Sometimes I Think About Dying

Exploring the mundane, particularly through a dramatic rather than comedic lens is a challenging undertaking. Director Rachel Lambert's adaptation of Kevin Armento's play stars Daisy Ridley as an introverted office worker who often fantasizes about her own death. Friendly, but not friends with anyone in the office. Alone, but not necessarily looking to give up her solitude, Fran (Ridley) begins a friendship with a new coworker (Dave Merheje) whose attempts to break her out of her shell lead to mixed results.

Nightwing #116

Nightwing #116 quickly skips over the part of this story was most concerned with. We get Dick Grayson's recovery and the equivalent of a montage to get him out of the country and on his quest to the Himalayas. While his friends are ready to stick up for him an even allow their secret identities to be exposed to save his own, Dick is more concerned with recovering what he's lost as Nightwing than clearing his name (at least for now) which plays out similarly to the  Bruce's focus in Batman: Bruce Wayne - Murderer?

G.I. JOE: A Real American Hero #308

The mutant Cobra storyline continues as Serpentor Khan readies stealth fighters with his mutated soldiers who he will drop on Springfield to fight for his version of Cobra. Springfield is also of importance to the Joes who send the entire Ninja Team (hell yeah, give me as much of this group as you fit in every issue) to the city. Interesting to see Scarlett chosen as their leader which chafes Storm Shadow a little. Along with them are also Zartan, the Baroness, and the Dreadnoks, although the attack on the city by the mutated troops may change our heroes' timeline.

The Inventor

Even if it does get a bit schmaltzy in its final act ending in a questionable musical number, 2023's The Inventor still has much to offer in the stop-motion animation that explores the life of Leonardo da Vinci (Stephen Fry) first in Rome and later in France where his experiments and inventions struggle against the expectations and demands of his patrons. Leonardo finds a kindred spirit in Princess Marguerite (Daisy Ridley) who shares his dreams in creating an ideal city, although her brother Francis I (Gauthier Battoue) is more concerned with his inventor creating ways for the king to show off to other rulers.

Hit-Monkey - Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?

Bryce (Jason Sudeikis), Haruka (Ally Maki), and Hit-Monkey look for who set them up leading to a pair of bloody and violent confrontations taking place in the New York Public Library and an an exclusive Gentlemen's Club. In both situations, Haruka's new blade overwhelms her creating a new situation for Bryce and the monkey to deal with, but "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner?" is most notable for the carnage the three create not once but twice which leaves no one alive left to answer their questions. The episode also introduces the character of Dot, a young assassin who chooses to help our protagonists against the Aldermen for reasons of her own. If there's a negative to this point in the season, it's that the humans (each with their own story) are beginning to overshadow our title character.

Wonder Woman #11

An Absolute Power tie-in issue, Wonder Woman #11 opens with Diana playing poker with an add assortment of characters including Billy Batson, Detective Chimp, John Constantine, Mary Bromfield, Madame Xanadu, and Jim Corrigan. Some robot, randomly quoting Charles Dickens attacks the group stealing power and magic from various characters as it continues to get stronger. 

Exploding Kittens - Pilot

Loosely based on the board game of the same name, the first episode of Exploding Kittens introduces us to a douchebag of a God (Tom Ellis) who is exiled by Heaven's Board of Directors to Earth to earn a little empathy from humans. Oh, and he's now a cat. Sent to help the (mostly annoying) Higgins family (Suzy Nakamura, Mark Proksch, Ally Maki, and Kenny Yates), Godcat struggles to bring the family closer together (eventually merging their various individual interests into a bonding activity based on the dad's roleplaying game that puts the entire group in mortal danger). 

Chaos Walking

Adapted from the first book of a sci-fi trilogy, Chaos Walking offers a dystopian future on an alien world where human settlers deal with an oddity of the planet as men's thoughts are broadcast allowing others to hear, and even at time see, them. Our two main characters are the local screw-up Todd Hewitt (Tom Holland) and newly-arrived colonist from space Viola (Daisy Ridley) who is notably taken aback by the unexpected phenomena and whose appearance throws the town into chaos and forces hidden truths about both the town and world Todd has grown up on to be explored.

