616. The Little Prince vs. The 8 Headed Dragon!

               Here's a rather obscure (at least for 30 years) Japanese cartoon movie.  It is beautiful, no question!

615. ROCK ROCK ROCK! with Xenorama!

             This is a pretty fun movie, with a very flimsy story to push the music along.  It was a big ol' hit, though!

Little Prince and the Eight Headed Dragon (1963) Original Trailer

             You sure can tell who wrote the music for this score immediately.  It is the story of Susano and the Orochi dragon.  Guess how many heads it has?

614. LOTL Season 2 episodes 10-12!

                       The second season is almost over and it is pretty darn good.  I'm still rather dreading season 3, but we will see...

RIP Joe Ruby (five years and two days ago)

 

From Wiki- Joseph Clemens Ruby (March 30, 1933 – August 26, 2020)^[1] was an American animator, writer, television producer, and music editor. He was best known as a co-creator of the animated Scooby-Doo franchise, together with Ken Spears. In 1977, they co-founded the television animation production company Ruby-Spears Productions.^[2] Ruby would work with Spears and would co-create several other shows including, Fangface, Dynomutt, Dog Wonder and Jabberjaw among others.  Ruby would meet Spears in 1959 at Hanna-Barbera, when the studio was being interviewed by Life Magazine^[3] and the two would start working together on animated shows. Before Ruby founded Ruby-Spears he would work with at several studios including Walt Disney Animation Studios, Hanna-Barbera, DePatie–Freleng Enterprises and with Sid and Marty Krofft. In 1996, the Ruby-Spears studio closed, and Ruby would keep working with Spears until his retirement in 2002.  Ruby died on August 26, 2020. Spears died three months later of natural causes. He was 87 years old.  Back to a slightly embarrassed me:

613. Muscles, Myths, and Movies: A peplum book review!

                  What a fun book- it was groundbreaking some thirty plus years ago, and it is still a lot of fun!

HOTW- Heracles/Hercules

From Wiki- In Roman mythology, although Hercules was seen as the champion of the weak and a great protector, his personal problems started at birth. Juno sent two witches to prevent the birth, but they were tricked by one of Alcmene's servants and sent to another room. Juno then sent serpents to kill him in his cradle, but Hercules strangled them both. In one version of the myth, Alcmene abandoned her baby in the woods in order to protect him from Juno's wrath, but he was found by the goddess Minerva who brought him to Juno, claiming he was an orphan child left in the woods who needed nourishment. Juno suckled Hercules at her own breast until the infant bit her nipple, at which point she pushed him away, spilling her milk across the night sky and so forming the Milky Way. She then gave the infant back to Minerva and told her to take care of the baby herself. In feeding the child from her own breast, the goddess inadvertently imbued him with further strength and power.  Back to me:

612. The Fantastic Goldface takes on Cobra in 1967!

                    Huh, didn't know I had an "Italy" label, but since I do talk a lot about peplum movies here, it makes sense.

BURNING WITCHES - High Priestess Of The Night (Official Video) | Napalm ...

               This is rather old school metal, and while it is good, we do know who the true priestess of the night is...

611. Avengers United etc 07-09

                OK, this show is OK.  That's the best I can do.  It tries too hard to be the X-Men cartoon, and the armor is dumb.

Calvin and Hobbes 01-20-1986

 I can see how Calvin might think this could work in real life.  I have tried it myself a time or two.

610. My Son, the Vampire over London, meets Mother Riley!

                  Oh how I wish this was a sidesplitting comedy.  Alas, it is not.

coming up- Yokai movies!

From Wiki- Yōkai (妖怪; Japanese pronunciation: [joː.kai]^[1]) are a class of supernatural entities and spirits in Japanese folklore. The kanji representation of the word yōkai comprises two characters that both mean "suspicious, doubtful",^[2] and while the Japanese name is simply the Japanese transliteration or pronunciation of the Chinese term yāoguài (which designates similarly strange creatures), some Japanese commentators argue that the word yōkai has taken on many different meanings in Japanese culture,^[3] including referring to a large number of uniquely Japanese creatures.

