Red State U.S.A Tour hit's Boston and brings the house down!

Director: Kevin Smith
Writer: Kevin Smith
Starring: Michael Parks, John Goodman, Kyle Gallner, Micheal Angarano,
Nicholas Braun and Stephen Root
Distrubuted by: Smodcast Pictures
Website: http://www.coopersdell.com/

Filmmaker Kevin Smith rolled into Boston Sunday night and brought with him a little flick called Red State. Since the movie premiered at Sundance in January there has been a lot of chatter regarding Red State, some positive, some negative, some things I agree with and some things I don't. One thing that anyone has to admit is that all of this talk has generated a whole heap of buzz for the flick and that is really the whole point of the Red State U.S.A Tour.  A word of mouth tour targeted at Smith's audience, designed to get them into the seats, show them the flick and then send them out into the world to talk about it. Smith himself said he doesn't care how you talk about the movie, whether you love it or hate it just talk about it and if last night is anything to go by it seems to be working. Admittedly forking out for a ticket on the tour set me back around 7 times more than a regular movie ticket would and there are a lot of people out there crowing about that fact. I think when you take into account the fact that the movie is introduced by the dude who wrote and directed it, then he sat in the audience to watch the flick with his audience and came right back out on the stage after to do a QnA session. It all adds up to a unique experience that you are unlikely to find anywhere else and, for me at least, was worth every penny. Honestly it is, check it out for yourself, tickets are still on sale at http://www.coopersdell.com/ you won't regret it.

Faster BD Review

Faster is the latest starring vehicle for wrestler-turned-actor Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson...apologies but I gotta say it. Finally The Rock has come back to the genre that made him a star...and it's a good thing. I will never understand the action stars need to delve into family comedy drivel, but that's beside the point. Despite his quick charm and easy smile, which doesn't make a single appearance in this flick, Johnson's wheelhouse is most definitely action. Yes Faster is an action movie, but it's a surprisingly deep action movie. It differs from a lot of it's peers in that it tries to be a little more grown up and serious. With deeper character development than most of us are used to.

The Pull List 03/02/11

After a couple of weeks off due to real life getting in the way The Pull List is back for 03/02. The format will stay the same with my picks for the week up front, then a few notable other releases if any and finally a link to the full distribution list from Diamond Comics. The big two both have a couple of books on my list this week and there is also the next issue of the awesome Chew from Image. 

Astonishing Thor #3
Marvel Comics

Asgard is in ruins, and now-the infamous Grey Gargoyle strikes! In search of the fabled Apples of Idunn which gives immortality to the gods themselves, the rock-like horror will stop at nothing to achieve the endless life he has so long sought. He invades the fabled, though fallen city, turning all before him to unmoving stone in his awful quest. And it seems as if not even the Thunder God himself can give the Grey Gargoyle pause.

Azreal #18

DC Comics

Azrael has reached the end of his pilgrimage only to face the native threat of the zealous Fireball! What really separates these two men of faith? And what purpose does Ra's al Ghul intend to serve 

Brightest Day #21

DC Comics

As the end of BRIGHTEST DAY approaches, our returned heroes and villains begin converging in one area as the ultimate protector reveals itself against the ultimate menace!

Chew #17 
Image Comics


Bullied nerd Peter Pilaf goes all 'food-columbine' on the students of Francis Bacon High. Plus: fun with astronauts.

Daken: Dark Wolverine #6

Marvel Comics

Daken's plans to undermine the criminal underworld of Madipoor are falling into place! But will the most dangerous men and women in the world simply topple where they stand - or will Daken find the tables turned...and his neck in a noose?

Deadpool #33.1

Marvel Comics

Special Point One issue. START READING with this Point One issue. Deadpool has risen to prominence, thanks to the immense talent of Daniel Way. And if you haven't been reading Deadpool, now is the time to delve into the Merc With A Mouth's twisted world! The Wrecker, an immensely powerful psychopath, is on the loose and wreaking havoc. There's only one person to call...Deadpool!

Incognito: Bad Influences #4

Marvel Icon

Zack Overkill has plunged into the super-criminal underworld on a deadly mission that's made him question everything. Now he's come face-to-face with his target, and things just got a hell of a lot worse. And so with every issue, our Professor of Pulp Culture, Jess Nevines is back with another great essay on forgotten pulp history, available only in the single issues of INCOGNITO.

5 Ronin #1
Marvel Comics


It is 17th century Japan, a time and place of violent upheaval, wandering Ronin, and mysterious Geisha. Into this strange and dangerous world come Wolverine, Pyslocke, Punisher, Hulk and Deadpool. Five of Marvel's greatest heroes…as you've never seen them before. Each has been wronged by a powerful tyrant. Each has taken a solemn vow…of vengeance!

Ultimate Captain America #3
Marvel Comics

Captain America has seen things no soldier should ever see, been to places that no man should be able to return, and beaten foes that no other hero could put down. Now, in the jungles of Cambodia, one man will push Captain America to, and past his limits. And Cap may not come back! The superstar team of Jason Aaron and Ron Garney bring you a brutal story you will NOT want to miss! 

The Best of the Rest...

Powers #7

Marvel Comics

God is dead! And Walker and Sunrise are investigating his murder. Yeah. God. Don't believe me? Then buy the book and find out what's going on in this cops and capes drama that has NO RULES!! Oh, and Deena Pilgrim returns and the how and why is going to surprise you!! All that and Retro Girl finds herself infected with a deadly alien virus. 

