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AICN COMICS REVIEWS! ALL STAR BATMAN & ROBIN! DESOLATION JONES! THUNDERBOLTS! INDIE JONES PRESENTS! AND MUCH MORE!!
#18 | 9/14/05 | align=right> #4 |
(Click title to go directly to the review)
ALL-STAR BATMAN & ROBIN THE BOY WONDER #2
DESOLATION JONES #3
FRANKLIN RICHARS: SON OF A GENIUS
ROUND TABLE OF AMERICA: PERSONALITY CRISIS #1
THE PULSE #11
JSA #77
THUNDERBOLTS #12
Indie Jones presents NIGHTMARE WORLD
CHEAP SHOTS!
ALL-STAR BATMAN & ROBIN, THE BOY WONDER #2
Writer: Frank Miller
Artist: Jim Lee
Publisher: DC Comics
Reviewed by Dave Farabee
One of these things is not like the other…
1989: “Who are you?!” “I’m Batman.”
1992: “I am vengeance. I am the night. I am BATMAN.”
2005: “Are you RETARDED or something? Who the hell do you THINK I am? I’m the goddamn BATMAN.”
If nothing else, that last unintentionally hilarious line from ALL-STAR BATMAN & ROBIN #2 serves notice that writer Frank Miller is staking out new territory once again. Over the decades, audiences have seen Batman the smiling crimebuster, Batman the Dark Knight detective, and Batman the hardass control freak…but I’m pretty sure ALL-STAR serves up the first Batman as manic eighth grader.
Historians, take note.
So alright, Miller’s exercising some of the same muscles he did in the controversial DARK KNIGHT STRIKES AGAIN. He’s become taken in recent years with returning a sense of outrageousness to superhero material, to playing the iconoclast and serving up sacred cows as White Castle burgers. That’s not inherently wrong, is it? Didn’t we all love him for doing this in the original DARK KNIGHT? And isn’t there something to be said for countering prevailing trends of realism with more anarchic beats?
I want to say, “Looks good on paper, buuuuuut…”
ALL-STAR BATMAN & ROBIN 2 picks up right on the heels of the first issue, Batman having rescued a young Dick Grayson from a pack of corrupt cops by…uhh…driving through their cop car. And now our two heroes are speeding away from Gotham in the Batmobile, narrative captions dotting the panels with Batman’s terse situational assessments and exposition. It’s all straight from the SIN CITY school of beating the reader over the head with a hardboiled cadence:
Welcome to MY world, Dick Grayson. BATS and RATS and WARTS and all.
You poor boy.
You poor little bastard.
Welcome to hell.
Hell. Or the next best thing.
I can’t help but feel but Miller’s been around this same block so many times he’s worn a groove into the road, but he seems more self-aware this time. Perhaps damagingly so, as, for instance, he writes one scene where Grayson’s own narrative captions recognize Batman’s tough guy persona as a facade:
That’s not his real voice. It’s like he’s doing some lameass Clint Eastwood impersonation.
I had to laugh. What a way to undercut your lead character’s mystique! But the intent of the scene was clearly to establish the soon-to-be-Robin as a canny kid, capable of seeing through Batman’s R. Lee Ermey drill instructing and recognizing there’s a human underneath. Does the attempt at bringing some three-dimensionality to the characters work?
I say no, and not just because it’s almost breaking the fourth wall to comment on Batman sounding like Clint Eastwood (as he does in so many movies and cartoons). No, I just don’t think Miller can do subtle anymore, not even “comic book” subtle. Attempting it in mid-Mickey Spillane riff is as awkward a fit as Jim Lee’s art on the book, with its detailed, pretty linework meshing miserably with Miller’s consciously coarse approach to writing. With DK2, love it or hate it, at least Miller’s anarchic drawing style (what they call “bigfoot cartooning”) was a match for his words. And Jim Lee just can’t pull that off. He’s too slick, too traditional. He likes detail and cross-hatching and paying lip service to realism. It’s like consummate craftsman Frank Sinatra trying to belt out a punk tune.
And maybe not such a good punk tune at that.
The meat of the issue is a chase scene – legions of cop cars in pursuit of the Batmobile. Among the more outrageous moments: the Batmobile sprouting wings and flying like one of those cheesy old M.A.S.K. toys from the ‘80s; the Batmobile’s computer “speaking” with Alfred’s British accent; the iconically stately Alfred recast as a studly Rhett Butler type, tearing off his shirt to bind Vicky Vale’s injures and holding her sensually in the rain like the cover to a bodice-ripper romance; and let’s not forget Batman’s newfound penchant for maniacal laughter! Just before the Batmobile sprouts wings and flies, Batman begins yucking it up like he’s channeling Blue Beetle’s “Bwa-ha-has” from beyond:
HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! You’re gonna love this kid! Just watch, kiddo. This is gonna be great! HAH!
Did I mention that Batman incinerates a bunch of cops when the Batmobile’s engines make like a rocket? Yeah. At that point in the story, though, I really didn’t care. I’d already grown numb to the book’s “WE’RE NEW AND DIFFERENT, GODDAMN IT!” approach to rejuvenating Batman, so what did I care if Miller’d decided Gotham cops were now so vile that Batman would kill ‘em with a laugh and a smile? With execution so desperate, you stop worrying about what “fits” the character and whether it’s bold or not to take a page from the Golden Age when Batman used to kill. You just laugh or sneer or pine for BATMAN: YEAR ONE. Or maybe you try to figure out what DC was thinking in promoting the All-Star line early on as home to recognizable, iconic takes on DC’s greatest heroes; as following in the tradition of Alan Moore’s smart, neo-Silver Age Superman story, “Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow?”
What were they, retarded or something?
DESOLATION JONES #3
Writer: Warren Ellis
Penciler: J.H. Williams III
Publisher: DC Comics/Wildstorm
Reviewed by Humphrey Lee
Three issues into this series, and now three reviews later, and I'm still really digging this book. One of the reasons that Warren Ellis has become one of my favorite comic book writers over the past few years is simple: The man does probably the best "off-beat" material you can find on the stands. Some of my favorite issues of TRANSMETROPOLITAIN were the ones that simply just had that series' protagonist, Spider Jerusalem, out and about in The City, commenting and reacting to those things around him and in the very dry and loathing tone, but with the odd bit of sick humor that Mr. Ellis tends to insert into his works. And this issue (well, okay, this series so far) definitely has a lot of that going for it.
Take this issue for example. Literally a third of the book is our title character, DESOLATION JONES, talking with a worn down "old" porn star about the porn industry and what it does to its starlets. That's it. Just a good seven pages or so of talking about the highs of the porn business when you get started: the quick and easy money, the cheap thrills and so on, and then the inevitable crash and burn of it all. Now obviously there has to be a little more to it. Halfway through the conversation we catch a glimpse of our Mr. Jones having these very weird and surreal "visions", so to speak, to give us a bit more insight into the world of DESOLATION JONES, but even then the conversation just has this shocking appeal to it, just the brutal honesty that goes with something you just didn't know that much about and now that you do you're just taken aback. It's just good stuff given the foulness of the subject matter doesn't make you feel awkward or anything. But chances are if you're reading this book and know who Warren Ellis is, you're prepared for the worst.
Obviously there is one draw back that tends to come with the odd off-beat issue, and that is that they usually do dick-all to develop ongoing storylines. And that's pretty much what we get here as well. We're three issues into this six-part storylines (I believe it's six parts anyway) and we still haven't really got any further than "Jones is looking for Hitler porn." We're catching good tidbits about our title character sure, but we haven't really gotten too much into any detail as to what these "Desolation Tests" that he endured exactly did to him, or turned him into. So far we've seen him have visions, and twice now (including this issue) he's beaten the unholy fuck out of some random bruisers in very cold, brutal, and efficient ways that we can pretty much assume come from some sort of abilities granted to him. Which could be anything, really. Superhuman reflexes, some sort of "Midnighter-esque" ability to see the weak spots of his opponents and fight accordingly... who knows? I am still highly interested in finding out though, and think Jones is a very intriguing character by nature. I just hope we continue to catch more bits of his history at a bit of a faster pace as this title goes on. Other than that I still give this book a very high recommendation.
FRANKLIN RICHARDS: SON OF A GENIUS #1
Story & Script: Mark Sumerak
Story & Art: Chris Eliopoulos
Publisher: Marvel
Reviewer: Ambush Bug
Why is it that all of Marvel’s best books are more light-hearted and kid friendly? Could it be that all of the hemming and hawing about realism and deconstruction has finally worn itself out and the industry is taking a turn back to a simpler, more fun era? God, I hope so. I’m not the type of guy that is saying there isn’t a place for maturity in graphic storytelling, but I will be the first to say that alongside all of the Disassembling and Identity Crisis-ing, there still is a place for good old fashioned, super hero fun. Marvel is leading the pack these days with all age-friendly and light-hearted titles written by up-and-coming writers such as Brian K. Vaughan, Dan Slott, Zeb Wells, Sean McKeever, and the subjects of this review: Mark Sumerak, and Chris Eliopoulos.
Simply put, FRANKLIN RICHARDS: SON OF A GENIUS is the best idea to spring from the House of Ideas in a very long time. This new compilation features all four short stories that appeared in the back of the latest POWER PACK series and tacks on a brand new five-pager at the end. I was less than thrilled with the POWER PACK miniseries, but what kept me buying all of the issues were these back-up stories focusing on Franklin and his robot pal, H.E.R.B.I.E.
Sumerak and Eliopoulos lift from the comic strip CALVIN & HOBBES to put a familiar face into a new light. This new version of Franklin is an ornery little shit. And when your father is the smartest man in the Marvel Universe, there’s plenty of trouble to get into. That’s why Reed Richards designed H.E.R.B.I.E., an uptight robot nanny who follows Franklin around and tries to clean up the all messes that he makes. Imagine if C-3PO were assigned to watch over an ornery Han Solo as a child and you’ll get the picture. Whether he is shrinking himself to microscopic size and taking a journey into the nose of his unsuspecting father or cloning himself out of Jell-O in order to gather more candy for Halloween, the eternally four-and-a-half Franklin and his worrying robot nanny never fail to entertain. Sumerak and Eliopoulos are able to tap into a side of Franklin that has never been seen before, making the little tyke much more appealing than the saccharinated baby-in-peril we see on a regular basis in the ongoing FANTASTIC FOUR series. They expertly play Franklin’s childish hyperactivity against H.E.R.B.I.E.’s overly-maternal instinct programs with a banter and energy that exudes fun.
Sick of all of the rape, death, and betrayal? Tired of deconstruction and heavy-handed slo-mo storytelling? Want something different? Something that reminds you of why you started reading comics in the first place? Give FRANKLIN RICHARDS: SON OF A GENIUS a try. Sadly, there aren’t too many books like this on the shelves today. Support this book and there’ll be more like it.
ROUND TABLE OF AMERICA: PERSONALITY CRISIS #1
Writer: Pedro Angosto
Artist: Carlos Rodriguez (pencils)/Albert Puig (inker)
Publisher: Big Bang Comics (by way of Image)
Reviewer: Prof. Challenger
This was the most satisfying comic bought this week and read by this grizzled, grumpy old comic book fan. What a joy to read. Seems like Big Bang Comics may be the only place where I can find modern super-heroes who still feel like the type of characters I grew up with. The more that the Avengers sit around a argue incessantly over who gets to kill the Scarlet Witch, the more that the JLA sit around and argue incessantly over whether to lobotomize somebody, the more that I have to read stories about heroes executing villains, the more I have to read and see the particular sex habits of super-heroes, the more I gravitate to Big Bang and their stable of respectable heroes.
Sitting back this week and reading THE ROUND TABLE OF AMERICA: PERSONALITY CRISIS, I felt like I was being reintroduced to old friends that, in fact, I've had very little exposure to. However, I’ve always liked them and supported the whole concept behind the company. In the same week that I trudged through the depressing JLA: CRISIS OF CONSCIENCE comic, the one with Zatanna on the cover, the love and enthusiasm between the covers of RTA: PERSONALITY CRISIS put DC's comic to shame. These are heroes through and through who know how to function as a team and as friends.
For the uninformed out there, the analogs for the Round Table of America characters goes a little like this: Ulti-Man (Superman), Thunder Girl (Shazam!), Beacon (Green Lantern), Blitz (Flash), Ms. Merlin (Zatanna), Knight Watchman (Batman), and Hummingbird (Atom/Hawkman). Each of these heroes function as certain heroic archetypes and in PERSONALITY CRISIS they each find themselves face to face with a Jungian archetypal nemesis based on their own private fears and desires. Ulti-Man comes face-to-face with Ultragirl the concept that the world is all illusory. The villain behind this grand series of battles is, of course, the Living Archetype.
Formerly Jungian psychiatrist Doctor Archeimedes E. Tipe, the Living Archetype uses a mystical wooden scepter that grants him the power to physically materialize archetypes. Here lies the endearing charm of Big Bang Comics, the illusion of 50 years worth of publishing history. When Thunder Girl's alter ego, Molly Wilson, searches the RTA's computer database to learn some background on the Living Archetype, we readers are given flashback glimpses into the RTA's past battles with the Living Archetype. Most likely these earlier stories have not yet been published but it doesn't matter. And they may never be published. But, it feels right. Reading a single RTA comic feels like you're joining a decades long history of continuity. But it's all just an inclusive game between the publishers and the readers. Personally, I'd love to get a chance to one day read a "reprint" of one of the adventures where the Living Archetype turned both the members of the RTA and the members of Earth B's Knights of Justice into toddlers -- by releasing their "inner child", natch.
This comic is a one-shot and I appreciated that. There was no "writing for the trade" here. There was no "set up" going on. There were no pages filled with a bunch of static heads talking. This comic had a beginning, a middle, and an end. It is plot driven but distinctive in its characterization. Similar to the style of many a Gardner Fox-scripted JLA comic in the 60s, the reader is treated to a plot based on actual science -- in this case, the studies and teachings by Carl Jung about universal archetypes and the theory of the collective consciousness. But more than that, Angosto also advances the personal stories as well by his choices as to what archetypes each hero faced and how each hero dealt with it. Thunder Girl was the standout in this comic where we see just a glimpse of the power potential within her as well as an idea of where her story will ultimately end. There was no sense of campy winking at the reader as so often happens when modern superheroes are approached with a retro feel. This is a comic that is not embarrassed about the fact that it is about superheroes. The artwork was also very polished and professional. Carlos Rodriguez is at least as good as the guy drawing the high profile mini-series DAY OF VENGEANGE right now (Justiano?). I got no real sense that he was specifically trying to "ape" another artist in his stylings (as is common with a lot of Big Bang comics). He stands out on his own as a fine artist and storyteller and I actually appreciated the fact that he just stayed true to himself here.
This was a great superhero comic. Search it out and buy it. And for some reason I now have the urge welling up within me to cry out MAKE MINE BIG BANG!
THE PULSE #11
Writer: Brian Michael Bendis
Artist: Michael Gaydos
Publisher: Marvel Comics
Reviewed by Dave Farabee
If I had my druthers, I think I’d give Brian Bendis a single Marvel book to write, and the only thing he’d write in it would be vignettes. It’d be all these down-time, behind-the-scenes moments with superheroes just talking, woven in and around the plots of other writers. Luke Cage and Iron Fist would be seen cracking wise on a supervillain stakeout. There’d be a poignant phone call between Captain America and an aged World War II survivor. And, I dunno, maybe some pillow talk between Doctor Strange and Clea?
‘Cause that’s the stuff I like from Bendis. Don’t get me wrong: the man can plot, can spin a good yarn when he’s “on” – I just think he’s best with character vignettes.
Which is why I enjoyed this latest issue of THE PULSE. There’s a mystery brewing, with reporter Ben Urich investigating a very unusual Daredevil sighting, but it’s almost treated as a sub-plot. And what would normally be a sub-plot - series lead Jessica Jones getting together with some gal pals for coffee, and later trying to hook boyfriend Luke Cage up with a new ensemble – is easily the dominant sequence.
And it’s great.
Much credit goes to the dialogue, nearly always the highlight of a Bendis book, but even for Bendis it was exceptional this issue. Maybe because so much of it ties into parental worries (Jessica’s very preggers) and relatively recent poppa Bendis is just plugged into that whole parent/kid “scene.” Take the following exchange from Jessica’s visit to the Fantastic Four’s headquarters. Jessica’s just nearly been bowled over by the Thing, chasing after the Human Torch as usual, and Sue “Invisible Woman” Richards appears to give him a scolding…
Sue: Say you’re sorry, Ben.
Ben: I’m so sorry, I – who is this and why are they in our house?
Sue: This is Jessica Jones. My lunch date.
Ben: Why do I know that name?
Jessica: We met once.
Ben: Is it mine?
Sue: Ben!
Franklin Richards (Sue’s kid): Is there a real baby in there?
Jessica: There sure is.
Franklin: Is it a boy or a girl?
Jessica: It’s a girl.
Sue: Mommy had you in her belly when you were little.
Franklin: No way.
Jessica (to Franklin): You want to touch it?
Franklin: Is it coming out now?
Jessica: No, no. But you can feel it in my belly.
Franklin: No way!
He touches her belly.
Franklin: Whoa. Barf-a-roni!
Sue: Franklin.
Franklin (more serious now): You’re going to be someone’s mommy.
Jessica (sporting a rare, easy-going smile): Yeah, how about that?
It might seem prosaic, but these really are the moments you live for in a Bendis book. There’s a great gag with the Thing, there’s Franklin being dialogued like a real kid for maybe the first time in his life, and for the longtime Jessica Jones follower, the scene has a special poignancy because it’s one of those rare moments that occur for her where she’s just comfortable and at peace. And Bendis makes you care.
Reason #2 that scene and others hit their mark so well is that Jessica Jones co-creator Michael Gaydos is back drawing her again for the first time since ALIAS wrapped. Gaydos works a photo-reference style ala regular Bendis collaborator Alex Maleev, and shares with him a talent for capturing subtle facial nuances. But Gaydos is the original when it comes to Jessica Jones – fitting, as I believe she’s modeled on his own wife. Gaydos will never be topped for capturing Jones’ snark, her wry amusement, and those slightly wide features that other artists tend to idealize away. Truthfully, the very meandering PULSE has never captured the focus and intimacy that ALIAS had, but with Gaydos now on the art, there’s a sense that maybe, just maybe, the book might find its center. I’ll even forgive that weird, textural coloring that just appeared on the book, the stuff that makes me think someone just ran the art through a “water damage” filter in Photoshop.
If there’s one thing about the issue that makes me a little nervous, it’s the subplot about Urich and the return of a potentially silly Marvel character who superficially resembles Daredevil. Thing is, I’ve never read a story starring this character (I don’t want to blab the surprise for the few who’ll recognize him), but from what I’ve heard, he’s a hard-luck type who’s supposed to actually have some heart to him once you get past his funky appearance. And I’m a little wary that Bendis will just spoof him or off him tragically or somesuch, without even a little respect. And that’d be a shame. I like underdog and oddball heroes - your ROMs, your Novas, your Soviet Super Soldiers – and I’d hate for another to end up like Spider-Girl did in ALIAS.
Can’t knock points off a book for speculation, though, so I’m suggesting folks give this book a look-see as of this issue. And I haven’t even gone into the heartfelt exchange between Sue and Jessica about superhumans raising kids, or the deft comedic sequence where Luke Cage sits like a beaten man through the Wasp’s attempt to sell him on a new costume. It really is the exact kind of stuff I’d want Bendis doing all the time at Marvel in lieu of the straight-up superheroics (excepting maybe DAREDEVIL). And it’s effectively stand-alone, has an inspired artist, and heralds a new direction for the book free of the whole “Secret War” ball-and-chain.
