May your brother have found peace. And to the insulting fiction we saw, I will now invoke Pete Townshend in another context: "F___ 'em... f___ 'em, f___ 'em, f___ 'em, f___ 'em to death, f___ 'em to hell and beyond." That notion deserves no less.
The worst part is this wasn't even the only "hero gets infected with AIDS" thing early image did--Shadowhawk was forcibly infected with AIDS before becoming Shadowhawk, who then used it as his justification for breaking criminals' spines like Bane. He eventually died of it, and a second one came along who was less Bane and a lot more Silver Age Batman.
Back in the first episode I had mentioned the premise was actually interesting about a golden age hero’s body being taken and being made into a weapon for an evil corporation and thus the legacy hero and a golden age hero must team up to save said hero. That would be a really good idea in DC and Marvel… here it’s not even a story it’s just a fight scene. Which is Youngblood, isn’t it?
@@WTFisTingispingis Honestly, that's the sad truth of Extreme Studios. As long as he's not drawing them, his characters usually come out really well. *Bloodstrike: Reborn under a Bad Sign* and the recent *Youngblood* relaunch are great examples of this.
Just imagine him deciding to take a bathroom break because Chapel was taking so long, and then Chapel shows up while he’s taking a leak and he says, “Oh, shoot! Hang on a minute, I’m almost done! (Mutters under breath) Oh, sure, now you decide to come!”
I was first confuse to why the "US Gouverment creat AIDS to control population" plot upset Linkara. Then after, I learn that afro-americain and lgbt+ communities was the most expost to the AIDS in the 80'. And I was "Oh yeah... I get it now..." So yeah, to hell this comic.
This comic is riding on the coat tails of an already existing conspiracy. The idea that the CIA created AIDS to reduce the black and LGBT population emerged in 1981 (less than a year after the CDC confirmed the first case of it). They even connected it to a specific hepatitis B vaccination campaign from 1978 that took place near the epicenter of the AIDS outbreak in NYC.
Definitely a conspiracy that was prominent in minority communities. It wasn't a conspiracy but sympathize in that someone (the US Government in this case) has repeatedly mistreated you, experimented on you, and tried to wipe you off the face of the Earth then it is pretty easy that AIDS would have been yet another attempt.
A certain comic made a similar comment a while back. Basically what an amazing coincidence it is that the three main groups affected were (racial slur), (homophobic slur), and junkies. Oh and look, one of these characters has a similar name.
@@Jim4815162342 So you don't agree with using slurs for people of different racial backgrounds or sexualities, but you're fine with the pejorative "junkie" to refer to people dealing with substance addiction? Sorry if I'm being picky, but the break in the pattern kind of jumped out to me.
Marvel, Holly Terror, Future's End, Heroes in Crisis, and RoboKnight somehow being alive broke him a long time ago. This comic doesn't even come close...
Dude during part of the pandemic and my life I got too busy to keep up with your channel, I finally was like "WAIT, HOW IS ATT4W DOING?" and zoomed over, your content was some of the rare wholesome comic content out there, thank you for what you've done. Since the last time I was watching you I hadn't fully come out as a trans guy, and a lot of creators I used to watch are no longer uhh, "friendly" to watch, you are an exception 🙌
Was gonna ask why there was no 90s Dude cameo in this episode...but considering the subject matter in these issues I can understand why you wouldn't want to give it that dignity. Even 90s Dude would be grossed out by that Chapel story.
@@davidmelon9409 90s Dude: DddduuuuUUUUUUDE WHAT THE HELL ROB LEIFELD! AIDS is a serious issue, and using it as part of your bad comic book is NOT RAD!
Him getting booted off the team for having AIDS is some incredible stuff. He's a murderous mercenary who shoots people and sleeps around, like, are they really like "mm, no, it's fine, as long as he doesn't get AIDS". And who makes that call, Shaft? Was the rest of the team unanimous in kicking out a member because he had aids?
There are still some people especially in Black Nationalist/Nation of Islam circles who believe this. Either that or outright AIDS/HIV denialism which is a HUGE problem in parts of Africa and South Asia.
@@BATCHARRO to be honest, even in the 90s that was totally plausible. You could be perfectly fine being a trash human being and keep your job but Contract AIDs all bets where off.
@@genzo454 I don't know about Warhammer, but Araki at least knows how to draw hands and feet in proportion to his early characters' jacked bodies. Oh, and he knows how to draw expressions other than scowling.
Caught the COVID today, I'm on a five day quarantine and it feels like my head is four feet deep in ice water. BUT there's a new Linkara video today so we'll call it even.
4:44 - I did some research into Chapel and found out that Spawn damaged his face so that part of his SKULL actually shows! So yeah, while he had a painted skull on his face at one point around the time of his suicide, Chapel actually had a skull face due to the injuries inflicted by Spawn! Still, I agree the artist may have been under the impression that was always the case! Also, I took the time to skim through Extreme Sacrifice to find out what happened after Chapel became a Hellspawn and turns out Wynn is actually Satan who was driven out of Hell by the Hellspawn Chapel & ended up traveling into the past forming Youngblood! Let's just say the story after Chapel kills himself is really confusing, though it does explain why Wynn is so shady as he's literally the Devil!
5:28 If it makes ya feel any better, it's probably going more for a shady drug dealer giving a steroid than an actual medical professional giving medication for your health.
Idk if it's intentional, but I just love how done Al Simmons looks in these issues of Skrikefile. It's like he's an actor whose contractually forced to cameo in a spinoff that he knows will not survive it's first season. Being a Hellspawn is more enjoyable for him. Also kudos to the Youngbloods version of the US government for their excellent evil plan. Using a deadly disease that mainly targets homosexuals for population control, brilliant idea! No but seriously, why? Why not use a fictional disease?
