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Monday, December 27, 2021
Marvel Comics Shipping from Diamond Distributors for December 29, 2021
Comic Books, Magazines and Books from Diamond Distributors for December 29, 2021
DC Comics Shipping from Lunar Distributors for December 28, 2021
Action Comics #1038 (Cover A Daniel Sampere),$4.99
Action Comics #1038 (Cover B Julian Totino Tedesco Card Stock Variant),$5.99
Aquaman Green Arrow Deep Target #3 (Of 7)(Cover A Marco Santucci),$3.99
Aquaman Green Arrow Deep Target #3 (Of 7)(Cover B Jonboy Meyers Card Stock Variant),$4.99
Aquaman The Becoming #4 (Of 6)(Cover A David Talaski),$3.99
Aquaman The Becoming #4 (Of 6)(Cover B Khary Randolph Card Stock Variant),$4.99
Batman Superman The Archive Of Worlds HC,$29.99
DC Connect #20,AR
DC Vs Vampires #3 (Of 12)(Cover A Otto Schmidt),$3.99
DC Vs Vampires #3 (Of 12)(Cover B Francesco Mattina Card Stock Variant),$4.99
Deathstroke Inc. #4 (Cover A Howard Porter),$3.99
Deathstroke Inc. #4 (Cover B Ivan Tao Card Stock Variant),$4.99
Detective Comics #1046 (Cover A Dan Mora),$4.99
Detective Comics #1046 (Cover B Lee Bermejo Card Stock Variant),$5.99
Detective Comics #1046 (Cover C Stephen Segovia Card Stock Variant),AR
Flash #777 (Cover A Brandon Peterson),$3.99
Flash #777 (Cover B Jorge Corona Card Stock Variant),$4.99
Green Arrow The Longbow Hunters Saga Omnibus Volume 2 HC,$150.00
Harley Quinn #10 (Cover A Riley Rossmo),$3.99
Harley Quinn #10 (Cover B Derrick Chew Card Stock Variant),$4.99
Harley Quinn #10 (Cover C Rachta Lin Card Stock Variant),AR
Human Target #3 (Of 12)(Cover A Greg Smallwood),$4.99
Human Target #3 (Of 12)(Cover B Stanley Artgerm Lau),$4.99
Justice League #70 (Cover A Yanick Paquette),$4.99
Justice League #70 (Cover B Alexander Lozano Card Stock Variant,$5.99
Robin #9 (Cover A Simone Di Meo),$3.99
Robin #9 (Cover B Francis Manapul Card Stock Variant),$4.99
Robin #9 (Cover C Crystal Kung Card Stock Variant),AR
Superman ’78 #5 (Of 6)(Cover A Francis Manapul),$3.99
Superman ’78 #5 (Of 6)(Cover B Jamal Campbell Card Stock Variant),$4.99
Superman Red And Blue HC,$39.99
Superman Son Of Kal-El #5 (2nd Printing Travis Moore Card Cover),$3.99
Swamp Thing Green Hell #1 (Of 3)(Cover A Doug Mahnke),$6.99
Swamp Thing Green Hell #1 (Of 3)(Cover B Christian Ward),$6.99
Swamp Thing Green Hell #1 (Of 3)(Cover C Francesco Francavilla),AR
Task Force Z #3 (Cover A Eddy Barrows & Eber Ferreira),$3.99
Task Force Z #3 (Cover B Rodolfo Migliari Card Stock Variant),$4.99
Task Force Z #3 (Cover C Pamela Hoogeboom Card Stock Variant),AR
Teen Titans Academy #10 (Cover A Rafa Sandoval),$3.99
Teen Titans Academy #10 (Cover B Fico Ossio Card Stock Variant),$4.99
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Comics Review: "VENGEANCE OF VAMPIRELLA #25" Brings the Series to a Rousing Conclusion
VENGEANCE OF VAMPIRELLA VOLUME 2 #25
DYNAMITE ENTERTAINMENT
STORY: Thomas Sniegoski
ART: Kewber Baal
COLORS: Omi Remalante, Jr.
LETTERS: Troy Peteri
EDITOR: Joe Rybandt
COVER: Lucio Parrillo
VARIANT COVER ARTISTS: Ben Oliver; Stephen Segovia; Michael Sta. Maria; Jamie Biggs; Lucio Parrillo; Rachel Hollon (cosplay)
32pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (December 2021)
Rated Teen+
Vampirella is vampire and female superhero created by the late author and science fiction and horror expert, Forrest J Ackerman, and comic book artist, Trina Robbins. Vampirella first appeared in Vampirella #1 (Sept. 1969), the debut issue of a black and white horror comics magazine from Warren Publishing. Writer-editor Archie Goodwin changed the character from a hostess of horror comics to a leading character in her own stories.
