Star Wars Experiences!

I mentioned Star Wars Experiences, times when I felt that I was part of Star Wars, being in the story and helping to build it. Here are some of them. First would be the Jedi Lightsaber Master Class that I took in 2012. One of the appeals of Wizard World New Orleans was the class taught by Nick Gillard. He was the swordmaster of the Prequels and also played Jedi Master Cin Drallig. This was a chance to be trained by a Jedi Master! The Wizard World conventions are now Fan Expos that are around the country. I had fencing training from Ren Faires which was picked up by my instructor, CC, and it was difficult for me to not use fencing techniques, but I could memorize the moves. Check out the article here: https://geektruth.blogspot.com/2018/09/jedi-lightsaber-master-class-wizard.html. 

       Savi’s Workshop, Galaxy’s Edge, 2019, author’s photo. 

The next one is also lightsaber related, Savi’s Workshop at Galaxy’s Edge, this is an experience of building your lightsaber. The early lightsaber toys were knockoffs with flashlights with a plastic tube that always got mangled in duels. The Prequel Era had more elaborate lightsaber toys. Star Trader at Tomorrowland, Disneyland had a Build-A-Lightsaber station, but this was just assembling pieces like Legos. At the opening of Galaxy’s Edge, I had the chance to go to Savi’s Workshop, a short description is here: https://geektruth.blogspot.com/search?q=galaxy%27s+edge. You are a Builder going into the workshop and take a position around the table. This is the best Star Wars experience at Black Spire Outpost. It is very much a show, building your lightsaber in secret, it uses dramatic music that is missing from most of the park expansion. 

It doesn’t follow the ceremony that was in “A Test of Strength” (2012); GLC-CW5/7, the Clone Wars episode, but the traditions may have been difficult to continue after Luke formed the Jedi Academy. Still, you select a Kyber Crystal, then find a tray of parts to form the hilt, crystal mount, emitters, and other parts. The head Gatherer shows you how the parts assemble and fellow Gatherers will help you assemble the parts. It makes the activation sounds, but no blade or lights. You have your lightsaber in a tube. The voice of the Jedi Master is a wow moment. Then, you raise your lightsaber! The build is great, there isn’t much to do afterwards, but worth the cost if you can afford it. I wouldn’t say the same with the rides at Galaxy’s Edge, even Rise of the Resistance. As an attraction, it is sophisticated in technology, but I really didn’t feel a part of the story, just an observer. 

    Hyperspace Mountain, Season of the Force, 2015, photo by the author. 

I would say the same with Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run, the hangar and lounge are impressive, the ride itself is just button mashing. I think it is that there is no connection with the rest of Galaxy’s Edge. Damage to the Falcon has no consequence with the characters. This would also include Star Tours, it is fun, wandering around the Star Wars worlds, and the spy part is kinda fun. I was the spy one time. The original Star Tours was great too, going into the Death Star trench, but you are really just site seeing. The ride that does have an experience is Hyperspace Mountain! The overlay over Space Mountain was intense to ride for Season of the Force in 2015. The difference is that the speed and turns gives you the sensation of being in an X-Wing Fighter and engaging in the Battle of Jakku! Even repeat rides are great for the thrill, the combat reports, and projections of ships! 

It would be great to see if any of the dialogue slips in to further accounts of the battle in comics or other forms! Here is the review: https://geektruth.blogspot.com/2021/07/strolling-through-theme-park-hyperspace.html. In terms of games, there has been the Star Wars arcade game in 1983. It isn’t the vector graphics, it is the repeat of battles against TIE Fighters, flying across the Death Star surface, and the trench run. After you destroy the Death Star, it is just polishing your pilot skills for run after run. This goes the same for Star Wars: Battle Pod in 2014. This gets you into the Death Star run, going up against walkers with T-47 airspeeders, and flying a speeder bike in the Battle of Endor. Finally, dueling against Darth Vader with your lightsaber. Fun. The gameplay in Vader Immortal: Lightsaber Dojo is really fun getting to use the Force, fight stormtroopers, and finally Darth Vader in the port from the Vader Immortal home VR game from Oculus. 

