2 Upcoming Marvel Crossovers That Sound Promising

Marvel recently announced two crossovers. One is intra-compnay as Marvel's parent corp. (Disney) owns the rights via Fox and the other is an inter-company deal with Marvel and Dynmaite. What are these crossovers? Let's discuss...

In a crossover that continues a trend, this August, the Predator will appear again in, "Predator Kills the Marvel Universe." The comics featuring various Predators going up against Wolverine and Black Panther have been shockingly great (a Spider-Man one just started too), hence, it all culminating in a Predator (or Predators) trying to kill all the Marvel heroes should be quite a wild ride. Between this and the upcoming, "Predator: Badlands," movie due in November, we've got a lot of Predator goodness this year!

Another crossover that comes a bit more out of left field is how, "Gargoyles," will be having a crossover with the Fantastic Four in a special comic due this October (with a preview for Free Comic Book Day). Simply titled, "Gargoyles/Fantastic Four," it will be a one-shot special created in a partnership between Dynamite (who currently has the publishing rights to, "Gargoyles," comics) and Marvel (who, obviously, owns the Fantastic Four). I don't think anyone would have predicted such a random grouping but it could be fun! I mean, between the Predator further attacking Marvel's characters and the Gargoyles meeting the Fantastic Four, 2025 is shaping up to have some intriguing crossovers!

McCrispy Strips and Creamy Chili Dipping Sauce--A Review

McDonald's is in the process of rolling-out their release of McCrispy Chicken Strips and a new, "Creamy Chili Dipping Sauce." It has already launched in multiple locations and should be available everywhere by April 29th. I saw a big sign about how it was available now here in Saint Louis when I pulled up to McDonald's yesterday, so I got a pack of four to try and the new dipping sauce. I liked it!

The tenders were quite good. They aren't that crispy despite the name, funnily enough. They are pretty delicious, however. These don't just taste like big nuggets, but have a good flavor profile with a bit of seasoning I was pretty into. As for the Creamy Chili, I've got to be honest and tell you it tastes almost exactly like Freddy's Fry Sauce. This, however, is not a bad thing as I am extremely fond of Freddy's Fry Sauce. The tenders dipped in the Creamy Chili is a real treat for the tastebuds. These tenders mixed with the chili sauce might be my favorite, "Temporary," menu item since the Sweet and Spicy Jam. If your McDonald's is selling these now, go try some! Otherwise, if you have to wait until the 29th, go get some then!

5 out of 5 Stars (for the tenders and sauce).

eBay Now Offers, "Seamless," Grading by PSA

PSA is a big grading company who are making major moves in 2025. They plan to start grading comics (as I've discussed) and now have an intriguing partnership with eBay. If you buy a, "Raw," card for $250 or more from someone, you can have it shipped directly to PSA--as long as it is not autographed. You don't need a PSA account or anything, as it can all happen within eBay for you, the buyer of the card. Your ungraded card that you bought goes to PSA, gets graded, and then is shipped to you.

One interesting wrinkle is that any card that passes PSA grading will be considered a final sale and not eligible for return. What happens if you buy a card that the seller promises is going to grade wonderfully if you send it to PSA, and once graded, it receives a mediocre score? That would be a bit messy, for sure. That concern aside, this is a snazzy feature that makes it easier for folks who are buying an expensive card with the intention of getting it graded to have it just go directly to PSA without a bunch of steps in between. 

The price point of $250 means only the most notable cards will have this service utilized, but one wonders, with successful results, will that number go down? Will other companies try to partner with eBay as well--CGC with grading comics, for example, in an effort to combat PSA? It will be interesting to see how this all develops.

The Official, "Oblivion," Remaster Was Announced and Released Today

Elder Scrolls Games have a lot of fans. Many folks (myself included) adored the 3rd in the series back in 2002, "Morrowind," while the fourth, "Oblivion," came out in 2006 and has numerous fans and the most recent came out in 2011--"Skyrim," and was pretty popular as well. In what was technically a massive surprise if it hadn't been such a badly kept secret, a total remaster/reworking of, "Oblivion," was announced and promptly released today by Bethesda on PS5, Xbox, and PC. There is still that mod in the works too, so you could basically play two totally different and, "New," versions of, "Oblivion," this year if you wanted.

Early buzz for this remake is positive. It looks good, even if a little muddy and muted. I'm going to be honest and let you all know that while I loved, "Morrowind," and quite liked what I played of, "Skyrim," I randomly enough never played, "Oblivion." I'm not sure why, I was perhaps a bit busy in 2006, seeing as I graduated high school and went off to college that year. I did play video-games somewhat during my initial collegiate time, however, but while I dabbled in, "Dead Rising," and, "Hitman: Blood Money," a good deal, I just never tried, "Oblivion," and therefore can't offer any opinions on the original's quality or if this remaster compares favorably. It is available for, "Free," on Xbox's Gamepass, however, so perhaps I should give it a try sometime in the near future? The question is what other game from my backlog I've been meaning to play that I'll need to delete first to have the memory space, however!

