Original cover by Hergé; Casterman 1931. Alexis Logié's website is here.
Freitag, 29. Juli 2011
Can I get a WA-HOOO!
When it comes to movies based on comic book superheroes I am of the opinion that the best I can hope for is it doesn't suck too much. Two or three bad super hero films can kill the genre for about a decade. Look at the 80s for an example.Fortunately for fans of comic-to-film cinema Marvel has been doing a pretty good job lately in their choices. What helped I think was an overall vision or if you prefer, a story arc. Beginning with Iron Man a connecting theme of sorts has been present all with the goal of maintaining a franchise to culminate in the Avengers movie slated to be released next year. Clearly, a lot is riding on the Marvel characters to pay off in the end and the recent Captain America movie probably did not hurt the studios chances of wrapping up the story with good box office.
I saw Captain America, the First Avenger, The Movie (to use the full official title) in the theater last Monday and I was pretty impressed. It exceeded my expectations that the movie not be merely OK which is about all I really want from a super hero flick. While I really enjoyed the film I did accidentally pick the 3D version from the hard to navigate sun-washed touch-screen kiosk outside the box office, so ouch to my eyes. The 3D was alright but it is not my entertainment viewing preference.
The film was fun, exciting and the producers didn't get stupid with the script or go cheap which is the death of any comic book film (for instance the 1990 Cap). Production values were high and there were plenty of Easter eggs to delight the geeks like myself such as the Human Torch android safely sealed in a vacuum tube and the Arnim Zola giant face in the monitor. Chris Evans and Hugo Weaving as Captain America and the Red Skull were pretty great. Wisely, a young Nick Fury was not included.
The film managed to acknowledge the entire published and cinematic history of Captain America and as a fan I was pleased it did not ignore the contributions of Simon and Kirby among other creative teams. Honestly though, I thought the 1990s Red Skull mask was superior to the one worn by Weaving. The 2011 Red Skull had smooth and flawless skin. I expected more veins, raw exposed teeth and muscles similar to the one worn by Scott Paulin in the 1990 film.
The initial Hydra spy foot chase could have benefited from some tighter editing and the musical number, with Cap punching co-splay Hitler was a nice scene that set the stage for the journey from propaganda jester to hero. Also, a nice touch was that Captain America was made in a process that meant more than the physical aspect as a pre-super soldier Steve Rogers obsessively studied militarily history and tactics. It was clear that not just anyone could be Captain America, something that the comic books has addressed for decades. That the Nazis were only incidental to the film and Hydra was the big bad initially caused some story concern for me. What is Cap without Nazis? But it became clear that the Nazis were petty, venal thugs with limited vision and ability. In recent cinema (after the 1940s) this idea was also put forth in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. The fate of the Red Skull is pretty obvious and I'd be surprised if he doesn't make an appearance in the Avengers film or a Cap sequel. Bucky was also set up to make a return as the Winter Soldier if the fan interest is there.So as a lead in to The Avengers and as a stand alone film I was not disappointed with Captain America: The First Avenger. Most of all, are you listening, Marvel? This film I would pay to see again.
Donnerstag, 28. Juli 2011
Not Shown: Tears
Utterly hilarious in heavy-handed guilt inducement this online ad from a bank urges you to avoid years of expensive therapy for your children and acrimonious divorce from a spouse by taking out a loan for fancy, expensive vacations and not suffer the shame of a mediocre family trip to lesser destinations.
Mittwoch, 27. Juli 2011
Dienstag, 26. Juli 2011
The Clone Returns Home
OK, I never heard of it either. But the good folks at AnimEigo sent me a review copy, so I feel I owe them a review. Unfortunately, this time around it's not going to be a good one.I suppose there is an audience out there for incredibly slow Japanese films (Maborosi comes to mind … ). As it happens, The Clone Returns Home received several awards at prestigious film festivals like Sundance, Fantasia and the New York Asian Film Festival. And I can't for the life of me understand why. Maybe because Wim Wenders was executive producer? Perhaps it was one of those emperor's new clothes things; it's so tedious and boring, it must be good and I'm just not getting it. Nobody had the balls to stand up and say, "I'm sorry, but this is just pretentious and dull."
I've seen a few Japanese art films in my time, and I can go for a slow burn with the best of them. I love Kubrick at his slowest (Barry Lyndon anyone?). Kubrick is obviously an influence here, in the form of 2001: A Space Odyssey, but the compositions don't warrant such loooong lingering shots, and the actors need not pause like junkies nodding out between every line.
