The Franchise Report

Content updates from our favorite IPs

🌌 From A Galaxy Far, Far Away

Ahsoka Part Four: Fallen Jedi

Spoilers ahead.

Yeah, just give Dave Filoni the keys. This was one of the best episodes of Star Wars, live-action or animated, that I’ve ever seen. The stakes felt high. The character moments were fantastic and the story vaulted forward. Nightsister magic is awesome. The fight sequences felt like the perfect mix between the prequel and the original trilogies. The shogun/samurai aesthetic is top-tier. The depth of the characters and the lore of the universe continues to build. The tone truly felt like something out of S7 of The Clone Wars. The ambiance feels both epic and devastating.

Ray Stevenson as Baylan is one of the best casting choices Star Wars has made…maybe ever? He’s already one of my favorite antagonists of the franchise. He holds immense weight, mystery and intrigue and his fighting style resembling an Arthurian knight is just fresh and badass. It’s horrendous that Ray passed away earlier this year before he got to see how celebrated he’s been by the Star Wars fandom. We lost an incredible talent.

Then it ends on that BANGER. Ahsoka wakes up in THE WORLD BETWEEN F-ING WORLDS and turns around to see her master, Anakin Skywalker, donning his attire from Episode 3: The Revenge of The Sith. I MELTED.

Now, if you’re lost…I got you. The World Between Worlds is a mystical, high fantasy concept from Star Wars Rebels. Ezra (the Jedi they are looking for in this show) enters to find windows into other realities and points in time. He even reaches into one of those windows and pulls Ahsoka out of her battle with Vader from the S2 finale of Rebels, so this is her second time here.

Ahsoka has a lot of trauma and demons regarding Anakin and how she wasn’t there for him when he turned to the dark side, so this will likely play as a cathartic learning experience that she needs to move on. I imagine we’re going to see some insane glimpses into the past and alternate realities next week. We might even see Thrawn and Ezra. This episode cutting to black with the Darth Vader theme is unsettling. Buckle the fuck up.

If you’re late on getting caught up with the series, find my Ahsoka Primer here.

More Star Wars

• Dave Filoni explaining the World Between Worlds. Brilliant.

• Ahsoka Part 5 will be released in select theaters in the US and internationally on Sep 12. This hasn’t been done before…what is Dave cooking??

• If you look closely, you can see that Hera keeps a picture of Kana Jarrus in the cockpit of the Ghost. Immense pain.

🦸‍♂️ Cape Shit

MCU Shows Moving Dates

Let’s get this out of the way first: any shows or movies changing dates and being delayed is due to the studios refusing to pay the writers and actors fair wages. This moving around of the MCU TV slate is no different.

Borys Kit of The Hollywood Reporter scooped that the MCU is reshuffling its deck. Originally we were to have a ton of content to end this year…but it looks like they’ve decided to punt a few down the road in order to spread the content while the strikes are ongoing.

• Loki S2 will premiere this fall on Oct 6. I thought S1 was fantastic, so I’m excited for this one. New trailer here.

• What If…?, the animated anthology series, is the only other series to premiere this year, with S2 slated for ‘around Christmas Day’. If you like animated content, the first season was a ton of fun and I recommend watching it.

• Echo, a character who was seen in last year’s Hawkeye, is moving its release from Nov 29 to January 2024.

• X-Men ‘97, a spiritual continuation of the original animated series from the 90s, was moved from fall 2023 to early 2024.

• Agatha, a WandaVision spinoff, is moving from winter 2023 to fall 2024 - so almost a full year. It’s smarter for this show to release in the heart of Halloween, so I actually support this and it will likely be more successful.

• Three shows are officially off of the schedule (for now) due to the strikes, including Ironheart, Daredevil: Born Again, and Wonder Man. I’m highly anticipating Daredevil, but it might be a while until this one releases.

The MCU release slate is going to look very different in the near future.

Read the full article here.

The Rest

Content updates from smaller franchises and projects

🎥 Films, TV & Streaming

More

• Danny Masterson who played Hyde in That ‘70s Show, has been sentenced to 30 years in prison due to a rape conviction. Horrible.

• The Crow, an adaptation of the 90’s comic, scores distribution with Lionsgate. The film stars Bill Skarsgard and is heavily anticipated.

