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NOC Review: ‘The Mandalorian and Grogu’ Satisfies with Simplicity

May 19, 2026May 19, 2026 Mike Manalo

The Disney-era of Star Wars films has been fraught with controversy. The sequel trilogy proved incredibly divisive and, in some ways, directionless. Solo was met with production troubles, mixed reception, and ended up heavily underperforming at the box office. The only film that die hard Star Wars fans seem to fully unite around is Rogue One, and its legacy. Now, after a seven year hiatus, the pressure is on for The Mandalorian and Grogu to be more positively received than most of its five predecessors. And thankfully, it rises to the occasion.

Movies, Star Wars

Breaking Down the Trailer for ‘The Mandalorian and Grogu’

February 18, 2026February 18, 2026 Mike Manalo

At its core Star Wars has always been about rebels and underdogs standing up to dictators using their own private armies to take over the galaxy. Since its debut in 2019, The Mandalorian strengthened those themes, centering on a ragtag duo of outcasts fighting the good fight against villains still trying their hardest to hold on to authoritarianism. Now the battle continues on the big screen as Din Djarin and Grogu return in The Mandalorian and Grogu!

Marvel, Movies

UPDATED: Breaking Down All ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Trailers So Far

January 6, 2026April 1, 2026 Mike Manalo

Happy New Year, folks! 2025 was definitely a tough year for many, but frankly, perhaps more so for Marvel Studios than most. While the House of Feige arguably put out a pair of its best post-Endgame films with Thunderbolts and The Fantastic Four: First Steps, none of its three releases last year grossed anywhere close to the heights of many of the studio’s previous wins.

Marvel, Movies, Reviews

NOC Review: ‘The Fantastic Four’ is a Loving Tribute to the Marvel Age of Comics

July 22, 2025July 23, 2025 Mike Manalo

There was a time, shortly after the Comics Code Authority was established, when DC Comics, after being attacked by psychiatrist Fredric Wertham and the Senate, was forced to make more campy, child-friendly stories for their most iconic heroes: Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman. As a result, sales plummeted, and fans of comics were looking for something more meaningful and relatable. Enter Stan Lee and Jack Kirby’s The Fantastic Four!

Marvel, Movies

Breaking Down the Latest ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ Trailer

June 4, 2025June 4, 2025 Mike Manalo

It’s June 4, which means tickets for The Fantastic Four: First Steps are officially on sale! I don’t know about you all, but I cannot wait to see Marvel’s First Family tearing up the big screen. All signs point to this one being a banger, and we got another new look at the film today. Let’s break down some of the key moments from this 75-second sneak peek, and deconstruct what it might showcase for the new movie and, perhaps, the greater MCU!

Horror, Recaps, Video Games

‘The Last of Us’ Recap: Vengeance and Violence Everlasting

May 25, 2025May 26, 2025 Mike Manalo

We are at the finale of an incredibly (intentionally) short season of The Last of Us. For those who have played the game, it should make sense why they are stopping here. And for those who haven’t, strap in and prepare for the unexpected!

Horror, Recaps, Video Games1 Comment

‘The Last of Us’ Recap: I Hope You Do a Little Better Than Me

May 18, 2025May 19, 2025 Mike Manalo

Oh my goodness. I can’t imagine there being a dry eye in the house after this emotional, beautiful episode of The Last of Us.

It’s good to see Joel again and get more about him despite his untimely demise early this season. We even get to see Pedro Pascal’s name and his silhouette at the end of the opening credits. If you were a fan of the games, you knew where this episode was going. However, surprise, surprise, we get some really great stuff that was exclusive for the show.

Horror, Music, Video Games3 Comments

‘The Last of Us’ Just Featured a Pearl Jam Song, Time Paradox Ensues

May 12, 2025May 12, 2025 Keith Chow

It’s been well documented on this site that I’m not much of a gamer. It’s is also well documented that I am a huge and unabashed Pearl Jam fan. Those two facts about me collided during last night’s viewing of the most recent episode of The Last of Us on HBO.

Horror, Recaps, Video Games2 Comments

‘The Last of Us’ Recap: An Airborne Nightmare

May 11, 2025May 12, 2025 Mike Manalo

Seattle: Day Two has begun, and The Last of Us Season 2 is progressing at an even faster pace than I could have imagined from the game. Dina and Ellie are one step closer to finding Abby; however, Ellie finds herself one step closer to losing her soul. All this and more on this week’s The Last of Us.

Horror, Recaps, Video Games2 Comments

‘The Last of Us’ Recap: Take On Me

May 4, 2025May 5, 2025 Mike Manalo

Ellie and Dina have officially reached Seattle. However, almost insurmountable challenges in Ellie’s quest for vengeance present themselves, as the WLFs have taken over the city. Chief among them, a new threat (in the form of a familiar fan-favorite actor) emerges. All this, plus a very emotional and soulful callback, and more in this week’s The Last of Us.

Marvel, Movies

Why ‘Avengers: Doomsday’ Might Work Out After All

May 1, 2025May 1, 2025 Mike Manalo

I’d like to start out by saying I’m an MCU believer. The rest of the world may be done with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and with just cause after misses like Quantumania, She-Hulk, and Secret Invasion, or even after mid-tier products like Brave New World or Multiverse of Madness. However, I got into Marvel Comics in 1991, and here I am 34 years later, and I still buy them, love them, and get excited whenever a new MCU film is announced or is released.

