Batman: Dead End (2003)
[2nd watch]
[#51 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
This "Batman vs Predator" fan film was ever so popular Back In The Day, and for some reason came up on Twitter this afternoon, so I watched it — I wasn't sure I'd actually ever seen it, but once it got going it all came back. Mad that it's nearly 20 years old. It holds up really well too, which you might not expect — it's not just "good for an amateur production in the early '00s", it's genuinely well made. No wonder it caused such a stir all those years ago.
Friday, 12 August 2022
Games
Deponia
Decided to go for something a bit more modern for my next point-and-click adventure (it's ten years old, but that's "modern" by my standards). Also, there are three sequels to this, so if I enjoy it my list of games to play will get even longer (next time they're on sale, anyway). Only played for about half-an-hour, but it's off to a decent start — the cartoon visuals are pleasant, and the puzzles are logical without being ludicrously easy. Nothing too taxing yet, but then I have only just started.
Decided to go for something a bit more modern for my next point-and-click adventure (it's ten years old, but that's "modern" by my standards). Also, there are three sequels to this, so if I enjoy it my list of games to play will get even longer (next time they're on sale, anyway). Only played for about half-an-hour, but it's off to a decent start — the cartoon visuals are pleasant, and the puzzles are logical without being ludicrously easy. Nothing too taxing yet, but then I have only just started.
Thursday, 11 August 2022
Films
Tintin and the Lake of Sharks (1972)
[#50 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
Normally for foreign language films I use the title as seen on the copy I watched, but my DVD copy of this has for some reason chosen to call it Tintin and the Mystery of Shark Lake, whereas the title above — a more accurate translation of the original, Tintin et le lac aux requins — is much more commonly used online.
[#50 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
Normally for foreign language films I use the title as seen on the copy I watched, but my DVD copy of this has for some reason chosen to call it Tintin and the Mystery of Shark Lake, whereas the title above — a more accurate translation of the original, Tintin et le lac aux requins — is much more commonly used online.
Wednesday, 10 August 2022
Games
Flight of the Amazon Queen
Finished, in just over 6 hours. Bit of a lacklustre ending — in a movie it would be a Big Action Climax, but that doesn't really translate to point-and-click adventure games, so it's just a couple of simple puzzles to end on. Hey-ho. It was fun overall, but not truly a classic; more a likeable imitation of better things.
Now... what next?
Finished, in just over 6 hours. Bit of a lacklustre ending — in a movie it would be a Big Action Climax, but that doesn't really translate to point-and-click adventure games, so it's just a couple of simple puzzles to end on. Hey-ho. It was fun overall, but not truly a classic; more a likeable imitation of better things.
Now... what next?
Tuesday, 9 August 2022
Podcasts
Doctor Who: Pieces of Eighth
1x05 The Eighth Doctor Action Figures
I became aware of this podcast — dedicated to media about the 8th Doctor — a while ago and have been meaning to catch up on it, but (as is typical of me and podcasts) I keep not getting round to it. But with today's announcement of a new 8th Doctor action figure set, someone on Twitter pointed towards this edition, which covers the genesis and history of the 8th Doctor in action figures (at least until mid-2021) via an interview with Alasdair Dewar of Character Options, the company who make Doctor Who toys.
[Listen to it (again) on Anchor, or wherever you get your podcasts.]
1x05 The Eighth Doctor Action Figures
I became aware of this podcast — dedicated to media about the 8th Doctor — a while ago and have been meaning to catch up on it, but (as is typical of me and podcasts) I keep not getting round to it. But with today's announcement of a new 8th Doctor action figure set, someone on Twitter pointed towards this edition, which covers the genesis and history of the 8th Doctor in action figures (at least until mid-2021) via an interview with Alasdair Dewar of Character Options, the company who make Doctor Who toys.
[Listen to it (again) on Anchor, or wherever you get your podcasts.]
Sunday, 7 August 2022
YouTube
Georgia & David Tennant's Doctor Who Quiz
Somehow stumbled across this quiz (from back in December 2020!), which was done in aid of Marie Curie, and I ended up getting sucked in to it. Well, if you've got David & Georgia Tennant, plus guest stars, testing my Doctor Who knowledge (and I do love a quiz), how could I resist? (Apparently I resisted back in December 2020. But I don't recall knowing it was happening, so...)
[Watch it (again) on YouTube.]
Somehow stumbled across this quiz (from back in December 2020!), which was done in aid of Marie Curie, and I ended up getting sucked in to it. Well, if you've got David & Georgia Tennant, plus guest stars, testing my Doctor Who knowledge (and I do love a quiz), how could I resist? (Apparently I resisted back in December 2020. But I don't recall knowing it was happening, so...)
[Watch it (again) on YouTube.]
this week on 100Films.co.uk
We may now be a whole week into August, but the month did only start at the beginning of this week, and that means this 100Films.co.uk update begins with my review of last month...
Plus, the summary of films I failed to watch in July...
Additionally, there was 1 new review published this week...
Prey (2022)
More next Sunday.
Plus, the summary of films I failed to watch in July...
Additionally, there was 1 new review published this week...
Prey (2022)
Plot-wise, Prey is pretty straightforward. And therein lies a big part of its success, because what more do we want from a Predator movie than “a hero has to fight a technologically-superior Predator”? If you do want more than that, I think you’ve come to the wrong franchise. Of course, simply rehashing what’s gone before is just another path to failure, and so what Prey does is take those basic bones and dress them up with fresh settings, ideas, and perspectives.Read more here.
More next Sunday.
Saturday, 6 August 2022
DVD
Big Finish Talks Back: Paul McGann
[2nd watch]
Not quite sure what to file this as — it's not a movie; it's not TV; it's not an extra, because it's a release unto itself... It's a feature-length interview, anyway. It came out in 2002 and I guess I bought it and watched it around then — 20 years ago! — because I know I've seen it but I don't remember it. It was a nice thing to revisit, though.
Plus, a bonus short interview that adds in McGann's first Doctor Who audio companion, India Fisher, after they'd recorded their second series. A nice little time capsule.
[2nd watch]
Not quite sure what to file this as — it's not a movie; it's not TV; it's not an extra, because it's a release unto itself... It's a feature-length interview, anyway. It came out in 2002 and I guess I bought it and watched it around then — 20 years ago! — because I know I've seen it but I don't remember it. It was a nice thing to revisit, though.
Plus, a bonus short interview that adds in McGann's first Doctor Who audio companion, India Fisher, after they'd recorded their second series. A nice little time capsule.
Theatre
The Lion King
UK & Ireland Tour at Wales Millennium Centre
Finally seen this super-acclaimed and -popular show. I thought the songs added beyond the film were mostly a bit lacklustre, but the costumes and puppetry were incredible. I can see why it's a stage spectacle that's been enduringly popular for decades now.
UK & Ireland Tour at Wales Millennium Centre
Finally seen this super-acclaimed and -popular show. I thought the songs added beyond the film were mostly a bit lacklustre, but the costumes and puppetry were incredible. I can see why it's a stage spectacle that's been enduringly popular for decades now.
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Five new additons this week — a quiet one, by current standards. Three new releases, too. Only one 4K, but both the older titles are 3D (one an upgrade to the 2D copy I already had).
