Reviews Archives - Page 1009 of 1411

Category Archives: Reviews

TV Review: The Flash S3E7 Killer Frost

Posted on November 23, 2016 by Brett

Caitlin’s inner Killer Frost is unleashed after she uses her powers to save Barry; on a rampage. Killer Frost goes looking for Dr. Alchemy, kidnaps Julian and battles both the Flash and Vibe. Joe and H.R. have an honest discussion.

The Flash is interesting as it gets Caitlin to go full Killer Frost and begin to become the villain we knew she’d become. There’s some good and some bad with this.

The good is, Caitlin as a bad guy is bad ass. It’s some solid acting and it’s a character I’ve liked as far as a villain for some time. The bad is she was a solid female lead who was also a scientist. The show has a bad habit of spotlighting their female characters in a negative way. Iris has gotten better but she was originally the love interest Barry couldn’t have and Jesse was a damsel when she started on the show. Caitlin was the one character who was competent and a scientist. Now she’s a slightly loony bad guy…

That was the big chunk of the episode until we got to the end, where one of my predictions totally was revealed as the identity of Dr. Alchemy is exposed. It wasn’t a hard one to figure out at all, but it’s nice to see it confirmed at this point.

The episode also shakes things up for Barry who has to make a decision about Caitlin’s actions and if she should face justice. It’s a plot we’ve seen in comics a bunch of times, but cool to see it be brought over to the series.

The negative of the show is a certain someone getting their powers in a flash and zipping away. It’s something we expected to see, but out of everything that happens in the episode, it feels like too much packed in. And that’s the big thing about the episode. Some is really good and is given the proper amount of attention while other plot points are just too quick and aren’t focused on enough.

There’s a lot to unpack from this episode and for the series to explore for the rest of the season so in that it’s pretty good.

Overall Rating: 7.85

Review: Go Home

Posted on November 23, 2016 by Brett

Stranded on a secluded island during World War 2, a young man discovers the true horrors of war.

Go Home written by Dan Hill with art by Andrew Herbst really caught me off guard in a good way. The story is more of a poem and how it’s written is an interesting one. The story is written like a letter home as the protagonist writes home to his father exploring his time growing up and his experiences during the war.

The comic is like reading a personal diary entry with images and that style really makes it stand out. It all gives a look into the mind and even has the main character rethinking some of what he’s saying. It provides an insight into the character you don’t often get making the comic a character study in many ways. It creates a depth you often don’t see with comic characters.

Herbst’s art is fantastic and with Hill’s writing style it becomes even more important. The design is solid and reminds me a bit of Nate Powell’s work in a way. The drama is emphasized and the heartbreak too with the combination of writer and artist coming together to tell a great solid.

Overall, the comic wasn’t on my radar, but this is really solid and one I’d suggest checking out digitally. It stands out as a prime example of the type of entertainment that indie comics can deliver that you often don’t see in the big publishers.

Story: Dan Hill Art: Andrew Herbst
Story: 8.4 Art: 8.4 Overall: 8.4 Recommendation: Buy

Graphic Policy was provided with a FREE copy for review

Review: Civil War II #7

Posted on November 23, 2016 by Brett

The war ends…

Marvel‘s 2016 event Civil War II begins to wrap up with just a few more issues to go and this issue raises a hell of a lot of questions as to what’s to come.

Civil War II #7 is an interesting issue in that I’m very mixed in my thoughts about it. As an issue that teases things to come, it’s one that fans will be going over and be examining for a while to come. As part of a story that’s supposed to be exploring precognition’s use to stop crime, it falls rather short.

The issue is broken up into two parts written by Brian Michael Bendis. Half of the issue deals with Ulysses and his freezing at the end of the last issue and now being in the future somewhat which is the most intriguing thing about the issue.

Artists Andrea Sorrentino and Marcelo Maiolo lend their hand for that as the issue is set in the future that is Old Man Logan where the future grizzled Wolverine gives rather cryptic statements to Ulysses about where things have gone wrong. Of course, that opens up questions like why Wolverine doesn’t recognize Ulysses and why he hasn’t spoken up to everyone to tell them the future and put an end to all of the silliness. A bit of a Catch-22 there. Still, the art is utterly fantastic and the teasing is intriguing.

