The comments, reviews and rantings are for entertainment only. If you are offended then someone else is getting entertained. Welcome to the internet. Have at it. This is where I sound off on what I read in comics this week, and occasionally ramble about other things.
THE WALKING DEAD #98 continues the "Something to fear" storyline which will be leading us to issue 100. You know something is up when the person behind the counter is freaking out over the issue with a complete, "I can't believe that happened" look on their face. Yes a main character gets bumped off in this issue and I honestly didn't see that one coming. Its true what Kirkman says about this comic: "No one is safe." The battlelines are drawn between Rick's group and this mysterious Negan. Lately with the group taking out an entire herd of walkers its seemed like they were ready for anything. Granted, Rick's group is still as tough as they come, but its looking like Negan's group is a serious threat. Now we have the loss of an important member of the group, which has me seriously wondering if Rick and the others will be able to hang on to their community in the face of this threat. There's some critics that say the series moves a bit slow, but they certainly can't complain about this issue. Plenty of action, and all of it brutal.
ANGEL AND FAITH #10 is an absolute hoot. The quest to get Giles back takes an amusing turn when we meet Giles' Great-Aunts. These sisters have used every trick in the book to stay young and beautiful, but now with magic gone, the bill has come due. Christos gage and Chris Samnee do a huge gear shift in classic Whedon fashion. When things get really heavy like they did in the last storyline, when its time to turn around and deliver some fun. The sisters are an absolute hoot, as is how Angel and Faith react to them. I had some real laugh out loud moments here. At the same time, we also move along with "Giles Quest". This is a really well done issue. I had a blast with it.
ROCKETEER ADVENTURES 2 #3 serves up three stories again. David Lapham and Chris Sprouse give us a nice story with with Cliff and Betty thinking about their future and what could be. There's a story by Kyle Baker which is better off skipped. The last is by Matt Wagner and Eric Canete which is an interesting retelling of the Rocketeer's history. Sprouse and Canete both really serve up for beautiful art, and this is added to by a sweet pin-up by Eric Powell. I would have liked some more action with this issue. The stories show a lot of love for the character, but now a lot of punches thrown and bullets flying. Not bad, but hopefully we'll get more action next issue.
ZOMBIES VERSUS ROBOTS ANNUAL 2012 came out, and to be honest I only picked it up because Drew Moss drew one of the four stories in there. Sam Keith did art on a story in there too, so that's a bonus. It was interesting in that Keith and the other artists have a really quirky style, and that really made Moss's stand out with his cleaner style. I'm not a big ZvR fan, and this issue isn't going to get me on the bandwagon, but it wasn't bad at all. The "Summer" story was the stand out for me, but of course I'm biased there.
Going the start off with RAGEMOOR #3 which is a completely twisted nightmare of a book. There's absolutely no hope for any of these characters. The two leads Herbert and his servant Bodrick are absolutely screwed. They live in a living castle and the only reason they're still alive is the castle allows it. They can't escape. They can't beat the castle. I'm not sure if Herbert is hapless or just completely beaten by the place he's in. This is beyond "The fall of the House of Usher". This is "The House Fell a Long Time Ago and is not Happy at ALL about the Entire Affair". Combine that with the weird creatures wandering about and its just incredibly creepy. Jan Strnad and Richard Corben have both done a masterful job in creating this impenetrable air of dread and discomfort. This issue center a lot around Herbert and Anoria. He wants her. She wants the poacher fellow who's been around. The castle wants an heir out of Herbert and sees Anoria as the best bet, especially since she's trapped there too. Needless to say, the castle isn't too happy with that poacher fellow. This book isn't for everyone, but for folks like me who studied Gothic literature its fun to spot all the little bit in there that are straight out of the genre. Its a great work, in a really horrid way.
We move on to NO PLACE LIKE HOME #4. You haven't seen the reviews for issues 2 and 3 because the shop hasn't gotten them in. Some sort of shipping problem. So I've gone from issue 1 to issue 4. This makes issue 4 the most unintentually hilarious thing I've read in a long, long time. I get through issue one and we meet the three sisters who are all coming back to their hometown. There's some sort of terrible secret there. The sisters seem interesting enough, so I'm going to stay with the title to see where things go. Fast forward to issue four and what do we get right on the first page: a flying monkey. That's right its a flying monkey. Now, you people all know the rule: everything is better with monkeys, so this book is now the greatest thing ever. What's more, its a homicidal flying monkey. Its like Bufkin from FABLES declared "F--- THIS S---, heads are gonna motherf---ing ROLL!" It seems tornadoes ask as portals and sometimes flying monkeys get through to our world, and they're complete pricks. The sheriff apparently ganked one when he was a kid, which is no doubt why they made him the sheriff. So all the good old boys are all "Dear God, no! Not another flying monkey!" The sister that's still running about is all "OMG! Why didn't you ever tell us about the flying monkey?!" Most likely because if they had you'd never ever come back to visit. And the flying monkey? He's all "RAWR!! GIVE ME YOUNG WOMEN AND OLD PEOPLE HEADS!" Well, actually it just goes "SKEEEE!" a whole bunch but the language of the flying monkey is is very utilitarian. Kinda like Tim Allen when he grunts. Means a whole bunch of stuff. The best scene in the whole comic, and yes this is a spoiler, either suck it up, or skip ahead, is when the old hippy with the Pink Floyd shirt opens the door to his house and finds the flying monkey dragging his ol' lady down to the basement. He's just standing there, and she's yelling at him to do something. The old hippy tells the monkey to stop that, but the monkey don't listen, most likely because the old hippy is an old hippy and nobody listens to them anyhow. He finally shuffles over to the basement door, mustering up the last of his old hippy courage and the monkey bursts back out and delivers a big flying monkey pimp slap, and drops the old dude. I then took out a pen, and breaking my long standing rule about writing writing in my comics added the word balloon over the flying monkey saying "SKREE!" which translated from the flying monkey language is roughly: "B----, YOU BETTER RECOGNIZE!" So, yeah, I love this book for all the wrong reasons.
Morning gang. Its Sunday, April 29, 2012, its review day, and this is The Side. As you noticed there was no update on Friday. I was very tired the tale end of the week, and just couldn't find the time and energy to sit down and write. Hit the wall, as it were. Has absolutely nothing to do with NetFlix now having TRANSFORMERS and G.I.JOE cartoon available for streaming now.
COMIX!!!
In recent months, I've railed against things like stupid variant covers, and rebooting entire comic book lines just In the hopes of bringing in new readers. It does seem like sensationalism is being pushed instead of good stories sometimes. Its very frustrating for me seeing the same silliness that absolutely did not work well twenty years ago being repeated now. This brings us to THE GOON #39, which is an issue that is sure to be a collector's item because its the book that guarantees Eric Powell won't be working for DC or Marvel for a while. The last two issues of this comic have dealt with some serious stuff and struck emotional chords. Not this time. Oh no. This issue is on big brutal mockery of every stupid thing certain larger companies have been doing to whore themselves to the media and the masses. Changing origins, changing costumes, gratuitous pantie shots, big gay kissin', characters dying repeatedly and more is all wrapped up in one nice neat little package for use to laugh at. This was my read of the week.
