

Written by Chris Chibnall
Directed by Jamie Childs

The Doctor (to Tim Shaw): "We're all capable of the most incredible change. We can evolve, whilst staying true to who we are. We can honour who we've been and choose who we want to be next."

With that line, I think the show found a more succinct way of acknowledge the change in gender of the Doctor than the It's About Time tagline that's made up the marketing in the last few months. It's not a line that will win points for subtlety but it's a good way of telling audience that change isn't bad and that it's still the same show we've all loved for the last 55 years.

There was a lot riding on this debut episode for Jodie Whittaker to make her mark and to make it a good one. It's not an episode without it's flaws and it's not going to be my overall favourite debut story for a Doctor but everything it needed to do, it succeeded in doing pretty damn well if I'm being candid.

The Doctor herself - Jodie Whittaker is the Doctor. There's no denying it after this episode. She gets the role and honours the fine men who have come before her as the mischievous Time Lord of Gallifrey while at the same time, very much making the role her own as well. It's not an easy feat and there's 10 episodes left to go (including this year's Christmas special) but she's off to a flying start.

Stranded without a TARDIS in the middle of Sheffield, the Doctor doesn't overextend her post regeneration crisis but the effects are still felt as she's on the hunt for an alien menace named Tim Shaw or Tzim-Sha (Samuel Oatley), who has come to Earth for a hunt of his own with unfortunate crane operator Karl (Johnny Dixon) being the target in question.

Monster wise, we've had better looking/more menacing ones but Tzim-Sha did serve as an adequate enough opening menace, even if parts of his story are clearly Predator influenced along with a sinister take on the Tooth Fairy for good measure. His methods of kills are surprisingly gritty in parts and the use of DNA bombs was pretty clever, even when the Doctor managed to turn it on him along with Karl making his own decision to deal with the baddie after the Doctor neutralised the threat.

As for the companions - well, we've got three of them and they're pretty well defined in this opening episode. The focus is primarily on warehouse worker, Ryan Sinclair (Tosin Cole), a dyspraxia sufferer who along with his grandmother Grace (Sharon D. Clarke), her second husband/retired bus driver, Graham O'Brien (Bradley Walsh) and police officer, Yasmin Khan (Mandip Gill) are the ones to get caught up in the Doctor's crazy world.

The lot of them are thoroughly engaging characters with a natural rapport with one another and with the Doctor. It's easy to see how this lot work as a team and when Grace tragically dies during the defeat of the main baddie, it's an actual gut punch. I genuinely thought she was going to be a recurring this series and was surprised to see bumped off so early as well. I also loved that this Doctor also went to Grace's funeral as well as Ryan, Yasmin and Graham not holding her responsible for what happened to Grace.

As for the costume bit - you really can't beat a good charity shop. It was a good way to see Whittaker gets her outfit and the end scene where all our regulars wound up in deep space during a botched attempt to locate the TARDIS was a nice cliffhanger moment. I know the format for this series is going to be standalone with no two parters but I do wonder if every episode might have a cliffhanger leading into the next one. It could be a fun thing to do. As for the TARDIS, I really do hope it's located next episode. I don't want to wait that long to see what it looks like.

- We didn't see the opening credits but the closing ones were stunning with new composer Segun Akinola evoking some 60's theme music for good measure.
- The next time trailer gave us an impressive list of upcoming guests to look forward to over the next nine weeks as well as a trailer for The Ghost Monument.
- 8.2 million overnights so far, proving that audiences are clearly fine with a female Doctor and that moving the show to a Sunday night was the right thing to do.
- Character bits: Ryan wants to be mechanic, can't ride a bike and is a vlogger, Graham had cancer/is in remission and was married to Grace for three years. We didn't learn anything about Yasmin's family but I assume we will pretty soon. Not to mention poor Rahul (Amit Shah) whose attempts to save his sister resulted in a brutal death by Tzim-Sha.
- Like The Day Of The Doctor, this episode was also a simulcast event. The new cinematic look really highlights certain scenes, more so the day time ones.
- Chronology: September 2018. There was a moment where a drunk guy when he wasn't flinging his salad at the main baddie mentioned that Halloween was a month away.

The Woman Who Fell To Earth is a rather strong opening episode for the Thirteenth Doctor. Is it the best opening episode for a Doctor? Maybe not, but it's certainly one of the most important and while the monster could've been a little better, it doesn't detract from the fact that the episode succeeded in doing everything it needed to do while also captivating casual viewers. I'd say we're off to a good start, am I right?

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of How To Get Away With Murder's 5x02: "Whose Blood Is That?"

Written by Sarah L. Thompson
Directed by Mike Smith

Bonnie: "What were you saying about Nate?"
Michaela: "Whose blood is that? Whose blood is that, Bonnie?"

Well, we can rule out Laurel and Michaela along with Annalise, Christopher and Frank going by this episode. Sticking with the flashbacks - was Bonnie really about to do a runner with baby Christopher before being interrupted? It certainly looked like at the very end of this one before Michaela asked a rather awkward question.

I guess because the question is being asked, it probably means that Bonnie hasn't killed someone but maybe has either watched them die or failed to save them. Right now, I'm still convinced the body will end up being Roland especially as this episode saw him make a move on Bonnie and have her reciprocate it as well. That and our new regulars potentially have more mileage in them as well.

It's hard to tell if Bonnie has genuine feelings for Roland, although his for her do seem sincere enough given his scenes with Bonnie and later, Nate. Speaking of Nate, he seemed to be getting closer to finding Bonnie's son who also was kidnapped by a woman as a baby while Frank upped his investigation of Gabe as well.

