Header image: Netflix
“The Nevers” — HBO
“The Nevers” is a new science-fiction series coming to HBO and HBO Max that takes place in Victorian London. The series is created by Joss Whedon, known in the TV industry for his work on “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” and “Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.” The series follows the classic sci-fi premise of “a lot of people randomly acquire super powers out of nowhere” but is unique due to its historical setting. Those who acquire abilities are known as The Touched, and the story follows a group of The Touched who work together, as well as several church and government groups that work to suppress them. “The Nevers” stars Laura Donnelly (“Outlander,” “The Fall”) as Amalia True, a Touched woman who can see the future and would “die for the cause and kill for a drink,” according to HBO. The series will also feature Olivia Williams (“The Sixth Sense”) as Lavinia Bidlow, a pseudo-leader of The Touched that takes Touched in as orphans.
“The Circle” season two — Netflix
Netflix’s popular quarantine binge reality series “The Circle” will be getting a second season on April 14. The series is a contest reality series in the vein of “Big Brother” where contestants are voted off as time goes on and compete for a cash prize. The difference between “The Circle” and other series is that none of the active contestants ever meet each other in person, and can only interact over social media. Some players play as themselves while others take on personas known as ‘catfish’ and try to socially manipulate other players. This season, the show will be hosted by comedian Michelle Buteau and features eight contestants ranging from 20-years-old to 58-years-old. Some notable aspects of this season are that it was filmed during the COVID-19 pandemic and will touch on that some way and will feature a “surprise twist” halfway through according to Netflix.
Pac-Man 99
The classic arcade game Pac-Man is getting yet another modern facelift in the form of a 99 player competitive battle royale style game. Pac-Man 99 is the third in the “Nintendo Switch Online Series” which are free-to-play battle royale titles offered to Nintendo Switch Online members who subscribe to their monthly online service. The previous entries in the series, Tetris 99 and Super Mario Bros. 35, both gained high critical success and received continuous free updates as time went on. The iconic arcade style gameplay of Pac-Man is sped up in this competitive iteration, incentivizing the player to go after ghosts rather than score, sending obstacles to other players’ boards as they progress on their own. As time goes on, the movement speed of the player and the enemies will increase, meaning matches are quick and even if a player goes all the way to the winner’s circle, they still did so in under 10 minutes. The quick, competitive style of Pac-Man 99 is sure to keep players coming back time and time again.
Editor’s Note: This actually came out last week on April 7, but was announced after the last issue of the Collegian went live and was released the next day.
The La Salle Collegian 