Yesterday, news broke that Phil Lord and Chris Miller have left the untitled Han Solo spinoff film due to “creative differences”. Now, the film which is scheduled for release next year, has no director – however, this might change soon enough.
Deadline is reporting that Ron Howard is the new directorial frontrunner. Howard is known for his work behind Apollo 13, Rush, and most recently, In The Heart Of The Sea.
Disney losing directors on the Han Solo flick came as a huge surprise to fans. It just shows that, despite a company being well renounded and putting our great products, it’s possible for something to disrupt that trend.
How would you feel about Howard taking over the Han Solo film? Sound off in the comments below.
Empire Magazine has revealed an awesome new look at Hugh Jackman in The Greatest Showman. Directed by Michael Gracey, the film is a passion project for Jackman who has worked for seven years to bring P.T. Barnum’s true story to the big screen.
The film has gone through various changes over the years, including the decision to make the true story a musical. Obviously, Hugh Jackman is well-known for his musical talents and this will be the first big-screen musical for the actor sinceLes Misérablesin 2012. Since then we’ve seen La La Land burst into Hollywood and everyone is waiting for the next cinematic musical.
Check out the image below:
The Greatest Showman tells the true story of American showman P.T. Barnum, who founded the circus that became the famous traveling Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. The film also stars Zac Efron (Baywatch), Michelle Williams (Manchester By The Sea), and Spider-Man: Homecoming star Zendaya.
The Greatest Showman arrives in cinemas on Christmas Day! Make sure you check back with Monkeys Fighting Robots for more updates.
Orange is the New Black is one of those Netflix shows that is undeniably great, but during the long hiatuses between each season, the events of the previous season leave me. After the first two spectacular and groundbreaking installments, the show’s third and fourth time around left me desiring me more. Despite season four’s heartbreakingly powerful final two episodes, I found the other twelve contrite to the point of boring. The characters were as enjoyable to spend time with as ever, and the overarching plotline involving the new, untrained (bordering on cruel) C.O.s was compelling, but the season still had the same enormous problem that it suffered through during it’s third batch of thirteen episodes – mainly, ever since the show shifted its focus away from Piper and centering all of the action around her story, it seemed to lose its way. Frankly, it’s been all over the place, swinging so wildly through different tonal shifts, it’s been akin to watching Dr. Jekyll transforming into Mr. Hyde before immediately turning back again.
It’s because of my waning interest in the show that it took me as long to sit down and start season five as it did. Once I started, however, I couldn’t stop. Season five of Orange is the New Black is not only its most tonally consistent, wildly ambitious season yet, but I would go so far as to say it was probably the show’s best since its debut.
Beyond this point, there are going to be slight spoilers, so read past the jump at your own risk.
As Bruce Wayne and Selina Kyle lay in bed together, Bruce begins to tell her a tale from his first year as the Batman. In a very detailed and deeply revealing narrative, Selina and the reader begin to learn about two of the Batman’s deadliest enemies. How they met. How they clashed. How they brought the city of Gotham to a deadly war. And like all war stories, everyone will come away with scars.
Batman #25 “War Of Jokes and Riddles” Part 1 Written by: Tom King Art by: Mikel Janin Colors by: June Chung Lettered by: Clayton Cowles Published by: DC Comics
In a nice bit of change, Tom King takes us into flashback territory with this issue. Having it be a first person narration by Batman puts both the reader (and Catwoman) in the frontlines of a very intense opening of what is sure to be a very explosive story. Read on for 11 reasons to join the war that starts in Batman #25
Page from ‘Batman’ #25
Tom King’s Batman narration is very unique and this issue is a perfect example. We all love being in the head of Batman the tactician, the badass. But King shows us a very human side of Batman. One with feelings, fears, and even doubts as he looks back.
Mike Janin’s clean and elegant art set the tone perfectly. It’s cinematic.
The colors by June Chung are a sight to behold. The use of light and shadow in the opening two pages (one of which is included at the top of this review) is simply gorgeous.
