by admin | Jul 22, 2025 | TV & Beyond Articles
Prime Video’s hugely popular “Reacher” — which broke a ratings record with its third season — is a big part of why the show has been so successful, with fans finally getting an on-screen version of the titular hero who fully represents the character from Lee Child’s equally popular book series. But it took Ritchson some time to find the role that would make him a major star.
The actor took the long road to landing what has proved to be his breakthrough role. In fact, he’s been toiling away on both the big and small screens since the early 2000s, beginning with his role as Arthur Curry/Aquaman on “Smallville” back in 2006 — though his real TV debut came a few years prior when he auditioned for “American Idol,” but the less said about that the better. After “Smallville,” Ritchson continued to work consistently. Some of his more notable roles include Gloss in the “Hunger Games” films and Hank Hall/Hawk in DC’s “Titans.” Ritchson starred in an overlooked MMA movie, which was recently made available on Prime Video, he played Raphael in 2014’s “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” and its sequel, 2016’s “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows,” and he starred as Thad Castle in Spike TV’s sitcom “Blue Mountain State.”
All of these projects were successful in their own ways, though none of them propelled Ritchson to “Reacher”-level fame. But prior to becoming the major star he is today, the actor also appeared in an array of lesser-known projects, including a sci-fi series that deserved to be more well-known than it ultimately was.
Alan Ritchson’s Grindhouse-inspired dystopian sci-fi action show was insane
Syfy
Back in 2017, just before Alan Ritchson first appeared as Hank Hall in “Titans” (before leaving after season 3), the actor landed a starring role in SyFy’s “Blood Drive.” The show was set in a dystopian version of 1999 wherein a cataclysmic event known as the “Great Fracking Quakes” physically split the United States into two. Separated by an enormous ravine known as “the Scar,” the country is in the process of being taken over by a corporation called Heart Enterprises, which uses mysterious discoveries from the Scar to allow them to control every aspect of the new U.S. society.
Ritchson stars as good guy LA police officer Arthur Bailey, who investigates an underground race called the Blood Drive. This death race across America involves cars that run on human blood (which should give you a good idea of the show’s tone), and after Bailey’s investigation is discovered by the master of ceremonies, Julian Slink (Colin Cunningham), he’s forced to team up with dangerous temptress Grace D’Argento (Christina Ochoa) to take part in the race. The whole show was made in a 1970s grindhouse style, emulating the look of low-budget exploitation and splatter movies, making for a unique but short-lived series that didn’t necessarily get the response it deserved.
There were 13 episodes of “Blood Drive” for its first season, but the show was cancelled fairly early on in its run, according to series creator James Roland, who announced the cancellation himself the same night the finale aired. According to Deadline, the show had a “promising start” with 834,000 viewers for its premiere episode, but the numbers quickly dropped, with the show averaging 300,000-400.000 viewers for most episodes. That said, given the positive critical response and the fact that fans of the show seemed to really enjoy it, had it been given more of a chance to grow an audience, it might have become a popular cult show.
Blood Drive could have been a cult hit
Syfy
“Blood Drive” gave us one of Alan Ritchson’s best performances, with the actor fully embracing the wildness of the series. What’s more, critics were clearly quite taken with the end result. “Blood Drive” has a 76% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes based on 21 reviews, with Charles Bramesco of Rolling Stone finding the “cinema du carsploitation fun” quite appealing. The Hollywood Reporter’s Daniel Fienberg, meanwhile, saw a lot of value in “a show that just aspires to be a bloody, leering, disreputable hoot and largely succeeds.”
Not everyone was impressed, however, with Sophie Gilbert of The Atlantic opining that the series “isn’t a television show so much as a mashup of everything that’s ever offended the Parents Television Council.” Still, on the whole, you can’t say it was the critical reception that killed “Blood Drive.” Neither can you say that fans of the show weren’t passionate enough. Judging by the Reddit comments that came in the wake of its cancellation, “Blood Drive” was a hit with the viewers who did manage to catch it, with one fan calling the series “incredibly fun, ridiculous, and the closest thing to a Mad Max-type show.” Others lamented how SyFy seemed a tad too cancel-happy, with one Redditor writing, “Syfy should really be called ‘Cancelfy’ because that’s all they do.” Elsewhere on Reddit, fans of “Blood Drive” accepted that the ratings were low but talked up the show overall, with one user calling it a “fun series through and through” and praising the “impeccable art direction to mask its low budget trappings.” They added, “For a low-budget SyFy production, it was stylish in a way stuff like ‘Dark Matter’ and ‘Killjoys’ didn’t have the imagination to pull off.”
