Words To Live By?

Conan & Dragonero #3 (Titan Comics)

In this month's issue of the non-canonical crossover comic, Conan & Dragonero, our Cimmerian protagonist delivered a throwaway, mid-combat, line that rather caught me by surprise.

"I don't worry about anything until it happens".

I am, by no stretch, a Robert E Howard scholar or expert on his most famous creation, but I guess this has always been Conan's philosophy - even though I don't recall him specifically spelling it out like that.

Perhaps, in all my years of consuming the adventures of Conan The Barbarian in various media, I've never really given this much serious thought.

To be honest, I'm not one hundred percent sure that this statement is a sensible approach to life as, taken at face value, surely that means a total absence of forward planning... and yet Conan is a master of the cunning trick and unpredictable battle strategies.

However, though the lens of stoicism, he is right. Only worry about things within your control. 

There's no point worrying about the possibility of wild wyverns slashing the balloon of your airship and sending you plummeting to the ground... because that's out of your control. 

Fighting the monsters that are in front of you, though, is within your control.

I wish I could adopt this mindset.

I've always been quite an anxious person, but since the sudden aortic aneurysm that struck me down out of the blue a couple of decades ago (and the stroke I suffered during the emergency, life-saving surgery), my PTSD-fuelled anxiety and general nervousness has gone through the roof.

Things that used to bug me or worry me can now reduce me to a blubbering wreck.

But these are - nearly always - things that are out of my control.

I'd love to have a modicum of Conan's stoicism. I shall endeavour, next time an appropriate situation arises, to tell myself "not to worry about anything until it happens".

This reminds of another phrase I heard last year that I try to put into use when I can.

In the brutal Netflix Western serial, American Primeval, Taylor Kitsch's character tells a kid with a broken arm: "It's only pain."

A simple, little phrase, but one I now repeat to myself when I'm going to the doctor's or the hospital for a procedure that involves sticking needles into my tiny, elusive veins.

I still hate it, it doesn't stop me screaming out or crushing Rachel's hand, but - at the end of the day - it is "only pain". It's not going to kill me, and it will pass.

So, who still thinks that comic books and television aren't good for you?

PROJECT 60: Back In The Saddle

My three new mini packs for Dead Man's Hand

Inspired by my whinging about not getting anywhere with  the skirmish wargame side of PROJECT 60, I felt I should invest in some new miniatures for Dead Man's Hand.

This coincided with Great Escape Games announcing a couple of new packs of townsfolk (ladies and children), and me bingeing the entirety of the excellent, new iteration of Little House on The Prairie (on Netflix).

So, I ordered that pair of new packs and a pack of Chinese labourers (I'm pretty sure that with all the other Chinese figures I own, I could populate an impressive Chinatown for my unbuilt Wild West town). 

As ever with Great Escape Games these all arrived safe and sound the day after I'd placed my order. 

My painter, Matt, currently has some fantasy figures of mine he's working on at the moment, but the next shipment will be a return to my Western theme, to spur me on with this scheme.

To give you a better idea of what I've just picked up for my game, here are Great Escape Games' beautifully painted versions of these figures from their website:

Meet The Characters of Little House on The Prairie

Ghosts Haunt The East Palace, Who You Gonna Call?

A man who walks the spirit world and a court lady who hears the dead enter the East Palace by the king's orders — can they unravel its dark secrets?

The East Palace, an eight-episode South Korean supernatural serial, comes to Netflix on July 17.

Introducing Toph Beifong To The Last Airbender

The cast and creators of Avatar: The Last Airbender explain how Season Two brought Toph Beifong to life.

Epic Trailer For New Season of Avatar: The Last Airbender

Will 'Pensioners on Golf Carts' Be The Next Niche Genre?

In a seemingly perfect retirement community, a crew of unlikely heroes must stop an otherworldly threat from stealing the one thing they don’t have: time.

Character Posters For The Last Airbender's Second Season

Independence Isn’t Just A Way Of Life

THROWBACK THURSDAY: At The Cinema With...

