Scooby-Doo Team-Up #42

It's a case of serious monkey business in this issue of Scooby-Doo Team-Up! Grodd, the super intelligent outlaw from Gorilla City has organized the evil simians of the DC Universe to take over the world! This is a case too big for the Mystery Gang along. So the teenage detectives call in for help. Enter Sam Simian, Congorilla and Detective Chimp!

I've praised how series writer Sholly Fisch has evolved this series away from the standard Scooby-Doo formula. Jokes about pulling the mask off of the monsters and goofy traps are still in the mix. But there's no ghosts or monsters in this story. Okay, there's a Nazi gorilla in the story. He's a monster. But how many episodes of Scooby-Doo do you remember Fred, Velma and Daphne battling agents of the Third Reich?

Dario Brizuela is on point in this story filled with more primates than the St. Louis Zoo! His technique is so classic. He's really the artist to go to in these DC crossovers.

A really exciting issue. It's jammed packed with guest stars. I'm a little disappointed that Detective Chimp wasn't used as much as he could have been. My hope is for him to return in another mystery, only maybe by himself. Or with Cain and Abel, the hosts of the House of Mystery and the House of Secrets. I'd be okay with a Halloween special with Scooby and those three supernatural characters.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Don't Get Me Confused With...

It's come to my attention that there's an entity on Tumblr who has the moniker Madman-with-a-book. He also goes on other social media as Enlightmentality. This person appearantly has several sites in which they offer counseling to abuse victims. This Madman-with-a-book is not a licensed therapist and supposedly uses some questionable techniques. They've also been accused of being emotionally and verbally abusive.

I would like to clarify that I am not that other Madman-with-a-book. I've been maintaining this blog for about 10 years now. My focus is on and has always been on books and pop culture. I do not and never have used Tumblr. Also on other platforms, I do not go by Madman With a Book.

In the past year, I have been writing as both Madman With a Book and my real name, Tony Dillard for the website Outright Geekery. But that is all.

My wife is a licensed clincacl social worker and I have written a couple of articles about mental health and autism in the realm of comic book collecting. But I have never offered counseling advice to any of my readers.

I've noticed my personal readership has gone down in the past couple of months. This is about the same time that Madman-with-a-book began his amatuer clinic. Thank you to those who have continued to read my blog. And special thanks to the reader who pointed out the other Madman-with-a-book so that I can clarify that I am not that appearantly toxic person on other social media platforms.

Scooby-Doo Team-Up #38

Dynomutt, Dog Wonder and Scooby-Doo: together again for the first time!

I had always thought that the robotic dog of a thousand gadgets and the crime solving scaredy cat pooch had paired up with each other before. But technically the two cartoon canines have never officially meet. In the late 70s, ABC television did air the Scooby-Doo/Dynomutt Hour. However, the show was comprised of 30 minutes of Scooby-Doo mystery and 30 of Dynomutt action and adventure. But never was there a crossover- until now!

In this issue, Dynomutt’s human companion, the Blue Falcon, isn't acting like himself. Instead of being gentle and kind, Blue Falcon is being kinda moody. The hero is roughing up jaywalking little old ladies and beating up litterers. Worst of all, Blue Falcon has broken up his partnership with Dynomutt!

Just what is wrong with the Blue Falcon? Dynomutt thinks his human pal might be possessed. So he calls in Scooby and the Mystery gang to find out for sure.

I had heard that Blue Falcon was a Hanna-Barbera knock-off of Batman. I don't think that comparison is so warranted. But I do see where the Dark Knight was used as source material. Yet I think any cartoony inspirations were done first out of love for the ultra-campy 1966 Batman series. Corporate greed and possible copyright infringement were a distant second and third motive.

This is another story by Sholly Fisch that doesn't follow the traditional formula of a Scooby-Doo mystery. I love it! Usually the crossovers with the Hanna-Barbera properties are silly and formulaic. That's not so here. I think in the case of this adventure, the similarities between Batman and the Blue Falcon help to add more unique elements to a Scooby-Doo caper.

