Fri Jul 30, 2010 — by Marc Alan Fishman

John Callahan: 1951-2010

Taboo cartoonist leaves behind an array of strips that'd make Seth MacFarlane blush.

For those who think the cartoons in the pages of Playboy or Hustler are racy, or the cartoon cavalcade of Seth MacFarlane pushes the boundaries of taste... sit down, and get something cold to drink. Last week, the world lost John Callahan, taboo cartoonist extraordinaire. Callahan, a quadriplegic since a car accident at 21, turned to cartooning to share his worldview. By clasping a pen between his two hands (akin to a "praying" pose, if you will) John spent his years sharing his darkly funny worldview with the public at large.

Callahan was an original voice in his oddly-drawn world. His cartoons were dark, and funny. For those who are familiar with the webcomic The Parking Lot Is Full, or finds Family Guy's "Prom Night Dumpster Baby" song to be hilarious... know now that this godfather to that raunch has passed.

While his cartoons were shown in local Portland papers, where John was considered an often seen man-about-town, he was a varied artist at heart. He wrote his own "quasi-memoir", Will the Real John Callahan Please Stand Up? His songwriting skills led him to record an album in 2006, Purple Winos In the Rain. In addition to this, Callahan's cartoons became the basis for a pair of animated series, Nickelodeon's Pelswic, and the Canadian-Australian Quads. Quads retains Callahan's more darkly twinged humor.

Feel free to take a look at Callahan's website, which includes both raving good reviews, as well as hate mail, and the subsequent store, where you can purchase some his wickedly funny cartoons. And as a treat, enjoy John's uke and harmonica twinged tune...Touch Me Someplace I Can Feel.

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Fri Jul 30, 2010 — by Robert Greenberger

DC Comics celebrates its 75th, and you can win prizes-- if you can stump our expert

DC Comics was born in the fall of 1935 and they are celebrating their diamond anniversary in many ways including a digital iTunes experience with movies such as The Dark Knight or animated features such as Superman: Doomsday available for download complete with extras. You can even experience the previous nine seasons of the WB/CW’s Smallville in HD. See for yourself in this cool clip:

The kind folk over at Warner Home Video have offered us three prizes:

• DC Character Hat
• Batman Under The Red Hood Free iTunes Download
• DC 75-branded toy set

To win one of these, you will have to stump the expert – me.

As writer of DC’s forthcoming new edition of Who’s Who, I will be answering DC Comics-related trivia questions posted in the comments section. The first three to genuinely stump me will be declared the winners. Our definition of trivia is the kind of semi-obscure questions that make you nod in agreement when you see the answer and think: ‘D’oh! I knew that.’ We don’t want obscure, picky questions such as what brand of ketchup was used on page 4, panel 3 of Donut Man #75. That’s not trivia, that’s the sign of having too much time on your hands.

Check out the iTunes offerings and good luck with the challenge.

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Fri Jul 30, 2010 — by Mike Raub

The Point Radio: Tim Matheson Meets 'Thor' and 'Green Lantern'

Back in business from ComicCon, we have a TON to share! First, Tim Matheson takes us behind the scenes at the hit USA Network shows that he is directing including COVERT AFFAIRS, PSYCH, WHITE COLLAR & BURN NOTICE. Then we give you a glimpse of our ComicCon experiences as we share comments from Grace Park, Erica Durance, Chris Helmsworth (THOR), Joel McHale (COMMUNITY), Robert Carlisle (STARGATE UNIVERSE), Ryan Reynolds (GREEN LANTERN) and even some comic book guy named JIM LEE.

And be sure to stay on The Point via , RSS, MyPodcast.Com or Podbean!

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Don't forget that you can now enjoy THE POINT 24 hours a Day - 7 Days a week!. Updates on all parts of pop culture, special programming by some of your favorite personalities and the biggest variety of contemporary music on the net - plus there is a great round of new programs on the air including classic radio each night at 12mid (Eastern) on RETRO RADIO COMICMIX's Mark Wheatley hitting the FREQUENCY every Saturday at 9pm and even the Editor-In-Chief of COMICMIX, Mike Gold, with his daily WEIRD SCENES and two full hours of insanity every Sunday (7pm ET) with WEIRD SOUNDS!