ANGEL AND FAITH #9 wraps up our heroes encounter with Druscilla who is now sane. She had gotten a hold of a demon which can take trauma out of you. You still have the memories, but you don't feel anything about them. This issue is a serious throwback to the old TV series, but in a really good way. It used to be Whedon and his writing staff would have a monster with some specific ability and that would be a plot device for a type of statement about humanity. That's what we have here. Having our pasts and caring about them is what makes us who we are today for better or worse. We definitely get both sides of the coin here as on one hand you have Druscilla whose trauma drove her mad. On the flip side, you have Faith who long time fans have seen go through a huge and tough character arc filled the guilt and trauma and come out the other side a hero. I had been on board with this book, and liked it well enough, but the wrap up to this story really made it shine. I wasn't expecting it, but I should have as Christos Gage really knows his knows his way around these characters. Great stuff.
This brings us to THE ACTIVITY #3 & #5. I can't review #4 because its classified. That and I didn't get it in, which I'm hoping to remedy soon. I said in my review of the first two issues that this comic is filling the hole in my soul left by an absence of QUEEN AND COUNTRY stuff. These two issues really put a point on that because both series are spy-fi, but neither is stupid spy-fi. There's no gratuitous action. There's no guarantee of success. This isn't James Bond with buckets of gadget saving the world in a tuxedo. Issue 3 gives us an insight as to some of what happens when an operation goes completing tango uniform. You don't get all the details, and good on Edmondson for that, because the story isn't about the operation itself. You get a lot of information about the resumés of the characters, and you see how they handle it when things go bad. They aren't larger than life, and this really grounded the characters for me. It did get a little heavy-handed with the "war is failure" bit, but I understand it since if these guys do their jobs right then wars don't get started. Issue five has our team in a Thailand prison getting interrogated. You also get more of Weatherman's history and how he was brought into the team. Again Edmondson doesn't throw in every last detail, because you don't need them all. This is a comic for intelligent readers who are capable of filling in the blanks for themselves. This way a storyline which could have been stretched out for two or three issues can be wrapped up neatly into one issue with no filler and we don't really lose anything. Its compressed storytelling that moves fast, kinda like GLOBAL FREQUENCY in that regard. The ruslt is a comic that you can pick up from any issue and be fully up to speed. I'm loving this comic.
MUSIC!!
I was clicking through the radio stations and actually caught this tune. Ain't nothin' like Jerry Reed.
That'll put a spring in your step, or at least make a fella feel better about his current situation. See y'all Wednesday.
Its Sunday, April 22, 2012, if you're one of the every fifth people who click on this block you get to see the variant pictures, and this is The Side. I got into it over variant covers with some people this week. I've seen how ridiculous it can be. I was around in the early 90s when it was completely out of control. Now many of the books with the super elaborate covers that collector's though would be worth something one day are found in dollar bin in comic shops right next to the same comics that didn't have the fancy pants variant.
Its one thing if a comic has a variant cover by a different artist. When INFINITE CRISIS came out years ago Jim Lee did the covers and George Perez did the variant covers. I sought out the variants because I'm a big fan of George Perez's artwork. I certainly didn't buy two copies of the same book. I can even understand seeing two covers by different artists and really loving the artwork on both covers, and buying both if you're unable to choose.
But this business Marvel's doing with not coloring parts of the cover and calling it a variant. That's so freaking sketchy. I've got to wonder where they came up with such an idea..
BEHIND THE SCENES!!!
Head Suit: "OK men, our movie franchises are a hot ticket right now, but need a good sales boost on our comics. Ideas?"
Suit #1: "Make the best books we possibly can and hope readers and the market recognize this?"
Head Suit: "You're fired."
Suit #2: "I've got it! Variant covers!"
Suit #3: "We tried that back in the 90s. About the same time our bankruptcy attorney gave us our frequent filer card."
Suit #2: "No, no! It'll work this time! We've got Disney money backing us! Mickey Mouse cheddar, baby!"
Head Suit: "No, we're not going to use the Disney money to fall back on, but still this variant cover idea might have legs."
Suit #2: "Sure. We'll hit the nostalgia factor. If those guys across the street can bring back Barry Allen and get people to actually buy a book starring him after he's been gone for twenty-five years, I think we can run with such an old school gimmick. Its been twenty years, so its about time again."
Suit #4: "Are we going with the card stock, foil embossed covers with the holograms again?"
Suit #3: "Hold it. You've got to remember that we're still in a recession. Those bells and whistles will up the cover price. Money's tight and there's a lot of readers who won't pay too much more than they already do for one book."
Head Suit: "Yes, we need something that won't up the cover price much, if at all."
((Insert hours of pondering here.))
Suit #4: "What if we don't color part of the cover?"
Suit #3: "What?"
Suit #4: "Yeah, we'll not color a certain character on the cover."
Head Suit: "Oooo, I wonder how much we'll save in ink?"
Suit #3: "Probably not much, sir."
Suit #2: "Hey! Maybe we can get a kickback from Crayola, since someone will have to color those missing parts."
Head Suit: "Excellent thinking! Good work, gentlemen! Pie and hookers all around!"
COMIX!!
THE WALKING DEAD #96 concludes the "A Larger World" storyline which is pretty pivotal. At the end of the last issue Rick was forced to kill a member of the Hilltop community in self defense. This issue we get a better idea of what Hilltop has to deal with, but its from description rather then Kirkman just dumping action on us. Hilltop has enemies. Rick and the others need what Hilltop has to offer in terms of supplies and food. Hilltop needs what Rick and others can provide by way of strength. This is so very fascinating from an anthropological point of view. We're seeing how countries are made. These tribes have formed a network to help each other. Now Rick's tribe has joined and we see what their contribution will be. How its going to work out is anyone's guess, but most likely Hilltop's enemies are going to have to deal with a very determined Rick Grimes as we approach issue #100 of the series.
THE SHADOW #1 kicks off Garth Ennis and Aaron Campbell's take on the classic pulp character. I'm a fan of The Shadow. I loved the Alec Baldwin flick. I still catch an occasional episode of the old radio show when the local high school radio station plays them. Ennis pulls no punches here. I love WWII comics, but haven't seen anything of his concerning anything from the Pacific Theater. The book opens with details of japan's brutal assaults on China. I'm not sure how much of it is accurate, but when it comes to WWII stuff Ennis tends to be very well researched. Ennis's version of The Shadow is a gun toting, avenging mystic, who seems very cold. Then we see him as being very smooth and debonair as Lamont Cranston. I wasn't really thrilled with how he acted towards Margo Lane, however that was only one scene and I'm thinking she's one that'll be holding her own. I find this version of The Shadow not very likable, but still entertaining. I do like Ennis as a writer, and he's good at writing characters which aren't terribly likable, but still sympathetic. Haven't seen it here yet, but its just the first issue and we'll see how it goes.
THE ROCKETEER ADVENTURES #2 gives us another trio of really great stories. This book has an excellent balance to it. We start off with a harrowing tale from the battlefield of WWII. Then its over to a fun little story with Cliff checking up on Betty while she's filming a movie. The last one is a great story from the one and only Walt Simonson with a charming little story. I do get a kick out of this book. We're treated to all these different takes of the same character by all these really talented writers and artists. Even with all the differences in the story styles, its still all obviously the Rocketeer. Great read.