Yōkai are also referred to as ayakashi (あやかし), mononoke (物の怪) or mamono (魔物). Some academics and Shinto practitioners acknowledge similarities within the seeming dichotomy between the natures of yōkai and most kami, which are generally regarded as relatively beneficent in comparison, and class the two as ultimately the same type of spirits of nature or of a mythological realm.^[4] Their behavior can range from malevolent or mischievous to benevolent to humans. Back to me:

609. Super Five Element Ninja (1982) review!

                 Easily one of the top two ninja movies of all time!  We have reviewed the other one as well.

608. 7 Song Friday: 08-22-25 swords and shooting stars!

                    Another classic Seven Song Friday, this time all rock and roll!  

VAMPIRE OVER LONDON (1952) Theatrical Trailer - My Son, the Vampire

                   How they got Alan Sherman to do this song and trailer is beyond me.  But since I don't wanna review Curse of Frankenstein...

607. Land of the Lost S2 07-09!

                   Two great, and one good, episodes of the show.  The last one features fishing.  Fishing.

606. Superman vs. Spider-Man in the Battle of the Century!

                   There was a lot of hype about this way back in 1976, and the book lived up to it- after a few readings.

HOTW- Glory

From several Wiki notes-  Writer Alan Moore joined Image after leaving DC Comics and spending a period of time working for independent companies. As he did on other Liefeld works like Supreme and Youngblood, Moore relaunched Glory in March 1999 under the Awesome Comics line.^[4] Blending mythology, adventure, and romance to the superheroine much as he would shortly do in his subsequent series for ABC Comics, Promethea.

In the retooling, Glory takes on a human identity by a waitress named "Gloria West", in order to experience humanity. Only one issue was published (#0), but was eventually republished with two additional issues for Avatar Press in 2001. This version also had an extended backstory, once supervising a team called 'Danger Damsels' decades ago.^[5]

 During World War II, Glorianna fights for the Allied forces against the Nazis, alongside Supreme. For a time she works with Die-Hard and SuperPatriot as the team called 'Allies'.^[2] She is part of the second and third Brigade teams with other superheroes.^[3]  Back to me:

605. Superman meets the Mole Men in 1951!

                As far as first original movies (yes, I know about the serials) this one is pretty good, all things considered.

I Dream About You (But I Cannot Sleep) - Jon Astley

               Jon Astley produced some great albums for other people, and at least two really good ones of his own.  This is one of my favorite songs he did.

604. Avengers UTS 04-06!

                     I gotta admit, this show is growing on me, despite my dislike of the stupid armor on the heroes.

Calvin and Hobbes 01-19-1986

 

Poor Hobbes just became "one of us" by osmosis, it seems.  I think Calvin's parents got a little more proactive about his television watching pretty quickly.

603. Kikaida and JAKQ together again!

                      Fun movies from Toei!  I would have loved these as a kid even more than I do now.

Avengers UTS- Tigra

 

Well, it is sorta Tigra.  She is named Greer, but she looks like a very young version of the character.  Also, if she wasn't called Tigra by the team, you wouldn't know who this character was at all.  She barely has any stripes.  I get that that would both simplify the character and give her a less revealing costume.  However, they changed her design so much that she's barely tiger related.  I don't hate this design, but this character looks more like Tigra, Jr, rather than the original.  Sure, the series takes place in the slight future, so that could have been an out right there.

602. The Fearless Hyena is properly pumped!

                   Here is Jackie's directorial debut!  It is a wonderful movie, full of action and fight scenes.

601. The return of 7 Song Friday on 08-15-2025!

                 This video may or may not survive in the future, which is where we all must live.  So watch it now!

Horror of Dracula (1958) - Peter Cushing vs Cristopher Lee

                    SPOILER! This is the final battle between van Helsing and Dracula- and a very innovative scene it is!

600. Spot and Junior in LOTL 04-06!

             I am so happy that this second season of LOTL is a lot better than I remember.

