Women's Wickedness Month

So it’s Women’s History Month again… This time around I thought I’d list a few of my favorite Female Supervillians. OK, OK, I know I’m supposed to do something “positive” for WHM, but I just couldn’t help myself. I’ve been thinking about this for a while now, and I realized that I just have to get it out of my system. Besides, these are all strong, proactive, and intelligent women so why the hell not?

The Viper (Madam Hydra)

This vixen, criminal mastermind figures very prominently in my early comic book reading experience. When I first got addicted to marvel comics, two of the first three issues I ever read from the house of ideas featured the Viper as the antagonist: Captain America #283, and New Mutants #5. Additionally, The Viper was also the villain in the first X-men comic I ever read issue #173. In all three issues, she was very alluring, despite the fact that she was stone cold crazy. Her whip, sleek body suit, green lips and half covered face (ala veronica lake) made her all the more exotic. Despite her obvious womanly charms, she’s clearly a psychopath and a terrorist. No one is able to work with her, not even the Red Skull, as her only desire is to sow destruction and chaos. The one exception is her teaming up with the Silver Samurai. It’s one of those horrid love stories in the mold of Bonnie and Clyde. The Viper is very scary because she’s the antithesis of everything a woman is “supposed” to be. She's evil, violent, and nihilistic… You never forget your first.


Superwoman

Superwoman hails from a parallel Earth where good and evil are reversed. So, essentially, she’s a bad Wonder Woman. Along with her buddies in the Crime Syndicate of Amerika (that are evil analogs of the main characters in the justice league), she subjugates her world through fear. I first encountered Superwoman in the pages of Crisis on Infinite Earths #1. She died in that story, but I became very interested in her, umm… adventures and thusly bought up all of her previous comic appearances. Her and wonder woman tying each other up was awesome. The Crime Syndicate was just too great of a concept to let go of and so Superwoman, along with rest of her team, has been revived many times. I’ve always had the feeling that she was a perv/dominatrix type and Grant Morrison’s Earth 2 comic confirmed that. In Grant’s story, she lets a sexual deviant Jimmy Olson watch her change clothes, makes a pass at Martian Manhunter by saying she’ll try anything once, and even gets Bill Clinton lassoed up and on his knees. Wow, how could this evil Amazon not intrigue me?


Titania

One of the strongest females in the Marvel Universe, Titania, has always kicked ass and never taken names. She’s often seen fighting She-Hulk, another favorite of mine, which really adds to her appeal IMO. The catfights between those two can lay waste to whole city. Titania is great because she’s wish fulfillment gone wrong. She used to be a pathetic weakling until she took Dr. Doom’s offer for superpowers and became the ultimate bully. She’s always spoiling for a fight and can’t stand being beaten. She even had a phobia of Spiderman for a while after he handed Titania her ass on a platter. Ultimately, I like her because if Titania is around there’s gonna’ be a good, knockdown brawl. What also makes her interesting is her unmitigated rage towards She-Hulk. It makes me wonder if Titania has unresolved “special feelings” for the jade giantess.


The Borg Queen

Star Trek has always been mainstream, but there was only one time when it was actually super cool outside of it’s über geeky fandom (which I have been a part of to some extent) and that coolness came in the form of the Borg Queen in First Contact. She’s a controversial figure with some Trekkies because she changed the nature of the Borg, but for me she’s brought a much-needed sexy threat to the Star Trek Universe. What makes her so frightening is that she can strip away your humanity, and enslave you body and soul. Losing you identity in a powerful woman both repels and attracts at the same time. Besides all that, I had the distinct pleasure of being assimilated by the Borg Queen at Star Trek the Experience in Las Vegas, and yes, it was good for me!


The Great Tyrant

Sometimes in life you remember the exact moment you had an epiphany. A moment like that happened to me when I was watching Barbarella. The scene where Jane Fonda’s character meets the Great Tyrant the first time, warped my 7yearold mind. See, up until that point I knew that men and women did nasty adult things together but I never knew two women could do nasty adult things together too. When I watched the Great Tyrant lusting after Barbarella and saying “your very pretty, pretty” I was shocked beyond belief. The Great Tyrant’s scene is tame but after I saw it, a whole new perverted world opened up suddenly. I was very young, very intrigued and I wanted to know more… much, much more. That’s why the Great Tyrant will always hold a special place... ...in my loins….
Watch the scene!



Dark Phoenix

Before Marvel retconned Jean Grey’s death into the realm of ridiculousness, the Dark Phoenix Saga stood as a powerful story of absolute power corrupting absolutely, down into the darkest depths of the soul. Her decent into madness and cosmic evil is the greatest X-Men story ever told IMO. The rest of the franchise has been chasing this masterpiece ever since. What makes the Dark Phoenix so chilling is that she was a warm and wonderful person, Jean Grey the hero, but she was manipulated into becoming a cosmic threat that nearly destroyed everyone that Jean ever cared about. We all worry about the evil that exists inside of us but what if that evil took us over totally. This is what happened in the Dark Phoenix saga, and that’s why as a villain, she stands the test time despite the fact that Marvel has undone the consequences of this gem of story since it first appeared. If you only read one X-Men collection, read this one. Dark Phoenix is truly among the greatest of all supervillains and she reminds me of an era when comics were amazing.

