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Monday, November 21, 2022
Comic Books, Magazines and Books from Diamond Distributors for November 23, 2022
DC Comics Shipping from Lunar Distributors for November 22, 2022
Comics Review: "SHEENA Queen of the Jungle Volume 2 #10" is a Final Issue Win
SHEENA: QUEEN OF THE JUNGLE VOLUME 2 #10
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT
STORY: Steven E. de Souza
ART: Ediano Silva
COLORS: Dinei Ribeiro
LETTERS: Taylor Esposito
EDITOR: Joseph Rybandt
COVER: Lucio Parrillo
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Arthur Suydam; Joseph Michael Linsner; Rose Besch
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (November 2022)
Rated Teen+
Sheena originally created by S.M. “Jerry” Iger and Will Eisner; Sheena reboot by Steven E. de Souza
“Cenozoic” Part Five
Sheena, Queen of the Jungle is an American comic book character. She first appeared in the British magazine, Wags #46 ( January 1938), and was created by legendary American comic book creators, Will Eisner and S. M. “Jerry” Iger. Sheena made her first American appearance in Jumbo Comics #1 (Fiction House, cover dated: September 1938) where she was a mainstay until 1953. Sheena was also the first female comic book character to star in her own series. A “jungle girl heroine,” Sheen was an orphan, like Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan, who had adventures featuring African natives, wild animals, and white hunters and villains.
Dynamite began publishing Sheena comics in 2017. Dynamite's second series is Sheena: Queen of the Jungle, Volume 2. It is written by Steven E. de Souza; drawn by Jethro Morales, Wil Rio, and Ediano Silva; colored by Dinei Ribeiro; and lettered by Taylor Esposito. Writer de Souza begins a new series of challenges for Sheena in the story line, “Cenozoic,” which finds Sheena on a mission to save a nature preserve when she and her animal and human companions stumble upon an island out of time.
Sheena: Queen of the Jungle, Volume 2 #10 opens in the year 1945. That is where Sheena and company find themselves – lost in time on an island that recalls “Skull Island” from King Kong (1933). Captain Karl Visser is the captain of the U-3523, a prototype “XXI” U-boat and the greatest and most powerful super-submarine of the German Kriegsmarine. Now, Visser holds court on the island's beach, with Sheena's human companions, Bob Kellerman and Martin Ransome, his captive audience.
Visser finally believes their story that they are from the future. Now, Visser has a date with a date: July 23, 1945 and U.S.S. Indianapolis – and the chance to change history … in Nazi Germany's favor.
Speaking of King Kong references, Sheena is also tied up for sacrifice, ready for the “Great Maw.” But can she escape, even with a little help from her animal friends?
THE LOWDOWN: Since July 2021, Dynamite Entertainment's marketing department has been providing me with PDF review copies of some of their titles. One of them is Sheena: Queen of the Jungle Volume 2 #10, which is the tenth Dynamite Sheena comic book that I have read.
Alas, Sheena: Queen of the Jungle Volume 2 is another great Dynamite Entertainment comic book series that is ending with a tenth issue. The phrase “killed it” was made for creative teams like the ones that produced this fine series.
Dynamite's current incarnation of Sheena: Queen of the Jungle is a reboot by the prolific Hollywood multi-hyphenate, Steven E. de Souza. He perfectly modernizes Sheena without loosing her classic “jungle girl” and pulp-inspired comic book roots. This second five-issue story arc summons the best of the Indiana Jones sequels, Jurassic Park, and King Kong with splashes of Wonder Woman. Under de Souza's guidance, Sheena is a great hero to follow, both smart and ruthless, the way male heroes are allowed to be.
Artist Ediano Silva saves the best for last, although his previous issues were already quite good. His storytelling is so big and dynamic, and he captures the vileness of Capt. Visser and the conniving male locals with a subtle touch that keeps them from being stock villains. And the pages with the dinosaur recalls classic lost world comic book artists, Al Williamson, Wallace Wood, and Mark Schultz, to name a few.
Dinei Ribeiro's vivid colors make the action scenes really pop and add to the story's sense of being “widescreen.” Award-winning comic book letterer, Taylor Esposito, captures the force of de Souza's electrifying dialogue and also blows up the story with powerful sound effects.
Sheena: Queen of the Jungle Volume 2 #10 is a … dynamite final issue. This series will likely be even more exciting to read in trade collection. In the meantime, don't wait; try to find issues #6-10 and enjoy them now.
I READS YOU RECOMMENDS: Fans of Sheena will want to try Sheena: Queen of the Jungle Volume 2.
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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Saturday, November 19, 2022
Review: Spielberg's "INDIANA JONES and the Temple of Doom" Still Goes Boom! (Celebrating "The Fabelmans")
TRASH IN MY EYE No. 71 of 2022 (No. 1883) by Leroy Douresseaux
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
Running time: 118 minutes (1 hour, 58 minutes)
MPAA – PG
DIRECTOR: Steven Spielberg
WRITERS: Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz; from a story by George Lucas
PRODUCER: Robert Watts
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Douglas Slocombe (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Michael Kahn, A.C.E.