The other half of the comic deals with Spider-Man on the steps of the Capitol which is actually presented in a pretty authentic way post upgrades. Though where’s the Capitol police in all of this? There’d be more than DC police involved. He’s trying to come to grips with what Ulysses saw and Captain America confronts him to discuss that. That too is interesting but as soon as we get somewhere to really discuss things, the fighting begins again diluting any actual philosophical debate to be had. And that’s my issue with the series. For as smart as it seemed to have been or presented it has mostly been about heroes punching each other and characters dying. The actual important discussion of using an algorithm to arrest people before they commit a crime isn’t explored enough in the main story. It’s a Michael Bay film on paper, all flash, little depth.

David Marquez‘s art is solid as usual. As I said his interpretation of the Capitol is solid and I felt like I was walking around it. His characters and framing of the scenes keeps you watching and entertained. It’s really good work and continues the art of the series being strong than the story itself.

The issue sets a lot of things up to come and you know what’s hinted at will be something bigger than presented. It also interestingly shifts the importance of Marvel’s “X” lines a bit as the events to come are presented from the view of Old Man Logan increasing his importance. But, like the six issues before, the concept is muddled with too much flash.

Story: Brian Michael Bendis Art: David Marquez, Andrea Sorrentino, Marcelo Maiolo
Story: 6.95 Art: 8.15 Overall: 7.05 Recommendation: Read

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Review: Death of X #4

Posted on November 23, 2016 by Brett

It’s the first true battle in the upcoming war between the Inhumans and Mutants this issue finally reveals the fate of Scott Summers aka Cyclops!

I’ve generally been down on a lot of Death of X which overall still feels like it’s a very small part of a story as opposed to something that’s really self-contained. And in some ways it is that small part. The story is what happened in the gap from when the Marvel Universe was reset again.

Since that kick-off fans have been left wondering the fate of Cyclops which has been hinted at and teased but never fully explained. We knew he wasn’t around and it was pretty clear he died, but there was enough leeway another fate might have befallen him.

And we get our answer here in a story that has enough twists to keep things interesting.

But, beyond the death of Cyclops, and a few other characters throughout this series, what I think is most important is that by the end of this comic the X-Men are being positioned back to where they work best a philosophical idea as much as characters and action. While I don’t want to spoil things there’s an interesting back to basics feel about this comic which gets things back to “ideas.” When the X-Men began it was a series about the idea that mutants and humans could live side by side in peace. Over the years that has ebbed and flowed and by the end of this comic the declaration is made we’re getting back to the philosophy at their core. It’s a declaration as much to the reader as it is a foreshadow of things to come.

The comic is good in that it answers at least one of my questions, why haven’t the X-Men just destroyed the clouds, but it also leaves some things open like why there isn’t even more of a fallout from the events in this series. It feels like things are a bit short and not resolved enough. For instance, another character sacrifices himself here for the greater good of mutants. You’d think that might come up somehow? Maybe things will now that the cat’s out of the bag?

But, for the issues I had with the storytelling the art is just a complete slide from what we had been seeing (which already had issues). There’s one panel in particular that has Emma Frost looking more like Beak. Artist Aaron Kuder had some troubles with character design that’s not consistent and at times atrocious. It’s one where I’m actually scratching my head trying to figure out what happened and what went wrong. But the art had me struggling.

The comic answers questions and foreshadows things to come, but it also leaves a lot of unanswered questions (how has Magneto not seen more of a backlash?). I have no idea if those holes will be filled, but the four issue series does what it set out to do, set up the conflict to come in the next big even, tell else who has died, and provide the fate of Cyclops. It does all of that, I just wish it did a bit more too.

Story: Jeff Lemire, Charles Soule Art: Aaron Kuder
Story: 6.65 Art: 5 Overall: 5.8 Recommendation: Pass

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Review: Batman ’66 Meets Wonder Woman ’77 Ch. 1

Posted on November 23, 2016 by Brett

It was a matter of time before these two classic properties came together, but we finally have the 1960s Batman meeting the 1970s Wonder Woman in a digital first series that begins with a flashback and I think introduces some more modern characters into the classic setting.

What mysteries are hidden in the book Ra’s al Ghul just hired Catwoman to steal? And why does this caper lead Batman down memory lane-to his childhood fight against actual Nazis?!

Written by Jeff Parker and Marc Andreyko, Batman ’66 Meets Wonder Woman ’77 kicks off with a caper by Catwoman, but quickly dives into the past as Bruce reflects on his childhood and an incident of an auction that was crashed by Nazis and the League of Assassins.