One of those really nice surprises.
JSA #77
Writer: Geoff Johns
Penciler: Jim Fean
Publisher: DC Comics
Reviewed by Humphrey Lee
You want the short and simple version of my review of this book? Well then here you go: I'm sick of the tie-in BS, and I want my JSA back.
There ya go.
Month in and month out for almost god knows how long now and it seems like we've been getting nothing but tie-ins in this book. Now, I've been trying to keep a level head about me, and I will say now that some of these have legitimately been handled well, but for the most part all I'm seeing in this book for the past several months has been "Hey, here's some OMAC" or "Look, the Spectre has gone mad!" and so on and so on. And fine, yes, INFINITE CRISIS is looming and obviously change is a coming, but come on, last I checked there were several mini-series out there specifically created to prep us for all the oncoming madness... why does this book need to be hijacked to push these things as well?
Now again, I said some of these have been done very well. The three-parter that tied in with DAY OF VENGEANCE and also involved the ongoing JSA plotline of Black Adam's reign in Khandaq was nicely done. The events with Atom Smasher were riveting and touching, the action was energizing (though a bit over the top at times) but it all had a point, and did well to push along storylines that have been developing in this title over the past couple years and it used the Spectre as a focal point to do so. All well and good. This issue does none of that. In fact all it pretty much does is randomly insert Hal Jordan, let's us know of his ties to the JSA "family" via his being Airwave's cousin, and then takes us onto a journey where he, Airwave and Alan Scott run into Donna Troy in space on the outskirts of "New Cronus"....
I pause here because even though I just typed it, even I really don't know what it means...
All I know is that there's too much going on in DC these days, and sometimes it keeps coming crashing down on certain books. There was the whole "Sacrifice" debacle with the SUPERMAN titles and WONDER WOMAN, and we've got this book taking on some of the brunt because half the characters in it are off in space fighting an interplanetary war in RANN-THANAGAR, or fighting some giant mystical threat in DAY OF VENGEANCE, or out of commission because of said mystical threat. And now we've got DC's "Golden Boy" Hal Jordan just kinda showing up here for shits and giggles to lead into some random team up with Donna Troy of all people. It just really has no place here. And it's finally got to that point where I no longer look towards INFINITE CRISIS as this focal point of talent and the potential for an interesting future for DC. Now I just see it as something that makes half the mainline DC titles I get a month borderline unreadable. Right now I'm not worried about all the developments and possibilities INFINITE CRISIS can bring to the table. Right now I'm just concerned with it up and ending so I can actually see the characters I bought the book for and see it developing its own stories, not building up to the same thing twenty other titles already are.
I say "Bring on INFINITE CRISIS" and then end it so we can bring on back the JSA I actually know and enjoy.
NEW THUNDERBOLTS #12
Fabian Nicieza: Writer
Tom Grummett: Artist
Marvel Comics: Publisher
Vroom Socko: Clearly Brainwashed
This is one of the things I love about comics: remember seven or eight months ago, when Ambush Bug was bitching and moaning about how Purple Man was out and about in this book, but was safely locked up in New Avengers, and aren’t these stories happening at roughly the same time, and where was the editor during all this, and blah blah blah Daredevil… Or something to that effect.
Fabian Nicieza explains that discrepancy in this issue, and he does it in half a sentence. I love shit like that. In fact, this issue has pretty much everything I could want from a superhero comic. And no, I’m not talking about Spider-Woman’s naked ass. (Jeez, you review one porno comic…)
I’m talking about stuff like Atlas reconstructing his ionic form after exploding. I swear he and Wonder Man have done this half a dozen times between them.
I’m talking about using the Purple Man’s narration to mock everything from company-wide crossovers to the opening synopsis page.
I’m talking about every hero in New York being under the control of a madman, with most of them showing up on-panel. I was especially pleased to see my two favorite Fabian foils, Justice and Firestar. Marvel really should get Fabian writing these two in an ongoing again. At the very least, let him write them a wedding.
I’m talking about the elements that have become T-Bolts standards, yet never wear out their welcome. Things like the final page surprise, (and this one has a great one,) and the ever-changing appearance of the members. Although I have to wonder why Photon’s new look is a cross between Vance Astro and Starhawk from the Gurdians of the Galaxy.
But most of all, I’m talking about this being a book that is a solid issue, a perfect arc capstone, and manages to both conclude the plot threads from the first year while setting up new ones for the second year. There may be better written comics out there. There may even be more entertaining ones. But there’s no comic that’s a more efficient storyteller than this one.
NIGHTMARE WORLD: KNEE DEEP IN THE DEAD AND OTHER TALES OF TERROR
Written by Aaron Weisbrod
Art by Various Artists
Publisher: Funnel Cloud 9, Inc.
Reviewer: Ambush Bug
Good horror is hard to come by. I’ve said before in this column that it is especially hard to convey horror in comics because the writer cannot control the timing with which the reader moves from panel to panel and it is a medium that only stimulates one of the five senses. That’s why horror is so easily created in film. The director can add frightening sound effects or music which aid in the slow build leading to the payoff scare. Those who choose to write horror in comics have this hurdle to leap and I have only read a few books that have actually accomplished this mammoth task of scaring me as a reader. Because of this, writers go a different route with horror comics. This route relies on the clever, O. Henry/ TWILIGHT ZONE/old EC Comics twist ending which comes as a visceral shock to the reader. Through clever writing, comics misdirect, mislead, and make one misinterpret events, leading the reader down one path, and then pulling the carpet out from under them in the last few panels. I like to call this the “shockeroo ending” and I think it is a worthy and equally effective substitution to the feelings one gets from cinema horror.
NIGHTMARE WORLD is an anthology series by Aaron Weisbrod. Those new to this site may not recognize the name, but Talkback veterans will remember Weisbrod as a former AICN Comics/GreyHaven reviewer. I’ve interacted with Aaron over the years in the TBs and when he dropped me a line in July to stop by his booth at this year’s WIZARDWORLD Chicago, I was glad to oblige. It appears Weisbrod has been quite busy since shedding his comic book reviewing duties. NIGHTMARE WORLD compiles thirteen of his short stories.
Like many anthologies, the quality of these stories varies. All of them employ the aforementioned “shockeroo ending” and some of them utilize the formula very well. My favorite stories turned horror conventions on its ear. A typical FRIDAY THE 13TH scenario is poked fun at. There’s a self-aware HITCHER-twist tale. The imaginary friend story is especially good as is the origin of the Chupacabra. Weisbrod exercises his funny bone with a Faustian rock god tale. Two of my favorites involve a confession in a diner and an especially wicked case of Stockholm Syndrome. All in all, it is a good mix of twists and turns. Weisbrod does a good job of misdirecting the reader to assume one thing, then shattering those expectations in the end. It all at once makes sense on a second read, but proves to be effective in its shock value. Like the stories themselves, the art varies too, ranging from amateurish to highly exceptional. I especially liked cartoony panels drawn by the Maduriera-esque Dan Boultwood, the sketchily detailed, Michael Lark-like images of Mark Matlock, and the delicate art by Kristen “Me Rekat” Perry.
I was also impressed with the tiny details throughout this anthology. Weisbrod titles each of his stories after rock songs, honoring Pearl Jam, Alice Cooper, Nine Inch Nails, AC/DC, and one of the best bands ever, Faith No More. To top it all off, Brian Pulido offers some words of encouragement in the intro and Weisbrod ends the book with some factoids about himself. All in all, this is a slick production from an online reviewer who made the leap to creating his own comics. I’m hoping to see more twists and scares from Weisbrod. He’s definitely off to a good start.
Remember, if you have an Indie book you’d like one of the @$$holes to take a look at, click on your favorite reviewer’s link and drop us an email.
Remember, if you have an Indie book you’d like one of the @$$holes to take a look at, click on your favorite reviewer’s link and drop us an email.
OZ-WONDERLAND CHRONICLES #0
At least if you're going to do a set-up comic, you should be sure and publish it as a #0 like BuyMeToys.com does here with their preview of the OZ-WONDERLAND CHRONICLES. My only complaint about it is that I felt like I was essentially paying the full price of a comic book for little more than an advertisement. Content-wise, I like the concept of crossing Oz and Wonderland together for a series. I also kind of like the idea of presenting Alice and Dorothy as modern college girls. If nothing else it makes for nice cheesecake covers by Greg Horn. Unfortunately, it also makes Mrs. Challenger put the kibosh on any plans to buy this series for my 8 year-old daughter. Myself, I like the concept and I like the art. Not enough writing in the preview to have a real opinion about it, but nothing stuck out to me as being wrong (like say, a string of profanities from Jack Pumpkinhead or something.) Best of all is that the Oz and Wonderland characters shown in the preview look very much like their original book versions -- including Dorothy's silver slippers instead of those dang ruby slippers and especially the Wicked Witch with her eyepatch. - Prof
JLA #118
God bless Geoff Johns and Allan Heinberg. They've taken the elements that I most vehemently disliked about IDENTITY CRISIS and made them... I won't say good, but they're now more palatable. With Superman acting as a moral compass and Zatanna standing up for herself, this arc has me more interested in INFINITE CRISIS than anything else I've seen yet. Even ignoring that, and aside from an appearance from that godawful new Supergirl, this is a just plain great story in and of itself. - Vroom
MIDDLEMAN #2
Viper's new series by Javier Grillo-Marxauch (writer/producer of television's LOST, among others) picks up the pace in issue two. Issue #1 was a fun little diversion but #2 is even better. Wendy Watson gets her crash course into some of the details about the secret organization the Middleman works for. The banter between MM and Wendy is hilarious. Ida, the robotic secretary with the crabby personality, cracked me up. Once again, the glorious black and white art is an old-school joy to behold. Lots of fun comicbook references throughout the story and most importantly the next issue's story will involve our mysterious banana-eating villain in a story entitled "The Experimental Simian Identity" which means....MONKEYS!!!! Nothing better in comics than monkeys. Just ask the late Julius Schwartz. - Prof
100 BULLETS #64
Here's what you need to know about this issue: Jack is back and meaner than ever, and so is Agent Graves and he's one intimidating son of a bitch. What we get here is a showdown between these two bastards when Graves hunts down Jack and gives him a little poking and prodding. The context of their little "confrontation" rates from subtle to bone-crunchingly brutal and back again as tensions mount higher and we get a load more of what Jackie boy is made out of. It's a roller coaster and you're definitely in for a ride. It's visceral, it's psychological, it has pretty pictures... it's 100 BULLETS. Go, buy, read. Now. - Humphrey
BREACH #9
Different penciller this issue but it looks like Alvaro Lopez was able to use his inks to help give the artwork a consistent look. This is an utterly heartbreaking story. I just "knew" how it was going to end (there really was no other possibility) but I kept hoping as I read it that the inevitable was not going to happen. Definitely one of the best single-issue stories this year by any publisher. Crap. It still bothers me while I'm writing this. Really powerful stuff by Bob Harras. Sad to see such a quality series on the chopping block. Damn. - Prof
HAWKMAN #44
So far, I’ve really been liking Palmiotti and Grey’s take on the Winged Wonder and his estranged mate, Hawkgirl. They’ve done a good job at telling a heartfelt tale of loss and redemption surrounded by some pretty brutal violence. It compliments the Conan-of-the-skies fighting for his own humanity theme that was started when Geoff Johns was on the series. Before this issue, my one complaint was that the villains just weren’t that interesting, with their over the top dialog and cartoony powers which are waaaay too much like the villains of more popular heroes: one villainess turns men into animal-like slaves (like WONDER WOMAN’s Circe), one is just a raging man-beast (like BATMAN’s Killer Croc), one fancies himself a cowboy (like SUPERMAN’s Terra Man or NIGHTWING’s Stallion), and the main baddie, The Fadeaway Man comes off as a wannabe Shade from the STARMAN series. But Palmiotti and Grey get the Hawks right and that’s what’s important to me. As far as this issue goes, though, I won’t spoil it here, but I think these creators went the easy route resolving the Golden Eagle/Hawkman predicament. Look for an absolute mace-whuppin’ when the Hawks clash in the next issue. - Bug
RANN-THANAGAR WAR #5 (of 6)
This mini-series is clearly the best of the bunch when it comes to these INFINITE CRISIS preludes. It is intelligent, intense, emotional and complicated. It logically draws in some of the most underused characters in DC's space-oriented corner of the universe. Adam Strange is the epitome of the cornball episodic space opera comics of the 60s, yet just this past year he and his bad ass headlined an awesome top-selling miniseries and now he functions as the glue that holds this current mini-series together. But even more than that is that the art in this book just totally knocks my socks off -- especially the inks by Marc Campos (who I've praised before). There are two pages in this thing where someone else did the inks and the difference was startling. Campos puts more work into a single panel than I normally see in a modern inker's work on a whole page. COMICBOOK INKING 101 should be taught by Marc Campos. - Prof
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and guess that why we're all finding, I dunno, the tone? of All-Star Batman so strange is that this is all how Robin remembers this all happening. This is a memory of an eighth grader. A perception. This isn't a straight narrative. Miller even said a bunch of different times that this title is more or less told from the point of view of Robin. What, Miller's not capable of something like this? Would this kid, still in shock of his parent's murder and his own attempted murder, perceive that the Batmobile turned into one of those vehicles from M.A.S.K. and blast some cops? Would he remember Batman clean cut or stubbly? I think there's more to this story than's been revealed in two issues.
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All Star Batman sounds off key.I'll get round to that at some point.Comics are going through a strange phase,I hope it doesn't end in tears.
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Mister Miracle #1 and Green Lantern Corps: Recharge were excellent.
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That fits quite nicely; I wish I'd thought of it. As for the discordancy of the series as an intentional reflection of Robin's youth and/or memories, I wish I could give Miller that much credit, but that just doesn't sound like something from his particular bag o' tricks. It's not completely out of the question, though - guy does still experiment. 300, beyond the experimental visuals, worked the novel idea of telling a story where an entire army is the "main character." DK2 was manic satire. SIN CITY: HELL & BACK had that funky, quasi-autobiographical dream sequence. So he *does* do narrative experiments. Regularly even. But if it was all Robin's subjective point of view, why would we get narrative captions from Batman? Or Vicky Vale? Doesn't seem to fit the theory. ******* Incidentally, Paul Pope's issue of SOLO had a much keener take on Robin doing the whole "Boy Wonder" thing. Was smarter, cooler, funnier, shorter, and better drawn than ALL-STAR BATMAN & ROBIN.
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Narrative captions from Batman and Vicky Vale are completely acceptable conceits for a comic book and especially if Grayson is "writing" this book a few years after this took place. This is a Batman story written by Miller through Dick Grayson. The way all the dialogue is written, choppy, repetitive, exactly like a memory. If you were an eighth grader and you were picturing what a hot chick does in her apartment, you wouldn't picture her in her lingerie? You wouldn't assue this lady with the designer dress has this pimped out crib? Grayson's inception as Robin was a tramatic and difficult process that most likely scarred him deeply. It wouldn't be surprising if Grayson saw his introduction into Batman's life as joining a war and becoming a soldier. Nightwing's not telling this one, Robin is. His memory is affected by his extreme fear and shock, but he's not going to tell us how scared he was and depict himself as he really was. We all imbelish when we tell a story, especially if we've acted less than manly. I'll bet when we see Wonder Woman in this title for the first time, Robin's first time, she's the hottest Jim Lee Wonder Woman we've ever seen in the skimpiest Wonder Woman costume ever.
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I keep turning the page and groaning out loud. C'mon, how many double page spreads of dialogue do you need? I like that Bendis responds to the criticism that he writes pages and pages of boring talking heads with "You know I don't do that!" Finch and McNiven are friggin' excellent artists and Bendis just doesn't know what to do with them.
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What are we arguing about this week? Darth Jesus' AS Batman theory (like Dave said, i wouldn't give it that much credit, but who knows?)***Dave, thanks for posting some dialogue from The Pulse to make your point. Those are my fave kinds of reviews, when an actual example of why something is good/bad is shown, spoilers be damned. That piece of dialogue put a smile to my face.
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All Star Batman and Robin is the best thing to happen to Batman in years. I love the way Miller is writing Batman, it is exactly how Batman would seem to outsiders.
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Batman does not kill anyone, ever? He killed people all the time in his early days.
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...and everything to do with Frank Miller's love of pulp objectification of women and Jim Lee's well-known status as a "babe artist." Miller outright said in interviews that he's putting lots of hot chicks into the series to play to Jim Lee's strengths - I don't think the answer is anything deeper than that. ***** And the choppy, repetetive dialogue? That's just straight from the SIN CITY playbook. It does seem juvenile, but not because it's Robin's - that's just the pulp idiom Miller has embraced for something like a decade or two now. "Lucky...lucky old man...I got lucky..." That goes back to DARK KNIGHT and DAREDEVIL before it. I think you're giving Miller too much credit to imagine that he's doing anything but a raucous approach to Batman intended to inject some life into the character, Miller style.
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...what in the name of Heaven do we make of the hunky, "shirtless Alfred" scene?
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Well, we'll see. Miller's even said something to the effect of "Wait until Robin is seeing these women like Wonder Woman and Black Canary for the first time..." I think you're not giving Miller credit enough.
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If you're right, it wouldn't exactly save the book for me (the notion of Batman as seen from a kid's perspective might hold appeal as a one-shot, not as an ongoing), but it'd give me a bit more respect for Miller. Make more more likely to give his *next* project some interest.
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...but not nearly so weirded out as I am over the fact that two, count 'em, TWO reviews take special notice of Franklin Richards. OMGWTFBBQ!
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"Are You Retarded Or Something" is now the new "Has a Beer And Cheets On His Wife." And yes, All Star B&R reads like a funny, funny parody of a Frank Miller Batman.
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...what I'd give to have Allreds Madman back.God,I miss that book.Just class......Frank Miller?Well,after that utter horror that was the sequel to Dark Knight I'd be hardpressed to buy any comic he writes.He's become a parody of himself......There was a time that I wouldn't leave a comic shop empty handed,I'd always find SOMETHING that perks me up.Now,I just don't know WHAT the fuck is going on in timelines and stuff.Jesus,I even trid Gen13 and John Byrnes Next Men.Next Men seems like a classic in comparison to some of the crap on sale....Gen13...well,I have NO excuse...twas the dark days of comicdom...the days of foil covers,holograms and trading cards...WHAT?They're still giving out fucking trading cards....Ughhhhh......
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What amazes me about ALL STAR BATMAN AND AWFUL TITLE is that there's essentially no disagreement on whether or not the book is crap. The argument is whether or not Frank Miller is oh-so-cleverly *intentionally* making it crap for reasons which entirely escape the book's readership for the moment. "It's a parody!" "It's a send-up of his own work in 'Year One' and 'Dark Knight'!" "It's a probing look at the role of the sidekick in superhero comics!" Well, I guess it could be any of those theoretically, but Occam's razor tells us the simplest explanation is usually the correct one, and the simplest explanation for why ALL-STAR BATMAN is such a piece of shit is that Miller's a burnt-out old hack. It has all the same Millerian cliches that've made his comics unreadable over the last few years: the leering, psychopathic hero, the stuttering, Rain Man-esque dialogue ("It was brutal! They were killed - brutally! Brutally! So brutal! It was brutal! Brutal! So brutal!"), the laughably over-the-top titillation factor. He isn't making some big statement. The man's on autopilot. I'll bet anything that Black Canary, Catwoman, or whatever women he throws in there will be just more Exotic Killer Sex Objects in the same Elektra-clone mold as half his Sin City characters. My question is, could Frank Miller write a book that DIDN'T look like this at this point? DK2 and the last couple Sin City books had a couple things in common: they were all shit, and they all mined his old, overworn style so heavily they read as unintentional self-parody. This is a guy who burned bright and burned early and burned out, and has nothing more to say. He just wants to make a paycheck doing the only thing he knows.
