Month: September 2014

Agents of SHIELD Review: Season 2 Premiere “Shadows”

Agents of Shield

 

– Spoiler Review –

After a rocky first season, which thankfully ended strong after Captain America: The Winter Soldier shook up the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), there have been some doubts about how a second season will pan out for Agents of SHIELD. And without any MCU movie releases to rely on, the show needs to be strong on its own, which is fitting given the team we knew in the show now has to be strong on its own too. After a rollicking and solid debut episode, setting a darker and consistent tone early, it looks like Agents of SHIELD (AoS) might just be able to pull its own weight. Continue reading “Agents of SHIELD Review: Season 2 Premiere “Shadows””

The Clone Wars Legacy Announced, Crystal Crisis Impressions, and Ventress Novel Title Unveiled

I’ve always been an avid fan of The Clone Wars, so of course I was disappointed, along with many others, upon it’s cancellation. Since then we’ve not only gotten an extra season, but two unaired story arcs saw the lights of Tatooine: a comic series, Son of Dathomir, giving partial closure to Darth Maul’s arc; and a novel starring Asajj Ventress, now titled Dark Disciple. With all that extra content already, it was surprising when Jedi News hinted at some big TCW news hitting soon and sithspit, they weren’t wrong: a story reel version of an arc on Utapau, concept art, and new databank entries were put on the official site for fans (on the eve of Rebels, nonetheless) with a promise we haven’t seen everything yet.

Continue reading “The Clone Wars Legacy Announced, Crystal Crisis Impressions, and Ventress Novel Title Unveiled”

Gotham Review: Season One Premiere

Gotham

– Spoiler Review –

Can a show, set in Gotham City, starring younger versions of Batman’s famous Rogues gallery and the seemingly incorruptible James Gordon, work without Batman? That’s been the million dollar question when it comes to Gotham, leaving some of the fans of the popular DC comic’s detective apprehensive, with others at least excited for a new take on familiar stories. Premiering to 8 million viewers (which doesn’t account for DVR usage), no matter their trepidation or excitement for the show, a lot of Bat-fans turned up to watch Jim Gordon get his first taste of Gotham City’s justice. While I did find the episode to be a bit clunky and a little too busy, the world-building and characters helped make for an engaging hour. But was it enough to hook me (and will it be for other viewers)?

Ending Gotham TV Show Reviews (9/26/15)

I probably should’ve done this more formally back when I called it quits with the show after its umpteenth break during the first season, but I won’t be reviewing this series anymore. I had been holding out hope the show would get better for the second season and the creative team behind it were saying all the right things, but the S2 premiere was just more of the same. Sure, there’s some promise for better things ahead in it so I’ll be tuning in, but this is more in regards to my own personal time constraints and my sanity. Sorry and thanks for checking out Mynock Manor for details on Gotham and I seriously hope the show hits its stride soon. We still have plenty of content on the site so browse around before heading somewhere else!

Continue reading “Gotham Review: Season One Premiere”

Video Game Review: Star Wars: Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike

Rogue Squadron III Rebel Strike cover

We’ve all heard the following saying at least once in our lives: “If at first you don’t succeed, try and try again.” But what should you do if you’ve already succeeded? The success was Rogue Leader and Factor 5 had to find a way to answer that question by beating a formula they largely perfected. In 2003, two years after Rogue Leader’s release, fans and gamers alike got to find out if they managed to succeed again. For the most part, Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike outshines its predecessor, but for every step forward, it occasionally takes two steps back. Continue reading “Video Game Review: Star Wars: Rogue Squadron III: Rebel Strike”

The Old Republic MMO Sees A Familiar (Masked) Face Return

The above video teases the return of (a possibly Darth) Revan, a part of the much beloved character we haven’t seen in Legends canon since flashbacks in the original Knights of the Old Republic game. While maybe this fits better with some of your multiple playthroughs of the game, his story has come a long, long way since then. Below contains heavy spoilers for The Old Republic MMO, Revan the novel, and the KotOR series, as I look at how Revan’s story has evolved and similarly become constrained over the decade since his first appearance. Continue reading “The Old Republic MMO Sees A Familiar (Masked) Face Return”

Star Wars New York Comic Con 2014 Plans

NYCC 2014

New York Comic Con 2014 takes place from October 9-12 and will be packed with almost as much goodies as SDCC. Revealed so far on the mobile app, there’ll be a panel for Marvel’s Netflix-exclusive Daredevil (including the full cast), a look at the shrouded-in-much-secrecy Tomorrowland from Disney, and Constantine and Gotham panels to say the least. On top of those, Star Wars is guaranteed to have its presence felt in at least three panels. Continue reading “Star Wars New York Comic Con 2014 Plans”

New Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1 Trailer Drops

The first full trailer for The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1 dropped early Monday morning. If you haven’t seen the previous films, this trailer will certainly give you a good reason to reconsider that mistake. This is the only book I haven’t read of the Hunger Games series, so while I wish I could sneak a hint in as to where this will all go, I’ll leave it up to the rest of the internet to do so for me. Expect to see Jennifer Lawrence show Hollywood why leading women can rock the box office on November 17th.

Video Game Review: Star Wars: Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader

Rogue Leader cover photo

– Minor Spoiler Review –

If you ever played the N64/PC game Shadows of the Empire and felt like the Hoth level was the best thing in it, you were not alone. Factor 5 and LucasArts felt the same way and thus created Rogue Squadron, released in 1998. Critically acclaimed and a sales juggernaut, it warranted a sequel not only in the developers eye’s, but also the fan’s. Three years later, and on the start of a new console cycle, Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader was made as a flagship title for Nintendo’s newly released system, Gamecube. Frustrating, fun, and a tad short, Rogue Leader makes me never want to actually have to get caught in a real space battle and happy I can pretend to do so from the safety of my basement. Continue reading “Video Game Review: Star Wars: Rogue Squadron II: Rogue Leader”

New Terminator Trilogy Dates Set

Genisys Ttile

It seems Arnold is never kidding: he will be back, and with him a new Terminator trilogy. Shortly after announcing the oddly spelled Genisys as the title for the first new Terminator film, Warner Bros. has dates planned out for the sequels. Genisys relaunches the franchise on July 1st, 2015, with the other two on May 19, 2017 and June 29, 2018. Continue reading “New Terminator Trilogy Dates Set”