THINGS THAT MADE ME HAPPY IN FEBRUARY

February was a month that just plain got away from me. It was as bitterly cold in Ohio as I can remember. I was feeling poorly as I prepared for Akronomicon and ended up leaving the event early when I got quite ill. Three days later, I was admitted to the MetroHealth hospital in Cleveland Heights. I was there four days and received excellent care on all fronts. 

I came home on Friday the Thirteenth, which made my Saintly Wife Barb nervous. I don’t understand that. She’s never even seen any of the movies. All kidding aside, she took wonderful care of me as I slowly recovered from the debilitating effects of being too damn old for my own good.

If my being physically ill wasn’t enough, the child-molester-in-chief and his vile cronies and his idiotic supporters ramped up their awfulness way past 10. You saw the news. You know the evil they continued to unleash on our country and the entire world. I wish Hell would take them all right now.

The purpose of my daily “Things That Make Me Happy” posts is to embrace whatever joy each of those days brought me and to share that joy with all of you. We must hold on the little things as we pray for better big things to come our way.

Here are the books and more that brought me considerable joy in the otherwise shitty month of February.

February 1: Separation of Church and Hate: A Sane Person's Guide to Taking Back the Bible from Fundamentalists, Fascists, and Flock-Fleecing Frauds by John Fugelsang. The long title says it all. The best non-fiction book I’ve read in years.

February 2: Sabrina Carpenter singing and performing “Manchild” at the 2026 Grammy Awards. Her lively appearance made me smile from the start. The choreography and props were amazing. One of the best awards show performances ever.

                                                                            

February 3: Do Women Need Sex Entertainment Vol. 1 by Yachinatsu and Sono Yoshioka. Broke and single, Sono takes an admin job at an escort agency catering exclusively to women. A delightful, funny and gentle sex romp. Mature readers only.

                                   

 

February 4:: The Muppet Show is back and I loved it. It had the funny quirky feel of the original but still felt fresh. I was grinning like a kid all through the episode. Let’s hope this is just the launch of a new series!.

February 5: Godzilla Legends: Mothra: Queen of the Monsters by Sophie Campbell and Matt Frank. IDW continues to produce amazing Godzilla series. This one is a different and fascinating take on one of my favorite Kaiju. Recommended.

February 6: Mana to Miniskirts by Tanya Mondragon. A gamer nerd is struck by a gender-change virus and navigates her new reality like a D&D campaign. Transgender romances are often formulaic, but this one takes a different approach and is well-written to boot.

February 7: Akronomicon 2026 was a winter horrorland of actors, creators, creatures and vendors. I was thrilled to connect with old friends like Brinke Stevens and Nancy Anne Ridder. I will be back in 2027.

                                                                               

February 8: My Girlfriend is 8 Meters Tall by Wataru Mitogawa. This manga is more charmingly saucy than sexy as normal-size student Yumeji tries to make life a bit easier for his childhood friend Chieri. I love these characters and this series. 

February 9: Louis Cato and the Great Big Joy Machine. I love the Late Show band and I’m guessing/hoping the new name means we have not seen the end of this wonderful group of musicians. Long may they make musical magic!

                                 

 

February 10: “See the USA in Your Chevrolet!” I’ve never been a car girl, but when I listen to rising country artist Brooke Lee singing a modernized version of that tune, I’m filled with warm nostalgia. What a wonderful way to celebrate the brand’s 20-year anniversary!

February 11: Godzilla Kai-Sei Era #1-6 by Tim Seeley and Nikola Cizmesiga. IDW is breaking the rules with all kinds of different takes on the Great Scaly One. I prefer traditional Godzilla, but I can’t deny these are very interesting.

February 12: MetroHealth. I spent four days in Metro’s Cleveland Heights facility. It was excellent. A comfortable large room. Staff that was efficient, friendly and kind, and who always used my correct name and pronouns. Top marks all around.

February 13: MetroHealth. Comics writer Jenny was the celebrity of my floor, almost as big as the soap opera star who was there a while back. I enjoyed talking to staff members about comics. I didn’t have an appetite, but they surely fed my ego.

