(courtesy The Jim Henson Company) This was originally published on this blog on 21 December 2016. Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas, a production of the Jim Henson Company based on Russell and Lillian Hoban’s 1971 book of the same title, is a delight in every sense of the word. Packed full Continue Reading
#ChristmasInJuly book review: There’s Something About Merry (Mistletoe Romance #2) by Codi Hall
(courtesy Sourcebooks Casablanca) When it comes to Christmas novels, and really many forms of festive storytelling, the much observed truism that there is nothing new under the sun is well and truly borne out. That’s not necessarily a criticism since those of us who love the season love the tropes Continue Reading
Movie review: Oppenheimer
(courtesy IMP Awards) As a general rule, we like to think of history as a thing of clean, linear beauty – x happens, y results and time marches inexorably and uncomplicatedly on, consequence following action over and over until fact stacks upon fact and the story of humanity is told Continue Reading
Existence is absurd: Trailer and poster arrive for the fabulous weirdness of Strange Planet
(courtesy IMP Awards) SNAPSHOTWhat happens when you mush the everyday and the extraordinary to the most absurd level? Based on The New York Times No. 1 bestselling graphic novel and social media phenomenon of the same name, Strange Planet is an hilarious and perceptive look at a distant world not Continue Reading
Decay is an ever-present constant on the human journey: Foundation S2, E2 review
(courtesy IMP Awards) As we wade further into the end of Empire (Lee Pace) and empire – the one rules, the other is ruled over but they are on and the same – it’s becoming increasingly clear that the purported saviours of humanity and its shaky grasp on galactic civilisation Continue Reading
Show the world what love is made of: Full trailer and poster drops for Heartstopper season 2
(courtesy IMP Awards) SNAPSHOTNick (Kit Connor) and Charlie (Joe Locke) navigate their new relationship, Tara (Corinna Brown) and Darcy (Kizzy Edgell) face unforeseen challenges, and Tao (William Gao) and Elle (Yasmin Finney) work out if they can ever be more than just friends. With exams on the horizon, a school Continue Reading
Book review: Chasm (Glacian Trilogy, book 2) by Stacey McEwan
(courtesy Penguin Random House) If you’re going to make a fantastical world feel somewhat believable and authentic, and yes, fantasy needs to feel lived-in and humanly possible in some respects for the conceit to really stick its landing with readers, then you need three key things – taut, compelling and Continue Reading
Higher. Further. Faster. Together. The Marvels has a new trailer and poster
(courtesy IMP Awards) SNAPSHOTCarol Danvers (Brie Larson) aka Captain Marvel has reclaimed her identity from the tyrannical Kree and taken revenge on the Supreme Intelligence. But unintended consequences see Carol shouldering the burden of a destabilized universe. When she discovers an anomalous wormhole linked to a Kree revolutionary, her powers Continue Reading
Boldly going in narratively different directions: Star Trek – Strange New Worlds S2, E 6 (“Lost in Translation”) and E7 (“Those Old Scientists”)
(courtesy IMP Awards) One of the thing I have always loved about Star Trek is its capacity for endlessly diverse and vibrantly creative storytelling. Much like the people and worlds that populate it, the franchise is possessed of the ability to be a searing drama in one episode, indicting a Continue Reading
Movie review: The Land of Short Sentences (meteri sekundet)
(courtesy IMDb) Marie (Sofie Torp) and Rasmus (Thomas Hwan) are in love. Really, really, all-in, in love, the beating of Danish film Meter i sekundet (The Land of Short Sentences). He’s an up-and-coming poet, big on the Copenhagen artistic scene, and she’s a bon vivant city dweller and writer who Continue Reading