YouTube is forever changing, adding, adjusting. There are a ton of shows, reactors, reviews that I have enjoyed watching.
I think it is very interesting since these shows go up and down the list quite a bit. Here are the Top 15 shows on YouTube for me.
#15. Jeremy Johns. Here is one that has been higher up the list in past years. Jeremy reviews movies and I do like his opinions.
#14. The Geek Buddies. This is another example of a show I used to watch much more, but that I haven’t watched much lately. It has to do with the content available.
#13. Dodgers Nation. The Dodgers won the World Series again and so I do like listening to Doug McKain talk about them.
#12. Fatman Beyond. Another one that would have been higher before. I love Kevin Smith and Marc Bernardin, but their schedule and show length catches up with me.
#11. Ashleigh Burton. She depends on what she is watching. I have loved watching her react to Buffy TV shows this past year.
#10. The Hot Mike. The entertainment show that breaks stories on movies and TV. John Rocha and Jeff Sneider have a great chemistry with each other.
#9. John Campea. John Campea has been a movie pundit for many years. He talks daily about all the top movie news.
#8. Dan Murrell. Dan is probably my favorite movie reviewer on YouTube right now. Dan’s reviews allowed me to see two of the Top 5 movies from 2024 in 2025.
#7. Settle the Score. I love this competition show, but it has slipped a little because of the amount of time I have to watch it. Matt Knost hosts and Andy Merriweather is the musical director.
#6. Kristian Harloff Show. Kristian, former Schmoe-Knows guy, does a weekly talk show that discusses movies and TV. He has multiple co-hosts during the week including Roxy Striar, John Richa, Winston Marshall, Mike Kalinowski and others.
#5. Untraveled. Jay and Adam traveling through Spain, reacting to what they see. I have to say, this has only had 4 episodes so far and might have been higher up the list had I seen more of the show. They are really funny, and will show up higher up this list.
#4. Reel Rejects. Greg and John started a reaction channel and they will react to movies, TV shows etc. There are multiple Reel Rejects who join in on the reactions (Roxy, Coy, Tara, Aaron, Andrew). They have great conversations after viewing.
#3. pReview’d. Here is the original Jay and Adam channel. They react and review TV and movies. And cry. They are funny and real. This is the place where friends don’t let friends watch movies (or watch tv or watch trailers) alone.
#2. Bonus Action. Last year’s #1, slipped to number two, mainly because this season’s volume is not finished yet. The crew switched from playing D&D to Daggerheart. Despite the new system, the cast is still the best around.
And the #1 show on YouTube….
FYC (For Your Consideration)
Scott Mantz, Perri Nemiroff and Jeff Sneider get together to talk everything Oscars. They predict the nominations. The predict the winners. They discuss reasons behind their thoughts. Above all else, even when they disagree, there is a level of respect between each other that is awesome to watch. I love the intelligence that they show.
November is closing today and we have just one more month remaining. It feels like this year has soared by. December always brings the Year in Review around EYG and the comics section of that will be quite busy. There are some amazing books from 2025.
Let’s get this underway…
Infernal Hulk #1. “Rise” Written by Phillip Kennedy Johnson with art and cover art by Nic Klein. I also picked up the foil variant of this issue by Dan Panosian (Bronze Medalist). I was legitimately shocked by the violence and gore of this issue. It had way more blood and gore than most of the Marvel Red Band books that I have read this year. The brutal new version of Hulk is definitely frightening.
Galactic #1. Written by Curt Pires and art and cover art done by Amilcar Pinna. According to the first page of this new DSTLRY book, Galactic #1 is a love story. Not sure if that is as accurate as it could be. This is the story of a bounty hunter looking for a runaway daughter, but through space. It has a flavor very much like Saga. It was an intriguing number one.
Department of Truth #34. Written by James Tynion IV and art by Martin Simmonds. Back-up story is titled “Suspicious Minds Part 2” by Scott Snyder and Joshua Hixson. I have the die cut cover by Tyler Boss. More conspiracies and mysterious events circling around this title. Back up story continues the tale of Elvis.
Black Cat #4. “IV: One of the Bad Guys, I Swear.” Written by G. Willow Wilson with art by Gleb Melnikov. Adam Hughes did the cover art. Felicia is trying to convince Tombstone that she is still the crooked criminal that she always was, despite the current image as a superhero. He ain’t buying it.
Absolute Batman #14. “Abomination: Conclusion” Written by Scott Snyder with art by Nick Dragotta. Cover variant C art by Guillem March. The brutal final confrontation between Batman and Bane happens in this issue. It is a symphony of violence.
Detective Comics #1103. “The Courage that Kills: Part Three” Written by Tom Taylor with art by Mikel Janin. Variant cover C art by Lee Garbett (Gold Medalist). Batman continues his race against the clock to find answers to the virus that he has been exposed to before he succumbs to the illness. He recruits Superman and Wonder Woman to help.
Justice League Unlimited #13. Written by Mark Waid and art by Dan Mora. Variant cover C art done by Marcos Martin. The time misplaced heroes gathered together by Mister Terrific are off on a major adventure to help prevent the return of Darkseid. Not everyone comes back alive.
DC KO #2. “Chapter Two: Objects in Motion.” Written by Scott Snyder & Joshua Williamson (interlude) with art by Javi Fernandez & Xermanico (Interlude). Variant cover E art by Mike Del Mundo. We are down to sixteen heroes/villains from the DC Universe battling one another for the chance to be the champion against Darkseid.
Batman/Green Arrow/The Question: Arcadia #1. Written and art by Gabriel Hardman. Virgin variant foil cover D art was done by Denys Cowan & Bill Sienkiewicz (Silver Medalist). What is the mysterious Arcadia Project and how does it tie to three lone wolf vigilantes? This looks to be cool noir style crime thriller.
Devil on my Shoulder #1. Written by Kyle Starks with art by Piotr Kowalski. Cover art was done by Piotr Kowalski with Brad Simpson. A new series from Dark Horse gives us a horrendous situation for Tee, who is captured and tortured by five boys. Leaving her for dead, she does not die. Now, she is out and in search of vengeance. This was my favorite new book of the week.
Universal Monsters: The Invisible Man #4. Written by James Tynion IV with art by Dani. Variant cover B art was done by Ryan Sook. The final issue of Invisible Man wraps up with the tragic tale of madness and greed. There is also a preview for the next Universal Monsters series: Phantom of the Opera.
