Friday with Keira

Young Justice #19

The latest issue of Young Justice concludes the Gorilla City arc including giving us an origin of the city unique to the title. The issue also stands out as the final issue with the original team as Robin's case notes transition to a final panel revealing Nightwing thinking back on the adventure. This means starting next month the comic, like the show, will move forward with the "Invasion" storyline set five-years in the future.

Although I'm not thrilled by the rewriting of the origin of Gorrilla City to be nothing more than the effects of the Ultra-Humanite and the Brain experimenting on gorillas in Africa, the story centainly plays out well within that design as the team works alongside Gorilla Grodd to stop the super-villains which leads to the creation of Gorilla City.

We get Grodd, the final adventure with the original core team, and even cameos by Congrilla and Nightwing. That should be enough to warrant fans picking this one up. Worth a look.

[DC, $2.99]

Futurama - 31st Century Fox

Despite his recent interest in fox hunting Bender (John Di Maggio) becomes incensed after he discovers the hunters (led by guest-star Patrick Stewart) are actually hunting a robotic fox for sport. When his attempts to end robot cruelty and help Leela (Katey Sagal) protest the hunt fail, Bender decides to step in and rescue the fox. But Bender's plan backfires when he finds himself the subject of the latest hunt.

The Flash Annual #1 (New 52)

It's all been leading to this. The Flash takes on The Rogues... with the help of Captain Cold? Presented in a series of chapters, each drawn by a different artist (sadly none of which are done by Francis Manapul), The Flash Annual #1 may not be a great issue but there's plenty here to talk about.

The story begins with a little backstory on Barry Allen and his father (which, to be honest, does feel more than a little like filler). We also finally see some of the backstory of the Rogues themselves, including how they came to have their super-powers thanks to Darwin Elias. Sigh, I guess this character is here to stay despite no rational explanation for any of his actions.

Speeding up, the comic picks up where Flash #12 left off as the Scarlet Speester and Captain Cold take on Glider, Mirror Master, Weather Wizard, the Trickster, and Heat Wave. Throw in plenty of action, a last second double cross, the return of Turbine, and a crazy ending involving Gorilla Grodd and and army of apes and even at $5 you're going to get most of your money's worth. Worth a look.

[DC, $4.99]

White Collar - Compromising Positions

Neal (Matt Bomer) and Peter (Tim DeKay) try to match wits with a political fixer (Perrey Reeves) who has been hired to sink the case of a criminal Peter is trying to put behind bars. To help take down the woman, who is behind the blackmail of the Assistant District Attorney (Michael Torpey) trying the case, Neal and Peter call on the help of an old friend, Sara Ellis (Hilarie Burton), to help set-up a sting that doesn't go quite as planned.

The Vivacious Nicole Kidman

To help promote her new movie The Paperboy actress Nicole Kidman took time out for a fashion photoshoot with photographer Mario Testino (you'll find the pics inside) and sat down for an interview with Jacob Bernstein for V Magazine's latest issue to discuss her willingness to go with the flow and take risks, her latest role which includes a brutal sex scene with co-star John Cusack in one scene and peeing on co-star Zac Efron in another, being forbidden to go to the beach as a child, working with director Stephen Daldry on The Hours following her divorce from Tom Cruise, her life in Nashville with husband Keith Urban, and her plans to work with writer/director Lars von Trier on The Nymphomaniac.

Covert Affairs - Loving the Alien

Annie (Piper Perabo) accepts Simon's (Richard Coyle) offer to accompany him on his trip to Cuba. Although she gets Lena's (Sarah Clarke) approval, Annie understands the risk of going in without any CIA back-up and no way home if something goes wrong, which, as you might expect, is exactly what happens. But the manner in which her trip ends no one could have foreseen.

Super Dinosaur #13

Kidnapped and taken into Inner Earth by the Exile, Derek learns the truth about his captor in the latest issue. It turns out the Exile isn't the super-villain Derek believed him to be but a member of the royal family who was banished for his theories of life on the surface of the Earth.

As Derek works on escaping, and even defending the creature that kidnapped him, Super Dinosaur brings his team to the rescue. There's one big continuity error here with the ease SD and the kids make it into Inner Earth (a place that super-villains and scientists alike have been spending decades trying to discover).

You can't really overlook such a big plot issue, but there's enough fun here, including some great action, that you aren't forced to dwell on it. You probably aren't reading a title like Super Dinosaur for its logic or consistency. Still, it's troubling.

