Archive for the ‘Comic Book Features’ Category

Interview: Andrew McGinn on Writing ‘The Legacy’

Tuesday, July 6th, 2010 by Carl Doherty under Interviews

I recently reviewed Andrew McGinn and David Neitzke’s The Legacy, a hilarious graphic novel about a young artist who inherits his father’s beloved newspaper comic strip “Simple Pleasures” and strives to make it the most offensive and reviled cartoon in America in order to get his commitment cancelled.

The Legacy is sharp, genuinely funny and its subject matter is quite unique for the comic medium. I had the opportunity to ask writer Andrew a few questions about his warmly received debut, and his answers are as entertaining as the book itself.

SA: How did the idea for The Legacy come about?

Andrew: Well, funny enough, it started when David and I were rejected by the syndicates for a family friendly newspaper comic strip of our very own. We’ve been friends since our college days in the mid-’90s. A few years ago, we hit on the idea of collaborating on a daily strip that, in our minds, would be so funny, so timely and so hip that it would instantly compel newspapers everywhere to once and for all drop “Blondie” and “Mary Worth” and run ours instead, thereby winning over an entire new, younger generation of newspaper consumers.

We were promptly rejected by the syndicates. In some cases, we not only were sent rejection form letters, but photocopies of rejection form letters for that extra insult!

We decided to try our hands at a graphic novel instead, and promptly made good use of the freedoms this new medium allowed by dropping as many f-words as possible. I still think “Marmaduke” would be a lot funnier if every so often somebody used some profanity. And so the idea for “The Legacy” was born during one phone call. We’d just spent a good long while trying to be a part of that world (the world of squeaky clean newspaper comics), so why not turn on it?

The Legacy

The Legacy

Perhaps the most impressive element of the graphic novel is the impressive fictional comic strip history you and artist David Neitzke have constructed. Would I be safe in assuming that this project spent a long time in gestation?

Actually, it came together rather quickly, especially considering we both have full-time day jobs. It took much longer to find someone to take a chance on two newcomers and actually publish it. We didn’t really have to do much research either. We’re the kings of useless pop-culture information. I can’t speak for Dave (although I think I can here), but I can’t read a tape measure, balance my check book or fix most things around my house, but I can rattle off every Jethro Tull lineup change between 1968 and 1978, and I don’t even really like Jethro Tull. Crap like that. We both love comics and comics history, and so playing in that universe was almost effortless. I’m not bragging, either, because my wife would much rather I be able to fix things around the house. Me too.

Movies about the filmmaking process are relatively common, and practically one in ten novels has a writer for a protagonist. Yet comic books about the comic industry or the creative talent behind it are virtually non-existent. Why do you believe that is?

Hmm. Good question. Maybe it’s because directors, actors and novelists have been so romanticized through the years that we’re all fascinated by what goes on behind the scenes. In the U.S. at least, comics have long been perceived as junk literature and appropriate reading material for kids and retarded adults only, and so maybe we all subconsciously doubt our self-worth as creators. Maybe we think, “Who the hell would want to read about me trying to draw some big tits on this female zombie?” Maybe we’re right.

My biggest influence isn’t actually another writer, but Frank Zappa. I’m taking my cue from him and the way he lampooned rock music and teen life with the Mothers back in the ‘60s. I look at the comics community the way he looked at the “counterculture.” There’s a lot of great material there. Someone just has to have the guts to point out the absurdities. To use a phrase, maybe I’ll never work in this town again.

You’ve stated that you’re not a particularly big fan of comic strips, yet the parodies are so spot-on that is hard to believe. Was a lot of research required, or were strips like Garfield and Peanuts just properties you grew up with?

I’m a newspaper reporter by day (on the all-important arts and entertainment beat), so I get to regularly witness how attached people get to some of these strips. A year or so ago, we briefly stopped running Garfield and people were literally cancelling their subscriptions. Many people subscribe just for the comics. And so I torture myself on a daily basis to see what all the fuss is about. I try to never miss The Family Circus or Beetle Bailey. In our paper, Beetle Bailey is credited to “Mort, Greg and Brian Walker,” and often times I think, “OK, how many Walkers does it take to think of a gag that lame?!”

I also once did a feature story on why old comic strips never die and was able to interview the likes of Bil Keane (Family Circus) and Mort Walker. That turned out to be an invaluable amount of research when it came time to write “The Legacy.” I was able to pick these guys’ brains firsthand. In fact, some of their quotes later showed up as dialogue in “The Legacy.” I must say, though, Bil and Mort and Chris Browne (who took over “Hagar the Horrible” for his dad, Dik) were some of the most gracious people I’ve ever interviewed. Making fun of them in “The Legacy” is a bit like walking up to the cutest little puppy and kicking it in the face.

But also, some of these comic strips are just part of everyday American life. Even if you’ve never read a single Garfield strip, you know he’s a fat, lazy cat who loves lasagna and hates Mondays. Some people might not know Garfield even originated in a newspaper comic strip. He’s been a cartoon character on TV, the subject of a couple of movies and he’s pictured on a whole bunch of products at the supermarket. Same with the Peanuts gang. In fact, I personally never miss the Charlie Brown animated holiday specials. And so making fun of Garfield or Charlie Brown is about as easy as making fun of George Washington or Uncle Sam or Superman or Mickey Mouse. Your base of knowledge can be very limited and you can still know enough about them to parody them.

Parts of The Legacy could be interpreted as a writer venting his frustrations at an industry that refuses to evolve. How difficult was it to get a graphic novel that doesn’t neatly fit into an easily marketable genre published?

Getting “The Legacy” published was much, much harder than actually creating it. In a way, you acknowledged that challenge in your review of the book when you noted the glut of superhero/vampire/zombie comics. There’s not much in the way of humor. Or at least humor this broad. And since this is our first project, our names have no recognition. A double-whammy.

The Coda contained in The Legacy really emphasizes the amount of effort you and David put into the comic’s metafictional elements. How was that section developed in relation to the main story?

Out of necessity! The publisher asked for some extra pages, so that’s what we came up with … sort of a cross between a Christopher Guest mockumentary and what Alan Moore did between the chapters of “Watchmen.“ Turns out, it was actually more fun to write than the story itself. We just really put our love of comics history on display with that section.

So… what’s next for you guys? I read that you’re planning a follow-up to The Legacy – will that take into account the hilarious final page of The Legacy’s coda, which gave us a glimpse into the future?

Actually, our next project (if I can get around to starting it between my day job and raising a 20-month-old toddler) won’t have anything to do with “The Legacy” at all. It will be inspired by our mutual love of Universal’s monster movies of the 1930s and by my recent befriending of an old horror actor who’s now a fixture on the autograph convention circuit. If anyone asks, I tell them to expect a combination of “Tuesdays With Morrie meets Fatal Attraction meets Frankenstein Meets the Wolf-Man.” Sounds like a winning combination to me. Or at least I hope.

For more info on The Legacy visit www.molechpress.com/legacy.html.

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Rubicon Publishing Takes Graphic Novels to the Classroom

Monday, June 7th, 2010 by Carl Doherty under Comic Book Features

Earlier this year I featured a book called Fool’s Gold, an ambitious collaborative project from the Dearne High College in Rotherham, which aimed to encourage reading and writing in pupils. It’s always heartening to hear of comic books breaking though literary prejudices, and even more so to see comics enlightening children and teens. Contrary to the mainstream outlook that comics are confined to superhero stories and fantasy manga, the medium is as flexible and versatile as any other storytelling device, and with its fusion of images and words is ideal for learning.