The Undead Iron Fist #3. Written by Jason Loo with art by Fran Galan. Whilce Portacio & Alex Sinclair did the cover art. Danny Rand is battling some of his biggest foes as he has returned from the grave to figure out why he has returned and what is going on.
Mortal Thor #4. “A Merry Tale of Asgard” Written by Al Ewing with art by Juann Cabal. Alex Ross did the cover art. This story takes place in Asgard as we follow Magni, Thor’s son from an alternate timeline, as some are trying to convince him to take the throne of Asgard.
Cloak or Dagger #2. Written by Justina Ireland with art by Lorenzo Tammetta. Cover art was done by Mike McKane & Rachelle Rosenberg. In the Age of Revelation, X Years later, Cloak has to face off with Fenris, while Dagger stays with their child. I do like how this Marvel crossover gives us a chance to see secondary characters such as Cloak and Dagger and see what the years have done to them.
Feral #18. Written by Tony Fleecs and art by Trish Forstner & Tone Rodriguez. Variant cover B art was done by Tony Fleecs & Trish Forstner. Things inside the pet store are becoming terrible. Food is short and the cats are becoming dangerous. Gigi tells Elsa that she can not just leave the store because she was pregnant. Ooooooohhh.
Undeadpool #2. Written by Tim Seeley with art by Carlos Magno. Cover art was done by E.M. Gist. Undeadpool is one of my favorite books from the Age of Revelation. It is a creative use of the character as is the guest star Cable.
Geiger #18. Written by Geoff Johns with art by Eduardo Pansica and Gary Frank. Variant cover B art was done by Kyle Hotz. Not sure what was going on here, but putting Geiger in an electric chair does not seem like a bright idea.
Daredevil & Punisher: The Devil’s Trigger #1. “The System is Flawed” written by Jimmy Palmiotti with art by Tommaso Bianchi. Punisher is out for blood against a crime family that is represented by Matt Murdock’s law firm. Daredevil attempts to prevent Frank Castle from assassinating his client. Spoiler: he can’t.
Trinity: Daughter of Wonder Woman #5. “A Gorgi in the Family, Part Two” Written by Tom King and art by Belen Ortega. Variant cover C art by Jonboy Meyers. Trinity is in pursuit of the missing corgis across time, but she winds up back with Jason Todd. They make a cute couple, even though Trinity knows Jason Todd’s doomed future.
Survive #3. Written by Robert Venditti and art by Doug Braithwaite. Cover art was done by Mike McKone & Morry J. Hollowell. I loved this book this week. The story of survival in a sunken submarine with an American spy and a Russian spy. I truly believe this story has been presented in a very cinematic fashion and it could easily be a movie.
Marvel Knights: The Punisher #2. Written by Jimmy Palmiotti with art and cover art by Dan Panosian. The control of Frank Castle continues here. Frank has been added to Armando Molerro’s Assassin El Zombie! How dangerous can that be? What an ultimate weapon. I get a feeling Frank is not going to be happy when he gets free.
X-Vengers #2. Written by Jason Loo with pencils by Sergio Davila. Mike McKone & Morry Hallowell did the cover art. With Scott Lang dead, Revelation agrees to see Dani and Sam. Meanwhile the remaining Avengers try to stop the overgrowth. And another X-Verger dies in the process.
Expatriate X-Men #2. Written by Eve L. Ewing with art by Francesco Mortarino. Cover art was done by Francesco Mortarino & Raul Angulo. A rescue attempt for the mutant Lyrebird leads to division within the ranks of the Blue Dashers. It brings them face to face with the Darkchild.
Other Books this week: Immortal Legend Batman #4, Ancestral Recall #4, I Saw Ma Hunkel Kissing Santa Claus #1, Arcadia #1, Sherlock Holmes: The Dark Detective- Knights of Frankenstein #4, and I Saw Santa #1.
Quick Hits: I picked up the virgin variant cover of Conan: Scourge of the Serpent #3. It was a beautiful shot of a female character who I do not know… she appeared on the final splash page too. Hornsby & Halo #12 sees Rose and Zach in full form and on their way to trouble. We get Star Brand guest starring in Battleworld #3. It is neat to see the return of the original Star Brand from the old New Universe books. We have more monster/vampire action in Cul-De-Sac #4. Orla #4 makes you really want to root for Orla after Gwyn finds her in mid-murder. More weird things go down in The Last Days of H.P. Lovecraft #2 from Boom! Studios. Marvel Zombies #3 is setting up some real bad things for our heroes. Jean Grey is now zombie Phoenix and Thanos has nearly all of the infinity gauntlet assembled. Poor Grandmaster. Justice League vs. Godzilla vs. Kong 2 #5 sees our heroes and their titan allies brought down by King Ghidorah. Things look dark for the heroes. Escape #4 is a nice and quiet issue after some major bombardment last issue. I picked up the Universal Monsters: Dracula Black and White Special #2. I have to say I grabbed cover A but the picture of cover B on the back of this issue makes me think I missed out. I picked up a new horror series called Dead Head #1, but I was unimpressed with it.
May have been the scariest jump scare I have ever seen.
I was so engaged with the angry conversation going on between Theo and Shirley that I never once even considered that there would be something scary happen.
And when the ghostly figure of Nell screeched from the back seat, I literally screamed out. That rarely happened. The show got me good.
Prior to that, I was thinking what a group of douchebags these Crain kids were. I would go as far as to say that I really have grown to dislike both Steven and Shirley and their obnoxiousness.
I knew immediately that Luke was heading to the house. I am not sure why no one else thought of that right away, especially considering the weirdness that had been going on around the funeral parlor (last episode).
The whole knocking and doorbell ringing at that funeral parlor was creepy too, and it only served to make me dislike Shirley more. Dismissing this impossibility as kids playing pranks is just so short sighted that she was more embracing her own anger and resentments than able to see what was going on.
Then, the monologue from Theo after the jump scare was heartbreaking. The whole “I felt nothing” stuff was tough to listen to and, seemingly, finally got through the exterior of her sister.
By the way, last week’s episode had Hugh’s flashback heading through the Red Door, but nothing was mentioned or shown about that this week. That did not upset me as what we got was so excellent. Our flashback was Steven fixing up an old vanity for his mom. This was an important memory for Steven because it was proof for him about his mother’s madness, instead of one more haunted item in the Hill House.
