Movie Review: An Inspector Calls

The inspector arrives.

Movie Review: An Inspector Calls (1954) directed by Guy Hamilton It is spring, 1912 in the English town of Brumley. Wealthy manufacturer Arthur Birling (Arthur Young) and his wife Sybil (Olga Lindo) are having a small dinner party to celebrate the engagement of their daughter Sheila (Eileen Moore) to Gerald Croft (Brian Worth), son of one… Continue reading Movie Review: An Inspector Calls

Book Review: Phobia

Book Review: Phobia by Thomas Luke When Peter Ross was seven, his little sister died in a swimming pool accident. He developed a crushing fear of swimming. Some years later, Peter’s father threw him into the deep end of the pool, and in his struggles to get out, the boy found that he could swim,… Continue reading Book Review: Phobia

Movie Review: Attack of the Giant Leeches

Steve and Nan explore the swamp.

Movie Review: Attack of the Giant Leeches (1959) directed by Bernard L. Kowalski Steve Benton (Ken Clark) is a state game warden in a rural area of Florida not so far from Cape Canaveral. He’s checking up on a wild story told by local poacher Lem Sawyer (George Cisar) about a weird looking critter that he… Continue reading Movie Review: Attack of the Giant Leeches

Movie Review: Isle of the Dead (1945)

Madame Kyra tries to warn General Pherides of the supernatural evil afoot.

Movie Review: Isle of the Dead (1945) directed by Mark Robson General Nikolas Pherides (Boris Karloff) is leading Greek forces in the first Balkan War of 1912. His troops have just won a hard-fought battle. But perhaps less of them would have died if one of his officers hadn’t arrived too late. The officer tries to… Continue reading Movie Review: Isle of the Dead (1945)

Comic Book Review: The Best of DC #30: Detective Comics

Cover by Aparo.

Comic Book Review: The Best of DC #30: Detective Comics edited by Len Wein Detective Comics is one of DC’s longest-running comic book series, and indeed, they’re named after it. While it’s best known as the birthplace of Batman, over the years it’s hosted several other features involving some form of detection or mystery solving.… Continue reading Comic Book Review: The Best of DC #30: Detective Comics

Manga Review: Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service Omnibus Edition 5

Manga Review: Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service Omnibus Edition 5 story by Eiji Otsuka, art by Hosui Yamazaki Well, it’s been a long time since I looked at this series. Mainly because Dark Horse decided that sales weren’t good enough to economically produce the individual volumes, so they started reprinting Kurosagi in an omnibus edition that… Continue reading Manga Review: Kurosagi Corpse Delivery Service Omnibus Edition 5

Magazine Review: Spicy Mystery Stories June 1936

Cover is symbolic; the "cat person" in the story is male.

Magazine Review: Spicy Mystery Stories June 1936 by various creators As I’ve previously mentioned, the “spicy” pulps were racy for their time, with descriptions of women’s breasts and thighs, and it being obvious that the characters are having sex, but never actually describing the sex or genitals. This particular magazine, despite the title, has little… Continue reading Magazine Review: Spicy Mystery Stories June 1936

Book Review: Thrilling Adventure Yarns 2025

Cover by Jeffrey Ray Hayes, illustrating "ESPD." The distressing is part of the cover design.

Book Review: Thrilling Adventure Yarns 2025 edited by Robert Greenberger Disclaimer: I contributed to the Kickstarter for this book. A lesser known aspect of pulp fandom is the creation of new stories in the tradition of the pulp magazines of old, action-packed and exciting. Thus this series of books which feature modern authors trying their… Continue reading Book Review: Thrilling Adventure Yarns 2025

Comic Book Review: Man-Thing by Steve Gerber: The Complete Collection Vol. 1

Comic Book Review: Man-Thing by Steve Gerber: The Complete Collection Vol. 1 by various creators You may have heard a story like this before. A biochemist working for a secret agency develops a chemical that evil people want to steal. They come to his place in the swamp, and he winds up with the serum… Continue reading Comic Book Review: Man-Thing by Steve Gerber: The Complete Collection Vol. 1

Movie Review: The Casino Murder Case

Philo and Doris compare notes.

Movie Review: The Casino Murder Case (1935) directed by Edwin L. Marin We begin our story with urbane amateur detective Philo Vance (Paul Lukas) fencing with his manservant Currie (Eric Blore). This is part of Vance’s recent exercise kick, and Currie has been dragged into it as well. More relevantly to the plot, an anonymous letter… Continue reading Movie Review: The Casino Murder Case