Parallax

Alright, with all the buzz about the upcoming Green Lantern movie in June, I decided it was time to do a post about the big in the shadows villain that will be showcased in said movie. And that villain is Parallax, the fear entity and the source of power for Sinestro and the Sinestro Corps rings (but that's something else entirely). Ok bottom line, when the world was first created, and there was new life, the first being to actually feel fear evolved into a higher state, and that little spec of life became Parallax. The Guardians had been secretly battling him over the years, and his greatest triumph came when he infected Hal Jordan with fear, and turned Jordan into his host, causing the destruction of the Corps for a time. In addition, there is the creation of the Sinestro Corps, which is dedicated to spreading fear throughout the galaxy. I am keeping this post short due to that it would get ridiculously long with all the history of the character, but be on the lookout for this fearsome foe come June 17 fans! Mark those calendars and buy those tickets!

Howard Stark

The father of Tony Stark aka. Iron Man, Howard was a brilliant inventor his whole life. He and his father worked together on various projects, together founding Stark Industries. During WWII, Howard worked on the Manhattan Project and the 'Arsenal' robots, which were programmed to be awakened only if the nation was overrun during the Cold War. Howard married Marie Carbonell and they had a son, Anthony 'Tony' Stark. Throughout his life, Howard pushed Tony to be the best, telling him that someone must have "iron in their backbone" to be successful. But he also suffered from severe alcoholism and this would later afflict Tony as well. Howard and Marie were both killed in a plane crash on the Ides of March, a crash which was thought to have been engineered by the V-Battalion, a group Howard was a part of during WWII. After his death Tony took over Stark Industries, started a charity in his mothers name and of course would later on become Iron Man. Howard will be portrayed in the upcoming Captain America movie by Dominic Cooper.

The Howling Commandos

Before Nick Fury became director of S.H.I.E.L.D, he was a no nonsense Sgt. of an elite squadron of soldiers during WWII. The Howling Commandos were often assigned dangerous, and seemingly impossible missions. The group consisted of Sgt. Nick Fury, Corporal Dum Dum Dugan, Private Gabriel Jones, Private Rob "Rebel" Ralston, Private Dino Manelli, Private Isadore "Izzy" Cohen, Private Johnathan "Junior" Juniper who died in issue #8, Private Percival "Pinky" Pinkerton a British soldier who took Junior's place after his death and Private Eric Koening, a defector from Germany. These men fought against both real and fictional war foes, including Erwin Rommel, the Red Skull, Baron Zemo, Baron Wolfgang Von Strucker who would later on become head of the terrorist organization HYDRA as well as other Axis villains, and they also dealt with inter-squad bigotry. Even after the book ended, several of the characters made the transition to being members of S.H.I.E.L.D alongside Fury. The group will be featured in the upcoming Captain America film, so be excited true believers, cause the Marvel move Universe is getting a lot bigger!

James Buchanan "Bucky" Barnes

First appearing in Captain America # 1 (1941), Buck was a scrappy kid born in Shelbyville Indiana in 1925, and became an orphan after his father was killed in training before America's entry into WWII at Camp Lehigh, Virginia. There he became the unofficial mascot of the camp and made friends with Private Steve Rogers, who Bucky believed to be a dull-witted guy, unaware that Steve was secretly Captain America. Upon discovery of Steve's secret, Bucky became Cap's partner. Together they fought many enemies of the Allied Powers during WWII, including the infamous Red Skull. On their last mission together, against Baron Heinrich Zemo, they hopped aboard a drone plane that was laden with explosives. Steve was knocked off the plane, and Bucky was blasted clear of it, losing an arm in the process. A passing Soviet submarine picked him up, and due to the explosion he was stricken with amnesia. He was taken to Moscow and scientists attached a bionic robotic arm, upgrading the arm every time the technology improved. He was put through a rigorous training course and becomes the Winter Soldier, their top covert assassin. It was not until the 21st century, when Bucky was sent by the former Soviet General Aleksander Lukin to kill the Red Skull that he and Cap meet. Afterwards he goes on to kill hundreds of people in Philadelphia, kidnap Sharon Carter and charges the Cosmic Cube, which Lukin sent him to collect. When he and Steve struggle for the Cosmic Cube, Steve gains control and tells the Soldier to "remember who you are". Upon being hit with the flood of memories and the overwhelming guilt for what he did over the years, Bucky flees. Over time, he regained the trust of his friends, and upon Steve's supposed death, he became the new Captain America, at the request of Steve. Upon Steve's return, he is willing to give back the mantle to his former mentor, but Steve declines, telling Bucky to continue on. Bucky joins the reformed Avengers after the events of 'Siege' and is soon put on trial for his crimes as the Winter Soldier. Bucky will be played in the upcoming Captain America movie by Sebastian Stan. 

