Next Weekend Has Two Cool Shows in the Region

Fun stuff happens in this bi-state area!

Much of next week and the weekend will have Comic-Con International/San Diego Comic-Con in the news. A lot of folks will be traveling there and enjoying what is (usually) the biggest comic/television/movie/pop-culture event of the year. However, if you're going to be around my neck of the woods, two cool comic events are happening on the 25th and then the 26th that I'd recommend checking out.

On July 25th, the awesome folks over at Bigfoot Comics and Collectibles will be doing the Airbase Treasure Chest Event. It'll have comics, coins, and all kinds of collectibles. The American Legion Mascoutah will be holding it as the above flyer illustrates. This is the first time it has been held, and it looks to be a lot of fun! I'm not sure I'll be able to make it out there due to some other family obligations, but I'd encourage anyone able to get over ot Mascoutah to head on over.

July 26th will mark the latest Spector Club show. This one is always a fantastic event to find cool comics, and it is continuing to be held at its spacious and very nice new location, the American-Czech Center at 4690 Lansdowne. If you're able to attend both shows or even just one of these, you're sure to have quite a fun time next weekend. It illustrates how you don't have to go all the way to San Diego in July to find some stellar comic shows--even though it might be fun to go out there someday if I can get anyone to cover my travel and lodging expenses to do a write-up!

I Appreciate Joe Casey Discussing Some Companies Generally Paying Less Royalties Than They Should

Marvel seems to do this thing where if you create a character under their work-for-hire system and they use it in a movie/show, they'll give you a check...but are very careful about it. They aren't giving you a royalty; it is $5,000 and an invite to the premiere of the thing with your character...as long as you signed some contracts too, where they're protected from you suing for more money or speaking out about things too much in a critical manner. I mean, Ed Brubaker got more money for filming a cameo in, "Captain America: The Winter Soldier," than what he made on the character being in the flicks (yes, yes, there is some argument about how he took an established character such as Bucky and did Winter Soldier, I know). Joe Casey has done quite well with a number of projects and didn't feel like he needed to sign any paperwork for Marvel using America Chavez in, "Doctor Strange and Multiverse of Madness," or now for William Metzger (being played by Tramell Tillman) in, "Spider-Man: Brand New Day." Metzger was created by Casey and Steve Rude back in the 1999-ish mini-series, "X-Men: Children of the Atom." He just feels that if a character is being used a good deal in a production, perhaps the millions being spent (and made) can have a decent check go to the person who actually invented this (hopefully) profitable property.

Casey isn't outright enraged at Marvel; he still works with them on occasion. Still, Casey feels, "For me, it’s not about money. It’s not even about the respect. I would never expect to be respected by a corporation...If I’m in a position where I can afford not to take their insult of an offer, and be able to talk about it, maybe the next guy — where that kind of money could change their life — would get a fair shot of receiving that money.” An honorable sentiment from a creator who can turn down a smaller check and talk about thanks to other successful projects (he and Joe Kelly did well with, "Ben 10," for sure, to name one thing). It goes to show that when you're doing work-for-hire in the comic industry, you could make something insanely popular and barely see much extra scratch for it. At least if something creator-owned fails to strike a chord in the market, you still have ownership.

Film Friday: "Digger," Looks Intriguingly Unhinged

I've written plenty of times about how I don't much care for Tom Cruise as a person whenever I've read about how he's quite unpleasant, egocentric, and so forth. That said, I will never deny that the man can act. That is quite on display in the trailer for the upcoming dark comedy, "Digger." Cruise plays an elderly and deranged oil tycoon whose company's actions put the safety of our planet at risk, so he's got to save us all from the problem he created. Give the trailer a view:

Cruise is the main attraction, but the supporting cast is nothing to ignore either, with John Goodman as the President of America looking to be a hoot as well. "Digger,' hits theaters October 2nd. Between this, "Street Fighter," and, "Clayface," there are three movies I want to see in theaters that month!