With all this in mind, it really does seem as though, given a little more time, “Blood Drive” would have surely gained a certain cult status and given Alan Ritchson one less series that only lasted one season on his résumé. That said, Ritchson isn’t far from the only talented actor to star in a series that lasted just one season, and the short lifespan of “Blood Drive” certainly doesn’t speak to his performance of the show’s quality. TV history is full of shows that lasted for just one run of episodes, including the recent example of “The Residence,” which, by all accounts, was a success but was cancelled by Netflix after just one season.
by admin | Jul 22, 2025 | TV & Beyond Articles
“Slither,” a horror comedy that wound up a cult classic, showcased a distinctive vision we don’t see much anymore. In that film, his passion for horror, goofy characters, and dark humor was dripping from every scene. He was well-versed in the genre and knew how to craft amusing, relatable, and vulnerable characters we were inclined to root for — it’s why “GOTG” became instantly lovable in the first place. Yet instead of going down the rough and bumpy path of horrors, he chose another direction.
That brings us to his second feature, “Super,” a criminally underrated pseudo-superhero flick in which Gunn has taken his weirdo approach and morbid sense of humor even further than before.
Super was Gunn’s experiment (and eventually blueprint) for developing a likable misfit
IFC Midnight
“Super’s” protagonist, Frank Darbo (Rainn Wilson channelling his inner lunatic that made him a star in “The Office”), was the blueprint of the reject/loser-type protagonist that Gunn done to perfection four years later in “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 1.” It was somewhat of an experiment for the writer-director to see how far he could take a resigned, slightly delusional, and loony character, and turn him into a hero (in an R-rated movie nevertheless that granted him a much-needed creative freedom). Therefore, Frank is rough and unbalanced at times, but it’s also strangely grounded and real because of his ordinariness.
When we first meet him, he’s the antithesis of cool — boring, wimpy, and unattractive. His pretty wife, Sarah (Liv Tyler), is with him out of gratitude. Frank helped her get clean from her drug addiction, so she married him. But whatever it was that made Sarah fall for him had worn off a long time ago. Their marriage no longer functions. So it’s hardly a surprise that Kevin Bacon’s macho drug dealer and strip club owner swoops in to snatch her away from him in an instant. At first, Frank feels utterly depressed and powerless against this douchebag, but for once in his sorry-ass life, he finds the courage to stand up to the bully and defend what’s his. Well, only after he’s touched by the finger of God and meets the Holy Avenger (Nathan Fillion) (the fictional character of a bizarrely religious network show who tells him to fight crime) in a disturbing vision. After all, we all need some divine purpose to fight on.
Of course, Frank is a weirdo. So his way to become a superhero, catch criminals, and take his girl back is unusual. He goes to the local comic book store for inspiration — where he also finds his eventual sidekick, the nerdy store clerk, Libby (Elliot Page) — and comes up with his un-caped crusader persona, The Crimson Bolt. Lacking any supernatural ability, muscle, or wit, he has to deal with the bad guys in his own way. So he puts on a poor-man’s Daredevil costume, grabs a pipe wrench, and develops the catchphrase, “Shut up, crime!” With that, he’s ready to dive in and become a savior — until reality kicks him in the nuts.
The world wasn’t ready for the Crimson Bolt
IFC Midnight
Although “Super” was a critical and commercial failure at the time of its release, it served as the movie that helped Gunn find his voice. In retrospect, he basically extended upon the same tone that made “Slither” a blast. While that film celebrated and paid homage to specific horror tropes, “Super” aimed to forge its own path by turning superhero clichés on their heads. Admirably, it was also shot on a significantly lower budget ($2.5 million as opposed to “Slither’s” $15 million), which forced Gunn to come up with cheaper yet inventive visuals and narrative gimmicks that greatly complemented the story’s primary spirit.
However, the fact that it came out right after Matthew Vaughn’s beloved and thematically similar “Kick-Ass” didn’t help. In terms of scale and action, Gunn’s film had no chance to compete. Its excessive violence, black humor, and sometimes odd sexual energy might have been off-putting to a general movie-going audience. Most of the world just wasn’t ready for such an eccentric and awkward hero as the Crimson Bolt. To the fans of “Slither” (like myself), however, “Super’s” over-the-top bonkerness seemed like the natural evolution of a filmmaker who felt most alive in the intersection of funny and weird.
