Tagged: ComicMix

Doctor Consultation for Iron Man

  • News
  • September 27, 2008

ironmovieheart-8721101With the imminent release of Iron Man on DVD next week, the mainstream public is more aware of the saga of Tony Stark than ever before. When my in-laws start asking me about how accurate the movie was to the comics (because I’m “that” relative who still reads funny books), you know it’s become part of the cultural landscape.

While talking about the movie with my old college roommate, I remembered something. He’s a doctor! The goofy guy I watched The Simpsons with, shot with paintballs, and took to his first strip club went on to become a respectable member of society. So I asked him how medically sound is the story of Tony Stark suffering a coronary injury due to his own weapons and becoming Iron Man to atone for his sins. Specifically, the Iron Man movie.

Dr. Ken Nizza is a board-certified internist in the state of Pennsylvania. He doesn’t read as many comics as your average ComicMix reader, but he had an unofficial education in college when I stuck issues in his text books. He would also like to note that he has more foreign policy experience then Sarah Palin.

ComicMix: Is shrapnel lodged in your chest getting closer to your heart exist a possible medical condition?

Dr. Nizza: I could definitely classify having large pieces of metal lodged in one’s chest as being a "medical condition". If they were moving towards the heart ("embolizing", in the biz), I would even go so far as to call this a "worsening medical condition".

CMix: Would you recommend a powerful magnet to keep it from getting closer as a treatment option?

Dr. N: Well, assuming that one had a powerful enough magnet, the shrapnel was not in the proximity of any vital organs, and the patient had good enough insurance… then no, this is still a really stupid idea. To illustrate this point, let’s imagine actual magnets as used in medical diagnosis: the MRI machine. An MRI has in it a large electromagnet that is powerful enough to align all the hydrogen in the water molecules of the body.

If one were to pass a patient with some sort of metal through an MRI machine, the metal in question would rocket out of the patient’s body like a bullet towards the machine’s magnet, leading to a) a very unhappy/broken multimillion dollar piece of medical instrumentation, b) a very unhappy hospital administrator and c) a very unhappy/dead patient. Keep a mop handy.

It would be easier to have a cardiothoracic surgical team perform an exploratory thoracotomy. And yes, this is the only time an "exploratory thoracotomy" can be considered the easier option.

CMix: Would it be possible to have a metal tube big enough to fit Gwenyth Paltrow’s entire hand directly in your chest?

 

Dr. N: For one to breath, the chest cavity has to be completely airtight. When you inhale, the diaphragm flattens and the space inside the chest expands. Because of the vacuum generated ("negative pressure" in the biz), the lungs are stretched and, in turn air is pulled down to fill the space. To exhale, the diaphragm relaxes, the lungs snap back into place, and air is expelled. With a large, gaping hole in the middle of the chest that’s exposed to the outside world, this entire process is somewhat less effective in that it doesn’t work at all even a little bit. Think "sucking chest wound". (more…)

Maverick Is Their Name, by Martha Thomases

  • News
  • September 27, 2008

 

My friend Stephanie is a proud Texan, even though she’s lived in Manhattan for more than three decades. You can still hear Texas in her voice. She’s about as far from the stereotype as you can get, not a cowgirl,  nor a big-haired society type, she’s a fine artist with a rock’n’roll heart. And, as you can see here, she has an affection for the rock stars of comics as well.

Still, the Texan remains. Stephanie has a pride in her home state that is far deeper and more profound than I feel for mine. She knows her state history. I wasn’t surprised that she knew enough to send me this link. I was just surprised at what it said:

It didn’t bother us when Ford Motor Company used the Maverick family name for their new car. We didn’t care that Tom Cruise’s character in Top Gun was named Maverick, and we were amused when Madonna used our name for her record label. It is part of the American vernacular. But when McCain and the media placed it in a political context, using the maverick label as the centerpiece of his presidential campaign, each and every member of this family was appalled. We continue to be. –Fontaine Maverick

Did you know there were real people with the name “Maverick?” I didn’t. I thought it started in the 1950s with the television show starring James Garner.

And to make this a bit about comics, don’t you think the young James Garner should have starred in a Spirit movie? He looks exactly like Denny Colt.

