Category: Television

San Diego Comic-Con 2022: Was there anything interesting?

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Books, Comics, Movies, Television

I want to talk about San Diego Comic-Con, in particular, the 2022 edition. Why? Well for starters I’ve never been. I live over 10,730 km away, so I’m practically next door, but I have yet to drag my broke arse there.

Another thing is that this year was the first one to be held in person, since the 2020 and 2021 events were cancelled, because of everybody’s least favourite virus, COVID-19.

For those of you that already know about the San Diego Comic-Con, congratulations! For those of you that don’t know about it; I’m very sorry, but I’ll give you a quick summary. Don’t panic.

The San Diego Comic-Con is arguably, one of the the largest events; if not the largest, celebrating popular culture on the planet. The event is designed for creators and companies to advertise new products coming up like toys, anime, computer games, manga, books, comics, movies, tv shows and anything else; as well as being able to sell their existing products to the public.

Because of this, it attracts people from all over the world, to help celebrate everything that is pop culture. Oh, I forgot to mention the cosplayers. So many cosplayers!

I think San Diego Comic-Con is usually held over 3-4 days in July, and even though I’m thousands of kilometres away, I can still get excited. This is because of the important reveals, trailers, and announcements.

This year has been no exception, with an avalanche of information released to the public. But is any of it interesting? Being the writer of this blog; and the person to blame for anything that happens here, I’ve decided to breakdown the most interesting things I have discovered from the event.

Let’s establish a few things first:

1.) I have not read or seen, every article or trailer released from San Diego Comic-Con. There’s probably a ton of information I have missed, but I’m only one man against the odds. I can only discuss the things I have knowledge on, but also things I’m actually interested in. Any news about a Sour Cream and Chives themed computer game, will not be mentioned.

2.) Just because a product is on my list, does not mean I’ll actually get to see it or purchase it. There are so many different streaming services, I can’t subscribe to all of them; I would need a higher paying job for that. Simply, if something has landed on this list, it has my attention.

Let’s do it!

Image by Tania Van den Berghen from Pixabay

Literature

Star Wars: The High Republic

I know the High Republic is not for everybody and that some people don’t like it. Having said that, no one is perfect, and I fall in the other camp, because I enjoy this series!

I loved learning about the Phase II reveals, new characters and stories, listening to the creators, but also looking at the amazing novel and comic book covers for the series. I’m invested with this for the long haul, so I was pretty happy to learn new things about Phase II. One day soon, I’ll write a blog about the High Republic and explain it better. Anyway, we are off to a good start!

Batman/Spawn

There was news that DC and Image will be getting together for another Batman/Spawn crossover. I understand that Batman and Spawn alumni artist, Greg Capullo, will have the art duties, with Todd McFarlane as the writer.

Apparently it will be released this December, and I thought these characters would never met again, after their two 1994 meetings. I didn’t see this one coming at all. I’m not sure what to expect from this, apart from the stellar art. I’m quite interested, to be honest.

As for other comic news, um…..nope. I have to admit, nothing else that I’ve heard from Marvel, DC, Image or anybody else, released from Comic-Con actually has me interested in their upcoming comic book projects. It’s quite strange. Just Star Wars: The High Republic and Batman/Spawn. Maybe I’m getting too picky in my old age.

Movies

DCEU: Shazam! Fury of the Gods

The first film, Shazam! was cool. I mean I thought the film makers did a great job balancing Billy’s personal and superhero life. It was also refreshing to see the villain actually survive. What mischief will Doctor Sivana and Mister Mind get up to?!

It was fun, which is why I’ve been looking forward to the sequel. Bringing more mythology into the franchise with Hespera and Kalypso, will be entertaining. Will it be predictable and a bit corny with Billy’s family? Yes and yes, again, however it will be a lot of fun.

It just makes you want to stand up and shout, “SHAZAM!” Damn, I want to watch the first film again now. How good is bullet immunity?!

Black Adam

Speaking of Shazam!, how about we discuss the Big Red Cheese’s antithesis villain. I have always thought that Teth-Adam is similar to Magneto, Namor, or Ronan the Accuser; a leader or symbol to his people, which means he can and will fight alongside the heroes, as easily as against them. A classic anti-hero.

I’m nervous, but I have high hopes for this film. Having the Rock play Black Adam is a master stroke, and it will also be interesting how the Justice Society will connect with audiences. Doctor Fate was my first introduction to a superhero magician, so hopefully this film will not disappoint. How far will they push things? I have no idea.

We do need to see the Shazam!/Black Adam or Superman/Black Adam fight somewhere in the future. Pretty please? Teth-Adam is the last person on Earth that should have these powers, so let the smackdown begin!

MCU

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

I liked Black Panther, because at least to me, it brought a lot of political and social issues of living in a superhuman world into the light. Plus I thought Chadwick Boseman was phenomenal as T’Challa. He’s one of the greatest characters Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, ever created together. I’ve always liked T’Challa.

So because of that, I’m nervous about the sequel for three reasons. Firstly, since the original film was such a massive success, there could be a lot pressure to catch lightning in a bottle for a second time. An example of this is Wonder Woman and Wonder Woman 1984. The sequel did not quite hit the mark.

Secondly, I feel it was a mistake not to recast T’Challa. I know they did it to honour Boseman’s memory, but I feel allowing T’Challa to exist in the MCU, would have been a better tribute. Allowing another excellent actor to step into T’Challa’s sneakers, is not something uncommon in superhero films.

And lastly, Namor. I’m always concerned when great villains are not adapted in the best way. Doctor Doom is the best example, with three films behind him, the film makers got it wrong, three times over.

Namor just like Black Adam, he is an anti-hero. His arrogance is only equal to Batman’s, so it will be interesting to see how the film makers translate this; but also for his culture. Obviously there will be some tension/conflict between Wakanda and Atlantis, just like T’Challa and Namor in the comics.

I want this film to work, which is precisely the reason why I’m interested in it. And the Dora Milaje kicking arse helps.

Phase 5 and Phase 6: The Multiverse Saga

This covers Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, The Marvels, Blade, Captain America: New World Order, Thunderbolts, Fantastic Four, Avengers: The Kang Dynasty, and Avengers: Secret Wars (February 2023-November 2025).

I’m interested in all of these films, but I’ll wait to receive more information about them as the wheel turns, as the world moves on.1 I also do realise there are some MCU tv shows as well, but I’ll talk about them below.

Television shows (streaming)

Disney +

I don’t have Disney +, but if I did, I think my family wouldn’t see me for a few weeks. Without discussing the shows already on the platform, the reveals and trailers from Comic-Con include Andor, She-Hulk, Secret Invasion, Echo, Loki Season 2, Ironheart, Agatha: Coven of Chaos, and I am Groot, sound quite fantastic.

These announcements are awesome and I’m interested in watching all of them…one day I guess. However, there was one reveal that was jaw dropping: Daredevil: Born Again.

I’ve seen Netflix’s Daredevil Season 1 and 2 on DVD, and that show was astounding. I loved it, but I haven’t seen the third season. I’m very impressed that Charlie Cox and the rest of the crew (I think) will be coming back.

Whether the show will be based on the famous Born Again storyline, or a play on words like Spider-Man: Homecoming, I don’t know…but Daredevil is back! I’ve always thought Daredevil was a very underrated character, so I’m stoked that he’s getting more camera time.

The Sandman

If you’re a follower of my blog, you will understand how special this show is to me. I’m actually not going to discuss it too much, other than stating that The Sandman trailer was mind blowing; but also this was the most interesting reveal/trailer/announcement to come out of San Diego Comic-Con.

