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Sat May 10, 2008 — by Mike Raub
ComicMix Radio: Living The Dream - Writing TV and Comics
Episode #201: Marc Guggenheim, Heroes, 'Wolvie's Wacky Adventures' and more...
He's Marc Guggenheim, and if you didn't know him from Brothers & Sisters, CSI:Miami or even the "Death Of Bart Allen" storyline in Flash, you may have encountered his current run on Amazing Spider-Man, his new Young X-Men series or even a little show called Eli Stone. So how does he work it all out? Marc is happy to fill us in, plus:
-- The Scarecrow moves to Heroes
-- Secret Invasion tie-ins dry up on the shelves
-- Get ready for The Marvel Super Hero Squad and the "Wacky Adventures of Wolvie"
And there are at least three songs we play that you will not get out of your head until Monday morning, guaranteed - so just Press the Button!
And remember, you can always subscribe to ComicMix Radio podcasts via 
or RSS!
Sat May 10, 2008 — by Rick Marshall
Editorial Cartoon Investigated as 'Hate Literature'
Canadian newspaper accused of promoting hatred via cartoon
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Nova Scotia newspaper The Chronicle Herald has vowed to defend an April 18 editorial cartoon by award-winning cartoonist Bruce MacKinnon after police received a complaint that the cartoon could qualify as "hate literature."
The cartoon (pictured here) depicted the wife of Qayyum Abdul Jamal, who was arrested in 2006 on terrorism-related charges that involved an alleged plot to bomb targets in Toronto and Ottawa. Jamal's wife, Cheryfa MacAulay Jamal, told The Herald that she intended to sue the federal government after the charges against her husband were stayed.
According to various reports, the cartoon was reported as potential "hate literature" to local police, but law enforcement officials are still determining whether a crime actually took place.
According to Dan Leger, director of news content for The Herald, "We will vigorously defend (the cartoon) and it would be an abuse of process for them to even contemplate initiating any type of action against the newspaper."
(via Journalista, ComicsReporter and just about everywhere, really)
Sat May 10, 2008 — by Matt Raub
Review: 'Speed Racer' - Emile Hirsch Gets Behind the Wheel
Is it a warning flag or checkered flag for the popular anime's big-screen adaptation?
So here we are, a mere two weeks into the Blockbuster Season and the veil of bedazzlement has already been lifted. If you are a fan of the original Speed Racer franchise, animated films, or even decent films in general, you will more than likely be disappointed with the film that should've been more accurately named Speed Raver. From start to finish, this film is very much like what an 8-year-old would do if he were given a crate of Pixie Stix and free run of a CGI studio, with no knowledge whatsoever about pesky details like story structure, character development or any shred of realism.
For those not in the loop, the story of Speed Racer surrounds not just the titular character (played by possibly one of the better actors of his generation, Emile Hirsch), but his über-supportive family. Pops and Mom Racer, played by John Goodman and Susan Sarandon, respectively. Balancing out the cast was Speed’s girlfriend Trixie (Christina Ricci), his obnoxious and extraneous little brother and pet chimp, and by far the MVP of the film, in Matthew Fox as Racer X.
The plot, or at least what one can gather about it after two hours in the theater, takes place in a world where car racing is king and the car-building Racer family takes aim at the allegedly fixed world of professional racing with their prodigal son, Speed. The plot is almost beaten into our heads for the first hour, with cartoonish performances and poorly rendered backdrops aiding along the way.
Continue reading Review: 'Speed Racer' - Emile Hirsch Gets Behind the Wheel ›
Sat May 10, 2008 — by Aaron Rosenberg
Happy Birthday: Vincent T. Hamlin
Allez oop, good sir!
Vincent T. Hamlin was born in 1900 and grew up during tumultuous times—he enlisted in the Army at age 17 and served in France during World War I.
After returning home, he studied journalism and art at the University of Missouri, but was kicked out of art class because his teacher told him he was too fine an artist to waste his time as a cartoonist. After graduating Hamlin moved to Des Moines and became a reporter.
