Wednesday, October 31, 2018

Samhain Readings: TALES FOR A HALLOWEEN NIGHT

 

EDITOR’S NOTE: Searching through the long boxes for some appropriate reading tonight, I found the perfect choice. This selection is also timely because it follows the news that Tales For A Halloween Night is a planned television series for the SyFy Channel. Watch a video with details and insights here: https://www.stormkingproductions.com/skpanducpannouncement/ I had so much fun reading this collection, I just may have to search out some more Halloween scary tales to share . . . . .

 

JOHN CARPENTER’S TALES FOR A HALLOWEEN NIGHT Volume 1  (Storm King Productions, October 2015) Mature readers. ISBN # 9780985325893. Various writers and illustrators, as noted below . . . . .  

 

This is a dream assembly of creators.  The stories meet expectations for chills and thrills and are different enough that none of them seem like retreads of often used tropes. The art is equal to the premium quality of the writing crew, and the inks and colors are exceptional. Some stories look painted, some photo realistic, but all appear as if they could be movie sets. Perhaps it’s because, as publisher and editor Sandy King explains in the SyFy Wire video, that she treats inkers and colorists as if they were lighting directors on a movie set, and provides hints and tips on how scenes should portrayed in the comic. I’ll explain the accompanying stories below, but I’ll put my rating right up front  - - - HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. If you’re a fan of horror comic anthologies, you’d be hard pressed to find a better collection than this one. 

 

Like all good horror comics, this one includes a creepy host in the tradition of EC’s Tales From The Crypt, and all those that followed. The stocky, shadowy Groundscreeper (created by Steve Nile and Steven Hoveke with art by Jon Bogdanove) is manager of the spooky cemetery and introduces each of the six stories in Volume 1. 

 

In the opening tale “The Ghost Maker” written by filmmaker John Carpenter with art by Federico De Luca, two scientists often at odds have a discussion over brandy on the principles of observer-created reality.  The host scientist has uncovered a way to create a ghost and has found the perfect subject to demonstrate his findings. Never drink brandy with your rivals. Both characters in this story have a sly resemblance to horror film stars Peter Cushing and Tony Todd.

 

Four friends set out “At Sea” (written by Trent Olsen with art by Tone Rodriguez) to sail to a distant isle. Who expects visitors in the middle of the Pacific Ocean? 

 

“Bunny Didn’t Tell Us” written by David J. Schow with art by Darick Robertson is my second favorite story in the collection. Crimelord Bunny rubs out competitor Desmond, but neglects to snag the rings and bling he was wearing. So, he dispatches two employees to dig up the grave and grab the prizes. Bunny forgot to tell them that Desmond was buried inside his limousine. Luckily, it has a sunroof. But why is it opening up once they dig down to the limo? 

 

The significance of the title “Some Grub”, by James Ninness and Brett Simmons, won’t sink in until after the finish of this story.  This squirmy tale is related by a survivor during a meeting at a greasy diner that provides for some funny comments and literary references.  A jewel heist goes wrong as one of the robbers is shot.  They hide away in a remote hut in the woods and encounter slimy things in the dark. 

 

My favorite tale is “Notice To Quit” by Duane Swierczynski and Richard P. Clark. Near-suicides don’t count, unless something happens in the time that elapses when a person hovers on the ledge between death and life. In this case, something else wants to use the body since it’s being discarded. The main character comes to in a hospital bed, revived by the EMT’s. But he’s not fully recovered, and horrible things are occurring when he suffers from blackouts, which are occurring more and more frequently. Pray you never have to fight with a demon for possession of your physical form. 

 

Things don’t end well in “Fortune Broken” by Sandy King and Leonardo Manco as a gaudy ring brings hellish visions and bloody downfalls to it’s various temporary owners.

