El fin de semana fue la convención de cómics aquí en Monterrey y compré muchos cómics muy baratos, a $5 pesos, menos de 50 centavos de dólar americano, claro que para esto tuve que comprar más de diez, pero me surtí de cómics de Punisher y Uncanny X-Men, uno de estos de la serie de los número doscientos veintitantos. El Thor de la foto andaba en la convención, era un indito con peluca rubia, bien nórdico se veía el Odinson Región Cuatro.

En mi trabajo me bloquearon muchas páginas, pero no sé porque ahorita si pude entrar al blog, así que aprovecho para subir la lista.

MARVEL CÓMICS

Amazing Spider-Man 613 SS MU

Avengers the Initiative 030

Criminal the Sinners 02

Dark Avengers Ares 02 SS MU

Dark Tower Fall of Gilead 06

Dark Wolverine 080 SS MU

Enders Shadow Command School 03

Fantastic Four 573

Guardians of the Galaxy 020

Halo Helljumper 05

Hulk 017

Immortal Weapons 05 SS MU

Incredible Hercules 138

Invincible Iron Man 020 SS MU

Marvel Adventures Spider-Man 057

Marvel Previews 076

Models Inc 04

Ms Marvel 047 SS MU

New Avengers 059 SS MU

New Mutants 07

Powers 01

Secret Warriors 010

Son of Hulk 017

Son of Marvel Reading Chronology

Spider-Man Clone Saga 03

Thor Giant-Size Finale

Ultimate Comics Avengers 04 SS MU

Uncanny X-Men 517 SS MU

Web of Spider-Man 02

Wolverine First Class 021

Wolverine Magazine 04

X-Men Forever 012

DC CÓMICS

Arkham Reborn 02

Batman the Brave and the Bold 011

Billy Batson and the Magic of SHAZAM 010

Blackest Night 05 SS MU

Detective Comics 859 

Gotham City Sirens 06 SS MU

Green Lantern 048 SS MU

Justice League Cry for Justice 05 SS MU

Justice League of America 039 SS MU

Justice Society of America 033

Superman Secret Origin 03

Superman 694

Teen Titans 077 SS MU

Web 03

Wonder Woman 038 SS MU

Worlds Finest 02 SS MU

Madame Xanadu 017 SS MU

Northlanders 022

Unknown Soldier 014 SS MU

Free Realms 03

Starcraft 06

Wildcats 017

Lobo – Highway to Hell 01 SS MU

OTRAS COMPAÑÍAS

Cyberforce Hunter Killer 03 SS MU

Heroes 154 MU

Star Trek Nero 04 SS MU

Hercules The Knives of Kush 04 SS MU

Tarot Witch of the Black Rose 059 SS MU

Archie 603 SS MU

Project Superpowers Meet the Bad Guys 04 SS MU

Uncle Scrooge 385 SS MU

Buck Rogers 06 SS MU

Beasts of Burden 03 SS MU GS

Creepy Quarterly 02 SS MU GS

The Goon 33 SS MU GS

Usagi Yojimbo 124 SS MU GS

Despite most of the people I know having huge pull lists this week, mine was actually pretty small. Just five books: Invincible Iron Man #20, New Avengers #59, Uncanny X-Men #517, Ms. Marvel #47, and Giant-Size Thor.

Spoilers under the break. If you don’t want to know yet, don’t read.

Invincible Iron Man #20: This was my favorite comic this week, though I knew it would be going in, so I’m probably a little biased. This is the title I’ve been most impatient about waiting for the next one for, and I get a little giddy whenever I realize it’s going to be Iron Man week. (There may be a little dance. I’m neither confirming or denying this.) I love what Fraction has been doing with the series, and while I’ll admit the idea of Tony erasing his mind had be a little wary, I trusted Fraction and so far he hasn’t let me down. Despite the fact there is currently nothing in Tony’s head, this comic still managed to give us a good look inside of it, and I liked that, both with the message he left behind and what I’m guessing is some kind of wacky coma dream. I will say I kind of wanted to smack Pepper for her whole “why is Tony the one who gets to live” thing, but that’s probably just me bringing my own feelings about the characters in more than anything else. (It still felt in character and right for her.) I also liked the summary of the series so far in the back. Well done. (And this doesn’t really matter one way or another, but I’m ready Captain America Who Is Not Bucky to get himself all reborn and stuff…)

New Avengers #59: First off: hell yeah, you don’t @#$^ with Luke Cage. (Hey, Osborne — stop @#$^’ing with Luke Cage. I’m getting nervous over here…) Despite the fact that I’m not the world’s biggest Bendis fan (though I can tolerate him more than some other current writers), I’ve actually really been enjoying this series. I can also admit to myself (and the Internet, apparently) that a lot of that is simply because seeing Clint (I hate calling him “Ronin”) and Mockingbird together again makes me giddy. (However, as previously touched upon, needs less Bucky-Cap. Do not like.)

Uncanny X-Men #517: I like Rogue. I went as Rogue for Halloween for three years in a row. Rogue was awesome in this one. I  really like what Fraction has been doing with Magneto (there Fraction goes, being The Man again), and I’m curious to see where he goes from here. But I just have to say, Namor — Buddy, I get that you’re the King of Atlantis. You’re special. That’s great. But could you still wear pants more? Please? I have never been a fan of your speedo, and that has not changed.

Ms. Marvel #47: This was kinda adorable, and I literally laughed out loud when Spider-Man claimed to be Wolverine. Peter Parker with nothing to say was great, and I never in a million years would’ve thought that “cute” would be the word I’d describe for a date between Parker and Carol Danvers, but I’m just going to go ahead and say it here. That was cute. The Marvel talent-inspired business names was a nice touch as well. (Also, Ms. Marvel ending soon gives me my sad panda face. Why do you want to give me sad panda face, Marvel?)

Giant-Size Thor: I liked it, but I can’t honestly think of a single thing to say about it. I’m sure that’ll change in the next Thor, when there will be Dr. Doom. Granted, it’ll probably just be a lot of Doom fangirl babbling, but I’ll have something to say. (Yes, I just called myself a Doom fangirl. What of it, huh?)

‘Crepúsculo’ lidera indicações ao People’s Choice Awards

Robert Pattinson e Kristen Stewart disputam troféus de melhor ator e atriz.
Cerimônia de entrega do prêmio está marcada para dia 6 de janeiro.

10/11/09 – 20h25 – Atualizado em 10/11/09 – 20h25

Os protagonistas da série “Crepúsculo” foram indicados ao prêmio (Foto: AP)

O filme “Crepúsculo” brilhou entre os indicados ao People’s Choice Awards, anunciados nesta terça-feira (10). Os três protagonistas da produção, Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart e Taylor Lautner concorrem a troféus da premiação, que homenageia os astros favoritos do cinema, da TV e da música.

A série de filmes “Crepúsculo”, que lança este mês seu segundo longa, “Lua nova”, também foi indicada na categoria melhor franquia, entre suas sete indicações.

O prêmio, que resulta do voto do público, será entregue no dia 6 de janeiro, no início da temporada de premiações de Hollywood.

Pattinson, que interpretar o vampiro Edward Cullen na série “Crepúsculo”, foi indicado a melhor ator de cinema, enquanto Stewart vai disputar a estatueta de melhor atriz de cinema. Lautner, que tem 17 anos, concorre na categoria melhor ator revelação.

No último ano, o People’s Choice Awards divulgou a lista de indicados 11 dias antes do lançamento de “Crepúsculo”. O filme acabou conquistando uma bilheteria de US$ 384 milhões no mundo inteiro, tornando-se um dos maiores fenômenos de 2008.

Desta vez, “Crepúsculo” vai disputar o prêmio de melhor franquia com “Harry Potter”, “Star Trek”, “Transformers” e “X-Men”.