Number of titles in collection: 2,899 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,048 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,851 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 194 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 7,198 [up 9]
Number of films: 3,469 [up 6]
Number of additional cuts: 273 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,336 [no change]
Number of short films: 999 [up 3]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Five new additons this week — a quiet one, by current standards. Three new releases, too. Only one 4K, but both the older titles are 3D (one an upgrade to the 2D copy I already had).
Number of titles in collection: 2,899 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,048 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,851 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 194 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 7,198 [up 9]
Number of films: 3,469 [up 6]
Number of additional cuts: 273 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,336 [no change]
Number of short films: 999 [up 3]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 5 August 2022
Thursday, 4 August 2022
Games
Flight of the Amazon Queen
I've not said much (or anything) when I've logged this, but I'm making steady progress. It's not a bad game, but it's no LucasArts classic. It's clearly inspired by Indiana Jones, but executed with some of the self-aware humour of Monkey Island, but it doesn't hit the mark as precisely as either. I guess that's what happens when you're taking off things that are already fundamentally perfect! But the most annoying thing is the voice acting — everyone speaks so slowly, probably in some effort to beat the compression of the day (the game is from the early '90s, after all), and half the lines are delivered with the emphasis in the wrong place. But I'm nitpicking, really, because overall it's a likeable dose of retro adventuring. I'm five-and-a-half hour of playtime through, so if typical playtimes are anything to go by, I've only got a couple of hours left to go.
I've not said much (or anything) when I've logged this, but I'm making steady progress. It's not a bad game, but it's no LucasArts classic. It's clearly inspired by Indiana Jones, but executed with some of the self-aware humour of Monkey Island, but it doesn't hit the mark as precisely as either. I guess that's what happens when you're taking off things that are already fundamentally perfect! But the most annoying thing is the voice acting — everyone speaks so slowly, probably in some effort to beat the compression of the day (the game is from the early '90s, after all), and half the lines are delivered with the emphasis in the wrong place. But I'm nitpicking, really, because overall it's a likeable dose of retro adventuring. I'm five-and-a-half hour of playtime through, so if typical playtimes are anything to go by, I've only got a couple of hours left to go.
Wednesday, 3 August 2022
Tuesday, 2 August 2022
Sunday, 31 July 2022
TV
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x13 Episode 13
4x14 Episode 14
4x15 Episode 15
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
4x13 Episode 13
4x14 Episode 14
4x15 Episode 15
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Saturday, 30 July 2022
TV
Agatha Raisin
4x03 A Spoonful of Poison
Cracker
1x03 To Say I Love You Part 1 [2nd watch]
1x04 To Say I Love You Part 2 [2nd watch]
1x05 To Say I Love You Part 3 [2nd watch]
Belatedly continuing the Cracker (re)watch I started in January. Then I noted that the DVDs present each multi-episode story as a single movie, without obvious episode breaks. Perhaps that was just the first story, because there were clear fade-to-blacks for the end of each part this time. Still watched it one sitting, though. Formal considerations aside, it's a really good show, donchaknow.
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x11 Episode 11
4x12 Episode 12
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
4x03 A Spoonful of Poison
Cracker
1x03 To Say I Love You Part 1 [2nd watch]
1x04 To Say I Love You Part 2 [2nd watch]
1x05 To Say I Love You Part 3 [2nd watch]
Belatedly continuing the Cracker (re)watch I started in January. Then I noted that the DVDs present each multi-episode story as a single movie, without obvious episode breaks. Perhaps that was just the first story, because there were clear fade-to-blacks for the end of each part this time. Still watched it one sitting, though. Formal considerations aside, it's a really good show, donchaknow.
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x11 Episode 11
4x12 Episode 12
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Oh, this week was so nearly a small quiet one... and then a big package of Blu-rays from the US turned up. Can't pretend I'm not excited about that! Combined with a couple of other purchases, that made for a total of 14 new titles — not a record-breaker, but at the upper end of single week increases. Some were upgrades, mind (one DVD to BD, one BD to 4K, and one DVD to 4K!), so the net total is... well, below...
Number of titles in collection: 2,895 [up 10]
Of which DVDs: 1,048 [down 2]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,847 [up 12]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 193 [up 5]
Number of discs in collection: 7,189 [up 17]
Number of films: 3,463 [up 15]
Number of additional cuts: 273 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,336 [no change]
Number of short films: 996 [up 2]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Oh, this week was so nearly a small quiet one... and then a big package of Blu-rays from the US turned up. Can't pretend I'm not excited about that! Combined with a couple of other purchases, that made for a total of 14 new titles — not a record-breaker, but at the upper end of single week increases. Some were upgrades, mind (one DVD to BD, one BD to 4K, and one DVD to 4K!), so the net total is... well, below...
Number of titles in collection: 2,895 [up 10]
Of which DVDs: 1,048 [down 2]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,847 [up 12]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 193 [up 5]
Number of discs in collection: 7,189 [up 17]
Number of films: 3,463 [up 15]
Number of additional cuts: 273 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,336 [no change]
Number of short films: 996 [up 2]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 29 July 2022
TV
Grantchester
6x06 Episode 6
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]
Neighbours
1x8903 The Finale [series finale]
I haven't watched Neighbours in over 20 years, but I was a regular viewer back in the day — it's part of my childhood — so I had to tune in for this final goodbye! Obviously I had no idea who most of the characters were (of course I didn't know the young people; the oldies was a constant game of "do I recognise them or not?") and I had to infer most of the storylines, but hey-ho, that is what it is. Overall, quite a sweet goodbye.
[Watch it (again) on the My5.]
Neighbours Made Me a Star
I hadn't intended to watch this — I assumed it was going to be an empty clip show of Neighbours actors in other productions — but the title actually belied that this was a kind of history of the soap through the lens of the people it made famous, so it was a fitting part of the finale evening. Glad I stuck around for it.
[Watch it (again) on the My5.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x10 Episode 10
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
6x06 Episode 6
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]
Neighbours
1x8903 The Finale [series finale]
I haven't watched Neighbours in over 20 years, but I was a regular viewer back in the day — it's part of my childhood — so I had to tune in for this final goodbye! Obviously I had no idea who most of the characters were (of course I didn't know the young people; the oldies was a constant game of "do I recognise them or not?") and I had to infer most of the storylines, but hey-ho, that is what it is. Overall, quite a sweet goodbye.
[Watch it (again) on the My5.]
Neighbours Made Me a Star
I hadn't intended to watch this — I assumed it was going to be an empty clip show of Neighbours actors in other productions — but the title actually belied that this was a kind of history of the soap through the lens of the people it made famous, so it was a fitting part of the finale evening. Glad I stuck around for it.
[Watch it (again) on the My5.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x10 Episode 10
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Thursday, 28 July 2022
TV
Grantchester
6x05 Episode 5
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x09 Episode 9
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Ten Percent
1x08 Episode 8 [season finale]
Overall, this series wasn't as good as I'd hoped it would be, but it's not bad. I feel like if they'd tightened each episode up to 30 minutes (instead of the c.48 they do run) it would've been better. Still, if they bother to make a second series, I'll watch it.
