Author Archives: Doc

SDCC: 2025 Eisner Award Winners

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The 2025 Eisner Awards were presented Friday, July 25 at the San Diego Comic Con. The Eisner Awards are the biggest prize among the comic book industry.

Inductees into the Will Eisner Comic Awards Hall of Fame included: Junji Ito; Kyle Baker; Eddie Campbell; Roz Chast; Dan Clowes; Todd Klein; and John Romita, Jr. The inductees are voted on by fans from a list of 18 nominees given by a panel of experts. Adding to that list was the group chosen by the judges which included: Chosen by judges: Steve Bissette, Lucy Shelton Caswell, Philippe Druillet, Phoebe Gloeckner, Joe Sacco, Bill Schanes, Steve Schanes, Frank Stack and Angelo Torres and, chosen in memorium, Peter Arno, Gus Arriola, Wilhelm Busch, Richard “Grass” Green, Rea Irvin, Jack Kamen, Joe Maneely, Shigeru Mizuki, Bob Oksner, Bob Powell, Ira Schnapp, Phil Seuling.

2025 Eisner Award Results

Best Short Story

  • “Anything Sinister,” by Ross Murray, in NOW #13 (Fantagraphics)
  • “Day 1703,” by Chris Ware, in Smoke Signal #43 (Desert Island)
  • “Pig” by Stacy Gougoulis, in NOW #13 (Fantagraphics)
  • “Spaces,” by Phil Jimenez, in DC Pride 2024 #1 (DC)
  • “Water I’ve Loved: Moving Day” by Pam Wye, in MUTHA magazine, https://www.muthamagazine.com/2024/05/water-ive-loved-moving-day/
  • “You Cannot Live on Bread Alone” by Kayla E., in NOW #13 (Fantagraphics)

Best Single Issue/One-Shot

  • Abortion Pill Zine: A Community Guide to Misoprostol and Mifepristone by Isabella Rotman, Marnie Galloway, and Sage Coffey (Silver Sprocket)
  • Ice Cream Man #39: “”Decompression in a Wreck, Part One,” by W. Maxwell Prince and Martin Morazzo (Image Comics)
  • PeePee PooPoo #1, by Caroline Cash (Silver Sprocket)
  • Sunflowers, by Keezy Young (Silver Sprocket)
  • Unwholesome Love, by Charles Burns (co-published with Partners and Son)
  • The War on Gaza, by Joe Sacco (Fantagraphics)

Best Continuing Series

  • The Department of Truth, by James Tynion IV and Martin Simmonds (Image)
  • Detective Comics: Detective Comics, by Ram V, Tom Taylor, Riccardo Federici, Stefano Raffaele, Javier Fernandez, Christian Duce, March, and Mikel Janín (DC)
  • Fantastic Four, by Ryan North, Carlos Gomez, Ivan Fiorelli, and others (Marvel)
  • Santos Sisters, by Greg & Fake, Graham Smith, Dave Landsberger, and Marc Koprinarov (Floating World)
  • Ultimate Spider-Man, by Jonathan Hickman and Marco Checchetto (Marvel)
  • Wonder Woman, by Tom King and Daniel Sampere (DC)

Best Limited Series

  • Alan Scott: The Green Lantern, by Tim Sheridan and Cian Tormey (DC)
  • Animal Pound, by Tom King and Peter Gross (BOOM! Studios)
  • The Deviant, by James Tynion IV and Joshua Hixson (Image)
  • Helen of Wyndhorn. by Tom King and Bilquis Evely (Dark Horse)
  • Rare Flavours, by Ram V and Filipe Andrade (BOOM! Studios)
  • Zatanna: Bring Down the House, by Mariko Tamaki and Javier Rodriguez (DC)

Best New Series

  • Absolute Batman, by Scott Snyder and Nick Dragotta (DC)
  • Absolute Wonder Woman, by Kelly Thompson and Hayden Sherman (DC)
  • Minor Arcana, by Jeff Lemire (BOOM! Studios)
  • The Pedestrian, by Joey Esposito and Sean Von Gorman (Magma Comix)
  • The Power Fantasy, by Kieron Gillen and Caspar Wijngaard (Image)
  • Uncanny Valley, by Tony Fleecs and Dave Wachter (BOOM! Studios)

Best Publication For Early Readers

  • Bog Myrtle, by Sid Sharp (Annick Press)
  • Club Microbe, by Elise Gravel, translated by Montana Kane (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • Hilda and Twig Hide from the Rain, by Luke Pearson (Flying Eye)
  • Night Stories, by Liniers (Astra Books)
  • Poetry Comics, by Grant Snider (Chronicle Books)

Best Publication For Kids

  • How It All Ends, by Emma Hunsinger (Greenwillow/HarperCollins Early Readers)
  • Next Stop, by Debbie Fong (Random House Graphic/Random House Children’s Books)
  • Plain Jane and the Mermaid, by Vera Brosgol (First Second/Macmillan)
  • Weirdo, by Tony Weaver Jr. and Jes & Cin Wibowo (First Second/Macmillan)
  • Young Hag and the Witches’ Quest, by Isabel Greenberg (Abrams Fanfare)

