This week has been interesting with the U.S. Election. Sadly I seem to be seeing parallels in the comics that came out to what the countries future might be. Maybe I shouldn’t have started by reading Survival Street first. A comic with a world in which corporations run the government and in this issue a small enclave tries to hide out by ignoring the problems around them until they no longer can, that kicked off my short stack for this week!
I don’t want to get into details dealing with the election or the results (this isn’t that kind of blog) but lets just say I’m concerned that we will end up in a world that makes most dystopian novels seem like fairy tales. I hope I’m wrong, but…
This Week’s Comics:
I Hate Fairyland #17 – Gert has tried to be a hero, but her past comes to take care of that fantasy!
Action Comics #1074 – Superman in on Krypton via the Phantom Zone and tries to get help from his parents without messing up the past and his future! It’s always interesting to see how different creative teams show Krypton and Joe-El and Lara. This time Jor-El has a beard and Lara is blonde.
Batman #154 – Batman is on the case, trying to figure out who killed the mayor! After everything that has happened he’s not well-loved (neither is Bruce Wayne). Then there’s this question about his possible brother?
JSA #1 – So with everything that happened in Absolute Power and All-In we have the latest version of the Justice Society of America. Which seems to be a mix of all the previous versions (except the one with Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman in it). The elder statesmen have gone missing- Flash, Green Lantern, Wildcat, Dr. Fate, Hackman and Hawkgirl. and those left are trying to find them. Jakeem Thunder (the modern version of Johnny Thunder) has been critically injured. We get some drama between the various characters and learn who is behind all of this mayhem.
Absolute Superman # 1 – We’ve seen a different take on Batman, and Wonder Woman in this universe controlled by Darkseid. Now we bring in Superman. The big changes seem to be that Superman didn’t leave the planet until he was a little older. That and instead of his parents being scientist, they are now lowly workers, punished for going against the Science League. We flash forward to Superman saving some mineworkers in Brazil who are being forced to work in dangerous conditions by the Lazarus Corporation. Superman saves them and then gets into a fight with the “Peacemakers.”
The Ultimates # 6 – The new version of the Ultimates take on The Hulk and his irradiated group of baddies. Things don’t go as planned…
Public Domain #10 – The story behind The Domain. San Diego Comic Expo is over and we head back to find out a bit about relationships from the past. This is an interesting take on the comic industry while also having at the superhero comic these characters are making being published alongside.
Nemesis Rogues’ Gallery #4 – So who is trying to take on Nemesis and Rookie? We learn the backstory behind the group who are pretty angry at our antihero.
Survival Street The Radical Left #2 – As I said in the lead up, this comic came out at an interesting time. I’ll let this page speak for itself.
Oh, the issue? Should this enclave help out a couple of librarians who are being pursued by bounty hunters for distributing banned literature… it seems their bookmobile had a book on climate change in it. Welcome to the future.
“War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is Strength” – Orwell
This week was Halloween, a time that most school’s don’t look forward to at all. On November first kids show up in a variety of states: exhausted, on a candy buzz or a combination of the two. Kids bring candy to school thinking they are so smart at hiding it, what they don’t understand is most teachers don’t care. Many have packed their own lunch – which consists of a bag of candy. It’s all part of growing up. Thinking you are “Sticking it to the man” or whatever.
Sue and I are hot and cold when it comes to All Hallow’s Eve. Having taught in the same neighborhood as many of my students I’ve given out worksheets to some kids. Other years we’ve just closed up the house. Unlike my brothers, I’m not into decorating. Again it runs hot no and cold, but never something that elaborate. On Halloween this year it rained a bit. The number of kids have steadily declined throughout the neighborhood and most seem to be imported from other neighborhoods. I don’t know why, because our neighborhood isn’t a large candy bar Mecca or anything.
I guess what I found interesting was the lack of imagination when it came to costumes, and how some kids felt entitled. Most of the time the kids will go through the moves “Trick or Treat!” Listen to an adult say something nice about their costume, then “Thank You!” As they run off to the next house. This year, I actually had a kid throw the candy back in the bowl! She said “I don’t like jelly beans” and then her brother, who I think was almost as shocked as I was sheepishly returned his to the bowl. I dug around and found the last M&M small size bags in the bowl and stood there dumbfounded. When they left I decided to do one of two things- first was just lock the door and turn off the lights. The other option was to go downstairs and pull out the LEGO poly bag tub and start handing that out. I chose the latter and confused some kids, but made some very happy. Next year? Who knows? After Tuesday who knows what the world will even look like?
Enough. After last week’s double batch I’m back to just what was on my subsheet or titles they know I want.
This Week’s Comics:
Night Club 2 #3 – In the first series a few non-popular kids end up becoming vampires and then superheroes. In series two adolescence kicks in and frankly as many geeks/nerds will say- they are easily manipulated. so in our last issue one of the group decided to turn his “girl friend into a vampire… ah young love. this issue we get to deal with the ramifications of this decision. Those being she really wasn’t his girl friend and just a popular kid who wanted whatever he had… once turned- she turns all of her friends (aka the popular kids/bullies) in the school the results aren’t pretty.
Captain America #14 – Cap is back! fighting Nazi’s and fascists just before the election! Oh wait, no he isn’t. He’s now helping Thor out with a mystical issue from a while ago when Asgard relocated to Earth and then weird things happened. Spider-Man has been brought in since Steve and Peter were about to have dinner and chat about their lives as superheroes- See Spectacular Spider-Men for a similar encounter but with Miles instead of Steve. Coming up next: Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Therapist.
Amazing Spider-Man #60 – It’s the 60th issue of Amazing Spider-Man! wow! its like 1965 or something… Actually according to Legacy Numbering it is actually Issue #954. This is a series of short stories some intertwine and give us some foreshadowing as to what might be coming up in the future.
Trick or Read Fantastic Four #1 – Free Comic Book Day happens in May, over Halloween comic companies have a second free comic opportunity. This one I picked up because after NYCC and seeing Doctor Doom riding an armor plated T-Rex. So, Doom and the FF meet with Dino Doom and the Dino FF and try to save each of their respective universes.
