Thanks to C&C Repair for Fixing my Phone!

I will sometimes write about local places that I enjoy/appreciate, and now is one of those times as I'm going to discuss C&C Repair. They have had a location in Florissant and recently opened a store in Ballwin. As they were located near some other stores I like (including my favorite Chinese restaurant, China in Bombay) I had noticed their store. In the past couple of weeks, my iPhone's back-facing camera had quit functioning properly. I would hold my camera still, but everything would be wavy and shaky. My phone is quite a bit older (iPhone SE2), and I'll be due for an upgrade at some point, but I don't want to have a shaky camera for months. 

It occurred to me I could call C&C Repair and ask if they could help me. I explained my problem, and they told me it would be about $45 and take maybe 20-30 minutes to fix everything. I had time this afternoon to go over there, so I stopped by. I walked into a nice, clean, organized store and was quickly greeted by a friendly employee. I mentioned how I had called earlier, and he happily took my phone to work on it. I read some of a comic I had brought with me (I try to always carry a comic or two and/or a book when I go places), and before too long, I was told my phone was ready. They'd replaced the camera, and they gave me the old one too. The price was exactly what I had been quoted, and I didn't wait too long at all.

I was very pleased with the service I received at C&C Repair. They don't just fix phones, either. They can help with tablets, laptops, game consoles, and more! They also sell devices if you need one as well. I know that when I have any future repair needs, I will turn to C&C Repair as I appreciate how fantastic they were!

NOTE: I was not paid for this post or offered anything. After they fixed my phone and I paid for the repair, they mentioned positive reviews on various websites are always appreciated; I mentioned my blog, and they said they'd love for me to write about C&C Repair, so now I've done so!

Comics Distribution Gets Crazier as Dynamite Leaves Diamond and DC (Allegedly) Joins Universal

The New Ad Populum-owned Diamond Comic Distributors has been an utter hot mess that refuses to pay (or communicate) with vendors/stores and apparently feels like it is, "Playing chicken with idiots," in that regard, while still having time to sue other folks like Alliance Entertainment (who were orignally going to be the party that bought Diamond before that fell into disarray). Barely any publisher was still using Diamond, with Dynamite being the last bigger name still there (and suing them too). Even Dynamite has fled Diamond now, however, for Lunar. Diamond is going to quit doing a print publication, too--although what/who is even left for them to solicit? That settles almost everything outside of some lawsuits though, right? Diamond is most likely going to wither away as a company, and some other entities might emerge to compete with Lunar and Penguin Random House...no more big changes, yes? Oh, wait...

DC is going to sign with Universal (who distribute comics extensively in Canada) to deliver their comics in America, according to a self-declared scoop from Bleeding Cool. For those keeping track of this utter mess, Universal actually was partnered with Ad Populum when Diamond was purchased and acquired a chunk of assets not related to comic distribution--which puzzled folks. Perhaps this was a piece of that puzzle--Universal didn't want Diamond's comic branch for the U.S. because other plans were already in motion! Everything is just getting messier in these comic distribution wars, and I know many people are sick of reading/hearing about it, but I'm fascinated by how bizarre this is all getting. As soon as one element settles down, something else gets all unstable and unpredictable. I'm 100% sure there will be more on all of this as it develops.

Happy Juneteenth 2025!

Today is June 19th, also known as Juneteenth. While the holiday has existed for quite some time, it is our youngest/newest National holiday in the sense that it is federally recognized (e.g., Federal employees are off, banks are closed, no mail, and so forth). If you're curious about the history of this holiday, I'd highly recommend reading up on it (from legitimate sources). Hopefully, this day isn't stripped of its status. Even though President Trump once championed making Juneteenth a Federal holiday (in his first term as President), his latest time as POTUS has been marked by a sharp anti-diversity stance. Anything that isn't white, straight, and cisgender has been treated with disdain by Trump and his GOP flunkies--for now, Juneteenth has escaped his wrath, however. Have a great Juneteenth, everyone!

The Upcoming, "Batman," #1 Relaunch will Have (Pricey) Polybags

It has been almost exactly a month since I posted about how the "Battle Beast" blind bags were a hit. I suspected other publishers would poorly copy them, of course. Well, DC has announced that the upcoming relaunch of, "Batman," will feature polybags for $9.99 with various variant covers. The regular comic will be $4.99. I would like to point out I wrote, "I don't look forward to DC or Marvel trying to do a blind bag variant themselves for a character nobody cares about and asking $9.99 for it, only to be surprised when it flops." I was half-right as Batman is a huge name, but I nailed that $9.99 and want my bonus like when you're right on the money at, "The Price is Right." 

