Super Tuesday Recap - Comic Book & TV Show Reviews

It's time for another Mailbag episode. And what a difference a day makes. Kriss and Dpalm were going to record this on the 31st but changed their minds at the last minute and that little, innocent change had serious consequences. Because 24 hours later WB finally admits (once again) that they're not moving forward with Ava DuVernay's New Gods (As well as James Wan's The Trench). *sigh* Sometimes we hate being right. So for those keeping track at home: Spend 70 - 80 million more for a SnyderVerse they're not moving forward with (and only 36-37% of viewers completed) but cancel two projects (One by a Black woman and one by an Asian man) that could have had potential. Great job. It's not all bad news for DC though. James Gunn's The Suicide Squad looks amazing. Finally a DC film we're actually looking forward to seeing.   Kriss and Dpalm record the Mailbag at the end of every month. If you want to send in your own questions and thoughts, email us: Mailbag@MTRNetwork.Net   Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode! Follow us on Twitter: @Dpalm66 @InsanityReport @TheMTRNetwork Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account! Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network

Apparently the other Forces got together and jumped the Speed Force and beat it like it stole it stole money from them. The Flash is clearly taking elements from Williamson's run but are making changes to tell the story they want. The Speed Force getting beat down is definitely not from the books but hey, its keeping things interesting. We're wondering if on the show they're making the other forces emulate the emotional spectrum, kinda like what Geoff Johns did with Green Lantern. It also makes us even more skeptical of the original Wells coming back and if somehow he's also a product of one of the new forces. Three things stand out to us specifically for this episode:  * Cecile is becoming pretty powerful.This is the second episode where she's demonstrated that her powers can be a good thing (or scary if used wrongly) * We're appreciative that they're bringing up the fact that Frost used to be "Killer Frost" and literally murdered people. Can't really sweep that under the rug *  Where is the baby? Where is Joe & Cecile's baby? Is it just one of those things the show isn't show or is this part of a bigger plot that Crisis changed things.  Kriss and Dpalm record the Mailbag at the end of every month. If you want to send in your own questions and thoughts, email us: Mailbag@MTRNetwork.Net   Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   Follow us on Twitter: @Dpalm66 @InsanityReport @TheMTRNetwork Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account!

Before Batwoman heads into another hiatus, Shanna, Ro, and Hiroja are back to talk about all the post-Coryana drama in Gotham.  Alice, who is apparently on a completely separate show, is stuck in a liminal space after learning that Kate is dead. Because the stages of grief are just guidelines, Alice decides she's going to skip right over them by telling her brain that she never had a sister. This should be interesting when Kate returns with a new face.  It's okay that Alice is having a full psychotic break because Black Mask AKA Roman Sionis (Peter Outerbridge) is here and he's our official big baddie of the season. Ryan has inherited his vendetta against Batwoman, the Crows, and GCPD, which kicks off when the False Face Gang shoots the police chief.  Angelique was driving the getaway car and Sophie's sister, Jordan, was the sole witness pulling Ryan and Sophie into the mix. Jordan (Keeya King) is an activist and community organizer so she presents an interesting moral dilemma for Sophie who is finally starting to realize that she may not be on the side of right. And, surprisingly, Jordan also challenges Ryan's image of Batwoman as a savior when she questions the "throw a Batarang, ask questions later" nature of what Batwoman does.  Right now Batwoman is settling into itself and despite some questionable glossing over of certain plot points (the Bat Team just has a desert rose plant now? We're not going to investigate how?) using characters like Jordan and villains like Black Mask to bring our character's issues to a head is exactly what this show needs.    Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   Follow us on Twitter: @TheMTRNetwork @shittybonmots @HiroJaShibe Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network   Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account!

Nice arm you got there. Be a shame if someone came and ripped it off. Especially if that "someone" was a Black super solider. We knew that Marvel had cast Carl Lumby as Isaiah Bradley but we didn't know how they would integrate him into the story. Look, everyone knows the cover of Truth: Red, White & Black that tells Bradley's story but let's be honest. The story itself is...well...not very good. Episode 2 of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier though sets up Bradley's background by 1. not making him brain dead and a drooling mess 2. Establishing him as a bad ass who took the Winter Soldier's arm back in the 50's 3. establishes the horrific legacy of the super solider serum and how it was used on Black soldiers who were experimented on and then swept under the rug. Now instead of being a cringy story that folks have to add onto to make better, it starts off as a story we want to see more of. And that's just a small part of this episode. This episode opens up humanizing John Walker and showing him as a pretty competent choice for Captain America and we hate it. The propaganda is so strong that. We had to begrudgingly admit that he's more than capable with the shield in his hand. Of course Walker's overconfidence and assholery comes out the further we get into the episode which we appreciate. We also appreciate Bucky not being with the shit at all.  We also get some deep cut Captain America references, from Battlestar to the Power Broker. We get more understanding of the Flagsmasher's motivations and we aren't going to say they're 100% right but they're making some solid points. Especially about the feelings fo those that were left to survive during the blip. Listen as we break down this episode and make sure you subscribe so you don't miss any of our discussions.     Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   Follow us on Twitter:   @Dpalm66 @InsanityReport @TheMTRNetwork   Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network   Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account!

