Dread

Mr. Mercedes is long done. Midnight Mass on Netflix was excellent. Like Salem's Lot with more religious overtones. Curb Your Enthusiasm : never watched this before other than a few episodes. I'm almost done season 6 now and it's become one of my all-time favourite shows. Lucifer is done and is pretty ho-hum overall. First couple episodes of Hawkeye are pretty great. So far, it's got my vote for the best of the Live Action series. I think that catches me up on TV stuff. Edit: oh yeah...Only Murders in the Building which I'm still stewing over. Not sure how I feel about it, TBH

Black Widow: while much of this was competent, it feels really too little too late. As such, it's impossible to give a shit about Natasha when literally any other character is onscreen. They did Taskmaster dirty. This probably has the worst CGI in an MCU film to date, but it still lands somewhere in the middle of them as far as quality is concerned. Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings: holy shit, this was fantastic in almost every way. It might be my favourite MCU film. Simu Liu was awesome. Tony Leung. Come on! That guy's been rad for thirty years. He's probably the best villain in the MCU. Kingsley is redeemed here. Michelle Yeoh was a little wasted and boy do I ABSOLUTELY not care for Awkwafina. I can do without ever seeing her on screen again. Razofist has been a character in a major blockbuster. That's a thing that happened. Great fun. Guns of Eden: i was able to sneak peek this one, with the picture lock version. Thanks to having this friend and other friends who are filmmakers, I've been gifted opportunities to view unfinished picture lock films before. This means the movie is done being shot and edited, but still may need visual or audio FX. I think this was the first action movie version I've seen though, and the lack of gunshots took a little getting used to. It also made the few gunshots in the film very shocking, haha! Still, great movie with an incredible lead actress who is definitely star material. Features: 127 Shorts: 2 Documentaries: 17 Rewatches: 2

Last one was too long to edit, so here's the next: X-Men Epic Collection Proteus: this is a pretty fun era of the X-Men. Earlier in the Claremont/Byrne run. The new X-Men face Magneto for only the second time. They wind up in the Savage Land to face Garokk, The Petrified Man. They have a fun little battle with Arcade. They sow the seeds of the Dark Phoenix Saga. They have a great battl ewith Alpha Flight (Pierre Trudeau spent a lot of money on Weapon X and we want him back!). And Wolverine meets Mariko Yashida for the first time. Because it's Claremont so obviously we have to fetishize Japan a little bit. Great read. X-Men Epic Collection Dissolution and Rebirth: what a wild ride this is. Begins at the tail end of the X-Men being dead and undetectable in Australia. Wolverine is crucified by the Reavers and rescued by Jubilee. Storm becomes a child. Psylocke becomes Lady Mandarin and then just ninja Psylocke. Gambit debuts. The core X-Men team becomes Moira McTaggert, Siryn, Legion and Multiple Man. So weird. The art vacillates between the excellence of Jim Lee and Marc Silvestri and guys you've never heard of then or since. I told you it was wild. Last Stop on the Red Line #1: completely forgettable. Old Man Quill #5: this would be a contender for series of the year lists if I wasn't a year and a half behind reading comics. Rock Steady #1: not for me The Life and Death of Toyo Harada #2, 3: Dysart's Valiant stuff is pretty solid as a rule. The art on this is fantastic. Uncanny X=Men #18: this was really great Vampire Mob #1: Not good War of the Realms #4:so fucking great. At first I felt like the plot was too piecemeal (think What If? issues trying to get through a lot of time in a few panels), but it all paid off with Dark Freyja and Iron Odin being horny and killing elves. War of the Realms Strikeforce The War Avengers #1: Just great. Age of X-Man Apocalypse and the X-Tracts #4,5: This probably stands as my favourite of these series. Age of X-Man Next Gen #5: great ending to a great series Age of X-Man Prisoner X #4,5: this was alright. Age of X-Man The Amazing Nightcrawler #4, 5: Kind of a yawn. Age of X-Man The Marvelous X-Men #5: Pretty good. Age of X-Man X-Tremists #4, 5: not the best ending. Age of X-Man Omega #1: Look, I thought the minis were fun for the most part, but I knew that it would end with a whimper and push us into the big time X-event that I'm excited to start now. Asgardians of the Galaxy #8, 9:Really fun. Incursion #4:Fuck this was good. Justice League Dark #11: Man, this series is killing it. I love the magic in the DC Universe. It's always falling apart sand threatening to destroy everything. Like, that is its natural state. Marvel Comics Presents #5:Fun Nightcrawler story. Somehow already forgotten who the third story was of... Mary Shelley Monster Hunter #2: this is not for me. Road of Bones #1: very cool. A horror story in this setting is unique as far as I know. I'm down. War of the Realms Uncanny X-Men #2: It seems like a lot more time has passed in this mini than the others. War of the Realms Journey Into Mystery #3: this is just a little too goofy for me. Issues: 365 Trades: 19 Omnibus: 20 Graphic Novel: 14

