Monthly Archive: January 2017

Trolls Invades Your Home Digitally Jan. 24, Disc Feb. 7

LOS ANGELES, CA (Jan. 10, 2016) – A hit with audiences and critics alike, DreamWorks Animation’s TROLLS, is the “feel-good” movie of the year receiving an outstanding audience reaction with a coveted “A” CinemaScore® and a Certified Fresh rating on RottenTomatoes.com. DreamWorks TROLLS, the fresh, music-filled adventure packed with humor and heart dances onto Digital HD on Jan. 24 and Blu-ray™ and DVD on Feb. 7 from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.

The colorful, richly textured Troll Village is full of optimistic Trolls, who are always ready to sing, dance and party. When the comically pessimistic Bergens invade, Poppy (Anna Kendrick), the happiest Troll ever born, and the overly-cautious, curmudgeonly Branch (Justin Timberlake) set off on an epic journey to rescue her friends.  Their mission is full of adventure and mishaps, as this mismatched duo try to tolerate each other long enough to get the job done.

From Shrek franchise veterans Mike Mitchell (Shrek Forever After) and Walt Dohrn (Shrek 2, Shrek the Third), TROLLS features the voice talents of Golden Globe® nominee Anna Kendrick (Pitch Perfect, The Accountant), Grammy and Emmy® Award winner and Golden Globe® Award nominee Justin Timberlake (Friends with Benefits, Shrek the Third), Golden Globe® and Emmy® Award nominee Zooey Deschanel (“New Girl”), Christopher Mintz-Plasse (Superbad, How to Train Your Dragon), Golden Globe® and Emmy® Award winner Christine Baranski (The Good Wife, How the Grinch Stole Christmas), Russell Brand (Get Him to the Greek, Forgetting Sarah Marshall), Grammy Award nominee Gwen Stefani (The Voice), Golden Globe® and Emmy® Award nominee John Cleese (Shrek 2, Shrek the Third, Shrek Forever After), Emmy® Award winner James Corden (The Late Late Show with James Corden, Into the Woods), Golden Globe® and Emmy® Award winner Jeffrey Tambor (Transparent, Arrested Development) and Ron Funches (Undateable, Get Hard).

“The movie’s message, and it’s a lovely one, is that we all have a wild-haired, beaming doll of happiness inside. ‘Trolls’ will put you in touch with yours,” proclaims Owen Gleiberman of Variety.

Give your new year an optimistic start with TROLLS PARTY EDITION on Blu-ray™ February 7, 2017 and Digital HD January 24. Exclusive to TROLLS BLU-RAY PARTY EDITION – take your Trolls Party to the next level with four interactive Party Mode features where you can use your remote to engage with the on-screen fun. Shower the screen with glitter during party scenes, drop cupcakes when things get scary, high-five Cloud Guy, join Mr. Dinkles for “OH SNAP” moments and much more!

TROLLS Blu-ray™, DVD and Digital HD Includes:

  • Party Mode – Sing, dance and laugh along with the Trolls in this engaging, interactive feature.*
    *PLUS, only on Blu-ray: use your remote to conTROLL fun on-screen moments!
  • Travel Through Troll Village – Cloud Guy narrates a fun exploration of Troll Village.
  • The Potion for Stop-Motion – Part behind-the-scenes, part stop-motion tutorial, this featurette explores the process of creating Poppy’s visually stunning scrapbook.
  • Creating Troll Magic – Trolls Production Designer Kendal Cronkhite-Shaindlin leads a kid-friendly exploration of her role as production designer on the film before highlighting four key stages of creating the animation with detailed visuals of each stage.
  • Troll 2 Troll – Poppy and Branch have a friendly debate on important topics such as “Cat vs. Dog.” *
  • Inside the Bunker – An in-depth exploration of Branch’s “special” place, narrated by Cloud Guy. *
  • Deleted Scenes with Intros by Director, Mike Mitchell and Co-Director, Walt Dohrn.

