Saturday, June 25, 2022

Negromancer News Bits and Bites from June 19th to 25th, 2022 - Update #21

by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

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ENTERTAINMENT AND CULTURE NEWS:

ROE V. WADE - From NPR:  The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) has overturned "Roe v. Wade."  It's gone, boo.

From GoogleDocs:  "Roe v. Wade": What you can do.

From RSNNewYorker:  We're not going back to the time before Roe. We're going somewhere worse.

From RSNVanityFair:  Justices Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor, and Stephen Breyer's wrote a withering dissent to the court's conservative majority. Their conclusion: this opinion is "the curtailment of women's rights, and of their status as free and equal citizens."

From TruthoutRep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass) led a group of 20 Black Congresswomen who urged President Biden to to take urgent action to protect abortion rights.

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MOVIES - From THR:  Emmy, Grammy and Tony Award-winning actor, Billy Porter, and Food Network star, Guy Fieri, are joining the road trip comedy, "80 for Brady," which is being produced by NFL star and Super Bowl champion, Tom Brady.

MUSIC/POLITICS - From YahooEntertainment:   Grammy-winning recording artist and rock music legend, John Mellencamp, slams politicians for not doing more to prevent gun violence.

MOVIES - From FilmBookSteven Spielberg‘s semi-autobiographical drama, The Fabelmans, is scheduled to open Nov. 23rd, 2022.  However, the star-studded film is now scheduled to open in New York and Los Angeles on November 11th, to help build buzz on the film, which is vying for Oscar consideration.

MOVIES - From Deadline:  At CineEurope in Barcelona, Spain, Universal Pictures shows off its upcoming film slate, including a glimpse of "Fast & Furious X."  James Bond producer, Barbara Broccoli, also introduced a behind scenes look at the, "Till," the MGM drama about lynching victim, Emmett Till, and his mother.

From Deadline:  At CineEuope, Warner Bros previewed its films and offered a behind the scenes look at "Meg 2: The Trench" and touted its DC Comics films, like "Black Adam" and "The Flash." 

SCANDAL - From Variety:  Oscar-winning screenwriter and producer, Paul Haggis ("Crash"), has been arrested in Italy on sexual assault charges.  Haggis is currently being sued over a rape allegation and has been accaused by three other women of sexual misconduct.

From Deadline:  A Santa Monica jury in a civil trial has decided that Bill Cosby sexually abused Judith Huth in the 1970s when she was a minor and awarded her $500,000 in damages.

CELEBRITY - From Variety:  Actor-producer-director, Bradley Cooper's success at nabbing Oscar "noms" is apparently a source of irritation for some people.

BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficePro:  The winner of the 6/17 to 6/19/2022 weekend box office is "Jurassic World: Dominion" with an estimated take of 58.6 million dollars.

From WeGotThisCovered:  "Top Gun: Maverick" sets a box office record only surpassed by "Avatar."

NETFLIX - From THR:  The sequel to "Knives Out" (2019) has a title.  It is "Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery" and it is due for release this holiday season.

From Deadline:  Netflix is suspending production on its series, "The Chosen One," after two actors were killed and six injured in an auto accident involving the cast and crew on June 16th in Mexico.

DISNEY - From DeadlineGuy Ritchie will director a live-action version of Disney's 1997 animated hit, "Hercules."  The film will be produced by AGBO, the production company of brothers, Joe & Anthony Russo of "Avengers: Endgame."  Ritchie directed the billion-dollar live-action version of "Aladdin."

OBITS:

From ESPN:  Former NFL player, Anthony "Tony" Siragusa, has died at the age of 55, Wednesday, June 22, 2022.  Nicknamed "The Goose," Siragusa was a "defensive tackle."  In 1990, Siragusa was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Indianapolis Colt.  He came to fame with the Baltimore Ravens where he was a member of the team that won Super Bowl XXXV on January 28, 2001.  After he retired, Siragusa was an NFL sideline analyst for Fox Sports from 2003 to 2015.  Siragusa also appeared on four episodes of HBO's "The Sopranos."

From NPR:  Television political commentator, Mark Shields, died at the age of 85, Saturday, June 18, 2022.  Shields his best known for providing political analysis and commentary for "PBS NewsHour" from 1988 to 2020.