Best Publication For Teens

  • Ash’s Cabin, by Jen Wang (First Second/Macmillan)
  • Big Jim and the White Boy, by David F. Walker and Marcus Kwame Anderson (Ten Speed Graphic)
  • The Deep Dark by Molly Knox Ostertag (Scholastic)
  • The Gulf, by Adam de Souza (Tundra)
  • Lunar New Year Love Story, by Gene Luen Yang and LeUyen Pham (First Second/Macmillan)
  • Out of Left Field, by Jonah Newman (Andrews McMeel)

Best Humor Publication

  • Adulthood is a Gift! by Sarah Andersen (Andrews McMeel)
  • Forces of Nature, by Edward Steed (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • Kids Are Still Weird: And More Observations from Parenthood, by Jeffrey Brown (NBM)
  • A Pillbug Story, by Allison Conway (Black Panel Press)
  • Processing: 100 Comics That Got Me Through It, by Tara Booth (Drawn & Quarterly)

Best Anthology

  • EC Cruel Universe, edited by Sierra Hahn and Matt Dryer (Oni Press)
  • Godzilla’s 70th Anniversary, edited by Jake Williams and others (IDW)
  • Now: The New Comics Anthology #13, edited by Eric Reynolds (Fantagraphics)
  • Peep #1, edited by Sammy Harkham and Steve Weissman (Brain Dead/Kyle Ng)
  • So Buttons #14: “Life and Death,” by Jonathan Baylis and various artists (So Buttons Comix)

Best Reality-Based Work

  • Djuna, by Jon Macy (Street Noise Books)
  • The Heart That Fed: A Father, a Son, and the Long Shadow of War, by Carl Sciacchitano (Gallery 13/S&S)
  • The Mythmakers: The Remarkable Fellowship of C. S. Lewis & J. R. R. Tolkien, by John Hendrix (Abrams Fanfare)
  • The Puerto Rican War: A Graphic History, by John Vasquez Mejias (Union Square)
  • Suffrage Song: The Haunted History of Gender, Race, and Voting Rights in the U.S., by Caitlin Cass (Fantagraphics)

Best Graphic Memoir

  • Degrees of Separation: A Decade North of 60, by Alison McCreesh (Conundrum)
  • Feeding Ghosts: A Graphic Memoir, by Tessa Hulls (MCD/Farrar, Straus & Giroux)
  • The Field, by David Lapp (Conundrum)
  • I’m So Glad We Had This Time Together: A Memoir, by Maurice Vellekoop (Pantheon)
  • Something, Not Nothing: A Story of Grief and Love, by Sarah Leavitt (Arsenal Pulp Press)

Best Graphic Album – New

  • Final Cut, by Charles Burns (Pantheon)
  • Lunar New Year Love Story, by Gene Luen Yang and LeUyen Pham (First Second/Macmillan)
  • My Favorite Thing Is Monsters Book Two, by Emil Ferris (Fantagraphics)
  • Sunday, by Olivier Schrauwen (Fantagraphics)
  • Victory Parade, by Leela Corman (Pantheon)

Best Graphic Album – Reprint

  • Breaking the Chain: The Guard Dog Story, by Patrick McDonnell (Abrams ComicArts)
  • Lackadaisy, vols. 1–2, by Tracy J. Butler (Iron Circus)
  • The One Hand and The Six Fingers, by Ram V, Dan Watters, Laurence Campbell, and Sumit Kumar (Image)
  • Rescue Party: A Graphic Anthology of COVID Lockdown, edited by Gabe Fowler (Pantheon)
  • Seattle Samurai: A Cartoonist’s Perspective of the Japanese American Experience, by Kelly Goto and Sam Goto (Chin Music Press)
  • UM Volume One, by buttercup (Radiator Comics)

Best Adaptation From Another Medium

  • Thomas Piketty’s Capital & Ideology: A Graphic Novel Adaptation, by Clare Alot and Benjamin Adam (Abrams ComicArts)
  • The Hidden Life of Trees, by Peter Wohlleben, adapted by Benjamin Flao and Fred Bernard (Greystone)
  • The Road, by Cormac McCarthy, adapted by Manu Larcenet (Abrams)
  • Winnie-the-Pooh, by A. A. Milne, adapted by Travis Dandro (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • The Worst Journey in the World, Volume 1: Making Our Easting Down, by Apsley Cherry-Garrard, adapted by Sarah Airriess (Iron Circus)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material

  • All Princesses Die Before Dawn, by Quentin Zuttion (Abrams ComicArts)
  • The Jellyfish, by Boum, translated by Robin Lang and Helge Dascher (Pow Pow Press)
  • Mothballs, by Sole Otero; translated by Andrea Rosenberg (Fantagraphics)
  • Return to Eden, by Paco Roca; translated by Andrea Rosenberg (Fantagraphics)
  • Sunday, by Olivier Schrauwen (Fantagraphics)