The story is over the top fun as you’d expect with a series such as this bringing together not just the characters but also Ra’s al Ghul, Catwoman, Talia al Ghul, and Nazis in a story that feels like it’s a mix of classic Batman with Indiana Jones.

There’s a certain camp you’d expect when reading this type of story and Park and Andreyko delivers making sure to not take things too seriously and also work it so it feels fairly natural as to how Wonder Woman fits into it all. And since this is a digital chapter which tend to run pretty short, there’s actually a hell of a lot fit in there.

The art by David Hahn continues the style we’ve seen and has become what I’d expect for this setting and these series. It’s solid and I’d be interested in seeing how it flows in comiXology compared to my reading it as single pages in a PDF. So, my reading wasn’t ideal in reality and there may have been some things I missed due to that (Wonder Woman spinning to change could be really cool digitally for instance). Still, it’s solid work that continues the style we’ve seen before.

Overall, it’s a digital chapter, so a bit short for me, but it does pack in a lot and continues the fun tone of classic Batman and Wonder Woman. I can’t wait to read the next chapter and see where things go from here.

Story: Marc Andreyko, Jeff Parker Art: David Hahn
Story: 7.8 Art: 7.8 Overall: 7.8 Recommendation: Read

The first chapter is now available for download via the DC Comics App, Readdcentertainment.com, iBooks, comiXology.com, Google Play, Kindle Store, Nook Store, and iVerse ComicsPlus

DC Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Review: AD: After Death Book One

Posted on November 23, 2016 by Joe Ryan

AD: After Death Book One has been described as part comic and part prose. When I first heard that, I wasn’t sure exactly what the creators meant, but now it makes complete sense. This book may not be for everyone, as it can be very wordy, but it really shines the more writer Scott Snyder got to write. Even if you do not like wordy comics, I would still give this a chance, because it is something very special, and it doesn’t feel like a comic.

The story is narrated by Jonah Cooke, as he looks back at his own memories. I could relate to a lot of Jonah’s childhood, and to the message of family that is this books heart. I mean that when I say it, this book has heart. There is a longer part, I believe in the middle where Snyder’s words spoke to me in a heavy way. It was describing someone who worries about everything, and how no matter how good something can go, you’re waiting for the other shoe to drop. Now I have always had some form of anxiety, which is most of the time manageable, but when I read this brilliant part, I could feel my heart racing. That is a very powerful thing, and that is what a good writer can do.

It wouldn’t be fair if the only thing I raved over was the writing, which certainly deserves it, but so does the art. Jeff Lemire, who is another favorite talent of mine, gives us some incredible work. You can tell that these two powerhouses worked with such care creating this story. From seeing the little green balloon our young Jonah and his family are following illustrated like something out of a beautiful watercolor version of children’s book. To the full beautiful painting of a field and windmills with Jonah’s truck driving past. Some of the pages are something I would hang on my wall as actual art, and not just prints or pages. It is beautiful, and his style is so unique and much different from what we see in most comics. We have seen more books do the watercolor route (like Dept. H), and it is truly refreshing. It is nice to have different forms of art in the medium of comics, especially when so many other books are doing the same thing. Nothing about this book feels familiar, and the beautiful work by Lemire is a big reason why.

This extra large book runs around seventy pages, and the story will be completed in three issues. We don’t get everything that is going on yet, and that’s okay, because we still have two more large books coming to tell us. But we do get a lot of setup, and a lot of Jonah’s past. It is also mentioned multiple times that this is hundreds of years after he was a child, and that death has been cured. Jonah is not some frail old man, in fact he looks quite young still, so it is apparent that perhaps aging in general has stopped, but I don’t want to get ahead of the story here, because I am sure most of these questions will be answered in time. How was death cured? Is that a good thing? I cannot wait to find out.

I feel like this book is personal, and I love that. Sometimes it is hard to read something so real, but you’re better for it. It can be therapeutic. Like Jonah, I was a young child in the eighties, and I lost my father at seven years old. Now our stories may be different, but there were pieces that connected. The car rides, family vacations where things went wrong, the silly games, and mostly just about the innocence of being a child and the moment where something horrible happens, and it changing you forever. This book captured that part of my youth perfectly, and it’s like it was speaking to me and me alone. Even if that is just for a moment, that is something magical, and I hope that when someone else reads this, they feel that too.