“Slither” and “Super” were refreshingly original and alluring, which always made me wonder what Gunn could’ve done if he hadn’t been sucked in by the big studios. If there was an alternate universe where he stuck to making deranged horrors and twisted comedies, mixing up genres any way he wanted, and carving out a different space in the land of pop culture than what he ended up with. I guess we’ll never know. But at least we’ll always have these two movies to go back to if we get tired of “Superman” and whatever other superhero Gunn might bring us on the big screen in the coming years.
by admin | Jul 22, 2025 | TV & Beyond Articles
Disney completed its purchase of Fox for $71.3 billion. For Marvel fans, that meant that the “X-Men” and “Fantastic Four” rights were finally going to be in the hands of Marvel Studios. That has now materialized in the form of “The Fantastic Four: First Steps,” which kicks off Phase 6 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the final phase of the Multiverse Saga, so there’s a lot on the line and a lot coming our way over the next few years. Does this movie have a post-credits scene to help tee up what’s to come?
MCU fans have become accustomed to credits scenes over the years. Recently, the credits scene in “Thunderbolts” was directly connected to “Fantastic Four.” It’s the nature of the beast. We’re here to offer up a spoiler-free guide for viewers who plan to see “First Steps” in theaters. We’ll let you know whether or not you need to stick around and if director Matt Shakman, of “WandaVision” fame, has anything else in store for audiences after the credits roll. Seriously, we won’t spoil anything, so proceed without fear. Let’s get to it.
How many credits scenes does The Fantastic Four: First Steps have?
Marvel Studios
Yes, “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” does have credits scenes that fans should be aware of. There are two different scenes attached to the movie. One is a mid-credits scene, and without saying too much, let’s just say that fans will absolutely want to stick around for it. The second one is a true post-credits scene that happens at the very end of the credits, and it’s more fun than monumental, but it’s there for those who wish to see it.
Given that next year will see the release of “Avengers: Doomsday,” which features a massive cast including Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom, the inclusion of some credits scenes here is not surprising. Everything is building to “Avengers: Secret Wars” in 2027, which will bring the MCU’s Multiverse Saga to a close.
The cast for Marvel’s latest is led by Pedro Pascal (“The Mandalorian”) as Reed Richards, Vanessa Kirby (“Hobbs & Shaw”) as Sue Storm, Joseph Quinn (“Stranger Things”) as Johnny Storm, and Ebon Moss-Bachrach (“The Bear”) as The Thing. Ralph Ineson (“Nosferatu”) is also on board to bring Galactus to life, with Julia Garner (“Wolf Man”) playing Silver Surfer. The synopsis for the movie reads as follows:
Set against the vibrant backdrop of a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world, Marvel Studios’ The Fantastic Four: First Steps introduces Marvel’s First Family — Reed Richards/Mister Fantastic, Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, Johnny Storm/Human Torch and Ben Grimm/The Thing as they face their most daunting challenge yet.
Forced to balance their roles as heroes with the strength of their family bond, they must defend Earth from a ravenous space god called Galactus and his enigmatic Herald, Silver Surfer. And if Galactus’ plan to devour the entire planet and everyone on it weren’t bad enough, it suddenly gets very personal.
“The Fantastic Four: First Steps” hits theaters on July 25, 2025.
by admin | Jul 22, 2025 | TV & Beyond Articles
a potential viable business with Jurassic Park), but “Jurassic World Rebirth” proves it’ll always turn into a nightmare. Sorry, but humans and dinosaurs aren’t meant to coexist — and don’t go blaming the dino-buddies for this fact, because people don’t know how to leave well enough alone. It’s like an addiction for these folks to be locked up with man-eating creatures in an attempt to see if they can survive with all their limbs intact. At this point, why don’t they just rub BBQ basting all over themselves and parade in front of the dinosaurs?
While this franchise asks the audience to suspend a lot of disbelief, especially when it comes to the science and what dinosaurs really looked like, “Jurassic World Rebirth” possesses logic loopholes that can’t be ignored. Some of them teeter between “this could have been fixed in another draft” to “OMG! This is the dumbest thing I have ever heard.”
