#13
Fame
“You’ve got big dreams? You want fame? Well, fame costs. And right here is where you start paying… in sweat”.
Composed: Michael Gore
Lyrics: Erica Gimpel
Performed: Erica Gimpel
The song was originally from the movie Fame, that the TV show was based upon and the song from the film was performed by Irene Cara. That version won an Academy Award and a Golden Globe for best Song in 1980.
This one is like Bonnie & Clyde was made in the Universal Monsters franchise while being set in Gotham City.
The Bride! is the new film directed by Maggie Gyllenhaal that take a new look at the classic story of The Bride of Frankenstein.
This film is one that left me unsure of how I felt. There were certainly good things that I really liked about The Bride! but there were many other things that just did not work for me at all.
According to IMDB, “In 1930s Chicago, Frankenstein asks Dr. Euphronius to help create a companion. They give life to a murdered woman as the Bride, sparking romance, police interest, and radical social change.”
The standout aspect of this film is 100% the acting from our two lead performers. Jessie Buckley, who is up for an Academy Award in just about a week and a half for her role in Hamnet, is absolutely amazing as the Bride. Buckley’s performance jumps off the screen with her facial features and her confusion. Buckley also played Mary Shelley, who was a framing device for the story, and it seemed as if Mary Shelley was possessing the Bride (also called Ida or Penny). Buckley would switch from her normal voice to the British accent of Shelley. It was confusing at times.
Christian Bale was also great as Frankenstein. He would go by the name Frank and he played this character lonely and desperate. Bale and Buckley have an amazing chemistry and they are the reason to see this movie. I loved the performance of Annette Bening as Dr. Euphronius.
However, there are so many weird things going on in this movie that pulled me out. The tone of this film was all over the place. At times, it felt like I should be laughing, but others I felt horrified. It was not a smooth transition between tones. It was truly messy.
For example, there was a dance number in the film. I loved it and hated it at the same time. I loved the homage the dance routine was to, but it felt totally out of place in this film.
The film had several secondary storylines that could have (should have) been edited out completely. All the scenes with Penelope Cruz and Peter Sarsgaard, who played a couple of detectives chasing the Monsters, felt so unnecessary. Had those scenes been completely dropped, there would have been nothing really that would have to be changed.
The Bride! is a messy, wild and crazy film that has some great performances and some big swings. Some of this worked well for me while much of the rest of it did not work. Great performances in a film that is all over the place. There are some cool things in the film, but not enough to dismiss the weak points.
2.8 stars
Pixar is back with their latest animated feature film, Hoppers. Yes, the concept is very much like Avatar, which they make a joke of in the film, but this film is a lot of fun (more than Avatar, for me) and actually had some surprisingly darker moments.
According to IMDB, “A 19-year-old animal lover uses technology that places her consciousness into a robotic beaver to uncover mysteries within the animal world beyond her imagination.”
I did enjoy much of this movie, although I do not consider this in the upper echelon of Pixar movies. It is a solid, entertaining film that gave me some mouth drop moments.
Piper Curda led the voice cast as Mabel, the 19-year old animal lover. There is a lot of great voices in the cast including Bobby Moynihan, Jon Hamm, Kathy Najimy, Dave Franco, Sam Richardson, Steve Purcell, and Meryl Streep.
As always, the animation is top notch and the finale of the film was absolutely gorgeous on the screen. The animals have great designs and look tremendous.
There is an adult feel to the story that will resonate with the parents, while the film gives the kids something to be entertained by. The best animated movies are those that both parents and kids can find something in it to engage with and Hoppers definitely have that.
A solid Pixar movie that flows nicely and has a really great story and a good message.
4 stars
Spoilers
Written by Gail Simone
Art by Walter Geovani
Cover art by Jenny Frison
“One Step Over the Abyss”
Astrid’s #1 fan has arrived at the Clean Room with supposedly information on the baby Derica, who spent the first several pages of this issue being horrendous. The imagery of the bridge with the human faces was nightmare fuel if I have even seen any.
