What’s on our shelves: A gladiatorial disappointment, esports, books, brunch and more…

Film: Gladiator II directed by Ridley Scott

Although this tries so hard to copy the story and patterns of the blockbuster original, with a huge budget and star-studded cast it still fails to impress. The score is forgettable, the main character is lumpy and wooden, there is no sense of time passing so that characters seem to spin on a dime. Sadly we don’t see any of the sweeping glory and moments of beauty of Rome. You have no idea what any of the other gladiators are called or why they love the titular character. A study in disappointment 4/10

also sharks??!! that made me TUT so loud

Sam Goldsmith, Business Development  Manager – PTFS Europe

Helen’s take – Overall, meh. Denzel Washington is fabulous in all ways there are to be fabulous but, frustratingly, his motivations were never explained (cue Gladiator III). The two emperors were equally delightful to watch and managed to replicate some of Joaquin Phoenix’s mannerisms as Commodus which I thoroughly enjoyed. I will watch Pedro Pascal in anything but he wasn’t utilised nearly enough. However, as much as I enjoyed these four, they couldn’t save the boredom of the rest of the story and how surly and unappealing the main character was. I did not enjoy the CGI animals and as Sam says, barely noticed the soundtrack.

Helen Symington, Sales Executive – PTFS Europe

Esports: The 2024 League of Legends World Championship Finals, The O2

I’ve always enjoyed watching League of Legends at the highest levels of play and watching it live with the 2 best teams in the world at that moment was incredible.  The gameplay that was on display with Faker rolling the years back to help turn both Games 4 and 5.

It was probably one of the best Worlds Final since the start of the esport.  The eventual winner was well deserved and I won’t spoil who it was!

Ryan Henderson, System Administrator – PTFS Europe

Book: The Rook and Rose series by M.A. Carrick (trilogy)

Really enjoyed this fantasy series. An orphaned waif raised by a crime gang returns to her troubled home city – disguised as a noble, with a plan to wheedle her way into the upper echelons of society. Only to find there are darker plots at play which she finds herself embroiled in. 4/5

Sam Goldsmith, Business Development  Manager – PTFS Europe

Video Game: Life is Strange published by Square Enix

Life is Strange was released in 2015 and is a glorious example of thoughtful, moving, complex interactive storytelling. I loved it then, and I have loved every game in the series since. By asking you to embody the protagonist and make crucial decisions, they sweep you into caring deeply about the relationships between characters, their prospects, and their safety. There is love and loss and time travel and explosions, and because events later in the story are influenced by earlier player decisions, you begin to feel that the predicaments you find yourself in really are of your own making. They are marvellous games, and I recommend them all to anyone. I might replay them and rant about their brilliance in detail in a later WOOSH.

Double Exposure is the latest release in the series. It reprises Max Caulfield as the protagonist from the first one, and I am heartbroken to report that I think the magic from the previous games is not present here. It is visually lovely – the world and the characters are beautifully drawn and rendered, especially complex emotive facial expressions which are famously difficult to represent in animated cyberspace. Sadly though, there were times while playing Double Exposure when things felt so detached from their narrative context – lighthearted comments in the midst of wildly dark events, completely sideways responses to situations, or nonsensical presumptions made by characters with whom we are being asked to closely identify. Things are explained by Max’s voiceover – “Hmm, I should ask Gwen what she knows about the manuscript!” – in ways designed to reduce player confusion, but that should really have been made more evident and left for the player to contemplate, as was common in previous instalments. The story makes what I can only describe as “almost no sense”, even with the plausible deniability provided by things like time-vortex-related mysteries. A central antagonist is introduced, characterised as an existential threat, then dispatched without fanfare or explanation within one chapter. Even my long standing affection for the series and its characters could not get me over the jarringly incoherent plot and its many dangling threads. It was weird.

As a standalone work, Double Exposure is valuable and beautiful and thought-provoking. I think because the protagonist is the same person we spent dozens of hours with in 2015, seeing the world through their internal monologue and agonising over their choices, this lapse in narrative cohesion feels weirdly personal. It left me feeling upset and unfulfilled. I will probably play it again, and you should probably play it too. ?/5 stars.

Jake Bateman, Linux System Administrator – PTFS Europe

TV series: Lioness, Paramount Plus (series 1 & 2)

A glimpse into the darker side of US defence. The series follows a secret program to train female assassins to infiltrate and “neutralise” top terrorist targets. It’s not your expected violent worshipping fodder, it is violent at times of course, but its also terribly emotionally messy and complex. The characters are flawed and fascinating 9/10.

Sam Goldsmith, Business Development  Manager – PTFS Europe

An update from Helen’s ‘To Be Finished’ shelf

I’ve had a quiet month on the reading front.

I finally finished listening to Simon Sebag Montefiore’s Stalin. It’s taken me a while to finish it as I had to take a few breaks from the serial mass murder and paranoia for some more light hearted fare. I’m not sure it’s the type of book and topic that I can say I enjoyed but it was interesting and worth listening to or reading if you prefer.

I also listened to the first Bad People podcast since Sophie Hagan left and was very disappointed. I loved the nuanced discussions between Sophie and Dr Julia Shaw when they went in depth into the psychology of why people do bad things but the new format feels like it is much more about the shock factor and reinforcing media cliches of crime. I thoroughly recommend the first series of Bad People with Sophie Hagan but I would stop after they leave.

I read Grady Hendrix’s My Best Friend’s Exorcism as a friend had recommended the author. Horror isn’t a genre I gravitate towards but I trust this friend’s tastes so gave it a go. The main character was an irritating, ‘I know better than anyone else’ 16 year old, who was so desperate to be liked and accepted by people who could not have cared less about her, I kind of wanted the demon possessing her friend to destroy her life. I won’t spoil it in case anyone wants to read it but I’lll admit I was disappointed.

I am now reading The Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Brontë and am loving it. Don’t get me wrong, I hate all the characters and the patriarchy so devastatingly on display, but the language and storytelling is superb. I’ve never understood why everyone raves about Wuthering Heights when almost every other Brontë novel is far superior. Would highly recommend.

Helen Symington, Sales Executive – PTFS Europe

Hello Kitty’s 50th Birthday celebrated at ArtBox Cafe – Hello Kitty and Friends, Brighton

1st November 2024 marked Hello Kitty’s 50th birthday! Eilish and I celebrated the occasion with a trip to Brighton to have brunch at the Hello Kitty café. I had the Hello Kitty Strawberry Cream Hot Choc with the My Melody’s Pink Paradise Strawberry Tiramisu. Both were surprisingly delicious, and shortly followed by a sugar headache! The service staff were a joy and very accommodating to our deliberation over just what to order. In the shop below the cafe, I picked up new notebook for work and have my eye on much more for future visits…

Lauren Purton, Marketing Executive – PTFS Europe