#Her name is Ellie-4 and she loves Archie

[staceyblep]

[x] Ellie-4 meeting Archie

[keiko86chan]

Ok, so in the past weeks (I think since November, more or less) I'm watching/ re-watching some Les Miserables adaption, together with @clumsyhobbit.

For now we watched the 1995 concert, 2014 Broadway musical, 2019 concert, 1964 Italian serie, 1978 movie, and 4 episodes of 2018 BBC serie. We yet programmed to finish the BBC serie and then 2012 movie (which I saw on my own many times) and Shojo Cosette anime (where I saw only few episodes).

Soon or later we need to watch also the 2010 concert, the 1998 movie and 2000 mini serie.

But, for now, I think that I could show you my "Dream Cast", even if it maybe will be updated in the future.

BTW, here it is:

Jean Valjean

Richard Jordan 

(1978 movie)

I mean, look at him! He's too cute! And also, his look is so fluffy and on point!

Even if Colm Wilkinson and Hugh Jackman has both a special place in my heart!

Javert

Philip Quast

(1995 concert)

He IS Javert. Period.

But he’s immediately fololwed by Tino Carraro (1964 Italian serie) and Anthony Perkins (1978 movie) as they’re both perfect (Carraro is a very accurate Brick Javert, and Perkins is amazing too!!

(Even if my forbidden desire is to see, soon or later, a Romani Javert on screen... T^T)

Cosette

Ellie Bamber

(2018 BBC serie)

Baby Cosette

Mailow Defoy + Lia Giovanelli

(2018 BBC serie)

Finally we could see the FULL story of Cosette.

She has a personality!!

And they’re adorable.

But all these girls needed to have brown hair XP

Marius

Roberto Bisacco

(1964 Italian serie)

As he looks 100% the clumsy, awkward and naive boobie-boy he is in the book.

Fantine

Anne Hathaway

(2012 movie)

She is so good and her acting is heartbreaking, even if a lot of her story is brutally cut out (and she needs to be BLONDE!!)

Eponine

Samantha Barks

(2012 movie)

Alright, both Angela Cardile (1964 Italian serie) and  Erin Kellyman are much more similar to the clever and stalky girl that Eponine is in the book, in 1964 serie the’re is also the part where she lures Marius at the barricade just trying to die with him (IDK if there is also in the 2018 serie, I’ve not seen yet the last 2 episodes), but Samantha Barks is too intense to not be loved, even if the character in the musical is totally changed.

Azelma

Alex Jarrett

(2018 BBC serie)

Well, she’s basically only there and in the 1964 serie, but she didn’t do so much. And I prefer her 2018 appearance, so...

Gavroche

Adam Searles

(1995 concert)

IDK, I like so much also Reece Davies (2018 BBC serie) and Logan Clark (2019 concert) but when I imagine Gavroche, Crivello’s look is the first that I think. 

M.me Thenardier

Olivia Colman

(2018 BBC serie)

Because only there she’s really shown as the bastard bitch she is in the book.

In all the other adaptions she’s only or a comic relief or drunk (1964) or even cut out briefly (1978)

Thenardier

Antonio Battistella

(1964 Italian serie)

He’s perfect. The clever asshole he is in the book, and not (again) a comic relief or very cut out (1978, again, where all the Thenardier family is brutally cut out except in a short scene).

I like very much also Adeel Aktar (2018 BBC serie), as he’s too shown perfecty in character (basically both these Thenardiers act on point in the same way), but.... That vagina-like beard make me uncorfortable... Sorry! ^_^”

Enjolras

Aaron Tveit

(2012 movie)

His look is perfect, and he’s very good as the fiery and intrepid leader of the barricade.

But another perfect Enjolras is Claudio Sora (1964 Italian serie) as he is totally the idealistic, serious and ferocius revolutionary he is in the book. 

Honorable mention even to Bradley Jaden (from 2019 concert) as he’s too adorable and cute for this world!

Grantaire

IDK his name

(1964 Italian serie)

I love the 1964's Grantaire (I can’t find his name, sorry) as everytime is on screen he cracks me up, he’s perfect as acting as a drunk dude (even if he looks as a 45 years old man, definitely too much old for a student! XD).

His scenes with Javert are priceless!! XDD

But, on a side note, for Grantaire happens the same thing I said of Gavroche, that every time I imagine him, is George Blagden (2012 movie) that appears.

Fauchelevent

Cyril Cusack

(1978)

His mastermind dialogue with the Mother at the Petit-Picpus is too much funny!

Courfeyrac

Archie Madekwe

(2018 BBC serie)

He’s too cute! And I love how is shown his friendship with Marius!

Mon. Myriel

Colm Wilkinson

(2012 movie)

What can I say? He’s adorable, looking so peaceful and wise all the time!

Les Amis

(I’m sorry, but they’re shown all, (precising the names) only in the 1964 serie (in both the 2012 movie and 2018 BBC serie they’re there also, but honestly I can’t understand which is which), so I can’t make a good choice for them. :P

BONUS:

Rivette

Enzo Clienti

(2018 BBC serie)

Ok, he is an original character which appears only in the 2018 serie, but he’s too adorable to not mention him! <3)

@clumsyhobbit if you want, do a list of your favourite cast too!!

[tabloidtoc]

OK, May 10

You can buy a brand new copy of this issue without the mailing label for your very own at my eBay store: https://www.ebay.com/str/bradentonbooks

Cover: Inside Kim Kardashian's Wild New Single Life

Page 1: Big Pic -- Jenna Dewan enjoyed a stroll around her L.A. neighborhood with 13-month-old son Callum, whom she shares with fiance Steve Kazee, in a stroller

Page 2: Contents

Page 3: Contents

Page 4: The world watched as Prince Harry came face-to-face with the royal family for the first time in over a year to say farewell to his late grandfather Prince Philip, and now that he's back home in Montecito, California, with pregnant wife Meghan Markle and their 23-month old son Archie, Harry's been reflecting on the emotional reunion and preparing for what lies ahead in the coming months -- although the trip inevitably had its share of awkward moments, he's generally happy with how it went, and things had been especially frosty between Harry and The Firm following his televised tell-all, but the main thing is they broke the ice, and he's finally communicating properly with his family again -- in fact, Harry is said to have enjoyed low-key meetings with several relatives before heading back home to the States, including his grandmother Queen Elizabeth and cousin Princess Eugenie, although he did not have a one-on-one chat with his estranged father Prince Charles and it was more of a civilized catch-up than an intense sit-down because it wasn't an appropriate time to delve into recent tensions; however, Harry did take the opportunity to reassure everyone it wasn't his intention to upset them and that he loves them all very much and they, in turn, echoed their affection for him and they mutually agreed to keep moving forward positively and constructively and there's a still a lot of unfinished business, many are hopeful that all will be resolved when Harry returns to the U.K. for a memorial honoring his late mother Princess Diana on July 1 and this could be Harry's last chance to sit down with his family and properly repair things and Harry and Prince William have both agreed to meet before the event and have a frank discussion about how they can do their best to fix the damage that's been done and air their grievances in a calm and pragmatic manner

Page 6: Next spring, Johnny Depp and his ex Amber Heard will head back to court in the latest installment of their ongoing legal drama, but this time, Johnny, who filed a $50 million defamation lawsuit against Amber following a 2018 op-ed where she detailed her experience as an alleged abuse victim, is determined to clear his name one and for all -- Johnny and his team have new and explosive testimony from two of the responding officers, plus new body cam footage, that they believe will finally turn things around in their favor and they're convinced it will show that Amber made up claims about their alleged May 2016 brawl in an attempt to ruin him and the video shows a neat apartment with nothing out of place, nothing broken or anything to suggest a knockdown fight had just occurred -- Johnny's always maintained his innocence and now he's confident this evidence will prove it and Johnny's also working on a tell-all that he intends to release as soon as he's declared innocent and the tome will vividly detail what happened on that night in 2016 and throughout their year-long marriage and Johnny feels Amber never really loved him and his friends warned him not to marry her, but he didn't listen, and he's paid a dear price for it

