Despite my protest, violent anger, seething rage and fairly open contempt towards The Amazing Spider-Man, and this ludicrously shallow movie franchise Sony is trying to build, the editors here at Grizzly Bomb seem to find some sick perverted joy in making me cover Spider-Man movie news. [Ed. Note – This is true.] I tell them, why not get someone who likes this movie? Or the series of previous movies? Or even the character for that matter? But they shun those words, and laugh as my tears are like some salty opiate nectar to them. [Also true.]
Because the last one inexplicably made so much damn money, despite being complete and total trash, they’ve moved forward with carrying out the development of the sequel. As we all know, that was the whole point to begin with, and certainly there was never any intention to tell an interesting, new, captivating, well acted, funny, engaging, non-boring story to begin with. Since we’ve established Gwen Stacy as Spider-Man’s totally hot, awesome babe of a girlfriend, we’re next gonna bring in Harry Osborn, to set up the foundation of what will presumably be the second sequel’s story, which is the introduction of the Green Goblin. Again.
They’ve currently auditioned four different actors for the role of Harry Osborn, and they’re the same type of namby pamby, limp wristed sissy boys that our current Peter Parker is. I’m positive they’ll all have multiple layers of coats and undershirts, and constantly mope about how awful their lives are while being incredibly rich, handsome, famous and generally leading amazing lives.
Douglas Booth, Sam Claflin, Boyd Holbrook and Eddie Redmayne, in order from left to right. All sissies.
[quote]According to The Hollywood Reporter, studio insiders say four young actors tested for the role on Monday: Sam Claflin (Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Snow White & the Huntsman); Eddie Redmayne (The Good Shepherd, My Week with Marilyn); Douglas Booth (Noah, Christopher and His Kind); and Boyd Holbrook (Hatfields & McCoys, The Host).[/quote]
Because the current sequel is rumored to have Jamie Foxx as Electro, we can probably expect Green Goblin to show up in the third movie, which will tie in to explain something or other about Peter Parker’s parents, and people will blow their gaskets over it and laud it and oh my god the whole thing already makes me sick. Jamie Foxx as Electro already sounds stupid enough, so I can only hope these movies go full-retard into something that can actually entertain me. Until then, I’m stuck covering the news of this movie, in some sort of Sisyphean torment put upon me until the end of time, or whenever these movies stop being made. By the likes of things, they’re probably one and the same.
Recently it’s come to my attention that both Spider-Man and Superman have gotten new costumes. Regardless of their semi-permanence or not, the first thing that comes to my mind is always: Why? For Spider-Man, dude has had probably an entire closet full of costume changes, anything from the infamous (and creatively sound) Black Suit, to the stunningly forced and ugly Iron Spider suit from Civil War. You know, the one that was somehow bulletproof yet could be torn by glass. Superman on the other hand, seems to get a suit change every once in a while, until the editor who approved it realizes how stupid they were being and switches back to the iconic, perfect original suit.
Well anyhow, they’re at it again, this time Spider-Man gets a new suit for his debut in the brand new Spider-Man title, The Superior Spider-Man.
Spider-Man is pretty much the poster boy for superfluous suit changes. Every couple of years he seems to get a new suit change so I’m not surprised really. It’s no secret here at GB that I’m not the biggest Spider-Man fan, but even so I still have to say this new suit is just kinda weaksauce. It more or less seems the same, with the exception of a color palette swap, and maybe a few more minor changes that either aren’t visible or I haven’t noticed. At least with the Black Suit that was noticeably different, and worked on its own terms. On top of that, it had a good creative argument behind it. Spider-Man is inherently kind of stealthy character, and why would a guy like him wear such bright colors? Follow it up with the suits excellent reveal of actually being the living Symbiote that would create Venom, and you’ve got more than enough justification for a suit change. In that case, a writer had an idea that made sense, was new and interesting, and helped tell a good story. Time will tell as far as for the storyline implications of this new suit, but I don’t think it’d take much to successfully predict it’s not a fully creative decision. The new suit, the cancellation of Amazing Spider-Man and launch of this “Superior” Spider-Man, reeks of executive business decision. It looks and feels like something that was decided solely to try to get more readers and/or mainstream press about this sudden “new” suit change.
