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The Point Radio: How COMMUNITY Is Surviving

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  • March 6, 2013

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After losing a show runner and being off the air for month, NBC;’s COMMUNITY is back and now the questions are out there. Is it the same show without creator Dan Harmon, and can it last? Series regulars Allison Brie and Danny Pudy weigh in on where things stand in the middle of the show’s fourth season, plus Red Sonja gets a new creator and Robert Kirkman has something new for both comics and television.

Take us ANYWHERE! The Point Radio App is now in the iTunes App store – and it’s FREE! Just search under “pop culture The Point”. The Point Radio  – 24 hours a day of pop culture fun for FREE. GO HERE and LISTEN FREE on any computer or on any other  mobile device with the Tune In Radio app – and follow us on Twitter @ThePointRadio.

ERLE STANLEY GARDNER BIOGRAPHER GETS PULPED!

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  • March 6, 2013

PULPED! Returns with a fantastic episode looking at another side of New Pulp- Biographies!


 Tommy Hancock welcomes Mystery and Pulp Biographer Jeffery Marks to this episode of PULPED!  Considering academic works part of New Pulp, Jeffery discusses his work on his upcoming Erle Stanley Gardner biography.  Listen to anecdotes, explanations, and origins of some of the best known Gardner creations, including a certain well known attorney!  Join Jeffery Marks as he gets PULPED!

Check out the latest episode of PULPED! HERE!

Mike Gold, In Praise Of Bad Taste

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  • March 6, 2013

Gold Art 130306Solidly castigated for being in bad taste, Seth MacFarlane announced he was not interested in hosting the Oscars again. Watching his reception in horror, Tina Fey said “Hell, no.” So producers announced next year’s host will be Gilbert Gottfried.

To be fair, when it comes to MacFarlane I’m not necessarily your go-to guy. I thought Ted was good fun, but I have a hard time watching an entire episode of Family Guy. If I surf past it ten minutes in, I’m fine. If I watch it from the beginning but the phone rings and I actually decide to take the call, I don’t hit the TiVo button. American Dad doesn’t work for me, but it’s better than The Cleveland Show. Robot Chicken might be the finest show in the history of the medium. I loved him on Star Trek: Enterprise.

But I really enjoy MacFarlane when he’s on a talk show like Craig Ferguson or Jimmy Kimmel. Humor is in the eye of the beholder and I never, ever use the phrase “that’s not funny” without the tag “to me.” I think he’s funny, I think he’s clever, I think he might be the closest thing we’ve got in America to Ricky Gervais – except, of course, for Ricky Gervais. Who I also like. Who also was chastised for bad taste humor while hosting an awards show.

But here’s the thing. If you don’t want some bad taste on your teevee plate, don’t hire Seth MacFarlane. He’s not going to bow before the great Oscar god. That’s not what he does. He’s not Bob Hope, he’s not Johnny Carson. He’s not Billy Crystal either, although his Oscar ratings last month were 10% higher than Crystal’s the year before.

I don’t always watch the Oscars. I enjoy watching the show with my daughter because she does a fashion commentary that would make MacFarlane sound like Loretta Young. Come to think of it, that’s true of every woman with whom I’ve watched the show. Adriane wasn’t around this year, but I watched it because I like MacFarlane and, mostly, because I was hoping Ben Affleck would knock it out of the park. I might have wandered away had Christoph Waltz not copped the first award and, no, don’t blame MacFarlane or the show’s producers for Waltz’s nomination in the supporting actor category. They didn’t have anything to do with it. Grow up.

Hmmm. “Grow up.” Isn’t that Joan Rivers’ catch-phrase? Maybe she can be Gottfried’s co-host next year.

Hell, I’d watch that.

THURSDAY: Dennis O’Neil

FRIDAY: Martha Thomases

 

Enter Our “Tai Chi Zero” Blu-ray and DVD Giveaway!

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  • March 6, 2013

To celebrate the release of the steampunk kung fu epic Tai Chi Zero, being released  on Blu-ray and DVD, Comicmix. will be giving away two DVDs and two Blu-Rays of this fantastic film.