*Blu-ray and Digital HD only

Molly Jackson: Classic Days, Sound Advice

It’s been an interesting week. Watching the news is almost akin to watching a horror film at times. At my day job, we usually talk about anything but the current events. Somehow, the other day our daily conversations turned to our childhood television shows. I spoke with glee about the past shows like Pete & Pete, Animaniacs, Ren & Stimpy, Aaah! Real Monsters, and Batman: The Animated Series. While a couple of these shows brought excitement to my coworkers, most did not. I was baffled, how could people not love Pete & Pete or Animaniacs?!

In thinking about it afterwards, I understand why they weren’t as excited as I was. In my day job, I am older than most of my team. This runs counter to the majority of my life, when I was always the baby of the group. It’s an odd feeling, to have to explain days gone by. In a way, I am finally starting to understand my parents.

However, I’m not one to let a chance at nostalgia slip by. It is, after all, the upcoming theme of the country. Since it was the first show I could find available on Netflix, I started rewatching the animated classic, Animaniacs. On the off-chance you haven’t seen it (you weirdo), it follows the misadventures of the Warner brothers Yakko and Wakko, plus the Warner sister, Dot. It runs like an anthology of shorts, with appearances by a wide cast including fan favorites Pinky and the Brain.

I tried actually writing this column while I caught up on Animaniacs (I blame Mindy for this). That was a mistake. It is still a really good show that frankly holds up to the tests of time and age. I was mesmerized by episodes I barely remember so everything felt new. A few things were dated, like anyone wanting to hang with Mel Gibson, but it hardly mattered to me. I felt the easy peace that comes with revisiting old, cherished friends. Yes, it’s been over 20 years but I still know that Bill Clinton can still play the sax, the Warner kids are still snappy and witty, and right now I’d take the Brain as the new world leader.

The next nine days will not be easy for anyone. The country is in turmoil, no matter what side you agree with. Taking the time to relax with your childhood memories can be reinvigorating and fun. So if you get a chance, put your feet up and give that a shot.

Mike Gold: Up The River Without a TARDIS

  • News
  • January 11, 2017

If you were to ask me if I had a favorite character among all the heroic fantasy teevee shows and movies over the past five years, and damnit I wish you would, I would immediately respond “River Song.”

For those who came in late, here’s the mandatory Journalism 101 background:

River Song is an ongoing but breathtakingly occasional character in Doctor Who. A remarkably capable, strong and intelligent archaeologist/con artist/warrior-protector with a great sense of humor and about 92% of all the sexuality ever expressed in the 54-year history of the program, she has been, is, and/or will be married to the Doctor – it’s time travel, Mr. Gittes – and that poses all sorts of thrilling opportunities. It also begs the issue of “until regeneration do us part.” She’s kind of a partial Time Lord, having absorbed some of the Doctor’s DNA while being conceived in the TARDIS. Yes, she’s the daughter of two of the Doctor’s former companions.


Yup. I really love time travel.

Ms. Song is played by Alex Kingston, and in addition to some crackerjack writing from Steven Moffat, Ms. Kingston is the reason why this complicated yet highly entertaining character works. She’s known in the States for her work on such teevee shows as Arrow (where she plays Dinah Lance I), Gilmore Girls, Macbeth (playing Lady Macbeth; duh), Upstairs Downstairs (the 2012 series), Law and Order SUV, and ER. My favorite of her work that I have seen came in the teevee movie The Fortunes and Misfortunes of Moll Flanders, where she played the title character and shared the boards with such folks as Diana Rigg and Daniel Craig.

In other words, Alex Kingston’s career orbits the nexus of fan reality.

You might ask why I’m bringing River Song to your attention at this time, if I already hadn’t just done that. The people at Big Finish, arguably the world’s largest publisher of original full-cast audio stories, released their second box set of River Song adventures. The Diary of River Song Series 2 co-stars Colin Baker and Sylvester McCoy, both playing her husband The Doctor, and together the four adventures runs about four hours and change, not counting the bonus “behind the scenes” disc full of audio extras.

