At the risk of losing any comics-related credibility I may have established in your eyes to this point, gentle reader, I must admit that I was first won over by the character of John Constantine as he was portrayed by Keanu Reeves in the 2005 film simply titled Constantine. That’s where I was introduced to […]
Broadway’s golden boy will be taking the Roy Thompson Hall stage tomorrow night to sing Stephen Schwartz songs alongside the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. Fresh off his pre-Broadway run in the new Finding Neverland musical and a movie star turn as Jamie in the Last Five Years film adaptation, Tony-nominated (and My Theatre Award-winning!) Newsies star/Smash saviour […]
One of the most satisfying side effects of a popular culture rooted in mass media, in my occasionally humble opinion, is the plethora of milestones available for one’s nostalgic reflections. There was definitely a moment after my private Catholic high school days and post-secondary conservatory theatre training during which my worldview shifted from West Side […]
Montréal is one of my favourite cities to visit. Perhaps it’s the surreal experience of walking down a city street, not entirely unlike a Toronto street, and seeing familiar corporate logos with unfamiliar French names. The feeling of stepping into an alternate reality where things are just different enough that you’re forced to pay attention […]
I don’t think I would’ve become as big of a fan of comic books as a medium, now, if it weren’t for the general trend, which started a while ago, towards more complex characters and storylines. I’m not talking about dark and broody caped crusaders or anti-heroes. I mean compositions that are sufficiently patient and […]
There’s nothing quite like the midnight movie (okay, I’m old now, I snuck into a 10:30 showing). The hordes of fans excited for the same thing as you. The energy when that first Marvel Movie credit comes up. The giggling at the in jokes – the clapping at the easter eggs hinting at future awesomeness. […]
Daredevil made his comic book debut in 1964. As with most superheroes that have been around that long, he’s gone through his fair share of being reinvented and reimagined. As times have changed, his supporting cast has also evolved. On April 10th, Netflix released their new 13-episode original series based on the characters created by […]
The last time I dug into a comic book written in the fantasy genre, my focus was on a story derived from the world of Dungeons & Dragons. And, though modern writers may push the envelope of that world of swords and sorcery, there was a defined framework upon which it was built – a […]
I get enthusiastic about comics anthologies for the same reason I enjoy attending fringe-y theatre and film festivals. There’s something magical about being able to immerse oneself in a range of stories and styles in one place. In that setting, I find myself more willing to step out of my comfort zone and try something […]
There’s something deeply satisfying about discovering a competent, innovative cover version of one of your favourite songs. I have a great deal of admiration for artists who not only re-record someone else’s tune, but reinvent it and put their own spin on it in a way that showcases just as much artistry as the source […]
I’ve never been particularly patient with serial or otherwise long-form storytelling. If I’m not grabbed from the start of something, there’s a good chance I won’t hang around for whatever the creator considers the point of the endeavour. After watching the pilot episode of Lost when it first aired, I was convinced that that television […]
I’ll remember 2014 as the year I got back into comics in a big way. I enjoyed a lot of what I read, but I know I also just didn’t have time for the volume of good comics and graphic novels that arrived this year. How exciting to think that there’s a new year full […]
It’s a shame that the perceived fast pace of life means so many new things get boiled down to X Meets Y. There’s certainly an argument to be made for having a quick answer to the frequently asked “So, what’s this new comic all about?” but the more new series I read, the more frustrated […]
Perhaps one day I’ll review a comic book and become a mighty geyser of vitriolic verbage, but today is not that day. Maybe it stems from reading as many comics as I do and my tendency to see something good in every one. I end up using this forum as a way to recommend my […]
The League of Assassins vs. Malcolm Merlin Nyssa is back to try and find Sarah, but Oliver tells her that she was killed. Nyssa knows that it was arrows that took her down, and it is Oliver’s mission to work with Nyssa to figure out who killed Sarah; she was in Starling City to track […]
NBC has joined the comic book adaptation race on TV with its new show Constantine. Let me preface this review by saying I have not read the Constantine comics or seen the movie, so I didn’t incorporate any external knowledge about the source material into my viewing experience. Unlike the other comic book offerings that […]
(Spoilers Inside) I realized yesterday during my busy return to work, that I had been remiss in my Arrow re-caps. After three weeks the show slowed down a little, but the one two from weeks one and two were enough to set the groundwork for the shows major arc, the mystery of who killed Sarah. […]
Just when you thought my rambling comics commentaries couldn’t get any geekier, this past week saw the launch of a new comic book series set in the world of Dungeons & Dragons. How could I possibly resist? Doubling Down with D&D! The 40th anniversary of the original epic tabletop role-playing game franchise has already been […]
For as long as it’s true, I’ll continue reminding people that I’m fairly new to the act of talking(and writing) about comics. I don’t think of it as an excuse so much as a justification for my palate-in-progress. I know enough about myself, though, to admit I have an open mind to trying new things, […]
I identify as a geek. I identify as a fanboy. I use fanboy as a verb when becoming exuberant about things like the release of new comics in a series I enjoy or when I have the opportunity to be in the same room as a creator I admire. And, despite the prevailing voices of […]
Welcome to the DC/CW game Barry Allen. For the last two years Arrow has paved the way for bringing a successful small screen adaptation of a super hero. Sure the WB/CW had Smallville, and it was entertaining, but in this new universe creator Greg Berlanti balances the human nature, and the team behind these shows […]
As a skeptic, I’m confident that there are lots of complex, often interconnected, rational answers for the things I don’t know. As someone who often dabbles in and reflects upon creative processes, I enjoy attributing phenomena to more nebulous, metaphysical forces. I particularly revel in ruminating upon impulses that comfortably loiter at the intersection of […]
Generally speaking, modern superheroic interpretations of the maxim “with great power comes great responsibility” are incomplete. There are, naturally, supervillains to thwart, crises to avert, and days to save. But tropes like rescuing a cat that’s stuck in a tree are rarely(if ever) tied back into a superhero’s responsibility. Despite being overqualified for sorting out […]
One of the major pluses to Marvel building a complicated, interconnected multiverse (that also happens to be the most profitable thing around right now that’s not called Frozen) is that they can take insane, stupid risks. Like a rogueish space captain who’s not afraid to play with his own safety, they’re free to jump headfirst […]
Nothing epitomizes the “geek” culture like comic books. In recent years, Hollywood has revitalized the big screen comic book hero to capitalize on the rise of “geek chic” in America. Don’t believe me? During the last ten years, four of the highest grossing domestic movies have been based on comic books. I have a confession: […]
“The thing about Batman is that it always goes on, and that’s the thing I love about these characters… When I’m dead and moldering there will still be Batman.” -Grant Morrison In August 2009, four years and an entire universe ago, I bought my first Batman monthly comic. It was Batman And Robin #1 by […]