Keeping both the Riddler and Joker hid and obscured in shadows gives them a nice level of fright.
The way King writes the Riddler. I can’t remember the last time Edward Nigma was this creepy. Just look at the scene where an escaping Nigma faces off against a SWAT team.
“This city. It’s always covered in rain or snow or heat.” –Batman
The multi-villain splash image on page 26.
“You need to laugh or else who are you? And you can’t laugh as long as he’s out there. To laugh again you need to kill him” –Riddler.
Clayton Cowles lettering. Each person has an evocative font. Each sound effect is felt and heard. A reminder of how important a talented letterer is to the comics medium.
How this creative team can make Joker sitting silently at a desk terrifying and tense.
“All Right. Go Ahead Mr. Feder. I’m ready to laugh” -Joker
Page from ‘Batman’ #25
As the first of King’s stories to start diving deeply into Batman’s more popular Rogues, this could not have been better. This title has been all about slow burns with big payoffs from the beginning, and this feels like it is heading in that same great. I can’t wait to see what happens next and where this story goes. Bring on the jokes and riddles!
The seventh season of Game of Thrones is fast approaching and the dynastic struggle for the Iron Throne of Westeros is coming to a close. When George R. R. Martin came up with the ideas for his A Song of Ice and Fire series he was reading about the War of the Roses, a medieval war between two factions for the English throne. The history and geography of the British Isles (as well elements from European history) has been a major influence on the book series and obviously the TV adaptation and being an Englishman with a history degree let us look at some of the events that influenced the popular fantasy franchise.
The Ice Age
During the Ice Age, Britain was attached to mainland Europe and early humans crossed into the land via this land bridge. Fossilized footprints in Norfolk provide evidence that early humans were in Britain 800,000 years ago and modern humans have been in Britain for 30,000 years and settled to become the Celts. The land bridge flooded at the end of the Ice Age – making Britain into an island.
This is similar to how the First Men settled into Westeros. The First Men crossed a land bridge known as The Arm of Dorne and they soon fought the residents: the Children of the Forest. The Children of the Forest resort to using magic to break the Arm of Dorne to stop the flow of men and creating the Stepstone Islands.
The History of the Kings of Britain – Geoffrey of Monmouth
Geoffrey of Monmouth was a 12th-century cleric from Wales who was famous for writing Historia Regum Britanniae (The History of the Kings of Britain) – a chronicle of the history of Britain – from the settlement of Brutus of Troy to Julius Caesar’s invasion of Britain – to the Legendary King Arthur. Whilst dismissed now as historical writing it was an important work during the Middle Ages.
Before men arrived in Britain in The History of the Kings of Britain, the land was dominated by giants who Brutus defeated to claim domination over the land. This is similar to the history of Westeros, because before the First Men arrived Giants and the Children of the Forest and the First Men immediately went to war with this mystical creatures before a peace was brokered.
The Punic Wars
During the early rise of the Roman Republic, it became a rival to another empire across the Mediterranean Sea: Carthage. The nations entered into a series of wars known as the Punic Wars that lasted 112 years and ended with the defeat of Carthage. This was a war famous for the rise and fall general and statesman Hannibal Barca who crossed the Alps and nearly defeated the young Roman Republic.
The Punic Wars mirror series of conflicts between the glowing Valyrian Freehold and the established Ghiscari Empire. Over the course of five wars known as the Ghiscari Wars, the Valyrians were able to defeat and conquer the old Empire. The wars started when the Ghiscaris feared the rise of the Valyrians who discovered dragons and by the time war ended up spanning to the Summer Sea, the Basilisk Isles, and Sothoryos as well as Essos.
Caligula
The Roman Empire was famous for having some batshit insane rulers and the 3rd Emperor of the Roman Empire – Caligula was arguably the most insane and cruel of them all. Caligula was a young man of 24 when he became Emperor and ruled for less than four years, being murdered by his bodyguards.
