Insert "Bunky" joke here

I feel thuper! Its Friday, September 23, 2011, thanks for asking, and this is The Side. Spent some quality time under a house fixing insulation that wasn't installed properly by another contractor on a house that's suppose to close today. Time crunch, couldn't get the person who did the original work in time, under I go.

Its unpleasant to work with that stuff. The fiberglass insulation itches something fierce. Being the crawl space isn't fun and even if you don't have claustrophobia, being down there is nearly enough to make you want to start. But the job is done, and while it was pretty unpleasant I can't really complain because first off I was working and right now, working is a very good thing.

Also it being a vacant house with newly renovated bathrooms and nice showers to choose from after the ordeal was a bit of luxury.

COMIX!!

The DC reboot is in full swing. The new #1 issues are steadily rolling out. I haven't been buying any of them, but a few have ended up in my pull box. Joey at Comic Kings has been very happy when I told him I didn't want them, as he had a serious run of people who came in at the last minute asking for the books. You can't pre-order books a week in advance. If you didn't know that before, you do now. So even with ordering a lot of extra books, he's still a little short. Seems that people will still show up for first issues. The real question is, will they show up for subsequent issues.

There's been a lot of talk about diversity with the characters. Its not just white guys on parade anymore. Although there's still a bit of fanboyism that's in the way. Hal Jordan is still Green Lantern, even though John Stewart has a strong following thanks to the old JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED cartoon. If DC wanted to really impress me with their push for diversity they'd have made John the main Green Lantern. It might almost make up their their notion that diversity is good unless we're talking about paraplegic women.

We do have new gay heroes too! That should be good, but when I hear people talking about Bunker, I'm having my doubts. I have no problems with gay characters. Greg Rucka created some really great ones. The thing that has me worried is reading Brett Booth tweet that:

We’re trying to make being gay a part of who he is, your gaydar should be pinged right off the bat:)

OK, that's a pretty poorly phrased statement. Your sexuality is a part of who you are. Its not difficult to make being gay a part of who a character is. If that character is romantically attracted to other characters of his or her same gender, then they are pretty much gay. Now, what I'm really, really, REALLY hoping that he doesn't mean that being gay is going to be this characters defining characteristic. This is partly due to this character being on the Teen Titans and defining teenage characters by their sexuality just isn't a good idea. Moreso, defining any character by their sexuality is a bad idea. Is Bunker's (Whose dumb idea was that name? Why don't you just set the ball on the tee?) main motivation for everything he does going to center around him being gay?

I'm not saying that having an openly gay character is a bad idea. I'm not saying that having an openly gay character in the Teen Titans is a bad idea. In fact, its a great idea because it opens the door to having great stories addressing issues of prejudice. Much like Chris Claremont's 80's UNCANNY X-MEN run used the genre to look at prejudice. Unfortunately, I seriously doubt that we're going to have the same thoughtful and nuanced approach to the issue here. When I think of a character like Tommy Jagger, who was gay, I don't just think "Oh, he's gay." No, I think about what a great character he was and how much I could relate to him. I looked forward to reading comics with him in them. He wasn't there to be in my face to make me think about diversity, but the way the entire Rucka CHECKMATE series was written you accepted diversity because everyone brought something awesome to the table.

So the question is: Will Bunker bring something to the table that fans and readers can appreciate, or will he be there to pander to one group of people for the sake of being "diverse"? I'm really hoping its the former, but unfortunately I'm having serious doubts.

MUSIC!!

Because gay dudes are hardcore, yo!



That's all for me today. Looks like its going to be a soggy weekend again, but I'll still see y'all Sunday.

The Last Comic Review

ITS HEADED RIGHT FOR US!!! Its Friday, May 20, 2011, we're all gonna die, sooner or later, and this is the Side. Yep, that pesky old time of prophecy is upon us again. Judgement Day is scheduled for tomorrow, so with such big stuff happening I hope you appreciate my dedication in getting this week's comic reviews to you.

I'm taking the Buffy approach to this whole thing.

"Its the end of the world."

"Again?"

Yeah, so guy claimed that the Judgement day was gonna be Saturday. Massive earthquake to be followed promptly by the Rapture and the Almighty laughing at those silly Mayans and their silly calendar.

Screw this. Time to discuss matters with a bit more realism.

COMIX!!!

This was kinda a weird wee in that I got three comics and while all three were really solid, none of them really jumped up and made me want to read them again immediately. Kinda weird since all three book have really good creative teams. I do know why though, and I'll hit on those individually.

