Author Archives: Doc

Capturing the Friedmans (2003)

Posted on by

January 29

With just three days remaining on the Genre-ary for 2025, I watched an Oscar-nominated doc called Catching the Friedmans, another tough watch because it centered around a teacher and his son who had been accused of sodomy and sexual abuse of kids.

Director Andrew Jarecki, who was the director behind the amazing docu-series, The Jinx, was the driving force behind this documentary.

According to IMDB, the “Documentary on the Friedmans, a seemingly typical, upper-middle-class Jewish family whose world is instantly transformed when the father and his youngest son are arrested and charged with shocking and horrible crimes.”

There are plenty of scenes in this movie that came from home video recordings taped by the Friedman family themselves. Most of these scenes were really tough to watch considering the way some of this was portrayed. It painted a horrible picture of most of these people. There was a dramatic scene taped at Jesse Friedman’s trial of a parent chasing after him screaming that he had raped his son. Unbelievable.

Elaine Friedman seemed to be a spiteful woman, but it is hard to imagine the situation she found herself in daily. Her husband was a pedophile. Her sons hated her. A lot of the recordings by her kids had her screaming like a banshee. She did not come off looking well. Then, the final scene of the doc seemed to go against everything that the doc had shown us up until that point.

The doc sheds plenty of question on the case overall, especially when it came to Jesse. Arnold, the father who was an admitted pedophile, said that he had committed sexual abuse on two kids, but not the countless number at school.

I’m not sure how I felt about this doc because the voice seemed to be all over the place. I’m not sure what the doc was telling me about this story and it felt as if details changed throughout. I do not have a better understanding of what the truth was in this case or to what level these people were guilty or innocent. Maybe that is the idea with the doc… that truth may be elusive and that you may never know for sure what is happening in the heart of a family.

There’s Something Wrong with Aunt Diane (2011)

Posted on by

January 28

Today’ documentary for the Genre-ary was a doc from HBO MAX called There’s Something Wrong with Aunt Diane.

According to IMDB, this documentary looked at… “The accident made national headlines: a suburban mother drove the wrong way on the Taconic State Parkway in New York and crashed head-on into an SUV, killing herself and seven others. In the aftermath, Diane Schuler was portrayed as a reckless drunk and a mother who cracked. But was she the monster the public made her out to be…or the perfect wife and mother that many say she was? Investigating the case six months after the accident, this documentary searches for answers to a mysterious and senseless tragedy.”

This was an interesting documentary. The story of Diane Schuler was an odd one. It looked as if she had just been drunk and high and wound up in a tragic accident that killed eight people. Moat of the doc featured Diane’s husband, family and friends and their POV of the situation. They were all certain that there was no way that Diane could be a drunk who drove her car into another vehicle. They were all very determined that this was not possible.

The problem was that all of the evidence of the case pointed to Diane Schuler was drunk and high at the time of the accident. The family of Diane did not provide any possible evidence outside of their denials.

Through the entire documentary, it felt as if some piece of information was missing. The motivation of Diane is questionable. I do not understand why she may have been drinking vodka and smoking marijuana. There was a point of contention about a possible tooth that abscessed, but that did not feel like the overall answer.

There is also another weird event involving an investigator hired by the family who had Diane’s specimens retested, but never got back in touch with the family. This was a truly bizarre aspect of the story. Near the end, Diane’s sister spoke with the investigator who said that he had sent the results and that they were the same as the original one. This was strange.

Some of the images of the accident was just tough to watch. There was a warning at the beginning of the film, but they still caught me off guard.

There seems to be something missing in this story, and sadly, we will never know what it was. Such a tragedy that cost the lives of several humans, including four children.

Last Breath (2019)

Posted on by

January 27

As we enter the final five days of January, we are coming down to the last documentaries in the Genre-ary. The doc I selected for tonight was a harrowing tale of survival under the most unlikely of circumstances. I watched the doc called Last Breath on Netflix.

This doc was released in 2019, and there is actually a big budget movie set to release at the end of February starring Woody Harrelson about this very story.

