MattyLoves.com

Greetings and salutations. Another comic book Wednesday is here, and man, has it arrived a lot sooner than I anticipated. Usually I am ready for each and every Wednesday, but the past week or so caused a slight pause in some of my reading. I’m busy-busy. Have I been reading at all? Yes. Am I reading as much as I usually knock out weekly? Hell no. That must change soon or the backlog will start to get a bit ridiculous.

But before I get to the comics, did anyone see Fantastic Four? I’m speaking to ‘you,’ the reader. The numbers totally show that no one saw the movie, especially in the demo of people who go see all comic book films (me). I personally thought it look crappy from the jump, but then the trailers leading up to the film’s release gave me a little bit of hope. But once the early reviews started to roll in–all similarly dunking the movie–my interest waned. Will I see the film eventually? Yes, of course I will. But I don’t think I will shell out the $20 to go see a film I already know will waste my time and money. Maybe Fox will release the original cut when the DVD is released (doubtful).

I’ve been watching a bit of the current pro-wrestling product. It’s all shlock, in my opinion. Rather tired. However, RAW did manage to grab my attention. How about Stephen Amell wrestling at ‘The Summerslam?’ Both he and Cody Rhodes (son of the late Dusty Rhodes) aka Stardust have traded comments on Twitter from quite some time now. I think the initial rumors of Amell’s involvement with the WWE started a little before Wrestlemania XXXI back in March, if I’m not mistaken. My ear isn’t to the wrestling streets as it once was.

Anyway, Amell didn’t get arrested, letting all fans know they can attack wrestlers whenever at live events. I’ve never been a fan of the “celebrity jumping over the guardrail” deal, especially if the celebrity totally makes it look staged. That said, Amell’s effortless approach to the ring was pretty impressive (well rehearsed). Who knows, maybe he got work somewhere before he started acting. If Amell wears the Arrow gear while in the ring, there’s no way any nerds won’t tune in. The promo Amell cut was pretty convincing (he is a professional actor, after all). Some of the boys should take note. The promos nowadays… Yikes.

Next week I’m proud to say episode nine of MattyLovesPodcast is pro-wrestling centric. For any of you wondering where the wrestling has gone in my daily vernacular, fear not. I’ve been saving it for episode nine. Stay tuned.

Speaking of the podcast, we’re eight episodes deep! Well, technically seven, but the next episode is mixed down and will be delivered to the Internets promptly this Friday. This week “Dr.” Tom Lucas and I rap about some of our greatest teams in the history of entertainment. We also talk a little about the Fantastic Four and Deadpool. It’s a good time for all.

Oh, comics. How you slay thee. I said earlier that I’ve been a bit on the busy side, which has upended my reading time every week. I’m also not going to lie to you, I went ahead and snagged MLB The Show 15 like an idiot. I’m pitching for the Cubs. But it will soon lose its luster. I hardbody video games for like two weeks, and then I keep it moving. I’m not much of a “gamer.” Sports games, I like. If I play a game where I need to use a strat guide or other forms of assistance in order to complete the story, I tend to stay away. I don’t have time for that stuff. I usually play those types of games if I’m sick. For real. If I get sick, Gamestop is on my sickly to-do list. Playing a wild video game in the midst of a fever is fun for me–y’know, while I feel like crap.

As far as the comics I managed to read outside of my work and walks plus hits per innings pitched, I enjoyed some of last week’s selections.

Darth Vader #8 continues to rock the spot. The heist ended up being a success.

I’ve seen the character Skyfox playing the wall in Jupiter’s Circle. I’ve said to myself, “Who’s that guy? What’s his deal?” He’s just been ‘around.’ Well, if you read issue five, you know now what Skyfox’s deal is. He might be my favorite hero of the lot.

Giant “devil horns” in the direction of Brian K. Vaughan’s We Stand On Guard. Firstly, the book looks beautiful. The colors remind me a lot of how Invincible has that brighter hue to it. It seems the rebels’ leader is in a rather dire predicament. I wonder how the gang’s going to save her?

Outcast by Kirkman and Azaceta is nuts. The demons are everywhere. I’m beginning to think Kyle Barnes’ family might be cursed.

I’m so behind on my Secret Wars stuff. Admittedly, there is a lot of material. It’s adding up. So much to the point to where I may just end up collecting certain tie-ins and reading them together like Age of Apocalypse, Civil War, and Spider-Island. Those are just a few.

Hey look, more Secret Wars.

[EDITOR’S NOTE: Put down the controller and read some comics, nerd.]

My list for 8/12/2015

ACTION COMICS 43

A-FORCE 3

BATMAN 43

DESCENDER 6

FADE OUT 8

HOWARD THE DUCK 5

INJECTION 4

PLANET HULK 4

SECRET WARS 5

STAR WARS LANDO 2

STAR-LORD AND KITTY 2

YEARS OF FUTURE PAST 4

At long last, the next chapter of Secret Wars unfolds. This is a Dr. Doom story, y’all. We’ve found out he totally wants to be Reed Richards. Well, at least Doom wants Reed’s life. If you tell him that his vision is selfish or unreasonable, you die. Ask Cyclops. Doom broke the neck of The Phoenix, essentially. Marvel just loves the X-Men these days.

Hey hey, a new Planet Hulk drops today. I can’t get over the quirks to ‘Greenland.’ I can’t wait to see what’s in store for Captain America, Devil Dinosaur, and Doc Green.

Sigh. Action Comics and Batman #43 are waiting patiently on my office desk. They sit at the top of the pile. Yes, I have a Superman “Truth” t-shirt en route to my apartment. Am I excited about the story in which the new ‘costume’ is involved? Not really. I don’t think there are any ‘Robo-Bat’ shirts available. But I think Batman is playing out a lot better than Superman or Action in this post-Convergence mess. My fingers are crossed for today’s issues.

My lists have been a little funky as of late. Fade Out #8 was supposed to be released last week (hence the graphic). It ended up in my stack today.

Finally, Descender ends today. This series was my introduction to Jeff Lemire. I haven’t read a lot of his DC stuff. I’m looking forward to reading his upcoming X-Men material. And if Descender is anything similar to his storytelling in other books, I need to read those. Please, friends, send me your suggestions. Everyone should pick up Descender when it becomes available in trade format. It’ll be cheap and totally worth the $10.

And that’s that. I hope everyone enjoys their Wednesday. I promise next week I’ll have more info on some of these titles I need to get to. Until then.

Matt de Simone is a writer, blogger, podcast host, and finds Sponge Bob Squarepants incredibly annoying. He may just be a curmudgeon because “cartoons aren’t the same anymore.” His words.