Final Comics Haul of 2019

After a month or two, I ended my New Comics Wednesday drought I purchased my weekly comics haul at my favorite local comics shop. When I left, I was struck by the realization I would not set foot in there again until the New Year. Short of any orders arriving from prior online purchases, I won't be buying anymore physical comic books or trades until the New Year. These are my final purchases and Comics Haul of 2019.

Rather sublime in a way...

Here they are:

Conan Serpent War #2 (Robert E Howard characters team up with Moon Knight!), Doctor Who 13th Doctor Holiday Special #2 (I had given up on Doctor Who comics and trades for the most part but am making an exception for this two-part Holiday Special. Closest I will get to a Doctor Who Christmas Special I will get this year, I suppose), Watchmen Companion HC (Normally, I would pass on this book; but it collects the Watchmen material for the old Mayfair DC Heroes RPG! If only DC Heroes or Blood of Heroes were easily acquired. Perhaps DC should release more of the RPG material sitting stagnant in a vault somewhere?)

Guardians of the Galaxy #12 (The final issue of Donny Cates run on GotG and my final GotG issue for awhile. I will NOT be collecting the next volume.), Shazam! #9 (Out finally!), New Mutants #4 (Only two more issues left on my pull. Dropping with issue #7.)

John Constantine Hellblazer #2 (Ultimately, I decided to keep collecting Sandman Universe titles because of Constantine's return to the imprint/universe.), Doomsday Clock #12 (The End has arrived! In hindsight, I should have waited for the super duper trade.), Excalibur #4 (Same situation as with New Mutants.)

He-Man and the Masters of the Multiverse #2, Invaders #12 (Final Issue), Marauders #4 (Only collecting two more.)

Aquaman #55, Lucifer #15 (Still collecting for the time being. Constantine's guest appearance helped the title's cause.), Wonder Woman Giant vol 2 #2 (I collect the Giant 100 pagers from my FLCS and not at Wal-Mart now. Thus, reducing the chances of my purchasing any more comics and trades during the remainder of 2019 substantially.)

X-Force #4 (Only two more to go., The Last God #3, Justice League #38 (I decided I would buy until the conclusion of Snyder's run. It's also a twice-a-month title, which as I stated during my first December 2019 blog entry I was abstaining from.)

My final Comics Haul of 2019./

Three blog posts during December done. Will see how close to twelve total (as in the Twelve Days of Christmas) I get this month.

Next time.

Comics Haul for July 3rd, 2019

Often I won't buy comics until the Tuesday Game Night (Adventurers League or Shadowrun Missions). As such, my Comics Haul will be posted at the last possible second. While I bought comics last Tuesday, the entry wouldn't have posted until Wednesday. Granted, I am not technically violating my no combining rules I felt posting it on the day of release violated the spirit of the rule. Ergo, I skipped last week.

Since I did purchase comics today, here's my Comics Haul from those comics released on July 3rd 2019:

Doom Patrol Weight of the Worlds #1 (loved  show on DC Universe!), The Green Lantern #9, Savage Avengers #3 ( I had been buying the Deodato variants. However, none were offered. Conan with a symbiote sword? Cool!)

Dreaming #11, Uncanny X-Men #21, Talk Bernie to Me! One - shot (Please no political rants...)

Captain America & The Invaders: Bahamas Triangle One-Shot Ron Lim variant (Grew up on Lim art. Plus, how can you beat WW2 super-hero teams?), Savage Sword of Conan #6, Justice League #27

Steve Gerber Conversations  (One of my favorite comic writers. Had to acquire a compilation of interviews and statements on the internet.) Doctor Who Gallifrey Time War Volume Two Audio Drama CD. (Cause Time War and some old time radio narration.)

A decent sized haul.

Next time.

Discussion Question Answers: Torchwood - Ghost Mission Audio Drama

There's a story behind why I am holding a photo of a shrink-wrapped copy of the Torchwood: Ghost Mission Audio Drama CD. Will get to that in a moment...

Over on a social media platform, which as part of a lark I'll refer to as the Book of Face, Big Finish the UK producer of audio dramas started a discussion group for a select audio drama. Toward the end of the month Big Finish releases a list of discussion questions. February's selection was the aforementioned drama. I actually listened to Ghost Mission last month; but I have waited until the questions for this month's selection to be released. Funny word 'wait'...

