Over the past three decades, there has been a steady rise in the share of women, especially mothers, in the workforce. [Collected data shows that] the majority of women and mothers work, and many work full time and full year. This dramatic increase in women’s working hours has had a substantial impact both on household earnings and the economy more generally. Our analysis finds that middle-class households would have substantially lower earnings today if women’s employment patterns had remained unchanged. Had that been the case, gross domestic product, or GDP, would have been roughly 11 percent lower in 2012 if women had not increased their working hours as they did. In today’s dollars, this translates to more than $1.7 trillion less in output – roughly equivalent to combined U.S. spending on Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid in 2012. • The Economic Importance of Women’s Rising Hours of Work, A paper presented at the 75 Years of the Fair Labor Standards Act Conference at the Department of Labor, November 15, 2013.
The number of working-age women with a full-time job has surged from 28.6% in 1979 to 40.7% today, and the increase in working mothers in that time is even more remarkable – from 27.3% to 44.1 percent. So why the fuck do corporations go out of their way to alienate women, when all economic indicators point to the power of the dollar in women’s hands? Yep, those crazy people – “Corporations are people, too!” said Mitt Romney during the 2012 Presidential campaign – seem to do it all the time.
Last month it was that cover from Marvel. This month it’s DC Entertainment’s turn, with those t-shirts.
If you don’t know what t-shirts I’m talking about, take a moment to click here and read Martha’s column from Friday. Be sure to clink on the “stupid” link, which will bring you to The Mary Sue website, and the column which inspired Martha’s piece (and inspired this one) and includes handy-dandy pictures of said t-shirts.
Yeah. They piss me off, too.
You might think it’s weird that the woman who didn’t get upset about Spider-Woman’s butt is all pissy about t-shirts that proclaim maxims that belong in the 1950s and not in the second decade of the 21st century. But I grew up in the era of Bella Abzug and Gloria Steinem and bra-burnings. Okay, so I never actually burned my bra, but I sure as hell got the message, and I was all of 15.
And the message was: I belong to myself.
That was 45 years ago. Almost 46, since my birthday is in 19 days. And 45 years later, there is definitely a concerted effort happening. An effort to put women back in their place, back in the kitchen, just back.
On Thursday the United States Court of Appeals (Fifth Circuit, New Orleans) gave Texas “permission to require all abortion clinics in the state to meet the same building, equipment and staffing standards as hospital-style surgical centers,” which forced thirteen Texas abortion clinics to immediately close and leaving the state – “with 5.4 million women of reproductive age, ranking second in the country” – with only eight open clinics.
Listen up, people. Texas is full of crap. This is a total bullshit ruling. The way it reads makes it sound as if these clinics are nothing more than the dirty, dark, “back room” holes-in-the-walls of crumbling tenements in the worst part of the worst neighborhoods and ghettos in Texas, like the one that Natalie Wood goes to in Love with a Proper Stranger. I am here to tell you, truth to power, that abortion clinics must meet the same standards as any “hospital-style surgical center.” They are not staffed by fairy-tale witches holding out poisoned apples to Snow Whites or by cackling crones who haven’t washed their hands or seen a dentist in a hundred years. These clinics are non-profit centers run by caring health professionals whose only aim is to insure the well being of the women who are their patients
Yeah, I know, I went off the rails a bit, but not really. It’s all the same thing, really. Closing abortion clinics, DC Comics t-shirts, it’s all about fear of loss.
It’s the classic time travel question – would you kill a dangerous killer in their crib, before they’ve actually done anything? Well, what is you weren’t sure the baby was going to do anything? What if you were asked to…
KILL THE MOON
By Peter Harness
Directed by Paul Whilmshurst
Clara speaks to the entire Earth – they run the risk of the Earth being destroyed if they don’t kill an innocent being. “The man who normally helps” is nowhere to be found, and a decision must be made. Flashing backwards, we learn that Coal Hill student Courtney Woods has not reacted well to her brief run on the TARDIS. The Doctor told her she “wasn’t special”, a comment she’s taken to heart. Clara asks him to apologize; he instead offers her a chance to be the first woman on the Moon.
Alas, all is not well there.  In 2049, the moon has mysteriously gained 1.3 billion tons of extra mass, causing staggering tides on Earth. It turns out the moon is something altogether new to The Doctor’s eyes, and rather than help…he walks away.
This was a very dark episode with a bright ending, only to reveal that light at the end of the tunnel is an oncoming train. I expect we’ll see this story used in argument for certain social issue quite soon now. Fabulous performances all round.
GUEST STAR REPORT – Hermione Norris (Lundvik) is well known to British audiences for many regular TV appearances in series like Spooks and Cold Feet.
Tony Osoba (Duke) – is one of a smallish group of actors who’s appeared in both the new and original run of the series. He had roles in both Destiny of the Daleks and some years later in Dragonfire.
Paul Whilmshurst (director) will be back next week, and will be directing the Christmas episode. He has a long resume of TV directing, both drama and reality/documentary.
Peter Harness (writer) has been writing for British television for nearly a decade now. He wrote and appeared in a TV movie about British comedy legend Frankie Howerd, who was played by Who-lumnus David Walliams.
