Category Archives: Marvel
Hooray, the New Scarlet Spider is Back!
So I’ve noticed for awhile now that I’ve been slacking in my blogging. I post a List of Six on Wednesdays and comic book reviews on Saturdays, and then pretty much just Youtube videos every other day. That’s no way to blog! That’s no way to Internet! I haven’t gone on a good rant in awhile. Or written something just for the fun of it.
Well that’s hopefully going to change. I need to take back this space and have some actual fun with it. And from now on, that’s going to include just some quick, fun posts about my pop culture thoughts. I don’t need to do full length movie reviews for everything I see; a quick review is good too. And when something happens in comics that I like, I should mention that too!
For example, as the headline suggests, Kaine is back!
Sorry for the spoilers
I used to do full length reviews of the Scarlet Spider series back in the day because I’m a huge fan of the character. Then he was killed in Spider-Verse and that was sad. Well time heals all comic book wounds, and Kaine returned in the second issue of Clone Conspiracy this week!
This is just fun news.
I’m not going to spoil too much of Clone Conspiracy for anybody. Just gonna say that Kaine seems to be doing something heroic, and that’s pretty cool. I hope writer Dan Slott has some fun plans for him.
That’s our Kaine!
To explain why I care, the original Clone Saga in the 1990s was my first real entry into comics. I started out reading the leftovers from when my dad collected in the 60s and 70s, but the 90s was when my brother and I really dove in for ourselves, and Spider-Man was our entry point. We loved the Clone Saga, and especially loved Ben Reilly, the original Scarlet Spider. Kaine was cool too.
Flash forward to now, and while Ben died a long time ago, Kaine continues to be an ever-evolving character who is actually a pretty cool guy. He’s this jerk clone of Peter Parker who still has spider-powers and is trying to sort of do some good with his life. He’s like Spider-Man’s jackass cousin, and is definitely the best lasting effect from the original Clone Saga.
So yeah, Kaine is back in Spider-Man comics. I like that.
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Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 11/5/16
Welcome to the last batch of comic book reviews before the possible ending of the world! I’d like to think we had some truly amazing comics in these, our final days, but they were mostly alright — except for two utterly outstanding comics.
Not only did Harley Quinn mostly stick the landing of their excellent rock & roll story, and not only did Unworthy Thor finally bring about the return of Beta Ray Bill, but writer Dennis Hopeless delivered the Spider-Woman issue he’s probably been waiting years to bring us. The man is brutal. Comic Book of the Week by a mile.
Thumpety Thump Thump
Also, if you live in America, be sure to vote on Tuesday!
Comic Reviews: Champions #2, Harley Quinn #7, Nightwing #8, Spider-Woman #13 and Unworthy Thor #1.
Movie Review: Doctor Strange
By the Crimson Bands of Cytorrak, Marvel Studios have done it again! The mystical and magical Doctor Strange is another entertaining success, blending some wild visuals and inventive action with a pretty great cast of characters. It definitely follows the Marvel formula at this point, but as a comic book geek who has loved every Marvel movie so far, that doesn’t really bother me.
Sure, I wasn’t blown away by any sort of masterpiece, but I had a blast at Doctor Strange.
Movie Rating: 8/10 – Very Good.
Marvel makes good movies. They might not be Oscar worthy or emotionally powerful, but considering how enjoyable their movies have been, that sort of thing would be extra icing on the cake. Marvel produces solid, worthwhile entertainment using a variety of interesting characters, tapping into different genres and movie styles to at least try something new each time. Doctor Strange is a crazy CGI roller coaster that doesn’t get bogged down in the computer madness. The movie never loses touch of Benedict Cumberbatch in the lead role. And it has fun with all the weird and wild concepts it introduces.
Considering everything already in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Doctor Strange succeeds in carving out its own niche and making us eager for more. I can’t wait to see some of these characters again and learn more about their mystical world.
Join me after the jump for my full review! There will definitely be MAJOR SPOILERS for Doctor Strange.
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 10/29/16
Happy Halloween, everyone! Or close enough! Sadly, there weren’t any spooky comics on my pile this week. It’s like everybody forgot about the holiday! Though I suppose the fact that the greatest comic book Halloween story has already been written might deter others from trying. Oh well.
Still, at least we had some good comics this week from some of my favorites. Power Rangers, Ms. Marvel and Detective Comics were all a blast. This week also saw the debuts of the new Prowler series from Marvel and the new Teen Titans from DC. You’d think I’d be super psyched about both of those things, but you would be wrong. Comic Book of the Week instead goes to the new Silver Surfer for a particularly fun and enjoyable done-in-one story.
The Silver Surfer knows the best dates
The latest issue of Civil War II also came out this week, but ugh, that thing is a definite stinker now. And I’m starting to fear the sort of impact it’s going to have on other, more fun comics. Will Miles Morales come out of Civil War II as anything other than damaged? Will Captain Marvel ever be a hero again? Civil War II is barely a story, but it doesn’t seem like Marvel is ever going to learn any lessons about putting out crappy, long-delayed, status quo-altering event comics.
Comic Reviews: Batgirl #4, Detective Comics #943, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #8, Ms. Marvel #12, Prowler #1, Silver Surfer #7 and Teen Titans #1.
Hench-Sized Comic Book Reviews – 10/22/16
Comics! We love them! And some more of them came out this week. I read a bunch and wrote some reviews, that I hope you’ll enjoy. We’ve got Squirrel Girl, we’ve got Doctor Doom, we’ve got Zephyr and we’ve got the Porcupine, among others. A whole cornucopia of fun comics!
Comic Book of the Week goes to Astonishing Ant-Man #13, the final issue of this wonderful series. It’s not the highest rated comic this week, and it still kind of annoys me with how poorly writer Nick Spencer handles his courtroom scenes, but gorram does this creative team have a lot of fun with their final issue.
It’s like reading a movie!
Meanwhile, The Mighty Thor gave us the origin of Mjolnir! It’s really neat, but I decided to pass on reviewing the issue. Jason Aaron writes some great side stories.
Comic Reviews: Astonishing Ant-Man #13, Faith #4, Harley Quinn #6, Infamous Iron Man #1, Nightwing #7, Spider-Woman #12 and Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #13.
Henchman-4-Hire 