Excalibur #5. 1988.

And we're back. This was supposed to be the third part in my Arcade epic, but then I got busy with work and other stuff and didn't have any time to scan/write. Well, here it is in all it's glory.

This one (like most of the early Excalibur issues) was written and drawn by the almighty duo of Chris Claremont and Alan Davis. Through a bizarre series of events, the team had found themselves in Arcade's Murderworld and have had their bodies swapped with those of The Crazy Gang. Also, Captain Britain's ex-girlfriend, Courtney Ross was kidnapped by Arcade and was being tortured in a fashion that only Arcade can manage. If that doesn't catch you up, here's a two page spread with everyone involved.

So at some point, Shadowcat phases through the control board disrupting the computer system that runs the place. Then later, Kitty hacks into the system to give her control over Murderworld. This is not a good situation for Arcade, because he is forced to enter his own Murderworld and try and survive it. Hilarity ensues.

First off, Jester (who is in Nightcrawler's body) tries to kill Courtney Ross with the old "tablesaw with a long conveyor belt" routine (Are you serious Claremont? I know this was supposed to be a fun story, but you're digging into Wile E. Coyote's bag of tricks? Yikes). Well, for probably the millionth time in a row, this trick doesn't work and Nightcrawler (who is in Jester's body) starts fighting with Jester (who is in Nightcrawler's body) while Courtney is allowed to escape. She then finds Arcade rather quickly and slugs him in the mouth.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, Miss Locke and Mr. Chambers are trying to lure Lockheed away from his post of guarding the control board (see the panel to the right). Mr. Chambers gets burnt but Miss Locke turns on the charm and they escape off panel.

Choas ensues, a special performance by The Cat's Laughing occurs (I think this was Kitty's favourite band) and eventually, everyone is restored to their rightful bodies. Oh yeah, and Arcade is arrested. Everyone wins, except for the reader, because Arcade was written into the story. I'm sure the reason why Miss Locke and Mr. Chambers escaped was so they can break Arcade out of jail. He should have gotten the chair. Sorry, but that's just how I feel. So that's about it, hope it was worth the wait.

30 Days of Night - Review

I have zero knowledge of the comic other than the basic premise, so I don't know how accurate this film is to the source. I still enjoyed it immensely. It's a dark and bloody movie - exactly what I'd expect out of vampires invading a town in Alaska where the sun doesn't shine for 30 days. Josh Hartnett and the always gorgeous Melissa George star as an estranged couple and leaders of the town's survivors. Most everyone bails on the town for the month, with only a handful of people sticking around.

One thing I loved is when they showed what day it is, so it's an establishing shot "Day 22 " and you see less and less people. You know they only have to hang on for 8 more days. Creepy. I wasn't sure about the ending right after I saw it, but given time, I think I like it. The end is a bit comic booky but it works. I highly recommend this flick.

Worst Avengers Line-Up Ever

I collected Avengers kind of off and on but I think this may go on record as the worst Avengers line up ever. First off, it's only five people. The Avengers should have at least 6-7 people 'cause you know people get their regular days off, so you have to have some flexibility in there. Secondly, two of the five people are members of the Fantastic Four. I don't buy the idea that you can be in two superhero groups at the same time. Certainly not high profile groups like the FF and the Avengers. Mister Fantastic and the Invisible Woman were kind of weak characters back then anyway. Thor is there, he's good. Steve Rogers is going under his The Captain alias at this point and rounding out Earth's Mightiest Heroes is...Gilgamesh, the Forgotten One! He was forgotten before he showed up and I guarantee he's been long since forgotten. Apparently he hasn't been seen in recent years and is presumed dead. Oh, and this just in...no one gives a crap anyway. This issue deals with the Inferno crossover which kind of creeped me out as a 11-year old nice Catholic boy. I think they righted the line-up a few issues later but for a while, this team sucked. The only way this team could have been a worse line up is if Starfox and Dr. Druid were on it.