When Multiversity Guidebook came out, I immediately thought it would be cool if someone had taken all the information in it and created a online handbook people could use to identify the various universes that made up DC's Multiverse.  Then it occurred to me, we should do it here on Critical Blast!

Thanks to Chris, Patti, and RJ for coming up with the name.  I wanted to give it some kind of name like "Visiting The DC Multiverse for a Dollar a Day" or "DC Travelouge," but we ended up settling with Hitchhiker's Guide to the DC Multiverse. Don't forget to bring your towel!

You will see there are seven universes below listed as Unknown.  I wasn't just being lazy, DC seems to have left these blank for now.  I'm not sure if they were just leaving themselves some leeway if they wanted to add something later or if they were holding back some surprises. My guesses for some of them are:

If you follow the theatre scene in St. Louis beyond the Broadway tour shows at the Fabulous Fox, you will probably recognize their names: Zachary Allen Farmer, Jeffrey M, Wright, and Todd Schaefer. They’ve performed in a wide variety of shows across the St. Louis region, and most recently performed together in New Line Theatre’s brilliant Hand on a Hardbody last spring. Each bring something unique to their roles and this past Saturday night was no exception as the terrific trio took the tiny stage at the Kranzberg Arts Center to perform an adult cabaret set entitled Shootin’ Some $#!%, directed by New Line Theatre’s Mike Dowdy and featuring the music direction and piano playing of Paul Cereghino. It was a one night only show, and if you missed it you missed out on a wonderful hour of song by three excellent voices and ending that you won’t see very often on any stage.

From People Magazine:

There's a new Disney princess in town – and for the first time, she's Latina.

On Thursday, Disney Junior announced that Princess Elena of Avalor will make her debut in 2016 on a special episode of Sofia the First, the network's hit show for preschoolers.

Princess Elena is "a confident and compassionate teenager in an enchanted fairy tale kingdom inspired by diverse Latin cultures and folklore," the network said in a statement. After her introduction on Sofia, 16-year-old Elena will star in her own spin-off series, Elena of Avalor, also set to debut on Disney Junior in 2016.

Dominican Republic-born Aimee Carrero of ABC Family's Young & Hungry, 26, will voice Elena, whose backstory is connected to the magical amulet Sofia wears on the show.

Spider-Man 2099 #8

Written by: Peter David 

Art by: Will Sliney 

Colored by: Antonio Fabela

Lettered by: VC's Joe Caramagna 

Cover by: Francesco Mattina

Published by: Marvel

Cover Price: $3.99

Note: This is a review of the digital version which can be found on Comixology.

Warning! This review contains quite a few spoilers!

By Mike Weaver and Mike Maillaro

Thor (2014) #4

Written by: Jason Aaron

Art by:  Russell Dauterman

Cover by: Russell Dauterman & Matthew Wilson

Over at Newsarama, I saw this:

The phrase "Avengers Assemble!" may never be more apt than when talking about products like these. On Thursday Marvel and LEGO Group announced new products on two fronts -- a new console video game and a lush new S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier playset.

Celebrations to include collectible giveaways, events, and new publishing

NEW YORK, NY—January 29, 2015—Scholastic, the global children’s publishing, education and media company, will celebrate the 10th anniversary of its groundbreaking Graphix imprint in 2015, with a yearlong celebration to include collectible giveaways, special events, and new publishing. Graphix is dedicated to publishing engaging, age-appropriate graphic novels for children and teens. Supported by librarians, teachers, and most important, kids, Graphix titles have become bestsellers around the globe and continue to receive awards and critical acclaim including multiple Eisner Award wins and nominations, a Stonewall Book Award, a Boston Globe-Horn Book Award Honor, an Edgar Allan Poe nomination, and 14 New York Times bestsellers to date.

Valentine's Day is a day made for cuddling -- and nobody cuddles better than Doc McStuffins' friend Lambie!

However, when Doc gets a new stuffed friend from her parents for Valentine's Day, a heart named Val, Lambie feels threatened. Val's doing all the things that are normally Lambie's area of expertise -- giving out hugs, getting into photographs, and generally being the life of the party as she makes friends with all of Doc's entourage of toys. Doc has proven especially talented at fixing broken toys -- but what can she do to fix a broken heart?

This contest has ended.

The randomly selected winner is: NICOLE L. of TUCSON, AZ!

Stay tuned for another Power Rangers give3away soon.

Go! Go! Power Rangers! Fans of Saban's MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS, do we have your attention? Good, because this contest is geared to you!

Up for grabs is the boxed set of 19 DVDs marketed as MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS: THE COMPLETE SERIES. Yes, we know they made more episodes after these first three seasons, we didn't package it up. This cool set -- still in shrinkwrap -- includes the aforementioned discs in five cases, plus a booklet. You'll get the ten-episode ALIEN RANGERS miniseries, rare archival footage, retrospective featurettes, and so much more!

“Revelations: The Photographs of Justice Howard” by Schiffer Publishing is more than just a book of photos by an artist. It’s a multidimensional look at the art of photography and tattooing, and how, in the right hands, the two can come together in a beautiful union.

