Mark's Epic Blog of Randomness

 By Mark Rodriguez In this anthology series, the Turtles have different adventures taking place within different iterations of the franchise. The gimmick here is that the stories are drawn in black and white, and also green. Let's check out what awaits us in this issue.  "Buddycount" opens with Casey Jones knocking a punk out the window of a pet shop. There has been a string of robberies lately where people have been taking all the snakes out of pet shops. Casey asks the guy why the 'Viper Boys' have been stealing snakes. The guy only knows that Bobby Viper told them to round up all the snakes. Casey drops the guy on the ground and gets a call on his flip-phone. He tells the caller that he's wrapping something up and asks if he wants to come along. Casey asks the guy to tell him where he can find Bobby Viper before he stops taking it easy on him. Later on, Casey stakes out the Viper's Nest, the hideout of the Viper Boys. He sees the men bringing in boxes ...

 By Mark Rodriguez Peter and Miles agreed to meet up once a week at a coffee shop called The Coffee Bean. After some of the regulars go missing, they go to investigate and get trapped in a fantasy world called the Arcadium controlled by Arcade and Mentallo while being backed financially by Hammerhead. Hammerhead has entered the virtual world and is about to send other villains like the Kingpin, Mister Negative and the Black Cat after the Spider-Men. Elsewhere it's revealed that Raymond Warren might actually be a clone of Miles Warren, the Jackal, and he's also wandering around in the Arcadium. What will happen next? "Arachnobatics Chapter 6- Fulfillment" opens with Raymond Warren talking to the Arcadium security system. Raymond says he's sympathetic to the AI since he also sees that the world has little tolerance for true innovation. He asks the AI more about what the Arcadium is, as it informs him that it creates a wish fulfilling fantasy word using technology a...

 By Mark Rodriguez In the Absolute Power tie-in portion of last issue, Cyborg managed to tell Batman of an energy signal caused by a Mother Box, before he got captured by the Failsafe robots. Escaping capture, Batman decides to enlist the aid of Catwoman to steal this Mother Box from Amanda Waller. "Into the Unknown" opens as Batman finds Catwoman in a hiding spot she calls 'The Drawer'. He tells her that he needs her help. Amanda Waller has a Mother Box, and it's currently north of her base of Gamorra. It's hidden in the island of Okinawa. Batman says it's a heist that could save everyone, which is why he needs Catwoman. Catwoman says Batman needs no one, but Bruce Wayne does need her. She agrees to help and asks Batman about the plan. Batman says they'll go undercover as employee  of a private military contractor called Sentryglobe. If they play it right, there will be no resistance, but if they mess up this could turn into a suicide mission. Later ...

 By Mark Rodriguez I bought this one at the local mall bookstore a few years back, and the funny thing was, every time I tried to get around to reviewing it, it would get lost somewhere. Luckily I was able to find it so it could join me on my big move with Ninja Jupi. Now that I have it, let's check it out before I accidentally misplace it again. 'Viva'  starts with Balrog getting driven in a limo as he returns to Vegas. He says Wall Street was too white collar for him and he made a living in Vegas by working with his hands. The limo driver says Balrog was the best in the ring. Balrog says he had the town in the palm of his hand and he will again. He says he's betting on the winning horse and will own the city again. Suddenly steel claws stab themselves through the car's roof. Balrog tells the driver to lose the attacker as he he punches through the top of the car. The attacker is Vega who says that have business to discuss in person. Balrog says he has two seconds ...

 By Mark Rodriguez Peter and Miles decide to hang out once a week at the Coffee Bean. When they notice the regulars either acting weird or flat out missing, they follow them into the Arcadium. Arcade and Mentallo trapped the Spiders in idealized fantasies. Peter was married with Gwen and had kids, while Miles was dating Kamala Khan. Once the Spiders find out that they weren't living in reality, Arcade switches things up and pins them against each other, making them think the other is a robot. Meanwhile, the Arcadium's financial backer, Hammerhead, decides to swing by and check on his investment. Arachnobatics Chapter 5- Contingencies opens with us seeing the fake Kamala Khan, as well as Gwen Stacy, the kids, Aunt May and George Stacy all slumped over like the lifeless robots they really were. Elsewhere, Peter and Miles square off against each other, each one thinking the other is a fake. Peter takes a swing at Miles but misses. Miles blasts him with his Spider Bite. Peter gets ...

by Mark Rodriguez Peter and Miles agreed to hang out once a week at a cafe called the Coffee Bean. Along the way they fought against a mindless monster version of the Jackal, and the battle led them to find a mysterious corpse in Warren's old lab. After some of the people at the cafe started acting strange and have gone missing, the Spider-Men went to investigated. The heroes are captured by Arcade and Mentallo and are trapped in idealized fantasies, similar to their missing friends. How will the Spiders escape from a situation that is literally too good to be true? Arachnobatics Chapter 4- The Pitch opens some time ago with Arcade and Mentallo pitching their idea of the Arcadium to an investor. As new clients come in, Mentallo uses his psychic powers to tap into the fantasy center of their brains. Then Arcade connects Mentallo's helmet to his computers to bring the experience to life with realistic androids and environments. At first they'll try it on low income folks, bu...