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Fri Jul 30, 2010 — by Robert Greenberger

'Legend of the Guardians' One-Sheet Unveiled

We started hearing about director Zack Snyder working on adapting Kathryn Lasky's Guardians of Ga’Hoole as his first foray into animation as his work on The Watchmen was concluding. Legend of the Guardians is finally opening on September 24 and Warner Bros. just released the first one-sheet for the feature.

Here are the other vital stats:

Cast:    Emily Barclay, Abbie Cornish, Ryan Kwanten, Anthony LaPaglia, Miriam Margolyes, Helen Mirren, Sam Neill, Geoffrey Rush, Jim Sturgess, Hugo Weaving, Richard Roxburgh, David Wenham  

Writers: John Orloff and Emil Stern

Producer: Zareh Nalbandian

Executive Producers: Donald De Line, Deborah Snyder, Lionel Wigram, Chris DeFaria, Kathryn Lasky, Bruce Berman

Fantasy Adventure.  Acclaimed filmmaker Zack Snyder makes his animation debut with the fantasy family adventure.  The film follows Soren, a young owl enthralled by his father’s epic stories of the Guardians of Ga’Hoole, a mythic band of winged warriors who had fought a great battle to save all of owlkind from the evil Pure Ones.  While Soren dreams of someday joining his heroes, his older brother, Kludd, scoffs at the notion, and yearns to hunt, fly and steal his father’s favor from his younger sibling.  But Kludd’s jealousy has terrible consequences—causing both owlets to fall from their treetop home and right into the talons of the Pure Ones.  Now it is up to Soren to make a daring escape with the help of other brave young owls.  Together they soar across the sea and through the mist to find the Great Tree, home of the legendary Guardians of Ga’Hoole—Soren’s only hope of defeating the Pure Ones and saving the owl kingdoms.

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Wed Jul 28, 2010 — by Mike Gold

Review: 'Sherlock', The New Kid On The Block

A Man For Our Time

You don’t have to be Sherlock Holmes to figure out who’s made his second fantastic comeback in seven months.

Last Christmas Robert Downey Jr.’s Sherlock Holmes was great fun, featuring a contemporary approach that actually had a lot more to do with the original stories than the subsequent movies and teevee shows. I’m looking forward to the sequel.

Last week, the BBC debuted its new series of Sherlock teevee movies, created and produced by Doctor Who showrunner Stephen Moffat, who also wrote the pilot. He took the great detective and set him in contemporary times.

Yeah, I know.  As Rocket J. Squirrel famously stated, “But that trick never works.” There’s nothing new about this: Basil Rathbone’s Sherlock battled Nazi spies during World War II. We watched Moffat’s Sherlock strictly because of my overwhelming enthusiasm for Moffat as a writer, and we weren’t disappointed. It was a non-stop thrill ride with a perfectly obsessed Holmes deploying cell phones and nicotine patches in his exhibitions of genius.

As Sherlock, actor Benedict Cumberbatch was right on the money: intense, possessed, and brilliant. He’s a bit like Moffat’s Doctor Who, Matt Smith, although he’s actually older and less restrained. Evidently, he turned down an offer to play Doctor Eleven because he didn’t want his face on lunch boxes. Still, it doesn’t take a fanboy to wish for a crossover.

His comrade-in-sleuthing Dr. Watson was admirably portrayed by Martin Freeman, of The Office fame (that’s the original one, not NBC’s Americanized version). His performance reminds me a bit of John Simm’s work on Life On Mars; that’s high praise in my book.

The updating went well. Everybody is acting as though it is really 2010 and the cast is expanded to reflect current reality. It’s been a long time since I had so much fun watching a teevee pilot, and I highly recommend it. It will show up stateside on PBS’s Masterpiece whenever they feel like running it.

