NCIS: Origins - One Flew Over

"One Flew Over" is more memorable for the Gibbs' (Austin Stowell) storylines than the murder of the week involving an elderly woman with dementia found dead in the woods. For Gibbs we get a present involving him taking care of an injured bird while flashbacks tie back, in an not-so-subtle metaphor, to the soldier's early interactions with Franks (Kyle Schmid) after returning home and his frustrations with the murderer still roaming free. Before the end, we'll also see Franks being unable to let a personal case go providing some understanding and commonalities between Franks and his probie. 

Justice League Unlimited #1

Taking a page from the Justice League Unlimited TV-series, Justice League #1 reboots the Justice League as a worldwide group of heroes helping to fight threats around the world from the Watchtower. After a quick tour of the tower by the Flash for newbie Air Wave, a group of members (Superman, Wonder Woman, Black Lightning, Firestorm, Kid Flash, and Star Sapphire) is sent to deal with an issue in South Africa involving a terrorist group calling itself Inferno (who it appears will be sticking around for awhile). 

Interior Chinatown - Delivery Guy

The second episode of Interior Chinatown begins to explore the rules of the world as we see the limitations put on both Willis Wu (Jimmy O. Yang) and Lana Lee (Chloe Bennet) who seem stuck in small supporting roles to a larger story. While Lana can offer insight and advice to Green (Lisa Gilroy) and Turner (Sullivan Jones), she is stuck firmly in the role of a sidekick. As for Willis, the pair ignore him completely and his access to parts of the city (here the police department) is blocked. However, after spending most of the episode unable to get into the department, Willis uses a stereotypical Asian role to gain entry, opening the door a bit wider to his access in the world.

Moana 2

Offering more of what was delivered in Moana, albeit without a memorable musical number, Moana 2 delivers more adventure for the titular character in continuing her journey into the wider world. After bringing her people out of isolation and back to the ocean, Moana (Auli’i Cravalho) continues to search for other people leading to her next quest following the footsteps of her ancestors' greatest wayfinder Tautai Vasa in searching for the lost island capable of reuniting the people of the ocean.

Jenny Sparks #4

Following the same format of the previous issues, Jenny Sparks #4 splits time with another Jenny Sparks flashback (this one dealing with the Spirit of the 20th Century taking out some aggression on corporate greed contributing to the housing crash of the late 2000s) and her present situation still attempting to talk down the deranged would-be god who just knocked off the Justice League.

Arcane - Heavy is the Crown

The Second Season of Arcane: League of Legends picks up immediately after Jinx's (Ella Purnell) attack which managed to somehow only kill the minor supporting characters leaving Jayce (Kevin Alejandro), Caitlyn (Katie Leung), and Mel (Toks Olagundoye) largely unscathed and the other counselors only wounded - although Caitlyn does suffer the loss of her mother. Not knowing about his friend's secret experiments, Jayce blames the attack for Viktor's (Harry Lloyd) unusual condition.

Murder in a Small Town - Family Concerns

After a couple of weeks with no murders within the town, "Family Concerns" offers two with the unrelated murders of two women found in the woods. The explanation of one turns out to be obvious enough with Karl (Rossif Sutherland) uncovering an affair and an unfortunate escalation of a disagreement between the victim and his lover's daughter (Natalie Malaika) which left the woman dead. Despite the father's (Ryan Allen) attempts to take the fall, after failing to pin the crime on the murderer of the earlier victim, the truth is far too easy for Karl to see once the facts emerge. 

MaXXXine

Reveling in 80s style, writer/director Ti West completes his X series with MaXXXine featuring Mia Goth reprising her role from X. Having built up a name for herself as a pornstar, Maxine Minx finally gets her big break in an auteur's (Elizabeth Debicki) horror film but that's when her past comes to call in the form of a degenerate private investigator (Kevin Bacon) and his mysterious employer (Simon Prast) who know the secrets from Maxine's past she wants to stay buried.

The Outrun

Saoirse Ronan stars in director Nora Fingscheidt's stylish memoir based on Amy Liptrot's true story. Jumping around her timeline to showcase various moments of Rona's (Ronan) life from childhood to present provides context to how she ended up one one of the most remote Orkney Islands fighting her addiction with alcoholism and building a new life. While following her inner journey, the film also examines life on the island and nature beyond as her relative isolation brings her a peace she hasn't seen in years.

