Monthly Archive: July 2017

Guardians of the Galaxy 2 Arrives in 4K, Blu-ray Discs in August

BURBANK, Calif., July 11, 2017 — This August, Marvel Studios’ Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, the blockbuster sequel featuring the world’s favorite band of intergalactic misfits, blasts into homes digitally in HD, 4K Ultra HD™ and Disney Movies Anywhere on Aug. 8 and physically on 4K Ultra HD,™ Blu-ray and DVD on Aug. 22.

“Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” marks the Studios first in-home title to release in stunning 4K Ultra HD format, providing consumers with the ultimate home entertainment experience with next-generation high dynamic range visuals and Dolby Atmos immersive audio. 4K Ultra HD provides four times sharper resolution of HD with exceptional HDR which produces brighter brights, deeper blacks and richer colors than ever before. The galaxy has never looked so good!

Delivering the ultimate in-home experience is the Ultimate Cinematic Universe Edition (which includes a collectible poster while supplies last) comes packaged to include a 4K Ultra HD version of the film, a Blu-ray, a Digital Copy and more than 80-minutes of exclusive, never-before-seen bonus materials. Bonus will take fans behind the scenes with the movie’s diverse, dynamic cast of misfits and inspired team of filmmakers, debut an all-new original music video starring David Hasselhoff and special guests, hilarious outtakes, deleted scenes, audio commentary by director James Gunn, and more.

Set to the all-new sonic backdrop of Awesome Mixtape #2, the film’s storyline continues the team’s adventures as they traverse the outer reaches of the cosmos. The Guardians (Chris Pratt as Peter Quill/Star-Lord, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Dave Bautista as Drax, Vin Diesel as the voice of Groot, and Bradley Cooper as Rocket) must fight to keep their newfound family together as they unravel the mystery of Peter Quill’s true parentage. Old foes become new allies and fan-favorite characters from the classic comics will come to our heroes’ aid as the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues to expand.

BONUS MATERIAL (may vary by retailer):

Blu-ray:

  • The Making of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 – A four-part, behind-the-scenes look at the making of the film, done in the style of classic-rock album liner notes.
  • Visionary Intro – Director James Gunn provides context on how he continues and expands the storylines of these beloved characters in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.
  • Guardians Inferno Music Video – Join David Hasselhoff and special guests for a galactic retro dance party.
  • Gag Reel – Laugh out loud at all the hilarious off-script shenanigans and bloopers that took place on the set of “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2,” featuring all your favorite Guardians.
  • Four Deleted Scenes – Check out four specific scenes that had to be cut from the film, including two extended scenes and two deleted scenes.
  • Audio Commentary – Check out a special narration of the film by director James Gunn, who guides fans through an inside look at the making of the movie.

Digital:

All the features listed above plus four extra exclusives:

  • Three Scene Breakdowns (Digital Exclusives) – We’ll reveal the anatomy of a few key scenes from the film. Discover the process in bringing these scenes to life. It starts with a doodle and the rest is film history. Audiences will be given the option to view 5-6 layers of specific scenes in the film. Scenes include “Eclector Escape,” “Gamora and Nebula,” and “Rocket and Ravagers.”
  • Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: Breakout! (Digital Exclusive) – Get an exclusive sneak peek inside the most anticipated ride at Disneyland, Guardians of the Galaxy – Mission: Breakout!. We’ll dig into the concepts and inspiration, and talk about what it took to bring the most epic ride at Disneyland to life.

DVD:

  • Does not include any bonus materials.

SPECIFICATIONS (applies to film content only):

Product Offerings: Digital = 4K UHD with HDR (HDR-10 or Dolby Vision), HD, SD
Physical = Cinematic Universe 4K UHD Combo Pack (4K UHD with HDR, Blu-ray, Digital Copy), Blu-ray Combo Pack (Blu-ray, DVD, Digital Copy), DVD and Exclusive Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack
On Demand – August 22nd – check with your local provider
Feature Run Time: Approximately 136 minutes
Rating: PG-13
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1
Audio: 4K UHD Blu-ray = English Dolby Atmos, English/Spanish 7.1 Dolby Digital Plus, English 2.0 Descriptive Audio, French 5.1 Dolby Digital 4K UHD Digital = English Dolby Atmos (platform dependent), English 5.1, English 2.0
Blu-ray = English 7.1 DTS-HDMA, English 2.0 Descriptive Audio, French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital Language Tracks
DVD = English, French and Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital Language Tracks, English 2.0 Descriptive Audio
Subtitles: Physical: English SDH, French & Spanish
Closed Captions:  Digital & DVD = English

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 is written and directed by James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy, Dawn of the Dead) and produced by Kevin Feige. Louis D’Esposito, Victoria Alonso, Jonathan Schwartz, Nikolas Korda and Stan Lee serve as executive producers.

