SCHWAPP!!!

Wait...What?

2010-03-08T18:35:00.006-05:00

JMS is on Superman and Wonder Woman?

I thought when JMS got the Superman: Earth 1 project, his mission to write Superman was resolved. But now you're putting him in control of the main Superman and the alternate Superman?

That doesn't seem like a smart move. It would seem more likely that people pick one JMS Superman project over the other. There is the possibility that there seems to be less differences between the two versions, because it is likely that JMS writes the core of the character rather identically in each version. There's a reason why Marvel didn't just slap Bendis on the traditional Spider-Man title after JMS left, beyond the chance that Bendis didn't want to write two versions of the same character.

The addition of Wonder Woman to his writing schedule makes much more sense, though. With how he seemed to have brought a new level of interest to the THOR title at Marvel, slapping him on to the DC character that deals with a pantheon of gods seems to be a no-brainer.

Dismantling The Hype Machine

2010-02-27T15:05:00.002-05:00

During times of war, I stick to the roads less traveled.

What DC Needs To Do...Or Doesn't Need To Do?

2010-02-21T16:05:00.004-05:00

Tom Spurgeon put together an article on the moves that DC Comics needs to make coming out of their restructuring. There is a lot in there to like. Spurgeon comes up with some heady stuff.

But in his third and final part of the list, he breaks out its own three part list.

1) a commitment to stricter schedule-making in a way that de-emphasizes crowding similar titles on certain dates, doesn't stack potentially series-strengthening runs into mini-series for a reason that isn't clearly obvious and builds an expectation in the audience for when certain books come out

In a paragraph after this, Spurgeon starts listing the ways companies have dominated the market and how DC needs to pay attention to that. One of the ways Marvel has managed to be the lead dog right now (which Spurgeon doesn't cite) involved a commitment to large stories that placed more emphasis on similar titles coming out on certain dates.

It can currently be argued that the customers want an emphasis on an immersive world where the continuity between titles is strong. Marvel made a huge commitment to just that approach with Civil War and hasn't looked back since. This includes several times where books had to miss their scheduled releases for the greater good of the story.

Don't get me wrong: I really think scheduling needs to be a focus. But doing it to the detriment of other aspects the consumers seem to like that contribute more directly to the product itself seems to be a perilous course.

2) an aggressive program facilitating comic shop store openings that favors neglected areas of coverage and a variety of store models, focused on opportunities provided by the current economy that has led to more people than ever looking towards franchising and small business opportunities

Ten years ago, I'd be all behind this one. But now? Especially given what follows this suggestion?

3) a move towards a proactive digital strategy that involves transparency so that decisions made in terms of price point and timing could be an industry driver and not just a series of in-house contingency plans based on some ill-defined, anticipated event that may or may not ever happen

Move towards a digital age, while encouraging new folks to get into the Direct Market game? Really? I think that would be irresponsible.

There's a lot of talk about what might or might not happen to the DM as publishers start to embrace digital offerings of their product. I've known so many DM retailers that have struggled and either had to shrink their business or fold altogether.

That is without prominent, legal competition via digital downloads. That's without having a LongBoxDigital or iPad to compete with. Yes, independent bookstores still exist with there being a Kindle and other digital delivery options. But less and less independent music stores are left after the move to MP3s.

I'd argue that the push to digital would make collected editions represent a much larger percentage of the physical product they sell. Collected editions are readily available through the big chain bookstores and online booksellers. The only way a DM retailer stays in business 5-10 years down the line is by their focus being on one or two non-comic-book products. A store that sells comic books in addition to their main focus on collectible card/miniature gaming might survive, but is that the sort of business major comic book publishers should make a concerted push to prop up?

But that's just me. I feel for DM retailers, but am against all the push for publishers to find ways to keep them in business. It's like saying petroleum companies should have tried to keep leaded-only gasoline retailers viable. Technology is forcing the publishers to evolve, but we're making them responsible for keeping alive the organisms that lack the traits needed to survive on their own in this new world. Of course, I don't think all the people the health insurance industry employs is a good argument against moving to single payer, either.

But what do you think?

Would Atlantis Chronicles Be Made Today?

2010-02-19T03:13:00.005-05:00

Rich Johnston linked to an NPR article about Aquaman that brought a question to mind. OK, it was a question that had already come to mind many times before, but I never got around to blogging about it.

If you're like me, you've been a fan of comic books since the early 1980s. During that time, it seemed like companies would give some of the most unconventional mini-series the green light. There didn't seem to be so much pressure on sales that retreads that were guaranteed at least mediocre sales were put out instead of new ideas that might turn into winners.

If you're like a lot of other fans, you came to comic books in the early-to-mid 1990s. During that time, it seemed like companies would give some of the most unconventional series and mini-series the green light. There seemed to be the feeling that anything that you slapped a "#1" on would sell enough to justify giving new ideas a shot.

In the recently completed 2000s (and, to be fair, the late 1990s), it seems like Marvel & DC Comics sometimes sacrifice fresh ideas for lower risk/reward projects. Each failed project seems to be taken more as an indication that the market just won't support new ideas, rather than the ideas they chose to put in play didn't resonate with the target audience.

A perfect example of this attitude, I think, would be the Second Feature idea at DC Comics. The approach with the properties that weren't selling enough on their own seems to be that the ideas are fine, but the market can't support them as stand-alone series. It is, also, how they've put out a few new projects (retreads, but still something new), albeit with no real metric to gauge interest in them. Other than a nice PR cushion to price increases, it hasn't really succeeded. I'm not talking about the quality of the stories, but the development of new, salable product.