Caligula was the product of incest, his parents were cousins and were famous for being a cruel and sadistic rule. Caligula was noted for having a violent streak and his alleged crimes included ordering a section of the audience at games he was presiding at to be eaten by wild beasts – sleeping with other men’s wives and bragging about it and having a statue of himself erected in the Temple of Jerusalem. He was also accused of committing incest with his sisters and prostituting them – turning the palace into a brothel and made his horse into a consul.
Joffrey Baratheon has often been compared to Caligula and his style of rule: Joffrey was really the product of an incestuous relationship between twin brother and sister Jaime and Cersei Lannister, he enjoyed violence and humiliating people – including his betrothed Sansa Stark – and ordered massacres for the slightest infraction. In the books it was revealed that Joffrey killed a pregnant cat when he was a young child and when he presented the kittens to his parents King Robert punched him so hard that he knocked out some of Joffrey’s teeth: whilst in the TV show Joffrey sexually humiliated two prostitutes when presented to him as a gift from his uncle Tyrion and murdered another with his crossbow.
Hadrian’s Wall
Spanning 74 miles from coast-to-coast in Northern England Hadrian’s Wall was constructed in 122 AD and is seen as the boundary between the Roman Empire and the Pict tribes that dominated Northern England and Scotland. The misconception is that the wall was built to prevent the barbarians from invading Roman territory but most modern theories are that the wall was built as a piece of power projection to people on both sides of the border.
The comparison in Game of Thrones is very obvious: The Wall stretches 300 miles across the North of Westeros and is 8,000 years old. According to legend the famous Stark lord Bran the Builder led the construction of the war – which was later fused with magic by the Children of the Forest. The purpose of the wall is to prevent another invasion of the White Walkers that attacked during The Long Night. The Wall also kept out the wildings from entering the Seven Kingdom. Tyrion Lannister did theorize that like Hadrian’s Wall, The Wall of Westeros was also an attempt at power projection and everyone south of it were the lucky ones: however, the events in the novels and TV show have proven him wrong.
The influence of The Wall in Game of Thrones has gone full circle because it lead to this parody when Donald Trump ran for president.
The Fall of the Roman Empire
The fall of the Western Roman Empire is infamous – seen as the start of the Dark Ages in Europe as many of the empire’s territories broke away and were invaded by other nations and tribes. In Game of Thrones, the equivalent of the Roman Empire was the Valyrian Freehold – conquering much of Western Essos; the freehold had a dramatic fall after a natural disaster known as the Doom of Valyria.
The Fall of the Western Roman Empire was a long process whilst the Doom of Valyria was a sudden event, but the aftermath of both events are similar. After the break-up of the Roman Empire, Italy became a collection of city states and in Western Essos there are the nine Free Cities. One of them, Braavos is canal city like Venice. Western Essos fell into a period known as the Century of Blood – where the Dothraki cross the Bone Mountains and pillage the remains of the Freehold: like the Huns raiding and invading Italy.
Figures in real figures like Justinian I – the Byzantine Emperor attempted to reunite the Western Empire with the Byzantine Empire and tried to conquer Italy. The Dragonlord Aurion tried to reconquer what was left of the Valyria Peninsula: but his expedition ended in disaster with his army never being seen again – a little like the legendary Ninth Legion of Rome who attempted to invade Scotland.
The Saxon Invasion
By the 5th century, the Western Roman Empire was on its knees and the island of Britain was being invaded by invaders from the East: The Saxons. The invasion ended up forcing the Romans to abandon the island and the Saxons ended up settling in England and mix with the population – hence why the English are known as Anglo-Saxons. Whilst England was settled the Celtic fringes (Scotland, Wales, Cornwall, and Ireland) were able to resist the invaders.
The Saxon Invasion is similar to the Andal Invasion – an event that happens 6,000 years before the events of Game of Thrones. The Andals were from Northern Essos and they fledge their homeland to avoid the advancing Valyrian Freehold. The Andals were able to conquer Westeros through a combination of an advanced military technology and tactical marriage alliances: most people in Westeros have a mix of Andal and First Men blood in them. However, the Andals were unable to invade the North and their blood is more akin to the First Men and their culture is different from the rest of the Seven Kingdoms.
