Marvel 1975.11 - Captain Marvel #41

Captain Marvel #41

Title: Havoc on Homeworld!

Writer: Steve Englehart

Artist: Al Milgrom

Villain: Supreme Intelligence, Ronan the Accuser, Lunatic Legion

Regulars: Rick Jones

Flashbacks: Yon-Rogg, Una, Thanos

Captain Marvel flies to the Kree homeworld Hala in a modified Avengers Quinjet. He should modify all their Quinjets, so they can get around faster. He's been combined with Rick Jones for the flight, however long it lasted, but they separate when they're in the streets of Hala.

They pass a building which is a temple of the Universal Church of Truth. This church features in the current issues of Warlock written by Jim Starlin. I'll write about them soon.

They're attacked by a gang of blue-skinned Kree because of their skin colour, so they fly the rest of the way to the Supreme Intelligence. Captain Mar-Vell has come to warn the Supreme Intelligence about the Lunatic Legion, but they're standing in front of the Supreme Intelligence waiting for him. Captain Marvel merges with Rick, and he defeats the Lunatic Legion in a brief fight.

The Supreme Intelligence reveals that he's been guiding Captain Marvel's destiny ever since Captain Marvel # 1 so that he can be his perfect opponent. The Kree, including the Supreme Intelligence, have reached a plateau in their evolution. They can only advance if the Supreme Intelligence absorbs Rick Jones' mind. He knows that Captain Marvel won't allow it, so he's offering to fight him. The Supreme Intelligence separates Captain Marvel and Rick, but now they only have one nega-band each. Together they fight against Ronan the Accuser. Rick discovers that he now has Captain Marvel's powers. He isn't as skilled in using them, but together they're able to defeat Ronan.

The Supreme Intelligence teleports Captain Marvel and Rick Jones away. We'll find out where they are next issue. Captain Marvel #41 ends with a strange series of six events.

I'll refer to these six scenes as P1 to P6 when we come across them in the following issues.

Holy Spider (4½ Stars)

This is a film made in Persian (Farsi) by Ali Abbasi, an Iranian director who lives in Denmark. It's about Saeed Hanaei, a serial killer in Mashhad in 2000 and 2001. He confessed to 16 murders, but it's suspected that he killed more. The film follows the investigations of Arezoo Rahimi, a female journalist from Teheran who's come to Mashhad to investigate the killings.

The film is in two parts. In the first part Rahimi is hunting the killer, because she doesn't think the police are interested in finding him. Saeed murders prostitutes, and the police think he's helping them by removing immoral women from the streets. The killer has the unusual habit of phoning a reporter, Rahimi's colleague, after every murder to tell him where he's left the body.

In the second part, after his arrest, we see the public outcry. Saeed is popular among veterans from the Iran-Iraq war, and they think he's been wrongly arrested. Saeed claims that he's been carrying out a Jihad against immorality, so they say he's done nothing wrong. When Saeed appears in court, he uses the opportunity to hold religious speeches. He shows no regret for his crimes, except that he's stopped too soon. He says that there are about 200 prostitutes in Mashhad, so it's not enough to have killed only 16 of them.

 "Holy Spider" doesn't hide the killer's identity. It's not a whodunnit. We see him from the beginning as a good husband and father. He loves his wife, he loves his children and he loves Allah. He honestly believes he's doing God's work.

The director wanted to make the film in Iran, but he wasn't given permission, so it was filmed in Jordan. When it was completed, the Iranian govenment made a statement saying it was insulting to Iran. That's one of the differences between a free country and a dictatorship. Films are made in America that criticise the authorities, and they're accepted as an expression of free speech. If a film criticises the Iranian govenment or any aspects of Iranian culture, there are loud complaints.

I almost didn't go to see this film. It's been in the cinema for a few weeks, but I only found out last week that it received several nominations at the Cannes Film Festival, and Zar Amir Ebrahimi was voted Best Actress for her performance as Rahimi. I'm glad I saw the film today. It's ugly in its depiction of violence against women,  but it's a moving thriller, delicately dealing with the problems of life in a misogynist culture. I would have given it five stars, but I've deducted half a star for the smoking in the film. I'm biased against cigarettes, sorry.

VFB Stuttgart Season 2022 Match 17

Hoffenheim – VfB Stuttgart

Date: 24th January 2023, 8:30 pm

Result: 2 – 2

This is the 17th match of the season, marking it as the halfway point. I said I would resume my full game reports when Stuttgart reached the 14th place, but I shan't do that today. Stuttgart is in equal 14th place with Bochum and is only ahead on goal difference. Apart from that, Bochum and Augsburg have only played 16 games so far. With such a close race, Stuttgart is only one game away from being relegated. If Stuttgart had won, the team would still be in 14th place, but with a (relatively) safe 18 points.