Mind you, I'm just shooting out thoughts here with zero research. I'd really like to hear what you think in the comments.

Who's That Girl?

2010-02-17T14:42:00.002-05:00

Her "Secret" is as guarded as can be.

(do I have to spell it out more directly than that?)

Steaming Pile Part Deux

2010-02-16T14:54:00.000-05:00

You know how, when you taste something terrible, you are sometimes driven to tell a friend "you gotta try this"? So it was with JLA #41. I convinced a friend to locate a copy and give it a read. I told him it wouldn't be pretty going in. What you see below is his running commentary, pulled from a chatroom of mutual friends.

[23:56] Frankie/OP: ok!
[23:56] Frankie/OP: here goes
[23:57] Frankie/OP: "America's Dream. Turned nightmare." starting it off classy
[23:59] Frankie/OP: "And some who did survive, MAYBE wished they HADN'T." DRAMA
[00:00] Frankie/OP: is this really Bagley? seems like he's trying too hard to channel Benes, irksome
[00:03] Frankie/OP: i wonder how Vixen can go on about how much she thinks and recalls about Prometheus
[00:03] Frankie/OP: how long*
[00:05] Frankie/OP: "Don't go! Not now!" "I must." EXTREME CLOSEUP, VIXEN'S DETERMINATION TO QUIT IS OVERWHELMING IN THIS THE SMALLEST OF PANELS
[00:05] Frankie/OP: /reading from Robinson's script
[00:07] Frankie/OP: lol
[00:07] Frankie/OP: "Help us, Wonder Girl!"
[00:07] Frankie/OP: "Its Ms. Troy, and fuck off, i don't help people anymore."
[00:07] Frankie/OP: "But the children!"
[00:08] Frankie/OP: "CHILDREND?! OH SHIIIIIIIIIIIIII"
[00:08] Frankie/OP: -d
[00:08] Frankie/OP: "So here I go. Again." ON MY OWWWWN. GOING DOWN THE ONLY ROAD I'VE EVER KNOWWWWN
[00:10] Frankie/OP: Robinson, you are a master of characterization and subtlety. i mean, the way you just TELL us how Donna's feels? GENIUS
[00:11] Frankie/OP: ok, no, really, this art is grating on me
[00:13] Frankie/OP: "The Justice League ails too, my sister." this is what people mean when they say Wonder Woman is (written as) stiff and uptight
[00:15] Frankie/OP: ok, i'm no expert on dialogue from frenchmen in the 1700's, but "a-boil with canker" ? pfffffffft
[00:17] Frankie/OP: i have absolutely no idea whats going on in this 1777 segment
[00:18] khuxford2: That's to be expected, Frankie
[00:18] khuxford2: and to be echoed for almost every scene, regardless of period
[00:19] Frankie/OP: HAHA
[00:20] Frankie/OP: i understand he's recording himself
[00:21] Frankie/OP: but why is this guy talking to himself as though Robinson is talking directly to him
[00:21] Frankie/OP: its like he's found a new form of exposition
[00:22] Frankie/OP: and who is this 90's Image reject?!
[00:22] khuxford2: That scene reads like Robinson realized how terrible his dialogue was but, rather than fix it, he decides to just have the character own up to it as if that makes it good and meta.
[00:23] Frankie/OP: exactly!
[00:23] Frankie/OP: and it just ends up so much worse
[00:24] Frankie/OP: did Damian just call Donna a harlot? HAHAHA
[00:25] Frankie/OP: now i see
[00:25] Frankie/OP: Robinson's inspiration comes from badly translated Shakespearean plays
[00:25] Frankie/OP: "Kid, yes, Drama Queen, Double yes." and Diablo Cody
[00:26] Frankie/OP: "Al Ghul's grankid" IN CASE YOU DIDN'T KNOW, GUYS
[00:29] Frankie/OP: "Judging from your appearance and the tone of your voice, I deduce... you want me in the Justice League." HOW DOES HE GET ALL THAT FROM TONE?!
[00:29] Frankie/OP: oh
[00:29] Frankie/OP: because apparently Dick's some sort of smartass
[00:29] Frankie/OP: are they fist-bumping?
[00:29] Frankie/OP: BAT-FISTBUMP
[00:30] Frankie/OP: RESPEK KNUCKLESSS!!
[00:32] Frankie/OP: so wait, does Donna convince Kimi with just... "But we NEED you."
[00:32] Frankie/OP: "You can't go."
[00:33] Frankie/OP: seriously
[00:33] Frankie/OP: did she just convince her to stay by WHINING?
[00:33] Frankie/OP: if thats how she sets up the Justice League, i don't have high hopes for this team
[00:34] Frankie/OP: oh good, Mon-El zzzzzzzzzz
[00:34] Frankie/OP: i'm sure Mon is only here because he'll need someplace to go after Superman returns to his OWN DAMN BOOK
[00:34] Frankie/OP: the one that Robinson is "writing"
[00:35] Frankie/OP: lol
[00:36] Frankie/OP: i love her argument for why Mon should be in the Justice League
[00:36] Frankie/OP: "Superman did it! Don't you wanna be like Superman?"
[00:36] khuxford2: Argument? Aren't arguments normally longer than 1.5 sentences?
[00:36] Frankie/OP: all i'm saying is, if Superman jumped off a bridge...
[00:36] Frankie/OP: lol hux
[00:36] Frankie/OP: thats my next point
[00:37] Frankie/OP: when did this become "hey! we're making a club! wanna join?" "sure!"
[00:37] khuxford2: Superman ALWAYS ate the lead-poison-cure-reversing-sammich that I made him...
[00:37] Frankie/OP: LOL
[00:38] Frankie/OP: THE RAGE BURNING WITHIN
[00:38] Frankie/OP: THE RAGE
[00:38] Frankie/OP: BURNING
[00:38] Frankie/OP: WITHIN
[00:38] Frankie/OP: i'm not sure i understand how Ollie feels O_O
[00:39] Frankie/OP: wait, its over?
[00:40] Frankie/OP: i know it continues to the next issue, but the ending to this one could have at least been a bit more...climactic?
[00:40] Frankie/OP: instead we get "OLLIE, STOP WHINING AND JOIN US."
[00:42] Frankie/OP: everyone's going about Prometheus and especially that panel with Ollie holding Roy
[00:42] Frankie/OP: but WHO KNOWS WHY OLLIE IS ANGRY
[00:43] Frankie/OP: man
[00:44] Frankie/OP: that was hard work
[00:44] Frankie/OP: trudging through that
[00:44] Frankie/OP: i'm hungry!
[00:44] Frankie/OP: also
[00:44] Frankie/OP: i don't know if its the coloring or inking or Bagley himself or all things combined, but no, this art was not serviceable
[00:45] Frankie/OP: it wasn't eye-raping, like the writing
[00:45] Frankie/OP: but its offensive
[00:45] Frankie/OP: to me
[00:45] khuxford2: Well, I blame it more on the writing. I think what he was given to work with was shit. I think the raping that the script does to you makes you pre-disposed to think of the entire package as shit. So I gave him a pass.
[00:46] Frankie/OP: SO ENDS MY LIVE-TORTUR--I MEAN BLOGGING OF JLA 41
[00:46] Frankie/OP: tune in next time for JLA 42, where i will push electric eels into my eyesockets to save myself
[00:48] Frankie/OP: no i probably won't
[00:48] Frankie/OP: however, that was fun to bash the fuck out
[00:48] Frankie/OP: of
[00:48] khuxford2: LOL
[00:49] khuxford2: I knew you'd enjoy it in a "holy fuck, I can't believe they published this shit" way
[00:49] Frankie/OP: lol pretty much