    Star Wars: Unlimited playmat, decks, and tokens!, MultiCon, author’s photo. 

The ultimate though is no longer here, Star Wars: Secrets of the Empire from the Void. It opened at Downtown Disney in 2018 and closed in 2020. The cool part of the experience is actually having the actors playing Mon Mothma (Genevieve O’Reilly), Cassian Andor (Diego Luna) and K-2SO (Alan Tudyk). In the VR game, you travel to Mustafar and I remember getting tapped in the chest by stormtrooper fire and then going blaster happy when Vader appeared! Remember it here: https://geektruth.blogspot.com/2018/07/star-wars-secrets-of-empire-review.html. Lastly, and most recent was another game, Star Wars: Unlimited, https://geektruth.blogspot.com/2025/02/star-wars-unlimited-review.html. It really is tactical, playing out a battle, and also hits my collector part since I know I would like Admiral Ackbar and Ahsoka Tano cards. 

I haven’t built a deck yet, but will do so soon. I see a number of playing sessions at game stores. Playing the game is simple as having another player and having a starter set, $34.99. It was great to play characters like Luke Skywalker and R2-D2. I didn’t realize that the set up to playing characters as units would form a Star Wars story! The randomness is interesting, Yoda never showed up, and he was in the deck. I would like to see how buying more cards will make a season of Clone Wars or The Mandalorian. The upcoming Jump to Lightspeed gives a new dimension for play with Twin Suns decks that are now 80 cards! This is the standard card number for trading card games, but I like that Fantasy Flight Games waited to build up cards. Have you had any Star Wars Experience? I would 100% would like to know especially those that I may not have mentioned; cosplaying, joining the 501st, or traveling to film locations. 

#StarWarsExperiences, #JediLightsaberMasterClass, #NickGillard, #CinDrallig, #GalaxysEdge, #SavisWorkshop, #RiseOfTheResistance, #MillenniumFalconSmugglersRun, #StarTours, 

#HyperspaceMountain,  #StarWarsArcadeGame, #StarWarsBattlePod, #VaderImmortalLightsaberDojo, #StarWarsSecretsOfTheEmpire, #MonMothma, #CassianAndor, #K2S, #DarthVader, #StarWarsUnlimited, #JumpToLightspeed 

Star Wars Unlimited Review!

Star Wars: Unlimited is the best chance to be part of the Star Wars story with some brilliant gameplay! The game company is Fantasy Flight Games who has experience since its first board game, Twilight Imperium (1997). The Living Card Game line with pre-constructed starter decks include The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game, Marvel Champions: The Card Game, and previously Star Wars: The Card Game that started in 2012 to 2018. The lead designer is Daniel Schaefer, kudos to him, for creating a fun, innovative game! The first set, Spark of Rebellion, was released on March 8, 2024. It had the conflict between the Rebel Alliance and the Galactic Empire that was in the Original Trilogy. The second set released in July of that year, Shadows of the Galaxy, brought in bounty hunters. This had a starter deck with Moff Gideon and The Mandalorian. 

On November 8, 2024, the third set, Twilight of the Republic, featured the Clone Wars. The latest set, Jump to Lightspeed, is set to drop on March 14th of this year. It features the pilots and starships of Star Wars. The fourth set to be released in July, I was told, has lightsaber battles! I did get the first set, but was unimpressed about the art and the game set up. This is wrong because game play is essential and the artwork once I got the chance to actually play the game is first rate. There are standard cards that have good artwork, but there are cards with some stunning artwork. Also, the artwork is for game play more than collectibility. I was used to the first Star Wars: The Customizable Card Game that used photos for every card. This game's artwork makes the cards consistent and fun. So in the two player game, using Spark of Rebellion, there are two pre-constructed decks with Imperial and Rebel forces.

Star Wars: Unlimited, Jump to Lightspeed promotion at Multi Con, author’s photo.