Next he went to Fort Worth, Texas, where he got occasional work as a reporter, a photographer, and a cartoonist. In 1927 he got a job creating maps and posters for the oil fields. It was during that time that Hamlin came up with the idea of a cartoon about a prehistoric caveman, and in 1929 he moved back to Iowa to work on the idea. It took him several years to get it right, but Alley Oop finally appeared a daily strip in 1932.
The strip became so popular that the first fan-based comics award, the Alleys, was named after it. Hamlin continued Alley Oop until his retirement in 1971, when he handed the reins over to his assistant, Dave Graue. Hamlin died in 1993.
Sat May 10, 2008 — by Martha Thomases
I Lost It at the Movies, by Martha Thomases
Brilliant Disguise #56
Last weekend, my son and I went to see Iron Man. We went in the middle of the day to a movie theater in Manhattan’s Tribeca neighborhood that is rarely crowded, so the only other people there were geeks like us.
We had a great time, and that’s what this column is about. Tomorrow is Mothers’ Day, and last week is the last time I’ll be able to go to a superhero movie with my son, without involving an airplane. He’s moving to Los Angeles next month. That’s as far away as he can go without crossing an ocean or a border.
Our movie-going habits started early. When he was six weeks old, we went to see the original Ghostbusters, with the baby in a Snugli. It’s not that we were those horrible parents who take a screaming infant everywhere, as if the world deserves to share their headache. We knew his sleep schedule, and we knew that if we fed him just before the movie started, we should have at least two hours before he woke up. And we went in the middle of a weekday when there would be few other people, and sat in the back, near the aisle, so we could make a hasty retreat if our calculations proved wrong.
Later, as he grew older, my son developed a love of comics that rivaled my own. Even though he was barely five years old, there was no way he would let us go see the first Batman film without him. Being afraid of nightmares, I found a book that explained how the special effects were done, so he’d know that Jack Nicholson didn’t really hurt anyone. The effects didn’t scare him, but he did remark on how out of character it was for Batman to use a gun.
Continue reading I Lost It at the Movies, by Martha Thomases ›
Fri May 9, 2008 — by Rick Marshall
Eric Reynolds on 'How I Pissed Off Steve Ditko'
Fantagraphics' go-to guy reflects on an encounter gone awry with the comics legend
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Fantagraphics' upcoming Steve Ditko retrospective Strange and Stranger: The World of Steve Ditko will be available next month, so resident Fantagraphics jack-of-all-trades Eric Reynolds recently took the opportunity to share a story with readers that he's called "How I Pissed Off Steve Ditko."
Reynold's tale is one of those personal experiences with industry legends that I love to hear about, as it puts some substance behind the names and faces of people I've never been lucky enough to interact with myself.
About ten years ago we had the great fortune of publishing a new series by Mr. Ditko, STEVE DITKO'S STRANGE AVENGING TALES. This was incredibly exciting to me, having been a lifelong Ditko fan. Unfortunately, I did not get to interact much with Mr. Ditko. See, I do all of our promotion, and to say that Mr. Ditko is not big on promotion is like saying the Pope is not big on gay marriage. And, he preferred snail mail to phone. As such, I did not have many opportunities to interact with one of the greatest comic book artists of all-time. Except one.
You can also check out a 10-page preview of Strange and Stranger on the Fantagraphics website.
Of course, one of my main reasons for posting this is the fact that I'm fortunate these days to interact with a number of industry veterans every day here on ComicMix -- many of which have had their names grace some of the greatest comics ever created -- and I wonder what they'll have to say about Reynolds' story.
(via Journalista)
Fri May 9, 2008 — by Rick Marshall
'Diesel Sweeties' Does 'Iron Man'
When art imitates art you have... a potential lawsuit?
With all of the Iron Man hype fading, I thought it would be worth pointing out one of my new favorite shout-outs to the film that popped up in my daily reading list.
In this strip, Diesel Sweeties mastermind R. Stevens manages to take a jab at both Stan Lee and everyone's favorite drunken industrialist turned armor-plated superhero. Titled "Radical to the Extremis," it's another example of why I enjoy DS so very much: not only does Stevens have some traditional comics savvy, but he's also honest-to-jeebus hilarious.
