Michael B. Jordan Joins ‘Black Panther’ Cast

It’s been announced that Michael B. Jordan has officially joined the cast of Marvel’s Black Panther.

Jordan, known recently for his roles in Creed and Fantastic 4 (Marvel, once again rescuing the Johnny Storms!) hasn’t revealed his role yet, but a source has mentioned it could very well be a villain character.

Black Panther, due for release in 2018, will focus on the warrior king of Wakanda and his sudden ascension to the throne, and therefore the esteemed Black Panther mantle. Introduced to Marvel audiences in Captain America: Civil War, Chadwick Boseman will return as the lead role for the standalone feature, and will also star alongside Oscar Winner Lupita Nyong’o.

Black Panther, being directed by Ryan Coogler, is due for release on February 16th 2018, with production scheduled to begin in 2017.

Russo Brother’s Accidentally Reveal Captain Marvel For ‘Avengers: Infinity War’

Right on the tails of the Russo’s revealing their plans for Avengers: Infinity War, they also let another spoiler slip – Captain Marvel will be in the line up for the Infinity War – Part I.

The blonde hero Carol Danvers, who is due to her standalone movie in 2019, was brought up by mistake by the brothers during an event at the Smithsonian Institute. During a discussion about Infinity War the Russo’s mentioned Captain Marvel by name.

A fan immediately pounced with “Did you just confirm Captain Marvel?”

“Um…” Russo replied, “Captain Barvel. Totally different character.”

Right Russo. Totally. We’re so excited for the appearance of Captain Barvel in 2018. Meanwhile, you can see fan reactions to this under the twitter hashtag “#MarvelatSI” to this and more statements from the Russo’s.

Avengers: Infinity War Part I is due for release May 2018, with Part II following up in 2019, and Captain Marvel will make her solo debut in 2019.

Russo Brother’s Announce Plans For’Avengers: Infinity War’ Part I & Part II

With the UK release of Captain America: Civil War right behind them, and the US release pending, people might think the Russo Brother’s would want to wind down a little, have some time on the down low.

People might be wrong.

In the space of 24 hours, Joe and Anthony Russo have announced two of their plans for Avengers: Infinity War, the two-part feature coming in 2018 and 2019 respectively.

The first bit of news, is that the Russo brothers are planning on a name change for the two titles. So far, Infinity Wars is just a working title it seems.

“It is misleading,” stated Anthony Russo, when asked about the current two-part title for Infinity War.

“The movies are two very different movies,” said Joe Russo, explaining why the title change has come about. “The intention is we will change it, we just haven’t come up with the titles yet,” he said. “But, yes, we will change it. And, yes, that is a scoop: we will retitle them.”

To top off this title change, the Russo brothers then made a nod to how Captain America: Civil War will affect things for Avengers: Infinity War (don’t worry, no spoilers here folks!)

What we do know about Captain America: Civil War is that it features Marvel’s biggest and bravest facing off against each other, in a heated conflict that’s ripped the team into two sides. Regardless of however the Russo’s choose to tell that story, it’s a story that will have an impact that will carry on through, and set the tone for Phase 3.

According to Joe Russo, that’s exactly what he had planned;

“What we love about [the Marvel Cinematic Universe] as storytellers is that we get to tell a story over the course of movies. We get to take the characters on journeys that, again, can be unique to the cinematic experience. So knowing that we’re doing ‘Infinity War’ really informs ‘Civil War’ because we knew we wanted to leave the characters in as complicated a place as possible to set up Infinity War.”

Scary words, Mr Russo, scary words – and yet also, completely reassuring that the MCU and the fate of the Infinity War movies are in the completely right hands. The whole point of the Cinematic Universe is that it’s a universe, and these movies have got to tie into one another and balance each other, even when it’s completely different directors and writers. It’s much like the link people make between Iron Man 3 and The Avengers; Age of Ultron – IM3 effectively ended in Tony Stark retiring and destroying all his suits, and then Age of Ultron opened on him kicking ass, running the Stark Tower as the Avengers Tower, and still very much working as a superhero, with no reference to the arc reactor he had removed from his chest.

The fact that the Russo’s are treating every project they’re given by Marvel as a careful piece to a bigger story, making sure they’re leaving their ends ready for the next beginning, is a massive reassurance for Marvel fans.

Avengers: Infinity War Part I is due 2018, and Part II is due 2019, pending name changes.

Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. SN3E17 – ‘The Team’

This review contains spoilers.

Last weeks episode saw the capture of the team by Giyera, Hive’s new right hand (Inhu)man and also saw a look into Malick’s backstory. We discover that Malick has been following the belief in the exiled Inhuman his entire life – and then we see it cost him his beloved daughter, Stephanie.

This weeks episode sees us gather some previously introduced Inhumans – Joey, from the opening episode of this season, and Elena (AKA Yo-Yo) from SN3E11 (Bouncing Back). Joey and Elena are called in by Daisy and Lincoln, in order to take back the SHIELD bus from Malick’s grip.

This episode was amazing. Remember last review when I said that SHIELD were launching pieces forward? This week, it was kind of like we were having a really pleasant, fast paced game, and all of the sudden the other player has flipped the board and started beating you with it, whilst jamming the pieces up your nose. In a good way.

The Kickass Stuff;

The Secret Warriors were absolute badasses this episode. Their rescue of the team and capture of Malick was fantastic – it looked great, and it was just awesome to see a team of all Inhumans going on the mission. They worked amazingly together, in incredible sync. Seeing Yoyo and Joey work together and take down six men at once in one hallway? Awesome.

