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mobius-prime · 4 years

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159. Sonic Super Special #15

Welcome to the final Sonic Super Special ever! Here's my opinion on it. Past Super Specials have ranged from okay to amazing, depending on the writer and the subject matter, and their long length has usually, if you ask me, worked in their favor, as it meant more time and space to tell a compelling story. This is not true of this one. Unfortunately, the last super special of the comic is utterly awful, with two stories that do absolutely nothing to grip my attention, one of which ends in a status quo with a net gain of absolutely nothing, and the other of which is cringeworthy and isn't even very clear on when, where or how it takes place. Let's just get this over with, shall we?

Naugus Games

Writer: Ken Penders Pencils: Many Hands Colors: Josh and Aimeee Ray

This first story is far, far longer than it has any right to be - it really feels like they were trying to find ways to pad it out it to take up the full 48 pages of the special. Furthermore, you might notice some oddities about the credits above. First of all, Aimee's name is misspelled with three E's for both stories for some reason, indicating some lazy copy-and-pasting as well as a lack of care from the editors. Even more frustratingly, no one is actually credited directly for the pencils (or inks), with the art instead just being credited to "many hands." Remember how I said the comic was getting annoyingly bad about properly crediting people? Now, in case you're confused, there's not just some artist out there literally named Many Hands; instead, that's the comic's way of sidestepping actually bothering to credit any individuals for their work. It just means "eh, a lot of people worked on this I guess, but we don't care enough to actually tell you who." Unfortunately, unlike a few issues ago where the art style was immediately recognizable as Steven Butler's, the art style for this story is foreign to me, suggesting they got some people who weren't their usual artists to work on this one, so I can't even take an educated guess here. All I know is that both the art style in general and the quality of the inks are very poor, and as we'll see, the art gets unforgivably lazy at times. Perhaps best of all, this story was later retconned into a much more interesting and concise version of itself at a later date, with better storytelling and artwork to boot. The only reason, then, that I'm covering it at all, is honestly as a demonstration of just how lazy the comic could get at times, as well as due to the fact that this is the first appearance of "Many Hands," who later pencilled one other issue for the comic that was of equally poor quality.

So this story takes place at an unspecified time in the recent past. It seems to be sometime after Eggman's return, judging by some of the lines of dialogue within the story, but the actual timeframe is pretty vague. Sonic has returned to the Southern Tundra to pay his respects to Eddy, recalling how Eddy sacrificed himself when he, Tails, and Nate all fought Naugus here some time ago. He's brought a single rose to lay on the site of the wreckage, but the ground isn't quite stable…

And here we have the first instance of a truly terrible art decision. Sonic falls into a pitch black cave system, but instead of representing this with maybe one page max of blackness or darker lighting, we're treated to nearly four pages straight of nothing but this:

He blindly stumbles around for a while, informing us of this fact through dialogue bubbles because everyone knows that telling is better than showing in fiction, right? He finally hits a wall and sees a glow through a crack in it, so he tunnels his way into the next room only to find it full of glowing rings - apparently, either he, Tails and Naugus somehow didn't use up all the rings when they fought, or these one have just auto-generated themselves somehow down here. Sonic recalls memories of the previous battle when Nate sealed Naugus away with a wish from a ring, and then decides to try to use one to get out of the cave system.

Wonderful! Apparently, a "wish" as defined by the magic of the rings just means that you think of someone's name while touching a ring, and so with a flash, Naugus is back from his imprisonment in the zone that Nate sealed him into! But how is this possible?

That explanation makes… basically no sense, dude. Naugus was definitely sealed away in another zone, he didn't just get turned into a pile of telepathic rings. But whatever. He and Sonic start battling it out, and somehow make it outside, where Naugus conjures up a snowstorm that consistently stays centered on Sonic no matter where he runs. Time for the second awful art choice of the issue - now instead of four pages of pure blackness, we get six whole pages of this:

I think the best thing about this is that the blizzard backgrounds are clearly not even hand drawn like the rest of the comic is - there's only two types of snowflakes up there, and they're consistently just copied and pasted in that same repetitive swirl pattern on every single page. I get that drawing for a big story in a super special like this can be long and tedious work, but this is why you don't try to find a way to artificially elongate a story like this which could easily be told in the span of a normal issue length. It just ends up making the audience feel like their time is being wasted. Anyway, the blizzard finally ends when Sonic pulls out a ring from his jacket and wishes for Naugus to be sealed away in his previous zone once more, and thus, Naugus is out of our hair again, with absolutely nothing to show for it. Man, if it's this easy to defeat people in this universe, why hasn't anyone tried this on Eggman yet?

Sonic then leaves back for home, thinking one last time of Eddy, who is shown looking down on him from the heavens above. And thank god that story is over.

Sonic Spin City

Writer/Pencils: Michael Gallagher Colors: Josh and Aimeee Ray

Michael Gallagher, over the course of the comics, has gone from one of the series' main writers to basically a guest writer who's brought on every once in a while for special occasions. In this case, he even makes his return as a penciller! Unfortunately, his goofy writing style has begun to clash with the much more serious plots of these later issues, and this story is no exception. It's entirely unclear about whether we're supposed to take this story as actual canon, as a story from an alternate zone, or as just a silly joke story that doesn’t mean anything - and while I tend to try to avoid looking at non-canon materials in this review series (I've already skipped a few stories and issues for exactly this reason), the ambiguity of this one forces me to cover it. In addition, I don't even know why Josh and "Aimeee" were credited as colorists for this story, considering the entire thing is black and white with no color to be found.

Much like the first story of StH#52, this story has the flair of an old detective serial. Sonic is wandering the streets on a rainy night when two swatbots ambush him. Of course, two swatbots are no match.

What does a swatbot need matches for? Eh, whatever. Sonic races over to Rusty's, a hangout for abandoned badniks, and orders himself a "chili dog float," which in addition to sounding absolutely disgusting doesn't even seem like something a bar for robots would serve in the first place. As he takes his seat, the lights go out, and… this abomination emerges onto the stage.

Yes. The badniks are going wild for a swatbot with tits dancing seductively on a stage for them. What is she gonna do, plug them into a wall outlet? They even start screaming out for "the stretch," and appear to get even hornier as she massively elongates her legs for them. I mean, just, what? I swear, Michael, if we get one more weird borderline-sex thing like this from you in this comic, my eyes are gonna pop out of my head like Natsuki. A bot grabs the dancer's ankle, and she's thrown off balance and crashes down, with the head popping off to reveal that underneath, it's Bunnie in disguise.

You know, after her claim all those issues back that she's a "sax cymbal," I'm not even gonna contest the idea that she'd do a sexy dance during infiltration for a mission. Hell, I get the impression she'd do one anyway just for fun back in Knothole if she got the chance. You might also notice her arm is the arm from her old design, and that coupled with Sonic's own design seems to indicate that if this took place at all in actual canon, it was before Eggman's return, though I'm immensely skeptical that this is supposed to be canon at all. Sonic and Bunnie take out the rest of Rusty's customer base, and then evacuate before the last swatbot activates its self-destruct chip, blowing the place sky high. Congratulations, nothing important was accomplished in this issue and nobody cares!

It's kinda sad that the final Sonic Super Special turned out to be so low-quality, honestly. However, this marks a bit of a turning point in the comic. For the first time in its entire run, from now on, there are no more special issues, no sister series, no miniseries, nothing. From the next issue, all the way to almost the 200th, with one exception in the form of a Free Comic Book Day issue, there are absolutely no interruptions from issue to issue. While this may not seem too notable at first, since we've just been reading everything in mostly-chronological order anyway, keep in mind that as far as the comic is concerned we're still in the year 2000, with a mere seven years having passed from the beginning of the comic all the way to now over the course of 159 issues. Over the course of the next 106 issues, we're going to blaze through nine years of comic history, meaning that the story is going to flow a lot faster, with more plot points being covered in a shorter amount of time. While this does make the order of issues a lot easier to follow, since there's no questions about which issue fits in where or anything, I am sad to see all the special issues go, as I quite enjoyed how they served to break up the flow of the comic as a whole with special stories and side content. Though we're still in the middle of our current plot era, we're entering into a new era of the comic as a whole, where we've got a straight shot through the next hundred issues. So I say - let's do it to it!

#nala reads archie sonic preboot #archie sonic #archie sonic preboot #sonic the hedgehog #sonic super special 15 #writer: ken penders #writer: michael gallagher #pencils: many hands #pencils: michael gallagher #colors: joshua d ray #colors: aimee r ray

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theateared · 4 years

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They Didn’t Deserve You. ❜

Summary: Trauma doesn’t cease to exist just because you’re in a relationship.

Grace had been relatively easy to break in. While he knew his sexual tastes bordered on extreme, he was patient with her, his only demand being that she found her footing with him at her own pace. Despite the intense desire he’d carried with him for centuries, he didn’t want to upset her. The way he saw it, he’d waited hundreds of years to get close to her; he could hold out a little while longer while she discovered her boundaries all over again.

How long has it been since you’ve laid with someone? And why?

She mewled softly as he sandwiched her between the wall and his body, inviting his wandering hands with a lascivious arch of her spine, her own palms hungry as they travelled along his body, mapping him out in the dim light of the hallway. This had started as it so often did: slow and sensual, riddled with giggles and flirtatious promises, teeth nibbling gently and hands hovering lightly as they touched and teased. Now, the Alpha was more than a little impatient, frustration staining his breath as he panted against the delicate skin of her collar. Every time her mate mark was exposed to him, he only became hungrier.

She earned a low growl from him as her hand stroked along the outline of his length through his dress pants. At least in her case, all he had to do was lift her skirt up.

“I want it,” she whispered, voice sweet and needy against his ear as she ground her hips into his. He was much stronger than most gave him credit for. He held her up with his body without a single hint of struggle, knees strong despite the way she taunted him so. “I want you to fuck me, Eddie… I need you to fuck me--” Her wanton words were cut off by a stuttered gasp as he shunted her against the wall harshly, dragging her underwear down her legs while he fumbled with the zipper of his pants. Her ears stood to attention as he did so, breath coming out in shallow pants as his hand slid between her legs. Despite the fact that he was the one supporting her weight, her knees still felt weak as his digits began to tease her, sliding along her soaked slit, taunting her with the promise of filling her.

“Call me Alpha,” he murmured, tongue wet against her hickey-riddled neck. “Like you should.”

“A-Ah… I’m sorry, Alpha… please… use my inferior body until you’re satisfied…” They were just words. Deep down, both of them knew that she didn’t mean it. She had a keen sense of self-worth, and he knew better than to approach her with the same vacancy he once had. You’re no longer just a conquest to me. You and I are mates. In this relationship, we’re equals. Even so, he was a fan of power-play. She knew as such, would feed into his desires the same way that he would feed into hers. If she was being truthful, she gleaned satisfaction from being able to stunt his self-control. The more degrading her dirty-talk was, the more invested he became.

“That’s better. Good girl.” He paused for a moment, raising higher to kiss her nose. The affection made her feel safer. He knew as such. “That’s a good girl…”

He didn’t extend her torture far beyond that. As soon as she was used to his fingers, Edgar pushed inside of her and began to move, albeit modestly to start. She moaned so sweetly as she adjusted to his girth, though her sounds were quick to turn more salacious as he sped up. Soon enough, he was thrusting into her properly, his strength making her tremble. She’d ruined a handful of his suit jackets due to how she sank her claws into his back, and she had a feeling that this one would be joining the pile.

"So good... mnm...”

Edgar was beginning to lose himself. As the pleasure built up, an end in sight regardless of how far away it seemed in the moment, he became more and more aggressive. His nibbles turned to bites, covering her skin in dark purple marks, and his arms flexed and tightened around her, pressing her flush against him as he drove into her without restraint.

She squeezed around him just right, keened sweetly enough to make him melt, and it saw him grabbing her throat in a display of primal power, squeezing hard until he was satisfied with it.

The sound she made brought everything to a standstill.

He hovered beside her for several seconds, still save for the rise and fall of his back as he panted for air, before he slowly pulled back to look at her. She looked terrified of him in that moment, as if it wasn’t him she was looking at to begin with, ocean eyes wide and scared. His brow furrowed, smile now incredibly faint as his hand released her neck.

“Grace?” he asked, voice a mix of concerned and lustful. Despite his pause, he was still buried to the hilt inside of her. That changed when he witnessed tears gathering in the corners of her eyes, pulling away just enough to not be intruding any longer, tucking his pants back into place. Hesitantly, he put her down, her skirt fluttering back down her thighs. Don’t cry. Why are you crying? It hurts when you cry. “Do you… not like that?”

“It’s not that…” she said in a wobbly voice, one that told him that it was absolutely that. He didn’t have time to ask about it as a soft apology tumbled past her lips, quivering hands raising to rub at her damp eyes. I hate this. I hate crying. I hate crying over something that happened forever ago even more. I hate that it’s hurting my relationship with Edgar. I hate that I can’t stop. “I-It’s just… I’m sorry--”

“You only have to say so if you don’t like something. I wouldn’t force you to do anything,” he murmured, drawing her close. It was moments like these that proved he had never been completely gone to begin with. When the right people came along, he had the potential to tap into some degree of humanity. It wasn’t as if feelings didn’t exist to him - they just had to be activated. Like an age-old machine that had been laying dormant for aeons.

It didn’t seem as if she was hearing him. She just kept apologising, even while her face was buried in his chest. He scratched gently at the back of her ears while she continued to tell him that she was sorry. It just made his heart ache more. What’re you sorry for? Why are you apologising to me? Is it because of the sex? I don’t just need sex from you anymore. It didn’t help that any attempts to soothe her just resulted in a more fierce utterance of the same words. Eventually, somewhat bewildered, he guided her from the hallway to sit at one of the tables in the tavern, hoping the change in scenery would separate her from whatever had made her emotional. He draped his suit-jacket over her shoulders before making his way to the seat opposite her.

For a while, they sat in silence. The familiar space seemed cavernous without the public there to fill it, the bar stretching far like a desert plain. The table beneath him was tapped on gently, claws making a rhythmic tk, tk, tk against its polished surface. Part of him hoped that she’d become irate, that she’d hit him with an explosive “that’s so annoying!”, but all he received was spaced-out silence. Just when he felt he’d go insane, she spoke, though his relief was short-lived when he realised it was yet another apology.

“I’m so sorry abo--”

“Oh,” he interrupted, a hand rubbing at his forehead. “Please. Stop apologising.” He never said please. He was of the belief that he was above it. What was the use in asking for things nicely when you could just take what you wanted for yourself? After a moment to collect himself: “... are you going to tell me what that was about?”

Her lack of a response unsettled him. A hint of shame had entered her face somewhere along the way, arms that were already wrapped around herself tightening slightly. “... I don’t know if I can talk about it.”

Edgar was only growing more worried. He himself was chock-full of secrets but he didn’t like the idea of his mate keeping one from him. His almost entirely revolved a life that she had expressed no interest in even when he had confessed that he’d had it. I didn’t know you then, so it doesn’t matter. I’ll judge you based on this life. This was clearly something that was still affecting her, otherwise she wouldn’t have become so upset.

His hand curled around the lip of his seat, raising from it briefly to drag it closer to her before he sat down again. “Talk to me, Grace,” he said, voice soft but firm. His hand settled on her wrist before it squeezed gently. “I want to know how I upset you.”

She shuffled before sighing heavily. After a brief sniffle, the woman moved to lean against the table, pulling his jacket taut around her, her cheek nestling into her sleeve-covered palm as she considered what to say. She wasn’t a fool. She knew that once she started talking, it’d probably be an invitation for the floodgates to open. She also knew that he wasn’t a fool either; he’d be able to piece together most things on his own even if she didn’t say anything overly incriminating.

“You have to promise not to go mad,” she mumbled.

“I can’t promise that when I have no idea what you’re going to tell me,” replied the Alpha, tone straight-laced and tight. Whatever I’m about to hear, I’m almost certainly going to get angry. She wouldn’t preface it with that if she didn’t think I wouldn’t.

“... I was in two creeds before I found yours. And both of them sucked.” A laugh was forced out, nails gently digging into her arms. Even through the jacket, the grip of her claws stuck. “... so I left. And I… I found you.” His ever-present smile was fading; replaced with a thin line of sobriety. “A-And, my previous Alphas… oh…” Her vision became fuzzy with grief, tears gathering despite her best effort to remain composed. Blue eyes looked upwards when she felt his cool hand against her face. For a moment, all they did was stare at one another. Despite his reputation as a stone-cold bastard, there was a hint of hurt in that familiar black gaze. She was always so strong… to see her succumbing to emotion was a painful sight. He leaned forwards in his seat until his forehead could touch hers, thumbs curling across her cheekbones as he gently demanded her attention. I think I know why you feel you can’t talk about it: you’re still scared of these lyes.

“Your previous Alphas… they abused their status, didn’t they?” Her nod was slight, meek. “They used their positions to exert unjust dominance over you. And you weren’t the only one, were you? It was systematic oppression.”

“I don’t… I don’t know what those words mean, Eddie,” she admitted weakly, gaze falling into her lap instead. Before he could continue: “My first Alpha was a loudmouth asshole. I think… we all believed in him because of his strength. Whether you agreed with him or not, he could protect you physically to the ends of the district. But by the time we realised he would use it against his own creed members, it was too late. We were already signed. His short temper ended up getting him killed though. The one who killed him was my second Alpha; we wound up with her more out of circumstance than desire. Our previous leader was no more… we didn’t know where else to turn. She was ‘kind’ enough to let us in. I think, in hindsight, she just saw us all as trophies. As proof that she’d disbanded an entire creed by herself.” She took a moment to pause, to gather her thoughts, tail curling around her shins loosely. A sickening nausea was beginning to build in her stomach.