THE MONSTER FILES – The Moon has been the setting of many Who adventures over the decades. It first threatened the Earth millions of years ago, where the dominant life form of the Earth, who would come to be known as Silurians, feared a monstrous asteroid would crash into the planet. They set themselves up in massive hibernation cities to sleep through the disaster, only for the heavenly body to be trapped by the Earth’s gravity and become the Moon. That change to the delicate balance of the orbital mechanics of the solar system was enough to allow the planet Mondas to break free of its orbit, returning millennia later as The Tenth Planet. There have been many bases on the Moon, built and manned by both human and alien forces. The Cybermen tried to attack one in an appropriately titled episode. It would be used as a penal colony, house River Song’s alma mater, and eventually, we’d haul in four more for additional real estate. Needless to say, there’s never been any mention of it hatching a titanic alien and leaving another one in its place, but that’s the sort of thing that gets forgotten when you’re trying to fight off Draconians.
Doctor Who has had its share of spidersas well, even if in this case they’re just bacteria that resemble spiders, by some mad coincidence. Brought with human explorers in the future, spiders would evolve to control the world of Metebelis III, eventually known as the Planet of the Spiders. The Racnoss were a semi-arachnid race who planned an overthrow of the world, stopped by the able assistance of The Runaway Bride.
BACKGROUND BITS AND BOBS –
SET PIECES – Rather than go for the old reliable stone quarry, the production team traveled to Lanzarote, part of the Canary Islands off Africa, to duplicate the surface of the Moon. It was last used in the Davison adventure Planet of Fire.
I WEAR THE CLOTHES OF THE REGENERATED – Capaldi is wearing David Tennant’s spacesuit from The Satan Pit, a suit which is rapidly becoming the most recycled prop on the show, gaining on that rock used on almost every alien planet in the classic series.
“No being sick and no hanky-panky” – Considering the last time there was…you know, what-not… on the TARDIS, it resulted in River Song, a clear example of a result which caused both happiness and hardship.
“You’ll have to spend a lot of time, shooting me, because I will keep on regenerating” – The Doctor may be bluffing when says he might keep on regenerating forever – he made a similar comment on The Sarah Jane Adventures when he was asked how many times he could do it. But the new energy infusion given him by the Time Lords is something new – it’s not known if it was enough for one, a whole new cycle of twelve, or a potentially infinite number.
“What is wrong with my yo-yo?” – The Doctor used a yo-yo to test gravity force during the Baker years, with the same color yo-yo, yet. I’ve mentioned before that this Doctor is using more gadgets, large and small, to get things done, not just relying on the Sonic Screwdriver, a change I love campaigned for.
“That’s what you do with aliens, isn’t it? Blow them up?” It’s not The Doctor’s primary method, but it’s come up a couple times. Prime Minister Harriet Jones, (Yes, we know who you are) contacted Torchwood to destroy the retreating Sycorax spaceship at the end of The Christmas Invasion. And after Leela recommended it the whole time, The Doctor suddenly “came up with the idea” of blowing up The Invisible Enemy.
“High tide everywhere at once” – Well, no. It’d be tides far higher than normal for parts of the Earth both facing and pointed away from the moon, and calamitous low tides at the sides.
“When I say run…run” – So much fun to see bits of the old Doctors pop up again. That was one of the second Doctor’s catch phrases, like in <a href=”
target=”_blank”>this clip from Tomb of the Cybermen.
“There are some moments in time that I simply can’t see” This is a new take on the old reliable “Fixed Point”, where crucial points in history exist, chronal tipping points that cannot be changed. But here, rather than just walking away, here he forces three humans to make a choice that will damn the world, either physically, or by making them party to genocide.
“My Gran used to put things on tumblr” There actually is a girl named Courtney Woods with an account on tumblr, and I expect she’s getting an amazing increase in traffic right now. The Doctor Who tumblr community is amazingly vast and creative, featuring animation, art and filk music. It’s neat we’re finally getting a shout out.
“The last time you said that, she turned up on the wrong side of the planet!” – Clara is referring to the events of Cold War, where the TARDIS popped off to the south pole because The Doctor turned on the HADS, or Hostile Action Displacement System.
“There’s some DVDs in the blue bookshelf – just stinck on in the TARDIS console, it’ll bring you to me” There are exactly seventeen DVD titles containing the program that will automatically return the TARDIS to The Doctor’s location. They are the seventeen DVDs owned by Sally Sparrow, as revealed in the classic Blink.
“We didn’t nip out after pudding and kill Hitler” River Song, or rather Mels certainly tried that one time.
“Turn your lights off” – Real world physics get in the way here. Luckily, when they see the moon from Earth at the end of the episode, it’s full, which means it’d be behind the Earth. That’s backed up by the fact that the Moon is fully lit throughout the episode. This means when they were looking at the Earth, they’d be looking at the side in night  If they were on the other side, they’d never be able to see the lights. But unless my math is wrong, 45 minutes is not close to enough time for the light-up votes of the entire Earth to be seen – only an additional sliver of the Earth’s circumference would com around.
“Mind your language, please – there are children present” I count one child. Whoever could The Doctor be referring to in the plural? Patronizing, indeed.
