Monthly Archive: December 2017

Win a Home Again Combo Pack

  • News
  • December 11, 2017

It’s been a while since there was a well-made, ell-received romcom and Home Again seemed to revive a genre thought dead. To celebrate the season and its release on home video tomorrow, Universal Home Entertainment has provided us with a Combo Pack (Blu-ray, DVD, Digital HD) to give away.

All you need to do is tell us which Reese Witherspoon performance is your favorite and why. Entries should be submitted no later than 11:59 p.m., Friday, December 15. The contest is open to North American readers only and the judgment of ComicMix‘s judges will be final.

Academy Award® winner Reese Witherspoon (Big Little Lies) stars in Home Again, a modern romantic comedy about love, family, and new beginnings. Home Again arrives on Digital on November 21, 2017, and on Blu-rayTM, DVD, and On Demand on December 12, 2017, from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. Smart and oozing with charm, the film takes viewers on a heart-warming journey of laughter, emotion, and self-discovery as Witherspoon navigates life as a newly single mother of two. The perfect holiday gift for romantic comedy fans of all ages, Home Again on Blu-rayTM, DVD and Digital features a bonus commentary with the director and the producer of the film, taking viewers even deeper into the heartfelt story.

Produced by Nancy Meyers, who brought us beloved films including Something’s Gotta Give, The Holiday, and The Intern, Home Again is filled with a talented ensemble cast including Michael Sheen (Midnight in Paris), Lake Bell (What Happens In Vegas), Nat Wolff (The Fault in Our Stars), Pico Alexander (A Most Violent Year), Jon Rudnitsky (Saturday Night Live) and Candice Bergen (Miss Congeniality).

Alice (Witherspoon), a recently separated mother of two, finds her life upended when three young, charismatic filmmakers move into her guest house. Alice’s unlikely new family and a budding romance comes to a crashing halt when her ex-husband shows up, suitcase in hand. A story of love, friendship, and the families we create, Home Again is a modern romantic comedy with one very big life lesson: starting over is not for beginners!

BONUS FEATURE on BLU-RAY™, DVD and digital

  • Feature Commentary with writer/director Hallie Meyers-Shyer and producer Nancy Meyers

Home Again will be available on Blu-ray™ combo pack which includes Blu-ray™, DVD and Digital.

  • Blu-ray™ unleashes the power of your HDTV and is the best way to watch movies at home, featuring 6X the picture resolution of DVD, exclusive extras and theater-quality surround sound.
  • Digital lets fans watch movies anywhere on their favorite devices. Users can instantly stream or download.
  • The Movies Anywhere Digital App simplifies and enhances the digital movie collection and viewing experience by allowing consumers to access their favorite digital movies in one place when purchased or redeemed through participating digital retailers. Consumers can also redeem digital copy codes found in eligible Blu-rayTM and DVD disc packages from participating studios and stream or download them through Movies Anywhere.  Movies Anywhere is available only in the United States.

FILMMAKERS:
Cast: Reese Witherspoon, Nat Wolff, Jon Rudnitsky, Pico Alexander, Michael Sheen, Candice Bergen
Casting By: Courtney Bright, Nicole Daniels
Music Supervisor: Linda Cohen
Music By: John Debney
Editor: David Bilow
Costume Designer: Kate Brien Kitz
Production Designer: Ellen Brill
Director of Photography: Dean Cundey, ASC
Executive Producer: Jeremiah Samuels
Produced By: Nancy Meyers, p.g.a., Erika Olde
Directed By: Hallie Meyers-Shyer

TECHNICAL INFORMATION BLU-RAY™:

Street Date: December 12, 2017
Copyright: Universal Pictures Home Entertainment
Selection Number: 55192091
Layers: BD 50
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Widescreen
Rating: PG-13 for some thematic and sexual material
Languages/Subtitles: English SDH, French Canadian, Latin American Spanish
Sound: English DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1, Latin American Spanish DTS Digital Surround 5.1
Run Time: 1 hour, 37 minutes