Lincoln making his electricity into lassos and holds to throw his adversaries into the air? Awesome.

Daisy in general, but especially swinging down on that chain and sending Giyera flying? Awesome.

Malick had some really great lines this episode too, about religion and faith. I really liked two in particular;

“I believed I could resurrect a God; but instead, I freed the Devil.”

“Oh no, Mr Coulson, it is a God. It’s just not ours.”

I really like these lines because it really is about his faith and how awry it’s gone. All of his and Phil’s interrogation scenes this episode are like that. Phil asking Malick what he expected from bringing back a creature like this, and Malick explaining he was brought up in the faith that it was a God due to bring him good fortune – a God he thought he could work with for power. The breakdown of all of the Malick belief systems has been a great watch, and I love it.

There was also more fun, violent grossness that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. seem to be piling on lately, including but not limited to Simmons cutting open Lucio’s head to examine his brain, us being treated to his scalp being pealed back, his skull pulled off and his infected brain placed on show. But, alongside this grossness, comes the solid evidence that Malick is telling Coulson the truth – Hive can infected Inhumans, make them part of his hive, and control them under his bidding.

Family;

Malick’s grief over Stephanie is absolutely heart breaking to watch. He’s so blatantly devastated by his loss, and it’s hard to watch him talk about her. When he tells the story about her riding Arabian horses, and how he felt so proud she could tame such a difficult breed of horse to ride, it was just really damn sad. I never thought I’d feel this awful and sympathetic to a member of Hydra, but the writers managed to do that with Malick and Stephanie.

The relationship between FitzSimmons is just so wonderful now. It’s developed so naturally, and in the beginning, I never would have wanted this relationship – but now that it’s happened like this, for all these good reasons and through a lot of character development, I’m really happy. And their adorable little interaction near the end of the episode; “I have a magnificent thing right here…it’s the painting, my painting of space.” It’s such a sweet, funny couply moment.

“The seal gonna hold?”

“I hope so, it’s chlorine gas. If not, we’ll all go blind.”

“What?”

Elena and Joey really shined in this episode. Them two speaking Spanish to one another was a lovely touch – shows and movies tend to overlook this small detail, and often make two characters whose first language isn’t English, speak it even when they’re alone together. I like that SHIELD gave them these moments, which are very real and how they would communicate naturally.

MACK AND ELENA. They’ve clearly been keeping somewhat in touch – and I find it beyond sweet that whilst Elena has been learning English, it isn’t all on her to learn how to communicate in his language – Mack has been learning Spanish for her. How cute can two people possibly be?

It makes it all the more devastating when later this episode, she no longer speaks to him. The team had this amazing synergy and togetherness, and it was ruined in one episode.

Witnessing the secret warriors team, who flew into this episode being so kickass and having this really great team dynamic, be torn about. Hive manipulated them horrendously easily, by turning their very fears on each other. It destroyed the trust the team had for each other, by aiding in trying to show that it was Humans vs. Inhumans in this episode. Hive played on all their insecurities and drove this really great start just straight into the ground. The paranoia even spreads to the human agents – May instantly pointing out that Lincoln tried to “pump her full of meds” and Mack having to point out that Lincoln is a doctor and she was injured.

The “OH MY GOD” part;

Yeah, I replaced the “Meh” section with an “Oh my God” part, because this episode deserves it more than anything else. That reveal at the end was absolutely heart-breaking, and it was a huge deal. This episode is just pure, everything people love about this show, because when it kicks it up a notch, it kicks really damn hard. The utter betrayal and loss of someone who is their own is so evident, and it’s a pain we haven’t felt since Grant Ward’s betrayal to Hydra.

After all that happened this episode, Daisy is the Inhuman who’s been infected by Hive. She frames Lincoln, using memories of his violent and short tempered history to manipulate how everyone sees him, destroys her team, steals alien tech and destroys their base – their home. She’s also the one revealed as killing Malick.

I do love that Hive isn’t just controlling Daisy – she’s not totally brainwashed or unaware. She’s completely aware, but it’s more like a heavy inclination – a euphoria and desire to do what she’s told. It’s insanely creepy She’s also so dangerous – she’s a formidable Inhuman, and her fighting skills alone without her Inhuman abilities make her scary enough – throw in the fact she’s a master hacker and that she’s been alongside Phil to know some seriously deep info, and the team are hugely screwed.

If anything, I think this is worse than the Ward betrayal – Ward was in complete and utter control of his senses, and he made the decision to go undercover and hurt the people he was with. Daisy is infected, and doesn’t have a choice in what she’s doing, and no one knows how to cure her or if she even can be cured. It’s a precarious situation for her to be in, especially when we know someone from Team SHIELD is going to die by the time the finale rolls around.

I also noticed this fits in with a recurring theme that’s been going on since season 1 – once again, it’s Grant Ward trying to bring Daisy onto his team. It’s been happening since the beginning, with Ward trying to convince Daisy that his side is the right side, that they could be unstoppable together – and now it’s two seasons later, and Hive possessing Grant Ward’s body goes after a woman he still refers to as “Skye” – it’s pretty sickening, actually, that this need to have her on his team never seems to end regardless of how much they change in-between.

I’m just so absolutely blown away by this weeks episode. It was absolutely excellent, with some of that cold-hearted betrayal I’m somehow still unused to after three seasons. It had awesome acting, great fight scenes and just really flung our story forward full force. I can’t wait to see what more this show has for us, as we are only four episodes away from the two part finale.