The sequel stars Chris Pratt (Jurassic World, Guardians of the Galaxy) as Peter Quill/Star-Lord, Zoe Saldana (Guardians of the Galaxy, Star Trek Beyond) as Gamora, Dave Bautista (Spectre, Guardians of the Galaxy) as Drax, Vin Diesel (Guardians of the Galaxy, Furious 7) as the voice of Groot, Bradley Cooper (Joy, American Sniper) as the voice of Rocket, Michael Rooker (Guardians of the Galaxy, The Walking Dead) as Yondu, Karen Gillan (Guardians of the Galaxy, Doctor Who) as Nebula, Pom Klementieff (Ingrid Goes West, Oldboy) as Mantis, Elizabeth Debicki (The Great Gatsby, Everest) as Ayesha, Chris Sullivan (The Knick, This Is Us) as Taserface,  Sean Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy, Gilmore Girls) as Kraglin, Tommy Flanagan (Gladiator, Sin City) as Tullk,  Laura Haddock (Guardians of the Galaxy, Luther) as Meredith Quill, with Sylvester Stallone (Creed, The Expendables) as Stakar, and Kurt Russell (The Hateful Eight, Furious 7) as Ego.

Box Office Democracy: Spider-Man: Homecoming

There needs to be a clear change in thesis statement when you reboot a film franchise.  Something like “We need Batman to be more serious and less goofy” being the reason to bring Christopher Nolan in to restart the Caped Crusader, or “Star Trek doesn’t feel relatable to young people because we’ve been serving TNG fans and older exclusively for 20 years” for the Abrams Trek reboot.  I think that’s why the Andrew Garfield Amazing Spider-Man series never caught on because there wasn’t a change in thesis, it was the same attempt at superhero melodrama with big CGI villains.  The only thing that changed was people didn’t seem to like Tobey Maguire anymore and Sam Raimi wanted desperately to do anything else with his time.

Spider-Man: Homecoming is a clear change in tone.  Sony/Marvel (I don’t know who gets credit here) have decided that they want Spider-Man to be upbeat and not dragged down by being an overwrought angst-fest.  This is a movie about the wonder of being a superhero and the problems are kid problems.  The problems that don’t involve a man with giant wings at least.

It’s so refreshing to see a reboot without an origin story.  There’s a throwaway reference to being bitten by a spider and that’s it.  There’s no working as a wrestler, there’s no Uncle Ben, and the movie doesn’t suffer one iota for the absence.  We’ve been told this origin story so many times including twice in the last 15 years on the big screen.  It’s nice to be given credit for cultural literacy for once.  I do wish someone had said “With great power comes great responsibility” just one time because that’s an important thematic shorthand that just gets run over here, but if I have to trade that for 40 minutes of not killing Uncle Ben I’ll take it.  Hopefully whoever at Warner Brothers responsible for planning the next on-screen version of killing the Waynes saw Homecoming this weekend and is thinking twice.

There’s a prominent subplot about Peter’s suit.  It’s a suit Tony Stark gave him and it has a very Iron-Man-y HUD.  Midway through the film the “training wheels” get taken off and we get an awful lot of material on the crazy new features and Peter’s inability to manage them.  It’s funny enough but I profoundly do not care about watching Spider-Man fiddle with technology.  History probably proves I’m in the minority here, as both the Ben Reilly costume change and the Iron Spider era both saw bumps in sales, but it’s not the relatable content to me.  I think it’s fun when Peter engages in relatable drama; not does a scene out of Despicable Me with a plethora of gadgets.  This should be a small thing, but it’s so much of the second act it gets exhausting.

It feels like every few months we get another thing from Marvel that is supposed to finally show us the MCU from a human perspective and none of them ever succeed.  Daredevil was supposed to be this, as were Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., and seemingly everything else.  None of those particularly worked for me on that level because while they would mention the bigger things happening in the movie they either felt too far removed (like they were only coincidentally in the same world) or too close (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is massive in scope).  Spider-Man: Homecoming is, finally, a success at feeling small.  The stakes feel important, but at no point is someone threatening me with the end of the world or the destruction of New York.  This is a movie about personal triumph and the effect, and lack of effect, that has on the later world.  Spider-Man fails if the Vulture succeeds, but the worst outcome of the events in this movie wouldn’t even be worth an aside in the next Avengers film.  There’s growth here and as the rest of the MCU spins in to grander, more cosmic, conflict it’s nice to have a little story that feels big instead of a giant story that rings hollow.