If Bonnie and Gabe aren't related, then it does feel like there's a bit of water threading with Frank and Nate's storylines so far. Speaking of Gabe, the character is decent enough and I do like that his interactions with the Keating 4 or Annalise haven't felt forced so far, though the scene where Connor and Oliver were grilling him on his sexuality did make me laugh. I wouldn't be surprised if Gabe winds up hooking up with Michaela or Laurel.

Keeping with Michaela - having her be the one to work on a case of a gay immigrant was a bit ironic considering what she did to Simon. I also think that was the point of the episode as her and Annalise worked to stop a Muslim woman for being imprisoned for the murder of her wife. The reveal of that case's real killer did add something of a sting but it's definitely one of the more interesting cases we've had on the show. As for the tension with Michaela and Oliver, at least this episode might have drawn a line under the sand with it for now.

As for Laurel, I found her way of getting childcare for Christopher pretty underhanded but within character. Last week I was convinced that no harm came to her mother, now I'm back to not being so sure on that one. I do like that both Tegan and Emmett seem naturally suspicious of Laurel and the latter has proven to Annalise that he's not to be underestimated. Out of the two, I'll take more scenes with Tegan than Emmett to be honest.

- Asher managed to get himself an internship working with Roland and Bonnie's at the DA's office. Bonnie did not seem pleased with this outcome.
- Why does everyone go to that apartment when they find themselves homeless? Gabe went there and I bet by next week, he'll have moved in with the Keating 4. I like Annalise's new digs though.
- So far we have Asher, Nate, Gabe, Tegan and Emmett unaccounted for but I can't imagine why the last two would even by at Connor and Oliver's wedding.
- Chronology: Two and a half months before the big Connor/Oliver wedding.

Not as impressive as the first episode but I did like the case of the week and while I was more on Oliver's side than Michaela's, I am also glad that the show won't continue the tension between them. Whose Blood Is That added a little more to the saga with Bonnie right now looking awfully suspicious. As for the grooms of the wedding, hopefully we'll see them soon.

Rating: 7 out of 10

My Review of American Horror Story: Apocalypse - Could It Be .... Satan?

Written by Tim Minear
Directed by Sheree Folkson

Michael (to Cordelia): "How can any of you defeat me when I've already won?"

Four episodes in and it was time to shift the focus. Everyone has wanted a witches vs. Antichrist season and with this episode alone, it's what we're getting. Despite being revived at the end of the previous episode, there's surprisingly little focus on Mallory, Dinah and Coco. Instead, it's Michael who takes centre stage and this episode is all the better for it.

Cody Fern proved himself to be a revelation earlier this year with his performance in The Assassination Of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story and if that didn't convince, then this episode should do as we got to see Michael not living with Constance but instead a Satanist, presumably called Miriam Meade and again, delightfully played by Kathy Bates. Despite having a penchant for poisoning her husbands, Meade genuinely cared for Michael and also facilitated his dark side and he in turn felt genuine affection for her.

Michael's dark side not only attracted the law (who arrested him for a murder he probably committed) but also the Hawthorne Boys Academy. Yup, people, we've got Warlocks and four rather distinctive ones with Ariel (Jon Jon Briones), who bailed Michael out of prison to tap into his magical potential along with John Henry Moore (Cheyenne Jackson), Chablis (Billy Porter) and BD Wong in an unnamed for now role.

I've been properly wanting to see a male coven since the third season and this episode didn't disappoint as the group put Michael through tests that he passed with flying colours while also having to deal with the misandry of the coven, led by Cordelia, Zoe and Myrtle. It seems the male equivalent of the Supreme is the Alpha and in that warlock school there are undoubtedly mostly Betas, so I'm not shocked that Ariel and company saw Michael as the Second Coming to challenge Cordelia.

Speaking of Cordelia - she's still as fabulous as she was the last time we saw her and I loved her lamenting about failing to rescue Queenie from the Hotel Cortez, with Michael managed to do with little effort along with scooping Madison out from her own personal hell. I also quite liked the brief return of James Patrick March and the fact that he didn't even attempt to challenge Michael when the latter came for Queenie.

As for the rest of the episode, things ended still in flashback mode with Cordelia fainting at the sight of Michael with Madison and Queenie in tow. I did find it interesting that Queenie and Madison went to Cordelia without Michael trying to stop them at all. Just what is his playing at here? As for everyone else, they're still dead for now and we had some flashbacks hinting at Mallory's potential as the next Supreme. Or a possible girl crush for Zoe. We'll have to wait and see.

- In flashbacks, Michael was intentionally styled to look similar to his father, Tate. Present day Michael needs a freaking haircut.
- Dinah clearly is aware of being a witch. This episode made that more obvious by her refusal to get involved in taking out Michael. I'm assuming Andre might have some powers as well if he's revived.
- Sheree Folkson who directed this episode, also directed one of the worst episodes of Doctor Who. You can google which one if you like. Tim Minear who previously wrote for Angel also managed to get a Buffy reference in this one.
- Chronology: Not long from where Forbidden Fruit left off. Standout music: Portishead's Glory Box during that final scene.

Easily the best episode of the season so far. Could It Be Satan? hit the heady heights of some of the best moments of Coven and with some fantastic zingers from the likes of Michael, Cordelia, Madison, Myrtle, brilliant flashbacks, music, character bits. Everything about this episode was seriously on point.

Rating: 10 out of 10

Superman: The Animated Series - Episodes 49-54 Reviews

I was going to split this for two blogs but decided to ultimately cover the last six episodes of this animated series in just the one.