The Singularity will air 26th April 2016.

 

 

 

Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. SN3E16 – ‘Paradise Lost’

This review contains spoilers.

Last weeks episode, ‘Spacetime’, finally saw the rise of Hive over Malick, and Daisy was shown a horrifying vision of someone on a shuttle in space being killed in an explosion.

‘Paradise Lost’ opens on a mansion, with a lot of black, old school cars leaving it’s grounds. We’re then informed the year is 1970, and that the two boys are in fact Nathaniel and Gideon Malick – and that this is their fathers funeral. They’reordered into a car and taken to none other than Whitehall. As the car rolls by, we’re brought back to the modern day .

This episode was absolutely fantastic. Filled with wonderful acting, intense scenes and a phenomenal ending. This episode not only moved pieces for the finale forward, it flung them at the audience with a lot of aggression.

The Kickass Parts;

I loved seeing Hydra’s belief system broken down – it’s finally made Hydra look like a larger organisation with different belief systems and branches, rather than just one cult-esq driven united front. It added some serious depth to these guys, making them more like separate forces rather than just hashing out the same murderous villain each time.

I also enjoyed seeing Whitehall again – he was scary as all hell, and he helped add to that layered belief system of Hydra’s – he absolutely mocks the Malick family beliefs, and asks the boys to join his Hydra. Gideon vehemently refuses this.

Leading off from this, I absolutely loved watching Malick’s belief system be so utterly shattered. Usually, Hydra are pretty damn unwavering in everything they do – because most of what they do is murdering and leading the way for world domination. The Malick Family belief was that someone would bring back the exhiled Inhuman and that this would grant them untold amounts of power and control. Granted, it’s still world domination, but it’s very much a deity method of doing so. So watching that firm, almost arrogant belief he has be pulled apart is fascinating – Agents of SHIELD has always been great at character development and emotional stories, so this is just awesome. Top it off with the fact that Malick’s beliefs are being torn to shreds by the very thing he worships – Hive.

Hive taking over Malick’s house – damn. He’s shown in this episode he is in total control over Malick, and it’s so very obvious how frightened Malick is of Hive now. He has absolutely no trust in him, and he’s completely devoid of the arrogant happiness he had earlier this season. I also really love watching Malick’s daughter, Stephanie, and how she interacts with Hive. She follows him with the same awe and devotion that Malick began with, and it’s fascinating to see that contrast of an intense believer vs. someone whos faith has been shaken.

We can also see exactly why Malick fears Hive so much in this episode. Malick reveals the vision that Charles showed him in the last episode; the vision is of his own painful, violent and bloody death. I do really feel like the writers are turning up the violence this season – the vision, which we also get to see, involved Malick’s eyes full of blood and swelling to the point of bursting, while he screams with blood pouring down his head. It’s really intense and creepy, and it’s genuinely understandable as to why Malick’s more terrified of him than anything else. It’s not just that this idol he discovered is more powerful and out of his control – it’s that he saw a future where this idol, who he was promised would grant him an incredible life, is tearing his body to shreds.

We’re also part way to finding out what Hive is, and as we all probably predicted when Ward’s gross skin-crawling corpse showed up in the mid-season finale, it’s not good. Simmons inspects some data and finds out that the way in which Hive is tearing these bodies apart, is that he’s sending parasites to feast on them. Worst part – these little parasites aren’t controlled by Hive – they are Hive. Which is about a thousand times worse and disgusting.

We also kind of get a reveal of Hive’s “true self” – and it isn’t looking pretty, even from the back. The Malick’s and their audience didn’t look overly thrilled at the arrival of this HYDRA Alien they’d all been waiting for, for all these years.

We’re also introduced to a would-have-been Inhuman, James. He’s Australian and clearly beyond paranoid, with minefields planeted around his trailer property, a huge barbwire fence, and a gun in his hand upon arrival. It’s absolutely fascinating to watch him, because he is angry, and he’s clearly feeling the emptiness Lincoln mentions all Inhumans have before they go through the change. Lincoln dangles the Terrigan Crystal right in front of his eyes, and when he pulls it away, James is furious – lashing out and spitefully telling Daisy nods to Lincoln’s past. He’s clearly bitter, and has some drinking and trust issues brewing. I would like to see more of Jiaying’s failed Inhumans explored, and find out just how banishment or denial has affected them.

Of course, to finish off this section – the fight scenes. The fight scenes always get a mention in these reviews, but that’s because they always look absolutely fantastic. This weeks episode had one particular fight scene I adored – May vs. Giyera. This scene was excellent in every single way. The scene looked fantastic for one thing – it was in a stark white room with two people in black gear, who also have dark hair. It just looked awesome. And then the choreography is utterly mind-blowing – Giyera’s fighting style is one I haven’t seen in this show before, and it was so inventive and painful looking. Let’s also give a massive shout out to Melinda May running up a wall and using it to backflip over Giyera. Iconic.

Family moments;

There were some great bonding moments in this episode, and not all of them SHIELD related.

In the SHIELD department, I thoroughly enjoyed Phil and Fitz’s talk about Ward – about whether or not Ward “deserved” to die, and if that’s what SHIELD is about. It’s an interesting conversation to see them have – by all accounts, Ward was vicious and dangerous, putting him down most likely was the right choice. But in Phil’s eyes, it was the right choice done for the completely wrong reason – once again, it’s SHIELD discussing openly about doing the wrong thing for the right reasons, and doing something that could lead to positive results but doing it for personal reasons.

