9. Zuda's Strangle/Switch
8. Barry Kitson on Amazing Spider-Man
7. Bedard Back On Birds Of Prey (or so they say this month)
6. Dirk Deppey Vs. Girl Wonder
5. Gail Simone Vs. Dave Sim
4. Colbert Vs. O'Brien Vs. Stewart
3. Doctor Who Season Four Trailer
2. Iron Man Superbowl Trailer
1. Wolverine and the X-Men Trailer
I can't decide if that Wolverine and the X-men trailer is kind of great or totally horrible.
ReplyDeleteLooks good to me, I can add it to the DVR list next to The Batman and Legion of Superheroes.
ReplyDeleteYes! Firestar makes the list!
ReplyDeleteThanks Val!
I can't decide if that Wolverine and the X-men trailer is kind of great or totally horrible.
ReplyDeleteIt could go either way, but Scott Summers looks kinda drunk to me - and they killed the Prof, so ... it's a good start in my book.
It does sort of mirror what is happening in the comics too ... and Emma Frost will be in it. So, again, so another added bonus.
But, it also could play in to what I call the 'Beta Ray Bill Problem.' Sometimes things can FAIL on every critical and crucial level (Marvel Ultimate Alliance, for example), but still WIN if your favorite characters show up (like Beta Ray Bill, in MAU).
This could be a horrible, no-good, very bad show, but I'll more than likely watch it if my favorite X-Men appear.
[Which, is really the only reason I still watch SMALLVILLE ... I mean it's terrible, but I still love it!]
Wait, I thought it was a slapfight between Gail Simone and Dave SIMS.
ReplyDeleteNot some other Dave I never heard of.
I hereby relinquish my interest in said slapfight.
...wait, there isn't even a dave sims, is there?
ReplyDeleteI was mixing up Chris Sims and Dave Campbell.
Oh, the horror.
Dave Sim = Creator of Cerebus, pioneering graphic novelist and self-publisher, noted crypto-Islamic sexist/homophobe.
ReplyDeleteDave Sims = Sportscaster, the voice of the Seattle Mariners.
You really thought Dave Sims was getting into fights about the role of women in comics? I guess that would be pretty amazing.
Dave Sims v Simone would be one for the ages! As for Sim v Simone, it was all sizzle and no steak. Sim is never going to argue on a message board, or any other printed word medium, that's not him exchanging long winded diatribes with someone else where he can completely ignore any point he wants. He's a jerk and I wish someone other than Jeff Smith would call him on it, because Smith is too nice, too classy, and frankly too much bigger than Sim to really do much more than call Sim a liar and move on.
ReplyDeleteThe Deppey v Stephanie Brown thing intrigues me, because the argument isn't Deppey v feminism, but the trophy being important v the trophy being trivial. I think there's a lot more meat on that bone, especially in regards to the white elephant in the room, the loss of influence of the direct market on comic books.
Val, I think it's *really* telling how you're the only person on-line, as far as I know, who cares about Zuda. I like how the guys at Funnybook Babylon talk about it - they would talk about it except nobody cares. I hope High Noon and Bayou make it to print so I can finally read them, because I *really* hate the Zuda viewer. I'm predicting Zuda's demise before Jan 1, 2009.
There are far too many preferable alternatives to Zuda for webcomic wannabes - you could, for instance, just take each individual page of your comic in hand, wipe your ass with them and throw them in a sewer. The end result would be the same - virtually no-one will read them but people you know, and they're effectively no longer your property.
ReplyDeleteThat Wolverine and the X-Men trailer looks so desperately bad that I simply must see the full movie! Car-crash compulsive rather than Dini/Timm Batman compulsive, but still compulsive, nonetheless.
Do I look really sad if I ask if Wolverine is voiced by the dude who voices Solid Snake in the Metal Gear games?
Out of curiosity, I also have to ask if Firestar ever had a costume that didn't suck? I know it's pretty hard to make anything remotely cool with a flame motif running through the design, but Marvel could at least try.
Val, I think it's *really* telling how you're the only person on-line, as far as I know, who cares about Zuda. I like how the guys at Funnybook Babylon talk about it - they would talk about it except nobody cares. I hope High Moon and Bayou make it to print so I can finally read them, because I *really* hate the Zuda viewer. I'm predicting Zuda's demise before Jan 1, 2009.
ReplyDeleteThis might be terse, so please forgive me, I have a lot of work to do. I'm just getting to the meat of the matter.
1. Val was spotlighting Kevin Colden, in particular, whose work she has mentioned before, who is also a member of ACT-I-VATE, and has a book coming out from IDW later this year.
2. Val is not the only one online talking about Zuda. Lines and Colors just great piece on Zuda/High Moon, as did WebComics.Com [on comparing viewers] and Flashback Universe has a piece too. There are others, but those are the three that come to mind. Oh, and Sean Kleefeld, had several articles up on it.
3. I think your 'prediction meter' is busted. Zuda is right now one of the best ways to raise attention to your project and develop a following of fellow creators, editors, and fans. It's a better talent showcase than any other major company around, with a much faster response time.
4. HIGH MOON and BAYOU will be seeing print, as part of the 'Zuda' model.
5. Zuda's viewer is one of the few I like. I hate that .cbr and DCU formats, because typically the writers don't write to the pages ... and it really messes up my reading rhythm and brings me out of the story when I have to navigate a simualted hand around a page. 4:3 format is great for a webcomic. Heck, it works pretty well for the 'Sunday Funnies' too.
There are far too many preferable alternatives to Zuda for webcomic wannabes - you could, for instance, just take each individual page of your comic in hand, wipe your ass with them and throw them in a sewer. The end result would be the same - virtually no-one will read them but people you know, and they're effectively no longer your property.