Marvel's Comic Division to Relocate to California; Steve Wacker to be New EIC

A big chunk of, "Marvel," as we know it, is currently in California. The movie stuff (Marvel Studios), the owner of the company (Disney), and so forth. Marvel Comics has been in New York City (in some form before it was even Marvel as well) for over 100 years. Just as DC found itself consolidated in California, Marvel plans to relocate everyone in NYC to Burbank over the next year (whoever is willing and won't otherwise quit), having it all switched over by July 2027. It makes sense from certain financial and logistical standpoints, but it definitely marks the end of a long and storied era. Marvel had some shakeups earlier this year, and it was clear something was going to be shifting at Marvel. We're now seeing the first big changes.

In addition to the relocation, Steve Wacker will be returning to Marvel, having worked there in various capacities before, now serving as the new Editor in Chief. He'll be replacing CB Cebulski, who has served in the position since late 2017. Cebulski will be moving into a position as Marvel's new Asia Originals Editor--a job located in Tokyo with an emphasis on manga and other projects with Marvel characters. I haven't seen anyone particularly mad or happy about Cebulski leaving, outside of those who remember the, "Akira Yoshida," controversy. It seems he did a solid job as EIC and will be relatively missed, although Wacker has a lot of fans pumped for him to take over at Marvel--with some who have long memories warning to just keep him away from social media (I wrote about that PR mess in 2012). It is going to be an interesting next 12 months for Marvel between this for the comic division, "Avengers: Doomsday," having a lot riding on it for the cinematic aspect, and so forth!

Okay, so Lettuce is Giving Everyone Uncontrollable Diarrhea?

America has been facing a large number of cyclosporiasis cases. It is a parasite that makes someone really sick to the point they have explosive, watery, unstoppable diarrhea. Not a fun time, in other words. People have been hospitalized due to how sick they've gotten, and enough Taco Bell restaurants have been liked to cases that in various locations they have stopped putting certain vegetables in their meals--and that's a restaurant generally associated with blowing up the toilet! It seems the culprit may be lettuce and other salad greens that were contaminated. Basically, if you needed an excuse to pass on the salad and instead dig into a bag of potato chips, here you go.

In all seriousness, the fact that our current government has massively cut funding to the CDC, and parasite monitoring as well makes it less-than-surprising that it has taken a bit of time for anyone to get much of a lead on this. Everyone likes to say certain government programs/initiatives/whatever are pointless and we should save money by getting rid of them. Then, lo and behold, something that certain people said was a waste of cash turns into a huge issue (hello there, screwworm). Public health is like an escalator, in some ways. You don't particularly take note of it when everything is working as intended. Then, somebody decides not to worry as much about maintenance, the escalator breaks, and we all become very aware of it being an issue as we trek up the stairs that should be carrying us up. Things may only get worse, I worry, as the results of things that, "Aren't important," getting cut continue to become apparent.

Television Tuesday: The Upcoming, "Crystal Lake," Show Has a Teaser

The series, "Crystal Lake," was announced a number of years ago when the rights to, "Friday the 13th," and the (generally) main character, Jason Vorhees, were in a bit of a legal limbo. Then, it was in a sort of development Hell as the showrunner/s kept changing and such. However, everything eventually got figured out and we're getting all eight episodes of, "Crystal Lake," this October 15th. The last, "Official," flick with, "Friday the 13th," branding was a weak remake/reboot back in 2009, but this prequel show is prepped to take us to the 1970s, and it seems other, "Vintage," horror is ready to come back ("Nightmare on Elm Street," has a new flick planned, we'll see when it is set, though). Everything old is new again, and we're going to meet Linda Cardellini's take on Pamela Vorhees soon! Anyone who has watched the first movie knows that Jason is hardly in it as he is instead talked about fondly by his mother (Pamela) as a young boy who drowned when counselors weren't paying attention...before it is revealed she's murdering folks. Hence, a prequel show all about the town and its camp set a year after Jason died, and Pamela has not yet developed a taste for killing, maybe, does sound like a fun mix of horror and thriller genres. An official teaser dropped, and it doesn't show much, but there is enough to pique my interest:

I mean, Cardellini is a fantastic actress, I've got Peacock (where it'll be streaming), and I'm a fan of the franchise. Hence, yeah, I'll watch it. Hell, it doesn't even have to be great, considering that this franchise has some real stinkers of entries, I'll settle for decent/good. We'll see what we get come October 15th.

