Stuck inside? Don’t know what to watch/read/play/listen to? ComingSoon.net has got you covered. In this week’s CS Recommends our staff gives you solid tips on the best media to consume during your downtime, including The Boys & more. Check out our picks below!
MAX EVRY’S RECOMMEND: The Last Bookstore Surprise Book Bundles
Click here to place a custom order!
As an avid reader, I was thrilled to get the chance to support local bookstores without actually leaving my home. Los Angeles’ famed The Last Bookstore is currently thriving by offering customers the chance to order a surprise custom book bundle hand-picked by their staff. It’s the complete opposite of an Amazon algorithm, it’s an actual flesh and blood book lover who chooses titles for you based on how much you’d like to spend and your tastes. You can send them a list of specific books/genres/authors you enjoy, and they’ll take it from there. In my case, I requested gothic horror paperbacks from the 60’s/70’s! The minimum is $25, and there’s a media mail cost of shipping per book. If you’re in the LA area you can do curbside pickup as well! This is a great way to get something cool to read that you never would have discovered otherwise.
KYLIE HEMMERT’S RECOMMEND: The Boys Comic Series
By now you all know how incredible Eric Kripke’s The Boys series on Amazon Prime is (if you don’t, seriously, go stream the first season here) but many of you have probably never read the source material. Created by Preacher comic co-creator Garth Ennis and Transmetropolitan artist Darick Robertson, The Boys comic book series ran between 2006-2008, following a small clandestine CIA squad led by Butcher and also consisting of Mother’s Milk, the Frenchman, the Female, and “Wee” Hughie Campbell, charged with monitoring the superhero community. Just like its live-action series counterpart, The Boys comics are gritty, dark, innovative, funny, and definitely NSFW. As you patiently wait for the second season to premiere, why not check out where the bonkers story originated from?
GRANT HERMANNS’ RECOMMEND: Absolute Preacher Vol. 1
While many of us are taking the opportunity in quarantine to catch up on film and TV watchlists across various streaming services, many of us should be taking the opportunity to get away from our screens and put our noses in some books, even if it is the darkly hilarious, bloody, compelling and downright outrageous Preacher. Before Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg and Sam Catlin brought the series to life at AMC, the Garth Ennis-created franchise was delivering graphic novel fans a tense and fascinating story of the titular protagonist, his romantic interest from his crime days and an ancient Irish vampire as they hit the road searching for God, who has abandoned Heaven, while also learning to harness The Word of God, a power imbued in him after being merged with Genesis, the infantile offspring of an angel and demon. Ennis weaves plenty of gut-busting humor and hard-hitting action throughout his subtle critiques of the world and religion, adding up to an endlessly entertaining and easily digestible graphic novel series, with Absolute Preacher Vol. 1 collecting issues #1-26 of the 66-issue series.
MAGGIE DELA PAZ’S RECOMMEND: The Perks of Being a Wallflower (book)
First published in 1999, The Perks of Being a Wallflower centers on 15-year-old Charlie Kelmeckis, who is an introvert that loves to read books and make mixtapes compiling songs he heard from the radio. He begins the book by writing a letter to an anonymous receiver that he addresses to as “Dear Friend.” In his letters, we’ll get to find out how Charlie will try to navigate his new life as a freshman in high school while also trying to deal with the trauma caused by the deaths of his childhood best friend Michael and his favorite aunt Helen. Along the way, he will get to meet new friends in the form of high school seniors Patrick and Sam.
I’ve always been a sucker for coming-of-age stories whether it’ll be a film, a series or a book. That’s why, when I first read Stephen Chbosky’s The Perks of Being a Wallflower back in high school, I was immediately drawn to the story and its characters. Even though the book was written 20 years ago, the story is timeless as it is something that today’s young generation could still very much relate with. It covered themes concerning the perils of growing up, sexuality, friendship, first loves, anxiety and depression which are issues that are still prevalent in the young society. What I also loved about it is the pop culture references that were incorporated throughout Charlie’s story and how these references had influenced his growth. If it wasn’t for this book, I wouldn’t have been introduced to the incredible 1975 cult classic film The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
So if you’re also into coming-of-age stories or if you’ve already seen Chbosky’s 2012 film adaptation (starring Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, & Ezra Miller), I highly recommend you to check out The Perks of Being a Wallflower and get the latest 2019 edition for its 20th Anniversary which features a new letter from the protagonist.
JEFF AMES’ RECOMMEND: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power
Click here to stream on Netflix!
I was hesitant to watch Netflix’s She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, a new take on that obscure 80s He-Man clone — the one for girls — that existed only to sell toys, toys and more toys. Thankfully, my daughter talked me into checking out a few episodes of the series because I quickly found myself addicted to one of the best shows on TV. Unique characters, strong writing, goofy humor, and a kick ass storyline make up this DreamWorks production from creator Noelle Stevenson, which is still lighthearted enough for the young ones, but deep enough for adults. Savvy?
The series follows the exploits of Adora, a young warrior who finds her life flipped upside down after she stumbles upon a magical sword that allows her to conjure the powers of the legendary She-Ra. Adora discovers she’s been fighting for the wrong side, which leads her to team up with the feisty Glimmer and charismatic Bow to battle her former friend and ally Catra and the evil forces of the Fright Zone.
She-Ra doesn’t follow the typical episodic nature of most animated shows, but instead charts a fully fleshed out storyline that continues to evolve and surprise over the course of its four seasons. Finally! An animated series that actually challenges its target audience with heavy themes about love and betrayal, friendship and death. DreamWorks’ ho hum Trolls World Tour may have sucked up a majority of eyeballs over the weekend, but She-Ra is the one that deserves your attention.
A fifth and final season of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power premieres on Netflix May 15. I can’t wait.
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