VfB Stuttgart should have won, but Hoffenheim scored the equaliser in the fourth minute of extra time. In football you can never be complacent.

1.	Bayern München	36
2.	RB Leipzig	32
3.	Eintracht Frankfurt	30
4.	Union Berlin	30
5.	SC Freiburg	30
6.	Wolfsburg	29
7.	Dortmund	28
8.	Mönchengladbach	22
9.	Leverkusen	21
10.	Köln	21
11.	Werder Bremen	21
12.	Mainz	20
13.	Hoffenheim	19
14.	VfB Stuttgart	16
15.	VfL Bochum	16
16.	Augsburg	15
17.	Hertha BSC	14
18.	Schalke 04	9

Marvel 1975.09 - Captain Marvel #40

Captain Marvel #40

Title: Rocky Mountain Bye!

Wtiter: Steve Englehart

Artist: Al Milgrom

Villain: Starleech

Regulars: Rick Jones, Carol Danvers

Guests: The Watcher, Jarvis

Captain Marvel and Rick Jones bid farewell to the Watcher. He says that he can't thank them for their assistance, because a Watcher can only watch. That's taking it a bit far, isn't it? He takes them back to the Moon, and from there they can fly back to Earth. Is that another ten hour trip? He could have taken them a bit closer. They're now two separate beings, but they can still merge voluntarily. I don't quite understand their current state.

On Earth they separate again. Rick Jones goes to Denver for his concert. He's still wearing his spacesuit, which Mordecai Boggs thinks is just right for his stage show. He goes on stage. He sings. And everyone laughs at him. "The 50's haircut, the 60's ballads, the 70's spacesuit!" Rick falls apart and smashes his guitar, which only makes them laugh more. That's it! It's the end of his career as a rock musician.

The soulless body of Una, Mar-Vell's former lover, has been on Mars since Captain Marvel #29. I'd forgotten all about her. An alien creature takes control of her body and her memories. The creature is called the Starleech on the cover, but it's left unnamed in the story itself.

Captain Marvel visits the Avengers Mansion for a cup of hot chocolate. Then he flies to Florida to visit Cape Canaveral, the army base where he once worked as Dr. Walter Lawson. Rockets are launched to kill him, and he barely escapes. When he goes down to the base he meets Carol Danvers, who's suffering in pain after being hurt by Una. The possessed Una, that is.

Una says she wants revenge on Carol for taking Mar-Vell away from her. These were only suspicions, it wasn't true, but the Starleech doesn't know that. Captain Marvel fights with Una, battering her until the Starleech leaves her body. Her body is now dead.

Rick Jones arrives and says he wants to remain with Captain Marvel wherever he goes.

I'm a big fan of Steve Englehart, but I think this was a poor story. The Starleech is a random monster that appeared out of nowhere and is never seen again. Steve can do better than that!

Fast & Furious 7 (4 Stars)

This film's correct name is "Furious 7", but I've renamed it "Fast & Furious 7". It's annoying when films in a series are given random names. Besides, by giving consistent names the films are easier to find in my alphabetic list of posts. I hope my regular readers use the list a lot. I know I do. Whenever I watch a film that I've watched before, I read my old reviews first, and I use my list to find them.

"Fast & Furious 7" begins shortly after the end of the previous film. It's more accurate to say that it overlaps. The opening scene takes place before the mid-credits scene of "Fast & Furious 6". Deckard Shaw is the brother of Owen Shaw, who was left badly injured and comatose after the last film. Deckard visits Owen in the police hospital, slaughtering everyone who gets in his way. I counted 19 bodies lying scattered in the lobby and hallways as he walked out. He only spared the medical personnel, not the guards. Judging by the mass destruction left in his wake, they need to build a new hospital.

From what I understand, Deckard isn't necessarily a bad guy. He was an elite soldier in the British SBS and SAS. Wow! It's rare that someone serves in both units. He was trained to be a ghost, entering foreign territory undetected to assassinate Britain's enemies. He's a man who can never be found unless he wants to be found. But family comes first. Anyone who harms his brother has to be dealt with.

Deckard visits the DSS offices to find out who was responsible for his brother's injuries. No, he doesn't make an appointment. He breaks into the building at night and logs into the computer of Luke Hobbs to get the information. He doesn't reckon with Hobbs doing overtime. A fight with Hobbs puts him into hospital for most of the film, but he climbs out of bed to go into action in the last half hour.

The first person he kills is Han, as we saw in the mid-credits scene of "Fast & Furious 6". Then he attempts to kill Brian O'Connor by mailing him a bomb. A big bomb. After this his primary target is Dominic Toretto (Dom).