Quested Season Two #5 – The story of Lothar (Jinx’s Father)
Ultimate X-Men #8 – This is really starting to make me think I need to read it as a compiled series and not individual issues. We’ve got more and more characters being introduced and people trying to find out about the multiple suicides,a nd the “Children of the Atom” cult. I appreciate the art style and really need to sit back and carefully read each issue.
Action Comics #1073 – Still in the Phantom Zone. We now meet Aether the big bad of the moment. Will Superman and Mon-El be able to stop him? Will Superman escape the fate he has been tossed into?
The Magic Order # 2 – So Cordelia Moonstone isn’t Codelia Moonstone , head of the Magic Order, and protector of the Earth from evil magical thingies? Can she escape this weird universe she’s been put into? Who did it? Why? answers are forthcoming as is retribution for putting her through this.
Minor Arcana #2 – When we last left Theresa she was trying to help her mom out and had just started doing a Tarot card reading for one of her mom’s clients… Theresa thinks this is all just bunk, but find out… maybe it isn’t. Can she figure things out enough to be able to return to her world? How will this experience change her?
Oh, I haven’t had time to catch up on the stuff I planned to do because it seems my idea of part time work is not exactly what the real definition is. I kind of miss being fully retired, not working and having time to fiddle with various projects… I guess I got spoiled. At least today I got a text asking me if I really wanted to work- I said “Thanks! No” so I could spend some time at home and even get this post out.
Please make sure to vote on or before Tuesday. It’s important. Maybe we can return to some semblance of sanity… I doubt it, but I can dare to dream.
I’ve already done the pre-Convention post, and the post CXC post so I really don’t have much to say. I am working on Promptober, and only time will tell if I can keep it up. Added to this is my goal of a daily comic journal along with other stuff.
Tuesday was a massive release day for LEGO stores. I had the chance to finish one of the Fortnite sets- Peely Bones. Basically a cut away of a banana character. I’m old and don’t play Fortnite so I have no clue what the big deal is. The minute I saw him the only thing that came to mind was the 1930’s song “I like bananas because they have no bones” since this guy has a skeleton and intestines. Working at the LEGO Store you do get a chance to build sets , most times you don’t get to build the entire thing, but that’s OK. The hardest part I’ve found is when there are extra pieces left over from another builder and you try to figure out if anything was assembled incorrectly.
This Weeks Comics:
Nemesis Rogues Gallery #3- In this issue Nemesis and The Rookie show us a little bit about what goes into planning a heist. Currently they are doing a pretty good Bruce Wayne & Dick Grayson imitation while building up a nest egg for a future master plan. What happens when the next step hits an unexpected snag? Things get interesting when the hunter becomes the hunted.
Justice Society of America #12- A wonderful recap of Stargirl’s adventures solo & with the JSA as we celebrate her 25th anniversary in comics, and to think it only took her 25 years to graduate from Blue Valley High School. Less adventuring and more homework might have helped her pass classes, yet she still ended up valedictorian which says something for the state of the Blue Valley Public Schools. 🙄
Batman #153- Things are calm in Gotham as we start this new arc. Fine, the mayor is in cahoots with the Court of Owls, the Riddler is now running a very successful tech company, Vandal Savage is Commissioner of Police, and Bruce Wayne is back in charge of Wayne Enterprises which seems to have redoubled its efforts to help Gotham, even though some people don’t want the help. What about this new “Hero” who wraps himself in the flag and shoots bad guys?
Creature Commandos #1- I got a ticket to see the Creature Commandos panel at New York Comic Con so I decided to pick this one up and do some research. Frankenstein’s monster, a vampire, a werewolf, a medusa and a mad scientist all walk into a secret government facility being run by a not so nice Army general… I figure the punchline will happen soon.
DC All In Special #1- I’m guessing this is the end of Absolute Power and the starting off place for DC’s new Absolute titles. It seems the Justice League has decided to let every super hero join up- maybe in hopes of retaining their trademark on the word “Super Hero.” Darkseid is involved. The comic actually has two stories one from the POV of the heroes the other from the POV of Darkseid both ending in the middle of the comic with Booster Gold in this new alternate universe facing a Darkseid themed team of superheroes.
I Hate Fairyland #16- Has Skottie Young finally gotten to the point of wanting to stop I Hate Fairyland? The arc is called “Happy End Game” so who knows? We begin with a wonderfully confused Gert trying to figure out why people’s faces look so weird as she enters the city… “That’s called smiling, Gert.” Of course things happen once it dawns on her that she is being treated like a hero and it isn’t that bad of a feeling – she actually like it. I did find it interesting the way she defeated the villain… it seemed appropriate in this day and age.
DC’s I Know What You Did Last Crisis #1- This anthology book deals with untold stories of heroes during the various ultimate crisis to end all multiverse crises crossover event to help increase sales over the summer – Heroes will die! The world as you know it will never be the same! Kind of events. DC’s It really worked in the 80’s to clean up all the stuff from the Silver Age, so let’s just hit the reset button every few years now with another event. If you don’t know about all the various events being covered it might be confusing. It was for me, and I know most of them. That said these short stories were for the most part good. For me the first one with Batgirl was probably the best. Your mileage may differ.
This week was pretty heavy with some new ones, and others I had missed from previous weeks. I’ll do a big write up on Cartoon Crossroads Columbus (CXC) next week. So this post is pure comic stuff. Some of the comments are short, sorry, about that. Some stories are harder to review without giving away too much. Other stories just don’t have as many details in them. Good guy, punches, bad guy who then punches good guy back. Ultimate bad guy get’s nervous…
I Am Stephen Hawking – Ordinary People Change the World – If you have never picked up any of these books by Brad Meltzer & Chris Eliopoulos you are missing some of the best all ages biographies ever done in a graphic novel format. It’s gotten so big that PBS has the Xavier Riddle cartoon by the same team, in the same style. Basically take a famous person, pick a trait that people should embrace and use their life to exemplify that trait. In Hawkings case it’s “Defy Boundaries.” Yes, there are some of the more adult themed arts of his (and every person’s) life that get edited. but the idea is everyone can and should do things to make the world better.