You see living across the pond acquiring Big Finish audios can be... difficult. So I order them from FLCGS. Namely select Doctor Who audios; but when they debuted I bought the Torchwood solos as well. Then, I realized I really wasn't interested in every Torchwood solo so I stopped buying them. Eventually, I cut back on purchasing Big Finish audios all together. I just wasn't listening to them. They're really too pricey not to listen. Besides, I started to purchase digital copies of the audios whenever they're on special. Ergo, no sense in buying the CDs...

Anyway... I discover the Big Finish discussion group on the Book of Face. Why not start with February selection, Ghost Mission? As the audio selection, the digital was on sale. Why not purchase it? After all, I did STOP BUYING the solo Torchwoods...

I'm sure you get where this is headed...

Once I finished downloading my digitial copy of Torchwood: Ghost Mission, I begin listening to it when I scan my collection of Big Finish audios. There, still enshrined within the shrink-wrap it arrived across the pond, is my physical copy. On the bright side, I listed to both copies. I really can't listen to audio once and get everything on the first go.

Honestly, I could probably listen to Ghost Mission a third time and then I would understand how Sergeant Andy Davidson (the main - or is it sole? - protagonist) solves the problem at the end. Fortunately, such understanding is unnecessary to answer the questions.

Overall, I felt Torchwood: Ghost Mission was a solid romp featuring a character who doesn't often embark on such adventures. Heck, this is pretty much Sgt. Andy Davidson's first romp. I'd say his lack of experience is as much a part of the story as his his overcoming it is. His chemistry with his... evaluator... is top-notch. 

I did dislike a couple things. One, the audio is best enjoyed by those who have followed not only much of the Torchwood range but much of Big Finish's output as well. Dusclaimer: I didn't realize what I missing ubtil I read the discussion questions. My second issue was the prevalence of the word 'stalk-y'. While hilarious back when this audio was released several years ago, it comes across as dated in the wake of recent social developments.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Now the discussion questions...

Norton Folgate is a Big Finish created character. Do you want like him? How well do you think he fits the Torchwood universe compared to other Big Finish characters?

I rather liked the smarmy, dapper Norton Filgate. While I can't comment too much on comparisons with other Big Finish characters, Norton Folgate is a perfect example of the morally grey, complex characters that dot the world of Torchwood.

Do you think there's a place for Andy full time in Torchwood?

Heck yeah! I bought Ghost Mission precisely because I am a fan of the character. There's always room for a cgaracter full of naievity and levity whose just beginning to dip their toe.  Besides, Torchwood is quite hazardous so there's always room for someone new...

Does comedy have a place in a Torchwood range?

Yes, especially when characters like Andy are the focus. Not every mission Torchwood needs be grim. 

Do you think the Bad Penny is the same as the Bad Penny from the fourth doctor story or the Torchwood story? Does it add to mythos? What Torchwood elements should return?

I, er, haven't listened to either the Tom Baker or Torchwood Bad Penny stories. Maybe? Guess, it would be cool if it did. I always did love when elements would reoccur. As for which Torchwood elements should return, I haven't the foggiest.

Would you like to see future Norton and Andy adventures? What other situations would you like to see them in?

Future Norton and Andy adventures would be fantastic as they suit each other like a glove. Honestly, I like to see Andy interact with Norton in Norton's time. Although that could be the Doctor Who fan in me thinking. Perhaps a situation stemming from the outcome of the Bad Penny's appearance in Ghost Mission?

Who do you think sent Andy the egg plant emoji?

Uh, really, that's a question??? One of his co-workers whom goes on pub crawls with...

Mayhap, I will provide a review/discussion question answers for the March Big Finish audio selection. I KNOW I don't own a physical copy of that story.

Next time.



12ish Days of Blogging: Some Yuletide Links I Found of Interest

Since today marks day one of the traditional Twelve Days of Christmas and the march toward year's end, I've decided to do a series of twelve-ish blog posts. Alright, I mean blog twelve days in a row but give or take a couple days. Originally, I planned on Christmas/Holiday content appearing before and including on Christmas itself but the holiday happened. So expect plenty of Christmas-oriented stuff during twelve days of blogging. On the other hand, there may be several entries that aren't Christmas-oriented at all. My review of the Halloween Disney comic and commentary on New Year's Resolutions are among what I want to squeeze in before we're well into 2017.


