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Doctor Who - Series 12 (New Season 12)
Doctor Who - Series 12 (New Season 12)
2020 | Adventure, Sci-Fi
Getting stale
When Doctor Who first came back into our screens, I loved it and loved it for quite a few series however the longer the show has been running for, the more tired of it I become. Like with any tv show, I think there comes a time when you should call it a day before it starts to become stale and people lose interest. I’m afraid to say that Doctor Who has gone past that point for me.

Don’t get me wrong, this was still a fairly enjoyable series. I adore Jodie Whittaker as the Doctor, I think she’s rather wonderful and I’m surprised at how many people don’t really rate her. I also find all of her companions quite bearable and probably the most bearable out of all of those that have come before - most likely because they haven’t tried to shoe horn in some cringey romantic aspects with the Doctor. Although I can only think of The Chase when I look at Bradley Walsh.

The problem is that the storylines are all getting a bit old and rather samey, whether they’re new enemies or old ones returning. Especially with the old foes returning, how many more times can we see the return of the Daleks or the Cybermen? It’s been done too many times. It was nice in this series to see the return of a familiar friendly face and it was nice in a way to see the return of a familiar and much loved enemy, however without spoilers I will say that this returning face isn’t quite as good as the one that came before it.

Overall this was an enjoyable series but not particularly memorable, and I really think they should consider giving this show a rest for a while.
  
Star Trek: Discovery - Season 1
Star Trek: Discovery - Season 1
2017 | Sci-Fi
Fast pacing, mostly good acting across the cast, amazing visual effects, high quality production, a decent plotline (0 more)
The series big plot twist was slightly rushed, did not enjoy the romance plot line between two characters, some of the acting is over done(but giving it's star trek I can forgive that) it's really dar (0 more)
So, I started the series with high hopes and ended it slightly underwhelmed. The first few episodes are fairly gripping if a bit fast paced, but the immediate action ment that I was invested in the plot straight away. The visual effects are stunning, having just watched the original series it's almost jarring to see a star trek series that looks so modern and realistic, the production quality really ups the standard of this show. The overall acting of the show is okay, I particularly enjoyed Sonequa Martin-Greens performance of Micheal. However, I wasn't so keen on her character being the center of the entire plot, and her seemingly endless skills and knowledge, I'm not a huge fan of the 'chosen one' character trope. Compared to the origin star trek series, Discovery is very dark and pessimistic. It's a lot more war focused, a long way away from the original series more optimistic and 'utopian' future. That being said, just because it isn't like the original star trek, it doesn't mean that it doesn't have it's one appeal. The series has an overarching storyline, each episode relating directly to the next, so if your looking for some light watching, this might not be the show for you. There is a particular plot twist near the end of the series that I really enjoyed but felt was slightly rushed, and of course some plot holes but that's inevitable with a show like this. Overall, it's an enjoyable TV series, I would definitely recommend giving it a watch ( just don't go in expecting it to be like other star trek series). Not only is it visually stunning to watch, the plot is engaging, they're are many references that star trek fans will enjoy, and the cast is extremely diverse and refreshing as well!
  
    Cooking Dash™

    Cooking Dash™

    Games and Entertainment

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    Flo cooks her way to TV fame as a celebrity chef in this fast-paced, new time management game –...

Thrawn (Star Wars: Thrawn #1)
Thrawn (Star Wars: Thrawn #1)
Timothy Zahn | 2017 | Science Fiction/Fantasy
8
8.3 (7 Ratings)
Book Rating
I think therte may have been other Star Wars books prior to [a:Timothy Zahn|12479|Timothy Zahn|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1215545810p2/12479.jpg]'s 'Heir to the Empire' trilogy, but I believe all those were set during (or prior to) the events of the movies, with Zahn holding the position of being the first author to be licensed to extend the story beyond the end of 'Return of the Jedi', and thus to kickstart the whole Extended Universe (or EU) of the Star Wars stories prior to the abolition of the same when Disnay acquired Luasfilm.

The three novels in that series - [b:Heir to the Empire|216443|Heir to the Empire (Star Wars The Thrawn Trilogy #1)|Timothy Zahn|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1398253847s/216443.jpg|1133995], [b:Dark Force Rising|216442|Dark Force Rising|Timothy Zahn|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1451092000s/216442.jpg|463790] and [b:The Last Command|216422|The Last Command|Timothy Zahn|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1451092026s/216422.jpg|397139] - set a VERY high bar for the subsequent novels to reach, mainly due to who would become a fan favourite character: that of Grand Admiral Thrawn. Thrawn's past, however, was only ever hinted at in those stories.

When Disney acquired Lucasfilm (and did away with the old EU, renaming them Legends), they did state, however, that they would 'cherry-pick' the best parts for inclusion in the Disney Star Wars canon: a promise they kept when Thrawn appeared as one of the key villains in the third season of the animated TV show 'Star Wars: Rebels'. And, in this, Zahn once again returns to perhaps his most famous creation, filling in (some of) the blans about his early days in the Imperial Navy.

However, this does not concentrate solely on Thrawn himself, but on a couple of other ancillary characters to him (no Rukh or the Noghri, yet), including Ariahdne Pryce - another Imperial from that TV show (and the sections of the novel dealing wih her of which, I found, to be the least interesting).
  
Mr Mercedes
Mr Mercedes
Stephen King | 2015 | Horror, Mystery, Thriller
8
8.5 (28 Ratings)
Book Rating
Stephen King at its best (3 more)
great characters
Insane Villian
Great Twists
Story got weird with the dead sisters family (0 more)
A New Look into a Killers Eyes
I have been a Stephen King fan for a very very long time. But it has been a while since a book like this has come out and kept me wanting to keep reading it till it was done. I am not the biggest reader of book and it can take me awhile to finish them. I tend to spend more time watching tv and movies over reading. This book though kept me on the edge of my seat.

This book really went to a place most crime novels don't go to and that is a story about a retired detective on the verge of suicide. I feel like most retire cops go into something else and not just sit around all day. But he is pulled out by a case that got away, which is a good motivator. The one and done type of killer is very rare as well. Usually these types of psychos always go out for more. I don't know if it was lack of drive which most killers don't have or patience which he seemed to have a lot of. It was definitely different.


I can't wait to read the next 2 books in the series and watch the TV show to see how it compares. Until next time, enjoy the read.
  
40x40

Sarah (7798 KP) rated Before the Fall in Books

Jan 30, 2018 (Updated Jan 30, 2018)  
Before the Fall
Before the Fall
Noah Hawley | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
8
8.4 (7 Ratings)
Book Rating
An unexpectedly good read
There is a lot more to this book than it simply being the plane crash suspense thriller the description makes it out to be. Noah Hawley writes for tv, and reading Before the Fall you can really see this coming across - this would make a great tv show and much better than any other similar shows (Lost anyone?).

This is a simple premise - a plane crash with only 2 survivors - but it’s very well written and works brilliantly. It switches between the viewpoint of the survivors and the deceased prior to the crash, and this is a really good dynamic. The characters are all interesting and developed as well as they can be, all with their own flaws. There’s a lot more to this than just a basic thriller, and it delves into coincidence, the crash investigation and the media intrusion with such detail that all of this paired with the character stories really got me hooked.

My only criticism of this book would be the ending. Hundreds of pages build up to this massive ending but it winds up just being a bit of an anticlimax. It’s not a bad ending, not in the slightest, it just feels a little lacking and that it could’ve been so much more.


Despite that, this is still a fantastic and very well written book. Definitely the best I’ve read so far of Noah Hawley’s.