The, "Mad Dog Magic BBQ Spice," From Max Mix is Delicious

Longtime readers of the blog are aware that I generally am not a fan of sauces. I didn't enjoy ketchup until I was in my 20s, and was astonished when I enjoyed Freddy's Fry Sauce. That said, I have always loved a good spice mix/dry rub/etc. I often keep my eyes peeled for new ones, and when I was at Dierbergs the other day, my attention was immediately drawn to a display with an assortment of spices. I approached and saw they were a brand named, "Max Mix," after their founder, Max Crawford. From childhood to now being a young adult, Max was into spices and BBQ, which led to him launching Max Max in 2023. As his company's website discusses, "The dream is that Max Mix will provide independence for Max, provide employment and job training for others with special abilities, create awareness about the lack of meaningful and respectful employment in our special needs community, and all while helping people spice up their life with flavorful food." The Mad Dog Magic BBQ Spice that can be put on anything looked intriguing, so I figured a tasty-sounding spice from a company dedicated to helping others was something I wanted a bottle of!

So, how was the Mad Dog Magic? I assume you read my headline where I declare it was delicious, because that stuff is fantastic. The name is, "..a heartfelt tribute to a beloved friend, Mad Dog Maddox Truitt," and I adored the smoky and sweet flavor, as well as the slightly spicy kick it carried. I put it on some chicken I had, and it took it to a new level of flavorocity, and yes, I did make that word up just now. My point is, I loved the Mag Dog Magic BBQ Spice and plan to try other flavors of Max Mix in the near future. If you live somewhere Max's products are easy to acquire, I'd encourage you to grab some at the store, or you can always buy them online!

Disclaimer: As I always like to make clear with these kinds of posts, Max's Mix did not reach out to me or request an article be written about them. They are not even aware of my blog's existence, but I will be emailing them about my article so that they know how much I dig their Mad Dog Magic!

"Supergirl," Had a BAD First Weekend at the Box Office...

"Supergirl," is the second big film in James Gunn and Peter Safran's new take on the DC cinematic Universe. "Superman," did quite well, and the second season of, "Peacemaker," which altered its continuity to take place in the same universe, was a hoot as well. "Supergirl," earned raves for Milly Alcock's performance, muted praise for Jason Momoa's Lobo, and was otherwise given a critical, "Meh," by many outlets. It proceeded to land roughly in theaters.  I mean, it made less than, "Morbius," did in its opening weekend. "Supergirl," isn't the worst cinematic bomb ever despite dramatic headlines, but the indifference of reviewers and theatergoers is evident.

Some people have begun discussing whether a general toxicity in fandom is to blame. Other's have said it is proof female superheroes don't sell/Hollywood keeps failing them. Every superhero movie that struggles results in discussion of, "Superhero movie fatigue," and plenty of folks have already begun writing this off as, "Not a big deal." The argument already is going, "Supergirl was never a big thing, the real test is how that Green Lanterns show, and Clayface movie do!" which feels like a big example of, "Moving the goalposts," but whatever.

I do want to check out the new, "Supergirl," movie. That said,  just I didn't see the latest, "Superman," until it had been out a couple of weeks, and I had the chance to view it, that'll probably be the case with, "Supergirl," for me too. At least if I go in with average-to-low expectations, I may very well conclude that it is better than people have been saying. Sure sounds like I will have much of the theater to myself when I do make it over there.

"The Serpent of the Sea," is a Great Tale Full of Creepy Vibes

"The Serpent of the Sea," is a new comic by writer Finlay Miles and illustrator Lyndon White. It's a highly enjoyable one-shot story with a delightfully unreliable narrator who might be suffering from madness or could have simply stumbled into knowledge no human should learn of, and found the Universe prefers anything he discovered be rendered forgotten. Set in 1882, we read the diaries of Captain Edward Bartholomew Pierce as a seemingly straightforward search for missing shipping vessels morphs into a fight for his life against all manner of strange creatures and beings.

