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Wonder Woman Lassos a September DVD Date

Burbank, CA, August 10, 2017 – Celebrate the wonder when Wonder Woman arrives onto Ultra HD Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack, Blu-ray Combo Pack, DVD and Digital. Gal Gadot returns as the DC Super Hero in the epic action adventure from director Patty Jenkins (Monster, The Killing).

The Ultra HD Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack, and Blu-ray Combo Pack will include an all-new bonus scene never before seen in theaters.

Wonder Woman will be available on Ultra HD Blu-ray for $44.95, Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack for $44.95, Blu-ray Combo Pack for $35.99 and DVD for $28.98. The Ultra HD Blu-ray features an Ultra HD Blu-ray disc with the theatrical version in 4K with HDR and a Blu-ray disc also featuring the theatrical version. The Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack features the theatrical version of the film in 3D hi-definition and hi-definition; the Blu-ray Combo Pack features the theatrical version of the film in hi-definition on Blu-ray; and the DVD features the theatrical version in standard definition. The Ultra HD Blu-ray, Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack and Blu-ray Combo Pack will include a digital version of the movie with UltraViolet.  Fans can also own Wonder Woman via purchase from digital retailers beginning August 29.

Additionally, all of the special features, including an all-new bonus scene, interviews with filmmakers, featurettes, and extended scenes, can be experienced in an entirely new, dynamic and immersive manner on tablets and mobile phones using the Warner Bros. Movies All Access App, available for both iOS and Android devices. When purchased digitally and redeemed on UltraViolet, the Warner Bros. Movies All Access App allows users to watch the movie and simultaneously experience synchronized content related to any scene, simply by rotating their device. Synchronized content is presented on the same screen while the movie is playing, thus enabling users to quickly learn more about any scene, such as actor biographies, scene locations, fun trivia, or image galleries. Also, users can share movie clips with friends on social media and experience other immersive content. The Movies All Access app is available for download on the iTunes App Store and Google Play Store.

The Blu-ray discs of Wonder Woman will feature a Dolby Atmos® soundtrack remixed specifically for the home theater environment to place and move audio anywhere in the room, including overhead. To experience Dolby Atmos at home, a Dolby Atmos enabled AV receiver and additional speakers are required, or a Dolby Atmos enabled sound bar; however, Dolby Atmos soundtracks are also fully backward compatible with traditional audio configurations and legacy home entertainment equipment.

SYNOPSIS

Before she was Wonder Woman, she was Diana, princess of the Amazons, trained to be an unconquerable warrior.  Raised on a sheltered island paradise, when an American pilot crashes on their shores and tells of a massive conflict raging in the outside world, Diana leaves her home, convinced she can stop the threat. Fighting alongside man in a war to end all wars, Diana will discover her full powers…and her true destiny.

Joining Gadot in the international cast are Chris Pine (the Star Trek films), Robin Wright (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, House of Cards), Danny Huston (Clash of the Titans, X-Men Origins: Wolverine), David Thewlis (the Harry Potter films, The Theory of Everything), Connie Nielsen (The Following, Gladiator), Elena Anaya (The Skin I Live In), Ewen Bremner (Exodus: Gods and Kings, Snowpiercer), Lucy Davis (Shaun of the Dead, Better Things), Lisa Loven Kongsli (upcoming Ashes in the Snow), Eugene Brave Rock (Hell on Wheels) and Saïd Taghmaoui (American Hustle).

The film was produced by Charles Roven, Deborah Snyder, Zack Snyder and Richard Suckle, with Stephen Jones, Geoff Johns, Jon Berg, Wesley Coller and Rebecca Steel Roven serving as executive producers.

Warner Bros. Pictures presents, in association with Tencent Pictures and Wanda Pictures, an Atlas Entertainment/Cruel and Unusual production, Wonder Woman. The film is rated PG-13 for sequences of violence and action, and some suggestive content.

BLU-RAY AND DVD ELEMENTS

Wonder Woman Ultra HD Blu-ray, 3D Blu-ray and Blu-ray Combo Pack contain the following special features:

  • Epilogue: Etta’s Mission – Etta Candy gets the boys back together for a secret mission that could impact humanity’s future.
  • Crafting the Wonder – Wonder Woman finally comes to life in her first, breathtaking solo film. Explore the journey to create an adventure worthy of DC’s greatest warrior.
  • A Director’s Vision: Themyscira: The Hidden Island
  • A Director’s Vision: Beach Battle
  • A Director’s Vision: A Photograph Through Time
  • A Director’s Vision: Diana in the Modern World
  • A Director’s Vision: Wonder Woman at War
    • Join director Patty Jenkins as she takes you on an exclusive journey through “Wonder Woman’s” most pivotal and exciting moments
  • Warriors of Wonder Woman – Witness the creation of the Amazon army as the women of “Wonder Woman” transform emotionally and physically into the world’s most powerful and heroic warriors.
  • The Trinity – Filmmakers and comic book creators explore the legend of Wonder Woman and how she stands shoulder to shoulder with Superman and Batman to create the pillars of the DC Universe.
  • The Wonder Behind the Camera – Meet the women behind the wonder as they welcome a group of aspiring filmmakers on set for an exclusive, once-in-a-lifetime experience.
  • Finding the Wonder Woman Within – Feel the power of Wonder Woman as award-winning poets and inspiring public figures reveal the impact and importance of DC’s greatest heroine.
  • Extended Scenes
  • Blooper Reel