Page 7: A fateful chapter from Ashton Kutcher's past could be coming back to haunt him as he's being urged to take part in the upcoming documentary on his late ex Brittany Murphy and it's stressing him out to no end and so far, he wants nothing to do with it -- the documentary is going to look for clues as to why it all ended like this for Brittany, and producers want Ashton to tell his side of the story and the thinking is he may have little choice but to participate because he had a front row seat to Brittany's life, and her fans want him to shed light on what really happened

* Alec Baldwin and wife Hilaria Baldwin knew that having six kids would be a challenge, but they're realizing it's even harder to find nannies who are up to the task of tending to their brood because Alec and Hilaria have some pretty high expectations for the kind of people they want to employ and what the job entails and it's been a logistical nightmare hiring and scheduling a rotating team of caretakers -- in addition to children Carmen, 7, Rafael, 5, Leonardo, 4, and Romeo, 2, the parents welcomed baby Eduardo in September and their sixth child, Lucia, via surrogate in March -- long hours and multitasking are a must given the meal prep, diaper changes and homeschooling, plus the nannies have to know how to deal with a cranky set of kids without losing their cool and Hilaria's every bit the mother hen, so she won't settle for anything less than perfection

* Harry Hamlin and Lisa Rinna have had it with the romance between their daughter Amelia Hamlin and Scott Disick -- Amelia recently raised eyebrows when she was spotted with bruised lips, which often occurs after lip filler injections, and Harry and Lisa drew a line in the sand and they're concerned that Scott is convincing her to mess with her appearance, especially since she's talking about boob and butt surgery to keep his eyes off other girls and ever since the couple hooked up last October, Harry and Lisa have been sitting back and hoping that Amelia would come to her senses, but it's clear she's in way too deep now, and that they need to make their feelings known, but the worry is that Amelia will be pregnant before she knows it, so Harry and Lisa are ready to take the bull by the horns before Scott ruins their daughter's life

Page 8: It's been nearly four years since Matt Lauer was fired from Today amid a sexual assault scandal, and he's still being snubbed by his old Hamptons crowd -- Matt, who retreated to his waterfront estate in the celeb enclave after a colleague accused him of assaulting her at the 2014 Olympics, has done everything he can to regain his place in the community, but he's remained persona non grata despite his best efforts; he'll turn up to fancy events and be super friendly with everyone but most people just turn their noses at him -- the disgraced ex-anchor, who hooked up with public relations exec Shamin Abas after his 2019 divorce, has been talking to friends about marrying her in a big Hamptons wedding, but it's hard to imagine there'd be much of a turnout and people have had ample time to put out the welcome mat, but it seems like they've shut their doors on Matt for good

* Former Playboy Bunny Kendra Wilkinson has gone from living the high life to pounding the pavement to earn a paycheck, and she's missing the glam old days -- Kendra, who enjoyed a pampered existence as Hugh Hefner's girlfriend and Girls Next Door star, has had to bring home the bacon in the wake of her 2018 divorce from Hank Baskett to help provide for their two children, Hank, 11, and Alijah, 6, and being a single mom is a lot harder than she thought it would be and she currently resides in a humble Calabasas rental and recently snagged a job as a realtor and was hired by Kyle Richards' husband Mauricio Umansky and she's working long hours and weekends, and she looks pretty burnt out and Kendra tries not to complain and is sucking it up as best she can, but she can't help but think about the times when she didn't have to worry about bills and rent and could sleep in as long as she wanted

* He was once Hollywood's biggest bon vivant, but Jack Nicholson has become a total hermit, and friends are concerned that he's harder to get a hold of than ever and Jack's shut himself away in his hilltop home on Mulholland Drive, and everyone is worried about his state of mind -- the actor, who was last seen in public looking disheveled at a January 2020 Lakers game, says he just wants to spend his retirement in peace and quiet, but his loved ones wish he'd make himself a little more accessible -- Jack's admitted that he yearns for one last romance, but how can that happen when he's hiding at home? Jack turned 84 in April, and it's as if he's resigned to spending the rest of his life alone and it's so sad, but it seems there's nothing anyone can do for him

Page 10: Red Hot on the Red Carpet -- stars wow in sexy shoulder-baring dresses -- Ella Balinska, Renee Zellweger, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley

Page 11: Adrienne Warren, Martha Hunt

Page 12: Who Wore It Better? Rainey Qualley vs. Celine Dion in Chanel, Melissa Wood-Tepperberg vs. Idina Menzel in Alice + Olivia

Page 13: Ellie Goulding vs. Charli XCX in Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood

Page 14: News in Photos -- Gavin Rossdale took his beloved dog Chewy with him to tennis practice in the park in L.A.

Page 15: Jeff Goldblum stopped at celeb hotspot Craig's for dinner with wife Emilie Livingston and their kids Charlie and River in West Hollywood, newly single Real Housewives of Orange County star Braunwyn Windham-Burke hit the beach in Miami, Natasha Lyonne continued filming her series Russian Doll in NYC

Page 16: Amber Rose enjoyed lunch with her son Sebastian whom she shares with Wiz Khalifa in L.A.

Page 17: Anchor Robin Roberts filled viewers in on current events during Good Morning America in NYC, Kristen Taekman got all gussied up at her home in NYC, Howie Mandel showed up to the America's Got Talent set in surfing gear in Pasadena

Page 19: Bling Empire's Cherie Chan and fiance Jessey Lee grabbed a bite with their daughter Jadore, pro wrestler Ariane Andrew (a.k.a. Cameron) fueled up with a healthy sip

Page 20: Wells Adams stocked up on some essentials at the grocery store in L.A., Rachel Brosnahan protected herself with an umbrella while filming The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel in NYC

Page 21: Jon Hamm and his new rescue dog Splash get some fresh air in L.A., Whitney Port in a beige sweater dress and matching boots while recording her podcast in NYC

Page 22: Selling Sunset's Christine Quinn brightened things up in designer duds while walking her dogs in L.A., Monique Green attended the drive-in premiere of her new series Big Shot in L.A.

Page 23: Irina Shayk and her daughter Lea De Seine walked hand in hand around NYC, friendly exes Sara Gilbert and Linda Perry take a stroll in L.A., Law and Order: SVU stars Mariska Hargitay and Ice-T snapped a photo together in between takes

Page 26: Inside My Home -- Sam and Aaron Taylor-Johnson's designer digs

Page 28: Home Town stars Ben and Erin Napier recently announced they're getting ready to welcome their second child, a girl, and the famously private pair, who chose to keep the news a secret to avoid any extra unwanted attention or stress, could not be more excited -- this baby is a miracle because Erin was told years ago that pregnancy would be unlikely due to a past health issue and when their first daughter Helen arrived, they were overjoyed, and they never imagined they'd be blessed with a second -- with Erin's due date just around the corner, she and Ben are busy prepping Helen to become a big sis and they have no doubt she'll be wonderful because she's very warm and empathetic toward others and she loves to hug so the baby will be extremely loved -- after the newborn's arrival, the busy HGTV stars will take some much-needed time off and they're a team, and Ben plans to be there to support Erin and make sure she gets her needed rest, but they both love what they do, so it won't be long before they're back in front of the cameras -- while baby No. 3 chatter has already begun, the college sweethearts aren't getting ahead of themselves and Ben and Erin always dreamed of having a big family, and if they can, there will be more children, but if it doesn't happen, then they will be quite content as a foursome

Page 29: Kacey Musgraves is head over heels for her new boyfriend Gerald Onuoha, but friends are worried that she may be rushing the romance -- Kacey, who hooked up with the Nashville-based doctor after calling it quits on her three-year marriage to Ruston Kelly in July, tends to jump into things with her heart and this relationship falls into that category and Kacey, who was spotted snuggling up to her physician beau while out and about in L.A., is on cloud nine with this guy, but when she has to hit the road again it's not like he can pull up stakes and follow her -- she's not thinking straight about the future, and her friends are bracing for trouble once reality sinks in and Kacey would be wise to slow things down and not get ahead of herself

