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Bong Joon Ho has long been one of world cinema’s most original voices indicting the borderless scourge of late-stage capitalism, class polarization, climate disaster and the oppression of unchecked power. Using satirical allegory, broad farce, horror and violence, the visionary Korean master has made a string of standout genre films that double as subversive takes on sociopolitical rot, from Memories of Murder to The Host, Snowpiercer to Parasite, frequently making a virtue of tonal whiplash. Following his four-time Oscar-winning 2019 smash, the director returns in Mickey 17 to sci-fi, skewering autocracy and even attempted genocide in a pitch-dark comedy about colonization.

Or as Mark Ruffalo’s egomaniacal leader Kenneth Marshall puts it, an attempt to create “a pure, white planet full of superior people like us.” With much of the world swerving rightwards, the timing seems ideal for an anti-fascist comedy that uses recycled humans and uploaded intelligence as a...

Game of Thrones has had an unparalleled impact on pop culture. Fiery dragon battles, Machiavellian court politics, incestuous relationships, and the undead take as much pleasure in derailing the Westerosi continent as the Dothraki horde, witch magic, and century-old prophecies in George R.R. Martin’s medieval historical fantasy lore.

Game of Thrones [Credit: HBO]

What keeps the continent spinning on its axis is Martin’s arc of gritty realism behind every fantastical story about the battles of succession, the fall of empires, and the divisions of power, class, hierarchy, culture, and faith.

But even though Game of Thrones may have survived the fallout of its Season 8 ending, the descent of Daenerys Targaryen from a liberator to a Mad Queen was one of the most obscene storytelling ever portrayed. Here are five more ridiculous plots of the HBO series that otherwise singlehandedly sits at the pinnacle of television.

1. The Thirteen of Qarth Game of Thrones Season 2 feat.

Honor Among Thieves 2 must explore the threat of Szass Tam for a satisfying sequel. Szass Tam's power as a lich and necromancer offers ample storytelling opportunities. Focusing on Szass Tam would fix the first film's issue of lackluster villain development.

If Honor Among Thieves 2 does happen, then the movie must deliver on the most exciting promise made during the first film. Honor Among Thieves has become a highly beloved film despite its initial box office failure, with a critical Rotten Tomatoes score of 91% and an audience score of 93%. Despite the film's popularity, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves 2 updates have been slow to arrive, creating doubt about whether the film will get its sequel or if its story will be left unfinished.

While the initial film does wrap up a lot of the major character stories, Honor Among Thieves' ending still left a few things open for a sequel film to explore.

Editor's Note: The following article contains spoilers for Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among ThievesDungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves is the rare adaptation that will hook casual viewers as well as long-time Dungeons & Dragons players. Its mix of humor, heart, and fantasy action has drawn praise, as well as the way that directors/co-writers John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein manage to utilize the rich mythology of Dungeons & Dragons. Fans of the game will no doubt be keeping an eye out for the Easter eggs sprinkled throughout the film but one of the biggest comes in the form of a character whose presence drives the plot. That character is the necromancer Szass Tam (Ian Hanmore).

While the series has kept the "Game Of Thrones" title from the first novel, George R. R. Martin's book series is collectively known as "A Song Of Ice & Fire," and while hints of the relevance of that have been contained throughout the show so far, that title has never been so front and center than in "Valar Morghulis," the superb season two finale, which managed to give satisfying climaxes to most of the ongoing stories that have run throughout the last nine episodes, including those that have been rather less developed.

Fire was prevalent throughout, starting with Stannis Baratheon, crushed by his defeat at the hands of the Lannisters. Losing what faith he had in the fire god brought to him by sorceress Melisandre, he's mourning the death of his men, and even that of the brother he conspired to kill, and attempts to throttle his enigmatic mistress. But...

Burning kids, breaking vows and snapping necks are the topics of conversation on this week's 'Thrones.'

By Josh Wigler

Alfie Allen in "Game of Thrones"

Photo: HBO

Is there such a thing as going too far on "Game of Thrones"? Just ask the charred toddler hanging on the walls of Winterfell — he'll have an answer, I'm sure.