ZATANNA #13 had Paul Dini back on the reigns and Jamal Igle serving up the hotness. Love these guys. So why wasn't I super-amped on this book? Now, I really dig this series, and this was a good issue, but this is a set up issue. Its one of those books in which we're shown that big stuff is coming, and in this case we're shown by a mystic kitty cat. There is no shortage of action, but that comes from Detective Colton trying to stop brother Night from escaping prison. So while we do have Zee interacting with mystic kitteh and having a tete-a-tete with the Spectre, the action isn't on her. I do understand that. Its got to happen sometimes, and I have to say I'm a lot more interested in Colton now than I was before. So its a good comic, but spends more time building our villain and a key supporting cast member. If you've been curious about the book, you might want to pick it up as i think this issue is heavy on the foreshadowing.

TEEN TITANS #95 has the team going up again Rankor, and its not going very well. In fact they've been getting picked off a few at a time and taken prisoner. JT Krul seems to be taking this old school. I remember quite a few team books from when I was a kid in which you'd have them up against a big bad and the villain and his crew would manage to pick them off one at a time. Typically the last hero would free the others and a giant beatdown would ensue. So its pretty familiar territory, but I'm OK with it. I may have a good idea where this is going, but I'm curious as to how they're going to pull it off. Nicola Scott's art is as always a delight. JT Krul is still turning our a decent story. The only problem is that I'm hitting the same notes here that I've seen many times before. Its done well, but its pretty familiar. We'll see how things pan out next issue.

TINY TITANS #40 this week is all about Kroc. Kroc rocks! Its a Krocapalooza! Its Krocaggedon! Its... its... a whole lot of Kroc. Kroc follows the gang to school. Chaos ensues. Not much for DCU continuity gags here this time around. The book is always really cute, but but when it does stuff like "Finals Crisis" or "Mister Johns Comic Shops" I usually get a bigger chuckle. My kids will probably dig it though.

MUSIC!!!

Going with the obvious song choice, but a very cool version of it.



That's it for me FOREVER!!! Unless the world doesn't end tomorrow in which which, we'll see yeah back here Sunday.

The Ladies be Fightin' Crime, Yo.

Aw yeah, haircut! Its Friday, April 22, 2011, I look great, and this is The Side.
bieng about six months overdue for a haircut I finally managed to eek out a little time to get into a little chain hair-cuttin' type place. After getting the junk from work shampooed out of my hair, the lady asked me how I wanted my hair cut.

"I need a hair cut that says 'millionaire playboy by day, crimefighter by night'. Give me... "The Bruce Wayne".

That's all she needed to know. Best haircut I ever got.

COMIX!!!

I'm starting off with ZATANNA #12 this week. Matthew Sturges takes the reigns from Paul Dini, and before some of the hardcore Diniphiles begin with the wailing and gnashing of teeth, relax, this was a great issue. Zee takes on a new villain, Backslash, who kills mythic creatures, eats bad fast food, and is a complete jerk. Oh , he can also move time backwards for short spans completely nullifying Zee's powers. Not good for our fishnet clad neroine. So how can she defeat this guy? Fun with the English language! If you haven't been picking up this book, this is a great stand alone story to give it a shot. And if you need more tempting, there's gorgeous art by Stephane Roux to further tempt you.

SUPERGIRL #63 continues the "Good Looking Corpse" storyline and it looks like the final secret of Alex is revealed. I've been a little tepid on this story. Its fine, but I didn't think it was good to have so many guest stars in a creative team's lead off story for their run. Looking back over the last few issues and seeing how they slowly let more and more information out about Alex in such a controlled manner I have to give them props. Its been well paced, and the use of guest stars Robin, Blue beetle, and Miss Martian haven't overshadowed Supergirl's role in the book. I was worried it was going to turn into "Titans: Metropolis", but it hasn't. This is still Supergirl's book and the guests are handled well. I did get word that this book is going to have another shift in creative teams, but I'm not sure if its permanent. Probably has something to do with DC losing Nick Spencer to Marvel. It has taught me not to gripe about artists who are attached to a book. I wasn't super thrilled with Bernard Chang on the book, but once I found out the next artist is going to be ChrisCross I wanted to beg Chang to stay.