“What did she do to you, Grace?” Though his voice was quiet, a thick layer of intensity draped itself along his words like a quilt, hot and rigid, suffocating. His tone was enough to stop her heart for a moment as he finished with a striking: “Tell me what she did.”

Part of her wanted to deny him-- a large part, in fact. This was something she hadn’t addressed even once despite all of the centuries she had lived. It lived only as a distant nightmare, one that would occasionally insert itself into her slumber before vanishing for years on end once more. However, there was a sliver of her that craved to be heard; one that had not been satisfied since she had been taken advantage of.

“... everything was fine for a while,” she admitted, lips turning upwards slightly. “You know? ‘’Like the calm before the storm’’. We all fit into our neat little places. We all made friends. Alliances. And then… and then heat rolled around, and it all went to hell.” It was difficult to keep herself together. She wanted to cry. She wanted to scream. She wanted to tear herself apart if it meant killing the insipid revulsion unfurling like a weed in the pit of her stomach. I hate what happened. I’ve never stopped hating it. And I’ve never stopped hating the fact that it made me anticipate the same from Edgar. I hate that I still worry about it sometimes. “... all of our ‘friends’ were predetermined. She told her members where to go. And when heat came, she told them who to take for themselves.”

She noted the gradual fall of his hands from her face, his stare burning a hole through her despite the fact that she wasn’t looking back.

“... who to take,” he repeated slowly, tone void.

“Most lyes rejoice when heat rolls around. We ourselves were excited. But then the choice was taken away and suddenly we didn’t like it anymore.” Her thighs subconsciously pressed tightly together, skirt tucked defensively against her skin. Even talking about this made her feel dirty. But who else can I tell? It isn’t like the police exist to us. “The females were subdued. The males were useless to them because they couldn’t lay eggs, so they got a choice between betraying our dignity or dying for their loyalty. Most were slaughtered right in front of us as we were defiled because they refused to throw away our history. A few of them were scared by the threat of death and became part of the problem, And I… I still don’t know if I blame them or not. Cowardly, maybe, but it wasn’t as if they had another choice. They took no pleasure in the things they were made to do. It was clear they were saving their own skin and that was it.”

A hand curled in front of her mouth slowly, heart hammering hard against her chest. Her eyes felt warm and wet, and it was only then that she realised she was crying again.

“I-It wasn’t like normal mating, Eddie. It was… it was horrible. It was violent, and degrading, and I hated it. I hated every single second of it. They… m-made me do things that I didn’t even know existed. I had litter after litter. Heat was only the start of the cycle. I was just a machine to them. And when I tried to fight… when I wouldn’t comply… one lye became two and two became four a-and my Alpha… she was encouraging them-- spurring them on-- like it was a sport. A game. As if they weren’t wrecking somebody. Mocking me as if it was funny. Saying that I was weak and that was why I was there, ‘’in my place’’, only fit to give her creed children because I couldn’t do anything else.” Furiously, she swiped her arm across her face, eager to stop the flow of tears. She wasn’t known for her sensitivity. She was the self-assured lady; the firecracker that didn’t take anybody’s shit; the confident backbone of the scouting faction. “I’m so ashamed of this… I hate it so much. I hate that I couldn’t stop them. Even when I tried to keep my mouth closed, they would plug my nose until I had no choice but to breathe, and then they would have their way. When I tried to bite them, they would choke me until I went limp. I-I was… I was too weak...”

“You were abused,” Edgar hissed. His tone turned her blood to ice. When she slowly looked up at him, she was stunned to see his expression twisted into one of rage. She had only seen seen him angry a handful of times over the course of knowing him, and she knew that that was when things turned sour. It was all fun and games until Edgar’s smile was gone, Moxie would say. Gradually, it became an in-joke with the creed; the kind of joke that was funny because it was true. “You were stripped of your freedom. The trust you had in your leader was destroyed. Your allies were murdered in front of you. You were--” He cut himself off, feeling his voice beginning to crawl upwards in volume. The last thing she needed right now was for him to lose his head-- to shout. Only when he felt his control return did he continue: “... what they did, Grace, it was wrong.” He moved forwards to cup her face once again, touch gentle despite the need to tear something apart. “It was unforgivable. They didn’t deserve you. They never did.” His lips met her nose tenderly before he leaned his head back against hers, listening to her whimper. You need to cry. You need me to let you let it out.

He drew her close to him, holding her tight against him. Though she didn’t want to, she felt herself crumbling, sinking into his lap as she came undone. The sadness in her had been pushed aside for so long that she’d forgotten about its existence. Now that it was allowed to come out, it smothered her, choked the air from her throat, making her feel like she was back in the grasp of those that hurt her, and her fingers struggled for purchase in his shirt as he held her to him defensively.

It’s been a long time since I’ve felt such sadness for another person. You make me feel so much.

When she eventually stopped sobbing, there was a wet patch on his shoulder. He could feel it against his skin as she picked up her head and apologised for it. It only made the ache in his chest more fierce. It had hit him hard as she’d cried her heart out: the amount of sense that her behaviour made to him now. The reason she was so hesitant to put trust in him as her Alpha was because of this. The reason she took herself away from everybody when their heat cycles rolled around was because of this. The reason she melted whenever he was gentle with her... was because of this. Her head met his shoulder again after a few seconds spent rubbing her eyes and getting the hair that was stuck to her face out of her way.

“... so this is why you gave me such a hard time for complimenting you,” he said quietly, hand fiddling innocently with the hem of her skirt. She sensed no ulterior motive from him, legs remaining slack over his. “All that time ago, when we first met, I told you that I liked the look of you. An innocent expression of interest. And that cast me in a bad light for you.”

“I’m sorry, Edgar. I thought you were just like them.” Her lips pressed lightly against his neck, as if to offer him some solace. “I was scared… I was scared that it was going to be a repeat. I… I had to do all I could to come across as somebody who couldn’t be taken advantage of. I didn’t want to be another Alpha’s plaything. I’m sorry I treated you like a scumbag...”

Every comment you made, every barrier you put up, every evasive gesture… it was because you were afraid of my status. You never once coveted it.

“And now?”

She shuffled in her spot on his lap, sitting up enough to look him in the eye. “Now I see that I was wrong.” Delicate fingers raised to trace the markings on his neck, pointed tip dragging oh-so-lightly until it could round his jaw, following one curve up to his nose. It had been so long since he’d been touched so gently… part of him wanted to rebel. “... you’re a good leader. And to me, you’re a good lye.” Her thumb stretched upwards to stroke against the marks beneath his eye. You always look like you’re blushing. I’d kill to make you blush for real. “I don’t care about your past transgressions, and I don’t care about how other people feel about you. You’ve proven yourself to me and that’s all that matters.”

Her lips met his gently. He allowed it, eyes gradually closing. The hand previously playing with her skirt moved to her waist, lukewarm skin soothed by the warmth of her body. When she pulled away again, his eyes cracked open to get a look at her.

Even when you’ve been crying, you look beautiful to me.

“... is your previous Alpha still around?” he whispered, watching her face closely as she hovered near. Her lower lip was caught between her teeth; a clear sign that she was worried. In a small voice:

“I don’t know… I’ve never run into her or any of her creed while scouting, and it’s been centuries now. I don’t know.”

“What was her name?”

“Eddie, don’t…” It was as if she was attempting to hush a child, gentle hands sweeping across his face with all the tenderness of a mother. “... it was forever ago. She likely got taken out by a better Alpha. She’s probably dead.” She didn’t believe that for a second. She knew her. There was absolutely no chance that anybody was foolish enough to go up against her - and if they had, they were most likely dead. Nyx was a creature that defied expectations. Not only was she ruthlessly powerful, she seemed to have no concept of guilt either. Though she doubted Edgar would get hurt too badly if he was to take her on, possessing freakish strength of his own, she didn’t want to think of exposing The Strahvs to a war with her. In a sweeter voice, trying to plead with him without outright begging him not to do something foolish: “... and if she isn’t, the ones who did it definitely will be. She’ll likely have betrayed them too. So don’t…” Don’t start a war. We don’t need a war. What about all you’ve worked for?

In the same voice as before, albeit slightly more intense: “Her name, Grace.” When she shook her head quickly, he raised a hand to her face, cradling it softly. “I will cycle through every single female Alpha in this God-forsaken pit until I kill her through the process of elimination.”

“Edgar, stop it--”

“I don’t WANT to stop it.” His voice had barely raised at all, though she still flinched as if he’d screamed it. The contrast of his tender touch against his heated hiss only made her shiver. “I want you to be rid of her. I want you to feel safe. I want you to have justice.” The apprehension in her eyes only made him angrier, though he knew better than to direct it at her. This is her fault. This is that bitch’s fault. Continuing in the same gentle whisper as before: “Don’t you see that, Gracie? Mm…? I just want to give you the resolution you deserve. So tell me her name. Tell me who she is. And if she isn’t dead, and if her creed is still roaming free after what they did to you, I’ll dispose of it. One by one. Until they’re gone. Until they’re not breathing the same air as you and I. I won’t stand for somebody mistreating you.”

Her head was flooded with worry. Even so, she wouldn’t deny the brief flutter of her heart. In his own way, Edgar was showing her that he cared. He certainly wouldn’t feel moved enough to start a war with another creed by most… but that didn’t mean she wanted it to happen.

He’s not messing around, she thought as she stared into his cold eyes, resolute in her silence. He really will get her, one way or another, either through me giving her up or through senselessly killing until he finds her. One war is bad enough… Do we really want five? Ten? Fifty? We’ll die with that many enemies - even if we stay in Huron. They’ll come in droves for revenge.

“Edgar,” she tried, though he cut her off with a shake of his head.

“Don’t try to distract me from doing the right thing. It’s me who makes the decisions.”

“I’m not talking to you as my Alpha, I’m talking to you as my lover.” He fell quiet again, stare unflinching for all of three seconds before it flitted down to his hands on her waist. I’m still adjusting to being on an equal footing with somebody. Sometimes I forget that you aren’t just my inferior anymore. It’s difficult to drop my need to control everything. He had to put effort into reminding himself that that was how it all went to hell in his previous life; though he felt no remorse for the things he’d done, he also realised the mistakes he’d made, the errors in the way he’d carried himself. Too emotional; too obsessive; too trusting. It would almost definitely be wiser to treat everything with an air of distance. It was just so difficult for him to be distant with her.

Her hand on his cheek earned his attention once more. “... I feel like I don’t tell you enough that I see all the work you’ve put into this operation. Building bridges in Huron… at first, some of us thought you’d taken a swan dive off of the deep end.” She allowed herself to chuckle softly, knowing full well that she had been one of those people, that she too had doubted his leadership for a while. It was only after a fateful encounter with a racist baker that she had learned his true intentions. Only then had it clicked into place for her. “But now? We all see it, Eddie. And we’re all grateful.”

“I don’t require praise, Grace.”

“I think you do,” she continued, fiddling with a strand of his hair. “Just this once. Because you seem to be forgetting all of the effort you’ve put into maintaining peace in return for a safer future.” The motion of her fingers stilled, only to be brought to the top of his head as she pushed herself upwards slightly with the use of his shoulder. Tenderly, her fingers began to scratch, the tips of her claws tracing his scalp. Edgar wasn’t afraid to admit that he felt a series of tingles flood his spine as the affection ran its course. “... I know you. You really would kill her. And while I want her dead-- while I want her whole creed dead for the things she did to me, and countless others-- I don’t want a war to break out and ruin all of the things you’ve worked for.” After a moment of thoughtful silence: “... heat is coming soon. You know that’s when lyes are most vulnerable. Even Moxie gets lethargic. We don’t need conflict when we’re all impaired.” A kiss was pressed to the tip of one of his ears, the fluffy appendage twitching slightly. “... besides… wouldn’t you rather spend it with me?”

His eyes shut, and he told himself that it was because he needed to think, not because of the fogginess that shrouded his brain once the idea of spending heat with her had entered it. Despite the fury he could feel stirring inside, some part of him knew that she was right. Now is not the time. As much as she doesn’t deserve another day, my creed doesn’t deserve to suffer it.

“I’ll tell you what,” he began, tone certainly more level than it had been five minutes ago. It wasn’t as if his feelings had been vanquished-- one day, whether it was soon or not, he would exact his revenge in any way he so chose to-- but the timing was all but inconceivable. His head tipped back so that he could make eye contact with her, her hand pausing atop his head. “I will leave it be. Temporarily. Until heat has passed. Until it’s safe. I’ll file my anger away, tuck it neatly in a little drawer inside my head, and revisit said drawer only when it is convenient to do so.” His gaze hardened then, even in spite of her touch. “... but I will have it, Grace. I will have her head. And I will end her creed. And you will give me her name, or so help me, I’ll make a list, and I’ll do it that way. I know lyes. Even if I don’t know her, I will find her eventually - and I will leave destruction in my wake.”

I love you. I love you so fucking much that not getting up and doing something now is tearing me apart inside. How could somebody do this to you? You’re an angel. You’re just the sweetest little angel.

Deep down, Grace knew that this was the best she could get. She didn’t really consider it a failure. All along, she’d known that Edgar would never let go of his thirst for vengeance in full. It was part of why she’d been so hesitant to speak in the first place. She was only grateful that she’d been able to put it off for a while. If he was intent on fighting, she wanted it to be with a clear head. Though she had no doubt he would be fine-- not only was he skilled, he was angry, and that was so much worse-- she also knew that Nyx would fight hard too. There’s no way to avoid this fight. I don’t like that fact, but it’s the way that it is. I can’t take back what I told him.

Slowly, she nodded, hand atop his head sliding down until she could find his hand. She fed her fingers between his, revelling in the gentle squeeze he administered without even thinking about it. This is the way it has to be. There’s nothing else I can say-- nothing else I can do.

“... it’s a deal, then.”

#🞮 — if i could i'd trade my heart for a second brain. ❜ ( edgar. )#☆ — i never promised you your dream boy. ❜ ( main. )#☆ — i'm just here to destroy. ❜ ( ic. )#drabble *#/ FUCKIN OOOOOOOF #FUCK I LOVE THEM #but yeah this drabble is actually really important; not just for their relationship but or grace's dev #it dives into her backstory and edgar's response to it is very indicative of the type of lover he is too #all in all i just. like it a lot.#a secondary edit will probaby come later but that's later #fr now enjoy #also yes it starts kind of smutty but it just. ISN'T smutty at all for like three quarters of it; i just needed something to trigger the #conversation and like. bam.

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thesilverdreamer · 6 years

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Roger Rabbit and the Ink Machine: Chapter 1

Read on Fanfiction.net here

Read on AO3 here

Summary: New York City, 1948. Alice Angel has gone missing. The NYPD laughed at the prospect of a Missing Toon Report, and nobody wants anything to do with Toons. Desperate, Joey turns to Eddie Valiant, the Detective Who Works for Toons. A few months out from the Marvin Acme case, Eddie quickly realizes that something funny is going on at Joey Drew Studios, and he aims to find out what.

Characters: Eddie Valiant, Roger Rabbit, Joey Drew, Henry, Bendy, miscellaneous characters from Bendy and the Ink Machine

Rated T for language

From the Case Files of George K. Fowler, Office of Extranormal Affairs

June, 1947: Marvin Acme, acclaimed comedian, industrialist, and the creator of Toontown, is found dead, apparently murdered by one of the very same Toons he had been supporting for almost two decades. Maroon Cartoon’s Roger Rabbit is believed to have killed him in a fit of jealous rage after learning that his wife, Jessica Rabbit, was having an emotional affair with Acme. Detective Eddie Valiant, of Valiant & Valiant, uncovers the truth: Judge Doom of the Los Angeles Circuit killed Acme and framed Roger to gain control of Toontown. Acme’s will is found, bequeathing Toontown to the Toons. Valiant begins helping Toons again after several years’ lapse, and Roger Rabbit signs a contract with Walt Disney Productions to have his own cartoon.

New York City, 1948

Joey Drew was either out of his mind or an idiot to fly a detective from LA to New York. Eddie Valiant wasn’t complaining, his plane ticket, lodging, and time were being paid for in advance by Drew Studios, plus the job itself. (Alright, so he was complaining a little, but odds were good that this would be a simple missing toon case the NYPD wasn’t taking seriously, worse case scenario he got to see the Statue of Liberty. He was, after, all, the shmuck who agreed to come out here.)

Drew Studios was smack dab in Manhattan, at Broadway and 3rd Avenue. The building was unimpressive, but apparently it had several basement floors. Joey Drew had a reputation for being a little peculiar, even for a man who worked in cartoons. The front face of the building was dominated by a colorful sign reading, ‘JOEY DREW STUDIOS.’

Eddie breathed a long-suffering sigh, hefted his travel bag over his shoulder, and pushed through the revolving door.

The studio was alive with the sound of creators at work, and it almost sounded like home. The entrance hall had posters all the way down showing some of the characters in Drew Studios’ cartoons. Boris the Wolf (less villainous, more hungry), the Butcher Gang (a recurring group of bad guys made up of Charley, Barley, and Edgar), Alice Angel (her mediocre debut was followed up by the fantastic ‘Hell or High Water’ and her popularity exploded), and of course, studio mascot Bendy the Dancing Demon. Bendy was the big star, and had been ever since Drew Studios started getting some recognition back in ’35.