I think the problem with Spider-Man, in my opinion is that he’s a character ruled and governed with such executive care. Everything about him seems so obviously handled by a suit, making sure their cash cow isn’t somehow accidentally caught doing something original or daring. It’s the main reason why we keep getting endless origin stories of him, and sensationalist gimmick stories that don’t really do anything interesting. One More Day, his identity reveal/pro-reg siding in Civil War, and of course that most recent terrible movie, are all plagued by this. It’s one of the main reasons I hate costume changes in general, because it actively reminds me that the guys running these businesses, (and that’s what they are) are just trying to maintain IP security. Make sure people are talking about our character, no matter what! Any press is good press! Who cares if we color him in terrible red and gold and give him lots of useless extra limbs!
It’s like staring into a giant dumb lens flare. Or a J.J Abrams film. HEYOOOO.
But as much as I’d love to keep hating on Spider-Man all day, DC is also to blame for this same stupid tactic. In a lot of ways, Superman is victim to the same company paradigm that Spider-Man has. Protect the IP, raise character awareness, etc. The difference is, he generally gets far fewer costume changes, and due to his ironic modern lack of popularity, ends up with better stories. The people who writer Superman generally get to tell the stories they want to tell, and don’t have to follow any company mandates TOO hard, although occasionally you’ll end up with some real stinkers like the Superman Red/Blue outfits from years back. Of course, we’re talking about Superman’s most recent costume change, and really, it’s literally nothing we haven’t seen before.
Compare it the old black suit he wore from Return Of Superman, and a bunch of other things, and you’ll see it’s not a new design at all. They just added the red cape to it.
DC has always had trouble with Superman’s outfit in one way or another. It seems like every once in a while some idiot comes along and thinks they can improve it, or give him an outfit that will supersede the original in some way. As I mentioned earlier, the most egregious example of this is the Blue/Red suits, which were an embarrassment that DC and nearly all Superman fans would like to forget. So understand it brings me no pleasure to re-live this horrible outfit again by showing them here.
My eyes! The goggles do nothing!
Those costumes were from a TERRIBLE old storyline that involved Superman going into the sun, getting supercharged (whatever that means), and then needing the new suit to “contain” his powers. Then he split into two for… reasons. One was evil or something, and that’s about all I can remember before blood starts to violently leak from my nose and I pass out.
This isn’t the first time DC has made superfluous and needless costume changes. They did it very recently pre-New 52 with Wonder Woman, and gave her an idiotic, tacky 90’s jacket and some pants:
Damn the man!
Or the time they did that whole Azrael/Batman thing, after Knightfall happened:
But the thing is, we’ll keep getting new costume changes, because people will still buy the comics to see them, if only out of curiosity. We’ll have to deal with all of the slutty Invisible Women:
Stupid mohawk Storms: [Editor’s Note – Mohawk Storm was badass!]
And asinine Mr. Fixits:
Seriously, this happened. Hulk in a suit and fedora. WHAT WERE THEY THINKING?
Because it’s a tactic that works. Very rarely is there ever any true creative incentive to actually change a long-established character’s costume, and when there is, it’ll still be met with controversy, and likely sales no matter what. In terms of a gamble, it’s kind of no brainer, because if it’s good, it’ll sell and fans will like it. A good example is Carol Danvers AKA Ms. Marvel, who’s had plenty of costume changes as written about here on GB. She ended up with a new costume that fared far better than her original costume, and is now arguably more iconic and representative of her than the one she started with. However, if the costume is bad, you’ll end up with a Superman situation, where the book sells but it ends up damaging the character, and the whole thing is looked back on as a huge mistake. In the short-term though, it all generates sales, and this is the main problem with the whole costume changing concept. Executives will just demand a costume change any time they see sagging numbers, and short of actually trying to tell a good story, will simple implement a costume change to see those numbers go up. It doesn’t always have to be a costume change, sometimes it’s a gimmicky story element, but more often than not it is.
It’s easier to get an artist to draw up a new suit, print a couple thousand comics with him on the cover, animate the tv show with him in it, license the look to an action figure company, and switch back later when the heat dies down. For every Ms. Marvel, we’re gonna get 10 other totally craptastic costume changes we’ll have to live through. Such is the life of being a comics fan.
Today sees the return of The Griz Bin – a look of at the more random side to comics that has nothing (or at least not much) to do with films, TV or comic books themselves. And I’ve been given the keys! So hold tight as we look at toys, art, cosplay and general weirdness.