Episode 49: Superman's Pal

Ah, Jimmy Olsen. He's not had many episodes focusing on him but as we head towards the final few episodes of the show, we finally get one where he's in the spotlight. Mainly because Angela Chen decided to misquote him and get him some notoriety as Superman's BFF. It's also enough to have intern Tina use him in Metallo's latest scheme to kill the Man of Steel. As an episode, it's mildly diverting, not the best use for Metallo but still rather decent though. 7/10

Episode 50: A Fish Story

With this episode, we can mark another League member off the list. I'd like to think had this series ran for another few episodes that maybe we would've seen either Wonder Woman or Cyborg but at least we got to see Aquaman (Miguel Ferrer) who spent the episode either being a prisoner of Lex Luthor or threatening to take vengeance on Earth dwellers for endangering Atlantis. I did like his rapport with Lois in this episode and at least they didn't make him and Superman too hostile towards one another, which is a good thing. 7/10

Episode 51: Unity

And she's back. Like Batman: The Animated Series with Batgirl, this show really did use Supergirl rather sparingly (and there's even a reference to Barbara in this episode) and that probably worked in the character's favour. In this episode we saw Kara being bored by Smallville and excited for her visit to Metropolis while at the same time also battling a parasitic alien named Unity with her cousin as well. It's a fun second outing for the character and I do like the bond we see Kara having with Jonathan and Martha in this one. 7/10

Episode 52: The Demon Reborn

So this is like the fifth episode we've had with Batman then? If this show had produced another season, we probably would've gotten another appearance, right? I'm not complaining though this one isn't quite as great as his previous appearances. Villain wise, this time around it's Ras and Talia (the former being mentioned in Knight Time) as they kidnap Superman in order to restore Ras back to full health. I did like the scenes between Batman and Lois and Superman playing on Ras's devotion to his daughter in order to outsmart him as well. 8/10

Episode 53: Legacy, Part 1

It's the series finale and who deserves to be the main baddie here? Zod? Doomsday? Brainiac? Lex? Nope, Darkseid as the episode opens up with him and Superman actually working together. It seems that off screen Darkseid got a hold of Superman and brainwashed him into believing that he's Darkseid's son with help from Granny Goodness. It's a pretty good scheme and one that nearly works as well when Superman decided to invade Earth with an army and only Lois and Supergirl to try and talk sense into him. There's a subplot with a Superman robot that Lex quickly sees through and decides to use Superman's sudden turn to his own advantage. 8/10

Episode 54: Legacy, Part 2

The last episode and it's an interesting one to end things on. For example, Superman takes his fight with Darkseid to Apokolips and beats the snot out of the latter, thereby liberating a planet of people who don't want to be free, given how they still embrace Darkseid while back on Earth, his relationship with humanity has been somewhat severed. There's a nice final moment with him and Lois but I can't help being slightly annoyed that she never figured out his real identity before the series ended. Lex got a few bad moments in there too and Supergirl showed her own maturity during one scene with her cousin. For a final episode, it does hit the spot though. 8/10

I guess that's it for the Superman reviews for now. Hope you enjoyed reading these as much as I did watching the series again.

Batman 66 - Episodes 73-76 Reviews

The resolution of one three parter, another two parter with my favourite female character and the start of another three parter in this batch of episodes reviewed.

2x39: The Penguin Declines

Following his absence in the middle segment of this story, the Penguin came back as the Dynamic Duo and Venus escaped being gobbled up by that giant clam from the previous episode. I have to admit Venus's dippiness somewhat grated in this episode as she was easily manipulated by the Penguin to help the Joker try and complete his Zodiac crimes as the two fiends managed to enter the Batcave. Not exactly the first time for the Penguin though. It's an okay resolution to this three part saga. 7/10

2x40: That Darn Catwoman

It wasn't too long ago that Catwoman was teaming up with the Sandman to cause but here, she's back to being her own boss with a new protege unimaginatively named Pussycat, who manages to bring out Robin's bad boy for most of this episode. I have to laugh at Burt Ward's attempts of being bad. I do like the guy a lot as an actor but he never pulls it off that watching him trying to be intimidating during a confrontation with Batman becomes more comical than the script intended it to be. As for Batman, it's not the first time an under the influence Robin spelled danger for him. 8/10

2x41: Scat Darn Catwoman

For once, Catwoman becomes part of the reason Batman gets saved when he grudgingly agrees to becomes Catwoman's partner in crime and while it's obvious that he's only acting along, it's a lot of fun watching this pseudo team up with the pair. I also dig the fact that Catwoman gets to appear in the Batcave and she even seems to get a kick out of it as well. Of course, her general plan is scuppered, Robin snaps out of his trance, Pussycat gets to show some great vocal talent and Catwoman herself seemingly comes to a watery end but we all know she'll be back. 8/10

2x42: Penguin Is A Girl's Best Friend

Someone on the production clearly adores Burgess Meredith a lot. I swear he's appeared the most in this season alone and this is the second three parter he's been as well. This time around, the Penguin is paired with Marsha, Queen of Diamonds and her dotty Aunt Hilda and it's a magical pairing - not from Hilda's end of course, she's still crap on the spell casting front but Penguin and Marsha working on a movie with an unwilling Dynamic Duo is a brilliant plot though. Easily one of the best uses of both characters and the cliffhanger is one of the best ones as well. 8/10

Next blog I'll look into Penguin Sets a Trend/Penguin's Disastrous End and Batman's Anniversary/A Riddling Controversy.

Superman: The Animated Series - Episodes 45-48 Reviews

More returns, a team up or two, a planet under hostile rule and a Lantern rises. Yup, more episodes of you know what.