The quick shift into the motivations of the Exile and the unexpected complexity of the politics in Inner Earth is a nice touch. I'm hoping the characters get to spend more time exploring the world before reuniting and returning to the surface. For fans.

[Image, $2.99]

Perception - Nemesis

Kate (Rachael Leigh Cook) goes out of her way to try to impress her new boss (Lisa Banes) on a case involving a federal judge (Mary Page Keller) on the short list for Solicitor General who is being stalked by a disturbed young man (Jonathan Tucker). However, the case hits far too close to home for Professor Pierce (Eric McCormack) when he learns the man in question, who believes the judge is an alien from another planet sent here to save the world, is schizophrenic.

The Newsroom - The Greater Fool

The First Season finale begins with the hospitalization of Will McAvoy (Jeff Daniels) brought on by a bleeding ulcer, a hatchet job by Mackenzie's (Emily Mortimer) ex-boyfriend (Paul Schneider) in The New Yorker, and an overdose of anti-depression medication. By the end of the week, despite his eagerness to throw in the towel and walk away, Will is back at the anchor desk reporting on voter disenfranchisement, the fallacy that the United States was founded as a Christian nation, and calling out the Tea Party as "the American Taliban." So much for playing nice for ratings.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles #13

I've been very happy with the IDW's new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, which makes this month's issue all that more perplexing. The biggest difference is Andy Kuhn, and his far rougher style, stepping in for artist Dan Duncan who, until now, had done the art for every issue of the series. Although I prefer the art from the original Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird run I had grown accustomed to Duncan's style. The difference in the book's look is striking, and not in a good way.

Also problematic is how much exposition and plot summarization of the comic up until this point is passed off as attempts at natural dialogue. I assume the idea was to use the issue to help get readers up to speed who reading the title for the first time, but the effect doesn't do the actual story any favors.

The main story points have to do with the Turtles killing time after saving Splinter while The Shredder (who is drawn for the first time with pupils instead of zombie eyes) finds only disapproval with his granddaughter Karai. There's also the return of the subplot of Casey Jones and his abusive father. For fans.

[IDW, $3.99]

Community - The Complete Third Season DVD review

The Third Season of Community, and final season with show creator Dan Harmon as show runner, is highlighted by a video game episode that features 8-bit versions of the cast working to save Pierce's (Chevy Chase) inheritance from the evil Gilbert (Giancarlo Esposito), the introduction of Inspector Spacetime, the Air Conditioning Repair School, the Dreamatorium and Evil Abed, the study group being told Greendale isn't a community college but an insane asylum, an all-campus war between pillow forts and blanket forts, and a near-perfect Law & Order parody.

The season starts out a little slow with a handful of good, but certainly not great, episodes. However, things pick up "Remedial Chaos Theory" which shows us how a single roll of the die could alter the future of each character in both big and small ways. We also get another Glee-ful Christmas episode, Annie (Alison Brie) moving in with Troy (Donald Glover) and Abed (Danny Pudi), and a disastrous attempt to make a new commercial for the school spearheaded by Dean Pelton (Jim Rash).

Leverage - The D.B. Cooper Job

Parker (Beth Riesgraf) is approached by FBI Agent McSweeton (Gerald Downey) who needs help solving his father's (Ronny Cox) most famous unsolved case before the man dies. Parker, in the guise of Agent Haggan, introduces Nate (Timothy Hutton) as a FBI consultant and profiler to McSweeton, his father and his father's old partner (Fred Ward) in hopes that Nate can come up with a theory as to what really happened to D.B. Cooper (Matt Nolan).

The Flash #12

The latest issue of The Flash is mainly set-up putting the final pieces in place for next week's The Flash Annual #1 featuring the Scarlet Speedster against The Rogues. Glider gathers the rests of The Rogues (including the first appearance of The Trickster), leaves her brother (Captain Cold) for dead, and manages to frame the Flash for murder without breaking a sweat.

Fans of the series should get their money's worth, but if you're looking to save a couple bucks you could probably skip this issue and jump right into next week's Annual without missing much other than the Flash's confrontation with Darwin Elias (that do much to explain the scientist's recent actions anyway).

The issue's certainly not bad, but to get the payoff this storyline has been slowly building to it looks like readers are going to have to put down a little extra cash to pick up the annual next week. On the plus side writer/artist Francis Manapul has set up an annual that looks like it's definitely worth picking up (which, as those who have read comics for a while know, that's usually not the case). Worth a look.

