Archives October 2020

My friends! We have two lessons before us to choose from today: an eye-for-an-eye, or turn-the-other-cheek! Witness our sister Kate Pryde’s dilemma in the book of Marauders, chapter 12, verses 1-32!

This is the word according to “I’d rather be writing Deadpool” Gerry Duggan!
Corroborated visually by “I also have a thing for Deadpool” Matteo Lolli!

The official plot:

“RED RECKONING! The Black King removed the Red Queen from the board…what move will the White Queen make?”

Marvel Comics

Does this solicitation feel like an afterthought to anyone else? It’s like they didn’t even try to make it sound interesting. (Full disclosure: It’s not)

My Impressions:

• Marvel/Duggan spend 10 issues building on the fact that Kate is actively rejected by Krakoa. Turns out she just needed to be rebooted.
• The whole issue is visually off-putting. I mean, it’s a party…why are some of these folks wearing their battle gear, while Kate is in a party dress?
• Crossover Dependency: You’ll need a passing understanding of the overall X-men paradigm.

Notable Appearances/Events:

• Black King (Sebastian Shaw)
• Bishop (Lucas Bishop)
• White Queen (Emma Frost)
• Nightcrawler (Kurt Wagner)
• Storm (Ororo Munroe)
• Katherine ‘Kitty’ Pryde
• Magik (Illyana Rasputin)
• Prestige (Rachael Grey)
• Wolverine (Logan/James Howlett)

Bottom Line: 2 Stars!

I want to like Marauders. It started as an interesting concept of a team to swoop up all those folks that, for whatever reason, couldn’t use Krakoan gates. Basically an X-men search and rescue! Unfortunately this title just seems to wander around doing next to nothing. I believe we’ve had something like two missions in 10 issues? Kate and her crew deserve better.

Epic Games brings us Superliminal, a first person game where you can impose your perspective on the world around you.

Have you ever woken up in a facility that is testing you physically and mentally? In Superliminal this is exactly what is happening. Unlike the real world where an item doesn’t change size only your perspective of it does, this game is about making the size of objects work for the puzzle of the room. Right off the bat the puzzle solutions are not completely apparent but with a little patience solutions become quite clear.

I have never played a game like this where by picking up an object and moving away from it you make it physically larger just by releasing it. Conceptually it’s a bit difficult to wrap your head around but after you learn the controls it is apparent how ingenious it really is. Look at the image above for example. The doorway on the right is full sized and respectively those items are huge, but they didn’t start that way. Each item was sitting on a small tray and a box and by manipulating your views of them changed their sizes.

If you are looking for a puzzle game that is not only brilliant but thought provoking as well this game is a must. Many rooms will have you scratching your head and when you finally figure them out you will be disappointed it took so long to figure out. Do you have the patience to make it to the end?

“I will execute great vengeance on them with wrathful rebukes. Then they will know that I am Mutant!” Heed the lessons from the book of New Mutants, chapter 12, verses 1-32!

This is the word according to the erratic Ed Brisson.
As envisioned by the forgettable Marco Failla.

The official plot:

“The human world never seems to tire of lashing out at Krakoa. The NEW MUTANTS have their ways of striking back.”

Marvel Comicsl

If you count a failed attempt to make people feel sad as striking back, yeah, this is the perfect description.

My Impressions:

• Doxing Bad: Sorry Marvel, you haven’t built this subject up enough in the sub-plot arena for it to carry a full issue. Ultimately that means your message is lost.
• Bad Judgement: If you’re going for an emotional issue…why would you use Glob? The guy has no face. No face means no facial expression!
• Great artwork: Not so much. I really felt that this was cartooned out. I couldn’t help but think of some comic strip dad with a pencil behind his ear.

Notable Appearances/Events:

• Anole (Victor Borkowski)
• Glob Herman (Robert Herman)
• Mirage (Danielle ‘Dani’ Moonstar)
• Magik (Illyana Rasputin)
• Trinary
• Joseph Canning

Bottom Line: 1 Star!

