Athena #1
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Released
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April 12, 2010
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Running time
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21:01
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Previous review
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Next review
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Tagline
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Something tells me this one won't be discussed in any mythology classes.
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Link
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(Linkara is seen adjusting a wrist communicator; he looks up, startled, seeing he's on camera)
Linkara: Oh, hey, everybody! Welcome to Atop the Fourth Wall, where bad comics burn. (hastily pulling his coat sleeve over his communicator) Uh, you caught me in the middle of a little side project, but let's not worry about that right now. (clears throat) You know, on occasion, I get a comment or email asking me why I spend so much time criticizing the depiction of women in comics.
(A montage of shots of women in comics are shown)
Linkara (v/o): Well, to be accurate, half the time, they're asking me if I'm gay, because, of course, the only explanation for criticizing a comic with superhero costumes containing boob holes must be that I'm a homosexual and thus hate the female form displayed in any titillating manner.
Linkara: I hate to disappoint my gay or bisexual male fans, but I am in fact straight. Also, I am not a prude, nor am I an overzealous religious extremist wishing to ban anything that resembles the naked body or someone who hates any expression of sexuality in comics!
(A montage of comics women in sexy outfits is shown)
Linkara (v/o): We live in the year 2010! This is not some extreme agenda designed to oppress the manly men; this is common sense about characters! I should not have to be talking about this!
(These are ALL from the last six years, by the way.)
Linkara (v/o): If male superheroes were just wearing Speedos that went up the cracks of their asses, and the artists made sure to lovingly outline every contour of the penis behind the Speedo, it would look just as ludicrous! When Wizard Magazine puts out a drawing guide that says, "Women should look sultry; men should look heroic and strong," there's something wrong here. When Frank Miller puts in his script that the only reason Vicki Vale is in her underwear is because he wants to get the guys who are reading the comic turned on, then maybe there's a problem. Or maybe when Stephanie Brown a few years ago was tortured with a power drill, and the artist showed off her ass, it's just fricking sick!
Linkara: Which is why today we're digging into (holds up comic of review) "Athena #1", a comic released last year that seems to think TNA are more important than good storytelling. That's why I'm criticizing it, people. (points to comic) IT'S STILL GOING ON.
(AT4W title sequence; cut to a shot of the cover of the comic)
Linkara (v/o): The cover for the comic displays our title character's ass to the reader. Get used to that, folks; there's a lot of that. Okay, okay, I may be highly opinionated, but I'm a fair reviewer. There's a couple of things I should point out. First and foremost, this comic has a lot of alternate covers, and this is just the one that my copy has.
(Cut to a shot of one such alternate cover)
Linkara (v/o): For example, there's another cover showing Athena holding a sword, a spear and a shield, though why she has the spear inside of the shield straps confuses me, but maybe that's actually better for combat, I don't know. And there's even blood on her clothes! She's not standing in the most comfortable of poses, but she does look pretty imposing and badass.
(Cut to a shot of another alternate cover)
Linkara (v/o): Yet another has her coming at the reader, blood dripping from her lip, and you get the clear impression that you try to screw with her, and expect to find your limbs scattered across the room! Yet another has her naked and sleeping in a field, the sword conveniently blocking the view of her naughty bits. And while it actually reflects the book, it doesn't endear itself to me when it's a blatant cheesecake shot.
(Cut back to the cover of the comic that Linkara has)
Linkara (v/o): However, this one, in my mind, deserves the most scrutiny as well. The good thing about it is that she looks fairly muscular and strong, the coloring is excellent, and I still get the impression that she can kick my ass. But she's also wearing a thong! I never knew that standard Greek combat attire was to wear something that rolled up your butt something awful! She's also wearing high heels, which are, of course, perfect for you when engaged in combat that requires rapid movement. And let's not forget the fact that while, yes, this is a well-structured cover, we don't even get to see what our title character looks like. We just get to see what her ass looks like.
Linkara: Though, again, we're gonna be spending a lot of time looking at it in this comic, so maybe that was the idea.
Linkara (v/o): The story begins with a sepia-toned flashback of ancient Greece, giving a very abridged history lesson that mainly talks about a statue of Athena and the Parthenon, then says that time passed and the statue disappeared, the end. No, seriously, there is no purpose to this first page. It tells us nothing important, features no characters, and does not advance the plot. It just looks nice, which is fine, I guess, but some story might be good! The next page: naked Athena lying in a field with "Athena, Book One", written in Xena: Warrior Princess font, and an owl overlooking her.
Linkara: Two pages in, and nothing has happened except naked woman. This is gonna hurt.
Linkara (v/o): We cut to a hospital a few days later... I guess, because there's no establishing caption; we just see a hospital with Greek letters on the side. They talk about a woman who won't wake up, and there's no sign of trauma or evidence of any assault. Is this the woman from the field? If it is, when the hell did they find her? And if there's not going to be any transition from naked in field to hospital, why even bother having naked in a field?! The police detective assigns an officer to watch over her in case she wakes up, commenting that there's something familiar about her. Oh, and Greek hospitals must suck, since there's no monitoring equipment or catheters or anything attached to her when she wakes up at night. Also, as she gets up out of bed, with apparently the police officer watching her on a coffee break or something, since we don't see him again, we see that she's wearing the smallest hospital gown possible without any kind of undergarments so that we can know she's naked under it, and we get a look at her ass!
Linkara: Thanks, because I had forgotten what it looked like from the cover.
Linkara (v/o): Subsequently, she's less muscular here so she can be more traditionally attractive as opposed to the stronger-looking appearance on the cover. Because why would we want our title character to have muscle? Nooo, we need her to be curvaceous; otherwise, how would we get our jollies off? She looks out the window, which conveniently faces the nearby ruins of the Parthenon. She thinks that the place seems familiar, and I guess climbs out the window, since she's suddenly outside and walking towards the ruins. When she reaches them, we get a few more glimpses of her rear as she realizes that the city is gone. So... no security at the priceless historical site? I don't know. Maybe it's like that in real life, but it seems like it'd be an easy target for anyone wanting to try to graffiti it or something. Next, we get a three-page sequence that's honestly really good, recounting the origin of Athena and the sepia tones from the beginning. What I don't get is why the hell they put this here instead of at the beginning?! That way, you get people up to speed on the origin, and you've got yourself a perfect transition to modern times from that. But no, let's randomly shove it in six pages into the story, when we don't know what the hell is going on!
