Lanterns Episodes 5 to 8 reviews

 

Episode Five- Lights Out

This episode is the best yet at balancing the series’ more thoughtful scenes with it’s action ones. As the town comes under threat from the aliens searching for the Manhunter and Hal leaves John for dead, emotions are running high. The 2007 opening flashback depicts Kerry’s arrival in town, pursued by killers and shows how Zoe helped her- for a price. It’s a fitting beginning to an episode where several characters have to make an important choice as to what to do. If the sometimes tongue tied dialogue makes it harder to work out what people’s motivations are then this episode suggests everyone is looking after themselves.

Spoilers after the break...

Top of the Pops 3rd October 1991

Reviewed by Chris Arnsby

“Welcome to a fresh new look Top of the Pops from our new studio in Elstree. To open our show tonight, Erasure.”

 [4] ERASURE: Love To Hate You. That uncredited voice over doesn’t have the impact it needs. I don’t have the vocabulary to describe the sound quality so I’ll use the word muffled. I think it is being recorded in the studio where it has been played through speakers. This stops it booming like the wrath of god, which is what is needed. I guess the mix of studio audio is being carefully balanced to take into account Erasure’s backing track.

I am also not sure the opening shot sells the new studio. It’s clearly massive. You couldn’t pull off a crane shot like that in TC3 but a huge space needs a huge crowd to go with it, and obviously the BBC doesn’t want to wrangle a huge crowd of twentysomethings on the first night. This means my first impression of the new studio is of a space that is cavernous but a bit empty.

Goodbye to our local WH Smiths

 

My local branch of what used to be WH Smith is shortly closing after being made to wait months to hear it is on the list of closures drawn pup by Modella, the company who `rescued` the firm. Modella’s past record is of making such deals then downsizing the estate before ultimately winding up the physical business leaving either an online presence only or nothing but empty units. There is no reason to believe the same will not happen to the business latterly known as TG Jones. Yet for each shop closure there is a story, a history beyond the unfortunate fate of those working there and whatever has led down this final path. And this shop is almost the last one left of those I remember from decades ago. Its impending closure will be a sad day because I have so many memories of the place.

 

Top of the Pops 26th September 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Countdown to Year Zero revamp: 1 week.

 Gary Davies: “Hello. Very good evening to you. Welcome to Top of the Pops. Well it’s the end of an era tonight on Top of the Pops, next week a totally different look to the show. We’ll tell you a little bit more about that a little later on. We’ve got some great dance music in the studio tonight, we start off with PJB featuring Hannah and Her Sisters.”

 Housekeeping first. Several years ago I was delighted to learn of an early entry on Paul Ciani’s television CV.  A Christmas 1975, “rock-musical romp through the legend of The Wooden Horse of Troy.” It was called Great Big Groovy Horse and it has finally escaped the BBC Archives and you (yes, you!) can watch it at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfUfDDrd0GQ

I only found it on Youtube this week. It seems appropriate to link to it here because this edition feels like the true end to the Paul Ciani era of Top of the Pops. It’s from next week that Stanley Appel really puts his mark on the programme.

 

Resident Evil review

 Last year’s Weapons was quite a shock in every respect so much is expected of director Zach Cregger’s follow up especially as it stars Austin Abrams, a standout in the previous film as drug addict James. Here, he is also tasked with leading the film as the camera never leaves him for the entire run time, something he achieves with aplomb.  As for Zach Cregger he has again found a way to make the ordinary seem scary and the extraordinary seem terrifying; all with jump scares aplenty. Regardless of its source (about which I know little) as a film Resident Evil is a tremendous ninety five minutes of tension, danger and a little well sprinkled humour too.

Spoilers after the break...

 

Top of the Pops 19th September 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Nicky Campbell: “Oh welcome to Top of the Pops and a classic show tonight. What more could you want? Great videos. Great music. Great live performances as well. What a great start. Brothers in Rhythm, both of whom have been DJs since about the age of thirteen, so they know a thing or two about infectious rhythm. Ah, one, two, three, four.”

