Cow universe? The whole cud thing got old really quickly. I kept waiting for there to be some kind of twist, but it never came. Kripke and Bert left the universe but they were stuck between universes.
This one just had no story at all. I suppose there was some progress on the relationship between Stuart and Denise as they seemed to enjoy the whole cud thing, and the licking of the salt lick was gross.
Raj showed up again. Here, he was someone ranting about the end of the universe.
We see the other Stuart again who arrives to convince our Stuart to leave the cow universe. Stuart and Denise head out too.
The classic tale of a boy and his dog, which dies and is reanimated by the boy. Frankenweenie was a charming, heart-felt take on the Frankenstein creature and the beautiful black and white makes it feel like one of the old Universal Monsters films.
Voice cast: Catherine O’Hara, Martin Short, Martin Landau, Charlie Tahan, Atticus Shaffer, Winona Ryder, Robert Capron, James Hiroyuki Liao, Conchata Ferrell, and Tom Kenny.
It’s getting late… I need to jump right into this week’s books.
Also-rans: Batman: Bad Seeds-Sunset #1 (A cover), Sorcerer Supreme #9, Hello Darkness #24, Fall of the House of Slaughter #4, The Greatest American Hero #2 (Cover A), Hammerfist #1, Rom #1 (Die-cut cover), Denver #1 (D cover), and Black Tower: The Raven Conspiracy #1 (A Cover).
Bronze Medalist
The Greatest American Hero #2
Variant Cover C
Cover art by Rafael Loueriro
This is an awesome homage cover to Amazing Spider-Man #50, the Spider-Man No More cover. Ralph front and center, walking as if he had something better to do. Love the look of the book and this has been a huge win for me from Amp Comics.
Silver Medalist
Bad Thoughts #3
Cover art by Dave Wachter
I love the colors of this cover. With the stream of red blood from the recently dead body flowing across the yellow ground. The black background with the red title works so well for this book.
Gold Medalist
The Greatest American Hero #2
Variant Virgin Cover B
Cover art by Eranga Devasurendra
Greatest American Hero has two of the top three this week, with the A Cover in the also rans. The red and black cover is just a beautiful cover with the scene of the UFO in the blackness. Spectacular cover on this book and my favorite of the week.
This is the story of a movie that fought back against cancelation and low expectations to make a release date several years after being filmed.
Coyote vs. Acme is a live-action/animated mix in the vein of Who Framed Roger Rabbit, but featuring the Looney Tunes. When Warner Brothers had the rights to the film, they decided that the movie would not make any money and they shelved it. Eventually, WB put the film up for sale but there were no takers. Everyone had the same fear… this would flop.
Finally, Ketchup Entertainment purchased Coyote vs. Acme and the film was going to be seen. While the film may eventually prove WB correct with its box office, at least the movie is able to be seen. The Looney Tunes are not as well known of an IP as they once were, and the struggle for the film is real. However, I can be happy to say that the film absolutely needed to be released because it is fabulous.
Rapscallion Wile E. Coyote, tired of Acme’s products constantly backfiring on him, saw an advertisement on TV from a lawyer named Kevin Avery (Will Forte) claiming to be able to get a settlement for any cartoon against Acme.
Actually, he was looking very low level, in the hundred dollars range. Kevin did not have the confidence that it would require to go up against a major corporation like Acme, with their top notch lawyer Buddy Crane (John Cena) and CEO of Acme, Foghorn Leghorn (Eric Bauza).
As they dive into their case, they discovered more than just a case of some misfiring rocket skates.
This was great. It was funny. I was laughing the entire time. Will Forte did an amazing job of playing against the animated Wile E. Coyote, as well as John Cena, who was in full cheese-mode as Acme’s lead lawyer.
There were a ton of jokes that would be considered either inside jokes or Easter eggs that would reward the longtime viewers of Looney Tunes. I do worry that people who were not fans of Looney Tunes would not appreciate the jokes as much as I did. The writing was extremely clever, but was, potentially, too insider for the general audience.
