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Writer: Donny Cates / Artist: Aaron Kuder / Marvel Comics

With the death of Galactus and The Black Winter last issue, Thor is clearly the greatest hero in the galaxy. Odinson struck down the World-Eater, drained him of his power cosmic, then turned him into armor and bones. The Black Winter tried to snatch up his herald’s body when Thor sent a monstrous lightning strike at Galactus’ body, using him as a bomb to take out the Black Winter for good.

If you haven’t been paying attention, Donnie Cates has been serving up top notch Thor writing for our reading pleasure. He currently has the God of Thunder consumed with the black snowflake that came trickling down after the explosion to show Thor his one true end. Aaron Kuder steps in to draw this one, but it’s been Matthew Wilson, the best colorist in the game, who gives Thor life!

With him being such a begrudged King, it was interesting to watch Thor fall back on the idea of loyalty, as he seeks out Beta Ray Bill and enlists his services and intel. Straight bars came flying out of Bill’s mouth, after the beat down he suffered in issue #3.

Witnessing Thanos pulling up with an infinity stone studded Mjolnir and gang of zombie heroes ready to eat your face off, will quickly humble you and force you to rely on your ride-or-dies.

Meanwhile, in Broxton, Oklahoma

The town is abuzz with it’s second Thor related interaction. Mjolnir crash lands in a field next to Adam Aziz’s body shop and the media comes running. You’re going to want to remember that name because he becomes someone that will be causing quite a stir in the coming issue(s).

My favorite part of reading this comic was jerk-mode Tony being all pissy because Adam Aziz called his personal cell to help with the unliftable God hammer in his backyard. One look at the engraving was all it took to put a giant smile on my face, and I know I’m not the only one!

Mjolnir’s issues, it landing in Broxton and the subsequent suitors of the hammer will be next issue’s focus, and I’m excited to see that. “The Devourer King” arc was some of the most epic storytelling I’ve ever seen, so Cates is dialing it back a bit and bringing us some homegrown fun with “Hammerfall”. This issue wasn’t meant to blow your socks off, but Thor is certainly headed in a good direction.

8 Galactus Helmet Decorations out of 10

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The post Thor #7 Review appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.

Writer: Chip Zdarsky / Artist: Francesco Mobili / Marvel Comics

The theme of identity has always surrounded heroes, no matter how big or small. Street level vigilantes like Daredevil have their families and friends to worry about, so a mask has always been necessary. World-saving legends like Iron Man or Mr. Fantastic also have their loved ones to keep in mind, but sometimes take the position that transparency is the best policy.

Secret Identities Vs. Accountability

Most Marvel fans witnessed this dilemma come to head in either the Civil War comics or recent movie, but either way, it’s never an easy decision to come clean after years of taking the law into your own hands. That was precisely where Matt Murdock found himself in Daredevil #21, until the day 1 homie Foggy Nelson saved his candy ass.

After the death of Leo Carraro, Daredevil feels it is only right to answer for his crimes. Ready to tell the world that Matt Murdock is Daredevil, Foggy flexes those fancy litigation skills and cites the Supreme Court allowing masked vigilantes to enter the court to testify under their aliases and masked up. Now Daredevil can turn himself in and go through the perp motions without having to reveal himself and risk his loved ones being murdered.

From mugshot to press conference, the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen is finally being brought to justice, under Wilson Fisk’s mayoral rule and anti-superhero NYC stance. It was a very real issue for Chip Zdarsky. Fighting crime is not for the faint hearted and having to stand trial for one of the few mistakes you made, on top of the hundreds of thousands of lives you’ve saved is easy for no one. Mobili does a good job of creating the visuals for Chip’s script and bringing the police depts, offices and city to life but I’d be lying if I said it his art came anywhere close to Marco Checchetto’s brilliant work.

Tying Up Loose Ends

Murdock hasn’t forgotten about the Stromwyns and their diabolical efforts to displace an entire NYC neighborhood of citizens. He knows it wont be easy to stop two dastardly fiends who can print money, so he enlists a few printers of money who may be able to help. He asks this issue’s surprise guest for a favor that he cannot repay, but knows the moral reward will outweigh the investment.

Mayor Wilson Fisk hasn’t forgotten about the surprise emergence from Typhoid Mary. Their conversation is interesting and, once again, telling of Zdarsky’s abilities as a writer. I’m very intrigued where this storyline will go in the future.