TECHNICAL INFORMATION DVD:
Street Date: December 12, 2017
Copyright: Universal Pictures Home Entertainment
Selection Number: 55192090
Layers: DVD 9
Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen
Rating: PG-13 for some thematic and sexual material
Languages/Subtitles: English SDH, French Canadian, Latin American Spanish
Sound: English Dolby Digital 5.1, Latin American Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1
Run Time: 1 hour, 37 minutes

Judge rules that an illustration style can’t be a trademark

  • News
  • December 8, 2017

Yesterday, Judge Janis Sammartino handed down a ruling in our ongoing case, Dr. Seuss Enterprises v. ComicMix, allowing the case to proceed to discovery while narrowing the allegations in significant ways. Buried in the order is a very important point that has implications for the entire comics industry, to wit (with footnotes and citations omitted):

Plaintiff claims Defendants misappropriated “the unique illustration style [of] the characters and backgrounds found throughout Dr. Seuss books, that have come to be instantly recognized by consumers as source identifiers for Dr. Seuss.” Defendant argues trademark law does not protect an artistic style. …

Most courts have held there is no trademark protection for the “style” of an artist. Style is a matter more properly protected by copyright law. …

Plaintiff cited no authority to support its assertion that its general “style” is a protectable trademark. Plaintiff only argues that the book can be subject to both trademark and copyright protection and that distinctive characters can qualify as trademarks. Plaintiff claims the Ninth Circuit has recognized Plaintiff owns trademark rights to “the character illustration of the Cat [in the Hat’s] ‘stove-pipe hat’.” But the illustration of the Cat’s hat is different than the general “illustration style” and non-specific “characters and backgrounds found throughout” Plaintiff’s books, in which Plaintiff asserts trademark rights now. And Plaintiff does not allege trademark rights in any specific character or background image in [Oh, The Places You’ll] Go! The Court is not holding illustrations of specific characters within Go! are precluded from trademark protection, but at this stage of the proceedings and based on the information in front of the Court, the Court finds that Plaintiff’s claimed general “illustration style” is not protectable.

What does this mean for comics? It puts plainly what many artists in the comics industry already knew: you can’t be legally dinged for drawing like Jack Kirby, or Neal Adams, or John Buscema, David Finch, Jim Lee or anybody else— not directly copying art, which might lead to a copyright infringement claim, but drawing in the style of a particular artist (or if you prefer, a particular school of art, like, say, the Bolognese or Kubert school) isn’t a trademark infringement. When we speak of an artist’s “trademark style” we’re not actually speaking of a legal trademark, and as such it’s not something that can be legally claimed.

And this means that if, say, Ty Templeton draws a portrait of me looking like I was drawn by Dr. Seuss, there’s not a thing Dr. Seuss Enterprises can do about it.

Of course, this is generally a good thing. This means that no artist can be charged with stealing someone else’s “trademark style” or the way they draw (or for that matter, how they shoot a photograph or a movie). We all learn from each other, we all influence each other— particularly in comics— and we all build on other works and artistic traditions and styles to create new works of art to tell stories.

If you’d like to read the ruling, click here.

Blade Runner 2049 Hunts Replicants at Home in January

Burbank, CA, December 7, 2017 – See what critics are calling “the best movie of the year” when Blade Runner 2049 arrives onto 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Combo Pack, Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack, Blu-ray Combo Pack, DVD and Digital HD. From Oscar-nominated director Denis Villeneuve (“Arrival”) comes Alcon Entertainment’s science fiction thriller Blade Runner 2049. Sure as it is to delight ‘Blade Runner’ fans, this stunningly elegant follow-up doesn’t depend on having seen the original.

The film stars Oscar nominees Ryan Gosling (La La Land) as K, and Harrison Ford (the Star Wars films, Witness), reprising the role of Rick Deckard.  The main international cast also includes Ana de Armas (War Dogs), Sylvia Hoeks (Renegades), Robin Wright (Wonder Woman), Mackenzie Davis (The Martian), Carla Juri (Brimstone), and Lennie James (The Walking Dead), with Dave Bautista (the Guardians of the Galaxy films) and Oscar winner Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club).