6x05 Episode 5
[Watch it (again) on the ITV Hub.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x09 Episode 9
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Ten Percent
1x08 Episode 8 [season finale]
Overall, this series wasn't as good as I'd hoped it would be, but it's not bad. I feel like if they'd tightened each episode up to 30 minutes (instead of the c.48 they do run) it would've been better. Still, if they bother to make a second series, I'll watch it.
Wednesday, 27 July 2022
TV
Agatha Raisin
4x02 Love, Lies and Liquor
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x06 Episode 6
4x07 Episode 7
4x08 Episode 8
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
4x02 Love, Lies and Liquor
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x06 Episode 6
4x07 Episode 7
4x08 Episode 8
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Tuesday, 26 July 2022
TV
Leverage
4x17 The Radio Job
4x18 The Last Dam Job [season finale]
Richard Osman's House of Games
3x78 Episode 78
3x79 Episode 79
3x80 Episode 80
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Ten Percent
1x07 Episode 7
4x17 The Radio Job
4x18 The Last Dam Job [season finale]
Richard Osman's House of Games
3x78 Episode 78
3x79 Episode 79
3x80 Episode 80
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Ten Percent
1x07 Episode 7
Monday, 25 July 2022
TV
Leverage
4x16 The Gold Job
Richard Osman's House of Games
3x76 Episode 76
3x77 Episode 77
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Slow Horses
1x06 Follies [season finale]
Enjoyed that. Looking forward to more.
Ten Percent
1x06 Episode 6
4x16 The Gold Job
Richard Osman's House of Games
3x76 Episode 76
3x77 Episode 77
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Slow Horses
1x06 Follies [season finale]
Enjoyed that. Looking forward to more.
Ten Percent
1x06 Episode 6
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
A solid but not huge update this week, with four new additions (one a BD-to-4K upgrade). But this post is a couple of days late because it was also time for the monthly running time update, including all the busy last few weeks, and I needed a bit of time to add all that up. Results below...
Number of titles in collection: 2,885 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,050 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,835 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 188 [up 2]
Number of discs in collection: 7,172 [up 6]
Number of films: 3,448 [up 2]
Number of additional cuts: 273 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,336 [up 13]
Number of short films: 994 [up 1]
Total running time of collection (approx.):
513 days, 12 hours, and 10 minutes.
(Up 1 day, 15 hours, and 17 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
A solid but not huge update this week, with four new additions (one a BD-to-4K upgrade). But this post is a couple of days late because it was also time for the monthly running time update, including all the busy last few weeks, and I needed a bit of time to add all that up. Results below...
Number of titles in collection: 2,885 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,050 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,835 [up 3]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 188 [up 2]
Number of discs in collection: 7,172 [up 6]
Number of films: 3,448 [up 2]
Number of additional cuts: 273 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,336 [up 13]
Number of short films: 994 [up 1]
Total running time of collection (approx.):
513 days, 12 hours, and 10 minutes.
(Up 1 day, 15 hours, and 17 minutes from last month.)
See you next week, faithful reader.
Sunday, 24 July 2022
TV
Leverage
4x15 The Lonely Hearts Job
Richard Osman's House of Games
2x09 Episode 9
2x10 Episode 10
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Slow Horses
1x05 Fiasco
4x15 The Lonely Hearts Job
Richard Osman's House of Games
2x09 Episode 9
2x10 Episode 10
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Slow Horses
1x05 Fiasco
Saturday, 23 July 2022
Theatre
Les Misérables
UK & Ireland Tour at Bristol Hippodrome
I've seen Les Mis on stage before — before this blog began, in 2006 (if I remember rightly). This was a 'new' staging ('new' in 2009), which was pretty impressive. The film is good 'n' all, but I think the show plays best on stage.
UK & Ireland Tour at Bristol Hippodrome
I've seen Les Mis on stage before — before this blog began, in 2006 (if I remember rightly). This was a 'new' staging ('new' in 2009), which was pretty impressive. The film is good 'n' all, but I think the show plays best on stage.
Friday, 22 July 2022
TV
Richard Osman's House of Games
2x06 Episode 6
2x07 Episode 7
Digging into my archive of unwatched episodes now (i.e. these aren't available on iPlayer).
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Slow Horses
1x04 Visiting Hours
Ten Percent
1x05 Episode 5
2x06 Episode 6
2x07 Episode 7
Digging into my archive of unwatched episodes now (i.e. these aren't available on iPlayer).
[Watch various (other) episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Slow Horses
1x04 Visiting Hours
Ten Percent
1x05 Episode 5
Thursday, 21 July 2022
TV
Leverage
4x14 The Boys' Night Out Job
Not Going Out
12x06 Tent [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x70 Episode 70
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Slow Horses
1x03 Bad Tradecraft
4x14 The Boys' Night Out Job
Not Going Out
12x06 Tent [season finale]
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x70 Episode 70
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Slow Horses
1x03 Bad Tradecraft
Games
The Room Two
Popped back onto this for the first time in a while. Accidentally finished it. The narrative's not up to much, but the puzzles are quite fun. I expect I'll get the next one, too.
Popped back onto this for the first time in a while. Accidentally finished it. The narrative's not up to much, but the puzzles are quite fun. I expect I'll get the next one, too.
Wednesday, 20 July 2022
TV
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x69 Episode 69
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Slow Horses
1x02 Work Drinks
4x69 Episode 69
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Slow Horses
1x02 Work Drinks
Tuesday, 19 July 2022
TV
Leverage
4x13 The Girls' Night Out Job
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x68 Episode 68
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Slow Horses
1x01 Failure's Contagious
We're already guaranteed at least four seasons of this spy thriller on Apple TV+, so it's a good thing it's off to a strong start. With its grounded, washed-up spooks, it's a bit like a more dryly humourous version of Le Carré. Let's hope it's got the same smarts to pull that off all the way to the finish.
Ten Percent
1x04 Episode 4
4x13 The Girls' Night Out Job
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x68 Episode 68
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Slow Horses
1x01 Failure's Contagious
We're already guaranteed at least four seasons of this spy thriller on Apple TV+, so it's a good thing it's off to a strong start. With its grounded, washed-up spooks, it's a bit like a more dryly humourous version of Le Carré. Let's hope it's got the same smarts to pull that off all the way to the finish.
Ten Percent
1x04 Episode 4
Monday, 18 July 2022
TV
Leverage
4x12 The Office Job
Not Going Out
12x05 Jury
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x67 Episode 67
If you were wondering why I'm watching such a random week of House of Games (no one was, but still), it's because it's the only week still available on iPlayer that I've never seen. But once it's done, I do have a load of older ones downloaded.
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
4x12 The Office Job
Not Going Out
12x05 Jury
[Watch it (again) on iPlayer.]
Richard Osman's House of Games
4x67 Episode 67
If you were wondering why I'm watching such a random week of House of Games (no one was, but still), it's because it's the only week still available on iPlayer that I've never seen. But once it's done, I do have a load of older ones downloaded.
[Watch various episodes (again) on iPlayer.]
Sunday, 17 July 2022
Saturday, 16 July 2022
Comics
Batman: Wayne Family Adventures #47 by CRC Payne & StarBite
Someone posted a gag from this on Twitter, which led me to the full thing (which I'd never heard of before), and... well, the gag they shared was the primary punchline to the whole comic, so there wasn't much point reading it. But it's a decent gag.
