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Molly Jackson: Knowing Too Much

Knowing Too Much

Marvel has been slowly and steadily announcing their plans for their “new universe” coming this fall. It has been the hot topic on most geek blogs and is keeping people excited, sort of. In just watching this event creating the new Marvel Universe unfolds, I already have some misgivings with how things are going.

With nearly two months left of the current world-changing event, we already know who is going to survive Secret Wars. We already know what new series they will be in and who the creative team is. It’s no fun if you know the answer before the question is done being asked. And now the question is, why bother reading the event at all?

I’ve waited a little bit before jumping into buying Secret Wars. I had just finished with Convergence – which was basically the same event – and needed a break from world combining. Also, I was not a huge fan of the Free Comic Book Day prequel comic. And frankly, I wanted to hear people’s reactions. A friend has told me the basics but admitted that while it is interesting, it is not the most cohesive story. I’m considering just skipping Secret Wars all together since I already know the outcome.

The other hand is, I was excited to give Marvel another chance sans the weight of their overgrown universe. In the past, I had a hard time trying to jump into large universes because of the weight of history and the complex, never-ending storylines. Then, Marvel Point One happened. I tried out and liked quite a few issues. However, the series I enjoyed failed to keep me interested because they immediately went back to complex tales. DC Comics learned from this, and then made their complete reboot a lot more accessible. My hope was a new start for Marvel meant an easier entrance to exploring that universe beyond just a few standalone stories.

It all comes down to why I read anything. I read to experience through another’s eyes, hear another’s thoughts and feel another’s feelings. I read to explore new worlds and characters. And I read to enjoy the plot unfolding before me. All I can hope is that Marvel’s new universe won’t be completely spoiled before it is even born.

Mike Gold: The Shoe’s On The Other Foot

gay-pride-2015-11-4825331

My long-time friend and colleague Martha Thomases does not like wearing high heels. This, of course, is her right. I have been sympathetic to her position, even to the point of referring to it as a contemporary form of traditional Chinese foot-binding.

gay-pride-2015-19-6714749That was until this past Sunday. Now, meh, not so much.

I’ve been to many a Gay Pride rally, including – yep, I’m bragging – the very first in New York. I’ve been to such rallies in several different cities; I’ve been to them after terrible tragedies such as the Stonewall Inn riots and, less than ten years later, the discovery and growth of HIV. Yet each and every march and rally has been fantastic fun, each one a deeply meaningful, fun-filled and life-affirming event. I have always walked away from the rallies and parades feeling much better about my fellow humans – even in my most cynical times that account for some six decades of my life.

More to the point, I always had a great time. Always.

So this year’s Gay Pride march and rally in New York City, coincidently held two days after the Supreme Court finally made marriage equality the law of the land, was something I wouldn’t miss even if I had lost my arms and legs and had to be carried in a basket. Thankfully, I was fully able to walk.

If Elon Musk had been there, he would have figured out a way to capture the energy of the event and use it to fuel a battery that would run every car in America for a year.

There’s no question the gay culture that has always affected our mainstream culture no matter how closeted it had been in the past. Several of our ComicMix columnists have commented on this point and several more may yet: right now, it is the perfect topic for a pop culture site such as this one.

The New York City parade, which attracted more than two million onlookers and, it seemed, about as many participants, was fraught with politicians and corporate sponsors. No, Mike Huckabee didn’t march, nor did any of his fellow Republican presidential candidates. That wasn’t a surprise and, besides, the parade route always was crowded. Delta Airlines, NBC/Universal, Master Card, and Coca-Cola were among the many who entered elaborate floats. So did a great many religious organizations – but certainly not all. Parents brought their children, both as onlookers and as participants.

This year’s parade marshals were two British peers: Sir Ian McKellan, also known as Magneto, Sherlock Holmes, Gandalf and others; Sir Derek Jacoby, a.k.a. Emperor Claudius and both Doctor Who’s arch-enemy The Master as well as The Doctor himself; and Ugandan LGBT activist Kasha Jacqueline Nabagesera. All around, a class-act. It was sort of like the St. Patrick’s Day parade, but without the – what’s it called again? Oh, yeah. Blatant bigotry.

