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The Point, The Point Hello, I am Mike Raub. Welcome to The Point where all parts of pop culture come together. We kick it off with Frank Miller on why he feels he took real good care of the Spirit franchise. Five cool things you might not get for Christmas but we'll be waiting for you in your comic book store this week.

And why there might never be another one of those letters to Santa Claus. It's Wednesday, December 24th, 2008 and we get to The Point right now. This is The Point, The Point, Radio, get The Point, Radio. One of the great icebreakers of 2008 or maybe even one of the best pick up lines has been, Hey, what's on your iPod?

Me, I prefer to find out what's on your TiVo. I mean, I think that tells a lot more about a person. The deals of people have put out a list of the 10 most recorded shows on TV and kept on people's TiVo during 2008. They'll start at number 10 with American Idol, the Wednesday version, at number 9, that new show from CBS, The Mendless. At number 8, the Tuesday version of American Idol and at number 7, Survivor from CBS.

Number 6, Show on Most TiVos is House from Fox, number 5, Grey's Anatomy from ABC. Number 4, Bones from Fox, number 3, I guess when it's on, would be Lost from ABC. The show, number 2 on most people's TiVos is Fringe from Fox and the most time shifted program of television in the past year, NBC's Heroes. I guess you just have to keep watching it a few times to figure out exactly what's going on. Turns out you're the villain, Peter.

I'm the hero. Well, no doubt there's a lot of giving and getting in your life today and over the next few days and your comic store is not going to be forgotten at all this as well. And getting new comics in this week got pretty close to today, Christmas Eve. I'm sure there'll be some surprises waiting for you after the holiday if you get in. Here are the five cool things we think you should look at this week when you hit the doors of the store.

There's a final issue of Fem Noir, Dark City Diaries this week for me, Better Tame It. It's that Joe State miniseries that just has gotten better over the four issues. And we really hope it's not going to come to an end here. There's Batman number 683. It's the Grant Morrison two-part story beginning here.

As Alfred tells some of the past tales of the Dark Knight and things are set up for whatever the particular future DC has in mind for Batman. Also from DC this week, the first issue of Vigilante, they're bringing that character back hopefully with a new look, hopefully with a new future longer than the last one was. IDW this week takes one of the more popular episodes of the Angel Television series. Remember the one with the puppets? Well it comes to a new miniseries called Angel Smile Time that begins right now.

And finally at the bottom of the list, Marvel beginning to lay out the plans for Dark Reign with a few different tie-ins this week. Those include Ms. Marvel number 34, New Avengers number 48, and Secret Invasion Requiem number 1. Okay, so you're into the hard stuff. You know those variant covers everybody's chasing? Here's what you got to look hard for this week.

There's a variant addition to Batman number 683. A second printing variant cover, the final Crisis Rage of the Red Lanterns number 1. There's a variant of course, the Vigilante number 1. Also from DC this week, a variant to Wonder Woman number 27. Marvel has several villain variants including one to Daredevil number 114, Nova number 20, and Scar's son of Hulk number 6.

And there's a Santa-Pulk variant, really cool by the way, to Hulk number 9 this week from Marvel as well as an Ed McGinnis variant to the Ultimate Universes, Ultimatum number 2 this week from Marvel. To top it all off, new issue of previews is in, so grab your wallet and start planning for what you're going to be buying for books coming out in March of 2009. The Point Radio We all know Gina Fey is really smart and this just proves it.

If you saw the Christmas episode of 30 Rock, well you saw the story points about the fallacies in the Letters to Santa Claus program. Well in real life, the US Post Office has been forced to temporarily shut down the 96 year old Operation Santa program this week. In New York and several other cities around the country after a disturbing privacy breach occurred. Just in case you've missed this for the last couple of decades or nine, well the program gave volunteers at post offices the opportunity to answer letters written by needy kids to Santa Claus and send them back gifts. A new not-for-profit group has stepped up though and launched something on a website called BeanElf.org.

It's to create an online solution to the program and build out a nationwide network of gift giving for the holiday season. The group is working to develop new software to allow children to securely post their letters to Santa Claus online. And then when a member of the public prints out a child's name from the site, they never see the child's home address but only get a bar-coded shipping label. Mmm, nice and personal for the holidays. Google approved a grant for the site earlier this year but they're seeking donations to help get the word out at least in time for next Christmas.

There's advertising being done right now on Yahoo and MSN. I am just wishing every one of you a very, very Merry Christmas. Depending on when you're listening to this, either the spirit has opened or will hit movie screens in a few hours and all weekend long there's going to be lots of opinions, reviews and tons of commentary on the web. But the real question is how did it translate from comics to film or even more specific from Will Eisner to Frank Miller. Well, Frank feels he did the grand old man the justice his work really deserves.