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Sep 22, 2005 7:15:48 AM CDT
"He just wants to make a paycheck doing the only thing he knows.
by dave_f
Here's a question: do you think Miller is a hack in the truest sense of the word, just doing the job for money? I suspect not. Artists are capable of massive self-denial - how else would they stay motivated when they're not peaking? - and I feel pretty certain Miller still thinks he has something to say. Whatever else I might think of the guy, I don't think he's in it for the paycheck.
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Now dis is funny...
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Also, what be up with the wonky font?
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Sep 22, 2005 7:51:57 AM CDT
Saying All-Star Batman & Robin is written from Dick Grayson'
by rev_skarekroe
Here's a good excuse, and one that I'm fairly certain is accurate - it's a humor book.
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...when he gets thinsg right there are very few in the industry who can come close, or even bare comparison. And he's responsible for many of my all time favourite series, comics and storylines. When he fucks up though, he fucks up in truly monumental proportions, and nothing proves this more than his last couple of turns at writing The Bat. Truth be told, I think the main problem is that he's completely lost the pulse of the character, and now it's like he's trying to remember and reaquaint himself, but he's getting the details all mixed up and out of order. I still think Miller has it in him to write great stuff, something that he's proven again and again over the years, but when it comes to The Bat, he truly seems to have lost his way.
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I loved that fact that I could laugh so hard at a Batman comic. It was cheesy, but a good cheesy.
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After picking up issue one and skimming over issue two I'd sooner gargle razorblades than be subjected to issue three of that shitfest. The artwork's okay, I've never been a big fan of Jim Lee's art, he is however, a thoroughly nice guy, Sadly and in all seriousness most of you talkbackers could write a better and more entertaining Batman comic, lousy spelling, Hulk Hogan references and all. Mark Miller's All Star Superman will look great thanks to (Vin) Frank Quitely's art I only hope it's a better read than FM's tripe.
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Sep 22, 2005 8:52:17 AM CDT
ALL-STAR BATMAN & ROBIN makes BATMAN: THE DARK KNIGHT STRIKES AG
by spyguy
I just crack up at all the various attempts to justify Frank Miller's reimagining of Batman as a laughing whackjob with a flying Batmobile. By now, it seems pretty obvious that Miller wants to turn Batman, a mainstream character, into one of his cartoonish SIN CITY creations. Miller's intense, edgy Batman who cradled Carrie Kelley in his arms ("Good soldier...") in THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS has been replaced by a man saddled with a junior high mentality who paraphrases Michael Keaton to a traumatized young boy ("You wanna see nuts?! I'll show you nuts!"). Bottom line, ALL-STAR BATMAN & ROBIN THE NONSENSICALLY LONG-WINDED TITLE is crap -- crappier than a flooded New Orleans sewer. After sifting through two issues of this muck, I'm bailing on the series and hoping that Morrison and Quitely come through with ALL-STAR SUPERMAN where Miller has failed so miserably...
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I disagree about Rann Thannagar War. I find this series is like being bludeoned by a big fucking mace. It's all editorial edict with no attention to characterization, believavility, or emotional honesty. More than the other Infinite Crisis setups it's all about moving around the pieces without looking to see what they are.
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Jeez, I've read a lot of Miller....when did he go through a subtle phase?
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I'm going to amass enough money to build a dimensional transporter so I can go and rescue the real Metallica and the real Frank Miller from their alternate reality prisons.
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This is the same Bats who was in Spawn\Batman. You'd have thought somebody might have told FM that it was a sucky version of the character the first time around.
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Sep 22, 2005 9:18:14 AM CDT
Is ALL-STAR BATMAN &ROBIN a sick joke or what? Someone please t
by jdanielp
Sometimes, I REALLY dig Frank Miller's work. His "DARK KNIGHT RETURNS" and "YEAR ONE" Batman work are my top-favorite books, being that I'm such a huge Batman fan. (And the "SIN CITY" movie was outstanding, ...a nice contrast to most Hollywood productions today.) But sometimes, Miller is way off the mark. And if he's chosen to take the Batman character in the direction as described above, ...and DC Comics has chosen to allow it, ...then I'm just flat-out disgusted.
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From where I sat, it looked like Batman killed a lot of cops in the highway scene in Batman Begins. Why the outrage over ASB&R, while propping up Begins as the next Citizen Kane? I don't get fanboys sometimes (despite being one myself, on occasion) *** If I may pat myself on the back, I called it as soon as the All-Star anouncement was made that everyone would hate Batman. I'd ask if anyone wants to go double or nothing with All-Star Superman, but Grant Morrison fanboys are truly insane and will praise anything that man does.
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The variant cover to this issue, hands down, is one of the best Batman covers I've ever seen. Ever. Robin cowering and gritting his teeth while Batman splatters blood all over him...that would've been a comic worth reading. But it's not the comic we got. What the hell's going on with this book? First of all, it's boring. Second of all, there's so much repeated dialogue, it could be half the size. Literally. And I like Lee's art--even if most of the chicks have boobs bigger than their heads, and everyone's got weird action lines everywhere on their body--but there's a weird disconnect with the writing. Maybe because "Hush" was so popular, but it doesn't really seem to work. Does it? Maybe it's me. Finally, Batman as bizarre child-endangerment-guy would've been sweet. I mean, really, that's what he is. The Robin thing is truly messed up. And there are moments of it, like when Batman slaps Dick, but then he doesn't go all the way with it. And then it got a little Dark-Knight- Strikes-Back-Again with the jet car. And dude...is Alfred totally cut? He looks like he's about to make out with Vicki Vale--while she's passed out. Hoping Morrison's Superman will be better...
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Sep 22, 2005 9:33:24 AM CDT
I see All Star Batman having more influence on DC's future t
by cookylamoo
In Infinite Crisis Didio and crew are just rearranging the place settings at the table, but Miller is knocking this dishes onto the floor and laughing as they break. If All Star Batman is half as influencial as Dark Knight then Pandora's Box has been opened. In five years you'll be hearing "What do you mean, who am I? I'm FUCKING Superman, damm It."
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Sep 22, 2005 9:41:18 AM CDT
"In Infinite Crisis Didio and crew are just rearranging the plac
by rev_skarekroe
Ha! That's awesome. Clearly the fans are either laughing along with him (like me) or going "EEEEE!!! You've ruined the dishes! YOU'RE RUINING MY TEA PARTY!!!! GET OUT GET OUT GET OUT!!!" like most of the rest of you. And let's be honest, it's not even like it's the fine China...
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This was a good review. Now please, i implore you, do not review the third issue. Just skip it. It has been established that this comic sucks. And while you're at it, no more reviews of House of M either. Let's see some good comics reviewed.
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I don't think Miller wrote this to be a joke. I think he wanted this to be his big Robin story. But anyway--I've got a new idear for Dan Didio and DC--they could call it "All Star Crisis Shocktopia!" And it could be written by Danielle Steele. Here's my pitch: Have the OLD Dr. Light rape the NEW Dr. Light! And then, confronted by Geo-Force, Dr. Light rapes him, too---before tearing out his spine! Then, the old, Mike W. Barr/Jim Aparo Outsiders declare vengenace--but Dr. Light rapes all of them, in succession, before crippling a couple of them. Finally, Metamorpho transforms into Mad-Cow Prions and infects Dr. Light's brain, turning him into a gibbering wreck once again! Welcome to SHOCKTOPIA, suckers! Bet you didn't see that CRAZY SHOCK coming, didja? Aren't we SHOCKING? This could be followed by an All Star relaunch of a gritty Outsiders series written by--who else? Warren Ellis! Several variant covers ensue.
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Let me just say I love this column but for the life of me cant understand why 100 Bullets doesn't get more props.I honestly beleive you guys give 100 Bullets the cold shoulder because of Azzarello's run on Batman and Superman.Those comics didn't fit his style.It would be like if Cronenberg directed the new Superman movie, just doesn't fit.But trust me Azzarello is blowing his load on this book.It's brilliant.It's the closest we'll ever get to a Michael Mann film written by David Mamet in comic form.I only read my comics in TPB form nowadays and just finished reading the 8th volume.Wow.That whole Wylie Times arc was an amazing piece of writing.And that ending!Anybody else reading this book?When it's all over 100 Bullets will go down in history as the greatest crime comic.It makes Miller's Sin City look pedestrian.Reading 100 Bullets is like watching The Wire,you know it's brilliant,it gets critical acclaim but nobody's talking about it.Sorry for the rant guys but this book deserves it..peace..or should I say "croatoa" maybe that'll wake a couple of you guys up :)
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Sep 22, 2005 10:32:16 AM CDT
Theroies to explain Desolation Jones and ASS Batman and Robin
by fantomex
Some people think Miller is just playing a really big joke. I really don't see how he could be doing that but it sure seems that way. MY theory behind Desolation Jones is that the entire series so far has just been an engine to allow Ellis to write a 7 page conversation between his main character (himself) and a pornstar. It might have been interesting if a) I didn't live in southern california and knew nothing about the porn industry and b) I already didn't subscribe to the warren ellis mailing list and get this kind of stuff in my inbox every day. 100 BULLETS: I read it. I think its been very uneven of late. The Wylie arc was WAY too long. The last arc was pointless and the dialouge that is specifically written so you don't actually know what they're saying got old 30+ issues ago. We saw Graves meet with Benecio's father several issues ago, but they keep meeting and having these non-conversations for what purpose? It really feels like Azzarello is spinning his wheels. But then we'll get an amazing single issue like this one (a good character/mood piece which was much better than the entire subplot of the last arc) or the one we had before the last arc, which in a few pages advanced the plot more than the last 7 issues put together. And I disagree that Batman didn't fit his style. I think it fit perfectly. Sometimes his all-too-noir writing style gets away from him.
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the wire is indeed brilliant. and i really like desolation jones and i'm a little sadden by this all-star frank miller/lee event...at least there is the goon.
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...is relative to his own oeuvre, Sideshow. And maybe I should've made that more clear. So when I say subtlety for him, I'm thinking of the staging of the first issue of BATMAN: YEAR ONE, or, say, the scene in DAREDEVIL: BORN AGAIN where Urich's getting the 3rd degree from Robbie Robertson over missing a deadline even as Urich listens to a mine die on the other end of his phone line. Man, the way that latter scene is paced is a thing of beauty - the rising chaos of the newsroom as the "camera" slowly zooms in on Urich's utterly drained face. "I want you in my office, Ben. Now." Funny thing is, Robbie's always been such an even-handed guy that his paternal tone toward Urich almost hits with as much weight as the murder Urich's just listened to. And then I think about the modern Miller and how he might've staged the scene... URICH: "I can't write, OKAY! I just heard a man DIE, damn you! He died! While I was listening, he DIED!" So that's the divide I'm talking about.
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Alright, it's a typo. Listens to a "man" die is what I meant, natch. Though the death of a land mine is always tragic too.
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Oh my god! Frank Miller didn't do exactly what I expected him to do. I haven't read the whole story yet but I'm sure I know what I'm talking about. I hate him now.
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I understand and respect your point of view.I guess I just liked it alot more and didnt mind the extended arc on Wylie.And as for the dialogue I think your wrong on it getting old.Its heavy slang and people do talk like that.Beleive me I'm one of them.That's one of the reasons why I like the book so much.Regardless of where the story takes place the language is authentic(like The Wire).A lesser writer would water down the slang to appeal to a wider audiance.I've seen it done tons of times especially in superhero comics where urban characters are nothing more than stereotypes.I'd love to know where Azzarello gets his info on the way people speak.He has a great ear for dialogue.Thanks for the response..peace
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Sep 22, 2005 11:01:52 AM CDT
Whoops I stand corrected it's Grant Morrison not Mark Millar
by regicidal_maniac
That should be the title "All Star Supes" just to counter the rediculously long The Englishman Who Went Up A Hill And Came Down A Mountainesque title of the ASB&RTBW comic.
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Sep 22, 2005 11:17:59 AM CDT
Does everyone else just have half a talkback, or is it me?
by mortsleam
Or did those bastards actually manage to break the internet. Those bastards. They broke it. The Internet. The bastards. (Look at me, I'm writing an All-Star book!)
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...ala the ULTIMATE line and most superhero "universe" titles? Because I'm having a hard time imagining it with writing styles as disparate as Miller and Morrison's for the opening salvos. They pretty much *have* to ultimately crossover if DC has an intent on doing an ALL-STAR JLA, but I for one would like a little purity of the line with each of the heroes standing on their own - essentially the only "hero" in their self-contained world. It's wishful thinking, though, I figure. Miller's already wanting to have all the DC babes in ALL-STAR BATS, and lord knows that if Morrison's Superman ever shows in that book Miller'll just have Batman beat his ass for the umpteenth time. All things considered, this is a pretty ugly start for the line. I still have hope for Morrison, but the line doesn't seem particularly well-planned for stability. Aren't Miller and Morrison already talking about only being around for something like ten and twelve issues respectively? Geez! I've got my beefs with the Ultimate line, but at least there's some stability to it!
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In Batman Begins Alfred makes a point saying that "You're lucky somebody didn't get killed"
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Whenever Bale was under the cowl he sounded like a Baldwin brother.
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There isn't a plot to igore 100 BULLETS here at AICN. I think there are a few of us who read the title regularly (I don't, but I know Humphrey and Sleazy G do). I think it is just the case that there are so many titles out there to cover and so little time and space to do so. Hopefully, we'll be able to continue to cover 100 BULLETS since there does seem to be an interest in the book. About your comment on accurate depictions of speech pattens and slang in literature, I have to disagree. Liek I said, I don't read 100 BULLETS, so I can't cite specifics, but I do know that, for me, trying to plod through dialects is the one sure thing to grasp me by the collar and pull me firmly out of the story. Much like Twain's TOM SAWYER and HUCK FINN or to be more comic-specific any Whedon or Bendis-speak title, accurate use of dialect and slang may show that the writer knows what he is talking about, but it also can distract the reader from the flow of the story. When I have to stop and reread a sentence because I can't understand the top or bottom of it, story flow halts and that's the worst thing a writer can do to a reader. As soon as the reader falls out of the grasp of the story, the writer risks losing his audience. I'm a big fan of DEADWOOD, the works of Alan Moore, and other properties which borrow from the SHakespearian overuse of words and pretzellizing of sentence structure, but moreso as an admirer of language and communication than as a lover of good fiction. Still there are times when absorbing and attempting to understand this type of dialog seems futile and pointless and a distraction from what could be a much more engaging story.
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a little bit too MEN IN BLACKish, maybe, but cute in a hip-ish, self-aware, BUFFY kind of way (that's only slightly played out). artwork is nice too -- a simpler, more cartoony style of comics illustration.
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Yep, we sure do have things to discuss. Let me start out by saying that I think I've just read a bunch of bad Bendis lately and I still feel this issue wasn't good, but could have been "fixed" quite easily. I don't mind Gaydos, especially because he was the first to draw Jessica, but the photoshop water filtered texture thing for the colors was horrendous. I felt like everything took place in a gas station bathroom. I KNOW the Baxter building is in no way that dirty. Maybe it's because I'm not a parent, but I just wasn't in the mood for a comic book about worrying for the baby and not even seeing the thing be born (I guess that will take a few more issues if Bendis spreads out his arc). The Luke Cage bit was good, but all in all, I felt it was too decompressed (shock) and the colors were horrible. Maybe it's because the previous issue w/ Hawkeye was pretty good, but does that have any relevance now? Is #10 post HoM? I'm a little worn out w/ all that right now.
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Stupid GCPD. Maybe they knew the psycho Batman was going to kill about three times as many cops in the next few minutes anyway so they just played dead. I don't think there's anyway around the cops burning in flames screaming. "Damn monster" "Crazy, he's crazy, he's crazy" and "Madness, it's madness!" This is far worse than the first issue. Let's hope the third doesn't dig a whole any lower.
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I read alot of crime fiction and whenever an author gets interviewed a common question that comes up is "Arent you afraid you might alienate a certain part of your audiance by using slang they might not be familiar with?"And the usually response that I've heard on more than one occasion"It adds flavor and if the core of the story is interesting enough it shouldn't matter".But apparently to some people it does.When John Dahl made the film Rounders he filled it with tons slang used in the underground poker scene.He said in an interview he knew most people wouldn't get some of it but it wouldn't take away from the enjoyment of the film.I'm not from that area so alot of it went over my head but I still liked it.The same goes whenever I watch a British show or movie with heavy slang.I dont know what the hell they're saying some of the time but if the story is engaging the slang just adds a touch of authenticity.In my view anyway..thanks for the 100 Bullets review..peace
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that DK2 was embarrasingly bad.
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I'm worried about the future bastardizations of Green Arrow, Wonder Woman, Black Canary, etc. by Miller.
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Did what I think happened, happen? Is ***SPOILER*** Shayera dead? For real?
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and by the way, your thoughts on LOST?
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As I was reading this issue, I thought
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Oh, I'm sorry--I forgot. DC never uses rape, murder, or lobotomy purely for shock value. My bad.
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I counted the number of advertiser pages in the comics I bought yesterday... it averaged out to twenty-two pages of ads (and that's not including the in-house ads). Ultimates2 #8 had something like 27 pages of advertisements. If the company's are selling this much ad space per issue, please tell me why the fuck I'm paying three dollars per comic?
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I'm reading throught the talkback right now. Some interesting theories, others are just silly, and the Buffy and Star Trek arguing is funny stuff. But about LOST
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don't forget about the nanites. Fans are loving the nanites
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That Batman book sounds TERRIBLE. What happened? When did it switch so that the movie was good and the comic was terrible? DC doesn't need an "Ultimates" line (that's what this is). The whole point of the Ultimate line was to start fresh, so that new readers wouldn't be intimidated by forty years of history with characters like the X-Men. Batman doesn't really have that, anyone can pick up a Batman/Superman/Any DC Character really (and I stress DC, not Vertigo) and more or less follow it. DC has always been more accessible. Frank Miller seems to have gone from the slight parody of "Dark Knight Returns" to the insanely out there "Monty Python's All Star Batman and Robin" Sigh.
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Pshaw, Heathen. You're just jealous that this talkback hasn't devolved into the pro/anti Buffy whirlwind the Lost talkback flirted with this morning. Wait... no I guess you're probably not. And to add to the dead bodies from the CtIC crossovers, the wizard Shazam got clobbered by a large stone block... again.
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Overall I liked the pacing of this lil' 3 parter about the Sentry. Maybe Bendis should do more 3 parters? That way, he'd be forced to get to the devil shit quicker. That said, I think this last part was the weakest of the issues, but it was still okay. Emma and Sentry's 2 page spreads of word bubbles were a little too long and Emma saying, "Yes, it be true." is the dumbest grammatical and character quote/moment since All Star Batman (oh damn only a week!) but McNiven's art was great and it had a nice little set up for the next arc. I like how Bendis is using the round table meeting w/ Reed Richards, Namor, Dr. Strange, etc. to set up this story and the next apparently. It shows that many things can unfold from just one meeting, but you can only due so much at one time - even in comics!