Gladiator II: Electric Boogaloo

But, why? Fans of 2000 film will remember that both the primary protagonist and antagonist die in Gladiator. Usually everyone being dead is a pretty good reason not to have a sequel. Not only that, but Maximus Decimus Meridius' entire quest to avenge the death of his family and remove control of Rome from the hands of a corrupt emperor succeeds in every way imaginable. The self-contained story is complete. So why, more than two decades later, are we getting a sequel?

Cross - Ride the White Horsey

While being so riled up with his wife's killer fucking with him, and working on finding the missing phone which is now in the hands of the dead man's baby mama, Alex Cross (Aldis Hodge) nearly shoots his daughter. And the poor girl, distrustful of anyone who could actually help her, runs into a hitman staying the same hotel who eventually gets bored of waiting and just kills her. So, it's not a great week for the master detective. Meanwhile, our serial killer (Ryan Eggold) targets his next victim which will complete the bizarre recreation set by targeting her at a coffee shop and over a dating site. However, a clue found by Cross will allow the actual investigation to get started.

Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft - Yinyang

Well that was anticlimactic. After being bested by Charles Devereaux (Richard Armitage) at every turn, Lara Croft (Hayley Atwell) faces off against the man who has acquired all the stones and (literally) become a monster... and she just beats him rather easily abruptly ending the threat and story in a single episode set within a secret bunker belonging to The Light. Aside from the victory, which Camilla Roth (Zoe Boyle) helps on, the episode is also notable for Lara finding some inner peace (Shifu would be proud) in a short coma at the beginning of the episode. With the threat neutralized, the series moves forward to its final episode of the season acting as both an epilogue and, no doubt, setting up for the show's next season which may actually see Lara use guns.

The Irrational - Anatomy of a Fall

"Anatomy of the Fall" allows for the conclusion of Phoebe's (Molly Kunz) separate story and her return to the department. Before that, however, we'll get a case of suicides on campus which Alec (Jesse L. Martin) is asked to look into. What he finds, with the help of Marisa (Maahra Hill), is the latest suicide was anything but as a young woman's death was covered up by her sorority sisters attempting to avoid bad publicity. The episode is notable for the experiment playing on how peer pressure can force someone to go against what they know to be true, the case hitting home for Simon (Max Lloyd-Jones) given his brother's death, and Alec's interactions with the girl's father (Blake Robbins) allowing them both a way to honor the young woman's memory.

Arcane - The Complete First Season

Adapted from Riot Games' League of Legends universe, the First Season of Arcane: League of Legends focuses on origin stories for sisters Vi (Hailee Steinfeld) and Jinx (Ella Purnell) while exploring the class struggles between the utopian city of Piltover and the oppressed underworld city of Zaun. The first thee episodes of the series provide examples of the girls' childhood and how that life ended badly for all involved while the rest of the season picks up years later bringing the two sisters, each believing the other died years ago, together again. Also explored is the rise of scientist Jayce Talis (Kevin Alejandro) and his Hextech technology which will change the world. 

Interior Chinatown - Generic Asian Man

Set in a heightened reality, the opening episode of Interior Chinatown introduces us to waiter Willis Wu (Jimmy O. Yang) in a world that feels more like a police procedural than real life with Willis cast as nothing more than a background actor. Witnessing an abduction brings Willis to the attention of Detective Lana Lee (Chloe Bennet) who reveals to Willis his older, and far more talented, brother who disappeared years ago was helping her department get to the truth of what is going in Chinatown. Lana offers Willis the same opportunity.

Wicked

Mean Girls with a side of fantasy? Adapted from first act of the Broadway play, Wicked: Part I covers the childhood of Elphaba Thropp (Cynthia Erivo) and her enrollment at Shiz University where she'll be partnered with the mean but popular Galinda (Ariana Grande). It's also where Elphaba will discover that her magical ability is even rarer than her bright green skin eventually leading to trip to the Emerald City and an audience with the Wizard of Oz (Jeff Goldblum).

