No it’s not an April Fool’s joke, Wizard World Comic Con returns to St. Louis for the fourth time, April 1-3, 2016. The lineup is jam packed with artists, authors, graphic designers, cartoonists, illustrators, cosplay guests, and iconic replica vehicles. In addition, the schedule boasts celebrities from Daredevil (Charlie Cox, Elden Henson, Jon Bernthal), Jessica Jones (Mike Colter, David Tennant), Doctor Who (Billie Piper, Matt Smith, David Tennant), Voice Actors from Halo (Steve Downes, Jen Taylor), and much more who will be conducting panels, signing autographs, and posing in photo ops. 

On the show floor you'll be sure to find hundreds of amazing vendors with great art, comic books and collectibles. And this year for the first time in St. Louis, Wizard World is adding a gaming to the mix. You'll be able to play the games as well as compete in tournaments for cash prizes.

Title: Batman: Gotham City’s Guardian

Author: Matthew Manning

Illustrator: Steven Gordon

Ages: 8-12 / Grade: 3-7

Retail: $5.99

Before you head out to the theaters to watch Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, take a look at the backstory for the mysterious Dark Knight Detective, Batman.

Everyone who has ever read superhero comic books knows that the creators always cut loose for the fight scenes -- and there have been some slobberknockers over the past decades! Superman vs. Doomsday. The Thing vs. The Hulk. Superman vs. Captain Marvel. And does anybody remember the standalone independent nothing-but-a-fight-scene comic called DESTROY?

Now with BATMAN V SUPERMAN: DAWN OF JUSTICE hitting the theaters, we -- with help from the fine folks at www.morphsuits.com -- want to provide a look back at some of the greatest superhero standoffs that have happened on film. So without further ado, Critical Blast is proud to present:

MTV's fantasy series based on Terry Brooks' epic novels is set to release for DVD on June 7th, 2016.

Set thousands of years in the future, the series follows the adventures of three unlikely heroes: Elf-Human hybrid Wil (Austin Butler, “Arrow”), Elvin Princess Amberle (Poppy Drayton, “Downton Abbey”), and Human Rover Eretria (Ivana Baquero, Pan’s Labryinth), as they embark on a quest to stop an evil Demon army from destroying the world.

Welcome back to Critical Blast’s weekly look at what new comics you should check out each week.   Just a warning, I make these picks pretty much a week BEFORE I actually get to read any of these comics, so if something is a stinker, I take no blame on that.  Let's get to it!

Comics shipping this week

Cheap Pops - March 20, 2016

This week!

Title: Superman: The Man of Tomorrow

Author: Daniel Wallace

Illustrator: Patrick Spaziante

Ages: 8-12 / Grade: 3-7

Retail: $5.99

Before you head out to the theaters to watch Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, take a look at the backstory for the controversial Man of Steel himself, Superman.

Scholastic books offers a wonderful view into the backstory of the most iconic superhero in all of comics, in chapter form. With a forward by the last son of Krypton, that summarizes his journey, the book will enlighten your young reader. Ten short chapters provide insight on how Superman went from orphan alien, raised in Smallville, to beloved superhero and protector of Metropolis (and Earth)!

Brothers Teague and Ian Alexy have been performing as Hobo Nephews of Uncle Frank for a decade and just released their fifth album, American Shuffle, on Duluth’s Chaperone Records. For the first time, they worked with a producer, Ryan Young. He’s Trampled by Turtles’ fiddle player and a longtime friend of the pair who played on the Hobo Nephews’ last three records. The brothers tackle some unexpected material on the new album, including former Green Bay Packers quarterback Brett Favre (“Old Number Four”) and the legendary Yankees manager Billy Martin (“The Day Billy Martin Quits”).

The television series LOST IN SPACE is one of my guilty pleasures. It didn't create a huge following, and it never got the movie treatement it deserved. It's not STAR TREK. But the whole "Space Family Robinson" concept (another comic book title, by the way; same theme completely different series) was always an intriguing one, and should have found fertile ground in those days of television and movies when imagination looked to the boundless stars.

SHE LOVES ME presented by The Roundabout Theatre on Broadway is literally a story you’ve seen before. If you’ve ever seen Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan's YOU’VE GOT MAIL or James Stewart/Margaret Sullavan’s THE SHOP AROUND THE CORNER, you've heard this story. Boy meets girl, boy and girl strongly dislike each other, but work together, craziness ensues, low and behold they’ve loved each other the entire time, happy ending. It’s actually quite a unique story as far as rom-coms go.

