Andor

Andor (2023)

Season 1 (2022)

1 "Kassa" 
Five years before the Battle of Yavin, Cassian Andor looks for his missing sister in the industrial planet of Morlana One. While investigating, Cassian is antagonized by two officers. An altercation ensues, leading to Cassian accidentally killing one officer and murdering the other. At the planet Ferrix, he attempts to hide his involvement by convincing his adopted mother, Maarva, her droid—B2EMO, and his friend, Brasso, to cover for him. Having a Starpath Unit, a valuable piece of Imperial navigation technology, Cassian asks his friend Bix to connect him with a black market buyer. Bix agrees and contacts the buyer. Meanwhile, Bix's boyfriend, Timm, is suspicious of Andor. To improve his report to the Imperial authorities, Morlana One's chief inspector of security elects to cover up the murders. However, his deputy, the dutiful Syril Karn, is determined to solve the case. He identifies Cassian's ship, traces it to Ferrix and learns that the fugitive is from the planet Kenari. In a flashback, a younger Cassian, known as Kassa, joins a group on Kenari who set off to locate a crashed ship. Kassa rebuffs his younger sister's efforts to join the search, leaving her behind in their tribal encampment.

2 "That Would Be Me" 
Timm, still suspicious of Bix's relationship with Cassian, reports Cassian to Pre-Mor Security, who issue a warrant for his arrest. Karn partners with Sergeant Linus Mosk, an equally dutiful Pre-Mor officer, to arrest Cassian. B2EMO informs Cassian and Maarva of the warrant. Cassian prepares to flee the planet. Meanwhile, Luthen Rael—Bix's buyer—travels to Ferrix to obtain the Starpath Unit. In a flashback, Kassa and his fellow tribal members locate and investigate the crashed ship near a massive abandoned industrial strip-mining operation. When one of their own is killed by a crew member of the downed ship, the tribe kills the attacker and quickly leaves the crash site. Kassa stays behind to explore the ship.

3 "Reckoning" 
Luthen arrives on Ferrix and meets Cassian in an abandoned factory. Karn and Mosk also appear with a dozen security officers. They confront Maarva, who refuses to cooperate. Intercepting a transmission from Cassian to B2EMO, Karn pinpoints Cassian's position. Cassian wants to sell the Starpath Unit and leave Ferrix. However, Luthen tries to persuade him to join the Rebel Alliance, citing Cassian's repeated success at stealing from and sabotaging Imperial ships. When Karn's officers raid the factory, the two men escape to a speeder hangar, and subdue Karn. After learning of Timm's betrayal, Bix rushes to aid Cassian, only to be stopped by the officers. Timm is killed when he attempts to intervene. The pod the security officers arrived in is sabotaged and destroyed by Brasso. Luthen and Cassian escape the planet while Karn and Mosk request evacuation. In a flashback, Maarva and her husband, Clem, scavenge the crashed ship on Kenari and find Kassa. Maarva decides to take him with them, fearing his fate if he is discovered there by the Republic.

4 "Aldhani" 
Luthen takes Cassian to the planet Aldhani, asking him to join a robbery mission there. Cassian is reluctant but eventually agrees. Luthen asks him to use a pseudonym among the rebels, and Cassian chooses 'Clem'. Vel, the rebel group's leader, introduces him to the rest of the group but keeps Luthen's involvement a secret. They explain to Cassian that they plan on stealing the payroll of an Imperial sector from a key Imperial supply hub, taking advantage of a rare natural phenomenon in Aldhani's sky to escape since their getaway vehicle is slow. Meanwhile on Coruscant, Luthen, posing as an antiques dealer, meets with Senator Mon Mothma, and they discuss challenges in keeping their opposition to the Empire hidden. Karn goes to live with his mother after being castigated and fired. Imperial Security Bureau (ISB) lieutenant Dedra Meero seeks access and authority over the Ferrix incident, but is opposed by a colleague and a senior officer.

5 "The Axe Forgets" 
On Aldhani, 'Clem' hides his past from his fellow rebels and is met with distrust from most of them, particularly Skeen. Taramyn trains Cassian and the other rebels for the planned heist. While traveling to the Aldhani Imperial garrison, Cassian reveals that he is a mercenary. Vel decides to continue with the mission and hold off on dealing with 'Clem's' past until they have achieved their objectives. Imperial officer and double agent Lieutenant Gorn covertly aids the rebels. On Coruscant, Eedy Karn emasculates her son Syril as he explores new career prospects. Mon Mothma establishes a new charitable foundation while managing increasingly tense relations with her husband and daughter. ISB supervisor Blevin acquires a hotel as the new ISB headquarters on Ferrix. Meanwhile, his rival Meero and her assistant Heert reach the conclusion that the rebels are conducting a series of coordinated heists of Imperial weapons and technology. Luthen anxiously waits for a transmission from Vel and her rebel team.

