Yearly Archives: 2013
Villains Month Announced for DC Comics This September
DC Comics are continuing their annual September Sales Stunt thingy this year by bringing us Villains Month, where each of the 52 comics will be taken over by a major super-villain. Not only that, but there will be a new crossover mini-series called Forever Evil spinning out of September as well. So yeah, pretty big happenings at DC this fall.
One can only hope we get Sidekicks Month next year!
Anyway, this all sounds pretty cool to me. I’m all for DC trying something new every September to boost sales, and everybody loves a good villain story. Maybe it’ll even convince me to try out some new comics to see how it works, and that would be the whole point, right? That first link shows off a lot of the villains that will be taking over. We’ll see the Joker in the pages of Batman, Two-Face in Batman and Robin, Poison Ivy in Detective Comics, Cyborg Superman in Action Comics, Darkseid in Justice League, Gorilla Grodd in Flash, and many more.
Knowing my luck, Teen Titans will probably feature one of those lame new villains Scott Lobdell created for the series, like Diesel.
Check out more after the jump!
You Could Write the Next Doctor Who!
When contemplating the Internet, one must accept that anything you could ever possibly imagine already exists in some far corner of the Information Superhighway. For example, I bring you “6 lines of Java script that write Doctor Who plots indistinguishable from the current series”, created by the fine folks at Us vs. Th3m.
Just click here and the magic of the Internet gives you a Doctor Who plot.
For example:
A malfunction sends the TARDIS hurtling towards a space station in the far-future, but Clara thinks she can hear a child’s tears. Isolated from the Doctor, Clara goes on to uncover the secret of the first Aztecs. Clara’s tears save the day. Michael Caine has a walk-on part.
Or how about:
The Doctor has vowed to return to an underwater base, but the Doctor is worried. The visitors discover the first creatures of Time Lord legends. A nostalgic 90’s pop culture reference saves the day. David Beckham guest stars.
It’s genius!
Get Caught Up on The Venture Bros. with Henchman 21!
It’s been three years since we last saw new episodes of The Venture Bros! How is that possible? What TV show operates like that? My blog, which is ostensibly named after Henchman 21, hasn’t even been around for three years!
But whatever, the show returns tonight with a new episode, and to help get everyone caught up, Adult Swim put out this Youtube video of Henchman 21 narrating the first 4 seasons. It’s quite helpful if, unlike me, you don’t watch the reruns on DVD all the time! Enjoy!
Matt Smith Is Leaving Doctor Who!
I nominate myself as the new Doctor. I did some acting in high school – and that’s about it – but I think the world is ready for an overweight, nerdy American Doctor. They’re going to need to find somebody, because actor Matt Smith is stepping down from Doctor Who at the end of the year!
He was good. He will be missed.
Aw, who am I kidding! Matt Smith was great as the 11th Doctor, and starred in some of my all-time favorite episodes of the series! In fact, I would be hard pressed to say whether Matt Smith or David Tennant is my favorite Doctor. I’ve loved Smith’s quirkiness. It’s probably his defining characteristic. He always felt like a fish out of water, even though he knew pretty much everything there was to know about whatever he was facing. Plus that bow tie is just the bee’s knees. Though, of course, it’s probably safe to say I’ve loved Smith because of the great work behind the camera by show-runner Stephen Moffat. I’m a big fan of the cinematic style Moffat brought to the show in the Smith years, as well as the serialized storytelling. Those two made a great pair, and I’m glad that Moffat will be staying on.
According to the BBC, Smith will star in the upcoming 50th Anniversary Special in November, but then die in the annual Christmas episode at the end of the year. That should be pretty sad. The Christmas episodes are always top notch for Doctor Who. Current companion Jenna Louise Coleman will be still be with the show, as will John Hurt, who is playing a mysterious version of the Doctor. So that’s pretty cool.
Now let’s say goodbye to Matt Smith with my favorite moment in all of Doctor Who!
Good times!
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 6/1/13
Are there any comic book readers who get legitimately excited when a main character is suddenly killed? After all of the deaths and resurrections in comics over the past few years, is there anybody who doesn’t just roll their eyes when a writer suddenly decides to kill a major character? A big one bites the dust at the end of Justice League of America #4 this week, and I can’t help but throw up my hands in exasperation. Even if it turns out next issue that it was all just a ruse, I still think it’s a weak storytelling crutch that comic book writers need to lay off for awhile. That Geoff Johns is responsible makes it even worse. I spoke of you so highly this week, Geoff! C’mon!
At any rate, I’ve pretty much given up on Justice League of America anyway, so a stunt like this might just be the final nail in its coffin for me. Thankfully, Marvel Comics is at the top of their game, with fun issues of New Avengers, Indestructible Hulk and the brand new X-Men. I’ve been looking forward to this series since it was first announced, both because of the all-girl experiment and for Olivier Copiel’s art. Neither one disappoints in the Comic Book of the Week.
Doop loves babies, but the feeling is clearly not mutual
Comic Reviews: Indestructible Hulk #8, Justice League of America #4, New Avengers #6, Red Hood and the Outlaws Annual #1, Wolverine and the X-Men #30 and X-Men #1.
Henchman-4-Hire 