[DC, $2.99]

Comic Rack

It’s a new week so it must be time to talk about comics! Welcome to the RazorFine Comic Rack boys and girls. Pull up a bean bag and take a seat at feet of the master as we offer you this quick list of all kinds of comic book goodness set to hit comic shops and bookstores this week from all your favorite publishers including DC, Marvel, Dark Horse, Archie, Dynamite, Image Comics, and others.

This week includes Angel & Faith, FF, The Flash Annual, Gambit, Godzilla, Green Lantern Annual, Higher Earth, Hulk, Justice League, The Lone Ranger: Snake of Iron, Mega Man, Morning Glories, Powers, Prophet, Red Sonja, Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow, Winter Soldier, Witchblade, Young Justice, the first issues of The Last Zombie: Before the After, Li'l Homer, National Comics: Looker, Phantom Lady, and the final issues of Airboy: Deadeye, Diablo, Grim Leaper, Infernal Man-Thing, Popeye, Smoke and Mirrors, and Spaceman.

Enjoy issue #188

XIII - Undertow

XIII (Stuart Townsend) and Jones (Aisha Tyler) head to Chicago seeking one of the two other surviving soldiers involved in the break-in at Renelco's Costa Verda plant, hoping that the operative is still alive and in possession of his third of the mysterious code of Renelco's secret weapon project. Unwilling to unleash XIII without some oversight into his activities President Carrington (Stephen McHattie) reinstates Agent Jones, gives her the necessary resources and security clearance, and authorizes their continued investigation.

Anna Kendrick Enjoys Modern Luxury

In the latest issue of Modern Luxury's Angeleno Magazine actress Anna Kendrick sat down with Alexandra Wolfe on the set of her upcoming film Drinking Buddies to discuss working with director Joe Swanberg and Olivia Wilde, the hot dog named after her, growing up in Portland, her early career on Broadway (where she became the second youngest actress ever to be nominated for a Tony Award), moving to Los Angeles, the bonuses to being short, her love of macaroni and cheese, how her character in 50/50 is the closest she's gotten to playing herself on-screen, and how she'd love to have a lasting career in Hollywood and "be the next Betty White." You can find pics from her photoshoot inside.

Rookie Blue - The Rules

As Traci (Enuka Okuma) and Gail (Charlotte Sullivan) return to work the 15th Precinct gets back to basics with all officers hitting the streets. Andy (Missy Peregrym) and Nick (Peter Mooney) respond to a burning car and find themselves in the middle of a war zone when a local priest (Benz Antoine) becomes the target of a neighborhood drug lord (Shamier Anderson).

The First Look at Masterpiece Soundwave

Takara Tomy has released pics of Masterpiece Soundwave, Sideswipe, and Red Alert (currently available to pre-order in Japan). Very, very cool. Now we'll just have to wait and see how long it takes the Decepticon to make his way across the ocean and satisfy insanely happy Transformers fans who will no doubt want to add him to their collection. (And Sideswipe doesn't look to shabby either!)

Saturday with Amber

Burn Notice - Desperate Times

In the mid-season finale Michael (Jeffrey Donovan) enlists the help of Card (John C. McGinley) and the CIA to find Tyler Gray (Kenny Johnson), the assassin responsible for the deaths of Anson (Jere Burns) and Nate (Seth Peterson). With no other resources from the CIA other than a disgruntled desk jockey (Chad Coleman) who was heading the team to catch Anson, Michael, Fi (Gabrielle Anwar), Jesse (Coby Bell), and Sam (Bruce Campbell) head to Panama to track find their man.

Futurama - Viva Mars Vegas

While the rest of the Planet Express crew heads to the Wongs' new Native Martian casino Mars Vegas, Zoidberg (Billy West) finds his pathetic dumpster diving interrupted by the Robot Mafia who dump their stolen loot in his lap. Believing the $8 million in cash was a gift from God, Zoidberg joins his friends at the casino only to quickly lose the entire amount at roulette.

Margaret

Completed and originally scheduled for theaterical release in 2007 Margaret, writer/director Kenneth Lonergan's film about a self-absorbed teenage girl (Anna Paquin) whose life is affected by a bus crash she witnessed (and inadvertently helped cause) was finally released in theaters last year to mixed results. Maybe it should have stayed on the shelf a little longer.