6 "The Eye" 
Aided by Gorn, the rebels infiltrate the garrison by posing as an escort squad for Commandant Jayhold Beehaz, Gorn's superior. They take Beehaz's family as hostages and force him to give them access to the payroll vault. While loading the credits onto a freighter, they are discovered by Imperial forces. Taramyn and Gorn are killed in the ensuing firefight. Cinta is unable to make it onto the ship, so only Cassian, Skeen, Vel, and Nemik escape from Aldhani. During takeoff, Nemik is crushed by an unsecured load of credits, and suffers a severe injury. They land on the planet Frezno to treat Nemik's injuries. With Vel occupied looking after Nemik, Skeen proposes to Cassian that they flee and split the payroll between the two. Enraged and fearing for his life, Cassian kills Skeen. He tells Vel about what happened and informs her of his plans to take the amount he was promised as payment and leave. Vel gives Cassian Nemik's manifesto, in accordance with Nemik's dying wishes. Back on Coruscant, the ISB agents are gathered to formulate reprisals to the heist, while Luthen hears news of the theft and quietly celebrates.

7 "Announcement" 
On Coruscant, Karn starts a new job at the Bureau of Standards. Colonel Wullf Yularen announces that the ISB has gained more surveillance and punitive authority, while Meero is challenged by Blevin for breaking protocol by accessing Imperial data without authorization. She persuades her superiors of her work's value and is assigned oversight of Ferrix. Luthen's assistant Kleya instructs Vel to find and kill Cassian, as he knows Luthen's identity. Mon Mothma meets with Tay Kolma, an old friend and banker, and asks him to help her access family funds. Cassian returns to Ferrix to settle old debts and learns that people blame him for the Corporate Security crackdown. The presence of stormtroopers on Ferrix reminds Cassian of how his adoptive father, Clem, was murdered by Imperial clone troopers during a protest on Rix Road. Cassian attempts to get Maarva to leave Ferrix with him, but she decides to stay and oppose the increased Imperial presence. Cassian travels to the tropical tourist paradise of Niamos, adopting the name "Keef Girgo". Some time later, while walking towards a local store, he is unjustly arrested by a Shoretrooper and sentenced to six years of imprisonment.

8 "Narkina 5" 
Cassian is brought to a prison surrounded by water on Narkina 5 where he spends every day working in monotonous heavy industry with hundreds of other prisoners. Vel and Cinta travel to Ferrix to search for him. When Maarva falls ill, Bix attempts to contact Luthen about Cassian's whereabouts, but Luthen, worried about being exposed to anyone monitoring communications, does not answer. He then leaves Coruscant to meet with Saw Gerrera. Rael attempts to hire Gerrera's rebel cell to act as air support for a raid on an Imperial power station at Spellhaus organized by Anto Kreegyr, but is turned away. Dedra Meero questions Syril Karn about his experiences on Ferrix, but declines his offer to help with her investigation. She leads a unit to Ferrix herself, where she apprehends Bix.

9 "Nobody's Listening!" 
Dedra Meero and an Imperial scientist named Dr. Gorst torture Bix for information and realize that Cassian may have been involved in the Aldhani attack. They fail to learn anything from Bix about Luthen. The ISB capture a Rebel pilot from Kreegyr's group, who reveals that a power station on Spellhaus is set to be raided. Mon Mothma reunites with Vel, revealed as her cousin, and encourages her to keep a low profile while maintaining the facade of a rich and politically uninvolved young woman. Mon and Tay Kolma continue working to covertly gather funds for rebel activities. Meanwhile, an older member of Cassian's prison work crew named Ulaf is euthanized by a prison medic named Dr. Rhasiv when he suffers a stroke and can no longer work effectively. Dr. Rhasiv confirms to Cassian and floor manager Kino Loy a disturbing rumor: a prisoner who had completed his sentence was sent to work on a different level instead of being released, forcing the prison to kill all the prisoners on that level to cover up the mistake. Cassian and Kino realize that the prison will never let them go, convincing Kino to join Cassian's scheme to escape.

10 "One Way Out" 
By breaking a water pipe and flooding his work floor, Cassian disables the floor's security system, allowing work crews there to overpower the few guards and escape. Kino uses the prison's intercom system to encourage other floors to escape and the rebellion sweeps through the entire prison. Despite his role in the escape, Kino reveals that he can't swim. Cassian swims with the other escapees and reaches land. Mon Mothma meets with Davo Sculdun, a shady businessman who offers to help finance her projects, but Mon refuses after Davo requests that Mon arrange a meeting between her daughter and his son, an initial step towards marriage in their Chandrilan culture. ISB supervisor Lonni Jung, secretly a rebel informant, meets with Luthen and updates him on ISB activities. The two men reflect on how they are both trapped in their roles.