The hall opened into a lobby, and an inter-office courier nearly ran into Eddie, gave a half-hearted apology, and kept on going. There were a couple of young men bickering off to the side, and a projector played an old Bendy cartoon on a screen at the back wall.

A woman wearing a knee-length checkered skirt and red lipstick approached Eddie as he took the scene in. “Can I help you, sir?” she said. She had a distinct Jersey accent.

“Yeah, uh, I’ve got a meeting with Mr. Drew?” he said. The secretary, probably, consulted her clipboard and asked for his name. “Valiant.”

“Hm, I’m not seeing—”

A sharp whistle cut across the lobby, and a man who definitely wasn’t Joey Drew but still seemed kind of familiar strode across the room, up to Eddie and the secretary. “It’s fine, Sherry, we’re expecting Mr. Valiant,” he said. He was distinctly short, white, and slim. He looked young, without a trace of gray in his hair, and had a very thin pencil mustache. He was dressed professionally, but his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and his tie was thrown over his shoulder to keep it clean. There were dark spots under his eyes.

“Alright, Mr. Hoskins,” Sherry said, and quietly made a gesture like adjusting her collar; he picked up on her meaning and quickly sorted out his tie.

Sherry fluttered away, her heels clicking on the wood floor, and Eddie forced himself to look in any other direction. “So, uh, Mr. Hoskins?”

“Please, just call me Henry.” Henry Hoskins, now that was a name that Eddie recognized from his research. Cofounder of Drew Studios, head animator for what little traditional animation they still produced. Despite his significance in the studio’s history, he stayed out of the public eye, especially compared to Drew. “Pleasure, Mr. Valiant, I’m the lead artist here.” Henry held out his hand for Eddie to shake.

‘Lead artist’ was a roundabout way of alluding to Henry’s bigger role; he was one of those rare gifted people who possessed the power to literally bring their art to life. Some called them, ‘Old Men,’ after Disney’s Nine Old Men, who had that power to a man.

Eddie shook Henry’s hand. “Eddie Valiant.”

“Oh, I don’t think there’s many people in this industry who haven’t heard of you after last summer,” Henry said.

“You’d be surprised.”

“Well, at any rate, I’d like to talk somewhere a little more private. We’re trying to keep things quiet as long as possible.”

He led Eddie down the left wing to what was presumably Henry’s office, surprisingly small for one of the studio’s founders. There was an ordinary desk and chair, along with a light table that had been in use recently. He probably didn’t have people in his office very often, judging by how the desk and chairs were piled high with papers. As Henry moved a heavy-looking binder off of a chair, Eddie looked around a little.

Framed art covered the walls, but especially over the light table. There were character model sheets, concept art, a few posters. Some photographs had been pinned up. There was one of Henry and another man, at least a few years younger. Another was clearly a wedding portrait, showing Henry and a pretty woman with dark hair. Eddie checked surreptitiously to confirm that yes, Henry was wearing a wedding band.

Then there was another photo, this one of a little girl who couldn’t have been older than five, and right next to that photo was a child’s drawing of Bendy done in crayon.

“Your daughter?” Eddie said.

Henry swung his head around to see what Eddie was referring to, and broke into a smile. “Yeah, my little girl. Beth just turned six. Do you have any children, Mr. Valiant?”

Eddie shook his head emphatically. “No, no no, that life ain’t for me.”

“Well, it isn’t easy, I’ll say that much, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. Then again, if even half of what the papers say is true, you’ve taken on some work far more difficult than raising a child.” Henry threw his hands up as the mess defeated him. “Bah. I’m sorry Joey didn’t come meet you himself, he’s scatter-brained at the best of times. I—what in the world is that noise?”

There was some kind of rustling noise coming from the coat closet. Eddie was closer, so he pulled the door open, and a puny cartoon devil came tumbling out, dramatically gasping for air.

“I thought I was a goner!” Bendy wheezed. “It smells like a sewer in there!”

“Bendy!” Henry snapped, but he didn’t look all that bothered by it, smiling as he spoke. “How long have you been in there?”

“Uh…what day is it?”

“Same as when I saw you this morning. Why aren’t you on set?”

“Cause they’re still cleanin’ up after the last take,” Bendy drawled, dropping all of the wheezing he had affected. It was a gag, between Toon and creator, maybe not exactly that situation but the format of Bendy cracking wise while Henry was the straight man was nothing new. Not for the first time Eddie reflected on just how weird artists were.

“So, this the flatfoot who’s gonna find Alice?” Bendy said, turning his attention to Eddie and sizing him up.

“I hope so,” Henry said. “Mr. Valiant, Bendy. Bendy, Eddie Valiant.”

“Hmph,” Bendy grunted, and Eddie’s response was more or less the same. He was way too used to being around Toons.

“So, Alice Angel?” Eddie said.

“Yes, that’s right,” Henry said, sobering. “Alice has been missing for a little over a week. The last time anyone saw her was the Friday before last. Joey tried to report her missing, but New York’s Finest laughed at him.” The sarcasm was practically dripping off of Henry. Bendy murmured something about, “@#&%ing pigs,” with the sound of a bike horn. Definitely a New Yorker.

“No surprise there,” Eddie said. He held up his box of cigarettes. “Alright if I smoke?”

“Sorry, I’d prefer if you didn’t,” Henry said. Eddie nodded and quietly pocketed the box. “We tried searching for her ourselves, but everyone here is so busy with work. There’s been some calls to PI’s in the area, but they didn’t want anything to do with Toons. If I’m being honest, as much as I trust Joey, I objected when he wanted to hire you, Mr. Valiant, but I think he’s panicking.”

“Well, if we’re being honest, I thought it was a little funny myself. As for your little starlet…” Eddie set his jaw. “She wouldn’t be the first to go running off into the city for a good time, but she doesn’t seem like the type. Anybody check her place?”

“Hm?” Henry blinked. “Oh, no, Alice lives here in the studio, along with Bendy and Boris.”

Well that explained some of the expansions, dorms for the Toons. It was practically unknown in Hollywood since Toontown was brought to life, and even before then it was uncommon for studios to have private housing for their ink-based stars. Toons weren’t treated well in general, but there was still some acknowledgement that they were people, human-like, and wanted to be treated like adults. Unless it was funny, of course. Hell, even Roger—

“ACHOO!”

The room went very still, as that had definitely not been either of the humans who had sneezed comically loudly, and Bendy wasn’t trying to use Henry’s shirt as a handkerchief, and also the sneeze had come from Eddie’s travel bag.

“I, uh, think your bag might have a cold,” Bendy drawled.

Eddie could feel his blood pressure rising. He dropped his bag unceremoniously to the floor, and the impact was accompanied by a yelp. Eddie roughly unzipped the bag, reached in to the elbow, and yanked out a Toon rabbit by the straps of his red overalls, wriggling as he tried to get free. “Oh, boy, is it stuffy in there! My ears were burning, was somebody talkin’ about me?”

“Roger!” Eddie snapped, as he lifted Roger Rabbit up so he could look him in the eyes. “What’re you doing here?”

Roger rambled, oblivious to Eddie’s frustration. “Well, I heard you were going to New York, and I’ve always wanted to go to New York, so I thought, why not go see New York with my best pal? Then we can solve a case together, just like the good ol’ days!”

“’The good ol’ days?’ You mean last summer, when you were framed for murdering Marvin Acme and almost got the both of us killed?”

“Yeah, just like then!” Roger said earnestly.

Eddie closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and dropped Roger so he could rub his temples. Bendy looked excited, which couldn’t be good, and Henry was laughing. “Do I even want to know what you did with my spare clothes?” Eddie snapped.

Meanwhile, a ten-year-old girl in Albuquerque was very confused when she unpacked her suitcase and found a pair of men’s boxers with hearts printed on them.

“Pu-bu-bu-bu-robably not!” Roger trilled, and darted away from Eddie to avoid retaliation.

Roger stopped in front of Bendy and gasped dramatically. “Oh, boy! I never thought I’d get to meet Bendy, I just saw the last cartoon you were in! Oh, the artistry! The drama! The tragedy! It was inspired!” Roger cried, swooning.

Bendy was all too eagerly soaking up the praise. “Well, you ain’t too bad yaself, Rabbit. Put ‘er there, pal,” Bendy said. Roger happily shook his hand, and even as Roger was viciously zapped by Bendy’s joy buzzer, he shook Bendy’s hand so strongly that the little devil was lifted up off his feet and shaken up and down. By the time they were finished, Roger’s fur was singed and Bendy was dizzy and a droplet of ink fell from the edge of his widow’s peak like sweat.

“Toons,” Eddie said gruffly.

“Toons,” Henry said cheerfully.

Artists.

A knock came at the door, and a blonde kid pushed it open. “Henry, you’re needed on the sound stage. And have you seen—oh, Bendy’s right here, perfect. You should know, Mr. Drew is getting anxious.”

“Yes, yes, I’ll be right there,” Henry said. “Do you mind coming downstairs, Mr. Valiant? Knowing Joey, if he doesn’t see you with his own eyes he’ll end up keeping you waiting a while.”

Eddie just gestured for Henry to lead the way.

There was a lift to the lower floors, Henry explained, but the sound stage was only one floor down. The stairs were easier. Bendy hopped up on Henry’s shoulder and Henry didn’t even blink; Roger saw this, looked at Eddie hopefully, and Eddie ignored him.

All things considered, the studio was nothing special compared to the kinds of setups you saw in LA, but you wouldn’t know it from the way Henry spoke proudly about starting the studio with Joey Drew, creating Bendy and building the studio into a strong contender, expanding the staff to a fair size, if smaller than some other studios of the same age—coming up on fifteen years.

There was one weird thing, though.

“What’s with the pipes?” Eddie said, of the clear plexiglass pipes carrying a trickle of some dark black substance. The pipes seemed to run (and drip) everywhere in the building, from the lobby to the offices to the stairwells.

Henry didn’t even need to look to know what Eddie was talking about. “Much like your being here, a result of Joey panicking. I’m still not all that sure about it myself, I was a little distracted with a newborn, but I have my suspicions. Around that time, before Bendy became real, the studio was having some trouble. We couldn’t really keep up with the larger studios out west. I’m thinking Joey got pulled in by a conman, he was desperate but it could happen to anyone—”

Bendy cut in when it was clear Henry was going to keep rambling and making excuses. “Joey wanted to try and use some hunk-a-junk ‘Old Man-in-a-Can’ to try and make me real. Not to, uh, doubt him? But let’s just say I’m real glad Henry pulled it off before the machine ever got off the ground.”

Eddie made a sour face. “Hold on, hold on, he tried to build a machine to make Toons?”

“Well, yes,” Henry said, wincing. “Don’t get me wrong, Joey’s my best friend, but he can be a little…”

“Short-sighted. Impulsive. Dumb as a box of rocks,” Bendy said.

“Anyways! It was a mess from the beginning, but it never would have worked, Joey’s Ink Machine,” Henry said. “I saw the blueprints once, most of the writing was some nonsense scribbles. He’s embarrassed by it, really. But it’d be expensive and messy to take it all apart, it’s just been left as it is.”

“A monument to stupidity,” Bendy quipped, and Henry shook his head.

Joey Drew was even more of an eccentric than rumor claimed, then. Bringing Toons to life without needing an Old Man? He wasn’t the first person to try, but there was a reason that studios still employed Old Men. The attempts ended in spectacular failure, and the failures were well-publicized. From what Eddie knew, nobody had really tried to do it in at least ten years. The general conclusion was that it was impossible to replicate an Old Man’s power. Joey must have been really desperate.

The sound stage on B1 was a raucous mess of people moving back and forth trying to get their jobs done. Above the sound crew setting up and testing mics, above artists organizing work, above the cleanup crew getting out of the way, a man’s booming voice dominated the room. “Somebody shut off that fan! I want that playback ready to go on cue this time! And where is Bendy?”

Crew moved aside as somebody pushed their way through, and there was a man Eddie recognized from his picture in the papers, looking a little red in the face from exertion and the stage lights. Joey Drew was a white man standing at about six foot tall, built sturdy. His facial hair was grown out and a little unkempt, and already light hair was shot through with gray. He had clever eyes and laugh lines.

“Finally!” Joey declared. His voice was deep and booming, filling the space he was in. He pointed a finger at Bendy as though in accusation. “Just where did you run off to? After everything that’s happened, I would think you—”

Henry grabbed Joey’s hand and forced it down. “Give it a rest, Joey. He was upstairs in my office, meeting Mr. Valiant.”

“Wait, Valiant?” Joey said, and for the first time he looked at Eddie. His face was starting to return to a healthier pallor. “Mr. Valiant!” Joey exclaimed, with no small amount of relief, and he laughed. “Goodness, I didn’t expect you here so early!” It was almost four in the afternoon. “Oh, but it is wonderful to meet you in person, put ‘er there.”

They shook hands, and Joey’s grip was firm. “Mr. Valiant, please do forgive me, but could I have just one minute and then we can go back upstairs.”

Eddie waved him along. Joey pulled Henry and Buddy up towards the sound stage, clapping Henry on the back and they chatted amiably as they went out of sight. Eddie took a few steps off to the side to lean against a wall in a mostly unoccupied corner. A janitor in denim coveralls was leaning over a trash can, rooting around in the garbage.

“Lose something?”

The janitor jumped and hit his head on the edge of the trash can and stood up straight massaging the bump. He was a young black man, in his early twenties at best. “Nope, didn’t lose nothing! I was just, uh…” He had a strong Brooklyn accent. “Definitely did not lose my keys, nosiree…”

“Don’t worry about it, kid, no skin off my nose,” Eddie said, and then he rethought it. “Just one question, though, how long have you been missing your keys?”

The janitor, his name tag said Wally, looked at Eddie funny. “Uh, I had them an hour ago? But thanks, anyways. Oh, hell, I’m outta here,” Wally said suddenly, and darted away as Joey returned.

Joey had his attention split as he opened a small vial. It looked a little like something Eddie’s girl Dolores had ordered out of the Sears catalog, some oil that was supposed to relieve stress but mostly the strong smell just gave Eddie a headache. Running a cartoon studio, though, Joey probably needed all the stress relief he could get.

Joey sniffed the contents of the vial and made a face. “Blast it, I think it’s gone bad. Mr. Valiant, does this smell like lemon to you?” Joey said as he suddenly shoved the vial in Eddie’s face. Eddie reflexively pushed it away but not fast enough to avoid catching a whiff of something that was not lemon, but smelled a lot like eggs that had been rotting for months. Eddie turned away to cough and retch.

“What the hell?” Eddie spat as Joey was laughing. Roger came closer to investigate, caught the scent directly, turned green, and dropped to the floor stiff as a board clutching a drooping flower between his hands.

“Ha-ha! Oh, dear, I just couldn’t resist!” Joey said as he wiped his eyes, tearing up from laughing so hard at Eddie. Eddie just scowled at him. “Oh, don’t be like that, Mr. Valiant, it was just a joke.” He corked the vial and replaced it in his coat pocket. The smell was still present, but Joey seemed unperturbed. He tapped a finger on the side of his nose. “Can’t smell a thing, never been able to, makes the gag just a little more convincing.”

“Yeah, well, right now I’m wishing I couldn’t smell.” Eddie really had regained his sense of humor since the Acme case, but that didn’t mean he had the patience for some guy who thought that Acme Brand Stink SyrupTM was a replacement for an actual joke.

“Oh, for the love of, I’m sorry, alright? It won’t happen again,” Joey said, and to his credit he sounded pretty genuine.

“Right, well, I’d like to get to work, if you’re done playing pranks.”

“Now hold your horses, Mr. Valiant, there’s no need to be hasty. A minute one way or the other won’t make much of a difference.”

Eddie begged to differ, but made himself shut up and stay put. It was hard when Roger was standing behind Joey waggling his finger and making faces.

“There we go. Now, Mr. Valiant, tell me, have you ever seen an Old Man use their power?”

“You kiddin’? I’m from LA, you can’t swing a dead cat without hitting an Old Man.”

Joey pouted at him. “Well, I personally never get tired of watching.” He turned back toward the sound stage.

The crew was settling and clearing the space, and on the sound stage Henry was with an assistant artist on one side and the director on the other, looking over a drawing done by the assistant with Henry’s guidance and input.

There were no bright colors or auditory cues when an Old Man went to work. There was just an invisible shift in the air, like the way light passing through a gap in the curtains moved across the wall. And as Henry’s eyes passed over the empty space, the image in the drawing was reproduced in three dimensions. The floor became a city street, the back wall, a store front. A couple of lamp posts, a manhole cover, the sidewalk, all of it rounded and polished and matching the style of Drew Studios’ cartoons.

So there was still some wonder at seeing drawings come to life. Everybody was watching quietly, but nobody seemed quite as happy as Henry, even after using his power so many times. It was never mundane to him, how could it be?

As it was drawn by another artist, the set would only last a couple of hours before turning to dust. Only if Henry drew it himself would it be permanent. Nobody quite knew how that power worked, but there was a consistent set of rules to how it could be used.

When the set was completed, Henry was perspiring and grinning. The page in his hand had started spontaneously leaking ink from the center out, and by the time he was done it was soaked through with black ink.

Henry took a step back, and like that, the spell was broken, and everybody went straight back to work.

