The Caldari Navy Hookbill: choosing where the fight happens

This series draws on Rixx Javix’s ship reviews to explore the fits, tactics, and lessons behind flying them. Some are ships I fly; others are ships I’m curious about. Either way, there’s always something to learn before your next undock.

The Caldari Navy Hookbill is worth considering if you enjoy making an opponent work for every bit of damage. In his most recent ship review The Definitive Hookbill, Rixx Javix, Pirate Lord of Stay Frosty and my co-host on The Safe Spot, makes the case for a frigate whose greatest advantage is deciding where a fight happens. Rockets provide the damage, and those five mid slots give you ways to keep the other pilot somewhere uncomfortable.

I already flew a Hookbill, so this review prompted a closer look at my own fit. 

It also reminded me that having the right hull doesn’t necessarily mean you’ve fitted it to do the thing you like about it.

Neuromancer’s trailer gets the right feel — now comes the hard part

I’ve watched the Neuromancer teaser a few times now, and it has me hooked. It looks polished, but more than that, its world feels believable. TV sci-fi can sometimes look like a set everyone’s trying very hard to pretend is real. This doesn’t. At least, not in the footage we’ve seen.

I’ve been excited by trailers before. I thought Alien: Romulus looked promising, and I had high hopes for Rebel Moon. Both left me disappointed. So I’m trying to keep my expectations in check.

Still, it’s William Gibson’s Neuromancer, with Callum Turner, Briana Middleton, Mark Strong and Peter Sarsgaard among the cast. 

I’m allowed a little hope, right?

Dune: Part Three trailer — the hero and the poison

I shared the teaser back in March, but the official trailer has me thinking about Paul in a different way.

I first read Dune in CÉGEP, and it felt unlike any science fiction I’d encountered. The closest comparison I had was Asimov’s Foundation trilogy, though even that didn’t prepare me for what Herbert was doing with religion, politics and the weight of a single person’s destiny.

In Villeneuve’s first two films, it’s easy to see Paul Muad’Dib Atreides as the hero. The Harkonnens destroyed his family and oppressed the Fremen. Of course you want to see them brought down. What fascinates me about this trailer is that it lets the poison inside Paul’s messiah story come into view. I’m eager to see how far Villeneuve takes that turn.

I loved Parts One and Two, so yes, I’m excited for this one. I’m also waiting on my limited Portfolio Edition of Dune: The Storyboards, which I backed late last year. If it arrives around March 2027 as expected, I’ll get to revisit the whole trilogy through the storyboards, artwork and proofs. First, though, I want to see where Paul’s story ends on screen.

December 18th can't come soon enough...