* George Clooney turned the big 6-0 on May 6, and his wife Amal Clooney is being a bit of a birthday buzzkill -- George wants a big, booze-soaked sky's-the-limit bash in an exotic locale like Mexico or Italy with his old drinking buddies like Rande Gerber, but Amal is pushing for a quiet family celebration at home with their children Alexander and Ella, and it's led to a few arguments -- George figures it's his chance to finally let off steam and that it's his choice on how to mark the milestone occasion and he wants Amal and the other wives to come and join in on the fun, but watching George get wasted certainly isn't her idea of a good time and she sees nothing wrong with a dinner at home

Page 30: Harrison Ford is finally set to start filming the new Indiana Jones movie this summer, and his wife Calista Flockhart will be keeping a close eye to make sure he stays safe on the set -- Harrison has been training hard to get in shape and is feeling great, but at his age, you can understand why Calista is concerned and protective Calista plans to accompany Harrison as he shoots the fifth Indiana Jones installment in London and other locales and he's still capable of doing his own stunts, and a lot of it is thanks to Calista, who made sure he stayed fit with weight training and proper nutrition, but Harrison's going to have the best people in the business looking out for him so he doesn't get hurt again, otherwise Calista wouldn't have given him the green light

* It's barely been three months since Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker went public with their hot and heavy romance, and they're already talking about getting engaged and pregnant, not necessarily in that order and Kourtney fully believes this isn't just a honeymoon phase, but that Travis is the man she's going to share her dreams with -- as for Travis, he's been telling everyone he's hit the jackpot with Kourtney and Travis, who has two kids of his own, has already started shopping for rings and he's planning an ultra-romantic proposal because he's big on grand gestures and he's still looking for the perfect ring, but that doesn't mean the baby-making has to wait until it's on her finger

* Love Bites -- Zac Efron and Vanessa Valladares split, Brooks Laich and CrossFit athlete Katrin Davidsdottir dating, Tan France and husband Rob are having a baby this summer

Page 32: Cover Story -- Kim Kardashian single and loving it -- ready to mingle, an unattached Kim is having fun exploring her dating options -- she did all she could with Kanye West and now she needs to steer a new course for herself -- she's been relishing her single status and feels like she can finally breathe again -- Kim may be living it up, but her four children remain her primary focus -- the eligible bachelors who've caught Kim's eye: Drake, Rege-Jean Page, Brad Pitt, Lewis Hamilton

Page 35: Jennifer Aniston's on such good terms with her old flames she still talks to ex-husbands Brad Pitt and Justin Theroux regularly and has even stayed in touch with her former beau John Mayer -- Jen and Brad have a lot of complicated history, but she's glad they reconnected and are friends again and she thinks the world of Brad, and they support each other -- Justin recently revealed he and Jen text and FaceTime, and the divorced duo will always share a special bond -- although she and John split in 2009, Jen and the musician still hang out from time to time and they flirt here and there and when John's in town, Jen's down to meet him -- but friends are urging the star to finally and firmly move on from her exes and they think she needs a fresh start, and Jen's been on a few dates with someone who isn't famous and Jen's not looking to get married again, but she'd like to have a partner to share her life with and this guy could be the one, she's just got to give the relationship a fair chance, without any distractions

* Weeks after announcing she'd called it quits with Alex Rodriguez, Jennifer Lopez is feeling sad and disappointed and she didn't want to believe the rumors about Alex's wandering eye, but the Madison LeCroy thing was the last straw -- it's not the first time Jennifer's been fooled by a bad boy as cheating rumors plagued her romances with Sean "Diddy" Combs and Casper Smart and she's wiser now -- Jennifer's saving grace is she's got a jam-packed schedule so it won't leave too much time to be broken-hearted and she's a busy mom of two with a million projects up in the air so don't expect her to be dwelling on the past for too long

Page 36: Young and In Love -- Why wait? These stars were in their early 20s, or teens, when they tied the knot -- Olivia Wilde married an Italian prince when she was 19, Hailey Baldwin married Justin Bieber when she was 21

Page 37: Demi Moore married rocker Freddy Moore at 17, Uma Thurman married Gary Oldman when she was 20, Cher married Sonny Bono at 18, Macaulay Culkin married actress Rachel Miner when he was 18

Page 38: Jessica Simpson married Nick Lachey at age 22, Kate Hudson married rocker Chris Robinson when she was 21, Drew Barrymore married when she was 19 for only 19 days

Page 39: Janet Jackson married R&B singer James DeBarge when she was 18, Kim Kardashian eloped with a music producer when she was 19, Solange Knowles married and a baby at 18, LeAnn Rimes married a backup dancer at 19

Page 40: Interview -- Anya Taylor-Joy thrilled to pieces -- The Queen's Gambit star is still processing her phenomenal success

Page 42: Role Models -- like mother, like daughter -- these stars are inspiring their kids to stay healthy and fit -- Brooke Burke, Gisele Bundchen

Page 43: Cindy Crawford and Kaia Gerber, Christie Brinkley and Sailor Brinkley-Cook, Goldie Hawn and Kate Hudson, Jessica Alba

Page 46: Style Week -- Saweetie has a new sunglasses collaboration with Quay

Page 48: What's Hot Right Now -- stand out with a statement piece from the 8 Other Reasons x Draya Michele capsule collection

Page 49: Make Me Blush -- follow spring 2021's hottest beauty trend and create a flush with a pop of peach, pastel pink or terracotta -- Mindy Kaling

Page 50: Mother's Day Gift Guide -- Molly Sims

Page 54: Entertainment

Page 55: Reality Check -- your small screen guilty pleasures are back and here are all the details -- Bar Rescue, The Real Housewives of New York City, Teen Mom 2, Million Dollar Listing New York

Page 58: Buzz -- The ACM Awards in Nashville -- Carrie Underwood and CeCe Winans, Keith Urban and fellow emcee Mickey Guyton, Kenny Chesney and Kelsea Ballerini

Page 59: Blake Shelton, Chris Young and Kane Brown, Miranda Lambert and Elle King, Jimmie Allen and Brad Paisley, Maren Morris and husband Ryan Hurd

Page 60: Sound Bites -- Jessica Alba on not being afraid to complain, Justin Theroux on dating, Jodie Turner-Smith on her and Joshua Jackson being perfect partners, Rob McElhenney on expectations of men in Hollywood

Page 61: Chrissy Teigen on her break from Twitter, Courteney Cox showing off her extremely organized kitchen on Instagram, Lance Bass on the basic thing in his past he'd like to move on from, Amanda Seyfried on confiding to the Mank costume designer about her pregnancy, John Stamos on getting together with wife Caitlin, Eiza Gonzalez on developing body confidence

Page 62: Horoscope -- Taurus Henry Cavill turned 38 on May 5

Page 64: By the Numbers -- Rege-Jean Page

[thejonzone]

Riverdale is the Best Show You’ve Written Off

About once a month, a tweet will go around, reading something like “I can’t believe Netflix cancelled [SHOW X], but Riverdale is still on?!? *eye roll emoji, angry cussing emoji*.” It can be difficult to read tweets like these, because I like Riverdale. But I understand why it has struggled to keep an audience-- there is a perception that the show has gone completely off the rails, a chaos of hot actors in their mid-20s playing glamorous high school sociopaths, with the show choosing excess over narrative cohesion. That perception is pretty accurate. It’s an easy show to write off and easy to make fun of, especially because, as a CW show, it’s ostensibly geared to teens. So it brings me no pleasure to say that Riverdale, currently in its 5th season, has reached a renaissance, and its episodes so far this season represent its high-water mark. 

To appreciate how stunning and exciting Riverdale’s new direction is, it’s important to understand how we got here.

In the first season, a murder in the titular town revealed an underbelly of thugs, power brokers, and shady backroom rulers, all vying for control with gothic morbidity. What followed after that season though, was something else entirely. 

