Are the “Rocky” films more spectacle or substance? At first blush, the opening act of “Rocky III”(1982) suggests spectacle. Rocky fights professional wrestler Hulk Hogan – OK, technically “Thunderlips” – in a charity bout. It’s unclear […]
Life doesn’t become easy after your first success: Blowing up one Death Star doesn’t mean you’ve defeated the Empire. Dumping Shredder into a garbage truck doesn’t mean he won’t come back as a supermutant. And […]
The buzz is heating up for the seventh movie in a legendary film franchise that dates back to the 1970s. I’m referring, of course, to the “Rocky” series, which will continue with “Creed” on Nov. […]
The seventh “Rocky” film, “Creed” — which comes out on Nov. 25 – is on paper quite a departure from the first six, which were all written by Sylvester Stallone and directed by Stallone or John G. […]
After his first book, “Edge of Victory I: Conquest,” spent most of its time on Yavin 4 – one of the “home worlds” of “Star Wars” – Greg Keyes’ sequel, “Edge of Victory II: Rebirth” (2001), flies […]
The stories of Jaina, Jacen, Lowbacca and other “next generation” characters’ youthful days were explored in the “Young Jedi Knights” series, written for young adults. But that series doesn’t account for all the next-gen characters. […]
“Me and Earl and the Dying Girl” (now available from Redbox) follows last year’s “The Fault in Our Stars” into the cancersploitation genre – a coming-of-age story with one or more terminal teenagers thrown in. The […]
A decade after the first two installments of “Crimson Empire” in both real time and on the “Star Wars” timeline, the six-issue “Crimson Empire III: Empire Lost” (2011-12) was finally released, and it was almost certainly different […]
In Kathy Tyers’ “Balance Point” (2000), the “New Jedi Order” saga continues to do a remarkable job of previewing George Lucas’ prequel themes and plot points a few years before they emerged on screen. I noted in […]
Sunday’s episode of “The Walking Dead” featured cinematographically beautiful scenes of Morgan and his mentor, Eastman, practicing the martial art of aikido, along with powerfully acted moments of Morgan begging Eastman to kill him. But the most […]