I would absolutely recommend AD: After Death Book One to anyone looking for something a little deeper, a little longer, and a little different. Snyder and Lemire have created a tale that feels raw, real, and beautiful. As surreal as something like curing death may seem, this book tells a very believable story. I connected to Jonah as a boy, and am very interested to learn more about who he is as a man.

Story: Scott Snyder Art: Jeff Lemire
Story: 10 Art: 10 Overall: 10 Recommendation: Buy

Image provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Review: The Ultimates 2 #1

Posted on November 23, 2016 by Logan Dalton

In Ultimates 2 #1, writer Al Ewing, artist Travel Foreman, and colorist Dan Brown depart from the petty in-fighting that dominated the book thanks to Civil War II and return the Ultimates to their initial purposes as a team of intelligent powerhouses who solve cosmic scale problems proactively. The comic starts macro with a bird’s eye view of chained Eternity and goes micro as it focuses on the tense relationships between Blue Marvel and Spectrum and Captain Marvel and Black Panther for the brunt of the book before the team reassembles in a logical, yet epic way as the double page spreads from Foreman fly.

Since the beginning of Ultimates‘, Dan Brown has been a major ingredient in the comic’s success from his depictions of the multiversity as a slightly trippy and overwhelming place that would make Jack Kirby smile to the different energy attacks that the characters use. His colors have given the book an extra level of grandeur, and he plays an even bigger role in Ultimates 2 #1 in matching Travel Foreman stride for stride as the artist goes from sketchy and slightly cartoonish to photorealistic from panel to panel. This might make it seem that Ultimates 2 has inconsistent art, but Foreman has a purpose behind the difference in his figures. He’s like a cinematographer who uses different camera filters to shoot varied and interesting scenes. For example, he draws Captain Marvel and Black Panther with lighter lines and more cartooning when they’re pretending to be on an awkward online date to avoid suspicion as they talk about possibly reforming the Ultimates. However, Foreman goes full photorealistic and Brown puts on a hearty helping of black and silver when Black Panther responds to Captain Marvel’s claim that he would do anything for Wakanda.

It’s a visual representation of the “I Am Wakanda” moment as well as yet another example of what is sort of becoming a signature of Travel Foreman. In Civil War II: Amazing Spider-Man, he used nearly photographic flashbacks of Uncle Ben, the robber, and Aunt May to show how much loss affected Spider-Man as a hero in a pivotal moment. In Ultimates 2, he uses a fierce panther behind T’challa to show how much the legacy of ancestors means to him, and how his destiny is wrapped up in his state. But he still sees the bigger picture, and Brown opens up his palette with reds and golds as Galactus reassembles the Ultimates to fight the binder of Eternity as the issue comes to its conclusion.

Along with somehow reassembling the Ultimates and setting up Ultimates 2′s premise of Eternity being bound, Ewing spends a lot of time looking into the relationship between Blue Marvel and Spectrum. His usually clinical, scientific dialogue for Blue Marvel has taken on a new romantic angle as he has really fallen for Spectrum. Also, a good way to connect with your partner is to share their interests, and Blue Marvel takes this to a new level by trying to give himself Spectrum’s cosmic perception through light waves to himself. Superpowers have been used as a metaphor for everything from racial discrimination to puberty, but Ewing is more creative and uses Blue Marvel’s attempt to replicate Spectrum’s light powers to both show how he is trying to see the world from her perspective and also share something in common. It also connects nicely to seeing Eternity in pain bridging plot and character nicely.

Ultimates 2 #1 is a slow burn start to Al Ewing and Travel Foreman’s cosmic story of redemption as former baddies Galactus and Anti-Man lead the fight against a nefarious force that threatens to destroy the multiverse, timestream, and basically everything. But even though the comic’s scope is massive (And Dan Brown’s color palette is intoxicating.), they don’t neglect the individual personalities of the Ultimates’ members and their relationships between the double page tapestries of nearly omnipotent beings in pain. (Poor Eternity!)

Story: Al Ewing Art: Travel Foreman Colors: Dan Brown
Story: 8 Art: 9.5 Overall: 8.7 Recommendation: Buy

Marvel Comics provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

Review: Venom #1

Posted on November 23, 2016 by Joe Ryan

I am one of the people that really enjoyed the idea of Flash Thompson as a hero. I loved the Agent Venom storyline, and I even enjoyed the Space Knight run and where he was a member of the Guardians of the Galaxy. So when I heard that Venom #1 was going to have the symbiote find a new host, I was skeptical. I am all for changing things up, I just felt that Flash made Venom fun in a way it had not before. However, I guess there is only so much you can do with Venom being a good guy, and both of those series had seemed to become stale. Perhaps it was time to have him be bad again and try something and someone different.