IF/THEN is a different sort of musical than what you may be used to. It’s not an “easy” show; you probably won’t sit there quietly singing to yourself and straining against your better judgment to get up and dance along as you might with MAMA MIA!, GREASE or ANYTHING GOES. It’s a deeper, more introspective production with top-flight acting and powerful vocals.  It’s not a show for those of you who don’t care for intricate plots and complicated narrative. IF/THEN rewards the vigilant observer with a rich character study, more multi-layered than you’d typically expect from your traditional musical fare. 

When the banking crisis was happening, I was -- perhaps ironically -- working at a bank as an acquisitions analyst. (Not that I'm taking the blame for the collapse or anything.) But even then, hip-deep as I was in the business, the whole "housing bubble" was something I just couldn't wrap my head around. And if I couldn't understand it then, as a part of the industry, how could any average person figure out just how badly they were being screwed over?

Charles Randolph and Adam McKay do a bang-up job of making this elusive concept somewhat manageable in THE BIG SHORT. Adapting the book by Michael Lewis, Randolph and McKay break down a cerebral and dry subject and turn it into something informative and entertaining through fourth-wall breaks, cutaways to explanatory skits starring celebrities, and a focus on the quirkiness of the main players. This goes a long way to explaining why they won the Oscar for Best Screenplay.

Agents of SHIELD #3 by Marc Guggenheim and German Peralta

Summary: Coulson’s ex-girlfriend Lola is still working for the Department of Defense.  She seems to be trying to manipulate Coulson.  She also knows about the Kobik program, which is still active.

Coulson’s team is hot on the trail of the stolen Quantum Drive which contains plans to take down all superheroes.  Coulson is also really concerned about Rick Jones work as the Whisperer.  

​A&A The Adventures of Archer and Armstrong #1

Written by: Rafer Roberts
Penciled by: David Lafuente
Inked by: Ryan Winn
Colored by:  Brian Reber
Lettered by: David Lanphear

Published by: Valiant
Cover Price: $3.99

Maura Ellis (Amy Poehler) is a divorcee who has put all her efforts into helping other people at the expense of her own happiness. Kate Ellis (Tina Fey) is a wild-child single mother who can't keep a job. When they return to their childhood home to reconnect, they learn that their parents (James Brolin, Dianne Wiest) have just sold the place. So how do the titular SISTERS deal with this latest -- and seemingly heaviest -- blow to their self-esteem?

By reliving their high school days and throwing a wild party, inviting all their high school friends (and excluding all their high school rivals). But age has taken its toll on their old crew: parenthood, middle-life maladies, and the dreaded monster, Responsibility, have overtaken them. But this is nothing that a boat-load of booze and a buffet of illegal drugs won't conquer, courtesy of Dave (John Leguizamo) and his frighteningly built connection, Pazuzu (John Cena).

This week!

Welcome back to Critical Blast’s weekly look at what new comics you should check out each week.   Just a warning, I make these picks pretty much a week BEFORE I actually get to read any of these comics, so if something is a stinker, I take no blame on that.  Let's get to it!

Comics shipping this week

By: Patti & Chris Delloiacono

Chris: It's been kind of cool to see all the recent live theater productions on TV the last couple years. Unfortunately, as much as I love Broadway and musical films, PETER PAN, THE SOUND OF MUSIC, THE WIZ, etc, just aren't my thing. On the other hand, GREASE is one of my favorites. Now, I never saw it performed live, but John Travolta, Jeff Conaway, Olivia Newton-John, Stockard Channing and the rest of the cast are icons that put on a performance that's been with me all my life.

The Leftovers-The Complete Second Season on BluRay is, as you would imagine, the next steps in the HBO original series, but this is not really a “pick up where we left off and spend the first couple of episodes bringing everyone back up to speed on what happened the first season." No this different. You will really need to watch season one first to get an understanding more of the people than the story line.

The basic premise is still the same. Three (now approaching four) years ago, 140 million people in the world just vanished—departed, as it is referred to in the series--and the world is trying to find out why. What has changed and is pretty significant here is that season two starts in a completed different part of the United States, a town in Texas called Jarden, located in the middle of a Fictional National Park called Miracle, with a completely different family.

Applewood Road is not only the name of the Album in review, it is also the name of the band--not so much a “band” but more of a trio of young musicians with a penchant for creating music that harkens back to a simpler, less “electric” time. The trio consists of Emily Barker, Amber Rubarth, and Amy Speace.

The three women met for the first time in 2014 in an East Nashville Tennessee café. By the next morning, they had finished writing their first song, Applewood Road.

Six months later, they got back together to write and record “Applewood Road.”

Applewood Road’s music is distinctly Americana with a “folksy” feel to it. It is not at all what I would call country music by today’s (or even yesterday’s) standards. The songs on the album remind me of the music that country music was derived from.