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Why did I just say "tis?" Anyway, yeah I read DoV #6 last night too. Looks like they're setting up people to receive the powers of the seven sins? Well at least the new Blue Beetle, that's a given.
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I hate everything! Especially stuff with ANY hype... I hate everything. Oh, and moviemack, good to see you have returned from your cave since Batman Begins kicked your ass, dumfuck.
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I hate everything! Especially stuff with ANY hype... I hate everything. Oh, and moviemack, good to see you have returned from your cave since Batman Begins kicked your ass, dumfuck.
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...the hell!
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g'night folks!!!
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Rann/Thnagar: "This mini-series is clearly the best of the bunch when it comes to these INFINITE CRISIS preludes. It is intelligent, intense, emotional and complicated."
Bloak Narpin:I think it's the worst. I look forward to each new issue of OMAC (The best on the minis), Day of Vengence , and Villians United. Reading Rann/Thanagar has been a chore. -
What? It be true. Rann/Thanagar is the one I look forward to the least, but it has the best art and the story isn't bad, but I'm just not anticipating it as much as the others.
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He's not writing Batman as the cool customer. He's writing him as the psycotic that evyone claims he is. It's almost if Miller thought he was being "Daring" in 1986 feels he needs to push the envelope further to get the same effect. Sadly it backfired in DKSA and this Batman And Robin. How different YO and B&R: Bruce saves two cops from a burning car, even AFTER they shot him. Now he sets ccops and cop cars on fire and laughs like the Joker. Really sad.
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test
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test again because i do not know where to login on this site !!!!
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Sep 22, 2005 3:41:15 PM CDT
Justice League, Teen Titans, Legion of Doom. That's all you
by rev_skarekroe
Daredevil? Unless you count Marvel Knights. Hmm... Does Lobo count as a superhero?
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My land mine died no more than a year ago and it still hurts.***Sideshowbob: Does that mean if you happen to hate AS Superman but other people like it, then they're automatically Morrison apologists or something?
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Sep 22, 2005 3:51:24 PM CDT
AND NOW FOR SOMETHING COMPEATLY ASSHOLEICK (not what your thinki
by rickslamu2
Wow, I haven
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The use of slang doesn't bother me (but I find his use of it uneven, especially early on in the series). What bothers me is two characters who are having a conversation but come off as if they're desperately trying to avoid saying anything at all (because that would ruin the mystery). So we get things like "When we did that thing in Atlanta" instead of "When we killed so-and-so" because we aren't supposed to know who so-and-so is yet. Its not bad when used sparingly, but the series has become nothing but one non-conversation after another. People do not talk like that unless they think the FBI is bugging them, and even then I think they'd make more sense then some of the stuff in 100 Bullets. Hey, maybe they are being bugged...
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dont miss this http://tinyurl.com/c7wq9
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There's someone saying Morrison sucks and fucking Chuck Austen was a ray of hope right here on this board!!! There's a little bit of everything in the world.
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I'm going to be more blunt. Miller is ruining the Mystique of How Batman and Robin met. Graysons parents were killed by a sabotage of their wires...Not an obvious mob hit. It was a protection racket against the circus. When Dick was going to the cops, Batman STEALTHILY told Dick what was going on...and that the cops were in on it. No.. This is loud, boisterous Miller. Not the creature of the night that moved in the shadows.
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Sep 22, 2005 4:47:18 PM CDT
"Jessica Jones co-creator Michael Gaydos is back drawing her aga
by smileybone
You're forgetting the What If? issue from last year. Though that was so lame that I couldn't really blame you for forgetting it...
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Do you think Jim Lee likes AS Batman? Cause i mean, you're Jim Lee, you're pretty excited to work on a BATMAN comic with FRANK MILLER and you're saying to yourself "I'm rich, successful, i smile even when i'm crying and i'm drawing a Frank Miller Batman comic....it does not get any better than that!" And suddenly Frank hands you the script and it reads something like "What are you retarded?! I'm the goddamn Batman!!! My car can fly MUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA OMG OMG OMG HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA HAHAHA *cough cough*.......Good soldier". I'd be less than thrilled.
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That link was from Dave's Long Box, right? That man is a true internet r0xx0r. And, there's the whole Velvet Marauder business. Genius.
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I read Tec' #38 last night and Miller's work is very close to that. Maybe, even closer than the Dark Victory stuff. OMG, my bashing begins soon. **** PS I loved tDKSA
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Sep 22, 2005 5:12:34 PM CDT
Maybe AS B&R is an experiment to how much hetero testosterone ca
by realdoublej
Wow. Just, freakin', wow. The batmobile taking off and killing people just screams giant flying penis of death. It might also be possible that AS B&R is occuring in a timeline where Alfred is half-English, half-Hulk Hogan. That's the only reason I can think to why he's suddenly got 6 inch pythons...
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let's hope it is an experiment.
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Well, that is a slight exaggeration since I did buy the JLA issue in Cheap Shots, and it wasn't that great. I did really enjoy the All-Star Batman review as well as the discussion. It almost makes me want to read this comic, since it appears to be BAD, as in "Showgirls," trainwreck, so-bad-it's-sorta-good bad. And I used to love Thunderbolts but dropped it after Hawkeye, Moonstone, Skein, Amazon, et. al. all left. Who is this Photon? Is it the Monica Rambeau/Captain Marvel Photon, or someone else?
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The thing about Batman is perspective. The character can be written from MANY different perspectives, be it World's Greatest Detective, campy, dark & brooding loner, patriarch of the Bat-family, or as Frank Miller writes his best characters, un-hinged quasi-psychopaths who operate against social norms. I'm not a mind reader, but I would like to think that Miller doesn't want to write the same Batman that he has in previous outings. However, fans & DC want a Frank Miller book to sound like a Frank Miller book. So what's a guy to do? He pushes the envelope stylistically and the result is this All-Star Mess. I love Frank Miller's work, but as far as The Bat goes, it's like he's trying to repaint The Last Supper. Hey DaVinci, you got it right the first time, quit messing with it. That's just my 2 cents, which is about the only amount I'll pay to pick up issue #3.
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I respect your views. I have to point out that in the future, Batman-philes can expect Paul Pope's Year 100, as well as Morrison and Adam Kubert's run on Det. Comics.
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Sep 22, 2005 5:32:24 PM CDT
I think Frank Miller is intentionally trying to destroy DC from
by neo zeed
From the obvious gay overtones (Bruce Wayne ignoring Vicki Vale while leering over Robin, saying "I've been watching him for a long time. The boy's got talent.") Add this latest review and we gotta a guy who's playing games with DC for fun. Cause this is toooo bad not to be
intentional. Bottom line, he's an archistic prankster. -
What goes on there?
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Sep 22, 2005 5:47:06 PM CDT
I Hope For Poor Sales For AS B & R. I Hope It Forces Frank To D
by buzz maverik
Alan Moore has said that even Frank's Spartans are a little hard boiled. I'd be happy, and I'm sure Frank would be happier, if he could dump superheroes all together. If he were a novelist, he'd be in his prime; if he were a filmmaker, he'd be just past his prime. But as a comic book hybrid, he's the Ancient One. SIN CITY is certainly better than any superhero stuff Miller has done, which isn't much, since either ELEKTRA LIVES! or MAN WITHOUT FEAR (which still had some problems). Personally, I have always hated YEAR ONE. YEAR ONE was the first comic where I realized that no one had the balls to edit Miller, which sort of set the trend for your Liefeld's, Lee's, etc. Miller is the reason today that no one edits Bendis except to correct the typos. He's the reason no one says, "Think that one over" or especially, "No." Most people love YEAR ONE. Still, I sort of equally hate a backlash and the type of fans that say, "Hey, anything he does is alright because Miller did DARK KNIGHT." That's like saying, "Don't say bad things about CURLY SUE or DUTCH because John Hughes did FERRIS BUELLER and NATIONAL LAMPOON'S VACATION.
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Thanks for an awesome review, Dave! Yes indeed, FNM *is* one of the BEST bands ever. Speaking of faith no more, though, I don't think I'll be buting ALL-STAR BATMAN AND ROBIN #3. It's not that I was offended by the issue or anything... it just wasn't worth $3. What a waste.
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what i meant was am i the only one who's talkback is getting cut off?
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Lol, kidding - I remember it happening to you a few comics talkbacks back. **** Vale, the Aquafag talkback superiority over ours is truly irritating.
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so far has been a pretty good day of reading the talkbacks. thanks for the spolier heads up heathen. fantomex that was a hilarious link. vale i went into the aqufag talkback once and it barely makes any sense.they talk about the talkbakc being found someday and made into a gospel and some other such nonsense.i think if the aicn comics talkback was continous instead of jumping every week like we do wed have them beat.
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I'll probably like it. Maybe love it. I actually love Morrison's writing and I think we're really lucky to have him in this industry. But at the same time most of us know he's dropped some turds...and there are fans who feel STRONGLY that he hasn't. Those people freak me out a little, actually.
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JLA was the only book I bought last week also, and I even told the guy at my LCS that I was primarily buying it because "it's so bad it's kind of good."
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Sep 22, 2005 7:15:41 PM CDT
Where in the sweet blue fuck is your review for Phil Hester (and
by tequilamocking
Talk about being out of the loop.
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Genis-Vell, aka Captain Marvel. He's been going through some... changes. Also, if you're a fan of the classic T-Bolts, I'd give the latest issue a try. It's got some strong stuff, particularly where Songbird is concerned.
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Whoever said ASB&R is the 'Showgirls' of comics is exactly right. Why are some of you bending over backwards to try and rationalize ways this comic might not suck; i.e., if you view it through THIS perspective, maybe it's not so bad. The only perspective there is what's in the comic. It's not all from Robin's point-of-view. Robin wasn't in Vicki Vale's apartment watching her change clothes, Robin wasn't there when He-Alfred cradled Vale... it's Miller being a bat-shit, lazy writer who started believing that anything he did was excellent. Now, I'm not a "hater" (great word to negate honest criticism by people who might actually give a damn about quality, btw). I just care about the character and about having good comics to read. The truth is, from any aesthetic viewpoint, Miller has NOT written a decent comic since the original Sin City that got serialized in Dark Horse Presents. Everything he's done since is formulaic, dull, and features characters who are no more complex than the goofy-as-fuck bad-pulp dialogue they sputter out in sentence fragments. He's shit. He did good work once upon a time, but now he's shit. And don't come with "he's trying to do something new." HE'S NOT TRYING TO DO ANYTHING NEW. HE'S DOING THE PAINT-BY-NUMBERS FRANK MILLER WE'VE HAD WRITING FOR THE LAST TEN YEARS.I'm all ready to embrace him if he applies a little discipline, lays off the cocaine, and actually writes a well thought out, engaging story with rich characters again. Hell, I was about eight on his original Daredevil run, and I still remember how fabulous that was. This... this is dogshit. Through drugs, drink or perhaps simple laziness, he's just come to believe that anything he shits out on paper is gold. It's not.
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Sep 22, 2005 8:51:48 PM CDT
The Aquaf@g TB is essentially, and by that I mean literally, 3-4
by heywood jablowme
Basically, what falls under "cool news" is really just a chat room for a handful of people. The comics TBs are the only ones on the site that are even worth looking at anymore. The "scoops" are always courtesy of other sites and the "reviews" of the movies are nowhere near the quality they used to be. They're bland and predictable. Seriously, look at the homepage right now and tell me there's something on there that is remotely interesting that wasn't posted somewhere else like a week ago. AICN Comics, you're the last bastion of integrity around here. Except when you lay into Bendis. Don't you know? This is the guy who boke the internet in half. Respect.
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Except for the first couple of years, Batman has been a constant progession from nice to nasty. Crazy Bat-Marv is simply the next step past the Bat-Asshole who is currently featured in the other bat-books.
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Sep 22, 2005 9:23:51 PM CDT
Dark Knight Returns was the comic equivelant of Nirvana's Ne
by zer0cool2k2
It made the world stand up and take notice, inspired a generation of imitators, and is still fun to revisit occasionally. As far as Miller's "sequel' goes, maybe he should have just killed himself (or maybe Lynn Varley should have had him killed and made it look like a suicide). DK2 started out average, and became horrid. By the time the last issue got pushed out, I felt like what Miller was really trying to do was make a statement that "Look, I'm such an icon, I can scribble some crap on the page, put down some incoherent ramblings, and the sheep will call it genius". Maybe he wanted people to stop putting him on a pedestal, maybe he was tired of people bitching about how long it was taking to finish, or maybe he just didn't give a fuck. Whatever the case, I thought it was terrible. The first Dark Knight and Year One were both great, but maybe Frank should just stick to Sin City from here on out.
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maybe lee and miller will create such a transcedant final issue to salvage the rocky start they have executed...then again, i might be really really drunk.
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Oh boy, where do I start? Well, before I get to the text, some basics. My main point: Calculator's behind the Society and the Secret Six, he's just letting Lex handle the ringmaster duties because a) Lex is good at it and he can accomplish more with the respect he has in the villain community, b) Lex is a megalomaniac and would rip apart anyone who prevented him from being in charge, c) it's easier to operate if no one pays attention to the 'loyal flunkee' (and if I'm right then it could be said that he was setting up Lex in S/B #19 by acting the way he did around Luthor, instead of just being out of character). Frankly, the way I see the Society Six, aside from tech abilities, this former Z-lister has nothing of note on his resume compared to the other five. He was one of the best things about Identity Crisis but he was a total red herring that only got Bolt in the hospital, Boomerang killed and managed to outwit Bats once. Something's gotta give. Now onto the texts: first, Identity Crisis. Coupla interesting things: Bolt asks how he gets his info, a spy satellite or something? (hints of OMAC/Brother Eye) The Fiddler (aka the Secret Six member that Deadshot whacks in VU #1) gives him a call, and a connection to the Secret Six. Countdown to Infinite Crisis (a book that is probably about as dense with foreshadowing as you can get): look at the panel where the Society Six are shown, Noah on a giant monitor screen behind Luthor; for visual imagery alone that's suggestive of his position in the scheme of things, but moreso if you look at the cover for VU #6 there's the image of 'Mockingbird' in the foreground (with Lex not being depicted elsewhere) and a subtle head shape with pointy ears in the background, very similar. Then, before I get to VU, look at some Birds of Prey/JSA details: Oracle with the Brainiac virus, a clash of Brainiac masks on an upcoming cover where Calcy is the main villain, the B-13 virus which turns ordinary people into OMACs, OMACs targetting Oracle and Mr. Terrific (probably his biggest tech rivals in the DCU). And just what was Calculator using to monitor Supergirl and Superman while they were in space in S/B #19? Now to VU. #1: the first bit of dialogue is his and in the first few pages even Luthor is relegated to a status no higher than any of the others: Calcy's center stage as you would expect the mastermind to be. Also of note: compare the Mockingbird image and the fact that here Eaglesham draws Noah with full-on shades, and we never get to see the golden-brown eyes he was shown with in Identity Crisis, and consider that Mockingbird might not be bald but have slicked back hair. #4: Calculator put together psych files on all the villains (I wonder how much he could have referenced from OMAC? And how much did he tweak things before they got to Luthor?) #5: why does the Society have a top secret encoded file on Mockingbird? Luthor is clearly bent on using the Society to his own personal ends, but I think Calculator is interested in forming a society and maintaining it long after Luthor's gone. That's why he creates the Secret Six to act as a check or police force (as hinted at in the beginning of VU #4) on the Society when things get egregious like making a device that would mindwipe the JLA, etc (it's just bad for business).. This situation is most preferable for him because he derives his power from knowing precisely who everyone is and what they're about (Lex especially), and the villains in a more ordered non-chaotic organization only increase his power. Luthor and Calculator have also been shown in VU to think very much the same, so much that they almost seem interchangeable. Given his character and a name like Calculator, you'd think Noah Kuttler would have the ability for intense long-range planning, with a definite chance to outplan Luthor himself, who seems much more short-sighted right now.
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WHAT'S up with the message boards being off? Oh and plus BOYCOTT X-MEN FOR 3 MONTHS!!!!!!
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it's like you didn't even think that out...how can you distille crisis in 3 sentances? jk...nice post though, you put alot of thought into it...i do enjoy this talkback for the brains involved...and of the kitty pride gawking too.
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Sep 23, 2005 1:21:04 AM CDT
I actually reviewed the roughest issue of the N'awlins Wylie
by sleazyg.
...cuz it kicked my ass. I also loved the one-shot at the gas station. It's just that only a couple of us are regular readers, and I hate reviewing the same stuff over and over. I'll get back to it the next time an issue really grabs me the way that bear trap did, though...
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that was thalya that posted.its ok im on my way to join u in the land of drunk myself.:-)
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that bear trap thing was the saddest thing ive read in a comic all year. i literally cried my ass off for half an hour!
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Sep 23, 2005 1:25:16 AM CDT
God help me for saying it, but I actually enjoyed ALL-STAR BATCR
by sleazyg.
I was still hating it until about the halfway point, I guess it was. Then I started laughing at how wrongheaded, stupid, pointless, empty, and overwrought it was and I didn't stop til I put it down, and realized I'd had fun. Look at it like this: it's not a Batman book. At all. That character just isn't Batman, and we all know it, and that's why we all fucking hate it. But there's a certain freedom that comes with knowing that. See, once you realize it is not, could never be, Bruce Wayne/Batman who smacks around little twelve-year-old punk bastards and kills cops and laughs like his own fucking archnemesis, you can officially stop caring. You can just laugh at the sheer lunacy being spewed out across the page and have a laugh and a good time. Well, I mean, except for the fact that any new readers who actually made the mistake of picking this thing up will never buy another comic, of course.
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I actually cried. It really was so fucking sad and hard...wow. Pretty amazing.***Let's give it to Alan Moore who hasn't started sucking yet and consistently pumps out quality material even tho' he's past his prime like all those Millers and Claremonts and Byrnes. No?
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It's on the subject of LOST, and it goes a little something like this: Please, my homies...my Cogs...my fellow dorkwads...please fer the luvva God don't blab potential fucking spoilers IN THE SUBJECT LINES!!! I mean, I love you all as my four color brothers, but sometimes I can't catch this show until a few days after it airs, and I just want to be able to hang out with you guys in the TalkBacks without one of the great modern TV shows getting the Sue Dibny treatment. Izzat so much to ask? I know I'm taking my anti-spoiler life into my own hands if I venture into the actual LOST TalkBacks, but maybe here we could show a little restraint? At least put the spoilers in the body of the message and maybe warn folks first? That's all I'm asking. I *really* like LOST. And I don't want to have to go all Black Mask on y'all.
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I just sat there going "oh SHIT" and reread those pages like four or five times. That arc did run a bit long, but that issue was killer.
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...I'm starting to get picky, m'self. Reading Junji Ito's horror manga changed everything for me, proving for the first time ever (at least for me) that comics actually *are* capable of drawing out suspense like a movie, of actually giving the reader chills, of actually creeping one out. And since being creeped out is pretty much the highest calling horror can have for me...most comic book horror fails for me now. The only exceptions I can think of are those books that just manage a compelling story - WALKING DEAD, the occasional HELLBLAZER...like that. Mostly, though, I think anyone who wants to try their hand at horror in comics needs to take a lesson from the boys in the East. (Sidebar: For the record, this isn't me being a Japanophile or anything - I just think their horror comic books own the living crap out of ours. But I'm just talking one genre there, and I submit that the Japanese could learn a thing or two from American comics in turn! You know, like how NOT to tie every goddamn story into some new agey, goddamn spirit of Gaea parable!)