Sakuya, Slayer of Demons again

 

From IMDb: The eruption of Mt. Fuji in 1707 released hordes of demons from deep inside the earth. Sakuya, the young daughter of a samurai killed fighting these demons, accepts a mission to travel to Mt. Fuji and defeat the evil spirits. Accompanying her on her journey are two veteran warriors who served her father, and Taro, a young kappa, or river spirit, whom she has adopted as her little brother. Along the way, the two warriors have doubts about Taro's loyalties, and the young kappa himself must decide if he will stand with his own species or with the humans who have cared for him.—Jean-Marc Rocher <rocher@fiberbit.net>  Back to me:

599. The JLA and JSA's most interesting team-up!

                  These two comic books were very important in my life- they pretty much set my ability to understand the DC Multiverse.

HOTW (or decade): Surpreme

From Wiki- Given free rein over Supreme and the wider Maximum (later Awesome) universe, Moore created a storyline to both entirely reinvent the character's world, and meld it with Liefeld's extant continuity. In Moore's first issue, Supreme returns to Earth and discovers that he is living in a new revision of reality.

The new version of Supreme has a secret identity as Ethan Crane, a mild-mannered artist for Dazzle Comics whose powers are a result of a childhood exposure to a meteorite made of Supremium, an element which can alter reality. When not saving the world as a superhero, Crane illustrates the adventures of Omni-Man, a Supreme-like character being reintroduced with a change of writers.

Echoing this change, Supreme encounters a number of previous/retired and parallel iterations of himself living in another reality, called the "Supremacy." The Supremacy is a form of afterlife for characters whose stories had ended or have been written out of current continuity. After experiencing amnesia, Supreme's returning memories are told on the page in flashback form revising and ret-conning the character's complex and oft-rewritten backstory, often in pastiche style evoking different periods of comics history.

Darius Dax, a Lex Luthor-like evil genius and Supreme's antagonist, is introduced in this storyline. Dax dies twice in the series, the first time in prison from lymphatic cancer caused by exposure to Supremium.  Back to me:

598. The 40th anniversary of PW Herman's Big Adventure!

              Here's a rarity- a podcast subject on the 40th anniversary of the actual movie!  I did see it in the theater back then as well.

You Talk Too Much- Joe Jones

 This song is from 1960, and is pretty cute.  I think Run DMC used it as a basis for their song of the same name.

597. Avengers: United They Stand 01-03

                     Wow, this isn't an easy series to review.  There is a lot to like, but...

Calvin and Hobbes Monday 01-18-1986

 

This is not the first appearance of Spaceman Spiff, but it is the first appearance of The Zorg.  I wonder if his blaster has any effect on the alien.

596. The very dapper Werewolf of London! 1935

                 Good thing about a 75 minute movie, it is a short episode!

The Avengers: United They Stand (1999)

From Wiki-  The Avengers: United They Stand (also known simply as The Avengers) is an animated series based on the Marvel Comics superhero team Avengers.^[1] It consists of 13 episodes, which originally premiered on October 30, 1999, and was produced by Avi Arad. It was canceled on February 26, 2000.^[2]  The series features two founders of the team, Ant-Man and the Wasp, and introduces Wonder Man, Tigra, Hawkeye, Falcon, Vision and Scarlet Witch.^[3] Ownership of the series eventually passed to Disney following Saban Entertainment’s closure, which also includes Marvel Productions. 

595. Marco Polo and the Four Assassins! 1975

                There sure isn't a lot to add to this review about this great movie.  Just watch both this episode and the movie!

Werewolf by October

 From Wiki- Werewolf by Night is an American television special directed by Michael Giacchino and written by Heather Quinn and Peter Cameron for the streaming service Disney+, based on the Marvel Comics featuring the character of the same name. It is the first Marvel Studios Special Presentation in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), sharing continuity with the films and television series of the franchise. The special was produced by Marvel Studios and follows a secret group of monster hunters as they compete for a powerful relic while going up against a dangerous monster. Back to me:

594. Lil Abner, the 1959 Musical!

                       I haven't really talked too much about ol' Lil Abner.  I am not that familiar with most of the characters, though of course I have known of them my whole life.

Warren Zevon - Werewolves Of London (Official Lyric Video 2020)

             Here's a "lyric" video for this great song.  Sven is airing the movie tomorrow.  The trailer is already up.