Episode 45: Obsession

Two returns in this episode - first of all, Lana Lang, who opened this episode promoting her latest swimwear collection with the help of her best model, Darci. The latter then is nearly kidnapped, courtesy of the Toyman and the episode rather succinctly reveals that Darci is actually a robot that Toyman built for company. The ending is actually the most powerful of the episode as Superman assumes both Darci and Toyman have perished, only for that to clearly not be the case. 8/10

Episode 46: Little Big Head Man

A team up in this episode as Mxyzptlk decides on round two of his vendetta with Superman by turning impressionable Bizarro against the Man of Steel and reveling in the chaos of the both of them fighting in Metropolis. Unfortunately this course of action seems to be enough to anger Mxy's higher ups, who decide to strip him of his power in exchange for him performing a good deed. The punishment that Superman comes up with for Mxy this time around is rather fitting. 8/10

Episode 47: Absolute Power

Keeping with the return, this episode took us out of Metropolis and onto another world where Superman quickly discovered that Jax Ur and Mala have escaped their Phantom Zone fates and are now rulers under another planet. It doesn't take long to realise that they're more dictators with a sinister plan for Earth than peaceful rulers and there's a nice team up with Superman and Cetea (voiced by Jennifer Jason Leigh) but overall, it's a slightly weaker episode compared to the previous two on offer here. 7/10

Episode 48: In Brightest Day

Another episode to guest a DC hero and this time, it's Green Lantern. Surprisingly enough, not Hal Jordan though there's one scene where he's suitably name checked. Instead it's Kyle Raynor, who is a co-worker at the Daily Planet, a friend of Jimmy Olsen's and the latest to get a certain ring in his possession, which attracts the attention of Sinestro, who's desperate to get the ring himself. I do think this episode did a good job with Kyle and it was nice to see a few other Lantern members as well for a brief moment at the end. 7/10

Next blog I'll delve into Superman's Pal, A Fish Story, Unity, The Demon Reborn and Legacy Parts 1 and 2.

My Review of How To Get Away With Murder's 5x01: "Your Funeral"

Written by Pete Nowalk
Directed by Stephen Cragg

Annalise (to Frank): "Why do you look like someone just died?"

Probably because we're into a fifth season where on this show we open up with a death or a near one and spend eight or nine episodes ruling out people before the actual victim is revealed? I would say "same old, same old" but as usual, it's fun trying to figure out who the unfortunate so and so will be this year.

Looking at the flashforwards first - we've got Connor and Oliver who might be missing from their own wedding reception, Annalise grooving to the beat before a dour looking Frank somewhat spoils her moment to kick back and dance and of course, the perspective of the victim (which is a new tactic I approve of) who looks like they're about to be suffocated by Bonnie (right Angel of Death, isn't she?) and baby Christopher crying in the bloody freezing snow.

The fact that the baby isn't a year old and is already witnessing murders probably won't end well for Laurel in a few decades time but who exactly is the victim. We've got three new regulars but I don't think it's any of them, maybe not this early into the game, so the only person I can think of is potentially Bonnie's interim boss whom she's playing but even that seems to be a stretch for now.

Speaking of the new regulars - I'm really hoping they're not going to dangle the mystery of Gabriel Maddox too long. At this point, I do think Nate's snooping might have confirmed that he's Bonnie's son but given that this show does like to pull a fast one, he could be someone else's kid too. More than likely though, he's Bonnie's for the time being.

Of course when Gabriel wasn't possibly being investigated by Nate, he absolutely was by Frank, who went out of his way to play basketball with him at the end of the episode. I can't remember what set Frank off about looking into Gabe but I do think it's somewhat reckless of Annalise not to be a bit curious about him.

Speaking of Annalise - I did like her new beginning mantra and the fact that she's now working for Caplan & Gold is an interesting development. It might be a good idea for her not to underestimate new boss Emmett but more importantly, I can't wait to see how Annalise and Tegan are going to fare now that they will be working together.

As for the rest of the episode - having Asher not in Annalise's this season is another interesting move. I'm glad Annalise is calling him out for taking on an immigration cause because he was trying to spite Michaela (who also got rejected by Marcus off screen) while Laurel put the brakes on anything else with Frank by moving into a frat house with the rest of the gang. I'm sure by the end of the season, Laurel will probably end up accepting Frank's proposal though.

- Laurel didn't kill her mother as the latter sent a christening gown for Christopher off screen. I cringed at Roland's nicknames for Bonnie and Nate. A big no to both of them.
- New regulars this season are Amirah Vann (Tegan), Rome Flynn (Gabriel) and Timothy Hutton (Emmett).
- Standout music: Dear God by Lawless and Sydney Wayser, effectively used during the final moments of this episode.
- Chronology: Three months from where most of the action of the premiere took place.

Your Funeral (the words said by Gabe to Frank) certainly kicks the new season off in a great style. It does feel like a little revamp of sorts (as did last season to an extent) while at the same maintaining the craziness we've come to love about this show. Overall, a great start to things.

Rating: 8 out of 10

My Review of American Horror Story: Apocalypse - Forbidden Fruit

Written by Manny Coto
Directed by Loni Peristere

Madison (to Mallory): "Surprise bitch. Bet you thought you saw the last of me."

Fine, let's call it then - Madison and Mallory are evidently sisters then. If the first two episodes have been lacking on the Coven end of the crossover bargain, then this episode somewhat made up for things as it ended with the arrivals of Cordelia, Madison and Myrtle showing up to Outpost Three to resurrect Coco, Mallory and Dinah.

The beginning of this episode signposted that Mallory and Dinah were witches - the former quite blatantly during her confrontation with Michael but the latter with a little more subtlety, implying at a former agreement that was held with the two of them. As for Coco, well this episode just maintained her vacuous nature until Brock put a knife into her skull, so her being a witch might be a surprise by comparison.

Michael's scheming in this episode was rather delightful but despite coming up with the poisonous bobbing for apples scheme that killed everyone else, I don't believe we're done with them quite yet. I won't really miss Andre (he's a bit of a whinger, isn't he?) but I can't see Gallant, Timothy, Emily or even Venable remaining dead for the rest of the season.