According to IMDB, “A deep sea diver is stranded on the seabed with 5 minutes of oxygen and no hope of rescue. With access to amazing archive this is the story of one man’s impossible fight for survival.“

Diver Chris Lemons had his umbilical cable severed during a saturation dive and he was stranded around 100 meters beneath the sea. Somehow, Chris was able to survive for around 30 minutes on the five minutes of oxygen that he had.

The doc is an absolutely stunning accomplishment as it uses real footage from the moment, collected from body cameras and actual radio audio to tell this story. It spoke with the other crew members who were desperate to find Chris before it was too late, but who were fearful that it was already past time.

It was amazing to see these images of Chris atop the structure in the unlikely position among the blackness of the sea. It was powerful watching them pull Chris into the vessel and giving him two deep breaths. They did not believe that they were going to be able to save Chris, and yet they never gave up in their attempt.

This documentary has made me more interested in the movie coming in February, where I had limited interest before.

Football

Posted on by

Football

Coach screamed “go go  subs” . It was at the NFL Chiefs camp I was drafted and the 5 pick in the draft. I ran in and I was a QB, “Down set hiiik” I snapped the ball one of the D line break thru i scrambled to the right side of the field them i let it go it went flying

 Zip 

I flew past everybody straight to Jim Hardy (one of our WRs). But at the last second, an interception that was my first day at the training camp, my first snap. I screamed in rage.

That night when I was about to leave the camp when the coach called me over I knew I was done for. He said “follow me we need to talk…” 

When I arrived at the office he “said take  a seat”. 

“Ok I know you are trying your best but we might have to cut you if you don’t lock in.”

 I sat there for a minute or two before I broke the silence. 

“ I really am trying to do my best but I…”

 ” DON’T CARE” said the coach “ YOU WILL GET CUT, FIGURE IT OUT.” he told me. I went into my car and drove out.

When I was driving home I was muttering to myself the whole time about how stuipd that

  dream of mine was. To be in the NFL. I saw a gas station and decided to stop and get a snack and some gas. When I went in, I heard a lot of screams. I walked in and I said “What’s wrong?” That’s when I saw him, a short guy, 5 foot 6, mask, with a glock. I started panicking. 

He said, “Go to the ground with your hands behind your back.” 

 I went to the ground. 

He said, “Give me your money.” 

I said “no,”

 He pointed the gun at me as I rolled out of the way. He fired again and missed his shot. I jumped up on him and he fell to the ground. I grabbed his gun and threw it to the side. Just as the cops came in and arrested the guy, they said thank you but next time not do that again. 

I got into my car and drove home. I wasn’t really thinking about the chance of being cut off the Chiefs roster. I was just thinking about how I almost died. I was so busy thinking about that that I zoned out and wasn’t paying attention to the road. “BOOM” everything went black.

I woke up in the hospital and I screamed, “What is going on?” 

The nurse came over and said, “You were hit by a deer while on the road.”

 “Ok, I need to go to football practice. How long has it been?” 

“About that… you might want to talk to your coach.”

 I thought to myself, “Oh no, I got cut, didn’t I? Then the coach walked in with a worried look. 

He said, “Tim we got a problem” 

“What” I said.

 “Well it’s been 5 months.” 

“ FIVE MONTHS!” I screamed. I looked outside and I saw it was fall outside. 

“And even worse” said the coach.

 “What could be possibly worse?”

 “Jones has been injured”

 “ Oh crap”

 “Yep,” said the coach, “we need you to play and you’ve been in a coma for 5 months.”

The next day I went to practice and everybody was depressed. I knew what they were thinking, “We are cooked.” 

When the coach said “starters,” he didn’t sound happy. I went out very nervously. I snapped the ball. I was very rusty and I almost dropped it. I scrambled down to the 10 yard line for a first down. This was my chance to prove myself. Down, set, “hike” . I snapped the ball and I saw an opening. I let it fly, straight dot to his chest  

“ Touchdown,” said the coach, smiling. 

My other teammates were shocked alright Everybody said the coach practice is over we all went home the next day was the first game.

I woke up early in the morning and drove to  practice. We warmed up and drove to the Bronco stadium. We didn’t win since 2025 with Patrick Mahomes now in 2100 we had not been in a Super Bowl since then so when we arrived we warmed up then the announcer said let the game begin and I went on the field and said “hiiik”                 

The X-Files S7 E19, E20, E21, E22

Posted on by

Spoilers

“Hollywood A.D.”