TEEN TITANS #94 was pretty good stuff. The team travels to another dimension to try to save Wonder Girl and her mother as well as find Solstice's parents. This story is teetering on a few complains I've had about previous Titan runs. Raven hasn't taken the problem spotlight, but it seems she has an adverse reaction to Solstice's presence. I don't really like having Raven in the center of things as its been done to death, but its not the main focus of the story. Combine that with me not having seen two heroes whose powers adversely affect each other in each others presence since Firestorm and Captain Atom way back when, and I can live with it. Also it looks like the formula of having one team member in trouble and the rest rushing to help is starting to rear its head. However, that's not completely the case as the team was summoned for help by Wonder Girl's mother and has gotten into it with serious opposition. As for this opposition its pretty nice to see Indian Mythology used in a story. There's an in story jab about how often Greek Mythology is used, and that's a pretty good point. This is an alright read.

To wrap things up, we're thinking pink with TINY TITANS #39. A bunch of super capes get tossed in the laundry at Wayne Mansion and everyone's costume comes out pink. Hilarity ensues. Fun issue. Probably the most pink I've ever seen in one comic. Great for young readers, or anyone who wants a lighter change of pace.

MUSIC!!!

She's had it up to... where?



That's the ball game for me. I'll see y'all Sunday. Don't get any on ya.

Fitch Beats up a Cheesehead for Comics!!

Shame! Or possibly sham. Its Sunday, February 27, 2011, I've returned to you, and this is The Side. "Where was Friday's post?" you may ask. More computer trouble, but its been resolved. I thought about posting up some stuff on Saturday, but it would have been more rushed and half-assed than usual, so I figured I'd wait.

Alright, time for a shameless plug. I like video games, but I'm not super up on all the news and details. Lately, I'm playing more older games since they're cheaper to get a hold of and i don't have the latest systems. So if you're looking for some video game news and articles, go check out my buddy Joe. You'll be glad you did.

BEATIN'S!!

The UFC last night proved three things to me: you don't ever want to get punched my Mark Hunt, Michael Bisping is an asshole, and Jon Fitch can't catch a break.

The main event last night was disappointing and not because of the fight. After seeing Michael Bisping blatantly throw a completely illegal technique and then go on to win I was a bit soured. However, then out comes Jon Fitch to some sweet Johnny Cash music. Much has been made of him coming into this fight, mainly due to him adopting a new diet which is pretty much a vegetarian one. He's been a dominant fighter in the welterweight division. And now standing between him and title shot is the former champion BJ Penn.

Fitch might look like he should be in a van with a Great Dane and some other kids out solving mysteries, but he's the real deal. He battled a very tough Penn in a grappling war the first two rounds, and then beat the crap out of him in the third taking the fight to the a decision. The Judges chose poorly and the fight was declared a "majority draw" meaning two of the judge called the fight even on points while the third said Fitch won. Even Penn said that him getting a draw in that fight was an act of the gods and he thought he lost. Fitch was very disappointed but his attitude about it was outstanding.

His stance is that its not his job to decide who gets a title shot. He's there to do his job and that job is to fight. He's said that if he hasn't convinced Dana White, the UFC and fans that he should be the number one contender to the title then he hasn't been doing his job right.

No excuses. No whining. Hard work and dedication. That's what I like to see. Does Fitch deserve a title shot? Absolutely. Will he get one? Probably, since he's not going anywhere, looks better than ever in the ring, and is patient enough to do whatever it takes to achieve his goal.

DIRTY LOW-DOWN SHAME!!

With me being knocked offline for a couple days I spent my mornings before work watching the morning news shows. I got to see some true stupidity. The big news was that blogger who got an interview with the Wisconsin Governor by posing as someone else. Pretty lame stuff considering the Governor said the exact same stuff in a press release a couple hours later. But this was apparently some kind of brilliant ploy against the Governor. What was the monumentally dumb part was they played a portion of the phone interview and the Governor said that since certain state senators are literally in hiding to avoid doing their jobs then he was going to stop the direct deposit of their pay and take the checks and lock them into the desks of the senators, so if those clowns want to get paid they better show up for work.

At this point the dim anchor woman said how horrible it was to even suggest that those state senators be locked to their desks. Not surprised she got confused as she does tend to get confused easily. Fortunately there a guy on the same show who is actually quite brilliant and pointed out her mistake. Unfortunately as he attempted to explain why the Governor is correct and the protesting unions are not the show conveniently ran out of time for that segment. Nice.

