Per gli appassionati dei Fumetti o Comics della Marvel ecco un’interessante collezione di 247 Immagini di copertine, personaggi e azioni. Un ottimo spunto per la realizzazione di un Blog o Siti Web, ma anche come Background o WallPaper degli stessi o del desktop.

Leggi tutto l’articolo, guarda e fai il download di Marvel Comics WallPaper.

Informacijos ir kompiuterių amžiuje mes esame užsivertę įvairiais daiktais, kuriuos kartas nuo karto vis reikia įkrauti, t.y., pradedant mobiliuoju telefonu, kurių šeimoje būna tikrai ne vienas, iki nešiojamų kompiuterių, mikrofonų ar fotoaparatų ir t.t.  Daugelis šių prietaisų pakrovėjų yra skirtingi, todėl įsigijus naują prietaisą, senasis įkroviklis paprastai išmetamas. Yra ir tokių, kurie neturi įpročio atsikratyti nebereikalingų daiktų, nes „o vdruk prireiks“. Tokių žmonių namuose galima būtų rasti turbūt dešimtis įkroviklių.  

Todėl man gana keista, kad tik dabar atsirado universalūs įkrovikliai. Kaip teigia „Green Plug“ ir „WiPower“, universalus žaliasis įkroviklis tiktų visiems bevieliams įrenginiams. Pajungus prietaisą į „Green Plug“ pakrovėjo jungtį, „Greentalk“ protokolas nuskaito prijungto prietaiso lustą, kad galėtų nustatyti maitinimo tinklą, reikalingą jam pakrauti.

Tačiau yra didžiulis „bet“. Tam, kad būtų galima naudoti universalų kroviklį, gamintojai turėtų montuoti „Greentalk“ lustus į savo įrenginius, o ne siūlyti individualius adapterius vis naujai gaminamam modeliui.

Panašią technologiją siūlo ir „Powermat“, kuri vizualiai galbūt net patrauklesnė nei prieš tai aprašyta. „Powermat“ įkroviklis – padas, ant kurio padėjus prietaisus, jis juos įkrauna taip pat bevieliu būdu. Vienu metu galima įkrauti 3 mobiliuosius telefonus. Taip pat galima įsigyti ir kubą su 8 skirtingomis jungtimis.

By Jeph Loeb (writer), Ian Churchill (artist)

The Story: Red Hulk gets betrayed by his Code Red team, including Thundra.  Thundra betrays the Code Red team for Red Hulk.  Red Hulk tries to kill Red She-Hulk.  Red Hulk decides to not kill Red She-Hulk.  Red Hulk is blind.  Red Hulk is not blind.  Red Hulk is a bad guy.  Red Hulk is now not so much a bad guy.  Oh, and Red Hulk and Thundra go to a barbershop for a haircut, possibly.

What’s Good: Hmm…  Well….  Let’s see…  What’s good, what’s good…  You know, this issue had a very nice variant cover by Ed Mcguinness that makes this look a lot like an issue of X-Force and I’m a big fan of X-Force.  Although, they only show up for three pages toward the end, so it’s actually pretty misleading.  Still, nice cover…

…Okay, yeah, that’s all I’ve got.

What’s Not So Good: A lot of people criticize Jeph Loeb’s Hulk for being the comic book equivalent of a Jerry Bruckheimer or Michael Bay film: light on the plot, heavy on the action.  While it’s a fairly apt assessment, I actually don’t mind that fact.  I’m a believer that you need to have different types of stories out there to service different types of fans.  Often enough, you even must have different types of stories to service the same fan, who might just be in a different mood than the day before.  There are plenty of times when I just want to turn off the ol’ brain and put a stop to the constant solving of mathematical equations and medical breakthroughs that threaten to overwhelm me.  (Okay, what I really want to put a stop to is my constant cataloging of every superhero who’s ever been an Avenger and my inner debate over whether or not Magneto was Xorn or Xorn was Magneto or whatever.  But I digress.)  A good “popcorn comic” like Hulk is just what I need when I want to decompress.  However, this issue ends up really maxing out the dumb on the dumb fun scale.

Loeb’s script seems to be an exercise in stream of consciousness.  Allegiances switch during the course of story for no other discernible reason except that it’s been three pages and we need a twist.  The logic behind the Punisher and Deadpool betraying the Red Hulk are just lazy, and so is the sudden decision behind Rulk’s letting Red She-Hulk live.  I understand that we need to have her stick around because, well, I don’t really know why we need to have her stick around but she has big boobs and she’s red and a hulk so there are reasons.  However, Loeb just, seemingly, arbitrarily changes Rulk’s mind mid-battle.  It’s a clumsy development and, like much of the issue, seems forced and false.