Blade Runner 2049 was produced by Oscar nominees Andrew A. Kosove & Broderick Johnson (The Blind Side) and three time Emmy winner Bud Yorkin & Cynthia Sikes Yorkin.  Multiple Oscar nominee Ridley Scott (The Martian, Gladiator), who directed the first Blade Runner, is an executive producer.  Bill Carraro served as executive producer and unit production manager.

Blade Runner 2049 will be available on 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Combo Pack for $44.95, Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack for $44.95, Blu-ray Combo Pack for $35.99 and DVD for $28.98. The 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Combo Pack features an Ultra HD Blu-ray disc with the theatrical version in 4K with HDR and a Blu-ray disc also featuring the theatrical version. The Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack features the theatrical version of the film in 3D hi-definition, hi-definition and standard definition; the Blu-ray Combo Pack features the theatrical version of the film in hi-definition on Blu-ray; and the DVD features the theatrical version in standard definition. The Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack and Blu-ray Combo Pack include a digital version of the movie in Digital HD with UltraViolet.  Fans can also own Blade Runner 2049 via purchase from digital retailers beginning December 26th.

4K Ultra HD showcases 4K resolution with High Dynamic Range (HDR) and a wider color spectrum, offering consumers brighter, deeper, more lifelike colors for a home entertainment viewing experience like never before.

Additionally, all of the special features, including interviews with filmmakers, featurettes, and deleted scenes, can be experienced in an entirely new, dynamic and immersive manner on tablets and mobile phones using the Warner Bros. Movies All Access App, available for both iOS and Android devices. When a Combo Pack is purchased and the digital movie is redeemed, or the digital movie is purchased from a digital retailer, the Warner Bros. Movies All Access App allows users to watch the movie and simultaneously experience synchronized content related to any scene, simply by rotating their device. Synchronized content is presented on the same screen while the movie is playing, thus enabling users to quickly learn more about any scene, such as actor biographies, scene locations, fun trivia, or image galleries. Also, users can share movie clips with friends on social media and experience other immersive content. The Movies All Access app is available for download on the iTunes App Store and Google Play Store.

The Blu-ray discs of Blade Runner 2049 will feature a Dolby Atmos® soundtrack remixed specifically for the home theater environment to place and move audio anywhere in the room, including overhead. To experience Dolby Atmos at home, a Dolby Atmos enabled AV receiver and additional speakers are required, or a Dolby Atmos enabled sound bar; however, Dolby Atmos soundtracks are also fully backward compatible with traditional audio configurations and legacy home entertainment equipment.

Blade Runner 2049 will also be available on Movies Anywhere. Using the free Movies Anywhere app and website, consumers can access all their eligible movies by connecting their Movies Anywhere account with their participating digital retailer accounts.

SYNOPSIS

Three decades after the events of the first film, a new blade runner, LAPD Officer K, unearths a long-buried secret that has the potential to plunge what’s left of society into chaos. K’s discovery leads him on a quest to find Rick Deckard, a former LAPD blade runner who has been missing for 30 years.

BLU-RAY AND DVD ELEMENTS

Blade Runner 2049 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Combo Pack, 3D Blu-ray and Blu-ray Combo Pack contains the following special features:

  • Designing The World of Blade Runner 2049
  • To Be Human: Casting Blade Runner 2049
  • Prologues: 2036: Nexus Dawn
  • Prologues: 2048: Nowhere to Run
  • Prologues: 2022: Black Out
  • Blade Runner 101: Blade Runners
  • Blade Runner 101: The Replicant Evolution
  • Blade Runner 101: The Rise of Wallace Corp
  • Blade Runner 101: Welcome to 2049
  • Blade Runner 101: Joi
  • Blade Runner 101: Within the Skies

Blade Runner 2049 Standard Definition DVD contains the following special features:

  • Blade Runner 101: Blade Runners
  • Blade Runner 101: The Replicant Evolution
  • Blade Runner 101: The Rise of Wallace Corp
  • Blade Runner 101: Welcome to 2049
  • Blade Runner 101: Joi
  • Blade Runner 101: Within the Skies

DIGITAL DISTRIBUTION ELEMENTS

On Dec 26, Blade Runner 2049”will be available to own for streaming and download to watch anywhere in high definition and standard definition on favorite devices from select digital retailers including Amazon, iTunes, PlayStation, Vudu, Xbox and others. On January 16, Blade Runner 2049 will be made available digitally on Video On Demand services from cable and satellite providers, and on select gaming consoles.

Professor Marston and the Wonder Women Coming Home in Jan.

CULVER CITY, Calif. (Dec. 5, 2017) – Luke Evans (Beauty and the Beast, Fast & Furious 6), Rebecca Hall (Christine, Vicky Christina Barcelona), and Bella Heathcote (Fifty Shades Darker, Dark Shadows) star in the biographic drama PROFESSOR MARSTON AND THE WONDER WOMEN, debuting on Blu-ray,  DVD, and Digital on January 30 from Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. PROFESSOR MARSTON AND THE WONDER WOMEN is based on the bold and illuminating true superhero origin story depicting the creation of the beloved comic book character ‘Wonder Woman’ in 1941 by Dr. William Moulton Marston (Luke Evans), the Harvard psychologist who helped invent the modern lie detector test. Marston’s polyamorous relationship with wife Elizabeth Holloway (Rebecca Hall) and their lover, Olive Byrne (Bella Heathcote) was key to the creation of Wonder Woman as their feminist ideals were ingrained in the character from her creation. Written and Directed by Angela Robinson (“True Blood”), PROFESSOR MARSTON AND THE WONDER WOMEN also stars JJ Feild (Captain America: The First Avenger) with Oliver Platt (Frost/Nixon) and Connie Britton (“Nashville”).

The Blu-ray release of PROFESSOR MARSTON AND THE WONDER WOMEN features revealing bonus material including deleted scenes, two behind-the-scenes featurettes, and a special motion comic revealing “The Surprising Secret Identity Of Charles Moulton”, the real psychologist and inventor of the lie detector and ‘Wonder Woman.’ Learn more about writer/director, Angela Robinson’s exhaustive and passionate research into this story and its characters in “A Crucial Point of View: Directing – Professor Marston And The Wonder Women.” In “A Dynamic Trio: Birth of a Feminist Icon,” stars Luke Evans, Rebecca Hall, and Bella Heathcote reveal how the loving, yet alternative relationship between their characters informed their performances.

Synopsis:

PROFESSOR MARSTON AND THE WONDER WOMEN is based on the extraordinary true story of the creator of one of the most iconic super heroes ever conceived, and the seductive secret life he kept from his fans. Harvard psychologist Dr. William Moulton Marston (Luke Evans, Beauty and the Beast) was roundly criticized for the creation of his feminist superhero, but it was his personal life, with his polyamorous relationship with his wife, Elizabeth (Rebecca Hall, The Gift) and their lover, Olive (Bella Heathcote), that was more provocative than any adventure he had ever written.

From Annapurna Pictures in association with Stage 6 Films, PROFESSOR MARSTON AND THE WONDER WOMEN is written and directed by Angela Robinson. It was produced by Terry Leonard and Amy Redford and executive produced by Andrea Sperling and Jill Soloway.

Blu-ray & Digital Exclusive Bonus Materials Include:

  • The Secret Identity of Charles Moulton Motion Comic
  •  A Dynamic Trio: Birth of a Feminist Icon
  • A Crucial Point of View: Directing – Professor Marston and the Wonder Women
  • Deleted Scenes:
    • Love Leaders
    • Who is Sappho?
    • Coughing Blood

DVD Materials Include

  • A Dynamic Trio: Birth of a Feminist Icon
  • A Crucial Point of View: Directing – Professor Marston and the Wonder Women

PROFESSOR MARSTON AND THE WONDER WOMEN has a run time of approximately 108 minutes and is rated R for strong sexual content including brief graphic images, and language.