Linkara: And we don't even get it from her perspective! It's just a random flashback!
Linkara (v/o): An owl at the ruins observes Athena conversing with text boxes that are probably from Zeus that she's starting to remember things. Oh, and it seems my warnings about the lack of security have proven to be accurate, since there's a thug who sees Athena and wants to rape her! My question is, what the hell was this guy doing here before she showed up? However, when he grabs her, Zeus sends down the lightning and fries the guy! The police having gotten back from their coffee break spot Athena and bring her back to the hospital. Zeus and the owl say they need to give her some memories and talents, or else she'll be defenseless against random rapists hanging around ancient ruins. And so, several days later, Athena is in actual clothes, though your mileage may vary, and is talking with a doctor and the detective. So, what's her secret identity? Athena Olympios! Huh.
Linkara: You know, why not just have Spider-Man's real name be Arachnid Webbs? Or how about instead of Clark Kent, his name is Superman Kryptos?
Linkara (v/o): You know what's even sadder? Olympios is in fact a real last name, and a Greek one, of course. I'm just saying it didn't have to be quite so on the nose. We cut to "several years later, in New York City", where Athena has gotten a job as a police detective. How? Why? These are questions that were apparently not important to the writer. And if you think I'm just asking why because it's far easier than trying to think about it or come up with something clever, consider what we know so far: Athena suddenly appears naked in the middle of a field and is taken to a hospital. Fine, we'll buy that somebody came along between pages, found her, and brought her to the hospital. But then she wakes up, is saved by Zeus and the owl, and it's pretty damn clear that this is supposed to be the goddess, Athena. We have no idea why she's human and why her memories are all gone. However, it's outright stated that Zeus can grant her memories, so fine, setting her up with a past for herself – except Zeus is not exactly one to alter reality itself. This "Athena Olympios" has no clothes of her own, no money, no forms of identification, no birth records, no passport, and we are told nothing about her as a character up until this point and what her personality actually is. We have no idea why she went to New York, how she got involved with the police, how she even got a job with the police and advanced in rank enough to be doing interrogations as a detective. Now, let's give them the benefit of the doubt and say that Zeus made arrangements for all that, fine. Ignoring that from a story perspective, it's a lot to just assume happened off panel. Let's instead, from a narrative perspective, see that we know nothing of who she is! We have just cleared the halfway point of this issue, and only NOW are we learning anything about her! But of course, we fall into the classic example of bad writing: show, don't tell! Two other characters have to tell us about her. And what do we finally learn about this woman? Well, Richard Nixon here says...
Agent #1: It's incredible the way she gets them to open up.
Agent #2: Yeah, it's as if she can tell when they're lying.
Agent #1: And she's never wrong!
Linkara: (slapping himself on the head with the comic) Athena, by this comic's own definition...
(A text box from the comic appears, describing Athena as Linkara does)
Linkara: ...is the goddess of wisdom, war, the arts, industry, justice and skill. I checked Wikipedia, and besides for adding or dropping similarly-named ones, notice one that was missing from there? TRUTH!
Linkara (v/o): Athena is NOT the goddess of truth! One of Apollo's titles is "God of truth", but otherwise, the spirit that personified truth was called Aletheia. I guess if you really, really wanted to, you can stretch wisdom to include truth, but it's still a hard sell. What are we supposed to get from this, that because she's a goddess, you can't lie to her? People lie to the gods and goddesses all the time in Greek mythology! They lie to each other, they lie to their worshippers. Come on, this was 2009! A simple Google search reveals that Athena had nothing to do with truth. Anyway, back to the comic itself. Somebody – I guess the FBI, not that they say – wants to recruit Athena to go after... some people. I'm honestly not kidding here. We go from page 13, with Nixon saying it's time for blondie-boy to meet her, to Nixon saying...
Agent #1: ...and that's the story.
Linkara: Whatever the hell story it was, was probably better than this one.
Linkara (v/o): They tell her they want her to go undercover.
Athena: So you want me to participate in this...what is it, a beauty contest?
Agent #2: Kind of, it's more like American Idol...
Linkara (v/o): Who is she going undercover against? Never said! Seriously, at no point in this comic do we learn who she's trying to infiltrate. Is it drug dealers? Gunrunners? Makers of counterfeit Arby's sauce? What is it?! Anyway, they decide to get to work on her makeup immediately.
Makeup woman: Let's make you fabulous!
Linkara (v/o): And by "fabulous", they apparently meant "hooker", with heavy eye shadow, a tight strapless red dress, and thigh-high boots. And she's sent into a club by the docks as the owl and Zeus narrate. Yeah, a nightclub rave; that's so much like American Idol. She gets the attention of somebody and is brought in closer to two women. She says to her wrist communicator...
Athena: You were right... she's here.
Linkara (v/o): The rest of the squad, which apparently consists solely of Blond Mullet Man, says that the woman they're referring to is...
Agent #2: Helena Mims--in Paris' place. Can't be good.
Linkara: Well, the comic has lost me. It has lost me and it is twisting the night away without me.
Linkara (v/o): Wait a second! Suddenly, there's a contest of the three women dancing onstage, and the winner is about to be given a golden apple! There's a character named Helena, who's in Paris' place, and this is about Greek mythology. Oh, I get it! It's like the Apple of Discord from Greek mythology!
(Cut to an image of the painting "The Judgment of Paris")
Linkara (v/o): Long story short, golden apple with the inscription "To the fairest" was feuded over by three goddesses that claimed it for their own: Hera, Athena and Aphrodite. Zeus decided to settle the feud by having Paris, a mortal judge considered to be the most even-handed, determine which of the three was the fairest. Each goddess tried to bribe him with something different, but he settled on Aprhodite's, that she would give him the most beautiful woman in the world to him as his wife. That was Helen, who was taken to Troy, thus starting the Trojan War.
