Peaceable Kingdom written by Jack Ketchum

Peaceable Kingdom is a collection of short stories and novellas written by Jack Ketchum and published by Leisure books in 2003. It contains 3 stories that won Jack Ketchum the Bram Stoker award for best short stories. I am pretty sure this book is now out of print,but shouldn't be too hard to find.

I became a fan of Jack Ketchum back in 2008,and after reading a few of his novels I wanted to try out some of his short stories. I got lucky and found this book at the nearest bookstore. This book has 32 stories in it. The Box was nominated and won Jack his first Bram Stoker award. It is a short tale of a young boy who wants to know what is in the box a strange on the bus is holding and the effects this knowledge has on the boy and his entire family. The Rifle is a story about a mother that find out her son has a gruesome hobby and decides to punish him for it. Gone is the second story that won Ketchum a Bram Stoker award. It is a tale of a mother who child has disappear a few years before the story starts and the pain she suffers when on Halloween night she gets a small clue as to what happened to her daughter. Closing time won Jack his third Bram Stoker award. It is a story that Jack wrote to help him deal with his feelings after the 9/11 attacks. The rest of the stories in this collection range from brilliant to so so. But it is worth picking up if you are a fan of Jack Ketchum. Peaceable Kingdom gets a solid B+.

Career Opportunities

Career Opportunities is a 1991 film directed by John Hughes and starring Frank Whaley and beautiful and talented Jennifer Connelly. I first saw this years ago on Showtime,and it seemed like it played all the time on cable for years. But I never really hear anyone ever talking about it. So when I found the DVD at Biglots for 3 bucks I had to pick it up.

Frank plays Jim Dodge who is the town loser. His dad tells him he has to get a job or he will be kicked out. So Jim gets a job doing after hours cleaning at the local Target. It is his first night and he is having fun being all alone in the huge store. But it turns out that Jennifer Connelly,who plays Josie, has also been locked up in the store. Frank has had a major crush on Josie for years, and really what straight male hasn't had a crush on Ms Connelly at one time. It seems she is tired of her father and was gonna try to get caught shoplifting so her father would finally pay some attention to her. Well she ended up falling asleep in the changing room. They have some fun ,but then two stupid crooks break into the store and hold the two young adults hostage.

This seems to be one of the few John Hughes films that has no following and is kinda forgotten about now. But it is one of my favorites from Mr Hughes. It is a very funny film and who hasn't thought about how much fun it would be to be locked in a store all night. It seems that most guys I talk to that even remember this film only really remember one scene where Josie is riding one of the kids rides that is a horse the bucks back and forth. She is riding this while wearing a tight fitted tank top,and I can see why this scene is burned into the memory banks of most male viewers. Career Opportunities is a fun film and gets a B+

Silver Age Classics Sugar and Spike #99

Sugar and Spike was a comic published by DC comics. Created written and drawn by Sheldon Mayer. This series started in 1956. And ran for 98 issues. Then in 1992 DC comics started a series of reprints of various key Silver Age comics. Well it turns out there was a 99th issue of Sugar and Spike that had never been published. So they finally published it 21 years after the series had ended.

Sugar and Spike are two toddlers who have many many zany adventures. They are able to talk to each other,but no adult can understand what they are saying. They both possess vast imaginations,and this is what usually starts their adventures. In some ways they can be seen as prototypes for the popular Nick toon Rugrats. This issue has 2 stories. In the first Sugar teaches Spike how to handle a bully. The second story is an adventure that teams Sugar and Spike up with baby genius Bernie. Bernie is the same age as Sugar and Spike but is so smart he can speak normal English along with the baby talk that S and S speak. Both of these stories have artwork that at first glance seems to be very simple. But once you give it a second look you can see the energy and thought that went into it. Ever since I read this book back in 1992 I have wanted to read more of these two babies adventures. And DC comics has said that come October 11th 2011 they are releasing the first volume of a hardcover collection of all the Sugar and Spike comics. If you like stuff like the Muppet Babies this is a book you might want to check out. Silver Age Classics Sugar and Spike #99 gets a B-.

Elite Squad

Elite Squad is a 2007 Brazilian film directed by José Padilha. I first heard about this film when the podcast Mondo Movie reviewed it. And the review got me interested enough that when I saw the DVD for sale at a store in town I picked it up.

Set in 1997 in Rio de Janerio Brazil,this is the story of the BOPE. Which is a special unit of the Brazilian police force. Similar to USA vice squads. The BOPE is set up to deal with all the gang and drug related violence. The main plot is about an upcoming visit from Pope John Paul II. We follow 3 members of the BOPE. The captain ,who is almost ready to retire. And two newcomers to the squad. At times this film reminds me of the TV show The Shield. In that we are following law enforcement officers that are corrupt and almost as bad as the criminals they are trying to catch. A few warnings if you are gonna watch this film. First off it is subtitled. Now I don't mind subtitles ,but I know some people do. And secondly there is a interrogation scene near the end of the film that is very graphic and managed to even shock me. I have heard that sequel to Elite Squad has been released but I don't know if it is out on region 1 DVD yet. Elite Squad is a good film that gets a B.

