The Bills lost more than a game in Cleveland. Rookie QB E.J. Manuel strained his LCL and is out six to eight weeks. The Bills activated Thaddeus Lewis from their practice squad to fill in at quarterback. I dubious about this strategy. But the Bills intend to run the ball a lot on offense and hope the defense can keep them in the game against the Bengals. The weather today is supposed to be perfect: sunny and 70. How is your favorite NFL team going to do today?

Director Paul Greengrass manages to amp up the suspense in Captain Phillips even though the audience knows how it’s going to end. Captain Phillips is based on the 2009 invasion of a container ship by Somali pirates. Captain Phillips is taken hostage by the pirates and only the intervention by the U.S. Navy and SEAL Team Six can save him. The suspense level in this movie keeps ratcheting up. Tom Hanks portrays Captain Phillips as an average guy in an extraordinary situation. Barkhad Abdi, as the Somali pirate leader, scared the hell out of me! I was on the edge of my seat for most of this movie. I can confidently predict Captain Phillips will grace many Best Movies of 2013 lists. And, of course, the Oscars. GRADE: A

When I was a teenager, I loved Eric Frank Russell’s clever tales. Wasp was my favorite. But Next of Kin (aka The Space Willies) provided plenty of amusement, too. Erie Frank Russell specialized in stories where the hero would outwit his powerful opponents with double-talk and confusion. In Next of Kin, a Terran space scout enters enemy space flying a super-fast ship. His mission is to map enemy territory and send the information back to Terran Space Command. But the scout ship’s propulsion tubes wear out and the scout is forced to land on an enemy planet. That’s when the fun begins. The aliens know nothing about Terrans so the scout baffles them with wacky information. There’s not a lot of humor in Science Fiction, but Eric Frank Russell’s sly story-telling has plenty of it. I also highly recommend the Eric Frank Russell volumes published by NESFA.

Mysterious aliens set up a space elevator in Darwin, Australia. Then an equally mysterious alien plague kills 90% of the people on Earth. The survivors struggle in dystopia conditions as the few scientists left get ready for the next alien surprise. These are the premises of Jason Hough’s “Dire Earth” trilogy. But the Big Question is: do you want to read 1500 pages to find out what happens? The pluses are action-packed pages and quirky plotting. The minuses are cardboard characters (both Good Guys and Bad Guys) and very clumsy romances. Hough leaves the door open for another trilogy, but I’m not sure I’ll read it. GRADE: C+ (for all three books)

Bill Crider recommended Harlan Ellison’s graphic novel, 7 Against Chaos, here. This is Ellison’s tribute to The Magnificent Seven. A band of misfits take on an Evil that could destroy Earth. Ellison’s clever plotting and bizarre characters generate plenty of excitement. Paul Chadwich’s wonderful artwork perfectly complement Ellison’s story. It only took me an hour to read 7 Against Chaos, but it was an hour full of that Sense of Wonder. GRADE: A

For Breaking Bad fans, here’s the perfect Christmas present: The Complete Collectors set of Blu-rays with a collectible replica money barrel, over 55 hours of special features from all seasons, all new two-hour documentary, 16-page booklet with a letter from Vince Gilligan, a commemorative challenge coin designed by Vince Gilligan, and a Los Pollos Hermanos apron! This set goes on sale on November 23, but they’ll sell out fast! Order now!

Diane and Katie visited Patrick in Albuquerque this weekend. I’m busy administering the first round of semester exams to my students in Western NY so the timing of this trip didn’t work for me (but I did get to go to the BOUCHERCON in Albany last month). Patrick took Diane and Katie to Santa Fe for a day. Yesterday they went to the Hot Air Balloon Festival. Later today, I’ll be driving to the Buffalo Airport to pick Diane and Katie up. They’re returning to celebrate Diane’s mother’s 94th Birthday tomorrow.

My son Patrick is becoming the Go-To Guy to explain techie devices. Click here to see Patrick’s latest TV interview on the new iPhone 5s and OS 7. Next step: Prime Time!

If you see GRAVITY you really should see it in eye-popping 3-D. I was astonished by the realism of this movie. You’ll actually think you’re in space with George Clooney and Sandra Bullock. The plot is simple: survive. When the debris from a Russian satellite slams into an American space shuttle, Clooney and Bullock are the only survivors. Their only hope is to reach a Russian space station. But they’re low on oxygen and fuel. I was on the edge of my seat for much of this movie. The 3-D effects are state-of-the-art. This is a simple story elegantly presented on-screen. Don’t miss Gravity! It’s one of the best movies of 2013. Check out the trailer below. GRADE: A

Batman is over 70 years old. And so is his nemesis, The Joker. Great villains bring out the best in heroes. This expanded editoin of Stacked Deck: the Greatest Joker Stories Ever Told includes some updated additions not included in the original volume. The stories are in full color. The bulk of the stories are pre-1965 (which I like) and range from 1940 to 1987. For comic book readers of a certain age, those longer stories are much more satisfying than the later short stories. The artwork got better, too. If you’re a Batman fan, this book needs to be in your collection. If you’re a casual fan of comics, there’s plenty here to like and enjoy.
TABLE OF CONTENTS:
1. The Best of the Bad
2. The Joker’s Dozen
3. [Batman Versus the Joker]
Batman
4. The Case of the Joker’s Crime Circus
Batman
5. [The Joker and the Sparrow]
Batman
6. The Man Behind the Red Hood
Batman
7. The Joker’s Crime Costume
Batman
8. The Joker’s Utility Belt!
Batman
9. The Crimes of Batman!
Batman
10. The Crazy Crime Clown!
Batman
11. Superman’s and Batman’s Greatest Foes
Batman; Superman
12. Crime-of-the-Month Club!
Batman
13. The Great Clayface – Joker Feud
Batman
14. The Joker Jury!
Batman
15. The Joker’s Happy Victims
Batman
16. The Joker’s Five-Way Revenge!
Batman
17. Death Has the Last Laugh
Batman; Joker
18. The Last Ha Ha
Joker
19. The Laughing Fish!
Batman
20. Sign of the Joker!
Batman
21. Dreadful Birthday, Dear Joker…!
Batman
22. Last Laugh
Batman
23. Catch as Catscan
Batman
24. The Last Laugh!
Batman
25. Still Crazy After All These Years
26. Stacking the Deck: The Other Joker Stories
27. Creating the Greatest: The Men Behind the Mask