It’s the first post of September? I feel like we JUST had the first post of August. Oh well. It was a light pop culture week, so you’ll be able to get back to your doomscrolling rather quickly.
So, I finished King of the Hill Season 14, and…it didn’t stick the landing. I’m so disappointed to say that, as I loved the overall season, and it was so much better than I expected. That said, it simply didn’t land the plane adequately.
Still not loving adult Connie, but I love Bobby even more now than I did in the original run. The thing about Bobby Hill is that, in all this insanity, he has always known who he was. He might not understand the world, but he understood Bobby. He knew what he was and wasn’t willing to tolerate (“That’s my purse!”), and that’s still true here. He’s willing to try to go along with Connie’s new way of life, but he knows he can’t do Ethical Non Monogamy. To be perfectly honest, I’ve been let down by most of the characters outside of Bobby and Hank.
The problem isn’t with the show, however, but rather the streaming model. They approached the series like it always was, which was anywhere from 12-23 episodes a season. There might have been 2-parters here and there, but it was generally “Here’s a slice of life in Arlen, TX.” Hulu brought the show back, not changing anything about it other than updating the time period. Great, right? Well, the streaming model sticks to 10-episode seasons, usually following some sort of overarching storyline. Hulu ordered 20 episodes, but released the first 10 as their own season. However, this show clearly wasn’t plotted with that in mind. While the penultimate episode, with Hank and his little brother Good Hank going up against an Andrew Tate manosphere analogue, the last episode of the season landed like a lead balloon.
Hank and Peggy discuss whether to get more aggressive with their retirement investments, and end up backing a business that removes wild pigs from John Redcorn’s land. That wasn’t a “season finale”. There were no stakes. Hell, it was closer to a “filler episode” than anything. It was the kind of episode that should have been put in the middle of the run, not at the end. I watched it twice, just to make sure I hadn’t missed anything. That was it? That’s what we’re left with for the next year until we get the next 10 episodes? It’s like going for a nice drive in the country in your new car, only to be killed in an auto accident when you’re almost home. OK, it’s not that deep, but still…
Overall, I loved the season, but I was let down by the ending. There are worse fates. At the end of the day, it’s still an 8 out of 10.
Trailer Park
Marvel Zombies (Disney+, September 24)
Is it weird for me to be surprised that Disney greenlit this? I mean, yeah, it’s streaming and not on Disney Channel, but still. I’m biased, though, as I hate zombies. It just feels like lazy storytelling. It wasn’t always like that. We lived in a pretty zombie-free society for a long time. Hell, when the Marvel Zombies concept debuted in Ultimate Fantastic Four, it was an interesting concept. Then, Marvel decided to expanded upon it, with them getting their own miniseries, with Arthur Suydam zombie covers. Over the course of the mid 00s, EVERY comic publisher was getting Suydam to zombify their characters for variant covers. Did I mention that Marvel Zombies writer Robert Kirkman was already establishing himself as the foremost zombologist, seeing as how he was also behind The Walking Dead? Anyway, I don’t hate what I see here, and I can easily watch a 4-episode miniseries. I think it was spun out of What If?, though, and I didn’t watch that.
Run The Numbers
Is our hero going to meet his Book goal for the year? I’m not so sure… Anyway, I read 2 comics and a graphic novel this week, so lets get to it!
First up, I read Out of Alcatraz #1, by Christopher Cantwell and Tyler Crook. It was released by Oni Press earlier this year, and was an immediate sellout – something that publisher doesn’t experience too often. It follows three prisoners as they escape from “The Rock” in the 60s (?). They wash up in a small town, and go into hiding until they’re contacted by their handler, an unnamed white-passing woman who seems like she’s being leveraged into this role for some reason. The thing I love about this story, so far, is that I’m not feeling like I’ve read this before. It’s not really throwing out common tropes, and instead offering some angles that I haven’t experienced in comics too much. For example, there’s a scene in the beginning, where the handler goes into a bank, and is greeted in a strange way by the black teller. I should point out that the art doesn’t make her look like she has “black features”, so it’s puzzling when the teller says something as she’s about to leave: “You have fun playing in their world. It’s not too late to come home.” I didn’t really get the meaning until later, when the simpleminded fugitive asks his partner “Did you know she was colored?”, to which the partner seems surprised, as he had not noticed. Anyway, it’s a really engaging story, and it’s finished by now, but I’ll just grab the collection when it’s released next month.