In probably the most groan inducing and obvious news to ever surface, a sequel to this year’s The Amazing Spider-Man is in the works. After the first one came out to a generally positive reaction from audiences, this money grab new franchise reboot seems determined to follow through with its shameless planned effort to make a new Spider-Man trilogy. At the time however, director for the first film, Marc Webb, was unconfirmed for a return. Now it seems like we’ll have to endure get to see another film starring the wonderful Mr. Garfield and his spectacularly lame portrayal of the hippest, least relatable, and most lame-sauce version of Peter Parker yet. [Editor’s Note – I totally disagree, Garfield > Maguire]
Aren’t I tortured?
Now if it wasn’t clear, I’m not a fan of the movie. I found myself trying really hard to stay positive about the movie right up until I actually saw it, but boy was I ever let down. I wasn’t expecting a masterpiece of epic proportions, nor was I even expecting a knockout, drag down epic superhero film. What I got instead was probably one of the stupidest, most uninteresting, boring superhero films I’ve ever seen. As I was watching it I found myself groaning in disgust or facepalming at the inanity of everything, literally every 5 minutes. Not to mention the stupidest thing I’ve ever seen in a movie since the Hulk Dogs from Ang Lee’s Hulk; The goddamned lizard mouse. Plus the sweaters Peter wears, oh GOD the layers on this guy! What is he anemic? Dude wears at least 4 layers of clothes in every scene where he’s not in his Spider-Man garb.
4! Four layers of clothes! Ah! Ah! Ah!
I’ve never seen a film with such a perfect mix of boring, dumb, and redundancy. I kept trying to forget all of the previous things in the film that I found retarded, for lack of a better word, but they just kept coming. Eventually I realized the true meaning of this film lied in it’s franchise value, and the lack of any substance, or anything new or interesting was because of this. People often talk about who is or isn’t a hack in Hollywood, and the guys who wrote this, god bless them for trying. They’re obviously fans of the character, who had to deal with immense studio pressure to make the film as toyetic, commercial, broad and franchisable as possible. What I mean by this, is that it’s the case of a studio counting its eggs before they hatch. The whole film felt like an attempt to make a movie, solely to make other movies, rather than actually tell an interesting, coherent, original story.
Script? Story? Just make the damn movie, we need that Spider-Cash!
So hearing that Andrew Garfield and Marc Webb are coming back isn’t exactly a surprise, but leaves me with no real feelings of joy either. I had no huge problems with Garfield, although he did seem to be sleepwalking through the scenes that didn’t have to have him crying, skateboarding, or crying while skateboarding. He’s not the blame for his character being utterly shit-tastic. I’ve never seen a guy whose shit was so ruined despite looking cool, having a hot babe be obviously into you, being rad at skateboarding, and being a goddamned genius. Furthermore all of the awesome camerawork that was promised by Marc Webb was mostly absent, as I recall a big hooplah being made about the POV swinging sequences, of which I can barely remember. I don’t mean to trash them both, because they did what they could with what they had. The entire thing was a massive failure on every level, except for monetary gain. Which it was made for to begin with, so in that regard it’s a success. I know I’m in the minority with that opinion here at GB, (4.5/5) but It’s how I feel.
Seriously, look how tortured he is!
Will I be looking forward to seeing the new Spider-Man film? No. Will I see it? If somebody else pays for the ticket, snacks, and then is willing to sit through my rant after the film is over? Yes. Will I be continuing further coverage of the sequel as plot details are released? Yes, but only because my editor hates me. [True.]
Welcome to Comic Rack! My pick of the top five comic news stories in no particular order…
Boom Studio’s & Paul Jenkins Teaser
Boom studios is one of the many indie comics studios that has found a niche audience with their select few titles of popularity. Arguably their most popular was Mark Waid’s Irredeemable, but they’re also known for their Hellraiser, Planet Of The Apes, and Adventure Time comics. Personally I really loved Irredeemable, and thought it was a great book, even if it’s ending was the same ending from All Star Superman #10. But that’s such a brilliant ending I’ll take it again anyway. When it comes to Boom Studios, there’s not much they do make that I can say anything negatively about, so the fact that Paul Jenkins is working on a project with them, is something I’m looking forward to upon announcement alone. So here comes the teaser for the project, whatever it may be:
So yeah, not a whole lot to go on there at all. But hell, Jenkins has done incredible work on Hellblazer, Wolverine: Origin, and my personal favorite, The Sentry. Not that I like who The Sentry became, but that first 6 issues that introduced us to the character were so creatively meta, well written, and emotional that I still love it greatly, even if The Sentry turned into a whiny crybaby Mary Sue piece of shit. To this day I still think that story of The Sentry could be adapted into one of the best original superhero movies ever made, if you just changed it to an original superhero, and make it a bunch of Marvel analogues, ala Planetary, or The Authority. It’d be a great story about superheroes, rather than just being about superheroes.