“Fight Club”

“Je Souhaite”

“Requiem”

And with this, season 7 of The X-Files comes to a close. Perhaps one of the most inconsistent seasons of the show, with some real highs and some real lows.

The first three episodes on the list were all based in humor. One that really worked well, one that was so-so and one that was maybe the worst episode of the series.

“Hollywood A.D.” was ridiculous in all the best ways. Mulder and Scully being followed by a movie producer, who was full of puns and jokes, and a movie with Gary Shandling and Tea Leoni. This was written and directed by David Duchovny and had enough wink-winks to make the episode work.

“Je Souhaite” was the middle ground episode as it featured a Genie granting wishes. Honestly I got a lot of Twilight Zone vibes from this episode, which ended like the Disney movie Aladdin did. I found this silly too, but the humor worked more than it did not.

“Fight Club,” on the other hand, is one of the worst episodes I have ever seen of the X-Files, rivaling “First Person Shooter”. Kathy Griffin played two characters who were doppelgangers of each other and in love with a man who also had a doppelganger. Oh, and pro wrestler Rob Van Dam appeared. This was one where the humor did not work and the story was so stupid and incoherent that it seemed as if everyone was just going through the motions.

Then in “Requiem,” the season ended with the show going back to its roots, quite literally, as the show returned to the Oregon town that appeared in season one episode one. It also returned actors who had appeared in that episode. Returning as well was Smoking Man, Krychek, and Marita Covarrubias and Krychek apparently murdered a wheelchair-bound Smoking Man by pushing him down the stairs. It sure looked like he was dead this time, but I know he did not die here. Besides, it would not have been satisfying having Krychek be the one to knock off the a-hole.

Mulder then gets abducted by aliens in full view of Skinner, setting up Mulder’s absence moving forward. Scully tells Skinner that she was pregnant, even though she does not understand how (I mean, she knows how… but she was supposed to have been unable to become pregnant after her abduction).

“Requiem” set up the series with some real cliffhangers that allowed the series to continue into the 8th season. Many times during the 7th season, it really felt like it was going to be the final season and that the creative juices were gone. Part of that may have been the end of the conspiracy and wrapping things up, like Samantha Mulder’s disappearance, as they did.

Flight Risk

Posted on by

Mel Gibson has fallen quite a bit since Hacksaw Ridge almost ten years ago.

His new directorial work, Flight Risk, is a silly, 90’s style action movie that produced as many eye rolls as it did action moments. I have to say though that I did not hate this movie. It was just not very good.

According to IMDB, “In this high-stakes suspense thriller, Academy Award® nominee Mark Wahlberg plays a pilot transporting an Air Marshal (Michelle Dockery) accompanying a fugitive (Topher Grace) to trial. As they cross the Alaskan wilderness, tensions soar and trust is tested, as not everyone on board is who they seem.“

Michelle Dockery and Topher Grace were both decent in their roles and they both made me care about their characters, even though they both did really stupid things that if you would take five seconds to think about, you would do something different.

Mark Wahlberg is a long way from an Academy Award nominee in this role. He is so over the top that he was tough to watch.

Of course, we all knew what the situation was, because this film gave it to us in the trailers. Wahlberg was a hitman trying to kill Topher Grace, who was turning state’s evidence.

There was a leak storyline that was probably the dumbest of the storylines. When it was just the three of them in the airplane, the movie was much better. Dockery’s character, Madolyn, was so mistrusting of everyone, except one that I would have started to doubt immediately.

There were some funny moments, mostly from Topher Grace, but nothing that was going to make this a better movie. It was not a satire or a parody. It was just trying to be a dumb action movie. With that as a goal, the film is a success.

I did not hate myself for watching this, but I would not recommend anyone go out to the theater to see Flight Risk. You see most of the movie in the trailer anyway. However, this would not be the worst film on a lazy weekend on streaming.

2.8 stars

Misha and the Wolves (2021)

Posted on by

January 26

My favorite type of documentary is the ones that have a story that it tells you that is totally unbelievable, but it is true. Previous docs that I loved in this manner included Tickled, The Imposter, Three Identical Strangers, and The Jinx. There is a new doc that shocks you with its twists and turns among this harrowing story of a young girl surviving the Holocaust by living with the wolves.