Avengers Academy #10

Marvel Comics

The return of the Wasp? The return of Korvac? It's two book-shaking issues in one month - and issue #12 guest-stars the Avengers! First it's a 'day in the life' of the students, with special guest instructors Protector and Dr. Strange! Then Thor, Steve Rogers, Iron Man and more assemble as one of Earth's Mightiest Heroes' most powerful villains storms the school as Korvac comes back! 

Heroes for Hire #4

Marvel Comics

Featuring Falcon, Paladin, Misty Knight and Iron Fist! Who is really pulling the strings at Heroes For Hire? Misty thinks she knows, but does even the bionic detective realize how much trouble she's in? It's more awesome street-level action and intrigue featuring some of Marvel's coolest heroes in the most unconventional team book ever!

That's it for another week, check out the link below for the full Diamond Distribution list.

 

Diamond Distribution list 03/02/11

Morning Glories #7 Review

In just seven issues Nick Spencer and Joe Eisma have crafted a fairly unique, vastly intriguing and mysterious title with Morning Glories. It's one of the best creator owned books to launch last year and it has had a consistently strong story. That continues this week as Spencer shifts his focus from the group to just one, Zoe. This is her issue, we learn a little bit about her past but all the while Spencer wraps it up in more mystery and you leave with more questions than you entered with. Which is not a bad thing at all. As well as focusing on Zoe they also show a little more of the academy. The evil, murdering establishment has a cheer leading squad for example, no surprise there then some high schoolers would say they are the epitome of evil douche-bags. So they fit in well at MGA. 

Zoe is still pissed at not being clued into on Casey's plan from a couple issues ago and stomps off to find more 'popular' friends. She finds the head cheerleader and we learn that she used to be one in her old school. This issue is all about learning how Zoe ticks, she is shown as a child in India where she witnessed her father murder her mother and already has some scary abilities, she accidentally killed a teacher at her old school and covered it up. All this information she gives voluntarily when prompted but when asked the question 'Who is David?' she bolts. All this was a facade perpetrated by the higher up's in the school, seemingly to find out who David is. The last thing we learn about poor little orphan Zoe is that her first murder may have been an accident but the next one? Not so much. Whoever David is she definitely doesn't want to talk about him. 

The thing I love about this book is just how much Nick Spencer manages to suck me in, then he delivers a great story that often leaves me scratching my head and yet I still go back for more every month. That's a staple of great writing, I don't need to know everything, I don't even have to have my question's answered, I just want to be entertained. In this respect Morning Glories  is certainly living up to the comparisons with the stellar Lost that have been thrown around since the book launched. Eisma's art is servieable again, not perfect but there is a massive amount of potential there and it's never what I would call bad, just inconsistent in parts. His characters look great though and they definitely fit the setting well. I like the direction the series is taking and I hope we will get some more issues focused on the single characters so Spencer can flesh them out for us before revealing more of the over arching plot.

Writer - Nick Spencer
Artist - Joe Eisma
Colors - Alex Sollazzo
Letters - Johnny Lowe
Cover - Rodin Esquejo
Publisher - Image Comics   

Iron Man #501 Review

In the past month we have been treated to two great issues of Invincible Iron Man issue #500 saw the conclusion of the 'Resilient' story line and the expertly written #500.1 gave us a recap of the entire Iron Man story in the unique form of an AA meeting. With issue #501 Matt Fraction and Salvador Larroca start a new arc entitled 'Fix Me'. The story opens with the first meeting of two gifted scientists, one a cocky, brash young man, Tony Stark and the other an insecure, yes man, Dr. Otto Octavius. Their first meeting isn't exactly a success with Octavius' dismissal of Stark's 'God Number' theory, the minimum amount of moves that any problem can be solved in. Their next meeting goes even less smoothly, while Tony watches an interview he did talking up the future of the 'Resilient' brand he is attacked by Doc. Ock who threatens to detonate a nuclear bomb in the middle of the city if Stark doesn't meet him face to face. He issues a challange, let's find out who is smarter, seems the old Doc is still smarting from that meeting all those years ago at the technology symposium and now, in true psycho fashion, he thinks he has found a way to get his own back. He tells Stark that he's dying and unless he fixes him, like he managed to fix himself and regain his mind after what Osborn did to him, he will detonate the nuclear bombs and let the whole world know that it's Tony Stark's fault, that he could have prevented it all if he had just admitted he wasn't smart enough to fix Doc Ock. 

That's what it all boils down to, he sees the way to beat the man is to attack his ego, drag him down by forcing him to attempt the impossible. As insurance he had Electro and Sandman kidnap one of Stark's employees, Tim, and he will die if Doc Ock stops checking in. In his madness he thinks his ultimate victory over Tony Stark will be for him to say 'I can't fix you'. In a nice little exchange Stark lays out his opinion on the Doc, he's nothing but a sad rip off artist whose 'octobots' are sad copies of old Stark tech and the reason why he has never appeared on Starks radar since the symposium is simply because he isnt worth his time. Then in true Tony Stark fashion he gets to work proclaiming 'I'm going to fix you, you sad weird bastard'. Just when you thought things couldn't get more interesting, Pepper show's up an Tim's apartment separated from Electro and Sandman by nothing but a door. Could we see Rescue in a little smack down with 1/3 of the Sinister Six. I hope so.

