Save So, over the weekend, Donald Trump picked his running mate, Indiana Governor Mike Pence, who is extremely right-wing. I must say that I’m only slightly surprised. First, I knew that Trump was going to pick an established politician. Despite the caricature of Donald Trump, one thing he is not is stupid. So although his…
A 60-year-old’s battle to give birth to her own grandchild
A 60-year-old British woman has been embroiled in a long legal fight over whether she can use her deceased daughter’s frozen eggs to carry her own grandchild. Last week, the woman, identified as Mrs. M, won a crucial case in the Court of Appeal in London that could allow her to carry out what she…
In Defense of…GENE SIMMONS
This is a little old by now, but since Simmons is still getting attacked over it, I figure it’s worth writing about it. Okay, first, let’s look back at a couple of old posts of mine: WHEN I GROW UP I WANT TO BE…GENE SIMMONS And PRINCE ROGERS NELSON . . . So you know…
I Saw CAPTAIN AMERICA: CIVIL WAR Today (no spoilers)
As an early Mother’s Day present, I took my mother and stepfather to go see this film today. I’m not going to write a full review, there’s a bajillion of those online, by much better writers than myself (like ZAKI HASAN or GIRL ON COMIC-BOOK WORLD) plus if you have even the slightest interest in…
Afeni Shakur, mother of hip-hop legend Tupac, dead at 69
Afeni Shakur Davis, mother of late rap legend Tupac Shakur who was the subject of one of his most iconic songs and who oversaw his posthumous legacy, has died. She was 69 years old. Marin County deputies responded to Shakur’s home in Sausalito, Calif., Monday night after she suffered a possible cardiac arrest, the sheriff’s…
BOOK SNOBS part 2
PREVIOUSLY: BOOK SNOBS Please read the link, if you haven’t before, as it says all I really have to say on this topic of Book Snobs, which is what I call people who are serious readers and/or writers, that take a particular delight in mocking certain books and those who read them. Personally, I hate…
PROMPOSALS
Warning: Potential Grumpy Old Man Rant So a couple of weeks ago some teenage guy posted a question on the dating advice forum on Reddit. Honestly, I usually just avoid even answering questions from teenagers, sometimes it’s hard for me not to sound like a condescending adult (which I am), because they’ll act like everything…
Shelley Dufresne and Rachel Respess: UPDATE
Shelley Dufresne and Rachel Respess Okay, I see that some of my previous posts on this subject have been getting new hits in the past week. So much so that I have decided to give this topic, which I have been covering since October 2014, it’s own special category on this blog (moving it from…
Kelsey McCarter, Another Female Pedophile CAUGHT
The wife of a Tennessee high school football coach slept with one of his underage players, according to authorities in Knoxville. Kelsey McCarter, 26, carried on a sexual relationship for nearly a year with a student at South-Doyle High School, according to a seven-count indictment handed down by a grand jury in Knox County. The…
Carly Fiorina, Who Was Right About Ted Cruz: I Was Wrong About Ted Cruz
On Wednesday, Carly Fiorina was given the rare opportunity to be on the right side of an issue. Unfortunately for her, that issue was new best bud Ted Cruz, so Fiorina decided to be wrong. Shortly after she was announced as Cruz’s running mate, Fiorina was asked about her newfound support for the man she…
Startup #1.2
Written by Darin Henry Drawn by Craig Rousseau Published by Sitcomics PREVIOUSLY: STARTUP #1.1 Picking up later that same night from the events of the first issue, Renee makes it back home and wakes up her son Malcolm, to tell him all about her transformation and new superpowers. Through concentration, Renee is able to transform…
Superman: American Alien #6