[Read it (again) on Webtoon.]
Someone posted a gag from this on Twitter, which led me to the full thing (which I'd never heard of before), and... well, the gag they shared was the primary punchline to the whole comic, so there wasn't much point reading it. But it's a decent gag.
[Read it (again) on Webtoon.]
Games
Flight of the Amazon Queen
Having enjoyed my replay of the Monkey Island games, I've been looking for more point-and-click-style adventure games to play — and, thanks to sales and whatnot, I've ended up with quite a few to choose from. So, this is where I've decided to start. Why? Not sure, really. It was originally released in 1995, and I vaguelly remember being aware of it back in the day and wanting to play it (because it's Indiana Jones-inspired and I've always loved Indiana Jones), but I never did. So now I finally am. Hurrah!
Having enjoyed my replay of the Monkey Island games, I've been looking for more point-and-click-style adventure games to play — and, thanks to sales and whatnot, I've ended up with quite a few to choose from. So, this is where I've decided to start. Why? Not sure, really. It was originally released in 1995, and I vaguelly remember being aware of it back in the day and wanting to play it (because it's Indiana Jones-inspired and I've always loved Indiana Jones), but I never did. So now I finally am. Hurrah!
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
When this week began, it was possible it was going to be a completely dead one. Well, that's... not how things turned out. Between preorders turning up early and some quick-shipping sale buys, there's a grand total of 12 new acquisitions this week. Four of them are upgrades to previous editions, including the second Dalek movie in 4K meaning, my old double-film BD set is removed from the stats (as mentioned when I got the first film in 4K).
Number of titles in collection: 2,882 [up 8]
Of which DVDs: 1,050 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,832 [up 9]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 186 [up 3]
Number of discs in collection: 7,166 [up 11]
Number of films: 3,446 [up 8]
Number of additional cuts: 273 [up 4]
Number of TV episodes: 9,323 [no change]
Number of short films: 993 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
When this week began, it was possible it was going to be a completely dead one. Well, that's... not how things turned out. Between preorders turning up early and some quick-shipping sale buys, there's a grand total of 12 new acquisitions this week. Four of them are upgrades to previous editions, including the second Dalek movie in 4K meaning, my old double-film BD set is removed from the stats (as mentioned when I got the first film in 4K).
Number of titles in collection: 2,882 [up 8]
Of which DVDs: 1,050 [down 1]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,832 [up 9]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 186 [up 3]
Number of discs in collection: 7,166 [up 11]
Number of films: 3,446 [up 8]
Number of additional cuts: 273 [up 4]
Number of TV episodes: 9,323 [no change]
Number of short films: 993 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 15 July 2022
TV
Obi-Wan Kenobi
Part VI (of 6)
As I mentioned at the start, throughout the series I've been posting some thoughts to Letterboxd, if you're interested.
Part VI (of 6)
As I mentioned at the start, throughout the series I've been posting some thoughts to Letterboxd, if you're interested.
Thursday, 14 July 2022
Wednesday, 13 July 2022
Tuesday, 12 July 2022
Monday, 11 July 2022
Sunday, 10 July 2022
TV
Wimbledon 2022
Men's Final
I've watched bits of Wimbledon on and off this year, but not enough to feel it merited logging. I only half-watched this too, but I did have the full thing on, and it was worth it for the touching tribute to Sue Barker after the match. Even though I don't watch a huge amount of Wimbledon (I haven't bothered to log it since 2014!), I'm always aware of it, and she's been presenting it for as long as I can remember. Definitely an emotional farewell.
[You can watch all of the BBC's coverage of Wimbledon on iPlayer.]
Men's Final
I've watched bits of Wimbledon on and off this year, but not enough to feel it merited logging. I only half-watched this too, but I did have the full thing on, and it was worth it for the touching tribute to Sue Barker after the match. Even though I don't watch a huge amount of Wimbledon (I haven't bothered to log it since 2014!), I'm always aware of it, and she's been presenting it for as long as I can remember. Definitely an emotional farewell.
[You can watch all of the BBC's coverage of Wimbledon on iPlayer.]
this week on 100Films.co.uk
7 new reviews were published to 100Films.co.uk this week...
Bank Holiday (1938)
Lupin the Third: Is Lupin Still Burning? (2018)
2022 | Week 22
More next Sunday.
Bank Holiday (1938)
To call this a “forgotten classic” or similar would be to overstate the point somewhat, but it does seem to be a largely forgotten film that merits being better known.Read more here.
Lupin the Third: Is Lupin Still Burning? (2018)
Appropriately for a 50th anniversary special, Is Lupin Still Burning is loaded with references (both major and minor) for diehard fans to enjoy. As someone who has enjoyed a couple of Lupin’s adventures but is a long way from being well-versed in his world, I could tell a load of stuff was flying over my head — almost everything, in fact — which was unfortunate, but understandable. This is clearly a celebration that’s primarily aimed at dyed-in-the-wool fans rather than pleasing or initiating newcomers.Read more here.
2022 | Week 22
Featuring...Read more here.
- This Means War (2012)
- To Be or Not to Be (1942)
- An Unsuitable Job for a Woman (1982)
- The Pajama Game (1957)
- The Contender (2000)
More next Sunday.
Saturday, 9 July 2022
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
Just a couple of new additions this week, although one of them is a 5-disc set devoted to a single film...
Number of titles in collection: 2,874 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,051 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,823 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 183 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 7,155 [up 7]
Number of films: 3,438 [up 3]
Number of additional cuts: 269 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 9,323 [no change]
Number of short films: 993 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Just a couple of new additions this week, although one of them is a 5-disc set devoted to a single film...
Number of titles in collection: 2,874 [up 3]
Of which DVDs: 1,051 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,823 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 183 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 7,155 [up 7]
Number of films: 3,438 [up 3]
Number of additional cuts: 269 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 9,323 [no change]
Number of short films: 993 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Wednesday, 6 July 2022
Tuesday, 5 July 2022
Articles
The outlandish Doctor Who movie that never was
by Matthew Sweet (from MSN)
I heard about the screenplay for "the third Dalek film" (which actually has nothing to do with the Daleks) after the screening the other week at which its existence was revealed, but I think this is the first deep-dive into what that screenplay is actually about. Very interesting.
(This article was originally published by the Telegraph, but that's behind a paywall, so here's the full thing for free courtesy of MSN.)
by Matthew Sweet (from MSN)
I heard about the screenplay for "the third Dalek film" (which actually has nothing to do with the Daleks) after the screening the other week at which its existence was revealed, but I think this is the first deep-dive into what that screenplay is actually about. Very interesting.
(This article was originally published by the Telegraph, but that's behind a paywall, so here's the full thing for free courtesy of MSN.)
Sunday, 3 July 2022
TV
Mystery Science Theater 3000
13x05 Doctor Mordrid
Nearly a month since I last watched MST3K; although, at their current release schedule, that means I'm only two behind, and still have almost three weeks until the next premiere (which I won't be free to watch live, again). Talking of premieres, they're continuing to leave them available (for those of us with suitable Gizmoplex passes), so I'm still watching new eps that way. It takes longer (there are *gasp* adverts!) but has its benefits (post-show Q&As).