About the film:

“From the creators of IP MAN and DETECTIVE DEE, featuring Martial Arts choreography by the legendary Sammo Hung, TAI CHI 0 is the first of a planned Steampunk Martial Arts trilogy. TAI CHI 0 tells the story of Yang Luchan, a young genius who, tired of being picked on, travels to Chen Village to learn the art of Tai Chi. Luchan finds out the hard way that it is forbidden for a villager to teach an outsider. But when a frightening army of steampunk soliders bearing strange machines shows up, the villagers must trust this strange outsider with the knowledge of Tai Chi.“

If you want your chance to win a copy of Tai Chi Zero, entering is simple: you must comment on this post. We will announce the winners picked at random from those who comment!

Now on to the rules…

  • There will be only four winners.
  • You must comment on this post to win.
  • One comment per user.
  • Contest is over at midnight (EST) on March 10th
  • Winners will be announced the following day and have 5 days to contact us with shipping info.

We would like to thank Variance Films for letting us give our readers this opportunity to pick up this wonderful film.

HARD BOILED WESTERN OMNIBUS DEBUTS FROM PRO SE-SAVAGE NOIR BY GREG NORGAARD!

  • News
  • March 6, 2013

An untamed land of lawless men and deadly decisions.  Evil hides in the shadows of alleys and Good dies on blood soaked streets. Loose words lead to skinned sixguns and flying lead.  A land where a man has to be of a certain breed.  Tough, relentless, unforgiving.  A land where a man has to be…Savage.


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Pro Se Productions, a leading publisher of Genre Fiction and New Pulp proudly presents SAVAGE NOIR: The Complete Adventures of Frank Savage.  Written by Greg Norgaard, SAVAGE NOIR is a hard boiled two fisted western.  This omnibus features the original two novels featuring Norgaard’s raw, exciting protagonist-Frank Savage- as well as a never before published short story chronicling Savage’s last adventure.

There is only one way to deal with murderous souls when killing is their modus operandi and revenge is on their mind. When the West was wild, one man knew this better than any other. His name was Frank Savage.

A SAVAGE RETRIBUTION – On a cross country stagecoach trip, Frank’s destiny causes him to cross paths with people from his past.  Unaware that they are being followed, Frank must come to terms with his old ways.  With the help of his friends, he will face his past and fight for their lives against a madman who will stop at nothing to get his savage retribution.

A SAVAGE DARKNESS –The violent story of four lawmen in search of a murderous group of psychopaths.  Frank leads his new found partners into Chicago’s dangerous underworld in order to destroy the killers who savagely murdered one man’s family.

AN AMERICAN SAVAGE- Never Before Published!  This trek takes Frank to England for his final mission- to stop a killer from continuing his rampage.  A killer that he should have disposed of when he had the chance.  It will not be a mistake Savage makes twice!

According to Paul Bishop (Fight Card), “Savage Noir is not your father’s western.  Frank Savage is a flawed hero riding hell-bent for violence.  Nasty.  Brutish.  Twisted.  I loved every page.” 

Gordon Dymowski (Zone 4/Blog THIS Pal) recommends, “If you like your Westerns a little wilder than most, you’ll dig SAVAGE NOIR.”

SAVAGE NOIR: THE COMPLETE ADVENTURES OF FRANK SAVAGE by Greg Norgaard is currently available from Pro Se Productions at https://www.createspace.com/4190844 and at Amazon and Barnes & Noble!  Coming Soon to Kindle, Nook, and Other E-Readers!

For Interviews with the author or more information on Pro Se Productions, contact proseproductions@earthlink.net!

Catch the new Iron Man 3 Trailer

  • News
  • March 5, 2013

For those who can’t wait to see it on the big screen with Oz the Great and Powerful this weekend, Disney has released the new Iron Man 3 trailer online.