The animation was excellent and it was such a fun film with the returning characters of these iconic Looney Tunes. I really loved seeing the characters such as Road Runner, Taz, Tweety, Daffy Duck etc. It was so awesome to see them all back.
I am so glad that this movie had a chance to be seen on a big screen. In a perfect world, this would be a huge film at the box office. Coyote vs. Acme was such a good time and such a wonderfully written film.
Animation Style: computer-generated (CG) 3D animation
Studio: DreamWorks
This the sequel to the classic original and it brings us the debut of Puss In Boots!
Voice cast: Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz, Antonio Banderas, Julie Andrews, John Cleese, Rupert Everett, Jennifer Saunders, Larry King, Aron Warner, Cody Cameron, Christopher Knights, Simon J. Smith, Chris Miller, Mark Moseley, and Conrad Vernon.
They can cause trouble with a team. You see it all over the place and this week’s Ted Lasso dealt with the coaching staff of the Lady Greyhounds of Richmond trying to stomp out the cliques that were threatening to derail their team before they even get started.
In Ted Lasso’s eclectic manner and undeniable folksy wisdom, he requires the team members to go to a pub trivia night.
Things go crazy. The team winds up in a bar brawl with another team of asre-hole men as they all get arrested.
Fairly predictable outcome in the trivia contest, but I do like how it worked out and the scenes of the team in jail celebrating was great.
Roy was on multiple dates in one night after Keeley told him that he needed to date at least ten women before she would consider them getting back together. However, it feels like Roy may be slipping away from her as he was into a bartender before falling to the ground with his knee. Then, Roy’s sister took him to the hospital where he met a doctor who irritated and infuriated him. You can see where this is going too.
One of my favorite parts of the episode was the use of Trent Crimm (James Lance) and Dr. Sharon Fieldstone (Sarah Niles) as a framing device around the episode. Both characters were favorites of mine and it was great seeing them again, as Trent was interviewing her for a podcast.
The whole Keeley/Rebecca story felt like a big nothing and I was not into it much at all.
Fun episode, but pretty generic for a Ted Lasso episode.
Animation Style: 3D CGI animation style blended with traditional Chinese painterly aesthetics, ink wash techniques, and hand-drawn 2D sequences
Studio: DreamWorks Animation
Voice Cast: Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross, James Hong, Jackie Chan, Jean-Claude Van Damme, Randall Duk Kim, Bryan Cranston, J. K. Simmons and Kate Hudson
A sequel thast took the original characters and expanded the world even further than the original did. It focused in on the theme of friendship, particularly between Ralph and Vanellope.
Voice cast: John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Jack McBrayer, Jane Lynch, Ed O’Neill, Gal Gadot, Taraji P. Henson, Alfred Molina, Alan Tudyk, Pamela Ribon, Jennifer Hale, Kate Higgins, Roger Craig Smith, Maurice LaMarche, Brad Garrett, Corey Burton, Anthony Daniels, Vin Diesel, Tim Allen, Melissa Villaseñor, Bill Hader, and John DiMaggio.
Zootopia 2 was a sequel to a surprise hit from a few years ago that absolutely took off, making over a billion dollars at the box office. The Zebros were a hit in the film, voiced by WWE Superstars CM Punk and Roman Reigns.
Voice cast: Ginnifer Goodwin, Jason Bateman, Shakira, Idris Elba, Alan Tudyk, Nate Torrence, Don Lake, Bonnie Hunt, Jenny Slate, Ke Huy Quan, Fortune Feimster, Andy Samberg, David Strathairn, Patrick Warburton, Quinta Brunson, Danny Trejo, CM Punk, Roman Reigns, Michelle Gomez, David Fane, Stephanie Beatriz, Wilmer Valderrama, Jean Reno, Macaulay Culkin, Brenda Song, John Leguizamo, Tiny Lister, Maurice LaMarche, Raymond S. Persi, June Squibb, Jenny Slate, Josh Dallas, Auli’i Cravalho, Blake Slatkin, Bob Iger, Tig Notaro, Nick DiGiovanni, Ed Sheeran, Yvette Nicole Brown, Michael J. Fox, Josh Gad, Robert Irwin, Tommy Chong, Dwayne Johnson, Mario Lopez, and Anika Noni Rose.
