Monthly Media Recap - March 2026

 For an April 1st post, there's not a lot of stinkers this month!

As usual, linked titles will take you to a trailer. 

 

Gatchaman Progress

Only watched 2. Now up to: 75

 

Streaming Series

 

Wonder Man (Disney+)

The MCU TV series can really shine when they take a chance and do something different. This isn't a "superhero" show. It's a show about a guy making his way through life that happens to have super powers. I love how they made "Wonder Man" an 80s sci-fi movie icon and that they brought back Trevor. who has no trouble stealing the scenes he's in. Looking forward to season 2!

 

Ted (S2, Peacock)

Simultaneously more crass than last season (hilariously so) but also balanced with an equal amount of heart. MacFarlane has said this is the last season due to the cost of the show which is really too bad because it's just so damn funny.

 

Movies

 

Project Hail Mary (2025, IMAX)

I've only really seen Gosling in Barbie and the Fall Guy and he does a phenomenal job here. His co-star is no slouch either and will likely be one for the record books. There was a lot more comedy that I was expecting which is kind of ironic as Lord and Miller were booted off Solo: A Star Wars Story for trying to make it more comedic. If you're on the fence about seeing this in a theater, do it! The little kid in me that used to stare at the moon through a telescope and wonder what was out there is glad he did.

 

Rating: 9/10 

 

 

The Last Video Store (2023, Shudder)

The Videonomicon, a strange video tape, traps two people in a video store and forces them to face off against movie characters. I often rip on low budget horror but then there's ones like this that have something special that I thoroughly enjoy. Just about everything hits for me: the synth score, the meta movie tropes, and the knockoff fictional stereotypes of famous movie characters. Horror kids that grew up renting everything and anything in the 80s, this one's for you!

 

Rating: 8/10

 

The Running Man (2025, Paramount+) 

Solid action movie with a social commentary that's a little too close to home these days. It's one of those movies where some things don't make sense if you stop and think about it, but it's also not that kind of movie and before long there's another action set piece to keep things moving.

 

Rating: 8/10

 

Escape Room: Tournament of Champions (2021, Prime)

Speaking of movies that don't make sense... I mentioned with the first one of these how crazy it was that Someone constructed these elaborate escape rooms which must cost into the billions and that's even more true here. Not only that but it feels like things happen because that's the way they have to in order for the plot to progress. Even just the way the main characters are forced together must have taken an improbable amount of planning. Still, kind of a fun watch for the traps.

 

Rating: 6/10 

 

 

Alligator (1980, Prime)

This is one of those movies that was always at my periphery of horror. It was always on the rental shelf, frequently saw it popup on TV but for some reason never watched despite it being one of my favorite sub genres: giant animal on the loose. It may be a B movie Jaws knockoff but they pull it off! I was surprisingly entertained for the whole thing

 

Rating: 7/10, not really but it was a fun watch

 

 

Alligator 2: The Mutation (1991, Prime and YouTube)

As much fun as the first one was, this direct-to-video bomb needs an MST3k treatment to get to the same level of fun. It's a poor retread of the original and everything about it is worse. The plot, the acting, the effects, you name it. At one point, the alligator is making its way through a fair and it's clear they're just shooting the snout from the side while it's on a dolly, rolling it through the crowd.

 

Rating: 3/10, flush it

 

Ready or Not (2019, Prime/Hulu)

Have you ever watched a movie that you've never seen but parts of it felt familiar? That was my experience here, very odd. Anyway, it's a pretty wild ride and if it's possible seven years later, best to go in blind. The plot becomes apparent to the audience almost immediately but the build up to the main character being let in on it and the roller coaster that follows is wonderful and the dark humor woven in is chef's kiss.

 

Rating: 8/10

 

 

Relaxer (2018, Shudder)

I feel secure promising you, you've never seen and will never see, another movie like this in your life. The basic plot is about a guy trying to get to the Pac-Man kill screen on New Year's Eve 1999. The whole movie takes place in his living room with the occasional visit from oddball characters. And there's some extra weird layered on top of all this. It's something you have to see for yourself because I sure as hell can't explain it! While I kind of get what they were doing and the performance of the main character was fantastic, it's just a little too out there for me...and I love Rubber!

 

Rating: 4/10 

 

This Month

New: 8   Rewatch: 0

Year to Date

New: 22   Rewatch: 0

Thundarr the Barbarian Comc Book

 It's still pretty early in the year but I think I can safely say Thundarr the Barbarian from Dynamite is my most anticipated comic of the year!

 

As far as Saturday morning cartoons go, Thundarr is at the top of my list and was likely a factor in my picking up the D&D Basic rule set at that age. If, for some reason, Thundarr isn't known to you, check out the show's intro. A post-apocalyptic world combining sci-fi and fanatasy? Doesn't get much better than that! 

 

 

 Like many comics these days, Thundarr has multiple cover variants. The above one is my favorite since Jack Kirby himself worked on the show's production design including most of the villains, which are all memorable in their own way. Not only is in done in a very Kirdy-esque style but there's a not so subtle Kirby tribute on the cover.

 

 The comic hooked me from the first few pages. Obviously, I'm an easy mark but even in the opening scene, they bring back a few of the bad guys Thundarr crossed paths with in the show. Being an 80s Saturday morning show, Thundarr was pretty episodic and usually dealt with a new threat each week. To see some of them pop up from the get go, told me these folks are really paying attention to the source.

 

 If you watched the intro, you might recognize the guy on the left that appears for maybe 2 seconds. 

