Random Notes from a Crank

On Father's Day Mrs. Nasty, the kids, and I went to the Wonder Woman movie. I enjoyed it. I'm not a DC Comics kind of guy, but it was an entertaining movie. Of the DC comics characters, Wonder Woman is one of my favorites. 

And the actress who plays Wonder Woman is hotter than the hinges hanging off the gates of Hell. 

Unfortunately for her, "Gal Gadot's Wonder Woman Salary Was Shockingly Low." 

This past weekend I took my son to the local comic book store, and he picked up a copy of Black Panther Vol. 1 by Ta-Nehisi Coates. I read it that afternoon. I really enjoy Coates' work, but the narrative was a little too fragmented for me. 

One of my excellent discoveries was that Bendis created a new stand-alone Jessica Jones narrative. Good stuff people. 

Stay Positive: Iron Fist

Of the Marvel Netflix series, Iron Fist is the one that has not gotten a lot of positive critical acclaim. 

In fact, it has received its fair share of negative reviews. For example, check these out: 

• "6 Problems That Make Iron Fist So Frustrating"
• "Marvel's Iron Fist Is Desperately Seeking a Hero"
• "Iron Fist Is a Terrible Show - And It's Not Donald Trump's Fault"

I'm here to tell you that it's a decent show. 

There is some just (but minor) criticism in those reviews, but I enjoyed the series. 

One issue out there is that there was a campaign to make the main character Asian-American. I don't get that. 

Danny Rand has always been a rich white dude. Sweet Christmas. 

In comparison to the comic books, the TV Danny Rand is a bit of a darker character. Thinking back to the old Power Man and Iron Fist comics and even comparing the TV series to the current run of Power Man and Iron Fist by Walker, the comic book versions of Danny Rand are sometimes more light-hearted. 

And to think more positively, the Iron Fist series moves us toward the new series, The Defenders. 

And here are possible explanations to the end of season 1. 

Stay Positive: Power Man and Iron Fist

I finally finished Luke Cage last night. It was a good series, but I think I enjoyed Jessica Jones more. One plot line I had a hard time buying was that Diamondback was Cage's half brother and that he somehow became this major crime kingpin. So I had to suspend my disbelief and just enjoy the show. The first season did provide some surprising plot twists, and I guess I didn't really know Cage's origin story. At least I didn't remember it.   

I got this comic book in the mail this week. 

I read all of it, the collected issues (1-5), in one sitting. Issue 5 is hilarious. I mean laugh-out-loud hilarious to me. 

As you can imagine, I'm geeked up about this upcoming series. 

Random Notes from a Crank

The other day I was driving on I-57 and passed a heavy duty pickup truck pulling a very large boat, a vessel that looked like you could live on it. The name of the boat was "Final Argument." I'd like to learn the story behind that name. 

I'm desperate enough for some small-screen drama that I'm rewatching the seasons of Daredevil and Jessica Jones on Netflix. 

Mrs. Nasty and I decided we're going to do some 5Ks this year. To follow up on that verbal commitment, I bought some running shoes recently ~ a fancy pair of Sauconys. Thank goodness I bought them at a store that had all their stock 40% off. I do look forward to the Zen quality my mind gets when running, but I'm not looking forward to getting started and running in the cold. 

I ran today on a little over a two-mile route that I ran on a regular basis years ago. I had to stop about halfway through because it was cold as heck and I felt a little upchucky. After a bit of walk, I started running again and finished off the route. I probably ran a mile and a half. Baby steps...

Random Notes from a Crank

As someone who works at a university, I'm often astounded and frustrated how some people with PhDs and impressive credentials can be really @#$%ing stupid.

I would like to watch a sporting event on television without having to listen to commercials about boner medicine. Please stop the incessant marketing of pecker pills. 

I need to start a campaign. 

Because I've become a fan of the TV series Manhattan, which is about the making of the atomic bomb, I recently purchased and have started reading the 25th anniversary edition of The Making of the Atomic Bomb by Richard Rhodes. When I got it in the mail I was a bit surprised. I didn't realize it was 747 pages long. I'll be reading about this history for a good while. 

Another TV series I've been watching is Jessica Jones on Netflix. I was not familiar with that character until I started doing some online sleuthing. I remember her being teamed up with Luke Cage toward the end of Matt Fraction's Iron Fist series, but she's quite the character. I've had experience with the villain of the series, Killgrave, in a Daredevil comic recently. So it seems like the TV series is piecing together parts of old story lines to create a clean narrative. Though a major discrepancy is that Killgrave, aka The Purple Man, looks normal in the Jessica Jones series. 

Regardless, I've enjoyed the series so far (I'm about six or seven episodes in). In fact, I think I like it better than the Daredevil Netflix series because I have little prior knowledge about Jessica Jones. With Daredevil, I've been reading those comic books since I was a kid. 

Like Wolverine was, Jessica Jones is a drinker, in particular bourbon. As a bourbon aficionado, I've noticed the brands of bourbon she drinks. So far it's been Jim Beam White, Wild Turkey 101, Four Rose Yellow Label, and Heaven Hill Bottled-in-Bond, which she wouldn't be able to get in New York City because it's only sold in Kentucky and Indiana.