So to start the 12ish Days of Blogging, I begin light by sharing several seasonal links that I found of interest. Some additional Christmas/Holiday/Yule like content that you may find of interest.


Ostrander on the Doctor Who Christmas Specials - Comics writer John Ostrander, Suicide Squad creator, provides a pretty nice overview of the Doctor Who Christmas Specials on ComicMix. My mileage on his opinions on each of the specials varies although there's some I haven't seen. Didn't realize until Ostrander pointed it out but, yeah, the Tenth Doctor, David Tennant, began and ended his time as the Doctor on Christmas. Rather neat coincidence.


CBR Superman Advent Calender - Leading up to Christmas, as part of Advent, Comic Book Resources had a daily countdown of Superman Christmas Stories and stories that contained elements no matter how minor of Christmas-theme. The screenshots are quite readable so much of each individual story can be read. Well, the nuts and bolts anyway. Some excellent Superman Christmas material here. Heck, I'm only two-thirds through!


Six Christmas Graphic Novels - Want to read some Christmas graphic novels that you can be certain you order from your local comics shop? Well, Diamond Comics Distributors have you covered with this list of six. I'm pretty confident if Diamond is listing these titles they have them in their warehouse. One of the six, Klaus, I hope to include during my 12ish Days of Blogging.


A History of Jingle Bells, Batman Smells - Here's an excellent essay on the origins and evolution of classic children's folksong Jingle Bells, Batman Smells. Seems to date back to the classic Adam West Batman sixties television show. Did you know there once was a line referencing Commissioner Gordon? I certainly wasn't aware of just how many variants there were of the classic children's folksong. Very interesting read.


Till Next Time!

Cthulhu Mythos and Doctor Who Share a Birthday! (Sort of)

August 20th serves an important distinction for the Cthulhu Mythos and Doctor Who. Sure, neither debuted on this day (well as far as I am aware anyway) but both share a birthday in common.


Thanks to the internet and global capitalism I discovered that both H.P. Lovecraft, the creator of the Cthulhu Mythos, and Slyvestor McCoy (the 7th Doctor) were born on August 20th, give or take several decades. A coincidence that's simply geektastic! As an aside, I found out about Sylvestor McCoy's birthday courtesy of Big Finish, the creator of Doctor Who audios. They are having a sale on ten 7th Doctor audios. Meanwhile, One Book Shelf is having a Cthulhu Mythos sale (20% off) on its Drive Thru Fiction, RPG, and Comics sites. Since I didn't feel like linking the OBS sale (last 12 days), out of fairness (and may not participate in) I won't link to the Big Finish sale (lasts until Monday morning London time - I may participate in this one).


The works of HP Lovecraft have been a part of my life for twenty years. In fact, my next D&D character for Adventurer's League may very well be a Warlock who serves Cthulhu (albeit played more for humor than straight). Meanwhile, I remember as a little kid watching Sylvestor McCoy's regeneration story on PBS and eagerly trying to watch each new 7th Doctor Who story to varying degrees of success as the airing of episodes had become erratic. Don't think I've watched every story from McCoy's time on the show, certainly haven't listened to every audio nor read every book. To be fair, I haven't read every Lovecraft story yet either - although I do own a copy of his complete fiction and an annotated edition of several of his works.


In any case, I had to shine a spotlight on two creative people's birthdays, HP Lovecraft and Sylvestor McCoy, whose body of work has thrilled me.

A Decade of the Voice of the Daleks Influencing the Doctor

Another historic milestone has been reached in the world of Doctor Who. As I would like to say, the voice of the daleks has been influencing the adventures of the Doctor for a decade... Okay, I know what you're thinking. That this is a new Moffat revelation. I'm not referring to a new Doctor Who plotline. The influence affects older Doctors. Sigh... not more Moffat revisionism. No, I am talking Nicholas Briggs. For those whom may not follow the nuts & bolts of Doctor Who production, Nicholas Briggs provides the voice for the daleks. So every time a dalek proclaims that they are the superior beings, you are hearing Nicholas Briggs.