Usagi Yojimbo: The Crow #4

With the kidnapping of Yukichi the focus of the issue, we get the young boy Isamu getting a meal and payment from Miyamoto Usagi and then agreeing to lead Usagi, Gen, and Stray Dog to their missing friend. The bandits have their own issues to deal with long before the heroes get there as one of their number, believing Inuyoshi isn't ruthless enough to lead them, attempts a coup. Thanks to Yukichi's warning, the former samurai survives now further in debt to Usagi's family.

Jurassic World: Chaos Theory - The Drop / Into the Fog

"The Drop" continues both groups on their way to the secret headquarters of the dino-smuggling ring. Yaz (Kausar Mohammed) and Sammy (Raini Rodriguez) make their way in the back of a DPW truck with a doped-up Becklespinax while Darius (Paul-Mikél Williams) and Kenji (Darren Barnet) follow Brooklynn's (Kiersten Kelly) notes to a drop site where the dinosaurs are usually handed over. This will lead to all four characters reaching the facility in "Into the Fog" snooping for clues and finding Bumpy in the crates of caged dinosaurs who will have another surprise for the group as well.

The Acolyte - Episode 8

The Acolyte concludes with a finale that plays into expectations. The final four episodes of the series have all pointed towards Osha (Amandla Stenberg) trading places with Mae and taking her twin's path on the Dark Side (complete with the bleeding of a kyber crystal which has been discussed in various Star Wars properties without ever being shown until this point). As with the previous flashback episode, which only confirmed events viewers should have already have worked out on their own, "The Acolyte" finale provides a confrontation between Mae and her old master Sol (Lee Jung-jae) pushing her path towards Qimir (Manny Jacinto). The path of Mae turns out to be far less interesting, mind-wiped and basically trading places with her sister, meaning we're left in largely the same situation we were when the series began.

Young Woman and the Sea

Based on the true story of the first woman to swim the English Channel, Daisy Ridley stars as Gertrude "Trudy" Ederle. After filling in a little of her early life (including surviving the Measles as a child to the utters surprise of everyone), the film moves forward with the young Trudy's (Olive Abercrombie) fascination with swimming following her sister Meg (Lilly Aspell and Tilda Cobham-Hervey) into lessons and eventual competitions proving herself the best female swimmer England had to offer. This will lead to the Olympics and eventually the English Channel as new challenges to overcome.

What Happens in Miami (Should Stay in Miami)

What Happens in Miami is a lackluster thriller focused on a group of friends Ashlei Sharpe Chestnut, Annalisa Cochrane, Rachel Leyco, and Jada Elena Wooten one of whom (Cochrane) goes missing while on spring break. The focus on the film isn't about the loss of their friend, what happened to her, emotional drama or fallout but instead the girls being afraid of the police who for some unknown reason believe they are better suspects than the missing girl's drug dealer boyfriend (Christopher Collins) who was with her when she went missing.

The movie breaks down the interwoven threads of current events, which center around the girls talking to police and lawyers, and flashbacks to spring break that fill in gaps over the course of the film revealing the missing Autumn (Cochrane) was a real bitch to even her closest friends. We get late reveals and even a not-so-shocking twist before the film mercifully, finally, concludes. 

Invincible - This Must Come as a Shock

"This Must Come as a Shock" picks up with Mark (Steven Yeun) recovering from the battle against the Viltrumites and helping the Thraxans before returning to home with his half-brother. We get some awkward reunions with his mother, Amber (Zazie Beetz), and others which will be expanded on in the next episode as events are put in hold to deal with an invading ship from Mars full of Sequids. Mark joins Eve (Gillian Jacobs) for a fight in space while the leftover Guardians Rex (Jason Mantzoukas), Kate (Malese Jow), and Rae (Grey Griffin) deal with the Lizard League breaking into a nuclear facility on Earth.

