“Angel” and hardboiled detective fiction are such a natural fit in book form that I almost wish every novel in the series used the style. But at least we have “Hollywood Noir” (January 2001), where Jeff Mariotte – in his second entry in the series – leans into the genre, while still writing a story […]
“The Strangers” (2008), chronicling a couple (Scott Speedman and Liv Tyler) cornered in their rural home by masked psychopaths, is a beloved cult classic. One of my friends counts it as his favorite thriller of all time. If you’re going to tell the next chapter in this franchise, you better not wade in half-hearted. Luckily, […]
An outsider’s take on the Marvel Cinematic Universe (Movie review): A grand finale begins with “Infinity War.”
Earlier this month, I reviewed “Annihilation,” a mediocre movie with a great trailer, and following it onto home video is “Game Night,” which somehow has an awful trailer but is laugh-out-loud funny from start to finish. John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein, who wrote last year’s sharp superhero film “Spider-Man: Homecoming,” smoothly transition to the […]
An outsider’s take on the Marvel Cinematic Universe (Movie review): The MCU gets more diverse with this African epic.
While most of the Dark Horse “Buffy” comics released during the show’s TV run are considered non- or quasi-canonical – and are rarely talked about by fans — a glowing exception is the eight-issue “Fray” (June 2001-July 2003). Written by Joss Whedon when he had free moments while overseeing three TV shows, it’s the complete […]
An outsider’s take on the Marvel Cinematic Universe (Movie review): The third “Thor” film rocks.
First episode impressions (TV review): The MCU branches out to Freeform for “Cloak & Dagger.”
An outsider’s take on the Marvel Cinematic Universe (Movie review): Spidey jumps into the MCU in the form of Tom Holland.
In his only “Angel” novel, “Shakedown” (November 2000), Don DeBrandt delivers an enjoyable fly-by of an effort, mixing many of the things we enjoy about the franchise but not showing his hardboiled influences as much as one might like, considering he counts John D. MacDonald as a favorite author. The characterizations of the main trio […]