I also really liked this small interaction between Daisy and Mack (yay, Mack’s back!) where he gives her a nice hug and they just talk. It’s so small, but it’s because it’s so casual and looks so comfortable that it’s so important in showing team dynamics.

Also on team Daisy, there was a really great moment between her and Lincoln. I like seeing Lincoln break down – not because it’s funny to see someone try and rebuild their whole life, but because it’s so interesting. Lincoln was a vision of pure calm and serenity when he was at Afterlife – after that all ended, we’ve watched Lincoln react with fear and in some cases violence. He’s not in control the way he was in Afterlife, when his days and life were planned and everything was fixed and perfect. Now he’s been flung full force into the real world, and it’s a lot to take.

I also enjoyed finding out more about him, and this episode featured some pretty dark stuff. It explains that Lincoln was once a violent alcoholic, struggling to fill this empty depression inside him, and that he caused a collision drunk-driving that nearly killed the last girl he was with. Luke Mitchell brings a lot to that confession, with so much emotion in every movement. I’m really enjoying his performance as Lincoln, and I’d like to get to know more.

Honestly though, the family that truly stole the show this episode? The Malick family.

The writers of SHIELD did such an incredible job on this, and I’m beyond pleased Malick isn’t some schmuck Hydra villain they churned out – he had a family and a lot of raw emotion went into it.

There was obviously the relationship with his brother – he put a lot of work into defending that relationship, and trying to keep the truth about their father. There was then the awful moment he betrayed him, and the look on their faces as it happened. It’s clearly a stand-out moment in Malick’s history, one he’s kept hidden all these years. It was so painful to watch Nathaniel talk to Malick through Hive – the horror only coupled by Brett Dalton nailing it by completely changing the tone, by matching this young man Hive met in the 70’s perfectly. It’s a raw, wonderful moment and I loved/hated it.

Then, of course, there was Stephanie Malick. This episode well and truly mastered the art of presenting a deep, loving relationship to it’s audience, before absolutely decimating it. We spend the whole episode watching Stephanie support her father, and her talking about how he’s supported her too. It’s made very obvious that through high and low, in his own way, Malick has supported and raised his daughter with only the best intentions, with love and the need to make her strong and independent. Stephanie then spends this episode bonding with her dad, teasing him and reminding him of the lessons he taught her – they share a scotch in front of the fire and he thanks her, for reminding him of how he should be. It’s incredibly touching and loving, and not what I expected from a family built on Hydra values.

It’s what makes this episode all the more utterly horrifying when it rips your heart out as Hive murders Stephanie in front of her father. First, he completely breaks down her trust in her dad and outs him as a traitor and a coward. Then, when the moments right, he just straight up kills her from the inside out, messily and painfully right before Malick’s eyes. To then add to this, he drops her corpse on the hands with a non-chalant wave of his hands and this statement; “now you know the true meaning of sacrifice.” It’s so beyond cold, and vicious.

I’d like to also take this moment to mention the music choice for this episode, for one particular scene, was perfect. Malick is drinking a scotch in his daughters chair, sitting in front of the fire they were looking into not that long ago. The music playing is this sad, slow piano tune – then as Hive rests his hand on Malick’s shoulder, and tells him he no longer has anything to fear, the music takes this jarring drop. It’s so perfect, and the delivery of the line after the events of this episode gave me absolute chills.

I am pleased to say I have absolutely zero “meh” moments this episode – this was a really solid, exciting episode from beginning to action packed ending.

The ending then leaves us with this; all of our team aboard the bus have been captured by Hydra, taken in by Giyera. The only two outstanding members are Daisy and Lincoln – and Lincoln and Daisy agree it’s time to call in the people on the Secret Warrior’s Initiative. This episode also leaves us with a reveal from Daisy that the vision she had, of the SHIELD agent aboard the exploding space craft, is actually a member of their own team.

This episode was beyond solid, and with an episode focused entirely on Daisy’s recruited Secret Warrior’s only a moment around the bend, I am so excited for this action and fantastic story-telling to keep building on this show.

 

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. SN3 EP14 – ‘ Watchdogs ‘

This review contains spoilers. 

Last episode saw the team say a tearful goodbye to two of their most loyal and longstanding friends, and the precarious position S.H.I.E.L.D. is in politically.

This episode featured the Watchdogs, the online hate group Daisy mentions, that want to take out Inhumans – and now they’re finally on their way to making that happen. This episode also included a look into Mack’s background – at long last! He’s an incredibly mysterious character and I’m glad we get to know more about him.

The kickass stuff;

Once again, fight scenes. I can’t fault them at all. Not only was the choreography great, but there was this really amazing action scene that took place in the Mack household that I just loved. It mostly involved them walking around a dark house, being stealthy and kick-ass, but it was a great scene.

The Agent Carter reference – hell yes! The Nitramene weapon used by the Watchdogs is very much the same weapon Howard Stark designed, and the weapon that appeared in season one of Agent Carter.  I’m so glad to see more references to Peggy and the good ol’ days of SHIELD – I hope they do that more, with more nods to the things we’ve learned from Agent Carter.

Also, Fitz and Daisy team up! Their friendship was so special in Season 2, so I’m glad they’re still showing them as friends, even if Fitz nearly got imploded in the process. Though really, I knew this show probably wouldn’t let that bomb go off on Fitz neck – it isn’t his time. (I refuse to put a “yet” here because I swear to God, I’ll never forgive Marvel if they kill Fitz.)