February 14: MetroHealth. An amusing thing about my stay at the Cleveland Heights hospital was people telling me about the deep divide in their families. They were divided between Marvel and DC. This took me back to the 1960s.

                                                                                 

February 15: Sensation Comics #38 (Facsimile Edition). I always get a kick out of these DC editions featuring complete issues of rare Golden Age titles. It’s like time-traveling to a different era of heroes, gangsters and Nazis.

February 16: Live with Kelly and Mark. Saintly Wife Barb got me hooked on this talk show. The banter between Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos pairs well with a breakfast sandwich. We both love the daily “Stump Mark” segment. Pleasant viewing.

February 17: Doctor Doom Epic Collection: Enter...Doctor Doom. I lean towards Victor being the quintessential Marvel villain. These 1962-1969 tales tales show his beginnings and development. Six decades later, he still intrigues me.

                                                                               

February 18: The Leopard from Lime St. by Tom Tully. Yes, this is a blatant rip-off of Spider-Man with the young hero getting powers from a radioactive leopard. But, gosh darn it, it’s funky fun and I’m enjoying it immensely.

February 19: The Gorgon (1964). I’d not seen this British horror movie until it aired on Svengoolie recently. I saw the ending coming but the film itself was well acted with decent suspense and a real sense of tragedy. I liked it.

February 20: Christine Jorgensen: A Personal Autobiography was a gift from a Facebook friend. She was the most famous transwoman of the 1950s and beyond, yet I knew little about her. This great book is filling in the gaps for me.

                                                                                   

February 21: The Complete Yancy Street Gazette. The YSG was one of the first fanzines I subscribed to. It was also one of the first I wrote for. I made lifelong friends though its pages and I am thrilled to see those issues again.

February 22: Men’s Adventure Quarterly #9. It’s been a minute or three since I last wrote about this fine magazine. This issue has gators galore. Lots of great men’s adventure mags history and chilling croc attacks. What’s not to love?

                                 

     

February 23: Barb found this box while going through stuff. It’s full of my dad’s cuff links and tie clips. He didn’t get many chances to use them because he worked six days a week, but he most definitely had style. I’ll showcase some of these pieces in the near future.

February 24: Tombstone French Fry Crust Pizza (Loaded Bacon Cheddar). Frozen pizza’s a go-to here. This was a hit. You could taste the “french fry” and the bacon and cheddar complimented it. Warning: it loses something if you eat it cold. Heat the leftovers up.

                                                                                      

February 25: Taylor Tomlinson Prodigal Daughter (Netflix). What a sensational stand-up special! Hilarious, insightful, moving, spiritual. It hit so many marks for me. One of the best stand-up acts I’ve seen in years.

February 26: Black Cat Books in Medina. There are many reasons to love this place. One of them is the monthly Tatum’s Top 5. It’s rare when my interest is not piqued by one of this woman’s choices. She has excellent taste. Now excuse me while I order one of her latest recommendations.

February 27: I hadn’t driven my SUV since just before my recent hospital stay. Today, I drove it for the first time in three weeks. I went to the Medina Library and Carol and John’s Comic Book Shop, Cleveland’s best. I’m on the road again. 

February 28: Saintly Wife Barb bought a new car. It’s a Cadillac XT4 and, if I’m a very good girl, she may even give me a ride in it. Seriously, she deserves this vehicle and I am over the moon happy for her.

Here are the “best of show” winners.

BEST COMIC BOOK: Doctor Doom Epic Collection: Enter...Doctor Doom

BEST BOOK: Separation of Church and Hate

BEST MOVIE OR TV SHOW: Taylor Tomlinson Prodigal Daughter

BEST PERSON: Barb Isabella

BEST OTHER THING: The Complete Yancy Street Gazette.

As I mentioned in my previous bloggy thing, I have no convention appearances scheduled until July when my son Ed drive to Chicago for G-Fest. I can hazard a guess as to why this is the case, but I’m honestly not crushed by this situation.