In fact, this is a lot about comics. Although I’m not current on the specifics of the law, I believe that the Maverick family does not retain legal ownership of their name for commercial use. By allowing it to be used so frequently and generically in the past, they’ve surrendered it to common usage.

However, just because something is legal doesn’t mean it’s right. The contract Siegel and Shuster signed for Superman with DC was legal, and DC had no legal obligation to pay them more money. However, giving them a cut was the right thing to do, and, thanks to the efforts of people like Neal Adams and Paul Levitz, the creators received a portion of what was due to them.

  (more…)

Mickey Mouse: Soldier of Satan, by John Ostrander

  • News
  • September 25, 2008

As reported here on ComicMix last Monday by Matt Raub via AP : “A sheik from Saudi Arabia, a former diplomat posted in Washington, has put out a fatwa on Mickey Mouse, calling him the new enemy of Islam. ‘Mickey Mouse is a soldier of Satan, and everything he touches becomes impure,” said Sheik Muhammad al-Munajid.

‘Mickey Mouse has become an awesome character, even though according to Islamic law, Mickey Mouse should be killed in all cases. According to sharia law, the mouse is a repugnant and corrupting animal,’ he said during a show broadcast by Al-Majd television.”

So. There’s a fatwa on Mickey Mouse.

It should be noted that a fatwa, in and of itself, is not necessarily a death sentence. As Matt noted, “a “fatwa” is a ruling on a point of Islamic law that is given by a recognized authority.” In that respect, it’s not that different when the Pope speaks ex cathedra. It certainly isn’t different that when the Popes called for the Crusades to free the Holy Land.

This is not the first time that Disney has butted heads with religious types. Donald Wildmon of the American Family Association began a nine-year boycott of Disney, citing they were too friendly to gays. The Southern Baptists were part of that boycott and if there was ever a group in Western culture that I think was capable of issuing fatwas, it would be the Southern Baptists.

It’s all part of a continuing war on pop culture that is usually conducted by the conservative and/or reactionary elements of society. It’s not only religious groups, either. The comic book medium in the 1950s came under the scrutiny of Congress who felt that comics were degenerative and an unwholesome influence on America’s youth. To fend off possible Congressional controls, the comic book publishers of the day instituted the Comics Code – a straitjacket that bound and confined the comic book medium for decades and stunted its artistic growth. (more…)

I’ve Done Paul McCartney Wrong, by Mike Gold

  • News
  • September 22, 2008

Back in my DC Comics days, I was sitting in my office pretending to work when Mark Waid stuck his head in. “Hey, do you know when Paul McCartney wrote ‘Silly Love Songs?’” he asked.

“Pretty much his whole damn life,” I replied without looking up.

That about summed up my feelings about Paul McCartney. I was a John Lennon guy, although I’ve come around to really appreciating George Harrison’s stuff even more. He spoke softly but carried a big stick. “Taxman,” “Piggies…” great stuff.

I’ve had cause to reflect recently, and I think I’ve done Mr. McCartney wrong. He did this great song called “Give Ireland Back To The Irish,” which took a stand on the England / Ireland situation that one might expect from a guy named Mc-anything. And the BBC, owned by the British government, promptly banned it. So did Radio Luxembourg and ITV, effectively removing it from all venues of British broadcasting. His record label, EMI, said they wouldn’t release it. They wanted safe little silly love songs that said nothing and inspired no one but the vapid.

McCartney followed “Give Ireland Back To The Irish” with a reggae version of “Mary Had A Little Lamb.” It got lots of airplay.

So it is with this community. Comics creators used to work out of their need to earn a living. The pulps were dying, they couldn’t get work as illustrators (particularly if their last name sounded Jewish), newspapers started their half-century of death throes by slowly dropping continuity comic strips, the type that bring the readers back the next day to find out what happened. Writers and artists like to eat, sleep and reproduce, and therefore must earn a living. It was tough, particularly during the 50s when their efforts were equated with those of child molesters. Not to say that their heart wasn’t in their work; often it was, with some of the creators.

Today, creators have greater luxury. They have more options; they have a wider range of creative opportunities. They can work from the heart and pay the rent at the same time. Few will get rich, but, hey, that’s show business.

