Yearly Archive: 2008

Purple Haze, by Martha Thomases

  • News
  • November 1, 2008

Originally, I wasn’t supposed to have a column.

Mike Gold wanted to have regular writers contributing during the week, Monday through Friday. He had the list of people he wanted to include – comics veterans like John Ostrander, Denny O’Neil and Michael Davis, plus popular blogger Elayne Riggs – and he wanted a soapbox for himself.

Me? I’m the publicist. I’m supposed to draw attention to the product, not to myself. The best publicist is the one you don’t see.

However, I’m also a team player. And an egomaniac. So, when the website started, and we didn’t always have a lot of content, I started to write. I wrote short essays that could get thrown up on the site when we were short on material. I’ve only been reading comics for 50 years, so there was always something on my mind.

One day, Mike said that, since I seemed to be writing regularly, perhaps my writing should have a name and a regular time slot. And so was born Brilliant Disguise, named for one of my favorite Bruce Springsteen songs, from one of the more depressing Bruce Springsteen albums. It’s about love and loss, and the lies we tell ourselves so we can take care of each other through the tough times. How appropriate. (more…)

AMC Seeks Best Monster Hunters

  • News
  • November 1, 2008

While we disapprove of AMC’s decision to air their movies with ad breaks, we do admire their original series, Mad Men, and their various online features.  Today, in honor of the holiday, they have launched the Master Monster Hunter Tournament. Readers are being asked to nominate their favorite hunters and the top 16 will be facing off in a voting death match between November 10 and December 12.  Finalists are being named on November 6 so you have a week to give this some deep thought as you munch your Halloween treats.

Nominations to date:

  • Van Helsing (Peter Cushing)
  • Riddick
  • Seth Gecko, From Dusk Till Dawn
  • Blade (Wesley Snipes), Blade, Blade II, and Blade: Trinity
  • Jay & Slient Bob (Jason Mewes, Kevin Smith), Dogma
  • Ashley (Bruce Campbell), Evil Dead
  • Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver), Alien, Aliens and Alien 3
  • Jack Crow (James Woods), Vampire$
  • Hellboy (Ron Perlman)
  • Alice, Resident Evil
  • Dr. Alan Grant from Jurassic Parks 1 and 3
  • Charlie Brewster (William Ragsdale) and Peter Vincent (Roddy McDowell), Fright Night
  • Quinn (Christian Bale) and Van Zan (Matthew McConaughey), Reign of Fire
  • Buffy Summers (Sarah Michelle Gellar)
  • The Winchester brothers, Supernatural
  • Casper Van Dien, Starship Troopers
  • The Ghostbusters
  • Jamie Lloyd, Halloween sequels
  • Harry Potter
  • Shaun and Ed, Shaun of the Dead
  • Dorothy Gale (Judy Garland), Wizard of Oz
  • Beowulf
  • Laura Croft (Angelina Jolie)
  • Godzilla
  • The Incredible Hulk (Edward Norton)
  • Chris McCormick (David Arquette), Eight Legged Freaks
  • Jack Burton (Kurt Russell), Big Trouble In Little China
  • Fox Mulder (David Duchovny), The X-Files
  • Lloyd Gallagher (Kyle McLauchlan), The Hidden
  • Doctor Who
  • John Constantine (Keanu Reaves)
  • River Tam (Summer Glau), Serenity
  • Ronon Dex, Stargate Atlantis
  • Captain Jack Harkness (John Barrowman), Torchwood
  • Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp), Pirates of the Caribbean

‘King’ Gets Thrown Off the ‘Hill’

  • Uncategorized
  • November 1, 2008

hank-hill-1080443No, it’s not Friday the 13th. But it is Halloween, and the 13th season of King of the Hill looks to be its last.

Reports are coming in that the long-running Fox comedy will not return past the 13 episodes currently in production bringing the total to something like 250. King of the Hill, created by Mike Judge and Greg Daniels, has aired on the network since 1997. Although it’s not the ratings getter it once was, King stalwarts such as Ain’t It Cool News’ Hercules tout the series as Fox’s greatest comedy. Both Judge and Daniels have moved onto other projects. Judge’s newest animated comedy, The Goode Family, launches on ABC midseason, while Daniels is running NBC’s smash hit The Office. Judge still supplies the voice for Hank Hill on the series.

Meanwhile, Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane continues to enjoy his renewed success over at Fox. Variety has announced that MacFarlane’s American Dad has been picked up for a fifth season. Dad, which features conservative CIA agent Stan Smith and his family, is currently in its fourth year. It’s noted that early pickups are required for animated shows due to their lengthy timetable, which could be a reason that both the American Dad and King of the Hill announcements came so close together.