The similarities are even starker because one of the Germanic people who took part in the Saxon invasion were called the Angles. A possible influence for George R. R. Martin or a happy coincidence?
The Heptarchy Age
After the Saxon Invasion England entered into the Heptarchy Age where the territory of England was split into seven kingdoms. This period lasted from the 5th century to the 9th century. The main kingdoms were Wessex, East Anglia, Mercia and Northumbria with Essex, Kent and Sussex also being important. Whilst England was split into seven kingdoms, there were more petty kingdoms and the period saw a great period of change which ended with Wessex unifying the kingdoms into England.
As fans of Game of Thrones know Westeros was seven separate kingdoms. These were The Stormlands, The Mountain and Vale, the Rivers and Isles, The Kingdom of the Rock, Dorne, The Reach and The North. Like in England, the Seven Kingdoms vied for power and entered into diplomacy and alliances through marriage.
The Norman Conquest
Tapisserie de Bayeux – Scène 57 : La mort d’Harold
Many school children in England have to learn about the Norman Conquest, 1066 and all that. England entered into a succession crisis after Edward the Confessor died and numerous contenders vied for the throne. Harold Godwinson was crowned King but ended up having to fight off two invasions, the first from Harald Hardrada of Norway, the second from William of Normandy which resulted in William becoming the King of England and many French-speaking Normans becoming lords in England.
In Westeros, Aegon of House Targaryen invaded the continent from the island of Dragonstone with a small force of a 1,600 soldiers, his sister-wives and three dragons. Within three years Aegon had conquered most of Westeros and started his dynasty.
The similarities are striking: both England and Westeros were invaded by foreign lords who spoke a different language and had a dubious claim to the throne, yet with a fairly small army these lords took over a whole nation. William I and Aegon I were also given the name The Conqueror after their invasion. Both brought new power structures into their new lands. They even founded important landmarks after the invasions: the Tower of London was founded in 1066 and after Aegon took over Westeros he founded the capital city King’s Landing with the Red Keep in the center of the city.
The Anarchy
Between 1135 to 1153 England entered into a dynastic civil war known as the Anarchy. This succession crisis started after Henry I died without a male heir, leaving the throne to his daughter Matilda. However, Henry I’s nephew, Stephen of Blois seized the throne and was crowned King Stephen I. During this period the throne swapped between the two and England’s neighbors used the chaos as an opportunity to seize territory. The conflict ended with Stephen being declared king but had to name Henry Plantagenet as his heir.
The civil war the Dance of the Dragons was clearly influenced by The Anarchy. The Dance of the Dragons was a succession crisis after King Viserys I named his daughter Rhaenyra as his heir but she was overthrown by half-brother Aegon, being crowned Aegon II, and his mother Alicent Hightower was the power behind the throne. The civil war was a devastating conflict as dragons battled over the skies of Westeros and many Targaryens and their dragons died as Rhaenyra and Alicent’s children both sitting on the Iron Throne. Rhaenyra won the war but it pyrrhic victory for the Targaryen dynasty – the war killed most of the dragons leading to their extinction and the eventual overthrow of the Targaryens.
The Black Dinner
One of the most infamous events in Game of Thrones was the Red Wedding where the Freys and Boltons betrayed Robb Stark during the wedding of his uncle Edmure Tully to Rosin Tully. The action led to the death of Robb, his wife, and mother, with Edmure becoming a hostage and the Boltons and the Freys becoming the Wardens of The North and The Riverlands respectively – ending the secession of these lands, at least for a time.
This event was influenced by the Black Dinner in 1440. During this period Scotland was ruled by James II, who was 10 at the time and many factions were vying for power within his court. Sir William Crichton, the Lord Chancellor and Alexander Livingston feared Clan Douglas was going to be a threat to their power. They lured the 16-year-old William Douglas, 6th Earl of Douglas and his younger brother to a dinner of reconciliation with the king at Edinburgh Castle. After presenting the Douglases a Black Bulls head – a symbol of death – they were taken out and after a mock trial executed.
