Misconceiving Moments

Cue May.

2010-04-26T11:50:00.000-07:00

So this past weekend was the Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo. I wrote a wrap-up post about it for the Fabler, which you can find here.

Funtastic times and swell merry-making was had by all.

Cosplayers were out in good form....

Washed-up wrestlers made friends with fans dressed as other washed-up wrestlers....

The Fabler had its own (quite well-attended) booth again this year....

Really, what more could you ask for from a good convention?

I have a few more pictures up at http://www.flickr.com/the-fabler and http://www.flickr.com/misconceiving if you want to check out more shots from around the expo.

I also have a tonne of interviews scheduled for the coming weeks with some very rad artists and authors, including one I did at the con with Ryan Sohmer of Looking for Group and Least I Could Do - so check back at the Fabler soon for updates.

That's it for now,

-Kevin

Carnal Tuesdays, November Lips

2009-11-10T11:34:00.000-08:00

Oh geez, only one update for all of October? Good thing I keep my writing regular over on the Fabler Blog, else you'd probably think me a terrific slacker.

Speaking of which, I interviewed Joey Comeau of a Softer World a few weeks back, and that interview is now up over on the Fabler. I tried to balance the interview between touching on some Softer World related stuff and talking up his latest prose release, Overqualified. In fact, included in the preamble before the interview is my mini-review of the book, which I thought was pretty rad and easily recommendable. I use more enthusiastic language in the actual post.

This week on the Fabler Blog I'm posting a profile on a swell cat by the name of Jesse Jacobs. This guy does crazy good illustration, and has an imagination that seems to be pretty well without borders. He was recognized for his hard work self-publishing minicomics at this past Joe Shuster Awards, where he received the first ever Gene Day Award for Canadian Self-Publishers.

This is a sample of his art, taken from the comic strip One Million Mouths:

Edit: The Jesse Jacobs profile is currently up here.

In other news...!

I've been religiously playing through Dragon Age: Origins. Nothing tickles the compulsive gamer I have lurking below the surface like a solid, well-told RPG. I feel no shame in admitting this.

I've been staying consistent with Marvel's current Ultimate line-up, as well as Captain America: Reborn, Deadpool, and any and all material relating to Marvel's golden age characters (the Torch, the Marvels Project, etc.) Throw in Sweet Tooth, North 40, Batman and Robin, and Irredeemable, and you have my current pull list. Much to the chagrin of several other local comic enthusiasts I've talked to, I've managed to swerve keenly away from this year's DC Blackest Night event, dodging it entirely.

I figure I may read it later - as it is I just lost so much interest in DC after stumbling through the tangled web of Final Crisis that I have little to no desire to revisit many of the mired-in-decades-of-story character properties currently forming the DC canon. Meh, really.

Oh, also I am currently browing animal shelters in search of a compatable feline friend. This qualifies as news, albeit on a very small scale to anyone who is not me.

Rock on, sweet carnal adventurers. Rock on.

Zombies! Burlesque! Horror Films! (It's October again)

2009-10-19T09:06:00.000-07:00

October has been frightfully swell this year. Aside from the insane cold front which blanketed Calgary in premature snowfall last week, which I think we can collectively agree was 'teh bunk'.

This past Saturday was the date of Calgary's annual Zombie Walk. I was there in full, flesh-rotting attendance with my trusty Canon Digital Rebel XTi, snapping away at the legions of animated corpses.

I've uploaded a bunch of the photos from the walk to my Flickr account. If you have any interest at all in the walking dead, it's there for the checking. Out. Of.

Speaking of Flickr, I also uploaded a set I took last month at Ignite - a dance festival featuring Kabuki Guns Burlesque which took place at Belgo, here in downtown Calgary. The show was sponsored by Pride Calgary and also featured the KGB beginner's class (which Sam, my lovely ladyfriend, is part of) as well as several performances by some super-talented Drag Kings.

Fun was had all around. That set can be found here.

In the spirit of the season, I've also caught a few of this month's horror releases. In theatres, I highly recommend both Zombieland and Paranormal Activity. The former is a pastiche of all that is good about contemporary zombie mythos, neatly wrapped into a film that's part quirky-Indie-feeling comedy, and part Left 4 Dead. The latter movie is the first genuinely creepy movie I've seen in a long while - the packed theatre I saw it at literally echoed with screams at key points in the film's perfectly paced narrative.

I also checked out new DVD release Trick R' Treat, in part because of the interesting cast and director, (Michael Dougherty, of X2 fame - the only bearable X-Men movie) and in part because of the companion graphic novel simultaneously released by Wildstorm. People are calling it the 'quintessential Halloween movie', and I'm inclined to agree - while low on gore and over-the-top horror, Trick R' Treat manages to thrill and entertain equally well on merit of its well-crafted story and fantastic cast.

Comic-related:

I hope everyone who participated had a swell 24 Hour Comic Day this year! I did not partake, but I stopped by Comic Kaze here in Calgary to lend an iota of moral support to the Vicious Ambitious gents in their efforts.

I stopped by the Calgary Comic and Toy Expo a few weeks back, and nabbed a handful of trades at stellar discounts. One of which was the Thunderbolts tpb "Justice Like Lightning", collecting the first few issues of the original Thunderbolts title as well as a few of their cameo issues in other comics. I loved it (which is unsurprising, since I'm a huge Kurt Busiek fan) and was disheartened when I learned that there is no trade paperback released collecting the issues that follow immediately after. Few trades exist of the original Thunderbolts run, and they pick up at random points throughout the series.

Lastly, hopefully if you're into comics at all you capitalized on Jeff Lemire's recent offer to send a hand-drawn sketch to anyone who purchases and mails him a copy of Sweet Tooth # 1. I did, and promptly thereafter (about a week later) received this nifty sketch back of Jepperd.

Thanks Jeff! I'd love to see more comic creators offer this sort of incentive for their fans.

Apology? Hyperbole? Anemone.

2009-09-29T00:58:00.000-07:00

Oh man! I've gotten sloppy with my updating lately.

Hopefully this will be fixed soon. I've been doing lots of interviews with cool comic creators (alliteration onward!) lately, plus working lots at my dayjob...and my recent acquisition of an Xbox 360 has probably not helped matters much.

Speaking of which, I purchased one Marvel Ultimate Alliance 2 for the aforementioned system and played through it entirely. I was not quite shocked but legitimately baffled by the third segment of the game.

See, the first part is taken from the Secret War story arc. The second part, heavily referenced in advertising, is a reinterpretation of Marvel's Civil War event. Then the third part, as near as I can tell, is basically Star Trek: First Contact featuring an all-Marvel cast of superheroes and starring Nick Fury as Captain Jean-Luc Picard.

Tangent! In any case, I should have an interview featuring Ryan North from Dinosaur Comics up on the Fabler Blog this week.

Also, you should check this out. It's a pretty cool idea for self-publishers to essentially claim a week as their own from the iron-fisted tyranny that is Diamond distribution. If Diamond distribution were a person, that person would have eyes of steely grey and always wear gauntlets.

What's up with updating? News, reviews, n' the like.

2009-09-10T19:12:00.000-07:00

Whew, summer sure raced by this year. The homestretch - the past few weeks - especially so.

Over the past four months I transitioned from Journalism school/editing/writing for the Calgary Journal through to working a full time day job and writing a weekly column for the Fabler Blog. My photography has been getting a bit lax, and in the coming months I'd like to expand my sphere of freelance work more -but overall, I'm pretty satisfied with how things have gone this past summer. Maybe degree # 2 wasn't such a waste of time after all (excuse me while I hold my breath).

I'm especially pleased to have had the opportunity to talk (directly or indirectly) with so many talented Canadian comic creators. It really presents a whole new side to the many-sided-die that is contemporary Canadian identity. Perhaps a side that automatically grants a plus 6 bonus to Northern creativity.

Speaking of the Fabler, you can see the most recent interview I did up there now with Jason Turner, a Vancouver-based artist whose come to some renown thanks to both his work on True Loves and the endorsement he's received from Scott McCloud. I wanted to focus on more West Coast artists, and the several that I contacted happen to include both Turner and the very talented Steve Rolston. Look for more Vancouverites/Victoria locals in the coming weeks!

But not next week - that will be reserved for a transcript of the interview I did earlier this evening with Kate Beaton, a gifted artist and (as it turns out) pleasant conversationalist. If you haven't heard of her already, which you really should have, (consider yourself scolded!) you can check out her webcomics over at Hark! A Vagrant. Or cast your eyes southerly to the strip below.

There's been lots of news that I've been avoiding commentary on in the past few weeks, (namely, the Marvel-Disney shenanigans and now the DC Entertainment nonsense) and I have to say, nothing interests me enough about either to really write at any length on the subjects. At least not yet. There's enough speculation about both on the net for three more major comic book company events already; I think I'll wait til we actually start seeing some of the concrete changes that come about as a result of either of the above.

Admist all of my other life-busyness and recent rampant playing of Fallout 3 & Arkham Asylum, I've still managed to keep up with a few of my monthy reads...

Here's my EXTREME COLES NOTES version of my thoughts on some of the comics I've picked up in the past couple of weeks:

Sweet Tooth #1: Fantastically original story, trademark Lemire gorgeous linework - don't just buy it, buy it and mail it to Jeff for a free sketch!
Deadpool # 15: Still plot filler, but hilarious plot filler. Watch for the nod to Brubaker and Cap. A worthwhile, but not neccessary, read.
North 40 #3: Crazy shit gets even crazier, and it looks gorgeous. Hop on the North 40 bandwagon; you won't regret it.
Marvel Zombies Return # 1: Zombie Spidey meets Classic Spidey, and it's a pretty well-executed story with interesting juxtaposition of art. Could be worth reading.
Marvel Zombies Return # 2: Early career 616 Iron Man meets a zombie invasion, and it's boring. Not worth reading.
Torch # 1: I'm a sucker for all the Golden Age character properties Marvel is highlighting right now, and this is now exception. Still, we'll have to wait to see whether this title is really going to prove worthy of the original Torch title.
Irredeemable #6: More installments end with cliffhangers than a season of 24. This one too. Still, we get yet another interesting glimpse into the Plutonians past. Solid issue.
Ultimate Comics Spider-Man #2: New villains! Actually, truly new, not just rehashes of old ones! The art still has yet to grow on me, but I'm already hooked on Bendis' new arc.
Ultimate Comics Avengers #2: The history of the Red Skull is revealed... and it's freaking sweet. Millar is clearly taking the time needed to build up the supervillain before leading us into the meat of the conflict between Cap and the Skull. Worth reading to see how the Red Skull acquired his namesake this time around alone.
The Marvels Project #2: Brubaker's drawing from the mind of Golden Age Comics expert Jess Nevins proves to be a sound decision, with plenty of interesting cameos of forgotten Marvel characters. This is starting to feel more like a DC than a Marvel title, in a good way.

I suppose that's it for now. Remember to stay well-Purelled in the coming flu season, kids!

Thursday Update: All About the Batman

2009-08-27T00:59:00.000-07:00

Whew! I've somehow managed to pull myself away from playing Arkham Asylum long enough to post a brief update on here. Navigating the darkened corridors and gothic landscapes of the infamous DC comics crazyhouse for the better part of the day has put me directly in the mood to talk about Batman's latest adventures.

First, to dwell a bit more on the game. By now, you've probably heard the hype that Batman: Arkham Asylum is generating across the interwebs - reviews have been pouring in with scores consistently in the ninetieth percentile, and Twitter has had the game as a trending topic since its release yesterday morning.

In their early review of Arkham, IGN called it 'the greatest comic book videogame of all time', and I have to say, I'm inclined to agree. Arkham Asylum succeeds resoundingly in the two biggest ways it could possibly succeed. First, the gameplay is fun and easy to learn, but still challenging in the ways its supposed to be. An innovative control system that shifts from stealth action, to combo-move-based fighting, to puzzle solving seamlessly guarantees that even the most ADHD gamer will stay hooked on the variety it offers up.

Second, and most importantly, Arkham Aslyum captures the essence of what it would be like to actually play as Batman perfectly. I mean perfectly, from the Dark Knight's infallible courage in the face of horrific surroundings to the stubbornly industrious machinations of the world's greatest detective. It's hard to think of more satisfying sequences in videogames than how it feels to drop silently from a gargoyle to stealth up behind a goon, put him in a sleeper hold, then vanish into the surrounding darkness as more cronies show up - each growing more frightened every moment by the unseen threat of the Bat.

Relationships between characters are immaculately portrayed, contributing further to the immersive experience of the game. The Joker, portrayed delightfully sisinister by longtime Joker voice actor Mark Hamill, bears the lion's share of the dialogue in the game - alternating between hurling taunts at Batman, messing around with Harley Quinn's already fragile psyche, and berating his own hired help. Killer Croc and Victor Zsasz' longtime hatred for the caped crusader is played up skillfully, and Commissioner Gordon's faith in his longtime friend comes across brilliantly in a sequence where Gordon is temporarily held hostage by the malevolent forces who have risen to control the Asylum. Harley Quinn's on/off friendship with Poison Ivy is even referenced in one scene.

I could, in all honesty, rant about how much I've enjoyed playing this game for at least another six to eight paragraphs, but I'll leave it at this: if anything about Batman - from the 90's cartoon to the Frank Miller comics to the Dark Knight film - has ever appealed to you in the slightest, then you should play Batman: Arkham Asylum. It won't let you down.

Ahem...To shift to a completely unrelated topic, Grant Morrison's first story arc with the new Batman and Robin series comes to a close this week with release of the title's third issue. Batman and Robin # 3 has the duo (former Nightwing Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne, respectively) face off in a thrilling showdown with the gruesomely demented Professor Pyg.

My thoughts on the first arc are overall pretty positive. You can definitely see Morrison's uniquely twisted touch throughout the script, bringing to the project the same kind of schizophrenic dialogue that you might have seen in, say, The Filth, or The Invisibles. At the same time, he manages to reign that idiosyncratic flavour in just enough to stay true to character when writing to the characters of Grayson or Commisioner Gordon. Frank Quitely's art is visceral and fresh while still providing us with the odd panel of classically iconic Batman.

One highlight for me has been the obvious struggle Dick Grayson is experiencing with taking the mantle of his legendary mentor. From the conversation he has with Alfred in the first issue about how he can't shake the feeling he's wearing a shroud to the sequence in the second issue where he finds himself unexpectedly tied up with no backup, calling futilely for an AWOL Robin.

Another highlight has been, of course, the formal induction of a villain to Batman's rogue's gallery whose depravity rivals that of Joker and Zsasz combined.

All in all, were I the 'rating' sort of fellow, I'd give Batman and Robin a 4/5 so far. The extra point is missing purely because the series hasn't hit its stride enough to tell a truly compelling story just yet, but I'm pretty confident that Morrison will get there soon enough.

Thursday Post: Archie, Veronica, CTV News, and Essex County

2009-08-20T11:00:00.000-07:00

I usually try to update every Wednesday, except for when I'm out of town or otherwise occupied - as was the case this week.

Yesterday I was out about around Alberta for most of the day, beginning at 7am when we left for Edmonton. We stopped by Happy Harbor Comics v1 for 11am to check out their Archie and Veronica Engagement party event, and enjoyed delicious cake dripping with gooey icing in the company of a real life Archie, Veronica, Betty, and Mr. Weatherbee. It was pretty well covered by local media, who were all over the opportunity to put a local spin on light-but-sensational news like the already infamous upcoming Riverdale wedding.

Funnily enough, CTV News used a few quotes from yours truly in their brief story on the event on yesterday's six o'clock news. The story begins at 9:55, and runs for a minute and a half or so. You'll note that my apparent claim to fame (the subtext listed under my name when I'm shown) is "dating a brunette". Which is especially funny because Sam actually has black hair, something the CTV correspondant noted when he approached us for the few questions.

On the way back from Edmonton we stopped in humorously named Balzac to check out Cross Iron Mills, which is supposed to become the biggest super-mall in Western Canada. The grand opening was yesterday, so the mall was pretty much a giant clot of slow-walking window shoppers and obese parents with screaming children. They did, however, have dinosaur skeleton displays and a bb rifle shooting range.

As for new titles out this week, there wasn't a lot that caught my eye but for one exception.

