Movie Review: The Black Cat (1934)

The old friends are so thrilled to see each other again.

Movie Review: The Black Cat (1934) directed by Edgar G. Ulmer Mystery writer Paul Alison (David Manners) and his bride Joan (Julie Bishop) are spending their honeymoon in Hungary, starting with a private compartment on the Orient Express. As so often happens, the railway company accidentally double-booked their compartment with a courtly but somewhat sinister-seeming middle-aged… Continue reading Movie Review: The Black Cat (1934)

Manga Review: Gyo

Manga Review: Gyo by Junji Ito Tadashi and Kaori, a handsome young couple, thought a vacation by the sea would be an excellent idea. That’s why they’re in Okinawa, living in his uncle’s seaside home and diving off his boat. One day while SCUBA diving, Tadashi comes across a wrecked battleship on the ocean floor.… Continue reading Manga Review: Gyo

Manga Review: Rin-Ne Volumes 38-40

Manga Review: Rin-Ne Volumes 38-40 by Rumiko Takahashi Quick recap: Rinne Rokudo is a shinigami, a psychopomp who helps the spirits of the dead move on to the afterlife. But he is partially human, so his powers are relatively weak and he often has to resort to special devices that cost money. Between that and… Continue reading Manga Review: Rin-Ne Volumes 38-40

Manhwa Review: Full House 1: Incompatible

Manhwa Review: Full House 1: Incompatible by Soo Yon Won Elle Gee is an aspiring scriptwriter who has spent the last ten days recovering from a breakup with her childhood sweetheart Felix by shutting out the outside world to concentrate on her debut script. Thus it’s a complete surprise to her to learn that Full… Continue reading Manhwa Review: Full House 1: Incompatible

Book Review: The Circular Staircase

Book Review: The Circular Staircase by Mary Roberts Rinehart Miss Rachel Innes is a woman of independent means who raised her brother’s children Halsey and Gertrude after he and his wife passed away. They’re now in their early twenties, and have at long last persuaded their maiden aunt to rent a summer house out in… Continue reading Book Review: The Circular Staircase

Book Review: Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and Other Strange Tales

Book Review: Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and Other Strange Tales by Robert Louis Stevenson Robert Louis Stevenson (1850-1894) wrote several “weird” stories as well as adventure tales like Treasure Island. This volume collects five of them. “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” starts us off with the adventures of Mr. Utterson,… Continue reading Book Review: Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and Other Strange Tales

Book Review: Beyond Human Ken

Book Review: Beyond Human Ken edited by Judith Merril This 1954 paperback anthology is a partial reprint of the 1952 hardback of the same title, choosing twelve stories of the original twenty-one and skipping the prefaces that were in that edition. The theme is non-human beings of various kinds, pulled primarily from the science fiction… Continue reading Book Review: Beyond Human Ken

Magazine Review: Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine August 1953

Magazine Review: Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine August 1953 edited by Ellery Queen If you’re not picky about condition, you can find a lot of cool old magazines for very reasonable prices, like say a dollar for this 1950s EQMM. At this time, editor Frederic Dannay still used his pen name of Ellery Queen on the… Continue reading Magazine Review: Ellery Queen’s Mystery Magazine August 1953

Book Review: Uncle Sam’s Attic: The Intimate Story of Alaska

Book Review: Uncle Sam’s Attic: The Intimate Story of Alaska by Mary Lee Davis There was a time, not so long ago, when Americans knew little about the territory of Alaska. In the popular imagination, it was a desolate land of perpetual ice and snow, inhabited mostly by gold miners and “Eskimos.” Indeed, many people… Continue reading Book Review: Uncle Sam’s Attic: The Intimate Story of Alaska

Movie Review: Night of the Living Dead (1968)

Movie Review: Night of the Living Dead (1968) directed by George Romero Daylight Savings Time can screw with your head. Here it is, already 8 P.M. and it’s still daylight. Even so, this old graveyard in rural Pennsylvania (about 200 miles from Pittsburgh) is plenty spooky. Johnny teases his sister Barbra about her childhood fears that… Continue reading Movie Review: Night of the Living Dead (1968)