Overall it's a nice start to the next arc, I'm a fan of Fractions writing the more and more I read him and the quality continues here. I like his take on Tony Stark a lot, he really makes you believe that Tony is changing but there is still that old arrogance bubbling away and the possibility that he could implode at any time is always there. When I first started reading this series I have to admit I wasn't a massive fan of Larroca's art style but as the series continued it grew on me and now I couldn't imagine the book without his unique brand of visuals. Invincible Iron Man is still one of the most quality titles to hit the stands month to month and with Marvel seemingly pushing a return of the Sinister Six pretty hard over multiple titles I am interested in seeing where the story will go from here.  

Writer - Matt Fraction
Artist - Salvador Larroca
Colors - Frank D'Armata
Letters - Joe Caramagna
Cover - Salvador Larroca
Publisher - Marvel Comics

Detective Comics #874 Review

Remember the back up story from the first 2 issues of Scott Snyder's smash hit 'Black Mirror' story that focused on the return of Commissioner Gordon's son James Gordon Jnr? Good, because that means you have been doing the sane thing and reading Scott Snyder's great run on Detective Comics. Anyway, when DC announced their 'Drawing the line at $2.99' initiative, as a caveat they decided to remove the back up stories from their books so we never got to see the conclusion of that story. Until now. Scott Snyder took what would have been the final chapter of the back up story and wove it into a larger story featuring Batman and Red Robin, that story is Detective Comics #874. The first half of the issue continues the meeting of Gordon and his son, it's a creepy, overtly dark encounter that finally gives us some first hand insight into the character of James Gordon Jnr. He doesn't seem to be a very nice person and freely admits to being a psychopath. Blithely making jokes about cutting off a waitresses head and stuffing it into the toilet, a nice touch here is how they show the slow trickle of water coming from the bathroom giving the impression that he could have indeed done just that. The undertone created in the first two parts of this story were that Jimmy Jr returning was not a good thing and that he couldn't be trusted, that perception is solidified here as he comes off as a little bit sinister with an air of the crazies. References to Dick not trusting him, the Peter Pan killer and the death of his sister Barbara's friend Bess further add to the overall picture that Snyder is trying to reveal to us bit by bit. Slowly filling in his back story and giving us the impression that his return is no going to be easy on the commish. Gordon opening the bathroom door to find that the water coming under the door is because the sinks have been filled with rolls of toilet paper and left running. Stupid practical joke or the seeds of a manipulative mind game by an admitted psychopath?

As we follow the water down the drain it takes us to the second part of the story and to a Batman still recovering from the effects of the toxin used on him last issue, teamed with Tim Drake AKA Red Robin. This segue into a seemingly unrelated story is not only done well from an art point of view with the water draining and flowing to the outlet pipe at the docks where Dick and Tim are but handled expertly by the first line of dialogue on the page "You're fooling yourself again". A reference not only to the current scene and Batman's refusal to admit the toxin is still in his system but to the previous scene and Gordon's willingness to sit and listen to his son. It's a damned effective little piece of storytelling. The second part of the story is a little more standard Batman fare but call's back to the original story in the form of one of the missing birds from the aviary. Tendrils of this story are already tying back to the return of James Gordon Jnr. The dynamic duo bust up the animal smuggling ring hampered a little by the effects of the toxin still in Batman's system. In the end though they are still no closer to finding out who or what is behind the whole thing.

Overall this issue was really good, Snyder's writing was on point and the way he wove both stories together to give a complete issue that didn't feel disjointed in anyway was awesome. I love his approach to the Jim Jnr angle, by not just hitting us with a deluge of information and instead dropping breadcrumbs for us to follow it really adds to the whole mystery and overall atmosphere of the story. Speaking of atmosphere Francavilla's art is about as atmospheric as it gets. The muted, limited color palette only adds a great brooding aspect to the whole show and his bold textures really work well. He deserves just as much credit for the beutiful transistion between stories, with his depiction of something as simple as water running it's course and findings it way out to sea, as Snyder does for his bridging dialogue. They really play well off each other and one just wouldn't work without the other. It's looks like the darker, seedier view of Gotham is going to continue in future issues and I for one can't wait. Even after just four issues I would recommend that any fan of, not only Batman, but mystery books in general should start to pick up Snyder's run on Detective Comics.

Writer - Scott Snyder

Artist - Francesco Francavilla

Colors - Francesco Francavilla

Letters - Jared K Fletcher

Cover - Francesco Francavilla

Publisher - DC Comics   

American Vampire #12 Review

For the past 12 months American Vampire has been one of the best books out there. Consistently scoring high with reviewers and gaining plaudits for creator/writer Scott Snyder and artist Rafael Albuquerque. All well deserved. Albuquerque has taken time off from the internal art for the past few issues, providing only the cover art, while they gear up for the next arc. The art this issue is provided by Danijel Zezelj and his style fits the overall feel of the book well, as have all of the artists chosen to fill in for Albuquerque. This issue is a nice little stand alone story featuring Skinner Sweet, the original American Vampire. He is attending the performance of a traveling show that happens to be about him and how he was captured by Jim Book. Sweet knows the guy in charge and takes exception with how his story is being portrayed. He provides his own version of the narrative alongside Colonel Seldom French as he introduces famous faces from the time of the frontier, Sweet's version is much more entertaining. Sweet has had his fill of the show when Frenchie announces one last relic from the past, famed prostitute and lover of Skinner Sweet, Kitty Banks. Until he hears she is the one responsible for turning him over to Jim Book.