The downloadable version can be secured from Big Finish for a mere twenty bucks American, Amazon is charging a bit more for the physical five CD box set.

This isn’t a review because I have yet to hear the material. If it sucks, I’ll apologetically apologize anon… once the surprise wears off. I’m a big fan of Big Finish’s work, although I’ve only heard a fraction of their couple-thousand hours of original Doctor Who material starring all of the living Doctors from Tom Baker to John Hurt aside from Matt Smith (as of this writing). More to the point, I listened to The Diary of River Song Series 1 starring Alex Kingston and Paul McGann (the eighth doctor, if you were to count them in order of first appearance) during one of my infamous cross-country drives and it was absolutely great.

River Song last appeared in the 2015 Christmas special “The Husbands of River Song.” It was her first meeting with her husband Peter Capaldi, and because of where it is set in time she does not recognize The Doctor. In fact, she’s married to someone else, for a while. It’s a great jumping on episode for those who haven’t seen River Song, Peter Capaldi’s doctor, and/or Doctor Who. It’s well-written, clever as hell, sensual to excess and more fun than a barrel of monkeys. And we all know everything is better with a monkey.

Even better: this episode gave us the introduction of Nardole, played by British comedian Matt Lucas. He returned for this year’s Christmas special as the Doctor’s, umm, valet (the Doctor is companionless for the nonce) and Nardole will return for about a half-dozen episodes in the upcoming season. Americans might recognize him for his role in Community where, coincidentally, he played a fan of the ersatz teevee show Inspector Spacetime.

I hope to see River return sometime this season as it is Steven Moffat’s last as writer/showrunner. I hope to see River Song return anywhere at any time, if that latter phrase has any real meaning in a world where time travel exists.

But, hey, I’ll settle for Alex Kingston returning damn well anywhere.

New Clip from Justice League Dark

Warner Home Entertainment released an all-new clip from Justice League Dark, the next installment in the popular, ongoing line of DC Universe Original Movies. The film will be available from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment on Blu-ray Deluxe Giftset, Blu-ray Combo Pack and DVD on February 7, 2017, and on Digital HD starting January 24, 2017.

The clip features the Justice League assessing the situation, and one notable member not quite believing there might be supernatural forces involved. The clip also includes the first appearance of John Stewart/Green Lantern as a member of the Justice League in a DC Universe Original Movie.

When innocent civilians begin committing unthinkable crimes across Metropolis, Gotham City and beyond,  Batman must call upon mystical counterparts to eradicate this demonic threat to the planet. Enter Justice League Dark, reluctantly led by the Hellblazer himself, John Constantine. Like Batman, Constantine is a cunning, often cynical loner who is the best at his chosen profession – but quickly realizes the sinister forces plaguing the planet will require help from other supernatural alliances. Forming a new “league” with sorceress Zatanna, otherworldly Deadman, and Jason Blood and his powerful alter ego Etrigan the Demon, this team of Dark Arts specialists must unravel the mystery of Earth’s supernatural plague and contend with the rising, powerful villainous forces behind the siege – before it’s too late for all of mankind.

Michael Davis: Seduction Of The Not So Innocent.

In 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its decision in Brown v. Board of Education which overturned Jim Crow racial segregation in the public schools. That mattered little in most of the country when white privilege was normalized, and white supremacy went unchallenged. Black people had no real say. Whites controlled most everything, as they still do to a great extent.

Since the 1950s black and brown people have been demanding their rights and as expected in a nation of so many different viewpoints there has been push back.

This time a distinction between the past is evident. It appears the soon to be the leader of the free world Donald Trump is now leading any pushback on racial resolutions. His actions over time and in particular the last few years support this.