Episode two of DC’s Lantern’s series stuck it out in the 2016 timeline, leaving last week’s shocking conclusion during 2026 for a later date.
Instead, the episode split Hal and John into different places. John is sent to retrieve the Lantern to charge the power ring, and Hal sticks around to go see Macon again.
Hal ends up getting shot as a warning and John gets nabbed and dragged away when we hear the term “Manhunters” for the first time.
I know enough about Lantern lore to say that this is not the Martian Manhunter, aka J’onn J’onzz, but not much more after that so I am curious to find out what this piece of DC history is all about.
The show brought out some awesome Green Lantern stuff this episode. First, as I mentioned, they showed us the power charging Lantern that Hal needed to recharge the power on his ring. It was stored in a cool pocket-dimension found in Hal Jordan’s house.
Second, we get to see the Green Lantern costumes. There were three of them hanging in Hal’s closet. Hal did not seem overly anxious to put it back on.
However, third, he did put it back on and he flew into space to a satellite of some kind where we meet, for the first time, Sinestro. Sinestro is Green Lantern’s arch enemy, and is being played by Ulrich Thomsen.
John Stewart could not fly when using the ring, but he was able to create a bird that followed him the whole episode, even when he did not have the ring on, even when he was unconscious after being snatched at Hal’s house. I get a feeling that the bird has a deeper meaning for down the road.
I am excited about the mysteries of the show, and I am wondering when we will be heading back to 2026. Next week looks to be a John Stewart-centric episode with more of his past coming to [Green Lantern’s] Light.
I am not sure where the flashbacks go from here. With everything about the silos laid out, the rejection by Helen and Daniel of the offer by Stensen and Thurman feels like a conclusion. Maybe there is more here than what I can tell, but right now, I am not sure what that will be.
The drama inside the silo is picking up actively. Juliette has been arrested and placed in the same cell as Sims.
The episode gives us answers about what happened to Lukas and Kennedy on their attempt to go to Silo 17. Lukas was shot and Kennedy helped him to get to the silo.
Steve Zahn was back and he was spectacular in this episode. I have missed Jimmy and Zahn’s portrayal of this character and it is great that he was back. The information of his mother’s fate was painfully displayed across Zahn’s face and eyes.
Sheriff Paul has found the killer of Orla Kent. It was her boyfriend to keep her quiet about the smuggling from critical supply.
Everything is building toward the end of the season. I am not sure what the flashback story is going to be moving forward, but the present day story is on fire.
I wrapped up season one of Boston Legal on Hulu this afternoon with some great episodes.
These episodes included:
“It Girls and Beyond”
“‘Til We Meet Again”
“Tortured Souls”
“Let Sales Ring”
“Death Be Not Proud”
Some amazing guest stars started to show up, as a couple of the regulars from the first half of the season were starting to be phased out. Some guest stars included Betty White, Carl Reiner, Courtney B. Vance, Chi McBride, Shelley Long, Kerry Washington, and Freddie Prinze Jr (resuming his role as Donny Crane).
“Death Be Not Proud” sent Alan to Texas to try and prevent an execution of a man with an IQ of 80, whose confession may have been coerced, and might be innocent. It was a powerful episode with an end sequence that was very difficult to watch. I think that was clearly the intention of the scene, even though we mostly focused on Alan and Kerry Washington’s character Chelina.
Bernard Ferrion returned from earlier in the season and Katherine (Betty White) took him under her wing, especially after Alan rejected him once again. I know this is leading to a big story in season two.
One of the funniest running gags in any episode was how uncomfortable Brad was with the word “lesbian,” and how the others around the Crane, Poole and Schmidt offices wouldn’t let him off the hook.
The idea of Denny Crane having Mad Cow Disease happened in these episodes. It would be Denny’s fall back stance against the potential Alzheimer’s that he had.
