"Marc Spector: Moon Knight," #1 is a Great Comic With an Unnecessary Renumbering

Jed MacKay has been writing the character of Moon Knight for a number of years and has created one of the best runs ever. However, because Marvel cannot help but relaunch books with new #1's next to a different title, his epic take on Moon Knight and his crew has been split up across various series, despite arguably being one big story. We had, "Moon Knight," followed by, "Vengeance of the Moon Knight," then, "Moon Knight: Fist of Khonshu," which ended with Marc Spector apparently kidnapped and leads us into, "Marc Spector: Moon Knight," picking up in a manner that is friendly to new readers but clearly could have just been a new issues of the previous series. 

Don't get me wrong, I am thankful that in this era of Marvel killing off books barely ten issues in, MacKay has been able to keep telling us superb stories with Moon Knight with minimal interference from editorial outside of when the book heavily linked to the vampire event, "Blood Hunt," but it made sense as MacKay also wrote that (and there was a brief tie-in with, "Devil's Reign," in the form of a one-shot that was good too). Here we are, though, with, "Marc Spector: Moon Knight," #1, giving us a heavily-drugged and confused Spector put into a strange fake life to trick him into revealing various secrets--until a former foe-turned-temporary-ally (Zodiac) appears at the end of the issue to, "Help." It's good stuff, and  Devmalya Pramanik is amazing, as many artists on these series have been. Paramanik keeps the feeling claustrophobic and tight with his art, making us feel uneasy and confused just like Spector/Moon Knight.

It is clear how I really enjoyed this issue, just as I have with anything Moon Knight-related created by MacKay and the assorted skilled artists he's worked with. The question remains, why is this a #1 issue? It is, at best, a new story arc. At least when, "Moon Knight," ended Marc Spector was temporarily dead with an imposter fighting his friends for much of, "Vengeance of the Moon Knight," until the Blood Hunt event brought Spector back. This new series just feels odd to give a new numbering, even if the series title, "Marc Spector: Moon Knight," is a fun throwback to the long-running 90's series many recall the later issues of fondly thanks to Stephen Platt's wild covers and artwork. Quibbles with renumbering aside, this is another amazing issue of a Moon Knight comic, whatever the official title may be. Whether you're starting with the series here or have read all of MacKay's work on the character, it remains stupendous stuff.

Valentine's Day 2026!

Happy Valentine's Day! Whether you have a partner/s or are currently single (by choice or otherwise), I hope you have a good day. Go out, stay in, and remember that starting tomorrow, a lot of chocolate and candy will be dramatically marked-down at stores (great for anyone with a sweet tooth and a bit of patience). I am happy to be able to celebrate this occasion with my wife, Samii, and continue to be deeply thankful for having her in my life. Now then, let us observe the occasion with the best song related to this holiday, "Happy Valentine's Day," by Andre 3000 of OutKast...

Enjoy yourselves, everyone.

Flashback/Film Friday: Discussing the Forgotten, "Friday the 13th," Reboot/Remake

It is Friday the 13th. As I don't find the number 13 unlucky or anything, this day doesn't feel scary to me, but it does remind me of the fun and scary franchise, "Friday the 13th." I have talked about the best and worst of those movies on multiple occasions, but what about the mostly ignored/forgotten/overlooked remake?

In 2009, a remake/reboot of, "Friday the 13th," hit theaters. It was wholly unremarkable. Outside of an absurdly silly scene where Jason murders someone in a sleeping bag, it has little of note beyond, "Hey, we have a hockey mask a guy named Jason killing teens!" It just lacks...something. There is no spark. Some of the, "Friday the 13th," flicks were a bit snarky and funny. Some were serious and scary, some were hilariously awful. This remake commits the ultimate sin of just being boring. So little sticks out in viewers' minds that is awesome or terrible that I've mentioned the remake to people before who then go, "Oh, I totally forgot that even happened," and we're talking horror-movie afficinados saying this!

Unless you're a huge fan of Jared Padalecki (this movie came out early-ish in the run of, "Supernatural," and would've honestly been better if his character of Sam Winchester fought Jason), or a, "Friday the 13th," completionist, there is little reason to watch the 2009 iteration of, "Friday the 13th." It just comes across as a drab attempt at a slasher film with nothing to say that the over ten or so films featuring Jason in some capacity had said before (it makes the time he fought Freddy Kruger look award-worthy, and that movie was just passably silly). I do hope that upcoming, "Crystal Lake," show which has had development issues but does appear to actually be happening, does the legacy of Jason and, "Friday the 13th," right. Have it be amazing, have it be a wretched, but just, please, don't have it be dull.