The parade ran in a light rain from 36th Street and Fifth Avenue to the Stonewall Inn, a distance of nearly two miles. From my vantage points I couldn’t conduct a scientific study, but I believe there were more adults wearing high heels than not. Of course, I’m also counting the dozens (at least) of paraders wearing stilts.

Seeing all those folks marching in their fine footwear, I think I’ve got to backtrack on that foot binding thing. I figure, it must be worth it.

gay-pride-2015-51-9257269Now… you say you don’t like gay marriage? You’re opposed to it? Somehow, it lessens the value of your marriage? Well, congratulations. You’re in luck. There is no more “gay marriage.”

Now… there is only “marriage.”

(Photo notes: At top – PBS’s rolling billboard for Vicious, starring McKellan and Jacoby. Up there on the right – part of the massive Delta Airlines presence, including a flight attendant with an astonishing hat size. Down here on the left – your humble columnist, posing with the newly transgendered crimefighter, The Shadow.)

 

Box Office Democracy: Ted 2

  • News
  • June 30, 2015

ted2I was disappointed by Ted 2 and considering I didn’t think much of the original Ted I’m not sure where the hell I get off feeling like this. Ted was a flimsy frame upon which a few passable jokes were hung and Ted 2 is a slightly flimsier frame with fewer decent jokes but it makes a huge difference as Ted 2 collapses into joyless wreckage. It’s a lot like watching five back-to-back episodes of Family Guy without commercials in a dark room that you’re socially conditioned not to leave or do anything else in but watch the screen. I guess what I’m saying is Ted 2 is an awful lot like a nightmare you can’t wake up from.

Good comedy has to come from some sort of relatable character base and that simply isn’t present in Ted 2. The characters are just whatever they need to be to get the next punch line to work and have no consistency from scene to scene beyond Boston accents. Amanda Seyfried replaces Mila Kunis as the female lead and narratively we go from a woman disappointed that Ted and John (Mark Wahlberg) have no ambition in their lives to a woman who finds John to be a real catch despite his only character traits present in this film are being really hung up on his ex and consuming a copious amount of pornography. I suppose the shrewish girlfriend is a slightly more tired cliché than the inexplicable attraction to a loser trope but it isn’t fantastic work. Giovanni Ribisi returns as the villainous Donny who I had completely forgotten from the first movie because that movie also felt like it never had any stakes so why would anyone bother to retain any of the information? If Ted 3 comes along in three years I certainly won’t remember John Carroll Lynch played the bad guy in this movie an I think Lynch is a fantastic underrated actor unfortunately wasting his time here.

Setting aside the thin characters and the plot that doesn’t seem to care enough about its own integrity or consistency to even be worth seriously discussing the movie just isn’t that funny. I’m not going to say I never laughed but I’m sure I laughed fewer than ten times. It’s comedy that wants to get laughs by being shocking either by being gross or being inappropriate or sometimes even by being obscure and I’m not sure Seth MacFarlane is capable of surprising me in these ways anymore. I’m too on my guard to not see every race joke coming and I’m now too familiar with his childhood pop culture to laugh uproariously when they use a song from Revenge of the Nerds for their musical montage. I’m sure this does much better among a younger audience who are probably still sitting through their first million smoking weed jokes but if you’ve seen more than your fair share there’s nothing new or exciting here and unfortunately that applies to most of the material.

 

Star Wars Rebels: Complete Season One Forces Way onto Shelves 9/1

star-wars-rebels-season-one-e1435606493277-4633369BURBANK, California, June 26, 2015 –– Star Wars Rebels: Complete Season One delivers all 15 action-packed episodes plus never-before-seen bonus material and cast/crew interviews revealing the magic behind the making of the hit series. Releasing on Blu-ray and DVD on September 1, this is a must-add collection to the library!

In the first groundbreaking season of Star Wars Rebels, young hero Ezra Bridger joins the clever but motley crew of the starship Ghost in their resistance against the Empire. As the series begins, Imperial forces have occupied a remote planet, ruling with an iron fist and ruining the lives of its people. Ezra and his new rebel friends — Hera, Kanan, Sabine, Zeb and Chopper — embark on daring adventures in their fight against oppression across the galaxy, receiving help from familiar heroes such as Lando Calrissian, Ahsoka Tano, and Jedi Master Yoda. Pursued relentlessly by the Imperials and a Jedi hunter called the Inquisitor, this tenacious ragtag band of rebels will find itself in the crosshairs of none other than Darth Vader when season one closes in a shocking two-part finale.