Meeting the Endless will bring me a lot of happiness, but I also can’t wait for people to meet Desire, because they were woke, before woke was a concept.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power

I understand the Rings of Power are getting some flak from Tolkien super fans over changes to characters, the timeline, and other things. As a Tolkien fan myself, not every fan has to agree on a product’s direction; however, I am ready for this show.

I’m not sure how much of the plot will be taken from The Silmarillion, The Fall of Númenor, The Nature of Middle-Earth or Unfinished Tales, but it looks great. I know it’s set during the Second Age of the Sun, and….I’m so excited for this.

Will we see the Silmarils? Will we see the rise of Sauron? Will we see Angband? Will we see the War of the Last Alliance? Or even better, will Morgoth have a cameo, even in a flashback or prologue? I have no idea!

There are many things that can go right or wrong with this show, but I’m choosing to be positive; I have to. I’m just stunned that the show exists at all. I love the genres of superheroes and science fiction, but throw fantasy in there also, and I’m going to be immersed in geekdom.

I’m not a subscriber to Amazon Prime, but this show is tempting me.

Can I also mention House of the Dragon? This show is one I can actually watch on my streaming platform, so I have to research the Targaryen family tree a lot more, before it starts in a few weeks. Things to do.

Ok that’s it. What reveals from San Diego Comic-Con were you interested in? Please let me know. My dog needs his belly rubbed, so look both ways before you cross the street and I’ll see you next week.

1 Anybody for some Ka?

Saying Goodbye to a Series: Are You a Quitter?

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Books, Comics, Literature, Movies, Music, Television

I want to talk about saying goodbye to a series. Why? Over the many times I have travelled around the Sun, this strange event has happened repeatedly. To understand this subject better, you won’t need Herb Powell to build a translator for you, I’ll just try to do a better job at explaining it.

You don’t have to be a geek or nerd to enjoy a series. This could be in the form of comics, novels, television shows, movies, video games, music, or just about anything that is created for people’s enjoyment and entertainment.1

Now for whatever reason, you love that series. Maybe you have grown up listening to a special artist or band, read all of the books in a saga, played all of the games in a franchise, watched every episode in a tv show, or seen every movie in a series.

Whatever it is, there is something you like watching, listening to, or reading, that…well, makes you happy; like lying in bed, listening to the rain fall on the roof, or eating some some Salt and Vinegar chips, while watching your favourite team win.

Whatever the case, you have a relationship with…and I’m doing to use the word, product, for the purposes of context. You have a relationship with that product; whether it is positive, negative and everything in between.

But here’s the problem: just like the relationships you have with other homo sapiens, every relationship has a beginning and an ending. Just the same as the relationship you have with your product.2

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

The way I see it, I can think of three different ways the relationship with the product will end.

1.) The product stops creating

The band could split up; the singer retires; the monthly comic book finishes; the tv show screens the final season; the final movie in a trilogy or series is released; the makers of the video game, have discontinued the line; or the last and final book in a saga, is finally released.

It doesn’t matter what the reason is, but the product that you enjoy, will no longer be creating any new content going forward, on a regular basis. Yes, it’s possible that tv shows and movies, could have spin offs; the monthly comic book could come back as a mini-series; the band members could join or create new bands; or the author may decide to explore prequel eras of the saga; but it’s not the same, is it?

Basically what I’m saying, is that the product broke up with you. It hurts, but it’s out of your hands. There will be no new book, album, movie, tv show, or comic book; whatever story the creators of that medium were telling, that story has been told and now, it’s finished.

You also know, if it was up to you, the product and yourself would still be together. All you can do now, is listen to the songs again, reread the saga, play the games again, or binge watch the tv shows and movies; compounded by the blessing and the curse, that you know what happens.

2.) The product is high maintenance

As the stale, old, bread winner of our one income family, this reason is a no-brainer: money. ABBBA and Pink Floyd warned us about this in the 70’s, to various degrees. The loss of a job, extra bills, crossovers, multi-media projects, dwindling savings, or just the slow and steady rise of the product’s cost, could result in you declaring that the product is now, high maintenance; therefore, you can’t afford it anymore.

It sucks, because you love the product, but the product is out of your league now. You could try to figure out a way to keep it: buy less food, give up the gym, or decrease on using electricity.

However when there are children or UMCs involved, you have to admit that you’re the adult, and you need to give up the product for their sake. Bread vs the new book? Electricity vs the new video game?

You’re a parent and you’re doing the best that you can for your kids, so you quit the product to help them. Or until you can afford it again!

3.) You and the product want different things

So we have finally arrived at the most strangest and personal reason, you and your product are no longer together: you’ve lost that loving feeling.

There are so many various situations about why this happens. It can cover the product receiving a new artist, new writer, new direction, new singer, death or return of major characters, new music video, new songs, games becoming easier/harder, storylines getting repeated, bad dialogue, or maybe just the fact that you have moved on from the product.

Whatever it is, the love and the passion you once had for the product, has slowly faded away. It could have been your family’s influence, or your friends, spouse, partner, work mates, or quite honestly, it was you realising that you and the product are travelling down different roads now, and you want something else.

There is no shame in this. I think about my own life and the products that I have quit for different reasons, is probably more than Chuck Norris has executed a roundhouse kick. Wait…that’s physically impossible. You can’t beat Chuck Norris at anything, except receiving roundhouse kicks to the face.

And you’re back in the room. This may sound quite odd, but hey, a geek’s going to do, what a geek’s going to. Every time I have quit a product; whether it involves movies, novels, comics, bands, or tv shows, I feel the need to explain myself.

By this I mean writing an email or letter to the director, author, or whomever it would be, to apologise for leaving the product, and explain why I have done it. I never have though, but the desire is there.

Sometimes it’s extremely easy for me to identify, the reason(s) why I’m not interested in a product anymore, but there are times when it’s the opposite. I’ll know that I’d like to quit the product, however I’m unable to explain why.

I may start second guessing myself over the decision, but if I start doing that, I know it’s over. Throughout my life, my love of music, books, comics, movies, and tv shows has not changed, but the genres have.

My tastes in popular culture have changed, just like me. I’m definitely a work in progress, but I’m still evolving, which means the products that I spend my hard earned money on, have to reflect what makes me happy. Though my taste for Sour Cream and Chives will never, ever change. Ever.

We have now arrived at the point of the conversation where I ask you the question: Are you a quitter? What products were you interested in, but have now left behind? What caused the break up? Please let me know.

Sorry, this was a long one. As usual I have a bad idea, then it spirals out of control. Alright, thanks for reading, walk your dog, and I’ll see you next Monday.

1 Alliteration much?

2 Am I the only one that has Closing Time, by Semisonic, as an earworm now?

Why I hate Chilli and Bandit Heeler

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Children, Parents, Television

I want to talk about Bluey, in particular her quintessential parents, Chilli and Bandit Heeler. Before I go any further, I feel I need to explain who and what Bluey actually is, before Mum and Dad are brought back into the picture.

Bluey, Bluey, Bluey…. I feel millions of parents around the world 1, would be able to give various explanations, impressions, confessions of love, or expletive laden statements about Bluey, but here is mine.

Bluey is an animated tv show, based on a now, seven year old Blue Heeler puppy, aptly named, Bluey. She lives her now, five year old Red Heeler sister, Bingo. The Heelers sisters have shenanigans left, right and centre, mainly through their dramatic and role playing games.

As the viewer, you get to meet their friends, cousins, uncles, aunties, grandparents, teachers, and other members of the community. To the best of my knowledge; because I have not seen every single episode, every character in the show is some type of dog.