Honorable Mention

Mystique:
What’s fun about Mystique is that I like both her Comic Book and Movie incarnations. In the comic she’s a strong, bisexual leader and in the movies she’s a sexy assassin/spy. But most of all she's got shape changing powers and smurfy blue skin. Now that’s awesome.

Terra:
The whole Judas Contact was another of those great comic book storylines and Terra was it’s malicious star. Her traitorous activities to bring down the Teen Titans proved her to be an especially devious villain. You gotta’ appreciate someone that’s simply been bad from the beginning but fooled everyone into thinking she was one of the good girls.

Catwoman:
I’m not all that much into Batman, but I have admit he sure met his soul mate of a sort in Catwoman. She’s, sexy, crafty and makes thieving look oh so good. Catwoman seems to have survived that horrible movie with Halle Barry, proving she’s got nine lives.

Queen Bavmorda:
When I saw Willow as a teenager, I was supposed to cheer for Madmartigan, feel empathy for Willow Ufgood, and enjoy the antics of the two brownies, Franjean and Rool, but you know what? I found evil Queen Bavmorda in her dark and dreary castle the most interesting part of the whole movie.

-Swinebread

My New Comics

This week’s best cover is War Is Hell: First Flight of the Phantom Eagle #1.


Brave And The Bold #11, DC Comics.Ultraman! I love those Crime Syndicate Guys.

Red Sonja #31, Dynamite Entertainment.

War Is Hell: First Flight of the Phantom Eagle #1, Marvel Comics/MAX. I’ve been enjoying DC’s Enemy Ace, so now I get to delve into Marvel’s WWI Ace (Phantom Eagle) with this new story. It features art by Howard Chaykin, who incidentally did a few Enemy Ace stories.

Shadowpact #23, DC Comics.

Jungle Girl #5, Dynamite Entertainment. A cliff hanger ending leads to a 2nd mini-series in this Lost World-like adventure.


Magazine:
Back Issue #27, Twomorrows Publishing. The Royalty Issue, great article on Dr. Doom.


-Swinebread

Game Geek Reviews

I just came across Kurt Wiegel’s roleplaying game reviews on youtube. Interesting and informative, Check ‘em out! See Here

This is his 50th video retrospective posted just last week:


-Swinebread

Beau Knows, But The Newsroom Doesn’t

There’s an interesting news story about Beau Smith, he’s a comic book writer I remember from his days at Eclipse Comics. Smith’s Beau LaDuke character was quite the redneck riot in Tim Truman’s Scout. Anyway, station WSAZ did a nice little profile on Smith and what he’s been up too with his career, but what really caught my attention were the patronizing comments the anchors use about Comic Books when they introduced the story. See Here (video on right side, has a commercial first)

Hey, comics aren’t just for the Kiddies anymore…

-Swinebread

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Have a green, sheen kinda' day! Remember everybody's Irish on St. Patrick's Day... even Batman!



Cover from Batman: The Long Halloween #6 (St. Paddy's issue)

The Long Halloween, along with Batman: The Man Who Falls, Batman: Year One, and various comics from the 1970s, all served as inspiration for the 2005 film release Batman Begins, as well as the upcoming sequel, The Dark Knight. It is also a personal favorite of current Batman star Christian Bale. Dan DiDio has said there is a possibility for an animated adaptation during a Q and A at Wondercon.

from wikipedia


_Swinebread

Tagged by The Moody Minstrel

Moody tagged me here (scroll down).
The rules:

* Link to the person who tagged you.
* Leave a comment on their blog so that their readers can visit yours.
* Post the rules on your blog.
* Share the seven (7) most famous or infamous people you have met. Or go with the original 7 weird things about yourself. Or with Sandra's change and list your 7 favorite writing websites. Lots of choices!
* Tag 7 random people at the end of your post.
* Include links to their blogs.
* Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

I’m going with 7 famous people.

Bruce Campbell

Bruce was showing his film Bubba Ho-Tep around at various venues in 2002 to interest a distributor. Dean Wormer and Misses Dean were kind enough to invite me and the SO along. We waited for hours outside the Hollywood Theater in the cold to get in. Well, the gals waited outside as Dean and I got to go inside and wait in another line to do a meet and greet with the B-Movie legend before the film started. I had brought my DVD copy of The Evil Dead for Bruce to sign. While there, I decided to buy a hardback copy of his book If Chins Could Kill. I thought: “hey, why not get two things signed.” Well just before I got to meet him the crew told me that Mr. Campbell only signs one thing per fan. Oh well, I did want to read his book at some point.

Bruce was very nice and shook my hand and I sat and talked with him a few moments. As he signed my DVD with “Stay Groovy.” I mentioned that I really enjoyed his mini doc Fanalysis that was on the DVD and wondered if he was going to do another one. He said that they had something in the works. I never saw it but I’m sure it ended up on some DVD. I then blabbered some dumb crap about myself that he could have cared less about, but I was feeling ill so I wasn’t thinking clearly. I did have the good sense to say that I enjoyed his work and wished him well before I left.