Wonder Woman Standard Definition DVD contains the following special features:

  • Crafting the Wonder
  • A Director’s Vision: Themyscira: The Hidden Island
  • A Director’s Vision: Beach Battle
  • A Director’s Vision: A Photograph Through Time
  • A Director’s Vision: Diana in the Modern World
  • A Director’s Vision: Wonder Woman at War
  • Warriors of Wonder Woman –
  • The Trinity
  • The Wonder Behind the Camera
  • Finding the Wonder Woman Within
  • Extended Scenes
  • Blooper Reel

DIGITAL DISTRIBUTION ELEMENTS

On August 29, Wonder Woman will be available to own for streaming and download to watch anywhere in high definition and standard definition on favorite devices from select digital retailers. On September 19, Wonder Woman will be made available digitally on Video On Demand services from cable and satellite providers, and on select gaming consoles.

ABOUT DIGITAL

*With digital, fans can watch a digital version of their movie or TV show anywhere, on their favorite devices. The digital movie is included with the purchase of specially marked Blu-ray discs. Consumers can instantly stream and download movies and TV shows to TVs, computers, tablets and smartphones through retail services like CinemaNow, Flixster Video, Vudu and more. For more information on compatible devices and services go to wb.com/digitalmoviefaq. Consult a  digital retailer for details and requirements and for a list of digital-compatible devices.

BASICS

PRODUCT                           SRP

Ultra HD Blu-ray              $44.95
3D Blu-ray Combo Pack  $44.95
Blu-ray                                $35.99
DVD Amaray (WS)            $28.98
Standard Street Date: September 19, 2017
EST Street Date: August 29, 2017
DVD Languages: English, Latin Spanish, Canadian French
BD Languages: English, Latin Spanish, Canadian French, Brazilian Portuguese
DVD Subtitles: English SDH, Latin Spanish, Parisian French, Canadian French
BD Subtitles: English, Latin Spanish, Parisian French, Canadian French, Brazilian Portuguese
Running Time: 141 minutes
Rating: Rated PG-13 for sequences of violence and action, and some suggestive content.
DOLBY ATMOS   DLBY/DGTL   [CC]

Chris Pratt talks Making Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2

Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 sees the return of the universe’s favorite band of intergalactic misfits. Set to the all-new sonic backdrop of Awesome Mixtape #2, the movie’s thrilling storyline follows the team’s adventures as they traverse the outer reaches of the cosmos. The Guardians – Chris Pratt as Peter Quill/Star-Lord, Zoe Saldana as Gamora, Dave Bautista as Drax, Vin Diesel as the voice of Groot and Bradley Cooper as Rocket – must fight to keep their newfound family together as they unravel the mystery of Peter Quill’s true parentage. Old foes become new allies and fan-favorite characters from the classic comics will come to our heroes’ aid as the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues to expand.

To celebrate the in-home release of the blockbuster sequel digitally on HD, 4K Ultra HD™ and Disney Movies Anywhere this week, and physically on 4K Ultra HD™ Blu-ray™ Combo Pack, Blu-ray Combo Pack and DVD on August 22, we catch up with Chris Pratt – who plays Peter Quill/Star-Lord – to find out more on the making of the action-packed Marvel movie…

The in-home release of Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 is packed with exclusive bonus material, including four deleted scenes. What do you think of the deleted action?

Whenever I watch deleted scenes, I think they are really interesting – but it’s always abundantly clear why the scene is not in the movie. Very rarely have I seen a deleted scene where I’ve thought, ‘You know what? If this scene was in the movie, the movie would be better.’ It’s always fun to see them, though. As a collaborator – as one of the guys who worked on this movie – you certainly feel these phantom limb pains for scenes that you expected to see that have been cut. You think, ‘Oh, man… I really would have liked to have seen that scene.’

Which of the deleted scenes from Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2 stands out the most for you?

There’s a scene with a statue that was cut from the movie, and I know exactly why the scene doesn’t work in the movie. Originally, Quill was going to be really excited to go and see Ego. That was in the script – but it wasn’t until we did additional photography that we determined Quill would be a little cynical about it and that Gamora would have to change his mind. We adjusted a few things to deepen the story in additional photography, and the scene with the statue didn’t work.

What can you tease about the deleted scene with the statue?

What can I tease? Well, Ego built the statue for us. It was essentially of Peter Quill as Star-Lord; he is larger than life and all the other Guardians are really, really small. Quill looks at it and says, “It’s perfect!” It’s a fun, funny scene – but then we developed the story and it didn’t work. It’s exciting to know that audiences will finally be able to see it now.

Peter Quill is an iconic Marvel superhero. What makes a good hero?