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Wed Jul 28, 2010 — by Alexandra Honigsberg

Review: 'Ouran High School Host Club'

Last October, a horn player and otaku friend recommended a shojo anime. OMG. Cute. I don’t do cute. But she persisted and I was curious – a smart, geeky, poor girl gets into an elite academy for rich kids on a full scholarship, feels totally out of place, and accidentally becomes associated with the six smartest, most gorgeous, richest, blue-blooded and most well-connected guys in the school…hmmm…been there, done that. No really! My life is an anime! So I looked. And I was hooked.

I had to wait ‘til the end of March for the complete Ouran High School Host Club collection from Funimation (4 disks, extras like commentaries from the American cast, about $50 retail, standard and blu-ray). But it was worth it. And what could make a hard-core, anti-kawaii viewer like me get involved? Simple – beautiful art, music, performances, writing and, most importantly, characters and storylines that will make you laugh and cry and care. In short, as I’ve said so many times before – it’s human!

And it does so by delighting all the senses – the eye is treated to architectural renderings both ridiculous and lush (English academy style in pink with cherry blossoms), the music composed and performed flawlessly with elements of Bach Brandenburg Concerti, Strauss Waltzes, and Chopin Nocturnes that will have you swearing they’d been written by the great masters, but by Yoshihisha Hirano (Death Note), believable dialogue even at its most outrageous, and glimpses into Japanese pop culture and history in fascinating detail.

Continue reading Review: 'Ouran High School Host Club' ›

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Wed Jul 28, 2010 — by Robert Greenberger

Review: 'James and the Giant Peach'

Movie technology needed to catch up to the imagination of author Roald Dahl. By the time that occurred in the 1980s Dahl was in his final years and barely got to enjoy proper adaptations of his works. His imaginative fiction was incredibly vivid and picturesque while also having a dark undercurrent, an edge that set them apart from other children’s literature.

His widow, Liccy, finally allowed his 1961 novel, James and the Giant Peach, to be adapted by the team of producers Denise Di Novi and Tom Burton and director Henry Selick. They had previously proven their mettle as a team with the delightful A Nightmare Before Christmas and were seeking something else to do with their stop-motion wizardry. The results in 1996 were a stripped down adaptation, but one that Liccy and children around the world embraced.

Walt Disney Home Entertainment is finally releasing the movie on Blu-ray this Tuesday. The Special Edition comes complete with both Blu-ray and DVD, but no digital copy, so this is a littler less special than other releases.

The story of young James Henry Trotter is told here with some substantive changes from the novel including his age and whereabouts when his parents are killed by a rhinoceros (in the film, a thunder storm of horrific proportions, in the book, the real animal). He comes to live with his vile and cruel aunts, Sponge and Spiker, who delight in tormenting him. Through it all, James’ optimism never wavers and he’s a model child, keeping his dreams of visiting New York City to himself.

His behavior and nature is rewarded when a Mysterious Stranger approaches him with a bag full of magic. Accidentally spilling some of the glowing objects, a dead tree soon after reveals a growing peach, which becomes mammoth in proportion. As the aunts profit from displaying the object to the curious, James is left to clean up after the tourists. That is, until he finds a tunnel and burrows deep within the fruit and encounters a hardy band of insects and an arachnid. Together, they take the peach on a journey, heading towards the Big Apple.

The rest of the film is a romp as they go from adventure to adventure en route to Manhattan and then finally arrive. Inexplicably, the aunts arrive soon thereafter, only to receive an overdue comeuppance, one far less interesting than their prose fate.

Selick interestingly begins and ends the film with a live action James (Paul Terry) but once he enters the peach, the film shifts into fantasy land with stop-motion figures. As a result, we get nicely detailed and designed ensemble including Mr. Old Green Grasshopper (Simon Callow), Mr. Centipede (Richard Dreyfuss), Mr. Earthworm (David Thewlis), Miss Spider Susan Sarandon), Mrs. Ladybug (Jane Leeves), and Glowworm (Miriam Margolyes, who is also Aunt Sponge).

Things move along briskly although things do stop for some unmemorable and unnecessary songs. Randy Newman’s Oscar-nominated score was all we ever needed and the pacing does stop even though the songs are at least plot or character specific.

Being remastered for Blu-ray, the visuals are sharp and wonderful to watch, with excellent sound.

The only new extra on the Blu-ray disc is an interactive Spike the Aunts game, which takes nice advantage of the technology. The original extras: a short Making Of featurette, a Newman music video, “Good New”, still gallery can be found on the standard DVD.

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Wed Jul 28, 2010 — by Glenn Hauman

#SDCC: Marvel Studios: 'Thor' & 'Captain America: The First Avenger' complete panel for viewing

Just to prove that it can be done like we said it could be, we figured we'd do what the convention hasn't and make video of some of the heavily attended panels available to you for viewing.

First on our list, Marvel's Kevin Feige, Kenneth Branagh, Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Kat Dennings, Tom Hiddleston, Clark Gregg, give you an inside look at the ever-expanding Marvel Cinematic Universe-- and you'll see the first video of the Avengers assembled, as they're joined by Joe Johnston, Robert Downey Jr., Scarlett Johannsen, Chris Evans, Samuel L. Jackson, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, and Joss Whedon. Enjoy.

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Tue Jul 27, 2010 — by Robert Greenberger

'Green Lantern' Teaser One-Sheets

Seemingly minutes after Comic-Con International called it a wrap for 2010, Warner Bros.' publicity machine cranked it into high gear and released four teaser posters for June 2011's Green Lantern feature film. Our apologies for the delay in sharing them with you.

Of course, one of the con's highlights was Ryan Reynolds's encounter with a young fan, who asked about the oath. Apparently, hearing him solemnly recite the oath caused fainting, oohs, aaahs, and other orgasmic responses.

While some have quibbled over the still-in-the-works costume (personally, we hated the mask we saw on the Entertainment Weekly cover), what was shown to the packed room was well received.

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Tue Jul 27, 2010 — by Glenn Hauman

#SDCC: The Black Panel 2010

There's something very strange when the only write-up I've seen on this year's Black Panel came not from any comics websites, but from the Wall Street Journal. On the other hand, perhaps they were just reading the actual sales figures, and they noted that the best selling comic of 2009 featured a black man.

This year’s panel included, besides moderator and self-crowned Master Of The Universe Michael Davis, author Nnedi Okorafor, entertainment attorney Darrell Miller, former Danity Kane singer Dawn Richard, director and comics writer Reginald Hudlin, artist Denys Cowan, writer Natashia McGough, Wu-Tang Clan’s Prodigal Sunn, and actor Bill Duke.

The WSJ certainly captured the flavor of the panel:

Davis opened the event by beckoning any reporters from conservative media outlets to take his comically incendiary comments out of context, including his announcement that he would not be letting white people into the event and that white people are all better off dead. He later scathingly lambasted anybody that violated the rules of the panel, such as when audience members digress during the Q&A portion. Suffice it to say, it pretty much happened most of the time anyway.

Hopefully video will be available soon.

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Tue Jul 27, 2010 — by Kim Kindya

AniMiniCon SoHo July 30-August 1

An Event in New York City for Fans of Anime, Manga and Japanese Culture

AniMiniCon SoHo is a three day-event taking place July 30-Aug 1 for local New York City area fans of anime, manga and Japanese culture. It's happening at a unique downtown space, the SoHo Gallery for Digital Art in Manhattan (138 Sullivan Street, New York, NY  www.sohodigart.com) The Gallery has 16 hi-resolution 40" computer monitors on the walls, which will show off not only anime and manga artworks, but also photgraphic scenes from Japan that will make you feel like you're in a "Virtual Tokyo."

On Friday night, (July 30) the events open with a cosplay reception (refreshments will be served!) that will also mark the debut of the SOHO Host Club. This group of young gentleman fans of anime and manga will be circulating throughout the event and presiding over several program items throughout the weekend. They will be serving tea and snacks at the Victorian, Gothic and Lolita Tea Party on Sunday afternoon (August 1) where premium tea will be provided by Harney and Sons. You don't need to dress up, but if you can, please come in your best Victorian, Steampunk, Gothic, Lolita or Japanese traditional outfits! If you have any Asian Ball Jointed Dolls (such as Dollfies) bring them along to show off.

On Saturday night (July 31) there is a live musical performance of songs from anime series such as Bleach, Full Metal Alchemist and Blood Plus. As ComicMix's own Alexandra Honigsberg plays, corresponding scenes from the anime will be projected onto a large digital screen, so the live music becomes the soundtrack to the show! You'll also be encouraged to sing and dance along. 

AniMiniCon SoHo will also feature anime screenings (courtesy of Funimation) as well as panel discussions with animation and manga artists including Misako Rocks. There will also be a Dealer's Room, as well as organized discussions and anime/manga themed games and demonstrations.

For more details and updates, visit www.animinicon.com or join their Facebook group. Admission is $30 for the three-day pass (available in advance at the website) or $12 per day at the door.  If you are interested in participating in any of the program items (especially if you can demonstrate Japanese traditional arts, such as kimono or origami) e-mail animiniconsoho@gmail.com.

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Tue Jul 27, 2010 — by Mike Gold

Terror At The San Diego Comic Con

Loudmouthed OPINION from the Editor-In-Chief

Just about everybody over the age of 12 who had gone to the fabled San Diego Comic Con over the past several years has perceived the unbelievably massive overcrowding as an accident just waiting to happen. Well, this year it finally happened.

As reported here and elsewhere, last Saturday a confrontation between two attendees ended with one being stabbed in the eye. It seems the perpetrator took exception to the guy sitting in on a panel just so he could get a seat at the next panel. Quite frankly, that’s a common occurrence at the San Diego show.

The attacker was arrested and charged with assault with a deadly weapon. That deadly weapon was a pen, but, according to the police, the pen was used in a deadly manner. Barring additional, heretofore unrevealed information – like, the victim was wielding a Klingon Daqtagh – this seems like a reasonable charge. I’m sure it’ll be plea-bargained down to something like community service at a Soylent Green plant.

There’s only so much security you can provide when you squeeze an eighth of a million people, most wearing gynormous backpacks, into a confined space that restricts movement. If you’re not willing to be in line for the better panels hours and hours early, you will not get in. And there are dozens and dozens of those; trust me, I’ve been on more than a few. Last couple years those of us who participate in panels have been hustled into “green rooms” afterwards in order to escape the crowds.

If it’s panels you’re looking for, in San Diego you’ll be lucky to attend two a day while spending the rest of your time standing in line.

Those lines exacerbate the difficulty of getting around. This isn’t restricted to the panel rooms: signings and appearances in the main room (p.k.a. “the dealer’s room”) or in Artists’ Alley promotes exceptionally dangerous crowd conditions.

Doesn’t San Diego have a fire marshal’s office? If so, what the hell are they smoking? They couldn’t get away with this in most other cities; I’m reminded of the first two New York shows put on by Reed Exhibitions that were corralled by New York’s bravest.

It’s a no-win situation; the San Diego Comic Con has outgrown its facilities, and it may have outgrown manageable reality. Lucky for us comics fans, it’s been years since the San Diego show has really been about comic books anyway.

 

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Tue Jul 27, 2010 — by Robert Greenberger

Review: 'The Job'

How desperate does a man get before he agrees to do the unthinkable? How low must you fall before you allow yourself to get caught up in something immoral, illegal, and just plain dangerous?

These themes are barely touched on as we encounter Bubba (Patrick Flueger), a jobless, down on his luck guy in a nameless small city in the low budget dark film The Job. Based on a 1998 stage play by Shem Bitterman, who went on to script and direct this adaptation, the story is a slow act of seduction.

While sitting in the coffee shop where his long-time love Joy (Taryn Manning) works as a waitress, he is befriended by a drifting salesman named Perriman (Ron Perlman), who gives him a job lead. That begins the long, torturous descent from just plain lost to lost, confused, and crossing the line between good and evil.