I will admit the film gets interesting about 55 minutes in when talk turns to the spiritual ramifications of cloning and what becomes of the souls of the original person and his clones (unlike a lot of film critics, I actually welcome a little philosophical inquiry in a film). However, things snap right back to dull-as-dishwater a few minutes later and stay that way for the rest of the flick.
If you liked the film Moon (the one directed by Zowie Bo-- er, Duncan Jones), you probably would like this film too, but certainly not in its current form. Actually, while I'm no fan of remakes of Japanese films, this one could actually benefit from the Hollywood treatment (wow, never thought I'd say that).
So sorry AnimEigo, I'm a big fan of every other Japanese film in your catalog, but I'm afraid you've got a dud on your hands with this one. Slow as molasses, The Clone Returns Home is a test of anyone's attention span. Watching this film made me realize what ADD must be like.
Montag, 25. Juli 2011
Q and A
Came across this research website with an unanswered query about film star Hayley Mills and knew that it was up to me to provide peace to her fans.
No other answer possible.
FYI, this entry of Monday With Hayley Mills also marks the 6th blogiversary of Lady, That's My Skull.
No other answer possible.FYI, this entry of Monday With Hayley Mills also marks the 6th blogiversary of Lady, That's My Skull.
The Black Dynamite cartoon is coming August 8th! (sorta)
(The part where Honey Bee pulls the ninja stars out had me dyin'...)
I've been focusing my chi to remain patient for the animated release of Black Dynamite, which is sceduled for 2012, so it was good to hear that Adult Swim's dropping the pilot on the website next month.
I gotta give props to the fine folks at Ars Nova, the owners of the intellectual property rights to Black Dynamite's exploits, because they are one of the only production companies that takes full advantage of a cool concept, dropping flames from the sky in every medium they can, the way it should be! No sooner had the blaxploitation action comedy classic kung-fu-kicked it's way into theaters than the rumors of the animated show surfaced, and before I knew anything, word of the comic were floating too (PLEASE tell me you got your copy of Black Dynamite: Slave Island...). And we don't even NEED anyone to tell us that there is talk of a sequel, do we? I mean THAT'S a given!
Let's hope the good times continue to roll! I mean, I know I need more Black Dynamite comics, DVDs, video games and other assorted what-not in my life... Who doesn't?! So anyways, let's crash the Adult Swim servers with record-levels of traffic when that pilot drops August 8th.
holla!samax.
Sonntag, 24. Juli 2011
All in color for a won
I'm pretty sure I wouldn't recognize South Korea if I visited it again. When I was there almost no one had internet and now it is one of the most connected countries on the planet. My impression of the country was that a person could walk a mile and the landscape, lifestyle and technology would change to resemble anything from 1930s American Heartland to the 1980s and back again all within a comfortable stroll. From new pictures I can see that many of the cities are completely transformed.
The popular music I heard while out was more often than not self-produced, self-promoted and self-distributed and the bands commonly consisted of a small electric organ with pre-programmed bossa nova beats. One of the interesting things to watch while I was in Korea was the evolution of rap and rock music. As restrictions of an oppressive government eased and Korean youth could speak out they did so angrily through their songs, though more polite by several degrees than the urban American inspiration that shocked so many people.
Watching the slick, corporate-owned and high production values of some of the newest Korean pop groups is something of a shock since all I recall are stiff, rote performances to a cassette tape playing on a chair next to the performer. There are few surprises in the music videos though and all pretty much follow the standard themes familiar to anyone born after the 1980s. The girls are cute, bouncy and sexy (very few affect a public street or gangster persona though this is changing) and rapid changes in costume and sets are the rules. A lot of cosplay costumes are involved though I'm sure this is what producers are confident that the audience wants.
The male performers in videos are usually depicted as living large and horribly tortured by emotion, definitely appealing to teen girls. The videos are hilarious because of the overwrought scenery chewing of the performers. I suspect focus groups or something similar dictate the format and themes of the music videos to an extreme perhaps more than their American counterparts and that these groups are similar to the heavily-managed and manufactured boy and girl groups of the American 1990s music scene.
5 Dolls is a typical Korean girl bubblegum pop group featured in a video with a comic book layout theme. Kind of fun and a little daring.
The popular music I heard while out was more often than not self-produced, self-promoted and self-distributed and the bands commonly consisted of a small electric organ with pre-programmed bossa nova beats. One of the interesting things to watch while I was in Korea was the evolution of rap and rock music. As restrictions of an oppressive government eased and Korean youth could speak out they did so angrily through their songs, though more polite by several degrees than the urban American inspiration that shocked so many people.