Jeff Lemire's collected Essex County Trilogy hit the shelves, and I recommend it as a must-have for anyone. This comic will make you emotional. Approach it with a skepticism if you need to, but I guarantee the tales of isolation, loss, and basic human relationships will leave a lasting imprint on you. Jeff's portrayal of human interactions in a rural Ontario community are told poetically through heavily visual stories, and I could easily see people from all walks of life being able to relate.

Lastly, I had a wonderful discussion with Michael Cho this afternoon - be on the lookout soon for an accompanying interview in The Fabler Blog.

Reviewing Ultimate Comics Avengers # 1 & Ultimate Comics Spider-Man # 1: my verdict on the franchise restarts.

2009-08-12T12:29:00.000-07:00

Somehow, I've managed to tear myself aware from Fallout 3 long enough for a quick update.

That game is rapidly consuming hours of gameplay, and I still feel like I've only just scratched the surface. Kudos, Bethesda - your game truly was worthy of all those shiny awards it pulled in. Now if only they'd release the expansions for PS3.

In Marvel news, as of today the Ultimate Universe has officially been restarted. I picked up Ultimate Comics Avengers # 1 and Ultimate Comics Spider-Man # 1 today, and I feel compelled to share my initial thoughts.

First of all, it's important to remember the point behind the reboot of the Ultimate franchise. It originally existed as a more accessible means to pull in readers without requiring any previous knowledge of the characters or their long, often convoluted histories. After a few years on the market and several hundred issues, (between the titles with the Ultimate imprint) the characters were beginning to become bogged down in backstory nearly as much as their 616 universe counterparts.

So Marvel decided they would hire Jeph Loeb, the literary equivalent to a wrecking ball, to go in and perform an enema on the Ultimate universe. The result was messy, painful to read, and seemed to radically transform characters with little to no explanation, but it got the job done... I guess. Now Marvel can start all over again with new directions, new mythos, and hopefully, new readers in addition to those it hasn't lost with Ultimatum.

** ARRR! THAR BE SPOILERS AHEAD **

Ultimate Comics Avengers # 1

Mark Millar and Bryan Hitch's Ultimates was the title that originally drew me in to Marvel's Ultimate Universe. It was a title that reimagined characters from the Avengers as grittier, (ultimately) flawed versions of their 616 counterparts. Those flaws made them more relatable, more relevant, and in a lot of ways, more interesting to read about.

In an Ultimates comic, Captain America would bootstomp an already surrendered foe just to make a point. The Hulk would literally bite the head off of an invading skrull and eat it, and Hank Pym and Janet Dyne have an abusive relationship where the only rule to their violent arguments is 'no superpowers'. Yet despite Millar's alternate take on the characters, the essence of each has always remained fundamentally the same.

Then everything changed with Ultimatum; some heroes suspiciously acquired traits from their 616 selves, (ie.,Thor's sudden change of dialect) while others reacted completely out of character (Janet Dyne, the Wasp, died as a result of having her innards eaten by a grossly deformed Blob).

Ultimate Comic Avengers # 1 sees Mark Millar return to breath the life back into his horribly misappropriated characters. Six months have passed since Magneto flooded New York, the city is rebuilding, the Ultimates have lost three key members, and a now S.H.I.E.L.D.-less Nick Fury is back. It's clear that things can never go back to the way they were, and to punctuate that point, this first issue has Captain America go AWOL as a result of a startling discovery about the son he never knew he had.

From Cap's dialogue to the early-on exchange between Nick Fury and Hawkeye, it's vastly refreshing to see the key elements of the Ultimates franchise return to character. Like being reunited with old friends, only with less handshakes and hugs and more violence and surprising plot revelations.

This comic features the first Ultimate universe appearance of the Red Skull, who is reimagined with a different look and a truly innovative backstory that has me super excited to read more. Remember that startling discovery I mentioned about Cap's son? Turns out a certain crimson-faced villain may have been born right around the end of World War II.

Sadly, Bryan Hitch has not returned to pencil this chapter of the Ultimates (now Avengers, though they have yet to be dubbed that in-comic). Carlos Pachecho, however, proves that the heart of Bryan Hitch's pseudo-realistic style can be suitably co-opted by a talented substitute. Hopefully the rest of the separate artists on this volume continue add their own flavor to the series without degenerating into anything remotely resembling Joe Madureira's soulless over-the-top envisioning of the characters in Ultimates 3.

All in all, I loved Ultimate Comic Avengers # 1. All that's left to say ont the subject is thank you, Mark Millar.

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man # 1

After that lengthy discourse on Ultimate Comics Avengers, I don't know how I could possibly follow it up with an equally worded review about volume 2 of Ultimate Spider-Man. The fact is, Brian Michael Bendis had a great run throughout volume 1, from beginning to end. He wrote Spider-Man as a teenager before a superhero, and built a series about a fan favorite character that could please loyalist fans as well as appeal to just about anyone.

Loeb didn't get to bastardize Bendis' closely guarded incarnation of Peter Parker, so analyzing any returns from a departure of character is moot here.

What would be significant to look at is Bendis' decision to continue volume 2 with Aunt May's nephew still wearing the Spider-Man tights. For a long while there, Marvel encouraged speculation that a new character would be donning the red-and-blue superhero pajamas. While this might have been an interesting avenue to explore, long time fans will be pleased to read this is in fact not the case. At least, not yet anyway.

Ultimate Comics Spider-Man has Peter Parker working at a fast food joint, trying to make ends meet while still galavanting about as his wisecracking alter-ego. The difference now is that, thank to a tell-all article by J. Jonah Jameson praising Spider-Man for his exploits over the years, Spidey is now widely regarded as a hero of the people.

With issue # 1, Bendis lays the groundwork quite well regarding where he wants to take the series. Old friends Kitty, Gwen Stacy, and Johnny Storm each have their moment in the comic, informing us that there will still be a focus on 'the ol' gang'. A new vigilante is introduced, apparently the Ultimate version of the Hood. Similarly, Spider-Man's newest arch enemy makes his cameo as Mysterio, who cements his status as a total badass early-on by pushing the Kingpin out of a window to his apparent death.

My only complaint about this comic is unfortunately a big one. I hate, hate, hate how David Lafuente draws Spider-Man. I'm wary about taking the comic, visually, in a cartoony-manga-esque light to begin with, but drawing Spidey as a midget with a button face just comes off as ridiculous. I've seen more realistically proportioned drawings of Spider-Man in Marvel Babies.

** end spoilers. **

Oh, and in case I gave you the impression that the new Ultimate titles were the only comics worth buying - think again!

Deadpool # 13 came out, redeeming my faith that there's at least one writer currently out there who can write a Wade Wilson so hilariously that I actually laugh out loud reading it. Daniel Way, along with new series artist Shawn Crystal, tells a tale of pirates, the high seas, and the seduction of a blind vixen at a party resort. Oh, and Bob from H.Y.D.R.A. is a parrot.

The Marvels Project # 1 also hit shelves, with Ed Brubaker revisiting Golden Age Marvel characters (the original Human Torch, Namor, Nick Fury, Captain America, and Angel) to tell a classic story of espionage and the beginnings of the Marvel Universe. Seems promising so far.

Fables TP Vol. 12 The Dark Ages was released today, which is all I'm going to say on the subject since anyone who's read my blog before will already be sick of hearing me gush about my love for Willingham's long-running Vertigo title. Seriously though, Fables is awesome.

Irredeemably Excessive Use of the Word Probing. (and new comic day)

2009-08-05T14:22:00.000-07:00

The classic late afternoon update: still early enough to be relevant, yet too late to be considered punctual.

I just finished sending out a round of interview probes to some comic book creators I'd like to talk to for the Fabler. Contrary to popular beliefs propagated by media representation of aliens, probing is actually quite redundant, uninteresting work. See what I did there? Yeah.

Of course, it isn't without reward; roughly two-thirds of the time I'll receive a positive response, and then the q & a is genuinely interesting and always at least somewhat enlightening. Actually, even the probing isn't all that bad. I really just wanted an excuse to use the term 'probing' repeatedly in a blog post.

So today, in an unprecedented move, I probed the shelves of the local comic shop prior to sitting down to write this post. As today is Wednesday, and Wednesday's have some small significance to comic fans as being the day that new content hits the shelves, I walked out with a score that included the following items:

Issue # 1 of Ultimate X-Men: Requiem

Deadpool: Merc with a Mouth # 2

Irredeemable TPB Vol. 1

Irredeemable # 5

North 40 # 2

Captain America: Reborn # 2

Astro City: The Dark Age Book 3 # 4 of 4 (whew. Stop subdividing volumes, Busiek!)

This week, rather than giving you a shortened preview of some of the new titles, I'll do you one better. I'll tell you that, of the comics I purchased today at least, the ones most certainly, definitely worth buying are Irredeemable (the whole package) and North 40 # 2.

Astro City's great and all, but the pacing of the Dark Age has been a little off. Busiek normally doesn't stretch narratives as far as he's been doing with the Dark Age, so we can forgive him for this, and because I'm such a fan of everything Astro City related I'm still purchasing them. However, I just can't award it the honor of being as good as the other two titles I mentioned.

Captain America Reborn and Ultimate X-Men: Requiem are pretty well obligatory titles for anyone interested in the seperate respective franchises. If you've been reading Ultimatum, or ever read Ultimate X-Men, you're going to have to buy Requiem. It's marketed that way. Same with Reborn and its tie-ins to everything from Dark Reign, to New Avengers, to Bucky's run on the Captain America comic.

The difference between Requiem and Reborn is that the latter is actually written with some genuine, character-relevant substance. Once you can get past that whole 'time gun' plot device that lumbers clumsily in the foreground of an otherwise interesting story, Brubaker's writing is in full stride. This issue also served as sort of a re-introduction to Captain America's origin and history, in what I suspect is an attempt to lay the groundwork for new fans interested in the buzz surrounding the forthcomic Captain America movie.
Deadpool: Merc with a Mouth is just not as funny as Daniel Way & Paco Medina's Deadpool. In fact, it needs a Marvel Zombies crossover gimmick just to draw any readership to it in the first place. I'm not going to to continue reading this comic, and I mean this with no slight intended to the deformed mercenary himself. It's just overkill.

It's no secret that North 40 is illustrated by one of Calgary's own rising stars in the industry (and also a fun individual I chatted with for the Fabler a little while back). But even without that context, I would still be recommending this comic with enthusiasm. Fiona Staples' art is fantastically unique, but accessible enough to capture nostalgia for the pastiche of genres that North 40 draws from. Holy wordy sentences, Sheriff Morgan! But really. She manages to pay more than suitable homage to the Lovecraftian Horror/Americana Western/Superhero mashup of influences Aaron Williams has been drawing from for the script. This issue sees Conover County begin to curiously adapt to the dark forces that have infused most of its citizens, with no shortage of action in sight.

Lastly, buying into the Irredeemable series is the best investment you could make in comics this week. Well, it's probably not a sound fiscal investment, but in terms of dollars for solid, interesting new plot you really can't go wrong.

Written by Mark Waid (of Kingdom Come and Empire, duh) and illustrated by Peter Krause, Irredeemable tells the story of a world's greatest superhero gone bad. Picture a Superman with the same level of ethical certainty as Jeffrey Dahmer. With that sort of principle in mind, the comic could have elected to go the route of, say, Garth Ennis' The Boys - with a plot so drenched in ultraviolence and exaggerated superhero satire that it overwhelmed the characters themselves.

Instead, Waid writes a narrative that is so focused on motivation and character relationships that it could be a believable chapter in any respectable comic book's continuity. While the full motivations for superhero The Plutonian's move from white knight to evil supervillian remain to be seen, the hints and foreshadowing that Waid drops from time to time allude to a reason that I strongly suspect will bring the book together as a strong work of fiction.

The best part is, the trade paperback containing the first 4 issues as well as the new 5th issue are all for sale at neat promotional prices. You can nab the trade for $9.99 US, and the 5th issue for $0.99. Probing.

Back from camping, San Diego Comic Con announcements, and new comic day.

2009-07-29T08:05:00.000-07:00

Well folks, I'm back from camping, feeling refreshed, and ready to share some of my thoughts on the San Diego Comic Con announcements as well as the new comics out today.

But first, a bit about camping right now in British Columbia:

If you can at all avoid it, don't do it. Kelowna has been burning down in an ebb and flow of raging wildfire for the past week now, which drastically altered our previous camping plans to go to Penticton, which is right on the other side of Okanagan Lake. We thought, well, there has to be someplace in BC we can go that isn't affected by the smoke from Kelowna or burning itself.

So we went to Salmon Arm, North of Kelowna and right on the Shushwap Lake. On Saturday, while we were out touring a few wineries in the area, apparently yet another wildfire erupted into life not far from our campsite. We were greeted by this sight on the drive back:

Note the thick curtain of smoke. We realized soon after that our campsite was barricaded off, with all of our belongings still out on the beach and a storm expected that evening. With no other option, we headed into town and booked a tiny motel room which the seven of us crammed into.

On the plus side, I did find some nifty comics in Salmon Arm itself. In a used book store downtown called Book Nook etc., (which was mostly memorable for dividing its books into those by male authors and those by female authors) I found an old What If... comic where Wolverine became lord of the vampires, a '78 Marvel Tales reprint of Amazing Spider-Man #98, (featuring the controversial arc where Harry became hooked on drugs) a less-than-impressive 90's X-Men TPB titled Rise of Apocalypse, and an American Manga called Dogby Walks Alone.

Then at a 50% off book sale in a store called Bookingham Palace, I found the collected edition of Zot!, which, in my humble opinion, is one of the greatest independant comic books produced in the late eighties. So, score and a half.

Forward to Comic Con!

The announcements this year that have me the most excited:

- Terry Gilliam announces that the Don Quixote movie is back on the table
As Gilliam is my favorite film-maker of all time, I couldn't help but be giddy with glee at the notion of Cervantes' classic finally being successfully made by the mind behind Brazil and the Adventures of Baron Munchausen. Gilliam's first failed attempt at Don Quixote was famously captured in the documentary Lost in La Mancha.

- A new Fables original graphic novel
Bill Willingham said that he was working on an OGN entiteld Werewolves in the Heartland, featuring art by Jim Fern a story focused on Bigby's quest across America to find a new location for Fabletown.

- War Machine will be in Iron Man 2
Fans were treated to surprise video footage from Favreau's Iron Man sequel which featured- among other things- a shot of War Machine in action. War Machine is, of course, the armored alternate identity of Jim Rhodes (played in this film by Don Cheadle).

- Gerard Way talks about Umbrella Academy series 3
In a panel about the third Umbrella Academy series, Way said that the series will focus on the fate of some of the supervillains that Hargreaves & co. have faced over the years. The new series will be subtitled 'Hotel Oblivion', and once again feature Gabriel Ba on pencils.

Below is some teaser art from Hotel Oblivion, originally posted over at CBR:

And finally, because no Wednesday update wouldn't be complete without it, some of the comics I'll be picking up today:
(in congested list format, since this post is already an unwieldly size)

- Ignition City # 4 (of 5)

- Marvel Zombies # 4 (of 4)

- Secret Warriors # 6

- New Avengers # 55

- Ultimatum # 5

- Ultimate Spider-Man Requiem # 2 (of 2)

- Jersey Gods TPB Vol.1

New Comic Day! Some old titles become new again.

2009-07-15T09:07:00.000-07:00

My post today will be short and sweet:

-This week's Fabler article should be up by tomorrow, featuring an interview with Doug Wheatley; an incredible artist and all-around solid guy, Doug's been doing the art for a variety of Star Wars titles (under the Dark Horse imprint) for the past six years or so. Also check out his entry on Wookieepedia.

-There's a rumor going around about Fabler 2.0 appearing in the near future. Stay tuned for more on that in the near future.

-I'm headed to Penticton, BC next Tuesday night for a weeklong extravaganza of beaches, wine, and general shenanigans. This may affect postings, but we'll see - I might be able to get everything I need to done in advance.

Some new releases worth checking out this week:

First off, DC/Vertigo has a couple of collected volumes out today that I'll definitely be picking up. These are:

Astro City: The Dark Age TPB - I love pretty well anything Kurt Busiek-related, though none of his other work rivals the appeal for me that Astro City holds. Unique, non-traditional approaches to superhero storylines with an emphasis on the details that are often overlooked in most DC/Marvel titles, Astro City is about humanity more than the superhuman.