The new duo of Astrid and Chloe split apart as Chloe went to see her brother Peter. Meanwhile, Chloe and Killian tried to voir dire the #1 fan.
Artus Greenhand is the name of the #1 fan and he is a piece of work. With hair just like Astird, we discover immediately that this guy is dangerous. He is a serial killer and looks on women as “critters.”
He also seemingly can control the Clean Room, which is not a good thing, as he left Chloe and Killian in a memory facing himself.
I have to say that the relationship between Astrid and Chloe seemed to take a sudden switch here and I am not sure that I think it is earned. Chloe, in particular, had real anger toward Chloe and it does not feel as if that was as resolved as it is being shown to be. However, I do think the relationship between Chloe and Killian worked extremely well and feels as if it makes more sense.
Of course, the whole “intercourse” bit was really funny.
#14
Golden Girls
Title: “Thank You for Being a Friend”
Written: Andrew Gold
Performed: Cynthia “Cindy” Fee
Originally released as a single by Andrew Gold, the song was re-recorded by Cynthia “Cindy” Fee for the series. This theme was also used for the Golden Girls’ spin off, The Golden Palace.
Spoilers
Written by Gail Simone
Art by Walter Geovani
Cover Art by Jenny Frison
“Time and Tide”
Interestingly enough, we got a new artist for the book. Walter Geovani is the new artist replacing Jon Davis-Hunt. I had not seen an announcement in issue #12 that there was going to be a change. I did not look closely though so it could have been there.
We see a side to Astrid this issue that we had not seen before. She was ready to punish Killian and Duncan in the Clean Room because of their betrayals last issue. However, at the last minute, she reconsidered and rushed back to them. I was surprised by Astrid’s change of heart, but I did like it very much.
Then, Astrid went to Chloe and asked her to join her as one of her rooks. Chloe demanded the truth from Astrid, and… she gave it to her! I couldn’t believe that either.
Then, Astrid brough Chloe to the Clean Room where her niece, the daughter of her brother who had shot her, was at, and the little girl showed off her own evil possessed power, killing a guard. The final shot of the toddler was creepy as heck as she says to Chloe that Philip says hello.
Philip was, of course, Chloe’s fiancé who had shot himself in the head after reading Astrid’s book.
I feel that Astrid and Chloe are forming a bond, at least to work together. I am still not sure if I should trust Astrid, but I have to say I am getting there.
Five more issues to go. This has been awesome.
#15
Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes
Title: “Fight as One”
Composed: Guy Michelmore
Performed by Bad City
One of the best superhero theme songs around. The tagline “Avengers… Assemble” really worked in the middle of the song.
This show was too short as it was really a great adaptation of the Avengers into animation.
March 5
I had a tough choice this week that I wussed out of. I was down to four covers for the three medals and, once again, I decided to have there be a tie. Oh well…
Last week we did not have any variants in our medalists. This week, there are two of the four covers.
Also-Rans: Narco #1, Avengers #36, Batman #7, Moonstar #1, The Twilight Zone #5, Bloodland #2,
Bronze Medalist
(TIE)
Disney Villains: Gaston #1
Cover art by Milena Ciccarello
Variant Cover C
I loved this cover, helping me decide to pick this Dynamite Comics book up. I love how we get Gaston and LeFou running inside the outline of Gaston’s body. The black background makes this standout all the more.
Hello Darkness #19
Cover art by Jenny Frison
Variant Cover B
Another variant that I saw on the shelf and decided to pick it up. I have been enjoying Jenny Frison’s work on the Clean Room Vertigo series that I have been reading on the Daily Read and I think her touch really helps make these horror comic covers effective.
Silver Medalist
Sleep #8
Cover art by Zander Cannon
I have been waiting for the finale of this series for quite awhile now and I was excited to see the book come out this week. The covers of Sleep have been consistently excellent and this one is no exception. The black and white background with the blood red running down creates an exceptional contrast for the cover and really makes me want to see what the finale has in store for me.