11 "Daughter of Ferrix" 
Maarva dies, prompting a funeral ceremony on Ferrix, which Dedra Meero encourages in the hopes that Andor will attend. Vel informs Kleya about Maarva's death and learns of Mon Mothma's reluctant plan to marry off her daughter to secure funding through Davo Sculdun. Mon's daughter Leida begins taking part in group gatherings focused on Chandrilan culture and traditions, much to the distress of Mon and Vel. Syril Karn also learns about the funeral from Linus Mosk. Saw Gerrera decides at the last moment to assist Kreegyr's attack on Spellhaus, but Luthen advises him against it, revealing that the ISB know about the impending assault. While returning to Coruscant, Luthen escapes from an Imperial patrol, destroying several TIE fighters and a tractor beam. With help from Keredians Dewi and Freedi, Cassian and fellow prisoner Ruescott Melshi are able to escape from Narkina 5 and travel to Niamos to recover Cassian's belongings. After Cassian discovers that Maarva has passed, Cassian and Melshi part ways, intending to publicly expose the Empire's unjust prison system.

12 "Rix Road"
Cassian returns to Ferrix for Maarva's funeral and learns of Bix's imprisonment. Dedra Meero and the local Imperial garrison prepare to use the funeral to capture Andor for questioning regarding Axis, while Luthen plans, with Vel and Cinta's assistance, to kill Cassian (to keep Cassian from possibly divulging any secrets), using the Imperial ambush as cover. The ISB succeed in stopping Kreegyr's attack but leave no prisoners, angering Meero. Mothma's 13-year-old daughter Leida is introduced to Davo Sculdun's 14-year-old son. During the funeral, B2EMO displays a recording of Maarva, who rallies the populace to fight the Empire, creating a riot in the main quarter. During the confusion, Cassian rescues Bix, while Syril Karn saves Meero from being attacked. Meeting with B2EMO, Brasso, and several others in a shipyard, Cassian convinces them to take Bix somewhere safe away from Ferrix. Moved by the rebellion on Ferrix, Luthen returns to his ship where Cassian is waiting. Knowing that Luthen is there to assassinate him, Cassian offers Luthen the choice to either kill him or take him in, to which Luthen smiles. In a post-credits scene, droids assemble the machinery produced by the Narkina 5 prisoners on the firing dish of an Imperial superweapon.

 Wolverine (2020) #14-19

   Wolverine is the best he is at what he does. And unfortunately a lot of what he does is predictable. Everything I've seen from Benjamin Percy's Wolverine is essentially the same thing I've seen in every run of Wolverine but this time, there's a smattering new wave of characters and the Krakoan angle to play. And it makes things a lot more interesting. 
   In the first story, Wolverine seeks the Muramasa blade from a pirate named Sevyr Blackmore. The two of them first work up a plan to blackmail another pirate named Solem and there's then a bevy of doublecrossing that ends up with Wolvie getting his swords back. Plus a new pirate ship. Plus Emma Frost "Emma Frosting" in a few ways.
   Next up it's time to bring back Maverick, who was one of Sabertooth and Logan's old Weapon X, secret agent buddies. Wolverine's old pal Jeff Bannister has pissed off his old friends in the CIA and now Wolverine has to carve some people up. Overall, another good story though.

Still love where Percy is taking this thing. Hopefully he still has a lot of room to run with it because it's still pretty awesome.

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (2023)

 from Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ant-Man_and_the_Wasp:_Quantumania

Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania

    

During her days of entrapment in the Quantum Realm, Janet van Dyne encounters an exiled traveler named Kang. In the present day, after the Battle of Earth, Scott Lang has become a successful memoirist and has been living happily with his girlfriend, Hope van Dyne. Scott's now-teenage daughter Cassie has become a political activist, resulting in her having a strained relationship with her father.

While visiting Hope's parents, Hank Pym and Janet, Cassie reveals that she has been working on a device that can establish contact with the Quantum Realm. Upon learning of this, Janet panics and forcefully shuts off the device, but the message is received, resulting in a portal that opens and pulls the five of them into the Quantum Realm. Scott and Cassie are found by natives who are rebelling against their ruler, while Hope, Janet, and Pym explore a sprawling city to get answers.