Batman: Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader HC - Containing Neil Gaiman's recent run on the Dark Knight, Whatever Happened to the Caped Crusader is the closest thing to a quintessential Batman story in recent memory. Though it does tie in to the DC canon storyline of Batman's psychological deconstruction and subsequent 'death', you don't really need to be reading anything else to be able to get this. Worth picking up if you can't be bothered to follow all of the recent twists and turns of the DC universe, but you're hungry for a new Batman story.

Then we have a few of great new opportunities to leap into a series you may not have already read:

Fables # 1 Reprint - I love Fables. I've made no secret that it's my favorite ongoing monthly title, and I genuinely believe that any sort of fan could find value in Bill Willingham's consistently inspired-yet-accessible writing. If you haven't been reading it, and you're curious what it's all about - here's your chance.

Preacher HC Book 1 - If you read comics regularly, chances are you've already read Garth Ennis' Preacher - easily one of the most celebrated titles in comics in the last decade. The Hardcover release of the first volume of Preacher includes issues 1-12, making it easier to collect than the individual trades. Plus it supposedly includes some pin up art from a few other issues. This is a title you must pick up, if you do not already own any Preacher.

Spider-Man: Torment HC - Containing a collected version of Todd McFarlane's now famous early 90's stint on Spider-Man. McFarlane's vision of Spidey, Calypso, and the Lizard went a long way towards defining how future artists would approach the characters. The dark tone of his run, while uncharacteristic of the title at that time, also set a benchmark for future writers aiming to tell a Spider-Man story with a nontraditional twist.

Aside - SM:Torment has a special nostalgic place in my heart as being the first Trade Paperback I ever bought, way back in '92. This may not have been so long ago for some comic fans, but for me it was right when I was just getting into reading comics regularly, at the impressionable age of ten.

And the monthlies:

Dark Avengers # 7: After months of borderline stagnant development, Dark Avengers finally gets interesting with the X-Men/Utopia crossover. You have my attention, Fraction.

Deadpool # 12: Of the three Deadpool monthly titles currently on the shelves, after reading Deadpool: Merc with a Mouth # 1 I am confident in stating that this title (just plain ol' Deadpool) is the most worth your dollars. Daniel Way's writing is often laugh-out-loud funny, and doesn't play too much up to the nineties cheese that riddles the dialogue in Merc with a Mouth. Issue 12 continues the Deadpool/Bullseye arc seen in the last two issues.

Incognito # 5: Brubaker's well-hyped pulpy miniseries about a former supervillain in hiding comes to a close this issue. Consistently well written, (though a little slow early on) issue 4 was filled with developments that promise to segue into a thrilling final issue.

Timestorm 2009-2099 #3: I just dig the return to the 2099 universe. The writing is so-so, the ideas are pretty solid, and the art is a saving grace. I'm interested in where this will go, but don't consider this a must-have title by any means.

Poe # 1: Supernatural thrillers tying into classical literature has to be one of my favorite sub-genres out there. If you can rightly consider that a sub-genre, which I'd argue you validly could. Published by Boom! studios, written by J. Barton Mitchell and illustrated by Dean Kotz, I'll be picking this up with high hopes - and blaming CBR's 3.5/5 star review if it falls short.

Calgary Stampede, interview updates, and New Comic Day

2009-07-08T00:35:00.000-07:00

So it's Stampede time here in Calgary.

For those of you who don't know what that is, basically for a a week and a half of every year, all of the locals out here put on Cowboy hats and pretend like we're in touch with our Wild Western Heritage. There's a medium-sized theme park we open up for just that window of time, right in the heart of downtown so it can clog the already jammed arteries of our poorly planned transit system.

We have rodeos, horse races, and even a nightly grandstand show with fireworks and a marching band! All of these are priced to inflict modest wounds upon your wallet, but if you still have some money left over after, there are all sorts of other seasonal tourist traps laid around town.

Yeah, it's pretty awesome.

Fabler-wise, last week's interview was Lar deSouza (of Looking for Group & Least I Could Do), this week it's James Turner (Nil: A Land Beyond Belief, Rex Libris, Warlord of Io), and next week is shaping up to be Doug Wheatley (Star Wars: Dark Times, Star Wars: Empire, Superman: Last Son of Earth). I was especially excited to talk to James Turner as I'm a big fan of Nil, and have been for some time - since my friend Arinn took it out from the Library she worked at back in 2005 because she thought I might like it.

We also had some mentions on Sequential, the Shuster Awa rds Blog, and the Least I Could Do media section. Thanks to the above, and to anyone else linking to the Fabler Blog - the more people that are reading the interviews, the more sustainable I think it could be as a longer-term project.

On the topic of the Shuster Awards, if you haven't seen this year's nominee list, check it out here. Lots of mighty fine Canadian talent competing for top honors this September.

It's struck me that I haven't done any comic reviews for some time, as I've just been sticking to weekly updates giving my thoughts on the monthlies/new releases I'm planning on buying. I'd like to try to get back into a routine where I have time to put up reviews; it just hasn't seemed feasible lately. I don't know how some others manage to pull it off - take Chuck's Comic of the Day, for example. Just as the title implies, he manages to churn out a brand new, multiple paragraph review every single darn day.

For now, here's my forecast for comics I'll be buying this week:

For starters, two titles put out by Canadian artists I've interviewed for the Fabler Blog -

The Nobody HC - Written and illustrated by Jeff Lemire, acclaimed creator of the Essex County Trilogy, I'm pretty excited to get my hands on this Vertigo offering. The Nobody is a modern retelling of H.G. Wells' Invisible Man, with a North American small town setting and a pronouncedly sombre tone. You can read the interview I did with Jeff about it here.

North 40 # 1 - Words by Aaron Williams, pictures by Fiona Staples. North 40 # 1 marks the beginning of a new Wildstorm ongoing series that promises to be chock full of monsters, Western imagery, and kick ass action sequences. Or so Fiona Staples informed me, at least, when we chatted about it for the Fabler.

My pull list is looking pretty tame this week, as there's only one other title I'm picking up:

Dark X-Men Beginning # 1 (of 3) - The reason that I'm buying this title is dependent on screwy logic. It's a tie-in to Dark Avengers/X-Men: Utopia, the first part of which I enjoyed immensely, thanks to Matt Fraction's spot-on ability to weave a good narrative. This book, however, is not written by Fraction, but instead by Paul Cornell. To be fair, the latter has done some solid work on Captain Britain, and I guess he's an established writer for Doctor Who - but the curious fact remains that I'm buying his writing because of the excellent writing of someone else. Huh.

A Canada Day new comic list!

2009-07-01T08:30:00.000-07:00

On today's date in 1867, four warring provinces declared peace after years of bloodshed. Canada West, Canada East, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia had been locked in territorial conflict for over two hundred years - dating back to the first Great Canadian Civil War in 1602, which was started after William Shakespeare announced he would produce a run of his latest play, Twelfth Night, in only one of the provinces in the then colonial Great White North.

Sadly, Twelfth Night was never to be seen performed live on Canadian shores. A meeting to decide which province would host the honor of welcoming Shakespeare turned quickly to violence after a representative from New Brunswick impaled the Nova Scotian Premiere with a harpoon. To this day, Twelfth Night is banned from Canadian theatres, in memory of the four hundred and twelve lives lost in the riots following that initial meeting.

In 1867 we were finally able to put aside our differences because we realized that only as a united Canada (under colonial British supervision) could we fully exploit the first Nations people who had been here long before we came with our petty squabbling. It was a beautiful day in Canada's history, and lasers mounted on elk were fired into the night sky to mark the occasion.

142 years of Canadian years later, it is today's new comic day. The following are some of the titles I'm picking up:

Batman and Robin # 2 - As Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely steadily work to write a new chapter in the Batman mythos, fans still show mixed reactions. Nightwing may have been the ideal candidate for the Bat mantle of those put forth in Battle for the Cowl, but can he be truly compelling at this stage in his development? He does have an interesting dynamic with Damien Wayne, who I personally think actually can be engaging as Robin. The arrogance, the perspective that is at times detached from human companion - it will be interesting to see how he develops.

This issue will also expand on the newly introduced villian Mr. Pig, who appeared in Batman and Robin # 1 as one of the creepiest Bat-villians we've seen in a while.

Captain America Reborn # 1 (of 5) - Obviously, today's big ticket comic release is the one which heralds the return of original Captain America Steve Rogers. Done by Brubaker and Hitch, there's a fair amount of buzz around this title, mostly relating to how it will affect Bucky's current place in the Marvel Universe. I'm also pretty apprehensive.

Bucky's filled the Captain America boots in a way that was more compelling than Steve Rogers has been able to for a very long time. His self-doubt, shady history, and obsessive need to honor Steve's memory all work together to make him a very deep, layered personality with an interesting new take on the dynamic Captain America has with the people around him - including the New Avengers, the Falcon, and Black Widow. Hopefully we won't see these new dynamics relegated to the sidelines in the coming months to make room in the limelight for Rogers.

Deadpool: Merc with a Mouth # 1 - Why is there another Deadpool title on the shelves? Between this title, Daniel Way's Deadpool, and Deadpool: Suicide Kings, as much as I love him, does the infamous Wade Wilson really need three monthly releases? With two of those both being ongoing series, no less.

I'll still pick this up, especially since the first arc involves a crossover with Marvel Zombies in the form of zombie Deadpool's severed head. It just seems a little too obvious, even for Marvel, that they're simply pushing for more dollars from a character that's on the hot list right now. I expect to see a fourth Deadpool title next month, written by Ryan Reynolds and titled "Deadpool: Awesome Explosion". It'll happen.

Greek Street # 1 - The latest Vertigo offering; a new, ongoing series written by Peter Milligan and illustrated by David Gianfelice that retells classic tales from greek mythology in a contemporary, London red light district setting. I'm hooked. I've always been a fan of mythology from antiquity, and who doesn't like to read about strippers and street thugs killing to the tune of classic literature? The premise sounds like a new Baz Luhrmann movie, only if Baz was on crack while writing it and real blood was shed in its making.

On other fronts, sometime this week (probably tomorrow) my profile of Lar deSouza will go up on The Fabler Blog. I was taken aback by his sheer, almost overwhelming friendliness. Which was a good thing when I interviewed him, since I'm a pretty big fan of his work on Looking for Group - his cheery disposition and helpful attitude went a long way to keep me from losing my cool at talking to someone who produces a comic that I love/read regularly.

If you didn't hear already, somewhere in the chaos following the death of a particularly eccentric former pop king, the legendary Jeff Goldbum also passed away. Fortunately, he received a very touching and appropriate eulogy on the Colbert Report the other night, given by Jeff Goldblum. I laughed so hard I almost peed out of my eyes. If you're in the US, you can watch the video below. If you're in Canada like I am, you're shit out of luck because we don't have the same video streaming privileges as our Southern Neighbors.

Jeff Goldblum Will Be Missed

http://www.colbertnation.com/

Colbert Report Full Episodes

Political Humor

Jeff Goldblum

New interview up - plus props/fail for the week.

2009-06-26T12:19:00.000-07:00

The Jeff Lemire interview is now up on the Fabler Blog!

Jeff is an incredibly talented artist/writer/creator, who is already well-known in Canadian comic books for his Essex County Trilogy. He had some pretty neat things to say about his upcoming work to be released via Vertigo Comics. A promotional image from one of those projects (Sweet Tooth, an ongoing monthly title beginning in September) can be seen below:

Check back for next week's profile on Lar deSouza, artist and co-creator of the fantastically twisted and consistently hilarious webcomic Looking for Group.

Also, mad props and epic fail this week go to:

Mad props - Matt Fraction for writing an engaging, character-driven crossover issue that actually progresses the Dark Reign plot. (Dark Avengers/Uncanny X-Men: Utopia # 1)

Epic Fail - Transformers 2, for actually causing myself and several others in attendance on opening night to drift in an out of sleep in the third act. For more of my thoughts on this pastiche of bad action movies, you might as well read the IGN review of it, which captures my perspective pretty well exactly.

Jeff Lemire and other interviews, plus rainbow shoelaces and New Comic Day!

2009-06-24T16:32:00.000-07:00

Lots of news this update, so I'll try and condense it as best I can.

This week I have an interview going up on The Fabler Blog with Jeff Lemire, writer/illustrator of the critically acclaimed Essex County trilogy. Jeff graciously agreed to do an email interview with me, where he talked about Canadian landscapes, David Lynch, and his plans for his new upcoming Vertigo monthly, Sweet Tooth. He also had a few interesting things to say about his original graphic novel The Nobody, which is due out July 1st, also through Vertigo.

Lar deSouza, illustrator of the webcomics Looking for Group and Least I Could Do, is slated to be my profile piece for next week. I'm pretty stoked on talking to Lar, since I've been an LFG fan for some time - which is probably why when I put together a top 10 webcomics list earlier this year, it was the second strip I listed.

For now, interviews with Karl Kerschl and Craig Taillefer are indefinitely postponed - hopefully, when time is permitting for them, I'll still be able to do feature pieces highlighting their work.

I updated my Flickr account for the first time in a (ra)coon's age! Some of the photos from my April trip down through Nevada/California are up now, along with a few images from a recent hiking trip out by Banff. My favorite of the bunch is an image of Sam's shoe surrounded by daffodils, because daffodils are highly underrated.

On other fronts, Marvel publicists must have been working overtime this past week through a flurry of news activity.

Some highlights:

Norman Osborne is set to crank shit up a notch with Dark Reign: the List, beginning in September. Basically a series of eight one shots each addressing a different target Osborne has placed on priority status, this is being billed as the climax to the Dark Reign arc. (or at least what leads up to it)
Marvel Zombies Return was announced at Wizard World Philly last weekend. Technically not Marvel Zombies 5, it'll apparently consist of a bunch of one shots featuring the characters from the original two Marvel Zombies volumes. Fred Van Lente writes two bookend comics in the series, with the others written by a variety of different authors.
Mary Jane returns to the pages of Amazing Spider-Man in a new arc beginning August. I remain hesitant, despite the moderately decent quality of the last couple of ASM arcs.
IGN has a pretty nifty interview up with Jonathan Hickman about where Secret Warriors is heading next, with a new arc fast approaching and a new arsenal of characters to develop.

Aaaaand, today also happens to be NEW COMIC DAY. (hsss, raaa, hsss, miscellaneous crowd noises)

Some stuff I'll be reading this week:

Dark Avengers/Uncanny X-Men Utopia # 1 (of 6): In "the first X-Men/Avengers crossover in 15 years," (despite the fact the actual Avengers aren't involved) Osborne sics his Dark Avengers on the remaining X-Men, who you'd think would be pretty tied up themselves at the moment with the whole Messiah War thing going on. I admit that Dark Reign is proving to be a lot more drawn out, and consequently less interesting, than other Marvel events in recent years - but I'm hoping that this title, as it paves the way to The List, will start to get things rolling again. The fact that Matt Fraction is helming the miniseries is a huge plus.

Secret Warriors # 5: Relative Marvel newcomer Jonathan Hickman has done a fantastic job of fleshing out the personalities in this book so far. Issue #5 brings the first arc to a close with a massive confrontation involving H.Y.D.R.A., H.A.M.M.E.R., the Howling Commandos, and the Secret Warriors themselves. It'll be interesting to see how Hickman decides to shake things up, now that he has laid the groundwork for what looks to be one of the most interesting titles in the Marvel lineup this year.

Literals # 3 (of 3) - Also part 9 of 9 in the Great Fables Crossover, the conclusion to Bill Willingham's latest arc in the Fables universe is going to be huge. I've been following the Crossover as its titles have been hitting the shelves on an almost weekly basis, and my own excitement level for this comic - which promises to 'rewrite the universe' - is pretty high.

While the pacing to the Crossover event has been a little off rythm, (largely because typically static characters in the titles have been hopping between books willy-nilly) overall Willingham has managed to convey a sense that the Fables are coming up against a logically impossible foe. Kevin Thorn, the apparent metafictional architect of the Fables characters, has finally removed the obstacles which prevented him from fully realizing his demigod status. I genuinely don't think Willingham is, for his part, blowing smoke up our collective behinds about how significant the lasting changes from this arc will be on the titles he's masterfully drawn us into over the past seven years.