G.I. JOE #1

The relaunch of a new main G.I. JOE title offers us a team of Duke, Rock 'n Roll, Stalker, Cover Girl, Clutch, and (most surprisingly for those who didn't read the Duke mini-series) the Baroness. The new series continues the story started in the various mini-series introducing key characters to merging G.I. JOE into a shared universe with the Transformers. The first issue introduces the team and points out early on that despite their skills they are far behind the group who has yet to be revealed as Cobra who is already maximizing Engeron to bolster their forces and the unknown threat of transforming robots from another world.

NCIS: Origins - Incognito

Gibbs' (Austin Stowell) first undercover operation is more notable for it continuing to build up the importance of Dominguez (Mariel Molino) to Gibbs during Mark Harmon's narration than anything that happens in the field as the two's attempt to buy stolen missile plans nearly goes south due to the slow response of their FBI backup. The episode continues to highlight Lala's struggles with the boys' network and second-thoughts about moving in with her boyfriend leading to getting frisky with a stranger outside the local bar. As to the foreshadowing, the show sure seems to be leading up to something tragic in the not-too-distant future.

Citadel: Honey Bunny - Talwar

The second episode of Citadel: Honey Bunny overs three threads. We get Honey (Samantha Ruth Prabhu) finding her daughter Nadia (Kashvi Majmundar), which turns out to take less time than expected (and provide more context to the rules Honey has set up with her daughter in case of such emergencies), and relocating to a safe house with more pursuers on her trail. We see Bunny (Varun Dhawan) reconnect with his old friend Chacko (Shivankit Singh Parihar) and make a run on one of the enemy's bases coming up empty on the attack. And, in the past, we see Honey begin her training as a spy against the reservations of the misogynistic Guru (Kay Kay Menon) despite her obvious talent for the work and her relationship with Bunny turning romantic.

Psylocke #1

The character of Psylocke has had a complicated comic history. The new series centers not around the original Psyclocke Betsy Braddock but on Kwannon (think Elektra but a mutant and a bizarre body-swapping past). After a bit of off-the-books action to open up the comic's first issue, the former Hand assassin finds herself benched by Cyclops telling her she needs a vacation. Who wants to bet we aren't getting a bunch of issues of her lounging on the beach?

Murder in a Small Town - The Madness Method

"The Madness Method" offers a twisty tale of a murder's psychiatrist (Paula Patton) warning the department he's (Keenan Tracey) on his way to Gibsons. Sensing something off about her story, and the woman herself, Karl (Rossif Sutherland) has his department dig into her background while they prepare for the killer's arrival. This leaves the department stretched thin when he arrives, but it also gives Karl the necessary information to know who is actually behind the attacks and prevent any more loss of life (even when he storms the department).

Transformers One

Playing with various versions of Transformers continuity to craft something new, Transformers One gives us the rise of both Optimus Prime and Megatron... eventually. The lack of recognizable characters may have played a role in the film's box office struggles, but fans missed out on what is easily the best Transformers movie in decades.

Red One

When Santa Claus (J.K. Simmons) is kidnapped days before Christmas, the head of his security (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) will team up with a snarky bounty hunter (Chris Evans), whose actions led the kidnappers to the North Pole, in order to find Santa and save the holiday. Geared mostly towards preteens and teens, Red One is exactly what you would expect for a family Christmas action film with a big budget to blow on stars and special effects and far less time spent on plot.

Topkapi

1964's Topkapi is an odd film. Starting with a psychedelic opening in which a character breaks the fourth wall to talk directly to the audience, a device which is never seen again, the film then vacillates between a heist film and a farce before finally settling in as a serious heist film (with an admittedly farcical epilogue). The story involves a thief (Melina Mercouri) who recruits an old partner and lover (Maximilian Schell) and a collection of amateurs for a risky heist in Istanbul. Their plan relies, in part, on smuggling the tools needed into the country through the use of unaware small-time hustler Arthur Simpson (Peter Ustinov).

