Tagged: sequel

Mike Gold: Mars Attacks – Completely!

Mars Attacks • Abrams ComicArt • hardcover $19.95,  also available in electronic format. Publication date: October 1, 2012

There’s a seminal moment in every weirdo’s life where we experience something so outrageous our worldview is altered severely and forever. For Ray Bradbury and Michael Moorcock, it was Edgar Rice Burroughs. For nascent NASA scientists, it was Ray Bradbury and Buck Rogers. EC Comics begat a generation of filmmakers, satirists, and cartoonists. I have no doubt we will be appreciating the influence of The Simpsons and South Park as its early adopters enter the creative workplaces.

For me, it was Mars Attacks.

I love to collect things. I suspect if comic books were unnumbered I wouldn’t have made it to the Marvel Age. So I would dutifully check out the counter-spaces at my local drug stores to see what the Bazooka Joe boys at Topps were offering in the realm of what we now call “non-sports cards.” Their Civil War News series was as informative as it was gutsy. Their Space Race and Funny Monsters cards brought great entertainment to my pre-pubescent little brain. But nothing – absolutely nothing, not Rocky and Bullwinkle, not Mad Magazine, neither Ernie Kovacs nor Steve Allen – prepared this 11 year-old proto-nerd for the glory and the horror of Mars Attacks.

Briefly for those who are not in the know, Mars Attacks was a set of 55 trading cards issued in 1962 that told the grisly story of an invasion from space by everybody’s favorite bug-eyed naked-brain Martians. On the front was a masterful painting by the great Norm Saunders based upon sketches by the great Bob Powell and the great Wally Wood. On the reverse was the next part of the invasion narrative. Cattle were torched, subway cars were eaten by giant ants, soldiers were slaughtered, dogs were vaporized in front of their youthful masters.

Spoiler Alert: We win.

The concept and story, created by Topps’ creative director (and, later, seminal comics fan publisher) Woody Gelman and staff writer Len Brown, later of T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents fame, was breathtaking because it was over-the-line. Way over the line. So far over the line you couldn’t see the line in your rearview mirror if you stopped right after you crossed it. Simply put: in 1962 you did not torch dogs and soldiers and cattle and wrap it up in wax paper with a slice of bubble gum.

Were adults offended? Holy crap, yes! You’d think the Martians actually invaded and turned out to be Commies. Topps was inundated with complaints and boxes were removed from store counters. At first, the Bazooka-boys thought they’d simply tone down some of the more objectionable cards, but instead they squeezed the toothpaste back into the tube and withdrew their product… leaving nothing but the legend in its wake. A highly collectible legend.

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of this historic event, Abrams ComicArts has released a hardcover book surprisingly called Mars Attacks. Forwarded by Len Brown and backwarded by Norm Saunders’ gifted daughter Zina, all the cards are reprinted (both sides) in their full glory along with the surviving sketches as well as the 1994 sequel cards and other great stuff, including artwork from Zina Saunders, Jay Lynch, Timothy Truman, Frank Brunner, Sam Kieth, Keith Giffen and a whole lotta other swell folk.

In addition to the aforementioned 1994 sequel cards, there have been several attempts to revive Mars Attacks including at least three comics series and a grandiose Tim Burton movie (forgive my redundancy). These have succeeded to varying degrees, but I think the concept is truly a product of its times. The bar of outrageousness has pole vaulted in the past 50 years, and these cards would barely raise an eyebrow if issued today.

But for its time, in its time, Mars Attacks brought the energy of rock’n’roll to the B-movies of the drive-ins and put it all on the doorsteps of the nation’s 11 year-olds. Its quick removal trusted it into legendary status. Abrams’ new book is a very worthy tribute.

THURSDAY: Dennis O’Neil

 

SGT. JANUS RETURNS

  • Uncategorized
  • September 13, 2012

So, what has the good sergeant been up to lately, you may ask?

Plotting his triumphant return, of course!

New Pulp Author Jim Beard has recently turned his thoughts to the sequel to SGT. JANUS, SPIRIT-BREAKER, which is tentatively entitled SGT. JANUS RETURNS.

You can learn all about Jim’s plans at http://sgtjanus.blogspot.com/2012/09/sgt-janus-returns.html

You can find SGT. JANUS, SPIRIT-BREAKER on Amazon.com.

For more information on Airship 27 Productions, visit them on-line at www.airship27.com.