The Blu-ray of the film includes the theatrical cut of the film as well as a DVD with the director's extended 186-minute version. Although the movie provides several strong performances, the extended cut features extended cutaways, random shots of New York set to an operatic score, often buries the conversation of the main characters among the bustle of New York City, and gives us several subplots that never really fit together, creating a pretentious mess that is often more maddening than entertaining.

Green Lantern #12

As Hal Jordan and Sinestro fight off Black Hand and his army of raised zombies the Guardians of the Universe continue their plans to raise the "Third Army" which will destroy the various Lantern Corps including the Green Lanterns.

If you've been missing zombies since Blackest Night ended this issue is for you. Howver, if you were thankful that Blackest Night ended and hoped never to see the Black Lanterns again (like me) then there's little worth noting except for the what is teased to happen in the coming months including (God help us) Hal Jordan becoming a Black Lantern.

The main story between Jordan and Sinestro and the zombies isn't all that interesting, and the reveal of the Book of Black's prophecy is troubling if that's Geoff Johns' plan for the character. Sligthly more interesting is the Guardians plans for the other Green Lanterns of Earth who have been singled out as their biggest obstacle to removing the Corps. The choice of Renato Guedes to replace Doug Mahnke's art on the title also means the comic has a less crisp look and feel than the previous issues of the title. Hit-and-Miss.

[DC, $2.99]

White Collar - Identity Crisis

After Mozzie (Willie Garson) discovers clues left by a mysterious spy ring inside a recently purchased storage unit he, Neal (Matt Bomer), and Peter (Tim DeKay) get dragged into a dangerous treasure hunt involving a case of mistaken identity, a mansion with secret passages, spies from the Revolutionary War, and a flag someone is willing to kill for.

Covert Affairs - Hello Stranger

Despite both Joan (Kari Matchett) and Auggie's (Christopher Gorham) reservations and several warnings from the State Department not to get involved, Annie (Piper Perabo) is given three hours to attempt the impossible by trying to turn the Chief of Staff (Omid Abtahi) of the Prime Minister of Yemen into an asset for the CIA while the Prime Minister undergoes surgery in an American hospital.

Fatale #7

Nicolas Lash and his ongoing obsession with Josephine is put on hold as the storyline involving the new characters introduced last month, the a B-movie star named Miles and the girl nearly sacrificed by the Method Church, continues as Josephine and Miles find themselves in a cemetery under a full moon just as everything goes to hell.

We get plenty of Josephine, including her suspicions and horror at learning the creatures she believed were dead are still around, hunting for Suzy and the film, and now that they know Josephine is in Los Angeles - her. However, Miles is the main focus of the issue. We witness his selfishness and greed in his attempt to sell the film to his ex-girlfriend's creepy producer as well as his confusion over his sudden bravery and need to help and protect Josephine.

Although most of this issue is set-up, with the blind Hansel knowing that Josephine is in Los Angeles and Miles now bent to Josephine's will things should get interesting very quickly beginning next month. Worth a look.

[Image, $3.50]

Olga Kurylenko Flaunts Her Cunning Linguistics

In the latest issue of Flaunt Magazine actress Olga Kurylenko discusses working with director Terrence Malick on To the Wonder, her prowess with language (she speaks fluent English, Russian, French, and Spanish), her sense of humor, working with writer/director Martin McDonagh (In Bruges) on the upcoming Seven Psychopaths, growing up in the Ukraine, and her insistence to always keep two feet on the ground and not let the glamour of her current life overwhelm her. Kurylenko also posed for a photoshoot with Naj Jamai which you can find inside.

Perception - Lovesick

Kate (Rachael Leigh Cook) enlists the help of Professor Pierce (Eric McCormack) to solve a wrongful death suit which may have played into another case involving a recently murdered therapist (William Ragsdale). After an exhaustive search through the man's records Pierce comes to the conclusion that the therapist was indeed cutting loose patients of a specific insurance company for a kickback, but that's only the beginning.

Daredevil #17

Rather than continue the highly questionable story arc stared in Daredevil #16, writer Mark Waid, with the help of artist Mike Allred, takes a look back into the past into a case from the early days of the law firm of Nelson & Murdock.

Waid shows his skill once again her by showcasing one of Daredevil's lesser foes, Stilt-Man, by admitting to his ridiculous nature but also pointing out how troublesome and dangerous the super-villain could actually be. Allred is a interesting and fun choice for the art of this issue, but I wasn't quite sold on his design of Stilt-Man.

