Originally posted at PrimeTimeGeek.com.

PTG Episode 78 is brought to you by Bloodsport. It’s ridiculous to me, considering everything that’s out there on the web to be viewed on YouTube or streamed through Netflix or Amazon.com or iTunes or any number of other online media outlets, that Bloodsport, arguably the only film in Jean-Claude Van Damme’s filmography that can be considered a “classic” of any kind whatsoever, cannot be found online in any appreciable form–it is still ONLY available on DVD (unless you count a stray VHS tape still viable out there). Other JCVD movies are available, the truly terrible ones that aren’t worth remembering or rewatching, that is. Hell, even Kickboxer, Van Damme’s far-less-satisfying follow-up to Bloodsport, is available on blu-ray–how did that happen? I know this because I went searching for audio and video clips, and only found the same scenes over and over again, mainly the fights, and while those are great, some of the dialogue not found in these scenes is truly wondrous cheese that’s worth quoting over and over again. I humbly submit to you that Bloodsport on blu-ray or available streaming through some reputable media outlet, well, that would be my Christmas miracle for 2009, or one of them, anyway.

In addition to talking a little about the films of the Muscles from Brussels, in this episode we spend a bit of time talking about what was, again in my humble opinion, the worst let down in terms of comic book series of 2009, and arguably the worst series overall, Ultimatum. Yes, we covered every issue of Ultimatum when it hit stands this past year, and though it seemed to start so breathtakingly well, as writer Jeph Loeb’s apocalyptic vision of the “end” of the Ultimates universe unfolded it seemed to devolve into simply a series of increasingly violent and gruesome death scenes. In the end, the series was an abattoir for the Ultimates characters, nothing more, and any sense of drama readers might have felt in the “reveals” of the final act is drowned in all the blood and spectacular death. As someone who once called himself a Jeph Loeb fan, I was left truly “dissed”: disenchanted, disillusioned, disappointed, disdainful of the celebration of carnage, illustrated so capably by artist David Finch, the lone bright spot of the whole series. I’m sure my opinion is in the minority–it usually is–but I look forward to a time when Loeb turns back to writing something intelligent, hopeful, and inspiring. He’s done it before–Superman for All Seasons stands in my mind as the most shining example–and I’m hopeful he’ll do it again someday.

Also we cover the final new Fringe episode of 2009, “Grey Matters”, two new Dollhouse episodes, “Meet Jane Doe” and “A Love Supreme”, and give you our top Marvel picks from last week’s selection of new books, including New Avengers Annual #3, Invincible Iron Man #21, and PunisherMax #2. Enjoy!

Originally posted at PrimeTimeGeek.com

PTG Episode 56 is brought to you by Superman/Batman: Public Enemies, now on blu-ray and DVD. (Support Prime Time Geek by purchasing it through Amazon with the link provided!) Well, I’ll say this much for Warner Premiere’s latest direct-to-video animation offering: it’s by FAR the best of the bunch, especially in terms of how well it brings to life the source material, in this case the bestselling comic series and graphic novel by Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuiness. Trouble is, of course, that calling it “the best of the bunch” isn’t saying a whole lot. Be sure and check out this weekend’s live broadcast of PTG from Heroes Landing in Clermont, FL for our full review of the feature, but I’ll just say this one last thing about it for now: if you were a fan of the Superman and Batman animated series of the 1990s, and you recall with as much nostalgia as I do the iconic renditions of Supes and Bats by Tim Daly and Kevin Conroy, respectively, then there’s much to enjoy for you in this movie.

So Episode 56 is all about Superman, because in my opinion its a great time to be a Superman fan. Yes, I know, there’s no Superman feature film even remotely on the horizon, but aside from that, with the great ongoing writing and artwork to be found in the current line of Superman and Superman-related comics, as well as Smallville returning for its 9th Season (yeah, I know, maybe not such a good thing) and the aforementioned “Superman/Batman: Public Enemies” now on store shelves, there’s lots out there to enjoy and be excited about. In this hour we cover a great deal of all that, plus talk a bit about the images of Nicolas Cage’s supposed “costume test” for the thankfully-never-filmed “Superman Lives” project that producer Tim Burton threatened to unleash upon movie audiences in the 1990s, a project that certainly would have had us Superman devotees and aficionados fleeing theaters in droves while trying to tear out our own eyeballs to make the burning stop. IF the image that made its way around the internet is, in fact, genuine, (see below!) then its even more proof that we were all better off with this nightmare never taking flight, and those folks out there who decry Superman Returns might wish to be a bit more thankful that THAT was the movie we got a few years later, rather than Burton’s “vision.”

Chilling, isn’t it?