I loved seeing the two sides of the Inhuman argument meet in the form of family – Mack’s little brother and Mack himself at odds with each other, Mack firmly (and obviously) on the side of “Do Not Murder Inhumans” and Ruben sharing the same fear-mongering view that the Inhumans will cause nothing but death.

Further to that, I loved the different way that people deal with that hatred – because Daisy is all for the SHIELD method of scaring someone into telling you what they need, whereas Mack points out that using fear for answers will only ignite further fires. I think they’re both right, in a way – of course Mack is right, that proving them right by going after them and spreading fear isn’t the way to go, but on the flipside, this group have gone from Trolls to Terrorists real quick, and there needs to be a way to stop them planting more imploding bombs.

Family moments;

Obviously, Mack and his brother were the outstanding Family Moment of the episode, what with them being brothers. It was really good to not only see a SHIELD agent with regular family (something we haven’t seen before) but also to see how Mack’s involvement with SHIELD touches his relationship with his brother. It’s good to see how he hides who he is, and how is brother is so un-trusting and angry towards him for that. I also just, in general, like knowing more about Mack, where he came from, and how it’s shaped him today.

I loved seeing May and Simmons together – it’s not a usual combo for this show, but after the events of Andrew/Lash, it’s not all that surprising they would come together to help each other. I’m hoping they build on this particular relationship, because it’s mad adorable.

I also really liked Lincoln this episode – his whole life’s been changed so it’s about time he reacted with some anger and got treated like a part of his team, even if Phil’s introduction was…unorthodox. I also appreciated that he’s still furious, still so full of anger – but when push came to shove, he wasn’t happy to outright kill someone.

And speaking of someone…Agent Blake is back! And he’s against SHIELD now? And unwittingly working with Hydra/Malick so that’s super awkward. And also really stupid of him. But I hope they explore his feelings on Inhuman’s a little more rather than just leaving it at “He is ANGRY” – of course he’s angry, for good reason, but his anger might not necessarily be directed entirely at Inhuman’s and I’d like a good arc for him.

Finally, I really loved how this episode ended with Ruben and Daisy coming to an understanding. It seemed corny, but I liked seeing them bond over how much they love Mack, and watching as Ruben started to shift his stand on Inhumans slightly from talking to her – and Daisy had this little look of realisation that maybe it isn’t about scaring people, but about trying to talk and show them what the good Inhumans are really about.

The meh;

I’m not so sure how I felt about this episode in terms of plot development. Or much of a development really. It shuffled some pieces along, but it didn’t feel like we made any significant jumps at all. We made little improvements, and it was nice to see certain interactions I mention about, but overall, I just want something to happen. Top it off with the fact there was hardly any actual progress in the realm of HiveWard, and Malick’s plan (other than one moment at the end which felt so out of place after this episode, involving Blake and Mr. Giyera chit-chatting over a missile). I just want to see this show kick it up like a thousand notches, and I really hope episode 15 blows my freakin’ mind.

Overall, I didn’t hate the episode – it had enjoyable moments, and a nice look at our own Mack’s (Alfie’s) background! However, I feel like I’m just waiting and waiting for something bigger to happen, and the two-hour season finale is ever approaching.

Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D. SN3E15 – ‘Spacetime’

This post contains spoilers.

This weeks episode leads off from “Watchdogs”, where we got an inside look on how Maleck is turning Trolls to Terrorists and investing in weapons on a mass scale, while simultaneously we get introduced to Mack’s Inhuman fearing brother, Ruben.

“Spacetime” begins with a homeless man carving a small bird outside the back of a restaurant, and he’s then asked to please leave by the owner because him sleeping out there has put off customers coming in. The owner, realising what’s asking is harsh and unfair, reaches out to give the man some money for a hot meal. The homeless man freaks out and tries to move away – understandably, because when he touches the own, he writhes in pain, staring at the sky and choking, seeming to have some kind of seizure.

After the title card, we are then led to a 911 call recording, in which the attacked owner asks for Daisy Johnson. Understandly, the team are more than confused, especially as this person has zero involvement with SHIELD or any other government body. They get to the scene, to find this owner narrating a sequence of events; then, we watch as the next five minutes play out a horrific massacre – a massacre the owner saw coming. And as Daisy races to catch the homeless man they’ve established as an Inhuman, her fingers brush his – and a horrifying series of events that SHIELD must prevent are shown to her.

This episode was off the chain amazing. For the past few episodes, the audience has been waiting for something to happen – and episode fifteen took us there.

The kickass stuff;

Man, where to begin.

I’ll kick off with this weeks Inhuman – I really enjoyed it. I know the “tortured powered person who can’t touch others” thing has been done a lot, but this was portrayed really well. His power wasn’t just hurting people – it was revealing terrible futures to them. Not only that, but the whole process was excruciatingly painful.

Then, as his past comes out, we find out he was a happy man named Charles, with a wife and a little daughter. After he went through the transition, he left, because not only could he never touch his child again, but if he did ever touch her it gave her nothing but absolute pain, and visions of death. The writing of this episode, combined with the acting of both Bjorn Johnson and Lola Glaudini (Charles’s wife) really portrayed this as absolutely agonising and a heart-wrenching decision he had to make.

Once again, fight scene choreography. I mention this every single review, but hey, when this show stops giving good fight scene, I’ll stop mentioning them. But, seeing as the fight scenes were all wonderfully executed, with gorgeous cinematography and fluid, violent motions, I’m going to keep mentioning that they were great.