Written by Max Landis Drawn by Jonathan Case Published by DC Comics PREVIOUSLY: SUPERMAN: AMERICAN ALIEN #5 Max Landis continues his rewrite of Superman’s origin. It’s a year since the previous issue, with Clark firmly established in his duel-identity of Superman, who has become quite a citywide sensation. Clark’s childhood best friend Pete Ross and…
Strange Fruit #3
Written by J.G. Jones and Mark Waid Drawn by J.G. Jones Published by Boom! Studios PREVIOUSLY: Strange Fruit #2 SIX MONTHS LATER, the third issue of this 4 issue miniseries has finally been published. I wish I could say that it was worth the wait but…well, that would be lying. Like I said last time,…
BLACK PANTHER #1 by Ta-Nehisi Coates & Brian Stelfreeze
Written by Ta-Nehisi Coates Drawn by Brian Stelfreeze Published by Marvel Comics One of my most hotly anticipated books arrived (about 4 weeks ago…yeah, I’m late on this review), featuring the beginning of this latest launch of a Black Panther series, with social commentary and political writer Ta-Nehisi Coates at the helm. Not being one…
HUCK #6
Written by Mark Millar Drawn by Rafael Albuquerque Published by Image Comics PREVIOUSLY: HUCK #5 I have to say that this has been one of Mark Millar’s most enjoyable recent projects. With some inventive use of Anna’s powers, Huck busts the two of them out of the Siberian prison, and then mother and son team…
Empress #1
Written by Mark Millar Drawn by Stuart Immonen Publish by Icon/Marvel Comics Mark Millar returns to Marvel Comics for this new series, published under their creator-owned Icon Imprint. I must say that I had high hopes for this title up initially hearing about it. First, because of his collaborator and co-creator Stuart Immonen, whose work…
JACKED #6
Written by Eric Kripke Drawn by John Higgins Published by DC Comics/Vertigo PREVIOUSLY: JACKED #5 This is it, the final issue, and it goes out with a bang, although I don’t mean that literally (or do I?). Now, I can’t say too much, as I want to avoid major spoilers. But as per last issue’s…
The Case Of Eddie Bolden: One More Reason I Oppose The Death Penalty
For the last 22 years, Eddie Bolden sat in an Illinois prison, convicted of killing two men. The only hitch: He didn’t do it. It was just this year he was exonerated of the crime, and this week he was freed, just in time to see his son Dom graduate from college. “I was anxious…
Breaking Into… Writing with Geoffrey Thorne on Black Hollywood Live
In this episode Black Hollywood Live host James Lott Jr. interviews Geoffrey Thorne. After a successful career as a television actor including portraying police officer Wilson Sweet in the television series In the Heat of the Night from 1989 to 1994, Thorne began writing professionally, winning Second Prize in Simon & Schuster’s sixth annual Strange…
Accidental Incest?
I’ve been thinking about incest a lot recently, and before you jump to conclusions about what that says about me, please let me explain. First, a couple of weeks ago one of my Facebook friends posted a list of the kind or men she would not date. One of the items on the list were…
Testing ADRAFINIL
Over the years I have tested several Nootropic pills, also known as “smart drugs,” these are pills that claim to be designed to help your brain function by improving your memory and helping you concentrate. Most notably I have tried and written about both EXCELEROL which I ultimately found completely ineffective and TRUBRAIN which seemed…
Remembering Joanie “Chyna” Laurer
Joanie Laurer, the groundbreaking female wrestler known as Chyna, has died. Police in Redondo Beach, California, confirm that Laurer, 45, was found dead in her apartment on Wednesday. Police say they were notified by a friend who went to check on her and found Laurer unresponsive. The cause of death is under investigation, but police…
PRINCE ROGERS NELSON . . .