Survival Street: The Radical Left #1 – Now for something completely different. I remember picking up the first comic in the Survival Street series and all I can recall was it was something like the Sesame Street Muppets in a post apocalyptic universe… That was a while ago. This comic continues the series and obviously I have forgotten a bunch. In this case we are dealing with a dystopian America run by the corporations and if you aren’t part of the ruling elite your life and that of your family isn’t great. This issue we follow our Happy and friendly PBS based characters as they go to rescue people from a corporate work camp. unfortunately after taking them to a city that can offer them a life, it isn’t great since they are refugees. Some actually want to return back to the work camp since it was simpler… Sadly, I see this as one of the possible futures awaiting America.
The Writer #3 – Still on the road to Solomon… as everyone figures out their powers Izzy get her sword (from Grandma) as they confront more demons and finally face Solomon himself!
Star Trek Defiant #19 – As the Defiant races to save their crew from the Romulans with the help of Chief O’Brien, there are other issues going on including the realization of the fate of the Romulan homeworld as seen in the Kelvin Universe and Picard.
Night Club 2 #2 – High school aged vampire superheroes… what kind of teenage drama could occur when love is involved?
Star Trek # 24 – Can the Theseus escape Pleroma after Lore has done what Lore likes to do? How will they save everyone on the ship and at what cost?
Minor Arcana # 1 – Jeff Lemire who has written some amazing stories many of whom deal with human drama no matter what the genre. This time he takes us home to Limberlost and the story of Theresa who is back to help her mother who is in failing health. Mom is the town psychic & fortuneteller and Theresa will have nothing to do with it… or will she?
Detective Comics # 1089 – I was sad when I looked at this issue and quoted a bowl of petunias “Oh no, not again.” This is fortunately the last story in arc in which Batman and his allies go up against the evil that has taken over Gotham City. I don’t know what else to say, but it has been a long road and I’m hoping things change next issue. Like Captain America venturing into the world of the occult, I’m not sure I’m into Batman taking this deep a dive into that pool either.
Magic Order 5 # 1 – The previous 4 series of “The Magic Order” have been amazing and as this one starts out I’m just trying to figure it out. Which is kind of what happened in the previous four iterations. Kids go missing, Cordelia Moonstone and members of the magic order get called in to help… then, well things get weird.
Lawful # 4 – In a land where if you break the law you get turned into a monster it’s pretty good reason to follow the rules you’d think. Like most perfect solutions there’s a catch, if you are in a position of power there’s a way to get those horns, claws and scales removed, magically.
Helen of Wyndhorn # 5 – It looks (sadly, like this may be the penultimate issue of this series, and that makes me sad. I really have liked it, and the actual story from our time period has me guessing as to how it will tie back, since it basically just follows what happens to most collectors as they get older. Their parents sell off their collection for pennies, not knowing what it may actually contain. As for Helen, she is still trying to figure out life without adventures, which is not fun. Her governess does finally intercede, and we wait to see what happens next.
Ultimate Spider-Man # 9 – Looks like Uncle Ben and J. Jonah Jameson have gotten their news site working well. “The Paper is a success and now (with a few more Spider-Man stories) can start covering other stories that are more important to the city. While Harry and Peter try to figure out how to circumvent and Stark/Stane interference with their tech only to discover that the King Pin has put a price on their heads. Has Harry gone too far in stopping one attempt… did he not read the “Great Power, Great Responsibility… oh, and don’t kill people” memo?
Amazing Spider-Man # 58 – Tombstone goes on the rampage and is going to kill his own daughter for betraying him… Can Spider-Man stop him in time and save her? And you thought there would be no ramifications from “Gang War.” I had a nice chat with the owner of my LCS on JR Jr.’s layouts and fart. While I’m not exactly a fan of his more rough and tumble style used in Spider-Man, I do have admit, this issue a great way to show people how it is done, no matter if you like the exact style, it is a beautiful thing.
The Flash #13 – Finally we are done with some of this weird stuff and now we just need to wait for the fall out. “It’s a boy? It’s a girl? It’s a non-binary universe?” I’m guessing this will tie into the “Absolute” titles like Flashpoint cause havoc in the DC Universe before that.
Action Comics #1069 – Superman faces his final opponent in this flashback story. Can he survive? Hint: He’s Superman.
Titans # 15 – So Raven’s dark side has joined with Trigon to take over the world… or has she?
It’s election time again and time to take a serious moment away from arguing over who will bring about the fall of America as we know it, because they announced today the nominees not for some silly political thingie like President- The Strong Museum of Play announced who is up for inclusion in the Toy Hall of Fame. The 12 finalists were announced and after a vote by the general public three will make it. Here’s the official announcement: https://www.museumofplay.org/exhibits/toy-hall-of-fame/2024-finalists/
For those who don’t like clicking on links, the 2024 finalists:
Apples to Apples
Balloons
Choose Your Own Adventure Gamebooks
Hess Toy Trucks
My Little Pony
Phase 10
Pokémon
R/C Cars
Sequence
Hobbyhorse
Trampoline
Transformers
Cecil and I visiting the National Toy Hall of Fame last year… I’m looking forward to returning again this year.
While some Toys seem like they should already be included, and others make you scratch your head (Is that really a toy?). This is serious business. So who will join last year’s inductees: Baseball Cards, Cabbage Patch Kids, the Fisher-Price Corn Popper and Nerf Toys? Some other notable inductees include: sand (2021), the ball (2009), the cardboard box (2005), Silly Putty (2001), LEGO Bricks (1998), and the stick (2008)? Yes, there are 84 toys currently in the Hall of Fame since it started in 1998. There is a long process that leads to the actual vote which goes on until September 25th. So Vote Now! You can vote once per day unlike the presidential election (no matter what one party continues to claim). Fortunately there will be no debates, rallies, or tweets filled with propaganda trying to sway your vote. The conservative and liberal media seem not to care. The current candidates have not weighed in, and probably won’t. Hopefully things will be better than in 2013 when there were all those scandalous posts about the rubber duck and its relationship with a certain muppet. 🙄 Like I said, some people take this seriously.