“You made your decision…humanity made its choice” Assuming the vote is the same on the bright side, the Earth chose to kill a beautiful and innocent creature to save themselves. That’s more than a bit similar to the choice the denizens of Britain made when they built the Starship UK in The Beast Below. Considering they made themselves all forget they did it then, maybe that’s a viable explanation why it’s so rarely mentioned in future history.
“Not bad for a girl from Coal Hill School” I for one am perfectly ready for Courtney Woods to come on full time as a companion. We’re seeing her make a massive change in just these two episodes. She’s not well educated, she’s an average kid. And as such is a more perfect avatar for the viewer than any of the adult companions we’ve seen in the entire new series. Companions are often younger in the comics for that reason. It’s likely the extra issues of a minor working on a TV show, especially one as intensive as Doctor Who that precludes such a casting choice, but for a girl for this this is her first professional acting job, Ellis George is more than up for it.
BIG BAD WOLF REPORT – Clara’s arc is once again the only one furthered this week. The blowout argument with The Doctor, combined with the heart-to-heart with Danny, certainly points towards a change of affiliation in the future.
“It’s time to take the stabilizers off your bike” there may be two levels of action happening here. The Doctor is forcing Clara to make a staggering decision. He is also causing a rift in their relationship. What are the odds that this is another attempt to push Clara to safety? It’s plainly obvious that Clara will do everything in her power to help The Doctor – she hung onto the outside of the TARDIS for an eyes-open trip through the time vortex in The Time of the Doctor. She’s already spent an unknown amount of time racing through his timeline, fixing what The Great Intelligence set wrong. Perhaps he knows she deserves a rest, and knows the only way she’d leave is if he all but pushes her away. As here, The Doctor is forcing Clara to make a massive choice.
“You wanna have babies?” Courtney’s teasing mention of Danny is spot on. Assuming he’s not something Clever and surprising from Moffat’s dark evil heart, the budding relationship between Danny and Clara is almost a certainty. There’s not much that could stop it – death, perhaps, or as mentioned, an inability to leave The Doctor.
“I’ve got Grey areas” “Yeah, I noticed” It sure sounds like a hair joke, but on further rumination, it’s pretty clear Clara is talking about the grey areas in The Doctor’s personality. This is an extension of that first question – “Am I a good man?”
That’s the quote from David Copperfield on Clara’s board. Once again, the choices of quotes Clara selects are amazingly prescient.
“I had a really bad day” – Yes, there’s absolutely a very big story to be told here, and there’s still a chance it may not be a good one for Clara and their relationship.
NEXT TIME ON DOCTOR WHO – The Doctor tests the little grey cells. Mummy on the Orient Express, coming this Saturday.
On the next full moon, coinciding with NYCC Super Week, you can be one of the first to see WOLVES at an exclusive fan event followed by a Q&A with writer/director David Hayter! The werewolf action-thriller stars Lucas Till (X-Men: First Class & Days of Future Past, Stoker), Jason Momoa (Game of Thrones, Conan the Barbarian), Merritt Patterson (Kid Cannabis, The Hole), Stephen McHattie (The Strain, Haunter) and John Pyper-Ferguson (The Last Ship, Alphas).
The screening will take place in Manhattan on Wednesday, October 8th at 8pm. Follow @BewareWolves on Twitter to find out how you and a guest can win passes to this special event! In order to attend, you must be 17 or older as Wolves is rated R for bloody violence throughout, and some sexuality.
Popular high school student Cayden Richards wakes from a horrific nightmare, only to realize that he’s living it… He is changing into something vicious, unpredictable and wild. Forced to hit the road after the brutal murder of his parents, Cayden tries to hunt down the truth of what he is. In the remote, mountain town of Lupine Ridge, he discovers others like him — Including the beautiful Angelina, a young woman caught between two ancient clans of “wolves”. And when he finally discovers the shocking truth behind his ancestry, Cayden realizes there is only one way to save the woman he loves… a grisly fight to the death against forces more savage than he could have ever imagined.
WOLVES Arrives on Premium VOD October 16th and in Select Cities November 14th
Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy film has earned over $645 million worldwide and recently passed the $300 million mark at both the domestic and international box offices. Guardians of the Galaxy opened domestically August 1 with $94.3 million to become the biggest August debut of all time and ultimately the biggest August release ever; it’s also the highest grossing film of the year and the first to surpass $300 million in 2014 domestically. After becoming the 10th straight Marvel Studios film to open at #1, Guardians of the Galaxy occupied the top spot domestically for four of its first six weekends in release.
Synopsis:
From Marvel, the studio that launched the epic franchises of Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and Marvel’s The Avengers, comes an unlikely new team—the “Guardians of the Galaxy.” The Marvel Cinematic Universe expands into the cosmos when brash space adventurer Peter Quill steals a coveted orb and becomes the object of a relentless bounty hunt. To evade his enemies, Quill forges an uneasy truce with Rocket, a gun-toting raccoon; Groot, a tree-like humanoid; the deadly assassin Gamora; and the revenge-driven Drax. But when Quill discovers the true power of the orb, he must rally his ragtag band of misfits for a desperate battle that will decide the fate of the galaxy. Featuring amazing new characters and exclusive bonus features, this must-own blockbuster will have you hooked on a feeling… of pure adrenaline!