Okay, well, I need to write something. I’ve been thinking about this all day, and I’m honestly still not sure that I even have the words. Prince is dead. His Purple Majesty is no longer with us. I still can’t believe this. I found out at 10am this morning, as my morning break at work…
SOUL MATES #1
Written by Martin Chuzz Drawn by Claudia Balboni Published by Convinct Comics This is an interesting little book, billed as a romantic comedy. Denzel is a demon from Hell, charged finding and getting people to sell their souls to Satan. While Holly is an angel from Heaven, charged with finding and converting 100 souls for…
HASS #1
Written by B. Alex Thompson Drawn by Federico Santagati Published by Approbation Comics I got this last week on impulse. The synopsis for this series was: In a story that’s “Romeo & Juliet” meets “American History X,” Hass is the story of the dramatic and tragic events that turns a young Black man into a…
STEALTH Vol. 1 The Life And Times Of Allen White Preview
Written by Robert Jeffrey II Drawn by Jamar Logan Published by Studio EFX This is issue is meant to be a preview of a larger upcoming Original Graphic Novel featuring the superhero STEALTH, who was created by William Satterwhite. For this issue, Satterwhite has enlisted writer Robert Jeffrey II (whose work I’ve covered before), with…
100 COVERS by Rick Lundeen
Written and drawn by Rick Lundeen Published by Epoch Productions This is such a unique and awesome concept, I wish I’d thought of it myself. The idea here is that this issue is a collection of the first 100 covers of a fictional ongoing comic-book series about a superhero team called THE BATTALION. Just the…
ROUTE 3 #3
Writer: Robert Jeffrey II Artist: Sean Damien Hill Publisher: Terminus Media Previously: Route 3 #2 This is a bigger than average issue, about 35 pages, and the first half is mostly dialogue. There’s a lot of panels of talking heads, but it’s good and informative, and a credit to writer Robert Jeffrey II that he’s…
Leaving Megalopolis: Surviving Megalopolis #3
Written by Gail Simone Drawn by Jim Calafiore Published by Dark Horse Comics A couple of interesting things happen in this issue. Cody shows Mina his remaining resources as The Crimson Shadow, and asks her to be his sidekick. Rainwater and Ethan prepare to dive into the big hole in the middle of the city,…
Leaving Megalopolis: Surviving Megalopolis #2
Written by Gail Simone Drawn by Jim Calafiore Published by Dark Horse Comics This issue starts off with Harold joining Bennett and meeting the rest of the team that’s due to sneak into Megalopolis. The other soldiers are a British man named Samuel, and married couple Rainwater and Ethan. But then to Harold’s surprise (and…
Leaving Megalopolis: Surviving Megalopolis #1
Written by Gail Simone Drawn by Jim Calafiore Published by Dark Horse Comics PREVIOUSLY: LEAVING MEGALOPOLIS It’s back! I loved the original graphic novel, which began as a Kickstarter project, has now returned in a new sequel series! Now, first, you need to read the original book before reading this series. If you’re a newbie…
Halloween Man #12
Written by Drew Edwards Edited by Russell Hillman Published by Sugar Skull Media PREVIOUSLY: Halloween Man #11 And here we have a loooong overdue review of this latest issue of Halloween Man. As always, this issue contains multiple stories, all written by creator Drew Edwards, and drawn by various artists. What is different about this…
#IFightGhosts: The Spectromancer Chronicles #1
Written by Martin Dunn Drawn by Shawn Langley Published by CAE Studios/Big Pond Comics Here’s another comic I got on impulse. It was digitally released in August 2015, so I’m quite late. It’s collection of strips from a webcomics. As for the premise, well, I’ll just post the official solicitation: Season 1 of the hit…
LIKE FATHER, LIKE DAUGHTER #1
Written by Kathryn “Comic Uno” Calamia Drawn by Wayne Brown Colored by David Aravena Published by Short Fuse Media Group I picked this up on impulse last Wednesday, as I browsed the New Submit section on Comixology. I thought the premise sounded interesting (and it was cheap). Unfortunately, it doesn’t quite live up to it’s…
Superman: American Alien #5
Written by Max Landis Drawn by Francis Manapul Published by DC Comics PREVIOUSLY: SUPERMAN: AMERICAN ALIEN #4 With this issue, we jump ahead 6 months, Clark and Lois are interns at the Daily Planet together, and Clark has been going out in a makeshift costume, which includes the cape he took from Batman, and going…
Superman: American Alien #4
Written by Max Landis Drawn by Jae Lee Published by DC Comics PREVIOUSLY: SUPERMAN: AMERICAN ALIEN #3 This issue of the latest retelling of Superman features several first in the Man of Steels career. His first trip to Metropolis, and his first encounters with Lois Lane, Lex Luthor, Dick Grayson, and Bruce Wayne/Batman. Oliver Queen…