As for the teaser? Is it a comic about death? Maybe. I know I’ll be looking forward to hearing just what the hell it is.
Greg Rucka Tells It Like It Is
Greg Rucka, probably most famously known for his Batman related work, and his New Krypton storyline for the Old DCU, has been pretty vocal lately with his dislike of the way creator relations are currently being handled by BOTH of the big two, voicing his displeasure in a revealing quote over at [ComicsAlliance].
Rucka said that he’s “reached the end of my Work For Hire rope,” adding that “I have spent a lot of my comics career in service of other masters, and I’ve had enough of that for now. I’m sick to death of the way the Big Two treat people.”
He goes on to add some more details about the mistreatment he’s received from both camps, expressing his displeasure pretty pointedly. As a comics fan, it’s hard to disagree with him, because the points he makes are so prevalent, especially with DC. I’ve heard plenty of horror stories over the years about the way writers are treated like meat into a grinder, especially since there’s so many that are chomping at the bit to break into any sort of comics writing mold. The most obvious and glaring point is that the companies keep trying to compete with each other, and play catch up, rather than strive to innovate or go their own way. The most obvious example is the whole Marvel NOW! thing, which is so blatantly a transparent lift of the concept of New 52, it’s maddening. At least with DC, it made sense, because they had a bowl of spaghetti for continuity, but Marvel seems to be doing this purely for marketing reasons, rather than anything creative.
An industry that only looks to constantly play catch up, is inevitably going to stagnate. As innovation dwindles, and brilliant books that try things differently go by the wayside, you’re in danger of having an industry bubble burst. I don’t mean to go all “THE SKY IS FALLING” on anybody, but I’ve found that generally being a pessimist about these kind of things doesn’t hurt. Expect a kick in the balls, and if you get slapped in the face, you win, I always say. Hopefully, Rucka’s words will wake up some abject comics executive, who’ll help creative minds establish their work in a way that’s beneficial to everyone, rather than threaten them with losing their job to 10 more hungry writers, who’ll work for scraps off the DC table.
Brian Wood’s New Original Title From Image Comics!
Brian Wood is a curious writer for me, personally. First off, the guy has written some of my most favorite comics of all time. Issue #10 of his masterpiece, Local, brought me to tears, and touched me in ways I can barely explain to most people. His other work, is all of differing quality and style, from his massive work on DMZ, to the shockingly different tone of his work on Northlanders, the guy undoubtedly has range.
However, he’s a guy who I’ve met in real life, more than once, both times I went to Comic-Con. It’s one thing to meet someone who’s obviously stressed and trying to cope with the zoo that is CCI, and it’s another to meet a guy who clearly doesn’t really like his fans. I remember being in line, and watching the guy be kind of openly rude to multiple people, begrudgingly signing things, and just generally seeming like he didn’t want to be there. I’d like to think I’m a very understanding person, and I get that after a while it’d be very difficult to be super enthusiastic for each fan you come across when your main prerogative is just getting back to your hotel room and getting some sleep. But it’s another thing when you’re there first thing in the morning, and still have attitude. I gave the guy the benefit of the doubt though, and came back next year, to get him to sign my copy of The New York Four (which is great mind you), only to see him acting the same way again. It was disheartening to say the least.
All personal experiences aside, the man undeniably is a genius and makes great comics, even if he is a bit of a douche. So of course, I’m totally stoked to see he’s working on a sci-fi title dealing with superpowers. The concept of an athlete discovering their superpowers live on television is A-1 dynamite. A stepping stone that could lead to excellence. It’s the sort of thing where I have to separate Brian Wood the man and Brian Wood the writer, and just take his work at face value for the brilliance it is. You can read more about the actual book here.