Mr. Campbell was nice of enough to meet all the folks that had waited to get something signed, so nice in fact that the showing of Bubba Ho-Tep was delayed much to the dismay of our spouses waiting outside in the cold. Eventually, we all sat down together and, after a lively introduction by Mr. Campbell, enjoyed the film.


Erin Grey

I think it was in 1998 when Erin Grey stopped by Portland during a comic convention. I had a big crush on her when I was in grade school because of her staring role as Wilma Deering on the Buck Rodgers TV show. You know the one that was a little too disco for it’s own good right? Well, as the years went by I realized that she was the best part of that program (well, her and Doctor Theopolis that is) so; when she came to Portland I decided to meet her.

When I got to the comic show, I realized I was actually a little nervous, which was strange because it’s not like she was mega famous anymore but, maybe it was due to the fact that hardly anybody ever came to Portland. She looked great, Erin had taken care of herself over the years and she reminded me of one of those hot moms. I talked to her a little bit and asked if she had anything coming out, and she responded that she up for a role and she hoped she was going to get it. That made me a little sad because I think that Grey is good actor, but Buck Rogers typecast her. She was seriously considered for the role of Janeway on Star Trek Voyager. How awesome would that have been?

I bought a signed copy of one her Buck Rogers pictures and I also bought a copy of her book Act Right. Incidentally, it was at this convention that I realized the Portland Comic book show was held in really awful space, the basement of the Memorial Coliseum. I felt a little ashamed that guests had come from all over the place and were stuck in this dank, dark dungeon. And Sure enough, she never came back to Portland just like all the other media guests that have come for the convention.


Will Eisner

Yes, the godfather of American comics and the creator of the Spirit actually came to Portland once thanks to Dark Horse Comics. In august 2000, Things From Another World (Mike Richardson’s other company) hosted the meet and greet with the grandmaster. He was obviously in town to convene with the Dark Horse bunch and it was a simple matter for him to cross the street for the event at the comic shop.

I was having trouble deciding what to have him sign, but I ended up bringing the first two volumes of the Spirit Archives that had just been published previously that year. I arrived early with my niece and we ended up being the first in line. My niece didn’t have a clue who Eisner was but I hoped that someday she’d realize how special it was to meet him, although I’m still not holding my breath.

When Will Eisner came into the shop, he looked just like I thought he would, like a kindly grandfather. He was very affable and was very happy to sign my copies of the Sprit archives especially since he hadn’t seen them yet. When he recognized that Alan Moore wrote the forward, he examined fondly “Oh Alan!”

My niece got mildly annoyed because he kept confusing her name with the name of one his great-granddaughters, but I had great time. I would have loved to chitchat with him but the line was already very long. I had my picture taken with Will and I used one of those disposable cameras, which I promptly lost. Oh well, it was great to meet one of my comic creator heroes particularly given that he passed away a few years later in 2005.


Linda Harrison

Linda played Nova in the first two Planet of the Apes films which are part of my favorite Science Fiction film series of all time, so there was no way I was gonna’ pass up seeing her. She came to Portland in 2004 (I think?) to the Portland comic convention.

I hauled along my Niece again, she didn’t know who Linda was either but I figured she might watch the Planet of the Apes movies eventually. Linda was very nice and agreed to have a picture taken with my niece. As you can see from the shot, she looked great. I bought and had her sign one of her photographs. It was she, the cast and the crew from the first POTA film. Everybody was on the beach where they shot the scene in which Dr. Zaius gets tied up. When I later took to look at the picture, I realized that everybody in that photo was dead expect for Linda Harrison and “Chuck” Heston.


Cat Yronwode

Author, critic, hippie, and sex magic promoter, Cat Yronwode, has worn many hats throughout her life but I knew none of that when I went to see the Eclipse Comics booth back in 1985 or 86. At that time, she was the editor-in-chief of one of my favorite comic companies and that was good enough for me as a pimply-faced teen. Being a huge fan of Eclipse Comics because they published lots of different genres, I collected many of their titles and I couldn’t believe they were actually coming to Portland. Plus, I had read many of cat’s editorials so meeting her personally was something I built up in my mind.

When I first got to the Eclipse table, Cat Yronwode wasn’t there but she soon walked up with some Eclipse titles in hand. She commented to her crew how she was able to find some good back issues to add to their library. I knew what she was talking about because Eclipse had been flooded out a few years before and all their back issues were lost. Cat then sat right down and began interacting with the fans.

Now being a celebrity novice, I didn’t realize that bringing a ginormous stack of comics for her to sign was a pretty rude thing to do. But she was very cool about it and said something nice about what great fan I must be. I realized my mistake when Dean Mullaney, Eclipse’s publisher, said he was only going to autograph one title and suggested she do the same. She ignored him and went right on putting her name on all my Scout comics, Miracle Man comics and Alien Encounters comics (my three favorite titles). Then, when she was done, she handed me one of the Eclipse Comics metal buttons they were selling because I was such a big fan. I wore that button proudly for many years before I stored it away someplace.

Cat Yronwode became one of my favorite comic book people that day. She treated me so nicely when she could have totally blown me off. Cat didn’t and so created a very loyal Eclipse Comics fan. I always felt she was the major reason that Eclipse had been such a success in the 1980s. Eclipse Comics went out of business in 1994, but she had left in 1993. What does that tell you?