Música

Nas categorias musicais, a cantora Britney Spears recebeu indicações a melhor artista pop e melhor cantora, competindo com Taylor Swift, recordista de vendas de 2008.

Sandra Bullock, que estrelou a comédia romântica “A proposta” depois de dois anos fora das telas, foi indicada ao prêmio de melhor atriz de cinema.

Programas de TV sobre vampiros, como “True blood” e “The vampire diaries”, também se deram bem entre os indicados, concorrendo com atrações veteranas, como “CSI” e “House”, e adolescentes, como “The hills” e “Gossip Girl”.

Os vencedores do People’s Choice Award serão escolhidos pelo público por meio do voto na internet. A votação termina dia 8 de dezembro.

http://g1.globo.com/Noticias/Cinema/0,,MUL1374007-7086,00-CREPUSCULO+LIDERA+INDICACOES+AO+PEOPLES+CHOICE+AWARDS.html

This an iconic X-men cover that I redrew for the Covered Blog only to have it rejected within a few hours. Oh well. I’m posting it here for the four three people that will care…

A Luwie pick

Right, so LT has raised the stakes somewhat with her choice of Gavin… not bad, LT, not bad. So it’s time to haul out the big guns and speaking of big guns, my choice this week is Hugh Jackman. He is Wolverine. And for some reason, we all think Wolverine is not only the most awesome of the X-Men, but also the hottest of all the super-hero characters out there.

People Magazine voted him the sexiest man alive in 2008 and I’m not going to argue with People… they’re always accurate. His only drawback is that he is Australian but then no-one’s perfect…

Tom Addison reinterpreta para Covered la clásica portada que en 1938 realizara Joe Schuster para Action Cómics #1

Bienvenidos una vez más a su guía semanal del procastineo, un mini-dossier, con lo más selecto y novedoso del océano informativo del Twitter de Zuplemento (infieles unanse al club), esta edición viene más jugosa y grasienta que pincho e’ perro en la entrada al universitario…

Nov 16 “El Manga es una Plaga“, Entrevista al pran de los pranes, Moebius, en el diario español “El País” . En la entrevista relata entre otras cosas porque dejó de fachar, y si me parece que los 65 años es una buena edad para dejarla ;D

Nov 16 Le Fox Fantastique, fabulosa galería de Chriscoh con arte de layouts y storyboards de la anticipada pelicula animada “The Fantastic Mr Fox“.

NOV 17 Floyd Farland: Citizen of the Future, el primer cómic publicado por Chris Ware entre 1986-87 y reproducido en su totalidad en link del título, les advierto que su manera de dibujar en esa época era muy distinta a  la actual, con su característico estilo diagramático, sin embargo creanlo que vale la pena chequearlo.

NOV 18 “Remote Control Jimmy” de Spümco, esto es una rareza, dos duros de la animación reunidos para hacer un cómicbook, de John K y Mike Fontanelli y editado en el año 1996.  La segunda página (arriba) es un homenaje a Milt Gross, una mermelada, de pana que si tienen poco tiempo y solo pueden revisar un link… este es.

NOV 20 Covered, este magnífico blog se ha dado la tarea de incluir en cada post una portada clásica de cómics americanos y su versión moderna o remasterizada por artistas más nóveles. En la imágen de arriba Sol Brodsky parodia la portada del primer episodio de “X-Men” de Jack Kirby (me dio demasiada risa la imágen de Beast).

NOV 20 Terrible Yellow Eyes, Una colección de ilustraciones dedicada a Maurice Sendak y que hace tributo a su cuento infantil “Where the Wild Things Are” adaptado recientemente al cine.

NOV 20 Ware en portada, Prometo que después de esto no mencionaré más a Chris Ware en 2 semanas, pero esto era impelable por su alto nivel de “eye candy”, las 19 portadas (so far) de las “Acme Novelty Libraries” en tamaño gigante :O

NOV 20 “¿¿qué?? yo no le pago la droga a nadie!!” (I) y (II), El genial historietista argentino Ernán Ciriani versiona a Winnie the Pooh en uno de sus recientes cómics “El bosque de los 100 saques“.

NOV 21 El Horror antes del Horror, el número 5 de Tebeosfera está dedicado al género de Horror, e incluye un extenso y bien ilustrado artículo sobre los orígenes de la historieta de terror.

NOV 22 Inglourious Basterds Comic Book Covers 5 faux comicbook covers con el estilo vieja escuela de Jack Kirby, para una ilusoria adaptación al cómic de la cinta de Tarantino.

Hasta la próxima.

]]> http://mutantaday.com/2009/11/25/artist-watch-adam-hughes/ Wed, 25 Nov 2009 05:57:55 +0000 mutantaday http://mutantaday.com/2009/11/25/artist-watch-adam-hughes/

Because we can’t wait for Comicon in January, Here’s a little eye candy from artist Adam Hughes who will be in attendance!

mmhmm, electric hawk!

..how we miss thee serenity

meow..

double meow

]]> http://travisblock.wordpress.com/2009/11/24/sight-sounds-of-the-00s-in-the-year-2000/ Wed, 25 Nov 2009 02:05:31 +0000 travisblock http://travisblock.wordpress.com/2009/11/24/sight-sounds-of-the-00s-in-the-year-2000/

In hindsight, Y2K made us look like fools.

Think about how trivial it all was.  We were afraid of a software mistake.  How trite in light of all that happened after it.

We survived Y2K and went along with our lives.  Music and film very much did the same, ignoring the coming storm that appeared in the guise of Napster.

Rap metal, post-grunge and teen pop were all the rage.  Justin Timberlake hadn’t yet proven that he was funny and talented.  Britney Spears wasn’t quite yet a train wreck.  For some reason, Fred Durst was still cool and Creed was selling millions of records ripping off Pearl Jam by way of pseudo-Christian grunge.

In film, the first glimpse of the coming onslaught of the superhero genre came with the first X-Men.  Tom Cruise continues his Mission:Impossible franchise, his career and behavior still on the rails, while his future director and savior Ben Stiller began his long slow crawl to mediocrity with Meet the Parents.

For both film and music, 2000 was a progression of the 90’s.  Whatever the new sound was going to be (and there were several sounds that would define the decade) it wouldn’t quite appear, though there were some rumblings in the underground.    But, for the time, there was no reason to change anything.

Times were good.

There wasn’t a President to rail against, a war to protest, or an economy to crush us.

We weren’t prepared at all for what was to come.

Pretty girls and kittens plus Transformers (sorry the image wouldn’t fit), what could be better?

Reading an interview with said pretty girl, Horror Queen Suzi Lorraine and The Architect of the Transformers, former Marvel Writer Bob Budiansky!

Click here for a sample of two new articles in appearing on Metal Machine.net

Suzi Lorraine

She’s just too good to be true. A girl who is into heavy metal, horror movies, and a model?  A girl like that only exists in our dreams…or is Suzi Lorraine. Straight out of New Jersey, Suzi has modeled all over the world in magazines like GQ and Esquire. Suzi is also an accomplished actress and writer, whose had articles published in magazines like Gorezone and Horrormania and just co-wrote her first feature, a horror comedy called Won Ton Baby. Want to know about it along with what brought Suzito the “dark side” of entertainment.

How does a girl like you get into horror and Alice Cooper?

Primarily because of my older brother’s influence. When I was little, he was into rock and roll and scary movies and I remember hearing the “Welcome to my Nightmare” album by Alice Cooper and it freaked me out. I was little so I was so scared but so enthralled by it at the same time.  I would run to my room and then come back and ask him “can you play Steven again?” So I think I was imprinted with all things horror very young.   We used to watch scary movies like Halloween, Dead and Buried, Pieces, you name it. You know, the more I talk to horror fans, a lot of them started watchinghorror movies at a younge age, so I’m wondering if there’s something to that imprinting theory…

Want to read the rest? Click here.