Help comes from unexpected quarters. The leader of a black ops military team who calls himself Mr. Nobody offers Dom his assistance in finding Deckard if Dom does a job for him first. A hacker called Ramsey has written a program called God's Eye that can process data from every device on Earth with a camera or microphone, everything from mobile phones to traffic cameras. Combined with facial recognition software, anybody can be found. A Nigerian terrorist has kidnapped her in Azerbaijan. If Dom frees her and retrieves the hard drive containing God's Eye, Mr. Nobody will assist Dom in finding Deckard Shaw; using God's Eye, of course.

Dom and his team go to work, but it's even more difficult than expected. Deckard is never far away. Dom rescues Ramsey (after an exciting car chase), but Deckard tries to push Dom's car off the road.  Ramsey tells Dom that the hard drive is in Abu Dhabi, but when Dom and his team go to collect it, Deckard is waiting for them.

There's a bittersweet element to the film. The actor Paul Walker, who plays Brian O'Connor, died in a car crash before the film had been completed. The crash was nothing to do with the film itself. The filming continued with slight rewriting. The final scene is a thinly disguised tribute to Paul Walker. Dom says farewell to Brian, and there are flashbacks to the previous films, but it's obvious that he's really saying farewell to Paul. The film is dedicated to him.

Paul Walker
12 September 1973 – 30 November 2013

Success Rate:  + 6.0

	Order from Amazon.com
	Order from Amazon.co.uk
	Order from Amazon.de

Marvel 1975.07 - Captain Marvel #39

Captain Marvel #39

Title: The Trial of the Watcher

Writer: Steve Englehart

Artist: Al Milgrom

Regulars: Rick Jones

Guests: The Watcher (Uatu), Atul, Ingu, Emnu, Aron, Council of Watchers

Flashbacks: Fantastic Four (Reed Richards, Susan Storm, Johnny Storm, Ben Grimm)

    Silver Surfer, Warlock, Thor, Captain America

    Molecule Man, Mandarin, Super Skrull, Porcupine, Melter, Electro, Galactus, Overmind, Leonard Tippet, Dormammu, Loki, Tempus

Captain Marvel follows the Watchers back to their homeworld. They want to send him back, but he says that if Uatu (the Earth's Watcher) is on trial he wants to be present to speak for the defence. They disagree and freeze him in a shroud of stasis (TM). When they've left, Captain combines his energy with Rick Jones, and the shroud explodes. There are only two witnesses: a young Watcher called Aron and a rackcat called Mad-Eye. No, I've never heard of rackcats either, but Steve Englehart throws the word at us like it's something every child should have learnt in first grade. It's a creature that looks like a leopard, but it has antlers.

Captain Marvel and Rick Jones are now standing side by side in the positive world. The rackcat attacks Captain Marvel, but he's strong enough to drive it away. Aron just watches. Captain Marvel flies in pursuit of Uatu and the other Watchers, carrying Rick Jones. Mad-Eye wakes up and follows them. Captain Marvel and Rick Jones arrive in a huge council of Watchers. In the centre stand Uatu and his accuser Emnu.

Emnu begins by stating that it's the sacred duty of the Watchers never to interfere. Then he lists a series of events where Uatu broke his pledge as a Watcher.

Fantastic Four #13.

Fantastic Four #20.

Fantastic Four #29.

Avengers #14.

Strange Tales #134.

Fantastic Four #48, #49, #50.

Fantastic Four #72.

Thor #165.

Avengers #101.

Avengers #118.

Giant-Size Fantastic Four #2.

Avengers #128.

Captain Marvel #39 was written in 1975, long before the days of the Internet. Today there are online databases where we can look up the appearances of the Watcher with a few clicks. Back then people had to rely on their knowledge of comics. Maybe there were notes on sheets of paper flattering around the Marvel bullpen. Otherwise the writers had to carry the knowledge around in their heads. My thanks to Steve Englehart for putting the list of the Watcher's appearances together. It's questionable whether Avengers #14 is relevant, because only the reader sees the Watcher. We can assume that he was also standing watching every other Avengers mission, even if he wasn't explicitly  drawn in the comics.

I believe this is the first time we've been told that the Watcher was responsible for the star over the Avengers Mansion in Avengers #128.

Not even Steve Englehart is perfect. He forgot to mention three other appearances of the Watcher. No, I'm not saying I'm cleverer than him. Sitting at my computer in 2023, I have access to one of the aforementioned databases.

Fantastic Four #60 – This is a case like Avengers #14 where the reader alone sees the Watcher observing the Fantastic Four. Maybe it's slightly more relevant, because the Watcher admits in his soliloquy that he feels tempted to intervene.