You can read this strip and others at dieselsweeties.com, and be sure to check out my Diesel Sweeties interview with R. Stevens that ran previously on ComicMix.
Fri May 9, 2008 — by Aaron Rosenberg
Happy Birthday: Barbara Slate
Cheers to a leading woman in comics
Born in 1947, Barbara Slate started out in greeting cards before moving to comics. In 1974, she met with a greeting card buyer from Bloomingdales and showed him 24 feminist greeting cards she had designed. Thus, the "Ms. Liz" line was born.
Ms. Liz then became a comic strip in Cosmopolitan, and then an animated feature on The Today Show. Next, Slate spoke to Jenette Kahn of DC Comics, who hired her to create Angel Love. From there, Slate moved to Marvel to create Yuppies from Hell and Sweet XVI (which won a Forbie Award in 1991), and then began working on Barbie and Barbie Fashion (which won the Parent’s Choice Award in 1992 and 1993).
Slate has also written for Disney Comics (Pocahontas and Beauty and the Beast) and Archie Comics, among others. Currently Slate writes for Archie Comics, teaches graphic novel and sequential art workshops, and has a syndicated column called “You Can Do A Graphic Novel.”
Fri May 9, 2008 — by Karl Cramer
'Trick My Truck' Customizes Iron Man Rig
CMT's 'Trick My Truck' makes one trucker's Iron Man dreams come true
If Stark Industies made tractor trailers, they might look something like this. Country Music Television's Trick My Truck is the country version of MTV's Pimp My Ride. Professional truck customizers give a deserving trucker's rig a makeover so that he can ride with pride on the open road. Now if that good buddy is a comic book fan and known for being an "Iron Man" when it comes to grueling hauls, it's no surprise what superhero they chose to surprise him with. Ladies and gentlemen, introducing "Iron Truck":
Fri May 9, 2008 — by Chris Ullrich
Free Graphic Novels: Sandman, Swamp Thing, Fell
Yes, free... as in, 'Free Beer'
I had a feeling that title would get your attention. Sure, sometimes a title like that is used just to get attention when the substance of the article doesn't actually include anything free, but fear not, ComicMix reader, we have you covered.
Over at Daily Bits, they've highlighted 17 -- yes, count 'em, 17 -- free graphic novels available online for you to download, read and enjoy. And yes, they are all free for the taking -- er, downloading.
Some of the graphic novels highlighted on the list include heavy-hitters such as Neil Gaiman's The Sandman, Vol. 1: Preludes and Nocturnes, Warren Ellis' Fell #1 and a personal favorite of mine, Brian K. Vaughan's Y: The Last Man, Vol. 1.
The list also includes the popular Salamander Dream and, for ComicMix Managing Editor Rick Marshall, Swamp Thing, Vol. 1: Legend of the Swamp Thing. Go get 'em.
Of course, we'd like to also remind you that you can get free, original comics by well-known creators here on ComicMix every single day of the week -- so if "free" is your thing, don't say we never gave you anything.
Fri May 9, 2008 — by Martha Thomases
GrimJack: The Manx Cat - Knives Are Drawn
GrimJack gets to the point
In today's brand-new episode of GrimJack: The Manx Cat, by John Ostrander and Timothy Truman, John Gaunt is back in his own body, and he's in a hurry. He needs the St. Johns knives to save his friend. Can he persuade Munden (of Munden's Bar) to hand them over?
Credits: John Ostrander (Writer), John Workman (Letterer), Lovern Kindzierski (Colorist), Mike Gold (Editor), Timothy Truman (Artist)
More: GrimJack: The Manx Cat
Fri May 9, 2008 — by Karl Cramer
Red Hulk in 'The Incredible Hulk' Game a GameStop Exclusive
A retail exclusive character is announced for 'The Incredible Hulk' movie game
At the New York Comicon, Sega's BJ Enriquez was elusive when asked about downloadable characters for the upcoming videogame based on The Incredible Hulk movie. Now we know why. Retailer Gamestop announced that Red Hulk, the mysterious enemy seen in current Hulk comics, would be a exclusive, playable character for customers who pre-order the Xbox 360 version from them.