Best U.S. Edition of International Material – Asia

  • Ashita no Joe: Fighting for Tomorrow, by Asao Takamori and Tetsuya Chiba, translated by Asa Yonola (Kodansha)
  • Hereditary Triangle, by Fumiya Hayashi, translated by Alethea and Athena Nibley (Yen Press)
  • Kagurabachi, vol. 1, by Takeru Hokazono, translated by Camellia Nieh (VIZ Media)
  • Last Quarter, vol. 1, by Ai Yazawa, translated by Max Greenway (VIZ Media)
  • Search and Destroy vol. 1, by Atsushi Kaneko, based on the work of Osamu Tezuka; translated by Ben Applegate (Fantagraphics)
  • Tokyo These Days, vols. 1–3, by Taiyo Matsumoto, translated by Michael Arias (VIZ Media)

Best Archival Collection/Project – Strips

  • All In Line, by Saul Steinberg (New York Review Books)
  • Frank Johnson, Secret Pioneer of American Comics, vol. 1, edited by Chris Byrne and Keith Mayerson (Fantagraphics)
  • Stan Mack’s Real-Life Funnies: The Collected Conceits, Delusions, and Hijinks of New Yorkers from 1974 to 1995, by Stan Mack, edited by Gary Groth (Fantagraphics)
  • Thorn: The Complete Proto-BONE Strips 1982–1986, and Other Early Drawings, by Jeff Smith (Cartoon Books)

Best Archival Collection/Project – Comic Books

  • The Complete Web of Horror, edited by Dana Marie Andra (Fantagraphics)
  • David Mazzucchelli’s Batman Year One Artist’s Edition, by Frank Miller and David Mazzucchelli, edited by Scott Dunbier (IDW)
  • DC Comics Style Guide (Standards Manual)
  • The Farewell Song of Marcel LaBrume, by Attilio Micheluzzi, edited by Gary Groth and Conrad Groth (Fantagraphics)
  • Wally Wood from Witzend: Complete Collection, commentary by J. David Spurlock (Vanguard)
  • X-Men: The Manga Remastered, vol. 1, edited by Glenn Greenberg and others (VIZ Media)

Best Comics-Related Periodical/Journalism

  • The Beat, edited by Heidi MacDonald and others,, https://www.comicsbeat.com
  • ICv2: The Business of Pop Culture, edited by Milton Griepp, icv2.com
  • INKS, The Journal of the Comics Studies Society, edited by Susan Kirtley (Ohio State University Press)
  • SOLRAD: The Online Literary Magazine for Comics, edited by Daniel Elkin, http://www.solrad.co (Fieldmouse Press)
  • Zdarsky Comics News, edited by Allison O’Toole (Chip Zdarsky)

Best Comics-Related Book

  • American Comic Book Chronicles: 1945-49, by Keith Dallas, John Wells, Richard Arndt, and Kurt Mitchell (TwoMorrows)
  • Kate Carew: America’s First Great Woman Cartoonist, by Eddie Campbell with Christine Chambers (Fantagraphics)
  • Q&A, by Adrian Tomine (Drawn & Quarterly)
  • Reading Love and Rockets, by Marc Sobel (Fantagraphics)
  • Tell Me a Story Where the Bad Girl Wins: The Life and Art of Barbara Shermund, by Caitlin McGurk (Fantagraphics)
  • Walt Disney’s Donald Duck: The Ultimate History, edited by Daniel Kothen Schulte with text by David Gerstein and J. B. Kaufman (TASCHEN)

Best Academic/Scholarly Work

  • Comics and Modernism: History, Form, and Culture, edited by Jonathan Najarian (University Press of Mississippi)
  • Drawing (in) the Feminine: Bande Dessinée and Women, edited by Margaret C. Flinn (Ohio State University Press)
  • From Gum Wrappers to Richie Rich: The Materiality of Cheap Comics, by Neale Barnholden (University Press of Mississippi)
  • Petrochemical Fantasies: The Art and Energy of American Comics, by Daniel Worden (Ohio State University Press)
  • Singular Sensations: A Cultural History of One-Panel Comics in the United States, by Michelle Ann Abate (Rutgers University Press)

Best Publication Design

  • Bill Ward: The Fantagraphics Studio Edition, designed by Kayla E. (Fantagraphics)
  • Brian Bolland: Batman The Killing Joke and Other Stories & Art, Gallery Edition, designed by Josh Beatman (Graphitti Designs)
  • David Mazzucchelli’s Batman Year One Artist’s Edition, designed by Chip Kidd (IDW)
  • One Bite at a Time, designed by Ryan Claytor (Elephant Eater Comics)
  • Scott Pilgrim 20th Anniversary Color Hardcover Box Set, designed by Patrick Crotty (Oni Press)
  • Walt Disney’s Donald Duck: The Ultimate History, designed by Anna-Tina Kessler (TASCHEN)

Best Digital Comic

  • The Beauty Salon, based on the novella by Mario Bellatin, adapted by Quentin Zuttion; translated by M. B. Valente (Europe Comics)
  • Beyond the Sea, by Anaïs Flogny; translated by Dan Christensen (Europe Comics)
  • Gonzo: Fear and Loathing in America, by Morgan Navarro; translated by Tom Imber (Europe Comics)
  • My Journey to Her, by Yuna Hirasawa (Kodansha)
  • The Spider and the Ivy, by Grégoire Carle; translated by M. B. Valente (Europe Comics)