 [25] BROTHERS IN RHYTHM: SUCH A GOOD FEELING. About two thirds of the way through this performance something small but significant happens. Dave Chapman, credited with video effects, and Hilary West, vision mixer, apply a reduced frame effect to give a strobe movement look to Brothers In Rhythm. Stanley Appel never uses electronic effects when he’s directing a performance. What’s going on?

Ludwig season 2 review

 

The plethora of detective series means there’s something for everyone whether its disturbing thrillers or so called cosy murder mysteries (though I’m not sure how murder can ever be described as cosy), Ludwig sits somewhere in between and owes as much to the likes of Inspector Morse as it does to so called gentler series. Its also something of a comedy drama, a difficult thing to pull off but which writer Mark Brotherhood manages to do with aplomb. This second series offers a new set of homicides along with unexpected developments relating to the overall plot of missing detective James Taylor.

 

Lanterns episodes 1 - 4 review

 

Episode 1 Pilot

The opening episode starts off in understated style, playing with Western tropes aplenty. The incestuous small town, bar room fights, desolate geography – these aspects and more come into play as Lanterns establishes itself as one of those series that tries to make superpowers more down to earth and relatable. The mood is often similar to something like Wonder Man except the humour is more arch, the characters harder to like. This episode is very much about establishing a sense of place and there’s more than enough to sink your teeth into whether not you’ve read the comics.

Top of the Pops 12 September 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Simon Mayo: “Hello. Good evening. Welcome to Top of the Pops. Can I say, first of all, if you got your tickets for tonight’s show through Keith Prowse, can you, you can watch this at 7.30, but cheer and applaud louder because you are watching for free. Seem fair enough to me. We’re gonna start at number twenty eight with Bizarre Inc and this is Such A Feeling. Their first time on the show.”

 [28] BIZARRE INC: SUCH A FEELING. Simon Mayo gabbles his introduction. It’s weird. He talks so quickly he seems actually nervous. Maybe this is take three. Maybe he’s struggling to remember his convoluted satirical jab at the Keith Prowse ticket agency, who went into administration on Monday 09/09/1991. I’m not really even sure what his joke is, it’s lost in the word salad.

It doesn’t really matter because this is a great performance. Top of the Pops is getting better at generating visual interest from a few blokes with synthesisers. In this case the three blokes with synthesisers are at the back of the main stage, behind two dancers who are raised on podiums about four feet off stage level. This means they tower over the crowd. Under both podiums are squares of four monitors, at the back of the stage are two more piles of monitors, each a stack of three, each playing the video.

Brewster McCloud (1970)

 

Considering its place in the timeline of Robert Altman’s career, Brewster McCloud is a comparatively overlooked film. It was his next movie after MASH and similarly underperformed initially though its curiously vague publicity (“a different kind of film”) and odd poster probably didn’t help. Its not an easily pigeonholed movie and so little talked about that I only discovered it when I was writing about Harold and Maude, checking on Bud Cort’s other credits. The film has never really enjoyed a re-assessed critical appreciation while Altman’s subsequent illustrious career left Brewster McCloud as grounded as its protagonist ends up. While it never quite rises to the heights of the director’s best -known work it is interesting to view it from the considerable distance of fifty -six years as a bold endeavour that never quite fits any category.  In some ways its hard to see how it got made as it refuses to be confined.  Is it a murder mystery? Is it a comedy? Is it a fantastical allegory? Watching the movie does not necessarily answer these questions but I’m sure it created much post cinema debate in 1970. It’s not that it’s difficult to understand, more that the narrative chooses to be obtuse and vague, leaving it to the viewer to make up their mind.

Top of the Pops 6th September 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Jakki Brambles: “Hello, good evening, and welcome along to Top of the Pops. The nation’s finest music show. Tonight we’re checking out the Top Forty Breakers looking at what’s heading up the charts. Also, we have five acts in the studio. The first of which are at number eight. They’re from Liverpool, will you please welcome in the studio Oceanic.”

 [8] OCEANIC: INSANITY. Barely two weeks ago I suggested that Oceanic would have made a better opening act than Midge Ure. Nice of Stanley Appel to take my advice. Let’s see what he does with them.

