Author Archives: Doc

EYG Favorite Comic Cover of the Week

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November 6

Good evening cover lovers. Welcome to the EYG Favorite Comic Covers of the Week for the first week of November. If I am being honest, this week’s covers were a little weaker. There were not as many also-rans this week even though the top three are still very strong.

There is just a few weeks to go until the 2025 Cover Artist of the Year is named in the Year in Review. Spoiler… I think this year’s winner is among the medalists this week. Should not be a surprise if you have been paying attention.

Also-Rans: DC KO: Knightfight #1, Crownsville #1, No Place #1, Amazing Spider-Man #15, Batman #3, and Alien vs. Captain America #1.

Bronze Medalist

Star Trek: Red Shirts #4.

Cover art by Chris Shehan

Rough day for this cover Red Shirt. The skeleton with the sword in its guts, chained up. Feels like overkill, but it is a stunning cover that really tells you what the series is about. Killing off red shirts!

Silver Medalist

Wild Animals #4

Cover art by Andy Kuhn

Wild Animals has been a sensational series and this cover continues some awesome work. I love the white background with the giant gun and the yellow tint. It is just a real standout among the covers this week.

Gold Medalist

G.I. Joe #13

Variant Cover B

Cover art by Mark Spears

Mark Spears is back in the gold medal round with a beautiful cover featuring Cobra Commander. I was very surprised to see Spears doing a G.I. Joe Cover. He is undeniably going to be out cover artist of year unless there is some kind of massive push by someone. He is certainly the leader in the clubhouse.

I probably have to thank Todd for putting this in my box… he gets twitchy when I don’t mention him.

Daily Countdown: TV Shows #35

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#35

Murphy Brown

Politics and the media. Murphy Brown was a show ahead of its time.

At the fictional news television newsmagazine program, FYI, investiagtive journalist Murphy Brown searched for the scoops and traversed the ups and downs of Washngton, D.C. with her crew of fellow reporters.

Murphy Brown, played by Candice Bergen, was one of the top sitcoms on CBS and was genuinely funny. It used current world politics to tell some remarkably hilarious stories.

When real world Vice President Dan Quayle made a remark about the fictional TV show Murphy Brown, the show took it into their fictional world and ran with it into a feud with the sitting VP. I would love to have seen what Murphy Brown would have done with Donald Trump (though he was mentioned during a 2017 revival of the shw that lasted one season).

As it is with many of these types of shows, the ensemble’s chemistry is what truly makes the show work. This is true for Murphy Brown as well as Candice Bergen was joined by Charles Kinbrough, Joe Regalbuto, Grant Shaud, Faith Ford, Pat Corley, Robert Pastorelli and eventually Lily Tomlin.

One of the running gags throughout the show was the inability for Murphy Brown to keep a secretary. The joke allowed a countless number of fun cameos over the 10+ seasons of the show.

The multiple Emmy winning show dealt with many issues outside of politics, including breast cancer, feminism, family and single mothers.

Daily Countdown: TV Shows #36

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#36

Breaking Bad

Considered by many the greatest show on TV, Breaking Bad was a show that I came to in a different manner.

I had never been interested in the show, despite the cultural significance that it was having. It was around the fourth season that I decided to go back and watch the show from the beginning. The first couple of seasons felt kind of… okay. I did not love the show in the first handful of episodes. In fact, near the beginning of season three, I actually considered stopping watching it. The whole plane crash stuff was nearly the straw that broke my back.

I am so glad that I stuck with the show. Almost immediately the show felt better. In season three, I became engaged and enthralled by the characters and the story it was telling. I can’t believe that I nearly gave up on the show.

By the end of the fifth and final season, Breaking Bad was one of my favorite shows on TV at the time.

The all-star cast was sensational. The cast included Bryan Cranston, Aaron Paul, Anna Gunn, Dean Norris, RJ Mitte, Betsy Brandt, Giancarlo Esposito, Jonathan Banks, and Bob Odenkirk.

The character of Walter White is one of the greatest characters in TV history and the comple performance from Bryan Cranston earned him four Emmy Awards for best Actor in a Drama and Aaron Paul’s work as Jesse Pinkman won him three Emmy Awards for best Supporting Actor in a Drama.

Untraveled: Day 1 Madrid to Cordoba

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Jay and Adam, the boys from pReview’d, one of my favorite reaction channels on YouTube, have created a travel show. Produced and edited by Michael Millard, Jay and Adam narrate the show from their studio. They showed off their chemistry as they walked around Spain, this episode specifically in Cordoba.

The area is beautiful and Jay and Adam are hilarious. There are seven total episodes of Untraveled dropping on Tuesdays, and I look forward to the next episode.

Daily Countdown: TV Shows #37

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#37

Stranger Things

Stranger Things is one of Netflix’s biggest shows of all time. A supernatural/action/comedy/horror show that grabs you with a ton of nostalgia and coming-to-age drama among a group of wonderful characters that are as charismatic as you could believe.

