I wish that wasn’t literal, but 2016 was a thing that happened.
Well, I spent half the week sleeping late, though that wasn’t the plan. I just had trouble sleeping a few days and it messed me up. Over at The Clutter Reports this week I did manage to get some minor cleaning done but the point of taking the week off was to relax and reduce burnout. So I did what I planned, and had a relaxing birthday. With ice cream cake!
And I’m coming back with a full week of discussion topics. We have two strikes affecting the storytelling industry so I may actually comment on that depending on what else happens. We have more My Adventures With Superman episodes and I think I’m going to use this to demonstrate the difference between a good story and a good adaptation for as long as I can put up with it. It’s Superman so sadly my brain keeps pulling me in, though I gave up on Superman & Lois after the first episode so I guess even I have my limits of not-Superman-enough. It won’t be the only adaptation discussion I have this week. Plus the usual comic reviews and daily video/article link quickposts to start the morning.
So birthday week break is done and it’s time for more of what you hopefully came here for. Have a great week, everyone!
I’m only taking a week off, so it’s not like it’s going to be a long cliffhanger.
Actually, I’ll be back next week with the new comic. As to the week off…
In the year 1973 on July 13th, a cosmic mistake took place…I was born. 😀 So per usual I’ll be taking this week off. Unlike the slowdown there won’t be any posts unless something happens I absolutely need to comment on. I wish it was a full vacation but I’ll probably end up doing a few things I didn’t get to during the slowdown due to the family emergency. Still, while I can’t afford to go anywhere or do anything it should help stave off potential burnout and get stuff done while finding some time to just relax. That does give us a few minor cliffhangers. Batman is still in the hands of a loon while the real Batman is trying to find his doctor. The Ninja Turtles can’t find their master. Sonic’s king is still half-crystal while Knuckles is having a terrible family reunion. We’ll get back to all that when I come back.
In the meantime I did get to update The Clutter Reports on the last two weeks and I might do a bonus post there just to keep me writing and a couple of the slowdown holdovers will make good article fodder there.
Have a great week, everyone. When you see me again, I’ll be an old man. No, really, I’ll be 50. Too bad I can’t afford my midlife crisis.
I wish I could present these Saturday Night Showcase Ultraman samples in the right order, but between Tokushoutsu, the Shout Factory arm for Japanese superheroes, and the official Ultraman YouTube channel, run by Tsuburaya Productions, that’s not always possible. So tonight we get a look at the 19th installment of the Ultraman series, Ultraman Mebius.
Our hero Mebius has been sent to Earth to learn from humanity. The current anti-monster group is Crew GUYS (Guards for UtilitY Situation, meaning not only did they fight for an acronym, they fought for one that doesn’t even make sense in the language they’re ripping off), and they’re about to find that monsters are coming back to Earth after a 25 year absence. You know how tourist spots are. Some are hot for a while, lose some steam, and then eventually comes back into favor. However, Mebius may have found there’s more to this attack than the norm. At least that’s what it’s hinting in the first episode. Enjoy.
No, really, when did Sparky gain the power to fly?
The Blue Beetle #17
Holyoke Publishing (December, 1942)
At this point I’m starting to have the same issue I have as we get closer to the end of a book review for Chapter By Chapter. I’m running out of ways to fill space. That’s another problem with reviewing anthologies. Usually I can do the credits, even if we’re getting two or three stories an issue, tell you which story we’re on, and it’s all good. Here we have three Blue Beetle stories, the next part of the Likkity Split story (God help me), V-Man, and another Spark Stevens (God help me again). I don’t have any real trivia, anything else will be said in the review, but because on the homepage I want to have some space before the “continue reading” button I need to say something. So what I get is rambling, which thankfully I’m done with for this installment. Let’s get to the reviews.
This intro does not appear in the two episodes, the two part “Adventures Of A Normal Man”, that aired on Adult Swim last night. It might have been added in for HBO Max or the Adult Swim app, on demand, and on their website. but that’s not the version I watched. I’ll bring up again someday as part of the Many Intros Of Superman some time in the future. The show will air Thursdays at Midnight on Adult Swim, be on HBO Max, now just called Max, and repeated Saturdays on the Toonami block, so it may end up on Toonami’s site as well. Originally it was going to be on regular Cartoon Network, and it does look like a kid show (the word “murder” comes up a couple of times in episode two but nothing is objectionable for kids beyond that) but for some reason they changed their mind, and Williams Street, who handles the Adult Swim and Toonami blocks, saved it for at least one airing. Whether or not we get a second season depends on how well it does…and if it is worth having a second season.
Of course, despite my misgivings, I had to watch and review My Adventures With Superman. We’re talking about my number one favorite superhero since childhood, so I’m rather defensive of how he’s portrayed. I’ve seen many live-action and animated version over the years as well as the various main and side comic continuities…aka the source material. Superman means a lot to me and so far all of those sources are failing my favorite superhero. The comics have done some horrible things to him lately I don’t want to bring up, Zack Snyder gave us a dark, brooding Superman even Batman fans think is wrong, and I haven’t watched the direct-to-video movies due to lack of money so I haven’t see a decent Superman since Justice League Action…and that suffered from using the New 52 Superman.
To properly judge this show both on its own merits and as an adaptation of Superman and friends I’m going to format this in the form of the good, the bad, and the…eh. The good is everything I like about the show and obviously the bad is the opposite. I’ll look at both the adaptation and on its own. I did admit Man Of Steel was a good superhero movie but a terrible Superman movie, so this still has a chance to have positive things said about it. As for the eh, that’s the stuff I’m rather neutral on but are worth bringing up on both angles.
Adult Swim’s YouTube channel, at least as of this writing, only has part one but it should give you some idea what I’m talking about if you haven’t checked the show out yourself. Watch, and then read the review.
With so many adaptations being under the control of people who care more about their story than a proper adaptation, it’s refreshing when a director wants to be faithful to the source material. While neither of the Haunted Mansion movies are really in my interest, hearing the director of the new version say he wanted to be faithful to the ride’s story, as there actually is a tale attached to the events seen in the ride from what I hear, is rather amazing and I wish more adaptation creators had the same thought. If someone adapting a ride can treat what came before as a template why not someone adapting a book, comic, game, or nostalgic property?
BW Media Spotlight 