Best Webcomic

Best Writer

  • Tom King, Archie: The Decision (Archie); Animal Pound (BOOM! Studios); Helen of Wyndhorn (Dark Horse); Jenny Sparks, The Penguin, Wonder Woman (DC)
  • Ram V, Rare Flavours (BOOM! Studios); Dawnrunner (Dark Horse); The One Hand (Image); Universal Monsters: Creature from the Black Lagoon Lives! (Image Skybound)
  • Kelly Thompson, Absolute Wonder Woman, Birds of Prey (DC); Scarlett (Image Skybound); Venom War: It’s Jeff #1 (Marvel)
  • James Tynion IV, Something Is Killing the Children, Wynd (BOOM! Studios); Blue Book, The Oddly Pedestrian Life of Christopher Chaos (Dark Horse); Spectregraph (DSTLRY); The Department of Truth, The Deviant, WORLDTR33 (Image)
  • Gene Luen Yang, Lunar New Year Love Story (First Second/Macmillan)

Best Writer/Artist

  • Charles Burns, Kommix (Fantagraphics); Final Cut (Pantheon); Unwholesome Love (co-published with Partners & Son)
  • Emil Ferris, My Favorite Thing Is Monsters Book Two (Fantagraphics)
  • Jon Macy, Djuna (Street Noise Books)
  • Paco Roca, Return to Eden (Fantagraphics)
  • Olivier Schrauwen, Sunday (Fantagraphics)
  • Maria Sweeney, Brittle Joints (Street Noise Books)

Best Penciller/Inker or Penciller/Inker Team

  • Filipe Andrade, Rare Flavours (BOOM! Studios)
  • Nick Dragotta, Absolute Batman (DC)
  • Bilquis Evely, Helen of Wyndhorn (Dark Horse)
  • Manu Larcenet, The Road (Abrams ComicArts)
  • Javier Rodriguez, Zatanna: Bring Down the House (DC)
  • LeUyen Pham, Lunar New Year Love Story (First Second/Macmillan)

Best Painter/Multimedia Artist

  • Frederic Bremaud and Federico Bertolucci, Donald Duck: Vacation Parade (Fantagraphics)
  • Leela Corman, Victory Parade (Pantheon)
  • Benjamin Flao The Hidden Life of Trees (Greystone)
  • Merwan, Aster of Pan (Magnetic Press)
  • Eduardo Risso, The Blood Brothers Mother (DSTLRY)
  • Maria Sweeney, Brittle Joints (Street Noise Books)

Best Cover Artist

  • Juni Ba, The Boy Wonder (DC); Godzilla Skate or Die, TMNT Nightwatcher and others (IDW)
  • Evan Cagle, Dawnrunner (Dark Horse), New Gods, Detective Comics
  • Bilquis Evely, Animal Pound (BOOM!); Helen of Wyndhorn (Dark Horse)
  • Tula Lotay, Helen of Wyndhorn #1, Count Crowley: Mediocre Midnight Monster Hunter #3, Dawnrunner #1, Barnstormers TPB (Dark Horse); Somna and other titles (DSTLRY); The Horizon Experiment (Image)
  • Hayden Sherman, Absolute Wonder Woman, Batman: Dark Patterns, Superman, Ape-ril, Batman: The Brave and the Bold) (DC)

Best Coloring

  • Jordie Bellaire, Absolute Wonder Woman, Birds of Prey, John Constantine, Hellblazer: Dead in America, The Nice House by the Sea (DC); The City Beneath Her Feet (DSTLRY); The Exorcism at 1600 Penn (IDW; W0rldtr33 (Image); G.I. Joe, Duke (Image Skybound)
  • Matheus Lopes, Batman & Robin: Year One (DC); Helen of Wyndhorn (Dark Horse)
  • Justin Prokowich, Jimi Hendrix: Purple Haze (Titan Comics)
  • Javier Rodriguez, Zatanna: Bring Down the House) (DC)
  • Dave Stewart, Dawnrunner, Free Comic Book Day Comic 2024 [general], The Serpent in the Garden, Hellboy, Hellboy and the BPRD, Paranoid Gardens, Shaolin Cowboy Cruel to Be Kin Silent but Deadly Edition (Dark Horse); Ultramega, Universal Monsters: Creature from the Black Lagoon Lives! (Image Skybound)
  • Quentin Zuttion, All Princesses Die Before Dawn (Abrams ComicArts); Beauty Salon (Europe Comics)

Best Lettering

  • Becca Carey, Absolute Superman, Absolute Wonder Woman, Plastic Man No More! (DC); Radiant Black, Rogue Sun (Image); When the Blood Has Dried, Murder Kingdom (Mad Cave Studios)
  • Leela Corman, Victory Parade (Pantheon)
  • Clayton Cowles, Animal Pound (BOOM! Studios); FML, Helen of Wyndhorn (Dark Horse); Absolute Batman, Batman, Batman & Robin: Year One, Birds of Prey, Jenny Sparks, Wonder Woman (DC); Strange Academy, Venom (Marvel)
  • Emil Ferris, My Favorite Thing Is Monsters, Book Two (Fantagraphics)
  • Nate Powell, Fall Through (Abrams ComicArts); Lies My Teacher Told Me (New Press)

Other awards:

Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award: Mad Cave Studios for their LA Strong charity comic

Russ Manning Promising Newcomer Award: Richard Blake

Will Eisner Spirit of Comics Retailing Award: Akira Comics in Madrid, Spain

Bill Finger Award for Excellence in Comic Book Writing: Don Glut and Sheldon Mayer

EYG Favorite Comic Covers of the Week

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July 24

Another big week of books. It just feels as if I should not keep saying that since the comics are just on fire right now, artistically.

