the stuff inside my head that must get out
archives
Sat, 23 Jul 2005
In case anyone is wondering what to get me for my 30th birthday next week, one of these would be nice. Now somebody needs to invent repulsors.
Fri, 22 Jul 2005
comicon 2005
Now that I've returned from my very first Comicon in sunny San Diego I
thought I'd take a moment to reflect. Overall I had a blast, although
that was due as much to what a great city San Diego is as anything that
went on in their super-futuristic convention center.
My host was Chris "Chip" Vanacore, who long-time Mike's Coliseum customers may remember from his days working behind the counter. He's currently drumming up a storm for his band Dirty Sweet. Actually, you probably won't recognize him as he looks nothing like the kid I remember beating up in elementary school. Now he looks more like Charles Manson than I ever remember.
Anyway, the highlight of the convention for me was the hour-long perfomance by Tenacious D. They truly delivered an awesome performance that I'll always remember.
The best comics-related panels that I went to were the Bill Liebowitz memorial and the Eisner awards, which were both fun yet twinged with sadness as we lost two really important men involved with the comics industry.
While we were nominated for the Eisner Spirit of Retailing award, we failed to make the finalists and were not even allowed to sit with the nominees. I was disappointed, to say the least, but there were 18 nominees this year, and the competition was very tough. The winner was Mimi Cruz of Night Flight in Salt Lake City, Utah. I've only heard great things about Mimi, and I know the award was well deserved. We'll just have to keep working hard at improving the store, and we'll try again soon.
After the dissapointing denouement of the awards, I decided to spend some time seeing San Diego. We met Alton Brown, my favorite TV cook and got him to autograph some books for us. He was a nice guy and really took time to talk to everyone.
Sunday we sipped cocktails at the scenic and historic Hotel Del Coronado. It was beautiful and really helped relax and enjoy the first vacation I've taken in a long time.
Monday we went to the world famous San Diego Zoo. It lived up to it's reputation and was a great way to wind up our time in San Diego. I'll be back to visit next year for sure.
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Sat, 09 Jul 2005
Comics: The 9th Art
I should have posted this weeks ago, but I didn't. I'll be giving a
speech for 6th to 12th graders on the mezzanine level of the new MLK
Library downtown on Saturday July 9 at 3:00.
I'm going to try to give a talk on comics and communication theory to kids. Sounds boring? We'll soon see. I'll be talking about why comics are a medium that's rarely well done.
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Tue, 05 Jul 2005
Justin G is a comics addict
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Volume 2: Absolute Edition
America's Best Comics
I think it's ironic that this book came out the same day as Spielberg's War of the Worlds opened in theatres. Both feature some of the H.G. Wells tripod contraptions. The movie boasted a vaguely interesting script with unoriginal visuals. This book just blows it away, we knew from the opening shots of Mars that we were in for something special here. Don't let the price tag fool you, this is a special pedigree well worth the price of admission considering the grand scope, craftsmanship of both scripting and art, as well as the extra features. Grade A.
Shining Knight #3 (of 4)
DC Comics
This book is getting really good. I wasn't bothered by the Arthurian bits that irked me before, in fact they've grown to be really interesting. The art remains very strong with striking panel choices. Throwing the term "antiquities" around gave it sort of a vague Indiana Jones feel in spots and I'm looking forward to the wrap up. One of the strongest supporting casts I've seen in quite a while. B+.
Albion #1 (of 6)
DC Comics, Wildstorm
Pity that Moore never got to do his follow up project to Watchmen, Twilight of the Superheroes, due to his ever festering fallout with DC. All of his projects seem to have a hint of it present which never has come to fruition. Albion feels and looks like that, like it's trying to connect with that energy, particularly with the "play within a play" feature that Moore borrowed from Shakespeare's Hamlet. While some might think having Moore's daughter Leah handle scripting is nest, it just comes off as kitschy to me - it's just not very good dialogue and I think it's in poor taste. I glossed over from the less than engaging story about half way through and just enjoyed the art which starts as an odd blend of Sean Phillips and Phil Hester, and ends up with a heavy Eduardo Risso influence. Grade C.
Young Avengers #5
Marvel Comics
Still solid superhero comics. I refuse to get sucked into the debate about the questionable sexuality of Asgardian and Hulkling. I don't care. Whether the characters are female, black, gay, or time-traveling warlords, I'm in as long as they're written in an entertaining manner, and they are. Questioning whether they belong in this medium in the first place means we haven't truly accepted them as a part of mainstream society. I'd like to believe that our beloved medium's stance of tolerance is better positioned than that. This is a great books for kids because not only is it fun superhero comics, but it doesn't dwell on issues of race, gender, or sexual preference. It just lays them out there as givens and moves forward with a good story. Grade B.
GI Joe #1
Devil's Due Publishing
Not bad at all. I'm digging the look of Scarlet and the wildly different personalities and opinions of the team members. The book also just feels really weighty, maybe it's the thick paper, the dark colors, or the Casey dialogue, but finally a $2.95 comic that I don't feel cheated by. It feels like we're getting our money's worth of entertainment here. Grade B.
Green Lantern #2
DC Comics
Reminiscent of the old 80's Green Lanterns that I grew up on. Johns has definitely found his groove and is channeling the sound and feel of the fast moving action and thoughtful dialogue that a GL book should offer. There is lots going on here to take in with all of the various sub-plots and Pacheco's solid art is very easy on the eye as it welcomes you around the page. Grade B.
Solo #5, Darwyn Cooke
DC Comics
DC's Solo series is such a great idea. What a wonderful spotlight on the modern masters of the medium. Cooke pulls off a great diversity of vignettes that reads more like a really great anthology book. His pieces are also interspersed with an uncredited story about a bar scene with some wonderful background cameos. Really good stuff. Grade A.
Planetary #23
DC Comics, Wildstorm
Planetary is the best work of Warren Ellis by far. The individual story arcs that are vaguely familiar, the cover designs hosting different genres, and the superstory which seems to tie together the canon of all comic continuity is simply amazing. Though it narrowly misses the A+ grade for a laughable publishing schedule, still one of the greatest comic achievements of the modern age. Grade A.
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Sun, 03 Jul 2005
Comics delayed for Independence Day
We'll be closed Monday July 4th in honor of Independence day. Due to the holiday, comics will be shipping on Thursday instead of Wednesday.
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Fri, 01 Jul 2005
This cool gallery of bootleg toys has some hilarious pictures of illegal action figure knock-offs.
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