According to IMDB, “Misha and the Wolves is the dramatic tale of a woman whose holocaust memoir took the world by storm, but a fallout with her publisher – who turned detective – revealed an audacious deception created to hide a darker truth.“

I don’t want to spoil much of this tale, so all I will say is that the story told by Misha in her memoir, which became a huge selling book, is compelling enough, and what happened following its release is even more so.

This doc is well told, with some excellent editing and design. It grabs you with the story immediately and then expertly weaves through what remains for the run time.

There are some questions left at the end which made me want to know more, but the doc is truly surprising.

Misha and the Wolves is available to stream on Netflix.

Sunday Morning Sidewalk #1

Posted on by

January 26

Episode One: “Currahee“

Starting a stroll down the Sunday Morning Sidewalk here at EYG. The idea is to pick out a season of TV, ideally a short season, perhaps a show that only had one season, and watch an episode every Sunday morning.

While there are a ton of series that could have been our first series, I chose a series that has been on my to-watch list for quite awhile. It is over at HBO MAX, and it is Tom Hanks and Stephen Spielberg produced 2002 mini series, Band of Brothers.

I was not sure exactly what this first episode held for me. I have historically not been a huge fan of war movies, which was why I had not watched this before now.

When the episode began, it felt like a documentary style show, partially because of the initial interviews with members of the Easy Company of the U.S. Army 101st Airborne Division and I was suddenly confused. I saw the episode underway and I thought, “Could this be actual footage?” It took me a few moments to figure out that this was not real footage, which speaks very highly of the show itself.

It was more than just a reenactment too. This was a show written from interviews and journals of the men involved in the company and it seemed as if accuracy was a major goal of this series.

If I had any question, the moment David Schwimmer walked onto screen, I knew what was going on. Schwimmer was playing a captain who pushed the men in their training, but turned out to be a lackluster field leader. It became so bad that men under his command staged a rebellion to draw attention to their concerns.

The acting is on par with some of the best acting you are going to see on any size screen. The first episode truly showed the skills of Damian Lewis, as Richard D. Winters.

Episode one does a great job of setting up what we are going to be seeing and provide us with an accurate view of the situation these men were in.

Next-February 2nd. Episode Two: “Days of Days“

EYG Comic Cavalcade #136.ONEDOLLAR

Posted on by

January 26

Welcome to a special edition of the EYG Comic Cavalcade.

I wanted to include issues from the one dollar box that I picked up this week at Comic World, but I did not remember to add a paragraph at the beginning of yesterday’s post. So I thought we could cover it by doing a bit of a parody.

Marvel has done this several times, with Amazing Spider-Man being the top offender. In fact, just this month, Amazing Spider-Man released issue #65 and then a week later released Amazing Spider-Man #65.DEATHS. Then, this week they had ASM #66. Why they numbered the books in this way is beyond me. Why can’t #65.DEATHS just be issue #66 and continue their numbering from there? As the kids say, IDK (I hate IDK, by the way).

I have done plenty of parodies involving comics during the Comic Cavalcade (I joked about Legacy Numbering once before) so this is officially EYG Comic Cavalcade #136.ONEDOLLAR.

Books from the One Dollar box this week:

Avengers Vol. 3 #10. “Pomp & Pageantry” Written by Kurt Busiek and art by the legendary George Perez. It is an anniversary of the Avengers and the city is celebrating. This roster of Avengers features Firestar and Justice, which I like quite a bit. The party crasher is the Grim Reaper who resurrected a bunch of dead Avengers to fight against the team. Funny enough, I do not think any of them are currently dead in continuity except the original Captain Marvel and maybe Swordsman and Thunderstrike. Wonder Man, Mockingbird, Hellcat, and Dr. Druid are all currently alive and active in the Marvel Universe. It’s funny.

Black Book #1. Todd chastised me about this. He said I had never heard of the company Comico before, implying that I shouldn’t care about this book. It turned out the Black Book #1 is just a promotional book for comic that had been and will be (maybe) released by Comico. I saw both Space Ghost and Jonny Quick in here, which is funny since they are both out in Dynamite.