Kill All Immortals #1

The first issue of Kill All Immortals introduces us to the Asvald family. It turns out there's more to the family than simply the notoriety of their billions or the whispers of the violence used to procure and keep their wealth. Descended from  Erik the Red, the family of Vikings is immortal, bloodthirsty, and very, very dangerous (especially when their secrets are in danger of being exposed).

Hit-Monkey - Return to Sender

Having returned from Hell (agreeing to help his simian sidekick stay on a murderous path), Bryce (Jason Sudeikis) leads the despondent Hit-Monkey to New York City where he starts making a name for himself. Setting up various characters in the new locale, we get Hit-Monkey being hired by Bryce's old agent (and taking up residence in Bryce's apartment). Haruka (Ally Maki) also makes the trek to the West bringing along Bonzai Master's sword whose power allows her to survive an attack by a creature who was either a giant tiger or a possessed alley cat (or possibly both). The sword, connecting her to its previous owners, is of obvious interest to someone lurking in the shadows. We also see Bryce's daughter who it seems, like the sword, will play a role over the course of the season.

Scarlett #2

Having found them, Scarlett attempts to earn a place within Arashikage. First, that means staying alive and continuing to show off skills that might be useful to the clan. Second, that means accepting a suicide mission to retrieve something vital to the clan under impossible security. But for Jinx, Scarlett is willing to risk everything.

Delicious in Dungeon - Ice Golem/Barometz

While facing an Ice Golem and Dire Wolves, the episode's purpose is to work the selfish Izutsumi (Mitsuho Kambe) into the group and, by the end, also give her a taste for monster flesh. Helping the party against the golem, but the abadoning them against the wolves, the then injured Izutsumi is then saved and healed by Marcille (Emily Rudd) learning a little bit about doing for others (a lesson she ignored in the flashbacks to her younger days we see her as well). The meal of the episode is made from Barometz.

The Lazarus Project - Episode 12

Having successfully time jumped, but ending up further back in time than they planned. By the end of the episode the team has what it needs to attempt another time travel jump and get about their mission. However, temporarily stuck where they are provides some members of the group the change to reexamine their past. Archie (Anjli Mohindra) begins looking into the secret job Ross (Brian Gleeson) did, even confronting him about it pretending to be her younger self. Meanwhile, George (Paapa Essiedu) attempts to prove to Sarah (Charly Clive) that they were always meant for each other returning to the party with each interacting with the younger versions of each other on the night they met. While self-contained, almost a little bottle show outside of the events of the season, there's plenty of interesting pieces to the episode allowing the longer storyline to pick up in the next episode.

Ahsoka #1

The first issue of a by-the-numbers adaptation of the Disney+ series of the same name, Ahsoka #1 retells the events of the first episode of the series without adding any new context. I'll be honest, the idea of an Ahsoka comic series grabbed my interest, but realizing it was just republishing events of the series quickly dimmed those expectations. 

Jurassic World: Chaos Theory - Free Fall / That Night

"Free Fall" reintroduces Yaz (Kausar Mohammed) who has been working through her dino-triggered PTSD and helping others with similar issues in a dino-free zone. She's less than thrilled about the news someone is using dinosaurs to hunt them, and initially refuses to leave. A dino attack controlled by DPW agents changes her mind while also allowing Yaz to show Sammy (Raini Rodriguez) how well the rehab has worked and how strong she is now. Barely surviving the attack, the trio decide to hitch a ride and find out who is behind this conspiracy.

The Lion King

It's the circle of life. Returning to theaters for the film's 30th anniversary, The Lion King tells the story of young Simba (Jonathan Taylor Thomas and Matthew Broderick) and his journey following the death of his father (James Earl Jones) and the pride being taken over by Simba's villainous uncle Scar (Jeremy Irons) and his hyenas (Whoopi Goldberg, Cheech Marin, and Jim Cummings) responsible for Mufasa's death and Simba's exile.

