Americana songwriter Andy Hackbarth wrote and recorded Panorama Motel in the wake of a messy breakup. The record finds Hackbarth singing over acoustic guitars, dobro, upright bass and organ -- turning his recent brush with heartbreak into some of the most moving songs of his career.

No song sums it up better than the title track, which takes a headfirst dive into the frustration that follows a breakup.

“It’s reflective of my music career as a whole,” Hackbarth explains, “from the classical/Spanish guitar background to the darker, more indie/acoustic rock writing style that I’ve been gravitating toward lately. It’s beautiful, but dark and emotional. I’ve always loved the sound of the nylon-string guitar, and paired with layered violins, guitar swells and some haunting background vocals its aim is to capture the despair and loneliness we all feel after a breakup.

THE LEFTOVERS, an HBO series, is a complex story that takes place three years after an “event” happens where 120 million people -- 2% of the world’s population -- disappeared in an instant. It centers on the town of Mapleton, New York where 100 people disappeared and the local sheriff, Kevin Garvey (Justin Theroux), is trying to hold his family together while simultaneously trying to keep the peace and help people get on with their lives.

Some people said, and still say, that the event was the Rapture, while some say it isn’t that because not everyone was a good person that disappeared. Others still look to some sort of scientific physics-based explanation to the phenomenon.

BATMAN: SEASON 3 DVD
Warner Bros. Entertainment
$39.98 SRP

Being a kid growing up in the late ‘70s and ‘80s, you didn’t have the television world at your fingertips.  There were literally seven channels for me to watch until I was about ten years old.  During the week, the only kid-friendly shows were on in the early morning till maybe 9 o’clock then in the afternoon from say 3-6pm.  Oddly, a lot of the shows weren’t even cartoons.  Instead it was shows like GET SMART, THE BRADY BUNCH, and the Adam West BATMAN that helped keep me entertained.  

Critics are in an uproar over Jesse Eisenberg’s scathing commentary on critics in the New Yorker.  In the column, he pretends to be an Internet reviewer who sums up his thoughts on a film he reviewed with:

In sum, these are the main problems with “Paintings of Cole”: it was inconveniently shown on the Upper West Side, written by a guy I envy, screened by a cute intern whose name was too confusing to remember, based on an idea that I poorly executed in grad school, and praised by the Times, which rejected me.

Mike: Maillaro: We’re going to start transitioning to a POST-SECRET WARS version of Front lines, discussing a bunch of different comics in addition to Secret Wars.

SECRET WARS #7 by Jonathan Hickman and Esad Ribic

Summary: This issue reveals that the Prophet leading the attacks on Doom is the Inhuman, Maximus.  He has been working with the Reeds to cause a distraction so they can put their real plan in place.

Thomas McCarthy is an actor, writer, and director with a couple of nice independent films under his directorial credits. With his latest film, SPOTLIGHT, he’s poised to be a household name, and almost certainly a name you’ll hear read aloud at the Oscars. The outstanding job he’s done crafting a story that by both default and historical accuracy require the film to be nothing more than a collection of talking head frames is so compellingly done, so engrossing, that it really makes my job difficult. I don’t want to tell you anything about it. I want you to see it for yourself. You need to see this film. Even the group that should be the most opposed to this film is very positive about it, and that’s the Catholic Church I’m talking about. Thomas McCarthy may just have directed a miracle.

Before I discuss Mockingjay, I want to discuss something else. Bear with me. I have a point, I promise.

(Some spoilers for Twilight and Mockingjay Part 1. No spoilers for Mockingjay Part II)

There is an emerging trend in the YA books-turned-movies industry, and that is the final book in a series being made into two individual movies. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows started this trend, followed quickly by Twilight’s Breaking Dawn. And let’s not forget that awful strategic decision to take J.R.R. Tolkien’s 320-page classic, The Hobbit, and turn it into not one, not two, but three separate movies.  

IRVING BERLIN’S WHITE CHRISTMAS is gracing the stage at the Fabulous Fox Theatre from November 17-22, 2015, just in time for…Thanksgiving. You can blame WICKED’s December residency for that, but that’s fine, really. The retail stores rolled out their Christmas gear before Halloween, so chances are you’ve already been dreaming of a white Christmas. And why wouldn’t you? After all, Bing Crosby’s rendition of the Irving Berlin classic is the best selling single of all time, according to the good folks at Guinness Book. Chances are you’ve seen the old movie or witness the production on previous tours, but believe it or not, I’ve never seen it before tonight.

After his battle with Zoom, Barry (Grant Gustin) was left without feeling in his legs. In case you were worried, don't be; he's got a very fast metabolism, and he heals pretty fast. His broken back is already mostly stitched back together as this episode opens.

