Wind River

A guy who works at predator control for U.S. Fish and Wildlife (Jeremy Renner) works with the Bureau of Indian Affairs and a green FBI agent (Elizabeth Olsen) to investigate the death of a young woman on an Arapaho reservation in Wyoming in the winter.

I thought this was going to be about chasing a serial killer. Someone who should be easy to pin down, simply for lack of potential suspects, but they have so much room to hide. That's not what this is. It's more about people who feel lost. They live in a place where they see no opportunities, they see no way out to find other opportunities. They've seen what that does to their parents, their children, and they feel it's going to happen to them. And what all that does.

Of course, it's a movie about life on a reservation, and the two main characters are white folks, sooo, that's not the best approach. Renner's character at least was married and part of life there, and remains so even after the marriage fell apart. And Agent Banner is repeatedly shown to not have any grasp on what things are like here. She was sent from a training in Vegas, because she was simply the closest available agent. That's she honest about this, is willing to ask for assistance from people who know the area, and tries her best mitigates that somewhat.

Still, she is extremely naive about how the legal system works for someone who presumably would have been educated in that at some point on the path to joining the FBI. That really annoyed the person I was watching it with, the primary woman in the film being someone who has to have things explained to them constantly. It's a fair complaint.

For all that I just mentioned about what the film could have done better, for what it actually did, it was solid. At times, the education of Agent Banner feels like telling the audience, rather than showing, but at other times it does well at just showing the grief, depression, and difficulty of life in general. There are some quiet moments that work well. There's an awkward sort of chemistry between Renner's character and Olsen's where I felt at first he was being more open than I would expect, but the film explains that in a way that mostly makes sense.

Han's Gotta Do Things His Way

Over the weekend I came across Return of the Jedi on TNT. I haven't watched the movie in a while, and I didn't ultimately stick around long this time either. Hey, the NBA playoffs were on.

The Rebels are sneaking around in the forests on Endor, and I noticed that while Luke and Leia are both wearing the helmets, and camo ponchos, Han Solo is walking around with no protective headgear in a camo trenchcoat.

The lack of a helmet isn't a surprise. Han doesn't strike me as a character that worries much about cranial trauma. And if I had his hair, I wouldn't want to wear that dumb helmet either. But I did find it funny the others are wearing something that seems appropriate for roughing it in a wet, wooded area, and Han's rocking a big coat instead, like he's in the middle of a Western. I suppose it would keep the rain off, although it seems like it'd weigh a ton when it got wet, and get caught on things easily. All the other rebels appear to be wearing full-body camo outfits. Either a jacket and pants combo, or camo coveralls.

I would guess Harrison Ford's height might have something to do with it. Maybe they didn't have any ponchos in Han's size. The Rebel Alliance is a cash-strapped organization, certainly compared to the Empire. Uniform budgets were probably an easy cut. The ones Luke and Leia have barely go past the waist. Han might look like he was wearing a peculiar lobster bib.

On the other hand, even if they had a poncho appropriate for his size, Han turning it down. Just doesn't work for him, he says. Maybe they'd have something a little cooler, with a few more pockets? The quartermaster looks at General Leia, she looks at Chewie to see if Han is serious. The Wookie shrugs, she rolls her eyes, and tells the guy or gal to make something happen. Han is oblivious to all this unspoken communication. Luke is somewhere in the background hiding a chuckle behind his hand.

Crisis In Costa Rica: The 1948 Revolution - John Patrick Bell

Bell doesn't focus strictly on the 1948 revolution; that's only the last chapter before the epilogue. Most of this is about the years leading up to the revolution. The politicians and groups on both sides, the issues of contention, the steady preparation of Jose Figueres Ferrer, and the disputed 1948 presidential election that ultimately leads to armed conflict.

It's about 160 pages, originally published in the '70s as part of a Latin American Monographs series at the University of Texas. Bell spends the first few chapters establishing the situation and history of Costa Rica entering the 1940s. Then he spends the next 5 chapters looking at the issues the divided the political parties, with the National Republicans and Vanguardia Popular on one sides, and the Centro and the Social Democrats the primary parties on the other side, eventually forming The Opposition, and how each side responded.

This includes several tactics which are very familiar to our current situation here in the U.S. Like one party consisting of the wealthy, who want to return things to some idealized golden age when they could do as they pleased. Or one group insisting that the only way you'll know free elections exist was if their party won. Attempts to try and block people from voting on both sides.

It's only the last chapter that actually addresses the revolution itself, since that didn't last more than a couple of months. It's what leads up to it that interests Bell. The book seems well-researched, although I'm sure there's been a wealth of new information that's come out in the nearly fifty years since it was published. Bell's a little partisan towards Calderon Guardia and the National Republicans. There are times he'll spend several pages dogging the Opposition for voter intimidation, then throw in one paragraph that notes similar activities by the National Republicans in an earlier election that was within the scope of this book.

I felt most sympathetic to Vanguardia Popular, the country's Communist Party. They gained a certain amount of leverage when the Opposition basically took their ball and went home, and they used it. But the fact they were Communists meant they were something else the Opposition could use against the National Republicans, both within Costa Rica, and internationally. It's notable the U.S. only decided to get involved in the revolution when Vanguardia Popular stations their forces in the capitol city and vow to resist the Opposition (who are rebels, and had tried to assassinate the party's leader). Because they're Communists. Credit to Jose Figueres Ferrer and The Opposition for knowing how to play the U.S. like a fiddle, I suppose.

I finished the book feeling like I had a better grasp of the conflict than I had before, but wondering if I wasn't getting only one side of the story.

'Calderon Guardia had largely replaced the Communists in the popular mind as the proponent of reform and transformation. His great following enabled him to threaten the privileges of the oligarchy far more ominously than did the minuscule and vulnerable Vanguardia Popular. His rise in popularity also threatened those segments of his opposition whose hopes of political power rested on their own programs for reform and transformation. Accion Democrata and the Centro therefore sought to discredit him, not by criticizing his reform program, but by charging him with fraud.'

What I Bought 4/16/2018

I should have titled last Friday's post "Draw What You Want To See In The World". Unfortunately, I didn't think of it until several hours after the post went up, and it feels like cheating to go back and change it. On to actual comics!

Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #31, by Ryan North (writer), Erica Henderson (artist), Rico Renzi (color artist), Travis Lanham (letterer) - I think Henderson even did the multiple reflections for the logo's shadow, which is a nice touch.

Going by the cover, it looked like this was the start of the story about Doreen and Kraven being stuck in some murder house. Instead, Doreen and Nancy are zapped into "hypertime" meaning they move so fast the rest of the world appears almost stationary to them. To the extent they will live out their entire lives in the span of a single weekend. The story follows them over the decades they live, trying to build a time machine, and generally saving people's lives, since it's easy for them to avert accidents and crimes. Although notifying everyone of that was a mistake. At the end, their escape is also a reset.

It was funny and a little sweet. New Yorkers deciding to be total jerks and take advantage of Doreen and Nancy's good nature made me laugh. So did Doreen and Nancy taking advantage of Tony Stark as a source of money and resources. I can't decide if I'm supposed to be reading the story as Nancy and Doreen became a romantic couple over the decades. Seems like it, but they could be really good friends, period. I'm sure part of it is I'm conflating this issue with the final episode of Futurama , which had Fry and Leela in a similar situation. But I don't know. It can go either way, it's just something I was left wondering about, and I don't really have a lot else to say about the issue. Other than I continue to enjoy the dialogue for Brain Drain.

It's fun to see how Henderson draws the two aging over time, and it gives her a chance to explore their changing tastes in clothes over the decades. There was a nice variety in that.

Domino #1, by Gail Simone (writer), David Baldeon (artist), Jesus Arbutov (colorist), Clayton Cowles (letterer) - As Greg Land covers go, it's not bad. Although I imagine the difference in his art style from Baldeon's could give a reader whiplash if they weren't ready for it.

Domino's in a merc group with Outlaw and Diamondback, but it seems as though someone named Topaz is gunning for her. Topaz is soooo dangerous, even Deadpool and a finally slimmed-down Agent X are wary of her. As it turns out, Topaz is working with some creepy old man who has an interest in Domino dying, and the same birthday as her. And possibly something's off with her powers.

I'll establish up front I know very little about Domino's backstory. For example, I did not realize she and Colossus had been an item at some point. Or that her powers acted in such a way that they sort of hurt her to save her. I suspect Simone may tie that to Domino's apparent anger and self-loathing/pity about the traumatic experiences that brought those powers about.