Please note that these reviews tend to be after a quick cursory reading of the comic and while some people think “Comics aren’t real reading” it does take more than just reading the words to get all the subtlities infused in the words and pictures (It’s called “multimodal literacy” in the Ed Biz). So I apologize ahead of time for things I might glance over. I do go back and reread most of the comics I get each week, multiple times, unless I get busy petting cats. As you can tell, while I might enjoy a character, there are times in which I can tell (after decades of practice) that for me, the story isn’t worth more than a quick once over – usually these are tie-in issues in which I really don’t care about the massive universe ending tale they are connected to.
Superman #18 ( Absolute Power Tie-In) 🙄 – Blah, blah blah, Amanda Waller is bad, heroes need to stop her… Universes will change, heroes will make sacrifices, read it or you’ll be left out.
Whatever.
In this case Superman and Zatana are in a very warm place Dante wrote about and in order to get the map to find their way through they need to make a deal with the DC version of the devil – Who usually shows up in these “multiverse changing” events. Superman makes the ultimate sacrifice (you’ll need to read it to find out). Now it’s time to pick up the next issue of a comic you usually never read or the next key issue of Absolute Power to find out what happens next. Let me know once you find out.
Spider-Boy Annual #1 (The Infinity Watch Tie-In?) 🙄- I really have no idea where this annual fits in the grand scheme of things. Spider-Boy is on the boardwalk enjoying some time off when he decides to stop a thief who happens to have a dog’s face. Could he be another escapee from Madame Monstrosity? Hijinks ensue. Maybe not hijinks, but a fight and a team up with guys who currently have control over individual Infinity Stones- you know those things Thanos wanted in the Avengers movies. “snap!” By the end Bailey is back to enjoying his time and there is some sort of cliffhanger dealing with the Infinity Stone people if I was following the saga of The Infinity Watch, I might know more. Hmm… The Infinity Watch… I wonder what apps it comes with? Is it compatible with my iPhone? Does it keep track of the exercise and sleep patterns?
Ultimate X-Men # 7 – I’m not really seeing any kind of arc as I read this. Not saying it’s bad, just in western comics it’s gotten to the point where after 6 issues you are used to some conclusion. Here we are still building things up. Making me want to find all the previous issues and go back and reread them so that maybe I can understand what is going on. I’ve got a month before the next issue comes out.
Huge Detective #2 – Giants and “dolls” aka humans inhabit the Earth, this crime drama we’re still trying to figure out the rules of the world and how everything works. What I know so far, there is a giant who serves as a detective along with his human partner. They are working on a case dealing with missing people and murder. In this issue a giant skeleton pops out of the moon and heads to Earth. Why? I guess we’ll find out next issue. With many comics I’m starting to think I’m getting too old to figure these things out… Now get off my lawn!
Flash Gordon #2 – I tend to say I started reading comics with Flash Gordon… When I would ride my bike during the age of “Be home before dark” I would stop at the drug store, which was more than a drug store, it also had books. One of them was Flash Gordon Volume 1. I was in second grade and I coveted that book. At some point I got it, my older brother got Volume 2. I read it over and over again. When other volumes of Alex Raymond’s original Sunday strips came out I bought those, unfortunately over a few moves I don’t have them anymore… I have replaced them, but different publisher, so all the nostalgia has leaked out of them. I’m currently reading Dan Schkade’s take on Flash Gordon by King Features which I have thoroughly enjoyed and look forward to every morning. (I really recommend it and wish I could find him at a Con. While it is not Alex Raymond’s style, it is awesome.
Now Mad Cave Comics has relaunched their take on Flash. I picked up the Free Comic Book Day teaser, but unfortunately missed issue 1 which I will ask about the next time I’m at Comic Carnival. It looks like after whatever happened in Issue 1, Flash is now on a prison planet with Ming the Merciless (who is also a prisoner). He is trying to get away and Ming offers to “help.” (Ming is never to be trusted… he earned the title “The Merciless” for a reason and it had nothing to do with his puppy dog soufflé.
There was some initial commentary about how Ming and the inhabitants of Mongo had been drawn in the Mad Cave FCBD teaser. It is definitely a more alien style, but that is up to the artist and by deviating from Raymond’s style defines these stories, (like Schkade’s) not as attempts to reproduce Raymond’s amazing artwork, but to honor the characters and the story of Flash Gordon. Basically, get over it.
Flash Gordon Quarterly #1 – These seem to be a conglomeration of stories either from the Flash Gordon Universe or a “Elseworlds” “What if” take on the characters by various writers and artists. The main story is about Vultan (King of the Hawkmen) and his son, a coming of age kind of story in which Vultan’s son tries to prove he’s not a little boy anymore in the face saving his father from the enemy.
The second story is a western… with Flash Gordon as the sheriff of a small derelict town going against the gang of bad guys led by Ming. Flash is, of course, saving the town and Dale from the evil clutches of the villain.
The final story is the 1930’s gumshoe detective tale. Flash is the Sam Spade like detective, the damsel in distress is Aura, Zarkov is Flash’s partner who makes gadgets for him. Dale is Flash’s informant in the Police Department. So who is after Aura, and in the process trying to kill Flash? I’ve read too much Dashiell Hammett not to be intrigued. I looks like these will be coming out quarterly so I’ve got some time to reread and figure out what clues might be hidden in the panels.
This week’s commentary isn’t much. We had Star Trek Day on Sunday- which since little is really far enough along to have something to share they didn’t need to make it an extravaganza as they had in the past. Just posting a curated list of episodes on Paramount+.
We’ve had a presidential debate in which one side is claiming victory and the other side seems to be whining about how it was unfair. I watched it. ’nuff said. It’s hard to say that the moderators were biased when all they did was say things like “no dogs were harmed in the making of this debate” and “No state allows babies to be killed after birth.” Things you wouldn’t think needed fact checking, but in a world of “alternate facts” I guess anything is possible.
Oh, the winner in the race for the most alternate facts- was the person who helped to make role of fact checking into a serious career. Which may be why the moderators had to keep commenting after he said something, and he kept needing to ask for time to comment. I guess I just wish both candidates had time to actually discuss (like sane people) their policies and how they are different, not just soundbites, and spin. Although one candidate did seem to be doing a better job of that, than the other. Just remember the cats and dogs being eaten in Ohio, someone should really do something about that, I see a cookbook coming out soon- maybe a reality cooking show- Netflix- get on that it’s a guaranteed hit.