Prime Time Geek Episode 28 is brought to you by Custom Design & Printed, where we’re creating our NEW online swag store! Printfection was cool for a while, and that store is still up, but if you take a minute to check out Custom Design & Printed, I think you’ll notice right away a LOT more product for a WHOLE lot cheaper. How about a PTG T-shirt for $16 instead of $25? How about mugs, keychains, hip flasks, and tons more aside from apparel? How about you take a look for yourself and check it out. Remember, any purchase you make supports Prime Time Geek, and your support is GREATLY appreciated, so keep checking here at primetimegeek.com for updates on when the new store will be open for business!

It’s been a while since we’ve had an Ed Brubaker lovefest on PTG, so here’s one to make up for lost time. In our minds, its completely justifiable: Captain America, which has been steered with unswerving ability by Brubaker for several years now, led off the week by making headlines in the mainstream media (although not in the way Marvel might have preferred–see below), and on Wednesday the latest issue of Incognito, Brubaker’s latest not-for-the-kiddies collaboration with artist Sean Phillips (Sleeper, Criminal) for Marvel’s Icon imprint, hit store shelves. Incognito has been nothing but fun, and Steve Rogers, it turns out, is only “mostly dead.” Brubaker is responsible for both, so he gets pretty much a whole hour of PTG. End of story.

And just one final thought to follow up on this episode’s lead segment: don’t hold the whole “Captain America #600 in stores on Monday” fiasco against your local store. IF you knew that Cap #600 was supposed to be in stores on Monday (a BIG ‘if’) and you went to get it, chances are your favorite comic shop didn’t have it yet because a) UPS hadn’t arrived yet to deliver it; or b) the store refused to pay extra shipping to get it there early, predicting (accurately) that there wouldn’t be enough increased traffic on the Monday to justify the expense. But it’s much more likely you didn’t even KNOW the issue would be available on Monday, you went by your local comic store on Wednesday, as usual, and there were plenty of copies left since no one came in on Monday because the media hyped Cap’s return but rarely mentioned anything about Cap #600, the issue that kicks off the story of his return, being in stores that day. In this economy, the smart play was to NOT pay the extra money to Diamond in order to get the issues early–the stores that did definitely did NOT get enough traffic on Monday to justify the expense. Said it during the show, it’s been said many times, many ways, I’ll say it one more time: Blame Marvel-they screwed the pooch big-time on that one. Doesn’t happen often–they scored big with the Spidey-Obama promotion back in January, and when Cap’s death made headlines 2 1/2 years ago, the mainstream media ran with it, resulting in big bucks for the House of M. Chalk it up to risking big to win big, as Marvel often does, and this time coming up a loser. It happens to the best, and I wouldn’t bet against them coming up on the winning end next time they roll the dice.

Prime Time Geek Episode 26 is brought to you by Tate’s Comics in Lauderhill, Florida. Well, not exactly brought to you by Tate’s, since they’re not a sponsor, but they are REALLY cool. We here at PTG wholeheartedly recommend you check out their website, and if you’re in South Florida and love comics, toys, anime, gaming, or just about anything pop-culture related and you haven’t been up to Tate’s, shame on you. Get in your car, Google the directions, and go. Right now. Put the podcast on your iPod and take us with you, ’cause we’d love a return trip over there.

[NOTE: The correct address of Tate's Comics is 4566 N. University Dr. Lauderhill, FL 33351--during the podcast I erroneously located the store at 4555 N. University. I apologize for any confusion.]

Now, if you live in and around where Tate’s is located down there in the Lauderhill/Sunrise/Plantation area of Broward County, Florida, the name “Past, Present, and Future” might also be familiar to you, and might seem a strange choice of title for an episode of PTG during which much time is spent going ga-ga over Tate’s. But aside from being a store name held at one time by a store quite close to Tate’s, Crossroad Comics and Games, “past, present, and future” is very much a theme running throughout this entire hour of PTG. In the literal sense, it relates to both of the comics we spotlight in this episode: Batman #687, which ushers in a new era for the Caped Crusader as Dick Grayson takes on the mantle of the Bat; and Buck Rogers #1, which shows the beginning of an exciting new envisioning of one of sci-fi’s most venerable time-traveling heroes. In their own ways, Batman and Buck Rogers are characters whose appeal defies the passage of time, and no consideration of their new adventures can escape some form of comparison or contemplation of what has come before.