Liefeld was one of Image's founders and had an active stake in the company at the time. Not a lot of people could tell him, "No Rob. I don't think writing a story where you claim that the government made AIDS as a means of population control and they're withholding the cure is a good idea" without fear of repercussions.
Edgelord/CT twitch: be topical to be noticed with absolutely no regard for how it's presented. It's why conspiracy pushers ripped off the lizard people from the old TV series V, the red pills from The Matrix and Q from Star Trek The Next Generation. But then, let us also remember DC once gave us Snowflame in the 1980s, cocaine-powered supervillain.
Correction, as far as I know there is no truth to the idea that AIDS "mainly targets" gay folks. That's just a dumb, homophobic myth that sprung up around the time this comic came out, making an already awful situation worse and leaving lasting scars today (ex, this is why gay guys can't give blood).
@@jamesadamsfl Far as I know going off CDC, the likelihood of contracting AIDS through anal intercourse is higher than other ways. This may be the source of that myth since in male homosexual relationships it is most likely more common than heterosexual or especially female homosexual relationships. So it does not mainly target them and is not some "gay disease", but the likelihood of spreading is higher due to how the virus works.
Yeah, I agree, it's not half bad, it's gawd awfully bad. I mean it's something if they invented some virus that doesn't exist and claim the same thing, that I could look past, but using an actual virus that was killing people, bad move. Anyways, that classic Doctor Who next week sounds like fun. Thank you, Linkara.
Ah, so good to see Linkara engage in his true calling, EVISCERATING another YOUNGBLOOD comic in a Atop the 4th Wall review. Seriously, on the title card he looks like he's ready to TEAR the COMIC into PIECES with his Liefiedian Muscular. (RIP IN TEAR, RIP IN TEAR)
Linkara certainly did not disappoint with this one, as he points out how they made the government infected Chapel with HIV even worse with the moronic HIV/AIDS epidemic is really a form of government Population control (which is utter BS, regardless if people ever actually believed it at the time, as its obvious the comic writers used it for the sake of being EDGY and didn't give it very much thought) which I'd like to think is just Wynn making that stuff up to manipulate Chapel and even doubt that CURE of his is real (especially considering Chapel's later decision to die by his own hand and become a Hell Spawn cause he had HIV, which was really BAD message to send at the time).
Linkara's deadpan is so on point, he is just so 'done'. Not that you can blame him, I think my soul just died a little on this review and this comic. Remember, you too can be a writer if this crap gets published. Also Lewis, you missed a perfect opportunity to rag on anti-vaxxers. Go on, do it, nobody would blame you.
Your neighbor from a couple of states over here...SANE people won't mind. Anti-vaxxers, as we both know, will be screaming bloody murder over the insult.
He's probably being cautious because of the whole "too soon" clause, since the COVID pandemic is still fresh in all our minds and not even completely over yet. Though i look forward to more "Anton York" bits in the coming years.
It's weird that I just realized AIDS is not actually something that would've been manufactured, HIV would have, in that AIDS is something you develop as a condition when HIV progresses, whereas you can treat HIV and not develop AIDS, which you don't actually contract anymore than you contract asthma.
Chapels fate in the spawn series deserves mention, either spawn did something or he realized that if al could come back to life, so too could all the other people he offed, driving him insane
@@mikethegrunty5968 It is not often one can give Mcfarlane props. Given that today I figured out that he ripped off part of Spawn's backstory from Deathlok, there are reasons why that is.
@@mikethegrunty5968 Yeah, got the Deathlok Marvel Masterworks for Christmas and it turns out our pissed-off cyborg ALSO has a wife and best friend who got married while he was "away" because they thought he was dead. Given how Mcfarlane ripped off Matt Wagner's Grendel sigil for Spawn as well (seriously, all Mcfarlane did was add glowing green eyes), I wish I could say I was more surprised than I am. I am, however, just as angry as I think I should be over it.
The current look has been slowly evolving since 2018 when I premiered it. Originally used the old jacket because I wanted to sew together an original jacket, but that took a loooong while to complete, then turns out the hand-sewn one I followed the directions wrong so it was a bit oversized, and finally I found a jacket that fit me really well and started using that one back in October. In December I swapped out the brown/red paisley scarf for the current blue one - originally just for the Christmas episodes, but I liked the blue so much I made it permanent.
@@AT4W Ah, I thought it was Christmas that the new scarf appeared but I wasn't 100%. Think you'll ever do a video breakdown of some of the costuming decisions for the show sometime? Or maybe a whole retrospective on creating some of the characters?
You know, as someone who wants to write comics one day, seeing these reviews assures me that even if my comics aren't masterpieces, they will still be far better than "AIDS was created by the government for population control."
As a pro ghostwriter who is usually fixing these kind of scripts behind the scenes, I can say you have good reason to be optimistic about your chances. May you never need the services of someone like myself.
Linkara's reviews have done a lot to help me understand Iron Age comics and what was wrong with them. Now I'm working on a whole series of novels, trying to do the "superheroes meet cyberpunk" concept right this time around.
Poor Linkara -- your "so done with this" rant at the beginning made me want to give you a hug. And DAMN, every time you think this comic cannot get more insulting. . .palate cleanser please! Let's do some Classic Who.
8:43-10:17 - I appreciate your optimism, Linkara, but like you said in your review for Youngblood #10, this is Rob Liefeld we're talking about and he has earned no benefit of the doubt.
The main offense of this period of comics was how a lot of the edgy grim n' gritty creators went callously after serious issues of the period like AIDS, pedophilia and sex traffic as ammunition to make their comics more "extreme" without any idea of the seriousness of the issues they were portraying. They essentially turned real life suffering into pop art that could be solved with punches against one bad guy without any irony or self awareness. It is an edgelord version of "Imagine by Gal Gadot" about it in its cringey tone deafness. Say whatever one say of Troma movies but none of those is stupid enough to pretend "this is how the world works". They know the movies they are making. Rob Liefeld on the other way seems to REALLY believe what he is writing.
