Audiophilia: Aaron's Albums of 2013

NOTE: This article was originally published by me on TheWebsiteofDOOM.com

In a manner of serendipity I bought the new releases of 10 bands this year. Most pleased me endlessly but there were a few duds mixed in too. Here are my 10 albums of 2013 (well, 9 albums and an EP). I've included a sample song from each release but if you'd like to listen to all the albums in full here is a handy Spotify playlist for you.

Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Mosquito

Karen O and team don't quite channel the same sort of raw energy that drips from their earlier offerings but what they lose in vitality they more than make up for in growling sneers.

Comics: 24th December 2013

Only one out this week, the Christmas period affecting releases (and my ability to hold down food, apparently).

- Avengers #24
- Written by Jonathan Hickman
- Art by Esad Ribic, Salvador Larroca, Mike Deodato & Butch Guice

This is the cross-over point from the last story to the new one. Everyone is at Avengers Tower having a well deserved barbecue to celebrate their big victory over Thanos. It's a great scene that is a welcomed break from all the recent drama. Thor screaming "Bring forth the pies!" needs to be a thing.

The revelry is cut short as our next problem rears its ugly head in the form of a (check the title) rogue planet on collision course with the earth. Luckily, future-Iron Man is on hand to help out. That's right folks, Marvel's year of time-travel isn't over quite yet! They just snook this one in under the wire.

The art is generally good but whoever (out of the long list above) drew Hawkeye on page 21 needs to do some reference work in the future because OH MAN did they fuck-up how to draw someone holding a bow and arrow. Yikes!

Aaron’s WWEport – My “Fave Five” of 2013

NOTE: This article was originally published by me on TheWebsiteofDOOM.com

It's that time of year again! The time when I look back and give you my list of 5 wrestlers who did the best work in WWE over the past 12 months. The "fave five" Booker T reference seems like a million years ago now but I got to keep with tradition and this is my third year of doing the countdown.

Interestingly, there is only one wrestler who appears in all three lists of 2011, 2012, and now 2013. I'll let you know who when we get there, but I doubt the answer will surprise you.

1) Antonio Cesaro

Just missed out in making my 2012 cut but got an honourable mention, Cesaro has been working his socks off since arriving on our screens. He's not great on the mic so his partnership with Swagger and Zeb Colter has been perfect in letting him shine in the ring instead. Oh and how he shined!

Everyone is going to point to The Cesaro Swing as the big move of the year, but don't forget he already destoryed Miz against the barricades back in February when he was still a singles competitor. That's the thing, he keeps inovating. Every couple months Cesaro will do something new, like the leapfrog over Swagger to stomp on the chests of his opponents on the ground.

There are no "5 Moves of Doom" to be found here. More like 500.

Also, check out this Swing from the indie circuit in 2009 when he actually swings his opponent a full 100 times. Bonus points for spotting the clean shaven D-Bry counting along.

CABIN FEVER #116: If They Could See Us Now

Here's the deal; I floated the idea with my old co-host Brian Fitzpatrick a month or two ago about maybe doing a Cabin Fever Christmas reunion special. A once-off just like all our favourite TV shows did when we were young. A bit of a present to the listeners of our show who were so kind to us over the years.

Brian dutifully agreed and the end result is what is now available to download. We talk about Morrissey, Police Academy, and Buffalo. Enjoy it folks because it's not likely to happen again!

To listen CLICK HERE or to download directly CLICK HERE.

Comics: 18th December 2013

Lots out just before Christmas so lets get right to it.

- All New X-Men #20
- Written by Brian Michael Bendis
- Art by Mahmud Asrar & Brandon Peterson

Man, that Asrar guy is everywhere these days! No complaints from me though. Him and Peterson essentially take half of the issue each. Asrar the first half and Peterson the second.

Bendis is really taking advantage of his X-Men run by trawling through the comic's history. Not only did he create a story where he could play with the original 5 but he has now taken a classic bad-guy in William Stryker and semi-ressurected him by introducing his son.

Now if memory serves me right, the only son William Stryker ever mentioned in the comics was a mutant who he killed at birth as soon as he noticed the child's difference. Considering this rather pivotal part of the character's history, Bendis' explanation of this son better be good.

Comics: 11th December 2013

We're getting close to the end of the year! I'll try add all the comics up by the end and give some sort of round-up. This week sees only two comics of interest for me.

- Three #3

- Written by Kieron Gillen

- Art by Ryan Kelly

The ancient names of the characters involved are kinda hard to remember, although I notoriously have a hard time remembering character names anyway but these in particular are tough. Terpander, Damar, Klaros, Kleomenes, if my life was on the line I couldn't tell you which was which. Hopefully as time goes on I'll get better but for now I refer to folks as the blonde one, the girl, etc.

So the whiney Spartan is chasing the three slaves for killing his dad and troop while the other Spartans are chasing the slaves separately because the whiney Spartan is seen as a disgrace to his people for being a coward and they don't want anything to do with him.

That made sense, right?