COMPOSER: John Williams
Academy Awards winner
ACTION/ADVENTURE
Starring: Harrison Ford, Kate Capshaw, Ke Huy Quan, Amrish Puri, Roy Chiao, Roshan Seth, Philip Stone, Raj Singh, D. R. Nanayakkara, Dan Aykroyd, and Pat Roach
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is a 1984 action-adventure film from director Steven Spielberg. It is the second entry in the “Indiana Jones” film franchise that began with the 1981 film, Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), but it is also a prequel to Raiders. In the Temple of Doom, Indiana Jones takes on a secret cult in India in order to reclaim a sacred rock stolen from a simple Indian village.
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom opens in Shanghai, 1935. Dr. Henry “Indiana” Jones, Jr. a.k.a. “Indy” (Harrison Ford) has been hired by Lao Che (Roy Chiao), a Shanghai crime boss, to find the remains of Emperor Nurhaci. Che betrays Indy, who goes on the run with Willie Scott (Kate Capshaw), one of Che's nightclub singers, and Short Round (Ke Huy Quan), a young Chinese orphan who is Indy's sidekick.
After surviving a plane crash orchestrated by Lao Che, the trio ends up in a small village in northern India. The village chieftain (D. R. Nanayakkara) believes that Indy's arrival is fated, and that he will help the village with two problems. The first is to retrieve the village's stolen “Shivalinga,” a rock the villagers hold in high esteem. Indy believes that this rock is one of the five sacred “Sankara stones.” The chieftain also wants Indy to find the villagers' missing children. The chieftain informs Indy that the village's troubles began when the new Maharajá reopened the Pankot Palace in Pankot, an opening that has brought back a “dark light” to the land.
Traveling to Pankot Palace, Indy, Willie, and Short Round discover that the Maharajá of Pankot (Raj Singh) is a child, and beneath his palace, the ancient “Thuggee” cult has also been revived. The cult leader, Mola Ram (Amrish Puri), wants to find all five Sankara stones in order to gain power from the Thuggees' goddess, Kali. Now, Indiana Jones has taken it upon himself to stop the cult.
For years, I encountered pretentious film fans who despised Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and who insisted that I should hate it, too. However, I have always found Temple of Doom to be endlessly entertaining, but I also understand that it has a lot to live up to. It is the sequel (prequel) to one of the most popular movies of all time and one of the greatest films of all time (as far as I'm concerned), Raiders of the Lost Ark.
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is a great action-adventure film precisely because the filmmakers were not trying to make “Raiders of the Lost Ark II” so much as they were creating a franchise. Temple of Doom is essentially world-building, as the film, especially early in the narrative, hints that Indiana Jones has had many adventures. So before there was Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, there was Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. That is what I liked most when I first saw it and still like: Indiana Jones was not a one-time great thing; it was new universe and a new series of adventures centering on an archaeologist who was as much a cowboy as he was an professor and academic.
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom also remains the most unique film in the series. To date, it is the only entry that does not have a single moment set in the United States. Set in China and India, it is the only film in the series in which the main cast is largely non-white. The film has an intriguing villain to open the story, the Shanghai crime boss, Lao Che, and a superb main villain, Mola Ram, the Thuggee cult leader. Both actors play their respective villainous roles quite well.
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is also the first film in the series to suggest that Indy has a network of helpers or at least a circle of associates. For me, Short Round is an excellent sidekick, and he fits better than Kate Capshaw's Willie Scott, who seems like nothing more than a noisy dame.
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom also has excellent production values, especially its costumes, hair and make-up, and art direction and sets. The film won an Oscar for its visual effects, which remain impressive four decades later, especially for the scenes involving the lava pit and the chase through the mine's tunnel system.
I am watching and, in some cases, re-watching early Steven Spielberg films, such as Duel, Jaws, and 1941, in anticipation of Spielberg's autobiographical film, The Fabelmans. I have lost track of how many times I have watched at least part of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, but this is the first time that I have watched the film in its entirety in decades. Watching it again, I am sure now, more than ever, that I love this film. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom was the first sequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark, and to date, it remains the best.
8 of 10
A
★★★★ out of 4 stars
Saturday, November 19, 2022
You can purchase the "INDIANA JONES 4-Movie Collection" Blu-ray or DVD here at AMAZON.
NOTES:
1985 Academy Awards, USA: 1 win: “Best Effects, Visual Effects” (Dennis Muren, Michael J. McAlister, Lorne Peterson, and George Gibbs) and 1 nomination: “Best Music, Original Score” (John Williams)
1985 BAFTA Awards: 1 win: “Best Special Visual Effects” (Dennis Muren, George Gibbs, Michael J. McAlister, and Lorne Peterson; 3 nominations: “Best Cinematography” (Douglas Slocombe), “Best Editing” (Michael Kahn), and “Best Sound” (Ben Burtt, Simon Kaye, and Laurel Ladevich)
The text is copyright © 2022 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site or blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.