UMC1 and UMC2 love Bluey. UMC2 has a Bluey plate and a new Bluey toothbrush, while UMC1 has a Bluey drink bottle. Recently UMC1 was told at school that Bluey is only for babies, but the four of us will sit down to watch the episodes and laugh together.

Now the nature of this particular blog is not to confession my love of the show. Remember the title of the blog? It’s time to talk about Chilli and Bandit Heeler.

Bandit, Bluey, Bingo and Chilli Heeler

Chilli is Bluey and Bingo’s mother and she also works part-time for security at an airport. She is a Red Heeler, just like Bingo; where as Bandit is a Blue Heeler, just like Bluey. Bandit is also an archaeologist, because apparently he likes to dig up bones.

So why do I hate these two cartoon dogs? Well, hate could be too strong of a word. I feel that Chilli and Bandit are some of the best parents, television has seen in a long time. The case being is that they’re too good. Their parenting skills are so excellent, that real world parents are just going to fail, when compared to Chilli and Bandit; myself included.

The biggest problem is that they somehow set completely unrealistic expectations in the real world. That’s what they do. Chilli and Bandit always have time for the girls. Now like I said before, I haven’t seen every episode, but from the few that I have seen, Bandit has only gone to work twice; but he’s always hanging about at home?!

Bandit never seems to bring work home, or attend any meetings at night; he’s just awesome. It’s the same issue for Chilli as well. She always seems to knows how to sort it out any problem, which is part of the show’s charm, because not everything goes the way it should.

I meant to point out that Bluey would be UMC1 in our house, with Bingo being UMC2. It’s also quite tragic that I find myself being enviousness of two cartoon dogs, because they seem to be far better parents than anybody!

This does make me look at what I do in the weekend, and how much I should be playing with my boys. Damn you, Chilli and Bandit!

My wife and I sit down with the boys, to watch the show with them. We laugh along with the madness, but after the episode, we will have a little talk to ourselves about how that could never be us. Chilli and Bandit are so patient, it sucks.

I fear my patience needs to be renewed every day. It’s a finite source, that somehow it’s regenerated in my sleep; but then again, I’m a parent, so I’m always tired. As soon as I wake up, my patience starts to deteriorate.

I would really like to see a Bluey episode that doesn’t have any children in it. It would just have Chilli and Bandit going about their lives, but following the utter carnage of living with children. Having a scene before the children eat breakfast in the kitchen vs what happened afterwards, would be ideal. Having lots of before and after scenes would be hilarious and would make me feel better about my own parenting.

I don’t know what else I can say, other than the show is amazing; however Bandit and Chilli, make you want to sign up for parenting courses. Oh, I forgot. We now have in our house, the brand new word, dunny. Previously, it was a toilet, but now the boys love using the word dunny, and especially, dunny hands. The word dunny, did not exist in this house until Bluey. Also wars have nearly been declared in this house, because of dunny hands. Thanks Bluey and Bingo. Cheers.

There is one slither of pleasure I do get from the show. It’s the fact I get to say, dude, a lot more often, especially to my wife; because she now calls me, bro, but only when UMC1 and UMC2 can hear. It’s their turn to roll their eyes at us.

Anyway, thanks for letting me rant. I appreciate it. There is a special blog for Wednesday, so please watch out for it. Look after yourselves, and I’ll see you then.

1 The Earth is not flat.

Happy Star Wars Day 2022

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Books, Children, Comics, Movies, Television

I want to talk about Star Wars. Why? Hmmm….maybe because it’s Star Wars Day! The 4th of May aka May the 4th be with you, can mean different things to different people; but ultimately, it’s a day to celebrate all things Star Wars.

Slowly over time, UMC1 and UMC2 have been becoming more interested in Star Wars. They recently saw A New Hope, last week for the first time, and they now want to see all of the films. Patience, my clever padawan and youngling, patience.

Oddly enough, they like Star Wars for different reasons. UMC1 seems to be all about the different vehicles, whether they fly or drive. He wants know to about their engines, passengers, speeds, and other capabilities. UMC2 on the other hand, is all about the droids. He is nearly 4 years old, but he is hard core about droids.

Because of Star Wars Day, UMC1 and UMC2 decided to take after their artistic mother, and make some Star Wars art projects.

Utinni the Jawa by UMC2
Utinni the Jawa by UMC2

UMC2 decided to make a Jawa, named Utinni. This is because he thinks they’re the worst aliens to purchase a droid from. He also believes that Jawas are extremely funny, but he doesn’t trust them. UMC2 constantly tells random people, to never buy droids from Jawas, because they’ll have bad motivators.

Gonky the power droid by UMC1

UMC1 chose to create a power droid, called Gonky. Apparently Gonky is some sort of super power droid, because he can run at extremely fast speeds, helping to fix broken spaceships, by supplying power to them. Oh, I forgot, he can also dance.

That’s it for today. From all of the staff at Some Geek Told Me, have a Happy Star Wars Day! May the 4th be with you. Always.

Thanks for reading, wash your hands, and I’ll see you next week.

Rethinking some Children’s Pop Culture Names

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Children, Comics, Literature, Movies, Television

I want to talk about children’s names. Why? This is because selecting a child’s name is supposed to be a meaningful process, but sometimes it feels like it’s one of the most difficult things a parent can do. I thought my wife and I would get divorced, over our inability to compromise on UMC2’s name!

Both UMC1 and UMC2 have pop cultures names, but they are not mainstream names. It would only take a geek to identify their names and the meanings behind them.

Now this blog is not an original idea. My wife saw something similar on social media, about non-geeks giving children extremely cool sounding names from pop culture, but the parents not understanding the background of the names.

I liked the idea so much, that I put it to a vote to all of the staff at Some Geek Told Me, and I received 100% support for this, to create my own list.

As a parent, you could name your child after anything; like a traditional name from your family, or your favourite singer or sportsperson. Maybe it’s a name you have heard from pop culture that you quite like, but have no understanding about where it’s from.

Could you imagine yourself as a parent saying, “Luke, please wash your hands,“ or “Where are your shoes, Shuri?” That works, right?

But, what about, “Iago, please wash you hands,” or “Where are your shoes, Cruella?” Does it work now? No, no it doesn’t. Not for a child, at least. Or an adult I guess.

Below you will find some truly awesome sounding names from across pop culture. The issue is that these names will be from characters that have not made the wisest of choices. This will be because of two reasons; 1.) Characters that have very wobbly moral compasses, so they have made some very shitty decisions, or 2.) Characters that have betrayed their values, beliefs, country, family or friends, for vengeance, money, or power.

My humble apologies if there are real people with these names out there. It’s not to cause offense to anybody, I’m just trying to get some parents to rethink their choices, because you’re upsetting the geek community. And that is dangerous….just kidding, no, it’s not. We’re harmless, apart from trivia nights, where we conquer all whom stand before us. Pity the fools.

Alright, let’s do it in alphabetically order, because I can’t think of a better way!

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Anakin Aoyama Atomica Baelish Barriss Belloq Bellwether Bertholdt Black Adam Briony Brutus Caliban Cersei Claudius Cruella Cypher Daenerys Davros Demona Don John Dooku Ephialtes Fredo Gambit Ghirra Gin Goneril Gothel Hamlet Hans Iago Judas Kaede Kisma Kylo Loki Lotso Macbeth Madhouse Maeglin Meleoron Melkor Miek Mondego Morgoth Namor Nedry O’Brien O’Dim Obadiah Othello Palpatine Pettigrew Pong Prosset Reiner Roose Saruman Sauron Scar Severus Sinestro Smeagol Squard Starscream Stinky Pete Tandro Terra The Master Tyrion Valeris Vegeta Vizsla Volemort Vulko Walder Waller Waternoose Zuko

If you’re thinking of selecting a name from this list for your future child, please reconsider. Seriously, please rethink it. Don’t be a hipster; just trust a geek when I say: Your child will not thank you for it, nor will the geek community. Stay away from these names, like the Bog of Eternal Stench!

