Abraham Josephine Riesman Author Archive
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Abraham Josephine Riesman

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@abrahamjoseph
  1. 100 jokes
    Airplane!’s Creators Reveal the Origins of ‘Don’t Call Me Shirley’It may have saved the entire production.
  2. sequential art
    The Strange, Hidden Story of Harley QuinnThe character was on her way to becoming DC Comics’ most successful villain well before she was stealing scenes in major movies.
  3. villains week
    Why Doctor Doom Is the Best SupervillainRobert Downey Jr.’s next turn in the MCU will be as Marvel’s greatest baddie.
  4. comics
    When TMNT Caused a Comic-Book Bubble That BurstThe Turtles were inadvertently responsible for one of the most disastrous speculation runs in comics history.
  5. excelsior
    The Stan Lee Myth Is Safe — for NowDisney’s hagiographic documentary promotes a myth. But someday that myth will fade into history, and maybe then we can remember Stan Lee objectively.
  6. chapters
    How Bret Hart Wrestled Back Into the StoryThe WWF icon had his legacy buried for years —until he decided to play Vince McMahon’s game.
  7. chat room
    Andor’s Kathryn Hunter Saw Eedy Karn’s Comedic Potential Immediately“She’s probably a thwarted woman herself, and she’s overcompensating with her son.”
  8. batman
    An Oral History of ‘Batman: The Animated Series’The show that defined the Dark Knight for a generation, in the words of its creators and stars.
  9. book excerpt
    The Wild True Story of Stan Lee and the Dot-Com DisasterIn the late ’90s, the Marvel legend decided to strike out on his own — with an alleged con man as his business partner.
  10. encounter
    Art Spiegelman Loses His GlassesAs the latest fight over Maus erupts, its artist-creator searches for his spectacles.
  11. histories
    The Progressive, Controversial History of Suicide Squad’s Amanda WallerViola Davis’s character was a comics game-changer.
  12. superheroes
    The Story Behind the Winter Soldier’s Unprecedented CreationIt’s one of the greatest transformations in superhero comics history.
  13. justice league
    Justice League’s Villains Came From the Wildest Experiment in Comic-Book HistoryThe saga known as the Fourth World was a failure at first, but seminal in the long run.
  14. overnights
    WandaVision Finale: Ding, Dong, the Witch Is SadAmid lots of standard-issue MCU pyrotechnics, our final chapter manages to sneak in some moments of real poignancy.
  15. overnights
    WandaVision Recap: Big Trauma’s HouseOh, so you wanted answers? Here’s your answers!
  16. overnights
    WandaVision Recap: Confessional of a Dangerous MindIt seems Westview’s sitcom setup is on the fritz — but who’s to blame?
  17. overnights
    WandaVision Recap: Neighborhood WitchWestview’s Halloween celebration speedily shifts from sitcom-sweet to truly terrifying.
  18. emergency discussion
    What Do We Want Out of WandaVision, Anyway?What most appeals to some of the show’s viewers is exactly what most annoys others, but we can all at least agree on one thing: more Kathryn Hahn.
  19. overnights
    WandaVision Recap: I Want Your HexWell now, that’s one hell of a crossover.
  20. overnights
    WandaVision Recap: While You Were BlippingWanda may be at the center of the Big Mystery, but this week’s plot-heavy episode belongs to Monica Rambeau.
  21. overnights
    WandaVision Recap: Come On, Get HappyWe jump ahead to the 1970s in an episode that dials up the weirdness and confusion, for better and worse.
  22. overnights
    WandaVision Recap: Use Your IllusionTrouble is clearly brewing in Westview.
  23. overnights
    WandaVision Series-Premiere Recap: Guess Who’s Reality-Warping to Dinner?The MCU’s unplanned drought comes to an end with a bold, intriguing deviation from the norm, but what’s all this building toward?
  24. wonder woman 1984
    How Wonder Woman Changed DC’s Entire Movie StrategyCan DC Entertainment bring its success in comics, TV, and games to the multiplex?
  25. wonder woman 1984
    How Wonder Woman Brought Color Back to the DC UniverseIt all began with … a photo of James Blunt?