RAGEMOOR #2 is just flat out freaky. I've read my fair share of really weird and disturbing comics, but this one has got to be up there in the ranks. It bangs about with the subtlety of a tire iron right to the face. The setting is just so intentionally horrendous, and Master Herbert tries to rail against it this issue for what happened to Anoria last issue. It just goes horribly and I have to wonder how on earth he and Bodrick the butler have survived so long in there. The answer is that the castle tolerates them and you don't screw with the castle. The creatures inhabiting the place are just so weird and freak that i have difficulty fathoming how the pieces of the puzzle fit. We know from the first issue how the castle was built, and how over time developed some sort of life of its own. Its almost like it is some Gothic, Lovecraftian entity that has all these little things growing in it like bacteria. Read it if you feel like getting weirdly creeped out.
MUSIC!!!
Caught this tune on the radio yesterday. I dug it.
Whew. It's Friday, March 30, 2012, I'm a self imposed deadline beatin' motherfrakker and this is The Side. Had to pick the kids up after work on Wednesday as The Missus had a doctor's appointment. Work ran a little long, but I got them and made it all the way across town for their gymnastics class and they were only a few minutes late. But that meant I couldn't pick up my comics on Wednesday.
So I got them yesterday between after work. Still got to Karate on time. Got them read. Banged out the reviews, and here we are. LIKE A BOSS!
Thus is my commitment to you.
Also this will probably the only time I use the phrase "like a boss" in reference to myself.
COMIX!!!
THE WALKING DEAD #95 is part three of "A Larger World" and I'm finding out exactly how apt a title this is. Rick, Michonne, Andrea, Glenn, and Carl (who didn't stay in the house this time either) have gone with Paul to see the settlement he's from. There's still a lot of trust issues Rick's having with the entire situation. We get only the tiniest view of things at the hilltop before learning that the place has its own drama going on. Our cast of survivors have found themselves in someone else's story, and it seems like they're arriving as things are coming to a head. Its become obvious that just because there are other groups that have found means to survive and somewhat thrive life its still very treacherous. This book continues on a very interesting path as far as being a study of society. Very came into the series as society was in mid-crumble. Now we're well on the way of seeing it rebuilding. The groups of survivors are very much like tribes, and now that we've gotten to a point of having a successful tribe, we're into seeing how these tribes deal with each other. This story arc is seriously picking up steam on the way to issue 100 and I'm very eager to see what's coming.
MORNING GLORIES #17 revolves around Jade and Ike. You get a lot of backstory on Jade. The book continues to give pieces to the puzzle that is the story, but for the life of me I still haven't figured out the shape of it. There's a continues sense of "this whole thing makes sense somehow". Everything feels significant, but its a mystery as to how it all fits. That's probably why I'm incredibly hooked on this book. This issue in particular centers around Jade and Ike talking. No huge danger to them. No direct threats. Just two interesting characters having an incredibly interesting conversation. The dialogue is word porn on a Whedonesque scale. This book really isn't for everybody, and I know some people with excellent taste who just don't like it, however this issue is exactly why I'm on board. Not only is the puzzle hooking me in, but these characters are so great to watch. If you haven't read this comic, give this issue a look. If you dig these characters, you're just getting a small dose of how god this title is.
ANGEL AND FAITH #8 is solid stuff. Drusilla has returned and is surprisingly sane. She has a way for people/vampires/whatever to away with painful emotions. This is the same time as Faith's father returns to cause Faith some trouble. We have Nadira dealing with survivor's guilt over losing her fellow Slayers to Pearl and Nash. Faith is dealing with some nasty "daddy issues". On the surface it seems like Drusilla is offering a great fix, but there's always a catch to things like this. I've got some ideas as to where this is heading, but lately things have been going in unexpected directions with the "Buffy-verse". Solid issue, and keeping me on board.
MUSIC!!!
I wish I was classy enough to dance like this.
That's going to be it for me today. I'll likely be talking about Batman on Sunday. Be prepared.
Its Friday, March 23, 2012, and this is the Side. Y'know, many of us go through our days thinking we're the stars of our own little shows and that somehow things are just revolving around us. I spent yesterday tired, and kinda irked at the lady at the convenience store around the corner that for whatever reason refuses to listen to me and simply goes along her overly pleasant business.
Then I find out that my mother-in-law was in a car accident, and when they gave her a CAT scan in the ER they found something. This led to an MRI and without going into too much detail she'll be seeing an oncologist today. Perspective.
COMIX!!!
THE GOON #38 tells us the story of Kizzie The Iron Maiden, a woman with strong ties to The Goon. This is an excellent read telling the story of a plain, but strong, woman with big dreams but stuck in a small town. Its a very thoughtful piece and while you get to see Kizzie achieve her dreams on some level you really get smacked in the face with how tough a life this woman has. Its a really good character study. Typically this is one of those comics that is a hoot and half, but this issue is one that shows that Eric Powell can do a lot more than deliver laughs and creepiness. He really knows how to hand good human drama as well.
HEART #4 wraps up the series from Blair Butler and Kevin Mellon. In the previous three issues we watched Rooster rising up through the ranks and it looked like he was poised to make a run at the welterweight belt. This issue shows how he deals with getting stopped cold and sees that his dream of MMA glory isn't going to happen. In short be see a cocky young fighter grow up. I've been a fan of MMA for a long time and this is a story I've seen play out repeatedly. You see some young up-and-comer and he's the next big thing. Everyone figures he's going to be huge one day. Then he suffers a tough loss and he's just not the same. Its not a matter of injury, its a matter of psychology. They're getting in deeper waters and its tougher, and while they've still got the guts to get in the cage they start playing things a little more cautiously. They go from contender to gatekeeper. This is a really gutsy story for Butler to tell. It would have been so easy for her to go the easy route and have Rooster overcome his tough loss come back and win the belt. She definitely didn't go the easy route and as a result, she made an excellent story that really rings true.
RAGEMOOR #1 is a narrative that I would have expected straight out of Doctor Bob Geary's Gothic Literature course from my time at JMU. This book is creepy and that eerie feeling of the numinous is felt in every page. This is a serious horror book. The black and white is perfect for helping to set the tone of dreariness and desperation. We get the classic notes of the solemn man warning his visitors of the place's evil and how they really should not stay, and of course they don't listen. Herbert is the caretaker/owner of the castle Ragemoor and gives the twisted history of the place. He seems like a very noble fellow placed in a horrible situation he can't escape. I'm greatly looking forward to see how this story continues.
Throwing things in reverse we have THIEF OF THIEVES #1. Yes, I know I reviewed the second issue last week, and no, this isn't some bizarre Hickman-esque time travel thingy. I couldn't get my hands on issue one previously but now have a hold of a second printing. Issue two showed us a lot of the reasons why Redmond left the life of a thief. The first issue we get the lead up to him announcing his retirement. We also get to see how he met his assistant, Celia, and a good look at his last job. This is a really great book. Very clever writing, and top-notch artwork. Both the issues at are out are solidly character driven and not heavy on the action, but reward patient readers with a great story about a very interesting character.