Steve Ditko – Creativity Just Beyond Reality

The Creativity of Steve Ditko  • Craig Yoe • With essays by Mykal Banta, Mike Gold, Jack C. Harris, Paul Levitz, and Amber Stanton • IDW/Yoe Books • $39.99 retail

It’s only fitting that I start a review of a book about Steve Ditko by raising an ethical question. Is it proper for a critic to review a book in which he has an essay, no matter how brilliant, poignant and vital that essay might be?

I don’t care. The latest tome from YoeBooks, The Creativity of Steve Ditko is so magnificent such petty concerns such as objectivity do not matter. Anything I can do to help direct the masses towards this effort is in service to a greater cause and, besides, I don’t get royalties.

There have been a number of books about Ditko, one of America’s most important comics creators who is as reclusive as he is gifted. In fact, this one is a sequel to Yoe’s The Art of Ditko, which I haven’t read – not because I’m not in it, but because I’m a cheap bastard. Creativity runs over 200 over-sized pages and weighs over three and one-half pounds, supporting my argument for electronic publishing as I suspect the majority of its audience consists of aging baby boomers who can only keep the book on our laps for a short period before reaching for Depends. I’m hard-pressed to suggest what Yoe could have cut.

There’s tons of artwork, including lots of large reprints of Ditko’s work including many full-length reprints of sundry horror and mystery stories. Steve always said he wants his work to speak for itself; here, it doesn’t speak – it screams. Loudly. The photographs are particularly interesting, as Steve hasn’t been seen in public since roughly the time we crawled out of the sea.

As one would expect from the man who ran one of America’s foremost design studios after his stint as creative director, vice president and general manager of Jim Henson’s Muppets with enough awards, honors, yadda yadda yadda, to sink the Titanic, The Creativity of Steve Ditko is as exquisitely designed as a fifth dimensional cathedral. I particularly admire Craig’s patience: it must have taken him forever to find so many top-shelf Ditko stories from Charlton that were actually printed on-register.

I don’t know if Steve would like this book. My feeling is, probably not. He simply doesn’t like the attention, although I’m unlikely to debate the right to privacy issue with him. But whether he likes it or not, Ditko deserves that attention – and he deserves all of the effort that Craig Yoe has lavished upon him.

And those essays are great.

 

FORTIER TAKES ON ‘SCAVENGER’!

  • News
  • August 21, 2012

ALL PULP REVIEWS by Ron Fortier
SCAVENGER
By David Morrell
Vanguard Press
324 pages
In September of 1960 I began my high school career at a Catholic parochial school in New Hampshire.  At the time I and my classmates arrived at the building, it had not even been fully constructed, which is why they were accepting only one class, we freshmen. We had no upper classmen and would remain the “senior class” all four years.  I’ve some fun memories of sitting in a Civics class while jack-hammers pounded away directly across the hall in what would be our gymnasium.  Six months into that first year, the Bishop visited to officiate at a very special dedication ceremony the highlight of which was setting the building’s final cornerstone.  In that block of granite and cement had been placed a time-capsule containing the names of all the students and teachers present. I’ve never forgotten that day because the thought of my name in that time-capsule still excites my imagination. Who knows when in the far distant future, when that capsule is finally unearthed, what future students will think of us?  Will they wonder what we were like and what our school days were like?  What will their future world be like?
Time-capsules are hardly new and in this fast moving thriller by David Morrell they are the basis for a fascinating plot that involves a nightmarish race against death to uncover the ultimate time-capsule and expose its long forgotten secrets.  Written as a sequel to his award winning thriller, “Creepers,” this book was published in 2007 and features the same hero, former army vet and police detective, Frank Balenger. 
Belanger and his lover, Amanda Evert, are barely recovered both emotionally and physically from their horrible experiences in the first book when they are invited to a mysterious lecture concerning time-capsules sponsored by a historical society in New York City.  On a whim they attend and in the middle of the presentation are drugged into unconsciousness.  When Amanda awakens she finds herself somewhere in the southwest with four other kidnap victims.  They soon learn they’ve been abducted by a psychotic games player who wishes them to discover a very unique time-capsule which supposedly contains the secrets of universe.
Meanwhile Belanger awakens on a Coney Island beach and realizes he and Amanda had been duped.  Putting his police skills to use with the assistance of a city detective, he begins to unravel the mystery of the perpetrator behind the elaborate hoax.  His overwhelming drive is to find Amanda whom he senses in is dire jeopardy.  Thus the first half of the book jumps back and forth between Frank’s hunt throughout New York piecing together what few clues he can find and following Amanda and her fellow prisoners as they race across a rugged terrain filled with horrendous death-traps all the while trying to fathom the so called “rules” of the game they are being forced to play.
Morrell is easily one of the finest thriller writers of our age and his body of work attests to his prestigious standing amongst his peers.  Though “Scavenger” is an enjoyable read and whips along at rocket speeds, the final act has it traveling down old and tired paths.  Without spoiling the story, this reviewer found himself annoyed by having easily surmised which of the characters would survive and which would not.  When you can predict the outcome of any book, its time for the writer to hang up over used plots and try something new.  