The War of the Roses
George R. R. Martin was famously influenced by War of the Roses when writing A Song of Ice and Fire series having studied the subject and there are many direct parallels between the real and fictional conflicts.
The War of the Roses was a dynastic conflict in England that lasted for 30 years been the Houses of York and Lancaster – seeing the throne of England swap between the two factions. The main contenders for the thrones were Henry VI and Edward IV and later Richard III and Henry Tutor.
One of the most important figures in the conflict Margaret of Anjou – a French noblewoman Henry VI married to ensure peace with France after the Hundred Years Wars acting as a de facto ruler of England because of Henry VI’s lapses into mental breakdowns. Margaret earned a reputation for being fierce, aggressive and powerful, and most important of all defensive of her son, Edward of Westminster, the Prince of Wales. Margaret was one of the major influences on the character Cersei Lannister. Henry VI’s mental instability mirrors King Aerys II, AKA the Mad King, a ruler known for his incompetence.
When Edward IV seized the throne he foolishly married for love – marrying Elizabeth Woodville, a widow, and a mid-ranking aristocrat. Due to Elizabeth Woodville’s elevation to Queen Consort her family were given titles and became incredibly influential within Edward IV’s court; just like The Lannisters who held many important and vital positions, from Robert Baratheon’s squire to Hand of the King, the second highest position of power in Westeros.
The TV show is entering its final two seasons with Cersei becoming Queen of the Seven Kingdom and the exiled Daenerys Targaryen returning from to Westeros to claim the crown. There are similarities with real history: Richard III seized the throne of England after his brother died and allegedly killed his nephews and rightful heirs (many historians believed he did give the order). Richard III claimed his nephews were illegitimate to justify his claim – an issue that dogged Cersei’s children and the justification for Stannis Baratheon’s claim.
Richard III’s reign lasted two years because Henry Tutor – exiled to France was able to raise an army to invade England and defeated Richard III at the Battle of Bosworth. Daenerys was the exiled daughter of King Aerys II and the trailers hint that she is going to have a major battle with the Lannisters.
Fresh off of critical favorite The Leftovers,Damon Lindelof is in talks for a potential Watchmen TV series for HBO. Sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that the project is in the early development stages. An official deal is not yet in place. Representatives for HBO and producers Warner Bros. Television declined comment.
Lindelof is no stranger to adaptations or dark, complex narratives. His previous credits include Lost, Cowboys & Aliens, World War Z, Star Trek/Into Darkness, and Prometheus. He has publicly stated his love for the Watchmen comic before:
“From the flashbacks to the nonlinear storytelling to the deeply flawed heroes, these are all elements that I try to put into everything I write.”
Watchmen was published by DC comics, and created by writer Alan Moore, artist Dave Gibbons, and colorist John Higgins in 1986. The series went on to greatly influence comics and the superhero genre as a whole, emphasizing grittier and more critical looks at these characters. It is known for its deeply complex story, told in nonlinear and often meta “story-within-story” form. Watchmen can be found in collected form at your local comic book shop, book store, or as a motion comic.
Breaking news from Lucasfilm today announcing that Phil Lord and Christopher Miller have left the ‘Untitled Han Solo’ film due to creative differences, according to Deadline.
Their post reads:
The Untitled Han Solo film will move forward with a directorial change.
“Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are talented filmmakers who have assembled an incredible cast and crew, but it’s become clear that we had different creative visions on this film, and we’ve decided to part ways. A new director will be announced soon,” said Kathleen Kennedy, president of Lucasfilm.
“Unfortunately, our vision and process weren’t aligned with our partners on this project. We normally aren’t fans of the phrase ‘creative differences’ but for once this cliché is true. We are really proud of the amazing and world-class work of our cast and crew,” stated Phil Lord and Christopher Miller.
The untitled Han Solo film remains scheduled for a May 2018 release.