ROCKETEER ADVENTURES vol 2 #1 features a trio of really fun stories. Marc Guggenheim and Sandy Plunkett start of with a great story of how folks deal with a vigilante who falls out of the sky and into their lives. Peter David and Bill Sienkiewicz follow up with a great parody story in which The Rocketeer gets more than a little "Daffy". The brilliant Stan Sakai rounds things out with a fun little story that gives a smiling homage to another hero we know well for flying around. All this and a great pin-up from Arthur Adams. Great comic and lots of fun not just for fans of The Rocketter, but anyone who wants to sit down for a read.
MUSIC!!!
Can't say as I'm feeling overly "RAWR" today, so I'm going to keep things mellow.
That;s going to be it for today. Any prayers and well wishes for my mother-in-law, the Missus and the whole family are greatly appreciated. Thank you, and see y'all Sunday.
Good Morning, Spawn Campers. It's March 16, 2012, the Ides haves passed, two days ago was time for Pi, and tomorrow maybe some green pie, and this is The Side. Does it seem weird to anyone else that every other day seems like a "holiday" and every month is designated as a time that we're supposed to be aware of something. Yesterday was of interest due to Julius Caesar, so there's historic context their. The day before was amusing due to a specific number important to mathematics. Tomorrow is an Irish holiday which proper drunks refer to as "amateur night". I'm sure today is probably supposed to be recognized as something specific, but really, who cares?
There's too much of it and these stupid things have already started to overlap. The worst culprit is April 20th. Had someone at the bar I worked at ask me if I was going to celebrate 4/20 and I told them absolutely not and that the person who instigated the holocaust is not a person to be celebrated. They weren't sure what I was talking, because they were stupid. I told them that April 20th was Adolf Hitler's birthday. They tried to argue that it was the pot smokers holiday or something to that effect.
It was that point that I told them they really should put the bong down and pick up a book.
COMIX!!!
There's a void in my existence which is left because I can't get new QUEEN AND COUNTRY stuff on a regular basis. I'm on the verge of sending Greg Rucka an e-mail begging for such. I sit wishing the THE SANDBAGGERS DVD collection wasn't so expensive. Fortunately for me Nathan Edmonson and Mitch Gerads have heard my pleas and THE ACTIVITY #1 and #2 are in my hot little hands. Yes, I am a bit late to the game on this one, but I'm so glad I got a hold of it. This is some really outstanding Spy-Fi. Its not too over the top. The operatives have some great gear, but no jet packs or tricked out Aston Martins. These are top tier professions who handle problems for the CIA and other intelligence outfits. If a job goes a it wrong or there details or evidence that needs taken care of, these are the people that go in. The story is mostly mission driven, but the cast is very cool. We get scant bits as to their personal lives or lack thereof, but they all seem very likable. Don't go in expecting explosions on every other page or high drama. Do expect to see people who are very good at what they do beings very good at doing it. The art is phenomenal. The writing is sharp. this is the kind of book that could easily be over written, but Edmonson seems to really know when to stop and let Gerads handle the storytelling. This is a really great collaboration. I highly recommend this one.
I missed the first issue, but I did get THIEF OF THIEVES #2. I dig Robert Kirkman and Nick Spencer so that alone sold me. I wasn't let down. This book also isn't over the top action, but is a really great character driven work about an incredible thief who is looking go go straight and get his family back. Shawn Martinbrough is the perfect artist for this project. I was a big fan of his work with Greg Rucka on their run in DETECTIVE COMICS for DC. His noir style is incredibly grounded and in a book like this in which the expressions on people's faces have as much impact as the bullets fired, his mastery of these subtle things is crucial. Even though I missed the first issue I feel like I'm mostly up to speed on the important things. That's great, because usually is you miss the first issue you're lost. Nice to see a smart comic that accessible. This book made me care a bit about the main character Conrad, and while we don't have all the pieces to the puzzle that's his life I find myself hoping he can put it all back together.
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER: SEASON 9 #7 continues "On Your Own" which deals with Buffy's pregnancy. Kinda of a weird title to the story since all she's done is go to get support from her friends. Her plans go awry when the police officer who's been trying really hard to establish himself as a character runs into a nest of "zompires", who are some of the most un-sparkly vampires ever, and Buffy, Spike, and is his alien bug piloted spaceship fly to the rescue. As much as I want to ask why in the blue frak Spike has a spaceship with a bunch of giant alien bugs that serve him and speak English, I've decide that this is just a monumentally weird thing that I approve of. There's a twist ending on this one that is also monumentally weird, which I'm going to approve of for the moment based solely on monumental weirdness. This "season" of Buffy has been pretty oddball, but after the overly epic epiciness of the previous "season" I'll take oddball. I was a bit put off by Buffy's decision to terminate her pregnancy, and I did briefly consider bailing on the book, however this issue made me glad that I hung in there.
You know how I said the zompires in BUFFY were some of the most un-sparkly vampires ever? Yeah, the vampires in THE STRAIN #4are the most un-sparkly vampires ever. Icky, nasty and disgusting. These things are just outright creepy. The outbreak is coming and the CDC is a bit behind the eightball. The more they find out, the more disgusting these vampires seem to be. I do really like this book because its so very different from a lot of the more popular vampire fiction that's out there. They really do seem like diseased inhuman things. While not for the faint of heart, this is a really well done horror comic and I'm really enjoying it, even though it does creep me out.
MUSIC!!!
This tune gives me a sweet American Gothic vibe. Kinda weird that the local alternative/modern rock station is playing the hell out of it, but I dig it.
Got the Petersburg Karate Open tomorrow and will be competing in the kata and weapons events. Hopefully, I'll have some nice new big trophies to put in the garage. I'll let y'all know Sunday. See ya them.
Here we go! Its Sunday, January 22, 2012, got a bunch of stuff for you today, and this is The Side. Yeah, I'm a bit video heavy today, but I've got some cool movie trailers for you, and of course our music section. I'm actually haven't a pretty good weekend. No blood (at least not mine), not much drama, kids seem to be feeling a little better, I'm not rushing to bang this out.
I'm almost scared I'm jinxing myself. Ah well. Let's dive in.
MOVIES!!!
Haven't had a chance to get to the theaters in quite a while. Fortunately, I've got Netflix and a Wii. Been watching some great flicks with the Missus. Been really digging some foreign movies section. Here's a couple we checked out this week.
BANLIEUE 13: ULTIMATUM is set two years after the first film. Yeah, we have or fun calling the French a bunch of cheese eating, surrender monkeys, but this film is completely badass. Damien and Leito team up again to keep a crooked politician from setting into motion events that would destroy the district and kill a lot of people. The Parkour scenes stole the show in the first film, and that gets toned down this time in favor of hard hitting martial arts choreography. They really do it right here going with the Asian approach to fight cinematography and pulling back with limited cuts to let the viewers really see the choreography and showcase the work the actors and stunt crew put in. The story has a hole or two in there, but for the most part its really good. The main bad guy manipulates everything masterfully. There were plenty of times I had to just sit back, slack jawed and take in how amazingly screwed up this guy's plans were. Really good performances all around. Not as visually over the top as the original, but more than makes up for it with a really tight story.
