Big Finish Review-Doctor Who: We are the Daleks

“We Are the Daleks” marks the beginning of a new era for Big Finish, which has released over 200 audio dramas and now seeks to provide a fresh entry point for new listeners. Each Doctor will lead a new trilogy of stories, starting with the Seventh Doctor and Mel.

Set in 1987, the UK is a divided nation with striking workers in Bradford and wealthy stockbrokers in the City of London. Alek Zenos, the enigmatic head of the Zenos Corporation, offers an economic miracle to Britain, which proves too tempting for politicians and investors alike. While the Doctor investigates the Warfleet computer game craze, Mel goes undercover to uncover the truth about Zenos’s partners.

The Daleks have a new plan to conquer the universe: economic power through the free market. This old-school Dalek story pays homage to previous Dalek tales of the era while satirizing Thatcherism and the “greed is good” campaign.

McCoy excels as the Seventh Doctor, my personal favourite from the classic era. His final speech to the Daleks is chilling and on par with Matt Smith’s speech in “The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang.”

Big Finish excels at giving characters a second chance, as seen with Bonnie Langford’s Mel. Underserved on TV, Mel was originally intended to be played as Violet Elizabeth Bot. Big Finish has unlocked Mel’s full potential, turning her into the companion she should have been on screen.

This multi-layered story explores themes of ambition, greed, and exclusion, even taking a jab at Michael Fish. “We Are the Daleks” is an excellent start to Big Finish’s new era.

Leaked Lucasfilm picture confirms Spin-Off

Yesterday Lucasfilm announced there would be a Han Solo anthology movie, focusing on the adventures of the young scruffy looking nerf herder. Now, it seems that Lucasfilm’s other big Comic-Con announcement has leaked online. 

Now, the photo could be faked. But apparently someone working at San Diego comic con managed to snap this pic of LucasFilm’s full line-up.

The two interesting things here are the confirmation of the much rumoured Obi-Wan Kenobi solo film called Kenobi: The Balance of the Force and the Fett/Solo Anthology film. 
Like I said, it was announced that Han was getting his own movie. But now it looks like Fett will also appear. 

Like most people, I had my problems with the prequels. But Ewan McGregor was not one of them. It would be awesome so have him reprise his role. There’s certainly a story to tell. 

Rumour X-Men/Fantataic Four crossover due in 2018.

The very reliable Latino-Review are reporting the X-Men may team up with The Fantastic Four in a cross-over in 2018. 
But before that can happen, the Fantastic Four reboot and its sequel (due in 2017) have to make a huge amount at the box office. X-Men: Apocalypse also needs to make a respectable amount, which is a safe bet when you look how well Days of Future Past did.
So a lot of things need to align before that can happen, but given that every single studio wants an Avengers, I would say 2018 is looking pretty good for a crossover. 

The possibility alone has me excited. 

Review-Entourage

Before we begin, It’s worth noting that the Entourage movie isn’t made for critics, it isn’t made for the general public. It’s made for the Entourage fans. I was a huge fan of the HBO show that begat this. When the show ended in 2011, I felt a void in my heart that could only be filled by a follow up.

The movie picks up an unspecified amount of time after the TV series, it could be two weeks, it could be two months. Vince is now freshly divorced after a nine day marriage and his former agent is now a high-flying studio boss, who has the perfect role in mind for Vince.
There’s just one catch, Vince wants to direct, can Vince direct? It doesn’t matter. In fact the overall plot of the movie doesn’t really matter, what’s important is that the boys are back in town.

If I have one criticism it’s that it doesn’t feel like a film, it feels like four episodes of the TV series stitches together, but that is also the fun of it. It doesn’t feel like just another big screen adaptation of a successful series.

If you’re a fan of the series, you’ll love this, if you’ve never seen the series then there’s probably nothing here for you.

 

Minions premiere pictures

Last night saw stars flock to the yellow carpet to celebrate the release of Minions. Bad Wilf was on hand to keep you up to date with the Despicable Me spin-off.

Click on the images to enlarge.

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Thanks to Universal for the access. Minions is out in the UK June 26th.

Jon Bernthal cast as The Punisher 

Rumors have been circulating for a while now, about The Punisher joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe. More recently we heard that Frank Castle would appear in Daredevil, and now it’s been confirmed! Marvel announced yesterday that they’ve cast The Walking Dead star Jon Bernthal in the role for series 2. 
Personally, I’ve enjoyed the three previous Punisher movies (yes, even the one with Dolph). 

I think Bernthal is a great choice.

Marvel said:

“Jon Bernthal brings an unmatched intensity to every role he takes on, with a potent blend of power, motivation and vulnerability that will connect with audiences. Castle’s appearance will bring dramatic changes to the world of Matt Murdock and nothing will be the same.”

I’ve binged the entire first series twice now and I can’t wait for series 2. 

Batman V Superman plot synopsis revealed 

DC and Warner Bros have released the official synopsis for Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice.

“Fearing the actions of a god-like Super Hero left unchecked, Gotham City’s own formidable, forceful vigilante takes on Metropolis’s most revered, modern-day saviour, while the world wrestles with what sort of hero it really needs. And with Batman and Superman at war with one another, a new threat quickly arises, putting mankind in greater danger than it’s ever known before.”

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, stars Ben Affleck and Henry Cavill and opens Worldwide March 25, 2016.

Rebecca Front to appear in Doctor Who 

Last year, we saw former the thick of it co-star Chris Addison reunite with Peter Capaldi. This year we will see Rebecca Front. 
Front will guest in the two-part adventure that sees the return of the Zygons, details of her role are currently being kept a secret but she is thought to be playing a member of UNIT. 
The episodes have been written by Peter Harness and will see the return of fan favourite Osgood (Ingrid Oliver).