The Suicide Squad Roll Call Teaser, My Thoughts

The DC Cinematic Universe is rolling on! In 2016, WB released the movie universe's third installment: Suicide Squad. Based on the comic book series, the David Ayer-written and directed film was about a group of supervillains and anti-heroes conscripted into government service. The film was given a mostly negative reception from critics, but it was praised for its cast and makeup. It even won the Best Makeup and Hairstyling Oscar at the 89th Academy Awards. The film would get a spinoff in Birds of Prey, and now...it's got a standalone sequel that was written and will be directed by James Gunn. Let's look at the trailer!

Makes sense Amanda Waller would come back.

And we got a new actor for Rick Flag Jr.

Savant - aka Brian Durlin. First appearing in Birds of Prey #56 (August 2003), created by Gail Simone and Ed Benes. A wannabe-vigilante turned blackmailer. Martial artist with genius intellect. I'm also not surprised that Michael Rooker would be in this movie. After all, James Gunn is directing. I think Savant will die, because of his obscurity and his lack of any real superpowers.

Javelin - Real Name unknown. First appeared in Green Lantern #174 (February 1984), created by Len Wein and Dave Gibbons. A former German Olympian athlete turned supervillain, he's skilled with his namesake weapon. I think this dude will be cannon fodder.

Harley Quinn - No introduction really needed. She first appeared in the Batman: The Animated Series episode "Joker's Favor" (first broadcast on September 11, 1992), and made her comics debut in Batman: Harley Quinn (October 1999), created by Paul Dini and Bruce Timm. She's a psycho psychologist who is a skilled acrobat/martial artist. In the comics, thanks to enhancement from Poison Ivy, she is immune to toxins and poisons. She will definitely live. And I like her costume here better than her outfits in Birds of Prey.

Polka-Dot Man - Real name Abner Krill. First appeared in Detective Comics #300 (February 1962), created by Sheldon Moldoff. The dots on his costume contain various devices. He's pretty obscure, and I can imagine the film getting a couple of gags out of his costume's gimmicks, but yeah, he's toast.

Ratcatcher - Real name Otis Flannegan. First appeared in Detective Comics #585 (April 1988), created by Alan Grant, John Wagner, and Norm Breyfogle. Flannegan had the power to command, well, rats. Interestingly enough, the Ratcatcher was an actual rat-catcher before becoming a supervillain. This film's version is female and called "Ratcatcher 2", implying she's a legacy character. I think it will be a tossup if she lives or dies.

Bloodsport - This Bloodsport is likely based on Robert DuBois (the first Bloodsport, there have been three in the comics), first appearing in Superman #4 (April 1987), created by John Byrne and Karl Kesel. He has a teleporter grafted into his body that allows him to summon weapons. I think he'll survive the movie because he's likely there to take the place of Deadshot.

King Shark - Real name Nanaue. First appeared as a cameo in Superboy #0 (October 1994), then fully appeared in Superboy #9 (November 1994), created by Karl Kesel and Tom Grummett. A demi-god, he has a human mother and his father was a shark god. He's super strong, has a healing factor, and you don't want him to bite you. He's a powerhouse character, and considering the popularity the character has gotten thanks to the Harley Quinn animated series, I think he may live.

Mongal - First appeared in Showcase '95 #8 (Deptember 1995), created by Peter Tomasi and Scot Eaton. An alien powerhouse, super speed, strength, durability, etc. I found her an utterly bizarre choice for this movie, and I would not be surprised if she gets killed off. Should be hard to do, though.

The Thinker - Likely the Clifford DeVoe version, this incarnation first appeared in All-Flash #12 (Fall 1943), created by Gardner Fox and E.E. Hibbard. In the comics, the Thinker was known for using a device known as a "Thinking Cap" to use various mental powers. Considering who is playing him, I think he may live.

Sol Soria - I think she's a new character, so she may likely survive. She's been described as a "South American revolutionary", so its possible that this may be a hint as to the Squad's mission in the movie.

Blackguard - Richard Hertz. First appeared in Booster Gold #1 (February 1986), created by Dan Jurgens. In the comics, Blackguard wore armor that allowed him to create a mace and shield made of energy. He's pretty obscure, so I think he's going to be toast.

TDK - Real name Floyd Belkin. First appeare in Secret Origins #46 (December 1989), created by Gerard Jones and Curt Swan. Has the power to remove his arms and use them as limb. He's often thought of as a bit of a joke, so he'll likely get killed off.

Weasel - Real Name: John Monroe. First appeared in The Fury of Firestorm #35 (August 1985), created by Gerry Conway and Rafael Kayanan. In the comics, Weasel was a serial killer in a costume, not a mutated animal like he seems to be here. He's dead.

Captain Boomerang - Real name George "Digger" Harkness. First appeared in The Flash #117 (December 1960), created by John Broome and Carmine Infantino. An Australian supervillain, he uses, well...boomerangs. He'll likely survive, as he's one of the "iconic" members of the Suicide Squad.