Sweaterweather and Other Short Stories by Sara Varon

This is not a new book by Sara Varon, cartoonist of Robot Dreams and Bake Sale . That may be slightly disappointing.

It is an old book by Varon — originally published as her first collection back in 2003 — expanded with as much new material as old, so it’s kinda new, and probably unfamiliar to most of Varon’s audience (who I suspect were, in most cases, not alive yet in 2003).

So this new edition of Sweaterweather and Other Short Stories has the eight stories from the 2003 first edition (plus the cover, presented as an interior spread), which originally appeared various places in 2002 and 2003. And it also has nine newer stories, created since the first edition of Sweaterweather and running up through 2014.

Some are fictional, and some are about Varon’s own life, though the distinction gets muddy — she draws all of her characters as animals and robots and creatures, and some of the “fictional” stories are directly from her life, just not presented as a “true” story about “Sara Varon.” And it’s all appropriate for fairly new readers — say the middle reaches of elementary school, and maybe even a bit lower — with an intrinsic sweetness and inquisitiveness that kids that age love and embody.

So the stories that aren’t Varon showing us around parts of the world — that aren’t specifically nonfiction with a “Sara Varon” narrator — are set in her usual Busytown-style kids-world, where all of the characters have adult lives and responsibilities (jobs, shopping, errands, and so on) but are essentially kids, almost playacting in that world. And, of course, everything is nice, and conflicts are almost entirely avoided. It’s a sweet, lovely, nurturing world of happy creatures who like each other and maintain great friendships.

A steady diet of that would be too much for most of us, but it’s a great thing to dip into now and then, to wash off all of the cynicism and unpleasantness of the adult world. Varon’s world is a kinder, happier place than the one we really live in, and should be celebrated for that. I hope this book is in a million schoolrooms and libraries, and as many homes as it can find a place in.

Reposted from The Antick Musings of G.B.H. Hornswoggler, Gent.

Mike Gold: Hot Town, Summer In The Cities

I’m going to ramble a bit about an annual phenomenon. In many important ways, New York City and San Diego are about to trade places.

Even with DC Comics having moved its flat drawers and some of its staff from the Right Coast to the Left, New York City remains inundated with comics people. Marvel, Archie, Dynamite, and Valiant remain in the Baked Apple, as does King Features Syndicate and sundry Internet outfits such as comiXology and ComicMix. We’ve still got the only weekly magazine venerable enough to publish single-panel cartoons, The New Yorker. You’d be familiar with this publication if you went to the doctor more often. Overall, the Greater Comics Racket continues to dance to the beat of east coast drummers.

Except for next week.

Next week, New York goes to San Diego to participate in the annual “how many college freshmen can you stuff in a phone booth” contest, a.k.a. the San Diego Comic-Con. They prefer to call themselves just “Comicon,” maybe with two c’s, but there are a lot of tradespeople who consider this something akin to theft of intellectual property. We’ve got a ton of ComicMixers there, including Glenn Hauman, Adriane Nash, Ayna Ernst, Maddy Ernst, Jen Ernst (do you detect a theme here?), Ed Catto, Emily Whitten, Bob Ingersoll, Michael Davis, Arthur Tebbel, and whomever I forgot because my memory is like a well-tuned car – as long as that car is a Stanley Steamer.

That leaves Martha Thomases, Joe Corallo and me in Manhattan watching a double-feature. I’m not sure what Denny and Molly and John and Marc will be up to, but at least I’ll be seeing Marc in Kokomo this fall. How can I pass that one up?

So, for some reason I’ll be spending time wandering the hot, summery streets of Manhattan, coping with high humidity, high temperatures, pissed-off Long Islanders and the pervasive smell of rat urine, the stench that shouts “welcome to our subways!” During SDCC week, San Diego is overcrowded, overpriced, and over-partied but with perfect weather (except, oddly, when I’m there). I’ll be happy to be here. Besides, I try not to fly anymore. In airplanes, I mean.

I’ve dedicated my current travel schedule to the “smaller” conventions (of course, by comparison to SDCC the Roman Coliseum held “smaller” conventions). You know, the shows where I can talk with the fans, find out what people like and don’t like and might like, talk with the retailers and guests, and never have to wait more than five minutes to get through the bathroom line. I’ve been doing comic book conventions for 49 years, back when our product was printed on papyrus. The late and deeply lamented Phil Seuling held his first “big” convention in New York City in 1968. There were 300 people there, and all of them were thinking the same thought: “Holy crap! There are 299 other people who are just like me.”

Well, it was 1968, so “just like me” meant possessing a Y chromosome. It also helped if you were white but, then again, it usually does.