You set up a Base card, I had the Administrator’s Tower from Cloud City with 30 Hit Points. This is how much damage it can take from space and ground units. Some Bases have lower HP, but have abilities. Destroy the Base to win! This is like the Death Star, the Rebel Base on Yavin, and Echo Base. It is similar to the Planeswalker represented by the player in Magic: The Gathering. Below it is your leader, I had Luke Skywalker: Faithful Friend, he had the Action, spend a resource and exhaust by turning the card, to put a Shield token on a unit you played. The best part is Epic Action, in Luke’s case, if you have 6 or more resources you deploy Luke onto the ground arena flipping the card! This makes Luke into a unit with Power (attack) 4 and HP 7, a good defense. In comparison, the Fleet Lieutenant has 3/3. You don't have to hope that Luke shows up randomly in a deck, or never show up, he is there. Once you set up your Base and Leader, shuffle, and draw 6 cards. 

Two of the cards will be used for Resources, this is like Ink in Lorcana. It could be high cost cards 1-3 is average, and 4+ is for later in the game. Obi-Wan Kenobi: Following Fate costs 4 Resources. You determine who has the Initiative marker, who acts first, and only one action is taken before the next player takes their turn. So you can play a card like a unit, Leia Organa: Defiant Princess with a cost of 2, and the unit is Exhausted, can only act the next turn. She has the action that when you play her on the ground arena, you can ready a Resource or Exhaust a Unit, stop a readied opponent! I wasn’t worried about my opponent damaging my Base so much as focusing on ground units at the time. The order is put down one Resource, play a card, or attack. An attack can reduce the HP of a card, so Luke can be hit with an attack of 4, but have 3 HP left shown with tokens. I like this mechanic similiar to Lorcana, and superior to Magic: The Gathering having the same defense after every combat doesn’t make sense.  

Two Star Wars: Unlimited game setups with playmats, decks, and tokens!, photo by the author. 

Still, I was used to attacking with more than one card, but Star Wars: Unlimited is only one action so only one unit can attack. I had Leia and later R2-D2: Ignoring Protocol, 1 cost and when played you can look at your top card and may put it on the bottom. Knowing which cards you draw is a plus. I like the card effects that match the characters. I also brought down Chewbacca: Loyal Companion, 3/6 with Sentinel. His ability means the opponent has to attack him and not other units or the base! I had enough Resources to bring out Luke and my Imperial opponent countered with Darth Vader: Commanding the First Legion, 5/7. He has Ambush so he can attack once he is played. He has the ability once played to search the top 10 cards and play units 3 or less for free! Chewie wounded him, but was finished! 

I sacrificed Luke to take out Vader, this was a fun part of the game. The other cards you can play are Event cards, I used the trick, Asteroid Sanctuary to exhaust an enemy unit, then give a Shield token to a friendly unit that costs 3 or less. The Shield protects a unit from damage, but then the token is removed. Another Event card is the supply card, Repair, which heals 3 damage for a unit or base, I wasn’t able to use it effectively and probably needed more such cards. My enemy used the event card twice, I Am Your Father which deals 7 damage to a unit or I had to say, “Nooooo!", so this allowed him to draw 3 cards. I later played Alliance X-Wing, 2 Resources, 2/3, which goes to the Space Arena. It can’t attack ground units. Kinda strange because we did see this in later films, same with TIE Fighters, it would make sense if it moves to the ground arena to attack them. 

The Event Exclusive card, Grogu: Irresistable!, 0/5, signed!, author’s photo. 

My opponent started to deploy a number of TIE Fighters and space combat began. I had to really work to stop my enemy’s Blizzard Assault AT-AT, 9/9! It has the effect that excess damage goes to another ground unit! The game changer was when I played Han Solo: Reluctant Hero who had a 7 Resource cost, 5/6, but he had Ambush! Then, I armed him with the Upgrade card, Luke’s Lightsaber, +3/+1. Then, further added, the Upgrade, Resilient, +3 HP! The 8/10 Han Solo crushed and then destroyed my opponent’s Base! There are ways to wound and discard units, but there were no such cards in his hand! I lost almost all of the main characters with Han Solo as the hero who won the day! I got a pack of Twilight of the Republic for playing and got the Leader card, Nala Se: Clone Engineer, and Base, KCM Mining Facility. Base and Leader cards are in every pack so you can build a deck with the 50 card minimum with at least 4 packs of 15 cards. 

