This is a big deal to me. One thousand individual columns. Some might say it’s just a number, but it’s over a decade of cultivating and exercising my love for writing. Writing is my anchor in which I escape reality for just a while, allowing my mind to fill with ideas and the words to express myself on topics close to the heart. Reaching 1000 columns is by no means a sign of slowing down. This means lots more Image Comics reviews, my marking out for anything Daniel Warren Johnson or Kyle Higgins publishes, more AEW columns, and of course more Transformers are on the way.
Not realizing it, and I am not sure if Bill was aware of this [Editor’s Note: I can’t remember what I ate for lunch yesterday.], but with my 1,000th column reviewing another DC Comic universe launch, and featuring Booster Gold is certainly one hell of a call back to my first solo column where Booster Gold played a pivotal role in the bridge between Flashpoint and bringing the New 52 Universe to life. I think it’s fair to say that Booster Gold and I are inexplicably linked together, permanently.
My first entry into the world of The Pop Break came after Bill and I had been talking for some time about being a part of the site. At the time I was freshly unemployed and in grad school part-time, wanted to rekindle my love for writing. He told me about his plans for the site and adding more material, one of which was a column called three angry nerds. On August 4th, 2011, together with Jason Stives, and Daniel Cohen, I took a brief whimsical journey into our own perceptions of embracing the various fandoms — and thus it began. While I’m mostly known for Transformers and wrestling, my first column was not about either of those, but was about DC Comics relaunching their whole superhero line of books under the banner of New 52.
Over the past decade plus, I’ve been fortunate to contribute to many joint columns with other Pop Break staff members, collectively writing about TV shows, comic books, anime, ultimately writing a number of solo columns reviewing current trends. one of my favorites were columns featuring each Doctor from Doctor Who, going all the way back to the classics. Speaking of classics, another favorite column I contributed to was known as The Lost Picture Show.
Being able to review Flash Gordon, The Black Hole, and The Last Starfighter was pretty thrilling and definitely brought out more of my passion for writing. As I continued on to do more TV contributions and reviews, I began to jump right into covering WWE wrestling programming. By 2012 I was fortunate to have multiple wrestling columns, the WWE-ek, Superstar Spotlight – highlighting to stand out wrestlers, Rant-A-Mania where my inner heel would surface, and of course pay-per-view and TV programming. Two years in and was going strong.
Unfortunately, on October 5th, 2013, I had a “cardiac event” called a Myocardial Infarction which briefly sidelined me for about a month.
In case you’re not sure, it’s also known as a heart attack. Cardiologist said I had a 90% blockage. If you do find a way not to do Steiner Math, then you’ll understand when I say I was 10% away from possibly not making it to my 33rd birthday which was a week later. Thankfully we won’t know.
This kicked my ass into full gear. While working at an internship, something took over and opted to churn out more content. Wrestling, TV, and more comic book reviews came flowing.
For years wrestling became my staple on the site, and damn blessed to have Bill in my corner to brainstorm ideas and for me to join in on more group pieces.
Fast forward a few more years, and we’re kicking tuchas. Thanks to Bill, Rob Williams, and others, I got into podcasting, something which I internally feared due to lack of confidence in being able to present myself. The more casts I was on, the more confidence grew. While I opted not to branch out into my own, for now, I would guest host on podcasts in and outside of ThePopBreak.
The birth of AEW filled a growing void with my loss of interest in WWE.
Pandemic hit. Everything turned upside down. My job and private mental health practice exploded, and suddenly things took a turn for the difficult. Working from home, my wife working from home, three kids all at home, compromised immune system. Life got challenging. As Bill could tell you, my anxiety and being overwhelmed took a toll on me. [Editor’s Note: Mike was a huge part in helping me deal with my own mental health issues as he took many a night on ZOOM with me discussing what I was going through].
October 18th, 2021, four days after my 41st birthday, I elected to have surgery to remove part of my guts which was being destroyed by Crohn’s Disease. I have been living with this since I was 19. It sucks.
This whole love letter to The Pop Break is also my way of being bluntly open and honest about why I do what I do. I could have thrown in the towel at any point. Three kids, two major health problems, and I now have a full time job plus a private practice.
Here’s the thing. When there is something you love to do, and want to do it, you find a way. Writing has been in my brain and heart for as long as I could remember. Despite many of life’s obstacles getting in the way, this was the one thing I could not let go of. This, and my Transformers Collection.
If you’ve got a skill or talent and you simply want to let it fly free and continue to grow, then don’t give it up. Find a way. The way might not be easy or straightforward, but it is there.
This means more wrestling columns, more Transformers columns, more comic and television reviews, and more, more, more.
Thanks must be given, as through the site I have been given opportunities by writers and publishers to get a preview of their material before they release. It’s pretty cool, and I admit to marking out when a writer I follow reaches out and asks if I want an early PDF coy of their upcoming book to do a preview days before. Hell yes!
Now comes where I have to put over the guy who made this all happen. Bill and I have known each other since Rutgers. Bonding over our mutual love of pro wrestling, thanks to our advisor who encouraged it, Professor Steven Miller. I tried getting Bill a job at WWE while I was working there. Bill and I would continue our friendship following Rutgers, as wrestling, television, all things fandom were our common bond. That’s the thing about unique friendships, it’s not the quantity, it is all about the quality of that friendship. It didn’t matter how often we spoke, when we spoke it was like picking up the conversation where we left off. Up until a few years ago, we had not seen each other in-person since Rutgers. Sure, we saw each other on Skype or Zoom for podcasting. From text chats on google to the occasional virtual chat, Bill was there. Dude checked up on me after my heart attack, and repeatedly after my surgery. Not once did he question whether I could continue. We both knew there was no stopping me. With his encouragement and motivation, I pressed on harder than before. Thank you Bill for bringing me on board the Bodkin train.
Hey DC, Scott Snyder, if you’re still looking for a writer to launch the new All In Booster Gold solo series, slide into my dm’s, will you?
