Howard Tayler

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Protected: Back on the Wagon!

May 26, 2008 Howard Tayler

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Howard Reviews

Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F July 5, 2024
Years ago while trying to explain that a bad remake does not ruin your childhood, I described modern remakes as attempts to make money by “strip-mining nostalgia.” And before I explain the metaphor further, let me clearly state that BEVERLY HILLS COP: AXEL F is a much, much better movie than that. Strip-mining is how […]
SOUL December 27, 2020
I loved Soul. LOVED. IT. The mythos was fun, the music was amazing, and the story had more heart in it—more truth in it—than anything in recent memory. As an added bonus, if you like jazz, this movie has some amazing things to offer. It’s easily worth a Disney+ subscription. Easily. Yes, it has death, […]
Wonder Woman 1984 December 26, 2020
The up-front summary: I enjoyed Wonder Woman 1984 but I was disappointed. I don’t regret signing up for HBOMax¹, because #WW84 was worth the $15 (cheaper and safer than going to the theater) but I really do wish the film had been… y’know… better. The good: there were lots of fun moments in the film, […]
TENET December 19, 2020
TENET is one of those films like THE SIXTH SENSE in which any review of the film must dance around the fact that it’s very, very difficult to say much about it—especially in any sort of critical examination—without spoiling something. So let me just say this before saying anything else: I enjoyed it. I really […]
Let’s review some movies December 19, 2020
It’s been a while, I know. I haven’t been to the theater since February, and I suppose I could describe my spring, summer, and fall to you, but all three of them were mightily 2020’d, so let’s just give that a miss. Will I make it back to a movie theater anytime soon? I doubt […]

The latest Schlock Mercenary

We All Have Rawwrs Together February 20, 2026
I’m working on the bonus story, “Refulgence of Refuge,” and the final panel has to do quite a bit of heavy lifting. If you’re familiar with book 19 then you know (spoiler alert) that a civilization of feathered raptor-oids among Earth’s dinosaurs was rescued by an advanced civilization. “Refulgence of Refuge” gives us the details […]
Progress Report: the Impact Panel January 19, 2026
This took longer than I wanted it to. It’s for just one panel in the Book 19 bonus story, but it’s an important panel, and it needs to look good. In the amount of time I spent noodling on this? 2018’s version of me could have written and illustrated two weeks of comics. I do, […]

The most recent Writing Excuses

21.08: Setting Expectations February 22, 2026
In this episode, we explore what it really means to set reader expectations at the beginning of a story. We talk about how openings communicate the shape of what’s to come — from genre and tone to the kind of emotional ride we’re inviting our readers onto. We dig into practical tools for building reader […]
21.07: Deep Dive- “With Her Serpent Locks” February 15, 2026
To celebrate Mary Robinette’s birthday today (!!), she is taking us inside the craft (and emotional engine) of her short story “With Her Serpent Locks,” using it as a case study in beginnings, control, and creative “leveling up.” Our hosts dig into grounding the reader through myth, pattern, and delayed information, and how a familiar […]

Writer, Illustrator, Consumer