There has certainly been a lot said about how the "Fast & Furious" franchise has gone on too long, as each sequel sees the need to one-up the last movie, to the point where the latest films in the franchise are utter nonsense. The last film, "F9," saw the main cast put a car into... Continue Reading →
“Vinland Saga” Season 2 Has Tough Lessons In Leadership For King Canute | Column from the Editor
"Vinland Saga" Season 2 is a vast departure from last season, featuring a slower pace with more focus on character development than gory anime battles. It's also seen King Canute (Jesse James Grelle) -- who was a prince last season -- undergo a complete 180-degree turn in terms of his character. Season 1 Canute was... Continue Reading →
Marvel Has Lost Some Momentum After “Avengers: Endgame.” Jonathan Majors’ Kang The Conqueror Isn’t Helping | Column from the Editor
Say what you will about the Marvel Cinematic Universe -- and there are plenty who bash it -- but it accomplished something we've never seen in cinema on this scale: A multi-phase, cohesive story told through many successful blockbuster films that make up The Infinity Saga. Many studios have tried to create similar cinematic universes, but all have... Continue Reading →
Ketil In “Vinland Saga” Season 2 Highlights How There Can Be No Good Slave Owners | Column from the Editor
Perhaps the most interesting character in "Vinland Saga" Season 2 is Ketil (Doug Jackson), the owner of the farm that Thorfinn (Aleks Le) and Einar (Ian Sinclair) find themselves enslaved on. Any system of slavery is inherently immoral, so it should come as no surprise that popular culture depictions of slave owners typically portray them... Continue Reading →
“Vinland Saga” Season 2 Shows A Complimentary Struggle To Season 1 | Column from the Editor
I recently started watching the period anime "Vinland Saga" Season 2, which isn't for everyone, especially for those expecting more or less the same story as Season 1. It's also still airing, so I'm willing to give it the benefit of the doubt until it wraps up. For most of this season, our antihero, Thorfinn (Aleks... Continue Reading →
A Soft Ending To A Bizarre Trilogy | “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3” (2023) Movie Review
Closing out a trilogy is no easy task. "Spider-Man 3," "The Dark Knight Rises," and "X-Men: The Last Stand" are all examples of third films in massively successful franchises that couldn't quite close the deal. "Guardians of the Galaxy" wraps up as director James Gunn takes the helm at DC to direct their rebooted cinematic universe. Truthfully,... Continue Reading →
Another Helping Of Great Original Stories | “Star Wars: Visions” Season 2 (2023) Disney Plus Series Review
With the resounding success of "Star Wars: Visions" Season 1, Disney has officially released another helping of it. This time, Western studios are in the spotlight. Below are mini-reviews of each episode of this season. https://www.tiktok.com/@inreviewmovies/video/7229224907333389614 Episode 1: Sith This episode takes place presumably prior to the rule of two, where Lola (Úrsula Corberó) a... Continue Reading →
Scary On Its Own Terms | “Evil Dead Rise” (2023) Movie Review
It's been a while since a horror movie actually scared me. I think this is mostly attributed to the fact that horror films over the last few years have been painfully predictable. There are plenty of complaints online about the oversaturation of jump scares and while modern horror's overreliance on them is part of why... Continue Reading →
Watching “One Piece” For The First Time (Part 7): Fish-Man Island | Column from the Editor
Last year, I started watching “One Piece,” and I started documenting my journey getting through the show on InReview’s TikTok page. You can watch my previous batch of “One Piece” TikToks here. This batch covers the show's Fish-Man Island arc. I only got through one major arc this month, as I needed a break after the trauma that... Continue Reading →
Pokemon Scarlet And Violet | Return to Nintendo: Column from the Editor
When I started "Return to Nintendo" -- a series of columns documenting my return to Nintendo consoles after a five-year absence -- one of the first things I wrote about was how much Pokemon had changed since I last completed a main-series game with "Black 2" version, writing about "Sword" and "Shield" at the time.... Continue Reading →