Those of you familiar with me here at GB, know I’m not the biggest Spider-Man fan in the world. I’ve said before time and time again, he’s my least favorite superhero, out of the big ones. Something about him I just can’t relate to, even when I was a teen struggling with… helping my weird Aunt, or responsibility, or some other boring shit.
Dammit, sorry. I promised myself I would try to stay as positive as possible for this part of the article.
Unlike some other people, of course. They see this as an attempt to revise, erase, and forget the legacy and history of their superheroes in favor of a cash grab. But that’s what the movies are for. I see this as a welcome change to the entirely shitty status quo that is Spider-Man.
I remember way back when Spider-Man was 3 different books a month and they decided to cancel the other 2. This of course meant Amazing came out 3 weeks in a row every month. Which forced Dan Slott to write weird, lame stories that amounted to mostly useless filler at best, and at worst, horrible retcon filled bullshit like the fallout from One More Day. Then they started introducing stupid villains like Mr. Negative and Anti-Venom, which the mere thought of, to me, screams UNCREATIVE.
I know, they’ll just print another Spider-Man title, and the re-numbering means nothing, and it’ll just be the same book with a different name, maybe with some new gimmicky team attached, or something or other. I don’t know, and I don’t care. It’s all pointless really, and in the meantime, i’ll just try to pretend like this is the end.
Shit. I failed at being positive didn’t I? Oh well.
[Supascoot here. My opinion varies greatly from Cheesebadger’s. Spider-Man is my favorite (Marvel) hero. I don’t like the end of Amazing, and some of the rumors about Spidey’s direction afterwards (Spidey with Doc Ock Arms… Seriously) aren’t filling me with confidence. I would be more upset, but Marvel already punched my love of Spidey history right in the balls with One More Day. So… whatever. Back to you, Cheese.]
Kirkman and Moore Lawsuits Arrive At Mutual Satisfaction
When I first heard about this, I was pretty shocked to hear about it. It seemed like something out of a bad made for TV movie:
Two buddies make a project together. Project gets big. One buddy gets all the credits, lets the fame change him. Leaves previous buddy by the wayside. Previous buddy asks for due credit and compensation, but is unable to reach his old buddy, as he’s now a megalomaniac monster, drunk on his own fame and power. Lawsuits are made, friendships ruined forever. Tragedy. Roll credits.
Which is more or less the situation with Kirkman and Moore, from my point of view anyway. It seems history has a way of repeating itself, what with this happening between Siegel, Shuster, and DC, or arguably even Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. When it comes to partner projects, it’s hard to tell if even your best friends since childhood, (literally in Kirkman/Moore’s case) can be trusted. Unlike those previous examples however, both Moore and Kirkman came to a resolution that seems to be good for all parties involved. I know I’m not privy to many of the personal details but having suffered from the fallout that can come from collaborating with friends on projects and watching those projects fall through, along with the friendships, this story hit a nerve for me. I’m glad they came to an agreement, but I can’t help believe it was at the cost of their friendship. Potentially anyway, but lord knows neither man will actually actively comment on their personal lives in this manner, because who else but me would care?
Tony Moore cares…
Regardless of how I feel personally on the matter, it’s good to know that credit is given where it is due, and all of the other particulars could be put by the wayside. Unfortunately, The Walking Dead is still a terrible TV show, and I’ve never looked to a new season of a show with regretful disdain more than the upcoming third season. I fully expect it to be shit, especially in contrast to the perpetually great comic book. Hopefully this sort of thing won’t happen again, and the comic won’t be affected in any way, because it’s still my #1 read at the top of my pull list every month, for 4 years straight.
You can read more about the actual details of the lawsuit and the settlement here.
That’s it for this edition of Comic Rack. We’ll see you next week.
Welcome to Comic Rack! My pick of the top five comic news stories in no particular order…
Rob Liefeld Quits DC, Thousands Rejoice?
Liefeld is a pretty infamous name in the comics world. He’s generally known for his 90’s work, which showcased his startling lack of attention or care to basic human anatomy, and a bizarre fascination with ridiculously sized guns and an inordinate amount of pouches. I know, it’s very hip to hate on Liefeld, but the dude really did contribute to the boom, and subsequent giant bubble burst of comics collecting in the 90’s, and the stigma his art and writing left on the industry is something from which they’re finally recovering. Well it seems he’s quitting DC, and as much as I’d like to celebrate, his reasons, are actually pretty concerning.
