Released 9 years ago today. It was a Friday, and no one realized that in three days David Bowie would be called back to his ancestors in the cold, black void of space. I'm wondering if this video is modeled after his home planet?
NCBD:
Oh man, I am psyched for this week's books! Let's get into it!!
Back in November, the first issue of David Ian and Rebekah McKendry's Barstow took me by surprise and blew me away! The desert can certainly be a creepy place, and Barstow leans into that all the way. Can't wait to see where this goes!
Bruticus vs. Devastator? 'Nuff said! This has me twitching with anticipation that HasbroPulse might be gearing up to release a Combaticons set similar to the Constructicons one they did last year. I could let Devastator lads pass me by, but Swindle, Vortex and their crew are probably the only merger set I would love to own. The original versions just never did the character designs on the cartoon and comic book justice. To have a Swindle or Onslaught that actually look like the characters... that would be amazing.
I read the first issue of Dan Watters' Batman: Dark Patterns last month and really liked it. Watters has become go-to writer for me; I won't read everything he does for the big two, but I think I'm 100% up on everything he's released that's creator-owned. I'm digging these one-off Bat-series, though, so I'm back on Patterns this month for another round.
This book is just f*ckin' nuts! I don't know where we're going or how we ended up where we are (what a fantastic final page last ish!), but I'm hooked once again. Boss and Rosenberg have a punk rock dystopian epic on their hands.
Watch:
Rejoice! Vinegar Syndrome announced the Blue Ray for Ryan Kruger's Street Trash!
I pre-ordered mine as soon as I saw the announcement; this SEQUEL to the 1987 original came in at number six on my Top Ten Favorite Horror Films of 2024, which can be heard over on the latest episode of The Horror Vision.
Chelsea Wolfe - She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She
Chrystabell & David Lynch - Cellophane Memories
David Bowie - Heathen
David Bowie - Black Star
The Jesus Lizard - Rack
Hall and Oats - Greatest Hits
Card:
Today's card is the Knight of Wands:
The Firey aspect of Fire, or the Willful aspect of the Will, which feels convoluted or redundant. What does A.C. say about this one in his Book of Thoth?
"The moral qualities appropriate to this figure are activity, generosity, fierceness, impetuosity, pride, impulsiveness, swiftness in unpredictable actions."
This card implies a quickening and might warn about going off half-cocked. Things have to get done, but be careful how to do them. Impetuous actions don't often work out well, and impulsiveness can be a good thing, but it can also lead to a bad end.
Oh man! Mr. Brown steered me to this one the other day, and it's fucking EPIC. Reminds me how much I love this band. I need to get Hot! on vinyl like yesterday! Also, serves as a great reminder to pull out their Christmas album.
NCBD:
This week's pull list has some pretty exciting titles in it:
One name sums up my absolute excitement for this issue: BRUTICUS!!! I am a huge fan of the Combaticons, and seeing them dart in and out of the last few issues, I knew this couldn't be far away.
Loving Jeff Lemire's new series Minor Arcana so far, but then, I've really come to appreciate these books where he writes and does the art. His style is very distinct and very mature, i.e. he's been doing it long enough that it really feels 'complete.'
This is another new, limited Batman series. Here's the solicitation from League of Comic Book Geeks:
"Set during the early years of Batman's career, Batman: Dark Patterns delves into four mysterious cases as he attempts to cement his place as Gotham City's protector while the city itself fights back against him. This is the Dark Knight Detective at his most stripped-down core, a man relying on his wits, his skills, and little else as he tackles some of the most twisted mysteries Gotham City and its protector have ever encountered.
Case 01: We Are Wounded
A series of sickeningly gruesome murders has sent shock waves through Gotham. Are these the random works of a serial killer, or is there something more sinister at play? Batman attempts to get to the bottom of the mystery before any more victims are claimed."
Sounds pretty cool, eh? Definitely worth giving a shot, at the very least.
Watch:
Danny Boyle and Alex Garland's 28 Years Later got a trailer yesterday and there was no way I wasn't going to watch it, despite the fact that between now and the summer 2025 release date, I expect to be inundated with this trailer ad nauseam.
I'm a huge fan of the first two films in this series, and despite the usual disdain I hold for late-coming sequels, I'm pretty excited about this. It feels natural, not like a cash grab.
From Jonathan Grimm's Hand of Doom Tarot, which you can buy HERE.
• Five of Swords
• Page of Pentacles
• XI: Justice
Good will comes from finding a truce, and finding the truce comes from recognizing the "Lunar Pull" - Read: obscured influences - on seemingly unconnected processes. I'm not really sure how this applies to my daily life at the moment, but as always, it's good to approach the day with this in mind and see what reveals itself.