Peacemaker - Real name: Christopher Smith. First appeared in Fightin' 5 #40 (November 1966), created by Joe Gill and Pat Boyette. Skilled martial artist, and weapons user. I hope he survives, personally. John Cena can be pretty funny. I expect him to be a breakout character. I have heard there was more stuff with him in the works, so it's likely he'll live.

I admit, I am rather excited for this movie. I never saw the first one. Looking back, the promotion for that one gave me the impression they were trying to respond to Guardians of the Galaxy. Kind of ironic that James Gunn is directing this film, then. Huh. This trailer gives me the impression that this will be a good time popcorn movie. The kind of film you just sit back and have fun watching. And I am all for that. I also like that this film is giving some spotlight to some lesser-known DC characters...even if it's only brief.

Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves, and each other. Stay safe, stay healthy, stay home, wash your hands often, and wear a mask! See you next time!

Green Lantern #21 (September 2007)

In the 1990s, DC was on a bit of a kick of radically shaking up some of their superheroes. Superman was killed off, Batman had his back broken. Another hero to get such a shakeup was the Green Lantern. The primary Green Lantern at the time, Hal Jordan was transformed into the supervillain Parallax and a new Lantern emerged in Kyle Rayner. This storyline, "Emerald Twilight", was used to remove much of the Silver/Bronze Age Green Lantern mythos, like the Green Lantern Corps and the Guardians of the Universe.

Hal's transformation was met with much anger and outrage from Lantern fans. Despite that, for a decade, Kyle Rayner was the DCU's only Green Lantern. Hal would stick around as Parallax, eventually finding redemption by becoming the Spectre. In 2004, the miniseries Green Lantern: Rebirth would restore Hal to life, as well as usher in the rebuilding of the Green Lantern Corps. It would also set up for another epic storyline: The Sinestro Corps War.

You see, Rebirth had established the idea that the green energy the Green Lanterns used was actually the center of an emotional spectrum. Green was the central color, the color of willpower, which allows one to keep emotions in check. And since there were other emotions out there, that meant there were other colors...and potentially other Corps. One was the Sinestro Corps. Led by their namesake leader, longtime Green Lantern villain Sinestro, this Corps used the yellow light of fear...and they wanted one thing: the universe to live in terror. As such, they waged a war on the Green Lanterns. Let's see the beginnings of the war in Green Lantern #21!

The cover is a Ivan Reis, Oclair Albert, and Moose Baumann piece depicting members of the Sinestro Corps and Parallax in his yellow bug form. It's a good cover, but it's a bit basic. I do like the little detail of the Green Lantern masthead logo's green being switched with yellow. It helps give the impression that the Sinestro Corps are taking over.

"The Sinestro Corps War Chapter One: Fear and Loathing"

Writer: Geoff Johns

Penciler: Ivan Reis

Inker: Oclair Albert

Colorist: Moose Baumann

Letterer: Rob Leigh

The story begins with Hal Jordan doing a bit of reminiscing. One time, the Air Force man was one of the Green Lantern Corps. He was considered one of the best. He thinks it was because he was one of the few Lanterns willing to argue with the Guardians of the Universe. They reminded him of his superiors in the Air Force. They liked to tell him how to fly, but they never sat in the cockpit.

Years after Hal became a Green Lantern, his hometown of Coast City was destroyed by the Cyborg Superman. It was only the second time in his life that fear overcame him. It allowed him to be possessed by Parallax, the embodiment of fear. Under the monster's control, Hal would end up destroying the Green Lantern Corps and even tried to recreate the universe. Despite this, Hal would later be able to ressaert himself enough to save the world when it seemingly entered its Final Night. But he would be freed by his Green Lantern comrades: Kilowog, John Stewart, Kyle Rayner, and Guy Gardner.

But that was in the past. Since then, the Green Lantern Corps has been rebuilt...but someone is bent on tearing it back down. Who, exactly? Well, Sinestro. Once a Green Lantern himself, he was stripped of his uniform and ring when he abused its power to create a dictatorship. He and Hal had fought many times over the years, but now Sinestro has his own Lantern Corps, using the yellow light of fear, and they just made their first big strike, a strike that killed over fifty Lantern officers.

The recovery is complicated by a group known as the Lost Lanterns. They were a group of GLs that tried to stop Hal Jordan when he was possessed by Parallax after the destruction of Coast City, but he took their rings and left them for dead. They would be found again, but they still have issues with Hal. Kilowog is able to calm the tensions, though.

Elsewhere on Oa, the Guardians are debating what to do next at the Book of Oa. The Book of Oa is literally that, a giant book containing everything that is known about the Green Lantern Corps and its history. The book is open to a chapter about something called "The Blackest Night". It's a hidden chapter, and the Guardians decide it must be kept that way.

Two of the Guardians, Ganthet and Sayd, object to this.