This will give me the time to finish one major project and make a lot of headway into a second. If the months go as smoothly as I would like, I may be able to add a few small projects to the mix. This excites me.

If, perchance, you are someone who wants to invite me to appear at your comics convention or store, e-mail me and we can work out the various details of such appearances. I’ll do my best to accommodate you.

That’s all for today. I’ll be back with more bloggy fun in the very near future. See you then.

© 2026 Tony Isabella

 

THINGS THAT MADE ME HAPPY IN JANUARY

 

Welcome to this horrible delayed edition of “Things That Make Me Happy.” I’ve been feeling sickly all month and it caught up with me in the form of a four-day stay in the hospital. Nothing life-threatening, but it’s left me very weak. I’m taking it easy as I regain my energy. I set myself modest goals every day and I have been able to meet them.

Here are the things that brought me joy in January…

January 1: 2026. New year, new hopes. While hope alone will not be enough to achieve the better and more just world all decent people seek, it’s the first step in creating that world. Let’s all try to live up to those hopes.

January 2: House of Secrets #83 (January, 1970). The DC horror comics were at their peak here. A sad/happy tale by Marv Wolfman and Alex Toth. A super-scary one by Gerry Conway and Bill Draut. These comics were a training ground for great writers.

January 3: Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery. The third and most intense in the Benoit Blanc series. Daniel Craig gives his best performance yet as the master detective with Josh O’Connor impressive as a troubled young priest. Magnificent.

January 4: Supergirl #5 [November 2025] by Sophie Campbell and Pauline Ganucheau. “Paws and Effect” is a charming tale of the Super-Pets. I laughed out loud when Krypto “thought” he couldn’t understand English because he was just a dog.

January 5: Myles Garrett of the Cleveland Browns set the NFL’s single-season sack record. The Browns are and have been a train wreck due to their immoral ownership, but individual players can and do rise above that stink. Huzzah to Myles Garrett.

January 6: All-Negro Comics: America's First Black Comic Book is a comics history treasure, reprinting that singular issue with additional commentary and even some new stories. The reprinted material is what makes this a must-read. 

                                 

 

January 7: Ed Isabella was sworn in as Medina’s new Councilman-at-Large and, in addition to being named to several committees, he was named chairman of the Streets and Sidewalks Committee. He is the youngest member of the City Council.

January 8: The Daily Show: Jordan Kepler’s masterful takedown of Russian operative and Batman fanatic Benny Johnson is epic and hilarious. My Batman would have never been an inspiration to scum like Johnson.

January 9: Kaijumax Complete Collection Volume One by Zander Cannon. A gritty series about a kaiju prison that’s much grimmer than Toho’s Monster Island. A great example of how much a clever creator can do with this genre.

                                                                               

January 10: On Starlit Shores by Bex Glendining. A graphic novel about grief and growth, made more evocative with a haunting and satisfying supernatural element. It’s aimed at young adults, but this old lady loved it. Recommended.

January 11: Ed Isabella is Medina’s new councilman at large. His swearing in was amazing. Barb held a Bible and my dad’s service flag while our friend Jess administered the oath of office. It was a grand night of pride and family and friends.

                                                                                

January 12: Elvira in Horrorland by David Avallone and Silvia Califano. This five-issue series finds our mistress of the dark traveling through films like Psycho and Nightmare on Elm Street. It’s got laughs, legs and cleavage. I love this stuff.

January 13: Abbott Elementary came back from its winter break to face a new challenge. With their school in need of repair, they relocated to an abandoned mall. Making the space work for their students has been challenging and hilarious. The show is better than ever. .

January 14: Good Life Fine Jewelry and Piercing. This happy girl got her first ear piercing from the wonderful Monica. The photo here doesn’t do justice to the beauty of this jewelry, but there will be better photos in the future.

January 15: Star Trek Starfleet Academy. I enjoyed this. It’s a different kind of Star Trek series with a fascinating premise and characters. Maybe too many, but I’m hoping for episodes that focus on individual crew and students.

January 16: Star Trek Starfleet Academy. Holly Hunter’s Captain and Chancellor Nahla Ake has some annoying tendencies, but when I see her curl up in the command center, all else if forgiven. Her character is a strong principled woman. I’m a fan.