Miles does a superb job of filling readers with dread and White's illustrations are imposing and scary without a doubt. They cram a lot of impressive storytelling into their comic, and I do wonder if we'll someday get a sequel exploring how much of what Captain Pierce believes occurred is real or imagined. If you desire a good serving of horror, "The Serpent of the Sea," should help satisfy that craving! You can buy it on White's website, and I rate it...

5 out of 5 Stars.

Sony Has Reaffirmed You Don't, "Own," Those Digital Movies You Bought. I'm Not Surprised

I discussed almost exactly three months ago my concerns with how physical media disappearing could lead to issues due to how we never really seem to, "Own," digital media--even if we, "Buy," it. Some folks argue that if you outright bought something, of course you own it! Well, they are oh so very wrong sometimes, as recent news at the PlayStation store makes evident. John Walker at Kotaku breaks it all down:

Sony is contacting PlayStation Store users who bought movies from the platform that were distributed by StudioCanal—like Terminator 2, Total Recall, and Confessions of a Dangerous Mind—to say that “you will no longer be able to access your previously purchased content from Studio Canal, and it will be removed from your video library.” There’s no mention of any refunds or make-goods for the affected users. Sony simply says the films are going away “due to our content licensing agreements,” once again reaffirming the fact that you are never truly buying anything that’s digital, just temporarily renting it.

You bought a movie to stream on your PlayStation or maybe even took the step to download it for some form of safekeeping. Sony comes along and says, "Nah, you didn't," before pointing to some fine print tucked away in a massive EULA document. Things like this are why I get nervous hearing, "GTA VI," won't have a disc in the physical boxes upon release, just a download code. When you don't have the DVD, comic, or even a DRM-free download of something, it could very well disappear someday from wherever you thought it was secure.

Society seems to be moving more and more towards a model where nothing is owned, and everything has a membership plan. The subscription economy has its cheerleaders and those fatigued by it. In some ways, it is the logical evolution of capitalism--arguably for the worse. Just remember that you own nothing and you're going to love it!

"Absolute Batman," is Getting an Animated Adaptation and Absolute Funko Pops Are Incoming

Back in April, I discussed my slight astonishment at how DC hadn't fully capitalized on the success of their Absolute Universe and, "Absolute Batman," in particular, with a ton of tie-ins. Well, DC has had enough time to gear up and get some stuff made, as recent announcements show. The biggest one is that out of DC's upcoing slate of animated projects, an adapatation of, "Absolute Batman," is planned. It'll be a series aimed to older/adult viewers, and it remains to be seen what network/streamer it ends up on, but it has been announced! Plus, a limited number of Absolute Universe-themed Funko Pops shall be for sale at Comic-Con International/San Diego Comic-Con, with doubtlessly more Absolute Pops planned. I'd bet DC has a lot more in the works with the massive success of everything-Absolute and will be interested in seeing what comes next.

Fare Co-op Sets off My MLM Alarm Bells

I've got some familiarity with pyramid schemes. When I was looking for work years ago I almost joined an insurance one. I've had friends and, "Friends," try to sell me on them at various points as well. For those unaware, pretty much anything where you can make more money recruiting people than selling the actual product is, by its nature, a pyramid scheme/multilevel marketing. It can be insurance, Mary Kay Cosmetics, CutCo Knives, True Romance sex toys, Herbalife, Avon, Pampered Chef, or basically anything. My point is, if a major aspect or even the main point of the business is to recruit others so you get money for referrals, downstream/upstream, or any other fancy phrasing, you're in a MLM. If you're okay with that, cool. Some people do very well in such a business as with any prymaid there are, "Levels," above others, making plenty of money...the thing is, a vast majority of folks are there at the bottom. I say all this to bring me to the point of how, when I heard radio ads for something called Fare Co-op, I looked into it. Then, my MLM alarm bells went off.