Hope, Janet, and Pym meet with Lord Krylar, a former ally of Janet's, who reveals that things have changed since she left, and that he is now working for Kang, the Quantum Realm's new ruler. The three are forced to flee and steal Krylar's ship. The Langs, meanwhile, are told by rebel leader Jentorra that Janet's involvement with Kang is indirectly responsible for his rise to power. The rebels soon come under attack by Kang's forces led by M.O.D.O.K., who is revealed to be Darren Cross, having survived his apparent death at Scott's hands.

Aboard Krylar's ship, Janet confesses to Hope and Pym why she wanted nothing to do with the Quantum Realm again; Kang claimed that he and Janet could both escape from the Quantum Realm if she helped him rebuild his multiversal power core. After they manage to repair it, Janet sees a vision of Kang conquering and destroying entire timelines. Kang reveals he was exiled by his own variants out of fear, which drove Janet to turn on him. Outmatched, Janet used her Pym Particles to enlarge the power core and render it unusable. Kang, having regained his powers, eventually conquered the Quantum Realm afterward.

The Langs are taken to Kang, who demands that Scott helps get his power core back or else he will kill Cassie. Scott is taken to the core's location and shrinks down. He is nearly drowned in a sea of variants of himself, but Hope arrives and helps him acquire the power core. However, Kang reneges on the deal, capturing Janet and destroying her ship with Pym on it. After being rescued by his ants, who were also pulled into the Quantum Realm, rapidly evolved, and became hyper-intelligent, Pym helps Scott and Hope as they make their way to Kang. Cassie rescues Jentorra and they commence an uprising against Kang and his army. During the fight, Cassie convinces Cross to turn sides and fight Kang, though he sacrifices his life in the process.

Janet fixes the power core as she, Pym, Hope, and Cassie jump through a portal home, but Kang attacks Scott, nearly beating him into submission. Hope returns and, together with Scott, destroy the power core with a combination of Pym Particles and knock Kang into it, causing him to be pulled into oblivion. Cassie reopens the portal on her end for Scott and Hope to return home. As Scott happily resumes his life, he begins to rethink what he was told about Kang's death being the start of something terrible happening, but brushes it off.

In a mid-credits scene, numerous variants of Kang are concerned by Earth-616's increasing interest in the multiverse and plan their uprising. In a post-credits scene, Loki and Mobius M. Mobius locate another Kang variant, named Victor Timely, on Earth in the 1900s

from Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Boys_(season_3)