Watching the slick, corporate-owned and high production values of some of the newest Korean pop groups is something of a shock since all I recall are stiff, rote performances to a cassette tape playing on a chair next to the performer. There are few surprises in the music videos though and all pretty much follow the standard themes familiar to anyone born after the 1980s. The girls are cute, bouncy and sexy (very few affect a public street or gangster persona though this is changing) and rapid changes in costume and sets are the rules. A lot of cosplay costumes are involved though I'm sure this is what producers are confident that the audience wants.
The male performers in videos are usually depicted as living large and horribly tortured by emotion, definitely appealing to teen girls. The videos are hilarious because of the overwrought scenery chewing of the performers. I suspect focus groups or something similar dictate the format and themes of the music videos to an extreme perhaps more than their American counterparts and that these groups are similar to the heavily-managed and manufactured boy and girl groups of the American 1990s music scene.
5 Dolls is a typical Korean girl bubblegum pop group featured in a video with a comic book layout theme. Kind of fun and a little daring.
On the male side is So Goodbye from the City Hunter television series soundtrack and it's pretty slick. My wife is addicted to the show and many others that are not fun to locate in the US but she enjoys immensely. Being a good husband, I focus on procuring Korean films and television nearly as much as I do gathering Hayley Mills memorabilia.
Freitag, 22. Juli 2011
Voyeur enabling comic book ad
While not being privy to the creation of the ad copy for this mini-camera from a 1958 girl's romance comic book it is hard to believe that the following sales point for the camera was meant for anyone other than emerging pervs or creepy adults. It is possible that it was totally innocent but the sleaze-factor, combined with the explosion of "camera clubs" during that time period leads me to doubt that the camera was meant just for laughs.
In case you can't read the copy it proudly states one of the positive features of the small, easily-concealed camera is:"Your girlfriend and other bathing-beauties will all relax in their natural pose and make a swell pin-up collection. Through a paper is just one of many ways to go about it."
In case you can't read the copy it proudly states one of the positive features of the small, easily-concealed camera is:"Your girlfriend and other bathing-beauties will all relax in their natural pose and make a swell pin-up collection. Through a paper is just one of many ways to go about it."
Donnerstag, 21. Juli 2011
From the Library of Ada Winemiller, Part 2
The presumably young Ada Winemiller that claimed this copy of Brides in Love #9 back in 1958 would have been reading tales of romance that perhaps misled her as to what gender roles were really like in the late 1950s. Other than the social programming within the book Ada would also have been exposed to the somewhat non-gender specific advertising within the pages as well.The advertisements that appeared in comics were not really targeted to both genders back in the day. Comic books were primarily and rightly so aimed at the young male demographic. Female customers were almost an after-thought and romance comic books held the same place the more adventure oriented books had as a product, as a safer alternative to the racier and more lurid pulp and gossip magazines that dominated the news stands.
Comic book advertising was almost certainly sold based upon volume, not a targeted youth or older group. Ads for submarines, rockets, space suits, cowboy gear and body building dominated pages set aside for outside revenue. What the sales department was selling was eyes on the page, not what percentage of boys versus girls were tempted by their products. Even the romance or female-oriented magazines for the most part contained advertising directly aimed at the young male reader. Ads for fashion and makeup were typically published in titles like Miss America or Calling All Girls which while they contained sequential art were considered full-fled magazines and were on a different tier than the other four-color comics.
So it was that Brides in Love #9 contained the usual advertising of the era. That several of the ads depicted muscle men is likely incidental and while possibly of interest to Ada were probably not placed in the book specifically to her market.The opposite may be true for the male youth market as the amount of T&A in most of the mainstream comic books were obvious and gratuitous far beyond what the artist or writer knew was sensible. The romance books, while not as adventuresome thematically, supports my personal theory that even the girl-oriented books were also primarily meant for the male reader and served as a safe and acceptable form of pornography or at least a source to satisfy curiosity, somewhat like the notorious lingerie ads in a Sears catalog. Given that so many stories feature panels of women in their underclothes and showing them fitfully tossing and turning on their bed with frustration is provocative to be sure. A scene in an issue of Marvel Comics 2003 mini-series Unstable Molecules, reflecting the era, bears anecdotal witness to the idea. You can view the semi-NSFW page here.
These type of cheesecake voyeuristic images were almost exclusive to the romance comics. Unfortunately when this imagery, combined with the more violent ones that were ubiquitous to the action and adventure comics reached a sort of parental saturation the result was government and group involvement that resulted in the Comics Code Authority.
Of the eight pages of ads in Brides of Love #9 there are three are shilling body building, four are pushing a combination of toys and science-related instruments. Arguably given the perceived audience of the time these ads were correctly and most effectively aimed at a young male.