SABRINA Debuts On Netflix

EDITOR’S NOTE:  HAPPY HALLOWEEN!  This new series debuted October 26 on Netflix.  Yet another good reason to be a subscriber. Enjoy the cool aninmated opening credits by clicking on this link:   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xGeqxKjuKws

Her name is Sabrina Spellman. Half witch. Half mortal. On her 16th birthday, Sabrina (Kiernan Shipka) has to make a choice between the witch world of her family and the human world of her friends. With her aunties (Miranda Otto, Lucy Davis), her cat Salem, and her boyfriend Harvey Kinkle (Ross Lynch), Sabrina will face horrors and new adventures in the mysterious town of Greendale. From the executive producers of Riverdale comes a haunting new tale. Chilling Adventures of Sabrina premieres October 26. Only on Netflix.

Book Review: THE BURNING ROOM by Michael Connelly

THE BURNING ROOM by Michael Connelly (Little, Brown & Co., November 2014) Hardcover, 388 pages. ISBN 0316225932

 

The summary from the Goodreads website . . . . .

 

Detective Harry Bosch tackles a cold case unlike any he's ever worked, in the new thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Michael Connelly.

 

In the LAPD's Open-Unsolved Unit, not many murder victims die almost a decade after the crime. So when a man succumbs to complications from being shot by a stray bullet nine years earlier, Bosch catches a case in which the body is still fresh, but any other evidence is virtually nonexistent.

 

Now Bosch and his new partner, rookie Detective Lucia Soto, are tasked with solving what turns out to be a highly charged, politically sensitive case. Starting with the bullet that's been lodged for years in the victim's spine, they must pull new leads from years-old information, which soon reveals that this shooting may have been anything but random.

 

In this gripping new thriller, Michael Connelly shows once again why Harry Bosch is "one of the greats of crime fiction" (New York Daily News).

 

My review from the Goodreads website . . . . .

 

     This one took me longer to read and finish compared to previous Connelly novels featuring detective Harry Bosch, but not because it was tedious and boring - - - but because it was crammed with procedural details and packed with insights into modern day police department practices and politics. 

 

     I read this at a slower pace in order to absorb all the details. 

Rightly so, author Connelly no longer has Bosch mixing it up with gangsters in fistfights or gunplay. He's a veteran police detective nearing retirement and the workload and responsibilities have shifted as would be expected. 

 

     Bosch is now part of the Los Angeles Police Department Open-Unsolved Unit, and with new partner Lucia Soto are charged with solving a murder attempt from ten years past that has political implications. The crime is soon linked to another crime, an arsonist fire in an apartment building that resulted in the deaths of several young children. Bosch and Soto work the case, following even the most slender of leads, in methodical but effective fashion. 

 

     Along with the great investigative detail, Connelly explores the human side of police work revealing the sense of responsibility and dedication that all good officers display. The ending has several twists that determine both how the story ends a bit less than satisfactory as well as lays out the future for Bosch in the books that followed this one.


Monday, October 29, 2018

Pittsburgh's STEEL CITY COMIC CON is a Celebrity Fest

 
Welcome to the Steel City Comic Con!
 
Where Pop Culture RULES!
 
DEC 7-9, 2018
 
MONROEVILLE CONVENTION CENTER
 
SHOW HOURS:
FRIDAY: 10 am - 8 pm
SATURDAY: 10 am - 8 pm
SUNDAY: 10 am - 5 pm
 
Celebrities Attending:
 
 
DAVID FAUSTINO -
JUST ANNOUNCED!
 
David Faustino is best known for 
his role as "Bud Bundy" on the sitcom Married... with Children.
 
 
 
Admission Ticket DISCOUNT OFFER Ends Soon! 
 
DISCOUNT TICKET OFFER ENDS when category of tickets sell out or the offer expires, whichever comes first. 
 
Comic Con Info: 
 
 
JEROME FLYNN -
VERY RARE APPEARANCE!
 
Best known for his roles as "Bronn" from the hit HBO hit series
Game of Thrones and "Bennet Drake" in Ripper St.
 
 
 
 
ADAM BALDWIN
 
Best known for his roles in  Firefly and Serenity as Jayne Cobb. His roles include Stillman in Ordinary People(1980), Colonel John Casey in Chuck, and Mike Slattery in The Last Ship.
 