My relationship with Will Eisner was a long and abiding one where we argued incessantly. And the very first time he saw one of my pages, he told me what was wrong with it. We just kept arguing ever since. It was the classic Irish Catholic meets the Bronx Jew. We just went at it tooth and nail, loved each other dearly. And as far as what translates from comics to film, I find that the truer they are to the source material, the better. And would cite Marvel Entertainment's recent Iron Man and Incredible Hulk as wonderful witty jobs at adapting them.

I think if they get too presumptuous, comic movies tend to fall apart. A number of members of the cast have talked about how they enjoy taking their characters, shall we say, over the top. And that includes Eva Mendez, who plays Sam Saraf, who even invented a brand new adjective just for the project. Right. Yeah. Well, what I loved about this was just that that I have, you know, I had the my character was created in 1940s. So I had this real dame, broad kind of appeal, you know, you know, to the character.

And she was just so she was just so over the top and fantastical that, you know, and she has some of the best lines in the movie. You know what I mean? I think Shut Up and Bleed being one of my favorites. Shut up and bleed, which strangely I've used it since. Yeah, I think it might have been. We'll talk to more of the cast and look at those fantastical weekend numbers when we get back on the point next week. The point. Radio. Here's some of the stuff we're talking about in pop culture on this day. How about Star Trek in comics?

I mean, there's been a bunch from Gold Key to Marvel, a lot more out of the complete history of the Star Trek universe and comic books and newspaper strips has been chronicled in great detail in a new book called Star Trek, a comics history. It's written by pop culture historian Alan J. Porter, who did the James Bond history books as well. And over the course of nine information pack chapters, it details the history of Trek from those early Gold Key comic books all the way to Marvel DC IDW and a lot more. The book coming in trade paperback form will be available in March 2009. Arcana Studios is teaming up with the Emmy Award winning production company Legacy Films to take a slate of five of their comics and bring them to live action genre feature films that have begun filming even already with the new sci fi thriller Paradox.

It's going before the cameras, even as we speak in British Columbia. Paradox introduces homicide detective Sean Daldy's a cop on a parallel Earth. He's investigating a baffling series of murders committed by a means his Earth has never seen before. It's the power of science. Sean uncovers an apocalyptic plot that will lead him to another dimension and the realization that unless he prevents it, all Earths could be destroyed. Other films slated to go before the camera real soon, Chopper, which is a horror based thriller. It sets up production in late January and sundown a Western vampire thriller goes before the cameras in April, May of next year.

The films are being sold internationally by myriad pictures. No word yet on how they'll be distributed, be it the theaters or direct to DVD. Meanwhile, Warner Home Video is the new home of such anime features as the roto bleach death node in Uyasha, as well as the Pokemon animated TV series. The new DVD releases are going to be combined with this and Warner Home Video. They're scheduled to begin with the ruto uncut box at number 13 data, as well as the ruto uncut box set 13 special edition and hunter X hunter box set volume two.

He's be released early in April in 2009 with a lot more to come during the year. Maybe you'll be lucky enough to find Mystery Science Theater 3000's 20th anniversary DVD celebration collection underneath your tree in a few hours. However, if not take heart, there's going to be even a better follow up coming early in the new year. Mystery Science Theater 3000 volume 14 is a four DVD set set to come out in February. It features the shows never before released film episodes of Mad Monster, Man, Hunting Space, Soul Taker and Final Justice.

Lots of other cool stuff in there too. There's limited edition mini posters. Lots of bonus material, including a really cool interview with one of the guys that the misty people have made fun of a number of times over the years. Director Joe Estefes. Mystery Science Theater 3000 volume 14 is a four DVD box set priced at around 60 bucks. And again, it should be in stores right around February 3rd.

And shake your head all you want to. You know, you're going to want this 18 years after it was on network television. It's finally being released on DVD. It is Blossom season one and two. It's DVD stores the end of January.

It's a six disc set containing all 37 episodes in the first two seasons. Lots of bonus content too, including commentaries by the star, Mayim Bialik, Jenna Van Ooy, Joey Lawrence, Ted Woss and a lot more. And the original Blossom TV pilot, by the way, it's about 50 bucks is what it will cost you to get this on your shelf. Now, by the way, before you scoff and run away, did you know that season one and two had some pretty cool guest stars in there,

including David Cassidy, Sonny Boto, Rhea Perlman, Neil Patrick Harris and Salt and Peppa. A sad note that I just had to share. If you're a Mac fan, well, this year's Apple Mac World Conference coming up in San Francisco just a few weeks from now will be the last. No more in 2010 or any years beyond that are blending a number of things, including the success of social networking blogs and other digital mediums.