Joey clapped a hand on Eddie’s shoulder, and Eddie jumped. “Alright, then, let’s get to business.”

Joey’s office was three times the size of Henry’s, significantly more organized, with significantly fewer personal touches. The left wall had a bookshelf mostly filled with knick-knacks, and the right wall had a couple of newspaper clippings, a magazine cover, and a poster for the Butcher Gang. It was a little chilly, the vent was wide open. Eddie made Roger wait outside the office, which carried its own risks, but it was at least a calculated one.

“So, Henry already told you what’s happened?” Joey said as he stepped behind his desk.

“More or less. You want me to find Alice.”

“That’s exactly right, Mr. Valiant. It’s been madness this past week, I’m at my wit’s end. Speaking of, I really am sorry about the state I was in when you first came downstairs, it’s just been…difficult,” Joey said. “We’re all so worried about her, the police only mocked me, and I shudder to imagine what could have happened to her.”

“Mm-hm,. You gotta understand, Mr. Drew, you’re not giving me a lot to work off of here, and I can’t guarantee I’m gonna find her. It’s not easy to hurt a Toon, but it ain’t hard for a smart Toon to make themselves disappear.”

Joey shook his head. “I hope she isn’t hurt, but even if she did run away, she couldn’t possibly have done it without help.”

“What’s that mean?”

“Just what I said. Alice, and Bendy and Boris as well, they’re all clever, but not particularly, what’s the word, worldly. They don’t really leave the studio very often, and when they do they usually have a chaperone, either myself or Henry.”

Eddie squinted at him. “No offense, Drew, but that’s a little funny to keep Toons locked up in a studio.”

“Not locked up, goodness!” You make it sound like they’re here against their wills!” Joey said, visibly appalled. “But, Mr. Valiant, this isn’t Los Angeles. There isn’t a haven like Toontown here in New York, but people aren’t any kinder to Toons here than they are in California. Do you recall Fleisher Studios?”

“Sure I know ‘em. Hell, my brother and I worked for ‘em once back in the day. They, uh…” Eddie frowned as he recalled the details. Had to be spring of ’42, Fleischer Studios was going defunct. The case wasn’t actually for Max Fleischer, Valiant & Valiant were hired by Betty Boop and Bingo after the couple moved to California along with some other Fleischer Bros. Toons.

Eddie wet his lips. “Right. The stalker.”

Now it was coming back to him. Betty had a stalker who had been harassing her for some six months. The creep wasn’t subtle about it, but he was a human and she was a Toon, so the NYPD would not do a think about it, and the stalker even followed Betty and Bingo all the way across the country. They had been afraid he might try to hurt one or both of them, so Teddy got Betty and Bingo safely to Toontown while Eddie waited at the motel room and gave the stalker the scare of his life. The involvement of Valiant & Valiant did not make the papers, but word of mouth still spread the story among the Toons.

“Alright, I get what you mean.”

“Thank you, Mr. Valiant,” Joey said, relaxing a little and smiling gratefully. “It’s incidents just like that one that make me fear for the safety of my Toons. They haven’t expressed any interest in living somewhere else, so I’m only too happy to let them have a home here.”

Persuasive guy, Eddie thought. “So, whether she left of her own will or not, somebody else had to be involved. That’s definitely something to look into. Still can’t guarantee anything, but I can do some digging.”

“Fantastic,” Joey said, flashing a big grin. “About your compensation, I admit that this work is a little nebulous and the time frame is going to be uncertain.”

“At least a couple days.”

“I thought as much. We’ll stick with the daily rate we agreed upon plus expenses, yes? You do have a reputation for results, and for being a man of strong morals, so I think I can trust that you won’t sit back and do nothing.”

This was already going better than Eddie feared it would. “That sounds damn fair, Mr. Drew.”

And they shook on the agreement.

“So Alice lives here in the studio, but does she have any friends outside of it?”

“Ah, I wouldn’t know, I speak with her less than I would like,” Joey said, as he went to write out a check for the first day of work.

“Then who would know?”

“Well, Henry is certainly closest with the Toons,” Joey said. “But he’s a tad busy at the moment, and rather worn out. Otherwise, she spends quite a bit of time around our Music Director, Sammy Lawrence. You’re welcome to speak to him, the lift can take you down to level B4. I only ask that you avoid going into sound stage while it is in use. Level C is under construction but the button on the lift is disabled anyways. And there is one room on this level you will pass on the way to the lift, it’s boarded up, but that is the site of a, eh, project that didn’t work out.”

“The Ink Machine?”

Joey’s lip curled. “So, Henry told you about that, did he? Wonderful. Nevertheless, I recommend staying clear. And that goes double for Roger. The last thing I need is Disney on me, on top of everything else.”

That, at least, Eddie could understand.

When Eddie went to leave, he was relieved to find Roger was just where he left him, now chatting with that same janitor from downstairs. Wally wasn’t doing his job in the slightest, but was leaning on his mop with the bucket left right where somebody could step in it.

“Wally! Perfect timing!” Joey boomed, and Wally nearly fell over in surprise, stood upright, and grinned. “You can show Mr. Valiant—”

“Show him the door! On it, boss!” Wally said, dropping his mop and pushing his sleeves up.

“Show him the lift, Wally!” Joey interjected.

“Show him the lift! On it, boss!” Wally said in the same tone, fixing his sleeves and adjusting his cap.

Joey clapped his hands together. “Well, Mr. Valiant, on behalf of every one of my employees, I wish you could luck. I believe in you, Eddie, and with the power of belief, nothing is impossible.” He was beaming, and there was a twinkle in his eye.

Eddie nodded and touched the brim of his hat. “Let’s get going, Roger.”

The door closed loudly behind them.

“So, you find your keys?” Eddie said.

“Huh? Oh, yeah!” Wally said, and kept on walking as he fished out a keyring and jangled it. Roger was intensely fascinated by the keys. “And now I get why you were so curious about when I lost ‘em, if they’d been lost a while somebody might’ve used them to break in.”

“Smart kid,” Eddie said dryly. It really had been his concern.

“Don’t think it’s that much. Aw, geez, Eddie Valiant. My aunt’s wild about that true crime stuff. Uh! Not that I’m gonna mention anything about it until after you’re done,” Wally added quickly. Again, smarter than some of the people Eddie had worked for in the past. “You are here to find Alice, right? She’s quite a gal, just hope she’s alright.”

Wally took Eddie down a hall, past administrative offices, and down a small flight of stairs to a break room. In the back corner was the lift Joey told him about.

“Hey, so, I couldn’t help but overhear a little,” Wally said. “You’re gonna go talk to Mr. Lawrence?”

“’Overheard,’ huh?” Eddie said doubtfully. “Yeah, that’s right.”

“Can I give you a piece of advice?” Wally crossed his arms and slouched. “Sammy’s pretty much always angry at everybody, and it’s easy to cheese him off. He’s just damn good at makin’ music so everybody puts up with him. But, if you want to start out on his good side, offer him a cigarette. He’ll probably turn you down, but he’ll be a little easier to talk to.”

And that was why you were polite to the janitors: they had the dirt on everyone. “Offer him a cigarette, huh? I’ll keep that in mind. Thanks, kid.”

“Yeah, well, no problem, Mr. Valiant,” Wally said. He held out his hand. Eddie frowned, but he shook the proffered hand. “Good luck finding Alice.”

“…Yeah.”

Weird kid, but Eddie had met weirder in just the last hour. Eddie pushed his hands into his pockets.

The lift was a little rickety and very slow, but better than too fast. Eddie pulled the grate shut, and Roger insisted on pushing the button, but at least he didn’t push all the buttons.

As the lift slowly descended, Eddie lit a cigarette. He set his jaw, and noticed Roger looking at him eagerly. “What?”

“I know that face, that’s the Eddie Valiant Thinkin’ Face!”

The worst part was that Roger wasn’t wrong. He really had been thinking.

Eddie tapped his cigarette and said, “You ever see an Old Man work, Roger?”

Roger perked up. “Oh, sure plenty of times! Not as much at Disney, but at Maroon Cartoons, all the time!”

“So, you know what it looks like and you saw when Henry made the set a bit ago. You notice anything weird about it?”

“Huh, weird?” Roger said, and he tapped his chin in thought. “Well, now that you mention it…” He tilted his head to the side. “I ain’t never seen an animator get so tired after Old-Manning. It’s usually easy for ‘em, right? But Henry looked like he was gonna pass out by the end of it.”

Ignoring the interesting turn of phrase, Eddie nodded. “What else?”

“Uh, oh, yeah, and the paper he was using!” Roger exclaimed. “It got all gross and inky, made a whole big mess! I’ve never seen anything like that happen before?”

“Me neither. I already felt like something was up, but now I’m sure of it.” Eddie pulled out the paper that Wally had quietly given him while they shook hands and held the note up to Roger. “Something stinks at this studio.”

Written in a heavy hand were the words:

DON’T TRUST JOEY DREW

#bendy and the ink machine #batim #who framed roger rabbit #wfrr #roger rabbit and the ink machine #rratim #fanfiction

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aion-rsa · 3 years

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Upcoming Must-See Movies in 2021

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It’s 2021. Finally. If you’re reading this, it means you’ve hopefully gotten through the wreckage of last year unscathed and are ready for a brighter future. And if you’re also a movie lover, this certainly includes a trip (or 20) back to the cinemas. Although a month into the new year, and our hope for a better tomorrow has faded a bit–especially with new COVID variants spreading. Yet there is reason to remain warily optimistic. Yes, including about theaters

For nearly a year now cinemas have remained largely dormant, and given the already shuffling 2021 film calendar, that will continue for the foreseeable future. However, studios (with one notable exception) remain mostly committed to getting new films to the theater this year, and the current 2021 film slate gives reasons to be hopeful.

Indeed, 2021 promises many of the most anticipated films from last year, plus new surprises. From the superhero variety like Black Widow to the art house with Wes Anderson’s The French Dispatch, 2021 could be a much needed respite. So below is just a sampling of what to expect from the year to come…

Judas and the Black Messiah

February 12

It’s kind of hard to wrap one’s head around the annual “Oscar race” in a year when little trophies don’t seem so damn important, but Warner Bros. feels strongly enough about this movie that it’s getting it into theaters and on HBO Max right in the thick of the pandemic-delayed awards season. And judging by the marketing, it’s bringing heat with it.

Shaka King directs and co-writes the story of Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya), who became the chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party in the late 1960s and was murdered in cold blood by police in 1969. LaKeith Stanfield plays William O’Neal, a petty criminal who agreed to help the FBI take Hampton down. This promises to be incendiary, relevant material — and it’s almost here.

Minari

February 12

Lee Isaac Chung directs Steven Yeun–now fully shaking off his years as Glenn on The Walking Dead–in this semi-autobiographical film about a South Korean family struggling to settle down in rural America in the 1980s. Premiering nearly a year ago at the Sundance Film Festival, where it won both the U.S. Dramatic Grand Jury Prize and the U.S. Dramatic Audience Award, Minari had a quick one-week virtual release in December, with a number of critics placing it on their Top 10 lists for 2020.

Its story of immigration and assimilation currently has a perfect 100 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics lauding its heart, grace, and sensitivity. A few of ours also considered it among 2020’s best.

Nomadland

February 19

Utilizing both actors and real people, director Chloé Zhao (The Rider, Marvel’s upcoming Eternals) chronicles the lives of America’s “forgotten people” as they travel the West searching for work, companionship and community. A brilliant Frances McDormand stars as Fern, a woman in her mid-60s who lost her husband, her house, and her entire previous existence when her town literally vanished following the closure of its sole factory.

Zhao’s film quietly flows from despair to optimism and back to despair again, the hardscrabble lives of its itinerant cast (many of them actual nomads) foregrounded against often stunning–if lonely–vistas of the vast, empty American countryside.

I Care a Lot

February 19

A solid cast, led by Rosamund Pike, Peter Dinklage, Chris Messina, and Dianne Wiest, star in this satirical crime drama from director J. Blakeson (The Disappearance of Alice Creed). Pike plays Marla, a con artist whose scam is getting herself named legal guardian of her elderly marks and then draining their assets while sticking them in nursing homes. She’s ruthless and efficient at it, until she meets a woman (Wiest) whose ties to a crime boss (Dinklage) may prove too much of a challenge for the wily Marla. It was one of our favorites out of Toronto last year.

The Father

February 26

Anthony Hopkins gives a mesmerizing, and deeply tragic, performance as Anthony, an elderly British man whose descent into dementia is reflected by the film itself, which plays with time, setting, and continuity until both Anthony and the viewer can no longer tell what is real and what is not. Olivia Colman is equally moving as his daughter, who wants to get on with her own life even as she watches her father’s disintegrate in front of her.

We saw The Father last year at the AFI Fest and it ended up being a favorite of 2020; Hopkins is unforgettable in this bracing, heartbreaking work, which is stunningly adapted by first-time director Florian Zeller from his own award-winning play.

Chaos Walking

March 5

This constantly postponed sci-fi project has become one of those “we’ll believe it when we see it” films until it actually comes out. Shot nearly three and a half years ago by director Doug Liman, Chaos Walking has undergone extensive reshoots and was at one point reportedly deemed unreleasable.

Based on the book The Knife of Letting Go, it places Tom Holland (Spider-Man: Far From Home) and Daisy Ridley (The Rise of Skywalker) on a distant planet where Ridley, the only woman, can hear the thoughts of all the men due to a mysterious force called the Noise.

Raya and the Last Dragon

March 5

Longtime Walt Disney Animation Studios head of story, Paul Briggs (Frozen), will make his directorial debut on this original Disney animated fantasy, which draws upon Eastern traditions to tell the tale of a young warrior who goes searching for the world’s last dragon in the mysterious land of Kumandra. Cassie Steele will voice Raya while Awkwafina (The Farewell) will portray Sisu the dragon.

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Warner Bros. and HBO Max 2021 Film Slate Destroys Theatrical Window

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Disney Animation has been nearly invincible in recent years with other hits like Moana and Zootopia, so watch for this one to be another major hit for the Mouse.

Coming 2 America

March 5

The notion of whether nostalgia-based properties are still viable has cropped up repeatedly in the last few years. However, streaming, which is where Coming 2 America finds itself headed post-COVID, makes golden oldies much safer. This sequel—based on a 32-year-old comedy that was one of Eddie Murphy’s most financially successful hits—sees Murphy back as Prince Akeem, of course, along with Arsenio Hall returning as his loyal friend Semmi.

The plot revolves around Akeem’s discovery, just as he is about to be crowned king, that he has a long-lost son living in the States (we’re not sure how that happened, but let’s just go with it). That, of course, necessitates another visit to our shores—that is, if Akeem and Semmi presumably don’t get stopped at the border. The film reunites Murphy with Dolemite is My Name director Craig Brewer, so perhaps they can make some cutting-edge social comedy out of this?

Godzilla vs. Kong

March 26

Here we are, at last at the big punch up between Godzilla and King Kong. They both wear a crown, but in the film that Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures have been building toward since 2014, only one can walk away with the title of the king of all the monsters.

Admittedly, not everyone loved the last American Godzilla movie, Godzilla: King of the Monsters, but we sure did. Still, Godzilla vs. Kong should be a different animal with Adam Wingard (You’re Next, The Guest) taking over directorial duties. It also has a stacked cast with some familiar faces (Kyle Chandler, Millie Bobby Brown, and Ziyi Zhang) and plenty of new ones (Alexander Skarsgård, Eiza González, Danai Gurira, Lance Reddick, and more).

It’ll probably be better than the original, right? And hey with its HBO Max rollout, questions of a poor box office run sure are conveniently mooted!

Mortal Kombat

April 16

Not to be deterred by the relative failure of Sony’s Monster Hunter in theaters at the tail end of 2020, Warner Bros. is giving this venerable video game franchise another shot at live-action cinematic glory after two previous tries in the 1990s. Director Simon McQuoid makes his feature debut while the script comes from Dave Callaham (Wonder Woman 1984, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings) and the cast includes a number of actors you’ve seen in other films but can’t quite place.

The plot? Who knows! But we’re guessing it will feature gods, demons, and warriors battling for control of the 18 realms in various fighting tournaments. What else do you want?

Black Widow

May 7

Some would charitably say it arrives a decade late, but Black Widow is finally getting her own movie. This is fairly remarkable considering she became street pizza in Avengers: Endgame, but this movie fits snugly between the events of Captain America: Civil War and Avengers: Infinity War. It also promises to be the most pared down Marvel Studios movie since 2014’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and that’s a good thing.

In the film, Scarlett Johansson’s Natasha Romanoff is on the run after burning her bridges with the U.S. government and UN. This brings her back to the spy games she thought she’d escaped from her youth, and back in the orbit of her “sister” Yelena (Florence Pugh). Old wounds are ripped open, old Soviet foes, including David Harbour as the Red Guardian and Rachel Weisz as Nat and Yelena’s girlhood instructor, are revealed, and many a fight sequence with minimal CGI will be executed.

How’s that for a real start to Phase 4? Of course that’s still assuming this comes out before The Eternals after it was delayed, again, due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Those Who Wish Me Dead

May 14

Taylor Sheridan is among the best writers in moviemaking right now. Having all but cornered the niche around modern Westerns, he’s responsible for the scripts for Hell or High Water, both Sicarios, and Wind River, the latter of which he also directed. He’s back in the director’s chair again for Those Who Wish Me Dead, which has been described as a “female-driven neo-Western” set in the Montana wilderness. It is there a teenager witnesses a murder, and he finds himself on the run from twin assassins, and in need of protection from a likely paranoid survivalist. The film stars Angelina Jolie, Jon Bernthal, Nicholas Hoult, Tyler Perry, Aidan Gillen, Jake Weber, and Finn Little.