Joss Whedon is in for “Avengers 2” and Marvel live-action TV series

English: Joss Whedon at the 2010 Comic Con in ...

It’s official: the man who wrote and directed “Marvel’s The Avengers” and grossed $1.5 billion and counting at the box office is coming back to do it all over again. Slashfilm seems to have caught it first:

It was just announced on the Walt Disney Investors Conference Call that Joss Whedon will return for The Avengers sequel. Whedon is signed to both write and direct the upcoming sequel. Disney confirmed that Whedon is also involved in the development of the previously-rumored long-lead ABC live-action television series which will be set inside the Marvel cinematic universe.

Whedon had previously said that he was “very torn” about coming back: “It’s an enormous amount of work telling what is ultimately somebody else’s story, even though I feel like I did get to put myself into it. But at the same time, I have a bunch of ideas, and they all seem really cool.”

Marvel is notoriously cheap when it comes to contracts, so some fans were worried that a deal wouldn’t be made. I think everyone will be excited that Whedon is back for the next one. If I were Kevin Feige I would secure Whedon to a long term contract as an executive producer, overseeing the marvel universe on a Pixar braintrust-level. The Avengers is being tentatively planned for a Summer 2015 release, although Disney and Marvel have not formally announced a date.

via Joss Whedon Signed for ‘The Avengers 2′ and Marvel Live-Action TV Series.

Let’s see how he pulls all of it together… again.

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FIGHT CARD DEBUTS ‘A MOUTH FULL OF BLOOD’!

The latest release from New Pulp powerhouse publisher Fight Card is the first sequel in the series!



A year after the pulse-pounding action of Split Decision, Jimmy Wyler is back in Chicago trying to put his life back together. Working a job washing dishes in a late night diner, Jimmy vows to never get into a boxing ring again.

But then, someone needs him. Leo, a teenaged boy who fights hard against the city every day, could use a man like Jimmy. To help save him from his alcoholic father, and to save his only sister from a pimp bent on turning her out.
Jimmy must fight again. Fight for the ones who can?t fight for themselves. It will take him from fistfights in back alleys to no rules bouts with crowds screaming for blood and all the way back to the orphanage where he grew up. Along the way, blood will be spilled and knuckles will be bruised.
More white-knuckle action and epic fights from the Fightcard series.
Praise for Split Decision: It was unpredictable; it put its main protagonist through the ringer; and didn’t take the soft option for the resolution. It’s that kind of story. I finished it in one sitting. It’s that entertaining. Highly recommended.- Permission To Kill
Split Decision is a prime example of the sort of variety and adventurous storytelling we can expect from the Fight Card series, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Highly recommended.- James Reasoner, author of Dust Devils and The Blood Mesa
Split Decision hooked me. Allow enough time to read the whole thing at one sitting, you’re not going to want to put it down.- Mike Faricy, author of Russian Roulette and Finders Keepers
Available now in Paperback on Amazon and as an Ebook for Your Kindle!

FORTIER TAKES ON THE DESTINY OF FU MANCHU!