Speaking of awesome scenes, I really loved the whole, rushing to change the future stuff – I know, again, it’s done a lot in sci-fi TV shows, where somehow the future is shown to them and the future is awful, so they rush to change it – and they either change it, or the exact same outcome comes about but just in a different way they expect. Watching them rush to change fate, and then how everything falls into place and comes around exactly as Daisy saw, is absolutely amazing. I love putting the pieces together, such as when Daisy thinks Phil is shooting at her and it turns out she’s looking at him in a one-way mirror. This show executed this racing against the future plotline really well, and I thoroughly enjoyed watching it all unfold.

HiveWard is back and goddamn, Brett Dalton, can I get a round of applause for you? His acting this episode (as it has been the entire time he’s been in this show) was out of this world. No pun intended, I guess. Seriously, though, he’s kicked it up into damn good villain notch – again. He looks fearsome, he’s quiet and incredibly formidable. He’s so calm and absolute, and is so all knowing whilst being so new to the Earth. His intelligence and calmness is so measured and easy, that it’s terrifying to watch him, never knowing what he’s going to do next.

What makes HiveWard so much worse is the calmness in which he executes everything. At least with Malick, you can read his emotions – he’s happy, or lying, or angered. For a villain, he was fairly easy to read for an audience; he was generic bad guy 101, here to take over the world.

Hive is an entirely different ball park because he gives away absolutely nothing. He tells people what to do, with no rhyme or reason, he just asks that they do it. He’s calculated and completely devoid of emotion; that is a million times worse than any crazed man looking to take over the world, because this is someone who can, and will, calmly strip human beings down to bits of flesh on a skeleton, and then carry on a conversation as if all he did was bump their arm a bit. That is the sign of something ultimately horrifying.

Finally, I just want to throw out here how goddamn violent this episode was. Like, there was a moment in this episode that made me scream “HE MOUNTAINED HIM!” – Game of Thrones fans, you know what I mean.

Yeah. I’ve mentioned before that Agents of SHIELD, whilst having some gross moments, was never overly violent. It rarely crosses particular lines, especially not the lines its more violent friend Daredevil tends to take – so when it does cross over into violent, bloody territory, it’s always all the more shocking and engaging. The whole episode was full of a lot of blood, death and really graphic imagery that most Agents of SHIELD fans won’t be used to. I mean, not only did that poor schmuck have his entire head crushed, there were other moments, including the pure beating Daisy took. It was so drawn out and aggressive, and it genuinely made you feel like there was a rock in your stomach, watching her suffer that way.

The “Family SHIELD Team Moments;

This episode was not only ripe with kickass stuff – this was such a great episode for character bonding time.

Phil Coulson, back with the quips as always;
“I haven’t seen the original Terminator.”

“…You are off the team.”

And also – “Yeah. Day got weirder.”

I am also completely and utterly here for the “Papa Phil” thing – I don’t care, Phil looking out for Daisy, struggling to cope with her name change and slipping up, and oh the look on his face as he tells her to, “Just come back safe” – it melted me. It’s been a while since we saw Phil care for Daisy the way he seemed to fret about her 24/7, and I’ve missed that dynamic. Now, if we can bring back “A.C.”, please.

I really loved the scenes where they try and re-create the vision Daisy had so they can stop it happening – by sending May instead, and walking her through every single moment. Obviously, this was an important sequence, but it was really good to see them all working so hard together, to watch them try so hard to pull this all together. They looked adorably goofy doing it too.

Final family moment, and this one really broke me, starting with a line from Phil Coulson – “If you don’t go and be with him right now, you’re gonna regret that for the rest of your life.” Andrew, seconds before they get May ready to leave to face Malick and HYDRA, is brought into their base after surrendering himself. He’s about to change for the last time, and he wants to say goodbye.

This whole sequence was pretty awful – May was throwing her all into finding Lash so she could put him down, and then Andrew came to her, calm and knowing, and needing to say goodbye to her. It was a really awful scene, after everything they’d been through and their incredibly rocky relationship, to watch as May witnessed the destruction of the man she loved. It was brutal.

The “meh” stuff;

Honestly, I loved this entire episode. I had but one fault – why did Charles die? Like, I mean, I know he got grabbed by the throat and all by RoboMalick but…nothing, seemed to happen except he got gripped a bit hard? And given the tonne of bloodshed and the crushing of a mans skull that took place not even fifteen minutes prior, you’d think they wouldn’t have an issue being a bit more graphic and clear on why Charles just decided to die then and there. But as I said, this is my one gripe.

Overall, this was such a solid episode. Finally, it’s moved things forward, and not only has it moved them forward, it’s moved in significant and engaging steps. This episode was action-packed, with emotional moments, wonderful characters and fantastic writing. Top it off with the fact Hive has very clearly become the head villain to deal with as the season finale creeps upon us, I’m really excited to see what this show is going to throw at us next. I’m also very interested to see what Malick’s death vision was, and what it is that’s got him so shaken up.

My prediction so far, is that Malick has waded into something way bigger than himself that he cannot hope to control – but I think we all saw that coming after two seconds of HiveWard. I also have a very big feeling that Lash is going to become part of the plan of dealing with Hive – he’s an Inhuman who has a primal urge to murder other Inhumans. And Andrew did say he felt like he had a purpose – so I think this will be it.

