Super Fatigue: Marvel, DC, and the Blockbuster Bubble

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We’ve all seen the announcements, major events reminiscent of Apple conventions, wherein the stuff of comic books are plotted out in their latest big screen adventures. This year, both Marvel and DC have declared (civil?) war upon movie screens and wallets across America. Over the next six years, there will be over 40 (!) superhero movies featuring the characters of the two comics publishers released, setting the tone for blockbusters for the immediate future to come. On the surface, this sounds exciting – there’s never been a better time to be a comic-book movie fan.

And that might not necessarily be a good thing.

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On Gone Girl: Meryl & Travis Pick Apart Nick & Amy

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Rosamund Pike as Amy Dunne

Rosamund Pike stars as Amy (seen here), and Ben Affleck as Nick. (image via)

It’s been a few weeks, so hopefully you’ve had the chance to get yourself acquainted with Gone Girl by now — be it by reading Gillian Flynn’s 2012 mind-bending novel, or by seeing the author-written screenplay film adaptation that came out last month. If not, be warned: Spoilers lie here. (Lots of them!)

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A Forgotten History Retold: Karina Longworth’s “You Must Remember This”

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This picture is worth more than a thousand words.                                            Karina Longworth speaks those words.

Karina Longworth is overqualified to talk about movies. She holds three degrees in film (the first coming from our own School of the Art Institute of Chicago), co-founded the late, lamented Cinematical web site, and until recently served as chief critic for the venerable LA Weekly. Longworth left that position because, as she told rogerebert.com, she found being forced to have opinions on so many films she didn’t care about was less interesting than researching and asking deeper questions about films she did care about. Today, Longworth is a multiply-published author, a college teacher…and one of the best new podcasters in America with her show You Must Remember This.

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Essay Fiesta to Celebrate Five Years of Live Lit

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Book-cellar

Essay Fiesta will celebrate five years Nov. 17 at the Book Cellar.

At the very first Essay Fiesta performance on Nov. 16, 2009, founders Keith Ecker and Alyson Lyon didn’t know what to expect. They’d invited a handful of writers they knew to read essays for strangers they hoped would come out for it, at the Book Cellar in Lincoln Square. The pair were in then-uncharted territory, seeking an audience for the live performance of written essays and first-person narratives. Live literature was new and Chicago, now the art form’s epicenter, was the wild west.

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Thoughts from the Dugout: AwardsWatch 2014

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Image of Clayton Kershaw

Well, that was a fun 2014 baseball season. Time to move on to the next phase of baseball magic: the offseason.

During baseball’s offseason, many interesting things happen. Unusual contracts are signed, granting mediocre players obscene amounts of money that cripple your franchise’s pitching staff for years (sorry, I’m still bitter about Homer Bailey). Odd choices are awarded for fielding awards, using subjective rather than objective criteria (fortunately, nobody awarded anything to Brandon Philips this year). And random-ass Hall of Fame elections happen, resulting in as much head-scratching as they do in triumphant celebration (seriously, who the fuck voted for Jacque Jones??).

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the Fifth Line: Shooting the Percentages

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The boys of summer have finally given way to the boys on the ice, and “the Fifth Line” takes over for “Thoughts from the Dugout.” It’s been a month since the NHL season started, so let’s check on how things are going, shall we?

State of the ‘Hawks

A month into the 2014-15 season, and the Blackhawks are… okay? [Read more…]

Addison Recorder Pick ‘Em Week Eleven – Gramila and Me

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Welcome to the Addison Recorder‘s football Pick ‘Em column. Each week Alex and a guest writer will predict the outcome of the most intriguing games on the slate. He will try to be as expert as possible, but we make no guarantees for his guests.

This week we’re joined by Bean’s once and future cabinet-mate at Groupon, John Gramila. He said he might use augury for his predictions, so watch out. [Read more…]

J&STAC: Halloween Inspiration

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-J. Michael Bestul is a writer for the Addison Recorder. Stephanie Ruehl works in a comic book shop. They’re married and have a lot of discussions about comic books and graphic novels. Combine all that into a biweekly feature and you get “J. & Steph Talk About Comics.”

Halloween and comic book conventions both spotlight the idea of dressing up like your favorite characters. Steph is an occasional cosplayer, and -J.’s Halloween archive contains many comic book costumes, so we decided to use this year’s costumes to talk about the books that inspired them.

prettydeadly-crow-mauve_1024x1024Pretty Deadly (vol. 1)

Words by Kelly Sue DeConnick, art by Emma Rios, colors by Jordie Bellaire, letters by Clayton Cowles

Steph: I adore Kelly Sue DeConnick. I just want to get that out of the way, so everyone knows that I may be biased in this review, but really, Pretty Deadly is just plain good. [Read more…]

Benched is the Beans’ Favorite New Show

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Benched USA Eliza Coupe Jay Harrington

Benched is a show that deserves to be seen.

Benched, a new sitcom that airs on Tuesdays at 9:30 CST on USA, is catnip for the Bean household. It boasts a cast we love, a winning creative team, and a concept that promises more thematic heft than the typical sitcom. The show is about a corporate lawyer who loses her boyfriend and her job in brutal fashion and lands at the public defender’s office. Yes, you already know where this is going, but it’s the potential journey that has us excited. It’s love at first sight over here, but let us break down why we’re so excited about Benched.

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Highlights from Amy Poehler’s “Yes Please”

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Cover of "Yes Please"

Yes Please came out October 28. (image via)

I bought this book on Audible on Friday afternoon and finished it Monday night, savoring the last hour at home while cleaning before sitting down to write this review. Listening to Amy Poehler talk about her life, her career, her family and her friends was soothing and inspiring at the same time. She made me want to write but also call my aunt to catch up. (I still owe you a call, Aunt Cary.)

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