Riverdale, ramping up during Seasons 2 through 4, became a beautiful mess. I think it’s important to state that no other show on television is even attempting to do what Riverdale did/is doing. The show is, at any one point, 5-7 wholly different shows. There is a season’s worth of plot per episode. It’s storytelling mania and in-real-time dementia. I don’t remember what happened at the end of last episode because SO much happened. And besides, coherence is overrated! Give me hot actors, give me drug-addicted mobsters, give me creepy principals! On Riverdale, the parents are both former teen heartthrobs and serial killers, children operate underground speakeasies, and for some reason not one therapist has realized they could make a fortune helping our cast work through the intense psychological terror and emotional abuse they receive every episode.

This show is beyond pastiche, hyper-loaded with reference. My roommate and I had a joke that the show’s third season could be mapped to a quadrant of influences: Twin Peaks, True Detective, The Sopranos, and Gossip Girl. At any point Riverdale was acknowledging and playing into the influence of one of these shows. Season Four doubled down on the show’s horror anthology tendency. No one wants you to miss the references being made. You know that menacing boarding school Jughead attends in Season Four? You’d be right If it reminded you of Donna Tartt’s A Secret History. After all, consider Jughead’s classmate, whose name is Donna Sweet. Maybe you picked up on the violence simmering underneath the surface of Jughead’s other classmate, Bret Easton-Elli--  I mean, Bret Weston-Wallis.

Every week, the show seems primed for failure, attempting to juggle more storylines than possible or even necessary. The show is like a house of cards that has already fallen, and yet the writers are somehow still haphazardly adding more cards to the top. “Be reasonable!” I would plead. To no avail. And that’s the thrill of it. The plotlines are secondary to the spectacle. The show is a celebration and parody of violent legacy dramas, camp, teen horror, canonical literature, and anything else it can stuff under the hood, as much an ode to other pieces of media as it is an original work itself. 

But now, something completely different is happening. The beginning of Season Five brought an end to the seasons-long saga the show felt trapped in. Archie, Veronica, Betty, and Jughead graduated high school, and the show flashed forward seven years. What might be considered a hokey technique was one of the best decisions the writers ever did. Because now we have a blank slate for our main cast. The writers effectively cut the fat from three seasons of violent, ridiculous maximalism. And it’s psychically refreshing.

At the heart of any good sitcom, we just want to see our main characters hanging out together. Change is part of life, but it shouldn’t be in television. Which is why this new season is so exciting-- Riverdale is now in the process of bringing its four main characters back from their adult lives and re-engaging them in the deadly politics of their hometown. Pop Tate, the owner-manager of Pop’s, Riverdale’s diner, is retiring, and Archie gets the gang back in town to celebrate the man who helped make the diner such a great hang-out spot. In the words of Jughead, “You gave us a home, Pop.” Like so mant other sitcoms before it, Riverdale used Pop’s to establish its characters and their relationships to each other.

I grew up on Seinfeld so I’ve always been attracted to the idea of the diner. The pandemic has made me yearn even harder for the sitcom diner, that idealistic place where all my friends are, where people enter with problems to be solved, drama to be explained, good news to be celebrated. Riverdale’s acknowledgment of Pop and his diner as the show’s connective tissue is a grounding and human choice. It works fantastically to set up this upcoming season, where our gang must confront the newest nefarious plot for control over the soul of Riverdale.

No doubt the show will continue its pattern of naming and spoofing genre. Veronica, in her adult life, had an Uncut Gems-style few scenes where she works as a charismatic (of course) diamond merchant. She married a possessive, boring guy who’s only characteristic seems to be that his voice is *exactly* like Veronica’s megalomaniac dad, Hiram. Something something Freud, something something daddy sexy. And credit where credit is due, Mark Consuelos is really hot.

Jughead is a writer now, in the most white guy college freshman fantasy of being a writer possible. He attended the Iowa Writers Workshop as an undergrad, something that is definitely not possible. He’s written a hit book but now suffers from *gasp* writer’s block?? He’s a cool guy writer who, in his opening montage, gets recognized by, hit on, and then has sex with a college-aged fan. Back in Riverdale, Jug writes a speech for Pop’s retirement and sends it to his agent. His agent is smitten with the work, calling it “tragic americana” and proclaiming that Jughead’s next book will be titled “Elegy for a Small Town”. This is almost certainly a reference to J.D. Vance’s bad book, and I’m sure the show will be bringing in more elements of “tragic” “americana” as the season unfolds. 

Betty is FBI in training, because as the show has loved to tell us, Betty has “the serial killer gene”, but is using it for good. For the record, her dad was a serial killer, and her brother was a serial killer. And it’s not like her mom or sister can cast the first stone. Betty’s endured enough trauma to fill 100 lives with unending pain and I’m sure the show will have no trouble heaping more on top. Already in the new season we’ve seen flashbacks to some point during the time jump when Betty was taken hostage, in what’s clearly a homage to The Silence of the Lambs. 

And then there’s Archie. I don’t know if anyone knows what to do with the guy. Played by K.J. Apa, who is both really good-looking with his shirt off and a god-awful actor, Archie has been in the army. The show is using him to shill for the military-industrial complex. 

I’ve long joked that the Riverdale writers have no idea what they’re doing. But through a global pandemic affecting TV production and *the* major narrative complication in any high school-set show (graduation), the Riverdale writers have seamlessly transitioned the show to a new stasis. Past seasons are informing this one, but we aren’t bogged down by the details in this new season. The bigger joke, of course, is that the writers have known exactly what they’ve been doing this whole time, and I’m just an idiot. Well I mean, of course I’m an idiot. I use television to regulate my emotions and simulate a static friend group that doesn’t leave or change. And Riverdale is perfect for that. If a renaissance is a rebirth, well then my friends, cut the umbilical cord and save the placenta to put in pills, because Riverdale is cranking out episodes that are better than ever.

[heatherfield]

I’ve been thinking about this a lot—planning out my little “Red Cricket family” that would cross over most AUs. 

I’ve known it was four girls and one boy for awhile, but it’s taken a bit of time to come up with the names and personality traits. I think I’ve got a good framework now!

In order, the Lucas-Hopper family:

Rose (“Rosie”):

 ^ Ohmygoodness this is totally Rosie helping at the diner with her mom and talking to her dad. :3 :3 :3 (And Ruby bursts out laughing and teases Archie before she runs her fingers through his hair, probably giving him a kiss and assuring him that he is very handsome.)

Rose is independent and knows what she wants—and is happy to keep by herself sometimes when everyone else is too frustrating or boring. She’s used to the company of adults but she’s definitely got her own personality. A Lucas family name (Ruby’s real name and Granny’s middle name), Ruby and Archie start calling her “Rosie” almost immediately, but when she’s older she prefers to go by “Rose”. She never tires of her dad still calling her “Rosie” and “Ladybug”, though.

Selene (maybe “Lena”?):

About 4 (-ish?) years younger than Rose, Selene loves to follow her big sister around (sometimes to Rosie’s chagrin) and she also loves to get into trouble. Of all the girls, she shows signs of the wolf the earliest, and embraces its fierceness—sometimes to the worry of her parents. She definitely likes to push the boundaries as far as she can. She’s named after the goddess of the moon.

Estelle:

Estelle loves to join in her sisters’ fun, but she’s happy to let them have the spotlight. She doesn’t fight to be the centre of attention—Selene always captures everyone’s eye, anyway—but, with her gentler personality, she likes to follow quieter pursuits. Her name is after the Latin for “star”. She is 2 years younger than Selene.

(I could see them calling her “Ellie” but I don’t want to have all the kids with names ending in “-ie” especially when their parents are “Rub-y” and “Arch-ie” lol. I’m probably overthinking this lol.)

James “Jamie”:

(gif by nessa007)

(I kind of only thought of Oliver Jackson-Cohen because he’s the grown-up version of that little boy but he actually looks like he could be Ruby’s son. :3)

I was tempted to name him Lucas but that doesn’t work if they’re the Lucas-Hoppers, so I thought that “James” would be after Jiminy, and they call him Jamie. I also like that James is more old-fashioned. 