Arnim Zola

 

Today's post is about another Captain America foe who has been a constant thorn in his side, Arnim Zola. First appearing in Captain America # 208 (1971), Zola was a brilliant biochemist during WWII in the employ of the Nazi Party and was one of the first human genetic engineers. His greatest contribution was in developing a brain pattern imprint device, this allowed a persons mental essence to be projected into a cloned brain. This was gifted to Adolf Hitler and allowed his brain to be transferred into a new body, the body that would become the supervillain known as the Hate Monger. Zola used his technology on himself, thus allowing him to survive past the war into the modern era. The Red Skull has through the years also financed several of Zola's experiments for the creation of monsters such as Doughboy, Primus and Man-Fish. His experiments have made him a dangerous foe over the decades. He was instrumental in pulling Steve Rogers from the timestream, so that the Skull could project his brain into Rogers body. His whereabouts after those events are unknown. He will be portrayed in the upcoming Captain America film by Toby Jones.

Baron Zemo

In prepping for the Captain America movie release, I thought I'd blog about another one his wartime enemies, granted not as infamous in the sense of the Red Skull, but just as equally villainous. Despite first appearing in Avengers #4 (1964) alongside Captain America's return, the Baron has been written into Cap's wartime history. A top Nazi scientist, Zemo created many weapons of mass destruction for Hitler's armies, but he was also a sadist, testing his inventions on civilians and prisoners inside the Reich. It was when he faced off against the Howling Commando's in one of their early encounters that this sadism came to a head. He test fired an experimental ray weapon on a nearby German town, killing hundreds of innocents. Despite his attempts to blame this atrocity on the Allies, Nick Fury and the Commando's exposed him for the monster he was, causing him to be hated and reviled throughout the entire world. His mask became a permeant part of his face when Cap exposed his face to Adhesive X, an experimental compound that could not be dissolved. Near the end of the war, he caused the apparent deaths of both Captain America and his wartime partner Bucky, when he launched an experimental drone plane laden with explosives towards London. Satisfied that his enemies were dead, he fled to South America, where he quickly gained followers and hid for many years. Upon the return of the Captain, he assembled several other super-villains into the first Masters of Evil. After their attack on the Avengers failed, he was pursued to his hideaway by the Captain, who blinded him with his shield, causing Zemo to fire his ray pistol wildly, creating a rockslide that buried the villain for good. His role was later taken up by his son Helmut. The Baron is confirmed to appear in the Captain America movie, although his role is not yet known. But whatever it is, you can bet that it will be good.