It started off as a mystery as young Will Byers disappeared. His friends become enveloped in the mystery and the dangers of the Upside Down, a hostile nearby dimension with creatures and monsters.

The cast is sensational. It included  Winona Ryder, David Harbour, Finn Wolfhard, Millie Bobby Brown, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin, Natalia Dyer, Charlie Heaton, Cara Buono, Matthew Modine, Noah Schnapp, Sadie Sink, Joe Keery, Dacre Montgomery, Sean Astin, Paul Reiser, Maya Hawke, Priah Ferguson, Brett Gelman, Jamie Campbell Bower, Eduardo Franco, Joseph Quinn, and Amybeth McNulty.

However, the key to the show is the kids. Finn Wolfhard, Gaten Matarazzo, Caleb McLaughlin and Noah Schapp have unbelievable chemistry together and when you add in the special talent of Millie Bobby Brown, you have something truly special.

The show has run for four seasons, with the fifth and final season preparing to drop later this month.

Daily Countdown: TV Shows #38

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#38

The Greatest American Hero

It’s a bird. It’s a plane. It’s ….. Ralph?

ABC’s action/comedy The Greatest American Hero was a superhero parody show, but it was so much more.

Teacher Ralph Hinkley was stranded in the desert when he was approached by a UFO. The UFO left him a suit, complete with cape, that gave Ralph a variety of super powers, from super strength to flight to invisibility. One problem… Ralph lost the instruction manuel.

Ralph bumbled his way through misadventure after misadventure, always seemingly coming out on top. Ralph team up with FBI agent Bill Maxwell and the two of them fought the “bad guys.”

William Kitt played Ralph and Robert Culp played Bill, and the two of them had a great chemistry. Their friendship was one of the keys to the shows success, even if at times, Bill could be hard to handle.

Connie Sellecca was on the show as well, as Ralph’s girlfriend Pam Davidson.

One wondered why Ralph did not have a mask on the show. There were so many times where a mask would have helped him. Oh well, part of the comedy I guess.

The theme song of the show was a major hit and reached #2 on the Billboard top 100 chart.

Believe it or not.

Strange Harvest

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This scared the hell out of me.

It has been a long time since I have been as disturbed by a film as I was by Strange Harvest, a film I rented on Fandango at Home (Vudu). This would have worked really well for the October 13, although I did not watch it until November.

This movie was filmed in the “True Crime” style documentary, though the story was fictional. I would call it a “mockumentary” though that term leads me to picture something funny like This is Spinal Tap, and there was nothing funny about Strange Harvest.

The film followed the story of the serial killer who became known as Mr. Shiny, and his multiple murders over several years. The main “talking heads” of the horror mockumentary were Detective Joe Kirby (Peter Zizzo) and Detective Lexi Taylor (Terri Apple). They provided most of the narrative for the fake documentary.

This feels like a real documentary, which I think is why it hit so hard. There is a “Blair Witch” tone to it which adds to the mood of this film. Up until the ending of the doc, this could be a true story.

Mr. Shiny is a combination of the Zodiac Killer and an H.P. Lovecraft character. When we learn of his identity as Leslie Sykes (Jesse J. Clarkson), the character becomes even more frightening than he did before. Jesse Clarkson does an amazing job of creating an eerie, creepy, sinister character who is more like a ghost than a human for much of the film.

This is definitely one of the most scary films I have seen in a long time. I am still feeling disconcerted and unquieted as I write this. I may go from here and jump into my bed and hide beneath my covers. Strange Harvest was an excellent experience.

4.75 stars

The Senior

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The Senior was a film that I had wanted to see in the theater when its run was happening, but I just could not get it to fit into the schedule. There were too many other films in its way. So now that it is on Fandango at Home (aka Vudu), I went ahead and rented the film to watch.

The movie is the true story of 59-year old linebacker Mike Flynt, who returned to college for his senior year several decades after being kicked out of school for fighting. He tried out for the football team as well, making the cut.

The real life story is inspiring and the film does a nice job of detailing it. Mike is played by Michael Chiklis, and he does a great job in the role. He is a very easy guy to cheer for and the film plays into that desire. I actually thought Mary Stuart Masterson, who played Mike’s wife Eileen, was an even more interesting character that I would have liked to have developed more.

Now, the movie definitely shares many of the typical sport movie tropes and it does not break a lot of new ground. There are some flaws in the storytelling and some moments of the story that does not work very well. However, the comeback Mike goes through and the on field football stuff works very well and leaves you feeling inspired and entertained. A better script could have made this an even better movie though.

The Senior is authentic and worth a watch. If you enjoy a typical sports redemption tale, The Senior is a good choice for you.

3.5 stars

Daily Countdown: TV Shows #39

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#39

Night Court

Harry Anderson was one of my favorite parts of Cheers in its early seasons so I loved following him to his new show. While this was not a direct spin off from Cheers, the Harry Anderson character Harry Stone, shared a lot of the same traits with Harry the Hat from Cheers.

I am sure it all came from Harry Anderson’s own act as a magician/comedian and his skills were highlighted on Cheers. Night Court then followed.

