Mark's Epic Blog of Randomness

 By Mark Rodriguez The first ever Detective Comic I ever bought was issue 611 which the second part of a two-part Penguin story. Decades later I found and purchased issue 610 thanks to Hipcomic. This is the next issue that involved Catwoman, so as a new fan I was happy to see another familiar villain. However this issue not only features Catwoman but a Catman as well. Let's see what happens.    "Cats" opens with some hoodlums skating down the park. One of them snatches a purse from an old lady while the other shoves her to the ground. Luckily Batman was patrolling the park and swings into action. He kicks one of the kids in the back, making him crash fast-first into a tree branch. He tosses a Batarang to the back of the other guy's head, which makes him fall over the wall that surrounds the park and into the bushes. Batman asks if the old lady is alright and says it's dangerous to be out at night. She says her Persian cat Ayesha hasn't come home, and she alwa...

 By Mark Rodriguez Batman had been called to Moscow to deal with the KGBeast's protege, the NVKDemon. The Demon plans to kill ten people on his list, people he believes are making the Soviet Union weak. After several attempts to find and stop him, Batman and the Demon fought atop a high platform where an international dinner was taking place. Batman is sent falling off the platform. What will happen next? "Earth Day! Demon Night!" opens as Batman, dazed and wounded, is falling off the platform. Batman grabs the tips of his cape with both hands and uses it to catch onto one of the many flagpoles decorating the building. Batman tells detective Nikita that he's alright and he pulls himself up onto the flagpole.    Security try to get the special guests, Andronikov and Pyotr out of there. The Demon shows up and guns everyone down while monologuing about making the country strong again. He aims his gun at the fallen Pyotr who is head of internal security. He blames him fo...

 By Mark Rodriguez      Batman has been called to Moscow to take down the KGBeast's deadly protege, the NVKDemon. He has a hit list of several men he considers weak and traitorous towards the Soviet Union and has already killed several. Batman confronted the Demon and was outmatched. The Demon managed to elude capture, now more determined to carry out his murderous plans. What will happen now? "When the Earth Dies- Chapter Two- Underworlds" opens with Batman watching over a hockey game in the Lenin Stadium in Moscow, an American team playing against the Russian team. He radios Detective Nikita Krakov and says the Demon hasn't shown up yet. He's certain he will be at the game since he is following a pattern. Nikita tells Batman he's hope he's right, but mostly they can prevent the Demon from killing again. He has warned Aleksey against being out in crowds but since it was his son's birthday and there was a soccer game, he refused. Family tradition is i...

By Mark Rodriguez We continue my look back to the actual Batman comics I purchased back during my childhood. The first Batman issue I bought was issue 444, but that was part 2 of a 2-part story. This was before the days of going to an actual comic shop and back-ordering a missed issue. This was when you just bought comics at a grocery store or pharmacy. This is my first full Batman story, a three part tale that takes the Caped Crusader to Russia. Let's check it out. "When the Earth Dies! Chapter One: Red Square! Bloody Square!" opens with narration explaining how Batman knows every bit of the city. He knows every street, every back alley, every sewer, from the business district, the parks and the ghettos. They are all part of his city to protect. Just then Batman leaps into a dark alley to stop a villain named Slasher from killing another victim. Slasher has sharp weapons attached to his arms, a blade on one hand and a spinning buzzsaw on the other. Slasher says these ...

 By Mark Rodriguez This time we got a few comics from Third Eye and Alpha Comics, but a lot of it was catching up on older and missed titles. It turns out I waited one week too long to grab the last two issues of the Carnage series, so I had to go to HipComics. Captain Marvel Dark Past # 1 - Carol Danvers realizes she never got all her memories back from her incident with Rogue several years prior. What do these new memories mean, and how will Carol figure things out when she can't tell the difference between new memories and visions from the future? Captain Marvel Dark Past # 1 Review   The New Ms. Marvel # 20- A reprint from a classic comic as Carol faces off against lizard men.  Venom # 254- It turns out even though the comic went from 'The All-New Venom' back to the regular title, the MJ Venom adventures continue. I'll be buying the missing issues in between All-New and the regular title since there aren't that many. The Amazing Spider-Man # 26- The Death Spi...

 By Mark Rodriguez Some time ago, the Udon comics introduced a group of original enemies called Vortex. So far Chun Li, Zangief, Guile and Elena have run into different members of this evil organization. Now it's Karin's turn. Let's see what happens. The story opens at the Kanzuki Corporation Mountaintop R&D Tech Facility in the Dufourspitze, Swiss Alps where Birdie is was told to stand outside because 'his face was ruining the vibe'. He's freezing and has half a mind to leave if the only way off the mountain wasn't be helicopter. Karin's butler, Ishizaki shows up with Birdie's lunch, a huge burger accompanied by a jar of horseradish. Just then, something is seen in the distance, flying his way and he wonders what it is. A young woman with green hair lands in front of Birdie, her parachute falling all over him. She says it would have been cooler if she smashed through the skylight. Birdie tells her the party is by invite only and unless she has o...