Bob Budiansky, The Architect of the Transformers

Bob Budiansky has had a pretty good career. He was an accomplished penciller on Ghost Rider, created the character Sleepwalker, and served as editor on such titles as Daredevil, Fantastic Four, and the entire line of books starring a little known character named Spider-Man. He was responsible for a couple of significant initiatives bringing many (including myself) into comics. The first initiative of note was creating the wildly popular Marvel Trading Cards that so many others and I collected in the nineties. And in the eighties he was a significant architect of The Transformers, writing both the comics and biographies on the packages of the toys.

Can you talk about the politics of writing a toy comic book?

Most importantly, everything I wrote had to be approved by a representative of the toy company that owns the property, in this case Hasbro. As Hasbro rolled out new toys, I was asked to feature them in the comic book, which I did. I also kept in mind that the audience was for the Transformers toys as I wrote the stories. No one from Hasbro ever asked me to specifically write for boys of approximately the ages of 6-12, but common sense dictated that was the group to whom the toys were being primarily marketed, and so I fashioned stories that I thought would have appeal to that group.

Want to read the rest click here

And for a bonus…my review of the Astonishing X-Men Motion Comic written by Joss Whedon

Which one is your favourite?

These excellent supercute superheroes are by JSalvador and you can buy them for $20 each over on Etsy.

A ideia inicial de escrever para o Judão era sobre um nerd na Mostra Internacional de Cinema de São Paulo. Mas acontece que há duas coisas: 1) eu não sou nerd e 2) não estava a fim de assistir nada da Mostra. Calma, que essa é uma técnica de prender a sua atenção, afirmando duas coisas que podem polemizar. Então vamos lá.

Eu sou nerd, claro. Mas não do jeito que as pessoas estereotiparam os CDFs. Gosto de Lanterna Verde, X-Men, Star Wars e De Volta para o Futuro. Mas também gosto de Wong Kar-Wai, Pearl Jam e Monet. Tenho toda uma teoria sobre o gostar das coisas, sobre colocar as pessoas em categorias pré-determinadas, mas vou te poupar. O fato é que há algum tempo passei a quebrar certos paradigmas e pude tirar proveito de mais coisas. Não jogo RPG e por isso não sou CDF? Gosto do diretor Jean Paul Civeyrac e por isso sou cabeçudo? Sei pelo menos cinco versões diferentes da morte de Thomas e Martha Wayne, por isso sou nerd? Acho o Nirvana sensacional e isso faz de mim um grunge? Que seja. Pode me colocar a tag que quiser. Vou continuar curtindo cada uma dessas coisas, sem precisar defender uma ideologia específica, baseada em coisas tão banais e divertidas como música, HQ e filmes.

Essa foi a primeira vez em três anos que não trabalhei na Mostra ou em algo relacionado a ela. Por isso não queria assistir a nenhum filme da programação. Era muito agito e só queria assistir um filme em paz. O único que assisti foi Bastardos Inglórios. Em 2007, fiz assessoria do evento, ocasião em que ‘conheci’ o Borbs. Até então, só sabia o nome que assinava os textos do Judão. Por isso, o lobby que fiz, para que a equipe desse estimado site ganhasse credenciais, foi justamente por achar que mereciam.

Ouvi algumas chacotas, mas sempre mantive minha opinião. O motivo: leia o parágrafo anterior. Simplesmente segui a lógica: se eu era leitor do Judão e via filmes da Mostra [não só os blockbusters, mas os 'cabeçudos' também], a probabilidade de existir mais pessoas nessa condição era grande. Nesse ano, uma das pessoas que já trabalhou comigo mandou-me um email, com o release da MTV anunciando a parceria com o Judão. O email: “Você tinha razão. Eles venceram”.

‘Eles’ não, cara-pálida. Nós. E não nós, os nerds, apenas. Pegue Rock Band dos Beatles, por exemplo. São dois mundos que ‘colidem’. Repare na ascensão e reconhecimento de filmes como Spider-Man, X-Men e afins. Até as moças que praticam yoga ‘venceram’, já que há jogos específicos para a prática, no Wii. Acho que o caminho da ‘vitória’ segue lado a lado a trajetória do avanço tecnológico nos últimos anos. Quando o mundo deixou de olhar para Bill Gates como estereótipo de nerd e passou a ter Steve Jobs como seu símbolo, começamos a trilhar a vitória. E pelamor, sem essa de entrar na pendenga Microsoft x Apple e defender seu sistema operacional, dizendo que o verdadeiro geek-nerd-CDF usa é Linux. O Bill Gates só tem cara de bobo e a palavra ‘geek’ sempre foi associada a isso, a alguém meio bobo, meio estranho [assim como 'punk', para arruaceiro].

Liberte-se das categorias em que te colocaram. Aceite que alguém ‘nerd’ nunca tenha lido Dark Knight, Watchmen ou Akira. Assista comédias românticas com sua guria, para dar risada e vê-la sorrir. Vá para praia sem iPod [ou celular!]. Viaje para algum lugar que não tenha energia elétrica e aprenda a montar uma barraca. Só não faça algo porque alguém esperou que você fizesse. Que a Força esteja com você.

______________________

Texto publicado originalmente no Judão.

Um pouco atrasada (a lista é até 15.11.2009, sem a estreia, portanto, de “Lua Nova”), mas hoje, por mais uma semana, continuamos renovando o post publicado a respeito do total de público este ano: quantos espectadores teve seu filme favorito entre os que foram exibidos em 2009 ? São somente as ordens de grandeza aproximadas, de acordo com os posts sobre Público e Arrecadação aqui publicados (os colchetes indicam que o filme ainda está em exibição no grande circuito com possibilidades de crescimento e subida na lista).

Acima de 9 milhões e 200 mil espectadores

- A Era do Gelo 3

Acima de 6 milhões

- Se Eu Fosse Você 2

Acima de 5 milhões e 100 mil espectadores

- Madagascar 2 – A Grande Escapada

Acima de 4 milhões e 500 mil

- Harry Potter e o Enigma do Príncipe

Acima de 4 milhões de espectadores

- Batman – O Cavaleiro das Trevas (total 2008 + reexibição 2009)

Acima de 3 milhões e 100 mil

- X-Men Origens: Wolverine

Acima de 3 milhões

- Anjos e Demônios

Acima de 2 milhões e 500 mil

- Uma Noite no Museu 2

Acima de 2 milhões e 300 mil

- A Mulher Invisível

Acima de 2 milhões e 200 mil

- Velozes e Furiosos 4

Acima de 2 milhões e 100 mil

- Os Normais 2
- Transformers: A Vingança dos Derrotados

Acima de 2 milhões

- O Curioso Caso de Benjamin Button
- Up – Altas Aventuras [*]

Acima de 1 milhão e 800 mil

- 007 Quantum of Solace
- Crepúsculo
- Divã

Acima de 1 milhão e 700 mil

- High School Musical 3 – Ano de Formatura
- Se Beber, Não Case [*]

Acima de 1 milhão e 600 mil

- Marley & Eu

Acima de 1 milhão e 400 mil

- A Proposta
- O Dia em que a Terra Parou
- A Verdade Nua e Crua [*]
- Monstros vs. Alienígenas

Acima de 1 milhão e 300 mil

- Sim, Senhor
- Quem Quer Ser um Milionário?
- O Exterminador do Futuro: A Salvação
- Tá Chovendo Hamburguer [*]

Acima de 1 milhão e 200 mil

- Sete Vidas

Acima de 1 milhão e 100 mil

- Bolt Supercão
- Operação Valquíria

Acima de 900 mil

- Um Faz de Conta que Acontece
- Presságio
- 2012 [*]

Acima de 800 mil

- Força G
- O Sequestro do Metrô 123
- Ele Não Está Tão a Fim de Você

Acima de 700 mil

- Bastardos Inglórios [*]
- G. I. Joe: A Origem do Cobra

Acima de 600 mil

- This Is It [*]
- Hannah Montana: O Filme
- O Menino da Porteira

Acima de 500 mil

- Vicky Cristina Barcelona
- A Pantera Cor-de-Rosa 2
- Inimigos Públicos
- Distrito 9 [*]

