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Chapter by Chapter features me reading one chapter (or possibly multiple chapter for this one) of the selected book at the time and reviewing it as if I were reviewing an episode of a TV show or an issue of a comic. There will be spoilers if you haven’t read to the point I have, and if you’ve read further I ask that you don’t spoil anything further into the book. Think of it as read-along book club.
In our last chapter our infiltration duo got their marching orders. This week’s chapter is a bit short compared to most chapters, but at five pages it still qualifies as review length, plus I’m also short on time this week.
This week takes us to the Russian/Ukrainian border, and this is where the timing of the book becomes unintentionally timely. As I write this in 2025 there is still a war going on as Vladimir Putin has decided to attack Ukraine. Okay, I’m going to push through the stuff I hear from everybody and give you my opinion on the current situation just to get it out of my system and pad out the intro. Forgive me for getting political on this one, though I warned you way at the start of this edition of Chapter By Chapter that there would be times I’d have to. Well, welcome to that time. If you aren’t interested, skip to the chapter mark and we’ll get to the review proper.
Look, we know why certain groups got on Ukraine’s side, and sadly it’s not because they’re in the right even though to a point they are. The extremists among the Democratic Party had used “Russian collusion” as a failed attempt to overturn or damage Donald Trump’s first presidency, which turned out to be a load of bull on top of other loads of bull like the so-called Steele Dossier. Another one was an alleged call in which Trump was demanding the Ukrainian President dig up dirt on Joe Biden, though that was in doubt after the actual transcript was released. Instead he was trying to learn if Biden was interfering with an investigation of his son, Hunter. It was a whole big thing. This was before the 2020 election, as Biden was a frontrunner for the Democrat nomination. We all know how that went down.
So using both Russia and the Ukraine against a candidate they hated for ruining their chance at the first woman President being a Democrat (maybe choose better women, guys), they kind of had to take Ukraine’s side. Admittedly it is wrong for Russia to go after Ukraine and we know that Putin is just trying to absorb it back into a new USSR (funny that the Democrats, Hollywood, and other liberal groups used to love the Soviet Union when I was growing up), which should be stopped. Meanwhile, Zelinsky’s attitude really isn’t scoring him any points with anybody. Ultimately I’m only on Ukraine’s side because I don’t want the Soviet Union and communism restored to Russia not only for their sake but to avoid a second Cold War. Now here I am reading a book from 1995 that has a similar situation with no way of knowing what would happen decades and century turn (1995 is 20th, while we live in the 21st). NONE of that has happened, so I’m curious how this will be approached where there is no political connection to it. This is a story based on what Jeff Rovin and the creators saw and where things could go for the sake of entertainment. There is no agenda other than to entertain the target audience, which thus far hasn’t included me as much as I assumed it would when I bought this book so many years ago. With all that out of my system, and for any of you still reading (I appreciate your continued patronage), let’s see how 1995 tackled this idea.
Tuesday, 2:30 AM, Russian-Ukrainian Border
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I feel the same about reading your comic again, buster, but here we are.
Firearm #6
Malibu Comics/Ultraverse (February, 1994)
“Missing Child”
WRITER: James Robinson
PENCILER: Cully Hamner
INKER: John Lowe
COLORING: Moose Baumann & Foodhammer!
LETTERER: Tim Eldred
EDITOR: Hank Kanalz
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I remind you this is the man who wanted to make braille comics for the blind.
All the way back in Jake & Leon #19 , Max’s first appearance. That was when I was doing Weekly Wrap-Up on Sundays.
Over at The Clutter Reports this week I decided to post something fun as I did minor maintenance. Comic Drake went hunting for the Final Faction comic as it seems to have gone out of circulation, even when it’s still on the Dollar Tree store shelves. Since it’s a series I’ve discussed over there I thought it would be more interesting there than here.
This week I have one distraction. So far. I might be able to get some work in this week and not just making deadlines. We’ll see as we continue the Chapter By Chapter review of Tom Clancy’s Op-Center: Mirror Image, the usual comic reviews, and see what else comes up. So far there are a couple of trailer to discuss I hear. As for the Monday Malibu Ultraverse reviews, that’s getting harder and harder. I found a good site but I guess the anti-pirates got to it and I have to find a replacement that isn’t shoveling porn and unwanted downloads at me. Remember, Marvel is doing absolutely JACK with the Ultraverse with no plans to do anything in the future with it, and Pre-Disney Marvel only wanted Malibu for a now outdated computer coloring process everyone was jealous of at the time, so it’s the only reason I’m willing to do this, but I might have to drop out if this becomes enough of a pain. Shame as I kind of like some of the titles.
Have a great week, everyone!
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Eh, why not?
I never really got into Phineas & Ferb. Not that I have anything against the show. I certainly understand it’s fanbase, I did like the Star Wars parody, the multiverse TV movie, and crossover with Milo Murphy’s Law (a show I wouldn’t mind seeing make a comeback), but the show itself just never clicked with me whenever I tried to watch it. I can’t say I know why specifically, but it just didn’t work. Even the Marvel hero crossover I’m kind of neutral on.
Still, with a returning season recently announced on Disney Channel and Disney Plus (can’t wait to see how they screw this one up), and since I stumbled on it looking for a Saturday Night Showcase entry, posting the first episode of the original series might be fun. The original aired on Disney XD, and it’s their YouTube channel this is coming from. Some of you might not have seen the original show but heard about it, and others might want a refresher since the series has been off the air for a few years outside of the Milo Murphy’s Law crossover where Doctor Doofenshmirtz started a path of reforming I guess the returning show will undo. Pity, but I can see why. Doof’s antics with Perry The Platypus/Agent P was the only part of the show I had any interest in.
For those of you who somehow missed the whole experience, Phineas and Ferb are stepbrothers who invent the craziest things to help them and their friends get over summer vacation. These are somehow really big and potentially dangerous things, which is why Phineas’ biological sister, Candice, keeps trying to bust them to her mom, but…well, let’s not tell you everything. “Rollercoaster” is the first episode, as the boys create a rollercoaster in their backyard. “Candace Loses Her Head” finishes the episode as she has a birthday and the boys have a rather unusual present for her.
Even I wasn’t ready for Phineas to have a less nasally voice than he’s usually given. I guess they were still trying to find his proper voice. Ferb rarely talks and Perry/Agent P never talks, so they were easy. 😀 Enjoy!
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He’s going to have an awful headache in the morning.
While not the original “Termite Terrace” (that was taken down in 1940), the studio which later housed the Looney Tunes/Merry Melodies creators is now scheduled to be torn down. Not because it was condemned like the original (it earned that name for a reason) but to make room for more HBO studio space. As the linked-to article notes, it hasn’t been used as an animation studio for years. Warner Brothers Animation operates elsewhere. Still, many Bugs and Daffy fans are upset because of its place in history. I suspect all of the other odd decisions David Zaslav has made regarding their animation library and new creations (I remind you that Warner Brothers Discovery has arguably the largest animation library on the planet) has them riled up.
I don’t see them making it into a Looney Tunes museum or something, and it hasn’t been a historic anything in years. It’s not even the original building the cartoons started in. I’m more bothered with how they treat the stuff that came from the studio rather than an unused building that is only famous for what it used to put out. It’s a shame to see it go for historic significance but only die-hard “toon heads” would want to see a building that isn’t even set-up as a studio.
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