I first noticed Ed Brubaker during his Captain America period, when he and artist Steve Epting resurrected Bucky Barnes and transformed him into the wildly popular Winter Soldier.  Never had the Red Skull been more menacing, and the overall espionage vibe the two generated for Cap and company changed the game.  Then came Velvet, a […]

A Senior Research Fellow at Long Island University in Brookville, New York, Bob Brier over his decades-long career has become not only a respected Egyptologist, but a leading champion in bringing his science to the general public.  Dr. Brier, in fact, was the first person in 2,000 years to mummify a human cadaver as they […]

Most are aware of how in 1954 the Comics Code Authority (CCA) went into effect, all but obliterating graphic horror, science fiction, crime, romance, humor, you name it from the medium until 1971, when a slight rewording within the code about horror imagery and usage allowed monsters to roam across garishly colored pages once again.  […]

Grant Morrison’s Luda isn’t a beach-read one might enjoy in isolation. Instead, it’s best experienced as an object for discussion.  Author Gabino Iglesias, for example, feels Morrison’s handling of identity and gender merit analysis: Morrison shows just how fluid gender is while obliterating the idea of identity as an established, monolithic thing. Luci and Luda […]

On the Death of Jerry Garcia I walk with women spinning in the street,Between two psychedelic minivansGridlocked by the color-drenched bereaved.A broker’s luminescent tie commandsRespect, and, farther on, I hear some linesFrom “Alabama Getaway” — two bums,Both tenors, beg for change while singing songs,Your children left behind.Our Jerry’s gone.  The mourning City hums,“We Will Get […]

During the 1970s, most boys around Campbell, California bonded with their fathers through sports, automotives, fishing, and hunting, not horror magazines, comic books, or Saturday afternoon science-fiction film shows.  I truly wanted to bond with my father, but he was into football and baseball, and for me sports, even still today, are yuck.  My only […]

I spent my final day in Chicago post-Chicon 8 wandering along Navy Pier, lunching, reading lazily under the shade while occasionally peeking out towards the city’s magnificent skyline.  Chicon 8, as with any Worldcon, had been a whirl of activity. I sat on three panels, all of which went well.  I attended parties and connected […]

Lucy in the Sky Writer Kiara Brinkman and illustrator Sean Chiki craft the early history of the Fab Four . . . not that quartet, but the all-girl Strawberry Jam.  Lucy Sutcliffe’s life has not been running smoothly.  A seventh grader, she feels increasingly separated from her friends, Vanessa Takahashi and Rupa Khanna.  Vanessa’s discovered […]

Horror-themed holiday stories, whether filmed or penned, are nothing new, but clearly, I’m obsessed with 1970s Marvel horror comics and can’t resist talking about them.  I own all available omnibus collections, and I’ve written multiple articles where I mention how during the early 1970s the Comics Code Authority loosened its restrictions against horror comics, making […]

In 1983, seven teachers from the McMartin Preschool were alleged to have abused more than 100 children.  The case lasted seven years and cost $15 million, making it the longest and most expensive American legal proceeding ever, but no convictions occurred.  Bruna Calado, Henry Otgaar, Timothy J. Luke, and Sara Landström with The Inquisitive Mind […]