Obi-Wan Kenobi
Part I (of 6)
Finally starting this. Thoughts on Letterboxd.
13x05 Doctor Mordrid
Nearly a month since I last watched MST3K; although, at their current release schedule, that means I'm only two behind, and still have almost three weeks until the next premiere (which I won't be free to watch live, again). Talking of premieres, they're continuing to leave them available (for those of us with suitable Gizmoplex passes), so I'm still watching new eps that way. It takes longer (there are *gasp* adverts!) but has its benefits (post-show Q&As).
Obi-Wan Kenobi
Part I (of 6)
Finally starting this. Thoughts on Letterboxd.
this week on 100Films.co.uk
No new reviews on 100Films.co.uk this week, but it was the start of a new month, and that means a monthly review...
Plus, a summary of some of the films I failed to watch last month...
Back to the reviews next Sunday.
Plus, a summary of some of the films I failed to watch last month...
Back to the reviews next Sunday.
Saturday, 2 July 2022
Games
Tales of Monkey Island
Chapter 5 Rise of the Pirate God
Another hour played, and that's that — I'm all caught up on Monkey Island!
I enjoyed Tales overall, even if it had some bits that could stand improvement (an over-reliance on cut scenes at times; some puzzles that were made tedious by having to trek back and forth). It's a shame Telltale didn't make a second season; in fact, I'm not sure why they didn't: Tales was a critical and commercial hit (it's said to have been their biggest financial success until Back to the Future); and, while they eventually went bankrupt, that was nine years later. Mysterious.
Anyway, at least now we have Return to look forward to. Can't wait!
Chapter 5 Rise of the Pirate God
Another hour played, and that's that — I'm all caught up on Monkey Island!
I enjoyed Tales overall, even if it had some bits that could stand improvement (an over-reliance on cut scenes at times; some puzzles that were made tedious by having to trek back and forth). It's a shame Telltale didn't make a second season; in fact, I'm not sure why they didn't: Tales was a critical and commercial hit (it's said to have been their biggest financial success until Back to the Future); and, while they eventually went bankrupt, that was nine years later. Mysterious.
Anyway, at least now we have Return to look forward to. Can't wait!
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
I ended last week's count by noting that there was nothing on the schedule for this week. Unsurprisingly, that changed. Four titles may not look like much compared to some recent weeks, but, if you think about it, it's more than enough for a single week!
Unusually, they're all 4K titles — I don't think that's happened before. And they include what I believe is the first anime TV series to be released in 4K, Hayao Miyazaki's directorial debut, Future Boy Conan. So that's exciting then.
Number of titles in collection: 2,871 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,051 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,820 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 182 [up 4]
Number of discs in collection: 7,148 [up 10]
Number of films: 3,435 [up 3]
Number of additional cuts: 268 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,323 [up 13]
Number of short films: 993 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
I ended last week's count by noting that there was nothing on the schedule for this week. Unsurprisingly, that changed. Four titles may not look like much compared to some recent weeks, but, if you think about it, it's more than enough for a single week!
Unusually, they're all 4K titles — I don't think that's happened before. And they include what I believe is the first anime TV series to be released in 4K, Hayao Miyazaki's directorial debut, Future Boy Conan. So that's exciting then.
Number of titles in collection: 2,871 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,051 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,820 [up 4]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 182 [up 4]
Number of discs in collection: 7,148 [up 10]
Number of films: 3,435 [up 3]
Number of additional cuts: 268 [no change]
Number of TV episodes: 9,323 [up 13]
Number of short films: 993 [no change]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 1 July 2022
Games
Tales of Monkey Island
Chapter 5 Rise of the Pirate God
Another hour played... though quite a tedious one, to be honest, involving a lot of old-fashioned back-and-forthing to achieve anything. Shame, because it makes this episode feel a little anti-climactic. Still, I've got the final stretch to go yet, so maybe that will pick up.
Chapter 5 Rise of the Pirate God
Another hour played... though quite a tedious one, to be honest, involving a lot of old-fashioned back-and-forthing to achieve anything. Shame, because it makes this episode feel a little anti-climactic. Still, I've got the final stretch to go yet, so maybe that will pick up.
Thursday, 30 June 2022
TV
Doctor Who
3x33 The Final Test [2nd watch]
aka The Celestial Toymaker Part 4. Thank goodness this was only a four-parter — it feels drawn-out as it is.
Well, apparently the scripts for this serial were compromised by being in production at a time of changeover in the team running the show, which perhaps explains why there are nice ideas here that unfortunately don’t land very well. Parts of the episode feel like they were written on the spot, going round over the same points to little end. Shame.
Equally, it’s no wonder several writers have tried to have a second crack at the Toymaker down the years — there’s unexplored potential there, even if it were to just involve rehashing this storyline but executing it better.
3x33 The Final Test [2nd watch]
aka The Celestial Toymaker Part 4. Thank goodness this was only a four-parter — it feels drawn-out as it is.
Well, apparently the scripts for this serial were compromised by being in production at a time of changeover in the team running the show, which perhaps explains why there are nice ideas here that unfortunately don’t land very well. Parts of the episode feel like they were written on the spot, going round over the same points to little end. Shame.
Equally, it’s no wonder several writers have tried to have a second crack at the Toymaker down the years — there’s unexplored potential there, even if it were to just involve rehashing this storyline but executing it better.
Films
My Name Is Julia Ross (1945)
[#43 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
Plus the video extras on Arrow's Blu-ray, which include the original theatrical trailer and a 22-minute critical analysis.
[#43 in The All-New 100 Films in a Year Challenge 2022]
Plus the video extras on Arrow's Blu-ray, which include the original theatrical trailer and a 22-minute critical analysis.
Wednesday, 29 June 2022
Games
Tales of Monkey Island
Chapter 5 Rise of the Pirate God
Here we go, the final instalment. Gets off to a nicely spooky start, although the actual gamplay all feels fairly straightforward — there may be a few rooms to explore, but there's not a great deal to do in each of them, so it all feels (dare I say it) a little easy. Still, it kept me engrossed for an hour and a quarter, so I'm not really complaining.
Chapter 5 Rise of the Pirate God
Here we go, the final instalment. Gets off to a nicely spooky start, although the actual gamplay all feels fairly straightforward — there may be a few rooms to explore, but there's not a great deal to do in each of them, so it all feels (dare I say it) a little easy. Still, it kept me engrossed for an hour and a quarter, so I'm not really complaining.
Tuesday, 28 June 2022
TV
Doctor Who
3x32 The Dancing Floor
aka The Celestial Toymaker Part 3. The Toymaker feels like a really good idea (I guess that’s why there have been so many attempts to bring him back), but the middle episodes of this story suggest it’s harder than you’d think to find something interesting to do with the concept. Or maybe the games just needed someone with more imagination. I mean, half this episode is taken up by Steven and Dodo needing to find a key, which they do by… looking around a kitchen until they find it. Hardly the stuff thrilling adventures are made of, is it?