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Sep 23, 2005 2:02:01 AM CDT
Those of you worried about an anti-Azzarello bias, I got two thi
by sleazyg.
1. Stop worrying. 2. You'd better fucking by LOVELESS #1, cuz I've been lookin forward to it since it was announced at WizWorld Chicago '04, and I'll be pissed if it struggles. Bonus round: who here caught the industry insider/friend of Azz who got name-dropped in the preview to the first issue? Winner gets the no-prize I ganked from Joey Q's room while he was drinking white zinfandel with Kevin Smith and Ron Zimmerman at the hotel bar.
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...ever notice how the visual images during the final battle of Ang Lee's "Hulk" mirror those of the climax to "Princess Mononoke"? I'm thinking of the weird, bubbling, inwardly-lit stuff in the middle of the desert in "Hulk" vs. the weird, bubbling, inwardly-lit transformation of that big forest-god-thing in "PM". I saw "PM" upon American release a couple years before "Hulk" came out, and when I saw "Hulk" that scene gave me "PM" flashbacks.
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From a new interview: "The good new is, and I guarantee you this, when we
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Nice interview. One thing i'd like to point out is that the guy who directed Daredevil is like agigantic comics fan and a gigantic Daredevil geek. So what went wrong there? Because you can't claim the reason that one sucked was lack of passion for the material. Apart from that i'm just gonna go out and say it: Is the offer to send me the Astonishing X Men trade still standing? I actually feel like a dick when i think about it because not only are you offering to gve me the trade for free but you're also gonna have to pay for the shipment. If that's the deal then my suggestion is to ask how much it would cost to send the package to Bogota, and if it sounds ok to you...then we'll talk. Thanks a million, again.
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The most disturbing thing was the dreadful artwork and astonishingly awful colouring.Genuinely amateur.Storywise it didn't so much as deal with Bats as overstuff the story with other lesser characters.God,I still shiver in horror at Plastic Man and the artwork of a big wrinkly Luthor.I fully admit,to buying the first and I think second,but reading the other in the shop and I still can't remember what was going on.Drama free area,kids.Something DK was not.DK is still fucking awesome,Miller at the height of his powers I think.I must admit to not yead reading this new Bats/Robin comic but I skipped through it and thought "oh,no..Millers doing it again.He seems to be being minimal with dialogue as if he's trying to be clever.Oh,well...hopefully DK3 will never happen.
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http://tinyurl.com/e2pve **** a reference to the Batman begins 'romantic' poster
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Maybe I
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Oh, and if you want to know what went wrong with Daredevil, besides the miscasting, and Daredevil
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I went to my Local Comic Shop yesterday and dropped 50something bucks on the discover card, and I just have to say - Mark Millar is on a freakin' roll. He put out three books yesterday, and every one of 'em was gold.
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But I don't read Wolverine anymore since his first storyarc was so lame, so I forgot about it. If it's as good as the rest of his stuff this week, maybe I should've kept reading.
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I've never heard of it before.Is it another crime series?After reading 100 Bullets I'll give anything written by Azzarello a try.Another thing that I dont mention nearly enough about 100 Bullets is the art.Is there a better artist out there than Eduardo Risso?Man, his stuff is amazing.Unlike other artists who get alot of praise yet most of their characters look the same Jim:cough:Lee,Risso draws everyone different and has a great eye for detail and composition.I too was shocked at that bear trap scene.That's the one thing I love about 100 Bullets ya never know who's gonna get it.When all the smoke is cleared you guys need to do a 100 Bullets casting call.I have a few ideas who should play Shepard,Graves,Lono and Dizzy.I'd be interested in hearing other talkbackers ideas...peace
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Sep 23, 2005 9:36:22 AM CDT
"that last unintentionally hilarious line from ALL-STAR BATMAN &
by zombiesolutions
are you sure it wasn't supposed to be hilarious? sounds like Miller is doing a parody, right? a rather ham-fisted parody, but a parody nonetheless...
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It's a stand-alone story inspired by a conversation with Will Eisner, pencilled by the great Kaare Andrews and is a truly chilling tale set in a Polish concentration camp. It was the best of Millar's books this week, and some of the best stuff he's written in a while.
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Sep 23, 2005 9:41:41 AM CDT
"Reading Junji Ito's horror manga changed everything for me"
by zombiesolutions
yeah, he's something else, isn't he? his stories are genuinely creepy and his artwork is fantastic. any horror fan should pick up any Ito volume they see; it's truly a strange and unnerving experience (TOMIE and UZUMAKI are his standouts).
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There are some format problems with your thoughts on horror comics. If you slow things down to tell a well-paced horror story that gets under a reader's skin when you're only working with 22 pages at a time, that's people start using the "decompressed" word. Look at stuff like Freaks of the Heartland or Ultimate Nightmare. It's really tough to do in this format. Although a few people have proved otherwise, it's far more suited to digests. *** By the way, have you ever read DOMU? Creeeepy.
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It really inspired one of the DUMBEST talk-backs I've read in ages. That book is like a virus, infecting everyone with dumb, isn't it? *** By the way zombie, don't leave out Ito's GYO. That book is good stuff as well. And rereading my last post on horror manga, it makes little sense. I just meant to say that 22 pages isn't really enough to convey a good horror mood (with a few notable exceptions).
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The Dark Side of DCU is not going away because the writers themselves are infected with it. These guys LIKE doing nasty stuff. I can't imagine them cleaning up their act for any extended period of time.
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Sep 23, 2005 10:20:42 AM CDT
Just how is the talkback about AS Batman & Robin infecting us al
by heywood jablowme
Dave's review is spot-on. Now everyone is trying to figure out what the hell went wrong with it. It seems like a no-brainer, take one of the most popular pencils out there and combine him with an iconic writer on a character that is one of the most popular in the genre. Like Dave said, "looks good on paper", but the product is really bad. Laughably bad if you read the fans' reactions on the TB. As far as the "dumbness" of the TB, well, compared with some of the other TBs around here, this one looks like a goddamn Mensa meeting. Since we're all infected with "dumb", why don't you enlighten us with some pearls of wisdom on the book. Or do you want to just leave your take at "I told you so"?
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oh yeah! that was great too. pretty much all Otomo's stuff is excellent. watch out for creepy obsessive model building otakus!!! like Rob Burgandy's guns, they'll git ya!
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I like the idea, but the preview pages didn't do anything for me. It looks like everything I don't like about 100 bullets, without the interesting ongoing plot.
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I am ambivalent about all the "dark" stuff, really hated the end of IC, but am enjoying most of the lead-ins to the big Crisis coming next month. I am not ambivalent about Mark Waid, however. He is boring. He isn't annoying or self-indulgent, but he isn't interesting either. I love Legion of Superheroes, bought so many issues for so many years. But I had to quit Waid's Legion after two issues, because it just seemed boring, overly traditional and stale. Supposedly "fresh," but not. Which begs the question: Which is worse, an interesting (and probably self-indulgent)writer gone awry or a competent writer with nothing interesting to say? And Sideshow, old pal, this isn't a dumb talkback!
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Some observations of mine on 'Tec #38 (Robin's 1st appearance and origin). The police are corrupt and would kill a young boy, or surrender him to the mob - if it was asked by the local boss. There are homoerotic undertones.("Okay, you wreckless young squirt, I ought to whale you for jumping those men alone. Why didn't you wait for me?" "Aw! I didn't want to miss any of the fun! Say, I can hardly wait till we go on our next case. I bet it'll be a corker!"[lol]) Robin surrenders himself completely to Batman's whims. Batman is a vindictive psychopath (not my view, but what I perceive as the objective one, as in a psychiatrist's assessment). Robin kills a guy off-panel.(he pushes him while being very high up in a construction site) Batman uses a lot of lame one-liners and generally his dialogue would today be considered as very, very akward. ("So, you want to play, eh?..Well....." "...Here's a roulette table to play with!") He is ineffectual and cruel (he lets a mob boss kill a lackey of his ready to squeal on him, then he reveals he had Robin bring a camera so as to get incriminating evidence). I believe that Miller references this comic and this particular era of Batman storytelling, maybe... And also does a self-parody. I can't see why he should revisit his previous versions of Batman. If you prefer the more improved/updated/corrected version of this story, I suppose you'd prefer the one in Dark Victory. I can't, however, provide any reasons why one *ought* to read the All-Star book - at least if you don't like reading pulp-era Batman stories (as in the original story). ***** Indeed, I believe that Johns was one of the architects of the darkening of the DCU. I think his Mirror Master who did coke on a mirror, right? How can he give us a sunshine version of DCU? / Domu is excellent. I believe that is the visuals superhero comics should strive for.
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Robin arrives tearing through a drum membrane. Totally unrealistic and very lame.
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read: those are visuals
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For those who haven't read it: Domu is the tale of an outright war between to immensely powerful psychics living in one of Japan's (in)famous 'city-tenement' buidlings. One is a little girl of somewhere between 8 and 12 years old. The other is an old man with the mind of a child. TRULY powerful stuff. if you haven't read it do yourself a favor and do so.
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Sep 23, 2005 12:31:56 PM CDT
"compared with some of the other TBs around here, this one looks
by darth kal-el
thanks for starting my day with a smile!
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erik larsen's column over at CBR was a pretty interesting read. check it out:
http://tinyurl.com/9t9qd -
domu sounds very cool indeed! thanks for the breakdown. is it in black and white?and is it digest format?ill have to see if i can track it down
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Sep 23, 2005 12:35:22 PM CDT
Geoff Johns & Alternatives to ALL-STAR BATMAN & ROBIN THE RUN-ON
by spyguy
Gus, I agree that Geoff Johns has contributed his fair share of the darkening the DCU, but Johns is also capable of brightening it just as easily. Check out the early Howard Porter issues of THE FLASH or GREEN LANTERN: REBIRTH for great examples. If nothing else, cleaning up the Hal Jordan "Emerald Twilight" fiasco alone should give Johns brownie points. And yes, BATMAN: DARK VICTORY is a far superior alternative to ASBARTBW, along with BATMAN: YEAR THREE which inexplicably keeps getting overlooked for a trade paperback collection. Jeph Loeb and Marv Wolfman managed to update DETECTIVE #38 just fine without pissing all over the material the way Frank Miller has.
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The pacing, the eeriness, the stucture, the art, and the story were top notch. There's even a page written by Millar about meeting and becoming friends w/ Mr. Will Eisner. Great buy. I only wish it was in B&W. I hear there's a variant like that.
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Sep 23, 2005 1:13:11 PM CDT
sidedshow, if this is one of the dumbest talkbacks you've re
by the heathen
you haven't been here in a loooong time (but I know that's not true either) my friend. Just check out the Aquaf@g tb consisting of people posting what # there post is, or for a fun read look up Harry's PSP UMD movie reviews. Now that was a dumb tb. BTW that Nintendo Revolution controller is retarded. Like, Robin the Boy Wonder retarded. *** http://tinyurl.com/72e87 *** Hope that brings out the Nintendo fanboys. : )
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darkhorse.com/profile/profile.php?sku=11-161 ***** It's in what I 'd call semi-digest format. Bigger than Runaways, but smaller than any regular tpb. ***** Spyguy: I 'll check out Johns's work there. Can you remind me what are his recent GL works? I think he updated GL in GL: Rebirth and then GL Corps: Recharge. Has he done anything else, GL-related? And I know that Dave Gibbons collaborated with him on GL. Which series was it? Doing what?
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It's about a Cofederate soldier who goes home after the war, finds out his old life has gone to shit, tracks down his missing wife and then the two of them go on a killing spree that makes Bonnie and Clyde look like Rachel and Ross. The art's gonna be killer cuz it's by Marcello Frusin, who worked with Azzarello on his HELLBLAZER run.
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Johns did REBIRTH, then moved on to the ongoing series which has been pretty good stuff. It's only around four issues in, so you might be able to track the issues down. Dave Gibbons is the one who's going to write GL CORPS: RECHARGE, which I believe has already been bumped from mini to ongoing. Don't remember who's doing the art, though. Oh, and of course, Gibbons is the one writing RANN/THANAGAR WAR, too.
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Sep 23, 2005 1:27:59 PM CDT
Dave_F, don't worry about LOST spoilers PLEASE READ (watch o
by the heathen
The nanites thing was just SPECULATION that continued from last season into this that may or may not be true. But about the shit stain coloring of The Pulse, it is gorram awful. Looks like the pipes in the walls burst w/ piss and shit soaking into the plaster, floors, even peoples faces!!! The Luke Cage bit was okay, but when I thought about it again it was only three pages and it reminded me too much of The Incredibles cosume scene, but only not as good. Yes, it be true. *** sorry about the name mispell sideshow : )
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Heathen, you lousy swine, you... I think it may prove to be very functional for whatever games revolution will have, and thus more cool than it now seems. OT: have you seen the new Sonic? Sweet zombie Jesus! Too bad, it won't support (I suppose) 2-player co-op mode like the all-time classic Sonic 3 w. Sonic & Knuckles. *** http://tinyurl.com/aempf *** http://tinyurl.com/d2aaj
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Will focus mainly on Kyle Rayner (so he won't die in IC!!!), Kilowog, and Guy Gardner training new recruits and running around in the cosmos.
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It's motion controlled. Can you imagine giving people a remote and having them swinging it all around? Ah, I dunno, to be honest, I'm not all that impressed w/ any of the next gen stuff as of yet. I'm too broke, that's always a good one as well.
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You've obviously paid more attention than I have and you have made me want to go back and read all of those issues again. I have a question though: What does the Joker have to do w/ any of this? Rucka said stay tuned to VU or something like that. Your theory Ms, Thalya?
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I'll reserve my full judgement for when i play w/ it. Until then it is only as perfect as say the idea of Frank Miller and Jim Lee doing a Batman comic together. Sounds fantastic doesn't it? This remote just isn't going to do it I'm guessing. Maybe in Japan, but probably not here, but like i said, "we'll see."
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It's funny all the things you can notice and the conspiracy theories you can come up with when you have a crush (and for goodness sakes, it's ok to say I'm a weirdo already), though in this case I think it's actually a bit more than half-baked. It'll still probably be Luthor in the end though, and we haven't seen Alexander Luthor show up, but after #5 who knows what'll happen? As for Joker, I dunno, I think they said to keep watching in general, even if it was prompted by a VU question. Joker doesn't seem to fit into the VU paradigm right now and my personal guess is that the current Red Hood will become the new Mr. J. That, and Batman will die (and briefly be the host of the Spectre - and yes, I'll say it first - "Are you RETARDED or something? Who the hell do you THINK I am? I
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Sep 23, 2005 2:46:07 PM CDT
Guys, why don't we channel our creativity and zest towards t
by gus nukem
Cap? Ultimate Loki? How? Why? These are the current events and we have foolishly ignored them.
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Sep 23, 2005 2:50:22 PM CDT
"my personal guess is that the current Red Hood will become the
by gus nukem
There was a spoiler on LITG a few weeks back about how during the '52' event Batman will be committed in Arkham Asylum, while Nightwing is Batman. Your hypothesis could work though.
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Check it out Vale, it's not an interview but it's a really in depth look at characters aging in comics. Good stuff. blackthought, you are drunk aren't you? *** On a side note, I've been listening to the background music on the Serenity website and I'm really digging it. Good sounding score and I just realized that I can't freakin wait until next friday!!! I've tried to keep cool, but now I'm real anxious. Please no spoilers about the movie. I've managed to not even read one of the fan reviews.
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This really does read like a NAMBLA meeting when compared to some of the crap you find in this site. Ok so i'm pretty sure Loveless is gonna rock, not only cause it's a western created by Azzarello, but man...does Marcelo Frusin rule! Anyone here share my love of Azz' Hellblazer run? Anyone?! Anyone here share my love of Savage Dragon now that i'm at it? Kirkman wrote a nice column about the Dragon...go find it.
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Sep 23, 2005 3:04:34 PM CDT
"I'm a weirdo already" and I belong to a group called The Al
by the heathen
I think you'll fit in quite fine girl
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That rumor's been widely circulated around the DC boards. Great story potential, but what if it's a red herring? I mean, you circulate something like that, it puts people at ease thinking Batman's 'safe' and will survive the Crisis, which is the perfect setup to pull the rug out from under people.
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All-Star Batman and Robin is just plain awful. Even if it is "from the view of Robin" thing. It is still a whole new continuity (the flying Graysons getting capped from a sniper). Miller has gone off on a tagent lately with writing everyone as if they just came out of a bikerbar on saturday night, ready to scalp anyone who touches their bike. This is Batman as if played by Andrew "Dice" Clay.
God help us. -
what about Morrison and Kubert working on Detective next year? Do you think they would have such a good team do something w/ a different Batman? Actually that kinda makes sense, but what if Batman dies and becomes the Spectre, then has a Batman: Rebirth like Hal did, but then he still does the Arkham time? That way he dies and is reborn and we still have the potential for a good story and hopefully a Bruce Wayne with a good personality. My head hurts
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But even for you guys.. I mean, if I was to parallel you guys more closely I'd more likely be salivating to the likes of Roy Harper or Sanderson Hawkins or Floyd Lawton, but.. eh, I suppose if Alba's derriere gets posted, then fanfic could be fair game too.. But anyway, you're right on all counts, and don't forget Lady Quark, either. Now all that's left is Earth-2 Superman.
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..perhaps someone new under the cowl would be a plus so that people won't complain if he does something like New X-Men because he won't be tinkering with an established character in his established role.
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Sep 23, 2005 3:28:32 PM CDT
Would (or is) the re-emergence of these multiple Earth character
by the heathen
I mean, wasn't the original Crisis' purpose to make things easier to follow by trimming the fat. I had a dreadful thought the other day that I've been really enjoying all of the Countdown Minis, but I suddenly got a little worried about the actual Infinite Crisis itself being so connected to the original. That said, I do have faith in Johns and w/ the added involvement of Morrison I hope I'm just having nervous thoughts. After HoM (even though it's officially not over) can you blame me? Oh, and of course fanfic is fair game. El Vale has written some cool stuff that's original and also some Batman and JLA stuff. btw, where our those links Vale?
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Sep 23, 2005 3:33:57 PM CDT
Gotta Look At This Weird New Miller / Lee Batman Thang And...
by zombiesolutions
yeah, it's craptastic. BUT, the reason why it's craptastic is because Jim Lee's rigid, overly rendered, almost mechanical drawings don't fit a parody very well. it would have been alot funnier with a looser comics artist. needless to say, i didn't buy it. but i did buy a TON of other comics. i need to go to the store more often.
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Sep 23, 2005 3:34:51 PM CDT
Yeah, that's why I thought that it would make sense after th
by the heathen
A lot of people will be more inclined to give it a try w/ that creative team. I'd like for the fill in Batman to be Dick though. 52 takes place in-between the monthly titles one-year later jump doesn't it? So, if Bruce is alive and out of Arkham maybe it will be the Batman we know and WANT to love.
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Does DC lack...brains? "We seriously have no idea how NOT to write Batman like a dick...so let's just kill him and put another Dick in the costume :D" I hope not. And i don't even read any Batman books.
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Sep 23, 2005 3:48:08 PM CDT
"let's just kill him and put another Dick in the costume"
by the heathen
you slay me Vale. : ) They did break his back and put another guy in the Batsuit for a while, so anything is possible. And remember, dead isn't dead for long in comics.