But Episode 26 is also very much about memories and change. After all, a trip to South Florida for me is a trip down “Memory Lane”, an opportunity to drive along the streets that my friends and I back in the day cruised upon as we quested for gaming books, for new anime, for Battletech miniatures, for rare toys, and just about anything else that we might have fixed our sights on back in the day. Trips into that area require that I reconcile those memories of past experiences with present circumstances, such as the fact that the store my friends and I referred to as “The Shrine” (the aforementioned Crossroad Comics) due to its sheer size and its vast selection of geekly distractions has since changed ownership twice and is now most certainly the second option for geek shopping in the area. “Going home” means recalling the past, reconciling it with changes in the present, and contemplating the future–it’s simply unavoidable, especially if you have someone with you who is seeing it all with fresh eyes. More often than not, those places that are so special in our memories as childhood haunts and playgrounds lose some of their lustre once they are stripped of the veil of nostalgia and seen under the present’s harsher light. Time is often unkind … often but not always.

Yes, the store in North Miami Beach where I bought my comics all through high school, the store I knew as “Super Heroes Unlimited,” is now known as “Villains” and is a fundamentally different store than it was 20 years ago, before the advent of Collectible Card Games. And yes, “The Shrine” may have been eclipsed in greatness by the awesomeness that is Tate’s Comics. But the very landscape of Geekdom in South Florida is changed beyond belief, simply because it is visible and vibrant, whereas in my day one could argue it was non-existent. This is very good thing in my mind, and though I might look back fondly on the way things were when I was younger, I certainly can’t argue that its a very good time to be a geek in South Florida, and I can’t imagine it changing for anything but the better in the future.

Amazing how things change.

Prime Time Geek Episode 25 is brought to you by Bad Apple Comics. Vote for Bad Apple Comics as “Best Comic Store” in this year’s Orlando Weekly “Best Of Orlando 2009″ poll by clicking HERE. They’ll be your best friend, and so will PTG. (Okay, so maybe not your BEST friend, but we’ll both like you a whole lot.)

Lots of time in this episode is spent talking comics – special guest co-host Matthew Ruele spent some time before (and during) the show getting caught up on Marvel’s meltdown of the Ultimates universe, Ultimatum, which could carry the alternate title of “So You Think That’s a Gruesome Death?” Later in the episode, Bad Apple Comics General Manager Shawn Schinault calls in to talk further about Ultimatum, as well as the amazingly well done Old Man Logan story in Wolverine, the aftermath of Batman: Battle for the Cowl, and the new Batman and Robin #1. Shawn gives some interesting insights on the reasoning behind Ultimatum’s brutality, Old Man Logan’s brilliance, Batman: BFTC’s blunders, and Batman and Robin’s bright future. If you’re over at the Bad Apple store on OBT and you need a recommendation on something great to read, you could a lot worse than to ask Shawn to recommend something for you. The man simply KNOWS what’s good in a comic book.

Truthfully, as Matthew pointed out, it is quite sad that so many of Marvel’s heroes in this world have fallen, if for no other reason that these often-brilliant new takes on classic characters were once celebrated as much-needed revitalizing energy for a company that needed a shot in the arm. As Ultimatum rumbles to its final, body-count raising conclusion next month, I can’t escape the growing perception that writer Jeph Loeb’s blood-soaked opus is growing into an exercise in seediness, something akin to Hostel-like torture porn, where we as readers get to see characters we’ve come to care about sacrificed on the altar of crossover-event sensationalism. It’s simply not possible for issue #5 to not kill half the remaining cast, because to do anything less would be a letdown in comparison to what’s come before. We’ve come this far, Jeph–why not simply blow up the entire Ultimates Earth and be done with it?

Hour 2 of Prime Time Geek Episode 21 is brought to you by one of Bill Paxton’s most memorable cinematic turns, playing “Chet” in Weird Science. Yeah, maybe Pvt. Hudson in Aliens (”Game over, man!”) or Simon in True Lies are more readily remembered because those were bigger films (and both James Cameron films), but for those of us who grew up watching ‘Brat Pack’ movies, it was THIS role that forever cemented Paxton as an actor who could play a truly ’serious idiot.’ Semi- interesting bit of trivia: Paxton has the unique distinction of being the only actor to have been ‘killed’ by an Alien (in Aliens), a Predator (in Predator 2), and a Terminator (in the original Terminator film).

You may be wondering what the heck Kenny Rogers is doing in this hour’s episode image, scrunched there in between Bullseye having an identity crisis on the left and a can of Jolt Wild Grape (which tastes GREAT, just so you know–just imagine carbonated Dimetapp, and I mean that as a compliment, no joke!) on the right. The “Rock Band” logo below his face is a clue, but only tells half the story. You see, in addition to this hour’s Marvel Comics Spotlight focusing on Dark Reign: Hawkeye #2 and our second Eat More Geek segment, this one focused on the joy that is Jolt’s selection of caffeine-crazy beverages, there’s also a ‘Felix is Fuming’ segment that talks in part about the recent release of the Kenny Rogers classic “The Gambler” as DLC for Rock Band 2.