Well, it would appear that comics are already being widely read in the classroom. Canadian Publisher Rubicon sent me some samples from its  range of educational books, which includes both fiction and non-fiction graphic novels. Divided into age ranges and curriculum levels, Rubicon’s catalogue has something for children of every reading level, from the ‘Timeline’ titles, which combine digestible historical fact with a comic narrative, to the ‘BOLDPRINT’ and ‘BOLDPRINT Kids’ selections for younger readers.

BOLDPRINT Graphic Poetry - Lord Tennyson's The Eagle / The Kraken

BOLDPRINT Graphic Poetry - Lord Tennyson's The Eagle / The Kraken

By far the most impressive of the copies I received was a ‘Graphic Poetry’ title featuring two of Alfred, Lord Tennyson’s most revered works The Eagle and The Kraken. Spoken poet Scroobius Pip recently released a book of his lyrics put to images, and the end product fully convinced me that poetry and sequential art are perfect partners. Both of Tennyson’s poems are magnificently illustrated by Jeremy Bennison here, particular The Kraken, and he uses the poems as part of the visuals rather than limiting Tennyson’s succinct style to caption boxes.

The ‘Graphic Poetry’ layout is also quite inspired. Each poem begins with a brief introduction spotlighting themes or hidden meaning that students will want to look for, and is followed by the illustrated poem itself and then a plain text iteration of the work with definitions. At the rear of the book is a ‘Between the Lines’ section which goes into each poem in further detail, as well as posing questions that study groups can discuss. It’s unlikely that any pupils will struggle to understand or appreciate Tennyson’s work after giving this book a chance.

Next up is Detective Dean, a fairy tale amalgam from the ‘BOLDPRINT Kids’ imprint. Written by Michelle Shalton and illustrated by Xiao Xin, it’s a fun enough little book which invites pupils to follow the titular Dean, a bookish tortoise, and his sidekick Chicken Little, as they visit various fairy tale characters and unravel the mystery of Snow White’s disappearance clue-by-clue.

Ninja Banana

Ninja Banana

Detective Dean is clearly aimed at very young readers, and is intended a catalyst for a series of creative exercises in which lil’ dreamers will write their own fairy tale crossovers and design a poster for a metafictional Detective Dean animated movie. Xiao Xin’s character designs are cute, quirky, and the straightforward story is likely to get imaginations running.

Finally, we have ‘BOLDPRINT’ book Banana Ninja, a  slapstick caper which combines two ever-bankable genres: martial arts movies and anthropomorphic fruit… Bad puns ensue as Banana Ninja and Cinnamon Sumo thwart the advances of a gang of ravenous rats. Again, there’s a series of exercises following the story, which I didn’t feel worked as well as Detective Dean. It wasn’t nearly as charming, and didn’t appear to offer any educational or literary value. Though I should add that each BOLDPRINT graphic novel is thematically linked to another publication; in this case a book on food nutrition with recipes, entitled Eat, which I did not read.

Rubicon is clearly producing some impressive school aids here, with attractive art and provocative presentation. The Graphic Poetry line in particular illustrates how comics can be used to administer the classics to the potential writers of tomorrow; and doing so with a great deal of reverence. While some might dispute the educational value of Detective Dean or Banana Ninja, both were fun enough to get kids interested and the curriculum notes will have them discussing the related themes and, most importantly, embarking on their own creative endeavours. And at the end of the day, isn’t that what school should be about?

For more info on Rubicon Publishing and BOLDPRINT, visit www.rubiconpublishing.com and www.boldprintbooks.com/canada/,respectively.

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Dave Gibbons Interview: On the Digital Artist 2009 Awards and Watchmen

Sunday, August 2nd, 2009 by Carl Doherty under Interviews
Dave Gibbons

Dave Gibbons

I recently had the opportunity to talk to comic book veteran and Watchman co-creator Dave Gibbons. Dave is currently promoting the Digital Artist 2009 awards, but was also happy to share his thoughts on the virtues of digital illustration and digitally distributed comics.

Please tell us why you decided to get involved in the Digital Artist 2009 awards.

Well, you know, I’ve used computers to do comic book art for the last fifteen years or so, and I just love the sort of flexibility that it’s given me and the increase in speed and the way you can translate your ideas into actuality. And also the way you can bounce the work backwards between collaborators. Also, you know, I was given a lot of help breaking into the field, and it’s really good because one of the categories is for the Stars of Tomorrow.

There are thirteen categories, and I think just to read the categories gives you an idea of the range of creativity (see below). But What I’m particularly interested in is the Star of Tomorrow, because that’s encouraging young people – there’s two categories; people under sixteen, and people between seventeen and twenty-five – to get their works seen. And that’s always the most difficult thing; to get your work seen. So this gives them an arena to do that, and it also means that they can win some nice prizes as well. But the thing I would like to stress is that the closing date is 31st August, so they need to go to digitalartistawards.com and get the work in before then.

And what qualities will you be looking for in those entries?

I think imagination is the thing. Just the strength of the basic ideas. And then of course, the technical proficiency with which they express it. I think the thing with art is that it gets an emotional response, and I think you get a gut feeling about a piece of work or and artist, so I’ll be looking at it in a technical way, but for a gut feeling as well.

How do you think digital art and digital distribution have changed the route of entry into the comic, video game or animation industries? A lot of new artists and writers are able to get their work seen online, but few seem to make much money.

A problem in doing comics online is this kind of micro payment thing, because the amount of money you’re going to charge people online is going to be pennies rather than pounds, and it’s always been a difficult thing. But I think in a way this has been cracked with the iTunes store and the other places like that, where it’s a very simple thing; you put on an account, you press a button and a small payment is made, and the artist gets a considerable proportion of that. So that I think has made the commercial model work a lot better.

What piece of advice would you give to any talented but inexperienced artist who is lucklessly looking for a way into the creative industries? Other than “keep trying,” of course.

Well, yeah, see it is very difficult. The hardest bit is to get the ball rolling when there’s a real inertia. I think nowadays there’s more people competing for jobs on the internet, but also your work can be out there. You can have your comic book published – you can have it potentially in front of millions of people in ways which I couldn’t when I was breaking into it. So I think what you really need to do is embrace digital media, to embrace the modern methods of digital distribution to make sure that with websites, blogs, twitter, whatever you want to do… you’re out there and you’re watching what’s going on. And if you can just get that first toehold, than things hopefully become a little easier after that.

You spoke about getting into digital art about fifteen years ago. How did that move change your own approach to illustration as an existing professional?

Well, we started to do colouring… the way colouring was being done before was that you’d have to do colour guides and annotations to them, which meant that there could be a lot of slippage between what you did and what you got printed. A wonderful thing with the computer was that you could see onscreen exactly what you were going to get and send a digital file, which would be what was printed from. So you got that immediate fidelity.

Then it started to be used in a lot for the humdrum sides of comic book production. When you did hand lettering, you used to spend an afternoon ruling out all these lines, and you no longer had to do that. You still had to know where to put it and give it style, but all that sort of thing became easier. But now, because the processes are so much quicker and the input means are so much more fluid. I use a Wacom Cintiq tablet, [so] you’re actually drawing on the picture. That means you can sketch things out and you’ve got enough control to do finished inking… and then at the end of it you can send the artwork digitally; you don’t have to entrust a parcel to the post. So, on every level now, and not only that communication at the end but in-between collaborations, you can send roughs backwards and forwards, colour sketches backwards and forwards in a way that you just never could before.