But yes, the bill is working its way through limiting the collective bargaining abilities of public unions in Wisconsin. Democrats were chanting "Shame" as it passed. Of course they're pissed. This directly affects them. See, this is about public unions. These unions are made up of people whose wages are paid by money from taxes. The heads of these unions donate money to politicians from union dues. Doesn't really matter what the rank and file union workers want, they don't have much say in the matter. Unions is Wisconsin donate a disproportional amount to Democrats over Republicans. The Democrats are pretty much in the Union's pocket as they know which side their bread is buttered on. So yeah, the Democrats are pissed because they couldn't stop this bill which would decrease the power of public unions. The whole reason this is going through is in an attempt to balance the state's budget. It doesn't cut anyone's pay or take away their pensions. All it does is put a check on the power of unions. The unions don't want it. The Democrats they gave money too couldn't stop it. So they're worried they won't be getting their hefty union donations come election season.

Yeah. That's a damn shame.

Its been such a crazy week with everything in politics. Protests are going on in a bunch of countries against their governments. Libya is completely nuts right now. I have to wonder if our Pop-Star-in-Chief isn't trying to get himself impeached with his declaring law "unconstitutional" and refusing to defend them. He was supposed to be the one with all this understanding of the world, and the world is going apeshit on his watch. Not his fault, mind you. There's nothing he can really do about it. But between that and his old lady giving him grief about her crusade as First Lady to fight obesity, I wouldn't be surprised if he's considering saying "Fuck this! I'm out of here, and going to go get myself a cheeseburger." So, he's doing a bunch of dumb stuff that Presidents can't do and hoping to get tossed.

Its just nuts. Fortunately, good old Virginia is trudging on fairly steadily. The only political uproar here is if our Governor will be on the Republican ticket as Vice President if he gets asked. Amazing how our budget is manageable and this being a right to work state. One hell of a coincidence.

Politics. It really is like a contact sport.

THE LATE MANNY FRESH

Manny Fresh is dead. That's the reports coming in via The Mike and Bob Show. Manny went out doing what he loved but also proved that masturbation and gun play are never a good combination.

But is there more to this story? Manny Fresh had his share of foes. They struck at him through Twitter, but Manny masterfully shut that down. Then came "Cupcake" who also approached Manny via the internet and attempted to lure him to his doom with the promise of weird sex while simultaneously trying to drive a wedge between Manny and the Dudes. Yet, still Manny persevered! But now it seems he has fallen, and while it appears to be accidental, I wouldn't rule out foul play. This could have been staged and Manny's body could have been left in the state that it was to try to shame his memory. However, it was Manny, so there's not much that could be done to shame that memory.

Could this secret cabal that was attempting to destroy Manny Fresh have finally succeeded? Is Peter Criss Mask somewhere out there oddly laughing at Manny's demise? Has Manny really been sent back through time and is being hunted by a metaphorical curse machine? Will be one day return to form Manny Fresh Inc and train Manny Freshes around the world?

Only time will tell.

COMIX!!!

I'm going to start this off on a serious note. This week we lost a really great talent. Dwayne McDuffie passed away due to complications from a surgery. You're probably familiar with is work. He's been a writer in comics for many years. He's done a lot of work with the DC animated properties. I even scripted the Justice League Heroes video game for PS2. McDuffie was a writer that you could trust to deliver. He didn't get the recognition that some of the writing "superstars" get, but when he's mentioned you're not going to hear much of anything bad about his work. And this is good. This is a fellow who will live on through the amazing body of work that he produced in his life. The day that he passed the animated feature ALL-STAR SUPERMAN that he wrote was released. I wasn't planning of purchasing it, but I am now. Not so much as a tribute, but as a fan who now has a greater appreciation to a talent that was taken from us to soon.

On to some actual reviews, and this week's book were really great. Starting the ball rolling with DETECTIVE COMICS #874. Earlier in the Snyder run the book was split with half of it following Dick Grayson and the other half following Jim Gordon. That format got dropped to complete the Grayson story, and now that its wrapped we pick up right where we left off with Jim Gordon and his son. When I was picking up my comic the guys were discussing Luke Cage and how that fella eats a lot. It seems that there's a lot of appearances with Luke Cage eating. So its funny that the first issue I read this week opens with a diner scene. Its brilliant. Its so tense that it palatable. Brilliantly written and the artwork by Francesco Francavilla is incredible. Grayson is indeed here and dealing with the after effects of his battle with The Dealer. Fortunately he has Red Robin to back him up. I always liked reading these two teamed up. It does seem weird that in the field Tim is referred to as "Red Robin". It just doesn't sound right, but that's just how it is now. Great issue front to back.