Horacio Carzon and Hector Ottolini replace Dario Brizuela on art in this issue. Brizuela tends to pencil the DC crossovers of this series. For Dynomutt, I understand why they went with Carzon and Ottolini; the dog is a very fluid character with all of his souped up abilities. But why not use Brizuela to pencil Blue Falcon and everyone else? Would this have been a case of too many cooks and not enough kitchen?

A fun issue that was original. It broke the Mystery Inc mystery mold. And a few times, it made me laugh.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

Swamp Thing Halloween Horror Giant #1

The terrifying Swamp Thing is highlighted in this Walmart exclusive 100-page Halloween special. The big box chain has had a fair amount of success with its line of exclusive 100-page specials published by DC Comics. Each special features a 15-20 page all-new story, along with around 80 pages of reprinted material.

Most of the material reprinted so far has been of New 52 or Rebirth issues. So the lure of lone new story hasn’t swayed me to making my local Walmart my new LCS. Yet, there’s always something special with a holiday special. Whether it be related to Christmas, Halloween or Arbor Day, I am a sucker for a holiday-themed comic book. So what if the book has stories that I’ve read before?! If the book has got something new, even if it’s just a one-pager or a revised cover- if it’s got some sort of holiday cheer (on in this case, fear), I must have it!


Swamp Thing Halloween Horror Giant #1New Material by Brian Azzarello and Greg CapulloPublished by DC Comics exclusively for Walmart

The new Swamp Thing story is called ‘Hollow.’ I think Azzarello and Capullo have something big in store for Swampy and it launches from this story.

First Swamp Thing has a disciple with him that he calls ‘Twiglet.’ This story acts first as an origin as to how and why Twiglet is essentially Swamp Thing’s apprentice.

This story also introduces an unseen character. This entity is quite powerful and called Bi’tal by his followers. Swamp Thing calls this malevolent force The Barren. After saving some trick-or-treaters from Bi’tal’s followers, the hero hints at a coming war between Barren and The Green.

I don’t know if this forthcoming battle between Swamp Thing and The Barren will play out in the pages or a regular Swamp Thing comic or a series of Walmart exclusives. But it’s another genius move on DC’s part. Just a couple of weeks ago, the publisher okays the showing of Bruce Wayne’s ‘Bat Pole’ in order to bring massive free publicity to DC’s new Black Label. Now, DC is luring Halloween fanatics like myself to Walmart for a new special to get us hooked on a new Swamp Thing story arc! Pretty Sneaky DC!!!

Reprint Material written  by J. Michael Straczynski, Steve Niles, Mikey Way, Dan Didio, Brian Azzarello, Len Wein, Dennis O'NeilArt by Bernie Wrightson, Neal Adams, Jesús Saíz, Dean Ormston, Mateus, Ian Churchill, Greg Capullo

Swamp Thing also ends this special. The final story is a reprint of the character’s classic first appearance in House of Secrets #92 by Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson. This Giant marks the third or fourth publication I own which reprints this iconic story. For the very first time, I noticed that the story is set in the Antebellum South and that here Swamp Thing’s real name isn’t Alec Hammond. So Wein and Wrightson did a bit of retooling before DC greenlit a Swamp Thing stand alone.

Several of the reprint titles are taken from the DC Halloween specials of the late 90s-early 2000s. There’s a fun adventure with Blue Devil and a very aged and angry Charlie Brown and Linus in a certain pumpkin patch. The Superman Vs. The Zombies story was rock-em, sock-em fun and I was particularly creeped out (in a good way) by the Zatanna tale.
In a paring I never would have expected to happen, Jack Kirby’s Demon teams with Aquaman to save the world from an underwater evil. It had amazing art from Jesus Saiz and that twist ending was awesomely frightening.

The last big story of this Halloween collection involved Robin and Batman versus the Grim Reaper. It was an interesting tale from Denny O’Neil, Neal Adams and Dick Girodano. The trio of artists somehow managed to get themselves added as stars in this story that is half murder mystery/half Holocaust horror story. For such a serious storyline, having Neal Adams acting like a buffoon was rather odd. And that abrupt ending leaves you reeling. (Side Note: Adams and crew would return to this same setting for at least 2 other appearances in 70s issues of Justice League of America for more weird interactions with DC’s greatest heroes.)