One ad features photographs of popular media stars, which is the only ad that might be considered by advertisers to be directly of interest to a girl of that era. But what sort of young woman was Ada Winemiller? If she took any interest in the ads at all who is to say she wasn't the most intrigued by the rocket kit? Maybe she liked the idea of breaching the walls of America's enemies in a tank? It could be she grew up to be a force to be reckoned with in the business world after learning entrepreneurship from selling salve or Grit. Out of all the advertisements from Brides in Love #9 presented here, which ones may have captured the attention of Ada the most?
Maybe she chose her own path and did whatever she wanted be it in business, science or as homemaker. Perhaps the old men editing the romance comic books of the 1950s, who mandated stories of women who yearned to be housewives and mothers and nothing else because there was no other goal worthier than domestic breeder, would be shocked to learn how Ada Winemiller ultimately turned out.
Mittwoch, 20. Juli 2011
Dienstag, 19. Juli 2011
Multiple Choice
GREATEST TV SHOW?
OR GREATEST TV SHOW EVER?Brisco and Lord Bowler got trouble in The Adventures of Brisco County Jr. (1993)
Getting good Feedback about our Luke Cage Tribute Issue!
"the new 'Luke Cage' issue of GhettoManga is off the hook! It rocks in sooo many ways. Loved the way you broke down Bendis' Luke Cage in Alias...."
"How did you get Mike Hawthorne to draw a pinup?!? He's one of my favorites artists!"
-Barry K.
"Mini Battle Men is my new shit! Tell Zees he got a winner on his hands, son!"
-Big Shane
-Sara Q.
Yo, I really appreciate that so many people took the time to drop a line, tweet, comment or whatever. The magazine is a labor of love, and every comic, illustration and article is chosen by me. I try to take criticism objectively and constructively, but I definitely take all the love personal. And juuust in case you haven't bought a copy or subscription yet...
Here's the Sales Pitch:
The GhettoManga Sweet Christmas Special features a gallery of tribute art dedicated to Marvel's resident soul brother #1, with art by lots of underground talent that you need to get familiar with. There's also new comics from Zees Moreno (Mini Battle Men) and Dan Fu (The Retriever), plus articles by Jay Potts (World of Hurt), Corance Davis (GodBody) and more... Back issues of the 52 page full color magazine are already available on IndyPlanet. You can order single issues for ten bucks each (includes shipping), or subscribe
and get 4 issues for the price of 3!
So, thanks again! Production has already started on the next issue, and of course, you know where to find me...
holla!
samax.
The veal of vegetables
Baby carrots are the venison of the vegetable world. This is because they are not grown into such a convenient shape and size like baby corn is. Rather, a regular carrot is chopped, shaved and whittled down to a fun sized snack. A similar process is used in making veal, which is the tasty result of a calf being ripped from the beating womb of a cow. Such waste.Annually millions of pounds of carrot shavings are then discarded into the streets creating traffic jams or toasted and made into non-caffeinated coffee substitute. Furthermore, a bag of baby carrots can cost the consumer $7.99 or more while a few bunches of carrots that the buyer would have to wash and cut themselves costs less than $5.
It is in Maryland that sales of baby carrots are the most brisk. This immoral act of environmental crime is ameliorated by the fact that for the most part anything sharp enough to cut carrots in the state of Maryland is typically used for preparing meth or stabbing neighbors, or both, usually in the same evening. Baby carrots are most appealing to children and it would be wrong to use blood-stained, meth-permeated knives to cut up carrots and then feed them to kids.
So already prepared carrot pieces manufactured in a smarter region and imported are preferable to warping another generation of Maryland spawn by getting them hooked too early on drugs and the taste of blood. It is better to delay the inevitable until they can be securely housed in a Super-Max prison jail instead of the rotating doors of Juvenile Hall. Somebody has to think of the children.
Montag, 18. Juli 2011
Caroline is back, but not in the US
After an absence, Hayley Mills as Caroline returns to the cast of Wild at Heart (2009).
Man, this show is hard to find. Mostly they are all Region 2 formats or medium quality rips from incomplete online sources like the place I found this clip. There should be a law that all media related to Hayley Mills should be All Region. Really, the various movie media empires need to get it together or end up in the same trash can as the music industry. There are fine films, some featuring Hayley, that can only be found as bootleg DVDs ripped from a VHS source or poor quality tapes from online auctions. The film industries don't want their catalogs to be copied and made free to everyone with an internet connection but they don't want to make them available either. I get the DVD market might be a loss for many movies out there as they would only have niche buyers but how hard is it to make a digital copy of an out of print film and put it up for streaming? Not very, according to Netflix.