The film has a screenplay by Lawrence and Jon Kasdan, and is produced by Lucasfilm and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. It will be the second installment of the Star Wars Anthology series, following 2016’s Rogue One. Alden Ehrenreich is starring as Solo, along with Woody Harrelson, Emilia Clarke, Donald Glover, Thandie Newton, Phoebe Waller-Bridge and Joonas Suotamo.
Transformers: The Last Knight‘s laughable narrative mixed with putrid performances by the entire cast make this film the worst of the 2017 summer movie season.
Summary
What’s sad about this release is that even after sitting for two and half hours of the latest Transformers film, it’s hard to make sense of the most convoluted narratives of the summer. It shouldn’t be this hard to unwrap the 5th Transformers movie but Micheal Bay really “Bay’d” this whole movie. From what I could gather, Transformers: The Last Knight centers around the idea of reframing. The writers, director, producers, and anyone who is involved in the film want audiences to forget any background knowledge that we may have on the Autobots and the Decepticons. Now we are to believe that Transformers have roamed the earth for centuries, dating back to the time King Arthur, the knights of the round table, and Merlin. Transformer and Human formed an alliance over history to help each other against the forces of evil. This secret history has been entrusted to a particular bloodline which I guess is supposed to be similar to the Knights of the Templar but now falls on the shoulders of Sir Edmund Burton (Anthony Hopkins). Now if the film were just about protecting the hidden history of the Transformers then at least this movie would somewhat make sense, but alas we are talking about a Micheal Bay production.
So apparently, Optimus Prime is gone to seek out his creator on his home planet of Cybertron only to realize that their maker (a robot named Quintessa) has become twisted and can turn our hero into a villain. Now his home planet is on a collision course with Earth and Quintessa has every intention of allowing Cybertron to absorb Earth and become one mega planet. The only people who have the power to save mankind are Cade Yerger (Mark Wahlberg), Colonel William Lennox (Josh Duhamel), and Vivian Wembley (Laura Haddox). Vivian is apparently a secret weapon in this fight because not only is she an Oxford Professor but is also a decedent of Merlin (sigh). The film becomes this crazy as hell confusing mess as they race against the clock to save the planet from extinction.
What Worked
Well, at least what we were looking at on the screen was beautiful. What was taking place on the screen may have been utter garbage, but Michael Bay sure does know how to make trash look beautiful.
Stanley Tucci playing Merlin because at least he can deny his involvement in the project because he’s unrecognizable in the film.
What Didn’t Work
Did Anthony Hopkins even read the script for the film? Did he agree to do this just for the novelty of it all? While I understand that his purpose was to launch this new cinematic universe, his role was so inconsequential and confusing that it could have easily been cut from the film. Why even have a character to usher in this new world? No one on this movie seems to care at all about coherent narratives or continuity.
The only reason why Mark Wahlberg has to be still doing these films must be because he’s locked into a multi-picture deal. That’s the only logical reason why anyone would agree to be part of this. However, there has to come to the point where even Mr. Wahlberg is over it all. Not even the mountain of cash that he makes doing these films can fill the void of doing an action film that clearly should have never been made to start with. His performance was a textbook example of “going through the motions.”
So you get rid of Megan Fox and replace her with what can only be described as her British doppelganger?
How many times are we supposed to find John Turturro’s role as a conspiracy nut job entertaining?
Can someone please explain to Michael Bay that there’s no need to use slow motion in what appears to be every 4th scene of the film. It was distracting and took the audience out the moment even if that moment was ridiculously bad.
Overall
Transformers: The Last Knight only exists because people still are willing to pay to see a bad film based on nostalgia. I grew up playing with Transformers just like most little boys and girls did during the 1980’s, and this movie is an insult to their legacy. Some might argue that this is just a simple movie with cool explosions that’s meant for kids. When exactly did children start to enjoy films that were lacking in originality and dreadfully dull?
Others might argue that this film wasn’t made for the critics and only fans would appreciate the final product. Do you think critics do this job because we somehow aren’t fans of cinema? We are fans just like anyone else who longs only to be entertained. I realize that Transformers isn’t Shakespeare, but that doesn’t mean Michael Bay should just be allowed to pass off any final product as being good. There has to be some element of quality or even portions of the film that are at least redeemable.