Tarnsman of Gor by John Norman

Tarnsman of Gor is the first of a long running series of novels by John Norman. Referred to as either the Gor books or Chronicles of Counter Earth, I had never heard of this series till Robin Bougie of Cinema Sewer fame mentioned them on a message board I post at. So when I was at Coast Con this year I saw a dealer that had a huge stack of the Gor novels. Well I wasn't willing to pay 2 bucks for a book I hadn't read. But during the last hour of the con all the books were dropped to 10 cents each. So I picked up the first 7 books of the series.

Tarnsman of Gor is the story of Tarl Cabot. Who is a college professor. While out on a hike he learns that his father is from another planet that is on the opposite side of the sun from Earth. He is transported to Gor and starts to learn about this strange alien culture. He becomes part of the military of one of the major cities on Gor. And becomes a tarnsman. The tarns are flying creatures that the military of Gor use as transportation and for air attacks. After a few adventures Tarl is transported back to Earth and the novel ends.

This novel while kinda short,218 pages in the paperback edition,is still entertaining in the way that the old pulps use to be. Now I have heard that the later novels have a strong BDSM theme,but this first novel is more of a combo of Conan the Barbarian and John Carter of Mars. So if you are a fan of either series of stories this is worth picking up. Tarnsman of Gor gets a B+

Monster Menace 1-4

Monster Menace 1-4

This was a kinda companion piece to Marvel's "Curse of the Weird" 4 issue mini. This series focused on the various Marvel pre-Silver age giant monster stories. This is the place were Fin Fang Foom and Groot showed up for the first time. So highlights from the 4 issues are. "I spent Midnight with the Monster on Bald Mountain" written by Stan Lee and art by Steve Ditko is a great moody story that shows both men at their artistic peaks. "The Terror of Tim Boo Ba" again by Lee and Ditko not only has a monster with a great name,but a fun twist ending that had to be mind blowing to the kids that read these stories many years ago. "When the Totem Walks" starts off the second issue with another blast of pure fun from Stan Lee and Steve Ditko. They take the stupid idea of a killer monster Totem Pole and make it into something believe able for a comic book. "Save me from the Weed" besides the laughable title,is a fun science fictionish story from Stan Lee with Jack Kirby doing the pencils and Dick Ayers on inks.This is one of the many radiation gone wrong stories that were all through out pop culture during this era. "I can't escape from the Creeping Things" is another mortality tale from Lee and Ditko that has a very early ecological slant to the story.Then wrapping up issue 2 is the highlight of the issue. "I fought Colossus" written by Stan Lee pencils by Jack Kirby and inks by Steve Ditko. Another of this era's "The machines are gonna take over " scare tales."I Live again" is the sequel to "The thing from Bald mountain" comic. It has the team of Lee and Ditko again and their talent shines through.Issue 4 starts off with a fun cover by Floyd Hughs. We start off with a sequel to the walking Totem story from a few issues back. "Orrgo the unconquerable" is a amazingly fun tale by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. Then we get what I consider the highlight from the entire 4 issue series "Rorgg,King of the Spider Men!!". Written I am pretty sure by Stan Lee this has pencils from Jack Kirby and I think Dick Ayers did the inks. Small town gets invaded by a group of aliens that have 6 arms and look kinda like Spiderman when he grew the extra arms. This story was the best way to end what was a decent mini series. I enjoyed "Curse of the Weird" more,mostly cause the Marvel giant monster comics are not some of my favorite stuff. But judging this on all 4 issues "Monster Menace" gets a B.

Deathmate Red

Deathmate Red

Considered to be the worst part of the worst big event crossover of the 90s. This came out like 3 months after it was suppose to. And by the time it did ship most people had given up on Deathmate. So this one has the lowest print run of any of the issues. This was the issue that was handled by Rob Liefeld and his crew of talent from Extreme studios. This is mainly various Extreme Studio heroes,IE Youngblood,Brigade,Bloodstrike and Prophet with Bloodshot from Valiant thrown in. Now I am a fan of Bloodshot and looking back the Extreme Studio stuff wasn't as bad as people make it out to be.Sure most of it was generic superhero stuff with not so good art. The storyline in this comic makes no sense and really is barely even connected to the overall Deathmate storyline. Now Rob Liefeld draws a great Bloodshot. And some of the art in this issue would have made great posters,but as a actual comic it fails on so many levels. Deathmate Red gets a F+.