Vampirella publications were published by Warren into 1983, and after Warren's bankruptcy, Harris Publications obtained the character and published new and reprint Vampirella comic books into the mid-1990s. In 2010, Dynamite Entertainment obtained the character and has been publishing new Vampirella material since then.
One of Dynamite's Vampirella comic book series is Vengeance of Vampirella, which was also the title of a Harris Comics series. Vengeance of Vampirella Volume 2 is written by Thomas Sniegoski; drawn by Michael Sta. Maria and Kewber Baal; colored by Omi Remalante, Jr.; and lettered by Troy Peteri. The series focuses on a reborn Vampirella, fighting the forces of Mistress Nyx and the Lords of Chaos to save humanity and then, trying to live in a new world after the war has been won.
Vengeance of Vampirella Volume 2 #25 opens in Sepulchre City. Vampirella's old enemies, “The Danse Macabre,” and its leader, Mr. Sabastian, make their final move. Once upon a time, a resurrection spell was used to revive Vampirella, but that spell was originally meant for Sabastian. Now, he wants it and has begun the process of extracting the resurrection energies from Vampirella.
Meanwhile, Jeannine, Vampirella's traveling companion, has been waiting for the sign that will mean she must make her move to help, but in order to do so, she will have to undergo a big change. When the smoke clears, justice in the monster city will have a new name. Will that name be Vampirella's.
THE LOWDOWN: Dynamite Entertainment's marketing department recently began providing me with PDF review copies of some of their titles. One of them is Vengeance of Vampirella Volume 2 #25. It is the sixth issue of this series that I have read, and one of a growing number of Vampirella comic books that I have recently read.
Issue #25 is the final issue of the Vengeance of Vampirella Volume 2. Writer Thomas Sniegoski closes out what has been an interesting run of issues the second half of this year. Readers will be satisfied, as I am. I have found the last six issues of this series to be among the most entertaining Vampirella issues that I have read in 2021.
Artist Kewber Baal came in last issue and finishes the series with some strong art and storytelling, with Omi Remalante, Jr.'s rich colors once again bringing a nice dark mood to the story. Troy Peteri's lettering closes out this battle royale so that it can come across as a battle for the ages.
Apparently, Vengeance of Vampirella Volume 2 is ending to give way to a new Vampirella series, Vampirella Strikes! I'm looking forward to it, and hopefully trade paperback collections will give readers a chance to revisit this series or new readers to experience it.
I READS YOU RECOMMENDS: Fans of Vampirella will want to try Vengeance of Vampirella Volume 2.
B+
Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
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The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.
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Saturday, December 25, 2021
Review: Crosby and Astaire Keep "HOLIDAY INN" Open with Crooning and Hoofing
TRASH IN MY EYE No. 73 of 2021 (No. 1811) by Leroy Douresseaux
Holiday Inn (1942)
Running time: 101 minutes (1 hour, 41 minutes)
PRODUCER/DIRECTOR: Mark Sandrich
WRITERS: Claude Binyon-screenplay; Elmer Rice-adaptation (based on an idea by Irving Berlin)
CINEMATOGRAPHER: David Abel (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Ellsworth Hoagland
COMPOSERS: Irving Berlin (songs and music); Robert Emmett Dolan (musical direction)
Academy Award winner
MUSICAL/COMEDY/ROMANCE
Starring: Bing Crosby, Fred Astaire, Marjorie Reynolds, Virginia Dale, Walter Abel, Louise Beavers, Irving Bacon, Marek Windheim, James Bell, John Gallaudet, Shelby Bacon, and Joan Arnold
Holiday Inn is a 1942 musical, comedy and romance film from director Mark Sandrich. The film is based on an idea by legendary American song writer and composer, Irving Berlin, who also wrote twelve songs specifically for this film. The most famous of the film's songs is “White Christmas,” which went on to be the biggest hit record in the career of one of Holiday Inn's stars, Bing Crosby, and also the best selling record of all time. Holiday Inn is set at an inn that is open only on holidays, and the story focuses on a love triangle involving a singer, a dancer, and a beautiful up-and-coming young female performer.
Holiday Inn opens on Christmas Eve at the Midnight Club in New York City. Crooner (singer) Jim Hardy (Bing Crosby), hoofer (dancer) Ted Hanover (Fred Astaire), and signer-dancer Lila Dixon (Virginia Dale) have a popular musical act. Jim plans for tonight to be his last performance. He is retiring and moving to Midville, Connecticut where he will be a farmer. Jim wants Lila to retire with him, and she has previously accepted his marriage proposal. However, she has fallen in love with Ted and wants to continue working as his partner in a new act. Jim accepts this and bids them goodbye.