Red Skull

He is one of the most feared and hated men in the Marvel Universe. And he is the archenemy of the Marvel Universe's greatest beacon of hope, Captain America. First appearing in Captain America #1 (1941), this Red Skull, George Maxon, was revealed to be an agent of the true Red Skull, Johann Schmidt who appeared in Captain America Comics # 7 (1941). After a traumatic childhood, Schmidt was working as a bellhop at a major hotel, serving the rooms of Adolf Hitler himself. He was present when Hitler was berating an officer, saying that he could create a better National Socialist out of the bellhop. Looking closely and seeing Schmidt's dark inner nature, Hitler took him under his wing and personally oversaw his training. Upon completion, he gave Schmidt a unique Nazi uniform with a blood red skull mask. Thus the Red Skull, the embodiment of Nazi intimidation was born. Schmidt was put in charge of Nazi terrorist activities and this would bring often into conflict with the man who would become his most hated enemy, Steve Rogers aka Captain America. The two clashed often for the duration of the war, until the Skull was apparently buried under the rubble of a building during one of their final wartime conflicts. In reality, he had been exposed to a experimental gas which left his body in suspended animation. He was revived years later by the terrorist organization AIM (Advanced Idea Mechanics), and quickly subverted a cell of the group for his own world domination plans. Often his plans would involve the Cosmic Cube, a device created by AIM that could turn any wish into reality. Years later, he was assassinated by the Winter Soldier under orders from the former Soviet General Aleksander Lukin who wanted the Skull's new Cube for himself. Using the Cube's power to attempt a body switch with Lukin, the Skull only succeded in transferring his mind, and the two would wage a constant mental battle for control. After engineering Cap's death, the Skull set upon two tasks, to control the soon to be born child of Steve and his girlfriend, SHIELD Agent Sharon Carter and place his political puppet Gordon Wright in the White House. Both plans failed, and Lukin was killed, but not before the Skull's chief scientist Arnim Zola transferred his mind into one his spare robotic bodies. It is revealed that the Skull did not in fact kill Steve but using Doctor Doom's sophisticated time technology had trapped Steve's body in the time-stream. He then attempted to retrieve Steve using Sharon Carter and Doom's tech, but the machine was destroyed. After much effort and calling upon Doom's assistance once again, the Skull retrieved Steve's body from the time-stream and placed his own mind into it, gaining control. But Steve proved to be too strong and forced the Skull out of his body and back into the robotic one, which was destroyed in battle with the Avengers. But for how long will the villain stay dead? And for all you movie fans out there, you can see Hugo Weaving play this villainous Nazi in Captain America: The First Avenger, who will also be the head of the terrorist organization HYDRA. Once again the film's release date is July 22 so mark those calendar's people!

Blackhawks

Today's post is about one of the finest fictional fighting forces of WWII, the Blackhawk Squadron. First appearing in Military Comics #1 in 1941, this flying force was comprised of men from the various countries affected by the Axis Powers. Flying into battle in modified Grumman XF5F Skyrockets, they became the feared princes of the fictional skies. Despite the downfall of superhero comics after the end of the war, the company that published the Squadron's adventures, Quality Comics, was purchased by DC and the Blackhawk Squadron was folded into the history of the DC Universe. Since then, the Squadron has appeared frequently in various DC publications, always prepared to keep fighting the good fight. 

The Losers

Before anyone asks, no I am not blogging about the team from the Vertgio series that was seen on film not too long ago, I am talking about the original Losers, first appearing in Our Fighting Forces #123 (1970). The team consisted of Captain Storm, a P.T. boat commander who lost his crew twice, and was missing one leg and one eye; John Cloud, nicknamed the Navajo Ace due to his impressive flying skills, was constantly beset by racial prejudice from his fellow soldiers, Sarge and Gunner, two Marines who had fought bravely in the Pacific, then lost an entire squad of new recruits in Europe along with a dog nicknamed Pooch that was trained to sniff out enemy forces. These four men and dog soon met up and formed 'The Losers'. They fought bravely during WWII in the comics, until they were killed in action during Crisis on Infinite Earths by the Anti-Monitor's shadow demons. They were featured again at the beginning of the mini series DC: The New Frontier are seen in their last mission for the O.S.S. retrieving a Nazi rocket scientist from Dinosaur Island, a mission from which none of them return. If anyone who reads this blog happens upon any copies of Our Fighting Forces which contains an adventure of this team, I suggest you get it! These men may have seemed like losers, but they fought with the spirit of winners. And for anyone who reads this blog, if you wish to find any issues of any comics containing the adventures of any of the DC characters I've recently blogged about, just click this link, http://www.metropoliscomics.com/. There you'll find tons of comics, from the Golden Age, the Silver Age etc. all at convenient and affordable prices. So don't hesitate, get your copies of these classic and thrilling comic books today!