Venable in particular really got exploited as the monkey rather than the organ grinder here. Michael kept being a step ahead of her, making her think she was plotting to kill the survivors with her Hallloween soiree and even Meade soon realised that her loyalty was with Michael rather than Wilhemina. The fact that Michael has Meade programmed with the essence of a certain someone was a nice nod too.

As for the rest of the episode, it mostly felt like filler. We know that Timothy and Emily were saved from being executed by the Fist (yes, that's what torturer lady is called), Brock got his way into Outpost Three to kill his ex, so he's still a loose cannon in the place and Gallant might feel a twinge of angst for killing his grandmother. Oh and Andre has mommy issues to match his whiny personality. That more or less covers it really.

At least with the arrival of Cordelia, Madison and Myrtle, the witch element is nicely in place as Michael's plan to take them all out clearly didn't go to plan. How are Madison and Myrtle alive and where is Zoe? I'm also assuming we won't have to wait too long for Misty and Queenie to re-enter the fray as well. One should hope not.

- Looks like we're meeting some warlocks next week, going by the debut of a character in the trailer. We still have yet to meet Cheyenne Jackson's regular this season as well.
- Torturer lady/The Fist used to run a nutritional blog before joining the outpost. That little tidbit of information cracked me up.
- Loved the false memories we saw of Meade from 1963, 1968 and 1988, each Halloween as well.
- Chronology: Halloween 2021 it would seem.

Forbidden Fruit had it's moments of lagging a little, but it certainly picked up the pace from the first two episodes and finally having the witches in the mix should hopefully elevate the rest of the season. I'm also hoping we get out of that outpost in the next few episodes as well.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Wedded Behind Bars Before Release

A few finales in this pile up of programmes that I have recently been watching.

911: I really did think, going by the premise of this show that this was going to be tamer by Ryan Murphy's usual OTT standards but I've been proven wrong and rightfully so. I mean the characters are more grounded compared to some of his other shows but the zaniness certainly hasn't been. Between the explorations of Bobby's alcoholism, meeting Hen's wife, Athena's collapsed marriage and the blossoming Buck/Abby relationship, we've also had plane crashes and a Valentine Day's episode that would've also worked on another show very well. I know the second season has just started on US television but I am savouring this first one and enjoying the hell out of it.

Jessica Jones: Finished the second season, still not interested in catching up with Luke Cage and Iron Fist but eagerly awaiting the third run of Daredevil. Oh right, my thoughts on Miss Jones's second run - eh, not bad. It's second season finale ended the Alissa storyline in a rather messy way while separating Jessica from both Trish and Malcolm while Jeri managed to get some sweet revenge on Inez but other than that, it was a little lacking. Hopefully the third season will get the show's groove back.

Killing Eve: The urge not to go on BBCiplayer and binge the hell out of the show, well it's been hard but I've taken the slower path and with two episodes left to watch, I really am not looking forward to ending it. This series has been one of my favourites this year with both Jodie Comer and Sandra Oh on sublime form as Villanelle and Eve. Both of them have been riveting to watch and now that both our main baddie and heroine are interacting more and more, the episodes have gotten more tense. I do worry that the show could be in danger of humanising Villanelle but then she goes and does something pretty evil and I'm oddly relieved by that. I guess she's just more fun to watch when she's evil.

Krypton: I'm still not gripped as such by this series but it's obviously doing something right because I'm still watching it. I mean, the female characters are certainly well drawn out and characterised - Nyssa being a particular favourite of mine and the hint of Adam being bisexual is a nice move away from comic canon (and odd, given Goyer's previous history with DaVinci's Demons and Constantine though). I guess though the uses of both Brainiac and Zod is probably the biggest draw - some great performances from Blake Ritson and Colin Salmon respectively but Seg El himself can sometimes lack a little. He's not bad but he needs to liven up a little more though.

Orange Is The New Black: Season 6 has not been the show's best season but nor has it been it's worse. There's no denying that it's taken a while to get used to the new set up and reduced roles of certain characters but the last few episodes certainly found it's groove. Carol and Barb turned out to be rather decent antagonists and their exits seemed fitting. A wise decision on the show's part not to overextend their storylines but at the same time, Badison needs to be the next departure as her character has been a massive drag on the new season along with the new guards and anything involving Aleida. Piper and Alex's prison wedding was rather sweet and I'm intrigued to see how the former (as well as Sophia) cope with being free. Taystee's storyline concluded the only way it could but I felt worse for poor Blanca and I liked that Maria wanted to atone for her past actions this season. Red and Gloria had their moments but not compared to previous seasons though and I liked the dynamic with Freda, Doggett and Suzanne. Overall, not a bad season. I will miss the series if next season is truly the last one.

- Shane West will be playing an old friend/upcoming enemy of Gordon's in Gotham's final season (rumoured March 2019). Rumoured that he might be this show's version of Bane.
- Brec Bassinger will be Stargirl for the upcoming DC Universe series of the same name.
- Crystal Reed will be Abby Arcane while Maria Sten will be Liz Tremayne for the upcoming Swamp Thing series.
- Wonder Woman movie writer, Allan Heinberg will be producing a female led Marvel TV series for ABC. Characters have yet to be revealed for the show.
- Marc Cherry will be doing a thriller series named Why Women Kill, focusing on three generations of women who don't react well to being cheated on by their spouses for CBS All Access.
- Robert Englund will be reprising his role as Freddy Krueger for the upcoming Halloween episode of The Goldbergs.
- Elizabeth Tulloch has been cast as Lois Lane for the upcoming Arrowverse crossover event, as well as Cassandra Jean Amell as Nora Fries and Jeremy Davies as Arkham doctor, John Deegan.
- Domhnall Gleeson will star in Phoebe Waller-Bridge's upcoming HBO series, Run.
- A major character will apparently die in Modern Family's tenth season.
- Melissa Joan Hart and Sean Astin have been cast in Netflix's multi cam family show, No Good Nick.

