Monday, September 30, 2019

Hellbent for Letterbox | Blazing Saddles (1974)



Pax and I are once again joined by Evan Hanson, this time to discuss Mel Brooks' Western satire starring Cleavon Little and Gene Wilder.

Friday, September 27, 2019

Fairy Tale Friday | Fables, Part 4: A Two-Part Caper



Picking up the Fairy Tale Characters in Other Genres format again, Fables #12-13 contained what it called "a two-part caper." The arc itself didn't have a name, but the individual issues were titled "A Sharp Operation" and "Dirty Business."

The plot is that a newspaper reporter has been watching the Fables community and thinks he's figured out their secret. He threatens to expose them, but when he presents his evidence to Bigby Wolf (hoping to get more details in an interview), it's clear that he's on the wrong track. He knows the community is immortal and has some kind of supernatural abilities. He assumes they're vampires.

Either way, Bigby isn't taking chances on a story getting out that will bring unwanted attention to the community. So he assembles a heist team to steal the reporter's evidence and make sure he has nothing to write about.

The team consists mostly of characters we've already met: Prince Charming, Jack, Bluebeard, Little Boy Blue, and Flycatcher (the Frog Prince). But in addition to them, Bigby adds Briar Rose, aka Sleeping Beauty, for a particular gift she possesses. I won't spoil how it goes, but it's a fun caper and raises tension by having Bluebeard strongly disagree with Bigby's methods. There's an intense confrontation; I'll just leave it at that. Repercussions are foreshadowed.

Sadly, Snow sits this one out as she's still recuperating from the events at the end of the "Animal Farm" arc.

Tuesday, September 24, 2019

Filthy Horrors | Dracularity



Darla, Jess, and I get Dracula-ed out discussing Bram Stoker's novel and the many movies, TV shows, comics, novels, and board games it's inspired.

Friday, September 20, 2019

Fairy Tale Friday | Fables, Part 3: Bag O' Bones



Fables #11 was a departure from the multi-issue story arc format as well as from the genre-hopping nature of the series. Rather than put fairy tale characters in a non-traditional genre like a murder mystery, the single-issue tale goes back in time to retell a couple of trickster stories from the Civil War. Fables has mashed them together and cast them with Jack as the "hero," but it's still straight up folklore.

Not that that's necessarily a problem. If you're familiar with these kinds of stories, Jack's 19th century adventures feel authentic if also not exactly original (because they aren't). The issue's an entertaining diversion with its personifications of the devil and death and Jack trying to outwit both, but I remember being eager to get back to present-day New York for more with Snow White, Bigby Wolf, and their neighbors.

Tuesday, September 17, 2019

Hellbent for Letterbox | A Million Ways to Die in the West (2014)



Guest Evan Hanson returns to help Pax and I survey Seth MacFarlane's Western comedy. I skipped this in the theater because it didn't look funny to me, but my more recent love for The Orville made me want to go back and give it a try.

Friday, September 13, 2019

The Fairy Tale Project | Fables, Part 2: Animal Farm



The second story in Fables takes a hard turn away from the murder mystery of the first story. Having established the human community in New York City, the series moves upstate to visit the remote farm where all the talking animals and other non-human fairy tale characters live. And since it's literally an Animal Farm, what better genre to explore than a political allegory a la George Orwell?

The story has Snow White going to check on the farm, because its human overseer hasn't reported in a while. And since the events of the previous story revealed a catastrophic rift in Snow's relationship with her sister Rose Red, Snow takes Rose along with her so that they can talk. Upon arriving at the farm though, they quickly learn that all is not well and that the farm's inhabitants are extremely dissatisfied with the human government of the fables community. Like, full-on revolution dissatisfied.

As much as I enjoy the mystery of the first story, the talking animals in this one are even more my bag. The Three Pigs, Three Bears and Goldilocks, Reynard the Fox, and the Jungle Book characters are all major players in the drama. This was the story that completely hooked me on the series back in the day.

Tuesday, September 10, 2019

Fourth Chair Army Invasion | Rambo



Talk to me, Johnny! Adam from SequelQuest and William Bruce West join me to rap about Lt. John J Rambo’s adventures in Washington, Vietnam, Afghanistan, Myanmar, and maybe even a little with the Force of Freedom. What are the high and low points of the series? Does it deserve the attention it’s received? And what expectations does it create for the upcoming Rambo: Last Blood?

Tuesday, September 03, 2019

Filthy Horrors | But You Know It's Still Grimm



Darla, Jess, and I embrace the dark side of some of our favorite fairy tales: "Sleeping Beauty," "Little Red Riding Hood," and "The White Snake." And if you're not familiar with "The White Snake," don't worry. We'll read it to you!

Also up for discussion:
Alien: Covenant (2017)
Would You Rather (2012)
Jaws (1975)
Crawl (2019)
What the Folklore podcast
Mythos podcast

And things we're looking forward to:
It Chapter Two and Ready or Not


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