BKO: BANGKOK KNOCKOUT was a really pleasant surprise. For the moment I saw that it was from the same production company they gave us ONG BAK and CHOCOLATE I knew I was in for a treat. I crew of young martial artists are hoping for a shot at fame in Hollywood, but what they get is kidnapped and put through a gauntlet of vicious fighters so high rollers can bet on them. This was a really martial arts thriller. I was on the edge of my seat worried about these kids. The thugs range from muay thai fights, to guy that seems more like an animal than human, and even a guy right out of a slasher flick. The fight scenes are off the charts. The crew of fighters specialize in parkour, muay thai, kung fu and capoiera. The action is as beautiful to watch as it is brutal. Plenty of twists and turns for the more story minded. Loved this movie.
COMIX!!
MORNING GLORIES #15 is on deck this go around. Gym class continues as Zoe, Hunter, and Jun continue trying to navigate the Woodrun. So while things go fairly poorly for the students we get plenty on flashbacks continuing to let us in on Zoe's past. I'm very intrigued by this story because its focusing on Zoe. Yes there's more to all the characters here than meets the eye, but Zoe is such a random factor. On one hand she's dived right in to help save Jade, and she saves Hunter in this issue. But on the other hand she's got that pesky habit of stabbing people to death with large knives. She's really hard to get a bead on. I love that because early on it was so easy to write her off as a hot Indian Slutty McSlutslut who gets by on batting her eyelashes and excellent bra selection. That seems to be the middle ground between the altruistic girl who peeks out every-so-often and the stone cold killer. She's really a fascinating character. The over all story doesn't give us much more insight as to everything that's going on. There's a trap that seems specially designed for Hunter, or possibly he's not the only person with his condition. I do think there's a puzzle piece in here somewhere, but figuring out exactly what it is, and where it fits is the tricky part. As always with this book, its one big load of screwed up with a psycho chaser. Love it.
MUSIC!!
This guy's voice reminds me a lot of Sting's. The singer, not the wrestler. The tune has been getting a lot of air play here locally. I dig it.
That's going to be it for me today. Feels like I've got my mojo working, so we'll see how long I can keep it going. See y'all Wednesday.
Hey howdy, buckaroos! Its Friday, January 13, 2012, eek, bad luck, and all that crap, and this is The Side. Not terribly concerned with the whole Friday the 13th being bad luck. If memory serves I've tended to have good days on Friday the 13th. The only thing that concerns me is being a bit off schedule as far as my weekly rhythm. Had a couple of short days at work which is kinda nice because I got to spend a bit of time with the kids. Still, it feels weird because today feels more like a Tuesday than a Friday.
Next thing you know I'll be trying to go buy comics tomorrow. Completely unnecessary since I got them already.
COMIX!!!
Snagged HEART #1-3 and got my doors blown off. ATTACK OF THE SHOW's Blair Butler makes his comic writing debut and he hits on all cylinders. Yes, I am absolutely biased. Its a comic about an MMA fighter, and I love MMA. The story follows Oren Redmond, a young guy who really has nothing going on and gets into MMA. We see him in the beginning of the story as a guy working in an office and hating it. His brother is an MMA fighter because he grew up wrestling and wanted to keep doing it. Oren decides to give it a shot. At this point you'd typically see the story take a turn in which Oren turns out to be insanely talented, and learns super secret techniques from his sensei and everyone is blown away by him. Not this time, Butler keeps it real. You see Oren's head in the trash can on day one puking his guts out. You see him getting the crap kicked out of him. He keeps going because he's feeling pretty good about this. He feels like he's earning his rest at night. Slowly but surely he gets better. He gets in shape. He figures out he has a sucky ground game. The coaches keep working him and he starts getting amateur fights. He does well and starts getting pro fights. Its not all glamour. There's a great scene in which he's working to cut weight, and the reader gets to know exactly how much it sucks. Oren also does stupid stuff like blowing money on tattoos. He's a likable, but not perfect character. Kevin Mellon blows me away here. His art is spot on. Its dynamic and still very technical. Its easy to draw a guy throwing a punch. Its not easy to draw a guy locking in a kimura from his back. Even the little things like giving the fighters' stats and listing their entrance music really made this book sing. This book is a gem. If you've never seen anything MMA and want to get an idea of what's up this book is a brilliant introduction. Also, if you've got a friend who loves MMA but isn't really into comics, let them check it out. I'm betting they'll dig it.
Moving from realism to fantasy let's head over to Dark Horse for BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER: SEASON NINE #5. Buffy's having weird Slayer dreams and those of use who have been following the Buffy-verse for a while know that these tend to set the tone for things. There's buckets of things that go down in this book. Huge reveal at the end. Its really hard not to drop spoilers because of the extreme Oscar Mike Golf factor. This is really a set up issue in which we're getting some pretty significant plot beginnings to plot threads that we'll most likely be following for the majority of season nine. We get an inkling of a possibility of reconnecting earth to magic as well as huge personal changes for Buffy. Karl Molina (FRAY) guest pencils, and I love his stuff. I'm really excited to see where this season is going now.
Let's stick with vampirey type stuff with THE STRAIN #2. This is a really nasty story. The vampires here are pretty disgusting. These are the complete anti-Twilight vampires. Nothing even remotely sexy here. Still, its a good story. You've got to be a patient reader here because the vampirism pandemic is only just beginning. There's no huge body count let, but things are still just just beginning. Dr. Ephraim Goodweather and the others at the C.D.C. are still trying to get a handle on just what happened on the flight, and the three survivors aren't any help. The mystery is deepening for them, but we get a peek of the horror that's coming. The creepiness of this book is building, so if you love horror, you'll love this.
We wrap up this week with DARK MATTER #1. This is a nifty little sci-fi mystery. Six people wake up on a spaceship with no memories of who they are or how they got there. They look for answers and fight a robot. For a first issue, its pretty straight forward. The set up isn't anything really fresh, but its handled well enough. Each character seems to have their own skill sets that they're discovering. Its not bad at all, but hasn't really hooked me. It is good enough that I'm going to follow along for a bit and see where it leads.
MUSIC!!
Let's use one of Rooster's entrance music songs.
That's it for me today. Have a good weekend even if it feels like the middle of the week. See y'all Sunday.
Howdy! Its Sunday, November 20, 2011, I'm beat for no good reason, and this is The Side. I really wish I was tired from going to watch the fights last night. I read that Hendo and Shogun went all out, and the Silva/Le fight was incredibly exciting. I was already exhausted last night, so I probably would have passed out driving if I had gone to watch them, and then there'd be nothing for you to read this morning.
Hey, speaking of reading...
COMIX!
For anyone who is looking to me to tell them what to think about the new JUSTICE LEAGUE book. Stop looking. I don't read it. I do however keep up on it via the handy-dandy abridged version.
MORNING GLORIES #14 is the perfect comic for you if you think your high school is or was the worst place on Earth. This book continues on with its touching after-school special teen drama. Hunter is still upset that Casey told him they should just be friends. Casey feels really bad about hurting Hunter's feelings. Then there's Zoe, who is trying to put on a brave face, but the girls on the cheerleading squad are saying really nasty things about her, especially concerning the three dead people. But all that's OK, because its time for P.E.! That's right, good old gym class where a stressed out student can blow off some steam. Of course, when the faculty have tried repeatedly to kill you, weird stuff happens at every turn, god only knows what the hell is going on in the basement, and a psychic woman seems to be predicting all this from the Puritan days as the man she loves is being pressed to death in front of her, a jog through the woods may not go as well as one would hope. Things get weird of Hunter, Zoe, and Jun real quick. This book is completely freaking nuts. I mean that in the best way possible.
