The Mix : What are people talking about today?

Bouncing about

Bouncing about

The idea of sports comics has always appealed to me.  I wish we had more of them.  Okay, any of them.  Sports is such a great method of portraying action without having the characters fight each other (by only having them metaphorically fight).

But Japan, with its vast array of comics subject matter, has the flare to not only pull off a sports manga but make it innovative and cutting-edge.  And now that the live-action version of Ping Pong is coming out, many are doubtless eager to see how it lives up to the original.

Folks in New York, Chicago and Seattle will get that chance, as Viz Pictures will be screening the comedic sports film for limited runs in those cities over the next couple of months. In New York, you can catch it at the ImaginAsian starting on April 6; in Chicago it debuts at Facets Cinematheque on April 27; and in Seattle it’ll be at the Grand Illusion Cinema beginning May 25 (which is a bit far in the future so no info is available yet on their site).

GLENN HAUMAN: On scurrilous rumors and other omens

GLENN HAUMAN: On scurrilous rumors and other omens

Man – make one offhand comment, and everybody gets all suspicious. Heidi MacDonald comments:

"Over at ComicMix, it’s been teased and speculated that co-owner Mike Gold and partners will be rolling out a “Phase 2 for the site. Given that Gold is the founder of First Comics, properties and creators associated with that line has been part of that speculation. Today Glenn Hauman pulls a tease…. Eclipse was of course the OTHER early 80s indie comics company that published many fondly remembered books like the original ZOT! and Miracleman and all that kind of stuff. Dean Mullaney was the publisher, the same Dean Mullaney who has now reappeared in comics editing comic strip reprints for IDW. Is is all a coincidence? Or a tease? Or just something to fill column space?"

Heidi, while I’m always happy to tease you and give you plenty of inches to fill holes in your column, you missed a few other possibilities why I used the word eclipse:

  • I couldn’t come up with a good pun for Comico;
  • I wanted to tweak Todd McFarlane, always a worthwhile activity;
  • Dean Mullaney and Mike Gold were the same person, and couldn’t admit it before because of anti-trust worries in the 80s. And if that’s true, Dean, you got Martin Short’s costumer beat by a mile.

Quoting Tim Curry as Cardinal Richelieu: "But really, Your Majesty, why stop there. I have heard much more festive variations. I make oaths with pagan gods, seduce the queen in her own chamber, teach pigs to dance and horses to fly, and keep the moon carefully hidden within the folds of my robe. Have I forgotten anything?"

There are already plenty of hints out there in various places, all waiting for a good prowler to scout about on the internet and find the nuggets of truth in all the verbal crossfire on the internet and solve the whodunit – in fact, I’ll give you a hint and suggest you research our tech ace. And while we are on the crest of a new wave in comics and being coy is in our DNA, gents like us would never do something like that just to get a surge in traffic, and only a cynical man would say such a thing. After all, we have a particular, shall we say, image we want to present.

So just keep reading ComicMix, and all the ms. tree and twisted tales will be brought to light. And Heidi – my, you’re a psychic girl, but what you’re hoping for would take a miracle, man.

Adolescent Radioactive Black Belt Hamsters in 3-D.

Sorry, I had to get that in somewhere.

Why else Iran may be peeved at 300

Why else Iran may be peeved at 300

Will Shetterly has a theory about why Iran might be offended by the portrayal of the Persians in Frank Miller’s 300, and it’s not just the setting up of Persia/Iran as "the enemy" during a time of modern sable-rattling in that same area.

Shetterly notes, regarding how King Xerxes is costumed, that "A US film portraying Xerxes like this would be like a British film about the American Revolution portraying George Washington in a pink uniform with lots of ruffles."  Well, I can picture the ruffles.  And a lot of guys did wear pink in those days.  But point taken.

To be fair, Shetterly does note that "300 turns the Battle of Thermopylae into a fight between butch gays and queens. When Leonidas refers to ‘boy-loving Athenians,’ he’s clearly jealous."  Oh, snap!

Mimzy gets the early word…

Mimzy gets the early word…

The Turtles‘ director Kevin Monroe gets himself interviewed, The Last Mimzy gets itself reviewed, Team America goes to the tube, more on Jimmy Olsen, this Friday’s Anime Awards telecast, the Top 10 best-selling comics, and the latest in television and movie stuff.

All this to be found on the very latest ComicMix Podcast, which you can listen to in all its glory by clicking right here:

Battlestar 4 to go the distance

Battlestar 4 to go the distance

At long last , the SciFi Channel’s embattled Battlestar Galactica has received a renewal for a full 22 episode fourth season.