Moving on to another Red Robin appearance over in TEEN TITANS #92. Georges Jeanty pencils this issue, and i like his work, but I was really amped to get my Nicola Scott fix. After a few deep cleansing breaths I dove in. With everything going on with Calculator the story was mainly about the team preferring to have Tim with them than Damien. I understand it since a lot of the team has a long history with Tim. These are his best friends. It makes sense that he's with them now that his quest to find Bruce has been completed. However, I prefer the team with Damien on it. J.T. Krul really made that dynamic work and I was eager to see how this was going to play out in the long term. Looks like we'll never know. Something that was bugging me was the deal with Kid Eternity. He got snatched like a year ago and it seemed like nobody noticed. Well, they certainly noticed now.

Over in ACTION COMICS #898 Hairless Lex Luthor takes on his old Orange Lantern ally Larfleeze. Paul Cornell and Pete Woods are nearing the end of this story which has just been completely stellar. Just when you start to really pull for Lex Cornell reminds us of what a complete bastard that he is. The end of this issue has a huge reveal about Robo-Lois which had me smacking my forehead and wondering how I couldn't have seen that one coming. We knew she had an agenda separate from Lex's and that she was working for someone else. Now we know who and this has me itching to see the next issue.

ATOMICA #5 turned things from a light-hearted romp to a nasty chain of events. After talking with a counselor about her Amnesia, Rose discovers that Professor Colluns is missing! The hunt for the good Professor leads out plucky heroine straight to one Dr. Astray. Ted Astray is still a nasty opponent and fairly creepy, but the creepiness gets upped with his parting warning "Beware the Metavore!" I don't know what a Metavore is, but I'm damn sure bewaring it. I have to wonder if this has a connection with Atomica's past and if this is the "big bad" that Astray is working for. Hopefully we'll get more answers next issue.

MUSIC!!

I'm a general fan of there domestic policies concerning boggy marshes.



That's the whole nine yards for today. I'm ready to go back to bed or start a coffee IV. Money's on the latter. See y'all Wednesday.

Edgar versus Batman to Save Children!

Happy New Year! Its Sunday, January 2, 2012, half my resolutions are already toast, and this is The Side. Bouncing around the intarwub like it was new toy I found a nifty little new story about Scareware. Well, well, looks like what hit my comp last week has a name and its bouncing around Facebook, which the Missus has been spending quite a bit of time on.

Look, Facebook sucks, but half the planet seems to use it. Nothing I write is going to make it go away our make people stop putting way too much information about themselves or their friends on there. Its a Wikileaks for people, but unfortunately Mark Zuckerburg has enough pull to keep his ass out of the frying pan.

That said, if you're going to make just one New year's resolution involving the internet, make it this one: don't be stupid. This is a hostile environment, and don't you forget it. If you put it on the internet count on everyone on the planet seeing it. Nothing is fully secure on here, and if you don't believe me, just ask Haley Williams.

BEATIN'S!!

UFC 125 was last night and a lot of people were pretty down on this card due to lack of big star power. I think people thank big stars as in size. The heavyweight division lit up once Brock Lesnar hit the scene. For a while it was pretty thin, but now its exploded with a lot of giant powerhouses, which made Lesnar's days as champion numbered and which will give him a hard road back to the championship. Now the opposite end of the weight spectrum is getting a huge push. The UFC has added a featherweight and bantamweight division. Their roster has increased with the acquisition of the WEC. I was incredibly excited to hear that Anthony Pettis was next in line for a lightweight title shot, because that guys is exactly what the division needs, an incredibly exciting fighter who can bring the crowd to its feet.

But can the lightweight division offer the same excitement that the heavyweights can? Frankie Edgar is determined to prove it can.

The champ managed a feat that no one else has: he beat BJ Penn twice as a lightweight, and he did so convincingly. He goes under the radar because he's not a big trash talker. Still, last night's title match had my full attention because because Edgar's first defense now that he's sent Penn back up to welterweight was against the only guy who has ever beaten him. Round one looked like history was going to repeat itself as Gray Maynard beat the living hell out of Edgar. The guy threw 93 strikes in round one and many of use were shocked that the fight wasn't stopped. We were more shocked that Edgar survived the round. We were even more shocked when Edgar came out in round two as if round one had never happened and won the round. Edgar battled like a true champion but Maynard is a tough fighter and always dangerous. The fight went the distance. Edgar had one three of the five rounds including the fifth. However the judges don't always agree with me and Maynard's dominance in the first round gave him a lead of points that Edgar was forced to catch up to, and he did resulting in draw. A rematch is is up next for the two fighters, with Pettis waiting to take on who ever is left standing.

So the naysayers can say whatever they want about the lighter weight classes in mixed martial arts, but the UFC has one gutsy champ to be proud of. Most guys fight matches. This guy fights wars.

COMIX!!