Look, it’s necessary to applaud the creative team for pushing the film in a different direction and trying something new, but there are threads here that if pulled, threaten to bring down the entire storyline with it. If you’re cool with just going with the flow, that’s fine too — no shade here. However, if you feel like laughing at how silly this film is when you interrogate it even a little bit, join us to discover the 10 things that don’t make sense in “Jurassic World Rebirth.”
The scientists try to extract DNA from mutated dinosaurs
Universal Pictures
The entire premise of “Jurassic World Rebirth” revolves around the pharmaceutical company Parker-Genix wanting to get DNA from three of the largest dinosaurs alive, because this will help them to create a miracle drug for heart disease treatments, so they send a team to gather the samples. Now, once you stop laughing at the absurdity of a pharmaceutical company wanting to do something good in this world, consider this for a second: where are these dinosaurs located? Oh, that’s right, on Ile Saint-Hubert. You know, the place where InGen employees turned into the classic “X-Men” villain Mister Sinister and tampered with mutations.
So, here’s a legitimate question: why are scientists wanting to extract DNA from what’s most likely mutated dinosaurs? On this island, InGen played god, and it’s unlikely that it kept up-to-date records where it stated, “Yeah, we gave a warthog’s nose and raptor feet to a Tyrannosaurus rex.” Resultantly, all the data acquired won’t be conclusive — plus, it’ll be riddled with all kinds of permutations and risks.
It isn’t implausible to think that learnings could be taken from dinosaur DNA in general, but any application might be futile in this circumstance. One, because the dinosaur is a mutation of god knows what, and two, the genomes between dinosaurs and humans differ drastically (never mind what happens when you throw mutations into the mix). Unless a real-life scientist can come forward and say, “Well, actually,” we’re chalking this down to too unbelievable.
Dolores might not survive with Isabella
Universal Pictures
One of the dinosaurs that isn’t scary nor dangerous in “Jurassic World Rebirth” is Dolores, the Aquilops. Dolores makes friends with the young Isabella Delgado (Audrina Miranda) and follows her around before eventually leaving the island with Isabella and the surviving humans. It’s a cute moment, and a reminder that friendship, uh, finds a way.
Here’s the sad part, though: Isabella may have doomed Dolores by taking her off the island. The beginning of “Jurassic World Rebirth” confirms that the Earth’s climate has changed drastically since “Jurassic World Dominion,” and the dinosaurs aren’t doing well in it. The only place they can survive is around the equator. Ile Saint-Hubert is a few hundred miles east of French Guiana, which makes it incredibly close to the equator, so that’s ideal for dinosaurs like Dolores.
There is an American flag on the Delgados’ boat, which leads one to believe that’s where the family is from. Naturally, the United States is further away from the equator than Ile Saint-Hubert. What’s more surprising about this whole ordeal is how a paleontologist like Dr. Henry Loomis (Jonathan Bailey) doesn’t tell Isabella that it’s a bad idea to remove Dolores from her natural habitat and take her to a place where she may not survive. Considering how the film made such a big point about the world and climate change after the events of “Jurassic World Dominion,” it appears like someone forgot the rules when a cute dinosaur was introduced into the picture.
Reuben Delgado decides to sail with his family around the equator
Universal Pictures
Spare a thought for Reuben Delgado (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo). He wants to reconnect with his daughters, Teresa (Luna Blaise) and Isabella. Heck, he’s even willing to tolerate Teresa’s boyfriend, Xavier Dobbs (David Iacono), who’s an acquired taste. Reuben has a grand plan: he’ll take them sailing across the Atlantic Ocean on his boat, La Mariposa. They’ll be able to bond away from civilization, modern distractions, and dry land.
What a swell idea, right? Wrong. What the hell is wrong with this man?! Has he not been following the news for the past 10 years? The events of the previous “Jurassic World” should be fresh in his mind. You know, how the Mosasaurus exists in water and if it attacks, it’s game over for anyone. Instead, this father decides to take his kids on a trip across the ocean, near the equator where the dinosaurs now gravitate toward, so they can spend quality time together. Look, if this was all part of a plan to leave Xavier there, you could understand it, but it’s madness otherwise.
Even though it’s revealed that people are tired of dinosaurs (a line from “Jurassic World Rebirth” that’s harder to believe than dinosaurs living today), there’s a difference between not being wowed by the creatures and blissful ignorance. Sure, these prehistoric beasts might be part and parcel of the film’s universe now, but they’re still dangerous. Reuben taking his family near the equator is like someone actively setting up camp in a lion’s den then being surprised by an attack.