Numerous companies have attempted to bring printed comics “up to date” with animated comics such as the Watchmen Motion Comic project. Do you ever see this format ever becoming a replacement or a larger accompaniment to the traditional paper-based comics?

I think more of an accompaniment. The Watchmen Motion Comic, which was something I was involved with, I think is very, very well done within the limitations of what it’s trying to do. A lot of very hard work has been put into it, and I think it works amazingly, but I don‘t think that the way that’s been done is necessarily the final form that these things will take. I think we’re looking at a new hybrid medium that might become two or three different mediums. But as a way to get stories across its pretty effective, and again it gives people a chance to see what an unedited Watchmen movie would look like, more or less.

So, yeah, I’m really interested in trying new ways of distributing stories told in words and pictures. I’m really interested in what you can do on hand-held devices like iPhones, and I’ve got my own ideas on how I’d like to approach that kind of thing. But again, I think it’s a wide open field, and I don’t think the final product has been arrived at.

Over the years you’ve moved from illustration and inking into writing – how has writing comics influenced the way in which you convey a story through art?

Well I’ve always been aware that you have to tell a story, though in fact when I first broke into comics I didn’t really know that there was a separate writer and an artist; the comics I did as a kid I’d write the story and draw them as well. So yeah, I’ve always been aware that every picture has to tell a story. Some artists aren’t very story-orientated, they find it hard to tell the story… which is why when I’ve collaborated with someone like Alan Moore, who is a very picture-orientated writer (and I’m a very story orientated artist) you tend to merge in the middle. Certainly, writing has made me more aware of how hard it is to write comics, and I think has refined my story sense even more.

Having had time to look back at the excitement surrounding the Watchmen movie release, do you think that comic book film adaptations in general impact the public’s appreciation of the comic medium at all, or are comic movies just flavours of the month waiting to be superseded by the next superhero effort?

Well, I think one of the problems has been in the past that you bring out, say, a Spider-man movie, and people see Spider-man and like that Spider-man, but they don’t know where to find Spider-man. Marvel publish a lot of different Spider-man comics, but they’re all at different continuity and they’re all quite hard to get into because of the continuing story. The joy of a thing like Watchmen is that it was a graphic novel, and the movie is that graphic novel, so you can read the same thing in a comic book form. And I think, yeah, movies do promote interest in the characters, but then it’s encumbering on the comic book companies to make sure that the product is there for them to easily buy. I’m amazed that there isn’t comic book product in movie theatres… I mean they sell popcorn and pop. I think one hand washes another basically.

Finally, I’d like you to suggest two comic series, one old and one currently in print, that aspiring comic creators should make an effort to read.

Well, I love The Spirit, by Will Eisner, which is from the forties and fifties but is still the textbook on comic book storytelling. And as for a new one? There’s a great comic I read called Alan’s War, which is a graphic novel by a guy called Emmanuel Guibert, and that’s a beautiful, but quite traditionally done new graphic novel. Over at Marvel I like Mark Millar’s Ultimates; that to me was a modern comic book that I really used to queue up for at the comic book store.

For more on the Digital Artist 2009 Awards jump over to digitalartistawards.com for details on the 13 categories, which include:

Graphic Design
Animation
Motion Broadcast
Web & Interactive Design
2D Illustration
3D Illustration
Character Design
Concept Art
Product Visualisation
Games Design
Architectural Visualisation
Visual Effects (short form)
Stars of Tomorrow – sponsored by Intel

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Interview with Death Falcon Zero Co-writer Daniel Boyd

Thursday, January 15th, 2009 by Carl Doherty under Interviews

I recently spoke with Daniel Boyd, co-author of the illustrated novel Death Falcon Zero vs. The Zombie Slug Lords. Daniel is both an acclaimed filmmaker and film professor at West Virginia State University, who several years ago entered pro wrestling at the ripe age of 48. His wrestling alter ego, Professor Danger, appears in the book alongside his fellow Grapes of Wrath tag team members, Raw Talent and the titular Death Falcon a.k.a. William Bitner, who also wrote.

I won’t elaborate further on the book (a preview can be found here: Death Falcon Zero), but Mr Boyd’s frank observations will not only interest wrestling fans but anyone invested in seeing their crazy ideas make it to print.

Death Falcon Zero vs. The Zombie Slug Lords

Death Falcon Zero vs. The Zombie Slug Lords

Could you very briefly tell us about Death Falcon Zero vs. the Zombie Slug Lords?

DB: The project started as a feature film. I’ve been a filmmaker by trade, and we actually shot the foreign portions of the film, the Czech Republic and Tanzania scenes, and we just realised that it was going to be too huge a Megillah to do on the budget we had. So Bill and I – William Bitner, who is also known as Death Falcon Zero – went back to another love that we had; graphic novels and pulp fiction. Really, our idea was to create a pulp fiction with illustrations. So that was my segue from filmmaking now into publishing.

You’ve written and directed films such as Chillers – which I can imagine had a stretched budget. Did the move to illustrated prose allow you to write scenes that would have originally proven too expensive, or was there now a temptation to get carried away with dialogue?

Chiller is just one of 30 movies that I’ve made. Yes, budget was certainly a factor, but writing is writing is writing, and storytelling is storytelling. And I teach my students – I really am a professor in real life – that nearly every entertainment form follows your basic three acts: set up, complication, resolution.  But the transition from screenplay to pulp novel was a pretty easy one.

How did the writing process differ for prose? Would you say the unlimited storytelling possibilities that the form allows ever expanded/limited your ideas?

Absolutely, yeah, I’m glad you asked. I have a whole box full of scripts that I’ve never made into movies in my over 30 years in the business, and what this book has done is liberated me. It’s made me realise “holy cow, I can make any creative work I want now because I’m not limited to the chicken shit budgets that I usually have to work with on my movies.” I’m 52 years old and I’ve made around 30 movies, but I don’t have to make movies any more. I don’t have the drive I did as a youth and a young professional that I had to do something, but I still have to create, and this moving into prose, and possibly eventually in the form of a graphic novel…

Is a fully illustrated, sequential art adaptation of Death Falcon Zero vs. The Zombie Slug Lords a plan?

Actually yeah. I have a call after I’m finished with you, with Robert Tinnell, who has been a great friend of mine, another West Virginian. He’s a filmmaker, and we started our careers together; he did Surf Nazis Must Die for Troma back in the 80s. But he’s co-author of the [comic series] Wicked West and Feast of the Seven Fishes and he was a great consultant to help Bill and I transition into this world. He found us the Fraim brothers, who illustrated the book. At any rate, I’m going to talk to him about co-writing something that’s more in the graphic novel world. But on the other hand I really like this illustrated novel, as opposed to graphic novel, as its closer to a full blown book. So I don’t know Carl, I’m in a rare time which in the movie business we call turnaround. Turnaround is when you’re between projects, and I can’t remember a time – and it’s literally been years – since I found myself in this position.

Has the growth of the internet in the last decade, and self-publishing outlets such as Amazon, made a project such as Death Falcon Zero more viable? Do you think it would have been possible 10 years ago?

I don’t know, because I wasn’t into it… I was just so buried in films. But y’know I’m pretty much an optimist. I’m a kid from rural West Virginia that was able to become a filmmaker, and become a professor, and live and teach round the world so I pretty much believe that we can do whatever we want, so if that had been my goal I would have found a way to get there. But this has certainly made it easier. The fact that you and I are having this conversation, to me is still fascinating.