Cast:
Chris Pratt (The Lego Movie, TV’s Parks and Recreation) as Peter Quill, Zoe Saldana (Avatar, Star Trek) as Gamora, Dave Bautista (Riddick, The Man with the Iron Fists) as Drax, Vin Diesel (Fast and the Furious series, Riddick) as Groot, Bradley Cooper (American Hustle, SilverLinings Playbook) as Rocket, Lee Pace (The Hobbit series, Lincoln) as Ronan, Michael Rooker (TV’s The Walking Dead) as Yondu Udonta, Karen Gillan (Oculus, TV’s Doctor Who) as Nebula, Djimon Hounsou (How to Train Your Dragon 2, Gladiator) as Korath, John C. Reilly (Wreck-It Ralph, Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby) as Corpsman Dey, Glenn Close (TV’s Damages, Tarzan) as Nova Prime and Benicio Del Toro (Traffic, The Usual Suspects) as The Collector.
Director: James Gunn (Movie 43, Super)
Screenplay: James Gunn (Dawn of the Dead, Scooby Doo) and Nicole Perlman (Thor)
Producer: Kevin Feige, p.g.a. (Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Thor: The Dark World)
Executive Producers: Nik Korda (Robin Hood, The Golden Compass), Stan Lee (X-Men: Days of Future Past, Captain America: The Winter Soldier), Victoria Alonso (Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Thor: The Dark World), Jeremy Latcham (Marvel’s The Avengers, Iron Man 2), Alan Fine (Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Thor: The Dark World), and Louis D’Esposito (Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Thor: The Dark World)
Release Date: 11/18 for Digital 3D and Digital HD
12/9 Digital SD, 3D Blu-ray Combo pack (3D Blu-ray + Single Disc Blu-ray + Digital Copy), Blu-ray, DVD and On-Demand
Bonus Features:
(Digital HD*, Disney Movies Anywhere, 3D Blu-ray Combo Pack, Blu-ray)
Never-Before-Seen Deleted Scenes
Making-of Featurettes
Exclusive Look at “Marvel’s The Avengers: Age of Ultron”
Gag Reel
Audio Commentary
(DVD)
Exclusive Look at “Marvel’s Avengers: Age of Ultron”
Never-Before-Seen Deleted Scene
Digital bonus offerings will vary per retailer Ratings: PG-13; PG for CE; G for CF Feature Run Time: 121 minutes Aspect Ratio: Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray & DVD: 2:40:1 Audio: Blu-ray 3D & Blu-ray 2D = English 7.1 DTS-HDMA, French-Canadian 5.1 Dolby Digital, Latin Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, English DVS 2.0 Dolby Digital
DVD = English/Latin Spanish/French Canadian 5.1 Dolby Digital, English DVS 2.0 Dolby Digital Languages: English, French & Spanish Subtitles: English, French & Spanish
Once the medics got their hands on our pal John, they put him on the rack for an oil change and discovered he needed to have a few other parts cleaned out. The phrase “triple by-pass” sounds scary (although it’s scarier on most Interstate highways), but we’re assured that this procedure is really fairly routine and probably awaits many of us in the future. The surgery will happen in about a week, so it’s not ridiculously urgent. Profoundly, but not ridiculously.
Okay. Fine. Then I promise not to be scared. Thankfully, they don’t let comic book editors operate in the surgical theater. ComicMix columnist (and John’s friend) Mindy Newell just happens to be a surgical nurse, and she’ll be following this one like a hawk.
HOLLYWOOD, Calif. – The “super fun” (Topher Gauk-Roger, CNN), visually-stunning and riotously entertaining blockbuster TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES bursts onto Blu-ray Combo Pack, Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack, DVD and VOD December 16, 2014 from Paramount Home Media Distribution. The film arrives three weeks early on Digital HD November 25.
In this eye-popping reimagining of the legendary heroes in a half shell, New York is under attack by the sinister Shredder, but fearless leader Leonardo, brilliant and brainy Donatello, rough and rebellious Raphael and wild and crazy Michelangelo take to the streets to defend their home with the help of intrepid reporter April O’Neil (Megan Fox) and their brilliant sensei, Splinter. Packed with jaw-dropping action and special effects and loaded with the franchise’s signature humor, TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES is “fun for the whole family” (Joel Amos, Movie Fanatic). The film also stars Will Arnett, Whoopi Goldberg, and William Fichtner and features Johnny Knoxville as the voice of Leonardo and Tony Shalhoub as the voice of Splinter.
The TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES Blu-ray 3D and Blu-ray Combo Packs with Digital HD include explorations of the Turtles’ latest incarnations and their sensational appearance in 3D, an extended ending, a look at the making of the hit theme song “Shell Shocked,” along with the music video and much more. In addition, specially marked Blu-ray Combo Packs include two reversible masks featuring all four signature colors of the beloved crime-fighters. Masks are available only while supplies last and quantities are limited. Select retail outlets will also offer exclusive versions of the Blu-ray with collectible packaging, premiums and more.