Prophecy/Guimoon: The Lightless Door: reviews forthcoming Features: 124 Shorts: 2 Documentaries: 17 Rewatches: 2

The Acid King/V/H/S/94/Army of Thieves/Grizzly: reviews forthcoming Features: 122 Shorts: 2 Documentaries: 17 Rewatches: 2

Nobody Is In Control #1: seems right up my alley, but the first issue didn't grab me. Punk Mambo #1: I've been on the fence on this character ever since her debut, but I loved this issue. I'm around for more. Queen of Bad Dreams #1: definitely not for me. Knew by page two. Superior Spider-Man #5: I'm really loving this series. Thanos #1: A mini about the Thanos/Gamora relationship. Wasn't super into this issue, but the second issue is where I'l make the decision. Age of X-Man: Apocalypse and the X-Tracts #2: this is a close second for my favourites of the series in this event. X-Men: Days of Future Present: This collects the annuals bearing that title (1992?) which has some good shit. Walt Simonson writing FF and X-Factor at the time really helped with the strength of this story I've never read in total. Fun future stuff. This is where Cyclops and Jean Grey discover Phoenix is their daughter from the future. And this is also I think the first instance of future Franklin Richards stirring up trouble. I'll read X-Factor drawn by Bogdanove and written by Simonson (either Walt or Weezie!) all day long. The Forgotten Queen #3: this shit is wild. War of the Realms Uncanny X-Men #1: this event has been so solid across the board. Pretty impressive. Age of Conan Belit Queen of the Black Coast #2: just not for me. Age of X-Man Apocalypse and the X-Tracts #3: when's the last time there were two concurrent kickass events at the same time at Marvel? Age of X-Man Next Gen #4: still my favourite of the minis. Age of X-Man Marvellous X-Men #3, 4: never really connected with this mini. Batman and the Outsiders #1: man, really uninteresting. Highlander: The American Dream: I read the first issue of this a few years back and was like "oh, I'll grab this in trade. Well, I finally did that. It's great. The present day of the story is 1955, but the inciting incident is during the American Civil War. Well told, great art. X-Men Kings of Pain: this is another collection of 90s annuals. In this case, the X-Annuals and New Warriors of 1991. Decent story. The payoff is pretty much a whiff. each issue has different versions of the same cover image by Mike Mignola (and Bagley draws the NW on that issue, weird...) Black Hammer Age of Doom #10: so much of this series feels like spinning tires. Captain America #10: this was a pretty good issue with a GREAT moment in it. Conan the Barbarian #6: Sooooo consistent. Man. This team is killing this. Eve Stranger #1: held zero interest for me. Ice Cream Man #12: not the best story in this series. Marvels Annotated #3: This story doesn't really hold up very well for me. It drags, and the through-line is not interesting. It's definitely great if "see Alex Ross paint Marvel history" is what you want. Otherwise, I think it's quite heavily overrated. Maybe that's an unpopular opinion. My opinion of it certainly has changed. Murder Falcon #7,8: This screeched to an abrupt and profound end. Great fucking series. Red Sonja and Vampirella Meets Betty and Veronica #1: this is a hell of a lot of fun. X-Men: The End Books I-III: this series has Chris Claremont and Sean Chen doing three six issue miniseries set 15 years in the future. It's quite a great sendoff. Claremont's wordiness comes into play and is far less annoying than it used to get. Great twists and turns and appearances by a lot of villains. It was a suitable end and had me somewhat surprised that Claremont not only integrated so much from other X-writers, but in one instance making a character someone long after him created as the ultimate big bad. Chen's slight costume design tweaks are great for the most part. Great reads. I teared up at the end. Taarna #4: Ok, I guess. War of the Realms Journey Into Mystery #2: This is so good. War of the Realms New Agents of Atlas #1: oh, I do not like this. They're the Champions for god sakes... X-Force #6, 7: great! The art on this is fantastic. Black Widow #5: halfway decent end to a so-so miniseries. Daredevil #5: so great. Fantastic Four #9: so good. Still, this is much more like a Doom series than FF. Giant Man #1: did not expect this. This is really fun. Basically, all the Giant Men (and Atlas and Black Goliath) go undercover as Frost Giants. Fun. Guardians of the Galaxy #5: wow, ok. Hulkverines #3: this was a hell of a lot of fun. Issues: 338 Trades: 19 Omnibus: 18 Graphic Novel: 14