Acima de 450 mil

- Um Hotel Bom Pra Cachorro
- Queime Depois de Ler
- Watchmen – O Filme
- Dragonball Evolution

Acima de 400 mil

- Noivas em Guerra
- Rede de Mentiras

Acima de 350 mil

- O Leitor
- Minhas Adoráveis Ex-namoradas
- Star Trek
- Anjos da Noite: A Rebelião
- Evocando Espíritos
- Arraste-me Para o Inferno
- Besouro [*]

Acima de 300 mil

- Gran Torino
- Coração de Tinta
- 17 Outra Vez
- Substitutos [*]

Acima de 250 mil

- Austrália
- Salve Geral!
- Coraline e o Mundo Secreto
- Jogos Mortais 6 [*]
- Te Amarei Para Sempre
- Jean Charles
- A Montanha Enfeitiçada
- A Troca
- Sexta-Feira 13

Acima de 200 mil

- Uma Prova de Amor
- Os Fantasmas de Scrooge [*]
- Surpresas do Amor
- Código de Conduta [*]
- Bruno
- O Corajoso Ratinho Despereaux
- Marido Por Acaso
- Alma Perdida
- Foi Apenas um Sonho

Acima de 150 mil

- Pagando Bem, Que Mal Tem?
- Novidades no Amor
- Dia dos Namorados Macabro
- Eu Odeio o Dia dos Namorados
- Milk – A Voz da Igualdade
- Carga Explosiva 3
- O Grilo Feliz e os Insetos Gigantes
- A Orfã
- A Festa do Garfield
- Falando Grego
- Intrigas de Estado
- Halloween – O Início
- Os Delírios de Consumo de Becky Bloom

Acima de 120 mil

- Tinha que Ser Você
- Duplicidade
- Che
- Dúvida
- Entre os Muros da Escola
- Pequenos Invasores
- Efeito Borboleta: Revelação
- Gamer
- Perdido pra Cachorro

Acima de 100 mil

- O Contador de Histórias
- Amantes
- 9 – A Salvação
- Matadores de Vampiras Lésbicas
- Força Policial
- Passageiros
- Trama Internacional
- Jonas Brothers 3D – O Show
- Eu Te Amo, Cara
- Recém-Chegada

1896: Se considera como el nacimiento del cómic con la aparición de la primera tira cómica, The Yellow Kid creada por Richard Fenton Outcalt que además introdujo los “globitos” como recurso para que sus personajes se expresaran.

1929: Surge el primer intento de comercialización del cómic con Funnies No. 1, sin nada de éxito.

1930: Las tiras cómicas ganan popularidad, con personajes como Anita la Huerfanita, Popeye, Dick Tracy, antecesor indirecto del Cómic Negro y creado por Chester Gould, Flash Gordon de Alex Raymond y el más exitoso de todos, Tarzán, creación de Edgar Rice Burroughs.

Vídeos de Dick Tracy

Vídeo de Flah Gordon

Tarzán en el cine

  1931: Aparece por primera vez Superman en el fanzine Science Fiction: The Vanguard of Future Civilization #3, creación del escritor Jerry Siegel y el dibujante Joe Shuster. La idea les pareció buena pero no tuvieron éxito cuando trataron de comercializarla ya que las editoriales pensaban que un personaje tan poderoso no podría tener éxito.

Superman en el cine:

SuperMan (clásica)

SuperMan Returns

1933: Famous Funnies es considerado el primer cómic. Fue una re-impresión de varias tiras cómicas, en formato de comic book.

1936: Se crea el primer superhéroe tal y como los conocemos, aunque irónicamente no tiene ningún poder sobrenatural. The Phantom dibujada por el artista Lee Falk, aparece como tira cómica en los diarios norteamericanos y cuenta la historia de un hombre que utiliza un disfraz púrpura y un antifaz para proteger su identidad y así poder combatir el crimen. Porta dos pistolas calibre .45 y monta un corcel blanco.

1937: Se lanza Detective Comics No 1, posteriormente la compañía toma las iniciales para crear DC Comics, una de las casas editoriales más importantes actualmente.

1938: El cómic comienza a tomar cada vez más importancia, pero es hasta que Joe Shuster y Jerry Siegel presentan en Action Comics #1 (junio de 1938) a Superman que nace la Época de Oro.

1939: El segundo superhéroe en cobrar importancia es Batman, creado por Bob Kane y presentado en mayo de 1939 en Detective Comics #27. Aparecen por primera vez juntos dos de los superhéroes más importantes de todos los tiempos, Batman y Superman, en la portada de New York Worlds Fair Comics #1, aunque nunca aparecieron en una misma historia hasta 1952. Se crea Timely Comics, que a la postre se convertiría en Marvel Comics, con el lanzamiento de La Antorcha Humana (no confundir con Johnny Storm) y Prince Namor: El Sub-Marinero.

Batman en el cine:

Batman Begins

Batman: El caballero Oscuro

La Antorcha Humana en la película “Los 4 Fantásticos”

1940: Para esta década el personaje más popular es Capitán Marvel (Shazam) cuya primera aparición se dio en Whiz Comics (Número 1 en portada y 2 en interiores), publicado por Fawcett Publications. Posteriormente DC obtiene los derechos y crea la revista Shazam! cuyo primer número corresponde a febrero de 1973.

1941: Se lanza el primer cómic con contenido bélico, haciendo aparición el superhéroe más patriótico de todos los tiempos, Capitán América, en Captain America #1 creación de Jack Kirby y Joe Simon. Otra inclusión importante es la de Wonder Woman de William Moulton Marston (creador del detector de mentiras).

1952: Aparece en Superman #76 la primera historia de Superman y Batman juntos escrita por Edmond Hamilton y dibujado por Curt Swan.

1954: El New York Worlds Fair Comics cambia su nombre a Worlds Finest Comics. En el #71 de dicha serie Superman y Batman aparecen en la portada y se incluye una historia de los superhéroes juntos. A partir de entonces la revista se dedica a publicar exclusivamente historias protagonizadas por Superman y Batman, y desde ese momento el dúo se conoce extraoficialmente como World´s Finest (Los Mejores del Mundo) y aparecen varios crossovers en sus respectivas publicaciones.

La década de los cincuentas fue difícil para el Noveno Arte, ya que la censura Mcarthista afectó a todos los géneros del cómic y, con la conjunción de diferentes circunstancias termina una de las mejores etapas del Arte Gráfico Secuencial. La Época de Oro termina, lamentablemente, con la publicación del libro Seduction of the Innocent del psiquiatra austriaco Frederick Wertham donde planteaba la teoría ultraconservadora anti-cómic de que éstos inducían a los jóvenes a cometer actos delictivos y atentaban contra la moral.

En consecuencia directa se crea el Comics Code Authority, un código para regir los contenidos de los comics donde queda estrictamente prohibido la aparición de temas sexuales, políticos o de violencia (de manera ilustrada o escrita) además también prohibía que personajes terroríficos aparecieran como protagonistas de comics. Por si no fuera poco, se crea The Comics Magazine Association of America, que regularizó los temas de varias revistas de terror, prohibiendo la aparición de sangre, tortura, vampiros, hombres lobo, lujuria, necrofagia, necrofilia, canibalismo, zombis y las palabras horror y terror.

1956: Durante los años subsecuentes a la creación del CCA, varias casas editoriales fracasan, desaparecen personajes importantes y las ventas bajan considerablemente. Es hasta que aparece Barry Allen, mejor conocido como Flash, que la industria da un nuevo respiro y nace oficialmente la Época de Plata del cómic. Otro acontecimiento importante es el lanzamiento de Fantastic Four el cual dio inicio a la denominada Era Marvel del Cómic. Marvel lanza personajes tan importantes como Spider-Man, X-Men y Daredevil entre otros.

