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Capital Thoughts: All-New Captain America #4
In what is now a common trope, Sam Wilson, aka, the All-New Captain America, is getting his ass kicked, this time by Armadillo, a third-rate villain who first appeared in Cap #308 (August, 1985; Gruenwald/Neary/… [more]
Movies You Should Watch: The Treasure of the Sierra Madre
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre came out in 1948, and was directed by John Huston. The movie stars Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston, and Tim Holt. Bogart and Holt play Fred C. Dobbs and Curtin respectively. [more]
Tracing Some of the Roots in Scott McCloud’s The Sculptor, Part 2
[A quick word of caution. What follows is an analysis of some of the literary antecedents for The Sculptor. As such, spoilers abound. Don’t say I didn’t warn ya!] If you read last week’s column,… [more]
Can You Read The Raven’s Speech: Multiversity Mastermen #1 Splendour Falls
Firstly, dear reader, my apologies for the delay. This write up has been one of the toughest but also one of the most enjoyable thus far. The more I reread Mastermen the more I realize… [more]
The Marx Brothers as Guardian Angels—Part 3: Harpo’s Magical Turn in Love Happy
Harpo himself wrote the storyline for the final Marx Brothers film, Love Happy, which features Groucho as narrating detective Sam Grunion and characterizes Harpo and Chico (a.k.a. Faustino the Great) as nearly supernatural figures. While… [more]
Five Historical Figures Who Deserve a Comic Book
Before we even start with this topic, we should probably clarify that this is call for biographical comics, not films. In recent years, after studying both media, I’ve developed a theory that dramatic biography is… [more]
Sifting Through the Ashes: Analyzing Hellblazer, Part 21
Issue 24 “The Family Man” Writer: Jamie Delano Art: Ron Tiner Colors: Tom Zuiko Letters: Tom Frame Cover: Dave McKean Being a supernatural horror comic, it is only natural that Constantine would encounter demons, ghosts,… [more]
Baptized in the Fires of the H-Bomb: Eiji Tsuburaya, Godzilla, and the Birth of Kaiju
With my eleven Gamera movies watched and reviewed and the last outlier on its way I decided it was time to delve into more kaiju films, specifically as many of them, in chronological order, as… [more]
Michel Fiffe’s Copra: The Most Well-Known Secret in Comics
Copra is the most well-known secret in comics. Everyone seems to know its name, one repeatedly shouted from digital rooftops in choruses of “all hail!” by ardent fans and critics alike, and it’s a roar… [more]
The Marx Brothers as Guardian Angels—Part 2: Chico Helps Fellow Poor Kids From Brooklyn
A Day at the Races was one of the most dramatically satisfying Marx Brothers films to feature a financially strapped romantic couple. However, it was not the only one to get the storytelling formula right.… [more]
Superhero Fever Strikes India: Maharakshak Aryan on Zee TV
You can hardly swing an unconscious henchman without hitting a superhero in American popular culture these days. Solo and in teams, superheroes dominate our comics and movies; they’re making rapid inroads on television too, on… [more]
Tracing Some of the Roots of Scott McCloud’s The Sculptor, Part 1
In the midst of this very Postmodern setting, The Sculptor winds up echoing some very old legends with roots tracing back through 19th century Germany, 16th century England, and 1st century Rome. [more]
On Escape from Tomorrow
If you’re going to launch your film career, shooting a wild movie at Disney World without permission isn’t a bad idea. That’s what first-time director Randy Moore’s Escape from Tomorrow (2013) is most known for. It’s… [more]
The Only Part I’ll Remember: The Dream States in Charles Burns’ X’ed Out Trilogy and Terry Gilliam’s Brazil
This article will attempt to explore of some of the obvious and not so obvious similarities of the dream imagery that appears in both the X’ed Out trilogy and Brazil and what that imagery represents.… [more]
Sifting Through the Ashes: Analyzing Hellblazer, Part 20
Issue #23 “Larger Than Life” Writer: Jamie Delano Art: Dean Motter, Ron Tiner Colors: Tom Zuiko Letters: Elitta Fell Cover: Dave McKean Without a doubt, the most memorable aspect of fiction are the characters—figures that… [more]
Spotlighting Underrated Films: The Hit (1986)
Boy, do I love the poster for the Stephen Frears film The Hit. It looks like a super-cool 80s noir and it sports the wonderful tag line: “Even bad guys have bad days.” Now, the… [more]
Oh, My Aching Cranium!: Jack Kirby’s OMAC Deconstructed and Reconstructed, Part Fifteen
Sometimes, friends, it seems like OMAC is a comic that can’t win no matter how hard it tries. Fans of Jack Kirby’s original eight-issue run didn’t like how it ended, while readers who weren’t fans… [more]
“I’m Making Dream Art”: Further Thoughts on Nameless #1
There are at least two ways to write Lovecraftian horror. One is to take the various elements of the Cthulhu mythos and tell your own story within that framework. Another way is to use various… [more]
Oh, My Aching Cranium!: Jack Kirby’s OMAC Deconstructed And Reconstructed, Part Fourteen
After the original OMAC series ended with a literal—if too-goddamn-tidy-for-its-own-good—bang in 1975, all was quiet in “The World That’s Coming!” for a couple of years, but one should never underestimate DC’s ability to milk a… [more]
Sifting Through the Ashes: Analyzing Hellblazer, Part 19
Issue #21 “The God of All Gods” Writer: Jamie Delano Art: Mark Buckingham, Alfredo Alcala Colors: Lovern Kindzierski Letters: Elitta Fell Cover: Dave McKean Continuing directly from the previous issue, “The God of All Gods”… [more]
The Frank Miller & Alan Moore Adaptations
As we near the climax of comparing Miller and Moore it’s worth talking about the adaptations. Is there any good adaptation of Alan Moore’s work? Is there a bad adaptation of Miller’s work? [more]
The Marx Brothers as Guardian Angels of Young Lovers in Jeopardy–Part 1
Harpo! When did you seem like an angel the last time? And played the grey harp of gold? -Jack Kerouac, ”To Harpo Marx” Are the Marx Brothers believable guardian angels? It may be difficult to… [more]