Horror, Recaps, Video Games4 Comments

‘The Last of Us’ Recap: The Aftermath of Tragedy Looms on Jackson

April 27, 2025April 28, 2025 Mike Manalo

At the time of writing this, a large portion of the world has bonded over the collective trauma of seeing the first two harrowing episodes of The Last of Us Season 2. The train has officially left the station, and there’s no going back. Which means by now, everyone on it already knows that zero punches are getting pulled, and every blow is about to land right in the gut.

Hard N.O.C. Life, Marvel

Hard NOC Life 354: The Last of Pedro Pascal’s Fantastic Father Figures (& Grogu)

April 21, 2025April 21, 2025 Hard NOC Media

On a new episode of Hard NOC Life, Keith and Dominic break down the recent trailer for Fantastic Four: First Steps and Pedro Pascal’s penchant for playing paternal characters in Last of Us and The Mandalorian. Then they review the first season of Daredevil: Born Again before recapping some news from Star Wars Celebration in Japan.

Marvel, Movies, Trailers

A New Silver Surfer Arrives with a New Trailer for ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’

April 17, 2025April 17, 2025 Mike Manalo

Prepare yourselves because Galactus is coming! The herald of Galactus has come to this world to inform us that tonight, the role will be played by an actual purple planet-eating humanoid Goliath and not a storm cloud of nothing. More than that, they brought the official trailer for The Fantastic Four: First Steps with them, and boy, it looks phenomenal!

Interview, Movies, Reviews

‘Freaky Tales’ is a Love Letter for Funny Folks Fighting Fascism

April 4, 2025May 20, 2025 Dominic Mah

The Golden State Warriors played the Los Angeles Lakers last night, as they do in the closing act of the new film Freaky Tales from filmmakers Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, set in the East Bay Area (Oakland and Berkeley mainly) in 1987, in which many cultural rivalries are lovingly recreated. The genre-bending mixtape movie from the directors of Captain Marvel and Half Nelson is timely, nostalgic, punk rock and old-school hiphop, inspiring and often hilarious.

Television, Video Games

Between Vengeance and Love at ‘The Last of Us’ Season 2 Press Conference

March 27, 2025March 27, 2025 Mike Manalo

Nothing in the video game space has broken my heart nearly as much as The Last of Us Parts I and II. The story of Ellie and Joel is one of the most beautiful and profoundly tragic tales I’ve ever played through, and seeing the first part come to life so gorgeously in the first season of The Last of Us was such a wonderful experience.

Marvel, Movies3 Comments

Marvel Studios Confirms Full Cast of ‘Avengers: Doomsday’

March 26, 2025May 15, 2025 Mike Manalo

We are only a little over a year until Avengers: Doomsday hits, and fans have been getting anxious about any sort of confirmed announcement about the tentpole, beyond the casting of Robert Downey Jr. as Doctor Doom, and the Russo Brothers directing. Well today, we finally got something pretty big, as the full confirmed cast was revealed via livestream, ending months of speculation on which MCU A-Listers would be joining the fun!

Television, Video Games

Secrets Are Revealed in ‘The Last of Us’ Season 2 Trailer

March 10, 2025March 10, 2025 Mike Manalo

This weekend, The Last of Us took SXSW by storm, as Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey visited the annual festival to unveil the latest trailer for the upcoming second season on Max. The explosive trailer, which shortly debuted online after, showcased a ton of scenes that will appear incredibly familiar to those who have played The Last of Us Part II. As such, get ready to feel your heart break folks!

Marvel, Movies

The Teaser Trailer for ‘The Fantastic Four: First Steps’ Launches

February 4, 2025February 27, 2025 Mike Manalo

At long last, we have our first trailer for The Fantastic Four: First Steps! It had been a long time coming, but Marvel’s first family is officially here!

Horror, Television, Video Games

New Trailer for ‘The Last of Us’ Season 2 and Why We Need This Now

January 7, 2025January 7, 2025 Mike Manalo

Last night, HBO and Naughty Dog dropped the latest trailer and release date information for the next season of its Emmy-nominated series adaptation of The Last Of Us. And frankly, the timing couldn’t be better. Here’s why we need this season of the show now more than ever.

Interview, Movies

Fred Hechinger on the Parallels of ‘Gladiator II’ and the Politics of Today

November 23, 2024November 25, 2024 Mike Manalo

Joaquin Phoenix’s first Academy Award nomination was for the role of Emperor Commodus in the first Gladiator film. The role went down in history as one of the best movie villains of that decade. So to walk in the footsteps of the legacy of such a performance and a character would have been a challenge for any actor.

Movies, Reviews

NOC Review: ‘Gladiator II’ Honors Its Predecessor with Strength and Blood

November 11, 2024November 11, 2024 Mike Manalo

There are very few films in cinematic history — especially from the ‘00s — that many would consider perfect. But 24 years ago, Ridley Scott’s Gladiator became a monumental box office success, an Oscar Winner for Best Picture, and is now considered to be one of the best films of its decade. So I was insanely skeptical about Gladiator II.

Movies

Harry Gregson-Williams Scores in the New Music Featurette for ‘Gladiator II’

October 11, 2024October 11, 2024 Mike Manalo

How do you capture the spirit of ancient Rome? Through gorgeously composed music, of course! This was something Hans Zimmer knew very well putting together the original score for Gladiator back in 2000. Now, following in the footsteps of Zimmer comes composer Harry Gregson-Williams.