 

The comic tells two stories simultaneously: The main story takes place in the present of 3994 and has Thundarr going under cover to break up a human trafficking/slavery ring. The other story is told through flashback and follows Thundarr's life as a gladiator slave leading up to him meeting Ookla and Ariel.

 

 Despite how much I was looking forward to this, the first issue snuck by me and I only found the second issue just released a few weeks ago. This issue spends a little more time in the flashback, you get to see how Ariel ties into things, and Thundarr faces his toughest arena fight yet: Ookla the Mok!

 

Meanwhile, in the present day, the gang confront the Council of Wizards who are involved in the human slave trade. In classic comic tradition, these wizards have all been bested by Thundarr over the show's run and are now gathered together to bring him down! One of them activates a time portal and sends our heroes back to 1994 just moments before the runaway planet passes between the Earth and the moon, kick starting the global apocalypse from the intro!

 

 

Another thing I love about the series so far is they perfectly capture the characters, including Ariel's commentary on Thundarr's recklessness.

 If you're a fan of sci-fi/fantasy that's just being introduced to Thundarr from this post, you'd probably enjoy the comic. But if you're someone that's been craving more Thundarr adventures since the 80s, I think you'll absolutely love this and find it a worthy successor to the show.

 

Monthly Media Recap - February 2026

 The country (world?) may be going to hell in a hand basket but I'm still here to bring the Monthly Media Recap! As usual, linked titles will take you to a trailer.

 

 

Gatchaman Progress

Only squeezed in 3 this month. Currently up to 72.

  

Streaming

 

His & Hers (2026, Netflix)

Two estranged spouses — one a detective, the other a news reporter — vie to solve a murder in which each believes the other is a prime suspect. Excellent murder mystery! And you can't go wrong with Jon Bernthal and Tessa Thompson as the leads, great performances.

 

The Muppet Show (2026, Disney+)

If this doesn't get a series order, people should be rioting! Not only did the reproduce the original Muppet theater but they also captured the essence of the original show. I think more than ever, the world needs the Muppet Show!

 

Movies

 

Uncanny Annie (2019, Hulu)

Part of Hulu's holiday horror series Into the Dark. This one has a bunch of teens playing a haunted board game on Halloween night. There's some drama among the friend group but I didn't really care. I didn't like any of them and was pretty much waiting for the body count to rise. The kills aren't anything memorable but they're okay. 

 

Rating: 5/10

 

 

The Jester 2 (2025, Shudder)

I'm torn on this series so far. On one hand, they have some creative kills inspired by magic tricks. On the other, they keep doing something to make me not like it as much as I want. In this one, they redesigned the Jester's look (probably to get away from Art the Clown) and it just looks like a mask on a mask. At least the plot in this one is more straightforward and it falls an oddly specific sub-genre that I enjoy: kids getting roped into working with the evil.

 

Rating: 5/10

 

 

10/31, Part IV (2024, Tubi or watch it on YouTube)

Another entry in the Halloween horror anthology series. I went back to see what I thought of the rest and found I've only seen the first! Of the four stories, the first, Ejectdead, is my favorite. Imagine The Ring but instead of Samara, you get a Jason like slasher. There's one other tale that's memorable even if the way they carried it out didn't make a lot of sense. Overall, not bad for an indie anthology.

 

Rating: 4/10

 

The Wrecking Crew (2026, Prime)

This feels like it could be in the Fast & Furious-verse: it's loud, dumb, about family, has lots of action and for some reason I really enjoyed it. Bautista and Momoa play off each other really well, milking the "at odds buddy cop" trope for all it's worth. My two biggest issues were some sequences with painfully obvious blue screen and the unbelievable civilian collateral casualties they cause with no mention.

 

Rating: 7/10

 

Predator: Badlands (2025, Disney+/Hulu)

Some people won't like this because a Predator is the main character and it removes some of the mystery around them. Me? I've been waiting for this movie since the original AvP comics came out. Having a young Predator protagonist allows you to see there's more to them as a species. Elle Fanning is great and has a lot of lifting to do as she's the only "human" in most of the movie. Between this, Prey, and Killer of Killers, we've been blessed with some of the best Predator content since the original.

 

Rating: 8/10

 

 

Mrs Dex found the Six Million Dollar Man on Peacock and we're doing a series watch. I can't really call it a rewatch because there's no way I caught a lot of these when they aired. Being Gen X kids, we both have nostalgia for the show so it's interesting to go back and watch it now, especially with the gratuitous use of stock footage. Prior to the show proper, there were three made for TV movies to get Col. Austin off the ground.

  

The Six Million Dollar Man (1973)

I've read this is a good adaptation of the original novel Cyborg by Martin Caidin. I haven't read the book but I'm not sure how anyone saw this and said "Yes, we need more!" Steve has mental trauma from his accident and replacement parts which is understandable and is a great theme for a book. But here he's very dour and the show just isn't that much fun. The fan-made season one trailer above gives a little peek at how serious the pilot can be.

 

Rating: 3/10 

 

Wine, Women, and War (1973) &The Solid Gold Kidnapping (1973)

I'm lumping these together as there's not a lot to differentiate them. They basically turned Austin into James Bond with bionics. He's got a sense of humor and even drops a couple double entendre! They're dated, as anything from the 70s will be, but they're a lot more fun to watch than the pilot. They haven't got around to using the iconic sound effects yet so it's a little weird seeing him in action without them.

 

Rating: 4/10 & 5/10

 

This Month

New: 8   Rewatch: 0

Year to Date

New: 14   Rewatch: 0