ReplyDeletePlease be sure to tell that to my face when you see me at a convention.
conan vs colbert vs stewart made me LOLZ!
ReplyDeleteVal, I think it's *really* telling how you're the only person on-line, as far as I know, who cares about Zuda.
ReplyDeleteShould have mentioned this in the earlier post, but this comment is a pretty cheap shot, Kenny - not least because I've seen it elsewhere and the person making it never states directly what they're implying.
Please be sure to tell that to my face when you see me at a convention.
Next time you tour Europe, I'll look you up.
I maintain that Zuda does nothing a well-crafted sig/banner-cum hotlink and a visible online presence in the comics-reading fan community doesn't already do better - there are comics freely available (for instance) on Deviantart that have been viewed hundreds of thousands of times, and this was happening long before Zuda and its creative rights contract appeared on the horizon. Many have made the jump from web to page quite successfully - Megatokyo, Ctrl+Alt+Del, Penny Arcade, Perry Bible Fellowship - even PvP managed to go one further and get it's own animated series.
My contention remains that Zuda offers nothing beyond what already exists on the web and I'm surprised you take my criticism personally, David. I've never said anything even remotely derogatory about any of the work Zuda has showcased, only the concept and delivery method.
That would be the concept of Zuda itself, and their method of delivering the comics to the computer monitor. Should have made that clearer.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteBryan,
ReplyDeleteI didn't take it personal at all,
but when you say, 'just take each individual page of your comic in hand, wipe your ass with them and throw them in a sewer.' to my face - at a convention, I can show you the long line of people lined up to see Steve Ellis and I for HIGH MOON :-D
Props to you for articulating and clarifying your response.
Bryan,
ReplyDeleteI just deleted a reply to you that was hostile and defensive when a simple apology/ explanation would suffice.
I only meant to imply I thought it was telling there's a lack of coverage of Zuda comics on-line. I was referring more to how everyone else *isn't* talking about Zuda rather than Val's link to a Zuda comic. I think the lack of coverage on-line is telling there's a lack of interest for Zuda among most comic book readers.
I wasn't trying to imply anything relating to Val and David's relationship and her linking to a Zuda comic. I'm sorry if it came off like I was. So far, I've called Dan Slott a bad writer directly in response to an interview he had on here, which he saw, and, um...I'm sure I've said other similarly direct things. I'm not trying to hide any personal insults behind vague phrasing and I'm sorry if I wrote something that could be interpreted as such. I may be an asshole, but at least I try to be honest about it.
David, I'm going to respond 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 to your comments just out of ease. So, hopefully that's ok!
ReplyDelete1. Val can spotlight whoever she wants for whatever reason she wants. (I'm sure you agree with me on that! lol) It just struck me when I saw the link that it was the first link I've seen to a Zuda comic in a while, and I thought it was telling I haven't seen or heard any other mention of a comic on Zuda since it launched - telling as in no one's really waiting with bated breath to check out new Zuda comics when they launch. Whether that's because of poor perceived quality on the whole or dissatisfaction with an element of Zuda's operation, it's hard to say.
2. I don't know who Lines and Colors, Flashback Universe, or Sean Kleefield are, so as far as I knew at the time, this blog was the only place with any sort of recent commentary on Zuda's content. So, good on those three sources. I read the Webcomics.com article comparing viewers by following a link from Deppey's blog. If I'm not mistaken, their verdict of the viewer was more they liked it in comparison to Marvel's but weren't in love with it. They didn't touch on the content, though, and they were talking about Zuda more out of default since they were comparing different viewers. Even Todd Allen at CBR has stopped talking about it, and the economic models of webcomics is his bag!
3. I think my prediction meter is being generous, to tell you the truth. Plus, I've learned from watching college football shows every year you can make whatever crazy predictions you want and no one will ever remember them! But I don't see how a webcomic site getting 6,000 - 10,000 views a month for a majority of its webcomics is successful. Also, I'm not sure who, besides me, is waiting for print collections of the books. Penny Arcade, PvP, etc sell books because they have a percentage of their fanbase eagerly buying them. If, and let's really inflate the number here, 25% of the readers of any Zuda comic buy it in print, how many sales are we realistically talking? 5,000? 10,000? Would this be enough sales
for DC to decide all the money they're putting into promoting the books on Zuda is worth it?
4. YAY! I'm honestlt anxiously awaiting both! I liked the High Noon preview I read a *lot* and I think Bayou looks promising. I honestly hope I'm not in a small group buying these books. That's the thing that really fascinates me - I *want* to read some of the stories on Zuda and I'd rather pay for them than use the reader they have. How many people won't even go that far?
5. This is a matter of personal preference. Also, you're coming at it from the vantage point of a writer, I'm merely looking at only the reading experience. For my tastes, I prefer single .jpg files I can read on my phone. I'm not a fan of using Flash on the whole.
Dr. Who! Huzzah!
ReplyDeleteMartha Jones looked a little sexyevil though, perhaps from her guest run on TORCHWOOD.
So, I've heard bits of fussing about this supposed "big fight" between Sim and Simone over the past couple of days, and only just finally checked it out through the link here. My response was pretty much "That's it???" It just seems like a relatively mild discussion with Simone asking a few clarifying questions about Sim's well known wacko notions (which she doesn't even refer to as such), with him responding in an uncharacteristically calm and reasonable manner. I got bored after about the second page, so maybe I missed some big flare up later on, but unless this is the case, I'm not seeing where the big epic online feud is supposed to be happening.
ReplyDelete...the only reason I don't read Zuda stuff is that my computer can't handle the reader.
ReplyDelete/5 cents.