Movie Vault - Oblivion from Full Moon Pictures

"From the vault of Captain Creepy"
I hadn't seen this in years so I recently watched Oblivion. A really bad, yet fun Full Moon Pictures release. A movie that probably ten people in the entire world would be interested in.
My quick synopsis for the movie.
When wayward slacker Zack Stone's father, the sheriff of Oblivion, is killed by the alien bad guy Red Eye, Zach returns home to take his fathers place and exact revenge, with the assistance of the cyborg deputy, his possible love interest lady from the General Store, Catwoman, and a wise and over talkative Indian that he rescued.
A science fiction western for the ages, but not quite Firefly.
Oblivion has a fun cast including Andrew Divoff, Julie Newmar, Issac Hayes, Meg Foster, and George Takei as a drunken barber who throws around not very subtle Star Trek references at every opportunity. The screenplay was written by the great Peter David, famed comic book and Star Trek writer.

This is a total B-Movie in every sense. There was a sequel made a few years later titled "Backlash, Oblivion 2." I have that movie also and maybe will rewatch it and write something about it soon. Action Lab Comics also just did a four issue mini series that follows the second movie in the continuity. I haven't read that yet but plan on checking it out soon. Good stuff if you are one of the ten.

Stalking The Herd - Quick Book Review

Stalking The Herd is the most comprehensive collection of information about the cattle mutilation mystery that I have ever seen. Chris O'Brien has painstakingly compiled and collated numerous cases over decades in this troubling area of research and the result is the undoubted best book on the market in this subject. By no means is this a breezy summer afternoon read, there is a lot of meat here (pun intended), but Stalking The Herd is essential for your library. Chris doesn't give you a bunch of BS or unfounded nonsense, just solid research. I had to digest this book in bite size pieces, putting it down and then going back to it at a later time. It's work to get through, but it makes you think and gives you a lot to chew on if you have any interest in the bizarre subject of cattle mutilations.

Nailbiter #16 - Image Comics

Publisher - Image
Writer - Josh Williamson
Artist - Mike Henderson
 - POSSIBLE SPOILERS EVERYTIME -

Nailbiter has been a great series since issue 1. Of course the basic premise of the series is there is a town named Buckaroo Oregon and sixteen known serial killers have been born and raised there. A researcher came to town to investigate this phenomenon and he disappeared. His friend, who is a disgraced former Army interrogator and facing issues of his own, follows him to Buckaroo to search for him. We are introduced to many of the townsfolk, including the Nailbiter himself, Edward Charles Warren. He got his nickname because he would chew off the nails of his victims before killing them. He is a sick dude, but a really interesting character just the same. In this issue it is Halloween and a group of kids are going to do what they call Three Knocks, but what we use to call Ding Dong Ditch in my youth. The problem is they are going to do it at the Nailbiter's house. Not a good decision. He catches them and they are amazed to discover that he is a serial killer with principles and he doesn't kill children. How uplifting! There is another plotline going where we discovered an issue or so back that this teenage girl that has been a background player throughout the entire series is in fact the daughter of the Nailbiter and the sheriff. Serious soap opera action going on here!
Josh Williamson has been doing great work with Nailbiter since the beginning and I have yet to miss an issue. It has horror, mystery, soap opera elements, and a touch of dark humor. Another fine issue from another fun series. I'm not sure how long this series is planned to run but it has been a fun ride and I would say grab the first trade paperback and start getting caught up!

Plutona #1 - Image Comics

Publisher - Image
Writer - Jeff Lemire
Artist - Emi Lenox

 - POSSIBLE SPOILERS -

Plutona is a new series from Image Comics that I guess is suppose to be a 4 issue mini. That's a shame because I wish it would go on for much longer. This issue was so good! Plutona shares some thematic elements with the new Paper Girls book by Brian K Vaughn. We have a group of outsider kids that are brought together and end up being in the middle of a big adventure. The kids come across a dead body in the woods, much the same as the Stephen King short story The Body that was made famous in the classic movie Stand By Me. The body in question belongs to a superhero named Plutona, one of the greatest superheroes in this universe it seems. This first issue gives us a bit of a look at each of the kids in the group and is written so well. Jeff Lemire is on his "A" game. Emi Lenox art has an indy vibe that fits this story so well and the colors by Jordie Bellaire also work perfectly to convey the feel of the book. Plutona totally has its hooks in me. Reminiscent of some of the great kid adventures that I love. Things like Monster Squad, Goonies, Stand By Me, Silver Bullet, and The Lost Boys.  Can't wait to read more of Plutona and see what Jeff Lemire has in store.