3x32 The Dancing Floor
aka The Celestial Toymaker Part 3. The Toymaker feels like a really good idea (I guess that’s why there have been so many attempts to bring him back), but the middle episodes of this story suggest it’s harder than you’d think to find something interesting to do with the concept. Or maybe the games just needed someone with more imagination. I mean, half this episode is taken up by Steven and Dodo needing to find a key, which they do by… looking around a kitchen until they find it. Hardly the stuff thrilling adventures are made of, is it?
Games
Tales of Monkey Island
Chapter 4 The Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood
25 minutes and that's this chapter wrapped up, with a helluvan ending. Just one final part to go...
Oh, and in case you missed the news, here's the just-released full trailer for Return to Monkey Island. It looks awesome — I can't wait!
Chapter 4 The Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood
25 minutes and that's this chapter wrapped up, with a helluvan ending. Just one final part to go...
Oh, and in case you missed the news, here's the just-released full trailer for Return to Monkey Island. It looks awesome — I can't wait!
Monday, 27 June 2022
Games
Tales of Monkey Island
Chapter 4 The Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood
Another hour-and-a-quarter played and not quite at the end of this chapter, though I presume I'm almost there.
Chapter 4 The Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood
Another hour-and-a-quarter played and not quite at the end of this chapter, though I presume I'm almost there.
Sunday, 26 June 2022
Games
Tales of Monkey Island
Chapter 4 The Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood
Another 50 minutes or so played, not that I can get an accurate time on this chapter now. It was, once again, a little too reliant on a couple of lengthy cut scenes in the middle to advance the plot. I read somewhere that, because this game was released as a series of downloadable chapters, each one had file size limits and so some decisions were made to keep sizes down. I wonder if the cut scenes were one of them — perhaps, without such limits, they would have been able to make those sections playable. It's not the end of the world, just unfortunate.
Chapter 4 The Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood
Another 50 minutes or so played, not that I can get an accurate time on this chapter now. It was, once again, a little too reliant on a couple of lengthy cut scenes in the middle to advance the plot. I read somewhere that, because this game was released as a series of downloadable chapters, each one had file size limits and so some decisions were made to keep sizes down. I wonder if the cut scenes were one of them — perhaps, without such limits, they would have been able to make those sections playable. It's not the end of the world, just unfortunate.
this week on 100Films.co.uk
4 new reviews were published to 100Films.co.uk this week...
Frances Ha (2012)
2022 | Weeks 18–20
More next Sunday.
Frances Ha (2012)
Being a ditzy twentysomething in New York, hanging out with friends and going to parties, having a job as a dancer and earning just enough to get by, and nothing quite going to plan but it all kinda being ok anyway — all in black & white? I see why some people love this film. It’s a kind of obvious fantasy life for certain Artsy people. Of course, there’s not much drama in that (not that that would stop some filmmakers), and so Frances’s messy life begins to get messier. It may stop being a fantasy, but it’s certainly relatable to any of us who’ve failed at the things we’d dreamed of doing.Read more here.
2022 | Weeks 18–20
Featuring...Read more here.
- The Monolith Monsters (1957)
- Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)
- Chip ’n Dale: Rescue Rangers (2022)
More next Sunday.
Saturday, 25 June 2022
Games
Tales of Monkey Island
Chapter 4 The Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood
Onward! Forgot to set a timer going or note when I started, so not sure how long I played for today. Somewhere between 45 minutes and an hour, roughly. Again, this is shaping up to a fun episode with some different kinds of gameplay. I'm appreciating the variety.
Chapter 4 The Trial and Execution of Guybrush Threepwood
Onward! Forgot to set a timer going or note when I started, so not sure how long I played for today. Somewhere between 45 minutes and an hour, roughly. Again, this is shaping up to a fun episode with some different kinds of gameplay. I'm appreciating the variety.
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
A new season of classic Doctor Who joins the collection this week, the first this year (at one point it looked like they were going to be releasing four of these sets per year; then it quickly slipped to three; now, it seems like getting to two will be a stretch. The pandemic's not an excuse anymore!) Anyway, as that upgrades several old DVDs, it means this month's counts nearly dropped (gasp!)
...but, of course, I can't help ordering other stuff — four more new releases, in fact; two of them multi-film box sets; plus a trio of titles on offer, too — so it's actually a rare month where every category changes, most going up. Hurrah! Poor old DVD, though; the only one that continues to sink. It's surely just a matter of time before it dips back below 1,000 titles, a number it had surpassed before I even started this series almost 13 years ago.
Number of titles in collection: 2,867 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,051 [down 4]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,816 [up 8]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 178 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 7,138 [up 26]
Number of films: 3,432 [up 15]
Number of additional cuts: 268 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes: 9,310 [up 5]
Number of short films: 993 [up 25]
And if that wasn't enough, this week it's time for a monthly running time update, too.
Total running time of collection (approx.):
511 days, 20 hours, and 53 minutes.
(Up 4 days, 17 hours, and 15 minutes from last month.)
Well now, that's a pretty big jump! Most months the increase is less than two days, and that's the biggest single month since my post-Christmas January 2nd count (which factored in multiple box sets, as the end of the year is always rife with them).
See you next week, faithful reader — when, as things stand, I'll have nothing to add! We'll see how that pans out...
A new season of classic Doctor Who joins the collection this week, the first this year (at one point it looked like they were going to be releasing four of these sets per year; then it quickly slipped to three; now, it seems like getting to two will be a stretch. The pandemic's not an excuse anymore!) Anyway, as that upgrades several old DVDs, it means this month's counts nearly dropped (gasp!)
...but, of course, I can't help ordering other stuff — four more new releases, in fact; two of them multi-film box sets; plus a trio of titles on offer, too — so it's actually a rare month where every category changes, most going up. Hurrah! Poor old DVD, though; the only one that continues to sink. It's surely just a matter of time before it dips back below 1,000 titles, a number it had surpassed before I even started this series almost 13 years ago.
Number of titles in collection: 2,867 [up 4]
Of which DVDs: 1,051 [down 4]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,816 [up 8]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 178 [up 1]
Number of discs in collection: 7,138 [up 26]
Number of films: 3,432 [up 15]
Number of additional cuts: 268 [up 3]
Number of TV episodes: 9,310 [up 5]
Number of short films: 993 [up 25]
And if that wasn't enough, this week it's time for a monthly running time update, too.
Total running time of collection (approx.):
511 days, 20 hours, and 53 minutes.
(Up 4 days, 17 hours, and 15 minutes from last month.)
Well now, that's a pretty big jump! Most months the increase is less than two days, and that's the biggest single month since my post-Christmas January 2nd count (which factored in multiple box sets, as the end of the year is always rife with them).
See you next week, faithful reader — when, as things stand, I'll have nothing to add! We'll see how that pans out...
Friday, 24 June 2022
TV
Doctor Who
3x31 The Hall of Dolls
aka The Celestial Toymaker Part 2. Not as good as the first — it feels like it's killing time, with the game Dodo and Steven have to play being not that interesting or challenging.
Taskmaster
2x04 Welcome to Rico Face
[Watch it (again) on All 4.]
3x31 The Hall of Dolls
aka The Celestial Toymaker Part 2. Not as good as the first — it feels like it's killing time, with the game Dodo and Steven have to play being not that interesting or challenging.