Top of the Pops 29th August 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Mark Goodier: “Hi. Good evening and welcome to Top of the Pops. We have an essential show tonight with some performances by EMF, and the Farm, and Arnee and the Terminaters. And we start with a live rap by Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch with Loletta Holloway. This is a new entry Good Vibrations.”

 [29] MARKY MARK & THE FUNKY BUNCH Featuring LOLETTA HOLLOWAY: GOOD VIBRATIONS. I’m over 50. Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch are basically precision engineered to make me hate them. Stupid hat. Check. Stupid trousers. Stupid jacket. Check. Shakes walking stick at the screen. Boo! Get these kids off my TV set.

Coyote vs. Acme review

 

The endless attempts made by the perpetually hungry Wile E Coyote to catch a speedy Road Runner entertained generations in classic cartoons with each of the former’s schemes foiled one way or another proving perhaps that he wasn’t as wily as his name suggested. Or was it someone else’s fault? Often his failed attempts came as a result of misfiring equipment, always bought from a generic company named Acme and this film runs with the tremendous idea of him suing that company over these malfunctions. Gleefully incorporating countless cartoon moments mixed with live action, the results are impressive and funny.

 

Top of the Pops 22nd August 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Bruno Brookes: “Good evening and welcome to Top of the Pops. On the show tonight, Jason Donovan, Martika, Zoe, and also this fellow who’s locked himself away in a studio for the last couple of years making a terrific album and also sporting a hit single. Here in the Top of the Pops studio the one and only Midge Ure.”

 [19] MIDGE URE: COLD, COLD HEART. Three drummers? Do you think maybe that’s too much percussion? Midge Ure doesn’t. During the drum break, a handheld camera operator runs down the line of drummers to make sure we get a good look at them. Then the picture cuts to a Bodhrán being held by Midge Ure, and then the camera pulls back to reveal the guitarist standing next to Midge Ure also has a Bodhrán, and the keyboard player has a Bodhrán. Bodhráns for everyone!

The End of Oak Street review

 

In the Eighties, when this movie is set, there was a phrase that said: “don’t bore us, get to the chorus” referring to those songs with short verses and memorable choruses and it is this sort of philosophy that The End of Oak Street follows. With as little a preamble as you need- though one that contains quite a lot of material - David Robert Mitchell’s film soon cuts to the chases and offers exciting set pieces and plenty of nerve-jangling action. Yes, it does share some dino DNA with the likes of successive Jurassic World films and also the tv show Primeval but has enough ingredients of its own to provide memorable moments and rekindle that feeling you would get watching a film as a kid. Come on, its dinosaurs running wild in Eighties America! How can you not enjoy that?

Raaarrrrghh. Spoilers lurk in this review...

 

Our Hero, Balthazar review

This film has had quite a strong online promotional presence and like many when I first saw one of the Bboy Malone videos pop up on YouTube I thought it was real; some kid literally crying about the state of the world and its not as unlikely a sight as you’d think. It was only when they kept appearing and its subject seemed equally distressed about all kinds of things that I twigged it was for the film. These videos and clips have got crazier – Balthazar is the first ethical feminist to become pregnant! – yet in terms of the film they may be giving a slightly misleading impression. As a campaign it worked though as it led me to the film itself yet while Our Hero, Balthazar has some dark humour it’s an intriguing look at characters that society- whether at the top or near the bottom- overlooks.

Top of the Pops 15th August 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Gary Davies: “Hello. Very good evening to you. Welcome to a hot summer night’s edition of Top of the Pops and of course we are in stereo on Radio 1FM. In the studio tonight we have Right Said Fred, and Sophie Lawrence, and PM Dawn, and we start off with the second highest new entry in the charts. At seventeen, Level 42, Guaranteed.”

 [17] LEVEL 42: GUARANTEED. Level 42 have been away. They last appeared briefly on Top of the Pops in 1989 when their song Tracie was a breaker on the 26/01/1989 edition. When did they last see the inside of the Top of the Pops studio? That would be 01/09/1988 when they performed Heaven In Your Hands and even on that occasion Mark Goodier described how they “have been away for a long time”.

Grand Designs!