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UVALDE, TEXAS MASS SHOOTING:

From YahooAP:  An 18-year-old gunman slaughtered 19 children and two teachers on Tues., May 24th, 2022 in Uvalde, Texas.  All 21 victims were in the same 4th grade classroom at Robb Elementary.

From TheDailyBeast:  Texas's top law enforcement official, Department of Public Safety Director Steve McGraw, has said that the school shooter in Uvalde, Texas could have been taken down in three minutes.

From TheDailyBeast:  Police officers responding to last month’s mass shooting at an Uvalde, Texas, elementary school never even tried to open the door to the classroom where young children were trapped with the gunman, according to a new report. 

From Jacobin:  "The Uvalde Massacre has exposed the lies that once justified police militarization" by Branko Marcetic

From Truthout:  We don’t need more evidence that police can’t be trusted.

From Truthout:   44 percent of GOP voters view mass shootings as part of living in “Free Society”

From ABCNews:  Arnulfo Reyes, a teacher who survived the school massacre in Uvalde, Texas, calls the local police "cowards" because of slow response to an active shooter at his school, Robb Elementary.  All of 11 students in his class were killed.

From DallasNews:  Joe Garcia, the husband of Irma Garcia, one of the two teachers killed at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas, has died of a heart attack two days after the murder of his wife.  They had been married for 24 years and had been high school sweethearts.

From Axios:  Texas gubernatorial candidate, Beto O'Rourke, interrupted Texas Gov. Greg Abbott's gaslighting press conference on the Uvalde elementary school mass shooting.

From USAToday:  Beto O'Rourke's outburst at Gov. Greg Abbott's Uvalde news conference shows the spine Democrats need.

From BostonGlobe:  Steve Kerr, head coach of the NBA's Golden State Warriors, asks "When are we going to do something?"

From NBCNews:  A Robb Elementary teacher describes "the longest 35 minutes of my life" and the terror she now feels.

From NBCNews:  The Uvalde school district had an extensive safety plan, but 19 children were killed at Robb Elementary anyway.  Even security plans that appear to be up to the latest research-based standards may have gaps and fall short of preventing the worst-case scenario, experts said.

From MSN:  Angeli Rose Gomez, the mother who was handcuffed outside Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas, was able to get inside the school and rescue her two children.

From YahooNews:   Daniel Defense, the maker of the rifles used by the Uvalde massacre killer, has used "incendiary ads" in the past, including one in which a toddler holds one of its rifles.

From TheIntercept:  The police aren't obligated to protect anyone NOT in their custody, as the Supreme Court has ruled twice.

From RollingStone:  Right wing lies about the Second Amendment and why they tell them are killing America's childrne.

From Vice:  The law enforcement personnel in Texas that arrived at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas on Tues., May 24th did the opposite of what their own training documentary videos show.

From Vox:  Uvalde police keep changing their story.

From TheDailyBeast:  The families in Uvalde, Texas who lost loved one in the Robb Elementary massacre say that the cops there are "Nothing more than cowards" and that they need to pay for doing nothing while a gunman rampaged through the school last Tues, May 24th.

From TheNewYorker:  Thoughts and prayers, Uvalde, Texas. This is the America that Republicans and the right wing have being thinking about and praying for all these decades.

From ABC:  Sources say that Uvalde police and school district no longer cooperating with Texas probe of shooting of the May 24th massacre of 19 children and two teachers at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas.

From GuardianUK:  Canada plans to freeze all handgun ownership.

From RSNWashPost:  Is it time to show the true horror of mass shooting - in pictures?

From MSN:  Angeli Gomez, the Uvalde mother who rescued her two children from the Robb Elementary shooting massacre, says that a police officer threatened to arrest her if she did not stop telling her story.

From RSNTheAtlantic:  The Uvalde police chose dishonor. Where was there courage?

From RSNWashPost:  Brenda Bell:  I hid from the Texas Tower sniper (Charles Joseph Whitman) in 1966. His successors have found us all.

From RSNTheIntercept:  "AR-15s Were Made to Explode Human Bodies. In Uvalde, the Bodies Belonged to Children" by Murtaza Hussain

From RSNNPR:  The tragic history of police responding too late to active shooters.

From VICE:  There is likely bodycam footage of the school shooting in Uvalde, TX, but the public may never see it.

BLM-BUFFALO:

From ABCNews:  A 18-year-old white MAN shot 13 people, killing 10 at a Buffalo, New York Tops Friendly Markets supermarket on Saturday, May 14, 2021.