The helicopter circles for only two minutes and at night
Universal Pictures
Inevitably, disaster strikes when Duncan Kincaid’s (Mahershala Ali) ship, the Essex, gets attacked by the dinosaurs in the water. This leaves Zora Bennett (Scarlett Johansson) and others shipwrecked on Ile Saint-Hubert. Zora, though, isn’t a newbie to expedition missions, so she reveals a contingency plan that she put in place. In 24 hours, a rescue helicopter is meant to circle the island for two minutes and get them out. Why only two minutes? Well, because that adds dramatic effect and tension to David Koepp’s screenplay, but for storyline purposes, it’s because the pilots are wary of dinosaur attacks and don’t want to be left exposed for too long.
So, why is the rescue helicopter only circling the island at night? Surely, this makes it tougher to see what’s going on below. If these pilots are so terrified of dinosaurs, wouldn’t it make more sense to conduct the search-and-rescue mission during daylight where their line of sight will be clearer? This isn’t a military operation where enemy forces are prepared for your arrival, and you need to get in and out before they notice you, so it feels — I don’t know — counterintuitive.
Some might argue that the cloak of darkness makes it less likely for the dinosaurs to spot the helicopter buzzing about. Well, that did absolutely no good here. In the end, the helicopter gets destroyed by the Distortus rex anyway. So, this rescue mission was for nothing.
Ile Saint-Hubert existed and no one ever mentioned it before
Universal Pictures
Let’s take a look at the facts for a minute: a lot of people died on Isla Nublar and Isla Sorna. Who’s to blame for it? InGen. The company wanted to recreate dinosaurs and turn them into theme park attractions. Afterward, Masrani Global Corporation acquired all of InGen’s assets and tried to do something similar — much to the same effect where people die and dinosaurs take over.
After all those deaths and catastrophes at Isla Nublar and Isla Sorna, the question needs to be asked: why did no one ever know about Ile Saint-Hubert until “Jurassic World Rebirth”? One could argue that InGen kept its presence hush-hush, but the incident with the Distortus rex happened a few years before the launch of Jurassic World. In other words, InGen was still continuing its shenanigans on the downlow after the events of Isla Nublar and Isla Sorna. How did InGen not go in front of congress for the numerous deaths and international incidents it caused? Are we really to believe that not one single ex-InGen employee squealed about the existence of Ile Saint-Hubert?
If Parker-Genix knew about it, surely there must have been others who were aware too. Of course, the easy answer here is that it’s a plot device that allows for the discovery of a new island in the franchise, but it still doesn’t make sense how it remained a secret until the events of “Jurassic World Rebirth.”
The plan to extract the DNA of the Quetzalcoatlus is just dumb
Universal Pictures
The team needs to gather the DNA of the three largest dinosaurs. Out of all three, the Titanosaurus — one of the new dinosaurs in “Jurassic World Rebirth” — is the easiest mission. The Mosasaurus provides a few challenges, but it gets done regardless. The most dangerous extraction involves the Quetzalcoatlus, since it’s an avian creature, and the team points out the obvious in “Jurassic World Rebirth”: it’ll be tough to hit a flying carnivore who is the size of an F-16 and might attack if threatened.
Resultantly, they come up with a plan to rappel down the rocks to the Quetzalcoatlus nest and extract the DNA from an egg. Anyone with a set of eyes can see how this is going to transpire, and it does as expected. The adult Quetzalcoatlus returns, angry that someone is messing with the egg, and ends up killing LeClerc (Bechir Sylvain).
Let’s not discount the fact that trying to extract DNA from a flying dinosaur is tricky business. However, this is easily one of the dumbest plans in the franchise’s history. They literally rappel into an isolated area and hope the adult doesn’t come back. What about luring the creature into an enclosed structure or pondering a much safer plan before heading out to the island? Judging by how these folks behave, you have to question if they are even professionals to begin with.
There aren’t many raptors on the island
Universal Pictures
Look, whether it’s “Jurassic Park” or “Jurassic World,” the franchise is velociraptor-heavy. These deadly creatures feature predominantly, often presented as the MVPs of the films. In “Jurassic World Rebirth,” though, they’re largely absent. Sure, we spot two sneaky Steves lurking behind Xavier, who is answering the call of nature, but one of them gets pounced on by Mutadon, while the other runs for the hills. After that, there are no more raptors, which is odd, since they’re portrayed as pack creatures in the movies, so there should be more of them bopping around.