Some of the Trump race record includes:

Attacking Muslim Gold Star parents

Claimed a judge was biased because “he’s a Mexican.” (In fact, he was an American)

The Justice Department sued his company ― twice ― for not renting to black people

Refused to condemn the white supremacists who were campaigning for him

Never apologized to President Obama for saying he was not born in the United States

He encouraged the mob justice that resulted in the wrongful imprisonment of the Central Park Five.

From The Huffington Post

In 1989, Trump took out full-page ads in four New York City-area newspapers calling for the return of the death penalty in New York and the expansion of police authority in response to the infamous case of a woman who was beaten and raped while jogging in Manhattan’s Central Park.

“They should be forced to suffer and, when they kill, they should be executed for their crimes,” Trump wrote, referring to the Central Park attackers and other violent criminals. “I want to hate these murderers and I always will.” The public outrage over the Central Park jogger rape, at a time when the city was struggling with high crime, led to the wrongful conviction of five teenagers of color known as the Central Park Five. The men’s convictions were overturned in 2002 after they’d already spent years in prison when DNA evidence showed they did not commit the crime. Today, their case is considered a cautionary tale about a politicized criminal justice process.

Trump, however, still thinks the men are guilty.

The Voting Rights Act, signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson on August 6, 1965, aimed to overcome legal barriers at the state and local levels that prevented African Americans from exercising their right to vote under the 15th Amendment (1870) to the Constitution of the United States. The act significantly widened the franchise and is considered among the most far-reaching pieces of civil rights legislation in U.S. history.

That was then.

Tuesday, June 25, 2013, the Supreme Court effectively struck down the heart of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 by a 5-to-4 vote, freeing nine states, mostly in the South, to change their election laws without advance federal approval.

That’s happening, in fact, it already happened.

It’s becoming harder much harder for poor people and people of color to vote. That’s been tried but this time every branch of government is under one party.

One party under the control of a man who lies without the slightest remorse. Don’t take my word for it: here’s the record.

This record clearly shows he has no “great relationship with the blacks.”

Debating facts isn’t my thing. Is it possible Trump has the kind of respect he says he does for black people? Sure, it’s possible, but as a black man I’ve got too much to lose to pretend what he’s done and said before just don’t exist.

Feel free to disagree but do so with facts. Opinion is not fact and what I’ve attributed to Trump isn’t opinion.

My opinion is he is a liar and perhaps a racist the facts clearly show he has acted as both on many occasions.

With notable exceptions, the comic book industry, after trouncing Thump when thought he couldn’t win, has been silent after his did.

In 1954, psychiatrist Fredric Wertham cautioned the world comic books were damaging to young minds and a serious cause of juvenile delinquency.

He did so in his book Seduction of the Innocent.

To say the book was influential would be an understatement. Taken so very seriously at the time parents and teachers joined to combat this attack on the youth of America. Fueled by the televised lynching of American freedoms brought on by McCarthyism attacking comic books was a no-brainer.

•     •     •     •     •

Gerard Jones, a comics writer whose career includes writing Green Lantern and The Trouble with Girls and writing and co-creating Prime for Malibu, has been arrested on suspicions of putting child pornography on YouTube.

Full disclosure, I knew Gerald and was shocked by these charges. That being said I am not here to defend nor am I here to condemn him. He’s accused of a horrible crime, but I’ll wait until he has his day in court to pass judgment.

I will say this; it never fails to amaze me how those who swear by the ‘law of the land’ always seem to ignore any presumption of innocence.

I have no sympathy for those who prey on children. For that there is no excuse, none. There is also no reason for damning a person before all the facts are known. I’m pretty sure some will take what I just wrote as defending Gerald. I clearly wrote I am not doing so.

If found guilty he should get and deserves jail. I’m not afraid to say that nor am I afraid to say I find the charges hard to believe. I pray he’s innocent, but I allow that he may not be.

The facts will be revealed in court and not on Twitter, Facebook or Bleeding Cool.

There’s a real threat to comics no matter what the outcome of a trial.

