There may not be a mystery to solve in The Batman & Scooby-Doo Mysteries #9 but there's still plenty of fun to be had when Mystery, Inc. find themselves at a heroes gala without any other heroes. It seems all the heroes in town are busy putting an appearance in at Gotham City Comic-Con (the meta of which the comic doesn't attempt to explain) leaving the charity gala ripe for the picking by not one but two different villains.
The second episode of A Discovery of Witches features Matthew Clairmont (Matthew Goode) attempting to steer clear of Diana Bishop (Teresa Palmer), attempting to get his desires under control, while Diana discovers the stir she's created given her access to the missing manuscript. The realization of what the witches want it for, the methods they use to attempt to frighten her into getting it for them, and a personal betrayal, all leave Diana at her wits end with no one left to turn to other than the vampire.
The anthology series in black, white, and green returns for another issue with four separate stories taking place in different times and versions of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' history. My favorite of the bunch is the humorous "Shredder Gets Caught on Things" which features Michelangelo highlighting Shredder getting caught on things over the years in comics, movies, and TV (often with deadly results). Every one of the flashbacks shown in various styles of the original it references.
Returning to theaters 20 years after its initial release, Edgar Wright's horror comedy Shaun of the Dead still entertains. Written by Wright and star Simon Pegg, the film gloriously celebrates and mocks both zombie films and romcoms alike in this tale of a zombie apocalypse descending on London while many people are too busy to notice until it's too late. Who best to survive? Bet you didn't have your money on a group led by two of the laziest men in Crouch End. I'll also note that viewing this in a post-COVID world also adds a different flavor to the film (as does viewing any zombie film highlighting humanity's stupidity).
An attempt on Jim Gordon's (Eric Morgan Stuart) life sends Batman (Hamish Linklater) to prison in an attempt to get the hit called off and with a warning for Barbara (Krystal Joy Brown) and to visit the prison in an attempt to get Muller (Peter Jessop) to call of the hit leading to an unexpected discovery: Jim isn't the target. While the action is good, and the twist works well enough with Barbara revealed to be the target even one of the police detectives is willing to kill for, "Moving Target" is the most forgettable episode of the season. The point of the episode, so to speak, is to provide Barbara a new perspective as to what someone deserves.
After languishing in development hell for three decades, a sequel to 1988's Beetlejuice finally makes it to theaters (sadly without any references to the previous failed sequel plans such as Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian). Bringing back some of the original cast (with notable exceptions of Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis) while mixing in a few new faces such as Jenna Ortega, Willem Dafoe, Monica Bellucci, and Justin Theroux, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice captures the same zany energy of the first film if not quite the same magic. Lacking the boldness of Beetlejuice, the sequel feels very much the compromise of a movie just happy to have finally gotten made.
After dealing with the drama and searching for meaning and truth in the lives of the other characters, Gray and Vince are happy together and Ivory has started something good with Molly. That leaves things open for the odd man, er Ghost, out. On his birthday, Ivory takes his friend camping to search for the beast who killed him. The set up allows the comic to explore both the idea of ghosts and Matt himself (allowing us to see him before his death).
"The Cleanse" is most notable for revealing how the Ben died during the flashback of the opening scene showing the last mission he went on as a member of the Umbrella Academy. Hargreeves (Colm Feore) explains the action of his other self and also why this version was working so hard to keep the team away from the adult Jennifer (Victoria Sawal) whose proximity to a member of the team, or anyone exposed to the marigold which gives them their powers could lead to the end of the world (foreshadowing the end of the series).
Although he didn't make it into the new comic's first issue, Powerpuff Girls #2 delivers Mojo Jojo who sets out with a fun little plan which, like most of his plans, doesn't go as expected.
The only thing I've ever wanted out of Ben Reilly is for him to be the Scarlet Spider. I don't have much in the way of interest of him being Spider-Man or being a Spidey villain (which sadly are the only two options that Marvel seems interested in). Currently calling himself Chasm, Reilly is back in villain mode calling himself Chasm with his crazy girlfriend Hallow's Eve robbing New York tourists for fun. He's also had his past wiped from his mind, unaware of who he used to be or what he could become.
In one of the more interesting setups of the relaunched series, "The Belly of the Beast Job" features our team taking on a sexual predator of a music producer (Jeffrey Vincent Parise) but keeps them mostly in the background allowing the guest-stars to take over center stage when the naive Jenna (Emily Hall) gets hired for the new assistant position that their plans relied on. Working their way around less access than they planned, Leverage gives Jenna the proper nudges at the right time to lead her to uncover the truth about her boss and expose him, and his crooked business partner (Gail Rastorfer), to the world.
Sydney Sweeney stars as a novice recruited to be a nun at at a remote convent in the Italian countryside where older nuns are taken care of in their final days. From the pre-credit sequence, involving a nun frantically attempting to flee the order only to be tracked down and buried alive, it's obvious to the audience there's something dark happening in the convent long before Sister Cecilia (Sweeney) arrives. Not long after arriving, Cecilia discovers she is pregnant, leading the nuns treat her as a new Virgin Mary... well, except for the one (Giulia Heathfield Di Renzi) who attempts to drown Cecilia out of jealousy.
Akiko (Olivia Munn) finally catches up to Hit-Monkey in her self-titled episode but is unable to get her revenge. Despite being warned about the dangers of letting an enemy live, Monkey can't bring himself to kill her leading to her eventual escape and new partnership with Lady Bullseye (Reiko Aylesworth). Looks like all killers are getting ghost mentors these days. Also of note, the episode fills in some origin stories for members of the Collective and Iris (Cristin Milioti) begins a new career cleaning up crime scenes.
Zatanna spends most of the third issue being talked at by both the Casters and the Order of the Rabbits who magicsplain and accuse the young woman.. Sticking up for herself, and to her story that she hasn't used magic since she was a child, Zatanna is frazzled by the end of the issue and at her wits end (especially after learning that, perhaps without meaning to, she has indeed been using magic). The introduction of John Constantine to the story may provide more answers but probably won't lower her stress level.
Although it ends the season without any further action toward finding the Mad Mage or rescuing Falin (Lisa Reimold), the final two episodes of the First Season of Delicious in Dungeon provide plenty of stand-out moments. First, we get a proper backstory for Senshi (SungWon Cho) explaining his time in the tunnels and his reaction to the Griffin. Laios (Damien C. Haas) helps put him at ease with the latter with the help of the same monsters who cause the party a different kind of trouble. Senshi's flashbacks take an incredibly dark turn, with old fears being dragged back into the light. Thankfully, Laios' gamble pays off and allows his friend to find peace.
lazy afternoon 🛋️ pic.twitter.com/SVdc9CmOs3
— Mike Maihack (@mikemaihack) September 1, 2024
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