New Mutants has struggled to find an identity since the House of X event, flip flopping between multiple line-ups, which detracts from its potential. As the youngest team, this title should be full of drama and angst. The attempts are there with relevant subject matter. Unfortunately, Marvel just is NOT pulling it off. The sad isn’t sad, the angry isn’t angry and that means the boring IS boring.

Evil plants of all kinds will grow on many worlds! Their leaves will not wither, and if you heed not your own common sense, they will eat you! Don’t believe me…see Justice League, chapter 52, verses 1-32!

This is the word of Jeff Loveness. As envisioned by Robson Rocha. If you’re thinking “Who??” you are forgiven. I did too.

The official plot:

“For the first time, the Justice League explores the planet of the Black Mercy’s origin. One flower is enough to incapacitate even the strongest hero, but with an entire planet full of them, the Justice League must steel their minds or else succumb to the withering effects of the great tree at the core. With Batman unable to cope, can Superman, Wonder Woman, the Flash, and Green Lantern survive the horrors of their souls?”

DC Comics

They should have just called this one…”Batman’s origins redone for the 5 millionth time.” Oh, and as per the new normal, Wonder Woman saves the day.

My Impressions:

• Regime Change: Wonder Woman really appears to be taking on the “Leader” role…they should just make it official.
• Visuals: Good with an occasional touch of great.
• The real “bad”: DC is really bad at the whole “team” thing. They either try to give every member something to do, essentially under using all of them, or focus too much on just one member…like Batman in this issue. It’s seriously bad. Superman or Green Lantern could have legit burned this thing down from a mile in the air, problem solved. Instead, they have to be sidelined so Batman can have an internal struggle that he KNOWS isn’t real.

Notable Appearances/Events:

• Green Lantern (John Stewart)
• Flash (Barry Allen)
• Batman (Bruce Wayne)
• Wonder Woman (Diana)
• Superman (Kal-El / Clark Kent)

Bottom Line: 3 Stars!

Why do I stick around? I’m a fan of these guys separately…and quite honestly I’m afraid I’ll miss something cool. Also, it’s not a bad story…its just been done before. Given all that, I feel they need to fix how they handle the team soon, or I just may bail.

They who dabble in the black arts, shall surely be slain by their own creation! So sayeth the book of Inkblot, chapter 1, verses 1-52!

This is the word of…well both Emma Kubert and Rusty Gladd. As envisioned by…Emma Kubert and Rusty Gladd??? What is this the Beatles? Please pick a lane and stay in it!

The official plot:

“This new ONGOING SERIES follows a powerful sorceress attempting to correct her greatest mistake—the creation of a magical cat that can travel through time, space, and reality. The cat threatens to unravel the fabric of the universe, doesn’t care, and just won’t listen!”

Image Comics

The jury is out on the “powerful sorceress” description. I think “accidental” might be more apt. Labeling the cat as her mistake is also a bit harsh, all she was doing was taking a nap. The parts about the cat feel accurate.

My Impressions:

• Physical Fitness: This girl is running everywhere, all the time!
• Magic Fitness: Spilled ink bringing animals into existence? Seems a bit unstable to me.
• Caveat Emptor – I feel like I was duped. I thought that the cat would be a bit more purposeful about what it was doing. Like a wizard’s familiar.
• My daughter says I was not duped…she was expecting EXACTLTY this. Since I have more comics than her, we will use my opinion!

Notable Appearances/Events:

• The Seeker
• A black cat

Bottom Line: 3 Stars!

Without a doubt I came off a bit harsh about this title. Inkblot isn’t bad, it just isn’t what I expected. I get a very Songs for the Dead vibe. For the record, I’m sticking it out a bit longer. The book starts by laying the groundwork for a sprawling magical world, so the potential is really high. I can adjust to the cat not being anything special.

Warhammer 40k was the first game that brought me into tabletop gaming and still holds a high place in my heart with 9th edition.

The kind folks at Games Workshop have once again shared their games with us, this time the 9th edition of Warhammer 40k (as always this holds no sway on our opinions). Commonly referred to as just 40k or the trending hashtag of #New40k. Warhammer in all of it’s iterations will hold a place in my heart as the game that introduced me to wargaming, tabletop miniatures and painting. 