For those who don’t know, the book’s heroes, Death Falcon and Professor Danger are based on your tag teams professional alter egos, and it also feature numerous other pro wrestlers and local personalities. Though those entities are technically speaking fictitious characters invented for the ring, did their expansion into zombie slaying prove difficult?

Well, any wrestling gimmick is, I contend, based on each person for real. William Bitner is much more like Death Falcon Zero than he would ever admit. And Professor Danger… I am a professor in real life. I’m not nearly as brilliant as the character that we portray, but I’m a bit of a nerd, and I’m not a big massive monster wrestler, and Bill and I really kind of despise each other most of the time in our real lives. So it’s a lot of life imitating art there.

Also, the slaying the zombies… even in my filmmaking I realize that there has to be suspension of disbelief, but there also has to be believability. Who’s going to believe a 50 year-old pro wrestler brought back to life? So you have to gimmick it up, and the professor, in this case has other strengths that he’s fostered even in his younger days as a combatant. So we really tried to retrofit it to who we really are. Now Death Falcon Zero and Raw Talent, they’re both excellent wrestlers. Death Falcon is up in age, he’s the same age as me, but there’s probably 500 wrestling matches between the 3 of us, so there’s plenty of ring experience.

You and William Bitner have both wrestled professionally, though I can only assume you’ve never grappled the undead. What would you say this level of professional experience brings to the book?

Yeah, it helped a lot, learning it from the inside. We wanted to make it very authentic, but to be honest I probably learned all I need to learn within 6 months from this obsession with pro wrestling, now moving towards 5 years or more. Something I was just going to do for a few months because I always enjoyed it. So the book is kind of been an excuse or justification for this crazy ride that I’ve been on as a pro wrestler.

Many people seem to be surprised by the level of camaraderie seen in Films such as the documentary Beyond the Mat and portrayed in the recent movie The Wrestler. I’m not the first person to observe that in many ways the wrestling world is not unlike that of the superhero, with clearly defined heroes and villains. Why would you say that there are so few wrestlers in comic books?

You know, I really don’t understand that, Carl, because I feel like I’m a pretty good barometer of entertainment. I mean, I’m a kid that pretty much enjoyed any genre or any form of entertainment that there is. That coupled with what Mexico did with the lucha libre scene of the 60s, 70s and 80s, where they took the superhero and made him a real person beneath the mask, and created a gigantic enterprise of comic books and movies and live performance. I don’t know, I mean it’s perplexing, and that’s why with this new surge of superheroes going to the screen, we might be in the right place at the right time with this lucha community. I think our book has more in common with the Mexican lucha libre scene than the American professional wrestling scene. So I hope that we’re on the cutting edge of redefining that era.

(I mention that shelfabuse.com has received numerous visitors via the search term “wrestling graphic novel”)

Well that’s very good news. See, I don’t have any stroke in the comic world. I have stroke in the movie world, because I spent  a lot of time in it, so I’ve had to call all my old friends to sort of lead me in as I have in different enterprises. I’m hoping that I can get into the world of Image or Dark Horse or those guys to now pitch ideas, due to the success of our Death Falcon Zero book.

The most apparent influences in Death Falcon Zero are wrestling and zombie movies. What other films, comics or books were you influenced by?

I have to be honest with you, and tell you that I haven’t read comics since I was a child, until we started adapting this as a book 2 years ago. Since that time I’ve revisited those 30 years that I’ve missed, and I’ve read everything that I can put my hands on. As a child I was a DC comics kid – I was not into Marvel, but I had every single DC comic; Flash, Batman, Justice League, Superman, all that. As a college student – and remember, I went to school in the 70s – I was an R. Crumb fan and of the Fabulous Freak Brothers… that were representative of my time. And now being born again into comics, graphic novels, I’ve tried to consume them all. I found it very exciting that you had a review of our book right next to Black Hole, which I thought was brilliant, because that was an example of what comics have become. Those people were all my age, so I found that very engaging.

How was it working with the Brothers Fraim? Did you give them much direction for their images?

Well, it was a very interesting process, because again, this was the first time I’ve ever done this, and I’ve never met them. They really are twin brothers. Bob Tinnell has met them; he hooked me up with them. Basically, they read the manuscript and interpreted it and gave their sketch suggestions, and we pretty much wanted to give them creative reign. The only disagreements we had were that there were certain characters that they had to include, because a lot of characters in the book are based on real wrestlers. Some very famous, some not so famous, but all people that we liked and worked with. But it was a very interesting process. Again, I’ve never laid eyes on these guys. I’ve had one phone conversation with them well over a year ago, and everything else has been through email.

So back to the question of “do you think I could have done this ten years ago?” Well… certainly this whole way of working is quite interesting. It was a very exciting creative process. Now like any kind of creative people, they’re peculiar, and I’ve learnt this in the filmmaking industry. Artists are going to be somewhat… the nice word is peculiar. So we were careful with how we handled each other through this process.

How have other wrestlers reacted to the book, and their portrayal within it?

Oh they love it! Again back to my history in this crazy sport that I seem to have to justify every day, people are like, “Danny, you’re a scholar, a successful filmmaker, why in the hell would you want to get involved with professional wrestling?” And I can’t explain it except that it’s really in so many ways the most wonderful art form that I’ve ever come across… and that’s a whole other volume to go into. But wrestlers are really movie marks, a mark meaning a fan. They’re comic marks, they’re monster movie marks, they love all the things that you and I love, Carl. The kitsch and the elements of the fantastic that we’re drawn to, all sort of come together, plus physicality, in the professional wrestling world. Anyway, for a chance for them to expose themselves in a more, let us say, semi-legitimate way was very exciting.

Wrestling and comics are similar in that they were massive in the 80s and early 90s, but interest in both has waned considerably over the last decade. Death Falcon Zero definitely appears to have captured the essence of Troma’s purple patch – why do you think the market has moved away from the goofy comedy horror genre of the 80s to the bland and severe “torture porn” of today?

I think we were also at fault a little bit, in that we saturated the market with too much crap. That time made my career; I was in the right place at the right time as a young independent filmmaker because of the boom in video, where you could get a lot of things out and reach an international audience. But I think that really most of the blame – this is going to sound really Orwellian – can always be placed on the majors. You know, the very few major corporations that control the media. In your world, publishing. The major motion picture studios. The major publishing companies. So they pretty much decide what’s going to filter through and get the promotion. Now a little products can get out, like ours, but if it’s not properly promoted it’s not going to see the light of day. And that’s the best opinion I can give on that.

On a lighter note: Profits from the book will go to New Covenant Community Development, Inc. tell me a bit about the charity, and why you chose it.

Well… first of all, I confess to you, it’s not totally being altruistic. I teach my students every day, the best way to create is to have a message, to have a theme, have something you want to say. I don’t want to preach, and I always use the example of Rod Sterling’s Twilight Zone. Definitely a work of the fantastic, of extreme fantastic, but always a message or a moral there. And even as schlocky as Death Falcon Zero is, it’s really addressing the decay of our inner cities. Even in, you know, Bumfuck West Virginia we have our inner city problems; drugs and breakdown of civility and those sort of things.