Steaming Pile of Shit #41

2010-02-15T22:45:00.005-05:00

On Sunday, I read a comic book that single-handedly soured me on reading the rest of the books I bought that day, kept me from placing an advance order on DCBS and has me in a shit mood.

That comic book? Justice League of America #41.

I've been disappointed with a lot of what James Robinson has written without a partner over the last few years. His Atlas arc in the Superman books, the first few issues of Justice League: Cry For Justice and other bits here and there were just terrible. Filled with cliche situations, bad dialogue and exposition measured in metric tons (it's so heavy, get it? I didn't say I could write better).

Why did I give this book a shot? A friend of mine tweeted to James Robinson that he loved the issue and felt it respected so many previous versions of the JLA. My curiosity was piqued.

The result was that I wished I could take not only that issue back for a refund, but the rest of my $33+ purchase, as well.

Where does it go so wrong?

It directly picks up from stuff that happened in JL: Cry For Justice. As stated previously, the writing on that long-delayed, "originally supposed to be an ongoing series but shrunk down to a mini" series was horrendous. The manner of introducing the characters was cringe-inducing, particularly the need to have them all boil their situations down to a "cry for justice". It was as if it was written to be what some writer "slumming it" in comic books thought a comic book was supposed to read like. It read like the worst of 80s/90s comics. And they spend several pages doing a bad job of trying to establish the weight of what went on in that mini. It gives the book a mediocre-at-best start (and, honestly, it can't see mediocre from where it's standing). They, also, have this spin out of Blackest Night, but just barely. Even still, it is a sounder move to have this work with aftermath of the biggest selling DC project, rather than an ongoing that got downgraded to a mini and started ridiculously long after it was initially supposed to come out.
You have heroes quitting. No, I'm not talking about Vixen talking about leaving the JLA. That sort of thing has been done to death, but you can't necessarily knock it. If the membership is going to change, you'll need scenes like this. No, I mean Donna Troy quitting being a hero. I don't just mean deciding not to gather with other heroes to fight crime. I don't mean not going on patrols or anything like that. I mean showing up at the scene of an ongoing crime and telling the police present that she won't lift a finger to potentially save lives. Has this been done before? Possibly. Has it rang false most of the time? Yup. Does it come off as unbelievable here? You betcha.
In about five panels time, we have Donna Troy convinced to not only keep going as a hero, but join the Justice League and start recruiting others to be a member of the biggest super-heroing-show on Earth. Let's see...on one page we have "those people might die? fuck those people" and "I'll go convince others to help me save the Earth from evil-doers" on the next. Holy shit, that's bad.
In this book that couldn't manage to properly make you feel the weight of past events on the characters and had Donna Troy go from "fuck everyone else" to top JLA cheerleader so fast that my head is still spinning, we're given several pages of a poorly written flashback to 1777? If there have been a less enjoyable or useful four pages in a DC Comic book in the last 5-10 years, I haven't seen them (and I'm glad, as I can't imagine what my reaction to THAT work would be). Like so many of the problems I have with this book, I don't think I can say it better than "it reads like the worst 1980s comic book you ever read".
So far, the only purpose the flashback served was to introduce us to some possibly alien artifact that a scientist at the Smithsonian delivers the clunkiest exposition while examining. How clunky? The kind you haven't read outside of the worst 1980s comic book. What's worse is that it tells you that it is bad. Robinson writes the scientist as recognizing how bad the dialogue is. It is as if he realized he was writing shitty dialogue and, rather than fix it, had the character acknowledge it as if it made it cool and meta, rather than lazy and shite.
Donna gets her cheerleading on. She takes a half page to recruit Starfire and the other half to recruit Cyborg. One of the biggest problems I have with this book is that it makes all the wrong choices with how it chooses to spend pages on the story. I get that you have to be efficient and economical with how you dole out space in a book where you're throwing together a whole new JLA. But you have to do that smartly...and that is where this book fails.
Donna then recruits Dick Grayson Batman. And in the five pages used for this bit, Dick calls Damian a drama queen. I know Dick is so much more lighthearted than Bruce...but drama queen? Really? It seems a bit out of character and oddly placed. I can't explain why it should bother me so much as to rate its own spot in this list, but it does.
Please don't make me talk about how terrible the dialogue between Donna Troy and Dr. Light was. I don't think I could survive having to read it again.
Mon-El Superman gets recruited. Two pages/four panels of showing how heroic and stoic he is, followed by a monosyllabic Guardian asking him who he captured and confirming that he captured him and tied together with a bow by Dr. Light recruiting him by simply pointing out that Superman was in the JLA. Really, because we needed a splash page and a three panel page establishing Mon-El Superman so he could be recruited by saying, "you want to be like Superman? Superman was in the JLA." Pages wasted on bullshit and Robinson having the characters having to TELL everything and show nothing. He wants to spend pages on "cool visuals" for throwaway scenes, painting himself into a corner where he has to give you microwave character development and terrible, exposition-heavy dialogue.
I was about to say the Green Lantern/Green Arrow bit was the only part I didn't have a problem with. But then I re-read and caught the "what do I do that'll make the rage burning within go away?" line. Holy shit, this book can't even manage to handle a two page scene without having something hack fall out of a character's mouth.