 

I wanted to recommend two artists whose work now features prominently in my house which I’ve recently been having redecorated room by room. One of the aspects I really wanted to freshen up were the wall hanging pictures. Previously there was an assortment of various images of different vintages whereas I wanted to have something more in line with the new furnishings. And that’s how I found two artists whose work I think is excellent and wanted to do a little to promote it in case you, too, were pondering over what art to put on your walls.

Top of the Pops 8th August 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 Nicky Campbell: “Oh, very good to see you. Thanks for joining us. Listen, tonight’s show is wonderful. Rock and roll up for the greatest pop show on Earth, Top of the Pops and prepare to marvel at the line up tonight. Truly incredible. Let’s start off with three fun loving guys from Amityville. The phenomenal De La Soul.”

 [22] DE LA SOUL: A ROLLER SKATING JAM NAMED ‘SATURDAYS’. Henry Barber is still doing the Lighting and it looks great. Lots of colour. Lots of studio atmosphere. Good use of the hand held camera operators by Stanley Appel. Yes, this is a really positive start to the show. I could do without Nicky Campbell quoting the Zip-a-de-doo-dah lyric at the end. When he does it, it’s not cool.

Top of the Pops 25th July & 1st August 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 25/07/1991

 Mark Goodier: “Hi. Good evening. Welcome to the UK’s number one hit music show, Top of the Pops with stereo sound on Radio 1FM. We’ve got Danni Minogue on tonight, we have Cher, we also have OMD, and we start with the brilliant Shamen. Rapping, scratchin’, and singin’ live on Move Any Mountain.”

 [9] THE SHAMEN: MOVE ANY MOUNTAIN. It’s all a bit flat. Stanley Appel directs Vision Mixer Ben Fuller to mostly bounce between static camera angles when a song like this needs energy and oomph. It needs panning cameras and constantly moving handheld camera shots. It needs more dynamic lighting and atmosphere. Where are the strobes and the spotlights and the smoke? Why are we limited to flashing banks of orange and blue lights along the studio roof? Basically, why is this all a bit boring? It should be brilliant but somehow the direction and staging sucks away all the life.

Move Any Mountain is a great single. This is three minutes of a bunch of blokes doing their best but being offered no support. It’s as if Stanley Appel expects the viewer to be so impressed by a live vocal that no other work is required. It’s like offering someone a cake and dumping eggs, flour, milk, and sugar on the table. Additional work is required.

Spider-Man - Brand New Day review

 

Brand New Day, as the title attests is a relatively fresh start. What you need to know is neatly summed up at the time you need to know it and even though most of the main characters are not new, they feel fresh again. People are saying this is the best of the current era of Spiderman films which may be true though we should acknowledge the excellence of the previous three has created the platform on which this one can triumph. Brand New Day is a joyride to experience and by a comfortable distance the best new film I’ve seen this year so far.

 Some Spidey Spoilers contained in this review....

The Odyssey review

 You never really know what you’re going to get with a Christopher Nolan film. I remember wondering before both Dunkirk how he could find a new way to present a familiar story. With Oppenheimer I imagined it wouldn’t be very exciting yet it was even though it was mostly conversational. As for Inception and Tenet, they are strange out there movies that work even though they shouldn’t. The Odyssey is I suppose the original story, or at least one of the first great tales. Its credited to Homer though he may just have been the first person to write down a story that, like many of that time, were passed on by word of mouth. Can Christopher Nolan reinvigorate yet remain true to such a venerable work? Spoiler- yes!

 

Heartstopper Forever review

It’s only been four years yet it seems longer since we first met Nick Nelson and Charlie Spring tentatively starting their relationship and I would imagine only those who watched the previous three seasons will check this finale. What's really changed though in that time is that it feels like the accepting atmosphere in which a series like this could thrive has been challenged.  While even some of its loyal audience have to admit that Heartstopper has sometimes been the frothiest confection that may not even fully represent the generation it is supposed to, the fact that it is being made at all is important in itself. However, that does mean the show has had something of a free pass in that aspects that would have received criticism had they appeared in other series were overlooked. On the flip side it has been a welcome change to have a drama unafraid of brightness and joy rather than the seemingly endless parade of dark thrillers that seem to make a lot of the running these days. This feature length conclusion closes off the story in a satisfactory though not outstanding manner. 