Avengers Annual #2 – The Watcher sends the Avengers back home when they're stranded in an alternate universe. There are disagreements among Marvel fans whether the Watcher is just an inhabitant of our universe (Earth-616) or someone who stands above it, observing all universes. The former alternative makes more sense, but if there are Watchers in every alternative universe, they have to coordinate with one another when a Watcher watches or enters a parallel universe.

Marvel Team-Up #7 – The Watcher helps Spider-Man and Thor defeat Kryllk, who had stolen one of the Watcher's artefacts in order to mess up time. I don't think Steve could possibly have forgotten this story, because it was the most recent interference of the Watcher. It's possible that he deliberately omitted it because it was a messy story that didn't make much sense.

Now let's get back to Captain Marvel #39 and  the Trial of the Watcher. Captain Marvel says that the Watcher always interfered in order to help Earth, not harm it. While he's speaking, Mad-Eye enters and attacks him. Aron enters the room to watch the battle, but he also gives advice on how to defeat Mad-Eye. The older Watchers chide him. Rick Jones leaps into action and bangs the nega-bands on either side of the rackcat's head, knocking him unconscious.

Captain Marvel resumes his speech in the Watcher's defence. He says that doing good is better than doing nothing. Emnu is unmoved, and proclaims the Watcher guilty.

"Mar-Vell, you admire action, and you have led this youth (Aron) to admire it as well. But action breeds reaction, which breeds reaction, which breeds reaction; and no action is worth a mote of dust to infinity. Too much is happening for any one thing to matter, Mar-Vell. Your life, to my mind, is neither good nor bad, but merely true. Everything that happens is true. Truth is all that concerns me. If I take action, allying myself with one position, I must lose sight of the truths that oppose my position in reaction. I cannot then know all the truth".

That's a powerful speech by Emnu. Uatu replies:

"You are correct, Emnu. I came to a point where the continuous kaleidoscope of action and emotion spread before me became intoxicating. There were billions and billions of stories, and I yearned to become involved. I did. I aided my heroes and marked their important events, as with the Madonna-Star. It made me feel a hero, and I enjoyed that. But it bothered me that I dared do no more, so when Mar-Vell became protector of the universe, taking the life I longed for, I allowed those who joined me in opposing him to enter my house. And each succeeding action bred, indeed, another. This led me to disgrace. I have learned my lesson. I shall not do wrong again".

Effectively, Uatu confesses that it was selfishness and pride that inspired him to do good.

So what's the punishment? There isn't one. Emnu pats Uatu on the shoulder, and they part ways. A punishment would be inappropriate, because it's an action. The Watchers don't act, they watch.

I can see arguments for and against the passivity of the Watchers. It's a subject that philosophers can write books about, so I shan't show myself up by attempting to speak for or against the Watcher.

Blues Brothers (5 Stars)

My readers have missed out. When I first watched this film I said I'd watch it again soon, and if I didn't watch it again within 12 months I'd buy a beer for the first person to remind me. That was four years ago. I'm a person who keeps his promises, but I admit that I'm slow at times.

The films start with images that emphasise how ugly Chicago looks. Jake has just been released from prison and reunites with his brother Elwood. They find out that the orphanage where they grew up will be closed unless a tax bill of $5000 is paid within eleven days. Jake says he can bring the money by tomorrow, but the nun who runs the orphanage refuses to accept money that's been earned by crime.

Despite being Catholics, Jake and Elwood visit Triple Rock Baptist Church. James Brown is a preacher who uses soul to save souls.

This is the sort of church I'd want to belong to. If you look carefully, you'll see that everyone is black, apart from the Blues Brothers who've quietly sneaked into the back. Is it racist if I say that black churches are better than white churches? On the other hand, why do black churches even exist? Are white people too intimidated to walk in and take a seat? If I lived in Chicago, I wouldn't be scared to take part. I'm sure they'd accept me as one of them.

The Blues Brothers have an epiphany, something they never experienced in a stuffy old Catholic church. First Jake, then Elwood sees the light. They decide to reunite their old blues band to play a big concert to earn the money.

James Brown isn't the only famous singer who appears in the movie. Aretha Franklin is the owner of a small restaurant. You know a woman is beautiful if she can be attractive even when she's wearing a dirty apron.

Ray Charles is the owner of a music instrument store, and he plays a song to demonstrate the quality of a keyboard. I've never considered him on of my favourite singers, but based on his performance in "Blues Brothers" I ought to check out some of his music.

You know you're famous when your picture is drawn on the wall of a public toilet. I've never had that honour. By the way, the man on the left is Charles Napier.