Plenty of awesome Also-Rans this week: Mark Spears’ Monsters #2 (3rd Printing), Blue Palo Verde #2, Look Into My Eyes #1, Sleep #3, Rocketfellers #7 (not counting the awesome Fantastic Four homage cover), Absolute Wonder Woman #10, Geiger #16, Space Ghost Annual #1, Death of the Silver Surfer #2, Captain Planet and the Planeteers #2 (Variant), Vanishing Point #3, and Star Trek: Red Shirts #1 (variant).

Three variant covers in the medal round this week.

Bronze Medalist

Feral #15

Variant Cover

Cover art by Trish Forstner & Allen Passalaqua

Another great horror movie homage cover (The Conjuring, perhaps?) for this series. The feel of this cover is scary and it gives the tone of the book extremely well.

Silver Medalist

Vampirella: Armageddon #1

Variant Cover

Cover art by Mark Spears

Mark Spears is back in the medal round this week with the great variant cover for the new Vampirella book. I do not usually buy Vampirella, but Spears makes me pick it up. Again, the Monster Squad monsters make an appearance on a Mark Spears cover. It does not have a lot to do with Vampirella, but this is worth it.

Gold Medalist

Exquisite Corpses #3

Stealth Variant Cover

Cover art by Valentine De Landro

Look at this amazing cover for the new series Exquisite Corpses. The covers for this book have been amazing, but this might be the best of the series so far. The creepiness that it exudes with the beautiful red windows behind the eerie creature. Just love it.

RIP Hulk Hogan

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I was coming out of the comic shop in Bettendorf this morning when I saw a YouTube notification for John Rocha’s channel. It said “Hulk Hogan is Dead.” I was shocked and immediately started looking though my phone to see what this meant. It was a strange way of putting it so I thought maybe it was that he was metaphorically dead. But I found other articles about the Hulkster’s death from cardiac arrest in a hospital in Florida.

I found myself feeling very strange. I have not felt like this in a long time. When I was young, Hulk Hogan was one of my favorite wrestlers. I would have been a Hulkamaniac for sure. The years in the 1980s helped cement pro wrestling as one of my favorite things to do.

I went to the closed circuit broadcast in Davenport at the Palmer Auditorium for Wrestlemania 3 when Hogan wrestled Andre the Giant. I was so into this match and I was emotionally invested.

However, then I grew up. I started seeing Hogan as not just a character, but a performer who was an asshole. He was racist. He was a politician backstage, keeping others down. Someone who went into the WCW and helped bring that organization down.

I found myself disgusted with Hogan. When he came to RAW on Netflix in LA earlier this year and the crowd booed him out of the building because of his choices that he had made. Some blamed his support of Donald Trump, who he spoke for at the Republican National Convention, for the reaction of the liberal LA crowd, but I think that is too easy of an excuse. I do think the issues from his racist comments to his sex tape to other choices he made is what led to the booing.

Either way, I felt sad and confused about my thoughts of Hulk Hogan.

RIP Terry Bollea.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps

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I have been excited about this movie since the announcement that Marvel was getting the rights back to the Fantastic Four. To say that the previous big screen efforts to put Marvel’s First Family on the big screen were less than successful would be an understatement. The Fantastic Four: First Steps is the fourth attempt to get these characters right.

Fourth time is definitely a charm.

I loved this movie. There were so many things that this film does well, but above all, this felt like the Fantastic Four that I knew from the comics. The adventure felt very much like an FF adventure. This was so great.

We jump right in to the story, without the need for an origin story, although the film does give us some background exposition to catch anyone up to speed in a very clever manner at the very beginning of the movie.

The film wasted no time in setting these four up as a family, which is perhaps the singularly most important piece for a Fantastic Four movie. Sue discovered that she was pregnant and announced the glorious event.

However, their excitement was short lived as a being appeared in New York riding a surfboard, heralding the soon arrival of Galactus, the universal force that would be consuming the planet.

The Fantastic Four head into space to confront the gigantic Galactus.

The casting of the characters in this film is pitch perfect. One of the most controversial casting choices was Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards. Pascal, who has been in a ton of movies lately, does an incredible job of becoming Reed Richards, aka Mister Fantastic. I believe that Pascal loses himself in the role and truly embodied Reed. You could believe that Reed was a super genius, but still had his own issues, among others , guilt and self-frustration over perceived failures.