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES Blu-ray Combo Pack
The TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES Blu-ray is presented in 1080p high definition with English Dolby Atmos (7.1 Dolby TrueHD compatible), French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, Portuguese 5.1 Dolby Digital and English Audio Description and English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Portuguese subtitles. The DVD in the combo pack is presented in widescreen enhanced for 16:9 TVs with English 5.1 Dolby Digital, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital and English Audio Description and English, French, Spanish and Portuguese subtitles. The combo pack includes access to a Digital HD copy of the film as well as the following:
Blu-ray
Feature film in high definition
Digital Reality
In Your Face! The Turtles in 3D
It Ain’t Easy Being Green
Evolutionary Mash-Up
Turtle Rock
Extended Ending
“Shell Shocked” Music Video
Making of “Shell Shocked”
DVD
Feature film in standard definition
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack
The Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack includes all of the above, as well as a Blu-ray 3D presented in 1080p high definition with English Dolby Atmos (7.1 Dolby TrueHD compatible), French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital, Portuguese 5.1 Dolby Digital and English Audio Description and English, English SDH, French, Spanish and Portuguese subtitles.
The Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack and Blu-ray Combo Pack available for purchase include a Digital Version of the film that can be accessed through UltraViolet™, a way to collect, access and enjoy movies. With UltraViolet, consumers can add movies to their digital collection in the cloud, and then stream or download them—reliably and securely—to a variety of devices.
TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES Single-Disc DVD
The single-disc DVD is presented in widescreen enhanced for 16:9 TVs with English 5.1 Dolby Digital, French 5.1 Dolby Digital, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital and English Audio Description and English, French, Spanish and Portuguese subtitles. The disc includes the feature film in standard definition.
Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies present a Platinum Dunes production, a Gama Entertainment/Mednick Productions/Heavy Metal production of a Jonathan Liebesman film: TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES. Executive produced by Denis L. Stewart, Eric Crown, Napoleon Smith III and Jason T. Reed. Produced by Michael Bay, Andrew Form, Brad Fuller, Galen Walker, Scott Mednick and Ian Bryce. Based on the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles characters created by Peter Laird and Kevin Eastman. Screenplay by Josh Appelbaum & André Nemec and Evan Daugherty. Directed by Jonathan Liebesman.
Street Date: December 16, 2014 (Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray, DVD and VOD)
November 25, 2014 (Digital)
SRP: $52.99 U.S. (Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack)
$39.99 U.S. (Blu-ray Combo Pack)
$29.99 U.S. (DVD)
U.S. Rating: PG-13 for sci-fi action violence
Canadian Rating: PG for violence
LOS ANGELES, Calif. (September 30, 2014) – Get ready for worlds to collide like never before! Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment takes you to the center of the battle between apes and humans with DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES 3D Blu-ray™, Blu-ray™ and DVD on December 2 and on Digital HD™ November 11. The film quickly became the highest grossing film in the franchise, netting nearly $680 million at the box office*, and the most critically acclaimed blockbuster of the summer**.
Gary Oldman, Andy Serkis, Jason Clarke and Keri Russell star in this thrilling next chapter of The Planet of the Apes. It is 2026, and humanity has been pushed to near extinction by a deadly virus. When a group of survivors desperate to find a new source of power travel into the woods near San Francisco, they discover a highly evolved community of intelligent apes led by Caesar (Andy Serkis). The two species form a fragile peace but dissention grows and the groups find themselves hurtling toward all-out war. Fans and critics flocked to the film, with The Hollywood Reporter raving that “In the annals of sequels, Dawn is to Rise of the Planet of the Apes what The Empire Strikes Back was to Star Wars—it’s that much better.“
With approximately two hours of special features, the DAWN OF THE PLANET OF THE APES Blu-ray will make a perfect holiday gift for any action film fans. The Blu-ray is jam-packed with behind-the-scenes footage and deleted scenes, including intimate interviews with Andy Serkis on how he masterfully created Caesar and inside looks at the secrets of the relationship between man and apes.
For an even more immersive experience in the world of the apes, fans have to get the Planet of the Apes: Caesar’s Warrior Collection. Witness the battle for world domination between ape and man with both Rise of the Planet of the Apes and Dawn of the Planet of the Apes on Blu-ray and Digital HD™ on December 2. The collection comes in a limited-edition, fiercely lifelike replica bust of Caesar wearing his tribal war paint, designed by WETA, the special effects masters responsible for bringing Caesar to life on film. This must-own set includes an all-new 32-page booklet “Planet of the Apes: Building an Icon” that explores WETA’s creation of the Caesar replica, four battle-ready ape collectible character cards and more than 5 hours of special features.
…and won? Well, we won’t know that until October 13th when all our data is tabulated. But the old adage applies: it’s not so much about the destination as it is the journey that matters. In this case, the journey is that of the punk rock garage band attempting to overcome the man. But first, a little history.