There’s a simple answer to this: director Gareth Evans likely wanted to shine the light on the Mutadon, which is a hybrid of a raptor and pterosaur, rather than rehash more raptor rampage. Unfortunately, this comes at the expense of the regular stars of the franchise, who take a backseat to these new mutants.
Simply put, it doesn’t feel like “Jurassic World” without the presence of raptors. They feature in the franchise’s biggest moments. Yes, even the talking raptor scene from “Jurassic Park 3.” Much like everyone expects to see a Batmobile in a Batman movie, the same can be said about raptors and “Jurassic World.” Without them, we are nothing.
The T-Rex can’t bite through a raft
Universal Pictures
A bastion of the “Jurassic” franchise has been the Tyrannosaurus rex. While the little arms may struggle to clap along to songs, those powerful jaws are more than capable of immense destruction. The T-rex very possibly possessed the highest bite force of any animal who has roamed the Earth. That’s why Rexy in 1993’s “Jurassic Park” was able to bite through the thick and serpent-like skin of lawyer Donald Gennaro (Martin Ferrero) so easily.
In “Jurassic World Rebirth,” something doesn’t make sense in the T-rex’s solitary scene. It’s the part of the film when Teresa sneaks past a snoozing Tyrannosaurus to grab a raft so that she, her sister, father, and boyfriend are able to go down the river. Now, this is a proper raft, not a plastic flamingo that you blow up to chuck in a pool. While Teresa and Co. successfully get the raft onto the water and paddle away, the dangerous dinosaur goes after them. Teresa, Reuben, and Xavier get thrown off the raft by the T-rex, while Isabella hangs on under the structure. Rexy gnaws at the raft, but he fails to penetrate it, as Isabella lives to see another day.
It makes sense that this raft would be made of sturdy material to withstand rocks and other sharp objects, but how in the world does this T-rex, with jaws of steel, not manage to penetrate it? Did you see the size of this dinosaur’s teeth?
The Distortus rex was contained by a single door
Universal Pictures
The flagship mutant dinosaur of “Jurassic World Rebirth” is the Distortus rex, or D-rex for short. This mutated version of a Tyrannosaurus rex boasts six limbs and a big head that makes it a dead ringer for a Xenomorph. The dinosaur also has an insatiable appetite, always finding space in its stomach for another pound of human flesh.
Viewers meet the D-rex early on, as a Snickers wrapper causes havoc in an airlock and results in the security system being rebooted — somebody must have been watching “Final Destination” when this Rube Goldberg machine-inspired scene was written. Amazingly, this is all it takes to release the D-rex after he snacks on an InGen employee, then breaks through the door and roams Ile Saint-Hubert like a Chihuahua that saw the gate being left open.
Now, everyone knows that InGen wasn’t too hot on safety protocols and relied on a disgruntled IT technician to manage Jurassic Park, but was all that was holding back a D-rex from totally annihilating InGen employees a single door? This is ridiculous. InGen probably downloaded its safety program for free from Limewire too.
People still willingly go to a dinosaur island
Universal Pictures
How many times have humans gone to a dinosaur island? The answer is too many. “Jurassic Park” taught everyone a valuable lesson: when things go wrong in a place like this, they go terribly bad. Still, no one listened, and the same happened in “The Lost World: Jurassic Park,” “Jurassic Park 3,” “Jurassic World,” and now “Jurassic World Rebirth.”
Yet, somehow, someway, someone manages to convince a group of cursed fools to venture onto a dinosaur island again and again. The hook in “Jurassic World Rebirth” is a lot of money for Zora and her pals, while Dr. Loomis and Martin Krebs (Rupert Friend) want to find a cure for heart disease, but these people are either gullible or possess more guts than brains. In Zora and her team’s case, what’s the use of all that money if they never make out alive? Same for Dr. Loomis and Krebs. History has proven that not everyone survives on a dinosaur island, and many people perish before the credits roll in this movie.