From RSNAP:  The white male suspect in the Buffalo Tops Supermarket shooting, Payton Gendron, was charged with federal hate crimes on Wed., June 15th and could face the death penalty if convicted.

From Truthout:  The racist attack in Buffalo at the Tops Friendly supermarket was crafted to terrorize us.  We can fight back, and here’s how we fight back.

From WGRZ:  Who are the victims of the Buffalo Tops Friendly Markets grocery store shooting. This comes from local station WGRZ Channel 2 and includes video and some victim photos.

From BuffaloNews:  One of the 10 Black murder victims of the Buffalo massacre was Katherine "Kat" Massey.  She was a leader in her community and civil rights activist and advocate for education.

From NewYorkPost:  One of the 10 Black murder victims of the Buffalo massacre was Andre Mackniel. He was at TOPS Supermaket to pick up a birthday cake for his son.

From Truthout:  The racist attack in Buffalo, NY at the Tops supermarket was crafted to terrorize us, so here is how we fight back.

From CNN:  What is known about the 18-year-old MAN, Payton Gendron.

From NPR:  198 mass shooting this year ... so far.

From Truthout:  White supremacist massacre of 10 people in Buffalo, NY shows that the “Alt-Right” ideology leads to murder.

From RollingStone:  Buffalo rampage killing is "Straight Up Racially Motivated Hate Crime."

From InformedComment:  Rene Binet, the originator the "great replacement" was a French Nazi, and he saw all American as "Negroes," an "impure mestizo 'race'."

From WashPost:  Only 22 people saw the live-stream of a white terrorist kill Black shoppers at the Buffalo Tops Friendly Markets supermarket, but millions have seen it since...

From GuardianUK:  Buffalo Tops Friendly Markets shooter may have been motivated by "eco-fascism," a focus on overpopulation and environmental degradation.

From RSN:  "What Lessons Have We Learned From the Buffalo Shooting?" by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

From Truthout:  “Innocent” White People Are Also Complicit in the Anti-Black Murders in Buffalo by George Yancy.

From Truthout:  "Black Lives Matter" cofounder discovered that Alicia Garza has learned that her name is mentioned in the Buffalo Tops supermarket killer's manifesto.

From GuardianUK:   Cornell West says, "Trump isn't out there with a gun, but he's enabled this war against Black people.

From Slate:  From the Tulsa Race Massacre to the Buffalo Tops Friendly Markets shootings: the legacy of anti-Black violence.

From Truthout:  After mass shootings, Republicans shield white supremacists from scrutiny

From MSN:  Angeli Gomez, the Uvalde mom who rescued her children from the school shooting at Robb Elementary, says that local police have threatened to have her arrested if she does not stop telling her story.

UKRAINE:

From TheDailyBeast:  Russian soldiers allegedly raped and killed a 1-year-old Ukrainian boy and have reportedly raped or sexually abused children as young as 9 months old.

HATE WATCH:

From NPR:  31 members of the white nationalist Patriot Front arrested near a "Pride Month" event in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.  They are believed to have been planning to riot held at a local before moving on to rioting downtown.  They were not the only haters trying to sour the "Pride in the Park" event, which included families with children.

From SpokesmanReview:  The Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office released the names and photos of all 31 "Patriot Front" members who are suspects in a planned riot at the "Pride Month" event in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.


Friday, June 24, 2022

Review: "PARALLEL MOTHERS" is Another Almodovar-Cruz Masterpiece

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 39 of 2022 (No. 1851) by Leroy Douresseaux

Parallel Mothers (2021)
Original title: Madres paralelas
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Spain; Language: Spanish
Running time:  123 minutes (2 hours, 3 minutes)
MPA – R for some sexuality
WRITER/DIRECTOR:  Pedro Almodóvar
PRODUCERS:  Augustin Almodóvar and Esther Garcia
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  José Luis Alcaine (D.o.P.)
EDITOR:  Teresa Font
COMPOSER:  Alberto Iglesias
Academy Award nominee

DRAMA

Starring:  Penelope Cruz, Milena Smit, Israel Elejalde, Aitana Sanchez-Gijon, Julieta Serrano, Adelfa Clavo, Carmen Flores, Ainhoa Santamaria, and Rossy de Palma

Madres paralelas is a 2021 Spanish drama film written and directed by Pedro Almodóvar.  The film is also known by its English release title, Parallel Mothers (the title I will use for this review).  The film focuses on two mothers who give birth on the same day causing them to bond in unexpected ways.