Paul Chadwick

I met Paul Chadwick, the creator of Concrete, in 2005. He was nice enough to do an on camera interview:



Mike Richardson

Mike Richardson is the founder of Dark Horse Comics. Back when the company was first starting out in 1986, Dark Horse always had a booth at the Portland Comic Book Show and Mike was often there. He was a soft-spoken, easygoing sort of guy that was happy to meet the fans. Nowadays, Mike’s a bigwig with 300, Sin City, and Hellboy, being huge media successes so he has no need to slum it with the little folk or modest comic book conventions that take place in dank dungeons, but this year he is gonna’ be at the Stumptown Comics Fest, so I think this newer, homegrown convention has, shall we say, arrived?


I’m just gonna tag Lady Bug… I broke the rules… sorry Moody...

-Swinebread

Tower Talk

Stephen King had a great discussion about The Dark Tower, comic books and Marvel’s Gunslinger Born/The Long Road Home series on NPR’s Talk of the Nation. Although brief, it’s very interesting. Check it out here

Copy from the NPR website:

To the delight of Stephen King fans, the latest installment in the Marvel comic book series inspired by his Dark Tower epic was released in early March.

The illustrated saga was kicked off in the graphic novel Dark Tower: Gunslinger Born, which introduced young hero Roland Deschain in the midst of his coming-of-age journey. The newly released Dark Tower: The Long Road Home, is a continuation of the narrative, with the young gunslinger on the run with his posse.

King collaborated with writer Peter David, consultant Robin Furth, and illustrators Jae Lee and Richard Isanove on the project.

"I'm just somebody who's always been interested in how things work in different medium," King says. "I have a tendency to say 'yes' to projects rather than to say 'no' just because I'm curious. I want to see how things turn out."
The best-selling novelist has written more than 40 novels, and his books appear in 33 languages in 35 different countries.

"Comic books are almost like movies on paper," King says. "They came to interest me as a medium because they exist in their own category."

It’s great because Mr. King is bringing new fans into the medium. In fact, during the discussion he plugs Y: The Last Man and gets one of his call-in fans to take a look at Vaughan's fantastic comic. The big news for me is that Marvel will adapt The Stand into comic book form.

-Swinebread

My New Comics

This week’s best cover is Serenity #1.


The Astounding Wolf-Man #5, Image.

Badger Saves the World #3, IDW.

Bat Lash #4, DC Comics.

Dead of Night #2, Marvel Comics.

The Lone Ranger & Tonto #1, Dynamite Entertainment.

The Last Defenders #1, Marvel Comics.

Evil Dead #3, Dark Horse Comics.

The Walking Dead #47, Image.

Serenity #1, Dark Horse Comics.

The Un-Men #8, DC Comics/Vertigo.

The Amazing Spider-Girl #18, Marvel Comics.


Trade Paperbacks:
Conan: Rouges in the House Vol 5, Dark Horse.

-Swinebread

The Incredible Hulk Trailer

The new trailer for the Incredible Hulk is out. The fact that whole franchise is rebooted is good news. It looks like the Hulk gets an actual supervillain instead of his dad and a giant poodle this time.

They can make the comic, the TV show or a combination of both; just don't make anything like the Ang Lee version. Lets hope Hulk has some Wrath of Khan magic for his second big screen outing. Also, there better be a "HULK SMASH" in this movie someplace!

Of course the Incredible Hulk has to be a success because if it isn't then we'll never get a She-Hulk. Shulkie would make for a fantabulous character in the next film… …and then they can do a Fantastic Four crossover... oh the possibilities.



Trailer:

• MTV
• Music Videos
• MTV Shows
• Entertainment News

-swinebread

Dave Stevens R.I.P.

I've been really busy but what news greats me when I get the chance to look around? Dave Stevens died two days ago (see here). Man this sucks. I love his retro style and his classy/sexy gals. At least we now know why he disappeared from the comics scene as he had been fighting leukemia.

I first encountered his work via Eclipse Comics. I’ll always remember his Airbody cover, which I picked up as a poster. It knocked my socks off but then anything he did was amazing IMO like the Rocketeer. I also have a Mr. Monster Poster by him that I love too. Dave was class act all the way and he will be missed by this fanboy. He was much too young…




-Swinebread

I had strange dream last night that went on and on. During one part of it, I was in a grade school classroom. The walls were covered from floor to ceiling with kid paintings of the Avengers. They were very colorful and garish as you’d expect them to be and of course She-Hulk figured prominently in most of them (it was my dream after all). In a kind of booth in near the door was man sitting at a drawing table. Ignoring the kids running around the class, I walked over and sat down near him and watched him sketch. Suddenly, I realized that it was Jack Kirby because he was drawing pictures of Captain America! He looked like he was in his thirties but his clothes were something you might see somebody wearing in the 1960s. I mumbled a few lame questions before I realized “hey, I’ve got Jack Kirby here. It’s not everyday that you get to meet him, so you better ask him something worthwhile.” (Especially since he died in 1994). So I tried really hard to concentrate through the haziness of the dream and I finally came up with a good query. “What was it like to work with Joe Simon?” Jack seemed happy with that question and began to respond when the dream morphed into something else and thus I never got to hear his answer.