They point out that they tried this with the truth behind why Green Lanterns' power rings did not work on the color yellow (It was because they had Parallax trapped in the Lantern's Central Power Battery, which somehow weakened the ring's ability to affect anything yellow), and it led to the events of Emerald Twilight. The Guardians cannot ignore this. The prophecy of the "Blackest Night" is coming to pass. The Sinestro Corps are here. This is merely the beginning.

The other Guardians believe it's a lie. The prophecy is a fake, used to manipulate Abin Sur, the Green Lantern that operated in Sector 2814 before he died and his ring went to Hal Jordan. Ganthet points out that if the prophecy was not a lie, then it would not have been recorded in the Book of Oa. One Guardian destroys the pages containing the prophecy, stating that Guardians did it because they did something forbidden. They allowed themselves to feel fear.

We next get a scene in which one of the Sinestro Corps needs a recharge. This allows us to learn their oath, a twisted take on the Green Lantern's oath.

In Blackest Day, in Brightest Night! Beware your fears made into light! Let those who try to stop what's right! Burn like his power! Sinestro's might!

Sinestro himself watches his Corps rampage, and he is very pleased.

Back with Hal, he finds himself receiving a secret communication from Ganthet and Sayd. They want Hal to lead the Green Lanterns through the upcoming war. After all, leading is something that comes naturally to him. Hal refuses, as he knows the Corps don't trust him thanks to his actions when he was under Parallax's control. The two Guardians try to convince him to be the Lantern's beacon. Hal still refuses. Two Lanterns have been asked to be beacons by the Guardians: Hal and Sinestro. And they both broke under the pressure.

Ganthet points out that Hal is still haunted by one great fear, but the Air Force man is just interested in finding Kyle Rayner. Kyle had been kidnapped in the Sinestro Corps attack earlier. Ganthet and Sayd reveal that he's been taken to the world of Qward, the planet that the Sinestro Corps have been using as their counterpart to Oa. Guy Gardner and John Stewart arrive and alert Hal that the "Lost Lanterns" have orders to go to Qward and retrieve Ion. Ion is the embodiment of willpower, much like Parallax is the embodiment of fear. The three Earth-born Lanterns prepare to charge their rings up for the trip, but...

The Sinestro Corps left a nasty surprise in the Central Power Battery: Parallax. He manages to make off with Guy and John. The fear monster then decides to taunt Hal by replaying a memory from his childhood: The death of his father. In Johns' run on the title, it was established that Hal's father Martin was a test pilot himself. Hal loved to watch him fly.

Much like Hal himself in the future, Martin Jordan worked as a test pilot for Ferris Aircraft. When Hal was a boy, Martin flew an experimental plane for some investors. However, something went wrong in the plane's systems. Overcome with fear, Hal tries to make his ring save Martin, knowing what's going to happen next.

Martin tries to bring the plane down at the airfield. The plane is going to go down due to the mechanical failure it's suffering, but at least in the airfield, no one else will get hurt. In the cockpit, Martin says something, but Hal can't make it out. Parallax taunts Hal with this. Everyone has fears, and Hal's was that his father died in fear. Parallax shows himself, having possessed Kyle Rayner like he had with Hal years ago.

I have to admit, I love the design of the Parallax-possessed Kyle. The costume includes elements of Parallax's look when he possessed Hal, but also is remisicient of Kyle's first Green Lantern costume.

I do have to admit, I was never too fond of Kyle Rayner's first Green Lantern outfit. It felt like they were trying too hard to make him look "cool". Also, the costume was predominantly black, and I felt it made no sense for a character called Green Lantern to have a predominantly black outfit. The Parallax-ified Kyle taunts Hal about how much more imaginative the younger Lantern is than him, which makes sense. Kyle Rayner in his civilian life is a professional artist, after all.

Hal demands to know where Guy and John are. Parallax!Kyle refuses to answer, instead saying that he's come around to having a Corps of his own. The story ends with Hal facing off against Parallax, the Sinestro Corps, and a pair of constructs of Kyle in his Green Lantern and Ion guises.

This was an enjoyable issue, but it does have a couple of flaws. The main flaw is that it's one of those issues that feels like it's better when read as part of the whole Sinestro Corps War story than on its own. Also, it does feel like you need to have some knowledge of the Green Lantern Corps's history and mythos to truly appreciate this story.

The big strength of this issue is the focus on Hal. We get to see that he's still affected not only by his time under Parallax's control, but he's also still haunted by his father's death. Seeing Martin Jordan's fatal plane crash was the incident that made Hal the supposedly fearless man he is, but it still scarred him.

Ivan Reis to me is an underrated Green Lantern artist. He does great facial expressions, and manages to capture emotion very well. He also manages to make the Parallax-ized Kyle, not to mention the fear monster in his true yellow bug form, look terrifying.

The Sinestro Corps War is an epic story, and should be required reading for anyone who wants to know why Green Lantern is awesomel If you want to read this for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2008 trade paperback Green Lantern: The Sinestro Corps War Vol. 1. Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves, and each other. Stay safe, stay healthy, stay home, wash your hands often, and wear a mask! Join me next time, as we join Wonder Woman as she undergoes her tenth labor...

