“‘Chaos Walking’ Stumbles, Trips, Faceplants”

Just gonna pat myself on the back for this headline, what a stroke of genius. Continue reading →

TV Review: The Bastard Executioner, 1.10, “Blood and Quiescence/Crau a Chwsg”

“If The Bastard Executioner’s cardinal season can be summed up with a single word, that word is “rushed.” From the show’s premiere to its finale, “Blood and Quiescence/Crau a Chwsg,” every narrative thread, every plot point, every character arc has felt unjustly compressed, like so many square pegs being stuffed into round holes. This, in … Continue reading →

TV Review: The Bastard Executioner, 1.08, “Broken Things/Pethau Toredig”

“And for one episode, the cast of The Bastard Executioner set aside their petty squabbles, personal vendettas and unresolved beefs to unite for a greater purpose: hunting a rogue Frenchman. Corbett might be a murdering son of a bitch, and Wilkin might feel the utmost loathing for him, but when the newly-exiled Piers Gaveston goes … Continue reading →

TV Review: The Bastard Executioner, 1.06, “Thorns/Drain”

“Tough luck for all you Lowry/Wilkin shippers: You ship is still anchored at port. Those two crazy kids haven’t knocked boots yet, which is surprising, and not in equal measure. We’re only six (technically five, if you count the pilot as a single entity) episodes into The Bastard Executioner’s opera of suffering and misery, too … Continue reading →

TV Review: The Bastard Executioner, 1.04, “A Hunger/Newyn”

“After a two-part pilot and a pair of standalone episodes, The Bastard Executioner has become a show that’s fully worth watching. We’re too far past the point at which Kurt Sutter’s Welsh medieval torture baby could ever be called “perfect,” but where he’s contented himself playing solo rounds of speedball since the series’ premiere, he … Continue reading →

TV Review: The Bastard Executioner, 1.03, “Effigy/Delw”

“Effigies and snakes; that’s all The Bastard Executioner deigns to give us this week, all instances of rhinectomy aside. Annora’s growing collection of artisanal hanging serpents are probably the least important detail in “Effigy/Delw” (pronounced “del-oo”), but the sight of them suspended in air, gently lit by the blaze of her torch, does give the … Continue reading →

TV Review: The Bastard Executioner, 1.01, “Pilot”

“The clash of steel you hear in the two-part pilot for The Bastard Executioner, erstwhile Sons of Anarchy showrunner Kurt Sutter’s new FX passion project, isn’t just the sound of men crossing swords: It’s the sound of Sutter throwing down a gore-stained gauntlet somewhere in the vicinity of George R.R. Martin’s boots. A review of … Continue reading →