Today we also have the anniversary of the terrorist attack that really changed the world… and not in a good way. I just remember trying to keep people up to date with the news while they were teaching, I’d send updates via email to the staff. We couldn’t say anything about it in front of the kids, but the adults needed to know.
This Week’s Comics (oh and due to shipping issues, some of these might actually be from last week):
Justice Society of America #11 (Tony Harris Variant Cover) – Helena Wayne from Earth 2 has been through a lot. Parents dead, world destroyed… typical bad day for a superhero. Now we’ve got the Legion of Superheroes visiting from the 30th century to stop Modru from not turning evil and therefore ruining the timeline. Then there’s a secret bad guy and a guest appearance by the Legion of Substitute Heroes… confused? It might all end up well in the end…
Batman #152 (Absolute Power Tie In) – So being an absolute Power Tie in, it really has nothing to do with Batman. The story does have Batman and Catwoman off planet to get Amanda Waller’s Mother Box (It’s a Jack Kirby MacGuffin from his New Gods series). There’s a fight, Batman does what Batman does. I’m torn, because I liked the way the last arc finished, and how more empathetic Batman had become, and now we are in the middle of a multi universe altering meg event, so I’m still trying to figure out if I want to continue reading Batman.
Captain America #13 – Final battle Cap vs. Death. Death who just wants to destroy the world because he is sick and tired of escorting the dead especially since mankind has become really good at killing massive numbers of people without remorse. It looks like he’s got a plan and it may work, but will he survive and be able to celebrate with a show at the Front Door?
Batman & Robin #13 – Will Damian and Batman survive their little junket to Dinosaur Island? When last we left our caped heroes they had been fighting Bane and his daughter along with Kobra who’d developed an even better venom. It’s amusing that the interludes are Damian at school going over things with his Guidance Counsellor.
Amazing Spider-Man #57 – Tombstone in Jail?!? What are the consequences for putting him there? What about last issue’s foreshadowing and the lion cub? Can Spider-Man save everyone who needs saving and bring down the bad guy? Who is the bad guy?
Primer: Clashing Colors #3 – The final issue in the first arc after her origin. Ashley has been betrayed and now must fight Deathstroke to save the Teen Titans from certain death by slumber!
Public Domain #8 – The behind the scenes story of a comic creator who ends up getting the rights to his character and now wants to publish an updated version. Will they have an ashcan done in time for San Diego? Torn from the pages of reality when Marvel Comics stopped publishing the Fantastic Four and mutants stopped existing and became inhumans in the Cinematic Universe.
The Domain #3 – See Above for the backstory, this is issue number three of the comic that is being produced in Public Domain. Three friends find a crashed spaceship take the power bands and are trying to figure them out as the only alien who was saved rolls his eyes at how stupid they are, and the crew of the ship that shot down the ship with the power bands goes after them. Just remember the aliens won’t kill you… no really they won’t.
Prodigy Slaves of Mars #2 – Edison has been framed, he’s escaped to his brother’s place, because we need two super geniuses to take care of this mess. Only to discover the secret stuff their father had been doing- now the title is starting to make sense.
The times they are a-changin’ After a little of over a year of Whimventuring and embracing retirement, I’ve decided to go back to work😱. Now, understand, this has nothing to do with being bored (I’m not), it has nothing to do with wanting to return to education (I’m not that crazy… no, really I’m not). It has nothing to do with much of anything except that with the way the future looks… November will tell a lot about if it will be Star Trek or the Hunger Games. I decided that if I still wanted to go galavanting around, and not dip into my retirement savings, I might want to supplement my pension. This is not starting a second career… I know some people think that’s what they need to do (and maybe they do) but I’m happy just work part time without too much stress. We are not starving, we are not about to lose the house, we are not about to become financially destitute. I just want to be able to still go to conventions and buy stuff that strikes my fancy and not be worried about buyer’s remorse. You know, after you buy something frivolous and realize just how frivolous it was and go “Oh no, I probably shouldn’t have done that.” We have a basement that has some frivolous stuff in it, hence why it is in the basement.
I’ve held back on getting some things, because I don’t want to experience the “Doh!” feeling that comes with buyer’s remorse, and now I decided I want some “Egg Money.” For those who don’t understand the term. Back in the old days, when women weren’t allowed to have bank accounts, or own property – a time that some people actually want to return to… 🙄 Some women would keep chickens in their backyards and sell the eggs. This money was theirs and they could buy whatever they wanted without asking their husband’s permission. It could be something for the kids, it could be a nice pair of shoes, basically whatever.
I’m fortunate that Sue is still working, and we use that and my pension to deal with household expenses and most Whimventures®. Sue and I, over the years, have turned a blind eye to each other’s hobby spending. We both don’t go too overboard- if anyone does, it’s me. So I just want to be able to be silly and buy stuff – go overboard if I want. It’s me, not her, I don’t think Sue really cares as long as the electricity works and the cats don’t eat her.
So this week I started my “onboarding” at a retail store associated with a maker of a highly sophisticated interlocking brick system. Yes, I have worked there before, but I took my onboarding seriously, things had changed and my last time time “training” was minimal at best. Unlike being a public school teacher where I was legally required to go through hours of annual online training on my own time, here I clocked in, and watched the videos, answered questions, and played the related games to prove I learned stuff. The insane part- I was paid to do it. Yes, the administration at school says they give you time, but really they give you time, and then a hundred other “really important” tasks to do during the same time while dealing with kids, and parents, so the only time you have is at home. If they wanted you to do this during your school hours, the videos would only be available at school and you would have time set aside instead of having to go to meetings that could be done as emails, or analyzing data that really isn’t telling you anything you couldn’t observe. So this small company from Denmark has it set up where I really don’t have access to anything, except at work. The other thing I asked about was (now that I have a company email if I could access it from my phone- nope internal only and not outside of work hours. So when I’m not “at work” I don’t worry about it. OK, I did go home and watch some related videos- but Dreamzzz on YouTube, was my choice and it was rather entertaining… of course now I want to buy some LEGO sets.