Reading this, it felt like a reading Secret Six plots. The creepy old man villain. Another villain out to get the main character, who is so dangerous that even characters like Deadpool are nervous about her. Even though we've never heard of this Topaz before now. That part reminded me of Junior, the oh-so evil and terrifying mob boss from the first arc of the Secret Six ongoing (the one they took the Get Out of Hell Free card from). It would have worked better to have her show up and trounce Domino first, then she can learn about Topaz from Wade or someone else after. Show first, then flesh the new character out by telling after.

That said, I think I'd enjoy the fun merc adventures of Domino and Her Gal Pals. So if we can get some of that while dealing with this main plot, that'd be nice. Baldeon has a loose style, very expressive. Works well for the comedy bits, mostly works for the action parts. I had a little trouble following the end result of the "Fastball Special", with all the after-images, what the order was. Also, during the initial mission, Domino makes a comment about getting mud down her cleavage, but her outfit appears to cinch tightly around her neck. Although the back is open. Maybe it's her luck powers. Saved her from a speeding truck, but somehow the mud got inside her shirt.

Sunday Splash Page #15

"Don't Need A Spider Sense For That Danger," in Amazing Spider-Man #368, by David Michelinie (writer), Mark Bagley (penciler), Randy Emberlin (inker), Bob Sharen (colorist), Rick Parker (letterer)

The Michelinie/Bagley run on Amazing is unfortunately dominated by poor storylines. The long-running subplot about the return of Peter's parents. I thought it had potential once, even blogged about that, but on reflection, probably not. The Clone Saga, took up most of the last couple years of the run, although that one might have worked if they'd stuck to the original plan for it to run six months. Maximum Carnage (and way too much of the symbionts in general). That whole plot line about Mary Jane taking up smoking due to stress (it wasn't a bad idea, just handled somewhat hamfistedly).

There are some smaller stories I think work well as straightforward superhero stories. Invasion of the Spider-Slayers works as a "Spider-Man fights killer robots" story, that also gets Black Cat active in the costume business again (albeit with an even more impractical costume). The Tri-Sentinel that Spidey blew up with his Captain Universe powers at the end of Acts of Vengeance returned for a rematch against a non-cosmic powered Spider-Man (and Nova). There's a rampaging Hulk two-parter. None of them doing anything revolutionary with Spider-Man or revealing new facets of the character, they just tell quick, engaging stories while keeping other subplots going in the background. There's a lot opportunities for Bagley to draw action sequences, or portray characters being emotional, which plays to his strengths.

Havin' A Dust-Up

It's never a bad time to see Krillin punching Vegeta right in his stupid face. I actually drew this three weeks ago, so this piece wasn't done in response to Monday's post, although parts of it come from the same place, distaste for Vegeta/his fans. My posting it is at least in part related to Monday's post. Also, I didn't have a better idea in mind.

Mostly I just wanted to draw Krillin doing something cool, and I'm pleased with how it turned out. All the usual nagging inner voices are mostly silent. 

Bullet to the Head

A hit man (Sylvester Stallone) and a cop (Sung Kang) have to team-up to bring down the guy responsible for killing each of their partners. Well, really the hit man is responsible for killing the cop's partner, but the guy who hired him and his partner double-crossed them, so all bets are off.

There's not much to it, and the movie doesn't help itself by making Kang's character such an empty authority figure. He keeps telling Stallone that they're going to go by the book or whatever, and yet Stallone keeps killing people, with no consequences. You figure possibly, at the end, Detective Kwon will arrest him, but no, he lets him off with a "Next time you step out of line, I'm bringing you down" useless threat.

You can really tell they flubbed the end of the movie, because the last 5-10 minutes there are a series of awkward conversations where it feels like all the characters are waiting for the script to tell them to do one thing, but instead it told them to do something. The hit man's daughter (played by Sarah Shahi) is there, because she was used as leverage against him, and the two of them have some awkward "see ya later" when Stallone just kind of wanders off after shooting Kwon in the shoulder.

Plus, Stallone's character is pretty consistently racist, in what is I think meant to be taken as funny. They pull that off, once, when he commends Kwon on his "samurai warrior" shtick, and Kwon points out he's Korean, not Japanese. Then he says it would be like saying his favorite Italian food was tacos. Stallone's response: 'That's a pretty stupid analogy.'

I mean, he's wrong, but that exchange actually made me chuckle.

Christian Slater's in there as a sleazy lawyer for a former warlord with big plans, played by Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje. Jason Momoa is in here as the problem-solver for Adewale's character, and the guy Stallone's character really wants to kill. Which leads to a fight with fire axes in the remains of an old building.

There's a couple of decent fights in the movie, not for anything flashy they do. More just the way the fights feel somewhat realistic (I'm not including the axe fight, obviously). Characters are going for whatever will give them the advantage at that moment. When Stallone and Momoa first tangle, Stallone buys himself some time by tripping his opponent with a mop bucket that he kicks in the guy's direction. I don't know if I buy Momoa obliterating that restroom sink with his faceplant, but he is a bug dude. But it felt like the sort of desperation, "this is all I've got handy" move someone might really use in an impromptu fight for survival.

I had some odd desire to see if this movie was any good, and overall I'd say no. At least now I know.

Maybe It's An Age Thing, Maybe It's A Me Thing

How readily do you think to check the Internet for solutions to problems?

The question occurred to me last weekend. I was hooking my original XBox up to play some Crimson Skies. The disc tray refuses to open unless there's a disc in it. I had turned it on and opened the tray to switch out games, but it closed before I could put the disc in. So it was stuck. I spent a good twenty minutes fiddling with it, pressing the button, trying to jiggle the tray to get it to respond.

It wasn't until I'd reached the point of trying to pry the tray open when a knife that it dawned on me there was almost certainly a video or article online somewhere that would explain how to deal with this. And there was.

My delay in going that route might just be my personality. I tend to try and handle things myself, with whatever I have at hand at the moment. If that fails, then I'll go retrieve more tools, but I hate to waste the effort on bringing something over I didn't end up needing. Or maybe I'm just slow on the uptake. My father says I have a tendency to lock myself into one strategy for getting things done, and then stubbornly press ahead, rather than look for easier alternatives.

But I wonder if it isn't partially an age thing. The Internet wasn't really something I used for research purposes when I was growing up until at least high school. Maybe not even until college. I had access to it prior to that, but if I needed information on something, I went and found a book. Would someone younger, if they grew up with the idea "there'll be something to help with that online", more readily turn to it?

John Wick: Chapter 2

I got this as a Christmas gift, and have been waiting to watch it until, I got through all those shitty movies on Netflix I was marginally interested in, I guess. There are probably some SPOILERS for this movie that came out over a year ago, so consider this your warning.

I figured John would have to deal with the friend or relative of Viggo's, out for revenge. The movie instead dispenses with that quickly. John's problem is still related to his re-entering his old world, but it's comes from old business. And John finds himself in a situation where his only hope of peace seems to be more killing. But each action only serves to make the bullseye on his back larger. The rules and checks that govern this peculiar world of hotels, armorers, and so on, don't have much give to them, and they don't really serve John much at all.

The action sequences are still fun, even if several of them remind me of the shootout in the night club from the first movie, with John steadily mowing through generic cannon fodder. It looks good, and there's an excellent flow to those scenes, but it might start to seem familiar after a while. The movie adapts to this by using some different settings, like catacombs, or a mirrored art exhibit. I thought they'd use the old "you can't tell from the reflections where anyone is" bit a lot, but they were fairly restrained.

It also helps that the movie adds some interesting touches with other characters. Riccardo Scamarcio as Santino D'Antonio has this delightful combination of threatening, smugness, and faux-innocence. So he'll go from making a threat, to protesting he really has no choice, to telling John he better just accept it. All in all, it makes him an imminently hateable antagonist.

Laurence Fishburne as the Bowery King, with his army of homeless soldiers (or people dressing up like they're homeless). Common playing the failed bodyguard out for revenge. He and Keanu get a couple of good, extended fight scenes, including one where they casually take potshots at each other with silenced pistols amidst an oblivious crowd. That was one of a couple of funny bits the movie has, actually. Ruby Rose plays Santino's top gun, who speaks only in sign language, and is pretty effective with her facial expressions and gestures.