Taskmaster
2x04 Welcome to Rico Face
[Watch it (again) on All 4.]
Thursday, 23 June 2022
TV
Doctor Who
3x30 The Celestial Toyroom
aka The Celestial Toymaker Part 1. With all the rumours about the Toymaker’s forthcoming return, I thought it was about time I watched his debut (and, so far, only televisual) appearance. Of course, I can’t properly watch it because it’s 75% missing, so the Loose Cannon recon will have to suffice.
3x30 The Celestial Toyroom
aka The Celestial Toymaker Part 1. With all the rumours about the Toymaker’s forthcoming return, I thought it was about time I watched his debut (and, so far, only televisual) appearance. Of course, I can’t properly watch it because it’s 75% missing, so the Loose Cannon recon will have to suffice.
DVD Extras
Michael Grade in Conversation
The other interview I was referring to yesterday. It’s thorough enough that you feel there’s nothing left to be said, but it also doesn’t feel like there’s anything significantly new here. Interviewer Matthew Sweet does his best to draw out the whole truth and nothing but the truth, but it becomes clear that Grade didn’t care enough about Doctor Who to remember all the nitty-gritty details. So that’s that, then.
The other interview I was referring to yesterday. It’s thorough enough that you feel there’s nothing left to be said, but it also doesn’t feel like there’s anything significantly new here. Interviewer Matthew Sweet does his best to draw out the whole truth and nothing but the truth, but it becomes clear that Grade didn’t care enough about Doctor Who to remember all the nitty-gritty details. So that’s that, then.
Wednesday, 22 June 2022
DVD Extras
Colin Baker in Conversation
I've been picking up every one of the Doctor Who: The Collection Blu-ray releases as they come out, but I've not actually watched very much content on them. Indeed, I think the John Nathan-Turner doc may be literally the only thing I've watched from any of the 11 sets released so far. Shame on me — I really must do a lot to change that.
Well, here's one thing, at least. Though, like the JNT doc, I'm only watching it so quickly because I've seen it praised repeatedly on social media. In fact, there are three "In Conversation" features on the season 22 set, and I've seen two of them praised repeatedly; but as they're each essentially feature-length, I've only watched one for now. The other soon.
I've been picking up every one of the Doctor Who: The Collection Blu-ray releases as they come out, but I've not actually watched very much content on them. Indeed, I think the John Nathan-Turner doc may be literally the only thing I've watched from any of the 11 sets released so far. Shame on me — I really must do a lot to change that.
Well, here's one thing, at least. Though, like the JNT doc, I'm only watching it so quickly because I've seen it praised repeatedly on social media. In fact, there are three "In Conversation" features on the season 22 set, and I've seen two of them praised repeatedly; but as they're each essentially feature-length, I've only watched one for now. The other soon.
Films
Lupin the Third: Is Lupin Still Burning? (2018)
A one-off special to mark 50 years of Lupin III. I'm counting it as a short film; others would say it's an episode of TV. It's what anime fans call an OVA — Original Video Animation — which means it went straight to DVD, basically. I say that makes it a short, even though it was released alongside a TV series. (Does it really matter, though?)
As a short, I'll review it on 100 Films eventually. For now, I posted some thoughts on Letterboxd.
A one-off special to mark 50 years of Lupin III. I'm counting it as a short film; others would say it's an episode of TV. It's what anime fans call an OVA — Original Video Animation — which means it went straight to DVD, basically. I say that makes it a short, even though it was released alongside a TV series. (Does it really matter, though?)
As a short, I'll review it on 100 Films eventually. For now, I posted some thoughts on Letterboxd.
Tuesday, 21 June 2022
Audio Drama / Podcasts
Doctor Who: Redacted
1x10 Salvation [season finale]
Overall, I enjoyed that about as much as I've enjoyed the Chibnall era as a whole. Yeah. I've seen people on Twitter hoping for a second series; I hope it gets left behind in the current era, where it clearly belongs.
[Listen to it (again) on BBC Sounds.]
1x10 Salvation [season finale]
Overall, I enjoyed that about as much as I've enjoyed the Chibnall era as a whole. Yeah. I've seen people on Twitter hoping for a second series; I hope it gets left behind in the current era, where it clearly belongs.
[Listen to it (again) on BBC Sounds.]
Monday, 20 June 2022
Games
Tales of Monkey Island
Chapter 3 Lair of the Leviathan
Turned out to be about 45 minutes left, for a total time of 2 hours 55 minutes — slightly longer than the first two chapters took me, but not insanely so. Again, some entertainingly different-feeling sorts of puzzles here, which makes up for those slightly unwieldy cutscenes. Still got two-fifths of the game to go and already I feel like I'll be disappointed when it's over...
Chapter 3 Lair of the Leviathan
Turned out to be about 45 minutes left, for a total time of 2 hours 55 minutes — slightly longer than the first two chapters took me, but not insanely so. Again, some entertainingly different-feeling sorts of puzzles here, which makes up for those slightly unwieldy cutscenes. Still got two-fifths of the game to go and already I feel like I'll be disappointed when it's over...
Sunday, 19 June 2022
Games
Tales of Monkey Island
Chapter 3 Lair of the Leviathan
Felt like there were a lot of cutscenes at some points this chapter. Why not make them interactive conversations instead? Obviously the player's options would be narrow because it's about getting on with the plot, but they could throw in a couple of variations or asides. Plus, at least it would feel like a game rather than spending five minutes just watching, performing one simple task, then spending another five minutes watching.
Those iffy bits aside, the game remains decent fun. Some different types of puzzles I'd not seen before, which was a welcome change, and a nice use of fan-favourite character Murray. Just over 2 hours of time spent playing the chapter so far, which, based on the other two, probably means 30 to 45 minutes to go.
Chapter 3 Lair of the Leviathan
Felt like there were a lot of cutscenes at some points this chapter. Why not make them interactive conversations instead? Obviously the player's options would be narrow because it's about getting on with the plot, but they could throw in a couple of variations or asides. Plus, at least it would feel like a game rather than spending five minutes just watching, performing one simple task, then spending another five minutes watching.
Those iffy bits aside, the game remains decent fun. Some different types of puzzles I'd not seen before, which was a welcome change, and a nice use of fan-favourite character Murray. Just over 2 hours of time spent playing the chapter so far, which, based on the other two, probably means 30 to 45 minutes to go.
this week on 100Films.co.uk
5 new reviews were published to 100Films.co.uk this week...
Encanto (2021)
High and Low (1963)
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)
2022 | Weeks 16–17
More next Sunday.
Encanto (2021)
It doesn’t look like your typical Disney Princess movie, but it’s not functionally different to them. The Madrigal family’s powers mean they effectively rule over their small town, albeit in a benevolent way, which makes Mirabel a de facto Princess; and she has the usual Disney Princess hangups about feeling under-appreciated and needing to find her self-worth. But hey, at least she doesn’t also need to find a husband!Read more here.
High and Low (1963)
Akira Kurosawa has a good many classic films to his name, but, according to users of both IMDb and Letterboxd, this is the second best of them all — and, on the latter’s list. the 12th greatest film ever made, to boot... It’s certainly a fine piece of work — although, on first watch, I’d say I’ve seen several better examples of the genre and several better films by Kurosawa. But that isn’t truly a criticism of the film, rather of its high placing on the lists mentionedRead more here.