Vanessa Kirby was great as Sue Storm, the Invisible Woman. She showed what a powerhouse Sue is in both her use of her powers and the presence that she provides. Joseph Quinn played Sue’s brother Johnny Storm, aka the Human Torch. This Johnny was less of a playboy as he has been seen before, though that is implied to be there as well, but he is shown as a much more positive force inside the group. Then Ben Grimm, played by Ebon Moss-Bachrach, feels like the heart of the team. This version of Ben Grimm is less of the brooding monster that we have seen before and more of a character who has accepted what his life was now.

The chemistry between the foursome is vital for the movie and they all work so well together. They felt like a family, from the relationship between Sue and Reed to the brother-like banter between Johnny and Ben.

The visuals of this movie was stunning. It may be the best looking Marvel movie that we have seen in ages. The imagery in space was as good as you see in any prestige project. I have heard others compare the visuals here to Interstellar and that is a fair comparison. To be fair, there were some moments of iffy CGI when dealing with Franklin Richards, the baby, but I am okay with that. No need to stress out a real baby in some of these situations.

Galactus is an absolute marvel (no pun intended). Voiced perfectly by Ralph Ineson, Galactus has come a long way since his days of being a cloud of dust in 2007’s Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer. There is no reason that a giant purple man with antennae-like ears on a helmet should look anything but silly in live action, but this Galactus is positively sensational, if not, scary. This character was imposing from the second we see his outline in the darkness.

Another major controversy among those who want to make this a problem was how Julia Garner was hired to play a female Silver Surfer, based on the Shalla-Bal character. Those who complained about this apparently did not know that the comics did have a version of Shalla-Bal as the Silver Surfer. Garner does a remarkable performance as the Surfer and anyone who wants to complain about it is just looking for issues to have. Surfer was powerful and compelling and did have a story reason for the casting of a female actor in the role, narratively speaking.

The story was filled with stakes and tension, and there were some scenes where I legitimately was not sure what was going to happen. I found so much joy in this as this film got these characters so right, truly for the first time on screen.

They did have some of the typical Marvel humor, but, to be honest, it was kept at a reasonable level. Again, in a film that could be very satirical, this was grounded, keeping much of the drama within the four of them. Even with Galactus coming to devour the earth, this felt more like an internal battle for the FF.

There are two post credit scenes. The first one being a major set up for what is next in the MCU.

The retro feel of the world that this team of Fantastic Four is set is part of the awesome vibe this movie gives off. A futuristic 1960’s feel was all over the setting and brought something different to the MCU. The choice to place this in the 828 universe instead of the 616 one was an excellent choice. It also gave the film a chance to really honor FF co-creator Jack Kirby. This movie did feel like a Jack Kirby style of comic from the 1960s.

Matt Shakman did a magnificent job directing this film. He had directed the WandaVision Disney + series which is still considered by many, including me, to be the best Disney + Marvel show of all time. Shakman brought that feeling of family as he did in WandaVision and there were so many clever visual shots in the film. I loved the way the FF used their powers. Especially Reed, whose stretching could look really goofy, but, instead, was very effective.

I loved this movie. The “It’s Clobberin’ Time” line had me in goosebumps and tears. I was so engaged with the Fantastic Four: First Steps that it is my current favorite movie of the year so far. I saw this in IMAX and, man did everything look great. I can’t wait to see it again.

5 stars

Murderbot S1 E6, E7, E8

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Spoilers

Murderbot is my new favorite program on Apple TV +.

I watched three episodes and I really wanted to keep watching, but I needed to pause and move along. There are two episodes left in this season and I will finish it off later this week or this weekend.

All the secrets are out. Sec Unit’s past came out as he was hooked up to Gurathin as they were operating on his leg. Gurathin had been shot in the leg by Leebeebee. Leebeebee was holding the crew hostage until she got what she wanted. As soon as Sec Unit returned with Mensah (after a scene where Mensah cut open Sec Unit’s spine to retrieve some wiring to fix their ship… it was tense for sure), Sec Unit blew Leebeebee’s head off.

That made the others a bit touchy, to say the least.

I still find the inner dialogue from Sec Unit to be hilarious. He provides questions that he does not understand from human behavior and, more often than not, he was right.

Everyone is still very much on edge with Sec Unit as they are unsure about his motives. When they all joined in to fight the other sec unit that arrived (after the two giant monsters had sex on top of the hopper, leaving an egg sac… weird, I know), it was clear that they were not going to be helpful in any way. Sec Unit had to fight despite them.

This is a fast watch and I really enjoy this show.

Stick S1 E5, E6, E7, E8, E9

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Spoilers

So I wanted to catch up on Stick, which is on Apple TV + and has episodes dropping on Wednesdays. I do believe the final episode of the season is this week, so I had five episodes to run through in order to get caught up.

Stick is such a great show and it is a easy watch as the episodes run around 30 minutes. It is also very well-written and compelling in a sport that does not truly entice me much.

Much like the F1: The Movie and auto racing, a film/show can be entertaining and engaging if it is intelligent and well-written, acted and smartly plotted out even if I am not a fan of the sport involved. I am not a fan of golf, but Stick is far more than just about golf.

The story of Pryce trying to help Santi to become the best he could be in the world of golf took a lot of turns, some that very not necessarily positive, but everything worked well.

That is, until Santi’s father showed up at the end of episode nine. That feels like one more major hurdle for the characters to overcome.