Clumsy is also a great description of Loeb’s ham-handed meta-reference to the rationale behind the Red Hulk’s choice of Code Red team-members.  Just because the writer points out a glaring hole in his plot does not make the plot hole okay.  It’s almost insulting when he then follows this by trying to explain away said plot hole with the sloppiest possible justification I’ve read in a long time.  Basically, the Punisher, Deadpool and Crimson Dynamo were picked to be on the team because they’re a bunch of Yentas.  I wish I was joking.  Speaking of Yentas, when the heck did Elektra become so talkative?  Has Loeb ever read an issue of Daredevil?  I was left with the impression that he simply needed someone to speak certain dialogue and was left with Elektra.  Then again, maybe she was a Skrull.

There’s not much to say about Ian Churchill’s artwork here.  It’s certainly not bad by any stretch, but it never seems to fit the subject matter.  Where artists like Arthur Adams and Ed Mcguinness have managed to channel Loeb’s bigger-than-life characters and events into mouth-watering visuals, Churchill’s cartoony style comes off at odds with the plot. Red Hulk specifically loses much of the weight that made him appear so imposing in previous issues.  Under Churchill’s pencil, the figure almost looks silly.

Conclusion: Look, I know that no writer, no matter what we might think, ever aims to write a bad story.  I do think that a writer has a sense of responsibility to make his plots make sense and work within its established parameters.  Sadly, Hulk #17 does almost none of these things.  Nice variant cover, though…

Grade: F

-Joe Lopez

A couple weeks ago I was on TransFM, hosted by the wonderful Ethan St. Pierre. Elektra, the fabulous co-host happens to be one of my best friends. The beginning is sort of tough to listen to, as it takes me a while to get over my nerves (this was really my first time on the radio for an extended interview), but it was a great experience and a tremendous learning experience.

Here’s the interview.

Occasionally I’ll hear some piece of music from the mainstream that totally sticks in my head and obsesses me to the point where I ultimately end up in HMV buying it whilst trying to maintain an air of independent coolness that will convince the person behind the till that although I’m buying something that’s been bought by thousands and millions of kids who just don’t know music, I’m still somehow better and more knowledgeable and more hip than any old casual purchaser. Hah! Deal with that long sentence.

This record is such a case – okay, so it might not be from the complete MOR pop mainstream, but it got what I believe is known as ‘heavy rotation’ on major radio stations upon its release. Those major radio stations were the ones that polluted my ears during my working days at the time, and this song was a huge relief amongst the relentless crap every time it came on. Ol’ Dirty Bastard’s voice is so ugly, so rough, I love it – and I love the fact that such a dirty and sleazy song as this was all over Radio One for a time (even if they did have to refer to the artist as just ODB in order to fend off the inevitable flood of complaints)…

By the way – Ol’ Dirty Bastard; RIP. He seemed to live life to the full (to put it mildly).

My Wu-Tang Clan anecdote: I saw Raekwon and pals performing at an All Tomorrow’s Parties festival a couple of years ago, and a few memories stay with me:

• The total rip-off they got away with by playing snippets of Wu-Tang faves for a minute or so before playing out a huge gunshot sound, shouting at the crowd for a bit and then moving on to the next track. Then ultimately descending into nothing more than a sales drive for Wu-Tang t-shirts from the stage.
• How inappropriate the sleazy, dirty hip-hop of Wu-Tang seemed to be when played out to a room full of pasty-faced indie kids (in which group I consider myself firmly a member). The intense embarrassment of seeing flower-skirted indie girls attempting to shake their booty when invited up on stage.
• A brief, drunken conversation with a couple of Wu-Tang entourage who were stalking through the crowd during the performance, selling mix CDs. I purchased a couple, and attempted a manly slap on the back whilst informing the guys that they were ‘great sallesshmen’. What did I expect to be the outcome of this lame performance? That I would get invited to hang out with the group? That I’d become an honorary Wu-Tang? Alcohol makes you do funny things.

El Sindicato Mexicano de Electricistas (SME) y Fernando Amezcua, secretario del interior entregaron copias  a los medios de comunicación de los estados de cuenta de varias dependencias federales  y empresas privadas que tienen adeudos millonarios por el servicio de energía  eléctrica, ya que mantenían un “trato especial” :

Secretaría de Hacienda y Crédito Público (SHCP) muestra que esta dependencia adeudaba más de 3 millones 266 mil pesos.