Cross - Hero Complex

I really want to like this new Amazon series starring Leverage's Aldis Hodge as James Patterson's super-sleuth Alex Cross but I'm finding it quite hard to become emotionally invested in the story of a great detective getting the runaround by not one but two uncatchable serial killers in separate storylines that only somewhat overlap. My issues have more to do with Patterson and the structure of his work, always focusing on making the killers as genius and unstoppable as possible (and here throwing in two!) than Hodge or any member of the cast which also includes short appearances from Alona Tal who I would happily watch more of.

Wizards Beyond Waverly Place - Mortal Vibes Only

The second episode of Wizards Beyond Waverly Place is a by-the-numbers episode of Billie (Janice LeAnn Brown) screwing up with magic, accidentally revealing their father's magical past to Milo (Max Matenko) and Roman (Alkaio Thiele) and then making half of each invisible, all while attempting to fit in leading to various shenanigans. Meanwhile, in attempts to cover up everything,  Justin Russo (David Henrie) lies to his wife (Mimi Gianopulos), badly. 

Spider-Man: Black Suit & Blood #4

Spider-Man: Black Suit & Blood #4 offers three more tales of Spider-Man in his black costume, although none of the trio of stories collected in the fourth and final issue include the symbiote. My favorite of the stories, "Past Lives," takes place long after Peter's time with the symbiote and his return to the classic red and blue costume. However, when he needs to break into the Latverian embassy and doesn't feel right doing it in his classic colors, he reprises the black look once more while also hitting up Black Cat for help harkening back to a specific time in Peter Parker's life.

Jurassic World: Chaos Theory - The Adjustment / Troubled Waters

After the reintroduction of Brooklyn (Kiersten Kelly), the show moves forward splitting the focus between Brooklyn and the rest of the Nublar Six who will eventually all reach the same location by season end. We see some of Brooklyn's time with the DLN, explaining what she was doing with the rather dim eco-terrorists using them to find the Broker (Dichen Lachman) and nearly getting eaten by her pet raptor. We also see Brooklyn's call with Ben (Sean Giambrone) and the reasoning behind her decision to stay disconnected from her friends. The tension in Brooklyn segments work really well, as she barely escapes for her life, but this also marks the end of her story making any sort of sense for the remainder of the season.

SHAZAM! #17

The return of Freddy Freeman's powers, and a new attitude to go with them, is the focus of SHAZAM! #17. At the Rock of Eternity, Billy and the Captain meet Hephaestus who built the talisman Freddy found there fashioned from an alien and meant as a test to determine the worthiness of a hero and whether or not they can be corrupted by great power. So... what are the chances Freddy is found wanting?

Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft - Whanaungatanga

Catching up to Charles Devereaux (Richard Armitage) in Iran, Lara Croft (Hayley Atwell) manages to save Jonah (Earl Baylon) but ends up even further behind her competition as Devereaux finds another stone. Highlights of the episode are Lara's skydiving into Iran and the fight on the bullet train. The episode is also notable for Lara being unable to talk Devereaux down from his obsession and for Camilla Roth (Zoe Boyle) discovering that the Light are up to something as it appears another player is about to enter the game.

JSA #1

Every time DC relaunches JSA there are questions about what version of the team you are going to use and, more importantly, when and on what Earth you are going to place them. The new volume mixes in both original and rebooted versions of characters on Earth-0 on the modern timeline (rather than on a separate Earth or during WWII).

Doctor Odyssey - I Always Cry at Weddings

With the ship being bought out for a wedding cruise, most of the storylines of "I Always Cry at Weddings" have to deal with the medical team dealing with issues of the wedding party and mother of the bride. Most turn out to be not so serious, although the psychological problems of the groom to be put a permanent damper on the festivities after he commits suicide. The crew also get to stand in for the bride and groom at the rehearsal allowing for us to get at least the semblance of a wedding in the wedding episode.

Retro 50s Buffy the Varmpire Slayer

Seven Samurai

Widely regarded as on of the finest, and most influential, films in the history of cinema, the Criterion Collection releases this new 4K/Blu-ray combo featuring the extras of previous releases and the film available in 4K for the first time. Akira Kurosawa's classic about a group of ronin hired to protect a village provided a template that would be reused, repurposed, and remade countless times over the years from The Magnificent Seven to Three Amigos to "The Magnificent Ferengi" while specific scenes from the film have inspired sequences in everything from Blade Runner to Mad Max: Fury Road.

