Having recently read the magnificent spy epic The Company for the third or fourth time, I decided it was finally time to explore some of Robert Littell's other works.  So for no particular reason I picked his 1990 novel, The Once and Future Spy (which Mrs. Suit informs me is a King Arthur reference). While TO&FS is not nearly as engrossing or rewarding as The Company, it was fun and engaging nonetheless.  Without giving too much of the plot away, the basic story ... Read on, Daddy-O

I caught a bit of GoldenEye over the weekend and was reminded of how much the 007 franchise was just going through the motions even long before Pierce Brosnan's arrival.  Casino Royale went a long way toward restoring the vitality and enjoyment of watching James Bond, and it looks as if Quantum of Solace will continue that positive direction. Don't believe me?  Just watch the newest trailer: See what I mean?  That shot of Bond falling through the glass ceiling at the 1:24 mark ... Read on, Daddy-O

The fact that a movie like Tropic Thunder not only exists but is doing well at the box office is refreshing for two reasons - first because we live in age of political correctness run amok, where works of mainstream art are neutered beyond recognition lest they offend anyone; and because it's proof that genre spoofs don't have to be nothing but an endless parade of tired and already dated sight gags and pop culture references (I'm looking at you Epic Movie, ... Read on, Daddy-O

I think I'm gonna need some more time to process the season 3 finale of The Venture Bros., but for right now I can't help but feel a bit let down. I think that's because Jackson Publick and Doc Hammer haven't yet figured out what they really want their show to be.  Do they want it to be an homage/parody of the action/adventure genre, or do they want to fully invest in their own universe and mythology? All signs pointed to the latter ... Read on, Daddy-O

No more flashbacks, no more character sketching, and no more filling in questionably important bits of history - the season finale of The Venture Bros. is all about moving forward.  All the buildup and all the backstory is done, so I hope you were paying attention. Actually, if you think about it almost all of this season's back end has really been the finale, since most of the episodes have picked up right where previous ones left off.  So in that sense, everything ... Read on, Daddy-O

Setup episodes can be very tricky to pull off.  They've got to provide enough information to set the stage for what is to come, and yet be entertaining in and of themselves.  Too much information and the story becomes cluttered, and not very fun to watch.  But make things too subtle, and the episode can seem like a one-off at best, a throwaway at worst.  So how does "ORB", an obvious setup episode, fare? Pretty well, thankfully.   The mystery kicks off in the ... Read on, Daddy-O

At some point before season four of The Venture Bros. gets underway, I'm going to run a countdown of the top 10 episodes from the first three.  And right now I can't think of any reason why "The Lepidopterists" won't be on that list.  With a few exceptions, I've been thoroughly entertained by all of this season's episodes, but this one had me laughing out loud as much as when I discovered the show sometime around the beginning of season one.  And ... Read on, Daddy-O

Ever been on a blind date that you knew was a disaster right from the start, yet you felt obligated to see it through to the bitter end?  Such seems to be the recurring fate of the Monarch, forced to endure a supremely lame archenemy pairing at the beginning of "Tears of a Sea Cow" (working title "Murder O'Clock").  But soon the misery is over, and he turns his attention back to his true hate...Dr. Venture. After quickly (and permanently) dispatching his newest ... Read on, Daddy-O

The most dangerous villains, the scariest ones to watch, are the ones with no clear reasons or motives behind their mayhem.  They enter from the darkest corners of our imaginations and exist solely to inflict pain on others.  They are not driven by greed, revenge, or lust for power. So how does someone (say, a hero or a district attorney) on the side of right stop such a villain?  How much are they willing to compromise themselves; and how much collateral damage is ... Read on, Daddy-O

This is shaping up to be a banner year for Batman.  The Dark Knight comes out next week, and I can't see any way it won't kick ass.  So to whet the appetite of the hardcore Bat-fan, this week marks the release of Batman: Gotham Knight, a direct-to-DVD animated adventure. But rather than being just another animated Bat-film, Gotham Knight is actually an anthology of six short films, all presented with different styles of animation.  Those six short films, and my take on ... Read on, Daddy-O