Spoilers after the break...

 

Top of the Pops 18th July 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Jakki Brambles: “Hello, good evening and welcome along to Top of the Pops on BBC1 and you can hear us in stereo on Radio 1FM. Well, it’s an all star line up on tonight’s show. We’re starting off with a lady who’s knocking ‘em dead on both sides of the Atlantic. Will you welcome, in the studio, Cathy Dennis.”

 [28] CATHY DENNIS: JUST ANOTHER DREAM. A very high concept start to this performance. Kathy Dennis stands singing while dancers wearing black raincoats and Fedoras turn and pretend to take photos of her. It’s all terribly symbolic and I’m sure its a marvellous metaphor for something or other but I don’t know what. Kathy doesn’t seem to be disappointed by the attention and why should she when she’s wearing a one-piece hot-pants suit covered in sequins. Fortunately for everyone concerned the dancers disrobe to reveal underneath their raincoats they are all wearing neon-coloured bikini tops and hot pants. 

Why don’t I have dreams like this? I get nightmares about rats attacking me on the bog*.

*Curse you, James Herbert!

Dating Amber (2020)

 

This overlooked, light hearted film set in 1995 is about two closeted Irish teenagers, Eddie and Amber. Tired of the homophobic jibes they have to endure, they conjure up a plan to pretend to be a straight couple. While initially this eases the pressures on them and also means they are meeting familial expectations it leads to other more complex problems. David Freyne’s delightful film turns what could be a serious topic into something altogether more comedic with some pin sharp observations and two characters whom the viewer soon gets to like. In a way it’s a romcom without the `rom` as the duo’s pretence leads to each of them discovering more about themselves.

 

Top of the Pops 11th July 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Bruno Brookes: “Good evening. Welcome to another sizzling Top of the Pops. All hot stuff on the show tonight. Later on we’ve got Bryan Adams for you. INXS, Billy Bragg, and Bros to name a few. First of all at number twenty eight is D.J.H. featuring Stefy. You need it. And you love it!”

 [28] D.J.H. featuring STEFY: I LIKE IT. The shape of the new-look Top of the Pops is being assembled in the background. We’ve had Michael Hurll’s changes to the way the charts are presented. And, as a side effect of this, the interstitial graphics for the Top 40, Top 10, and Breakers have been retired. Oh, and the Top 5 Albums countdown has been quietly dropped as well. There’s also the green screen and separating the host from the audience.

Enola Holmes 3 review

 

At the beginning of this third instalment of the adventures of Sherlock Holmes’ smart sister, Enola is late, a nod perhaps to the tardy arrival of the film. It’s more than three and a half years since the second in the series so you’d be forgiven for forgetting what happened. Luckily anything you need to know is folded into this brisk, energetic package mostly set in Malta rather than England. The location adds a new character to the tale which may not be as knotty as the cases dealt with by Enola’s older brother but is exciting and involving enough.

 Spoilers after the break

 

Top of the Pops 4th July 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Gary Davies: “Hello. Very good evening to you. Welcome to Top of the Pops. We are in stereo on Radio 1 97 to 99 FM and we have a terrific show for you tonight. In the studio we have Cola Boy and Kim Appleby, but we start off with this week’s highest climber. It’s called Always There, Incognito and Jocelyn Brown.”

 [9] INCOGNITO Featuring JOCELYN BROWN: ALWAYS THERE. I’ve just noticed another small tweak to the title sequence. The little sprite chased by the camera through the title sequence has gone. It was added on the 13/06/1991 and lasted all of one week. It was replaced by some less abstract but more dull numbers; 5,2,4,1. It’s probably Stanley Appel’s PIN.

Top of the Pops 27th June 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Simon Mayo: “Hello this is Top of the Pops. Thirty minutes of songs for your folks to complain about. Question. Give me a singing superstar from Belgium. Yes, yes, yes. Singing nun. Any ideas? Plastic Bertrand. Yes. Any more? Well you can add this lot to the pile because they’re at number twenty two a spooky thing, the band are Cubic 22.”