Sgt. Rock

One of DC's more hardball characters, Sgt. Franklin Rock first appeared in Our Army at War #83 in 1959. He fought during WWII in the European Theatre, eventually rising to authority in his unit, Easy Company. He had many adventures in the pages of Our Army at War over the years, coming into conflict with a German Major nicknamed the Iron Major due to having an iron hand in place of his frostbitten one, his rigid moral code, iron will and strict adherence to rules. There has been some debate on a historic front as to what actual Sgt. ranking Rock had. Many spectualate that his official ranking was as platoon sergeant, despite having the stripes of a Master Sergeant, a rank that most infantry companies did not have. His adventures have been reprinted in several different volumes, Sgt. Rock Archives Vols. 1-3, Showcase Presents: Sgt. Rock Vols.S 1-3, Sgt. Rocks Combat Tales Vol. 1, Sgt. Rock: The Prophecy, Sgt. Rock: Between Hell and a Hard Place, and Sgt. Rock: The Lost Battalion. I recommend these volumes to anyone, because you are in for some war stories. After all, like Rock always said, "Nothin's easy in Easy Company."

Adam Strange

First appearing in Showcase # 17 in 1958, archeologist Adam Strange is transported from the jungles of Peru to the planet Rann via a Zeta Beam. Called on to protect the planet from interstellar threats using high-tech weaponry, Strange grew to care for the inhabitants of Rann, especially Alanna and her father Sardath, whose experiments were responsible for the beam. Eventually the effects of the beam wore off and Adam was returned to Earth at the exact time he left, but not before Sardath gave him a schedule of the periodic beam transmissions to Earth, should Adam ever be called upon to help Rann again. Over time, the beam was perfected so that Adam could stay permanently on Rann, and he declared the planet his adopted home, marrying Alanna. Over the years, Adam's story has been expanded, with new characters and adventures. The DC reprint series Showcase has a volume devoted to Adam's early Silver Age appearances, his stories from Showcase #17-19 and Mysteries in Space #53-84. So don't delay, get out there today and get your hands on the amazing adventures of this astounding space-man!!

Captain Comet

First appearing in Strange Adventures #9 in 1951, the character of Captain Comet is an explorer, adventurer and of course hero. Born Adam Blake in 1931 to a Mid-Western farm couple, Adam is described as being a mutant metahuman, the only one of his kind. His powers are unlocked when a strange comet passes over him at birth. At age four, he is able to find objects without effort. At age eight he demonstrates an amazing photographic memory. Other skills manifested over time, but he always felt isolated from humanity because he was different. He first adopted the Captain Comet persona when he prevents thieves from stealing an experimental device from his mentor and the scientist who discovered Blake was a mutant, Professor Emery Zackro. Both he and the professor agree that Blake should become a full time superhero. Blake makes his first appearance in his new guise stopping a giant terraforming robot belonging to an alien race looking for a world to colonize. He had many strange battles over the years, then disappeared into space for 20 years. He returned in 1976, having not aged and wearing a new protective costume instead of his spacesuit and with new skills. Upon his return, after being tricked by Gorilla Grodd into helping him commit crimes, he was offered membership in the Justice League, which he turned down, although he did become an honorary member. The Captain has been a powerful ally to the superhero community over the years, helping them when danger strikes. His adventures from the 2006 'Mysteries in Space' series have been reprinted in two volumes. So get out there, and read about the adventures of this amazing individual today!

The Challengers of the Unknown

First appearing in Showcase #6 1957, the Challengers of the Unknown were four ordinary men. Test pilot Kyle "Ace" Morgan, daredevil biker Matthew "Red" Ryan, Leslie "Rocky" Davis and Walter Mark "Prof" Haley were all traveling on the same plane and survived a crash that no one should have. They banded together and formed the Challengers of the Unknown, going on many adventures, facing strange monsters, creatures and other things. Soon after, they based their headquarters in a hollowed mountain they named Challenger Mountain. Eventually, they added a fifth member, June Robbins. The team has survived over the years, always facing new and bizarre things along the way. Their adventures have been collected into reprint volumes, but if anyone who reads this blog manages to find any of their comics at a decent price and in great shape, do not pass up that opportunity! So get out there and read up on the adventures today!