I love you, Mike!

The Thing: still an absolute classic. Perfect. Prince of Darkness: probably Caprenter's smartest, most interesting film. True cosmic horror. I don't think there's a better example of cosmic horror in film. Alien: covered this on the Lobby Boys Podcast. The Guilty: didn't know what to expect going in. But great Gyllenhaal performance. It gets a little tired at times being the whole one setting thing, but it works in the end. The Dark and the Wicked: Pretty damned good. Well-acted. Creepy enough. Features: 118 Shorts: 2 Documentaries: 17 Rewatches: 2

The films of Mike Flanagan (who's killing it with Netflix series lately), but it might be difficult to find those early films. Or Ben Wheatley or Neil Marshall. Throwing my hat in the ring for Kubrick. And Tarantino. Haha!

Old/House of the Black Death/Blood on Satan's Claw: reviews forthcoming Features: 113 Shorts: 2 Documentaries: 17 Rewatches: 2

Marvel Zombies The Complete Collection Volume 1-3: I ordered a bunch of tabs and GNs for my school several years ago and ordered Marvel Zombies as one of them. I've also read the occasional one-shot (perhaps in IIWY? segments?). The original series is pretty awful. So is the second. Once Fred Van Lente takes over, it's great! 3, 4 and 5 follow various obscure characters as they work through ARMOR to destroy zombies in every dimension. Lots of Morbius. Lots of Howard the Duck. Lots of Machine Man. It's fun as fuck. Marvel Zombies Supreme is pretty great too. Written and drawn by two Italian guys. Battlestar and some specialized soldiers check out a strange occurrence at Project Pegasus to discover Squadron Supreme clones have been infected with the zombie virus. It's wild. Marvel Zombies Destroy is fucking wild. Peter David writing Howard's ARMOR team grabbing Dum Dum Dugan and a motley crew of characters who debuted in 1940 Atlas Comics (as well as brand new characters who I had to check and see if they ever existed back then) to go to a dimension where the Germans in WW2 made themselves zombies to take over the world. It's a pure delight. Most of the one shots are pretty bad. The chunk in the middle with the crossover into Marvel Ape (remember that shit?) was a garbage fire. Glad I finally read all this, though. Sensational She-Hulk #9-30: I started the SSH by John Byrne, but because I'm mentally ill, I wanted to read the fill-in issues. And that's a hell of a fill=in. Not the last either. What was wrong with him at the time? Anyway, this stuff is almost always striving to be like Byrne's take on her. They all fall pretty flat. Some good stories and interesting satire by all kinds of folks from Steve Gerber to Peter David. A young Bryan Hitch does a spot-on mix of Byrne and Alan Davis. Halfway decent stuff. The Man-Thing by Steve Gerber Complete Collection Vol. 3: This is the last bit of Gerber's run, the only recently finished Infernal Man-Thing miniseries with Kevin Nowlan, and what I was happiest to see: the Sandman-esque 12 part Marvel Comics Presents series Gerber did with Tom Sutton. Marvel Zombies Resurrection #1-4: This, of all of them, might be the best of the whole MZ run. Never heard of the writer before, but the story is great. Leonard Kirk's art helps a lot too. Old Man Quill #4: this series continues to be a complete delight. Savage Avengers #1: holy shit. What? Why does this work? Spencer and Locke 2 #1: I'm not digging this as much as volume 1, but I'll give it another issue. Stiletto #1: pretty forgettable. Stronghold #3: wow, this really cracked it open. I wasn't feeling it so hard at first but this issue was great. Tainted Love #1: HARD pass. The Devils #1: holy shit, this is great! The Punisher #11: still so fucking great. Rosenberg is quickly becoming a definitive Punisher writer, which is not an easy thing to do based on who already is. Thor #12: this is a War of