The Boys S3

1. 
One year after the Stormfront scandal, the Boys work as contractors for Victoria Neuman's Bureau of Superhuman Affairs to apprehend rogue Supes, with Hughie Campbell as their liaison. Vought CEO Stan Edgar appoints Annie January, who is now publicly dating Hughie, co-captain of the Seven to repair Vought International's reputation and unsuccessfully attempts to sell V24, a Compound V variant that temporarily grants superpowers, to U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Singer. Queen Maeve secretly works with Billy Butcher and has him investigate Payback - a disbanded superhero team whose leader Soldier Boy mysteriously died - in hopes of finding a weapon capable of killing Homelander. She also gives Butcher several vials of V24, which he considers using. Hughie encounters a man named Tony, who claims to be Neuman's best friend and calls her "Nadia". Suspicious, Hughie tails the pair into an alley, where Tony urges her to tell the truth about "Red River". She refuses, prompting Tony to retaliate before she kills him with her powers, unaware of Hughie's presence.
2. 
As the Boys investigate Soldier Boy's death, Hughie visits Red River, an orphanage for superpowered children[a] and copies its records, learning that Neuman is Edgar's adopted daughter. Frenchie and Kimiko confront Soldier Boy's widow Crimson Countess at a Vought theme park, but she escapes and mistakenly kills an innocent bystander in the process. After learning of Neuman's powers from Hughie, Butcher takes a dose of V24 and uses it to kill Soldier Boy's former sidekick, Gunpowder. Before dying, Gunpowder informs Butcher that Soldier Boy died in Nicaragua while on a CIA mission led by Colonel Grace Mallory. Mother's Milk (MM) rejoins the Boys, seeking to avenge his family's death at Soldier Boy's hands. After learning that Stormfront committed suicide, Homelander lashes out during his televised birthday celebration and goes on a spiteful rant, claiming he is the world's savior under persecution from Vought executives.
3. 
Homelander's approval rating among rural white males skyrockets after his rant, subjecting him to less scrutiny from Vought executives. Homelander, now believing himself to be untouchable and threatening genocide, pressures Annie into reinstating the Deep. Annie is also forced to publicly pose as Homelander's new lover. Fearing for the safety of her ex-boyfriend Alex / Supersonic, she pleads with him not to join the Seven. However, he does so to support her. Mallory reveals to the Boys that Payback was deployed to assist the CIA against communists in Nicaragua during the Cold War, but were ambushed during an attack by Russian and Nicaraguan soldiers that left Black Noir mutilated and Soldier Boy missing in action, supposedly killed by a Russian superweapon. Butcher is enraged at Mallory for not disclosing the weapon's existence earlier and lashes out at Ryan Butcher before storming out. He then has Frenchie contact the latter's former boss, "Little Nina" Namenko, to arrange transport to Russia.
4. 
Butcher meets Nina and negotiates the Boys' travel to Russia in exchange for assassinating one of Nina's targets. Upon learning of the V24, Hughie asks Butcher to let him use it. Butcher refuses, but Hughie secretly takes a dose and uses it to kill one of the Russian soldiers guarding a secret laboratory. Inside, Butcher discovers a still-living Soldier Boy, who releases an energy blast that depowers and wounds Kimiko before escaping. While escaping to stabilize Kimiko, Butcher theorizes the Russians experimented on Soldier Boy. During a press conference regarding Homelander's behavior, Neuman betrays Edgar by accusing him of corruption. In return, Homelander provides Neuman a sample of Compound V, which she injects into her daughter Zoe. Annie recruits Maeve and Supersonic to help her face Homelander. Supersonic later attempts to recruit A-Train after witnessing him being mistreated by Homelander and the Deep. However, A-Train tells Homelander of the planned coup, and Homelander later confronts Starlight with Supersonic's corpse and threatens to kill Hughie unless Annie complies with his demands.
5.
Frenchie admits Kimiko to a hospital, where she is overjoyed to find she has lost her powers. She and Frenchie bond and share a kiss, but Frenchie is later kidnapped by Nina. Hughie reveals his V24 usage to a disappointed Annie. Maeve gives Butcher another batch of V24 before drinking and having sex with him. She is later captured by Noir and Homelander. Ashley Barrett is named Vought's CEO after Edgar's departure. A-Train tells fellow Supe, Blue Hawk, to issue a public apology for using excessive force against African-Americans, but Blue Hawk flies into a violent rage during the event, wounding several bystanders including A-Train's brother Nathan. Upon his return to America, Soldier Boy inadvertently causes an explosion, alerting the Boys. MM, Hughie, and Butcher learn from former Vought executive, the Legend, that Soldier Boy is going after Crimson Countess before finding and incapacitating her first. Soldier Boy arrives and kills Countess as revenge for giving him up to the Russians. Butcher decides to partner with him, and Hughie goes along despite Annie's protests.
6.
The Deep and Homelander uncover security footage of Soldier Boy killing Countess, leading Noir to cut out his tracking chip and disappear. Nina kidnaps Kimiko and Frenchie's former partner Cherie and forces him to choose who to execute, but Kimiko frees herself and kills Nina's henchmen while Nina escapes. Neuman privately reveals her powers to Annie and proposes an alliance, but Annie declines. Butcher and Hughie help Soldier Boy track down his former teammates in exchange for his help in killing Homelander. All parties converge at the TNT Twins' residence in Montpelier, where they are hosting "Herogasm", an annual Supe orgy. After the twins claim Noir also sold him out to the Russians, Soldier Boy accidentally releases another energy blast, destroying the building and killing the twins and multiple guests. Soldier Boy and an empowered Butcher and Hughie join forces to overwhelm Homelander, but he escapes before Soldier Boy can nullify his powers. A-Train uses his powers to kill Blue Hawk, then collapses from heart failure. A disillusioned Annie films a livestream announcing her departure from the Seven and publicly condemning Vought, Soldier Boy, and Homelander.
7.
Hiding out in an abandoned Buster Beaver's pizza restaurant, Noir is visited by his imaginary friends, the pizzeria franchise's mascots. They re-enact his abuse at Soldier Boy's hands and the ambush in Nicaragua — he and most of the rest of Payback, sick of Soldier Boy's abuse, conspired to trade him to the Russians on Edgar's behalf. In the present, A-Train is successfully revived after receiving a heart transplant from Blue Hawk. Butcher, Hughie, and Soldier Boy seek Payback member Mindstorm, who subdues Butcher, trapping him in memories of his abusive father and the suicide of his little brother Lenny. Hughie convinces Mindstorm to revive Butcher in exchange for his freedom, but Soldier Boy kills Mindstorm shortly afterward. While retrieving Compound V for Kimiko at Vought, Annie discovers that V24 will kill users after three to five doses. Homelander confronts Annie regarding her livestream, but she records him confessing to his crimes and posts it on social media. Frenchie injects Compound V into Kimiko, healing her injuries and restoring her powers. Annie informs Butcher of V24's risks, but Butcher chooses to withhold this information from Hughie. Soldier Boy calls Homelander and reveals that he is his biological father.
8.
Homelander finds Ryan and reconciles with him. Unwilling to harm Hughie further, Butcher abandons him; Hughie then meets with Annie to apologize. Maeve escapes Vought's custody and meets with Hughie, Annie, and MM. Homelander kills Noir for withholding the knowledge of him being Soldier Boy's son. Butcher and Soldier Boy meet with the Boys, Annie, and Maeve, and trap all but Maeve in a safe room before leaving with her and Soldier Boy to kill Homelander. When Ryan defends Homelander, Soldier Boy attacks him too, causing Butcher, Maeve, and the arriving Boys to fight Soldier Boy. Soldier Boy attempts to fire another blast, but Maeve tackles him out of the building while Homelander escapes with Ryan. Afterwards, the public mourns Maeve's apparent sacrifice, unaware she is alive but depowered. Butcher is terminally ill due to his usage of V24; Annie joins the Boys; Soldier Boy is in government custody; Neuman campaigns for Vice President after the Deep murders her predecessor; and Homelander and Ryan attend a rally for the former, where Homelander murders a dissenter for attacking Ryan, to the crowd's excitement and Ryan's pleasure.