I must have been thinking about Joe Simon because I recently watched an old news story about him from last year during the whole death of Captain America thing. He’s pretty old now (but still sharp as a tack) and I guess I’m worried he’ll be gone soon. Jack Co-created Captain America with Joe, so it all connects I guess.




-Swinebread

Wired Article on D&D and Gary Gygax

Wired published an excellent article on Gary Gygax. It was to be an investigation into the man himself and the game he created, Dungeons and Dragons. Sadly now it’s a memorial of sorts.

The Dungeon Master: The Life and Legacy of Gary Gygax
Editor's note: Wired contributing editor David Kushner visited Gary Gygax at the Lake Geneva Convention last July. We were preparing a package of articles about the father of Dungeons & Dragons and the upcoming revised edition of the game he created when we received the sad news of his death. We are running this story now in remembrance of Gygax and in celebration of his staggering achievements. Later this month, we will run the additional articles about D&D as well as excerpts from the extensive interviews used in reporting this story. We extend our deepest condolences to Gygax's family.

Dungeons & Dragons had a way of turning game players into game designers. The rule set was pure potentiality, and the greater the creativity of each dungeon master, the more the players could extract from it. Many young people found their calling while playing D&D.

See the full article here. Check it out.

-Swinebread

There Are Those...

I wasn't able to finish Moody Mistral's tag so here's a nice Battlestar Galatica remix I found to hold you all over.




-Swinebread

Spectacular Spiderman

Today is the big day… The premiere of the new Spidey Cartoon: Spectacular Spiderman. Two episodes were aired this morning to reel in the kiddies… *ahem*…and others. Essentially, what we have here is Spiderman done ala DC’s animated shows especially the most recent version of The Batman (which is currently running on the same network). It has that similar hybrid anime/western look with that “sort of” big eyes and exaggerated body shapes style found in Teen Titans. It’s very contemporary in tone (as it should be) as cell phones and interracial dating appear but Spectacular Spiderman also takes us back to early in Peter Parker’s career only a few months after he has received his powers and that’s a good thing because we certainly don’t want to relive Spidey’s origin again.

…the new animated series picks up the original web-slinger's mythology at the beginning of his hero's journey, as a 16-year-old entering his junior year of high school. Having spent the summer engaging common criminals with his new-found powers, Peter Parker must conceal his secret identity while engaging a new level of terror - the multi-leveled pressures of teenage life at home and school while combating bigger, badder super-villains in the real world like Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus, Venom, and many more.

(from wikipedia)

I’m not particularly interested in the teen angst presented in the show but I have to admit for a cartoon, it’s well done and is mostly in keeping with spirit of the original comics. Not being a kid, I’m more attracted to Betty Brant and what’s happening at the Daily Bugle which only appears briefly in the first episode. The series does seem to be darker in tone than any other versions of Spiderman that have been on TV but that just might be because the animation style is the same as Batman’s. Regardless, a well-adjusted, sunny Peter Parker offsets any gloominess, and lets the zingers fly when fighting the villains. I have a few issues with some aspects of the design of Spectacular Spiderman, but folks that enjoy the half anime, half WB look will greatly enjoy it I think. It’s certainly better than the lame CG Spiderman they did in 2003. It’s a fresh start, so why not a fresh look. Marvel’s going for a franchise reboot with this show and it looks like they’ve succeeded.


What I liked in no particular order (spoilers):

Some of the scenes borrow many visual details of from the movie without directly relating to the films.

The Osborns have their red hair back.

Mary Jane Watson is nowhere to be seen in the first few episodes and is sure to be introduced later like she was in the original comic books.

The animation is very smooth… like it’s never been before in a Spiderman Cartoon.

Peter’s spider bite happened at Doc Conner’s lab. That helps speed up the plot without being hackneyed.

Aunt May looks like a hippy grandma and that seems to work well for this day and age.

Webshooters are back! Yes!

Interracial dating? This is a your modern Spiderman.

Peter wasn’t able to get a job at the Daily Bugle during the first two episodes, the plot is building.

Cell phones are used to funny affect during the show. My SO even laughed.

The show appears to have well-planned story arcs, that has certain appeal for a comic guy like me.

I like the little underarm web wings.

It's really nice having a superhero in a cartoon that doesn't look like he's on steroids.



What I didn’t like in no particular order (spoilers):

Gwen Stacy is the Beautiful-Ugly girl… …sigh

The villains have totally new costumes. I know some of the old outfits look dated but did they have to get rid of them completely?

What the heck is up with Peter’s nose?!

Peter seems a little too happy for a kid that’s indirectly responsible for his uncle’s murder… or is he? Since the origin is skipped we don’t know for sure at this point.

Spiderman’s Eyes on his mask change with his emotions, ah NO! Plus, they are a little too big for me. I like the mask’s older look.



Missed opportunities:

Now having the 16yearold Peter getting involved with Betty at the Bugle would be a real shocker… OK that’s just wrong, sorry…

Trailer:


-Swinebread

I’ve been tagged by Dean Wormer

Old Dean got me see here

List 7 random things about yourself that people may not know.