Luke at the Hill House failing to light it on fire, only to be confronted by a vision of his mother in a red dress at the top of the stairs and the arrival of Rotten Polly, the owner of the said vanity.
There are two more episodes remaining and this series is absolutely hitting its stride. After this episode ended, which was the shortest run time of the series, I really wanted more.
Every year, I watch some movies from the previous year and I do not place them on the Best Movie list at the end of the year. Instead, I usually do a list here. A lot of times, I would see these films in January or February as they were Oscar contenders that had been released in limited release in November or December.
Of course, the last few years, there has also been the June Swoon where I watch 30 different films daily from the year before.
So this is always the first post of the Year in Review. It is the Top 5 movies from 2024 that I saw in 2025.
#5. Better Man.
The biopic of British pop sensation Robbie Williams and the story of his personal struggles and his eventual comeback. Of course, this film portrayed Williams as a singing monkey. I knew nothing about this performer, but it was very strong and powerful of a film.
#4. Flow. The animated movie that wound up winning the Academy Award for best animated movie. The dialogue free film tells the story of a flood and a group of animals, led by a black cat, in their attempts to survive the natural disaster.
#3. Ghostlight.
A beautiful story of life and loss and finding a way to go on after tragedy. It starred Keith Kupferer as a middle-aged construction worker who unexpectedly joined a local theater’s production of Romeo and Juliet. The film dealt with depression after a painful death. Ghostlight was an unexpected film that I heard about thanks to YouTube film critic Dan Murrell.
#2. Hundreds of Beavers. This is another film that I had only heard about thanks to Dan Murrell. It is an absurdist comedy with plenty of slapstick. It was one of the weirdest films that I saw this year.
#1. September 5
The first film I watched in this past summer’s June Swoon was September 5. This told the true story of the 1972 Munich Olympics hostage crisis and the coverage from ABC Sports. The drama of this film was done extremely well. This was a film that I was excited to see and I would have seen in the theater had it ever came around here. It is a powerful story.
As we have the second film of the 2025 post-Thanksgiving, Snowpocalypse Weekend, there is actually snow on the ground. It has been snowing all morning though it does feel as if it is not as much as was forecast.
Still, nowhere to go this afternoon so I rented Eleanor the Great off Fandango At Home (aka Vudu) starring June Squibb.
After the death of her friend and longtime roommate, 94-year old Eleanor Morgenstein (June Squibb) was lonely and grieving. By fate, she wound up in a support group for Holocaust survivors. Not sure what to do, but craving the human attention, Eleanor, not a Holocaust survivor, began telling the stories of her recently passed roommate, who did survive, as her own. From these tales, she met a bright young journalism student, Nina (Erin Kellyman), who had suffered her own recent loss.
This was the feature directorial debut by Scarlett Johansson, and she did a fine job with a story that placed the delightful June Squibb front and center. I am not sure there is a more impressive actress working today than the nonagenarian. She brought an energy to the film that would not have been there without her.
The story was good, but Squibb elevated it into a much higher level. It was a typical “lies get revealed” type story, but Squibb made this more than just a typical tale. You could feel her passion for the film in every moment she was on screen.
The relationship between Eleanor and Nina was another positive of the movie. They had a bond that you could feel on screen. When Nina discovered that Eleanor was not what she had represented herself as, the pain and betrayal cut deep.
It may have wrapped up too neatly in the end, but it did give us an ending that provided hope for the future of the characters.
Zootopia was a giant surprise hit in 2016 when it broke one billion dollars worldwide. With that much box office success, one would wonder why it took nearly ten years to have a sequel.
Zootopia 2 is an excellent new animated movie that does a great job of providing a new story and continuing the awesome partnership between Judy Hopps and Nick Wilde.
According to IMDB, “Brave rabbit cop Judy Hopps and her friend, the fox Nick Wilde, team up again to crack a new case, the most perilous and intricate of their careers.“
Ginnifer Godwin and Jason Bateman are the voices of Judy and Nick respectfully. They do a fantastic job with these characters and their voice work is part of the reason this pair is so good together. They are also written well as any friendship you’ll find in the movies.
There is a great voice cast along with Godwin and Bateman. This included Ke Huy Quan, Fortune Feimster, Andy Samberg, Dasvid Strathairn, Idris Elba, Shakira, Patrick Warburton, Danny Trejo, Quinta Brunson, and Bonnie Hunt. In a fun bit of casting, the Zebros were voiced by pro wrestlers, Joe Anoa’i (aka Roman Reigns) and Phil Brooks (aka C.M. Punk).
I liked the story of the film as well. It was nicely developed without succumbing to the sequel-itis where the sequel tried to do way too much, cramming it in. However, this felt very well constructed and worked well. I was worried at first that there would be too much here and make the story feel convoluted, but it came together nicely as it progressed.
The character design is amazing, and the creativity is off the charts. The animation looked fantastic and you could tell that they were having a lot of fun with the film as it translated to the screen.
It had real emotion and some wonderful character moments. It was also hilarious and filled with some great animated action. It was worth the wait to see a sequel.
Good Sunday to all. We are back with a HUGE week of books. Legitimately, this was one of the largest weeks of comic purchasing that I have had in a long time. I am jumping right in…
Batman Deadpool #1. “The Cosmic Kiss Caper” Written by Grant Morrison with art and cover art by Dan Mora. It is DC’s turn to team up Batman & Deadpool. There are, of course, a bunch of variant covers going with it. I picked up three other covers, including one with Joker vs. Doom, Nightwing & Laura Kinney and a homage to Crisis on Infinite Earths. I really enjoyed this comic this week. I would give a special shout out to the back up story featuring Nightwing and Wolverine.
Zdarsky Comic News #17. Chip Zdarsky’s news mag is always fun, but I included it here because, according to Chip inside the book, next issue is the final issue of the Zdarsky Comic News. That made me very sad as I enjoyed this every time I would grab it in Bettendorf. I think it probably has to do with the big Marvel stuff Chip is going to be doing soon.
No Man’s Land #3. Written, art and cover art by Szymon Kudranski. I picked up Cover C (Antlers variant) as well as the cover A by Kudranski (Gold Medalist-TIE). I truly love this book. It is one of my favorite books of the 2025 calendar year. The team up between our two agents from competing super powers continues to be engaging as can be, as does the mystery of who is responsible for the murder.
