This week’s round-up includes getting excited about the Supergirl movie trailer, reflecting on Britney Spears, anticipating new Tomb Raider and Star Wars video games, learning that whales have dialects, and much more.

Film

You may or may not be aware that James Gunn brought us a new Superman movie this year, and it was a banger in my opinion. There are many more movies on the DCU roster for the next couple of years, but next year brings Supergirl back to the big screen after 42 years. Based on the tremendous Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow run of comics (one of my rare five-star reads), Milly Alcock‘s Kara Zor-El will be unlike any screen Supergirl we’ve seen before – the Maid of Might is traumatised and out to numb the pain of losing the home she knew, a home that Superman never knew and thus doesn’t quite suffer the same deep sense of loss. If the trailer that was released this week is anything to go by (see below) this will not only be an awesome movie, but feature the best aspects of Woman of Tomorrow.

This week also finally saw the release of The Running Man (2025) in theatres in Korea. I have been looking forward to this film as a fan of Stephen King’s novel, and though the film did stay mostly true to the book, for me it was lacking in many aspects (check out my full review at dawnofthetapes.com). I’ve also been watching tons of Christmas films that I’ve never seen before in the run up to the big day, some nicely festive, others lacking in the spirit (you can see bitesize reviews for these films in the coming days on the Dawn of the Tapes Instagram page).

Television

Maybe I’ve been banging on about Taylor Swift too much lately, but whatever, this is my blog, and I like Taylor Swift. She has a new docuseries about her record-breaking Eras Tour, and though there are currently only two episodes out, they are packed with behind-the-scenes stories and her (and her team’s) experiences. It’s a very interesting glimpse into how the show was put together and the blood, sweat and tears (and money) spent. There is also a new version of the Eras Tour concert film, The Final Show, that includes The Tortured Poets Department segment that was added to the show.

I’m also getting very excited about the return of Emily in Paris next week, Stranger Things returning in just over a week, and getting into the latest series of Love is Blind (US), the latter being one of my favourite shows to put on in the background while I play mindless farming games.

Music

This week I found myself listening to a lot of Britney Spears while making content for various social media. It took me right down memory lane, remembering when I bought her first album, …Baby One More Time, became obsessed with learning the chair dance from Stronger on the Oops… I Did It Again album, through coming around to a newer, more mature sound on the self-titled Britney and then a complete move into a dancier vibe with In the Zone. After In the Zone I kind of dropped off from Britney, enjoying the odd track like If U Seek Amy and Criminal from future albums, but never really vibing with her later music. I often find myself joining other fans in thinking about her current state and hoping she’s ok. I enjoyed reading her book The Woman in Me, but couldn’t help but feel her current reality doesn’t reflect the level-headed narrative in which her story was written. Ultimately we all hope she can live a carefree existence with less intrusion from the public, as she has more than earned it.

Literature

If you’d read the The Dawn Summary: Edition 02, you’ll know I had recently read Sophie Kinsella‘s semi-autobiographical novella What Does It Feel Like? in which the main character is diagnosed with a malignant and incurable brain tumour, much like Kinsella was in reality, and I enjoyed her Shopaholic books as a young adult. Heart-breakingly, Kinsella, whose real name was Madeline Wickham, passed away on December 10th. Although her prognosis was terminal, it still came as a shock. She was just two days shy of her 56th birthday. It’s events like this that put a lot of things into perspective. My thoughts are with her family, and may she rest in peace.

Turning to brighter things, I have begun putting together my TBR (to-be-read) list of books for 2026. I spent much of this year following reading challenges with set books to read and felt quite satisfied in reaching the set goals, but now I want to indulge in books and series that I’ve been wanting to read or re-read. I’m mostly looking to re-read The Hunger Games series because I want to read (for the first time) The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes and get Sunrise on the Reaping under my belt before the film releases next year. A few other series I’ve started and want to finish include the last handful of books in the Bridgerton series, The Whimbrel House series by Charlie N. Holmberg, and The Old Kingdom series by Garth Nix, amongst many others.

Gaming

I’ve been getting through Disney Dreamlight Valley‘s Wishblossom Ranch DLC, and while I’ve really enjoyed riding around on the horses, there hasn’t been a whole lot else to enjoy. It doesn’t have nearly as many foraging items or similar collectibles as the other DLCs, and I suppose that comes down to the horses being the main draw for it, which I’ll accept, but I hope they put more into the grinding aspects in the next DLC. I’m now making my way through the new Winter Warmth Star Path and update that brings in Cinderella. It’s got some great wintery and festive items that I’m enjoying decorating with, and I always enjoy the feeling of getting the duties checked off in the Star Path.

I was so happy to see that two new(ish) Tomb Raider games are coming soon! 2026 will see the release of Legacy of Atlantis, a reimagining of the very first game. It seems like a bit of a cop out, considering we had Tomb Raider Anniversary as a fully updated remake, but honestly, I don’t mind a reimagining if it means we can play again but in a larger, more modernised world for Lara Croft. Then 2027 will see the release of a brand new game, Tomb Raider: Catalyst, that will apparently be a sequel to Underworld. The stills from the game and the new design of Lara looks a little bizarre, but I’m going to withold full judgement, for BOTH games, until they are released. I should probably go back and finish Shadow of the Tomb Raider before then, as I struggled to get into it… and all the prequel trilogy tbh…

ALSO a new Star Wars single player RPG is coming, Fate of the Old Republic. Could it possibly be tied in to some of the greatest Star Wars games of all time, Knights of the Old Republic!? Well, the game is “being developed by a new studio launched by Casey Hudson, the director of the original Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic and the Mass Effect trilogy” (starwars.com for the full interview), so although it may not tie in directly, it’s definitely in the family. There’s no release date set yet, so it could be a couple of years before we see anything, but it’s very exciting!

A Random Thing I Learned This Week

Dr. Harini Bhat posted a TikTok in which she explains that although we’ve been long aware that whales communicate, they also have their own dialects that can change if they join a new pod. Not only that, they have names that are taught to them by their mothers! I don’t know why we continue to underestimate these creatures who have been on the Earth for millions of years, far longer than us. There’s plenty of other interesting facts about whales in Dr. Bhat’s TikTok, so check it out if you want to learn more!