Of course, you’re probably screaming at your screen and saying, “How else will they make more of these films then, you idiot?” That’s my point. It’s beyond being believable now. There’s no good reason to go to a dinosaur island anymore. Someone can tell me there’s a first edition of “Detective Comics” #27 and unlimited pairs of Jordans on Ile Saint-Hubert. I don’t care. I’m not going.
by admin | Jul 22, 2025 | TV & Beyond Articles
a very low-budget rendition of the characters merely to retain the film rights. That film was never officially released to the public, but a robust bootleg market has assured that Marvel fans the world over have seen it. Weirdly, its cheapness and corny script served the characters well; the Fantastic Four, even more than most of their fantastical comic book contemporaries, are corny and demonstrative. Both the heroes and the villains they face tend to speak in operatic hyperbole. There are a lot of exclamation points.
But then, there’s a whimsical, relatable element to the Fantastic Four as well. They’re one of the only superhero teams that also functions simultaneously as a cosmic adventure epic and a dysfunctional family sitcom.
The three following cinematic attempts at a “Fantastic Four” movie were mixed, at best. The two directed by Tim Story in 2005 and 2007 had some hokey elements (positive), but lacked intelligence, wit, or many acts of heroism. The 2015 “Fantastic Four” from Josh Trank was a dour, downbeat, joyless remix that never committed to its strange body horror elements. Shakman’s new film is the first “Fantastic Four” movie that balances the team’s necessary, wimpy corniness with astonishing spatial adventures, emerging as one of the better superhero films of the year. This is a “Fantastic” quartet of squares. They are scientists and nerds in a genre overstuffed with soldiers and fighters. They can serve as the mentally healthy counterpoint to the wounded violence-dealers in Jake Schreier’s “Thunderbolts*.”
And, even more so than James Gunn’s “Superman,” they live in a world of hope. The Fantastic Four are so capable and intelligent, they have literally changed the world.
Science! Industry! Technology! And from it, hope!
Marvel Studios
Like the recent “Superman,” “The Fantastic Four” dispenses with dramatizing the title heroes’ origin story, and takes place in a world where they are already established and even famous. For those who need a refresher, Reed Richards (Pedro Pascal), his wife Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby), his best friend Ben Grimm (Ebon Moss-Bachrach), and Sue’s brother Johnny (Joseph Quinn) once piloted a super-advanced shuttle into the outer reaches of the cosmos where they were bombarded by cosmic rays. They returned to Earth with elemental-style powers: Reed became the liquid-glue stretchy man Mr. Fantastic, Sue became the clear-like-air Invisible Woman, Ben became the earthen Thing, and Johnny became the Human Torch.
The existence of cosmic rays, as well as the ascendancy of a supra-scientist like Reed Richards has, in the world of “First Steps” fundamentally altered the world. “First Steps” takes place in a retro-futurist landscape that’s a combination of the 24th century and 1961, and it’s astonishing to behold. People all over the world now make used of Fantastic Four tech, and the quality of life seems to have been improved. “First Steps” is set in an inspiring world where the promises of Art-Deco world fairs from America’s post-War years were finally fulfilled. The presence of heroes, for the first time, seems to have made the world a better place, and not just a more violent one.
It’s also worth noting that the Fantastic Four are no mere enforcers or soldiers in this universe, but benevolent philosopher kings (well, at least Sue and Reed are). They are the masters of all industry, diplomats, politicians, and scientists. Innovation and intelligence, along with caring and compassion, are their currency. Even when the bitter subterranean villain Mole Man (Paul Walter Hauser) tries to invade the surface world, the FF don’t defeat him, so much as negotiate a peace contract.
Beware! The might of Galactus! Devourer of Worlds!
Marvel Studios
They do occasionally encounter monsters and villains (there is an amusing opening montage that featured Reed kicking an evil monkey into the Hudson River), and some brief fisticuffs are in order, but the FF are not here to get into brawls. They are uncool. They are so uncool, they turned the world into a “Star Trek”-like utopia. If you want to save the world, save it from the ground up.
At the outset of “First Steps,” it’s revealed that Sue and Reed are pregnant. She is happy after years of attempts, but Reed is nervous; he can’t help but imagine their child adversely affected by their superpowered genes. Indeed, picturing worst-case scenarios seems to be Reed’s greatest blessing and greatest curse. He can only picture solutions once his mind has filled with problems.
