The Commodification of Gomer in Hosea (2019)
“I can’t go up there. But you can love me down here.” —Cate Hosea, a new film by filmmaker Ryan Daniel Dobson, is a creative and gritty take on the book of Hosea that manages to capture the honest and…
"Crisis Point" – Star Trek: Lower Decks S1E09
After episode 8 overdosed on fan nostalgia for The Undiscovered Country, “Crisis Point” makes it clear that there’s a competition for the episode with the most fun fan callbacks; and the prize isn’t even close to being awarded yet. Thankfully,…
“Take, Eat”— Redeeming Consumption in The Platform
The Platform is the English title of Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia’s 2019 Spanish science fiction-horror film, El Hoyo. Its original title poses “the hole” or “the pit” as the film’s controlling image, whereas the version American audiences have recently become exposed to…
"Veritas" – Star Trek: Lower Decks S1E08
“Guys, this is basically a resort compared to what the Klingons do to you.” —Beckett Mariner Ok, but…it’s pretty much exactly what the Klingons do to you. This is the fanservice-iest episode of the season, by far. Mostly for The…
"Much Ado About Boimler" – Star Trek: Lower Decks S1E07
I’ve always loved Star Trek’s penchant for forcing characters together who don’t really interact much in a usual story; you see Sisko & Kira scenes and O’Brien and Bashir scenes all the time, but every once in a while the…
Darmok and Jalad in the Upper Room
A recurring theme in some of the strongest episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation is the pursuit of understanding. You could almost say that this theme is a core value of the Star Trek universe as a whole. For…
"Terminal Provocations" – Star Trek: Lower Decks S1E06
First of all, I felt personally attacked by this episode’s cold open. Just because I listen to Star Trek warp engine sounds while I work sometimes and can definitely tell the difference between the Enterprise-D’s and Voyager’s ambient warp core…