It’s instantly apparent by just looking at the cover of this volume that this is a quality piece of workmanship. The heavy cover stock is beautifully rendered with a tattooed model on the front, laced with vibrant colors, giving us a glimpse of what’s to come.

There are three forwards written in this book, one by an artist and two by “celebrities” featured in this book’s pictures, all paying homage to the photographer, Justice, who also provides a written introduction.

by Chris Delloiacono and Mike Maillaro

This week!

• Royal Rumble Recap

• Where’s Wrestlemania 32?

• Justin Gabriel Quits the WWE

With all the hoopla over the assured blockbuster status of Marvel's upcoming THE AVENGERS: AGE OF ULTRON, it's easy to forget that another Marvel property is coming to theaters this year as well. Granted, it's a franchise tainted by two previous lackluster releases (three for the purists who pretend the Roger Corman version counts), but Hulk's first two films weren't exactly critical accomplishments, and the big green guy is doing alright for himself in Avengers.

I'd like to say that the Fantastic Four could follow in Hulk's crater-like footsteps, but my confidence level hasn't been high, and this trailer has done little to change that.

Before we discuss that, though, let's take a quick look at the trailer, released today, for FANTASTIC FOUR:

Okay, now, all the non-comics fans only please: What is this movie about?

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!

Entertainment Weekly has announced:

A Time Lord is coming to the Marvel universe. The studio has cast David Tennant as the major villain in its upcoming Netflix series A.K.A. Jessica Jones. The Doctor Who and Gracepoint star will play Zebediah Killgrave (aka The Purple Man).

The official series description: “After a tragic ending to her short-lived super hero stint, Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter, Don’t Trust the B—- in Apt. 23) is rebuilding her personal life and career as a detective who gets pulled into cases involving people with extraordinary abilities in New York City. An enigmatic figure from Jessica’s past, Kilgrave’s reappearance will send shockwaves through the former super hero’s world.”

In the Realms-meshed world that lays the landscape for Zenescope's AGE OF DARKNESS, ordinary humans are completely out of their depth. And when a roving band of survivors make it into Wonderland, now ruled over by the benevolent White Queen, Calie Liddle, the Dark Queen sets a task for Calie: kill the humans while they are lost in Wonderland.

Calie's not one for taking innocent lives, but she's left with little choice in the matter. The Dark Queen has a hold over Calie's daughter Violet (Wonderland's Mad Hatter), and Calie is never out of the gaze of the Dark Queen's minion, Joy the Trickster. Will she do what she's told? Will she stand up to the Dark Queen? Calie and the Cat are left without choices in this first of a three-issue miniseries.

Quantum and Woody Must Die #1

Written by: James Asmus

Art by: Steve Lieber

Colored by: Dace McCaig

Lettered by: Dave Lanphear

Cover by: Mike Hawthorne with Jordie Bellaire

Published by: Valiant

Cover Price: $3.99

Note: This is a review of the digital version which can be found on Comixology.

Warning! This review contains quite a few spoilers!

Summary (contains spoilers): This issue starts in the docks of Baltimore, Maryland.  Two female criminals named the Dominos and their crew attack an FDA truck.  Quantum and Woody arrive on the scene to try and stop them.

For a vinylphile like me theses are marvelous times.

Records are making/have made a comeback. Whether it is because people have finally come to their senses that vinyl records sound superior to any other recorded medium, or because records companies are trying to find a way to make money again now that the people who forsook records for ease and portability have now forsaken that medium for the even worse sound but greater portability of digital file music, and they need something to generate cash flow for them now, they’ve realized that the record faithful have never gone away. We’ve just stood in the shadows, intent on letting the trends go by while we bask in sonic superiority listing to great music spinning on our turntables.

Whatever the real reason the record companies have decided to make LP’s again is really irrelevant. The fact is they are back in the groove again, and I am happy.

Powers (2015-) 1

Written by: Brian Michael Bendis

Art by: Michael Avon Oeming

Colored by: Nick Filardi

Lettered by: Chris Eliopoulos

Cover by: Michael Avon Oeming

Published by: Marvel (Icon)

Cover Price: $3.99

Note: This is a review of the digital version which can be found on Comixology.

Warning! This review contains quite a few spoilers!

Newsarama has posted the three types of titles that will be part of Secret Wars -  Battleworld, War Zones, and Last Days.  Here's some info on each:

Last Days - 

“What would you do if you learned today was your last day on Earth?” added Editor-in-Chief Axel Alonso is a press release. “That’s the question your favorite Marvel heroes are going to ask themselves in their Last Days story lines as they brace for Secret Wars and the end of the Marvel Universe.” 

So, a while back, Robin died, and I bitched about it. I bitched about him dying, even though I had also bitched about comic book characters not staying dead.

Damian Wayne didn't stay dead. And here I am to bitch about it.

Don't misunderstand. Of all the characters in comics to die, Robin -- that is to say, the Damian Wayne incarnation of that character, not the Jason Todd one -- had the best chances for a "Get out of Death Free" card. His mother, after all, was Talia al Ghul, which makes his grandfather Ras al Ghul, who's total "thing" is his regular resurrections via the Lazarus Pit. A dip, a dunk, and voila: Robin Reborn, no muss, no fuss.

But that would have been too easy.