"Spider-Man: Far From Home" was a whiz-bang, crowd-pleaser of a movie. But, as usual with a Marvel Cinematic Universe movie, there are elements with long, unmentioned histories in Marvel Comics. So with a hearty "Spoilers ahoy," let's dig down on some of them:

EARTH, AIR, FIRE AND WATER

The "four elements" of ancient Greek have a long, deep ...Read more

So just who is this Mysterio guy in "Spider-Man: Far From Home"? Let's go the Sacred Texts of the Nerd Canon to find out!

Mysterio first appeared in "Amazing Spider-Man" in 1964, in the 13th issue. That proved to be anything but unlucky, as that was the launch of a long career for the master of illusions.

The issue opened with Spider-Man ...Read more

The comics ticker is rattling away with news -- good, bad and uncertain:

FLASH! Fans of DCUniverse.com, the DC Comics streaming service, have had reasons to be nervous of late. But Comic-Con International: San Diego has given them reason for hope (maybe).

Despite the apparent success of its first two live-action shows, DCU's debut of "Swamp ...Read more

A lot of comics-related TV shows have been canceled lately, and some folks will call it a backlash, a correction, or the end of a fad. Don't believe them.

Yes, it has been something of a bloodbath. But not many shows were axed due to ratings. There's something bigger going on, as the big boys jockey for the streaming wars on the horizon. This ...Read more

Box office numbers indicate that movie-goers have found "Dark Phoenix" a bit underwhelming. That comes as no surprise to longtime X-fans.

For one thing, "Phoenix" had three strikes against it, just from a movie perspective:

1. The Dark Phoenix story has already been told (badly) in "X-Men: The Last Stand" (2006).

2. No Wolverine. While the ...Read more

The new "Swamp Thing" TV show isn't your daddy's swamp monster. It isn't even Alan Moore's.

Moore is the English writer famous for "From Hell," "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen," "V for Vendetta" "Watchmen" and a slew of famous stories on major DC Comics characters like Green Lantern ("Mogo Doesn't Socialize") and Superman ("For the Man Who ...Read more

Season finales usually wrap up all the themes and plots, maybe tack on a cliffhanger, and if we're lucky, toss in a hint of what's to come in the following season. The four "Arrowverse" shows did all that and more. With a hearty "Spoilers ahoy!" let's take a look:

"Arrow," "DC's Legends of Tomorrow," "The Flash" and "Supergirl" -- dubbed the ...Read more

"iZombie," "Lucifer" and "Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." -- three shows whose obits had already been written -- returned this month. Oddly, it's only the zombie show whose death will stick.

I can understand if the ratings for "iZombie" may have slipped. The CW show has moved far afield of its initial premise, which means older fans might have...Read more

Publishers have gotten much better at Free Comic Book Day. Rather than a collection of teases to books we may never see, most of the 51 titles that were given away May 6 had full stories -- and then some teases. Here are some of the most interesting:

EVERYONE ASSEMBLE

With "Avengers: Endgame" burning up the box office, interest is high in what...Read more

"Avengers: Endgame" had a lot of great callbacks to the comics, not all of which were obvious. With a huge, honkin' SPOILERS AHEAD warning, let's look at a few:

CAP vs. CAP: Superheroes battling their own doppelgangers is a staple of comics, and Captain America is no exception -- the "Endgame" scene where he fought his younger self could have ...Read more

Genre fiction seems to have rediscovered a powerful piece of storytelling: The ending.

The most obvious example of that is "Avengers: Endgame," which has been described all over the media by Marvel Cinematic Universe mastermind Kevin Feige as a finale of what began with "Iron Man" in 2008. That is to say, the overarching story that Marvel has ...Read more