Bruce Phillips narrowly skirts induction into Joss Whedon’s awesome cult, and he has this book to blame.

With the Dark Knight casting his long shadow over box offices this month, a true sidekick emerges to help define this troubled but beguiling hero. Batman Unauthorized lifts the cowl with 18 diverse essays that do a lot more to support the Caped Crusader than that “Aww shucks!” Robin, and should be the perfect warm-up for the big screen bat.

Calling all Star Trek fans and absolutely no one else!! This book is not for the light of Trekkie heart. Tim Wardyn got suckered into reading these essays and finds out that, for the most part, those who write about Star Trek are just a bunch of a-holes.

Can a Cold War-era spy find love in the 21st Century? The box office returns for Casino Royale say YES. If you want an idea why James Bond is still such a cultural force, the essays in this volume give you a lot to think about. Bob Pomeroy tells you about the good and the not so good from the Bond debates.

Two nerds hold a mock trial to determine the merits of George Lucas’s most popular creation. The result is somewhere between Night Court and A Few Good Men. James Greene Jr. is our court reporter for the day.