Daredevil en el cine

Actualmente el Noveno Arte es uno de los movimientos más importantes, con gran número de personajes, corrientes, temas y autores renombrados. La industria del cómic ha evolucionado con el tiempo, convirtiéndose en uno de las formas de contar historias más populares, dedicando convenciones a nivel mundial, programas de radio, revistas especializadas, tiendas exclusivas y un largo etcétera.

Super Megafest 2009 – Framingham, MA

If you found yourself at the Sheraton Tara Hotel in Framingham, MA last weekend (November 21-22), chances are you were at Super Megafest. Super Megafest touts itself as New England’s largest Multimedia Fanfest. The convention indulges fans of all varieties and includes celebrity Q & A sessions, photo and autograph opportunities, and concerts.

The biggest draw of this year’s convention was, without a doubt, the celebrity guests. Among this year’s celebrities were:

Photo courtesy of JamesMarsters.com

James Marsters (Spike from the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer & Angel, Brainiac of the television series Smallville, Captain John Hart of the television series Torchwood, John in the movie P.S. I Love You). Visit the official James Marsters website.

Photo courtesy of Myspace.com/RealBrentSpiner

Brent Spiner (Data from Star Trek: The Next Generation the television series and movies, Dr. Brackish Okun in the movie Independence Day, Dr. Nigel Fenway of the television series Threshold). Visit the official Brent Spiner website.

Photo courtesy of RayPark.com

Ray Park (Darth Maul in Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace, Edgar of the television series Heroes, Toad in the X-men movie, Snake Eyes in the movie G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra). Visit the official Ray Park website.

Photos courtesy of LindsayWagner.com, Bionik.com & JaniceWhitby.com

Lindsay Wagner, Richard Anderson & Janice Whitby from the classic television series The Bionic Woman

Photos courtesy of Myspace.com/theofficialmickydolenzpage & PeterTork.com

Micky Dolenz & Peter Tork from The Monkees

Still not interested? Perhaps comics, collectibles or movies are more your thing. You can visit the dealers hall, boasting approximately 100 vendors, to pick up vintage comics, autographed photos, weaponry, custom fangs, collectibles for every fandom, and movies to round out your collection.

But wait, there’s more! Celebrity events like this year’s James Marsters & Peter Tork concerts, or the special dinner with Peter Tork made this year’s convention a fan highlight of 2009. Let’s not forget about the costumes, this is a fan convention after all. Super Megafest may be a small regional convention, but the fans are hardcore. Turn the corner and you will find yourself face to face with Batman from the television series, alongside Slave Lea and Saber Tooth.

Vader’s 501st New England Garrison was also in full force with a photo booth, accepting donations on behalf of Toys for Tots & The Jimmy Fund.

Vader's 501st New England Garrison

For this fan, Super Megafest 2009 was a great experience. I got a chance to make great new friends, meet some of my favorite celebrities, listen to good music and purchase some DVDs to add to my own collection. I am glad I stumbled upon this convention. Which brings up a point. I spoke to many attendees and did not find a single one that had been to the event before. We all happened upon Super Megafest by accident, or because we knew someone who was already aware of it. Though the event is in my backyard, this was the first I heard of the convention. Even friends who attend many fan events each year had no idea this convention existed. Why? A lack of marketing, guerilla or otherwise. In this sense, Super Megafest is their own worst enemy and that truly is a shame.

I applaud the effort to bring suburban fans together with the celebrities and artists they love. I sincerely hope more of these fan conventions pop up in smaller cities around the country. Admission tickets for the Super Megafest weekend range in price from $20 to $100. For more information on Super Megafest, visit the event website.

Today I will be presenting for your enjoyment (mockery?) the story of how Professor Charles Xavier was confined to a wheelchair. The first time. You know, back when he didn’t have a clone body or anything. (Honestly, what are the odds that you get a new, non-paralyzed body only to lose your legs again? But I digress…)

The story of how Xavier loses the use of his legs first appears in X-Men #20, published in May of 1966. This is old school X-Men, folks, when Hank was not blue, Scott spent all his time moping over how he could never be with Jean, and Jean herself had never died. Also, everyone wore really nice suits and sweater vests. (Classy!)

The comic opens with a bank robbery and the two men holding up the bank (one who is so obviously the Blob it’s ridiculous) are dressed in X-Men costumes.  You know, the old really unflattering blue and yellow ones that are not nearly as classy as a neat suit and a hat. Both of these “X-Men” are smoking as they rob the bank and the one who is not the Blob is holding a baseball bat. This is some high tech robbery.

However, it seems like the plans of the “X-Men” might be foiled because the bank vault has a time lock on it. Well, I guess it’s time to just take their baseball bats and go home. Or…

 
Oh yeah, totally not the Blob…

With the bank vault now open, the “X-Men” then start removing the giant sacks of money with dollar signs on them, as I assume happens in all bank robberies because this is what comic books and old-timey cartoons have taught me. The fully-armed security guard, however, knows enough about the X-Men to know they aren’t bulletproof (but not enough to know none of them look like the Blob) and proceeds to shoot the hell out of both of them.

Had this been the actual X-Men, they might be dead (for now…) however, the bullets bounce right off Totally-Not-Blob and go nowhere near the other guy, who I shall now dub Totally-Not-Unus-the-Untouchable. And then, just to rub in how useless humans are, Not-Blob crushes the security guard’s gun with his bare hands.

Heh. Cuddles.

With the gun doing no good, the cops of course decide to all jump on the two “X-Men” and beat them with nightsticks. Because if a gun is useless, a nightstick is so the best choice. Really, if someone can crush your gun with his bare hand then just jump on him and beat him with a stick. This is a completely logical choice if you enjoy breathing.

During the struggle however, the Blob does announce that he is, in fact, the Blob. This clues in the cops and they’re all “oh! no wonder he’s all huge and kicking our butts!” But of course, they also assume this means the Blob has joined the X-Men, not that the Blob is setting up the X-Men. Because all mutants are in cahoots. Evil cahoots. It’s a world that fears and hates them, people!

Oh, People of the Marvel U. How quickly you spot the obvious.

And then, naturally, the Blob and Probably-Totally-Unus-the-Untouchable drive off in the bank manager’s limousine.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch (er, Westchester…) Scott Summers has decided he’s just going to up and leave the X-Men because he’s dangerous. His eye blasts could kill someone, maybe even his secret love, Jean Grey. (Scott foolishly believes that if he kills her, she’ll be gone forever. Oh, the naiveté of youth.) And since Scott’s powers make him oh-so-very-dangerous, he’s decided he must leave the X-Men. Immediately. With nothing more than a note. I assume because any more time spent around the X-Men at all is just risking Jean’s life. Or Scott’s a total drama queen.

The smart money’s on drama queen.

In the meantime, the other X-Men are totally oblivious to Scott’s emo fit, and are watching the news to discover that they have just robbed a bank. Only they didn’t just rob a bank, so clearly, something is afoot! They alert Professor Xavier who already knows because he watches TV with his mind. Really. He claims to sit around “mentally scanning” newscasts. I guess everyone needs a hobby. Luckily, Xavier has just finished building a new Cerebro since the old one, as Stan Lee kindly points out in a little note, was destroyed by Magneto in X-Men #18. And Cerebro, being as high-tech as it is, comes with a projector so Xavier can show what he finds with it to the X-Men. Neat-o!

Shut up and watch Grandpa’s slideshow, kids.

By watching Cerebro’s awesome slideshow, the X-Men learn that those bankrobbers in X-Men costumes are, in fact, the Blob and Unus the Untouchable. Yeah, they needed Cerebro to clue them in. This especially angers Hank McCoy, because the last time they fought Unus, he promised he’d turn from his life of crime. How dare he claim to be a good guy now and as soon as he’s off the hook go back to being bad! It’s like he lied just to get away or something! Although Hank’s totally got the solution for this. He’s going to hit him with a ray gun. Booyah.