However, of course, now this leaves the Mac people to be totally involved in CES, which also takes place in Las Vegas, pretty much the same time as the Mac World show every year, which caused a number of different problems. CES, by the way, is going to be the host of a number of cool things we'll be talking about in the weeks to come, including NBC Universal, who is doing it big this year with multi platform theme entertainment called Entertainment. You can touch content that touches you bringing stars like Al Roker, Nancy Odell, Jimmy Fallon and Bill Griffith out there to originate special programming on site

from the company's 9000 square foot booth on the show floor. The multimedia lounge will also be back as part of NBC's presentation, allowing bloggers to upload directly from the NBC booth. More on CES to come. Trust me. And finally, congratulations to JK Rowling as we start to put together our list of the cool things of 2008. The latest Harry Potter related book Tales of the Beetle Bard is not the fastest selling title of the year.

It was released in December. So far, the book has sold 2.6 million copies, probably more. In fact, I'm guessing you gave one or we'll get one at some point this year. As you know, most of the money went to charity, $6.5 million so far for the Children's High Level Group, the charity co-founder by Rowling to help children in need in Central and Eastern good. The Blind Time Machine.

Wednesday, December 24th, 2008. Let's roll back the clock 11 years. December 24th, 1987. We went to the theater during the vacation to see Thrombova from the train, classic John Candy in planes, trains and automobiles and that rabid thing again in fatal attraction. TV this week was heavy on the reruns with episodes we'd already seen of Perfect Strangers, Head of the Class and CBS's Beauty of the Beast. They also loaded up a whole bunch of different Christmas specials on this Christmas Eve, including The Pink Panther Christmas, Bud's Bunny Looney Christmas Tales and a brand new network special on the making of the movie Santa Claus.

Alexander Salkine presents Dudley Moore. Merry Christmas. It certainly should be. And John Lithgow in Santa Claus, the movie, seeing his believing. The only question we have is why. Time Machine. It was a great holiday for three girls who formed an American vocal group on the way to a career that would see seven singles reach the top ten over the next couple of years.

In a few months, this song would reach number one and be their biggest of all. It's exposé and seasons change. People change. I'll sacrifice tomorrow just to have you here today. Forgiver seems so far away. There's time for love and for play. You dream about today. Season change. People change. Let's roll back the clock another few decades.

It's Christmas Eve 1968 in the theaters. We saw Steve McQueen in Bullet, Franco Zeffirelli's Romeo and Juliet, the re-release of Gone with the Wind. And that came home to the Christmas repeat special of Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In, Here's Lucy, and Mitzi Gator's Christmas special. However, all eyes were in the skies because Frank Borman and the crew of Apollo 8 were set to orbit the moon later on this Christmas Eve night. And when they got there, they sent a very important holiday message back to Earth. It was the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep.

And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, let there be light, as there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good. And God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light day, and the darkness he called light. And the evening and the morning was a fruit day. And God said, let there be a moment in the midst of the waters. But it divided the waters from the waters. And God made the moment. And divided the waters which were under the moment, and the waters which were above the moment.

And it was so. And God called the moment heaven. And the evening and the morning was a fruit day. And God said, let the waters of the heavens be gathered together into one place. And let the trinolands appear, and it was so. And God called the trinolands of Earth. And the gathering together of the waters called East Sea. And God saw that it was good. And from the crew of Apollo 8, we close with good night, good luck, a merry Christmas, and God bless all of you, on this good Earth. Time machine.

On the charts, another group group exactly of the opposite career spectrum from X-Bose. These ladies were only getting six of their last eleven singles on the charts. And this was their only number one at the end of the decade. In fact, part of the group wasn't even on the session. Still credited to those that die on a Ross and the Supremes. Here's Love Child. That's a wrap. Thank you for coming along in our maiden voyage. We will be back one more time in 2008 on Tuesday, December 30th. And then when the new year hits, look out. The point hits twice weekly on great websites at ComicMix.com and MichaelDavisWorld.com and many more to come.

And also not too far into the new year, look for the debut of our terrestrial radio show Saturday nights on Cox Radio. Now if you don't grab us on iTunes, well you soon will be able to. Like we said, we're kind of a work in progress these days and we'd love to know what you think. Let me know at Mike at GetThePointRadio.com, which happens to be our website too. And one more thing, have a merry Christmas, a great holiday week, and get back to the point in just a few days. Thanks for watching.