High Strangeness #2. “Book Two: 1975” Written by Daniel Noah & Zac Thompson with illustration and cover art by Noah Bailey (Silver Medalist). Is this a bigfoot story or some other type of monstrous creature? I don’t know, but I enjoyed reading it.
Amazing Spider-Man #16. Written by Joe Kelly and penciled by John Romita Jr. Cover art was done by John Romita Jr., Scott Hanna and Marcio Menyz. More earth-bound action with Norman Osborn covering for Peter. I loved this issue because of how Tombstone reacted to Spider-Man. He was worried about the reactions Osborn-Spidey was having, that they were not the Spider-Man that he was used to, and he wanted to find out what was wrong. The level of respect Tombstone held Spider-Man in is one of those things that I love to see.
Radioactive Spider-Man #2. Written by Joe Kelly and penciled by Kev Walker. Cover C variant art was done by Juan Ferreyra. Age of Revelation, X Years in the future, it gives us a cool futuristic Spider-Man tale, featuring how much Peter loved his Aunt May. This has been a solid piece of the Age of Revelation.
Lion King #1. Written, illustrated and cover art by Edin Galmon. I grabbed this off the shelf for the heck of it. I have enjoyed the Dynamite books lately and this look like a nice collector’s item to have. Then, I thought the story was better than I anticipated. So much so that i will probably grab issue two as well.
One World Under Doom #9. “The White Sail of her Soul”. Written by Ryan North and art by R.B. Silva. Cover art was done by Ben Harvey. The One World Under Doom arc came to a close with this issue as Doom went cosmic to undo his accidental killing of Valera Richards last issue. He lost his Sorcerer Supreme title as well.
Deluge #2. Written by Cullen Bunn and illustrated by Marika Cresta. Riley Rossmo did the cover art. The prison is flooded, putting the lives of the inmates in jeopardy, but the females of the prison did not have to face just the waters. It is what is in the waters that is the most dangerous. Ignition Press has a winner on their hands with Deluge.
The Twilight Zone #2. “A World of Your Wildest Dreams.” Written, art and cover art by Tom Scioli. Another story that would be exceptional as an episode of the TV show. The design of the art in this book was very original and different and I enjoyed it quite a bit. This has been a great anthology series so far.
Spider-Man Holiday Spectacular #1. Written by Rainbow Rowell and art by Luciano Vecchio, Paco Medina, Nathan Stockman, and Bob Quinn. Cover art was done by Luciano Vecchio. I usually do not like these holiday specials, but this one I absolutely loved! Aunt may is on a cruise, so Peter is going to be alone on Christmas, so the rest of the Marvel Universe stepped up to show how much they love Spidey.
The Ultimates #18. Written by Dennis Camp with art by Juan Frigeri. Cover art by Dike Ruan. Tony Stark makes a video appeal to the superheroes of the Ultimate Universe as major problems are coming soon.
The Last Wolverine #2. Written by Saladin Ahmed with art by Edgar Salazar. Cover art was done by Martin Coccolo & Matthew Wilson. Leonard, along with Nightcrawler and Heather Hudson, are on their way to try and save Logan. I do like this character of Leonard quite a bit and this has been one of my favorite of the Age of Revelation books so far.
Punisher: Red Band #3. Written by Benjamin Percy and art by Julius Ohta. Cover art was done by Marco Checchetto & Matthew Wilson. Punisher is back, though he does not remember who he is. But the Kingpin is trying to control him, use him as a weapon. Frank is on the case… and killing people in a violent manner.
G.I. Joe #14. Written by Joshua Williamson with art and cover art by Tom Reilly. Did Cobra Commander just get fed to some pigs? The Dreadnok War moves along as CC and Duke try to find their selves a place to hide. Maybe they choose poorly.
Absolute Flash #9. “Rogue’s Revenge” Written by Jeff Lemire and art and cover art by Nick Robles. Wally and the Rogue’s Gallery are looking to team up to take care of their mutual problem… however, there is a traitor in their midst.
Nova Centurion #1. “Deep Space Drifter” Written by Jed MacKay with art by Alvero Lopez. Cover art was done by Alessandro Cappuccio & Rachelle Rosenberg. I also picked up the foil variant cover by Ivan Shavrin (Bronze Medalist). I wasn’t much of a fan of the Imperial comic, so when I picked this up, I was not expecting much, even though I have always been a fan of Nova. I was very pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed this new take on Richard Rider. Much like Planet She-Hulk, this separate series started off strong.
Unbreakable X-Men #2. “Burial at Sea.” Written by Gail Simone and art by C.F. Villa. Lucas Werneck did the cover art. We learn about the X Years later fate of the Outliers. This continues to be one of the best written group of characters in the X-universe.
Terrorbytes #2. Written by Mark London with art by Emanuele Ercolani. Cover art was done by Sebastian Piriz. This Mad Cave book tells the story of a guy who is influenced by AI to do many bad things in exchange for money. It is the easy way… or is it?
X-Men: Book of Revelation #2. Written by Jed MacKay and penciled by Netho Diaz. Cover art was done by Netho Diaz, JP Mayer & Fer Sifuentes-Sujo. Kitty Pryde, the Ghost of Philadelphia, showed up to save a little girl who was one of Revelation’s Choristers, Elbecca from Fabian Cortez. However, things are not as they seem.
Don’t Forget Your Briefcase #5. Written by Eliot Rahal with art and cover art by Phillip Sevy. The political-spy thriller/comedy book from Mad Cave wrapped up with this issue. I have to say that I was a little unclear about the ending of the book, but it seemed like everyone was happy. Maybe?
Pecos Bill and the Guns of Oz #1. Written by J. Hammond with art by Erick Marshall. Cover art was done by J. Hammond. This new Keenspot book including the tall tale character of Pecos Bill attracted my attention on the stand. It was a weird book, but it seemed to fit right in with some of the other weird Keenspot books.
Red Book #2. Written by James Tynion IV with art by Michael Avon Deming. The mysteries of UFOs are not just an American phenomenon. It is also found in China, and this comic gives us some background behind the Chinese stories. Tynion IV has always been great with these types of books and this is no exception.