Over the next year, Jim does not have much success running a farm. So on Christmas Eve, a year after he retired, Jim is back in NYC. He tells Ted and his agent, Danny Reed (Walter Abel), that he wants to turn the farm into an entertainment venue that opens only on holidays. He has named it the “Holiday Inn.” Ted and Danny are amused at the idea, and Ted is not interested in performing there.
However, Linda Mason (Marjorie Reynolds), an aspiring young singer and dancer, does find her way to the Holiday Inn. There, she finds Jim, his African-American housekeeper, Mamie (Louise Beavers), and her two small children, son Vanderbilt (Shelby Bacon) and daughter Daphne (Joan Arnold). The homey feeling that permeates the Inn and Jim's new song, “White Christmas,” convince Linda to stay. But old rivals are conspiring to return and ruin Jim's plans again.
First, I have to be honest with you, dear readers. I never really watched very much of those Bing Crosby holiday television specials that ran decades ago and now, still occasionally pop up on vintage TV channels. I do, however, love to watch the films in which he appeared. The man dazzles me, and I just love his singing voice. He doesn't need to try hard; he seems to be amazing just naturally.
Watching Holiday Inn for the first time just recently also gave me a chance to really start to appreciate Fred Astaire. He's amazing on film, and now, I see why the late “King of Pop,” Michael Jackson, was such a fan of his. It's the same as Crosby – he doesn't even have to try hard. Astaire just seems naturally an incredible dancer and performer.
The production values on Holiday Inn are beautiful, obviously so even in black and white. In fact, Holiday Inn features some of the most beautiful and sharp black and white photography that I have ever seen in a Golden Age Hollywood film. Director Mark Sandrich, a highly respected director in his day, makes this simple story, with its nonsensical plots and narrative, seem like it is almost high art.
Crosby and Astaire's co-stars, Marjorie Reynolds (as Linda) and Virginia Dale (as Lila), are also delightful, especially Reynolds in a larger role than Dale's. Reynolds makes Linda seem like the equal, in terms of stage performance, of both Jim and Ted. They bring Irving Berlin's wonderful songs to life with the kind of professionalism and skill that makes such songs into hits or at least into memorable tunes. Besides the great “White Christmas,” there are a number of stand-out songs in this film, such as “Happy Holiday” and “Be Careful, It's My Heart.”
Like some Hollywood films from the first half of the twentieth-century, Holiday Inn has characters in “blackface,” which is when White actors blacken their face to play racist and stereotypical caricatures of Black people. In this film, it occurs during the “Lincoln's Birthday” holiday performance when Crosby's Jim and Reynold's Linda perform a song called “Abraham.” Crosby's blackface makeup is not the worst that I have seen, but Reynold's get-up, a sort of female “picaninny” with fake ponytails radiating from her head like sunbeams, is horrible. However, the song “Abraham” is weak, and the sequence in which it is performed is forgettable. Honestly, I had forgotten the song, the performance, and the blackface less than a minute after it finished.
For me, Holiday Inn is a magical Christmas movie. No, the film does not depict all 15 holidays that Jim plans to celebrate at the Holiday Inn, but the ones that really count seem to be Christmas Eve-Christmas and New Year's Eve-New Year's Day. And in these moments, the film is most lovable and at its most enchanting. Holiday Inn is not my favorite Christmas movie. That would be the Holiday Inn semi-remake, 1954's White Christmas (also starring Bing Crosby), which takes its inspiration and title from the beloved song. Still, Holiday Inn is special because it introduced the biggest Christmas song of all time, Irving Berlin's “White Christmas.” For that reason, I will always try to find my way back to Holiday Inn … especially during the Christmas season.
8 of 10
A
Saturday, December 25, 2021
1943 Academy Awards, USA: 1 win: “Best Music, Original Song” (Irving Berlin for the song “White Christmas”); 2 nominations: “Best Writing, Original Story” (Irving Berlin) and “Best Music, Scoring of a Musical Picture” (Robert Emmett Dolan)
The text is copyright © 2021 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.
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Negromancer News Bits and Bites from December 19th to 25th, 2021 - Update #13
by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"
You can support Leroy via Paypal or on Patreon:
ENTERTAINMENT AND CULTURE NEWS:
CRIME - From THR: A recent string of high-profile retail robberies and home burglaries in upscale Los Angeles neighborhoods has caused a dramatic uptick in requests from wealthy clients for the services of private security contractors.
