Superman Unchained #9 Review

With several publishing delays, drastic character changes (Lex Luthor being a member of the Justice League), and the Superman ongoing series getting a new superstar creative team in the form of Geoff Johns and John Romita Jr, it was obvious that Superman Unchained wasn’t long for this world, even though it has been the quintessential telling of the Man of Steel’s exploits in the New 52. Continue reading “Superman Unchained #9 Review” →

The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers at Rhode Island Comic Con

From the moment the pilot episode aired on Fox, The Mighty Morphin Power Rangers immediately captured my imagination. What was crummy for me is that the show became massively popular while I was in middle school. This meant I could never talk about the show with my friends because we all took a vow of silence, pretending we didn’t watch the show because we were too old to enjoy a kids’ television program.

I remember wanting to get the action figures, but I didn’t due to fear of ridicule if my friends came over to my house and saw a Dragon Zord sitting on my bureau. Now that I’m an adult, concerns over what people think about my geeky hobbies aren’t even a blip on the radar.

The Green Ranger, played by Jason David Frank, is my all-time favorite Ranger. I’ve always felt that the White Ranger, also played by Frank, gets a bad rap. There is nothing wrong with the portrayal or character; it’s just hard to get someone to jump on board when a concept that was a 10 is replaced with the idea that is a 9.

I attended Rhode Island Comic-Con this past weekend to cover the festivities for Forces of Geek and had the pleasure of meeting comic book creators and the original Flash, John Wesley Shipp. The highlight of the convention was the Power Rangers Q & A panel featuring the original Red Ranger, Austin St. John. There were many fans in attendance, and their passion and dedication to the franchise was an inspiring sight to behold. One person told me that he found the inspiration to lose weight because of the leadership that St. John exhibited on-screen.

I wrote an article reviewing the Power Ranger’s Q & A Panel at RICC, and you can check it out at Forces of Geek.com

Do You Remember The Original ECW Invasion?

As a teenager in the growing up in the 1990’s, professional wrestling was my singular passion. While WWF/E was often front and center for me, Extreme Championship Wrestling, spent a few years as my favorite wrestling company. What drew me into ECW was the realistic storylines and hardcore atmosphere, complimented by blood, guts, tables, chairs and barbed wire brutality.

Naturally, I was thrilled when WWF and ECW worked together for a time in 1997. Taz, Tommy Dreamer, Sandman, Paul Heyman, and others appeared on Raw and in return, Jerry Lawler, with the help of Sabu and Rob Van Dam would infiltrate the ECW Arena. This was great stuff that really showed how to do a proper promotion vs. promotion angle.

Most wrestling fans only remember the poorly executed 2001 invasion angle involving ECW and WCW instead of its predecessor. I recently wrote an article for WhatCulture.com examining all the juicy details about this fresh concept during the heated stages of the Monday Night War. Click the link to check out 10 Things You Need To Know About The Original ECW Invasion.

The Death of Wolverine: Deadpool and Captain America #1 Review

In the wake of Wolverine’s passing, Captain America and Deadpool take on the task of eliminating their compatriot’s DNA so no razor-clawed clones can be created.

Deadpool writer Gerry Duggan was the perfect choice to helm this story. His team-up issues are pure fun, not only because of his expertise with the loud mouth mutant, but also because of his understanding of other characters and how they interact with such an…interesting personality. Continue reading “The Death of Wolverine: Deadpool and Captain America #1 Review” →

Did Ambrose vs. Rollins Deliver?

My friends and I get together to watch the big four WWE pay-per-view events and tend not to care about the other eight events, otherwise known as the B-Shows. With the WWE Network, I watch these shows even though I didn’t before. On Sunday, afternoon, I received a phone call from my friend Ryan telling me he was having a get together at his house for Hell in a Cell, again,which is a B-Show.

There was only one reason why we were getting together for a show that we would normally ignore. Dean Ambrose vs. Seth Rollin, in the main event, inside the Cell. This was the first feud that I had been legitimately excited for in a while. I mean, how could this match go wrong? Well, some feel the match delivered tenfold while others believe it left a lot to be desired.

I wrote an article breaking down the match for the Camel Clutch Blog titled “Gimmicks in a Cell”

Colder: The Bad Seed #1 Review

Paul Tobin and Juan Ferreyra’s Eisner-nominated series is back, and this time, it’s ongoing, baby! Declan Thomas and his caretaker, Reece, were almost lost in a deadly encounter with Nimble Jack in the last series. Declan prevailed, and his powers have become a conduit that can literally suck the insanity out of the insane. Continue reading “Colder: The Bad Seed #1 Review” →

WWE Superstars #9 Review: Legend vs. Legend

There is a rumor going around that at next year’s WrestleMania, John Cena, age 37, will square off with a 61-year-old Hulk Hogan. The predetermined nature of professional wrestling allows for certain dream matches to occur that otherwise wouldn’t happen in Boxing or Mixed Martial Arts.

However, what if this match and others could happen when both men were in their prime? Mick Foley and Shane Riches give us a look, through a bizarre prism, of what that would look like. Wrestlers from different eras are being pulled into combat across a myriad of battle fields from the roman coliseum to the pirate ships of the seven seas. Continue reading “WWE Superstars #9 Review: Legend vs. Legend” →

Wrestling Game StArcade: WWF WrestleMania

It took me years to finally admit to myself that WWF’s first game for the Nintendo Entertainment System, WrestleMania, absolutely sucked. Deep down inside, I always knew it, but that didn’t stop me from playing it for hours on end. I mean, come on. You get to play as Hulk Hogan and Macho Man Randy Savage. What could go wrong? Well, quite a bit actually.

The most frustrating thing about this game for me was figuring out how to pin somebody. Every time I knocked my opponent down and drained his energy, I mashed the buttons at a feverish pace, hoping I would luck out and press the right combination. Thanks to this cool blog written by Alex Knapp over at The Johnson Transcript , I finally know how. (Hit the B button and the right D-pad)

The Johnson Transcript

by Alex Knapp

WWF WrestleMania
Year: 1988
System: Nintendo Entertainment System
Developer: Rare
Publisher: Acclaim

By the latter half of the 1980s, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) was the unquestioned king of pro wrestling. Vince McMahon’s ambitious growth had seen the fed lay waste to the territorial promotions of old, neuter the AWA, and eventually defeat the one promotion that could compete with them nationally, Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP). The era of Hulkamania and the Rock ‘n’ Wrestling Connection was in full swing, wrestlers were appearing on MTV, and WrestleMania III had recently generated unbelievable attendance and buyrate numbers, as millions of paying fans witnessed Hulk Hogan slamming Andre The Giant (all 7,000 pounds of him, brother!).

A central component of the WWF’s success was its ability to ride the waves of the evolutions in media going on at the time. The developments of cable television and…

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Gone Girl Review

I didn’t know what to expect from David Fincher’s latest film, Gone Girl. Fincher is one of those directors whose projects gets an instant buzz because his name is attached to it. With Ben Affleck’s role as Batman on the horizon, anything he does will also garner a lot of attention. The book written by Gillian Flynn is immensely popular and was my wife’s bedside companion. Continue reading “Gone Girl Review” →

Rocket Raccoon #4 Review

I have been a junkie for Skottie Young variant covers over the past couple of years now. His work on the critically acclaimed The Wonderful Wizard of Oz series laid the ground work for his writing and drawing the Rocket Raccoon series which has been an excellent pairing thus far. Continue reading “Rocket Raccoon #4 Review” →