Category Archives: science fiction

Movie Review: “Thunderbolts” (2025)

thunderbolts

© James Pyles

I didn’t anticipate watching Thunderbolts* (2025), yes the asterisk is supposed to be there, but it was at the public library in the new films section, so I figured “why not?”

It was actually better than I thought, but you have to accept it for what it is. I’ll get to that.

Spoiler Alert: This review is loaded with them, so if you haven’t seen the movie and want to be surprised, stop reading now.

Pet Peeve Alert: The characters of Yelena and Alexei were once part of a spy cell pretending to be a typical American family and as such they spoke perfect English. Why, oh why are they now speaking in heavily accented English just to prove they are Russian? It’s stupid.

Now let’s continue…

Basically this is Marvel’s…I was going to say “B-Team” but they aren’t even that high on the list, well most of them anyway…trying to carve their way into being heroes when most of them at least have histories as villains if not actually still being on that list.

We start out with Yelena Belova (Florence Pugh), Natasha Romanoff’s (Scarlett Johansson) secret agent sister (see the 2021 film Black Widow) still living the life of an assassin for the CIA killing people and stealing stuff. She’s totally empty and alone and has no purpose in her life, still grieving over Natasha’s death as seen in Avengers: Endgame (2019).

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Movie Review of “Superman” (2025)

superman

© James Pyles

Last night, I watched James Gunn’s Superman (2025). OMG, where do I begin?

Oh, Spoiler Alert. This review is full of them.

First of all, let me say that I get where Gunn was taking the film and the character. He was balancing Superman as an alien vs Clark as a human. This is seen both in how goofy (in my opinion) both Superman and Clark (played by David Corenswet) appear and behave. Face it. Clark really doesn’t have to act like an inept nebbish to keep people from finding out he’s Superman. Why would people even believe Superman has another identity and if he did, he could be anyone living anywhere.

The secret to Clark’s insecurities, sometimes unstable behavior, and pathetically Boy Scout (even by campy comic book and earlier movie and TV standards) actions and attitudes lies in his humanity, in being raised by Martha and Jonathan Kent on a farm in Kansas.

The Kents, played by Pruitt Taylor Vince and Neva Howell respectively, are the quintessential country hicks. I’ve worked in rural settings before, and Ma and Pa Kent might as well have been Ma and Pa Kettle. They weren’t necessarily strong or heroic and are never seen struggling over raising a son from outer space. They’re “just plain folks” and their defining characteristic is how much they love their son.

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Kickstarter for “Ruins: A Space Opera Anthology”

ruins

Promotional image for the anthology “Ruins.”

Across the vast expanse of space and time lie the remnants of civilizations that reached for the stars—and vanished. Silent cities carved into asteroids. Derelict megastructures drifting between galaxies. Temples buried beneath the red sands of dead worlds.

This book contains 13 bold tales of humanity’s encounters with these cosmic ruins.

That’s how the narrative for the Kickstarter for “Ruins: A Space Opera Anthology” begins.

Just to be clear:

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Review of “Jurassic World: Rebirth” (2025)

rebirth

© James Pyles

In my last review, I mentioned getting two movies from the public library. The second was Jurassic World: Rebirth. I almost want to say “reboot” because we get a whole new cast of characters, most notably Scarlett Johansson playing the mercenary Zora Bennett.

The film takes place a few years after events in Jurassic World: Dominion (2022) starring another Marvel movie alum Chris Pratt as Owen Grady. Dinosaurs are now sharing the planet with all the other 21st century life forms including humans. However, due to changes in oxygen, temperature, and so on, most dinos are living in areas somewhere near the equator. That’s a convenient way to limit their exposure to people, but it was previously established that at least some dinosaurs can live in colder climates.

Well, this is entertainment.

Spoiler Alert! If you haven’t seen the film and want to be surprised, read no further. You have been warned.

The movie starts in 2008 in a dinosaur genetics lab on Île Saint-Hubert. In previous films, we’ve already seen that audiences got bored seeing the “same old dinosaurs,” so the big money people demanded that the scientists create ever more exciting (and more dangerous) hybrids. The lab has a stupid accident, dropping containment and all hell breaks loose.

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Through The Looking Glasses

glasses

PHOTO PROMPT © Roger Bultot

“Dad?” Rod turned to his front door as his Dad Frank walked in. He was expecting him to bring the pumpkin pie, but the old man had something else.

“Happy Thanksgiving, son,” said Frank. “Where are Holly and the kids?”

“Kitchen and the backyard respectively.” Rod’s mouth was agape. “What’s that on your face?”

“These glasses?” Frank chuckled and looked around the living room.

“What was your ophthalmologist thinking?”

“Ever see the movie ‘They Live,’ Rod?”