Final Boss #1. “Stage 1: Genesis.” Written by Tyler Kirkham and art by Tyler Kirkham with David Miller. Cover art was done by Tyler Kirkham. Tommy Brazen is one of the top fighters around. This book reminds one of the fighting video game such as Street Fighter or Mortal Kombat. The panels are oversized and the imagery is fantastic. Story is not remarkably deep, but you kind of expect that.
News from the Fallout #6. “Chapter Six: Darkness Everywhere” Written by Chris Condon with art and cover art by Jeffrey Alan Love. One of the most original and enjoyable mini series of the year closes with this creative issue. Weirdness everywhere and I love it.
Nightwing #132. “Slapstick” Written by Dan Watters with art and cover art by Dexter Soy. Nightwing goes in search of a group of children that had been taken by the Spheric Solutions. However, Nightwing discovered a truth about Olivia Pearce that is definitely frightening.
Ferocious #1. “Hello, Survivor.” Written by Written by Luke Piotrowski and art by Emanuele Ercolani. Cover art was done by Andy Clake & Jose Villarrubia. The new Mad Cave book is based on the survival FPS video gameFerocious from OMYOG and tinyBuild. A young boy trains under a warrior woman who destroyed his village.
Captain America #5. “Our Secret Wars” Part 5. Written by Chip Zdarsky and art by Valerio Schiti. Cover art was done by Ben Harvey. Cap’s adventure in Latveria comes to a close and Cap leaves the military to join the Avengers.
Omega Kids #2. Written by Tony Fleecs with art by Andres Genolet. Rod reis did the cover art. The Omega Kids, led by Quentin Quire, are a psychic spy network for Revelation. However, there may be more to these kids than it seemed.
All-New Spider-Gwen: Ghost Spider #4. Written by Stephanie Phillips with art by Paolo Villanelli. Cover art as done by David Marquez & Federico Blee. Gwen Stacy’s former symbiote has taken over a prison and, seemingly, has been able to control multiple hosts at once. What can Gwen and Flash Thompson do to stop this?
Justice League Red #4. Written by Saladin Ahmed with art by Clayton Henry. Cover art was done by Clayton Henry and Arif Prianto. Red Tornado lays out the plan to face off against Black Adam in an attempt to prevent the apocalyptic future.
Space Ghost #5. Written by David Pepose with art by Jonathan Lau. Cover art was done by Francesco Mattina. Space Ghost prevents a war between two squabbling planets.
Exquisite Corpses #7. Written by Michael Walsh with James Tynion IV and art by Claire Roe with Michael Walsh. Cover art was done by Michael Walsh. I also picked up a virgin variant with art by Marcos Martin. Wild action continues on in the tournament. There was a bit of a twist in the action that might affect the families.
Other books this week: The New Gods #12, Good as Dead #3, Marian Heretic #2, Mary Sue #2, It Killed Everyone But Me #3, Ghost Pepper #5, and Yuletide #2.
Quick Hits: Todd was able to find me a copy of Peter Cannon: Thunderbolt #1, from Dynamite. James T. Kirk is back and alive again in The Last Starfighter #2. Curious to see where that may go. While the X-books are involved with the Age of Revelation, Marvel released X-Men of Apocalypse #1, a book with characters from the previous dystopian future. Tama #4 is getting more and more violent each week as Tama is losing even more control. The Terminator Metal #2 gives us a human to cheer for and then pulls the run out from under us. There are two reprints from the world of Mark Spears. Mark Spears Monsters #1 has a cool reprint with a zombie crawling through the grass and Mark Spears Monsters #4 -2nd print (Gold Medalist-TIE) has a Santa Claus Skeleton. I missed Grim #25 last week, which was the final issue of the series. Not sure I loved the finale, but I am glad I have the complete series. More zombie problems in Everything Dead & Dying #3 as the humans have found the zombie city. Viking Moon #2 is pretty awesome again as we get werewolves vs. Vikings. 20th century Studios comics Thor dies in the Predator Kills the Marvel Universe #4. A group of heroes are teaming up to take on the Predators… with the title, it does not seem like a positive thing for them. Hector Plasm : Hunt for Bigfoot #2 comes across what could be a Bigfoot. This is a weird book so far. Racer X #3 still focuses more on Speed Racer than on Racer X. More cool horror stories in the anthology book Hello Darkness #16. I grabbed this book, John Le Carre’s The Circus: Losing Control #1 from Dark Horse off the stands. It felt like a book that had other series prior that I was expected to know. Not going to continue with this one for now. There was a cool virgin cover of Spawn: The Dark Ages #1, but it was also a book that the story did not interest me. Awesome cover though (even though it did not crack the medal round this week). The final issue of Silverhawks #10 came out this week. This has been a book that has been losing my attention as it progressed so I am glad to see it end. Harley Quinn X Elvira #2 from Dynamite is filled with weird interactions between these two characters. Th, we got huge sword fights with oversized swords in Lost Fantasy #5.
A few years back there was a film featuring a Finnish protagonist who had become a legend by his brutality and his survival. Dubbed the “Man who refuses to die,” Aatami Korpi stomped through Nazis, killing everyone in his path.
Aatami Korpi (played by Jorma Tommila) is back after the war and he returned to his home in Finland, which had been annexed by the Soviet Union in the peace treaty, to the home where his wife and two sons were murdered.
Korpi dismantled his house, taking the lumber from it to leave the now Soviet Union so he could rebuild the house again. Unfortunately, the man who killed his family, Yeagor Dragunov, played by Stephen Lang, was hired to go and kill the legend, once and for all.
The story was really simple, and Jorma Tommila does not have one line of dialogue, but he did a nice job with his body posture and his facial expressions (that is, when we could see the facial expressions through the crimson mask that covered his face at multiple times in the film) to express the pain and anguish he was going through.
Korpi is beat all the crap in the film, to the point where it is amazing that he could possibly still be functioning, much less alive.
I have to say that while I did enjoy a lot of the excessive violence that was going on in the film, it got to a point where it may have been too much. It was difficult to accept that he was still alive after so much without any sort of magical/mystical abilites.
Some of the things he does is also too cartoonish. Some of the things had me rolling my eyes or trying to decide exactly why he did that. There was one scene with a tank that truly showed this concept.
Because of the violence becoming too out there, I felt like the movie took a step back from the previous one. I do not remember the last Sisu movie being this over-the-top, Looney Tunes type violence and this just was more than I wanted.