10:38 I never thought I'd play Devil's Advocate for a Youngblood series, but...given how bloody their methods of heroism are (sometimes to themselves as well), I can see the team releasing Chapel not because they're assholes, but because there's a real risk of accidental infection. Which is probably more an indictment of how they do business. "Oh yeah, we beat the shit out of everyone we come across so badly that we can't distinguish whose blood is whose."
5:26 Is a lose lose situation 8:38 funny enough this counts like a compliment to chew's author's skills if he can use all those topics in one book with respect and sensitivity 10:17 wait what? liefeld no longer owns youngblood?
Yeah, that last one was a bit of a surprise, although maybe it shouldn't have been. Liefeld both sued and got sued enough, he had to lose something along the way.
You know, I remember suggesting at one point in the past that you review 2 or 3 issues of Strikefile in one, just to get it over and done so that we can get to Youngblood Volume 2 at some point in my lifetime (and I would still suggest it here), but I can totally understand why #3 was more than enough Youngblood for one year... or one lifetime.
Diehard wears floatation devices all the time. => Diehard cannot swim. => Diehard ate some Devil Fruit. Now if only all the other characters had an in-universe reason for their exaggerated, inconsistent proportions.
I fear that one of these days, Linkara will feel the need to do a Liefeld marathon. While on one hand I see no other way for him to finish all those Liefeldian monstrosities before his retirement, it will surely be agonizing for him to see so much of his 'artwork' without rest.
One of these days this man is gonna review one of these Youngblood issues wearing all white contact lenses to make himself look like he has Youngblood's Disease
Sin City came out around 1991, as much as Rob Liefeld was trying to make Youngblood into a poor man's Teen Titans, Strike file could be his Sin City.... just without all the satire and noire writing. And even in the 90s anything that said "this episode of Baywatch is gonna tackle AIDS" would get shallow attention because the government just went with "Make a quilt" as a policy.
Thank you for your hard work in going through these books, when they feature stuff that was cringy when they were made... and have aged far more poorly than anyone could have predicted.
To be fair about the AIDS thing, the way the Reagan Administration basically treated the AIDS crisis (by ignoring its effects on the gay population), you'd be forgiven for thinking they released it deliberately to "cull the gays."
No Lewis, HIV/AIDS _was_ not - it IS! The pandemic is still ongoing. Millions of people are suffering and around 700k people have died because of it in 2020, it's not a something that should be talked about in past tense at all. It may not be the problem it was in the rich Western countries in the 80s, 90, and early 2000s anymore - but globally it's still one of the worst scourges of humanity.
I think the "sucker punch" was meant to be an uppercut, but they didn't add the lines to show a swing. The AIDS thing is friggin awful. All I'll say is that it's even dumber as population control because while Wynne has a cure, they haven't shown any way to control who gets it or hinted at a kill-switch. That's kind of an important feature in case the virus mutates or (because this is a superhero universe) transforms into a sentient Captain AIDS. I sreally want to see Savage Dragon, Youngblood, Spawn, and every other Image character beat the crap out of Wynne for this.
@@RokuroCarisu Interesting. I was thinking it was more like an uppercut with his fist had hit already and his elbow was up by Superpatriot's face between that and the next punch. Like the shot was in-between blows.
@@chaoticjusticezero Well, you can never really be sure with the way Liefeld draws fight scenes, but it seemed like the most logical move to get in this position with.
Hey, Linkara. If doing Youngblood is such a chore I wouldn't complain of more US1 comics per year instead. Those are my favorite videos. I love that comic :)
You know what's funny about Diehard? He's actually an entertaining and interesting character in the 2012 Prophet series. He displays pathos, a range of emotions and a personal story.
It's funny, slightly off topic, I play DC Universe Online, whenever I get the chance. A lot of the characters designed by other players look like they could be members of Youngbood. Massive shoulder pads, massive guns, motorcycle helmets as masks, gun belts, gloves with bands and lights all over them, etc. Sure, to each their own, but it seems the average gamer/comic fan agrees with Liefeld's design theory. Heroes should look like inhuman terrors, wearing either next to nothing, or 400 lbs of armor and weaponry.
This remeinded me of when I played Dragon Ball Xenoverse. Most players I met has costumes that uses black and red even though no one in Dragon Ball uses those colors together.
I always love seeing Linkara's reviews of stuff I had when I was younger (this being one of them.) I only remember the art - but I had no idea that AIDS was used as a central plot point to Chapel's backstory. Good grief.
Look at this way dude you're almost done with Strikefile so that's a plus. Also I can't say I blame you for next time after a really bad comic can't wait.🐻
I really liked Robert Kirkman's take on Super-Patriot. Always wondered if I should read the stories referenced in that book... Bullet successfully dodged.
@@DrZuluGaming I hear good things about both but have had no interest in looking closer. But seriously, his Destroyer series is an underrated gem about getting older and dealing with that fact. Can't recommend it enough.
"Ignoring the AIDS stuff, this issue's not half bad."
And I'm sure Mrs. Lincoln enjoyed the play if you ignore her husband being shot.
Just like how by all accounts john wayne gasey was a fantastic clown BUT WE DON'T REMEMBER THAT PART FOR A REASON!
Well said.
The sad thing is, it was probably the conspiracy theory at the time.
Ignoring why its so bad, it's not so bad.
From scary godmother,
so other than THAT mrs. Lincoln how did you enjoy the show?
A Youngblood Comic: *Exists*
Linkara: Ah shit, here we go again.