We’ve come a long way. SDCC dumps about a quarter of a billion dollars into the San Diego economy. Comic book conventions attract several million fans and professionals. Much of Hollywood moves down to San Diego for the week, and we see equivalent attendees in places such as the United Arab Emirates, Spain, Belgium, Chile, Finland, France, Italy, Japan, Malaysia… I think I may have received an invite from Togo last year.

And to think it all started out as a hobby. 300 geeks in a hotel ballroom who never, ever thought the word “geek” would become a badge of honor.

Wow!

Joe Corallo: Your Friendly Neighborhood Spectacular

This past weekend I saw Spider-Man Homecoming with my friend Chap. We went to the theater right by us early in the afternoon on Saturday. It was the best experience I’ve had seeing a Spider-Man movie in theaters since I saw Spider-Man 2 with fellow ComicMix writer Arthur Tebbel back in 2004. That was thirteen years ago.

So much of what makes this movie work is Spider-Man himself. Tom Holland (no relation to Alec Holland, a.k.a. Swamp Thing) manages to nail playing both a boy with a superhero physique with enough awkward mannerisms to make it totally believable that he would be perceived as big nerd even by nerd science school standards. He handles the social anxiety and doubt of a teenage Peter Parker better than just about anyone else I’d seen play it or write it. Tom Holland approaches the character with a neediness, desperation, love, and affection that really elevates Spider-Man into being a character that’s unique in this overcrowded superhero landscape which should help make this franchise stand out in future movies. I imagine Tom Holland will also be getting a lot of offers to play roles that Michael Cera would have been offered ten years ago.

Michael Keaton is a stellar villain here, and after Kurt Russell in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 shows a course correction on Marvel’s part in terms of making better villains. This has been one of the shared universe’s weakest points. Keaton elevates a silly, gimmicky comic book villain into a character with nuance and strong motivation. The downside here is that if you want to go read a comic with a good Vulture story, good luck finding one as good as this.

Many of the background characters were people of color, which was very refreshing. Peter’s best friend, his love interest, Flash Thompson, the high school gym teacher, the principal, Shocker and many others were non-white. These movies need to do this more often in order to keep them fresh and timely. Yes, not all of these characters were nonwhite, but many of them were created fifty to nearly eighty years ago and the times they are a changin’. They also gavespecial thanks to Dwayne McDuffie in the credits, as he created Damage Control. I made it a point to look for his name.

Needing more of a Spider-Man fix this weekend I took my copy of Kraven’s Last Hunt off the shelf and read that as well. It’s a very different kind of Spider-Man story; the exact opposite of what was offered in Spider-Man Homecoming. The optimism was replaced with cynicism, the love and affection coming from Kraven in his own sick way as Spider-Man, through the fate of circumstance, is reduced to a damaged shell of his former self; at least for a time. The stakes are higher and the villains more lethal.

Kraven’s Last Hunt is a thoughtful work exploring life, depression, and how we move past trauma. It’s one of my favorite Spider-Man stories, but in part because of how untypical it is for a Spider-Man story. If the character went down that direction more often, it would lose its impact. While it’s a darker place, it’s the kind of story I do think this new Spider-Man movie franchise could tackle towards the very end.

I know that I was saying earlier how this movie makes Vulture a more interesting villain than he typically is, but in all honesty, the most depressing thing that comes from watching Spider-Man Homecoming is that no Spider-Man story is like it. If you weren’t reading the comics and now you wanted to, I cannot recommend a single Spider-Man comic that feels the same way. The closet might be Bendis’ Ultimate Spider-Man which will always have a special place in my heart for bringing me back to Marvel Comics, but even then it’s much different.

You like Ned? Too bad! You like Liz? Oh well! Do you like this Flash Thompson? Go somewhere else! Does this Spider-Man speak to you more than any others you’ve seen in the movies or on TV? Sorry, but you’ll have to wait until the next movie because he’s not like this in any of the comics.

I grew up loving Spider-Man. Yes, I know I wrote that whole long column about how much I love X-Men, but Spider-Man was up there for me too. I loved watching Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends, the 90s animated series, collecting the action figures from it, playing video games like The Amazing Spider-Man vs The Kingpin, Spider-Man and Venom: Maximum Carnage which was just a Streets of Rage clone but I still enjoyed it, and a whole lot more.

I really love the character. I want to love the comics so badly. I haven’t liked the comics in years. In many years. It saddens me that a character I grew up loving so thoroughly and was excited to talk about and get immersed in through comics and games as a kid has so thoroughly alienated me. The character has been diminished through clones, copycat characters, alternate universes, gimmicks, clumsy resets, body swapping, and moves to go backward instead of forwards.

