Movie #3 of 2026: The Matrix Revolutions (2003) A disappointing but acceptable conclusion to the original Matrix trilogy. This third feature is nowhere near as imaginative as its predecessors with their mindbending fight scenes and special effects, rushing through the comparable moments somewhat perfunctorily and spending far too long on the defense of Zion. For …
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TV #3 of 2026: Classic Doctor Who, season 23 If you’re a modern viewer catching up on old Doctor Who, you might not notice anything immediately amiss when finishing season 22 and starting this next one. There’s an introductory framing device that’s new, involving the Time Lords putting the Sixth Doctor on trial for his …
Book #10 of 2026: Tales from the Nightside by Simon R. Green Three years after the main Nightside series concluded, author Simon R. Green released this anthology of shorter stories set in the same supernatural corner of London. All but the concluding novella The Big Game had been previously published elsewhere, while four of the …
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Book #9 of 2026: A Spell to Wake the Dead by Nicole Lesperance This novel has a neat beginning that it then proceeds to squander, becoming one of those stories where I can viscerally feel my rating for it dropping as I continue to read along. The initial premise involves a trio of queer and …
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TV #2 of 2026: The Adventures of Young Indiana Jones, season 1 The show The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles originally aired from 1992 to 1996, with Corey Carrier playing the future archaeologist from age 8–10 and Sean Patrick Flanery performing the role for ages 16–21. In 1999, these episodes were then combined with new bridge …
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Book #8 of 2026: The Magician of Tiger Castle by Louis Sachar This 2025 novel has been promoted as author Louis Sachar’s first story for grown-ups, but I feel as though it only earns that designation via the adult narrator and the slightly higher page count. The tone isn’t noticeably different from his previous offerings, …
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Movie #2 of 2026: The Matrix Reloaded (2003) As a movie, The Matrix (1999) is perfectly standalone. As a box office hit and a genuine cultural phenomenon, however, it was probably always going to launch a franchise, and this first sequel is a pretty solid follow-up. It’s messy and overstuffed by comparison, even ignoring the …
Book #7 of 2026: A Libertarian Walks into a Bear: The Utopian Plot to Liberate an American Town (and Some Bears) by Matthew Hongoltz-Hetling A darkly-ironic case, not always written about very well in this particular book. The town in question is Grafton, NH (population 1,385 in the latest census), which we’re told was already …
Book #6 of 2026: The Rise of Neptune by Scott Reintgen (The Dragonships #2) The first volume in this middle-grade sci-fi series about dragons in outer space didn’t blow me away, but it was promising enough that I decided to check out this sequel to see how the cliffhanger resolved. And I guess I’m reasonably …
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Book #5 of 2026: Powersat by Ben Bova From 1985 through his death in 2020, author Ben Bova wrote around 30 interconnected novels in a loose sci-fi series he eventually called his Grand Tour. (It’s actually surprisingly difficult to get an exact count there, since this was seldom used as a marketing term and there …
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