Spiral

May 21

Chris Rock has co-written the story for a new take on the Saw franchise. Never thought we’d write those words! The fact that it also stars Rock, as well as Samuel L. Jackson, is likewise head-turning. It looks like they’re going for legitimate horror with Darren Lynn Bousman attached to direct after helming three of the Saw sequels, and its grisly pre-COVID trailer from last year.

Hopefully this will be better than most of the franchise that came before, and given the heavily David Fincher-influenced tone of the first trailer, we’re willing to cross our fingers and play this game.

Free Guy

May 21

What would you do if you discovered that you were just a background character in an open world video game—and that the game was soon about to go offline? That’s the premise of this existential sci-fi comedy from director Shawn Levy, best known for the Night at the Museum series and as an executive producer and director on Stranger Things. Ryan Reynolds stars as Guy, a bank teller who discovers that his life is not what he thought it was, and in fact isn’t even real—or is it? We’ve seen a preview of footage, so we’d suggest you think Truman Show, if Truman was trapped in Grand Theft Auto.

May 28

Just when you thought this never-say-die franchise had shown us everything it could possibly dream up, it ups the stakes one more time: the ninth entry in the Fast and Furious saga (excluding 2019’s Hobbs and Shaw) will reportedly take Dom Toretto (Vin Diesel) and his cohorts into space as they battle Dom’s long-lost brother Jakob (John Cena, making a long-overdue debut in this series). Michelle Rodriguez, Tyrese Gibson, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Jordana Brewster, Helen Mirren, and Charlize Theron all also return, as does director Justin Lin, who took a two-film break from his signature series. Expect to see the required physics-defying stunts, logic-defying action and even more talk about “family” than usual.

Cruella

May 28

Since Disney has already made an animated 101 Dalmatians in 1961 and a live-action remake in 1996, it is apparently time to tell the story again Maleficent-style. Hence we now focus on the viewpoint of iconic villainess Cruella de Vil, played this time by Emma Stone. She’s joined in the movie by Emma Thompson, Paul Walter Hauser, and Mark Strong, with direction handled by Craig Gillespie (sort of a step down from 2017’s I, Tonya, if you ask us).

The story has been updated to the 1970s, but Cruella–now a fashion designer–still covets the fur of dogs for her creations. This is a Mouse House joint, so don’t expect it to get too dark, and don’t be completely surprised if it ends up as a premium on Disney+ in lieu of its already delayed theatrical release.

Infinite

May 28

This sci-fi yarn from director Antoine Fuqua (The Equalizer) stars Mark Wahlberg as a man experiencing what he thinks are hallucinations, but which turn out to be memories from past lives. He soon learns that there is a secret society of people just like him, except that they have total recall of their past identities and have acted to change the course of history throughout the centuries.

Based on the novel The Reincarnationist Papers by D. Eric Maikranz, this was originally a post-Marvel vehicle for Chris Evans. He dropped out, and the combination of Fuqua and Wahlberg hints at something more action-oriented than the rather cerebral premise suggests. The film also stars Sophie Cookson, Chiwetel Ejiofor, and Dylan O’Brien.

The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It

June 4

James Wan is already directing a new horror film this year so he’s stepping away from the directorial duties on the third film based on the paranormal investigations of Ed and Lorraine Warren (Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga). That task has fallen to Michael Chaves (The Curse of La Llorona), so expect plenty of the same Wan Universe touches: heavy atmosphere, superb use of sound, and shocking, eerie visuals.

Details are scarce, but the plot—like the other two Conjuring films—is taken from the true-life case of a man who went on trial for murder and said as his defense that he was possessed by a demon when he committed his crimes. That’s all we know for now, except that, intriguingly, Mitchell Hoog and Megan Ashley Brown have been cast as younger versions of the Warrens.

In the Heights

June 18

Lin-Manuel Miranda’s first Broadway hit musical gets the big screen treatment (by way of HBO Max) from director Jon M. Chu (Crazy Rich Asians). Set in Washington Heights over the course of a three-day heat wave, the plot and ensemble cast carry echoes of both Rent and Do the Right Thing. While a success on the stage—if not quite the cultural phenomenon that Miranda’s next show, Hamilton—it remains to be seen whether In the Heights can strike a chord with streaming audiences.

Luca

June 18

Continuing its current run of all-new, non-sequel original films started in 2020 with Onward and Soul, Pixar will unveil Luca this summer. Directed by Enrico Casarosa–making his feature debut after 18 years with the animation powerhouse–the film tells the story of a friendship between a human being and a sea monster (disguised as another human child) on the Italian Riviera. That’s about all we have on it for now, except that the cast includes Drake Bell and John Ratzenberger.

Pixar’s recent track record has included masterpieces like Inside Out, solid sequels like Toy Story 4, and shakier propositions like The Incredibles 2, but we don’t have any indication yet of what to expect from Luca.

Venom: Let There Be Carnage

June 25

Can anyone honestly say that 2018’s Venom was a “good” movie? A batshit insane movie, yes, and perhaps even an entertaining one in its own nutty way, but good or not, it made nearly a billion bucks at the box office so here we are.

Tom Hardy will return to peel more scenery down with his teeth as both Eddie Brock and his fanged, towering alien symbiote while Woody Harrelson will fulfill his destiny and play Cletus Kasady, aka Carnage, the perfected hybrid of psychopathic serial killer and red pile of vicious alien goo. Let the carnage begin!

Top Gun: Maverick

July 2

It’s been 34 years since Tom Cruise first soared through the skies as hotshot pilot Pete “Maverick” Mitchell, and he’ll take to the air once more in a sequel that also features Val Kilmer, Jennifer Connelly, Miles Teller, Jon Hamm, and more. The flying and action sequences from director Joseph Kosinski (who worked with Cruise on Oblivion) will undoubtedly be first-rate, but the studio (Paramount) has to be nervous after seeing one nostalgia-based franchise after another (Blade Runner, Charlie’s Angels, Terminator, The Shining) crash and burn recently.

Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings

July 10

With Shang-Chi, Marvel Studios hopes to do for Asian culture what the company did with the groundbreaking Black Panther nearly three years ago: create another superhero epic with a non-white lead and a mythology steeped in a non-Western culture. Simu Liu stars in the title role as the “master of kung fu,” who must do battle with the nefarious Ten Rings organization and its leader, the Mandarin (the “real” one, not the imposter from Iron Man 3, played here by the legendary Tony Leung). Director Destin Daniel Cretton (Just Mercy) will open up a whole new corner of the Marvel Cinematic Universe with this story and character, whose origins stretch back to 1973.

The Forever Purge

July 9

One day nearly eight years ago, you went to see a low-budget dystopian sci-fi/horror flick called The Purge, and the next thing you know, it’s 2021 and you’re getting ready to see the fifth and allegedly final entry in the series (which has also spawned a TV show). Written by creator James DeMonaco and directed by Everardo Gout, the film will once again focus on the title event, an annual 12-hour national bacchanal in which all crime, even murder, is legal. How this ends the story, and where and when it falls into the context of the rest of the films, remains a secret for now. Filming was completed back in February 2020, with the film’s release delayed from last summer by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Space Jam: A New Legacy

July 16

There are two types of folks when it comes to the original Space Jam of 1996: those who were between the ages of three and 11 when it came out, and everyone else. In one camp it is an unsightly relic of ‘90s cross-promotional cheese; in the other, it’s a sports movie classic. Luckily for kids today, NBA star LeBron James was 11 for most of ’96, and he’s bringing back the hoops and the Looney Tunes in Space Jam: A New Legacy.

The film will be among the many Warner Bros. pics premieres on HBO Max and in theaters this year, and it will see King James share above-the-title credits with Bugs Bunny. All is as it should be.

The Tomorrow War

July 23

An original IP attempting to be a summer blockbuster? As we live and breathe. The Tomorrow War marks director Chris McKay’s first foray into live-action after helming The Lego Batman Movie. The film stars Chris Pratt as a soldier from the past who’s been “drafted by scientists” to the present in order to fight off an alien invasion overwhelming our future’s military. One might ask why said scientists didn’t use their fancy-schmancy time traveling shenanigans to warn about the impending aliens, but here we are.

Jungle Cruise

July 30

Disney dips into its theme park rides again as a source for a movie, hoping that the Pirates of the Caribbean lightning will strike once more. This time it’s the famous Adventureland riverboat ride, which is free enough of a real narrative that one has to wonder why some five screenwriters (at least) worked on the movie’s script.

Jaume Collet-Serra (The Shallows) directs stars Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt down this particular river, as they battle wild animals and a competing expedition in their search for a tree with miraculous healing powers. The comic chemistry between Johnson and Blunt is key here, especially if they really can mimic Bogie and Hepburn in the similarly plotted The African Queen. If they can sell that, Disney might just have a new water-based franchise to replace their sinking Pirates ship.

The Green Knight

July 30

David Lowery, the singular director behind A Ghost Story and The Old Man & the Gun, helmed a fantasy adaptation of the Arthurian legend of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. And his take on the material was apparently strong enough to entice A24 to produce it. Not much else is yet known about the film other than its cast, which includes Dev Patel, Alicia Vikander, Ralph Ineson, and Kate Dickie–and that it’s another casualty of COVID, with its 2020 release date being delayed last year. So this is one we’re definitely going to keep an eye on.

The Suicide Squad

August 6

Arguably the most high-profile of the WB films being transitioned to HBO Max, The Suicide Squad is James Gunn’s soft-reboot of the previous one-film franchise. It’s kind of funny WB went in that direction when the first movie generated more than $740 million, but when the reviews and word of mouth were that toxic… well, you get the guy who did Guardians of the Galaxy to fix things.

Peacemaker: Suicide Squad Spinoff With John Cena Coming to HBO Max

By Mike Cecchini

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The Suicide Squad Trailer Promises James Gunn’s “1970s War Movie”

By David Crow

Elements from the original movie are still here, most notably Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn and Viola Davis’ Amanda Waller, but the film promises to be weirder, meaner, and also sillier. The first points are proven by its expected R-rating, and the latter is underscored by its giant talking Great White Shark. Okay, we’ll bite.

Deep Water

August 13

Seedy erotic thrillers and neo noirs bathed in shadows and sex are largely considered a thing of the past—specifically 1980s and ‘90s Hollywood cinema. Maybe that’s why Deep Water hooked Adrian Lyne (Fatal Attraction, Indecent Proposal) to direct. The throwback is based on a 1957 novel by the legendary Patricia Highsmith (The Talented Mr. Ripley), and it pits a disenchanted married couple against each other, with the bored pair playing mind games that leave friends and acquaintances dead. That the couple in question is played by Ben Affleck and Ana de Armas, who’ve since become a real life item, will probably get plenty of attention close to release.

Respect

August 13

Respect is the long-awaited biopic of the legendary Aretha Franklin, with the Queen of Soul herself involved in its development for years until her death in August 2018. Authorized biopics always make one wonder how accurate the film will be, but then again, Aretha had nothing to be ashamed of. Hers was a life well-lived, her voice almost beyond human comprehension, and the only thing now is to see whether star Jennifer Hudson (Franklin’s personal choice) and director Liesl Tommy (making her feature debut) can do the Queen justice.

The King’s Man

August 20

This might be a weird thing to say: but has World War I ever seemed so stylish? It is with Matthew Vaughn at the helm.

An origin story of sorts for the organization that gave us Colin Firth and the umbrella, The King’s Man is a father and son yarn where Ralph Fiennes’ Duke of Oxford is reluctant about his son Conrad (Harris Dickinson) joining the war effort. But they’ll both be up to it as the Duke launches an intelligence gathering agency independent from any government. It also includes Gemma Arterton, Matthew Goode, and Aaron Taylor-Johnson as charter members.

Oh, and did we mention they fight Rasputin?

Candyman

August 27

In some ways it’s surprising that it’s taken this long—28 years, notwithstanding a couple of sequels—to seriously revisit the original Candyman. Director Bernard Rose’s original adaptation of the Clive Baker story, “The Forbidden,” is still relevant and effective today. Back then, the film touched on urban legends, poverty, and segregation: themes that are still ripe for exploration through a genre touchstone today.

After her breathtaking feature directorial debut, Little Woods, Nia DaCosta helmed this bloody reboot while working from a screenplay co-written by Jordan Peele (Get Out). That’s a powerful combination, even before news came down DaCosta was helming Captain Marvel 2. And with an actor on-the-cusp of mega-stardom, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, picking up Tony Todd’s gnarly hook, this is one to watch out for.

The Beatles: Get Back

August 27

Peter Jackson seems to enjoy making films about what inspired him in his youth: The Lord of the Rings, King Kong, his grandfather’s World War I service informing They Shall Not Grow Old. So perhaps it was inevitable he’d make a film about the greatest youth icon of his generation, the Beatles. In truth, The Beatles: Get Back is a challenge to a previous documentary named Let It Be, and the general pop culture image it painted.

That 1970 doc by Michael Lindsay-Hogg zeroed in on the band’s final released album, Let It Be (although it was recorded before Abbey Road). Now, using previously unseen footage, Jackson seeks to challenge the narrative that the album was created entirely from a place of animosity among the bandmates, or that the Beatles had long lost their camaraderie by the end of road. Embracing the original title of the album, “Get Back,” Jackson wants to get back to where he thinks the band’s image once belonged.

Resident Evil

September 3

Let’s try that again. As one of the most popular video game franchises of all-time, the original handful of Resident Evil games appeared ready made for adaptation. Visibly inspired by cult classic zombie movies from George Romero, Resident Evil once even had Romero attached. Instead we got the deafeningly dull Paul W.S. Anderson franchise starring Milla Jovovich. And those decade-spanning monstrosities lacked something any self-respecting zombie film needs: brains.

Now Resident Evil is back in a reboot helmed by writer-director Johannes Roberts. And he’s off to a promising start by apparently focusing on the plots of the first several video games in the series. The cast includes Hannah John-Kamen as Jill Valentine, Robbie Amell as Chris Redfield, Kaya Scodelario as Claire Redfield, Avan Jogia as Leon S. Kennedy, and Tom Hopper as Albert Wesker. So far so good. Fingers crossed.

A Quiet Place Part II

September 17

The sequel to one of 2018’s biggest surprises, A Quiet Place Part II comes with major expectations. And few may hold it to a higher standard than writer-director John Krasinski. Despite (spoiler) the death of his character in the first film, Krasinski returns behind the camera for the sequel after saying he wouldn’t. The story he came up with apparently was too good to pass up.

The film again stars Emily Blunt as the often silenced mother of a vulnerable family, which includes son Marcus (Noah Jupe) and deaf daughter Regan (Millicent Simmonds). However, now that they know how to kill the eagle-eared alien monsters who’ve taken over their planet, the cast has grown to include Cillian Murphy and Djimon Hounsou. While the film has been delayed due to the coronavirus outbreak, trust us that it’ll be worth the wait. Is it finally time for… resistance?

Death on the Nile

September 17

Murder on the Orient Express (2017) became a surprise hit for director and star Kenneth Branagh. Who knew that audiences would still be interested in an 83-year-old mystery novel about an eccentric Belgian detective with one hell of a mustache? Luckily, Agatha Christie featured Poirot in some 32 other novels, of which Death on the Nile is one of the most famous, so here we are.

Branagh once again directs and stars as Poirot, this time investigating a murder aboard a steamer sailing down Egypt’s famous river. The cast includes Gal Gadot, Armie Hammer, Letitia Wright, Tom Bateman, Ali Fazal, Annette Bening, Rose Leslie, and Russell Brand. Expect more lavish locales, scandalous revelations, the firing of a pistol or two, and, yes, more shots of that stunning Poirot facial hair.

The Many Saints of Newark

September 24

The idea of a prequel to anything always fills us with trepidation, and re-opening a nearly perfect property like The Sopranos makes the prospect even less appetizing. But Sopranos creator David Chase has apparently wanted to explore the back history of his iconic crime family for some time, and there certainly seems to be a rich tapestry of characters and events that have only been hinted at in the series.

Directed by series veteran Alan Taylor (Thor: The Dark World), The Many Saints of Newark stars Alessandro Nivola as Dickie Moltisanti (Christopher’s father), along with Jon Bernthal, Vera Farmiga, Corey Stoll, Ray Liotta, and others. But the most fascinating casting is that of Michael Gandolfini—James’ son—as the younger version of the character with which his late dad made pop culture history. For that alone, we’ll be there on opening night… even if that just means HBO Max!

Dune

October 1

Could third time be the charm for Frank Herbert’s complex novel of the far future, long acknowledged as one of the greatest—if most difficult to read—milestones in all of science fiction? David Lynch’s 1984 version was, to be charitable, an honorable mess, while the 2000 Sci-Fi Channel miniseries was decent and faithful, but limited in scope. Now director Denis Villeneuve (Blade Runner 2049, Arrival) is pulling out all the stops—even breaking the story into two movies to give the proper space.

Movies

Dune Trailer Breakdown and Analysis

By Mike Cecchini

Movies

What Alejandro Jodorowsky Thinks of the New Dune Trailer

By Mike Cecchini and 1 other

On the surface, the plot is simple: as galactic powers vie for control of the only planet that produces a substance capable of allowing interstellar flight, a young messiah emerges to lead that planet’s people to freedom. But this tale is dense with multiple layers of politics, metaphysics, mysticism, and hard science.