Jamie is quite a bit younger than his three sisters since he’s kind of the “surprise” baby of the family. (I think he’s 8 years younger than Estelle). With three bad-ass sisters looking out for him, he’s much more quiet and sensitive—though he also likes to try to keep up with them. (He especially hates it when Mommy and Daddy say he has to stay home with the adults when his sisters get to go out and have fun.) He’s particularly close with Estelle, who blooms as she takes him under her wing, perhaps while the older two are having their own adventures.

(gif by chesapeakeshores)

Oh and how could I forget their adorable family of Dalmatian puppies?

(That was not what I was expecting but HECK YES.)

@queenofglassbeliever

[gokinjeespot]

off the rack #1172

Monday, July 24, 2017

 A rainy and windy morning here in Ottawa with thunder storms circling the area. I'm glad to be safe and snug here at home and not out on the lake. It's been a wet summer so far but our garden has never looked better.

 Star Wars: Darth Vader #3 - Charles Soule (writer) Giuseppe Camuncoli (pencils) Cam Smith (inks) David Curiel (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). Vader sees a man about a light sabre but Master Kirak Infil'a won't be giving it up that easily.

 Star Wars: Doctor Aphra #9 - Kieron Gillen (writer) Kev Walker (pencils) Marc Deering (inks) Antonio Fabela (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). So now we know what the bad Doctor is going to do with that old Jedi A.I. That rascally Triple Zero has plans of his own though. The two deadly droids are my favourite Star Wars characters now.

 Batwoman #5 - Marguerite Bennett & James Tynion IV (writers) Stephanie Hans (art & colours) Deron Bennett (letters). A flashback story about how Kate first came to Coryana. Very dramatic.

 Invincible Iron Man #9 - Brian Michael Bendis (writer) Stefano Caselli (art) Marte Gracia with Israel Silva (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). Big battle in Latveria with the super villain Lucia Von Bardas. It's winner take all.

 Astonishing X-Men #1 - Charles Soule (writer) Jim Cheung (pencils) Mark Morales, Guillermo Ortego & Walden Wong (inks) Richard Isanove & Rain Beredo (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). The latest mutant team book to hit the racks gathers together Angel, Beast, Bishop, Fantomex, Gambit, Old Man Logan, Psylocke and Rogue to battle the Shadow King. Get ready to be astonished by the last page, although I saw that surprise twist coming 1.60934 kilometres away.

 Aquaman #26 - Dan Abnett (writer) Stjepan Sejic (art & colours) Steve Wands (letters). I would recommend this book for the art alone but the royal court intrigues would keep me reading too. I'll be drifting along until we find out who the new guy is at least.

 Lazarus X+66 #1 - Greg Rucka & Eric Trautmann (writers) Steve Lieber (art) Santi Arcas (colours) Jodi Wynne (letters). This 6-issue mini will feature secondary characters from the series. This issue has a soldier going through the process of becoming a member of an elite unit. She's more than just a G. I. Jane.

 Ms. Marvel #20 - G. Willow Wilson (writer) Marco Failla (art) Ian Herring (colours) VC's Travis Lanham (letters). This is a timely story about corrupt politicians. I hope that young readers will get the message about greed and community. The interrogation of Kamala's brother made me wonder about the present state of the world.

 Batman #27 - Tom King (writer) Clay Mann (pencils) Danny Miki, John Livesay & Clay Mann (inks) Gabe Eltaeb (colours) Clayton Cowles (letters). We take a break from the War of Jokes and Riddles to meet Kite Man, the new bad guy with a gimmick, and see if he's team Joker or team Riddler. I love the bad Bat guy names.

 Bettie Page #1 - David Avallone (writer) Colton Worley (art & colours) Taylor Esposito (letters). Colton Worley's Bettie may not be as wow worthy as Dave Stevens's but he did an adequate job in this new comic book about the raven haired beauty. I fell in love with Bettie Page when I saw that full page spread of her in the photographer's studio in the Rocketeer comic book that hit the racks in 1982. I bought the t-shirt, action figures, bust and any copies of Bettie Pages I could find. Here we have a Bettie who goes to Hollywood in 1951 to escape the F.B.I. in New York City. Why the feds raided the studio isn't explained but being in California means that Bettie can be featured scantily clad, which is what she was famous for. The story is campy and I wish the art was nicer but these guys did a pretty good job of portraying a spunky, independent woman who is full of life and ready to experience it all.

 Generation Gone #1 - Ales Kot (writer) Andre Lima Araujo (art) Chris O'Halloran (colours) Clayton Cowles (letters). This new book is about three millennials who hack into the computers at DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency) and will get the surprise of their lives. I like Baldwin and Elena but Nick is a dick. A scientist at DARPA has written some code that can change the human body and these hackers are fed the code. This type of giving regular people super powers comic book has been done before but I like the art and the characters so far so I will see what happens next.

 Totally Awesome Hulk #21 - Greg Pak (writer) Robert Gill (art) Nolan Woodard (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). Part 4 of WMD has the bad guys going ahead with creating a Hulk-like super soldier and the good guys deciding how to deal with the bad guys. For fans of such things there's a cool fight between the Totally Awesome Hulk and Sabretooth.

 Super Sons #6 - Peter J. Tomasi (writer) Jorge Jimenez (art) Alejandro Sanchez (colours) Rob Leigh (letters). "Planet of the Capes" starts here when Damian and his Teen Titans run into trouble fighting a new team of super villains. Jorge Jimenez's Starfire is hot.

 Archie #22 - Mark Waid (writer) Pete Woods (art & colours) Jack Morelli (letters). I was on the verge of tears throughout this issue. I can't imagine feeling those emotions if even Dan DeCarlo drew this since his classic style, as pretty as it was, might not have conveyed the sadness inherent in this issue. Pete Woods did an excellent job here. I've loved Betty Cooper longer than I have loved Bettie Page, so seeing what happens to her affected me deeply. I don't hate Mark Waid for what he's done. I look forward to seeing what comes next.

 The Mighty Thor #21 - Jason Aaron (writer) Valerio Schiti (art) Veronica Gandini (colours) VC's Joe Sabino (letters). This issue features War Thor. Old Volstagg never looked so lean. The last caption made me scream NOOOOOO!

 Dark Days: The Casting #1 - Scott Snyder & James Tynion IV (writers) Jim Lee, Andy Kubert & John Romita Jr. (pencils) Scott Williams, Klaus Janson & Danny Miki (inks) Alex Sinclair & Jeremiah Skipper (colours) Steve Wands (letters). Holy mackerel there's a lot of blah, blah, blah in this comic book. I think I got the point in the first few pages with Carter Hall. I didn't need to see Batman's quest or Green Lantern and Duke/Robin's blah blah with the Joker to get that a Dark Crisis is a-coming and it's all sooooo mysterious and uber dangerosus. Let's get on with the story shall we?

 Royal City #5 - Jeff Lemire (writer art & colours) Steve Wands (letters). This issue shows Tommy interacting with all of his family. It's cool how each member sees him differently.

 Luke Cage #3 - David F. Walker (writer) Nelson Blake II (art) Marcio Menyz (colours) VC's Joe Sabino (letters). This issue proves once again that nobody stays dead in a comic book.

 Superman #27 - Peter J. Tomasi & Patrick Gleason (writers) Scott Godlewski (art) Gabe Eltaeb (colours) Rob Leigh (letters). It's too bad this issue didn't hit the racks before the July 4th holiday. There's a lot of rah rah American patriotism but it's the family bonding Peter and Patrick put in their stories that's the reason I like this book so much.

 Peter Parker: The Spectacular Spider-Man #2 - Chip Zdarsky (writer) Adam Kubert (art) Jordie Bellaire (colours) VC's Travis Lanham (letters). Chip almost lost me in the first three pages with the dumb captions. Maybe he thinks they're cute but I think they're juvenile and annoying. If his Peter Parker gets any more goofier I'm outta here.