Obviously this peaks Sweet's interest and pisses him off a teensy bit, enough to rip the head offa the actor playing him and fill the guns with real bullets. One little introduction and the maiming of Frenchie later and all hell breaks loose. Sweet leaves the little people to duke it out and goes to confront Kitty, in her drug induced haze she thinks he is a dream and freely admits to turning him in. Just as his is about to get his payback she tells him why, she did it for him, so he could go out in the blaze of glory he always wanted. Kitty just wasn't expecting Book to show up and take him out, she could see the end of the wild west that Sweet knew was coming and she wanted to save him from it. Sweet excepts her explanation and allows her to live, he even offers to turn her but thinking she is still dreaming she declines. He leaves as she walks back into her wagon which is about to be engulfed in flames. Sweet hops a plane to California where the American Vampire story started 12 issues ago. 

It's a nice move by Scott Snyder bringing the whole thing full circle for the 12th issue, I was afraid this issue would be more of a filler leading into the epic World War II arc that starts next month but it was much more than that. The story stands up well on it's own and it's cool to have that little piece of how Skinner Sweet ended up in LA meeting Pearl filled in. The dueling narratives of Seldom French and Sweet works really well, their differing accounts of how the players and the events played out are very entertaining. The art is great again this issue, whoever chose the artists to fill in while Albuquerque was away did a fantastic job and even with the break in artists the feel of the book is never fragmented at all. As good as the issue was I can't help but look past it to the next arc, whatever Snyder has planned for his American Vampires during WWII, I'm in. 

Writer - Scott Snyder
Artist - Danijel Zezelj
Colors - Dave McCaig
Letters - Steve Wands
Cover - Rafael Albuquerque
Publisher - Vertigo Comics

The Amazing Spider-Man #655 Review

I'll say this right up front ASM #655 is one of the best comic books I have ever read. Over the course of the years there have been plenty of remembrance issues, this isn't even the only one being released this week. So while the concept may not be original, writer Dan Slott and artist Marcos Martin have created what could possibly be the perfect eulogy issue. Following on from the death of Marla Jameson last issue the first 10 pages of the issue cover her funeral. Ten pages that smack the reader with emotional resonance, absent a single word of dialogue. Martin puts on a masterclass, the symbolism as Peter dresses for the funeral over his Spidey costume, the pain in his face as he realizes Spider-Man is to blame for Marla's death and image of him leaving the apartment while his discarded suit lays strewn across the bed is powerful stuff. What's also great is the stoic J Jonah Jameson, his expression never changes the only emotion he shows is when he holds his fathers hand for a beat. The reader is left to wonder what JJ's reaction will be once it all sinks in.

There is no lack of emotion from Pete, he can't even look at JJ and after the funeral is over and he falls asleep Dan Slott adds his tremendous writing to Martin's visuals. Pete's dreams are filled with images of the people he has been unable to save, including his Uncle Ben, Marla and Gwen Stacy. To see Ben's killer sitting down and enjoying breakfast like one of the family is jarring to say the least. In a great splash page visual from Martin, Pete runs into the people who have died over the years while he is chasing Gwen Stacy. The whole layout reminds me of the endless staircase scene from Labyrinth. After being confronted by perhaps his largest demon, his refusal to kill, Pete snaps. He relives the memory of Ben's killer passing him in the hallway only this time he handles it differently, he beats him to a bloody pulp. When he's done he looks down at the bloody, broken body of Uncle Ben expressing his disappointment with him for what he has resorted to. Then he is posed the ultimate question by Marla "what will you do now?". His answer? That he's done accepting things the way they are, no matter where he is from now on no one is going to die while he is around. Unfortunately for him you just can't save everybody, as the final page proves. 

It's a pretty special book that makes me think about changing how my rating system works, giving this book the highest rating I can is a gimme but it stands head and shoulders above some of the books that have also earned that ranking. It's just that good. Martin's art work is inspired, from the entire funeral scene, to the great dream sequences it's all exquisite. Slott is firing on all cylinders again, the vulnerable damaged side of Peter Parker is shown in all it's glory during the dream sequence. The struggle that he goes through to not let himself slip and become the murderer he could so easily be is shown with a quiet elegance. It's definitely a treat for me to have such a fantastic creative force as Dan Slott writing one of my favorite Marvel characters, I can't wait to see what he and the house of ideas come up with next. 

Writer - Dan Slott
Artist - Marcos Martin
Colors - Muntsa Vincente
Letters - Joe Caramagna
Publisher - Marvel Comics

All-Star Superman BD Review

The original incarnation of All-Star Superman was a 12 issue comic book series written by seminal comic book author Grant Morrison and drawn by Frank Quitely. It was an attempt by DC Comics to have one of their most iconic hero's stripped down and retooled by one of the best writers in the biz. Morrison made it look easy and the result is one of the finest comic book runs of the past decade. To say it's beloved by the legions of comic book fans around the world is an understatement, now DC and Warner Animation are bringing this tale of the Man of Steels final months to Blu-Ray and DVD. Expectations are obviously pretty high. 

All-Star Superman begins with Superman (James Denton) attempting to save the first manned mission to the sun which has been sabotaged by Lex Luthor (Anthony LaPaglia). In an ingenious and diabolical plan Luthor uses Superman's greatest asset, his invulnerability, against him. Knowing that Supes is the only person who would be able to get close enough to the sun to save the shuttle he mutates one of the crew and controls him remotely from earth, Superman manages to throw the kryptonite charged mutant into the sun and the resulting solar flare over-saturates his cells with power. What has always been the source of his power, earth's yellow sun, becomes his death sentence. His cells are now supercharged and destroying themselves from within, solar-cancer if you will. Once this information sinks in Superman sets out to make his final months on earth meaningful.