Captain America #601. Written by Ed Brubaker and drawn by Gene Colon. The Winter Solider tells Nick Fury (the original one) a story of World War II where Cap and Bucky had to fight vampires. Listed as “A Very Special Issue of Captain America” on the cover, this was a neat book, especially with there being so many vampires in the Marvel Universe today.

The Stuff of Dreams #1. This is subtitled “A Kim Deitch Comic Book.” Kim Deitch was an American cartoonist who worked in the underground comix scene during the 1960s. This book, released in 2002, was very much in the style of those underground comix, black and white and full of controversial material.

The Dreaming # 21-23, 25, 30-31, 35. This is a Vertigo book, which was an imprint of DC Comics at the time (and is once again, I believe). It is a book of horror stories set in the Sandman universe. It featured some of the lesser Sandman characters. The books looked attractive, but I do not think I would pick up any unless they arrive in the dollar box again.

Ex Machina #9, 11-12, 33. This book is written by Brian K. Vaughn, which is absolutely a selling point, but I love the phrase Deus Ex Machina which, honestly, why I picked these up. This apparently sprung out of the events of 9-11 and I will say that, though I have not read these yet, I have scanned them through and I find this more intriguing than the Dreaming. This is from Wildstorm Comics, which was also an imprint for DC.

That’s it for this special edition of EYG Comic Cavalcade. We will continue next week with our normally numbered posts, though it will apparently only feature DC Comics and Image comics. Thanks a lot, Diamond.

EYG Comic Cavalcade #136

Posted on by

January 25

It is time for the EYG Comic Cavalcade once again.

This week I did something that I rarely do. I picked up a 3rd printing of a book. I prefer the first printing and have been known to skip it if it is not 1st prints. However, Mark Spears Monsters #1 third printing had an all-new cover by Mark Spears and I loved it. It earned a bronze medal in this week’s Favorite Comic Covers of the Week and Spears continues to be absolutely fire.

Books this week:

Superman Annual #11. “For the Man Who Has Everything“. Written by Alan Moore and art and cover art by Dave Gibbons. I was talked into buying this by Todd. He talked about the story, how it had been adapted into one of the animated shows. He guaranteed that I would love it, and…. it was fine. Two things really stood out to me. This was a different Batman. He called Jason Todd “chum.” That was like an Adam West Batman line. Then, Robin saved them all, and nobody thanked him. Good thing Jason was there.

Doctor Doom & Rocket Raccoon #1. Written by J. Michael Straczynski and art by Will Robson. Cover art was done by Gary Frank & Alex Sinclair. Doctor Doom needs some specific help. And who does he call? Of course, he calls Rocket Raccoon. This was a fun issue, but some of the Dr. Doom lines felt strange, kind of out of character. It was not disqualifying for me, but it felt odd.

Amazing Spider-Man #66. “No More.” Written by Justina Ireland and art by Andrea Broccardo. Mark Bagley & Richard Isanove did the cover art. Peter is is a serious funk. The whole 8 Deaths of Spider-Man has seemingly broken him. I’m not convinced that he would be acting this way, but I do like how Cyra was so confused by his behavior. The whole kissing Black Cat was strange too.

Black Canary: Best of the Best #3. “Round Three.” Written by Tom King and art by Ryan Sook. Cover art was done by Ryan Sook. I have really enjoyed this series so far. Batman makes a guest appearance as does Ted Grant. Black Canary and Lady Shiva kicking the crap out of each other. I love this series. Tom King has done it again.

G.I. Joe #3. Written by Joshua Williamson and art and cover art by Tom Reilly. There are some trouble inside the Joes and physicality breaks out. Meanwhile, Clutch is inside Cobra, trying to stay hidden and get a message to the Joes. Will Cobra Commander find him? The new G.I. Joe has been solid so far.

Fantastic Four #28. “Die By the Sword.” Written by Ryan North and penciled by Steven Cummings. Cover art was done by Joshua Cassara & Dean White. Reed and Sue try to find a way through the magical dome over Latveria and they approach Dane Whitman, the Black Knight for aid and suggestions. Things don’t go the way they want. I have loved Ryan North’s run on FF, and I am excited that he gets to write the upcoming One World Under Doom event series.