“This is the 4th time I quit in the last 4 months. This time it will stick,” he wrote from a theater, where he was watching The Expendables 2. “Never thought the Image section of my book would be topped. This last year was a humdinger. The DC52 chapters will go top all of it. […] Reasons are the same as everyone’s that you hear. I lasted a few months longer than I thought possible. Massive indecision, last-minute and I mean LAST minute changes that alter everything. Editor pissing contests… No thanks. Last week my editor said ‘early on we had a lot of indie talent that weren’t used to re-writes and changes … made it hard.’ Uh, no, it’s you.”
I’m not Liefeld advocate by any means, but it’s hard to not see where he’s coming from. Things at DC do seem pretty haphazard, and just barely thrown together. I love DC, and they really do have some great writers telling great stories, but lets face it, their editing team has always been one huge clusterf***. With the departure of Morrison for similar reasons, and other writers like George Perez also giving similar complaints, things on the editing front over at DC seem at the very best, shaky, and that’s putting it as nicely as I can. It does kind of explain why George Perez’s run on Superman was total dogshit boring though, and I’m a HUGE Superman fan. I’m just hoping the same thing doesn’t happen to any of my other favorites like Jeff Lemire, or Scott Snyder. That’d be a pretty huge loss to the company that not even a thousand Geoff Johns writing on a thousand typewriters could fix.
In A Startling Move, Mark Millar Is Not A Horrible Person For Once!
You’d almost never guess he’s pure evil inside. Also, Scottish.
So despite being a terrible comics writer, who shits out bad comics purely to be optioned into films, he still somehow is popular, and has a rabid fan base. This fan base has in turn, made him very rich and successful. In a shocking movie, he’s finally decided to use this fan base for good, rather than more evil. It would seem some horrible, sexist, racist, misogynist, generally all around asshole, (the twist is that it’s not Mark Millar!), has been harassing various female comics writers and artists on twitter for quite some time. The guy has posed as several different names on twitter, and has been doing this for about 2 years, according to Sue from @DCwomenkickingass The tweets, emails and god knows what else, all are pretty lousy, terrible things to say, and the lot of them are far beyond typical “Lol you suck” hater tweets, venturing into downright harassment and outright online bullying. Here are collected few: via [BleedingCool].
@happysorceress Vixen? Seriously? LOL. She’s the most usless black female character in comics. And that’s saying something.
@kellysue Captain Marvel sucks. Just sayin. Put that hot little piece of blonde pussy back in black thigh highs and move on already
@CertainshadesL I’m guessing you wouldn’t be as amused if you were being gang raped by black guys in lois lane masks. Yeah, I’m thinking no.
@ronmarz right, because it’s easier to go after spelling when you’re to f***ng lame to deal with the actual point. Nicely played, cunt face
@gimpnelly and being a liberal, you certainly love to embrace hate. You’re just jealous that you’re too ugly to be in porn, f***ing mutt.
@GailSimone calls Condoleeza racial slur and liar, African American fans shocked at Simone’s uncharacteristically intolerant/cruel comments
@MarkWaid refuses to disavow claims that he called Romney’s wife “white corporate whore”, fans shocked at Waids comment
@maguirekevin Kevin Maguire calles Condoleeza Rice an “ignorant ni**er war monger”. Fans are shocked at artists racist comments
@MarkWaid geyser of lies, you mean like when he said that Mitt gave a woman cancer? Whoops! F***ing hypocrites like you make me laughKind of like the time
@laura_hudson said “white people are ruining comics”. Yeah, that’s not irrational, I’m just entitled for not agreeing
@Curicon @valeriegallaher @TheNerdyBird eh…bunch of no talent bitches that need a few hours as the star in a tentacle filled hentai film.
@Curicon @valeriegallaher @TheNerdyBird poor choice of words. Should have said “victim” instead of “star”. The tentacles are the star.