A good hero is unselfish. A good hero has a willingness to sacrifice one’s own self, own health and own happiness for the benefit of others. A good hero is somebody who, without complaint, puts on a uniform and goes to work to protect a country, to protect a street, to coach kids.

Directing Chris Pratt

Who is your biggest hero?

Man, I’ve got a lot of heroes. My biggest hero is probably my brother, Cully. He’s a law enforcement officer and he was a big part of raising me in my household. He always protected me and nurtured me. He always made me feel really confident in myself. I credit so much of my life to his nurturing as a brother.

That’s amazing…

It’s true. I got really lucky. I have a great family. I have a great sister, a great mom and a great dad – but specifically my brother. He’s a big hero to me.

What other heroes are in your life?

I also love the men and women in the armed services. I have a couple of friends who are spec operators [in the special operations forces] who have been through hell and back – but they would never brag about it. They are quiet professionals who have made countless sacrifices for a cause they believe in.

As a child, Peter Quill’s hero was David Hasselhoff. Who was your biggest hero when you were growing up?

Sylvester Stallone was my idol back then. I loved Rambo. I had a Rambo knife. I had his survival kit. I loved Rambo, man. I loved First Blood. I told him that behind the stage of the theater at the premiere in Los Angeles. I got that fan moment out of the way.

Didn’t you get to work with Sylvester Stallone on the set of Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2?

Personally, I didn’t have any scenes with Sly – but it’s been a real pleasure to meet him. I had a really surreal moment backstage at the premiere, which is where I met him for the very first time. I did that thing that everyone inevitably does, which is you have a fan moment with somebody. You swear you’re never going to do that – but I think the only way to be really authentic is to address the fact that you’re a fan. Immediately afterwards, you try to quickly move beyond that. You try to swiftly move into a working relationship of two peers, two collaborators, two artists or two actors; two people who can look at each other as equals. Not that I look at myself as Sly’s equal.

How difficult is it to work with your idols?

When you have an interaction with somebody as a fan, you put them into a category – but I don’t want to be considered somebody’s fan when I’m working with them. I can be a fan of their work – but it’s important to me to get that out of the way as quickly as possible in order to try and build an authentic relationship based on mutual respect. That’s how I deal with it.

Another icon in the movie is David Hasselhoff. What was it like to have ‘The Hoff’ on the set of Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2?

Man, it was awesome. It was really cool! To be honest, it was pretty surreal to have him on set – but he was really gracious and nice. He was happy to be there, but we were all just as thrilled that it all worked out. It was great.

How does David Hasselhoff compare to Ego as a father?

It turns out that Ego is not Quill’s Hasselhoff – but in the grand scheme of things, I don’t think anyone can ever really be the Hasselhoff. It’s really hard for anyone to live up to the expectations we build around people when we long for them. Whether it’s a girlfriend, an absent father or an idol, we often build up these people in our heads and it becomes impossible for anyone to live up to them – let alone an egocentric planet hell-bent on the destruction of the universe.

Music is integral to the Guardians Of The Galaxy movies. What does music mean to you?

You’re right… Music is a huge part of this movie. It’s funny because I feel like music and light are two things that have a profound effect on me – but I often fail to manipulate either to make a situation better. My wife will come home and she will adjust the lighting – and I’ll look around and say, “This room is so much better. Why didn’t I think to do that?” For me, it’s the same with music. I sometimes forget to play music. Someone will play a song and I’ll go, “I love this song. Why wasn’t I playing anything?”

What music do you rate?

My go-to is country music – and I like it, but I’m not a great DJ or anything like that. I’m a fan of music and I love music, but I’m not somebody who has an intimate connection with music in that way.

If you could add any song to the Awesome Mixtape #2, what would it be?

I really like the idea of adding [Kenny Loggins’] Highway To The Danger Zone to the Mixtape. I feel like Peter Quill would’ve been a fan of Top Gun. And as a pilot, I feel like he’d pump himself up to that song. I’ve pictured the scene a couple times – but I think it’s perhaps too ‘movie iconic’. Maybe it will make it into the third movie? I think that could be cool.

Gag Reel

At the end of Guardians Of The Galaxy Vol. 2, there is a fun scene with Teen Groot. Take us behind the scenes and explain what that was like to shoot?

I thought that scene was really cool. It was very different and original. I love the idea of adolescent Groot being a little jerk. I don’t remember if it was written into the script as a post-credits scene or if it was something we improvised together, but it was interesting to work on. There was an actor on set playing out Groot’s movements; I believe it was Sean Gunn, but I’m not sure. That scene felt like a glimpse into the future. Possibly.

Dennis O’Neil: Deadlines and Ducks

My old friend Danny Fingeroth has nothing to do with the subject of this column, at least I don’t think he has, but we are at the beginning and, you never know maybe some absolutely brilliant idea will occur any second now, an idea with Danny’s name graven on it in fiery letters as big as the cosmos, in which case, I guess, that’s what’d I’d write about.

Hey idea, I’m waiting.

Okay, to hell with you, idea.