Everybody in the movie has their own sense of style, and it all works really well.

I especially like the end of the movie, after John has made his vow that he will kill anyone who comes after him. He'll kill them all. But after that, when he was doing a limping variant of the slow badass walk, you can see it begin to sink in what "all" really entails. The threat can come from anyone, any angle, and all his traditional resources are now inaccessible. Good luck in the third film, John.

Livin' That Spite Life

No, not "Sprite" life. Spite Life. This is not a soda commercial.

Question for the day: Has there ever been something - a movie, book, food, sports team, whatever - that you were fairly neutral or indifferent to on its own, but you ended up hating it because its fans were such annoyances?

There are certain things we're gonna dislike on their own merits, or lack thereof. My distaste for the Dallas Cowboys had nothing to do with their fans, and everything to do with a) them kicking the Cardinals' asses twice a year back in the '90s, and b) the media's insistence on referring to them as America's Team. My dislike for Batman stems from him being written as a total ass for twenty years. So on and so on.

But sometimes, the thing itself is OK, but the people who really like it are what kills it. It isn't the fans' enthusiasm. I've said this before, but reading or watching people discuss something that interests them, even if it's not necessarily something I'm into, can be fun. It's when the fans decide they have to seek out people who are fans of other, related things, and badmouth those while trying to prop up what they like. Convert or die, basically. It's so aggressively obnoxious I end up despising the thing they like since it apparently produces such idiocy in them.

I don't like Cyclops, but I don't go find people talking about how much they like him so I can butt in yammering how, actually, Cyclops is garbage and Nightcrawler is so much better.

The Chicago Cubs would probably be an earlier example of this for me, but the reason it came up is I think I hit my limit last week with Vegeta fans. I don't particularly like the character. He's an asshole. He talks a lot of shit he rarely manages to back up. His arrogance makes situations worse for everyone else repeatedly. He takes time away from any number of other characters I'd rather see get some shine. But, on occasions, he will do something cool, and it's fun to watch him freak out when things don't go his way. I could do without him, but on his own, he isn't a deal-breaker.

But a lot of Vegeta fans - or perhaps just a few, very persistent ones - like to spend their time interjecting themselves into discussions that had nothing to do with him to talk him up, and put down whichever characters were actually being discussed. Usually this involves making a lot of excuses for the character, or inventing things out of thin air to explain why he's "better" than the character they're dismissing. Generally just being obnoxious.

I know, people behaving poorly on the Internet? What is the world coming to? Anyway, I've reached the point the character's own irritating behavior is now conflated with that of his fanboys, and seeing him or hearing about him is unwelcome.

That's my current target of loathing, so what's yours?

Sunday Splash Page #14

 "Hope the X-Men Are Taking Notes", in Amazing Spider-Man #327, by David Michelinie (writer), Erik Larsen (penciler), Al Gordon (inker), Rick Parker (letterer)

Hot damn, I love Acts of Vengeance. Spidey with the serious power upgrade, where suddenly it's everyone else punching out of their weight class trying to fight him. Ahem, outside of the Acts of Vengeance issues, the David Michelinie and Todd MacFarlane/Erik Larsen run isn't a favorite of mine. Too much Venom (although that problem would only grow in next week's run), and I've never really loved Todd Mac's figurework. His people always looked a little too strange.

But there's a Sinister Six story not long after the issue above I don't mind; it continues Sandman's face turn. And another shortly after that where the Black Cat has to keep bailing out a temporarily depowered Spider-Man (who can't help himself when it comes to trying to help people). Although that one ends with Felicia depowered (a status that lasts about 25 issues). This is also when she took up with Flash Thompson, initially as some revenge against Peter for choosing Mary Jane? Oh and there's an Inferno tie-in much earlier that has a few pages of Spidey fighting a possessed Macy's parade balloon of himself. I have a soft spot for that one, strictly for novelty factor.

OK, so it's a mixed bag. The last issue before Larsen departed is a pretty good one involving Doctor Doom, though.

What I Bought 4/4/2018

I'm not sure why I went with a different approach for the April Fools' Day story. I think I was expecting it would be easier to type without having to go back and bold each characters' name prior to their dialogue, or italicizing something else. I think it worked in that regard, but I'm not sure if I preferred it otherwise. Whatever, here's some reviews of some comics that came in the mail this week.

Demon: Hell is Earth #5, by Andrew Constant (writer), Brad Walker (penciller), Andrew Hennessy (inker), Chris Sotomayor (letterer) - Interesting gesture Belial's making there. Either, "Who wants a big hug?" or "Look how swole I am, bros!"

Having reached the tear between Hell and Earth, Etrigan charges in, forcing the others to follow along and fight some of the forces of Hell. They think they're winning, but Belial steps out, casually stomps everyone but Jason Blood, and seems to complete his plan to make Earth a part of Hell.

That's pretty much it. It's mostly a fight scene, and it looks nice in places, but since we're aware that Belial is toying with them, it doesn't carry much weight, and there's nothing much to be interested in as far as the fight demonstrating character traits. Unless Blood taking advantage of the demons being too stupid to realize he can't do anything to them is significant. I'm not sure how he might turn that on Belial, though, since Belial should be aware of it. The others continuing to use Blood as a distraction they don't have to worry about harming is kind of amusing.

I thought Merlin was working with Belial, and his pleas for assistance were a ruse because Etrigan was essential to Belial's scheme somehow, but that doesn't appear to be the case. Doesn't mean Merlin doesn't have his own schemes going, though he hardly looks like he has any way to carry them out.

The color work is very pretty. The point of connection between Hell and Earth is a massive wall of pink energy, which makes a nice contrasting backdrop for the hordes of Hell, who are mostly shades of red and orange, with various darker colors for their clothing. The flames continue to look very nice.

At this point, I really wonder if there's any point in bothering to buy the final issue. Is it even worth it, to see how this ends?

Mata Hari #2, by Emma Beeby (writer), Ariela Kristantina (artist), Pat Masioni (colorist), Sal Cipriano (letterer) - I can't figure out what that is in the far background, behind even the trees. Part of a fan, or a curtain? The view of something through prison bars?

Monsieur Bouchardon visits the prison, hoping to gain a confession by seeming reasonable and friendly. Meanwhile, Margaretha tries to turn him in her favor with flattery and concern, while sharing some of her life story. Neither has much success. Bouchardon is having some problems with his wife, which he is almost certainly taking out on Margareetha, while also being encouraged by his bosses to get that conviction, whether she's guilty or not. France needs it! France needed generals who were less stupid, but whatever, sure.

It's odd, reading the book after the text piece from Beeby last issue mentioned Margaretha lied constantly, because I tend to doubt everything I see. Is she genuinely reduced to tears at the thought she might be interviewed by Bouchardon in a gown with a bloodstain, or is it a play for sympathy? During the interview, as she relates her youth, we see she was raped by the headmaster at the school she worked at, which turned into a recurring affair, I guess? She seems convinced he loves her, but is she old enough to give consent? She's 15, so I'd say no, but I don't know what the rule was in Holland in 1891. I'd still say "no", though.

Regardless, everyone blames her for the headmaster not keeping it in his pants (which is a recurring theme). What's interesting is that Kristantina draws 15-year old Margaretha giving the headmaster a sort of playful or beguiling look, right before he assaults her, but four panels later, her older self is giving Bouchardon the same look. So, she learned from that unpleasant memory and turned it into something she could use to her advantage? Or she's doing it unconsciously? I'm not sure how much benefit of the doubt I'm suppose to give here.

Masioni gives the panels with Margaretha and the headmaster a strong red tint, and there's a pair of panels near the end of the issue, one of her, one of Bouchardon, when she asks if Bouchardon has a wife, where there's some in the middle of both panels, as if it's hanging in the air between the two of them. Bouchardon has this slightly dazed, vulnerable look, and he's looking up, as if she's in a position of power. Although, in the next panel, she doesn't appear to be looking down at him. Instead she's looking at him as though he's on her level. Either she missed the moment, or she knows the key is to find his weak spot without making him feel weak or inferior. The really curious thing is there's no hint of the red in the panels when she's around her future husband.

I'd think it meant a passionless nature of the marriage, that she set out to find a husband, and he was the first guy who wandered along, but maybe not. Given the circumstances of those panels with the red tint, none of which are exactly happy moments, maybe the lack of red is a sign there's none of the danger, fear, or pain she experienced many other times. It's not there even when he's got her wrist in what seems like a strong grip, which might be an unpleasant or frightening moment.

