Archives for August, 2009
Written by Elliot Serrano
Art by Ariel Padilla
The Story
Kind of late to the bandwagon, everyone’s favorite Evil Dead hero finally has his turn to team up with the 44th president of the United States.
The setting is Detroit City Comic-Con, which manages to get probably the one guest the real show in San Diego didn’t – President Barack Obama. Also in attendance, although not willingly, is our hero – S-Mart employee Ashley J. Williams. Of course, the Necronomicon rears its ugly book cover around to cause trouble, making the day even better for Ash. …continue reading
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Created by: Bill Lawrence
Starring Zach Braff, John C. McGinley, Donald Faison, Sarah Chalke, Ken Jenkins, Judy Reyes
Most sitcoms and shows set in hospitals are really hit or miss for me. Mostly, I try to miss them because they just never are that funny or entertaining to me. So, I have watched Scrubs before and chuckled a bit. How is the 8th season? I popped it in and pushed play. Scrubs: The Complete Eighth Season was recently released by ABC Home Video.
The Season
Just in case you aren’t familiar with the series, here is a quick refresher. Dr. John “JD” Dorian (Zach Braff) still works at Sacred Heart Hospital. The series follows J.D., his friends and his co-workers, as they navigate their personal and professional lives. …continue reading
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Created By: Eric Blakeney, Stephen J. Cannell
Starring: Richard Grieco, Lori Petty
The television spin-off is sometimes good (Frasier, Angel) and sometimes it falls seriously short of the original series (Joey, Time of Your Life). Booker falls somewhere in the middle.
The Season
In Season 3 of 21 Jump Street the character Dennis Booker (Richard Grieco) was introduced to the series. By the start of Season 4 he was spun off into his own series. Now a private investigator working for a large Japanese corporation, Booker continues to “break all the rules.” Along the way Lori Petty (Tankgirl, Point Break), Marcia Cross (Melrose Place, Desperate Housewives), Thomas Hayden Church (Wings, Sideways) and Don Cheadle (Boogie Nights, Ocean’s Eleven) all made guest appearances. My favorite guest star is Heavy D as a rival private investigator working the same case as Booker. I can never get enough of the “buddy cop” formula. …continue reading
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This week we’re welcoming back Morgan and Cristy from www.nashvillist.com! We chat District 9, Inglorious Bastards, Peopleholes, Twitt Sex, and much more!
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Directed by Greg Mattola
Starring Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Ryan Reynolds
Adventureland comes to us from the director of Superbad, as the box proclaims. Using this information for a slogan is probably a really bad idea because it infers a certain kind of film which Adventureland most definitely is not. Superbad was an over the top comedy where Adventureland strives for something much more subtle.
The Movie
James is just out of college and preparing for graduate school in New York. When he discovers that his parents are going through financial problems and can’t afford to send him to graduate school, he gets a summer job to put money back to pay his own way. It’s 1985, so what does he do? …continue reading
![Band Of Brothers [Blu-ray]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31Wb5TwvL1L._SL75_.jpg "Band Of Brothers [Blu-ray]")
Written by Michael Uslan
Art by Stan Goldberg
Marvel’s mainstays aren’t the only ones reaching the #600-issue mark this year. Over at Archie Comics, the eponymous book joins the 600+ club. Not to be outdone by whatever Marvel is doing passing that hurdle (Is #600 really that big of a deal?), Archie himself is finally forced to make arguably the most difficult decision in all of comic books: Betty or Veronica. The book’s title Archie Marries Veronica: “The Proposal” might give it away.
The Story
This first of a six-part story explores the future of Archibald Andrews where he pops the question to Miss Veronica Lodge. So how does the eternal high schooler make the leap to marriage? Instead of taking a trip down Memory Lane, he goes up it. Of course, the road is diverged in a yellow wood (yep), so Archie takes one path and here we are. I must admit, I love this. Taking the phrase “a trip down memory lane” literally and then turning it around is inspired. Then tacking on Robert Frost’s “The Road Not Taken” is the most logical next step in Archie’s journey. The whole thing is so obvious that it’s brilliant. …continue reading
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Directed by Mitsuo Kurotsuchi
Starring Ken Ogata, Somegoro Ichikawa, Yoshino Kimura
“A leaf of grass is no less than the journey-work of the stars.”
Walt Whitman
Animeigo continues to impress with their collection of jidaigeki (period drama) and chambara (sword play) films. The Samurai I Loved (Semishigure) was recently released on DVD and I happily gave it a try.