Linkara: Wow! So the modern-day Paris is having some kind of dancing contest, I guess, to determine who should get the golden apple award, and there's a woman named Helena here. That is just... (struggles for words) What? What is it?
Linkara (v/o): What is the point of this? Why all the Greek parallels? Oh, but then some angry guys come onstage with guns, saying that one of the women is his and that nobody will take her from him. Athena shoves Paris and one of the women over and calls for backup, giving us not only a butt shot from her, but also of the woman she knocked over.
Linkara: They should've just called this "Athena's Butt"! It gets more panel time than her!
Linkara (v/o): The lead angry guy aims his gun down at her and fires, but then she suddenly up and kicks the gun so that it misses. The rest of the gang just starts opening fire on the crowd for some reason. Oh, and now Athena is clutching her shoulder, despite the fact that the gunshot clearly missed her! Blond dude comes charging into the club with some SWAT officers, not even bothering to order the thugs to surrender before they open fire. The lead angry guy runs off, saying that he'll be back. Blond mullet man goes over to Athena.
Agent #2: Are you all right? How bad is it? Athena?!
Linkara (v/o): Dude, stop panicking. It's not like she's going to be bedridden at a hospital for– (the next scene, however, shows just that) WHAT?!?! SHE'S BEDRIDDEN AT THE HOSPITAL?!?!? FOR WHAT?!? Let's give the comic the benefit of the doubt again, and assume the bullet did actually hit her, even though, at best, it grazed her. It was just her upper arm! We have Nixon and Mullet Man saying it was all their fault that she was hurt. Why is she in the hospital?!? Bandage her arm, tell her to take it easy on her arm, and get her back to work. Oh, no, instead, they tell her that she's not well, and that she needs to stay there for a couple of days. For her arm wound! The one that we see the bandages for! And even then, they say they'll wait to I.D. the thugs until she's better. I'm neither a doctor nor a police officer, but what the hell prevents them from getting a statement and I.D. from her while she's in the bed?!
Linkara: You know, while doing research for this, I discovered that this comic actually got good reviews across the board. I'd really love to read whatever the hell it was those people read, because it wasn't this comic!
Linkara (v/o): Zeus and the owl talk about how it's getting far too dangerous for her, and Zeus says he'll have a word with Hephaestus. The next night, an assassin comes into Athena's room, ready to kill her for seeing too much. What did she see that the dozens of other people the guy fired at didn't? But the owl suddenly leaps in and glows, distracting the assassin. And so, our comic ends with Athena suddenly appearing in battle armor, or rather, a metal breastplate, a cape, some gauntlets, a helmet, a spear and shield, and some greaves, most of her body still completely undefended.
Linkara: Oh, but of course, we're not done yet. See, this book decided to have a back-up story, but not one that's right after the comic. Nooooo. Following in the footsteps of "Youngblood", it's a flip-book, meaning we have to turn the book upside-down (flips comic over, revealing a second story) in order to read it.
Linkara (v/o): Oh, but what is this backup story? It's Athena and President Obama! Yes, you heard me right. See, there was something really weird going on in 2009. Comic companies were obsessed with the President, putting him in random comics every which way.
(Cut to a shot of a Spider-Man comic with Obama on the cover)
Linkara (v/o): The most notable is his appearance in an issue of "Amazing Spider-Man", one that I encouraged on my blog for people not to buy, because at the time, Obama paraphernalia was hot on the market, and the whole thing came off like something out of the early '90s, where the thing entered like three or four printings because it was being bought by speculators who thought it'd be worth money someday. Of course, it's worth exactly the price of the comic and nothing more.
(Cut to a montage of other comics featuring Obama prominently on the cover)
Linkara (v/o): But yeah, "Army of Darkness", "Savage Dragon", "Youngblood"...
(Cut back to the Athena comic with Obama on the cover)
Linkara (v/o): ...and of course "Athena" all jumped on the bandwagon to have a comic featuring President Obama. The cover is just the two of them looking into the sky; probably examining a really spiffy-looking cloud. (the comic proper begins) The comic opens to the docks in a village in... somewhere, where the President is giving a speech. Oh, and there's also a note that says that this comic takes place after "Athena #4". Yes, the four-page back-up story doesn't take place for another three months after this thing's initial publishing. Huzzah. Some old guy with a horse and buggy is stopped by the Secret Service and told he has to turn around. He whines that he always down here in order to earn his living. What the hell that is is never explained, since... uh... something happens. It's not clear if the horse goes out of control or the guy tries to rush the crowd. Yeah, that'd be a smart business move, dude, rush into a crowd of people, past the ones who have guns. The Secret Service guy shoots the guy and his horse dead, and they plummet into the water. However, Athena and Mullet Man come running up (the panel shows the "Required Athena butt shot") just as Poseidon of all people rushes out of the sea.
Poseidon: Who dares attack the god of the seas?!
Linkara: (as Poseidon) An old man with a horse and buggy?! Clearly, this is an all-out attack!
Linkara (v/o): Oh, but now Athena's in her battle armor – not that we see any transformation – and tells him it was all an accident.
Athena: Father Zeus sent several of us here to live our days in peace.
Linkara (v/o): Yes, that is our explanation for why Athena is here. That's it, that's our explanation. Dear Lord, this is stupid! Poseidon says he's tired of squabbling and wars, and Zeus is now overhead and "gives Poseidon peace", whatever the hell that means. Looks like he just flash-fried the god of the sea. Zeus uses the Waters of Forgetfulness to wipe everyone's memory of that... If only I could forget this thing... and the backup story concludes with Athena meeting Obama, her making the dumb joke that she thinks she knew Antigone's father.
Linkara: (angrily holding up comic) This comic is dreadful in every possible sense! The narrative makes no sense, we learn absolutely nothing about Athena as a character, the mythology is messed up, and the artist is obsessed with her ass! To comic artists out there, if you really want to draw asses, fine, that's your right, I don't care, BUT DON'T EXPECT US TO PAY $3.50 FOR YOUR MASTURBATION FANTASIES! (slams comic down, gets up and storms off)
(Credits roll)
Coming soon – the Kool-Aid Man teams up with President Obama!