Episode 4 of The Flash Season  7 feels like the real beginning of Season 7. It's also clear that this season is going to be dealing with the fallout of the events of last season (and maybe the season before). When you think about it, there's been a lot of shit that's gone done. From Crisis destroying the multiverse to the trauma of Eva's mirrorverse (and let's not forget Thawne causing Nora to erase herself from the timeline), Barry and Iris have gone through a lot. And it's not just them, but all of Central City. It feels like this also represents a lot of what we've all been dealing with in real life with the trauma of the pandemic.  Throw in the fact that we're also clearly dealing with the new forces and this is going to be a major problem, and we're excited to see where this all leads. Kriss and Dpalm record the Mailbag at the end of every month. If you want to send in your own questions and thoughts, email us: Mailbag@MTRNetwork.Net   Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   Follow us on Twitter: @Dpalm66 @InsanityReport @TheMTRNetwork Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account!

Shanna, Ro, and Hiroja are back to talk about the latest episodes of Batwoman, which tie-up the threads surrounding Safiyah, Coryana, and the mystery of Kate Kane ... or do they? While Batwoman managed to give us many moments of levity and even some of the plot points we predicted (hello, Tatiana calling Sophie an oppressor), the show doesn't seem quite ready to commit to Ryan as our new Batwoman and everything they've built suffers for it.  In "It's Best You Stop Digging", Ryan runs around Gotham with Kryptonite poisoning instead of letting Mary and Luke take the stage and work to save her life; something that would have solidified her as their new Batwoman. Similarly, in "I've Survived Much Worse" Ryan is inexplicably pushed to go to Coryana (still poisoned but now with an adrenaline shot) and she still can't manage to get the one thing that will save her life. Although the episode ends on a life-saving cliffhanger, most of the development the show has been building is undercut by the reveal that Kate Kane is still alive as well as and the subsequent news that the role was recast. These episodes were an opportunity for Batwoman to fully entrench Ryan (and Javicia Leslie) as our new Batwoman and lay Kate Kane to rest for a time, but now it feels like Kate Kane will continue to be a dangling thread that won't be tied off any time soon.    Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   Follow us on Twitter: @TheMTRNetwork @shittybonmots @bookblerd @HiroJaShibe   Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network   Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account!

We're back with more MCU Phase 4 Disney+ goodness. This time we're back to explore two more characters: Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes, the Falcon and Winter Soldier. Right out the gate this series lets us know it's going to be way more action packed than WandaVision. Apparently Sam spent the 5 years in the blip, not erased out of existence but in a Crossfit gym. The opening of this series lets us know right away that the powers that be that don't want Sam to keep the shield don't have a leg to stand on. This is the first time we've seen Sam doing hero shit on his own and....he's damn good at it. Still not good enough to get a loan as a black man though. On the Bucky side, it's nice to see the trend of using the Disney+ shows to explore the characters that have deep troubling issues that we've just never had a chance to explore. Bucky being forced to go to therapy is good and it's also great that his therapist doesn't let him off the hook. Like WandaVision, when you think about how recent some of the most traumatic events to happen to some of these characters are, it's a wonder they're not all in therapy.  I know some might be confused as to why Sam would give up the shield and where the hell Great Value Captain America aka John Walker came from. But like WandaVision, audiences need to trust the process and just let the story unfold. One of the best things so far about the Disney+ shows being the intro to MCU Phase 4 is that they're reenforcing how serious that "Five Years Later" was in Endgame. There's also a sense of anti-hero sentiment that's also going on and that never ends well.  Listen as Ro, Kriss and Dpalm discuss this episode and have reasonable predictions (The therapist is Mephisto).   Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   Follow us on Twitter:   @Dpalm66 @InsanityReport @TheMTRNetwork   Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network   Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account!