Some other titles I'll also be picking up include Dark Reign: Hood # 2 (of 5), Timestorm 2009/2099: X-Men, Wolverine Noir # 3, Dark Avengers # 6, and New Avengers # 54.

If you were interested. Or if you weren't, HA! You've already read this far anyway, sucker!

David Sedaris is a **, Captain America gimmicks his way back to life, and it's New Comic Day!

2009-06-17T09:12:00.000-07:00

As I'm sure you've already heard, (since it's been mentioned everywhere from The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien to CNN) the original Captain America Steve Rogers is coming back. Beginning in July, a 5 part miniseries written by Ed Brubaker and illustrated by Brian Hitch will tell the story of Cap's return. The title, called "Captain America Reborn," was apparently planned out as far back as when they originally shot Cap down two years ago.

My thoughts on this? It wasn't unexpected, of course, though I had sort of figured they'd try to keep him dead for a bit longer. Maybe a nice round five years, so that his return would have more impact than, say, the short-lived death of another cultural icon that occurred back in the nineties.

Obviously, there's going to have to be a pretty major deus ex machina here to make this work. Not only was Rogers originally sniped from afar and shot multiple times at point blank range, but his death was verified by everything from Stark's technology to Wolverine's hyper-sensitive sense of smell. Major comic characters have previously been brought back from the death by such over-the-top plot devices as; clones (many Marvel characters in the 90's), negotiations with the supernatural (Harry Osborn via Mephisto, Elektra and a handful of other heroes via the Hand's occult practices), an explanation involving the death not really being a 'death but more of a regenerative coma (Superman)... the list goes on.

While I've been a fan of Brubaker's work on Captain America to date, if he relies on one of the above devices to bring back Cap, I will stop reading the title entirely. You hear me, Brubaker? That's right, you face the wrath of one disgruntled fan, and I suspect I won't be alone.

Or maybe they'll go the same route as the DC Universe's current mirror 'death and return' story - Batman. While he hasn't returned quite yet, it's already been shown that the 'omega sanction' he was shot with didn't actually kill him, but sent him back into the distant past leaving only a corpse in his wake.

On other fronts, I had the pleasure of catching David Sedaris at a live reading here in Calgary over the past weekend. If you haven't read anything of his yet, do it now. You won't regret it. His dryly witty memoirs of life experiences that vary from the obscene, to the unusually mundane, to the legitimately ridiculous are laugh-out-loud hilarious. He read a new short story, (from the perspective of an embittered newlywed emailing her sister to sarcastically thank her for a wedding gift of pizza coupons) read a few excerpts from his diary entries, (which are astonishingly detailed) did the Q & A thing, and signed/met fans afterwards.

I approached him and asked if he would mind signing my copy of When You Are Engulfed in Flames, his most recent novel. After writing "To Kevin" across the top of the title page, he asked me what my last name was and how to spell it, then proceeded to make guesses about me that almost all fell short of the mark. "And you're... 24?" "26, actually." "Ah yes. And... a Gemini?" "Libra." "Well you don't have diabetes, I know that much." "That's true, I do not have diabetes."

After asking a few more questions while he digilently scribbled a message into the book, he closed it and smiled up at me, thanking me for coming to see him speak. I told him the pleasure was mine and that it was a wonderful experience, then walked away from the table grinning like a fool. As I walked away, I opened my book to see what he had written while I was distracted by his line of questions. Below is the message that David Sedaris had left for me:

Fucking brilliant. Only David Sedaris.

Oh yeah, and some of the new comics out today that I'll be picking up:

Ultimate Spider-Man: Requiem # 1 (of 2): Ultimate Spidey is dead and gone, (or just gone) and it falls to J. Jonah Jameson to write his obituary. Previously this would have been the last person a Spider-Man fan would've wanted to give truthful account to the webslinger's life, but ol' J.J. has recently undergone a change of heart. Spidey's actions during the Ultimatum event have given Jameson new perspective, and he now regrets every mean word he's ever thrown at the hero. Looks like a promising two-parter, with Bagley and Immonen dually responsible for present day/flashback illustration duties, respectively.

Captain America # 600: In addition to marking a hallmark number in the series by returnining to its original numbering, Captain America # 600 is a giant-sized special issue featuring several stories by different writers and artists. Notably, it features a flashback ministory with the art of Alex Ross, a golden-age Cap story , and - most significantly - a Brubaker tale that wil set the stage for the return of Steve Rogers. Technically this comic wasn't released today as it was timed for a Monday release to coincide with the announcement about Rogers' return, but we'll just pretend.

Also on the shelves are Jack of Fables # 35, (#8/9 in the Great Fables Crossover) Captain America: The Man With No Face HC, (collecting Captain America # 43-48) Invincible # 63 (still among the best monthlies in the Image lineup) and...

Marvel Zombies 4 #3 (of 4) - Fred Van Lente's work on Marvel Zombies has taken the Kirkman-originated concept to completely new levels. Which is good, since you can only run so far with a plot based around the same group of Marvel heroes-turned-flesheaters as they alternate between annihilating life and coming to their decayed senses. With Marvel Zombies 4, Van Lente has already brought in current Marvel villain favorite the Hood to join his mishmash cast of 616/zombified characters. This issue features an appearance by classic Marvel monster Man-Thing.

I've been enjoying the title so far, and while I wouldn't say it's on my must-have list, I'd certainly recommend it to fans of the other Marvel Zombies titles or simply anyone with an interest in zombies and/or superheroes.

New Comic Day! Also, present/future interviews for the Fabler Blog!

2009-06-10T12:37:00.000-07:00

It's odd that I've found myself with even less free time after having finished school. I'm pretty sure this worked in reverse after I picked up my first post-sec credential.

This week, there is an interview I did with Fiona Staples up on the Fabler Blog. I strongly believe (and I suspect I'm not alone in doing so) that Fiona is headed for big things - her art is fantastic, very unique but still universally accessible at the same time.

For next week, I have an article with Jay Bardyla of Happy Harbor Comics lined up. I figured since I've been talking to quite a few people about the comic scene here in Alberta, I would be remiss not to include an interview with someone who's been so significant to its growth.

Future interviews will (hopefully) include a feature on Karl Kerschl of The Abominable Charles Christopher, and possibly an interview with Craig Taillefer of Wahoo Morris.

Some new comics out today that I'll probably be looking at are:

Beta Ray Bill: Godhunter # 1 (of 3) - How do you kill a God? I think it's fair to say that the typical response to that question would be, 'you don't'. The equine Thor counterpart Beta Ray Bill apparently feels differently. This new miniseries focuses on Bill's vengeful plans for the world-eating Galactus. Beta Ray Bill has always been more of a fringe hero - a 'cult classic' in a sense, whose appearance often leads fans to thinking that he's more of a joke than a genuine, emotionally-compelled character. I'm pretty stoked to see how this will turn out.

Deadpool # 11 - I've had nothing but praise for Daniel Way and Paco Medina's run on Deadpool. Consistently hilarious fourth-wall-breaking moments, inspired interactions with contemporary 'buzz' characters in the Marvel U, and original plot threads have all been staples of the obnoxious merc's latest ongoing series. Last issue ended with a run in between DP and Bullseye that looks to get messy with # 11.

Buck Rogers # 1 - Dynamite Comics' highly touted reboot of the classic Buck Rogers franchise. I was never much of a Buck Rogers (or sci fi altogether) fan myself, but the cultural significance surrounding the character makes for a reason in itself to give this title a shot. Comic Book Resources has a review up that speaks of how this incarnation of Buck is a real departure from the Buck Rogers your Father, or your Grandfather grew up with.

Red Robin # 1 - Everything in recent Batman canon seems to revolve around the same questions; "Who is the new mystery character in X outfit?", "How will other Batman characters react to this?", and "Is Bruce Wayne really gone?". Red Robin is no exception. I can't wait for DC to move past these tackily repetetive 'hype-building' story arcs and just go forward with their new slate of character changes. Grant Morrison's Batman and Robin looks promising because its actually doing this. Hopefully Red Robin segues into a similar format quickly.

Veil # 1 - I can be a sucker for horror/mysteries. This title, IDW's latest, focuses on a female private eye named Chris Luna who can interact with the dead. Apparently broke from trying to keep a successful practice selling her services to ghosts, ghouls and the like, Chris is forced to return home to Maine - where she will apparently come face to face with all of the terrors that lurk below the Wild Blueberry State.

In addition to these, some other ongoing titles out today include:

Proof # 20, Flash Rebirth # 3, and Fables # 85

New Comic Day! Plus, Portugal.The Man! Peaches!

2009-06-03T10:05:00.000-07:00

It's been a fantastic week for concerts here in Calgary - in the past six days, I've caught performances by Peaches, TV on the Radio, and (my personal favorite of the bunch) Portugal.The Man.

I can honestly say that The Portugal.The Man concert was one of the best shows I've ever had the privilege of attending. I've been following the band since, well, before they were even a band - the lead singer/songwriter John Gourley had previously been in a band on Fearless Records called Anatomy of a Ghost, and after they broke up back in 2004, I was pretty excited to see he had put together another project (PTM) shortly thereafter. Three albums later, to see them finally come to Calgary and play a relatively tiny venue like the Marquee Room was almost surreal.

They played a fantastically high energy set, bringing to life the Alaskan indie-prog-rock-blues-gospel sound they've worked hard to define on a small, barely elevated stage in front of a suprisingly sparse crowd of locals. I guess 'Alaskan' could be considered a bit of a misnomer, since while the majority of the band was formed in Wasilla, these days the band is based out of Portland, Oregon.

Anyway, I took a video of one of the heavier songs from the performance, 'Chicago', which you can watch below:

Incidentally, I also took a video of Peaches performing Kick It this past weekend at Macewan Hall - if you're interested, it's embedded below. After the video you can find my look at some of the new comics that are out this week.

Some of the new comics out this week - (featuring 'supposedly' major developments for Marvel's Ultimate Universe)

Ultimatum # 4: Jeph Loeb's unabashed rape of the ultimate universe continues. Whose head will explode this issue? What senseless action will be served up in place of tangible plot? Buy it today and see!

Ultimate Spider-Man # 133: They've been dangling the ambiguous fate of Peter Parker in our faces for months now, hinting that some catastrophic event will remove him from his current role as Spider-Man to make way for a new Spidey in the upcoming USM Volume 2. In this, the final issue of Ultimate Spider-Man, we might just get our first real idea as to what that fate is.

Batman and Robin # 1: Battle for the Cowl decided it: Dick Grayson (formerly Nightwing, formerly Robin) is the new Batman, and Damian Wayne (son of Bruce) has assumed the mantle of the next Robin. This is Grant Morrisson's next chapter in the ongoing death and rebirth of Batman saga. Fortunately that whole rebirth part isn't to be taken as literally as it was back in the 90's when Doomsday took down the Man of Steel.

Timestorm 2009-2099: Spider-Man # 1: I've been digging the Timestorm 2009-2099 vibe so far, with its knowledgeable references to the original 2099 titles and a genuinely compelling (if still somewhat mysterious) angle to the plot. This comic features the return of, or in this case the revised origin of, Miguel O'Hara as Spider-Man 2099.

Daredevil Noir # 3 (of 4): I found the first two issues of Daredevil Noir to move somewhat slower than the other Marvel Noir titles thus far. It still paints Matt Murdock as a pretty cool, if somewhat one-dimensional, retro Daredevil, and plays to the complicated relationship DD had with Kingpin in mainstream Marvel continuity. Hopefully the plot shifts up a gear with this issue, and we see some genuine twists and plot reveals.

Belated new comic day! Plus Cuddlecore, and more.

2009-05-28T15:40:00.000-07:00

Delay! Horrifying! Horrible!

...But you'll get over it, I'm sure. Or you'll stop reading my blog. Which actually would be pretty unfortunate, now that I think about it.

Apologies for the delay! Apologies!

I had a very awesome conversation with Mr. Troy Little this past week, out of Prince Edward Island. He's notably released two graphic novels through big time comic house IDW Publishing, Angora Napkin and Chiaroscuro Vol. 1. The former was turned into a pilot for Teletoon, which should apparently be debuting any day now.

I really dug Troy's work, and you should most definitely read the article I wrote from our chat here.

While we were talking about Angora Napkin, Troy reminded me of a band I haven't thought of in a moose's age - Vancouver 'cuddle-core' pop musicians Cub. What's cuddle-core, you say? It was a sub-genre of indie alt rock in the mid-nineties, characterized by poppy, simplistic punk style chord progressions and irrepressibly upbeat harmonies. At least that's how I understand it.

Anyway, I initially only distantly recalled Cub, so I took to Youtube to track down some of their old videos - and this one popped up:

I remember catching this video on the Wedge on Much Music back circa 1995. Mid-nineties music nostalgia has now consumed my mp3 player.

Oh right, and the part about new comics this week:

First, we have a couple of new titles launching that look worth checking out -

Starcraft # 1 - Written by Keith Giffen and released by Wildstorm, the debut of Blizzard's epic space franchise as a comic book looks to at least begin on an interesting note. Starcraft # 1 features a troupe of AWOL marines on a mission to assassinate Jim Raynor - a name anyone familiar with the legendary PC strategy game will recognize. I generally dig Giffen's work, so his involvement on this project is also a plus.

Dark Reign: The Hood # 1 - Starring Parker Robbins in his very own limited series! The popularity of this character (made infamous in the Marvel canon within the pages of New Avengers) is pretty unsurprising. Aesthetically a cross between Marvel hero Cloak and Dante from Devil May Cry, his visage, combined with his marksmanship, ability to turn invisible at will, and current demonic possession, adds up to a character just loaded with obvious potential for fan appeal. Hopefully this series, expanding on his current reign as overlord of New York's criminal empire, will succeed in playing up the psychological development of the character.

Several collected editions of stellar series' also came out this week -

Battlefields TPB Vol. 2: Dear Billy - Second in Garth Ennis' trilogy of tales from the frontline of World War 2. A must pick up for any fan of Ennis, as well as for anyone interested in the oft-neglected comic book genre of historical war fiction.

Spider-Man Noir HC - You could click back through my reviews of the Spider-Man Noir monthlies to get a more detailed assesment of how I felt about this title - but I'll say here that I loved it, and thought it (so far) has been the best of Marvel's Noir reimaginings. The characters were ostensibly quite different in a lot of ways, but writer David Hine managed to translate the tone of their individual personalities perfectly. Definitely worth reading.

X-Men: Magneto Testament HC - Written by Greg Pak, who thoroughly researched holocaust accounts and literature prior to starting the project, the five issue Magneto Testament consistently pulled in wild critical praise. Providing a more thorough examination into the character known as Magneto's childhood than ever before, the collected hardcover edition is sure to be a top selling title. Check out IGN's review of the final issue here.

...Which brings us to the regular monthlies worth a read -

Ignition City # 3 -Warren Ellis' futuristic space-western continues. Ellis has thus far proven his vision for Ignition City to be both imaginative and a departure from the cliche's typically associated with the genre.

Ultimate Wolverine vs. Hulk # 6 (of 6) - Finally, Ultimate Wolverine vs. Hulk comes to its conclusion! After the title was postponed just two issues in back in 2005, it leapt back into regular production this past March and blitzed through the remaining chapters in the crossover, finishing its run in May. To be honest, I've been waiting to read this title til I knew it'd actually have a published ending.

New Avengers # 53 -Continuing the storyline of Dr. Strange seeking the new sorceror supreme before the Hood can find him first. With Norman Osborne still in charge of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Dark Avengers still roving around, it's hard not to see this arc as filler. That being said, Brian Michael Bendis ensures it's still well-written filler, and that combined with my longstanding attachment to the New Avengers title is enough for me.

Wolverine # 72 (Old Man Logan part 7) - Fortunately, fans haven't wait as long for this issue of Mark Millar and Steve McNiven's Old Man Logan arc as they did for issue # 71 (when the series experienced a three month hiatus). The pacing of this series has been picking up more with every issue, and I expect # 72 to be a doozy - especially considering the last issue ended with the death of a friend and a bullet-ridden Logan being taken to President Red Skull.

Phew! That's a walletful of new content.

Also! I'm currently trying to track down any Canadian comic creators/artists/writers that might be interested in being interviewed for the Fabler Blog. Contact me if you fit the bill and you'd like some exposure on our burgeoning little Calgary-based comic website.

