Beyond the Starport Adventure Chapter Two

Beyond the Starport Adventure Prologue Beyond the Starport Adventure Chapter One Beyond the Starport Adventure Chapter Two Chapter Two 2179AD – Glasgow, Scotland Sean Archer sipped his cappuccino. He looked over his food towards his young son. Matthew gazed back adoringly, mimicking his father’s lopsided smile. Sean winked and Matthew returned the wink without a […]

Ascension

Ascension by Richard Fairbairn Author’s Note: Note that this short story takes part after the events portrayed in the novel Beyond the Starport Adventure spoilers are very likely if you have not read the first novel in the series. You have been warned! The funeral was a grim one. Admiral Dethvarr would have approved. The whole service […]

Humor

Added on New Year’s eve 2017, whilst recovering from a bad Southern Comfort hangover. Here are a selection of things that I find humorous. Christmas is Here – A Bad Lip Reading of Donald Trump Last Man on Earth – Carol Pilbasian Makes Love to Phil

Alien Covenant (2017)

“It’s all about Danny McBride for me…” Yes, I’m a big fan. I was a little fan before this movie, now I’m a big fan. I feel that Danny McBride’s character gave us the “down to earth hands on action” that Idris Elbe brought to Prometheus. Other than that the movie was very much more […]

Welcome

Richard W. Fairbairn Welcome to my website. I’m Richard Fairbairn, a Scottish writer living in just south of Edinburgh. I like to work on science fiction and thrillers. Right now I’ve published the science fiction thriller Blacker which is, I guess, the nearest I’ve come to a hard science fiction piece for some time. If you click the […]

Poetry

I’ve written a few poems over the years. Mostly, they’re forgotten now. But if I remember them, I’ll relate them here. I may add a few new ones too. My poetry is dark and self-indulgent. A lot of it is personal. It was a toss of the coin whether or not I’d include this in […]

Wonder Woman 2017

 “Enjoyed it thoroughly, except for the boring ending…”

I really loved this movie. I’ll admit, I’m a big fan of movies with a strong female lead. I was disappointed with Batman Vs Superman (you can read my review here) but I really wanted Wonder Woman to succeed.

We watched this movie on opening day. Okay, you’re going to get idiots kicking your seat a lot more often when you go and see a movie on opening day. Still, I like the atmosphere and the shared experience of laughter, gasps and whispered words of enjoyment. t makes the mobile phone lights, chatting teens and bolshy mothers unable to control their flock bearable – at least for the duration of the movie. I’m also getting more refined in my tradeoff between diplomacy and rage when it comes to telling people to remove their stinking trainers from the proximity of my head. I guess that’s becoming more of the authentic cinema experience, though. Enough babbling, on to the movie…

wonderwoman2.0

I didn’t expect Gal Gadot to have the presence that such a movie really needed. Now, I am by no means sexist. I just think that, in an action movie, a female star has to work just that bit harder to keep things interesting. Gal Gadot certainly did that. I knew that the addition of Chris Pine (Star Trek, Carriers, etc) would help a great deal, but I didn’t expect Wonder Woman herself to hold the movie together. She did just that.

I went into this movie with an open mind. Batman Vs Superman had revealed Wonder Woman already, and it had shown that she was incredibly overpowered. I was concerned that the character would not be vulnerable enough in this movie. Let’s face it, in Batman Vs Superman she was withstanding super powered eye blasts from the General Zod / Kryptonian monster thing that Lex Luthor had cobbled together, and she was taking all the blows from that beast (which was standing toe to toe with Superman) without getting so much as a hair out of place. So, I was worried that the character would be overpowered and not vulnerable enough in her stand alone movie. Strangely enough, the way the movie progressed from beginning to conclusion assuaged my fears. Diana’s powers and abilities were developed and explained in a satisfying way.

I enjoyed the first act the most. I loved seeing the Amazons on their island, training and fighting together in armour that was all but impractical. I’m not a fan of bows and arrows, horseback fighting and swordplay, or at least I didn’t think I was! The opening act had a lot going for it and when the movie moved to a more recognisable and relatable scene (London, WW1) it didn’t jar at all. Chris Pine’s character was believable and enjoyable, happy to play support to Gal Gadot and confident in his role.

The movie moved along nicely and I enjoyed Wonder Woman’s assembled band of helpers. It was (and always is) nice to see the Nazis taking a pounding and they certainly did in this movie.

The only thing I didn’t really enjoy was the cliched and tired ending. It felt too much like the ending of Batman Vs Superman, XMen Apocalyspe and just about every superhero movie. But it wasn’t a bad enough ending to spoil the whole experience. So I give Wonder Woman a strong thumbs up!

 

Beta Readers

Beta Readers Wanted: I’m looking for beta readers. Please email richarddpd@gmail.com for more details.

Zootopia / Zootropolis

I really enjoyed this movie. Enough entertainment for young children, but maybe not the very young. But its definitely entertaining enough to keep the parents entertained. Younger children may find some of the scenes difficult to understand. This was a thought-provoking exploration of prejudices, preconceptions, exclusion and other adult concepts that kids have to be prepared for as they […]