As with lots of MLM stuff, Fare Co-op sounds absolutely great at first blush. It is a rideshare service that the drivers own a part of, not some big Wall Street company. Co-ops can be great. I was a member of a grocery store co-op when I lived in Upstate New York and would frequent it in Ithaca. You could pay a membership fee, volunteer your time to help the store for membership rights, go to meetings to vote on things where everyone had a voice, and so forth. Fare Co-op makes itself sound like a co-op (I mean, it is in the name), but the more you dig, it becomes abundantly clear that a pyramid is buried under the seemingly green grass. To use another metaphor, even if some aspects do have co-op bones, the lifeblood is strictly MLM.

You tell people who hitch a ride with you via Uber or Lyft that if they were to use Fare Co-op, they can get rides cheaper. You also can recruit other people to drive via Fare Co-op, with all your referrals drawing a percentage back to you (sound the warning klaxon). When the customers or drivers you recruited get new people to try Fare Co-op, you even earn a slice of that, thanks to the tiers (the klaxon is getting louder). If you are there on the ground floor, getting people to use Fare Co-op as it begins to operate in your state, you might theoretically be able to do pretty well. Recruit enough folks and you'll be able to just sit at home watching as the money rolls in thanks to your, "Referrals." That's what MLMs are truly selling, however, and the amount of work you'd need to put in to climb these tiers and make all this money can very well end-up being the same as or less than if you just started your own private transportation company you hyped-up while doing Uber or Lyft, with its own elite fleet of chauffers or such; as I saw people point-out on Reddit, why do all this work for something that at the end of the day, even if you're doing well, you only have a piece?

This is all just my opinion. I've seen people doing Fare Co-op in their states where it is currently operating, being quite pleased with the process/growth/etc. I have noted folks who hated trying it. I am not here to tell anybody driving for Uber or Lyft that they should do Fare Co-op or be sure to avoid it. All I can say is that back when I was sitting in that, "Seminar," about selling insurance which was followed by an, "Interview," where they said how much they wanted to bring me aboard, a little voice inside me was whispering, "Run." I listened to that voice before losing a ton of my time to make very little money. I heard the ads for Fare Co-op, and for a split second, I started to think about how, if it is going to be around here, and I had the time to do something like that, it could be a good opportunity. Then, the little voice spoke up. It went, "Oh, Hell no," and was not even whispering. It did more of a holler that continued, "Come on, man, you've dodged these before." I'm gonna listen to the voice.

Disclaimer: As I repeatedly have said, this is an opinion. I've criticized businesses before to the chargin of some, and one even threatened to sue me for libel before they shut down due to countless customer complaints. I doubt a seemingly big company such as Fare Co-op cares what I have to say, but in the interest of CYA, I've added this disclaimer.

Some, "Grand Theft Auto VI," News Dropped Today. Then, All Hell Broke Loose

"Grand Theft Auto VI," is the most anticipated game of this year, that is not an overstatement. From leaks about the game as it was in development for quite some time, to how it was delayed repeatedly, and it seeming all-but-certain November 19th is set in stone as the release date, there has been a lot of hype. One thing everyone wondered, and Rockstar (the developer) or Take-Two (the Publisher) would not reveal was what the game could cost. Most new games are $70, some are $80, and there were rumors for such a huge game, the price could be $100. A bunch of news came out today, and they chose to go in a direction that makes everyone angry. "GTA VI," will ostensibly cost $80 at launch, but an, "Ultimate Edition," with more outfits, weapons, cars, and content, will cost $100. Just making it $80 would have been accepted by a lot of folks. Pricing it at $100 would have upset a ton of people, but probably had apologists too. This weird two-level system just upsets anybody involved and is a terrible idea. Oh, and there is no physical disc, either. Yes, seriously.