Link the person who sent this to you, and leave a comment on their blog so that their readers can visit yours.

Post the rules on your blog.


1. I’ve been to Disneyland three times.

2. I hate Gambit… a lot! I dropped the X-men, and even comics for a long time after he showed up. He symbolizes everything that was wrong with ‘90s comics IMO. Plus, all the great stories from the 80’s that were adapted by the first X-Men cartoon series didn’t have Nightcrawler or Colossus; No, instead we got that stupid Gambit guy. That bugged me to no end; the Dark Phoenix saga with Gambit? Yuck! He didn’t show up in the first three X-Men movies so that was way cool although he is in the new Wolverine film.

3. Some high school chums and I buried a time capsule. I can’t remember what we put in it beyond a war comic that I didn’t want. It was a metal case about the size of small toolbox and it was wrapped in a plastic bag. I’m sure it’s long since been ruined by now.

4. My Favorite Looney Tunes character is Daffy Duck.

5. I’ve been to the site of the Dachau concentration camp while on a backpacking trip through Germany years ago, horrific but necessary in my opinion..

6. My favorite episode of Star Trek TOS is The Return of the Archons. It used to be Mirror, Mirror for a long time until after I became an adult and learned a little bit about how computers worked. I also love what it has to say about religion, and technology. “Festival Festival!” It’s totally cheesy and very deep at the same time.

7. I ate pig brains once…

I’m going to tag Heidi Meely (who never does my tags but that’s OK), and ah… anybody else that wants to do it I guess…

-Swinebread

My New Comics

This week’s best cover is Jonah Hex #29.


The Dark Tower: The Long Road Home #1, Marvel Comics.

Doctor Who Classics #4, IDW.

North Wind #3, Boom Studios.

Streets of Glory #4, Avatar.

Army of Darkness: The Long Road Home #7, Dynamite Entertainment.

Jonah Hex #29, DC Comics.

Painkiller Jane #5, Dynamite Entertainment. Part three of Painkiller Jane vs. the Terminator.

Comic Book Comics #1, Evil Twin. A nice indie b/w on the history of cartoons and comics. See here.

The End League #2, Dark Horse Comics.

Savage Tales #6, Dynamite Entertainment.

Northlanders #4, DC Comics/Vertigo.

The Twelve #3, Marvel Comics.

Omega the Unknown #6, Marvel Comics.

Trade Paperbacks:
Chronicles of Conan Vol 14, Dark Horse. Roy Thomas’ last Conan work on his original ten-year run.

-Swinebread

Watchmen Characters Revealed!

Director Zach Snyder has revealed the first shots of the Watchmen for his upcoming film. The film finished principal photography a few weeks back and comes out one year from today.

Revealed in the photos are the five main characters and cast members, The Comedian (Jeffrey Dean Morgan), Nite Owl (Patrick Wilson), Ozymandias (Matthew Goode), Rorschach (Jackie Earle Haley) and Silk Spectre (Malin Akerman).

The Watchmen will hit theaters March 6th, 2009

from here
The Comedian


Nite Owl


Ozymandias


Rorschach


Silk Spectre


They sure look great and are nice adaptations of the comic versions. In fact, I think I like Ozymandias' movie costume better than the original. This just keeps getting better and better. I'm more excited for this film than anything coming out this year.

I just got a strange feeling that that Watchmen will have this bizarre cultural affect and retro 80s will be very popular in 2009.

Sadly, this film and the graphic novel are more topical than ever.

-Swinebread

His Adventure Is Over: R.I.P. Gary Gygax

As some of you have heard by now, Gary Gygax, the D&D guru, has died. I wasn’t part of the first wave of roleplaying gamers and so I largely missed out on playing through most of Gary’s adventure modules, but I did encounter the large part of the game’s initial aftershock when the production values had increased. I love roleplaying games a lot but I kinda’ had a love hate relationship with them when I was a kid. Being able to inhabit another world and use you imagination was an incredibly powerful and fantastic experience, but the D&D rules were very encumbering and, for me, stymied that imagination. I never owned a copy of the main rulebooks until D&D 3.5 (well OK, except the Basic and Expert boxed sets) and I merely relied on others to run the game if we wanted to play Dungeons and Dragons.

It wasn’t until I encountered both the skills focused Basic Roleplaying System (via Call of Cthulhu and Stormbringer) and the rules light Storyteller System (Vampire, Werewolf), that I really found gamming a truly immersive experience. It was also around this time that finally realized why I found D&D to have such a strange, clunky, mechanistic feel. It’s because Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson were strategy game players first and then developed D&D roleplaying out of that. I was never a strategy game sorta’ guy and that’s why their approach to the gaming seemed backwards to me. Levels, experience points, tons of charts, character classes, and mutually excusive rules for every little aspect, was really just too much in my opinion. But for other folks, with a more mathematical or legalistic mind, probably found these rule mechanics pure heaven. For some, roleplaying was a numbers and accounting game but I never saw it like that. For me, gamming should be a character driven, story creation experience. On the other hand, I always greatly appreciated the world building that went into Dungeon and Dragons and the different types of dice as well. I believe those two aspects were some of D&D’s greatest strengths beyond just simply using your mind's eye.