And onward. I wanted to get in touch with Mr. Fingeroth because he often knows things I don’t and I wanted to fact-check myself on an assignment that I blew (I think) but I don’t care to scramble names/dates and such. We are, by thunder, in the truth telling business here, citizens (and therefore are not qualified for a job in politics. We’ll live with it.) The immediate problem here is, I want to telephone Danny and people don’t always instantly answer emails and so communication by computer is iffy, leaving the alternative of the phone. But I’ve misplaced Danny’s Rolodex card. Just like me!

Do we have a topic yet, or are we just blathering?

Okay, if the cupboard is bare open the pantry.

What I was hoping to get confirmed by the encyclopedic Mr. F was an article being prepared by another magazine, the ancient kind made of paper and ink (though I do think it has a web presence and don’t I wish that Dan was here to confirm that?!) The editor of this publication was seeking anecdotal information about deadlines and, having been dueling with deadlines on and off since I was a wet-behind-the-ears journalist back in southeast Missouri I thought, sure, I can knock out volumes of copy – both pro and con – about deadlines, so clear the way to the computer!

But I didn’t. One reason might be that, as a general policy, we don’t sling mud in this venue and the ripest of my deadline tales would entail doing just that. Sure, I could and would omit proper nouns or use pseudonyms but my readers are extremely astute and would effortlessly see through such a paltry stratagem and probably think less of me for trying to perpetrate it. And the most egregious deadline flaunters, well…I’m sure others have stories, too, and don’t need mine.

Not that I myself am completely innocent in this matter. I once thought I was and mentioned this in a conversation with the late and beloved Archie Goodwin who was my editor at the time. Archie gently rectified me. I was, indeed, a chronic deadline misser. I always got assignments done in time to keep their dates with the presses, but I was not as prompt as, living in a fool’s paradise, I believed I was. I was, in short, a dumb cluck.

And here we are almost 500 words into whatever this is and still no topic. Feh! And cluck cluck cluck!

 

 

 

Mike Gold: My Timey-Wimey Toddlin’ Town

Well, last Sunday my pal John Ostrander did a lovely and quite informative column around his inability to come up with a topic. And tomorrow, my pal Denny O’Neil has an equally interesting column addressing the same basic issue. So, damn, I’d look pretty lame if I pulled the same stunt today, wouldn’t I?

Yeah, I know. I should be used to that.

So, instead of impressing you with my astonishing ability to wax on for 591 words about how there’s an echo chamber between my ears – it’s August; there’s supposed to be an echo chamber between my ears… or, at least, the Attica! chant – I’m going to write up a couple of paragraphs about a comic book show I’ll be doing in 15 days. Stream of consciousness, to paraphrase Kris Kristofferson, means you have nothing left to lose.

Danny Fingeroth, who’s name will magically reappear in Denny’s column tomorrow, finally found the one way to get me out to Chicago’s Wizard World show August 24 – 27. No, it’s not the availability of that wondrous delight, the Italian beef sammich. I get back to Chicago three or four times a year, so that’s not quite a deal maker.

No, Danny suggested we do a panel about America’s first mammoth Doctor Who convention, held as part of the Chicago Comicon (since sold to Wizard World) way back in 1982. Larry Charet, who, along with Bob Weinberg and me, were sponsors of the Comicon back then and Doctor Who had pretty much just taken a serious hold among American geekdom. We massively underestimated the number of folks who would be interested in attending… by… well… a lot. We made the Chicago Fire Department nervous, which, historically, is a dick move. We made the American Nazi Party nervous as well, but you’ll have to attend our panel in order to find out why.

I believe this was one of the first, if not the first, Doctor Who show that attracted the attention of a 15-year old named John Barrowman, who had been living in nearby Joliet Illinois at the time. John also will be a guest at Wizard World, so hopefully, I’ll be able to find out. Not that we’re taking credit for inspiring the man who became Captain Jack Harkness on Doctor Who and on Torchwood… but, with him no longer part of Arrow (at least for the time being), maybe the good folks at BBC-Wales can get him back to the timey-wimey stuff.

Of course, going home for Wizard World puts me back in the neighborhood of a hell of a lot of friends, as well as a gaggle of good folks that I haven’t pissed off for a while. Writers, artists, retailers, media folks, actors, broadcasters – it’s a fun place to be. And I’ve always had a great time at Wizard World Chicago, even though it’s actually in Rosemont Illinois, a town sandwiched in between the City of Chicago and the Airport of O’Hare. If you go there, check out Rosemont’s water tower and, if there are children around, try not to laugh out loud.

A month later, I’ll be at the Baltimore Comic-Con, one of my favorites. A damn good show run by damn good people.

That’s the reason we started these big comic book shows. Friendship, seeing people from all over the planet and making rude and obnoxious comments about the high price of stabbed comic books.

At least, we think those are comic books in there. Outside of the cover… who knows?

Box Office Democracy: The Dark Tower

I wonder if it bothers Stephen King that his 54 novels and 200 short stories have produced exactly one great movie.  (Two if you count The Shining, and you probably shouldn’t, considering the very public feud between author and director.)  We have the greatest pulp author of a generation, perhaps of all time, and he just keeps sending his ideas off to Hollywood to die.  I don’t mean to turn the man in to too much of a martyr; he keeps cashing the checks, so he knows what this is.  But to see The Dark Tower, the sprawling thirty year epic he wrote threading through so much of his work, turn in to a pale reflection on the silver screen must sting worse than most.  The Dark Tower is probably the best attempt we’ll ever see to turn a 4,000 page story in to a 90 minute movie, but also maybe no one should ever try that again.  There just isn’t room for any nuance.

