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Showing posts with label spiderman brand new day. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spiderman brand new day. Show all posts

Monday, March 10, 2008

Occasional Thoughts

Thoughts. I do have them.

On my vacation from my blog I sought corporate sponsors for Friends of Lulu's annual Lulu Awards. This is not much different than selling Girl Scout cookies, except there are no cookies, and if you fail, the really bad Christmas tree with the three branches is going to be in the pageant.

Do not want:

Do want:

The biggest DC news to come out of MegaCon, as far as I'm concerned, is that there was an audience member in the DCU Countdown To Crisis Panel dressed like Jay Garrick. You get rid of the Speed Force, this fellow's coming after you with that metal salad bowl on his head.Just in case you thought the furor over Spider-Man's OMD/BND has settled...well...

No.


I was particularly impressed by the poster who said he posted to religious websites about "One More Day" even though he was an atheist. Love of Mary Jane apparently trumps religious persuasion. Now that's something we can all get behind. It's like buying the world a Coke.


Lisa Fortuner provides guidelines for writers of international characters, courtesy of "The Mainstream Comics Industry":
"However, the Mainstream Comics Industry advises against researching another culture and creating a well-rounded original character based on actual facts, because this could result in your readers thinking of foreign nations as places with a rich history and culture populated by a variety of individual thinkers who are worthy of respect as human beings. This leads to the audience raising their standards and refusing to pay for books that don’t adhere to that standard. "

But Lisa, if you just think of those characters as Legacy Heroes, and give them a chance instead of tearing them down because of supposed inaccuracies and "uninspired characterization" (my God, as if there really is such a thing), maybe they can blossom.

(runs)

Which reminds me...

Remember Faith from JLA?


What the hell happened to her?

See, when I worked on JLA, Faith was created to "kill two birds with one stone" by virtue of her Latin-American heritage. So you got a Woman (big W, trademarked) and an International Character.

Ask Morrison if he's going to use Faith in Final Crisis. Maybe she can be in one of those epic George Perez-like crowd scenes that get turned into a poster with a numbered identification index. She could be right behind Fire's shoulder. Boy, that Fire, I'll tell ya -- she's one hot Brazilian. Get it?


You know, I was really cool with the Yellow Lanterns. To me, that made all sorts of sense.

But now there are Red Lanterns...


So according to this Newsarama article, the Red Lanterns spew "their red energy of hate."

And the first of these Lanterns is named, appropriately, "Atrocitus." George Lucas School Of Naming. Atrocitus used to hang out with Evilicus in middle school.

I don't get it, weren't the Yellow Lanterns supposed to be the bad guys? And the really important question -- the action figures, are they coming out soon?

Where Geoff Johns gets his writing inspiration:


Video: "Asian Christopher Walken"



Bonus points if you understand the meaning behind the "Miss Saigon" T-shirt he's wearing.

It fascinates me that Asian stereotypes are still acceptable in entertainment. I dunno, is Fu Manchu offensive?


Another thing that seems still acceptable in entertainment is homophobia. I just caught the movie Wild Hogs on cable the other day -- you know, sat through as much as I could of that dreck. The movie was obsessed with jokes about homosexuality. I mean, one after another. All of them of the "being thought gay is the absolute most humiliating thing ever!" variety.


"Oh, no, we're all naked in the watering hole and now there are boys swimming in it! Don't get too close to my naked body! And look, now the naked gay cop that's been stalking us is going to jump in the watering hole too! What a freak! WE aren't freaks like that. We are real guys."

In the scene, John Travolta's character plays the most homophobic guy of the bunch.


Well, that's all I've got. Back to the grind.

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Occasional Links: The Hank Pym, Superstar Edition

Despite Fan B**tching, Spider-Man's Brand New Day Top Of Sales


Amazing Spider-Man #546 made the top of Diamond's sales charts for January, followed close by Hulk #1. Marvel took 9 of the top ten slots; Dynamite Entertainment's Project Superpowers #0 made an impressive showing in fourth place.

The DC titles that managed to crack the top 20 were Justice League of America #17, Batman #673, and Countdown #16.

And Dan Slott had three books in the top ten, and four in the top 30. Go, Slott!



GI Joe's Red, White, and Blue Is Gone?



The MTV Movie blog has what might be the first picture of the new GI Joe logo -- and its patriotic red, white, and blue have been replaced by silver and black.

I understand the need by Hasbro to extend the popularity of GI Joe beyond the USA. But...

Maybe I'm just nostalgic. Was watching the old cartoons the other day.


The Joker Returns

The New York Post ran an article called "Cruel Joker" about the decision to release action figures and other Dark Knight merchandise despite actor Heath Ledger's death:

"Heath Ledger lives on - as an evil 6-inch figurine."

I love how the Post just reduces things...

Anyway, here is the Joker action figure...what do you think?




"Shaun of the Dead" director to helm Ant-Man?



Could Shaun of the Dead director Edgar Wright be up for directing the Ant-Man movie?