The Metal Men

Today I'm going to talk about a team of superheroes that are as human as human can get and very unusual. They are the Metal Men. Artificially intelligent robots created by Dr. William Magnus, these robots personalities and intelligence are the product of "responseometers". The robots mirror the characteristics of their namesake metals in behavior and personality. The members of the team are Gold, Lead, Iron, Mercury, Platinum and Tin. Over the years these fantastic robots have appeared in various DC titles, also being rebuilt many times by Doc Magnus due to being damaged or destroyed in their adventures. The characters made an appearance in a recent episode of the cartoon show Batman: The Brave and the Bold in the episode Clash of the Metal Men in which they, along with Batman and Doc Magnus, go up against the Gas Gang, a series of robots the team fought in the comics which use the various gases they are named for as weapons. The Gas Gang is reimagined here as the former research colleagues of Doc Magnus prior to his building the Metal Men. 

Smallville Season 10 ending: Darkseid and Superman?

With the buzz about the eventual ending of the Smallville series and for comic book fans the chance to see Superman baddie Darkseid on television and actor Tom Welling in a Superman suit, it has me wondering, will the final episodes be able to propel the series into retirement glory? Think about it people, this show has been on the air since 2001, and now 10 and 1/2 seasons later they've introduced pretty much all the main supporting characters in the Superman group, from Lana all the way to Lois in terms of girlfriends, brought in practically every super-villain the Big Blue Boy Scout has faced, and a few from the mainstream DC Universe, and even brought in Green Arrow, Aquaman, Cyborg, Impulse and Black Canary, the Justice Society of America, and now they are even bringing in Booster Gold and Blue Beetle in terms of heroes. This show has pretty much turned into one giant live action comic book. So again the big question is, can this series end on a high note instead of a low? We'll just have to tune in come May 13 and find out.

The Flash: Three Generations

The Flash has always been one of my favorite super-heroes, because even though people always just write him off because he has the most obvious in superpowers. The Flash title has always been held by men who have upheld it with honor, courage and valor. The first Flash, Jay Garrick, fought crime during the 1940's, when the "world" was at its darkest and needed champions. Forced into retirement along with the other masked mystery-men by the government. Years passed, and the new heroes came. Barry Allen became the second Flash, taking his cue from a man who he had grown up respecting. After a time, he took on a sidekick, his nephew Wally, who became Kid Flash after going through the same accident that gave Barry his powers. When Barry died during Crisis on Infinite Earths, Wally became the new Flash, with Jay there to help and mentor him. Years later, Barry returned during the Final Crisis, to a new world. And now all three run forward, three generations of Flash, righting wrongs, saving the world, together.

Astro City: The Samaritan

When I picked up a copy of the first Astro City trade paperback, what drew me to the cover immediately was the image of Samaritan. The costume was unlike anything I'd seen before and yet it was so cool. The second reason the cover drew me in was that it was done by Alex Ross. This guy has the most simple origin ever. He is sent back from the 35th century back to the past to correct a problem which has catastrophic repercussions on the world. As he is traveling back through time, he is bombarded by empyrean fire, the energy that makes up the time-stream. He crashes near Astro City in 1985 and spent the remainder of that year mastering the new powers that he had been given by the bombardment. When he emerges at last costumed, he performs his mission and saves the space shuttle Challenger from crashing. Besieged by reporters, he says he is simply a "good samaritan". So the papers dub him Samaritan. After a time he decides to become a super-hero, with Astro City as main working base. Using his Zyxometer, a living bio-computer shaped like a diamond with tentacles, he creates a job for himself as "Asa Martin", a facts checker at Current, a newsmagazine in Astro City. He after a time joins the Honor Guard, the cities premier superhero team. To learn more about the Samaritan and the world of Astro City, pick up you copies of the trade paperbacks or back issues today!