La coordinación de administración fiscal de SHCP mantenía una deuda por más de 9 millones 117 mil pesos.

El área de cobro foráneo de la SHCP presentaba un adeudo de 722 mil pesos.

Secretaría de Agricultura, Ganadería, Desarrollo Rural, Pesca y Alimentación (grupo pozos) 321 millones 308 mil pesos, que se suman a la sección de bombeo del lago de Texcoco,  cuya deuda era de 45 millones 167 mil pesos + 998 mil pesos de oficinas que no se encuentran en el edificio sede.

Poder Judicial de la Federación el monto del adeudo de luz era de 7 millones 60 mil pesos.

El Consejo de la Judicatura Federal sumaba un total de 8 millones 163 mil pesos  .

La Procuraduría General de la República (PGR) presenta una deuda acumulada de 3 millones 650 mil pesos.

La Presidencia de la República, con más de 5 millones 801 mil pesos sin pagar.

Elektra, 5 millones 500 mil pesos.

Salinas y Rocha, 3 millones.

Nextel, 11 millones.

Aurrerá, 8 millones 281 mil pesos.

Suburbia, 8 millones.

Radio Móvil, 15 millones

Todos estos adeudos fueron permitidos por la dirección de la paraestatal.

http://www.jornada.unam.mx/2009/11/18/index.php?section=politica&article=009n1pol&partner=rss

The waiting and wondering is over. Our eyes have seen the glory of the full line-up of Leader characters for the inaugural set of the Marvel Superstars Trading Card Game, and it is good. We have a Halle Berry.

Zap! Storm is joining Wolverine and Professor X as the first Leaders of the X-Men team affiliation.

Ouch! Ghost Rider burned a path to the final Marvel Knights spot on the Leader list. Hot times ahead.

How perfect! Mr. Fantastic will be joining his invisible mate as a Leader in the Marvel Premier set, which means that the Avengers will be left with only Hulk and Iron Man to represent.

Wow. The line-up is set, and it is simply magnificent. Here are the final 15 announced Leader characters. Get ready for a cardboard party unlike anything mankind has ever seen:

Avengers: Hulk and Iron Man

Fantastic Four: All four.

Marvel Knights: Blade, Elektra, and Ghost Rider.

X-Men: Professor Xavier, Storm, and Wolverine.

Villains: Abomination, Dr. Doom, and Magneto.

TV Azteca,  es una empresa de televisión mexicana establecida en 1993 por Grupo Salinas como consecuencia de la privatización de la televisora estatal Imevisión.Produce servicios de programas e información, transmitiendo en la televisión, y en Internet, siendo la segunda cadena de televisión más importante en México y competencia directa de Televisa.

Fue fundada el 18 de julio de 1993, después de permanecer más de veinte años bajo la administración del Estado, el Canal 13 de televisión pasa nuevamente al sector privado. Junto con el 13 y su red nacional, son “desincorporados” el Canal 7 con sus repetidoras en la República y el Canal 2 de Chihuahua. Aunque Imevisión también poseía el canal 22 del Distrito Federal, este no entró en el paquete de privatización y fue entregado al Conaculta.

Para efectuar la “desincorporación” el gobierno tiene que regularizar la situación legal de los canales, pues muchos de ellos, especialmente los de la red 7, tienen el estatuto de permisionados lo cual impide formalmente su venta debido a que la legislación de la materia señala que solamente los canales concesionados pueden cederse en operaciones de compraventa.

Crea, entonces, una serie de empresas parestatales —la más grande llamada Televisión Azteca— para que se conviertan en concesionarias de los canales que conforman las redes 13 y 7. Al final pone a la venta dos cadenas nacionales, una con 90 canales (la del 13) y otra con 78 (la del 7).

La privatización de los que fueran canales del Estado se lleva a cabo después de un largo y complicado proceso de licitación pública en donde participan cuatro sociedades empresariales y en el cual resulta elegido para efectuar la compra el grupo Radio Televisora del Centro, encabezado por el empresario Ricardo Salinas propietario de la cadena de venta de artículos electrodomésticos Elektra.