Right now there are three classic Hayley Mills films I want to own but have to purchase as old VHS tapes from online listings. That is assuming I can get past the typical auction site sock puppets that many sellers have in place to prevent their item being sold at a less than an artificially inflated price or the vultures that hover over a bid and pounce using bidding software. I had to use a piece of software to successfully win a bid for some Land of the Lost memorabilia some time ago, as I kept getting outbid by a few cents at the very last possible second. I really don't mind paying the "Buy It Now" price for many items but when the expected bid for an item is $35 and the BIN is over $150 then you can be pretty sure the fix is in for the auction and it is a waste of time to enter a bid.
And the big risk of a thirty year old video tape is that it will get ruined by the equally aged player the first time I put it in the machine, leaving the world a lesser place for having lost a Hayley Mills film for the crime of trying to watch a movie. Maybe another ten or fifteen years will see big changes in the media business model that doesn't alienate consumers but by that time I may only be interested in collecting my medication and adult diapers. The future can't come fast enough.
Right now there are three classic Hayley Mills films I want to own but have to purchase as old VHS tapes from online listings. That is assuming I can get past the typical auction site sock puppets that many sellers have in place to prevent their item being sold at a less than an artificially inflated price or the vultures that hover over a bid and pounce using bidding software. I had to use a piece of software to successfully win a bid for some Land of the Lost memorabilia some time ago, as I kept getting outbid by a few cents at the very last possible second. I really don't mind paying the "Buy It Now" price for many items but when the expected bid for an item is $35 and the BIN is over $150 then you can be pretty sure the fix is in for the auction and it is a waste of time to enter a bid.
And the big risk of a thirty year old video tape is that it will get ruined by the equally aged player the first time I put it in the machine, leaving the world a lesser place for having lost a Hayley Mills film for the crime of trying to watch a movie. Maybe another ten or fifteen years will see big changes in the media business model that doesn't alienate consumers but by that time I may only be interested in collecting my medication and adult diapers. The future can't come fast enough.
Sonntag, 17. Juli 2011
Samstag, 16. Juli 2011
San Diego Comic Con
I thought I would take a short break from the covers for a little self promotion and provide the same for other Covered artists, regarding the nerd Mecca, Comic-Con.
I will not have a table this year, but I will be signing copies of Mome that I had stories in at Fantagraphics on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. The times have not yet been finalized, but when I know them, I'll post them here. I'll have some wood postcards, original art, and a print of those ducks you see above available for sale. Come on over and say hello.
On Friday night, I will also be a part of what should be an amazing event: TR!CKSTER and THE CRITERION COLLECTION present: A TRIBUTE TO THE FILMS OF AKIRA KUROSAWA. It will be held at Tr!ckster, a side show to Comic Con that focuses on creator owned comics. The work will be auctioned off and the proceeds will be going to the Japan Society Earthquake Relief Fund. Check out this line-up: Mike Allred, Scott C., Josh Cochran, Francesco Francavilla, Victor Kerlow, Ted Mathot, Scott Morse, Sho Murase, Yuko Shimizu, Bill Presing, Jim Rugg, Bill Sienkiewicz, Connor Willumsen, and myself. You can see my contribution above. It should be a great chance to pick up some amazing art for a good cause.
Any other Covered artists going and have something to promote? Let's see it in the comments section.
UPDATE: My signing schedule is: Thursday 2 pm -3 pm, Friday 6 pm - 7 pm, and Saturday 6 pm - 7 pm.
Looking at Fantagraphics's signing schedule, I see a lot of names that have appeared on Covered: Jon Vermilyea, Malachi Ward, Paul Hornschemeier, and Johnny Ryan. Check here for the full schedule. I hope to see you soon. I have a feeling that my signings will be the perfect location for agoraphobics to come and chill out.
Freitag, 15. Juli 2011
From the Library of Ada Winemiller, Part 1
An unknown time ago Ada Winemiller signed her name to a September 1958 copy of Brides In Love #9 published by Charlton Comics.At this time Ada is a mystery. Nothing is known of her past, what she was like or the path of her life's journey. The travels of this old romance comic book are as equally unknown as the owner.
How is it that this book came into Ada's possession? Was it a gift, purchased with hard-earned nickles or begged for to a parent at a news stand? Did Ada enjoy the stories within and treasure them or did a cynical young girl dismiss them as foolish tripe?
That is almost impossible to say but here is one of the stories that a presumably young Ada Winemiller would have read way back in 1958. I'd like to imagine Ada lazily splayed over a pile of Annette Funicello records scattered about the floor, idly kicking her bobby sox adorned feet as she happily read about four-colored romance and happy endings as she dreamed of her future wedding day.
Abonnieren
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