Next up, I read The Kids, which was a one shot comic from Garth Ennis and Dalibor Talajic. I love a good one shot, as it’s a No Commitment Liaison, but I had some problems with this one. For one thing, it was an oversized book, which I hate, as they’re a bitch to store. It wasn’t quite as big as a DSTLRY or DC Black Label book, but it’s still too wide for a standard short/longbox. I thought it was because it was part of Image’s new Ninth Circle imprint – I’m not sure what the purpose of that imprint is, but it seems like it’s going to be horror-leaning. That said, I’ve seen more recent Ninth Circle releases, and they were standard trim size. So, it felt like they just did it to do it, and that doesn’t work for me.
Anyway, the story focuses on how, one particular night, all the local babies are immediately aged up into adults, while retaining their baby minds. So, it’s just a bunch of naked, middle aged adults, causing havoc throughout the suburbs. We’re not clear if it’s isolated to this one area, or if it’s a worldwide phenomenon. The story focuses on one family, who end up on the run with their crude neighbor.
Now, I’ve got to talk about this neighbor, as she’s described as everything from a “witch” to “MAGA”, yet never really does anything to justify those labels. Sure, she’s crass, and takes no shit, but we never see her cast a spell, nor do we see a Trump flag waving in her yard. While on the run, she spouts these beliefs about how the child-free are inconvenienced by the actions of those who decide to have children. She goes on to say that she doesn’t blame the children, but the parents, as we claim “Children Are The Future”, yet parents pass on their same selfishness and other issues to their kids, just continuing the cycle. Anyway, the reader is left wondering “Is that the message here?”
It wraps up fairly quickly, we never learn the cause of the phenomenon, and it ends on a note that could necessitate a sequel, but I doubt it will. It’s probably the most “human” story Ennis has written, but it makes me think that’s not the corner in which he thrives. He needs to stick to tales with characters called “Arseface”.
Finally, I read One Crazy Summer: The Graphic Novel, which was an adaptation of the 2010 children’s novel written by Rita Williams-Garcia. I had randomly put it on my Libby holds back in July, but totally forgot about it until it was ready for me. It was at that point when I realized I was kinda familiar with the story: I had seen the novel on thrift runs, and didn’t know this was an adaptation of that cover I’d seen so often.
One Crazy Summer is set in the late 60s, and follows black siblings Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern, as they travel to Oakland, CA to visit the mother who abandoned them. It’s one of those stories that I related to when I probably wasn’t meant to. You see, my mom is the youngest of three black sisters, which would have made her the Fern in this story. The girls were raised in Brooklyn by their father, and his mother, Big Ma. I, too, had a “Big Ma” who helped raise me. And she and the one in this book shared a LOT of the same beliefs. In Big Ma’s eyes, the girls’ mother was no good. She would tell them how she lived in holes in the wall, and slept on park benches. So, as you can imagine, she was NOT a fan of the mother of her grandchildren. In fact, it seems like sending them out to Oakland was Dad’s idea, as the mom wasn’t too keen to see them once they arrived.