(Stinger: the alternate Athena cover, showing her naked and lying in the field with her sword strategically placed, while an image of Zeus watches from on high)
Linkara (v/o): (as Zeus) Oh, yeah... That's it, baby... Position the phallic symbol right over your naughty bits. Zeus likes!
(end)
Atop the Fourth Wall Transcripts
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2008:
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Spider-Man 56 · Doom's IV 2 · Batman 147 · The Top 15 WTF Moments in Comics · Titans 1 · Sinnamon 11 · US-1 1 · S.C.I. Spy 1 · Superman At Earth's End
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2009:
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Godzilla Vs. Barkley · Uncanny X-Men 423 · Uncanny X-Men 424 · Mr. T and the T-Force 1 · Star Trek comic 1 · Newmen 1 · NFL Superpro 1 · Neutro 1 · Amazons Attack Prologue · Amazons Attack 1 and 2 · Amazons Attack 3 and 4 · Amazons Attack 5 and 6 · Sultry Teenage Super-Foxes 1 · Top 15 Worst Heroes Becoming Villains · Daredevil 305 · Daredevil 306 · Blue Beetle Tribute · World of Warcraft 2 and 3 · Captain Planet and the Planeteers 3 · Wolverine: Adamantium Rage · Youngblood 1 · New Guardians 2 · The Marriage of Hercules and Xena · Secret Defenders 9 · Secret Defenders 10 · Superman vs Terminator 1 · Countdown Prologue · Countdown Part 1 · Countdown Part 2 · Top 15 Worst Moments of Countdown · Xena 1 · Cable 1 · Law and Order 1 · Batman: Fortunate Son · Air Raiders 1 · Nightcat 1 · Zero Patrol 1 · Blood Pack 1 · Mickey Mantle 2 · Adventures of the Kool-Aid Man 1 · Silent Hill: Dying Inside 1 and 2 · Silent Hill: Dying Inside 3 and 4 · Silent Hill: Dying Inside 5 · Maximum Clonage · 22 Brides 1 · All-Star Batman and Robin 1 and 2 · Doom 1 · Spider-Man, Storm and Cage · Bimbos in Time · The Dark Knight Strikes Again Part 1 · Extreme Super Christmas Special 1 · James Bond, Jr. 3 · Top 15 Missed Opportunities of AT4W
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2010:
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Pitt 1 · Scarlett comic 1 · Future Five 1 · Ultimates 3 1 and 2 · Ultimates 3 3 and 4 · Ultimates 3 5 · Youngblood 2 · Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers 1 · Strange Adventures 136 · Doom's IV 1/2 · X-Men comic 1 · Darker Image 1 · The Dark Knight Strikes Again Part 2 · Sultry Teenage Super-Foxes 2 · Star Trek/X-Men 1 · Athena 1 · JLA - Act of God Part 1 · JLA - Act of God Part 2 · JLA - Act of God Part 3 · Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Meet Archie · Lunatik 1 · Chuck Norris Karate Kommandos 1 · AT4W & Spoony: Experiment Warrior 2-3 · The Dark Knight Strikes Again Part 3 · Tandy Computer Whiz Kids: Fit to Win · Anita Blake: The Laughing Corpse 1-2 · Freak Force 1 · Chain Gang War 1 · Ewoks 9 · Cable 2 · The California Raisins 3-D 2 · Hardcore Station 1 · The Others 1 and Brute Force 1 · Amazing Spider-Man: Skating on Thin Ice 1 · Star Trek Voyager: Elite Force · Action Comics 592 · Action Comics 593 · Top 15 Comics I'll Never Review · 100th Episode · Nolan Ryan 1 · Transformers comics 4-5 · Silent Hill: Dead/Alive 1 and 2 · Silent Hill: Dead/Alive 3 and 4 · Silent Hill: Dead/Alive 5 · Spider-Man: The Greatest Responsibility · Action Comics 1 · Amazing Fantasy 15 · Detective Comics 27 · The X-Men 1 · Brute Force 2 · New Kids on the Block 4 · Marvel Team Up 127 · Santa Claus Conquers the Martians · Top 15 Screw-Ups of Atop the Fourth Wall
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2011:
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Justice League: Cry for Justice 1-2 · Justice League: Cry for Justice 3-4 · Power Rangers Zeo 1 · Justice League: Cry for Justice 5-7 · Care Bears 13 · Superman: Distant Fires · Youngblood 3 · Doctor Who Classics 7 · Spider-Man and the Fantastic Four in... Brain Drain! · KISS Comics · Superman and Wonder Woman: Tandy Computer Whiz Kids · Spawn 1 · X-Force 1 · The Backstreet Project 1 · All-Star Batman and Robin 3 and 4 · Lady Gaga 1 · Star Trek: The Motion Picture 1-3 · The Godyssey 1 · Superman Meets the Quik Bunny · Ultimate Warrior's Workout · Ultimatum 1-2 · Ultimatum 3-4 · Ultimatum 5 · SCI-Spy 2 · Miller Time: Batman/Spawn · Gameboy 1 · Eminem and the Punisher 1 · Barbi Twin Adventures 1 · Rise of Arsenal 1-2 · Rise of Arsenal 3-4 · Comic Book Advertisements · Star Trek 2 (Gold Key) · PSA Hell: Captain America: Return of the Asthma Monster! · NBComics 1 · Mightily Murdered Power Ringers 1 · Kamandi at Earth's End 1 · US-1 2 · Twilight Zone 9 · Superman and the TRS-80 Whiz Kids: The Computers that Saved Metropolis! · Street Fighter 1 (Malibu) · Silent Hill: Paint It Black · Silent Hill: Among the Damned · Silent Hill: The Grinning Man · Spider-Man: Planet of the Symbiotes · Pokémon - The Electric Tale of Pikachu · All-Star Comics 8 · The Fantastic Four 1 · All-American Comics 16 · Captain America Comics 1 · Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan 1 · Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan 2 · Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan 3 · Top 15 Personal Favorite Jokes of AT4W
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2012:
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Marville 1 · Miller Time: Robocop vs. the Terminator 1 · Brute Force 3 · 15 Things That Are Wrong With Identity Crisis · New Guardians 1 · Gameboy 2 · Youngblood 4 · Star Trek III: The Search for Spock · Mr. T 1 (AP Comics) · Mr. T 2 · The Amazing Spider-Man and Captain America in Dr. Doom's Revenge! · The Invincible Four of Kung-Fu & Ninja 1 · Kamandi at Earth's End 2 · Black Web 1 · Transformers: Generation 2 1 · Captain Tax Time 1 · Superman 701 · Bloodstrike 1 · Marville 2 · The Amazing Spider-Man on Bullying Prevention 1 · The New Teen Titans Anti-Drug Giveaway 1 · Daredevil vs Vapora 1 · Batman: A Word to the Wise · Marvel Team-Up 74 · Blake's 7 2 · Battle for Bludhaven 1-2 · Battle for Bludhaven 3-4 · Battle for Bludhaven 5-6 · Sir Charles Barkley and the Referee Murders · Captain Electron 1 · Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home · 200th Episode · Rock 'N Roll 31 · Future Shock 1 · Catwoman: Guardian of Gotham 1 · Catwoman: Guardian of Gotham 2 · Psychoman 1 · Marville 3 · Tandy Computer Whiz Kids: The Answer to a Riddle · Batman: Jazz 1 · Starstream 1 · The Thing From Another World 1 · The Thing From Another World 2 · Spider-Man: Power and Responsibility · Bart Simpson's Treehouse of Horror 2 · Flash Comics 1 · Tales of Suspense 39 · The Brave and the Bold 54 · The Incredible Hulk 1 · Superman's Christmas Adventure · Archie Giant Series Magazine 452 · Teen Titans 13: A Swingin' Christmas Carol · Batman: Noel · The Next 15 Screw-Ups of Atop the Fourth Wall
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2013:
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Kamandi at Earth's End 3 · Raver 1 · Transformers 31 · Happy Days 2 · All-Star Batman and Robin 5 · Youngblood 5 · Star Wars 3-D 1 · Marville #4 · Titans Retrospective: Team History · Titans Retrospective: JLA/Titans: The Technis Imperative · Titans Retrospective: Titans 1-25 · Titans Retrospective: Titans 26-50 · Frankenstein Meets the Space Monster · Power Pachyderms 1 · Star Trek V: The Final Frontier · Dragnet 4 · Wild Thing 1 · Spider-Man 2099 1 · Punisher 2099 1 · Doom 2099 1 · Ravage 2099 1 · Comic Book Quickies 1 · Kamandi at Earth's End 4 · SCI-Spy 3 · Star Trek: The Next Generation/X-Men 1 · Mr. T and the T-Force 2 · Miller Time: All-Star Batman and Robin 6 · Tandy Computer Whiz Kids: A Deadly Choice · Battlestar Galactica: Journey's End 1 · Marville 5 · Miller Time: Tales to Offend 1 · The Culling: Teen Titans Annual 1 · The Culling: Superboy 9 · The Culling: Legion Lost 9 · The Culling: Teen Titans 9 · Plan 9 From Outer Space: 30 Years Later 1 · Brute Force 4 · Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country · SCI-Spy 4 · The Thing From Another World: Climate of Fear 1-2 · The Thing From Another World: Climate of Fear 3-4 · Spider-Man: Crossfire · 2001: A Space Odyssey 1 · Showcase 4 · Tales to Astonish 27 · Showcase 22 · Journey into Mystery 83 · The Punisher: Silent Night 1 · Solson Christmas Special featuring Samurai Santa 1 · Star Trek: The Next Generation 2 · Doctor Who Classic Comics 15 · The Next 15 Missed Opportunities of AT4W
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2014:
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Marville 6-7 · Comic Book Quickies 2 · Miller Time: All-Star Batman and Robin 7 · Preparedness 101: A Zombie Pandemic · Gameboy 3 · US-1 3 · Youngblood 6 · Star Trek: Generations · The A-Team 1 · The Wild 1 · Kamandi at Earth's End 5 · Nova Girls: Kissing Canvas · Avengers 200 · SCI-Spy 5 · Red Hood and the Outlaws 1 · Athena 2 · Bill and Ted's Excellent Comic Book 1 · Zolastraya and the Bard 1 · PSA Hell: Superman: For the Animals 1 · Chuck Norris: Karate Kommandos 2 · Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers: The Movie 1 · Speed Steer 5 · Batman: Jazz 2 · 2001: A Space Odyssey 2 · Comic Book Quickies 3 · 300th Episode · 300th Episode: Part 2 · 300th Episode: Part 3 · Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters 1 · Batman: Shadow of the Bat 56 · Sinnamon 1 · US-1 4 · The Adventures of Jell-O Man and Wobbly 1 · Miller Time: All-Star Batman and Robin 8 · Tandy Computer Whiz Kids: The Computer That Said No to Drugs · Marvel Super Special 17 · SCI-Spy 6 · Kamandi at Earth's End 6 · Sonic Super Special 7 · Star Trek: First Contact · Cosmic Slam 1 · The Thing from Another World: Eternal Vows 1-2 · The Thing from Another World: Eternal Vows 3-4 · The Thing from Another World: Questionable Research · Spider-Man: The Trial of Peter Parker · Whiz Comics 2 · Tales to Astonish 44 · Detective Comics 38 · The Avengers 1 · The Hobbit 1 · The Hobbit 2 · The Hobbit 3 · Santa the Barbarian 1 · Top 15 Worst Comics I've Reviewed
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2015:
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Miller Time: All-Star Batman and Robin 9 · Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters 2 · Trouble 1 · Comic Book Quickies 4 · PSA Hell: Energy and Safety with the Justice League · Youngblood 7 · ROMTROSPECTIVE: ROM Spaceknight 1-40 · ROMTROSPECTIVE: ROM Spaceknight 41-75 · The Star Wars 1 · Batman: Jazz 3 · Mr. T and the T-Force 3 · Big Bang Presents 3: Protoplasman! · Crimson 1 · Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines (RPG Game) · Titans: Scissors, Paper, Stone · PSA Hell: Batman: Shadow of the Bat 57 · Comic Book Quickies 5 · Avengers Assemble Featuring Captain Citrus 1 · Doctor Who/Star Trek: The Next Generation: Assimilation Squared · My Cage · The Punisher 60 · The Punisher 61 & 62 · Steam Wars · Ultimate Power 1-2 · Homestuck, Act 1 · Atomic Robo, Vol. 3 · Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating Superman · Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating Batman · Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating Wonder Woman · Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating The Flash · Zyuranger Episodes 17-22 · Tandy Computer Whiz Kids: The Computer Trap · Trouble 2 · Pokémon Reburst, Chapter 1 · Green Lantern 23.1 · Team Youngblood 1 · US-1 5 · The Star Wars 2 · Power Man and Iron Fist 79 · Nightmares on Elm Street 1-2 · Nightmares on Elm Street 3-4 · Nightmares on Elm Street 5-6 · Spider-Man: Virtual Mortality · More Fun Comics 73 · Daredevil 1 · Action Comics 252 · Tales of Suspense 52 · Atop the Fourth Wall: The Movie, Part 1 · Atop the Fourth Wall: The Movie, Part 2 · Atop the Fourth Wall: The Movie, Part 3 · Atop the Fourth Wall: The Movie, Part 4 · Atop the Fourth Wall: The Movie, Part 5 · Deadpool Bi-Annual 1 · Cho Dengeki Stryker · Zombies Christmas Carol 1-3 · Zombies Christmas Carol 4-5 · Another 15 Missed Opportunities of AT4W
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2016:
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NFL SuperPro Special Edition 1 · Popeye: Borned to the Sea 1 · OnStar Batman Auto Show Special Edition 1 · Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters 3 · The Star Wars 3 · Youngblood 8 · All-Star Batman and Robin 10 · Pokémon Adventures Ch. 1-2 · Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger Episodes 1-5 · Blue-Skying, Part 1: Blue Beetle Dan Garrett · Blue-Skying, Part 2: Blue Beetle Ted Kord · Blue-Skying, Part 3: Blue Beetle Jaime Reyes · Blue-Skying, Part 4: Blue Beetle Jaime Reyes New 52 · Star Trek Special: Flesh and Stone · Blackest Night 1-8 · Dart 1 · Batman: Shadow of the Bat 58 · The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky · Ultimate Power 3 · Star Trek: The Next Generation 3 · Comic Book Quickies 6 · 400th Episode · 400th Episode: Part 2 · Superman vs. the Amazing Spider-Man · Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day 1 · Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day 2 · Titans/Young Justice: Graduation Day 3 · 15 Things Wrong With Marvel's Civil War · Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 1 · The Minister of Chance · US-1 6 · Star Trek: Voyager 1 · Unsounded, Chapter 1 · Biggles and the Menace from Space · Batman and Robin: The Official Comic Adaptation · Superman and the TRS-80 Computer Whiz Kids: Victory by Computer · Star Trek/Green Lantern: The Spectrum War · My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic 27-28 · Yu-Gi-Oh! GX Ch. 1 · Pryde of the X-Men · A Nightmare on Elm Street: Paranoid 1 · A Nightmare on Elm Street: Paranoid 2 · A Nightmare on Elm Street: Paranoid 3 · Spider-Man: Cyberwar · The Real Ghostbusters in Ghostbusters II 1-3 · Strange Tales 110 · More Fun Comics 73: Aquaman · Tales of Suspense 57 · All-Star Comics 3 · My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic 2015 Holiday Special · Ghostbusters: Past, Present, and Future · Elvira's House of Mystery Special 1 · Another 15 Screw-Ups of AT4W
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2017:
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Digimon: Digital Monsters 1 · Phonogram: The Immaterial Girl 1-6 · Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 1 · Trouble 3 · The Star Wars 4 · Spectacular Spider-Man Episode 1x10 - "Persona" · Youngblood 9 · The A-Team 2 · The Batman/Superman Movie: World's Finest · See You Next Mirror: Exiles Retrospective, Part 1 · See You Next Mirror: Exiles Retrospective, Part 2 · Reagan's Raiders 1 · Fist of the North Star, Ch. 1 · Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters 4 · Iron Man: The Animated Series - The Wedding of Iron Man · Athena 3 · Batman: The Dark Knight 1-3 · The New Teen Titans Anti-Drug Giveaway 2 · Crisis on Infinite Earths · Secret Wars (1984) · The Infinity Gauntlet · Flashpoint · Babylon 5 1 · The Star Wars 5 · All-New Ghost Rider, Volume 2 · Robocop vs. the Terminator 2 · Superman vs. the Terminator 2 · Tandy Computer Whiz Kids: News By Computer Foils Kidnappers · Ultimate Power 4 · Delicious in Dungeon, Vol. 1 · Batman: Odyssey 1 · Asterix: The Legionary · Comic Book Quickies 7 · JoJo's Bizarre Adventures Episodes 1-4 (2012-2013 series) · Thunderbirds Are Go · Batman: The Official Movie Adaptation · Ultimate Iron Man Vol. 1 1-2 · My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic 11-12 · Stormwatch 0 · A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Beginning 1-2 · A Nightmare on Elm Street: Fearbook · New Line Cinema's Tales of Horror 1 · The Sensational Spider-Man 0 · Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash · Marvel Comics 1 · Brave and the Bold 28 · Kamen Rider Fourze Episodes 1-4 · Clive Barker's Hellraiser Dark Holiday Special · Sensation Comics 14: The Story of Fir Balsam · Steam Wars Holiday Special · Christmas with the Superheroes 2
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2018:
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My Top 15 Favorite Episodes of AT4W · Legion of Superheroes: The Great Darkness Saga · James Bond, Jr. 1 · JLA/Avengers · Homestuck, Act 2 · Isaac Asimov's I-Bots 1 · Thunderstrike 1 · Youngblood 10 · Badrock 1A · Event Comics Month II: Infinite Crisis · Event Comics Month II: Infinity War · Event Comics Month II: World War Hulk · Event Comics Month II: Final Crisis · Power Rangers Turbo vs. Beetleborgs Metallix 1 · Diesel 1 · Teen Titans: "Betrayal" and "Aftershock, Parts 1 and 2" · The Punisher: Purgatory · Comic Book Quickies 8 · 500th Episode · Dark Knight III: The Master Race 1-2 · Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating Green Lantern · The New Guardians 3 · US-1 7 · Nova Girls: Space 34-24-34 · Batman: Odyssey 2 · Star Wars 3-D 2 · Pokémon - The Electric Tale of Pikachu 3 · PSA Hell: Captain America Meets the Asthma Monster · Superman and Spider-Man · Amazing Cow Heroes 4: Cold Cuts · Ravage 2099 2 · Adventures of the Kool-Aid Man 2 · Tandy Computer Whiz Kids: Safeguarding the Environment · Mr. T and the T-Force 4 · Star Trek 2 (DC) · Star Trek (2009): The Official Motion Picture Adaptation · Star Trek: The Next Generation 4 · Star Trek 1 (Gold Key) · Silent Hill: Hunger · The Thing: The Northern Nightmare · Freddy vs. Jason vs. Ash: The Nightmare Warriors · Spider-Man: Smoke and Mirrors · Hellraiser: Hell on Earth · Fantastic Four 52 · Marvel Comics 1 (The Human Torch) · The Incredible Hulk 181 · The New Mutants 98 · Batman Returns: The Official Comic Adaptation · The Punisher: Red X-Mas · Star Wars: The Force Awakens Comic Adaptation · Luke Cage, Hero for Hire 7
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2019:
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Yet Another 15 Missed Opportunities of AT4W · Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters 5 · Batman/Aliens 1 · Phineas and Ferb: Mission Marvel · Pokémon 15x19-20 "Cilan Takes Flight" and "An Amazing Aerial Battle" · Tomb Raider Vol. 3: Queen of Serpents · Little Victory: Chimera 1 · Youngblood 0 · Kickers, Inc. 1 · The Savage Dragon 1 · Darkwing Duck 1-4 · The California Raisins 3-D 5 · Hellstar Remina, Ch. 1-3 · Gallery of Horrors · Batman: The Dark Knight 16-17 · Tremors · Ultimate Power 5-6 · Batman Forever: The Official Comic Adaptation · Street Fighter: The Official Comic Adaptation · Catwoman: The Official Comic Adaptation · Dune: The Official Comic Adaptation · Superman IV: The Quest for Peace Movie Special · Justice is Silent: Cassandra Caintrospective, Part 1 · Justice is Silent: Cassandra Caintrospective, Part 2 · Justice is Silent: Cassandra Caintrospective, Part 3 · US-1 8 · Tandy Computer Whiz Kids: Community Action Program · Captain America Goes to War Against Drugs · Comic Book Swimsuit Issues · Batman 45-47: The Gift · Star Trek: The Next Generation 5 · The A-Team 3 · JoJo's Bizarre Adventures Episodes 5-9 · Trouble 4 · Franken Fran, Ch. 1 and 4 · Youngblood: Judgment Day · Teen Titans 27-28 · Clive Barker's Hellraiser 1 · Clive Barker's Hellraiser Summer Special · Clive Barker's Hellraiser Spring Slaughter · Spider-Man: The Exile Returns · Detective Comics 225 (Martian Manhunter) · Batman: Harley Quinn 1 · DC Comics Presents 26 · The Flash 123 · Evil Dead 2: A Merry Deadmite X-Mas · Transformers (UK) 145 · The All-New Batman: The Brave and the Bold 14 · Star Wars: The Last Jedi Comic Adaptation
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2020:
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Top 15 Dumbest Evil Plans of AT4W · Batman/Aliens 2 · Star vs. the Forces of Evil: Deep Trouble 1-4 · Megamind · Revolution · Superman vs. Muhammad Ali · Hellstar Remina, Ch. 4-6 · Youngblood: Strikefile 1 · Comic Book Quickies 9 · Black Panther, Vol. 4 1-6 · Batman: Odyssey 3 · Justice League/Mighty Morphin Power Rangers · The Champions, Vol. 3 1-4: Beat the Devil · Star Trek vs. Transformers · Athena 4 · Daredevil: Born Again · Action Comics 775 · Comic Book Quickies 10 · 600th Episode · Star Wars: The Phantom Menace Comic Adaptation · Star Wars: Attack of the Clones Comic Adaptation · Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith Comic Adaptation · Star Wars: Rogue One Comic Adaptation · DC Challenge! 1 · Kyoryu Sentai Zyurangers Episodes 40-43 · Trouble 5 · Dan Dare: Voyage to Venus · Superman 358 · Zero Hour: Crisis in Time · House of M · Secret Empire · Heroes in Crisis · Animax 1 · Ninjutsu 1-2 · Green Goblin 1-2, 4, 8, 12-13 · US-1 9 · Emergency! 1 · Mr. T and the T-Force 5 · Pinhead 1-3 · Pinhead 4-6 · Pinhead vs. Marshal Law · Spider-Man: Web of Life · Marvel Super-Heroes 12 (Captain Marvel) · The Flash 110 · The Amazing Spider-Man 129 · Awesome Comics Holiday Special · Transformers (UK) 41 · Solo: A Star Wars Story Comic Adaptation
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2021:
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Yet Another 15 Screw-Ups of AT4W · Star Trek Book and Record Set: Dinosaur Planet · DC Challenge! 2 · The Mighty Heroes 1 · Justice League 1x01-3: Secret Origins · The Star Wars 6 · The King of Braves GaoGaiGar Ep. 1-4 · Youngblood: Strikefile 2 · Pokémon 15×01-02: "Enter Elesa, Electrifying Gym Leader" & "Dazzling the Nimbasa Gym" · Stanley and his Monster 1-4 · Marvel Than Meets the Eye: The Transformers 1-40 · Marvel Than Meets the Eye: Transformers 41-80 · Marvel Than Meets the Eye: Generation 2 and Regeneration One · Star Trek 9 (Gold Key) · Star Trek/Legion of Superheroes · Mystery Science Theater 3000 1 · Batman: The Dark Knight Returns · Ultimate Power 7-8 · Batman: The Dark Knight 23.4 · Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating Aquaman · Sword Interval: Flashback Arc · PSA Hell: The Amazing Spider-Man: Riot at Robotworld · Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (Ultimate Edition) · Transformers/Ghostbusters: Ghosts of Cybertron · The New Guardians 4 · Codename: Ninja 1 · Batman: Hush · Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger Ep. 15-16 · Mr. T and the T-Force 6 · Doom’s IV 1 · Batman and Elmer Fudd & Catwoman and Sylvester and Tweety · Batman: Odyssey 4 · The Dresden Files: Storm Front, Vol. 1 · US-1 10 · Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters 6 · DC Challenge! 3 · Marvel Super Special 1: KISS · The Ring, Vol. 1 · The Ring, Vol. 2 · Spider-Man: Web of Death · Detective Comics 359 · The X-Men 4 · Batman 1 · Spider-Man Holiday Special 1995 · The Adventures of Chrissie Claus 1 · Christmas Quickies 1 · Still Another 15 Missed Opportunities of AT4W
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2022:
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Ultimate Power 9 · The Adventures of Superboy 3x05-06 and 4x07-08 · Batman: The Killing Joke Adaptation · Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating the JLA · Chew: Poyo Character Focus · Youngblood: Strikefile 3 · Doctor Who: Logopolis · Armageddon 2001 · Secret Invasion · Civil War II · Dark Nights: Metal · The Star Wars 7 · Sonic the Hedgehog: Tangle and Whisper · Star Trek: The Next Generation/X-Men: Planet X · Stargate SG-1: P.O.W. · Man of Steel · Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters 7 · Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger Episodes 17-21 · US-1 11 · X-Men Green · Spider-Man: Maximum Carnage · DC Challenge! 4 · Comic Book Quickies 11 · 700th Episode · Ken Penders' The Lost Ones 1 · Star Wars Infinities: A New Hope · Transformers: Deviations · Legion of Superheroes 0 and Legionnaires 0 · Mr. T and the T-Force 7 · The Ring, Vol. 3: Spiral · The Ring, Vol. 4: Birthday · Spider-Man: Funeral for an Octopus · Christmas Quickies 2 · Batman 27: A Christmas Peril · Mr. T and Emmanuel Lewis in A Christmas Dream · Top 15 Goofiest Superheroes of Atop the Fourth Wall
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2023:
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Star Wars: A New Hope Comic Adaptation · Marvelman Family's Finest 1 · Superman vs. Aliens 1 · Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney · Hellblazer: Dangerous Habits · Youngblood: Strikefile 4 · What Dreams May Come, Part 1: The Sandman 1-20 · What Dreams May Come, Part 2: The Sandman 21-40 · What Dreams May Come, Part 3: The Sandman 41-60 · What Dreams May Come, Part 4: The Sandman 61-75 · Animax 2 · The Dome: Ground Zero · Action Comics 1 (Non-Superman Stories) · Transformers (UK) 132-134 · Just Imagine Stan Lee Creating Robin · Mr. T and the T-Force 8 · The Dresden Files: Storm Front, Vol. 2: Maelstrom · Captain Marvel: The Last Avenger · E-Robot, Ch. 1 · Overwatch: Legacy and Old Soldiers · Green Lantern: Emerald Twilight · Back to the Future: Who is Marty McFly? · Super Soldier 1 · Legends of the Dark Claw 1 · Spider-Boy 1 · Assassins 1 · DC Challenge! 5 · US-1 12 · The Star Wars 8 · Godzilla: Kingdom of Monsters 8 · The Ring, Vol 0: Birthday · Sadako at the End of the World · Spider-Man: The Mark of Kaine · Sadako-San and Sadako-Chan · Doctor Who: Remembrance of the Daleks · Doctor Who: The Klepton Parasites · Doctor Who: The Chimes of Midnight · Yu-Gi-Oh: Capsule Monsters Ep. 1-3 · Klaus 1-7
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2024:
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Still Another 15 Mistakes of AT4W · Batman vs. the Predator 1 · Ben 10 Ep. 1×01, 09, 13 · Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger Ep. 14, 22-24 · Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back Comic Adaptation · Sonic/Mega Man: Worlds Collide, Act 1
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Specials:
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AT4W 2009 Trailer · Linkara's Take on Watchmen · Watchmen Review · Theme Song Contest · The Spoony Experiment: Warrior #1 · Theme Song Contest Winner! · Blackest Night · Silent Hill: Dying Inside Trailer · Silent Hill Alternate Endings · AT4W & Spoony: Experiment Warrior 2-3 · October 2010 Trailer · Silent Hill: Dead/Alive Review Alternate Endings · The Live Show! · AT4W Story Recap · October 2011 Trailer · Return of AT4W Live! · Revenge of the AT4W Live! · Southland Tales · Curse of AT4W Live · House of AT4W Live! · Ghost of AT4W LIVE! · October 2012 Trailers · Bride of AT4W Live! · Son of AT4W Live! · Night of AT4W Live! · Day of AT4W Live! · Dawn of AT4W Live! · Land of AT4W Live! · Diary and Survival of AT4W Live! · Power of AT4W Live! · Midnight of AT4W Live! · Planet of AT4W LIVE! · Genesis of AT4W LIVE! · 300th Episode Livestream Recordings · Destiny of AT4W LIVE! · Resurrection of AT4W LIVE! · Revelation of AT4W Live! · Remembrance of AT4W LIVE! · The New 52 · Atop the Fourth Wall: The Movie, Part 1 · Atop the Fourth Wall: The Movie, Part 2 · Atop the Fourth Wall: The Movie, Part 3 · Atop the Fourth Wall: The Movie, Part 4 · Atop the Fourth Wall: The Movie, Part 5
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