Fly Me to the Moon

NASA might seem an unusual spot for a romcom, but Fly Me to the Moon soars on the wit of its script and the charm of its stars Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum. Is it a great film? No, but it's a damn sight better than your average romantic comedy and certainly better than I was expecting. Johansson stars as Kelly Jones, a New York marketing expert brought it to make NASA sexy again and help sell both the public and Congress on Apollo 11's trip to the moon. Concerned with the safety of the astronauts and the aura of the program, Cole Davis (Tatum) immediately butts heads with Kelly's approach (despite the obvious attraction between the pair).

Space Ghost #3

With the origin story of how Jan and Jace started working with Space Ghost complete, the series moves on to the three fighting evil together. We see some early frustration from Space Ghost to how cavalier the youngsters but they'll step up before the issue is done. The main story involves Space Ghost making a deal with the unscrupulous Widow who plans out a heist of Robo Corp which would allow Space Ghost, Jan, and Jace all to get some some intelligence on, and some payback for, the company that destroyed all of their lives.

The Acolyte - Episode 7

"Choice," the seventh episode of the season, provides the Jedi perspective to the same events of the season's third episode, "Destiny." I don't think we needed another full episode flashback episode here which seems like a bit of waste considering the show is winding to a close and also there's not really anything new presented or revealed. We see the growing tensions between the Jedi and the witches, the spark which ignites, and Sol's (Lee Jung-jae) fear for the safety of the children. And, unable to save them both, we see his choice to save Osha (Lauren Brady), but it's simply a matter of perspective with no new information provided. The only real bright spot is the episode offers more of Kelnacca and Indara (Carrie-Anne Moss) who were underutilized for most of the season.

Grendel: Devils Crucible - Defiance #1

I have a confession to make. I love Hunter Rose. The original Grendel ranks as one of my favorite comic characters of all time. And while Matt Wagner has taken some interesting paths in exploring various later iterations of the character, the further you get from the original the more my interest wanes. The new series, Grendel: Devils Crucible - Defiance, focuses on the last of the Grendels: Grendel-Prime. Returning to Earth after centuries in space, the paladin finds a stark world of haves and have-nots with most tech horded by Necro Lords leaving others to roam the wilderness in a steam-punk-ish society.

My Adventures with Superman - The Death of Clark Kent

Well, if you can't come up with a good villain you can always turn Superman (Jack Quaid) into the villain, I guess. As Kara (Kiana Madeira)  helps Lois (Alice Lee) and Jimmy (Ishmel Sahid) sneak aboard the ship, Brainiac (Michael Emerson) works on Clark's psyche finding a weakness in the recent disappointments concerning his friends and exploiting them. The episode ends with Brainiac now fully in control of Superman's body laying the foundation for Lex Luthor (Max Mittelman) and Amanda Waller's (Debra Wilson) fears to come to pass with an invasion of Earth by "Superman."

Invitation to a Murder

Set in 1934, a group of strangers are brought together by a reclusive billionaire to his private island estate. The guests include florist, and mystery novel aficionado, Miranda Green (a frumpy Mischa Barton), an American journalist (Chris Browning), a lawyer (Seamus Dever), and three others (Bianca A. Santos, Giles Matthey, and Grace Lynn Kung). The last character of the film is the estate itself, well-shot but underutilized until the film's final act. 

Delicious in Dungeon - Hag/Nightmare

"Hag/Nightmare" adds a new member to the party when Izutsumi (Mitsuho Kambe), who was part of Shuro's (Shinji Kawada) party, ambushes the group demanding Marcille (Emily Rudd) use black magic to remove her curse. The woman's manners rub everyone the wrong way, even forcing an outburst from the usually serene Senshi (SungWon Cho). The second-half of the episode deals with Marcille being overtaken by Nightmares leading Laios (Damien C. Haas) into her sleeping mind and helping the younger version of Marcille he finds their overcome her fears and break the hold of the Nightmare. After returning to the waking world, Laois is happy to learn that the Nightmares are oyster-like creatures found under Marcille's pillow which can be cooked in some butter and soy sauce.