A partial renewal order of 12 episodes was given several weeks ago after what was perceived as a near-cancellation. The show performs well enough in the ratings, but is extremely expensive to produce.

According to TVWeek, the fourth season will include a special two-hour "event". The third season concludes this Sunday.

I think I-Con, I think I-Con

I think I-Con, I think I-Con

ComicMix‘s own Robert Greenberger reports on the panels in which he’ll be participating at this year’s I-CON out in Stony Brook on Long Island, and points to their long-awaited programming schedule (PDF file), which has finally been posted.

Naturally, since we deal with "all types of fantastic media," which is right up I-CON’s alley, ComicMix will be out in full force for this one!  We’ll try to report live on-site, but it’s all wifi dependent.

You can check Robert’s panel appearances on his weblog, and if you squint at the Sunday-at-3 PM slot on the schedule you’ll see my name somewhere as well.  I cannot recommend this convention enough, especially for folks local to Long Island.  The campus is lovely, the atmosphere very relaxing, and the dealers’ room a lot of fun.  Pack your checkbooks and your allergy medicine.

JOHN OSTRANDER: Scattershot – TV Spots

When I and Mary, my sweetie, sit around doing the couch potato thing, it’s always best to head for the commercial free stuff because it’s guaranteed that a high percentage of the commercials are going to offend her to the point of a rant. Not that the rants aren’t entertaining but I have to keep reminding her, “It isn’t supposed to make sense; it’s trying to sell something.” Or “It doesn’t work for you because you’re not the target audience.”

Generally, I try to let the commercials just wash over me without really registering them but every so often some do. On rare occasion, such as with the Mac/PC commercials, it’s because I genuinely enjoy them. More often, something sticks like tar in my mind because either a) it is incomparably stupid and/or b) my brain, warped by years of pop culture, does something with it the makers of the commercial never intended. Such as our first scattershot target.

LUNESTRA. It’s a prescription sleep aid and, in the commercial, restless people in their beds at night are visited by a luminescent green luna moths after which they close their eyes. The ad-makers, of course, want us to interpret this as Lunestra bringing gentle, natural sleep. Given the moths’ glowing green nature, however, I’ve become convinced it’s stealing their souls and that the people shown are dying. To Mary’s vast amusement (and my own) I’ve taken to screaming at the TV when these commercials come on as if it were a horror film. “LOOK OUT! IT’S STEALING YOUR SOUUUUUULLLL! FOR GOD’S SAKE – WAKE UP! OH NO! IT GOT THAT WOMAN, TOO! CAN NOTHING STOP IT?!?” Try it the next time you see the commercial; great fun.

THE CLONE OF ORVILLE REDENBACHER. When Orville Redenbacher first brought out his own line of popcorn decades ago, he also made himself the company spokesman, always telling us his popcorn was better than these others yadda yadda yadda “. . . or my name isn’t Orville Redenbacher.” Well, Orville was no spring chicken when this all started and eventually died. Recently, they brought back some of the old commercials and that was all right. Kind of a nice retro feel; I thought they worked nicely. That evolved, however, so that they got somebody made up to look like him with a make-up job that makes him look more like a Disney animatronic. And they use the same tag – “. . . or my name isn’t Orville Redenbacher.” It isn’t. We know it isn’t. This Orville has an embalmed look that makes him really creepy.

THE BURGER KING. The only creepier company spokesman on TV right now is the Burger King. You’ve seen him. Human body and an oversized plastic head that seems modeled after a young Henry VIII. The effect is like one of these licensed characters you see walking in a parade or in a theme park. Then they put him into situations that frankly make my flesh crawl. One of the commercials for BK’s breakfast line-up had a guy waking up in the morning and the Burger King was there in bed with him. The tag was “Have breakfast with the King.” The only thing I could think of was, “Dude, I don’t care how much you drank last night or how late their late night window is open, this is just wrong.” Not because the BK might be gay; it’s because he’s not human. Note to commercial makers: I don’t buy products where the commercials creep me out.

(more…)

Jon Favreau blogging Iron Man shoot

Jon Favreau blogging Iron Man shoot

While filming Iron Man, director Jon Favreau is taking a bit of time to update his MySpace page. If you go there, Favreau will tell you that the first week of photography was "extremely challenging," but went off "without a hitch." He goes on to praise the efforts put forth by his cast and crew, saying "Robert Downey was definitely the right choice."

Via our friends at Cinematical.

Captain America still dead

Captain America still dead

In case you didn’t get to your comic shop today, Steve Rogers is still dead after two weeks. That is all. Carry on, if you can.

Courage.