Oh, and this doesn’t put an end to Whimventuring® Sue and I are still going off to strange and interesting places. A few different things on the horizon including a junket or two. More on that later…
This Week’s Comics
Due to Labor Day there was an issue with shipping so DC comics was late, and then it was taken to another location, so DC will arrive next week. This week had a some nice books and other ones.
Star Trek 500 – A nice anthology comic covering multiple series and time periods from the franchise. If you like Star Trek- there is something here for everyone including following the emotion journey of love and loss taken by a tribble.
Helen of Wyndthorn #4 – After another amazing adventure with her grandfather Helen wants to learn how to use weapons to “defend herself.” So her grandfather gives her one year to train. Afterwards, Helen goes off on more adventures only to end up… The current day story just follows the progression of the original tapes of the interviews and how they keep changing hands, now being sold off at a small comic con.
Miles Morales: Spider-Man #24 – Miles is a vampire – because they needed to have something important happen during the “Massive Multi-verse Changing” even known as… what was it called again? Blood Hunt? Actually this is one of those issues that deals with character building and has to do with Miles girl friend “Starling” and her relationship with her grandfather. It doesn’t go well since Miles is a vampire and is getting really hungry and gets into a fight with her grandfather (who was actually going out to take care of the problem of Miles). Oh, and vultures are not birds of prey, they are actually classified as scavengers and carrion-eating raptors. I guess if Miles is a vampire and therefore classified as “undead” then he should be concerned about carrion-eating raptors.
Spectacular Spider-Men #7 – Guess what? AI is evil and will lead to bad things… The computer system set up by the bad guys: Mentallo & Arcade (paid for by Hammerhead) to give people their fantasies is now sentient. and after reading peoples minds Which opened up some weird sub-conscious wish fulfillment before deciding that villainy is the way to go and it will wipe out anything that gets in its way- even if that includes a silent “K” just so it can have a cool acronym based name.
Spider-Boy #11 – FINALLY!!! The world remembers Bailey (Spider-Boy, not my cat who still lives in obscurity). This includes his mom. Who has decided that she has neglected her parental role for too long and does this mean “Spider-Boy No More”?!? I’m actually concerned about Boy-Spider, but I’m sure that will come up sometime soon.
Ultimates #4 – In this universe lots of weird things have happened keeping the Marvel Universe from becoming the Marvel Universe that we know and love. All thanks to the “Maker” the twisted version of Reed Richards from the original Ultimate universe. So what happened to this world’s Reed Richards? What about Doctor Doom? Find out in this issue which has been uniquely put together with four different timelines overlapping in some places. A trip to read initially, but then again the Fantastic Four has always down things differently.
Shake of the Day:
You wonder why I am tired of “Epic Multiverse Changing Events” that after a short time just bring things back to the status quo? Here’s one from a decade ago by DC. Does anyone remember the jaw dropping ramifications of this event? Does anyone even care? DC/Warner Bros. was just happy to have gotten a little more of my money so I could keep up with everything that changed comics as we know it FOREVER!
I saw a recent comic dealing with the basic differences between Star Trek and Star Wars that I found amusing and enlightening…
I come from a weird time. I grew up with Star Trek in reruns, and was 11 when Star Wars came out in the theaters. As an adult I definitely see differences and understand that Star Trek is Science/Speculative Fiction and Star Wars is Fantasy with Science Fiction aspects (planets, spaceships, & rayguns). As pop culture has taken over society and it seems like for the most part, the fans are different.
I’ve joked that real Star Wars Fans really don’t like Star Wars, and that’s what makes you a true Star Wars fan. There is a lot of discussion online about how bad whatever the latest thing is. Then we get into things like the original releases vs. Special Editions vs. Prequels vs…. Did Han shoot first? Disney is ruining the Brand. George Lucas is ruining my childhood. This director or that director is ruining… Don’t even get started with casting decisions! There’s a lot of bad talk happening in Star Wars fandom, and a lot of people being just mean (embracing the dark side). This is all coming from the people who LIKE Star Wars!
I enjoyed how Star Wars sparked a change in the world. Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica, Star Trek Movies… it made science fiction popular and main stream. I recall my brother and I running around whacking each other with broomstick light sabers, while my mother wondered what happened to the broom and mop. Star Wars got me into reading as a middle schooler. “Splinter of the Minds Eye” by Alan Dean Foster was one of the first books I recall reading on my own.
You see, I’ve always loved Science Fiction from Flash Gordon serials to the 1950’s flying saucer movies… but I recall as a kid growing up in the Bay Area my dad taking us to a Star Trek fan club meeting and falling asleep the the episode “Arena.” I had starship plans, I still have the Technical Manual that I carried around as an elementary school kid. I could name off the various ships in the Federation. I had similar stuff for Star Wars- sketchbooks, The Art of Books I never really got into the toys for Star Wars since I was just old enough to not be as into toys, my neighbor had them. for the record: I preferred the Y-Wing to the X-Wing for the record. My favorite ship is the Enterprise (“No bloody A, B, C, or D”).
As a fan base one thing Star Trek has is the concept of IDIC (Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations) which helps when others talk about “best” and “worst.” In Star Trek they kinda accept everyone’s right to like even what you personally don’t. Which leads me to Prodigy. Canceled by the powers that be after one season. Paramount was able to sell the rights to Netflix after a massive online campaign to save the show. Kinda an internet version of what happened to the Original Series back in the 60’s. They are now trying the same thing to save Star Trek’s other animated series “Lower Decks” which they announced the next season would be it’s last.
The show was pretty much finished when Paramount decided to cancel it and make the show disappear from their streaming service. Netflix, this week, released season 2 of Prodigy in a 20 episode (about 10 hour) bingeable dump. Prodigy was the Star Trek franchise’s idea for a “kid show” co-produced by Nickelodeon. There are a lot of things to unpack from this series. I don’t want to give away any spoilers for either seasons. So I’ll start with where in the timeline does this happen? This isn’t much of a spoiler and because the first season has little to do with the Federation so it’s hard to tell. We know this happens after Kathryn Janeway is made an admiral. So sometime after Voyager’s return and during the time of the films. The second season tells us this all happened before the first season of Picard. So as the Romulans are being relocated (think the point in which the “Kelvin” timeline starts).