Villeneuve has assembled a jaw-dropping cast, including Timothée Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac, Josh Brolin, Stellan Skarsgård, Dave Bautista, Zendaya, Charlotte Rampling, Jason Momoa, and Javier Bardem, and if he pulls this off, just hand him every sci-fi novel ever written. Particularly, if relations between the director and WB remain strained…

No Time to Die

October 8

Nothing lasts forever, and the Daniel Craig era of James Bond is coming to an end… hopefully in 2021. In fact, delays notwithstanding, it’s a bit of a surprise Craig is getting an official swan song with this movie after the star said he’d rather “slash his wrists” before doing another one. Well, we’re glad he didn’t, just as we’re hopeful for his final installment in the tuxedo.

Director Cary Joji Fukunaga is a newcomer to the franchise, but that might be a good thing after how tired Spectre felt, and Fukunaga has done sterling work in the past on True Detective and Maniac. He also looks to bring the curtain down on the whole Craig oeuvre by picking up on the last movie’s lingering threads, such as 007 driving off into the sunset with Léa Seydoux’s Madeleine Swann, while introducing new ones that include Rami Malek as Bond villain Safin and Ana de Armas as new Bond girl Paloma. Yay for the Knives Out reunion!

Halloween Kills

October 15

2018’s outstanding reboot of the long-running horror franchise—which saw David Gordon Green (Stronger) direct Jamie Lee Curtis in a reprise of her most famous role—was a tremendous hit. So in classic Halloween fashion, two more sequels were put into production (the second, Halloween Ends, will be out in 2022… hopefully).

Movies

Halloween: A Legacy Unmasked

By David Crow

Movies

How Jason Blum Changed Horror Movies

By Rosie Fletcher

Curtis is back as Laurie Strode, along with Judy Greer as her daughter, Andi Matichak as her granddaughter, and Nick Castle sharing Michael Myers duties with James Jude Courtney. Kyle Richards and Charles Cyphers, meanwhile, will reprise their roles as Lindsey Wallace and former sheriff Leigh Brackett from the original 1978 Halloween (Anthony Michael Hall will play the adult version of Tommy Doyle). The plot remains a mystery, but we’re pretty sure it will involve yet another confrontation between Laurie and a rampaging Myers.

The Last Duel

October 15

What was once among the most anticipated films of 2020, The Last Duel is the historical epic prestige project marked by reunions: Ridley Scott returns to his passion for period drama and violence; Matt Damon and Ben Affleck work together for the first time in ages as both actors and writers; and the film also unites each with themes that were just as potent in the medieval world as today: One knight (Damon) in King Charles VI’s court accuses another who’s his best friend (Adam Driver) of raping his wife (Jodie Comer). Oh, and Affleck plays the King of France.

With obviously harrowing—and uncomfortable—themes that resonate today, The Last Duel is based on an actual trial by combat from the 14th century, and is a film Affleck and Damon co-wrote with Nicole Holofcener (Can You Ever Forgive Me?). It’s strong material, and could prove to be one of the year’s most riveting or misjudged films. Until then, it has our full attention.

Last Night in Soho

October 22

Fresh off the success of 2017’s Baby Driver (his biggest commercial hit to date), iconoclastic British director Edgar Wright returns with what is described as a psychological and possibly time-bending horror thriller set in London. Whether this features Wright’s trademark self-aware humor remains to be seen, but since the film is said to be inspired by dread-inducing genre classics like Repulsion and Don’t Look Now, he might be going for a different effect this time.

The cast, of course, is outstanding: upstarts Anya Taylor-Joy (Queen’s Gambit) and Thomasin McKenzie (Jojo Rabbit) will face off with Matt Smith (Doctor Who), and British legends Diana Rigg and Terence Stamp. And the truth is we’re never going to miss one of Wright’s movies. Taylor-Joy talked to us here about finding her 1960s lounge singer voice for the film.

Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins

October 22

While the idea of a Hasbro Movie Universe seems to be kind of idling at the moment, corners of that hypothetical cinematic empire remain active. One such brand is G.I. Joe, which will launch its first spin-off in this origin story of one of the team’s most popular characters. Much of his early background remains mysterious, so there’s room to create a fairly original story while incorporating lore and characters already established in the G.I. Joe mythos.

Neither of the previous G.I. Joe features (The Rise of Cobra and Retaliation) have been much good, so we can probably expect the same level of quality from this one. Director Robert Schwentke (the last two Divergent movies) doesn’t inspire much excitement either. On the other hand, Henry Golding (Crazy Rich Asians) will star in the title role, and having Iko Uwais (The Raid) and Samara Weaving (Ready or Not) on board isn’t too bad either.

Antlers

October 29

Dramatic director Scott Cooper (Crazy Heart, Hostiles) is doing a horror movie. As we live and breathe. And he’s doing it with a huge boost of confidence from Guillermo del Toro, who has opted to produce the movie. Antlers is the tale of two adult brothers, one a teacher and the other a sheriff, getting wrapped up in a supernatural quagmire that involves a young student and a “dangerous secret.” And with a cast that includes Jesse Plemons, Keri Russell, and Graham Greene, we are very intrigued… even if we must wait once again due to a coronavirus delay.

Eternals

November 5

Based on a Marvel Comics series by the legendary Jack Kirby, the now long-forthcoming Eternals centers around an ancient race of powerful beings who must protect the Earth against their destructive counterparts (and genetic cousins), the Deviants. Director Chloe Zhao (fresh off the awards season buzzy Nomadland) takes her first swing at epic studio filmmaking, working with a cast that includes Angelina Jolie, Gemma Chan, Kit Harington, Salma Hayek, Richard Madden, Brian Tyree Henry, and more.

Movies

Upcoming Marvel Movies Release Dates: MCU Phase 4 Schedule, Cast, and Story Details

By Mike Cecchini and 1 other

Movies

The Incredible Hulk’s Diminished Legacy in the Marvel Cinematic Universe

By Gavin Jasper

In many ways, Eternals represents another huge creative risk for Marvel Studios: It’s a big, cosmic ensemble film introducing an ensemble that the vast majority of the public has never heard of. But then, it’s sort of in the same position as Guardians of the Galaxy from way back in 2014, and we all know what happened there.

Ghostbusters: Afterlife

November 11

With the 2016 Ghostbusters reboot criticized (fairly) for its lack of imagination and castigated (unfairly as hell) for its all-female ghost-hunting crew, director Jason Reitman–finally cashing in on the family name by returning to the brand his dad Ivan directed to glory in 1984–has crafted a direct sequel to the original films.

Set 30 years later, Afterlife follows a family who move to a small town only to discover that they have a long-secret connection to the OG Ghostbusters. Carrie Coon (The Leftovers), Finn Wolfhard (Stranger Things) and Paul Rudd (Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania) star alongside charter cast members Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Sigourney Weaver, Annie Potts, and, yes, Bill Murray.

King Richard

November 19

Will Smith’s King Richard promises to be a different kind of biographical film coming down the pipe. Rather than being told from the vantage of professional tennis playing stars Venus and Serena Williams, King Richard centers on their father and coach, Richard Williams. It’s an interesting choice to focus on the male father instead of the game-changing Black daughters, but we’ll see if there’s a strong creative reason for the approach soon enough. The film is directed by Reinaldo Marcus Green (Monsters and Men, Joe Bell).

Mission: Impossible 7

November 19

Once upon a time, the appeal of the Mission: Impossible movies was to see different directors offer their own take on Tom Cruise running through death-defying stunts. But then Christopher McQuarrie had to come along and make the best one in franchise history (twice). First there was Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation and then Mission: Impossible – Fallout. Now McQuarrie and company have set up their own separate quartet of films with recurring original characters like new franchise MVP Ilsa Faust (Rebecca Ferguson) across four films.

Movies

Audio Surfaces of Tom Cruise Raging on the Set of Mission: Impossible 7

By Kirsten Howard

Movies

Mission: Impossible 7 – What’s Next for the Franchise?

By David Crow

Thus enters M:I7, the third McQuarrie joint in the series and first half of a pair of incoming sequels filmed together. The first-half of this two-parter sees the whole crew back together, including Cruise’s Ethan Hunt, Ilsa, Benji (Simon Pegg), Luther (Ving Rhames), and CIA Director Erika Sloane (Angela Bassett). They’re also being joined by Hayley Atwell and Pom Klementieff, but really we’re all just eager to see what kind of insane stunts they can do to top the HALO jump in the last one.

Nightmare Alley

December 3

Director Guillermo del Toro is finally back with a film which was originally intended for release in 2020. But like so many others, Nightmare Alley saw its production frozen due to the coronavirus. Del Toro’s first film since winning the Best Picture Oscar for The Shape of Water, Nightmare adapts William Lindsay Gresham’s novel of the same name. With a script by Kim Morgan and del Toro, it tracks a mid-20th century carny played by Bradley Cooper who is also a silver-tongued grifter. But his con meets its match (and is then outclassed) by his chance encounter with a psychiatrist (Cate Blanchett). They’ll make a hell of a team.

West Side Story

December 10

Steven Spielberg has just two remakes on his directorial resume: Always (1989) and War of the Worlds (2005). While the former is mostly forgotten and the latter was an adaptation of a story that has been filmed many times, his upcoming reimagining of West Side Story will undoubtedly be directly compared to Robert Wise’s iconic 1961 screen version of this classic musical.

A few numbers in previous films aside, Spielberg has never directed a full-blown musical before, let alone one associated with such powerhouse songs and dance numbers. His version, with a script by Tony Kushner, is said to stay closer to the original Broadway show than the 1961 film—but with its themes of love struggling to cross divides created by hate and bigotry, don’t be surprised if it’s just as hard-hitting in 2021. Certainly would’ve devastated last year….

Spider-Man 3

December 17

Sony has finally gotten to a “Spider-Man 3” again in their oft-rebooted franchise crown jewel (technically though this film is still untitled). That proved to be a stumbling block the first time it occurred with Tobey Maguire in the red and blues, but the company seems undaunted since Tom Holland’s third outing is expected to bring Maguire back—him and just about everyone else too.

Movies

Spider-Man 3: Charlie Cox Daredevil Return Would Redeem the Marvel Netflix Universe

By Joseph Baxter

Movies

Spider-Man 3 Adds Benedict Cumberbatch’s Doctor Strange

By Joseph Baxter

With a multiverse plot ripped straight from the arguably best Spidey movie ever, 2018’s Into the Spider-Verse, Holland’s third outing is bringing back Maguire, Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man, Alfred Molina as Doc Ock, Jamie Foxx as Electro (eh), and probably more. It’s a Spidey crossover extravaganza that’s only missing a Spider-Ham. But just you wait…

The Matrix 4

December 22

Rebooting or continuing The Matrix series has always been a tough proposition. While the original Matrix film is one of the landmark achievements in science fiction and early digital effects filmmaking in the 1990s, its sequels were… less celebrated. In fact, directors Lily and Lana Wachowski were publicly wary about the idea of ever going back to the series. And yet, here we are with Lana (alone) helming a project that’s been a longtime priority for Warner Bros.

Movies

The Matrix 4: Laurence Fishburne “Wasn’t Invited” to Reprise Morpheus Role

By John Saavedra

Movies

The Matrix 4 Already Happened: Revisiting The Matrix Online

By John Saavedra

The Matrix 4 also brings back Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, and Jada Pinkett Smith. This is curious since Reeves and Moss’ characters died at the end of the Matrix trilogy—and also because Laurence Fishburne’s Morpheus did not, yet he wasn’t asked back. We cannot say we’re thrilled about the prospect of more adventures in Zion after the disappointment of the first two sequels, but we’d be lying if we didn’t admit we’re still curious to see the story that brought Lana back to this future.

The French Dispatch

TBA

Wes Anderson has a new film coming out. Better still, it is another live-action film. While Anderson’s use of animation is singular, it’s been seven years since The Grand Budapest Hotel, which we maintain is one of the best movies of the last decade. Anderson is working with Timothée Chalamet and Cristoph Waltz for the first time with this film, as well as several familiar faces including Saoirse Ronan, Willem Dafoe, Tilda Swinton, Léa Seydoux, Adrien Brody, Owen Wilson, Jason Schwartzman, and, of course, Bill Murray.

The French Dispatch is set deep in the 20th century during the peak of modern journalism, it brings to life a series of fictional stories in a fictional magazine, published in a fictional French city. We suspect though, if Anderson’s last two live-action movies are any indication, it’ll have more than fiction on its mind–especially since it’s inspired by actual New Yorker stories, and the journalists who wrote them! We missed it in 2020, so here’s hoping it really does go to print in 2021!

Other interesting movies that may come out in 2021 but do not yet have release dates: Next Goal Wins, Don’t Worry Darling, Blonde, The Northman, Resident Evil, Red Notice, Army of the Dead.

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floralreddie · 7 years

Text

Reddie One-shot | Why Do You Care?

Richie Tozier x Eddie Kaspbrak.

Warnings: Swearing.

Word count: 2498

He’s sixteen when he realises he’s in love with Eddie Kaspbrak.

See, Richie has never been one for the idea of love. I mean, it’s kind of the assumption or the expectation that he’s gonna get the fuck out of Derry one day and find some girl and do whatever the hell he plans on doing with his life (he’s always kind of liked the idea of working somewhere where his trashmouth and you’re being too loud Richie personality isn’t such a freaking hindrance. Because, really, he’s too loud for Derry).

When he thought of that girl he might find, he never really saw a face. He never really got excited at the prospect of meeting some curvy gal far away from the odd, shitty little town of Derry, Maine. It had been a passing thought when Bill had stuttered out when they were fifteen that he wanted to leave Derry and meet someone, because everyone in their town was odd or terrible. Stan had nodded in agreement, Mike had looked wistfully to the side, and Eddie had pulled one of his wrinkled nose little faces from where he stood in the corner of Bill’s basement, a copy of The Terminator held between his hands. Ben, their chubby friend, had left Derry a year before. Bev, of course, had left after It. Sometimes…. sometimes Richie forgot what It even was. A mess of colour and blood and screams and Eddie’s face held between his shaking hands.

Richie hadn’t thought much on love since then. He was sixteen suddenly, then, and knee deep in High School homework and cigarettes and the taste of cheap beer on his tongue. Because, fuck off would he ever touch vodka, whiskey or gin. It reminded him too much of pressing his hands against his sleeping mother’s cheeks and feeling her warm, spirit stinking breath brush across his fingertips as he wondered how she was still alive.

He sometimes used to blame his parents for his indifference toward love.

Anyway, shit, we’re going off track.

He’s sixteen and it’s a Friday and he’s Richie Tozier so of course he’s going to sneak some of his dad’s beers and hunt down his friends. Thing is, with a call to each of his shitty friends’ houses, he finds out that Bill is out on a date with Sally Smithers, Mike didn’t even bother answering his house phone, Stan is doing homework (fuckin’ homework) and, of course, Bev Marsh is long gone and has forgotten all about them (he sometimes thinks it’s weird, that she never calls and forgot so easily, because Bev loved them and they loved Bev).

He isn’t disappointed. Not really. He quite likes spending time with just Eddie. And, though Richie forces his voice to remain flippant when Ed’s smartly announces he’s free for the evening after Richie informs the boy who’s voice was still breaking that the others are busy, he’s secretly pleased when Eddie insists they go to Richie’s house, because Eddie’s mom is having one of her paranoid episodes and insisting he’s getting unwell again.

‘She’s threatening to take me to the Doctor early tomorrow. Says I have the flu’. There’s a tiredness in Eddie’s voice that Richie clenches his fists at. Though he stood up to his mother far more, Eddie Kaspbrak still found it hard to understand what was lie and truth when it came to his Ma, and Richie hated her for doing that to him.

Richie frowns and presses the plastic phone closer to his face, a sneaky smile rounding his cheeks. He looks down the hallway and into the sitting room, where he can see his Ma lounging in an armchair with the television flickering in front of her. Dad was working late. Again. ‘You don’t sound like you have the flu, Eddie Spaghetti’.

‘That’s because I don’t, dipshit’.

Richie grins and slams the phone down before yelling to his Ma that Eddie was coming round. She doesn’t answer, but Richie knows this doesn’t mean she hasn’t heard him. She just generally ignores him most of the time. He’s excited, he realises, as he stomps up the stairs in his thick black socks, ratty blue jeans and a busy button up shirt. Fingering his glasses up his long nose, he kicks open his bedroom door and glances in the mirror, noting how unruly his mass of dark hair was.

Pointedly, he stops amidst his clothes strewn floor and ruffles his hair even more. That would annoy Ed’s to no end. He would constantly remind Richie that he looked like, as the Kaspbrak shit said, a dumpster diver.

Richie wonders why the fuck he even cares.

He doesn’t worry too much about the mess of his room, nor the fact that his Ma was passed out on the armchair downstairs, watching some shitty soap opera with a half empty bottle of some cheap, supermarket vodka sitting on the carpet by her feet. Eddie, out of what remained of their Loser’s Club, was the one Richie would trust not to judge him. Sure, Stan had an overbearing dad, Bill had mourning, fucked up parents after what happened to Georgie (what happened again? Oh, the murders, the deaths, the fucked-up laughter that echoed around the tunnels like a gun going off), and Mike…well, Mike didn’t even have a mom and dad. Eddie, though, got what it was like to have a shitty mom. He had a truly fucked up, overbearing mother who made Richie’s blood boil when he thought of how much she had screwed up wide eyed and dark-haired Eddie Kaspbrak.