El grupo adquiriente paga alrededor de 650 millones de dólares por un “paquete de medios” que incluye, además de las cadenas de televisión, la cadena de salas cinematográficas Compañía Operadora de Teatros S.A. y los Estudios América, ambos de propiedad estatal. En adelante, el sistema de canales que alguna vez fue conocido como Imevisión llevará el nombre de TV Azteca.

TV Azteca ha crecido con la compra de empresas televisoras en America Latina, y alianzas con empresas internacionales del medio como Disney y TV Globo, entre otras.

Su mayor accionista es el empresario mexicano Ricardo Benjamin Salinas Pliego dueño del Grupo Salinas y de la Familia Sada.

Aš ir vėl apie žalią spalvą. Tik šįkart ne apie stogus, o apie žaliąją energetiką, t.y., draugišką gamtai elektros energijos gaminimo būdą.  Vėjo jėgainės yra modernus ir atsakingas būdas pasigaminti elektros, todėl nuolat atkreipiu dėmesį į naujienas apie vėjo energiją.

Bendrovė „Helix Wind“ pradėjo bandymus Pietų Kalifornijoje norėdama išsiaiškinti ar jų vėjo turbinos galėtų aprūpinti mobiliųjų telefonų bazines stotis elektros energija. Įmonė tapo žinoma po to, kai pristatė savo mažo pajėgumo, t.y., apie 16 km/h, vėjo turbinas elektros rinkai.

Šį bazinių stočių turbinų bandymą bendrovė vykdo bendradarbiaudama su mobiliojo ryšio operatoriumi „Core Communications“. Tyrimo metu taip pat aiškinamasi ar elektros turbinos būtų pajėgios gaminti perteklinę energiją, kurią galima būtų parduoti skirstomiesiems tinklams.

Jeigu pavyktų pagaminti pakankamai perteklinės energijos, bazinių stočių operatoriai gautų papildomų pajamų, o elektros pardavėjai – papildomos, ir svarbiausia, „žaliosios“ elektros resursų.

Pirmąsias tokias turbinas planuojama pastatyti jau kitais metais. Šiuo metu P.Kalifornijoje yra 3500 bazinių stočių, o tam, kad būtų patenkintas vartotojų poreikis, ateinančiais metais planuojama pastatyti dar 1000.

Belieka tikėtis, kad mums neteks šių naujovių laukti keletą metų, nes sprendimas iš tiesų racionalus.

Hugo von Hofmannstahl was a writer born in Vienna. I got to know his work from the operas of the German composer Richard Strauss.

My recent visit to Vienna, brought back to me memories of the operas and his work, and today I want to share some elements of his masterpiece, Elektra. Hofmannstahl took Sophokle’s “Athenian”5th century B.C.  Elektra and turned her into a “Vienese” Elektra of the beginning of the 20th century.

Quoting from the book “Hugo Von Hofmannsthal: The Whole Difference” Edited by J. D. McClatchy, published by Princeton University Press (2008):

Their opera opened at the Koenigliches Opernhaus in Dresden on January 25, 1909, and was an immediate, if controversial, success around the world. Its complex psychologizing cannot disguise its raw brutality. Its single act hurtles through a series of confrontations towards the fatal dance of triumph at its conclusion,as Elektra celebrates her brother Orestes’ murder of their mother Clytemnestra in revenge for her killing of their father Agamemnon. The text is a delirious rhapsody of anguish and violence; the music erupts with demonic force.”

I now want to introduce  Elektra’s monologue, when she is calling on her father in a state of delusion.

The monologue is sung by the unforgettable Hildegard Behrens, who died earlier this year at the age of 72. The performance in the Metropolitan Opera of New York is conducted by James Levine (1994). You have to be patient to watch and hear and read the words, but the nine minutes are worth it!

The following synopsis is from the Metropolitan Opera of New York

Libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal, adapted from his play
World premiere: Dresden, Court Theater, January 25, 1909

Mycenae, ancient Greece. In the courtyard of the royal palace, servant girls comment on the wild behavior of Elektra, the eldest daughter of the late king Agamemnon. After they have left, Elektra appears, dressed in rags (“Allein! Weh, ganz, allein”). She is obsessed with thoughts of her father’s murder at the hands of her mother, Klytämnestra, and her mother’s lover, Aegisth. Calling on her father’s spirit, she renews her vow of vengeance. Her tirade is interrupted by her younger sister, Chrysothemis, who urges Elektra to give up her obsession with revenge so they both can lead normal lives. Elektra mocks Chrysothemis, who runs off as noises from within the palace announce the approach of Klytämnestra.