The rest of the story features a disagreement between Matt Murdock and Foggy Nelson and the case of an inventor who is able to give Murdock a moment of true happiness with an invention that allows him to see his father's final fight one more time.

Although the issue doesn't come close to resolving the pieces put into motion last issue, Waid delivers a strong (if somewhat sappy) story that's certainly worth a look.

[Marvel, $2.99]

Political Animals - Resignation Day

As the first season of Political Animals comes to an end (so much for being a "limited series event") Elaine (Sigourney Weaver) is hit from all sides as news of her resignation is leaked to the press, President Garcetti (Adrian Pasdar) asks her once again to consider becoming his Vice President, and Douglas (James Wolk) comes clean to his mother about telling Susan (Carla Gugino) about her plans to run against Garcetti.

The Newsroom - The Blackout Part II: Mock Debate

Following the recent power outage in the studio, the newsroom team holds a mock debate for two officials (Adam Arkin, Jake McDorman) of the Republican Party to showcase the kind of debate they would like to put on the air. Not surprisingly, it doesn't go over very well.

Hit & Run

Written, co-directed, and starring Dax Shepard Hit & Run is, simply put, a mess of a film likely to remind viewers of similar recent train wrecks such as Smokin' Aces and Catch .44. Shepard stars as Charlie Bronson, a getaway driver from Los Angeles now living in the middle of nowhere in the Witness Protection Program. When his girlfriend Annie (Kristen Bell) gets an interview for her dream job in Los Angeles, Charlie throws caution to the wind and decides to go with her.

Their road to L.A. is complicated by Annie's stalker ex-boyfriend Gil (Michael Rosenbaum) intent on proving Charlie is nothing but a crook, Charlie's ridiculous United States Marshal (Tom Arnold) in charge of his safety, and the even more ridiculous Alex Dimitri (Bradley Cooper) the man who Charlie testified against and is still looking for revenge. Gil, knowing Charlie's secret, contacts Dimitri in a last-ditch attempt to win back Annie by getting her current boyfriend killed. Yeah... that's the kind of logic central to ever single plot point in Hit & Run.

Leverage - The Gimme a K Street Job

The Leverage team sets their sites on a the CEO (Danielle Bisutti) of PEP, a corrupt corporation in control of a cheerleading empire whose cost-cutting measures, substandard safety regulations, and negligence is putting the young women in danger. Parker (Beth Riesgraf) goes undercover as the new coach of a team whose former coach, and the team's new client, was scapegoated when one of her cheerleaders is hospitalized with serious injuries. Meanwhile, the rest of the team heads to Washington D.C. to take on Congress.

Captain Atom #12 (New 52)

Captain Atom's brief rediscovery of his humanity ends all too soon when he discovers that giving into his dreams by recreating his human form of Nate Allen has unexpected side-effects for everyone else tied to the Captain Atom project.

While Nate indulges in his night with Ranita the body of Captain Atom subconsciously tries to give the scientists in the facility their own dreams and desires made real - with disastrous effects.

I'm a little sad that the Nate storyline ends so quickly as there was plenty of story to mine for several issues about how human this version of Nate actually is and how far his relationship with Ranita could have actually gone. That said, the immeadiate effects of giving into his desires to once again live his life as a normal man teach Captain Atom an important lesson as he knows now he can never go back to being who he was. The issue ends with another none-too-subtle Watchmen reference with our hero removing himself from the Earth while gazing back on it from the surface of the moon. Worth a look.

[DC, $2.99]

Supreme #66

The latest issue of Supreme plays on the concept of comic reboots and how that reality changes the worlds of the characters. In an homage to the final issue of Crisis on Infinite Earths we see characters from a different Earth stranded on a world not their own, fully realizing they may have no place on this one as Ethan Crane and Diane Dane walk the streets of a far grittier version of Omegapolis than they are used to.

The second-half of the issue deals the with brutal Supreme enforcing his idea of justice on the world. Suprema shows up to try and talk some sense into the darker version of her brother. When that fails the two duke it out until Supreme's rage is stopped only by the unexpected appearance of Omni-Man.

The Extreme version of Supreme is certainly back in full-force here, but the amount of rage he takes out on Suprema (nearly beating her to death) feels more than a little unseemly and too brutal even for this character. That said, the story does set up a huge fight next month - Supreme vs. Omni-Man. Worth a look.

