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This newsletter delivers one big recommendation each week that stands out from the rest. This week is our recommendation Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, a Marvel film that stands out from its competitors thanks to director Sam Raimi’s vision. And honestly, that’s all we have to say about the film for now beyond our spoiler-free review, because god knows we’re not responsible for spoiling the latest entry in the MCU over the weekend of its release.
Instead, we want to use this space to discuss a question, and more importantly, what that question means for the world of entertainment. That question is: what does Baby Yoda smell like?
That’s not a question we would have expected a decade ago, before Disney took over Lucasfilm and revived the Star Wars film and television production line and then kicked it into high gear. It’s not that George Lucas valued the commercialization of his galaxy far, far away. Rather, this galaxy had gotten a bit messy and dusty, like an attic full of stuff you promise to clean up eventually.
Now Star Wars is squeaky clean, meticulously planned, and utterly inevitable. Gone are the days of hardcore fans debating the expanded universe of books; Now we’re filling Reddit with theories that will be proven or debunked in next week’s episode, a game this fall, or a movie in the years to come. Star Wars has climbed back to the top of the pop culture mountain so confidently and so quickly that it doesn’t seem all that strange to wonder about the smell of “Baby Yoda” (two words that didn’t go together a few years ago).
With that in mind, this week we wrote three stories about the state of Star Wars and what’s next:
Will the future of Star Wars move in these directions? when will we know more Obi Wan premiered later this month. For now, we have a new trailer. It looks promising, just as everything looks promising with Benny Safdie. In the meantime, why not play the 13 best Star Wars games you can snag in this year’s May 4th sales? They’re almost certainly a better use of your money than grogu’s weird stench.
This week on YouTube | How Call of Duty turned war into a circus | “Call of Duty was created by developers who worked on it Medal of Honora WWII game modeled after Steven Spielberg’s The soldier James Ryan. The film is brutal, fearless and a bit romantic. But Call of Duty would evolve into something far stranger, far bigger, and far more perverted than anyone could have known. It is part of a military apparatus that sells war to the public. And it is fun.”
Five stories to read
After 50 years, Captain Pike got the Star Trek show he deserved | It took more than half a century, however Strange New Worlds delivers on the promise of a proper Pike spinoff.
The first trailer for the Game of Thrones spinoff looks quite promising | Can HBO reignite the flame extinguished by the original series finale? The trailer hints that could happen!
The Owl House turns out to be too good for Disney | “Even with Disney’s interference, The Owl House is brilliant.”
Everyday Heroes uses the rules of D&D to roll up Rambo, Highlander, The Crow and more
Heartstopper understands the bisexual panic watching Pirates of the Caribbean | Sometimes a headline says it all.
Four things to see
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness in theatres | Read our spoiler-free review of Sam Raimi’s return to the superhero industrial complex!
Lovely on digital rental platforms such as Amazon and Vudu | The director of anime hits like Mirai and The girl who jumped through time has taken a stunning and bewildering turn Beauty and the Beast. Curious? Read our review.
Eternal light in theatres | The controversial director Gaspar Noé is back.
13 great movies new in May to stream | Seriously, you no longer have an excuse to skip the Wachowskis’ underrated gem, Bound.
Plus, everything new to stream!
Five games to play
Before we get into the list, let’s just say, what a week for video games! This may be the first time we’ve awarded our Recommends badge to four games in the same week. And we thought this was the slow season!
village romance | Polygon recommends | Imagine katan minus all the stress. Available on Windows PC
Villain Legacy 2 | Polygon recommends | After almost two years in Early Access, Villain Legacy 2 is a worthy sequel to a popular roguelite. Available on Xbox Series X, Xbox One and Windows PC.
citizen sleeper | Polygon recommends | “The game’s greatest strength (and also its most annoying choice) is stripping me of concrete goals and letting me exist for no reason.” Available on Windows PC, Mac, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Nintendo Switch.
Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Demon Hunter | Polygon recommends | XCOM needed more and more giant space hammers. Available on Windows PC
The 25 best games in Xbox Game Pass | We’ve added new treasures to our ongoing list.
Free game of the week
No snake hotel | Reader, there is a snake and it is terrifying. The game is short and free and Streamable if you’d rather watch someone else playso let’s leave it at the details. Available on juck.io.
The best of the rest
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