“Yeah, but…”

“I can see you’re real. I just want to make sure about the rest of my family.”

“You’re off your meds, right?”

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Book Review of “Memory’s Legion: The Complete Expanse Story Collection” (2022)

memory's legion

© James Pyles

A few years back, I read all of the Expanse novel series by James S.A. Corey (really Daniel Abraham and Ty Franck) thanks to a suggestion from someone I used to work with and my local public library. I’ve never seen the television series, though I’ve heard it was quite good. I really enjoyed the books though.

You can search my blog and read all of my reviews of them.

A number of weeks ago, I was killing time in the library when I came upon a copy of Memory’s Legion: The Complete Expanse Story Collection (2022). They were the only Expanse stories I hadn’t read, so, of course, I checked it out.

It was different than what I expected. Still good and entertaining, but the tone felt, I don’t know, more depressing maybe?

The stories, almost all of them really, are prequels or “origin” stories to certain Expanse characters, other viewpoints of existing storylines, and even “how did this get invented?”

I won’t throw out too many spoilers so don’t expect to find out from me which Expanse characters you’re familiar with make appearances here.

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Who Puts Up Yellow Christmas Lights?

window

PHOTO PROMPT ©Yvette Prior

“Who puts up a Christmas tree in November and why only yellow lights?” Griffin thought. He turned from the window and back to his enemy.

Kemp developed the invisibility program for the government. Griffin was their guinea pig, but it was never about science. Griffin was their ultimate political assassin, an invisible man.

“You said you couldn’t bring me back,” Griffin mused. “You’re my next victim…”

Griffin’s skin lit on fire and he collapsed on the carpet. Kemp put down his smartphone and rose from the sofa.

“The yellow lights are my security system, Griffin,” said Kemp. “They’re killing you.”

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Book Review of “Time and Again” (1970)

time and again

© James Pyles

This review requires some explanation.

Spoiler alert: Before I get going, just be warned that there are tons of spoilers in this review. If you want to be surprised, stop reading after the break.

I originally saw the 1980 movie Somewhere in Time on cable TV within a year of it being in the theater. I became a fan of Christopher Reeve after seeing him in Superman the Movie (1978) and it was a pleasure seeing him in a very different role.

I was looking up the movie (not Superman) online a while back and came across a reference to the book upon which it was based. That would be Bid Time Return by Richard Matheson. Matheson is best known (to me anyway) for his novels I Am Legend (1954) and The Shrinking Man, both of which have had movies made from their material.

So, what does all this have to do with reviewing Jack Finney’s 1970 novel Time and Again?

The Christopher Reeve movie, Matheson’s book, and Finney’s book all have to do with a unique form of time travel, that a person can be hypnotized or so conditioned to believe that they belong in a certain place and year that they are actually transported there.

I read Finney’s rather than Matheson’s book because it was supposed to be a superior treatment of the subject.

Stephen King called it “The great time-travel story” and even science purest Carl Sagan said that it was among stories:

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Coming in March 2026: “A Wobblegong And His Boy”

boy and lizardOkay, I can finally talk about it.

I have a number of short stories published by Raconteur Press. They’re good people and seem to like my stories, even the ones they elect not to publish.

They also are in the process of publishing a series of Boys’ Adventure Books.

Generally, they’re short science fiction or fantasy adventure novels written specifically for young male readers between the ages of eight and eighteen in the tradition of Robert Heinlein’s juvenile books. While written for boys, they are intended to be equally enjoyable by girls as well as adults. But really, they’re mostly for boys.

The idea as I understand it, is that boys don’t read anymore in part because books aren’t really being written with boys in mind these days. With the surge in “updating the genre for modern audiences,” that “update” includes any audience except young boys. Boys (and often men) are thought to have been excessively marketed to in the past, and the current SFF gatekeepers thus decided to “move on” to other readerships.

I mean who is successfully publishing and marketing books in the tradition of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ “John Carter of Mars” or “Tarzan series? What about E.E. “Doc” Smith’s “Lensman” and “Skylark” books? Heck, if it were written today, Robert Louis Stephenson’s “Treasure Island” would probably never see the light of day.

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Two For The Price Of One

rainy night

PHOTO PROMPT © David Stewart

“Change the past to save the future,” complained Simon as he trudged through Queens in the October rain.

“Go back to 1946 and kill him as an infant, they said.” He patted the loaded pistol in his pocket. “At least they got me off of death row and out of the joint,” he snarled.

“I’ll show them change. Yeah, I’ll do the kid, but I know where the other guy is in Boston right now.” He turned a corner and headed toward Jamaica Estates. “I’ll hop a train and do him, too. History’ll be really messed up without both Presidents.”

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