 Wild Storm #6 - Warren Ellis (writer) Jon Davis-Hunt (art) Steve Buccellato & John Kalisz (colours) Simon Bowland (letters). Six issues in and we've met many characters. It starts off with an action-packed sequence featuring Deathblow. The Force is strong in that one. Then Warren spells out what the different factions are all about. It clears things up considerably so that the rest of the series should be more fun times and less who the heck are these people?

 Defenders #3 - Brian Michael Bendis (writer) David Marquez (art) Justin Ponsor (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). Holy fornication the last panel will wake you up. Everything leading up to that shocker was sorta casual, even the fight with Frank the Punisher Castle. Two comic books that I read this week ended the same way and both shocked me but each one shocked me differently. Each shocking thing happened to characters that I cared about for a very very long time. I don't know what's going to happen next but I can't wait to find out.

[bibliophilicmedstudent]

I am so glad to be nominated for the Liebster Award by Jeannie @ The Happy Clam! Thank you so much! Be sure to check out her awesome blog!

What is the Liebster award?

The Liebster Award is all about building out the book blogging community. Specifically, it’s a way to highlight newer blogs that don’t necessarily have a large following yet (less than 200). You get to discover hidden gems of blogs, make new book blog friends and learn more about the bloggers you already follow!

Rules:

Thank the person who nominated you and post a link to their site on your blog

Display the award on your blog

Answer 10 questions about yourself, which will be provided to you by the person who nominated you

Nominate 5-10 other bloggers for the award

Create a new list of questions for your nominees to answer

List these rules in your post

Inform the people/blogs that they have been nominated for the Liebster award and provide a link for them to your post so they can learn about it

Questions:

1. If you could live in any book universe, which would you pick?

I’ll have to pick the Shadow World by Cassandra Clare! The Mortal Instruments is the first book series that I commit myself into and the one that reignited my passion for reading – so it has to be it. I absolutely love the world building: the brave and graceful Shadowhunters, the (bloody) Clave, the chaotic Down World comprised of Vampires, Werewolves, Faeries and Warlocks. As much as I want to sound modest, I have no doubt I’ll be an excellent Shadowhunter ;)

  2. Assemble a team of literary badasses to help you fight off the zombie apocalypse. Who would you choose?

Definitely Aelin Ashryver Galathynius and Rowan Whitethorn from Throne of Glass, Kaz Brekker + Inej Ghafa + Jesper Fahey from Six of Crows, Emma Carstairs and Julian Blackthorn from Lady Midnight, Jace Herondale from The Mortal Instruments, and probably Ronan Lynch – with his sass and all haha.

  3. Pick a book or character that most closely resembles you or your life.

BLUE SARGENT from The Raven Cycle!!!!! I am probably in most ways similar to Blue: we are both feminists, opinionated, sarcastic AF and don’t get close to any boys unless necessary. Appearance wise, I’m practically her: black choppy bob, short, compactly built, wear old and second hand clothes (t-shirts, boots and patchy denim everything you name it). I dream of having a squad, having a psychic ability, oh did I mention I am obsessed with nature?

  4. What is your favorite movie or TV show adaptation of a book?

Well Riverdale from Archie comics is technically a book right? haha! I AM OBSESSED WITH THE RIVERDALE TV SHOW I HAVE NEVER EVER BEEN THIS OBSESSED WITH ANY SHOWS SO THIS HAS TO BE IT! (Ok, if it still doesn’t count, I’ll go with Harry Potter).

  5. If you were to write a book about your life, which author would you want to write it?

Hmmm, I would have to say Cassandra Clare – since she would definitely spice things up in my ordinary life hehe! I also reckon Maggie Stiefvater would do a brilliant job at it! Maybe I’ll find myself a Gansey someday haha.

  6. What is your favourite time and place to read?

This depends on the season: If it’s in summer, I like to read after dinner on the living room couch or on my bed. In winter, I like to read during the afternoon or at night on my bed snuggled underneath my blankets.

  7. What is your favourite reading time snack?

Coffee, tea, nutri-grain cereal, and rice crackers (seaweed flavour).

  8. List 3 facts about yourself that are totally unrelated to books and blogging.

My favourite food is pasta and acai bowls (I can eat either for every meal every day)

I am a huge procrastinator – I probably should be writing an reflective essay right now but ah well.

I can play the piano, guitar, ukulele, flute and harmonica.

  9. What is your current and/or dream job?

I’m currently in medical school (a 2nd year student), and (for now) I want to specialise in psychiatry or neurology. It’s my dream job to become a doctor for those in need, I hope to volunteer to third world countries and work for Doctors Without Borders sometime after I’ve graduated as a fully qualified doctor.

  10. What is the best book you’ve read this year?

Oh this is a hard one! Can I please pick two? It’s a tied between This is Our Story by Ashley Elston and Frostblood by Elly Blake.

Nominations:

The following are some of awesome the blogs I follow which have less than 200 followers. Be sure to also check them out!

Bree @ Jasper and Spice 

Emily @ A Bookish Adventurer

Katie @ Foxy Readers

Kalli @ K The Ravenous Reader

Michaela @ Floralink Books

New Questions for Nominees:

What advice would you give to new book bloggers?

What genre of books do you enjoy most?

What is that one book that made you reflect for a long time?

What has been the most rewarding part about having a book blog?

If possible, which fictional world would you take up permanent residence?

What is that one book/ series that really got you into reading?

Is there a book that you think everyone in the world should read and why?

Favourite reading time and snacks?

Who are your top 5 OTPs?

Finally, what are some of your favourite quotes?

  Even if I haven’t tagged you, I’d love to hear your answers to my questions in the comment section! Hope you enjoy reading this and I better get back to study some haematology! Happy reading in the mean time and catch y’all next week!

The Liebster Award I am so glad to be nominated for the Liebster Award by Jeannie @ The Happy Clam…

[gokinjeespot]

off the rack #1284

Monday, October 21, 2019

 Please take time to cast your vote in the Canadian Federal Election today if you haven't already. Our democracy depends on its citizens voting. If you wake up tomorrow and your side lost then I sincerely hope that we as a country can continue living our daily lives with respect and compassion. Things will change. Better for some and not for others. Let's all try to remember what it is to be Canadian eh.

 Is This How You See Me? - Jaime Hernandez (writer & artist). It's been years since I've looked in on Maggie and Hopey so this new graphic novel chronicling their adventures at a punk music reunion in Huerta was a perfect way for me to catch up on their lives. The girls have always had a complicated relationship and things haven't changed too much now that Esperanza/Hopey is married to another woman with a son and Maggie is in a long term relationship with a man. I loved the flashbacks to their younger days and unlike Dan De Carlo's Betty and Veronica, these women have aged and Jaime shows that beautifully. Love & Rockets fans must buy this graphic novel.

 Archie #708 - Nick Spencer & Mariko Tamaki (writers) Sandy Jarrell (artist) Matt Herms (colours) Jack Morelli (letters). Lots of mysterious things going on in this issue as Archie and Sabrina's picnic in the woods is interrupted while Jughead and Reggie's investigation into Reggie's father's disappearance receives a major clue. These modern Archie comics are so much more interesting than the old school stuff.

 Guardians of the Galaxy #10 - Donny Cates (writer) Cory Smith (pencils) Victor Olazaba (inks) David Curiel (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). The reunion with an ex-Guardian doesn't go well but not to worry folks, Groot and his pals come to the rescue. I like the new Magus reborn. Oh, and the cover is a total fib.

 Absolute Carnage #4 - Donny Cates (writer) Ryan Stegman (pencils) JP Mayer, Jay Leisten & Ryan Stegman (inks) Frank Martin (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). All seems lost when Carnage absorbs the Venom symbiote from a defeated Hulk but hold your horses folks, Eddie Brock will save the day. It's a major change for this character so you won't want to miss it.

 Metal Men #1 - Dan Didio (writer) Shane Davis (pencils) Michelle Delecki (inks) Jason Wright (colours) Travis Lanham (letters). Unlike the recently released Inferior Five we actually have the Metal Men in this debut issue. I'm glad I gave Dan Didio a chance because he impressed me with this story. The discovery of a sentient Nth metal might be similar to Marvel's Venom symbiote but I'm hoping the rest of this 12-issue maxi doesn't devolve into Will Magnus's Metal Men fighting this new entity.