Season 2 actually ends with the Utopia Planetia shipyards being destroyed which was a flashback in Picard season 1. The crew of the Protostar is a bunch of misfits trying to escape slavery on a at that point unknown planetoid. A mix of young aliens with no idea about Star Fleet or the Federation. So this is an introduction to the universe of Star Trek with the main characters being like the companion in Doctor Who, the audience’s surrogate. Pretty much every detail is covered for a newbie even that none of the characters speak the same language, so how do you communicate?
A few spoilers, but with a second season you know problems from the first season have been sort of solved. The first season <spoiler> gets the crew and lost starship Protostar to the Federation and deals with what happens then, bad things, bad bad things. While the second season deals with how our characters figure out how to live in the Federation preparing to join the Academy and attempt to rescue someone mentioned in the first season who was lost in time… then hijinks ensue.
There are lots of twists and turns through both seasons, but my favorite possible episode 13 from season 1 which dealt with the crew landing on a planet that the Enterprise interacted with during their five year mission and a “minor” violation of the Prime Directive that impacted the civilization for some amusing results.
I have enjoyed this series and frankly all the various series for their own merit. IDIC. Have I liked every episode? Nope. I joke about the first season of most Star Trek series aren’t great. The actors need time to figure out their characters. The writers need to figure out the world. Around season three they get it. Prodigy like Lower Decks, being animation allows some freedom that would be difficult or expensive in live action. Season 2 is worth a watch and actually does a nice job of taking care of some complaints people had about season 3 of Picard. Not all the plot holes are addressed, but at least one is tidied up. I just wish they had episodes of Will Wheaton’s The Ready Room for these, or even each season… that would be amazing.
As for the final decision when it comes to the battle between Star Wars and Star Trek… I like both, but if I have a choice – I’ll watch Star Trek. I have kept up with Star Wars, and enjoyed my visit to Galaxy’s Edge in Florida (I made a droid & a lightsaber). Yes, Star Wars has books and various TV shows, but the core is really the movies, where the core for Star Trek is the television shows. I’ve invested untold hours in the Star Trek Universe and have the scars to prove it. Now if they would only build a Star Trek Theme Park. 🖖
Now to this Week’s Comics:
Public Domain #6 – I thought I’d lost contact with this one… The first arc was dealing with a family and the rights to a character the father had created… Now we get to actually doing something with this character. OK actually this is al the “Real World” stuff and the comic with the superhero will be coming out soon.
Black Radiant #29 & 29.5 – In the last two issues we had come close to the end, each version of Black Radiant was tasked with a challenge that could save the world… SO what happened? Who Lives? Who Dies? Which person is actually the better Black Radiant? Read it and find out.
Justice Society of America #10 – One of first Legion of Super Heroes Comics had the Legion go up against Mordru an evil wizard. With Huntress (Lost in the multiverse Helena Wayne) building a Justice Society from reformed villains we have a young Mordru coming in trying to change his future, and learning that while the end may justify the means… it isn’t always that neat and clean.
Batman #150 – I know a secret! So what happens if you know who Batman is? What would you do? This is the story of a small time crook (former henchman) who know Batman’s secret identity and what he does with the information… It is a bit surprising but fits with the newish direction of Batman.
Then, of course, theirs a short tie-in story for the summer blockbuster Absolute Power…
Amazing Spider-Man Annual #1 – Another crossover taking control of a comic? Wha? Huh? This time it’s the “Infinity Watch” Which I guess, for an Annual issue isn’t too bad. Someone needs to study Temporal Mechanics 101.
Miles Morales: Spider-Man # 22 – Blood Hunt yipee! Yes, Vampires, yes, fights, yes, vampires. Sadly I see that there’s a DC vs. Vampires comic coming up, so more vampires! I really need to find other comics to read.
Rogue Sun #20 – Rogue Sun the immortal hero fighting to save the world again occult menaces, decides to start taking his role a bit more seriously as he plans to take out his big bad guy. At least he understands he has some work to do before hand. How does skipping school and heading off with a biker girl aid in his training?
Sons of Star Trek #4 – The end of the series, so no spoilers! Let’s just say I thought it was satisfying and still would like to know all the craziness that brought the universe together- Tuvix, Mariner, Morn… So many right turns in Albuquerque!
Rocketeer Jet Pack Adventures – I found this on the shelf of my LCS and picked it up… It is a book of short stories (so I won’t destroy my imagination by having to look at pictures… I can make the pictures in my mind). The book is actually 10 years old and I need to sit back and read it.
It seems that after the last Earth shattering finale for the merry Marvel mutants we are back with new team line ups and new titles. This teaser is to get me interested in all the titles and… it’s not doing anything for me.
I’m having enough trouble dealing with two Batman titles, two Superman titles, multiple Spider-Man titles (that at least have different Spider-Men in them), do I really need to be reading all these X-Men books? I watched X-Men ’97, but a dozen mutant books?!? Uncanny X-Men, X-Men, Exceptional X-Men, NYX, X-Force, X-Factor, Sentinels, Phoenix, Wolverine (also in Uncanny), Dazzler, Storm, Mystique, and let’s not forget the ad for Storm joining the Avengers!
Let’s not even get into the decades on continuity I need to wade through… If you love the X-Men (I do like the X-Men, but I really stopped reading them back when they had one title) this looks like it is a great time for you. New #1 issues, some new characters, and some cool stories. Enjoy! IDIC!
Not much going on this week… Mostly getting the house and the boys ready for our trip out west for MINI Takes The States. Yes, I’ve blogged about various MINI things it shouldn’t be a surprise to you. I’ll be taking a hiatus for the blog while on MTTS since I will be without a computer and my phone isn’t as reliable as I would like for blogging. If you want to keep up follow Cecil’s Adventures on Facebook and Instagram. I’ll post recap once I’m back.