Star Wars Rebels is created by Dave Filoni (Star Wars: The Clone Wars), Simon Kinberg (X-Men: Days of Future Past, Sherlock Holmes), and Carrie Beck. The Lucasfilm Animation production is also executive-produced by Filoni and Kinberg as well as Greg Weisman (Gargoyles).

Featuring the voices of Freddie Prinze Jr. (I Know What You Did Last Summer) as Kanan, Vanessa Marshall (Young Justice) as Hera, Steve Blum (The Boxtrolls) as Zeb, Tiya Sircar (The Internship) as Sabine, Taylor Gray (Bucket and Skinner’s Epic Adventures) as Ezra, David Oyelowo (Selma) as Agent Kallus and Jason Isaacs (Harry Potter) as the Inquisitor.

Bonus Features:

Blu-ray:

  • Rebels Infiltrates Star Wars Celebration (Exclusive to Blu-ray)
  • Season One shorts: “The Machine in the Ghost,” “Art Attack,” “Entanglement,” “Property of Ezra Bridger”
  • All DVD Bonus (see below)

DVD:

  • Rebels Recon: 14 behind-the-scenes featurettes
  • Star Wars Rebels – The Ultimate Guide
  • Star Wars Rebels Season 2 – A Look Ahead

Disc Specifications:

Release Date:              September 1, 2015

Format:                       Blu-ray (2-Disc) & DVD (3-Disc)

Rating:                         TV Y7 FV

Run Time:                   Approximately 330 minutes (not including bonus)

Closed Captioned:      Yes

Aspect Ratio:              1:78 (Widescreen)

Audio:                         5.1 Dolby Digital

Languages/ Subtitles:   English, French & Spanish

 

About the TV Show:

New episodes of Star Wars Rebels Season Two premiere this fall on Disney XD.

Emily S. Whitten: Turtle Power! The Original TMNT

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I’ve said before that some of the voice actors I’ve interviewed are the voices of my childhood, but I couldn’t possibly have been closer to interviewing a whole collection of voices from my early childhood at the same time than when I was at Awesome Con this year talking to all four of the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – Rob Paulsen, Cam Clarke, Barry Gordon, and Townsend Coleman. (I also interviewed the amazing Jess Harnell and Jim Cummings, so if you missed those interviews, check ‘em out now!)

I watched a fair amount of cartoons as a child, and among the ones with the earliest, largest impact on my young life were those coming out in the ‘80s, including Thundercats, Duck Tales, Inspector Gadget, Chip n’ Dale Rescue Rangers, He-Man, Danger Mouse, and more. But of all the ‘80s cartoons, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles consisently stands out as a favorite, with both a premise and characters (brought to life by the voice actors!) that I just loved. <a href=”

Greg Cipes (the current Michelangelo), I used to glue myself to the TV when TMNT came on, knew the theme song by heart (still do!), and totally had a favorite Turtle (Raphael! I do love snark). To this day I remember weird little bits of plot or character that apparently ingrained themselves in my brain from the age of six. So getting to talk (albeit a bit briefly, since the con was so busy) to all four of the Turtles in the span of the same hour was just really, really cool. As is being able to share those talks with you!

So if you’re a Turtles fan or you just like cool videos, click <a href=”

 for shout-outs from Raphael (Rob Paulsen) and Michelangelo (Townsend Coleman), and interviews with Leonardo (Cam Clarke) and Donatello (Barry Gordon).

And if you want to see what the guys were like in action, doing their fun voices at Awesome Con, check out the Awesome Con <a href=”

Toonz panel, as filmed by my great friend Kristy Sproul of Voice Chasers.

Enjoy! And until next time, cowabunga! And Servo Lectio!

Enter to see #RogueCut of X-Men: Days Of Future Past at SDCC free!

xmdofp_roguecut_invite_v5-550x340-6484561To celebrate the home entertainment release of the X-Men: Days of Future Past Rogue Cut Blu-ray on July 14th we’re hosting a contest!