Text Play: Pokemon Zeta #13

Hello, and welcome back to the Vesryn Region! It's time for entry number 13 in my Text Play of Pokémon Zeta!

Before I begin this, I just want to say thank you to everyone that has joined me so far on this adventure. I've had a lot of fun playing this game, and making these fun entries for all of you. And as usual, I want to warn you, I will be spoiling this game. If you wish to play it yourself, you can download it here. And now, let's go!

Last time, we had a bit of an...encounter, I guess you could call it, with a mysterious new Pokémon called Divaevus in Ladoga Town. We can thank Team Olympus being back up to their old tricks for that. But they managed to get their butts whipped, again.

With them out of the way for now, it's left me wondering what to do next. Well, I've been thinking about going back and doing that Ranger Club mission, like I've kept saying I've been wanting to do. Well, thanks to that Instant Lapras I now own, we can easily cross Route 311 back to Kivu. We can also battle the Swimmers there to power up my Weepinbell and Luxray (Swimmers tend to have Water-type Pokémon, so they're perfect for grinding up Grass and Electric-type Pokémon).

It is here that I do want to talk about a minor issue I have with this game. I may have talked about this before. If I had, I don't remember it, so bear with me, please. You see, in some Pokémon games, you culd have rematches with Trainers you battled. It helped increase the replayability of the games. This game does not seem to have this feature. I think it's a shame.

Anyway, let's go back to Kivu Town and take on that Ranger Club mission at last.

I've been doing a bit more grinding up of my Pokémon (as well as captured a few more for my collection. I mentioned in the eighth entry that the game's wiki recommended that your Pokémon be between levels 26 and 35. Well, my Pokémon are around level 36-37 now, so I'm hoping this gauntlet goes well this time around.

Before I took it on, I made sure to do something very important: Stock up on supplies. I bought plenty of Potions (regular and Super), and some healing items. The Team Olympus Gauntlet was easier to get through this time thanks to all that grinding. I do want to point out that something funny happened to me during this whole thing.

During my journey through this gauntlet, both my Weepinbell and Magmar evolved into Victreebel and Magmortar, respectively. Now, Pokémon evolving is not unusual, lots of them do it. However, here...it is unusual. You see, they evolved when they reached level 38 in this game. However, in the official games...it doesn't work that way for these particular Pokémon. You see, in the official games, Magmortar is obtained when you trade a Magmar while it's holding an item called a Magmarizer. You can get a Victreebel when you use a Leaf Stone on a Weepinbell. I can assume that when my Seadra reaches level 38, she'll evolve into Kingdra, despite needing a King's Stone for that in the official games.

I can understand why this was changed here. You see, the starters of this game are Magby, Horsea, and Bellsprout. Starter Pokémon tend to evolve by leveling up. They also tend to have three evolutionary stages. Charmander becomes Charmeleon, then Charizard for example. However, in the official games, it does not work that way for the three Pokémon they chose as starters here. It was a surprising change they made. I'm not complaining about it, I just noticed it, and I get why they did this.

Eventually, I made my way to the master Grunt.

The device he's using is one of four, being usedto create a massive square shaped area that will cause all the wild Pokémon in it to fall under Team Olympus's mental control. He calls himself the "Gruntmaster". I am not kidding. It's like "The Beastmaster", only stupider. I'm guessing he's the one who gives the orders to the grunts from the commanders. After he was defeated, one of the Rangers shows up to arrest the Gruntmaster...who makes his getaway somehow.

The device is called a "Gigaremo" from a region called Almia, owned by a group called Team Dim Sun. Almia...isn't that the region from Pokémon Ranger? It's interesting that non-mainline Pokémon games are given shout-outs here. Anyway, time to head back to Kivu Town and go to Route 312!

Route 312 is basically a winding dirt road with some plateaus and a couple of bridges. It connects Ladoga Town to Routes 313 and 315. See that item in the dirt road in the screenshot? That's a Full Restore. Get it. There's another item in the grassy area in the screenshot. We can't get that now, so don't worry about it. I did have a trainer encounter on this route that made me chuckle.

My inner child smiled. I was a Power Rangers nut as a kid. I wanted the original Megazord and Dragonzord as a kid, but the toy stores never had them. Always sold out quicker than the Flash after too much sugar. Maybe I'll get the Legacy versions of them one day online or something. And the Ranger's name there is Tuesday. I just thought that was amusing, ha ha. I eventually encountered some old..."friends" on this Route.

Well, well, well. Team Olympus. I swear, these guys are like cockroaches. You keep beating them down, and they keep coming back. We obviously can't go past them right now, so we can't see what they're guarding. They're covering the way to Route 315. There clearly is something there they don't want discovered. We can't really do anything about this right now, so we got no choice but to move on ahead to Route 313. But that's alright. We can whoop their butts another day. By the way, see that item on the right in the screenshot? That's a Full Restore. Get it. I don't think we can get the item on the left yet, so don't worry about it.

