What's Next For Designated Survivor?

I generally try to avoid political dramas as a form of entertainment, with so much happening in the "Real World" I need not look any further than the six o'clock news if I want to become both disgusted and depressed. 

With that fact in mind I have never watched House of Cards or The West Wing, although many friends and family members have regularly recommended these shows to me. 

But there was something different about Designated Survivor, it was obvious from the beginning that this was not going to be your typical political drama. This story was going to focus on a conspiracy of epic proportions, one which would bring a nation to its knees as a government was dismantled and a man with no political ambitions was thrust into the most demanding role in the world.

This looked like a series that I could get behind, plus it starred Kiefer Sutherland so how could you really go wrong?

The first season didn't disappoint. 

As the designated survivor Sutherland's character Tom Kirkman was flung into the presidency when a homegrown terrorist attack leveled Washington's Capital Building and eliminated the bulk of the United States Government during the State Of The Union address.   

Kirkman would immediately be faced with many challenges, transitioning his family to the White House, navigating the minefield that is a political life in Washington, restoring the trust of a demoralized nation, and bringing those responsible for this attack to justice.

This did not feel like your typical political drama, and by the time season one drew to a close I was already eagerly anticipating season two and the journey that the writers would continue to take us on. 

That wait came to an end last night as season two began with a giant leap forward!

It has been a year since the events that began the series transpired, the Kirkman administration has rebuilt that which was destroyed at a considerable expense, the wealthy ringleader behind the attack has been identified and is now on the run, and the American people have begun to lose faith in Tom Kirkman and his ability to lead.

Last nights episode found the States being drawn into a conflict between Russia and Chechnya with American civilians being used as leverage, but as the episode concluded it saw Patrick Lloyd, the terrorist leader played by Terry Serpico sneaking back into Washington D.C.

The return of Lloyd to Washington is in my opinion the catalyst that will propel season two forward. Because at its core it is this homegrown conflict that made season one so enjoyable, and it is that same tension that the shows producers will need in order to not only have a successful second season but to also hopefully be renewed for a third season as well.

Are you watching Designated Survivor?  If so, let us know in the comments below what your hopes are for season two and please remember to follow us on social media via our website at cangeek.com

Kingsman: What the F#CK is Alpha Gel???

This past Saturday, in between getting ready for CanGeek's participation in the Peterborough Comic-Con, my wife and I darted into a theater to see Kingsman: The Golden Circle.

I've quite regularly stated that beyond Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the first Kingsman film was one of my favorite movies of 2015, so I've been eagerly anticipating the release of this sequel for what feels like a lifetime now.

Generally speaking The Golden Circle was a decent followup film, there are however two points that bothered me, and at the top of that list is the return of Harry Hart played by Colin Firth. When I first heard that Firth would return for this sequel I was both joyful and confused, usually when someone is shot in the head at point-blank range they don't get a do-over,

But hey this is Hollywood so anything is possible, right?

Once they brought Harry into the story-line, it was explained that The Statesmen, the American cousins to the Kingsmen had developed this substance known as Alpha Gel. When injected post-gunshot through a victims ears, Alpha Gel builds a protective layer around the brain while nanobots internally dissolve the bullet - so this Alpha Gel stuff is basically magic and that is where my first issue with this film begins. 

Now I know that movies are not generally realistic but somethings are much harder to believe then others, for example had the writers explained Harts return through the use of cloning, that would have been much easier to accept then a magic gel that protects you from head trauma. It's not bad enough that they used this explanation once, but they killed off another character in a similar manor and then brought them back later in the film to further develop what felt like an unnecessary story arc.

My second issue with this film is simply that it felt too busy, there was so much "Star Power" in this film that it felt like they were coming up with any reason for characters to interact as a means to ensure that each actor or actress had their fair share of screen time.

One standout among all this star power was Julianne Moore as the films villain, this lady has playing a sociopath down to a science, she was a fantastic followup to Samuel L. Jackson in the first film.

However having said that, I think what made the first Kingsman film such a success is what they missed with this second film. You had a fluid story that moved forward quickly, it didn't feel like you had to have a road map to keep up with the story-line. That's not to say that you can't follow this story, but you do need to pay much more attention to keep up with all the jumping around that takes place in this movie.