[Image, $2.99]

XIII - Costa Verde

Picking up where XIII: The Conspiracy left off, the XIII television series has continued the adventures of the deadly amnesiac soldier in search for answers about his past. Based on the Franco-Belgian comics by Jean Van Hamme and William Vance the show recasts Stuart Townsend in the role of XIII and returns several of the supporting actors of the original mini-series.

Burn Notice - Official Business

CIA Agents Bailey (John Ales) and Manaro (Brendan O'Malley) resurface to tap their new CIA asset, Fi (Gabrielle Anwar), to help them with Ukranian aeorspace magnate Vincent Durov (Timothy V. Murphy) vacationing in South Beach who the CIA believes plans to sell classified intel on the black market. Unwilling to let Fi go in alone with the two agents who almost got Sam (Bruce Campbell) killed last year, Michael (Jeffrey Donovan) volunteers his services which unfortunately leaves Sam and Jesse (Coby Bell) alone on their search for Nate's (Seth Peterson) killer.

Red Hood and the Outlaws #12 (New 52)

I haven't been the biggest fan of writer Scott Lobdell taking the Outlaws into space in Red Hood and the Outlaws' current arc. In fact last month's issue was the lowest point of the series so far. Thankfully, things pick up here as the Essence back-up story has been dropped and Arsenal takes center stage in a somewhat ill-conceived rescue attempt.

Even though the current arc centers around exploring Starfire's past this issue is presented, almost exclusively, from Roy's point of view. We also see that Arsenal and Starfire's relationship has gotten more serious than either of them expected.

The logic of Arsenal getting himself captured, tortured, and telling his captors all about his days in space not withstanding, the story utilizes the comic's offbeat sense of humor well. I'm pretty sure I'm going to hate whatever the hell the "Thirteen" is which is ominously mentioned at one point, but, at least the comic has gotten back on its feet after a horrible mis-step last month. I'm also happy to see Timothy Green II has taken over as artist for the title (even if some of the art here looks a little rushed). Worth a look.

[DC, $2.99]

Rookie Blue - Cold Comforts

With the precinct still reeling from the death of Detective Barber (Noam Jenkins), Nash (Enuka Okuma) feels numb with the loss of her mentor and fiance, Shaw (Matt Gordon) takes a personal day to hang out in their favorite bar, Gail (Charlotte Sullivan) struggles with the effects of her kidnapping, and Sam (Ben Bass) finds it impossible to work with or forgive Andi (Missy Peregrym) who he blames for the death of his best friend.

Saturday with Angélica

Futurama - Near-Death Wish

After being disappointed yet again by Professor Farnsworth (Billy West) when he fails to show up to the Clippie Awards ceremony honoring the best delivery boys of the year, Fry (West) sets off with Lila (Katey Sagal) and Bender (John Di Maggio) to the Near-Death Star in search of other relatives, namely the Professor's parents.

Atomic Robo: The Flying She-Devils of the Pacific #2

That's more like it! Okay, I might be getting a little tired of Atomic Robo Presents Real Science Adventures and its short and mostly unconnected tales, but The Flying She-Devils of the Pacific is exactly the kind of fun, imaginative, crazy, Atomic Robo story that I want to read.

As Robo spends more time with the She-Devils, including a trip to local watering hole full of pirates and thugs, he discovers a secret abandoned Japanese air base on one of the islands. Of course he accidentally blows it up while inside, but we'll still give him credit for finding it.

Robo also has to deal with the news that Lauren, the She-Devil's resident mechanical whiz, has cannibalized the prototype airship Robo was shot down in. Initially furious, Robo comes to find Lauren's inventiveness and outside-the-box thinking infectious and agrees to help her redesign the jet packs using his technology. This brings peace back to the island, or would except for the arrival of the mysterious planes attacking the She-Devils' hidden island. Must-read.

[Red 5, $3.50]

Franklin and Bash - 6:50 to SLC

The arrival of Jared's father (Beau Bridges) and his firm's interest in buying Infeld Daniels forces Infeld (Malcolm McDowell) to come clean to Jared (Breckin Meyer) and Peter (Mark-Paul Gosselaar) about the real reason he hired the team of Franklin and Bash. Things are even worse for Peter who discovers his license to practice law has been suspended for failure to pay dues.