Alan continued to have terrible behavior in a lot of instances, while trying to do what he thought was right. Even though the others at Crane, Poole and Schmidt had troubles with Alan, it seemed as if they still took advantage of Alan and what he would be willing to do to get things done. Shirley actually went to Alan to co-chair a case where she did not want to do the closing because she did not want to go to the level she thought she would need to go. She knew Alan could do so, despite it being a case of police brutality/torture that Alan did not want to be a part of. There is a lot of hypocrisy when dealing with Alan.
Lori, who in these episodes had really seen her screen time diminish, had reached the end of the road with Denny’s constant sexual harassment. She told Shirley that she wanted to formally charge Denny with it.
I do believe that there is an episode that is missing from the season one list. I am not sure what is going on, but I am going to go investigate what has happened.
Sunday afternoon and I am ready to start working on the EYG Comic Cavalcade. I am still worried about writing this when school starts. I stayed home Saturday and spent all day reading comics, but when some more movies come out in the theater, that option won’t be around. Because of time, I might have to write the Comic Cavalcade before I read everything. We’ll see how it goes.
Comic of the Week
The Last Driver #1
I almost chose Redcoat #19 for this award, but I could not overlook this comic from Image. It is such an original story and the format of the book was awesome. Sean Murphy and Simon Gough are the creators of this book and they do a great job of creating a new world and making it feel lived in in the very first issue. We also have compelling characters introduced immediately and I was engaged with them.
The format of the book, turned to the landscape look, was so great and I wondered why comics didn’t do this more often. I think it is similar to Anime from Japan, except this starts at the front instead of from the rear.
Books this Week:
Redcoat #19. The creators are Geoff Johns & Bryan Hitch. Cover art was done by Bryan Hitch and Brad Anderson. I read this one early this week, and I was totally flustered by it. It was so good and it made me feel something. I saw the tragic events coming in the middle of the book, but I really wished I was wrong. I wasn’t.
Uncanny X-Men #34. “Chapter Two: Repent.” Written by Gail Simone with art by Luciano Vecchio. Cover art was done by Luciano Vecchio & Matthew Wilson (Silver Medalist). More mutant goodness as we see more of the new demonic face of Gambit and Rogue attempting to save him. We also have a new character at the end of the story named Howler, who looked very cool. There’s also a new villain named Repent. Lots going on here.
Mortal Thor #800. “Ouroboros” Written by Al Ewing with art by Pasqual Ferry. Cover art was done by Alex Ross. Variant cover C art was done by Declan Shalvey (Gold Medalist). The 800th issue of Thor comes along taking Sigurd in a new direction. He has to do battle with the Serpent. There are a cople of back up stories in this issue, including stories written by Chris Condon and Kieron Gillen.
Queen in Black #3. Written by Al Ewing with art by Iban Coello & Paco Medina. Cover art was done by Ryan Stegman & Frank Martin. The third installment of the Queen in Black includes Spidey, Venom and Dylan trying to get to the Baxter Building. The issue ended with Torch, Nova and Captain Alliance facing off with a Firelord symbiote. Not good.
Punisher vs. The Amazing Spider-Man #2. “Central Intelligence” Written by Dan Abnett and art by Alvaro Lopez. Cover art was done by Jonas Scharf & Alex Guimaraes. Early days of the relationship between Spidey and Frank Castle as we see the connection between them and the differences of them as well.
Daredevil #5. Written by Stephanie Phillips with art and cover art by Lee Garbett. Daredevil’s first arc comes to an end as Daredevil battled the new villain Omen, ho either dies at the end or only seemed to die at the end. It was not clear.
Spider-Man/Hulk: Fire and Brimstone #1. “Sacramental Health” Written by Kevin Smith & Andy McElfresh with art by R.B. Silva & Federico Blee. Spider-Man and the Hulk wind up facing off with a group of villains called The Manosphere, including Absorbing Man, Stilt Man, Plantman, Molten Man, Sandman, Titanium Man, Mole Man, Man-Bull, and Everyman.
Avengers Armageddon #3. Written by Chip Zdarsky with art by Ario Anindito. Cover art was done by Dike Ruan & Moreno Dinisio. Wolverine tracks David Colton and things do not go well for him. Things in this comic are turning to a really bad situation. Nuclear weapons are launched at the end of the book. This book is going to alter the Marvel Universe moving forward.