AH SHIT HERE WE GO AGAIN!!!
There's hundreds of Youngblood books. Suffer.
@@jonahfalcon1970 Or techically speaking 100s of books made by image with the same characters and made by Rob Liefeld
@@Pikachu2Ash Other creators trying to work on Youngblood is like putting lipstick on a pig.
ALL YA'LL HAD TO DO WAS WRITE A DAMN DECENT COMIC ROB!
My brother died of AIDS. Your rant regarding the use of AIDS in this story ( as well as the Merlin clip) was extremely cathartic for me. Thank you.
Condolences about brother. I hope you remember the good times with him.
@@fanofpink thank you kindly , and I try to.
May your brother have found peace. And to the insulting fiction we saw, I will now invoke Pete Townshend in another context: "F___ 'em... f___ 'em, f___ 'em, f___ 'em, f___ 'em to death, f___ 'em to hell and beyond." That notion deserves no less.
the fish is from merlin?
@@johnathonhaney8291 couldn’t agree more
Boy, Liefeld really compounded the awfulness of the whole "Chapel has AIDS" plot point at every turn, huh?
bEcAUsE tALkiNg aBoUt AIDS iN a 90's cOmiC is nOt oNlY eDgY bUt A hOt tOpiC.
(Never mind Liefeld is homophobic.)
Insert Rich Evans Aids! Soundbyte here
The worst part is this wasn't even the only "hero gets infected with AIDS" thing early image did--Shadowhawk was forcibly infected with AIDS before becoming Shadowhawk, who then used it as his justification for breaking criminals' spines like Bane. He eventually died of it, and a second one came along who was less Bane and a lot more Silver Age Batman.
@@jadedheartsz hahaha
Oh, you were serious.
HAHAHAHAHA
You've never met him, huh?
@@jadedheartsz Might wanna look up his reaction to Shatterstar being gay. He did soften on it years later, but at the time was very not good.
I am increasingly amazed just how much mileage the "too much pink energy" clip has gotten. It's so specific yet it's seen so much use.
And to think it eventually got referenced in Once and Always.
Last week linkara reviewed a great image comics title.
This week he reviews a terrible image comics title.
Thanos: perfectly balanced.
As all things should be.
Back in the first episode I had mentioned the premise was actually interesting about a golden age hero’s body being taken and being made into a weapon for an evil corporation and thus the legacy hero and a golden age hero must team up to save said hero.
That would be a really good idea in DC and Marvel… here it’s not even a story it’s just a fight scene. Which is Youngblood, isn’t it?
I could see that as a good Green Lantern or Flash story. Or maybe Human Torch, helps that the original Torch is an android.
Huh, that's kinda what happened to Bucky
That would've been amazing to see in a better comic. Liefeld needs to be relegated to the position of 'idea goblin.'
@@WTFisTingispingis Honestly, that's the sad truth of Extreme Studios. As long as he's not drawing them, his characters usually come out really well. *Bloodstrike: Reborn under a Bad Sign* and the recent *Youngblood* relaunch are great examples of this.
"I expected you HOURS AGO" ... does that mean he was just sitting with legs on his desk for several hours?
He went to the Blofeld School of Villainy apparently.
Was he reading a book? Doing some paperwork?
@@katherinealvarez9216 See either of those would make sense but I don't think he did
@@yugoxgc it would. so did he waited for hours because he's a dramatic? Did he take a nap or drank red bull?
I mean, how much time was wasted?
Just imagine him deciding to take a bathroom break because Chapel was taking so long, and then Chapel shows up while he’s taking a leak and he says, “Oh, shoot! Hang on a minute, I’m almost done! (Mutters under breath) Oh, sure, now you decide to come!”
I was first confuse to why the "US Gouverment creat AIDS to control population" plot upset Linkara. Then after, I learn that afro-americain and lgbt+ communities was the most expost to the AIDS in the 80'.
And I was "Oh yeah... I get it now..."
So yeah, to hell this comic.
Not like this plot would be any better without those implications, honestly.
This comic is riding on the coat tails of an already existing conspiracy. The idea that the CIA created AIDS to reduce the black and LGBT population emerged in 1981 (less than a year after the CDC confirmed the first case of it). They even connected it to a specific hepatitis B vaccination campaign from 1978 that took place near the epicenter of the AIDS outbreak in NYC.
Definitely a conspiracy that was prominent in minority communities. It wasn't a conspiracy but sympathize in that someone (the US Government in this case) has repeatedly mistreated you, experimented on you, and tried to wipe you off the face of the Earth then it is pretty easy that AIDS would have been yet another attempt.
A certain comic made a similar comment a while back. Basically what an amazing coincidence it is that the three main groups affected were (racial slur), (homophobic slur), and junkies. Oh and look, one of these characters has a similar name.
@@Jim4815162342 So you don't agree with using slurs for people of different racial backgrounds or sexualities, but you're fine with the pejorative "junkie" to refer to people dealing with substance addiction? Sorry if I'm being picky, but the break in the pattern kind of jumped out to me.
Guys, I think we broke Linkara. I think he needs to re review The Technis Imperative.
Marvel, Holly Terror, Future's End, Heroes in Crisis, and RoboKnight somehow being alive broke him a long time ago. This comic doesn't even come close...
Oh good, more of Sentinel’s Book of Destiny fanfics.
This comment becomes much funnier when you read "Oh good" as "Oooooh goooooooood🙄". Have a like.
Wait a second…
Does this mean that Sentinel WANTED AIDS to be made by the US government?!?
@@NoRegs30 Yes it does, make of that what you will...
Considering how Strikefile progressed thus far, I should’ve figured this issue would be so infuriating.