 
 
 
HENRY SIMMONS
 
Best Known for his roles as NYPD Detective Baldwin Jones on NYPD Blue, and as Agent Alphonso "Mack" MacKenzie on Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D
 
 
 
 
NATALIA CORDOVA
 
Natalia Cordova is best known for portraying Elena "Yo-Yo" Rodriguez on Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
 
 
 
 
LOU FERRIGNO
 
Lou Ferrigno is best known as The Incredible Hulk . He also had roles in Sinbad of the Seven Seas,
 
 
 
 
JASON DAVID FRANK (JDF)
 
Mixed martial artist. Best know for his role as the original 
Green and White Might Morphin Power Rangers.
 
 
 
 
BRENT SPINER
 
Best known for his role as " Lt. Commander Data" in Star Trek: The Next Generation."Dr. Brackish Okun" in Independence Day, - reprised in Independence Day: Resurgence.
 
 
 
 
GATES MCFADDEN
 
Gates McFadden is best known for her role as "Dr. Beverly Crusher in the Star Trek: The Next Generation and in the four subsequent films.
 
 
 
 
DENISE CROSBY
 
Best known as "Security Chief Tasha Yar" in Star Trek: The Next Generation. Also known for her role as "Mary" in the hit TV seriesThe Walking Dead. 
 
 
 
 
DEAN CAIN
 
was host of Ripley's Believe It or Not! and appeared in the series Hit the Floor.
 
 
 
ERNIE HUDSON
 
Best know for his role as "Winston Zeddemore" in the Ghostbusters film series. He also appeared in The Crow, HBO's OzThe Hand That Rocks the Cradle (1992) and Congo.
 
 
 
 
MICKY DOLENZ
 
Actor, musician, television director, radio personality and theater director, best known as a vocalist and drummer of the pop/rock band the Monkees.
 
 
 
 
KEVIN NASH
 
Wrestling legend and in film roles in The Punisher, Magic Mike films,
John Wick and The longest Yard.
 
 
 
 
DOUG BRADLEY
 
Horror film legend. 
 
Best known for his role as "Pinhead" in the Hellraiser film series.
 
 
 
 
TATYANA ALI
 
Best known for her role as Ashley Banks on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. She also appeared in the
 
 
 
 
KARYN PARSONS
 
Best known for her role as "Hilary Banks" on the The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Parsons also starred in the film Major Payne opposite Damon Wayans.
 
 
 
DAPHNE MAXWELL REID
 
Best known for her role as "Vivian Banks" on the NBC sitcom 
 
 
 
 
TOM SAVINI
 
 
RICKY STEAMBOAT
 
Wrestling legend better known by his ring name Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat.
 
 
 
 
DAVE DORMAN
 
A science fiction, horror and fantasy illustrator Best known for his Star Wars artwork. Eisner Award winner.
 
 
 
 
OFFICIAL SCCC BOOTH!
 
  1. Amazing low prices on autographed items!
  2. Purchase a COA.
  3. Purchase a plastic holder for the photo or poster that you just got autographed.
 
 
THE GARRISON CARIDA!
 
Get your picture taken with the world's definitive Star Wars costuming Organization! Bring the whole family!
 
 
 
 
HOTEL ROOM BLOCK
 
ROOM BLOCK - DISCOUNT OFFER - ACT QUICKLY!
Hotel Room block for Room DISCOUNT is now available! Call hotel at (412) 373-7300 and use CODE: STC
Check out hotel for more details.
 
 
 
DEALER & ARTIST TABLES - SOLD OUT!
 
WANT TO BE ON THE WAIT LIST?
 
Email us through the web site if you would like to be on the Wait List for for any table cancellations for the upcoming Steel City Comic Con!
 
 
Welcome to the Steel City Comic Con!
 
Where Pop Culture RULES!
 
DEC 7-9, 2018
 
MONROEVILLE CONVENTION CENTER
 
SHOW HOURS:
FRIDAY: 10 am - 8 pm
SATURDAY: 10 am - 8 pm
SUNDAY: 10 am - 5 pm