Wild Wild West episode 13: The Night of the Torture Chamber

Wild Wild West episode 13: The Night of the Torture Chamber

***1/2

The title of this episode is a little misleading, as there is no torture chamber per se in the episode. There is, however a deathtrap -  a wine press - which James West and Artemus Gordon end up in by episode's end.

Overall, it's an intriguing plot: the villain substitutes a double in his employ for the governor of some state in order to plunder the state's coffers to subsidize the building of a world class art collection.

Some other cool things about this episode include:

• The return of Miss Piecemeal (Sigrid Valdis), last seen in episode 3, "The Night the Wizard Shook the Earth"
• The use of a ballista as a short-range weapon
• The aforementioned wine press deathtrap
• Artemus posing as a French art critic / dignitary

Sandman #4

Sandman really takes off

The first few issues of this comic, The Sandman, showed that it wasn't going to be comic book business as usual, and hinted at greater things to come. With this issue, Neil Gaiman demonstrates how comic books can take their place among great literature.

The story concerns the Lord of Dreams traveling to Hell to battle a demon to regain his 'Mask of Office'. But no superhero slugfest, this. Before the monarchs and denizens of Hell, Morpheus engages in a storytelling type battle for his helmet, with his immortal soul at stake, and demonstrates how even without any magic powers, he still has power even in Hell. By the time he utters his final line, in the comic, the issues title "A Hope in Hell" comes crashing home in more ways than one.

All of this plus the enmity of Lucifer and strange events in Arkham Asylum hint that more fun is in the offing for future issues.  Comics just do not get any better than this.

Issue details

Name	Master of Dreams, Part 4 : A Hope in Hell
Volume	The Sandman
Issue Number	4
Cover Date	April 1989
In Store Date	February 28, 1989

Baby Driver

Baby Driver

Remember the 2011 Ryan Gosling film Drive about a baby faced stuntman getaway driver who didn't carry a gun, worked for a guy who masterminded heists, and could do just about anything with a four wheeled vehicle? If you loved the scene where Gosling slickly avoids the cops through high speed maneuvers set to a retro 70s/80s soundtrack, and wished there was an entire movie of that - Baby Driver is that film.

Plot wise, there is in fact nothing new here, the film is about a getaway driver doing that "one last job" before he quits to go straight. The driver is of course an expert at driving, and just about nothing else, and of course that one last heist predictably goes all wrong - putting said driver at odds not only with the law, but also the criminals he worked with. But it's not really the plot that makes Baby Driver so great, it's the awesome action sequences choreographed to the equally awesome soundtrack featuring some of the greatest underplayed R&B, Rock and Pop hits on the big screen. Just like martial arts films are all about the fighting, this one's all about the driving, and it's damn good; a standout even at a time in film history when there's an entire movie series, The Fast and the Furious films, devoted to nothing but car chases.

Baby Driver might not be the most memorable or noteworthy film, and might be forgotten ten years from now, but at the moment when the other options at your multiples are Despicable Me 3, Cars 3, and Transfomers #?, it's definitely the best bet.