What I Watched/Read/Played in July (2025)

I will never financially recover from this July.

July was a busy month for me. The Summer slowed down to a crawl and every week felt like a different lifetime. During all that chaos, I did find time to diversify my media diet. This handy graphic (graphic design is my passion) are the items I'll be discussing in this post. Of course, I already wrote about Superman, so I'll be going in depth about everything besides Big Blue. Ready? You better be.

Sinners (2025):

Everyone who says this is their favorite film of the year—I get it. And if you haven't seen it, one, get on that, and two, there won't be any spoilers here, and that goes for the rest of the items on this list. Pretty much everything you've heard about this movie is true. It looks amazing, the acting is phenomenal, the writing is genius, and the music is transcendent. It excels as a period piece as well as a supernatural horror (adjacent) action movie. Ryan Coogler can just do it all.

As someone who values writing above all else, Ryan Coogler put together a very tight script. While many have said the first act drags, I think the emphasis on showing the community around the Mississippi Delta, specifically the different groups of people populating the area, is indicative of the kind of care and consciousness Coogler made this movie with. It would be easy to discuss assimilation via a single group of people, but Coogler knows his history, and by showing how Black, Chinese, Irish, and Native Americans interacted with each other and White people at the time is key to what the film is trying to say.

And the music. Dude, the fucking music. Sinners is practically a musical with how many of its tracks are diegetic. The blend of modern, electric sounds meeting period-specific blues gives the film its identity in the OST and is a beautiful form and content moment with its themes of the past meeting the future. The diegetic music is the good stuff. I've been listening to "I Lied to You" and "Rocky Road to Dublin" just to catch a whiff of the high I experience watching their respective scenes.

Finally, if I had to have any issues with the film, its some minor editing mishaps during one particular scene, and perhaps the way its billed. Like, this isn't really a horror movie, at least not to me. There's some spooky imagery, and the way it uses the concept of vampirism to discuss the parasitic relationship that White people have to Black culture is how monster and horror fiction, at its best, operate, but this movie isn't scary, nor does it really try to be. Its an action movie first and foremost, and that's fine. Its a very good action movie. Sinners deserves all the success its enjoyed, and I firmly believe this will be considered a modern classic in the years to come.

Carrie (1974):

Not a great time to decide to be a Stephen King fan with all his weird Epstein tweets, but nevertheless, I picked up Carrie back in May and finally decided to read it in early July and absolutely devoured it. I have a lot to say about this book, so much so that I might to a dedicated That Good post about it later down the line, but for now, I'll give an overview of my general feelings.

While not explicitly scary, Carrie inspires a primal fear in me because I, too, was once a teenager, and I know that the inside of a teenager's head is the worst place you could ever be. Structurally, Carrie is right up my alley. Its well-paced, hops into multiple characters' heads, and breaks into some epistolary action as King includes future literature written about Carrie and the impending incident. It casts the story as a tragedy with a fixed ending that no one could have stopped, but we were all responsible for.

I get chills even just writing this short little rundown. The way that King's prose, especially early on, makes Carrie out to be the most pitiful girl in the world immediately endears the reader to her. The word "bovinely" bounced around in my head for days. Since King was a schoolteacher at this time, this story was no doubt influenced by some of the behavior he observed. The way he was able to nail the characterization of these young people, even decades removed, feels authentic. Behind Carrie, Sue Snell is probably my favorite character. Motivated by guilt, she has the best of intentions, but she doesn't know what kind of story she's in. "Sorry is the Kool-Aid of emotions" is something I'll take with me until the end of my days. I look forward to reading more King, since Carrie has quickly become one of my favorite novels.

"New" Wolfenstein (2014-2019):

It took me all month, but I played all the modern Wolfenstein games. If you're unfamiliar, Wolfenstein (1992) practically birthed the first-person-shooter video game genre, christening it with the blood of Nazis. Machine Games rebooted the franchises in 2014 with Wolfenstein: The New Order, an alternate history story in which the Nazis win WW2 and the player must overthrow the Nazi empire in a retro-futuristic 1960's. The New Order was followed by a prequel, The Old Blood, then a direct sequel, The New Colossus (my beloved), and lastly, Youngblood.

I have a whole That Good post planned for the entire reboot timeline (stay tuned), but for non-spoilers, these games are fun to play, beautiful to look at, and provide cathartic Nazi killing action. If shooters aren't your thing, turning the difficulty down and enjoying the wild ride these games will take you on is a worthwhile endeavor—that's basically what I did. The shooting and stealth gameplay aren't what compelled me, it was the alternate history, sci-fi premise. The worldbuilding is immaculate, and its not what you expect, as this series has plenty of tricks and surprises up its sleeve.