ParaNorman

ParaNorman is a creepy kids film with a nice message delivered with about as much subtlety as a kick to the groin. Written and co-directed by Chris Butler, ParaNorman takes a simple premise about a boy who can see dead people and a town under a witch's curse, and weighs it down with heavy issues and themes such as the effects of bullying and mob rule. Although Butler never loses the audience, he lacks the skill to continually keep the film interesting and entertaining while at the same time beating the audience over the head with its message.

The film, after a terrific opening having fun with late night horror movie tropes, opens by introducing the social outcast of the small New England town of Blythe's Hollow - Norman Babcock (Kodi Smit-McPhee). Norman has the ability to see and talk with the dead, which of course no one including his parents (Casey Affleck, Leslie Mann), the local bully (Christopher Mintz-Plasse), or generic teenage sister (Anna Kendrick) believes.

White Collar - Honor Among Thieves

Now reunited together in the White Collar Division, Neal (Matt Bomer) and Peter's (Tim DeKay) first assignment is a personal shopper turned art thief (Rebecca Mader) with a keen interest in a New York museum, but Neal's focus is off following Ellen's (Judith Ivey) murder and the inability of Peter to get any useful information out of the U.S. Marshals regarding the case.

Batman #12

The Bat Boys come out to play as Gotham finds itself under siege from the threat of the new villain Termius. While Batman goes all Iron Man to fight the armored dying madman obsessed with destroying Batman and Gotham before he draw his last breath Damian gets assistance from the former Robins as Nightwing, Red Robin, and even the Red Hood, show up to stop Terminus' hired mercenaries and odd mutated creatures.

Okay, Batman and Robin #12 isn't great, and there are a couple truly groan worthy moments, but it's certainly high on action (even if it never bothers to explain the reasons behind Terminus' obsession with destroying Batman and Gotham).

I like seeing the Robins together in this issue and if DC is looking for another Bat-title to replace one of the underperforming New 52 books may I suggest something along the lines of Robin Team-Up (featuring Robins current and past teaming up for short arcs - which would allow for the inclusion of Stephanie Brown, too). Worth a look.

[DC, $2.99]

With Regard to Cassie Scerbo

In the June issue of Regard Magazine actress Cassie Scerbo discusses relocating to Los Angeles from the East Coast, her competitive nature, her music career, her dreams to have career opportunities for serious dramatic roles similar to those of Meryl Streep, Charlize Theron, Angelina Jolie and Ashley Judd, how different she is from her character Lauren Tanner on ABC Family's Make It Or Break It, the challenges of being both a pop star and being taken seriously as an actor, her favorite fashion designers, and her upcoming film Take a Chance. You can find pics from her photoshoot inside.

Covert Affairs - This Is Not America

Given both of their recent failures Annie (Piper Perabo) and Auggie (Christopher Gorham) both find themselves assigned back to the DPD under Joan (Kari Matchett). Arthur (Peter Gallagher) is less than thrilled with Auggie's drunken assault that landed him in jail and Annie is ordered to let go of all the work done for Lena’s (Sarah Clarke) department, including cutting ties to Simon (Richard Coyle).

Inescapable trailer

Okay, it may sound more than a little like Taken, but I'm willing to give anything starring Alexander Siddig a chance. Written and directed by Rubba Nada, a former spy (Siddig), whose daughter goes missing in Syria, is forced to return to Damascus and begin a search. Joshua Jackson, Marisa Tomei, and Oded Fehr also star. Inescapable opens in Canada in September but, as yet, has no scheduled theatrical release in the United States.

Scarlet Spider #8

Finding himself in the ridiculous position of trusting an obviously mentally unstable woman he saved, then slept with, then learned she created the explosion he saved her from, leads the Scarlet Spider to trespass on Roxxon property and threaten the CEO when a group of heroes show up to stop him. All-in-all, he's had better days.

Battling the Rangers, Kaine manages to escape with the young woman who convinces him once again that her father is truly up to no good. This leads him to break into another of Roxxon facilities only to find no evidence to support the woman's claim (cursing his decision to believe Zoe), and once again be ambushed by the now even more ticked off Rangers.

Of course that's not the end of the story as the ensuing battle uncovers the awful truth about what Roxxon is really up to and creates an unstable new situation the Scarlet Spider and Rangers will have to work together to stop. Here's hoping the conclusion is filled with as much action and humor as this issue. Worth a look.

[Marvel, $2.99]