I know some people are enjoying the current Spider-Verse and I’m glad they are. Not every comic should be written for me. However, after seeing Spider-Man Homecoming I have some hope that maybe, just maybe, the comics will restore some of that magic that’s been lost over time in the same way that Tom Holland showed me that Spider-Man is still spectacular.

Glenn Hauman: Comics Adaptations Overload?

This past weekend, I was a guest at Shore Leave (had a blast) and as I’ve been doing for the last decade or so, I’ve been helping Robert Greenberger put together a bunch of trailers for upcoming movies, tv shows, and the like for what’s going to be coming out between now and February (which is when Farpoint takes place).

However, this week was the first time I could have filled the entire time allotted with nothing but previews from upcoming projects based on comics and graphic novels.

And this is less than two weeks before San Diego Comic-Con, where there will be lots of new stuff revealed for the first time – it’s a safe bet we’ll see sneak peeks from Avengers: Infinity War and Aquaman, maybe something from Runaways or New Mutants or Deadpool 2: Dead Harder, and that’s not even talking about any of the animated projects or anything from Valiant, not to mention the slew of returning TV series…

Are we hitting oversaturation?

I doubt it. Instead, we’re finally hitting a point of market segmentation and specialization.

First: we’ve got projects coming out that many people wouldn’t know were adaptations from comics unless you told them because they don’t have superheroes in costumes. Atomic Blonde is the current best example (based on The Coldest City by Antony Johnson and Sam Hart, published by Oni).

Second: we’re getting to a point where, just like in your local comic book shop, we’re seeing stories that aren’t just guys in capes beating each other up. We have mysteries, science fiction, high fantasy, horror, biographies, romance, thrillers, young adult, noir— in other words, the things you’d see in any bookstore except for computer manuals (and those don’t get adapted to movies).

And that diversity is a good thing, because not ever story is going to be for you. We’re long past the days when the only adaptations you had were Wonder Woman and The Incredible Hulk on television, and you watched them because that’s all that we had. (Maybe the Doctor Strange tv movie, if you could convince your parents not to watch Roots.) Now, we have a cornucopia of high quality shows to choose from, all appealing to different tastes and sensibilities. Even though Supergirl is a well-produced show, it’s not made with me in mind. And that’s okay, it has its audience and it’s doing fine.

This is healthy not just for adaptations, but for comics in general. It means that comic creators will tell other stories which have just as much chance as hitting the tie-in jackpot, which will compensate for the long hours at the drawing table.

However, having gone through the previews, I do see one trend that could feel repetitive: the bunch of outsiders grouping together to fight off evil, fear, and prejudice towards their kind. Between Cloak & Dagger, Inhumans, Gifted, Defenders, to an extent Justice League, and the non-comics Midnight, Texas… I have to wonder if this is a response to the politics of the day. (And for heaven’s sake, no more emo piano starting these trailers. You’re tortured. We get it.)

And since you’ve read through all of this, you should probably see the trailers I’m talking about.

Atomic Blonde:

Valerian:

Cloak & Dagger:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E5hrFVQiGyk

Ed Catto: It Creeps! It Crawls! Beware the Comic-Con!

  • News
  • July 10, 2017

It’s indestructible! It’s indescribable! Nothing can stop it!

Every one of you watching this screen should look out! Because soon, very soon, the most horrifying monster menace ever conceived…

No, this isn’t advertising copy for a comic convention coming to your town. These lines are from the trailer for that old monster movie, The Blob. But it could be used to describe any upcoming comic con.

Comic conventions are not only thriving but, like the Blob, they are now oozing out from the walls of their convention centers and invading local towns. Geek culture cannot be held within its original confines.

Who would have ever thought, way back when Geek Culture was nestled in little comic shops in the scorned section of town, that we’d get to this point? Unlike the foreboding tone of that Blob movie trailer, this expanding, oozing primordial mass inspires a sense of awe and wonderment.

The San Diego Comic-Con is probably the best example of this. The nation’s longest running convention is held annually at the San Diego Convention Center. (And it will be held there until 2021, but that’s a whole ‘nother column.)

The entire city seems to get behind this show. Most of the shops, bars, and restaurants in San Diego offer specials and decorations to welcome convention attendees. It seems like every waiter and waitress is wearing a comic book or Walking Dead themed shirt, in fact. And the show itself is so sprawling, it now schedules events in nearby hotels, local libraries, and even the town baseball’s stadium.

I have a great friend who lives in San Diego. Walshy, as we’ve called him since grade school, doesn’t know anything about comics or pop culture. Check that – he loved MAD magazine. That counts. But by and large, he just doesn’t have a passion for graphic novels, or science fiction, or horror movies, or Doctor Who, or any of the cool stuff at the San Diego Comic-Con.
But each year he attends Comic-Con and has a blast. There is one particularly wild story about how he partied with Michael Rooker (“I’m Mary Poppins, y’all!”) and Miss Venezuela on a hotel rooftop… but we’ll save that one for another day as well.