Other games need 50 packs or starter decks to build a deck which is an expense. For playing the game, I got an Event Exclusive card, Grogu: Irresistible, 0/5! I asked a number of questions and was told that yes, Teek, was considered. In fact, Ewoks and Jawas are the most requested. Everything in Star Wars can be made into cards; comic books, video games, I mentioned Galaxy's Edge, and I hope Star Tours, which was in the "Lightsaber Lost" (2010), GLC-CW2/11, episode of Clone Wars could be a card. It is available at game stores and I saw it on Amazon which is great because it is for playing first besides being a Star Wars product. I was told that this would at least be for the first year or so and this is also terrific so there is no sold out product from non-gamers. I can’t wait to buy more of the sets and build decks! Star Wars: Unlimited is a great Star Wars Experience, where I felt like I was part of the story, building the story, and playing the game was fun, the play went back and forth, not overwhelmed by one player! 

Five+ Resources out of Five! 

#StarWarsUnlimited, #JumpToLightspeed, #MultiCon, #FantasyFlightGames, #DanielSchaefer, #SparkOfRebellion, #ShadowsOfTheGalaxy, #TwilightOfTheRepublic, #JumpToLightspeed, #LukeSkywalkerFaithfulFriend, #FleetLieutenant, #ChewbaccaLoyalCompanion

#AsteroidSanctuary, #DarthVaderCommandingTheFirstLegion, #Repair, #IAmYourFather, #AllianceXWing, #BlizzardAssaultATAT, #HanSoloReluctantHero, #LukesLightsaber, #Resilient, #NalaSeCloneEngineer, #KCMMiningFacility, #GroguIrresistable  

Multi Con LA!

 Multi Con was an event held at The Sanctuary in Los Angeles that benefited wildfire relief for the United Way of Greater Los Angeles. The panels were introduced by Michael Tessler, CEO of Multihouse. Their site is at: https://www.multihouse.io/. The Reel Rejects streamed the panels on YouTube for the event. The Preserve was an interesting place. After checking in there were a number of food trucks and the Los Angeles Ghostbusters cosplay group. Thrilljoy gave attendees tickets that were for a giant PIX box figure after finishing the event. There were tropical plants and curves in the path that led to the building. The Preserve had many plastic walls that also curved and besides the square, it took some time to find the correct room, still there many people to help guide you. 

      Multi Con LA Wonder Women panel; Perri Nemiroff, Jackie Tohn, and Elizabeth Tuloch, author’s photo. 

I was wandering around checking out the Autograph Central, a circular room with tables for the many celebrities, and stopped by the room to play Star Wars: Unlimited. This is the collectible card game that came out last year and was promoting Jump to Lightspeed. It is the latest set to debut on March 14th. I’m anxious to write up the game, but for playing, there was a pack of cards plus I got a event exclusive Grogu card! I went from there to the main stage which led to a nice outdoor area with many rows of seats. The first panel I attended was Wonder Women that was moderated by Perri Nemiroff from Collider. It featured Jackie Tohn, who was Melanie Rosen, in GLOW, and Elizabeth Tulloch was incredible as Lois Lane in Superman and Lois. Tessler noted that Tohn defeated Neil deGrase Tyson on Jeopardy. 

Tohn said that the final Jeopardy category was the Muppets which led to her win! She was a kid actor and one of her first roles was in the sitcom, The Nanny. Tohn noted that on GLOW, she was able to bring in her real life grandmother into her show character, mentioning Aunt Pestle. Tulloch said she was against being an actor, while in Australia during Star Wars: Attack of the Clones (2002), Bitsie said George Lucas asked her a half dozen times to be in the movie and she said no! Her first role was in the mockumentary, R2-D2: Beneath the Dome (2001) as Artoo’s girlfriend! The other panel I attended was Galaxy of Good that had Greg Alba from Reel Rejects as moderator. It had Sean Gunn who reprised the character of Weasel in Creature Commandos, Daniel Logan voiced Mox in The Bad Batch, and Vivien Lyra Blair played young Leia in Obi-Wan Kenobi.   