Uncanny X-Men #9. “Off the Leash.” Written by Gail Simone and art by Andrei Bressan. Cover art was done by David Marquez & Matthew Wilson. I did not like the end of this one. I was shocked at the final page image with the brutal Wolfpack, a group of dog-like sentinels. I definitely hope something happens to save the character that look pretty dead at the end.

TVA #2. Written by Katharyn Blair and art by Pere Perez. Cover art was done by Pere Perez and GURU-eFX. We have Sylvie. We have Daimon Hellstrom. Such a fun group of characters, including our favorite ones from the Loki Disney + series. However, I am worried about Mobius. He ended the book looking pretty bad, in a pool of blood. I do not want him to be dead.

Ultimate Spider-Man #13. Written by Jonathan Hickman and art by Marco Checchetto. Cover art was done by Marco Checchetto and Matthew Wilson. Peter and Harry are in a lot of trouble as they are in the Ultimate Universe’s Savage Land as Kraven prepared to hunt them. I hope we get a Ultimate Ka-Zar. Meanwhile, Richard is trying to take his missing father’s place with the help of the AI that had replaced Peter.

Time Waits #3. Written by Chip Zdarsky and David Brothers and art by Marcus To and Marvin Sianipar. Marcus To did the cover art. Robert is back in his time and is on trial for his life. Wyatt is out for his own revenge. Robert is actually just looking to get back to his love. Zdarsky has been excellent over the years, and I do enjoy this one. I have had a little more challenge to follow these characters, but it is entertaining for sure.

X-Men: Xavier’s Secret #1. Two stories in this one shot, first one featuring Cyclops and Jean the night before she headed off to outer space as Phoenix. The second one dealing with Charles and his machinations.

W0rldtr33 #12. Written by James Tynion IV and art by Fernando Blanco. This series returned from its break. This was just like I remembered it. Confusing but completely engaging. This was involving Sammi and a flashback (?) to 1999. I love the layout of the book panels. It is original and creative.

Drawing Blood #7. Written by David Avallone and penciled by Ben Bishop. Cover art was by Kevin Eastman. Another book that was back after several months off, Bookman goes home to Maine and does not find himself welcome. We get a glance at the back story of our favorite fictional comic book writer.

Doll Parts: A Lovesick Tale #2. Written, illustrated and cover art by Luana Vecchio. A second issue that i think I liked even more than issue one, which I liked a lot. Maddie finds herself in a bunch of bad situations, with boys at school and a weirdo from the gore forum she had been posting on. There are some real tense moments here and you are never sure what might happen. This has been a great story so far.

Blade Red Band #4. Written by Bryan Hill and art by Federica Mancin & C.F. Villa. Blade and Elena have some bloody fights, chopping several vampires to pieces. This may be one of the few “Red band” books that really earned that title. Blade is still in pursuit of Pontious.

Justice League Unlimited #3. Written by Mark Waid and art and cover art by Dan Mora. Plastic Man is here. I am not sure where the Plastic man recent series falls in continuity, if at all, but Plastic Man is recovering his powers here. And what happened to Swamp Thing??? This new Justice League book has been solid so far and I do like how there are a bunch of characters to use instead of just Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman.

Hyde Street #3. Featuring storytellers Geoff Johns and Ivan Reis. Cover art was done by Ivan Reis & Danny Miki with Brad Anderson. Merry Christmas on Hyde Street. Pranky and Mister X-Ray are after Santa Claus. Yup, that is right. And then we get an appearance by the Matinee Monster. The level of horror weirdness in this series has been sensational so far. It reminds me of the best of Ice Cream Man.

Mystique #4. “Covers” Written, art and cover art by Declan Shalvey (Gold Medalist). Mystique is in search of Destiny. But she is doing it with a much more powerful ability. The ability to mimic the powers of the person in which she is shape shifting into. Angel? Juggernaut? Others? What about Nick Fury? This has been a showcase for Raven so far.