I’ve never read any of the Dark Tower novels and I’ve never felt particularly tempted.  I understand that this movie is a sequel of sorts to the books and also that it tries to tell a fair bit of the overarching plot of the novels in this 95 minute movie.  I don’t understand how both of those things can be true but there’s no possible way this is a reasonable adaptation of eight Stephen King novels, that man writes a dense book.  I appreciate that this isn’t anything like the Peter Jackson Hobbit movies and they didn’t turn this in to an endless stream of movies with endless amounts of exposition until I feel like I’ve been ground to dirt.  The Dark Tower, for all of its other faults, has a sense of tempo that is lost with books by directors that make movies like an overly defensive book report needing to prove they did the reading.  I always felt The Dark Tower wanted to get to the next scene and wanted to be entertaining.  It didn’t always succeed but it was trying.

Of course, I can’t tell you anything about what this movie was about.  There’s the eponymous tower and it’s good that it’s there but some bad guys who are basically all Vincent D’Onofrio from Men In Black are trying to use psychic children to destroy the tower.  The first half of the movie has a fairly compelling plot about family and trust but that just completely falls away.  It ends up just being a boy (Tom Taylor) hanging out with The Gunslinger (Idris Elba) in a barren dessert world that looks an awful lot like a studio backlot but according to the credits was South Africa.  Occasionally an evil sorcerer (Matthew McConaughey) will turn up and make everything interesting but they try to keep him as far away from the action as they can.  Probably because it’s all building to a confrontation that takes less than three minutes.

Matthew McConaughey seems like he was basically born to play a slick Stephen King villain.  He has the honeyed way of American speaking that I always tried to do in my head when someone was trying to talk someone in to giving up their soul for a trinket or whatever.  He’s playing a rather generic villain here, I presume because the intricacies of licensing made The Man in Black a little smaller than his literary equivalent (I don’t know how I know so much about this character despite never reading the books but here we are).  He shows up to be menacing and he backs up his bluster by being very mean to his subordinates and characters who are no longer useful.  He’s like a Saturday morning cartoon villain that can actually kill people.

Idris Elba is a talented actor given no chance to act.  The Gunslinger is every gruff hero you’ve ever seen in anything ever.  He doesn’t want to form emotional attachments and he doesn’t want to talk about why that is.  He’s very good at shooting things and there’s solid work given to showcasing that talent but it’s a waste of Idris Elba.  All they needed from Elba was a look and while he looks amazing (he’s a handsome man) there’s no there there.

I’ve seen something like 250 movies since I started reviewing them in 2012 and I’ve learned a little bit about good movies and a lot about bad movies.  The Dark Tower is a bad movie but it’s a great bad movie.  It isn’t excruciating to watch, it has the sense to be short, and there’s always something to pay attention to even if the story is bland nonsense.  They put a giant amusement park sign that said “Pennywise” and I was on edge for a whole scene that had literally no other content.  The Dark Tower is the kind of bad movie that you can walk out of feeling refreshed, remarking to yourself that it “wasn’t really as bad as people said” and while it might not be true it feels better than the movies where you can’t wait for the lights to come up.

Joe Corallo: Robots vs. Princesses vs. Kickstarter

I know I’ve been talking a lot about Kickstarter projects lately. Some have reached their goal, like Unmasked Volume 2. Some still need your support, like The Meatspace Omnibus. This week, I’m discussing a Kickstarter project from Todd Matthy, who’s learned a lot since his last Kickstarter.

I met Todd some years ago and picked up his self-published comic, Wicked Game, drawn by co-creator Roderic Rodriguez back in 2014. Since then, I’ve seen Todd at many local conventions working on other self-published projects.

For the last couple of years his focus has been on Robots vs. Princesses, a comic with art by Nicolas Chapuis and letters by Sean Rinehart. It’s a very “what you see is what you get” kind of title. The premise is that there are princesses banning together against robots. Specifically, Princess Zara wants to find a baby dragon, but on her quest runs into a robot. Now she and the other surrounding princesses have to defend themselves against the encroaching robot army.

It’s a mash-up of fairy tale story telling with giant robot anime. Todd is particularly passionate about this project as he’s an elementary school teacher who wants more comics that are accessible to younger audiences while still being interesting to adults.

Todd Matthy got a write up for Robots vs. Princesses in Bleeding Cool back in 2015 and got praise from comics professionals like Mark Waid and Kristen Gudsnuk. After getting some pages done, alternate covers from artists including Sean Von Gorman, and getting another MoCCA Fest under his belt, Todd went to Kickstarter in May of 2016 to fund the four issues that make up Robots vs. Princesses. The goal was $18,362. Unfortunately, that campaign ended with $2,875 raised ­– which meant that it could not move forward.