So Mark Millar finally went and used his powers for good, by writing this on his message board: via [CBR]
So I’m asking you guys a favour. I’ve managed to secure this guy’s name and address, but he’s stateside and I’m unsure what the next step should be. In the UK, he would be charged by the police under the Malicious Communications act, but we have a lot of smart cookies on here and I know there’s several US attorneys who post here regularly. If we have his details and copies of his communication, how can he be prosecuted? If any of the pros who have been attacked here would like to make a case against him I’ll personally cover the legal costs. Twitter, I would imagine, can confirm his IP address if the artists make a formal complaint to the police.Apparently several of those he’s harassed took Millar up on the offer, as today he came back and posted:Thank you very much, but I engaged a criminal lawyer in LA yesterday and have one of the women involved co-ordinating with the others today, hopefully. I don’t want to say much more in a public forum just now as it may prejudice the case and between the details we’ve got and the tweets we saved the police have everything they need. Even if this doesn’t go to court the guy should hopefully be publicly outed in California and the shame of this will not only stop him attacking women online, but also discourage others from trying this in future. I found out last night that this idiot had been making sexual threats to some of the women concerned for over two years now.Again, I stress that readers shouldn’t try googling the names he’s using as innocent parties may get targeted. He’s using false names for the most part, as you might expect. His IP address is all that matters and we’ve nailed the clown. This is a police matter now.
Basically, Millar used some old-fashioned Internet Detectives to get the guys details, and had his police goons send him a cease and desist, or a subpoena, or a effin’ bomb, I don’t know, I have no idea what cops actually do. All of my knowledge about them is from The Wire and Breaking Bad. Regardless, screw that guy, and good on Millar for finally attempting to apprehend horrible, sexist, racist, misogynist assholes on the internet. If somebody shows him Reddit though, he might have a stroke and die, and ironically there’d be one less sexist, racist misogynist left in the world. Hmm…. No.. No that’d be murder. Or at least manslaughter, as so McNulty tells me.
Venom Moves To Philly, Says It’s Always Sunny There.
Alright, I haven’t read a Spider-Man book, in about, oh going on nearly 4 years now. I’ve never been a big fan of his, and despite my hope, that his new movie would be good, it was the worst piece of dogshit I’ve seen since Ang Lee’s Hulk. I’ve never really been that big a Spider-Man fan, when it came to the comics. I remember liking him when I was younger, but that was mostly because of the cartoon on FOX, and really, the toys were pretty cool. When it came to comics I was always a Superman/Batman guy. I know, my predilection for DC is showing again, I’m sorry. But stuff like Venom moving, is something I find innately funny. Especially the entire concept of him going to Philly, just makes me laugh. I know the current Venom is no longer Eddie Brock, and has been Flash Thompson for a while now, and the concept behind the move is actually pretty sound. via [Newsarama]
“Now, he’s trying to do the right thing,” series writer Cullen Bunn told the AP. “He’s reassessing what it means to be a hero. And he’s looking for a fresh start. This means a lot of things for Flash. He’s surrounding himself with new people — such as tabloid journalist Katy Kiernan and his new love interest, the Asgardian Valkyrie. He’s changing his approach to being a superhero. And he’s looking for a change of scenery.”Series editor Tom Brennan, a graduate of Philly’s Drexel University, said it’s time Philly had a hero of its own, putting it in the same league as L.A. and New York, among other real-life cities that populate the Marvel Universe.“All the while that I lived there, I wanted a superhero for the city of Philadelphia, a town full of heart, hustle and hope — and I don’t care what anyone says — some of the nicest people I’ve ever met,” Brennan said. “Sure, they don’t suffer fools, and you’ve got to be mindful if you cross against the light, but I found the City of Brotherly Love to be a character in and of itself that I thought more fiction should explore.”
Bahahaha what? Guns? Seriously? Oh man…
I mean that makes sense. Why shouldn’t Philly have its own hero? Superheroes are all around the place in the Marvel U, so lets throw Philly a bone. If Detroit gets RoboCop, why shouldn’t Philly get Venom? But still, the thought of Venom eating Cheese steaks, hanging out on the street, drinking a 40 and singing Biz Markie, just goddamn cracks me up. If they don’t throw in The Gang from It’s Always Sunny In Philadephia in a background panel or something, that’s gonna be a pretty huge missed opportunity.
Scott Pilgrim Creator’s New Project!