I’m also really interested to see what this recurring vision of the view from space, with the cross necklace and the SHIELD logo burning up horrendously – because this isn’t the first we’ve seen of that, and I doubt it will be the last. I’m hoping it’s not a horrific sad sacrifice but when has this show ever been afraid of killing someone?

Also, I’m anticipating perhaps Hive gathering them all in one room under Guest Right then stabbing them in front of their parents. No, just me?

Next episode will be Paradise Lost, airing on Tuesday 12th April.

Goosebumps Alive!

Audience beware…you’re in for a scare.

Most of you will remember the Goosebumps books by R.L. Stine. You know, the ones with the scary yet bright covers with the dripping font, the ones that no matter where you got them from they always looked tattered and old, and the ones that perhaps your parents shouldn’t have let you read.

Or at the very least, you remember the TV series? The one with the terrifying theme song featuring the man with the briefcase, that flies open and pages and pages fly out, one becoming the ominous and always recognisable “G” floating across an unsuspecting town, revealing the horrors in wait there.

If you do, you probably also remember being utterly terrified of them – of the PlantHuman hybrid living in the basement, of the scarecrow walking the fields at night, and especially of Slappy, the living ventriloquist doll.

Well, here’s some fantastic news; Goosebumps is back, and it’s taken the form of an interactive theatre experience under the streets of Waterloo inside The Vaults – and it’s awesome.

Goosebumps Alive opened April 6th 2016, and I was very lucky to be able to attend as a guest for the show. I was incredibly excited – I’ve been completely in love with the Goosebumps books since I was a child. They were the books that got me into reading and into the horror genre in general, and they’re a huge HUGE part of my childhood. So the thought of an interactive theatre experience based on those books was incredibly exciting to me.

Just a pointer – unless you know London super well, this is fairly difficult to find. I’ve lived here my whole life and yet ended up walking in a big circle around it – so I implore you to follow the instructions on the website, and maybe put some Google Maps in there too. (Though Google Maps does get confused and seems to think you’ve arrived when you’re actually around the corner from it.) The hint you’re getting close is a HUGE graffiti-ed tunnel – you’ll know it when you see it.

When you arrive, you’re greeted by very friendly staff who take your name, tickets and explain the next process for you – to please proceed to the waiting area, complete with gift shop, bar/food, toilets and a wall of masks from Ministry of Masks. This is your chance to grab a drink/food/potty break before the show, which you will need to do – you can’t stop or go to the toilets during the show, and it lasts for an hour and a half, so do take the chance to get that out of the way and be comfortable in the show!

You’ll also be handed a card with an animal on it – this animal will represent which group you’re part of and which tour guide you should follow. Each animal will get a different route, and different rooms – this is a good way to split out the massive groups as most of the rooms are really tiny, and it also means if you enjoyed one tour, you’ll most likely come back and try another. I got a Crow.

Then after a brief and wonderful introduction to the tour featuring the theme song and very sneaky actors, your tour will begin, and so will the reliving your childhood and the horrifying things these books inserted into those precious, impressionable years.

The tour is really great – the atmosphere of the show is absolutely wonderful. Everything is extremely creepy, but with a touch of playfulness that really captures the books. Some of the rooms are only a little creepy, while a couple absolutely nail it on the “Oh Jesus Christ No.” scale. There were a few rooms on my tour that stood out; I’ll try not to give too much away, but one involved being in a tiny dark tent with only one actor and her tiny lantern – the atmosphere was absolutely perfect, and the set and sounds combined so incredibly well to give the aura that you really are in a tent in the middle of no where.

Another personal favourite set, if just for the sheer imagination and ingenuity of it, involved two floors – one floor was the kitchen of a young couples home, and the other was the basement beneath. It was a really refreshing way to watch the show, and watch the events of this particular story unfold.

The costumes and set designs are absolutely out of this world. They’re all so intricately designed, and a tonne of work has gone into them – even the seemingly simple sets like the inside of a tent or an unnervingly average apartment room.

The acting is fantastic – they’re clearly enjoying themselves, playing up into their roles with a tonne of enthusiasm and eagerness. They make the loud, eccentric moments very boisterous, and the quiet, creepy moments incredibly intense. They’re obviously a huge, huge part of the show, and they all fit their characters beautifully.

I feel like some stories could have been a bit longer or more intense – a few had some missed potential or felt a little bit short here and there. For the majority though, I really enjoyed it.

Overall, Goosebumps Alive has a tonne of heart. You can tell it was created and executed by people who loved the books, who loved the shows and who just loved bringing all this to life. It’s an exceedingly fun night out, with jump-scares, imaginative sets and a lot of surprises. And, of course, the overwhelming, nightmare inducing nostalgia for the thrill and excitement of a good old tattered copy of a Goosebumps book.

‘Kingsman 2’ Title and Plot Details Revealed!

Kingsman: The Secret Service, the crime/sci-fi/spy movie released in 2015, raked in over $414 Million world-wide and received positive critical reception as one of the most bonkers spy movies to be released. Based on the comic book The Secret Service by Dave Gibbons and Mark Millar, the story focuses on members of a secret spy society trying to thwart a megalomaniac billionaire (Samuel L Jackson) who is planning a mass genocide. It was a welcome refresher in terms of British spy movies from the broody, super slick James Bond, and it’s no wonder that the sequel has been highly anticipated.

Today, details of the sequel have been released.

Kingsman: The Golden Circle is the official name of the movie and (much like it’s predecessor) the plot sounds absolutely insane.