We jump ahead a few weeks in THE WALKING DEAD #91. The last storyline caught some flack for being "slow", but its still been very good reading. The uprising got quelled and Nicholas is in seeming good standing with everyone, although they're still kinda keeping an eye on him. Abraham doesn't seem too happy with not being in charge, and that's scary. If he turns on Rick its going to get ugly. The food supply is dwindling and that's bad in the dead of winter. Carl's adjusting to his injury as best he can, and we get a very good little scene between him and Sophia. Its fascinating to see how these kids cope with the ending of civilization as we know it. We also get the big fallout from the Rick/Andrea kiss. Those who didn't like the previous story might have some gripes here with it being slow, but the last two pages promises something on the horizon. This book is incredibly consistent in its quality. Kirkman writes the hell out of it and Charlie Adlard's art is just amazing. Great book.
MUSIC!
Always nice to see a band from my hometown making some waves. There's been so many bands from around here that have been absolutely amazing and were good enough to be big national acts, but never were. Locals who follow music here know Luther's Fall, and everyone close to my my age remember the Waxing Poetics. Let's see how far these guys get, because they definitely have the chops to go far.
That's it for me today. I'll be seeing y'all Wednesday.
Yawn! Its Sunday, October 16, 2011, one of these days I'm going to feel rested after sleeping, and this is The Side. Its completely due to the amount of sleep. It seems I'm not capable of functioning as well on six hours of shut as I used to. Used to be I'd get maybe four hours of sleep and then its off and running, but I don't think I'll be able to pull that one off anymore.
Its kind of a drag because its not until the kids finally hit the sack that we can watch whatever we want on TV, or put in whatever movie we'd like to watch. Its also less often when the Missus is hanging out with neighbors making it so I can play whatever video games I like and have full carté blanch over the viewing choices.
It used to just be a choice of what I wanted to watch or do. Now, I've got to choose between that and sleep. Right now, it feels like I chose poorly.
COMIX!!
BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER: SEASON 9 #2 starts us off this go around. Last issue we got a dose of where Buffy Summers is with her life, and its pretty normal stuff. She's working as a waitress. She's got an apartment with a couple of fun roommates. She's got to worry about paying her student loans. She just got relate-able again. That's good, but the bad is on the horizon. Bodies are popping up all over town and the police are thinking our favorite blonde Slayer has something to do with it. Andrew Chambliss steps in as writer after a strong series start from Joss Whedon, and he doesn't miss a beat. He's right on top of the distinct dialogue that the Buffy-verse is known for. We got to see where these characters are with issue one, and issue two let's us know that there's stuff going on. We do get an answer as to where all the John and Jane Doe corpses are coming from and that answer leads us to a lot more questions. We don't get a ton of over-the-top slam-bang action, but we do get good solid storytelling that's fun and engaging. Highly recommended.
PILOT SEASON: CITY OF REFUGE #1 makes me feel like I've dropped into a story halfway through. Its very possible since this is the first time I spotted this book and its an issue 1, but it seems I may have missed a previous series. Still, its not hard to fill in the blanks. Something really bad has happened, and people have come to a secured city for safety. The people in the city all receive implants which eliminate the capacity for violence. How it does this isn't spelled out all that well, but it works on the brain and that's all we really need to know. This city has not had a violent crime in eleven years. Security forces receive injects that temporarily counteract the implants. The implants are believed to be causing health problems. People don't like having their minds messed with. This story reminds me a lot of the film EQUILIBRIUM with some of the themes. Unfortunately, the comparison ends there. While the film was stylish and featured a ton of suspense and amazing action scenes, this comic is pretty slow. Its tough because there's so much going on that it requires a lot of exposition, unfortunately it doesn't have much going on to balance that. Yes, there is a hostage scene, and an element of danger, but the way it plays out doesn't really 'pop'. Its not a bad book, but you'll have to be a patient reader to really get through it.
MUSIC!!
Jumping in the wayback machine to visit a Van Halen tune. I used to really love this song. I didn't know the Blue Angels used it in a video, so that was a pretty pleasant discovery.
That's all for me for today. Time for about half a pot of coffee. See y'all Wednesday.
BRAINS! Its Sunday, October 9, 2011, I seem to be lacking them, and this is The Side. Been a busy week. Worked six day. Got the dojo back on track now that the Karate demo is over. Drew and inked a bunch of stuff. Found time to get my journalist on. I'm feeling a bit out of steam.
Fortunately, I don't run on steam. I run of caffeine, and possibly grease.
ONWARD!
COMIX!!
Only had one book waiting for me this week, but luckily for me it was THE WALKING DEAD #89. Last issue we left off with Nicholas, Spencer, and Olivia conspiring to remove Rick from leadership of the community. Nicholas it seems is off his nut because he doesn't just want Rick out of the leadership position, he wants Rick dead. Meanwhile, Rick is out with a scouting party checking out the surrounding area. So just when it looked like things were on a path to stability and safety, we find the most pressing problem isn't the dead. One thing has always set this book apart from other zombie comics in that those books were pretty much formulaic in that that they introduce the cast and then bump them off as the story progresses. Its about the zombies and how they get you. THE WALKING DEAD has always been about the people trying to survive in this world. As with the time the survivors were staying in the prison tension among the people boils over. What's actually pretty scary is how Rick handles things once everything's out in the open. We've been seeing Rick in his leadership position trying to do right by people and struggling with everything that's happened to his son. We get a glimpse here of the hard ass Rick Grimes who is the last person you want to mess with. The question is, will this quell the uprising, or just prove Nicholas's point?
The results for the BOOM! Studios Comic Book Straw poll were released. Sort of. For those who haven't heard about this, people voted by placing a pre-order of the comic for the person they chose. For the comic to actually be printed the pre-orders had to actually pass the 1500 mark and the top four actually did that with the others not making it, so they won't be printed.
Here's the results.
1. Barack Obama 2. Sarah Palin 3. Ron Paul 4. Michele Bachmann 5. Mitt Romney 6. Herman Cain 7. Newt Gingrich 8. Jon Huntsman 9. Rick Santorum 10. Rick Perry
I say the results were only sort of released, because they BOOM! hasn't released the actual numbers. I predicted Obama would win, and I was right. It was too early in the election process to do this. The Republicans Party has not chosen its candidate. So Obama may have only gotten 25 - 30% of the pre-orders and still won because the rest of the orders were split among nine other people.
I was surprise a bit that Sarah Palin came out on top of the Republican field, especially since she's not running. Still, she's popular, and there's an off chance some guys wanted that book hoping for a page of two from her pageant days. I'm not surprised that Rick Perry is at the bottom since this poll was announced before he entered the race. People may have made their decisions before he entered and got that big push a few weeks ago.
Ron Paul coming out on top of the Republican field for candidates actually running did surprise me a little, but shouldn't have. He's remained a consistent favorite for a lot of people. Bachmann doing well didn't surprise me either due to timing. She was doing very well at the time this was announced, but has since seriously declined. There's also the possible hotness factor that may have given Palin a bump. Keep in mind, I'm not saying they're in the positions they're in because of their looks. I'm saying some people will want a commemorative comic book of them because of it.
MUSIC!!
