Rewatching The Queen of the Damned: Where the Hell Did the Egypt Go?

AMC is bringing Akasha back to the screen, so I went back to the 2002 film, The Queen of the Damned, and Anne Rice’s novel to see where things went sideways. I look at the music, the missing Egyptian lore, and what the series needs to nail before the Queen takes over.

The Queen of the Damned Novel CoverAfter hearing back in July that AMC was finally developing The Queen of the Damned, I had to revisit the 2002 movie of the same name to see how badly it botched Anne Rice‘s tale. I also had to read the original book and process how different the two versions are. And yeah, it’s about what I remembered. Except now I’ve got a better idea of why it doesn’t work.

Let’s start with Lestat. Stuart Townsend plays him as a full-blown rock god, and it’s hard not to think of Jim Morrison the second he walks on stage. That comparison sticks mostly because of how well the lead played the role: the look, the swagger, the whole frontman posture. But the soundtrack is doing something else entirely. It’s a mix of nu-metal and goth rock, and once you clock Jonathan Davis of Korn’s involvement, the whole thing starts to feel less like a vampire movie and more like a 2002 mixtape with fangs.

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This Ain’t Georgia on My Mind: The Stunning Manga Georgie Returns Courtesy of Manga Mavericks & Omoi

This ain’t Georgia on my mind. It’s Georgie, the classic shojo manga by Yumiko Igarashi and Mann Izawa, getting a deluxe North American revival in 2027. Manga Mavericks Books and Omoi are bringing this coming-of-age story to readers digitally and in hardcover.

manga Georgie Omnibus Cover Vol 1
Available to order direct

Manga Mavericks Books and Omoi

Classic shojo is getting a deluxe revival for a new generation of readers, as two publishing firms team up to bring Mann Izawa and Yumiko Igarashi’s manga Georgie to North America. This series was first serialized in Japan in 1982 and received a sizable following. It’s a coming-of-age follows Georgie, a lively young girl raised in the Australian countryside alongside her two older brothers. When she meets a young English nobleman named Lowell, her life takes an unexpected turn. Soon, she sets off to England discover her roots, and find a place to belong.

It’s heartwarming tale for those who read the foreign editions (available on Amazon). For newcomers, it’s not quite like MediaOCD’s ruined childhoods line of videeo releases. Insetead, it has its own course.

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Fear the Jungle’s Shocking Spirit in The Awakening… Predator fans look out!

A covert-ops team slips into the Colombian jungle and wakes something ancient that doesn’t take prisoners. Jaime Osorio Márquez’s The Awakening trades sci-fi for dread rooted in local belief, and the result is grisly, tense, and hard to shake.

The Awakening Movie Poster Well GO USA

Jaime Osorio Márquez’s The Awakening (El Despertar, also known as Operation Black Jungle) is the type of “Predator”-style movie I’ve been waiting for. It strips away any hints of sci-fi and goes full-on Black Hawk Down. It’s not that the 20th Century Fox movie was borderline, but once the hints are placed at the start and the marketing does its thing, it’s hard to forget. What makes this Colombian film both haunting and yet peaceful before the insurgency is how the planning begins. I can hear shades of “House of the Rising Sun” during the setup in the first ten minutes or so.

The military team is preparing for a strategic mission: eliminate a political figure and exit unseen. With Rojas (Claudio Cataño, One Hundred Years of Solitude) and Diaz (Alejandro Buitrago, Narcos) leading the charge, who survives from this unit will depend on who can scream the loudest. They’re strong leading men who handle everything like they’ve spent time in the army, and they carry real presence. Doc (Héctor Sánchez), Matias (Carlos Mariño), and Pardo (Andrea Olaya) round out the team.

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Guns Akimbo Revisited: Why Jason Lei Howden’s Video Game Mayhem Still Hits Hard

Goremageddon sent me back to Guns Akimbo, where Jason Lei Howden’s taste for the ludicrous finds its best outlet in Daniel Radcliffe’s desperate scramble through a video game nightmare.

Guns Akimbo Movie PosterAfter reviewing DeathGasm II: Goremageddon, I had to backtrack to remind myself why I find Jason Lei Howden’s approach to visual storytelling so colourful. He crafts tales that feel like a Hail Mary, throwing himself into the ludicrous and bizarre. With three features and a handful of shorts under his belt, he’s already shown a taste for mayhem. That helped make Deathgasm such a wondrous cult hit. Guns Akimbo goes further, bringing first-person shooters to life while keeping its story straightforward. Miles Lee Harris (Daniel Radcliffe) has little hope of escaping unless he plays along and faces Nix (Samara Weaving), the game’s deadliest assassin!

Of the three movies he’s made so far, Akimbo is his best. The story keeps moving instead of jumping between too many set pieces. Here, spectators enjoy something like The Running Man playing out in their own city. Like The Purge, the carnage seems to give its participants free rein to let out their frustrations while everyone else can watch from a safe distance. The film cuts between the action and people enjoying the slaughter through their screens, making their enthusiasm a running gag.

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Holy Hellfire Tiamat! Dark Horse’s Dungeons and Dragons Goes For The Jugular!

Mordenkainen needs allies, and newcomers could use a guide. When Dark Horse’s Dungeons and Dragons series aims to please various crowds, yes, primers are needed.

Dark Horse's Dungeons and Dragons ComicDark Horse’s Dungeons and Dragons reads like a series written by fans for fans, and newcomers might not know who everyone is. Readers who want to understand the stakes and why each character matters can check online sources and watch YouTube deep dives into the lore. But is that enough? Most likely not. When their roles in the greater cosmic scheme aren’t widely known, it’s tough to care about these people.

In this tale, the hero is Mordenkainen, a powerful wizard whose history touches not only the world but all the planes of existence! Originally created by Gary Gygax as a Greyhawk native, this archmage has grown into a multiversal planeswalker and a secret agent across Toril. Unlike typical heroes fighting for pure good, he’s all about equilibrium. He practises True Neutrality and believes absolute Good and absolute Evil are equally dangerous. He’ll do what’s right or wrong to keep the cosmic balance.

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¡Ay, Leyendas! La venganza del Charro Negro and other Day of the Dead Offerings….

Fans of Ánima’s Las Leyendas outside Mexico may have to wait for La venganza del Charro Negro to find an audience (again).

La venganza del Charro NegroThere aren’t many new entertainment releases for this year’s Día de (los) Muertos, but two offerings caught my eye. One is accessible outside Mexico; for the other, La venganza del Charro Negro (The Legend of the Black Charro: The Revenge), I’m hoping for an eventual home video release. Since 2020, streaming seems to have become the only way to see the Leyendas films after their theatrical runs. I hope to be proved wrong, since there’s a niche fanbase beyond this country.

Whether Netflix’s Day of the Dead: Ofrenda counts depends on how folks feel. Select it, and all we get is a short animated sequence featuring an altar against a changing background. It’s a cute way to acknowledge those who live away from home and want to feel part of this two-day celebration following Halloween.

The other is the latest film in Ánima’s Las Leyendas (Legend Quest) franchise.

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