the Realms tie-in that's fucking rad. Uncanny X-Men #16, 17: ok, I was bitching a while back about Rosenberg's X-Men as compared to his Punisher, but these issues were excellent. War of the Realms: The Punisher #1: Gerry Duggan pits Punisher against a frost giant and it's delightful. What a great event, especially considering what comes next too. (Yes, I'm very behind). War of the Realms: War Scrolls #1: great. Fun anthology series. War of the Realms #2, 3: loving Punisher and Wolverine together. Always have. War of the Realms Strikeforce: The Dark Elf Realm #1: Cool. Kind of a New FF feel with Punisher, Ghost Rider, Blade and She-Hulk being led by Freyja. Wolverine Infinity Watch #3: Wolves, Loki and a ghost bloodhound board a magic viking ship to go into space to fight Darkhawks. Pretty wild. Wolverine The Long Night #4: Still great. Juggernaut: No Stopping Now: fucking hell, this was good. It takes place after X-Men comics I'm currently reading (haha) but I'll read anything with Ron Garney art. One of the modern greats. Age of X-Man Prisoner X #3: this was interesting. Liking this weird X-event. Age of X-Man X-Tremists #3: This is probably my favourite of the series. Black Widow #4: decent. DC Year of the Villain Special #1: I look forward to seeing what they do with Leviathan. Might have to catch up on all the shit Luthor got up to in trade. DCeased #1: Ok... Dark Red #2: this is a pretty interesting look at a very political horror comic. I don't think I like it much, but it's interesting. Dead Man Logan #6, 7: I might just have to skip ahead and finish this in one chunk. It's taking forever. Ghost Tree #1: interesting, but not for me. Gogor #1: this feels very 90s. Goosebumps Horror of the Witchhouse #1: not great. Heroes in Crisis #8: look, not what everyone wants to see in their superhero comics. I still find it interesting for a superhero book, a mainstream one at least. Invasion from Planet Wrestletopia #1: this is terrible. Justice League Dark #10: goddamn, this is really veering into one of my works in progress. But it's so great. Marvel Comics Presents #4: I liked all three of these stories. The Wolverine one hits a climax, the Spidey story is quite heartfelt and the Moon Knight one is twisted. A great balance of stories. This series is pretty great overall thus far. But it's still a 2019 book. Haha! X-Men: Apocalypse vs. Dracula: I've read this every couple years since it came out. It's such a cool little slice of alternate history in the Marvel Universe. It's very imperfect, but fun nonetheless. Issues: 301 Trades: 16 Omnibus: 18 Graphic Novel: 14

Hellraiser: Inferno/Hellraiser: Hellseeker/Hellraiser: Deader/Hellraiser: Hellworld/Hellraiser: Revelations/Hellraiser: Judgement: conversation forthcoming No More Souls: this is a short fan film in the Hellraiser universe directed by an integral figure to the film series. It would have been better as an 8 page story in the Hellraiser comic book, but as a film on its own, it leaves a lot to be desired. All Hail the King: this is the Ben Kingsley short film from the MCU and it's more entertaining than most of their films. Even considering I HATED IM3. Features: 110 Shorts: 2 Documentaries: 17 Rewatches: 2

Brutal. I know. That was me a while back. After my ex split, my insomnia kicked in HARD.

Hellraiser III: Hell on Earth/Hellraiser IV: Bloodline: what could that thing I watched it for be? Promising Young Woman: Wow, this was a delight. Dark, funny, charming. A wild cast. Goes somewhere I didn't expect. Highly recommended. Features: 104 Shorts: 0 Documentaries: 17 Rewatches: 2

The pandemic has really affected my ability to read and write. But I'm starting to pick up again. I don't read at night so long either anymore because I'm actually falling asleep, so I'm kind of riding that wave a little bit too. Sleeping well is a luxury. Haha!