Now it may seem like I’m bashing Mr. Gygax, but I don’t feel that I am, rest his soul, but rather I’m merely providing context and probing the memories his death has brought up. Gary Gygax was an entertainment innovator and brought a new way to experience, and harness imagination. I just needed it in a different form than he originally designed it. Regardless, thanks for starting the roleplaying game industry Mr. Gygax.

I think the New York Times has the best article about Gary Gygax, so I’ll post the whole of it here, as it will eventually disappear behind a registered user function.

Gary Gygax, Game Pioneer, Dies at 69

By SETH SCHIESEL
Published: March 5, 2008

Gary Gygax, a pioneer of the imagination who transported a fantasy realm of wizards, goblins and elves onto millions of kitchen tables around the world through the game he helped create, Dungeons & Dragons, died Tuesday at his home in Lake Geneva, Wis. He was 69.

His death was confirmed by his wife, Gail Gygax, who said he had been ailing and had recently suffered an abdominal aneurysm, The Associated Press reported.
As co-creator of Dungeons & Dragons, the seminal role-playing game introduced in 1974, Mr. Gygax wielded a cultural influence far broader than his relatively narrow fame among hard-core game enthusiasts.

Before Dungeons & Dragons, a fantasy world was something to be merely read about in the works of authors like J. R. R. Tolkien and Robert Howard. But with Dungeons & Dragons, Mr. Gygax and his collaborator, Dave Arneson, created the first fantasy universe that could actually be inhabited. In that sense, Dungeons & Dragons formed a bridge between the noninteractive world of books and films and the exploding interactive video game industry. It also became a commercial phenomenon, selling an estimated $1 billion in books and equipment. More than 20 million people are estimated to have played the game.

While Dungeons & Dragons became famous for its voluminous rules, Mr. Gygax was always adamant that the game’s most important rule was to have fun and to enjoy the social experience of creating collaborative entertainment. In Dungeons & Dragons, players create an alternate persona, like a dwarven thief or a noble paladin, and go off on imagined adventures under the adjudication of another player called the Dungeon Master.

“The essence of a role-playing game is that it is a group, cooperative experience,” Mr. Gygax said in a telephone interview in 2006. “There is no winning or losing, but rather the value is in the experience of imagining yourself as a character in whatever genre you’re involved in, whether it’s a fantasy game, the Wild West, secret agents or whatever else. You get to sort of vicariously experience those things.”

When Mr. Gygax (pronounced GUY-gax) first published Dungeons & Dragons under the banner of his company, Tactical Studies Rules, the game appealed mostly to college-age players. But many of those early adopters continued to play into middle age, even as the game also trickled down to a younger audience.

“It initially went to the college-age group, and then it worked its way backward into the high schools and junior high schools as the college-age siblings brought the game home and the younger ones picked it up,” Mr. Gygax said.

Mr. Gygax’s company, renamed TSR, was acquired in 1997 by Wizards of the Coast, which was later acquired by Hasbro, which now publishes the game.

In addition to his wife, Mr. Gygax is survived by six children: three sons, Ernest G. Jr., Lucion Paul and Alexander; and three daughters, Mary Elise, Heidi Jo and Cindy Lee.

These days, pen-and-paper role-playing games have largely been supplanted by online computer games. Dungeons & Dragons itself has been translated into electronic games, including Dungeons & Dragons Online. Mr. Gygax recognized the shift, but he never fully approved. To him, all of the graphics of a computer dulled what he considered one of the major human faculties: the imagination ’ ”

“There is no intimacy; it’s not live,” he said of online games. “It’s being translated through a computer, and your imagination is not there the same way it is when you’re actually together with a group of people. It reminds me of one time where I saw some children talking about whether they liked radio or television, and I asked one little boy why he preferred radio, and he said, ‘Because the pictures are so much better.’ ”

Nice article huh.

On another note, if you are a serious journalist (by serious I mean you get paid) and you use the words “geek,” “geeky” or “geeks” in your news article about Gary Gygax's death, you can FUCK OFF… …Just go fuck yourself. Those geek words are pejorative and not appreciated. Some folks in the gamming community use them, but that’s simply to take the word geek and disarm it while turning it’s original demeaning meaning on it’s head. “Geek” has no place in a eulogy or a serious piece of journalism and certainly shouldn’t be used by folks that don’t consider themselves a part of “geek culture…”

-Swinebread

Death in the Wild Blue Yonder

I’m about 75% of the way through my copy of Showcase Presents: Enemy Ace and I must say it’s been one of the best silver/bronze age comics that I have read. Robert Kanigher and Joe Kubert (which write and draw, respectively, most of the stories) have really created something special here. Choosing a German pilot and setting the stories in WWI was an inspired choice because it allows the reader to dispense with the usual jingoistic tripe and focus on one man’s hellish struggle to stay alive and sane during combat. The main character, Hans von Hammer, is an allegory to the Red Baron but with a pulpy goodness that only a DC war comic could provide. In some ways his personality is the opposite of another Bronze Age comic character I like, Conan the Barbarian but they both have the same evocative, brooding nature.