On Saturday, July 11th, the never-before-seen extended #RogueCut edition of X-Men: Days of Future Past will be screened at the Reading Theater in the Gaslamp District of San Diego. And we’ve got the chance to give away 10 pairs of VIP access wristbands. That’s guaranteed access to a screening!

We’ll be choosing winners at random, the only requirement for winning is that you will be in the area and able to attend. No San Diego Comic-Con badge needed! All you have to do to enter is comment on this article using a valid email address and you’ll be entered for a chance to win.

Don’t worry if you don’t win passes, you will have the opportunity to gain two VIP (guaranteed) access tickets to the screening by purchasing the X-Men: Days of Future Past Rogue Cut Blu-ray through one of these locations:

  • The Fox booth on the show floor (Booth #s 4229)
  • The Nerd HQ/IGN Lounge (Children’s Museum)

Additional seating will be available to fans on a first-come, first-served basis.

Beyond the two VIP tickets for the special screening, fans that purchase the Rogue Cut early on Blu-ray and DVD during Comic-Con will also score a limited edition lithograph, celebrating 15 years of the X-Men franchise. Rogue Cut will contain nearly 90 minutes of extra features including deleted scenes, featurettes and gag reels, sure to engage the most ardent enthusiast.  This entire package of content will be available at MSRP $19.99 and is a must-have for every X-Men fan.

Rogue Cut Beauty Shot

ABOUT X-MEN: DAYS OF FUTURE PAST ROGUE CUT

With a never-before-seen, alternate cut of the film—plus nearly 90 minutes of all-new, immersive special features, the X-Men: Days of Future Past Rogue Cut takes you deeper into the X-Men universe than ever before. Rogue makes her return as the all-star characters from the original X-Men film trilogy join forces with their younger selves and unite to battle armies of murderous Sentinel robots who are hunting down mutants and humans alike!

Remember, all you have to do to enter is comment on this article using a valid email address and you’ll be entered for a chance to win. May the odds ever be in your– no, that’s the other Jennifer Lawrence film franchise. Good luck! See you in San Diego!

iZombie Season One Hits Shelves September 29

1000575783dvdlef_432b167-e1435606174111-1178971BURBANK, CA (June 29, 2015) From executive producers Rob Thomas (Veronica Mars, 90210, Party Down) and Diane Ruggiero-Wright (Veronica Mars, The Ex List), Warner Bros. Home Entertainment and DC Entertainment brings iZOMBIE: The Complete First Season to DVD on September 29, 2015. iZOMBIE, the new hit series that nearly 3 million people are tuning in to weekly on The CW, stars Rose McIver (Once Upon a Time, Masters of Sex), Malcolm Goodwin (Breakout Kings), Rahul Kohli (Eastenders), Robert Buckley (One Tree Hill) and David Anders (Once Upon a Time, The Vampire Diaries).  The 3-disc DVD set includes all 13 episodes from the first season, plus deleted scenes and Comic-Con panel. iZOMBIE: The Complete First Season is priced to own at $39.98 SRP. 

iZOMBIE stars Rose McIver as Olivia “Liv” Moore, a medical resident on the fast track to a perfect life … until she’s turned into a zombie. Now stuck between half-alive and undead, Liv transfers to the city morgue to reluctantly access the only thing that allows her to maintain her humanity — human brains. But there are side effects to Liv’s new diet. With each brain she consumes, she experiences flashes of the corpse’s memories — including, at times, clues as to how they were killed. Her boss, a brilliant but eccentric conspiracy theorist, encourages her to embrace this gift and to work with an unproven homicide detective to help solve these murders … and quiet the voices in her head.

iZOMBIE is  based upon characters created by Chris Roberson and Michael Allred for DC Entertainment’s Vertigo imprint. The series was developed for television by Thomas & Ruggiero-Wright, who executive produce along with Danielle Stokdyk (Veronica Mars) and Dan Etheridge (Veronica Mars). iZOMBIE is produced by Bonanza Productions Inc. in association with Spondoolie Productions and Warner Bros. Television.