Mike, once again, you're a fucking machine.

Hellraiser/ Hellbound: Hellraiser II: Watched for a thing. But I watched part II twice because the first time I got fucked up news and it messed with my head that I actually remembered the movie I'd already seen ten times less after watching it the other night than before I watched it. Features: 101 Shorts: 0 Documentaries: 17 Rewatches: 2

Censor/Random Acts of Violence/Under the Shadow: reviews forthcoming Encino Man: is it possible this movie got better with age? I sure as hell loved it more last night than I did when I was 12. What a great, tight little comedy. Brendan Fraser is fucking genius. Pauly Shore is ridiculous. Lots of great shots and gags. On Disney+ if you want to walk down evolutionary memory lane. Features: 99 Shorts: 0 Documentaries: 17 Rewatches: 1

Marvel Premiere #28: read this to follow along on the Defenders Dialogue podcast. Good bronze age monster stuff. Houdini Master Detective #1: pass Incursion #3: such a great story. Loving it. Eternal Warrior is probably my favourite comic book character not from the Big Two. Mary Shelley Monster Hunter #1: pass Meet the Skulls #3, 4: it's an easy high concept idea The Americans, but instead of Russians, they're Skrulls...and the kids are agents too. Solid idea, pulled off well. Offbeats #1:really not good. Issues: 242 Trades: 14 Omnibus: 14 Graphic Novel: 14

Mr. Mercedes is pretty great. Almost done season one and I can't really see it ending the storyline there. Kind of wondering how they're going to extend the plot of the novel through another season.

Jakob's Wife/Nothing Bad Can Happen: reviews forthcoming Scream And Scream Again/Malignant: reviews forthcoming, but both of these movies are bugfuck nuts. Features: 95 Shorts: 0 Documentaries: 17 Rewatches: 1

Hey, that's cool, congrats. Great company. Jason is good people.

Such sad news. I was thinking just the other day about how he'd be my pick to be High Evolutionary in the MCU.

So, I've since watched the first three seasons of SLASHER on Netflix (season 4 debuting now on Shudder but for some reason I can't access the videos). I've rewatched all of SEINFELD. It doesn't entirely hold up, but it is basically a snapshot of the 90s. That all said: Dreyfus, Alexander and Richards are three of the greatest comedic actors of all-time. They're amazing on that show. I watched season two of Making a Murderer. I don't know exactly what to think, but I do know that if I'm ever imprisoned for a crime I didn't commit, I'd want Zellner helping me. Let's not fool anybody, if I go to jail it's because I definitely did the crime. I also watched all of Marvel's M.O.D.O.K. which was delightfully stupid. One of my favourite Marvel shows. Maybe the best of all the Disney ones. What If? is something I'm watching as it releases and I have enjoyed each episode to a degree, but I haven't seen anything that really captures the spirit of WI? yet. I think that catches me up on everything.

Nate Bargatze: The Greatest Average American:An outdoor comedy special filmed during COVID. He's funny. It gets a little old near the end seeing as every story is structured the same. I wish there were some "jokes," TBH. Still good. The Guest: rewatched a favourite with my girlfriend tonight. This is one of my top 50. The script, the pacing, the camera movement, the score, the acting, the bald brutality. An absolute banger. Untold: Malice at the Palace: this is a new Netflix sports docuseries of films. I couldn't give a shit about sports, but I can eat sports docs all day long. I almost did it today! This one is fantastic. Great compelling interviews and shocking footage that has never been shown in its entirety. Good shit. Untold: Crimes and penalties: It's funny, I'd heard ALL about Jimmy Galante in a bunch of true crime I've read and watched over the years, but I had ZERO idea that he owned a minor hockey team. What a bunch of fucking goombas in this. Compelling watching as well. Almost the complete opposite of MITP because you basically hate everyone interviewed in this one. Kid 90: Soleil Moon Frye apparently documented her entire teenagehood. It's wild to watch. I really relate to this. There's probably hours of footage of me just like this shit out there. I hope it's destroyed. But still. Teared up by the end of this one. Contender for the end of the year list. Time to watch the Val Kilmer one next. Features: 91 Shorts: 0 Documentaries: 17 Rewatches: 1