I Love This Weekly Planner From Sugar Bunny Shop!

I'm friends with comic creator Lindsay Hornsby and subscribe to her Substack newsletter. In one email, she discussed how she was fond of planners from Sugar Bunny Shop. I looked into them, and besides being adorable, they are perfectly designed for my needs. I, actually, had designed my own little weekly sheet, which I printed that was quite minimalistic but similar in design, starting on Monday and going to Sunday, with it easy to note what week it was. This is just like that, but a lot more professional. The section for weekly goals and little notes looked handy as well. I ordered the frog-themed weekly planner and have been loving using it. Sugar Bunny Shop itself makes more than planners, doing everything from clothes to towels, cards to pins, and more. Based on the quality of their weekly planner, I am definitely a fan and will test out their other wares too. I thank Lindsay Hornsby for the recommendation, too!

IDW Has Plans...Will They Pan Out?

IDW, as a company, has had a number of very public ups and downs because it is, in fact, a publicly traded option on the stock market. They've lost some juicy licenses but have managed to hold onto other ones for dear life (TMNT), plus there have been some hit comics they've put out lately. "Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees," is a weird serial killer comic with cute anthropomorphic critters and, "The Exorcism at 1600 Penn," was just optioned and has a sequel on the way. Things could be worse, but they could also get better, hence IDW recently discussed on an investors' call various plans from having a company-owned imprint where all creations are owned by IDW to...just hoping to get lucky with some more hit books.

I have enjoyed a number of series released by IDW over the decades and hope the company keeps chugging along. DC's Vertigo tried to take away the creators' rights to their comics, and that led to the imprint eventually ending as more creators fled en masse for Image and such (it just came back because nothing stays dead in comics, but yeah). Plus, companies can make their own luck, but it can be hard to predict what might get popular--obviously! I suppose we'll see what 2026 holds for IDW, and I wish them well.

Hot Comics Revue 22--All About That Orc, No Treble

At the moment, if you have an earlier issue of one of the, "Absolute," books from DC you've got something that is basically guaranteed to sell for above cover price. What about stuff outside of DC, however? There are some indie books that have, "Popped," a bit including, "Assorted Crisis Events," and now the first issue of a comic that just emerged last week, "D'Orc." Outside of a promotional ashcan from the publisher, Image, and getting spotlit as an interesting book on Comics Heating Up during the Final Order Cutoff, "D'Orc," lacked much anticipation from the comic-buying public. However, once it hit shelves, positive word of mouth and (I'd presume) the FOMO people had from being late to the party on some of the assorted Absolute books resulted in a rush to acquire copies of, "D'Orc," #1. It was a four-dollar comic, suddenly selling online for $35-$40, and then it just kept climbing. The standard cover A is now trending for eighty bucks or so!

I imagine the heat will die down and the book will settle to a respectable number above its cover price, but not quite as high. For now, however, "D'Orc," is as hot as molten lava. A second printing with many more copies than the first printing has been announced and some sites/apps like Key Collector threw a hissy fit about not being able to predict and pump the book, putting out a rare, "Buyer beware," about how it had zero hype before it dropped, and that makes Key Collector feel the popularity is suspicious. Look, I like Key Collector and often use it to find old key issues of stuff, but this sounds like sour grapes for not getting to take credit for, "Calling," a book would be hot--CHU gets credit, though (and remains a great site and forum)! Yes, "D'Orc," #1 is a sought-after book. Now, we just need to see if it maintains the heat or has a cooldown.

Scattered Super Bowl LX Thoughts the Day After

The Super Bowl happened yesterday, as you may have heard. I don't have a concrete article about it so much as a chunk of scattered thoughts. Observe:

From the tiny bit of opinions I'd heard before the game on the radio or television, Seattle's Seahawks were heavily favored to beat the New England Patriots. That is exactly what happened, with the Patriots pretty much never putting the Seahawks in danger of losing their lead. A fun game for Seatttle fans, a painful one for lovers of the Patriots, and a bit of a defense-heavy bore for everyone else watching.

Many advertisements this year were quite bland. Lots of AI promotion, some Cryptocurrency, and the occasional fun piece. The Liquid Death energy drink was cute with the missing heads and Dunkin riffed on 90's sitcoms in a star-packed piece, but little else stood out. Oh, that Ring camera, "Search Party," was creepy though. It basically bragged if you let them access the 10 million or so cameras in use they can find a grand total of 365 pets. How long until such a tech is used to identify, "Enemies of the State," on the run who spoke out against a government in a foreign country--or, Hell, America at this rate?