Marvel’s Iron Man 3 pits brash-but-brilliant industrialist Tony Stark/Iron Man against an enemy whose reach knows no bounds. When Stark finds his personal world destroyed at his enemy’s hands, he embarks on a harrowing quest to find those responsible. This journey, at every turn, will test his mettle. With his back against the wall, Stark is left to survive by his own devices, relying on his ingenuity and instincts to protect those closest to him. As he fights his way back, Stark discovers the answer to the question that has secretly haunted him: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?

Starring Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Stephanie Szostak, James Badge Dale with Jon Favreau and Ben Kingsley,Marvel’s Iron Man 3 is directed by Shane Black from a screenplay by Drew Pearce & Shane Black and is based on Marvel’s iconic Super Hero Iron Man, who first appeared on the pages of Tales of Suspense” #39 in 1963 and had his solo comic book debut with The Invincible Iron Man #1 in May of 1968.

Genre: Action-adventure
U.S. Release date: May 3, 2013

Cast: Robert Downey Jr., Gwyneth Paltrow, Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Stephanie Szostak, James Badge Dale with Jon Favreau and Ben Kingsley
Director: Shane Black
Producer: Kevin Feige
Executive Producers: Jon Favreau, Louis D’Esposito, Charles Newirth, Victoria Alonso, Stephen Broussard, Alan Fine, Stan Lee, Dan Mintz
Screenplay by: Drew Pearce & Shane Black

REVIEW: Hair Shirt

Hair Shirt
By Patrick McEown
Abrams/SelfMadeHero, 119 pages, $24.95

hairshirt_cvr_978-1-906838-27-0-e1361808098602-1092383A second chance at love or happiness is often cause for celebration, but as Patrick McEown explores in his graphic novel Hair Shirt, it is not always for the best. From the murky cover color through the final page, the book’s emotional spectrum tends towards the dark and troubled.

We’re in a non-descript, unnamed city when John, a college student seemingly scared of everything, chances upon Naomi, a childhood friend who always represented the promise of more. As they take up with one another again, their other connections with the world drop away and McEwon tightly focuses on what they bring to the relationship and what they bring out of the other.

Growing up, John and Naomi’s older brother were best of pals, doing everything together. That is, until the family relocated across town for some unexplained by clearly sinister reason. Chris and John reconnected in high school and by then the damage was done; they were completely different people with little in common. Chris was a troubled adolescent, hinting at abuse which was masked through obnoxious behavior. As a result, John drifted towards a deeper, more interesting relationship with the shy, and equally damaged Naomi.

After Chris dies, a victim of a car accident, the mother and Naomi flee for the west coast and she vanishes from John’s life. McEown shows us that neither can fully let go of their personal demons but merely hints at them, without really showing us what makes them tick. As a result, the hair shirt he metaphorically knits, the symbol of penance, makes little sense. We’re at least given hints what happened to Naomi; what made turned John into an introspective loner is never explored or explained.

Similarly, McEown, whose work captured our attention with Grendel: Warchild and went on to a varied career that stretches from Disney Adventures Magazine to storyboarding Batman Beyond uses a very muted color palette from beginning to end. Despite the heavy paper stock, some of the pages are just too dark to properly make out what’s happening. The various flashbacks probably could have benefitted from

Neither character appears to have a direction with their studies, nor do they seem to attend classes or do homework, but instead try to figure out what has happened to them. Naomi is nowhere near as annoying or self-destructive as her brother, but the trauma she endured in the past also prevents her from properly loving John. Instead, she keeps egging him into a physical relationship with Shaz, a zaftig mutual friend.

Additionally, the razor thin balloon tails can disappear inside the dark colors so some of the conversations between characters can be difficult to follow. There’s a lot left unsaid and open for interpretation so this emotionally wearing story could benefit from clarity wherever possible.

This is anything but your typical romance given how damaged both protagonists are but it’s also hard to find someone to root for given how dysfunctional they are. For John at least, the story’s conclusion offers us a glimmer of hope while poor Naomi is left with her inner demons, the one person who understood her now driven away.

This is bleak, difficult territory and despite the dark colors, McEown’s artwork is emotionally evocative and his dialogue has a nice natural ring to it. Love is never simple but it’s clearly what most everyone is seeking, even in the dismal city where memories are as vivid as the people close by.