That is exactly what Venom #1 does. It places the iconic Spidey villain back in that category, but with a twist. Our new host, Lee, is an Army Ranger who is home now and down on his luck. He is looking to be a hired gun, and the story does a good job of keeping details on our main character hidden. Is he a bad guy? Or just down on his luck? We do get those answers, for the most part by the end of the book.

I did not read the last few Guardians of the Galaxy issues, but I do know that with Civil War II, they are stuck on Earth with a busted ship. We don’t get Flash in this issue, but the writer Mike Costa does say he will be involved in this story, so that is exciting. Something happened for the symbiote to be in an alley, only to be found by an unlucky homeless man, and then finding its way to Lee. I did find it odd that Lee wasn’t scared, or shocked after the first time he was linked with the symbiote. He seemed in complete control and even seemed to control the symbiote. Perhaps the suit is very weak right now, and that would explain a lot. Still, I would think someone would be at least a little freaked out or terrified after an experience like that, but time will tell if they explain this more.

The art by Gerardo Sandoval is fine, especially when he draws Venom himself. I don’t like his character design on people as much as the monster, but it isn’t anything bad. I felt like the quality between panels varied from excellent to just okay. I will repeat however, Venom looks awesome. When he is on the page, he feels raw, violent, chaotic, and scary. That is how Venom should feel, and Sandoval does a nice job conveying that.

Who will be under control going forward? Lee, or the symbiote? This book has a pretty interesting twist with who that was in the thought bubbles, and once I discovered that, I went back and enjoyed it a bit more. I think this series has good potential, and this was just a setup issue. If you are interested in Venom being a violent, and dark book again, by all means give this a chance.

Story: Mike Costa Art: Gerardo Sandoval
Story: 6 Art: 7 Overall: 6.5 Recommendation: Read

Marvel provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review

TV Review: Supergirl S2E7 The Darkest Place Retreads Old Plot Points

Posted on November 21, 2016 by Logan Dalton

Lots of things happen in Supergirl Season 2, Episode 7 “The Darkest Place“, which earns its title as director Glen Winter loves shooting in crowded corridors and using almost hallucinogenic filters in his cinematography. Even if some of the fight scenes have that herky, jerky Arrow Season 1 feel (See the Martian on Martian fight when clearly they are trying to save money.), Supergirl‘s weakness isn’t its budget. It’s the way Robert Rovner and Paula Yoo structure the plot going from point to point and rarely giving characters time to breathe or reflect. This episode is about Mon-El and Supergirl being captured and experimented on by Cadmus while Guardian is framed as a killer, and Martian Manhunter deals with hallucinations thanks to the White Martian blood infusion he got from Miss Martian. Like most of Supergirl Season 2, “The Darkest Place” hits some strong character beats, and Chyler Leigh and Melissa Benoist continue to give strong performances as Alex Danvers and Supergirl. However, the main plot is a fast forwarded retread of the solar flare episode in Season 1 where Supergirl loses her powers, and the B-plot is like the first half of Daredevil Season 2 with far less gravitas.

The filming style for the Cadmus secret base is pretty nifty as Glen Winter makes it look the DEO’s evil twin, and Cyborg Superman (The real Hank Henshaw, who is still played by David Harewood.) straight up says it’s the spiritual successor to the DEO with its alien-hunting and experimentation. There are lots of quick cuts and dark camera shutters in an eerie homage to X-Files as Supergirl goes in alone to the DEO base to rescue Mon-El, who was taken captive at the end of last episode. But then all the interesting visuals and brutal hand to hand combat between Kara and Cyborg Superman gets squandered for yet another depowering plotline that only exists so Dr. Lillian Luthor (Brenda Strong is still disturbing as hell.) can have Supergirl’s blood to advance the season-long mystery plot. The loss of her power also allows Jeremiah Danvers (Dean Cain) to show up for two seconds, be a big damn hero, and then leave. The response to Jeremiah showing is actually more powerful than his appearance because Kara immediately tells Alex about it showing that they trust each other as sisters. But Alex knows James is Guardian, and Kara doesn’t so maybe not…

Speaking of Guardian, he and his techie sidekick Winn get the first villain in their rogues gallery, a chain gun wielding, former Navy Seal with a dead wife that is one skull logo away from getting a cease and desist from Marvel. Victor Zink Jr. plays the killer vigilante Phillip Karnowsky without an ounce of sympathy or personality because he’s mainly a prop to have the whole “mask or no mask” debate and give Guardian the requisite “hated and feared” step in his superhero journey. Luckily, Robert Rovner and Paula Yoo don’t have Snapper Carr channel his inner J. Jonah Jameson, but Ian Gomez keeps an even keel on his performance exposing James Olsen’s personal bias towards superheroes in his one scene in the episode.