The queen staggers in. Drugs, loss of sleep, and fear of retribution for her husband’s murder have made a wreck of her (“Ich habe keine guten Nächte”). Surprised that Elektra will talk to her, she appeals to her daughter’s intelligence and demands to know what she needs to do to find peace of mind. A sacrifice has to be made, Elektra replies. When Klytämnestra fails to comprehend what her daughter is hinting at, Elektra screams at her that it is Klytämnestra herself who must die and that she and her banished brother Orest will kill her (“Was bluten muss?”). Klytämnestra is horrified, but when her confidante runs in and whispers something, her mood changes abruptly. Laughing maniacally, she disappears into the palace.

Her behavior is explained when Chrysothemis reappears with news that Orest is dead. Stunned, Elektra at first refuses to believe her, then tells her sister that she must now help kill Klytämnestra and Aegisth. Chrysothemis runs off in terror. As Elektra frantically starts digging for the buried axe that killed Agamemnon, a stranger appears. She asks him what he wants and he calmly replies that he has been sent to bring news of Orest’s death (“Was willst du, fremder Mensch?”). But when Elektra reveals that she is Agamemnon’s daughter, he tells her Orest lives. Suddenly servants appear, kissing his hands and feet. Frightened, Elektra asks who he is. The dogs in the courtyard know me, the stranger replies, but not my own sister? Crying his name, Elektra gives in to her unspeakable joy and declares she has lived only to avenge their father’s murder. When Orest’s guardian tells him the queen waits inside, the men enter the palace.

Elektra waits anxiously and when a scream is heard she knows Orest has killed their mother. Aegisth arrives, having heard the news of Orest’s death, and Elektra lights his way into the palace with sarcastic courtesy. A moment later he reappears at a window, crying for help, before he is dragged inside and killed. While tumultuous confusion spreads through the palace and courtyard, Elektra, in a state of ecstasy, begins a triumphal dance. Chrysothemis returns but Elektra doesn’t hear her and at the climax of the dance falls dead.”

Susan Bullock as Elektra

Tim Ashley’s review for the Guardian back in 2003, is illuminating, and I therefore take the liberty to quote it almost in its entirety.

“……..Yet beneath some of those early comments lurked distorted vestiges of the truth. The opera had hit raw nerves. Each age reinvents classical mythology in its own image. Strauss and Hofmannsthal were holding up a mirror to their times and many didn’t like the reflection. A study of pathological hatred and self-perpetuating violence, Elektra forms a grim prophecy of the convulsions that dominated the 20th century and continue into the 21st.

The myth of Electra forms part of the vast classical saga of the house of Atreus, whose nominal founder, after a row with his brother, Thyestes, killed the latter’s children and served them up to him to eat. Thereafter, the gods compelled various members of this tribe to take one life for another, then to be murdered in revenge in their turn.

The Atreidan myth is the only subject common to all three extant Greek tragic dramatists, though they approached it in different ways. Aeschylus’s Oresteia focuses on chains of retribution and guilt. Euripides’ Electra ironically questions belief in a metaphysical system that encourages crime only to punish it. Sophocles’ Electra, centring on the heroine’s grief for her father and her overwhelming desire for Orestes to return to shed his mother’s blood, is widely regarded as the most psychologically advanced of Greek tragedies though Sophocles still presents the Atreides as motivated by divine commandments.

Hofmannsthal wrote his own Elektra in 1903 in response to a request for a version of Sophocles’ from the Berlin-based director Max Reinhardt, and what he came up with was groundbreaking. Fastidious, intellectual and precociously erudite, Hofmannsthal’s head was full of both the naturalistic theatre of Ibsen and Strindberg, and the murky psychological probings of symbolist poetry. His response to Reinhardt’s request was to haul Sophocles into the present.

Much has been made of his ditching of many overt trappings of Greek drama, such as turning Sophocles’ single-minded chorus into a gaggle of squabbling maids. Infinitely more important, however, was his decision to jettison the myth’s metaphysics in their entirety. There is no divinely imposed pattern of retribution, no Furies to goad and torment his Orest, and the characters are consequently at the mercy of their own uncontrollable psyches and irrationalistic obsessions. Myth becomes the embodiment of psychological extremism as Hofmannsthal collides with his contemporary Freud.

Elektra has often been cited as the first play to take Freudian theory on board. In some respects this is erroneous, since the only psychoanalytic work Hofmannsthal knew at the time was Studies on Hysteria, co-written by Freud and Joseph Breuer and published in 1895. Elektra does, however, anticipate not only psychoanalysis, but other developments in psychiatry.

