Don't waste your time and money on Oculus.

After my temporary position at my job ended, I was technically demoted and took a pay cut just to stay on (and yet, I'm still classified as temporary - go figure!). Needless to say, I haven't been in much of a mood to post lately - so you know this must be important/believe me when I say: You know that movie, Oculus? It SUUUUUUUCKS.

The Marvel Cinematic Universe makes its first big mistake.

In the interest of full disclosure, I should reveal that I own each of the following trade paperbacks:

Marvel Masterworks: Captain Marvel - Volume 1
Avengers: Kree/Skrull War
The Life of Captain Marvel
The Death of Captain Marvel

So it was with some dismay that I learned that - according to the 3/4/14 episode of Agents of SHIELD entitled "T.A.H.I.T.I." - [SPOILERS!] apparently the Marvel Cinematic Universe version of Captain Marvel is just some guy who's already dead.

Not only that, but they got certain fundamentals of the character completely wrong. Mar-Vell was a pink-skinned Kree, belonging to the lower caste - never blue.

Also: What was up with him being a giant, and having overtly alien features such as elongated fingernails/claws? And don't give me that it's actually based on the Ultimate Universe, because a) it shouldn't be, since that doesn't count/isn't canon; and b) even if it is, I DON'T CARE!!!

If they're going to do that, why even bother using Captain Marvel in the first place?
[/SPOILERS!]

Status update:

You might recognize 2012 as the year I posted a grand total of one new article. Well, that's because it was the last time I was working full-time.

Now I'm employed again.

I already feel as though I don't do enough with this blog. It's bad enough that I lack both the means and the talent to convert this to a video format - I mean, it's hard to stay relevant as text-only. Heck, the fact that I seem incapable of finding one successful focus is evident right in the title!

My new schedule is such that I'll hardly have time to read any more comic books, etc. I've even recently been ignored by a couple of legitimate internet personalities, to boot.

We'll see where things go from here.

What I Dislike About...

Convention sell-outs.

The folks running MystiCon 2014 have absolutely no foresight. The only convention in our area to ever book famous, truly worthwhile guests is completely sold out. Anybody who had to put off buying a ticket - say, those with uncertain financial futures (held captive by alleged potential employers, waiting on a phone call that never comes to officially offer them a position - or... so I've heard) - is just out of luck.

Seems that John de Lancie - Star Trek's Q, of all people - once did a voice on My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic. Who knew?

Apparently, the so-called "bronies" knew (proving once again that BRONIES. RUIN. EVERYTHING.)!

*sighs*

The real shame of it all is that this could have been so easily avoided. I - and doubtlessly other locals who have now found themselves similarly shut-out - attended last year's convention. Which means that the organizers had access to my contact information.

But did I receive any email warning me that tickets were almost gone? "You have to act fast if you don't want to miss out on this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," they could've advised me!

They didn't even give any indication that this sell-out was imminent on their own website!!! So really, what more should I have expected?

The Clairvoyant on Marvel's Agents of SHIELD is:

Have I got your attention? Good. Because I want to assure you that I have no special insider knowledge. I'm just a guy with a keyboard.

That said, the Clairvoyant on Marvel's Agents of SHIELD is totally Dr. Samuel Sterns from The Incredible Hulk (2008) - portrayed in the film by actor Tim Blake Nelson. In the comics Sterns is better known as the super-villainous Leader.

What has led me to this conclusion? Three things:

1) It fits with the character's skills and power-set in the comics;

2) Nelson, the actor, has appeared on TV before (of particular interest: his leading role in the short-lived 2011 CBS series CHAOS);

3) Emil Blonsky, aka the Abomination - who likewise featured prominently in the aforementioned film (portrayed therein by Tim Roth) - was recently mentioned on Agents of SHIELD (in the 2/4/14 episode, "T.R.A.C.K.S.").

EDIT 4) Actor Adrian Pasdar has recently been confirmed for an upcoming episode in the role of Major Glenn Talbot. That's right - another Hulk villain.

Regarding Uatu the Watcher's imminent death in Original Sin #1:

Such a pointless waste of a beloved character. So I guess this means, no more What If? People born in decades hence will no doubt look back on Kirby's "Coming of Galactus," and wonder who that bald guy is on the cover of Fantastic Four #48.

And really, what purpose does this serve? Can any possible new story that results from this outweigh what Uatu himself brought which was at all unique to the Marvel universe?

I think not.