 Superman Year One #3 - Frank Miller (writer) John Romita Jr. (pencils) Danny Miki (inks) Alex Sinclair (colours) John Workman (letters). Great Caesar's ghost that was a slog. I actually fell asleep partway through this. This 3-issue mini did not deserve the prestige DC Back Label imprint treatment. The writing was hackneyed and the art was unspectacular. I got tired of the clipped, repetitive captions after only a few pages because they ran on and on. And even though this is some of John Romita Jr.'s best work there was nothing special about it. These stories of Superman's early adventures could've been done in a 6-issue $3.99 US monthly and fans would have been happy. The big blue boy scout is not a good fit for Frank Miller. The style of writing he used in this last issue is more suited to someone like Green Arrow or the Question. If he follows through with another Superman story like he teased on the last page I would think twice before spending the time to read it.

 X-Men #1 - Jonathan Hickman (writer) Leinil Francis Yu (pencils) Gerry Alanguilan (inks) Sunny Gho (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). This is the first new X-Team book to hit the racks following the twelve issues of House and Powers of X that laid the foundation for Marvel's mutant revamp. It introduces the good guys (the mutants) and the bad guys (human scientists hell bent on eradicating mutants). The team rescues young mutants from the bad guys and safely return to Krakoa leaving behind a lot of dead humans. Yes, no more mister nice mutant. The team consists of Cyclops, Storm, Polaris, Magneto, Dr. Reyes, Jean Grey, Havok, Vulcan, Wolverine, Cable and Prestige (I know her as Rachel Summers). Only Scott, Ororo, Erik and Lorna go on the mission so no crazy Canucklehead antics this issue, sigh. I liked this enough to want to keep reading but not enough to add it to my "must read" list.

 Killswitch #1 - Jeffrey & Susan Bridges (writers) Walter Geovani (art) Brittany Peer (colours) Simon Bowland (letters). This sci-fi comic book is about a future where a small minority of people can see the future. They're called Augers. The rest of humanity fears them and have them rounded up in detention centres. Sounds familiar. The main character is Major Marcella Regula who turned in her own brother as an Auger. She's the new head of security at a detention centre in a domed city built on a comet. She hits the killswitch to try and save an Auger from dying but fails. Then she helps the dead man's friends to escape. I picked this up because I really liked the art but the story didn't spark joy. I'm hitting the killswitch on this one.

 The Marked #1 - David Hine (writer) Brian Haberlin (art) Geirrod Van Dyke (colours) Francis Takenaga (letters). This new book is full of magic and the art is stupendous. An ancient order of tattooed magic users tasked with fighting the forces of chaos have found a new recruit. So has a malevolent government agency after one of the Marked is banished. I cared about Saskia and her new friends by the end of this issue so I want to find out what happens to them. I'm going to read this as long as I can.

 The Batman's Grave #1 - Warren Ellis (writer) Bryan Hitch (pencils) Kevin Nowlan (inks) Alex Sinclair (colours) Richard Starkings (letters). The opening pages did not surprise me because I know someone who has their tombstone already in place. Batman investigates when a dead body is found in a tenement building. The victim had a wall full of Batman clippings and this 12-issue maxi is off and running. I love the detective side of Batman so I'm adding this to my "must read" list.

 Spider-Man #2 - J. J. Abrams & Henry Abrams (writers) Sara Pichelli (art) Elisabetta D'Amico (inking assistant) Dave Stewart (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). Two issues in and Ben has met his MJ. Her name is Faye Ito and she's a pip. So much for the old secret identity. Also cue the super villain menace appearance. You won't hear me complaining that there are too many Spider-Man books on the racks as long as they're this good.

 Inferior 5 #2 - Jeff Lemire (writer) Keith Giffen (plot & pencils) Michelle Delecki (inks) Hi-Fi (colours) Rob Leigh (letters). That's enough for me. This is just too weird. If you're into weirdness, you will certainly like this.

 Something is Killing the Children #2 - James Tynion IV (writer) Werther Dell'Edera (art) Miquel Muerto (colours) AndWorld Design (letters). I like Erica Slaughter, monster hunter. She gives this horror story a lot of spunk.

 Contagion #3 - Ed Brisson (writer) Mack Chater & Stephen Segovia (art) Veronica Gandini & Andrew Crossley (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). I'll give Ed Brisson this, he sure knows how to string a Marvel maniac along. Jessica Jones was the one to entice me to read this issue and the heroes that show up to help fight the fungus next issue makes me want to read that too. And that's not to mention the Wrecking Crew either.

 Once & Future #3 - Kieron Gillen (writer) Dan Mora (art) Tamra Bonvillain (colours) Ed Dukeshire (letters). Evil King Arthur gets his Galahad while Duncan and his granny get help from a historian. I like granny's simple solution for keeping the bad guys from winning.

 Batman #81 - Tom King (writer) John Romita Jr. & Mitch Gerads (pencils) Klaus Janson & Mitch Gerads (inks) Tomeu Morey & Mitch Gerads (colours) Clayton Cowles (letters). We're getting there folks. Bear with us. That Thomas Wayne is one tough Batman. He takes on Batwoman, Batgirl, Orphan, Huntress, Red Robin, Robin and Signal and manages to survive. Damn that no killing rule. Meanwhile, Batman and Catwoman get into Arkham Asylum to get to Bane. I liked how all the stuff leading up to this issue is explained even though it was hard to follow.

[gokinjeespot]

off the rack #1161

Monday, May 1, 2017

 It's a great week to be a geek. The TV adaptation of Neil Gaiman's "American Gods" starts airing now. Thursday, May 4th is Star Wars Day. The "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2" movie opens in theatres on Friday, May 5th. Saturday the 6th is FREE COMIC BOOK DAY. Sunday the 7th is another CAPITAL TRADE SHOW at the Jim Durrell Arena where Jee-Riz Comics & Appraisals will be hawking their wares. Fly your geek flags high.

 Ben Reilly: The Scarlet Spider #1 - Peter David (writer) Mark Bagley (pencils) John Dell (inks) Jason Keith (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). This follows the "Clone Conspiracy" debacle as Ben tries to start a new life in Sin City. If you like your Spider-Man a little bit unethical then this book is for you. Ben also talks to imaginary people which can make for some confusion but it's a quirk that sets him apart from the other Spider-Men. I don't know if I'll keep up with this mentally unstable version but I like his new costume a lot.

 Batman & The Shadow #1 - Scott Snyder & Steve Orlando (writers) Riley Rossmo (art) Ivan Plascencia (colours) Clem Robins (letters). A murder in Gotham City sets Batman on the hunt for the killer with the victim's name giving us a clue to who that might be. Lamont Cranston's death leads Bruce to the Alps to visit an old teacher after some detective work talking to old associates of The Shadow. I liked how the similarities between the two dark crime fighters make this an interesting chess game between two masters of mainpulation. I wonder what the motive was if The Shadow did indeed kill his own descendant. Maybe the rest of this 6-issue mini will reveal the truth.

 Big Moose #1 - This double sized one-shot features Archie Comic's iconic dumbbell jock Marmaduke AKA Moose Mason. I did not know that he had the same name as a comic strip great dane, and I don't mean Scooby Doo. The first story "Moose vs. the Vending Machine" by Sean Ryan (writer) Cory Smith (art) Matt Herms (colours) & Jack Morelli (letters) is your typical dumb jock story that would fit right in an old Pep comic from the fifties. The second story "Have It All" by Ryan Cady (writer) Thomas Pitilli (art) Glenn Whitmore (colours) & Jack Morelli (letters) shows a more intelligent Moose juggling all of his stressful high school responsibilities. I felt for the guy, especially his struggle with an English lit paper. It made me suspect that Moose might be dyslexic. The last story "The Big Difference" by Gorf (writer) Ryan Jampole (art) Kelly Fitzpatrick (colours) & Jack Morelli (letters) has Moose making a new friend that's a little "after school special" but the kids will get the message. All in all a nice feature of a minor Archie character.