13 ONE-HOUR EPISODES

  1. Pilot
  2. Brother, Can You Spare a Brain?
  3. The Exterminator
  4. Live and Let Clive
  5. Flight of the Living Dead
  6. Virtual Reality Bites
  7. Maternity Liv
  8. Dead Air
  9. Patriot Brains
  10. Mr. Berserk
  11. Astroburger
  12. Dead Rat, Live Rat, Brown Rat, White Rat
  13. Blaine’s World

DVD BONUS FEATURES

  • Deleted Scenes
  • iZombie: 2014 Comic-Con Panel

BASICS

3 DVD-9s
$39.98 SRP
Street Date: September 29, 2015
Languages:  English (5.1)
Subtitles: ESDH, Latin Spanish, French
Aspect Ratio:  Presented In 16×9 Widescreen Format
Approx running time: Feature – 548 minutes, Enhanced Content – 30 minutes

UPC: 883929486526

DVD Catalog # 1000575783

Marc Alan Fishman: The Swift Response To Save Starving Artists

taylor-swift-apple-1657442You might know her from too many pop-drivel hits on the radio. You might know her as the girl who always mouths the words and wriggles in her seat at all the award shows. But did you know Taylor Swift is also a militant defender of starving artists?

In a blog aptly titled “To Apple, Love Taylor.”  Taylor Swift laid into Apple (the computer company that also makes shiny, expensive phones, tablets and watches) over their recent announcement to compete in the streaming music game.

The Apple Music™ streaming service is being given away for free for three months, after which it becomes a $9.95 a month albatross around the necks of those who subscribe. True to their hipster-by-way-of-fascism business plan, Apple didn’t plan on reimbursing all of the artists for any plays of their music during this free period, believing this goodwill would ultimately pan out in a better-than-Spotify payment plan thereafter. Pure. Unadulterated. Evil.

So sayeth Lady Swift.

Taylor was swift to point out (nyuck nyuck) that Apple has the deep pockets and full coffers with which to pay for the play, as-it-were. So, a little shame here, a little bad PR there, and poof, Apple conceded. The day was saved. And the haters? Well, they can hate-hate-hate-hate. Funny enough? At first I was one of those haters.

I admit it. I read her well-articulated argument and honestly scoffed. Standing on a soapbox for the little guy just didn’t vibe with me. When she mentions – bleeding heart in hand – that “… the new artist or band that has just released their first single … will not be paid for its success.” I literally laughed out loud. The last time I checked, when a new artist pops on the scene and releases their first single they can’t give it away fast enough. It’s a music video on YouTube. It’s streaming on ReverbNation, Soundcloud, and BandCamp. It’s pushed out to as many venues as humanly possible. Why? Because by now, most musicians know that album sales when you’re unknown do not bring you the money touring will. And what better way to pack a house than to get your single out there and attract a crowd! I’d convinced myself that three months of free music would not be the end of the world for a small act trying to get bigger.

But why did I think that?

Because, dear reader, I am conditioned to be a patsy. Seven years as an indie book publisher has rendered me nigh-idiotic in the face of outright larceny. Where Taylor was talking about music, I immediately thought to comics. Specifically, I thought about ComiXology.

Where not three months ago I “accepted” the terms that traded Unshaven Comics’ right to set the price on our books on their Submit program for ComiXology’s desire to occasionally discount. “Why not,” I thought, “if it means more books get into readers hands? Who cares about a few bucks?”

Conditioned.

When a good friend of mine asked me to join his free online comic sharing website, Unshaven Comics discussed it for a solid 30 seconds before I was wrapping up our Samurnauts: Genesis issue ready for upload. “Why not,” I thought, “if it means more people see who we are … surely they’ll enjoy the free book and then support us with a purchase!”

It’s been the M.O. of those who seek to abuse the artists of the world. Exposure will somehow lead to fame and fortune. Yet I can’t honestly think of a single case where that actually worked. Yet so many of my compatriots in comics will open their arms at the opportunity without thinking twice. Is it simply a naïve outlook on life that leads us to welcome being played? How many countless webcomics exist pumping out free content, in hopes you’ll click that Google ad near it to earn them that fraction of a penny?

Let’s cut the crap: You don’t click that ad. You don’t buy the album if it’s available free on Spotify. You tell yourself you’ll do the right thing. But when no one is looking? You don’t. I know, because I don’t. I’m not a bad person for it either. I’m human. I’m broke. And I enjoy not having to pay for things.