Did you recognise any names on the list? Do you think I missed some out? Please let me know your thoughts.

That’s another blog down, and a whole week to think of a new topic to rant about. Thanks for reading, wash your hands, and I’ll see you next week!

Do Child Friendly Episodes of Doctor Who Exist?

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Television

I want to talk about Doctor Who, in particular, some child friendly episodes. Why? My wife and I are large fans of the Doctor, and of her enemies. We look forward to watching new episodes, so we can turn them into an event, with pop corn or chips. We love it.

So being the geeks that we are, we have various geek memorabilia, scattered around the house. A Batman lamp here; a Right Hand of Doom money box over there; a Silver Surfer framed print on one wall; with some Harry Potter Lego sitting on a bookshelf; and a life sized poster of a Dalek, outside UMC1 and UMC2’s bedroom.

The boys have no real idea about what a Dalek is, other than walking about with a washing basket over themselves, with a spatula and whisk sticking out; shouting, “I’m a Dalek! I’m a Dalek!”

We have shown them different videos of the theme song, which UMC2 calls, the Doctor Song. We have also shown them some funny scenes from the show, where the boys have thought were hilarious!

This of course has led to them campaigning to actually watch some entire episodes. Being the geeky parents that we are, we have said yes; on the condition that the episodes are child friendly.

Because of this, my wife and I have pooled our knowledge of the Doctor, and have created a list of some child friendly episodes of Doctor Who. We have tried to keep it to one incarnation of the Doctor as possible, because all of the Doctors deserve their own time in the starlight.

Image by sinepax from Pixabay

Flatline: Season 8, Episode 9

This episode has some truly hilarious scenes, that children would love. From what we can remember, some 2-D creatures from another dimension, have attacked the TARDIS’ outer shell, and caused it to shrink.

This results in some shenanigans with the 12th Doctor being trapped inside, and Clara carrying it around like a toy. It’s a hoot, and kids will love it.

Though to be honest, the 2-D creatures, named the Boneless, actually convert some people into 2-D, thus killing them, including a police officer. The Boneless then try and convert the Doctor, Clara and Rigsy into 2-D….so that could be a bit scary for the kids. Maybe we could pass on this one?

Partners in Crime: Season 4, Episode 1

Alright, the 10th Doctor and Donna are investigating a new weight-loss drug. The good news is that the drug reduces the user’s weight; the bad news is that the drug creates pieces of humanoid fat, that detaches itself from the user’s body.

The fat blobs are called Adipose, an alien race in their infant form. Children would love watching the Adipose walk around, with their cute little bodies, stubby legs, webbed hands, while causing trouble.

But wait a minute, there is a scene where a person is totally converted to a collection of Adipose; Matron Cofelia tries to kill 1 million British citizens, by the total conversation of Adipose; and also Matron Cofelia falls to her death, after being betrayed by the Adiposian First Family. Damn, the kids will need therapy over this, so we can’t show them this episode, either.

The Lodger: Season 5, Episode 11

Ok, let’s try 11 shall we? The 11th Doctor rents a room in a flat with Craig, and because of some time loops, he decides to investigate. This is because the Doctor suspects the cause of the time disturbances are being created by Craig’s upstairs neighbour.

Children will think it’s hilarious watching the Doctor play football for the first time, but also trying to act normal and blend into an urban British lifestyle; which he fails at. Just watching the Doctor trying not to be himself, is worth the ticket price for the kids.

By the end of the episode, a few people…have died. Oh, I forgot about that. An alien spaceship emergency holographic program, is killing people in order to find a pilot for the ship. Walking up a set of stairs in a strange house, could suddenly become nightmare fuel for children. Onto the next episode, please.

Rose: Season 1, Episode 1

I have it, the best child friendly episode is the first episode of the relaunch. The 9th Doctor meets Rose, a teenage shop assistant. Together, they uncover an Auton invasion of London. Autons look like mannequins, but they are much more than that.

The scenes of mannequins chasing people, the Doctor speed reading a book, Mickey getting kidnapped by a rubbish bin, are quite comical; however the Doctor being attacked by a plastic arm, would be great entertainment for the kids.

Hang on, the ending is brutal. The Autons open fire and kill dozens of people, while the Nestene Consciousness dies. Yet again, the day is saved, but with a large body count. I really don’t want to have to explain this to UMC1 and UMC2; next!

The Tomb of the Cybermen: Series 5, Episode 1

Let’s go back, way back to 1967 with the release of The Tomb of the Cybermen. The 2nd Doctor, along with Jamie and Victoria, travel to the planet Telos, where an expedition is taking place. It’s later revealed that the expedition has set out to find the Tomb of the Cybermen, that died out hundreds of years before.

This episode would be ideal for children, because of the futuristic music; the fact that the episode is black and white; but also that the Cybermen look hilarious and not scary at all.

Hang on, I’m forgetting something…oh, that’s it. The Cybermen murder some people, because that’s what they do. I’m starting to see a pattern here; a lot of people die in Doctor Who. Again, this is more nightmare fuel for children. Alright, I have one chance for success!

Kerblam!: Season 11, Episode 7

This is the last roll of the die for me, let’s go with the 13th Doctor; our current one. The Doctor gets a mysterious message from Kerblam, a massive galactic retailer. Once there, The Doctor, Yaz, Ryan, and Graham try and help whomever sent for help, as well as sort out the problems at Kerblam.

This episode would be great for kids. Firstly, a robot delivers a package to the Doctor, inside the TARDIS; people are playing with bubble wrap; and the robots themselves, the TeamMates and Kerblam Men, look outrageous!

The main theme for the episode…concerns a human workforce being replaced by an automated workforce. And that same workforce, is going to try and kill thousands of people with explosive bubble wrap.

Ok, I concede, I’m out. Doctor Who is very entertaining, but it can be quite intense, even for adults, let alone for children. I honestly can’t think of a single child friendly episode, that would be safe from people dying and violence. Though to be fair, I have not seen every single episode of Doctor Who; I’m not that cool.

Maybe there was a storyline or episode from the 1st Doctor, or the 4th, or even the 7th, that is actually child friendly. I can’t imagine the Master being featured in any of them, if they exist.

However, maybe you know of some child friendly episodes? If you do, please let me know, because I’m very curious. With that, I’m off to watch Superman & Lois. How good is Bizarro? Wait, that should be, how bad is Bizarro?

Stay safe, thanks for reading and I’ll see you next week.

Glory to Ukraine.

What I’ve learnt after watching 3,850 minutes of Dragon Ball

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Television

I want to talk about Dragon Ball. Why? The reason is because my awesome wife gave me the complete Dragon Ball Saga on DVD for Christmas. I had watched Dragon Ball Z a long time ago, but no other Dragon Ball series regularly since then.

My wife thought it would be a great idea for us to watch them together on Saturday nights, to witness the beginning of the whole story, but also to understand some of the events we had heard about.

So instead of hiring some baby sitters to watch UMC1 and UMC2, and hit some bars, nightclubs and parties on Saturday nights, we stayed at home and watched Dragon Ball. We are that cool.

Image by Anthony Gallon from Pixabay

22 discs, 3,850 minutes, and 153 episodes later, we have finished it. There are so many different things that we have learnt, but since we went into Dragon Ball without a huge amount of knowledge; other than what we have picked up over the last few decades, everything was revealing and entertaining.

