Semi-Heroic Reviews.

Time for adventure, time for larger than life heroics. Time for good to best evil. It's time for Semi-Heroic Reviews! ...It's the third name that popped in my head, and it amused me, so we're stuck with it.

"Holy Carpal Tunnel, Batman! Does that mean he'll review
us?"
"No. Just following our serial required 5 flow charts.
Reviewing us could kill a man."

It's time to head back to the thrilling adventures of yesterday year, or even this year.

Why? Because, like with The Horror Of posts, the point of talking about movies, TV, comics, etc, is to share things and talk about things I love and enjoy, not tear things down for fun. There's is so much out there that we can all enjoy, and some things that are under appreciated, or, even in the Internet Age Resurgence of Super Heroes, unknown to many.

So let's enjoy the bounty.

And to start us off, let's start a trek through the DC Comics Extended Cinematic Universe, and whatever acronym you use for it.

Yes, we will be heading back to 2013 with Man of Steel.

We'll move through the current slate of DC movies until we reach Wonder Woman, and then we'll have that review some time in the weeks to come, after I can see the film a few times and mull on it.

Wonder Woman Fun: Wonder Cookies!

As with all superhero movies these days, you can find a variety of companies and products to tie in. Toys are nice. Underwear and insurance are weird. But cookies...they may be the best.

Out for now in a store, hopefully, near you. Wonder Woman cookies. Wonder Cookies!

It's a fun box, that sets the stage for kids, or adults, to make some simple sugar cookies and have a Wonder Woman party...which is why I'll probably end up stocking up on some of these for when the movie is released for home viewing. (Though I suppose I could put some in a bag and sneak them into the film...)

From pre-prepped frozen rounds...

To warm cookie. (I found I need a full 15 minutes to get the cookies fully cooked and slightly brown on the edges and bottom.) The cookies are not big, they expand some from their initial look, but always remember, these are made for kids first.

After 15 minutes, you will find yourself with a tray, and some a plate, of yummy Wonder Cookies. (But remember, wait a minute or two before touching them after them come out of the oven. These cookies are fragile until they get a cool down minute.

So get out and try some, if it fits your tastes and dietary needs. Maybe even have them with a certain ice cream stores Wonder Woman themed ice cream?

And so are cookies.

And what else does this box promise?

Oh, I will be looking. I will.

The Horror Of...April Fool's Day (1986), No Joke.

Time to return to reviewing. And what horror awaits us tonight? On a night of fools? What else can we have but a pleasant end to out April Fool's Day. And why not do that with an actually April Fool's experience. A fun murderous night of fools.

April Fool's Day

The Horror Of....Grabbers (2012)

Here we are again, a St Patrick's Day...weekend. And you have to wonder what there is to watch that aligns quite well with the holiday and might give you a scare. And steering away from learning about the horrors in Irish history, I might say The Lair of the White Worm. It's about besting some snakes, and gives you some Hugh Grant and Peter Capaldi. But I've already looked at that lovely film.

So I could move on to the Leprechaun movies. But they are a bit on the nose, and I'd rather to start on them another day.

So why not dive into some Irish horror? And why not start with something relatively recent?

Grabbers!

Get yourself registered to vote. 2016.

The election is almost here. Just over a month from today is election day, November 8th, unless you live in a state that will allow you to early vote. (Do you?)

So that means many registration deadlines are looming. Some sooner than others. Let's review in case you need to start planning for a trip to your county courthouse, or administrative facility.

More information about voting at Voters 411. See the deadlines, ballot info, poll locations, etc. You can also use Ballotpedia, the page I linked here will allow to see a sample ballot for your district.

The Horror Of...Halloween Night, Warlock (1989)

It's getting dark earlier, and it makes October nights all the more lovely for getting down to horrible fun in front of your favorite screen. And among the 80's Must See's, Warlock should make the list.

It's a fun and odd little film. It's a mix of horror, fantasy, and time travel. In some ways it's almost The Terminator in reverse.

The Flash Review Season 2

As we ready to see what comes in the 3rd season of The Flash, let's look back at Season 2.

It was a hectic season that started off with Barry Allen, Flash, dealing with the repercussions of the first season. The effort to stop the Reverse Flash from escaping to cause more harm resulted in the deaths of Eddie Thawne and the Reverse Flash. A large tear in space/time opened up over Central City, and the Flash and Firestorm went in to try and close it before reality was destroyed.

In the wake of closing it we learn that Firestorm died in the effort. Ronnie Raymond, half of Firestorm disappeared into the gash in reality, and he is gone. The other half, Dr. Stein, is left without the ability to access their powers.
 