Hofmannsthal depicted Elektra as an obsessional neurotic long before Freud went public with his analysis of the condition. She and her mother are locked in a horrific co-dependency. Elektra’s relentless thirst for blood fuels Klytemnestra’s guilt, which she seeks in turn to assuage by turning to her daughter in the hope of some sort of solace. Terrified by nightmares of Orest’s return, Klytemnestra asks Elektra to interpret and cure her dreams. In Hofmannsthal, however, unlike Freud, there are no cures: Elektra tells her mother her nightmares must continue until the axe falls and extinguishes her life.

Throughout, both sexual motivations and repression dominate. Elektra has sacrificed her sexuality to keep her obsession alive, and describes, in a scary passage, how she gave birth, parthenogenetically, to “curses and despair”. Hofmannsthal, far from emphasising Freud, admitted that his principal influence was Hamlet. Both play and opera form an examination of the neurotic bifurcation between fantasy and action.

Nowadays, it is impossible to think of Hofmannsthal’s text without Strauss’s music, though the play proved influential in its own right, opening the way for later dramatists to reinvent classical myth as psychodrama. Jean Anouilh’s Antigone and Sartre’s The Flies are among its many successors. The playwright most strongly influenced by Hofmannsthal was Eugene O’Neill, who first read Elektra in the mid-1920s, and was inspired to write Mourning Becomes Electra as a result.

Strauss, meanwhile, saw Elektra during its opening run in the winter of 1903-04 and promptly contacted Hofmannsthal with a view to turning it into an opera. It wasn’t until 1906 that they could actually start work together on Elektra, by which time, Strauss, to Hofmannsthal’s alarm, began dithering. He wanted a libretto on a different subject, he told Hofmannsthal, who quietly held firm. Once work on the score was begun, Strauss, usually the most fluent and confident of musicians, began to suffer from composer’s block.

Strauss was a secretive man, and his chirrupy letters to Hofmannsthal make no mention of the trauma he was going through, namely that the text was triggering deep anxieties deriving from his own ambivalent attitude towards his parents. Strauss’s father, a domineering man, who encouraged his son’s compositions but repeatedly disparaged the results, had died in 1905, an event which in turn caused Strauss’s mother (whose mental health was never less than precarious) to have a massive breakdown, necessitating confinement in a sanatorium.

The subject matter of Elektra touched every raw nerve in Strauss’s being and explains why he took so long over the score. Those same raw nerves, however, also spilled into every bar of the opera’s music and also explain the torrential savagery of the emotions it recreates in the listener. Elektra is at once terrifying and elating, and to experience it is to go beyond the limits of reason into a world of naked, uncontrollable emotion. The collaboration between Strauss and Hofmannthal lasted for more than 20 years and became one of the most famous partnerships in operatic history, though neither was to produce work of such dreadful intensity again…….”

The Marvel Superstars Trading Card Game will elevate certain myths above the rest. These will be called Leader characters and they will be the basis for your personal strategy. So far we have learned the identity of eleven out of fifteen leaders in the inaugural Marvel Premiere set. Today we will run down the list and flash a bit of eye candy to get you all excited. As you can see above, the rivalry between Professor X and Magneto will be renewed on Legendary Cardboard…

Hulk and Abomination will be shaking card tables near you…

Iron Man soon shall soar in a whole new stratosphere…

Wolverine will be ripping shreds in enemy trading cards everywhere…

Human torch will be setting things ablaze…

Elektra will be roundhousing on your very own kitchen table…

Blade will be avenging demons in tournament halls…

Dr. Doom will be getting diabolical, while Thing clobbers some cardboard of his own. Pick your Leader Character and get ready to swing on some enemies, Marvel Superstars has a lively list of legends lined up to choose from with five more left to be announced. Cardboard combat will never be the same again.

Freelance illustrator that digs to draw, kickback and have some fun creating! -The Sanchez

Follow “Sanchez” on Twitter.

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Not that I needed anymore coffee, but the VeloColour-restored CCM bike hanging on the wall draws me in, along with the Elektra machine.  Ultimately, the bike is better than the coffee.

Yes indeed it is true. Jennifer Garner will be available to build your deck around. Elektra Natchios has been revealed as one of the first fifteen Leader Characters in the Marvel Superstars Trading Card Game. Strategy sessions will never be the same.