Below are 25 of the most craziest, interesting, entertaining, and favourite moments from Dragon Ball, that we have discovered, in no particular order. Also I realise a lot of people would have already seen Dragon Ball, so this list will not be a surprise to some of you; I’m only a few decades late.

WARNING, there are spoilers, so read at your own caution.

1.) Krillin has always been loyal, short and bald.

2.) The craziest building in Dragon Ball, has to be Muscle Tower, the six-story fortress, belonging to General White, of the Red Ribbon Army. When Goku enters it, he encounters mazes, monsters and mayhem.

3.) The original reason Bulma was searching for the Dragon Balls, was for the Eternal Dragon to grant her a boyfriend. Yes, a boyfriend.

4.) The Red Ribbon Army soldiers were under the assumption, that the reason they were searching for the Dragon Balls, was for world domination. The real reason was for Commander Red, the leader of the Red Ribbon Army, to become taller.

5.) DynoCaps are some of the greatest inventions, we have ever seen. Why has someone not invented them for real?

6.) Mercenary Tao’s mode of transportation, is both extremely bad arse and bat-shit crazy.

7.) The origins of some crazy character names: the Red Ribbon Army’s generals were all named after colours; King Piccolo and his Demonic Clan were named after instruments; Goku’ grandfather Gohan, is named after rice; Krillin is named after chestnut; Bulma is named after girls’ gym shorts; and the list just goes on and on.

8.) Goku promised to marry Chi-Chi when they were children, by an innocent mistake; but he still went through with the wedding, when he was older.

9.) Master Roshi is a complicated character: on one hand, he is a gifted martial artist and wise mentor, who cares deeply about his students; however he is one of the worse perverts ever.

10.) The names of some of the finishing moves like Wolf Fang Fist, Four Witches Technique, Devilmite Beam, Solar Flare, Crane Style Assassin Strike, Kamehameha, Explosive Demon Wave, were truly epic.

11.) Krillin’s technique to defeat See-Through, the Invisible Man, was very different. Wow, Bulma will never forgive him for it.

12.) I didn’t know it was possible for anybody to be squeamish, when watching a cartoon, but my wife could not stand the sight and sounds of King Piccolo, coughing up his eggs.

13.) Fortuneteller Baba and Master Roshi were siblings, and their interactions were priceless.

14.) We got to see how the origin of Goku’s power pole and the Flying Nimbus. Roshi would never be worthy of riding the Flying Nimbus again!

15.) At no point, was the location of Goku’s parents, the subject of conversation; by anybody.

16.) My wife and I would start trying to guess the number of episodes a particular fight or mission would last.

17.) The theme song actually tells you, exactly what happens in the show.

18.) The number of episodes the Ox-King’s castle was being destroyed by Fire Mountain’s lava; while the Ox-King was still trapped inside, was truly insane.

19.) The final episodes with the Furnace of Eight Divisions was bonkers, because of what Goku had to do, but also the fact the Furnace actually existed in the first place.

20.) The Devil’s Toilet was the most absurd, yet funniest name for a building in Dragon Ball.

21.) The mystery of Goku’s transformation by the full moon, is never truly resolved.

22.) Launch is very much like Bruce Banner; sometimes the Dragon Team needed Nice Launch, other times, they needed Violent Launch.

23.) The first wish granted by the Eternal Dragon in Dragon Ball, was for Oolong. He wished for a comfortable pair of underwear.

24.) Watching Yajirobe and Korin together was hilarious, because even though Yajirobe was on the support team, he was still a jerk.

25.) The way Goku would determine if someone was a boy or a girl, had us in disbelief and laughter.

There are a lot more things I would like to discuss, but I feel 25 observations of Dragon Ball is enough. We loved watching it; even every single recap of the previous episode. The show is a product of it’s era, but it was outstanding.

From the fights scenes, trash talking, powering up scenes, Roshi and his nose bleeds, Goku being hungry, and Emperor Pilaf and his gang losing yet again, Dragon Ball is a gem; but I would not have it any other way.

Thanks for reading and see you in a few days!

One Punch man: A guilty pleasure

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Comics, Television

I want to talk about One Punch Man. Why? Because I’ve fallen in love with the series and not ashamed to admit it. It’s become a guilty pleasure of mine now, for better or worse. For those people out there that have never heard of One Punch Man; 1.) I’m sorry to hear that, and 2.) I’ll explain what it’s all about.

The story of One Punch Man started off as a webcomic, then transitioned to magna (print) anime (television) video games and a live action movie, which is being developed. One Punch Man was created by ONE1 and Yusuke Murata; while the manga has sold over 30 million copies and has been translated into several different languages.

Image by Some Geek Told Me

So, who or what exactly is One Punch Man? One Punch Man follows the story of a man named Saitama, that has trained and developed his body to a point that he has become so absurdly strong, that he can defeat any opponent with only one punch. He has also gained super speed and invulnerability through his training.

For his training, Saitama spent three years completing the same daily fitness workout: 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, a 10 km run, as well eating healthy food, and not using the air conditioner or heater to reinforce his mental toughness. This training regime transformed Saitama into quite possibly, the strongest person in the world, but at the cost of his hair falling out, and slowly being disconnected from emotions.

There are many more facets about Saitama and his world, that I could explain to you, but I feel a lot of that can be found on other websites. Because of this, I want to talk about why I actually like this series, whether it’s the manga or anime.

I have the first 21 volumes of the manga, while the 22nd and 23rd volumes are still on pre-order for me. I have also watched both seasons of the anime, so I can come at this from both mediums. It’s just so much fun and entertaining! To me it’s just a guilty pleasure, it’s just so much fun.

I love how Saitama has deep and philosophical questions about himself, his role as a hero, as well as his place in the world. I find this very refreshing to see this coming from a protagonist, because Saitama is actually a complex character. He’s bored and he’s trying to find some adventure and bring meaning to his life. I think that’s awesome, I really do.

Another thing I love about the series; regardless if we talking about the manga or anime, is the fact that there are strong background characters. I mean, they really are amazing. There could be many spinoffs from these characters. I mean, I would love to have a backstory for Speed-o’-Sound Sonic; or for some of the Class S heroes, especially Pig God.

I also love the ranking system for the heroes, which I feel is very original and quite innovating, because it shows you superheroes from a completely different prospective and in my humble opinion; it works, it really works.

I don’t know if the ranking system could have been pulled off in American comics, because it would possibly come off as nonsensical. However, I think this is one of the advantages manga has over American and Western comics.

Sorry, I just love this series. Whenever I get a new volume, I try to make it a priority and read it within the first week; but usually, I go back and read the previous volume beforehand. This is because, it could have been four-eight months since I read the series, so it’s better to refresh myself with the story again.

I love how with the Class S heroes, everyone is quite different and they all have various motivations; and since I’ve already mentioned him, take Pig God for example. From what I have read and seen about him, he defeats his villains by eating them; that’s completely horrifying and hilarious at the same time.

Also there’s Puri-Puri Prisoner; he’s an amazing character because of his Angel Style fighting move, which can only be performed naked and the fact that he has a harem of men. He likes being in prison, because he’s closer to his “honies”. He is wickedly funny.

This series is so much fun, it’s rare for me to be reading something that makes me laugh so much. The series is so hilarious and it works, because Saitama is not a serious character, but Genos is. I feel the fact that these two have become heroes for different reasons, actually works in their favour, when working together. They are actually learning from each other.

There have been some magnificent scenes in the series, but I think one of best ones, is the practice fight between Saitama and Genos, especially in the anime. Reading it in the manga was brilliant, but to see it translated into anime, was simply just awe inspiring; it seriously was.