 [22] CUBIC 22: NIGHT IN MOTION. Please welcome Stanley Appel to the Produced and Directed by credit. He’s been around for years, obviously, but now he is here to shepherd Top of the Pops into the nineties, and beyond. This is awkward. I don’t much like his style. I’ve previously described it as dull. Although, fair play to the man, he directed a storming performance by The Wedding Present on the 27/09/1990 show.

Supergirl review

 

Superhero films are not generally a lot of fun when there’s serious world saving to be done yet Supergirl ,while it does have some darker hues to its story, is light and breezy enough to make you smile. Unlike the most recent Superman its clear his cousin takes her responsibilities a lot less seriously even if tis is covering up for traumatic past issues. The relatively small stakes of the plot compared with the other films of this ilk do make it more amenable to those less familiar with the backstory. In tone Supergirl lines up more with something like Guardians of the Galaxy. And, yes, the music is very loud!

Spoilers after the break.

 

Top of the Pops 20th June 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 Nicky Campbell: “Hello. Good evening. Welcome to the brilliant new look Top of the Pops. Prepare to be engulfed in a fiesta of music and colour. Lights and action. Sound and vision. What a show. Five live acts, the best music videos and what a start. Here is the r-r-r-r-Rebel MC.”

 [20] REBEL MC/TENOR FLY/B.LEVY: TRIBAL BASE. It seems a little over the top for Nicky Campbell to describe minor format tweaks as a new look. However, there’s an interesting snippet of news in the following week’s Stage And Television Today.

That news item would have been written in the week the 20/06/1991Top of the Pops was being prepared and recorded. It is possible Nicky Campbell was asked to describe the small changes made to Top of the Pops as a “new look” to throw people off the scent a bit.

Disclosure Day review

 

I suspect that if proof of aliens really was disclosed at this current febrile time the public reaction would be hysterical with calls for them to be locked up, dropped on the Moon or something similarly draconian. This is not presently a world receptive to `others` of the human variety let along extra-terrestrials. The idea of such a reveal is what drives Steven Spielberg’s latest which returns him to the territory of ET and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. Disclosure Day lacks the certainty of those earlier movies though and the sense of wonder they created is in shorter supply. I think it’s potentially a good story presented in a way that doesn’t do it justice.

 Spoilers disclosed after the break...

Invaders from Mars (1953)

 

“Gee Whizz!” Big green men invade a small town in this classic sci fi film

 If the plot of Invaders from Mars seems familiar then that’s likely to be because it’s proven to be hugely influential on subsequent generations of filmmakers. The likes of Joe Dante and John Landis are fans while Martin Scorcese has named it as one of the best uses of lighting and colour in film. While it does appear to fulfil its title admirably it also sets a template for future invasion pictures to follow or extrapolate from. Re-released last month with a fantastic restoration, we can have a more vivid experience watching it than even those 1953 cinemagoers did.

 

Top of the Pops 13th June 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 Jakki Brambles: “Hello. Good evening. And welcome to Top of the Pops. It’s a little bit different tonight but you can still hear us in stereo on 1FM. First up, tonight’s show, we have probably the only ever artist who scored five top twenty singles off her debut album and still got dropped by her record label. You can’t keep a good woman down. Here’s Sonia.”

 [11] SONIA: ONLY FOOLS (NEVER FALL IN LOVE). “A little bit different tonight.” That sounds ominous. I’m getting “Great news for all readers inside!” vibes. It sounds like IPC is about to force Top of the Pops to merge with Roy of the Rovers.

Backrooms review

 

Sometimes you can find yourself in one of those shops whose dimensions appear to exceed the space the building occupies. I’ve been in one or two such places and as you start to move away from the hubbub of the entrance, browsing can become a solitary occupation with no other customers around. The further you go, the stranger it can seem. It is this sensation, magnified many times, that Backrooms creates finding scares in such seemingly regular things as walls, rooms, doors and even open space. The debut feature of twenty year old Kane Parsons is an impressively unsettling movie to sit through, one that will make you think twice about roaming off on your own. Like last year’s Weapons it creates an edgy mood that makes the everyday terrifying.