A Mysterious Robber

The film is set in China during the war with Japan. There's a map of an old gold mine at stake, and part of it is held by a local bandit. Several parties want that map, or else revenge on the bandit, so they all converge on an inn. These include a ranking Japanese official, who is also an expert profiler. The brother of a businessman killed by the bandit. A young woman named Yue, whose father and her lover were both killed by the bandit. And a goofy guy who is an expert in knockout drugs who wants revenge for his murdered boss. Even the innkeeper hates the bandit and wants revenge.

There's supposed to be a lot of mystery about the bandit. The movie heavily foreshadows that things aren't what they appear with him, or with anyone for that matter. But, as the movie is barely 80 minutes long, it doesn't do enough to build that tension. I'd put most of the blame on the film's focus on the knockout expert. Who they play as a semi-comic figure, with scenes of him trying to sneak around, or arguing with the innkeeper's mute brother, or tying a blade to a small bird that he can call later if he needs to free himself. For the amount of time he gets, it doesn't feel like there's much payoff, so that time ends up feeling like a waste of the relatively short run time of the film.

The film ends on a Mexican standoff that has everyone shooting everyone else a bunch of times, but it feels flat. It seems like at least one of the characters should have started shooting much sooner, and that they only held off so they could explain everything to us, rather than each other.

The movie had a solid, classic set-up, and it just didn't do anything with it.

Round And Round They Go

It's an overcast, chilly day as I pull into the apartment complex. Following the road as it arcs around until, in the rear corner, I reached the building I wanted. I pulled into a parking space, but don't see his car. Maybe he's not back from work yet? I hope he's not out on inspections, it'll ruin the surprise. No harm in trying, though.

I step from the car, and walk to the back to open the trunk. I remove a large case, with some difficulty, and carry it into the open lawn in front of the building, setting it down. Returning to the car, I remove a smaller box, cardboard, heavily taped together, and carry it up the stairs. At the door I knock lightly. No sounds from within. I press an ear to it, trying to hear him sneaking around inside. Is he really not here? I'm more disappointed than I thought I'd be, but I was actually anticipating this confrontation eagerly.

"He's not here."

I turn back to the top of the stairs, to see a round, furry, black-and-white shape crouched there, watching me intently. The panda, of course. Maybe this is their plan, to have the panda confront me here, draw my attention, while Calvin waits for an opening? I grin. Maybe there'll be some fun after all. I take on my most mock-innocent expression. "Oh, he's not? Well, how unfortunate I was so late arriving. Let's discuss this further insid-"

Even as I finish the sentence, the panda is smashing into me, driving me over the railing. I manage to shove it away, and twist so as to not land on my neck. Still, the ground is muddy and this jacket is probably ruined. This is why I would have rather waited until we were indoors to fight.

"You aren't getting past the front door, Pollock, not this time! I've been waiting three days! I'm cold and wet, and I'm gonna take it out on you!" Well, that's more aggressive than normal. I shouldn't have been so tardy, it sounds like.

"Wait, wait. Don't you want to see what cool science thing I brought to use this year?" That stops it for a moment. Curiosity is almost as effective against the panda as doubt.

The panda folds its arms across its chest. "I hope it's better than your lame plan from last year. Your weak threats as you ran away were more dangerous."

I would have protested I don't even make threats as I run away, but I was too indignant about the other part. "I used a phone that was also an independently operating taser! It's extremely popular among people afraid of getting mugged. And given the power demands for the taser, the battery lasts for a decade if you just use it as a phone! No recharging necessary."

I narrowly dodged a kick to the head. "I don't need to hear a sales pitch, I was here last year," the panda jibed, as I retreated for the large box in the yard. "A walking taser might help with muggers, but it won't get you past me."

I reached the crate. "Very true, the phone wasn't enough last year, and our updates this year were more concerned with network security than agility. So I brought this."

I step on a lever at the bottom of the box, and the top flies open as all four sides fall away. A mass of metal begins to expand, reconfiguring into a basic human shape, with a comfy leather seat in the center, which I hop into. I take a moment to savor the slack-jawed gape on the panda's furry mug.

"It's our new mobility enhancer for the elderly or otherwise physically limited. It's a nice perk it'll also work to pound you into the mud."

The panda scrambles up to the walkway for safety. "Oh yeah, how you gonna get me from down there?" It waggled its butt as a taunt, but coming from a panda, it's just too cute to be angered by. Besides, I had the answer, raising the right arm, and with the press of a button, it extended, capturing the panda in its grasp in an instant. "For when you need to grab something off a high shelf."

The panda gasped, "What shelves are you trying to get things from?!"

"Well, what if our customer needs a new recliner from one of those big box stores? Are they supposed to wait until an employee wanders along, get their attention, then wait for them to return with a forklift? Their time is valuable and limited, why do you want them to waste it?"

"I'm not, eh, nerts to this." The panda inhaled sharply and slipped free. Look I was trying hard to be gentle. 'May crush pandas' is a bad tagline for most any product. Other than Murder, Inc., and their Panda Juicer. Still, I'm disappointed my attempt to make the panda doubt itself didn't work better. I need to give that trick a rest, perhaps.

As the panda landed neatly on the ground, I reached for it again, only to come up empty-handed. Unless you count some mud, which seems to be clogging the joints. The fingers were sticking. The panda circled warily.

I prepared my next stroke. "Expanding arms aren't the only feature. Check out the Whippersnapper-dismissing nose flick!" The left thumb and forefinger touched ends and reached forward, only for the forefinger to suddenly snap free and turning the panda into a furry projectile that rattled the sliding door of the neighbor below Calvin. "Guaranteed to humiliate any kid into accepting the terrible hand the prior generations have dealt them! Or, pulverizing them. Either way, it gets their noses out of their phones, right?"

Sigh and shake of the head in response. "You sell smartphones! And that whole thing is divisive and stupid!"

I shrug. "I know, but you have to play to your customer base. And I can supply both sides."

"War profiteer, eh? I'll settle your hash!" Again the panda scrambled up the stairs, then to the roof and out of sight.

"Settle my hash? How many cheap detective movies are you watching with Calvin?" Further comments on his archaic statements were interrupted by a roar and the panda rising into the air with a trail of flame behind. Coming from a familiar jetpack. My old jetpack. What the hell?!

The panda projectile hurtled right at me, only to bounce off the clear bubble dome surrounding me. If luck was on my side, the bounce would have sent it into the ground. Instead it went straight up, resuming the wary circling, albeit at a higher altitude.

"Climate controlled bubble canopy," I gloated a little as the sun comes out and the canopy darkened. "And it changes its shade in response to the ambient light like those glasses you see on TV."

"Oh come on! Although that is a thoughtful touch." It roared past very low, splattering up mud across my vision and the rest of the exosuit.

"Thank you. The design team was very proud of that." As I heard the jetpack roar past again, then shoot up into the sky, I made a note that we should add a windshield wiper as the arms weren't having much luck clearing the mud. The right arm in particular, was growing increasingly unresponsive. But the top of the canopy was clear, and through it, I saw the trail of the jetpack's exhaust arcing back behind me. I tried to swivel, but the mud and the grit seems to be jamming the gears. And the sound of the jetpack was growing louder.

Sigh. One more thing to give the design team notes about. Well, at least we installed an ejection seat. The designers argued for airbags, but that would leave you right next to the explosion, so what good would that do? As I was launched into the air, the panda rolled so the jetpack was below, unhooked itself and jumped as the pack and the suit erupted into flame.

Our momentum was carrying us towards each other, so I grabbed some fur, twisted, and hurled it towards the ground. It bounced off the roof of the little structure that housed all the mail slots, and then splatted in the mud. I landed less nimbly than I would have liked at the edge of the lawn. By this point, several dogs were barking, and neighbors were starting to come out to gawk. The panda rose, undaunted, and looked at the pyre.

"I know a coyote that's always trying to catch a roadrunner. Do you guys sell him his equipment?"

I started forward, getting a little irritated now. "Pardon me for not building the mobility assist to survive an RPG!"

"You have to know people are going to buy them to do dumb things like mech fights and lifting cars." OK, got me there.

"Wait, where did you get my jetpack from?"

"The raccoons found it where you left it when it ran out of fuel. I got it for 500 pieces of pointy metal, 20 pounds of peanut brittle, and 100 wrenches."