I'd really like to refine my points above more. At the least, I should really come up with a paragraph or two that sums things up and makes a bit more of a constructive statement than the griping you see above. But I just can't do it. I'm trying to put this issue behind me. What I've shared here is an attempt at catharsis. I'm hoping it will set me free and I can begin reading any of the other comic books (possibly mediocre, but undoubtedly better than this one) that I bought last night. Maybe I'll revisit this next week and try to dissect the book with more care and thought. But I need to try to get away from it now.

Mr. Anonymous, Is That You?

2010-02-10T02:53:00.004-05:00

So I see an old friend pop on AIM and I decide to say hi. Last time he had juicy spoilers for me, I held back on coming right out with the info and made it into a guessing game. Since, I've kinda lost the hunger for getting spoilers. All of this is to say: I really was just saying hello.

But he had an update for me. Secret Avengers lineup.

Hmmm. Eclectic damn thing. We both agree that, if anyone can pull it off, Bru is the man. We disagree on whether it is a definite that Bru and Deodato can make it sell well, in addition to being a quality product. Then again, I guess cast didn't significantly hurt Avengers: The Initiative or the later issues of Mighty Avengers.

I'll say popular opinion on the first teasers is correct. I'll be picking up the first few issues just to see how they make this thing work.

Is It Just Me...

2010-01-29T17:16:00.004-05:00

or has returning to regular work with Geoff Johns coincided with Scott Kolins' style reverting back to what it was like when he first made a name for himself?

I'm not complaining here. I've been hoping he'd return more to a cleaner finished product for awhile now. His work on Blackest Night: Flash has seemed to be just that, when compared to his Solomon Grundy and other recent work.

Well, Now That The NFL Is Finished...

2010-01-24T22:49:00.003-05:00

Hi. I'm Kevin H. and I'm a NY Jets fan.

(waits for the AA type response from the crowd)

I've been a NY Jets fan for as long as I can remember. It is a problem that tends to dominate so much of my day, until I have a moment of clarity (or the off-season hits).

The NY Jets were finally eliminated by the Indianapolis Colts, temporarily relieving or reducing my addiction to NFL product. Sure, the withdrawal symptoms will be rough in the coming weeks and months, probably leading to a relapse on Super Bowl Sunday and NFL Draft Weekend, but I'm going to enjoy the peace this brings me, one day at a time.

But, before I completely turn away, the a little Super Bowl ad promotion caught my eye. I got an e-mail about the CRASH THE SUPER BOWL commercial contest that Doritos is running. Apparently, since I occasionally cover sports here at SCHWAPP!!!, I made it on to the distribution list for asking bloggers to give some time and attention to it.

Now, I don't generally like to get involved in free advertising too much. But they went so far as to follow-up on the original e-mail to see if I might be interested in talking about this. That led me to take a look...and the fan-made commercials (competing for $5m prize) are pretty funny.

Below, I've attached a montage. I still haven't decided which I think is funniest, but I'll probably share a few of them (if not all six) on the blog during the course of the week. You can see all of them now, if you're impatient, by going to the CRASH THE SUPER BOWL site.

The Much Ballyhooed Blackest Night Trade-In Siege Variant Cover

2010-01-22T22:57:00.004-05:00

Some of the reaction to this cover is enough to make me sympathize with Marvel. It's been referred to as sexist and racist, when it is clearly parody and one that really fits the character that it uses.

It still seems entirely too unrelated to the event comic it is slapped on, though. Seems more like a variant cover made for Deadpool comics that they decided would be better used as part of a publicity stunt. But, then again, maybe it is a misunderstanding that this is the cover to that Siege issue.

(cover found via ifanboy)

Shame On HBO

2010-01-22T17:29:00.007-05:00

So, HBO has gotten into some genre programming with True Blood. What type of merchandising seems unavoidable with horror genre product? Busts and figurines.