Gold Medalist
Nectar #1
Cover art by Chris Shehan
Another new hot book has a beautiful cover featuring butterflies. How does that fit into the story? I am very curious about this book. The orange color of the butterflies and the title jump off the page, especially with that big white moon behind them.
Spoilers
Written by Gail Simone
Art by Jon Davis-Hunt
Cover art by Jenny Frison
“The Damned Lay Dying”
I love this issue. We get a couple of major face offs and sets our two main protagonists on a course for each other.
Astrid video called into the board meeting, revealing that she was very much alive. The confrontation with Mr. Wenuka was like the worst Zoom call ever. Astrid sure showed that even on a mountain top, she had everything under control. I loved how she dealt with Todd, who was the assassin who attempted to kill her on the mountain. She treated him way better than I expected.
Meanwhile, inside the Clean Room, Chloe embraced her ability to control the Clean Room and to show Spark his past… something Spark did not want to see. There were some horrible scenes with Spark possessing a little girl and the tragedy around it. Chloe seemed to be in control as much as Astrid was during the video conference. Killian was shocked since she only knew of one person, Astrid, who could activate the Clean Room.
Both of the assassins, Todd and Duncan, were shown to have been hypnotized and the people around them forgave them quickly. I like that very much. It also seems as if Spark may have taken a step back from the evil that it had looked to reclaim last issue.
Astrid’s brother’s baby was discovered by Astrid’s people. They told her the baby was normal. Of course, Astrid is able to see things differently as the last shot shows the baby with the monstrous head.
Every issue has a twist that I did not see coming. I love how this series feels like a roller coaster that is just flying without me knowing where it was going.
So I have been under the weather over the last few weeks, and I chose to stay at home this past Saturday. I had intended on going to the new Scream 7 film that came out, but I wanted to take the time to try and get better. Today, I was able to go to the film I missed last weekend.
I am going to say that I had heard a lot of negatives directed toward Scream 7 and so my expectations going into the theater today were rather low. I do think that it helped having such low expectations, because I did not hate watching this. Don’t get me wrong, it is a dumb movie and I would not recommend it. I just didn’t find it to be a horrible watch. It was certainly better than the Psycho Killer film from a few weeks ago. That is not saying much, though.
We are back with Sydney Prescott, now with the last name of Evans, and the film took every opportunity to comment on Scream 6 being the film (or the Ghostface killings) where Sydney did not get involved. The meta aspect of this fits in a Scream franchise, but it feels odd that the implication was that the last movie sucked because Sydney wasn’t there.
A new Ghostface finds his/her way to the town where Sydney was living and began killing off easily replaceable characters who have little to no characterization. For example, Asa Germann, who played Sam on Gen V, was only ever referred to as the “weird one.” There is no reason or explanation. That was his sole character trait. McKenna Grace was here too, but all I know about her character was that she was the blonde friend who was in the school play. There were actually some good actors in this film, but they were not given anything worthy to do.
We knew from casting news that Matthew Lillard was returning to the film as Stu Macher, who had been killed in the first Scream film. There was a lot of speculation about whether he was returning as the same character, but that is one of the most obvious bit in the film. No spoilers, but you’ll get it.
Then speaking of no spoilers, the ending reveal is perhaps the dumbest part of the entire movie. There are some cameos in this movie that are just terrible and make zero sense.
It felt like this movie played only on nostalgia without having any original thoughts of its own.
As I said, I didn’t hate this, but I am only a guy who has liked the Scream franchise. I think that if you are a big fan of Scream and its sequels, you are going to hate this. If you just want a dumb time at the movies, set your expectations low and you may not hate yourself for watching it.
2 stars
#16
The Weird Al Show
Written: Al Yankovic
Performed: Al Yankovic
Appeared: Running With Scissors album
Weird Al wound up with a Saturday morning program on CBS and this was the theme song he wrote for the show. The theme has been used by Al to kick off his concerts since the ending of his TV show.
Spoilers
Written by Gail Simone
Art by Jon Davis-Hunt
Cover art by Jenny Frison
“Red Inventory”
Things are flying along.