Parallel Mothers introduces Janis Martínez (Penelope Cruz), a highly considered magazine photographer.  She does a photo shoot with renowned forensic archaeologist, Arturo (Israel Elejalde). She asks him if his foundation will help excavate a mass grave in her home village, where she believes her great-grandfather and other men from the village were killed and buried during the Spanish Civil War (1936-39).  After he agrees to review the case with his foundation, Arturo has sexual relations with Janis, who becomes pregnant.

Later, Janis shares a hospital room with Ana Manso (Milena Smit), a teen single mother, and the two end up giving birth at the same time.  Janis has a daughter whom she names “Cecilia,” and Ana a daughter she names “Anita.”  The women promise to stay in touch, but Janis makes a series of shocking discoveries that will change both their lives.

Parallel Mothers is obviously an acting showcase for Penelope Cruz, who wastes no time exercising her prodigious talents.  Cruz won numerous awards and received even more nominations for her performance as Janis Martinez.  Writer-director Pedro Almodovar has spent his four-decade career in film making writing wonderful roles for women that result is wonderful films featuring an eclectic group of actresses.

Parallel Mothers' women are united across time by the bonds of motherhood, family, friendship, and loss.  They are the speakers for the dead and the nurtures of men, but they also nurture and support and lift-up the other women in their lives.  This is the uplift that Janis will provide for Ana, played by actress Milena Smit as a pixie of a girl in need of mothering.  Janis and Ana are the solid center and radiant soul of this film about the complications and twists, the pain and the glory, and joy, sadness, and bittersweet nature of being a mother.

The film has a subplot involving the Spanish Civil War, which is the impetus for the Janis and Arturo conceiving a child.  The search for the missing graves in her village, a grave that will hold the remains of her great-grandfather and the grandfathers of other women she knows is also part of the film's theme of loss and separation.  These men, murdered in the civil war, should ultimately have a decent burial, and Janis and the other women will see to that.

Pedro Almodovar offers a film that is as raw and unflinching as it is beautiful.  He draws out performances that are unashamedly naked and vulnerable in their depictions and displays of emotions, in a way American films tend to avoid, even Oscar-bait films.  Sometimes Almodovar can be riotous and uproarious, but other times he can be uncannily intimate, as he is here.  Sometimes, I feel unworthy of viewing his amazing films, which are so different and so much more daring than what I usually watch.  Parallel Mothers is one of 2021's very best films and reveals that the Spanish maestro is, as usual, in top form.

10 of 10

Friday, June 24, 2022


NOTES:
2022 Academy Awards, USA:  2 nominations: “Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role” (Penelope Cruz) and “Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures-Original Score (Alberto Iglesias)

2022 BAFTA Awards:  1 nomination: “Best Film not in the English Language” (Pedro Almodóvar and Augustin Almodovar)

2022 Golden Globes, USA:  2 nominations: “Best Motion Picture – Non-English Language” (
Spain) and Best Original Score – Motion Picture (Alberto Iglesias)


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Thursday, June 23, 2022

Review: "Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown" is Still Fresh and Vibrant

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 38 of 2022 (No. 1850) by Leroy Douresseaux

Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (1988)
Original title: Mujeres al borde de un ataque de "nervios"
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Spain; Language: Spanish
Running time:  89 minutes (1 hour, 29 minutes)
MPAA – R
WRITER/DIRECTOR:  Pedro Almodóvar
PRODUCER:  Pedro Almodóvar
CINEMATOGRAPHER:  José Luis Alcaine (D.o.P.)
EDITOR:  José Salcedo
COMPOSER:  Bernardo Bonezzi
Academy Award nominee

DRAMA/COMEDY

Starring:  Carmen Maura, Antonio Banderas, Julieta Serrano, Rossy de Palma, Maria Berranco, Kiti Manver, Guillermo Montesinos, Chus Lampreave, and Fernando Guillen

Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios is a 1988 Spanish comedy and drama film written and directed by Pedro Almodóvar.  The film is also known by its English release title, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown (the title I will use for this review).  The film focuses on a television actress who encounters a variety of eccentric characters as she tries to make contact with her lover who recently and abruptly left her.

Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown introduces television actress, Pepa Marcos (Carmen Maura), who was recently dumped by her lover, Ivan (Fernando Guillen).  They are both voice actors who dub foreign language films into Spanish, and Ivan's sweet-talking voice is the same one he uses in his work.  Pepa knows that Ivan is about to leave on a trip … with another woman.  He has even asked Pepa to pack his things in a suitcase that he will pick up later.

However, Pepa just wants to talk to Ivan.  She really needs to talk to him, but he seems to be avoiding her.  She never catches him at home and leaves messages on his telephone answering machine.  He leaves voice messages on her machine, always seeming to call when she is unavailable.  Her life is spiraling out of control, especially as an ever increasing number of eccentric characters, some connected to Ivan, start gathering around her.  Their lives are apparently spiraling out of control, too.

There is her friend Candela (Maria Berranco), who is afraid of the police because she had a brief sexual encounter with a man who turns out to be a “Shiite terrorist.”  He later returned to her, bringing a few terrorists colleagues, and they are planning a terrorist attack.  Candela is more afraid of going to jail than having had a sexual relationship with a terrorist.

Ivan's son, Carlos (Antonio Banderas), arrives at Pepa's penthouse, with his snobbish fiancée, Marisa (Rossy de Palma).  They are apartment-hunting and are interested in Pepa's place.  Pepa meets the feminist and lawyer, Paulina (Kiti Mánver), who has a past with Ivan's family and may be connected to them now.  Carlos describes his mother, Lucia (Julieta Serrano), Ivan's previous lover, as “crazy,” and she is apparently out of her mental hospital and on the way to Pepa's for a confrontation.  Meanwhile, what is Ivan up to?

The original Spanish title of Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown – Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios – is evidently not about a “nervous breakdown.”  The “ataque de nervois” is more about women showing excessive negative emotions via panic attacks, fainting, and bodily gestures when they get upsetting news or see something that disturbs them.  This is about agitation and stress instead of a full breakdown, which actually seems possible with some of the film's characters.

I can see why so many film critics, fans, and audiences were taken with Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown at the time of its original release.  There was nothing like it in U.S. contemporary film at the time.  Its costumes, art direction, and set decoration have stylish references to the past and present and hints at the future.  If one ignores such things as the types of telephones and answering machines and the operation of the airport, the film does not seem to be set in any particular time, past or present.  The decorations in Pepa's penthouse and all the characters clothing are a riot of beautiful colors and color design.  However, things like the taxi cab that Pepa frequently uses and its lovable driver (Guillermo Montesinos) add an earthy street-level touch to the film.  Even Pepa's menagerie of animals (chickens and rabbits) are a nice addition to the film's oddness

For most of the 1990s, there were rumors of an American remake of Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown, with Jane Fonda often listed as a potential cast member (as I remember it).  I am not surprised that American actresses would be attracted to this kind of film.  Even with Pepa as the lead, Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown has five supporting female roles with significant speaking parts, to say nothing of a few smaller parts that all actresses to show themselves.

No one female character is like another, and each woman has her own reason for “ataque de nervois.”  Pepa and her eccentric friends and acquaintances are a delight, and the actresses make the most of their time on screen.  They turn their character types into showy, gaudy, and captivating women, and I wanted more of them.  Also, a young Antonio Banderas, as Carlos, deftly fits in with all these females, never dominating the screen, but always complimenting with uncanny skill.

I have seen Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown described as a black comedy.  It is too wildly exaggerated to be anything but a farce.  For Pedro Almodóvar, it was his calling card that introduced him to a wider audience outside of both Spain and of the devoted international film audience that already knew him.  I like it as a comedy, but I am really fascinated by its characters and the actors playing them.  The women on the verge of a nervous breakdown are some amazing women indeed, and Women on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown is an amazing film.