 from Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Everything_Everywhere_All_at_Once

Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)

Evelyn Quan Wang is a middle-aged Chinese American immigrant who runs a laundromat with her husband, Waymond. Two decades prior, they eloped to the United States and had a daughter, Joy. The laundromat is being audited by the IRS. Waymond is trying to serve Evelyn divorce papers, and Evelyn's demanding father Gong Gong is visiting for her Lunar New Year party. Joy wants her mother to accept her non-Chinese girlfriend, Becky, but Evelyn presents her to Gong Gong as Joy's "good friend".

At a tense meeting with IRS inspector Deirdre Beaubeirdre, Waymond's body is taken over by Alpha-Waymond, a version of Waymond from the "Alphaverse." Alpha-Waymond explains to Evelyn that many parallel universes exist because every life choice creates a new alternative universe. The Alphaverse, led by the late Alpha-Evelyn, developed "verse-jumping" technology, which enables people to access the skills, memories, and bodies of their parallel-universe selves by performing bizarre actions that are statistically unlikely. The multiverse is now threatened by Jobu Tupaki, the Alphaverse version of Joy, whose mind was splintered after Alpha-Evelyn pushed her to extensively verse-jump. Jobu now experiences all universes at once and can verse-jump and manipulate matter at will. She has created a black hole-like "everything bagel" topped with everything,^[9] which appears as a toroid singularity^[10] that could destroy the entire multiverse.

Evelyn is given verse-jumping technology to fight Jobu's minions, who converge on the IRS building. She discovers other universes in which she made different choices and flourished, such as becoming a kung fu master and film star. She also learns of Waymond's plans for divorce. Alpha-Waymond believes that Evelyn, as the greatest "failure" of all Evelyns in the multiverse, has the untapped potential to defeat Jobu. Gong Gong is taken over by Alpha-Gong Gong, who instructs Evelyn to kill Joy to stop Jobu from using her to enter Evelyn's universe. Evelyn refuses and decides to face Jobu by gaining powers through repeated verse-jumping. Alpha-Gong Gong, convinced that Evelyn's mind has been compromised like Jobu's, sends soldiers after Evelyn. While they fight, Jobu locates and kills Alpha-Waymond in the Alphaverse. As Jobu confronts Evelyn in her universe, Evelyn's mind splinters, and she collapses.

Evelyn's consciousness uncontrollably verse-jumps alongside Jobu's across bizarre and diverse universes. Jobu reveals she doesn't want to fight, but that instead, she has been searching for an Evelyn who can see, as she does, that nothing matters while killing the Evelyns that don't. She brings Evelyn to the everything bagel, explaining that she wants to use it to allow herself and Evelyn to truly die. Upon looking into the bagel, Evelyn is persuaded and acts nihilistically in her other universes, hurting those around her.

As Evelyn is about to enter the bagel with Jobu, she pauses to listen to Waymond's pleas in her universe for everybody to stop fighting and to instead be kind even when life doesn't make sense. Evelyn has an existentialist epiphany and decides to follow Waymond's absurdist and humanist advice, using her multiverse powers to find what hurts those around her and brings them happiness. In doing so, she repairs her damage in the other universes and neutralizes Alpha-Gong Gong and Jobu's fighters. In her home universe, Evelyn reconciles with Waymond, tells Gong Gong of Joy and Becky's relationship, and talks with Deirdre after Waymond convinces her to let them redo their taxes. Jobu decides to enter the bagel alone while, simultaneously as Joy in Evelyn's universe, begging Evelyn to let her go. Evelyn tells Joy that even when nothing makes sense and even though she could be anywhere else in the multiverse, she would always want to be with Joy. Evelyn and the others save Jobu from the bagel, and Evelyn and Joy embrace.