MacFarlane’s road with Fox hasn’t always been smooth. Family Guy was initially canceled after struggling to find a consistent audience, in no small thanks to Fox’s constant reshuffling of the program’s schedule. When DVD sales went through the roof, Fox decided to raise the series from the dead. In the series’ first episode post resurrection, "North By North Quahog," the writers took a stab at Fox’s rationale for canceling the show in the first place.

"Well, unfortunately, Lois, there’s just no more room on the schedule," lead character Peter Griffin laments. "We’ve just got to accept the fact that Fox has to make room for terrific shows like Dark Angel, Titus, Undeclared, Action, That ’80s Show, Wonderfalls, Fastlane, Andy Richter Controls the Universe, Skin, Girls Club, Cracking Up, The Pitts, Firefly, Get Real, Freakylinks, Wanda at Large, Costello, The Lone Gunmen, A Minute With Stan Hooper, Normal Ohio, Pasadena, Harsh Realm, Keen Eddie, The $treet, American Embassy, Cedric the Entertainer, The Tick, Louie and Greg the Bunny."

All of those shows, of course, have been canceled.

Now, MacFarlane’s relationship with Fox couldn’t be better. Not only is Family Guy flourishing and American Dad has a new season on the way, but MacFarlane’s new series, The Cleaveland Show, will also debut later this year. Cleaveland is a spin-off from Family Guy featuring the titular Cleaveland and his family.

You’ll Believe a Routh Can Fly

  • News
  • November 1, 2008

brandon-routh2-7562218If there’s one thing that’s certain about Superman, it’s that you can never count him out of a fight. Same goes for Brandon Routh, who played the Man of Steel in Bryan Singer’s Superman Returns a few years back. Despite doing mediocre business (which, when it comes to Supes, is terrible business), the WB is still planning on resuming the franchise, albeit with a totally new direction and creative team. But Routh, as it turns out, might not be part of the cleaning house equation. The actor tells Web site IESB.net that he’s still involved, as far as he knows.

Says Routh: "[The] most recent conversation I had was with Paul [Levitz, President of DC Comics] when I was in New York and we talked about what … Warner Bros. were thinking and what the situation was and obviously, thankfully, he is still wanting me to be a part of it and I certainly want to be a part of it."

The story is corroborated by Latino Review‘s report earlier this month stating Levitz’s continued interest in Routh as Superman.

The most recent Kent, other than TV’s Tom Welling, says that he’s unaware of any story details other than what he reads in the media. Given that, he’s not exactly thrilled with the idea of a "dark Superman."

"I don’t think the character necessarily has to be darker," says Routh. "I think he is kind of dark in a sense, emotional dark, in Superman Returns, and the movie as a whole was slightly dark, they could have had more prowess in it I suppose, and I think that’s one thing that can be done in the sequel, so I don’t know how much darker you want to make it necessarily. You make the stakes higher, you make the villain darker, I think that’s a way to do it. But I don’t think Superman himself needs to be darker. He definitely has to struggle, how does Superman be a part of the world? And does he have to make sacrifices to be a part of that world? To fit in and what purpose does he really play in the world? Those are all kind of dark places to explore. But, I don’t think Superman should ever be dark and brooding, that’s not [his] nature. And that’s [not] what people [want] to see."

As for a villain for the next chapter, Routh has an idea: Brainiac.

"I think it would certainly be interesting, I think there are a lot of things you could do with Brainiac," Routh muses. "He’s been given a lot of power and a lot of different abilities over the years in the comics, as far as I understand. I know that DC is working on a Brainiac storyline that they are excited about and I think combining the two and have that flow between the comics and the movie would be a nice thing. I honestly think there are a lot of interesting things you can do with Brainiac. Controlling people, controlling technology, a lot of cool things."

It’s a widely shared sentiment that a Brainiac driven Superman film has a lot of potential. Combine Routh’s desire to see the green-skinned villain in the sequel and his indication that DC’s also on board, plus with original director Richard Donner’s plea to give Geoff Johns a shot at the screenplay, and you can bet that Mark Millar’s locked himself away in a dungeon taking the pen and eraser to his planned eight-hour Superman epic.

Routh also talks a bit about another upcoming comic book film he’s working on. He’ll be playing Dylan Dog in Dead of Night, an adaptation of Tiziano Sclavi’s Dylan Dog. According to Routh, filming should start soon.