Dude during part of the pandemic and my life I got too busy to keep up with your channel, I finally was like "WAIT, HOW IS ATT4W DOING?" and zoomed over, your content was some of the rare wholesome comic content out there, thank you for what you've done.
Since the last time I was watching you I hadn't fully come out as a trans guy, and a lot of creators I used to watch are no longer uhh, "friendly" to watch, you are an exception 🙌
Was gonna ask why there was no 90s Dude cameo in this episode...but considering the subject matter in these issues I can understand why you wouldn't want to give it that dignity. Even 90s Dude would be grossed out by that Chapel story.
Even the 90s dude has standards.
@@davidmelon9409 90s Dude: DddduuuuUUUUUUDE WHAT THE HELL ROB LEIFELD! AIDS is a serious issue, and using it as part of your bad comic book is NOT RAD!
Wait everyone is used to saying dude now ?😅
@@davidmelon9409he did show disgust and horror when Superboy Prime obliterated a pregnant woman.
DUUUUUUUUUUDE! I. Actually agree. This is absolutely insane.
I didn't think the aids plot could get worse.
I didn't expect "The US DId it cause population control".
It seemed legit in the 90s after Reagan and Bush.🤷🏾♂️
@@jadedheartsz cold? He didn't give a single shit! No one did. They let it become "The Gay Plague"
Him getting booted off the team for having AIDS is some incredible stuff. He's a murderous mercenary who shoots people and sleeps around, like, are they really like "mm, no, it's fine, as long as he doesn't get AIDS".
And who makes that call, Shaft? Was the rest of the team unanimous in kicking out a member because he had aids?
There are still some people especially in Black Nationalist/Nation of Islam circles who believe this. Either that or outright AIDS/HIV denialism which is a HUGE problem in parts of Africa and South Asia.
@@BATCHARRO to be honest, even in the 90s that was totally plausible. You could be perfectly fine being a trash human being and keep your job but Contract AIDs all bets where off.
The thumbnail art was hilarious, major kudos to Viga.
I know, it’s exactly what Linkara’s would look like if he was a Liefeld character.
Yeah, he looks halfway between a Warhammer and a Jojo's character, it's amazing.
@@genzo454 I don't know about Warhammer, but Araki at least knows how to draw hands and feet in proportion to his early characters' jacked bodies. Oh, and he knows how to draw expressions other than scowling.
Caught the COVID today, I'm on a five day quarantine and it feels like my head is four feet deep in ice water. BUT there's a new Linkara video today so we'll call it even.
Sorry to hear that. Hope you get well soon.
_[Sends virtual hugs]_
Dammit all, man, I'm sorry. Get better soon, okay?
I hope you feel better soon.
Best of luck. May you get a quick recovery.
I just imagine Chapel painstakingly drawing each and every single teeth every morning.
A new ep on Monday?! WHAT NEW SPORE OF MADNESS IS THIS?!
4:44 - I did some research into Chapel and found out that Spawn damaged his face so that part of his SKULL actually shows! So yeah, while he had a painted skull on his face at one point around the time of his suicide, Chapel actually had a skull face due to the injuries inflicted by Spawn! Still, I agree the artist may have been under the impression that was always the case! Also, I took the time to skim through Extreme Sacrifice to find out what happened after Chapel became a Hellspawn and turns out Wynn is actually Satan who was driven out of Hell by the Hellspawn Chapel & ended up traveling into the past forming Youngblood! Let's just say the story after Chapel kills himself is really confusing, though it does explain why Wynn is so shady as he's literally the Devil!
5:28 If it makes ya feel any better, it's probably going more for a shady drug dealer giving a steroid than an actual medical professional giving medication for your health.
That fish clip being the only use of the F-word by Linkara is *chefs kiss*
I love it whenever I see it.
He's used it before
He used it in the movie -- MAGNIFICENTLY.
@@c.cooper2877 In a previous episode, I meant
How many episodes has it been since we got the “Too much pink energy is dangerous” joke?
Idk if it's intentional, but I just love how done Al Simmons looks in these issues of Skrikefile.
It's like he's an actor whose contractually forced to cameo in a spinoff that he knows will not survive it's first season. Being a Hellspawn is more enjoyable for him.
Also kudos to the Youngbloods version of the US government for their excellent evil plan. Using a deadly disease that mainly targets homosexuals for population control, brilliant idea!
No but seriously, why? Why not use a fictional disease?
Liefeld was one of Image's founders and had an active stake in the company at the time. Not a lot of people could tell him, "No Rob. I don't think writing a story where you claim that the government made AIDS as a means of population control and they're withholding the cure is a good idea" without fear of repercussions.
Edgelord/CT twitch: be topical to be noticed with absolutely no regard for how it's presented. It's why conspiracy pushers ripped off the lizard people from the old TV series V, the red pills from The Matrix and Q from Star Trek The Next Generation. But then, let us also remember DC once gave us Snowflame in the 1980s, cocaine-powered supervillain.
@@danielbrant6740 plus image was (and still is) about creative control. So no one could tell you what to do with the property you own.
Correction, as far as I know there is no truth to the idea that AIDS "mainly targets" gay folks. That's just a dumb, homophobic myth that sprung up around the time this comic came out, making an already awful situation worse and leaving lasting scars today (ex, this is why gay guys can't give blood).
@@jamesadamsfl Far as I know going off CDC, the likelihood of contracting AIDS through anal intercourse is higher than other ways. This may be the source of that myth since in male homosexual relationships it is most likely more common than heterosexual or especially female homosexual relationships. So it does not mainly target them and is not some "gay disease", but the likelihood of spreading is higher due to how the virus works.
Yeah, I agree, it's not half bad, it's gawd awfully bad. I mean it's something if they invented some virus that doesn't exist and claim the same thing, that I could look past, but using an actual virus that was killing people, bad move. Anyways, that classic Doctor Who next week sounds like fun. Thank you, Linkara.