Unshaven Comics partnered with ComicMix in 2013 to exhibit at the New York Comic Con. Over the course of four days, sales records were decimated. Beards were bristled with pride. New York’s con felt like a wave pool, where every few minutes, a shallow tsunami rolled past our booth, and thanks in part to a helpfully pitiful sign (“Can I tell you about my comic book?”), customer after customer soon parted ways with our book(s) in hands. Here we are a year later, and ready to return with the loftiest goal we’ve ever uttered. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
At this year’s NYCC, Unshaven Comics is untethering ourselves from ComicMix (but we know they won’t be too far away… like the paternal nudgeniks we know them to be) and shacking up with Jim McClain of the Solution Squad to staff a small press booth across from the biggest and best publisher working today. You may have heard of them. No, not First Comics (Boom, roasted.). Marvel Comics. And with but a swatch of carpet between their monstrous exhibit and our little meager table? Well, it’s either going to rock like an Eddie Van Halen solo over a Flea bassline with a little drum fill from Neil Peart… Or it will suck like Courtney Love.
I’m all about transparency kiddos. Last year, Unshaven Comics sold 524 books over a four-day period. Our business plan is built around setting a goal to see 10% growth in book sales every time we return to a convention. That would mean we need to see roughly 53 more books sold. Given how sales looked at our most recent conventions, we’re very confident we can see that happen. I am a “pie-in-the-sky” kinda guy, so I’m personally looking to leave the Javits Center 800 books lighter. And because I’m not one to hedge bets, we’re packing 1,000 of them. This isn’t hubris, kiddos. This is positive thinking.
As it stands, Marvel Comics is crushing it with their movies and TV shows. DC isn’t far behind with decent love for Arrow, excitement for the Flash, and “it doesn’t suck that much” feelings over Gotham (and truth be told, I’m liking it so far). But let’s not beat around the Groot here. Marvel is in charge right now, as they should be. And to be sitting across the aisle from them at the second largest convention in the country is an opportunity me and my chiseled-chinned cohorts will face in a few days. The run-off from a “destination” booth such as theirs alone will rival the total traffic we saw on the outskirts of the far wall, back a year ago. And knowing that our Samurnauts pitch is only 30 seconds long (see <a href=”
Ha’s video here), it shouldn’t take long for us to pitch, wow, sell, shake hands, pass over to Jim… and move to the next awesome fan.
It will also help that above our table will sit a pair of posters to catch a wandering eye. We’ve decided it’s always a good idea to make a bad impression, so we’ve made “The Hipster League” as well as the “Brovengers.” They are both worth a chuckle, and will do what we need them to do: Disrupt someone who is wandering (with or without purpose) and get them to stop and listen to what we have to say. As more and more conventioneers question how to make a show more profitable, Unshaven always takes the simple solution. In this case, make em’ laugh, make em’ laugh, make em’ laugh. After the guffaws comes sincerity and the promise that our books were made with our tongues no where near our cheeks. Much like a little company I know that promised a picky movie-going audience they’d root for a talking raccoon with a gun. Natch.
And if Marvel should be leading a rousing crowd in a fury of ear-peeling cheers for their wares, well then, we’ll hold our signs higher, and be just that much more desperate for attention. Trust me, it works.
The key to it all – as is the key to whatever success we’ve enjoyed thus far – is really in catching someone’s eye, and then being passionate about our product. Backing that up with a unique concept, and a quality product priced appropriately certainly helps too. It also never hurts to use what little attention we can garner prior to the event to help amplify our plea. So, to all my east coasters making travel plans to New York in the coming week, I have but one simple question to ask:
Can I tell you about my comic book?
Unshaven Comics and the Solution Squad will be at the New York Comic Con in Booth 1361 across from… well… I am Groot.
FX’s THE STRAIN winds up it’s first season this weekend and we sat down with Guillermo del Toro and his cast to talk about where the show ended, where it goes next and how their vampires stack up against those who “glitter”. Plus famed actress, Isabella Rossellini takes her GREEN PORNO from TV to the stage and tells us how it all got started.
It was like one of those puzzle pictures we used to read in Highlights Magazine in the dentist’s office waiting room. The “What’s wrong with this picture?” one. But with one major difference. In this case, the picture is She-Hulk v 3 # 8, and the answer to what’s wrong with it is, not much of anything. Still, I want to show I can waste as much of our time writing about how a comic book story got the law right as I can writing about how it got the law wrong. So here goes.
She-Hulk v 3 # 8 started in a Los Angeles hospital where a dying nonagenarian made a death bed confession regarding “something terrible he needed to get off his chest.” No, not his “I heart Snooki” tattoo. Unfortunately, the story immediately cut to three weeks later, so we don’t know to what the dying man confessed.
After said three weeks transition, Steve Rogers, the once and future Captain America – Seriously, does anyone really think Falcon will still be Captain America when the third Cap movie comes out in two years? – visited the law office of Jennifer (She-Hulk) Walters. Cap told Jennifer why he came, but not us readers. Again with the keeping secrets from the readers? All we know is that Cap’s being sued in Los Angeles Superior Court for wrongful death, because of something that happened in Los Angeles in 1940. The rest will be parceled out slowly over the course of this multi-part storyline. It’s enough to make you wish that Lost never got on the air.