Phoenix #7. Written by Stephanie Phillips and art by Marco Renna. Yasmine Putri did the cover art. Phoenix takes on Thanos, who has the special artifact called the Wizard’s Eye, giving Thanos even more power. Can Phoenix stop him? Guest starring Nova, Rocket Raccoon, Captain Marvel and Sif.

The Tin Can Society #5. “Just Kids” Written by Peter Warren and art by Francesco Mobili. Cover art was by Francesco Mobili and Chris Chuckry (Silver Medalist). Our group of friends, investigating the death of their friend. They launched an assault on who they thought it was. This woman had a suit, but she was not inside it. The final page was a shocking reveal. I have enjoyed this book every issue. I wish I knew the characters better, but it has been a ride the whole time.

Metamorpho #2. “The Woman from Yesterday!” Written by Al Ewing and art by Steve Lieber. Cover art by Steve Lieber and Lee Loughridge. The relationship between Rex mason, Metamorpho and Sapphire Stagg hit a snag in this issue with some cool elemental action. I still enjoy the throwback feel this book has adopted.

What If Galactus Transformed Rogue #1. Written by Ann Nocenti and art by Stephen Byrne. Ron Lim and Israel Silva did the cover art. The next of the series of What If…? involving Galactus having to choose a different Marvel hero to be his herald. This was is okay, but the gimmick may be starting to show some ware. Watcher was back this issue though and he is always welcome.

Space Ghost #9. Written by David Pepose and art by Jonathan Lau. Bjorn Barends did the cover variant C art. Space Ghost is in a battle with the supervillain Metallus and so much is in jeopardy. Space Ghost has been such a surprisingly good series from Dynamite.

Iron Man #4. “Hellman Circle” Written by Spencer Ackerman and art by Javier Pina. Cover art was done by Yasmine Putri. It also said that the Scarlet Witch spread was done by Rod Reis. Iron Man, Ironheart and Melinda May team up to raid a Stark factory. And they come across yet another Stark Sentinel.

Other books this week: The Terminator #4, Kill All Immortals #7, Life #4, Absolute Wonder Woman #4, Scarlet Witch #8, Void Rivals #16, Lawful #7, and House of Slaughter #29.

Whitney (2018)

Posted on by

January 25

One of the greatest voices of music has also one of the most tragic stories is the documentary for today’s Genre-ary. Whitney Houston had so many struggles in her short and successful life, from drugs and pressures of her life. The 2018 documentary Whitney was on Netflix (though it is leaving at the end of the month).

Filmmaker Kevin Macdonald used archival footage, some great performances and interviews to give a picture of Whitney Houston’s life.

The music of Whitney Houston is amazing, and that comes through in this documentary, although there could be more about the music. However, the story of what happens and what led to her untimely death is very tough. The relationships in Whitney’s world was shown as a major part of her downfall. That included her marriage to Bobby Brown and the difficult connection with her father.

It was hard to watch the two sides of Whitney Houston that we saw in the doc. It was such a struggle in her life and how the events took such a toll on her.

It is a difficult doc to watch, even if there may not be anything new revealed of her story. Putting it in one spot like this is powerful.

American Tragedy (2019)

Posted on by

January 24

When I saw the synopsis for this documentary for the Genre-ary, I anticipated this film being a difficult watch. Strangely enough, this was not the emotional and gut-punch of a doc that I thought it would be.

This film was about one of the kids who participated in the shootings at Columbine. Surely, this would be a devastating film.

I was not prepared for American Tragedy, which I viewed on Amazon Prime, to be quite as dull as it was.

According to IMDB, “April 20, 1999 Columbine High School was under attack by Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold. Sue Klebold, Dylan’s mother, attempts to reconcile how the son she thought she knew, the son she loved could willingly be a school shooter. ‘If love could have stopped Columbine,’ she says, ‘Columbine would never have happened.’ What would real prevention look like? Is it possible? Is America ready?“

The film spoke to Sue Klebold during the film, but I just did not get the expected feelings from her that I expected. Perhaps it was from years of hardening herself from the anger and the unexpected behavior, but a lot of the sections with Sue felt like the story was being told by someone else. I am sure that is not the way she felt, but it does not translate to the screen in this doc.

There were a few moments that stood out, but they were few and far between.

This is a shame that this doc does not connect with the viewer as much as it should have.