It was still a fun revenge flick, but, interestingly enough, Korpi wasn’t in search of revenge. Had the Soviets not sent Dragunov after him, he would have just left the Soviet Union and built his new home. I am not even sure Korpi knew that Dragunov was the man who killed his family until he started bragging about it.
A solid revenge flick that does takes things too far for my tastes, Sisu: Road to Revenge is a decent afternoon watch, it is paced quickly and has some good humorous kills. Lots of blood too.
I am going to be perfectly honest. I had heard so many amazing things about The Haunting of Hill House before I started it during the Sunday Morning Sidewalk, and it has been disappointing. Yes, I have enjoyed the show so far, but it was not the epic that I was expecting.
Then, there was episode six, “Two Storms.”
Now I see what everyone else was talking about.
What an episode. This one blew all of the previous episodes away. It had tension, it had character reveals, it had story beats and it had some of the best direction/shots of the show.
There were multiple, long one-shots of scenes as the camera follows the grieving Crain family around the funeral parlor. Technically, this is a master class of direction from series runner Mike Flanagan. Whenever the one-shot would end, the transitions were spectacular, and we would be back into another oner. The design of the plan for each shot is unbelievable and executed perfectly.
The surviving Crain kids and their father finally are all together in the present day as a thunderstorm raged outside the funeral parlor. The show gave us a flashback to another storm that occurred with the Crain family while they lived at Hill House and they paralleled the two storms with a narratively striking purpose. We got to see some major effects that the house had on both Nell and Olivia. Nell’s disappearance and Olivia’s encounter with the spirits were chilling.
Chilling is a good way to describe many of the moments from this episode, including the appearance of the bent-neck woman at the family visitation. There was no jump scares here. The scenes transcended jump scares. They were done so spectacularly that you couldn’t help but be disquieted.
The character development was wonderful too, as secrets came out. The alcohol flowed freely (which I thought was incredibly selfish by every kid, considering Luke was there, clean and sober, watching his siblings all slapping back vodka) and the tongues were sharp. Fueled by their loss and grief, the kids and Hugh said some dramatically hurtful things to each other as truth came to the surface. Hugh seemed to be talking to himself, convincing Steven about the mental illness he believed ran in his family, but I believe it was clear that he was talking to Olivia’s spirit.
The concept of Nell and Olivia NOT having killed themselves, and, instead, being killed by the house came up and it triggered the resentment of the others for Steven’s book. They shared moments that we had seen over the first five episodes in the kids individual focused episodes that showed how much these siblings were not as close as they may have thought.
This episode elevated the entire series to a new level, one that makes me understand the fervor over this show that had seemed good, but not exceptional before this. I can’t wait to see where the show goes from here.
In 1966, ABC broadcast a TV show starring the Caped Crusaders from DC Comics. Batman and Robin made their return to the public eye with this action/comedy series.
Batman was played by Adam West and Robin was played by Burt Ward, and they were the way that the Dynamic Duo was seen until the Batman ’89 movie where they gave batman an update.
The show was one of the earliest show I can remember being obsessed with. Each episode was similar as Batman and Robin would face a villain from Batman’s extensive rogue’s gallery and get captured at the end of the episode and placed in some kind of dasterdly death trap. The next episode would resolve that trap and would wrap up the villain. The villains became iconic too as we got the Joker, Penguin, Catwoman, Riddler, King Tut, Mad Hatter, among others.
When I was young, I always bugged my mom to make me a mask like Robin. I was a Robin fan as a youth. Looking back, whenever they had the big fights, Robin would have to fight the big bad villain and Batman would punch out the hoodlums. I was always surrpised how underappreciated Robin felt.
I was, of course, watching reruns of the show. I would always look forward to Batgirl episodes starring Yvonne Craig, who was added as a character in the third and final season.
My friends and I would use the term “Batman Leap” which was when one of us would make an illogical leap to answer a question or solve a problem… something that made no sense, much like Batman and Robin would do on the series. Glu Glutton’s Glue Factory being a prime example.
The campy nature of the show appealed to many, but typecast the actors involved for decades.
Either way, I loved the 1906s Batman series, and it belongs on this list.
So… what’s next on the list? We’ll find out… Same Bat-Time, Same Bat-Channel!
I had wanted to see Kiss of the Spider Woman in the theater when it was at Cinemark, but the schedule did not permit it and it was gone before the following week. It was one of the big financial flops of the year, but I was still interested so as soon as it could be rented on Fandango at Home (aka Vudu), I watched it.
I loved the film.
This musical drama was based upon a 1992 stage show and a 1976 novel, but I had no background on any previous adaptations. I came into this with a fresh eye.
Set in Argentina in 1983, the film had a backdrop of a revolution that would be called the Dirty War, where the military junta seized control of Argentina. This was set at the tail end of the time period.
According to IMDB, “Valentín, a political prisoner, shares a cell with Molina, convicted for public indecency. An unlikely bond forms as Molina recounts a Hollywood musical plot starring Ingrid Luna.“
Diego Luna played Valentin and Tonatiuh played Luis Molina, and the film was carried by them. The movie split the musical away from the prison scenes, which kept the prison more realistic and gritty. The musical parts were in technicolor and were big, bombastic Hollywood fare. Ity created quite a distinct contrast between the different sections of th efilm.
Diego Luna was tremendous as Valentin, the political activist who Molina was sent to spy on.
Jennifer Lopez played Ingrid Luna, the actress who played Aurora and The Spider Woman in the recounted movie that Molina shared with Valentin. Lopez brings a level of credibility that this film required.
The music was catchy, but honestly, I do not think that I would recall any of the songs, which is not a good thing for a musical. Still, the music was entertaining during the watch of the film. I won’t be purchasing the soundtrack on Apple Music, but I think it worked for the film.
I thought this was a great film with some really strong performances.
Episode three of the new IT series on HBO Max is a banger.
We get some more psychic “shining” from Dick Hallorann, who we know ages up to work at the Outlook Hotel (and get an axe in his chest from Jack). The scene of him in the helicopter, flying over Derry and having psychic images of Pennywise in his forms, was exciting. Admittedly, as he was opening the cargo door of the copter, I never thought he’d fall out or die from that because I knew he had to be a part of the Shining eventually. Still, it was a tense moment.
Shawshank was mentioned too, which is part of the Stephen King shared universe. I do love how there are Easter eggs from other films in Derry. I’m sure there are some other hints out there that I do not recognize.