And then everyone suddenly realizes Scott’s not there. I feel a little bad for Scott that it took them this long to realize he’d run away from home. Although, I suppose in the X-Men’s defense, Scott is a pretty quiet dude. But now that they’ve learned he’s gone, they’re all worried. Or, you know, not. Because they’ve got better things to do it seems.

Xavier is unimpressed with Scott’s desperate cry for attention.

Okay, now while that last panel does advance the plot (sort of) it also teaches us two very important things that would otherwise be missed, were it not carefully dissected. First off, Bobby Drake has gone on vacation for this comic and has sent his identical cousin Bobby Blake in as a replacement. This is why identical cousins are very handy. The second is that Bobby Blake is really, really fast. Like Quicksilver fast. He manages to leave the room, find Scott’s letter, and return with the letter – which he’s already had the chance to read – in fifteen seconds. Impressive.

Actually, this time thing pops up in this comic a lot. I lost track of how many times something happens in “scant seconds.” These people are all really fucking fast.

So with the decision made that Scott’s departure will be ignored in favor of takin’ care of business, Xavier tries to use Cerebro (I assume very quickly) in order to discover who is behind this sinister plot to frame the X-Men as bank robbers. Only he can’t! Whomever it is is using mental shields so strong that Xavier can’t touch his mind. Uh-oh.

However, not knowing who they’re up against is not enough to stop the X-Men and they immediately head out to hunt down the Blob and Unus, and I assume hold them at ray-gun point and demand they tell the world they’re fake X-Men.

But if Xavier can’t track this diabolical, fake X-Men controlling mastermind, who can it be?

Could it be…Satan?

Yup, good ol’ Lucifer who, sadly, is not actually the same Lucifer of Devil fame. Because the X-Men fighting the Devil would be kinda rad. Maybe. (They’d probably manage to make it suck.) It’s another Lucifer. Totally different guy. (I wonder if they ever get their mail mixed up…) Anyway, when Lucifer isn’t shopping at Magneto’s Discount Evil Outfits Emporium, it turns out he spends his free time manipulating people to do his bidding. Lucifer then launches into a monologue that literally no one can hear but him (you’re only crazy if you expect a response from yourself, right?) about how he used his awesome manipulation powers to make the Blob and Unus decide to team up to be bankrobbing fake X-Men. And they call Deadpool nuts for breaking the fourth wall…

As it turns out, the Blob and Unus were working for different traveling carnivals (what is up with 1960’s comics and carnies? Is everyone a freaking carny?!) and ran into each other. Long story short, after a rather futile attempt at wrestling, they discovered they’re both mutants and decide to work together. However, we learn, as the audience, due to Lucifer’s helpful (crazy?!) monologuing that they didn’t really come up with this on their own but were influenced to do it by none other than Lucifer himself.

Unus is clearly a smart one. Who could’ve guessed Blob is a mutant?!

We’re then taken back to the present, where Blob and Unus are again robbing a bank in their fake X-Men uniforms. This time, however, a mopey Scott Summers happens on them and decides after a mini-existential crisis about whether he can stop a bank robbery in progress when he’s sworn to give up being an X-Man (really? this is an issue?), he decides yes, he can, and appears “exactly one minute later” in his full uniform. After being in a three-piece suit. Scott apparently also has super speed.

Cyclops calls Blob and Unus on their shit and points out that they are fake X-Men. Blob and Unus, however, decide to keep up their charade and insist that Scott is in on the whole thing and is just throwing a fit because he didn’t get to be leader of the bank robbery. Scott decides to prove that the other two are fake X-Men by stopping them. Of course, the crowd sees this and doesn’t attack Cyclops. Or at least they wouldn’t, were this not the Marvel U, where EVERYONE FEARS AND HATES MUTANTS ALL THE TIME. Yeah, mob attack time.

Scott really should’ve seen this coming.

While Scott is running for his life from an angry mob (oh, the life of an X-Man), Lucifer watches on, cursing the fact that only one X-Man showed up to be mobbed when he wanted all five there. You’d think someone with mind control powers would’ve made this happen immediately, but no. However, the X-Men do eventually show up to find the Blob and Unus, armed with their trusty ray gun.

Sadly, however, the ray gun has stopped working on Unus. Why? Because Lucifer is responsible for both this and Unus’s immunity. But wait, I bet you thought Unus was all untouchable because he’s a mutant, right? Yeah, me, too. Looks like we were wrong. (No, this is never explained. Just accept it as fact, people.)

So now the X-Men are left to face the Blob, Unus, and angry old ladies with umbrellas, all without the benefit of a ray gun. Fail.

Dammit, lady, back off with your umbrella!

The X-Men, however, are superheroes, and they can so handle that shit. They manage to escape the mob and defeat the Blob and Unus by making them fall through an overpass and land on a subway as its speeding off. This, naturally, pisses off the mob again since hey, property damage, but the X-Men run away before anyone can hand them a bill.

While (most of) the X-Men have been battling angry mobs, Jean Grey and Professor Xavier have stayed behind at the mansion, trying to discover the mysterious force behind all of this. Which they do, but only because Lucifer totally planned it that way. He hid himself so Xavier could break through his attempt to hide himself and find him. Totally makes perfect sense. And now that he’s been found out, he’s going to shoot himself out of his secret mesa lair. (Volcano lairs are sooo over.) Also, he has one more trick up his sleeve for dealing with Xavier, which leads to this:

He’s either just been attacked by Lucifer or is having a bad trip.

After having his brain set on (metaphorical?) fire, Xavier is rendered comatose. Jean immediately checks to make sure he’s alive and hears both his heartbeat and Xavier’s disembodied voice. And the voice wants to tell her a story. About Lucifer.

As it turns out, Xavier decided one day to take a trip to Tibet. While he was there, he stumbled upon a walled city that happened to have a lot of brainwashed people in it as well as people completely terrified of their leader, who lived in a giant citadel in the middle of the city. Xavier, naturally,  does some investigating and learns with his brain powerz that there’s alien machinery inside the citadel.

I do not know how telepathy told Xavier the citadel had alien tech. I really don’t. Does it have a mental signature? Is it made of actual aliens and he read their tiny green minds? I have no idea. But it does lead to this really trippy panel.

Oh, yeah. Definitely a bad trip.

So now Xavier has learned people are being controlled by someone living in a citadel with alien machines. Xavier figures out that some people are being mind controlled and some aren’t, so he forms a resistance with the non-mind control people. However, what Xavier doesn’t know is this man is Lucifer (Not Satan!) and Lucifer is onto Xavier. He decides to take over the mind of one of the people who has previously not been under mind control in order to make him attack Xavier and the rebels. Why he doesn’t just take over everyone at this point, I have no clue. You’d think if you were a tyrant who could control people’s thoughts you’d just take over everyone, but apparently, that’s not how Lucifer rolls.

Instead, he controls just one guy and has him cut loose a chandelier in hopes it’ll drop down and kill Xavier. Really. He doesn’t just turn everyone against Xavier and have them attack him. No. He mind-whammies one guy and tells him to drop a fucking chandelier. And it doesn’t even work!

Mutant Brain would be an awesome name for a punk band.

With the sinister chandelier-dropper stopped, Xavier then leads his merry band of rebels into some kind of alien tech maze (I think…). Lucifer sees this from his observation room and begins to make the walls start closing in all garbage-compactor style, and everyone freaks the hell out. Except Xavier, who’s already figured out that it’s alien tech and all he has to do is to find the power source and yank out some wires. Which he does. And of course, that goes really, really well.

 
Charles Xavier, forever the optimist.