There are a couple of bridges we have to cross to get to Route 313. On the way, we find another item.

Isn't it nice when you find potentially useful things just lying around? I love RPGs. Anyway, get this. It's TM87 (Swagger). I continued on the bridges. Fun thing? You can fight the man who claimed to have helped build them on this route. Look for an Engineer named Kyle. I was about to enter Route 313, when I heard some people talking about something that needs to be found. And why are they trying to find this object? Well, to take over the world, of course!

We do get to see who is talking, though.

Oh hey, it's Jake! Remember him from entry #6? Man, that seems so long ago. Wait, why does he want to take over the world? Has his so-called "swag" gotten to his head? That would not surprise me.

Anyway, he wants to know if I've seen TM87 anywhere. Remember, we found it earlier. But you know what? Jake's a jerk, so I'm not giving him the satisfaction of seeing it. I told him that I haven't seen it. Jake gets mad about at, and screams that I'm lying. Not that he has any reason to think so. Anyway, we end up battling.

1st Pokémon: Klefki (Lv. 36) - Defeated Butterfree. Defeated by Magmortar.

2nd Pokémon: Lairon (Lv. 37) - Defeated by Magmortar.

3rd Pokémon: Kingdra (Lv. 38) - Defeated by Luxray.

4th Pokémon: Scraggy - Defeated by Gabite

5th Pokémon: Charmeleon (Lv. 37) - Defeated by Kingdra

And with that, Jake runs off. He screams "Team Yoloswag Out" or some other nonsense. I have no idea, he's an idiot.

And I think that's where we'll end things for now. Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourself and each other. Stay safe, stay healthy, stay home, wash your hands often, and wear a mask! See you next time!

Pokémon Obtained

(Kivu Town)

- Krabby

- Corphish (120th Pokémon! Whoo-hoo!)

- Magmortar (Evolved from Magmar at Lv. 38)

- Victreebel (Evolved from Weepinbell at Lv. 38)

(Route 311)

- Tentacool

- Kingdra (Evolved from Seadra at Lv. 38)

TMNT/Ghostbusters #1 (October 2014)

In 1984, two icons of pop culture debuted. Theaters showed the a little movie about a quartet of blue-collar paranormal investigators/eliminators. Meanwhile, Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird created a little comic book about four anthropomorphic turtles trained in martial arts. The Ghostbusters and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles had surprisingly quite a bit in common. Both groups operated in New York City, both groups had successful long-running cartoons, and they have both have had adventures with various media over the years, including comic books.

Also, both groups have had their fair share of crossovers over the years, particularly when IDW got the comic rights for them. The Ghostbusters were involved in the first Infestation crossover, battling zombies alongside the original Star Trek crew, the Transformers, and GI Joe. The Turtles would be involved in the second crossover, alongside an alternate version of the Transformers, Dungeons & Dragons, GI Joe, and 30 Days of Night.

It wouldn't be until 2014 that these two groups would finally get to join forces for the first times. So, how did their first meeting go? Let's find out in TMNT/Ghostbusters #1!

The cover is a Dan Schoening piece, and it's pretty good. It's a bit basic, but it's good. I'd argue just seeing the Turtles and the Ghostbusters together is cool enough. What is interesting is how each Turtle and Ghostbuster is paired on the cover. Donatello and Egon make sense, as they're pretty much the brains of their groups. Leonardo and Winston are the serious fighters. Michelangelo and Ray are arguably the most kid-like. And then there's Raphael and Peter. Yeah, I don't see Peter as much of a hothead, but he and Raph do share a knack for cracking sarcastic jokes.

"Crossing the Divide"

Writers: Erik Burnham, Tom Waltz

Penciler: Dan Schoening, Charles Paul Wilson III, Cory Smith

Inker: Unknown

Colorists: Luis Antonio Delgado, Ronda Pattison

Letterer: Neil Uyetake

Editor: Bobby Curnow

The story begins with...a story. Long ago, powerful beings called immortals ruled the Earth...until they just up and vanished. Literally just decided to go disappear one day. These missing beings would go on to inspire many varied myths and legends, from the kitsune in Japan, to the Pied Piper of Hamlin in Europe. It seemed these immortals would never return. Yeah, never say never, folks.

We next look in on Japan during the Muromachi period. We look in on what appears to be a young woman trying to summon something. She senses someone nearby and demands he show himself. The woman is revealed to be a kitsune, the mischievous fox spirit of Japanese mythology. The man is her brother. He sensed the great power she was summoning, and he wanted to see if she was breaking some kind of agreement the two had made. She scoffs, as the man is so uptight about the rules. Someone then emerges from the portal.

Yup, it appears the Turtles' old sparring buddy Krang is up to something. The man, Chi-You, is infuriated. He believes Krang is a demon...and that the kitsune broke the agreement. You see, the two immortals had agreed to only use mortals as pawns in their games, not demons. He tries to punch her out, but she's able to dodge, and then judo throw him into the portal.