The plot will see Eggsy (Taron Egerton) and Merlin (Mark Strong) head to the U.S.A. to work with the “Statesmen” – who’s secret hideaway is disguised as a whiskey distillery. Once there, they will be greeted by Ginger (Halle Berry) who will lead them to combat with the movies villain, Poppy (Julianne Moore.)

Matthew Vaughn, director, said whilst discussing the sequel with Empire that while he doesn’t see the need for another Church scene, this movie will feature “other sequences you’ve never seen before.”

Sadly, at this time Colin Firth has not been confirmed for the sequel, though Vaughn has mentioned trying to find a way to bring Harry Hart back to the movies – further casting for Kingsman: The Golden Circle is yet to be announced.

Kingsman: The Golden Circle is currently set for release on June 16 2017.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. SN3 EP13 – ‘Parting Shot’

This review contains spoilers.

Last weeks episode finished off with Hunter and Bobby in the belly of a plane that Malick is riding off in, after his success in turning Anton Petrov to his “cause” and convincing him that Phil Coulson is the head of Hydra.

The episode opens on Bobby and Hunter being interrogated by Russian authorities. After a small sequence, we cut to Bobby and Hunter elsewhere – and a caption reads ’34 hours before’ – instantly, I’m excited. I’m a huge sucker for narratives where you’re presented with a current situation, and then the rest of the time is spent showing you how the characters got there.

Kickass, really great things about the episode:

This was a really Hunter and Bobby centric episode, and seeing them work together was actually really great. We haven’t had a hugely intense look at them working together in SHIELD so a whole episode dedicated to them? Awesome.

It was also cool to see them discuss their relationship in terms of SHIELD, and them bringing up the sacrifices they’ve not only made as a couple (never getting to go away together, no honeymoon), but as people – namely, the fact SHIELD constantly makes alliances with people they shouldn’t, Ward being a prime example. They constantly talk about the ‘Greater Good’ but then they end up getting damaged later.

The fight scenes this episode were incredible – they were really wonderfully choreographed, as per usual with this series, and there were some really stand-out moments – slow-mo Daisy kicking ass, Daisy and Bobby fighting together, and Bobby and Hunter fighting off security guards. It’s just awesome.

The episode twist, of going from Espionage to Assassination real damn quick. I loved that the initial plan was infiltration and intel gathering, because SHIELD is in a terrible position, and if Russia thought America was coming in hostile on them, it would cause a lot more problems for just SHIELD. I also liked this weeks Inhuman – a man who could manifest his shadow as a sentient being. He was also a political Inhuman, and the first of his kind.

Enjoyable family moments I loved:

So first things first, MACK IS BACK. After his mysterious just not, being around at all for the last episode, I was glad to have him and his sarcastic quips back. I also have a note about this particular exchange;

“You’re going to need some transport, is that going to be a problem?”
–Insert Hunter punching a Russian man in the face-
“No, I think we’re good.”

What we also learn from this episode are that Hunter and Bobby are the King and Queen of bullshitting. The detective interrogating them says something along the lines to Hunter of “It’s impressive. How you can talk about absolutely nothing and make it sound like information” – that sounds an awful lot like most adults.

FitzSimmons are BACK! Finishing each others sentences and working together again – it’s really fantastic to see and it made me really excited. This was especially heightened by the fact that Hunter apparently shares nature documentaries about the planet dying with the two and gets them to watch them so they can all sit and discuss it together – absolutely adorable.

I think we all also know the ultimate team moment of this episode: the ending. But I’ll come to that later.

The “meh”/”why.” stuff;

 This episode didn’t have many moments I didn’t like – but one moment I did sigh at was May’s speech to Hunter about how she’s still angry about him shooting Ward even when it could cost Andrew (SN3 EP4 – Devil’s You Know) – but then she talks about how SHIELD is for the great good? Don’t get me wrong – anyone and their dog knows Hunter’s choice was driven mostly by vengeance for Bobby, but considering Ward was the head of Hydra, and he had a metric tonne of weapons at his and Hydra’s disposal, I would honestly say he made a better call than risking Ward getting away. So I feel like that moment was a contradiction – but, it did lea to Hunter and May being friends again, and Hunter making quips later to her that she smiles at.

Overall, I really liked this episode – I feel like it’s my favorite so far of 3B. The narrative was great, the cinematography and fight choreography was really something else, and it was one of those great episodes where the team act like a family. I also felt like this episode, while seemingly filler, moved character issues forward a bit more. We had a major change in the teams layout, and it also gave a close look at just how precarious a position that SHIELD is in right now. This precarious position is only more heightened by the fact Malick has political influence all around the world – making him all the more formidable, because he is untouchable.

The final scene of this episode with The Spy’s Goodbye broke my heart. It was such a bittersweet ending, and by the time the second shot had been purchased for Hunter and Bobby’s table, I was an absolute mess.

It was such a beautiful way to say goodby to two really significant characters from the SHIELD roster, two agents that have come so far and become such an integral part of the team. It really solidified that these people aren’t just spies who work together – they’re a unit, they’e friends and they love each other. This final scene was so perfect, and a fitting farewell to two great Agents – for now, at least.

Seeing as their was no hide nor hair of HiveWard this episode (which surprised me considering his huge dramatic ending in The Inside Man), I imagine next episode will bring him forward. Given the ending of the episode featuring Malick’s daughter who wants to meet “someone” – and I can only assume that someone is Hive.

I’m hoping that from this point on, with the new team and information, we’ll start to see major progress and we’ll build up to an incredible, action-filled finale that this show has now become famous for.