"You gave wrenches to raccoons? Are you mad? They'll dismantle entire towns!"

"I don't think they're that destructive, not when - "

"What are you idiots doing?" stated a tired voice from above us. We both looked up, and saw Calvin, with a suitcase and sleeping bag, regarding us from in front of his door. He glanced at the fiery pile of twisted metal. "Did someone bump a Ford Pinto with a baby stroller?"

Why was I excited about this visit again? "Very topical. How do you even know about Pintos?"

"Well see, I read these things called "boooooooks", so I can learn about things that happened even if I wasn't present. Or perhaps it's witchcraft. Booga-booga. Moron."

The panda gawked. "Calvin, where have you been? I was worried!"

"I took the week off to go vacation in nowhere. Why were you worried? You think Pollock killed me?"

Does he really think I'd do that? Where's the fun? OK, there was that one time in Kentucky! And now my health insurance premiums are higher because ghost attacks are considered a pre-existing condition. Haven't I suffered enough?

The panda replied, "No, I thought maybe you slipped getting out of the shower and hit your head."

Calvin dropped his bags and threw his hands in the air. "I'm not Hal Jordan! Give me a little credit! Sheesh. I hope these chocolate-covered cherries on my doorstep will raise my spirits, or I'll have to go on another vacation."

"Calvin wait, those were left by - " Too late, Calvin popped one into his mouth and bit down, then immediately began gagging and retching. The panda tackled me and started punching. "What did you poison him with? Give me the antidote, now!"

This got out of hand. Ouch. When the panda sits on me, I can really tell how much bigger it's gotten. The punches have a lot more force behind them, too. I struggled to explain. "No poison - just mayo."

That worked. The punches stopped, and I watched the eyes fill with curiosity. Then they turned to look at Calvin, still coughing and scraping his tongue. "Calvin? Is it mayonnaise?"

"Yes," came the strangled reply. "Oh God, it's terrible! And South Park joked about doing this 15 years ago!"

The distraction was enough for me to sucker punch the panda and roll away and to my feet. "I thought you'd enjoy that aspect of it."

The panda rubbed its cheek as it watched me retreat to my car. "You went through all this for a cheap gag like that?"

"Do you know how much that exosuit cost? Nothing cheap about it. Except the protection for the joints to keep them from getting clogged up. We may have cheaped out there. But this was valuable product testing!"

The panda trundled up the stairs to get Calvin some water, as I dove into my car. I looked up at the stairway, though the two of them were out of sight at the far end. The part about product testing was true, although I had expected the exosuit to be damaged somehow. It always goes that way.

I'm sure they'll count it as a win, since I never even made it into the apartment. But the part I didn't mention was that this is like an annual vacation for me. A chance to cut loose and be silly, messing with those two. I can fight, tumble, insult, and not worry about shareholders or complaints being filed with HR. At that moment, the box came sailing through the air and hit the windshield, chocolate and mayo everywhere. I smiled. It's fine, even the parts that aren't ideal make me appreciate the things that go smoothly back at work. And unlike the suit, my car does have windshield wipers.

Although that mayo is proving difficult to clean off. . .

The Chronicles of Amber Volume 2 - Roger Zelazny

Volume 2 contains the other three books in the series: Sign of the Unicorn, The Hand of Oberon, and The Courts of Chaos. Picking up where the second book ended, with Corwin having arrived to help defend Amber, and his brother Eric perishing at the end of the battle. It wasn't a clearcut victory, though, as a mysterious figure gained power to move through shadow as well.

Corwin doesn't try to assume command - too many of his siblings mistrust him for that - but he still tries to take steps to defend Amber against the attackers traveling the black road. But there are good reasons to be wary of his family, if he could just figure out which ones to beware of. Much of the three stories get taken up with exposition about alliances, betrayals, double-crosses, and the like. Because one character will tell Corwin one version of a story, only for another one to tell a different version, it starts to add up. So that gets a little tedious.

Although at least I can understand what's happening during those info dumps (beyond confusing Corwin's sisters, Fiona and Flora). When Zelazny tries describing the realms ruled by the Courts of Chaos, I can't picture what he's going for. Maybe I simply wasn't interested enough to make the effort.

The characters are meant to seem as though they've grown, that Corwin's impressions of them from the days before he'd lost his memory, the old grudges they held, aren't necessarily true. Basically, all these kids have finally, after some vast amount of time, grown up and set the petty squabbles aside. Although, since the story is written entirely from Corwin's p.o.v., it's fair to wonder if he simply didn't understand some of them before. But there are enough disagreements between all of them, that it's meant to be accurate.

As with a lot of stories, I was more interested at the beginning, when the possible directions it could go were infinite, than once an actual path had been chosen.

'"Nothing has changed! You are afraid to try it!"

"Perhaps," I said. "But do you not feel that something for which you have given so much is worth some effort - some additional sacrifice - if there is even a possibility of saving it?"

"You still do not understand," he said. "I cannot but think that a damaged thing should be destroyed - and hopefully replaced. The nature of my personal injury is such that I cannot envision repair. I am damaged in just this fashion. My feelings are foreordained."'

The Teens Are On The Attack

Not doing so great on that "every other month" thing for the fake team posts. A lot of shit is occupying my time these days. Anyway, I hadn't done one using anime characters yet, so that's why I'm doing this time, with a focus on younger characters. Lot of precocious and talented adolescents and kids to choose from.

The Leader: Quatre Raberba Winner (Gundam Wing) - When I was younger, Quatre was probably my least favorite of the five pilots on Gundam Wing. Probably because he was the most quiet and peaceful (except for that stretch in the middle of the series where he lost his mind). He was the one that would offer an enemy that was trying to kill him a chance to surrender, which to my teenage self, made him a big wuss or something.

Now that I'm older, I can appreciate him a little more. The others were mostly lone wolves, but Quatre fought as part of a group. A group of soldiers who cared about him, and who he, in turn, cared about a lot. They were willing to risk their necks to save his, even when he tried to get them not to, and that kind of responsibility can weigh on a person.

Anyway, Quatre has more than fair skills as a soldier and survivor, but he's also a fairly reasonable and empathetic person who is willing to talk things out if he can. Or he can fight if he needs to. The Winner family was a pretty big deal in that universe, so if we place the team there, his name and connections can get him access through the front door of a lot of places. I don't expect a lot of huge personality conflicts with this bunch - none of them are colossal asses or anything - but having a calm, friendly person with a solid tactical mind running things is still a good thing to have.

The Rogue: Radical Edward (Cowboy Bebop) - Ed's name for herself is Edward Wong Hau Pepelu Tivrusky IV, but her hacker name is Radical Edward. I'm not sure if Ed would actually be interested in working with a group, but I could see her getting lonely after a while wandering the ruins of her Earth with a fairly intelligent corgi and choosing to join in.

Ed's extremely intelligent, but also silly and a little odd. It's difficult to tell how much of what she does is planned, and how much is just the way things work out. There are certainly times Ed manipulated the crew of the Bebop, but other times, I don't think she had any idea what response she'd get. I could see her behavior alternately amusing and infuriating the rest of the team. What she's getting out of associating with them is hard to say, if there's even a reason beyond "for the hell of it".

Still, if you need a security system or database broken into, it would be hard to do much better than Ed, short of putting one of those sentient A.I.s that exist solely in the electronic world onto the team. I'd rather have Ed on there, personally.

The Muscle: Makimachi Misao (Rurouni Kenshin) - In the series, Misao gets played largely as a comedy character, another character (usually Yahiko) saying something that riles her up, and then she behaves comically outraged. But by the time she was introduced in the series, she'd been trained as a shinobi for several years by the remaining members of an elite group of fighters left over from the wars that went on in Japan prior to the Meiji Restoration.

I always figured she deserved a little better than being the butt of so many jokes. Her personality is mercurial, shifting from being full of doubt and concerned one moment, to extremely excited the next, and more than willing to pretend the doubt never existed. She's very confident, to a level dangerous to her at times. She's also extremely loyal to the people she cares about, refusing to abandon them in dire situations. And she has a knack for rallying others when their spirits are low. There are a couple members of the team that shouldn't be an issue, but Quatre has been known to get too hard on himself, to take losses badly.