                                                                               

 

January 17: Star Trek Starfleet Academy. Gina Yashere is amazing as First Officer and Cadet Master Lura Thok. Knowing she’s also a great writer (Bob Hearts Abishola), I hope she gets the chance to write some episoes as well.

January 18: Ripperland by Steve Orlando, John Harris Dunning and Alessandro Oliveri. Post-Brexit England as a Victorian theme park and its own Jack the Ripper. Two stalwart detectives. I want a movie adaptation now! 

                                 

 

January 19: Crime Rangoon by Vivien Chien. This new Noodle Shop Mystery finds Lana Lee working with her detective boyfriend to solve the murder of a mystery writer. I can’t believe no one has picked this series up for an ongoing TV series.

                                                                                

January 20: The Godzilla 2026 Wall Calendar. Produced by Trends International, this gorgeous calendar offers a year of terrific Godzilla artwork.

January 21: The New Girl by Cassandra Calin. Lia and her family move from Romania to Montreal. She’s shy. Her French is shaky. Yet she grows during her first year of school in Canada. This is a success story that left me smiling. Recommended.

                                                                        

January 22: Rental Family. One of the very best movies of 2025. Brendan Fraiser is an American actor in Japan who who works for an agency playing roles in the lives of strangers. It’s dramatic and heartwarming. I recommend it highly.

January 23: DC Finest Hawkman Wings Across Time. I liked Hawkman as a kid. I grew to love the character and the intricate plotting and world building of writer Gardner Fox when I reread the comics for my own Hawkman run. These stories are some of the best from DC’s Silver Age.

January 24: Peacemaker Season Two. I thought it was better than the first. More character development. More fantastical events and settings. Both Scarier and more heartwarming at the same time. Sign me up for Season Three.

January 25: Peacemaker Season Two. The close bond between Chris Smith (John Cena) and Leota Adebayo (Danielle Brooks) carries the emotional weight of the season. It is as amazingly odd as it is amazingly right. I believe them.

January 26: Peacemaker Season Two. As Rick Flag, Sr., father of the murdered Rick Flag, Jr., Frank Grillo joins the small racks of TV villains I scream obscenities at. He joins Tobias Whale and Hiram Lodge. Well acted, sir.

January 27: Governor Mikie Sherrill of New Jersey. Her recent appearance was wonderful. She has great ideas for her state. She has a sense of humor. We need more young leaders like her and fewer old farts, Bernie Sanders being the exception.

                                                                                 

January 28: Catherine O’Hara. I’m happy for the truly wonderful entertainment she brought me and countless others. She was one of the funniest performers of all time. I mourn her death, but celebrate her life.

January 29: Sarah Sherman. With the departure of Bowen Yang, she is my new favorite Saturday Night Live cast members. She’s cute and hilarious and obviously game for whatever the writers throw at her. I want to hang with her.

January 30: Greg Ketter, founder of DreamHaven Books & Comics in Minneapolis. His protest of ICE as tear gas swept around him was inspirational. Comics have always been “woke” and that’s one of the things I most love about them.

                                                                               

January 31: Troll 2. A sequel even better than the original. The stakes are greater. The human stories are more intense. This is a film that explores heroism and humanity, courage and fear, and will leave you stunned by how good it is.

Here are the “best of show” winners.

BEST COMIC BOOK: Elvira in Horrorland

BEST BOOK: Crime Rangoon

BEST MOVIE OR TV SHOW: Rental Family

BEST PERSON: Ed Isabella

BEST OTHER THING: Godzilla 2026 Wall Calendar

This is where I would normally tell you about my next convention appearances. Alas, I have no such events scheduled for the rest of February, March, April, May and June. I’m sad about this. I feel like the girl who never gets a Valentine’s Day card.

However, I’ll make good use of the time, writing stuff, working on various other projects, getting ready for the year’s comics and pop culture garage sales, which will commence as soon as the weather permits. I would love to have that be April, but it will more likely be May.