Due September 3rd, I'm excited for this relaunch as an actual comic series--it has a stellar creative team in the form of Matt Fraction and Jorge Jiménez. I'd even be intrigued by DC doing these blind bags, but at double the cost of the regular comic (compared to how, "Battle Beast," priced everything the same), I'm going to sit out any mystery bags this time. I guess we'll see how they do at the higher price point!

A New, "The Twilight Zone," Comic Series is on the Way

The original version of, "The Twilight Zone," is amazing. I'll rewatch old episodes of the series that had Rod Serling as the showrunner (and oftentimes writer/executive producer/etc.) and be amazed how good a job the episodes did of telling stories that still ring true today in regards to our xenophobia, perceptions of beauty, and more (some episodes were simply intense and clever too). There have been multiple revivals of the series and a feature film (another is allegedly on the way too), but that original series is still the best. Now, a cool comic-book take (the latest of a handful that have occurred) is on the way.

This latest, "The Twilight Zone," comic will be an anthology--just like the television series--where each issue stands alone. The artwork will intentionally be in black-and-white as the OG version was too. Set to be published by IDW, some great names are attached to the initial five issues, including such talents as Tom Scioli, James Stokoe, Francesco Francavilla, and more! I know I'm excited, and I look forward to the first issue this September!

The, "Tells," of AI Writing Has One, "Tic," I Actually Personally Do a Lot AKA the Em Dash

I read a fascinating article by Charlie Fink where he breaks down how AI-written content can be prone to certain, "Tells," that make it obvious a computer wrote something. He is careful to point out some humans might engage in these behaviors and one or two things does not mean an AI wrote something. However, all of it together can be a dead giveaway. Always asking and answering rhetorical questions for a dramatic flourish instead of just starting with a statement. Quotes with zero attribution. Constant use of dashes. These are some examples and--wait, dashes?

Yes, anyone who reads my blog knows I love to use dashes/en dashes/em dashes/so forth. The em dash is the longest and is often used to show a shift in thoughts, add emphasis, and so forth. I looked at my past writings from the week and saw I loved to use my dashes, even putting one in a headline with, ""Marvel Knights: The World to Come," #1 is a Fantastic Read--and Generating Spec Heat as Well," on June 8th. Now, I am a human and not an AI (as far as I know, unless this is a Westworld situation). I also have made my distaste for AI, "Writing," things abundantly clear. Still, Fink discusses how, "ChatGPT favors dashes – over commas. This is the easiest tell – really," and uses dashes while doing so to be extra clever.  This made me wonder why, exactly, I am a fan of dashes?

Wait, there are times not to use dashes?

I thought it over and I feel like I got into dashes during college. No, this isn't a joke about, "Experimenting," with dashes in college as if it were my sexuality or drugs, although that would be a clever joke. I sincerely recall taking certain classes about literature and writing where all kinds of techniques were discussed, including en dashes and em dashes. I found em marks/a bunch of dashes quite handy the more I learned about them. 

As Merriam-Webster itself discusses, em marks, "can mark an abrupt change or break in the structure of a sentence...indicate interrupted speech or a speaker’s confusion or hesitation," and more! It is a darn useful tool for emphasizing things too, as they are "used in place of commas or parentheses to emphasize or draw attention to parenthetical or amplifying material. In this particular task, em dashes occupy a kind of middle ground among the three: when commas do the job, the material is most closely related to what’s around it, and when parentheses do the job, the material is most distantly related to what’s around it; when dashes do the job the material is somewhere in the middle." That's right, em dashes are a beautiful middle ground for emphasis in addition to being fantastic when writing dialogue or getting a point across--something I do on this blog often--and I just used some dashes here to prove my point!

I understand this whole article probably is only interesting if you are a linguistics and/or grammar nerd (hi, Mom) or fascinated by the weird ways AI writing can have odd tells (as others have noticed about the dashes too when I started looking into it) I guess the fact real humans can be prone to certain AI-centric tics proves that we should not assume something is written by AI if it has a few wonky aspects. That said, when many/all the little concerns pile up, then we might have some AI slop on our hands. Myself, however? I just love me some dashes despite being made of flesh as opposed to circuits.

Happy Father's Day 2025!

We played at Rock the Spectrum Gym this morning!

