Reviews

At the halfway point now, and I can confidently say that I am hooked on this show. This episode is by far the best out of the first six entries. The espionage mission comes to a head, and right from the get-go, you are drawn into the story. You see each character slowly but surely playing their part in ensuring the mission goes successfully. It is stressful and you have no idea what's going to happen, but that's what makes it so much fun to watch.

Something that I really like about this is that it shows you the darker side to the Rebellion. What they did in this episode, especially when they got inside the Imperial base, was nothing short of a bank hostage where innocent people died. If this played out in the real world, this would be a terrifying event that made headlines. It shows that the Rebels could also be a little evil, and the Imperial soldiers can be a little innocent. I really like that contrast. I don't think it's anything we've seen in Star Wars before, but it humanizes every character - everybody has a bad side and everybody has a good side.

The cinematography was also beautiful. The last 15-20 minutes had some of the most beautiful shots I have ever seen, and not just in Star Wars, either. The CGI looked great and it made for some really cool visual moments.

I'm really impressed with this episode and I am very excited to keep watching!

I originally got interested in the case of Candy Montgomery when it was announced that Elizabeth Olsen would be playing her in an 2023 show adaptation of the crime. I discovered this show and I watched it before Olsen's show premieres to get some background about the case (along with real research, of course). I was immediately hooked from the first few seconds of the episode and I was really impressed all the way through!

I am a major true crime junkie and I will watch pretty much anything that deals with true crime. I thought this case was really interesting, but I had not seen what the verdict was prior to watching this show. That made it really fun to watch because I didn't know how the case ended. I thought it was really cool how this show starts from the day of the murder and then backtracks through each significant event that led to the murder. I didn't really know all the details of the case, so I saw it play out in "real time" through the show. Sometimes when I watch a true crime movie or show, I already know all the facts of the case, so nothing is surprising. However, as I mentioned, I knew nothing about this, so each new episode and twist was just as exciting as the last.

My only drawback to this show is that it feels wrapped up very quickly. They spend the majority of the show (it's only 5 episodes to begin with) developing the story behind the murder - Allan and Candy's affair, Betty and Allan's marital issues, Candy's popularity, etc. However, I wish they had spent just a little more time on the trial itself and the details there. I think it's incredibly interesting that Candy and her team theorize that it was a psychotic break - whether or not this is true is lost to history, but I thought it was a really interesting twist in the trial. I think if this show maybe had one or two more episodes, it would have been nearly perfect.

All that's to say is that I still thought this show was phenomenal. The acting was incredible, the way the story is developed kept me intrigued the entire time, and giving a new perspective to the case is always interesting to see. I'm really excited to see Elizabeth Olsen's adaptation and how that compares here!

I enjoyed this episode, but it did feel like just another in-between episode. Although, I do understand that not every episode of every TV show can be action-packed with twists and turns. So, that's why I still rated it higher. I still liked it, just not as much as episodes 3 and 4.

With that being said, though, I think it sets up the next few episodes very well. I am very excited to see the rebels infiltrate the garrison and I'm wondering what will go down, since we still have 7 episodes to go from here.

You can kind of see each character at a crossroads here. Cassian is getting ready to engage in this very dangerous espionage mission. Mon Mothma's home life is not ideal at all and it's weighing on her. Dedra wants so badly to prove herself and wants to do whatever it takes to show that she is capable. Syril is wondering how to move on and catch Cassian, while still reeling from a military operation gone very wrong.

Like I said before, I completely understand that this is a filler episode and I think this will help make the next few episodes that much better. However, still somewhat slow and not the most entertaining. I'm still hooked, though!

I am only five episodes in at this point, but I would have to say that this one is my favorite so far and the best. I really enjoyed this episode. It was cool to meet new characters and understand one of the first major plot points. I think this is a really interesting to introduce the Rebellion and the fact that it is still not yet an organized group. I really like how they tie what we already know from Star Wars with that espionage mission. It's super cool and I'm excited to see how it plays out in future episodes.

I also really enjoyed seeing Mon Mothma again and how she plays a part in building the foundations of the Rebellion. There were so many Easter eggs and callbacks in this episode. They did really well with that aspect of it and playing with the nostalgia. I was happy to see Coruscant again after Revenge of the Sith. Coruscant is one of my favorite planets, so I was happy to see it again with some new locations.

Overall, great entry. I loved this episode and it makes me really excited for the rest!