Still, if you’re a convention or events promoter and would like me to appear at your show, just e-mail me and we’ll work out an agreement to make that possible.

That’s all for now. I hope to have new bloggy things for you on a more regular basis. Until then, be brave, be kind, and be your true selves.

© 2026 Tony Isabella

THINGS THAT MADE ME HAPPY IN DECEMBER

 

Call me an incurable optimist, but I always have a little extra bounce in my step at the start of a new year. No matter how dire my country and my world appear to be, there’s always going to be a part of me that thinks “this is the year we turn it all around and be the people and the nation we should be.”

In that hopeful spirit, let’s pass on any litany of people and things that were not as they should have been in the previous month and cut straight to those things that brought me joy in December...

December 1: The Luminous Fairies and Mothra. The joint effort of three Japanese authors, this is the original story that was the basis for the movie. Includes a great afterword by translator Jeffery Angles. Kaiju fans will love this book.

December 2: Adventures into the Unknown #147 [March 1964]. “I’ve Got to Protect Nettie!” by Richard Hughes and Paul Reinman. Though it’s problematic that the protagonist is a Confederate officer, this tale has a lot of heart. It’s why I love this era of ACG comics so much.

December 3: Chic Stone. I loved his inking Jack Kirby at Marvel. But, as I read ACG's Adventures into the Unknown from the 1960s, where he’s usually drew the lead story, I’m bowled over by his ability to draw action, drama and humor with amazing skill. He’s truly an underappreciated comics talent.

December 4: Paul Reinman. I’m gaining a new appreciation for the work of this comics legend as I see his art in ACG’s Adventures into the Unknown. He worked with ghost pencillers from time to time, but the final results are full of life.

December 5: Wheel of Fortune. On the December 4 episode, Medina resident Kari Deeks won $23,921, which total included a Disney Wish Cruise. It’s always great to have a contestant from my home town to root for.

                                                                           

 

December 6. Saturday Night Live.Weekend Update’s Colin Yost is deliciously hilarious as Secretary of War Crimes Pete Hegseth. I would very much enjoy watching Yost stretch his comedic chops in other sketches as well.                                                                           

December 7: Viewing online photos of joyful trans women becoming their authentic selves and living full lives. No matter how much hate we face, we all deserve to be ourselves and find our happy endings.

December 8: The Daily Show. Jon Stewart presented an incredibly concise exploration of similarities between our ill-conceived war on Iraq and Trump’s new war on Venezuela. The cherry on this smart sundae was an appearance by Rob Corddry.

December 9: The Daily Show. Activist and author Malala Yousafzai returned to the Daily Show for a simply wonderful chat with Jon Stewart. Her new book is Finding My Way: A Memoir. She is what a hero looks like.

December 10: Stephen Colbert and Taylor Swift. It was one of the best late-night interviews I’ve ever watched. There was obvious chemistry and mutual respect between them, making for a terrific conversation. The more I see them, the more I know these are two of our finest Americans.

December 11: My Perfectly Imperfect Body by Debbie Tung. This is an incredible graphic memoir in which the cartoonist shares her story of her teenage body issues. Frank, honest, vulnerable, it is worthy of Eisner nomination and highly recommended.

                                                                     

 

December 12: A Christmas Murder Mystery (Amazon). Great fun as a quirky puzzle creator is invited to visit a wealthy family, just in time for the family patriarch to be murdered. I want to see more of Vera Vexley (Morgan Bradley). Recommended.

December 13: Secret Mall Apartment. A group of artists discover an unused space and make it a home of sorts. They live there for four years. It’s a documentary about art, community connection, creative and gentrification. Brilliant.

December 14: Today is the second anniversary of when I started gender-affirming therapy at Cleveland Sex & Intimacy Counseling. Therapy has been of enormous benefit to me as I learn about and reveal who I was all along.

                                                                           

 

December 15: Newly elected councilperson Ed Isabella (my son) talked to the fourth graders at Sidney Fenn Elementary School where he went to school. He got a glowing review from the Medina City Teachers Association.