ALL PULP REVIEWS by Ron Fortier
THE DESTINY OF FU MANCHU
By William P. Maynard
Black Coat Press
210 pages
When William P. Maynard wrote The Terror of Fu Manchu, it justifiably received an overwhelming positive reception from the pulp community.  Not only had Sax Rohmer’s classic character been resurrected after decades, but by a wonderfully talented writer able to tell the story in Rohmer’s same, unique literary voice.  Reading that book one could easily imagine it having been penned by Rohmer, it is that good.  And before all the hoopla had died down, it would go on to receive many acolytes and even a Pulp Factory Award nomination for Best Novel of 2010.  This success did not go unnoticed by both the publisher and the licensors.  They wisely concluded that Fu Manchu fans would want more from this skilled writer and were only too happy to sign Maynard to write a sequel.
The Destiny of Fu Manchu is that rare follow up book that is better than the first.  Which is no small feat by any means.  Taking a different tack, Maynard opts to tell this new thriller through the eyes of British Archeologist, Prof. Michael Knox rather than those of Dr. Petrie, the original series’ best known raconteur.  In doing so, he offers the readers a marvelously new perception of these classic figures from both sides of this on-going saga.  Knox, unlike Petrie, in not a selfless, courageous hero but rather a shallow, womanizing opportunist who, upon finding himself entangled with the deadly forces of the Si Fan, immediately flees with no other plan than to save his own skin.  
For whatever reasons, Fu Manchu and his enemies are after a hidden Egyptian power buried under one of the pyramids Knox and his colleagues are excavating.  When his associate is brutally murdered by oriental assassins, Knox disguises himself and flees, hoping to escape whatever dangers have befallen him.  Instead he is found, seduced and hypnotized by Fah lo Suee, the daughter of Fu Manchu.  She is the most alluring Femme Fatale ever created in pulp fiction.  At the last possible moment, Knox is rescued by the determined Sir Nayland Smith of British Intelligence; Fu Manchu’s arch rival. From that point onward, the narrative becomes a world spanning adventure going next to the jungles of Abyssinia and London, then on to Munich before making a complete circuit and ending back in Egypt.
Maynard cleverly weaves in a diabolical plot that has Knox and Smith involved with Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain’s Munich meeting with Chancellor Adolf Hitler in an ill fated attempt to forestall a second world war.  His portrayal of Hitler and his bullying manipulation of the western world leaders is deft and insightful blurring the line between history and fiction to tell a fantastic, mesmerizing tale.
As ever, Maynard’s true genius is his comprehending Fu Manchu’s complicated character and motives so that by the book’s epilogue, it leaves us contemplating what forces compel men to achieve power and glory when aware both will ultimately destroy them. In the end, the differences between the hero and the villain seem inconsequential, both being obsessed to the point of self-destructive hubris.  The Destiny of Fu Manchu is the finest pulp novel this reviewer has read this year.  It is going to take something truly remarkable to usurp that number one spot.  We shall see.

REVIEW: Mirror, Mirror

In December, I had the pleasure of teaching fairy tales to seniors and we explored how the basic stories have been told and retold around the world and through the ages. The core concepts remain vital and can withstand wildly varying interpretations. Before Walt Disney began cementing a single version of each tale in the global consciousness, they were adapted time and again based on the culture and need of the ages.

I was reminded of this all over again when prime time offered us both Once Upon a Time and Grimm, which were vastly different takes on some of the most beloved fairy tales. The former obviously owes a lot to its corporate masters, Walt Disney, but even so, the versions of Snow White, the Queen, Pinocchio, and so on do not identically match their animated counterparts. Grimm uses the fairy tales as a launching point and goes in a wildly different direction.

Similarly, there are the competing Snow White epics that were released this year. The clear winner was the box office smash Snow White and the Huntsman, which is already spawning a sequel despite having some of the worst storytelling gaps I’ve seen in ages. At the other end of the spectrum was Mirror Mirror, which opened first and flopped badly despite having Julia Roberts as the Queen. Now out on DVD from 20th Century Home Entertainment, Mirror Mirror suffers poorly in comparison with its competitor and worse, with its own trailers.

The trailers showed us a slyly funny interpretation of the classic story and promised more but what we got was something silly and over the top and not especially clever. Tarsem Singh once more shows us, as he did in Immortals, that story is secondary to imagery. Marc Klein and Jason Keller tell a story that makes somewhat more sense than The Huntsman but they fail to make any of the characters particularly memorable nor does Singh elicit interesting performances allowing the cast to rise above the material.

Instead, a particularly strong cast is wasted looking fabulous in utterly absurd costuming. Roberts flounces about, vain and petty, but without real motivation. Lily Collins is a prettier Snow than Kristin Stewart and at least gets to train before fighting but has so little of note to do. Nathan Lane heads a supporting cast that is entirely flat and unoriginal. Even the seven dwarves are stereotypical and not especially funny. Having Lord Stark, that is Sean Bean, play the King in a wintry land invites poor comparisons with A Game of Thrones.

