Blogs
Fifty years ago, the Enterprise first embarked on her five-year mission, taking interstellar explorers from their living rooms on a journey through the stars. There was a lot that made the show unique, not the least of which was because a show that was openly “failing” going into its third season has become a force unto itself, inspiring a fandom that espouses continuously the remarkable nature of its stories (this writer included). Though I’m more at home in the 24th century with Picard and the Galaxy and Sovereign class ships, there’s no denying that without the original adventures of a slow-speaking, but quick-acting, captain, his Bilbo-loving First Officer, and their intrepid crew, there wouldn’t be a United Federation of Planets, any continuation of the name Enterprise, or such a bright future predicted in sci-fi.
Genshi is a tormented man. Nightmares of the night his family was brutally murdered haunt him, and he has started seeing visions of a supernatural force promising death and power; however, the young warrior only longs for two things: becoming a full-fledged Iga clan shinobi and openly claiming the love of his master’s daughter, Lady Akemi. Genshi is marked by something that will challenge his sense of honor and ability to do his duty to those he loves most.
This is it. The end. The end of time . . .
As we conclude the latest Dirk Gently story arc, we finally get to meet the creatures who have been stealing people’s ability to communicate. As we learned at the end of the previous issue, they’re some sort of aliens, or inter-dimensional beings. But, what do they want? Why are they wreaking havoc on Earth? Having solved the mystery, it’s now up to Dirk to interrogate them as best he can and find out.
We last saw the White Wizard track his daughter (and the formulary) to what remains of New York City. Kidnapping Anthony Farrow and taking him with him, the White Wizard runs into a gang called the “Down Boys” in the Bronx. He negotiates a deal with them to find safe passage into the heavily protected and sealed off city (now called Saved New York City). Meanwhile, Chloe has escaped the clutches of Hazeltyne, and Inspector Deal must face the consequences of her failure to retrieve the formulary.
Tales of the Night Watchman from So What? Press is one of those diamonds in the rough in the indie comic scene, and writer David Kelly is back with another twisted caper for his superhero to solve in Tales of the Night Watchman Presents: The Mad Mind of Anton Sebaum.
As an annual participant in the Hollywood Fringe Festival, LA-based theatre company Theatre Unleashed (TU) consistently stages phenomenal performances that span most every genre while never wavering in their quality or spirit. Encompassing everything from westerns (Round Rock) to sexual politics and gender relations (Sleeping Around), TU remains a mainstay in the LA theatre community by providing a solid platform for talented creators to hone their craft and entertain audiences through a variety of artistic endeavors. This year, the ensemble returned to the Fringe Festival with the 2015 hit, A Feast of Snack, demonstrating that even musical theatre is no match for the intrepid members of Theatre Unleashed.
Sometimes, you take a flyer on a new book. It’s always a risk, because new series, especially ones that you’ve not only never heard of but one that has an unfamiliar creative team, are never certain to even be good, let alone good enough for a new reader to grasp on to. But, sometimes, that risk pays off. Every once in a while, a book comes out of nowhere and totally takes over your interests. This time, that book goes by the name Crytpocracy, and it’s something that totally took me by surprise.
There comes a point in a great series when there’s not much else to say about it, aside from how awesome it is. That’s the case here, as the fantastic Gail Simone / Jim Calafiore series continues on its psychotic path. With the deranged heroes now meeting up with the team sent in to stop them, it’s up to the Crimson Shadow and his sidekick, Mina, to put an end to it. Anyone reading this book knows that any good intentions don’t seem to go well, and that’s absolutely the case as not only does the mission for the planned rescue of Mister Valiant go a bit awry, but so does the exploratory mission of Ethan and Rainwater. The two of them, on a quest of their own, really end up with more than they bargained for, and it really takes the series to another level with its insanity.
The ideas behind Jeff Lemire’s (All New Hawkeye, Descender, Old Man Logan) much anticipated new title, Black Hammer, are intriguing, but Issue #1 has yet to show the potential for how compelling the premise can be. That isn’t necessarily a problem. A lot of this is simply due to the fact that the story hasn’t really started. This is mostly exposition - Issue #0 kind of stuff. This is your pilot episode.