Astro City: The Confessor

I thought for today I'd blog about one of the heroes of Astro City that is honestly one of my favorites. This guy is like the Batman of Astro City, because he is a stalker of nighttime villainy. Originally Roman-Catholic priest Jeremiah Parrish, who came to America in the 1800's with Cardinal Grandenetti to build his cathedral. He was seduced by a beautiful woman while working in the shanty town of the Eastern-European immigrants who had come over to America. The woman turned out to be a vampire, who drained Parrish and left him dead in the filth of an alley. Three days later, Parrish rose again, a vampire himself. Over the years, Parrish sank further and further into seclusion out of fear of what he was. It was not until the arrival of Air-Ace, the first hero to emerge publicly in Astro City (the known as Romeyn Falls) that Parrish began to feel hope. After secretly observing the heroes for years, he took on the costumed identity of the Confessor, as penance and made his first documented appearance in the late 1950's. His costume was a strange priest's robe, with a silver cross stitched on the front to help stem the need to drink blood. For years he fought crime, and at the climax of his career, he took on a sidekick, Brian Kinney, who became Altar Boy. They worked together taking down mostly street crimes, and hitting The Deacon (crime lord of Astro City) and his operations the hardest. At the time, the Shadow Hill murders were prompting public outcry against the heroes, and the Mayor of Astro City began behaving in almost brutal manner in treatment towards the city's protectors. Brian discovers Parrish's secret, but does not condemn him. Parrish dies while exposing a terrible truth, that the Mayor of Astro City had been replaced by a doppleganger, a member of the shape-shifting alien race known as the Enelsians who then mounted an invasion force of the planet, which was stopped by the various heroes, villains and strange creatues that made up the "super-human" community. After four years of training, Brian took up the mantle of his former mentor, and continued to fight crime as the new Confessor.

Astro City: What is in store next?

When Kurt Busiek and Alex Ross first introduced Astro City in 1995, it set the wheels in motion for something fantastic. To those who follow my blog and don't know a thing about comics, Astro City is a series in which there is a world with heroes and villains aplenty. But the premises of these series's is that the characters have been active for a long time in their respective careers, so Busiek and Ross pretty much have created a whole world. One of the interesting things about the Astro City series is that it does chronicle the adventures of heroes yes, but not just from the heroes perspectives, but also from the perspectives of the villains, and the people who live in the city. This comic follows in a way the story-telling style of the great Will Eisner, in whose Spirit stories the regular people of Central City (and no I don't mean the Central City of the DC Universe). This latest series Dark Ages, follows the lives of two brothers in the world of Astro City, one who became a policeman and the other a crook. Now that this series has ended who knows what new direction will be taken in the next chapter of Astro City. I highly recommend anyone who follows my blog to pick up copies of the trade paperbacks, and also to check online or at your local comic book store for a complete run of each of the series. So don't hesitate, get out there and get hooked on Astro City today!

Episode Review: The Cape Episode 6: Goggles and Hicks

Tonight's episode of The Cape, pitted Vince Faraday against what I have seen as the strangest team ever. Two brothers, Goggles and Hicks, who are professional hit-men. The best way I can describe these guys is out of costume versions of DC comics super-villains the Calculator and Deadshot. Now the Calculator, for all you non-comic book readers out there, is a man of information, who hires himself out to the super-villain community, while Deadshot is simply a very good mercenary. These two odd ducks have been hired by Peter Fleming to find and kill the Cape. Meanwhile, Vince is trying to simply take a day off from fighting crime. In the end, the brothers are stopped, and evil triumphs over good once more. I give this episode 4.5/5 stars, but only because at times the dialogue seemed a bit... I'm not sure how to put it exactly, but I will use the word choppy for now. Well that's my take on this episode, for those of you who watch the show as well, make your comments at your whim but please, keep them clean.

First Avenger: Captain America Super Bowl spot

After viewing the spot for the upcoming Captain America movie, it has got me pumped up for the premiere . Not only do we get to see a few seconds of Cap in action, we also see the Howling Commando's (Nick Fury's WWII squadron) and Hugo Weaving in makeup as the Red Skull. For those who missed the spot last night, go to www.screenrant.com and look on the main page to view the captured stills of Weaving in makeup and to also see the spot. Release date is July 22 people, so mark your calendars, and get your tickets for the midnight opening!

Project Super Powers: What is it's future?