In the end the two brothers perform their concert, but they need a long time to get there. They're pursued by the police, white supremacists, angry country and western singers and even a homicidal jilted girlfriend. Talk about overkill. Even though the brothers are unarmed, a whole army battalion is sent to capture them.

It's difficult to believe that I only watched the film because it starred Charles Napier. It has so many other things going for it. There aren't just amazing musical numbers, there are spectacular car chases. I'm sure I'll watch the film again soon, but this time I won't offer any rewards to readers who remind me. You had your chance.

Success Rate:  + 1.8

	Order from Amazon.com
	Order from Amazon.co.uk
	Order from Amazon.de

Marvel 1975.05 - Captain Marvel #38

Captain Marvel #38

Title: No Way Out!

Writer: Steve Englehart

Artist: Al Milgrom

Villain: The Watcher, Lunatic Legion

Regulars: Rick Jones

Flashbacks: Supreme Intelligence, Cotati, Skrulls

Captain Marvel is a captive of the Lunatic Legion. Their identity is finally revealed. They're a group of pure-blooded blue Kree. After thousands of years of intermarriage with other races, the majority of the Kree are now pink-skinned. The Lunatic Legion even rejects the Supreme Intelligence as a collection of impure minds. They've targeted Captain Marvel, because he's the most powerful Kree warrior. His destruction will send a message to all other pink-skinned Kree.

They call themselves the Lunatic Legion in remembrance of the 17 Kree who built a city on the Moon to prove their worthiness to the Skrulls. This story was told in Avengers #133 (two months ago), but the story is repeated here in less detail. One thing is done more correctly in this comic. In Avengers #133 the colourist Phil Rachelson wrongly gave the first Kree on the Moon pink faces. Klaus Janson puts it right. They're blue.

The Lunatic Legion have set up their base on the Moon in remembrance of their origins. They expected resistance from the Watcher, but he unexpectedly allied himself with them.

The Lunatic Legion subject Captain Marvel to protronic disintegration (TM). The Kree believe in reincarnation, so this manner of execution alters the brain patterns to prevent reincarnation. Whether this is actually the case is a question for philosophers, but what's indisputable is that it's extremely painful.

Captain Marvel escapes by accident. The three hours that he's able to remain in our universe have expired, so he's replaced by Rick Jones. The Lunatic Legion has no reason to kill Rick, so they carry him away to wait for Captain Marvel to return.

In the Negative Zone Captain Marvel awakes. Something is changing in him. It's a combination of his torture at the hands of the Lunatic Legion, the drug that Rick took last issue and the cosmic awareness that he was granted in Captain Marvel #29. He finds himself able to control Rick's unconscious body and slam his nega-bands together. He's now more powerful and can outfight the Lunatic Legion with ease. Moreover, rather than merely being connected with Rick Jones, he now feels that the two of them are one.

The last remaining member of the Lunatic Legion appeals to the Watcher for help, but he refuses. The Watcher confesses that he's committed a great crime. He presses a button that summons two more Watchers. Together, all three are teleported to an unknown location. Rick tells Captain Marvel to help the Watcher, so he impulsively leaps into the teleportation beam to follow him.

Die Drei ??? - Erbe des Drachen (4 Stars)

The characters ??? in the title are pronounced "Fragezeichen", i.e. "question marks". The title of this German film is literally translated into English as "The Three Question Marks – The Legacy of the Dragon". If the film is released in America, it's likely that it will be called "The Three Detectives". The question marks come from the business card that the three youngsters hand out to potential customers.

This fancy business card translates as:

So who are the three detectives? They're the subject of one of the world's largest series of children's books. So far 223 books have appeared in the series. The first ten books were written by the American author Robert Arthur from 1964 to 1969 and achieved great popularity among young readers. After his death the publishing company Random House wanted to continue the series, so they commissioned various authors to write stories. In 1990, after 58 books, Random House announced that the series wouldn't be continued. The German publisher Kosmos, which had previously translated the books into German, bought the rights to the series. This led to the unusual situation that the first 58 books were written in English, but the following books have all been written in German.

The American books were written at the rate of two or three a year. Kosmos increased the rate to six books per year from 1993 onwards. The books are commissioned to various authors, so the books appear with alternating authors. Kosmos has refused to number the books, because they're all standalone stories that can be read in any order, but fans have compiled their unofficial numbers. As any collector knows, if there are 223 items in a series they have to be numbered to put them in the right order on the bookshelf.

The books are kept relatively short, between 150 and 200 pages. They're recommended for readers from 10 upwards. More than 16 million copies have been sold in Germany alone, but they're more popular as audio books, of which 45 million copies have been sold.

