The All Things Fun! New Comics Vidcast for the Week of 1-25-2012

The All Things Fun! New Comics Vidcast is shot live in a real comics and gaming store in West Berlin, NJ - All Things Fun! - co-hosts Ed (Captain Britain) Evans, Allison (Strawberry Shortcake) Eckel and Glenn (Gregory Hines) Walker discuss the new comics out this week in two fun video segments, now in high definition, and also available on YouTube. See it here!

The first segment includes discussion of the following topics: Ed goes first, Green Lantern New Guardians #5, I Vampire #5, Justice League #5, Aquaman #5, Flash #5, vidcaster brawl, Justice League Dark #5, the dual covers of Blackhawks #5, and the DC New 52 trade out.



The discussion continues in segment two including: All guys with goatees look alike, the Captain America hoodie, Alpha Flight #8, the X-Men titles, Secret Avengers #21.1, Galactus is back, Red Skull Incarnate, The Astonishing Spider-Man and Wolverine, The Walking Dead #93, Ed's indies, Transformers Robots in Disguise #1, Allison's kids comics, and Ed's trades.



Be sure to check out the craaazy new All Things Fun! website, and the All Things Fun! Blogs, by Allison and Glenn, and ATF! on YouTube.

And be back here every Wednesday morning at 11:30 AM EST to watch the new broadcast, and thereafter throughout the week!

Robert Hegyes 1951-2012

Actor, director and teacher Robert Hegyes passed away this morning in Metuchen New Jersey from a heart attack. He was 60 years old.

He was perhaps best known as Juan Epstein, one of the Sweathogs on "Welcome Back, Kotter," one of the superstar sitcoms of the 1970s. He was the tough guy, the Puerto Rican Jew, the guy who always had a note from his mother. Later he was a regular on "Cagney and Lacey," and appeared in a myriad of television and film projects in the time since.

A graduate of Glassboro College here in South Jersey, now called Rowan, he became an artist-in-residence. He also frequented the stage, at one point to much acclaim as Chico Marx in "An Evening with Groucho." His directing career began when he was 25 on the set of "Welcome Back, Kotter." Also of note for the Jersey born performer was his family, Jon Bon Jovi was his cousin. He will be missed.

"Dear Mr. Kotter,

Please excuse little Juan from class today. He's dead.

Signed, Epstein's Mother"

Metropolis at Biff Bam Pop!

My review of the silent scifi film classic Metropolis is now live at Biff Bam Pop!.

Metropolis is one of my all-time favorite movies, and revolutionary in inspiring an entire film genre. You can check my review out here.

Spartacus: Vengeance

I recently had the chance to see a sneak peek of "Spartacus: Vengeance" from the Starz network. This is a very different television series from its predecessor "Spartacus: Blood and Sand" and its sequel, "Spartacus: Gods of the Arena."

"Vengeance" is not just different for the obvious reason, Liam McIntyre replacing the late Andy Whitfield. McIntyre is a different Spartacus. This is not just a Darren Stevens type change out. He plays the character differently. In comparison to Whitfield, he seems smaller, softer, and tense, rather than intense. He also has compassion, and appears to care, and be more of a leader than Whitfield's predominantly loner from "Blood and Sand." While there's nothing lacking in McIntyre's performance, there still needs to be quite a bit of suspension of disbelief that McIntyre went through all that Whitfield did to get Spartacus to the place he is now.

And the place he is now is what the major difference in this cycle of the show as compared to the first two. The story has left the arena and the world of the gladiators, which was where much of the show's charm was in my opinion. Let's hope the characters, those that remain from the previous series, are enough to propel viewers along this new path.

Having freed himself and his allies from slavery in the house of Batiatus, Spartacus is now on the run and rampaging hit and run style against the Romans and the city of Capua. We see a brief glimpse of the arena, and I have to admit it's a highlight, but I wish there was more. I loved the first two series so I'm willing to give the new season, and Whitfield more than a fair chance.

"Spartacus: Vengeance" starts on Starz on January 27, 2012.

Etta James 1938-2012

Singer Etta James passed away today from complications of leukemia. She had been fighting ongoing illness for years. Truly we have lost one of the greatest voices of our time. Rest in peace, Etta.