Zorro’s Legacy #2. “Friend or Foe.” Written by Dan Abnett and pencils by Aaron Lopresti. Cover art was done by Aaron Lopresti with Walter Pereyra. David de la Vega jumps into action as a present day Zorro as his uncle Donny recovers in the hospital. This new take on Zorro is a fun new way to look at it and I have been enjoying this book.
Altered States: Warlords #3. Written by David Avallone with art by Mariano Benitez Chapo. Cover art was done by Joseph Michael Linsner. This issue of the Warlords focused on Tarzan’s arrival, joining up with Red Sonja and John Carter. There is only one more issue of this story which seems very quick as these characters have only just arrived.
The Last Starfighter #2. Written by Benjamin Raab & Deric A. Hughes with art by Willi Roberts. Cover art was done by Taurin Clarke. The construction of the Star League is underway, though problems arise very quickly and the end of the book is highly tragic and surprising.
Lazarus Order #1. Written by Sloane M. Siegel with art and cover art by Juan Doe. With a plot overview: In a medieval world, illness causes monstrous transformations. The Lazarus Order uses devout plague doctors who trade their freedom and lifespan to God for supernatural powers.
Junk Punch #3. Written by Paul Tobin with art by Carlos Javier Olivares & Christine Larsen. Cover art was done by Carlos Javier Olivares. I have been enjoying this book and, even though it still feels like it has one main joke, it has yet to become old. They added in an origin story for Clara and a steamroller. This is still a hoot of a story.
If Destruction Br Out Lot #4. “The Mystic Chords of Memory.” Written by Matthew & Mark Elijah Rosenberg with art by Andy MacDonald. Cover art was done by Andy MacDonald & Francesco Segala. The plot synopsis is Abe, a robotic replica of Abraham Lincoln, struggles with a dangerous “spark” addiction. He uses jolts of electricity to numb his memories of a mysterious human girl he encountered.
Something Epic #14. Written, Illustrated and Cover art (all three covers) was done by Szymon Kudranski. Dracula is dead. He is the latest character that has fallen during the course of the investigation by Nora and D. Ducktive. This is just one of the most entertaining book of the month mainly because you have no idea what might be happening next.
Dead Acre: Black Badge #2. Story by Rhett C. Bruno & Jaime Castle, written by Cullen Bunn with art Riley Brown. Cover art was done by Riley Brown & Fares Maese. Dead Acre is a supernatural Western following the exploits of dead demon hunter James Crowley.
Mister Nemo #2. Written by Nark London with art by Alden Kaye. Cover art was done by Duncan Rouleau. This comic book after two issues has been a hugely entertaining one. I have thoroughly loved these first two issues as we get to know Mister Nemo and his attempt to recruit others for his team. The spy aspect is just as good as the rest.
Nightwing #141. “The Courthouse” Written by Dan Watters with pencils by Denys Cowan. Cover art was done by Jorge Fornes. Will Nightwing turn himself in as he has been requested to do by the police of Bludhaven? Or will someone else step forward to support Nightwings story about what happened on that freeway that killed so many people.
Hornsby & Halo #15. Creators are Peter J. Tomasi & Peter Snejbjerg. Cover art was done by Francis Portela & Brad Anderson. Variant cover B done by Francis Portela. After the team up with the Trillion Dollar Kid, Hornsby & Halo are trying to get back to their lives. Meanwhile, a new group of Unbelievables called the DeadTones arrive and are ready to rock.
War Wolf #8. Written by Steve Orlando with art by Marco Perugini. Cover art was done by David Talaski. Bruin faces off with his alien son. The final fight wrapped the series up with a nice bow. I enjoyed this sci-fi/space opera story told in this series from Mad Cave.
Absolute Green Arrow #4. “The Longbow Killer Chapter 4” Written by Pornsak Pichetshote with art by Rafael Albuquerque. Cover art was done by Rafael Albuquerque & Marcelo Maiolo. This comic has really taken a step toward real horror, as we get a couple of scenes that shocked me, including a hand being decapitated that was unexpected. The mystery about who Green Arrow is deepened as it went along. This is one of my favorite Absolute books.
