Category: Books

His Dark Materials Episode Five – That One Without Mrs Coulter

Tonight’s episode was missing two things: Ruth Wilson and a dead fish. We did finally get to meet Will (WHAT?!) and Serafina Pekkala (Yes Queen) but the ball was dropped on a pretty key scene, and it’s left me feeling a bit worried about the emotional payoffs throughout the rest of the season.

I am about to go on a Billy Costa RANT so before we do, let’s quickly mention Will and how great it is to see so much of The Subtle Knife already being shown off in Season 1! I’m not immediately sold on Will himself, but I also had my doubts about Dafne Keen’s Lyra that are now fading away, so I’m giving him the benefit of the doubt. I think the changes they’re making here are really going to help the pacing of the series in the long-run as we get closer to season two. Continue reading “His Dark Materials Episode Five – That One Without Mrs Coulter”

His Dark Materials Episode Four – Bears, Hares, and Witchy Affairs

Tonight we finally got to meet Lee Scoresby and Iorek Byrnison, and although there were some absolutely awful performances over at Bad Guy Towers, we got to see a polar bear chuck a priest out of a window and watched Lyra eat the most delicious-looking piece of bacon I’ve ever seen. So it’s not all bad. Continue reading “His Dark Materials Episode Four – Bears, Hares, and Witchy Affairs”

His Dark Materials Episode Three – Keep That Monkey Away From Me

I have waited three weeks to see Lyra read that damn alethiometer and it’s every bit as satisfying to hear those needles click into place as I’d hoped. When can I book in for a fortune-reading? Tonight’s episode started off a little shaky but soon ramped up, and I’ve been left feeling more confident in the rest of the season than I was after watching episode two. Continue reading “His Dark Materials Episode Three – Keep That Monkey Away From Me”

His Dark Materials Episode Two – The Ruth Wilson Show

We’re two weeks into His Dark Materials and I still can’t get used to the joy of seeing daemons brought to life on my TV every Sunday. Tonight’s episode played more fluidly with the source material and featured some uneven performances. It’s great things are getting shaken up a bit for viewers in-the-know, but there’s a nervousness in my stomach akin to watching someone pick up your favourite possession with dirty hands and hoping they don’t make a mess of it. Continue reading “His Dark Materials Episode Two – The Ruth Wilson Show”

His Dark Materials Episode 1 – Don’t worry. It’s good.

I can’t believe I’ve just watched a full episode of His Dark Materials. I didn’t get swept up in the Harry Potter hype when I was younger – I only joined that train a couple of years ago. No, while everyone else was talking spells and sorting hats, I was quietly talking to myself about daemons, alethiometers and Dust. These books captured my imagination as a teenager; I would take interest in other series in passing, but if asked today what my childhood book series was, my answer would always be His Dark Materials. Continue reading “His Dark Materials Episode 1 – Don’t worry. It’s good.”

Harry Potter and The Cursed Child REVIEW

Nineteen years later and Harry’s still a dick…

I’ve only gone and bloody caught up on the Harry Potter universe! Since finishing reading the books for the first time last year, I’ve seen Fantastic Beasts & Where To Find Them (LOVED IT!) and read the script of The Cursed Child. The pacing of the story feels a little off and there are some messy plot mechanics, but this was made up for by the introduction of excellent new characters and some amazing throwbacks to the books. But why are we visiting the Wizarding world again? At the end of scene two an adult Ginny is talking about her youngest son and asks her husband: “Harry… He’ll be alright, won’t he?” He most definitely will not be alright Ginny, and it’s because of that we have this treat of a play to entertain ourselves with!

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WARNING! Spoilers abound throughout the rest of this review!

Continue reading “Harry Potter and The Cursed Child REVIEW”

The Deathly Hallows REVIEW

And so begin my constant attempts to get tickets for the play in London…

I’ve only gone and bloody followed through with something! I set out to read the Harry Potter series back in May and now I’ve finished and I can finally see why this series has had everyone and their mum’s talking about it. The Deathly Hallows gave me the awesome conclusion I wanted after a surprisingly slow build-up – it’s not been without faults, but dang Voldemort sure is one of the best villains I’ve ever come across. AND NEVILLE DIDN’T DIE SO I’M REALLY BLOODY HAPPY ABOUT THAT, TOO.

dh-uk-kids-jacket-art Continue reading “The Deathly Hallows REVIEW”