In this West Side of Charleston we have the Reverend Ealy’s New Covenant Development Center, which is literally a church at ground zero of the worst part of the West Side that is an after school program for at risk children and a senior centre. Reverend Ealy is actually a character in the book, though he is portrayed as the Reverend James. First and foremost we wanted to personify the real horrors we sensationalise and Reverend Ealy’s efforts do that. Secondly, it just made good business sense; this is not a huge money maker, and the way to take the greed out of it is to tell all of the participants “it’s a non profit project” so no one says “what’s my cut?” The cut is there is no cut. So it was also smart marketing on my part, and obviously it got your attention, and it’s got other media attention as well. It’s a way to pimp a product and I’m happy to do it. As I say, it’s not a huge pay day no matter what, but it might make a few shillings, and it can bring a little attention not only to us and our enterprise but to this good will organisation.

Are there any future fictional escapades planned for Death Falcon Zero, Raw Talent and Professor Danger?

I’ll confess something to you. Last night we did a national internet radio interview, and it was the last time Bill and I had probably spoken to each other in six months. So like I said, we sort of butt heads, much like Death Falcon and Professor Danger.  Nevertheless, I believe in this brand. I worked very hard to create this brand of the Grapes of Wrath – which is our tag team – so every time I think I want to kill every one of those bastards, I think “I’ve got a lot invested in this brand.” So I want to keep my mind open to other possibilities. And I don’t want to tell you too much, but the [book’s] ending has a lot with that question that you asked me.

To find out more about Death Falcon Zero vs. The Zombie Slug Lords, visit www.grapesofwrath.biz

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Christmas Comics Gift Guide 2008

Wednesday, December 10th, 2008 by Carl Doherty under Comic Book Features

We’ve all suffered those moments when parents, spouses or creepy bearded men ask us for Christmas present suggestions, and struggled with but one. Well struggle no longer, with this concise graphic novel shopping guide.

Rather than concentrate on Chrimbo themed books, I’m opting for the classics, personal choices and the odd surprise. No, this has nothing to do with the fact that I plan to change the date on this article and recycle it this time next year. Hee, hee! I’m so crafty!

For the inspiring industry insider:

Watching the Watchmen

Not a graphic novel but an insightful guide to Alan Moore’s seminal Watchmen series. Though Moore is absent, Dave Gibbons recounts the conception of the book’s layered themes and characters with the humble honesty of someone who had no idea quite what they were creating. Crammed with concept art, page layout sketches, copies of correspondence letters between Morre and Gibbons, anyone with even a passing interest in comics needs to own this book.

For the budding sociopath:

Wanted

Though Mark Millar’s Wanted shares a similar plot to Timer Bekmambetov’s kinetic but mindless movie, it’s actually are far wittier, self-conscious pastiche which asks ‘what if the villains beat the good guys?’ and plays it beyond all expectations.

Wanted - Mark Millar, JG Jones

Wanted - Mark Millar, JG Jones

For those bitten by the Dark Knight bug:

Joker

Brian Azzarello’s Joker isn’t the modern classic it’s been hailed as, but it’s still a rollicking, often sickening, ride that will haunt you for some time. Beautifully illustrated by Lee Bermejo, too.

Joker (Brian Azzarello) TPB Review

Joker (Brian Azzarello) TPB Review

For the indie film buff:

Persepolis I and II

Many people have already been directed to Marjane Satrapi’s personal tale Persepolis from the highly acclaimed animated adaptation. Like Art Spiegelman’s Maus, this monochromic autobiography is equal parts funny and heart rending.

For the ladies:

Buffy Season 8 vol. 1: The Long Way Home

Buffy Season 8 vol. 2: No future for You

Buffy may have left both our television sets and our hearts, but the vampire slaying continues in comic book form. Predominantly written by series creator Joss Whedon, “season eight” of Buffy loses none of the humour that made the series so much fun, and is getting better with each volume.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 vol. 2: No Future for You

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season 8 vol. 2: No Future for You

Nemi, volume II (2)

Lise Myhre’s observations on the intricacies of twenty-something life range from side-splitting observations to surreal occurrences to depressing truisms. Bit like real life, then.

For Horror fans:

The Walking Dead

Robert Kirkman’s zombie saga is still going strong, having just offed its entire cast (retrospective spoiler alert). Whenever the series seems to stall, Kirkman pulls another ace from his sleeve and turns his character’s relative serenity turned upside down – often by having the undead eat their brains.

Y’know, for kids…

Bone (colour reprints)

With a Warner Bothers animated feature speculated to be in the works, your kids may thank you in two years time for having introduced them to possibly the most enjoyable fantasy adventure since The Hobbit… though by then they’re more likely to have reached that “difficult stage,” and throw something at your head.

Silverfin

It’s James Bond. At Eton. I’ve no idea if it’s good or not, but all kids love Bond. Except girls. And precocious boys. And me when I was a child.

For the art student:

Like a Velvet Glove cast in Iron

Hardly a new book, but Daniel Clowes’ surreal classic reveals more subtext with each additional read – though I’ve still no idea what it’s all about. As close to a David Lynch comic as anyone could ever ask for.

Jar of Fools (Jason Lutes)

Jar of Fools (Jason Lutes)

Jar of Fools

Again, another older book. Jason Lute’s understated study of loss is impeccably paced, and illustrated with an attention to detail that pulls you in more than most films could possibly hope to.

For the guy/girl whose bookshelf consists of nothing but Steven King:

Dark Tower: The Gunslinger Born

Scripted by the ever reliable Peter David, this origin story is surprisingly entertaining, even for those unfamiliar with King’s Dark Tower universe.

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Songs from the Punisher Movies

Thursday, June 19th, 2008 by Carl Doherty under Comic Book Features

So you loved the Punisher movie, right? And it goes without saying that you’ve bought the obligatory skull T-shirt, joined the nearest gym and began on building a physique befitting Thomas Jane? Whether you’ve already assembling an arsenal large enough to stage a rebellion, or have decided that the obnoxious clerk down at the deli is in the crosshairs of some serious punishment, I’ve compiled a small Punisher-related audio selection that should compliment vigilante extremism no matter the occasion.

The Punisher (1989) Score
Dennis Dreith, Perseverance

For those with a fondness for the 1989 Dolph Lundgren vehicle (lower your hands, please) the Dennis Dreith score is available from Perseverance records. It’s a little cheesy, evoking the likes of Rambo and countless Schwarzenegger flicks, but it captures the essence of the Punisher surprisingly well, which is more than can be said for the rest of Mark Goldblatt’s abomination.

The Punisher: The Album (2004)
Various, Wind-Up Records

With great powers come big budget movies with lacklustre soundtracks. Okay, Frank doesn’t actually have any powers, so that doesn’t quite work, but this is the usual mix of nu-metal, rock and random oddities that seems mandatory with any superhero movie release. Fortunately, the metal direction suits the film more than it did either Spider-man 2 or Daredevil, and for fans of the genre it’s a pretty solid line-up.

Track listing:

1. “Step Up” by Drowning Pool

2. “Bleed” by Puddle of Mudd

3. “Slow Motion” by Nickelback

4. “Never Say Never” by Queens of the Stone Age

5. “Broken” by Seether Feat. Amy Lee

6. “Finding Myself” by Smile Empty Soul

7. “Lost In A Portrait” by Trapt

8. “Still Running” by Chevelle

9. “Ashes To Ashes” by Damageplan Feat. Jerry Cantrell

10. “Sold Me” by Seether

11. “Eyes Wired Shut” by Edgewater

12. “Slow Chemical” by Finger Eleven

13. “The End Has Come” by Ben Moody Feat. Jason Miller & Jason “Gong” Jones

14. “Piece By Piece” by Strata

15. “Bound To Violence” by Hatebreed

16. “Sick” by Seven Wiser

17. “Complicated” by Submersed

18. “Time For People” by Atomship

19. “In Time” by Mark Collie

The Punisher Score (2004)
Carlo Siliotto, La La Land

Carlo Siliotto’s score echoes Frank Castle’s pain and sorrow. While sounding similar to Dennis Dreith’s attempt, it’s slightly more deliberate set, the antithesis of the commercial soundtrack that has undoubtedly sold far more copies.

