As corny as Kansas in August

Well, folks, it’s hot out. And yet despite the heat, I keep going outside to socialize with people and also see movies and I really think I should get some sort of monetary prize for this or maybe a medal.

In other “things that should earn me a medal” news, I started a new project on July 1st just for kicks, and as of this writing I’ve got about 38,000 words. Which puts me on track to have a (very messy) first draft by the end of this month, which is great because my good friend Carolyn inaugurated a tradition last year where if you finish a draft you get to invite your friends out for cake, and I love cake and also friends. I also really love getting to the end of a first draft, reading it back, and going “Oh that’s who the characters are,” so really, win-win.

What’s New?

This was a big month for me, with two superhero franchises I have very strong feelings about hitting the big screen! My good friend Rebecca and I revived our Superman movie podcast, Flights and Tights, to discuss the new film by James Gunn. If you haven’t seen it yet (you should!), I’ve got a rundown of the characters over on Book Riot. And while you’re on Book Riot, I also have a primer on the Fantastic Four to prepare you for that movie. You know I always have your back.

What I’m Reading

Books: I’ve loved everything Rosie Danan has ever written, but Fan Service, which is about an actor who used to play a werewolf on a long-running schlocky TV series who is now turning into a werewolf for realsies, and the jaded former fangirl who just might be able to help him, was like she wrote it just for me. Absolutely bonkers premise pulled off with total aplomb.

Comics: Hey are you reading New Gods? You should be reading New Gods. I went on a tear last year where I read every Fourth World comic, both Kirby and post-Kirby, and let me tell you…the post-Kirby stuff is mostly pretty bad. (Exceptions here are Rachel Pollack’s excellent but too short New Gods and Walt Simonson’s absolutely masterful Orion.) But the current series by Ram V. and Evan Cagle is weird and beautiful and ambitious and heartbreaking, nodding to Kirby but also very much telling us something new.

What I’m Watching

Not to spoil the podcast I linked above or anything, but I absolutely loved Superman. It was such a bright, funny, joyous ode to the characters and the optimistic silliness of their world. Every performance was note-perfect and I loved how immersed it felt in the DCU that I love so much.

Fantastic Four: First Steps was not quite as much of a slam dunk for me, but it was still a fun movie to watch! The plot and pacing felt a little unfocused but once again, the characters were on point and that matters more to me when it’s a franchise where I’m really invested in the source material. It’s certainly an improvement on the characters’ previous cinematic outings.

And not a superhero movie—except yeah, basically a superhero movie—but like the rest of the planet, I am currently obsessed with KPop Demon Hunters and the soundtrack has been my running playlist for weeks.

That’s all for this month! Stay cool, friends.

<3

Jessica