With Amazon green lighting a Wolfenstein show, its my hope that they adapt these new games and garner enough attention to complete the "New" saga.

Raising a Rare Girl (2020):

This book is a memoir by Heather Lanier, who will soon be my college professor at Rowan University this upcoming Fall semester. I don't typically read non-fiction, because I'm a fiction writer who enjoys lies, but I think this has opened me up. The topic of this memoir is Lanier raising her daughter, Fiona, who was born with a rare chromosomal condition named Wolf-Hirschorn syndrome, or 4p-, as support groups call it.

Before we get into the content of the memoir, the story of how it came to be has always intrigued me. Lanier blogged her experiences in parenting, then wrote an essay called "Superbabies Don't Cry," which garnered a lot of attention online, and she parlayed that into creating this book. That's an abbreviated version of what she told me when she spoke at one of my publishing classes.

I want to say this book is "powerful," but not for the reasons you'd think. It discusses disability, of course, but also narratives around it, how able-bodied people, whether they know it or not, put disabled people in boxes. What's "powerful" about it isn't related at all to "overcoming" disability, or the struggles of parenting a disabled child, or any nonsense like that, because those are the narratives that Lanier is taking to task. What I find powerful is Lanier's capacity for change, the role model she becomes for able-bodied people in dismantling their hidden biases regarding disability. These people aren't "broken," but the way out society treats them is.

I can't lie, its weird reading a memoir by someone who only kind of knows you. Ideally, you want a definite status one way or the other. I mean, its not like we all know Sully Sullenberger personally. But hey, this is one hell of a conversation starter.

Mamma Mia! (2008):

This movie altered my brain chemistry. As an ABBA fan but not much a theater or musical guy, it took me about halfway through the movie to really warm up to it, but afterwards, I fell for it and fell for it hard. I sometimes struggle with movie musicals, (last year's Wicked really did not do it for me), but the singing here doesn't feel like a separate element of the story. In fact, ABBA might be the universal language in which all humans of the Mamma Mia! universe can communicate. At worst, this movie can really drag, especially in the first half where the the songs are used for mostly expository purposes, but in the second half, it gets going, using the songs to develop the relationships and plots and its already set up.

The cast is undeniably iconic. Everyone here is giving 110%, and without that effort, this movie would fall like a house of cards. Pierce Brosnan cannot sing, but goddammit is he trying. Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgård are an underrated comedy duo, and I'd say one of my few complaints is how underutilized this is. Meryll Streep is an absolute powerhouse here, and Amanda Seyfried is cast so well as her daughter that I was beginning to believe that Streep underwent cellular mitosis.

Finally, the music. Basically every notable ABBA track is used here, leaving little for the disappointing sequel to use. What I've always loved about classic ABBA is how these songs have an almost gothic quality to them. Their sound is grand and romantic but also dark and haunting, and this duality does this thing to my brain that I quite enjoy. "Lay All Your Love On Me" is my absolute Mamma Mia! joint, but "Does Your Mother Know?," and "The Winner Takes It All" are amazing renditions with amazing scenes attached. This is a soundtrack I see myself returning to...forever. Yeah, forever.

Thunderbolts Volume 1, "Justice, Light Lightning...":

Another book I bought in May but didn't read until July. Like many, I was enchanted by this year's Thunderbolts film, and unlike many, I actually decided to read their comics. I bought the first Epic Collection for the original 1997 series written by Kurt Busiek with art primarily by Mark Bagley. This volume collects issues 1-12 of the ongoing series as well as a number of annuals, specials, and guest appearances of the team in other comics.

I will be discussing spoilers in the next section, but if you're at all interested in this comic, I recommend reading it 100%. Its a hot slice of classic 90's era superteam fun. If you loved how the film made you fall in love with some unlikely Marvel anti-heroes, you'll love the cast of this book as well. It balances action, intrigue, and character work all while having some excellent narrative momentum. This collection paces the issues chronologically so you can see how every appearance of the T-bolts builds on itself. The team is hungry for publicity, and their dealings with the public and the powers that be add another layer to the already engaging centrifuge that Busiek has built. It might seem basic or quaint at points, but its modesty is what makes it approachable. Pick this up, you won't regret it.

SPOILERS BELOW:

If you're reading this, be warned: I'll be spoiling the main twist of the series, which is revealed at the end of issue 1. The original version of the Thunderbolts are actually the supervillain team called the Masters of Evil in disguise as an up and coming superhero team after the Fantastic Four and Avengers were defeated by Onslaught. Since the team was billed as an all-new squad of original characters, its one hell of a twist, and honestly, a more impressive con as time goes on. The twist gave this team of mostly c-list villains new life, as each and every costume designed Mark Bagley is a modern classic. Songbird and Citizen V are the breakout characters here, since they've stood the test of time better than the rest, Songbird is the Thunderbolt, and V's design is so iconic that everyone has taken a turn assuming the identity. When I was a kid, I saw Songbird in cartoon and was unsure of she was a hero or villain, Pretty on brand, I suppose.