Earth Day 2025

It's April 22nd, 2025. Hence, today is Earth Day. Originating in 1970 as a nationwide demonstration, the goal was to raise awareness about environmental issues and to mobilize public support for environmental protection. Earth Day started as a protest for our planet and its health, in other words. A lot has changed since 1970 for the better and lately for the worse. With efforts being made in the United States to gut the EPA, quit tracking climate change, loosen regulations, and so forth, our Earth continues to be mistreated. Plus, ever since we developed the ability to outright destroy our planet within a day's span of time, thanks to Nuclear Missiles, we've been on the edge of disaster perpetually, if you think about it.

Earth Day is about celebrating our planet and recognizing we need to protect it--generally from ourselves. Whether it is something as simple as not littering and conserving water or something as complex as a major corporation trying to have a zero (or negative) carbon footprint, we all can do our part for Earth. Everybody we know of lives here (besides a handful of astronauts in space), after all, so I'd say we owe Earth some respect.

Music Monday: Sad Songs to Make You Happy

Sometimes a sad song weirdly just makes you feel happy. Something about the soulful and sorrowful tune has a paradoxical result of the listener feeling better. I thought I would highlight some songs that always make me happy (even if the songs themselves are the opposite) and might do the same for you.

Anthony Hamilton is one of those music artists who has been around for decades, putting out lots of great songs. "Coming From Where I'm From," is a longtime favorite of mine, with, "Charlene," being another older tune that still is a treat to hear that you can bop your head to, despite how sad both pieces are.

John Waite's 1984 hit, "Missing You," is clever as the song breaks down all the ways he misses a love, but then insists that he isn't missing them at all. It gives the whole song a bit of a vibe of a clever little twisted and depressed joke.

I made a post back in 2021 about greatly enjoying the piece, "Like I Want You," by Giveon. The man's voice is amazing, and this song shows how wild his vocals are; he sounds like the reverb has been turned all the way up, but it is just him! Despite the longing and sorrow in the song, it always makes me smile just hearing his amazing voice.

Joshua Malilay's song, "Warm Body (Demo)," is incredibly minimalistic with just a guitar and him singing about a relationship that fell apart. It just works and makes me feel chill, however.

I randomly stumbled upon the song "Drugs You Should Try It," by Jordan Bratton, some time ago. It is, wildly enough, a cover of a trippy Travis Scott song, but I adore his version. This lush and orchestral take gives everything a deep and introspective feeling.

Kacey Musgraves makes amazing songs, and one quite sad one is, "Justified." It was my song of the year in 2021, and I still adore it. She's just such great singer and lyricist.

To touch upon another cover, Tony Bennett's version of, "Fly Me to the Moon," takes a song that can actually come across as quite peppy, but by slowing the song down and giving his voice a sense of forlorn longing this happy little ditty suddenly becomes a bit sad, and my favorite version of this piece.

Mary J. Blige has a massive discography, but one of my favorite songs by her is the downtrodden, "Rainy Dayz," featuring Ja Rule. It's about how much those literal and metaphorical rainy days just suck. Sometimes you just have to get through a storm to enjoy better times!

Let's end on a big one. Should you read my blog regularly, you'll know I am a huge fan of Kendrick Lamar. One of my favorite songs by him is also incredibly depressing when you listen to the lyrical content--"Bitch Don't Kill My Vibe." It's all about fighting your inner doubts, negative self-talk, and how hard that can be. The kernel of hope in the song makes it extra special, however.

Enjoy the Various Holidays!

Today, multiple holidays occur that are both official and relatively unofficial. It is Easter, we are in the midst of Passover, it is 4/20, and today is National Cold Brew Day! That is a lot of events that overlap, without a doubt. Between Jesus returning from the dead, the Hebrews escaping enslavement, a lot of cannabis enjoyment, and deliciously cold coffee, there is something for everyone to like about today--and safely engage in, be it prayer, weed, or coffee. Have a good one, ya'll.

April 2025 Pieces of Assorted News and General Interest

April showers are supposed to bring May flowers, so I will say we are due for a ton of flowers this May at the rate the month has been going where I live. While I'm rained in I thought sharing some interesting links would be fun/spread some metaphorical sunshine.