Look at the figurines. Well, first of all, they're busts, not figurines. They seem to use the two terms interchangeably.

But no, really, take a look at them. Anything seem off?

Like, I don't know, the faces of the actors clearly photoshopped on to the busts? That level of detail is not consistent with some bits in the busts.

While it is less clear on the Bill & Eric busts, it couldn't be clearer on Sookie. See the typical bust level of detail on Sookie's hair? Very much less detailed than the face, no?

Now compare it to the hair hanging down in Bill's face (the brunette of the bunch, if you're not a fan of the show). His hair detail that you can make out (which is, really, only what dangles in front of his forehead) is much more picture perfect than you get out of a sculpture.

It is clear that the face details are simply works of Photoshop. But nowhere on the pre-order pages do they warn that the images shown may differ from the final product. In fact, they urge people to order soon so they don't miss out...or, one might imagine, see a realistic representation of what the busts will actually look like.

This Is "Getting It Right"?

2010-01-21T01:00:00.005-05:00

OK, I just read this after someone linked to a review savaging Joe the Barbarian #1. The review, in turn, linked to an interview with the artist. What caught my eye was this exchange:

Murphy: I have gotten a lot of comments on that post. And in person, people will tell me that I’m controversial—which I’m not. When I think of true controversy I think of MLK, Rickard Dawkins and Karl Marx. But I understand what they’re getting at. In the context of comics it is, for some reason, considered controversial for someone to blow the whistle when part of the industry isn’t working efficiently.

For younger guys, I can understand them being timid. They’re hitting cons and meeting their favorite creators—often times artist, editors and companies whom they grew up admiring. For a newbie to rock the boat is risky. But there are a lot of established guys who have really great styles which almost guarantees them work for as long as they want it. And I’ve sat among them at shows and heard them complaining, and I always wonder why they don’t make their thoughts public. Their readers are thirsty for information on how to become a professional, so why not give them a list of people, companies and situations to avoid?

...

And as far as “the press” goes, you’re a perfect example of someone who’s doing it right. When I first met you, it was in Atlanta after an hour of telling a room full of students about my negative experiences with DC. I didn’t hold back at all, basically given everyone my hate-list of certain people at DC. So when you came up and told me you were at Robot 6 I thought, “great, now he’s gonna print all that shit I would have never said in an interview.” But then you told me that all that stuff would be off the record, which I of course appreciate. It’s more rare to find someone who takes it seriously and who genuinely wants what’s best for everyone. You could have easily gone for the ratings and the drama and spilled all the beans but you didn’t.

So, someone burying public statements in order to not lose a creator as a future contact for interviews and what not is an example of "doing it right" when it comes to being willing to blow the whistle on parts of the industry not working efficiently? He's relieved and appreciative of a journo who's first instinct was NOT to share Sean's whistle-blowing? Wow.

I Hate Press Releases

2010-01-14T20:55:00.003-05:00

I sometimes share press releases here when there's something that interests me. It is a very small percentage of those releases that I share in a positive light. Most times, if I do anything with them, it is to quote a bit that just demonstrates how annoying the information contained within is.

This is one of those cases.

Wizard sent out a press release touting their continued partnership with Diamond. The partnership? Diamond distributing their stuff, like they do for so many other publishers. You know...nothing worth touting in a press release, really.

But contained in the release is this little gem:

Wizard’s Philadelphia Comic Con is scheduled for June 11-13, 2010 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Retailers will join with tens of thousands of fans to converge at Philadelphia Comic Con 2010 to celebrate what’s great in pop culture: Movies, Comics, Toys, Video Gaming, Games, TV, Anime, Manga, Horror, Wrestling, MMA, Original Art, Collectibles, and more!

Look, I get that casting a wider net for customers is smart. But when you're calling your event a "comic con" and can't even be bothered to pay continued lip service to that idea by saying "to celebrate what's great in comics" and give comics the top billing in all the crap you rattle off as being covered at the event, it is time to stop calling it a comic con.

CBR's Interview With Thomas Jane

2010-01-01T03:34:00.006-05:00

I'm a fan of Thomas Jane's work. I even liked him in the Punisher and thought it was a shame that they made some poor choices in the script and didn't get a chance to make a sequel. HUNG, for which he has received a Golden Globe nomination, was a heckuva fun show on HBO, too.

I've never really sat down to hear about his comic book credentials. When I saw this pop up in my iTunes, I decided to play it. I was about to just comment on this to bust on the fact that they label him in the video as THOMAS JAYNE, but then it kept playing. Seeing him talk about growing up wanting to be a comic book artist as he started talking about Dave Stevens...and then seeing his eyes well up as he expressed what kind of man his friend and creator of The Rocketeer was...I thought this was worthy of attention for far better reasons then joking about a typo.

Geoff Johns: Angry DC Fanboy Target In 2010?

2010-01-01T01:19:00.004-05:00

My buds in the Best Shots crew did their Best of 2009 list, along with looking forward to 2010.

One of the selections to watch in 2010 was Geoff Johns. I agree, but not for the same reasons.

I think Geoff has put himself into a spot where he can't satisfy expectations. He's performed at such a high level for a long time now. Normally, that is a case where fans give creators MORE benefit of the doubt. But when you've been going on as long as he has, it can often be the point where fans are LESS forgiving.

Writing four books a month and one of them was a bit of a disappointment? Must be losing his talent.

I think that his being on Infinite Crisis, Sinestro Corps War, and Blackest Night, on top of being the driving force behind Superman's current direction, has put him firmly in the cross-hairs of any fan disappointed with DC product in general. That's probably been a bit of a problem even before 2010, but the ending to Blackest Night and direction that DC propels its line in afterward can only take it to the Nth degree.