I enjoyed this film, all be it not as much as the first one, and on a rating scale out of ten I'd  give this sequel a solid eight! Lets just hope that by the time a third film comes out the production staff re-watch the first movie and find their way back home.

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Star Trek: It has always been about hope!

I found myself feeling hopeless on Sunday night....

When it was announced that Star Trek was making its long awaited return in 2015 I was ecstatic, it had been almost a decade since production wrapped on Enterprise and I needed something to look forward to, to be hopeful for.

Whither it be James T Kirk engaged in mortal combat with Khan, Jean-Luc Picard defending the Federation against a Borg invasion, Benjamin Sisko protecting the Alpha Quadrant against the Dominion, Jonathan Archer helping to lay the foundation of Starfleet or Kathryn Janeway attempting to bring her crew home, Star Trek has always been about hope.  

However by the time the two hour series premier of Star Trek Discovery had concluded I was not left with a feeling of hope, but rather a feeling of hopelessness - this was not the Star Trek I had grownup with.

Discovery has a much different feeling to it, a very dark and hopeless feeling. 

Set roughly a decade before the events of the original series, Discovery begins with a confrontation between Starfleet and a fractured Klingon Empire. The Klingon's have been absent for almost one hounded years, other then popping up every now and again to kill colonists as a reminder that they are still out there - and that's how we meet our main character Michael Burnham.

Burnham is orphaned during one such raid and is adopted by Spock's father Sarek. Sarek places Burnham in the Vulcan Science Academy, and once her education is complete he logically returns her to the human race by placing her aboard the USS Shenzhou under the command of captain Philippa Georgiou.

It is during her service as the Shenzhou's first officer that Burnham sparks a war between the Federation and Klingon Empire, betrays her shipmates, and ultimately causes the death of her captain before facing a court-martial and being imprisoned for life.

Star Trek has always been about hope, but the premier of Discovery left me feeling hopeless.

As we look forward to next weeks episode it's fair to assume that Burnham will somehow evade her life sentence and once again find her way onto the bridge of a Starship. 

However in a series that opened with so much aggression and has already killed off what was believed to be a central character, this show feels like it is tapping the darkness that is the Kelven timeline as opposed to the hopefulness that was always just beneath the surface in the original timeline. 

With that in mind I can't help but wonder if Star Trek Discovery will be the CBS All Access attempt at Game of Thrones in space, only time will tell but here's hoping that the shows helmsmen sets a course in the right direction in the weeks to come.

Because Star Trek has always been about hope.

Is Star Wars in critical condition?

Is it just me or does Lucasfilm seem to be going through directors almost as fast as the Empire goes through Death Stars? It was confirmed yesterday via starwars.com that the production company had parted ways with Colin Trevorrow, the director of Star Wars episode IX.

According to the statement:

"Lucasfilm and Colin Trevorrow have mutually chosen to part ways on Star Wars Episode IX. Colin has been a wonderful collaborator throughout the development process but we have all come to the conclusion that our visions for the project differ. We wish Colin the best and will be sharing more information about the film soon."

This however is not the first time this has happened.  Earlier this year Chris Miller and Phil Lord were also replaced on the set of the super-secret Han Solo prequel film.  At the time a similar statement was released which stated:

"Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are talented filmmakers who have assembled an incredible cast and crew, but it's become clear that we had different creative visions on this film, and we've decided to part ways. A new director will be announced soon"

And within a matter of days Lucasfilm did indeed announce that Ron Howard would take over as director of that film.

Rumors have already begun to circulate with names like Rian Johnson & J.J. Abrams being suggested as Trevorrow's replacement.  However the real question here is whither or not the Star Wars franchise is in critical condition?  Could it be that with plans to release a film every year for the foreseeable future that Disney has over extended their own creative vision?  Have they set the bar so high that no one director or team or directors could hope to live up-to that vision?

Only time will tell, but it gives fans something to consider as we prepare for the release of The Last Jedi on December the fifteenth.