Superman: The Animated Series - Episodes 41-44 Reviews

And now, a continuation of a heroine's debut, more time in Gotham and another baddies causes mayhem for two episodes.

Episode 41: Little Girl Lost, Part 2

The second part to this introduction for Supergirl shifts the focus a bit to Superman being captured by Granny Goodness and the Furies and forced to face Darkseid on Apokolips. It feels a little jarring as I don't think Darkseid was particularly needed for this story but there are some great scenes as Granny soon feels the consequences of failure. As for Supergirl, it's a good round off for her debut onto the series as she somewhat saves Metropolis from a meteorite. Also, there's Jimmy clearly falling for her like Lois has done with Superman. 7/10

Episode 42: Where There's Smoke

Like Granny Goodness and the Furies, I'm actually surprised that Volcana hasn't appeared on Supergirl yet (get on that, CW) and while I'm not hugely familiar with the latter character, this was a good opening episode for her. She could've gone the same way as Livewire but in spite of her crimes and fiery nature, I think this episode did a great balancing act between establishing how dangerous Volcana could be while giving her sympathetic backstory. I am however a little surprised that Superman did send Volcana to a nice beach instead of some kind of prison that could contain her abilities but not enough for the episode to jar though. 7/10

Episode 43: Knight Time

Not a lot of time has passed since the World's Finest three parter, so I was a little surprised that we got another venture into Batman territory but I'm not complaining though. This episode some impressive moments - the use of five Batman villains such as Roxy Rocket, the Penguin, Mad Hatter, Riddler and Bane, only for Brainiac to be the main threat of the episode, given that he took Bruce Wayne captive and was using nanites for his sinister purposes. I did like the team up of Superman and Robin and having the former impersonate Batman was pretty amusing as well. A very enjoyable episode. 8/10

Episode 44: New Kids In Town

With Brainiac being the main baddie of the previous episode, I was a little surprised that he was also the main baddie for this one but eh, whatever. This time around, he decided to back into the past and kill Clark Kent during his high school years. Only this time, he had other trouble as Saturn Girl, Cosmic Boy and Chameleon Boy also went into the past to help Clark from stopping Brianiac with some pretty impressive fight scenes taking place at Kent farm. It's a nice enough episode, though there's the obvious case of wiping most of the characters memories and Lana isn't as well served here as she has been in previous appearances. 7/10

Next blog I'll delve into Obsession, Little Big Head Man, Absolute Power and In Brightest Day.

My Review of American Horror Story: Apocalypse - The Morning After

Written by James Wong
Directed by Jennifer Lynch

Michael (to Gallant): "No need for rules anymore, chaos has won."

It's week 2 in the Outpost 3 house and things have escalated a little. Mr Gallant spent some time in this episode mulling over his nanny issues while trussed up and enjoying a good old time with Rubber Man before indulging in a bit of granny killing, though even that wasn't entirely of his own accord despite the growing tension with Gallant and Evie in this one.

With Joan Collins being a guest star, her chances of survival as Evie weren't especially high and considering her delight in ratting out her grandson's tryst with Rubber Man to Meade along with her rubbing the other chosen ones the wrong way (Coco and Mallory mainly), I wasn't too shocked to see her dispatched off this early in the game. Don't worry though, Evie might be dead but Joan Collins still has another character or two to play in the remaining episodes of the season.

As for Michael, he didn't have to do a lot here to make his presence felt. He's already marked both Gallant and Venable for death and took great pleasure in needling the both of them about their various hang ups for good measure as well. I almost felt sorry for Venable when Michael exposed her vulnerability but that quickly faded with the rest of her actions in this episode.

With Michael's presence raising more questions, I'm glad that both Timothy and Emily had the sense to try and get some answers even if they ended up in Meade's hands and were primed for execution. While I don't expect both characters to make it out of the season alive, I am hoping they do last a little longer though. However, the last scene with Meade, I genuinely did not see coming.

We've had hints of the supernatural but nothing yet aside from Michael but with Meade being some kind of cyborg, I am curious if she's the only one and what her real purpose will be. She did seem to be more sympathetic to Venable when she interrupted the latter's confrontation with Michael, though the trailer for the season seems to indicate she may be switching sides rather soon.

Other than that, very little else has happened here. I'm not sure if the remaining episodes can sustain keeping things so contained within the Outpost 3 set and the way all of them are turning on each other (except Dinah, who actually seems nice enough) - does the likes of Gallant, Coco and Mallory actually deserve saving? I guess we'll find out next week, won't we?

- The Outposts in New York, Virginia and Texas have all been destroyed and I just realised that Gallant has probably had sex with someone who looks very much like himself.
- We still haven't met Cheyenne Jackson's unnamed regular character but I think the trailer for next week might have hinted at witches maybe showing up.
- Did they just add more snakes into the opening credits scene or was that just me?
- Chronology: Seemingly from where The End left off.

An okay second episode, The Morning After had some nice Gallant moments in it and Rubber Man's return was done pretty well but like Roanoke, there's a danger of making things too claustrophobic if we don't get some more sufficient scenes with the outside world. I did like the scenes Michael had with the likes of Venable and Gallant and it'll be interesting to see how he sizes up Mallory next week.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Batman 66 - Episodes 69-72 Reviews

In this batch of episodes, it's time for a little cowl stealing and looking to star signs to commit some dastardly crimes.