Ronnie’s father has something he is not telling anyone. It feels as if it is something that could work as an alibi, but he does not want to let that info out. Curious.
The flashback to the 1908 incident with Pennywise was scary. Frank and Rose’s interactions with the creature in the woods, a lookalike for the slender man from the carnival, was intense. Frank running from the creature only to be saved by Rose, wielding the slingshot that Frank had given to her (and Frank’s father had given to him). It was an exciting cold open showing what this episode would bring.
It was not as intense as when Ronnie, Lilly, Will, and Rich went into a graveyard to try and summon the monster that had attacked our departed friends from episode one in order to get pictures of it. I am not sure they could have come up with a more dangerous plan if they had tried. They were really fortunate to escape that event with their lives.
We end the episode with a pic of Pennywise as Will said of the photo he took, “It’s… a clown.”
It has been a long time since I have been as disturbed by a film as I was by Strange Harvest, a film I rented on Fandango at Home (Vudu). This would have worked really well for the October 13, although I did not watch it until November.
This movie was filmed in the “True Crime” style documentary, though the story was fictional. I would call it a “mockumentary” though that term leads me to picture something funny like This is Spinal Tap, and there was nothing funny about Strange Harvest.
The film followed the story of the serial killer who became known as Mr. Shiny, and his multiple murders over several years. The main “talking heads” of the horror mockumentary were Detective Joe Kirby (Peter Zizzo) and Detective Lexi Taylor (Terri Apple). They provided most of the narrative for the fake documentary.
This feels like a real documentary, which I think is why it hit so hard. There is a “Blair Witch” tone to it which adds to the mood of this film. Up until the ending of the doc, this could be a true story.
Mr. Shiny is a combination of the Zodiac Killer and an H.P. Lovecraft character. When we learn of his identity as Leslie Sykes (Jesse J. Clarkson), the character becomes even more frightening than he did before. Jesse Clarkson does an amazing job of creating an eerie, creepy, sinister character who is more like a ghost than a human for much of the film.
This is definitely one of the most scary films I have seen in a long time. I am still feeling disconcerted and unquieted as I write this. I may go from here and jump into my bed and hide beneath my covers. Strange Harvest was an excellent experience.
You see the contrast between episodes here amazingly well.
Episode 11 featured the Lennon Sisters and episode 12 featured Zsa Zsa Gabor.
In episode 11, there was a limited amount of comedy bits, with the main one being what seemed to be similar to the Muppet Show’s At the Dance skit where members of Sha Na Na danced with the Lennon Sisters and the camera followed them to each couple to tell a bad joke. That was a decent little use of the comedy (though that laugh track is still just obnoxious).
Also in episode 11, they did multiple songs including Rockin’ Robin, Runaround Sue, Tonight You Belong to Me (with the Lennon Sisters on the stage), The Great Pretender and a tribute to Elvis (interestingly, they never used the word Presley. I wonder if it was a rights thing.) in that tribute they did three songs, Heartbreak Hotel, Love Me Tender and Hound Dog.
Honestly, episode 11 may have been my favorite one so far.
Then, episode 12 was an over-reliance on the comedy bits. Way too many of them because none of them were funny. Plus, the songs were limited to Sha-Boom and 16 Candles. They did a comedy bit featuring The Lion Sleeps Tonight with Sha Na Na dressed up as cannibals.
Episode 12 may have been my least favorite so far.
When the show focused on the music, it was outstanding. When they pushed the comedy, especially without the guys in the band, it flopped. The comedy bit with The Lion Sleeps Tonight was just too long and, again, not funny.
They have so many great singers in Sha Na Na, I want them to play more music and I believe it worked much better when the special guest star(s) were musical too. I have nothing against Zsa Zsa, but her bits were just not as entertaining as the Lennon Sisters singing.
Forty-five years ago today, I woke up at my friend Jeff’s house after we went trick or treating and spent the night reading his comics. Jeff had a “folder” at Comic World in Dubuque and he had a bunch of X-Men and Avengers. It was the next day that I decided that I would begin to collect comics too.
Of course, there were years where I did not buy many books. Specifically during the college years and immediate years after when I subbed. I just did not have enough money for the hobby. However, I always considered myself a comic collector. I have always considered November 1st as my anniversary. Now a days, I buy a bunch of books a month.
This month is the fifth week of the month, which generally means a lower amount of books. I still was able to get a group of solid comics.
Books this week:
Sleep #6. Written, drawn and cover art by Zander Cannon. Jonathan found a way for him to contain the shocking transformation… or so it seemed. It was a fascinating issue as Jonathan seemed to be protecting Tabby. There was also a post credit scene. Very cool. Two more issues in this book which has been so great.
Black Cat #3. “III: Word Gets Around.” Written by G. Willow Wilson and art by Gleb Melnikov. Cover art was done by Adam Hughes (Bronze medalist). Lots of cool cameos in the newly super heroic Black Cat. Ms. Marvel, Sandman… Cat has to face off with Tombstone.
Feral #17. “Onslaught” Written by Tony Fleecs and art by Trish Forstner & Tonbe Rodriguez. Cover art was done by Trish Forstner (Gold Medlaist), I was talking to another Comic World customer who told me that his girlfriend read Feral and described it as a cross between Lion King and Walking Dead. It is a perfect example. This issue really feel like a Walking Dead book with cats. I love the horror movie homage covers for this book.
Undeadpool #1. Written by Tim Seeley with art by Carlos Magno. Cover art was done by E.M. Gist. It is the Age of Revelation and X Years Later… Wade Wilson has an all new way about him as the X-virus changed him into an undead zombie-like being, but he still had his narration skills. Undeadpool is another cool concept in the current Marvel storyline.
X-Vengers #1. Written by Jason Loo and penciled by Sergio Davila. Cover art was done by Mike McKone & Morry Hollowell. The Age of Revelation moves along X Years Later with a different variation of the Avengers. Dani Moonstar has cap’s shield, Shang Chi, Cannonball, Hawkeye (with multiple arms), Vision, Water Widow (yes, it is Natasha), and Variable Man (Scott Lang, thank you). Seeing how the X-Virus affected the heroes of the Marvel Universe is fascinating.