Yes there is indeed a second set of comic reviews because i had two weeks worth of books at the shop and ten bucks to my name. At least until I got paid. Here's the rundown on the rest.

I had a lot of Batman related stuff last go around. Grant Morrison continues to give us a Batman that is awesome. David Finch is attempting to drag the Batman from the 90s back. But that's Bruce Wayne Batman. What about Dick Grayson Batman? He's being awesome right now in DETECTIVE COMICS #872. Scott Snyder writes a helluva Dick Grayson Batman. His interactions with Barbara and Tim were great. The story is moving along in an interesting direction. The banquet hall scene was legitimately creepy and nerve rattling. There's also the back up story with Commissioner Gordon that's running parallel to the Dick Grayson story. I know DC is cutting back-up stories to get their books down to the $2.99 price point, but Detective Comics was the first comic i read regularly and it always had a back-up story. At the time it featured green Arrow. So the nostalgic part of me will miss them. That aside, its a really creepy mystery story going on there and I'm dying to see how it turns out. I know the last time I reviewed this title I said I wasn't a fan of Jock, but I like what he's doing on this book. Ditto here. He can set up camp here with Snyder for the long haul and I'll keep right on reading if it continues being this good.

Moving on over to things Teen Titans. We had TEEN TITANS #90 where I am uncharacteristically just there for the art. No secret, I love Nicola Scott. She's one of my favorite artists working today. She totally delivered here. As for the story itself, its moving right along. J.T. Krul was responsible for writing one to the worst book in 2010, but he seems to be looking to atone for that with a solid story and good character interactions. The interactions with Rose and Damien were very well done. I was off this book for while, but I'm back gain and enjoying it. That wasn't the only Teen Titans book out, and here's where it gets weird. TEEN TITANS: COLD CASE was there waiting for me, so I grabbed it and I don't know why this book was published. Its not that its not particularly very good, because frankly, it is pretty lame. Its that the book is set five years ago our time and has nothing to do with the characters as they currently stand. It features the One Year later Teen Titans line-up complete with Tim Drake as Robin and still dealing with his father's murder and Kid Devil, who I liked and thought it was pretty crappy that he got bumped off. I don't know why this book is coming out now. Did someone at DC find the script in a drawer from 2005 and say, "Hey, look what I found, let's publish this!" Weird, and skippable. Save your money. The dumb thing is $4.99. For that you can get a copy of TINY TITANS #35 and some doughnuts. This month we have fun with parallel dimensions and color schemes. Great stuff as always and it gave me a chuckle.

HELLBOY: THE SLEEPING AND THE DEAD #1 features Mike Mignola and Scott Hampton teaming up to give us another really fun and creepy title. Hellboy takes on vampires, and this is all straight from the Mignola handbook. Give us a grabber of an introduction and pull us right into the heart of the mystery along with Hellboy. This takes me back to stories like "The Wolves of St. August" and "The Chained Coffin". Its a short story that is super creepy and entertaining. Lovely work.

Rounding for home we get to the favorite comic of The Mighty Missus Nozz: ZATANNA #8. Paul Dini is back and dealing with Zee's fear of Puppets. I absolutely love the cover as it has has nods to some pretty famous puppets. The book itself is really good. One thing that bugs me is that everything in Zatanna's life seems to go back to something involving her father. And I know that this is the basis of the character, but I want to see things move beyond that. This story is a step in that direction. Yes, it does involve her father, but the story is about Zee. The threat is one that is specifically targeting her. The writing is great as expected from Dini. Cliff Chang handles the art, and its top notch. I know Supergirl will be in good hands when he takes over for Jamal Igle. He manages to make Zee look attractive and sexy without crossing over into making her look slutty. The Missus has good taste.

"WE GOTTA SAVE THE CHIL'REN!!"

We all worry about kids. We worry about the world that they are going to inherit and we worry about what they're going to do with it when we're old. When you're a parent you have two jobs: protect your kids and teach them to fend for themselves. More and more we worry about them at younger ages.



Some of it is pretty common sense. You need to keep an eye on what they're exposed to. If I brought home a magazine that my dad wasn't familiar with, he'd give it a flip through to check it out. Its trickery now, especially with music. My dad and stepmom thought their was nothing wrong with their granddaughter, who was at the time a pre-teen, being into the Spice Girls. I did warn them because I had actually listened to some of their music, but they blew it off. After all, the Spice Girls were marketed directly at pre-teen and early teenage girls. They thought I was blowing things out of proportion until they finally heard some of the music. Things like this don't change. Of course I was 12 when "Licence to Ill" hit and me and the guys wore that album out. So the battle is an eternal one and it does go on. Like recently when a CD marketed to kids was found to have profanity on it. Sometimes things slip through the cracks. Wal-Mart didn't know there was profanity on those CDs and as soon as they did, they pulled them from the shelves. Wal-Mart slipped up, but ultimately its not Wal-Mart's job to protect your kids.