I've never been a friend of audio books. Books are for reading, not for listening to. I suppose it's a symptom of today's teenagers that they're too lazy to read and would rather listen to a story.

The three ageless detectives live in Rocky Beach, California, a fictional town near Los Angeles. Justus lives in a trailer with his uncle. The other two live with their parents. Their ages are never explicitly stated, but among their fans there's a consensus that they're about 13 years old. 

After that long introduction, I'll only say a few words about the film itself. Justus' father is given a job doing special effects for a new Hollywood film called "Dracula Rising". The film will be made on location at Castle Piatra, the home of Vlad the Impaler, the inspiration for Dracula. Justus, Peter and Bob take jobs as interns, and they all travel to Romania.

The castle's current owner, Countess Cordina, welcomes the film crew and actors into her home. A lot of the dialogue is in Romanian, which annoyed me. The film could at least have provided German subtitles. But all is not as it seems. The Countess's brother mysteriously disappeared 50 years ago. There was a secret society that met in the castle, a society that has supposedly disbanded, but she suspects that it still exists. And there are rumours of treasure, a giant ruby that belonged to Vlad, which people have been seeking for hundreds of years.

The three detectives, or whatever you want to call them, get involved in conspiracies in the castle. Are there supernatural forces at work? They argue among themselves about the existence of vampires and zombies. The castle's staff definitely look scary, especially the housekeeper who walks the corridors at night with his vicious guard dog.

The film has an age certificate of 6. It's a close call, in my opinion. There are jump scares at various points which I don't consider suitable for young children. My grandson Oliver, who's exactly 6, gripped my arm a few times when he was scared. But in the end he enjoyed the film. I was happy to see that the cinema was more than half full.

VFB Stuttgart Season 2022 Match 16

VfB Stuttgart – Mainz

Date: 21st January 2023, 3:30 pm

Result: 1 – 1

This was the first league match after the winter break. The break lasted longer than usual, because the Football World Cup took place in November and December last year. It was a mistake scheduling the World Cup at this time of year. In future care has to be taken that the event is only scheduled in cooler countries. Qatar failed to host a fair World Cup, showing prejudice against visitors who were open about being homosexual. Qatar also forbade the sale of alcohol inside the stadiums, despite having promised to allow it in previous negotiations. It's obvious that free and fair events were never intended. The Qatari government lied in order to be allowed to host the event.

I intended to visit this match yesterday, but due to a misunderstanding my son's friend failed to get a ticket for me. By the time he realised that I wanted to go, the tickets were already sold out.

I watched recorded highlights of the game afterwards, but I haven't been able to see the whole game. Judging from reviews that I've read, it was a dull game. Both goals were scored in the first half.

Before the game began, there was a minute's silence to remember Pele, the Brazilian footballer who died on 29th December 2022. He's considered by many football fans (including myself) to be the best football player who has ever lived. If you have any doubts, look for recordings of the 1970 World Cup.

VfB Stuttgart has a new trainer, Bruno Labbadia, who was hired in December. I should say re-hired. He previously worked as Stuttgart's trainer from 2010 to 2015. After working for Hamburg SV, Wolfsburg and Hertha BSC, he's back with Stuttgart. This is his first league match with his team. He needs to work hard to get VfB out of the cellar.

1.	Bayern München	35
2.	Eintracht Frankfurt	30
3.	Union Berlin	30
4.	SC Freiburg	30
5.	RB Leipzig	29
6.	Wolfsburg	26
7.	Dortmund	25
8.	Mönchengladbach	22
9.	Werder Bremen	21
10.	Köln	20
11.	Mainz	20
12.	Leverkusen	18
13.	Hoffenheim	18
14.	VfL Bochum	16
15.	Augsburg	15
16.	VfB Stuttgart	15
17.	Hertha BSC	14
18.	Schalke 04	9

Bolt (4 Stars)

Disney Wednesday #10

This is a film I'd never heard of before today. My grandson Oliver wanted to watch a film, and he picked "Bolt" while clicking through the selection of animated films on Disney Plus. It's a film made by Walt Disney in 2008. I was honestly surprised how good it is. Despite being a relatively new film, it has a lot of the magic of Disney's old films.

Penny is a 7-year-old girl who lives in Los Angeles. Her mother takes her to a pet shop to get a dog, and she picks a small white puppy that she calls Bolt, because of the black mark on his left side.

The first question I asked is what dog breed he is. The film makers based his general appearance on the Swiss White Shepherd dog, but they've made him smaller and less hairy. All I can say is that if this dog doesn't exist, he needs to be invented. That's a task for dog breeders.

