Joseph Mallozzi's Blog, page 68

January 3, 2024: Amazing Covers!

A few that caught my eye this week…

Black Panther, vol. 1: Reign at Dusk – cover art by Rahzzah

Marvel Meow #1 – cover art by Doaly

Batman #141 – cover art by Jorge Jimenez

Fire & Ice: Welcome to Smallville #5 – cover art by Stjepan Sejic

Poison Ivy #18 – cover art by Inhyuk Lee

 

The Oddly Pedestrian Life of Christopher Chaos – cover art by Nick Robles

So, which were YOUR favorites?

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January 2, 2024: Massive Dark Matter sale!

Prodigy Pictures won’t be renewing its lease on the studio space it has held all these years and, as a result, they are having a massive sale on a bunch of production-related items including a mess of Dark Matter stuff…

January 6th, running daily from 9 am – 5 pm at 124 The East Mall, Etobicoke, Ontario

https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=690855309866027&id=100068246913840&mibextid=ox5AEW

I’m sure that the question on everyone’s mind is: “How does this sale affect the chances of seeing anymore Dark Matter”.  The answer: It doesn’t.  I have a bunch of Dark Matter items (costumes, props, construction layouts, etc.) from wrap, more than enough to establish a great base for any future productions.  But who knows what the future holds?

So if you’re in the area, go check it out.  Sure, there’ll be an enormous amount of crap for sale.  But, amidst the crap, there are more than few gems you’ll be able to get your hands on for a song.  Let me know how you do!

***

Akemi and I nicknamed the new concierge Columbo because at the end of every conversation with him, there’s always “one more thing”, an additional thought or non sequitur that invariably traps us, halfway out the door or by the open elevator. Akemi eventually admitted she had a hard time understanding him because of his tendency to mumble his words. So now we call him Comumblo.

***

Today’s Yes/No…

Cottage Cheese Ice Cream? Yes/Nohttps://t.co/GzwsFpvlBf pic.twitter.com/tVd8alnlPH

— Joseph Mallozzi (@BaronDestructo) January 2, 2024

 

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January 1, 2024: Happy New Year!

We ushered in the New Year as is the tradition in our household – by being asleep when midnight rolls around.

Then, today, we celebrated New Year’s day in the Japanese way – with TWO types of ossechi compliments of Dr. Blackjack:

The menus…

The ossechi…

With special guest star…bottarga!

The desserts were Italian-style: pistachio cornetto, almond cornetto, and a sfogliatelle…

Now, onto the New Year’s Resolutions!  This year…

Read one book a week

Start reading comics againWatch an anime episode 1 dayPractice Hiragana/Katana dailyOne Japanese lesson a dayLearn chatbotRe-read the Culture seriesWork outEat better***Kicking off that first resolution with a Grimdark marathon.  First up… GrimDarkMarathon Week 1 – Book 1: Prince of Thorns by Mark__Lawrence
From being a privileged royal child, raised by a loving mother, Jorg Ancrath has become the Prince of Thorns, a charming, immoral boy leading a grim band of outlaws in a series of raids and atrocities. The world is in chaos: violence is rife, nightmares everywhere. Jorg has the ability to master the living and the dead, but there is still one thing that puts a chill in him. Returning to his father’s castle Jorg must confront horrors from his childhood and carve himself a future with all hands turned against him.***So, how did you all ring in the New Year?  And what are YOUR New Year’s Resolutions.

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January 1, 2023: Happy New Year!

We ushered in the New Year as is the tradition in our household – by being asleep when midnight rolls around.

Then, today, we celebrated New Year’s day in the Japanese way – with TWO types of ossechi compliments of Dr. Blackjack:

The menus…

The ossechi…

With special guest star…bottarga!

The desserts were Italian-style: pistachio cornetto, almond cornetto, and a sfogliatelle…

Now, onto the New Year’s Resolutions!  This year…

Read one book a week

Start reading comics againWatch an anime episode 1 dayPractice Hiragana/Katana dailyOne Japanese lesson a dayLearn chatbotRe-read the Culture seriesWork outEat better***Kicking off that first resolution with a Grimdark marathon.  First up… GrimDarkMarathon Week 1 – Book 1: Prince of Thorns by Mark__Lawrence
From being a privileged royal child, raised by a loving mother, Jorg Ancrath has become the Prince of Thorns, a charming, immoral boy leading a grim band of outlaws in a series of raids and atrocities. The world is in chaos: violence is rife, nightmares everywhere. Jorg has the ability to master the living and the dead, but there is still one thing that puts a chill in him. Returning to his father’s castle Jorg must confront horrors from his childhood and carve himself a future with all hands turned against him.***So, how did you all ring in the New Year?  And what are YOUR New Year’s Resolutions.

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December 31, 2023: Sharky Sunday!

Waiting for the bus.

“Okay, guess I’m walking”…

Coffee outings…

New glasses…

Sharky got a little sharky with the other dogs and had to be separated…

He doesn’t like other dogs (especially bigger dogs) getting all up in his grill.  He did, however, get along with mom’s dog, Caramel.

Relaxing with dad.

The trip home…

Snuggling up with his Christmas gift.  It’s a stuffed dog with a battery-operated heartbeat…

And finally, these adorable ghosts of Christmas Past…

Happy New Year!

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December 30, 2023: The Crime Binge continues!

Crime (2021 – )

When an Edinburgh schoolgirl is abducted, DI Ray Lennox investigates her disappearance whilst confronting his own past trauma.

My thoughts: Predictable,  Overwrought.  The social justice narrative elements really feel like pandering.

DNF

The Staircase (2022)

Tells the story of Michael Peterson, a crime novelist accused of killing his wife Kathleen after she is found dead at the bottom of a staircase in their home, and the 16-year judicial battle that followed.