Every branch of government is poised to follow the lead of the next President Of The United States.

It will only take one inquiry into this case to give rise to a new comic book investigation. Kids, sex, and comics?  That’s a dream come true for an extreme Right Winger with a hankering to clean up the depravity in Hollywood.

The turning back of the clock has already begun on black America. Can what we watch read or write be far behind?

•     •     •     •     •

In 1954 much of what Wertham told the public was bullshit and lies.

From Wikipedia:

Wertham “manipulated, overstated, compromised, and fabricated evidence” in support of the contentions expressed in Seduction of the Innocent. He intentionally mis-projected both the sample size and substance of his research, making it out to be more objective and less anecdotal than it truly was. He did not adhere to standards worthy of scientific research, instead of using questionable evidence as rhetorical ammunition for his argument that comics were a cultural failure.

Sound familiar?

Congress convened hearings on the comic book industry and the industry folded like a bitch and as such the Comics Code was born.

Perhaps folding like a bitch was harsh. It was a different time and America was in a different place, and so were we.

But It appears it’s a place our next president wants to return us to. If they come for us, will we go?

Power Rangers Dino Super Charge Extinction Arrives on DVD March 7

The Power Rangers face their most dangerous threat yet when the action-packed adventures of Power Rangers Dino Super Charge: Extinction arrives on DVD March 7 from Lionsgate. This DVD contains the last 10 episodes from the latest Power Rangers season on Nickelodeon. Episodes 6-11 will also be available on Digital HD and On Demand March 7, while the last five episodes will be available on Digital HD and On Demand April 4. In this series, the teen superheroes must work together to protect the Energems and save the universe from monsters, zombies, and the evil Sledge. Stand as one and celebrate one of the top-rated and longest-running kids’ live-action series in TV history when the Power Rangers Dino Super Charge: Extinction DVD becomes available for the suggested retail price of $14.98.

The action is supercharged and the adventures are out of this world as the Power Rangers call upon their teamwork and abilities to protect the Energems, mysterious colored gems with incredible powers. The team faces some of its fiercest foes and greatest challenges — including monsters, zombies, and an evil love spell — as the Power Rangers stand as one and fight to keep the world safe from the evil Sledge!

PROGRAM INFORMATION

Year of Production: 2015
Title Copyright: ™ and © SCG Power Rangers LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Type: TV-on-DVD
Rating: NR
Genre: Action/Adventure, Children’s Series, Fantasy
Closed-Captioned: English
Subtitles: N/A
Feature Run Time: 232 minutes
DVD Format: 16×9 Widescreen 1.78:1 Presentation
DVD Audio: English 5.1 Dolby Digital Audio,
Spanish and French 2.0 Dolby Digital Audio

Joe Corallo: Cathartic Comics For Our Time

Now I loves me some catharsis. This past weekend I went down to New York’s lower east side to enjoy a David Bowie tribute night at The Delancey. They played the Cracked Actor documentary, had a cover band play a set exclusively from my favorite Bowie era – Station To Station through Scary Monsters And Super Creeps. It was a good time that I’m still reeling from.

With the impending conservative wave reaching its pinnacle in less than two weeks, I’ve been searching for other means to cope. Luckily I received my Kickstarter reward from backing the Black Mask Studios comic Toe Tag Riot the other day. That reward was the graphic novel collecting every bit of it including the shorts and, boy, could it have not come at a better time.

For those of you that don’t know, Toe Tag Riot is a four issue miniseries by writer Matt Miner and artist Sean Von Gorman. It’s the tale of a punk band in 2004 that gets a curse put on them that turns them into zombies every time they play. This causes the band, made up of singer Dickie Tagz, guitarist Paulie Propylene, bassist Annie Maul, and drummer Evie Vee, to have an unstoppable urge to devour human flesh that even band vegetarian Paulie can’t hold back.