A lot of stories you read from this time period are so consumed by Jim Crow and race, but this wasn’t. Sure, it was a component, but these girls flew cr0ss-country on an airplane, instead of hitching on a wagon cart or some shit. They knew folks were watching their behavior, so they had to be sure not to ruin their opinion of “Colored Folk everywhere”. They had excursions to San Francisco and went sightseeing. The interesting part, however, is they discover their mom is deeply involved in The Movement, and she sends them to a summer program run by the Black Panthers. This was in stark contrast to how the girls were being raised, as Big Ma had taught them that Huey Newton and the Panthers were nothing but troublemakers. So, it’s fun to watch them sort of learn that to not be true, and learn that the Panthers were much different from how they were being portrayed in the media. The girls are only in Oakland for a month, but it’s an impactful month for all three of them. I LOVED this book, and I know that there are two more sequel novels, but I’m not sure if they, too, will receive the graphic novel treatment. Hell, I ought to just read them as they are, just to bring up my Book totals. In fact, I just might do that…
Will Around The Web
Adam and I joined forces to discuss the Casting Call feature in issue #114 of Wizard: The Guide To Comics. The staff invited writer Greg Rucka to help them cast a Year One approach to Batman, with David Boreanaz in the lead role. And it only gets more insane from there! Check it out here.
Things You Might Have Missed This Week
- The cast for ABC’s Scrubs revival is coming together, as Judy Reyes (Nurse Carla Espinosa) and John C. McGinley (Dr. Perry Cox) have signed on to recur in Season 10.
- The cast for Season 34 of Dancing with the Stars was announced, including Danielle Fishel (Topanga from Boy Meets World), 80s heartthrob Corey Feldman, Fake Spaniard Hilaria Baldwin, and America’s Sidekick, Andy Richter.
- Hit-Girl is all grown up, as Chloë Grace Moretz married model Kate Harrison last weekend. No word on whether she was walked down the aisle by her grandfather, Hank Hooper, best known as the head of Kabletown.
- Everyone’s favorite UK stankface, and Joe Jonas’s favorite ex-wife, Sophie Turner has been cast as Lara Croft in Prime Video’s Tomb Raider series. I don’t love this casting, yet I’m more fascinated that the show is being developed by Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Remember her? She was famous before Covid?
- Did you know we’ve been pronouncing Denzel Washington’s name wrong? It’s not “Den-ZELL”, but rather “DIN-zil”. Apparently, he’s a “Jr”, so his mom started the different pronunciation so that he and his father (Denzel Sr) would know which one she was calling whenever she yelled out their name.
- James Gunn announced that Man of Tomorrow – the next film in his Superman Saga – would be released July 29th, 2027. He insisted that it’s not a direct sequel to this summer’s Superman, which just means that he just doesn’t have to devise a hackneyed way to break Lex out of jail following the events of that film.
- So, it appears Lorne wasn’t trying to trim down the SNL cast, but rather swap out some cast members. It was announced that Tommy Brennan, Jeremy Culhane, Ben Marshall (of Please Don’t Destroy), Kam Patterson, and Veronika Slowikowska are joining the show as Featured Players.
So, I think I’ve proven on here that I’m willing to eat crow, and I’m here to do that now. When the trailer was released for The Paper – the “spiritual spinoff” of The Office, I was not a fan. I didn’t understand why it was going to Peacock instead of NBC proper, and when I saw the footage, it felt more subdued than I felt it should be. Anyway, at the last minute, Peacock switched from a planned weekly released to a full-season drop yesterday. I’ve made it through half the season so far, and I actually really like it.
How is it related to The Office? I actually sort of appreciate that little trivia. In the premiere, we get an appearance from Bob Vance, of Vance Refrigeration, which is still located at the office park. It turns out that the Dunder-Mifflin office is now filled by One & Done, which is a laser hair removal business. It appears that, in 2019, Dunder-Mifflin was acquired by Enervate, which was a corporation based in Toledo, OH. When the documentary crew go to the address on file for Enervate, they find it to be the home of Soft-Tees toilet paper company, but also the home of the remaining staff of the Toledo Truth Teller newspaper. Oh, and Oscar Martinez is there.
It was a bit of a rough pilot, but it does get better. We’re introduced to Ned Sampson, who’s a nepo baby that got this new job – as Editor in Chief of the Truth Teller – by becoming the Soft-Tees top seller of toilet paper. When he arrives, the Truth Teller is basically a web-based content farm, reposting wire links from the AP and other clickbait. You know those “You’ll Never Believe What This Star Looks Like Now!” posts? That’s what they focus on. The same way Dave Foley comes into WNYX to revitalize radio news, Ned is determined to bring back True Journalism. Since the company’s budget can’t really support that, the employees continue their Soft-Tees jobs, but those interested volunteer their free time to work on the paper. I feel like a labor union would take issue with that, but whatever.