But fear not! His mental scans of the alien death maze have told him there’s a hatch that’ll dump water on everything (convenient). While the rebels are periodically under water, Xavier is able to then un-flood the tunnel before anyone drowns (also convenient). Xavier is also now close enough to Lucifer to shield his band of rebels from Lucifer’s mind control, so he’ll be safe from any more dropping chandeliers.

To an untrained eye, Lucifer looks totally screwed. But he’s not afraid. He’s certain he’s going to take Xavier and his buds down. But first he has to make a call. To his alien overlord.

I’d think stopping an uprising at your doorstep would be a good move to make…

The alien overlord tells Lucifer that “Sector A” has been compromised and it’s time for him to move to “Sector B.” It doesn’t matter that the rebels have taken over the Tibetan citadel, because they’re done there anyway. They’ve got a bigger plan!

Okay, so let me see if I have this right. Lucifer is an alien. He’s part of an alien plot to take over the Earth with mind control. He once took over an entire city in Tibet. However, several years after the incident in Tibet, he needs to take over two total morons like Blob and Unus and make them rob banks? To flush out the X-Men? If he really wants to control the X-Men so badly, can’t he just mind control them? Or send one of those mobs they attract so easily after them? Where is the logic in making a couple of mutant carnies rob banks while wearing spandex? What the hell can he possibly gain from this? They’re an alien race who wants to take over the world with mind control, dammit!

Yeah, I just… Yeah. Anyway, Xavier and his legs.

Ouch…

Xavier tried to stop Lucifer, it failed, and Lucifer dropped a giant slab of rock on Xavier’s legs. This is, more or less, still the story they’re going with over at ol’ Marvel, which really, kind of impresses me. I mean, this whole story is pretty nuts and is usually the kind of thing they retcon the fucking hell out of. But if you go today to Marvel’s official Xavier bio, they still attribute the whole leg crushing thing to Lucifer and Xavier’s wacky Tibetan uprising. More or less…

However, Xavier’s run in with alien-not-Devil Lucifer didn’t just put him in his iconic wheelchair. It also led him to form the X-Men, knowing someday, the Earth might be under attack from this threat yet again!

I can’t get enough of these wacky 60’s hats…

Now, that day has come, and the Earth is under attack from none other than the coming of Dominus (according to Lucifer’s alien overlord anyway). And are the X-Men going to be all, “Screw you, people of Earth! Every time we try to help you, you shoot at us and beat us with umbrellas!” No, not the X-Men. They’re going to try to save the day. Because they’re heroes and that’s what they do. Just as soon as they put a fishbowl on Xavier’s head.

 
Um…okay?

Apparently, having a fishbowl on your head keeps the aliens from controlling your thoughts. And all this time, I thought that was a tinfoil hat. (No wonder the aliens keep controlling my brainz!) So now with his fishbowl hat firmly in place, Xavier can also tell them where Lucifer is hiding – the Southwest Desert! (This is a very specific location. And totally a place you want to wander around looking for aliens.) And how will they get there? In their brand new plane, of course! (First Blackbird appearance ftw!)

How will the X-Men stop Lucifer and the coming of Dominus? Will they???

Well, I guess we’ll never know, because it’s a cliffhanger. We’ll just assume that the entire Marvel U won’t be taken over by aliens. Because that would be silly.

Earth is screwed.

Rogue buries her finger in Wolvie's chest.

I told you we’re back. Another Superhero Throwdown regular, Rachael W., weighs in this week’s challenge with this sweet submission.

Rachael:

An experiment with four Copic Markers and more of an outlined style, then edited in Photoshop. I often have to restrain myself from saying this phrase on a daily basis to the important people in my life.

Make sure you check her own design site, RachaelWDesign. You won’t be disappointed.

COMICS!

We went to the comic book store today. It was exciting, obviously. I bought the new Buffy and the past 4 Angel issues. And MI bought some X-Men, old skool and manga versions!

And now we are watching some Big Bang Theory, like the great nerds we are.

Warren Ellis loves music! People, not so much

PREVIEW: VISIT Warren Ellis’s website/blog

This was news to me, but apparently when Warren Ellis isn’t lovingly insulting half the world on Twitter or writing some of the most acclaimed comics of the past two decades (Astonishing X-Men, Planetary, Transmetropolitan, The Authority, Stormwatch, etc.), he’s critiquing relatively unknown music for the benefit of the greater blogosphere.

For anyone who’s initiated in any way to Ellis’s writing (notorious for meticulously layered plots, course dialogue and biting social commentary), it comes as no surprise that he would have just as strong opinions on music in 2009 as he does on everything else he writes about.

In his latest blog post, some highlights he discusses include Zola Jesus (“a beautiful ghost moaning from the shadows of a bombed-out cathedral”), High Wolf (“wet lo-fi tropical dreamstates”), British Sea Power (“the best piece of classical building/soaring postrock I’ve heard since ‘Raise Yr Skinny Fists.’ I mean, flat fucking out…”) and Gary War (“A gorgeous gurgling gargoyle of a thing”).

Sometimes it’s just cool to know that a 40+ year-old misanthrope — who introduced you to higher science fiction and colored your opinions of establishment politics — digs some of the same genres of music.

To ape Ellis’s own words and his tendency to close with brevity: “It is really bloody good, yes.”

– Eric Vilas-Boas, Managing Editor

[NOTE: This post pertains to Warren Ellis the writer. There is another Warren Ellis, a musician and composer who has collaborated with Nick Cave, info on him here]

by Jason Aaron (writer), Yanick Paquette (pencils), Michel Lacombe (inks), Nathan Fairbairn (colors), and Cory Petit (letters)

The Story: Dr. Rot attempts to release the animal inside Logan.

What’s Good: Last month’s issue was fantastic and this month is basically just more of a good thing.  Aaron’s “Insane in the Brain” arc continues to be a fantastic horror comic; it’s twisted, creepy, and shockingly gory for a mainstream Marvel comic.

Dr. Rot continues to be an incredibly strong character.  This month, his gleeful insanity is all the more enjoyable, as he has a run-in with some ordinary Mafia thugs.  What ensues is a delightful collision of worlds, where contact with the more mundane criminal only makes Rot appear all the more outrageous.  Also, if that female mask Rot wore last month wasn’t bad enough, this time Rot actually has it adopt its own personality, as he talks to himself in a mirror.  I couldn’t figure out whether I wanted to laugh or take a shower after reading that.

I suppose that that’s really indicative of how this issue’s build upon last month’s groundwork: it just seems that little bit more outrageous.  Where last month saw a bloody sack of brains, this one sees Rot running around with cleavers, a man with his hands removed, and an all-out chainsaw massacre.  Where last month had more of a “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” feel, this month continues that, but adds a strong dash of grindhouse, splatter-horror into the mix.  Indeed, when we enter Rot’s mad scientist lab and he goes plucking brains, it certainly feels like something out of a thirty year old horror flick.  It’s sensationalist, bloody, and delightfully campy.

On art, Yanick Paquette continues to put out incredibly pleasing work.  His character models remain fantastic.  I also enjoyed how most of the frames featuring Rot have his eyes shaded in.  The character’s only having shadowy black pits for eyes is definitely disquieting.  Paquette also extends his range a bit this month, drawing Wolverine’s nightmares in a completely different style, one that’s more blurred, painted, and hellish.  It’s a perfect juxtaposition to the rest of the comic and is suitably horrifying.  Colorist Nathan Fairbairn also continues to have a great effect on Paquette’s work, giving Wolverine’s “treatment” scenes in particular a very well-lit, even fluorescent, clinical feel.

All told, the book hits all the same right notes it hit last month.  While it shows more this month, using the suspense of the page-turn to the maximum, it still also plays up what we can’t see.  Certain areas remain cordoned off, and as demonstrated by the bandaged nurse this month, that’s often the worst part.