Walshy throws himself into San Diego Comic-Con because, as a resident, he can’t escape it. It’s so big and so boisterous that it’s all encompassing, even for locals.

And the great news is that Geek Culture is very welcoming. It pitches a big tent and invites everyone to come on in and have some fun.

The same thing is happening at other conventions. New York Comic-Con now hosts “Super Week” before their show, for example. Not surprisingly, it’s also happening at the up-and-coming shows in smaller markets.

Over the past year, I lent a hand to help grow Syracuse’s Salt City Comic-Con. It was a rousing success: it doubled in attendance and exhibitors reported very strong sales. It was officially held at the local convention center in the middle of Syracuse’s downtown area. But in reality, the event stretched to make the two days of the comic-con much longer.

  • The Mayor: Even Syracuse’s mayor got involved. Neal Adams was the guest of honor, and Mayor Stephanie Miner proclaimed the Saturday of the show to be “Neal Adams Day” in Syracuse.
  • Comics on Campus: It turns out Syracuse University has an incredible collection of original comic strip art. And for the past 80 years, only researchers have been able to view these treasures. We worked with SU’s Special Collections Director for an exhibition of original pages for fans. I never thought fans would be able to hold the very first Prince Valiant page, by Hal Foster, in their hands, but they did! One of our favorite artists, Joe Jusko, stopped by the exhibit and was in awe. His posts of viewing his favorite artists (Foster, Frank Robbins, Stan Drake etc.) went viral. And yes, we’re planning something bigger for next year.
  • Barley Quinn Craft Beer: The local brewpub, Empire, created a specialty beer called Barley Quinn and debuted it the week before the show. They gave away free Comic-con tickets and comics publisher Aftershock offered up a box full of Captain Kid graphic novels. Tom Peyer, the co-author of the series, is based in Syracuse and the publisher wanted to support him.
  • Cosplay: The convention partnered with the nearby Schweinfurth Art Center, a museum with a specialty in fabric arts, to host a cosplay “pre-game” event. I always feel bad when cosplayers put so much time and energy into their costumes, and can only wear them for a day, or two, at a convention. I suppose it’s the same way for brides. It was fun to be able to offer one additional “wearable opportunity” for cosplayers.

So even in a market like Syracuse, Geek Culture has creeped and crawled to ooze out beyond the confines of both the calendar and the convention center to become something bigger. Unlike the teenagers and townsfolk in The Blob, I’m not terrified. I’m elated! And you should be too.

John Ostrander: Holding Out For A Hero

Bill Maher, noted iconoclastic and increasingly misanthropic host of Real Time on HBO, announced about ten days ago that he was taking July off because, after six months of President Trump, he really needed it. I sympathize. Not before he took what I regard as some ill-informed and gratuitous swipes at comics, comic book movies, sci-fi/fantasy books, movies and TV and anything else I assume that he considers intellectually lowbrow.

Among his gripes that the stupid summer movies were increasingly infiltrating into fall, the time for more serious, adult movies. His biggest gripe is that they make us, the unwashed public, stupider because it makes us want a savior, someone who will descend from on high and rescue us instead of getting off our duffs and doing what needs to be done (i.e. deal with Trump) ourselves.

Except they’re not.

What bothers me about Maher’s criticisms is that he really doesn’t know what he’s talking about. I have severe doubts Mr. Maher has seen any of the superhero films, let alone read a comic book. It reminds me of the people who used to criticize Harry Potter films and books (which Maher also dislikes) as Satanic without ever having seen a film or read a word of the books. Somebody told them they were Satanic and that’s all they needed.

I can’t entirely blame Maher for thinking that films such as Man of Steel present the superhero as a godlike being descending to save the masses. The director, Zack Snyder, appeared to make the same mistake, presenting Supes in various Jesus like images. However, Superman is more like Moses than Jesus. Moses comes as a baby in a basket floating down the Nile to the Egyptian princess; baby Kal-El comes to Earth in a small rocket to the Kents in Kansas. Moses grows up as an Egyptian; Kal-El grows up as part of the Midwestern farming community.

However, Superman is neither. One of the key moments in the first Christopher Reeve Superman movie is the first time he takes off his glasses and opens his shirt to reveal the iconic S.

Not only does he become Superman: we become Superman.

That’s one of the big keys to the success of Superman over the decades. It’s part of the myth. Yes, we may seem meek and mild-mannered like Clark Kent but, if we took off our glasses and opened our shirts, people would see we were Superman.