Inquisitors #1

Featuring the Force-wielding Inquisitors introduced in Star Wars Rebels, the first issue of the new mini-series starts on the planet Targyon with the Grand Inquisitor searching for Jedi Tensu Run who Darth Vader has tasked him in finding. Not finding the Jedi, and displeased by the locals unwillingness to provide information about his whereabouts, he leaves death in his wake. The comic also provides some flashbacks Tensu Run taking down an Imperial outpost on his own and freeing prisoners beginning a legend the Dark Lord of the Sith wants squashed before it spreads any further creating a hero for others to rally behind.

Dead Boy Detectives - The Case of the Hungry Snake

After returning from Hell, the season finale ends with Edwin (George Rexstrew) and Charles (Jayden Revri) captured by Esther (Jenn Lyon) who has built a machine to pull the suffering from a ghost and turn it into magical power. Edwin's Hell experiences turn out to be the perfect battery. Crystal (Kassius Nelson) has to put aside her struggle with the return of her memories and the realization of the awful person she was before losing them and help rescue the ghosts with the help of Niko (Yuyu Kitamura) who won't survive the showdown (or will she?).

Axel F

Fueled on nostalgia and various Eddie Murphy bits, Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F does feel like a Beverly Hills Cop movie... just slower, older, and at times in desperate need of a nap. Breaking out the hits including a big opening action sequence in Detroit set to music from the first two films (making use of "The Heat is On" and "Shakedown,") we then get Axel quickly back to Beverly Hills to protect his estranged daughter Jane (Taylour Paige) and to look for his missing friend Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) who both have gotten caught up in a case involving dirty cops.

Moon Knight: Fist of Khonshu #0

Bridging the events of Blood Hunt and the new series Moon Knight: Fist of Khonshu, this zero issue works basically resets the stage for both old and new users reintroducing all the characters of the Midnight Mission from the perspective of Khonshu. The perspective is interesting, giving us the god's disapproval, but often grudging respect, for so many of the characters that have made up the supporting cast previous Moon Knight series saving the resurrected Moon Knight for last.

The Lazarus Project - Episode 11

While Archie (Anjli Mohindra) begins a new workplace romance, and the Lazarus Project struggles to recreate their own time machine, George's (Paapa Essiedu) encounter with Becky (Safia Oakley-Green) changes everything. Surviving the first attempt of Bryson (Royce Pierreson) to kill George for actions he hasn't taken yet, George isn't so lucky the next time around. However, the restart of a new loop, and coming clean with Lazarus and Dennis (Tom Burke) about Becky, leads to a key discovery for the Lazarus Project to make their first attempt at time travel and prevent the loop from occurring before time collapses destroying all reality with it.

Black Widow & Hawkeye #4

The four-issue mini-series limps to a conclusion without much in the way on an actual conclusion which, is admittedly, a bit odd for a final issue. We are given more of the flashbacks featuring Hawkeye, Black Widow, and Iron Man where Natasha takes one for her friend allowing Clint to look better following the assassination attempt on Damon Dran and not hurt his standing with the Avengers. In the present we catch up with Hawkeye captured by Dran and arguing with the symbiote before Natasha eventually shows up for the expected save.

Jurassic World: Chaos Theory - Brothers / Halfway Home

"Brothers" and "Halfway Home" continue the series theme of bringing the Nublar Six back together as Darius (Paul-Mikél Williams) attempts to convince Kenji (Darren Barnet) of the dangers hunting them and Sammy (Raini Rodriguez) and Ben (Sean Giambrone) head out to get Yaz. The Darius/Kenji storyline focuses on questions and blame concerning Brooklyn's death. After discovering she visited Kenji's father shortly before her messy end, the pair meet with Daniel Kon (Andrew Kishino), who meets a gruesome fate of his own after attempting to blackmail his son (karma?), leading to even more discoveries and questions as to what Brooklyn was up to in the days before the dinosaur attack.