Eh. Screwed up or not, it was no secret Richie preferred Eddie out of all their friends. He didn’t really bother hiding it at all.

It takes only five minutes for the squeaking of brakes to sound outside of Richie’s house, and with one quick look out of his window he sees the shadow of a small form parking their bike next to his driveway. When glistening, large eyes look up at his window, Richie flips them the bird and grins before darting away.

It takes him only fifteen seconds to reach his front door, slam it open and beam wickedly down at the frowning and sighing Eddie Kaspbrak.

‘Took you fuckin’ long enough,’ Richie greets him, stepping aside as Eddie meanders in, carefully toeing off his clean, white trainers and revealing bright red socks pulled just above his ankles. He’s wearing light blue shorts and a black polo shirt with that fucking fanny pack, and Richie thinks for the thousandth time in his life that Eddie was just fuckin’ precious.

‘I left as soon as you called, dick,’ Eddie replies evenly, bending down to place his shoes neatly by the door amidst the mess of Richie’s, his Ma’s and his Pa’s shoes. For some reason, Richie eyes the neat, dark curls that rest at the base of Eddie’s neck, and thanks the stars that Eddie had allowed this small bit of rebellion against his psychotic mother. Although his hair was still immaculately kept, Richie couldn’t help but appreciate how longer hair suited the pale boy.

Richie blinks. Richie wonders why the fuck he just thought that. Richie moves swiftly along and grins yet again. ‘C’mon then, Eds. Up we go’. He doesn’t miss the way Eddie’s wide brown eyes flicker toward the dimly lit sitting room, before settling back on Richie’s face. It was always like this. Always the concern. Richie sighs. ‘She’s fine. Come on’.

He speeds up the stairs and Eddie follows, his feet padding softly after Richie’s loud steps. There is the usual sigh and tut as Eddie enters Richie’s room, to which Richie snorts and asks Eddie if he’d ask his Ma to come over and clean Richie’s room for him. ‘I’ll pay her good,’ he says, winking and snorting. ‘By that, I mean-’

Eddie grimaces and winkles his nose and pulls that prissy fucking face that always has Richie wanting to grab his cheeks and bop his nose. ‘God, you’re so gross-’

‘Bill’s on a date with Sally Smithers,’ Richie cuts across, throwing himself onto his desk chair as Eddie settles onto the edge of Richie’s bed, eyeing the clothes strewn across is distastefully. The sight of Eddie with his bare knees pressed tightly together and his hands clasped tightly between them has a smile twitching at his mouth. He’s just so cute.

‘I know. He told us today at school he was seeing her,’ Eddie replies, toes wiggling in his socks. ‘After Gym. After the showers’.

‘He did?’ Richie asks because, shit, he was barely even listening. He was too busy glaring daggers at the shits who were making fun of Eddie tiny frame as the boys showered away the sweat of Gym. Funny thing was, it was the freaking AV geeks who were doing it, and Richie could safely say they had no right making fun of other people’s looks. Little shits. Especially Eddie’s look, because Eddie was like a…a fucking pretty snowflake, or something. ‘Oh. I’d rather spend time with my Ed’s, anyway’.

Eddie colours at that and Richie grins. He freaking loved making Eddie blush. It happened more and more since they were kids, since the world tilted and shit hit the fan.

‘You want a beer?’ he says, because it’s almost like a ritual now. It wasn’t uncommon for Eddie to come to Richie’s when the others were busy, and it wasn’t uncommon for Richie to offer him a drink.

It also wasn’t uncommon for Eddie to reply, ‘Do you know how disgusting that shit is? The calories, the taste – it tastes like piss, Richie-’

‘How do you know what piss tastes like, Eds?’

‘Beep beep, Richie. And don’t call me Eds! I hate that!’

Richie snorts and reaches behind him and into his open draw, pulling out a can of cheap beer and cracking the cap. It smells like it tastes. Bitter and sweet at the same time and just a little bit gross. ‘Fuckin’ liar’.

Eddie shakes his head and clenches his hands in his lap, his eyes dipping to the floor and a splash of pink spreading up his neck. Richie watches like a man starved of the sight as he brings the can to his lips and takes a deep swig, dark eyes on Eddie’s pale skin flushed rosy. ‘You shouldn’t drink that,’ Eddie says, looking up to meet Richie’s gaze. ‘It’s bad for you’.

‘I know that,’ Richie says, and it comes out sharper than he intends it to. He hates it when his friends say shit about drinking in front of him, because he knows better than anyone how bad the shit can be for you. It’s fucking hypercritical, anyway. If there’s some party, or when anyone is drinking down by the Barrens, then they don’t care about drinking. Then it’s okay for Richie to get battered and dance to Africa by Toto because, really, that song was fucking great. Once, Eddie actually got a little tipsy and danced with him, too.

So what if he likes to drink at the weekends? It’s the freaking weekend.

‘I know you do, Richie,’ says Eddie, and it’s soft and not teasing at all and Richie stops drinking and stares at him, swallowing the beer tightly. Eddie is sitting on the edge of his bed, ankles crossed and pale legs bare and wide brown eyes looking dead at Richie, opening his mouth as if to speak again.

Richie blurts out the first thing he can think of, because Eddie’s eyes on him are making him itchy and uncomfortable and he somehow feels like a piece of trash next to a fucking bottle of bleach, because Eddie is clean and perfect and Richie is not. ‘Why the fuck do you care, Eddie Spaghetti?’

Eddie stalls and colours and glares furiously at Richie, his Adams Apple bobbing as he looks pointedly to the wall across the room. ‘You’re such a fuckin’ dick, Richie’. A pause in which Richie opens his mouth to retaliate with some grinning, smart-ass remark, but then Eddie says, ‘Why the fuck do you care about what those dicks at school say about me and how I look, or how my mom is, huh?’

Richie breathes in.

The answer arrives his head like it has always been there, but nobody had ever bothered to ask the question. Why was it that Richie Tozier always slung his arm around Eddie Kaspbrak’s shoulders when their group met after school, but no one else’s? Why was it that he watched closely when Eddie breathed too heavily in Gym, because even though his breathing problems were bullshit, Richie knew it still scared Eddie? Why was it he kept a spare inhaler in his messy back-pack, and had flipped Stan off when the other boy had found out? Why was it that he hadn’t called Bill, or Stan, or Mike at all tonight, but had convinced himself that his friends would be busy with the things that usually took up their lives, rather than just ask? Hell, Bill had been on a date. Maybe Richie had been listening after all. Still, he knows. He wanted Eddie all to himself.

Richie breathes out.

So, Richie blinks and Eddie blinks back, because it’s been nearly a full minute and Richie hasn’t answered, and no one had ever rendered him freaking speechless before. Eddie is starting to look nervous, as if he is actually worried such a simple question might have broken the trashmouth Tozier.

‘Shit,’ says Richie, cradling the tin can in his hands and blinking behind his jam-jar glasses at the bewildered looking Eddie. He kicks his legs out in front of him and pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose. ‘I think it’s because I’m in love with you, Eds’.

He honestly sees Eddie’s breath catch.

It takes a moment for the smile to spread across Eddie’s face, and Richie is quite sure that smile could kick the mother-fucking suns ass. Suddenly, he’s half-smiling too. He’s placing the beer hastily on the side and it’s sloshing over his comic-strewn desk, but he doesn’t care because Eddie Kaspbrak is stumbling across the room and planting his mouth hastily against Richie’s, and it is fucking great.

Understatement. It is fucking fantastic.

When he pulls away, Eddie is practically sitting on his lap with his hands placed on Richie’s shoulders, and Richie is holding Eddie by the waist and Eddie is smiling with the least threatening glare Richie has ever seen (because Richie has seen Eddie’s threatening glare, and it is fucking terrifying. Do not underestimate him, because Richie has seen him fuck up something they call It when they were just thirteen) and he is sighing and tugging at Richie’s mop of hair and telling him, ‘About time, you fuckin’ trashmouth. Bill was about ready to smack you if you took any longer’.

Richie nods and agrees because, shit, how had it taken him so long?

‘And don’t call me Ed’s, you fuckin’ dick’.

#reddie #reddie oneshot #richie x eddie #it ff #it 2017 #areyoureddiekids #richie tozier #Eddie kaspbrak

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The Weekend Warrior Jan. 17, 2020 - WEATHERING WITH YOU, BAD BOYS FOR LIFE, DOLITTLE

Only the second column of the year, and I’m already questioning how long I’m going to keep writing this. In case you haven’t heard, I’m no longer writing for The Beat. I don’t really want to talk about it, but it was generally a horrible experience that I put up with since I needed the work/money. It turns out that someone I thought I knew, someone I respected and considered a friend for almost a quarter of a century, turned out to be a truly awful person. That’s really all I’m going to say... for now. (The Beat decided not to run my final Box Office Preview, so that’s incorporated within, as well.)

The good news is that Makoto Shinkai’s latest animated film, WEATHERING WITH YOU (GKIDS), will hit U.S. theaters this Friday after a few “fan previews” on Weds and Thursday night. If you don’t know the name of that Japanese animation filmmaker then you clearly didn’t see the fantastic sci-fi film Your Name, which was an absolutely enormous hit, grossing $354 million worldwide, most of that in Japan, China and South Korea in 2016. That movie eventually opened in North America in 2017 and made another $5 million, but it’s probably one of my favorite animated films. (Your Name will be playing again at the Metrograph starting February 7 if you haven’t seen it.)

But back to Weathering with You, which is another wonderful film from Makoto-san, this one about a high school senior named Hodaka who runs off to Tokyo and runs into financial problems in the gloomy city (boy, can I relate) until he meets Hina, an optimistic girl who has the ability to stop the rain and clear the clouds, something that they turn into a thriving business. It’s a simpler premise than Your Name for sure, but it’s still steeped in magic and fantasy that really makes it a very special film.

You can get tickets for Weathering with You here.

BAD BOYS FOR LIFE (Sony)

Cast: Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Alexander Ludwig, Joe Pantoliano, Paola Nuñez, Kate Del Castilo, DJ Khaled Directed By: Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah (Black, Gangsta, Image) MPAA Rating: R

Oddly, it took three whole weeks to get our first sequel of 2020 – that is, if you don’t count The Grudge, which actually is a sequel. I guess that would make Bad Boys for Life the first sequel that people actually may want to see, because it reunites Will Smith and Martin Lawrence, the stars of two very popular buddy cop movies a nd two of the biggest stars of the ‘90s.

The first Bad Boys came out in 1995 when both guys were pretty big TV stars, Lawrence on Fox show Martin and Smith from The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. Oddly, Lawrence already had quite a bit of film success from the “House Party” movies and Eddie Murphy’s Boomerang when he was paired with Smith.When the original Bad Boys opened with $15.5 million and grossed $65.6 million, that was considered pretty good for the time, especially for first-time director Michael Bay. That’s right. Bad Boyswas also Bay’s debut.

Ever since then, things have gotten crazy, especially for Smith, who starred in Roland Emmerich’s blockbuster Independence Day just one year later, the first Men in Black the year after that, and the rest is history. Lawrence went on to a couple big movies of his own, including the copycat Blue Streak, but other than 2000’s Big Momma’s Houseand its sequel six years later, he just didn’t have much draw when he tried other things. 2011’s Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son made about half what its predecessor made (about $38) million and then Lawrence vanished for a while.

Smith and Lawrence reunited for 2003’s Bad Boys II, again with Bay, who was also a much bigger director by then (and that was even before the “Transformers” movies) and that opened with $46.6 million and grossed $138.5 million domestically, showing how much bigger both stars had become.

That brings us to Bad Boys for Life, the third movie that may or may not have quite the same audience as the last movie. Little-known Belgian directors Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah take over from Michael Bay for this threequel, and oddly, it’s Smith’s fourth movie in the past year after the disappointing showing for Ang Lee’s Gemini Man and the animated Spies in Disguise over the holidays. On the other hand, Smith also had a huge hit last summer with Disney’s Aladdin,and that seemed to be enough to appease his fans who had gotten used to him doing one movie a year.

In some ways, Bad Boys for Life might feel a little like Men in Black 3, which Sony Pictures released in the summer of 2012, just nine years after the previous movie’s $190 million. While it didn’t seem like a necessary sequel, the third Men in Blackstill made only a little bit less. Obviously, nine years wasn’t enough to sour anyone on Smith’s character, although that movie also was now eight years ago, and we’re coming off a year of a ton of disappointing sequels.

Oddly, the MLK Jr. weekend has become a prime weekend for buddy cop movies, two of them seemingly inspired by the “Bad Boys” movies, as Ice Cube and Kevin Hart teamed up for Ride Along and its sequel. Both of them opened this weekend, the original six years ago to $48.6 million over the four-day weekend, and its sequel two years later made $41 million over the extended weekend.

That would seem like a pretty good barometer for Bad Boys for Life, if not for the fact that it’s a sequel to a movie that came out 16 years ago with a much hotter blockbuster director. Will audiences who were 18, 19, 20 when Bad Boys 2come out be anywhere near as interested in Smith and Lawrence’s shenanigans now that they’re well into their 30s?

Reportedly, Bad Boys for Life cost $90 million, although it’s doubtful that Sony expects the movie to make all of that money domestically. Bad Boys II made almost the exact same amount overseas than in North America, although the international market has exploded in the 15 years since then.

Reviews will probably hit around the same time that this column goes live or maybe slightly earlier, so it might be hard to tell if there’s a consensus either for or (more likely) against it. (It’s a sequel being released in January. Do you REALLY think that critics are gonna give it a fair shake?)

That just leaves the question of how well Bad Boys for Life might do, considering that Bay isn’t involved and Lawrence hasn’t been in the public eye very much. I think Smith’s ongoing popularity and the number fans of the previous movies should help the movie make close to $40 million over the four-day weekend, give or take. It certainly will offer something new for the key 20-to-40 year old males that already saw 1917.

DOLITTLE (Universal)

Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Ralph Ineson, Michael Sheen, Antonio Banderas, Carmel Laniado, Jim Broadbent, Jessie Buckley with the voices of Emma Thompson, Rami Malek, John Cena, Craig Robinson, Kumail Nanjiani, Octavia Spencer, Ralph Fiennes, Selena Gomez and more Directed By: Stephen Gaghan (Syriana, Gold) MPAA Rating: PG

Next, we have a slightly oddball of a first new family film for the year, as well as Robert Downey Jr’s first non-Marvel movie in a very long time, playing the classic kids book hero Doctor Dolittle, a doctor who can talk to animals. The children’s books by Hugh Lofting originated all the way back in 1920, and it was only eight years later before it was adapted into a silent animated short film. Probably the most famous movie (at least for 30 years) was the 1967 version of the movie starring Rex Harrison, but Eddie Murphy took on the role in 1998 for two hit movies released by 20th Century Fox (so maybe we’ll see them on Disney+ soon?).

Which might make you wonder how Universal got its hands on the property and why the studio isn’t making it a bigger deal about 2020 being the 100thanniversary of the character? Well, kids, it’s something called “public domain,” which allows anyone who wants to make a movie based on the character to do so. In this case, it’s Oscar-nominated filmmaker Stephen Gaghan, best known for his political thriller, Syriana, which got George Clooney his first Oscar. Obviously, a family-friendly fantasy adventure seems like an odd choice, but obviously, this is a real movie.

The story involves Dolittle being called to save Queen Victoria (played by the wonderful Jessie Buckley, star of Wild Rose) who is dying. Dolittle brings along a young lad named Stubbins (Harry Collett from Dunkirk) as well as a slew of animals voiced by a menagerie of actors. We’ll get back to them in a bit.

Obviously, Downey’s presence will probably play a larger part in anyone’s interest in the movie, since I’m not sure Doctor Dolittle has been able to maintain any sort of place in the pantheon of popular children’s book characters among younger readers. (I could be wrong.) This movie is co-produced by Joe Roth, who helped pave the way for big stars to take on popular fantasy characters, putting Johnny Depp in one of Disney’s bigger pre-Marvel/Lucasfilm hits, Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland, James Franco in Sam Raimi’s Oz the Great and Powerful, and Angelina Jolie in Maleficent. Universal (who previously teamed with Roth for Snow White and the Huntsmanin 2012 and its less successful sequel) are hoping that Downey can bring a similar starpower to Dolittleto get people into theaters.

The last time Downey took on a non-Marvel literary character was his eponymous turn as Sherlock Holmes in the movie directed by Guy Ritchie just over ten years ago. That made a half a billion worldwide, and its sequel two years later did similar business. Other than a starring role in Todd Phillips’ Due Date and the passion project The Judge with Robert Duvall, Downey hasn’t done much outside the MCU. But why should he? Apparently, he is getting somewhere around $50 million to make each of those movies, and for most people, that’s early retirement money, especially after wrapping up the role inAvengers: Endgame, the highest-grossing blockbuster of all time (globally). And yet, we’ll supposedly be seeing Downey’s Tony Stark in this year’s Black Widow, probably in flashback, so he’s clearly not putting the rest of his career in the hands of playing Doctor Dolittle.

The rest of the cast might not be as important but the movie does star the popular actor Michael Sheen (Good Omens), Antonio Banderas (who just received his first Oscar nomination earlier this week) and then the voices include a strange mix of British and American actors, includingEmma Thompson, Rami Malek, John Cena, Craig Robinson,Kumail Nanjiani, Octavia Spencer, Ralph Fiennes, Selena Gomez and more. It’s kind of a shame they couldn’t find a role for Kevin Bacon, as it would make that “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon” game so much easier.