The smoldering crimson ninja will not be required to defeat her cardboard foes singlehandedly, however. She will have support in the form of several different versions of herself and a slew of significant other characters from the Marvel movies. Here is the official text from Upper Deck introducing Supporters:

Supporter Characters

As a game progresses, you can call supporters to your side. Like leaders, supporters can attack and intercept enemy characters. In addition to the cost in its upper right corner, each supporter has: A health value above and to the right of its text box. If a supporter accumulates damage equal to or greater than its health, it’s eliminated. A force value to the left of its health, which is the amount of damage it deals in a fight.

It remains to be seen how many separate versions of Elektra we will be turning sideways on our kitchen tables and tournament halls. We can only guess which superheroes will show up to battle by her side. For now, we are simply basking in the red glow of her Superstar status. Elektra is a Leader.

En la sección de cómics voy a empezar una nueva sub-sección, llamada “Antagonistas”. Esta sub-sección hablará básicamente de algo que me encanta, el antagonismo, siempre me han gustado más los personajes antagonistas que los mismos héroes machaca culos. No significa que no me gusten los protagonistas, simplemente es un aprecio especial a sus adversarios, un cariño antropológico, incluso mitológico, puesto que sin ellos los propios héroes no serian nada, de hecho, “los malos” siempre hacen “al bueno”, me basaré en algo esencial, Superman no sería nadie sin su Lex Luthor, haciéndole muchas veces plantearse su vida contra el crimen.

Mi cariño hacía los antagonistas también puede ser derivado de algún tipo de  trauma infantil, es posible, pero me da igual…

Bien, pues empezaré a hablar de Bullseye, el enigmático enemigo de Daredevil con una grandiosa puntería y la capacidad de matar con cualquier objeto, absolutamente cualquier objeto.

Bullseye, de nombre Lester y de apellidos desconocidos creció con una familia bastante desestructurada, su padre alcohólico y su madre prostituta, dependiendo lo que leas del personaje tendrá un hermano, como en “Grandes éxitos de bullseye” escrito por Daniel Way. Aunque no se aclara demasiado el origen de Bullseye puesto que al personaje le encanta mentir para jugar con la psicología de las personas. Lo que si está mas o menos claro es que Bullseye mató a su padre, no está claro como, si quemando su casa con el dentro o asesinándolo mientras dormía dibujándole en la frente una diana que luego tomaría de símbolo.

Lester creció y empezó a enfocar su vida al béisbol aprovechándose de sus habilidades,  a los dieciséis años ya era profesional pero descubrió que no era lo suyo, el béisbol era demasiado pacífico para la perversa y perturbada mente criminal de Lester. En su último partido, Lester mató a un bateador con un lanzamiento por simple aburrimiento, llevándole este acto a un correccional militar por ser menor.

Cuando salió del correccional se alistó al ejército. Allí, se convirtió en uno de los mejores soldados, condecorado y alabado por todo el mundo, hasta que en una misión en las selvas de Nicaragua logró hacerse con un cargamento de droga perteneciente a narcotraficantes Nicaragüenses para venderlo a EE.UU., esto llegó a los oídos de Punisher, que intentó evitarlo, tras una pelea en la que el castigador casi acaba muerto, Bullseye decidió convertirse en el mejor asesino de la historia.

Bullseye fue contratado por Kingpin para asesinar al abogado Matt Murdock (Daredevil), que estaba puteando cosa mala al señor Wilson Fisk (Kingpin). Cuando Bullseye iba a realizar el trabajo, nada problemático, matar a un abogado ciego estaba realmente chupado para Bullseye, el hombre sin miedo se lo impidió y Lester, el mejor asesino de la historia fue derrotado por un tipejo armado con bastones.

Este hecho hirió el ego de Lester hasta casi llegar a la demencia. Se obsesiono tantísimo con Daredevil que entrenó, se castigó y le persiguió hasta la locura, literalmente, un tumor cerebral cambio su percepción de la realidad e hizo que viera a cualquier persona como Daredevil. El hombre sin miedo salvó la vida a Bullseye llevándole a un hospital para que le operasen el tumor (¿no resulta extraño que te cagas? Pero bueno, eso al fin y al cabo es la famosa doble moral de los superhéroes)

Después de librarse del molesto tumor,  Bullseye acabó en la cárcel y bastante cabreado por el hecho de que Daredevil le hubiese salvado la vida y encima sin poder agradecérselo con una puñalada en su corazón. Así que se escapó de la prisión para montarse en el autobús de la venganza, primera parada, Elektra.