So when I fall across what, at first, might seem like a truly stupid idea for a comic book story, these days I think about all those silly love songs I so callously dismissed. We have a wide range of creative fare out in the comics medium these days, greater than we’ve ever seen in America. We don’t have to look at movies or television for legitimacy. We can look to the reviews in major publications, we can appreciate the fact that works in this medium are receiving serious, contemplated analysis and acceptance by the world at large.

We can make a statement when we want to, we can tell a rip-roaring story when we feel like it. And as readers we can enjoy a work that says something directly, indirectly, or just indulges in pure escapist fare. As Jules Feiffer said in his play Little Murders, that’s all right.

This is the golden age of comics, folks, where our choices can range from a reggae version of Mary Had A Little Lamb to something as bold and – to some – as offensive as Give Ireland Back To The Irish.

And don’t forget to support your favorite rabble-rouser.

Mike Gold is editor-in-chief of ComicMix.

Everything I Need To Know About Politics I Learned From Superman, by Martha Thomases

  • News
  • September 20, 2008

For the last few weeks, most ComicMix columnists have been writing about politics. I can understand how you, Constant Reader, who came here to read about comics and movies and games, might think this is self-indulgently off-topic. Most of us have an intense interest in politics, and we think this is the most important election in a long time. People’s lives are at stake. But I can understand you frustration.

And then I had an epiphany. Not only did I grow up in a household where we discussed politics over the dinner table (and walking the dog, and taking in the dry-cleaning), but even more important, I gained my political perspective from Superman. The goals, strategies and tactics I discovered reading comics shaped my view of the world. Here’s what I know:

• You never know what you’ve got until it’s gone, whether that’s the planet Krypton or the ozone layer.

• Solar power makes you stronger.

• Drilling for oil in the ocean can upset the homes of your dearest friends, including your first love.

• Billionaire industrialists should not be trusted with positions of power. At best, they are obsessive loners with a mission to avenge their parents. At worst, they try to take over the world and destroy you and everything you believe in. (more…)

ComicMix debuts exclusive graphic novels at Baltimore Comic-Con

  • News
  • September 18, 2008

Are you going to the Baltimore Comic-Con at the end of the month?  So are we!  And we’ve got something special for you.  

In honor of the first anniversary of our announcement of our comics publishing program at last year’s show, we’re testing three graphic novel collections of recently completed stories from ComicMix.  You’ll want to check these out:

EZ Street – The Harvey-nominated graphic novel by Robert Tinnell (Feast of Seven Fishes, Surf Nazis Must Die, Kids of the Round Table) and Baltimore’s own Mark Wheatley (Mars, Frankenstein Mobster, Hammer of the Gods, Breathtaker) is about two brothers, a story about the love of stories, about ambition and dreams and fantasy, EZ Street is an involving look at the creative process, the dynamic of families, the true meaning of friendship and the quest for a really good comic.  Wheatley and Tinnell will be at the Insight Studios/ComicMix booth to sign copies.

GrimJack: The Manx Cat – Since its first appearance as a back-up in Starslayer in 1983, GrimJack has been a fan favorite.  The stories blend genres – the hard-boiled detective stories of Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammet get combined with the sword and sorcery of Robert E, Howard.  In The Manx Cat, these elements combine in a story that tells the history of Cynosure and the stuff that dreams are made of.  Timothy Truman will be on hand to sign copies.

Jon Sable Freelance: Ashes of Eden – The character of Jon Sable is so popular that he was the inspiration for the ABC network series, Sable, in 1987. In Ashes of Eden, Sable is hired by the head of an African diamond cartel to transport a magnificent raw diamond to an exhibit in New York. But his task is complicated by having to play escort, bodyguard and babysitter to the cartel’s corporate spokesperson, Bashira, a temperamental. In a story combining jewels, fashion, and a network of terrorists, Sable must also deal with enticements of Maggie the Cat. Colorist Glenn Hauman will be on hand to sign copies.