With Hollywood pulling him a little more each day, it increases the chances that his schedule impacts the quality of a comic book script here and there. The Flash movie pre-production is ramping up, Smallville might go another season that begs for more Johns' scripts and God only knows what other non-comic-book opportunities present themselves.

One of the few things shielding him from fans turning on him more is that he is a moving target. Over the last year, Johns dropped out of JSA and the main Superman titles. In 2010, while Johns returns to Flash, it is with Barry Allen and he moves on to new ground altogether (for him) with the Earth One take on Batman. I think it shows that he enjoys a challenge and still puts his all into his work, personally, but I believe it, also, helps him to avoid the whole "familiarity breeds contempt" (both for himself and fans of his work).

I think the angry fanboys are going to dial up their angry-fanboy-ness several notches in the coming year, even if Johns performs just as well as he did in the past year. Judging by Adventure Comics #5, I'd say he was able to deal comfortably with what has come his way.

I'm interested in seeing where things stand this time next year. Honestly, I hope I'm wrong, because I've enjoyed a great deal of his work over the years and, from listening to interviews and catching his panel appearances at conventions, just strikes me as one of the creators least deserving of catching grief from the fans (really, if more fans got to conventions and saw the passion the creators have for the characters and the medium, they'd shit on them much less on the internet, but that's a whole 'nother topic).

Because No One Asked For It: NFL Pro Bowl Picks

2009-12-30T01:04:00.003-05:00

The NFL announced the Pro Bowl squads tonight, so I thought I'd share the picks from my last online ballot submitted (which I recorded to send into the ESPN Football Today podcast when they requested listener e-mails on the subject). Keep in mind, this was submitted about 2 weeks ago.

AFC QBs: Peyton Manning, Matt Schaub & Philip Rivers
NFC QBs: Aaron Rodgers (A-Rodg), Brett Favre & Drew Brees

AFC RBs: Cedric Benson, Chris Johnson & Ray Rice (though I think Rice would give CJ a run for his money if used properly (i.e. not McGahee-vultured))
Also, I know I'm a NY Jets fan , but Thomas Jones largely benefits from his blocking and is not nearly the all-around back that Rice & Johnson are.

NFC RBs: DeAngelo Williams, Adrian Peterson & Frank Gore (tough to find a back that really makes a case for being a dominant, consensus #1)

AFC WRs: Andre Johnson, Brandon Marshall, Reggie Wayne & Vincent Jackson (if I weren't a Jets fan, Wes Walker would have gotten it instead of Wayne, btw)
NFC WRs: DeSean Jackson, Larry Fitzgerald, Sidney Rice & Marques Colston (much like the NFC RBs, this is a middling field; Fitz & Colston are better WRs in all around skill, but DeSean has clearly outshone them this season)

AFC TEs: Heath Miller & Antonio Gates (btw: Chris Baker is on the ballot for the Pats; so criminal that it makes me want to just go over league rosters to make sure I'm not missing clearly more deserving players at other positions. Oh...and to be fair: Dustin Keller quits/alligator-arms more often than Randy Moss)
NFC TEs: Vernon Davis & Brent Celek

AFC Cs: Kevin Mawae & Nick Mangold
NFC Cs: John Sullivan & Jonathan Goodwin (more for their teams record (Vikings & Saints, respectively) than observed production)

AFC Ts: Joe Thomas, Michael Roos & Ryan Clady
NFC Ts: Joe Staley, Jermon Bushrod & Bryant McKinnie

AFC Gs: Alan Faneca, Vincent Manuwai, Eugene Amano
NFC Gs: Chris Snee, Steve Hutchison & Rich Incognito (Incognito just because I want to see a personal foul in the Pro Bowl)

AFC FBs: Le'Ron McClain (out of respect for his having begrudgingly accepted the role when he could start at RB on so many teams)
NFC FBs: Leonard Weaver

AFC SSs: Dawan Landry
NFC SSs: Adrian Wilson

AFC CBs: DARRELLE FREAKING REVIS, Nnamdi & Johnathan Joseph
AFC CBs: Charles Woodson, Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie & Jabari Greer

AFC DEs: Robert Mathis, Richard Seymour & Mario Williams
NFC DEs: Jared Allen, Justin Tuck & Julius Peppers

AFC DTs: None. No one jumps out and Kris Jenkins was removed from the ballot due to injury.
NFC DTs: Sedrick Ellis, Pat Williams & Kevin Williams

AFC FSs: Jairus Byrd (breaking my unwritten rule of avoiding opposition players, but can't vote Rhodes based on how good I know he is instead of how he has played)
NFC FSs: Antrel Rolle

AFC ILBs: Bart Scott & David Harris
NFC ILBs: Jonathan Vilma & Patrick Willis

AFC OLBs: Elvis Dumervil, Terrell Suggs & LaMarr Woodley
NFC OLBs: DeMarcus Ware, Clay Matthews & Brian Orakpo

AFC KRs: Joshua Cribbs
NFC KRs: Percy Harvin

Wow...CBR Mods Are Scary

2009-12-29T14:06:00.003-05:00

I waded into the thread CBR had in its forums for their article about the Blackest Night #6 leak after I posted my blog that questioned whether the author of the article inadvertently revealed that he regularly reads scanned comic books downloaded via torrent.

The whole thread was nuked when, at last check, there was only a discussion about the following:

how it was questionable that they banned the member who originally posted some of the leaked images from BN #6
accusations that DC purposely leaked or put BN #6 in position to be linked to reap the coverage it would get
general discussion of the potential sales benefits of illegal downloads (not my position)
the future of street-dating for comic books
my question regarding whether the writer reads illegal downloads regularly.