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Friday, November 18, 2022
Comics Review: "Nita Hawes' NIGHTMARE Blog #10" - Meet Louis Cypher
Negromancer News Bits and Bites from November 13th to 19th, 2022 - Update #11
by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
You can support Leroy via Paypal or on Patreon:
ENTERTAINMENT AND CULTURE NEWS:
DISNEY - From EmpireOnline: "Empire" has a world-exclusive image of Harrison Ford from "Indiana Jones 5."
SCANDAL - From NYPost: Once upon a time comedian Andy Dick was a Hollywood star. Now, he will spend 90 days in jail and register as a sex offender related to a 2018 groping incident.
MOVIES - From Deadline: Bradley Cooper will play the character "Frank Bullitt" in Steve Spielberg's new film based on the classic Steve McQueen character.
MOVIES - From Deadline: The latest attempt to reboot director John Carpenter's classic sci-film, "Escape from New York," will come from 20th Century Studios and will directed by the collective known as "Radio Silence" ("Scream: 2022).
MOVIES - From Deadline: Paramount Pictures has dropped a trailer for its sports dramedy, "80 for Brady," which stars Jane Fonda, Rita Morena, Lily Tomlin, Sally Field, and Tom Brady.
AMAZON - From Deadline: Amazon Studios is developing a coming-of-age ROTC drama from writers Jalysa Conway (9-1-1 Lone Star) and Rebecca Murga (Swagger) — both military veterans — with Spike Lee set to direct and executive produce.
MOVIES - From Deadline: CNN has announced Nov. 20th as the date for the release of its documentary "Gabby Giffords Won't Back Down." Giffords is a former Arizona congresswoman who was terribly wounded in a near-fatal shooting in Jan. 2011, an event that ended the career of a rising star.
BOX OFFICE - From BoxOfficePro: The winner of the 11/10 to 11/13/2022 weekend box office is Walt Disney Pictures/Walt Disney Studios' "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" with an estimated take of 180 million dollars.
From CNBC: According to data cruncher, EntTelligence, 12.7 million patrons bought tickets to "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever" for an opening weekend box office gross of 181 million dollars.
From Here: Leroy Douresseaux's review of "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever."
SCANDAL - From THR: Alec Baldwin has filed suit in Superior Court in Los Angeles in order to "clear his name" in the shooting on the set of the Western film, "Rust." Basically, he is suing the armorer and the crew for giving him a loaded gun. A firearm Baldwin was holding fired and killed the film's cinematographer, Halyna Hutchinson.
OBIT:
From Deadline: The French-born American actor and Holocaust survivor, Robert Clary, has died at the age of 96, Wednesday, November 16, 2022. Clary was best known for playing "Corporeal Louis LeBeau" in the former CBS sitcom, "Hogan's Heroes." Jewish, Clary survived two concentration camps during the Holocaust and was rescued from the Buchenwald concentration camp in 1945.
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BRITTNEY GRINER:
From NBCNews: Brittney Griner will enter a system of isolation, grueling labor and psychological torment when she is transferred to a penal colony, the successor to the infamous Russian gulag, to fulfill a nine-year sentence handed down Tuesday in Moscow, former prisoners and advocates said.
From NBCNews: A Russian court has rejected Brittney Griner's appeal of her nine-year prison sentence on (fake) drug charges.
From Reuters: Russia says that it is ready to talk prisoner swamp for Brittney Griner and U.S. Marine veteran Paul Whelan, but also scolds the U.S. Embassy.
From TheDailyBeast: Legendary NBA bad boy and champion (Detroit Pistons, Chicago Bulls), Dennis Rodman claims that he has been given permission to go to Russia and help free imprisoned hostage, WNBA star, Brittney Griner.
From Vox: Vox's Jonathan Guyer talks the Brittney Griner case with Danielle Gilbert, a Dartmouth professor who is writing a book about states and rogue actors that take hostages.
From ESPN: A Russian court sentenced WNBA star Brittney Griner to nine years in prison Thursday, Aug. 4th. Griner was arrested Feb. 17 for bringing cannabis into the country and pleaded guilty July 7, though the case continued under Russian law.
From ESPN: The Biden administration has offered a deal to Russia aimed at bringing home WNBA star Brittney Griner and another jailed American, Paul Whelan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday.
From RSN: "Will Support From LeBron James, Joe Rogan, Kim Kardashian, and Other Celebrities Help Free Brittney Griner From a Russian Prison?" by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar via Substack
From ESPN: Detained WNBA star Brittney Griner pleaded guilty on Thursday to bringing hashish oil into Russia, telling a judge that she had done so "inadvertently" while asking the court for mercy.
From CBSSports: The Brittney Griner situation explained.
From RSN: According to The Washington Post Editorial Board: "Brittney Griner is a hostage, plain and simple."