9 of 10
A+
★★★★+ out of 4 stars



NOTES:
1989 Academy Awards, USA:  1 nomination: “Best Foreign Language Film” (Spain)

1990 BAFTA Awards:  1 nomination: “Best Film not in the English Language” (Pedro Almodóvar)

1989 Golden Globes, USA:  1 nomination: “Best Foreign Language Film” (Spain)


The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Comics Review: "PROJECT SUPERPOWERS: Fractured States #3" is Super-Powered

PROJECT SUPERPOWERS: FRACTURED STATES VOLUME 1 #3
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT

STORY: Ron Marz and Andy Lanning
ART: Emilio Utrera
COLORS: Arthur Hesli
LETTERS: Tom Napolitano
EDITOR: Brian Cunningham
COVER: Mike Rooth
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Scott Kolins; Paula Andrade; Geraldo Borges; Rus Wooton
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (June 2022)

Rated Teen+

Project Superpowers was a comic book limited series published by Dynamite Entertainment beginning in January 2008.  The series resurrected many superheroes from the “Golden Age of Comics” that were originally published by now-defunct companies like Crestwood Publications, Fox Comics, and Nedor Comics.  Many of these characters were in the public domain.

The series was set on an Earth where a twentieth century conflict gave rise to the age of “the Superpowers.”  These Superpowers protected the world, especially the United States.

The characters return in the new comic book series, Project Superpowers: Fractured States Volume 1.  It is written by Ron Marz and Andy Lanning; drawn by Emilio Utrera; colored by Arthur Hesli; and lettered by Tom Napolitano.  The series is set in 2052 and finds the United States of America, post-disaster, fractured into warring regions.  Into this world, a mysterious man awakens, unkempt, naked, and abandoned in an underground base.  This “John Doe” finds the world turned upside down, but does he bring salvation … or doom?  And where are the Superpowers and can they rise again?

Project Superpowers: Fractured States Volume 1 #3 opens in the “Zombie State,” in the year 2052.  Aboard her jet-propelled boat, Bobbi, the new “Black Terror,” tells John Doe what happened to America in the twenty-first century.  It all started in 2025...

At last, the secrets are revealed.  The origin of the new Black Terror is told.  John Doe learns how the United States of America fractured into warring powers.  In the middle of it all, the mysterious John Doe holds the key to what happened, and why the heroes of Project Superpowers failed.  Now, in the year 2052, can he gather the survivors and save America?

THE LOWDOWN:  In July 2021, Dynamite Entertainment's marketing department began providing me with PDF review copies of some of their titles.  One of them is Project Superpowers: Fractured States Volume 1 #3, which is the third Project Superpowers comic book that I have read.

Writers Ron Marz and Andy Lanning are writing a spectacular superhero comic book.  This blend of superhero fantasy, mystery, conspiracy, and science fiction is shockingly good.  I was surprised at how good the first issue was; now, I'm just dumbfounded by the third issue.  Project Superpowers: Fractured States Volume 1 is proof that writers that know what they are doing can create a plot-driven narrative that is great without being bogged down in dull psychological drama.  Does Dynamite have other superhero properties for Marz and Lanning to write?

I don't want to leave out artist Emilio Utrera; he is turning Marz and Lanning's scripts into addictive graphical storytelling.  Utrera captures the spirit of classic, old school superhero comic books filled with a sense of discovery and wonder.  Arthur Hesli's moody colors create an alluring world of mystery and thrills.  Of course, a superb superhero comic book needs a superb comic book letterer, and of course, that is Tom Napolitano.

I am writing this review in a state of nerd ecstasy.  Please read, Project Superpowers: Fractured States Volume 1, dear readers.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Project Superpowers and of superhero comic books will want Project Superpowers: Fractured States Volume 1.

[This comic book includes “Dynamite Dispatch” June 2022, which features an interview with writer Christopher Priest.]

A+

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


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The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Comics Review: BARBARELLA Volume 2 #10 Closes Out the Series

BARBARELLA VOLUME 2 #10
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT

STORY: Sarah Hoyt
ART: Madibek Musabekov
COLORS: Ivan Nunes
LETTERS: Carlos M. Mangual
EDITOR: Matt Idelson
COVER: Carla Cohen
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Derrick Chew; Butch Guice with Ivan Nunes, Celina Kirchner; Mike Krome with Elmer Santos; John Royle and Jagdish Kumar with Candice Han; Madibek Musabekov; Butch Guice; Carla Cohen; Rachel Hollon and Myke Shooter (cosplay)
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (June 2022)

Rated Teen+

Barbarella is based on the creator created by Jean-Claude Forest

“The Gang is All Here”


Barbarella is a female, French, science fiction comic book hero.  Created by the late French comic book writer-artist, Jean-Claude Forest (1930-98), Barbarella first appeared in a comics serial for the French publication, V Magazine, in the spring of 1962.