Herbie Archives, Volume One by Shane O’Shea and Ogden Whitney

Yeah, it did take me until now to finally read Herbie. It is so much exactly the kind of thing that I would like that the delay seems weird, but it’s a big world, and you can only do one thing at a time. I finally got to this particular thing, and can finally talk about it.

But wait! You say. Did I come in the middle of something? What on earth are you going on about?

All right, all right. Herbie Popnecker was the “hero” of a series of stories from the American Comics Group, for about a decade from 1958 through 1967 — first as one-off stories in anthologies, then as the star of twenty-three issues of his own comic in 64-67. He’s a short, fat, torpid, laconic kid with heavy-lidded eyes, a bowl haircut, and a lollipop always in his mouth, whose father is constantly complaining about him and calling him a “little fat nothing.” He doesn’t like sports or schoolwork or playing with other kids; at home he tends to sit in a straightback chair and doze, and we don’t see him at school or interacting with his peers.

So far, so promising for a humor title, right? Sounds just like the thing in the ’50s-’60s burst of teen-interest comics, with Archie and Binky and Scooter!

Well, Herbie was more than just a little fat nothing, luckily. He was also world-famous, almost omnipotent, and oddly resourceful. His lollipops gave him superpowers — this is slightly inconsistent, since sometimes he seems to have power merely because he is Herbie — and his aid is regularly sought by US Presidents and UN Secretary-Generals. Gorgeous women swoon at his approach. Vicious animals flee when they realize who he is. He travels in time, via lollipop and a flying boat-like grandfather clock, and can walk under the oceans and across empty space to reach distant planets.

And, if threatened, all he needs to do is ask “You want I should bop you with this here lollipop?” Herbie’s bop is a force that can frighten the greatest forces in the universe — in just this book, we see suns, dragons, and Satan himself cowed by it.

That is one weird mix of elements, and it doesn’t seem like it should work. But ACG editor Richard E. Hughes (writing as “Shane O’Shea”) kept a deadpan tone around Herbie, making it all strangely plausible. And Ogden Whitney drew all of the stories in a solid, straightforward style — both of them as if to drain any possible insinuation of imagination out of the stories, as if to prove Herbie’s adventures must be plausible if they are this normal-seeming.

It worked. It still works, now: some elements are a little outdated (the supernatural creatures are somewhat comic-booky and of their time), but most of Herbie is unique and sui generis. And many individual panels are still laugh-out-loud funny after fifty-plus years.

The first third of the Herbie stories were collected in 2008 as Herbie Archives, Volume One , which is what I finally read. There are two more volumes, collecting the rest of the Herbie stories, which I now need to dig up and read. If you like weird comics, you probably already know about Herbie. If you’ve never read him, you’ll probably want to move him up in the queue — this is still really good stuff, nutty and crazy in all the best midcentury ways.

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

Ed Catto: The Retail Mavericks Who Gave Us a New Geek Culture

I’ve loved comic shops ever since I rode my bike past Kim’s Collectible Comics and Records in the mid-70s. Kim Draheim, the owner, was one day away from opening the store.  He told me to come back the next day. I did and I am proud to say I was his very first customer.

I get that same thrill every time I visit a new comic shop. I’ve been to quite a few since then. I am always impressed the way each one seems to be on the bleeding edge of Geek Culture, combining entrepreneurial courage with personal passion.

So I was so eager to start reading Comic Shop: The Retail Mavericks Who Gave Us a New Geek Culture.  There’s a lot of great stuff in this book, and I wanted to learn more. I reached out to Dan Gearino, the author and he had a lot to say.

Ed Catto: Can you tell us a little about your comics background and business/writing? What makes you the right person to write this book?