We won't lie. We're grading this episode on a curve. While it's the third episode of season 7, this is clearly what was planned to be the end of last season. COVID ended up cutting that short and so this episode is wrapping all that up. So it's with that context that we're willing to overlook a few things with this episode. It's clearly rushed and a bit cheesy and on the nose ("It's about love"). But that said, it all still fits over all with what the show is trying to do with Barry and his team. Leaning on Barry and his team and differentiating him from his enemies was a big theme from last season. And while very heavy handed, Iris being Barry's "lightning rod" is also a key element of the character.  More importantly we're excited about where the show is going next now that they've been able to wrap up the story they were prevented from finishing last season. Once again  this show is pulling from the latest run of The Flash and we're seeing that not only did the Speedforce come back but it seems we're getting the other Forces as well. Which should be pretty exciting. Also, how they decided to handle the firing of Hartley Sawyer was hilarious. Kriss and Dpalm record the Mailbag at the end of every month. If you want to send in your own questions and thoughts, email us: Mailbag@MTRNetwork.Net   Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   Follow us on Twitter: @Dpalm66 @InsanityReport @TheMTRNetwork Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account!

This latest episode of The Flash is further evidence that the beginning of Season 7 is just the true end of Season 6 and we're not mad at that all. COVID clearly caused an abrupt end to the last season and instead of just moving on, The Flash is trying to complete that story before moving on to the next and that's a good thing. We really enjoy how they're tying everything back to Barry and his heart and what makes him a hero. By taking that part of Barry aware this episode and making him more tactical, we see that the benefits are short-lived and that the answer for Barry is to always lean on his family and team. It's the classic "my friends and family don't make me weak they make me stronger" troupe which is probably a bit heavy handed but we'll take it.  Also, there must always be a Wells.  Kriss and Dpalm record the Mailbag at the end of every month. If you want to send in your own questions and thoughts, email us: Mailbag@MTRNetwork.Net   Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   Follow us on Twitter: @Dpalm66 @InsanityReport @TheMTRNetwork Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account!

The WandaVision finale is here. The title is "Series Finale" so it's unlikely that we will be seeing a second season but as with all things in the MCU, this feels more like the beginning than the end. Wanda embraces the role as the Scarlet Witch even though she (and us the audience) doesn't know what that means. At least not yet. There's a lot of places the MCU could go now and we're excited for the fallout. And the memes. Cause the Black Twitter Vishawn memes have been *chef kiss*.  It's also worth pointing out how once again Marvel has tackled what could be viewed as a problematic storyline from the comic and flips it to give characters agency. Wanda Maximoff comes from a long list of female characters in comics that was written to be a victim of "too much power". WandaVision instead makes Wanda a victim of her grief that much more grounded and understandable. And the show gives her the power to get out of it instead of leaving it to a man to come and save her. Gotta love how Marvel has made that change. Now the question is, which path does she go down? Good? Bad? Or somewhere in the middle? We'll find out in Doctor Strange 2. Listen as we talk about this finale, the series as a whole and what's next. Also take the break cause we'll be back for Captain America and the Winter Solider (yeah we said it).   Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   Follow us on Twitter:   @Dpalm66 @InsanityReport @TheMTRNetwork   Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network   Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account!

Man it's good to be back. Covid ended The Flash's last season a bit early and delayed the start of season 7. There was such a delay that we actually had a little apprehension about the show coming back. Were we really down for another 22 episode season? Were we going to remember what happened in season 6? Were we going to feel the same connection to the show? Yes. The answer is yes. Yes we are.  The start of season 7 picks up right where we left off with season 6 and did a great job of getting us back up to speed and reminding us that this show was very good before things got shut down. Eva is still a real problem. We're getting closer and closer to our dream of an all female Rogues team. The show continues to pull from the EXCELLENT Williamson run of The Flash and really gets us thinking about where this show could go. Look, there will be plenty of time to be critical but right now, we're just happy the Fastest Man Alive is back on TV. Kriss and Dpalm record the Mailbag at the end of every month. If you want to send in your own questions and thoughts, email us: Mailbag@MTRNetwork.Net   Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   Follow us on Twitter: @Dpalm66 @InsanityReport @TheMTRNetwork Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account!

Time for the second Mailbag of 2021. We tackle listener emails and some of the latest news items. Like Gina Carano throwing away a Disney bag for *checks notes* a Ben Shapiro project? When Disney writes your apology note for you and tells you "Just shut up and read this and stop being a bigot online", you should probably listen. Then again, no one has ever accused Carano as being smart. We're also hopeful (Hope is a lie, we know), that this will be the last time we need to talk about about the "SnyderCut". We're so tired of it and ready for it to be over. And WB/DC Films must be too cause they just announced another wave of vaporware projects like a Superman film produced by JJ Abrams and written by Ta-Nehisi Coates and a new Latina Supergirl (Sasha Calle) appearing in The Flash movie. We're calling these vaporware projects because we're still waiting on any progress updates on New Gods (announced in 2018) and while the claims are its shooting soon, the Rock was attached to Black Adam back in 2007 and Marvel put out 3 whole phases and we haven't even seen Johnson even try on the suit yet. We've been hurt and lied to before. We don't believe anything until there's a trailer. And even then....(Hi New Mutants).  Anyway, strap in and give it a listen. We'll be back next month. Also stay tuned as we'll be back even sooner for the return of The Flash on CW. As a note, a couple of emails came in after we recorded so we will read those during next month's mailbag.     Kriss and Dpalm record the Mailbag at the end of every month. If you want to send in your own questions and thoughts, email us: Mailbag@MTRNetwork.Net   Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode! Follow us on Twitter: @Dpalm66 @InsanityReport @TheMTRNetwork Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account! Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network