Theory: Planned “Star Wars” Films Will Create 3 Trilogies, Focusing On The Past, Present And Future | Column from the Editor
"Star Wars" is branching off into three different directions post-"Rise of Skywalker" through three different films that take place in past, "present" and future eras of the franchise. They include: 1. A film set 15 years after "The Rise of Skywalker" starring Daisy Ridley as Rey Skywalker, who is rebuilding the Jedi Order. Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy is set to... Continue Reading →
It’s Not Easy Being A Minion | “Renfield” (2023) Movie Review
Getting out of a toxic relationship can be challenging, especially when it's over a century old and with a famous vampire. That's the premise of Chris McKay's "Renfield," starring Nicholas Hoult as the titular R.M. Renfield, who has been Count Dracula's (Nicholas Cage) familiar for at least a century. It started when Renfield tried to... Continue Reading →
Taking Back Mandalore | “Star Wars: The Mandalorian” Season 3: Episode 8 “The Return” Review
Well, it looks like "The Mandalorian" has reached its pinnacle. After this season, I think it's time to call it quits. What else is there left to do, after the reclamation of *spoiler*? That's right, there will be spoilers. Go watch the episode now if you haven't. After last week's shocking twist that Moff Gideon (Giancarlo... Continue Reading →
A Magical Reimagining Of A Classic | “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (2022) Netflix Movie Review
When you think of "Pinocchio," you might think of Disney's animated adaptation of the classic tale. However, like many fairy tales, Disney's version is not the sole authoritative version of it, and it is open to reimaginings and different takes on the source material. Enter Guillermo del Toro, who has been working on his own "Pinocchio"... Continue Reading →
Not Anyone Can Wear Beskar | “Star Wars: The Mandalorian” Season 3: Episode 7 “The Spies” Review
After last episode's celebrity cameo-filled affair, "The Mandalorian" needed to both get on track and set up the series finale this episode. Does it deliver? Read on to find out. Very big spoilers ahead -- it's impossible to talk about this episode without spoiling it, so go watch it if you haven't yet. This episode... Continue Reading →
Aesthetically-Accurate Nonsense | “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” (2023) Movie Review
Mario had a real tough break the last time he was on the silver screen, with 1993's "Super Mario Bros." being a legendary disaster not only from a quality standpoint, but from a production one as well. It is no surprise that it took Nintendo 30 years to release another film with their titular Italian plumber. Given... Continue Reading →
Droid Detectives | “Star Wars: The Mandalorian” Season 3: Episode 6 “Guns for Hire” Review
With Bo-Katan Kryze (Katee Sakhoff) chosen as the one who will bridge Din Djarin's (Pedro Pascal) coven of Mandalorians with other groups, she must now re-win over her former group of Mandalorians in order to get them onboard to retake their homeworld of Mandalore. But first, they must go on a side quest to solve... Continue Reading →
A Bittersweet Ending | “John Wick: Chapter 4” (2023) Movie Review
All good things must come to an end, and the "John Wick" franchise is no different. Coming off of three films of vibrant visuals and breakneck gun fu sequences, the titular Wick (Keanu Reeves) has very little fight and live for except for revenge, as he is determined to not only take down the leadership... Continue Reading →
Watching “One Piece” For The First Time (Part 6): Impel Down Through Marineford | Column from the Editor
Last year, I started watching “One Piece,” and I started documenting my journey getting through the show on InReview’s TikTok page. You can watch my previous batch of “One Piece” TikToks here. This batch goes from the show's Impel Down arc through the end of its Marineford arc. I'm just starting the first few episodes after the show's... Continue Reading →
Liberating Nevarro | “Star Wars: The Mandalorian” Season 3: Episode 5 “The Pirate” Review
We knew this was coming since Episode 1; pirates are coming for Nevarro this week. Irked by High Magistrate Greef Karga (Carl Weathers) and Din Djarin's (Pedro Pascal) defense of the planet from his underlings, pirate leader Gorian Shard (Carey Jones) attacks the planet. Karga gives a distress call to the New Republic, which pilot... Continue Reading →