The first step for him is to reveal his true identity to Lois Lane (Christina Hendricks), Lois has a hard time believing that the clumsy Clark Kent is the man of steel but goes with it. He designs a super-serum based on her genetic code that will give her his powers but none of his vulnerabilities for 24 hours. What follows are almost episodic adventures some featuring Lois some not, it is based on a comic book after all and they have tried to be as faithful to the source material as possible. Competing with arrogant deities for Lois' affections, answering the unanswerable question posed by the mighty Sphinx, interviewing his murderer Lex Luthor as Clark Kent in an attempt to understand the power mad megalomaniac, escaping from a power obsorbing monster at the prison, encountering 2 fellow kryptonians who intend to rule earth rather than protect it and the inevitable showdown with  Lex (who manages to get his hands on the super serum for himself giving him powers equal to Supes). All this before his final humanity saving effort to stop the sun from turning blue at the hands of an almost unstoppable entity, the mission that finally leads to his apparent 'death'.

If it sounds like a busy 77 minutes, that's because it is, fortunately it never feels overly complicated or messy. Each story element is handled well and all the major players are given the opportunity to flesh themselves out a little. Thanks in no part to director Sam Liu and Producer Bruce Timm sticking so closely to the source material, so much so that the dialogue is literally lifted from the page ver batim in as many places as possible. Even the art is pretty faithful to Quitely's original work. While this allows them to develop the story well it also hurts them a little in as much as the original material is so rich in detail and they are obviously limited by time and other factors. Unfortunately for fans of the source material, like myself, this gives the adaptation a slight feel of paling in comparison. Not so much that it can not be enjoyed thoroughly though. Morrison himself declares his delight with this adaption giddily and often during the commentary because it is so faithful to the tone and heart of his book.

Despite this little hiccup, which won't even be a blip on the radar to anyone who hasn't read a single issue of the comic, this is probably the best DCU animated production to date. Relying on it's main character, rather than throwing a deluge of hero's at you, to carry the story definitely worked in their favor here. The voice work by all the cast is top quality, LaPaglia in particular nails the superior, crazy Luthor. If your even a casual Superman fan you owe it to yourself to check out this flick, it's perhaps one of the best man of steel stories to be put on film yet. 

Special Features:  

The special features package is particularly tight for an animated presentation, with a few exclusives including a peek at the next DCU animated feature, an audio commentary, a digital copy of All Star Superman #1 and more.

• Audio Commentary: Producer Bruce Timm and original story writer Grant Morrison deliver an informative and engaging commentary that looks at the original comic, its story, characters and Morrison's opinion of the film.
• Superman Now: Morrison, DC Comics co-publisher Dan Didio, discuss the genesis of "All-Star Superman and the many, many twists and turns Morrison applied to iconic elements of the Superman mythos
• The Creative Flow: Incubating the Idea with Grant Morrison: This featurette shows Morrison's development process on the original book.
• Virtual Comic: All-Star Superman #1: The complete first issue of the comic, definitely worth a look even to just see how faithful the feature is to the source.
• Green Lantern: Emerald Knights Sneak Peek: An extended look at the next DCU animated feature: Green Lantern: Emerald Knights featuring Nathan Fillion as the man himself Hal Jordan
• Bruce Timm's Picks: Produce Bruce Timm selects a pair of Superman: The Animated Series episodes, "Blast from the Past" parts one and two.
• Trailers and Sneak Peeks: A Superman/Batman: Apocalypse Sneak Peek, Batman: Under the Red Hood preview, theatrical trailer for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 and a videogame trailer for DC Universe Online.

Directed by: Sam Liu
Written by: Dwayne McDuffie (screenplay), Grant Morrison (story)
Starring: James Denton, Christine Hendricks and Anthony LaPaglia
Distributed by: Warner Home Video
Website: http://warnervideo.com/allstarsuperman/

Psych:9 DVD Review

Psych:9 is the debut feature length effort from both director Andrew Shortell and writer Lawrence Robinson, unfortunately it's a confusing mess of a flick that doesn't even seem to understand itself. My problem with it is this, it's standard psychological thriller fare that winds itself up in it's own convoluted story so much that by the end your left wondering exactly what happened, when and to who. 

The story revolves around Roslyn (Sara Foster) who starts a new job at a recently closed down hospital sorting out the old patient files. She'll be working mostly alone, at night, subtle set-up. There is one other person in the hospital, a psych doc working up on the fifth floor, Dr. Clement (Cary Elwes). Rosalyn bumps into him one night and they start to hang out and talk at night. This is all happening against the backdrop of someone murdering women with a hammer. Rosalyn seems to be having some marital problems and is non to happy when her husband, Cole (Gabriel Mann), shows up at her work with her lunch and begins to read the patient files. Then with no warning she scrawls 'I want my baby' on the wall of her apartment and snaps. Her talks with Dr. Clements become therapy sessions and we find out she was abused as a kid, killed her father when she was 10 and escaped being burned alive by her mother a few weeks later. Rosalyn begins to believe her husband is responsible for the murders when she realizes that all the victims were patients at the hospital whose files he could have read.  