- Dead Body Road #1

- Written by Justin Jordan

- Art by Matteo Scalera

I knew nothing about this comic until it appeared on the shelf in my regular comic shop. I gave it a quick look and decided to purchase based on two things.

1) Matteo Scalera has consistently impressed me with his art.

2) It looked like a stylish crime story and that's my sweet spot.

I wasn't disappointed on either point. Scalera rocks it as usual and the story is a neat revenge plot for the death of a police officer during a heist-gone-wrong.

Some of my #1 choices this year have been hit-and-miss but I think I've been pretty lucky overall. I'm glad to place another one in the "hit" column.

Weekend Justice #207: It's a Wonderful Life of Blinding Rage

I return to Weekend Justice for the last episode of the year (excluding the inevitable clip show) for it's usual 4 hour train-wreck.

I join Widge, Jon, Rox, JJ, Tuffley, and Rob. We talk about, amongst other things:

• The Website of Doom (which doesn't load) attempts to review us (also, non-loading) 
• Virtual tour of Spazhouse 
• The Euro Jokes 
• Walking Dead and SPOILERS 
• Wrestling 101 
• iPad comparisons 
• Voyagers! 
• Portland politics and the lack of free beer 
• SHIELD report 
• Marvel and more Marvel 
• The P!nk Manifestos 
• Rufus Hound and rocket flashbacks 
• The Metal Quiz 
• Michael Stipe and not shaking hands  
• Cry-singing to Cyndi Lauper 
• Tim Burton's It's a Wonderful Life

To listen CLICK HERE or to download directly CLICK HERE.

The Drive-In of DOOM! - Tank Girl

This month's Drive-In commentary is for the cult classic Tank Girl starring Lori Petty. I really like this film, partially due to nostalgia and partially because I think it's a fun B-movie. JJ on the other hand... well you'll understand when you start listening.

I think this is one of our better commentaries and also one of the very few where it's not me being the angry one! For funzies, take a shot of tequila every time JJ says the phrase "I agree". Don't worry, you won't need a big bottle.

To listen to CLICK HERE or to download directly CLICK HERE. 

Comics: 4th December 2013

Better late than never, right?

- Amazing X-Men #2
- Written by Jason Aaron
- Art by Ed McGuinness

The fascinating thing about Marvel's comic universe is the way that they've woven mythical beings and locations from the real world into their comic world. Satan and Hell has featured in Marvel several times over the decades. In fact, they have a number of different versions co-existing with Mephisto, Hela, and so on. With so many heroes coming back from the dead too, there is a veritable rotating door to the afterlife.

This is where Amazing X-Men sources it's story. Nightcrawler is dead but that just means he's existing in these realms and once you find the door you can try to find him.

The X-Men stumbled across their door but now that they're through it there is no turning back and they're bringing our favourite blue fuzzball with them.

Tease Me, Baby! - Amazing Spider-Man 2

NOTE: This article was originally published by me on TheWebsiteofDOOM.com

It's on the record that I wasn't exactly enamored with the first Amazing Spider-Man. Despite the film having a great cast who tried their best with the shoddy material they were given, they couldn't elevate what was essentially a mess of a film. With the same creative team back for this sequel, I'm not exactly hopeful for what's in store.

But, with three new bad-guys to contend with (including Oscar perennial Paul Giamatti) maybe things can improve? I mean, who ever thought we'd see Rhino in the movies?

The first full length trailer has been released today. Fingers crossed...

Make The Bad Men Stop @ Dragon Con 2013

The first panel from Dragon Con this year was NeedCoffee.com's Make The Bad Men Stop which deals with Hollywood's persistant ability to fuck up all your favourite things as they adapt them for the big screen. It took me ages to get the footage together so I hope you enjoy it.

I Heart Graffiti: Phats Phoenix

Sometimes I think these lads are just showing off...

Click to see larger image

My Favourite Things: November 2013

NOTE: This article was originally published by me on ASiteCalledFRED.com

Once again I try to give you My Favourite Things from around the web in the last month.

1) Loki

Tom Hiddleston is in danger of becoming a regular feature in this column. He has appeared far too often at this point with his exploits. He is clearly having far too much fun.

Recently he featured in some short clips on Comedy Central to promote Thor: The Dark World. Watch with glee as he tries to get the upper-hand over a bunch of small kids.

Comics: 27th November 2013 Part 2

The second instalment of my comic purchases for this week (because there was loads and I got other things to do!).

- Pretty Deadly #2
- Written by Emma Rios
- Art by Emma Rios

One of the aspects of this story which has really gotten praise online since its release is the artwork. I would agree with that in part, Pretty Deadly lives up to the name. What I would argue though is while Emma Rios and, particularly, Jordie Bellaire do some great work there are still some negatives.

Rios' art does work incredibly well for drama but I think she struggles with action. I only really noticed it when in this issue Ginny (our cover star) arrives for the first time and lays waste to a bunch of goons. The resulting fight scenes are difficult to follow and even harder to admire. Sometimes the problem is angle choice, others its clarity. It makes for a frustrating read during those moments but hopefully that improves as the series goes on as everything else is so strong.