Krang assures the kitsune that thanks to the portal's safeguards, Chi-You won't be bothering her ever again. He gives her a device, asking her if the land he needs was cleared of humans. She had that taken care of. Everything's going to plan. We then next go across the Pacific Ocean, traveling a few hundred years into the future. In particular, we're going to modern day New York City, where the Heroes in a Half-Shell are looking over a portal device of their own.

The Turtles are joined by their longtime allies April O'Neil and Casey Jones. Also with them is Harold Lillja, a scientific colleague of Donatello's. April, Donnie, and Harold have been working on this transporter unit based on schematics from the Fugitoid robot. They think they got the bugs worked out, so they test it. How? By tossing an apple into the device...which ends up conking Casey on the back of the head.

It's nice little bit of humor. The Turtles want to use this thing for quick transportation. Like, to their underground lair to visit Splinter, perhaps? So, the Turtles, Casey, and April enter the portal. Unfortunately, Lillja is busy battling a fly. He manages to swat the fly, but ends up hitting the wrong switch.

Yeah, that's an oopsie right there. We then travel to New York City...an alternate New York City. Here, another heroic quartet are at work.

Yup, the Ghostbusters are hard at work busting ghosts. Because bustin' makes them feel good. The paranormal investigators/eliminators are after a rather nasty ghost: An ugly three-eyed purple thing. The 'Busters manage to catch the ghost, but Ray Stantz is a bit worried. A Class-Five ghost should not have been this difficult to capture. The only way that's possible if some sort of dimensional breach had happened.

Peter's not worried. After all, Ray and Egon built a gadget to detect such dimensional breaches, so it would be alerting them of something. And speak of the devil, they get a call from Janine Melnitz at the firehouse.

In case you're wondering, the Goth girl with Janine there is Kylie Grffin. As in, one of the four "next-generation" Ghostbusters in the Extreme Ghostbusters animated series. I liked that show. Kylie reports that there's a potential Class-Seven on the Eastside. The Ghostbusters naturally go check it out. Meanwhile, the Ninja Turtles arrive in a church on the Ghostbusters' world...in the middle of a wedding.

Chi-You then appears, but he's confused. He can't sense Kitsune or any other of his Immortal brethren. He also has found himself changed, like the travel through dimensions and the centuries in limbo has made him more powerful. The Turtles engage the Immortal, but his newfound ghostly nature makes their attacks ineffective. Chi-You thinks the Turtles are demons sent by Kitsune to recapture him. He's not going to let that happen again. Chi-You tries to blast the Turtles. They dodge it, but Casey gets hit...and he ends up not looking very well.

He needs some face cream. Chi-You has taken control of Casey Jones. And there's another benefit for the ghostly Immortal: He has access to Casey's mind, which allows him to learn about the Turtles...as well as learn how to speak English. And he's not the only one. The wedding guests have all fallen under Chi-You's control. The Immortal knows that The Turtles will try to stop him conquering the world, so he'll have his mortal minions tear them apart. After all, the Turtles will try to avoid harming innocent people.

Luckily for the heroes, a wall gets blown open, and we finally get to see the Ghostbusters and the TMNT meet up.

This comic is awesome. It really is. It's great seeing two icons of the 80s meet up like this. The usage of alternate dimensions is fitting as such a thing is native to both franchises' mythos. We do get a nice little glance of each of the heroes' basic personalities, which is neat. The comic does hint at some previous events in the comic, but as someone who hasn't read it, I did not feel lost. I liked the mention of Gozer. That was fun.

The book was drawn by three artists, but I saw no real indication of that. The art has a bizarrely cartoony vibe to me...which is kind of appropriate as both franchises have benefitted from animation. The only thing I find a bit "off" is the faces. The artists almost makes some of the human characters look like ducks.

If you want to read this for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2015 trade paperback Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles/Ghostbusters. It's great mini, I highly recommend it. Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other. Stay safe, stay healthy, wash your hands often, stay home, and wear a mask! Join me next time, when we join the Green Lantern Corps in the midst of a war...

Rivals of Aether Launch Trailer, My Thoughts

Back in 2017, Dan Fornace released a fighting game called Rivals of Aether. It hit the PC in March of that year, the Xbox One in August. The game was a spiritual sequel to a fan game called Super Smash Land. In the game, each of its fighters represented a natural element. One for fire, one for air, one for metal, etc. The game would be given heavy praise for its fighting mechanics and character design, but was criticized for lack of originality. And now the game has come to the Nintendo Switch! Let's look at the launch trailer!

I love that logo.

I also like the look of the game. I'm a bit of a sucker for the pixel art style.

I want to play as the lion. Lions are awesome.

I've heard of Extreme Volleyball, but this is ridiculous!

Cosmetics, huh? I wonder if they were like the spirits in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, little items you give your fighters to provide certain boosts.

Is...is that a kangaroo riding a mech?!

Well, this game looks like it will be a lot of fun to play! I can't wait to give it a shot. I love Super Smash Bros., so this looks like a blast as well. I like the characters (especially Shovel Knight, love that game), and the graphical style. I hope this does very well, and it's another for my list.

Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves, and each other. Stay safe, stay healthy, stay home, wash your hands often, and wear a mask! See you next time!

21st of September!

Hey, it's the 21st of September! So, let's groove!

Thunderbolts #1 (April 1997)

The Marvel Universe had it a bit rough in the mid-1990s. And it all started with a monster called Onslaught. Onslaught was a powerful psionic entity created from the merger of the darker sides of the minds of Professor Charles Xavier and Magneto, spinning from the events of the 1993 storyline "Fatal Attractions", which was a story created to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the X-Men.

In that story, Magneto used his magnetokinetic powers to literally rip the adamantium out of Wolverine's skeleton. Enraged by this, Xavier mindwiped his former friend. However, this caused Magneto's darker nature to enter Xavier's mind, which (as I said earlier) combined with Xavier's own suppressed dark side, creating Onslaught. The psionic being would eventually create his own body, and attempted to use the extremely powerful mutants Franklin Richards and Nate Grey to transform humanity into a collective consciousness.

The X-Men, the Avengers, and the Fantastic Four joined forces to stop the psionic monster. They managed to succeed...but the price was heavy. Earth's Mightiest Heroes and Marvel's First Family seemingly were killed destroying Onslaught. Of course, it turned out they were alive, but that's a story for another day.

With the FF and Avengers seemingly dead, the Marvel Universe needed A-Teams again. Sure, many other heroes were still active. Spider-Man, Moon Knight, Daredevil, the New Warriors. But there was a hole in the Marvel Universe. One team was determined to rise up and take up the mantle of being Earth's Mightiest Heroes...while harboring a very dark secret. First appearing in Incredible Hulk #449 (January 1997), this new team would create quite a legacy for itself. They are the Thunderbolts, and this is Thunderbolts #1!

The cover is a Mark Bagley piece, and it's pretty good. It depicts the Thunderbolts, basically giving an idea of who they are. I like the usage of the lightning bolt behind them. I do feel the group should have some shadows on them, helping symbolize that there's a dark side to them.

"Justice...Like Lightning!"

Writer: Kurt Busiek

Penciler: Mark Bagley

Inker: Vince Russell

Colorist: Joe Rosas

Letterer: Comicraft, Dave Lanphear, Oscar Gongorra

Editor: Bob Harras

Editor-in-Chief: Bob Harras

The story begins with a reporter at the site of a battle. She's here to give us a bit of a recap. She basically tells what I explained earlier in the entry, without the reveal of Onslaught's origins. A teenage girl watches the crew.

Meet Helen "Hallie" Takahama.  A few weeks ago, she was celebrating her 15th birthday. But then Onslaught showed up and her parents had been killed in front of her. Since then, she's survived on the streets. However, things are not going to get much better for her, as a mysterious man uses some chloroform to knock her out and drag her away.

Elsewhere, a group of looters and scavengers called the Rat Pack are looking around for items and valuables. However, they get a visit.

The gentleman's name is Citizen V, and he's here to make a citizen's arrest. The Rat Pack aim their guns at him. After all, he's seemingly just some nut in a funny suit and sword, right? Well, no. You see, Citizen V has some friends.

Meet the Thunderbolts! Songbird, scintillating sonic siren! MACH-1, armored aerial ace! Meteorite, space powerhouse! Techno, brilliant king of machines! And last but not least: Atlas: the gargantuan guardian! The Thunderbolts leap into action. A helicopter notices this and gets out the news. One of them is one Dallas Riordan.

Back to the battle! The Rat Pack's leader sends the craft with his group's loot flying. MACH-1 and Songbird pursue after it, but MACH-1 is brought down. Thankfully, Songbird saves him with a bubble of solid sound. The Thunderbolts get the win, but the Rat Pack manage to get way, thanks to some explosive tunneling.

With that done, the Thunderbolts return to their HQ...one of the abandoned buildings due to Onslaught. It's here we get some more character moments with the group. Techno complains about the dilapidation and wants to use one of the hidden bases that the Green Goblin and Dr. Octopus must have all over the city. Citizen V tells him the Thunderbolts can do better, and they don't have the money for a high-tech base anyway.

Neearby, MACH-1 and Songbird do a bit of talking. The sonic diva worries that she may not up to this gig, but MACH-1 assures her that she's got what it takes. Meteorite watches this and mulls over it. She then spots Atlas lounging in a chair. The powerhouse doesn't like the fact that Techno's grandstanding could have gotten them killed. You see, Atlas was a military man once. As such, he likes order and being able to depend on the rest of the men in the squad. Meteorite basically tells him, "Citizen V and I will take care of it, don't worry about it."

Meteorite then goes to check on Techno, who's been occupying himself with creating a robot.

Awww, ain't it cute? Meteorite blasts the robot. Because she is a jerk. Seriously, she fears it will arouse suspicion. A group of news helicopters arrive, and Citizen V takes the opportunity to formally introduce the Thunderbolts to the world. Who they are, their powers, that kind of thing. Interestingly, V reveals the team's name of "Thunderbolts" was inspired by a quote from 17th century poet Thomas Randolph:

"Justice, like lightning, ever should appear to few men ruin, but to all men fear."