There’s just something about WWI air combat that lends itself to great storytelling: the newness of the technology, the sense of dying chivalry, and the aloneness of the expanding sky. The last frontier has been opened and it’s used for bringing death. There’s also the sense of the duel, which recalls both knights defending their honor and an old west shootout like the OK Corral. It was Europe’s chance to play Cowboys and Indians except everybody was a Cowboy.

I have always had a passing interest in WWI aviation history and Showcase Presents: Enemy Ace, has brought that back to me of late. I started looking around the net reading articles about WWI aircraft and people again. While skimming a wikipedia article on Manfred von Richthofen, I noticed that a Red Baron movie is coming out this year. It’s a European production that plays a little loose with the facts but it still looks to be a first-rate film nonetheless. One of the things that stood out is that Lena Headey of Terminator: the Sarah Conner Chronicles fame has a significant role in the film as Nurse Kate. It will be interesting to see her in a softer role after her turn as the hardcore, kick ass mom.


Red Baron Shots:



In a sick sense of simpatico, I had just finished reading an Enemy Ace story of a puppy falling to it’s death when the news story of a marine killing a puppy by throwing off a cliff showed up in the news… scary… and sad…


-Swinebread

Bands I Missed: the Donnas

What’s that I hear? Why, it sounds like rock & roll. I’ve missed it so.

How come this all-girl, hard rock band isn’t more popular? I don’t know. But they sure can jam.

Maybe they’re the female Ramones, the inspire everybody and get none of the credit except by a few in the know…

And up until recently I didn’t know, but now I do.

The Donnas, listen and be amazed.



-Swinebread

Justice League: The New Frontier

Using the “Justice League” title with “The New Frontier” is somewhat of a misnomer as Darwyn Cooke’s original comic dealt with the transition from the Golden Age of superheroes to the Silver and the period just before the creation of the Justice League of America. But the Justice League is a recognizable brand and tying this project to that brand makes sense from a marketing standpoint.

But is it any good? Yes, it is good. I was a little worried because the online chatter had been mixed, however, I realized after watching JLTNF that most folks who were disappointed wanted something else and not Darwyn Cook’s amazing work. What they wanted was some sort of tie-in to the Justice League cartoons, this is simply crazy as the New Frontier story could never connect to those shows because it’s set in the 1950s and it's different in theme to those shows.

The story is very faithful to the original comic, but it does drop most of the mini-plots to focus in the main thrust of the story, that thrust being the rise of a new era of heroes and a threat to human existence on the planet. The story was so faithful in fact that there weren’t any surprises for those of us that have read the New Frontier comic book. So, the film’s enjoyment comes from seeing a great story animated, with excellent voice acting. It would be interesting to hear reactions from folks that haven’t read the original.

There are a few things to keep in mind. Much of JLTNF focuses on lesser-known characters in the DC Universe. The big three, Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman, have supporting roles. The main storyline focuses around Hal Jordan and the Martian Manhunter. The New Frontier is infused with events and the ethos of the 1950s and very early 1960s. Not knowing anything about the time period could reduce someone’s enjoyment (I’m thinking about you Dana Perino). This movie is certainly for the older crowd as suicide, murder, and horror figure into the plot of the film.

It’s a good film and despite some of it’s darker elements. The New Frontier gives a fresh take on the concept of heroism and what it really means. Many of the topics from the show resonate and that’s part of the appeal beyond the amazing artistic style. The idea that some shadowy crap is going on but at the same time there is still great hope for a new future truly resonates. That’s part of the brilliance of Justice League: the New Frontier.


Here is what I liked in no particular order (spoilers):



Darwyn Cooke’s original drawing style and designs are intact and look wonderful when animated.

I like the way Cook draws women and, by extension, how they appear in this film. They’re my kinda’ sexy.

The Martian Manhunter is great character. I never knew much about him before but both the comic and the movie have peeked my interest. He’s a great combination of sci-fi and noir.

Now we have a good reason for the new look Batman.

I like the Lovecraftian elements. It’s almost like the age of the Superhero finally overcomes its pulp origins with The New Frontier.

They kept the nod to John Henry in and I appreciated that.

I enjoyed the voice acting

The 1950s look of the story really helps convey how exciting the dawning of the silver age was.

I bought the cheap, single DVD version and was surprised by some good extra features like a Justice League doc, and commentary tracks.

Wonder Woman’s invisible plane bit is pure genius.

The “not so good” side of the 1950s is touched upon.

Events seem more connected in the film than in the comic.


Here is what I disliked in no particular order (spoilers):

Something is a little off with the Hal Jordan/Green Lantern storyline but I can’t quite put my finger on it.

Why didn’t The Martian Manhunter just impersonate one of the astronauts instead of showing up at the last minute and trying to ride the rocket from the outside?

I don’t think this film works well cross culturally.

I would have liked animated sequences rather than static images for the end speech.

Sometimes the horror aspects and Cooke’s style don’t quite work together. (Although, I think they work better here in the film than the comic)

Trailer:


WB's site for the film here


-Swinebread

March 1st is National Pig Day

Spider-Ham is in Hog Heaven on National Pig Day!

-Swinebread