With my older brother’s birthday I’m feeling a little bit older too. Fortunately he’s still older than me and for a few months TWO years older! I’m realizing that I need to focus bit more on all the stuff I have in the house that serves no purpose. So upon my return from MTTS I hope to redouble my efforts in going through things I haven’t touched in over a year. Is this stuff bringing me joy, or making me a bit overwhelmed? With Gen Con and New York Comic Con coming up, I need to do some serious thinking. My current plan is to just enjoy both Cons, but not really buy that much at either. We”ll see how that works.
This Week’s Comics:
Action Comics #1066 – The Battle of Hastings? (Sorry inside joke) The Fight with Brainiac is coming to a head with Brainiacs Queen online can Superman and his allies possibly defeat Brainiac? Who will make a sacrifice to help change the tide of the battle? The second story goes through Lex and Lena Luthor’s father/daughter issues.
Star Trek Defiant #16 – Can the crew of the Defiant survive against the evil hive mind that has taken over Starbase 99 and hopes to take over the universe? Again with the ultimate sacrifices… and then a bit of a twist once you think everything is over “and they all lived happily ever after.”
No/One #9 – In the penultimate issue- Pittsburgh holds a referendum and decides that you have the right to defend yourself if you think you might be in danger. That’s right- deadly force if you THINK someone might do something, sometime to hurt you. So after multiple bloodbaths because with great power there must also be great responsibility and people aren’t known for being very responsible… what will happen next? Sadly this is getting pretty close to reality, but comics are just silly and don’t have anything to do with social commentary. 🙄
Primer #4 of 4 – The conclusion of what seems to be the first arc of Primer’s story. Can Ashley save her foster parents from the crazed villain who wants all the superpower paints for himself? Will Ashley be able to get through the “Heroes Journey and become a real hero? Only reading this issue and a really cool costume can reveal the future fate of Primer.
The Department of Truth #23 – It looks like I missed issue #22, so I’ll need to go back and get it to see how that arc ended. This is a great starting point for those unaware of The Department of Truth. It’s a history lesson on how the department was set up and who started it all. It’s a Wonderful Story… (Hint, not a spoiler). For those who don’t know about the Department of Truth, in this world, if enough people believe something is becomes real. UFO’s were’t real until enough people considered the possibility, Bigfoot? same thing. Basically a world in which if a conspiracy theory can get enough people to believe it will tip the balance of reality. So who would have been put in charge of this when it first came to light?
U & I #5 of 6 – Penultimate issue and knowing this world I’m concerned about how it will all end, because not all comics in the Resistance Universe have happy endings. U tries to get Isabelle to see the world the way he does, and Isabelle’s Uncle conspires with the bad guys to find and eliminate U. Will it work? Next issue with tie everything up one way or another.
The Flash #10 – This arc is leading to the summer mega event Absolute Power which may be why I’m just kind “meh” about it. Are the speedsters actually the problem? What does math have to do with it? Will Wally finally join in? Will I be doing reviews that say “Absolute Power. ’nuff said”?
Detective Comics #1086 – In Batman the Zur En Arrh arc seems to be neatly finished, leaving Bruce Wayne with a clear new beginning and I’m happy about that. Detective Comics, Bruce is still fighting the Orgham’s and their control over Gotham. Let’s add in his Rogue’s Gallery to make things interesting. Which side will they take?
The Spectacular Spider-Men #4 – SO last time we dealt with Miles and Peter things were… weird. Miles was in a relationship with Kamala Khan, and Peter was married with kids to Gwen Stacey?!? Yes, I know, Gwen is dead on this Earth, then again so are a lot of the people Peter was dealing with. We get to peak behind the curtain and find out who has been responsible for Arcadium- Arcade and Mentallo. along with their mysterious (until the last page) funder. Fortunately, thanks to Shift and Peter’s psychological issues (aka the Parker luck) the veil is removed and you have two very angry Spider-Men out to take care of whoever made them happy.
Well, you’ve already sat through my gushing over HeroesCon, so what else can I say? If you haven’t go back the read it.
This Week’s Comics:
Helen of Wyndhorn #3 – I’m really liking this story and am interested in where it will go from here. We’ve been dealing with a series of flashbacks as Helen learns that her father’s fantasy stories weren’t fantasy stories. Her grandfather is pretty much a fantasy hero and she’s now learning the family business. The thing that get’s me is the present day piece and figuring out how it will tie in… more to come.
Batman # 149 – Wait a second! After everything that’s been going on… and on… and on… This arc comes to a conclusion? Loose ends are tied up and amazingly enough it only took the death of Bruce Wayne. 😉 I’m curious as to what will happen next now that a new “normal” is being created and Bruce Wayne, is more in touch with his feelings and what is really important to him.
Titans #12 – The Titans against Vanadia- a super fan given powers and made to believe the Titans are in danger… from the Titans? But just as victory has been achieved she is destroyed. The Titans confront T.O. Morrow and Nightwing gets a little surprise too.
Ultimate Spider-Man #6 – Peter finally tells his family about what has happened- something about confronting Wilson Fisk and not being prepared for it… “Gee Dad? Did you get hit by a bus?” That and May just can’t keep a secret… although she was doing a pretty good job for 4 months. Yes, we finish the issue with Peter finally being called “Spider-Man”! 6 issues in and he gets his name!
Man’s Best #4 – Who’s a good boy? Our friends are off in search of Doc and the Captain, once they find them… we learn more than we had bargained for.
The Displaced #5 – How do you not disappear? stay together with the others from Oshawa… but that doesn’t always work, it seems Emmett is “The Special.” Which obviously means something, but we don’t know right now, what we do know is this isn’t an isolated experience- it will happen again.
Star Trek #21 – The Sisko takes the pan dimensional Gods head on as he tries to correct everything that happened during his fight with Kahless. Will he be able to save the Oregonians? More importantly, will Beverly be able to see Wesley?
The Amazing Spider-Man #52 – Peter Parker is the Green Goblin-Man?!? Can Peter be saved? Who will help peter and what do the Sinister Six and J. Jonah Jameson have to do with it?
Captain America #10 – Cap is still searching for change agents to save them from Death. I’m still kinda missing him fighting fascists. Here he comes up against one the change agents who is fine not being saved, and her reasons are enlightening.