Ah, so good to see Linkara engage in his true calling, EVISCERATING another YOUNGBLOOD comic in a Atop the 4th Wall review.
Seriously, on the title card he looks like he's ready to TEAR the COMIC into PIECES with his Liefiedian Muscular. (RIP IN TEAR, RIP IN TEAR)
Linkara certainly did not disappoint with this one, as he points out how they made the government infected Chapel with HIV even worse with the moronic HIV/AIDS epidemic is really a form of government Population control (which is utter BS, regardless if people ever actually believed it at the time, as its obvious the comic writers used it for the sake of being EDGY and didn't give it very much thought) which I'd like to think is just Wynn making that stuff up to manipulate Chapel and even doubt that CURE of his is real (especially considering Chapel's later decision to die by his own hand and become a Hell Spawn cause he had HIV, which was really BAD message to send at the time).
Also, Chapel obviously uses face paint then mediculously glues press on nails to his lips.
Linkara's deadpan is so on point, he is just so 'done'. Not that you can blame him, I think my soul just died a little on this review and this comic.
Remember, you too can be a writer if this crap gets published. Also Lewis, you missed a perfect opportunity to rag on anti-vaxxers. Go on, do it, nobody would blame you.
Your neighbor from a couple of states over here...SANE people won't mind. Anti-vaxxers, as we both know, will be screaming bloody murder over the insult.
@@johnathonhaney8291 Let them scream. Easier to know who needs to be blocked.
He's probably being cautious because of the whole "too soon" clause, since the COVID pandemic is still fresh in all our minds and not even completely over yet.
Though i look forward to more "Anton York" bits in the coming years.
Besides a few skits, Lewis (and most entertainers, tbf) don't want to invite toxic debates by bringing modern politics into their videos.
@@Metrion77 Probably wise...he's likely seen firsthand how ugly those get.
Ah, yes, our expected dose of Youngblood's disease
I like to think of it as our annual booster _against_ Youngblood’s Disease.
It's weird that I just realized AIDS is not actually something that would've been manufactured, HIV would have, in that AIDS is something you develop as a condition when HIV progresses, whereas you can treat HIV and not develop AIDS, which you don't actually contract anymore than you contract asthma.
"a guy whose arms are now just multiple gun barrels"
wtf i love this comic now
Chapels fate in the spawn series deserves mention, either spawn did something or he realized that if al could come back to life, so too could all the other people he offed, driving him insane
I feel Todd handled Chapel WAY better than Rob. At the very least he recognizes that chapel is a wretched POS
@@mikethegrunty5968 It is not often one can give Mcfarlane props. Given that today I figured out that he ripped off part of Spawn's backstory from Deathlok, there are reasons why that is.
Best quote from spawn was "Your worst f**king nightmare."
@@johnathonhaney8291 oh damn, really ?
@@mikethegrunty5968 Yeah, got the Deathlok Marvel Masterworks for Christmas and it turns out our pissed-off cyborg ALSO has a wife and best friend who got married while he was "away" because they thought he was dead. Given how Mcfarlane ripped off Matt Wagner's Grendel sigil for Spawn as well (seriously, all Mcfarlane did was add glowing green eyes), I wish I could say I was more surprised than I am. I am, however, just as angry as I think I should be over it.
7:05 I actually stopped what I was doing and slowly turned back to the video, incredulously saying "Noooooo".
This warrants the what montage from the Dark Nights Metal review.
I can't help but imagine Rich Evans of RLM as one of the scientists shouting "We gave you AAAIIIIIIDDDDSSS!!!"
I was impressed by the amount of running gags this episode featured.
I always look forward to see what the thumbnail art will be. Viga comes up with the best interpretation of the titles being reviewed.
Excellent review and Viga absolutely nailed the title card for it!
"but it's like 5am now!"... that just happened to play at EXACTLY 5am for me. Freaky.
Man I haven’t seen Lewis angry in a while not since the review of Heroes in Crisis.
You blame him?
@@johnathonhaney8291 *Can
@@Pikachu2Ash Six of one, half a dozen of the other...
Next week's a review of classic Doctor Who?! AWESOME!
2 image comics reviews. Perfect for celebrating 30 years. HAPPY 30TH ANNIVERSARY IMAGE COMICS!
Linkara is more excited for Youngblood than someone who realized that they just had surgery.
Not sure how recent this look is, but it's probably my favorite. tho the overcoat will always hold a special place
The current look has been slowly evolving since 2018 when I premiered it. Originally used the old jacket because I wanted to sew together an original jacket, but that took a loooong while to complete, then turns out the hand-sewn one I followed the directions wrong so it was a bit oversized, and finally I found a jacket that fit me really well and started using that one back in October. In December I swapped out the brown/red paisley scarf for the current blue one - originally just for the Christmas episodes, but I liked the blue so much I made it permanent.
@@AT4W No wonder you like Blue Beetle so much, you're just like Dan Garrett
@@AT4W Ah, I thought it was Christmas that the new scarf appeared but I wasn't 100%.
Think you'll ever do a video breakdown of some of the costuming decisions for the show sometime? Or maybe a whole retrospective on creating some of the characters?
@@AT4W ooo what episode did that happen? I love the dramatic costume changes 🙂
You know, as someone who wants to write comics one day, seeing these reviews assures me that even if my comics aren't masterpieces, they will still be far better than "AIDS was created by the government for population control."
As a pro ghostwriter who is usually fixing these kind of scripts behind the scenes, I can say you have good reason to be optimistic about your chances. May you never need the services of someone like myself.
