Category Archives: Review

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HERO HISTORY: T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent NoMan

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Or – “Hero Of Many Roles:  Scientist…  Superspy…  Android…  Island…”

The history of the T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents began with a scientist murdered in his lab, but Emil Jenkins wasn’t alone in his development of super-weapons for the United Nations Defense Enforcement arm.  Other men worked tirelessly to create weapons of democracy for use in the brave new world of terrorist cells and metahuman threats to liberty, including today’s history entrant.  The eldest and wisest of the Agents, his nature is unique among not only T.H.U.N.D.E.R. but among heroes in general.  It is fitting that the man who was so key in the beginnings of T.H.U.N.D.E.R. be our final look at the team.  The agent whose super-weapon makes him most suited to spycraft, he is a mystery wrapped in an enigma, downloaded into the body of Commander Data.  This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of Doctor Anthony Dunn of The Higher United Nations Defense Enforcement Reserves…  T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agent NoMan!

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Review: Astonishing Spider-man & Wolverine #1 (of 6)

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Spider-man and Wolverine: two characters I loved as a kid. I even remember owning a comic in which they encountered one another – the memory of which caused to pick up this book. It turned out to have value far beyond nostalgia, however. More After the Jump >>

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From the Vault: Iron Man II (2010)

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This week, I’m going to start things off by “pulling back the curtain,” if only just for a moment. The whole idea behind the From the Vault series is to highlight older, oft-forgotten cinema gems that have, in one way or another, a connection to the realm of comic books. Honestly, this piece is supposed to be mainly about older flicks. But one can’t live on “Golden Oldies” alone, so this weekend I ventured out into the world and caught a showing of Jon Favreau and Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man II. Is it another instant classic, or does it suffer from Sequel-itus? Let’s find out!

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Review: Darkstalkers: The Night Warriors #2

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Donovan’s past is finally revealed as he faces off against Bishamon in a battle to the death. Meanwhile, Pyron the destroyer of planets arrives on Earth just as Demitri regains his full power. All of this plus the introduction of a new Darkstalker character!

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From the Vault: Steel (1997)

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Looking back on my childhood, I’ve found that my family went through a number of… I guess they’d be called “trends,” where one or more of us would get enthralled by a certain activity for a while, and then, quickly as it came, the interest would fade. Around the late 1990′s, we were really into renting movies and music from our local library. We would literally stop in two or three times a week, picking up a handful of classic films and older music each trip. And the one thing I vividly remember is every time we made our way to the Audio/Video section, I’d always want to rent Steel. I also remember every time being told, “No Sam, we’re not getting that one. It’s really bad.” It blew me away. How could a movie be so bad, it wasn’t worth the dollar to rent it?

Thirteen years later, I finally got the chance to watch Steel. And you know what? I think my folks were right.

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RETRO REVIEW: Uncanny X-Men #191 (March 1985)

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Or – “You Always Hurt The Ones You Love…”

 

There is a common misconception amongst those who listen to the podcast that Rodrigo is the only one who really knows the X-Men.  There are a number of stories (Morrison’s New X-Men, Days of Future Past, the 1991 relaunch, the original appearance of Juggernaut, the Mimic/Super-Adaptoid battle) that are among my favorites, and I’m passing familiar with the team in all it’s iterations (otherwise I wouldn’t be able to manage my back issue bins at work.)  There are even X-Men stories that I think are absolutely amazing, and beyond reproach awesome.  This is one of them…

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RETRO REVIEW: Skateman #1 (November 1983)

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Or – “Sort Of Like The Legend Of Boggy Creek, Only With Tie-Dyed Mask And Daisy Dukes…”

One of the great pleasures of reading comic books for me is finding characters and concepts that are just plain ludicrous, so ridiculous that you can’t help but love them.  Even guys like Lee and Kirby didn’t create gems with every outing, and I love the thought process that leads to concepts like The Music Master (secret identity: Chauncey Throttlebottom III) or The Dingbats of Danger Street.  Like the movies of Ed Wood, there are comic books whose entertainment value transcends questions of quality, comic books whose existence seems to be nothing but sheer force-of-will on the part of their creators, comic books for which rating is entirely speculative, and probably best done with a gutful of bourbon.

This book is their king… 

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Review: Street Fighter Legends: Ibuki #2

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With Makoto breathing down her neck for a fight, Ibuki must deal with mid-terms and training for her ninja exam. To make matters worse, the arrival of a transfer student named Elena sparks Makoto’s pride when she finds out that she, too, is a fighter. Can Ibuki keep the peace between Makoto and Elena while juggling her training and school work?

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HERO HISTORY: The T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Squad

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  Or – “Think “Mission: Impossible” Only With Awesome Red Blazers and No Peter Graves…”

The various inventions of Professor Emil Jennings allowed The Higher United Nations Defense Enforement Reserves  to empower their agents with super-abilities for the new era of spycraft, but even before they branched out into supers, T.H.U.N.D.E.R. was overthrowing tinpot dictators and defending liberty around the world.  Once Dynamo, Lightning and their ilk arrived, there were still old-school agents doing their thing, and the Best of the Best of the Best (HOO-AH!) was the elite T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Squad, the team who went in when all other options had failed.  Each agent is master of many disciplines, and all can be counted on to not only outfight, but also outwit and out play those who would attempt to poison my brothers threaten democracy and the forces of good.  This, then, is your Major Spoilers Hero History of Daniel John “Dynamite” Adkins, James “Egghead” Andor, Virgil “Guy” Gilbert, Kathryn “Kitten” Kane and William “Weed” Wylie of The Higher United Nations Defense Enforcement Reserves…  The T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Squad!

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Review: Army of Darkness #27

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Good. Bad. He’s the guy with the gun. Army of Darkness picks up on the adventures of Ash Williams after the events of the cult classic movie by the same name. Ever since stumbling across the Necronomicon in a log cabin the woods, Ash has been trying to keep an undead army of evil, known as the Deadites, at bay. After losing his hand and getting sucked back and forth through time, Ash thought he was free to return to his life … but that would be short lived. Soon after the events of the movie, Ash discovered that he is a Chosen One and destined to protect the world from the Deadites and their attempts to take over the world and destroy all living things.

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