I have zero problem with sports gambling and voted for Missouri to allow it, but my God, did that permeate the broadcast today. Betting on sports used to be this taboo thing, and now it's integrated into the whole sports experience as if the idea of enjoying a game without betting a five-spot on who wins is impossible. I mean, knowing you could win ten bucks from Seattle demolishing the spread can be entertaining, but gambling on a sport shouldn't be the sole reason people tune in!

That Halftime show with Bad Bunny was fun! I am not going to pretend I understood most of what was said with my single semester of, "Spanish 101," in college, but there was a clear message of love and unity. Plus, it felt like it was a big and wild party. There was nothing anti-American or offensive to anyone's sensibilities. I mean, unless men and women dancing and eagerly shaking their butts to the beat made you clutch your pearls. Plus, there was a real wedding!

Lastly, there was a burger for sale at the game itself that cost $180 dollars. Even putting aside my allergy to beef, it honestly did not look at all appetizing. That said, those of us who stayed home and watched on television could enjoy our own more reasonably priced snacks. Between food and friends, not a bad way to spend a few hours--regardless of how dull the game itself was!

A Local Pokemon Card Show/Convention Was Apparently Quite the Mess

There are occasions when conventions do not go well. Case in point, I had seen ads for, "PokeKon-Fest," and heard about it, but was unfamiliar with who was behind the show ("Our Cons,") even though they apparently do an assortment of events. This show happened yesterday, however, and was apparently the definition of a shit-show. Overcrowded showfloor, extremely long wait to get in, disorganized in terms of programming, and while (by all accounts) the vendors were nice, many attendees were upset and posted online it put the, "Con," in, "Convention."

I'm not here to pass judgment. I am friends with a number of people who put on comic conventions and pop culture shows. They work hard to make sure things go well. When you hold a show, you want it to draw a good crowd, but you need to be prepared for an underwhelming or overwhelming number of people. Apparently, PokeKon-Fest was woefully underprepared for the sheer folks of people excited for a Pokémon-centric show, and as a result, much of the populace is displeased. Some people did have fun, but if the majority of posts about a show are negative, well, that's not good. I've even helped with conventions in the past and hope to assist with others in the future; I just know I'll work hard to ensure any show I'm involved in will (hopefully) be remembered fondly. At the end of the day, that's what a convention is about--having fun and enjoying a community of fans. If it is treated as little more than a cash-grab, as some suggest about this, "Fest," that's just sad to witness. After all, you are supposed to, "Catch them all," not, "Con them all!"

Why Does it Remain so Hard For Comic Creators to Make a Decent Living?

A handful of notable exceptions aside, most of those who make comic-books are doing it for the love of the art form and won't get rich at it. That said, you would hope those who are making comics we enjoy could at least get a livable wage. In the span of a couple of days, two incidents occured First, we learned that Frazer Irving was literally homeless due to a lease issue and needed food--a man who has worked on huge comic-book properties and is an amazing creator. Next, Kevin Maguire went public about how he would no longer be working on covers for DC, as they hadn't increased his pay in 20 years. He has plans to do his own comics via Kickstarter and such--I hope he makes plenty of funds. 

As for Irving, he got support from fans who bought some of his work from his website and assistance from fellow creators, so he's doing okay for now. That said, why would Irving or Maguire need help or have to walk away due to not being paid their worth? That shouldn't happen. I would like it not to be a struggle for people who help create content that becomes multi-million dollar properties to afford housing and a meal. Only your name in the credits as a, "Thanks," for the latest billion-dollar superhero flick doesn't help pay the bills, after all.

DSTLRY to Pause Publishing

DSTLRY is taking a break. They're not shutting down or going bankrupt, they're just, "Pausing." Yes, the publisher of assorted fun comics that are generally magazine-sized is going to take a break and plot out hte best way to market, print, and distribute their comics for a maximum impact, as DSTLRY tells it. I understand the desire for a publisher to not only survive, but thrive. I mean, DSTLRY has been through the wringer. They were with Lunar, went exclusive with Diamond two months before they declared bankruptcy and proceeded to screw everyone over, then shift to Penguin Random House. That's a lot for a year or so for a known publisher, and DSTLRY had only splashed onto the scene in 2023.

The plan for DSTLRY is to, "..regroup, reset, and return with a more stable, consistent publishing rhythm.” I wish them the best and really hope we eventually get the third and final issue of, "White Boat," someday. That comic was really good.