Its been a Zombie type of weekend. Lord knows, I've been shambling around the house like one.
Alrighty, its time for this guy to go brew him up a pot of coffee and take it easy a bit. The batteries need a recharge. See y'all Wednesday.
Its Sunday, September 25, 2011, I'm going to lay some pipe, and this is The Side. Had a plumbing problem in the Nozz Compound involving minor flooding. I managed to stop the problem, but now I have to attempt to make the bathroom fully functional again. This is stretching the limits of my plumbing ability. Frankly, all I really know about plumbing is that shit rolls downhill and quitting time is five o'clock.
But before I possibly make a bad situation worse, let's see what's going on with things.
INTERNET!!
This has been a busy week in social media. Facebook is making a bunch of changes, which don't affect me because I'm not on Facebook. A lot of the changes have already started rolling out. The users aren't too pleased about it, but there may be a bit of resisting change for the sake of resisting change in play.
Phillip DeFranco gave a pretty thorough rundown of what users are in store for with the new Facebook.
Now to me, this all sounds horrendous. It just sounds like one big confusing mess. However, the focus still seems to be on what Facebook's main goal has always been: putting information about yourself out there to share with people. Also, looking at the screen shots of what's in store and having seen what the pages look like now, it just looks too jumbled. There's a lot going on here. Whether its too much or not remains to be seen.
The timing is also very interesting in that Google+ went public this week. Its still in beta testing mode, but its fully functional. Its neat and clean. The focus is on sharing information and discussion. Whether or not that information is personal or news stories, or just fun bits from the web depends on the user. They also have games now and that's in its own little section so you don't have a bunch of game notifications clogging up your streams.
There's been a lot of people I've seen on G+ who also have Facebook accounts noting that since G+ came into existence that Facebook has been tweeking things in a way that seemed like they were trying to mimic G+. Mark Zuckerberg does indeed have a G+ account so he knows exactly what G+ has to offer. Whether the allegations of ripping off G+ have any meat to them is anyone's guess at this point.
I've made my call as to which site I'm going to be on. I don't think that many people who casually use social media are going to use both. That said, we'll see what happens. Is Facebook going to get turned into MySpace, or will Google+ not catch on like many people think it will?
That asked, I'm going to get ready to see the results of this month's G+ grand Prix championship.
COMIX!!
THE RED WING #3 was on the stands this week. Jonathan Hickman and Nick Pitarra continue their time travel story with some new wrinkles to things. This continues to be an idea driven story as opposed to a character driven one. Time travel is based upon ascending vibrations, and considering time as a stacked model. Time lines are vertical. But we have have people diving backwards through time and doing things. As opposed to many other time travel stories, altering things in the past has no affect on the present. It merely creates an alternate time stack. We learn here that it is also possible to move horizontally through the stacks, which is the equivalent here of moving through parallel dimensions. This is not he only idea in play here, as we are also dealing with the condition of the present and whose fault that is. So, in the "present" (which is the future relative to us) Dom, Val, and Maye are pilots dealing with an attack from a foe which is still very loosely defined. Meanwhile Dom's father is the prisoner of Dom from possibly "the future" or possibly a different "present". prisoner taking Dom seems to have thrown in with and is leading the enemy that pilot Dom is facing with Val and Maye. He's also ready to blame the present on the past, which is a big issue here. The enemy forces seem to be pillaging and destroying various points in the past, and taking whatever they can. It seems their motivation is 'our parents didn't do right to make the present good so we'll go back and take whatever we can to make the present good, and screw the past because its their fault the present sucks'. This proves my long standing believe that whiny, self-centered jerks shouldn't have time travel technology. We're on issue 3 of 4 and I've got no clue how Hickman is going to wrap this thing up in only one more issue. I can't recommend this title for everyone because it seems like you need to be a theoretical physicist to keep this thing straight. Dealing with time travel issues is tricky enough, but over-laying parallel dimension theory with such an odd turn on time travel theory is about enough to cook a few brain cells. Its definitely different, so if you like different, and enjoy having your brain kicked sideways, give it a read.
MUSIC!!
There's cool, then there's cool, and then there's Chris Isaak.
What? Did you think I was going to post that "I want to fall in love" song? That ain't happening. That's it for me for today. I've got a hot date with blow torch. Got to sweat a nipple onto a pipe. Technical jargon can sound kinda dirty sometimes. If i don't burn the house down, I'll see y'all Wednesday.
Its Sunday, September 11, 2011, and this is The Side. Been a few weeks since I've posted a Sunday update. Its also been a while since I did a comic review. Let's get to it.
TEN YEARS AGO
I was on a roof when it happened. I had a rope tied around my waist with a guy sitting at the peak of the roof hanging onto the other end of the rope as I was power washing the shingles. This was the second time I was up there because the stains just weren't coming out, and I was redoing the stupid job. It was even goofier in that when I asked the lady who lived there if she wanted to come out and look at it after I was done, she told me it wouldn't do any good because she was legally blind and would barely be able to see the roof from the ground. Made me wonder why I had to go out there and redo the job. So I called my pal, Brian, to tell him how insanely stupid the situation was and before I could say much of anything he asked me if I had heard what was going on.
By the time I had the radio on it was clear that we were under attack. My father's house was close by, and we were heading there anyways to use the bathroom. My stepmother was home and had the TV on the news. My dad was part of an Air Force Reserve unit and was on base when it happened. I had heard what had happened, but the visual was still took me aback. The towers had fallen. The first image I saw was of the city from across the water. The cloud had engulfed much of the picture. My stepmother was very nervous. She wondered if my father would be activated and sent in. My brother was in the Air Force. We live in a military town. Our family and the families of everyone we know were going to be directly affected in some way.
I was still working, and my next stop was Norfolk. It wasn't lost on me that I was driving into one of the top strategic targets on the east coast. Essentially the top three are Washington, New York, and Norfolk. It was lunch time by the time we got there. We stopped to eat at Dog-n-Burger, which is a little grill joint that we liked a lot. It was a noisy joint with music playing and the staff and customers all chatting and carrying on. Not that day. The staff worked in silence as the new feed played in place of the normal music. Everyone ate quietly and listened. It was truly an eerie moment. The only other time that had happened was when the Cole was attacked.
I called my girlfriend's house even though I knew she'd be in class. Her housemate answered, which shocked me because he was a Navy guy. I asked what the hell he was doing home. It was his day off. He hadn't turned on the TV or the radio. He had no idea what was going on. That stunned the hell out of me.
The remainder of the day was spent painting a church. The thought of the events transpiring were stage front in my mind. We didn't know if the attacks were over. There was the chance that Norfolk could still be hit. Fear was trying very hard to take hold of me, but I kept working. The painting actually because sort of meditating.
That night I talked with my family members. My cousin was attending Columbia University at the time and we got confirmation that she was well away from everything and safe.
In the days that followed, we saw the locals here rally in support of the people that leapt into action to do what they could during the attacks. We rallied behind our troops who we knew were getting ready to go on the offensive to beat back the crazies that attacked our people. Of course there were a few hippy losers standing on street corners with their "War is Terrorism" crap signs pissing and moaning that our fighting forces were getting deployed. There's always going to be people who just don't get it, and think one big hug will solve the world's problems.