If you haven’t read it by now, you owe it to yourself to go and pick up all 6 volumes of the Scott Pilgrim comics, or some collected version and read it. Seriously. It’s one of those things that you wish you could forget about so you could read it for the first time, again. Stunningly, it was turned into a movie that was somehow EVEN BETTER than the comics, by the sheer amount of raw skill in story condensation used, as well as creative filmmaking in general. But I digress, the real hero here is Bryan Lee O’Malley, who really seem to has his finger on the pulse of the current generational zeitgeist, as his work in Scott Pilgrim alone truly speaks to the current generation of young adults. Any project of his is immediately worth noting for this reason alone, and with that, comes the news of Seconds, his latest graphic novel. via [CBR]
“I came up with the general idea for Seconds right after completing the first volume of Scott Pilgrim,” O’Malley says. “I worked in a restaurant in Toronto for a little while to pay the bills while writing the second volume and planning the rest of the series, and I had a few ideas for this other story, a story about a restaurant. So, Seconds is about a restaurant, and the restaurant is called Seconds, and 90 percent of the story takes place within it. Beyond that it’s really hard for me to explain and I’m going to have to work on that so I can talk about it properly when it comes out. But it’s funny and weird and kind of big and crazy despite the mundane setting.”Asked whether Seconds will be “realistic” like his 2003 graphic novel Lost at Sea, or feature more fantastical elements like Scott Pilgrim, O’Malley continued, “Seconds is grounded in the reality of this restaurant environment, and I did do plenty of research, so there’s that. It takes place in a town that is like a kinder, gentler fairy tale version of reality. Then it takes off into a story that is very strange, very mental. So it’s a little of both, I guess. The protagonist, Katie, is a loveable spaz, and she’s in practically every panel; her personality drives the story in a way that’s basically identical to my other work. They’re all very subjective worlds. But this is a new subject, so it’s got its own feeling.”
Some might say a comic about a restaurant just sounds like a strange setting, but that’d be ignoring the tons of great indie books that take place in normal everyday settings. I’m really looking forward to this book, and you should be too. Now go, go out and read/watch Scott Pilgrim if you haven’t. Seriously. I’ll wait.
Lois Lane And Clark Kent, Not Happening In New 52.
The current big hoopla in DC fandom is the newfound relationship between Wonder Woman and Superman. However, most fans seemed to treat it as unofficial Official canon, that sure, it’s happening, but it won’t count, and eventually Clark will end up with Lois, because c’mon, Lois & Clark. Duh.
This picture is seconds before hot, sexy, Super-Penetration.
Not so says DC, as they seem intent on not going down the whole Lois route once again. via [Newsarama]
In an interview with the Associated Press, Johns and Lee hinted that the other elephant in the room, Lois Lane’s previously-thought destined relationship with Clark, simply doesn’t exist. AP writer Matt Moore even went so far as to say “She’s still around, but the two have never dated, nor are they likely to.”Lee added to the assumption, and noted that this relationship will reach far beyond just the pages of Justice League or just the reactions of other superheroes.“The way Geoff unfolds the story and the implications of 2 of the most powerful characters in the DCU becoming a team is something that goes beyond the question of ‘What about Lois and Clark?” This is a statement to every nation and geopolitical organization in the entire DC Universe giving creative teams ample material to explore this relationship on so many different levels.”Meanwhile, at the New York Daily News, Lee says he likes that this will get people talking.“If you change anything from the length of a cape to the shape of a belt buckle, there’s always some fan that notices and is appalled.“We’re very lucky to have a very passionate fan base.”
That last quote is really kind of a fancy way to say, “Stop whining nerds, geez”, and get away with it. And you know, I’m okay with it. We’ve seen Lois and Clark together for decades, why not let him have a shot at somebody who can, you know, bear the full brunt, if you will? A woman who can take what he can give? Who doesn’t have to worry about his daring exploits? Sex. She can have sex with him without fear of horrible death. Is what I’m saying. Because she’s wonderful. She’s a wonderful woman. Ugh. I’m annoying myself now. Anyhow, I’ll be interested to see how the whole relationship plays out, because holy hell, that break up will be HORRIBLE. Entire cities laid to waste because of emotional outbursts from both parties. Well, maybe not Superman, but possibly Wonder Woman? Maybe? Oh god am I being sexist? Will Mark Millar send after me now? What’s that knock at the door? OH FU-
4! Four layers of clothes! Ah! Ah! Ah!
Grizzly Bomb 