The Flash struggled with guilt over this, pushing everyone away. He was given control of STAR Labs, so he could use it's resources. But he still lacked the support he needed to embrace.

Once he brought his team back together (with Cisco - taking the codename Vibe, Caitlin, Joe, and Iris) he was hit by a new threat. The rip in reality was still around, and 52 distinct holes existed around the city. And through those holes dangerous metahumans were coming. And they were all targeting the Flash.

The Horror Of...Star Trek: Infestation - Taking A Bite Out Of Trek

This is a bit of a switch for me. I had intended to include other media in the annals of The Horror Of..., but it's taken awhile. So, finally, horror of the four color fright variety!

So much has been done over the decades from crypts, Dracula's reign, to the dread of the comic code, to the resurgence of gory fun. Where is the best and most obvious place to start?

Star Trek, obvious! It is the 50th anniversary. And Trek has had it's horror moments.

The horror.

Ah.

The horror!

Oh!

The horror!!

Eek!

The HORROR!!!

...

...Wait? That is horror? The hell?!

I should be reviewing that. That looks awesome! Shatner versus Dracula. Why is that not this review? And why hasn't Linkara already reviewed this?! (What the hell, man.)


I'm feeling a little dispirited suddenly.

But wait! I must have something fun to review. Something fun and horrible. A mix of Trekness with the Macabre.

Oh what terror we have.

Star Trek: Infestation. Shatner versus Zombies.

"Ugh! Ha ha, 'He's dead, Jim.' I swear if  Bones says that
one more time..."

Fantastic Beast and How To Get Ready For The Movie

This year we are getting the next in the line of Harry Potter Universe films. Fantastic Beast & Where To Find Them. It takes place early in the 20th century, and focuses on events in the United States.

So we have a new era, setting, and magical community to look forward to this Fall. But we don't have to go into this film blind, unless you want to..

J.K. Rowling released a brief history of the magical community of North America a little while back. It introduces the point where the community began to be formalized, how it functions in a non-magical land, and the threats that have emerged.

No-Majs, Ilvermorny, MACUSA, Pukwudgies, Scourers. Rappaport's Law.

Jules: Adopting a dog's life.

Ah, a post 10 months in coming.

It's been around 10 months since I visited the local Humane Society, looking at dogs in need of homes, when I finally found that one. The one you make eye contact with and know you need to go home together.

"You're narrating my life again, aren't you?"

Trailers in Short - Star Wars: The Force Awakens

Right now we've had a series of new trailers for major scifi and superhero films emerge. And we have Star Wars latest trilogy starting tonight. I haven't touched enough on this, or taken advantage of the online traffic. It is exciting to see these all coming out. But let's not rush, most of these films are months out.

"What do you say? 'The Schwartz Awakens'?"

So let's tonight focus on Star Wars tonight.

Creeping Up On Halloween With The Hardy Boys

Wait? Is Halloween over? Or can I count Daylight Saving, and the fact it's night still?

Oh, well. Either we're finalizing Halloween this year, or slowly ramping up for next year. (What? Is Christmas coming up? I hadn't noticed.)

So let's take one more trip back before we stop our creeping for a few days, or weeks, or months. And we again head back to the 1970's. -- Hey? Between this KISS, Paul Lynde, and The Halloween That Almost Wasn't. Was there a hidden theme this year of the 70's? Weird.

Creeping Up On Halloween With More Lego Michael Myers

Good news! I don't think I see any sign of Myers in the Halloween fun in my Lego City.

Should be smooth sailing.

The Horror Of...Halloween Night, Web Series

Come Halloween night, we all want something fun or interesting  to watch. Going online offers various options. So it's time to update the list from last year.

Here are some:

Carmilla

It takes the 18th century novella and moves it to a college setting. When I first covered it, only the first series was done. It currently has three series.

Series 1
Series 2
Series 0


Mispelled

A group of young women find themselves suddenly with great power, and a whole set of issues to deal with. They currently have 1 series. Great new series,


Spooked

It follows a group of amateur paranormal investigators seeking out evidence of a world beyond, for a number of reason. It has a nice cast, some of whom you may remember from other series. So far we just have the one series.


Victoria Frankenstein, M.D.

The story of Frankenstein. Victoria Frankenstein. The series works a lot like Carmilla, with the characters creating vlogs that help continue the tale. It takes Frankenstein into the modern age. Live the classic tale once again.

The Horror Of...Halloween Night, The Halloween That Almost Wasn't

There are many specials that come out at Halloween. Or there were. We get some special episodes, and some oddities. But rarely do networks and actors put themselves out in often such an strange manner.