MOVIES - From THR: A look at the premiere of "The Matrix Resurrections" on Sat., Dec. 18th in San Francisco.
OSCAR - From Deadline: Oscar "short lists" have arrived for the following 10 categories: Documentary Feature; International Film; Animated, Live Action, and Documentary Shorts; Makeup and Hairstyling; Music Score; Original Song; Sound; and Visual Effects.
SCANDAL - From THR: Actor Chris Noth has been fired from the CBS television series, "The Equalizer," following sexual assault allegations against him.
BOX OFFICE - From THR: With final numbers in, "Spider-Man: No Way Home" has a 260 million dollar opening at the domestic box (the second largest of all time) and a 600.8 million dollar global debut (the third biggest).
From BoxOfficePro: The winner of the 12/17 to 12/19/2021 weekend box office is Sony Pictures/Marvel Studios' "Spider-Man: No Way Home" with an estimated take of 253 million dollars.
From Deadline: "Spider-Man: No Way Home" could slip by "Avengers: Infinity War" (2018) to have the second highest opening weekend at the domestic box office. "Infinity War" is at 257.698 million dollars, and "No Way Home" could go as high as 260 million when final numbers are released Monday morning (Dec. 20th).
From Negromancer: My review of "Spider-Man: No Way Home."
SCANDAL - From Variety: The site offers "My Traumatizing Years with Bryan Singer," by Blake Stuerman. The article details Stuerman's troubled relationship with controversial film director, Bryan Singer ("X-Men").
MARVEL STUDIOS - From Deadline: Marvel Studios president, Kevin Feige, says that Disney and Sony are "actively beginning to develop" where Spider-Man's story goes next after the worldwide smash hit film, "Spider-Man: No Way Home."
COVID - From Variety: Brian May, the lead guitarist for the legendary rock band, "Queen," has tested positive for COVID-19.
OBITS:
From THR: American and screenwriter, Joan Didion, has died at the age of 87, Thursday, December 23, 2021. Didion won the the "National Book Award for Nonfiction" for her 2005 book, "The Year of Magical Thinking, which recounted the year after the death of her husband, John Gregory Dunne, in 2003. Didion and Dunne wrote several sceenplays, including for such films as "The Panic in Needle Park" and the 1976 version of "A Star is Born." In her essay, "Sentimental Journeys" (published in 1991 in The New York Review of Books), Didion wrote the first mainstream media article to suggest that the "Central Park Five" had been wrongfully convicted.
From Deadline: Rapper, record producer, and break dancer, Kangol Kid (born Shaun Shiller Fequiere), had died at the age of 55, Saturday, December 18, 2021, following a battle with colon cancer. Fequiere was best known for his association with the seminal 1980's hip-hop and break dance group, UTFO (Untouchable Force Organization). UTFO was best known for the 1984 song, "Roxanne, Roxanne," which was the B-side of their debut single, "Hangin' Out." Outside of UTFO, Fequiere was a songwriter and arranger for such recording acts as "Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam with Full Force," "Whistle," Kurtis Blow," and Wyclef Jean, among others.
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AWARDS:From Deadline: The Los Angeles Film Critics Association has named the Japanese film, "Drive My Car," the "Best Picture" of 2021.
From Deadline: The 2022 / 37th annual Film Independent Spirit Awards have announced their nominations. "Zola" leads with six nominations. The winners will be announced Sun., March 6, 2022.
From THR: The 2022 / 79th Golden Globes Awards nominations have been announced. "Belfast" and "The Power of the Dog" lead with seven nominations each. Winners will be announced Jan. 9th, 2022.
From GoldDerby: The 2022 Critics Choice Awards nominations have been announced. "Belfast" and "West Side Story" leads with 11 nominations each. Winners will be announced Jan. 9th, 2022.
From Deadline: The American Film Institute announced the "2021 AFI Awards" Top 10 list, and the list includes "Dune," "The Tragedy of Macbeth," and "West Side Story."
From THR: Director Aleem Khan's "After Love" tops the 2021 British Independent Film Awards, winning six awards, including "Best Film of 2021."
From Variety: The New York Film Critics Circle has named the Japanese drama, "Drive My Car," as the "Best Film of 2021."
From Deadline: The National Board of Review hands director Paul Thomas Anderson's "Licorice Pizza" it "Best Film" and "Best Director" awards. Will Smith picks up the "Best Actor" award for "King Richard."
From THR: Netflix’s "The Lost Daughter," directed by actress Maggie Gyllenhaal, dominated the 2021 Gotham Awards in New York on Monday night (Nov. 29th). The film won in four of the five categories in which it was nominated, including "Best Feature."
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"RUST" ACCIDENTAL SHOOTING DEATH: