News: “Disney Aquires Marvel”

The news of Disney buying Marvel hit me hard. I’m sure no one will argue that Marvel is the biggest publishing name in the comic book universe, will this effect their legacy? I don’t know, and I don’t know if this news is good or not.

I’m a Marvel supporter, through and through. I’m not a snob though, so I still buy and read comics published by other companies. Disney is an entertainment giant. Theme parks, TV shows, cartoons, animations, TV channels, movies, merchandise… you name it, they’ve got it in bulk. I’m not apposed to Marvel becoming an entertainment giant, I’m apposed to it changing and becoming more “child friendly”. I agree that there is always room for more child-friendly comic books, but they all can’t be that way. Us adults need to be able to still enjoy comics and want to buy them too. The way the economy is these days they only way you can make money on comics is keeping the adult and young adult audience interested.

When it comes to movies I think Marvel would benefit from Disney’s influence. Marvel make great movies, but they could be better.

I’m not sure how it will all pan out. Only time, more press conferences, and more news articles will tell.

ComicBookResources.com: Disney Acquires Marvel – UPDATED

The Umbrella Academy: Dallas – Review

The best comic book series are the ones where the writer is the same as the creator, and the artist does not change. Why? It’s called consistency. Umbrella Academy has it all. Umbrella Academy set the bar high, but Dallas came along, jumped clear over bar and then annihilated it.

The characters in Dallas had developed from Umbrella Academy and the events that occurred between those pages, but Dallas still stayed true to the characters. Even the character development within the series was  insightful. Way is a genius. The use of President Kennedy’s assassination was mind-blowing, especially the reason why Number 5 was given his special task.

The main thing I love about Umbrella Academy is that they are superheros in their own right, but they are still flawed. Their lives are the portrait of the stereotypical superheros, where they save the day and their lives are awesome. The Umbrella Academy are different, they save the day but never in the conventional way and never ending the conventional way. Their family is broken, their father is a creepy alien douche, and their mother is a mannequin. They all have problems but they still seem to save the world together (well, the ones still alive or not in a coma).

Comics Online: Penny Arcade!

Penny Arcade is a web comic strip focused on gaming and gaming culture. It is written by Jerry Holkins and illustrated by Mike Krahulik, and debuted in 1998. If you haven’t checked it out head on over to Penny Arcade, read their news feed, comics and whatever else you can find lingering around.

Here is one of their comic strips from 26 of March 1999.

Today is Plastic Bag Day

Rainy Day | Left-Handed Toons.

Note: Plastic Bag Day is about wearing plastic bags inside your shoes to keep your feet and socks from getting wet. It’s all about recycling!

Deadpool Movie Confirmed

I’m a big fan of Marvel and Ryan Reynolds, so the announcement of a Deadpool movie is exciting to me. I know there are fans of the comics who aren’t happy with “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” and the portrayal or Deadpool, but I look forward to seeing how they bring Deadpool to the big screen after the small “debut” in “Wolverine”. Lauren Shuler Donner will be directing the film and Ryan Reynolds is set to return.

To expand, the Deadpool in “Wolverine” was different from the Deadpool in the comic books. If you would like to know more about the comic book Deadpool you can read more on Wikipedia. To get information on the Deadpool in “Wolverine” it’s very simple, watch the movie.

Were there many people who could not enjoy the movie because it swayed too far from it’s comic book roots? Leave a comment about what you thought and/or what you think about them continuing to bring comic book character to the big screen.

If you would like to watch a review of the movie by avid comic book readers check out The Comic Book Clubs review below.

The Umbrella Academy: Apocalypse Suite – Review

Gerard Way is brilliant. I wish I had friends who loved this comic series the way I do. The story is engaging, the characters unique, and the dialogue is fantastic. It made me laugh and almost cry. While i was reading one part (book) I couldn’t wait to get my hands on the next. It kept me wanting more.

Graphically it is also on another level of awesome. Gabriel Bá’s style complements the story and gives the characters depth. You can see their pain, strength, weakness, and emotional states. The fight scenes and ‘landscape shots’ during various ’scenes’ look amazing. It is art at it’s best. If I could I would frame every page and hang them on my bedroom walls.

I have yet to read a comic book like this one. I can’t get over the subtle humour and stunning art. Even though I’m very protective of my comics and graphic novels I’m always willing to let people read The Umbrella Academy because I love it so much. I would love at least one of my friends to get into it so I had someone to discuss how awesome it is with. (Of course, that person is not allowed to take the comic book out of my room or have it out for longer than it takes to read it.)

My WATCHMEN “Review”

Watchmen was awesome! I was not disappointed and I’m glad I went to the cinema’s to watch it.

To everyone who didn’t like it. I feel sorry for you.

That’s all I have time to write right now.

I can’t wait to read the graphic novel now.

WATCHMEN TPB at TFAW.com

WATCHMEN

Being released tomorrow is the movie I have been waiting. Watchmen. Check out the website if you want to know more about the characters. watchmenmovie.warnerbros.com

Director: Zack Snyder
Warner Bros. Pictures and Paramount Pictures
Based on a comic by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons and published by DC Comics.

Comic Book Club

“Iron your capes, unplug the Bat Signal and set your decoder rings on awesome: the Comic Book Club is in session! The Comic Book Club is a weekly comic book talk show featuring the best comedians in New York talking shop with industry professionals from all corners of the comic book world. Hosted by Justin Tyler, Pete LePage, and Alex Zalben. Plus every show we give away a 25$ gift card to Midtown Comics!”

Pete, Alex and Justin bring us a live comic book talk show that keeps me entertained and up to date with comic books worth ordering and shipping from the United States. I check their YouTube channel daily for updates, refusing to miss even one episode. They perform live in the Peoples Improv Theatre every Tuesday night at 8:00pm and tickets are only $5.

If you’re into comic books in a big way you should check the Comic Book Club on YouTube, read their blog at www.popcultureshock.com/cbclub/, ask a question by emailing them at thecomicbookclub@yahoo.com, or see their live show in New York.

On my list of “Things to Do Before I Die” number 1 is to attend a comic-con in the US and number 2 is see the Comic Book Club live.

Serenity: Better Days Series

I ordered 6 comic books from TFAW.com (US). They were due to arrive (in New Zealand) between 7-18 working days. I expecting it to take 18 working days but a box arrived on my door step 8 days after I received an email telling me my order had been shipped. Now that’s what I call amazing service!

Two of the comic books I ordered were Serenity: Better Days #1 and #2.
As a hard core Serenity fan I was not disappointed. I felt like I was back on the ship and my frustration of the show being cancelled faded away as I turned the pages. I now wish I had brought #3 instead of 30 Days Of Night Beyond Barrow #3, but these are necessary growing pains with building up a comic book collection.

I was deprived as a child. I live on a farm and so my days were taken up by games out side in the fresh Taranaki air. Then as a teenager I spent my time listening to loud rock music and watched movie after movie. Now, as a young adult I live in a city with stores fill of things we do not need, and I have access to online stores with even more products we do not need. My inner geek has been released and I have embraced this true me.

I will try to write short reviews of the comic books I read, just like I often do with movies and music. If you enjoyed the Serenity movie and/or Firefly TV Series I would suggest checking out the comic books. There is also a graphic novel that I have my eye on, Those Left Behind. This is next on my list, along with #3 in the Better Days series. “You can’t stop the signal!”

Open Learning Class 04/08/08

So we had an open learning class yesterday with Pastor Andrew. He put across the question, “If you were about to die and you had 5mins to preach your last sermon to a bunch of Christians, what would you say?”

To be honest i was stumped…what would i say? “Love God, Obey his teaching and love people”??

After class i was sitting and pondering over the question and a short answer came to my head that made me break out into laughter… “get a mac”…

With my last breath would I tell people that they should get a mac?? well if i had 5mins I’m sure that’s plenty of time to slip it in there somewhere…altho it wouldn’t be the main guts of my message – that would be crazy.

I think the purpose of this exercise is to get us thinking about what we would change if we could go back…our regrets etc.

What would i change?

• I wouldn’t want to be so lazy, i think.
• Look after the environment better
• Spend more time with family
• Spend less time working and more time with friends
• Spend more time studying and learning
• Read Bible and pray more
  …I’m sure there is more but I can’t think of it right now…

During this class Andrew and I spent some time discussing the Dark Knight. He didn’t like it, I did. So, it turned out to be a really interesting discussion. Tabitha made a comment at the end of class that we should read more books…this annoyed me! I read books…just not fantasy books. I’d rather watch a movie than read a book about the movie. Everything is right in front of you and you can see the skill and talent used to put it all together. I’m always left in awe at the special effects, camera techniques and other magical things.

As each day goes passed I amaze myself at how geeky I really am…it’s always been hidden inside… I have a profile on facebook, myspace, bebo, friendster, hisholyspace, hi5, oldfriends, purevolume, youtube, godtube, amplifier, eventful, blogspot, multiply, del.icio.us, digg it, flickr, photobucket, shutterfly, 431 club (NZ cricket), pogo, neopets, DSE, thinkgeek, amazon, trademe, driverguide, font trader…and more…hmm…maybe i should stop joining stuff…