 Some spoilers after the break

 

Spider - Noir review

 For Nicolas Cage to commit to his first television role (apart from appearances as himself or a 1981 pilot) it had to be something special and Spider- Noir definitely is. The phrase `comic book coming to life` is often bandied about but there aren’t many instances where this seems a appropriate a description as with this series. Set in the Thirties, it side steps realism taking inspiration from the printed page and pulp novels to present an absorbing world and a fresh take on familiar material. Even if you’ve seen the Spiderman films, you haven’t seen anything quite like this.

 You can choose to watch in “true black and white” or in what is described as “True Hue Full Colour”. There’s even some guidance as to which format is best for which episodes courtesy of the online fan site Marvel Mania. I’m sure the studio wants us to watch the whole thing twice but it actually works out interestingly to switch back and forth. So, in the reviews below, I’ve noted which format I watched in. In the end, I’d say the black and white edges it making the material look so stylish and adding to its’ strangeness.

Spider Spoilers after the break...

Top of the Pops 6th June 1991

 

Words: Chris Arnsby

Mark Goodier: “Good evening and welcome to Top of the Pops, featuring the world’s most exciting chart the BBC UK Top Forty. There’s lots of variety on the show tonight from Harry Connick Jnr. to the brilliant Northside with their brand new single. This is Take Five.”

 [A quick note for posterity. As I write this, Film is Fabulous have announced the recovery of two lost Beatles performances from the 23/03/1964 edition. It’s 35mm film of them miming to Can’t Buy Me Love and You Can’t Do That; their first appearance on Top of the Pops. If you can afford it, please donate to Film is Fabulous so they can continue their good work https://filmisfabulous.org.uk/the-film-is-fabulous-trust/ ]

 

Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Groku review

 

The Star Wars Universe has expanded massively yet despite the undoubted quality of the offshoots (notably the superb Andor) they are a fairly long way from the tone of the 1977 original. Here though is a branch of the tale that indulges in exactly the same fast paced action orientated type of story that lit the fuse.  The Mandalorian and Groku hardly rests, pinwheeling from one place to another frantic to throw our unusual heroes into ever more perilous situations. What you gain from the action you do tend to lose in terms of character but this is a film that brings the fun back to big screen Star Wars.

 

Top of the Pops 23rd & 30th May 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

23/05/1991

 Gary Davies: “Hello. A very good evening to you and welcome to Top of the Pops. Don’t forget we’re in stereo on Radio 1FM and boy do we have a great show for you tonight. We start off with a band who’ve got a new album called The Promise which is coming out in June. They’re in the charts at number twenty with Whenever You Need Me. It’s T’Pau!”

 [20] T’PAU: WHENEVER YOU NEED ME. Apologies to flame-haired crooner Carol Decker but I wouldn’t have started this edition with this song. Then again, I’m not sure which song I would have used to start tonight’s show. This is going to be a double-bill write up because once again I find myself with little to say. Top of the Pops has hit a chart slump between the May Bank Holidays.

Soylent Green (1973)

 Fifty three years ago the events depicted in Soylent Green may have seemed far fetched yet today maybe not so much. Based loosely on Harry Harrison’s novel Make Room, Make Room (though the adaptation changes some events and has a different outcome) the 1973 film depicts population and climate change having rendered life almost impossible for many. People sleep on staircases and queue for hours for synthesised food produced by the Soylent company while everyone suffers under blistering heat twenty four hours per day. Corruption is rife and memories of life before this urban hell are fading.

 

Top of the Pops 9th and 16th May 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

 09/05/1991

 Gary Davies: “Hello. A very good evening to you and welcome to Top of the Pops. We’re in stereo on your twenty four hour radio station, Radio 1FM. We have a terrific programme for you tonight. And we start off with a band who are shortly going to release their first album. They’re performing the DNA Groove mix of Get The Message, over there. Electronic!”

 [8] ELECTRONIC: GET THE MESSAGE. This is new. I don’t think a band has performed a different mix of a single before. It’s an interesting idea and I can see how you might want to keep a song fresh for the audience and the performer. It’s just… this is a bit boring isn’t it. It seems very low energy and Bernard Sumner’s voice sounds very quiet in the mix. I appreciate it’s a change of direction for these write ups to start talking about music but, hasn’t this remix boiled out all the good bits of the single? Where’s the drum break gone? Why is Johnny Marr miming to a guitar that only he can hear? 4/10 guys.