In 2017, Dynamite Entertainment began publishing original English language Barbarella comic books.  The latest series is Barbarella Volume 2.  It is written by Sarah Hoyt; drawn by Madibek Musabekov and Tommaso Bianchi; colored by Ivan Nunes; and lettered by Carlos M. Mangual.  In this new series, Barbarella and her pals, Vix, Taln (the blind “angel” and A.I. friend.), and George the Glofen (an alien dinosaur) travel through space in service of the Brotherhood.  They combat tyranny, especially “The Lady,” who wants to be Barbarella and rule the galaxy.

Barbarella Volume 2 #10 (“The Gang is All Here”) opens with Barbarella in the clutches of “The Lady of Qruyx” a.k.a. “The Lady,” the ruler of the tyrannical Qruyx Benevolence.  The Lady looks like Barbarella, and she wants our heroine out of her way.  Luckily, Barbarella will learn the origin of The Lady, and why she looks like her.

Of course, such similarities are the foundations of traps, and Barbarella's Brotherhood colleagues, Alexis and Victoire, are pawns in The Lady's games.  Even if Barbarella and the Brotherhood can stop the Lady, will that end the galaxy's troubles?

THE LOWDOWN:  In July 2021, Dynamite Entertainment's marketing department began providing me with PDF review copies of some of their titles.  One of them is Barbarella Volume 2 #10, which is the ninth issue of the title that I have read.

Cheers to the creative team of writer Sarah Hoyt, artist Madibek Musabekov, colorist Ivan Nunes; and letterer Carlos M. Mangual.  They have once again delivered an exciting chapter full of twists and tragedies, all presented in beautiful and colorful art and graphics.  However, I do have quibbles about certain events that took place here, but I won't go into details because I don't want to spoil things.  This series will make for a damn fine trade paperback collection.

Of course, this is the final issue of this iteration of the Barbarella comic book series.  Apparently, a new series will arrive in October.  That gives you plenty of time to catch up on this series, dear readers.

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Barbarella will want to try Barbarella Volume 2.

[This comic book includes “Dynamite Dispatch” June 2022, which features an interview with writer Christopher Priest.]

B+

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

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Wednesday, June 22, 2022

Director George Miller Starts Filming "Furiosa" (from the world of "Mad Max") in Australia

Cameras Are Rolling in New South Wales, Australia, as Production Is Underway on Director George Miller’s Epic Action Adventure “Furiosa,” With Anya Taylor-Joy in the Title Role, Alongside Chris Hemsworth and Tom Burke

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Principal photography is underway on Academy Award-winning filmmaker George Miller’s “Furiosa,” the much-anticipated return to the iconic dystopian world he created more than 30 years ago with the seminal “Mad Max” films, this time with an original new standalone action adventure that will reveal the origins of the powerhouse character from the multiple Oscar-winning global smash “Mad Max: Fury Road.” The new feature is being produced by Miller’s own Australian-based Kennedy Miller Mitchell banner, together with the filmmaker’s “Fury Road” partners Warner Bros. Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures. Anya Taylor-Joy stars in the title role, alongside Chris Hemsworth and Tom Burke.

As the world fell, young Furiosa is snatched from the Green Place of Many Mothers and falls into the hands of a great Biker Horde led by the Warlord Dementus. Sweeping through the Wasteland they come across the Citadel presided over by The Immortan Joe. While the two Tyrants war for dominance, Furiosa must survive many trials as she puts together the means to find her way home.

Taylor-Joy was most recently seen in Edgar Wright’s “Last Night in Soho” and Robert Eggers’ “The Northman.” She also played the lead in the romantic comedy “Emma,” based on the Jane Austen novel. Her additional features include the sci-fi thrillers “Split” from M. Night Shyamalan, and his follow up “Glass,” in which she reprised her role from the previous film. She also starred as a chess prodigy in the massively successful miniseries “The Queen’s Gambit.”

Hemsworth is right at home with high-octane action, having starred in the “Avengers” and “Thor” films as well as the recent “Extraction.” His other film credits include “Bad Times at the El Royale,” “12 Strong,” “In the Heart of the Sea,” “Rush,” “Snow White and the Huntsman,” and “Star Trek,” among many others.

