Talking about comic books, TV shows, movies, sports, and the numerous other pastimes that make us Gentlemen of Leisure.

Monday, August 30, 2010

Did you know...

...that Rush Limbaugh got married for the fourth time. And he's worried about the gays ruining the sanctity of marriage.

...that this website exists. I stumbled upon it when I accidently searched for http://www.google.com/ in Google Maps.

It's a completely generic website for a company called Illuminati Solutions. It has to be a joke, right? Or maybe it's some sort of front for the real Illuminati? I have a feeling that if I click on the right sequence of links on that page I'll end up at the real website and I'd be able to find out who really shot JFK, what really goes on in Area 51, what happens to my socks after they disappear in the dryer, what happened to Amelia Earhart and what the heck 2001: A Space Odyssey was all about. Then I'd disappear. They'd say I skipped town to start a new life in Tallahassee...but you'd all know the truth.

...that Dos Equis' "Most Interesting Man in the World" actually sounds a little like Stan Lee? This is crushing news. I know he's an actor and his exploits aren't real, but I at least thought his voice was real! This is like if I found out Dolly Parton's boobs are fake. It's...sad.
...that whenever you get stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic here in the United States you can now take solace in knowing that it could be much, much worse.

...that apparently the above item has caused another mystery I assume the Illuminati would have an answer to....if I could only figure out the secret of that website.

Friday, August 27, 2010

X-amining X-Men #50

"City of Mutants"
November 1968

In a Nutshell: The X-Men battle Mesmero as Lorna's power is activated. 

Editor: Stan Lee
Writer: Arnold Drake
Artist: Jim Steranko, Werner Roth (2nd Story) 
Inker: John Tartigalone, John Verpoorten (2nd Story)
Letterer: Herb Cooper

Plot
Hypnotized by Mesmero, Iceman and Lorna Dane are taken to Mutant City, Mesmero's headquarters. Iceman is imprisoned while Lorna is is placed into a Mutant Energy Stimulator in order to activate her latent mutant powers. Back in San Francisco, the other X-Men locate Mesmero's mansion base and swiftly gain the upper hand against a group of Elite Guards stationed there. But when Marvel Girl receives a telepathic call for help from Iceman, she tells the other X-Men to throw the fight so that they'll be taken to where Iceman is being held. Quickly knocked out by gas, the X-Men are captured and taken to Mutant City.

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Lost 6xE: The New Man in Charge

Ha! With the show over, you thought I was done blathering on about Lost. But thanks to the inclusion of a new 12 minute epilogue on the show's sixth season DVD release, there's more Lost to be had!

Truth be told, I haven't discussed or thought about Lost much since posting my analysis of the finale a few months ago; whenever I do, I tend to recall all the dangling plot threads and incomplete narratives, and angry up my blood in the process. And while Lost stands as a flawed and imperfect narrative, there's still plenty to like about the show, and I don't want to always recall it with anger and frustration (or to spew bitterness when discussing it). Thus, I gave myself some distance from it, in the hopes that time will ease my frustration. With the release of the sixth season on DVD and Blu Ray bringing Lost back to the surface of my personal pop culture consciousness, I find my frustration and bitterness still lingers, especially at the surface (upon reading a post on Nikki Stafford's blog about a new series of "trailers" focusing on Lost's themes, my first thought was "will one of those themes be 'unfinished narratives?'") though thankfully, they're less raw these days.

Monday, August 23, 2010

Retro Review: Flaming Moe's

Or the One Where: Moe enjoys tremendous success when a drink he stole from Homer becomes a huge hit.

The Setup: With business down and the beer supply cutoff, Homer shows Moe a drink of his own invention, the Flaming Homer.

Notable Notes: Though he's appeared plenty of times before, this is the first episode to feature Moe and to flesh out his character and his relationship with Homer.

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

X-amining X-Men #49

"Who Dares Defy...the Demi-Men?"
October 1968

In a Nutshell: The X-Men reform in response to Mesmero's summoning of a group of mutants to San Fransisco.

X-Tatically Presented by Stan Lee
X-Citingly Written by Arnold Drake
X-Huberantly Designed by Don Heck
X-Traordinarily Drawn by Werner Roth
X-Quistitely Inked by John Tartigalone
X-Ecrably Lettered by Herb Cooper, I. Watanabe (2nd Story)

Plot
Feeling nostalgic, Angel returns to the X-Mansion just as Cerebro detects a sudden large concentration of mutant energy. Angel telepathically alerts Marvel Girl, who spreads the word with the rest of the team. Meanwhile, Mesmero, a self-avowed pupil of Magneto, uses a Psyche-Generator created by Magneto to amplify his natural power of hypnotism in order to lure all the latent mutants in the country to his base in San Francisco.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Retro Review: Saturdays of Thunder

Or the One Where: Bart races in a soapbox derby.

The Setup: After Homer realizes he's a bad father, he rushes to the National Fatherhood Institute and proceeds to help Bart with his soapbox derby car.

Notable Notes: The fatherhood test Homer takes was based on a real fatherhood test.

Homer watches part of a McBain movie at the video store, one which loosely parodies Lethal Weapon (McBain's African-American partner is killed days away from retirement).

Monday, August 9, 2010

X-amining X-Men #48

"Beware Computo, Commander of the Robot Hive"
September 1968

In a nutshell: Cyclops and Marvel Girl fight some robots.

Chief Data Processor: Stan Lee
Scriptographer: Arnold Drake
Pencil Pushers: Don Heck and Werner Roth 
Pen Pal: John Verpoorten
Letter Bug: I. Watanabe, Sam Rosen

Plot
As part of new cover identities, Jean is working as a model in New York while Scott has gotten a job as a radio news announcer. Meanwhile, somewhere beneath the city, Computo activates three of his Cybertron robots from the Hive and sends them on a mission. At the radio station, Scott is showing Jean  some new high-tech equipment when the Cybertrons attack and attempt to steal the equipment. Cyclops and Marvel Girl manage to fight them off, destroying two robots, but the third escapes.

Friday, August 6, 2010

One Sentence Reviews

Ehhh...I got nothing...so here come some one sentence reviews en tu cara!!!

Inception (2010 Movie): A bit watered down, in a way, but overall a great movie.

inFamous (PS3 Video Game): You get to climb around a metropolis with electric powers being a superhero...the only thing that could make this game better is lesbian sex.

BioShock 2 (X-Box Video Game): More of the same from the BioShock series, but that's not a bad thing.

Friday Night Lights (TV Series): I'm only into the first season, but even a non-football fan would love this show....it's got everything.

The Last Airbender (2010 Movie): I just hope the "Airbender" in the title is a code word for: M. Night Shyamalan Movie.

Minnesota Twins (2010 Season): Mark my words, whether in the regular season or the first round of the playoffs, this season will end in disappointment.

Jersey Shore (TV Series): I think it's safe to say that this show is the pinnacle of humanity.

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

To Better Know A Hero: She-Hulk

Real Name: Jennifer Walters

First Appearance: Savage She-Hulk #1 (Feb. 1980)

Nicknames and Aliases: Shulkie, Jade Giantess

Powers and Abilities: Super strength, durability, stamina, agility and healing abilities; an apparent awareness of her existence as a comic book character. Jennifer Walters is an accomplished and accredited lawyer.