Jennifer suggested filing a motion to dismiss the suit on the grounds that Cap died a few years ago and a person can’t be sued post-mortem. Cap nixed the idea. He didn’t want to win the case on a technicality. Which is just as well, as Cap didn’t really die. He had been shot with a gun that caused him to phase in and out of time and spaceand everyone thought he was dead; but he wasn’t. Filing a motion to dismiss that argued Cap had died when he hadn’t would have been a fraud on the court. Matt Murdockmay play so fast and loose with legal ethics that he’d argue a motion based on a fact he knew wasn’t true; I’m not so sure about Jen.
Jen also considered the statute of limitations. Both state and federal jurisdictions have statutes which command that causes of action must begin within a certain number of years after the event which caused the cause of action. If the lawsuit isn’t filed within the statutory limit, it is procedurally barred. Hence the name statute of limitations.
Statutes of limitations exist to protect defendants from the possibility that the evidence necessary to defend themselves has been lost, destroyed, or forgotten in the intervening years. In California, the statute of limitations for wrongful death is set forth in California Code of Civil Procedure § 331.5 and it’s two years. Which means the time to file the wrongful death suit against Cap expired in 1942.
But the suit against Cap asked for equitable tolling of the statute, because the family didn’t learn it even had a wrongful death action until that deathbed confession three weeks earlier. Judges can grant a motion to toll the running of the statute of limitations, if the plaintiffs did not know about the claim until after the statute of limitations had expired. Some judges won’t, because they see it as a way of getting a case off their docket. But they can. Some judges do, because they see it as fair and equitable. But they don’t have to. The judge in our case probably doesn’t even have to worry about it.
Remember Cap already said he didn’t want to win on a technicality. He wanted to try the case and win it on its merits, so that his name would not tarnished in any way. A statute of limitations dismissal would be the type of technicality that Cap would veto.
And Jen would have to accede to Cap’s wishes on this, even though it might not be in his best interests. If a client wants his or her case handled in a certain way, the lawyer representing the client must accede to the client’s wishes, as long as the client’s wishes aren’t illegal or unethical. If a client wanted to put on perjured testimony, a lawyer wouldn’t have to do that; in fact, couldn’t do that. It’s illegal and unethical. But there’s nothing illegal or unethical – merely unwise – about not wanting to file a motion to dismiss and a lawyer couldn’t file one against the client’s wishes.
Someone asked me how Cap can be sued in Los Angeles when he’s a citizen of New York City. That’s easy. Whatever happened in Los Angeles back in 1940, Cap was there when it happened. That gave California and her courts personal jurisdiction over Cap for the case. If you visit L.A. and cause a traffic accident, the other people in the accident can sue you in L.A. That’s where the accident happened and where you were, when you caused it.
The next thing that happened was that Jen had to get some California lawyer to sponsor her appearance in a California court pro hac vice. This is a procedure by which a lawyer who is not licensed to practice in a state gets permission to be admitted to that state’s bar just for the one case; pro hac vice being a Latin term meaning “for this occasion.” It’s done by having a lawyer who is licensed in the state file a pro hac vice motion on behalf of the out-of-state lawyer.
But why, you may wonder, did Jen have to proceed pro hac vice? After all, waaay back in The Savage She-Hulk# 1, Jen lived, and practiced law, in Los Angeles. She was already a member of the California bar. Emphasis on the “was.”
California, like Ohio, has a registration requirement. In order to continue practicing law in California, every three years a lawyer must take enough California continuing legal education classes to meet California’s CLE requirements. Oh, and pay an annual registration fee. Several years ago Jen moved to New York and started practicing there. In addition, for some period of time, Jen was disbarred and worked as a bounty hunter. Although Jen got her license back, between years of practicing in New York and months of being a disbarred bounty hunter, Jen let her California license become inactive.
Yes, she could get her California license reinstated, but only after taking enough CLE classes to satisfy California and paying her registration fee – don’t forget her registration fee, money-strapped California won’t. But that takes time.
The wrongful death suit against Cap was filed no more than three weeks ago and probably later. Jen agreed to represent Cap some about days before it was set to go to trial. Jen didn’t have time to get her California law license reinstated. Hence the pro hac vice request.
Jen called Matt Murdock – who had just resumed practicing law in California after he was disbarred in New York, himself – to help her file a pro hac vice motion. He turned her down. So Jen ended up using Matt Rocks, one of former X-Factor leader Jamie Madrox’s duplicates who had become a successful entertainment lawyer in L.A.
For two days, Jen prepared herself for the trial, until she was confident that she’d be ready for anything the opposing side could throw at her. Which led to the big surprise ending. And to this
SPOILER WARNING!
As in, I’m about to give away the surprise ending of the story and you have been warned not to proceed if you don’t want to know it.
When Jen entered the courtroom, she discovered that opposing counsel was Matt Murdock.
Although, come to think of it, that wasn’t really all that much of a spoiler. If you didn’t see this ending coming the second Matt Murdock turned Jennifer down, you weren’t paying attention when you took Twist Endings 101.
The surprise ending did puzzle me, tough. Why didn’t Matt simply tell Jen he couldn’t help her file a pro hac vice because he was opposing counsel? There is absolutely no reason for him to have kept this information secret other than to be a dick. Still, considering some of the crap Matt has pulled in the past few years, being a dick may have been reason enough for him.