My thoughts: Fitfully interesting, overly long true crime dramatization.  I hear the podcast is great.

3.5/5

Sharp Objects (2018)

After treating her mental illness, crime reporter Camille Preaker returns to her hometown to solve the murder of two young girls. However, she is forced to face and deal with her own demons too.

My thoughts: Great ending, but a bit of a slog getting there.

3/5

Barrabrava (2023 – )

After a vicious internal fight, two brothers are expelled of their beloved team’s gang. Alone, without money or political protection, they will start a war that will put their brotherhood to the test.

My thoughts: Okay but unremarkable story about gangs feuding over a soccer team in South America.

Miss Sherlock (2018)

Inspired by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s classic literary characters, the series follows Dr. Wato-san Tachibana and Sara Shelly “Sherlock” Futaba, an eccentric police consultant who uses deduction to solve strange cases in modern-day Japan.

My thoughts: Too over-the-top silly and far-fetched.

2.5/5

Yeah, I’m a hard watch.  Better luck next time!

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December 29, 2023: Montreal Day #7!

Last night, we went out for our one and only restaurant dinner on this trip – and it was a great one: Montreal Plaza.  To be honest, after our Tokyo trip, Akemi and I were somewhat dubious, but this place really delivered.

Akemi peruses the menu

Sis peruses

Cheers!

Beneath the endives = beef tartare with anchovy

The chicken liver tartelette, my favorite dish of the night

Akemi marveled over the crispiness of the mackerel

The veggie bourguignon with bone marrow

My cute wife

Following dinner, we drove over a little chocolate shop called M. & Mme Chocolat where we picked up a medley of chocolates (exquisitely thin-shelled).

A perfectly sweet conclusion to our evening.

Today, we visited another pet-friendly cafe on the West Island – Coco & Bean where I enjoyed a salted caramel latte and a chocolate lava cookie.  While there, I ended up chatting with another customer.  Turns out she is a writer working her first novel, a YA fantasy.  We talked books, then the conversation switched to Vancouver.  Turns out she had lived near me while I lived in Van.  After learning Akemi was Japanese, she mentioned she had lived in Tokyo for four years and spoke some Japanese!  It was surprising to meet someone with so many common interests.  Then, to top it off, we ended up running into my long-time friend Theresa (who I’ve known for some 30 years!) who works across the street from the cafe and is a regular.  Timely coincidences upon coincidences.  time to play the lotto!

We fly back to Toronto tomorrow and will have one day to clean the place before Dr. Blackjack visits on January 1st, bringing with her some Japanese New Year osechi!

 

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December 28, 2023: Montreal Day #6!

Mom and Sharky

Sis and green beans

Akemi and bear-with-antlers sweater

Yesterday, we went shopping at the local C&T Chinese supermarket where Akemi was thrilled to pick up some natto and Andria was equally thrilled to pick up 6 jugs of corn oil (on special!) that my mother uses to cook.  Well, I should say “fry” because she fries EVERYTHING!  Looking forward to getting back to our “olive oil and roast”.

For lunch, we picked up some assorted items from the shop’s BBQ section: BBQ duck, BBQ pork, and wings.  And green beans.

My mother has been feeling under the weather for weeks and hasn’t had the strength to make her annual friendship cake.  So I ended up snacking on these marzipan fruit my sister got me for Christmas (along with two packs of butter rum lifesavers).  I used to love these as a kid.  Spoiler alert: Each piece of marzipan fruit tastes exactly the same.

After dinner, mom cooked up some chestnuts – only to have the lid fuse onto the pan.  Despite best efforts, it would not disengage so we ended up putting it out on the back patio until, ten minutes later, Akemi heard a POP.  Done!  My mother found them too hard to clean and gave up, but Akemi is a huge fan of tedious chores and spent hours carefully separating them out.  By the end, she was looking a little crazed.

Rain day today.  We may head out to Victor Rose, a dog-friendly coffee shop in the air.  Then, tonight, it’s dinner (our lone dinner out on this trip) at Montreal Plaza.  Expect plenty of food pics tomorrow!

***

My mother, while folding laundry, suddenly concerned: “Is this the type of underwear you wear now?”

She was holding up Akemi’s panties.

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December 27, 2023: Amazing Covers!

A few that caught my eye this week…

Immortal X-Men #18 – cover art by Phil Noto

Marvel Super Heroes: Secret Wars – Battleworld #2 (cover art by Adam Christopher)

Spider-Woman #2 – cover art by David Nakayama

Alan Scott: The Green Lantern #3 – cover art by David Talaski

Batman/Santa Clause: Silent Knight #4 – cover art by Dan Mora

Harley Quinn #35 – cover art by Jenny Frison

Power Girl #4 – cover art by Jamal Campbell

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers #115 – cover art by Taurin Clarke

Red Sonja #6 – cover art by Bjorn Barends

So, which were YOUR favorites?

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December 26, 2023: Happy Boxing Day!

Seasons Greetings from us (except my sister who is snapping this pic)!

Sis’s dogs – Ralphie and Kona – who Sharky doesn’t exactly get along with.

Years ago, my mother special-ordered a glass top for her kitchen table.  Something nice and thick that wouldn’t chip and would allow her to make pasta.  She insisted it be THIS thick (cue rough finger measurement) despite the guy’s protests that it would be too heavy.  But my mom persevered and got her way.  And now, it takes four of us to just slightly move the damn kitchen table.  Mom: “He should have told me.”  Me: “He DID tell you!”

I’m reminded of that scene from The Last King of Scotland when Idi Amin admonishes the James McAvoy character –

Idi Amin: You should have told me not to throw the Asians out, in the first place.

Nicholas: I DID!

Idi Amin : But you did not persuade me, Nicholas.

 

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