Night Court became a wonderful ensemble show. It took awhile to find the proper cast, specifically the defense attorney. The public defender started with Paula Kelly in season one, then went to Ellen Foley in season two before Markie Post finally solidified the position and went the remaining time for the show.

Dan Fielding, the DA, was never a trouble as John Larroquette ran the entire series. Dan was a slimy guy with a heart of gold and the contrast between Dan and Harry was always a great bit for the show. Richard Moll was another full time supporting actor as bailiff Bull Shannon. He was teamed up with the wonderful Selma Diamond for the first two seasons. Diamond played bailiff Selma Hacker, until her death in 1985 from lung cancer. The show struggled with the loss, especially pairing someone with Moll. When they found Marsha Warfield to play Roz starting in season 4, the show hit gold.

We also got Charles Robinson as Mac, the court clerk, replacing Karen Austin, whose Lana Wagner had been a potential love interest for Harry. Mac was a much stronger character and provided some wonderfully dry-witted moments.

When this group finally came together, Night Court really took off. From season four through the end of season nine, this ensemble was one of the best on TV. Stories worked with this variety of complex characters and they were all really funny and had great chemistry with one another. This was what the show was searching for in its first three seasons.

Sha Na Na S1 E11 & E12

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You see the contrast between episodes here amazingly well.

Episode 11 featured the Lennon Sisters and episode 12 featured Zsa Zsa Gabor.

In episode 11, there was a limited amount of comedy bits, with the main one being what seemed to be similar to the Muppet Show’s At the Dance skit where members of Sha Na Na danced with the Lennon Sisters and the camera followed them to each couple to tell a bad joke. That was a decent little use of the comedy (though that laugh track is still just obnoxious).

Also in episode 11, they did multiple songs including Rockin’ Robin, Runaround Sue, Tonight You Belong to Me (with the Lennon Sisters on the stage), The Great Pretender and a tribute to Elvis (interestingly, they never used the word Presley. I wonder if it was a rights thing.) in that tribute they did three songs, Heartbreak Hotel, Love Me Tender and Hound Dog.

Honestly, episode 11 may have been my favorite one so far.

Then, episode 12 was an over-reliance on the comedy bits. Way too many of them because none of them were funny. Plus, the songs were limited to Sha-Boom and 16 Candles. They did a comedy bit featuring The Lion Sleeps Tonight with Sha Na Na dressed up as cannibals.

Episode 12 may have been my least favorite so far.

When the show focused on the music, it was outstanding. When they pushed the comedy, especially without the guys in the band, it flopped. The comedy bit with The Lion Sleeps Tonight was just too long and, again, not funny.

They have so many great singers in Sha Na Na, I want them to play more music and I believe it worked much better when the special guest star(s) were musical too. I have nothing against Zsa Zsa, but her bits were just not as entertaining as the Lennon Sisters singing.

Sunday Morning Sidewalk #41

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Spoilers

“The Twin Thing”

This week is Luke’s episode.

That is what I figured since each episode so far has focused on one of the Crain children. I did not know that Luke and Nellie were actually twins.

Luke has been in the background a lot so far. We knew about him being in recovery for an addiction and stealing from his siblings, but that is about it.

I have to say, this was the first time I thought of Steve as a dick. But watching him at the dinner when Luke brought Joey to his brother’s.

I wasn’t sure of the time frame until we get the scene between Luke and Steve when Luke was stealing his brother’s camera.

I have found Luke to be my favorite character of the show so far. The final line of the episode gave me chills as Luke, because of a twin thing, says that it wasn’t suicide. He could feel it.

It was also very spooky with the bowler hat man following Luke into adulthood, and outside of Hill House. Is it a wonder that Luke became an addict? The scene where the bowler hat man came right up to Luke and it turned into Nellie’s face, leading into the car’s headlights was just amazing. The fact that Luke was so cold and that his legs and arms were stiffening up told us how connected he was to his sister.

I really liked this episode and I felt the most connection to Luke of all of the children so far. His scenes in the Hill House were some of the creepiest of the series so far, with that one where Luke was under the bed being right up there.

I am anxious to see what the show will give us now that Luke knows his twin committed suicide (or did she?).

Hazbin Hotel S2 E1 & E2

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Spoilers

“New Pentious”

“Storyteller”

I finally got around to seeing the first two episodes of the second season of Hazbin Hotel. The animated series on Amazon Prime was a big surprise with the quality and entertainment. I am been looking forward to the second season of the show for awhile.

The first episode was good, but I loved the second episode with Sir Pentious in heaven. This did a great job of following up the story of Sir Pentious’ redemption.

The music is just banger after banger. They have done such tremendous job with music. The lyrics are so clever and work so well together.

These episodes did a great job of setting up conflict moving along for the rest of the season. The show will be releasing two episodes every week and has a total of 8 episodes in season two. That means that the show will be over very quickly (three more weeks).

The animation continues to be spectacular and the character design is awesome. This is a highly entertaining series that is fun.