The Acolyte - Episode 6

After it was revealed that The Acolyte centered around a pair of twins you knew eventually we'd get around to the obligatory Parent Trap situation (especially considering this is a Disney product making such a turn of events inevitable). Having taken her sister's identity, Mae (Amandla Stenberg) spends some time with Sol (Lee Jung-jae) plotting his murder until her deception is uncovered. Her capture seems to set up a revelation about the events which occurred on Brendok years earlier involving Sol, and the Jedi Mae have killed, which he and the others appear to have hidden from the Jedi.

Hendo Art - How to Make a Dark Magician Girl Cosplay (Part 1)

Hendo Art is a cosplayer from California living in Norway. You can follow her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitch, Vero, and Twitter. You can also find more lewd content on Instagram and Twitter, and support her on Patreon and OnlyFans.

Despicable Me 4

You know you're in trouble when the main plot of the film is its weakest aspect. The latest from the Illumination franchise introduces Maxime Le Mal (Will Ferrell) as a longtime rival for Gru (Steve Carell) whose feud started in their boarding school days. Opening at the class reunion, Gru and the AVL take down the super-villain whose latest scheme involves transforming himself into a human-cockroach hybrid and arming himself with an army of smart cockroach soldiers (his own Minions so to speak) and an array of cockroach-style technology.

Nights #8

Don't lose your head. Halloween is a good time for all, until it isn't. Nights #8 gives us characters in a good place. Ivory has his demon under control and love may be in the air for more than just Vince and Gray. Even Matt is enjoying himself scarring the shit of the neighborhood trick-or-treaters. A house party, friends, and booze, what could go wrong. Oh, did I mention one of the guests is some kind of malevolent creature with delusions of grandeur who cuts off Gray's head and steals her body? Yeah, I didn't have that on the bingo card.

Wild Things

Your feelings on 1998's Wild Things may vary based on whether or not, for you, the over-the-top salacious erotic thriller hits enough spots to be a guilty pleasure or not. Kevin Bacon referred to it as the trashiest script he had ever read. Tightly wrapping sex and titillation around a complicated plot involving a teacher and two of his students involved in a fake rape, a defamation lawsuit, and eventual double-crosses and murder, Wild Things is peak 90s sleaze.

The Lazarus Project - Episode 9 / Episode 10

The Second Season of The Lazarus Project opens with the world stuck in a three-week loop caused by another secret agency playing with time. Coming clean to the group about everything he did last season, George (Paapa Essiedu) finds himself on the outs and having to work on his own to get back in. The Project does, however, find another recruit in Sarah (Charly Clive) who we will see follow a similar path to George in training and also dealing with the various other possibilities of her past which all got overwritten (many involving a relationship with a man she never even met in the current set of events).

Calamity Jane

A low-budget Western more notable for the reunion of Arrow stars Emily Bett Rickards and Stephen Amell than anything else, Rickards stars as Calamity Jane out for revenge after Wild Bill Hickock (Amell in pretty awful wig) is killed in a Deadwood saloon while she's cooling her heels in a jail cell. After breaking out, Jane hunts down the man responsible (Primo Allon) who hires a crazy murderer (Priscilla Faia) and her brothers to provide protection on his way through the lawless Badlands.

Doctor Who - Empire of Death

Wrapping up the first Disney season of Doctor Who, Sutekh (Gabriel Woolf) wipes out most life across the universe. The Doctor (Ncuti Gatwa), Ruby Sunday (Millie Gibson), and a corrupted Mel (Bonnie Langford) slowly falling under Sutekh's control, survive to find a way to undo Sitekh's wave of death following backwards through time everywhere the Time Lord's T.A.R.D.I.S. has traveled. One thing keeping The Doctor and his companion alive is the mystery surrounding Ruby's mother which even Sutekh can't uncover and becomes obsessed with the answer.