Superman Day just occurred on April 18th. It commemorates the first appearance of Superman in, "Action Comics, "#1 which was published on the 18th of April way back in 1938. I continue to look forward to the upcoming, "Superman," movie this July, and I was excited to see it will have some cool McFarlane-branded toys--that Mr. Terrific is snazzy!

A game called, "Tempest Rising," was supposed to have a special edition version that could be played a week early. A mistake was made, however, and all versions of the game let everyone play right away, basically moving the release date up a week! The developer, to their credit, just let things roll and has promised those who bought the pricier special edition will get extra features. This goes to show how silly these delayed releases can be. I'm not referring to Early Access games, of course, just when a game is done but the full-on release is staggered for no other reason than to make money.

"Speed Racer," is a manga that has had many adaptations from anime to that one zany live-action flick by the Wachowskis that was maybe underappreciated for how quirky it was. Now, there will be a Western take on the series in an interesting new twist. Mad Cave is publishing it with David Pepsoe writing and Davide Tinto on art, so between a quality publisher and great creative team, I'm intrigued.

A, "Full," trailer dropped for, "Fantastic Four: First Steps," and I liked it. There was a cool retro-futurustic vibe and the cast all seem to have great chemistry. I also appreciated it wasn't overly-quippy as some Marvel trailers (or movies, admittedly) can be. There was no attempt to undercut the danger posed by Galactus (who we see a shadow and the feet of) via a joke.

The NHL Playoffs begin today, with many thinking the odds are stacked against the Blues getting to (let alone winning) the Stanley Cup. That said, Saint Louis has its latest good luck charm yet, and possibly the weirdest in some time, Jobu. A fanciful homage to the movie, "Major League," Jobu appeared one day in the locker room out of nowhere (so the story goes) and since then the Saint Louis Blues have been (generally) playing fantastically. Whether it is the song, "Gloria," or Jobu, if the Blues are winning let's not question the superstitions helping them do it.

"Sinners," is a new movie by the talented Director Ryan Coogler and is getting glowing reviews. It also had an intriguing contract clause where, after 25 years, the rights to, "Sinners," will go to Coogler, himself. This is a rare occurrence for a studio flick, and one wonders if it'll start a trend.

Tariffs being on-and-off-and-on-and-off and so forth has played havoc with the economy. Everything could go up in price, and businesses could close. It is already happening as, "Renowned board game maker and publisher Greater Than Games has laid off staff and suspended operations," as a result of tariffs. Many may shrug at a board game company shutting down, but it is just one example of how things could rapidly get worse and snowball into a massive mess.

Finally, over at The Comics Journal, they broke down all the Diamond Comics Distributors bankruptcy drama so far in superb detail, thanks to writer Brigid Alverson. I've blogged about this fiasco off-and-on but Alverson summarizes everything expertly.

Flashback Friday: "American Carnage," Remains Disturbingly Topical

White nationalism running amock. Politicians stoking racial fires with hateful ideology. Government agents struggling to do their job amid everything falling apart. This was all in a comic from 2019? Yep, "American Carnage," was one of the last great Vertigo books (before the brand assumably returns from the dead soon) and I think of it often. d. emerson eddy over at Comicsbeat thinks it was great too, having recently spotlit the 9-issue series in their, "Classic Comic Compendium." It is quite unfortunate something that could be considered older/a classic is only now even more topical, but so is life.

The plot of, "American Carnage," follows an undercover FBI agent who infiltrates a white supremacist group with disturbingly close ties to a charismatic businessman running for congress. I loved the series so much I considered it one of the best comics of 2019 and discussed it a great deal in an interview with the writer, and friend of the blog, Bryan Edward Hill. Between Hill's writing and Leandro Fernandez stellar artwork, "American Carnage," is a pointed shot of noir that hits you like an ice-cold glass of your favorite adult beverage (if you drink)--burning on the way down and sitting in the pit of your stomach with sharp intensity as you take it in.

What's scary is how many people believe such things...

It upsets me to no end that, "American Carnage," remains as topical as ever in 2025 as it was in 2019. It also makes it all the more of a good reason to read the series if you haven't. Besides being a stellar story full of gorgeous artwork, it serves as a stark warning of where our nation is and could still be heading.

PS Plus Prices Are Increasing in Other Countries...Could America be Next?

Oftentimes, companies will test something out in one country before implementing it in others. Netflix tried cracking down on password sharing in various regions before bringing it to North America, to give one example. Hence, hearing that PlayStation Plus is raising its price in other countries makes me nervous. Before too long, we could see Sony decide to raise the cost of PS Plus here too, with nary an extra, "Benefit," for us as a result. No matter the reason (tariffs, inflation, etc.), prices will go up, and eventually these increases will hit everyone. Fun times, eh?