Eurovision 2026 Final review

 

I am gutted. Sick as a parrot etc. The two best songs in my opinion were eliminated in the semi’s. Latvia’s `Ena` and Switzerland’s `Alice` are no more which is a big disappointment though maybe not too surprising. Both are quite serious songs, perhaps not the tone required for the party atmosphere of the Final but I hope they are recognised beyond the competition. I really like both of them anyway. Of the others eliminated at this stage, I was also quite sorry to see Armenia, Georgia and Luxembourg go. These exits definitely cut back on the variety of music on display, however as last night’s Final demonstrated there were still plenty of bold performances to savour.

 

Good Omens finale review

 

Having been squeezed into ninety five minutes or so from an originally intended six-part series, its reputation tarnished by the allegations against its co- author, the third instalment of Good Omens seems determined to make a stand. Every scene is accompanied by grandiose incidental music, the story moves fast because it has so little time and the actors give it their best oratory.  Visually it manages to convey a lot even on a reduced budget. In some ways the truncated form helps; season two was definitely prone to meandering whereas this third part focusses on its two main characters, always the key asset. While the reduced screen time does sometimes help, it can also mean narrative leaps that are not always earned.

 

Top of the Pops 2nd May 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Simon Mayo: “Hello. Good evening. Tonight is club night. Welcome to the nicest nightclub in the nation with no dress sense required [glances at the woman to his right]… as you can probably tell. We’re going to start with the most incredible opening to Top of the Pops ever, ever seen. I mean it. Try this at number three. This is KLF. Take it lads.”

 [3] THE KLF: LAST TRAIN TO TRANCENTRAL. The Main Stage is full. I count 11 people, 10 of them dressed in white, diaphanous, robes and Ricardo da Force wearing black. Oh and Bill Drummond and Jimmy Cauty (or should that be King Boy D and Rockman Rock?) both have a single enormous tusk strapped to their head.

Eurovision 2026 Songs Reviewed

 

In an age when we’re all amateur pundits now, I thought I’d do mini reviews of each song entered into this year’s Eurovision. There’s thirty-five of them altogether and I’d say the standard is a little down on the last couple of years yet also more varied. Trends I noted where the inclusion of operatic influences in several songs (though nobody is spinning on a disk like Nemo) and what has become a Eurovision trope- a song starting as a ballad then lurching into all out techno. There are a lot of serious songs, so much so that a couple where the singer actually smiles and seems to be having fun really stand out. Disappointedly there’s no outright bonkers song this year; in fact the UK’s entry is at the quirkier end of things. It is though a vast improvement on our last couple of attempts.  Of course some of these thirty five songs will be eliminated in the semi- finals probably making my predictions seem totally wrong but that’s half the fun.

 

Top of the Pops 25th April 1991

 Words: Chris Arnsby

Nicky Campbell: “Yes. Top of the Pops. Welcome to your weekly dose. Lewd gyrations. Hips swivelling and loud music. Oh! The youth of today. What a show. The greatest show on Earth in thirty minutes. What a start. Welcome, the amazing E.M.F.”

 [22] EMF: CHILDREN. This sounds to my tin ear like a very guitar and drum heavy song, with not a lot to do for the keyboard player. This might explain why he’s really hamming it up at one side of the stage dragging the keyboard around and battering the keys like he expects them to jump up and attack him. Or, has he been watching the keyboard player from Jesus Jones, and decided to nick his shtick?

ComicCon Liverpool 2nd/ 3rd May 2026

 The essential ingredients for attending a ComicCon are stamina and a good pair of shoes. There is a lot of walking and a lot of queuing which is inevitable when you realise there are 50,000 attendees. This was probably the largest Liverpool event yet staged though its only one of a number around the country.  In common with most events these days everything is done on a large scale while the guests are front of camera people so if you're after insights into production, direction or writing then you won't find them here. For those willing to pay there ae photos or autographs with the stars of some of your favourite tv shows. Plus its not unusual to see Darth Vader or Davros or Spiderman walking around.