It’s the same thing in the Wonder Woman movie, the first time Princess Diana shows up in the Wonder Woman regalia. [SPOILER ALERT!] It’s a great moment as she climbs out of the trench and starts determinedly to stride across No-Man’s Land. She deflects the murderous gunfire of the Germans. She has been outraged by the suffering of innocents and she’s going to do something about it. The Allied troops, inspired, join her and drive the Germans from the suffering village.

At that moment, Wonder Woman is us. Male and female, we identify with her. We become her. That’s the power, not only of the movies but of the story in general. We identify with that hero. They can inspire us to become our best selves.

That is what Bill Maher doesn’t get.

I don’t dislike Maher. He speaks up on topics and takes positions with which I agree – such as climate change. In doing that, he speaks for many people. It’s why I listen; to hear what I think and feel put into words. That’s why it’s frustrating to hear Maher denigrate the field in which I work and that so many worldwide really enjoy. The global revenues on these films are greater than the U.S. take. This suggests that the films speak to people outside our shores and, I suspect, for much the same reasons. It’s not simply the special effects; it’s how they make us feel.

It does make me question. If Maher is so blind on this, how much else is he blind about and that I ignore because they fall into my own prejudices and beliefs.

I hope Maher comes back from his time off refreshed and ready to do battle again. I don’t expect him to backtrack from his previous statements. I’d just like to see him leave comics alone.

Because, Bill, you don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about.

Marc Alan Fishman: A Con-nundrum

This weekend finds the Unshaven lads amidst the fine folks adjacent to our hometown at the Anime Midwest convention at Rosemont’s always-lovely Donald E. Stephens Center. The show itself marks our fourth time attending. I’d be lying if I said this particular anime show was our top choice; Anime Central for all intents and purposes is a bit larger fish by comparison to this mid-summer affair. Getting a table at A-Cen however, is like getting a job with the city of Chicago. As my Uncle Howard once lamented: “You have to know someone, owe them a favor, and then hold on to it for dear life.”

Uncle Howard’s version of that quote was far dirtier than presented. But I digress.

This show itself is fine and dandy – boasting an always energetic crowd who attend with money in their pockets and a song (that we can’t identify) in their hearts. That it’s our fourth year attending should no doubt quell any lingering fear of us being tepid on purchasing a table. And with no small press areas to be dubiously placed you won’t hear me complain about any sundry logistic issues.

No, instead you’ll hear me complain about an issue brought to our attention that has me in a dilly of a pickle.

Anime Midwest, along with a collection of several other mid-sized similarly themed conventions are helmed by one Ryan Kopf. I would like for you to go ahead and google “Anime Midwest Ryan Kopf.” Go ahead. I’ll wait.

See where things get prickly?

For those too lazy to google, I want to tread lightly here. Suffice it to say, Mr. Kopf sets off more than a few alarm bells when placed into the ole’ search engine. He is connected to a large trail of word salad the includes creep, stalker, and several more I choose not to repeat here. Neither I nor anyone in Unshaven Comics knows Mr. Kopf personally. None of us, to our knowledge, have even met him. The folks we’ve worked with in conjunction with the con have always been genial and easy to work with. As attendees, they have given us access to a con suite with free ramen noodles, and their volunteer staff has always been helpful and friendly. But beyond those niceties comes now this blow to our decision to attend the show.

The sheer amount of anecdotal evidence that places Kopf in a litany of angry and spiteful feelings are enough to make Unshaven Comics think twice about attending this show – be it this year or any other in the future. Sadly, the table is paid for, the books ordered, and merch ready to go; to not attend is to derail necessary cash flow into our always-by-the-bootstraps-budget of our li’l studio. We have to be here, and you better believe we’ll sell the hell out of our wares until the show floor closes tomorrow afternoon.

But beyond that? We’ll be ghosts in the wind. Next year, when it comes to Chicago-based Anime Conventions, it’s A-Cen or bust.

The conundrum to this all… what irks me most… is the Devil’s Advocate that sits on my shoulder. Kopf is merely a piece to a puzzle that works without him. And should all that surrounds him be as accurate as my gut tells me it is (suffice it to say whilst doing research this week, several folks I know who know the man are quite clear in their agreement with much that Google identifies), well, can’t Unshaven Comics enjoy a good show in spite of him?

Certainly, the attending public either don’t know or don’t care. Converging with one another to enjoy a convention is one of the truest joys in comic bookery. Take Dragon Con; despite plenty of now-documented-and-accurate police action taken on the former leader of that Con, Atlanta’s crown jewel of geek fun continues to be a dominant gem for conventioneers abroad. One man, no matter the level of entrenchment he has at an event, necessarily sullies the entire show. The show goes on. Attendees come, revel, make memories, and leave without a single worry of who necessarily takes home the bag of cash at the registration desk.