If you buy, "GTA VI," at a store, you simply purchase a box with a download code inside. You can buy it a week early to preload the game when it goes live the 19th, but it is essentially an empty box, unless a cool little map comes with it. This has perturbed a number of people, and some smaller chains won't be selling the game as a form of protest without actual discs involved. We've got no discs with the, "Physical," edition and a bunch of content that costs extra. It isn't like this is DLC being worked on and added to the game months/years later, this is stuff that is done and being placed beyond an extra 20 bucks if you want the, "Complete," experience. For a game as massive at, "GTA VI," is bound to be will this content probably be less than 1% of the whole experience? Quite possibly, yes, but in line with that argument, why even fence it off? Much of the internet collectively groaned in displeasure at this news today, even if a bunch of cool new screenshots accompanied these unwelcome details. Will, "GTA VI," still sell an absurd amount of copies and be one of the biggest game releases ever? Yes, that is quite likely. I, at least, won't be buying it on release date purely out of principle due to this absurd pricing system/scheme. I've waited this long to play, "GTA VI," and I can give it a few more months for an inevitable, "Ultimate Edition," sale.

The Ultimate Universe, "Ends," Tomorrow

 

The current Ultimate Universe, as we know it, ends tomorrow. We will get, "Ultimate Endgame," #5 and a, "Finale," special. I've seen some spoilers that make it abundantly clear how, even if Marvel is concluding the current run of, "Ultimate," books, there are ways it will, "Return," in some fashion. Plus, the latest Ultimate Universe has had an impact on the regular Marvel 616 Universe already, with those little boxes of powers ending up jumping around the multiverse. That said, Marvel is essentially ending the latest iteration of the Ultimate Universe tomorrow (for now), and it does surprise me to a degree they actually went through with it--especially considering that, "Ultimate Spider-Man," was a license to print money for a hot minute. 

The original Ultimate Universe remains a fascinating piece of history (I'd highly recommend Ted Adams book, "The Ultimates (Marvel Age of Comics)," for an in-depth examination) and the success of its pseudo-return/reinvention will go down as pretty intriguing, as well. Between DC's Absolute Universe (and its continued massive success) and this most recent Ultimate Universe, unique takes on seemingly-familiar concepts worked out quite well. I really enjoyed a lot of this Ultimate Universe and while I'll miss a number of the series from it, at least this publishing cycle of an, "Ultimate," Marvel World did not wear out its welcome.

Music Mondays: Some Bands Are Just Ahead of the Times

Some music sounds like a throwback to the past. Other jams sound eerily apt for the moment. Then, there is the stuff that sounds straight-up from the future in some fashion. Bands that are ahead of their time, experimenting sonically in some wild fashion. Perhaps it is a new technique with technology that nobody else has attempted--think of the KLF and how they were doing sample-heavy mash-ups before, "Mash-Ups," were even a trend. The Pet Shop Boys feel like they were beamed straight from the future to our eardrums with the epic and space-age sound. OutKast took Hip-Hop places few could have expected with their blending of genres from space funk ("ATLiens,") to sounding a bit like a live rock band ("Aquemini,") to essentially transcending rap as a form and just doing damn good music that refused to fit into an exact genre ("Speakerboxx/The Love Below"). Hell, some people argue that Blondie and their New Wave tunes invented techno as we know it today--which, okay, but give Kraftwerk some credit!

Sometimes a group that is ahead of its time isn't recognized properly until later on (The Velvet Underground) or dismissed at first as a gimmick, even though, if you dig a little, you'll find a surprising amount of substance (Devo). It is wild to think you can sometimes play someone's music from decades ago, and you recognize that other groups have finally caught up with what the OGs were doing all those years earlier. Some bands are just ahead of the times, and I thank them all for being forward-thinking and supplying us with a glimpse of just where music could possibly be going before it even knows it wants to metaphorically get there.

Happy Father's Day 2026

I want to wish a happy Father's Day to all the dads and father figures out there! I love my boys, Clarkson and Gibson, so much and am excited to have another holiday to celebrate with them. Being a father is among the things I enjoy the most in life, and having kids was (for me) one of the best life choices ever. Having biological or adopted children isn't for everyone due to various circumstances they may face or their own personal choices, but if you've ever served in a role that is Father-ish, then you can be proud today! Oh, and I don't want to forget I owe a great deal of thanks to my wife, Samii, for helping birth these stinky boys. Without her, I wouldn't even be a dad, so much love to her and my kiddos on this special day!