To clarify: they nuked all user-contributed posts to the thread and then closed it. As of right now, there is still proof that a thread existed, albeit one that was closed days after creation without a single post.

Nothing posted today seems to be cached. But pages one, two (including where a member indicates the "lower quality" comment was off the mark), three, four and five are largely cached. Won't last for long, but it is proof that they destroyed a whole thread on a controversial topic generated by their own article.

Jim Caldwell Is No Herm Edwards

2009-12-28T14:35:00.004-05:00

Well, there goes that undefeated season. Funny thing is: there were a few comments before the game that seem to be contrary to the decisions the coach actually made during it.

Rachel Nichols had some interesting quotes from the coach and the QB. The links go to the original twitter posts that I grabbed them from.

From Jim Caldwell:

And yes, best outcome for Colts is to pile up a big lead early so he can just sit. Coach Caldwell says decision to be made "in flow of game"

In the flow of the game? I don't think pulling him in the middle of a competitive game with the outcome still completely in question is really a decision made in the flow of the game.

From Peyton Manning:

Clarifying Peyton's comments: I asked if he'd play thru 4th Q if outcome in doubt, his exact words:“I would certainly imagine so"

And, if it was in the flow of the game, I don't think he adequately prepared Peyton for it.

Sure, he left the game:

Manning also made it clear that if he gets tap on shoulder to sit, he will. He was too tactful to mention other QBs who might not.

But if you watched this game, Peyton looked either ready to cry or to punch his coach in the mouth. So I think it is pretty clear that the coach didn't prepare his best player for the scenarios he'd be removed from the game under. It seems obvious that there was more of a selected time for pulling players than a "in the flow of the game". Manning and others were pulled at about the most inconvenient time possible, so the only way "flow" mattered is if Caldwell had hoped to pull them even sooner if they were blowing out the Jets.

There was certainly no effort made to "play to win the game".

Why Geoff Isn't Publicly Fuming About BN6 Leak

2009-12-27T11:32:00.000-05:00

You see, he can't control it. While he might be a bit mad about it, lashing out over it would make him seem just a bit too much like Superboy-Prime.

Which brings me to something that really bugs me. I'm not a fan of the overly angry fanboy, but the statement he makes about getting mad over something you can't control, even something you love, rings false in this example.

In the end, the angry fanboy is the consumer and a passionate one at that. The consumer will have control over DC Comics product long after Geoff's candle burns out. The amount of pull Johns has gotten at DC Comics owes more to number of fans buying the product than the quality of the work.

I'm a big fan of a lot of his work, but STARS & STRIPE went the way of the do-do, I'd imagine, more due to the lack of fans purchasing it than the skill he demonstrated on the book. There are, also, many times where issues or arcs of his books sold very well even when the finished product didn't read like he put forth his best effort.

It is all well and good if he wants to tell himself that the segment of the customer base that is most disgruntled with his work just has some control issues they need to get a handle on. But when he crafts an entire issue of a comic book around it and has the consumer pay $3.99 to read it, there would seem to be a bit of pride and arrogance on display.

In this day and age where more of the readers are migrating to downloading illegal bittorrents of the books that they feel addicted to reading but aren't so happy with that they feel guilty for stealing it, you might not want to poke some of them with a stick.

With how small the group still buying comics seems to be getting, I wonder whether a H.E.A.T.-level motivated group of readers unhappy with the direction Geoff Johns is taking the DCU would be able to put a big enough dent in the sales numbers of his books by encouraging folks to download and not buy his work? I doubt we'll ever find out, but I am definitely curious.

Blackest Night #6 Leaked

2009-12-26T15:41:00.005-05:00

Update: From the comments in the thread on CBR about the article, it would appear less likely that the mention of the scan being "lower quality" was pulled from popular opinion of other readers of the illegally available comic book. Given that CBR banned a member who posted a few images from the book, it seems more and more likely that the comment may have been made to discourage others from seeking it out.

Original Post:

OK, we all knew that Blackest Night #6 would not successfully be embargoed when there are no proper checks and balances in place to keep it from getting out. There are no carrots and no sticks; any retailer who sells a few copies early to their best customers will likely be found out. Probably the only DM retailers that wind up following it are just the online variety (and even then, I don't think there are any that are STRICTLY online, so just the online segments of full service retailers).

But one of the things I found odd is the following in an article on CBR about the leak, specifically discussing the scanned book offered via torrents:

The scan itself was of lower quality than is typical of the pirated books, indicating that it was scanned, compiled and distributed in a bigger rush than usual.

The above quote was not placed in any context as being based on comments culled from the sites offering the torrent, but put forth as a statement of fact or judgment by the author of the column, Kiel Phegley.

If that statement is completely genuine, it suggests that a regular contributor to one of the top two sites covering comic books downloads and reads torrents on such a regular basis as to be able to compare and contrast scan qualities enough to make that assertion.

If that statement just isn't in its proper context (it WAS, in fact, made based on the opinions of others, not the author), then it runs the risk of people drawing the incorrect conclusion that Phegley is a connoisseur of scanned comics.

The third less likely option is that the statement is being made regardless of the real quality of the scan, only being there to serve as a slight attempt to dissuade readers from seeking it out.

I'd be curious to know which, if any, is true.