DC Has Warned Retailers Not to Price Their Exclusive Variants Too High

Retailer-exclusive variants have been around for some time. A store buys the rights to make their own variant for a (potentially) popular comic, pays an artist to create some cool artwork, and then seel a number of copies--often one that has the text/"Trade Dress," and one with just the artwork/a "Virgin," cover. It's a thing that has exploded lately with, "Absolute Batman," however. Some stores release quite limited variants with pretty high prices compared to the, "Cover price," of a comic if it were a standard, "A," cover. Something that's normally $4.99 gets sold with the variant cover for $50-$100, depending on the material (cardstock, foil) and any signatures or such--with remarques/little drawings on the cover causing prices to sometimes get astronomical! Apparently, DC has concerns about being associated with any accusations of, "Price-gouging," on these Absolute Batman titles as they're beginning to warn retailers they should only, "Upcharge," a certain amount higher for any retailer variants (around 5 times for unsigned and 10 times for signed and such). In other words, if the cover price on a carstock variant comic is $4.99, they should only ask $25-ish for the comic. A foil that's priced at $8 shouldn't generally exceed $40, and so forth.

I see this from various angles, as do others. I mean, if you don't want to spend too much on a special variant cover...don't buy it. You can always buy the standard, "A," cover of a comic and completely disregard special store variants, even if they've got snazzy artwork. I also know stores need to pay the artists who make the cool covers a, hopefully, good paycheck. Then again, is manufactured scarcity with ultra-limited and high-priced covers going to be healthy for the comic-book market, or will this be something that contributes to a potential new bubble reminiscent of the 90's? DC's Absolute comics have been fantastic for the comic-book industry in terms of great stories for readers, steady/solid sales for stores, and just getting more folks excited about comic-books in general. It makes sense retailers want to capitalize on this any way they can to not just survive, but hopefully thrive in a field that can be like a rollercoaster in terms of successes and failures. I understand that, but I also don't think milking the fans who are the lifeblood of this industry for every dollar they have is wise. I suppose we will see how retailers react to what DC said and if it stands firm, offers some leeway, or how this all develops.

Lindsay Graham Died, Sam Neill Died, and People Think the GOP is Faking Mitch McConnell's Alive ? What a Week!

This week marked the sudden passing of Senator Lindsay Graham, and not too long later, the unexpected passing of Sam Neill. Graham's passing resulted in a ton of jokes and vitriol. Everyone pointed out how much he hated Donald Trump and seemed to have principles...before suddenly becoming one of Trump's biggest cheerleaders and excusers when it served him to keep his political power. Also, the supposedly open secret that he was gay in his personal life, whilst in his political career, pushing an extremely anti-LGBTQ agenda, has been covered extensively. 

Few seemed to mourn him, while Sam Neill's passing had a ton of folk upset. He had shared a cancer diagnosis some years ago, but was in remission. He'd discussed how he wasn't afraid of dying but it would, "Annoy," him. Neill was, by all accounts, a really nice person and skilled actor who wasn't afraid to lean into the humor about how he was, "The Jurassic Park guy," with that being one of his most beloved roles. I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, but I will say I'd hope that when I die, people react more in a manner like with Neill than Graham.

