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alexbigaliy
Reviews
Andor: Nobody's Listening! (2022)
PRISON DRAMA
I definitely wasn't a fan when going into this prison arc, but with this episode it's really grown on me. Since the first Andor episode, I've been a fan of this realistic, gritty take on the Star Wars universe. I love this show possibly even more than the mandalorian but these past few episodes have made me understand why some viewers pass up on watching this show. Andor is a real slow-burn... mostly in a good way. This episode, however, nothing really happened and I understand they need to set up the finale to this arc but some bits really really drag. Luckily, the writing and acting just about keeps me interested in those bits. I just love Andy Serkis and his character SO SO MUCH, I'm so glad they cast him again even though he played Snoke. The final scene with Ulaf, Andor and Kino Loy literally gave me goosebumps... just great stuff! Obviously, next episode will be all about breaking out of the prison and I'm somewhat excited to see how they'll go about it. I have a feeling some characters are gonna be killed off in the next one.
Guillermo del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities: Lot 36 (2022)
Creepy, Grounded, But Not There Yet...
'Lot 36' was a decent start to the 'Cabinet of Curiosities', but did not quite meet my expectations. Contrary to what many reviewers think, I loved the slow, grounded approach to this story, however I agree that the pacing should have been adjusted to avoid cramming that ending into the last few minutes. At its best, 'Lot 36' was tense, suspenseful, and somewhat intriguing. The episode has an interesting yet basic concept, and I found almost all of the performances to be pretty solid. I didn't understand why the protagonist was made to be an absolute jerk... it really made him not relatable and prevented me from rooting for him in the end. 'Lot 36', coming from Guillermo Navarro, a cinematographer, was really nicely shot and overall the soundtrack was unsettling and subtle.
I rate this one a 6.5/10, because it just took too long to get good and just when it did... it ended. I cannot say I did not enjoy this, but there was really no scare factor and this concept could have executed much better. I am sure there are better entries to come but 'Lot 36' was not just there yet.
Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi: Resolve (2022)
A Solid End to a Great Star Wars Anthology Series!
'Resolve' is the first episode out of Tales of the Jedi to be set after order 66 and 'The Clone Wars'. This entry is really visually beautiful and stunning. I was intrigued by the events in Ahsoka's life post order 66, and it's good to see Stars Wars filling some gaps. I found this episode, too, gave strong final season of 'The Clone Wars' vibes, and I fully loved it. As in most of these episodes, the story line was very simple, but it was great to seethe extent of Ahsoka's power again at the end of the episode. Of course I just have to mention the incredible, menacing design of the inquisitor, and it is a shame the duel was so short but I feel it showcased Ahsoka's strength. I thought the score was great and though I did not have high expectations for this show after seeing some negative reviews online, it really pleased and I had a wonderful time with this. 8.5/10
Great stuff, and thanks for reading!
Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi: Practice Makes Perfect (2022)
Missing Clone Wars Episode... 'Perfect' Indeed
Wow it is great to be in the Clone Wars era! 'Practice Makes Perfect' is visually solid and does exactly what it is supposed to: it is a missing 'The Clone Wars' episode for the clone wars fans! It is immediately obvious the training scenes parallel scenes from the epic final arc of 'The Clone Wars', during order 66, and while this is not necessarily necessary, seeing the backstory is interesting and thoroughly entertaining. Through this episode I was thinking of putting it at an 8/10, however the ending, and we have to talk about the ending, was amazing. I was not expecting a full-on flash-forwards and it was truly epic. I felt the goosebumps through my body and it instantly elevated this episode to an 8.5-9/10.
Really great stuff!
Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi: The Sith Lord (2022)
An 18 Minute Journey to the Prequels!
'The Sith Lord' is arguably the best episode of Tales of the Jedi at an 8.5/10. Wow, I thought this episode was, firstly, visually gorgeous as ever, but also emotionally complex. This entry truly digs deeper into Count Dooku's character like never before, and surprisingly acknowledges Qui Gon Jinn's death. Its more dramatic elements are extensive yet perfectly balanced, and the score... oh the score! The score took me right back to the prequels, and I absolutely loved the duel between Dooku and Yaddle.
Overall, this episode truly pleased me, and instantly made me forget how bad episode one was. This one is really for the prequel fans, and what an end to the Count Dooku arc...
Great stuff!
Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi: Choices (2022)
Mace Windu and Count Dooku Are BACK!
Tales of the Jedi continues to get progressively better, and 'Choices' beats both previous episodes in this anthology series. This entry not only is intriguing, but also much more colourful and therefore more visually beautiful. I know the plot was very simple and somewhat predictable, but I was thoroughly entertained throughout this watch. I thought 'Choices' balanced all of its elements masterfully: the drama, the sabotage, and the more serious undertones. Overall, the themes somewhat reminded me of 'Andor', which I really love. I can stress how great it was seeing Mace Windu and Dooku again in this episode, and although I know these episodes feel too familiar with 'The Clone Wars' and 'The Bad Batch', everything seems to just expand the Star Wars universe just a little bit more.
Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi: Justice (2022)
This one does Tales of the Jedi 'Justice'
This episode, though I rated it a 7.5/10, was immediately much more interesting. Personally, I loved the tone and dull colour palette emphasising the supposed inferiority planet. 'Justice' was something completely different to 'Life and Death', the first episode and I just must mention that it was really great seeing Count Dooku again. 'Justice' took me back to some of the side stories in 'The Clone Wars' series, was very intriguing, and had some more serious undertones I picked up on. I thought this episode did justice to both Dooku and Christopher Lee, chronicling Dooku's motivations and foreshadowing his eventual turn to the dark side.
Good stuff!
Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi: Life and Death (2022)
A terrible start to an otherwise great series!
Starting off positively, 'Life and Death' gave us some stunning visuals of the natural world in the Star Wars universe, which added to some of the other good world-building elements. I thought the score was nothing out of the ordinary, but fit this episode well.
Personally, I found the animation in this particular episode a bit odd at times, especially when the yellow beast was introduced. Although the style bugged me, it was not bad enough to turn me off, however I thought the episode was boring and incredibly simple. This story was very predictable, added absolutely nothing to, and was unnecessary for the Star Wars universe. The writing for this to be good was just way too lazy... I cannot even see Ahsoka stans going crazy for this one.
Fortunately, 'Life and Death' is the odd one out, since five of the other episodes in this series were great...in their true 'Clone Wars' fashion.
Andor: Announcement (2022)
Spectacular Writing and An Episode that is the Bridge Between 6 and 8
It's been roughly a month since the first three episodes were released, and Andor has continued to amaze me. This cinematic show is a brilliant addition to the Star Wars franchise and universe, and has already given us the Star Wars' material this year.
'Announcement' continues Andor's political thriller arc with Mon Mothma and Luthen, while taking its time with Dedra Meero and others on the imperial side. The dialogue is written thoroughly, especially at Mon Mothma's dinner party, and often when episodes of Andor lack any action, the intense sequences of dialogue are left to impress and inform us. Furthermore, the flashback scene that shows exactly what happened to Clem, Andor's adoptive father was excellently done, while still managing to emphasise the contrast between past and present, with the clone and storm troopers marching around the same area. Clearly, the show is trying to explore both the rebel's and empire's sides by creating interesting, multi-sided characters such as Skeen, Mon Mothma, and Syril.
Personally, I felt as though 'Announcement' was a half-filler episode placed to give us a break, and act as a bridge between the incredible ark that exploded in episode 6, and the new ark in Niamos that, I think, already began at the end of this episode.
Though for the most part this episode was great, I did not like the transition to Niamos. It was, in my opinion, too fast and out of pace with the rest of the episode and did not fit in. It was great seeing K2SO again, and I think Andor will pick up with Andor escaping his sentence in the next episode. Another downside was the continuation of Syril's arc; it has gone on for four episodes now, the slow pace and lack of pay off slowly eats away at my interest in his character, though I loved him in the first three episodes.
I am sure Andor will get better again as we transition from arc to arc, and I cannot wait for what this show has in store for its climax. Thanks for reading the review, even if you haven't read the whole thing, and I hope you enjoyed the episode!
Andor: The Eye (2022)
Greatest Hour of Star Wars... EVER! A Thrilling, Suspenseful Episode and a Brilliant Payoff!
Unbelievable! Truly unbelievable! I had lost all hope with Marvel's decline and highly anticipated shows such as Boba Fett and Obi Wan turning out to be extremely mediocre, and then comes this masterpiece in filmmaking. Andor truly surpasses all expectations, and all the episodes of build up explode into a perfected mid-season finale. A brilliant hour of thrilling suspense and a pay of that is really worth it, what an ending!!! The cinematography and absolutely amazing score elevate this episode to levels even The Mandalorian and The Clone Wars have never seen... I'm lost for words because this has been a truly unforgettable experience. Cannot wait to see what Andor has in store for us next.
Better Call Saul: Plan and Execution (2022)
Plan and 'Execution'
One by one, the characters are going. First Nacho, now Howard Hamlin. Truly, Howard's death was the saddest because he never did anything to deserve the awful things Kim and Saul did to him. The last episodes have been setting up this mid-season finale and it surely pays off. Possibly, this is not worth the 9.9 IMDb has given it, but it is definitely one of the best episodes in the series.
The Book of Boba Fett: Chapter 1: Stranger in a Strange Land (2021)
It's just the start...
While it's true that this episode is pretty reserved, I think that it's a nice way to start the show. This filler is exactly what we needed, and it was great to see the different sights of Tatooine so much later in the saga.
The action scene was a mix of great and not-so-great in my opinion (Boba could have used his jet pack to fly over the shields).
The flashbacks to the Tusken camp are a bit too long, but I remain sure the show will develop to higher things towards the end.
It was great to see the all the alien races again throughout the episode, for example the rodian, and twilek running Mos Eisley
Morrison is great at playing Boba Fett and Ming Na Wen also delivers a strong performance, so I think this show will only get better from here.
That's it for my review and I'd love to see any characters like Mace Windu returning.