There is a meeting of the Honest World Foundation Board, called by Wenuka, to try an take control away from Astrid.
Meanwhile, Astrid is still in the mountains with Capone, trying to gage her loyalty. Astrid believed she could be a traitor, sent to the mountain to try and finish her off.
It was shown clearly that Capone was loyal as she prevented a sniper from killing Astrid, though the sniper that was sent seemed to lack any real skills in the subject.
Chloe was able to get herself into the Clean Room with Killian to try to save Spark. While inside the Clean Room, the real traitor was revealed… Duncan.
The battle between Duncan and Killian was dope. However, in the end, it took Spark controlling the Clean Room to stop Duncan.
The only way Spark could do that was to reclaim the darkness. The final shot of Spark with an evil grin plastered across it was both scary and sad at the same time.
Things are moving quickly with this book. Only 7 more issues to go.
#17
F Troop
Composed: William Lava
Lyrics: Irving Taylor
The opening of F Troop was funny and set the slapstick tone for the series as a whole.
Spoilers
“A Holy Charge”
What a fabulously emotional and powerful episode. The first three episodes were strong, but this episode of Paradise was tremendous. It was surprising, engaging, emotional. I found myself tearing up at a specific spot in the episode.
One of my favorite things was that as Xavier and Annie were on their way to Atlanta, they came across some people in another wagon. If The Walking Dead and The Last of Us have taught us one thing, it is that the real monsters in any sort of post-apocalyptic world are other humans. Annie begged Xavier not to look at these people, just to ignore them, and not speak to them. Xavier greeted them anyhow.
Later, Annie goes into labor, and Xavier ran for help from them. I swear I have seen this scene before on one of the aforementioned dramas. However, Xavier returned with a group of these people who went right into helping with the situation. I loved the fact that this show led with the message that not everyone has become monsters. There are good people still around.
The show did a juxtaposition between two births: Annie’s baby birth, and the first birth of a baby in the Colorado bunker (it was great to see James Marsden, once again). I was so on edge the whole time expecting something to happen to one of the babies, and they both survived. I was so happy.
Then, the show threw a twist that fit right with those other shows. Annie died from the birth. I couldn’t believe it. It was such a major shock. This was where I was nearly crying. The scene where the horse would not leave her graveside was so great.
Excellent episode. Next week looks like the story will be taking off, big time.
Spoilers
Written by Gail Simone
Art by Jon Davis-Hunt
Cover Art by Jenny Frison
“The Last Breath of an Exile”
So, what I wrote about last issue is a touch different now.
It appeared that Spark is not dead. The electricity that was sent through him last issue did not turn him into a pile of ashes. That is what I thought happened, but we see Spark this issue, still alive, still in the Clean Room and being tortured for information. The panel where Spark spoke for Chloe Clim Clam, begging for her to help him, made me worry that Spark is going to resent her for leaving him.
In fact, Chloe knows Spark is alive and I wonder why she left him in the first place. We see her investigating Mueller holdings, and she called Astrid all kinds of nasty names, but why did she leave in the first place?
We return to the scene several days later and Astrid has left the Clean Room and gone to a mountain retreat. Killian sent Capone to retrieve Astrid, but Astrid does not seem to be planning on coming back. Suddenly, there is some feeling for Astrid, a character who I called cold and sent straight t team bad guy last issue. I had some pity for her as she dealt with the idea that her brother shot her through the heart. I am such a manipulated mark.
We also have a new pair of horrendous individuals to fill that villain role. Wenuka and Pete are Jesus-loving corporate businessmen who are looking for a takeover of Astrid Mueller’s followers. We met them earlier, but this issue, we discover that they are darker than we imagined. They had their own “Dark Room,” which made me think it was similar to the Clean Room, and they seem to be ready to torture a poor couple. Weirdos.
I was sure of how I felt about these characters after issue #9 and then #10 flipped it over again. I love that this series is able to play with my emotions. I just hope Spark does not turn angry after his suffering, blaming Chloe.
EYG- Embrace Your Geekness 