The second act these characters get isn't just because of the series raising their popularity, as the characters themselves find being heroes a better alternative to getting beaten up by Spider-Man, so the mutiny against Zemo is very believable. As a fan of the Exiles, another original 90's era superteam, I enjoyed how this was a cape comic that wanted to explore a group of characters with a more elastic sense of morality. We know which members are true heroes, but wading in that morally grey zone with genuine interest is what makes this comic so compelling. The team never does anything beyond the pale, but the potential is there, and its thrilling. This premise is just electric, and Busiek gets everything he can get out of it in these 12 issues, and seeing as how this run goes on for nearly 70 more, I'm interested in where the T-bolts go next.

"DON'T TAP THE GLASS" (2025) by Tyler, the Creator :

Okay, I'm no Anthony Fantano, so I'll keep this quick. I've never even listened to a Tyler album before this, so I can't say if this is some radical departure or just more of the same, but I can tell you that I really like this record, and I've been keeping it on rotation since I pressed play the first time. So far, 2025 has been a big disappointment. I mean, across the board, but specifically in terms of pop music. While the charts are filled with boring, conservative slop, I've been searching for something with a pulse, and after a long, grueling summer, I think we've finally got it.

I don't often talk about music because I'm pretty uninformed about the formal aspects of it, but I really like whatever's happening here in terms of genre. There's clear rap and R&B stuff going on, but the electronic production was designed to appeal to my ears specifically. "Sugar on My Tongue" sounds like a lost Gorillaz track, "Ring Ring Ring" has an absolutely infectious baseline, and "Don't You Worry, Baby" is just majestic. Clearly, Tyler wants you to dance, and you bet your ass I am doing a white guy shoulder shimmy to this shit, and will be for the rest of the year.

Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025):

This is the one you've all been waiting for. Originally, I didn't have enough to say about this movie to make a dedicated post like Superman, so this is my compromise. On its own, First Steps is a good movie. Nothing special, really, but it does some unique stuff for an MCU flick. Firstly, it takes place on its own earth, so Redditors don't need to waste time asking why Spider-Man didn't show up to help, and secondly, its unabashedly Jack Kirby inspired. Its clear the people making this have a deep love for Kirby's work on the FF, and that came through in the way this movie looks. The retro-futuristic art direction to this world makes it, by far, one of the best looking and made Marvel films period. Plus, the costumes are the best these characters, or any others, have looked on screen perhaps ever? The Thing is ripped straight off the page, and the fact that these uniforms actually look like their made real material is such a relief. I need more of this and less nanotech, kevlar weave bullshit.

Yes, I do want yellow spandex.

Next up, the score. Michale Giacchino, who you might know from movies like The Incredibles, The Batman, and other films with "the" in the title, absolutely killed it. I usually don't notice a film's score at all, and hardly ever during a first watch, but its so powerful that you can't not hear it appearing during important scenes like its its own character. The notes of the main Fantastic Four theme recurring throughout is a great touch, and this twinkling brass band sound for the team is a perfect fit. The vocal choir getting in on the action is a something I always like in orchestral scores, specifically the big "Fantastic Four!" shout that's become pretty iconic, but the chanting during "Nothing Neutron Under the Sun," a track that made me turn to my friends in the theater, really gets me going. This technique is used to make tracks connected to Galactus have a grandiosity that emphasizes his role as an ancient, primal adversary. This is the only Marvel film that has an interesting soundtrack outside of needledrops, and it deserves credit for that.

Next, the casting. Each and every one of the Four is perfect in their role. Its time for everyone to apologize to Joseph Quinn. Now. Okay, I'll admit that he's probably the weakest link here, but his Johnny Storm is our best yet, and this script actually treats him like a character, not a caricature. In addition to being a hotheaded himbo, he's also sensitive, protective of his family, and has hidden depths and talents that this conflict brings out if him. Quinn, like Johnny, has the most to prove here, as he's surrounded by veteran actors, but he holds his own. He has the potential to bring a lot of out Johnny, and by the next time we see him, I know we'll get a "Flame on!" that puts the rest to shame.