Elektra ahora trabajaba para Kingpin sustituyendo a Bullseye en su labor y también como mejor asesino del mundo. Bullseye no podía consentir que Elektra Natchios, la chica griega experta en artes marciales, le sustituyera como mejor asesino, quizás podía hacer la vista gorda respecto a que Kingpin no le quisiera contratar, pero aún debería ser el mejor asesino del mundo. Por lo tanto, acabo con la vida de Elektra atravesándola con uno de sus sais. Daba la puta casualidad que Elektra era la chica de Matt Murdock, ósea que Daredevil se cabreo un huevo.

Bullseye y Daredevil se odian con verdadera cólera, en realidad tienen sus razones, Bullseye no para de putearle, pero el hombre de rojo siempre le revienta el culo y por circunstancias morales o externas nunca consigue matar a su acérrimo enemigo, aunque, en realidad es reciproco. La verdad es que debe ser bastante frustrante.

Como toque final a esta gilipollez: Cada novia que se ha echado Matt Murdock o Daredevil ha sido asesinada por Bullseye, tremenda putada.

¿Ahora entendéis a lo que me refería que “el malo” siempre hace “al bueno”? Daredevil se plantea cientos de veces su vida por culpa de Bullseye, dos almas, dos humanos, con diferentes percepciones del mal y del bien. Un hombre que intenta hacer el bien, pero sus acciones solo desembocan en terribles consecuencias. El mítico y catalogado por mi como “El síndrome del superhéroe” (algún día hablaré de esto en profundidad) que también sufrimos las personas  de carne y hueso en momentos de nuestras “vidorras”.

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Silencio ardiendo.

Helando los ruidos.

Otra vez lo opaco. 

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MC5 (Michigan, USA)
Kick Out the Jams
Elektra, 1969

Discovery: Pretty much everywhere, I just haven’t got around to listening to the whole album until now. From Monitor Mix to Live at Sin-é to the really bad guitar magazines I used to read as a young teenager. Everywhere.

History: I didn’t have any complaints about the fact list on Usher so here are (MC) 5 facts about this band:

1. MC5 is short for Motor City Five. It reflects their roots in Detroit (otherwise known as Motor City or Motown), vaguely resembles the name of a sports car and also echoes the Dave Clark Five, who were at the peak of their popularity in 1964–1965.

2. The track ‘Kick Out the Jams’ is included in the 2008 video game Guitar Hero World Tour. The guitar tracks were re-recorded but the original vocal track from Rob Tyner remains.

3. There was a lot of controversy relating to the title track, which starts with, “And right now it’s time to… KICK OUT THE JAMS, MOTHERFUCKERS!”. The record company executives wanted to edit it out of the album, while the band and manager John Sinclair were firmly opposed to this. “KICK OUT THE JAMS, MOTHERFUCKERS!” was originally printed on the inside of the album cover, but was soon pulled from stores. Two versions were eventually released, both with censored album covers, with the uncensored audio version sold behind record counters. Elektra dropped the band after the MC5 took a full-page ad out which consisted solely of a picture of lead singer Rob Tyner saying “Fuck Hudson’s” with the Elektra logo, after Hudson’s refused to stock the album.

4. Kick Out the Jams was recorded live at Detroit’s Grande Ballroom over two nights: Devil’s Night and Halloween, 1968.

5. On the TV Show ‘Friends’, Rachel Green wore an MC5 t-shirt in Series 9, Episode 18 – “The One With The Lottery”.

Review: The intro to this album is so dope:

“Brothers and sisters, the time has come for each and every one of you to decide whether you are going to be the problem, or whether you are gonna be the solution! You must choose, brothers, you must choose. It takes five seconds, five seconds of decision. Five seconds to realize your purpose here on the planet. It takes five seconds to realize that it’s time to move. It’s time to get down with it! Brothers, it’s time to testify and I want to know, are you ready to testify? I give you a testimonial: THE MC5!”

Anyway, this is just like an energy BOMB. It sounds awful and there aren’t really any songs, but it really doesn’t matter. It’s got a message and awesome guitar work and the delivery has “we don’t give a fuck” written all over it. I’m sure there’ll be days when filth like this (and I mean ‘filth’ in the best possible way) is all I want to hear, but I think it’s like a lot of punk music- you sort of had to be there.

Practical information: Kick Out the Jams