Pre-demolition: The derelict site of the former ABC Cinema in central Tunbridge Wells

These days I rarely see any movies at the cinema. I count myself 'lucky' if I manage the trip once in a 12-month period.

However there was a time - when I had a job - that I'd pop in to the cinema almost every week.

While the Tunbridge Wells town centre cinema (pictured above, years ago and well past its prime, and now - after a lot of faffing about - demolished) was still open, and I was friends with the manager, I saw pretty much everything that came out.

Of course, at the time, I was entertainments' editor for the local paper and self-appointed cinema critic.

I even had my own regular - and well-read (if not well-written) - column: At The Cinema With...

But when Odeon bought out the site then closed it so it didn't draw audiences away from their new, dismal, overpriced grottiplex on the out-of-town industrial estate, the rot started to set in.

I still went reasonably regularly, even though I had to pay(!), and got to see pretty much everything that interested me.

These days, now that I can't drive, it's just too much hassle. It's expensive, as well as inconvenient... and there are "other people" there when I'm trying to watch films.

To mangle Jean-Paul Sartre: "Hell is other people."

Despite what you might see elsewhere (in some movies, actually) watching a film is NOT a social experience, especially when you're paying the sort of money now being asked just to get through the doors.

If I've made the effort to go and see a film, I don't want to hear other people chattering, whooping, parroting dialogue, munching popcorn etc

I want to be in my own little bubble where I can sink into the story unfolding before my eyes.

And remember, more often that not, the people telling you that you HAVE to see a film on the big screen are those who will benefit financially from your inconvenience.

Truth be told - and it's probably a product of my age as much as anything - I find that far easier to do at home these days.

With the advances in home entertainment - the quality of TV screens and Blu-Rays, for instance - there is no longer the need to go to the cinema and pay a fortune to get annoyed with the unappreciative crowds of oiks who treat it as a social club.

Sure, I'll have to wait two or three months (sometimes a bit longer) for the movies I want to see to come out on Blu-Ray, Netflix, Prime Video, Sky Cinema etc, but I've realised I don't mind waiting.

It's a small price to pay for being able to watch a film how I want to, in comfortable surroundings with minimum distractions.

There's A Monstrous Cold War Brewing In Hawkins '85

Winter. Hawkins. 1985. Welcome back to a town crawling with secrets, where beloved heroes are facing fresh mysteries... and an all-new breed of strange.

The year is 1985, it’s a freezing winter in Hawkins, and our heroes are about to embark on an epic journey where the original characters must fight new monsters and unravel a paranormal mystery terrorizing their town..

The Little House Gets A Netflix Upgrade

They left everything they knew for a new life on the prairie. Meet the Ingalls family as they discover what “home” really means. Little House on the Prairie, based on the beloved books, premieres July 9, only on Netflix.

Neither the original TV series nor the books were part of my psyche growing up, so I'm looking forward to finally getting to know the Ingalls.

The Only Live-Action Avatar I'm Interested In

After a bittersweet victory saving the Northern Water Tribe from the invading Fire Nation, Avatar Aang (Gordon Cormier), Katara (Kiawentiio), and Sokka (Ian Ousley) regroup and set off on a mission to convince the elusive Earth King to aid in their battle against fearsome Fire Lord Ozai (Daniel Dae Kim).

Their journey to the impenetrable city of Ba Sing Se, home of the Earth King, is treacherous but also fruitful — Aang discovers Toph (Miyako), an audacious young master of earthbending, and convinces her to help him add earthbending to his powers of airbending and waterbending.

But even the city’s mighty walls cannot keep the Fire Nation’s forces at bay. Prince Zuko (Dallas Liu) continues his quest to capture the Avatar — made even more difficult by his status as a fugitive traitor from the Fire Nation, and a nagging conscience that makes him question whether he is on the right path.