While all of this has been going on, the internet has, for a handful of weeks, been debating if Mitch McConnell is alive and healthy, on life support, brain-dead, or simply dead, period. He had a mystery health scare and didn't appear in public or say anything for weeks. Fellow members of the GOP, friends, and aides claimed they had chatted with him on the phone for 20 minutes or more, and he was perfectly fine...but then freaked out when asked to give Mitch a ring. Rumors swirled this was to stop a special election or such, and once we hit August, then it would be revealed Mitch had, "Suddenly," died. With Graham's passing the jokes got even crazier about it being a conspiracy/distraction or proof that Mitch must be fine because how could his death be hidden if Graham's went public so fast? From riffs on, "Weekend at Bernie's" and more, everyone has been cracking wise, with a supposedly, "Casual," photo of McConnel feeling perfectly fine after needing some hospitalization due to a simple fall (with a recent newspaper just happening to be nearby), only inadvertently egging the jests on more.

The one thing I, personally, find hilarious is anyone in the GOP acting offended at these, "Mean liberals," stating hurtful things about Graham or McConnell. Anytime someone Donald Trump disliked has died he wastes no time in saying despicable things about them. Rob Reiner was mocked and Robert Mueller's death was greeted with the statement that it was, "Good," that it happened. When your party's poster child says worse things online than even the meanest high school bullies, you can't exactly clutch your pearls when people quip about Graham's funeral being, "Open closet," or put an AI video of a zombie McConnell dancing to, "Thriller," on TikTok. 

It goes to show just how bad the reputation of Republicans has become when people don't even believe the party stating one of their Senators is recovering just fine and chilling in a hospital bed as opposed to a slab in the morgue. I mean, Trump tells more lies than truths while at the same time having no filter, so maybe ask him about it so he can say, "Oh yeah, Mitch is doing fine, such a shame he's dead though. Oh, did I tell you about my latest cognitive test?" and that'll settle the mystery. For now, we know Graham and Neill are dead, and the public had very different reactions. As for McConnell...stay tuned?

Check Out My Friend's Doctor Who Club

I'm friends with Wayne Judge and his son, Victor. They are both big fans of, "Doctor Who," and have taught me a bit about the franchise, as I know very little about it compared to other fun sci-fi. A club dedicated to, "The Doctor," will be meeting this coming Sunday, July 19th, at the Saint Louis City Library Buder Branch from 1:30 PM-4:00 PM--at no cost to attend! If you have any questions, you can send an email to vhjudge@gmail.com and learn more!

The July 2026 ToyMan Show Was Stellar!

Today was another superb ToyMan Show, and they are always incredible fun and full of cool stuff. I started the show by chatting with my friend Jack Thomas of Fortress Comics and then checking out the snazzy comics for sale by Tim Metzger. 

I caught up with Spike from Lost in Space Toys and Collectibles, then looked at some of Nate Nauert's awesome comics! I also saw Larry from Bug's Comics, who had an, "Absolute Batman," comic for a solid price I picked up. Check it out:

As the show went on, I stopped by the table of my friend Tom Millister, and we talked about how life had been. Tatertot Comics and Collectibles was selling a bunch of interesting items, Jacqueline James had her fun books in the upstairs area, and 573 Collectibles had a mix of comics I enjoyed digging through, too. My friend Bruce Reynolds had a whole bunch of cool books for sale, and talented author Jessica Mathews had a new book for sale, which I excitedly got to give Gibson for his birthday, "Ninjas the Beach." Here it is:

Whenever I go to a ToyMan Show I'm astounded by the sheer volume of interesting items for sale. Trading cards, Funko Pops, Legos, die-cast cars, comics, Funko Pops, movies (in all formats), retro toys, newer gadgets, and viny/cassettes/CDs are present and keep the crowd busy admiring all the awesome wares. At this show, there were some vendors with tents outside near the entrance, as well, for the crowd to check out. That was neat! I'd encourage anyone close enough to make sure they visit the next ToyMan Show on August 23rd. It'll be a cool way to conclude a hot Summer!