It was one of the coolest fight scenes I have ever witnessed; at one point Genos was fighting Saitama’s after images, and then displaying just how unbelievably and ridiculously overpowered Saitama is, his non-connecting thrown punch caused mountains to be smashed. It’s absurd and awesome at the same time. I can’t say enough about this series, I love it, I really really love it.

I feel that One Punch Man; just like Invincible, has added something to the superhero genre. The dialogue is funny, the art is exquisite and you can’t but help root for Saitama; not just to win, but because you are watching his internal growth.

One Punch Man is more than a comical or superhero spoof, it’s intelligent and it’s also very hilarious. This could be very naive of me to say, but I feel this series can make a lot of people happy.

And isn’t that the reason for storytelling; to make people think about things and themselves, but also to be entertained and One Punch Man does this. It doesn’t matter how long this series exists, I’m in for the long haul.

I can’t forget to mention about everybody’s fighting styles. Some of these are the best sounding names, this side of the Dragon Ball Saga. Lion Slash Meteor Shower, Tank Top Tackle, Void Shaking Tiger Fist, Hell Storm, and Collapsing Star Roaring Cannon, are just some of the epic fighting styles.

I think when it comes to One Punch Man, Saitama has become one of the new faces of superheroes in the 21st century; along with Class S, Class A, Class B, Class C heroes, and the monsters too.

I also think it would be a mistake for me to not discuss Mumen Rider. I think he is Class C, Rank 1 and to me, I think he is one of the most outstanding characters in the series.

This is because he has no powers; he is a rider for justice! When he turns up for a fight, he’s got his bicycle helmet, goggles and his bike, and that’s it. He get his arse kicked very single time, but that’s not what I like about him.

The reason is that they’ve created a character, that whenever there is someone that needs help, or if there is a crisis, Mumen Rider is usually the first person to put his hand up or the first person to turn up. Even though he is going to lose, he still turns up, which is actually extremely heroic.

One Punch Man is a series I only discovered 3 years ago, but it’s now become one of the greatest titles in my reading diet. If you have already read or seen One Punch Man, let me know. If you haven’t, do yourself a favour and correct that mistake.

Thanks for reading and I’ll see you soon.

1 ONE originally created the webcomic, then Murata came on board as the artist for the manga.

My dog writes my blog: Animated dogs Edition

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Television

Hello, my name is Indy and I’m a 9 year old good dog. Mum says I’m actually a bichon cross, but I’m pretty sure I’m a good dog too. My Dad has been working on this blog, for hundreds of years and needs a break, so he asked me to write this week’s one. He is tired and needs a nap. No fair, I like naps too!

He said I could write about anything, apart from Sour Cream and Chives, but I don’t listen to modern music. I think the things that he writes about are boring, so I wanted to talk about some of my favourite topics instead, like running, rolling on smelly stuff at the beach and licking sweaty feet. My Dad said the people that subscribe to this blog, are not ready for these amazing topics….yet!

After he said no to my choices, I asked my Mum what I should choose. She is nice and smarter than Dad, so I listen to her more. She suggested I should talk about my favourite animated dogs, so I will.

This is me watching, one of the many examples of Snowy saving Tintin.

The first dog I want to talk about is my doppelganger, Snowy. People are always confusing me with Snowy, even though I am faster than him and more handsome. We are both small and white and dogs, but we are not the same. He is a Wire Fox Terrier, while I am a good dog, Bichon Frise crossed with speed and awesomeness. Mum says I’m actually Bichon, Maltese, Fox Terrier so I guess we are more alike than I thought!

Snowy is a very good dog like me, but he has a human sidekick called Tintin. I am very confused about Snowy’s tv show, because it is named after the human, Tintin. I have watched this show on the screen and Snowy is always saving Tintin and the day.

Snowy is great. He jumps, barks, runs very fast and always solves the case, while Tintin is always trying to catch up to Snowy, because he is slow. Why would anybody name a show after a human that relies on a dog to do all the work?

The answer is a cat. I don’t like cats much. Cats are always trying to hassle me, like our neighour’s white cat that sits on the fence and stares at me through my window. I yell at the cat and say “How dare you look at my house, cat!”, but my Mum and Dad just think I’m crying. I wish my Mum and Dad were as smart as me, so they would understand the dangers of cats.

Cats must have named the tv show after Tintin, instead of Snowy, because they are jealous of how great Snowy is, because he is such a good dog.

Another animated dog I like is Scooby-Doo. For a start Scooby’s tv show is named after him, like it should be. It’s an improvement from poor Snowy. Maybe it should be called The Snowy Show? Or maybe Snowy could leave that show and go solve crimes with Scooby, because Scooby is smarter than Tintin.

Anyway, Scooby has this gang of humans that tags along with him to solve mystery crimes. Without Scooby’s help, the gang would never solve anything, Scooby carries the entire show. Scooby has a human friend named Shaggy, that is so much better than Tintin, because Shaggy can talk to Scooby and understand him. Shaggy is very clever, for a human.

I like Scooby because he is smart, funny, brave and gets to run a lot, especially in hallways. I like running in hallways too. Scooby should go to the beach more often though, because even though running in houses is fun, it’s not very fun always running in a dark, scary house. I don’t like the dark, because there could be cats inside my house and I wouldn’t see them.

The BEST part is that Scooby has a snack named after him! That’s how you know he is famous, where are Indy snacks though? Maybe if Dad’s blog was famous I could get a snack deal?! If you could buy Indy Snacks at the food shop, I would pester my Mum and Dad to buy all of them. It’s great that Scooby has snacks, but he does silly things for Scooby Snacks. When the gang says “Come in this spooky house and we will give you a Scooby snack”, sometimes he should say no and go for a nap in the green van (I would!). That way they will remember who the star of the show is!

Ooh, another great dog is Snoopy. I like Snoopy, but I suspect he might actually be a bad dog. (I feel like a meanie for saying that.) Snoopy has an OUTSIDE dog house. My dog house is inside, because I’m a good dog. I think Snoopy may have been a bad dog and his humans won’t let him sleep inside. I wonder what he did? Maybe he ate something he was told not to eat or maybe his humans were jealous of how great he is. I do not know.

I like to go in my INSIDE dog house after a hard hour’s worth of work, walking around the house and staring through the window. In the movies, Snoopy’s dog house can fly which I’ll admit, is an improvement on mine; but mine is still better!

Snoopy is also great, because he has a Christmas song named after him. I wish I had a Christmas song named after me. This is how it would go, you know… if I had a song:

“Indy the magnificent, see him saving Christmas, HOORAY,
The fancy tree and wrapped boxes are outside, FOUL PLAY!
The wet stuff falls down from the sky, DISMAY!
Indy is brave and rescues everything, before everything is wet and soggy, MAKE WAY!”

See what I did there? What a great song, because the last words all rhyme and they are in shouty capitals, so you have to shout them!

Mum said my Christmas song should be a warning tale about not eating lollies from under the Christmas tree and ending up at the vets for a $300 dog enema. But I don’t know what she is talking about.

Side note, I’m pretty sure that the Red Baron is a cat. But Dad said this is not a blog about cat conspiracy theories, so I’ll let you do your own research if you are interested.

Speaking of internet research, when I tried to find out more information about this next dog, there wasn’t much to be found (Mum helped because I don’t know what a search engine is and my paws are good at many things, but turning fiddly book pages is not one one of them!). This leads me to believe his owner takes credit for all his exploits; it’s Krypto the super dog!

Krypto has everything a perfect superhero could want. Heaps of awesome powers like flight and heat vision. He can even smell and hear better than Superman! He has an awesome costume and even his own secret identity, “Skip”.