Consider the late 70's, 1979 to be exact. ABC gave us an odd little Halloween treat. The Halloween That Almost Wasn't. It's an odd collection of comedic and not so comedic actors in the role of various classic monsters. You may also know it by the name it picked up in 1992. The Night Dracula Saved the World. Yeah, the first title is more accurate, but the second one makes it clear that you're getting a dose of Dracula. With it's original title, maybe people thought they were seeing a Halloween version of the animated film Twas the Night Before Christmas. This is far goofier.

And that's apt, as the show was for years embraced by Disney and shown at Halloween.

Creeping Up On Halloween With LEGO Michael Myers

I think I should be worried. It seems LEGO Michael Myers is visiting my LEGO City.

But I think I may be okay. It's not Halloween...yet.

Creeping Up On Halloween With Theatrical Dracula

If you are reading my blog you know that Dracula was quickly translated from book to stage. Bram Stoker than Hamilton Deane than John Balderston. Out of this we met Bela Lugosi.

The stage show has continued on since then, going from theater to theater. Many crews and actors have come to Seward's Sanitorium. And many Draculas have entered the scene.

With revivals in the 70's, helped by the artistic efforts of Edward Gorey, Dracula made a resurgence. And more actors of note played that role. Enjoy.

Frank Langella took on the role. And this lead to him starring in the 1979 Dracula.

The Horror Off...Halloween Night, A Disney Halloween (1983)

"Mo-o-om! I'll bring in the other boxes
tomorrow!"

Sometimes the little kiddies need a treat come Halloween night. Some because they're too young to Trick or Treat. Some because they get home and need something to watch as they count their candy horde.

And what is the easier choice of amusement for the kiddies to start relaxing with than Disney. Disney the opiate of the minors.

One interesting choice from a day long past is A Disney Halloween. It was shown in 1983. I've seen it also called Disney's Halloween Treat. It may be that at different times it's been shown over the years that the name changed. "Disney Halloween Treat" seems to be the title of the song that plays at the start of the special, so it may have stuck, but I don't know. And who cares along as we get a nice dose of Mickey and his friends, right?

Okay, actually it seems this special combines the Disney's Halloween Treat from the previous year with the older Disney's Greatest Villains. And I think I know why I prefer this one. It adds the Magic Mirror as a character. But we'll get to him

Like many Disney series at the time (though this was while they were showing on CBS), we open with an introduction Michael Eisner, head of Disney who was trying to play the role Walt Disney used to play. (If you've read my Mr. Boogedy and Bride of Boogedy reviews, you've seen examples of his openings from back then.) This time around the people at Disney are getting ready for a Halloween party. Mickey and Minnie stop by to show off their costumes.

Then Goofy comes in to show the costume he's been working on for a month.

And into the special!

The Horror Of...Universal Monsters, and the coming of Dracula

There has been a quite a gap in my coverage of Dracula in films, and Universal Movie monsters. So much so that I had not realized that the last of the cast of Dracula (1931) had passed last year. Carla Laemmle.

So as we delve back into the catacombs where Dracula lies, let's remember this woman with old ties to our classic horror.

Carla Laemmle was the niece of Universal Studios executive Carl Laemmle. She was lucky enough to get a role in Dracula, a speaking role even. That is a feat, if you consider how few speaking roles there are in the film, and that movies with talking in them were still rather new.

Speaking role in the movie, and great lighting. She must know someone.

More over, she gets the honor of being the first voice heard in a "supernatural thriller". She has a place in horror history. Mark her!

It's not her only tie to horror films. She also plays a small role in the early silent Phantom of the Opera. She's a dancer on stage.

People do like to know when actors overlap between different. Carla Laemmle is one of them. (And as we go through Universal Horror, we'll see some more of the cast of Dracula popping up in other later films.)

Now, let's get back to Dracula. If you have a desire to go back to some of the earlier pieces on Dracula and vampires, check here. And for a recap of Universal Horror.



I have previously touched on Dracula's early cinematic history, and Universal Studios acquiring the rights. But, before we delve into Dracula and it's making, let's look back at what made this film possible.

Supergirl Season 1 Episode 1 - "Pilot" - Girl Super Power

This continues a look at the Supergirl pilot.

Now that we've had a chance to experience Supergirl's premiere, it's time to revel.

The show has a wonderful feel that is reminiscent of The Flash, but is unique for this character and her sensibilities.

I know when the first look came out for the show their were some that had a reflexive dislike. It wasn't drenched in machismo, which we are taught as kids to expect from superhero adventure. Instead there's energy, adrenaline, idealism, hope, optimism, youthful delight, danger, threats, and fun. It's weird to see the rebuffing it got, and that some gave this show.