Linkara's reviews have done a lot to help me understand Iron Age comics and what was wrong with them. Now I'm working on a whole series of novels, trying to do the "superheroes meet cyberpunk" concept right this time around.
@@RokuroCarisu Hey, good for you! Best of luck on those.
7:20 - May I just sum this up in one sentence please... okay. WHAT?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?
Another good review. Well done Linkara. Keep it up.
Poor Linkara -- your "so done with this" rant at the beginning made me want to give you a hug. And DAMN, every time you think this comic cannot get more insulting. . .palate cleanser please! Let's do some Classic Who.
8:43-10:17 - I appreciate your optimism, Linkara, but like you said in your review for Youngblood #10, this is Rob Liefeld we're talking about and he has earned no benefit of the doubt.
Indeed not...just ask Roz Kirby.
I should check if Linkara had reviewed Rob Liefeld's _New 52 Hawkman_ comics... I'm curious about his reaction
Oh, really? THOSE exist? Further proof that Dan Didio was just the worst.
@@johnathonhaney8291 yes, he really was
The main offense of this period of comics was how a lot of the edgy grim n' gritty creators went callously after serious issues of the period like AIDS, pedophilia and sex traffic as ammunition to make their comics more "extreme" without any idea of the seriousness of the issues they were portraying.
They essentially turned real life suffering into pop art that could be solved with punches against one bad guy without any irony or self awareness. It is an edgelord version of "Imagine by Gal Gadot" about it in its cringey tone deafness.
Say whatever one say of Troma movies but none of those is stupid enough to pretend "this is how the world works". They know the movies they are making.
Rob Liefeld on the other way seems to REALLY believe what he is writing.
10:38 I never thought I'd play Devil's Advocate for a Youngblood series, but...given how bloody their methods of heroism are (sometimes to themselves as well), I can see the team releasing Chapel not because they're assholes, but because there's a real risk of accidental infection.
Which is probably more an indictment of how they do business. "Oh yeah, we beat the shit out of everyone we come across so badly that we can't distinguish whose blood is whose."
Liefeld never disappoints in a sense that you always know what to expect, it just ain't good.
It wouldn’t be Atop the Fourth Wall if we didn’t do Youngblood. And it’s been a while since this Liefeld monstrosity graced us with its presence.
5:26 Is a lose lose situation 8:38 funny enough this counts like a compliment to chew's author's skills if he can use all those topics in one book with respect and sensitivity 10:17 wait what? liefeld no longer owns youngblood?
Yeah, that last one was a bit of a surprise, although maybe it shouldn't have been. Liefeld both sued and got sued enough, he had to lose something along the way.
Over 10 years have passed.
I'm still surprised that Deathmate escaped his watchful eyes (wonder how that will turn out?)
It'll happen eventually, just seems like a bad call to enter into it when I know basically NOTHING of the Valiant stable.
@@AT4WYou did read the Nintendo comics, but Okie Dokie. Just don't take too long to get to Valiant. Heard quite a few nice things about it.
Is there no bad idea that Liefeld can't make even dumber?
Hiss! Ixnay on the adbay ideay! It's like saying Bloody Mary's name in front of a mirror, saying that out loud.
@@johnathonhaney8291
BloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymarybloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymaryBloodymary ;)
That cover of Chapel reminds me of a Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark artwork.
Don't compare this garbage to those awesome pieces of art
pretty sure spawn made his skullface permanent as payback for killing him but they still shouldve left and editors note
How did he do that? And why didn't he kill him instead that seems more like payback then give him a permanent white face
And finaly one good thing comming from Youngblood: That awesome titlecard! Kudos to Viga.
Youngblood comics are always extra great! Glad I already have popcorn. Keep up the awesome work!
Looking at the artwork of this comic makes me want to yell "What were we thinking in the 1990's!?"
You know, I remember suggesting at one point in the past that you review 2 or 3 issues of Strikefile in one, just to get it over and done so that we can get to Youngblood Volume 2 at some point in my lifetime (and I would still suggest it here), but I can totally understand why #3 was more than enough Youngblood for one year... or one lifetime.
Yeesh, that plot-line involving AIDS was even worse than expected.
Diehard wears floatation devices all the time. => Diehard cannot swim. => Diehard ate some Devil Fruit. Now if only all the other characters had an in-universe reason for their exaggerated, inconsistent proportions.
I wonder what Rob Liefeld thought of Philadelphia the film.
I fear that one of these days, Linkara will feel the need to do a Liefeld marathon. While on one hand I see no other way for him to finish all those Liefeldian monstrosities before his retirement, it will surely be agonizing for him to see so much of his 'artwork' without rest.
Linkara released an episode on Monday for once, WHAT NEW SPORE OF MADNESS IS THIS????
Spawn: Hiya, Chapel. How's it going?
Chapel: Well I got AIDS, but other than that, I'm doing pretty good.
Wait that's not AIDS...
ITS YOUNGBLOODS DISEASE!!!
One of these days this man is gonna review one of these Youngblood issues wearing all white contact lenses to make himself look like he has Youngblood's Disease
I agree. Wearing opaque contact lenses is definitely the best way to read a Rob Liefeld comic.
something traditions never change
Sin City came out around 1991, as much as Rob Liefeld was trying to make Youngblood into a poor man's Teen Titans, Strike file could be his Sin City.... just without all the satire and noire writing. And even in the 90s anything that said "this episode of Baywatch is gonna tackle AIDS" would get shallow attention because the government just went with "Make a quilt" as a policy.
One day I hope Linkara talks about Alan Moores Supreme
Might actually be a nice change of pace from the rest of this shitshow that is early Image.
I was looking up Fat Princess, and I got this as the first result. GENIUS
Thank you for your hard work in going through these books, when they feature stuff that was cringy when they were made... and have aged far more poorly than anyone could have predicted.