In the Krypto the super dog cartoon, he teams up with Streaky the Supercat, which quite frankly I’m not sure I can forgive him for, however this series also features Ace the Bat-hound, so it’s not all bad! We also learned that Krypto will feature in the upcoming animated feature DC’s League of Super-Pets, voiced by Dwayne Johnson. I’m not sure who that is, but Mum sounded excited.

Last, but not least, the smartest, happiest, good dog on my list…. it’s Odie!
Poor Odie lives with a fat horrible cat, who we will not name here. Once again, the poor deprived dog is not the title character. The cat in Odie’s home is quite frankly abusive and his owner is negligent by allowing the cat to be so mean to Odie.

Odie doesn’t care though. he takes all this in his stride and is always loving, positive and happy like all good dogs should be. He is the epitome of being the better man… I mean dog!

In conclusion, dogs are superior to cats, whether they are real dogs and animated ones. People should pick a side, you are either a cat person/awful human or you are a dog person/perfect person; stop sitting on the fence like a cat!!! There should also be more dog related media, as this would make the world a better place.

Six Star Wars characters that no longer exist

On By somegeektoldme@gmail.comIn Books, Comics, Movies, Television

I want to talk about some Star Wars characters. Why? Because I find it fascinating that these characters no longer exist; if they ever really existed at all. Now you can raise your hand and confess to be a fan of Star Wars movies and that’s fine; so am I. However, what I’m going to be talking about are characters from the Star Wars Expanded Universe.1

Since Star Wars Episode VI: The Return of the Jedi was released in 1983, there have been many stories continuing the adventures of Luke, Leia, Han and the rest of the gang. This has been through different media like novels, comic books, and video games; created and released by different companies, but all under the Lucasfilm licensing umbrella.

There have been decades of stories within the Star Wars universe, after the Return of the Jedi. Seriously, mountains of novels, comic books and video games; all expanding the mythos of Star Wars. Some highlights in the comics for me were Dark Empire, Dark Empire II, Empire’s End, Crimson Empire and Legacy.

There were also massive storylines within the novels of The New Jedi Order, Legacy of the Force and Fate of the Jedi, as well as introducing readers to survivors of the Great Jedi Purge, Grand Admiral Thrawn and the Yuuzhan Vong.

This changed in 2012, when Disney purchased Lucasfilm; which meant Disney owned Star Wars; which meant Disney had the ability to create new content, as well as erase content; for good or for ill.

Image by Andrew Martin from Pixabay

The Star Wars Expanded Universe was about to change in a major way, because the way I understand it, there are two Star Wars universes now: Star Wars Canon and Star Wars Legends. The Star Wars Canon universe relates to all of the Star Wars movies (Episodes I-VI), but also the original content that Disney was creating, in the media of novels, comic books, video games and movies (Episodes VII-IX, plus Rogue One, Solo: A Star Wars Story) and television shows.

Star Wars Legends relates to the original content of novels, comic books and video games, that were published or released before the acquisition of Lucasfilm by Disney. Basically, what I’m trying very badly to say is that when Disney purchased Star Wars, they decided to start with a clean slate after Episode IV, by ignoring or not recognising previous storylines and characters, thus giving birth to Star Wars Canon (Disney) and Star Wars Legends (Not Disney).

Hopefully that makes sense. The idea about this blog post in particular, is to draw attention to the fact that I love Star Wars far too much; but also to address the point that some important characters in Star Wars Legends, no longer exist in Star Wars Canon. Namely six of them, though to be fair, there are many, many more.

These six Star Wars Legends characters, at least to me; are extremely important and are greatly missed in Disney’s new version of Star Wars. So, let’s crack on and see who makes the list! The six characters can be divided into two families: The Solos and the Skywalkers, so three from each family. I’ll try and keep these summaries short and sweet, though there are no guarantees.

The Solos:

Jaina Solo Fel

Jaina is the daughter of Han and Leia Organa Solo, twin sister to Jacen and older sister to Anakin. Because of her family’s connection to the Force, she was revealed to be Force-sensitive. Jaina was eventually sent to the Jedi Academy on Yavin IV, to be trained by her uncle, Jedi Master Luke Skywalker.

Over the years, Jaina became a formidable pilot and Jedi, taking the title of Sword of the Jedi, at her knighting ceremony, from her Uncle Luke. She fought in the Yuuzhan Vong War and also in the Second Galactic Civil War. It was during this time, that her twin brother Jacen, fell to the Dark Side and became Darth Caedus.

After committing some terrible crimes and trying to take over the galaxy, Darth Caedus was killed by Jaina in a lightsabre duel. Later on, Jaina married Jagged Fel, fought against a new Sith threat and Abeloth, fought against extremism within the New Republic and rose to the rank of Jedi Master.

Jaina Solo Fel

Image via Hero and Villains Wiki

So why is Jaina on this list? Jaina is what the epitome of what a good Jedi should be. She was tempted by the Dark Side, but she never fell to it; and she had the courage to stand up to her twin brother, when he fell to the Dark Side.

In a stretch, Rey from the sequel trilogy, could be described as Jaina; but like I said, it’s a stretch. For me, Jaina always strode to uphold the ideals of the Jedi, as well trying to put other people’s needs, before her own. Jaina also never wanted to split her allegiances between the Jedi Order and her love interest in Jagged Fel, though in time, she found a way to balance these emotions.

Jaina was an arse-kicker and a strong female character in the Star Wars mythos, so she remains greatly missed in the new Canon universe.

Jacen Solo

Jacen is the eldest son of Han and Leia Organa Solo, twin brother to Jaina and older brother to Anakin. Just like Jaina, he was Force-sensitive and sent to train with his Uncle Luke, at the Jedi Academy on Yavin IV.

Jacen became a Jedi knight and fought in the Yuuzhan Vong War, but was captured and tortured. During this time, he began to slip closer to the Dark Side, but returned to the Light Side. He escaped and helped bring about the fall of the Yuuzhan Vong Empire.

After this, Jacen spent some time traveling, but received a vision about a dark figure ruling the galaxy. Jacen took this threat seriously and after learning about his young daughter, Allana, he turned to the Dark Side to fulfil his destiny, as the apprentice to Lumiya, the Dark Lady of the Sith. It was here had became Darth Caedus.

As Darth Caedus, he murdered his Aunt Mara, tortured his cousin and committed numerous other crimes. In the end, Jacen was killed by Jaina, in a lightsabre duel, in order to save the galaxy.

Jacen Solo

Image via The Star Wars Legends Wiki

There are many similarities between Jacen and Kylo Ren, and also with Anakin Skywalker. Like Anakin, Jacen tried to prevent something from happening, but only made it worse; and like Kylo Ren, Jacen was a child of Leia and Han. It’s interesting to point out, that all three characters are fallen heroes, but they all redeemed themselves before dying.

Witnessing Jacen falling to the Dark Side and becoming Darth Caedus, was like watching a car crash in slow motion, it was painful and sorrowful to see him transform and commit acts of evil. Though, I think that was the quality of the character; you had read about his birth and his childhood, so you felt some connection to him, because of the amount of time, you had spent with him.

Then to read about him becoming Darth Caedus, was a kick in the stomach; but I think that was the point. To care about a fictional character enough, that you hoped he could redeem himself in the next story. Jacen was an amazing character, because he reminded us, even heroes can lose their way; though they always find their way back.

Anakin Solo

Because of the way you are brought up, you are taught principles by your family. Those principles can turn into action, which in turn can have consequences. There is no greater example of this, than Anakin Solo. As well as you have already unraveled, Anakin Solo is the youngest child of Han and Leia Organa Solo and younger brother to Jaina and Jacen.