593. Land of the Lost Season Two: 01-03!

                    Here we start the second season of Land of the Lost.  I am pleasantly surprised how good these three episodes are!

592. This Crystal Palace Dinosaur Book is amazing!

             I highly recommend this historical and wonderful tome.  It tells you everything you need to know about Crystal Palace and it's prehistoric inhabitants.

HOTW- Rocketman, aka Commando Cody

 

From Wiki- Radar Men from the Moon is a 1952 Republic Pictures' 12-chapter movie serial, the first Commando Cody serial starring newcomer George Wallace as Cody, Aline Towne as his sidekick Joan Gilbert, and serial veteran Roy Barcroft as the evil Retik, the Ruler of the Moon.^[2] The director was Fred C. Brannon, with a screenplay by Ronald Davidson, and special effects by the Lydecker brothers. This serial recycles the flying sequences from Republic's earlier 1949 serial King of the Rocket Men. It was later released by Republic in 1966 as the 100-minute television film Retik the Moon Menace.  And now back to me:  

591. The Ultraman Taro Story (1984)!

              This is a good Ultra movie, though it does start a rather annoying trend that still persists to this day.

Batgirl - Theme song with lyrics

             This is Batgirl's original theme song from the test pilot for her debut.  The scenes are from her episodes.

590. Waldo Kitty 10-13, dream away!

            Here are the final four episodes of Waldo Kitty.  They are kinda pretty good.  Yep, that's the best I can do.

Calvin and Hobbes Monday 01-17-1986

 When I was Calvin's age, our principal was 18 feet tall and possibly the scariest person I ever knew.  I never did have to go to his office, thankfully.

589. The deadly Black Scorpion attack from 1957!

                    This is a classic 50s movie, and the best of the giant "bugs" attack.  Yeah, I know, scorpions aren't bugs.

Crystal Palace Dinosaurs

From Wiki, of course- The Crystal Palace Dinosaurs are a series of sculptures of dinosaurs and other extinct animals in the London borough of Bromley's Crystal Palace Park. Commissioned in 1852 to accompany the Crystal Palace after its move from the Great Exhibition in Hyde Park, they were unveiled in 1854 as the first dinosaur sculptures in the world. The models, inaccurate by modern standards, were designed and sculpted by Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins under the scientific direction of Sir Richard Owen, representing the latest scientific knowledge at the time. The models, also known as the Geological Court or Dinosaur Court, were classed as Grade II listed buildings from 1973, extensively restored in 2002, and upgraded to Grade I listed in 2007.

The models represent 15 genera of extinct animals, only three of which are true dinosaurs. They are from a wide range of geological ages, and include true dinosaurs, ichthyosaurs, and plesiosaurs mainly from the Mesozoic era, and some mammals from the more recent Cenozoic era. Today, the models are notable for representing the scientific inaccuracies of early palaeontology, the result of improperly reconstructed fossils and the nascent nature of the science in the 19th century,^[1][2] with the Iguanodon and Megalosaurus models being particularly singled out.^[3]  Back to me:

588. Echoes from Beach of the War Gods! (1973)

                   This is such a great movie- it is in the running for Wang Yu's greatest movie in his career.  We should discuss!

Black Scorpion title card

A bit from wiki- The Black Scorpion is a 1957 black-and-white giant arachnid horror film from Warner Bros., produced by Jack Dietz and Frank Melford, directed by Edward Ludwig, and starring Richard Denning, Mara Corday, Carlos Rivas, and Mario Navarro.^[1] The film's stop-motion animation special effects were created by Willis O'Brien. In the film, volcanic activity releases giant prehistoric scorpions from the earth. They wreak havoc in the rural countryside and eventually threaten Mexico City.  Back to me:

587. 7 Unmasked KISS Songs Friday!

                  I liked this album back in 1980, but I really enjoy it a lot more now.

Cavern of Monsters- The Black Scorpion (1957)

                      This is the cavern of "monsters" though they are just giant, if very hungry, arthropods.  I think the segmented worm would count.

586. The Young Ones go out with a bang! 10-12

           We bid the fondest of farewells to The Young Ones, and kind of a sad goodbye as well.