2x35: The Contaminated Cowl

Ah, a return for the Mad Hatter and for a second hit, this was a pretty good effort. The episode opened with him stealing a lot of hat boxes and then soon descended into Batman's cowl being contaminated and turning a bright pink before a scientist was forced to help the Mad Hatter steal the cowl from the Caped Crusader. The cliffhanger does end on a rather deadly note for the Dynamic Duo as their days seem to be well and truly over. 7/10

2x36: The Mad Hatter Runs Afoul

There was a good amount of time in this episode dedicated to everyone believing that Batman and Robin were definitely dead, even to the point where Aunt Harriett assigned herself as chief mourner and told another woman on the phone that she could help organise a statue. Fortunately though, the episode did quickly reveal to everyone that the Dynamic Duo were actually alive and aside from a brief moment where Batman scolded Commissioner Gordon for not taking the Mad Hatter's crimes more seriously before the latter eventually got apprehended at the water tower. 7/10

2x37: The Zodiac Crimes

The Joker and the Penguin working together and the plot gets a little bit astrological. I quite like the idea of the pairing although it seems to go a little south when the Penguin is abandoned by his new partner in crime. Still though, the idea is clever enough and you've got one of the better (or more focused on) female assistants with Terry Moore's Venus torn between her loyalty towards the Joker and growing sympathy with the Dynamic Duo in this one. 7/10

2x38: The Joker's Hard Times

Two thoughts went into my head when watching this episode. One - were we going to get a Laughing Fish moment when the Joker went to steal a valuable fish in public and two - did that cliffhanger here inspire a certain moment in the Doctor Who classic, Genesis Of The Daleks? The other big differences in this episode also included the fact that this was the middle part of a three parter (this would happen again this season and once more in Season 3) and that the Penguin himself was nowhere to be seen as the Joker trapped Batman, Robin and Venus with a deadly trap. The way this one ended, things certainly weren't looking good for poor Robin. 7/10

Next blog I'll delve into The Penguin Declines, That Darn Catwoman/Scat! Darn Catwoman and Penguin Is A Girl's Best Friend.

My Review of American Horror Story: Apocalypse - The End

Written by Ryan Murphy & Brad Falchuk
Directed by Bradley Buecker

Mr Gallant: "What's happening out there?"
Timothy: "It's all gone."

Well, this is a season earlier than expected. Mixing the much clamoured for crossover of Murder House and Coven with an end of the world theme, I get the impression these were meant to be separate seasons but combined with certain actor availability and maybe an overlap in outcome, both ideas got merged into one. So far, that's fine by me.

It's not that far into the future where the world has begun to end. We first meet a vapid billionaire named Coco St Pierre Vanderbilt (Leslie Grossman) who along with her henpicked assistant Mallory (Billie Lourd), gay hairdresser Mr Gallant (Evan Peters) and the latter's wealthy grandmother, Evie (Joan Collins) are soon aboard a pilot-less plane heading for the only place that keep anyone safe from the apocalypse but of course, they are not the only ones headed to Outpost 3.

Among the group, there's a bright young man named Timothy Campbell (Kyle Allen) taken from his family due to his gene pool being top quality and a political protester named Emily (Ashley Santos) also inducted into a place for survival from prison. Right now, both Timothy and Emily seem more like our viewpoint characters than the other main players are for the moment. It also helps that so far they're also the most sympathetic of the bunch too along with a growing love for each other that will clearly violate Outpost 3's strict rules on intimacy.

Then there's Outpost 3 itself - a survival camp of sorts for the elite. It's a strict place where the worthy are decked out in purple and the servants gets to be dressed in grey as poor Mallory finds herself becoming unlike everyone else. Running the joint is Sarah Paulson's Wilhemina Venable, whom along with Kathy Bates's Miriam Meade seems to derive an enjoyment in abusing her own rules so she can sadistically torture her guests.

Keeping with the show's penchant for the shocking and because this episode needed an opening death, we got to see poor Stu (Chad James Buchanan) accused of being contaminated along with Mr Gallant and then shot/served as dinner, much to the disgust of his boyfriend, Andre (Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman). Oddly enough though, Evie seemed to be the only one unfazed by the fact that she dined on a young man but given that the only other food option was those horrible gelatin looking cubes, it's a surprise none of the Outpost lot started eating each other to be honest.

With the episode greatly hinting about the outside world being unsafe and both Wilhemina and Miriam using that knowledge to infringe their harsh rules upon the survivors, there was surprisingly little of the actual crossover bits that the recent promotional material had been going to town with. Of course, the arrival of a grown up Michael Langdon (Cody Fern) at the Outpost at the end though did nicely signal that things were about to get very interesting.

- Opening credits has Sarah Paulson, Evan Peters, Billie Lourd, Kathy Bates, Leslie Grossman, Adina Porter, Cody Fern. Both Emma Roberts and Cheyenne Jackson are credited but neither appeared while Billy Eichner was Coco's now assumed dead husband, Brock and Adina's character, Dinah seemed to be a former TV personality.
- The credit sequence has a nice mixture of the music and images from both Murder House and Coven.
- Anyone else get an Interview With The Vampire vibe off Michael's general look? I think that was the intention more than the sparkly look from another vampire themed series.
- Chronology: It's in the future but when has yet to be specified. Standout music also included You Belong To Me.

I can definitely say without a doubt that The End was probably the strongest opening episode we've had since the fifth season and while I can understand some fans being disappointed that certain fan favourites haven't shown up yet, there are nine more episodes to go. This one did a great job with introducing our main players and the post apocalyptic stuff certainly looked effective enough. A great start for a very promising season.

Rating: 8 out of 10

Celebrity Big Brother - Overview On 2018 Autumn Series

Earlier this year, Channel 5 decided with the Year Of The Woman theme for Celebrity Big Brother. The result was Courtney Act winning, so for their second theme, it was more a presidential/Stormy theme, which didn't quite take off to be honest.

