Author: Matthew Peterson

The internet has been ablaze this week preparing for today, as it’s not only Easter Sunday, not only the middle of Passover (Didja remember to sell all your chametz?), but also a holiday with which I was previously unfamiliar called “420”.  (Judging from the pictures I’ve seen online, I think it’s a celebration of Popeye’s birthday, celebrated by seeing who can grow the tallest spinach plants?  Bygones…)  The intersection of these various celebrations has led to an agglomeration of traditionall ceremonies, as well as a general scarcity of chocolate eggs, matzoh and Fritos.  For my part, while I enjoy the…

Bruce Banner (and his large emerald counterpart) have been working with SHIELD, under the command of Maria Hill, traveling the depths of time, space and dimension to fight the good fight and properly channel his rage.  Things are about to get much more complicated… Your Major Spoilers review of Hulk #1 awaits!

Ever since the storyline that led to Doctor Octopus’ mind taking over the body of Peter Parker, some folks have been snarking that “We all know it has to end before the next Spider-Man movie.”  On the one hand, the sentiment is at least partially true, but on the other, it’s dishearteningly harsh, and seems designed to undermine everyone’s enjoyment of the stories being told.  The journey, it is said, is as important as the destination (sometimes more so) and the quality of the story-arc made ‘Superior’ as interesting a run as the ol Web-Head has had in a couple…

For months, Doctor Otto Octavius has been the Superior Spider-Man, using his smarts and Peter Parker’s stolen super-powered body to continue the battle against bad guys (most of whom have an animal theme for some reason.)  Last month, Otto realized he had made a terrible mistake and took drastic action to defeat the Goblin King, but what does this mean for his career as Spider-Man?  Your Major Spoiler review of Superior Spider-Man #31 awaits!

Stephen and I have, once or twice on our various podcasts, referred to the Scooby-Doo cartoons, and the fact that there is a point where you can safely stop watching them because they’re not good anymore.  We argue about WHERE that point is, mind you, but we both agree that by the time Scrappy Doo is in the cast, you can walk away without fear.  The idea of adding a new character to “freshen up” a show, specifically a young character, is as old as stories themselves (notably, Sir Lancelot was added to the stories of the round table by…

This week’s Major Spoilers Poll of the Week (WeekWeekWeekWeek) got me to thinking about Star Trek, specifically the old debate about whether Kirk’s ‘Cowboy Diplomacy’ is superior to Picard’s more discourse-based method of operations.  Twenty-five years removed from Next Generation, the Picard character actually has a lot in common with Kirk, and even deals with his baldness in a more mature manner, but the age-old nerd question of Kirk Vs. Picard still has the same answer for me.  (No, I’m not telling.)  But, each Captain has his own thing going on, his own awesome ship and skilled crew, and each…

It’s an overworked cliché that every region has their own nomenclature for flavored, carbonated drinks, be it soda, pop, or even just a generic “coke.”  No matter what you call it, though, it’s surprising how vehement opinions on matters of taste are.  Lately, I’ve discovered a preference for Diet Pepsi to that of Diet Coke, a development that I find a bit disconcerting, as I’ve had a lot of conversations with people who feel perhaps TOO strongly about the superiority of their favorite brand.  (There are also those who believe that diet soda is the devil, but it is the…

If you’ve every bought or sold old comics, or haunted the quarter bins of your local shop, you’ve probably bumped into many Charlton Comics.  As the original printer of Captain Atom, the Question and others (as well as one of several publishing houses to handle the Blue Beetle property, as well as the originator of the beloved Ted Kord version), Charlton Comics is mostly a footnote in the history of comic books.  Of course, that doesn’t mean they didn’t create a few comic gems in their four decades of publishing…  Your Major Spoilers (retro) review of Charlton Premiere #2 awaits!

It was pointed out to me recently that it had been two decades since Brandon Lee, star of ‘The Crow’, had died in an on-set accident during the production of that movie, a revelation that knocked me back a couple of metaphorical steps.  1994, after all, seems like not so very long ago, a time when I had a crappy red car, acted like a teenage idiot and was dating a nice young lady from Topeka.  Now, I have a slightly less crappy car of a more mature “Merlot” color, act like a slightly more seasoned teenage idiot, and have…

They call him Doop: his origins and provenance remain a mystery.  To some a savior, to others a monster, he is spoken of in whispers as perhaps the most powerful mutant in the known universe.  A mystery, wrapped in an enigma, dipped and batter and deep-fried for tempura, this is his story.  Your Major Spoilers review of All-New Doop #1 awaits!

This week, thanks to ‘Zach On Film’, I was provided with my fourth opportunity to take in Francis Ford Coppola’s magnum opus, ‘Apocalypse Now’, a movie that I’ve never watched of my own accord, for one good reason (for which you can hear the justification during ‘ZoF’.)  As well-crafted a film as it is, it stands among the things I cannot fault for their quality, but still have no interest in experiencing again, alongside Frank Miller’s ‘300’ comic (but decidedly NOT the film adaptation thereof), the Lord of The Rings saga and Cinnamon Toast Crunch.  I’ve spoken of this before,…

As a general rule, I’m a little bit leery of comic book adaptations, having been burned more than once by the likes of Reb Brown’s Captain America and the (admittedly awesome but completely source-unfaithful) Japanese Spider-Man.  Still, I’ve been keeping up with ‘Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ each week to see if things ever pick up to the levels of Steranko greatness, or even the revamped late-80s version of Nick’s title.  Having just watched Episode #17, where all heck breaks loose (in as non-spoilery a manner as possible) in the wake of the second Captain America film has picked up the…

Having reached adulthood in the 1990s, I am required by law to adore certain films: ‘Clerks’, ‘Pulp Fiction’, and ‘Terminator 2’ among them.  In addition to that Mount Rushmore of Clinton-era wonder, I have always enjoyed the revisionist western stylings of ‘Young Guns’ and ‘Young Guns II’ (which I preferred due to the presence of my spirit totem, Christian Slater).  Having grown up in a small redneck town in the middle of the reddest of red states, I had long had an aversion to westerns (as well as country music and Louis L’Amour novels), but Young Guns provided a gateway…

Rumors swirl (as rumors are wont to do) in Hollywood that Disney is still planning a reboot/remake of their 1979 science fiction epic, ‘The Black Hole.’  As one of the vocal fans of that movie, I am torn by this plan.  On the one hand, it’d be lovely to get a new version reawaken interest in the original film, but on the other, I’d kind of rather have a sequel to the original film rather than a re-envisioning.  Whitman Comics attempted such a continuation in their comic book line back in the day, but the response to the film put…