Once upon a time, Micheal Bay may have cared, but he certainly doesn’t anymore. That’s the only way to justify how awful this film is. This was the closest I’ve ever come to walking out of a screening. The latest Transformers filmwas made with merchandise sales in mind, and ticket sales are just secondary. If Transformers: The Last Knight makes back its budget then they’ll be pleased, but if the film doesn’t it won’t matter. They already have plans for multiple sequels and even a Bumblebee spinoff film. The only to stop these types movies from ever coming to light is to stop buying tickets for them. Demand better! Expect more from your director! Unfortunately, if we don’t take this hardline stance, we can just expect more of the same in the coming years ahead.
There is no way to make ‘Transformers: The Last Knight’ a good film, so EJ and Matt have to work extra hard this week to entertain you. We hope you appreciate the effort.
Strap yourself in buckaroos! Episode 127 of the MOVIE SHOW by Monkeys Fighting Robots is here.
Do you want to be our SUPER-FAN of the week? All you have to do is comment on this podcast to be eligible.
Do you have a question that you would like answered during the show? Email your questions to matt@popaxiom.com.
About the Monkeys Fighting Robots Podcast:
A Gen Xer and a Millennial debate the latest topics in pop culture. One guy is a filmmaker and the other is a journalist, but both are nerds. We make your slowest days at work better. Hosts, Matthew Sardo and EJ Moreno.
Never heard of Matt Sardo? For starters, he made the Kessel Run in less than 11 parsecs. Prior to that, he gave Doc Brown the idea for the flux capacitor and led the Resistance to victory over SkyNet – all while sipping a finely crafted IPA. As a radio host, he’s interviewed celebrities, athletes and everyone in between. He’s covered everything from the Super Bowl to Comic-Con.
Who’s EJ Moreno? Is he a trained physician? No. Is he a former Miss Universe contestant? Possibly. But what we know for sure is he’s a writer, filmmaker, and pop culture enthusiast. Since film school, EJ has written & directed several short films. He’s used his passion of filmmaking to become a movie critic for MonkeysFightingRobots.com.
Hop City Brewing Company, previously the Niagara Falls Brewing Company until it was purchased in 2004 by Moosehead, has won a few awards since its re-branding. This year, Hop City Brewing won gold in the amber lager category for their Barking Squirrel Lager. And, although I’ve drunk a few Barking Squirrel Lagers over the years — and previously reviewed Hop City’s 8th Sin Black Lager — today I’m reviewing another of Hop City’s brews. Now, enabling my love of pale ales, I’m reviewing Hop City’s HopBot IPA. And, although I’m firmly a member of Team Monkey, I have a feeling that this is one robot I’m going to like.
HopBot IPA: Hop City Brewing Company – First Sip
HopBot IPA pours a transparent copper colour with a thick layer of foam. The foam gradually dissipates, leaving lots of thick lacing as it goes. I smell grapefruit as I take my first sip and enjoy the subtle malt flavours that quickly give way to HopBot’s dry finish. Its high alcohol content (7.1% ABV) sets off this brew’s malty backbone, creating a unique taste. All in all, HopBot’s blend of malt and hops balances quite well. Despite the thick layer of foam that forms when poured, HopBot has a relatively low carbonation level. Even so, this IPA-lover could do with even less fizz. As it is, HopBot’s has a smooth mouthfeel, but it could be smoother.
HopBot IPA: Hop City Brewing Company – Last Sip
Robotic efficiency never tasted so good. This is a beer that demands the imbiber’s attention. Unlike a crisp lager that someone chugs and forgets about, HopBot is a strong-tasting brew with lots of character, especially for a robot. With its strong taste and only slightly fizzy mouthfeel, this brew goes great with deep-fried and salty foods alike. This beer’s aroma is a great preface to its flavour, so make sure you enjoy it from a glass rather than from the can or bottle.
What Worked