I really liked this episode. I remember watching this back when all of the first three episodes were released and this being my favorite. Watching the whole series now, several months later, that statement still stands. I really like Stellan Skarsgard's character and how he teams up with Cassian against the Imperial officers. I actually really like that whole sequence. Involving the townspeople was super cool and you got to see how the whole town was affected by their presence, not just these two main characters.

This episode had so much action in it and I think it was really well done. I'm excited to see more of the plot develop and more characters to meet!

I didn't think this was a really strong entry for this show. I am just halfway through this show right now, but I would definitely say that this is probably the slowest episode. I think it was cool to get more flashbacks into Cassian's past and how you get to see a little bit more of each character and their connections, but as far as the plot goes, I still felt it was a little lackluster.

However, I still really like this show. I really like the whole espionage/mystery thing that they are doing, so I can understand why the show itself is still a little slow at this point, but I really hope that it will pick up soon and we get to see the pieces put together.

I originally watched this episode back in November when it dropped with the other two episodes, and to be honest, I wasn't that impressed by it. However, I just recently rewatched it and it is way better than I remember! I really like Cassian Andor and I think it's really exciting that he's getting his own show.

The only complaint that I have with this episode is that it is a little slow. I totally understand that this is only the first episode, but I feel like it could have set up the show a little bit more. All we really know is that Cassian is looking for his sister and he got caught in a very bad wrong place, wrong time.

However, from what I've heard (I haven't watched the whole show), the plot really picks up and gets pretty edge-of-your-seat thrilling. I also really like the overall mood of this show - very broody and mysterious, just like Rogue One started out. It also reminds me somewhat of Solo, which is one of my favorite Star Wars movies. Both follow a character who has no relation to the Force or the Jedi, so you get to see a different side of the Star Wars universe. Both characters are also just trying to survive in the face of the Empire and you get to see the "struggle to survive" side of Star Wars society.

Overall, I'm really excited for the rest of this show and how it will play into the larger Star Wars story! Solid start!

When Star Wars announced that they would be producing a show about Obi Wan in between episode 3 and 4, I was really excited. Obi Wan is by far one of my favorite Star Wars characters and I always wanted to know what happened to him during this time. We obviously knew that he had survived Order 66, but what I wanted to see was the emotional impact of losing so many friends, Padme, and Anakin.

Overall, I thought this was a pretty great follow-up to the prequels. I feel like we really got to see the impact of Order 66 on him. To me, it made a lot of sense that he would just kind of close the rest of the world out and have a somewhat normal life. Watching him be afraid of facing what happened felt very relatable and seemed like something that fit his character very well.

I thought this show would contain a lot of young Luke Skywalker in it, but I was actually very pleasantly surprised when it focused mainly on his relationship with Leia. She is a really cool character and I liked how the show addressed the fact that Obi Wan would have wanted to maintain relationship with both of Padme and Anakin's kids. We get to see how his relationship with Luke progressed through the original three films, but it was really cool to see how he also shared a close bond with Leia.

The final episode was probably my favorite. Being able to see Darth Vader and Obi Wan fight again, layered with the emotional turmoil of losing Anakin, was such a great way to end the show. Seeing that there was no shred of Anakin left in Darth Vader hit really hard, but again, I felt like it was something that made sense for that character and just added a whole new layer to him and the deep relationship Anakin had with Obi Wan.

I give this an 8 out of 10 because I feel like they could have done more with the Inquisitors, especially the Third Sister. I thought it was very cool how she was a youngling Jedi who survived Order 66, but I feel like her story wasn't very developed. I think she could've been a great character, so if more time had been spent on her past and how that impacted her role within the Empire, that would have really elevated the show.

Seeing Qui Gon again was amazing. I had figured they would do something like that, but it was still so great to see that. I will be really disappointed if they don't move forward with another season or at least another project about Obi Wan's training with Qui Gon. I remember they showed Yoda's Force training in Clone Wars and it's an incredible aspect of the Force that Star Wars should really explore. I think Kenobi season 1 is great on its own, but I would probably like it a lot less if they did not do anything with Obi Wan and Qui Gon.

Overall, though, I think this show was great and really successful. Star Wars fans of all ages could enjoy it and be taken back to the days of the prequels. I'm really excited to see what they do with this!

