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NYCC: A Post-Game Analysis

comicart2-4363435Fifty-nine weeks ago I slammed the first two New York Comic-Cons pretty hard, so it’s only appropriate that I comment on this year’s jamboree. The previous shows were held in February, so the mere fact that people waiting in line this year didn’t have to suffer in below-freezing wind chills is, in and of itself, a vast improvement.

The show was better organized, crowd flow on Friday and Sunday was almost manageable, and the convention staff from Reed Communications (not the volunteers, who were great) drifted more towards being hospitable and informed. In fact, they were neither hospitable nor informed but you could tell that this year somebody suggested being so might be a good idea.

Saturday was pretty much the same premise as last year: “What if you tried to squeeze the entire population of Manhattan into a phone booth?” They claim attendance records were broken and that would be nice to believe, but it would be even nicer if they were at a venue where they could actually obtain enough space so that people could walk down the aisles without getting bashed in the face by an endless number of backpacks and tripped by an equal number of light sabers.

I can’t help but wonder what the show would have been like if god hadn’t helped out. Passover started Saturday and the New York metropolitan area contains a lot of religious Jews. And the pope was in for the weekend, so a lot of Catholics were attending one or another event. In fact, it looked like he was on Frank Miller’s Dark Knight panel.

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Review: ‘Fantasy Classics’ edited by Tom Pomplun

fantasy3-7944618Fantasy Classics: Graphic Classics Vol. 15
Edited by Tom Pomplun
Eureka Productions, 2008, $11.95

The “[[[Graphic Classics]]]” series most of the time sticks to a single author per volume, but not always – they’ve had [[[Horror Classics]]], [[[Adventure Classics]]], and [[[Gothic Classics]]] already, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see more along those lines. (There’s no one chomping at the bit for a full volume of Sax Rohmer or Anne Radcliffe, for example, and it’s also a way to do more Poe or Lovecraft without doing a full-fledged “volume two.”) 

[[[Fantasy Classics]]] has two long adaptations – of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and of H.P. Lovecraft’s “[[[The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath]]]” – that each take up about a third of the book, and some shorter pieces that fill up the rest. They’re all fantasy, as advertised, but they’re very different kids of fantasy from each other – many, in fact, consider [[[Frankenstein]]] to be science fiction, indeed the ur-SF novel – and none of them are much like what’s mostly found in the “Fantasy” section of a bookstore. There are no Tolkienesque elves or post-[[[Buffy]]] vampire lover/killers here.

The book leads off with a single-page adaptation of Lord Dunsany’s “After the Fire” by Rachel Masilamani; it’s fine for what it is, but basically a vignette.

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The Holy See in NYC, by Dennis O’Neil

Well, the Holy Father has certainly been all over the media this past week, hasn’t he? Just a while ago, I looked, briefly, at Benedict celebrating Mass in no less a venue than Yankee Stadium – lots bigger than the biggest cathedral – and judging from the shots of the stands, it was a sellout crowd; I wonder if the Yankees themselves attract so many spectators, even when they’re against the Red Sox.

Shall we seek meaning here? Dare we posit that a) this pope is super-beloved or b) the church he leads is making a comeback or c) both of the above?

I’m reminded of an evening in Chicago, about 20 years ago, that I shared with a comic book artist and an actor. I don’t remember exactly why we were thrown together, but it probably had something to do with a convention. The actor was featured in a movie I’d recently seen and kind of liked, though I don’t recall having any strong reaction to this particular man’s performance, which probably means that I thought it was all right. As a dinner companion, sitting across he table at a Chinese restaurant, he was nice enough – chatty and just a bit gossipy, without any hint of malice. Not a stupid man, but he didn’t dazzle us with his intellect or wit, either. An okay guy. And, midway through the evening, I found myself trying to make him like me. It seemed important that he like me. Why? The only answer I have is that he was a celebrity. His image was on thousands of screen. Passersby recognized him. He was privy to really big, major-honkin’ celebrities.

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Demons of Sherwood: Back to the Forest

In today’s brand new episode of Demons of Sherwood, by Bo Hampton and Robert Tinnell, Robin and his Merry Men escape from the monastery to Sherwood Forest. But what waits for them in the dark? And are they ready?

Credits: Bo Hampton (Artist), Bo Hampton (Colorist), Bo Hampton (Letterer), Bo Hampton (Writer), Mike Gold (Editor), Robert Tinnell (Writer)

More: Demons of Sherwood

 

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Charges Against Gordon Lee Dropped

A few months back, retailer Gordon Lee escaped prosecution when a mistrial was declared in the case against him for distributing obscene material. Today comes word the case won’t be brought again.

The legal battle began in 2004 after an employee at Lee’s comic book store accidentally gave a minor a sampler book containing a scene of Nick Bertozzi’s The Salon, which included a naked Pablo Picasso.

The first trial against Lee, who was supported by the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund, was thrown out after the prosecuting attorney disobeyed the judge’s instructions. The Rome News-Tribune offers this on the latest development:

The case filed against local comic book store owner Gordon Lee has been dismissed, according to Floyd County District Attorney Leigh Patterson.