"Well, I think we are actually going to make it now (laughing)," says Routh. "I’ve never said that before, but I will now, all the paperwork is being finalized finally and  we are looking really strong for a January, mid-January start I believe, in New Orleans. And, [director] Kevin [Munroe] and I are looking at the script again and he’s got his draft and I am excited about it."

Marvel Launches Daily ‘Super Sqaud’ Digital Comic

  • Uncategorized
  • October 31, 2008

shs-poster-3204345Marvel Comics’ Super Hero Squad, aimed at its youngest readers, will begin running all-new daily comic strips beginnign today.

Marvel’s heroes and villains have been visually reimagined for all ages readers of their online material.

Marvel Super Hero Squad, according to a press release, "shines the spotlight on the characters of Super Hero City, some who battle for good, some who battle for evil and all begging the question on everyone’s minds—Are You Ready To Hero Up?"

The comic stirp will be made availabel free to those checking out Marvel’s website.

AOL Picks TV’s Best Witches

  • News
  • October 31, 2008

samantha-stephens-8960196Being Halloween, lots of places are running themed lists including beleaguered AOL which attempts to list the Top 20 witches on television.  While we don’t find any glaring omissions, we wonder about many of the placements.

 20. Alex Russo, The Wizards of Waverly Place
19. Miss Cackle, The Worst Witch
18. Marge Simpson, Treehouse of Horror VIII
17. Amanda Tucker, Tucker’s Witch
16. Ella, Hex
15. Witch Hazel, Looney Tunes
14. Endora, Passions
13. Paige Matthews (Rose McGowan), Charmed
12. Tabitha Stephens (Lisa Hartman), Tabitha
11. Mildred Hubble (Fairuza Balk), The Worst Witch
10. Prue Halliwell (Shannen Doherty), Charmed
9. Endora (Agnes Moorehead), Bewitched
8. Wilhelmina W. Witchiepoo (Billie Hayes), H.R. Pufnstuf
7. Phoebe Halliwell (Alyssa Milano), Charmed
6. Tabitha (Juliet Mills), Passions
5. Sabrina Spellman (Melissa Joan Hart), Sabrina the Teenage Witch
4. Grandmama Addams (Blossom Rock), The Addams Family
3. Piper Halliwell (Holly Marie Combs), Charmed
2. Willow Rosenberg (Alyson Hannigan), Buffy the Vampire Slayer
1. Samantha Stephens (Elizabeth Montrgomery), Bewitched

We applaud Piper over her sisters given how grounded she was as a character. On the other hand, Willow saved the world more than once and while she didn’t headline her own TV series, certainly has been displayed as the most powerful witch in this line-up.  We adore Samantha and grew up watching her show, but maybe it’s a cultural thing and see Willow having more resonance in today’s television than Samantha ever had.

Sound off below with your own thoughts.

Will Marvel Drop Canadian Pricing?

  • Uncategorized
  • October 31, 2008

loonie-8528206Columnist Don MacPherson has posted a thoughtful piece on his Eye on Comics blog indicating the falling US dollar may bring about the elimination of separate Canadian pricing.

He cites Strange Adventures’ Calum Johnston, reporting, “Both Marvel and DC are thinking of removing the Canadian cover price to comic-book periodicals.”

Marvel Comics spokesman Arune Singh clarified conflicting statements in an e-mail today to MacPherson saying Canadian pricing won’t be dropped from its books, only from its periodical publications. “For the time being, Canadian prices will remain on Marvel collections,” he said in an e-mail.

Comics Pro president Joe Field of Flying Colors Comics tolds MacPherson, “I believe there are conflicting reports because the issue of whether to continue putting Canadian cover prices on periodical comics is still unsettled. What one publisher may do another may not follow,” he said Thursday. “The dialog happening now will lead to some resolution. And I believe the publishers will do what they feel best suits the majority of their retailers.”

Traditionally, the covers have carried the two prices and the adjustments to match exchange rates occurred with regularity. Many Canadian retailers are said to be ignoring the printed Canadian prices for years, hand calculating that day’s exchange rate.

“Many Canadian comic retailers have been going by the US cover price plus applicable exchange rate. The rate is determined by what Diamond Comics Distributors charges the retailer on their invoice,” Johnston said. “While the rate hovered between one and five per cent, we just went by the U.S. price as being the same as Canadian. A few weeks ago, the rate climbed to eight percent, and we had to go back to adding the exchange. Two weeks ago, it was 12 percent, last week 18 per cent and this week 26!”

Writer Ed Brubaker chimed in, noting his Criminal, published under Marvel’s Icon imprint, has just a domestic price, adding "More in Canada".

