In late 2004, after Quinlan Vos is welcomed back by the Jedi Council and Anakin seemingly kills Asajj Ventress in “Republic” Issue 71, Dark Horse’s Clone Wars saga split into three parts leading up to the May 2005 release of “Revenge of the Sith.” Obi-Wan and Anakin hunt Ventress in the “Obsession” miniseries, “Episode III” villain General […]
The 2004 run of “Republic” marks some of the finest ongoing “Star Wars” storytelling. Primary writer John Ostrander balances his long-running Quinlan Vos saga – taking the shadow-dwelling Quinlan up to his return to the Jedi Order and keeping us guessing about his true loyalties – with treatises on the relationship between war and the loss of […]
Most of Dark Horse’s Clone Wars campaign was fought in the pages of “Republic,” but a notable exception is the five-issue “Jedi” series — 2003’s “Mace Windu,” “Shaak Ti,” “Aayla Secura” and “Count Dooku” and 2004’s “Yoda.” These double-length issues were part of the ongoing “Republic” continuity, but they also focused more deeply on an individual Jedi […]
Begun, the Clone Wars did, in Dark Horse Comics with “Star Wars: Republic” Issues 49-59 in 2003. This the start of what I call Phase I of the Clone Wars, with Phase II being the 2008-14 TV series (and related books and comics) with Ahsoka Tano as Anakin’s Padawan. While I prefer Phase II, Phase I has […]
Movies that have plot holes, shaky characterizations or structural problems are often sources for great novelizations, as the format allows for deeper exploration that may have been lost in the directing or editing process. More so than any other “Star Wars” movie novelization, “Episode II: Attack of the Clones” is ripe for this sort of improvement. Author […]
In the ongoing push to take “meta” to new and absurd levels, “Play It Again, Dick” (Tuesdays, CW Seed) joins the likes of “The Comeback,” “Episodes” and “Extras” (or James Van Der Beek playing “himself” on “Don’t Trust the B—- in Apt. 23”) as it chronicles the making of the fake “Veronica Mars” spinoff “Private Dick.”
First episode impressions (TV review): The “Batman” prequel gets off to a great start under the direction of Danny Cannon.
TV review: Everyone behaves like jerks toward everyone else as “Gilmore Girls” moves firmly into the Rory-and-Logan era.
A year ago, I announced that the lineup of new fall shows was the worst in two decades, and although I ended up liking (and now mourning, since they were canceled) “Almost Human” and “Super Fun Night,” I think my prognostication was accurate. Now I’m here to say that the fall of 2014 looks worse. […]
In this age of hook-laden, high-concept summer TV shows, it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. “Fargo” (FX) maintained its momentum all the way through its first season, culminating in Tom Hanks’ son satisfyingly blowing away Billy Bob Thornton’s almost parodically vile Lorne Malvo. And it looks like “The Strain” (9 p.m. Central Sundays, FX) is in […]