Books – TWILLERS

His Dark Materials S02E01: The City of Magpies REVIEW

Season 2 of His Dark Materials has finally premiered, boasting more impressive visuals than the previous season, great set designs, and improved pacing that has left me seriously excited for what may be in store for fans of the series over the course of this new season.

Having reread The Subtle Knife over the course of this summer, episode one was immediately satisfying as it showed me a Cittàgazze exactly like the one I pictured in my mind. If there’s one thing I’m the most pleased with about HDM, it’s the way the show is consistently succeeding in bringing my imagination to life in front of me with such accuracy and detail.

His Dark Materials Episode Eight – One Book Down. Two To Go.

Well, we made it. Sadly, in tonight’s finale there was no screaming Ruth Wilson, nor did we get to see Serafina Pekkala tear any shit up. But somehow this finale still managed to be pretty damn good, and most amazingly of all – very true to the books. Continue reading “His Dark Materials Episode Eight – One Book Down. Two To Go.”

His Dark Materials Episode Seven – So much for those bears. At least James Macavoy is back?

I came into episode 7 expecting to see a polar bear get his jaw punched off. I was expecting to see armoured bears cheer as two vicious beasts attacked each other with all their might. I was also wanting a really exciting episode that would leave audiences feeling excited to see the end of Season 1 next week. I ended up watching something… different? If there’s one word I would use to describe my experience so far watching His Dark Materials, it would be unpredictable. Continue reading “His Dark Materials Episode Seven – So much for those bears. At least James Macavoy is back?”

His Dark Materials Episode Six – Don’t Mess With Serafina Pekkala

What a fantastic episode this was! We finally got to see why Serafina was hyped up for so long, Roger managed to act his ass off and actually succeeded, and all those creepy scientists got what was coming to them – maybe a little bit TOO easily if anything. Continue reading “His Dark Materials Episode Six – Don’t Mess With Serafina Pekkala”

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”