Shortly after the news, Earth is visited by a mysterious chrome-plated alien, the Silver Surfer (Julia Garner). Unlike the rendition of the Silver Surfer seen in Tim Story’s 2007 “FF” film, this rendition is eerie and even a little bit terrifying. She can soar many times the speed of light, and confidently announces to the people of Earth that the planet has been marked for destruction by her boss, a cosmic space deity called Galactus (Ralph Ineson). Galactus is older than the known universe, and lives by consuming entire planets. Earth is next on the menu, and the FF soar back into the heavens to confront him.
“Fantastic Four” makes space seem large and ineffable. There is a lot of time devoted to them boarding and operating their spacecraft. I appreciate that “First Steps” is set in a gorgeous, sleek universe of miracle technologies, and the filmmakers, through subtle editing and wide camera angles, allow us, the astonished viewers, to sit and take it all in. It’s nice to actually be impressed by a superhero movie’s visuals.
The world unites to take on a cosmic threat!
Marvel Studios
The cosmic scenes make space seem like a vast and dangerous place. Galactus, a 1,000-foot giant, looms over the screen terrifyingly, evoking the godlike presence of Arishem from “Eternals.” For the record, I also love “Eternals.” Make of that what you will. Know that I was excited to watch the Silver Surfer tripping the light fantastic, though, hanging ten as she ripped the curl of a warp field’s event horizon. Man, it was fun.
But there are small, human moments as well. Johnny loses himself in linguistics, trying to learn an alien language, while Ben finds himself bonding with a sweet, pretty school teacher name Rachel (Natasha Lyonne). On the night before a dangerous event, the pair lock eyes at a local Temple. They previously bonded over their mutual love of their local deli’s black-and-white cookies. The Thing is realized through CGI, but the animation is strong enough to give his rocky face brief bursts of human emotion.
The world of “First Steps” is so optimistic, though, that when Sue gives a speech about unity and not giving up, the world actually listens. When Reed asks all the governments of Earth to team up to build a global network of high-tech widgets, they step to. I don’t want my heroes to thwack bad guys or expose villains. I want them to unite us through the sheer might of their intelligence. “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” is set in a world that I wouldn’t mind living in. Even if there are occasional, ineffable cosmic deities plotting to devour me, and terrifying silver aliens ripping my soul apart with their eyes. “First Steps” is a superhero movie where we’re already better. And I love that.
/Film Rating: 9 out of 10
“The Fantastic Four: First Steps” opens in theaters on July 25, 2025.
by admin | Jul 22, 2025 | Articles, Hollywood Reporter Articles
The Fantastic Four: First Steps stars Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Joseph Quinn and Ebon Moss-Bachrach continued their world tour in promotion of the film on Monday, bringing Marvel’s First Family to Los Angeles.
The film — set against a backdrop of a 1960s-inspired, retro-futuristic world — follows Mister Fantastic, Invisible Woman, Human Torch and The Thing as they defend Earth from Galactus and Silver Surfer.
On the blue carpet, Quinn, who plays Johnny Storm/Human Torch but previously auditioned for the role of Spider-Man, spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about the possibility of working with Tom Holland within the MCU, as Spider-Man and Johnny Storm are close friends in the comics.
“That pairing makes sense to me and I think he’s brilliant and I’m up for it,” the actor said. “I think we’d have a laugh. I’ve never met Tom and I think he’s brilliant; his Peter Parker is the best one ever, I think he’s our best-ever Spider-Man, so why not? Let’s do it, get it moving.”
Kirby, starring as Sue Storm/Invisible Woman, also commented about her journey with the film, as she’s currently pregnant with her first child while her character also becomes a mother on screen.
“It’s a very surreal timing for me. I think the most moving thing for me was that in a big movie like this, Sue spends half the time pregnant, she gives birth and then she has a newborn while facing some huge intergalactic, existential threat to humanity,” Kirby explained. “She’s never sidelined and she’s absolutely part of it; the fact that she’s a mother makes her stronger I think and it taught me so much about how powerful that experience is. As she does in the comics, I really hope that translates.”
Julia Garner, who plays the much buzzed-about Silver Surfer, joked that the team “made me look a lot cooler than I actually am” with special effects. She continued, “I’ve never done this kind of acting before and I think it’s really important as an actor to try different things and see what works and what doesn’t work. I had so much fun making this so it was really exciting and I would definitely do it again.”
The Fantastic Four: First Steps hits theaters on Friday. See the first reactions here.
Coy Jandreau contributed to this report.
