RIP, ROBERT LOGGIA...

So long, Mr. Loggia...

You covered many bases during your long career, including adventure, horror and fantasy. You were a special breed: the type of actor most others aspire to be. 

ARCHIE VS PREDATOR (Friends vs Ferocity)!!!

Archie has had some strange (and rough) times in modern days. He's been shot to death, teamed with the Punisher, fought flesh-feasting zombies, wrestled the paranormal in an "X-Files" animated knock-off, and now he and the gang are up against one of the deadliest foes ever to touch Earth...a teenage Predator!!!

It all starts with a Costa Rica trip won by dear Jughead. The young Predator just happens to be scoping the vacation spot for a potential challenge, though doesn't find it among the guys, but rather in the cat-fighting Betty and Veronica. Still, one must wonder, is it the girls' physical finesse or their curvaceous attributes that attracts the beast? 

The gang departs early, however, leaving the Predator to don his cloak of invisibility and follow them to Riverdale, where the "most dangerous game" then really heats up. 

Though Betty and Veronica are initially unaware of the monster's motives (and attribute the carnage left in his path to a "Jaguar Curse"), they soon focus on their foe, thus granting him the confrontation he so desires. 

The enveloping violence would make even H.G. Lewis cringe, and yes, some of our pals do bite the dust, but keep in mind, the mayhem occurs only within the confines of alternate reality...if that's any consolation. 

The set-ups play like those of an ‘80s slasher film, with the persistent Predator standing in lieu of Freddy, Jason and Michael. However, as the panels progress, the exploitation also adapts a defined science-fiction ambiance, with egghead Dilton creating a “Robot Jox” Archie suit to combat their opponent. There’s also a strange, scientific twist at the story’s end, regarding Archie and the Predator, which I won’t reveal as not to spoil the surprise, but to say the least, it’s unique.

The story comes to us through the talented teaming of Alex de Campi, Fernando Ruiz, Rich Koslowski and Jason Millet, with all installments now contained in a Dark Horse hardback edition. This edition also includes extras linked to the comic’s making, as well as some sharp, full-page, variant illustrations and offshoot teases, like “Sabrina Meets Hellboy”.

“Archie vs Predator” is a bizarre blend, which despite its goofy premise, succeeds as a fast, sexy and vicious horror tale. If you’re thirsty for something different, yet with ingredients culled from familiar sources, this will surely be your eclectic cup of tea.

Collectible Time #46: Gary Shipman Spock-TMP Print and Illustrated Fun with Kirk and Spock

I was about due to for another Gary Shipman print and nailed a powerful 11" x 17" tribute to Leonard Nimoy as Spock, precisely as he appeared upon entering the Enterprise bridge in "Star Trek--The Motion Picture". 

Shipman carefully captures the concealed, Hamlet-like torture that Spock harbors before his eventual mind meld with V'ger. Personally, I believe this to be one of Shipman's finest homages, in its subtlety and graceful detail. It's also a fitting acknowledgment of Nimoy, who left us only a few short months ago. 

The print is presently available through Etsy.

To accompany the print, I also obtained another Shipman "Trek" tribute: a mock children's book, of all peculiar things. 

The book (published by Cedar Mill Press) is entitled "Fun with Kirk and Spock" and was penned in the "Dick and Jane" vein by the talented Robb Pearlman, who places our stalwart duo in various tongue-in-cheek scenarios.

Of course, Kirk and Spock aren't the only favorites featured. There's Chapel, Chekov, McCoy, Scotty, Sulu, and Uhura. Guest stars include Apollo, Balok, Khan, Pike, Trelane, and Sarek. How nice!

Though the book revisits several of "Trek'"s classic moments, Pearlman's behind-the-scenes segments, accompanied by Shipman's excellent set-ups, are the most enjoyable, with the humor aimed toward an adult perspective. In fact, "Fun with Kirk and Spock" often plays in the style of Andy Kaufman and Pee-wee Herman. 

For any original-series fan, who seemingly has everything, this will make an ideal gift. (Copies are available now through Amazon and Etsy.) Heck, it's so darn clever, I bet it would even make a Vulcan grin.

I saw Victor Frankenstein...

As Valerie Martin's "Mary Reilly" allowed us to see Jekyll's strange going-ons through his maid's eyes, Paul McGuigan's "Victor Frankenstein" presents the mad genius' tale through his spry assistant's.

In this version of Mary Shelley's chilling story, Daniel "Harry Potter" Radcliffe portrays the aliased Igor Strausman, a deformed circus clown and amateur doctor, whom Frankenstein physically fixes and then employs. Igor isn't by any means Lugosi's legendary Ygor from "Son/Ghost of Frankenstein", nor is he a variation of Dwight Frye's Fritz from James Whale's original, though he occasionally insinuates the two. If anything, he's an impression of Michael Gwynn's unfortunate, physically transformed character in Terence Fisher's "Revenge of Frankenstein", though without the cannibalistic cravings. 