And she has a set of skills I'm not sure the others really do. Quatre knows firearms and probably explosives. Kino is a crack shot, but the team could use someone fast, capable of being sneaky if she'll focus (especially if Ed takes care of any security cameras), and can handle herself in a fight. She knows a little bit about disguise, although it's another of those things she's too sure of herself on. But the talent is there

The Lady of Mystery: Kino (Kino's Journey) - Kino's a traveler, visiting different countries for just three days, no more or less (usually). She travels on a motorcycle named Hermes, which can speak (it doesn't have a face as we'd recognize it, but it talks and characters other than her can understand it). An extra mode of transport is handy. Like I said, she's an excellent shot, and knows quite a bit about roughing it. She's polite, calm, and straightforward. She doesn't rush to judgment; if she's not sure about someone, she will give them a chance to demonstrate what kind of person they are, even help them if they're in need. If they do try to attack or harm her, then she'll put a bullet between their eyes without blinking, but she's not going to instigate it.

I'm very curious how she and Ed would interact. All the adults we saw Ed around, other than her dad, tended to be perplexed by her, and not shy about showing their confusion. I expect Misao will get frustrated with Ed, while Quatre will probably find humor in it. Kino has probably seen enough strange things in her journeys that Ed won't seem too odd. I don't know that they'll have much of a rapport, but I assume if Kino is confused by Ed, she'll simply ask for clarification. Or maybe not.

Kino would probably drift into and out of the rest of the group's orbit. If they're moving from place to place regularly, she'll probably stick around. Otherwise, if the team's not doing anything, or they're stuck in one place for a long time, she'll say her farewells and continue on her way.

The Kids with a Plane: Claus and Lavie (Last Exile) - Claus (in the background with brown hair) and Lavie (foreground with red hair) were delivery pilots, who got stuck trying to deliver a special kid to safety and wind up in the middle of a big mess. Claus was the pilot, Lavie the navigator, but as they were drawn into combat, she opted to become his mechanic and let someone else be his navigator. So if they have to fight, Lavie may hang back. But the team can still use someone with mechanical knowhow. Kino has some, enough to keep Hermes running at least. And Quatre must have worked on his Gundam some of the time. Between the three of them, they should be in pretty good shape on that front.

Both of them are energetic, Klaus has a tendency to act before he thinks, while with Lavie it's more what she might say. Although she can be pretty fierce if someone she cares about is being bullied or mistreated. Whether she can back up her bark with some bite is another matter, but there's a few people on this crew who could and probably would have her back.

Their enthusiasm for this group is going to depend on what the job is. This crew isn't likely to get up to anything too heinous - some espionage, a little stealing, for a good cause naturally - but if things start getting bloody, Claus and Lavie both may start looking for the exit sign. Claus will fight, and Lavie would do her best to keep him and the others alive, but it's not what either of them lives for. Although if it comes to that point, Quatre would probably encourage them to get out. His whole thing as a Gundam pilot was to try and fight so others wouldn't have to be put in danger.

It's a funny situation, because I wouldn't expect a lot of squabbling on the team. Most of them should get along pretty well, and I don't think there's much risk of a lot of mistrust and accusations. Too many of these characters are easygoing or relaxed for that. But they're also used to walking their own paths, and those paths are going to go in different directions swiftly. It's probably a one-mission crew, maybe two if they happen quickly or bleed together.

Sunday Splash Page #13

 "Different Wendigo", in Amazing Spider-Man #277, by Charles Vess (writer/artist), Elaine Lee (colorist), Rick Parker (letterer)

Not really representative of the DeFalco/Frenz run on Amazing Spider-Man, but it was too cool of an image to pass up. Issue 277 was split between two stories, the first dealing with the fallout of Flash Thompson being exposed as the Hobgoblin (not really), plus Peter getting a call from Matt Murdock (about halfway through the Born Again storyline), and going to impotently confront the Kingpin about it. That's more what this run is like. Lots of dialogue, lots of spinning plates, relationship drama, money problems for Peter. The classic Spider-Man template, basically.

This is the era I was introduced to Spider-Man comics. With a Secret Wars II tie-in of all things. The Puma trying to get Spider-Man to help him kill the Beyonder, which Spidey dismisses as a ludicrous notion.

But there were also some lasting effects. The alien costume that later formed half of Venom. Mary Jane figuring out Peter was Spider-Man (or finally revealing she's known for a long time, depending on what stories you're counting). So that during much of this period, the two of them are in a cautious friendship (the issue where they walk in the park and MJ details her difficult childhood is a pretty good one). Eventually the mystery of the Hobgoblin's identity was revealed, although that got retconned later. Harry Osborn and Liz Allan have a son, and find themselves targets of the Hobgoblin, which is a problem they could both do without. The Sinister Syndicate made its first appearance (I enjoy lower-tier villains getting together to make more cash), as well as Silver Sable and the Puma. And the run had some of Sandman's early steps towards becoming a good guy. Which didn't last, but that's how it goes sometimes.

Justice League

It was better than I thought it would be. Keep in mind that's a low bar to clear. I'm not saying it was good, just not a complete disaster. The movie didn't hold together for me. There were parts that would keep my interest, then long stretches that didn't. The scenes with Clark being reunited with Lois and his mother probably should have been a big deal, but I wasn't watching it for that, and I didn't really care. It makes perfect sense to do; Clark would absolutely want to see both of them after returning from the dead, but it made no impression on me.

Steppenwolf didn't make much of an impression as a villain. I was watching with Alex and he couldn't understand why anyone would want to purposefully make a planet look like that. I don't think my explanation of Darkseid and his goals clarified things any, but the Fourth World has never really been my bag.

The actual Justice Leaguers weren't bad. Watching Batman try to make up for his screw-ups in Batman v. Superman in his typically over-the-top, obsessive manner was OK. He actually sort of seemed to be trying to make friends? I kept calling Jason Momoa "Aquabro", but he did fine with the approach he took with the character. It's a little odd to see a Wonder Woman who needs encouraging from Batman of all people to get out there and be a symbol, but again, that's the hand the movies have dealt, and Gal Gadot makes it work.

Cyborg might have needed more fleshing out; Ray Fisher isn't really making much of an impression in my memory, outside of images of him brooding from under a hoodie (which is an activity I can identify with). The CGI for his mechanical parts was a little awkward, one of those things where it just doesn't look right where it meets his actual face. Although I wasn't terribly impressed with CGI in general.

If Alex hadn't had a copy of it available, I wouldn't have bothered, but it was something to have on at 2 in the morning while we talked. But you could easily have something better for that purpose.

Was He Always The Villain, Or Did He Grow Into It?

I was thinking about Dr. Knox, who is either the Inventor, or the Inventor II, recently defeated once again by Ms. Marvel. He was extremely indignant at the suggestion the clone of Thomas Edison crossed with a cockatiel was actually the Inventor, and he was just a lackey.

Well sure, nobody likes being dismissed as a lackey (unless being a lackey means they don't think you're worth killing). I'm trying to figure out if it was always his plan to "save the world", and he used the Edi-bird as a cover, or if the bird came up with the plan, and the Inventor is taking the ball and running with it. I can't help noticing that he's wearing an exo-skeleton that resembles the bird, though.

Which you could read a couple of ways. Creating a clone of Edison in the form of a bird was a way of creating an alter-ego (like the Ventriloquist and Scarface in the Batman comics). Knox is still leaning on it, but now he's actually front and center. Forms a parallel to Kamala. When she first got her powers, she could alter her appearance. Initially, she kept trying to look like Carol Danvers, like what she thought a hero was supposed to be. Eventually she had a costume that was based on some of Danvers', but with her own approach as she became her own hero.

Is Knox doing the same thing as a villain? To be taken seriously, he thought you needed to be more imposing, so he trotted out a clone of Edison crossed with a bird, and crazy. Knox appeared to be a supporting character, a scientist who had been surpassed and dominated by his assistant. The big final battle of the first year of Kamala's book was against the bird-man. Knox was an afterthought, squashed alongside the leader of the Inventor's goon squad by Lockjaw sitting on them. But he still went to jail, and maybe the bird was too crazy for his plans to work. So he takes charge, but he still likes "bird-person" as a visual. So he makes his own take on it. He's more comfortable being front and center, making the threats, challenging the heroes.

Or he really did just try to clone Thomas Edison, and things went awry. He couldn't get out, was overwhelmed by a more forceful personality, and wound up being imprisoned for a plan that was never his. So he decided to carry on his creation's work, but took his own approach. Rather than targeting teens, he went after the elderly. Rather than building robots, he went with merging the mechanical with the biological. The robots had a bit of that, since they were powered by humans, but the animals are more active participants now. Also, he's not using people, who are more likely to defy him or have opinions of their own, but animals, which can probably be reconfigured more easily.