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021)
The MCU publicity claim that any given film is “not just a superhero movie, it’s a [1970s conspiracy thriller / John Hughes comedy / whatever]” has, rightly, become a bit of a laughing stock. But I think Shang-Chi might be the first time it’s actually true. Yeah, it’s undeniably set in the MCU and, as such, plays by some of those rules... but the bulk of the movie itself is not really a superhero film as we normally think of them. Rather, it’s a martial arts fantasy-actioner.Read more here.
2022 | Weeks 16–17
Featuring two very different coming-of-age movies...Read more here.
- CODA (2021)
- Cruella (2021)
More next Sunday.
Saturday, 18 June 2022
Films
The Ghost Writer (2010)
Normally I go with UK titles for films, and this was originally released here as The Ghost, but nowadays it's on Netflix (where I watched it) as The Ghost Writer, so...
Normally I go with UK titles for films, and this was originally released here as The Ghost, but nowadays it's on Netflix (where I watched it) as The Ghost Writer, so...
Collection Count
Collection Count tracks my DVD/Blu-ray collection via a number of statistics every week.
I would call this week a quieter one, but that's only in the context of recent times. It still boasts six new additions, with ten films, an additional cut, and 24 episodes of TV between them.
Among them, I finally picked up the first Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection 4K set. It contains just four of his films, versus the 16-film BD set I also own them in. No replacement in my collection there, then! Indeed, it'll be some time before I can lose the BD set — if ever. Y'see, this volume is almost two years old, and they've only recently released a second with five more films. That leaves seven to go, two of which are actually with different rights holders, so who knows if they'll all ever see the light of day on 4K? Maybe they will, but I'll certainly be keeping the BD set for the forseeable future.
One BD set I won't be keeping for too much longer is the Peter Cushing Dalek films. The 4K edition of Dr. Who and the Daleks turned up this morning, and when the matching set for Daleks' Invasion Earth turns up (in a month's time) then I'll remove the old BD from these stats.
Number of titles in collection: 2,863 [up 6]
Of which DVDs: 1,055 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,808 [up 6]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 177 [up 3]
Number of discs in collection: 7,112 [up 19]
Number of films: 3,417 [up 10]
Number of additional cuts: 265 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 9,305 [up 24]
Number of short films: 968 [up 6]
See you next week, faithful reader.
I would call this week a quieter one, but that's only in the context of recent times. It still boasts six new additions, with ten films, an additional cut, and 24 episodes of TV between them.
Among them, I finally picked up the first Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection 4K set. It contains just four of his films, versus the 16-film BD set I also own them in. No replacement in my collection there, then! Indeed, it'll be some time before I can lose the BD set — if ever. Y'see, this volume is almost two years old, and they've only recently released a second with five more films. That leaves seven to go, two of which are actually with different rights holders, so who knows if they'll all ever see the light of day on 4K? Maybe they will, but I'll certainly be keeping the BD set for the forseeable future.
One BD set I won't be keeping for too much longer is the Peter Cushing Dalek films. The 4K edition of Dr. Who and the Daleks turned up this morning, and when the matching set for Daleks' Invasion Earth turns up (in a month's time) then I'll remove the old BD from these stats.
Number of titles in collection: 2,863 [up 6]
Of which DVDs: 1,055 [no change]
Of which Blu-rays: 1,808 [up 6]
— of which Ultra HD Blu-rays: 177 [up 3]
Number of discs in collection: 7,112 [up 19]
Number of films: 3,417 [up 10]
Number of additional cuts: 265 [up 1]
Number of TV episodes: 9,305 [up 24]
Number of short films: 968 [up 6]
See you next week, faithful reader.
Friday, 17 June 2022
Audio Drama / Podcasts
Doctor Who: Redacted
1x08 Ghosts
Did they have to recast several characters from the TV show because the original actorsread the script wouldn't appear, I wonder?
[Listen to it (again) on BBC Sounds.]
1x08 Ghosts
Did they have to recast several characters from the TV show because the original actors
[Listen to it (again) on BBC Sounds.]
Games
Tales of Monkey Island
Chapter 2 The Siege of Spinner Cay
So, having said there could be half-an-hour left, it was a little over fifteen minutes, including credits. Well, you never know! That means Chapter 2 took me about two-and-three-quarter hours, the same as Chapter 1, for a total so far of just over 5½ hours gametime.
As for the game itself, one thing I could do without (having now had it in both chapters so far): running around jungles trying to remember which pathway leads where. It's okay as a one-off, but it's not that much fun to repeat; it feels like a cheat to make the game feel bigger (more locations!) or longer (artificially extending it as you randomly try different paths hoping to end up where you're looking for).
Chapter 2 The Siege of Spinner Cay
So, having said there could be half-an-hour left, it was a little over fifteen minutes, including credits. Well, you never know! That means Chapter 2 took me about two-and-three-quarter hours, the same as Chapter 1, for a total so far of just over 5½ hours gametime.
As for the game itself, one thing I could do without (having now had it in both chapters so far): running around jungles trying to remember which pathway leads where. It's okay as a one-off, but it's not that much fun to repeat; it feels like a cheat to make the game feel bigger (more locations!) or longer (artificially extending it as you randomly try different paths hoping to end up where you're looking for).
Thursday, 16 June 2022
Games
Tales of Monkey Island
Chapter 2 The Siege of Spinner Cay
Uncharted waters — a Monkey Island game I've never played! I don't know if it's just in my head, because I know how the game was released, but Tales feels like a Monkey Island 'TV series' vs the 'movies' that were the first four games. It's not a scale or graphics thing either, because, if anything, this is the slickest and most cinematic MI has ever looked. I guess it's partly the way the story is paced (there's clearly an overarching narrative, but also it seems as if each episode is a self-contained chunk), and also textural things, like episode 1 ending with "to be continued" and episode 2 beginning with a kind of recap, plus opening credits playing over the early scenes — much more like TV than a movie. None of which really matters, it's just a feeling.
And, for the sake of keeping track, I've played this chapter for two-and-a-half hours so far. I think I'm near the end of it now, but there are surprisingly long cutscenes and whatnot sometimes — that "near the end" might translate to another half-hour yet, hence why I stopped for the evening.
Chapter 2 The Siege of Spinner Cay
Uncharted waters — a Monkey Island game I've never played! I don't know if it's just in my head, because I know how the game was released, but Tales feels like a Monkey Island 'TV series' vs the 'movies' that were the first four games. It's not a scale or graphics thing either, because, if anything, this is the slickest and most cinematic MI has ever looked. I guess it's partly the way the story is paced (there's clearly an overarching narrative, but also it seems as if each episode is a self-contained chunk), and also textural things, like episode 1 ending with "to be continued" and episode 2 beginning with a kind of recap, plus opening credits playing over the early scenes — much more like TV than a movie. None of which really matters, it's just a feeling.
And, for the sake of keeping track, I've played this chapter for two-and-a-half hours so far. I think I'm near the end of it now, but there are surprisingly long cutscenes and whatnot sometimes — that "near the end" might translate to another half-hour yet, hence why I stopped for the evening.
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