What’s Not So Good: Admittedly, much of the ground covered plot-wise is the same stuff we went over last month.  For instance, Wolverine repeats that he doesn’t know where he is or what his name is.  He stated those same lines through monologue a bit last month, but when he does so a few more times this month, it does become noticeable.   At one point, Wolverine’s continued restating of this existential dilemma made me wonder whether some of the internal monologue was even necessary, if it’s only there to echo what we’ve heard several times already.

The big ending this month does help, but there is a slight sense of water treading through some parts of this issue.  That said, I don’t suspect it will greatly bother anyone with a decent attention span.

Conclusion: Still incredibly experimental and creative, with a cool grindhouse flavor added in, this one’s a keeper.

Grade: A-

-Alex Evans

(mf) Nachdem ich letzten Donnerstag, 12. November, die achte Episode aus Staffel vier von Heroes gesehen hatte, entstand dieses typische leere Gefühl in mir, dass jedes Mal hochkommt, wenn eine Episode viel zu schnell zuende geht. Jedes Mal ärgere ich mich aufs Neue, dass es dann wieder ewig dauern wird, bis ich meine Sucht nach mehr werde stillen können. Ohne Spass, das ist wie Cold Turkey - kaum auszuhalten, deshalb beschloss ich an diesem denkwürdigen Abend, mir zumindest eine zweite Serie zu suchen, die diesen Schmerz ein wenig lindert. Was ich dabei fand, spottet jeder Beschreibung.

Was für ein Glück kann man überhaupt haben? Ausgerechnet an diesem 12. November 2009 ging der Pilot einer neuen Serie auf dem britischen Kanal E4 on air, die sich Misfits (dt. Aussenseiter) nennt. Aber, um mich nicht spoilern zu lassen, las ich mir nicht durch, was die Synopsis auf der Homepage über den Inhalt verriet und mied es auch, mir irgendwelche Screens oder ähnliches anzuschauen. Ich klickte einfach auf “Play” und lehnte mich entspannt zurück.

Leider fehlen mir absolut die Worte, adäquat zu beschreiben, was ich gefühlt habe, als ich die erste Episode von Misfits angeschaut habe. Egal was ich nun schreibe, es wird dem Gesehenen nicht gerecht werden können. Das muss man einfach gesehen haben. Mit einem Wort: Genial! Dennoch möchte ich Euch natürlich einen kleinen Überblick verschaffen, womit Ihr es hier zu tun bekommt:

Misfits ist eine Superhelden-Comedy-Drama-Action-Thriller-Serie, in der es hauptsächlich um fünf jugendliche Straftäter geht, die während gerichtlich verordneter gemeinnütziger Arbeit vom Blitz getroffen werden und fortan mit teils merkwürdigen Superkräften ausgestattet sind. Um Euch nicht allzu sehr zu spoilern, gehe ich nicht näher auf die einzelnen Kräfte ein.

Die Charaktere erscheinen auf den ersten Blick, wie die Protagonisten in John Hughes’ “Breakfast Club”, entpuppen sich aber bei genauerer Betrachtung als vielschichtiger und, zumindest für meinen Geschmack interessanter. Hier ein kurzes Roundup:

Curtis (Nathan Stewart-Jarrett) war ein aufstrebender Athlet und angehender Sportstar, mit dem Ziel an den Olympischen Spielen 2012 teilzunehmen, dessen Karriere leider vor die Hunde ging, als er mit einer verbotenen Substanz erwischt wurde und Justizia seinen Fall heranzog um ein Exempel zu statuieren.

Kelly (Lauren Socha) erscheint auf den ersten Blick eher einfach gestrickt und wirkt aufgrund ihrer Haltung aggressiv und unnahbar. Entpuppt sich jedoch später als extrem loyal und offenbart ein Herz aus Gold. Ihr Akzent erscheint anfangs unfassbar nervig, aber man gewöhnt sich daran.

Die schöne Alisha (Antonia Thomas) fühlt sich nur wohl, solange sie im Mittelpunkt der Aufmerksamkeit steht. Wenn eine Party zuende ist, tingelt die sogenannte “Miss Shagable” (dt. vulg. fickbar) einfach zur nächsten.

“You call me ‘chav’ one more time I’ll kick you so hard in the cunt your mum’ll feel it” – Kelly

Simon (Iwan Rheon) ist der Freak der Gruppe – ein Aussenseiter unter Aussenseitern. Die anderen meiden ihn, machen sich lustig, weil sie ihn merkwürdig finden. Schüchtern, in sich gekehrt, wirkt er eher wie ein Warcraft-Veteran als wie ein Krimineller. Er traut sich kaum, den Mund aufzumachen, sehnt sich aber nach Freundschaft und Beachtung.

Nathan (Robert Sheehan) ist das genaue Gegenteil. Ein extrovertierter Typ, der auf alles eine Antwort zu haben scheint – mit extremem Hang zum Sarkasmus und dem Talent es generell zu weit zu treiben. Natürlich ist er, unter der harten Schale aus Überheblichkeit und Sarkasmus, nicht so unemotional und unnahbar, wie es den Anschein hat.

Mein Fazit:
Misfits ist very british (auf eine gute Art), mit sehr gutem Sinn für Humor, aber auch sehr explizit. Trotz der eindeutig erscheinenden Prämisse, richtet sich die Serie wohl primär eher an Fans von “Skins” und “Trainspotting” als an Comicliebhaber. Nichtsdestotrotz kann ich Misfits jedem (18+) Zuschauer guten Gewissens ans Herz legen. Absolut sehenswert!

RELATED LINKS

Misfits Webseite

Esse cara desenvolveu um laça-chamas manual, que apresenta um efeito bem parecido com Pyro dos X-Men. veja com seus proprios olhos.

E agora ele como um dispositivo em Mutantes & Malfeitores:

Lança chamas de pulso: Dispositivo 2 (dificil de perder):  Raio 5 (descritor: fogo , falha: Inconstante)  [total6]

Esse dispositivo pode ser usado por capangas bem equipados, para dar aquele estilo e medo nos seus jogadores.

Após a fracassada invasão Skrull à Terra, Norman Osborn se tornou o Diretor da organização nacional de manutenção da paz, a H.A.M.M.E.R., e também o líder dos Vingadores. Descobrindo-se na necessidade de policiar a população mutante da América durante as revoltas em São Francisco que envolveram os X-Men, Norman recrutou seu próprio time de X-Men para ser a face da lei e da ordem para a mutandade…

Para entender essa série, leia antes o arco "X-Men Sombrios: O Princípio" que fez parte do crossover "Vingadores Sombrios/Fabulosos X-Men: Utopia (2009)".

Lançamento: Filhos do Átomo (SQ)
Glaurion (tradução), Rehder (letras)

Fonte: Clã Destino

(Originally written on September 2, 2009)

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I went to my very first Phillies game last night and had an absolute blast!  Yesterday at work, Wolverine (the guy who’s responsible for training me – and that’s Wolverine as in University of Michigan, not X-Men, very important distinction there…) told me that our boss had given him tickets and then randomly asked me if I wanted to go to the game with him.  I guess it wasn’t too random:  whoever was originally going with him cancelled last minute, then he asked another one of our coworkers who wasn’t able to go, so then he asked me.  And I thought, “Hey, why not?”  I mean, a major-league baseball game sounds much more entertaining than yet another night alone at the B-Dub.

Our tickets were “Diamond Club”, so we had a credit of $30 apiece on our tickets.  BUT we didn’t find that out until after we had already bought beer and brauts.  So…I decided that I was going to buy a jersey with it.  I settled on number 26:  Chase Utley.  He is H-O-T hot and, even better, his at-bat music is Kashmir by Led Zeppelin!  And I also later found out that he (recently?) signed a seven-year contract, so he’ll be with the Phils for a good while.

Anyways, our seats were in the sixth row, right behind home plate.  It was AWESOME!  And it actually turns out that we were all over ESPN Sportscenter last night because the Phillies’ pitcher threw a two-hitter.