Even worse for our heroes, his formidable sister, Princess Azula (Elizabeth Yu) now joins the fray. But the most dangerous enemies of all may be those unseen, for soon the Avatar and his companions will learn: Nothing is as it seems in a city of walls and secrets.

Character Posters For The Straw Hat Pirates

Set Course For Next Tuesday

New and Upcoming Western Movies and TV Shows

There's a lot of optimism (wishful thinking?) in Just Westerns':

"...preview of 40 new upcoming Western films and TV shows heading are way in 2026 and beyond, including Young Guns 3, Lonesome Dove remake, Blood Meridian, A Fistful Of Dollars remake, Horizon: Chapter 2, The Dark Tower TV Show, Butch & Sundance, Flint, The Magnificent Seven TV Show, Wind River 2 and many more, as well as new Westerns starring Tim Blake Nelson, Kevin Costner, Scott Eastwood, Kiefer Sutherland, Wes Studi, Samuel L. Jackson and Chris Pine."

For my personal tastes there are a few too many "neo-Westerns" here (although I love Yellowstone... and there's an abundance of Yellowstone-adjacent projects on this list) and, maybe, not enough classic, period Westerns.

From Hulk To Hermit

In his first creature role since CBS’s The Incredible Hulk, global icon Lou Ferrigno returns to the screen, and steps into the horror genre for the first time, in the cannibal horror/thriller The Hermit.

Uncork’d Entertainment will release the film on Digital and On Demand platforms March 3.

In this dark horror tale with a quirky edge, Ferrigno plays a cannibalistic pig farmer who makes and sells jerky made from human flesh.

The film is also led by Malina Weissman (Netflix’s A Series of Unfortunate Events) and Anthony Turpel (Hulu’s Love, Victor), two familiar faces for younger genre fans.

This is destined to become a cult classic - either for the right reasons or the wrong ones.

I'm loving the Texas Chainsaw Massacre meets Halloween vibe of the set-up, but the trailer doesn't wholly convince me that they stick the landing.

But it's Lou Ferrigno...

Luffy and Crew Sail Back Onto Netflix Next Month

Straw Hats! Grab your crew! One Piece: Into The Grand Line sets sail on March 10!

Netflix’s epic high-seas pirate adventure, One Piece, returns for season two — unleashing fiercer adversaries and the most perilous quests yet. Luffy and the Straw Hats set sail for the extraordinary Grand Line - a legendary stretch of sea where danger and wonder await at every turn. 

As they journey through this unpredictable realm in search of the world’s greatest treasure, they’ll encounter bizarre islands and a host of formidable new enemies.

Everything's Better With Dinosaurs

Welcome to The Dinosaurs – an epic journey into a lost world.

From executive producer Steven Spielberg, Amblin Entertainment, and the award‑winning team behind Our Planet, this groundbreaking documentary series follows the rise and fall of the dinosaurs across hundreds of millions of years.

Narrated by Academy Award–winner Morgan Freeman.

Watch The Dinosaurs – only on Netflix, March 6.

New Stranger Things Show Takes Us Back To 1985

Something from the Upside Down must’ve survived… Stranger Things: Tales From ’85 premieres April 23, only on Netflix.

Do we need this... so soon after the main show ended (and especially with none of the original cast seemingly returning to voice their characters)? Is it even canon? Does that matter? 

The animation style will probably take a moment to get used to, but we see the kids are playing Dungeons & Dragons in the trailer so that's a bit tick in the "yes" column. 

It's set between the end of season two and the start of season three... but clearly nothing that happens in this series is ever mentioned in the later seasons of Stranger Things!

This is why, as a general rule, I don't like prequels (and this is... kinda) unless they are earlier enough in the timeline to have faded into legend or they are specifically written to answer unanswered questions from the original material (and, yes, I am referring to the Star Wars Prequels).

I'll definitely be watching the first episode, of Stranger Things Tales From '85, to see if it can hook me as quickly as live-action Stranger Things did.

And, honestly, I'm sure I'll enjoy it.