All posts by ERTorre

E. R. Torre is a writer/artist whose first major work, the mystery graphic novel The Dark Fringe, was optioned for motion picture production by Platinum Studios (Men In Black, Cowboys vs. Aliens). At DC Comics, his work appeared in role-playing game books and the 9-11 Tribute book. This later piece was eventually displayed, along with others from the 9-11 tribute books, at The Library of Congress. More recently he released Shadows at Dawn (a collection of short stories), Haze (a murder mystery novel with supernatural elements), and Cold Hemispheres (a mystery novel set in the world of The Dark Fringe). He is currently hard at work on his latest science fiction/suspense series, Corrosive Knights, which features the novels Mechanic, The Last Flight of the Argus, and Chameleon.
Comic Books/Graphic Novels

Is it just me…?

I swear, it seems like the days are not just rushing by, but literally rocketing before my eyes.

We’re already three months into 2023 and I can barely remember 2022 at this point.

Anyway, as I pointed out a little before, I’m currently working on two things: A (gasp) graphic novel I’m working on with a wonderful penciller and my latest novel.

I’ve written before that the novel is moving along but I do still have to figure out the novel’s ending. I’m not quite there yet but when I do crack that particular nut -and I’m sure I will eventually- everything should fall into place.

As for the graphic novel, if all works as I hope, this will be the second graphic novel I’ve ever done… in collaboration with a wonderful artist, of course. My first is The Dark Fringe, which was the very first attempt at creating a full story…

I am loathe to get into too many details of this new graphic novel simply because we’re in the very early stages of this work and I’d rather start making formal announcements when the work is near release. I will say this much: The script is complete and if all works out, the book itself will be approximately 170 pages long. It will likely be released in three volumes at first before being collected into a single volume.

So far it looks terrific and I couldn’t be happier with the work of my friend who is drawing it.

Again, I’m being a bit cryptic here but revelations will be made when the time comes.

Until then, stay tuned!

Comic Books/Graphic Novels, General

Scott Adams…

…oh my.

I couldn’t tell you the first time I read a Dilbert comic strip. I can tell you that I quickly grew to love them back then, likely in the 1990’s or early 2000’s and before the internet swallowed up any need for me to still purchase newspapers.

I probably have a collection book or two somewhere of Dilbert strips. I liked the characters. I enjoyed the witty and bewildering look at being an office drone. Writing such humorous things takes quite a bit of skill and making it look “easy” takes even more. Having enough material to continue doing the strip for some 30 years? That takes genius.

But it doesn’t mean one is smart.

Back in the 1940’s and through 1977, Al Capp was renowned for his Li’l Abner comic strip…

Though known to espouse certain liberal causes, Mr. Capp would, by the late 60’s and into the 1970’s, become very conservative in his ideologies. He would end his career in controversy, accused by multiple women of sexual harassment, including a 19 year old Goldie Hawn.

And so we have Scott Adams who, with the rise of Donald Trump years ago, started to espouse a sharp right wing philosophy as well. There’s nothing wrong with espousing certain right wing ideologies, I feel, but there does come a point where they can slip a person into unforgivable areas.

Don’t take my word for it. You can go to YouTube.com and see the entirety of Mr. Adams’ video (it runs nearly an hour long) but here you get a smaller length clip that explores what has exactly happened since the video, and shows what got him into hot water to begin with…

The bottom line is that newspapers no longer want to carry Mr. Adams’ Dilbert and… I can’t blame them. I don’t know what goes through the mind of some creators. As I mentioned, Al Capp had his issues… and they may well have been even worse than those in which Mr. Adams currently falls into.

I’m familiar with and could mention other creators who have also espoused strange, perhaps even bizarre ideals and philosophies. The difference seems to be that today these things can be recorded, whether by others or by the person themselves, and posted with seemingly no awareness of how bad saying certain things may make them look.

Mr. Adams, if he was smart, has a nice nest egg thanks to his Dilbert strip. Based on the reactions thus far, he may need it because his strip may not exist for too much longer.

And, ultimately, he will have no one to blame for his misfortunes but himself.

Movies

Oh no…! Raquel Welch (1940-2023)

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Nowadays it may be hard for people to know how iconic Raquel Welch, who it was announced today died at the age of 82, was.

