Mark's Epic Blog of Randomness

 By Mark Rodriguez The Penguin has recruited a mute hunchback he found on the side of the road named Harold. It turns out that Harold was a genius with machines and created a device that helps communicate and control birds. Penguin uses this to commit robberies and cause trouble upon traffic and set a power plant on fire. On top of that, he kidnapped a soap opera actress that he's been stalking. Batman chases after the birds carrying off the actress in the Batmobile, but suddenly a swarm of birds attack a nearby jewelry store!   "The Penguin Affair II- Bird of Ill Omen!" opens with the swarm of birds robbing a jewelry store and attacking the owner. Batman runs in and uses his cape to get the birds off him. The man is surprised to meet the Batman himself, and thanks him. He asks him what's going on with the birds going crazy all over the city. Batman says he's not certain, but he knows who's behind it.   The actress Sherry West is sent to Penguin's hideout...

 By Mark Rodriguez We usually hit Third Eye Comics or any other comic store in the area once or twice a month. In doing so sometimes we miss a 'busy week' and so when we do finally hit the store we have quite a pile waiting for us. So I decided to show off what comics we got.  Now keep in mind even though we bought these comics it doesn't mean we will be reviewing them all. Even the ones we do review, there aren't any guarantees that we'll cover them right away. As you've seen on the blog, there are times I just get in the mood to cover several issues of the same series back to back, or I might also go back and cover something older like the Tomb Raider comics. We're always epic, random and unpredictable overall.    West Coast Avengers # 2- Can't wait to see what happens next as Firestar joins the team, bringing her personal baggage with her. West Coast Avengers # 2 Review Psylocke# 2 - Another one I can't wait to check out. Kwannon continues to deal...

 By Mark Rodriguez Back in 2014, Paige and I got into Loot Crate, possibly the most popular and biggest mystery subscription box to this day. I discovered their competitor, Nerd Block and decided to be 'the contrarian' and give them a try while everyone else was all over Loot Crate. Nerd Block would eventually get other boxes like Horror Block and Gamer Block which would eventually be renamed to Arcade Block.  Here's a quick rundown of some of the boxes I got back then and their items. I still own some of the items, mostly the mugs and the shirts. Let's check them out.  Nerd Block June 2014 My first ever block and overall mystery box. After seeing Paige gets her Loot Crates month after month I was excited to finally get something for myself. I took a gamble considering I wasn't that impressed by previous boxes shown in Youtube videos, but I was happy with my purchase. I got two cool shirts, one was related to Ghostbusters and the other was a mash up between The Iron...

 By Mark Rodriguez So some time back, I found all three parts of this story at one of the SteelCity Cons. The covers drew me in, so I picked it up, and now after a year or so of not even opening the packaging, let's check out this classic Batman tale. The story opens with Batman investigating a crime scene. The smell of bacon and eggs lingered throughout the home where an elderly couple was shot dead by a sniper in the middle of breakfast. Batman knows there's a murderer out there calling himself Mr. Lime that is killing old people. It seems Mr. Lime is targeting people over 63 regardless of gender or if they're rich or poor using several methods like leaving bombs or killing them up close and personal. Batman is determined to find and capture him. Meanwhile someone is getting dressed in their own suit and is getting their sword ready. He plans to make a debut tonight on the streets of Gotham. A couple is being attacked by armed men when the mysterious swordsman leaps in to...

By Mark Rodriguez The Riddler is out to steal a rare and valuable gem but it looks like someone put him up to this. Batman's search for the classic foe led him to finding that Deathstroke has been hired to take down the Dark Knight. As Batman and Deathstroke fight, Riddler makes a run a for it but it stopped by Green Arrow! Batman and Green Arrow watch the Riddler as he throws out one of his lamest riddles. The Riddler vents his frustration on how Batman always finds him, even when he escapes all he way to Amsterdam. The police show up and Riddler makes a break for it again. As the heroes give chase, Arrow explains he's also after the buyer for the stolen gem. Riddler leaves behind a trail of Riddler cards and Arrow says this is why everyone hates Batman's villains. Batman says they lead to a trap and if they run the other way it will be a trap as well so they head to the roof. The Riddler flies by on his cane with helicopter blades and the heroes subdue him. As Ba...

By Mark Rodriguez Batman has set up a team led by Black Lightning to rescue Sofia from being captured by the forces of Rah's Al Ghul. With Duke having his personal issues with trust in the team after an encounter with a villain named Karma, Batman sets up a little exercise to have him gain trust in the team. Elsewhere, Rah's trains Sofia to become a member of the League of Assassins. Some days before though, he gets a deal from Lex Luthor that led him to this path. Lesser Gods Part 4 opens with Rah's Al Ghul telling Sofia that she is the demon's flame and with violence she will earn her new name. Sofia suits up and is now a full fledged member of the League of Assassins. In Gotham, Cassandra approaches Duke as he's playing basketball. Duke wonders if she came to see if he's broken and Batman wants him off the team. Cass says she can help him. She says she knows fear and what it does. Duke doesn't want to become her problem but she says he would do ...

By Mark Rodriguez With so many comics with a long history, I can see why they keep releasing so many number 1's. They're just the perfect starting off point. I was gonna limit my Bat-books to just the Outsiders for now, but then I saw this book too. Let's check it out. Batman Universe Part 1 opens with the Caped Crusader in the Batmobile trying to solve the Riddler's latest riddle, which is simply 'When is the Riddler not the Riddler?'. Alfred is communicating with him via car radio about the dinner Bruce Wayne is missing and how this riddle seems pretty tame for Riddler's usual challenges. Batman uses his grappling hook and scales up a building (Adam West style) and notices that the alarms have been tripped but there aren't any reports of injuries yet. He sees a group of 'Riddlers' running out of the hotel and the Dark Knight swoops down. Batman sees a bunch of men, all dressed like the Riddler and Alfred informs him that they're al...

By Mark Rodriguez Batman formed a new group of Outsiders consisting of Katana, Orphan, and the Signal led by Black Lightning. Their mission was to rescue a young woman named Sofia with super powers who is being targeted by Rah's Al Ghul. After a battle against the latest member of the League of Assassins, Ishmael, the Outsiders and a friend of Batman named Kaliber were defeated and Sofia was captured. Sofia awakens in front of Rah's Al Ghul who offers to train her. Lesser Gods Part 3 opens with Batman on a rooftop talking to his team. Their main concern is not failing, but rescuing Sofia. He says Black Lightning will lead them against an enemy that will test them. The enemy is Batman, he says he will meet them in the Waterways in 3 hours. Sofia sees herself falling into the mouth of a red dragon as a giant sized Rah's Al Ghul watches on. Sofia tells that she hates him. Rah's tell her that he protected her and stopped Ishamel fro killing her. He said her fa...

By Mark Rodriguez Batman organized a new team of heroes which he wants Black Lightning to take charge of so they can discover who is hunting and killing metahumans. The team is consisting of The Signal, Orphan and Katana. The victim in question, Sarah escaped as a mystery man killed her father. Now another mystery man claiming to be from the future has arrived to rescue her. What will happen now? In the Batcave, Bruce tells Jeff that Sofia has a tracker implanted in her so he knows she is out of LA. He says she is with a man he trusts named Kaliber and he wants Jeff's team to get her because he's not the most stable person. Jeff asks Bruce how he does all of this and be the symbol of certainty. Bruce says he's the symbol of fear, Jeff represents hope and that is what Sofia needs now. He tells him that the Outsiders can arrive in LA in 5 hours but to be careful for whoever else is hunting for her. Elsewhere, Kaliber tells Sofia that is actually a former arms dea...