Instead of allowing themselves to give in to the evil of random killings to feed their zombie hunger, the band takes up an arguably more noble stance and only preys on bigots. I don’t want to ruin any surprises, but we get more rock star special appearances than just Fall Out Boy’s Andy Hurley and more bad guys than just Fred Phelps.

Now I know many of you wouldn’t condone the brutal massacres of groups like One Million Moms, The Westboro Baptist Church, or Neo Nazis, but Toe Tag Riot can sure be a good outlet for all that pent up aggression towards bigotry. Matt Miner’s writing on this project was heavily influenced by B horror movies and grindhouse style exploitation films and informs the characters.

Dickie Tagz is written as that kind of blissfully unaware “how homophobic he is in 2004 type” guy who grows as the story progresses. Annie and Evie are written as two kickass lesbian lovers that are very aggressive and in your face about it all which harkens back to those exploitation films. And the language throughout the book is very unforgiving and includes characters using queer slurs. Those characters are the bad guys though as they’re getting killed and/or eaten by our zombie protagonists, so you have to keep those things in perspective.

Sean Von Gorman’s art with watercolor coloring by Savanna Ganucheau give the book an almost cartoonish feel at times that really blends nicely with that grindhouse tone. It helps take some moments that could have been taken more seriously like in some of Matt Miner’s other work and gives it a comedic tone that really makes you feel like you’re watching the best kind of B movie and I really appreciate this book for that reason. I’d also like to take this time to say how Sean is a favorite artist of mine and I’ve gotten enough commissioned pieces from him to open up a small gallery. You can follow in my footsteps and start your Sean Von Gorman art gallery by visiting his website.

That being said, you do have to be in the right mindset to jump into this comic. If you’re in the wrong state of mind you could wind up getting offended despite the liberal leanings of the creative team. And if some language and certain kinds of representation may offend you, which I understand, you may have qualms with this book. Otherwise, you should really pick this up. Revel in bigots getting eaten by punk zombies, because after January 20th, this kind of catharsis it might be one of the only things we have to get us through what’s coming.

Netflix Mashes Stranger Things & Trollhunters in Video

In celebration of DreamWorks Trollhunters, which premiered on Netflix on Friday, December 23rd, DreamWorks Animation Television and Netflix have released an out-of-this-world mash up featuring elements of the wildly-popular Stranger Things! Trollhunters took fans by storm when it premiered all 26 episodes, a first for a Netflix original. Not only were fans ecstatic but critical acclaim has soared since the premiere putting Trollhunters at 93% on Rotten Tomatoes! See your favorite characters back in action in the video below!

From the limitless imagination of acclaimed filmmaker Guillermo del Toro comes a tale of two worlds set to collide in the epic saga DreamWorks Trollhunters. When ordinary teenager Jim Lake Jr. stumbles upon a mystical amulet on his way to school one morning, he inadvertently discovers an extraordinary secret civilization of mighty trolls beneath his small town of Arcadia. Suddenly destined to play a crucial role in an ancient battle of good and evil, Jim is determined to save the world – right after gym class. A must-see viewing event for the entire family, DreamWorks Trollhunters will bring viewers of all ages around the globe into the rich and creative world of this all-new Netflix original series, premiering worldwide December 23, 2016.

Voice talent includes Kelsey Grammer (“The Simpsons,” X-Men: The Last Stand), Ron Perlman (Hellboy, Adventure Time), Steven Yeun (The Walking Dead) and the late Anton Yelchin (Star Trek Beyond). Trollhunters is created and executive produced by Guillermo del Toro (Crimson Peak, Hellboy). Marc Guggenheim (Arrow, DC’s Legends of Tomorrow), Rodrigo Blaas (animator Up, Brave, WALL•E), Christina Steinberg (Rise of the Guardians) and Chad Hammes (Dragons: Race to the Edge) serve as executive producers. Dan Hageman and Kevin Hageman are co-executive producers.