Sometime later, with the family's relationships improved, they return to the IRS building to refile their taxes. As Deirdre talks, Evelyn's attention is momentarily drawn to her alternative selves and the multiverse before she grounds herself back in her home universe.

from Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paddington_2

Paddington 2 (2017)

Blogger's Note: I watched this film solely because of 'The Unbearable Weight Of Massive Talent".

 Paddington, having settled with the Brown family in Windsor Gardens, has become popular in his community, offering people emotional support in various ways. To purchase a unique pop-up book of London in Samuel Gruber's antique shop for his aunt Lucy's 100th birthday, Paddington performs several odd jobs and saves his wages, but Gruber's shop is burgled and the book is stolen. Paddington gives chase, but the thief escapes, and Paddington is framed. The thief returns home and is revealed to be Phoenix Buchanan, an egotistical actor who lives near the Browns. In court, although Gruber states that he does not believe that Paddington stole the book, with no evidence of the thief's existence, Paddington is convicted and sent to prison.

While in prison, Paddington befriends many of the inmates, including the short-tempered chef Knuckles, who recruits Paddington, impressed by his marmalade sandwich recipe. The Browns work to clear Paddington's name, putting up sketches of the thief. Buchanan uses the book to locate a series of clues within London's landmarks, which he believes will unveil the location of a secret treasure. During their efforts to prove Paddington's innocence, the Browns encounter a fortune teller who informs them that the book leads to the hidden fortune of the original author.

With Paddington inside, the prison is a much livelier place, but Paddington struggles to remain positive when the Browns are unable to prove his innocence, but keep hunting. Knuckles, Phibs and Spoon later tell Paddington that although the Browns mean well, they will eventually forget about him.

Becoming convinced that Buchanan is the culprit, the Browns look for the stolen book inside his house. They find a secret attic where Buchanan's various costumes are stashed, including the costume of the thief. Buchanan returns home and they are forced to leave. Meanwhile, the Browns' investigation causes them to miss visiting Paddington in prison.

Paddington, thinking that the Browns have in fact forgotten him, joins Knuckles, Phibs and Spoon in a prison break. They promise to aid in proving his innocence, but after escaping, they promptly abandon the idea in order to leave the country, inviting Paddington to join them. Paddington refuses and, while avoiding the police, uses a public telephone to contact the Browns, who assert that Buchanan is the real culprit. To catch him, they arrange to meet at Paddington Station, where a carnival train carrying the supposed location of the hidden fortune is due to leave.

Paddington reaches the station, disguising himself as a litter bin to avoid the police, and boards the train just as it leaves. The Browns pursue on a LNER Peppercorn Class A1, at the opposite platform. Buchanan finds the hidden fortune, but is thwarted by Paddington. Henry, Judy and Mrs. Bird catch up and board the other train to confront Buchanan, who overwhelms them and escapes. He severs the coupling of the train's rear carriage (with Paddington locked inside), but is photographed by Judy while holding the book, before Henry knocks him out.

Paddington is still trapped in the rear carriage when it derails and crashes into a nearby river. Mary tries to rescue Paddington but struggles to open the locked carriage; she is soon assisted by Knuckles and the other inmates, who had a change of heart and decide to help Paddington as promised.

Paddington becomes very ill and falls into a coma, but wakes up on Lucy's birthday. He learns that he has been exonerated, and that Buchanan has been arrested. He is disappointed that he cannot give Lucy the book, which was taken in as evidence, but discovers that the Browns, with the help of various other people in the neighbourhood, made sure Lucy could come to London and see it for herself. When answering the door to her, Paddington rushes up and hugs her, wishing her a happy birthday.

During the credits, Knuckles, Phibs, and Spoon are pardoned, and Knuckles opens a sandwich business. Buchanan is sentenced to 10 years in prison; six months later, he is shown to be putting his experience as a performer to further use by hosting shows for the inmates and providing entertainment throughout the building. The book was handed over to the Browns after it was released from the authorities.

The Unbearable Weight Of Massive Talent (2022)

from Wikipedia: 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Unbearable_Weight_of_Massive_Talent#Production

Hollywood actor Nicolas "Nick" Cage is struggling with his career after being passed over for several major film roles and is constantly pestered and tormented by "Nicky", who appears to him as his younger (and more successful) self. His relationship with his ex-wife Olivia and daughter Addy is also marred by years of emotional neglect. Losing a key film role and following an embarrassing event at Addy's birthday party, Nick plans to retire from acting. He decides to accept a vague offer of $1 million from his agent Richard Fink that involves going to Majorca to meet billionaire playboy Javi Gutierrez and to be the guest of honor at his birthday.