I was just as glad to see Sue finally got the respect she deserved. There was a lot of noise made by anti-woke assholes about Sue being marketed as a the leader of the team, but I'm not sure if the statement is true. Its more accurate to say she's the team's center, its core, both emotionally and spiritually. She embodies their ideals, and its the boys who do their best to make it happen alongside her. Like the others, Sue is a scientist, adventurer, and hero, but also a mother, so Vanessa Kirby gets a lot to chew on with this role and kills every single facet of it. She's so dynamic, as at one moment she's brokering international peace agreements between nations and the next, ordering Johnny to kill the Silver Surfer with a literal gun. And this is nothing against Jessica Alba, as she could have been a great Sue, but the scripts for the previous films never saw Sue as her own character outside of her male attachments. Kirby's Sue (heh) gets to have great interactions with all the rest of the Four but also have her own stuff going on.

Pedro Pascal, at first, felt almost like a stunt cast, but his Reed Richards is so unlike his other roles that I felt some shame for doubting him. Sure, Reed is a father like Joel or the Mandolorian, but if Ioan Gruffudd's is defined by his dorkiness, Pascal's is defined by his pensiveness. Here, Reed's intelligence is cold and almost terrifying, a far cry from Gruffudd's warm, fatherly charm. Pascal's performance is indicative of the film's dryer sense of humor, which is a welcome change from Marvel's standard quip competition. This is the best on-screen adaptation of Reed thus far, and while I like the more Rivals-esque adorkable quality that he sometimes has, Pascal's more reserved, thoughtful take fits the stakes of this particular version. I think the autism reading for Reed is also very strong here. He's burdened by a sense of shame about the accident that created their powers, but he also says he's always felt he had something wrong with him, and I think people will find whatever they want ti find in that. As a terminally neurotic freak trying everyday to appear as a normal person, I certainly related.

Finally, we have Ebon Moss-Bachrach as The Thing. This is slam drunk casting, the only issue is Ben is definitely left with the least to do out of the Four. He's clearly a victim of whatever cutting happened behind the scenes, but honestly, I didn't mind his muted presence. For one, the previous films all gave a lot of time to Ben's pathos, and I don't think we need to retread it, and secondly, the characterization is so on-point that its fine if he doesn't exactly get an arc here. One of my favorite parts of the film is how every one of the Four get to prove why they're here. The scene inside the Excelsior showcases everyone's talents. Ben's flies them home to safety, Johnny is takes action on the ship's gun, Sue manages to use her powers while giving birth, and Reed leads them all through it. I really enjoyed how they acknowledges that Ben is a damn good pilot, and has more to offer than sheer brawn or heart like how previous films characterize him. Through his interactions with Reed and Sue, we see how he's the rock of the team, and I loved his relationship to Johnny, as its equal parts brotherly love and brotherly hate. This is a borderline perfect adaptation of the character.

The last major players are the Silver Surfer, Shalla-Bal, played by Julia Garner, and Ralph Ineson's Galactus. Being a Final Fantasy 16 fan, I knew Ralph Ineson's voice was one of the most unique out there, so his booming English resonance was perfect for Galactus. As an ataognist, Galactus is little more than a plot device, but the way he's rendered as some kind of eldritch, H.R. Geiger space demon is pretty awesome. The standout character here has to be Shalla, though. On the surface, she's the biggest departure from the standard FF mythology, as its typically Norrin Radd who's all naked and chrome, she's a pretty familiar adaptation of the character. The film gives her some pretty spectacular scenes to showcase her powers as a herald, and seeing her literally surface on cosmic lava sealed her one of the coolest Marvel characters seen on screen. Shalla's relationship to Johnny is what really makes this film's take unique, though. These two characters bring out the most interesting parts of one another, and, minor spoiler, I'm glad they didn't take it in a romantic direction. They simply don't have the development or chemistry to pull that off, and it would have felt unnatural. That, and my selfish desire is that in the next multiverse movie, Shalla might be reunited with Norrin Radd's Silver Surfer from another Earth, and these chromed lovers might be reunited. This sentiment might age like milk, but we'll just have to wait and see.

Clearly, I like this movie, seeing as how I yapped about it for far longer than anything else I've talked about on this list, but its probably the third best superhero film of 2025. Even after all that praise, I was left thinking that First Steps just doesn't have many surprises up its sleeve. Most of its interesting content comes from the character work, which is great, but the plot follows a pretty standard trajectory, and familiarity with either the original Coming of Galactus story or the previous film only make the viewer better guess how this one will play out. Clearly, there are parts of the movie cut out, but I can't say it would it have been better if there were more super apes or Mole Man. I'd much rather have scenes that put more meat on Ben's story or show us some backstory for the Four.

In the end, First Steps exactly what it says on the tin. If you want a solid Fantastic Four film that gets the characters right and provides and engaging world and plot, then you've got it. Nothing more, nothing less, and that's fine. I still prefer Superman and Thunderbolts to this, but First Steps really is an achievement. When Marvel takes risks like this, we have to support them when they work out, and I certainly want more movies like it.

Excelsior!