Huck #5
Written by Mark Millar Drawn by Rafael Albuquerque Published by Image Comics PREVIOUSLY: HUCK #4 Okay, first of all, though I will try to avoid too much spoiling of this issue, do not ready any further unless you’ve read the first four issues first. Seriously, just stop. You have been warned. Okay, so the big…
Huck #4
Written by Mark Millar Drawn by Rafael Albuquerque Published by Image Comics PREVIOUSLY: HUCK #3 So here it is, The Secret Origin of Huck. Through flashbacks, as told by his newly discovered twin brother Tom, we see how he and Huck’s mother was part of Russia’s experimental superhuman program back in the late 70’s, and…
JACKED #5
Written by Eric Kripke Drawn by John Higgins and Marc Olivent Published by DC Comics/Vertigo First, I will note that it was this cover which caught my eye, and lead to me getting this whole miniseries, which I originally assumed was closer to a traditional “superhero” story (albeit one on DC’s Vertigo imprint, which means…
JACKED #4
Written by Eric Kripke Drawn by John Higgins Published by DC Comics/Vertigo In an interesting call-back to the first issue, the first few pages are narrated by Josh’s wife Alice. It turns out that, like him, she’s facing many of the same insecurities about her life and about growing older. And we see how, ironically,…
JACKED #3
Written by Eric Kripke Drawn by John Higgins Published by DC Comics/Vertigo The action really kicks it up a notch in this issue. First, Josh tries to stop taking the Jacked pills, but the withdrawals are too much for him to handle, so he starts taking them again. Meanwhile Damon is still in a coma…
JACKED #2
Written by EriC Kripke Drawn by John Higgins Published by DC Comics/Vertigo Picking up from the first issue, Josh wakes up the next morning wondering about what happened the day before. He tries calling the creator of Jacked to ask about the pills, but we see that man being arrested by the police. Josh is…
JACKED #1
Written by Eric Kripke Drawn by John Higgins Published by DC Comics/Vertigo I had never heard of this series until this past Wednesday. If there’s been any news or talk about it, I haven’t seen it. And I never noticed any previous issue when checking Comixology every week. But as I was browsing the “new…
Hyperion #1
Written by Chuck Wendig Drawn by Nicole Virella Published by Marvel Comics First, if you’re unaware of this character, see my previous review for AVENGERS #34.1, where I go over the character’s backstory, both in terms of creation and publication. And now that you’ve read that, you’ll see how much I enjoyed that portrayal of…
Why I’m Not Watching UNDERGROUND
Underground set a record as WGN’s highest performing original series ever in its launch last night. The 10 PM airing drew 1.4M total viewers to rank No. 5 among all scripted series premieres on cable this broadcast TV season. The premiere’s 585K adults 25-54 ranks No. 7 in the TV season that started last September.…
Doan’s Backache Pain Relief Caplets, Extra Strength
I discovered this product a few years ago. I’d woken up with some back pain (I’m older than I look), and it stuck with me for awhile, but ibuprofen just wasn’t cutting it for me. So I looked up backache pills on Amazon and found these. The product had a bunch of good reviews, so…
People Who Say: “You Can’t Judge A Movie By Its Trailer!”
Here is another pet peeve of mine. People who criticize people who criticize a movie, based on the trailer. They’ll argue “You can’t judge a movie by it’s trailer!” Some people will even get all superior and on a high horse about “I’ll wait until the actual movie comes out before I judge it!” As…
Pet Peeve: Askholes
So, in my ongoing quest to encourage myself to update this blog on a regular (ideally it would be daily) basis, I’ve tried to think of new categories of topics to add. And this recently hit me: Pet Peeves! Things that annoy me! It’s perfect, because almost everything annoys me, so this should be an…
The Ethics of Using DEAD CELEBRITIES In Commercials
Okay, so y’all know that I don’t watch sports, which means I intentionally missed the Super Bowl. I understand that this commercial debuted then, but I just saw this on Saturday. A Snickers commercial starring Willem Dafoe, where he is shown morphing into Marilyn Monroe. And they use actual footage of the real Marilyn to…
#SixWordSciFi
1 Time Travel Mission: Kill Baby Hitler. 2 My Clone Blames Me For Everything. 3 Flying Cars Are Still Too Dangerous. 4 Dating Profile: Single Cyborg Seeks Same. 5 The Mutant Virus Is Killing Everyone. 6 Mars Won’t Accept Refugees From Earth. 7 Across The Stars, She Patiently Waits. . . 8 Virtual Sex Just…
