Here's a sneak peek at the new Tales From My Spinner Rack! special Valentine’s Day episode featuring a look back at Marvel’s Romance titles from the late 1960s, titled “What’s Love Got to Do With It?” At the end of the Silver Age, Marvel had a brand new distributor who didn’t care how many books... Continue Reading →
One Year Without a Car …
This week is the “anniversary” of the loss of my car. San Diego was hit with a “storm of the century”—something that seems to happen every few years instead of every 100—on January 22, 2024. Two days later, I discovered my car had been flooded in the semi-underground garage which I parked in at my... Continue Reading →
Watchlist 03: Black and Blue …
Watchlist is an irregularly scheduled series of posts featuring short reviews and observations on streaming TV series I’m watching. I’ve watched a lot since the last appearance of “Watchlist” here on innocent-bystander.com, but lately my streaming choices seem to be confined to the British side of shows. Here’s what I’ve watched—and pretty much liked—in the... Continue Reading →
DC Finest 02: Batman Year One & Two …
Back in my first DC Finest post (click here to read it), I mentioned I was planning on concentrating on the Superman books the new reprint series would be publishing. Well, I caved. In November at a 50%-off sale at a nearby store, I bought the first DC Finest Batman volume, which features the Year... Continue Reading →
NEW Tales From My Spinner Rack! Video …
Tales From My Spinner Rack! returns from its long winter nap with an in-depth look at the third season of videos coming in 2025 on YouTube. Gary Sassaman, former director of programming and publications for Comic-Con International San Diego, previews ten new episodes set to premiere in the coming year, including a special focus on... Continue Reading →
December 2024 Books …
It’s my last book report of 2024, as we turn the page (see what I did there?) on the year and I went through a whole mess of books to clean off my coffee table (is it really a coffee table if you don’t drink coffee?) and make my 75 books read goal on GoodReads.... Continue Reading →
2024 Year-end Report …
2024 was a shitty year. The End. Thanks for stopping by. Seriously, 2024 was not one of my favorite years in recent memory. It started off badly in January when I lost my car to flooding due to one of those “storms of the century” that seem to happen every couple of years these days.... Continue Reading →
Merry Christmas, Everyone …
Here's my 2024 card. I'm afraid the days of printed cards are over for me, so please enjoy this electronic/internet/online/social media edition. Instagram: @gg92118 • @TalesFromMySpinnerRack YouTube@TalesFromMySpinnerRack
Snapshot 013: So This (Was) Christmas …
Snapshot is an irregularly-scheduled series featuring reminiscences of places and experiences in my life. To read all my Snapshot posts, please click here. This is actually a slight reworking (with some added images) of Snapshot 06, originally called “All About the Toys.” I wanted to do a Christmas post, but I think this one sums... Continue Reading →
1,000+ Subscribers on YouTube! …
Friends, we have reached the promised land. With my latest Tales From My Spinner Rack! video on YouTube (click here to view it), we've reached over 1,000 subscribers . Thanks to everyone who helped me get to this (admittedly minor) milestone, but it was something I never even considered when I started my channel a... Continue Reading →
TFMSR #049: Episode 15—My Favorite Spinner Rack Covers! …
Tales From My Spinner Rack! Episode 15 takes a tour of my very own spinner rack, with stops along the way to examine some of my favorite covers. From Superman to Adam Strange, from the Demon to Captain America, from the Incredible Hulk to (Choke! Sob!) My Love Story Queen Size Special, and with special... Continue Reading →
November 2024 Books …
OOPS! I realized in posting my October books, which featured Atlas Comics Library No. 3, I had never written a review for Atlas Comics Library No. 2: Venus, which I read months ago. Can you ever forgive me? Here is the review for that missing book! Atlas Comics Library No. 2: Venus Vol. 2 by... Continue Reading →
DC Finest 01: Superman The First Superhero …
You can go All In, you can even go Absolute, but the one thing from DC Comics that excites me most these days is their new line of DC Finest trade paperbacks. I have in my hot little hands the very first volume, appropriately devoted to Superman, and aptly subtitled “The First Superhero.” I’m thrilled... Continue Reading →
October 2024 Books …
Fall is here, but I’m still sitting out on my balcony in sunny San Diego reading books. Lots of graphic novels and collections this month, including an admission that I’m kinda “Thor” from reading so many Thor collections, but, oh that Jack Kirby art … not even Vince Colletta can ruin it, although he tries... Continue Reading →
TFMSR #048: Episode 14—WAH-HOO! It’s Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos! …
Tales From My Spinner Rack! Episode 14 is now available for your viewing pleasure! This all-new video takes us back 61 years to 1963 and Marvel’s very first war comic: Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos. Stan Lee and Jack Kirby created Fury and his team in the second year of the “Marvel Age of... Continue Reading →