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i don't think they ever made an animated version, but i love action one would be great too. this would be a way to breath life back into j-horror.
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Sep 23, 2005 3:53:23 PM CDT
I agree about the disparity between art and story on ALL-STAR, Z
by dave_f
Which I mentioned in my review. I was trying to make it my central, novel contribution to the critical drubbing the book is getting in most parts, but most folks aren't picking up on it. Ah well! ******* DOMU, eh? Haven't read yet, being far more of a manga "dabbler" than people maybe think, but I'll definitely check 'er out now. ******* Oh yeah, and the other thing I was hoping to bring to the table with my ALL-STAR review was the M.A.S.K. bit. Did y'all follow the link I provided to the old commercial? Tell me you followed the link!
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..just that, they're just reopening it like a drawstring bag because when they closed it the first time, some things like Power Girl got caught in the closure. They're going to reopen some things to work them through and make things more satisfactory, plus trim more fat. Things will get shaken up with the intention that they'll settle better and not get caught in the closure this time, then it'll close. The suggestions in the latest solicits about how the heroes will be facing situations they've always dreamed about seems to me like a setup where characters that just aren't working/fitting in the Universe will be able to go where they do work, and may never be seen again for 20 years. Those that do decide to stay but are having problems will be given an impetus to fix things. Plus I read an article recently about Marv Wolfman doing the Infinite Crisis Secret Files and supposedly he's going to tie together alot of continuity wrecks and major 'crises' ever since the big one. And, Heathen, who else but Dick? Interesting how he's not really Nightwing anymore..
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should we start counting our posts now? JK, my work computer wouldn't let me follow the link Dave, WindowsMedia is dreadful sometimes. : (
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I think it comes out in February. It could work if done properly. Maybe the Wildstorm universe will take some of the DC characters that aren't working because it seems like they're revamping a lot of things over there in the next year. Yes, interesting how he isn't Nightwing anymore. Can anyone tell me what's going on in his title book. I've read what's happened w/ him through issues of The Outsiders, Return Of Donna Troy 1-2, and just read the recent Birds Of Prey (which I really enjoyed).
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Amazing how Thalya appears to be a bigger geek than i am. I love this place! Thalya, don't you hate that term "fan fiction"?
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You'll never find me disagreeing with the assessment that Bendis is decompressed/windy/self-indulgent, but when he's applying his "mood piece" approach to original creation Jessica Jones, it's a style I can enjoy. She's always been at about providing an everyman POV on the Marvel U, so it's kind of her "thing" to slow down to enjoy the scenery. And that's why I'd probably enjoy a comic of Bendis doing *only* character vignettes without even the pretense of story. But if PULSE is to survive in the marketplace, it really needs to find a structure ala the mysteries in ALIAS. ******* Got no defense on the color issues. Why you suppose they did that? ******* About the Cage costume scene - I didn't think of INCREDIBLES so much as a similar scene in John Ostrander's HAWKWORLD from the early '90s. Hawkman and Hawkgirl have been having all this heavy shit go down for several issues - big, life-changing stuff - and so they're just slack-jawed when their earth liaison takes them aside to discuss new costumes with this fashion show of different looks paraded in front of 'em - Dark Hawkman/Accessory-laden Hawkman/Bright 'n' Shiny Hawkman, etc. Eventually, Hawkman finds his voice and says something like, "You've got to be kidding," and the liaison tells him, "Actually...yes." Turns out it was a staged bit to break up the Hawk's funk and everyone has a good laugh and, well, basically it works. Cool scene. ****** With the ALIAS sequence, I think it was just meant to be a laid-back, lightweight moment so everyone would be caught offguard when Jessica's water broke (and it's about damn time! How long's she been "expecting"? Two years?!). But I loved the scene. Luke's fixed expression, Bendis remembering that the Wasp is supposed to be a fashionista, Carol and Jessica giggling at the whole thing...definitely worked for me. On the other hand, the I'm not so sure about the name of Wasp's fashion agency. Van Dyne Designs? Well *that* sounds okay, but as written with the logo, it's VD Designs! The hell?!
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and yes dave the link was awesome.i used to have every one of those godamn toys. heathen next friday is going to be great! hopefully the movie will generate more interest so the serious will(hopefully) come back. theres no place i can be since i found serenity.
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what am i retarded?
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Funny thing about that latest NEW AVENGERS: not only was Emma's dialogue very off, but I kept wondering to myself: why is an X-Man the major character in an Avengers book anyway?! I think in Bendis's mind, though, any character he touches becomes part of the Bendis-verse, and since all his books take place in the Bendis-verse, he can mix and match as he pleases. It's pretty bad in AVENGERS, though. He already had Doc Strange save the group's bacon at the end of the old series, and now, even as the new group's establishing itself, an X-babe gets the spotlight. And didn't S.H.I.E.L.D. ultimately resolve a lot of stuff in that first NEW AVENGERS arc? Poor Cap. I expect Ben Urich to be bailing his ass out next. ****** And by the, Emma did have a better line than, "Yes, it be true." I can't quote it verbatim, but it's the part where she's telling Sentry his memories are about to come back, and she likens the experience to "taking a big dump." Folks, I can't make this kind of stuff up!
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Sep 23, 2005 5:02:09 PM CDT
VD Designs (not for Dave, but the rest of the post is) : )
by the heathen
I can see your point of view and respect your opinion. I personally haven't read a lot of Alias and my overall problem with The Pulse is exactly what you said about having a defintive structure. It varies so drastically from issue to issue over the course of a couple of months that I have a hard time w/ this book "sometimes." Other times I really enjoy it. The coloring is what ultimately set me off on this particular issue. Yes, it be true (anyone else read that line in NA yet?) It made me feel dirty and I was supposed to be thinking how cute babies and Franklin Richards are, not that they should all take a bath and due some spring cleaning of the Baxter Building. That Hawkworld scene sounds good. Oh, and Wolverine on the cover is pretty creepy too. I also can't wait for the damn Ronin character to FINALLY appear somwhere besides a freakin cover!!! The hell indeed!
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Just wanted to say I think Lukecash was onto something in that post. I can't say that there's a law as to how Batman is supposed to be portrayed, and certainly the icons are ultimately resilient to being manhandled, but nearly every incarnation of Batman ever has been a pretty smooth operator (cue Sade tunes). Either he's had a gadget for all occasions or he's always magically where he best needs to be to scare crooks or he's a master-planner who forsees all. But Batman the All-Star anarchist? It just doesn't seem to fit. Even if we accept that the All-Star claims of presenting iconic versions of these characters is pure hype, there's decades of history it's working against. Right, so okay, so it's Frank's point? Almost certainly. I just wonder if anyone wants such a beast. Other superheroes are anarchic - your Wolverines, your Guy Gardners, even Wally West in his less mature moments - but Batman? Does that seem cool to anyone to have him so nutso? I wasn't as in love with BATMAN BEGINS as most, but I absolutely was a fan of the depiction of Batman as a sane individual...within the strange world in which he resides. I actually think that's a key aspect to his character. I think it was John Byrne who noted that Batman might actually be saner than the rest of us -- he gets to go out and beat up crooks at night to vent *his* frustrations! The one thing Miller's doing that I like, and that he actually has in common with BATMAN BEGINS, is presenting a Batman who enjoys what he's doing. That's something else I like, a sort of throwback to the Dick Sprang era of the grinning Batman. But in the movie, it was the grin of an adventurer who knows his trade (Brosnan distinctly brought this to Bond), in the comic it's the grin of a madman. Just doesn't seem to fit for ANY incarnation of Batman.
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This ASTONISHING X-MEN is like unto a vile albatross around my neck. Take it off my hands!
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Sep 23, 2005 5:13:06 PM CDT
I guess you did read it Dave! And no, you can't make this B
by the heathen
It really is that crazy! I think she told Sentry that all of his memories are going to come pouring in and that it will feel like the biggest dump he'd ever taken. Nice, real subtle too. *** Kal-El *slap* of course your'e retarded you little snot *psssshh* now go back to sleep! JK of course. : ) Dude, go check out the movie theme at their website. It sounds traditional at first listen, but then you hear that country-esque banjo/fiddle type stuff layed in their very nice and then you ad the military type drums and, and, and I CAN"T WAIT!!!
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Vale, this question has absolutely been on my mind of late, somewhat amusingly so. Poor Jim Lee! I might not love his art, but by all accounts he's a great guy, so can you imagine him having to put this brave face on drawing two of the *worst* superhero stories of the last few years (ALL-STAR BATS and Azzarello's SUPERMAN)? It pains me just to imagine it. I see him finishing these scripts, looking up with a single tear running down his face, and then breaking out that classic ARRESTED DEVELOPMENT line: "I've made a terrible mistake." Jim Lee as Michael Bluth? I think we all know it to be true.
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couldn't put it better myself, and that's where the ultimate line is drawn isn't it? I read a review at Newsarama saying try to imagine Adam West saying those lines and it will become funny (in a bizzare parody kind of way) but when you think of Kevin Conroy saying those lines, it just freaks you out. Or at least that's my opinion.
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Sep 23, 2005 5:22:20 PM CDT
you know it's bad if people here are feeling bad for Jim Lee
by the heathen
What next, sympathy for Liefeld?
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I'll be back later. Might go check out Corpse Bride or Flight Plan.
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Man, is THAT going to be a strange beast. For all Morrison's talents, can the man write a mystery/crime story? Can he curtail the larger-than-life hooha for street-level adventure? Or will he even try? Maybe Batman's gonna be bustin' out his JLA: CLASSIFIED UFO. I do think it'd be bizarrely interesting to see one of the core Batman titles overtly acknowledge that this is the same Batman who does all the world-saving stuff with the JLA. Figure all the JLA tech could solve most straight-up Gotham crimes in a matter of hours, and it'd be hilarious to see Bats calling in the likes of Wonder Woman or Green Lantern to help him quash a gang war with minimal bloodshed. That's the kind of thing I can see Morrison doing. Have there been any official hints or leaks?
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Mark Waid just gave it a hip sounding name 'Hypertime'. Hypertime is where all of the 'Kingdom' books (sequels of sorts to Kingdom Come-which remains one of the most powerful thesis on super heroes to this day-IMHO)took place. Also, the purpose of Zero Hour was to restart time from the beginning, working out the anomalies left over from the 1st Crisis. What we are most likely going to be given is simply another crisis (which, let's face it the 1st time around it kicked all kinds of rectal tissue-so I'm ready for the next one).
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I've been wondering that too. Hush is looking better and better. I like Jim's art and I'll probably go back and pick up Superman and ASB&R in trade format only because of the saving grace of Jim's linework.
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Sep 23, 2005 5:40:12 PM CDT
Yeah, I think an *actual* throwback to CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS
by dave_f
Because a wholesale relaunch really does make for a clean slate, and it's the only way I can really see the DCU changing in the way Waid described. Me, I could never plod my way through reading CRISIS ON INFINITE EARTHS (Seriously. Causes physical pain.), but the after-effects of it are what distinctly got me into DC Comics: Byrne's SUPERMAN, Perez's WONDER WOMAN, Baron's FLASH...now those were some slick relaunches. I think WONDER WOMAN fared the best, with maybe five years of just really damn good stories. SUPERMAN and FLASH sort of petered out on momentum within three years. But the groundwork was all strong, so loss of momentum wasn't a big thing -- just the natural order of corporate superhero comics changing teams.
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But only 'cause I'm not reading any of the books anyway ;)
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im not sure how much postage would be to columbia but as a fellow south american id like to pitch in and help. do u have a paypal account? ill donate for postage
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some south american i turned out to be
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Sep 23, 2005 5:55:49 PM CDT
heathen check out the serenity poem writing contest. an example
by darth kal-el
Kaylee you are so pretty
From head to toe, including titties
I want to kiss your sweet mouth
then kiss your neck, breasts and further south
Twixt your nethers, time I would selflessly spend
pleasing you over and over again
Please fix my heart like a worn out g-line
I will be yours if you will be mine
I cant make this stuff up either! -
Just how bad was Azzarello's Superman run? And AGAIN I ASK: Anyone share my love of Azz' Hellblazer? Answer me!
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That's the best poem EVER!
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It was delightfully disgusting, especially with Corben's art making all the characters look skin does under harsh bathroom lighting - every crack, every pore, every bit of ugliness...exposed! Corben's great at that stuff. Ending left me a little disappointed, though, and without Corben continuing on the book, I wasn't in a "Hellblazer" enough mood to stick with the book. Figure I'll backtrack one'a these days.
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Sep 23, 2005 6:04:50 PM CDT
i love azz but missed the hellblazer run-ill have to track it d
by darth kal-el
that poem was the shit! those people actually won tickets to a sceening in austin with the actresses that play kaylee and river.i would love to meet those women! give me 3 an a half minutes. maybe even fo'.she be wantin to marry a nigga
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Sounds like a great gay firefighter porno does it not? I loved Corben's storyline but it got better (to me) as Frusin took over and Azz started exploring some seriously disturbing shit...the Highwater Neo Nazi story being quite scary to mine eyes.
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He's not exactly known as a purist. It's not like he's a guy with a vision, just a lot of business savvy. If you look at his work, WILDC.A.T.s, etc, and his artistic style, story and character aren't a big deal to him. He's a poster artist. And he was part of that Image crowd that took the alleged violence from the revolutionary comics of the '80s like Miller's (I say alleged because DKR wasn't as violent as most people remember it as being and certainly didn't share the mindless "golly-gee" ultra-violence of some of the early Image titles). So he probably thinks Miller can do no wrong. Bottom line (and there's nothing really wrong with this morally, it just can make for crappy comics sometimes) he likes his paycheck. Same with Miller. Total sellout stuff. I'm all for selling out, but you still need to do good work.
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yo, Dave_F, that was great! i remember those toys. i loved the cartoon when i was a kid too. mostly because it confirmed what i always knew in my heart was true -- a car really can turn into a plane if you just open the doors up and are going fast enough. sweet.
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Sorry if I offended, I was including myself. it's just...why the need to delve into why a comic book sucks? Can't it be as simple as the art is bad and the writing is bad? People say this team looks good on paper. Really? Two artists who are decades past their creative apex, whose styles don't fit together at all? The only way that looks good on paper is to Time Warner's shareholders. I'm guessing that, as Frank knew they were basically printing money anyway, he decided to have a little fun with it, to make it interesting to him. And he basically hammered it out during coffee breaks while working on his film projects. *** There, that's me guessing why the comic is no good. See what I mean by "dumb"?
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You got to post a review. I'm guessing it will easily coax 600-800 words out of you. And it's a book that's underappreciated (except by the smart folks in this dumb talkback, apparently), so it's good to spread the gospel. *** Unless you hate it, then don't write anything.
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first, thank god finals are done...and oh my god...i was rather drunk or high or in another dimension or multiverse getting your post mixed up there thayla...forgives please...just wanted to say you put an amazing amount of disecting into the whole crisis there...let's see darth...i forgive you messing up mine and vale's country's name there...your still a good south american though due to being a cog smooch...i'm having delusions of grander that we should officialize ourselves like the JLA and sweep the world of the scum that reside in it *coughliefeldcough*...or we could just let batman do it...cuz we are all retarted ya know.
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we definitely need to officialize. and we need a cool ass base like the watchtower.
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Sep 23, 2005 8:02:58 PM CDT
Hypertime & Thalya - re: solicitations and DC hero relocations
by gus nukem
Hypertime is actually a concept of Morrison. Waid just gave it that name. From GM's interview at SBCBs ( http://tinyurl.com/b6vnv ) : Offenberger: Is the All-Star line itself a separate part of Hyper-time?
Morrison: It could be regarded as that if you like. All-Star is a Hypertime Line which went underground for 20 years and is now coming back into the light.
'Hypertime' was the name Mark Waid gave to a concept of cosmic geometry I'd come up with, one bleary night in San Diego - given that the DCU has a Time LINE, the idea started as a consideration of what might exist beyond the Time Line, on the Time PLANE, or even in the mysterious Time CUBE . The theory allowed every comic story you ever read to be part of a larger-scale mega-continuity, which also includes other comic book 'universes' as well as the 'real world' we live in and dimensions beyond our own. It was also about how the world of fiction relates literally and geometrically to the world of 'reality'. Some of its basic features have even been echoed in current cosmological ideas emerging from the field of superstring research and M-Theory. Skip the rest of this answer if you can't be bothered with crazy talk.
We all live in Hypertime - in our 3-Dimensional level of Hypertime, which can be seen as CUBE TIME in relation to the DCU's LINE TIME, we can pick up comics and leaf through them, flipping in any direction - 'time traveling' back and forward through the 'continuity' like some new Doctor Who! I have a suspicion, based upon experience, that in HYPERCUBE TIME, there exist intelligences who stand in relation to our 3-D universe as we stand in relation to the 2-D universe of our comic book, film or TV heroes and who can leaf through our lives and times with the same ease we can leaf through Superman -
Heathen, Dick's no longer really Nightwing. He's got red instead of blue on his costume, is working for Deathstroke now and training Ravager, and is apparently headed towards Luthor's Society. I wouldn't know any more, the most recent ish was my first for the series. *** El Vale, I wouldn't go so far as to say I hate the term, just the perjorative nature with which people use it, though at the same time there are some writers who need some serious self-awareness about how their stuff reads. As it is, my real name actually came from Star Trek fanfic my mom wrote back in middle school, using the Greek alphabet no less so others wouldn't know what she was writing about! And if I appear to be a bigger geek, it's because I spent at least a year just learning what I could before I finally took the plunge and started getting current comics. I figured I should do it right if I wanted to play with the big boys. *** Psy, they already officially announced that Hypertime's dead. Waid even said so, I was at the panel where he said it. Not to mention it sounds like they're going to retcon it with the IC Secret Files. And yes, Kingdom Come kicks serious ass. It was one of the very first TPBs I picked up and it's still the best. *** blackthought: *blush* s'ok. Thank you. Though I think even then half of it I was coming up with on the fly, though I guess enough stuck, huh? And even then, you should've seen me in my heyday on the Buffy TBs. I majored in Restless dissection and minored in Angel vs. Spike.
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Check the December solicits. Infinite Crisis #3: War is brought home as Wonder Woman leads the Amazons in a struggle to maintain their control of Paradise Island in the face of a full-on OMAC onslaught
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I don't see them establishing a multiverse @ DC again but a look around the current universe does give you a feeling of deja vu. Captain Comet, the Omega Men, Adam Strange, Barry Allen in the Flash, Mera in Aquaman, Dick Grayson in a red costume, the original Outsiders, the Psycho Pirate, Pariah, Englehart and Rogers doing a Batman and the Joker taken straight from the classic Laughing Fish storyline of the 1970's. You don't think that DC would have the balls to wipe out the last 20 years of continuity do you? Reboots of Robin, The Flash and Batgirl with Dick Grayson, Barry Allen & Barbara Gordon? A new series featuring a teenage Clark Kent as Superboy? Morrison and Kubert doing a totally different Batman than the one we are used to. One that is not a complete asshole and without the full on entourage.
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Dave is right on. That "taking a big dump" comment was the single most out of character moment Emma Frost has had, including her being younger now than when she first appeared 20 years ago. The worst thing about it is that Bendis' strength is his dialogue. And Azzarello/Corbin's "Hard Time" story is my #1 all time favorite Hellblazer, and I have read over 100 issues of that book.
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sweet...i made someone blush...i don't know how to deal with these powers...what would batman do? anyway still sorry about the mix up, i was totally out of it...not drunkeness though...finals...i love finals. anyway gus, we do need a watchtower...we need powers...we need villains...and above all else...perhaps a jessica alba or two...you know...for team morale...ahem.