Spider-Man 2099 (2015) #1

Publisher - Marvel
Writer - Peter David
Artist - Will Sliney
- SPOILER ALERT SPOILER ALERT -
A temporal distortion threatened the stability of the future timeline in which the Spiderman of the year 2099, Miquel O'Hara, resides. Now he is stranded in our time. He is currently working as the head of Research and Development at the New York office of Parker Industries. Peter Parker is his boss. Miquel is trying to figure out and fix whatever caused the destruction of his future world.
This issue starts with Miquel and Tempest, his girlfriend, who is now healed from her terminal illness due to events in the previous volume of this title. They are at an American Ninja Warrior event (Ninja USA) in which Miquel is competing. He flies through the course in record time and qualifies for the finals. Later on back at Parker Industries, Peter expresses consternation at Miquel for showing off his skills in such a public arena. Miquel isn't concerned because he feels between Peter, Silk, Spider-Woman, and Miles Morales, he isn't needed as a Spider person anymore.
 Miquel made a power play and Alchemax were thwarted in their attempt to build a super villain prison. Miquel hopes that this event will be enough to alter the future and save his timeline and he ventures to a basement level high security vault which houses the temporal portal to 2099. He enters hoping for good news but discovers the future to still be in ruins. Alchemax are introduced to an agent of the Department of Internal Security who believes that their prison may be needed, and could be brought back into play.
The final scene has Miquel and Tempest in a restaurant expressing their love for each other when Tempest leans in and begins to whisper some rather huge news to Miquel when a car bursts through the front window of the restaurant and explodes. Temple is found in a pile of rubble and she is unresponsive. The end.
David and Sliney are obviously very comfortable with the characters in this book. They slide into them with ease. Peter David has a writing style that is very welcoming to me. I enjoy it greatly. I have a complete run of Spidey 2099 from the 90's original run of the title and it is still a great book. I'm pleased to see this title in the soon to be post Secret Wars Marvel Universe. I will be back. Captain Creepy says Spider-Man 2099 issue 1 is a winner!

The Hangman #1 - Archie Comics

Publisher - Archie/Dark Circle
Writer - Frank Tieri
Artist - Felix Ruiz
SPOILERS-SPOILERS-SPOILERS

The Hangman is another one of the Archie Comics/Dark Circle re-imaginings of older characters done in a much darker vein. What I know of this character coming into this book is there was an innocent man that was being hanged when a phantom type force came to him and offered a deal. Now he roams the earth protecting the innocent and hanging (literally) the guilty.
The story begins with a man named Mike Minetta getting ready to leave for work in the morning. He is lovingly interacting with his wife and young daughter and seems to have a wonderfully happy life. As he leaves for work we discover he has a man bound and gagged in the trunk of his car. Uh oh. As Mike drives away we catch a glimpse of a silhouetted Hangman watching from a distance. Mike takes the dude out of the trunk and down to the river and beats the living crap out of him. Come to find out Mike is known as Mad Dog Mikey Ice and he is some sort of a hitman or mob enforcer. He covers the poor bastard with strawberry jam and watches as the man is swarmed by a mob of rats and is slowly eaten. When Mike gets in his car and begins to leave the scene he sees the Hangman outside his car. He shoots at him and tries to run him over, to no avail. The Hangman appears inside the car and throws Mike through the windshield. He throws a rope over a light pole and hangs Mike from it, but as he does something strange begins to happen. Twinkling lights appear around the Hangman and he dissipates and ascends into the sky. We are left with Mike hanging from the light pole. The end. Evidently we are getting a new Hangman in issue 2.
This was a decent issue but it read very fast. If this were an episode of a tv show the content of this entire issue would have been the scene that takes place before the opening credits. The art is extremely sketchy and scratchy by choice, to fit the gritty tone. This works fine but some panels are a little hard to follow exactly what is happening or where I should be looking. Felix Ruiz draws the Hangman hauntingly, which is effective, and the cover is great. Overall I enjoyed this issue but for $3.99 I want a little more. There are many good books being published these days competing for my money so a book needs to grab me right away. I am curious as to what happens next. Does Mike become Hangman? I am curious but probably not enough to buy issue 2. Captain Creepy says The Hangman #1 is okay, but slightly disappointing.

Carnage (2015) #1

Publisher - Marvel
Writer - Gerry Conway
Artist - Mike Perkins
- SPOILERS SPOILERS -

Captain Creepy has never been much of a Carnage fan. There have been times that I enjoyed his tales more than others but as a rule he hasn't been one of my favorite characters. Well, this first issue of the new series is aiming to change my perspective a bit. Starting off with a brilliant cover by Mike Del Mundo and featuring very pleasing art throughout by Mike Perkins. We are re-introduced to Cletus Cassidy sitting in a diner having lunch while the news plays on a tv in the background. They are talking about him on the news. It seems they are attempting to lure him to a mine in West Virginia as a trap and they are using Manny Calderon as bait. But who are "they"? We are also introduced to Colonel Jameson, the heroic son of J. Jonah and a man named Barry Gleason, managing director of Grey Ridge Investments. The story is that Grey Ridge Mine is played out as an investment and Gleason discovered the connection between Calderon and Cassidy when he hired Calderon as his head of security. She was the sole survivor of Carnage's first rampage and he killed her family. So Gleason contacted the military to offer the use of his mine to capture Carnage. Eddie Brock is also on hand as plan B. If the plan doesn't work, Brock, as Toxin, will enter the picture. Well, Carnage takes the bait of course. The military Psyops team think they have him where they want him but there is a collapse in the mine and Carnage is loose. Time for Plan B.
I was surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. I thought it was great. It has a meaty story, introduces many interesting characters, sets up the next book and delivers outstanding art along the way. This was a 9 out of 10 for me and I'm in. Great stuff.