Welcome, dear readers, to our regular letter column; a series of missives from and to the internet, delivered by a series of tubes. We welcome your comments and questions. About anything! We’ll answer it, and at least one of us will take you seriously. Maybe.

You can ask questions about comics. You can ask questions about things that aren’t comics. You can ask questions about existence or just question existence in general. Did you know that when you look away, everything around you becomes enveloped in darkness and is suddenly rendered non-existent? This is why everyone looks scared and out of breath when they come back into your field of vision. It’s the shock of greeting the day again, being afforded the chance to live once more until you thoughtlessly look away.

Now you know.

Thank you, internet.

———-

Kyle Jago (@itsjago) asks: If you were given a free trip to anywhere, but you only had a day to prepare, where would you go?

Brandon: One day to prepare? Cardiff, no question. Well, slight question. Danica would have to go with me, because I’m pretty sure if I went to Cardiff without her and did all the cool Doctor Who stuff, she would murder me several times. It would happen shortly after I would return. I’d knock on our door (because she would have changed the locks) and when she’d open the door, I would smile rakishly and extend my arms in a welcoming hugging gesture. She would stab me right then and there, and I would understand. You don’t go to Cardiff without your sweet baboo. Or else you get stabbed.

If it’s without Danica, I would probably go back to Australia. Danica’s not too keen on everything being giant and deadly - and neither am I, but Australia is pretty great. You can eat lamb there on the cheap, and I kind of like it there. In the winter. Their summer would murder me dead. Australia.

James: The answer that immediately comes to mind is Chicago, home of Wrigley Field and the Chicago Cubs, but that would be SILLY! I’m already going there in under a month, fulfilling a lifelong dream. I might as well pick somewhere else, right?

Here’s the thing, though: I honestly can’t imagine needing more than a day to prepare for a vacation, assuming the gift includes pre-booked flights and accommodations. I’m sure my work would understand, after all. And really, I already do all my packing at 2am before a 5:30am wake-up alarm for an early flight (not kidding), so I imagine having a whole day would be a luxury that I would completely waste watching Happy Endings on Netflix until 2am.

As for where I’d go, I’d probably go to either Iceland (a place I have wanted to go to for years) or Scotland, where the Leasks are from and where I feel I owe it to myself to go at some point in my life. Both places can be somewhat inhospitable in terms of climate (especially the Orkney Islands, where my family is from), but as I’ve long stated on the record that I prefer a climate that is actively trying to kill me at least six months of the year, I think I’ll do fine. Plus, they have haggis in Scotland! And skyr in Iceland! I’ll even try hakarl!

———-

Jay Runham (@jayrunham) asks: What is the best video game based on a comic book ever?

Brandon: Does Marvel Lego count? Because if Marvel Lego counts, then it’s Marvel Lego. And if it doesn’t count then who the hell do you think you are, king of all questions? This isn’t a monarchy, son. Or a reich. Why don’t you like Marvel Lego, Jay. WHY.

James: The problem here is that I actually haven’t played a lot of video games based off comic books! Lego Marvel is pretty great for how it uses the standard Lego video game formula and expands it into a big open world where there’s so much to do and explore. Plus, it’s genuinely hilarious. I also really enjoyed the X-Men arcade game, as well as the Capcom vs. Marvel games, though those are only HALF based on comic books and honestly, I lost my taste for fighting games years ago. But when I was a kid, waiting for my pizza at Roadrunner Pizza, home of the greasiest, most delicious-est pizza in West Edmonton? That arcade machine was my jam, yo. So Lego Marvel is probably the best for actual quality, but the other two will forever be close to my heart.

———-

Scott Williams (@scottowilliams) asks: Who was the best comic character created in the 90s? The 2000s? The 2010s?

Brandon: Hurm. Tackling this backwards entirely, I would say the best comic character created in the 2010s would be the new Ms. Marvel, Kamala Khan. A vibrant, wonderful character in the grand tradition on Marvel every-folk, with an infectious attitude and a heroic outlook on life. I get the distinct feeling that she’s going to inspire a lot of people in the coming years.

In the 2000s? I almost want to blanket out and claim the whole of the Runaways, but this is completely down to my attachments to the team. Also, they aren’t so much a “character” as they are several characters. You know what? Going in a completely different direction. Heath Huston, Fear Agent, Rick Remender (and company’s) answer to dying space pulp heroes. A well crafted character who still reverberates in my mind today.

As for the 90s, I’m going with Ben Reilly. There is no reason for this. He is the best nothing, but he was my Spider-Man, and sometimes, that’s enough. For me, anyway.

James: Um, actually, Brandon, Ben Reilly was created in 1975. I don’t actually have a point here, I just wanted to um, actually someone in our usually-facetiously-named Um, Actually column. My actual picks are:

• 90s: May “Mayday” Parker, aka Spider-Girl. She just barely squeaks in under the wire, being created in 1998, and honestly, her actual series, from the parts of it I read, were always a little hit or miss for me. That said, there was an undeniable energy about her, and I really liked the ideas of her character, book(s) and universe. There’s a reason she keeps coming back: she’s GREAT.
• 00s: Quentin Quire. I’ve said it before, but he was probably my favourite part of one of the greatest X-Men runs of all time, Grant Morrison’s (and Frank Quitely and the other awesome artists) New X-Men. It’s been really great seeing Quentin change and react over the years, and seeing some snot-nosed punk I always wanted to see get punched in the face become one of my favourite X-Men ever has really pleased me.
• 10s: Izabel, the sassy bisected teenage ghost from Saga! For reals, she’s literally my favourite new character of the last several decades. ALL HAIL IZABEL.

———-

Danica LeBlanc (@DanicaHere) asks: Hey Brandon, how is it like writing for Comics Beat?

Brandon: Haha, whaaaaat? That’s a surprising and completely unsolicited question if I ever heard one.

Yeah, for those of you who hadn’t heard (because I haven’t really talked about it on the site), I’ve started writing for Comics Beat lately as their… retailer correspondent? Kind of? At this point, I can pretty much contribute anything that fits into their wheelhouse, which is fun, and daunting.

So far, things have been going pretty good. I’ve gotten a few disparaging comments, and more than a few people telling the dude that was brought on to talk retailer from a retailers experience telling him how to do his job in the comments, which is a special kind of delight, but uh… whelp, it’s made all the better by the fact that my comics retail hero Brian Hibbs has come along a couple of times to back me up. Or not me, but my points. But still. It was pretty rad. So uh… go there! If you see anything labelled with The Retailer’s View, that’s me running my mouth off about the things.

James: Okay, if you people can’t actually read that, then I look really petty here. But for reals, I’m super proud of my boy for taking a big professional step. And have you read his articles? They’re good! You can find them here, more or less - Brandon doesn’t have an author page on the site yet, so look for “The Retailer’s View.” Read them! But tell me you love me more.

———-

That’s it for the one hundred and forty-ninth instalment of Um, Actually. Check in every Monday and Thursday for a brand new column. If you have anything you’d like answered, hit up our contact page! If you submit anything via Twitter – to @blogaboutcomics, @Leask, or @soupytoasterson – remember to include the hashtag #UMACTUALLY so that we don’t lose it. Remember: you can ask us anything. Seriously, anything.