That was just the introduction. Five years later Bolt is a super-hero. Sort of. He's become a television star called Bolt, and Penny is his co-star. He has super strength and he can fire heat rays from his eyes. The difference between Penny and Bolt is that she knows it's a TV show, but Bolt doesn't. As a result, when Penny is kidnapped at the end of an episode, he has to be kept separate from her until the next episode is filmed, so that he thinks he really has to rescue her.

I could ask questions about how they make the special effects of rays shooting out of Bolt's eyes while he's filming, but let's suspend disbelief.

When Penny is kidnapped, Bolt doesn't want to wait for the filming to resume to find her. He breaks out of his trailer and searches for her. Film studios are a confusing place for a small dog. He hides in a cardboard box, not knowing that it's a package due for shipment. The box is sealed, and when it's opened he's in New York. This is an even more confusing place for a small dog.

Bolt meets a stray cat called Mittens. She's a fan of his television show. She tries to explain to him that his super strength and heat rays are just make believe, but he doesn't understand. For him the show is real life. She helps him return to Los Angeles, hitching a ride in trains and trucks. Most of the film is a road movie, as Bolt and Mittens travel across America. On the way they pick up a hamster called Rhino.

In Los Angeles, the show must go on. There's a stand-in dog for Bolt, but he's not as good as the real thing. He can't act as well, and Penny misses Bolt.

I didn't like most of the children's films that I've watched over the last few months. "Bolt" is different. It's a good film that I'd like to watch again.

Success Rate:  + 0.1

	Order from Amazon.com
	Order from Amazon.co.uk
	Order from Amazon.de

Marvel 1975.03 - Captain Marvel #37

Captain Marvel #37

Title: Lift-Off!

Writer: Steve Englehart

Artist: Al Milgrom

Villain: Annihilus, Nimrod (robot), The Watcher

Regulars: Rick Jones

Guests: Ant-Man, Wasp, Jarvis

This issue continues from Captain Marvel #35. Issue #36 was a Dreaded Deadline Doom (DDD) issue. Sigh... there were too many of them in the 1970's.

After Captain Marvel has thanked Ant-Man and the Wasp for their aid in issue #35, he delivers Rick Jones to his appointment with his manager Mordecai Boggs. As you hopefully remember, Captain Marvel and Rick Jones share their existence. While one of them is in our world, the other is in the Negative Zone. Rick is currently pursuing a career as a folk singer. Or is it a rock singer? Mordecai's assistant Dandy gives Rick a tablet she calls Vitamin C. I don't know what it's supposed to be, I just know that it definitely isn't Vitamin C.

Captain Marvel has to fly to the Moon to confront the Lunatic Legion. He needs ten hours for the flight. I thought he was faster than that. He can only be in our world for a maximum of three hours, which means he'll have to exchange places with Rick three times on the trip. Rick collects a space suit from Avengers Mansion for the journey.

Not far from Earth, Captain Marvel is attacked by Nimrod, one of the Lunatic Legion. Captain Marvel recognises that he's a robot and smashes him.

Rick Jones is attacked by Annihilus in the Negative Zone. Rick hits him, and he breaks up into hundreds of mini-Annihiluses. Or is the plural Annihili? Annihilus says he's still weak from his battle with Captain Marvel, but he'll return soon.

Ten hours later Captain Marvel arrives at the Moon's Blue Area, which was built by the Kree but is now the home of the Watcher. He has trouble concentrating. He doesn't know why, but we can see it's because Rick has swallowed the Vitamin C. Their connection is making both of them high from the one pill.

The Watcher attacks Captain Marvel, saying he wants to murder him. That's very unusual. The Watcher usually watches. That's what he does. The Watcher recognises that Captain Marvel is somehow ill and doesn't want to take advantage of his weakness. He knocks Captain Marvel and hands him to the Lunatic Legion.

Frankenhooker (4 Stars)

When this film was made in 1990 nobody took it seriously. People laughed at it, and not in a good way. They said it was stupid. But now, 30 years later, it's regarded as a cult classic. But it goes further than that. Back in 1990 the critics wrote bad reviews. Since then it's been re-evaluated. Critics now regard it as a dark comedy that people can laugh at in a good way.

The film's hero is Jeffrey Franken, a young man who spends all his time attempting to resuscitate dead life. He was thrown out of medical school, for unnamed reasons, and now he works for a power company in his home town of Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey. Yes, that town really exists.

Jeffrey's fiancée, Elizabeth Shelley, is killed in an accident with a lawnmower. Jeffrey salvages her head and a few other body parts before the police arrive. He wants to put her back together. The trouble is that her body isn't complete, so he needs spare parts. He visits a pimp in New York and hires all six of his prostitutes for a party. They're all crack addicts, so he offers them crack that he's specially modified. Their bodies explode. He doesn't feel guilty because they could have said No. He picks up the best pieces and takes them home to put Elizabeth back together again.