Back when we were with PopNerdTV our friends wrote a battle report as the official review for 8th Edition. We are here with the 9th edition of Warhammer 40k and are back to the traditional review format.

Without wasting much time we are just going to jump right in. As a whole I love this edition. Some of my biggest complaints came from previous editions where tanks and other warmachines couldn’t fire their weapons when opponents were in base to base contact. Thankfully they have finally rectified this clear error. The focus has deviated from being on rule sections and moved to styles of gaming- Open Play, Matched Play and (my favorite) Narrative/Crusade missions.

Now it surprised me to see this first drop relatively early into the COVID pandemic and my first impressions from the community was that it would not do as well as expected. In only a couple days the limited edition Indomitus boxset was not only sold out but Games Workshop even announced they would print however many copies were needed to allow anyone who wanted the coveted set to purchase their own copy. This did two things and both were brilliant. The first being that any customer could get this box that was originally going to be a limited release. Lastly the scalpers who were responsible with the purchases being sold out would not be able to sell them and price gouge the fans who actually wanted to play the game. Any company willing to raise their middle finger to scalpers deserves my patronage for certain.

Let’s talk about the models. Every model in the Indomitus release is a new sculpt with some truly badass poses. I always disliked loyal Space Marines but these models look awesome enough that I want to either field them or convert them for my own chaos armies. The new Necrons are not to be ignored either. The Skorpekh Lord and Destroyers are by far some of the best Necron sculpts ever produced.

Here is our live unboxing video:

Look below for some truly badass Necron paint schemes from our friend John Ashton (shared with permission):

NBA FINALS STARTING… WHY THE NFL NEEDS ADAM SILVER AND RECORDS BROKE DURING THE BUBBLE.

Hello Jacksters! One thing that ole’ Jack does is stay in his lane. For better or worse it has been something that I think more people should do. There are a lot of things to talk about on Wednesday morning including and not excluded to a presidential debate and the now updated NFL announcement to move the Steelers vs Titans game to Monday or Tuesday due to a Covid outbreak so we will be focusing on the NBA this week.

Here is my lane… With the covid-19 pandemic still in full force, it is foolish to speculate on NFL league protocols that may or may not be held up due to the unknown spread of the disease in the Titans player and personal and their potential reach of spreading infection.
When it comes to the debate, the most fun I had was to do the draft kings debate prop bets. 7/10, not bad. Jack’s takeaway… we are in for a “fun” next 4 years either way the country votes. Miss myself some BO, just miss the smoothness!

So again with the aforementioned statement… Lets talk NBA BABE!

If you followed my Darkhorse and the old GOAT post… this was predicted. But, again the credit goes to the DH. So this is the Black Mamba, Covid, Bubble 2020 NBA Championship. I will say this, kudos to you Mr Adam Silver and your NBA staff top to bottom who executed an amazing and safe way for these humans to play a sport to make us forget how much of a volatile and potentially dangerous time we are all living in. A Plan was in place to coordinate all these NBA Players, Production Teams, staff, families to protect but provide an overall fantastic viewing experience… considering the circumstances.

If you have followed sport card collecting during the time of Covid, you have seen a crazy explosion of the hobby and no more explosive then basketball cards. This is the official generational shift that all leagues experience. These players are the reason…

Luka Doncic 18-19 – This Dallas Mavericks ALL-NBA SUPERSTAR has been compared to Larry Bird… his RC’s(rookie cards) are so hot and trying to find a “decent” card that is for Under $100 is hard to come by.
Jack’s Advice- Sit on em as long as you can. If he plays like he has been, they will only go higher! He did not make it past the first round this year. Imagine the craze that will be seen if he makes the Western Conf Championship game.