Track Listing:

1. Punisher

2. Otto Krieg

3. Unusual Resurrection

4. Moving

5. I Can’t Believe I’m Home

6. His Whole Family

7. Massacre

8. Death and Resurrection of Frank Castle

9. God’s Gonna Sit This One Out

10. Ice Lolly and Meat

11. You’re Gonna Help Me

12. Entering the Fort

13. About Your Family/Setting a Trap

14. Bomb for John Saint

15. Good Memories Can Save Your Life

16. Thugs

17. Torture

18. Elevator and Headache

19. New Family/Joan’s Suffering

20. Quentin’s Glass Home

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New Reader’s Guide to Neil Gaiman’s Graphic Novels

Friday, June 6th, 2008 by Carl Doherty under Comic Book Features

With the success of the movie adaptation Stardust, as well as his novel American Gods, Neil Gaiman’s work is finally getting the mainstream attention it deserves. Though alongside Allen Moore, Gaiman has been one of the few American comic writers to enter popular culture, gathering critical acclaim from outside the comic book sphere, many of his appreciators may still not recognise his graphic novel work outside of The Sandman series and its numerous offshoots.

The Sandman - Neil Gaiman

The Sandman - Neil Gaiman

For the sake of brevity, I’ve concentrated on Gaiman’s work that is currently available in graphic novel format, presented in chronological order. The list far from extensive, but I think most would agree that I’ve covered all the classics. As ever with the comic industry, some of the publishing dates may be debatable – in most cases I have given the year in which the stories were published in their original comic format.

Violent Cases
1987

Gaiman’s first graphic novel collaboration with Dave McKean, in which a narrator recalls events from his childhood in Portsmouth, where he was taken by his father to be treated by an osteopath who once worked for Al Capone. In what would become a prevalent theme in Gaiman’s work, Violent Cases is a study in the relationship between memory and imagination, as the narrator’s accounts are increasingly skewed by an imperfect recollection of things he was too young too have understood at the time.

Black Orchid
1988

An update of a Silver Age DC Comics character with shares similar plant-based powers to Swamp Thing. Featuring cameos from Batman, Poison Ivey and the aforementioned Swampy. This could be considered a precursor to the seminal Sandman series, in that though it is set within the DC Universe, its idiosyncratic atmosphere is more in line with Gaiman’s personal work. Dave McKean’s art uniquely blends colour and monochromic imagery – Orchid is purple while those around her appear colourless – complements the eponymous heroine’s emotional reclusion.

The Sandman
1989-1996

  1. Preludes and Nocturnes
  2. The Doll’s House
  3. Dream Country
  4. Season of Mists
  5. A Game of You
  6. Fables and Reflections
  7. Brief Lives
  8. Worlds’ End
  9. The Kindly Ones
  10. The Wake

The definitive Gaiman series, undoubtedly one of the greatest comic book runs of all time, and the only comic book to find its way onto the New York Times Bestseller List. The ten volume tale of Morpheus, Lord of Dreams, and his fellow personifications of universal concepts The Endless, incorporates countless myths, legends and fairytales into an epic, Grecian tragedy.

Though the first volume, Preludes and Nocturnes occurs in the mainstream DC Universe, the series progressively took its own direction. The Sandman spawned numerous spin-offs, the majority of which were not written by Gaiman but are worth reading nevertheless.

The Books of Magic
1990

Lead character Tim Hunter and the magician-in-training plot bear an uncanny similarity to J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter, though this is an infinitely more pensive series. Though Gaiman was only involved in this initial miniseries, primarily intended as a guide to the various forms of magic an mysticism in the newly retconned DC Universe, a praiseworthy ongoing series written by John Ney Rieber expanded upon the Tim Hunter character and his fairy heritage, and is highly recommended to fans of The Sandman. Art by John Bolton.

Signal to Noise
1992

An emotional, ethereal yarn in which an anonymous film director, told that he has a terminal illness, attempts to create the film he will never get to produce in his head, with a cast of friends and family. Simultaneously empty, depressing and inspiring, Signal to Noise lingers in the mind long after. Again, art by Dave McKean.

Death: The High Cost of Living / Death: The Time of Your Life
1994/1997

Two graphic novel spin-offs starring the popular goth chic rendition of Death, sister to the Sandman, Morpheus. The High Cost of Living, in which Death takes human form once every century in order to appreciate life, is arguably the greatest thing Gaiman has ever written, and has undoubtedly reduced countless emotional readers to tears. The Time of Your Life is also very good.

The Tragical Comedy or Comical Tragedy of Mr. Punch
1995

A surreally haunting portrayal of a man haunted by his childhood, with bizarre art by long-time collaborator Dave McKean that blends painting with photographic imagery. Like Violent Cases this is a story about stories, with convincingly disturbing themes of early childhood perception and the nature of memory, that really makes you appreciate just how demented the Mr. Punch character is.

Stardust
1997

Began as another prestige-format illustrated novel with delicate illustrations by Charles Vess, though it is now most commonly published in a more conventional illustration-free paperback format. Now a popular feature film, though the book has a far more earthly, folktale ambience to it.

Neil Gaiman’s Midnight Days
1999

A Collection of Gaiman’s earliest short stories, including John Constantine, Swap Thing and the Golden Age Sandman. One for the most ardent fans only, really.

The Sandman: The Dream Hunters
1999

Not strictly speaking a graphic novel, but an illustrated novella, with incredible art by Final Fantasy artist Yoshitaka Amano. Gaiman draws his inspiration from numerous Japanese myths, predominantly that of the kisune, or fox spirit.

Harlequin Valentine
2001

Based on the old Commedia dell’Arte and Harlequinade pantomime, from which Mr. Punch also derived, this contemporization sees the mischievous entity Harlequin giving his blasé love interest Missy his heart… by literally nailing it to her door. It’s an intimate, bittersweet tale, beautifully painted by John Bolten. Includes an interesting essay by Gaiman on the origins of his tale, ‘Notes on a Harlequinade.’

Marvel 1602
2003

Though written primarily to financially aid his lawsuit against Todd MacFarlane for ownership of the Miracleman property, this relocation of the Marvel Universe into historical territory is an entertaining swashbuckling epic that can be appreciated regardless of one’s prior knowledge concerning its characters. Gaiman’s classical reinterpretations of popular Marvel franchises (the Fantastic Four, X-Men, Captain America et al) are intelligently mixed in with actual events, though thankfully the book doesn’t take itself too seriously. Art by Andy Kubert.

Neil Gaiman’s Nevewhere (graphic novel)
2006

(written by Mike Carey)

Began life as a dire, low-budget BBC miniseries, co-written with Lenny Henry and aired in 1996. Gaiman wrote a far superior companion novel, which was later adapted into graphic novel form by writer Mike Carey and illustrated by Glenn Fabry. This is by far the best of the three adaptations, with Fabry’s art capturing everyman Richard Mayhew’s journey through the labyrinthine London Below with a grandeur and attention to detail that no television budget could possibly match.