It is my hope that Anime Midwest may seek to oust their would-be show-runner in much the same fashion as the aforementioned Dragon Con. There’s a gaggle of good people connected to this show Unshaven Comics absolutely wants to see happy and throwing one heck of a show every year. Conventions are hard business. It would be a shame to see one fall because a single bad apple sits at the top of an otherwise fine tree.

But as I said above: between my personal connections to those who vouch for the nature of Kopf, and the, shall we say, Bill Cosby-level of indictment that swirls around the man, Unshaven Comics need not argue with the Devil to make up our minds. There are plenty more fish in the sea. And until this particular piece of chum is removed from the hull of the show he created, our lines will be cast in cleaner waters elsewhere.

30 Film Collection Celebrates DC Universe’s Animated Originals

BURBANK, CA (JUNE 28, 2017) – Warner Bros. Home Entertainment and DC Entertainment celebrate a decade of heroic animation with the release of the DC Universe Original Movies: 10th Anniversary Collection, a comprehensive box set of all 30 films, 5 animated shorts, new special features and exclusive collectible items coming November 7, 2017 to Blu-ray™. The entire 30-film set will also be available on Digital starting August 15, 2017.

Launched in 2007 with the landmark release of Superman Doomsday, the DC Universe Original Movies are based on or inspired by storylines and/or characters from within the ever-expanding DC library. Produced by DC Entertainment and Warner Bros. Animation, the stories range from films based upon iconic DC Super Hero stories (Superman Doomsday, Justice League: The New Frontier, Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Batman: The Killing Joke) to films inspired by themes from within DC history (Batman vs. Robin was inspired by “The Court of Owls,” Superman vs. The Elite was inspired by “What’s so Funny About Truth, Justice and the American Way?”) to original stories (Justice League: Gods and Monsters, Batman and Harley Quinn).

The DC Universe Original Movies: 10th Anniversary Collection will include all 30 films – from Superman Doomsday to the all-new Batman and Harley Quinn, as well as newly released commemorative editions of Wonder Woman and Justice League: The New Frontier. The 32-disc box set will also include all five DC Showcase animated shorts – The Spectre, Green Arrow, Jonah Hex, Catwoman and Superman/Shazam: The Return of Black Adam. The details of the special features will be announced later this summer.

“It’s been an amazing journey from the initial concept of bringing comic book pages to screen to the completion of 30 animated films spotlighting the mesmerizing characters and stories of the DC library,” said Mary Ellen Thomas, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Vice President, Family & Animation Marketing. “We are proud to celebrate this first decade of filmmaking with an impressive box set filled with exciting extras beyond these stunning films themselves.”

The 30-film DC Universe Original Movies: 10th Anniversary Collection (Blu-ray) will include:

  1. SUPERMAN: DOOMSDAY
  2. JUSTICE LEAGUE: THE NEW FRONTIER
  3. BATMAN: GOTHAM KNIGHT
  4. WONDER WOMAN COMMEMORATIVE EDITION
  5. GREEN LANTERN: FIRST FLIGHT
  6. SUPERMAN/BATMAN: PUBLIC ENEMIES
  7. JUSTICE LEAGUE: CRISIS ON TWO EARTHS
  8. BATMAN: UNDER THE RED HOOD
  9. SUPERMAN/BATMAN: APOCALYPSE
  10. ALL-STAR SUPERMAN
  11. GREEN LANTERN: EMERALD KNIGHTS
  12. BATMAN: YEAR ONE
  13. JUSTICE LEAGUE: DOOM
  14. SUPERMAN VS. THE ELITE
  15. THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, PART 1
  16. THE DARK KNIGHTS RETURNS, PART 2
  17. SUPERMAN: UNBOUND
  18. JUSTICE LEAGUE: THE FLASHPOINT PARADOX
  19. JUSTICE LEAGUE: WAR
  20. SON OF BATMAN
  21. BATMAN: ASSAULT ON ARKHAM
  22. JUSTICE LEAGUE: THRONE OF ATLANTIS
  23. BATMAN VS. ROBIN
  24. JUSTICE LEAGUE: GODS AND MONSTERS
  25. BATMAN: BAD BLOOD
  26. JUSTICE LEAGUE VS. TEEN TITANS
  27. BATMAN: THE KILLING JOKE
  28. JUSTICE LEAGUE DARK
  29. TEEN TITANS: THE JUDAS CONTRACT
  30. BATMAN AND HARLEY QUINN

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