New Comic Day!

2009-05-20T09:40:00.000-07:00

I think I need more consistency in my pull list. I tend to be a bit of a Marvel fanboy, with Vertigo leanings and a tendency to buy into the occasional sensationalist DC cashgrab. This isn't to say I don't read a lot of indie stuff as well - I do, particularly pertaining to those artists/writers I'm interviewing for one publication or another.

(Speaking of which, the latest interview features Gareth Gaudin, creator of the Magic Teeth Dailies and Perogy Cat, and it should be up at some point today)

What I'm getting at is that, since Marvel is constantly churning out miniseries' and spinoff titles, and much of what I read from DC is also to that effect, my own pull list is constantly changing. The titles I read without fail these days - when you subtract all of the limited run series' - are Daniel Way's Deadpool, Bill Willingham's Fables, and Brian Michael Bendis' New Avengers. Introspective pull list talk ends now.

I think I'll write an article in the very near future about how comic shops are among those businesses working counterpoint to the economic decline. In my interview with Gareth, (who owns Legends comic shop in Victoria) as well as in recent talks with local comic shop owners, it's been a recurring theme that the comic business is very much on the up and up these days. Be it a mixture of hype generated by big budget comic blockbusters such as Iron Man, the Dark Knight, Watchmen, and X-Men Origins: Wolverine, or simply the same trend that's allowing the movie and theatre industries to thrive relatively unaffacted, comic shops are busier now than they have been in a very long time. Like fifteen years long, thinking back to the early-to-mid-nineties when Marvel flagship brands like Spider-Man and X-Men were making a killing.

Back to today's pull list -
here are the titles I'll be picking up this week:

Batman: Battle for the Cowl #3 (of 3) - Conclusion to the trilogy focusing on the acsension of a new Bat. The first two issues have been all over the place, featuring character cameos from all corners of the Bat-o-verse, including a gun-toting Jason Todd blazing a trail of dead criminals while masquerading as the Batman himself. This one promises to reveal who will emerge wearing the cowl. The art has been pretty consistently stellar with this title.

Jack of Fables # 34 - The Great Fables Crossover continues! Almost every week there's been another Bill Willingham title out pertaining to this Vertigo event. While it's getting a little tedious to write something about the same event every week, the actual writing surrounding it has been great. I'm genuinely excited to see where the Crossover is ultimately going to take the Fables universe.

Timestorm 2009-2099 # 2 (of 4) - The first issue of this limited run crossover was awesome, epic even. Bringing back a slough of familiar faces from Spider-Man 2099, concepts from Punisher 2099 such as the Church of Thor and the Public Eye Police Force, and weaving it together into a new future spawned by recent events in the current Marvel continuum... the supplementary text in the back of issue # 1 was a pretty solid neccessity in understanding the depth of content referenced in what promises to be a fanastic (if short) adventure. Issue # 2 begins where # 1 left off, with current Spider-Man drugged and stranded in a cell in the future, and with current Wolverine transported into a world of rampaging Hulk monsters.

Wolverine Noir # 2 (of 4) - Oh, the Noir titles. Still a great idea, but with the ambitious depth of plot that Marvel writers have been fleshing these out with, I can't help but think they would have been better released exclusively in TPB form. Strictly as monthlies, each new issue demands a reread of the previous issue just to keep a grounding in what's going on. Not that I'm saying that's always a bad thing, just that in this case, they're only four issue titles - it really wouldn't be that difficult to skip the monthly stage entirely.

That being said, Wolverine Noir started pretty solidly, with throwbacks to the Wolverine Origins storyline of two children named James and Dog weaved into a gritty detective drama. As was the intended effect, I have absolutely no idea where they'll take issue # 2 - the title still has an 'anything could happen' feel to it, which I'm digging on.

New Comic Day! (in brief, with a minor series of updates)

2009-05-13T11:51:00.000-07:00

It's been another busy past week, filled with all sorts of twists and turns both in my work and personal life. This must be a herald to the beginning of a real Calgary summer - moving from winter to summer (we rarely get what you'd call a spring) always seems to involve a fair share of turbulence.

This update's going to have to be pretty short, so I'll keep it to the basics.

I should have another article up on the Fabler blog later today, featuring a profile of Richard Grzela. Richard has a pretty nifty comic book/rpg publishing company with a unique take on how the two can work together. I recommend checking out his site at 14ucomics.net.

Some comics out today that I think are worth checking out:

The Umbrella Academy: Dallas # 6 (of 6) - I've been reading this from the start, and digging it immensely. Gerard Way blows my mind with this project.

Secret Warriors # 4 - Nick Fury takes the action to Hydra's doorstep, while the Warriors continue to establish their characters in a comparatively less significant plot. This series is just gaining momentum, and I'm pretty interested in seeing where it'll go from here.

Wonderful Wizard of Oz # 6 (of 8) - If you haven't been reading this up until now, I don't recommend buying the monthlies to catch up - I kind of wish I didn't buy the monthlies to begin with. Not that it isn't a great read, it just would have made more sense to wait for the collected release. Since the plot doesn't really differ from the original novel, you know what's going to happen each issue - the only anticipation lies in how fantastically talented artist Skottie Young will present the visuals for each chapter. Without the anticipation of not knowing what's going to happen next, this series doesn't really build any excitement for me in picking it up each month.

Fables # 84 - Part four of the 'Great Fables Crossover' event. As is evidenced by the cover, Jack's back in a Fables comic.

That's all for now, kids. Stay tuned - I'm working on an overhaul to my blog design, and some other significant changes. Excitement abounds.

New Comic Day! Plus a couple of webcomic recommendations.

2009-05-06T09:57:00.000-07:00

When I wrote my Top Ten Webcomics List a few months ago, there were a number of other comics I'd have liked to include - unfortunately, a top twenty-five, or a top fifty list doesn't jive well with readability in a blog.

Before I mention a few of my recommendations for the new comics out this week, I'd like to point out a couple of additional webcomics worth checking out. Namely, the Victoria-based Magicteeth Dailies, and Diesel Sweeties (which is also a website that sells clothing, some related to the comic and some not so much).

Magicteeth Dailies is (or was, I'm not sure if they're still being published in print) the creation of Gareth Gaudin, a comic shop owner in Victoria, BC. The principle character is the much-loved Perogy Cat, a Canadian comic icon in its own right.

Diesel Sweeties, done by Richard Stevens III, is a pixelated 'robot humor' webcomic that has been running for EVER. Or at least since 2000. It's pretty well known, so you might actually know it already - but if you don't, and you dig off-kilter satire of social behaviours involving ex-pornstars, gay robots, and pretentious indie rockstars, I'm sure you'll love it.

As for the comics out today, some that I (for one) will be picking up include:

Astro City: the Dark Age Book Three #1 (of 4) - Astro City titles are my favorite comics to reread, over and over and over... Busiek's gift for pitting traditional hero archetypes in humanizing, unique contexts is pretty well unsurpassed. Despite the confusing numbering of this book it's being touted as a new jumping-on point, which explores Astro City in the early 1980's.

Flash Rebirth # 2 (of 5) - I dug the first issue in this restart of Barry Allen's Flash. The title promises to deliver a story of a hero who doesn't belong in the world anymore trying to find how to fit back in. Issue 1 also saw beginnings of a murder mystery, so hopefully issue 2 will weave that into something more substantial.

Daredevil Noir # 2 (of 4) -I'm apparently a sucker for Marvel's gimmicky marketing tactics. I've read all of the Noir title issues to date, and while Daredevil still hasn't gripped me like Spider-Man Noir did, it's definitely more readable than X-Men Noir. The verdict is still also out on Wolverine Noir. Noir Noir Noir.

Fin Fang Four Return # 1 -Starring former Marvel giant monsters shrunk to human size and trying to live an otherwise normal existence. The creative team of Scott Gray and Roger Langride (who did the previous Fin Fang Four stories) return to collaborate on this, which I can only assume will be another hilariously farcical, atypical Marvel comic book.

Public Enemy TPB Volume 1 - Collecting the first 5 issues of the Public Enemy series, (put out by American Mule) written by Chuck D himself and starring the whole PE crew as they fight corruption and oppression under their secret supergroup alias the Underground Railroad. Why would you not buy this? Really.

What's On the Shelves: Selections from the Last Week in Comics, April 29- May 2nd edition.

2009-05-04T23:22:00.000-07:00

Reviewing The Stuff of Legend free comic day offering, Battlefields: the Tankies # 1 (of 3), and The Literals # 1 (of 3).

Well now.

I hope everyone had a chance to hit up their local comic shop for this past Free Comic Day (May 2nd). 'Round these parts, the standard offer seemed to be two comics free, and 25 cents for each additional comic. Suffice to say, I picked up a slew.

I'm going to be picking up my bi-weekly comic reviews by featuring one item from the Free Comic Day lineup, and a couple that were released this past April 29. So technically this is almost like a weekly comic review, in that I'm only writing about stuff that came out within the same week. I wish I presently had the luxury of time to write something about what I thought of all of the issues I read from Free Comic Day, but alas! Such is not to be.

Of the material that was new to me, I really dug Mike Raicht and Brian Smith's book, The Stuff of Legend. Heavily stylized, sketch-style art with sparse paneling lend heavily to the 'classical fairytale' feel of the comic. Which is good, because it saves it from attracting parallels to Toy Story knockoff - a very real danger when the plot revolves around a group of toys who set off to save their child owner. Technically, the free comic day version of The Stuff of Legend is only the first 20 pages of the real first issue, which will be 52 pages in total.

It was enough to whet my appetite for more - I'd be very interested in seeing where this series will go. Especially with the closing teaser image of a battlefield (beyond the clost where the child disappeared, whisked away in the clutches of the Boogeyman) littered with corpes, where real-life-actualized versions of the toys did battle with similarly actualized versions of the child's old, discarded playthings.

If my description of The Stuff of Legend isn't enough, check out CBR's extremely positive review of the first issue. The reviewer predicts it to be a surprise hit of 2009, likening it to Mouse Guard's success four years ago. If only we didn't have to wait until July to see all of it ourselves...

I've been digging Garth Ennis' work on Battlefields since his initial Battlefields: Night Witches 3-parter. It's great to see Ennis excel at applying his knack for brutal, high-impact concepts and imagery to telling stories with a gritty, less sensational edge than what he often otherwise sticks to. You could look to the Boys, Punisher MAX, Preacher, or any number of Ennis projects as an example of the latter.

Battlefields: the Tankies (issue #1 of 3) marks the beginning of the final story in the nine issue Battlefields series. Keeping with the established theme of fictional, human stories from the historical frontlines of WW2, Tankies follows an isolated British tank crew as they attempt to survive the warzone that is the French countryside during the Battle of Normandy.

Tankies is slightly difficult to follow, at least initially, largely due to Ennis' use of British WW2-era vernacular. Lines like "Gooner, stand by on the seventy-five. make sure the belt on the besa's tight, ah divven't want any cock-oops..." bear a second (or third) reading. Past the language and terminology, however, Tankies stands strong as a story that explores different human reactions to the horrific violence they are exposed to on the frontlines of the Battle of Normandy.

Also part three of Vertigo's Great Fables Crossover event, the Literals # 1 of 3 launched this past Wednesday.

Written by Bill Willingham and Mathew Sturges, this title expands on the characters identified in Jack of Fables as 'Literals' - individuals who are literary devices rather than established characters from folklore. The first issue focuses on one Literal in particular - former journalist Kevin Thorne, who possesses the power to rewrite existence with barely an afterthought.

The title is neccessary reading for anyone keeping up with either of the other two Fables titles, due to its significance in the crossover event.

Willingham has done a fantastic job of keeping his idea of storybook characters living in contemporary USA from getting stale, and the Literals really only underscores this point. It's a brilliant, interesting idea and manages to take Fables canon in yet another direction.

The best part of The Literals is that it keeps the reader completely uncertain of what's to come on a page to page basis. It seems that every second page either reveals new (though strangely familiar) characters, unexpectedly brings back an older character, or forces new developments upon central figures in the plot. It does this while retaining the colorful, quirky-yet-dangerous tone that has become a hallmark of all things Fables.

Back from California! (and a new comic day shortlist!)

2009-04-28T09:33:00.000-07:00

Holy smoking hosebeasts, folks! Lately I've been busier than Brian Mulroney's publicist.

In a nutshell; after working slavishly as A&E editor for the Calgary Journal while churning out final assignments by the truckload over the past month or so, I'm now finito with the Mount Royal College post-graduate Journalism program.

To commemorate this moderately spectacular achievement, I went on a vacation/blitz of California. (Hence the lack of updates for the past few weeks)

We hit up Coachella, where my personal highlight involved Public Enemy performing the entirety of the album, "It takes a nation of millions to hold us back" from beginning to end - followed by a fantastically high energy rendition of Fight the Power. Flavor Flav, much to the chagrin of visibly exasperated stage security, insisted on repeated stage dives throughout the set.

Then we made our way down to San Diego, where I acquired a wonderful new tattoo (of a pixelated black mage sprite from FF1) from Mr. Steven Mast of Avalon Tattoo (and also Designs by Dana in Cincinnati).

After rounding the trip up with a solid run through Disneyland, Universal Studios, Hollywood, and Las Vegas, I made it back just in time for the 2009 Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo.

The verdict on this year's expo? Busy as shit. Seriously. Mid-day Saturday, lineup times ranged from 30 minutes (with a ticket) to well over an hour without. On Sunday, local onsite pizza providers Coco Brooks ran out of pizza. How does that even happen?

I didn't get to check all of the panels that I would have liked to, but of the ones I did attend, I was pretty entertained by James Kyson Lee as he talked up the importance of Ando on tv's Heroes. He really takes the Batman/Superman dynamic joke about himself and Hiro pretty seriously. And you know what? More power to him. I could do with more adventures of the Crimson Arc and his Ando-bike next season. It's not like the show hasn't already established that it'll try pretty much anything once to boost ratings.

Other highlights:

Picked up the debut album from Kirby Krackle, mostly acoustic geekrock at its finest.
Talked with Johnny Luu, Nick Johnson, and Vince Smith about the new Vicious Ambitious anthology Rocket Juice and where the indie company has been, where it's going.
Chatted with Chris Johnston about his first comic book, Jet Pack Mike. Very rad read, black and white with art remiscent of Mike Mignola.
Got to meet some very rad artists and writers. (Mark Brooks, Fiona Staples, Terry Moore,
Scored (among other things) a zombie Colonel America figure for $10, around $100 worth of trades from Happy Harbor for 25% off, and this rad Deadpool sketch from artist Ian Navarro:

From here, it's back to regular updates - weekly comic previews, biweekly reviews, and all the usual in-between. This week I'll also have an article up on the Fabler - a new website that was launched by Zensoft Studios to coincide with the Calgary Comic Expo. The idea, I've been told by its founder Bruno Steppuhn, is to build a community supporting indie comic writers and artists where they can showcase their work, receive feedback on it, comment on others' stuff, and participate in dialogue with like-minded creative minds. Or that's the impression I received, anyway.

On that note - this week, just a quick list of my picks from the latest comic releases:

- Batman: Battle for the Cowl, the Underground (one shot)
- Battlefields Tankies # 1
- Dark Avengers # 4
- Dark Reign Cabal
- Thunderbolts # 131
- Literals # 1 (of 3)

Updates! Plus New Comic Day, the 1994 Fantastic Four movie, and more

2009-04-14T23:38:00.000-07:00

I won't be posting a bi-weekly comic review this week, as I'm just wrapping up finals and leaving for a week-long sojourn to California early Friday morning. Coachella! San Diego! Anaheim! Los Angeles! All kinds of wonderful.

I'll have my trusty Canon Rebel XTi along for the ride, so images from the trip should be up on Flickr in a few weeks.

I'll be returning to Calgary just in time for the Calgary Comic & Entertainment Expo - as a reminder to anyone who can make it out to the Round Up Center in Calgary on April 25th/26th, the event should be a blast. In addition to showcasing local talent such as Riley Rossmo, Fiona Staples, and the Vicious Ambitious lads, the organizers have managed to book Terry Moore (Strangers in Paradise), Darwyn Cooke (DC The New Frontier), Sergio Aragones (Groo), Steve Niles (30 Days of Night), and a host of other fantastic comic creators/artists/writers.

