NO COMMENTS YET

dark_knight_returns_batman_vs_supermanThe big genre news this week came in the form of about four minutes of film assembled by marketing departments: the second trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens (which debuted at a panel at Star Wars Celebration last week), and the first for Superman V. Batman: Dawn of Justice. So, like everyone else in fandom, we discuss them: the content, how they play with expectations by showing us glimpses of long-loved characters and / or story beats from classic comics, and how they really tell us nothing while promising us everything… and how that can drive one mad with useless speculation based on roughly 45 seconds of footage, combined with slightly more dialogue than a Vine video and some kickass music.

We also talk about our plans to cover next weekend’s C2E2 convention in Chicago, including our planned schedule for this show during and after the convention:

  • We will release a recap of Friday at the convention sometime on Saturday, 4/25,
  • We’ll release a recap of Saturday’s programming at our show’s normal time on Sunday, 4/26, and:
  • We’ll release a full recap, including panel audio, on either Monday, 4/27 or Tuesday 4/28.

We also discuss:

  • Convergence: Supergirl Matrix #1, written by Keith Giffen with art by Timothy Green II,
  • The Tithe #1, written by Matt Hawkins with art by Rahsan Ekedal, and:
  • Archie Vs. Predator #1, written by Alex De Campi with art by Fernando Ruiz!

And, the usual disclaimers:

  • We record this show live to tape. While this might mean a looser comics podcast than you are used to, it also means that anything can happen. Like arguing over whether Chewbacca has had plastic surgery done, and where he gets his hair colored and highlighted.
  • This show contains spoilers. While we try to shout out warnings ahead of time, assume that you will discover which members of the Riverdale Gang have had their spines removed.
  • This show contains adult, profane language, and is therefore not safe for work. You want your employer to hear which sexually transmitted diseases are most reminiscent of Midichlorians? Get some headphones.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:52:08 — 101.2MB)

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Android | Google Play | Stitcher | TuneIn | RSS | More

Enjoy the show, suckers!

NO COMMENTS YET

Editor’s Note: This Sentinel’s Prime Directive: Ruin or spoil all stories about mutants.

Being a cynical and ironic child of the late 1980s / early 90s, there isn’t a reason on Earth why I should like Avengers Academy #32. It is naked and blatant in its attempts to manipulate the reader’s emotions by placing children and their pets in mortal danger from a cold and callous external threat. It blatantly pulls the old E.T. trick of making kids the emotionally satisfying voice of emotional trueness in the face of cold and calculating adult logic and compromise, and it even alludes to the old Old Yeller tearjerker moment when it isn’t obviously humping the corpse of Short Circuit. Truly, a book like this should have me sneering disdainfully while listening to Nirvana on my way to a Richard Linkater film and slacking. Or something like that.

With all that said, it’s now 2012, and the other day I almost got weepy when the Boston Red Sox traded Kevin Youkilis. So I don’t know if I’m losing my edge or what, but rather than being turned off by the obvious emotional manipulation going on in this comic book, I found it to be one of the best of the week. So either writer Christos Gage is damn good at what he’s doing, or I am turning into a colossal pussy. Regardless: I liked this book.