  26. history on screen
    Valley of Tears Is Historical Fiction for Today’s Grim RealityThe timing of the Israeli drama series, now on HBO Max, feels unsettlingly ironic, for Israeli and American audiences alike.
  27. extremely online
    The Guy Behind the ‘America: Endgame’ Video Explains Why This Thing Got MadeLove it or hate it, a viral video about the election, based on a certain Marvel movie scene, might be a defining image of our quar-brained culture.
  28. role muddles
    The Boys Is the End of the Superhero As We Know ItThe dark satire’s second season has illuminated the rotten core of superheroism, and cast our collective obsession with it in an unflattering light.
  29. it’s a bird it’s a plane
    The Making of Superman’s Brief Flight on BroadwayAnd how Riverdale creator Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa almost got him back off the ground nearly 50 years later.
  30. role muddles
    Why Cops and Soldiers Love the PunisherUnderstanding the controversial fandom of a violent Marvel antihero.
  31. hashtag inevitable
    What Hath the Snyder Cut Released?In retrospect, Warner Bros.’ decision to rerelease Zach Snyder’s Justice League was inevitable. It’s also consequential.
  32. coronavirus
    12 Monkeys Is the Apocalypse Movie We Need Right NowIt’s less about surviving a plague than it is about making a meaningful life on the eve of a crisis.
  33. yodea
    I Hated the New Star Wars, So I Talked to My Rabbi About ItMy spiritual guide was a big fan of The Rise of Skywalker and had wisdom to bestow.
  34. star wars episode ix
    But What Does the Title Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Mean?Some guesses about Episode IX’s mysterious name.
  35. comics
    The Forgotten Story of Watchmen’s Unsung HeroWatchmen writer Alan Moore and artist Dave Gibbons are legends. Why not colorist John Higgins, too?
  36. a long talk
    Like It or Not, Damon Lindelof Made His Own WatchmenAnd he’s pretty sure that Alan Moore put a hex on him for doing it.
  37. sequential art
    The Comics Story That Made the Joker the Ultimate Batman FoeDenny O’Neil and Neal Adams changed the character forever.
  38. comics
    Why You Should Be Reading the X-Men Right NowWriter Jonathan Hickman is doing something magical.
  39. hardest things
    The Hardest Effect I Ever Pulled Off42 filmmakers, cinematographers, and effects artists on making the impossible happen.
  40. true crime
    How Our Boys Painstakingly Re-creates an Israeli-Palestinian TragedyA new HBO miniseries looks back at the kidnappings and murders that sparked horrifically bloody battles in the summer of 2014.
  41. remembrances
    David Berman Struggled to Feel the Joy He Brought UsThe singer-songwriter passed away yesterday. He leaves a legacy of spiritual longing and fighting the darkness.
  42. timeline
    How Batman’s Alfred Went From Clueless Sidekick to Special Forces StudOver time, and through various reboots, he was given more gravitas and a skill set that comes in handy when your boss is a billionaire vigilante.
  43. i’m not tony stark
    ‘With a Box of Scraps!’: How an Iconic Marvel Cinematic Insult Came to BeSpider-Man: Far From Home actor Peter Billingsley (of A Christmas Story fame) explains what it was like to get screamed at by a shaved Jeff Bridges.
  44. sequential art
    The Six-Year Struggle to Regain Ownership of the ‘This Is Fine’ DogAfter the internet claimed the popular meme, its creator had to figure out how to take it back.
  45. sequential art
    How Vertigo Changed Comics ForeverThe influential DC Comics imprint just got canceled.
  46. superheroes
    Marvel on Netflix: What Went Wrong?The superhero TV experiment that was a victim of its own success.
  47. x-men
    Let’s Talk About the Ending of Dark PhoenixThe fizzling out of the X-Men franchise tells us a lot about superhero movies and Hollywood.
  48. sequential art
    How Magneto Became JewishAs the X-Men movie saga comes to an end with Dark Phoenix, it’s worth remembering how it began — with the darkest chapter in Jewish history.
  49. brightburn
    What We Talk About When We Talk About Evil SupermanWhat Brightburn and its comic-book ilk tell us about ourselves.
  50. joke theft
    Was Grumpy Cat’s Fame Built on a Stolen Joke?This sort of thing is sadly common for cartoonists.
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