Zatanna: Bring Down the House #1

Part of DC's Black Label, Zatanna: Bring Down the House #1 kicks off the five-part mini-series with a glimpse of Zatanna's life in Las Vegas, along with some childhood trauma that seems to have stuck with her around the time she first learned magic which we see teased in flashbacks. Despite her sunny disposition, there's a tension under the surface we see multiple times over the course of the issue including during a run through the desert and with one of her little fluffy rabbit friends.

Jurassic World: Chaos Theory - Down on the Ranch

The theme of reuniting the band continues in "Down on the Ranch" as  Darius (Paul-Mikél Williams) and Ben (Sean Giambrone) arrive in Texas to collect Sammy (Raini Rodriguez) from the Guitierrez Cattle Ranch. We also get a reunion with Bumpy who has been living on the ranch since Sammy's return (much to the displeasure of her neighbors). Their reunion is cut short by another run-in with the raptors as the three barely make it out alive and hoping Bumpy can survive on his own. There are several questions of course (why not target the extremely isolated Sammy before the boys could warn her?) but the format, racing for their lives and dealing with the fallout of their shared experiences, continues to be the backbone of the show.

Ultraman: Rising

Combining elements of a reluctant hero, evil government agencies, the struggles of early parenthood, estranged father-son relationships, selfish characters learning to care about others, and Kaiju leaving mass destruction in their wake comes Ultraman: Rising inspired by the Japanese series and its various spin-offs. Our main character is prima dona Ken Sato (Christopher Sean) who returns to play for the local baseball team and to take over his father's secret role as Japan's protector Ultraman.

Nightwing 2016 #115

Continuing the "Fallen Grayson" arc, Nightwing #115 picks up at events of the fundraiser spoiled by Heartless. The entire event was staged to get his hands on Dick Grayson (and underneath Batman's nose, which might be the hardest aspect of the story to accept). After discovering his secret, and realizing he can remove two enemies (both Grayson and Nightwing) in one fell swoop, Heartless enacts the next stage of his plan framing Dick Grayson for his crimes by drugging him, dressing him up as the super-villain, putting a gun and victim at his feet, and leading the police to the crime scene.

My Adventures with Superman - The Machine Who Would Be Empire

Leaving events on Earth alone (although we may catch up with those a bit in the next episode), "The Machine Who Would Be Empire follows Kara (Kiana Madeira) and Clark's (Jack Quaid) adventures in space where she eventually leads him to her "father" Brainiac (Michael Emerson) who wishes to rebuild the Kryptonian Empire. Through some sort of mind-control Brainiac has been using Kara not to bring planets in peacefully to the empire but to wipe them out completely (including Thanagar which the cousins visit). By the end of the episode Kara understands how she has been duped, but she need some help to save Superman (and the universe) from the AI.

Destro #1

Set in the new combined G.I. JOE / Transformers Engergon Universe, Destro #1 works as a reintroduction to the character. Using the Energon supplied by Cobra Commander, Destro uses the new prototype B.A.T.s to settle a personal score and set up a relative on the throne of the Republic of Darklonia. The test is a mixed success, in taking over the country (but also having no control of the bloodthirsty soldiers who kill friend and foe indiscriminately) and also raises the ire of Cobra for such a public demonstration.

Dead Boy Detectives - The Case of the Creeping Forest

There are a few different pieces all working simultaneously in "The Case of the Creeping Forest." While the regretful Niko (Yuyu Kitamura) attempts to repair the damage she unintentionally did to Jenny (Briana Cuoco) with a blind date that ended in death, the detectives are brought a new case by Monty (Joshua Colley) unaware they are walking into the witch's trap. Edwin (George Rexstrew) and Charles (Jayden Revri) are also unaware that Crystal (Kassius Nelson), in an attempt to break David's (David Iacono) influence over her, has used a magic artifact that seems to have taken away her powers.