As everyone knew before the series was to air, the intention behind Channel 5's misguided initial theme (which got scrapped a few days into the house) was to have Stormy Daniels be a cast member for this series, only for Stormy to (sensibly) bail on proceedings. That said with former Cheers actress Kirstie Alley and reality star Natalie Nunn, that side of the pond was represented fairly well enough, even if the latter grated pretty fast and became the first to be evicted from the house. The rest of the housemates then comprised of soap actors Ryan Thomas and Roxanne Pallett, former footballer Jermaine Pennant, radio host, Hardeep Singh Kohli, "psychic" Sally Morgan, former derivatives broker, Nick Leeson and various other reality people including Daniel Osbourne, Gabby Dawn Allen, Rodrigo Alves, Ben Jardine and model Chloe Ayling. In some respects, not too much recognisable faces.

For the first couple of days and because Channel 5 clearly didn't want to admit defeat over Stormy heading back to the US, the ill conceived presidential/Stormy theme went ahead with Kirstie assuming the commander in chief role with Ryan as her right hand man. To be fair to both of them, they did a brilliant job overall but between Natalie's incessant moaning and trying to create conflict with Kirstie over her own views regarding Trump and the fact that this idea felt like two series too late, I think we all could've done without this particular theme. Luckily for us (and probably due to Stormy being a no show), the theme was dropped after a few days, so the actual storm stuff come come into affect with the housemates being stuck with each other.

The biggest storm occurred halfway through the house when Roxanne Pallett falsely accused Ryan Thomas of assaulting her during a bit of play fighting. It was lucky for Ryan that due to this being on the air, audiences quickly spotted that Roxanne was lying but the fact that the show let it manifest to the level that they did before Roxanne left the house was absolutely shocking. The show has been pretty irresponsible in the past over tensions with the housemates but their actions (along with Roxanne's) contributed to Ryan even doubting himself, which was despicable of them to do. In the end, the right thing was done with Roxanne facing consequences for her actions as even Emma Willis could barely contain her disgust towards Roxanne during that awkward interview while Ryan went on to win the latest series and deservedly so, considering what he had been subjected to while in the house. Of course, Roxanne wasn't the only person who left the house in controversy as a "further incident" also saw the departure of Rodrigo Alves as well. We still don't seem to entirely know what went down there, do we?

As for the rest of the housemates - I think this show helped both Dan and Gabby with general public perception while people like Nick, Sally and Hardeep seemed to fare pretty well too, considering that "bigger" or "younger" people left before any of them did. I'll admit Chloe came across as a bit dull to watch and Jermaine and Ben weren't the most exciting of housemates either (even if the latter was extremely loud). I'm going to go against the grain by saying I didn't much care for Nick but I did find the Sally and Hardeep rivalry interesting, even when it led to a pretty heated discussion on the nature of race, in which I could see both sides (though I sympathise a little more with Hardeep). For me though, while Ryan was a deserving winner, my favourite housemate was Kirstie Alley. Endlessly entertaining, funny, a little mad and an overall a good person, she was a worthy second place and in another series, she definitely would've won the show. While I preferred the earlier version this year, this series after a dull start and some bad behind the scenes decisions did thankfully pick up pace though.

The regular Big Brother starts Friday at 9pm on Channel 5. The show may be taking a break in 2019 though.

Superman: The Animated Series - Episodes 37-40 Reviews

In this batch of episodes, a warrior queen makes her affections known, Darkseid shows he means business and Kara Zor El makes her debut.

Episode 37: Warrior Queen

We've been here before with a powerful female character wanting Superman as a mate and him not being so keen on the prospect but enough about Blast From The Past already. This time around, it's the rather bored ruler, Maxima who is keen on making the Man of Steel her husband and while she's busy making this happen, her handmaiden Sazu plotted with De'Cine to take over Maxima's home planet until everyone worked together to overthrow De'Cine with Superman's more merciful influence rubbing off Maxima a little bit. The final scene with Lobo showing up though was an unexpected delight. 7/10

Episode 38: Apokolips .... Now!, Part 1

Darkseid has had enough minor appearances that the next time he showed up, it needed to be something that actually demonstrated how much of a real threat he could be. This two parter certainly was aware of that and here, we saw him actually make an attack on Metropolis while also getting some interesting flashbacks to Orion being swapped at birth (who comes across as an ally to Superman here) via Granny Goodness. The episode's biggest strength is also Dan Turpin who takes on a bigger role when Maggie is taken out during the earlier attacks. There's also the arrival of Toby as well, which is another point for this impressive two parter. 9/10

Episode 39: Apokolips .... Now!, Part 2

If Darkseid wasn't enough for Superman to go up against, the addition of Steppenwolf was a good way to add to the tension of this story. This show hasn't always dipped into the darkness compared to it's Dark Knight couterpart but this episode really was one of the darkest we've had though. We got to see Superman somewhat subdued before he was able to drive off Darkseid with Orion's help but not before Darkseid went ahead and actually killed Dan Turpin in front of everyone. I genuinely didn't see that one coming and it was a masterstroke, although somewhat signposted given Turpin's larger role in this story as a whole. A brilliant two parter, possibly the best story from the series aside from the World's Finest three parter of course. 9/10

Episode 40: Little Girl Lost, Part 1

I think it makes a lot of sense that before debuting Kara Zor El/Supergirl (Nicholle Tom) that this show had made sure a lot of time had passed before adding her into the mix. Into the final story of it's second season was the right place to do it and while I wish they had gone for a costume that we've seen in the comics and Helen Slater's 1984 movie, the series does seem to get the character right so far. Kara's got a great rapport with Clark and seeing her and Jimmy work together to go up against the Intergang, Granny Goodness (who gets some shocking lines) and the Furies was pretty entertaining. A promising start for the Maid of Might. 7/10

Next blog I'll delve into Little Girl Lost Part 2, Where There's Smoke, Knight Time and New Kids In Town.