Dan Gearino: I’ve read comics for as long as I can remember. Like many children of the 80s, my gateways were the G.I. Joe and Transformers from Marvel. I soon became a DC kid, though. I think I was hooked for life by 1985, with DC’s Who’s Who, Crisis on Infinite Earths, and my discovery of the Legion of Super-Heroes. In high school and college, I read the Vertigo books. Shade the Changing Man was my favorite, and I don’t want to reread it for fear that it may not hold up. Late in college, I found my way to DreamHaven Books in Minneapolis, and that’s when I started to read Palookaville, Eightball, Artbabe and a lot of the other great stuff that was coming out in the late-1990s.

As for my reporting background, I was an editor at my college newspaper in Minnesota. My first job at a daily newspaper was in Keene, New Hampshire, where I covered a little bit of everything, including the presidential primary. From there, I went back to my home state, Iowa, and covered the statehouse and politics. Since 2008, I’ve been a business reporter for The Columbus Dispatch in Ohio, covering manufacturing and energy.

Because of my experience writing about businesses, I could see what an odd duck comic shops are in terms of the model, and I could see that the shops have an unusually high degree of difficulty. That, along with a great cast of characters, made me want to take a close look. Also — and this is a significant point — there were no books out there about the business of comic shops, and I thought that there must be people out there like me who wanted to know more about the subject.

EC: The early days of the direct comics market is getting to be “a long time ago”. How did you go about researching it all?

DG: Much of my research was through interviews, largely because there is not a reliable written record of a lot of this stuff. Unlike the things I cover in my day job, comics were not a large enough business to attract much market research or professional media coverage. The fan press was fun for me to read, especially for the ads from early dealers, but was no substitute for a good trade journal. This changed later on when the Comics Journal began in earnest, and other publications, but that wasn’t until years after the dawn of the modern version of the business. Luckily, many of the people from the early days are still around. I was thrilled to find and interview Robert Bell, an early retailer in New York, and Jonni Levas, who was co-owner of Sea Gate, the first direct distributor of mainstream comics, just to name two people.

EC: How many comic shops have you visited? What are your personal favorites and did you come across any surprises?

DG: I visited at lot of shops. It would be a project to trace my steps and count them. Suffice it to say that there are many shops I visited that informed the reporting but are not mentioned in the book. As for favorites and surprises, I have a real fondness for Green Brain Comics in Dearborn, Michigan; Legend Comics in Omaha, Nebraska; and Aw Yeah Comics in Muncie, Indiana, to name a few that I was unaware of before this project. There were several others that are well-known for being great, and were indeed great, such as The Beguiling in Toronto, Chicago Comics and Flying Colors Comics in California.

EC: What comic shops are next on your list for a visit?

DG: My list is long. There are a few stores I profiled that have moved or expanded since I last was there, plus many that I heard about for the first time after the book went to press.

EC: How would do you respond when someone says, “I’d like to open up a comic shop?”

DG: My advice would be that a new shop owner needs to be well-capitalized to be able to afford the kind of diverse inventory to have a strong start, and to weather the potential of a slow start. The amounts are different depending on the region, but $100,000 is a number I’ve heard more than once as a rule of thumb. This is very different from the 1970s, when someone could start a shop with their own collection and first month’s rent.

If you have the financing make a go go of it, my next advice would be to visit lots of stores and see what they do well. Many retailers will be eager to give advice, as long as that new shop isn’t in the same market. The best stores have a lot in common in terms of attitude and merchandising choices. Also, find a bad store or two, with disorganized stock and an indifferent staff, so that you can see how not to be.

EC: What comics are on your nightstand and from which comic shop did you buy them?

DG: My local shop is The Laughing Ogre in Columbus, which is a prominent part of the book. I have a big stack of comics and books, including recent issues of Saga and Paper Girls, a few of DC’s Young Animal titles. I also have lots of back issues that I’ve picked up all over the place, part of a seemingly unending to-read list. Lately, I’ve gotten a lot of old Jonah Hex, which I started to buy because of Jose Luis Garcia-Lopez’s art, and then continued to get for the clever stories and the other great artists such as Tony DeZuniga. There’s a lot of Garcia-Lopez on my nightstand now, including some old Batman and DC Comics Presents. As for books, I’ve been reading Charlier and Moebius’ Blueberry, thanks to a great find at a used-book store. I also got some great new stuff at Cartoon Crossroads Columbus, a show here in town that everyone should check out. One of the guests was Tillie Walden and I got a signed copy of her new book, Spinning, which is ridiculously good.