Re: the AIDS plot, trying to be Devil's Advocate... I got nothing.
Amazing that 90s Dude hasn't popped up. I bet even he would call the dumb of the use of AIDS in this comic.
To be fair about the AIDS thing, the way the Reagan Administration basically treated the AIDS crisis (by ignoring its effects on the gay population), you'd be forgiven for thinking they released it deliberately to "cull the gays."
Thinking of Lindsey's video. "Look pretty and do as little as possible."
No Lewis, HIV/AIDS _was_ not - it IS! The pandemic is still ongoing. Millions of people are suffering and around 700k people have died because of it in 2020, it's not a something that should be talked about in past tense at all. It may not be the problem it was in the rich Western countries in the 80s, 90, and early 2000s anymore - but globally it's still one of the worst scourges of humanity.
@7:20 Well that aged like milk sitting in the Sahara Desert for a year
I think the "sucker punch" was meant to be an uppercut, but they didn't add the lines to show a swing.
The AIDS thing is friggin awful. All I'll say is that it's even dumber as population control because while Wynne has a cure, they haven't shown any way to control who gets it or hinted at a kill-switch. That's kind of an important feature in case the virus mutates or (because this is a superhero universe) transforms into a sentient Captain AIDS.
I sreally want to see Savage Dragon, Youngblood, Spawn, and every other Image character beat the crap out of Wynne for this.
An uppercut with the elbow is called a European uppercut, for some reason.
@@RokuroCarisu Interesting. I was thinking it was more like an uppercut with his fist had hit already and his elbow was up by Superpatriot's face between that and the next punch. Like the shot was in-between blows.
@@chaoticjusticezero Well, you can never really be sure with the way Liefeld draws fight scenes, but it seemed like the most logical move to get in this position with.
Check out the first few seconds of the Strikefile #1 intro and this one here. You can tell the comic has taken it's toll.
1:21 So Amazon has a secret Cyber Initiative going a la Mortal Kombat? Cyborg ninja zombies?
More likely robot warehouse workers that will totally replace the human staff...not even joking.
@@johnathonhaney8291 I'd believe it.
Sektor and cyrax working for Amazon. interesting.
Hey, Linkara.
If doing Youngblood is such a chore I wouldn't complain of more US1 comics per year instead. Those are my favorite videos. I love that comic :)
Goddamn, that "one leg longer than the other" stinger really got me. Coffee all over the damn keyboard.
16:10 - Well the reboot did make him President. Which is up there with Saved by the Bell’s reboot making Zack Morris California’s governor.
You know what's funny about Diehard? He's actually an entertaining and interesting character in the 2012 Prophet series. He displays pathos, a range of emotions and a personal story.
It helps when you get a professional writer to handle the script.
@@johnathonhaney8291 Damn right.
It's funny, slightly off topic, I play DC Universe Online, whenever I get the chance. A lot of the characters designed by other players look like they could be members of Youngbood. Massive shoulder pads, massive guns, motorcycle helmets as masks, gun belts, gloves with bands and lights all over them, etc. Sure, to each their own, but it seems the average gamer/comic fan agrees with Liefeld's design theory. Heroes should look like inhuman terrors, wearing either next to nothing, or 400 lbs of armor and weaponry.
This is why they are players and not creators.
This remeinded me of when I played Dragon Ball Xenoverse.
Most players I met has costumes that uses black and red even though no one in Dragon Ball uses those colors together.
Linkara, your level of patience for these Young Blood comics is better than mine honestly. How do you do it.
He take his "happy pills"
I always love seeing Linkara's reviews of stuff I had when I was younger (this being one of them.) I only remember the art - but I had no idea that AIDS was used as a central plot point to Chapel's backstory. Good grief.
Look at this way dude you're almost done with Strikefile so that's a plus. Also I can't say I blame you for next time after a really bad comic can't wait.🐻
Ha ha ha ha. He's far from being done. He miscounted how many there were left to cover. In total there are 11 issues.
@@Pikachu2Ash Oh boy well look on the bright side at least he only does about once a year besides it could be worse to be fair.🐻🧸
I just noticed Generic Comic Book on top of the pile in the opening. I actually want to see a review of that one, looks interesting.
Nothing like Youngblood to make you feel old.
From what I know (really casual comics fan) Leinfeild went in Image comics to get the right of his creations. How did he managed to lost it ?
If I remember correctly he lost a bunch of IPs due to various legal challenges.
I'll be honest I've always seen Rob Leifeld as a lesser version of Todd McFarland
I really liked Robert Kirkman's take on Super-Patriot. Always wondered if I should read the stories referenced in that book... Bullet successfully dodged.
Well, Robert Kirkman is always worth a look. Have you seen his Destroyer series for Marvel Max?
@@johnathonhaney8291 Or Invincible. Don't forget that.
Both the comic and the TV show on Amazon Prime, they're pretty great.
@@DrZuluGaming I hear good things about both but have had no interest in looking closer. But seriously, his Destroyer series is an underrated gem about getting older and dealing with that fact. Can't recommend it enough.
Ooh, next week's episode sounds interesting.
linkara has been replaced by a skrull only explantion for this being posted on time
Clearly! The invasion has begun
Or the cosmic cube finally did it's magic....
THE COSMIC CUBE CAN DO ANYTHING!
@@johnkirby8939 But can it make Young Blood any less unbearable?
@@Pikachu2Ash THE COSMIC CUBE CAN DO ANYTHING!
Oh boy MORE Youngblood 😅
9.10.22
Sad that in his backstory they don't show when Chapel encountered Poyo, Rooster of Fury.
If glory has one leg longer than the other she should get shoe lifts.
Diehard hit Super Patriot with his elbow? Maybe he knows Muay Thai 😏