                 Galaxy of Good panel with Sean Gunn, Daniel Logan, Vivien Lyra Blair, and Greg Alba, photo by the author.  

Gunn said,“I had a blast doing Creature Commandos. It’s the favorite thing I’ve done in my career.” Logan spoke about Boba Fett in the original trilogy to The Book of Boba Fett, “I truly liked it. They brought me back as a 13 year old kid again.” Blair said about the character of Leia in many panels, “Please Lucasfilm, I would really like to explore a teenage Leia show.” Non canon, Star Wars Tales #11 (2002) featured the early years of Princess Leia in “The Princess Leia Diaries” by Jason Hall and Chris Brunner. It would be the best tribute to the character and actress Carrie Fisher to explore the teen years of Leia. 

I then went over to Autograph Central and started talking with Michael Cudlitz. He of course played Lex Luthor in Superman and Lois. His Luthor was vicious, but also Cudlitz said motivated by family which was the theme of the show. I asked him and also Bitsie if they were interested in seeing the new Superman movie and both actors said they wanted to see it. I finished the day at the Tabletop Gaming room and rolled up a character with the new edition of Dungeons and Dragons. The good people at Above Board TV helped in generating the character, a Dragonborn ranger who really wasn’t strong. A very fun event of games, activities, and panels all to help with the L.A. wildfire relief. 

#MultiCon, #UnitedWayOfGreaterLosAngeles, #TheSanctuary, #MichaelTessler, #LosAngelesGhostbusters, #Thrilljoy, #StarWarsUnlimited, #WonderWomen, #PerriNemiroff, #JackieTohn, #GLOW, #ElizabethTulloch, #SupermanAndLois, #GalaxyOfGood, #GregAlba, #SeanGunn, #CreatureCommandos, #DanielLogan, #TheBadBatch, #VivienLyraBlair, #ObiWanKenobi, #MichaelCudlitz, #DungeonsAndDragons, #AboveBoardTV    

Captain America: Brave New World Review!

Sam Wilson takes up the shield in Captain America: Brave New World and just kinda spins it around in an ok MCU movie. The Incredible Hulk (2008) introduced General Ross. Sam (Anthony Mackie) was introduced in Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014). Many of the story beats and characters are the same. Ross had become Secretary of State and introduced the Sokovia Accords. This divided the Avengers in Captain America: Civil War (2016). We had seen how Sam earned the shield of Captain America in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (2021). The show was created by Malcolm Spellman who is credited for the story and screenplay of this film. There was also co-story and co-screenplay by Dalan Musson was also a writer for the earlier series. 

It also introduced Joaquin Torres (Danny Ramirez) who has a larger part here. The same with Isaiah Bradley (Carl Lumbly) who was given the Super Soldier Serum in the 1950s. He was imprisoned for saving his fellow super soldiers, but he was able to escape and faked his death. This political edge is missing from the movie. The other co-story and screenplay writer is Rob Edwards. The screenplay also had director Julius Onah’s work and Peter Glanz. Onah wrote and directed the drama, Luce (2019). It really feels with the reshoots and its own title change from New World Order that the movie was taken out of the hands of the filmmakers. Rosa Salazar was cast as Rachel Leighton in the film, but I didn’t notice her and the character may have been removed. 

Also no funeral scene that was promised in the trailers. It feels like the MCU is retreading the same territory as Lucasfilm’s Solo (2018) movie. I place blame on the MCU machine that grinded what could have been about political manipulation and watered it down into a bland pot boiler. The other part is that the trailers have spoiled the major plot points of the movie, spoiler alert!, President Ross becomes the Red Hulk. This may also be due to the scrambling to piece together an inoffensive film. If the critical parts are taken out, then it should have been a streaming movie. The beginning was a rally with a slogan, “Together.” We get a closeup of Thaddeus Ross played now by Harrison Ford. There was another president played by Ford, James Marshall, in the thriller, Air Force One (1997). 