Cloak or Dagger #1. Written by Justina Ireland with art by Lorenzo Tammetta. Cover art was done by Mike McKone & Rachelle Rosenberg. In the Age of Revelation, X Years Later… Tyrone and Tandy are married, but they can only exist on the same plane of existence at the same time very a very short time. They tag each other out like they are in a WWE tag team. Cloak & Dagger have been a favorite of mine for awhile now and I am glad they get a book in this new adventure.
Expatriate X-Men #1. Written by Eve L. Ewing and art by Francesco Mortarino. Cover art by Francesco Mortarino & Raul Angulo. Ms. Marvel is leading a group of X-Men featuring a bunch I am not as familiar with including Rift, Bronze and Melee… with a connection to Mystique.
Return to Sleepy Hollow #1. Written by Casey Gilly and art and cover art by Savanna Mayer. Ichabod Crane is back in Sleepy Hollow to investigate a new murder. This is apparently a follow up to the movie Sleepy Hollow.
Runaways #5. “Think of the Children” Part Five. Written by Rainbow Rowell and art by Elena Casagrande & Roberta Ingranata. Cover art is done by Stephanie Hans. The storyline with the Runaways and the Doombot’s identity crisis is wrapped up here. I really love these characters and hope they return again.
Stake Presents: Jessamy #1. Written by David A. Byrne and illustrated and cover art by Francesca Fantini (Silver Medalist). I had no idea what this book was about when I spotted it on the shelf. The cover was what attracted me to the book. It was not a book that I found that intriguing after reading it, but it is a beautiful looking book. More vampire stuff.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Annual 2025. Written by Kenny Porter and art by Michael Shelfer. Cover art by Mateus Santolouco. The annual that is like the end of the Jason Aaron run of TMNT, but without Jason Aaron. I found myself less than interested in this annual which may not be a good sign for this book moving forward with Jason Aaron gone.
Absolute Batman Annual 2025 #1. Written and art by Daniel Warren Johnson with cover art by Daniel Warren Johnson and Mike Spicer. However, this Absolute Batman annual really kicked some ass. Some of the best imagery from the series yet. This was excellent.
Rocketfellers #10. Written by Peter J. Tomasi and art and cover art by Francis Manapul. It is Halloween for the Rocketfellers and they allow the kids to go trick or treating before they attempt to get away. Aunt Raina finds them and chases them away.
Mortal Thor #3. “The Father of Lies.” Written by Al Ewing and art by Pasqual Ferry. Cover art by Alex Ross. The Serpents attack Sigmund at his construction site. Not a good idea for them. Sigmund is a real bad ass with that little hammer. It is a really violent book.
All-New Spider-Gwen: Ghost Spider #3. Written by Stephanie Phillips and art by Paolo Villanelli. Cover art by David Marquez & Federico Blee. Ghost Spider showed up to battle her old symbiote. Flash Thompson has returned as Agent Anti-Venom. I am very happy that Gwen’s symbiote and weird powers are gone and she is back to the regular Spider-Gwen.
The Beauty #1. Written by Jeremy Haun & Jason A. Hurley and art by Emanuela Lupacchino. Cover art by Jeremy Haun & Nick Filardi. New book from Ignition Comics. There is a new STD disease, but it is one that people want to be infected by because it turned the infected into their most beautiful selves. This was a great new series.
Moonshine Bigfoot #4. Written by Mike Marlow & Zach Howard and pencils by Steve Ellis. Cover art by Steve Ellis & Zach Howard. Moonshine Bigfoot’s first arc is all done with this. The book really does feel like a Dukes of Hazzard cross with the X-Files. I have enjoyed Moonshine Bigfoot.
Supernatural #1. Written by Greg Pak and art by Eder Messias. Clayton Crain did the cover art. I never watched this TV show, despite it having been on TV for like 125 years. I was curious about the book because Dynamite has done some really good stuff lately. I will say that I did like the book, but I was not blown away by it. I am not sure if I enjoyed it enough to add this to a pull list with my other massive list of books. Fans of the show should enjoy this.
Sam and Twitch: Case Files #19. Script by Thomas Healy and art by Von Randal. Cover art was done by Federico Sabbatini. There is a new arc for Sam and Twitch with a story in the past of Sam which is coming back around today. I liked this new issue quite a bit.
Death of the Silver Surfer #5. “Farewells” Written by Greg Pak and pencils by Sumit Kumar with Tiago Palma. Cover art was done by Frank D’Armata. Not sure how I felt about this. Is this a future event or is it in continuity? A new Silver Surfer is out there.
Voyeur #1-2. Written by Leah Williams and illustrated by David Baldeón. Covers were done by Joelle Jones. I saw issue to on the stand on Thursday. I was not sure when issue one came out, but I was able to pick it up too. I had the ashcan of the book and I was wanting to pick it up. Love this issue. The first two issues show the same events in different POV (which always reminds me of LOST). Good stuff so far.
Blue Palo Verde #5. Written by Ray Fawkes and art by Rimanti. I have to say, I loved this book at the beginning, but it feels like it fell off hard. I was not as interested in the conclusion as it went way weirder than I expected.
Star Wars: Han Solo- Hunt for the Falcon #2. Written by Rodney Barnes and art by Ramon Rosanas. Ramon Rosanas and GURU-eFX did the cover art. Han and Chewy continue to try and find the missing Millennium Falcon.
Other books this week: Rivals: King in Black #1, Emma Frost: White Queen #5, Nights #16, Toxie Team-Up #5, and the Treat or Read Comics (X-Men ’97 #1, Godzilla vs. Fantastic Four #1, Venom: Lethal Protector, and Hallowed Hauntings #1).
Quick Hits: I picked up the Universal Monsters: Dracula Black & White Special. I have the issues from Image, but this looked so beautiful that I needed to pick it up. The Phantom #2 came out this week with a fun adventure that felt very much like a Phantom book. Battleworld #2 brought a bunch of heroes from across the time frame. Keensport’s book Don’t Run With Scissors #4 concluded with one of the oddest ending possible. Sonja Reborn #3 and Conan: Scourge of the Serpent #2 both have classic characters thrown into different situations. Another book with the question about where the continuity falls is Imperial #4, which ends that little series. I don’t know if it is the actually happening. I know that other Marvel books seem to have ties to it even though I don’t know how Hulk could be involved if this is current continuity. It hurts my head when I think about it. Thanks a lot Hickman. Then, Blink and You’ll Miss It #3 is fairly confusing too.
EYG- Embrace Your Geekness 