Upon meeting Javi, Nick is initially annoyed by his neediness and insistence that they create an improvisational movie based on a script he wrote, but is soon inspired by Javi's determination, and the two of them quickly bond over their surprisingly shared love of films such as The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari and Paddington 2 (the latter of which Nick watches for the first time with Javi). Soon after, Nick is confronted by CIA agents Vivian and Martin. They suspect that Javi, who they claim made his fortune through arms dealing, is behind the kidnapping of Maria, the daughter of a Catalan anti-crime politician, with the hope that he will drop out of an upcoming election. Nick insists that his acting instincts would've detected if Javi was a criminal, but he eventually decides to help the CIA with the mission.

After successfully rigging the cameras in Javi's compound, Nick attends a party where he announces his collaboration with Javi on a new movie, as an excuse to stay on the compound long enough to find Maria. After a misadventure involving LSD, Nick and Javi decide that their movie should be about their relationship. Nick later discovers that Javi keeps a shrine room dedicated to all of his movies, including a wax figure of his character Castor Troy from the film Face/Off, complete with identical golden pistols. Vivian suggests that Nick includes a kidnapping in their script, to get Javi's reaction to it.

Nick explains his new idea to Javi, who believes that Nick is distracted by his family issues. Vivian tells Nick to flee, or possibly kill Javi, as Javi has discovered their plot. But Javi reveals he's brought Nick's family to his villa. Nick tries to make amends with them, but they reject his appeal and accuse him of prioritizing his film career over his family. Javi privately goes to meet with his cousin Lucas, who is revealed to be the true arms dealer and the one who kidnapped Maria. Lucas warns him that Nick is working with the CIA and pressures him to kill Nick, or else Lucas will kill Javi.

Nick and Javi face off, but neither can bring themselves to kill the other. Lucas sends his men after both of them, and they race back to the house to discover that Addy has been kidnapped. Nick takes Javi, Olivia and Javi's assistant Gabriela to the CIA safe house, only for the house to have been compromised; Martin has been killed, while Vivian sacrifices herself to kill Lucas's men before they can ambush the group. With Javi's help, Nick and Olivia pose as a reclusive criminal couple to get close to Lucas. He figures out their plan, but they still manage to escape with Addy and Maria.

Nick, Addy, Olivia and Maria race to the American embassy while Javi and Gabriela stay behind to delay Lucas's pursuit. Upon arrival, Lucas holds Nick at gunpoint, but Addy tosses him a knife which Nick uses to kill him—transitioning into the movie that Nick and Javi completed, presumably based on their adventure. Nick is applauded for his new film and congratulates Javi before going home with his family to watch Paddington 2, now with a better relationship.

Moon Knight (2021) #1-6

 Moon Knight (2021) #1-6

   I'll be completely honest, this is my first deep dive into the Moon Knight comic book ethos. I remember buying one issue of Moon Knight from Steve's Comics on Florida Blvd. The dude's costume looked awesome and it was in the bargain bin where Steve would sell the books for something like 25 cents. No harm, no foul. Then I read it and I was like "huh?!" Needless to say, some of it was a little bit over a 12 year old's head. Kinda like the Jim Starlin 1990's stuff, or Silver Surfer, etc. Nobody was reading Moon Knight. Nobody. 

   Since then, we obviously know what happened. Disney bought Marvel for $4 billion and has continued to show they can do almost anything to the Marvel IP and make it a very worthy franchise. Enter Oscar Issac, Ethan Hawke, et al. And suddenly - it got pretty awesome. Just previous to this book launching, there was a really cool Moon Knight arc in the Avengers books that got everybody talking. And just like that, Moon Knight is cool again - to me anyway. More than just a bad ass costume anyway.

   This series starts off with Marc Spector running the Midnight Mission - a de facto hero for hire, assisted by his assistant Reese - who just so happens to unfortunately be a vampire. We learn a little about her and how this affliction has very recently been introduced to her, though not really how. I'm sure I'll learn more as the series progresses. 

   Somebody is watching Moon Knight from afar. As he traverses the city fighting crime, being assaulted, going through therapy, and encountering some other Fist of Khonshu, it's clear this arc is packing some very awesome things down the way. Sure there's some old vibes happening..i.e. we gotta beat the Hydra drum a little. But overall it's well written and the artwork is decent. It also doesn't help that everytime a Moon Knight book is sitting on our counter, my kids talk about how cool he is.

Overall, it's not bad. I'd recommend you check it out pronto.