David S. Goyer

‘Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice’ will probably give you what you expect, but not what you’re looking for.

For almost 50 years, Batman has graced the silver screen.  Whether working solo or accompanied by sidekicks and associates, Gotham City is continually saved by his enduring presence.  Even though the eight theatrical live-action films featuring the Caped Crusader have had their ups and downs, there is no denying his appeal as a lead character. …

Starz knows exactly what it needs. “The Rope of the Dead” is that thing. It is the perfect blend of high octane action, visual spectacle (enhanced by a little bit of sexiness, of course) and powerfully emotional character beats.

Like the series it just replaced in the Starz line-up, Black Sails, DVD has a huge world to explore. Naturally, it would make sense that more episodes would mean a fuller exploration of that world.

“The Blood of Man” earns a bunch of credit for being a satisfyingly action-packed return to this world. Florence is on the brink of collapse, the Medicis are in death’s line of sight and Leonardo can’t catch a break.

Fiction always has a habit of overlapping, whether intentionally or not, since storytelling is built on only a few choice templates. Your plot can include three headed aliens in an intergalactic pissing contest with ghost humans, or simply be a gritty fable about the perils of alcoholism and social stigma, it doesn’t matter. The plot …

  Da Vinci’s Demons, Season 1: Episode 8 – “The Lovers” Directed by Michael J. Bassett Written by Brian Nelson, Corey Reed and David S. Goyer For those of you not following along, that’s Zoroaster and Nico up there with very what-the-fuck expressions. Nico looks downright peeved. While the thoughts going through their heads might …

Da Vinci’s Demons, Season 1: Episode 7 – “The Hierophant” Directed by Michael J. Bassett Written by Sarah Goldfinger and Corey Reed Airs Friday nights at 9 on Starz After a week off, Da Vinci’s Demons returns just as bat-shit crazy as ever. In this penultimate episode of the season, most of the show’s weaknesses and …

So, to continue the trend of piecing together seemingly unrelated things in these Da Vinci’s Demons reviews (I consider this completely appropriate because of the outrageous fashion in which da Vinci solves his problems in this show), let me turn your attention to Bruce Dickinson’s song, “The Tower,”

Da Vinci’s Demons, Season 1: Episode 4 – “The Magician” Directed by Jamie Payne Written by David S. Goyer and Jami O’Brien Airs Friday nights at 9 on Starz Something that might interest me more than it should is how seemingly unrelated shows can connect on any given week, much like how Leonardo reminds Clarice …

The conceit of “The Prisoner” is that the episode is structured to parallel a game of Go played by Riario and the eponymous, mysterious prisoner. This conceit, along with the comparisons of a caged bird to Lucrezia, plays out rather heavy-handed and isn’t really necessary for us to understand what’s going on in Da Vinci’s Demons at this point. It’s a freshman mistake made by a freshman series, but the over-the-top nature of it lends itself well to how these first few episodes have been executed. Da Vinci’s Demons is still finding itself as a show in these first three scripts, much like how it took Spartacus: Blood and Sand a little while to get going on the same channel, and it’s up to us to trust the writers to pick up on where their ideas are strongest.

The second episode of Da Vinci’s Demons doubles up on explosions, but packing on the action doesn’t dust up the interest packing on a little more character development would. Leonardo continues to stand out as a dashing, charismatic lead. But so far, the show demonstrates no interest in allowing its other characters room to grow or compete for equal attention.

Da Vinci’s Demons, Season 1, Episode 1: “The Hanged Man” Written and Directed by David S. Goyers Airs Fridays at 9 pm on Starz All the promotional material about Da Vinci’s Demons trades heavily on David S. Goyer’s contribution to The Dark Knight Trilogy.  So it seems more than fair to discuss one in relation …

David Goyer has made quite a reputation in Hollywood as one of the go to writers of comic book adaptations. His credits include penning Dark City, Batman Begins, The Dark Knight and the Blade trilogy. With his fame growing each year, he’s been offered plenty of other projects to help develop, mostly all related to …