Reacher S1-2
I never understood why Reacher fans made such a big deal about Tom Cruise being too short for the role in the movies. The first film (never saw the second) was perfectly fine, and I’ll still watch the street fight scene every once in a while.
But then I started watching the show on Amazon (thanks to a friend’s recommendation), and it all made sense to me in a flash. So much of how people treat Reacher is due to his massive size, and it totally affects every situation that he’s in.
Reacher basically mixes the uber-competence and confidence of Jason Bourne with the convoluted mysteries of Stephen Hunter’s Bob Lee Swagger novels. Toss in the wandering ronin aspects of Usagi Yojimbo and you’ve pretty much got it all. (Obviously my comparisons aren’t the originators, but they’re the ones that come to mind first based off my personal lexicon.)
The result is a super fun show that I binged in no time at all. Alan Ritchson is born to play this role. The supporting cast includes standouts Maria Sten, Malcolm Goodwin, and Willa Fitzgerald. (Would that we could get more of her. Roscoe’s a perfect complement to Reacher.) There’s a perfect Terminator shout out for Robert Patrick.
I’ll keep watching these as long as Amazon keeps pumping them out.
Regret watching: No
Would watch again: Yes
Would buy on DVD: Yes
Rating: Good
Blue Eye Samurai S1
Watched this after my cousin showed me the first episode over Thanksgiving. I’m not the biggest manga fan (nothing against it, it’s just not high up on my list), but this is spectacular. The animation, the action, the internal conflict; all of it sings. Maya Erskine brings a lovely gravitas to Mizu. (Looking forward to seeing her live in Mr. and Mrs. Smith.) As a minor quibble, the rest of the cast is too famous to sink into their roles; I kept seeing George Takei, Masi Oka, and Randall Park’s faces when their characters spoke.
The ending also let me down; I expected and wanted Mizu to kill Fowler; It’s way more in character for her to accomplish her immediate goal and figure out how to find her other targets on her own. (She has their names now, after all.)
Still, can’t wait for season 2.
Regret watching: No
Would watch again: Yes
Would buy on DVD: Yes
Rating: Pretty good
What If… S2
Season 1 didn’t blow me away, but it was entertaining enough for what it was. Season 2 was more of the same. It’s always fun to hear the super-famous original cast voice their characters. Kahhori is a neat new addition to the MCU. I’ll never complain about more Captain Carter. (I want to see more of her and Black Widow. They’re a great team, and Lake Bell is an excellent replacement for Scarlett Johannson.)
Regret watching: No
Would watch again: Yes
Would buy on DVD: No
Rating: Nice
I am SO behind on new comics.
Avengers 9-10
I can’t pinpoint it, but there’s something missing in Jed MacKay’s writing and/or CF Villa’s art that prevents this run from hitting that next gear that I’ve been hoping for. Everything’s epic, and the elevator pitch of the Tribulation Events sparks my imagination, but the execution just isn’t there. Maybe it’s the ho hum cast or the unmemorable villains, but the title never gets me excited.
It gets one more issue; I want to see what MacKay does with Jarvis.
Crave 2-3
Things slowly escalate while the sex continues at a torrid pace. Maria Llovet’s certainly got my attention, and I’m definitely not bored.
Love Everlasting 11-12
I don’t know why it took me until the last page of issue 12 to realize that this is the origin of the cowboy who’s been chasing Joan this whole time. I’m really enjoying this arc; Tom King and Elsa Charretier continue to deliver with this quirky nothing-else-like-it comic.
Birds of Prey 5-6
The completely-out-of-place fill-in art by Arist Deyn in issue 5 reveals how weak the story by Kelly Thompson really is; Megaera is a horrible villain, and it really takes Leonardo Romero to lift the whole production to an above-average level. Still, I’ll keep going with this because despite the plot, Thompson nails the character interactions, and the overarching hook of saving Barbara Gordon’s life is brilliant.
Penguin 5-6
Penguin finishes gathering the crew he needs to take back Gotham City, before Tom King transitions to telling the story of how he rose to power in the first place. More of the same customary good work from King. Is this really an ongoing?
Batman: Off-World 3
Batman gets a space wolf companion, his revenge on the alien that beat him, and a new mission as he decides to tackle the space corporation behind the slave ship he was on. Batshit crazy fun stuff from Jason Aaron and Doug Mahnke.
Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees 3
How many issues is this going to be? Is it a mini? Not that I’m eager to see this end, but things seem to be moving very quickly. After ruling out a potential suspect, Samantha appears to discover the real culprit at the end of this issue. We’ll see how it shakes out…
Deep Cuts 4
Massively regretting my decision to continue with this series. I simply don’t care about this comic at all. Dropping with two issues to go.
Nightwing 110
So glad I’m not reading Tom Taylor’s Titans; if this Beast World crossover is any indication, it’s horrible. Damian as an underground fighting man-cat isn’t something that I’ve ever remotely wanted to read. Also, I miss Bruno Redondo.
Transformers 4
This hits all the right notes, but it still doesn’t sing in the way Daniel Warren Johnson’s previous work does. I’ll stay around for the next two issues, but I might drop when he stops drawing it.
Justice League vs Godzilla vs Kong 4
Do I just not like comic books anymore? So many of these titles aren’t evoking the joy that I’m looking for. Is it me or the books? There’s only three issues to go, and this is amusing enough that the completionist in me will probably finish it out.
Fables 161
I’m going to forget about this the instant I finish the next (last) issue. But on the bright side, it’ll be like reading a completely new Fables story when I get around to the re-read years from now.
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