Like all of these ensemble shows, it’s the cast that make this whole thing worthwhile. In addition to Ned, we’ve got Esmeralda, an Italian drama queen who had been Managing Editor prior to Ned’s arrival. Upset about her demotion, she starts thwarting to take Ned down, by sabotaging his plans. She’s basically the Dwight here, with an OVER THE TOP accent. I mean, her character is SUCH a caricature that I’d believe you if you told me she was from Brooklyn, and this was a Minority Woman character she created in an old improv class. Next, there’s Mare, an Army veteran who serves as the site’s compositor. She’s the one doing the drag and drop of articles from the newswire. It seems like she thought journalism would be exciting, but found out it’s just tedium. She’s about to leave for another job when Ned reignites her desire to investigate. We don’t really know if she’s straight, so there’s a sort of Will They/Won’t They, which is hard to navigate in the pacing of a 10-ep streaming season. The actual Jim & Pam here are Detrick and Nicole, where Detrick is sort of obsessed with coworker Nicole, who is clearly not interested in him like that. Remember what I said about the pacing? Well, in episode 5 he “negs” her (that’s pickup artist speak), and suddenly she’s interested. Detrick is sort of creepy initially, but he’s a sweet guy. Meanwhile, Nicole is basically April Ludgate from Parks & Rec — sardonic and lacking in emotion. The typical Who Hurt You? character. There’s accountant Adelola who kinda serves as the good-at-her-job black chick who randomly says wild shit. Basically Donna on Parks & Rec. She’ll have her own “Treat Yo’self!” by next season. Barry is the Old Black Man who can’t be bothered (Think Stanley, but more senile). Adam is some sort of religious nut whose wife basically makes him keep her pregnant, and he works there to support his growing family. My favorite character, however, is Travis, who’s the nut who works in the warehouse. He’s less Daryl, and more Marcus from Superstore. Since all these shows need a Cringe Aspect, that role is filled by Ken Davies, who represents Enervate Corporate, and is equal parts Michael Scott and David Brent. They’ve certainly learned that “less is more” here, so he only kinda pops into episodes, and isn’t really involved in the main plot.
The refreshing part of the show is that it plays into the fact that they know they’re in a documentary. The Office didn’t really do that until the end, as they were instructed to ignore the camera crew. Then, there was that bad plot point where the boom guy fell in love with Pam. Here, however, they acknowledge the cameras, it helps in certain plots, and they have a better understanding of what they signed up for, seeing as how they live in the universe where folks watched the Dunder-Mifflin documentary. And that’s where Oscar comes in. At first, I didn’t think he was charismatic enough to be the Worf – the character who bridged the two shows. The producers, however, explained that Oscar was the only character at the end of The Office whose story was somewhat open-ended. Plus, it’s sort of great to watch his hatred of the camera crew. When he first notices them, he goes OFF, asking how they didn’t get enough footage of him after 9 years. The onscreen card tells us that there was no actual end date to the release that Oscar signed in 2005! I thought it was going to be a cheap ploy, but Oscar actually fits in and serves a purpose here.
So far, the reviews have been good, and Peacock has already renewed the show for a second season. I’ve got about 4.5 more eps to go, and I’m hoping it holds steady, instead of taking a dip like King of the Hill. The best thing about it so far is that it is, first and foremost, a workplace comedy. That was a failing of The Office after it became a hit, as we didn’t really need to know about the Schrute beet farm or all the stuff going on with Athlead. It was going in too many directions, which I guess you have to do in 9 seasons. Here, however, we don’t know too much about these folks. We hardly know their last names. We’re not really seeing their days off, and we only see their homes if it serves the plot. This workplace comedy is situation directly in the workplace, as it should be. So, Peacock’s The Paper had the West Week Ever.