Mindy Newell Is Writing This During The Giants / Packers Game

The Crown Season 1

This is going to be a relatively unusual column today as I am frequently stopping to watch the New York Giants/Green Bay Packers wild card game. Right now there are 20 seconds left in the 1st quarter, the G’ints just punted, and Green Bay’s drive will start on the 45 yard line. The Giants should be up by at least one touchdown, but Beckham has dropped two perfect passes in the end zone – commentators Joe Buck and Troy Aikman are speculating that it’s because of the cold weather and although that’s possible, that’s not what I expect from a player of Beckham’s caliber. He made the All-Pro team this year. Anyway, the G’ints are up by a field goal (that’s three points for you non-football fans out there) and Green Bay has yet to put anything on the board.

I will say that New York’s defense in the 1st quarter has been terrific, but it’s a loooong game. Also, as I pointed to out to my daughter, son-in-law, and brother, the Packers have lost two previous play-off games to the Giants and they are as hungry as I would be. Eye of the Tiger, y’know?

Man, it’s hard not to write a running commentary on the game, but this is ComicMix, not NFL SuperPro (to mention the magazine I edited at Marvel in conjunction with NFL Properties), so I will digress from the pigskin.

To be honest, I haven’t ready any new comics that have impressed me enough to talk about – although I do love Adam Hughes’ Betty & Veronica – but I sure have been on the web a lot lately checking out “ComicMix-y” series, along with previews and trailers for what’s “coming soon.”

Constant readers will know that I have watched The Crown on Netflix (the geek connection is Matt Smith as Prince Phillip) and just finished the second season of The Man in the High Castle on Amazon. I’m currently looking forward to The Handmaid’s Tale, based on the 1985 speculative fiction, dystopian novel by the noted Canadian author Margaret Atwood, which will be premiering on Hulu in April. Set in a bleak future in which the United States has been become the theocratic Republic of Gilead, in which women have two functions: Madonna (wife and mother) and whore (the “Handmaids” of the title). While the novel primarily explores the themes of the roles of women in society, it also raises questions about the relationships between men and women, the purpose of class and caste, freedom of speech and thought, and the power of religion to subvert individualism.

The novel won the 1987 Arthur C. Clarke Award, and was nominated for the 1986 Nebula Award and Booker Prize; it was also nominated in 1987 for the Prometheus Award. It has already been adapted as a movie (which starred the late Natasha Richardson, and which, im-not-so-ho, did not do the book justice) and has also been translated to radio, opera, and stage. I’m really looking forward to it’s adaptation as a series so that the book has the chance to “stretch its legs.”

It’s the 2nd quarter, 3:60 left, and the G’ints are up by 6 – two field goals. Green Bay hasn’t yet scored…fuck! Green Bay just scored…and I must admit it was a daring pass by Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers to the successful and talented wide receiver Davante Adams. With the extra point, the Packers are now up by 1 – the score is now 7 – 6.

Much closer – next Saturday (January 15) is the television premiere of the sixth season of Homeland, although Showtime is already streaming the first episode and has made it available on Showtime On Demand. Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes) is in New York City, specifically Brooklyn, disengaged from the CIA, and has started a foundation to help falsely accused Muslims. Saul Berenson (Mandy Pantikin) and Dar Adal (F. Murray Abraham) are back, as is…

SPOILER ALERT!

…Rupert Friend as CIA “black ops” agent Peter Quinn. (To paraphrase Captain Kirk to Spock in The Wrath of Khan: “Isn’t he dead?”)

I check out the premiere of Emerald City (NBC, Fridays at 9 P.M.), which co-stars the indomitable and magnificent Vincent D’Onofrio (Wilson Fisk, a.k.a. the Kingpin, last seen on the whatever screen you use in second season of Netflix’s Daredevil) as the Wizard…

Double fuck!!!!! I missed the play (in fact, I don’t know how the Packers got the ball back because I was writing this), but the Packers have just scored again – and it’s an 8-point Green Bay lead. 14 – 6 going into halftime. What the hell happened to New York’s defense??

