By Dave B.

What if great power doesn’t come with great responsibility? That’s one of the questions posed by Jupiter’s Legacy (Netflix) as it follows a family of superheroes searching for their place in the world. Sworn to uphold a code that stipulates they will never kill, a new generation of heroes find themselves at odds with rules and responsibilities that don’t fit their current world. Society balances on the precipice as hidden threat surfaces to shatter the foundations of the world. 

By Dave B.

The second season of The Hollow finds Adam, Mira, and Kai back home with their respective families. But something is wrong and the teammates find that the “real” world is filled with unexpected nightmares. The trio go off in search of answers as to why, despite their victory, they can’t seem to escape the virtual world. 

By Dave B.

In Dispatches From Elsewhere, four strangers are thrown together in a game that sprawls throughout Philadelphia. What starts out as innocent fun turns into something more sinister, as the team uncovers a conspiracy perpetrated by a multinational corporation. 

By Dave B.

The third season of Netflix’s Castlevania takes place about a month after Dracula’s defeat. Eastern Europe is in chaos with various vampire and human factions vying for power. Trevor and Sypha roam the countryside killing demons and doing their small part to make the world a safer place. Meanwhile, Alucard wallows in loneliness, searching for purpose after accomplishing his lifelong goal of slaying his father, Dracula. As the vampire king’s loyalists plot their revenge against his betrayers, Trevor and Sypha find themselves battling religious zealots whose sole goal is Dracula’s return.

By Dave B.

Netflix’s Locke & Key follows the Locke children after they, and their mother, move into the childhood home of their father who, months earlier, was brutally and seemingly senselessly murdered in front of them. After moving into Keyhouse (yes, that’s what it’s actually called), the children begin finding keys that grant them access to incredibly powerful, incredibly dangerous abilities. Unbeknownst to the Locke kids, one of their father’s old enemies has resurfaced and will stop at nothing to gain control of the keys.

By Dave B.

HBO’s His Dark Materials takes place on an alternate version of Earth where people are connected to animals called daemons and the world is infused with an invisible substance called dust. England is ruled by a theocracy that ruthlessly suppresses all threats to its rule. A young orphan girl, Lyra, embarks on a dangerous journey to save her kidnapped friend and finds herself pursued by powerful foes, as unbeknownst to her, she is a child of prophecy destined to shake the foundations of her world. 

By Dave B.

In Netflix’s The Witcher, Geralt of Rivia is a Witcher: a mutant created by magic whose life is dedicated to killing monsters for money. Shunned by humans who believe that Witchers are emotionless abominations, Geralt finds his fate intertwined with those of Yennerfer, an ambitious sorceress who craves power to salve the wounds of her painful past, and Cirilla, a young princess from the kingdom of Centra who is on the run from the forces of the Nilfgaardian Empire who seek to use her incredible untapped powers for themselves. 

By Dave B.

​HBO’s Watchmen takes place in the same world as the “The Watchmen” comics and movie, from which it’s name is derived. The world of Watchmen is similar to our own and shares historical parallels, but is distinct in that differences in some critical events led to the widespread adoption of masked vigilantism as a way to fight crime. In Watchmen, vigilantes in masks have been outlawed, but the Tulsa, Oklahoma police themselves wear masks and adopt secret identities in the normal course of their duties, nominally for the protection of themselves and their families. When it is discovered that the all-powerful Dr. Manhattan is on Earth and living under the guise of a normal human, carnage ensues as various groups vie for his power. As a backdrop to all of this, the legacy of the 1921 Tulsa Massacre’s unresolved legacy looms large.

By Dave B.

​Seis Manos (Netflix) follows three martial arts students in a small Mexican town as they team up with a local police officer and an American DEA agent to find justice for the murder of their master who was slain by a man who was genetically mutated by magical tears from a statue. Their mission is further complicated by a mysterious visitor from their master’s past who holds the key to unlocking the truth behind untold mysteries. Does all of that make sense? 

By Dave B.

​Mortal Engines (2018, currently on HBO) takes place on a post-apocalypse Earth where mobile cities vie for resources, with huge metropolises devouring smaller towns. London, having exhausted the resources of England has crossed to continental Europe, intent on finding a path through to the comparatively untouched hunting grounds of Asia. Hester Shaw, the movie’s heroine, will stop at nothing to stop London’s relentless onslaught while fulfilling her own need for revenge against the most influential member of London society.