They also nabbed James Kyson Lee (Ando from Heroes), Jewel Staite (Kaylee on Firefly), and Tahmoh Penikett (Helo in BSG and Paul Allard in Dollhouse). The programming was announced a few days ago, and it seems like if you have to pick between the two days, this year Saturday is the day to go. Panels on Groo, Halo`s Master Chief, Heroes, independant comics (with Terry Moore and Mike Allred), Harry Potter, and Jewel Staite will all be squished into the one day.

While we`re on the topic of non-sequiturs, I have an article on buying and selling in-game commodities in MMORPG's up at CJ Connect. The money that can be reaped from brokering WoW account sales is absolutely staggering. Seriously. Like, "sell the condo and buy a ranch, WoW just dropped another expansion!" staggering. Possibly not that staggering.

But enough nonsense. Wednesday has reared its majestic maw of midweekery once again, which means new material for comic fans everywhere.

This week, I`m recommending:

Walking Dead # 60 - Robert Kirkman is a name that guarantees entertainment in pretty well anything he does, and Walking Dead is one of his two long running creator-owned titles (the other being Invincible). Kirkman's latest arc in Walking Dead, 'Those Left Behind', has been a layered examination into how violent anger can transform the human psyche. The latest issue picks up with Rick, Carl, and Abraham surrounded on all sides by an undead legion. Advertisements for the issue suggest another character death may be afoot.

Fables # 83 - Bill Willingham is my favorite comic book writer. I misplace no words here - Fables is one of the best comic series' of the last decade, and remains the single most universally accessible title that I find I can recommend to people.

The 83rd issue of the title represents the beginning of a significant Vertigo comics event. It marks the start of Fables Crossover, a 9 part series which will span 3 different comics over 3 months: Fables, Jack of Fables, and the Literals. Apparently some major changes are in store for Willingam's collection of classic-fantasy-characters-cum-modern-urbanites.

Perhapanauts Vol. 1: Triangle (TPB) - Perhapanauts has been around since 2005, when it was created by writer Todd Dezago and artist Craig Roussau for Dark Horse comics. After releasing two moderately successful miniseries' about a ragtag government agency of supernatural entities, the duo moved the comic over to Image. Perhapanauts: Triangle is the collected issues from the title's initial run on Image, following the exploits of the group as they delve deep into the mysteries of the Bermuda Triangle.

I haven't started on the Perhapanauts myself yet, but I've heard nothing but good things about Dezago and Roussau's work. This trade seems like an ideal point for hopping onto the series, since it reintroduced the characters to a slightly different fanbase after migrating from Dark Horse.

Wolverine Noir # 1 (of 4) - Marvel's present noir fixation treads on with Wolverine Noir, written by Stuart Moore and illustrated by C.P. Smith. The two have previously collaborated on the stories contained in the trade paperback Wolverine: Blood and Sorrow, which was a pretty solid collection of four stand-alone tales.

Wolverine Noir seems like it'll be more of a traditional crime noir story than Marvel's other recent entries into the genre. Logan and his brother dog operate as private investigators in 1937 New York, operating a 'seedy' business that is forever turned on its head when 'swanky dame' Mariko Yashida first walks through their office doors. The fact alone that Moore's including Yashida in this miniseries speaks highly of its potential - Yashida has always been a compelling element in Logan's long and often tumultuous history.

Also -

If you find yourself with a solid half hour to kill anytime soon, I highly recommend skimming through the 1994 Fantastic Four feature film.

After Catwoman, this has to be the most horrifically bad comic book adaptation in history. The funny thing is, it was never actually meant to be good. Some of you might be aware of this laughably amateur attempt at a movie already, but for those of you who aren't, the down-low is as follows:

German film production company Constantin Film owned an option on the Fantastic Four film rights around the early 90's. At the time, Constantin didn't actually have the money to make the movie, so they were essentially sitting on it til they could scrounge up the neccessary funds. However, option rights tend to inconveniently expire from time to time. Bearing this in mind, Constantin set out to churn out a low budget version of the FF, not for mass release, but purely to secure their hold on the rights to the franchise.

This is where it gets good. They actually hired a director, cast, and crew without informing them that they were signing on to make a fluff movie that (Constantin hoped) would never see the light of day. (Reality TV show pitch waiting to happen!)

The result? 90 minutes of amateur footage so bad that it's actually physically hurts a little to think about.

Links to the movie in its entirety are below:
Part 1 Part 2 Part 3
Part 4 Part 5 Part 6
Part 7 Part 8 Part 9

Comic book profiteering 101: Obama lays a battle axe beatdown on winter winter witch Palin

2009-04-08T12:55:00.001-07:00

Forget being the first African-American President, or a perceived icon of hope after G.W.B.'s extended shitstorm of a Presidential term - one of Barack Obama's greatest accomplishments is entering himself in the lexicon of comic stardom faster than any single comic character ever.

His enshrinement in comicdom began with Amazing Spider-Man # 583. The now famous issue contains a brief side story featuring Chameleon's attempt to usurp the Man on inaugaration day. Marvel has, to date, issued a whopping FOUR reprints of the comic since its debut in January.

From there, Barack went on to make appearances in Thunderbolts, Youngbloods, and Savage Dragon. His status as a comic celebrity was immortalized on the cover of comic/toy/videogame/general geek magazine 'Wizard's 210th issue. Some fans even went so far as to launch a comicsindustryforobama network on Ning.

Now, apparently the latest attempt to capitalize on comic book character Obama involves battle axes, bulging biceps, and a scantily-clad Sarah Palin dressed only in wolfskin. Chicago-based comic publishing company Devil's Due is launching a series of comics featuring the Democrat leader in a variety of fictional roles - the first of which he stars in as 'Barack the Barbarian'.

Throbbing muscles, loin cloths, and sweaty battles in fantasy settings... Shameless profiteering off of uncopyrightable public figures has rarely looked so bizarrely sexual in nature.

New Comic Day!

2009-04-08T09:31:00.000-07:00

Comic-related movie buzz continues to be a hot topic in the mainstream. Yesterday, Universal Studios officially announced its plans for an Umbrella Academy movie adaptation. Anyone who's been following my blog will know that I am a huge fan of this title, and I don't even feel I have to add "despite that it's written by Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance". Also yesterday, Aint it Cool News posted some of the first photos from the set of Iron Man 2.

Today, Warren Ellis launches a new series, Marvel's latest Noir title hits the stands with its first issue, Marvel Zombies 3 is released in hardcover, and... a revisit to the Marvel 2099 universe?

Hearken, for new comic day is upon us.

Some titles worth checking out this week (in my humble opinion):

Wonderful Wizard of Oz # 5 (of 8) - This faithful adaptation of L.Frank Baum's original Wizard of Oz has featured fantastic art and a decently represented dialogue from the get-go. Since it doesn't present any new takes on the story or have a specific 'angle, at this point I'm picking it up mostly for Skottie Young's uniquely bizzare illustrations.

Timestorm 2009/2099 #1 - Man, I remember collecting all those 2099 titles back in '92 and thinking, "I'll be able to sell these for ten times the cover price in a few decades!" Between the foil covers on each of the #1 issues, the hype Marvel built up around its 'classic heroes in a dystopic future setting' motif, and the trends in collecting comics for profit that were going around at the time... alas, the value was never to be reaped, thanks to the comic book bust in the mid-nineties.

But I digress. The 2099 characters have returned a few times since the nineties, and apparently Marvel has decided it's time once again to revisit its chronologically misplaced properties. Marvel is billing this comic as a look into an alternate future that has been severely changed by the events that have transpired in the current Marvel U.

Marvel Zombies Vol. 3 (HC) - The third collected volume following the adventures of the zombified Marvel heroes as they invade Earth 616 (the main Marvel universe). It contains all four issues of the run which, curiously, substituted Kev Walker for the original artistic duo of Sean Phillips and Arthur Suydam. Gone too is Walking Dead's Robert Kirkman, with writer Fred Van Lente (X-Men Noir) taking the helm.

Daredevil Noir # 1 (of 4) - Speaking of Marvel's Noir imprints, Daredevil Noir #1 is also out today. Written by sci-fi writer Alex Irvine and illustrated by Tomm Coker (Blood and Water), the series is once again set in 1930's New York - specifically, Hell's Kitchen. Kingpin and and a retro version of Bull's Eye have been confirmed as characters. Since Spiderman Noir was extremely well done and X-Men Noir failed horribly at being interesting series with a cohesive plot, I'm approaching Daredevil Noir with a mindset that it could go either way.

The fact that it has a reduced amount of characters (as was the case with Spidey Noir) and consequently doesn't risk being bogged down by complexity (as X-Men Noir was) might be reason to be hopeful.

Ignition City # 1 (of 5) - Warren Ellis is another writer in the business (right up there with Brian Michael Bendis) who produce more content than could possibly come out of one person. Between Ellis' webcomic Freak Angels, his blog/Twitter updating, his ongoing No Hero series for Avatar, and whatever else he has for prose/writing for television in the works, he has found time to helm a new series entitled Ignition City.

Ignition City will apparently mix elements from steampunk and pulp Western genres to tell a story about "where the space heroes went to die" - with swearing and rayguns. Art is by Gianluca Pagliarani, with whom Ellis has previously worked on Aetheric Mechanics.

The cover image is below.

Some other items of note:

Ellis wrote a G.I. Joe micro-series some time ago to be released in short installments in animated format. The title, G.I. Joe: Resolute, is going to be airing online on Adult Swim beginning on the 25th of April.

I didn't get into them here, but today Wolverine: Weapon X and Deadpool: Suicide Kings both also kicked off with their respective first issues. This couldn't possibly have anything to do with the rapidly approaching release of the X-Men Origins: Wolverine film, which features both Marvel properties. Nah.

Tweet or die: the PR ultimatum

2009-04-05T22:38:00.001-07:00

So I wrote this essay on Twitter last week. It was ten pages, for a cursory public relations course where we essentially could choose any topic under the sun - so long as it vaguely pertained to the industry.

My peers are somewhat sick of hearing about Twitter. I find it curious that I'm the only post-grad Journalism cert student using the service, so it just comes up from time to time, I guess.

In any case, the whole thrust of my thesis was that Twitter - and the concept of 'microblogging' altogether - is not just a useful tool for spin masters, but a necessary one. Thanks to discussion board forums, blogs, tweeting and retweeting, youtube vblogs, independant podcasts, and the whole bloody tremendous host of 'talky parts' that makes up the social web... opinions can now travel like wildfire, if wildfire could hop continents in milliseconds and spread in a vacuum.

This means that, if and when bad publicity somehow makes it on the web, shit rolls downhill fast.

Case in point: last year, Dr. Pepper promised a free soft drink to everyone in America if the Guns n' Roses album 'Chinese Democracy' released before the end of the year. I follow the logic - if our ears are going to be collectively assaulted by an aging Axl Rose & his new make-believe G n' R, we deserve something in exchange. When the album actually did drop, much to everyone's surprise (read: disappointment), Dr. Pepper allotted a 24 hour window to sign up on their site for a coupon to get a free bottle of their product. The site crashed, and Guns n' Roses got all pissy. They set their lawyer upon Dr. Pepper, who wrote a very strong worded letter cussing them out for their 'raw and damaging exploitation' of the washed-up rock band.

The internets picked this up faster than you can say web two point - and circulated it like mad. Dr. Pepper's response came several days later, by which point the damage was irreversable - they were forced to reopen the giveaway for a 48 hour window, and establish a toll-free line to call for coupons.

Example deux, the 'moms against Motrin' fiasco.

The painkiller Motrin launched a wildly miscalculated advertising campaign targeting Moms who wear baby slings. In it, they imply that baby slings are worn because they are 'fashionable', and because they 'make you look like an official mom'. It suggests that Moms look 'crazy' for doing this, but at least Motrin helps to ease the pain supposedly associated with the fashion statement. Original ad is below:

Naturally, a web savvy armada of angered sling-bearing Moms took arms against Motrin's blatantly offensive advert. Their weapon: Twitter. The Moms posted in droves using the hashtag #motrinmoms to rally together, and made media headlines. Motrin was forced to pull the ad and, several days later, issued a belated a stiff apology. As one blogger put it, the lesson learned is, "when life gives you lemons, tweet back to prevent a crisis!"

The modern social web is filled with examples of PR 'situations' that caused serious damage after spreading through modern social technologies unchecked by a quick enough response. In both cases, human responses via Twitter could have significantly impacted the end result. In the case of Dr. Pepper, a little counter-spin right off the get go could have turned the whole letter from Axle's lawyer into a laughing matter itself. 'Guns n' Roses blame failure of Chinese Democracy on Dr. Pepper'. Etc, etc.

In the case of Motrin, direct human interfacing with the legion of angry Twittering moms would have given them a channel to vent through, and potentially created the image that the company was working with the Moms to fix the issue rather than being ran out of town by a righteous mob of pitchfork wielding motherly-types.

The bottom line is, if the general public can use microblogging to make a mess of an image faster than ever before, spin masters and publicity suits owe it to their profession to be using those same technologies to remedy potential situations.

On a completely unrelated note, the Lonely Island uploaded their latest digital short for the song "Like a Boss" up to Youtube. TLI is to hilarity what TLC was to waterfalls. Yeah.
It features Andy Samberg and Seth Rogen - check it below:

New Comic Day! Plus, April Fools' tomfoolery!

2009-04-01T09:14:00.000-07:00

A new Flash titles drops, the critically acclaimed (so far) Image series Jersey Gods introduces a supplemental story arc by Mark Waid, Marvel celebrates its 70th anniversary, and the Authority face off against a an army of temporally displaced soldiers from throughout history.

Yes, this means it is NEW COMIC DAY. Holla.(?)

For my shortlist this week, the titles I would recommend checking out are:

Flash Rebirth #1 (of 5) - The DC-universe-altering events of Final Crisis may have spelled the demise of several heroes, (Martian Manhunter, Batman, Orion) but it gave us at least one hero back; Barry Allen, Silver Age comic icon and and bearer of the title "the Flash" from 1956-1985. This title follows his reception to the world of the living. Should be interesting, and the fact that it's written/illustrated by the same team that made Green Lantern Rebirth is a plus.

Jersey Gods #3 - This title has been making huge waves since its launch a few months back. Written and illustrated (respectively) by the not yet fantastically well-known team of Glen Brunswick and Dan McDaid, the premise is that everyday Jersey girl (Zoe) meets and starts dating a God named Barock. As you would imagine, complications ensue. Light-hearted, witty dialogue nicely overlaps the exceptionally unique artistic style McDaid brings to the project.

Issue # 3 features Mark Waid filling in a sub-plot concerning the history of Barock and his fellow Gods.

Authority # 9 - Picking up where #8 left off, this issue features the Authority squaring off against a clock-faced foe who throws 'weaponized time' at them. Whatever that means. Also, the Stormwatch: Team Achilles storyline continues. For those unfamiliar with the Authority, Warren Ellis created it some ten years ago for the Wildstorm imprint, and it follows the trials of a no-bullshit "by any means necessary" team of super-heroes.

Captain America Comics 70th Anniversary Special - 2009 is Marvel's 70th year making comics, and they have a host of one shots and specials planned to celebrate. Take exhibit one, Captain America's very own 70th Anniversary Special - featuring an untold story written by James Robinson of "Starman" fame (one of my personal favorite DC titles) about a young Steve Rogers. A Golden Age Cap story from Joe Simon and Jack Kirby is also included.

Any new Captain America story that brings us back to Steve Rogers is dandy in my books. Not that I'm all waxing nostalgic, since the new Bucky-as-Cap arcs have been great and all but... alright, I might be waxing nostalgic.

The cover image is below.

Also, you may have noticed that today happens to be April 1st. Consequently, a host of April Fools' Day jokes have been popping up all over the glorious internets. While social media sites and major news wires have (as usual) led the charge towards mass public prankdom, sites like Blizzard.com have put down their own chuckle-worth entries into the fray.

Some picks from the shenanigans:

Check out the newly-announced World of Warcraft Dance Battle System, an in-game DDR function that lets users of the world's most popular MMORPG form dance troupes and compete to 'serve' other players.