• Rick and Morty S7 releases on Oct 15 with a new main voice actor taking over for Justin Roiland, who was let go from the show after facing domestic abuse charges.

• The highest-grossing films of 2023, per Culture Crave.

• Marshawn Lynch improvised almost all of his lines in Bottoms and used the role as an opportunity to correct his wrongs with how he handled his sister coming out as a lesbian. Beast Mode is the best.

• Season 2 of Arcane is rumored to premiere in winter 2024. I will wait an eternity for this show.

The Gaming Industry

Content updates from the world of gaming & esports

More

• The future of gaming is in community mods and creative modes. Fortnite is a leader in this - check out the Hunger Games someone made within the Fortnite engine. Would genuinely give this a try.

• Megan Fox is playing her second demonic role in a video game this summer, starring as Nitara in Mortal Kombat.

• A Hogwarts Legacy sequel is in the works per some scoopers, but this isn’t the least bit surprising.

• Stray, the cat game phenomenon from BlueTwelve studio, is getting adapted to an animated feature film by Annapurna Animation.

• Baldurs Gate 3 companions are apparently ‘extra horny’ due to a bug in the system that the developers are working to fix. SURE.

• Competitive Madden shit-talking is back.

The Weekly Rant

Rotten Tomatoes Controversy

For years, Rotten Tomatoes has dominated the general audience’s opinions and viewpoints on films. It’s often used and quoted in blogs and articles out of demand and necessity (guilty). In recent years there’s been a love/hate phenomenon surrounding it, and the conspiracy theorists have always called it out for existing biases and paying critics. It seems that they’re finally vindicated.

Lane Brown of Vulture reported that PR firms are using Rotten Tomatoes to manipulate film scores and box office success. The PR firm in question, Bunker 15, has been caught paying critics $50+ for reviews (a laughably low bar here). They target small, obscure critics who are within the RT ecosystem.

Manipulating movie scores isn’t just saying “Here’s money, go give our movie a good review.” It’s as simple as providing money, visibility, legitimacy and other benefits to smaller creators who are excitable and can be had for cheap. Most early reviewers do not want to get on a studio’s bad side, so they feel a positive OR middle-of-the-road review will get them in good graces for progressing their careers. It’s unethical and happens constantly - and now we can prove it.

Critics voices used to matter, but now it’s really only the aggregated number. The general audience doesn’t go deeper than seeing the RT score to influence their opinion to watch a film or not. Finding reviewers you enjoy reading/watch (hey lol) is incredibly important.

If you’re looking for guidance on movies and shows without bias - find writers or creators whose opinions you value, enjoy and trust. Take their thoughts, use them to inform your process and move from there. Sites like RT have desensitized us from forming our own opinions…think for yourself.

The Quick Hits

Nonsense updates from the week

⚡ What I’ve Been Consuming

• Ahsoka - Part 4 was a masterclass in storytelling. Review above.

• Starfield - I’ve played just under 10ish hours. Review next week.

• Fantasy Football Content - I have five teams, and I’m fully aware I have a problem. Podcasts, YT videos, articles…I’m consuming all of it. It’s time.

💣 Random

• Tonight, the NFL returns. WE ARE SO BACK.

• Two YouTube legends Jacksepticeye and Mr Beast are beefing. Wtf?

• Until I saw this tweet I had no idea Jimmy Buffett cameoed in Jurassic World, running from dinosaurs while saving two margaritas. RIP.

• The Swifties are going to be an invasive species to theaters when the Taylor Swift Era’s Tour film drops this October. This is insanity. 

• I am now obsessed with the groundhog named Chunk who steals a farmer’s crops and eats them in front of the security camera.

• Cinema about the Irish exit. These guys are hilarious.

• I’m here for AMC A-List propaganda. This is me.

🐦Tweet of The Week
Timmy - man of the people.

📽️ Trailer Recap

• Loki Season 2 | Release Date Trailer

• The Bikeriders | Official Trailer

• The Boy and the Heron | Teaser

• Gen V | Final Trailer

• Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget | Teaser

👀 Keep An Eye Out

• Sep 06 | I Am Groot Season 2

• Sep 07 | Lions vs Chiefs

• Sep 08 | The Nun II

• Sep 12 | Ahsoka Part 5