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Reviews
Comic Con Discoveries Part 1: The Goon and The Guns of Shadow Valley
I picked up several comics at the recent San Diego Comic Con, so I’m having a look that them all as I get some good reading time. All of these comics are first-time reads for… [more]
Andre the Giant: A Modest Graphic Novel about a Giant Man
They call it “the business”. That’s the first thing I learned in the wonderful new comic about the life of one of the 20th century’s famous wrestlers. It’s not “the sport”, because that would open… [more]
Borgman: Mysteriously Effective
Everything about Borgman feels muffled. Like glimpsing a striking image through a foggy haze. Or hearing a catchy song muffled by feedback and noise. The movie relies on this atmosphere. One can’t feasibly be divorced… [more]
We are the Candy Bars of Pop Culture: Guardians of the Galaxy Broke Something in Me
I just can’t take it anymore. I know we’re in a new age of Hollywood spectacle, in which intelligence is largely relegated to a few TV shows, and viewers feel there’s no point shelling out… [more]
Outsourcing War and Profiteer Heroism in the Jacamons’ Cyclops
The Jacamons’ Cyclops is a science-fiction war thriller about a world where wars are delegated to private mercenary companies and televised for entertainment. Gruesome, amoral, but close to home with the modern reliance on mercenaries, the progress of communication technologies including helmet-cams, and the rising popularity of reality television. [more]
A Sandman Miscellany: Sandman Overture #3 Review
Written by: Neil Gaiman Art by: J.H. Williams, III Cover by: J.H. Williams, III Dave McKean Variant Cover by: J.H. Williams, III Dave McKean Since its genesis in the long distant past of December 2013,… [more]
She Who is Beyond Time – Kali Yuga #1 Review
The relationship between comic books and magic fascinates me. One day I want to write a book, or a very long series of articles, about the links between them. With several comic professionals claiming they… [more]
Under The Flesh #1: Violence, Zombies, and Weird Plot Choices
A strange virus comes to Earth and starts turning every human male into brainless impulse-driven zombies in Under The Flesh. The nefarious zombification urges the male populous to satisfy their most primordial, sexual needs. The… [more]
As Human as You Want to Be: A Review of Charles Soule’s Swamp Thing: Seeder
It’s an obvious pun when the subtitle here is “Seeder”, but Charles Soule’s first Swamp Thing book is such a scattershot of ideas and beginnings that it’s like he’s planting the seeds of larger storylines… [more]
Rat Queens #7
Rat Queens continues to deliver on all cylinders: sparkling dialogue, rich characters and just the right amount of horror and action for this genre. In issue #7, more plot elements start to fall into place… [more]
Manifest Destiny #8: Sacagawea Keeps Score
Things are getting “curiouser and curiouser” for the Corps of Discovery in Manifest Destiny #8. Aside from the usual thrills this comic provides, giant frogs, giant insects, scary jungle, etc, in this issue you can… [more]
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is Phenomenal
Two Apes articles in one week! This time I cover the sequel to Rise of the Planet of the Apes, and why it’s such a critical juggernaut. [more]
Rise of the Planet of the Apes: Servicable
Rise of the Planet of the Apes was the only Planet of the Apes movie I’d seen prior to this series of articles. Because I fucked up my schedule, I didn’t manage to rewatch it… [more]
Some Thoughts on Edge of Tomorrow
I write the first third of a lot of these articles in my head before I actually write them. Everything after that tends to be a process of discovery. But that initial pre-planning tends to… [more]
Review of One of Us by Tawni O’Dell
Dr. Sheridan Doyle, a fastidiously groomed and TV-friendly forensic psychologist, is the go-to shrink for the Philadelphia District Attorney’s office whenever a twisted killer’s mind eludes other experts. But beneath his Armani pinstripes, he’s still… [more]
Dystopian Redux: A Review Of Spread #1
Ever since The Walking Dead has exploded in popularity with both the hit comic book and AMC television show, it seems that everyone has a story about a dystopian future to share. The genre has… [more]
Serenity: Leaves on the Wind #6: We Need a Montage!
Perhaps this is the curse of episodic, serialized storytelling, but Serenity: Leaves on the Wind didn’t, it seems to me, end as strong as it started. This final issue certainly sets up a great deal… [more]
A is for Apocalypse: A Creative and Entertaining Short Story Collection
To the best of my understanding, the notion of apocalypse comes straight out of ancient religions and people have been talking about it for millennia. The common theme is this: in the era of “great… [more]
The Embiggening Superhero: A Review of G. Willow Wilson and Adrian Alphona’s Ms. Marvel #1-5
Kamala Khan is a Muslim/American teenager growing up in New Jersey and, like all teens, she’s insecure and unsure of her identity. Her family’s traditional cultural values stand in stark contrast to the society she… [more]
Snowpiercer: Worth the Ride, However Bumpy
Spoilers ahead… In the interest of full disclosure, I should note that I have not read the film’s bande dessinée inspiration, Le Transperceneige, by Jacques Lob, Jean-Marc Rochette, and Benjamin Legrand. I can only judge the… [more]
Devil Dealers: Our Tapestry is Alive and Well
I’m not usually a big horror person. Despite this, I’ve somehow accumulated a good amount of horror knowledge over the years, and I’ve also developed a great appreciation for what horror stories can offer across… [more]
2001′s Planet of the Apes Remake is the Worst of the Franchise
Awkwardly sexualized apes, bad writing, clumsy thematics, and Mark Wahlberg set this film apart from the rest of the franchise. Tim Burton’s 2001 remake of the classic SF franchise starter may not be good, but it is interestingly bad. More bad than interesting though… [more]
Stunt Writing Yields a Brilliant Novel: Dave Eggers’s Newest
Imagine you’re a novelist who gambles. You lose a big bet, and the buddy you lost to decides to make your writing life incredibly difficult. He sets these restrictions for your next novel, and as… [more]
Why Ravi Thornton’s Graphic Memoir is an Early Candidate for the Year’s Best
At a recent conference I attended for English educators, a panel of writers was discussing the phenomenon of the memoir, and debating what the popularity of the form has to say about today’s readership. The… [more]
Hanging Ten: A Review of Silver Surfer #3
Of all of Marvel’s cadre of cosmic characters, none are more misunderstood or have as rich a history as the Silver Surfer. Introduced in 1966 in the pages of Fantastic Four #48 by Stan Lee… [more]