Now that we've got the introductions out of the way, our characters are rubbing up against each other and the lines of morality they've been crossing since season one. While Ryan is succumbing to her Kryptonite bullet wound because she doesn't want to admit any weakness, Luke's alliance with Alice and Mary's connection to Hamilton Dynamics continues to put Ryan in danger and push her to compromise her ethics both in and out of the Batsuit.  Meanwhile, Jacob and Crowphie (yup, you read that right) somehow manage to flout the law while self-righteously lecturing everyone on their lack of morals. Both of them are supposedly doing this for Kate but they're actually avoiding taking any responsibility for their past and current actions.  And finally, Alice tracks down Ocean and she really, really, means to kill him but like any good CW drama ... it's complicated. We discuss this, fight sex, Ryan's lack of edges, and more in this week's podcast.    Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   Follow us on Twitter:   Shanna @BookBlerd @TheMTRNetwork   Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network   Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account!

"But what is grief if not love persevering?" So now the WandaVision writers are just showing off. Of course that's been try this whole series but episode 8 really drives it home (Maybe even too much). If you had any doubt that this show was about Wanda's grief (How could it not be?), this episode really erases all of that. It also really drives home the fact that with its Disney+ shows, Marvel is really trying to meld the way they tell stories in their comic book world with their visual projects. And I'm not talking about the storylines but rather how they tell the stories. This episode takes us all the way back to Age of Ultron when Wanda & Pietro talk about the flashing red light on a Stark munition, waiting for it to go off. It goes back to why Wanda and Pietro survived the Hydra experiments with the mind stone (Not enough people are talking about what we saw there). And it's all tied to chaos magic and the fact that Wanda is an untrained, natural witch with powers she (and no one else) understands.  We have thoughts, theories and most importantly, a deep appreciation for whatever comes next. Honestly, we don't believe some of the most out there and wild theories but at the same time, we also don't put anything past Marvel either. So, we're preparing for anything in episode 9.  To those worried that there's too much to wrap up in the last episode, remember, this is a comic book being told as a TV show. As long as the MCU is around, there is no end to this story, just the next chapter. We're really excited to see where this goes.   Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   Follow us on Twitter:   @Dpalm66 @InsanityReport @TheMTRNetwork   Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network   Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account!

Well there you have it. It's been Agatha all along. Gotta love how Marvel has masterfully put together WandaVision. Even when you have a pretty good idea of what's coming, it's still rewarding to see how they pull it all together and reward both those that expect it and those that don't. Also even if you always thought that Agnes was Agatha Harkness, it's still pretty amazing to think that Marvel not only put Agatha Harkness in the MCU but is clearly going full witchcraft. Oh and if that wasn't enough, they don't slow roll Monica's powers and really go there. The only question now is if she's going to be called Photon or Spectrum. It's also looking like Wanda is subconsciously trying to use Monica to pull herself out. The minute it looked like Monica was making some progress, Agatha shows up and pulls Wanda away. Next episode gotta be Wanda & Monica vs Agatha and her familiar right? We have a lot to talk about this episode. Some of the things we discuss: * The commercials are really coming into more focus as being important. First the "Yo Magic" commercial might give some insight into what Agatha is up to along with the "Nexus" commercial this episode * It doesn't seem like the book in Agatha's basement is the Darkhold or the Book of Cagliostro (the Book the Ancient One was using in Doctor Strange). We do have an idea of what book it is and it could be just as terrifying * There's been a lot of Man-Thing references in the MCU and if they're really moving towards the Nexus of All Realities we're getting even more. If this is part of a long game to getting a Man-Thing movie/series...bravo * The fact that this episode takes time to show use Acting Director Hayward being up to something lets us know it came be any good Only two more episodes left. There's so many different directions this could go. All of them bad (in a good way) and we can't wait.   Like what you hear? Subscribe so you don't miss an episode!   Follow us on Twitter:   @Dpalm66 @InsanityReport @TheMTRNetwork   Our shirts are now on TeePublic:  https://teepublic.com/stores/mtr-network   Want more podcast greatness? Sign up for a MTR Premium Account!