And kids consume more than just entertainment. A current study shows that a lot of infants are overweight or obese. This is a big problem because overweight people are among the last group you can make fun of and have politically correct hippies come after you with torches and pitchforks, so we can't let our kids fall into that group. The study says that straight breastfeeding is the best way to keep your infant from becoming overweight.

This study is complete bullshit.

First off: babies need calories. Second: there's plenty of calories in breast milk. My kids were had only breast milk for their first three months of life and quadrupled in weight. The Missus worked with children and babies for years. The overweight ones were often the ones that were breastfed. There's nothing wrong with formula. What parents need to do is listen to what they're kid's doctors tell them about their diets. You don't just shove a bottle in their mouths whenever they cry. I've got twins. If you don't have a good schedule with twin babies, you are screwed. They got a certain amount of formula at specific feeding times. If they didn't eat it all, no problem. If they did eat it all cool. They were well fed, and because of that they rested well. And resting well leads to eating well. So, my girls who were about three pounds each when they were delivered two months early quickly grew in little girls who are now mistaken as being older than they are. They're the tallest in their preschool class and healthy as horses.



Good eating is common sense. Yes, I eat horribly, but my kids eat pretty well. They love veggies and fruit. They eat plenty. Yes they had a period when they were squishy little butterballs, but now they're lean, mean, mess-making machines. And that's not me saying that I'm dad of the year. I'm a horrible parent by the standards all these studies put out, yet my kids are thriving.

It really doesn't take much to raise great kids and its no big mystery has to how to keep them healthy. But the one thing it does take above everything else: PAY ATTENTION! Pay attention to what they eat and what they're exposed to. You'll be amazed what a bit of vigilance pays off into.

MUSIC!!

Since I mentioned "License to Ill" by the Beastie Boys...



Alright, that's how we kick off the New year 'round here. Be back on Wednesday. I plan on pissin' some people off. That's about the only resolution I'll probably keep.

Writing Tutorial with Marty: Teen Titans

Today we're going to learn step by step how to write a story featuring DC Comics own Teen Titans! Ready? Let's get started!

Step 1: Pick any Titans character past or present. If you're having difficulty choosing, pick Raven.

Step 2: This is the hard part. You have to decide whether the character you've chosen will have their past come back to haunt them or will they turn on their teammates. Choose carefully.

Step 3: Make sure to reference a few other characters that have either turned evil or died horribly.

Step 4: Have whichever character is team leader, or if they're unavailable the character that's been on the team the longest, remind all the other team members that the Titans are more than a team, they're a family.

Step 5: Now all the characters are going to save they're teammate (possibly kill them thus saving them from a fate worse than death like being written by Chuck Austin), whom they all care deeply for. This caring adds dramatic weight to your story.

Step 6: After the battle make sure to have have a tease for your next story which will threaten a different character. Just make sure you don't threaten the same character twice in a row.

Now you're all ready to write a Teen Titans or Titans comic book! Go get 'em, champ!

So, what got me to do this little bit here? Well that would be TEEN TITANS #75 which brought forth a new writer Felicia Henderson. It's not a bad issue, really, but it hits every step on the list. Superteam books in the DCU have been having a serious problem in that the teams aren't in the business of saving the world, they're too busy being targets for everyone they've ever fought since the beginning of time. The TEEN TITANS comic since it's latest relaunch has fallen hard into this category. There's nothing new for the team face in the book. They've battled all the major Teen Titan villains from the previous stories. They've fought multiple incarnations of evil Titans. Its gotten pretty tiresome.

Well, I was going to drop the title, but I'm going to give Henderson a shot. Hopefully we can get back to heroes being heroes again.

Next in line?

During my weekend shredding of FLASH: REBIRTH Kristie asked me how this mess could be redeemed. It got my brain clicking, especially since I'd been writing about character progression and the passing of torches. With all of the old Silver Age heroes being brought back to the DCU, perhaps is time for the Justice League to go the route of the Justice Society and move aside for the next generation to become the premier heroes of the DCU.

I'm looking hard at the current Titans line-up. They're multiple characters on that roster that have been former League members. The potential there is great, but unfortunately all I'm seeing from the group is them dealing with the same threats they did twenty plus years ago.