Michael Davis: The Amazing Adventures Of Stupid

Davis Art 130305When I was in the eighth grade I began to notice that all things were not created equal. Up until then the sneakers I wore were generic sneakers. No brand name that I can recall everyone just called them Skips.

One day some other kids started making fun of my sneakers. They were all wearing Pro Keds or Converse. That’s the moment I realized things were not created equal. Back in the day you wore either Pro Keds or Converse or you were not cool.

Back then I thought being cool was important. Well, it was for me, my Junior High experience sucked and anything I could do to ease my lame ass rep I was willing to try.

So I asked my mother for some new sneakers…

Me: I need new sneakers.

Mom: I just brought you new sneakers.

Me: (having thought this out beforehand, I was ready for that) those were for everyday. I need new sneakers for Gym.

Mom: Let Jim get his own sneakers.

Needless to say I didn’t get any new sneakers and my mother kept insisting that gym was Jim and simply kept me on the defensive. The kids in my school were ruthless about my Skips.

Peer pressure where I lived was no joke. I lived in the hood. Not the play hood you see on television the real hood. Not being part of the cool kids could be a health hazard. I’d make a joke that most of the kids that teased me are now dead or in jail but it wouldn’t be funny because it’s true.

I was into the status thing for a long time. When I started making money I brought only designer this or brand name that.  If I hadn’t heard of it I didn’t even look at it no matter how cool I thought it was.

Stupid.

Now?

The last pair of brand name sneakers I purchased were Reebok’s some 20 years ago (When I was 5, Jean) and a pair of Converses a year or so ago which I have yet to wear. I’m glad to say I have no and I mean no interest in buying or doing anything because of a preconceived  status.

There is one exception to that rule. I’ve been a real snob when it’s come to movies and comics. When I write I listen to music in my office but in my studio I watch movies and unless I’ve heard of the movie I simply won’t watch it.

That is, until now.

Over the last few weeks I’ve had a serious case of insomnia fueled no doubt by a serious case of stress.  One particular sleep deprived day I was in my studio working (or trying too) and watching movies on Netflix, AT&T U-verse, Amazon Prime, On Demand and a few outlets on the net. You name a way to get movies and I’m pretty sure I have access to it.

Out of the blue I decided to watch something I’d never heard of with the full expectation that after a few minutes of sucking I’d watch something else.

It was great.

I then watched four straight movies I had never heard of and all were great or pretty damn good.

That got me thinking about comics and my reading habits. Like movies unless I’ve heard of the book or really like the creative team I’ve been hesitant to give certain comics a look.

Again, stupid.

I’ll admit, I was not as bad with comics as I have been with movies but I wonder why I will pick up a novel read the back for an overview and rather I’ve heard of it or not if it’s interesting to me I’ll buy it.

That’s exactly how I came to read The Amazing Adventures Of Kavalier & Clay, one of the best books I’ve ever read – and I’ve read thousands. I was looking for something to read on a flight and purchased the book at an airport bookstore.

If by some chance you have never heard of The Amazing Adventures Of Kavalier & Clay, do your self a favor and get that book yesterday.

Really.

I still have insomnia (still stressed) but I was wondering if any ComicMix readers would be so kind as to suggest movies or comics that are off the beaten path that you loved and think I may enjoy.

I’ll really appreciate it. Please send them in anytime. I’ll be up.

WEDNESDAY MORNING: Mike Gold

THUESDAY MORNING: Dennis O’Neil

 

Something Else To Vote On: Best Overstreet Guide Covers

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  • March 5, 2013

http://scoop.diamondgalleries.com/Home/4/1/73/1018?articleID=131671

The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide was first published in 1970, with a second printing required later that same year. Beginning with the fourth edition, published in 1974, the Guide began featuring original art on its covers. As they’re getting ready to reveal the covers for The Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide #43, they’re offering readers a chance to vote by decade for their favorite Guide covers of all time.

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