I want to wish a happy Father's Day to all the dads and father-figures out there today. One of the things I treasure most in life is being a parent with my wife, Smaii, to our two awesome boys, Clarkson and Gibson.. My children are amazing and I'm incredibly thankful to have them in my life, just as I am eternally grateful for my own fantastic father, whom everyone else (besides my sister, at least) refers to as, "Erik." Have a great day, everyone!

The Latest Iteration of Diamond Comic Distributors is Really Going Down in Flames, Eh?

Diamond Comic Distributors kicked off 2025 by declaring bankruptcy. After a ton of drama ranging from whether it would survive as it was, to who was even going to buy the damn thing, Ad Populum partnered with Universal Distribution to buy the majority of Diamond and split it up. Ad Populum took the comic distribution aspects of Diamond over around Mid-May and has been taking the company down in flames since then. Between massive layoffs, not paying anybody what they are owed, implementing new unpopular policies on No Cost Reorders or CODS, and sucking at commmunicating anything, like, at all, to retailer, it is all really bad. Publishers are pissed, comic shops are mad, and pretty much nobody is using Diamond besides Dynamite (a publisher) and shops that order Dynamite books.

The thing that boggles my mind is why Ad Populum contributed as much money as they did with Universal to buy Diamond and only screw everything up specatularly? Is the intention to kill Diamond for some reason, and are we witnessing a company intentionally being run into the ground for some unclear reason? I do wonder if things would have been better if Alliance Entertainment had bought Diamond as was the initial plan before that all fell apart, too. We'll just have to wonder.

Flashback/Film Friday: I Admit It! I find the First, "Friday the 13th," Relatively Boring

Today is a Friday and the 13th, so I always think of the movies. I have written about the, "Friday the 13th," films on multiple occasions. I've talked about how the flicks vary heavily in tone, touched on which ones are the best for newbies to the franchise, and even asked if Part V deserves some recognition as being a good movie if it didn't have that awful final twist. One thing I should admit, however, is that while some entries are universally agreed upon as being pretty bad (Part VII, the ninth entry of Jason going to Hell, we already touched upon V), I have to confess that the first movie is ostentibly good, but it bores me.

Yes, this is my controversial opinion about how the debut, "Friday the 13th," is a decent enough movie...but boring. I'm not just saying this because Jason is barely in the movie (his mother, Pamela, is the baddie), the flick just meanders a lot between some decent kills and the eventual reveal of Pamela. Part II is a superior movie in every way, and III is mediocre but at least introduces the infamous hockey mask (I already linked to my discussion of adoring Parts IV and VI as well). You can say I'm not a, "Real," fan for this view, and I am not saying I dislike Part I...it just is really slow going. 

Pamela Vorhees (as portrayed by Betsy Palmer)

I am okay with a horror movie being a slow burn, but when a supposedly brisk 90-ish minutes feels like it slogs along at many points...well, there is a bit of an issue. I am not alone in stating this, but few posts or websites share my opinion or go too far and say the whole franchise sucks (some of the flicks are certified bangers). There you go, that's my hot take on the, "Friday the 13th," franchise. I just hope the upcoming, "Crystal Lake," prequel show is exciting!

The, "Mindseye," Game Had as Bad a Launch as Folks Expected

"Mindseye," is an open-world-ish shooter game that had a former longtime, "Grand Theft Auto," producer (director for this game) named Leslie Benzies, involved in its creation with the new studio, Build a Rocket Boy.  As its release date neared, there were concerns expressed about the game being functional/more than vaporware. As the launch neared, Build a Rocket Boy co-CEO Mark Gerhard went on a strange PR offensive, saying people were funding a smear campaign against the game. Gamers were hoping for something akin to, "GTA," "Mafia," or the like, but as many feared, the launch is a hot mess. Reviews are negative, and people are demanding refunds. As for damage control, that's just making things worse!

There were big plans for, "Mindseye," according to Build a Rocket Boy. User-created content enabling some kind of Roblox-esque community was intended, but will this game last long enough for any dreams of long-lasting content creation to come to fruition? We've seen games launch in a messy state and be drastically improved with patches. I'd argue that of two big examples of that, "No Man's Sky," and, "Cyberpunk 2077," that even upon launch both were quite good, even if flawed, however. "Mindseye," just seems like it was delivered to players in shambles, with gamers left to pick up the pieces. I always prefer it when a game surprises people pleasantly, but not this time. "Mindseye," can be played on an Xbox, PS5, or via STEAM, but that is not recommended right now by most folks, clearly.