Tiger Woods CGI Reenactment

2009-12-03T16:25:00.002-05:00

I'm all for celebrities having the privacy they desire. But seeing how whatever went on between Tiger and his wife destroyed public property and could have put other lives in danger if it didn't happen in the wee hours of the night, any claims by Woods of making this purely a family issue just ring hollow. The FHP backing off is an example of unfairly applying the law, whether it is because of the fame of the suspect/victim or the gender of those involved.

That's part of why I had no problem clicking on this YouTube video and having a bit of a laugh, despite not being able to understand a non-English word.

Great: Now I Might Have To Abandon Amazon

2009-12-03T04:46:00.002-05:00

Amazon is being sued over labor practices. Thing is: this is something basically every company I've ever worked for has done/gotten away with. Well, at least every non-union job I've had (which is all but one).

So many employers more or less require you to be in before your shift starts. If you clock in right on time, you're effectively judged as being late. While law prevents employers in most states for penalizing you for being just on time or less than five minutes late, it is well known that you are expected to be at your station (desk, fry-o-lator, what have you) and working several minutes before the start of your shift.

Similarly, there is an expectation that you'll stay a few minutes past your shift to wrap things up. There's normally a culture that discourages employees from trying to claim their rightful quarter of an hour, even if the time ahead of shift and after shift add up to a full 15 minutes, let alone just fall into the amount that should be rounded up to the nearest quarter hour.

There's always been this imperfect balance between the worker and the employer. To a certain extent, failure to pay for all those extra minutes here and there seems reasonable, as settling little disputes over this amount of time would cause lost man hours and tons of frustration. But, at the same time, these employers are legally obligated to pay for the time and exert a silent coercion against their workers, with most employees having the feeling that haggling over a few hours of pay a year isn't worth killing their chances at advancement or a merit raise.

In all seriousness, my patronage of Amazon won't be effected. If they lose this case, they won't be the only company in America having to change how they handle this sort of payroll issue. You'll, also, have no end of fiscal conservative railing against the decision as the death knell of American business, especially the small variety.

For All Its Hype...

2009-11-27T17:03:00.003-05:00

Champions Online, the City-of-Heroes-warmed-over MMORPG that skews more towards action, couldn't even come close to selling out Amazon's allotment of half-priced copies of the game.

Selling for under $20, only 7% of copies were claimed by Amazon buyers. As video games go, $20 is as much an impulse buy price as a pack of gum in the supermarket checkout line. But on the biggest online retailer's site, they couldn't even move 10% of the stock set aside for the deal.

Is the game that bad? Has the market for MMOs not named World of Warcraft just dried up that much? Is this an indication that many dismissed it for its similarities to City of Heroes (including being made by the same studio)? Or is this a preview of how any super-hero MMO (cough DCU Online cough) will perform in the marketplace?

On a side note: they made Marvel change the name of a comic book for THIS?!?

Only Real Wizards Can Magically Make Mistakes Disappear!

2009-11-21T00:20:00.004-05:00

As you can see in the press release below, Wizard Entertainment's CEO bought New England Comic Con. Apparently, it gets them into Boston in a big way.

You're shitting me, right? They already had a WIZARD WORLD BOSTON that they ran into the fucking dirt, but they want to laud this as a way to get into a market in a big way. It just shines a light on the fact that they fucked it up so bad before that they don't even want to acknowledge that it is their RE-ENTRY into the market, doesn't it?

You know, I shouldn't be surprised by this sort of thing coming from them...but when people won't learn from their mistakes, it is dumbfounding.

GAREB SHAMUS, WIZARD ENTERTAINMENT CEO, ACQUIRES NEW ENGLAND COMIC CON

Wizard World Comic Con continues Tour Expansion

New York, NY (November 20, 2009) - Gareb Shamus, CEO of New York based Wizard Entertainment, announces today that he has purchased New England Comic Con, in a move to further expand the Wizard World Comic Con tour.

"We've known Larry for many years, and his exceptional 35-year old New England Comic Con gets us into Boston in a big way. New England has a long legacy of cartoons and comics embedded in their history, making the fans there very appreciative of comics' impact on society and pop culture," said Shamus. "I'm excited to bring these discerning fans an even better Con experience and everything they expect from a Wizard run show."

Larry Harrison, owner of Harrison's Comics & Collectibles, and Jimmy Tournas, the former owners of New England Comic Con, will be intimately involved in the new show production to ensure fan favorite traditions are maintained.

"Working with Gareb is an awesome experience. The folks at Wizard World have a great sense of how to grow the show in a way that I've always wanted to see it flourish. This should be the best comic con the city of Boston has ever seen," said Harrison.

The New England Comic Con acquisition is the first of several Comic Con tour expansion announcements expected in the weeks ahead.

“We bring together more fans, in more cities than anyone, to celebrate their passion for pop-culture. We've had such a strong positive fan and industry reaction to our new show launches that expanding the tour just made sense," said Shamus.

New England Comic Con venue and dates will be announced soon.

About Gareb Shamus:
Gareb Shamus founded Wizard Entertainment in 1991. Today, Wizard Entertainment publishes consumer magazines Wizard, ToyFare, FunFare, and numerous books about pop-culture's top talent, comic books and toys. Gareb also produces a North American Comic Con tour.

Wizard World 2010 Comic Con Tour:
Toronto Comic Con, Direct Energy Centre, March 26-28, 2010
Anaheim Comic Con, Anaheim Convention Center, April 16-18, 2010
Philadelphia Comic Con, Philadelphia Convention Center June 11-13, 2010
Chicago Comic Con, Donald E. Stephens (Rosemont) Convention Center, August 12-15, 2010
Big Apple Comic Con, Pier 94, October 7-10, 2010
New England Comic Con, TBD