Let me be clear, in case it isn’t clear in the episode: I have nothing against Kenny Rogers or the millions of people out there who love his music. He’s a living legend whose appeal and influence transcends the boundaries of country music and will continue to do so for a long time to come. In that sense, perhaps it’s no surprise that one of his songs would make it to the world of music video games. My point is simply that I don’t see the great majority of active Rock Band addicts and would-be virtuosos out there chomping at the bit for the opportunity to download and play “The Gambler”. Maybe it’s me, but I can’t see teens and twenty-somethings sitting around on a Saturday night, scrolling through the song selections, deciding who’s going to play drums and sing, and saying, “Hey, let’s do some Kenny!” Maybe I’m limited that way, but hey, we all have our limits.

As promised, here is the full audio recording of PTG’s interview with writer Jimmy Palmiotti (Jonah Hex, Painkiller Jane) and artist Amanda Conner (The Pro, Terra), talking about their new ongoing monthly series for DC Comics, Power Girl. Having both worked with Power Girl back in 2005 (along with Geoff Johns) in the opening storyline of JSA Classified, Palmiotti and Conner now return to the character with ideas to both flesh out her personal life away from the JSA and being a superhero, as well as make that personal life in some ways even more challenging than being one of the DC Universe’s most physically powerful heroines.

Special thanks to both Jimmy and Amanda for taking the time during their recent signing here in Orlando for the interview, and also to Aaron Haaland, Jason Blanchard, and the staff at A Comic Shop for allowing PTG to shoot and record the interview at their store.

Once again, thanks to everyone who lent their time and their enthusiasm to the production of this video: first and foremost, Michael Poley of Night of the Nightwolf for handling camera operator and video editor duties; also my beautiful girlfriend Erica Hosmer for voluntarily taking on Production Assistant duties and taking great pictures of our travels; and to everyone who appears in the video: Brian Alvear of Comic Connection, Shawn Schinault of Bad Apple Comics, Aaron Holland of Coliseum of Comics, Aaron Haaland of A Comic Shop, and Todd Fisher of Acme Superstore, as well as everyone else at those locations who allowed us to shoot and be a part of their celebrations, thank you and I hope you enjoy the ‘final cut!’

Hour 1 of Prime Time Geek Episode 19 is brought to you by Free Comic Book Day. First carried out and coordinated by Diamond Comics Distributors back in 2002, FCBD has become THE day to get out to your local comic book store and geek out by grabbing free books from the publishers you love as well as ones to whom you may not have ever given a second thought. It’s the day you bring your camera to the store with you, because there’s bound to be a superhero making an appearance at some point during the day. But most of all, it’s a day for the comics industry to say ‘thank you’ to the fans who continue to buy books and get others hooked on comic books, and a day for fans to say to the world, “Hell yeah, we read comics, and you should, too!”

Cap, Boba Fett, and Snowtrooper over at Bad Apple Comics

Brian from Just Push Play with Superman at Coliseum of Comics

Aaron Haaland along with Deadpool, Black Costume Spidey, and The Flash wave to passersby over at A Comic Shop

These are just a few of the pictures we took while touring all of Orlando’s many comic book stores that Saturday–go check out the rest on our Flickr Photostream.

In Hour 1 we were graced with a surprise phone call from none other than ELROSS, the producer of SomaCow, during which he simply gushed over the fun he and his family had hitting stores and grabbing up free books. He managed to grab a few that we actually missed during our travels that he was very excited about, so check out that part of the podcast for Ross’s comic book recommendations. Turns out that Mickey from SomaCow was also out and about on FCBD–he was over at Sci-Fi City meeting Atomic Robo writer Brian Clevinger (who incidentally makes his home right here in Orlando and we hope to interview him on the air very soon!) and getting a signed copy of the FCBD edition of Atomic Robo from Red 5 Comics for me to review, so check back with us for that in the coming week. Other highlights of Hour 1 include a review of Marvel Comics’ Dark Avengers #4 and last week’s horror-show-of-a-new-Smallville episode, “Beast”, which quite honestly could have doubled as a ‘Felix is Fuming’ segment. Tell you this though: I’m not alone in my opinion of this episode and the ‘Chloe-go-stupidness’ that occurs. I felt quite validated earlier today when I came across THIS review of the episode over at Newsarama.

“What, no ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine’ review,” you ask? Check back tomorrow for Hour 2 of Episode 19 for that review and a whole lot more about Free Comic Book Day, right here at Prime Time Geek.