Lindsay-Abaire to Pen ‘Spider-Man 4’

  • News
  • October 31, 2008

Relative newcomer David Lindsay-Abaire is stealing James Vanderbilt’s webshooters and hitting the New York skyline with Spider-Man 4.

The Hollywood Reporter states that Lindsay-Abaire, traditionally a novelist and playwright, is writing the fourth installment of the Spider-Man franchise for Columbia Pictures. Spider-Man 4 will once again feature Sam Raimi as director and Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker. Kirsten Dunst is expected to return, though no officiall announcements have been made, apart from her impromptu "I’m in!" during an MTV News interview.

THR notes that Lindsay-Abire has little screenwriting experience. He wrote the scripts for Robots and Inkheart, and is working on an adaptation of his novel Rabbit Hole. The writer’s work tends to focus on "outsiders in search of clarity," which makes him like-minded with Peter Parker. It’s a sign that the studio wants to take Spider-Man in a more character-centric outing, "something that critics said got lost in the third installment" according to THR‘s report.

Previously, all signs had pointed to scribe James Vanderbilt putting the pen to Spidey’s script. The writer had allegedly scripted a two-part Spider-Man epic that would’ve led to the fourth and fifth installments being shot back-to-back. In THR‘s report, it’s noted that Vanderbilt "previously wrote a draft of Spider-Man 4," so whether or not his draft is being used as a template for Lindsay-Abaire or is being scrapped entirely remains a mystery.

Even when Vanderbilt was on board, plot details remained quite sketchy. Most fans assumed that actor Dylan Baker would finally get his chance to play The Lizard in the newest installment, but director Raimi isn’t quite as sure.

"[Dylan Baker’s] a great actor, and I think one day The Lizard’s story will be told," Raimi told MTV News. "I don’t know if it will be this one or not. I just don’t know. I’m definitely hoping to work with Dylan in the picture. I just don’t know who the villain is yet."

Whether or not he was playing coy remains to be seen. What’s certain, however, is that whatever little we knew before about this movie, we probably know even less now. Isn’t Hollywood fun?

Manga Friday: Bat-Manga!

  • News
  • October 31, 2008

Just one book this week, but what a book! How could I mention anything else in the same breath as…

Bat-Manga! The Secret History of Batman in Japan
Compiled, edited and Designed by Chip Kidd
Photography by Geoff Spear
From the Collection of Saul Ferris
Translated by Anne Ishii
Pantheon, October 2008, $29.95 paperback/$60 hardcover

Bat-Manga! is an amazing, bizarre object, the book equivalent of hearing the result of a very long, cross-cultural game of Telephone. You see, the Japanese magazine Shonen King licensed the rights to create new, original Japanese Batman comics in 1966, when the then-new TV show was broadcast in Japan. Those comics ran for about a year, but were never reprinted in Japan, and have never been published in the US in any form before now.

It’s a book with much to admire, wonder at, and complain about. Well, let me get the first of those out of the way first:

Chip Kidd is a fine designer, but I have to admit that it annoys me that he gets top billing on a book made up entirely of someone else’s comics. What’s worse is that the creator of those comics – Jiro Kuwata, who wrote and drew all of the works reprinted in this book, based very, very loosely on concepts and characters from the American Batman comics of the time – isn’t credited officially at all. His name comes up in the introduction, and there is an interview with him in the front matter, but the official credits for Bat-Manga! – reproduced above – don’t mention him at all. We’ve really hit the triumph of design over substance when a book designer, photographer, and collector are billed above – instead of, to be blunt – the person who actually created the stories.

So: Bat-Manga! doesn’t say that it’s a book by Jiro Kuwata, but it is. Those other folks just helped bring it to an American audience. (more…)

What To Watch on Halloween

  • Uncategorized
  • October 31, 2008

Halloween is the day where, traditionally, people under 21 run around in costumes and collect candy while people above do…other things. If you don’t have any big plans that involve getting candy or alcohol in a costume tonight, here are a few reasons to leave a bowl of candy outside your door and curl up in front of the DVD player for the night.

dance box

 

Dance of the Dead

If Zombie Comedies are your vice, then you’ll want to grab this Dance of The Dead as part of the Ghost House Underground box set. It takes place on prom night when the dead decide to rise, and the only people who can stop them are the one’s not cool enough to get invited to the dance.There’s plenty of horror moments for diehard zombie fans, as well as some pretty great one’s as well, including a zombie make-out scene. Check out a full review here.

 

 

 

(more…)

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