The film, out today on DVD from Magnolia Home Entertainment, is far from engaging despite the interesting set-up and situations. None of the characters feel real or are fleshed out in a way that makes you believe they are willing to commit the acts that punctuates the rest of the film. The oddly named Bubba lets himself be talked into killing by Joe Pantoliano, in an understated role. When he decides he can’t go through with it, despite the promise of $200,000, Perriman agrees to help for half and that’s when things stop making sense and spiral out of control.

Bitterman gives oddness in lieu of clarity and twists that make little dramatic sense. Yes, setting things up so that Bubba is forced to do what he couldn’t bring himself to do is interesting but then the payoff goes from barely believable to illogical and badly constructed. Coupled with mediocre acting and lightly sketched characters, the entire movie becomes a 99 minute dreary experience.

The Alternate Ending and perfunctory Making Of featurette round out the DVD. Be warned, just watching this from beginning to end is job enough.

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Mon Jul 26, 2010 — by Robert Greenberger

Review: 'Sgt. Bilko: The Phil Silvers Show' Season One

Phil Silvers perfected his fast-talking, scheming promoter character during his years on the vaudeville circuit and polished it in a variety of feature films so that by the time he debuted on his own television series, it was pitch perfect. His Sergeant Ernest G. Bilko became a template for comedy roles imitated by others across the pop culture spectrum. For example, the Baby Boomers grew up with the Bilko persona imprinted on Hanna-Barbera’s Top Cat. Silvers rarely varied from the character, using it to good effect in subsequent films and even the Broadway play A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.

The series was originally called You'll Never Get Rich but in less than two months after its September 20, 1955 premiere, it was renamed The Phil Silvers Show and was subsequently syndicated as Sgt. Bilko. It won the Emmy Award for best comedy three seasons running with Silvers winning once as best actor. Series creator Nat Hiken was a recognized comedy writer, now a series creator and followed with Car 54, Where Are You? and McHale’s Navy. Such was the show’s fame and success; it was among the first situation comedies to run on the first incarnation of Comedy Central.

To see what the fuss is all about, you can now own the first season, releasing tomorrow as Sgt. Bilko: The Phil Silvers Show, from Paramount Home Entertainment. There are 34 episodes on five discs along with just a handful of extras.

What you get is Sgt. Bilko, head of the motor pool at sleepy Camp Baxter in Roseville, Kansas. He and his platoon of career soldiers never had money and always sought a way to get ahead – one scheme after another from card games to horse racing. Invariably, it meant out thinking the camp commander, Col. John T. Hall (Paul Ford) or fellow sergeants. Aiding him were his corporals Rocco Barbella (Harvey Lembeck) and Steve Henshaw (Allan Melvin). Throughout the season, characters recur such as his occasional romantic foil Sgt. Joan Hogan (Elisabeth Fraser), but all were in support of Bilko.

Continue reading Review: 'Sgt. Bilko: The Phil Silvers Show' Season One ›

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Mon Jul 26, 2010 — by Glenn Hauman

#SDCC: Overheard, Part 2

The concept that a comic book convention, which should be a wonderful introduction for kids to the dazzling and varied world of comics collecting–where a kid can meet and greet the creators he’s always admired and ask questions and feel that much closer to the (to him) magical process that brings super-hero adventures to him every month, and perhaps even fantasize about a time when he’ll be on the other side of that table, signing autographs or drawing sketches for kids that are the age that he is right then–the concept that such a convention should ever become a dangerous place, where young fans risk life and limb and might be trampled by alleged “adults” trying to get a hundred copies of the latest “hot” comic book signed so that they can tack on a few more bucks to the selling price–

It is intolerable.

Intolerable.

And we should not suffer it to continue.

--Peter David, writing not about the stabbing in 2010, but about the Great Eastern Convention near-riot in 1993.

"Thanks, Comic Con. Show the Machete trailer after the stabbing. Very classy." --Cole Abaius

"It was FREE, and I wanted it more than I've ever wanted anything in my entire LIFE." --overheard by Scott McCloud in the last minutes of the con

“I’m sorry I was late. I’m rooming with six slave Leias and they needed help with their bikinis.” --Bellechere, the Avatar Lady Death model (Hat tip: Rich Johnston)

And the photo was brought to us by the ironically named FunnyOrDie.com.

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