Second mail call today. A little miffed this is the only way to get “The Return of Bruce Wayne” in Absolute, but goodness do I love this run. Friends fear he’s reading Grant Morrison’s “Batman & Robin” yet again.

Ram V and Mike Perkins’ “Swamp Thing” omnibus arrived in the mail today. Looking forward to digging in.

My mother just text me to tell me that she ate the pack of chocolate flavoured sweets with five different fillings that I left in the fridge when I was over yesterday.

I quite enjoyed #Supergirl. A substantial improvement on “Superman”, even if it’s a little underwhelming as an adaptation of “Woman of Tomorrow.” Solid superhero fun, elevated by good character work for its two leads and a clear affection for the genre’s roots in the western.

#NowWatching #Supergirl

Absolutely fascinated by the Apple TV top ten, which still includes movies like "Greyhound" from 2020 and "Emancipation" from 2022.

#NowWatching #Jackass

Rest in peace, Millie. The best 17-year-old whippet you could ask for. You loved Emperor Palpatine and hated Kevin Costner. You will be missed.

Really dug this from @designdelve.bsky.social, on the delightful designs of "Majora's Mask." That took me back, to a game I know less well than "Ocarina of Time." Well worth a watch. www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6Yp...

Currently reading “The Odyssey”, and I had forgotten that what the Sirens tempt Odysseus with is an endless recounting of his past glories. It is, like so much of “The Odyssey”, a nostalgia trap.

It appears that… yes… we can confirm… he is in fact the photo on the Wikipedia page. I’m sorry.

I had a really great time with #TheInvite. It’s a funny, wonderfully performed chamber piece dramedy with a strong script and four good, giving and game performers. Very much a “the kind of movie they used to make more often” study of marriage, love and self-image.

I had no desire to see TOY STORY 5, but Darren's overview here is stupendous and nearly makes my completist urge insatiable, even though I'm certain I won't enjoy the movie. That's some great criticism right there, getting me itching for a movie I probably won't like! @secondwindgroup.com

#NowWatching #TheInvite

I feel like I say this every episode of The Backdrop, but it’s so, so nice to hear from a critic who understands history & business in relation to artwork.

It’s Disclosin’ Time. #NowWatching #DisclosureDay (Round Three)

Out-of-context The Rewind @secondwindgroup.com "No, I'm not declaring a White, Blond guy 'The King of The Amazon', Jesus!" - @darrenmooney.bsky.social "Oh, so he's gonna be Tarzan? Okay, great!" - @jackpackard.bsky.social

Apparently we can tweet about the second season of “X-Men ’97.” It’s really good. I’m very curious to see where it’s going, but the four episodes screened for critics are wonderful, especially the second, third and fourth. A story of cycles of violence echoing through time.

One of the things that I really love about Spielberg making “Disclosure Day” after “The Fabelmans” is the sense that it’s like watching a magician who has basically shown you all the hidden mechanics of the trick, but somehow that ends up making the trick itself more interesting.

In about an hour @darrenmooney.bsky.social, Marty, and I will talk about He-Man. We will discuss "Masters of the Universe" for far longer than it disserves to be talked about! I also saw "Cats"... it was not a good week for me. Watch/Listen Here:

Hearing @darrenmooney.bsky.social talk about 50-year-olds staying home to choose between watching the new He-Man or Slow Horses on streaming oddly made me feel simultaneously attacked and seen.

Big, juicy episode of “The Backdrop” up at @SecondWindGroup.com. This week, to mark the release of “Toy Story 5”, taking at how “Toy Story” is Pixar’s story. How a studio producing franchise about learning to put away the toys keeps breaking them out again. youtu.be/5XHQpH3t_QA?...

Oh, the third season of "My Adventures with Superman" is a really good time. It continues to be a bold, thoughtful reinvention of the iconic superhero and proof that he doesn't need to wallow in empty nostalgia. The third season offers a fresh, surprising take on "Reign of the Supermen."

Shoutout to my dad, who - for more than the past decade - has just *locked in* whenever he is at the cinema and sees a trailer for whatever the next "Minions" movie is, laughing and noting, "I love those guys." But has never actually seen a "Minions" or "Despicable Me" movie.

We can talk about the third season of #HouseOfTheDragon. I've seen the first four episodes, thought they were really good. (The biggest issue is that the four feel like the last two of the second season and the first two of the third.) A clear improvement on last season.