However… that was not the end of Robots vs. Princesses.

Anyone who’s done a Kickstarter that’s come up short, or gotten a rejection from a publisher knows that it can be discouraging. And just because you do everything right doesn’t mean you’re going to get what you want. Over the past year, Todd has gone to more shows, has made more progress with the comic, started a newsletter to build his up his base, and reworked the rest of his strategy going forward.

On July 25th, Todd took to Kickstarter once again for Robots vs. Princesses. This time the goal is more modest. Instead of trying to fund all four issues, this campaign is just looking to fund the first issue. The goal is down to $2,500 for the first issue. Seeing as the first attempt made over $2,500 this was a good goal and a safe bet. That safe bet has paid off spectacularly with this Kickstarter already about 75% of its goal with over two weeks left.

Not every comic Kickstarter is a big success. Not every comic gets picked up right away. Todd Matthy could have easily packed it in and called it a day after not getting funded in his first attempt like countless other creators have in the past. He didn’t. He sucked it up, took the time to reorganize and roll out a different strategy and it’s working. Patience is something that is required for anyone that wants to break into comics and it’s a trait that Todd possesses. Go check out his Kickstarter and see what an elementary school teacher is doing to make a passion project come to life for young readers.

Tune in next week when I (hopefully) am able to shamelessly plug a project that I’ll be involved in. Same Bat time. Same Bat channel.

Mike Gold: Too Many Heroes?

Super-hero movie fans are awash with anticipation. I’ll avoid the obvious jokes.

A couple weeks ago, executives from 21st Century Fox, the corporate head of 20th Century Fox, met with their counterparts at The Disney Organization, the corporate head of everything named “Marvel” except for Marvel Mystery Oil (see lengthy footnote, below). Evidently, Fox owner Rupert Murdoch needs some cash, as the purpose of the meeting was to see if Disney might be interested in purchasing the Fox movie and teevee operations, save for the sports-related stuff. Said meeting lasted several hours.

Of course, this is not a done-deal. It’s not even a deal. And to the best of my knowledge, there have been no further meetings. However, any such real offer was neither presented nor accepted. Disney appears to be… well, interested. So I guess it was a successful meeting.

Some fans are salivating over the prospect of an Avengers / X-Men / Fantastic Four crossover movie. Others – including me – firmly believe there’s such a thing as too much. I define too much as the maximum number of characters one could put in a 150-minute movie before they squeeze out an understandable and entertaining story. Avengers: Infinity Wars already sports at least 27 costumes, and that’s not counting Stan Lee.

What comes to my (admittedly diseased) mind is the stateroom scene from the otherwise somewhat overrated Marx Brothers movie A Night At The Opera. It’s phenomenal. It’s hilarious. And it runs four minutes and four seconds. Stretch that out to 150-minutes and, well, “Tain’t funny, McGee.”

Some are concerned that a Disney takeover will result in fewer Marvel super-hero movies. I respectfully disagree: the marketplace will determine how many Marvel super-hero movies it will support in any given year. It doesn’t matter how many studios split up that pie – it’s the overall size of the pie that matters.

I think what many of us want is to see the quality of the Marvel Studios movies subsume the quality of the average Marvel movie made by Fox. That would be nice, and it worked for Columbia when they “hired” Marvel Studios to take over the production of the Spider-Man franchise.

But the inside pressure to make Avengers / X-Men / Fantastic Four crossover movies would be inevitable and, I think unstoppable. It addresses every stupid marketing philosophy that Hollywood has embraced for decades.

Shirley Temple said it best. “If you eat too much, oh, oh, you’ll awake with a tummy ache.”

Pop Culture Trivia: In case you never heard of Marvel Mystery Oil and you think I made it up as some sort of twist on Marvel Mystery Comics, well, thanks for the compliment but, no, it is a real thing.

After World War I – you know, the great war – a guy named Burt Pierce invented the “Marvel Carburetor.” It was so successful it was deployed to roughly 80% of all vehicles. Unfortunately, they suffered from a clogging problem due to the high-lead content of the gasoline used at the time (and, in fact, up to about 40 years ago). So, in a blast of innovation so powerful it would have knocked Andy Granatelli’s socks off, Pierce came up with a lubricant that would allow him to continue to sell his Marvel carburetors. Why he named it Marvel Mystery Oil was the matter of some debate.

Did Pierce’s goo influence Timely (a.k.a. Marvel) Comics’ publisher Martin Goodman? Well, the stuff was very popular and it continues to be marketed today, but against massive competition.

The company was headquartered in Port Chester New York along the Connecticut border; back then you could throw a rock in any direction and hit somebody involved in the comics business. However, the oil company moved to Port Chester in 1941, more than a year after the comic book titled “Marvel Comics” changed its name to Marvel Mystery Comics.

Mindy Newell: Why D’ya Think?

From Martha Thomases’s column of August 4: Last week Heather Antos, an editor at Marvel, went out with a bunch of her colleagues for milkshakes at a nearby Ben & Jerry’s and posted a selfie on Twitter. She said “It’s the Marvel milkshake crew! #FabulousFlo.” The hashtag refers to Flo Steinberg, who had just died.