With the success of the first and second Project Super Powers series by Dynamite Entertainment, many fans are wondering will there be a third. For those who read this blog and have no idea what I'm talking about, Project Super Powers takes many characters from the Golden Age of Comics (1938-1950) who are in the public domain, all characters coming from three different Golden Age companies: Fox Comics, Crestwood Publications and Nedor Comics. The series are fantastic, with cover art done by the great Alex Ross and fantastic story work by Jim Krueger. The first series detailed an aged Fighting Yank, in the present, setting out to free his friends from Pandora's Urn, the friends he himself trapped. The second series picks up from the first and details the heroes taking the world back from the clutches of the Supremacy, a secret group of ex super-villains who rule the world. This series really brings a lot of classic heroes out of the mothballs and into the limelight. The trades are a must have for any new comics fan. They can be found at www.dynamiteentertainment.com under the titles section, which is alphabetized so it makes things even easier in terms of looking. And if you like what you see, be sure to check out all the other fantastic titles from Dynamite Entertainment! Don't hesitate, get your copies of Project Super Powers series one and two today!

New Big Bang Theory: Sheldon's apparent love for his mother

Last night's episode of The Big Bang Theory, was one that certainly tickled my funny bone. Sheldon is once again forced to lecture in front of a large crowd of people, in this case a room full of doctoral candidates, who are driven nearly insane by Sheldon's ego. After taking Amy's advice to take up acting lessons to help with his people skills, Sheldon turn to Penny for said acting lessons. But instead of acting out a scene from American stage classic Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, they act out a scene from a Star Trek fan fiction that Sheldon wrote when he was ten, that involved him being taken by the crew of the Enterprise to the 23rd century where his genius his appreciated. The part that was extremely funny was when Sheldon, coaxed by Penny to really get into his role of being his mother, reveals to viewers that he actually loves his mom, at which point Penny calls Mrs. Cooper to tell her, "I think I broke your son." Along with the side story of Raj starting to fantasize about Bernadette, during which time he convinces himself "he's definitely not gay." This episode literally had me laughing so hard it hurt, so I am giving this episode five out of five stars, even though I am not a tv numbers man. Till tomorrow, with another post. 

Green Hornet # 13: Where will it go from there

Things are heating up in the pages of Dynamite Entertainments Green Hornet series, as Britt Reid Jr. and Mulan Kato continue their investigation against the mysterious Santa Muerte crime cult. And what of the shocking revelation that Saint Death might be real, as seen in the last pages of Green Hornet #12. You better be sitting on the edge of your seats readers when you get your copy of the next issue!

Watchmen

Everyone who hasn't heard of Watchmen or seen the film is missing out. This groundbreaking comic by the brilliant team of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons was published back in the mid 1980's and gave the world and the comic book industry a big kick in the pants. The basic plot of course for all who have not read the graphic novel is as follows: It is 1985, New York City, and it is the height of the Cold War. Everything appears to be following the correct historical time-line, except for one thing, the presence of superheroes. Their presence has drastically altered the events of real world events, including the Vietnam War and Richard Nixon's presidency. The long and short of it is, right at the beginning of the book, the police are investigating the death of Edward Blake, who is revealed upon further investigation by the vigilante Rorschach to have been the government agent and former superhero known as the Comedian. The rest of the book details events in the present, including the other heroes coming out of retirement, and flashbacks to the "glory days" of the heroes before they were outlawed in the mid 70's due a law passed in Congress that outlawed superheroes. The film version of the comic does not disappoint either, despite the filmmakers having to change the ending to seem more believable to non-comic book audiences, and many of the minor supporting characters roles being downsized to make the movie flow. The dvd and Blu-Ray Directors Cut includes great bonus features, but the Ultimate Cut has way more bonus features to satisfy fans. Whichever version you get, be sure to read the graphic novel first, that way you can understand this amazing story more.

Tom Strong and the Robots of Doom... what will the ending be?

With only one issue to go in the latest mini-series starring the world's favorite science-hero and his family, I've been asking myself what will happen to Tom and his family as time marches forward after this? What lessons will Tom take away from this latest encounter with his son Albrecht, sired by Nazi Ingrid Weiss? Will he let him live to plague him another day, or will he... dare I say it, end this conflict with his own black-sheep child? And what of Tesla marrying? What will her future hold? And what happened to Dr. Permafrost, who was stabbed by one of the mechanized menaces in the last issue, only to have apparently disappeared at it's end. One can only imagine as readers everywhere wait with baited breath for the thrilling conclusion to this series.