We see a bit more character stuff with the individual interviews. MACH-1 talks about his suit, Songbird is a bit nervous, and Techno is a braggart. One of the reporters alerts Citizen V that the Rat Pack was spotted nearby the last place the 'Bolts faced them. And with that, New York's newest heroes jump back into action!

Back with Dallas Riordan! She gets a call from the mayor. People are talking about this wild new team, and he wants them to be connected to New York City. And that will be Riordan's job. So, where are the Thunderbolts right now? They're pursuing the Rat Pack to Liberty Island. And it's here that our new heroes have gotten themselves into an ambush.

Techno is worried about them. After all, the Wrecking Crew are known for regularly trading blows with Thor, who is a god. Despite this, the 'Bolts engage them. Citizen V taunts the Wrecker by reminding him of the time he got beaten by Captain America [Iron Fist #12 (April 1977)] and "a glorified SWAT team" [Journey to Mystery #505 (January 1997)]

During the battle, Piledriver causes a shockwave, endangering some tourists. Songbird manages to save them. Bulldozer tries to run her down, but MACH-1 manages to make him miss. Atlas is able to knock Wrecker silly, but Thunderball (My favorite member of the Crew because he shares a name with a James Bond movie) manages to knock him silly.

Ooh, right in the jaw!

Thunderball's blow manages to knock the gigantic Thunderbolt down and into the water. This distracts Meteorite, who ends up eating some flying rubble courtesy of Piledriver. In the process, the torch-holding arm of the Statue of Liberty is knocked off. Wrecker smashes a hole in the Statue's base, making one demand: The Thunderbolts surrender...or he'll live up to his name and turn the Statue of Liberty into a pile of scrap metal. With Atlas and Meteorite down, the 'Bolts can't fight the Crew head-on. Or can they?

When brawn fails, brains will work. MACH-1 flies in, firing small balls of sleeping gas into the Wrecking Crew's mouths. With Songbird creating sound bubbles around their heads, the gas sends three of the Crew to dreamland. Only Bulldozer remains, due to his helmet shielding him. An angry Atlas rises from the water, wanting a piece of Thunderball. But since Thunderball is busy with his nap, Bulldozer will make a nice convenient target for him. Atlas punches Bulldozer, sending him flying over the horizon like Team Rocket after a failed scheme to get Ash's Pikachu.

The Thunderbolts hear a noise, and...it's cheering. People are cheering for them. A short time later, Dallas Riordan arrives to Liberty Island and introduces herself to the 'Bolts. Atlas is a bit spellbound by the bespectacled redhead. The 'Bolts help repair the Statue and take their leave.

New York City has fallen in love with their new heroes, and even other heroes like Spider-Man, the New Warriors, and Black Widow have taken a shine to them. Back at their HQ, the 'Bolts are watching TV, seeing how the city has accepted them. An unmasked Citizen V enters the room, showing that he's...got some problems with his face. V decides to put on an older mask...and that's when we learn this team's startling twist.

Yup, they're actually supervillains in disguise. Citizen V is Baron Helmut Zemo. Techno is the Fixer. Songbird is Screaming Mimi. Atlas is Goliath, and Meteorite is actually Moonstone. All of these characters have served in various incarnations of the Masters of Evil. MACH-1, aka the Beetle, served with the 3rd incarnation of the group, first appearing in Avengers #222 (August 1982). That incarnation was led by an evil genius called Egghead. The others served in the fourth incarnation, debuting in Avengers #270 (August 1986). Led by Zemo himself, it was the biggest version of the team to date, with twelve members. This version made their name by storming and wrecking Avengers Mansion in the underrated "Avengers Under Siege" storyline. Back in 1997, this was a shocking revelation, helped by Marvel managing to keep it secret.

The story ends with Hallie Takahama in a dark cell, miles from New York, praying for anyone to help her.

This comic is awesome. You really don't get much of a hint that the Thunderbolts are actually supervillains until the end, which puts the hint of personality each of the members had shown into question. Was it real, or were they acting? We're left unsure and rather unsettled. We also have a bit of a mystery on our hands here. How exactly will posing as heroes help the Masters achieve their goal of presumably world domination? And what of Hallie? Well, we'll have to read on to find out.

I also liked Mark Bagley's art. To me, it has a bit of a cartoony vibe to it. One detail I really liked was that he was able to show Citizen V's facial expressions despite his face being fully covered. I did feel his faces were a bit generic at times, though.

If you want to read this for yourself, I recommend tracking down the 2011 trade paperback Thunderbolts Classic Vol. 1. Thanks for reading this blog entry! If you liked it, show it off! Take care of yourselves and each other. Stay safe, stay healthy, stay home, wash your hands often, and wear a mask! Join me next time, when we look at a titanic team-up between two 80s icons...