So, you know, a Friday after a long week, Heather and a group of her pals went out to remember a woman who was their friend and mentor. They didn’t go to a bar. They went for ice cream. They posted a photo on Twitter because that’s what the kids do these days. I don’t know what could be more wholesome.

Naturally, there was an upset. To some, this photo represented everything that was wrong with Marvel today. Women and people of color in editorial offices apparently is a menacing concept to them, and they menaced back. Ms. Antos received threats of rape and other kinds of physical violence. Others chimed in to say these women weren’t attractive enough to rape.

Fuck them.

Uh-oh. Mindy’s on a rant. Duck and cover.

Who the fuck gave these maggots permission to insult and threaten anyone who lives outside their minuscule, ignorant bubbles?

I’ll tell you who.

The liar. The bully. The malignant narcissist. The “Baby-Man.” Or, as I call him, Il Tweetci The Mad.

On June 29, Self magazine writer Nina Bahader listed 22 sexist comments made by the man who sits in the Oval Office. Here are some of them:

  • In tweets sent out earlier today, (June 29) Trump referred to Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski as “low I.Q. Crazy Mika” and claimed she visited Mar-a-Lago while “bleeding badly from a face-lift.”
  • He tweeted that sexual assault in the military is simply what happens when men and women work together.
  • He wrote that women are inherently manipulative. In his book Trump: The Art of the Comeback (1997), he wrote: “Women have one of the great acts of all time. The smart ones act very feminine and needy, but inside they are real killers. The person who came up with the expression ‘the weaker sex’ was either very naive or had to be kidding. I have seen women manipulate men with just a twitch of their eye—or perhaps another body part.”
  • He referred to women as “pieces of ass.” In an interview with Esquire in 1991, he said: “You know, it doesn’t really matter what [the media] write as long as you’ve got a young and beautiful piece of ass.”
  • He implied that unbelievably beautiful supermodel [and television host and entrepreneur] Heidi Klum was “no longer a 10” simply because she’d dared to age. During aNew York Times interview with Maureen Dowd, [he] mused: “Heidi Klum. Sadly, she’s no longer a 10.”
  • He said that women with small busts are not attractive. During an appearance on The Howard Stern Show, he told Stern: “A person who is very flat-chested is very hard to be a 10.”
  • He told a lawyer she was “disgusting” for pumping breast milk. In 2011, Trump was testifying in a lawsuit when lawyer Elizabeth Beck asked for a break from the proceedings so she could pump breast milk for her 3-month-old daughter. “He got up, his face got red, he shook his finger at me and he screamed, ‘You’re disgusting, you’re disgusting,’ and he ran out of there,” Beck told CNN. The New York Times reports that Trump’s lawyer does not dispute that he made this comment.
  • He credited women’s professional successes to their looks. “It’s certainly not groundbreaking news that the early victories by the women on The Apprentice were, to a very large extent, dependent on their sex appeal,” Trump wrote in his 2004 book, How to Get Rich.

A leopard doesn’t change his spots. You can’t teach an old dog new tricks. During the campaign, he tweeted: “If Hillary Clinton can’t satisfy her husband what makes her think she can satisfy America?” and said, “When she walked in front of me, believe me, I wasn’t impressed.” And he attacked her with this: “The only card [Hillary Clinton] has is the woman’s card,” he said in April 2016. “She’s got nothing else to offer and frankly, if Hillary Clinton were a man, I don’t think she’d get 5 percent of the vote. The only thing she’s got going is the woman’s card, and the beautiful thing is, women don’t like her.” He said of Carly Fiorina, his opponent during the Republican primary season: “Look at that face! Would anyone vote for that? Can you imagine that the face of our next president?!’ and “I mean, she’s a woman, and I’m not s’posedta say bad things, but really folks, come on. Are we serious?”

He called Megyn Kelley a “bimbo,” and then told CNN when asked about her questions during the debate, that “You could see there was blood coming out of her eyes. Blood coming out of her wherever.”

He has tweeted warnings to Republican Senators Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska about getting in step with the agenda.

He calls women he doesn’t like “fat pigs, dogs, slobs.”

His actions have led to abusive behavior by members of the Republican Party. The Washington Post reported that Representative Blake Farenthold of Texas said of Republican Susan Collins of Maine after her “No” vote in the health care debate that if she were a “guy from south Texas, I might ask him to step outside and settle this Aaron Burr-style.” In an interview with Ali Velshi of MSNBC, Georgia Representative Earl L. “Buddy” Carter said that “someone should go over there to that Senate and snatch a knot in their ass” a phrase that means to hit someone as punishment. And after Republican Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska also voted “No” on the bill, Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke told the Senator that her vote had put Alaska’s future with the administration in jeopardy.

And you wonder why the maggots feel empowered?

 

Ed Catto: Dare2Draw with Eisner & Kirby

Dare2Draw is one of those cool events that I never want to miss and am always so happy after attending.