Jeffrey works hard in his laboratory to make everything perfect.

He makes sure Elizabeth's head is screwed on tight.

Electricity is applied, and she's back to life.

Does that mean they can live happily ever after? Not quite. Even though it's Elizabeth's head and brain, she's influenced by the body parts of the other hookers. Her first impulse on coming back to life is to have sex and make money. She pushes Jeffrey away when he refuses to pay her. She goes out to pick up customers.

Would you want sex with a girl like Elizabeth? I wouldn't. Her scars would scare me away. Other men think differently. They just look at her purple breasts, and the rest of her body isn't a problem. But they soon regret hiring her. Somehow the electric charge is still in her body. Or maybe it's an after-effect of the modified crack. Any man that she gets close to is electrocuted, and then his body explodes.

So Jeffrey has to try to get his fiancée back without getting killed. It's a hard life for a teenage Frankenstein.

Jeffrey also has to deal with the pimp who wants revenge for the loss of his girls. He wears an amulet with a Z symbol. He looks like one of Vladimir Putin's friends from an exclusive Moscow gay bar.

It's a fun film. I can understand how it's won so many fans over the years. The special effects are ridiculously cheap, which is emphasised by the Blu-ray remastering, but somehow it doesn't matter. Love it or hate it, it's a film you won't forget.

	Order from Amazon.com
	Order from Amazon.co.uk
	Order from Amazon.de

Marvel 1976.09 - Avengers #151

Avengers #151

Title: At Last: The Decision

Writers: Gerry Conway, Jim Shooter. Steve Englehart

Artist: George Perez

Avengers: Captain America, Iron Man, Vision, Scarlet Witch, Yellowjacket, Wasp, Beast

Inactive Avengers: Thor, Moondragon, Hellcat, Quicksilver, Hawkeye, Black Widow, Hercules, Black Night, Black Panther, Mantis

Regulars: Jarvis

Guests: Ben Grimm, Two-Gun Kid, Iceman, Angel, Ghost Rider

Flashbacks: Doctor Doom, Swordsman, Spider-Man, Hulk, Sub-Mariner, Daredevil

This is the continuation of last month's enrolment story. I'm certain that it was partly changed from what Steve Englehart had originally written, but I can only make intelligent guesses as to what's his and what was written by Gerry Conway. A reporter called Sam Reuther is talking about the new Avengers line up on television. His role is badly written, so I doubt that his dialogue was written by Steve Englehart. He reports the decisions on television as they happen, which is infeasible, unless he had a hidden microphone in the Avengers Mansion. He also reports details about the Vision which I'm sure the Avengers would never have disclosed to the press.

It's always worth reading the small print. The text at the top of the splash page calls this issue "a misplaced Marvel masterpiece". This refers to the fact that the story should have been printed in the previous issue, but there must be a subtle joke intended. It's a joke I don't get.

Captain America answers the question asked by Iron Man last issue, before he was rudely interrupted by the 12-page reprint. He was asked if he wanted to stay in the Avengers, and his answer is Yes.

After a question by the Scarlet Witch, Thor confirms that Hawkeye is still a member, but he's currently inactive.

The Wasp is enthusiastic about joining the active Avengers roster again. Yellowjacket first says he prefers to be a scientist, not an Avenger, but then changes his mind.

Moondragon says she doesn't want to be an Avenger, but she's given the status of Avenger-on-call, similar to Hawkeye.

Beast and Hellcat accept membership of the Avengers, but Moondragon tells Hellcat to wait. She thinks that Hellcat needs time to train. Hellcat agrees, so she also becomes an Avenger-on-call.

Thor, Moondragon and Hellcat leave together. The Scarlet Witch wipes a tear from her eye. Iron Man thinks to himself that it's the end of an era. Why? Moondragon and Hellcat were only with the Avengers for a few months, and it's not the first time Thor has walked out. I also think it's the end of an era, for a completely different reason. I think it's the end of the Avengers era of greatness, the era led by Stan Lee (Avengers #1 to #34), Roy Thomas (Avengers #35 to #104) and Steve Englehart (Avengers #105 to #151). They were the best three writers that Marvel has ever had, and after they left, the Avengers never reached the same heights again. Some of the writers who followed them wrote good stories, but none of them lived up to these three.

For anyone who hasn't been paying attention, this is the new Avengers team.

In the final pages of the comic, Wonder Man arrives at the door of Avengers Mansion in a crate. He's been considered dead since Avengers #9.

I'll cease my reviews of the Avengers comics here. It's possible I'll return at a later date, but at the moment there are a large number of other comics that I give priority.