Film: The Substance

Nothing could have prepared me for this film. That's not to say it was totally out there, more that the premise didn't quite lend itself to what we finally got. An almost unrecognisable (to me, but still great) Demi Moore stars as the insecure star desperate to cling on to her perceived value.

The film is zany, maybe even a little gonzo and very graphic - at times uncomfortably so. It even threw back to some 80s classics at times (I'm looking at you, The Fly).

One criticism is that it might have laboured its point a bit too much, and as such felt overly long at times. Other than that, The Substance is a curious movie that's worth the time it asks for.

Book: Aurberon, James S. A. Corey

One of the nice things about the novellas in this series is how they're not afraid to jump out of context. Aurberon for example goes right back to the start of the Laconian take over of the human worlds, and the struggles with governorship that comes with such expansion. As such it's a very political story, and one that makes its point succinctly.

It's a nice break from some of the more wild science fiction that's going on elsewhere in the epic, while also showing the cracks in the empire that were there from the start.

A quick win then, and a nice little palate cleanser before the main event and finale to come next.

Film: Beetlejuice Beetlejuice

The first Beetlejuice had no right to be as good as it was. It was culty yet accessible, plot weak but full of character, and just an all round fun time Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is thankfully just more of the same. In fact, it might actually be better.

Sure, maybe it's a bit of a nostalgia fuelled cash in, but the team seemed to have given it a decent shot and further knew what gave the first film the goods. Keaton (perhaps helped by makeup) reprised his role perfectly, and all the random components making up the film came together in the random way that made an overall kind of sense.

If you liked the first you'll likely enjoy this one too. Recommended.

Book: The Last Flight of the Cassandra, James S. A. Corey

At 25 pages long this was hardly a novella - not that it ever claimed to be. Cassandra was actually a super short story first published in The Expanse Role-playing handbook. That makes it even less vital than anything included in Memory's Legion for instance.

That said, it was a quick read with more from the universe of the series. Given its place in the TTRPG it leaves more questions unanswered than otherwise, so don't go in expecting any Easter eggs or the like.

Book: Tiamat's Wrath, James S. A. Corey

Like many epics, there are usually two main antagonists. The human and the non human, the relatable and the unrelatable, the easy and the hard. The Expanse is no different, and Tiamat's Wrath largely deals with mopping up the less of the bad stuff going on in the now expanded galaxy.

In many ways it's because of this that it laboured a bit. Tiamat's Wrath wasn't a slog to read, but it wasn't the easiest either and I'm not sure the payoff (as great as it was) was worth the challenge.

But end it did, and I'm left excited for the final book (novellas aside) being allowed to give full focus to the big bad. On we go.