Wright told Empire Magazine:
"I finished the script and I'm having a meeting about it next week, but it depends which comes first in the queue basically. I've been working on two at once, and I'm also about to start developing two more scripts, one of which is with Simon (Pegg). It could be Scott Pilgrim [Scott Prilgrim’s Precious Little Life] is next or it could be Ant Man, we shall see."

In other news, there's going to be a Scott Pilgrim movie...


Video: William M. Gaines Interview from late 1980s


Some interesting stuff to point out in this interview:

* Gaines says in the interview that he has no plans to ever accept advertising in Mad, because of the conflict of interest. Of course, that has now changed post-Gaines.

* Gaines also says he would never license Mad out for other products:

"I just think that sucking every last buck out of a product with merchandising is not neccesarily the way to go and Mad doesn't do it."


As we can see by the current DC Direct Alfred E. Neuman and Spy Vs. Spy toys, this is another big change from the Mad Magazine of yesteryear. However, to be fair, I did remember playing with a Mad Magazine board game as a youngster (it kicked ass).

* Gaines refused to do market research, because he was afraid that if they knew the exact demographics, they would sub-consciously start writing to target that demographic.

* Gaines (and company) on the sale of Mad to Time Warner:

Gaines: "I didn't sell Mad to Warners, I sold it to somebody who sold it to Warners..."

Staffer: "Like the Contras deal..."

* Gaines was required by Warners to have a yearly physical; he regularly sent another staffer to take his place.

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

If Brand New Day Doesn't Work Out, Here's Marvel's Secret Weapon...



I mean, DOOD.

And McFarlane would totally do it, too. C'mon, I'm sure he's tired of making those dragon & S&M Wizard of Oz figures by now, isn't he?

Are you with me? Are you with me?

Who's with me?

(See, you all think I'm joking...but from a marketing standpoint this is $ in the bank. I'm talking BANK!)

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Occasional Links: The Superhero Mama Edition

DIY Spidey


Pictures of a guy and his super-advanced homemade Spider-Man costume. Plus Photoshop. Suits for sale. Classic or black. Webshooters not included.


DIY Superheroine


Time is running out for Shadowline's "Who Wants To Create A Superheroine" contest. Entries due by January 31st, details are here.

“I’d been hoping to see a super-hero book with a strong female lead to act as a counter-point to our popular Bomb Queen series, but none were forthcoming. So I decided to come up with a contest to create a super-heroine for the 21st Century.”

If anybody is looking for any inspiration on that "superheroine for the 21st Century," here are some pics of Bomb Queen:






Yep, that's the "superheroine for the 21st Century," I guess...


Night Thrasher = "BADICAL"


I always found Night Thrasher from The New Warriors to be very emblematic of early 90s comic books, and apparently the blog Of Course, Yeah! thinks so as well:

"But back in 1990? You bust some Tae Bo out on the local pimp and he be all convinced you were trained by the ghost of Bruce Lee himself! And the scarf? Well damn, make all the fun you want and but when you're laughing and there's a BLACK! METAL! FIST! PILFERING! OUT! JUSTICE! IN! YOUR! FACE!...you'll think twice about dissing on dudes with a little bit of balls when it comes to fashion. "


Me, I just love the "TRAKA TRAKA TRAKA" skateboard SFX.


"I Am Darkhawk, I AM The Night"

Speaking of "badical" 1990s superheroes, Project Rooftop has an awesome redesign of Darkhawk's costume by Joel Carroll


Divorce, Spider-Man Style



Erik Larsen added his two cents to the "One More Day" debate on a Newsarama forum and suggested that a Peter/MJ divorce might have worked better:

"Have Peter and MJ get divorced. She can't take the pressure any more--living with Peter is giving her nightmares--he's always in danger--always getting hurt--Peter's always late for stuff because of Spider-Man and every time she can't help feel that THIS will be the time that he never comes back--and she just can't stand it. It's all too much. She files for the divorce. She leaves him. He becomes that much more of a loser. He could try to make things right--promise to give up the tights and all that but--great power and great responsibility and all the rest and he has to save somebody and she goes through with it.

And Spider-Man getting a divorce would be big news--in the real world--but Marvel has always prided itself on realism and a divorce is a realistic solution--not a "comic booky" solution. Marvel would get a LOT more mileage out of a tastefully handled divorce than a hastily executed mind-wipe."
Peter could have then called these guys:



Videos: The Bizarro YouTube Superhero Awards

Choose between --

"Spider-Man Does Barbie": (NSFW, sort of) Buddies get drunk and their toys get wild in this soon-to-be-classic

"Transformation To Superheroine": (NSFW, sort of) Man or woman in creeeeepy anime mask slowly puts on superheroine outfit. The messed-up camera angle really contributes to the David Lynch quality of the production.

"I'm A Superhero": A nice "Blair Witch" vibe with the camera work, as mom dresses like superhero to "experience childlike freedom with her son." My mom never did this for me.

Thursday, January 10, 2008

Amazing Spider-Man #546: A Brand New Review


By now I think pretty much everybody has sounded off on this book and the "Brand New Day" direction. Except me. Well, I did milk the controversy for all it was worth...but now I still have to read and review the thing!