Family movies have generally been tough to predict, especially ones that may or may not interest teen and/or older audiences, which is certainly the case here. Opening Dolittle on a weekend with no school on Monday is a wise move by Universal, as well as doing so in January where there isn’t as much competition for eyes. More than anything, Dolittle will be a very good (and possibly sobering) test on whether Downey is a box office star when not playing Tony Stark… or Sherlock Holmes.

The movie has not caught the attention or interest of the ever-outraged #FilmTwitter, except to make fun of it, but that doesn’t mean younger kids won’t want to see a fun adventure with talking animals, and the latter should help Dolittle make somewhere between $25 and $28 million over the four-day weekend.

This Week’s Box Office Predictions:

Despite the impressive opening for Sam Mendes’ 1917 last weekend and its ten Oscar nominations, it’s very likely that either Bad Boys for Life or Dolittle (or both) will knock it out of first place this weekend. It definitely could be a close race for second place, depending on how well the latest movies from superstars Will Smith and Robert Downey are received. Expect Greta Gerwig’s Little Women to also get a nice bump from its own Best Picture nomination this weekend.

(Note: All the numbers below are for the four-day holiday weekend.)

Bad Boys for Life (Sony) - $42.5 million N/A (up $4 million)*

1917 (Universal) - $29.5 million -20%

Dolittle (Universal) - $23.5 million N/A (down $3.5 million)*

Jumanji: The Next Level (Sony) - $12 million -15%

Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (Lucasfilm/Disney) - $9.5 million -38%

Just Mercy (Warner Bros.) - $9 million -7%

Like a Boss (Paramount) - $7.5 -25%

Little Women (Sony) - $6.6 million -15%

Knives Out (Lionsgate) - $4.6 million -18%

Frozen II (Disney) - $4.5 million -24%

*UPDATE: Okay, my earlier predictions may have been a little unrealistic and it’s pretty clear that Bad Boys for Life, which has gotten decent reviews, will do significantly better than Dolittle, despite there not being much family competition. I’m adjusting accordingly.

LIMITED RELEASES

Besides Weathering with You, Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon’s kid (well, he’s 30) Jack Henry Robbins’ movie VHYES (Oscilloscope) will be out in select theaters and presumably VOD sometime soon. It’s a fairly odd movie made up of bits recorded on a VHS camera meant to look like it was recorded off various television stations by a teen, which includes bits of “late night adult television.” It’s pretty amusing more for appearances by the likes of Kerri Kenney and Thomas Lennon from “Reno 911,” Mark Proksh from “What We Do in the Shadows,” Charlyne Yi and more. It will open in select theaters Friday, including the Alamo Drafthouse in Brooklyn. It has some funny moments but it’s a little disjointed; I’m sure it would be great in an environment that involves drinking.

Also on the genre side of things is Gille Klabin’s directorial debut The Wave (Epic Pictures), starring Justin Long and Donald Faison, a weird movie in which Long plays an insurance lawyer who goes out on the town with his co-worker (Faison) but then gets dosed with a hallucinogen. It will open in select cities and On Demand Friday.

Alex (Taxi to the Dark Side) Gibney’s latest doc Citizen K (Greenwich) will open at the Film Forum on Wednesday, this one looking at Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the wealthiest man in Russia who was valued at $15 billion from his Siberian oil before being thrown into jail by Putin. I haven’t seen the movie, but it recently received a nomination from the Writers Guild (WGA).

A couple mostly VOD horror films out on Friday are Pedro C. Alonso’s horror/thriller Feedback (Blue Fox Entertainment), starring Eddie Marsan, Paul Anderson and Ivana Baquero (Pan’s Labyrinth) and Andy Newberry’s The Host (Vertical Entertainment), starring Maryam Hassouni, Mike Beckingham, and Dougie Poynter.

REPERTORY

Before we get to the regular stuff, if you happen to have some free time on Saturday, like the whole day, you should get down to the Anthology Film Archives for Subway Cinema’s latest all-day marathon, “It’s the Nineties, Stupid!” a collection of six rare and probably very weird films from the ‘90s shown on 35mm. These events are always a lot of fun, and there may still be some tickets left if you act quickly.

METROGRAPH (NYC):

Welcome To Metrograph: Reduxcontinues this weekend with Seizun Suzuki’s Branded to Kill (1967) and Edward Yang’s A Brighter Summer Day (1991). I personally haven’t seen either but might give one or more a try.This weekend’s Late Nites at Metrograph is Paul Schrader’s 1985 movie Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters, a movie I’m not really familiar but apparently, it stars Ken Ogata as Japanese artist Yukio Mishima, who committed seppuku. This weekend’s Playtime: Family Matinees is the classic sci-fi film Them!(1954).

ALAMO DRAFTHOUSE BROOKLYN (NYC)

Next Monday’s “Fist City” screening is Wesley Snipe’s Passenger 57 (1992), the “Terror Tuesday” is Adam Wingard’s 2014 movie The Guest, starring Dan Stevens, with Wingard in person for a QnA, and then next week’s “Weird Wednesday,” January 22, is the 1990 film Brain Dead, starring Bills Paxton and Pullman, hosted by YOURS TRULY!! Yes, I’m making my Alamo debut with a movie from the ‘90s I absolutely loved.

THE NEW BEVERLY (L.A.):

Today’s “Afternoon Classics” matinee is John Huston’s The African Queen (1951), while Friday’s “Freaky Fridays” is the 1985 horror film, Silver Bullet. Friday night’s midnight offering is Tarantino’s Django Unchained while Saturday’s midnight movie is Scorsese’s Raging Bull, celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. The weekend “Kiddee Matinee” is Miyazaki’s Kiki’s Delivery Service (1989).

FILM FORUM (NYC):

The West Village theater begins an expansive new series called “Black Women: Trailblazing African American Actresses 1920-2001” on Friday, and it’s fairly self-explanatory except that there are a lot of films that have rarely been seen in recent years, such as Otto Preminger’s 1954 film Carmen Jones, starring Dorothy Dandridge; Vincente Minelli’s 1943 film Cabin in the Sky with Ethel Waters and Lena Horne, and even Pam Grier as Coffy in Jack Hill’s 1973 film. This is going to be a very special series, one unlike anything else that’s been done on the New York rep scene, and I wish I could afford to check some of these movies out. As part of the series, “Film Forum Jr.” will play the 1972 movie Sounder, for which Cicely Tyson received an Oscar nomination.

EGYPTIAN THEATRE (LA):

On Friday, Beyond Fest presents a 35mm print of the 1993 movie Freaked with directors Alex Winter and Tom Stern and most of the cast and many of the crew in attendance. Hosted by my pal, Drew McWeeney! On Saturday, there’s a matinee of Disney’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (1954) and then that night is a double feature of Marlon Brando’s One Eyed Jacks (1961) and Peter Fonda’s The Hired Hand (1971). Sunday Print Edition is a matinee of 1945’s Hangover Square, then later on Sunday is the first Sean Connery Bond film, Doctor No (1962). Sunday night is a screening of Hitchcock’s Rear Window (1954).

AERO (LA):

On Weds. night, Greg Proops is presenting the hilarious Barbara Streisand-Ryan O’Neal comedy What’s Up, Doc? (1972) as part of his monthly film club. On Thursday the 16th, the Aero is showing Raging Bull in a matinee as part of its “Films of Marty and Bob,” then Friday is the 15thannual Focus on Female Directors, a mix of older and newer movies including the recently nominated short, Kitbull. Saturday begins “A Tribute to Noah Baumbach” with a double feature on Saturday night of Frances Haand Mistress America, his two collaborations with Greta Gerwig. Sunday is a double feature of his earlier films The Squid and the Whale and Kicking and Screaming. Tuesday’s offering in “The Films of Marty and Bob” is the classic King of Comedy, one of my favorite collaborations between the duo.

QUAD CINEMA (NYC):

On Friday, the Quad begins the series “Origin Stories: Bertrand Bonello’s Footnotes to Zombi Child” aka Bonello’s new movie, which opens next Friday. This series will include lots of genre films that influenced the film,including Carpenter’s The Serpent and the Rainbow, De Palma’s Carrie, The Exorcist: Extended Director’s Cut, I Walked with a Zombie and the Aussie classic, Picnic at Hanging Rock (also a director’s cut).

MOMA (NYC):

This week’s Modern Matinees: Jack Lemmonare Billy Wilder’s Oscar-winning The Apartment (1960) with Shirley MacLaine, the 1955 film Mister Roberts Thursday, and Costa-Gravas’ 1982 film Missing on Friday. Also, the International Teen Cinema series Show Me Love continues through Sunday. (You can click on the link to see what’s playing.) Another series, To Save and Project, the 17thMOMA International Festival of Film Preservation will run through the weekend and next week with some interesting choices like Roger Corman’s The Masque of the Red Death (1964) and Mystery of the Wax Museum from 1933.

FILM AT LINCOLN CENTER (NYC):

Although most of the screens here will be taken up by the 2020 New York Jewish Film Festival (see below), but FilmLinc is also getting a head start on its annual “Film Comment Selects” with the New York premiere of Jeffrey Peixoto’s Over the Rainbow and a 35mm screening of Darren Aronofksy’s controversial 2017 film mother!, starring Jennifer Lawrence. Okay, neither are that old but still sort of repertory.

IFC CENTER (NYC)

“The Films of Studio Ghibli” ends on Thursday, so it might be your last chance to see many of these films theatrically before they move to HBO Max later this year. Otherwise, it’s most of the same movies screening at midnight: David Lynch’s Eraserhead and Mulholland Drive, as well as James Cameron’s The Terminator. Ah! Looks like the IFC Center added its new winter repertory series after I wrote this week’s column. Weekend Classics: Luis Buñuel will screen the filmmaker’s 1972 film The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoise, The Terminator (1984) is screening as part of Waverly Midnights: Hindsight is 2020s, and Late Night Favorites: Winter 2020 is Kubrick’s The Shining (1980) but ALSO Prince’s 1984 classic, Purple Rain.

MUSEUM OF THE MOVING IMAGE (NYC):

As part of the exhibition “Envisioning 2001: Stanley Kubrick’s Space Odysey,” MOMI will have a screening of Stanley Kubrick’s film on Saturday afternoon with actor Dan Richter appearing in person. (For $25, you can get access to the exhibition after the screening.)

ROXY CINEMA (NYC)

The love for Nicolas Cage continues as the Roxy will screen Brian De Palma’s Snake Eyes (1998) on Wednesday and Saturday, and Joel Schumacher’s 1999 film 8mm on Thursday.

LANDMARK THEATRES NUART (LA):

This Friday’s midnight offering is Pink Floyd’s The Wall (1982) by filmmaker Alan Parker.

FILM FESTIVALS

Going back to Film at Lincoln Center’s 29thAnnual New York Jewish Film Festival – which I oddly have NEVER attended (mainly since I don’t have an outlet to write about it) – it begins on Wednesday with the New York premiere of the doc Picture of his Life, about underwater photographer Amos Nachoum. It will run through the end of the month, closing on Jan. 28 with the New York premiere of Dror Zahavi’s Crescendo about a world-famous conductor, and the Centerpiece selection is Marceline Loridan-Ivens’ 2003 film The Birch Tree Meadow. I’m not really sure why I haven’t gotten to more of the films in this festival, but it’s mainly because it offers so much, and I never know what’s good or bad and what’s worth my time, which is kind of a shame.

STREAMING AND CABLE

Okay, it’s a little funny that media mogul Tyler Perry is making his transition to Netflix with a film called TYLER PERRY’S A FALL FROM GRACE on Friday, and unlike most of Perry’s movies, I was invited to a press screening, which I sadly couldn’t make since I have to see Bad Boys for Life. It’s about a young woman named Grace (Crystal Fox) who confesses to killing her husband so her lawyer needs to learn the truth.

I also haven’t been able to watch the Viola Davis-McKenna Grace dramedy Troop Zero from filmmakers named “Bert & Bertie” but it will premiere on Amazon Prime this Friday. It also stars Oscar-winner Allison Janney and Jim Gaffigan, but it takes place in 1977 Georgia where a young girl (Grace) dreams of going to space by being recorded on NASA’s Golden Record.

Next week, we get The Gentlemen (STXfilms), the latest ensemble crime movie from Guy Ritchie, which I’m really excited about, and the horror/thriller The Turning (Universal). Again, I’m not really sure if I’m going to be writing anything more after this.

#TheWeekendWarrior Movies WeatheringWithYou #BadBoysForLife Dolittle RobertDowneyJr WillSmith

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topiom · 4 years

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KSI vs Logan Paul 2 LIVE: YouTube stars clash in LA - latest updates and undercard results | Daily Mail Online

KSI beat Logan Paul in a huge grudge rematch at Staples Center which saw the YouTube stars face off in a bid to end their beef once and for all.

In a closely-fought contest which saw both fighters hit the canvas, British YouTuber KSI emerged victorious, winning 57-54 56-55 while one judge scored it 56-55 in favour of Paul.

In the YouTubers first encounter they fought in Manchester with the result concluding in a majority draw, with the judges scoring the fight 57-58 in favour of KSI and the other two scoring it a 57-57, 57-57 draw.

Follow Sportsmail's Ollie Lewis who will provide live coverage of this clash including undercard fights Billy Joe Saunders vs Marcelo Coceres and Devin Haney vs Alfredo Santiago.

Ollie Lewis

Host commentator

That's all from us tonight

Thanks for joining us for our coverage of KSI v Logan Paul 2 this morning.

For all the criticism garnered against the pair, KSI and Paul provided us with the most entertaining fight of the night, and their commitment to the sport cannot be questioned.

Billy Joe Saunders and Devin Haney will be pleased to come away with victories in front of a huge watching audience, but will perhaps be left to feel they could have put on more of a show on the big stage.

05:54

KSI and Logan Paul speak

KSI: 'Last year I was scared. This time I just kept going and going.

'They saw how much bigger he was, but I was like 'screw that, I'm going to work my a** off!'

'Your boy has done it. I am victorious!

'I'm a dog. I keep saying it.

'It took me about a minute or two to figure how I was but I came back. I don't want people to think "he's weak, he's not a fighter" I am a fighter and I keep going.

'I have never worked so hard man, in the ring, in camp it was tough man but I was ready and I was on fire.

'It takes a big man to get in the ring, and you're a big man. Thank you for a good fight bro.'

LP: 'I just want to say fair play to JJ you are one of the toughest people I know and I wish you the best.'

KSI WINS BY SPLIT DECISION!!!

Those two points deducted have cost Logan Paul. The judges scored it 55-56 57-54 56-55 in favour of the Brit who looked rocked in the fourth round but recovered remarkably to win it on enemy soil.

ROUND SIX

Paul makes good use of the jab again to keep KSI at bay but the Brit is so determined to land the all important haymaker, but nothing doing.

This is going down to the cards. How on earth is this going to be decided? One knockdown, two points taken off Logan Paul who finished strongly after KSI's bright start.

05:34

ROUND FIVE

The effect of that upper cut cannot be underestimated. KSI looks to have had a load of confidence sapped as he looks to cover up from big Paul shots.

If the american finds that killer instinct he can finish this in the sixth round. It's going to a grandstand finale.

05:30

ROUND FOUR

Sharp start to the round for Paul who lands a clean one-two on KSI, who is forced to back up. And then KSI goes down! Paul lands a clean upper cut while holding KSI's neck.

That seemed to daze KSI who has taken a few moments to gather his thoughts. The referee has scored the knock down but has deducted two points because Paul hit KSI while he was down.

This is a big thirty seconds in the corner for KSI who looks stunned.

SHANNON BRIGGS IN THE CORNER TO PAUL

'What the f*** are you doing? Get behind the jab!'

ROUND THREE

KSI continues his barrage of wild swings and Paul is slowing down remarkably. The American is on his knee but the referee rules no knock down.

Paul seems reluctant to use his right hand while his jab is falling short. This is bubbling away nicely

05:20

ROUND TWO

Logan Paul is using the jab well to keep KSI at a distance, but he can't evade another looping overhand right which catches Paul, leaving a mark just below the left eye.

Based on the first two rounds, Paul is the better boxer technically, and KSI may blow himself out with the many missed shots so far.

05:16

ROUND ONE

KSI is looking to close the range on the much larger and more imposing Paul. KSI swings wildly but can't quite catch the American, while Paul lands a sweet left hook of his own.

A good first round, which the judges may give to KSI based on intent.

05:12

We're almost ready to go

National anthems have been played, with an interesting violin version of God Save The Queen, before the Star-Spangled Banner is sung.

Michael Buffer does his bit. Logan Paul's introduction is met by a chorus of boos while KSI lets out a roar across the ring with arms spread wide.

The fighters are given their final instructions by the referee and we are moments away.

05:04

KSI is making his way out now to music by Rick Ross.

The Brit is in a red gown and a black and red mask. A rather subdued entrance for the big personality.

First up...Logan Paul

Anticipation is building inside Staples Center as a Logan Paul montage is played on the big screen.

Despite being the hometown fighter, boos ring out for the Ohio-born YouTuber. Paul is dressed in a custom made hoodie with the American flag, and his Maverick brand logo on his chest.

Paul enters the ring and raises his right arm to the crowd, marching around the four corners, before climbing on the corner post to the crowd.