Okay. I’m calm. Depressed, but calm. As I was saying, I tried Emerald City, but it just didn’t work for me. It was too slow…or something. Not sure. I didn’t make it to the second half of the two-hour premiere – not actually a pilot, but two episodes run in sequence. But YMMV.

24 will be back, premiering on Fox after the Super Bowl (February 5), but without Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) and Chloe O’Brian (Mary Lyn Rajskub). Yep, Fox is doing a sequel, officially called 24: Legacy. Corey Hawkins is the “new Jack,” playing ex-Army Ranger and war hero Eric Carter. However, Carlos Bernard as agent-gone-bad Tony Almeida will be back. I don’t know about this one. Keifer and Chloe put such indelible marks on the show; it remains to be seen if lightning can strike twice.

 

Ed Catto: Planning for Geek

There’s a big year ahead in Geek Culture with lots to look forward to. Upon reflection, I feel like should have more clearly defined plans.

Cosplayers are the best at looking ahead and especially planning their convention attendance. The inherent creativity and creation of cosplay demands disciplined convention selection and scheduling. Cosplay entails developing elaborate timelines so that cosplayers have the necessary time to envision, plan, purchase materials and sew and/or assemble their cosplay costumes. And of course, so many cosplayers create multiple costumes. The finished products are impressive, and the work it takes to get there is impressive.

I’d like to attend several conventions this year and have my favorites. But in general, I find myself really looking forward to the smaller ones. That might be just because I’ve had so many great experiences at the big ones. And as a very impatient guy, I hate waiting in lines but I kind of like those big crowds at big shows.

But I think there’s something else going on.

There are many small shows that are very professionally run. They serve as a counterbalance to the chaotic frenzy of the larger comic-cons. Maybe their growth is part of the emerging “shop local” or “homegrown” trends. So, for me, shows like Ithacon, NJ Comic Expo, Salt City Comic-Con and Awesome Con are all on the radar this year.

There also bog two centennial birthdays to celebrate this year.

March marks the annual Will Eisner Week. Danny Fingeroth and The Eisner Foundation organize of series events nationwide at Comic Shops and libraries. I’d like to get one going locally, in fact. I never tire of Eisner’s work and we can all continue to argue about the validity or obsolescence of the term “graphic novel.”

Jack Kirby, the King of Comics, was born 100 years ago too. The more we understand the vast tapestry of comic creators, the more we can appreciate the many creators who contributed to comics. In fact, sometimes I’m surprised when speaking to industry professionals or historians, and they’ll casually categorize Kirby as a creator, just like any other.  That’s probably a rational way to approach the man and his work, but…

I was part of the generation that was taught to revere all his work. We believed all the hype. “Don’t ask: Just Buy It!” was a command we eagerly obeyed.

One event I’m looking forward to is the clever Kirby-themed issue of Back Issue! just announced, even though it’s not scheduled for publication until 2018. Back Issue! #104 is all about “The Fourth World After Kirby,” and the articles will be focusing on all the series and creators that followed in Kirby’s huge footsteps.

And there’s one other artist that I’m definitely going to have to learn about this year.

Two weeks ago, Disney and Warner Brothers artist Tyrus Wong died at the age of 106. The New York Times reported his passing on the front page. As a Chinese American, Wong suffered great hardships and bias throughout his life, but somehow he managed to become the guiding creative force behind Disney’s Bambi. He worked in the Warner Bros animation division for years after that.  His artistic vision was so great that he even contributed to live action films like Rebel Without A Cause and The Sands of Iwo Jima.

Wong has been given overdue credit, most notably in major exhibition at the Disney Family Museum and in a documentary called Tyrus. But most of his life seemed defined by enduring racial prejudice while producing incredible artwork. I’m looking forward to learning more about this fascinating artist.

These are my shoot-from-hip plans for Geek Culture in 2017. What are yours?

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