During her therapy session's we also find out she is unable to have kids and that she was a patient herself on the psych ward after her ordeal as a child. As she slowly begins to lose it the police clear her husband but even after being told that the epicenter of all the attacks is the hospital no one seems to suspect her at all. It all comes to a head when her friend, who got her the job, shows up at work and tells her that the psych doc working on the fifth floor will finally be coming in tonight...huh? Rosalyn tells her about Clements only to be told that he WAS a doc there but he was murdered by a patient years ago. Rosalyn rushes upstairs to find the 5th floor is a mess that no one has worked on and the treatment rooms are covered in 'I want my baby' she plays the tapes from her sessions and they only have her voice on them. She's officially bat-shit crazy. Despite all this she still insists that Clements is real and he is murdering the blond women because he was killed by a blond patient and he wants revenge. This for me is were all logic get's thrown out the window. Rosalyn is on the roof, her friend Beth is murdered on the stairs. Clements shows up on the roof with a bloody hammer Rosalyn threatens to destroy all the files so he will never be able to find out who killed him, we clearly see she is yelling at nothing and she torches the files before throwing herself down a laundry chute landing right next to the blaze she just started and into a locked room. Cole manages to save her and they both get out alive. The movie closes with Rosalyn revealing that she is pregnant and has dyed her hair blond. Wtf...so who actually killed them? Is there a supernatural element at work that they just never acknowledged or was she just crazy? Why did I just sit through a movie where the best thing was the opening credit reel?

One thing is evident, Shortell has probably seen every scholocky low rent horror movie made in the last 10 years and for some reason held them up as something to aspire too. The difference here is that while horror movies like this are a dime a dozen a lot of them are actually enjoyable, Psych:9 is not. It's a clumsy, slow paced mess that makes little to no sense. Now don't get me wrong I'm not saying that I need all my films tied up in a neat little bow. There are a lot of great movies out there that have meandering, twist filled plots but the difference is in the writing, they still manage to offer the viewer some sense of completion. Taking into account that this is a first feature there are some redeeming elements, it's shot fairly well, the ambiance and lighting is decent and there are definitely some creepy moments. If you're a fan of this kind of movie then you might do OK with it, just keep in mind that it's a debut effort and you'll probably be scratching your head at the end.

Directed by: Andrew Shortell
Written by: Lawrence Robinson
Starring: Sara Foster, Cary Elwes and Gabriel Mann
Distributed by: Lionsgate Films
Website: http://www.psych9.com/

Jennifer Blood #1 Review

Are you ready for a new book by legendary writer Garth Ennis? Thought so, the man who brought us the ultra violent epic that is Preacher is back with more blood soaked awesomeness. Jennifer Blood is the story of Jennifer, bored housewife by day and leather clad female 'Frank Castle' by night. The story is delivered in an interesting way, through the voice of Jennifer's diary. Who knew that Ennis was so in touch with his feminine side? It does actually work pretty well though, talking about the day to day boredom of housewife life as nonchalantly as she compares ammo types and the process of drugging her family with Valium so they won't wake up during her nightly activities. 

Jennifer has the perfect family, hardworking husband and two kids. She cooks dinner, does homework with the kids and does the housework. Once family time is over she absconds to her home made armory in the basement dons the black leather and the black wig an becomes Jennifer Blood. Our anti-heroine heads to the docks and scopes out a car theft ring shipping overseas, things get as ridiculously messy as you would expect from Ennis and she takes out the whole gang. All of this is still being told through the mechanism of the diary, it's kinda different but it works.. Ms. Blood takes everyone out in a haze of bullets and popping heads, before she leaves we get a small clue as to her motivations for the vigilante gig. When she gets home we get a look at just how emotionally disconnected and broken she is.

I really enjoyed this book, it's not Ennis' best work but it's a whole heap of fun and the unusual delivery turns his usual hyper violent story into something just that little bit different. Adriano Batista is perhaps the perfect visual compliment to Ennis that is to say he draws violence extremely well.  It's a decent start to what could become, with some fleshing out of the characters and the action kept at this high level, a must-have series.


Writer: Garth Ennis
Artist: Adriano Batista
Colors: Romulo Fajardo Jr.
Letters: Rob Steen
Cover: Tim Bradstreet
Publisher: Dynamite Entertainment

Astonishing X-Men: Xenogenesis #5 Review

 

Warren Ellis' latest Astonishing X-Men mini series came to an end this week. It's been a fun ride that took the X-Men to Africa to investigate a potential new spate of mutant births. Turns out the babies were mutated by exposure to radiation, a particular radiation that the X-Men are familiar with, they first encountered it when aliens from a parallel universe invaded Earth. The source of the radiation is renegade mutant Jim Jaspers, he has the ability to jump between universes but it comes with a super sized dose of radiation to the surrounding area. The cherry on top? Jaspers is being hunted by The Fury - dimension traveling cyborgs - designed to kill superhumans...all of them.

The X-men are teamed up with Joseph N'Dingi to try and take the furies down while Emma attempts to calm Jasper and find a way to end the attack. Cyc and the gang are barely holding their own against The Fury but they manage to whittle them down to just one. One that Emma manages to perform some rather nice pyschic surgery on and sends him back through the Ghost Box to report that all is well and Jasper is injured and gone. She also put Jasper into a psychic coma. The X-Men plan on dealing with him later but N'Dingi has other ideas.

The story here is fun, Ellis' writing is excellent but you can't help but be struck by an intense feeling of deja vu if you are a fan of his earlier work. It's very similar in feel to the great Captain Britain story Jaspers Warpies. It's something that is easily overlooked though once you get into the story. The one thing that wasn't as easy for me to overlook is Kaare Andrews take on the X-Men. Yeah Storm looks badass back in her mohawk and Wolvie looks like he always does for the most part but the rest? Emma looks like an Asian munchkin whose psychic power resides in her mammary glands, Beast looks like one of those cats that have been dropped on their face from 12 story's and Cyclops is a cartoon version of James Marsden. As with all things in life there will be people who disagree with me and that's fine, this is just my opinion and my distaste for the artwork didn't hinder me from enjoying the book as a whole.