So, to you, dear Taylor, I apologize. Your defense of the defenseless is applauded.

Now, if you could start reading comics, it would sure help me shake off the bad blood I have for an industry from which I will never, ever, ever get my fair.

 

The Point Radio: Jamie Murray Remains Beautifully Defiant

We head back to the set of DEFIANCE for some quality time with with Jamie Murray who talks about her part on the new season plus her past acting jobs on shows we loved like DEXTER and HUSTLE. Then writer and comedian Spike Feresten explains how he puts people behind the wheel on another season of CAR MATCHMAKER.

We’ll bed back in a few days with our ComicCon Preview. Don’t miss anything – Follow us on Twitter now here.

Mindy Newell: Hear Ye, Hear Ye, Bob Ingersoll!

justice-1870540

But this Court is not a legislature. Whether same-sex marriage is a good idea should be of no concern to us. Under the Constitution, judges have power to say what the law is, not what it should be.” • Chief Justice Roberts

“I join The Chief Justice’s opinion in full. I write separately to call attention to this Court’s threat to American democracy. • Justice Scalia, with whom Justice Thomas joins, dissenting

“The Court’s decision today is at odds not only with the Constitution, but with the principles upon which our Nation was built. Since well before 1787, liberty has been understood as freedom from government action, not entitlement to government benefits.”  • Justice Thomas, with whom Justice Scalia joins, dissenting

“For today’s majority, it does not matter that the right to same-sex marriage lacks deep roots or even that it is contrary to long-established tradition. The Justices in the majority claim the authority to confer constitutional protection upon that right simply because they believe that it is fundamental.” • Justice Alito, with whom Justice Scalia and Justice Thomas join, dissenting.

I have a question for Bob Ingersoll.

I don’t understand the dissenting opinions of Chief Justice Roberts, Justice Scalia, Justice Thomas, and Justice Alito. From my reading of their dissents – of which only excerpts are shown above – it seems to me that these men would also, given the chance, vote down the May 17, 1954 Warren Court’s decision on Brown vs. Board of Education Topeka, which:

“…declared state laws establishing separate public schools for black and white students to be unconstitutional [because]’separate educational facilities are inherently unequal’ [and] as a result,de jure racial segregation was ruled a violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment of the United States Constitution…”

Hmm, there’s that damn Fourteenth Amendment again.

Bob, I was taught way back when that our Constitution is a “living document,” which is defined by David Strauss of the University of Chicago Law School as: “…one that evolves, changes over time, and adapts to new circumstances, without being formally amended.” But apparently the four dissenting opinions are based on “constitutional originalism,” which Straus defines as “…the antithesis of…a living Constitution…It is the view that constitutional provisions mean what the people who adopted them – in the 1790s or 1860s or whenever – understand them to mean…[and] the Constitution requires today what it required when it was adopted…there is no need for the Constitution to adapt or change, other than by means of formal amendments.”

So, Bob, does that mean that Justice Clarence Thomas, a black man, believes that he belongs in a segregated society, that he thinks it’s okay for black children to go their schools and white kids go to their schools and never the twain shall meet?

So, Bob, does that mean that Roberts, Scalia, Alito, and Thomas also believe that women should not be allowed the right to vote, much less sit on SCOTUS? (Yes, I know we women gained the right to vote through the Nineteenth Amendment, which is the formality referred to by Straus, but women not having the right to vote was not one of the original “constitutional provisions” back in 1790 when Rhode Island became the final state to ratify the document.)

Bob, why do so many conservative pundits on radio and TV accuse SCOTUS of “enacting laws, not judging them?” I mean, if it weren’t for SCOTUS, half of them wouldn’t even be able to be on radio or TV, right?

And what’s with the accusations of “playing politics?” I seem to remember that a certain Texan became President of the United States because of SCOTUS “playing politics.” Where was all the shouting then?

Personally, I think it’s very hard for a Justice, or a radio or TV pundit, or anyone to really separate him or herself from their personal biases and life experiences when balancing the wheels of justice –

But that’s why they have law schools, right?

Like I said, damn that Fourteenth Amendment!

 

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