Zion Williamson 19-20 – First Pick of the New Orleans Pelicans! Basically NO let All NBA Power Forward Anthony Davis go to the Lakers. I saw him in the bubble with not seeing much of the regular season(Pre-Covid), but I couldn’t believe how easily he drove the lane with this one step-left handed drive that he does. So strong, jumps out of the arena, can shoot pretty good. Breaks Sneakers with literally his down force and ability to stop and pop. Invest in any that you can get your hands on. Chronicles would be a cheap buy for $40 to potentially get 2-6 per box. Nobody complains about their low end Lebron RC’s. Just wish it was better.
Jacks Advice- It’s about entry level bulk buying IMO. You cant go wrong with selling or sitting. Love collecting players like this. My warning. I would wait until next season if you are selling your pc of Zion. We are past top $ return for base low tier RC’s. The rare ones will always have a ridiculous market. Just COMP it friends!

Ja Morant 19-20 – ROY! Memphis Grizzlies G, Ja has given us hope that guard play will continue to be dominant in the Western Conference for a long time to come. When you have a generational talent like Zion Williamson and you can make a legitimate argument to draft Ja 1st overall, confirmed by his Rookie of the Year Award his overall bad-assness.
Jacks advice- There can be two! IE 2003 NBA Draft James/Wade/Melo/Bosh. Anyone saying this guy is not going to ball or won’t hold a high level return on his cards is trying to get you to sell yours and increase his PC for cheap.

Which brings me to a overall point of this 19-20 Draft

There is an emerging star in Tyler Herro, not to mention Nunn who is on the bench and started as a rookie all year until the bubble games and that’s just Miami. So I would sit on all of these 2019-2020 rookies and see what happens when they come into year 2 with hopefully a full regular season. Draft predictions for next year are not looking strong as far as talent, so don’t hold back now. BBall collecting has been completely on its head this whole summer. I predict a sub rookie explosion on most of the non mentioned rookies.
I will leave you with this thought…

The single modern card record was broken by a Greek Freak. In advance of his playoff meltdown and subsequent questions regarding the Bucks and their plans moving forward. Breaking Brons previous record which was in tact for only 6 weeks prior to the Giannis sell. $1.812 Million was the final price. Bron’s previous record was $1.8 Mil. So basically Lebron now fully hates Giannis! But not as much as this guy hates himself. This collector back in 2014 had this card in his hand and gave it up!! (See Pic)

Every collector has their “I shouldn’t have…” story. This jerk off wins! See the bottom comment… bahahaha Tristan20 this one’s for you!
Thanks for checking out my post! Take care of yourself and others!

It has been said that the devil prowls around, seeking someone to devour. Hear the story of that meal, our hero John Constantine, from his book of Hellblazer: Rise and Fall, chapter 1, verses 1-52!

This is the scripture according to Tom Taylor.
As envisioned by Darick Robertson.

The official plot:

“A billionaire falls out of the sky and is gruesomely skewered on a church spire. Bizarrely, Angel Wings are attached to his back. More follow until, hallelujah, it’s raining businessmen. Detective Aisha Bukhari is stumped by this, until she’s visited by her childhood friend, occult investigator John Constantine. DC’s Hellblazer discovers a link between the falling elite and a shocking moment in his and Aisha’s misspent youth. How do these killings tie to the first death on John’s hands? How does this involve heaven and hell? Even if this is kind of John’s fault, will Constantine be happy to let a few more rich bastards fall from the sky, like a vindictive Robin Hood?”

DC Black Label

Wow…what a sell job! Raining businessmen? If three constitutes rain, sure…it’s raining. I supposed dabbling in black magic does qualify as a misspent youth. Queue the flashbacks!

My Impressions:

• Is it a good story? I feel like it’s been done, but there are two more issues to go. Like I said with the last Hellblazer, I’ve got the first issue so as collector, I’m committed.
• Is it worthy of the magazine format? Not yet, but it feels like there may be potential…
• How does it look? Could be better. I’d rather Lucifer look like his normal Vertigo/Black Label self.

Notable Appearances/Events:

• John Constantine
• Detective Aisha Bukhari
• Billy Henderson
• Lucifer

Bottom Line: 3 Stars!

Unless you’re a huge John Constantine fan, you can skip this one. Hellblazer aficionados may want this since it has some glimpses into John’s youth. I bought this because I wanted to see Lucifer…too bad they didn’t stick with his cannon appearance. Good thing I’m a forgiving soul.