He asks an assistant if she has heard from his daughter, Betty. She is the one person that is central to his character. Ross takes a pill, which is mysterious, and takes the stage introduced as the next president. He mentions the “appearance of the celestial mass in the Indian Ocean.” This was the Celestial Tiamut who was defeated at the end of The Eternals (2021). The MCU keeps getting more and more complicated with years of films to understand. The reporters ask about his reputation as Hulk Hunter with the Hulk and Abomination’s battle. This was in The Incredible Hulk. There is a picture of Ross with a moustache which was his look in the film played by William Hurt. We see the news on a screen in a lab. 

It is “5 Months Later”, there is a C-130 plane flying over Oxaca, Mexico. Aboard the plane is Joaquin (Ramirez) who is monitoring the situation on the Serpents. Ramirez was notable in Top Gun: Maverick (2022). He was consulted by Sam in the series and now takes an active field role as the new sidekick to Captain America. The Serpents are the Serpent Society which was a group of supervillains who were introduced in Captain America #310 (1985). Now just a team of mercenaries. There was a Captain America: Serpent Society film that was announced prematurely for release on May 6, 2016. This may be some villains intended to be used from that movie. Joaquin contacts Eagle-1, Captain America (Mackie). The sci fi movie, Elevation (2024) starred Mackie. 

He is flying with his vibranium wings, a “gift from the Wakandans”, they are mentioned several times, but just in passing. Captain America lands and says, “Wait for it”, as the sonic boom slams into the mercenaries. So he can talk faster than a sonic boom? His helmet slides from his face He sends out his two drones whom he calls Redwing to scan for the Serpents who have taken over a church. There is a “package” and also some hostages held by the mercenaries. The leader of the Serpents is Sidewinder (Giancarlo Esposito). Stan Edgar, the villain of The Boys is played by Esposito. He orders the hostages to be killed and is there to get payment for the Package. Basically, he is the Brock Rumlow character who was trying to steal a bio weapon in Captain America: Civil War. 

Three Shields out of Five!  

#CaptainAmericaBraveNewWorld, #JuliusOnah, #MalcolmSpellman, #DalanMusson, #RobEdwards, #PeterGlanz, #AnthonyMackie, #DannyRamirez, #ShiraHaas, #HarrisonFord, #XoshaRoquemore, #GiancarloEsposito, #JohannesHaukurJohannesson, #WilliamMarkMcCullough, #TakehiroHira, #HarshNayyar, #RickEspaillat 

Happy Birthday Bear McCreary!

 Happy Birthday Bear McCreary! He has just produced his multi-media project, The Singularity, as an album, graphic novel, and concert! McCreary composed four seasons of the Battlestar Galactica (2004-2009) series. Also, the television film that followed the Battlestar Pegasus in Battlestar Galactica: Razor (2007). Another sci fi series, Eureka, (2007-2012) featured McCreary’s music. McCreary created music for another franchise, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles (2008-2009), one of my favorite spinoffs. He also composed the music for the spin off show, Caprica (2009-2010). McCreary went to superhero territory with season one of the Human Target (2010) series. It was a series based on the DC comic book by Len Wein and Carmine Infantino. Another series that was notable with Bear McCreary’s music was the horror show, Walking Dead (2010-2022). 

                            Bear McCreary and Serj Tankian at The Singularity signing at Eye for Sound, 2024, author’s photo. 

McCreary composed music for another superhero show, but an original hero in The Cape (2011). In 2012, McCreary returned to compose another tv movie, Battlestar Galactica: Blood & Chrome. One of the early films composed by McCreary was the fantasy horror comedy, Knights of Badassdom (2013). Next, he was the composter of the series, Constantine (2014-2015). The sci fi show, Defiance (2013-2015) featured McCreary’s music. Next, McCreary also composed music for the historical fantasy series, Da Vinci’s Demons (2013-2015). He began composing music for the Marvel show, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (2013-2020). In 2014, McCreary composed music for action movie, Everly. McCreary was the music composer for the pirate series, Black Sails (2014-2017). Outlander (2014-2024) is another long running series that has McCreary’s iconic music. McCreary was back in the horror realm with the movie, The Forest (2016). He also composed music for the horror movie, 10 Cloverfield Lane (2016). 

A horror comedy, Happy Death Day (2017) featured McCreary’s music. McCreary continued the music in the follow up sci fi horror of The Cloverfield Paradox (2018). In 2019, McCreary returned to compose music for the horror sequel, Happy Death Day 2 U. A stunning composition for me is McCreary’s score for Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) which wove in Akira Ifukube themes and had Serj Tankian’s rendition of Blue Oyster Cult’s “Godzilla.” The dystopian sci fi show, See (2019-2022) had music by McCreary. Then, McCreary composed music for the horror adaptation, Fantasy Island (2020). Ava (2020), the action movie, also had McCreary music. He composed music for the sci fi tv series, Snowpiercer (2020). A horror comedy, Freaky (2020) had music composed by McCreary. In 2021, McCreary began composing music for the adaptation of Isaac Asimov’s Foundation. Next, McCreary composed music for the historical drama, The Serpent Queen (2022). Another great series composed by McCreary is The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. One of my favorite horror films, The Last Voyage of the Demeter (2023) had music by McCreary. The music of Bear McCreary contains worlds! Happy Birthday Bear McCreary! 

#BearMcCreary, #TheSingularity, #BattlestarGalactica, #BattlestarGalacticaRazor, #Eureka, #TerminatorTheSarahConnorChronicles, #Caprica, #HumanTarget, #WalkingDead, #TheCape, #BattlestarGalacticaBloodAndChrome, #KnightsOfGadassdom, #Constantine, #Defiance, 

#DaVincisDemons, #AgentsOfSHIELD, #Everly, #BlackSails, #Outlander, #TheForest, #10CloverfieldLane, #HappyDeathDay, #CloverfieldParadox, #HappyDeathDay2U, #GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters, #See, #FantasyIsland, #Ava, #Snowpiercer, #Freaky, #Foundation, #TheSerpentQueen, #TheLordOfTheRingsTheRingsOfPower, #TheLastVoyageOfTheDemeter 

Dave Barclay Signing at Dark Delicacies!

Dark Delicacies was the host for another incredible signing, this time with puppeteer and storyteller, Dave Barclay! The signing was tied to Barclay’s new book, My Life with Animatronics: Movies, Puppets and Beyond. Check out more info at: https://www.davebarclay.com/. There will be copies at Dark Delicacies, if not you can find them at: https://coolwatersprods.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=9&products_id=2791. Coolwaters Productions had some great photos, the book, and a poster of his film, Mauldrix. I think I’m still reeling after Barcaly told me his first job at 19 was Empire Strikes Back (1980)! He was assistant puppeteer for Yoda! 

       Dave Barclay at the busy and fun signing at Dark Delicacies!, photo by the author. 

I’m just thinking of a CV that lists Star Wars as your first job. He had a Darth Vader marionette for Mark Hamill and brought it to Elstree Studio that introduced him to Stuart Freeborn. From Dagobah to Thra with Dark Crystal (1982), then puppeteering Jabba the Hutt in Return of the Jedi (1983)! There was also Sir Didymus from Labyrinth (1986). He explained to me at the signing that the book is written from photos, diagrams, and notes that give a peek in to some fantastic films. All leading to the production of his own film, Mauldrix, which is not yet released. It looks like the classic Frosty the Snowman (1969) special, magic, and fairy tales. I would love to crowdfund any part of the project so everyone can see it! Upcoming is there a Retiring Sale, 25% off on March 2nd, Sunday! 