However, while Barry is almost walking, his running speed isn't back. It's not the physical damage, but the emotional damage that leaves The Flash crippled. He was dragged all over Central City by Zoom, and the city that depended on The Flash to be their hero has now seen him defeated, and that has given him a mental block about using his abilities.

(By the way, this isn't the first time the hero has faced this kind of a physical challenge.)

A long time ago, at a PC far, far away (it was an Excel x286, and I sprung for the extra good SVGA card and monitor), I logged into the fledgling cyberspace. In those days you had to have a sheet of paper with the phone numbers for local Bulletin Board Systems and dial into them. If you wanted to go to another one, you had to hang up your connection and dial the next one. Your phone line stayed busy during all this, so the house was peaceful as nobody could call you. There wasn't much in the way of email, but there were lots of discussion boards.

And then came the day things changed. In a simple discussion filled with barbed sarcasm that would become the de facto method of communicating online, I saw two characters.

:)

Welcome back to Critical Blast’s weekly look at what new comics you should check out each week.   Just a warning, I make these picks pretty much a week BEFORE I actually get to read any of these comics, so if something is a stinker, I take no blame on that.  Let's get to it!

Comics shipping this week

Writer:  Mark Gatiss
Director: Justin Molotnikov

Cast

Cheap Pops - November 15, 2015 by Chris Delloiacono, Mike Maillaro and Jeff Ritter

This week!

When you hear the word “Motown” any number of names should immediately spring to mind: Barry Gordy Jr., Diana Ross and The Supremes, The Four Tops, The Jackson 5, Marvin Gaye, The Marvelettes, Smokey Robinson, and of course, Gladys Knight & The Pips. When I found out that the Empress of Soul was coming to the Fabulous Fox Theatre in St. Louis on November 13, 2015, I was excited. When I found out she was sharing the bill with the O’Jays, the Ohio soul standouts who struck gold time and time again on Philadelphia International Records, I was over the moon. I had to be there to witness these legends for myself.  

By this point, your house and emails have already been bombarded with Super Spectacular Toy Catalogs, Door-Buster Sales Schedules, Black Friday Secret Deals and Cyber Monday Email Tips for you to get the most out of your holiday shopping. And you've probably already noticed that the toy market has already been defined as to which toys are the ones you have to go get.

Lost in the miasma of metamorphing robots and not-quite-for-real pets is one of the simplest yet most enduring type of toy: the stuffed animal. But for a market that's been super-saturated with everything from the zoological to the crytpozoological to even the microbial, it takes something unique if a plush is going pique a child's interest.

THE SNOOPY TREASURES
Written by: Nat Gertler
Thunder Bay Press
$34.95

by Mike Maillaro & Mike Weaver

All New, All Different Avengers(2015) #1

I’ve just settled down to type this review after listening to Greg Page’s “Here Comes Christmas” and I am on cloud nine! I feel so good, so happy and here is why.

I have always been a Greg Page fan since I first saw and heard him on my daughter's “Wiggles” tapes and CD’s. Greg was the original Yellow Wiggle and lead singer for the group. I always enjoyed his voice and the songs they sang. As time went by, as time does, the daughter grew and The Wiggles were replaced by other shows and music -- but I never stopped liking Greg’s singing. I just didn’t have the opportunity to listen to him anymore.

Fast forward to today. When I heard Greg was releasing a Christmas album, I was like, "So what if it may be somewhat skewed towards kids? Christmas is Christmas and everyone is a kid at Christmas."

I think the first movie that I remember being aware of Antonio Banderas was 1995’s ASSASSINS, with Sylvester Stallone. It certainly wasn’t the pinnacle of moviemaking, but it was fun for what it was. That became the Year of Antonio, as he starred in five other movies released that year: MIAMI RHAPSODY, DESPERADO, FOUR ROOMS, NEVER TALK TO STRANGERS, and TWO MUCH. Banderas hasn’t slowed down a whole lot, averaging at least a couple of films a year. From underappreciated gems such as THE 13^th WARRIOR, the underrated FEMME FATALE, and the goofy but fun retro romp of THE EXPENDABLES 3, Banderas has always been fun to watch. THE 33, directed by relative newcomer Patricia Riggen, is another strong showing by the versatile Spanish star.

(Not Quite) The Hero's Journey

Joseph Campbell helped us to define the classic Hero's Journey. It involved someone reluctant to take up the call but eventually forced into it. (It involved a bunch of other things, too, but that's the Cliff Notes of the Readers' Digest version. Just watch STAR WARS Episode IV and you'll have the gist of it all.)