Eternals
2007

Just as he did with DC’s original Sandman, Gaiman attempts to breathe life back into Jack Kirby creation The Eternals, an offshoot of humanity created on Earth by the alien Celestials. The nearest to conventional capes & tights shenanigans Gaiman has written in many years, this book sticks closer to the original mythos than his previous reboots. Unlike much of Gaiman’s Marvel or DC work, it is perhaps best avoided by those intimidated by the superhero genre. Art by John Romita Jr.

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Top 10 Iron Man Armors

Sunday, June 1st, 2008 by Carl Doherty under Comic Top 10

Tony Stark’s vanity has never been in question. Whether he’s signing world peace treaties, seducing page 3 models, thwarting inter-conglomerate espionage, or getting his spine returned to him on a shiny silver platter by an angry Hulk, the moustachioed man has to look his best.

Here I present you a fine selection of tailor made metal suits, evaluated in terms of design, power, fashion statement (“oomph” in the common tongue) and the all-important codpiece factor.

10. Thorbuster

Powered by state-of-the-art Asgardian technology (okay, a big mystical crystal) this armor could withstand, and absorb, event the massive amounts of energy the Son of Odin threw at it. Ironically, it was still destroyed, by the latest in hi-tech warfare: a giant hammer.

Finest moment: Stark learns that technology has nothing on the power of the Gods, in Iron Man (vol. 3) #64.

Iron Man - Silver Centurion

Iron Man - Silver Centurion Armor

9. Silver Centurion

Nothing screams eighties like titanium shoulder-pads. The Silver Centurion also had a built in chameleon effect, previously used in the dark blue Stealth Armor.

Finest moment: Iron Man (vol. 1) #163 – 200, in which Stark uses this suit to take on Obadiah Stane, a battle which resulted in the destruction of Stane International. Serves him right!

Iron Man - Hulkbuster Armor

Iron Man - Hulkbuster Armor

8. Hulkbuster

When the Big Green Guy is out levelling small towns and smashing military installations, only the biggest, heavy-duty exo-skeletal shell, designed for maximum strength amplification at the cost of reduced versatility and mobility, is capable of giving him a good hard spanking.

Finest moment: The Mark II Hulkbuster severely failing to live up to its title as World War Hulk commences.

7. Modular

The classic red & gold got a nineties injection with this modular, compactable and highly customizable model, which not only made saving the world that little bit easier, but allowed the animated series and subsequent toylines to spawn an arsenal of Iron Man variant, including Samurai Armor Iron Man… which is either emotionally offensive or insanely cool, depending on your age.

Finest moment: Kicking M. Bison’s butt in the Marvel vs. Capcom series.

Iron Man - Red & Gold Suit

Iron Man - Red & Gold Suit

6. Red & Gold

Definitely the most iconic armour, and possibly Stark’s longest running outfit, lasting unchanged throughout the seventies. Quite what inspired his future first cousin once removed, Arno Stark, to attach giant cogs at the shoulders, we’ll never know.

Finest moment: The metal faceplate does nothing to hinder Stark’s boozing in Twisted Toyfare Theater’s surly and perpetually inebriated parody. I’m pretty sure these exploits are considered canon.

Ultimate Iron Man

Ultimate Iron Man

5. Ultimate Armor

Bulky without compromising sleek design, this suit goes for theoretical realism over big ideas, and not only requires a full behind-the-scenes support team to maintain and operate at full proficiency, but two hours of Tony’s time just to put the damn thing on.

Finest moment: The Ultimate Iron Man miniseries, written by Ender’s Game author Orson Scott Card.

4. Movie Armor (Mark III)

Almost an amalgam of all that has gone before but with an industrial, automobile bent, the gold-plated titanium Hollywood edition Mark III operates with remote assistance from Stark’s artificial intelligence JARVIS, who may be infinitely more useful than his comic book counterpart, but is incapable of making a good cup of tea.

Finest moment: Annihilating a group of Ten Rings terrorists, Robocop style, in Afghanistan, before playfully escaping two F-22 Raptors.

3. War Machine

Accessorize, accessorize, accessorize! Originally, briefly worn by Stark, this armor was soon passed down to best buddy James Rhodes, fully aware that, for the financially stretched, a light grey and dark grey colour scheme would never go out of fashion. Though the suit previously went under the catchy name of “Variable Threat Response Battle Suit,” Rhodes decided that the “guns, lots of guns” was the route to follow, adopting a name that doesn’t exactly connote peace-keeping heroism.

Finest moment: The non-canonical, monochromic miniseries U.S. War Machine, in which Rhodes is fired by Stark after cold-bloodedly killing two hostage takers on national TV.

2. Golden Avenger

Sure, grey is nice… but if you really want to impress the ladies, nothing screams affluence quite like this gold-plated setup. Strictly for those entrepreneurs wishing to take the Midas influence that little bit further, while adhering to the “big is better” principle. Also used a solar recharger; even in the sixties, Stark was anticipating global warming… which, as we all now know, doesn’t actually exist.

Finest moment: Tales of Suspense #40. One issue after his debut, Stark decides the grey suit was a little scary and, eventually rejecting the giant puppy armor prototype he’s worked so hard on, paints the entire thing gold. Because gold is the least intimidating colour of them all.

Iron Man - Extremis Armor

Iron Man - Extremis Armor

1. Extremis

The most powerful armor of them all, formed from nanotechnology and fused to Stark’s body via a techno-organic virus, which allows him to store the inner layers of the Iron Man armor in the hollows of his bones. A veritable cyborg indeed!

Finest moment: Warren Ellis’ entire Extremis run. Buy it now.

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Top 10 Spider-man Villains

Saturday, August 18th, 2007 by Carl Doherty under Comic Top 10

Though Spider-Man’s rogues gallery is not as fine as Batman’s, it’s still a memorable assortment of rapscallions and rascals. With Spider-Man 3 giving box office records a sly slap on the rear, and a Spidey 4 inevitable, I thought it time to look at some of the web-slinger’s most nefarious nasties.

Spider-man

Spider-man

10. The Lizard

Like Man-Bat, Henry Jekyll and the wolfman there was always a tragedy about Dr. Curt Conner’s transformation that put him a notch above Spider-Man’s other animal-themed enemies.

Finest Moment:    Amazing Spider-Man #6 (November 1963)

9. Kraven (Sergei Kravinoff)

Nothing gets you remembered like a good suicide. Kraven is also one of the few Spidey villains to have stayed dead.

Finest Moment:     Spider-Man: Kraven’s Last Hunt (GN)

8. Sandman

Flint Marko wasn’t what you’d call evil. Hell, he even fought crime with Silver Sable for a good few years. He was however, a volatile, moronic thug, bless him. And even if his powers made absolutely no sense they always looked great,

Finest Moment:     The Amazing Spider-Man #4 (Sept. 1963)

7. Carnage

Since his debut, Venom’s bastard son has been overused, but Maximum Carnage was pretty good fun in its day. Psychotic and virtually indestructible, with a peculiar affection for his dead mother, Cletus Cassidy was always more than a minor nuisance. The Sentry apparently killed him recently, by dragging him outside Earth’s atmosphere… but he’ll be back.

Finest Moment:     Spider-Man: Maximum Carnage (GN)

6. Mysterio (Quentin Beck)

Sure, he has a goldfish bowl for a head, and he was never a serious threat, but there was always a lot of mileage in the character. Quentin Beck drove Daredevil mad a few years back… which seems to happen an awful lot.