There are various articles available regarding her passing, including this one by Patrick Ryan and Edward Segarra and posted on usatoday.com…

Raquel Welch dead: ‘One Million Years B.C.’ sex symbol dies at 82 (usatoday.com)

To say she was a “sex symbol” seems wildly reductive yet also is very accurate. In her most famous and productive years on the big and small screen and, frankly, even more recently, Raquel Welch was nothing short of a breathtaking woman.

Here she is in one of her earliest/first successes, the 1966 film Fantastic Voyage…

She had already appeared in various TV shows by the time this movie premiered and in the same year, 1966, she would appear in a film that presented an iconic portrait of her, One Million Years B.C.

Those who weren’t in/around that time don’t realize how ever present the iconic image of Ms. Welch in her cavewoman bikini was back then. Seemed you’d find it everywhere and, yes, I even made my own version of the famous pose…

She would appear in many other works, including two with Burt Reynolds: 100 Rifles (1969)…

…and Fuzz (1972).

Apparently, Ms. Welch and Mr. Reynolds didn’t get along all that well and after 100 Rifles and while co-starring together in Fuzz, the film proved notable in that there isn’t a single sequence in it in which they share any screen time together.

Whatever her feelings were at the time regarding Mr. Reynolds, when the actor passed Ms. Welch let bygones be bygones and wrote a very nice tribute to him (portions of which can be found here).

In 1973 Ms. Welch starred in the ensemble film The Last of Shiela, which director/writer Rian Johnson has acknowledged as one of the big influences on his Knives Out movies…

Later on, Ms. Welch would play herself in one of the funnier sequences in Naked Gun: 33 & 1/3…

I’ve noted before one of the sad things about aging is that many of the people who you know and admire eventually grow old and pass away.

And so it is we reach that point with Raquel Welch, one of the most iconic -and sexy!- women ever to grace the silver screen.

You will be missed.

Books/Literature, Comic Books/Graphic Novels

So… what have I been up to of late…?

It strikes me I haven’t provided much information about what’s been on my plate -creatively, anyway- for a while now.

One of the frustrating things about being a writer is that it takes a while for something to get done. It is more likely than not whatever project I initiate goes through various permutations and what comes out often isn’t anything like what I originally conceived.

Further, I don’t want to give details up… I want the project to be released fully formed and “done”, and that means giving “updates” on a project have to be free of many story details.

At the moment, I’m working on two projects… or rather I personally am writing my next novel while a good friend of mine -an extraordinary artist- is working on another project I’ve already written.

The novel is roughly halfway done. I’ve gotten most of the details of the first half of the book in place but have yet to fully flesh out the book’s last act. I’m getting there, thought.

As for the project done in collaboration with my good friend… I saw the first few pages of it and I can’t wait to see more. Again, don’t want to give away too much but after all the shit I’ve gone through and the sadness and madness of dealing with my parents’ passing, lawyers and judges, and banks… it’s really nice to get back to creative work.

Let’s see where things go…!

General, Movies, Sports

Superbowl LVII

Personally, I found it an entertaining game.

There was plenty of drama and, you have to give it to the Kansas City Chiefs, they looked at halftime and after QB Patrick Mahomes reinjured his leg… that they might be done.

But Mahomes wasn’t about to let that happen and further credit where its due, their coach, Andy Reid, made some adjustments and eventually the Chiefs prevailed, 38-35.

There was controversy toward the very end on a holding call that might have been a little weak but that seems to be par for the course nowadays.

The commercials were mostly …ok… I guess, nothing that I found terribly memorable. What was intriguing, at least to me, was that almost all the car commercials (unless I’m misremembering) were focused on electric vehicles. I believe there was one commercial for a SUV (Hyndai?!) that was an ICE vehicle but otherwise the focus seemed to be on electric.

There were movie trailers as well and I must say of all of them, this is the one that most impressed me…

For a film that I wondered if it would ever get made to one whose main actor, Ezra Miller, has had some incredible troubles (to his credit he’s been out of the news for a while now, but I’m sure they will be dealt with either in court or through other means and may well preclude any future Flash projects), I didn’t think I’d have such a positive reaction to the movie’s trailer.

Frankly, it looks like the movie’s makers really went at it. The trailer gives off some seriously fun vibes and visuals to die for.