The Movie
The film opens with beautifully shot images of the skies, softly blowing snow and rice paddies that surround a simple Japanese village. The audience is introduced to Bunshiro (Somegoro Ichikawa), a samurai that is trying to navigate the increasingly turbulent political nature of the area. His father was forced to commit suicide after getting caught in the disagreements between two powerful samurai retainers. His loyalties are tested every day and each day is more tedious than the one that preceded it. …continue reading
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It’s special guest bonanza this week on the show! Niko returns along with Tom aka TechGOnzo from www.geeksofdoom.com and extra special guest costumer, R2D2 builder and now iPhone developer Chris Lee! We hit the box office, TV news, the Playstation price drop, and finish up the show discussing Chris’ new iPhone app iStooges! Check the app out at www.istooges.com
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Directed By: Christine Jeffs
Starring: Amy Adams, Emily Blunt, Alan Arkin, Jason Spevack, Steve Zahn
The Lorkowski’s are down and out. Rose is stuck cleaning the homes of her High School peers. Oscar has just gotten kicked out of another school. Norah can’t hold down a job and Joe is having trouble unloading a car load of shrimp, but an unusual business opportunity may just be the solution to all of their problems.
The Movie
Rose Lorkowski, Amy Adams, is scrapping by, but it’s not easy. It’s humiliating finding out the owner of the house your cleaning is a fellow cheerleader, but at least she’s still sleeping with the former high school football star. …continue reading
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Directed by Fritz Kiersch
Starring Linda Hamilton, Peter Horton, John Franklin
What do you get when you smack 80’s by the seat of your pants horror filmmaking with Stephen King stories? Well you get Carrie and you get Children of the Corn. Children of the Corn doesn’t have the style that Carrie does and it honestly feels a bit more clumsy than Carrie but it also has some positives that make it still to this day one of the more entertaining adaptations of a Stephen King story.
The Movie
A young couple is traveling across country when they suddenly find themselves in the Midwest and surrounded with corn fields. Along the way the couple is involved in a death and they need to report the incident to the police in a local town. The problem is that the town is devoid of life. As the couple investigates the town trying to discover what has happened they begin catching glimpses of kids scurrying about the town. …continue reading
Directed by Joe Wright
Starring Robert Downey Jr, Jamie Foxx, Steven Root, Catherine Keener
I saw a news story about Nathaniel Ayers, a homeless musician, and his friendship with Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez. It was fascinating. So, would a film about this be as interesting? Or, would I just prefer seeing a documentary about the story? Let’s find out. The Soloist: Blu Ray was recently released on Blu Ray by Dreamworks.
The Movie
Steve Lopez (Robert Downey Jr.) is a busy man. He is a writer for the Los Angeles Times, and he is trying to balance a career, an ex wife and all the other life responsibilities we all have. …continue reading
Written by Brian Michael Bendis
Art by David Lafuente
The Story
Yet another in the long line of unnecessary restarts, Ultimate Comics Spider-Man picks up six months after the end of Ultimate Spider-Man and Ultimate Spider-Man Requiem. New York City has been recovering since being hit with a tidal wave in Ultimatium. Law enforcement and citizens now have a new-found respect for its friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, thanks to J. Jonah Jameson’s premature obituary praising our hero’s heroism. Obviously it’s a brand new day (pun intended) for our little arachnid boy, right? …continue reading
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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (27.6MB) | Embed
This week we cover the Burn Notice mid-season finale, GI Joe, ZuneHD, Kick-Ass and much more!
Here’s some links mentioned in the episode:
Interview with Bruce Campbell and Sharon gless
http://www.tvverdict.com/2009/08/06/bruce-campbell-and-sharon-galss-talk-burn-notice/
Burn Notice mid-season finale review
http://www.tvverdict.com/2009/08/07/burn-notice-3-9-long-way-back/
Directed by Andy Fickman
Starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Carla Gugino, Alexander Ludwig, AnnaSophia Robb
“Don’t go down the pimped out refrigerator, Jack.”
Dwayne Johnson as Jack Bruno
This is the type of film that I wouldn’t go see in the theater. Who knows, maybe I miss some good films this way. So, I get to see if I missed anything when the DVD’s come out. Race to Witch Mountain: Blu Ray, a “reimagining” of the original 1975 Disney films Escape to Witch Mountain and the 1978 film Return to Witch Mountain, was recently released from Walt Disney.
The Movie
Jack Bruno (Dwayne Johnson) is a charismatic Las Vegas cab driver, scratching out a living taking tourists up and down the strip. At the end of the day, he calls a seedy motel room home, but it is better than his previous job: a driver for some unsavory thugs. But, this is in his past, although the thugs still come sniffing around to intimidate him and put pressure on him to return to his prior “career”. …continue reading
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Written by Joe Caramagna
Art by Craig Rousseau
Looking for an easy Iron Man story to get into, one that doesn’t involve immense knowledge of the character or carry baggage from the last few years? Then this book is for you.
The Story
The premise of the book is seeing what would happen if someone stole all of the Iron Man armors and turn them against Tony Stark. This happens fairly quickly, as all the armors disappear and Tony faces the first of his stolen suits before the issue’s end. Quick is good, considering this is only a four-part miniseries. It’s well-paced, as everything happens so fast and is still easy to follow. …continue reading