Some other cool highlights of the five episodes include:

  • The truth with Zero and Pryce’s deal coming out rocked Santi’s world. We knew that was going to happen when it first happened.
  • Santi and Zero have sex. This was surprising… especially with Santi looking for advice from Pryce. I really thought Pryce was going to respond differently and I liked the uncommon response he had.
  • Timothy Olyphant is always a welcome actor in any show I am watching.
  • Mitts and Elena’s relationship comes around. I like them together.
  • We get more with Pryce and his dead son. The dream of Pryce with his son, Jett, was really hard to watch.
  • The whole scam to try and get Santi into a pro PGA tournament was strange, but cool.

There was a lot of enjoyment in these episodes and I have grown to like these characters.

What We Do in the Shadows Season Four

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Season four of the FX show What We Do in the Shadows was next up. I liked season three, but it felt like a step down from the previous two seasons. What would season four be like?

I loved this season.

The end of season three sent the crew off in different directions. Nadja and Guillermo went to England so Nadja could be on the major vampire council. Nandor was off on his world trip. Laszlo stayed behind to raise baby Colin Robinson, who had come out of the torso of the dead body of Colin Robinson.

The first episode of the season wrapped these arcs up immediately, bringing them all back to the house, which is in a terrible condition.

Several great season-long storylines including:

  • Colin Robinson growing as a baby to a teen and so on.
  • The house and the damages to it.
  • The Vampire Nightclub- Nadja’s.
  • Nandor’s marriage and his Djinn (yes, he found a Djinn)
  • Guillermo’s continued involvement with the crew and his wish to be relevant.

My favorite story of the year was Colin Robinson as the baby and his growth, much like baby Groot from the Guardians movies. Laszlo took on a parent role for the baby, even though he was a terrible father. Guillermo stepped in several times to make sure that the baby did not die. Colin singing and dancing on the stage at Nadja’s club, his continued anger, his pounding holes in the basement walls with a hammer… all these things contributed to a wonderful arc for Colin. Or perhaps it was more of an arc for Laszlo, since Colin Robinson wound up exactly where he was when this whole thing started.

When Colin walked out in the finale looking exactly like he always did, it was a shocking moment. He did not remember anything from the past year. What was the most amazing things was the way this clearly affected Laszlo, who, though he remained quiet about it, was very melancholic over the loss of the boy who he had been raising (however poorly) over the last year. It was a subtle and deep moment for Laszlo that truly gave me some emotional investment.

My favorite episode was the surreal “Go Flip Yourself” episode that plays like it is a home renovation show with twins Bran and Toby Daltry. Toby is immediately eaten by Nadja, but the rest was as if the episode was on that show. It had a great payoff too as Brian Daltry, who led the whole renovation (as it was) turned out to be Simon the Devious and the entire Go Flip Yourself renovation show was set up as a scam to get his hands on Laszlo’s witch-skin hat again.

“Private School” was another awesome episode as they tried to get Young Colin into a private school. Nadja constantly hypnotizing the school headmaster to change their story was some comedic gold.

Other highlights included a face off with the Jersey Devil, Guillermo in a vampire fight club where he winds up fighting Nandor, Guillermo coming out as gay to his family in the most wild way possible, Guillermo’s boyfriend Freddie who Nandor developed a crush on and used one of his wishes from the Djinn to turn his wife, Marwa, into a duplicate of Freddie in every way. Then, having Freddie and Marwa-Freddie get together and cheat on Guillermo was horrible.

The finale feels as if season five may finally be the season of Guillermo as he took a bagful of money (that he had embezzled from the club) to Derek, the former vampire hunter club kid who was now a vampire, and asked him to turn him into a vampire. Is it finally going to happen? I do hope Guillermo gets what he wants because he has been such an MVP for the vampire house and he is always getting stomped upon.

Season five is next.

Smoke S1 E3

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Okay, I watched the next episode of the new drama on Apple TV + called Smoke with Taron Egerton. Last episode dropped a big bomb at the end of the show and I kind of expected more from this episode than what I got. Maybe something to explain why I saw what I saw, but that really did not happen.

We got more into the character of Detective Calderone and more about Freddy and his interview to be a manager.

A car got firebombed… seemingly by Dave?

Honestly, this was a slow burn (excuse the pun) episode that did not appeal too much to me. There was something with Michelle going to testify against her mother’s release from prison. It seemed as if the mother is the one who set the fire that Michelle had been caught in as a child. I’m not sure if we had known that before.

I was hoping for more from this show, but I do like the character development going on and I hope the big reveal last episode gets some more attention moving forward.

Murderbot S1 E3, E4, E5

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“Risk Assessment”

“Escape Velocity Protocol”

“Rogue War Tracker Infinite”

Okay, I love this show.

Five episodes in and I am fully in.

Sec Unit, played by Alexander Skarsgård, gives me Dexter feels. As he is narrating the show with his inner monologue, it gave me distinct “Dark Passenger” ideas as many of the internal dialogue revealed the true thoughts of the rogue unit.