So how has Nicholas Briggs been influencing the adventures of older doctors? Why, he's been an Executive Producer over at Big Finish for a decade. He's contributed to further adventures of the 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th Doctors. He's played a big part with Dalek Empire (which includes David Tennant's (10th Doc) first Doctor Who acting credit). Okay, this link HERE does a far better job explaining his contributions over Big Finish than I ever could.


There's also an anniversary special that offers discounts on some his work. May pick up one or two his Doctor Who audios myself. Provided I remember my password and time zones don't confuse me...

Big Finish's Colin Baker Birthday Special

Recently learned, courtesy of the purveyor of Doctor Who Audio Plays Big Finish, that next week marks Colin Baker's Birthday. For those who are new to Doctor Who, Colin Baker portrayed the sixth Doctor. While his run was comparably short compared to the likes of Tom Baker, David Tennant, Matt Smith and the like, Colin Baker reprised the role for Big Finish Audio Plays. Produced quite the number too! So to mark the occasion, Big Finish is offering a sale, either CD or DVD, this weekend on a select eleven audio plays. You can read the deal HERE.


Next to the third and fourth Doctors, the sixth Doctor holds a special place for me. Until I watched the 6th Doctors adventures, my Doctor Who viewing was scattershot at best. Would see an episode/story one day, then another a week later - maybe. More like month. Chronologically viewing the episodes? Forget about it. However, that would change with Colin Baker's first story. Not only would I watch Doctor Who regularly but I would proceed to watch them in order. In fact, I've seen almost every Sixth Doctor story. Some stories were only seen in parts. Can't make that claim with any of the other Doctors from the Classic era. Learned about the Time Lords. Finally understood regeneration. Was exposed to the Second Doctor via a Sixth Doctor story. In many ways, much of how I perceive the Doctor Who mythos was forged by this era. Needless to say, the Sixth Doctor, Colin's, is a very important incarnation of the Doctor to me. Always felt there should have been more Colin Baker - 6th Doctor stories.


Several years ago, I learned about Big Finish and their Doctor Who audio plays. Living across the pond, access is not easy. When I learned I could order the CD's, the price point made me hesitant at first. My very first audio CD was an insert in Doctor Who Magazine. For years, that was how I collect them. Then finally I took the plunge and purchased the audio CDs. The Doctor Who Audio CDs are part of my monthly comics order. However, I only started with Tom Baker's, 4th Doctor, second range. Barely purchased any of the main range, which includes Colin. Ergo, my main range collection is lacking. As for downloading, I hadn't yet truly taken the plunge. Big Finish offered some free audios as part of the 50th anniversary celebration. Downloaded those but that was it.


So in celebration of Colin Baker's Birthday, I purchased all eleven audios that comprise the special. Significant because not only have I expanded my 6th Doctor audio collection substantially but I purchased my first Big Finish audio download! A first step in a larger world. In addition to purchasing the latest CDs from my local comics shop, the entire backlist of audios are available to me with a but a click.

Got my copy of the Doctor Who RPG

Recently, my copy of the latest Doctor Who RPG arrived at my LCGS. As both a gamer and Doctor Who fan, I perk up at the mention of either an adaptation or RPG dealing with our favorite time lord. Way back, I picked Time Lord. Overall, I thought Time Lord wasn't a bad game. What saddened me was a lack of character creation rules. So I never played or ran it. It also didn't help most of my friends at the time had no experience with Doctor Who.

The current batch of folks I game with are familiar with the good Doctor. So when Cubicle 7 announced that they had the Doctor Who license, I was excited to order a copy. Now, I didn't expect to play or run it. I just wanted to have a copy and show to those who were at least familiar with the property. With that said, I was delighted when my copy of the boxed set arrived. At some point in time, I'll probably provide a review of some sort although I don't know if it'll have play experience included. That's really up to my gaming group.

Doctor Who on Youtube - the link

Awhile ago, I mentioned that some classic Doctor Who stories are available on YouTube. At the time, I didn't provide the link. Since that time, and courtesy of the blog HeroPress, I now present said link. Here it is.