I enjoyed this 100-page giant. I am hoping that DC and Walmart might team-up for a Christmas special. But they are going to have to dig deep into the archives as I own just about every DC Christmas story from the past 40 years.

I do feel a little cheated as a couple of the pages of this special are of advertisements. The ads are for DC Comics related things. But I thought these Walmart exclusives were going to be add free except for the inside and back covers. Did DC change its mind? Or did they forget their promise to the fans?

The Swamp Thing Halloween Horror Giant was a fun read. It had moments of humor and times of fright. They were all good scares though. I highly recommend this book but you will have to look for it. The book was due in stores last Friday. I had to go to 3 Walmarts to finally find a copy. Plus there are some on social media have still been reporting since then that the special has not dropped at their local Wally World as of the publication of this review, the following Monday. So grab it when you finally locate it!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars.

Venom

The live action Venom movie finally dropped in theaters this weekend. I refused to read any reviews in depth. But I came across a lot of posts on social media bashing the crap out of the film. While I didn't allow any critics to dissuade me, I did not go into Venom with high expectations.

The biggest hurdle with doing a Venom movie is the absence of Spider-Man. The wall crawler is at the very beginning of Venom’s 30 plus years of existence in the Marvel Universe. This film being the introduction (reboot) of the Symbiote makes this a ‘superhero’ origin film.

Can a Venom movie without Spider-man be done? Answer: yes. Can it be done well? Answer: Yes! That doesn't mean that this Sony picture was without it's problems. The film is roughly two hours long. The first 45 minutes is filled with rather slow back story.

Venom starts with disgraced reporter Eddie Brock hitting rock bottom when one of his stories gets him fired. Eddie went after a brilliant scientist for unethical practices on the homeless in a series of clinical trials. Doing so made some powerful enemies and caused him to lose not only his job but his fiance.  But Brock's luck is about to change when one of the researchers gets him an inside look at the laboratory.

It's here that Brock becomes fused with an alien Symbiote recovered from a recent venture in space. After a narrow escape from security, Eddie awakes in his apartment to a terrifying voice in his head and a number of heightened senses and abilities. Eddie and Venom are now one. And it's here where the pace of the movie changes for the better.

Up until this point, Venom was turning out into a John Carpenter's The Thing meets Michael Crichton’s Coma. A bunch of scary piles of goo were being unleash on hapless homeless guinea pigs. However once Brock fuses with the Symbiote, the movie now becomes an sci-fi version of the Lethal Weapon flicks!

Tom Hardy's Brock is Danny Glover's Murtaugh. He's too old and tired for this crap. Tom Hardy is also the voice of the alien parasite Venom, probably thanks to a lot of auto tune. Regardless, Venom is the Mel Gibson character of Riggs. He's abrasive, bullying and what's going to keep Brick alive when the villains strike in order to retrieve their missing science project.

Of everything to expect out of the Venom film, a buddy cop comedy wasn't anywhere near my list of expectations. Nor was the main female role of Brock's love interest Anne, played by Michelle Williams. Anne is a pretty strong character that manages to escape the film never once being a damsel in distress. Williams character is a lot like Judy Greer's character in the Ant-Man films in that she knows that Brock is merged with Venom and pretty fierce. But Greer's character was nowhere near as badass as Anne!

Venom has a great ending with two secret end credit scenes. One was expected, involving a possibility of a sequel ( if the box office take is good.) But that second one blew away the remaining audience. So be sure to stick around for it.

I'm about done with my review and you might notice that I have not spent much time talking about the movie's villain. For one thing, Riz Ahmed’s character of Carlton Drake didn't feel like baddie. He's got a plan to save the Earth in regards to the experiments his company is doing with the Symbiotes. And while he racks up a body count, Drake does at least have his patients sign waivers prior to experimentation.

Also Drake's hired goon, played by Scott Haze, isn't slimy enough to hate. He's a formidable foe to Brock/Venom. But he's not a character I cared enough to see killed like I felt about Andy Serkis’ Klaw in the Black Panther movie.

