March 12, 2023

Tonight is the Academy Awards and I usually watch these. I have especially started watching this more since I usually am pretty close to having seen all of them. This year, though, because there are several Oscar nominees that I am saving for the next June Swoon, there are a couple of best picture nominees that I have not seen yet.

I am also rooting for Black Panther: Wakanda Forever in the few categories it has been nominated for. In particular, I will be very disappointed if Angela Bassett does not get the Best Supporting Actress. Comic book movies are always dismissed by the Academy and her win would go a long way.

Meanwhile, I have some comics to catch-up on.

Black Panther #8. “The Long Shadow; Finale” Kicking off the catch-up with Black Panther because of the Oscars tonight. This is written by John Ridley and drawn by Stefano Landini. The conflict within Wakanda comes to a close as T’Challa and his forces launch their attack against Akili. I am looking forward to the next arc of this series.

The Silver Coin #4. “2467.” Written by Jeff Lemire and drawn by Michael Walsh. We get a futuristic story from the mind of Jeff Lemire. I have been reading a bunch of his work recently and I have really been enjoying it. This issue was so so. I did not feel the connection with a lot of the characters here as I have in other issues.

Moon Knight #14-15. Jed MacKay write this and the art was by Alessandro Cappuccio. Stephen Segovia & Rachelle Rosenberg were credited as cover artists. Moon Knight has been a solid series from Marvel recently. I really enjoy this last couple because it really dives back into the D.I.D. that Marc Spector has. We get some more on Steven Grant and Jake Lockley, which makes Moon Knight one of the most original super heroes in the comics.

Predator #1. “The Preserve Part 1 of 5” Written by Ed Brisson and penciled by Netho Diaz. The cover art was by Giuseppe Camuncoli & Richard Isanove. So I kinda liked this. However, I really did like the Alien book when it first came out, but it became one of my least favorite books every month. I just lost interest in it. I feel like this is going to be the same. I did like the set up of the story in this first issue, but I get a feeling that it is not sustainable.

Gideon Falls #3-4. Written by Jeff Lemire and drawn by Andrea Sorrentino. This has quickly become one of my favorite books that I am currently reading. It is extremely creepy and I have loved the mystery about what is happening and the enigma over the characters and why they are doing what they are doing. This mystery of the Black Barn is compelling and I am invested in it.

The Me You Love in the Dark #4. Written by Skottie Young and drawn by Jorge Corona. Seems like Ro is starting to understand that you do not start a sexual relationship with a mysterious spirit in a haunted house. The sweetheart spirit took a bit of a turn in this issue as he began to exert his own control over Ro. I have very few ideas on how this book is bringing this story to a conclusion next issue, but I am excited to find out how. I love Skottie Young’s writing style.

Ten Thousand Black Feathers #3. Written by Jeff Lemire and art by Andrea Sorrentino. We get more about Jackie’s disappearance and we see more about how she was acting before her disappearance. Trish and Jackie had some powerful reactions between each other that has led to a frightening final page that I am dying to find out about. This Bone Orchard Mythos world has been very engaging so far.

Primordial #3. Written by Jeff Lemire with art by Andrea Sorrentino. This Cold War series surrounding the space race and the mystery about the missing dog (Laika) and the primates (Able and Mrs. Baker) moves along with some wonderful imagery that makes the reader feel trippy. Yelena took the doctor into East Berlin in search of an answer to the mystery of the space program, but that is not what they found.

X-Men #20. “Lord of the Brood Part Two.” We finally come across Broo, who had been leader of the Brood, but was gleefully unaware that the hive-mind parasites had been doing things that he did not want them to do while he slept. And then, at the end of the book, we get a surprising arrival of Wilson Fisk and Typhoid Mary on Krakoa. Written by Gerry Duggan and drawn by Stefano Caselli. Juan Frigeri & David Curiel teamed up to do the art on the cover.

X-23: Deadly Regenesis #1. “The Past Haunts Us All.” Written by Erick Schultz and art by Edgar Salazar. Kalman Andrasofszky did the art on the cover. I liked this issue. Lately, Marvel has been going back into the pasts of characters to show stories that happened during that time period. This is an example of that for Laura. She does the heroic ‘save people from a building fire’ that we have seen others do, and it worked quite well here too. We are leading into a fight between X-23 and Haymaker next issue.

Sabretooth & the Exiles #4. “Station Four.” I did not expect the end of this book. It was a shocking final page that really picked up the rest of the book that did not create much in way of excitement or suspense. As a penultimate issue, this was not great, but it does give me an excitement for the finale next issue so that part was successful. Written by Victor LaValle and art by Leonard Kirk.