Peter Parker: Simply Irresistible
Though the splash page depicts Peter Parker smooching it up with a "Girls Gone Wild" type chick, it really has nothing to do with Peter actively "cheating" on Mary Jane. As we find out later, his lips were "raped." Some might say that having established in this issue that Peter is, in some senses, kind of a bum, having him chased and molested by some babe is unrealistic. To which I say: Kevin Federline.

Harry Osborn: Creep
Far more concerning to me is the establishment of Peter's constant borrowing of money from erstwhile friend Harry Osborn. I mean, speaking of deals with the devil...Peter depending on Harry for scratch is like taking home a bunch of weed from your drug dealer "on loan." It's not going to end well.

Is Harry the prototypical "creep" or what? They can't show him snort some coke in this book (or smoke a cigarette) but you intuitively *know* he must totally do that between panels. He's the type of guy Perez Hilton would draw little white dots coming from his nose in those paparazzi photos. If Harry Osborn was a real person he's be the dude who gave Lindsey or Britney that fatal dose and then sold the sex tapes afterwards.

Harold And Kumar meet Peter Parker
In general, Peter Parker's sense of judgement has been not so great as of late. That concerns me more than anything. He seems not to be acting from the position of a lifetime of experience. I mean, this isn't Peter from high school, but he sure is acting like he is. If he's twentysomething, doesn't that make him Generation Y? Slackers are Generation X. Generation Y is like my sister, the person with a full stock portfolio who clips coupons. I'm Generation X. I use my haircut money to buy comic books.

It seems like the target audience, 18-30, would be more "together" than to identify with Slacker Peter. The only thing Slacker Peter is missing is a blunt.

And yet I have to believe that, like the classic "Spider-Man" trope, Peter Parker has to learn the hard way that "with great power comes great responsibility," and that he wil shape up.

Yeah, But What About The Actual Comic?
In terms of the actual comic, I found it enjoyable, engaging, and very accessible to a new reader (me). I haven't read a Spider-Man comic in like forever. This book laid the current Spidey mythos all out for me in an easy-to-grasp way (thanks in part to a handy "chart" drawn by John Romita Jr.). Also, each upcoming arc is previewed for me via a short backup story with words & art from their respective creative teams -- I thought this was a smart thing to do, and really gave me a clear picture of what lies ahead.

Where I see the book having problems is with the hardcore readers who have been following their continuity closely. It's very hard for such readers to shift gears like that, and I think that's why we have witnessed so much emotion on the issue. On the other side of the coin is a reader new to the regular title like me. I tried on multiple occasions in the past to get "into" Spider-Man. Every time tried, the current labyrinthine continuity stymied me. If it wasn't the Clone Saga, it was The Other.

At least now, I am willing to pick this book up on a regular basis. I understand it. It isn't perfect, but it has laid all the elements of the storyline out for me and I am interested in seeing where they are all headed.

Peter Parker: Sensitive Guy Who Doesn't Care About Big Boobs
And what are the odds that Peter is going to nail the sexy self-effacing bookish police chick who is playing it coy? Probably pretty high. See, what Peter *really* wants is to go with a girl with brains, with substance over style. That was what the misleading splash page was trying to point out. I mean, if he ends up marrying a fashion model along the way, well, then...

Wednesday, January 09, 2008

Oh Crap! It's Another Vidcast!

One day I'm really meaning to make this vidcast thing a very professional, awesome production. In the meantime, we have this.

Comics covered:
Amazing Spider-Man #546
Hulk #1
Nightwing #140
The Goon #20
Teen Titans Lost Annual

Tuesday, January 08, 2008

Occasional Links: The Steampunk Parademon Edition

Man of Steel, Woman of Kleenex

When I was a teenager I got a big kick of this essay by Larry Niven that imagines what would happen if Superman really had sex with a mortal woman -- you know, from a physics standpoint:


"The purpose of this article is to point out some medical drawbacks to being a kryptonian among human beings, and to suggest possible solutions."

Today, not rocking on it quite so much.

But worth a read. (NSFW, obviously)


The Trouble With Harry


Your Mom's Basement asks Marvel editor Tom Breevort ten questions designed to clarify Harry Osborn's new place in the post-OMD universe:

4. Does Normie Osborn still exist?
Yes.


...this and other revelations at the link!



The Most Important Review You'll Ever Read!
Look, I understand 400 reviews on Amazon.com for the latest Harry Potter book.

But a Bic ballpoint pen?
Since taking delivery of my pen I have been very happy with the quality of ink deposition on the various types of paper that I have used. On the first day when I excitedly unwrapped my pen (thanks for the high quality packaging Amazon!) I just couldn't contain my excitement and went around finding things to write on, like the shopping list on the notice board in our kitchen, the Post-it notes next to the phone, and on my favourite lined A4 pad at the side of my desk.



SWAYZE


The true story. In panels and art.

(found at Journalista)



Steampunk Fourth World Action Figures

Courtesy of The Fwoosh are these awesome custom action figures of Kirby's Fourth World characters reimagined as steampunk characters:



PS: All those Fourth World characters gonna die. But they live on in your action figures.



Video: And now, here's the opening to a Superman cartoon for the 1980s...with John Williams score!