And Michael Keaton back as Batman?!

Yeah, I’m there.

Of course, it is a trailer and there have been trailers which made a film look far better than what it turned out to be…

I remain, however, cautiously optimistic!

General

Turkey…

For the past two years, it has felt like I’m locked into a version of the movie Groundhog Day.

I truly hate bringing it up (a la Groundhog Day, no?) but back in June of 2021, nearing two years now, I lost my parents in the collapse of Champlain Towers South.

Since then and in one way or another, this has been one of the major focuses of my day to day life, each day of the week, each week of the month, and now going on a little over a year.

The sadness is but one of the elements. It’s tough to put into the words not only losing one parent, but both in such a horrendous, unexplainable manner but also having almost all their possessions being wiped out as well… as if they didn’t exist at all.

Which is why I feel so very badly for those in Turkey. My personal tragedy feels almost insignificant when I see images in the news about what’s happened in Turkey.

When it happened, and because of the proliferation of cell phones and their ability to film things, I’ve seen images of buildings coming down and…

…and it instantly brings me back to the horrors of Champlain Towers South.

I can’t watch that stuff. I shut those images/film clips whenever they pop up on my computer or phone. I simply cannot stomach seeing a structure collapse.

Not anymore.

My thoughts and sympathy goes out to those living through this tragedy.

Sports

SuperBowl LVII – 2023

Yesterday came the semifinal games between the San Francisco 49ers versus the Philadelphia Eagles and the Cincinatti Bengals versus the Kansas City Chiefs.

The end result was that the Eagles beat the 49ers pretty impressively and the Chiefs outlasted the Bengals. For those counting, I predicted the Eagles win but felt the Bengals might have the edge over the Chiefs (you can read my .500 prediction here!).

However, the results of the Eagles/49ers game shows why predictions about sporting events are often the proverbial roll of the dice.

In the 49ers first series, quarterback Brock Purdy, who to that point has shown flashes of brilliance, sustained an injury to his throwing arm. Note that Mr. Purdy, who was the very last pick in the previous year’s draft (Mr. Irrelevant, as the joke goes) and who only got to be quarterback because of injuries to the other quarterbacks before him, had not lost a single game since he became QB of the 49ers.

His injury meant fourth string quarterback Josh Johnson was inserted into the game and, shortly thereafter, he fell back and apparently sustained a head injury/concussion and suddenly the 49ers had to bring Purdy back in for the bulk of the game… even though he could no longer throw the ball.

So what we had was a game where the Eagles knew each and every play would be a run and, let’s face it, the 31-7 loss they sustained could have been a lot worse given these circumstances.

Essentially any prediction about this game was null and void because of Purdy’s injury, and that, my friends, is why sports is a tough beast to predict. Had Purdy not sustained the injury, I suspect the game would have been closer but… I dunno.

Regarding the Chiefs and the Bengals, as I wrote in my prediction, I worried starting Chief QB Patrick Mahomes -easily one of the very best QBs playing the game right now- came into the game with a “high ankle sprain” and, frankly, I wondered if he would be able to win against the Bengals, who were healthier and dismantled the Buffalo Bills the week before.

Welp… it was a tight game and Mahomes gutted it out and obviously played with a lot of pain and, in the end, they managed to kick the winning field goal with only seconds left to play.

Which brings us to the SuperBowl in two weeks.

Who do I think can win?

You know… I’m at a loss. My head says the Eagles. They appear to be a very complete team although their QB, Jalen Hurts, is nursing a sprained sternoclavicular joint. This is where the clavicle or collarbone meets the sternum/breastbone. Sounds painful.

Still, we are talking about a team that is a very fearsome unit.

My heart, on the other hand, feels like the Chiefs -and especially QB Mahomes- really, really, really wants this, as was demonstrated in the way he played yesterday.

Does Mahomes have another -quite literally the last- gutsy game to play? Or will the Eagles continue their march?

We’ll see in two weeks, won’t we?

Movies

Black Adam (2022) a (mildly) belated review

There’s been more hoopla -it seems- about the behind the scenes stuff regarding Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam than there is about the movie itself.