Writer: Warren Ellis
Artist: Kaare Andrews
Colors: Frank D'Armata
Letters: Joe Caramagna
Publisher: Marvel Comics

The Amazing Spider-Man #654.1 Review

I have to admit I am torn here, if I am going to be all anal about it and insist on reviewing this as a Spider-Man book it scores pretty low. Why? Well Spider-Man isn't even in it for one thing and Pete only appears in one panel (not counting the final two pages of here's what's coming stuff). If I decide to look at it as just a comic book for entertainment purposes then it scores pretty high. Which is what I decided to do, why? 'cause I fucking love Venom! That's basically what this is, it's Venom #0.1 written by Dan Slott, firmly set in the time-line established in ASM #654.

It's Venom all the way this issue, we get to see Flash on his first official mission for Project Rebirth 2.0. It's a suave 007-esque affair that see's him go from infiltration to full on tux wearing ballroom dancing with his sultry target. The transition from symbiote uniform to tux by Humberto Ramos looks awesome, as do all the panels he get's to bust out old school Venom in. The rules of this new military ruled Venom are laid out for us, Flash can only wear the suit for 48 hours at a time and for a maximum of 20 missions. The integrity of the symbiote is tested on removal to make sure no bonding has occured. 

Leading on from that mission is Flash's second foray in the suit this time it's less 007 more Schwarzenegger as he is air dropped into a compound alone to retrieve and protect an asset. Unfortunately he is cut off from his handler and the terrorists manage to find a psychological trigger point for Flash, the loss of his legs. This gives the symbiote a chance to grasp control and we get a glimpse of the Venom of old as he tears through everyone. Flash manages to regain control in time to make the rendezvous and it's mission accomplished. When the symbiote is removed there is only 99% of it returned to containment...uh oh. 

Overall this is a good introduction to the Venom series, it's not without it's issues and for me it kind of pissed in the face of Marvel's .1 initiative. This is not a jumping on point for Amazing Spider-Man, yes the last 2 pages show a little of what is to come in ASM but it doesn't make up for a whole issue about another character. Despite how fucking cool some of what is coming looks. While Slott is a great writer and he has done amazing things with the book since taking over, I have to question the wisdom of having a new book introduced by a writer and artist team who are so stylistically different from the actual team starting the Venom series. That is something that can't be leveled at Slott though his writing is on point again and you really get a feel for what drives Flash now and his vulnerabilities. 

It will be very interesting to see how the series itself handles the 48 hour, 20 mission paradox. Especially seeing as it hasn't even started yet and they are already 2 missions down. It's already clear how easily the symbiote will be able to take control if Flash experiences any kind of psychological trauma and the glimpse we get of how the whole situation effects his private life certainly has some interesting possibilities. The fact that he instinctively attempts to stand up and go to comfort Betty could show just how much the two aspects of his life are clashing already. Good book with a decent by the numbers story and some great art but it will motivate more people to buy Venom #1 than ASM #655 and that really shouldn't have been the point should it?


Writer: Dan Slott
Art: Humberto Ramos, Carlos Cuevas
Colors: Edgar Delgado
Letters: Joe Caramagna
Cover: Paulo Siquiera
Publisher: Marvel

Being Human UK 'The Pack' Review

Holy %&$*...this is what all television should be. Seriously, I don't know how some of the shows on British TV can even show their faces when there are shows like Being Human for them to aspire too. After what many saw as a brief hiccup last week 'the Pack' had BH back on blistering form. Some of you may have noticed that I didn't review the last couple of weeks episodes, real life got hectic and I just didn't have time, so let me touch on a couple of plot points that have call backs this week. In episode 2 'Adam's Family' we met a new vampire couple Richard and Emma, to say that these gimp owning, swingers were a tad strange is a bit of an understatement. Richard popped up to let Mitchel know that there are some very powerful vampires, the old ones, that are not thrilled with him for his part in the box tunnel 20 massacre and they wanted him shipped overseas out of the spotlight. Last week in 'Type 4' the big news was that George and Nina are pregnant, the baby conceived after their night of wolf lovin'. The relationship between Annie and Mitchell went to the next level and his guilt over the tunnel murders was tempered somewhat by Annie telling him that she doesn't care about his past. Those are just a couple of things that lead on into this episode, if anyone is interested in hearing my thoughts on those episodes sound off in the comments and i will throw something up for them, I just didn't want to be stuck 2 weeks behind.
 
McNair and Tom are back for this episode and we get a first glimpse of just how young Tom was when he turned. George and Nina have got over the shock of finding out about the baby and are now focused on trying to find out if the baby will survive the change with the full moon fast approaching. That leads them to seek out Tom to see if he knows anything, what they find is a rather unfriendly, axe-wielding McNair who tells them they can't help them. Tom thinks otherwise and visits them that night to leave a gift for Nina, Mitchell catches him and understandably over reacts given the threat of the 'wolf-shaped bullet' hanging over his head. Blood is drawn before McNair arrives to break up the fight and we find out he isn't the biggest fan of vampires, the way he sees it is blood for blood and he intends to collect from Mitchell for drawing Tom's.

After Tom tells them that he was born a werewolf Nina has him visit her at the hospital to have some tests ran, she is not confident that McNair has been completely forthcoming with Tom. After checking his DNA against missing persons she has to break the news to him that he wasn't born a werewolf and that he went missing when he was just a baby but the bodies of his parents were found, the victims of an apparent animal attack. He confronts McNair who has to finally be honest with him and tell him that he killed his parents while he was transformed but when he went back to the campsite he found Tom and knew ha had to take him in and raise him. As noble an act as that may have been after such a tragedy the misguided attempt to keep this all from Tom and his lies about the titular Pack they have been supposedly tracking prove too much for Tom and he flees the hospital.