James McAvoy plays the scientific necromancer. His Frankenstein isn't quite as conscientious as Colin Clive's, but neither as incorrigible as Peter Cushing's Baron. Perhaps he's most like Kenneth Branagh's Victor, but why try to pigeonhole the chap. McAvoy makes his Frankenstein his own, though with a hyper Xavier strand which will likely please "X-Men" fans.

Frankenstein wishes to bestow eternal life upon the world, or at least as close to such as he can muster. Max Landis' screenplay bolsters that intent. As in previous incarnations, Frankenstein indulges in experimentation, with Igor's help, of course, and his assistant's reaction to the waking of dead flesh sways between glee and panic: the latter represented by a modified chimp's resurrection. Still, Igor remains faithful to his benefactor as they take the fugitive route, their relationship cheerful and sometimes comedic, at least until Frankenstein decides to build a man.

Guillaume Delaunay and Spencer Wilding occupy that essential spot, though the primary Monster (aka, Prometheus) remains more a phantom than an actual entity throughout much of the plot. Still, once he's revealed, he's a staggering sight to behold: patched, bolted and hulking (and at this point, not included in publicity stills). Too bad he doesn't enter the story sooner; for an extrapolation of his character would have proven quite fascinating. Even so, the giant's significance can't be denied and represents Frankenstein's guilt for the loss of his brother, Henry, though the creature's construction has equal, if not greater, impact on the bewildered Igor, whose conscience eventually gets the best of him. 

Other folks are also impacted (whether directly or indirectly) by Frankenstein's zeal, such as trapeze queen Lorelei (this version's would-be Elizabeth, though more to Igor than Victor; and played with refined grace by Jessica Brown Findley). There's also the righteous Scotland Yard inspector, Roderick Turpin (played with pious conviction by "Spectre'"s Andrew Scott) and a conniving college chum called Finnegan (played by the flamboyant Freddie Fox). Frankenstein's father (the sophisticated Charles Dance) enters briefly to accentuate his son's overcompensating drive.

It's Igor, however, who selflessly throws himself into the monstrous eye of the storm to save his master, but how can he prevent Frankenstein from completing the inevitable? Ah, in that lies the story's rub; and how Igor tackles such is this version's distinction. 

Beyond that, McGuigan/Landis' retelling remains old fashioned (i.e., relegated to the British Industrial Age), with steampunk machinery, flaring electricity, and that famous "It's alive" utterance. These familiar furnishings were obviously added as a safety net in case the film veered too off course, but fear not: "Victor Frankenstein" is nowhere near as extrapolated as the superheroic "I, Frankenstein", let alone that ol' groovy, cult favorite "Frankenstein Meets the Space Monster". Its roots remain primarily planted in Universal and Hammer stylizations. 

This may not be enough to appease all aficionados, but if you love Shelley's tale, if you fancy it no matter how many times it's been retold, regardless of the many twists filmmakers have forced upon it, you'll eagerly leap into this one and because of its content, likely enjoy it.   

"Victor Frankenstein", as with prior takes, warns us to keep our ambitions in check, to take responsibility for them when they go astray. In this instance, it's Igor who learns the brunt of that harsh lesson, but then as the filmmakers intended, his eyes are our eyes, once more experiencing a fable that, like our essential moral compass, will always require revisited contemplation.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING 2015!!! (Remembering the WOR Giant Ape Marathons)

I recall those glorious days of yore (from the '70s through the '80s) when WOR-TV (Channel 9 of Secaucus, NJ) would show a King Kong/Giant Ape marathon on Thanksgiving Day, followed by a Toho festival on Friday.

The first day would consist of "King Kong '33", "Son of Kong" and "Mighty Joe Young '49"; the second day generally featured "King Kong vs Godzilla", "King Kong Escapes", and "Godzilla vs the Sea Monster" (the latter originally planned to feature Kong in the lead, as one might know), or other various Toho favorites. 

In the final phases of these wonderful marathons, "King Kong '76" made an entrance, and then the festivals catered to "The Adventures of Superman" with George Reeves, as hosted by Jack "Jimmy Olsen" Larsen, giving us at least two years of a different variation of imaginative fun.

Alas, WOR said adios to such beloved, holiday traditions by the late '80s, scheduling "talk show" shenanigans in their place, where petulant folks "conversed" in the name of entertainment. (WOR wasn't entirely to blame, I suppose, having lost the rights to the O'Brien ape movies along the way, and I'm assuming the same situation thwarted the Toho and Superman salutes.)

Nonetheless, while those magical marathons lasted, I was most appreciative and savor all the terrific memories they sprung. With that in mind, I hope your memories are as sweet as mine this holiday. To one and all...Happy Thanksgiving!!!

FAREWELL, REX REASON...

Farewell, Rex Reason. You were one helluva leading man; and more than made your mark on the imagi-movie scene. Say hello to your brother, Rhodes, for me. God bless you both. 

GOODBYE, GERMAN ROBLES...

Goodbye, German Robles. You brought utter class to utter villainy: an act that many have sought, but few have ever achieved.