Letter From The Editor:
It’s been one month since I’ve launched The Cosmic Circus and started on this interesting new internet adventure. This post is the start of a monthly “Notes from the Editor” type feature to wrap up key happenings from the previous month and keep readers updated on what’s going on with the site in general.
In case you were wondering, yeah… it’s A LOT of work trying to get a site like this up and running. It really is. And I’ve had my moments of exhaustion, frustration, and doubt with this project this first month for sure. However, I think that there have been some great rewards as well, such as making new friends, and finding that I have far more people backing me up and supporting me than I thought I had. This support (from people like you reading this, I hope) has helped me feel encouraged enough to keep going and work to make the site better.
This past month has been kind of a learning journey as well for me, and for the writers contributing to the site I think. I am not the most tech-savvy of bloggers, nor am I great at making graphics, so this project has pushed me a bit to learn more about what I can do to give my site the best chance at success in what is a highly competitive niche. That being said, I’ve been quite pleased with what we’ve done so far, and how things have been coming together here.
Unfortunately, I still have a lot of learning to do (and perhaps some things I’ll never learn!); and evolution and improvements take time, a lot of it. Your continued support through reading and sharing articles, following the social media accounts, and supporting the site through the Cosmic Circus on Patreon, is very appreciated and will help both encourage myself and my writers and help pay for further work, evolution, and improvements here.
Thank you to those who are supporting this site in whatever way you can. If you’re not, then I hope you will consider it someday. I will do my best to not disappoint.
Sincerely, Ms. Lizzie Hill (@MsLizzieHill on Twitter)
July Star of the Month: Tucker Watkins
(This is where I will feature the winner of the monthly Cosmic Circus Writer’s contest, designed to reward authors who have contributed the most to the site each month.)
July writer’s contest winner Tucker Watkins wrote a dozen qualifying articles this month. This included a 3 part series on the currently filming and upcoming DC projects (1, 2, 3), reviews of both Snake Eyes: G.I. Joe Origins, and Netflix series Masters of the Universe: Revelations, as well as sticking up for a few films that often get a bad rap. He is a hard worker and very passionate about writing about comic book movies and series. Watch out for much more from Tucker into the future.
To check out all the great articles Tucker wrote this month, please see his author’s page: HERE.
Notable News and Exclusives
This site’s first exclusive was about The Wrecking Crew appearing in She-Hulk to the excitement of Marvel fans, and fans of men with mystical magical tools everywhere. I hope they live up to the hype. Although, I don’t have much doubt that She-Hulk will.
Other exclusives for the site in July included reporting that acclaimed British actor Simon Callow CBE has a role in Hawkeye, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever planning to film at M.I.T. (hmmm… I wonder why?), and the working titles for both Ironheart and Echo. See the Exclusives page to read all about it!
The Cosmic Circus didn’t start as a news site per se. This was meant to be more of a feature site of thoughtful posts and the occasional scoops about comic book, sci-fi, and fantasy-based films and series. However, one part of the planned “evolution” to The Cosmic Circus is more concentration on breaking news in the future. News reported here can be found on the News and Rumors page.
Please be sure to follow The Cosmic Circus on Twitter (@MyCosmicCircus) or Facebook to be alerted when there are new posts.
Features, Theories, and Reviews, Oh My!
Lots of great theories, reviews, and features were posted last month by our writers. Brian and Nathan have been working together on a “Marco Marvel” series (1, 2) and Brian also wrote defense of the Taskmaster in Black Widow. Drew wrote about why he thinks the Court of Owls is the real villain in The Batman, and speculation on where certain star actors might end up in the MCU.
In addition, Vin had a great pitch for a Black Panther prequel series, Uday broke down the What if…? trailer and speculated on its implications for the MCU, and Julia wrote a lovely open letter to Loki director Kate Herron.
I look forward to seeing what all the writers here can contribute to the site in the future, and you should too! To check out the rest of the features by our writers last month and currently, see the Features page.
Sights and Sounds From the Universe…
Along with creating official Twitter and Facebook accounts, there is a Cosmic Circus YouTube channel. There isn’t much there yet but we hope to add more reviews, Q&As, unboxings, etc in the future. It’s all part of the “evolution.”
The Cosmic Circus can also be found on Spotify as well as many other sites that carry podcasts. Speaking of which, currently, plans are in the works for a monthly writers’ roundtable-type podcast for them to chat about Marvel, DC, and other sci-fi, fantasy, news. The first episode should premiere mid to late August. It’s still being organized, but I suspect there’s going to be quite a bit of What if…? and Suicide Squad talk in that first one.
Until then, please check out audio reviews of Black Widow, and the Loki series, as well as the July Q&A held for members of the Patreon. These can be found at The Cosmic Circus on Spotify.
Patreon and Other Forms of Support
If you aren’t currently on the Cosmic Circus Patreon, please consider giving it a try, even for a month. We are offering movie watch parties, audio Q&As with a CBM insider (me), and an exclusive Discord for members. Support levels range from $1, $3, to $5 currently depending on the benefits you are most interested in.
The Patreon Discord has a wide array of CBM/Sci-Fi/Fantasy channels where users can discuss their favorites. Watch Parties are scheduled at least once a month, time permitting. The premiere party was for Black Widow, and we also had parties for Suicide Squad (2016) and Birds of Prey this month.
The next watch party is another exciting premiere. This time for James Gunn’s new Suicide Squad film. This is planned for Friday, August 6 (8 PM EST).
Needless to say, right now is a GREAT time to join the Patreon!
Further adventures…
Going forward, we have a podcast being planned, and an increase in news coverage, more scoops (hopefully), and lots and lots of Marvel and DC shows and films to look forward to. But we don’t intend to just cover CBMs, we intend to cover sci-fi and fantasy properties as well (at least this little Hobbit hopes so!), as time and writers’ interest permits. If there is a particular property that interests you for us to cover let us know in the comments or on Twitter. (@MyCosmicCircus)
To those who may be interested in writing here, this site is not currently actively adding writers for general coverage of CBMs. People who have a strong interest in writing about other sci-fi or fantasy properties may be considered, as well as those who are heavily into the comics (and in writing about new runs especially). You must provide previous writing samples that show how adept you are at writing, grammar/spelling, and putting your thoughts down coherently in a review, theory, or article. You must also have some kind of a social media presence that can be viewed. Please don’t take offense if you are not accepted.
Now, here’s hoping for a great month ahead of us ALL; full of “What if…?’s,” not what might-have-beens!