On the other hand, Jen should have known Matt was opposing counsel, anyway. As the attorney of record, Matt would have signed the official court filings in the case; the complaint, motions, requests for discovery, or what have you. Even if some other lawyer prepared the case, filed the complaint and all the other motions, and Matt only just took over the case; Matt would have filed a notice of appearance in the case to alert the court that he was now the attorney of record. Jen should have seen that notice while preparing for the case and known about Matt. If she didn’t, she should really withdraw from the trial, because she’s a poor excuse for a lawyer.
Now I said the story got the law right. Actually, it mostly got the law right. But the story would have us believe a seventy-four-year old wrongful death suit was going to trial only three weeks after the plaintiffs first learned their cause of action existed. I’m sorry, but no.
Neither Jen – three days – nor Matt – three weeks – would have had sufficient time to prepare their cases; what with all that pretrial discovery and deposing witnesses and endless motion practice. Both sides should have moved for a continuance to give themselves adequate time to prepare for a trial that is so important. Even squeaky-clean Cap could have no complaints to Jen’s moving for a continuance so she could have more than three days to prepare for a trial. Winning a trial because your lawyer is prepared is not winning on a technicality. And going to trial with a lawyer that hasn’t had time to prepare is more suicidal then playing Russian Roulette with a fully-loaded revolver.
Also, three weeks? I admit, I’ve never practiced law in California, so I can’t tell you how quickly civil cases move forward out there. But three weeks?
I can tell you that in Cleveland it takes several months – usually several years – for a civil case to come to trial. And Los Angeles County is 7.67 times more populated than the county where Cleveland sits, so probably has lots more civil cases clogging up its dockets. Those cases would be ahead of Jen’s trial and would have been tried first. There is no way a complicated wrongful death suit would ever come to trial in only three weeks.
Trust me, the constitutional right to a speedy trial only applies to criminal trials, not civil trials. Civil trials are about as speedy as Congress moving on immigration reform.
Well, what do you know? This is the longest column I’ve written for ComicMix. Turns out I was wrong before. Seems I can waste even more of our time writing about how a comic book story got the law right than I can writing about how it got the law wrong.
We use cookies to improve your experience on our site. By using our site, you consent to cookies.
Cookie Preferences
Manage your cookie preferences below:
Essential cookies enable basic functions and are necessary for the proper function of the website.
Name
Description
Duration
Cookie Preferences
This cookie is used to store the user's cookie consent preferences.
30 days
These cookies are needed for adding comments on this website.
Name
Description
Duration
comment_author_url
Used to track the user across multiple sessions.
Session
comment_author
Used to track the user across multiple sessions.
Session
comment_author_email
Used to track the user across multiple sessions.
Session
WP Consent API is a plugin that standardizes the communication of accepted consent categories between plugins.
Name
Description
Duration
wp_consent_{category}
Stores your consent preference for a specific cookie category (e.g., functional, marketing). It ensures consistent consent management across WordPress plugins supporting the WP Consent API.
30 days
Statistics cookies collect information anonymously. This information helps us understand how visitors use our website.
Google Analytics is a powerful tool that tracks and analyzes website traffic for informed marketing decisions.
Used by Google Analytics to determine which links on a page are being clicked
30 seconds
_ga_
ID used to identify users
2 years
_gid
ID used to identify users for 24 hours after last activity
24 hours
_gat
Used to monitor number of Google Analytics server requests when using Google Tag Manager
1 minute
__utmt
Used to monitor number of Google Analytics server requests
10 minutes
__utmb
Used to distinguish new sessions and visits. This cookie is set when the GA.js javascript library is loaded and there is no existing __utmb cookie. The cookie is updated every time data is sent to the Google Analytics server.
30 minutes after last activity
__utmc
Used only with old Urchin versions of Google Analytics and not with GA.js. Was used to distinguish between new sessions and visits at the end of a session.
End of session (browser)
__utmz
Contains information about the traffic source or campaign that directed user to the website. The cookie is set when the GA.js javascript is loaded and updated when data is sent to the Google Anaytics server
6 months after last activity
__utmv
Contains custom information set by the web developer via the _setCustomVar method in Google Analytics. This cookie is updated every time new data is sent to the Google Analytics server.
2 years after last activity
__utmx
Used to determine whether a user is included in an A / B or Multivariate test.
18 months
_ga
ID used to identify users
2 years
_gac_
Contains information related to marketing campaigns of the user. These are shared with Google AdWords / Google Ads when the Google Ads and Google Analytics accounts are linked together.
“Turn your lights off” – Real world physics get in the way here. Luckily, when they see the moon from Earth at the end of the episode, it’s full, which means it’d be behind the Earth. That’s backed up by the fact that the Moon is fully lit throughout the episode. This means when they were looking at the Earth, they’d be looking at the side in night  If they were on the other side, they’d never be able to see the lights. But unless my math is wrong, 45 minutes is not close to enough time for the light-up votes of the entire Earth to be seen – only an additional sliver of the Earth’s circumference would com around.