According to GameStop:
Players who buy this version will be able to play with the Red Huk character immediately, something that other players will not be able to experience, as he does not exist in any other version of the game!
There are no indications if this is an exclusive scenario or if other retailers could have their own unique playable characters. Perhaps, "World War Hulk" for PlayStation 3 at Best Buy or "Maestro Hulk" for the Wii at Target? All we know for sure is which version Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuiness will buy.
Fri May 9, 2008 — by Van Jensen
Review: 'Harbinger: The Beginning' by Jim Shooter and David Lapham
The classic '90s superheroes return in slick new collection
I had forgotten how much superhero comics had changed in the past 15 years when I picked up Valiant's new Harbinger: The Beginning collection ($24.95), which revives the book's first issues from 1992.
It's impossible to evaluate the stories without looking at the context of their era. True, Harbinger never reached the excessive silliness of Liefeld's X-Force, but it's populated by edgy characters with dated nicknames like "Torque," who spout even more dated phrases like "buttlick."
Since the crash of the '90s, comics have largely moved toward a more serious and realistic tone, and Harbinger (created by Jim Shooter and David Lapham) stands in stark contrast. All the same, in many ways the book holds up, probably no surprise since it once garnered a great number of fans.
What's especially appreciable about Harbinger is how it strays from the superhero stereotype, something even today's books struggle to do. The protagonist, Pete, is not a clear-cut hero; instead he's an immature and often egotistical teen who doesn't understand the dangers of his powers. The villain, Harada, is no great man, but his central goal is to protect the world from Pete.
As much as anything, Harbinger is about the folly of youth and the lessons to be learned from those mistakes. It falls into cliché and hollow edginess, but more often jumps in surprising directions and offers a new (again, in context) take on heroes.
Fri May 9, 2008 — by Michael Davis
I Got Nothing... by Michael Davis
Straight No Chaser #65
My mind is a blank. I can’t think of anything to write about. I read a bunch of comics and I came back with zip. I watched the news and was left with nada. I’m in the middle of a few great projects but don’t want to write about them yet.
Wow…writer’s block. I have never been at a lost for something to say or better yet to rant about.
Come on Davis. THINK, THINK, THINK!!
I know, I’ll make a list. That always sparks my imagination. Let’s see now, I can’t do a best dressed list or most sexy list. I have to do something that’s classy. I have to do something that shows that I am above the petty stupid lists that Hollywood produces.
10 people I would like to pimp slap.
Damn. Still nothing. I am really barren today. What else can I do to spark my imagination?
I’ll try another list.
Thu May 8, 2008 — by Van Jensen
Where Are The Superheroine Movies?
Few females featured in Hollywood adaptations
Over at Cinematical, Elisabeth Rappe responds to all the acclaim for Iron Man by pointing out a deficiency in the booming business of comics being adapted to film.
Looking around the cinematic landscape, at the likes of Tony Stark, Bruce Banner, Bruce Wayne, Hellboy and the like, Rappe notices something missing: superheroines. And, even worse, Marvel's recent announcement of more male heroes headed to the screen and ongoing delays in a Wonder Woman project, it looks like no female heroes will be hitting the big screen anytime soon.
It has been eight years since X-Men made comic book movies big business, and we have yet to see a proper superheroine. Ant-Man is on a faster production track than Wonder Woman – and who is more recognizable to the general public? Why is Thor more palatable to the mass audience than Black Widow? I don't buy that there isn't a mass appeal for these stories.
It probably doesn't help the studio perspective that the only two comic heroines allowed to fly solo were disasters. But was there ever a smidgen of care given to either Elektra or Catwoman during the writing or production process? Neither film was entered into with that Iron Man spirit; they were careless and cheap, and turned out predictably awful. It's no surprise that a movie bombs because it sucks – but surely, the suits are ascribing that largely to heroines being lousy sells. It says volumes that neither are worth the kind of relaunch The Incredible Hulk is getting. Why not bring back Elektra to revise big screen history? I'd pay to see it in a heartbeat.
A lot of food for thought, and plenty to agree or disagree with. Interestingly, Rappe doesn't place any of the blame on the comic book industry, which has been called out for giving women short shrift plenty of times.