Burke is perhaps best-known for his award-nominated role in Joanna Hogg’s film “The Souvenir,” as well as playing the lead in the popular UK crime series “C.B. Strike.” He also starred as Athos in the BBC series “The Musketeers,” appeared in such feature films as Nicholas Winding Refn’s “Only God Forgives,” and played famed filmmaker Orson Welles in David Fincher’s Oscar-winning “Mank.”

Miller penned the script with “Mad Max: Fury Road” co-writer Nico Lathouris and produces alongside his longtime partner, Oscar-nominated producer Doug Mitchell (“Mad Max: Fury Road,” “Babe”). Miller’s behind-the-scenes creative team includes such longtime Australian collaborators as production designer Colin Gibson, editor Margaret Sixel, sound mixer Ben Osmo, costume designer Jenny Beavan and makeup designer Lesley Vanderwalt, each of whom won an Oscar for their work on “Mad Max: Fury Road,” as well as first assistant director PJ Voeten and second unit director and stunt coordinator Guy Norris. The director of photography is Simon Duggan (“Hacksaw Ridge,” “The Great Gatsby”).

Filming is underway in Australia. The film will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures.

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Monday, June 20, 2022

Comics Review: "KING SPAWN #11" - It's Hard Out Here for a Hellspawn Pimp

KING SPAWN #11
IMAGE COMICS/Todd McFarlane Producions

STORY: Sean Lewis with Todd McFarlane
ART: Javi Fernandez
COLOR: FCO Plascencia
LETTERS: Andworld Design
EDITOR-in-CHIEF: Thomas Healy
COVER:  Francesco Mattina
VARIANT COVER ARTIST: Javi Fernandez
28pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (June 2022)

Rated: “T/ Teen”

Spawn created by Todd McFarlane


Spawn is a superhero/antihero character that stars in the long-running comic book series, Spawn.  Created by writer-artist Todd McFarlane, Spawn first appeared in Spawn #1 (cover dated: May 1992).

Spawn was Albert Francis “Al” Simmons.  A career military man who becomes a highly capable assassin and dies a violent death.  He makes a deal with the devil, Malebolgia, in order to return to the living realm to see his wife one last time.  However, Al returns with almost no memories accept that his name is Al Simmons, and he learns that he is now a “Hellspawn” in service of Malebolgia.  Rebelling, Al Simmons, now “Spawn,” finds a new purpose in stopping evil.

King Spawn is one of three recently launched comic book series that join the original series to form the “Spawn Universe.”  This series is written by Sean Lewis with Todd McFarlane; drawn by Javi Fernandez with Thomas Nachlik ; colored by FCO Plascencia; lettered by Andworld Design.  King Spawn finds Spawn battling the members of a dark conspiracy that wants to force him to accept his crown and the “Godthrone.”

King Spawn #11 opens with Spawn beating the crap out of a member of the Court of Priests.  The demon, Tremor, however, isn't Spawn's only target, but some of his targets will fight back.  Spawn is on the hunt for the Court of Priests, and maybe they expected it.  Meanwhile, Al Simmons/Spawn's oldest friend, Terry Fitzgerald, is on a mission of his own, one that may actually make things worse!

THE LOWDOWN:  King Spawn insists on being the best Spawn spin-off comic book to date, and I'm too scared of it to argue otherwise.  As I have written several times, this hybrid of dark fantasy, the supernatural, and superheroes never disappoints.

I love that writer Sean Lewis is just a little too aggressive because that feels like the right thing for the lead character.  This is a Spawn comic book, after all, and the character has often seethed with and anger, discontent, and rage.  Besides, Lewis has been offering a nice balance of character drama with Terry Fitzgerald.  He is the human side, vulnerable, but determined, a counter to the rage.

Once again, Javi Fernandez turns in some of best work.  It's the eleventh issue, for Hell's sake, but Javi is still offering crazy new compositions and invigorating graphics.  Fernandez balances the grim determination of Terry Fitzgerald with the hurricane of violence that is Spawn.  I loved how Javi drew Spawn pounding Tremor into crap in page after page of widescreen comics storytelling.

I highly recommend King Spawn.  To borrow a phrase from Joe Simmons of the Madea movies, King Spawn is some of that “good-good,” although Joe is talking about narcotics...

I READS YOU RECOMMENDS:  Fans of Spawn will want to read King Spawn.

[This comic book includes “Spawning Ground Presents:” featuring “Fan Art Sketch Covers”.]

A+

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


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