A Discovery of Witches - Episode 6 & 7

The sixth and seventh episodes of A Discovery of Witches will reveal a truth about Diana Bishop (Teresa Palmer) and the lengths her parents went to in order to keep her safe from Peter Knox (Owen Teale). After being kidnapped by Satu (Malin Buska) and delivered to Gerbert D'Aurillac (Trevor Eve), the witch attempts to torture the truth out of Diana. The ordeal will have unexpected consequences leaving Satu drained and Diana's power reawoken with questions that can only be answered by her family.

Citadel: Honey Bunny - Dancing and Fighting

The opening episode of the latest Citadel spinoff takes place simultaneously in both 1992 where struggling actress Honey (Samantha Ruth Prabhu) is recruited by stuntman and spy Bunny (Varun Dhawan) for a job, and 2000 where Honey's past catches up to her putting her daughter Nadia (Kashvi Majmundar) in danger. Yes, that Nadia who we meet as a smart and well-trained kid needing to look after herself in time for her mother, or the father she's never met, to find her. 

NCIS: Origins - Last Rites

Keeping to the theme of every single case being important to at least one member of the team (an idea that is destined for diminishing returns), "Last Rites" involves a serial killer on death row and the one victim who Franks (Kyle Schmid) was never able to find. On the eve of the execution, Franks gets roped into trying to get information out of the killer one last time before being jerked around and, finally, getting the family some closure. With Franks' behavior more on display, in the current timeline Gibbs (Austin Stowell) gets shunted to a supporting role (although his overreaction at one point to a situation doesn't go unnoticed). However, the episode provides more flashbacks to his past, and his hospitalization following the death of his family and his attempted suicide overseas.

The Batman & Scooby-Doo Mysteries #11

Taking place entirely in the Gotham City Public Library, The Batman & Scooby-Doo Mysteries #11 features both Mystery, Inc. and Commissioner Gordon stopping by on his daughter Barbara's first day at the library. The first day turns out to be an eventful one when Grotesque and some of henchmen dressed up as ghosts arrive. The ghosts, in simple sheets, are pretty low-tech for for a Scooby story and the structure of the tale doesn't leave room for some of the basic Scooby-Doo beats.

Batgirl #1

Lady Shiva's arrival in Gotham City and her warnings that neither she nor her daughter as safe from a cult of assassins. Focused primarily on Batgirl's distrust of her mother, things pick up with the arrival of wave after wave of assassins and Cassandra discovers her mother is telling the truth (if not the whole truth) about an apparent shared enemy. 

Wizards Beyond Waverly Place - Everything Is Not What It Seems

Serving as a spinoff for Wizards of Waverly Place, the new series catches up with Justin Russo (David Henrie) as an adult living without magic. The premiere, "Everything Is Not What It Seems" introduces Justin's wife (Mimi Gianopulos) and sons (Max Matenko and Alkaio Thiele) who are ignorant of magic. Guest-starring for the premiere, Alex (Selena Gomez) brings a talented but wild wizard named Billie (Janice LeAnn Brown) who needs a new teacher and very quickly exposes Justin's children to magic with a prank that releases a Floogie monster in the family apartment.

Jurassic World: Chaos Theory - C13v3rGr186

"C13v3rGr186" steps away from the current storyline of the new island to fill in the gap of Brooklyn (Kiersten Kelly) starting with the events that occurred prior to the attack and also what happened to Brooklyn after she was saved by Ronnie (Carmen Moore). Much of this we've seen before, or has been directed alluded to. We see her visit to Kenji's father with the added context of what she was after, the misunderstanding with Darius (Paul-Mikél Williams), and the night she lost her arm. Although considering letting the others know she's alive, Brooklyn ultimately decides to keep it a secret to protect them and play on the advantages of being dead as she goes after the Broker on her own in a storyline which will eventually get away from the writers but starts with just being a very questionable decision.