EC: Who can argue with someone who’s reading Paper Girls and Jonah Hex? Thanks for your time, Dan.

Comic Shop: The Retail Mavericks Who Gave Us a New Geek Culture is available at comic shops and bookstores everywhere.

So Long and Thanks for the Fish(man)

A few weeks ago, I started laying out hints. The times they are a changin’ I’d said. And then I got all mushy about my readership and spot here at ComicMix. And perhaps you’ve noted a theme with the recent bows by Michael Davis and EIC Mike Gold. Well, who am I to buck the trend?

My friends, this will be my last column at ComicMix.

I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating: I truly have loved writing in this space (and ComicMix at large) now for 7+ years. Being able to declare that I shared a blog with comic book legends is something I never took lightly. And that some of these legends have sat across from me to break bread and talk shop – all the while my inner fan boy was screaming himself hoarse – is something I still barely fathom. Let me take you all back…

In 2008, Unshaven Comics had just published our first book, The March: Crossing Bridges In America. While we were proud as hell that we’d completed it, we were terrified that presenting it on the same convention floor as cape-and-cowl comics would bury us alive in mediocrity. Enter Linda Gold. She listened to our meager pitch, and her eyes lit up. She grabbed a copy, and our business card, and vowed to return. Enter Mike Gold. He dropped his card (and plenty of names of folks he worked with), and said to “stay in touch”.

Soon thereafter, I posted in the comment section of ComicMix for the better part of two months. I tried my damndest to be witty, intelligent, relevant, and engaging. Near the holiday season of 2008, Mike sent me an email. He wanted to do lunch. The rest, they say, is history.

But it’s way more than that. It’s my history. Over the course of my columns here I have gotten married, become a home owner, and a father – twice. But I, perhaps for the last time here… digress.

Perhaps you may be asking through choked sobs “b-b-b-bu-but w-wu-why…?” My reasons are many, and cryptic. If I learned anything from my tenure here from Mike and Glenn, is to always leave people with more questions than answers. Nervous yet? I’d sure be.

I’m lying, kiddos.

As it stands, I’ve not purchased a weekly comic book in over 2 years. And I’ve literally no inclination to start again. Through TV shows, movies, and graphic novels picked up at the conventions Unshaven Comics and I frequent… I get my fix of sequential fiction just fine. But my specific loves now has grown to a much wider scope. It’s time to broaden my horizons. As Mike mentioned in his denouement, Adriane Nash’s Pop Culture Squad will soon become my weekly home for my snarky scribbles. I’ll look forward to seeing y’all there. And beyond my written words, you’ll soon be able to hear my dulcet tones on two monthly podcasts – covering Unshaven Comics’ comings and goings, and my unabashed love of professional wrestling.

So, to you all here within the sound of my keyboard, I leave you with some parting thoughts:

If I ever angered you with an opinion? I’m still right, and you’re still wrong.

If I ever made you laugh? Damn straight I did. I’m funny as hell.

If I ever made you think? Good. Do it more often.

If I ever inspired you? Even better. The world needs more creativity in it.

I’ll see each and every one of you soon. Be it here, there, or everywhere. Just keep your eyes open, ears perked, and fingers clicking when you see my name. And far be it from me to deny myself a bit of an indulgence. I take my bow citing lyrics I deem apropos. So long my friends… and thanks for all the Fish, man.

At the end of the tour

When the road disappears

If there’s any more people around

When the tour runs aground

And if you’re still around

Then we’ll meet at the end of the tour

The engagements are booked through the end of the world

So we’ll meet at the end of the tour

And we’re never gonna tour again

No, we’re never gonna tour again

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