Yahoo launched an Ideological Search Engine where you can filter news results based on political bias. Go ahead and do a Republican-biased search of 'Democrat'.

The Guardian announced a radical format change, stating that it would soon only be available as a Twitter feed. Quote;"'In the new media environment, readers want short and punchy coverage, while the interactive possibilities of Twitter promise to transform th," the online media guru Jeff Jarvis said in a tweet yesterday, before reaching his 140-character limit"

Smellr: "It's like Flickr, but for your nose"

...and my personal favorite, SlideShare's elaborate April Fools' prank - which blew up in their faces when it made countless business professionals look like fools on their Twitter networks. Ha!

What's On the Shelves: Selections from the Last Two Weeks in Comics, March 18-25 edition.

2009-03-31T17:02:00.000-07:00

Reviewing Ultimate X-Men # 100, Thunderbolts # 130, and Battle for the Cowl Commissioner Gordon (one shot)

The second half of March saw DC's Battle for the Cowl push forward with its event tie-in titles, (BftC: Commissioner Gordon, BftC: Oracle) while Superman #686 marked the beginning of the series's run without the S-man himself. Superman is, of course, currently on the newly created planet New Krypton stirring up shit with General Zod. DC also snuck in a relaunch of Azrael, featuring the adventures of the Batman character typically (unfortunately) associated with the Knightfall event that temporarily called for an alternate Bat-figure.

Marvel, meanwhile, wrapped up the Ultimate X-Men title with its final issue, and ended Spider Man: Noir on a decidedly positive note. They've also been releasing some annoucements regarding a couple of seriously cool projects in the works - the Spider-man: Turn off the Dark musical, and the as of yet unnammed future Marvel MMO. The first link has details about the production, while the second concerns Marvel's announcement that the MMO will be tentatively released in 2012. For those of you who can't wait that long, DC Universe Online is due right around the corner in early 2010.

Ultimate X-Men # 100, released March 18th, marks the end of the long-running comic series chronicling the events of the Ultimate Universe's version of the X-Men. The title has been running since 2001, and featured a 'hipper', more contemporary take on many of the characters as young adults.

It's important to note that the Ultimate X-Men are, for the time being, still alive and kickin'. While the series won't be releasing any more issues after #100, the X-Men themselves won't ultimately meet their fate until the upcoming Ultimate X-Men: Requiem.

Written by Aron E. Coleite and penciled by Mark Brooks, Ultimate X-Men #100 picks up after the alternate-earth-shaking events in Ultimatum #1-3. Dazzler, Beast, and Nightcrawler are dead, all drowned in the flood Magneto released upon New York. Professor Charles Xavier himself has just had his neck snapped by the relentless mutant villain. Logically, you would think this story would focus predominantly on the individual reactions to these losses. However, as Wolverine points out early in the issue, "No time to think. Not now."

The X-Men resolve to instead focus their actions on taking down "Multiple Man" Jamie Madrox, whose duplicates Magneto has been using as suicide bombers the world over. Therein lies the real story in Ultimate X-Men # 100; a poignant telling of the life and death of the Multiple Man from an unexpectedly humanizing standpoint.

Coleite could have done with a little more focus on the relationships between the actual X-Men, considering their time for the Ultimate Universe is so short. However, from the angle he approached it, it worked pretty well regardless.

This issue was great as a one shot story, but somewhat unfulfilling as a series finale.

In my last reviews section, I covered the beginning of the Magnum Opus 4 part miniseries, which started in Deadpool # 8.

On March 25, Magnum Opus continued with Part 2 in Thunderbolts # 130, written by Andy Diggle and penciled by Bong Dazo.

We left off with Norman Osborne calling in to deal with a PO'd Deadpool, who infiltrated the Avengers Tower in hopes of 'persuading' Osborne to make good on a debt owed. This issue of Thunderbolts dedicates itself to the confrontation that was promised in Deadpool # 8.

When dealing with two of the most popular 'adult-geared' Marvel titles on the shelves, it's imperative to strike some kind of balance when the characters from each collide. Admittedly the newest Thunderbolts lineup isn't as bad ass/well known as the pre-Dark Reign lineup, but still. It's their comic, they should be allowed to their own moment or two to shine.

Not so here - (spoiler) Deadpool shamelessly beats them into submission, painting the team less as an interesting mix of villains-cum-heroes and more as your typical punching bag cliché bad guys (and gal).

Which isn't to say I didn't enjoy it, being the Deadpool fan that I am. His dialogue loses nothing in the transition from writer Daniel Way to Diggle's handling of the character. It just seems a little inappropriate to have Thunderbolts title that paints the protagonists as boring villains with nothing better than run-of-the-mill thug dialogue.

Magnum Opus continues with Part 3 in Deadpool # 9, due out April 1st (tomorrow!).

Battle for the Cowl: Commissioner Gordon hit the shelves on March 25th, exploring the reaction of the Gotham City Police Department to the sudden spike in violent crime following the Dark Knight's demise.

The title is a one shot written by Royal McGraw and penciled by Tom Mandrake.

The story here is predominantly of a dependent learning to stand on their own. Though the theme of Jim Gordon's dependency on Batman has been explored in the past, (particularly well in Batman: No Man's Land) McGraw still manages to offer a fresh take on it by juxtaposing his psychological dependency with a physical inability to overcome a deadly situation with Mr. Freeze.

The comic skips between past and present tense as Gordon narrates his captive struggle against Freeze, offering a decent bi-layered story from the perspective of GCPD's well-respected Commisioner.

Mandrake's art is a high point in the issue, cultivated a noir-ish tone that emphasizes the darkness which has fallen over the city in Batman's absence.

Since BftC: Commisioner Gordon doesn't offer a tonne of development for those following the Battle for the Cowl arc, I wouldn't lose any sleep about missing this issue - unless you happen to be a diehard Commisioner Gordon fan (which I'm sure are out there somewhere).

New Comic Day!

2009-03-25T14:56:00.000-07:00

This Wednesday's release lineup is less than inspired, especially compared to the giant pile of hyped-up titles Marvel dumped last week. This included the latest installments of Ultimatum, Dark Avengers and Wolverine: Old Man Logan, as well as the series finale of Ultimate X-Men and the conclusion to the Spider-man Noir miniseries.

Holy alternate Marvel universes!

THIS WEEK, the titles I would recommend checking out are:

Umbrella Academy: Dallas #5 (of 6) - Gerard Way of My Chemical Romance has actually done some rad, twisted, and genuinely engaging work on this title. I've loved it so far.

Two Battle for the Cowl titles;
Oracle #1 (of 3) - DC is hyping this title as one that will "change the life of Barbara Gordon forever". Like we haven't heard anything those lines before. Still, I'm curious where they'll take this.
and
Batman: Battle for the Cowl, Commissioner Gordon (one shot) - Following Jim Gordon and the Gotham City Police Department as they attempt to stem the tides of rising gang violence in the wake of losing the Dark Knight.

Thunderbolts #130 - Continuing the "Magnum Opus" arc that began in Deadpool #8, the current iteration of the Thunderbolts are called in to defend Norman Osborne against the merc with a mouth, who believes that Osborne owes him an outstanding debt.

Proof #18 - The week before last, I posted a story I did featuring an interview with Riley Rossmo, the artist for Proof. The series, which has been consistently wicked from the get-go, explores John Prufrock's past with its 18th issue. It features the titular Prufrock, aka "Proof", in 1860's London as a serial killer terrorizes the city's prostitutes.

The cover image is below.

Also! I posted the rest of the pictures from Burlesque Fest. Check them out here!

AAAAND fun fact: since linking a photo of Jean-Claude Van Damme from mannythemovieguy.com, my traffic inexplicably went up by roughly 160 new visitors per day. Who knew that increasing web traffic to your blog was just that easy?

For your health!

Burlesque Fest and Busy Weeks in J-School

2009-03-23T00:49:00.000-07:00

Crunch time in Journalism school means that this month/the next few weeks have been among the busiest of the year.

In addition to a broadcast piece I'm working on about fraud, (turns out March is National Fraud Awareness Month - who knew?) I'm also doing a photo profile of one of my roommates, (who plays in the local metal band Reborn Pariah) a story on selling characters/gold from MMORPG's, and a piece showcasing Calgary burlesque troupe the Kabuki Guns.

I had the privilege of catching the Guns live last Friday night, at Burlesque Fest down at Broken City. The KGB performed admirably, considering the tiny stage and packed-beyond-capacity venue - though Rosie Bitts, a visiting performer from Victoria, stole the show.

I'll upload more pictures to my Flickr account when I have the opportunity, but in the mean time I leave you with a glimpse of the lovely ladies of the KGB (right) and of the wonderful miss Rosie Bitts (below).

Also, I do believe I am going to start posting comic reviews directly here. The system we have for uploading articles to the Calgary Journal Online is tedious and often results in up to a several week delay before they appear on the site.

Following Twitter to Jean-Claude Van Damme - and everything in between

2009-03-16T10:03:00.000-07:00

For those of you on Twitter, there's a new Twitter directory out that looks actually halfway useful. Digg.com founder Kevin Rose has created a site called Wefollow.com, a self-described "user powered directory".

It divides Twitter users into categories based on #tags, such as #celebrities, #comics, or #politics. Those users are then shown in order based on popularity. Who knew Reading Rainbow's Levar Burton had over 138,000 followers? I guess he was also on that other show. Speaking of which, turns out Brent Spiner (also known as Star Trek's forever inhuman android Data) also tweets. Quite prolificly, for that matter.

Speaking of recent Twitter-related headlines, one of the blogs over at wired.com posted an article a couple of days ago about the means by which the Twitter bird graphic was aquired by the company.

Turns out some Brit living in Japan created the now extremely famous white blot of bird perched on a swirly branch. He put the graphic up on iStockphoto, a Calgary-based company which also happens to be a pioneer in microstock photography, and Twitter subseqeuntly bought the design for around $15.00

That means Simon Oxley, the image artist (who also happens to have the most stereotypically British name imaginable) was himself paid around $6.00 from that amount. Twitter didn't purchase exclusivity rights or merchandising rights, and iStockphoto doesn't vary photo fees based on how many people will be looking at your design on a daily basis. Ha!

Also, since it seems to be a hot topic on many people's radar these days, Mashable posted a well-summarized article last week on 10 Ways Newspapers are Using Social Media to Save the Industy. I suggest anyone interested go check it out - it doesn't necessarily present anything new to those familiar with the topic, but it does give a pretty effective overview.

Lastly, this morning I enjoyed a good chuckle rereading an absolutely ridiculous interview Jean-Claude Van Damme did with a Newsweek Reporter back in November. Van Damme, himself a married man with 3 kids, shamelessly hits on the 22 year old reporter with the most ridiculous pick-up lines in existence;

"In this film I cut that hard seed, and inside that seed was a kind of liquid cream substance of the man I am, or the woman you are."

Oh Jean-Claude, your figurative liquid cream substance is not the sexy innuendo you think it is, but a metaphor for the special kind of delusion that saturates washed-up actors who can't get over their Hollywood days. Still, JCVD was pretty okay, so at least you have that. Right?

To be a Calgarian in the Business of Comics Books

2009-03-10T11:18:00.000-07:00

(reposted from the Calgary Journal Online)

Calgarian artist Riley Rossmo stands beside over a year's worth of Proof, a monthly comic he draws about modern day monsters and the secret agents who track the

To any local comic fan who has ever dreamed about finding success in a career writing or illustrating comic books - despair not! Several Calgarians working in the field attest that it is possible, with a little luck and a whole lot of passion.

Calgarian Riley Rossmo is co-creator and penciler for Proof, a monthly title written by Alex Grecian about a government agency that handles 'extraordinary' cases. Extraordinary, by Proof standards, would mean a Chupacabra masquerading as a human in the skin of its victims or a live baby dinosaur held captive by a big game hunter in Africa.

The agency is referred to as The Lodge, and the subjects in those cases - creatures whose existence has been reported but not been scientifically documented - are known as cryptids.

The twist? The series primarily follows the adventures of two Lodge agents, one of whom happens to be a cryptid himself - a suit-wearing sasquatch named John "Proof" Prufrock.

Rossmo holds a Bachelor's Degree in Design from the Alberta College of Art and Design. After obtaining his degree he tested the waters in a number of different fields, including carpentry, construction, and working in a professional design office.

"For a long while I didn't think it would be possible to make comics to even earn part of a living," says Rossmo, "I was just going to do editorial and commercial illustration, but I always drew comics for fun. Then we sold a graphic novel, Seven Sons, and it just segued right into Proof."

Seven Sons was Grecian and Rossmo's first collaborative effort. It was published under AiT/Planet Lar, an independent publishing company based out of San Francisco.

Citing a desire to reach a wider audience than what AiT/Planet Lar could offer, Rossmo and Grecian set out to find an alternate label for Proof.

The duo put together a first issue, and sent it away to Image Comics - one of the four largest comic book publishers in America.

"An artist that we know said that he'd push Image for us," says Rossmo, "Still to this day I don't know how much of a difference it made or if the editor just liked it, but we eventually heard back from them."

A representative from Image wrote them stating that the lettering of the comic wasn't up to par. After Rossmo redid the lettering and sent it back out, the two received an email that said simply, 'okay, we'll do it.'

"Since we've been on Image, they've been supportive on and off," says Rossmo, "the longer that we've been with them, the more they've helped us. But they're really hands-off. We can do whatever we want, and that's that."

Proof has now been ongoing for over a year, and is distributed widely across North America.

Rossmo says that it is possible for anyone in Alberta to find success in comic books, but that there is no set formula for doing so, other than simply having a passion for the creative process.

"You just have to do it for the love," says Rossmo, "When you're starting out, you can't do it for any sort of financial rewards or acclaim. You just gotta make something that you like, and hopefully someone else will like it."

The gentlemen of Vicious Ambitious, an independent comic book label based out of Calgary, would be inclined to agree.

Vicious Ambitious has been around since 2003, when it was initially founded by Nick Johnson and Johhny Luu as a way to legitimize their work in the public's perception. The label has since expanded to include Vincent Smith, Chris Peterson, Steve Gervais, Conor Geoghegan, and Gord Cummings.

Some profound introspection by Nick Johnson, Conor Geoghegan, and Steve Gervais- members of indie comic publishing collective Vicious Ambitious

"If you're gonna a seek a career in comics," says V.A. co-founder Johnson, "you had better love making comics for the sheer joy of doing it. A lot of blood, sweat and tears go into the process."

Johnson isn't kidding. Himself and the other V.A. members put a tremendous amount of effort into creating and distributing their original material.

Vicious Ambitious has, to date, released four anthologies and a number of trade paperbacks. The money for publication, distribution, and marketing comes straight out of their pockets.

At various times, each member has worn the mantle of writer, illustrator, editor, and promoter.

"We're lucky to have a super strong scene here," says V.A. member Conor Geoghegan, "There's this international event called 24 Hour Comic Day, where a bunch of artists get together and they have 24 hours to draw a 24 page comic. The past few years, Alberta has had one of the biggest turnouts in the world."

Alberta's strong community of comic book lovers helps the V.A. guys stay enthusiastic about their respective futures in comics. They also derive inspiration from other local comic creators who have found success in the medium.

"There are quite a few people in Alberta making a living off of the art that they do for comics," says Johnson, "so you know it can be a reality. It's a rare thing, but if you put the effort in, you can get there."

Both Rossmo and the creators in Vicious Ambitious agree that webcomics are an excellent way to gain publicity and build a portfolio.

"Webcomics are the ashcans of the new millennium," says V.A. writer/illustrator Steve Gervais, "I think it's a great way to put your stuff out there, and it costs next to nothing."

For the uninitiated, 'ashcan' is comic industry lingo for a minicomic produced on-the-cheap at a location that offers consumer print services (such as Kinko's or Staples). Traditionally, ashcans are black and white, printed on 8 by 11 inch paper, and serve as a cost-efficient way to market a comic.

The Vicious Ambitious guys strongly advocate using social networking sites and discussion boards to help with finding a place to start in comic books.

"Get on forums and meet people!" says Gervais, "Get on sites like Mapleink.ca or Canadiangeek.org and get yourself out there."

According to Johnson and Gervais, once you find your inspiration and start creating, the next step is to practice relentlessly.