The movie lies flat and remains not particularly entertaining nor does it surprise us even once. And that’s a shame since the story could be played nicely for laughs, poking some gentle fun at the many interpretations or psychological motivations but it attempts nothing so interesting. There’s no motivation for the Queen’s cruel rule or explanation offered as the nature of the magic mirror and her more staid persona within the glass.

On the other hand, the Blu-ray edition looks particularly nice, so the costuming and sets look swell. It’s great to watch at home along with excellent sound.

The disc comes with a bunch of perfunctory extras such as the five deleted scenes which are not missed, including the alternate opening. Looking through the Mirror (12:58) tries to make you believe the cast and crew really think they’re making a good film. The end credits are accompanied with an over-the-top Bollywood production number and I Believe I Can Dance (11:01) is an overlong look at how choreographer Paul Becker taught Collins, Mare Winning ham, Michael Lerner, and others to dance. The silliest bonus is Prince and Puppies (1:59) as real puppies review Armie Hammer’s romantic side. The most interesting featurette is Mirror, Mirror Storybook, a remote-controlled “storybook” version of the film.

Given the potential in the cast and the source material, and knowing there was a competing version also in production, you would have thought Singh would have risen to the occasion, making this film all the more disappointing.

Michael Davis: #TheBlackPanel 2012

A shameless plug.

San Diego Comic Con, Friday, July 13th (Friday the 13th? Really?) 10:00-11:30.

The Black Panel— Michael Davis (The Littlest Bitch) returns to moderate the wildest panel at Comic Con, the Black Panel! Expect industry insight and outrageousness when Shaquille O’Neal (NBA On TNT, Shaq Entertainment), Jamie Kennedy (The Jamie Kennedy Experiment), Missy Geppi (President, Geppi‘s Entertainment Museum) Reginald Hudlin (Django Unchained), E. Van Lowe (Earth Angel, the sequel to Boyfriend From Hell), and Steve McKeever (President Hidden Beach Records) as they field questions from the audience. The most entertaining and informative Q&A you’ll ever be a part of. It’s African American pop culture and then some! Room 5AB.

This ain’t just for black people, folks. Every year, it’s the don’t-miss panel of the San Diego Comic Con.

WEDNESDAY: Mike Gold Babbles Like A Brook

 

Win a Copy of Wrath of the Titans Blu-ray Combo Pack

  • News
  • June 23, 2012

After last year’s success with the remake of Clash of the Titans, a sequel seemed inevitable. Now, Warner Home Video is releasing Wrath of the Titans, starring Sam Worthington, Ralph Fiennes and Liam Neeson on Tuesday, June 26. We have partnered with WHV to host a contest with one copy of the Blu-ray combo pack to be given away. Please note, we are not able to ship to PO Box addresses and winners must be within the United States.

A decade after his heroic defeat of the monstrous Kaken, Perseus (Worthington) the demigod son of Zeus (Neeson) is attempting to live a quieter life as a village fisherman and the sole parent to his 10-year old son, Helius. Meanwhile, a struggle for supremacy rages between the gods and the Titans. Dangerously weakened by humanity’s lack of devotion, the gods are losing control of the imprisoned Titans and their ferocious leader, Kronos, father of the long-ruling brothers Zeus, Hades (Fiennes) and Poseidon (Danny Huston). The triumvirate had overthrown their powerful father long ago, leaving him to rot in the gloomy abyss of Tartarus, a dungeon that lies deep within the cavernous underworld. Perseus cannot ignore his true calling when Hades, along with Zeus’ godly son, Ares (Edgar Ramrez), switch loyalties and make a deal, with Kronos to capture Zeus. The Titans’ strength grows stronger as Zeus’ remaining godly powers are siphoned, and hell is unleashed on earth. Enlisting the help of the warrior Queen Andromeda (Rosamund Pike), Poseidon’s demigod son, Argenor (Toby Kebbell), and fallen god Hephaestus (Bill Nighy), Perseus bravely embarks on a treacherous quest into the underworld to rescue Zeus, overthrow the Titans and save mankind.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL50159536F59BCD8D[/youtube]

To win, tell us about your favorite Greek god or goddess and why. Your post has to be received by 11:59 p.m., Saturday, June 30. The judgment of ComicMix will be final.

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