Video: The Flash Season 2 "Zoom's Coming" Promo


Vintage movie poster: London After Midnight


Pop Culture Roundup: Fantastic Four; Murphy Anderson; MTV's 120 Minutes; Thunderbirds are Go on Amazon, more!

Via Booksteve, these Jack Kirby splash pages from Fantastic Four are mini-masterpieces.

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A nice tribute to the late, great DC Comics artist Murphy Anderson.
From 1969-71 Murphy Anderson and Neal Adams were DC’s de-facto cover artists. In a rare pairing they created one of the most enduring comic book images of all time, with Superman soaring high above an aerial photograph of the city. There was seemingly no storyline Murphy couldn’t encapsulate with a compelling image: Captain Cold gloating over the death of The Flash, savages overwhelming America’s Justice League, Superman witnessing his girlfriend’s marriage to Satan, Lois Lane transforming herself into a black woman for the day.
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Kinda cool: I have fond memories of MTV's "120 Minutes" which, in the days of Duran Duran and the Thompson Twins, was an oasis of what ultimately became "alternative" music. This site presents an archive of the series with links to full episodes and to the individual music videos they featured.


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Good news for stoners who are sick of "The Wizard of Oz": Apparently "Star Wars the Force Awakens" also syncs up with Pink Floyd's Dark Side of Moon.
When Poe (Oscar Isaac) wakes up in Kylo Ren’s (Adam Driver) torture chamber, the lyrics of “The Great Gig in the Sky” go, “I’m not afraid of dying/ Anytime will do,” and the song’s scream happens right as Poe opens his own mouth.
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Amazon Prime plans to air three 13-episodes of a new CGI series based on Gerry Anderson's "Thunderbirds."
“Thunderbirds Are Go!” stars Rosamund Pike (“Gone Girl”) as Lady Penelope, Thomas Brodie-Sangster (“Love Actually,” “Game of Thrones”) as Gordon Tracy and John Tracy, Rasmus Hardiker as Alan Tracy and Scott Tracy, David Menkin as Virgil Tracy, Sandra Dickinson as Grandma Tracy, Kayvan Novak (“Four Lions”) as mechanical genius Brains, Andres Williams as the villainous Hood, and David Graham reprising his role as manservant/IR agent Parker.


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Via Slay Monstrobot: Simon and Kirby and zombies.


Video: DC's Legends of Tomorrow 1x04 Sneak Peek "White Knights"


Video: A Terrible Idea – Marvel’s Agent Carter Season 2, Ep. 6


Video Find: Steve Wonder on "Soul Train" 1971


Upkoming Kinks komp kollects rare kovers

Sorry about all the Ks, but it seemed appropriate.

Out from UK reissue specialists Ace Records March 25, this looks like a must - at least for me!

Pre-order now from Amazon.

Details:

Ray Davies is one of the greatest songwriting talents that Britain has ever produced. From his earliest days with the Kinks he was tremendously prolific. His wry take on the British way of life was matched by uncanny melodic and commercial sensibilities, resulting in a body of work that remains unsurpassed. From ‘You Really Got Me’ on, the Kinks’ popularity and influence across the globe has been huge, ably demonstrated by the many covers of Davies songs.

“Kinked! Kinks Songs & Sessions 1964-1971” is an alternative celebration of the Kinks’ first decade, via the songs that “got away”, when a surfeit of strong material was shopped by Davies’ then-publisher and management, both in the UK and overseas. These tunes include several signature items never officially recorded by the Kinks: ‘I Go To Sleep’, ‘This Strange Effect’, ‘All Night Stand’; or released well in advance of the Kinks’ own versions.

The range of interpreters is wide, from pop-jazz chanteuse Peggy Lee and teen idol Bobby Rydell to Brit-girls the Orchids and Goldie & The Gingerbreads, UK mainstays Herman’s Hermits and the Pretty Things, sessioneer Nicky Hopkins, satirist Barry Fantoni, US garage punk avatars the Chocolate Watchband and R&B veterans the Olympics. Several cuts are previously unissued alternate versions / mixes or recent vault discoveries.

“Kinked!” also gathers together tracks which feature some or all of the Kinks as accompaniment, such as the obscure ‘King Of The Whole Wide World’. And as writer, Kinks guitar-slinger extraordinaire Dave Davies contributes one track, the rare beat pounder ‘One Fine Day’.

Detailed liner notes provide a background to the artists and how they acquired the songs. “Kinked!” is a lovingly-compiled, great-sounding and long overdue definitive collection that is bound to satisfy the casual Kinks aficionado as much as the hardcore fan.

Compilation and notes by Alec Palao.
 Tracks:

01. King Of The Whole Wide World - Leapy Lee
02. I Bet You Won't Stay - The Cascades
03. Look For Me Baby - Goldie & The Gingerbreads
04. I Go To Sleep - Peggy Lee
05. This Strange Effect - Dave Berry
06. All Night Stand - The Thoughts
07. So Mystifying - The Olympics
08. Un Jeune Homme Bien - Petula Clark
09. One Fine Day - Shel Naylor
10. Oh What A Day It's Gonna Be - Mo & Steve
11. Little Man In A Little Box - Barry Fantoni
12. A House In The Country - The Pretty Things
13. When I See That Girl Of Mine - Bobby Rydell
14. Nobody's Fool - Cold Turkey
15. Act Nice & Gentle - Duster Bennett
16. I've Got That Feeling - The Orchids
17. Emptiness - The Honeycombs
18. Rosie Rosie aka Rosie, Won't You Please Come Home - Marianne Faithfull
19. I'm Not Like Everybody Else - The Chocolate Watchband
20. Who'll Be The Next In Line - The Knack
21. Dandy - Herman's Hermits
22. The Virgin Soldiers March - The John Schroeder Orchestra
23. A Little Bit Of Sunlight - The Majority
24. Big Black Smoke - Mick & Malcolm
25. Mister Pleasant - Nicky Hopkins & His Whistling Piano
26. End Of the Season - The Uglys

Watch the final trailer for "Batman v Superman"


Michael Cho's February variant covers for Marvel Comics

I'm not one who seeks out variant covers, but this selection by Michael Cho is a knockout.