A slow start with a hilarious turn as a buddy cop comedy-drama. A stronger than normal female lead. Plenty of not evil enough foes. This made for an unexpected and uneven result. In the end, Spider-Man wasn't missed but I hope he'll pop up in Venom's neck of the woods one day.

I give this film a solid 8.

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 8 out of 10.

Star Wars Adventures: Tales from Vader's Castle #1

The long rumored and highly anticipated Star Wars horror anthology series is finally here! Star Wars Adventures: Tales from Vader's Castle offers all-ages frights from all corners of the Star Wars galaxy. This 5-week long miniseries stars some of your favorite characters including Luke Skywalker, Obi-WAN, and of course the Dark Lord himself, Darth Vader.

Issue #1 features the crew of The Ghost from Star Wars: Rebels. The story starts off with a Rebellion ship having crash landed on Mustafar. As the ship slowly melts in the magma of the molten planet, the crew debate whether to bake themselves to death or put the crew at the mercy of the Imperial forces awaiting outside.

It's here that we finally get to Kanan, Hera and Chopper's story. One of the marooned crew regurgitates a spooky encounter Chopper once experienced. During a rescue mission, the crew of The Ghost not only saves the damaged ship's pilot but manage to pick up an actual ghost as well!

This was an acceptable opening chapter. But I felt that the ending of the Kanan story wasn't finished. This isn't a spoiler, but I speculate that the events recounted in this issue is going to continue throughout the remaining 4 issues of this anthology series.

If that turns out to be the case, my rating of writer Cavan Scott might actually increase when issue #5 drops on Halloween day.

The art for this book was amazing. It's by Derek Charm, who draws Star Wars Adventures in an old school animated series style that I love. Francesco Francavilla (Archie Horror various) is doing a series of 5 special covers for this miniseries. I had to see all 5 covers in order to figure out the Easter Egg hidden in plain view. And I felt so much like a dummy when I finally saw it!

I realize that All Hallows Eve doesn't exist in the Star Wars universe. However I am excited that Disney and IDW Publishing finally figured out a way to incorporate Halloween into my favorite movie franchise. As with many miniseries, the premier issue is just a merely a teaser of what's to come. This opening round wasn't perfect but it was perfect enough to have me coming back for round two next week.

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.

This review was originally published on Friday, October 5th, 2018 on Outrightgeekery.com.

The Thrilling Adventure Hour #1

I read this issue a couple of months ago. I could have sworn that I had reviewed it back then as well. Yes after an exhaustive search, I cannot find evidence of ever have given my opinion on this first issue from Boom! Studios. So forgive me if I repeat myself. But hey,  just in time for Halloween, right?

The Thrilling Adventure Hour is about a married couple of semi-professional mediums/ghost hunters. Frank and Sadie Doyle seem better suited as mixologists than ghost busters. In fact, they don't even seem to fit this more modern time period.

Most modern comic book readers are not familiar with The Thin Man series of comedy mystery films. The Thin Man movies focused on Nick and Nora Charles; a wealthy couple who were amateur sleuths. They had this rapid fire dialogue thing going on that was absolutely brilliant. Plus with their smarmy attitude towards everyone and everything, you weren't quite sure if Nick and Nora thought that the world was their own private little sandbox.

When it comes to the Doyles, I have a theory. In this issue, Frank and Sadie agree to help an interracial couple whose new new home is supposedly haunted. Now you might be thinking as to why must I point out that the couple of different races. It's 2018, I should be agreeable to this sort of thing in American society. Well, I am. But the Doyles don't seem to be. In fact when Frank and Sadie first meet their new clients, they are taken aback by the mixed race couple. Thus I think the Doyles are ghosts!

Think about it. They can see and communicate with spirits. They appear more suited for the 1930s. And the Doyles don't understand social norms. It's just a crazy idea, but I think there's a Sixth Sense twist going on here.

A darling opening chapter in which I am eager to read the rest of the story. A comic/horror triumph by the writing/illustrating team of Ben Acker and Ben Blacker!

Worth Consuming!

Rating: 9 out of 10 stars.