 No World #1 - Scott Lobdell (writer) Jordan Gunderson (pencils) Mark Roslan & Charlie Mok (digital inks) JUANCHOo (colours) Zen (letters). I picked this off the rack to read because of the sexy hot cover by Jordan Gunderson & Peter Steigerwald. Plus, Scott Lobdell wrote some comic books that I used to like. This one did not impress me. The Aspen Comics imprint seems to cater to good girl art fans, of which I am one, but a comic needs more than just T&A to keep me reading. I wasn't given enough information about the two main good girls in this debut to care about them so I won't continue reading.

 Wonder Woman #21 - Greg Rucka (writer) Liam Sharp (art) Laura Martin with Hi-Fi (colours). Part 4 of "The Truth" finds Veronica Cale getting ever closer to finding Themyscira and saving her daughter. I am looking forward to the conclusion of this story in Wonder Woman #23 to see what Ares' role is.

 The Old Guard #3 - Greg Rucka (writer) Leandro Fernandez (art) Daniela Miwa (colours) Jodi Wynne (letters). Two of the five team members are in the clutches of the bad guys so it's three to the rescue. This issue is a great example of a good writer making you care about the characters. Part of it has the origin story of one of the mercenaries. Another part shows how much two of the members care about each other. There's plenty of action over many pages beautifully illustrated by Leandro but also lots of action we don't see that is clearly implied in just one panel. That's good comic books.

 Deadpool vs. Punisher #2 - Fred Van Lente (writer) Pere Perez (art) Ruth Redmond (colours) VC's Joe Sabino (letters). Round two has 'Pool and 'Pun in a shoot out with the Don of the Dead, a crazy Mexican bad guy as deranged as Deadpool. Round three next issue should be fun with a new bad guy who you'll recognise right away. I can't wait

 Action Comics #978 - Dan Jurgens (writer) Carlo Barberi (pencils) Matt Santorelli (inks) Hi-Fi (colours) Rob Leigh (letters). Part 2 of "The New World" continues the review of Superman's origin story including his romance with Lois Lane and the birth of their son Jonathan. The identity of the villain is also revealed. What he has planned for the Man of Steel isn't anything new but it never gets old.

 Kill or be Killed #8 - Ed Brubaker (writer) Sean Phillips (art) Elizabeth Breitweiser (colours). Being spotted by the police while killing his last victim has complicated Dylan's life. It seems like every law enforcement officer is looking for him, which makes it even more difficult to find and kill someone else to keep the demon at bay. This could be the end of our killer vigilante.

 The Mighty Thor #18 - Jason Aaron (writer) Russell Dauterman (art) Matthew Wilson (colours) VC's Joe Sabino (letters). In part 4 of "The Asgard/Shi'Ar War" the Shi'Ar gods Sharra and K'ythri act like a couple of spoiled brats and decide to unleash their ultimate weapon to destroy the universe. The opening pages have the good guys seeking help from one of my favourite mutants. Russell's art is crazy good and he's close to Geof Darrow in the details that he puts on a page. When the force unleashed can take out The Destroyer in the blink of an eye you know the good guys are in deep doo-doo.

 Detective Comics #955 - James Tynion IV (writer) Marcio Takara (art) Marcelo Maiolo (colours) Sal Cipriano (letters). I was enjoying this issue right up until the very last page. It's one of those deus ex machina moments that I better get an explanation of or else "League of Shadows" will be the Detective Comics story that benches this book.

 Josie & The Pussycats #6 - Cameron Deordio & Marguerite Bennett (writers) Audrey Mok (art) Kelly Fitzpatrick (colours) Jack Morelli (letters). I loved the Michael Allred cover. I really appreciate that all the ad pages were gathered at the back so that we get to read an uninterrupted story. This is one comic book that I read just for fun.

 The Wild Storm #3 - Warren Ellis (writer) John Davis-Hunt (art) Steve Buccellato (colours) Simon Bowland (letters). If Aspen Comics had done as good a job as these people in redefining their cast of characters I would endorse their books. Here we have a fire fight that's even prettier than the one in The Old Guard #3 thanks to the work of John Davis-Hunt. New readers should not be afraid to pick this series up because it's got cool characters and Warren Ellis always entertains.

 Elektra #3 - Matt Owens (writer) Juann Cabal (art) Antonio Fabela (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). It's all out action as Elektra battles through Murderworld. Just when you think she's won her freedom, Arcade springs another surprise. He never fights fair. I really like the covers by Elizabeth Torque and would love to see a comic book drawn by her.

 Old Man Logan #22 - Jeff Lemire (writer) Eric Nguyen (art) Andres Mossa (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). Looks like Jeff is showing us Logan's greatest hits as he winds down work on this title. Maybe it will make some fans buy a few trades.

 Hulk #5 - Mariko Tamaki (writer) Nico Leon (art) Matt Milla & Andrew Crossley (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). I read recently that fans won't buy a Hulk comic book unless it's Bruce Banner as the big green galoot. Those fans are narrow minded and don't deserve to be called comic book fans. This book is great and has made the Hulk interesting to me again. I don't care who the Hulk is or who Iron Man is as long as there's a good story and nice art for the book. It's been 5 issues of this title hitting the racks and we haven't really seen the Hulk once. It doesn't matter because this story about Jennifer coping with the recent changes in her life is a good one.

 Infamous Iron Man #7 - Brian Michael Bendis (writer) Alex Maleev (art) Matt Hollingsworth (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). See, this is how you make a major change in an iconic character so that fans will want to read the book and not feel sick to their stomachs. I love this new version of Victor Von Doom. Brian has shown him evolving into the Infamous Iron Man instead of what happened with Captain America seemingly out of the blue saying "Hail Hydra". Here's another character that's been made interesting again and I will promote this title to anyone looking to read a good comic book.

 Ms. Marvel #17 - G. Willow Wilson (writer) Takeshi Miyazawa (art) Ian Herring (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). Okay, I don't get how Ms. Marvel and her friends defeated Doc.X but maybe it's because I'm an old luddite. I don't have a cell phone and barely know what apps are. I did appreciate the group hug that started this issue because I grew up in the sixties and that's what we wanted to do back then too.

 Star Wars: Darth Maul #3 - Cullen Bunn (writer) Luke Ross (art) Nolan Woodard (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). This young disciple of the Sith is a lot less interesting than I first thought. He is merely motivated by his hatred of the Jedi and that's seems to be all that he's about. One dimensional characters aren't that interesting. It's the evil auctioneer that is making me stick to this story.

 The Totally Awesome Hulk #18 - Greg Pak (writer) Mahmud Asrar (art) Nolan Woodard (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). The evil aliens find out what happens when their food fights back. Amadeus showed a side of him that surprised me and made me like this Hulk even more.

 Doctor Strange #19 - Jason Aaron (writer) Chris Bachalo (pencils) John Livesay, Victor Olazaba, Al Vey, Jaime Mendoza, Tim Townsend & Wayne Faucher (inks) Chris Bachalo (colours) VC's Cory Petit (letters). Yay, Wong is saved from Misery but I might be miserable after the next issue because it will be Jason Aaron and Chris Bachalo's last.

 Weapon X #2 - Greg Pak (writer) Greg Land (pencils) Jay Leisten (inks) Frank D'Armata (colours) VC's Joe Caramagna (letters). The bad guys are on the Warpath and the mutant super hero is outnumbered. Sabretooth and Old Man Logan are still free but it looks like that won't last. Once Greg adds in the Domino effect the gang will all be here. I like Greg Land's art a lot more with Jay's inks.

 Invincible Iron Man #6 - Brian Michael Bendis (writer) Stefano Caselli (art) Marte Gracia (colours) VC's Clayton Cowles (letters). RiRi meets with Stark Industries, M.I.T. and last but not least The Champions. I'm most excited about her possibly joining the young super hero team. I wish Marvel would find a way to change the title to Ironheart. RiRi has been wearing the armour for a while now and calling this book Iron Man is just awkward.

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