These collector’s items are limited to 100 copies and will be available for the first time at the ComicMix booth exclusively at Baltimore Comic-Con from Saturday, September 28 through Sunday, September 29.  More information and tickets are available at http://www.baltimorecomiccon.com. (more…)

Economic Fundamentalists, by John Ostrander

  • News
  • September 18, 2008

227-4-1-8346051Over last weekend, the Presidential campaign’s silly season came to a screeching halt. Karl Rove, politics’ answer to P.T. Barnum, manipulated things pretty well, dominating news cycle after news cycle with his Beauty Queen Who Can See Russia From Her Porch (!) but that pesky reality came in and re-focused everything back on the issues again.

I suspect you know that the large brokerage house of Lehman Brothers went into bankruptcy. Merrill Lynch, another famous brokerage, got sold to Bank of America for relative pennies because it didn’t have much other choice. Insurance giant AIG went on the ropes and required a mega-Fed bailout. The Dow dropped almost 500 points on Monday before somewhat recovering on Tuesday before nose-diving again Wednesday morning.

In recent days, mortgage giants Fannie May and Freddie Mac were also bailed out (and acquired by the government). In a move of surprising fiscal sanity, the government has refused to pay the fired CEOs of these two companies their severance packages that would have come to about 24 million dollars. NY Senator Charles Schumer said “It would have been unconscionable to award these inflated salaries, particularly when the leadership of Fannie and Freddie can hardly be given good grades." Too right, Chuck.

Another bank, Washington Mutual (WaMu – Wooo Hooo!), is on the skids. Other banks and big-time brokerages are in trouble. The Fed has signaled that Wall Street should not expect the sort of bailout that they’ve done elsewhere. And experts are saying that a full-blown recession can be expected by the end of this year, start of the next year at the earliest.

Pesky reality.

So we’re back to dealing with issues. And what’s the main issue? What’s the election going to be all about? Not Sarah Palin, although her getting anywhere near the Presidency is pretty scary. Not the Iraq War, although that remains a mistake and a drain on our resources and the lives of our soldiers. It’s not about “values” and whose values are best. It’s not about whether or not we agree on what God is or if there is a God. It’s not about “smalltown” versus “big city.” It’s not about red states versus blue states. It’s not the environment although having air to breathe is pretty important. In terms of the election, there is one primary issue.

It’s the economy, stupid.

It’s as true today as when James Carville hammered it into Bill Clinton and got him into the White House. People are hanging on by their fingertips; they’re losing their jobs, their businesses, their homes. Older people are losing their pensions. I know people who have houses they can no longer afford but that they can’t sell, either, because the housing market is so depressed. I’m not talking about people buying McMansions. I’m talking about regular people with modest homes who were able to handle their mortgages until the economy went south. Now they can’t make the monthly payment, they can’t sell the house – period – and they have damn little hope.

John McCain went on the air to say that the “fundamentals” of the American economy were sound. The Democrats pounced and McCain stumbled back on the air to explain what he meant by fundamentals. He displayed an interesting bit of body language while doing it; his head kept moving side to side suggesting he either has Parkinson’s or he was denying what he was saying.

(more…)

Embrace Your Inner Pig, by Mike Gold

  • News
  • September 15, 2008

Are you a pig, or are you a sheep? I’m a pig, myself.

Contrary to popular opinion – particularly these past couple weeks – pigs are clean, intelligent, productive, and necessary to our eco-system. Of course, beauty is in the eye of the beholder and while I must admit pigs do nothing for me, I’m not here to pass judgment on animal lovers.

Sheep are useful. I haven’t checked out their SAT scores, and they seem pleasant enough. While I understand they are more appealing than pigs in certain farmland circles (including at least one semi-famous 1960s comics artist who bragged about it) and lanolin is comforting stuff, they, too, evade my wandering eye.

As colloquial phrases, neither one is held in very high regard. Being a pig has come to mean being ugly (totally unfair), being stubborn (probably fair), and/or being a miscreant police officer (tacky).  Being a sheep has come to mean being totally passive, one who follows the sheppard’s demands mindlessly, even to one’s own detriment.

Ergo, I’d rather be a pig than a sheep. But I’d rather be a sheep than an idiot.

Last Friday, Michael Davis commented about the Palin-the-Phony-Pig non-scandal, and he did so with his typical charm, wit, and aplomb. I have no intention of repeating his argument.