Founded by Charles David Chenet (now its Executive Director), Dare2Draw may seem like a comics-drawing class at first glance but it’s really so much more. In fact, this Saturday’s event will be celebrating the works and legacies of comic pioneers Will Eisner and Jack Kirby and celebrating their Centennial mark in the sequential arts.

Chenet describes this long-running organization as a mentoring, supportive and networking organization for artists of all levels. Dare2Draw is also designed to cultivate the awareness of and appreciation for the study of sequential art, and to the “furtherance and preservation of the comic book medium’s contributions to literacy, art, and culture, through outreach programs, events, and projects.”

I find these events to be invigorating. They are part drawing class, part lecture, part support group… and all fun.

For this upcoming event, Chenet will be bringing Dare2Draw back to the Art Students League of New York. It is a location with a historical importance.

“The Dare2Draw returns to The Art Students League for a very special event to celebrate where Will Eisner got his start and went on to lay down the foundation for the graphic novel,” said Chenet. “We will also be celebrating the work of Jack Kirby, who was able to revolutionize comics, without having a formal art education. Dare2Draw will be celebrating both of these pioneers in the industry of comics, helping to celebrate their centennial mark in the sequential arts.”

“We have invited Kyle Baker, whose irreverent spirit and boundless talent continue to push the art form, now and into the future. Kyle has earned eight Will Eisner awards and many others,” added Chenet.

In fact, Kyle Baker is a winner of not only eight Eisner Awards, but also five Harvey Awards and five Glyph Comics Awards. He’s planning to share his reflections on Will & Jack’s contributions and what the future of the sequential arts “comics” might hold.

Representing the Jack Kirby Museum & Research Center will be Rand Hoppe. He’s a tireless advocate of Jack Kirby and will be exploring the artist’s accomplishments and legacy, and how it all relates to today’s artists.

“Both these men will help us explore the contributions – Kyle, from the perspective of an artist and a peer of Will Eisner, and Rand as a curator of the Kirby legacy,” said Chenet.

You know these events are headed in the right direction as they are attracting sponsors. Of note: Brooklyn Brewery is supplying the beer.

This event will be hosted by Simon Fraser and Edie Nugent. It runs from 5:30 to 9:30 pm and the Art Students League is located at 215 West 57th Street in New York City. Have fun and post your art if you go!

•     •     •     •     •

Credit Given where credit’s due: I really must credit the creative in this week’s column. Will Eisner’s work appears via the courtesy of Will Eisner Studios, Inc. Jack Kirby’s creative provided courtesy of The Jack Kirby Museum and Research Center.

Unblocking John Ostrander!

A sad fact of a writer’s life is writer’s block. That’s when you sit down and look at the blank page or the empty screen and go “I’ve got nothin’.” Some form of that can happen every time you start to write. The really bad version can go on for a long time, maybe for years. Not only do you not have an idea, you feel that you can’t write, that you could never write, that you will never write, and what the hell were you thinking when you thought you could write.

There are things you can do when the malady strikes, some less useful than others. Crying, swearing, cursing, screaming are all options but you eventually run out of energy and then you’re back at square one – the damned blank page or screen.

Not all solutions work for all people and what work’s in one situation may fail in another. That all said here are some things that I’ve tried that sometimes work.

Do not panic! Seriously, calm down. It only feels like life and death. You’ll write again. Relaaaaaax.

Do something else. Staring into the abyss (a.k.a. that blank page or screen) until you’re cross-eyed only hurts your vision. Go do something else. Something physical. I’ve been known to wash dishes when I get desperate. Go for a walk or a run. Don’t read, watch TV, play video games, text or call someone. You’re looking for something that will shift your mind into neutral. Something that will silence the chattering monkeys in your skull.

Work on something else. I generally have three or four different projects working at the same time. If I get jammed up on one, I’ll go to another. If I get jammed on all of them, I revert to the rule above. Play with a cat. If nothing else, it may amuse the cat.

Check the basics. If I stall out on a plot, it generally means I’m making a Writing 101 mistake. I haven’t done the basics regarding plot construction or building a character. I tell myself that I’ve done this for so long that I can skip a step or two. That’s hubris talking and hubris is a lying bastard. Or maybe I’m so late with the deadline I don’t have time for all that. Wrong again. When you’re running late you only have time to do it right once. Take the time. Do the work.

Write about it. Yes, that’s exactly what I’m doing here. I sat down to write this week’s column and had nothin’ so I wrote this column about having nothin’. A rather Seinfeld column. Seriously though, as a writer you put into words that which exists only in your mind and heart. It’s most likely will be nothing you will ever read again or show to anyone but the physical act of putting words – any words – down can be therapeutic. Yes, it most likely will be crap. Let it be crap. Write it and flush it.

Get paid for it. At one time, I thought I had a serious case of writer’s block. Had it for years. Nothing came, nothing worked. Then Mike Gold offered to pay me for a story (my first printed work, as it turned out). Boy Howdy, that block just evaporated. Funny how motivating a paycheck can be. Knowing someone will give you the real coin of the realm for your writing can be awfully encouraging.

I hope all this has been a little help to some of you but – hey, I’ve got this week’s column so I’m good.

See y’all next week.

Unless I hit a block.

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