December 16: Rain by Jocelyn C. DiDomenick was an impulse buy. How so? I bought all six volumes in this series about a teen male-to-female transsexual. It’s compelling and funny in places. I’m enjoying the heck out of it and recommend it to all of you as well.

December 17: Wheel of Fortune contestant Chantel won $60,200 in the bonus round. However, the solve that made my evening was the main game puzzle. The category was “Who’s Keeping Score?” and the answer was “Superman or Batman?”

December 18: DC Finest Horror: The Devil’s Doorway. I have just started reading this year-long gathering of comics from May 1969 to April 1970. What fun revisiting these tales by great creators like Gerry Conway, Marv Wolfman, Alex Toth and more.

December 19: I Wish I Didn't Have to Tell You This by Eugene Yelchin. This graphic memoir relates the creator’s scary journey from making art in Leningrad to a mental health “asylum” in Siberia to America. It’s an amazing work that goes deep into Yelchin’s despair and determination. Recommended.  

                                                                               

 

December 20: Bowen Yang. For the past few years, he has been my favorite Saturday Night Live performer. Immensely malleable. he could take on any role in any sketch. His farewell was funny and moving. I look forward to what he does next.

December 21: My Svengoolie trading cards have arrived. Each box had three pack of ten cards each. I’m opening a pack a day. My first one had a card drawn by Bill Morrison and a shimmer variant (136 of 700 printed) by Jeff Carlson. So much fun.

December 22: If we go by Tony years, I turned 74 today. If we go by Jenny years, it’s two. Either way, I’m still badass, feisty, fun to be around and kinda cute. I hope to travel to a bunch of conventions and stores in 2026.

December 23: Flip by bestselling author Ngozi Ukazu is a tale of high-school body swapping between a brainy black girl and a very tall white guy. There is humor, but the emphasis is on two teens trying to navigate a crazy situation. Recommended.

December 24: Getting birthday and Christmas cards addressed to my preferred name is always joyful, especially when the friends who send them know me so well. 

                                                                 

 

December 25: The Isabella’s 2026 Calendar was my favorite gift of the season. Now my great family can keep me company in my office every day of the year.

December 26: HGTV’s Junk or Jackpot. We get an accumulator whose treasures jeopardize their relationship and a designer who will use the money the collector gets from selling these treasure to renovate their home to make it work for both partners. It’s more heart-warming than you would think.

December 27: Flaming Love (Quality; 1949-1950). I’m reading and enjoying the Retro Comic Reprint of this six-issue series. The art is terrific, The writing is top-notch and more respectful of women than most romance comics of the era,

December 28: Doctor Doom. I got the Doctor Doom Epic Collection on Christmas. The character has evolved in ways unexpected, but I love these earliest adventures and am enjoying rereading them one at a time.

December 29: Last month, I gave the “happy” to the TrueVision storytelling of Harry Lazarus in Adventures into the Unknown. Today, it goes to an article on the process by Peter Normanton in his Cryptology #4. Great article, great magazine.

                                                                   

 

December 30: Twist Social Club and Landmark Smokehouse were the locations for a girls night out with two friends from my support group. Twist is the neighborhood LGBTQ+ bar I wish was in Medina and the Smokehouse food is terrific. I’ll be back.

December 31: New Year’s Eve and my new tradition. I am recording Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest so that I can still watch the ball drop after I fall asleep in the couch. Please...no spoilers! 

                                                                         

 

Here are the “best of show” winners.

BEST COMIC BOOK: Rain by Jocelyn C. DiDomenick

BEST BOOK: The Luminous Fairies and Mothra

BEST MOVIE OR TV SHOW: A Christmas Murder Mystery

BEST PERSON: Bowen Yang

BEST OTHER THING: Twist Social Club

My first convention appearances of the year will be Akronomicon on Saturday, February 7 and Pensacon, February 22-24. I’ll have more to say about them soon.

Note. If you’re a convention promoter and would like me to be a guest at your event, email me and we can work out the details. I would like to do no more than two events a month.

Happy New Year, friends. I’ll be back soon with more stuff.

© 2026 Tony Isabella