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..what would Alfred do?
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I spent the better part of the afternoon rummaging through the 80s TV section. The only thing missing was Michael Ian Black and Donal Logue providing commentary while the Footloose Soundtrack played in the background. The networks really need to look into reviving the "super-powered vehicle" genre. If millions of people will tune in to watch Peterman prance around a dance floor, surely we can find a place for a super high-tech car, helicopter, motorcycle, etc. Of course, I know how some of you feel about the idea of a high-tech car that could, say...fly. But rest assured, you'd check it out, so long as Batman wasn't at the controls. Perhaps Hasselhoff, Tom Selleck, or Ted McGinley, but not Batman, no way.
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but gus i guess you and i could be the LAST TWINS or something.
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But If anyone is still reading this 4 days after this thred was posted, YOU Know that with 2 diffrent hurracanes (NO not the Penthouse comiX Superhero, THought i wouldn't mid it if that comic made a comeback. I Think i have the whole run but i'm not sure) Smacken around the economey, money is going to be tight for everyone! So why waste it on Crappy BOOKS!!! Hey i Love the X-Men but i'll do without for 3 months If that will make Marvel get's it's head out of it's movie Obsesed ASS to make a decent if not great book!!!
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Sep 24, 2005 12:23:57 AM CDT
I Think Bendis, As All Good Hearted Writers Do, Want To Be Writ
by buzz maverik
AVENGERS with Emma Frost popping up and Dr. Strange saving the team? That's the Defenders, bay-bee! The Defenders is a team in which any Marvel character on hand can be a member and can leave at anytime including during a battle(as the Hulk did once when everyone else was captured by Attuma: "Hulk can't believe puny friends lost to fish men! Hulk is going now."). I'd love to read DEFENDERS with Bendis dialoge. "Are you, uh, the, er, the Hulk?" "Grrr." "Because I can see that you're freakin' huge." "Hulk is Hulk." "And green and you're not on a can of, uh, peas." "Human is stupid." "And mono-syllabic. Uh, I also notice the purple pants." "Hulk likes beans." "Because I know that the Hulk always wears purple pants..." "Hulk hates puny Bendis-speak." "...and is huge and mono-syllabic and green..." "Hulk keeps telling Bald One there are more people who talk like Hulk than Bald One's characters in real life."
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I meant "dialogue".
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...that Adam West Batman episode in which both Batman and Robin were captured so Alfred had to whip out his...and i quote, "Emergency Batsuit" and save the day? Cause that's what Alfred would do, fuckers!!!
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Ain't no traitors on the Ultimates, foo'. It's all Loki. LOKI! Loki be fuckinwitchoo. Oh, and "Including Titties" is now the new "Are You Retarded Or Something." It's official.
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but 'including titties' is mighty fine as an heir to the throne.****'Cause that's what Alfred would do, fuckers!!!' i already ordered my WWAD bracelet cuz seriously,"emergency batsuit"!!?? that is exacty what da fug alfred would do!!***"Perhaps Hasselhoff, Tom Selleck, or Ted McGinley, but not Batman, no way."heywood hit it right on the head.
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If that is your real name, it should be: theta alpha lamda epsilon yiota alpha; I don't see why you used a 'y', instead of an 'ei'. Ha ha ha ha. It's all greek to me (as am I).
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Actually it's 'Kathleen' (though I don't go by that). Mom's got an Irish Catholic thing going on. Thalya's just my alter ego in all things and a quasi-goddess character of mine I like to torment. And y'know.. Thalya is close to Talia... What would Batman do, again?
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i read the first half before running out the door to the dentist this morning. i like it! the frame layout (most have 9 to a page right? a 3x3 grid sort of thing?) is really great for dialouge heavy work. reminiscent of LOVE AND ROCKETS and STRAY BULLETS (and others). now what is this "decompression" style everyone keeps talking about? are you referring to minimalism? just curious. so far it seems rather effective.
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what would batman do?
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whattaya think, you goddamn retards! he's the Batman! he would hang out with a 10 year old boy and kill cops in his flying car, of course! then he'd drive to old town and get into a tussle with a bunch of ninja hookers. i mean, what else? he's the f@#king BATMAN!!! the muthaph@cking DARK KNIGHT!!! ARRRRGGHH!!! AIEEEE!!! SCREECH!!!! BANG!!! OH GOD, NO!!! HELP!!!
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up to Tec 38, Batman hangs out with a 10-yr old boy. He kills people, Robin kills people, or they let other criminals kill criminals while they photograph it as evidence. They use much worse and cornier lines than whatever you 've read in the All-Star book. Not that I 'm apologizing to you on behalf of Miller. ***** Hh... mine's Bruce ... sorry about that - it's closer to Constantine - as in kappa omega ni sigma taf alpha ni taf yiota ni omikron sigma. Nice ..er.. to meet you.
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Nick Fury
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which is your favorite incarnation/rendition of: a.Batman and b.Bruce Wayne - be more specific on eras & creators if you can.
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and Batman drives a bright red car and occasionally drops Dick (not in costume) to do some task he assigned him.
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Awesome poem Kal-El "including titties." Do you think Jewel knows what they wrote? It could either be hugely uncomfortable for the both of them, or it could turn into a geek fantasy. *** Thalya. Much respect for your approach of learning what you could before jumping in. I did the same thing sorta. Cool. Thanks for the Nightwing info. But if he's doing that, then when did he meet w/ Babs in Birds of Prey #86? I may have to check into Nightwing. I've always liked his character, but never picked up his book. You are absolutley right about the similarity in panels from Crisis (which I just read recently) and the cover to JSA; Class #3. I think you should be the Calculator/Oracle/Batwoman of the Cog $mooches! *** Vale, Azz's Superman run still confuses me. I don't think he even knows what the hell happened. It was bad. And you know in issue 4 or 5 of All Star that Alfred is going to pull out his emergency bat-suit and save Vicki Vale. That would be funny if I didn't think that there was a possiblity of it happening. Cause that's what Alfred would do fuckers!!! *** blackthought and Gus. You two are defintely the LAST TWINS. blackthought, you have the power to make people blush and Gus, your Greek, so think of something God-like right? I don't know about the rest of our powers, nor a location for a base? *** Buzz, that Bendis speak post was hilarious bay-bee! Well done, well, er, you know, thanks. *** I ended up seeing Flightplan btw (majority vote just beat out Corpse Bride dammit) and it was okay until the last 20 minutes and then I realized what a turd it was. Take my love, take my land.
Take me where I cannot stand.
I don't care, I'm still free.
You can't take the sky from me .
Take me out to the black.
Tell them I ain't comin' back.
Burn the land and boil the sea.
You can't take the sky from me.
There's no place I can be.
Since I found Serenity.
But you can't take the sky from me... *** yeah, I can't wait.
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I am off to see Crispin Glover's 'What is it?'. He will be present. I 'll judge if he could be the Ace of Knaves. Should I ask him? Later.
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i'm going to pay some bills *yay* and get ready to watch the Gators kick Kentucky's ass. *yay* (sincere this time) Later cogs.
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So that's what they're calling them nowadays... I take it they're made of latex? *** Gus: Nice to meet you too. With the name though, that doesn't make you a John, does it? *** Heathen: Thanks. :) No clue on Nightwing, though that bit of continuity seems like the least of the universe's problems what with the disparity of Batman between OMAC and JLA, and then there's Hawkman.. hehe..Lady Calculator sounds about right, actually..
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if we are to organize and what not...i think it'd be prudent if we all have emergency batsuits.
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they actually won tickets to a screening that jewel and summer where going to be at and the contest states they may have to read the poems outloud to the crowd!id pay just to see that!especially the 'including titties' poem! comedy gold!heathen u made me sing along wiht your post you gorram cog smooch!!!****lady calculator has a nice ring to it thalya.oh and im still waiting for details on the buffy hot pocket thing. and where there emergency batsuits involved?!!****if alfred was my butler id make him wash my jeep cuz thats what alfred would do fuckers!!
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Well, as SleazyG mentioned last TB, he started a tradition where we all would make bets, if we were so daring, on what would happen next on BtVS, plot threads, character developments and all. I made a wager on two things I can't remember because it was so long ago. But anyway, I wound up having to eat two or three of those gastronomical annihilators (which can literally annihilate your digetive system for awhile, plus spontaneously combust in the toaster oven! They should be handled with the utmost care). No emergency batsuits were involved, but my hamster at the time, Buffy, wanted in on the action.
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I asked him: Will you be playing the Joker on the next Batman film? He replied that he found the role very interesting and would be definitely up for it, but ultimately it's up to the director and the screenwriter to decide to whom they will give the role; ultimately he doesn't know if he will be cast or not and can't make any final statements. I neglected to ask whether he was approached for the part. **** His film, What is it?, is the closest thing I 've ever experienced and the only film I know (which is) most resembling the film the Joker makes and shows to Jim Gordon in the Killing Joke. It was completely unique and a surprise to me. Foolishly, I was nervous about asking him and that made under-appreciate the film. Wow. As for Mr. Glover, he had excellent manners, he was suave, very kind and charming. He wore a suit and looked just like I suppose Bruce Wayne would be in the 1940s (check out Eddie Campbell's 'The Order of the Beasts' for that). All in all, I was very fortunate to see him in person, attend a Q&A by him and ask a few questions myself. More on that tomorrow.
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where was the screening at?
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In Athens. At the cinema Danaos II, as part of the 2005 Athens film festival.
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Sep 24, 2005 10:10:06 PM CDT
These "emergency Bat-suits" you speak of, do they by chance have
by heywood jablowme
Also, All-Star Batman & Robin would have been a lot better if they could have incorporated a shitload of neon lighting into it.
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It depends on how you use them?
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olimpiakos? poak? aek athens? who's your team? i didn't know you were from greece...well are you from greece? i'd like to see batman whip some greek gods asses on ount olmypus...maybe for the the third batman movie...christian bale vs. hades!...hades goes "who in the toga are you?"...batman..."what, are you retarded? i'm batman bitch"...followed by a well aimed bat-chop right between the eyes.
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http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v216/vroomsocko/goddamnbatman.jpg
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Another classic. I like this Batman, he totally lacks social skills. To answer Gus' question: I've read very few Batman stories in my life but i'd have to say DKR is my fave rendition of the character. I guess because he's absolutely insane, yet doesn't call anyone retarded even once! For my fave rendition of Bruce Wayne i'm gonna have to say (and i'l prolly burn in geek hell for this) Batman Begins. Again, kinda crazy and obsessive but did you see the part when Katie Holmes slaps him TWICE and he just gets out of the car instead of tying her up to a railroad while cackling ominously and questioning her intelligence?
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I'm the goddamn batman.
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yes, I live in Athens. I don't care for soccer and it's Paok, not Poak. As for Batman kicking some Olympus gods rears, I couldn't know - since none of them are real, I couldn't bother debating such kinds of *hypothetical* philosophical nonsense. --- About that league you were discussing with Kal-El, I 'd like in. I don't have superpowers, but I have a remarkable prowess in martial arts, my mind can force Stephen Hawking to an early retirement and I 'd really like to be close to Ms. Alba. **** I, too, favor the socially inept brute Batman, that makes up for it with kickass fighting skills, unbelievable SF gadgets (for that check out: JLA Classified 1-3) and a strategic mind to put Sun Tzu to shame. As for Bruce Wayne, I like Michael Keaton's performance - his goofiness and longing to be close to other people and that laughable facade he puts as a snob billionaire. As for getting comics from the internet, I again recommend this: google for DC++, download the latest, official release. In the 'public hubs' tab, use the filter comic. Connect to the 5 most populated servers at peak hours and you can find anything you 'd like - including Ennis's 303. My username there is faltsetas - see if you can contact me. I don't see why you should bother with D/L stuff from bittorrent sites; they are weak and slow - they are broken relics - they will tie you down to the past ***** For the magician, Constantine is his last name, but to me it's my first.
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Sep 25, 2005 10:00:43 AM CDT
That's not real kid dialogue from Franklin Richards in that
by jonquixote
"Barfaroni"? Or how about the grade-school aged son of Reed Richards, who has been to the negative zone, Hell, and Attilan among other places, struggling to grasp the concept of pregnancy? Is that a "real" exchange? Real for any kid? Real for Franklin Richards? Or is it a phony exchange designed to get to that end moment you quoted, and leaving everything else in the wake. In this case, admittedly a minor crime - annoyance in the first degree, maybe - but worthy of addressing because it was singled out for praise. I have kids in the house, I've spent most of my life working with kids or being one, and I've read a lot of Fantastic Four. That was no kid talking in that exchange, and it certainly wasn't Franklin Richards.
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Sep 25, 2005 11:12:50 AM CDT
It seems like no matter what Frank Miller does, people are gonna
by duncanhines
Go read DK2 again. The book reads pretty damn well if you read it all in one shot. ASB&RTBW will probably end up the same. Hell, if you don't like it, don't buy it. I've been reading comics since I could read, and I buy an assload of books every week, but only stuff I like reading. I can't tell you how many people I talk to at comic stores that buy X-Men books (for example) that suck, and complain how much they suck, and how they're getting ripped off, blah, blah, blah, crap, crap, crap... We're at a point where if you buy two shitty comics, that's potentially a meal you're missing. In my experience, it seems like comic fans just like having something to bitch about. "...Frank Miller doesn't write Batman the way I like Batman..."; "...Alfred has too many muscles and that makes me uncomfortable..."; "...Bendis writes comics that are enjoyable to read, but there's too much talking..."
If you don't like it, don't buy it! Stop wasting your money and time!
On an aside, I read somewhere on this talkback speculation as to how All Star Superman is going to be... Wizard ran an 8-page preview of it last month or something and it looks pretty friggin' awesome... but people will probably complain because Superman looks too big, or because everyone Frank Quitely draws looks like they want to kiss you, or because they just need SOMETHING to bitch about.
...and here I am bitching about people bitching...
Stop bitching so much! -
but i bet he's having a blast fucking up the character he made great. build 'em up and knock em down! thats the way they do things in Oldtown...
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No talking about the stuff you don't like.
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i'm there with ya vale.
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..top the Aquaf@g TB..
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Frank is doing a new Sin City Comic to tie in with Sin City Movie #2 or maybe #3. Hopefully he will stop drawing people's feet looking like damn battleships in this one. I have just one problem with Millar's Wolverine this week:(SPOILER)
Why doesn't Wolverine just liberate the whole camp himself instead of just mentally torturing the commendant?
It's still a really good story so you should buy it.
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You make a good point about this month's Wolverine, Ryogam, Millar could probably come up with some good rationales as to why (SPOILER) Wolverine remained in the camp but I think the truth is that it just wouldn't have been the story Millar wanted to tell. So he took some liberties. This issue is more like an EC comic masquerading as a Wolverine story, but it definitely was a good read. Rann/Thanagar started well but has gotten mired in an overly convoluted plot. Plus the villain is pretty lame, your basic world devourer with no distinguishing qualities. My favorite Omac tie-in is Villains United: its been a wild, twisted ride and the revamped Catman is one of the best character reboots in recent memory (Seven Soldiers aside --see below). However, I can't wait for this damnable Omac "event" to end. Seven Soldiers is better in every way: very original stories, strong characters and fantastic art unburdened by a morass of anal continuity. Morrison is already in that brighter universe Waid's talking about getting to a year or so from now. And, surprisingly, Morrison is really good at reimagining Kirby's DC characters while hewing close to spirit of the originals. The new Guardian and Mister Miracle are great books and exude the same grand absurdity that Kirby brought to his worlds. I would much rather see Morrison's take on Omac and Buddy Blank than the current monstrosity. House of M is another event I could do without, but I like Daredevil and The Pulse, and New Avengers has become a great read. I was really sceptical about the Sentry, but I thought Bendis did a brilliant job bringing him back without entirely dismantling Paul Jenkins original story. I'm really looking forward to the eventual reveal of The Sentry's true arch-nemesis, now that now that The Void has turned out to be a figment of his imagination. Back to Kirby for a second: the Kamandi deluxe reprint is fantastic. Check it out and see if I'm not right about Morrison trying to channel (successfully, I think) the King.
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we'll never beat the aquaf*g tb since we get a column weekly and don't have just one to concentrate on forever and ever...maybe if the assholes took a vacation we could crush that aqauf*q tb, but then again there's no real need since this TB is obviously far superior.
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I agree with what you said about the 7SoV. Regarding Kirby & Morrison, I 'd say Morrison is Kirby's successor in terms of creativity, imagination and weirdness. He may not draw his stories, but has a very good grasp of design (check out the most recent Comicon.com/pulse for his 7SoV designs) and he gets to collaborate with Frank Quitely.
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Well clearly this TB is the superior one. I'm just talking on a daily basis because at some point last week this TB was trouncing Aquaf@g. *** Fanfic questions: prose vs comic scripts? Also, have the Star Sapphires basically been evil female Green Lanterns?
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If the Sentry's Nemesis "The General" was such a big bad Supervillain? How come he was never heard frtom again in any Marvel Book? After he fucked with Sentry's mind, did he just retire?
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Bad stuff happens
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Sure it may be an okay read when read all at once as one poster claims but he's overlooking the fact that visually the book is as close as any book ever should get to inciting a genuine epileptic seizure.
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Sep 26, 2005 12:42:40 PM CDT
We Should Give An Award To Each Guy Who Pops Up Here For The Fir
by buzz maverik
Here's how it works, dude. The @$$holes review comics. If they only write about comics they like, they're not reviewing, they're advertising. You can only trust the critics that like some things and dislike others and can tell you why. Also, all positive reviews are boring. They had an all positive review crew here before us and we swooped in on 'em and kicked 'em out. It was like a hockey team mowing down a bunch of figure skaters. Reviews are great when its' a book yer on the fence about buying. As for fans buying books they don't like, most don't. But when I was reviewing, I had a personal policy that I wouldn't review something I knew I wouldn't like and would only review things that looked interesting, at the very least. You'd be surprised how many of those interesting sounding books turned out to be total crap. As a fan, I'd have bought a crap issue and been stuck with it. As a reviewer, I got to say, "Crap issue and here's why."
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im very sorry to hear that man. i hope your gilr is doing ok with all this too. that is some insane bizarre stuff tho about the writing.im also glad to hear a lawsuit will be forthcoming.the more i hear and experinece stories like yours the more i hate motherfucking cops.sad news my friend,sad news indeed. my condolences.
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You got our full support. I don't know what else to say that somehow doesn't sound like a joke.
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that really means a lot. i'll relay that to my girl. take it easy. if anything progresses i'll let all of you know. i actually read a bunch of stuff this weekend before it happened. talk to you about those later. adios mi amigos.
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you and yours have my condolences.
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hmmm.
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Hi, guys! Slightly off-topic but i heartily recommend you check-out either superherohype.com or zap2it.com. Both feature an article where Kirsten Dunst blabs about whom the TWO villains are in Spider-man 3. Seeing as nobody else has mentioned it...
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but how true is it you think?
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*offers hugs*
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I'm reading this comic Moore wrote back in the 80s. It's a short story that mocks Frank Miller's Daredevil. It's totally done for laughs (Moore was a huuuge fan of Miller's DD). Here's an exerpt: "What are you, some sort of retard? Don't make me laugh."
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heathen, you have my condolences.
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..has been what most of the speculation has been about already. When they finally make an official announcement, no one's going to be surprised. Besides, if Black Cat's also going to be in the film then Spidey in a black suit to follow her on cat burglaries just makes sense.