With George tackling a somewhat serious story this week the light comic relief falls to Annie, at least the small amount there is in this overtly dark and serious episode. Said comic relief is provided in the form of trying to figure out the nuances of un-dead and dead-dead sexy time. Annie gets a little frustrated with Mitchell's lack of reaction 'downstairs' to their make out session. Leading to an hilarious attempt at dirty talk from Annie, it makes you wonder how she ever got any action if this is her a-game. She does come up with another plan, a plan that anyone could see was doomed from the start, she wants Mitchell to pull a girl in the club take her back to their place and do the nasty so she can experience it with him psychically. Yeah cause that sounds like a stellar idea. The result isn't quite what she expected when the more aroused Mitchel gets the more animalistic he becomes until he can't take it anymore and the fangs come out ready to drink her dry. Annie manages to stop him before he can kill her but it does hit home just how hard it is for Mitchell to do what he does everyday, and even though he struts around seemingly full of confidence he could actually be the most vulnerable house member. You can't help but think that regardless of how Annie and the others see his past for his own sanity the truth will have to come out eventually.

Mitchel decides to see just how much of a threat McNair could be to him while the others are at the hospital with Tom, what he finds doesn't exactly assuage any fears. It seems McNair's problem with vampires goes a lot farther back than his first encounter with the dog fight vamps. With this threat hanging over his head Mitchell reaches out to Richard in an attempt to have McNair picked up and thrown back into the 'dog' fights. Plans motivated by fear never do seem to work out the way you want them and this is no different, when the vampires turn up to pick up McNair they find Tom instead, along with Nina and George fight to the death it's up to Mitchell and McNair to put their differences aside and save the day.

What follows is one of the best sequences of Being Human so far. McNair and Mitchell attack the vamps and manage to free the three captives, now with 4 werewolves all in the process of changing it's a bloodbath for the vampires. After Richard warns Mitchell of the retribution coming from the old ones for his refusal to leave and his actions now he is quickly dispatched by a mean looking half changed McNair. The scene closes with Mitchell  forced to lock himself in the cage with Annie while the 4 wolves fight to get inside. Everyone is unscathed the next day, physically at least, you can still see the guilt weighing heavily on Mitchell for his part in the guys being taken. McNair and Tom leave but not without a chilling parting shot to Mitchell.

Another stand out episode for season 3. The acting was spot on, Robson Greene was a no-brainer to play McNair and his portrayal of the tough-as-nails, meanest dog on the block is perfect. Tovey was able to slip into his serious acting shoes pretty well and the emotional range being shown by Turner week in and week out is a treat to watch. With Richard gone now that storyline seems mostly tied up but I can't help but feel that Emma will show up for a revenge appearance before seasons end. The McNair/Tom story also seems to be tied up now, hopefully they will make another appearance down the line but it doesn't seem as solid a prospect as Emma's reappearance for me. I don't think it was specifically addressed but it was implied that all was well with the baby after the full moon. I'm not sure the whole baby subplot was needed to be honest and call me cynical but I can only see it going one of three ways, either it ends in tragedy and the baby doesn't survive something wolfy further down the road, it ends with Nina taking the baby away or it ends with the baby joining the group which I think would alter the dynamic too much so soon after the edition of Nina. I can give the writers the benefit of the doubt that they have something fulfilling in mind for all us viewers out there but I guess we will just have to wait and see.

One thing that is known about the future is that Herrick will be returning next week and by the looks of it he is a shadow of the vamp we knew, kinda bat-shit crazy too. What will it mean for the gang and how did he find them in Wales when he doesn't seem to be in control of even half a marble? I dunno but I can't wait to find out.

Azrael #17 Review

The less said about last months debacle the better in my eyes. The difference between this issue and the last is night and day, or in Azrael's case life and death. Azrael is back from the dead thanks to Ra's Al Ghul and the Lazarus pit, why we don't know yet and how Ra's fits in with the Order of Purity, well we really don't know that either. Again no real questions are answered but where this issue stands above last months is that the story here is actually pretty good so I can live with being in the dark some more.

Michael Lane has come back from the dead, he's different, more focused and now very suspicious of Father Day after learning the secret of the Order. He has been given a new mission, to find the Brother's of the Sword, a radical religious sect hiding somewhere in Afghanistan. The Brotherhood has acquired a new weapon, one they call 'Fireball'. Fireball is a young man who seems to have some pyrokinetic powers. The Brotherhood call him Malak al-malut, the angel of death who we all know is commonly named Azrael.

Much, much better this month. Writer David Hine touches on some intriguing possibilities for what the Lazarus pit has actually done to Lane. He fights with the knowledge of every wearer of the suit of sorrows. Has a dip in the pit finally broken the curse that has taken the sanity of every wearer the suit has had before? Hine is very smart in the way he scripted this issue, on the surface it seems Lane is back and ready to take up the mantle of Azrael once more but you can't help but think that there is something more sinister hiding beneath the surface. Cliff Richards art is better this time around, his use of detail, color and angles work particular well. I'm glad things are starting to look up again for one of the most unique books on my pull list. 

Writer: David Hine
Art: Cliff Richards
Colors: Tomeu Morey
Letters: Dave Sharpe
Cover: Guillem March
Publisher: DC Comics