Good finds in teh cheap bins-5 random issues of Groo the Wanderer

Groo is a comic book series that at last count has been published by 6 different companies. Written by Mark Evanier and Sergio Aragoines and with Sergio doing the artwork this is a simple tale of a brainless barbarian and his trusty dog. As they go from town to town trying to earn money and get some cheese dip. Now a few years back I won an auction on Ebay and got like 40 random issues of the Marvel/Epic run of Groo. And the other day dug them out cause I wanted something funny to read. The first issue I read was #24 and dealt with a town that had be cursed to become the ugliest town on the planet. And with how Groo keeps trying to undo the curse. The second issue,#25,was all about how through so misadventures Groo ended up having 3 different groups of raiders attack the same town. Then issue #33 in which Groo becomes leader of a group of pirates. Which is strange cause any ship Groo comes aboard ends up sinking rather quickly. Issue #42 is up next and has the classic story of Grannie Groo trying to marry Groo off to 2 different women. The first of which is a fugly farm girl and the second of which is a rich princess. Great issue that had me laughing many many times.Last one in this group was issue #43. Another issue with Grannie Groo ,she sells Groo into slavery,and he of course messed up her plan. I have always enjoyed Groo,but have learned to never read most than 5 or 6 issues at once. If you do the stories start to run together and it kinda makes then less enjoyable. This batch of Groo comics gets a B+.

Don' Look in the basement-Elvira's Movie Macabre airing

"Don't Look in the basement"

A young pretty nurse goes to a rural insane asylum for work. Now this isn't your normal nuthouse,it is set in a old wore down home,and there isn't locks on any of the doors. And right before the new nurse gets there,one of the patients kills the head doctor with an ax. You have a nice collection of patients. There is the Judge,who either was or thinks he is a court judge and is also the person that killed the head doctor. There is Sarge,who still thinks the war,I am assuming from what time frame this was filmed in it would be Nam,is still going on. You have one lady who carried around a baby doll that she thinks is her real kid. And another lady that is a total nympho. Then there is Sam,Sam is a very large man who has the mentality of a 8 year old and seems to just want to be friends with every one.Oh he also LOVES Popsicles. Well most of the patients warm up pretty quick to the new nurse. And Sam keeps telling her that the dead doctor is talking him on a daily basis. Well things seem as normal as they can be at a house of the mentally ill. Then one night the new nurse is confronted by this older woman that vaguely warns her about something not being right in the house. This messes with the young nurse and the next day she finds out that it seems the old lady has cut out her own tongue. Things start going down hill from this point and keep it up till the ending. Now I don't want to spoil the ending at all. But it is a decent twist and helps makes up for the low budget and some of the bad acting.This is either in the public domain or assumed to be cause it isn't hard to find it on dvd super cheap. I have 4 different dvds/dvd sets that have it. The first one was one of the old Brentwood 10 movie packs. This was the first place I saw it. Then I have  a cheap dvd with 3 films one of with is "Don't look". Then  a dollar dvd that I picked up cause I liked the cover. And finally one of those Mill Creek 50 movie packs.

Deathmate Blue

Deathmate Blue

Before this came out it was one of the most hyped and anticipated comic company cross overs in years. You have Image comics ,who were smoking hot at the time. And Valiant comics,who were at their peak artistically and storywise. And the basic idea wasn't bad. The two different universes merge and a small group of people are trying their best to correct this huge mistake. Well lets start off with the obvious mistakes,this was published in mid 1993 and had a cover price of $4.95. IIRC at this times most comics were at most $1.95. Sure the issue is over sized and the cover has a small amount of blue foil on it. But there is no way this should have been almost $5 an issue. Each of the four "color" issues of Deathmate were collections of some short stories. We start this one off with a story that has Magnus Robot Fighter and Brigade. Written by John Ostrander and art by Jim Calafiore,this is decent. But really this story,and most of the other ones in this entire crossover,feel like you have been dropped into part 20 of a 40 part storyline.The fight between Magnus and Battlestone is decent,and has the usual Valiant style of good art. Next story is one that pairs up Secret Weapons and Cyber Force. Secret Weapons as a title never really worked for me. And Cyber force always felt like a X-men spin off team that would have lasted 2 years at the most. Written by Joe St. Pierre and art by Sean Chen,this one is more interesting than the first story. There is an attempt on the President's life and the combined team of Secret Weapons and Cyber Force must stop it. The next one has people from Harbinger,Brigade and Cyber Force. The team from the last story has invaded the Harada HQ and it ends up with a big fight. The story by Maurice Fontenot and art by Howard Simpson are both flat and really drags the pace of the book down.Geoff the geomancer finally gets to meet up with Harada and the both of them get in touch with Solar. This sets up the storyline that will be continued in Deathmate Epilogue.Last story has Solar man of the Atom and Supreme. Written by Kevin Vanhook and art by Peter Grau. This has Solar and Supreme teaming up with Master Darque and Dr Eclipse to go find out what has caused the two universes to combined and what is causing they to be destroied.This is one of the better issues in the whole Deathmare shitfest. But even then it is barely worth 2 bucks much less the $5 it sold for. I do like how it took the storyline and continued it forward.Which is something other issues in this series didn't manage to do. Deathmate Blue gets a C.