Season two has already seen no fewer than four of its currently aired seven episodes conclude with the death of a child in increasingly brutal fashion. And "A Man Without Honor" — the 17th hour of the series — was perhaps the cruelest of the bunch, thanks to Theon Greyjoy. Not quite the boy-monster that Joffrey is, Theon is definitely giving him competition for the show's Most Loathsome Villain award. Even though the golden-haired demon child sat out of this week's outing entirely (ironic, given the title of the episode), Joffrey's presence hung heavily through Sansa and Cersei,...

Burning kids, breaking vows and snapping necks are the topics of conversation on this week's 'Thrones.'

By Josh Wigler

Alfie Allen in "Game of Thrones"

Photo: HBO

Is there such a thing as going too far on "Game of Thrones"? Just ask the charred toddler hanging on the walls of Winterfell — he'll have an answer, I'm sure.

Season two has already seen no fewer than four of its currently aired seven episodes conclude with the death of a child in increasingly brutal fashion. And "A Man Without Honor" — the 17th hour of the series — was perhaps the cruelest of the bunch, thanks to Theon Greyjoy. Not quite the boy-monster that Joffrey is, Theon is definitely giving him competition for the show's Most Loathsome Villain award. Even though the golden-haired demon child sat out of this week's outing entirely (ironic, given the title of the episode), Joffrey's presence hung heavily through Sansa and Cersei,...

We’re nearly half way through the second season of HBO’s Game of Thrones and the new characters are starting to pile up! As if the monstrous cast of Season 1 wasn’t enough to wrap our minds around, there are a whopping 22 new characters (worth mentioning) introduced over the first four episodes of Season 2. The following list gives some brief background information about each new character, who they are and how they fit into the story.

Hopefully this will help to eliminate any confusion you might have when you yell at your TV: “Wait! Who the hell was that guy again?”

At Dragonstone:

King Stannis Baratheon

Played by: Stephen Dillane

Stannis is the late King Robert’s younger brother and the rightful heir to the Iron Throne and Westeros. Since Robert’s Rebellion, he has held the island fortress of Dragonstone, which lies northeast of King’s Landing. Stannis is a hard,...

[1] HBO's epic fantasy series Game of Thrones was such a big hit when it premiered this past spring that the network renewed [2] it for a second season just days after the first episode aired. But it's been a long three months since the first season ended, and with the advent of the fall TV season, even the most diehard fans probably haven't thought about the series in quite some time. In an effort to remind you of just how much you're looking forward to Season 2, HBO has released a very short new teaser. The video reveals pretty much nothing, aside from what seems to be the marketing slogan for the new season, but I welcome the reminder all the same. Watch it after the jump. The 17-second teaser not only has no new footage, there's actually no footage at all, despite the fact that the series has been shooting since earlier this summer.

We have added the new UK trailer for BBC Films and Studio Canel's upcoming supernatural period thriller, "The Awakening." 1921 England is overwhelmed by the loss and grief of World War I. Hoax exposer Florence Cathcart visits a boarding school to explain sightings of a child ghost. Everything she knew in unravels as the 'missing' begin to show themselves. "The Awakening" is directed by Nick Murphy and stars Rebecca Hall, Dominic West, Imelda Staunton, Lucy Cohu, John Shrapnel, Diana Kent, Richard Durden, Alfie Field, Tilly Vosburgh, Ian Hanmore, Cal Macaninch and Isaac Hempstead Wright.Watch the trailer below;"The Awakening" is released across the UK from November 11th. A Us release date has yet to be announced.

When Doctor Who returned to TV screens in the mid 2000s, the official BBC website ran a recurring feature called The Fear Factor. What happened was that a family of kiddywinks would preview the upcoming adventure and rate it from one to five as to how terrifying it was (1 = Harmless; 5 = Shit Your Pants). When it came to Tooth And Claw, the kids were suitably quaking at an episode that was touted as the scariest to date for the 21st century revival.

Now the scare factor in the reboot of Doctor Who has been a bit of a bone of contention. Some will argue that it's nowhere near as scary as what had gone before: The late '60s stories paraded scary monsters week in week out; The early '70s went close to the knuckle with blank-faced dummies, killer dolls and suffocating chairs; The mid-70s stories contained regular haunted...