The guest appearances are well done because they add a layer of drama or intrigue to the story, and not simply used for the surprise factor. Zdarsky hit us with another nice little cliffhanger this issue and I personally don’t know much about this character so I’m excited to find out more. Chip Zdarsky really wants comic book fans to know that he’s pouring his all into Daredevil and the quality shows each and every issue. Good to great artwork backs up his talented writing and having an admirable hero with Daredevil’s level of grit and persona bodes well for Chip.

8 Ex-Girlfriend Returns Out of 10

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The post Daredevil #22 Review appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.

With fall officially here, the holidays are right around the corner. That means it’s time to indulge in something new, and we all love an excuse to treat ourselves and our loved ones. Given the year we’ve had, we really don’t need a reason to do something nice, to spoil someone, or to treat ourselves. And a new fragrance is a really special way to do that.

Whether you love the summery sweet scents that launched during the warm months, you like to spritz on the equivalent of your favorite bouquet of flowers, or you tend to get into those warm and spicy grown woman scents that bring the boys to the yard, there’s something for you.

Check out some of the 2020 fragrance launches that we couldn’t help but add to our vanities this season.

The post 25 New Fragrances To Add To Your Vanity This Fall appeared first on Essence.

Source: JGI/Jamie Grill / Getty

If you’ve been able to master caring for a young child during the pandemic while also balancing your work responsibilities, kudos to you. I have not.

I have a four-month-old son and started working again from home a little over a month ago. I am exhausted. As every work week begins, the dread intensifies because the truth is, infants are not cooperative when it comes to giving you time to handle your business. Employers are also not understanding when it comes to having to wait longer than they would like for what they need from you because you’re busy tending to a child. I’m hopeful as each day passes that at some point, I’ll figure out a way to create some balance. However, there are days where I find myself trying to calm a crying, screaming baby looking for attention, while crying myself because I can’t seem to get anything done.

I know I’m not alone in the struggle, as so many are caring for kids (some people watching multiple) while trying to be productive from home. Many are trying to help their kids navigate interactive classes until further notice and hopping on their own meetings in Zoom and Google Meet. The day-to-day is chaotic right now. How does one give themselves a break?

LaNesha Tabb has some ideas. The education expert with Juicy Juice is also a wife, mom, soon-to-be author, and primary educator. She teaches kindergarten full-time and is the brains behind Education With an Apron, a resource for teachers like herself to help them find innovative ways to instruct their students. We talked to her during this on-again, off-again back-to-school season about the best ways to look out for ourselves and be as understanding as possible with our kids during this extremely stressful time. Here are the nuggets of wisdom she passed on.

Practice Self-Care So You Can Be At Your Best For Your Brood 

Prioritize yourself! They say that if you don’t take care of yourself, you can’t take care of anyone else. While that may be cliché, that doesn’t make it any less true. This can mean making sure that you are prioritizing your physical and mental health. Make sleep an important part of your routine. Take some time for yourself to get to the gym to release the stress and tension that might come from working a full-time job and caring for children. Self-care can also mean making sure you’re prepping and preparing food ahead of time that you need for healthy eating. Finally, the most important tip to consider would be to harness the power of the word “NO.” We can’t take everything on. So many parents are wearing lots of hats – because they believe that that’s what “good parents” do. But a burnt out parent can’t be a good parent. The thing about these tips is, when you do them, your children (who watch EVERYTHING that we do) will notice. They will see how you manage your life and take care of yourself in the midst of a crazy season of life.

Manage Your Time Better By Prioritizing What’s Important and Seeking Help

As parents, we wear so many hats! This means that it can be really easy to get burned out if we aren’t careful. In order to avoid this, we can take a few steps to ensure that we manage our time well. We can prioritize our tasks not only by importance, but by whether or not you delegate. Just because we can do it all doesn’t mean that we should. For example, you might pack the perfect lunch for your children and that might be on your list of things to do, but if your partner is able and willing to help, let them! It may not be perfect, but if the children are fed and you’ve lessened your load…that’s a win! If you can spread out the responsibilities and tasks, you can save time and avoid burnout.

Keep Things in Perspective to Help You Practice Patience With Your Kids

If you find yourself snapping out of a lack of patience, please know this: you are not alone. We live in a world that demands our attention at every turn. If we are constantly in demand, it can be easy to feel like you want to explode after your child says, “watch this!” for the 19th time. When you feel like this, try to remember that the old adage holds true: the days are long, but the years are short. When you feel yourself getting frustrated and losing the little bit of patience that you have left, take a deep breath and picture your children 10 years from now. They will be older and want to hang with their friends more than you. Take a deep breath, open your eyes, and be grateful for the moment that you’ve been blessed with now.