Patterson said the case was dismissed after the district attorney met with Lee’s counsel and decided that a measure other than prosecution could be taken in resolving the case.

“He did a written apology to the victims in the case,” said Patterson.

Happy Birthday: Phantom Girl

Born on the 4th-dimensional planet Bgztl in the 30th Century, Tinya Wazzo shared the rest of her people’s ability to phase out of reality, becoming completely intangible.

Tinya decided to use those abilities to help others and sought out the Legion of Super-Heroes, becoming their fifth member as Phantom Girl.

She was a Legionnaire in good standing for many years, and was romantically involved with one of her teammates, Jo Nah (Ultra Boy).

UPDATE: Doctor Who Review: Season Four, Episode #1 – New Companions, Old Feelings

Holy time-wimey, wibbly-wobbily bits, Doctor! It looks like the BBC/Sci-Fi Channel schedules got the best of us here at ComicMix, so  in the interest of preventing any  more spoilers, we’re pulling this article off the site and re-posting it on Monday , April 28.

Thanks to ComicMix reader David and our own John Ostrander for catching the time-traveling mistake!

Be sure to check out the Season Four premiere (here in the U.S., that is) of Doctor Who on Friday, April 25, at 9 PM EST on Sci-Fi Channel, then return here the following Monday for our analysis of the episode!

 

ComicMix Radio at NYCC: Familiar Faces and Plans for ’09

It was the homestretch here in New York City yesterday when we rounded up some of the biggest news items from New York Comic Con, including a new Farscape series, more Dark Tower from Marvel and Mark Waid on Spider-Man. We also spent a family-friendly minute with comics legend Joe Kubert.

Head back to the floor – just press the button!

 

 

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‘Farscape’ Comics on the Way

In the past few months, BOOM! Studios has had a spate of comics picked up for movie adaptations, but now that flow of comics-to-screen is reversing course. The publisher just announced a deal with the Jim Henson Company to create multiple four-issue series adapted from the sci fi TV show Farscape.

The show ran for four seasons before an abrupt cancellation, and the new comics look to expand on the untold parts of the story, according to the press release sent over from BOOM. The creative team hasn’t been announced, and the art at right is preliminary.

"Farscape took science fiction television to a new level and ushered in a whole host of shows that wouldn’t have been possible without Farscape‘s pioneering. As a long-time ‘Scaper’, I am incredibly excited to mine the dense universe of Farscape for new stories and adventures in comic book form," said BOOM! Marketing and Sales Director, Chip Mosher. "I watched the show as it came out, I bought the DVDs the day they hit the shelves, and I can’t frelling wait to publish these comics!"

The Farscape comic book series will be taking advantage of the upcoming webisodes to be produced by The Jim Henson Company in association with RHI Entertainment for SCIFI.COM. The webisode series will re-unite Farscape executive producer Brian Henson with creator Rockne S. O’Bannon.

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Battlestar Galactica Interview: Mark Verheiden on Starbuck’s Relationships and Cylon Motives

Welcome to the latest installment of Battlestar Galactica Weekly, our recurring Q&A with Mark Verheiden, co-executive producer of the hit Sci-Fi Channel series Battlestar Galactica. Each week, we’ll interview Verheiden about the events of the week’s episode, what those events might mean for both the season and the series, and hopefully unearth some clues about what to expect as the final season of Battlestar Galactic nears its conclusion.

Along with posing our own questions to Verheiden, we’re also taking questions from fans — so be sure to send your questions to me, your official BSG Weekly interviewer, after each episode airs at chris [at] comicmix [dot] com. New episodes of Battlestar Galactica can be seen every Friday at 10 PM EST on Sci-Fi Channel. You can view previous interviews via the links at the end of this article.

This week, Verheiden answers questions about the third episode of Season Four, “The Ties That Bind,” which aired April 18, 2008. Note: These questions contain spoilers so read at your own risk.

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COMICMIX: (from reader Susan): It makes sense that you want to break Kara and Sam up to make way for Kara and Lee to get together in the final season, but what’s with her brutal treatment of him in this episode? In seasons two and three, it seemed like she truly cared about him in spite of her deeper feelings for Lee, now her behavior seems truly unsympathetic. Why is this continuing, while Lee/Dee got to end cleanly?

MARK VERHEIDEN: Kara has never been the most stable of characters. She’s been through and continues to go through some extremely difficult, frustrating experiences. Not the least of which involves disappearing for two months, being almost shot by the President, and now struggling to command a ship looking for…well, something she can’t quite put her finger on. 

It’s sort of a truism that you hurt the ones you love, and maybe Anders caught the brunt because he was the only one who stood there long enough so she COULD go off on him.  But please remember this is Battlestar Galactica, where emotional entanglements can change on a dime…

CMix (from reader Molly): Are Kara’s words to Sam, like when she tells him “she’s not the girl he married” meant to be taken at face value? I always thought that what she said in “Rapture” was true, that she loved and hated both Sam and Lee. And I liked that ambiguity as it made Kara more sympathetic.

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