Way back in the Wolfman/Perez days the New Teen Titans were seen as the characters that would be the big heroes of the next generation. They were to be the future Justice League. I'm thinking the time may be fast approaching when this thought becomes a fact in comics.

Comics: mine, others, and Crisis Avoided

First up: my stuff!

Chris has finished up MERE MORTAL issue 3, and if taking the week off to work on other thing and a site update before starting issue 4. I've completed the first chapter of NIGHT LIFE, and will be taking the week off as I'm transitioning from a strip format to a regular comic page format. This is a bit intimidating for me, but you don't get anywhere by being a wuss. You may be asking how we managed to get to end of our prospective chapters at the same time? We're just slick that way.

And now: other people's stuff!

In a random act of e-narcissism I Googled myself. That always sounds dirty, no matter how many times you say it. Anyways, a listing came up for me at boxxet.com under 'Blue beetle' and the page, which I had absolutely nothing to do with, had a bit from this here blog and told the gentle readers to check here for more info on BLUE BEETLE. Of course, I haven't said anything about BLUE BEETLE since that one post that got ganked for that site, UNTIL NOW! This week's issue was good times. I like Sturges on the writing chores, and we have Rafael Albuquerque on art, so I'm a happy camper. I was really worried about this book after John Rogers left, but it seem to have gotten it's footing back.

Over in TEEN TITANS we get a very nesty bait and switch story. I honestly sat there and said, "That did not just happen". This title's been in some trouble since Geoff Johns left it. It just doesn't seem to be able to keep my focus. I thought the Terror Titans story was alright, but not great. The team keeps losing members. I know there's some spin off series planned, but right now, I don't know how intersted I really am in checking it out.

LEGION OF SUPER-HEROES had my attention for the first time in a long time, and not just from the last page of shocker of two of my favorite Legionaires canoodling. I like the series, although it does need to tighten up just a little more on the narrative. I'm very glad that the series will be surviving the Legion of the Three Worlds event. There was quite a bit of worry from myself and other Legion "Threeboot" fans that this version of the Legion would be done away with in favor of the Legion that Geoff Johns brought back in his Superman and the Legion of Super-Heroes story.

Justice Society of America continues it's story of Gog and Magog, which ties in with Mark Waid and Alex Ross's series KINGDOM COME. The story continues to be a strong one, whether your a fan of KINGDOM COME or not. Lots of good elements coming into play as Superman from the KC universe watches event unfold before him that had dire consequences on his world. Unfortunately this story is geared towards readers who have been reading comics for quite a while. Yes, still story loses quite a bit of punch if you ahven't read KINGDOM COME, but it's still worth the time to pick it up.

And on to SUPERMAN, which marks the first time I've really followed this title. I showed up for James Robinson's writing and I haven't been disappointed. The hook on the end of this issue has got me eagerly awaiting next month. Even you haven't read the title in a while, now's a really great time to come on back.

Finally: Final Crisis management.

It's no secret that I'm terribly disappointed in FINAL CRISIS and BATMAN: R.I.P., and I've dropped both titles. I gave both three issues, and neither could keep me interested. Here's the thing on FINAL CRISIS, no I don't like the series, but I'm really loving the spin offs.

Meltzer's LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT is not a direct tie in, but it's an event so I'm talking about it here. As stories go, it's a solid one. It revolves around the final night of the DCU. Something's happened, which Meltzer is vague on, but that probably a wise move, but it's bad. End of the world kind of bad and the heroes know that this is very likely their last fight. Much of the story revolves around Geo-Force wanting to finally get his revenge on Deathstroke for his sister. Much of what goes on with other heroes is handled in a page of two. The story is solid, but unless you're a fan of Geo-Force, and at last count there were about twelve of us, you likely will not care.

Second issue of ROGUES' REVENGE hit and I'm loving this book. The Rogues, like myself, decided to give the whole FINAL CRISIS thing the finger. And while I'm getting heat at the comic shop for my decision, Captain Cold and his crew are getting their own heat. They're looking to handle a few last bits of business before going to ground, namely, killing that punk Inertia. Libra's got a problem with them not playing ball, and it's on like Donkey Kong.

Then there's the SUPERMAN BEYOND 3D. I don't like 3D anything. Never been a fan. The story is tight though. This is the kind of stuff I wanted to see in FINAL CRISIS. Champions of the multiverse coming together fo take on some big badness. Superman kicking butt and taking names. If we had more of this sort of thing in FINAL CRISIS I'd be singing it's praises to the heavens.

So, that's my week in comics. Later.