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nothing like matching spandex.
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But for the story to work, that suit's got to epitomize everything that's going wrong in his life (MJ hung up on him always being in danger, the new temptation in Black Cat, maybe a bit of ultraviolence in his fighting style demonstrated in his fight(s) with Sandman, rivalry with Eddie Brock, some bits worked in with Aunt May and Harry..), hence the stirring final rejection of it at the end so he can emerge triumphant as Spidey (unless they kill MJ just afterwards, because a note of tragedy seems about right if they're shooting 3&4 back to back). Either way, it would be an interesting parallel with #2. The story just writes itself with these plot elements..
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I don't know who that Shirley Temple-lookin' chick in the spread on page one is, but she's got a really sexy mouth. Sadly, she disappears on the next page, and instead I get a buncha Johnny Storm stuff. I was hoping the cutie was Ultimate Valeria, but I guess not.
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Church as Sandman is a good one, but I was at first taken aback by the Topher Grace thing. Looks like Raimi is really going with the Peter Parker analog route here, casting someone who looks and acts like Peter. It looks like Raimi might be going the route of having Peter face someone much like himself and seeing what his life would be like if he chose to follow a different path. The more I think about it, the more I'm liking this decision. My problem mainly is the fact that this shoves the Goblin arc to the side because two villains are pushing it, three seems insane. It makes sense for Harry to don the Goblin mask in this third installment since he discovered it in the second. Without this evolution, the Harry character just seems like it'd stagnate, while Raimi pitted Spidey against two heavily CGI-ed villains. Still, Raimi hasn't failed to impress me and I can't wait to see the next one.
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Amen to that Ambush Bug! I can't wait to see both Sandman and Venom on the big screen. I still think that Harry Osborne may be the one pulling their strings though. Who knows? Maybe Harry is responsible for the creation of Venom, there are rumours circulating of a cloned Peter Parker and a Professor Warren working at Oscorp... What does everybody else think?
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Are we talking Ben Reilly as Venom? And what if they're only setting up Venom for this one? If the Batman series might set Harvey Dent up for one film before Two Facing him, then why not Venom?
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Latino Review posted an "insider scoop" just after Topher Grace was cast saying that he was to play eddie brock but that he would not be the Brock from Marvel continuity but rather that he would be a Parker clone. Harry was meant to be behind the plot and the story was also meant to feature professor Miles Warren; but not as the Jackal. There was no mention of the black costume either.
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I also found out that it was two cops and they maced him and used their batons in addition to tasering him 8 times. But enough of this gloom my friends. Grace as a P. Parker Venom? I'll say that I have loved both Spidey movies (especially the 2nd) but to go that far outside of continuity would be consistently on my mind. Anything more on the black suit? *** I love this scoop about the writer of the FF, "Mark Frost says he is currently in negotiations to pen Fantastic Four 2 and would love to come back again. He knows in which direction he wants the characters to head and plans to have all the Fantastic Four come back." No shit! Have all four of the Fantastic Four come back. Wow! *note sarcasm*
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I'm a Brit and those of us here in Blighty are having police problems too. Ever since July 7, Tony Blair ( otherwise known as Dubya's glove puppet ) has allowed the police carte blanche powers to do as they deem fit. We now have a SHOOT-TO-KILL policy on the streets of London for the first time in our history. This is a very bleak time indeed, but my random rant is nothing compared to what you must be experiencing right now. My deepest sympathies, my friend.
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Are you going to get that huge complete series of Buffy on DVD? I was thinking about it, but I already have the first two seasons (which could make good re-gifts to my family who are unfamilar w/ the Whedon) but what does this huge set include that the others don't? I'll give you a Ham N Cheese Hot Pocket if you'd like for your time! Thanks.
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hope you hang around all week
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i was at a club a couple of weeks ago and saw a fight break out. the cops that were watching the club and security got right in the middle, mace and batons in the air. the 2 guys broke off from each other and one guy got on the ground and held his hands up and said 'ok im not going to be any trouble' and he still got the taser shot at him! my best friend was standing next to me watching and he said 'thats fucked up'not even in a loud tone or trying to argue but just stating a fact.imediately one of these rambo cops is in his face yelling and asking if he wants some too. thats why im like fuck cops.
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Isn't that how it goes? Yeah I hear ya Kal-El. Hey go to this link to download the Firefly theme song *** http://tinyurl.com/dqoqt *** It also has the lyrics. It kinda makes me relax a little, because the way things have been going - I aim to misbehave.
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..HotPockets are things (I'm not even going to presume to call them foodstuffs of any sort..) that get served in Hell, not to be confused with devil's food. In other words: *makes a cross with two fingers* Away from me, Heathen! :) As for the boxset, I might eventually pick it up, but I've got all the eps on tape and I haven't watched any in a long while. If anything, Angel's the ME show that rules my world, and also, that Amazon link Herc posts underneath the promo for the boxset (see nearly any Coaxial TB) could probably clue you in even better than I could.
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In fact, when some was (illegally) used about three years ago it caused the crowd to rush down a set of stairs in a panic--a set of stairs that led to a locked exit. Something like 17 people were crushed to death. Not good, and a clear indicator of why the law had been passed to begin with. Of course, the fact that when a performer's private security detail pulled out pepper spray the clubgoers thought it was a terrorist anthrax attack at an R&B club on a Sunday night may have been a bit foolish, but that doesn't mean it was their own fault. There have also been some taser-induced local deaths that are causing them to get a long second look. They really need more laws against the use of ostensibly "non-lethal" deterrents in every state in the union. When misused, any of them is pretty damned lethal.
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I've looked at the link but it didn't offer up any good stuff as of yet (besides having 40 discs and the titles of the docs) but I just thought you might have known some inside stuff. I kinda knew that you hated the Hot Pockets. I figured I'd mention the ones that are the least likely for satanic bowel movements, the ham n cheese, not like the philly cheesesteak or hamburger ones *shudder* My girls brother, I shit you not, ate 24 Hot Pockets in one week!!! Angels last season was one of the most brilliant seasons of any show I've seen, and don't even get me started on that last episode. Whenever I see Boreanaz on that show Bones I'm like, "Angel get out of the freakin sun!." It feels wrong you know?
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remember he was 150 lbs and short as well. The cops said that he took off his shirt and they couldn't grab a hold of him because he was too sweaty. So of course the only reasonable thing to do was taser him 8 times, mace him, and beat him w/ batons. I've personally wrestled w/ him and I'm not a big guy and I didn't need to do any of those things. He wasn't even threatening anybody. As a punishment the cops had their tasers taken away. Way to show them!!! I'll bet they won't MURDER anyone for a week or two now!!!
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Or rather, I drifted away from my (even more fervent) Buffy sources awhile ago. I really appreciate the good stuff when it happens, but I tend to be about the moving forward, I guess.. Take what you get, but then top it, build on it.. Dear lord, he didn't have to go to the hospital, did he? And Angel, yeah, the 5th was amazing, especially when they started just writing for themselves at the end when they knew they were canned; it had a few weak links with the return of Lindsay and werewolf girl, but they can be overlooked. I tend to prefer the 4th though because there weren't weak links like that and the pacing was flawless. I'm glad Boreanaz is getting work. With a cast as good as Angel's, he was kind of the weak link, but looking at tv now I really think his work went underappreciated, and for some reason when I see those commercials for Bones I get the sense that he's this decade's Tom Selleck..
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This is a haiku on that man's murder: Autumn brought murder *** Batmobil crush the monsters *** Winter bring justice ***** I apologize in advance, if this offended; it sure was crass. From my experience, I have observed some of the worst human specimens amongst police officers; just like a gang, however the only one officially sanctioned and much more organized. I apologize again for the haiku, and I 'd like to offer again my condolences and express my outrage for that fellow's murder.
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I'm gonna share my police brutality story: In a town near Bogota, and due to some confusion, the police and the ARMY got in a firefight with eachother. No, really. 4 policemen were killed, which of course means the colombian army totally kicks ass. On the other hand i'm concerned about our policemen being total pussies. Only in Colombia.
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vale, are cops are kinda wimps.
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angel rocks hard as a show and the fifth season was fantastic...when is the sixth gonna premier? sighs...i miss wesley.
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I'm wondering if you could offer some advice. When you write fanfic do you structure it as a comics script or do you just do straight prose? Also, do you think Joe Gardner might ever wind up as hired muscle?
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it was actually kinda poignant. i feel like the all star batman right now and am looking forward to his crazy ass fucking up the GCPD some more in issue #3. it should be a requirement, that and calling people retarded.
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that incinerating cops doesnt seem so bad in light of what heathen told us when i read the haiku.and i agree gus some of the worst specimens indeed. in ecuador the cops and the army hate each other too but both are corrupt,dirty sons of bitches who will rob people and setup ambushes for kidnappings.heathen i belive in what goes around comes around. those pigs may have gotten a slap on the wrist but i promise you theyll be shot down in the street within a years time.i hope however it happens karma gives them double what they gave
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First of all, please call me Vale. Second, here's the deal. When i write "fanfiction" i always do full script. Thing is i work with two artists, one, James from Pennsylvania and the other, Maria from Portugal. I write full scripts for them to illustrate. Maria gets my work (mostly short stories) published in magazines, fanzines and anthologies in Portugal and Spain, and we're currently working on a sci-fi "album" we plan on pitching to Humanoids. On the fanfic side of it Maria and i are doing a Batman one-shot, just for the heck of it and i'm also writing a surrealist and insane Batman comic for James to draw. Hope that answers your questions :D
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I don't know if anybody outside of the u.k. has heard but we have our own superhero team over here. They are a small band of men who have been shafted over access rights to their own children. This small band have named themselves Fathers4Justice and they have taken to dressing as Batman, Robin, Superman and one of the Ninja Turtles and have performed very public, peaceful protests. Today, one of them, unfortunately dressed in civilian garb, scaled the House of Commons and also spoke to SKY NEWS live on his cellphone! This enemy of the state will probably be shot down by over-zealous police who can now shoot pigeons in Trafalgar Square if deemed a terrorist threat ;-)
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Coolness. That's way more than fanfic that you're doing. How long have you been at it? Also, weird question, but this James from Pennsylvania wouldn't happen to live in a little place called Doylestown, would he?
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Sep 27, 2005 4:55:18 PM CDT
"have taken to dressing as Batman, Robin, Superman and one of th
by the heathen
that's cool Duncan. I love how it sort of makes sense until you get to the Ninja Turtle. *** Karma is most definetly coming Kal-El and you're right about All Star Batman, I don't even consider it to be a "real" Batman, but I sure am waiting to see him toast some more pigs. *** How's the progress going on that one short story Vale?
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Thalya: I've been doing this for about a year and a half now, but it's only been about six months since it got interesting. And i don't remember where James lives exactly. James Smith is the bastard's name. I do write prose now and then, short stories most of the time. You? What's your status? ***Heathen: The Batman one shot i was doing for Maria stalled for a while, cause i couldn't figure out a way to connect a couple of things. It's finally moving along again. It's losely based on a Batman story Morrison did during his JLA run. The story itself is titles Elseworlds and it's an alternate future scenario (yes, another one). Aside from that i've written, aside from the porn comic, about 4 or 5 other short stories for Maria. Oh and the porn story's taken a while but it's almost finished, she says. I'm also doing, like i said, another Batman comic for James and it should be the best, most awesomest thing ever in the history of history and the world. Oh and a short Superhero-western-crime comic heh. Should be absolutely campy. Thanks for the interest man, i appreciate it a lot.
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http://tinyurl.com/ccjpz****and heathen im LOVING LOST!! i got the dvd's from blockbuste online on sunday and i marathoned the first 2 discs! im expecting disc 3 tonight. good damn stuff!also without any spoliers please do they ever show what the beast looks like?
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Different James then, Vale, I think. I know this one James who runs my local comic shop who's an artist/illustrator, so.. It would've been weird if I popped in Friday as usual to get my comics and could say "Guess who I talked to on AICN?" My status? Eh.. right now I'm only a wannabe with a dayjob. This fanfic I'm writing will be my first and it's mainly to get the story out of my system so I can go back to concentrating on my 7-part master opus (prose mainly, but it might cross media, depending..) that I've essentially dedicated my life to writing (so much so that the fanfic even has a meta-layer of the opus worked in there, in an eerie manner too..). /// That being said, Star Sapphire, Joe Gardner (Guy's evil alien clone), takers? Anyone know anything that I should know about these characters (like how to write them)? Just asking, because I'm inches from laying down words on the page..
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she's centimeters away from the page.
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Okay, I've been buying GL regularly for almost 15 years (and I've read some an array of stuff from the original Alan Scott stuff forward) but I got no idea who the hell Joe Gardner is. I feel like a schmuck. As for Star Sapphire, though, I can tell you this: she's not really a GL with purple beams. The only real evil GL analogue would be somebody like Sinestro--the whole Qwardian-produced yellow power ring dealie. Star Sapphire, if I remember correctly, is an alien conciousness that is able to possess humans who come into contact with a particular space gem. The real question, then, is this: if it's a sapphire, why is it (and Star Sapphire's costume) purple instead of a deep shade of blue? Are sapphires a different color when they come from stars, or is this some new scam to sell vat-grown semi-precious stones? Is it like the "yellow diamond" Michael Rapaport gave to Martha Plimpton in "Beautiful Girls"? Why the hell aren't I in bed yet?
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blackthought: darn tootin'. SleazyG: hey, don't worry, I've been Googling and haven't come up with too much on Gardner. My hunch is it was a Warrior thing, or sth.. On Star Sapphire, I actually came across a really good summary on the character(s) last night on a site devoted to JLU (animated, not comics) of all things. It seems SS was the mortal Zamaron queen or somesuch, so there is that analogue. It really makes me want to go back and check out all the Carol Ferris/Hal Jordan stuff (I'm not too sure about Silver Age writing, but..) and I'm seriously going to pick up GL if Johns starts getting into that angle. As for sapphires, I know they can actually come in a whole rainbow of colors, pink being the second most popular color after blue. (and really, superhero comics could use a bit more pink every now and then..)
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Yeah, last X-Mas I was looking at jewelry for my lovely girl and noticed a ring that had a pink sapphire and it blue my mind. I too, thought that sapphires were ONLY blue (damn popular color in my life right now) but then the women behind the desk explained to me the origin or something of how there were different colors and I started to realize I was in over my head *gulp* I went w/ something more standard, but yet different at the same time. Oh, that's right COMICS. Uh, don't know too much about those characters Lady Calculator. : (
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Does that answer you're question? Didn't think so. Just wait dude, LOST is like one of those puzzles that when you solve one of the pieces it adds about 5 more additional pieces you now have to solve. If that's your sort of thing, then this show is like heroin, or like insulin to me. : ) Can't wait for tonight! Hey, did you catch the lovely Amy Acker on Supernatural. Fred, Illyria, and The Huntress herself! Good to see her on TV again. And next weeks ep about the exorcism on the plane looks creeepy. JLU has been pretty cool this season so far too.
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Sep 28, 2005 12:17:38 PM CDT
Didn't Star Sapphire Lead One Of Those Famous Rock Group Cli
by buzz maverik
She was sorta mean to Miss Pamela and the GTO. Later, future punk victim Nancy Spungeon would copy her style.
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It's been passed on to somebody else. I don't remember exactly who, but I'm sure a quick Googling would get it for ya. Carol Ferris has already appeared again in some of Johns' new GL stuff, though. Oh, and Carol was still Star Sapphire through the 80's and maybe even the early 90's, so you wouldn't necessarily have to go all the way back to the Silver Age for readable stories.
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I think the current SS that's in the JLA Crisis of Conscience arc right now is named Debbie something or other. It should all be in this one link, which is what I found last night: http://jl.toonzone.net/star/star.htm As for Carol Ferris, it sounds as though she'll never get SS out of her psyche, which is a good thing, because just reading the summary, her character really struck gold with the whole empowered/traditional woman dichotomy. What's scary though, is I was scouring for a good 1.5 tier villain when I came across her and all I knew was "evil female Lantern-type power" and the threat level was about where I wanted, then I read that summary and suddenly _THEMATIC-NESS_.
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im very much looking forward to getting through the frist season so i can get into second season which i have tivoed. i missed supernatural but the tivo didnt:-).ill watch it tonight when i get home. i thought episode 2 was kinda weak. the wendigo looked like the freaking yellow bastard from sin city only minus the yellow! i agree JLU is off to a pretty good start. im waiting for the first season to hit dvd as well.how are things? is the girl feeling better?
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last night's ep was better, but wasn't really creepy besides one or two scenes near the end. The preview for next week looked good though. Maybe because I'm afraid of exorcisms and planes. The girl is feeling better, but it still is just so unsettling ya know? This has been the year of death for both of our families too. A lot of people have passed, but none murdered like this. The "blue man is coming for you" blows my mind as well. Her mother wants us to erase it, but I'm leaving it under the window as a memory of him. It means something. JLU needds to come out on DVD now! I wish they would be in 5.1, but I doubt it. At least Batman and Superman the Animated series our coming out more often. Thanks for that Whedon link too. I'm working my way through it. I might not be able to see the movie until late Saturday!!! There's no midnight shows where I live either.
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when will justice league be collected in season boxes? one will never know...sighs...and good god...yes LOST in a few hours...cannot wait...and v.mars is back too...and whedon is in an episode this season...that should be interesting...pulling a k.smith and getting in front of the cam.
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I can't even watch Veronica Mars because I have no TIVO!!! I really got into that show after watching the first few episodes replayed on CBS. Good stuff, I didn't believe it would be, but it certainly is. LOST. Hell yeah.
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The portal to the Phantom Zone has closed? Bizarro Doc? Huh?
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I'm back. My honeymoon fucking ruled. Mazatlan, Mexico fucking fules. My life fucking rules. Comics fucking rule.
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my wedding fucking ruled. I mean, "Time After Time" was on the playlist!
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welcome back and congrats again!'time after time" i love that song!
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congrats and glad to hear the wedding went swimmingly and the events after as well :)...heathen...v.mars is something good for sure...alas i lack tivo as well to battle the showing of lost and v.mars at the same time...but luckily i still have that contraption from yonder years...probably invented by vandal savage during the time he invented the wheel...yeppers, the vcr.
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Sep 28, 2005 5:00:12 PM CDT
Mark Frost Writing FANTASTIC FOUR? Wait'll I Call My Agent..
by buzz maverik
Dan the Man of Vortex Tours, Sedona, AZ (for $25 you get a ride in an old school bus down a dirt road to look at the vortex; plus, you get a baggie full of peyote buttons. It's a helluva a bargain). Dan will get me that job yet! He used to be a legitimate businessman on the East Coast until he had to go into witness relocation. I suspect that Frost got the gig because Arad doesn't understand how my perk system works. He always says, "I don' unnerstan' why you don' jus' take da money I vuld pay you and buy your own sho'gun." Dan has explained to him if I did that, I'd have to spend a whole day looking at the Purdy, polishing it, getting the feel of it. Dan will convince him that I have to have my British shotgun (delivered by limo), my Cuban cigars (filling the interior of an American gas beast) and my cold, hard cash. In exchange, he gets a first draft in 48 hours. Double my fee and I'll even direct it. It's really a great deal. Dan will make him...I mean, convince him of that.
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Elsewhere... I am... LAST!
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but you are not...I AM...LAST!!!
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LAST!
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you're still not LAST :)
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you're still not LAST :)
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yes I am. LAST!
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