Finest Moment:     Daredevil: Guardian Devil (GN)

5. Venom (Eddie Brock)

Every superhero needs their mirror-image counterpart. Thought the symbiote suit was introduced in 1984’s Secret Wars, it was not until 4 years later that Todd MacFarlane merged it with bitter journalist (is there any other kind?) Eddie Brock that fan favourite Venom was born. He was always more fun when used as a Punisher-style vigilante than a villain, though.

Finest Moment:    Spider-Man: Birth of Venom (GN)

Venom

Venom

4. Green Goblin (Norman Osborn)

Spider-Man’s prominent archenemy, the Green Goblin left his mark on Peter’s life when he murdered Gwen Stacy. As if that weren’t enough, he later turned Peter’s best friend, son Harry Osborn, into an enemy. A maniacal, cackling nutter, he was hardly a deep character, but when Norman Osborn came back from the dead (again and again) the results were always unpredictable.

Finest Moment:     Amazing Spider-Man: The Death of Gwen Stacy (GN)

Green Goblin

Green Goblin

3. Doctor Octopus

Barmy scientist Otto Octavius was one of the few villains with the brains to outwit Spider-Man, an IQ conveniently dormant when Doc Oc briefly dated Aunt May. Still, four ultra-cool adamantium tentacles don’t do his image any harm.

Finest Moment:   Spider-Man 2

Doctor Octopus

Doctor Octopus

2. The Kingpin

The archetypal crime lord, Wilson Fisk is a criminal strategist without equal. Unlike much of Spidey’s rogues gallery, he has no superhuman powers as such, but is exceptionally strong. He is also reining champion of numerous North American pie eating contests.

Finest Moment:    Daredevil: Born Again (GN)

Wilson Fisk

Wilson Fisk

1. J. Jonah Jameson

Pompous, arrogant editor of the Daily Bugle, Jameson has turned the people of New York against Spidey for 40 years, and will probably do so for 40 more. Because he works within the law, Parker will never be rid of the bastard, and more importantly, never get the opportunity to beat the crap out of him.

Finest Moment:     The Spider-Man movies

J. Jonah Jameson

J. Jonah Jameson

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No More Heroes Any More – The Death of Captain America

Monday, May 28th, 2007 by Carl Doherty under Comic Book Features

In a genre where finales are rarely final, and resurrections are a daily occurrence, why did the death of comic book hero Captain America garner such widespread attention?

Captain America is dead. Again. Probably. Indefinitely. For the foreseeable future. Until comic sales begin to flag yet again.

To the embittered teen acclimatised to age of the antihero, the demise of one more spandex-clad pensioner might have sounded like a desperate call for attention from a dying comic industry. But to the rest of the world, it suddenly mattered, the world-wide media coverage lasting several days, with stores selling out of Captain America #25 within the hour. America’s star spangled son had walked unnoticed for several decades; rejected by Hollywood and outdated since the seventies, only in death did the his 65 year battle against oppression seem at all relevant.

The death of Captain America

The death of Captain America

It would be easy to interpret the humdrum, almost “realistic” death of Steve Rogers as a crude commentary on a guilty post-Iraq America, a reflection on the decline of America’s flag-waving sentimentality, one more proud young American who died for a dubious cause. But perhaps Captain America was something more than the archetypal Caucasian patriot. Perhaps he stood for something more.

More so than any other serial fiction, comics have always reflected the underlying vibe of their times. Siegel and Schuster’s seminal Jewish creation Superman was instrumental in the DC Universe’s Allied victory against the Nazi regime. Superman’s arch nemesis Lex Luthor became president of the USA just months after George Bush’s controversial defeat over Al Gore, while Britain’s most (in)famous creation Judge Dredd began his totalitarian war on crime on the brink of Thatcher’s reign. The funny books saw the rise of the ultra-violent, vigilante hero during New York’s crime problems in the late seventies, and the return to a more traditional hero as the city cleaned itself up, and it was not until the liberal 90s that Alpha Flight’s Northstar could openly announce his homosexuality, a sexual orientation hinted at but never discussed since his creation some 13 years earlier. But none had quite the debut as Cap. The patriotic muscle-head’s first cover depicted him delivering Adolf Hitler his own brand of fist-to-jaw diplomacy; only in the bold, four-colour comic panel could relentless, brute force convey purest justice.

Somewhat oblivious to the attention it would receive, Marvel did not widely publicise the event, severely underestimating demand for Cap’s final issue. For Cap’s fans it could not have happened at a worst time; writer Ed Brubacker’s acclaimed Winter Soldier run had seen a resurgence of the character, with a movie deal and video gamed planned for 2009. With the Spider-man, X-men and Fantastic Four franchises breaking box office records, and over a dozen further comic book adaptations sequels and spin-offs planned for release before 2010, one must wonder why Marvel has been reluctant to bring their flagship to the silver screen.

During a comic collecting boom in the mid 90’s, DC infamously killed its flagship hero Superman, and crippled the legendary Batman. Both moves proved financially successful, albeit briefly, but condemned by fans, and both characters were returned within the year. With Spider-man 3 currently demolishing all box office records, one might assume that the comic industry has prospered from the Superhero blockbuster boom. But hits such as Ghost Rider and Batman Begins are having only a minimal effect on the industry. Captain America’s exit, a shock ending tagged onto the tepidly received Civil War event may have made the headlines, but will see only a temporary rise in sales.

Of course, the need for weekly doses of sensationalism has led to the majority of prime-time US shows whoring themselves out to the water cooler in-crowd. 24 killed almost every regular character off last year, including fan favourite Tony Alameda, and has suffered critically and commercially this year due to a lack of familiar faces. Lost regularly ups its nelson ratings with the promise of an islander’s departure, with Prison Break’s second season drop in escapees lending the show a leaner, meaner pacing. Perhaps the cast culling is a necessity of serial drama; Buffy and Alias suffered far worse, undergoing retcons and reboots with each season. Like an aging rock star the serial drama hero must change or die, evolving with every movie incarnation and cultural shift.

The death of the hero is far from a recent trend, having echoed through the earliest myths. A weary Conan Doyle killed Sherlock Holmes only to revive him due to rabid public demand, yet Holme’s climatic struggle with arch-enemy James Moriarty over Reichenbach Falls is the sleuth’s most memorable moment. Perhaps Holme’s apparent death means more because it was intended as final; something that no comic book death will ever be.

As the age old comic book adage goes, “nobody stays dead in comics except Bucky, Jason Todd, and Uncle Ben”, two of whom have now been revived multiple times since its conception. Bruce Lee, Jim Hendrix and Bob Marley all gained cultural immortality from untimely deaths, but unlike Uncle Ben, they won’t be coming back anytime soon. To the devout fanatic, the dead hero’s inevitable resurrection is an embarrassment to the medium, but perhaps the possibility of a comeback is what gives the death its resonance. Jesus’ resurrection is what makes Easter the celebration of a miracle rather than the mourning of an execution by order of the (super)villainous Pontius Pilate.

Pushing lamentable biblical allusions aside, the mythical hero is the only contemporary fictional entity capable of travelling to the furthest reaches of the subconscious curiosity and back again. With all but the deepest oceans discovered, chartered and filed away, and deep space exploration no longer a fantasy but a matter of time, the hereafter is the only journey from which there’ll be no postcards.

Though the superhero does not age, he does date and fade into obscurity. Captain America is a more powerful icon now that he’s dead. He’ll return, the red white and blue worn by Steve Rogers or someone else. But I can’t help but doubt whether the values he once stood for will have stayed the same.

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