Absolute Flash #18. “Now You See Me.” Written by Jeff Lemire with art and cover art by Nick Robles. However, I do love the Absolute Flash series as well. Wally faces some new villains. What happened to Grodd at the very end of this book? It seemed very shocking, but maybe it is magical.
What If …? Runaways #1. “What If the Runaways Hadn’t Run Away?” Written by Rainbow Rowell and art by Zulema Scotto Lavina. Cover art was done by Lucas Werneck. This was one of the better What If books during this recent new run. I really enjoyed how the Runaways were written in this and how things played out. The only problem I have with these What Ifs are it done not feel complete at the end. Each of these new What If books should be double issues to tell their story more completely.
Dispatched #2. Written by B. Clay Moore with art by Daniel Gete. Cover art was done by Daniel Gete & Lee Loughridge. This has been one of my newest favorite books of the month. It makes me think a lot of the movie Die Hard and the TV series MacGyver. “Ben”, our delivery driver, is in the building showing off his tremendous, but mysterious skills.
GI Joe #25. Written by Joshua Williamson with art by Tom Reilly & Andrea Milana. Cover art was done by Tom Reilly. The Baroness is on the run after Hawk killed a witness. It was not Hawk, of course. It was Zartan, but he took advantage of the undercover to make it look as if Baroness was the actual killer. The GI Joe force called Nightforce is on the case. Can GI Joe survive this internal struggle?
Bug Wars: The Coming of the Wardoom #1. “Bugs in the Walls” Written by Jason Aaron with art by Mahmud Asrar. Cover art was done by Mahmud Asrar & Matthew Wilson. Bug Wars is back with Slade Slaymaker struggling to get through the day as cockroaches crawl all over his body…even while he was at school. It did not do great things for his reputation.
Other books this week: American Caper #10, Lady Mechanika: Mechanical Menagerie #4, Bishop #3, Reborn: Ultimate Impact #4, Everyone Loves a Jewel Thief #4, Inglorious X-Force #8, and Star Trek: The Last Starship #10.
Quick Hits: We are kicking off this week with an ashcan from Marvel’s upcoming Midnight Universe. The Midnight Universe Black & White Ashcan Edition is a cool ad for what is coming in September from Marvel. Monsters abound in Dark Horse’s Only the Savage are Left #3. This week’s Queen in Black: Defenders of Light and Dark #2 featured a close-up on Cloak & Dagger. The new issue of Mad #601 had a fun cover featuring Alfred E. Newman as the Devil in Hell. The final issue of Image’s Nights #20 came out this week. This has not been my favorite book recently since around #7 or #8, but I kept buying it to keep my collection complete. Alien King Killer #5 wrapped itself up with this issue. Kyle Starks’ Vertigo series End of Life #7 is getting rough on Eddie. Vampyrates! #2 has vampire action on the seven seas. How could you ask for more than vampires and pirates? Tankers vs. Ancient Aliens #3 goes way back for some origins. I mean, way back. A great cover from Mark Spears appeared on The Phantom vs. The Singh Brotherhood #1 where the Phantom has to go into a prison to help stop an incursion. Nathan Fillion’s concept Witness Point #2 continued with the story of the town with all of the witness protection people hiding out. Doesn’t seem like it isn’t going to last much longer. We dived into the reason why some racers are monsters in M1: Monster Racing League #3. Rogue and Captain Marvel have a great scene between the two of them in the finale of Captain Marvel: Dark Past #5. This book kind of gave Rogue another sister. The Spectacular Spider-Man: Brand New Day #4 comic has received an extended run and this issue included a Mister Negative controlled Punisher. Then, Lucky Devils #9 was released and was initially the final book in the series, but at the very end of the book, it stated that there would be a Lucky Devils #10 to wrap things up. Killer Influences #2 is getting darker, which is impressive considering this was about a serial killer. Kill Switch #4 is another series this week that feels like the book is over, but the story is not done yet.
EYG- Embrace Your Geekness 