Red Sonja 2023 #15

Over the years Red Sonja has been several things. As Red Sonja #15 opens she is both revered as Goddess and an imprisoned captive as the war between the living and the dead continues to rage. By the end of the issue Sonja's captivity won't be a problem, thanks in part to her going all stabby-stabby and killing the man who had planned to sacrifice her on an altar to enhance his power, and thanks in part to the arrival of the army of the dead hunting her and adding to its number with every slain warrior who crosses its path.

Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft - Big Lies, Small Secrets

With no leads to follow Charles Devereaux (Richard Armitage), Lara Croft (Hayley Atwell) heads to Paris to investigate what led him to seek out the stones and more information about The Light. Although we get plenty of action in the catacombs beneath the city, made more exciting by hallucinogenic mist being pumped in by The Light, the episode is most notable for the introduction of Lara's estranged childhood friend Camilla Roth (Zoe Boyle). More than just another friend who Lara pulls into danger (seriously, she's an awful, awful friend), unpacking Camilla and Lara's baggage, including the rather awful way Camilla's father pitted them against each other as children, makes for a large part of the episode but ultimately leaves them better than they've been in years.

Batman: The Long Halloween - The Last Halloween #2

It only took two issues for me to lose whatever interest I had in DC attempting to milk more story out of Batman: The Long Halloween. Issue #2 goes through the motions with the calendar moving from Halloween to Thanksgiving with Batman hitting dead end after dead end in his search for the missing James Gordon. The comic features callbacks both the the first issue, returning Catwoman for some pretty awful flirting and then offering no insight into the case, and to the original series with Calendar Man providing Robin with a clue.

Batman: Caped Crusader - Savage Night

After a short stint in Arkham Asylum for evaluation, the First Season finale features Barbara Gordon (Krystal Joy Brown) attempting to convince Harvey Dent (Diedrich Bader) to work with her but all the fight seems to have gone out of the defeated former District Attorney. Kidnapping Dent during a prisoner exchange, Flass (Gary Anthony Williams) and Bullock (John DiMaggio) plan to kill Harvey, who in the skirmish ends up cuffed to Babs and running for their lives on the Gotham docks.

Only Murders in the Building - Escape From Planet Klongo / My Best Friend's Wedding

The Fourth Season of Only Murders in the Building comes to a close with a trip to the set of Ron Howard's (appearing as himself after a long tease that suggested he might not make an appearance) new film, the reveal of the killer and his motive, and a wedding (along with the tease of a new murder to solve next season). Along with Howard's appearance, which actually confirms one of Oliver's (Martin Short) outlandish stories, the final two episodes fill in the gaps to Sazz's (Jane Lynch) murder providing not only the motive writer turned stuntman turned writer Marshall P. Pope (Jin Ha) but the events which led up her death.

Space Usagi: White Star Rising #1

Rabbit Ronin in spaaaaace! Picking up after the events of Space Usagi: Death and Honor, the following 90s three-issue mini-series continues the space adventures of Miyamoto Usagi's descendent (also confusingly named Miyamoto Usagi) defending the Shirohoshi clan in the far future against the Kajitori. As with Death and Dishonor (also originally published by Mirage), this is the first time White Star Rising has been released in color.

Retro 50s X Men vs Street Fighter

Anora

Anora (Mikey Madison), or Ani as she prefers, is a fiery young stripper at a Manhattan club leading a mostly unremarkable life until the night Russian man-child Vanya (Mark Eidelshtein) walks into the club. Hitting it off, Vanya returns night after night eventually paying for private dates with Ani leading to a weeklong girlfriend experience of booze, drugs, sex, and partying ending in to a trip to Vegas, an unexpected proposal, and marriage. It seems Ani has hit the jackpot a rags to riches story. However, when Ani's family discovers what Vanya has done things get nuts.

Coraline

Returning to theaters for the film's 15th Anniversary, I had much the same reaction to Coraline that I had the first time I saw it in a theater. The dark tale of a young girl (Dakota Fanning) discovering a secret world of "others" who resemble her family and friends but with buttons for eyes is a vivid and creative use of stop-motion. However, the first-half of the film of Coraline exploring the magical world, and comparing her drab reality to it, has always left me a bit cold. For me, the film only picks up when the more sinister elements of the "Other Mother" (Teri Hatcher) are exposed and Coraline goes into survival mode.