#DarkDelicacies, #DaveBarclay, #MyLifeWithAnimatronics, #EmpireStrikesBack, #DarkCrystal, #ReturnOfTheJedi, #Labyrinth, #Mauldrix 

Paddington in Peru Review!

Paddington Bear has his greatest adventure that takes his family, the Browns, to his former home Peru! Paddington in Peru is the third movie in the Paddington films. There is also a television show, The Adventures of Paddington, that started in 2019. It is based on the long running book series that started with A Bear Called Paddington (1958) by Thomas Bond. It is the first film directed by Dougal Wilson who has previously directed music videos and videos on the boxer, John Lewis. The story is by Paul King who co-wrote and directed the first two Paddington movies. He had also directed Wonka (2023). The other writer is Simon Farnaby who co-wrote Paddington 2 (2017). 

Mark Burton also contributed to the story and is also the co-screenwriter. The other screenwriters, Jon Foster and James Lamont, created The Adventures of Paddington show. Brief re:cap - Paddington had a British geographer who finds the bears in Peru. He gives his hat to the one he calls Pastuzo and invites them to London. Pastuzo gives his red hat to his nephew, young Paddington loses his parents and Uncle Pastuzo in an earthquake, and Aunt Lucy goes to the Home for Retired Bears. She sends her nephew to London with a note, “Please look after this bear. Thank you.” Mary Brown takes interest of the bear and the family takes him in naming him after the station. Mrs. Bird, the housekeeper, also likes Paddington. 

He tries to find the explorer that found the bears in Peru. Mary takes Paddington to the owner of an antique shop, Samuel Gruber, who leads them to teh Geographers’ Guild. He lost his membership for refusing to bring back one of the bears. Paddington finds a family with the Browns. In Paddington 2 (2017), he is set up for stealing a rare pop-up book of London, his present to Aunt Lucy, at Gruber’s shop. The actual thief is a neighbor of the Browns, would be actor, Phoenix Buchanan. Paddington is sent to prison, accidentally turning the prison uniforms pink!, and makes an ally with the chef, Knuckles McGinty. Paddington is freed and Buchanan sentenced to prison. This story doesn’t require knowledge of the other movies or books, but there are nice touches to them in it. 

The film begins “A few bear years ago…” with a blue sky and below it is a jungle with red flowers like his hat. The lil’ bear that is Paddington (Ben Whishaw who also narrates the tale) sees an orange hanging from a branch and crawls out to it. Whishaw has voiced the part for all of the movies and television series. Paddington falls into a river and swept away. A paw reaches down and pulls Paddington up. It is Aunt Lucyk (Imelda Staunton). She tells him, “If you ever get lost just roar.” At the Paddington railway staton, he is in a photo booth, Paddington has to struggle to get a coin into the machine. He takes awkward photos and spills out the coins! We find the other family members, Mary Brown (Emily Mortimer) is painting the family on a couch. Mortimer played Jane Banks in Mary Poppins Returns (2018). Sally Hawkins played the part in the previous two movies.

Mrs. Brown is kind, but is not ready to have anyone leave the nest. One of which is her daughter, Judy (Madeleine Harris), who is ready to leave for college. Harris reprises the part and has also starred in the Man Down comedy show. Her role is to record her experiences for journalism classes. Her brother, Jonathan (Samuel Joslin) is more comfortable at home, gaming in his room using his inventions to stay in his chair. Joslin also returns as Jonathan and had starred as Thomas in the real life dramatic film, The Impossible (2012). Henry Brown (Hugh Bonneville) is comfortable working in insurance. Bonneville is back as the father and he is also known as Robert Grantham in Downton Abbey. The new boss, Madison (Hayley Atwell) has arrived and she shakes Henry with her daredevil motto,  “Embrace the risk! Atwell played Evelyn Robin in the film about another bear in  Christopher Robin (2018). I noticed out of the theaters that I had a smile ear to ear, the film left me with a feeling of joy, and realized we need more films like Paddington in Peru. 

Five Marmalade Sandwiches out of Five! 

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