Steven Spielberg's Disclosure Day mourns the death of monoculture. @darrenmooney.bsky.social digs into the film's many, many layers in his latest Patreon column -- www.patreon.com/SecondWindGr...

Really clicked with “Disclosure Day” on the second go-round. It’s Spielberg’s post-9/11 cynicism wrestling with what remains of his 1960s idealism. His anxiety about the power of the image and the hope that perhaps enough remains of the monoculture to save us.

#NowWatching #DisclosureDay (Round two.)

#NowWatching #ToyStory5

Loved this video from @darrenmooney.bsky.social for @secondwindgroup.com breaking down the future (and past) of Hollywood. It feels like we're at a flex point regarding movies and this makes me excited for what's next

Something I enjoy is I’ll see a film or a show, post a response that is clear but not hyperbolic ad copy. I’ll get a wave of replies like, “What do you mean?” Then, a week later, when they’ve seen it, I get a second wave of replies being like, “Oh, you meant what you said.”

I’ve been thinking nonstop about #DisclosureDay since I saw it last night. Always a very good sign.

A new episode of The Backdrop is now available from @darrenmooney.bsky.social looking at what the future of Hollywood might look like with recent releases like Obsession and Backrooms changing the game.

“I won’t be anybody’s religion.” “Disclosure Day” is a step down from “West Side Story” and “The Fabelmans”, but is comfortably mid-tier Spielberg. A film about the death of the monoculture, the power of the image and the trauma of making “The Fabelmans.” I had a good time.

#NowWatching #Disclosure

The new Masters of the Universe movie is a genuinely great commentary on the original's 1980s masculinity. @darrenmooney.bsky.social's latest column is free to read now on Patreon -- www.patreon.com/posts/column...

Great news about Lionsgate joining MoviesAnywhere. Now, if only Paramount, Amazon and A24 would join as well.

With the launch of #CapeFear on Apple TV this week, I took a look at Martin Scorsese's earlier remake of the pulpy thriller. It is some ways a prototype for the wave of remakes that followed, but is also meditation on the value of remaking an older work. www.patreon.com/posts/column...

I was… let’s say “mixed” on “Scary Movie.” Like the previous films, it confuses references for jokes, and a lot of what it “spoofs” feels driven more by obligation than by inspiration. But it ends on a good punchline about the state of these franchises. Better than “Scream 7.”

I am mixed on Apple's "Cape Fear" reboot. It starts relatively strong and has a great leading trio of performances - Adams, Bardem, Wilson. But it's also very clearly a concept that is designed for a tight two hours stretched across ten, particularly in the middle stretch.

Oh, #MastersOfTheUniverse is great. Maybe the best of the blockbusters of the year so far? It’s a well-constructed, funny and playful crowdpleaser that is surprisingly thoughtful in its study of the performance of masculinity.

In about 30 minutes I AM NOT on The ReWind, due to a contract amendment with Second Wind that I will not talk about a Star War. But Marty and @darrenmooney.bsky.social will be joined by @designdelve.bsky.social and @nickjcal.bsky.social to fill my void! Watch/Listen Here:

It just occurred to me that the emphasis on familial separation in Hickman’s “X-Men” run, with the larger run largely being about the separation of things that should not be separated and Apocalypse’s divorce/custody issues being a major plot motivator… Hickman’s “Ex, men.” (X-Men #15.)

Some quick bus ride home thoughts on “Backrooms.” boxd.it/eyOK3X

Quite enjoyed “Backrooms.” As with a lot of these YouTubers transitioning to film, impressed and heartened by the extent this feels more like an actual film than some recent films by sixty-year-old filmmakers. The nightmare of a young generation lost in the cultural detritus of the nineties.

Spider-Noir fights 'superhero fatigue' by embracing the genre's history. @darrenmooney.bsky.social's latest Patreon column on why Amazon's new series is worth your time -- www.patreon.com/posts/column...

Quite enjoyed the immersive experience of seeing “Backrooms” at the undead mall up at the Point Depot.

Finally getting around to Deniz Camp and Javier Rodriguez’s “Absolute Martian Manhunter.” What a comic. (Absolute Martian Manhunter #1.)

Really loved this video essay from the great @sigmagears9.bsky.social on "Mixtape." And teenagers. www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARuQ...

So, I’m guessing Travis Knight was a fan of Jane Schoenbrun’s “I Saw the TV Glow.” #MastersOfTheUniverse is a delight. Just a joy from beginning the end about being the man you choose to be.