Because he was named after his paternal grandfather2, Anakin had a lot to live up to. Just like his siblings, he was revealed to be Force-sensitive and sent to the Jedi Academy with Uncle Luke. Anakin often feared he would fall to the Dark Side, just like his name sake.

When the Yuuzhan Vong invaded the galaxy, Chewbacca sacrificed his life to save Anakin. This created tension between Anakin and his father, because Han blamed Anakin for Chewbacca’s death, which they later resolved; but it planted the seed of Anakin trying to live up to Chewbacca’s sacrifice.

Since Anakin was a fierce Jedi knight and a great leader, he was involved in several missions against the Yuuzhan Vong. Among other factors, the Yuuzhan Vong then started targeting Jedi for attacks.

During the war, the Yuuzhan Vong started using creatures called Voxyn, which could track Jedi down through the Force. Jedi were being assassinated across the galaxy, which led Anakin to lead a mission to Myrkr, kill the Voxyn Queen.

During the mission, Anakin was badly wounded and fought off a group of Yuuzhan Vong, while the rest of his team escaped. He killed several Yuuzhan Vong, but ultimately, he was killed.

Anakin Solo

Image via Star Wars Wookieepedia

I think Anakin’s death was always destined, but it still was hard to accept, because just like his siblings, you had watched him grow up. Not having Anakin in the new Canon universe, some what lessens it, because of the huge, but short role he played as a hero. This however is counter balanced by his legacy and inspiring others to follow in his footsteps.

Jaina, Jacen and Anakin can not exist in the new Canon Star Wars universe, because in that version, Leia and Han only had one child: Ben Solo; and not three.

The Skywalkers:

Mara Jade Skywalker

Ok, we are half way there! The next entry is the first Skywalker on the list. Her name is Mara Jade Skywalker and she was Luke Skywalker’s wife and also mother to Ben Skywalker. Mara is an interesting character, since she has not always aligned herself with the Light Side of the Force, since she was Force-sensitive.

During the First Galactic Civil War, Mara worked as the Emperor’s Hand, which was a special operative that basically worked off the books and answered directly to the Emperor. Just before his death, Palpatine ordered Mara to kill Luke Skywalker, but instead she left.

Mara became a smuggler and eventually, she crossed paths with Luke. Over time and working together on different missions; as well as training at the Jedi Academy, they fell in love and were married. Mara was heavily involved in the Yuuzhan Vong War, after immersing herself within the Jedi Order.

She later became a mother to Ben, achieved the rank of Jedi Master and took on Jaina Solo as her apprentice. After the Yuuzhan Vong War ended, Mara continued to serve the galaxy, facing new threats. Mara also served in the Second Galactic Civil War and then hunting down Lumiya, the Dark Lady of the Sith.

When Mara discovered her nephew, Jacen had become Darth Caedus, she saw him not just as a threat to her family, but the entire galaxy. Because of this, she went and confronted him, where she was killed.

Mara Jade Skywalker

Image via Pinterest

Mara was extremely loyal to her husband, son, the Jedi Order and the galaxy. She was such a bad arse, that because of her Imperial combat and weapons training, she had a set of skills other Jedi, simply did not have.

She was simply an outstanding character, especially for her redemption arc; which detailed her journey from the Dark Side to the Light. Her life was one of the highlights of the Legends universe and she is still greatly missed among fans.

Ben Skywalker

So we have looked at Luke’s wife, now let’s look at his son, Ben. He is obviously Luke and Mara Jade Skywalker’s son and cousin to Jaina, Jacen and Anakin. Also, if you haven’t figured it out yet, Ben is named after Obi-Wan (Ben) Kenobi, Luke’s first Jedi Master.

Growing up as a Skywalker, was not easy; especially when your father was the famous Jedi Master Luke Skywalker. Ben was born during the Yuuzhan Vong War and because his parents were fighting them, he spent a large amount of time with his Aunty Leia and Uncle Han.

Because he was a Skywalker, he was Force-sensitive, but he closed himself off to the Force during the conflict. When he was studying under his cousin Jacen, he started to learn how to open himself up to the Force.

As time went by, Ben grew into a very capable Jedi knight and had to deal with Jacen’s transformation to Darth Caedus, as well as his mother’s murder. Year later, Luke was exiled from Coruscant, because he failed to prevent Darth Caedus from rising. Because of this, Luke and Ben started to investigate why Jacen turned to the Dark Side, in addition to fight against a backlash of public anger at the Jedi.

Along the way, Ben discovered a long lost tribe of the Sith, hidden away for centuries; fight a powerful Force-powered creature called Abeloth; and fell in love with Vestara Khai, a Sith apprentice 

Ben Skywalker

Image via Star Wars Wookieepedia

In the new Canon universe, we have Ben Solo; although he is more based on Jacen, than Ben Skywalker. I miss Ben, because it was fascinating to read about Ben’s journey and connection with the Force. To me, he was very observant, compassionate, loyal, intelligent and helped to build bridges with people and relationships. He even taught his parents things that were not Force related. He was a very relatable and positive character.

Cade Skywalker

Cade Skywalker is an unique entry on this list. To the best of my ability, I believe he is the only one whose first appearance was in a comic book, Star Wars: Legacy and not a novel. Star Wars: Legacy was set 137 years after the Battle of Yavin aka 137 ABY, so this allowed the creators a lot more room to build new worlds and characters.

Cade is Ben Skywalker’s grandson, though he would be visited/lectured by his great-grandfather, Luke Skywalker as a Force-spirit. Cade was raised in the Jedi Order, but one day, the order was attacked by the newly forged One Sith; which was a new Sith Order. Cade’s father, Kol was killed in the attack, so Cade turned his back on the Jedi. Eventually he became a bounty hunter and pirate with his crew, on his ship the Mynock.

The galaxy was ruled by the Sith Lord, Darth Krayt and because of various connected storylines, Cade is somewhat put on a collision course with him and the rest of the other Sith lords. There is a lot more to Cade’s story and his misadventures with Legacy, but I really want to focus on Cade himself.

Cade’s an unique character, because he can walk dangerous close to the Dark Side, but has no desire or intention to ever crave its power. He is an extremely power Force user, displaying abilities that are truly amazing and surreal.

Cade had left the Jedi and Sith behind in his old life and really didn’t want to be dragged into galactic politics; he just wanted the free and easy life. But, as some of the characters on this list discovered, that if you have the ability to fight for the powerless, to stand against evil, then it’s something you have to do, even it’s at the bottom of your list. That’s Cade.

Cade Skywalker

Image via Comicvine and Dark Horse Comics

I really enjoyed this era of Star Wars, because the Empire has began benevolent; the One Sith Order were the most dangerous and remarkable group of Sith, you had ever seen; Imperial knights had white lightsabres; and Cade, the heir to the Skywalker name, walked the path between the Light and Dark Sides of the Force.

Although one thing was certain, you would find it difficult to locate anybody that hated the Sith more than Cade Skywalker.

The reasons Mara Jade, Ben and Cade, no longer exist in the new Canon universe, is because Luke never married; so he never met Mara, so Ben was never born; thus Cade was never born.

Whether you are a fan of Legends or the new Canon universe; or maybe both of them, Jaina, Jacen, Anakin, Mara Jade, Ben and Cade are beloved characters that sadly, we will never get to read any new adventures about them.3

The great thing is, if you miss them enough, you can just visit the book shelf or comic book collection to see them again. They will be waiting for you like old friends, in a galaxy far, far away.

May the Force be with you and I’ll see you next week!

1 My youngest son is named after a Jedi, so I love the Star Wars Expanded Universe.

2 You know who!

3 Though to be fair, three of them were dead.