You’ve had the surprise of Henry Cavill’s cameo as Superman at the movie’s end… something which delighted quite a few fans out there, even those who may not be big fans of Zack Snyder’s DC movies yet feel Cavill makes a great Superman. Then you had the disappointment -to those very same fans- when it turned out new DC Universe showrunner James Gunn stated Cavill would not return to the character after all.

There was the strange review situation, where professional reviews of the film were quite dismal yet the regular audiences were far more forgiving (at this date and on Rottentomatoes.com, the movie stands at a really, really low 39% positive among those critics and yet a very high 88% positive among audiences)

Then, when the movie was released, it seemed to do quite well in theaters but petered out relatively quickly. I suspect the film in the end did very well but not well enough for DC to push Mr. Gunn into a potential sequel or force him to use Cavill again. Mr. Johnson entered into that particular fray stating the film’s box office was quite healthy and his statements seemed rather defensive, even if I couldn’t blame him. He’s clearly someone who has pride in what he does and will defend it.

I was interested in seeing the film when it was originally released but, as is often the case for me, it was difficult to find the time to go to a theater to see the film. I also, I have to admit, had my eye on HBOMax and wondered just how long after the movie’s theatrical release I’d have to wait before it was streaming on that service.

In the end, I didn’t see the film in theaters but did catch it a few weeks back on HBOMax. I honestly don’t know if it’s still available to be seen there as of today.

So… what did I think about the film?

Was it as bad as the critics said? Did they miss something that general audiences found?

Avert your eyes, gentle reader, because what I’m about to state may cause some of you to faint…

I felt Black Adam was about as good a superhero film as Dr. Strange In The Multitude of Madness.

Yes, I said it.

Now, don’t get me wrong: Sam Raimi is a director who is in his own class and his direction of the Dr. Strange film was crisp and has his characteristic fun -and wild- elements which you cannot find in the Jaume Collet-Serra (whose previous directed films include The Shallows, Orphan, and Jungle Cruise) Black Adam.

However, I felt Dr. Strange’s story was, despite some really neat elements (particularly the alternate Marvel Universe and its heroes) quite toothless. It felt like the studio imposed the story and had Raimi tone down what could have been a truly fascinating horror/superhero hybrid. It felt to me like Raimi was in a strait jacket, making a good film when he could have made a batshit crazy great one, had he been allowed to do so.

So it was that I felt Black Adam was also one of those types of films. It wasn’t terrible IMHO, but it also felt like it was ticking off the boxes and trying to be all things to all audiences. I suppose, based on those Rottentomatoes.com scores, it achieved that much.

But it could -and more importantly should– have been more.

There were all kinds of fascinating elements in it. In Dr. Strange, as I mentioned, the highlight was seeing the alternate universe Marvel heroes. In Black Adam, the equivalent was seeing The Justice Society and, specifically, Hawkman and Dr. Fate, two characters I’ve always loved from the comics and was pleased to see come to life.

Pierce Brosnan was simply a delight as the weary Dr. Fate and seemed to have a blast in the movie. He was easily the movie’s standout.

Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam, alas, is presented as far more one note through the film. I get it: Unlike the comic books, where he was for many years an outright villain, here he’s a hero who is supposed to skirt the edge of being one. He kills, and quite a bit, but the movie -again like Dr. Strange– tries to soften the blow of his actions with humor or quick cuts which dampen what should be rougher stuff for audiences to chew on. As with Dr. Strange, I couldn’t help but wonder what a more no-holds-barred R rated version of this film might have been.

So the bottom line for me is that Black Adam is another reasonably successful superhero studio product. There are some really great effects and some of the action presented is quite wild but the film, in the end, feels like you’re having a Big Mac.

Go to any McDonalds in the United States and order a Big Mac and they’ll all taste the same even as they will help you get you past your hunger. Sure, they’re calories and they’re relatively cheap and you get served quick but it’s not necessarily a gourmet -or memorable- meal.

Recommended, with that caveat.

Movies, TV

Lance Kerwin (1960-2023)

Time marches on as it inevitably does.

The above name may not mean much to people today, but if you’re of a certain age -like mine- you may remember actor Lance Kerwin for a couple of very good roles he had in the late 1970’s.

Perhaps the role most people will remember him for is that of Mark Petrie in the very creepy TV adaptation Stephen King’s Salem’s Lot.