The world changed that day. America woke up to the fact that there's a group of people who would see us all dead just for how we live our lives. We were and are the enemy to a fanatical bastardization of a religion. There are still those people who say we'll never win this fight. They are right, but that doesn't mean that we shouldn't fight. There will always be some group of crazies who want to kill people simply for not being just like them. Time and time again in history people have had to beat back the crazies. September 11, 2001 was when we got reminded of that.
COMIX!!
Murders, deception, a hidden romance, and a really bad poet all get served up in USAGI YOJIMBO #140. This issue completes the "Murder at the Inn" two-parter, which has Usagi teaming up with Inspector Ishida. This is an old-school detective story here. We follow the Inspector and Usagi as they make a few discoveries and then its promptly on to the "parlor scene" in which the detective lays out the case before the suspects and reveals the guilty party. We're not talking about any great twists and turns on the genre here, but this story is done with such an exceptional elegance that its just a joy to read. Stan Sakai is a master cartoonist and you see this with every page. There's not a lot of sword swinging action, but this is a detective story first and foremost. Great read, and beautifully executed storytelling. I recommend this especially to young cartoonists who really want to see how to do things properly.
On to 50 Girls 50 #4, which kind of annoys me. It started out as a bit of a space cheesecake book. Last issue they dropped that angle, and went for straight space sci-fi. They're trying to continue that with this issue, and have succeeded a bit. Its not a bad issue, but its confusing. The story as contained in this issue is fairly clear, but everything around it isn't. I've seen this same group of women in every issue, but aside from Oskana, I couldn't begin to tell you any of their names. That's not just because I'm checking out their figures in their skin tight spacesuits. Its an ensemble cast, and one that is still new to readers. This book seriously needs some captions to let me know who these women are, and what they do. Also, despite the title telling me twice that there's 50 girls somewhere in this story, I still haven't seen them. I count, maybe, seven. And with all this stuff going on around Oskana and it being alluded to repeatedly that there's something really wrong with her, I have no clue what the deal with her is. Its not a bad book, but I feel like I'm watching a story unfold with no clue who the players are.
MUSIC!!
This song was the hotness, and was getting major radio time, but then the 9/11 attacks happened and the song went away because it seemed kinda wrong to laugh and kid around for a while.
That wraps up today. Please take a moment to think about those who sacrifice to keep us safe and maintain our freedom. Thanks, and I'll see y'all Wednesday.
Roamers!! Its Sunday, August 21, 2011, I hate zombies, and thats because if there's going to be any biting going on they had better buy me dinner first in stead of trying to make me dinner, and this is The Side. Wow. Inappropriate sexual zombie joke. Its been one of those nights.
As I said before, comic reviews will be on Sunday now. As for the title, would I really vote for Rick Grimes for president? I don't know. However, if Obama had ever killed a zombie with a hatchet I'd have a little more respect for him.
COMIX!!
THE WALKING DEAD #88 starts us off this week. There's been a bit of criticism that this story line has been slow, which is understandable. There hasn't been anyone attacked by a roamer and no one has died for a few issues now. At the same time, considering the body count amassed in "No Way Out", we were due for a little break. Still this is THE WALKING DEAD so you know something bad is going to be happening, and part of it is trying to figure out from what direction this is going to be coming from. Right now things are relatively quiet, and everyone in the community is rebuilding after the herd attack. The problem is, not everyone is very happy about the way things are going. To make things tougher, Carl is awake and has some memory loss. It seems like his brain is trying to protect him from the memory of his mom and sister dying. This is weighing really heavy on Rick, and as tough as Rick Grimes is, there comes a point in which it can get to be too much. Kirkman and Adlard really nail it in showing how overwhelmed Rick is feeling. Great issue. Light on the action, but still an excellent read.
ZATANNA #16 ends this series not with a bang, but with a filler. Its not a bad filler. Adam Beechen had turned out some very enjoyable little stories in this series. This on is fun enough. I very tired Zee gets and unexpected and uninvited guest from Limbo Town, home of Klarion (insert "bum bum bum" here) the Witch Boy. There's thievery and chasing about. That's pretty much it. None of the plot threads Paul Dini get rolling earlier in the series got addressed at all. Its not a bad issue, but still a horribly disappointing way to end a series. Its almost as if this book (and many others from DC) were just marking time until the reboot. I don't really blame them. With DC right now, nothing you're reading really matters in the grander continuity (unless Geoff Johns is writing it because somehow his crap is immune to rebooting) because its all going to get washed away next month. I am sad to see this series go, and I did enjoy it, but I'm very frustrated by it.
Now, let's move onto something BOOM is up to, and that's the Comic Book Straw Poll. Here's the deal:
August 17th, 2011 - Los Angeles, CA - It’s a comic book industry first! Make your voice heard! This November, DECISION 2012 debuts the comic book industry’s first straw poll — with biographical comic books for all the top candidates in the 2012 Presidential race. The decision is in your hands; it's up to you to see who wins! All print runs of each series will be announced this November and the candidate with the highest print wins!
If you want your candidate to win comic book's first straw poll, you need to call your local comic shop and pre-order your candidate's comic book before September 29th, 2011! To find your local comic shop just go to www.comicshoplocator.com, or call 1-888-COMIC BOOK to find the shop near you.
The people of Iowa just had their straw poll and only Iowans could participate. Now with comic book's first straw poll, all of America can participate!
"The DECISION 2012 line of comic books has something for everyone," said Marketing and Sales Director Chip Mosher. "For those political junkies that love a good horse race, we have comic book's first straw poll. For those voters and our young soon-to-be-voters, we have some great non-partisan biographical comics on all the major candidates - announced and waiting to be announced - in the presidential 2012 race. And finally, for the comic book collector we have a fantastic once-in-a-lifetime collectible. The DECISION 2012 comic line and comic book's first straw poll is a great way to spotlight the upcoming 2012 election and get people excited about voting!"
The DECISION 2012 line of comics and comic book's first straw poll isn't just a contest, but also a great way for voters and students to educate themselves on the candidates running in the 2012 Presidential election. This series of biographical comic books details the history and political lives of the candidates for the 2012 Presidential Election, giving non-partisan background on President Barack Obama and such presidential hopefuls as Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain, Newt Gingrich, Jon Huntsman, Sarah Palin, Ron Paul, Rick Perry, Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum! The DECISION 2012 line of comic books are aimed at anyone of any age who enjoys reading and discussing U.S. politics.
More information on the straw poll and the DECISION 2012 line of comics can be found here: http://www.decision2012comics.com/
Remember to make sure you pre-order your candidate’s comic from your local comic shop by September 29th, 2011. If your candidate's comic book does not get pre-ordered by at least 1,500 copies then it will not be printed.
This is a pretty neat idea. I do think its a little soon though. Let's face it, Obama's going to win this. Let's say his approval rating is at 40%, and the pre-orders mirror this, that 60% of pre-orders to split among nine other people. Not quite fair, but if one of the Republican hopefuls does win this I will laugh my ass off. It will be interesting as to who gets the most pre-orders out of the republican field. So, if you want to "cast you vote" head on in to your local comic shop and make your request.
MUSIC!!
A song for that girl from yesterday who has become the woman of today. Listen close, you can hear Elvis singing along with the track.
That's a wrap for me today. I'll see y'all Wednesday.