Actually, the whole thing sickens me.

Not the fact that McCain would seize upon a comment of Obama’s that had nothing to do with Palin and turn it into such. That’s campaigning for you, and one of the ways we can determine the make of person running is the way he or she conducts his or her campaign. McCain’s a scumbag who, according to his campaign “doesn’t speak for the campaign" (to quote McCain spokesman Tucker Bounds). Fine. We know McCain, and by now we know Palin, her ethics, her family values, and her supporters’ stand on hypocrisy and blatant lying. I’m good to go here. (more…)

Lipstick Jungle Fever, by Michael Davis

  • News
  • September 12, 2008
 
I’m in Mexico. I hate it here.

Next week I have to be in Japan and I will most likely hate it there also. Why do I hate it here in Mexico? Well, beside the fact that my ability to get on the Internet is hit or miss and I may have to send this column in is by re-writing it from on one of those “Internet café” computers – better known as “suck the money from the American assholes” – there is the massive attack on my very being to buy a damn timeshare.

From the moment I stepped off the plane I was harassed like a freshman pledge during Hell Week. I was offered everything from free meals to cold hard cash just to “come to a short presentation.” Telling these people I was here on business did nothing to stop their assault. I could have been shot in the head and they would have asked me if I wanted to stop to take a look at some timeshare property on the way to the hospital.

Why will I hate it in Japan next week? Because I hate to travel and I hate being in any country where I know they hide some resentment to America. I know that some people in Mexico and Japan have issues with us. From what I see when I look around Mexico the people are friendly and helpful…but every so often I see daggers in their eyes. I was told the average wage here was six dollars a day.

SIX DOLLARS A DAY.

We spend that much on a cup of coffee from Starbucks.

I don’t think that’s why some people here hate us. I think they hate us because of malls.

Yeah, I said malls. I needed to buy some stuff so I went to a mall. I’m thinking that at six bucks a day as a living wage there should be some great bargains at the mall. The mall I went to was no bargain, in fact it was crazy expensive.

Then I realized something. Those malls in Mexico are not for the Mexicans.

No. They are for us, the Ugly Americans.
 
That’s why some here hate us.

So here I sit in a country where most people make six dollars a day and I’m sure they hate me. I’m even surer that they think that Americans are idiots. We live in the richest country in the world and the two candidates are not talking about terrorism, or nuclear weapons or oil prices. No, they are talking about lipstick. (more…)

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What’s Wrong With Wonder Woman, by Mike Gold

  • News
  • September 8, 2008

ww-1-3961715In this space on Friday and Saturday, my esteemed colleagues Mr. Davis and Ms. Thomases waxed on about the political situation of the day. Whereas there is no more important issue facing us as Americans in this moment in time (and it has considerable impact on non-Americans as well), I will not follow in their wake this week. I’m sure I will in the future.

Instead, I’m going to take a point central to their themes, and those expressed to a somewhat lesser extent by Ms. Riggs last week, and talk about comic books. Specifically, about Wonder Woman.

Since I’m in a name-dropping kind of mood, I should point out that my comments have been heavily influenced by recent conversations with Ms. Adriane Nash, a frequent commenter here at ComicMix, as well as our new editorial proofreader (for those items that come in early enough to be proofread…). And, oh yeah, she’s my savvy and opinionated daughter.

So what’s wrong with Wonder Woman? Positioning. Not unlike what many people think the McCain campaign did by selecting a fundamentalist book burner as their vice presidential candidate, under the theory that women are so stupid they’ll simply vote for one of their own no matter what her position is on the issues. You know, just like the conservatives.

Ahem. Sorry. Back to comics.

Back in the 1940s, Wonder Woman was fabulously successful. She had as much exposure as any DC/AA hero (but not as much as, say, the real Captain Marvel). She had her own title, she starred in a monthly anthology book, she starred in a regularly published giant-sized star-studded superhero thing, and she briefly had her own newspaper strip. All she was lacking was a cheap movie serial.

By the time the 70s rolled around, DC had a hard time giving Wonder Woman away. As of this date, she’s undergone more revisions, reboots (one, quite literally, brought her original boots back), reinterpretations, and make-overs than Madonna. What happened?

(more…)

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