The Guardian subplot is really paint by numbers with the exception of Alex Danvers easily finding out about James’ secret identity because he and Winn are superhero noobs. (Her “interrogation” of Winn is hilarious.) James gives sanctimonious lectures about not killing to Karnowsky in a terribly mixed growly voice, and Karnowsky has the weak gimmick of only killing criminals, who got early parole or off on technicalities. The bulky mask continues to cover up Mehcad Brooks’ natural charisma, and it’s also hard to have any idea of what he’s saying. The fight between Karnowsky has way too many cuts to probably cover up some of the costuming and effects and is just plain boring as Alex and Maggie Sawyer come in and arrest him. It’s kind of sad that Rovner and Yoo decide to make Guardian a pastiche of Batman, Daredevil, and Green Arrow instead of focusing on how James Olsen transforms beneath the mask, but that is what his role feels like in “The Darkest Place”

The third major plot in “The Darkest Place” is Martian Manhunter’s sickness and hallucinations of his dead daughters and White Martians. Glen Winters creates a nice visual continuity between his cluttered mindspace and the claustrophobic halls of the Cadmus base before Rovner and Yoo use the sickness plotline to make him a creature of total vengeance. After finding out that Miss Martian is a White Martian through some blood tests, Martian Manhunter spends the rest of his storyline whaling on her. The fight culminates in an obscured CGI Martian beatdown with Martian Manhunter still under the effect of the plague. And the plague raises a question. Why would Miss Martian give him a blood transfusion when she knew that it would transform Martian Manhunter into a White Martian? The underpinnings of this are left on the backburner for fisticuffs though.

Although filled with some excellent individual character scenes, like Alex going full vulnerable with Maggie in response to her or Mon-El admitting his fear of death while being captured by Cadmus, the overarching plots of “The Darkest Place” feel like a rerun of previous episodes of Supergirl and other superhero TV shows. This and the continuing trainwreck of the James Olsen as Guardian makes this episode the weakest of a stellar second season. Also, the writers tease at a romance between Mon-El and Kara, which is a little disgusting, considering how he has treated and talked about women in previous episodes. However, Cyborg Superman has a chance at being a super cool and twisted villain, especially as David Harewood gets to go all Angel/Angelus and showcase his villainous acting.

Overall Rating: 7.0

TV Review: Lucifer S2E9 Homewrecker

Posted on November 21, 2016 by Brett

Following the murder of the owner of the building in which Lux is located, Lucifer and Chloe search for the killer, while Lucifer also deals with the fact that the new owner wants to evict him and demolish the place. Lucifer goes to great lengths to protect his home, and is entirely shocked when Chloe is supportive of him. Meanwhile, Maze and Amenadiel follow Charlotte around, as she comes up with a plan to upset Lucifer enough to want to leave earth and go back to Heaven.

Lucifer is a bit of a downer tonight as it doesn’t quite capture the usual magic, but I found myself laughing out loud more throughout the episode than I have in the past.

The episode is a bit serious as Lucifer fights to keep his bar and his mother really schemes against him. It would seem as the episode dives deeper and deeper into where ever the story with his mother is going, things are taking a turn for the more serious. That’s not a horrible thing, but the show usually does a good balance between that and the humorous moments.

The humor is still there, but the episode has a seriousness about it that feels rather odd. Plus, there’s his mother’s plotting which puts a dark cloud above it all.

Still, actor Tom Ellis in the lead role steals the show as usual. The hurt he shows off that his home might be taken away from him, you feel that. It’s great they’re giving Ellis more to do, but something doesn’t quite click here for me. It’s not his fault though.

The episode is an interesting one in that it shifts the tone a bit and sets up what should be a rocky rest of the season. Not every episode can be a winner, and it’s still an entertaining hour.

Overall Rating: 7.45

« Older Entries Recent Entries »