He was also the star of James at 16, a show that ran between 1977-78 and which I recall rather fondly.

Anyway, Mr. Kerwin, it was reported, died yesterday at the age of (gasp) 62. While his subsequent work may not have been quite as memorable as those he was involved in during his youth, the fact that I still remember those roles after all these years later, shows he did something quite special.

My condolences.

Movies

Razzies…

Way, waaaaaay back in the 1980’s or thereabouts I found this book and thought it was hilarious…

Written by Harry and Michael Medved (yes, the same Michael Medved who has become a pretty far right wing commentator) and originally released in 1980, the book focused on terrible movies and made fun of them and the ineptitude shown within.

As I said, I found the book hilarious and, over time, making fun of films became something of a sport. Perhaps the most famous example of doing so is the delightful Mystery Science Theater 3000 show, which has existed in various iterations and with various hosts since 1988 and has branched off -with a few of the original cast members of MST3K into RiffTrax in 2006.

Back in 1981, and perhaps as a result of the success of The Golden Turkey Awards (or perhaps not, I don’t know), the Golden Raspberry Awards premiered. Known as the “Razzies”, the so-called awards are meant to be a polar opposite of the Oscars in that they “award” movies and actors whom they feel in that year did particularly bad work.

This year, they nominated actress Ryan Kiera Armstrong, all of 12 years old, for worst acting in the Firestarter film and, after a backlash, decided to remove her from the nomination. (If you’re interested, you can read the entire story, presented on CNN.com and written by Lisa Respers France, here)

I feel the backlash is appropriate. Ridiculing some misguided or poorly received work by someone who probably should know better is somewhat understandable. But blasting a 12 year old child for doing what was likely the best she could in a (from what I’ve read) poor overall production? Seems harsh.

…and yet…

I can’t help but feel the notion of blasting artists of all/any ages on very public forums for perceived poor works has become distasteful, at least to me.

The market usually dictates hits and misses and there have been times when films were released to great scorn and subsequently were viewed far differently.

The very first Razzies, for example, nominated director Stanley Kubrick and actress Shelley Duvall for their work on The Shining, a film that over the years has come to be viewed by many -including me- as one of the very best horror films ever made.

Further, Shelley Duvall’s nomination as worst actress was voided years later when it was revealed she likely had a very bad working experience (to say the least) on the set of The Shining.

Having said all this, I admit: When I was much younger I found making fun of others’ works and failures was a pretty damn fun game.

But then I became a writer and things changed.

It has been noted that “no one sets out to make a terrible movie” and I would expand that quote into music and writing as well as TV. Everyone who first puts pen to paper or picks up a guitar or sings their first note hopes -and dreams- the work they create will be successful.

At times, it simply isn’t. The Shining, when the movie was first released, wasn’t all that successful. Critically, it had mixed reactions from audiences. Even to this day author Stephen King, whose novel was the basis for the movie, has had a very negative opinion about the work.

Remember way back when a few paragraphs above how I said I consider The Shining one of the all time best horror films ever made?

Welp, I saw it in theaters when it was first released (cough-old-fart-cough) and I didn’t like it.

At all.

Over time I caught bits and pieces of the film on TV when it aired and, over that time, I finally got it. The Shining was not meant to be a film that filled you with horror or slammed you with scary jumps (though it had a couple). The film was meant to seep into your psyche, to make you ill at ease and to descend, along with its small cast, into this pleasant looking -but deadly- hellscape of a Hotel.

I haven’t seen the remake of Firestarter but based on reviews I’ve seen, the film is likely dreadful.

To which I say: So what?

The filmmakers tried and possibly failed to make a good film.

Again: So what?

Many have before and many will again.

My point is: Why waste energy slamming the movie and the creators? Why not move on and find something you like and cherish rather than dwell on something you hate?

I’ve seen plenty of stuff I felt was terrible. I’ve read books that have disappointed me mightily. There are whole categories of music I simply don’t like.

But I’ve realized there’s little point in dwelling on it beyond looking at this as a learning experience.

As a writer, sometimes the stuff that doesn’t work offers lessons to me as to what not to do which, hopefully, helps me make things that are, in the end, better for those lessons.

Anyway, just a random thought (I should trademark that, no?!)