Added a new blog to my blog roll

By now, it should be well known that I am a huge fan of Doctor Who. With that said, I have added the blog, Doctor Who News Page to my blog roll. As the name implies it has Doctor Who news.

Honestly, I check out the blogs I have on my blog roll more often than those that I am a follower of. With that said I'll probably be adding more blogs to the blog roll in the near future.

4 Classic Doctor Who stories for free on YouTube

Over at ComicMix, it has been reported that BBC has released four stories from the classic Doctor Who run for free on YouTube. Here's the link to the original story.

The stories in question are: Edge of Destruction (Hartnell), Krotons (Troughton), Carnival of Monsters (Pertwee), and Caves of Androzani (Davison).

I am curious how long they will be available as well as whether or not more stories will become available later on. Honestly, its a nice a change of pace from the high price DVDs. Granted those DVD's have some nice extras they are about as expensive, maybe more so, than blue-rays. Perhaps the BBC feels it has reaped enough of profit on the DVDs to justify making these four stories available for free consumption?

Another Round of Links

Since its Monday, I figured I provide another round to various interesting things on web. Hopefully, later today I'll get around to posting a session overview of my first Serenity session.

10 under-rated Classic Who Stories - what the title says. A neat read.

Doctor Who Series 5 Spoiler - links to a bunch of photo stills although this page does provide the major spoiler. If true, Series 5 will have a much different tone than I thought. Hint: the initials R.S.

Matt Smith in Doctor Who Costume - definately not the goth look I thought it was going to be. Like the nice old/young man contrast.

The Comic Book Database - describes itself.

The last three posts of RPGBlog II's Palladium Week Coverage:
Robotech - as mentioned by Jason Marker whose contributing to practically the entire line.
Bill Coffin: Palladium Alumnus
A Look Back

Doctor Who: David Tennant interview

Yep, another Doctor Who-related post. This particular post links to an interview. What makes this one noteworthy is that its an interview of David Tennant conducted by the Chicago Tribune. Normally, I don't encounter mainstream news articles, albeit online, about Doctor Who originating from the United States. So here's the link for the curious.

Doctor Who RPG - I want it!

Here's another Doctor Who post, except this one is gaming related. Cubicle 7 is releasing a Doctor Who RPG in October. Once again, I got the news from the Tardis. Here's a link for the curious.

As I said in the title, I definately want a copy. Admittedly, the price is a bit steep. However, its a boxed set of Doctor Who game so...

If, and probably will budget permitting, I pick this up, my expectations are this is another game that I bought to own and read. Like many RPGs I own, I don't think I'll actually play or run it. Could be wrong though...

Possible Doctor Who movie starring Tennant

Over at the Tardis, there is a rumor that David Tennant, the 10th Doctor, may star in a possible Doctor Who movie. Since movies aren't as demanding as the television show is, its possible that the 10th doctor could appear in films. Kind of like the original crew appearing in film while Next Generation was on-air. I know I wouldn't mind more appearances by the 10th doctor in a visual medium.

If not, there's always the possibility of audio stories in the vein of Doctors 5 through 8. That won't be any time soon though.

Doctor Who: They're Back...

Hey folks, another Doctor Who-related post.

The Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith, starts his tenure with a bang. Just like Patrick Troughton, Doctor #11's first antagonist is the one - the only- the Daleks. One can read read a news report on it over HERE.

Honestly, I am disappointed by this news. At one time I was huge fan of the Daleks. Unfortunately, the new era of Who keeps insisting on using them to the point of overuse.

I was looking forward to newer, or less used, threats. Sigh.

A Torchwood related link or should I say - blog

I am a big fan of Torchwood. So one blog I have been meaning to visit is Torchwood.tv. Not only does it contain info on Torchwood it also includes some neat links.

While I don't know whether or not I'll add it to my blog roll, I figured I'd provide a link for the curious.

Here it is: the link

BBC has unveiled the Doctor's next companion

Over at the Guardian, the BBC has revealed whom will be playing the next Doctor's, Matt Smith, companion. Her name is Karen Gillan. There's the brief promotional piece.

I find it amusing that not only is the Doctor younger, as Matt Smith is around 26, but his next companion is in her twenties, 21, as well. Makes me wonder what type of stories Moffat will be telling.

As an aside, another red-headed companion?