Manga Review: Mao Volumes 14 & 15

Manga Review: Mao Volumes 14 & 15 by Rumiko Takahashi Recap: Nanoka Kiba is a modern girl who was cursed by the cat ayakashi (monstrous spirit) Byoki. Among the results is that she can travel between the 21st Century (it’s currently 2020) and the Taisho Era of Japan. In that 1920s setting, she became involved… Continue reading Manga Review: Mao Volumes 14 & 15

Comic Book Review: Uptown Girl: The Lazarus Heart

Comic Book Review: Uptown Girl: The Lazarus Heart by Bob Lipski Thirty years before “now”, three men were exploring a South American jungle, Alvarez Tuesday, Billy, and Mack. They found the hiding place of the legendary Lazarus Heart, but the cave collapsed and only Alvarez escaped. Ten years later, Billy caught up with Alvarez in… Continue reading Comic Book Review: Uptown Girl: The Lazarus Heart

Webtoon Review: Disenchantment Seasons 4-5

Bean and Mora get a little careless about motorcycle safety.

Webtoon Review: Disenchantment Seasons 4-5 Note: This review contains SPOILERS for Seasons 1-3. If you’re sensitive to that, you may want to check out my earlier reviews first. Quick recap: Rambunctious princess (and for a while queen) Bean and her friends, wimpy half-elf Elfo and tempter demon Luci, have gone through many adventures together in… Continue reading Webtoon Review: Disenchantment Seasons 4-5

Manga Review: The Crater

Manga Review: The Crater by Osamu Tezuka In the late 1960s, Osamu Tezuka’s career was facing a crisis. He was still popular, with publishers quite willing to buy more of the kid-friendly material he’d become famous for. But he wasn’t a trend-setter anymore. The new generation of manga creators was into gekiga, more serious and… Continue reading Manga Review: The Crater

TV Review: The Untamed

Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian enjoy a quiet moment between tragedies.

TV Review: The Untamed At the beginning, Wei Wuxian (Zhan Xiao) dies. The cultivation clans have banded together at Nightless City to battle the Yiling Patriarch, master of the dark arts. Wei Wuxian is confronted by his adoptive brother Jiang Cheng (Zhuocheng Wang) and best friend Lan Wangji (Yibo Wang). Wei winds up plummeting off… Continue reading TV Review: The Untamed

Book Review: Meditations on the Way of the Cross

Book Review: Meditations on the Way of the Cross by Mary Pezzulo We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you, because by Your Holy Cross you have redeemed the world. Adapted from the prayer of St. Francis In this Lenten season, Christians prepare for the holy day of Easter by contemplating the ministry of… Continue reading Book Review: Meditations on the Way of the Cross

Book Review: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice

Book Review: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice edited by Jack Zipes Most likely, when you saw this title, you immediately thought of the Fantasia sequence with Mickey Mouse, or perhaps the more recent Disney film with Nicolas Cage. But the multiplying of brooms is only one aspect of the tales gathered under the general title of “The… Continue reading Book Review: The Sorcerer’s Apprentice

Movie Review: The Day the Earth Stood Still

Mr. Carpenter finally explains himself to Helen.

Movie Review: The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951) dir. Robert Wise The humans of Earth are a fractious lot. Why, just six years ago, they had an entire World War, as a result of which they created and used atomic weapons. You’d think they would have learned their lesson, but instead they went right into… Continue reading Movie Review: The Day the Earth Stood Still

Magazine Review: Thrilling Mystery March 1936

Magazine Review: Thrilling Mystery March 1936 by various Thrilling Mystery was a pulp horror magazine created by Thrilling Publications; I’ve been unable to find publication history details in a quick search.  It specialized in “weird menace” tales, which had supernatural trappings but were ultimately revealed as having non-supernatural (but not necessarily plausible) explanations.  It did… Continue reading Magazine Review: Thrilling Mystery March 1936

Comic Book Review: Suicide Squad Most Wanted: El Diablo

Comic Book Review: Suicide Squad Most Wanted: El Diablo story by Jai Nitz, art by Cliff Richards Chato Santana used to be a drug dealer and gang leader in East Los Angeles.  At some point he became linked to a vengeful demon and gained pyrokinetic abilities.  El Diablo used those powers to rule his neighborhood,… Continue reading Comic Book Review: Suicide Squad Most Wanted: El Diablo