It's interesting that the first time we saw Knox was when Kamala (and Logan) stumbled across a test area with crocodiles that were having their personalities and instincts forcibly overwritten. The Inventor took credit, and Knox appeared to be a subservient guy being bossed around by his experiment. And maybe he was, or maybe it was a smokescreen. If they were working on making creatures go against their instincts, maybe Knox had already done that with the Inventor, but was letting the bird think it was its idea?

I tend to lean towards Knox having decided on this course after how things went the first go-round. Much of his motivation seems to be resentment, people not recognizing his genius, or being angry he was incarcerated. He created a clone of Edison, crossed with a bird (accidentally, but still). And all he hears is that the bird was the genius, the one behind everything. Dr. Knox is just a footnote. So he's going to prove them wrong, and take a jab at the bird while doing it by not only co-opting its look, but by carrying out its plan and doing it better!

The Chronicles of Amber Volume 1 - Roger Zelazny

The Chronicles of Amber Volume 1 contains the first two books in the series, Nine Princes in Amber and The Guns of Avalon. Detailing Lord Corwin regaining his memories after someone tries eliminating him, and setting himself to claim the throne of Amber in his father's absence. Except his brother is already there, and not prepared to give way. Corwin makes two attempts, the first relying on a partnership with another brother and a huge army, which fails. The second, he opts to rely on superior firepower, as well as benefiting from Eric's forces being otherwise engaged. I wouldn't call it luck, since the distraction was caused by him, and especially since it becomes his problem to deal with.

Corwin is not an easy character to root for. He makes a lot of Amber being the only true world, and all other worlds are mere "shadows": infinite, lesser variations of the true world. As a result, he doesn't have any problem finding a world where he and his kin are worshipped as gods, so he can recruit a lot of cannon fodder for his dick-waving contest with his brother. That's really all it is, because Corwin never makes any sort of argument for why he would make a better ruler than Eric. He just wants the job, and thinks his parentage gives him better claim than Eric.

(He starts in with that at one point, and the brother he was conversing with cut him, for which I was grateful.)

Corwin feels some twinge of guilt at getting all these people killed, or that some of the Shadows he ruled fell to ruin, but it feels less like it's because he cares about the people there, and more because it looks bad on him. And for all we know, his siblings feel similarly. We don't get to see inside their minds, so we only have Corwin's word that he's grown soft-hearted over time, in contrast to the rest of his family. He's going to fix the problem he created, because he won't have much of a reign if he doesn't, but it's hardly an altruistic motivation. Which, for the people he may end up saving if he pulls it off, won't matter a heck of a lot.

Zelazny likes to write battle scenes by describing incremental progress by Corwin's forces, contrasted with their losses or dwindling remaining numbers. 'We took five steps, but our vanguard was down to twenty. Ten more steps and it was down to fourteen,' that kind of thing. It certainly conveys the grim attrition of the battle, and also demonstrates how ultimately disposable Corwin's forces are to him. The armies are faceless fodder, outside of one character Corwin had a past with who becomes a sidekick, Zelazny wastes zero time fleshing out anyone, because they don't matter. Means to an end.

The moving through Shadows to seek a particular world is an interesting idea, and the uneasy alliances between the siblings could lead to some neat twists in the remaining three stories (collected in the second volume). There are a few mysteries I'm curious to see how Zelazny resolves them.

'I thought about the girl. The knowledge of her existence changed things somewhat. I was not certain how. Despite our major hatreds and petty animosities, we Amberites are a very family-conscious bunch always eager for news of one another, desirous to know everyone's position in the changing picture. A pause for gossip has doubtless stayed a few death blows among us. I sometimes think of us as a gang of mean little old ladies in a combination rest home and obstacle course.'

Summer Brings Some New Possibilities

June appears to mark the true beginning of Marvel's "fresh start", although it feels more like their typical rearranging of the deck chairs. A lot of familiar names on the main books. Dan Slott's still wrapping up his run on Amazing Spider-Man - although they're replacing him with Secret Empire writer Nick Spencer, so no thanks - and taking over Iron Man. Which has a variant cover that makes Tony Stark look more smug than I've ever seen him. On a positive note, the cover is possibly the first time Adi Granov has drawn a character with an expression described as something other than "stoic" or "bored". Progress!

Al Ewing's writing a Hulk book, Skottie Young and Nick Klein are taking over Deadpool. Even if I hadn't been lukewarm at best on Young's writing on Rocket Raccoon, I need a break from Deadpool. There's also a Deadpool mini-series drawn by Mark Bagley, but written by Cullen Bunn, whose writing has never done anything for me when I've encountered it.

Mark Waid is apparently writing almost everything else. OK, really just the new Doctor Strange book (in SPACE!) and an Ant-Man and the Wasp mini-series (not to be confused with the Ant-Man and the Wasp Living Legends one-shot also coming out in June). You could certainly do a lot worse, but perhaps a writer new to Marvel would better fit a "fresh start"? They're also giving the Sentry another series, for some reason. Sentry fans will be happy though, assuming they enjoy Jeff Lemire's writing (always found it plodding, myself). And all the Infinity Countdown and Search for Wolverine mini-series continue (he said dismissively, ignoring that he might be buying the Darkhawk one).

So this isn't all negativity, I am interested in the Multiple Man mini-series, and maybe that Squirrel Girl/Ms. Marvel team-up one-shot. It's five bucks, though. It also looks like the Shadowcat/Colossus wedding might be happening. I'm sure it will go off without a hitch, with nary a giant robot or time traveler bringing portents of doom to be seen. It's not something I'm particularly interested in, but I appreciate them getting on with it if they're going to do it.

Unlike DC, which is still dragging this Batman/Catwoman thing out. I don't think Batman needs this much prep time to fight Darkseid. Yep, still doing Batman "prep time" jokes in 2018. You're welcome. This month, there's a bunch of one-shots where Batman's kids fend off various villains looking to ruin things, including Hush. I thought we agreed to leave Hush buried in the same hole we dumped the Sentry in. Who dug them up? Come on, admit it!

DC's also bringing around some more of those crossovers between DC characters and cartoon characters. They're having Brett Booth draw the Flash/Speed Buggy one, which seems like a horrible choice for a book that's going to feature a talking, crime-solving cartoon vehicle. Although I can't think of a character I would describe Booth as being a good choice of artist for. Aquaman's going to be subjected to Jabberjaw, the shark that thinks he's Curly from the Three Stooges. Fingers crossed he's declared an enemy of Atlantis and executed. There's also a Plastic Man mini-series, by Gail Simone and Adriana Melo. I'm not sure about the book based on the description in the solicit, and I only remember Melo's art from a stretch on Brian Reed's Ms. Marvel book. What I remember doesn't encourage me, but it's been almost 10 years since then, styles evolve.

Outside, those, it's mostly business as usual for me. Copperhead and Giant Days continue on, dealing with a town invasion and a job fair. Which one contends with which I'll leave to you to decipher. Or go read the solicits yourself. Bubba Ho-Tep and the Cosmic Blood Suckers is approaching the big final battle, while Coda is still ramping up. I still can't decide if Bubba Ho-Tep is all going to be some fever dream for Elvis or something actually happening. Or maybe it's a fever dream of mine. Turns out Mata Hari is a 5-issue series, not 4, so it actually ends in June.

The one new thing I'm thinking about buying is Joseph Keatinge and Bret Blevins' Stellar. The pitch of a weapon designed to bring about peace, stuck living in the ruins of a civilization she didn't really save sounds intriguing. Worst case scenario, there'll be some cool and weird stuff in the book. Finally, this isn't something I'm considering buying, but I noticed Descender will be on its penultimate issue in June. Remember when that book started and people went ga-ga over the first issue? I bought it for about a year, before deciding it was taking Lemire and Nguyen too long to get anywhere I cared about. But most of the time, I completely forget I ever bought it. It sank beneath the waves of my memory the instant I dropped it.

Alternate Favorite Marvel Characters #7 - Cosmo

No, you didn't miss one. I'm going out of order from this point forward. I need more time for Alternate Favorite Marvel Character #8. And with that out of the way. . .

Character: Cosmo the Spacedog. I did not know "the Spacedog" was part of his official name.