"If you're gonna make it in the biz, you've gotta keep getting better," says Johnson, "The best way to do that is to find people whose opinions you respect and get them to tear your shit apart. Other than that, just keep focused, man. Don't get distracted, just keep drawing and doing your thing."

-Written by Kevin de Vlaming

Review-watching for Watchmen

2009-03-01T00:06:00.000-08:00

One more week til the Watchmen hits theatres! Early reviews have been popping up all over the internets - as of right now Rotten Tomatoes has it at a fresh rating of 81% after 26 reviews, yet the average rating puts it at a less than impressive 6.9/10. But! You shouldn't assume that the average rating is terrifically reflective of how people are scoring Zack Snyder's hugely anticipated adaptation. From what I gather, it seems like the reviews have been either polarized or confused as to how to approach measuring its worth.

Take, for instance, some of the reviews pouring out of the UK. A reviewer for Guardian.co.uk says he loved Watchmen, and writes how Snyder created a film that "slavishly follow(ed) Alan Moore's original themes and characters, without ever looking like a soulless facsimile of its source material". Then compare that with IGN UK, which ran an article expressing "serious dissapointment" in the movie - claiming it as a "shallow interpretation" of the graphic novel, which may cause those who haven't read it to "wonder whether the source material was actually any good to begin with." Meanwhile, London's Times Online doesn't seem to know what to say about it, other than that it is most certainly not for children.

If you're thinking to yourself, "well that makes sense that a geek-oriented site would give a film adaptation of the most celebrated graphic novel of all time a raw deal", think again - Comic Book Resources gave it an excellent review.

On other fronts:

WonderCon has been running all weekend in San Francisco. A new trailer for the Star Trek movie screened, DC Universe talked up the new Superman "World of Krypton" series, and Marvel beat it further into our heads that Ultimatum is not a restart of the Ultimate Marvel Universe, but its pretty damn close. Also, artist Art Adams is now exclusive to Marvel. Apparently he and Jeph Loeb are going to get together and produce ludicrous stories that make no sense but feature gratuitous explosions and action sequences.

The Calgary Comic Expo announced a few more guests - notably the fruity hobbit from Lord of the Rings who died in Season 5 of 24, the actor who played 'the soup nazi' on Seinfeld (?), and Groo creator Sergio Aragonés.

I finished writing my piece on local talent working towards eking out a career in comic books. Very inspirational. Really. I'll post it next week sometime.

Somehow in the past week I managed to read the Marvel Visionaries collection of Peter David's run on the Incredible Hulk, Planetary trade paperbacks vol.1-3, Batman Blind Justice, Wanted, Robert Kirkman's Invincible vol. 1, and a bunch of monthlies inexplicably amidst my busiest week of Journalism-related homework yet.

Consensus? Skip David's Hulk Marvel Visionaries, read Blind Justice only if you've already read a tonne of other Batman and can't get enough, READ AND LOVE PLANETARY, check out Invincible if you want to try something different and 'quirky', and read Wanted totally independent from the movie the next time you find yourself wondering what life would be like if you were a complete dickhead with super powers.

Also, I took this picture of Sam:

I happen to like it quite a bit. Calgary's been ridiculously cold lately, and sometimes the only way to beat cold is by carrying around thin paper umbrellas that lack practical application.

Christian and Joaquin are batshit insane; 'celebrity crazy' in the limelight

2009-02-15T11:13:00.000-08:00

February has been a month of very public celebrity meltdowns. Leaked audio of Christian Bale ranting at his Director of Photography on the set of Terminator: Salvation exploded on the web, leading to a 'heartfelt' apology by the actor on L.A.'s "Kevin & Bean" morning radio show on KROQ. Then, a week later, Golden Globe award-winning actor Joaquin Phoenix showed up for his interview on the Late Show with David Letterman groomed like the unibomber, and he proceeded to participate in what will go down as one of the most bizarre interviews ever on Letterman. Which is saying something, considering the Late Show's history of memorable guest appearances (think Andy Kaufman and Crispin Glover).

After Christian Bale's now infamous tirade made internet headlines several weeks ago, a celebrity cornucopia of opportunistic stars leapt at the chance to take a cheap shot at the Dark Knight. Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert, and Tom Green each paid homage to the incident on their respective talk shows, while actors Michael Cera and Tracy Morgan re-enacted their own versions. Lesser known composer/music producer RevoLucian has blasted himself into e-notoriety for his techno remix of the rant, while Family Guy creator and voice actor Seth MacFarlane has constructed a confrontation between Peter Griffin and the riled up actor.

The original clips of Bale and Phoenix are posted below, as well as a couple of the better parodies to come out of the dual fiascos.

Joaquin Phoenix on Letterman:

The original Christian Bale freakout:

Family Guy on Christian Bale:

RevoLucian's Bale remix:

Joaquin Phoenix Rapping (sadly, this is not a parody):

Unrelated: on the Marvel Dark Reign front, this Wednesday, Dark Avengers # 2 hits the shelves, and the week after a 'milestone' New Avengers #50 releases, exploring the heroes' reaction to Osborn's super-team of villains.

Also, if you're not already, you should be reading Warren Ellis' Freak Angels. It's free, updated weekly, and I am telling you that it is fan-facking-tastic. You really have no excuse not to.

NYCC09: Ultimate Universe takes the spotlight

2009-02-10T21:27:00.000-08:00

Lots of news came out of Marvel this past weekend at the NY Comic Con, especially pertaining to all things Ultimate Universe. For starters, the Ultimate Requiem titles were discussed, which include Ultimate Spider-Man: Requiem, Ultimate X-Men: Requiem, and Ultimate Fantastic Four: Requiem. The latter two represent the swan song for those respective titles, as they will be no more after the events of Ultimatum. Ultimate Spider-Man: Requiem, however, is a whole different ball entirely.

Brian Michael Bendis announced that volume one of Ultimate Spider-Man will draw to a close in with Ultimate Spider-Man #133, but then in July, Ultimate Spider-Man volume 2 will start with a new issue # 1. Same writer, different artist, and - get this - a different face under the spider-suit. Bendis has been hinting strongly for some time that Peter Parker won't be Spider-Man after Ultimatum, but new info like what's shown on the cover of USM:Requiem (which features a front page Daily Bugle story titled 'Spider-Man: Fallen Hero') is further suggesting Parker won't live through the earth-shattering event. Red herring or ballsy creative move by Bendis? We'll find out in the next few months.

Mark Millar also talked about his upcoming return to the Ultimate Marvel Universe with Ultimate Avengers. Thank Odin that Jeph Loeb's plot-convoluted flair for sensationalism without substance won't be the primary guiding force behind the adventures of Ultimate Captain America & co. Sure, he'll have his New Ultimates title - which is still a vague title at best, since Loeb is tight-lipped about what roster will be in the New Ultimates versus the Avengers. But some naive, desperately optimistic part of my fanboydom believes that as long as Millar is back in the Ultimate Universe, shit won't spin out of control again like Ultimates 3 did under Loeb. So far, Millar's talked about three arcs in Ultimate Avengers: the first dealing with Cap's son (?!), the second with Blade and the Punisher, and the third with Wolverine.

Also, for those unaware: the Calgary Comic Expo is going to be running April 25th and 26th this year. Ando from Heroes will be rocking the venue! And the lovely ms. Jewel Staite from Firefly! Plus a host of nifty writers/artists from the industry. And, apparently, that guy who created Reboot. Rad.

Twitter, Tina Fey, and Transformers

2009-02-03T11:01:00.001-08:00

Twitter is a magical place, and don't let anyone tell you different.

I'm now following (among others) Rainn Wilson, Tina Fey, Joe Quesada, and Brian Michael Bendis.

These are among the most important individuals of our time, people! ESPECIALLY Tina Fey. Not only because her public appearances as Sarah Palin made the Republican vice-presidential candidate a national laughingstock (as Greg Mitchel eloquently puts it in this excerpt from his book, "Why Obama Won: The Making of a President 2008"). Also, more importantly, because her character on 30 Rock, Liz Lemon, is bringing 'underdog sexy' to the forefront as a valid look. Millions of 'passive corporate doormat' types now stand a valid chance of getting laid by someone they don't pick up on the street six blocks south of their office.

For those who didn't catch the Superbowl spot, Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen has released a new teaser trailer, which you can watch here. The trailer didn't give much away outside of reassuring fans that yes, giant robots will be involved with big-budget explosions. G.I. JOE: The Rise of Cobra also premiered a teaser trailer, which looks Go-Joe-tastic.

Other news: I'm working on a story about how to be successful writing/penciling comic books in the Canadian Prairies. The consensus so far? Either start a webcomic, or start buying lotto tickets in hopes of winning enough to start up your own publishing company.

Newspaper conference, and an unnecessarily long rant on the significance of citizen journalism

2009-02-01T17:49:00.000-08:00

This weekend was a busy haze of toonie bars, seminars, and journalism buzzwords.

Friday and Saturday I was in attendance at the Alberta Weekly Newspaper Association's annual symposium at the Coast Plaza Hotel here in Calgary. The idea was to put away the Chuck Taylors for a night (in favor of some business-casual kickers), toss a few litres of rum and whiskey into a suitcase, and head out to the venue with a hopeful eye towards networking. Also, it couldn't hurt to learn a smidgen or two about where the local industry is at with regards to buzz around digital convergence.

I did meet a few interesting individuals, such as one gentleman from the Valley Sentinel (based out of Robson Valley, BC.) who shocked me when he said that a large fraction of his readership still operated on a dial-up internet connection. Whether or not my surprise was fueled by ignorant urban elitism towards smaller townships isn't the question here, but rather, 'how do they get their Youtube fix with such low download speeds?'

We were talking about the degree to which newspaper readerships are embracing the interactivity potential of the web, as well as what the common perspectives currently are on citizen journalism. It should be noted that these two themes came up regularly in conversation around the event, and a number of the seminars were geared very specifically towards 'using the INTERNETS to help your publication to be the best media outlet it can be!' ... blah blah, age of technology, blah blah, untapped potential, blah.

He made an observation that the Valley Sentinel website was receiving traffic consisting of about 50,000 monthly page views or more, yet very few of those visitors left comments or seemed halfway interested in participating in an online dialogue about story content. He seemed overall pretty ambivalent to the concept of interactive elements on web-based media sites spurring a significant change in the way the public participates in media. Other individuals I talked to from publications such as the Stettler Independent and the Red Deer Express also seemed pretty uninterested in discussing the topic as if it was anything significant.

The point was made twice to me that new outlets for non-journalists to report news as it happens, or media sites which actively encouraged back-and-forth dialogue between professional writers and readership, were about as legitimate as the idea of widely broadcasting idle barstool 'shoot-the-shit' chatter.

I have a totally different perspective on the matter. The way I see it, the reason that blogging, citizen journalism, and emphasis on dialogue over simply broadcasting a message are all rapidly increasing in popularity, is because people simply want to hear the news from a perspective as close to their own as possible. In Calgary, a Conservative with ties to the Oil Industry would be more likely to read the Sun than the Herald, because it represents news through a lens that is closer to their own perspective. Similarly, a Democrat is a more likely reader of the New York Times than a staunch Republican. These are crude examples, but they offer the same basic theme- news audiences gravitate towards outlets who apply a lens to the news that echoes their own worldview.

With everyone out there who has half of an opinion on the world around them now empowered to put their own take on current events on the web for all the world to see, people have endless potential to find tailor-made perspectives on events that will sync in beautiful harmonization with their own. It takes the effort out of understanding the news, because it's being related to you by someone who could just as well be you (at least in the ways that pertain to the content at hand).

So suffice it to say, I think new trends towards interactivity between 'citizen journalists' is a hugely significant matter. Talking to the representative from the Valley Sentinel made me question my perspective on this. In a community that's relatively small, where local, everyday concerns are tantamount to just about anything else, (barring gigantic national/international events) why wouldn't the chance to connect with other community members over developing events be better taken advantage of? Moreover, why wouldn't more community members leap at the chance to put their own spin on local news?

The answer I came up with: the 'interactive web media' trend hasn't hit the smaller towns as hard because the writers are still connected enough to their communities to pass as 'local lenses' themselves. I'd guess that the readerships are still feeling that their viewpoints are pretty well represented in their news sources as is, so it hasn't been as much of a priority to participate in the dialogue themselves. Ironically, this would suggest that newspaper outlets in those communities broadcast a fair share of barstool chatter themselves, to continue to push a perspective that is close to home for community members.

Now, what does this mean will happen if and when citizen journalism takes hold even in these smaller communities? Will smaller publications than the major metropolitan ones be forced into taking a polarizing position to the emerging voices, and become exclusive channels for serious news about the larger region in general?

Food for thought.

Also, it is nigh-on impossible to be kicked out of the Plaza Hotel. Seriously, try it. Be aware that you're going to need more liquor than what's pictured below:

What's on the Shelves: Bi-Weekly Comic Reviews for the Calgary Journal

2009-01-29T15:22:00.000-08:00

March 18th/25th: Ultimate X-Men #100, Thunderbolts #130, and Battle for the Cowl: Commissioner Gordon (One Shot)

March 4th/11th: Deadpool # 8, the Goon # 32, and Batman: Battle for the Cowl # 1

February 18th/25th: Spider-Man Noir #1, New Avengers #50, the Umbrella Academy # 4.

February 4th/11th: Secret Warriors #1, the Darkness #75, and Batman R.I.P., the deluxe hardcover edition.

January 21st/28th: Dark Avengers #1, Final Crisis #7, and Ultimate Spider-Man TPB Volume 21: War of the Symbiotes

January 7th/14th: Amazing Spider-Man #583, the Wonderful Wizard of Oz #2, American Splendor: Another Dollar TPB

Misconceiving Moments

Cue May.

Carnal Tuesdays, November Lips

Zombies! Burlesque! Horror Films! (It's October again)

Apology? Hyperbole? Anemone.

What's up with updating? News, reviews, n' the like.

Thursday Update: All About the Batman

Thursday Post: Archie, Veronica, CTV News, and Essex County

Reviewing Ultimate Comics Avengers # 1 & Ultimate Comics Spider-Man # 1: my verdict on the franchise restarts.

Irredeemably Excessive Use of the Word Probing. (and new comic day)

Back from camping, San Diego Comic Con announcements, and new comic day.

New Comic Day! Some old titles become new again.

Calgary Stampede, interview updates, and New Comic Day

A Canada Day new comic list!

New interview up - plus props/fail for the week.

Jeff Lemire and other interviews, plus rainbow shoelaces and New Comic Day!

David Sedaris is a **** ******, Captain America gimmicks his way back to life, and it's New Comic Day!

New Comic Day! Also, present/future interviews for the Fabler Blog!

New Comic Day! Plus, Portugal.The Man! Peaches!

Belated new comic day! Plus Cuddlecore, and more.

New Comic Day!

New Comic Day! (in brief, with a minor series of updates)

New Comic Day! Plus a couple of webcomic recommendations.

What's On the Shelves: Selections from the Last Week in Comics, April 29- May 2nd edition.

Back from California! (and a new comic day shortlist!)

Updates! Plus New Comic Day, the 1994 Fantastic Four movie, and more

Comic book profiteering 101: Obama lays a battle axe beatdown on winter winter witch Palin

New Comic Day!

Tweet or die: the PR ultimatum

New Comic Day! Plus, April Fools' tomfoolery!

What's On the Shelves: Selections from the Last Two Weeks in Comics, March 18-25 edition.

New Comic Day!

Burlesque Fest and Busy Weeks in J-School

Following Twitter to Jean-Claude Van Damme - and everything in between

To be a Calgarian in the Business of Comics Books

Calgarian artist Riley Rossmo stands beside over a year's worth of Proof, a monthly comic he draws about modern day monsters and the secret agents who track the

Some profound introspection by Nick Johnson, Conor Geoghegan, and Steve Gervais- members of indie comic publishing collective Vicious Ambitious

Review-watching for Watchmen

Christian and Joaquin are batshit insane; 'celebrity crazy' in the limelight

NYCC09: Ultimate Universe takes the spotlight

Twitter, Tina Fey, and Transformers

Newspaper conference, and an unnecessarily long rant on the significance of citizen journalism

What's on the Shelves: Bi-Weekly Comic Reviews for the Calgary Journal

David Sedaris is a **, Captain America gimmicks his way back to life, and it's New Comic Day!