When the first trailer for Top Gun: Maverick dropped, I had not yet seen the first Top Gun movie. I could recognize the trailer easily enough from Tom Cruise and all the jets, but I wasn't as invested in it as people who have seen and loved Top Gun since 1986. Although, the trailer looked awesome and I thought it would be a cool movie.

I saw Top Gun about six months after the trailer had been released, but the world was deep in the COVID-19 pandemic, so at that time, the movie had been delayed until November 2020. For the next two years, Maverick kept getting pushed back more and more, and I was wondering if this was actually a good movie or if the directors were just trying to delay the disappointment for as long as possible.

Finally, in May 2022, Maverick was released and it was so much better than I thought it was going to be. Is it a perfect movie? Not by any means, but it did what it was supposed to do - be a fantastic sequel to the 1986 hit. It was really cool to see what Maverick still flying jets and getting into trouble, as well as how he handled Rooster being on his team. I really loved seeing the new characters, especially since they had included a female pilot. Even back in 1986, women were not allowed to go to the Top Gun school, so to see a female pilot who had not only graduated top of her class, but was now an expert flyer was really amazing.

The plot is very similar to Star Wars: A New Hope, in that there is a dangerous machine that must be taken out by a skilled team of pilots - it even took two shots for each one to be destroyed. However, this allowed for some really cool stunts and maneuvers that you didn't see in the 1986 film. It was great to see Maverick as a teacher, but still be just as reckless and cocky. You could see him on the other side of the training, but still with that same pilot attitude he's always had. We even got the same style of beach scene and romantic love interest between Maverick and Penny Benjamin.

As far as fan service goes, this movie really does it well and as a huge Top Gun fan and daughter of a naval aviator, this movie was everything I was hoping it would be!

I'll start with the first part of my title. As part of the Ant-Man trilogy, this was an okay movie. It had the humor of past Ant-Man movies and was in the style that the two previous movies were. It was fun, funny at some parts, and overall had kind of low stakes.

However, I really don't think this movie advances the Multiverse Saga at all. This was the movie that was supposed to introduce the next "big bad" of the MCU - Kang the Conqueror. In the comics, Kang is known as one of the most evil, powerful villains. He's killed multiple variants of multiple Avengers, multiple times. In the film, he even asks Scott, "Have I killed you before?" There are many variants to Kang - Nathaniel Richards, He Who Remains, Rama-Tut, but Kang is supposed to be the worst of the worst. The other variants are supposed to be scared of him. In Loki, He Who Remains certainly was.

With all of this in mind, I was actually really excited to see this movie. As the first project of Phase 5, I was ready to move out of the train wreck of Phase 4 and into something that would start to put all the pieces together. I was really excited to see Kang, and honestly, Kang was the best part of this movie. He was scary, evil, and I could definitely see why Marvel wanted to have him as the next main villain of the Multiverse Saga.

I felt this movie really did the character an injustice. Kang is an incredible villain, who was defeated by a bunch of rag-tag Quantum people and ants. As someone who is supposed to be one of the most evil characters in all of Marvel comic history, this movie just felt like a funny way to kill a bad guy. It severely underpowered him and just completely took away his credibility as a powerful villain.

In past movies, Scott Lang has never really been the typical superhero guy. He has a criminal past, he's still trying to figure the whole superhero thing out, and he's really just a dad trying to be the best he can be. I absolutely love Scott Lang and I think this movie really could have elevated his character. Let's be real - Ant-Man is there as comedic relief. This movie could've changed that. Marvel could have truly moved him to a hero who is desperate to save his family and will do anything it takes to make that happen.

Quite honestly, I think this movie would have been way better if one, or all, of Scott's loved ones were either killed or taken by Kang. This is the problem with Marvel - they are not introducing high-enough stakes. As I mentioned earlier, Kang is supposed to be as evil as evil comes. Marvel could have shown this with deaths that would really impact Scott. Instead, they chose to keep it fun and light-hearted. That's not really who Kang is as a villain.

Marvel was completely fine with introducing high stakes with Thanos. At the end of Infinity War, the good guys literally lost. That's what made both Infinity War and Endgame so good - you didn't know if the good guys were going to win or lose. The stakes got real, people died, and our heroes had to get really tough.

Overall, I think Marvel missed the mark with this movie. I think this could have been a really cool introduction to Kang and Phase 5, and it would have gave more hope with the rest of the Multiverse Saga. I'm interested to see where Marvel goes from here, but I don't think it's looking good.