Creators: Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning. Wellinton Alves isn't listed on Wikipedia, but he was the artist of Cosmo's first appearance, which was. . .

First Appearance: Nova (vol. 4) #8. Cosmo isn't on the cover - just as well, I'm not eager to see how Adi Granov would have depicted him - so I went with a cover for an issue I had he featured prominently on.

First encounter: Nova (vol. 4) #8. Nova was out of its official Annihilation: Conquest tie-ins, though still on a storyline related to that event. The tie-ins ended on a down note, with a gratuitous character death. This story, where they not only introduced the setting of Knowhere, but had Nova fighting kinda-zombies alongside a telepathic/telekinetic Russian dog, was a welcome change.

Definitive writer: Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning. Other than his few appearances in Skottie Young's Rocket Raccoon book, and that one issue of the last Nova series (that had Rich and Sam in it), I don't think I've read Cosmo written by anyone else. I sure as hell wasn't going to see what Bendis did to him.

Definitive artist: I don't actually have any of his work in this post, but I'd go with Paul Pelletier, the initial artist on Abnett and Lanning's Guardians of the Galaxy. His work is less stiff than some of the other artists I've seen draw Cosmo, but still detailed where it needs to be. Cosmo can look mean or reserved when he needs to, or he can look like a friendly, happy dog when the situation requires.

Favorite moment or story: I'd have to pick his first appearance. It sets a lot of the tone for the character. Gives us enough backstory, gives us the basics of his powers and his personality. He's a calming presence, straightforward, protective, and friendly. He weathers Nova's oblivious questions with patience, and a little humor. He's fierce when he needs to be. Richard being in a weakened state due to the Phalanx means he has no chance of handling everything himself, so Cosmo gets plenty of chances to show what he can do.

What I like about him: Sometimes, it's just a good concept. Putting together a lot of odd pieces to make something interesting. Superpowered dog, Head of Security of a mecca inside the decapitated head of a space god floating at the edge of the universe, one visited by beings from every corner of space and time.

There's a lot of potential there, given just about anyone or anything can show up there for most any purpose. Powerful beings coming to contemplate existence, crooks looking to exploit a Celestial, refugees (given the number of conquering space empires in the Marvel U., there are probably a lot of people running from one or the other at any given time), conquerors. And Cosmo's the one at the front, having to deal with all of it. Meeting, greeting, assessing threats, protecting the vulnerable, being diplomatic with the various political entities that have a say (and their own interests).

Watching Cosmo negotiate that stuff is an interesting show. He's idealistic enough to see the value in a group like Peter Quill's Guardians of the Galaxy, so he'll go to bat for letting them HQ on Knowhere, but realistic enough to know he can't play favorites too much. Recognize there are valid reasons to be concerned about a team with Drax the Destroyer, Gamora (the Most Dangerous Woman in the Galaxy), Star-Lord (who hadn't been out of the Kyln prison for that long), not to mention Weird Shit Magnet Adam Warlock. These people can be friends and allies, but he still considers the safety of all the other people on the station. He has to, it's his job.

And he has the power to carry it out. When Adam Warlock finds out Cosmo is hiding Skrull refugees on the station, and misreads the situation, Cosmo has to put the mind whammy on him until he can explain the situation. Even with Adam showing up somewhat unexpectedly, Cosmo manages it.

I like looking for parts of his personality I can tie into his being a dog. His desire to help and protect others. When he meets Nova for the first time, Rich is confused, sick, and disoriented. No idea where he is or what's going on. Cosmo knows, and knows the situation is bad and they can't afford to sit around too long. But he still sits patiently and lets Rich collect his thoughts, lets him ask stupid, obvious questions to help find his bearings. My dad had a dog like that, Buddy, who would always hover nearby when a person or another dog was stressed. Not being aggressive, just standing there, watching and wagging his tail, reassuring. Cosmo being a telepath, where he can sense confusion or anxiety in the thoughts of those around him, probably increases that inclination.

You can see some of it in his friendship to Sam Alexander, where Sam is a kid running around on his own in space, doesn't seem to have any clue what he's getting into half the time. Cosmo is the kindly and protective uncle to him, who still busts his chops a little, gently. Not letting him get too swelled of a head, poking him about how much a girl he likes is running through his thoughts. (I think Cosmo also gets to serve as the sort of the angel on Sam's shoulder, in contrast to Rocket, who is the "cool" uncle/bad influence).

There's also the recurring theme of Cosmo enjoying get to fly, his version of your dog enjoying car rides. The idea was introduced the first time he met Nova, when Rich gave him a lift, and brought back, for one example, when he recruited the Silver Surfer into the Annihilators. That ability to enjoy the moment, the gift of a squeaky toy or specially baked dog biscuits.. Seeing a happy dog is nice.

Cosmo has a lot of backstory I'd love to see explored. He's been in space since before the Fantastic Four made their fateful trip. We don't know all the places he's been, things he saw before he came to Knowhere. How long has he been there, how long has he been security chief? What does he do when gets time off from his job? Does he have old friends to visit? Does he ever go back to Earth?

We see glimpses, hints of things he's done. We know he helped a bunch of decommissioned warbots establish a new, peaceful home for themselves on a quiet world (who then send him those special biscuits). We know he knew Sam Alexander's dad, or knew of him at least. There's a lot we don't know, but you can see the effect in how he approaches things. He isn't dismissive of potential danger, or take a fatalistic approach to it, but he isn't awed much either. He'll chat with Gladiator or the Silver Surfer, or even a Celestial is a casual, friendly manner.

When the Luminals brought one of their arch-foes to Knowhere, supposedly sealed securely in a box, Cosmo had a bad feeling. They stonewalled him, so he kept his eye on it. And when things went wrong, he got all the people on the station in that storage tesseract, while he stayed and tried to deal with the problem. That the problem involved the Luminals turning to zombies and rampaging across the station didn't seem to faze him much. Just one more thing to deal with. Time travel, almost dying and being shunted across alternate universes, almost dying and being tortured by the Magus. He takes it all pretty calmly, deals with the problem at hand the best can.

It's connected to his straightforward nature, his lack of interest in self-deception or denial. I don't know if that's the telepath in him, being able to see into people's minds, and so he can tell when they're lying to him or themselves. Or if it's that he's a Russian dog, and so he's going to be direct, and not waste time with trying to deny what he thinks is self-evident. He isn't blunt in a cruel way, saying it in the most hurtful way possible. It's more he knows there are things to do, and that it'll be easier if people just accept some fact of themselves. On a lighter side, his needling Sam about his crush on Lina, to maybe get Sam's butt in gear to actually talk to her. More seriously, telling Beta Ray Bill to get over it about being called the Annihilators.

You can certainly question whether that's a confidence-inspiring team name for the general populace - "Look, here come the Annihilators to save the day!" - but a) it was Quill's idea, not Cosmo's, and b) I can't imagine seeing the Kree Supreme Accuser, the leader of the Shi'ar Imperial Guard, and the most prominent Herald of Galactus all appear on your planet is going to produce warm, fuzzy feelings in anyone. More, "Are we going to be conquered, then devoured, or devoured and they conquer the remains?" And the idea was that they'd show up and blast whatever cosmic threat appeared into atoms - just so long as Starlin doesn't write them fighting Thanos - was the point, so sure, accept you're the Annihilators and let's get to work.

Cosmo hasn't yet really gotten the primary focus. He's been a supporting character, someone to highlight the strangeness of space, how you're never quite sure what you'll find out there. But there is a solid base established for his personality and setting, that provide a lot to work with, should the day come when he gets that focus.

Cosmo doesn't fear no walking dead in Nova (vol. 4) #9, by Dan Abnett and Andy Lanning (writers), Wellinton Alves (penciler), Wellington Daz and Nelson Pereira (inker), Guru eFX (colorist), and Cory Petit (letterer). It always pays to be polite, but casual when asking favors of Celestial in Guardians of the Galaxy (vol. 2) #16, by Abnett and Lanning (writers), Wesley Craig (artist), Nathan Fairbairn (colorist), Joe Caramagna (letterer). To be fair, most of us would react like that to an interstellar surfboard ride, Beta Ray Bill better face the facts, and Peter Quill says what we all know in Thanos Imperative: Devastation, by Abnett and Lanning (writers), Miguel Sepulveda (artist), Rain Beredo (colorist), and Joe Caramagna (letterer).