I am glad that the fact that Sec Unit was rogue was revealed and did not continue to be a cover up. He revealed it in a heroic manner by trying to kill itself before he was taken over by the implant that was inserted into his head by another Sec Unit. Having the crew help remove the implant was a cool trick and surprised Sec Unit.

I hope they give Sec Unit another name soon, because I don’t like typing “Sec Unit” all the time.

It was hilarious when Ratthi tested Sec Bot’s knowledge of Sanctuary Moon to see if Sec Unit had been using the show to transmit secret messages as Gurathin believed. It was a very geeky solution.

The arrival of Leebeebee (Anna Konkle) is someone whom I absolutely do not trust. There are just too many side-eyes given by this character for me to believe that she was just o the “laundry” of the other survey team. There is more to this character than we know yet.

These episodes, at least four and five, have been ending with a great cliffhanger that make me want to continue on in the binge. I am trying to keep from watching the final five episodes of the first season, as I have some of the other shows that I want to get in too.

I am loving Murderbot so far. I think Alexander Skarsgård has been sensational so far and I do love the relationship between the Sec Bot and Ayda Mensah. Mensah is one of my favorite characters on the show so far. She is such a great person and a leader who will not just choose the easy choice, even if Sec Bot thinks it is a mistake.

This has been awesome so far and I can’t wait to see Murderbot continue.

Stick S1 E3, E4

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“Daddy Issues”

“Zero Sum Game”

Episodes three and four of Apple TV’s new series, Stick, starring Owen Wilson were really great. I have to say though I am a little disappointed with Pryce and his weaknesses that are coming through. He does feel manipulative in his involvement with Santi and he is clearly also a problem with betting. These will both come back to haunt him later in the season, I am sure.

I do like the first few steps between Mitts and Elena. The whole “Mitts is trapped beneath the bed” part of episode three was fun and was a good way to learn about who these characters are.

We learned specifically what happened to Pryce’s son as Mitts told Elena about it after she had made an off-hand comment about Pryce not knowing about kids because he doesn’t have any. The little boy died at 4 from cancer, which is way too horrible to even think about. Elena immediately made the connection between the loss of his son and the meltdown Pryce had on the golf course that ruined his career. I had inferred this as well, but knowing the details make it even more painful and allow us to understand where Pryce is coming from.

We are introduced to Zero, played by Lilli Kay. I had seen her on the IMDB page and I did not know who she was, but she has been added as a “love interest” for Santi. Not sure I loved this character at this point, as she was portrayed as a far left idealist with big words for the society around them.

I did not think that the deal made by Zero and Pryce was a good idea. It will absolutely explode on them later in the season. Why they don’t just stick to the truth? It is such a better choice.

Stick has been solid so far and I am looking forward to see these seeds that the show is planting grow as the season progresses.

Sunday Morning Sidewalk #26

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Week twenty-six of the Sunday Morning Sidewalk takes a bit of a turn as we start our first documentary series, a two-part show originally on A & E (which I watched on Disney +) featuring the EYG Hall of Fame rock band known as KISS.

The first episode of the series was about an hour and a half and outlined the early days of the band and their struggle to rise to the top of the record business, all the while struggling with their personal turmoil and behavior.

The doc heavily featured new interviews from Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons, but only had archival footage or interviews with band members Peter Criss and Ace Frehley. There was a disclaimer that appeared in the documentary stating that Ace and Peter refused to participate in KISStory and did not agree with the presentation. That really triggered my curiosity. I knew that there had been issues between the band for years, especially with Ace and Peter, and I wanted to know why they refused to participate. Online, what I could find was that Ace and Peter refused because the amount of money offered was insultingly low and that they wanted final editing rights. I don’t know where that came from. Apparently, Peter Criss also refused to allow the song “Beth” to be used in the doc so that was in my head the entire time they were discussing the success of that song and how it helped propel the group upwards.

Peter and Ace were shown to have their own problems, specifically with alcohol and drugs, but I do not think it was done to the exclusion of the others. Gene spoke of his own issues, trying to put his ego aside while Paul spoke about plenty of his own troubles, including his anxiety over a birth defect he had with his ear. It did not feel like the doc piled on Ace and Peter. They definitely included how important they were to the band. Heck, even Gene and Paul admitted that the band’s sound did not come into focus until Ace came in to audition.

The feelings of the band were being made clear as they became more successful and started doing things like “KISS Meets the Phantom” or going more disco with “I Was Made for Loving You.” They addressed how some fans felt as if the group sold out as the success came fast. You could tell from the way Paul and Gene spoke about it that they felt much the same way, but they could not refuse it.

The clips from the Tom Snyder interview where Ace was clearly drunk were amazing. The looks on the faces of Gene and Paul were unmistakable and were painful to watch. The anger in their eyes was so obvious that anyone should have been able to see it.

The first episode ended with Ace’s announcement that he wanted to do solo work, and the band was definitely falling apart.

I truly would wish to have had more than just Paul and Gene’s voices in the doc, reflecting back on the history of this band. Peter and Ace’s absence 100% put a cloud over the documentary, even if it felt as if the doc did a good job of being balanced despite of their absence.

Next week will be part two of KISStory for the Sunday Morning Sidewalk and we’ll see where the band went from there.